Princesses, Slushes, LEGOs, and a maxed CC - Sept 2009 1st Timer TR

[longing2Batdisney]

Fun update! the play area and splash area at AKL looks like a kids dream come true!!! Love the lego bag!!!! Ashton has not started with Lego's yet (only 3) but that Pirate ship looks awesome!!! Joshua is awesome for trying the ToT he is two up on me!!! I bet as this trip goes on he will put me to shame for sure!!! Great job to you and Bridgette for getting him on all these rides at least once...
glad you were able to get your boo on your siggie!!!

 

[jenny105]

That Jedi Academy instructor was the same one from two years ago! I have tons of pictures from the first time we saw it but sadly we missed out on it this trip! We were too busy with the Animation Academy and TSM! LOVED that ride!

Joshua is brave!!!!!

 

[mommyof2Pirates]

what a trooper joshua is to even have gone on the ride. What a brave boy! These are such great updates I am so excited to see what else you did.

 

[Charlefours]

You may notice in those two pictures, that she has something new in her hands. Grandma was nice and bought her a baby Minnie this evening. You may notice in future pictures that baby Minnie got to do quite a bit of sight-seeing the rest of the trip.

That Baby Minnie is adorable! Is it a new favorite now that you are home too?

How happy he is--too cute!

Thanks for the tip about heading to WOD earlier in the trip. I think we may try that first night, especially if we decide not to head to a park that first day to rest up for MK the next day!

We are definitely going to try to make it to MK two days at least. Tentatively, I think two days in MK, two days in EP, 1 day in AK, 1 day in HS--though I am wondering if we might need at least another 1/2 day. That brings the total up to 6 to 6 1/2 days. I would like to leave our last day and perhaps the morning we are leaving to ride favorites if at all possible.

I am learning lots of interesting tidbits from your TR! I am looking forward to the next installment.

 

[MagicShell]

I loved your update. My seven year old son really loved Legos last year. He is in a Pokemon phase this year. We spent a lot of money in that Lego store last year. My husband was an encourager of my son because he really likes Legos too. That was a sweet story about your little boy "just looking" at the pirate ship.

 

[WrightFamily06]

Two very nice updates ! That splash pad looks really neat , I know my kiddies would really love it ! Cute pictures of Samantha at Pen Traders.Great pictures of Joshua w/ the Pirate Lego Boat , you can def tell from his facial expressions how much he wanted it !

Glad to see you enjoyed TSM We really loved this ride too and the Pixar area is so cute ! Loved what Joshua had to say about TOT , can't say I blame him I feel the same way ! LOL My son made a star wars sword also , he did the red not sure which one that is but I like the colors of Joshua's better and the way it had a sword on each side .

Can't wait to hear more

 

[stacikristine]

What great updates!! Your family is just adorable. I love the kids' expressions in all of the pictures WOW--the splash area at Kidani looks SO neat! We'll for sure have to check it out next time. And I'm pretty sure a huge "Awww!" came to mind when you said Joshua told you "I just like to look at it." I'm so glad he got his LEGO pirate ship!! It sounds like a fun end of the first full day and beginning of the second!

 

[crocko]

Fun update! the play area and splash area at AKL looks like a kids dream come true!!! Love the lego bag!!!! Ashton has not started with Lego's yet (only 3) but that Pirate ship looks awesome!!! Joshua is awesome for trying the ToT he is two up on me!!! I bet as this trip goes on he will put me to shame for sure!!! Great job to you and Bridgette for getting him on all these rides at least once...
glad you were able to get your boo on your siggie!!!

Yeah, I'm glad he was willing to give these rides a shot. Some worked out well, others didn't. That's okay!

That Jedi Academy instructor was the same one from two years ago! I have tons of pictures from the first time we saw it but sadly we missed out on it this trip! We were too busy with the Animation Academy and TSM! LOVED that ride!

Joshua is brave!!!!!

Yeah, he is a fun instructor. In December, Bridgette and I saw a female instructor.
I'm hoping to get to spend some time in the Animation Academy this November.

what a trooper joshua is to even have gone on the ride. What a brave boy! These are such great updates I am so excited to see what else you did.

Yes, he was great about giving new rides a try.

That Baby Minnie is adorable! Is it a new favorite now that you are home too?

How happy he is--too cute!

Thanks for the tip about heading to WOD earlier in the trip. I think we may try that first night, especially if we decide not to head to a park that first day to rest up for MK the next day!

We are definitely going to try to make it to MK two days at least. Tentatively, I think two days in MK, two days in EP, 1 day in AK, 1 day in HS--though I am wondering if we might need at least another 1/2 day. That brings the total up to 6 to 6 1/2 days. I would like to leave our last day and perhaps the morning we are leaving to ride favorites if at all possible.

I am learning lots of interesting tidbits from your TR! I am looking forward to the next installment.

Baby Minnie -- hmm....I need to see if Samantha's playing with her much these days. She's been on a big Princess kick ever since we got home.

For 6 days, that sounds like a good breakdown....in my opinion, if you do use another halfday, I would say give it to Hollywood Studios, especially if you like shows....if shows aren't for your family, then you may be able to take care of HS in one day (except that you'll want to go back to Toy Story Mania, because it is awesome!)

I loved your update. My seven year old son really loved Legos last year. He is in a Pokemon phase this year. We spent a lot of money in that Lego store last year. My husband was an encourager of my son because he really likes Legos too. That was a sweet story about your little boy "just looking" at the pirate ship.

Yeah...we're still strong in a LEGO phase right now...who knows what will be next

Two very nice updates ! That splash pad looks really neat , I know my kiddies would really love it ! Cute pictures of Samantha at Pen Traders.Great pictures of Joshua w/ the Pirate Lego Boat , you can def tell from his facial expressions how much he wanted it !

Glad to see you enjoyed TSM We really loved this ride too and the Pixar area is so cute ! Loved what Joshua had to say about TOT , can't say I blame him I feel the same way ! LOL My son made a star wars sword also , he did the red not sure which one that is but I like the colors of Joshua's better and the way it had a sword on each side .

Can't wait to hear more

Yeah, TSM is really fun. I'm having withdrawals. Originally, our November 3-day trip had us only going to HS for an afternoon and evening. We've actually re-arranged our schedule so that we can get to HS at a rope drop and be able to hit TSM

What great updates!! Your family is just adorable. I love the kids' expressions in all of the pictures WOW--the splash area at Kidani looks SO neat! We'll for sure have to check it out next time. And I'm pretty sure a huge "Awww!" came to mind when you said Joshua told you "I just like to look at it." I'm so glad he got his LEGO pirate ship!! It sounds like a fun end of the first full day and beginning of the second!

Yeah, he can be pretty sweet sometimes. Great first day and more great stuff from the next day to come....

 

[jordanyosh]

I like your idea of preliminary shopping! I don't think I've heard it called that before.

I also like your idea of checking out the World of Disney early before you go shopping at the Theme Parks. What great advice!

Here's some DTD advice. Try going to DTD early in the week, Mon or Tues, during the day, if at all possible. Most people are in the theme parks and it's usually very quiet earlier in the week.

 

[crocko]

I like your idea of preliminary shopping! I don't think I've heard it called that before.

I also like your idea of checking out the World of Disney early before you go shopping at the Theme Parks. What great advice!

Here's some DTD advice. Try going to DTD early in the week, Mon or Tues, during the day, if at all possible. Most people are in the theme parks and it's usually very quiet earlier in the week.

That's good advice. We generally get there in the evening and things are pretty busy. In November, we are going to try and get over there on Sunday afternoon and possibly Monday afternoon....so, hopefully we'll see smaller crowds on Monday.

 

[crocko]

Day 3 (Hollywood Studios Day)
Chapter 2 -- 30 Pounds of Fury



Okay, we left off with having given Jedi Training Academy a try, but not getting selected.
At this point, a friends of ours met up with us. We have a friend from our church in Oklahoma that is currently working at Disney with the College Program and she had the day off on this Saturday and was able to come hang out with us. So, with an 8th member of the Vacation Squad on board, we decided to cross back over to the Animation side of the park.

On the way, a starving Joshua got his first Mickey ice cream bar

We happened to be crossing the park while an HSM pep rally was going on. So, we stopped for a few minutes so Samantha could watch

Before we cross into the Animation side of the park, we let Joshua finish his ice cream bar and get cleaned up

Interesting note. I believe this was the last ice cream that Joshua had on the trip. For some reason, afterward, he would tell us that he didn’t want any more ice cream on the trip. Not sure what happened……..(after about a week back home, he finally started eating ice cream again) LOL

Our plan was to hit the Playhouse Disney show, but instead went ahead and got in line for Voyage of the Little Mermaid. A show had just recently started, so we got to be the first ones in to the waiting area for the next show. Some photos I took while we waited:

And then finally, the doors opened. It has been awhile since I’ve seen this, but the show is still really good. I think Samantha enjoyed it, but she got pretty nervous/scared when the huge Ursula came out.

After VOTLM, we went back to TSMM to use our FP’s.

This time, I was the odd man out….sitting by myself. That was fine by me. Here was my score for game 2

Yay! Improvement!!

Upon coming out….we had to be careful because the military was patrolling

By this time, we’re all getting hungry. So, let’s cross the park one more time and have lunch at Backlot Express. It has been a tradition for my family to eat here on our trips. I always enjoy getting a nice big cheeseburger from here.

As we walked up, we noticed that another Jedi Training Academy was about to start….and this time, Joshua was super-excited to try and get picked. So, Bridgette stayed out with him, while I went inside and helped my mom get our orders in. Once we’d ordered, I hustled back out to see if he’d been chosen and I saw this:

Woohoo!!! He got chosen. This is gonna be awesome.

So, for the next 15-20 minutes, Bridgette and I stood at different areas taking tons of pictures of this particular and VERY important Jedi Training Academy.

Uh oh…..

According to the Jedi instructor, here comes “30 pounds of fury!”

See ya later, stormtroopers!

Three cheers for the newest Jedi!

Up next: Are the Muppets still working?

 

[jenny105]

YAY! So glad Joshua got picked for the Jedi Academy!

 

[aaaateamsgrandma]

Ok, these last two reports were great. My grandson got to do the Jedi training too and he was beyond thrilled. Lucky Joshua. He looked like he did a good job and was super excited.

Loved your shirts by the way.

Joshua sure knows how to eat icecream.

 

[chicagoshannon]

Aw so glad he got picked! I'm so glad you included the picture of the lightsaber. Madeline wants to build one, a PINK one. I see that they actually have a pinkish one that she can have. We've been telling her that they might not have that color.

 

[Charlefours]

Yay for Joshua being picked for Jedi Training! Was this his highlight of the trip?? Thanks for the head's up about Backlot Express.

 

[longing2Batdisney]

fun,,,too funny about the ice cream...I had one at WDW and it was more than enough for the rest of my trip...to big and messy I think!

GREAT JOB! JOSHUA...HE IS HAVING A AWESOME FIRST ADVENTURE TO WDW!!!

great pictures as always!

 

[crocko]

YAY! So glad Joshua got picked for the Jedi Academy!

Yeah, after not making it the first time, he got himself pumped up to give it another try. He bounced around a lot more the 2nd time trying to get noticed.

Ok, these last two reports were great. My grandson got to do the Jedi training too and he was beyond thrilled. Lucky Joshua. He looked like he did a good job and was super excited.

Loved your shirts by the way.

Joshua sure knows how to eat icecream.

Yes he does!

Aw so glad he got picked! I'm so glad you included the picture of the lightsaber. Madeline wants to build one, a PINK one. I see that they actually have a pinkish one that she can have. We've been telling her that they might not have that color.

They've definitely got a variety of colors. She can make one either at Tatooine Traders or the Once Upon a Toy store at DTD.

Yay for Joshua being picked for Jedi Training! Was this his highlight of the trip?? Thanks for the head's up about Backlot Express.

It was definitely one of THE highlights of the trip. Although, when asked about the trip he's most likely to talk about Splash Mountain.

fun,,,too funny about the ice cream...I had one at WDW and it was more than enough for the rest of my trip...to big and messy I think!

GREAT JOB! JOSHUA...HE IS HAVING A AWESOME FIRST ADVENTURE TO WDW!!!

great pictures as always!

Yeah, we we're doing great so far!

 

[crocko]

Day 3 (Hollywood Studios Day)
Chapter 3 -- That was a Bambi song?!?



Once Joshua had finished his Jedi Training, Bridgette, my mom, and I were finally able to go inside and catch-up on lunch at Backlot. As usual, my cheeseburger was very yummy!

Then, we decided to head over to the Muppets and catch a 3-D show (imagine I’m saying that with Kermit’s voice).
No line for this attraction and we were able to just walk right into the waiting area. I’ve always loved the pre-show that goes on while you wait.

I don’t know the exact year this show started, but I want to say it’s been running for about 20 years. Even so, it is still funny and entertaining…BUT…it could use some work.
A) The quality of the film has gone downhill
B) The 3-D effects just aren’t as great as the were a decade ago. They are still fun, but with newer 3-D shows (specifically Philharmagic) the 3-D effects feel old and less cool.
I’m wanting to say I’ve heard the Muppets 3-D show is in fact getting a revamp in the next year or two.

At this point, we decided we’d pretty much hit everything that we really wanted to for this day. Plus, the kids were getting tired

So, we headed to the Photo area to get Joshua’s JTA pictures added to our Photopass card and then headed out to the bus stops and then back to Kidani.

We finished the parks early enough today, that we decided we had plenty of time to get some swimsuits on and head down to the pool.

While everyone was playing in the pool, there were some pool games going on as well…one of them was a Disney trivia game. Anyone could play. They would ask 15 questions and the highest score would get a prize. The theme for this day’s trivia was Disney songs. So, Bridgette and our CM friend sat at the edge of the pool and played. They would play a song and you would either have to know what movie it was from or be able to “fill in the blank”. Some were very easy, some were (easy to us) but not to the average Disney fan….and then there were a couple hard ones. The 2 toughest:
1) A love song that was not very familiar at all. I thought it sounded like it was from an old live-action movie, so I told Bridgette to guess So Dear To My Heart (Later, we found out that it was from Bambi! Haha…April Showers is the only Bambi song I ever remember)
2) The last question was what is the 6-word phrase the dwarves say in the Hi-Ho song….apparently no one ever got this one. Well, I was on the right track that they were actually singing about leaving work and not going to work, so I told Bridgette, “It’s off from work we go” That was close, but it is actually, “It’s home from work we go”
So, Bridgette got 13 out of 15 right which ended up being enough to tie for 1st. The prize was a 10-minute card to the arcade. She didn’t really think we’d use it, so instead they let her pick 2 tennis-ball sized bouncy balls. The kids had fun bouncing those down the hallways back to our room later.

During our walk back, the giraffes and zebras were out and active:

After getting dried off and day clothes back on, we did a bit of a split-up. We knew the kids had plenty of stuff to play with in the room, so we left them with grandma and grandpa to play in the room for the evening. Meanwhile, Mary, Bridgette, our CM friend, and I headed to Downtown Disney again. Once there, we parted ways with our CM friend….but we’ll get to see her again later.

First task, dinner! We’d had Earl’s the night before, so we decided to try Wolfgang Puck Express this time.

I had a BBQ chicken pizza and Bridgette had a 4-cheese macaroni & cheese. We all ordered crème brulee as our dessert

Wow! This dinner was awesome! The pizza was super good. Bridgette really liked her mac & cheese and come on….creme brulee….can’t go wrong there. For 3 of us, the total cost of this meal was $63 (OVER $20 A PERSON!!) and we were able to each use 1 QS credit. So, note to all Dining Plan users…IMO, Wolfgang Puck Express is not only the Best Value for a QS credit, but also some of the best food for a QS credit. (There is a WPE at the Marketplace and one apart of the Wolfgang Puck Café over at the West Side)

Then, some more shopping/browsing around for the rest of the evening:

Finished with me grabbing a chocolate-eared Mickey rice krispy treat. Yummy!

We stopped off at Jambo House on the way back to look in the big store there and grab some postcards. We then thought we’d give a try to walking from Jambo House to Kidani Village. For those who might stay at AKL sometime, the walk is not as bad as I expected. The Jambo House walk to the buses takes long enough that you might as well just walk over to Kidani if that’s where you’re headed.

Well, that’s Day 3. Another great day in Disney World…..and we still haven’t even hit 2 of the parks yet!





Up next: Which Princesses will be in Norway today?

 

[jenny105]

I agree with you about Muppets 3D. I love it but I feel that it's very outdated. I hope they update it rather than do away with it completely to make room for another Pixar attraction. Not knocking Pixar because I love their movies but it seems like everything new is Pixar-related lately!

Sounds like another great day in the World!

 

[stacikristine]

YAY! What great updates! That is so awesome that Joshua got chosen to be then newest little Jedi! And I just love Samantha's swimsuit and goggles picture. Super cute Isn't WPE just incredible?! It's by far our favorite counter service. Our total was around $30 for us to split a meal Looks like a really fun day!!