Scooter Mom Rides Again !!! A Thanksgiving TR-Nov.21-25(Updated12/26-closingthoughts)

[jecskc]

One of the horses is Maximus from Tangled. We were dismayed he was not represented in all the horse portraits in the lobby. The other I'm pretty sure is Phillipe from Beauty and the Beast.

I didn't think about Phillipe. Maximus is the most famous, I think. Had the biggest "horsey" role out of all of them.

 

[marDgreen88]

Saratoga looks beautiful! OMG-those pillows are brilliant. Phillipe and Maximus are some of the best Disney horses!

 

[IheartDDuck]

I'm here Susan!!! I can't wait to hear about everything. It was so nice to meet you when we were down there.

 

[jecskc]

Saratoga looks beautiful! OMG-those pillows are brilliant. Phillipe and Maximus are some of the best Disney horses!

It is a very beautiful and peaceful resort. They are !!!

I'm here Susan!!! I can't wait to hear about everything. It was so nice to meet you when we were down there.

Hey Danielle !! I was so happy to meet you, too !! Wasn't Epcot crazy crowded that day ?? I hope your lunch at Via Napoli was good !! I will post our pictures when I get to that part. You post yours, too !! Since DS took ours, I am not sure mine came out so well.

 

[rachel09985]

I am in!!!

You need to save that pic of your son sleeping to embarass him someday! It is funny.

 

[jecskc]

I am in!!!

You need to save that pic of your son sleeping to embarass him someday! It is funny.

Hey Rachel !! I am so glad you are here !!

I know, right ?? Nothing like a good embarassment photo to bribe him with - hahah

 

[Pixie Princess]

It was good for the one night. I don't think I would have wanted to stay there for a whole week. Just because it was kinda cramped with all of us. We switched to a 1 bedroom the next day and it had lots more space. I have pictures !!

I can't imagine how cramped y'all felt. I felt cramped, and it was just me and DD! I didn't feel near as cramped over AoA. I really did like having the little kitchenette though. It was good for a the short time we were there. I think I'd prefer a 1 BR with the full kitchen for a whole week though.

I was just kind of meh about SSR, but for $8 a point, I would absolutely stay there again.

 

[archdandy]

I'm joining in! I'm so sorry about your foot and I hope it didn't bother you too much on your trip. Saratoga Springs looks like a really beautiful resort. I don't see many people staying there so its refreshing to see one of the lesser used resorts. Is SSR your home resort?

 

[jecskc]

I can't imagine how cramped y'all felt. I felt cramped, and it was just me and DD! I didn't feel near as cramped over AoA. I really did like having the little kitchenette though. It was good for a the short time we were there. I think I'd prefer a 1 BR with the full kitchen for a whole week though.

I was just kind of meh about SSR, but for $8 a point, I would absolutely stay there again.

I knew we would feel a little cramped, but it was just for that one night, to we were OK with it. OKW's studio feels much larger to me. Maybe the SSR rooms are a tad smaller.

$8 a point is a good deal. I want to see your pics of AoA !!!

I understand that you would feel meh about it. I don't mind staying there and i really like it, but if something else is available, I am definitely staying somewhere else.

I'm joining in! I'm so sorry about your foot and I hope it didn't bother you too much on your trip. Saratoga Springs looks like a really beautiful resort. I don't see many people staying there so its refreshing to see one of the lesser used resorts. Is SSR your home resort?

Thanks for stopping by !! My ankle injury was BAD and it still hurts a lot. Very slow to heal. But I will get there. Little by little. Today was my fist day to be without the walking boot, so progress is being made.

SSR is very beautiful and peaceful. So if you are visiting during a busy time and want to get away from the frantic pace of the parks, SSR is a good choice. It is our home resort.

 

[jecskc]

Day 1 – Part 3

After getting our things settled, our first order of business was to catch the boat to Downtown Disney.

We had renewed our annual passes and the DVC renewal this year was a great deal. We were able to get a Premium Annual Pass for only about $15 more than the renewal rate of the DVC AP which was $385. We were so pleased with this and the kids were very excited to have unlimited use of water parks and Disney Quest for the entire year. We needed to go to Guest Services to retrieve them.

So we took a lovely boat ride to Downtown Disney

Downtown Disney

Our first stop was Guest Services and it didn’t take much time at all to get our tickets. Then the kids wanted to shop, so DD and I went over to Once Upon A Toy, but didn’t see anything she wanted, so we looked over at World of Disney.

DD really loved the movie Wreck-it Ralph and when she saw this Vanellope doll, she had to have it. She had a gift card so she used some of the money to get it.

I saw this train I wanted to put around the Christmas Tree.

And I would have gotten it, too if I didn’t truly believe the dog would destroy it like she does everything else.

DS and DH went over to the Lego store and DS got this with his money.

Some more DTD photos.

We headed over to our favorite spot for lunch.

And had the usual lunch we always get.

DH and I shared ….

Bacon Wrapped Meatloaf - mashed potatoes, port wine sauce and crispy onion rings $15

We get this every time we go and it never disappoints. The onion rings are crispy and full of flavor and the meat loaf is excellent along with the mashed potatoes and sauce. It is so good.

The kids went with their old standby of Chicken fingers and French fries.

These are standard fare but very good and the kids enjoyed them.
DH and I shared the Cheesecake

And the DD got a brownie and DS got a cookie

After that, we headed over to Disney Quest. The kids have always wanted to go there and now that we had our new passes, we could. They were so excited !!

 

[marDgreen88]

Ahhh, having AP's must be the best thing ever!

OMG, I love Wreck-it Ralph so much! (I mean, just look at my new avatar picture thingy!) Your DD made a good choice!

 

[Stringbean&Wingnut]

That's an awesome AP deal!!!

Love WPE! Your lunch there looks great! DF would go nuts for that meatloaf!

 

[Pixie Princess]

This was the view from our balcony at SSR...sort of. You'd need to be looking through the needles of a pine tree for it to be the exact view. It was lovely nevertheless.

 

[jecskc]

Ahhh, having AP's must be the best thing ever!

OMG, I love Wreck-it Ralph so much! (I mean, just look at my new avatar picture thingy!) Your DD made a good choice!

AP's are the best !! That first initial purchase was pricey, but you can't beat the renewal rates. Especially if you are a DVC owner.

That's an awesome AP deal!!!

Love WPE! Your lunch there looks great! DF would go nuts for that meatloaf!

We were and still are thrilled at the deal they offered. It makes us appreciate DVC even more.

That meatloaf is soooo good. Like I said, it never disappoints. Sooo yummy !!

This was the view from our balcony at SSR...sort of. You'd need to be looking through the needles of a pine tree for it to be the exact view. It was lovely nevertheless.

Did you stay in Congress Park ?? We stayed there last time and we liked the view of DTD. We requested it this time, but something was available in the Springs, so we took that. And we decided we liked that location better. It was so much closer to everything. The only thing that I can say that might be somewhat negative was being the last stop on the bus. Otherwise, we loved our location !!!

 

[jecskc]

Day 1 – Part 4

So we headed over to Disney Quest to check it out. Of course I took a bunch of photos along the way.

This was a neat Christmas Tree, I thought !

These garlands seemed to match the tree. I imagine they were really neat all lit up at night.

This was the Phineas and Ferb thing they had going on while we were there. DD wanted to do it, but we never got the chance.

We got to Disney Quest and went in.

Wreck-it Ralph !! If you haven't seen this movie, you must go !! We just loved it !!

They had a Fix-it Felix game

This level had a lot of the old school games. Galaga, Pac-Man, Dig Dug, etc.

DS and DH played these games while DD and I waited in line for the bumper cars.

 

[Pixie Princess]

Bumper cars??!! Where the heck are there bumper cars??!? Ok we may have to burn a WPF&M option and go back to DQ. I do really like the old school games. You can find a Galaga machine most anywhere, but Joust.. Not so much. Did they have a Tron?

 

[jecskc]

Bumper cars??!! Where the heck are there bumper cars??!? Ok we may have to burn a WPF&M option and go back to DQ. I do really like the old school games. You can find a Galaga machine most anywhere, but Joust.. Not so much. Did they have a Tron?

I don't know. I didn't pay much attention to the old school games because DD and I were in line for the bumper cars which are right behind the old school games. I will add that DQ was not a very scooter friendly place, so I waited in the corner a good bit to be out of everyone's way. I am certain I dipped into my pain pill stash by then as well. Having my leg down most of the day had caused to swell and it hurt pretty bad. So some of it was a little "blurry" for me. DH and the kids really enjoyed it, though.

 

[archdandy]

The AP deal for DVC owners really was an awesome deal! I was so jealous that I wasn't DVC when it came out Disney Quest looks like it would be something my DH would enjoy so far. I'm hoping on our next trip we can go now that they add two tickets to the regular packages.

 

[jecskc]

The AP deal for DVC owners really was an awesome deal! I was so jealous that I wasn't DVC when it came out Disney Quest looks like it would be something my DH would enjoy so far. I'm hoping on our next trip we can go now that they add two tickets to the regular packages.

My DH and the kids really enjoyed Disney Quest. But since I couldn't walk, it was really hard for me to get around in there. It really had some neat things to do and see. The kids can't wait to go back. Maybe I will enjoy it more when I am more mobile.

I agree that the DVC renewal deal was one of the best deals I have ever seen. We saved a good bit of money on souvenirs, too, since you get 20% off of your purchases with a premium pass.

 

[jecskc]

Day 1 Part 5

Disney Quest had a bumper car ride called Buzz Lightyear Astroblasters

It was pretty fun. I would suggest doing it more than once. It takes a few times to get the hang of it.

Here is DD getting strapped in to the bumper car.

After that, we headed over to another room and played some more games.

This place has five levels, so there is tons to do.

This was called Pinball Slam

But we didnt get the chance to do it. It looked very interesting though.

They had these games that were kind of like virtual reality rides. There was something like 15 different scenes you could do. It made you feel like you were on the actual ride. Some were better than others. They were really neat.

Our next stop was the Virtual Jungle Cruise.

This was really fun.

DH and DD went up top there to do the Aladdins Magic Carpet Ride.

DH really enjoyed this. Said it was really cool. But it could make you dizzy.

Pirates of the Caribbean

We didnt get to this one either, but it looked intriguing.

These were very popular.

Next, the kids wanted to do the Cyber Space Mountain. DH took them while I waited.

Here was another section. I seemed geared towards smaller kids.

They had an Animators Class, too just like at Hollywood Studios. I wanted to do it, but there wasnt an empty seat.

DH and the kids were taking a while at Cyber Space Mountain, so I got some random photos.

After the kids got done with the Cyber Space Mountain, I needed a rest.

We were supposed to meet my BFF Pixie Princess at Hollywood Studios that night to see the Osborne Lights.

I took some gift shop photos

After that, we hopped the boat back to SSR to get some rest.