Simple Thing a Cast Member Did...

[gracer9977]

What great memories everyone has, so wonderful when the magic is spread around.

A few of my favorite memories from our last trip:

My dd's name is Aurora and the first time she met Princess Aurora at our breakfast in Norway was a highlight. Princess Aurora was at our table signing autograph's and she looks at my daughter and says and what is your name. My little princess is staring at her with the biggest look of wonder as she says in a near whisper - Aurora. Well Princess Aurora went on to make a big deal of her name and even told some of the other princesses in the restaurant that her new friend Aurora was there. Totally made her day.

My niece is in LOVE with Aladdin and all she wanted to do when we were in Epcot was meet Aladdin. So of course we stood in the line to meet him and Jasmine for almost an hour. Finally it was our turn and the kids got autograph's etc and then my niece says she would like a picture with just Aladdin. Jasmine put on this whole act about how he was her husband and she would "allow" him to have a picture with her, and then she fussed with my niece's hair and started straitening her clothes. It was great.

We also had this great bus driver that instead of letting the usual recording play he spent the whole drive from the resort to the park telling jokes and little facts about the parks. He was so great!!! Really started our day off right.

There was also the CM that was at the Princess Tiana meet and greet. We went to get in line to meet her and were told that she was going to be taking a break and they weren't letting anyone else in line. She told us if we wanted to be first in line when she came back out that we should stay right there. She then spent the whole time chatting with us while we waited for Tiana to come back out.

So many great moments. So thankful to the CM's and Character CM's for adding those special touches, especially since it is their job and they have to go every day and see alot of people asking the same questions or saying the same things day after day and yet they still do what they can to make your day magical. Obviously from the length of this thread there are alot of people who remember.

 

[reginaastralis]

This is hands down my favorite thread I've ever read on the dis. It's threads like this that make you remember to be grateful for the little things.

Mine probably isn't Disney happy, but it saved me some sanity. Earlier this summer my daughter, mom and I headed over to Disney for my mom's birthday. The day was great, until it was time to leave and dd just wanted one more ride. We were at Splash and she wanted to ride Astro Orbiter. We told her "Sorry, no way. It's time to leave, it'll be here when we come back" (We are locals, so it's not that uncommon for us to go more than once in a month)

Well, dd lost it. She's got her own issues and going with the flow has never been her strong point. She threw an all out temper tantrum back in Frontierland, which left a lot of ground to cover with an obstinate 7 year old. Needless to say, we put on a show for everyone lining up to watch the Mainstreet Electrical Parade. We got up to Crystal Palace and they turned off the lights on Mainstreet, and dd took off. I'd sent my mom ahead because she wanted a cinnamon roll, so I was alone (with 1000s of my closet friends) in the dark, and searching for a missing child. I was one step away from terrified. I'm going against the tide and was literally seconds away from talking to this wonderful cm on my left, when I looked to my right and there was dd, sitting in front of a family, in a stranger's lap. The stranger had talked to the same CM I was about to grab to let her know she's gained a daughter when I came up in tears.

We let dd sit with them (thank you again strangers!!) and dd told them all about the parade while the CM and I stood behind and she told me all of her parenting blunders that had happened with not only her children, but her grandchildren. She had me in tears, but they were good tears. It wasn't just the stories she told me that honestly helped me calm down, but she gave me some very honest and amazing perspectives about life in general. It's really hard to explain, but when you have a child who doesn't act "normal" and you feel like you're being judged, you just want to wear a sign that says something like "Welcome to my life!!" She made me see that just because my "dear" daughter liked to cause a scene, it could always be worse. So even when my daughter throws the most ridiculous scene, I remember that I have to be thankful for having her. I wish I could hug that CM after reading this thread, she truly made everything seem ok that night.

 

[gjl]

When my extended family, to include 7 kids under 7, were at Disney in 2010, we were chased down by a CM from Mrs. Potts (now Storybook Treats) as we walked from Space Mountain to Fantasyland. She handed me a gigantic ice cream sundae to share amongst all of us. She said that Tinkerbell had seen us from the sky as we watched her fly from the castle and wanted us to have a Magical Night. It was a great sundae and a great way to end our night!

 

[Chynasmom]

We just returned from a week full of magic, but here are two that stand out:

Our first full day we went to DHS and had lunch at H&V. DD LOVES Disney Junior, and was very excited about meeting June, Jake, Oso and Handy Manny. Until we actually got there, of course, when she started ducking behind me and doing the "I'm so very shy" routine. I said Fine - you don't have to greet any characters you don't want to. The hostess, Pat, overheard us and started chatting to DD about how she was Very Good Friends with all of the characters there and would it help if she came along? So when June came out (thank goodness she was first), Pat came over, too and "introduced them". GONE was DD's shy attack, and she greeted, posed, and ended up dancing through the whole lunch.

Toward the end of our week, we were in Epcot and had split up from DH and Granddad. We were back near France and had the entire park to get through and meet up to go home for naps. We were hot, we were tired, we were DONE. So I decided to fork over the $15 and rent a stroller for 30 minutes. I guess we looked pretty pathetic at the stroller counter, because the CM just handed over the stroller with a sympathetic smile.

 

[PrincessMommy05]

Stumbled across this thread while searching for something totally unrelated and I think that this by far is the best thread I've seen on here!! Moments like this are why we return to Disney time after time!

-- Last time we were there, we were in AK to meet Pooh and Friends. Well when Pooh saw DS (about 6 months old at the time) he sat down and motioned for me to hand him over. I have the most adorable pictures of him (in his little reindeer outfit) just snuggling up with Pooh. It was cold and the lines weren't long and I think Pooh sat there with him for a good 5 minutes.

-- There was a sweeper who was cleaning up near where we were taking a break. I guess he could see DD was getting restless and came over and asked her what her favorite character was. She replied Goofy (this was pre-princess phase) and he drew the most amazing picture of Goofy in water with his broom. It was amazing.

 

[Keegansmommy]

Six years ago we were at Disney during the holidays. My mom's b-day is Christmas Eve. We were at EPCOT when she wanted a Mickey ice cream bar. When she went to get it, the CM wouldn't use a credit for it and told her it was a birthday treat. He then announced it was her birthday and led the crowd in a rousing "happy birthday" song. She was mortified but I thought it was really kind. It was her first birthday after my dad passed away and it was definitely a pick-me-up for her (after she stopped blushing!)


Our last visit we were eating dinner at POR and some of the CM came over and invited my boys (ages 2 and 4) to decorate cookies with them. They thought it was WONDERFUL. They got "Jr. Chefs" papers. So cute! Simple and magical!

 

[erincon23]

Keegansmommy, you reminded me of this! On a long-ago trip -- probably 12 years ago -- we took the boys to LeCellier for dinner, didn't know anything about it, it was a walk-up (DS16 was probably 3 or 4 -- told him we were going to a steak house, he asked if it was a "house made out of steak" ). DH and I were tired -- it must have shown! The CM asked if the boys could come back to the kitchen, helped them make ice cream sundaes back there, then brought them out with their great desserts and gave them each a light-up ice cube. Those ice cubes entertained them for hours!!! And it gave DH and I a couple minutes' break at least, which was much needed.

 

[Sleepyhappyandgrumpy]

Bump!!!

 

[k33teacher]

I taught second grade in a little town in northern Maine. I knew that most of my students would probably never go on a trip out of the state let alone to Disney. I decided to teach a unit using Disney maps and books. I wrote to Disney and asked them if they could send me some things that I could use in a pretend Disney store. I explained that the students would use my money to "purchase" items from this store. This would help the students learn how to count and use money. I was amazed when a box arrived with t-shirts for each student as well as pins, stickers, and pencils.

The students and I sent Disney a big "thank you" booklet with pictures of our show where the students dressed as Disney characters. It was wonderful! Thank you Disney.

 

[KapBoy77]

During our last trip a couple weeks ago:

-my boy (3) was eating a strawberry Popsicle thingy while we where at AK and it fell out of the wrapper and onto the ground. He picked it up wanting to eat it anyways but although the 5 second rule applies to me it doesn't apply to my boys so I told him he we had to throw it away. At that point a CM working the face painting booth came out and said "Did you guys just buy that at the cart over?" we said yes and she immediately told my 3 year old to follow her. She ended up getting him a new one. We ended up getting face painting done for the boys and she got a nice tip.

On the first day at MK we were in tomorrow land and were getting used to our rental stroller a City Mini and for some reason the wheels stopped turning. We were trying to figure out how to disengage the whatever it was that was jamming the wheel. Out of nowhere this CM shows up and asks us if we needed help. We just explained what was going on and there he was on the ground with me trying to figure out how to make it work. We finally got it to work and he just wished us a nice day and went on his merry way. I looked at my wife with a grin and told her "ya see that? That's that magic I was telling you about!"

I just love WDW!!

 

[meggiebeth]

I taught second grade in a little town in northern Maine. I knew that most of my students would probably never go on a trip out of the state let alone to Disney. I decided to teach a unit using Disney maps and books. I wrote to Disney and asked them if they could send me some things that I could use in a pretend Disney store. I explained that the students would use my money to "purchase" items from this store. This would help the students learn how to count and use money. I was amazed when a box arrived with t-shirts for each student as well as pins, stickers, and pencils.

The students and I sent Disney a big "thank you" booklet with pictures of our show where the students dressed as Disney characters. It was wonderful! Thank you Disney.

That is amazing! Thanks for sharing! I'm sure that brightened up the kids' days loads too!

Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

 

[gcoolie]

What a great thread! I just happened across this thinking to start some research for our cruise next summer.

Our crew, DH, DD 15, DS 10, and my folks were at WDW right after Thanksgiving this year to see the Christmas lights and shows. It happened that the last day of this trip was our anniversary (18 years) so we received buttons when we checked into the hotel. We wore them everyday and loved the "Happy Anniversaries" all day from CM's and guests alike!

We were walking into Columbia Harbor House for dinner one evening and the CM outside the front door, looking like Paul Revere, stopped us and asked how many years we'd been married. He then proceeded to serenade us, very loudly, right there in front of the restaurant. The kids were tickled pink at our embarrassment and my not-so-techie mom was thrilled that she was able to get her iphone out in time to video the whole thing! He made us kiss at the end of the song before we went inside!

Lastly--we've been going to WDW for years now and have purchased two sets of ten day, no expiration tickets for the six of us. I knew we were running out on this trip, so I stopped at guest relations on the way out of AK to see how many days each ticket had left. You really don't know unless you are a good bookkeeper. I knew they were a little different as some of us had been sick on a couple trips and missed days. It turns out one ticket was finished that day, but the rest had one or more days left. I went outside and tried to figure out how that could have happened that only one ticket was different. I went back in and asked if he could write down the dates they had all been used. He did with no hesitation, but also asked what I was trying to figure out. He could see all of our visits on his computer, so knew we had been a lot. He said I seemed distressed about it. I said, no, just confused. He said he wanted me to be happy and they appreciated our business, so how about a free one day ticket to make everything match up better? I was speechless!

This was a really great trip!

 

[LisaBi]

We have had lots of great CMs over the years but one I always come back to is one time in AK in Dinoland DS saw the basketball game ( you know the one - like $1.00 per shot and win a prize if you make it.). DS was 12 or so at the time, and has Down Syndrome. He really just wanted to throw the basketball. He had no concept that you had to pay and could win a prize. To him it was simply "there is a basketball and I want to throw it." It wasn't busy at all, so I asked the CM if he could just throw the ball...no prize option (there was no way he could make it). She agreed. We let him throw it 3 or 4 times, then I told him to say thank you and let's move on. As we were walking away she called us back, and gave him a stuffed dinosaur. He loved that dinosaur!

 

[stephm0188]

We were sitting on the curb waiting for the Electrical Parade to start. My four year old had begged all day for a bucket of popcorn, and we finally gave in and bought one for the parade. He was happily sitting and munching on his snack when another child kicked his bucket over while horsing around. Popcorn scattered all over the street, and my little guy was in tears. A CM who was sweeping nearby and took care of the mess, but not before bringing over a fresh container of popcorn. He saved the day!

He also went through an awkward phase during that trip where he just would not smile for the camera during character meets. He'd freeze and plaster a stiff, painful smile on his face. Our pictures are awful. Rapunzel knew exactly what to do! She chatted with him for a good five minutes, and when it was time for the photos, she tickled and laughed with him at just the right moments so we could get that perfect picture. He was so in love with her!

 

[pampam]

We have had lots of great CMs over the years but one I always come back to is one time in AK in Dinoland DS saw the basketball game ( you know the one - like $1.00 per shot and win a prize if you make it.). DS was 12 or so at the time, and has Down Syndrome. He really just wanted to throw the basketball. He had no concept that you had to pay and could win a prize. To him it was simply "there is a basketball and I want to throw it." It wasn't busy at all, so I asked the CM if he could just throw the ball...no prize option (there was no way he could make it). She agreed. We let him throw it 3 or 4 times, then I told him to say thank you and let's move on. As we were walking away she called us back, and gave him a stuffed dinosaur. He loved that dinosaur!

Happy tears, folks, happy tears.

I can just visualize the whole thing.

 

[frevic]

Our family all had our first trip to disney back in late November. To add to all of the unknown and excitement is our son's life threatening food allergies. He is 7 and is allergic to nuts and eggs. We did our homework and we do eat out with him often but this was the first extended trip that we weren't going to be doing the majority of his cooking since we were on the dining plan. He is absolutely awesome with dealing with his allergies.

After a sleepless night in Buffalo and an issue free trip to Orlando courtesy of JetBlue we took the express to Port Orleans Riverside. Before heading to Magic Kingdom we went to the food court for late lunch.

I must admit to having a minor panic attack with all the options and dealing with the allergies. My wife and I split up and went to different stations to try and figure out a meal. I went up to the booth and mentioned the allergies and the CM told me she would get chef for me.

The chef (Paul) came out and spent a good 5 minutes explaining the procedures of dealing with allergies and assured us that they do this all the time. When I mentioned staying away during breakfast due to all the eggs and peanut butter he told us that was not necessary and they could take care of us. My vacation really started at this point when I came to the conclusion that we made the right decision with disney and we could just relax.

Every meal had similar results including my son's first real breakfast at a restaurant in 3 years. He was all smiles all 3 times we had waffles/pancakes that week. I was glad I brought breakfast supplies for early morning getaways to the park but as for the allergies, Disney had it covered. Paul was simply doing his job but the way he did it put a family at ease to enjoy their vacation.

Disney truly is magical in the way they deal with issues and we have just found our new vacation spot. We hope to return on a yearly basis!

 

[andyman8]

I have a severe dairy allergy and Disney's always outstanding about it, but a CM last night at Tony's was amazing. If you don't know about Disney's allergy policy, it requires the chef to speak with the allergic diners before any food orders are placed. Well, the kitchen was pretty busy and it took the chef 20 minutes to get out. Apparently, that was a long time because the waitress came out a little latter and gave us all a No Strings Attached Pass (which basically is an "anywhere you want to use it FASTPASS"). We didn't even have a problem with the wait for the chef, but that alone made our day!

 

[Suellen]

We have had lots of great CMs over the years but one I always come back to is one time in AK in Dinoland DS saw the basketball game ( you know the one - like $1.00 per shot and win a prize if you make it.). DS was 12 or so at the time, and has Down Syndrome. He really just wanted to throw the basketball. He had no concept that you had to pay and could win a prize. To him it was simply "there is a basketball and I want to throw it." It wasn't busy at all, so I asked the CM if he could just throw the ball...no prize option (there was no way he could make it). She agreed. We let him throw it 3 or 4 times, then I told him to say thank you and let's move on. As we were walking away she called us back, and gave him a stuffed dinosaur. He loved that dinosaur!

Love this! This type of thing is what makes me go back again and again.

 

[DakotaRose]

On my solo trip I was given a corner garden view room, when I was expecting a parking lot view standard room. Nice surprise and a fun way to start the trip.

After dinner at Restaurant Marrakesh (which rocks!) I didn't have room for dessert, even though they looked so tempting. My friendly waiter returned with a small portion of dessert, saying that I should have the opportunity to at least taste it anyway. I had many wonderful waiters/waitresses that week, very personable.

 

[LisaBi]

Another one for us that really saved the day.....We were going to Fantasmic, and I'd promised DS popcorn and soda when we got there. Well this was several years ago when all the food/snack places inside the theater were cash only. I didn't know that, and only had a few dollars on me. I went to get the snacks, while leaving him at our seats. We were in the top row wheelchair seating. I came back with only one soda for him, no popcorn and nothing for me. He was very upset. I tried to console him by telling him we could get another snack on our way out. Nothing doing. Unknown to me, there was a CM standing behind us during this conversation. Next thing I knew, we were handed a bucket of popcorn. She had overheard the conversation and took it upon herself to fix it. Love that Disney magic!