So Many Characters..So Little Time! Our April Adventure to the World! Complete:)

[ellajeansmom]

Hi Angie Sorry I've missed so many updates - as you noted earlier its a busy time of year. Speaking of that, congrats to Nick on his award, that's excellent

I'm so glad you were able to have so many first time experiences...the parade, DisneyQuest, Typhoon Lagoon...and enjoyed them all Its always so great when you do something that you know your kids will like and you end up having fun too!

Love the pic of the boys holding hands back on your MK day, too cute! And for back to back rides on TSM!

Looking forward to more

 

[MickeyisBeast]

I've only ridden TSM once, and I had to wait two hours in line... but it was worth it! I love love love TSM, it's a really cool ride
That's awesome about the bus service... we had great bus service in April with Pop, I was surprised!
One Man's Dream is pretty cool, and really interesting, you definatly needa check it out next trip

 

[Believeinfairytales]

My guess is that you are going to go to see the UP characters next.

I cannot believe you got to ride TSM two times in a row without having to wait! That's like every Disney goers dream!

 

[Angies1274]

Great bus service! I actually have never had complaints about the Disney buses. The fact that they can move SO many people so efficiently is just incredible. If I wait for a bus now and then, I can deal!

I hate the thought that the vacation is ending soon. Once you get that in your head, it's tough to shake. Good for you for trying to put it aside and enjoy the evening!

TSM is SO fun! I compete with my boys on our Wii game too! It always makes me miss the parks though! Yay for going on twice in a row!

I still need to get to One Man's Dream as well. Someday!

I wish we could have met the UP characters....can't wait to hear about your meet and greet!

Hi Missy!

The buses were great this trip! I don't think we waited once!

I really tried not to think about the fact that we were leaving the next day...and just wanted to concentrate on all the fun things we had planned to do that night!

We pulled out TSM for the Wii the other night. It had been awhile since we played and you're right...it made me miss Disney too! Wish I was there now...at this point even a ticker would make me happy.

I know...I was just reading about One Man's Dream on another TR....it sounds so interesting! I need to make it there next trip!

 

[Angies1274]

Gracious! I've got a lot to post about and I'm sure I'll forget something I wanted to say.

I am soooo very happy that you guys liked Typhoon Lagoon. I told you I'm not a water park person either but Typhoon Lagoon was the best! I remember being on the lazy river and getting away from my family too. I'd be with them one minute and the next, they'd be way behind me.

Wave pools.....you either love 'em or hate 'em. I'm a hater so I don't blame you for finding a nice spot to sit and just watch. It sounds like your boys really enjoyed themselves in the wave pool though.

Yea for riding Crush n Gusher! Wasn't it fun?!?! And, you remembered to pick up your booty!

The picture of the boys with their pizza faces was cute. I'm always telling Hunter that he wears his meal on his face. Boys!

I didn't remember that you hadn't seen Fantasmic before. After seeing those dark clouds, I'm beginning to wonder if you got to see it this trip. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that you did.

Glad to hear that you were able to get the GAD fastpasses even though the Fastpass machines were shut down for the day. It's great that ya'll got to ride Toy Story Mania not just once but two times in a row!

Hi Lisa!

Oh...I know! I'm so happy that we gave Typhoon Lagoon a try! It was so much fun! We seemed to get separated a lot on the lazy river. That water moves fast.

The wave pool was fun for maybe a minute or two!....as long as I stayed in the shallow end. But I much preferred to watch the boys and DH have fun from the sidelines.

Crush n Gusher was the best! I was a little sad that Noah didn't like it though....

We were glad to get the FP for TSM too! I was starting to get worried for a minute!

 

[Angies1274]

Hi Angie Sorry I've missed so many updates - as you noted earlier its a busy time of year. Speaking of that, congrats to Nick on his award, that's excellent

I'm so glad you were able to have so many first time experiences...the parade, DisneyQuest, Typhoon Lagoon...and enjoyed them all Its always so great when you do something that you know your kids will like and you end up having fun too!

Love the pic of the boys holding hands back on your MK day, too cute! And for back to back rides on TSM!

Looking forward to more

Hey! No worries! Glad to see you back! It's definitely a busy time of the year! Thanks for the Congrats to Nick! Aww...we're very proud. He actually ended up getting what they call an Apple Award. His teacher had to pick one student from the class this year that she felt worked the hardest and just gave 100%. She picked Nick...we were so happy...and he was so surprised!

We got to experience so many firsts this trip...it was wonderful! Honestly, I was shocked how much I enjoyed TL and DQ. If it hadn't been for the boys, we may have never given it a try! So happy we did!

Love that picture of the boys! (although...I'll probably never see it again!) It's amazing what Disney can do!!

I've only ridden TSM once, and I had to wait two hours in line... but it was worth it! I love love love TSM, it's a really cool ride
That's awesome about the bus service... we had great bus service in April with Pop, I was surprised!
One Man's Dream is pretty cool, and really interesting, you definatly needa check it out next trip

Isn't TSM the best!! Aww...we love it too!!

I think that is one of the reasons we like Pop so much. We've never really had a problem with their bus service. It was just so funny this trip because...we never waited at all. Which was awesome...especially being the week after Easter.

One Man's Dream is at the top of my list for DHS next trip! It sounds really interesting.

My guess is that you are going to go to see the UP characters next.

I cannot believe you got to ride TSM two times in a row without having to wait! That's like every Disney goers dream!

Good guess on the UP characters!

Loved those GAD fastpasses!!It we hadn't had them, we would have missed TSM all together. Can't imagine it....we had so much fun!!

 

[dismagiclover]

Love the Typhoon Lagoon update! We need to get to a waterpark one of these years! And who doesn't love TSM? Can't wait to see you with the UP characters. I wish they were still around. We never got to meet them.

 

[Angies1274]

Love the Typhoon Lagoon update! We need to get to a waterpark one of these years! And who doesn't love TSM? Can't wait to see you with the UP characters. I wish they were still around. We never got to meet them.

Thanks! We had a lot of fun at TL!! Hoping to get another update posted today.

 

[Angies1274]

Hi Everyone!! I had a few minutes...so I thought I would try and get another update posted today! (especially...since it's so yucky and rainy outside...blah) Another busy weekend planned here. Anyone else have any special plans for the holiday weekend?

So,where did we leave off....

April 15, 2010--A night at Hollywood Studios!

Well... we had just arrived at Disney Hollywood Studios. We had stopped for a few photos in front of Mickey’s Sorcerer's Hat and then made our way over to Toy Story Mania…where I lost not once but twice to my 10 year old son. We decided after battling it out on TSM, that we would head over to the Animation Building for a meet and greet with the characters. On our last trip, the boys got to meet the Bolt characters and really enjoyed it. So, this trip after hearing some characters from one of our new favorite Disney movies would be there....it became a must-do for us. So what was the movie? And who were the characters we were so anxious to meet…..me especially? Well……







One of my favorite parts of the movie was when we read this…..”Thanks for the adventure. Now go have one of your own.”

The movie UP! I don't know if I ever cried so hard at a movie before. Then again...that was before Toy Story 3 came out.

We were very excited to meet Carl, Dug, and Russell!! Now…when we first walked inside, it was quiet. There wasn’t too many people around so we were hoping that the line for the characters wouldn’t be very long. Unfortunately, as we rounded the corner…we found all the people and the reason it was so quiet out in the lobby area. We had to make a decision...do we wait it out or do we decide to leave the line and find something else to do? Ultimately, we decided to wait it out....we were huge fans after all!
I decided to take a few pictures to pass the time…..

At this point, I started to realize that something strange was going on….we began to hear shrieking and laughing. People started ducking under the ropes and started running out into the lobby. I was curious...I mean, what could be so huge that would make people who have already waited in line for awhile … to just suddenly pick up and leave. I glanced out in the lobby and who did we see.....but....

The Queen of Hearts!!
Who was soon followed by Captain Hook! (He’s way up in the corner of the picture below) Can you see him?

And….they were soon followed by….Chip and Dale, Stitch, Aladdin, Jasmine, Mulan, and the list goes on and on. The characters were everywhere and so were the people! The once quiet lobby was now packed with guests trying to figure out which character was more important to see.

Let me just say….it took all I had not to grab the boys hands and run out with everyone else. As we were making our way to the front of the line, we started talking to a CM who was telling us that the characters wouldn’t be there too much longer and our best bet was to pick one we wanted to see most.

Since it was doubtful that we would be able to see a lot of these characters…I started snapping pictures of them leaving….

(sorry they are so blurry...they were moving quite fast!)

I really wish I had gotten a picture of the Queen of Hearts making her exit. She grabbed the doors and swung them so hard that they almost hit the wall. The man behind her had to step back so quick. It was a very dramatic exit to say the least!

So now you all know....that is the reason I decided to name my trip report…..So Many Characters…So Little Time!! It was so chaotic but also very funny! The adults seemed more excited than most of the kids!

But, seeing the characters everywhere was not the only thing that was distracting us while waiting in line. We were also very aware of the time. While planning this trip, DH and I had made a deal with the boys. As you know, we weren’t too excited about heading to Typhoon Lagoon. So we told them that we would do TL if they would see Beauty and the Beast. We knew we couldn’t convince them any other way….you know because of the whole princess thing. But,we really wanted to see Beauty and the Beast…me especially. It was the first Disney movie that DH and I ever watched together…so it meant something. Here was the problem though...the last showing for the night was at 5:45pm. We got into line just before 5:00pm and I thought we would have plenty of time….um….not so much…5:10 went by, and then 5:20. I was starting to get really anxious. So I guess the whole character thing was a good distraction at the time!

I was so happy when we finally made it to the front of the line and we stepped out to meet the UP characters—

Hey Noah!! Carl is looking at you…say something.

A couple from our calendar---

It was a great character meet and greet! I am so glad we made the time to see them and actually stayed in line. After saying our goodbyes to Dug, Russell and Carl, we made our way out of the Animation Building passing by Aladdin, and passing by Goofy. It was hard knowing that there was so many characters to see but so little time to see them!

After all, we did hold up our end of the bargain to visit TL…now it was time for the boys to hold up their end. We raced out of the Animation building….and I do mean raced and headed as fast as we could toward Sunset Blvd. But would we make it in time? You'll have to wait and see........

Up Next-- Rain? Oh no!

 

[mickeystoontown]

Now I see how you came up with the name for your trip report! That certainly was a whole lotta characters. It's just too bad that you didn't have time to see them all. I love the Queen of Hearts. She's always a hoot!

The pictures with the Up characters are great. I am loving the calendar.

 

[dismagiclover]

for the UP characters! I love that movie too. I also understand what you're saying about Toy Story 3. I cried like a baby in that last scene. So pathetic It's fun to see all those characters even if you don't get to meet them. Plus you hopefully make it to Beauty and the Beast too!

 

[DisMomAmy]

Playing catch up again... Typhoon Lagoon looks like so much fun!! We almost made it there in April, but with family joining us, plans got changed and it never happened... which I was sort of happy about at the time. Maybe next year.

TSM is so much fun!! I'm glad you had the GAD FPs to make it happen for you.

I can't believe how many characters there were roaming around! We usually just meet characters at character meals since my boys have such a hard time with lines so I'm not that familiar with that whole meet & greet area, but I don't think I've ever read a TR with that many characters in there! It's great that you got to see them even if you didn't get to meet them all.

Can't wait to hear about Beauty & The Beast... I've never seen it either... hoping to see it in the fall when I visit with my friend.

 

[Believeinfairytales]

What a load of characters! I would have been just like you - do I stay or do I go? (Hmmm...there's a song with those words that comes to mind. )

Glad you got to meet the Up characters. As much as I loved the movie, I just wasn't willing to wait in the long line with an already irritable child. I don't regret my decision to not wait, but I do wish it could have worked out! Great shots of the kids.

Now, I hope you get to see B & the B. That is such a great show!

 

[wdwgirl03]

Oh god, Angie, I was the same way when we saw Up. That part was just so sweet. I was crying so hard I could barely breathe. Same in TS3. I am such a sap.

Anyways...awesome you met the Up characters! I'm still bummed I missed my chance. That'll teach me that if I want to meet a character I should just wait. haha I wonder when they started having all those extra characters in the Animation building because it was like that when we went too.

 

[Mickey_Mom]

I was two updates behind! First off, I love Nick's shirt! Alex has one just like it in a darker blue and its one of his favs... remember this shot?

The buses at Pop are a big reason why we love it there too. I cannot wait until the suites are done in the Art of Animation side of Pop.

Toy Story Mania! We also pulled out the Wii about a week ago now and the kids have been playing it, including TSM non-stop. Now I can't remember where I read some elements of TS3 were going to be added to the TSM ride? So exciting!

Oh my gosh all those characters! My head would have been spinning.... where to go? Good call on sticking it out though. I really regret not meeting those characters before they were gone.

Oh I really hope you got to see Beauty & the Beast. One of our favorites

 

[Angies1274]

Now I see how you came up with the name for your trip report! That certainly was a whole lotta characters. It's just too bad that you didn't have time to see them all. I love the Queen of Hearts. She's always a hoot!

The pictures with the Up characters are great. I am loving the calendar.

I couldn't believe the amount of characters that night!! They were everywhere! I wish we would have been able to meet the Queen of Hearts too! She looks like a lot of fun! I have to admit...the one character I almost pulled the boys out of line for was Captain Hook. We really wanted to meet him in MK and didn't get a chance. Oh well...hopefully next time!

 

[Angies1274]

for the UP characters! I love that movie too. I also understand what you're saying about Toy Story 3. I cried like a baby in that last scene. So pathetic It's fun to see all those characters even if you don't get to meet them. Plus you hopefully make it to Beauty and the Beast too!

I know...YAY! I love the UP characters!! I cried like a baby too in Toy Story 3!!! I was so glad to have those on! They hid my tears! It was so much fun to see the characters!! They only stayed out for a few minutes...so I knew we wouldn't get to meet them all. But, it was really cool to see anyway!

Playing catch up again... Typhoon Lagoon looks like so much fun!! We almost made it there in April, but with family joining us, plans got changed and it never happened... which I was sort of happy about at the time. Maybe next year.

TSM is so much fun!! I'm glad you had the GAD FPs to make it happen for you.

I can't believe how many characters there were roaming around! We usually just meet characters at character meals since my boys have such a hard time with lines so I'm not that familiar with that whole meet & greet area, but I don't think I've ever read a TR with that many characters in there! It's great that you got to see them even if you didn't get to meet them all.

Can't wait to hear about Beauty & The Beast... I've never seen it either... hoping to see it in the fall when I visit with my friend.

Hi Amy!

Honestly, I wasn't looking forward to going to TL. But..we had held the boys off long enough. It really surprised me how much fun we had.

I'm so happy we had those GAD fastpasses. It would have been a completely different night at DHS without them. The crowds were pretty good the whole week but our night at DHS is when we needed them the most since we arrived so late and FP were already gone for the day.

We don't usually wait in line for the characters either and usually just see them at character meals like you. But...this trip there were a few characters the boys really wanted to see and were willing to wait. We couldn't believe all the characters we saw....there were so many!

 

[Cory's Gal]

How cool that there were so many characters (and so little time ) in the Animation Building! I didn't even know there were any characters in there!!!!!!!! I need to pay closed attention I guess!! Glad you got to see the UP characters, I just LOVE LOVE all the nice pics you made into a calendar Angie!!!! What a great souvenir!! I have yet to see the movie UP and since I cried during TS3 I expect to have tears during UP! I hope the rain didn't ruin your plans!!!!

 

[Angies1274]

What a load of characters! I would have been just like you - do I stay or do I go? (Hmmm...there's a song with those words that comes to mind. )

Glad you got to meet the Up characters. As much as I loved the movie, I just wasn't willing to wait in the long line with an already irritable child. I don't regret my decision to not wait, but I do wish it could have worked out! Great shots of the kids.

Now, I hope you get to see B & the B. That is such a great show!

There really was a ton of characters! It was so funny to see everyone's reaction as they started to appear.

The line was quite long and if the boys hadn't been older...we would have probably skipped it too. (as sad as I would have been...I know they wouldn't have been able to wait.) Which is why until this trip...we did character meals instead.

Oh god, Angie, I was the same way when we saw Up. That part was just so sweet. I was crying so hard I could barely breathe. Same in TS3. I am such a sap.

Anyways...awesome you met the Up characters! I'm still bummed I missed my chance. That'll teach me that if I want to meet a character I should just wait. haha I wonder when they started having all those extra characters in the Animation building because it was like that when we went too.

Aww....UP! I can't say enough great things about that movie! I just loved it! I sobbed at the beginning and at the end....then turned around and did the same thing in TS3...ugh!! Why does Pixar do that to us?

I was so sad we missed the UP characters last August when they were there...I knew that I had to fit them in this trip. I have a feeling the characters all appeared there like that because it was a Fantasmic night. That's so cool...that it was like that when you were there too! It was really something to see!

 

[Angies1274]

I was two updates behind! First off, I love Nick's shirt! Alex has one just like it in a darker blue and its one of his favs... remember this shot?

The buses at Pop are a big reason why we love it there too. I cannot wait until the suites are done in the Art of Animation side of Pop.

Toy Story Mania! We also pulled out the Wii about a week ago now and the kids have been playing it, including TSM non-stop. Now I can't remember where I read some elements of TS3 were going to be added to the TSM ride? So exciting!

Oh my gosh all those characters! My head would have been spinning.... where to go? Good call on sticking it out though. I really regret not meeting those characters before they were gone.

Oh I really hope you got to see Beauty & the Beast. One of our favorites

Hi Tracy!

Aww..now that you mentioned it. I do remember Alex wearing that shirt and thinking...Hey Nick has one like that!! My father bought it for him on our trip last August and Nick wanted to make sure and bring it again this trip.

Oh..I know I can't wait for the Art of Animation to open!! When is that again? The end of next year... or is 2012? Hmm...I think it's 2012 right?

I didn't know that they were going to add some elements of TS3 to TSM! How cool would that be?

It was so hard to stay in line when there were so many great characters everywhere...and some that we really wanted to see. But, in the back of my head I kept thinking that the UP characters would be leaving soon and this would be our last chance.

How cool that there were so many characters (and so little time ) in the Animation Building! I didn't even know there were any characters in there!!!!!!!! I need to pay closed attention I guess!! Glad you got to see the UP characters, I just LOVE LOVE all the nice pics you made into a calendar Angie!!!! What a great souvenir!! I have yet to see the movie UP and since I cried during TS3 I expect to have tears during UP! I hope the rain didn't ruin your plans!!!!

Hi Beth! Oh..it was so cool to see so many characters at once! I think that usually it's just the Incredibles, Sorcerer Mickey (still haven't seen him) and then whatever movie is out at the time. Toy Story 3 characters are in the Animation building...I believe right now..Lotso, etc. I'm so happy with how the calendar came out. The backgrounds for the UP characters were adorable! You haven't seen UP? Oh, you have to see it! But..if you cried in TS3...be prepared. The boys got UP for Christmas and I still cry every time...even though I have seen it a dozen times now.