The Many Adventures of...A Family With a New Baby! Jan - Dec 2016! New 11/7!

[Imagineer5]

On our way out of Frontierland, I checked out the Tiana & Naveen timing, but we had a little time before the next set, so went to use one more FP - for Pooh!

This ended up being quite the ordeal though. Mid way through the ride, the ride broke down! We actually were escorted out of our Honey Pot and got to walk through the ride with the lights on. That was SUPER COOL! and we still talk about it.

We still had time to make it to Tiana & Naveen's meet though, and while waiting in line I changed a sweaty Aria. Don't worry, I have it down that we can get her changed without undressing her lol

She's always pretty shy with the princes, but Naveen is very outgoing.

They talked about Boston Baked Beans, which came up from a previous meet with them and we still laugh about how they are astounded we don't eat them at home, since we live in MA.

That was cute, and I'm glad we ran over there and made it in time!! We actually ended up checking into BOG 15 minutes early (surprise, we're generally always early lol)

Once seated, I was really disappointed to see my favorite BOG meal OFF the menu - their salmon dish was AMAZING. It was a salmon filet with leek fondue and saffron potatoes. It still hasn't reappeared on the menu (speaking of which I should send an email to Disney dining about it!).

So instead I ordered their chicken dish, which was not very appealing. I don't remember what it was, as it isn't on the menu anymore, but it was just okay.

I did opt to share it with Aria though vs ordering her own meal, and she thought it was fine (she likes plain chicken though).

And I thoroughly enjoyed a glass of wine

For dessert, I had to get the strawberry cupcake.

And a lemon one

We cut them in half and each enjoyed the cupcakes!

We headed straight out after dinner, as this had been a very long day non-stop in the park! A quick monorail ride to the Poly and I didn't think I could handle the walk all the way to Shades, when I saw the Shady Shuttle parked at the entrance! Phew, we folded the stroller and hopped on board.

Yes, I made Aria wear a seatbelt in the golf cart lol

This was the only time we used this service (in December it was too cumbersome with the bigger stroller) plus you need to tip and I never had cash or smaller bills handy. But it sure was nice after a long day!

We spent the next hour or so just watching TV and relaxing, getting ready for the next day, and packing as it was already time to head home after a little park time tomorrow

 

[Imagineer5]

This always helps me go through plans, and I would LOVE feedback, so I'm going to write out our June & October plans - coming up soon is my 30-day FP day for June and my 180-day ADR day for October.

JUNE - Andrew, me, Aria, Maya & Emma - so we'll have a 5.5 yo, 1.5 yo, and 6? week old.

We have nonstop flights from Boston, arriving around 9AM and leaving around 4PM

Day 1 - I originally was going to just check into condo, pool time, and Disney Springs, BUT with the definite opening of AK, I am going to try and book some FP's for one (or both) of the new rides and spend a couple hours in the park, then head to Disney Springs.

Visit Jock Lindsay's then dinner at the Boathouse.

Day 2: Trattoria Bon Voyage BF with Rapunzel, Ariel, Eric and Flynn, then head to DHS. Spend a couple hours here (TSMM, ToT, RNRC, Star Tours, head out). Afternoon pool time. Originally had no dinner booked, but decided to book Garden Grove @ Swolphin to surprise Andrew with their Seafood buffet.

Day 3: MK, Tiana's Riverboat party (Aria has asked multiple times to do this again, but I might want to move it to another day), and dinner at California Grill.

Day 4: Akershus PPO BF, EPCOT. Take a side trip to Ample Hills for ice cream treat (I don't think they carry dairy free treats?) but their 6-pack of ice cream sampler plus their hard cherry float sounds amazing. Afternoon Pool time, no dinner plans? Or possibly go to Chip & Dale's campfire for Smores.

Day 5: CP PPO BF, MK. Have Ohana booked this day, BUT we are planning on doing Ohana in October, and it isn't my favorite meal, so I was considering swapping to Hoop De Doo?

Day 6: AK, Sanaa lunch, Tiffins ROL package

Day 7: Kona, MK. Dinner at Chef Mickeys

Day 8: Garden Grill PPO BF, EPCOT, fly home

One problem I have is Andrew has a 7 day park hopper, and we need to upgrade on Day 1 to an AP. Which means I'll only be able to pre-book FP for him for 7 of the days vs 8. Utilizing Rider Swap, I am thinking DHS would be the best day to skip his FP? Or maybe one of the MK days and I'll book 7DMT, Splash and Big Thunder or something, and plan on RS??



*******************************

October Plans!

IDK when Southwest opened October fares, as I totally dropped the ball - I was checking every few days but forgot to put the date on the calendar, and now the tickets are sky-high. So we don't have tickets yet But I am hoping to arrive around 9AM and fly out around 2PM.

Who: Andrew, Aria, Maya, Emma, Lynda, Aron, Brianna. Yes 4 little girls and 4 adults, eek! Girls will be about 5.5, almost 2, 6 months, and 11 months.

Day 1: Lynda will be getting military 5-day park hoppers, and thus there are 2 days of the trip they will not be joining us at the park. Day 1 is one of the days. It also happens to be my birthday :-D so we'll be heading straight to Magic Kingdom from the airport. I am thinking of going to Skippers Canteen for lunch. Maybe just spend a few hours in the park, then check out our rental house, before all going to dinner at California Grill.

Day 2: Tusker House RoL PPO BF, AK. Afternoon break, Sanaa for dinner, then to AK for RoL & a little evening park time.

Day 3: H&V PPO BF, DHS (No FP). Ly&A&B want to do Mama Melrose for lunch - we will leave DHS and head to EPCOT (pre-book FP here), do F&W booths for lunch. Meet up after lunch in EPCOT - Biergarten for dinner.

Day 4: Sleep in day. Brunch at Trattoria / Bon Voyage BF (unless it's terrible in June lol - maybe I should come up with a back-up plan for this). Afternoon in MK, dinner at BoG, watch the new fireworks show.

Day 5: CRT BF PPO, MK, then hop to EPCOT. Dinner here we'll split up - Ly&A&B want to go to Chefs de France, we're going to go to Spice Road Table (that is what I worked on this morning, narrowed down to 4 options, sent Andrew the menus and asked him to choose). Should be low-key at least with 3 little ones (vs Shula's steakhouse, which was my choice due to their chocolate soufflé lol!!).

Day 6: this day Lynda will not be going to the park. MK, Crystal Palace (either mid-morning, or PPO?), and Ohana for dinner

Day 7: Garden Grill BF, EPCOT, then fly home.

Lynda chose the days she didn't want to go to the park, I suggested no park on the last day but she's also going to go for a late afternoon flight home so that'll work out and we should be able to get FEA FP's for that day.



Any input would be helpful. I also need to figure out the best use of FP's via RS (esp for October with all the babies!) but I do have some time for that at least. I am torn between having so much park time and having some relaxing/pool time. Our house has a private pool (in Oct) and I want to be sure to utilize it - but I can see also coming back after dinner, putting the babies to bed, and having us relax by the pool for a bit too.

 

[schmass]

I need to go back and comment on your TR update, but a few thoughts on your upcoming plans:

I think Ample Hills Creamery does have a couple of non-dairy sorbets. I can't say for sure (yet!) but in my research that is what I determined. We'll most likely go in May and I can let you know.

Hoop de Doo would be awesome and I was actually just thinking yesterday about how we need to do this (haven't done it since I was a kid). You might want to wait until Emma and Maya are a bit older though? Not sure how well Maya would sit through it (I don't think Lola could yet), and if Emma needs to be taken outside at all, it would be a bummer to miss the show. Or she might sleep through the whole thing and it would be fine!

I would probably skip FPs for the MK day, due to the tiering system at DHS.

I think your plans look great!

What are your October dates?

 

[schmass]

That is so cute about Aria apologizing to Elsa about not wearing her Elsa dress!

A shady spot for the parade - that is amazing! Must have made it even more enjoyable.

The character meets all look great. You had a long day! It looks like Aria did a great job keeping up!

 

[Imagineer5]

I need to go back and comment on your TR update, but a few thoughts on your upcoming plans:

I think Ample Hills Creamery does have a couple of non-dairy sorbets. I can't say for sure (yet!) but in my research that is what I determined. We'll most likely go in May and I can let you know.

Hoop de Doo would be awesome and I was actually just thinking yesterday about how we need to do this (haven't done it since I was a kid). You might want to wait until Emma and Maya are a bit older though? Not sure how well Maya would sit through it (I don't think Lola could yet), and if Emma needs to be taken outside at all, it would be a bummer to miss the show. Or she might sleep through the whole thing and it would be fine!

I would probably skip FPs for the MK day, due to the tiering system at DHS.

I think your plans look great!

What are your October dates?

Thank you!! Good to know about Ample Hills, I didn't see anything about non dairy stuff in the DFB thing I read, but I was hoping they'd offer something.

We took Aria at 10? months to Hoop De Doo (forgetting which trip that was lol, but it was early on). It ended up being one of the best nights - so I think Maya would do okay - plus the BBQ ribs is most likely safe and she could eat some corn and such. Emma might be another story, but at least it's loud (vs. the uber-quiet Artist Point which was our worst meal experience with Maya as an infant by far lol). We'd do the 4PM show so at least it wouldn't be too late. DH was totally on board with that idea when I mentioned it, so I think that is what we'll do.

Yeah, I had originally thought DHS would be the best day to not plan FP for DH, but with all our MK days I think skipping one of them and doing 3 RS rides is the way to go!

We are going Oct 5-11

That is so cute about Aria apologizing to Elsa about not wearing her Elsa dress!

A shady spot for the parade - that is amazing! Must have made it even more enjoyable.

The character meets all look great. You had a long day! It looks like Aria did a great job keeping up!

I have become a parade person, especially enjoying the 45 minutes or so total of sitting somewhere and relaxing hahaha!

Aria was lucky to have the stroller, so she was really fine all day. I could have used a stroller a few times though :-D

 

[ariane37]

BTW Sketchers Go Walk shoes are Super comfy

I completely agree!

But I think the best part was the coloring table afterwards haha (at least the best thing to Aria)

Do they still "teach" kids to shoot a bow and arrow while in line? We met Merida shortly after she first started her M&G, and while you were in line some of her friends would pull young kids out of line and show them how to shoot. It was cute!

I did opt to share it with Aria though vs ordering her own meal, and she thought it was fine (she likes plain chicken though).

Ricky gets the plain grilled chicken there and really likes it; but as you saw from his weird-looking-chicken caesar salad at Pinocchio's, he's ok with plain chicken too.

For dessert, I had to get the strawberry cupcake.

Really it's a must.

so I was considering swapping to Hoop De Doo?

Have you done HDDR before? We did it a few years ago and the boys (all of us) loved it! Chris keeps asking to do it again Since 'Ohana isn't your favorite I'd swap for HDDR!

One problem I have is Andrew has a 7 day park hopper, and we need to upgrade on Day 1 to an AP. Which means I'll only be able to pre-book FP for him for 7 of the days vs 8.

Your idea is good; I would maybe book his FP's for your first 7 days and then add his for your last park day when you upgrade. That's an Epcot day, correct? It may be easier to get FP's for your last day since it'll be farther out, although not by much. And since you can use RS every day if you don't get what you want on that 8th day RS will work for you, correct?

 

[Imagineer5]

Do they still "teach" kids to shoot a bow and arrow while in line? We met Merida shortly after she first started her M&G, and while you were in line some of her friends would pull young kids out of line and show them how to shoot. It was cute!

About 2 years ago they did the bow and arrow thing at the end of the meet along with the coloring, but this time it was just the coloring. Maybe too many stray arrows were flying or something? It was cute when they offered it though!

Have you done HDDR before? We did it a few years ago and the boys (all of us) loved it! Chris keeps asking to do it again Since 'Ohana isn't your favorite I'd swap for HDDR!

Yes, when Aria was about 10 months old, and we had SO much fun! I've been wanting an excuse to go back! The food is not great to me either (lol) but Andrew loves it, and the whole evening is pretty fun.

Your idea is good; I would maybe book his FP's for your first 7 days and then add his for your last park day when you upgrade. That's an Epcot day, correct? It may be easier to get FP's for your last day since it'll be farther out, although not by much. And since you can use RS every day if you don't get what you want on that 8th day RS will work for you, correct?

Our last park day is EPCOT but I'm hoping to get FEA for that day since it's so hard to get. So that's not a RS ride...our 2nd to last day is a MK day though so I think I'll leave him off those FP and then add FP for him after we upgrade his ticket on day 1.

 

[Imagineer5]

I am going to wrap up our May trip today! I was hoping to have it complete before baby and it looks like I managed that, yay! I still haven't uploaded all my Disneyland (August) photos which will be the next TR (we had a BLAST BTW, despite my mother) but I'll be doing an in between post for May-August update as well.

As for this week - it's been CRAZY!! Between OB apt (weekly now), 5 year & 15 month appts for the girls (Aria is 43" and 36lbs, Maya is 31" and 22lbs), Swim Lessons, Maya's Allergy apt (still allergic to dairy, egg, peanut - tested negative for Almond which I was really surprised about bc she breaks out in a rash from almond milk, and rescheduled our peanut challenge for about 3 weeks!), Aria missed gymnastics because someone came to purchase our 10+ year old swing set. This weekend we hope to work on building a new swingset, if the rain holds out. And, tonight, Andrew's parents are coming for the night. I really need a day to myself!! Ugh!

**********

For our last day at Disney in May, we had plans to visit H&V and DHS before heading to the airport. I also wanted to use the Shades luggage check. When I arrived about 6:45am, they told me I was supposed to sign up for the luggage check the night before (no one told me this!!) but he said that no one had come to pick up the bags yet so I could still do it. Um, okay! I'm still confused because it seems like people drop off their bags the night before? Which defeats the purpose considering you want to check toiletries, which I need in the morning! IDK. I didn't bother with it in December so not sure if it has changed. After dealing with that we took our remaining items (backpack, stroller and Aria's toy suitcase) to the car and left Shades. We made it to DHS well before our 8AM ADR and lined up to the left with the other early breakfast people.

Andrew texted me this photo of him feeding Maya while getting ready for work.

And soon we were let in to DHS and seated by 8:05. Before grabbing food, Sofia came around! I like 8AM breakfasts because typically you have 15-20 minutes to grab food and get settled, but the characters were out in force first thing this morning lol!

They twirled together

I asked for coffee, juice, milk and we ran up for some food. For some reason, their tater tots (yes, in the children's area) at H&V are really good. TBH they are the main reason I didn't want to cancel H&V for June, but alas Aria had to be the voice of reason and talked me into Bon Voyage instead

Anyway we got back and Handy Manny stopped by. You can see Aria's plate of ham, bacon, croissant and chocolate donut.

My plate, had some cheesy potatoes, tater tots, eggs, croissant, chocolate muffin, and fruit. I found out my old Frank's hot sauce packets were REALLY OLD, so you can see I set aside the infected tater tots (and yes I did eventually go up for more, and asked for the very sad Tabasco).

Aria was really excited to see Doc come by next. Out of all the Disney Jr characters, she really only watches Doc McStuffins and Elena of Avalor now.

AND the timing was perfect, because it was time to dance!! Usually Aria is a bit nervous to go up there (sometimes I can talk her into it) but today, Doc brought her up with her!!

That ended up being super cute!!

And back at the table, Jake came by next.

Aria had a bit of a crush of Jake for years, but I don't even think she has seen the show in over a year now. She's getting so big!

We finished up our food and then headed out of breakfast. I snapped this pic on our way out at 8:52:

We had FP for TSMM so we used that first part of the morning to go meet Buzz & Woody with no wait.

Not sure what they were chatting about, but I love meeting Woody!

Then we ran across to use our FP for TSMM. Look, 9:04 and a 35 minute wait!

Being a group of 2, we got to go up and over the right hand side, which gets you right on!

We really enjoyed this, Aria even tried hard!

Back in December we did this like 3 times in a row. By the 2nd time Aria was complaining her arm was tired so she just sat back with Maya lol.

We had a 2PM flight out of Orlando, so should have been in the car by 11:30 or so. I think we tried to stuff as much as possible in those 2 hours of park time!! Up next, we met Sorcerer Mickey.

Then Minnie, when she was meeting by the Disney Jr characters

We had a FP for the 10:30 Disney Junior show, so while waiting for that to open, Aria decided to say hi to Doc and Jake again.

Doc has one of the best meets, she always plays around with each kid it seems!

Jake was okay, just a quick hello

Then we found our spots on the floor for the show

She still loves this show, so it's a must do!

Our final FP was for Star Tours, which despite the dark Aria really loves!

 

[Imagineer5]

And then it was time to leave we weren't yet hungry so decided to grab lunch at the airport. I returned the rental car, quickly put the car seat in its bag and stuffed the car seat back with anything remaining in the car, checked that bag (nice not to have to deal with the suitcase too!), got through security and then hopped on the monorail. Note: those things behind Aria are squished Dubloons from the show lol!

Then we went to the Mexican place that is no longer. oh look, she is STILL playing with those paper dubloons!

I can't figure out what this is that we ordered for Aria? I don't think she liked it (look at that face!)

I had chicken nachos with extra jalapenos lol! (they didn't have the firecracker chicken anymore, boo!)

Then we made our way to the gate to get ready for boarding.

And that's a wrap! We made it home in time to see Maya before she headed to sleep (her bedtime is 6:30!), throw in some laundry and then get some sleep ourselves as I had to be back at work the next day. We definitely missed Maya (and Andrew, but him not being at Disney was more normal than not being with Maya) but I think we both really enjoyed hanging out together. The trip seemed so "easy" not having a baby along and I'm SO glad we did it. Aria still talks about being surprised to go to Disney (and has asked me to "surprise" her again hahahaha) but she is also really excited to go in June once Emma makes her appearance.

As for Shades, I really liked it - mainly due to price vs location. Being so close to the MK/ able to walk was a huge plus, and the room size really was great. It wasn't Disney enough for me to LOVE it, and I had no interest in any of the on-site restaurants. Having all 3 kiddos plus Andrew on the next couple of trips, we have opted to stay in bigger places off-site (for way less $$), but that doesn't mean I'll never return. Especially when it's just me, I would go back in a heartbeat and stay there! They do offer bussing to the parks, so that might be something I utilize in the future (we'll see about that).

Thanks for reading along, again! Coming up I'll do a little recap of our May-August life and then when I have a chance to find all my DL & San Diego pics that'll be coming up next!!

 

[Grumpy's Wife]

Those chicken nachos look delicious. How is that airport food?

What a nice ending to your trip. Not a hectic day but a nice breakfast with a few fast past rides thrown in.

I always enjoy reading your trip reports. Thanks so much for sharing.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

ok, fell a bit behind but trying to catch up:

- looks like a nice meet with Elsa and Anna - I love that Aria apologized to Elsa for not wearing her dress!
- Great to get a shady spot in Frontierland for the parade! And a garbage can can some times be good for helping to secure your space
- What's a "height met" card?
- That's cool you got to see Pooh with the lights on - that huffalump area looks a lot less immersive with the lights on!
- I love when Naveen is with Tianna!
- Lot's of great Disney Jr meets and then the show. It's amazing how much kids love those paper gold dabloons!
- I like the new set up they now have at DHS for meeting Mickey and Minnie- really nice backdrops for them
- I like how you posted the pictures of Maya that Andrew would send you

I am sure it was tough to be away from her but also great you got some 1:1 time with Aria. I definitely find that now with 3 kids it is even more important to carve out some 1:1 time with each of the.

As to your upcoming plans:

June:
- it's great that Pandora will be open when you go (you may notice in my signature that I am sneaking away for a quick solo trip to check it out along with the DIS 20th party). Having 2 days at AK will help since they did tier the rides there now so you can only get FP for 1 pandora ride.

- All your food options look good and seem reasonably structured. I am fully supportive of swapping out 'Ohana for Hoop Dee Doo (especially if you will do 'Ohana in October). I think Aria is at a great age to enjoy it.

- Glad to see Jock Lindsey's on the schedule - I really liked it

October:
- again, I think your plans look good and reasonable. I like the idea of a Skipper's Canteen lunch and then California Grill dinner for your birthday! (I would like that for my birthday)

- The chocolate dessert we got at Spice Road Table was really good if that helps ease the pain of not getting to Shula's

 

[amazingact21]

I loved reading about your mom/daughter trip. I had never considered going to Disney with just Landon before, but after reading about how much fun you two had, it's something that's on my radar now.
All the Disney Jr. stuff at DHS is great. I feel like that park is severely lacking in toddler-friendly activities, but the things they do have are some of my kid's favorite things. I hope they keep it up for awhile.

You have had a busy week! I really hope for your sake you get a day to unwind and rest. Because we all know life is only going to to get crazier once Baby # 3 arrives.

 

[Dugette]

This ended up being quite the ordeal though. Mid way through the ride, the ride broke down! We actually were escorted out of our Honey Pot and got to walk through the ride with the lights on. That was SUPER COOL! and we still talk about it.

Haha, that actually describes our first ride ever on Winnie the Pooh! It's so weird seeing all the not-to-be-seen stuff with the lights on.

We actually ended up checking into BOG 15 minutes early (surprise, we're generally always early lol)

So, on this last trip, without Dug slowing me down, Izzy and I got to Tusker House early and I tried to check in - and they wouldn't let me! They made me come back 5 minutes before my ADR. So much for being early!

6-pack of ice cream sampler plus their hard cherry float sounds amazing.

That does sound amazing!

so I was considering swapping to Hoop De Doo

This is a good reminder for me. We have never done Hoop De Doo and I've seen so many good reviews of it (like from you). I might try to work it into the October trip.

One problem I have is Andrew has a 7 day park hopper, and we need to upgrade on Day 1 to an AP. Which means I'll only be able to pre-book FP for him for 7 of the days vs 8. Utilizing Rider Swap, I am thinking DHS would be the best day to skip his FP? Or maybe one of the MK days and I'll book 7DMT, Splash and Big Thunder or something, and plan on RS??

I would recommend, when you are at Guest Services to upgrade his AP, to ask the CM something like, "When we booked our FP, I couldn't book his with us for X day until we did this upgrade - is there any way for him to join us on our FP rides on that day?" If you're lucky, maybe you can get a CM that will toss on some anything FP for him.

Day 7: Garden Grill BF

This reminds me - Izzy was talking about WDW today and said she wants to "go on that thing that goes around and has the ride around it and is in the Soarin' building". I finally figured out she was asking to eat at Garden Grill, not go on a ride. So, I might book a GG breakfast. Heck, this is during our overlap, so maybe meeting up for breakfast is an option, though I don't know they'd have a booth that big (I have zero planned right now for October...need to get on that).

dinner at BoG

Just went back and looked at your list when we overlap. This is the other meal I was thinking of doing, as we've never had dinner at BoG or met Beast. Again, I have no plans or flights yet and I think this is our arrival night, so not sure when we'll want to do it. But just FYI.

Any input would be helpful. I also need to figure out the best use of FP's via RS (esp for October with all the babies!) but I do have some time for that at least

Wow, this all sounds mind-boggling with the babies and RS and FP. I'm too tired tonight to even think about it. Good luck!

but I can see also coming back after dinner, putting the babies to bed, and having us relax by the pool for a bit too.

That sounds like a really nice plan!

I am going to wrap up our May trip today! I was hoping to have it complete before baby and it looks like I managed that, yay!

Yay, congrats!

I still haven't uploaded all my Disneyland (August) photos which will be the next TR (we had a BLAST BTW, despite my mother) but I'll be doing an in between post for May-August update as well.

Can't wait to hear all about these too!

tested negative for Almond which I was really surprised about bc she breaks out in a rash from almond milk

Huh, weird. Could there be something else in the almond milk or cross contamination during processing?

I really need a day to myself!! Ugh!

You do! I hope you get one at some point!

The trip seemed so "easy" not having a baby along and I'm SO glad we did it.

So glad you got to take that trip. I had that "easy" feeling on this last trip w/just me and 4.5 year old Izzy. Much less stuff to deal with and it seemed like a lot less work than in her baby/toddler days.

 

[TinkLoverSam]

I really enjoyed having our car seat for Arthur at 8 weeks old in the parks (even in August) we had a stroller fan and the canopies on both the car seat and stroller closed to keep him out of the sun and he was quite content in the and slept a lot. We did also often put a frog togg under him to keep him cool.

The canopies closed towards each other so it worked well for us.

I can't even imagine having to go back to work as quickly as you do in the US. I'm so happy we get 50 weeks paid leave in Canada, though I did then choose not to go back to work as well.

We had a really fun time at Hoop Dee Doo with Arthur at 8 weeks but I don't know how maya would do through the show. It's kind of that awkward time when they don't sit very long to eat.

I only just stopped breastfeeding Arthur completely at just under 21 months (only st bedtime for the last 4ish months though) but it must have been really hard trying to make that decision while also adjusting to allergies.

 

[Imagineer5]

Those chicken nachos look delicious. How is that airport food?

What a nice ending to your trip. Not a hectic day but a nice breakfast with a few fast past rides thrown in.

I always enjoy reading your trip reports. Thanks so much for sharing.

Before MCO changed out their food area, there was a great Mexican restaurant that had excellent food and drinks...it's gone now though

Thank you so much for reading along!! It was a quick trip in comparison to Jan/Feb lol but we had so much fun!

ok, fell a bit behind but trying to catch up:

- looks like a nice meet with Elsa and Anna - I love that Aria apologized to Elsa for not wearing her dress!
- Great to get a shady spot in Frontierland for the parade! And a garbage can can some times be good for helping to secure your space
- What's a "height met" card?
- That's cool you got to see Pooh with the lights on - that huffalump area looks a lot less immersive with the lights on!
- I love when Naveen is with Tianna!
- Lot's of great Disney Jr meets and then the show. It's amazing how much kids love those paper gold dabloons!
- I like the new set up they now have at DHS for meeting Mickey and Minnie- really nice backdrops for them
- I like how you posted the pictures of Maya that Andrew would send you

I am sure it was tough to be away from her but also great you got some 1:1 time with Aria. I definitely find that now with 3 kids it is even more important to carve out some 1:1 time with each of the.

As to your upcoming plans:

June:
- it's great that Pandora will be open when you go (you may notice in my signature that I am sneaking away for a quick solo trip to check it out along with the DIS 20th party). Having 2 days at AK will help since they did tier the rides there now so you can only get FP for 1 pandora ride.

- All your food options look good and seem reasonably structured. I am fully supportive of swapping out 'Ohana for Hoop Dee Doo (especially if you will do 'Ohana in October). I think Aria is at a great age to enjoy it.

- Glad to see Jock Lindsey's on the schedule - I really liked it

October:
- again, I think your plans look good and reasonable. I like the idea of a Skipper's Canteen lunch and then California Grill dinner for your birthday! (I would like that for my birthday)

- The chocolate dessert we got at Spice Road Table was really good if that helps ease the pain of not getting to Shula's

Oh that card thing - it's when a kid who is too short goes up to a ride to measure themselves. Sometimes a CM will give them a card, that basically acts like a future FP for when the child is tall enough! We got one when Aria was 2 for 7DMT, and again at age 3 for Splash. It was only ever when Aria seemed like she REALLY wanted to ride that the CM handed it out.

I love the new M&M set up at DHS too, haven't seen it in person yet but I hope to in June. Now that I know where it is lol! I appreciated the pics from Andrew, and sent him a bunch in return of Aria of course!

Oooh I didn't see that, will have to look at your dates. I saw the 20th thing and thought of you, but we're a couple days off. If I had booked our flights with Southwest and was able to change them, I might have added a few days to the trip - but Jet Blue charges change fees so I just left it alone. Assuming you're going to the EPCOT party?

I did book HDDR for that evening, which works out perfectly since I wanted to get over there for the Chip & Dale Campfire anyway!

Hahah I thought that the MK day (can I go anywhere else on my birthday!!) sounded great, and CG is always amazing. Good to know about the chocolate dessert lol! I'm looking forward to revisiting Spice Road, I went when they first opened up, but not since they started taking reservations and expanded their menu slightly.

I loved reading about your mom/daughter trip. I had never considered going to Disney with just Landon before, but after reading about how much fun you two had, it's something that's on my radar now.
All the Disney Jr. stuff at DHS is great. I feel like that park is severely lacking in toddler-friendly activities, but the things they do have are some of my kid's favorite things. I hope they keep it up for awhile.

You have had a busy week! I really hope for your sake you get a day to unwind and rest. Because we all know life is only going to to get crazier once Baby # 3 arrives.

I am SO glad we did that, and it won't be the last trip for just Aria & Me (and I'm sure many with just Maya, esp once Aria starts school!). And #3...I can't complain about too many Disney trips hahaha. Gotta make it even, right

I'm hoping the new Toy Story area with the play area is really great for that age range, because yeah right now there's not much! At least it leaves us more time for the other parks lol.

Haha, that actually describes our first ride ever on Winnie the Pooh! It's so weird seeing all the not-to-be-seen stuff with the lights on.


So, on this last trip, without Dug slowing me down, Izzy and I got to Tusker House early and I tried to check in - and they wouldn't let me! They made me come back 5 minutes before my ADR. So much for being early!


That does sound amazing!


This is a good reminder for me. We have never done Hoop De Doo and I've seen so many good reviews of it (like from you). I might try to work it into the October trip.


I would recommend, when you are at Guest Services to upgrade his AP, to ask the CM something like, "When we booked our FP, I couldn't book his with us for X day until we did this upgrade - is there any way for him to join us on our FP rides on that day?" If you're lucky, maybe you can get a CM that will toss on some anything FP for him.


This reminds me - Izzy was talking about WDW today and said she wants to "go on that thing that goes around and has the ride around it and is in the Soarin' building". I finally figured out she was asking to eat at Garden Grill, not go on a ride. So, I might book a GG breakfast. Heck, this is during our overlap, so maybe meeting up for breakfast is an option, though I don't know they'd have a booth that big (I have zero planned right now for October...need to get on that).


Just went back and looked at your list when we overlap. This is the other meal I was thinking of doing, as we've never had dinner at BoG or met Beast. Again, I have no plans or flights yet and I think this is our arrival night, so not sure when we'll want to do it. But just FYI.


Wow, this all sounds mind-boggling with the babies and RS and FP. I'm too tired tonight to even think about it. Good luck!


That sounds like a really nice plan!


Yay, congrats!


Can't wait to hear all about these too!


Huh, weird. Could there be something else in the almond milk or cross contamination during processing?


You do! I hope you get one at some point!


So glad you got to take that trip. I had that "easy" feeling on this last trip w/just me and 4.5 year old Izzy. Much less stuff to deal with and it seemed like a lot less work than in her baby/toddler days.

Hahaha just your luck to show up early and not be able to check into the restaurant!

Good tips for the AP upgrade, maybe they will! That would be really nice.

I used Kenny the Pirates hours & crowd calendar for October, so hopefully we'll overlap on a few days! Garden Grill as a big group would be fun, you know where we sat in December? I bet they can combine those two tables into one big area. Ok let me know about BoG too. Our booking window opens Wednesday April 5th so I plan to make all the ressies that day.

I'm not sure about the almond milk thing. It was definitely various almond milks, considering I go grocery shopping near work sometimes and sometimes near home, plus daycare buys different milk? IDK. I do know that our allergist place needs more intelligent nurses. I mentioned the almond milk thing and her first reaction was "well she's allergic to dairy, so it's milk, I'm not surprised she reacted". Um, ALMOND milk is not "Dairy Milk". Considering she WORKS at an allergist office I was just dumbfounded at her ignorance.

I really enjoyed having our car seat for Arthur at 8 weeks old in the parks (even in August) we had a stroller fan and the canopies on both the car seat and stroller closed to keep him out of the sun and he was quite content in the and slept a lot. We did also often put a frog togg under him to keep him cool.
View attachment 227702
The canopies closed towards each other so it worked well for us.

I can't even imagine having to go back to work as quickly as you do in the US. I'm so happy we get 50 weeks paid leave in Canada, though I did then choose not to go back to work as well.

We had a really fun time at Hoop Dee Doo with Arthur at 8 weeks but I don't know how maya would do through the show. It's kind of that awkward time when they don't sit very long to eat.

I only just stopped breastfeeding Arthur completely at just under 21 months (only st bedtime for the last 4ish months though) but it must have been really hard trying to make that decision while also adjusting to allergies.

Considering the lack of infant seats in restaurants, I am definitely leaning towards the car seat thing again - our main issue was with Maya, since she hardly wanted to be in it. We plan to have the car seat though (since we're renting a car) so we'll have the option of the car seat or stroller seat depending on what seems to be working.

It is terrible. And considering I am NOT getting any paid maternity leave at all, it's just embarrassing to be in this country.

At 5 months, it was very hard to make that decision to stop nursing. BUT after a couple weeks, I felt SO much better about the decision. She did so great on Neocate formula and I felt like I had my body/life back, not having to worry about slip ups with food and how it would make her feel terrible for days on end, it was just ultimately the best decision for us.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Oh that card thing - it's when a kid who is too short goes up to a ride to measure themselves. Sometimes a CM will give them a card, that basically acts like a future FP for when the child is tall enough! We got one when Aria was 2 for 7DMT, and again at age 3 for Splash. It was only ever when Aria seemed like she REALLY wanted to ride that the CM handed it out.

I love the new M&M set up at DHS too, haven't seen it in person yet but I hope to in June. Now that I know where it is lol! I appreciated the pics from Andrew, and sent him a bunch in return of Aria of course!

Oooh I didn't see that, will have to look at your dates. I saw the 20th thing and thought of you, but we're a couple days off. If I had booked our flights with Southwest and was able to change them, I might have added a few days to the trip - but Jet Blue charges change fees so I just left it alone. Assuming you're going to the EPCOT party?

I did book HDDR for that evening, which works out perfectly since I wanted to get over there for the Chip & Dale Campfire anyway!

Hahah I thought that the MK day (can I go anywhere else on my birthday!!) sounded great, and CG is always amazing. Good to know about the chocolate dessert lol! I'm looking forward to revisiting Spice Road, I went when they first opened up, but not since they started taking reservations and expanded their menu slightly.

Oh ok - I had heard of that ... I thought it meant it was something she got for just being tall enough to ride, not from when she was just too short. Got it - still neat thing they do I think!

I am just going down for a quickie solo trip - I fly down the morning of the May 31st will take ME to POP and then go right over to Animal Kingdom. Meeting up with some other DISers there and mostly will be just for Pandora (they have those "extra" extra magic hours then where it is open to 1am (just Pandora)) - though would like to see Rivers of Light too since it wasn't open our last trip. Then the first will be low key, meeting up with other people and checking out some new watering holes (likely Geyser Point and Abracadabar) and old (Trader Sam'), then watch the new fireworks show from the TTC before taking the monorail over to EPCOT for the party. Then I fly back on the first

Glad you booked HHDR - should be a really fun evening! And hope you enjoy Spice Road!

 

[Imagineer5]

Oh ok - I had heard of that ... I thought it meant it was something she got for just being tall enough to ride, not from when she was just too short. Got it - still neat thing they do I think!

I am just going down for a quickie solo trip - I fly down the morning of the May 31st will take ME to POP and then go right over to Animal Kingdom. Meeting up with some other DISers there and mostly will be just for Pandora (they have those "extra" extra magic hours then where it is open to 1am (just Pandora)) - though would like to see Rivers of Light too since it wasn't open our last trip. Then the first will be low key, meeting up with other people and checking out some new watering holes (likely Geyser Point and Abracadabar) and old (Trader Sam'), then watch the new fireworks show from the TTC before taking the monorail over to EPCOT for the party. Then I fly back on the first

Glad you booked HHDR - should be a really fun evening! And hope you enjoy Spice Road!

Oh that sounds like SO much fun!!

 

[Dugette]

I do know that our allergist place needs more intelligent nurses. I mentioned the almond milk thing and her first reaction was "well she's allergic to dairy, so it's milk, I'm not surprised she reacted". Um, ALMOND milk is not "Dairy Milk". Considering she WORKS at an allergist office I was just dumbfounded at her ignorance.

Wow, that is terrible!

 

[Imagineer5]

So let's recap our May-August 2016 life <3 We got back from Disney to warm weather! YAY!

Aria had a belated 4-year dr apt (41" and 33lbs - she is now 43" and 36lbs). and Maya had her 6-month apt - 27" and 14lbs (don't worry, she is now 31" and 22lbs!).

Right at 6months, Maya started crawling although she had a cute little alligator crawl for a bit.

We visited the Providence zoo quite a bit (we get in there free with our Boston Museum of Science membership - so worth it!)

Aria had her very first lemonade stand - she made over $50!

We spent a warm summer day at Edaville amusement park which is very close by (hard to do on my own though since there are a number of rides that have height requirements that Aria has to ride with me).

Mid-June strawberry picking

For Father's Day I planned a day out in Boston which included a Duck Boat Tour, swan boats on the common, and lunch. it was a great day!

Aria had her first gymnastics show and then we took a break from gymnastics for the summer (which was very nice lol!).

June 24th- 7 months old and little miss Maya thought skipping working on her crawl and going straight to standing and cruising would be a good idea!

We had our annual Cape week, where we got to meet the babies Sofia & Wyatt (who were born during our May trip!)

Provincetown is filled with different people (us included!)

At the P-town monument

Maya & Andrew on the beach

Aria loves the water

Grandkids last summer- two more baby girls will be there this year! <3

We also had the very exciting news that Lynda was pregnant and she and Aron were getting married! It was a small ceremony followed by a fun reception.

We had Andrew's birthday celebration, then I found out about the possibility of a late-August meeting for one of my work projects in San Diego! I crunched some numbers, checked Andrew's leave (not enough) then Lynda's (none) then my mom's (yes she could come) and booked the trip!

Early August, Andrew spent a weekend with Aria up in Maine at his family's camp, they had a blast, and Maya and I had a lot of fun too. I took her to the zoo and we hung out. It was nice to have that one-on-one time with her too!

Mid-August Aria got to meet Chase from Paw Patrol with her friend Landon

Then on the day Maya turned 9-months old - we headed off for the first leg of our trip - Disneyland!!

Our plans were as follows: August 19-22 Disneyland, staying at the Grand Californian. Then 22-25 in San Diego, staying at the Hilton San Diego Resort & Spa. I still haven't uploaded all the photos so that TR is to come.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Looks like a great summer filled with memories. Fun to see you went to the Providence zoo after we just stopped there a month ago or so

Though clearly the highlight for Aria must have been meeting Chase!