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

[Imagineer5]

Aria was really brave about the "big" rides! Difference in boys and girls- mine wait for that explosion and get sooooooo excited when it goes off. The louder the better..... My poor ears. And Space at her age really is brave-- I love the DL version SO much (I would leave the WDW version forever off my list if my family didn't like it so much.).

Your mom..... Oh, boy. Seriously, she reminds me SO much of mine. I am making mental notes about ALL the things I can do to be helpful to my kids when they have their own families now--sheesh. At least your food was good?!

I'm not a huge parade person-- I do like FoF, and I LOVE the MNSSHP parade, but I found the Electrical Parade at WDW kind of annoying. You had good seats, though! And I love Maya's "whaaaaaat?!" face-- it just seem SO crazy to a baby!

I had the strongest feeling baby Emma was/is arriving today-- weird, huh? You could still totally make K registration if she did!

I was surprised that she was so nervous on the rides, after how much fun she'd had on them at WDW (BTMRR and Splash especially) but I think the Yeti really freaked her out lol. Thankfully she was still up for trying them and knows it's all pretend, and that I'm right there.

I'm *really* trying not to be too hard on my mom, but the waking up incident really pissed me off I couldn't leave it out of the TR hahahaha. Also I wanted everyone to really see why I thought maybe I was just SO annoyed that is why I didn't know I was pregnant. Because seriously, I was SO irritated and it was hard to get past.

Yeah, Maya's eyes were WIDE open during the parade, even at 8 weeks old back in January, she was wide awake and staring for the parade.

Today would be JUST fine, if baby decided to come! lol! But no I am sitting at work. Actually, tomorrow daycare is closed (she has to take a class or something to renew her daycare license once every few years), so I'll be home with the girls and promised Aria I'll take them to the children's museum in Providence. Soooo...she can come tomorrow too. Anytime this weekend really! lol. Last night I had SUCH a bad backache and cramps, but felt better in the morning.

 

[khertz]

Oh good Lord, I was MISERABLY behind on this TR but I made it my mission to get caught up tonight!!! I only quoted a couple of things because there was just too much to comment on, but I am loving the DL updates!! I'm so ready for our trip to get here and just this week made our couple of dining reservations, so now I know it is getting close. This is the perfect TR to get me even more ready!!

Okay, way back when I was finishing your May TR, this made my jaw literally DROP!! That is madness!

I don't remember the exact height requirement, but she was tall enough to ride a tandem swing with me, but not one by herself (which was okay with me considering how high we went!).

Ooh, I know this!! I JUST googled DL height restrictions tonight for DS since he measured himself at 46" and wanted to know what he could ride. lol It's 48" like California Screamin. So those are basically the only two things he CAN'T do (but I'm sure there will still be some he WON'T do!) I'm hoping to at least get him on Indiana Jones and BTMR, but I'm keeping fingers crossed for Space and/or Matterhorn.

So you WILL see me riding everything, drinking/eating whatever, etc, and if that bothers you then feel free to move on lol.

This made me lol!

On our last trip (and every other one I can remember) ToonTown didn't open up until 10AM and they had a little opening ceremony. So that is why I was shooting for 10AM to be at Toontown. Well, it was wide-open and turns out it opened up along with the rest of the park! Whoops

Good to know, as I was under the same impression! It has always been 10 am on our previous trips as well.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

The Toontown in Disneyland is really cute and cool - much better than what used to be at WDW. I don't know if you listen tot he Disneyland DIS Podcast by Michael Bowling did a series covering Disney in the 90s and part of it was about the building of Toontown and the motivation behind it and the reaction to it, etc. Another big thing covered is the building of the Indiana Jones ride so that might interest you as well.

Wow, we never got to meet Minnie when we were there as the wait was never less than 45 mins (her line was always longer than for Mickey).

Sorry Aria didn't enjoy Splash better - it is interesting how the seat set up on different rides can have such an impact on kids' views of those rides

that is a crazy set up for single riders at Indiana Jones. That ride is amazing but the lines are not! We used fastpass when we went but needed to rider swap and it took well over an hour for us to get through it in two shifts despite using FP

Looks like a pretty fun afternoon using up the RS - well, other than the challenges with your mom checking you in (or not) for Blue Bayou. Glad you were able to get a waterside table eventually though. I often read some mixed things about the food at Blue Bayou but I know we really enjoyed our meal there

What were your thoughts of the Hyperspace overlay to Space Mountain? We had the Ghost Galazy overlay and it was pretty cool but I am definitely intrigued by the Hyperspace one

haha - that is funny that we have the reverse reaction to the two paraded - but perhaps for the same reason in that they were each really hyped up for us setting expectations really high. Not sure what it is about Paint the Night but just the energy and the music with it just draws me in - despite seeing in 3 times in person I still find myself watching it on youtube at times.

Glad to read that overall Maya was napping and sleeping pretty well

 

[khertz]

Also, I forgot to mention, sorry traveling with your mom was so frustrating. Sounds like traveling with my mother in law. When I had Delilah, she said she could come stay with us to help but couldn't really help with the baby, just with Paxton. I was like thanks but no thanks. He is in school all day! When she came to stay and "help" after Paxton was born she spent her days watching HGTV and making herself lunch without cleaning up the dishes she used! I would definitely not take her as backup for a vacation!! Lol

 

[FantasiaMagic]

Hi Lauren!

Wow, it's been a long time since I've been over here but I finally came back to the DIS! I am all caught up with your TR! I loved reading the end of your December trip. Also, the My trip you took with only Aria sounded like so much fun! And of course, I am loving your DL trip!

How exciting you have some trips coming up! I am also headed to WDW this summer and planning on booking the Trattoria Bon Voyage breakfast. I will be interested to hear your review on it. I love how there is finally a character breakfast with princesses and their princes!

I'm looking forward to reading more of your DL trip!

-Alison

 

[Imagineer5]

Oh good Lord, I was MISERABLY behind on this TR but I made it my mission to get caught up tonight!!! I only quoted a couple of things because there was just too much to comment on, but I am loving the DL updates!! I'm so ready for our trip to get here and just this week made our couple of dining reservations, so now I know it is getting close. This is the perfect TR to get me even more ready!!



Okay, way back when I was finishing your May TR, this made my jaw literally DROP!! That is madness!



Ooh, I know this!! I JUST googled DL height restrictions tonight for DS since he measured himself at 46" and wanted to know what he could ride. lol It's 48" like California Screamin. So those are basically the only two things he CAN'T do (but I'm sure there will still be some he WON'T do!) I'm hoping to at least get him on Indiana Jones and BTMR, but I'm keeping fingers crossed for Space and/or Matterhorn.




This made me lol!



Good to know, as I was under the same impression! It has always been 10 am on our previous trips as well.

That's okay!! Can't wait to hear about your trip!

It was really fun doing the silly swings with Aria, so I didn't mind that she wasn't tall enough to go solo (she didn't mind either!). It's pretty high so I wouldn't have felt comfortable setting her off on her own anyway lol!

The Toontown in Disneyland is really cute and cool - much better than what used to be at WDW. I don't know if you listen tot he Disneyland DIS Podcast by Michael Bowling did a series covering Disney in the 90s and part of it was about the building of Toontown and the motivation behind it and the reaction to it, etc. Another big thing covered is the building of the Indiana Jones ride so that might interest you as well.

Wow, we never got to meet Minnie when we were there as the wait was never less than 45 mins (her line was always longer than for Mickey).

Sorry Aria didn't enjoy Splash better - it is interesting how the seat set up on different rides can have such an impact on kids' views of those rides

that is a crazy set up for single riders at Indiana Jones. That ride is amazing but the lines are not! We used fastpass when we went but needed to rider swap and it took well over an hour for us to get through it in two shifts despite using FP

Looks like a pretty fun afternoon using up the RS - well, other than the challenges with your mom checking you in (or not) for Blue Bayou. Glad you were able to get a waterside table eventually though. I often read some mixed things about the food at Blue Bayou but I know we really enjoyed our meal there

What were your thoughts of the Hyperspace overlay to Space Mountain? We had the Ghost Galazy overlay and it was pretty cool but I am definitely intrigued by the Hyperspace one

haha - that is funny that we have the reverse reaction to the two paraded - but perhaps for the same reason in that they were each really hyped up for us setting expectations really high. Not sure what it is about Paint the Night but just the energy and the music with it just draws me in - despite seeing in 3 times in person I still find myself watching it on youtube at times.

Glad to read that overall Maya was napping and sleeping pretty well

I have very little recollection of the TT at WDW, just know it was there at some point. Yeah we definitely hit it at a good time though to do the meets and rides!

Everytime I wanted to do IJ (i.e. when my mom was willing to take both girls) we had FP's for something else lined up, so I think that is why I just always did single rider. It's a mess! Worse than RnRC!

Well, you know my views on Star Wars, so I thought that overlay was unnecessary lol. I feel like I saw Ghost Galaxy overlay at some point too, and remember that being pretty scary? Anyway, the SW theme added to Aria's nervousness to the ride, though I'm sure anyone who likes Star Wars would really enjoy the added dimension to Space. (Much like if they had made it a Harry Potter theme I'd have been all over it).

Also, I forgot to mention, sorry traveling with your mom was so frustrating. Sounds like traveling with my mother in law. When I had Delilah, she said she could come stay with us to help but couldn't really help with the baby, just with Paxton. I was like thanks but no thanks. He is in school all day! When she came to stay and "help" after Paxton was born she spent her days watching HGTV and making herself lunch without cleaning up the dishes she used! I would definitely not take her as backup for a vacation!! Lol

Oh WOW, I would not be okay with that!! Actually having anyone around much after coming home from the hospital just doesn't work for me, even with #3 almost here, I have no interest in having people stay. IL's will be coming when it's baby time to watch Aria & Maya which reminds me I haven't really done a good job preparing food for Maya for that time hhmm! The last time though they left the day we got home, my mom came that day but stayed maybe 2 days. My mom asked me if I wanted her to come for a week or so after Andrew goes back to work and I responded with a very definite no. Nobody has cooked for us EVER, IL's left left-over Thai food last time which was nice lol, and my mom eats weirdo stuff that I don't want, so between all that, I'd rather just have my house to myself!

And definitely NOT clean up after anyone. It drove me crazy, bc DH was off running around cooking/cleaning/etc when ppl came when Maya was born, since I refused to do it - but that doesn't help things either when he could be helping out with the diapers or whatnot.

Hi Lauren!

Wow, it's been a long time since I've been over here but I finally came back to the DIS! I am all caught up with your TR! I loved reading the end of your December trip. Also, the My trip you took with only Aria sounded like so much fun! And of course, I am loving your DL trip!

How exciting you have some trips coming up! I am also headed to WDW this summer and planning on booking the Trattoria Bon Voyage breakfast. I will be interested to hear your review on it. I love how there is finally a character breakfast with princesses and their princes!

I'm looking forward to reading more of your DL trip!

-Alison

Hi! Thanks for coming over and catching up! When is your trip this summer?? I've heard good things about the breakfast so I am excited to try it!

 

[TinkLoverSam]

I ended up on bed rest almost immediately after coming home with my son and my dh was working 12 hour overnight shifts so my mom came out for a week to help me because I wasn't supposed to be out of bed and I wasn't even allowed to pick Arthur up (he was too heavy at almost 10 lbs) but she was awesome and cooked and did laundry. My mil arrived in town the day I left the hospital and she did very little.

 

[FantasiaMagic]

Hi! Thanks for coming over and catching up! When is your trip this summer?? I've heard good things about the breakfast so I am excited to try it!

I'll be there late July into early August!

 

[Imagineer5]

On our next full park day, we had plans to spend the day at DCA. I decided to try out the GC entrance into DCA, so we arrived about 7:30AM and were behind about 20 people waiting in line. I was surprised that security was there, but hadn't opened up to at least start going through bags, as there was sufficient space in the entrance area to start a line after security. Aria played with last night's light up toys (and you can see here she was already dressed for our lunch - she chose to wear this all morning vs changing just for lunch).

We were let in about 8:01, and half ran half fast walked to Cars Land, along with everyone else haha. Of course, we were heading to Radiator Springs. I pushed the stroller so we could all keep up and arrive together to grab the rider swap, then my mom was able to relax as Aria & I entered the Radiator Springs queue. It wasn't long, though we didn't make it onto a car until 8:15.

Quick pic as we walked through the line:

Despite NOT having a Cars obsessed kid (we've seen it maybe twice)- she LOVED the ride!! SOOOO much better than Test Track, the theming is just fabulous! We loved it.

My mom had disappeared when we came out, and wasn't answering her phone, so while trying to figure out where she was, I took Aria over to Mater's junkyard jamboree. Maya is too small for all of the rides in Cars Land, but I thought my mom would be waiting at the end of RSR.

This one is a HUGE hit, so much fun, we both cracked up the whole ride!

After that we figured out she had gotten waylaid by a bathroom break and turned around. LOL So we decided to head to TSMM, knowing no FP for that and Maya had a short window until her first nap (BTW, if you haven't heard, they are adding FP for TSMM!).

I rode with Maya and my mom rode with Aria

We had a blast on that ride! My mom decided to hop on Single Rider for California Screamin' and since I was right there and the line was short, Aria, Maya and I hopped right back on.

Our scores-

Then it was my turn to head onto California Screamin single rider, so I did that while my mom headed over to Bug's Land. I was hoping Maya would fall asleep in the stroller at this point.

Soon afterwards, I met up with them, but Maya hadn't fallen asleep, so we rode the Ladybug Boogie ride

I also checked the wait times for ToT for my mom and noticed they were nonexistent, so she went to ride that - Aria was adamant about not riding and I'm indifferent (gasp!) but she wanted to ride it.

Both girls really enjoyed it, although I didn't get the awesome smiles like I did on our last trip here when Aria was 2. Then we hopped on Flik's Flyers, which was fine...

My mom rejoined us so I put Maya down in the stroller again and covered her up, hoping for the best. Aria and I headed in to do the bumper cars!

Then we switched and my mom took Aria on the Chew Chew train

And I peeked in the stroller to see this!

And then I took Aria to the chew chew train too since there was no line. This ride bugs me (ha) IDK why, but it feels like the shortest Disney ride EVER plus how you board reminds me of a carnival ride? I think it's my least favorite DL ride there is. lol!

After that, my mom ran off to ride something, but I have no clue what. It was something Aria didn't care to do, so instead we decided to visit with some characters while we awaited our next FP which was for Soarin'. First, we saw a fairly short wait for the Zootopia characters so that sounded perfect (plus Maya was still sleeping and they let me bring the stroller through the queue thankfully).

I hopped in for a quick photo too

Then right next door Olaf was meeting, another first-time meeting him! There was NO wait for him at all!

He immediately went to twirl Aria around

Then Maya woke up about this point, but Aria spotted Sofia out so we hopped in her line while I got Maya up and out of the stroller

Coming up, a sweet meet and great lunch!

 

[Imagineer5]

Shortly afterwards, my mom rejoined us, and took Aria over to ride Soarin. I followed to grab a rider swap, and then found a shady spot to sit and make Maya's bottle. They were in there quite some time so eventually I took Maya over to hop in a line to meet Pluto.

I handed the CM my phone to take photos, but you can't really see how sweet the interaction was. Maya was SO cute with him, gently petting his nose and laughing.

She kept wanting to hold on to his mouth

It was really cute!

Soon Aria & my mom came out after their fun ride, and we split ways - my mom didn't want to go to lunch at Ariel's Grotto after seeing the price tag, so instead she headed off to find food and I took the girls to lunch. Maya was in a super cute mood -

We parked the stroller outside and headed in, and were called down stairs pretty quickly. It's set up like Akershus where you meet one princess (Ariel in this case) and then the rest come to the table.

Ariel was so sweet with Aria- they danced:

I got a blurry photo with Maya in there, and the photopass pic didn't come out any better

Then we were seated at a nice big table. I wanted the girls on the outside to be near the characters, but the table was so big that it was awkward to be sitting across from Maya, so instead I sat at the end of the table.

The girls got crowns and stickers to decorate them which was cute!

Maya's didn't last very long

The princesses entered at a door near our table so that was fun for them to watch (and Maya was NOT scared, unlike in December...).

I had read somewhere that we could order the "secret" drinks from the Cove bar upstairs while dining at Ariel's Grotto. Testing my luck, I did just that...

That's the Fun Wheel drink. How gorgeous?! Aria was disappointed I would not share it with her! So much fun, especially since I didn't think I'd ever have a chance to get to the Cove Bar this trip (I didn't).

I informed our server of Maya's allergies, and they were happy to make something dairy/egg/peanut free for her which was nice (at least to keep her busy, since I did have packets and snacks and stuff).

I started out with some sort of soup (how's that for dining reporting?!)

And Belle came over to say hi! I hadn't actually written down who all would be showing up, so aside from Ariel, I had no idea who came to lunch here! There are two I was very surprised about .. (not belle)

She was really sweet. Aria likes to point out that Belle is my favorite princess, thus she will never be Aria's favorite, lol!

Aria received a plate of carrots and cucumbers for an appetizer, and enjoyed her carrots while Maya liked the cucumbers

And Rapunzel came over!! How awesome! (before the Bon Voyage breakfast opened up, she didn't meet anywhere for a meal ,right? So she was a total surprise)

I ordered the corn cakes for my main dish (funny because I'm pretty certain these are both vegan and gluten free lol). They were pretty good, although blander than I was expecting.

Aria had the Whozits and Whatzitz AKA chicken fingers and tater tots, with watermelon which was a big hit

They brought out a plate of noodles for Maya - with parmesan cheese! Ugh! I caught it though and they sent it back.

Then Cinderella came over to say hi, Maya was interested in both her and the cucumber.

Soon a totally plain plate of spaghetti showed up

Maya thought it was fun to play with, and I took the plate away pretty soon after it arrived lol.

Then another surprise princess came over - Tiana! She's also a favorite, so that was a great surprise!

Our desserts came over and the little fishbowl of jello was the biggest hit for Aria!

They also surprised me by bringing out a bowl full of raspberry sorbet for Maya

AND of course, my plate as well.

I think if there had been more adults, we still would have shared the plate? But as it was, I got it all to myself, and didn't mind one bit! I love crème brulee, and this was a mango coconut and very good! The chocolate cake was very good as well.

Maya wasn't super into the raspberry sorbet, although she does love it now!

And then we headed out from lunch! I thought it went REALLY great, especially after not doing too many meals out by myself with both girls. We did have two different bathroom runs, one for Maya (Aria went then) then a few minutes later Aria had to go again. I will say, I am SO glad I treated myself to a new diaper bag when I found out I was pregnant with #3. The new one is a backpack style and SO much easier to take with me places.

Coming up (maybe tomorrow?) more DCA time, a Frozen special event, and dinner at Downtown Disney.

 

[FantasiaMagic]

Radiator Springs Racers sounds like so much fun. If the theming is anything like the Cars section at AoA, then you know it has to be beautiful!
It seems like you all got a lot accomplished that day. Many fun rides and character meets! (Especially the Zootopia duo, I love them!)
Aw, Ariel's Grotto sounds like so much fun. That will be a must do for me whenever I get to go to DL!

Looking forward to more!

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Sounds like a productive day so far - glad Aria enjoyed Radiator Springs Racer so much ... it definitely is a great ride

It's funny I loved the Chew Chew Train ride but maybe just because I enjoyed doing Heimlich impersonations for the rest of the day

Those are some great meets! So cool they have a meet with Nick and Judy there and nice that Maya had a super memorable meet with Pluto (and to think some people say to wait until your kids are older to go!)

Lunch at Ariel's Grotto is probably the one that surpassed my expectations the most during our trip and seems like you had a really good meal there too! We did have Tiana as well (so maybe she is semi-regular there?) but having Rapunzel is really cool. Oh, and I just checked my report and we each got a dessert sampler so even with more than one adult you wouldn't share it

 

[Imagineer5]

Radiator Springs Racers sounds like so much fun. If the theming is anything like the Cars section at AoA, then you know it has to be beautiful!
It seems like you all got a lot accomplished that day. Many fun rides and character meets! (Especially the Zootopia duo, I love them!)
Aw, Ariel's Grotto sounds like so much fun. That will be a must do for me whenever I get to go to DL!

Looking forward to more!

RSR and Cars land is fantastic, seriously! And that's coming from a non-Cars-lover lol. I mean, I like the movies but that's about the extent. I haven't actually been to AoA tbh, but have seen photos!

The Zootopia duo was great! Esp after reading about how hard it is to meet them at WDW. We loved lunch at Ariel's! I wish they offered the WoC package during lunch (I think they do for dinner only, when there's no characters?)

Sounds like a productive day so far - glad Aria enjoyed Radiator Springs Racer so much ... it definitely is a great ride

It's funny I loved the Chew Chew Train ride but maybe just because I enjoyed doing Heimlich impersonations for the rest of the day

Those are some great meets! So cool they have a meet with Nick and Judy there and nice that Maya had a super memorable meet with Pluto (and to think some people say to wait until your kids are older to go!)

Lunch at Ariel's Grotto is probably the one that surpassed my expectations the most during our trip and seems like you had a really good meal there too! We did have Tiana as well (so maybe she is semi-regular there?) but having Rapunzel is really cool. Oh, and I just checked my report and we each got a dessert sampler so even with more than one adult you wouldn't share it

We had so much fun on RSR! What did you impersonate from Heimlich?? LOL! I wasn't impressed with it when Aria was 2, and even less so when she was 4 haha.

YES, seriously, this trip with Maya was probably our best overall with her so far (3 "Disney" trips under her belt - 2 WDW and 1 DL). She was so into the characters and rides and it was really fun to see. And it was before the dreaded character fear set in...

Yes! We had a great lunch and great character interactions. I wish I had about 10 more hands, to do some better photos and videos while also making sure Maya wasn't touching her allergens and Aria was eating and the meets were going well...but alas it was just me lol.

Good to know I wouldn't have had to share that dessert platter haha! It was great!

 

[schmass]

This TR is making me want to go back to DL so bad!!

Great job at lunch by yourself with the girls! That looks like a great princess meal. I'm glad you caught the mistake with Maya's meal!

Cars Land looks like so much fun!!

I can't believe how close you are to meeting Emma - so excited for you!

 

[Imagineer5]

After our lunch, my mom was waiting to meet up with us so we headed back to the Paradise Pier area. Aria wanted to check out the Jumpin Jellyfish again so I got to ride it with her this time.

My mom hung out with Maya-

Oh we had also stopped for an outfit change, Aria had had enough of her Ariel dress haha.

Next up was the Silly Swings again, my mom didn't want to ride these (afraid of getting sick) so I got to ride with Aria.

Afterwards we used up the rider swap over at Grizzly River Run - somehow I convinced Aria to ride with her Gramma so she did.

Meanwhile I was on the bridge with a napping Maya. After their ride, my mom took Maya back to the room while I took Aria over to our special event! (My mom didn't want to pay for the Frozen package).

We had the Frozen Pre-Show Package booked, which included snacks, drinks, photo opportunities, and reserved seating for the Frozen show. The Frozen show at DCA is a live-action theater production much like Aladdin was (which was AMAZING BTW and something I really miss, and TBH I don't feel like they really needed to add MORE Frozen...but whatever...I bought these tickets anyway). I did this because 1) I heard that the Frozen show line is CRAZY and I didn't care to line up hours beforehand to catch a show and 2) I thought it'd be fun to spend some quality time with Aria since my mom didn't care to do this.

Anyway, we checked in early and relaxed in some shade while waiting to get in. Kind of annoying, but each ticket cost the same, but only the adults were given 1 alcoholic drink beverage coupon. Obviously I wouldn't want my then 4-year old getting an adult beverage, but a reduction in price would have been nice!

We got inside and made our rounds checking out the options. There was a shaved ice station which Aria was excited about, as well as popcorn, and then some juice, wine and beer. We grabbed a table with Frozen Trouble on it and played that for a bit! You can also see the shaved ice options (which had those bubble tea things which Aria loved):

At this point, my phone was on 1% battery and my mom had taken the stroller with the mobile charger - eek! I had thankfully given her an estimated return time, but if any issues came about with Maya this was not good. SO I put away the phone, and realized I actually had the water camera with me....but....that battery was blinking red. Ugh. I managed a few photos but mostly just hung out with Aria, so sorry for the lack of photos! I did find a few thanks to the DIS so I'll post those too.

Shaved Ice options: (I went back for the Root Beer one later)

I was surprised there was only wine, beer, water and non alcoholic mango apple cider as the drink options, and Aria didn't like the cider. Boo!

Initially it was pretty quiet in here

We found some crayons so did some coloring, and I savored my wine slowly.

A CM came over and asked Aria to help her put together a puzzle, so she had a lot of fun doing that

Also before it got too busy, we took photos with the included Photopass guys (which was nice)

I haven't seen these rock-trolls anywhere for sale, but they were so cute!

They had a few different backdrops to take photos with

Then Olaf came out so Aria hopped in a short line to meet him

Shortly before the show started, they had a little snow effect inside

And then we were taken as a large group over to the theater. A number of people took bags of popcorn, but I didn't think we'd be able to eat inside the theater (should have asked a CM about this) and I was wrong! Boo. They had concessions walking around, but it would have been nice to be given something to munch on during the show (or be handed popcorn as we left).

The seats were in a great spot though (you can see here we were seated before they let in everyone else)

Photos were allowed so I took a couple before the battery totally died. The show was great though - very well done and beautiful stage sets.

And that was it! The cost was $49 for the pre-show package (each). I'm not sure it was worth it to be honest - it wasn't much food, or drinks, and it was cancelled shortly after our visit so maybe others didn't find it worth it either lol. But we had a great time and that is what mattered most! Afterwards, I was anxious to get back to the room and check on how things were going with Maya, since my phone had officially died. Thankfully everyone was alive although Maya was in a poor mood as I guess she had woken up as they got back to the room - after a 15 minute nap.

 

[Imagineer5]

This TR is making me want to go back to DL so bad!!

Great job at lunch by yourself with the girls! That looks like a great princess meal. I'm glad you caught the mistake with Maya's meal!

Cars Land looks like so much fun!!

I can't believe how close you are to meeting Emma - so excited for you!

I know, I have been really wanting to go back too! Thanks so much, I want her to get here already!

 

[Imagineer5]

Shortly after getting back to the room, we headed out to Downtown Disney. We had no particular plans for dinner, but my mom thought Mexican sounded good and that is one type of food we definitely agree on! We were all hungry too, so we headed to Tortilla Jo's. The wait was about 45 minutes for an inside table but only 15 for outside, and it was a gorgeous evening so we opted to put our names in outside. My mom called my step father and chatted while the girls played.

We didn't have a long wait, and soon were seated at a great table along the fence overlooking Downtown Disney. I started off with a margarita flight (much to my mother's dismay) and we also flagged over the tableside guacamole cart!

At our local Mexican place, the tableside guac is $8 - seriously cheaper than if you tried to make a huge bowl of it yourself!! Here it was more than double that if I remember correctly, but still amazing and delicious and so fresh. Bonus, something we all enjoyed (well, minus Maya, she is weird and STILL doesn't like avocados!).

While we enjoyed the guacamole and waited for our dishes, a balloon guy came around. He was just working for tips, and of course Aria wanted one so I obliged. It was fun though to watch him make things for many tables around the restaurant so between that and the live music from Downtown Disney we had quite the entertainment.

Maya really enjoyed watching him as well

Aria asked for a purple and pink unicorn

The loud atmosphere was nice because Maya wasn't in the best of moods, but her little bit of whininess was drowned out. Aria wasn't feeling the food, either, so she ordered a bowl of fruit.

I had a really, really delicious enchilada meal with chicken. Mmm it was SO good.

My mom had a veggie enchilada meal, which she also really loved. We were having a really great time (finally!).

And Aria was enjoying her unicorn. We didn't get a balloon for Maya because she probably would have popped it but she was content snacking on her little fruit & veggie melts and chips.

After our great dinner, we stopped at a couple shops and then headed back to the room. We already had to check out the next morning! boo! But don't worry, we still have some park time (in both parks!), AND a really fabulous character meal before we head south to San Diego! Stay tuned!

 

[amazingact21]

I'm all caught up. Sounds like you and the girls were having a fun time at DL. I wish I could see Toontown for myself while my kids are still young. It looks so entertaining, and the meet and greets at the end are an added bonus.
I'm kind of glad to see someone was a little underwhelmed with Paint the Night. Everyone seems to rave about that parade, and while I won't pass judgement on it without seeing it (that's if it ever makes a reapperance now) I was finding it hard to believe it was better than Festival of Fantasy. That's the ultimate parade, in my opinion.

I hope Aria gives EE a try in June. At least that Yeti isn't quite as scary. And hopefully having a parent sit next to her will help with any fears.

Glad to see you were able to find a restaurant that you all enjoyed/chose to eat at. Traveling with family can be interesting...

I really hope you are able to make it to Aria's kindergarten registration tomorrow! I'll keep my fingers crossed that Baby #3 stays put at least until the evening.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

That Frozen pre-show seems like a nice time to hang out and just do something different (even just having down time with that CM who asked Aria to do the puzzle is neat and likely something she will remember) - and the shaved ice was neat and something a little different. but for the price and only the one adult beverage (and lack of other beverage options) seems a bit pricey. If it was like $29 or something I could see it. Is the line still really long to see Frozen? Glad you liked the show - I suspect it is a bit of a trial (or at least working out the stage concepts) for when it opens on Broadway

Dinner looks fun. we just made guacamole the other night for dinner - made 5 avacados worth at once (yeah, my kids like it)

Their Downtown Disney, especially at night, has a very cool vibe to it

 

[FantasiaMagic]

I love Aria's Tsum Tsum dress, too cute!

The Frozen experience sounds fun, I like how it guarantees you good seats and you don't have to wait outside the theater hours before just to make sure you get a seat!

The meal at DTD looks delicious. Especially the guacamole, I love fresh guac!