The Mostly Very Merry Holiday/Bday Grand Gathering Update 4/6 Calf Grill

[janloz]

Loved the surprise of the grandparents for the kids! That is one of those Disney moments you never forget

I can't wait to see all the Christmas decorations next week - heck tomorrow for that matter I'll be there in 18 hours - woohoo!

Am going to meet my first Diser this trip - she is bringing me a copy of the planning dvd that was back in 2005 (I believe) with Erin, Stacy, and the gang. I loved that video! (have you ever wondered when you see lime green on someone at Disney if they are a Diser but are too shy to go up & ask? I know I was last trip.)

Love your pics!! I didn't know you could see Winnie the Pooh in WS - I was sad that I couldn't get an ADR for CP for next Wednesday because my daughter & grandson (1) will arrive that day and that's our MK day. I really hoped he could see them but hopefully on Thursday we will find them at WS (our Epcot day).

It was a great family moment, everyone was so worried that we would spoil the surprise but we made it.

Congrats on the trip, I am ready to go back already. The Christmas decorations are amazing. Be sure to go to the GF and WL, their decorations and tree were the best.

We actually saw ALOT of Disers during our trip and at first i wouldn't say anything but then Mark actually starting saying "hey look that person has a lime green mickey head, isn't that from the Dis boards?" We saw a several groups on the bus from POP with DIS design, one from Buffalo had MVMCP ones (so cute) for their whole group of 15+ I think. Then the table behind us at WCC had some too. And a woman on the bus from Epcot was too. (Tinkerbeth, I think). I took a chance and said Hi and everyone was so nice. We didn't intrude on anyone's time, just wanted to say hi. One of those "small world" moments.

Check the schedule for character interactions when you enter Epcot. We have now seen Pooh & Friends twice in UK and there was only 2 groups in front of us. If you go in the shops on the right as you enter UK, follow them all the way to the back and the Photopass area is there. We also visited with Pooh in the Judges Tent area of Toontown in MK in 2006 but I am not sure if they are still doing Pooh since Tinkerbell arrived.

have a great trip.

 

[k_reile]

I didn't say it was a full picture of you. You secret identity is still safe I think. Again, it was a pleasure meet you, Jill, Brooklyn & Julie.

Thank you for the kind words. Mark tries to be the cool guy but sometimes there is a crack in the armor. Mark & Sarah are very close with their grandparents, my inlaws only live about 3 miles away and get them Monday-Thursday from school and watch them until we finish work and my mom gets them on Fridays (she lives about 30 minutes away). They are very fortunate (as are we) that they can spend so much time with their grandparents and that they can watch the kids grow up. My dad passed when I was only 17 so he didn't get to see his grandkids so my mom especially treasures every moment with them.

We've very lucky too... we live about 5-7 mins between each set of parents. My mil takes care of Caleb everyday (along with my niece) and she has kept 4 out of the 5 grandkids pretty much since birth. We are extremely lucky to have her watch him and it is a tremendous help. Of course we will probably travel to Disney with at least one set of Grandparents if not both because neither one of them would want to miss out on Caleb's first Disney trip!

 

[Sarilas]

Thank you for the pic of the layout at the buffet in Crystal Palace- I've yet to see that and I love knowing what I'm in for before I get there!

 

[scottny]

great update and pics.

thank you for posting it has put me in the mood so much more than I was. I am so anxious. 13 hours I will be leaving for the airport.

I will catch up when I return. Have a great week.

 

[Happy Elf]

What fantastic castle pictures! Main St. looks so neat all dressed up for Christmas! I love CP. We plan to go back in June.

 

[micandminforever]

Great trip report and I love the pictures. I leave for Disney Jan. 3rd for a trip with my DH family. Their is 11 of us, all adults, I miss when the neices and nephews were younger and kid fun at Disney.

 

[janloz]

Thank you for the pic of the layout at the buffet in Crystal Palace- I've yet to see that and I love knowing what I'm in for before I get there!

I had never seen a pic posted either, helps to know before you get there. Enjoy.

great update and pics.

thank you for posting it has put me in the mood so much more than I was. I am so anxious. 13 hours I will be leaving for the airport.

I will catch up when I return. Have a great week.

Have a great trip.

What fantastic castle pictures! Main St. looks so neat all dressed up for Christmas! I love CP. We plan to go back in June.

I was SO beautiful, the decorations were one of the reasons we wanted to go at that time.

Great trip report and I love the pictures. I leave for Disney Jan. 3rd for a trip with my DH family. Their is 11 of us, all adults, I miss when the neices and nephews were younger and kid fun at Disney.

Have a great time.

 

[janloz]

Chapter 6: MK morning

When we left off, we were heading into Adventureland:

We headed over to Pirates since the kids had never ridden it and it was closed in 2006 for re-furb. We walked up and there was 5 minute posted wait time but it was really walk on.

We really liked the addition of Jack Sparrow, even Sarah thought it was cool since she was really unsure about the ride. On the way out,

We looked but didn't buy anything. 11 year old boy + sword/gun= trouble.

We decided to back track and ride Jungle Cruise, it said 10 minute wait but was really only 5 minutes. We had to wait for new boat so we got it sit up front:

Our guide was really funny and did so many corny jokes. We luckily had a good boat and everyone played along except the 8-10 year old girl across the boat from us, she was hiding her eyes and actually started crying several times during the cruise. here are the many pics

We didn't ride this last time and forgot how funny it was.

After getting off the ride, MIL had to use the bathroom so kids decided to make some pressed pennies. We did a lot of these last time so they were just trying to find some of the usual ones they didn't get.

 

[janloz]

The ladies room was over by the Magic Carpet of Aladdin so while we were waiting, Sarah asked my mom to ride with her. I was secretly laughing since my mom is afraid of heights but she agreed to go but held on tight.

They survived and next up was Splash Mountain on the way, we passed the pirate tutorial but the kids were not interested. I think this is the "hot" Jack.

Here is a pic to show you the lack of crowds again today. It was taken around 10:30am.

Finally onto Splash Mtn:

Sarah & I didn't ride this last time since she wasn't tall enough and we were both looking forward to it. Just as we walk up, we notice that the ride is stuck. We grab fastpasses and then head over to Big Thunder Mtn Railroad. Again, Sarah & I hadn't ridden last time due to her height and she really wanted to go. The sign said 10 minutes wait but as we walked up, it changed to 25 minutes since SM was down, everyone ran over there. We actually only waited around 15 minutes. Sarah rode with Dave and actually came off the seat a few times since the bar wasn't against her legs. We really liked it. We walk past SM and it is still down so we head over to CBJ, it is 10 minutes until next show so we let the kids explore the candy store next to Peco Bills. We grab some water and snack then it is time for the show. CBJ was broken on our last trip so we were looking forward to it. We finally get in and I notice a group of teenagers behind us all have Dream Fast Passes and ask when/where they got them. Guess where???? YUP, It's a Small World around 9:20am If Mark had just let Sarah ride IASW after breakfast, we would have received it too. Oh well. Everyone enjoyed the show. It is corny but something about it is great.

Several times during the show, Sarah turned to me and said "The deer is staring at me!"

We finished up and wanted to try Haunted Mansion but the line was 40 minutes and the kids didn't want to wait so we finally headed towards It's a Small World. first we stopped at the Christmas store near near Liberty Tree, Sarah got santa hat with Minnie Mouse Ears and Mickey Head crystal bracelet (we would end up buying 5 or 6 different ones throughout the trip in different colors.). Then finally to It's a Small World.

 

[janloz]

On the way off of IASW, we had our one and only glimpse of the Dream Team. We all received Dream Ears. When we got to the top of the ramp, it was pouring harder then I had seen in a long time. We were going to try and stay there until the rain let up but it got really crowded so we decided to make a run for Tinkerbell's shop and check for some rain ponchos. Luckily, they had a stack of them on the counter and we bought enough for the group and then also got a nice throw with Castle in Icicles for $15. Then we ran for the tunnel under the castle, still raining. Ok, not sign of clearing up and we had ADR at Tony's so we decide to make a run for it down Main St. Half way down the street it slows down but by now we are literally dripping wet. Bad call on my part to wear capris today instead of shorts.

We make it to Tony's a little early and check in. This ADR was one that I was really concerned about since I had read many bad reviews about TTS. We checked in a little early for our 1:10pm ADR and since it was down pour raining it was very busy in there. We received a pager and sat down to watch Lady & the Tramp that was showing on the TV in the waiting area. There is also a very nice gift shop in the same building and in the back is a Photopass studio. I believe the Bibbity Bobbity Boutique girls can come there and have photos taken. When we were there, Santa was in back and there was no line so DD had her picture taken with him.

We were finally buzzed to go in and were seated in the main dining room in the far back corner on the right. It was quiter there but we could still see the Lady & Tramp statue in the middle of the room. Our CM was Rhonda and she was very nice and gave us good service. She got our drinks quickly and brought out nice warm bread which was quickly gone. Here is what we ordered:

DH: No app. (full of bread ), Chicken Parmigiana , Chocolate Gelato
Me: Tomato and Mozzarella Salad, Tony's Flatbread, Ice Cream Bomb
DS: No App. (same bread thing), Meatball Sub (no cheese, no onions), Ice Cream Bomb
DD: Carrots, Pasta with butter (See a pattern yet??), Ice Cream Sundae

Obviously, the bread was very good since the guys didn't get apps. The Tomato/Mozz Salad was very good, I do not like raw tomatoes but the cheese & onions in balsamic were very good. As a side note, my mom had the soup of the day which was butternut squash which she said was excellent. Our entrees were very large so the guys really didn't mind not having apps. My flatbead had Smoked Chicken, Caramelized Onions, Fontina, Spinach, and Red Pepper Sauce and was very good. Everyone at the table tried a piece and really liked it. DS loved the Meatball sub and was very happy that they actually got the special request correct. He only ate about 1/2 of it since it was so big. The chicken parm was also good, not the best that he ever had but not the worst either. He ate most of it so it hit the spot. Again, buttered pasta is hard to ruin.

When ordering desserts, DD was upset since again the only choices on most kids menus are fruit cup or make your own sundaes and Rhonda brought the dessert menus with all the tempting choices for the adults so I let her order using my credit. So she ate some of the make your own most the candy and a lot of my Ice Cream Bomb which was a scoop of chocolate and vanilla ice cream that was covered with a hard chocolate candy shell. Yummy!! DS also ordered the same and several at the table shared. DH got the chocolate gelato which he said was good.

In the end, we were pleasantly surprised with TTS, both the food and the atmosphere and would probably go back again during MK visit. The total cost would have been $100.84 but we used 4 TS credits and only paid $14.58 OOP for tip.

We finished lunch around 2:30pm and MIL/FIL decide that they are going back to the hotel for a nap and Mark and Dave go too. Mom and I weren't tired so we decide to stay at MK and do some shopping on Main St so Sarah decides to stay with us.

Up next....Shopping & parade pics

 

[janloz]

 

[princessesx2]

Awesome pictures! Can't wait to read more!!!

 

[shortchange1026]

I'm in, thanks for the great reviews, makes me wish I was there for Christmas instead of rainy, cold snowy Jersey!

 

[janloz]

Awesome pictures! Can't wait to read more!!!

Thanks, working on next installment now.

I'm in, thanks for the great reviews, makes me wish I was there for Christmas instead of rainy, cold snowy Jersey!

Thanks. Me too. It was so hard to get into the christmas spirit after being there with everything all decorated.

 

[janloz]

Chapter 7 Shopping and Parade

Ok, we left off with Dave, Mark, MIL/FIL going back to POP for a nap and my Mom, Sarah and I going to do some shopping. We started at Le Chapeau where Sarah got really cute Pink Mickey Head bobble Head band. Here she is wearing them later in the week:

They had them in purple, pink, black and aqua. She got a lot of compliments on them during the week. I loved the fact that all the stores are connected to eachother or just across the way from eachother. We went to Confectionary and promised Sarah we would make it our last stop on the way out so we didn't have to carry stuff around. We went up the street and here are some of the items I wanted to buy but unfortunately couldn't afford most of them.

Notice the price $37500.00

We watched him for a while, it was amazing.
Then we went to Main Street Bakery and used some snack credits for the HUGE cinnamon buns and a cookie or two. When we came out it was time for.....

 

[janloz]

The Afternoon parade.....

 

[janloz]

After the parade we crossed the street and finished up some shopping over here:

and

. Then we went back to the Confectionary to get some Caramel apples for Mark and myself, some decorated christmas cookies for Sarah which we used snack credits. Plus some taffy but since it is considered "bulk" does not qualify for snack credits. After all the excitement of the shopping and parade, we were ready to head back to bus for POP. We entering the bus, Sarah asked the CM for transportation cards and she was nice enough to give her the 3 different ones for the buses for both her and Mark. Some more magic for the day.

I will have to leave you on the bus back to Pop since it is late and I have to get up at 4:30am for work tomorrow.

Up next....will we make it to see the Osborne Lights????

 

[Happy Elf]

Neat parade pictures! The carmel apples sound so good!

 

[Sarilas]

That bejeweled castle is gorgeous!

 

[janloz]

Neat parade pictures! The carmel apples sound so good!

Thanks, Sarah loves parades so I am really glad we got to see it. Dave took about 100 pics of the parade during the MVMCP so those will come up later.
The caramel apples were wonderful, they are one of my favorite snacks. They also have them at Goofy's Candy Store in DTD.

That bejeweled castle is gorgeous!

It sparkled so much due to all the crystals but was a little out of my price range.