::The Newlyweds Return-A *Birthday* Celebration and *MNSSHP!* TR FINISHED! ::

[Hillary12.8.07]

Hello everyone! Some of you may remember me from my last TR, found here...

Honeymoon Trip Report

If you haven't read it, WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?!?!?

Really, you should read it before you even begin to read this one. Seriously.

Let me introduce myself, and the rest of the members of this TR.

Me-Hillary, 25, ALMOST 26 year old. As the title says, newlywed. My husband and I honeymooned in Disney back in December, which is that TR above which you really should read. Here's a few pics from that trip...

I'm a graduate student, finishing up my Masters of Education in School Counseling, graduating in May. I'm an intern at a middle school right now and I LOVE it. We're from Augusta, Georgia, right on the GA/SC line, and only about 8 hrs away from Disney. So we drive. Fun on the way down, not so much coming home.

Husband-Andy, also 25. Had never been to Disney, poor deprived child, until we took a trip with my parents back in May 2007. It was a quick 3 day trip, so our honeymoon was a lot of firsts for him. He's not nearly as obsessed with Disney as I, but it's growing on him and he puts up w/me.

Parents-or DM and DD. I have the best parents ever. They (at least my mom) are Disney freaks as well...we went multiple times during my childhood, and have had annual passes many times as well. During my middle school years we went every other month or so. So they are veterans as well. They love to camp, and own a big fabulous camper, and planned this trip at Ft. Wilderness, which they love.

Did I mention the birthday? Because it's a big one. My mom might not appreciate it if I say how old she is, and she might read this...hi mom! But it was one of those BIG birthdays and what better way to celebrate it than to go to Disney!

Brother-Justin, 22. Now, he is not into Disney near as much as we are, and is one of those kids that beats to his own drummer, or whatever that quote is. He hasn't been on a trip w/the family in quite some time, so it was BIG deal when he decided to go w/us. The whole family together, at Disney, what else could we ask for??



Trip details: parents left Wednesday October 1st and drove halfway to Jacksonville. Andy, Justin and I were leaving EARLY the next morning. We had no set in stone plans except for going to MNSSHP Sunday night. And then coming home Monday. So a long weekend trip, how much fun could we pack into just 3 and a half days?!?!?

Stay tuned...


TABLE OF CONTENTS
Day 1 Part 1 THE TRIP
Day 1 Part 2 DTD and riding the monorail!
Day 2 Part 1 DHS!
Day 2 Part 2 MORE DHS
Day 2 Part 3 O'Hana!
Day 3 Part 1 Epcot!
Day 3 Part 2 More Epcot!
Day 3 Part 3 F&W Festival and Illuminations!
Day 4 Part 1 Riding through the fort...
Day 4 Part 2 More of the fort and River Country!
Day 4 MNSSHP!! Part 1
Day 4 MNSSHP Part 2 Crystal Palace
Day 4 MNSSHP Part 3 Boo to You!
Day 4 MNSSHP Part 4 Hallowishes and more party!
Day 5 Happy Bday and we're home


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[NotSoEvilStepmother]

I'm here for you!
Your wedding pictures are gorgeous. Congratualations (even though it's almost a year late). Can't wait to read about your Disney adventures.
Now off to check out your last TR.

 

[Philadisney]

I'm glad you posted on my thread because now I see you have a new trip coming up! And at Ft. Wilderness - awesome. I don't think I have ever read a TR about Ft. Wilderness, I have been really curious about it! I think going with a big group and getting a cabin would be so much fun. Anyway, can't wait to read more!

 

[IluvXU]

Onboard again! Cannot wait to hear about your short yet fun trip the the World.

 

[Hillary12.8.07]

I'm here for you!
Your wedding pictures are gorgeous. Congratualations (even though it's almost a year late). Can't wait to read about your Disney adventures.
Now off to check out your last TR.

Thanks so much! I always enjoy compliments, even now! ha.

Thanks for joining in!!!

I'm glad you posted on my thread because now I see you have a new trip coming up! And at Ft. Wilderness - awesome. I don't think I have ever read a TR about Ft. Wilderness, I have been really curious about it! I think going with a big group and getting a cabin would be so much fun. Anyway, can't wait to read more!

Ft. Wilderness is AWESOME, I'm a bit partial b/c it's a nostalgic place for us, its where we stayed when I was a kid. But if you love Wilderness Lodge you'd love it at the Fort. The cabins are great too, you should try to stay one day!

Thanks for reading!

Onboard again! Cannot wait to hear about your short yet fun trip the the World.

YAY I'm glad you're here! Hope that new baby boy is doing well!! Thanks for joining in!!

 

[tinkerbell87512]

I'm here girl!!! Lookig forward to hearing all about your trip!

 

[Hillary12.8.07]

I'm here girl!!! Lookig forward to hearing all about your trip!

YAY I'm glad you're here! I remember loving your TR last October so much that I WISHED I'd be able to go this year! I can't believe I actually did!!










Update coming up soon, just waiting on pics to upload!!

 

[Hillary12.8.07]

Thursday October 2nd

Let me actually back up to the day before. My parents actually left Wednesday afternoon and drove about halfway, to Jacksonville, FL. There is a campground there they can drive right in and get out easy the next morning.

DH, my brother and I all had work the day before and were going to leave EARLY the next morning. I was in the BEST mood all day long at school that day (I intern at a middle school for counseling). I left there around 3:30, and stopped by the store for shampoos, soap, etc. I always like to get new stuff for my shower bag since we use the shower house at Ft. Wilderness. I may be weird but I just love going to use the showers there. moving on...

Then I had to go by the grocery store to pick up the cookie cake I had ordered for my mom. It was a minor aggravation...they couldn't find it, and then when they did, they charged me like $7 more than they'd told me when I ordered it. So after getting that taken care of I rushed home to finish laundry/packing. When DH got home we had to run up to my school to turn in a paper I had due the next night since I'd be missing class. THEN, we were going to just pick something up for dinner since I didn't want to cook that night, and have to clean up. Our plan was Sonic, we LOVE it, and its right down the street from our house. But it was CLOSED. I was NOT HAPPY. They closed it down for some stupid reason. So we decided to go to Golden Corral...its a big buffet and we both can find stuff we like there. And its cheap. So it was like we were already on vacation bc we don't go out alot. We were just in the best moods, all happy and relaxed to be getting out of town for a few days!! When we left, I SKIPPED across the parking lot! I love that feeling, right before you leave and you have the whole trip ahead of you!!

So we came home and quickly got all of our stuff packed up and ready to load in the car the next morning. I set our alarm for about 5 am, hoping to leave here by 6.

And like only days you're going to Disney, I popped out of bed into the shower as soon as the alarm went off! We quickly got ready, packed the car, and were on our way!!!!

I took this as we were leaving..

We had to stop by my parents house to get my brother. He lives alone, but had stayed overe there the night before to do all his laundry and bc he wanted to leave his car there (he lives in an apt and we had a gas shortage that week, and just didnt want to leave his car in the parking lot). We were actually leaving my car there too. He came out the door as we pulled in, and we were on our way!!!

We made good time that morning, w/hardly any traffic. About 3 hours into the trip we had to make a restroom break. I had on my shorts and Minnie Mouse tshirt, and it was COLD here that morning...the people in the gas station were looking at me like I was nuts!!

We continued on...made another stop somewhere near Brunswick, Georgia. DH also decided to get gas there too...I took this there...

On our way again!!! I slept some, but couldn't long, I was too excited and just couldn't get comfortable. So I entertained myself...

I love coloring! And the week before I found this awesome coloring book in Walmart that was Disney Halloween. SO fun.

And I took this picture of all my crap in the floor...

Around 11 or so my mom called and they were there! Actually she sent me a picture msg of the gates as they drove in.

Played with the XM radio some...

And yes I made DH listen to it!!

Soon we were in Florida!!

We stopped again at the Florida Welcome Center on 95, just because I wanted to and we never had before, that I remember anyway. I got some brochures and stuff to read and get me excited!

The rest of the trip went fairly quickly. My brother slept the whole way, so DH and I just talked and stuff. We didn't stop again until about an hour or so outside of Orlando to use the bathroom. We were almost there!!

As we started getting into Orlando we started seeing all those scary Bloody Mary billboards for Universal's Halloween Horror Nights. They freaked me out!!!


And soon we were coming up to this...

almost...

just a little closer...

We're here!!

We followed signs to Magic Kingdom and Ft. Wilderness...

And here we are !!!!

I just love this place

We ran in the registration building to make sure we didn't need anything. The guy gave us a parking pass, and I asked him for a Bday button for my mom. We were in the 500 loop, and as we drove into the campground my parents rode by on their bikes!! They followed us back to the campsite, and we unloaded all of our stuff into the camper. I brought her cake in too...

(forgot to take a pic before someone cut into it. It was so pretty!)

Some random campsite/camper pics...

decorations...

DH outside...

our setup...

view across to the bathhouse..

Tooks this after we got home but it shows how big it is!

Inside the camper..

The way it is set up, you walk in and are in the living area/kitchen. There is a couch there my brother slept on. To the right, there are stairs up into the bathroom and bedroom. To the left of the kitchen is another room w/a door, it has a couch that pulls out that we slept on. Its really like having our own bedroom bc of the door and separate area. SO nice.


In our room...

my Jake dog hanging out on our bed..

looking back into the living area

We hung out for a little bit, and then decided to get going!! We were HUNGRY so we decided to head out to DTD and eat and then go from there!




Next up: Dinner and a long ride!!







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[reyasmommy]

Love your TR so far, it's so much fun! Jake looks just like one of my old dogs "rocky"! Ohhhhhh I miss him!

Anyway, I can't wait to read more! That camper ROCKS!!! Very spacious! Too bad you don't get housekeeping though, otherwise it would be perfect.

 

[SwansLoveDisney]

Subscribing!

Looks like lots of fun so far...

 

[Hillary12.8.07]

Love your TR so far, it's so much fun! Jake looks just like one of my old dogs "rocky"! Ohhhhhh I miss him!

Anyway, I can't wait to read more! That camper ROCKS!!! Very spacious! Too bad you don't get housekeeping though, otherwise it would be perfect.

YAY thanks for reading!! Jake is a sweet boy. And YES their camper does rock. Its huge, and I love having our own space as well. And I actually don't mind the housekeeping at all...I'm kinda weird about having strangers in my room, thats just me though.

Subscribing!

Looks like lots of fun so far...

YAY another reader!

 

[Lan]

Hi
My parents have a motorhome and love Ft. Wilderness. We stayed in 502 Sept 25th-28th. We love the 500 loop for some reason. We have also stayed in the 200 loop.

Can't wait to hear more about your trip.

 

[Disneychix]

The trailer looks awesome! We are trying FW for the first time this April. My dad's trailer isn't quite as big as that though. Was there any problems parking 2 cars in the area? I thought you could only have one.

 

[*KeepMovingForward*]

I'm in Disney now, but I'm jumping on board. I'll catch up when I get home. Glad to see you have a new report going!

 

[Hillary12.8.07]

Hi
My parents have a motorhome and love Ft. Wilderness. We stayed in 502 Sept 25th-28th. We love the 500 loop for some reason. We have also stayed in the 200 loop.

Can't wait to hear more about your trip.

We love the 500 loop too, very central to everything! I don't remember the other loops we've stayed in before. Well, actually I do..May 2007 we stayed in the loop across the street from 500...not sure what that is though. 300 maybe?

Anyway, Ft Wilderness is awesome, glad you enjoy it too!! Thanks for joining in!

The trailer looks awesome! We are trying FW for the first time this April. My dad's trailer isn't quite as big as that though. Was there any problems parking 2 cars in the area? I thought you could only have one.

You will LOVE it. And no, we had no problems parking there, but this was a refurbished loop and the sites are quite a bit bigger. So it might depend on what site you are on. When we've been there before there def. wasn't enough room for 2 cars. There is alot of construction going on there right now, so hopefully you'll get a new one!! Good luck, and have fun!!

Thanks for reading btw!

I'm in Disney now, but I'm jumping on board. I'll catch up when I get home. Glad to see you have a new report going!

aw I'm jealous you're there!!! Thanks for reading! Have fun!

 

[Goldeelox9]

YAY! I loved your last trip report and I am going to tag along on this one too.

 

[heaven2dc]

What a beautiful camper your parents have! This is going to be a great TR - sounds like fun already!

I love Sonic too! I've never had a good experience with Golden Corral at least here in VA but glad you got to eat before heading out on the road. I envy you being only 8 hours away from WDW! I'd be visiting at least twice a year if I lived closer (and could afford it).

 

[Hillary12.8.07]

YAY! I loved your last trip report and I am going to tag along on this one too.

YAY, I'm glad you're here Lisa!

I just realized how close your wedding is! You must be so excited!

What a beautiful camper your parents have! This is going to be a great TR - sounds like fun already!

I love Sonic too! I've never had a good experience with Golden Corral at least here in VA but glad you got to eat before heading out on the road. I envy you being only 8 hours away from WDW! I'd be visiting at least twice a year if I lived closer (and could afford it).

Thanks for joining in. Yes they're camper is lucky, not the typical idea people have of a camper at all.

MMM I love Sonic. Its about the only fast food I will eat.

And YES being so close to Disney is awesome. We already have quite a few more trips planned here soon, but I"ll get to that later...


Thanks for reading!

 

[Goldeelox9]

Soooo excited!

I can't wait to read all about your trip!

 

[Hillary12.8.07]

Thursday October 2, 2008 Part Two

So where was I???!

After finally making it to Walt Disney World! And getting to Ft Wilderness and meeting up with the parents! We hung out some and were ready to head out to DTD for some fun, and get this party started!!!

We had a short walk to the bus stop for our loop...only about 6 campsites away (we were on 506). Now, most people advise that at the Fort its MUCH easier to drive everywhere. And I guess it is if you have time limitations. But we didn't worry about it...Disney transport is just part of the fun!!!

The way it works, there are internal busses going to the Outpost, which is up front where check in is, and where you go for everything except Magic Kingdom basically...and then the Settlement, which is where Pioneer Hall, Trail's End, and the boat dock is. These busses come by every few minutes, so you never have to wait long.

I took this to remember our beloved loop by...

We practially walked right on to the Outpost bus, and then when we got to the front, there was a DTD bus pulling right in! SCORE!

I also took this of the horses...

Like I said, I'm a nerd so just riding the Disney busses is excitement for me! So I was PUMPED getting on the bus!

obviously, so were they!

I just enjoyed the ride there, looking out the windows with DH, and just being so happy and excited to be on vacation for a few days, in DISNEY!

On the way we passed by Old Key West, so I was so excited to show DH where we would be staying in December on our anniversary trip (renting points there!)

Shortly we were pulling into DTD! We were all pretty hungry, not having had any lunch, and it was probably getting close to about 4:30 or so. So we went right to our place, Rainforest Cafe!!

Now, when I was about 12 or so, we had annual passes for a few years, and went every few months or so, if just for the weekend. And on just about every trip, we always ate at Rainforest on our first night. So it's just a family tradition, and MEANS Disney to us. So of course we had to eat there!!

We pretty much walked right in to our table, they weren't busy at all that early. We were in the Elephant room I think...right towards the front, to the right of the bar.

I only have one pic...

I didn't take pics of the food, but I think I know what everyone had...

me-Tribal Salmon - Atlantic salmon filet seared on a cedar plank and topped with roasted hazelnut and Frangelico butter

DH-Flying Dragon Pepperoni Pizza - Homemade pizza sauce, pepperoni and four-cheese blend

brother-Pastalaya - shrimp, sauteed chicken breast, bell peppers, onions and Andouille sausage tossed in a hot and spicy Cajun sauce and served over linguini

mom-China Island Chicken Salad - Crisp greens tossed with grilled chicken breast, potato sticks, rice noodles, toasted sesame seeds, and scallions. Tossed with China Island Salad Dressing

dad-Awesome Appetizer Adventure - Great sampler for two or more, featuring Chimi-Cha-Cha, Big Blue Crab Delight, Caribe Chicken Tenders and Coastal Calamari


Everyone LOVED their food, it was all so good. We just enjoyed the atmosphere, and hanging out! Very nostalgic indeed. Even though it's not technically a Disney restaurant, Rainforest is just our Disney place.

After we ate, we walked around some outside the shops there. Then headed to my favorite, the wonderful World of Disney!!! We pretty much stayed together, since it would be quite hectic trying to find each other again in that huge place!

I was just kinda looking for things I wanted...didn't want to buy yet. I knew I wanted a new photo album for this trip, and I LOVED all the Halloween stuff! Since we'd never been before in October, this was all new to me! I knew I had to have the little Mickey Halloween tea light holders!

After quite some time we headed out, and into the Lego Store. The boys of course loved this!

When we walked out, we were fascinated with the new T-Rex restaurant out there! It just looks SO cool. DH and I are thinking about going there in December, since we'll just be a short boat ride away at OKW!!

We headed to the Westside, walking through Pleasure Island.

While walking, we saw something that cracked us all up. There was a honeymoon couple walking through, with their ears on..and they both looked SO angry! They were walking like 10 feet apart, like they wanted nothing to do with each other! Kinda mean I guess to laugh, but it was funny. Sad for them to be on their honeymoon, which I guess they were...and look so miserable! We joked that he was just angry that he was being forced to wear the groom ears!

Moving on...we stopped in the Harley Davidson store so the boys could drool some...

The boys enjoying themselves!

Then we stopped in one of stores there...I have no idea what the name of it is...they have sunglasses, and other younger style clothing etc upstairs, and skateboarding stuff, and shoes, swimsuits, etc downstairs. It kinda connects to 8Trax. Anyone? name?

My brother was looking at shoes, and hats, so DH and I hung outside some waiting. It was getting HOT out there in the sun! We watched some lizards go by, and then headed back in. My brother was picking out a new hat, and goofing on in the mirror in the process! He finally picked one out, and we headed out!

We went in Starabilias, the little store w/all the signed movie posters and stuff. That's always a fun place to go in and ogle all the pricey stuff!

We just slowly walked through West Side, and then took some time in the Virgin Megastore. There's all kinds of interesting stuff in there! DH and I checked out all the Nintendo Wii stuff, we're always looking for new games to try!

After leaving there, we were pretty much done with all the stores and stuff at DTD, and were trying to decide what to do. It was only about 6:30 or so maybe, and the night was young!

My mom asked me what we could do, since I AM the Disney expert!

I had joked to DH earlier about just going to ride the monorail for awhile, since like I said, I AM a nerd, and enjoy stuff like that. So, we did.

We headed out to the bus stops, and waited for a Contemporary bus. Again, we didn't wait too long and one came along! One the bus, my parents struck up conversation with a family sitting in the back with two CUTE little girls. They were sad about leaving the next day! I felt so bad, I KNEW how much that feeling sucked, and I was trying to savor every moment and enjoy the fact that our trip was just starting!

We got off at the Contemporary, and went upstairs to the main concourse, and walked around some. Then headed up to the monorail. My mom asked about riding up front, since we got lucky the first time we asked back in May 2007 when we were there. And the girl said no one else was waiting for the next train! But, only 4 could go, so one of us would ride alone. My dad said he didn't mind though.

When it got there though, the family up front wasn't getting off, and there were 2 of them so obviously only 2 of us could. I told my mom and brother to go, since he hadn't been in so long.

My dad and DH and I went and found an empty car, and settled in. Again, the nerd was PUMPED about riding the monorail. As we went past where you see the Wilderness Lodge I got sad bc I missed it, its my fave resort, and I just fell in love w/it on our honeymoon!

At the TTC, my brother came and found us and asked where we'd get off. We said we'd ride it around one full time, and then get off to get on the Epcot monorail!

I was loving the trip, just happy to be riding my monorail. (I know the spiel almost by heart).

At the resorts we started seeing tons of people getting on dressed up for MNSSHP! We saw some of the cutest costumes! I was excited too, to be able to see the MK and the decorations!

Got a little camera happy...

Coming up on MK

back at Grand Floridian...

When we pulled in at the MK I saw SO many families dressed up, and got so excited!! I loved how creative some of them were! I started to take pictures, then decided not to...kinda weird.

As we pulled out I about died when I saw all the decorations!!

We could not WAIT for Sunday night, when we'd be coming back for MNSSHP!!! I was PUMPED. It all just looked so awesome!

We rode around back to the TTC, and then got off to transfer to the Epcot monorail. We just wanted to ride some more (ok, *I* just wanted to ride more...)

Took this as we passed the MK entrance...

We were just talking about what all we wanted to do that weekend, debating over whether to do Hollywood Studios, or Animal Kingdom the next day. We knew we were going to Epcot Saturday, and then MK on Sunday, so we just had to decide for the other day. We kept going back and forth though, and coudn't decide.

Soon we were coming up on Epcot!

YAY! So pretty.

By this time we were all getting pretty tired...esp DH and having been up since 5 am!!

So we rode back to TTC, and switched back over the the resort monorail to get back to Contemporary. From there, we took the boat back over to Ft. Wilderness. On the boat, we saw the same family that was leaving the next day, from the bus earlier!

The boat stopped first at Wilderness Lodge.... so sad...

I got over it eventually, and then we were back at Ft. Wilderness!

We walked all the way back to our site, its a nice walk, and we got to see alot of the Halloween lights people decorated their site with.

For some reason we decided we needed milk, so my mom and I decided to go to the Meadows Trading Post to get some. We wanted to ride bikes, and DH was going to go, but his tires were flat. So he decided to stay w/brother and play video games (brother brought his XBox). So mom, dad and I rode off on our bikes, in search of the trading post. I guess bc it was dark and we couldnt see well, we couldnt find it at first. Mom and I ended up separated from dad, at the bus stop right across from the pool. A bus came by and she asked where it was, and the bus driver told her to follow the path past the pool and we'd come to it. And we did! Just couldn't see it in the dark. The pool looked great though, and I knew we'd be back sometime to swim!

We walked around the store, I love all the stuff they have in there. Got our milk, and then found dad. Rode back to the camper, and then DH and I went to the shower house to get our showers and get ready for bed. We were POOPED. I think we pretty much crashed after that.

I always love going to bed with the Stacey Countdown on...just bc its Disney...but our loop was having trouble with cable so all we had was local channels. BOO. But I still went to bed happy and tired, ready for our first park day!!

Up next! Where do we end up going?! AK, or HS???








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