The One Where I Joined DVC! Updated 3/21/18

[Disney9.9.10]

Hello all!

I absolutely love writing trip reports, and even though I haven't finished the last report I started (for my trip in 2014), I'm going to start a report here to share my latest DVC trip. I think TRs are a great way to keep the magic alive while you plan for your next vacation (which I am already doing, even though I just got back on Saturday lol)

I'm writing this at work and I don't have access to photos right now, so I'm just going to make this first post very brief and say hello before I really get into the details of the trip.

My name is Krysten for those who don't know me. I didn't do much planning for this current trip, my mom did most of it, but I took care of booking fast passes and getting some things ready ahead of time. I have been going to WDW since I was about 18 months old and have taken 1 DCL cruise. I love the magic of Disney, reading, yoga, and spending time with my family (including my fur baby) in my spare time. I work at a bank to pay for my Disney addiction. Last year I separated from my husband so my little family now is just my daughter and I and I couldn't be happier.

So I think that's enough about me! Stop by and say hello, I hope some of you will join me for this adventure at SSR!

 

[Disney9.9.10]

Saved for Chapter links

 

[Disney9.9.10]

Good morning everyone!

I thought I'd get this started with some introductions.

First off is me, since I'm the one taking you through this trip

My name is Krysten. I'm a 20-something mom of 1 little girl who is the love of my life. This was my 15th trip to WDW. I work in a bank and I enjoy reading, yoga, and spending time with my family, on top of all things Disney. My favourite park is and always will be the Magic Kingdom, and my favourite resort is the Grand Floridian.

Next up is Evelyn

Evelyn is my one and only, the love of my life. She just turned 3 in January. She is sweet and funny and so loving. This was her 3rd trip to WDW and she loves it. She loves Pirates, Mickey, and Ariel is her favourite princess.

Next up are my parents, Ed and Debbie

They are the reason this trip happened. They bought DVC last year and have been constantly planning trips. They both love Disney and have been to WDW many times. My dad did all of our driving for the trip, which is no small feat. My parents are wonderful people who made sure that Ev and I got to go on vacations the last year or so after my separation. They would do anything for family.

And last, but not least, is my grandma Carole

My grandma is one of my favourite people on this planet. She will do anything for her family. We have lots of family traditions together and I am lucky enough to get to see her almost every day. She and my grandpa started taking my mom and uncles to WDW when they were young kids. Her favourite ride is It's a Small World so we always make sure to ride it on every trip.

So now you've met us all. Say hi and let me know who is reading!

Next up... Travel day!

 

[disney1474]

Love trip reports! Can't wait to read your's

 

[praisehisname]

Following along!

 

[Mom2m&k]

Following along... can't wait to read more!

 

[Disney9.9.10]

Love trip reports! Can't wait to read your's

Thanks for joining in!

Following along!

Thanks for following along!

Following along... can't wait to read more!

Glad to see you here!

 

[princessbride6205]

Reading along!

 

[Disney9.9.10]

It has been a while, but I'd like to finish this report! I seem to have misplaced my notes so I'll add in photos and what I can remember about the trip and add in notes as I remember things.

We left home around 4am. Evelyn was a little trooper. She didn't mind being woken up and was excited to be going to Disney again. The travel day was pretty boring, which I think is good, you don't need any excitement on the highway! Evelyn played with her toys that we had brought and was the best little traveller I could have asked for.

 

[Disney9.9.10]

When we got to Florida we stopped at the Welcome centre - something we usually do when we drive down. It was still before noon when we arrived.

Evelyn and my dad posed with this nice car

Evelyn trying some Florida orange juice! She didn't like it very much. But I don't give her juice at home, she only has it once in a while at my parents' house and it's usually watered down, so I understand her trepidation.

Evelyn and I by the Florida sign

4 Generations!

After we had a bio-break and enjoyed some fresh juice we got back into the car for our next stop - Cocoa Beach! The ocean is one of my favourite things so I was excited to be going, and Cocoa Beach was new for us. Once we arrived at Cocoa Beach, we stopped and walked around a little, popping into a few of the shops before heading over to the beach. We changed in the little restroom at the beach and I remember it being a less than pleasant experience. I slathered Evelyn up in sunscreen, we grabbed some towels and the sand toys and away we went!

We didn't stay at the beach real long. We spent enough time that I got to relax and enjoy the beautiful ocean and Evelyn got to play in the sand and water. Then we went back to the dreadful restroom to change back into dry clothes before we got into the car again. This time our trip would FINALLY get us to Walt Disney World!

Up Next... we check in to our resort!

 

[praisehisname]

Glad you came back!

 

[Disney9.9.10]

Glad you came back!

Thank you! I hope you enjoy the report, but I apologize for my missing notes!

 

[Disney9.9.10]

Welcome back!

So I left us off at Cocoa Beach. It was around late afternoon and we decided to head to WDW to our resort for this stay - Saratoga Springs Resort (SSR). I remember the check-in process being pretty smooth except that they had problems finding our magic bands (we live in Canada, so we can't get them shipped to us ahead of time). But they did end up finding our bands and we checked in. We had 2 separate rooms and they were very close to each other.

I took a few pictures that night

We were in the section of the resort that we had requested. It was quiet and had really lovely views. I was really enjoying how peaceful the resort seemed.

The next morning we were up early and ready to go. Someone was still a little sleepy.

I don't remember how long we waited this specific morning since I still cannot find my notes, but I do remember that we were not at all impressed with bus transportation on this trip.

I did have some time to take a few photos around the bus stop...

But we did finally get onto a bus and Evelyn was so excited to be riding the "Disney Bus"

That morning we were taking the bus to our breakfast destination - 1900 Park Fare at the Grand Floridian. We got on a bus to Epcot because it came first and we figured we would disembark there and grab a monorail to the GF. Well we got to Epcot and there was a problem with the monorail so we couldn't take it. We started to worry that we wouldn't be making our breakfast reservation on time! A bus ended up coming to take us to the GF and we made it just in time for our seating.

Breakfast received rave reviews from everyone in our party! There were copious amounts of hot and delicious food, and Evelyn had a blast meeting all of the characters.

After eating we took a little time to explore around the GF. It is (and always has been) my favourite resort so I love to spend time there.

Up Next... which park did we visit first?

 

[Disney9.9.10]

Life Update!!

Today is 1 month until our next WDW trip! I am so excited for this trip for a bunch of reasons. It's going to be a much more relaxed trip, we are only planning on visiting MK and Disney Springs. It will be my first time celebrating my birthday in WDW! It is my first time staying with my own DVC points. We are staying at AKL Kidani Village, which is one of my favourite resorts and I'm so excited to see Evelyn's reactions to the animals outside our room every day. And of course, a week off from work is always a bonus!

I plan on starting a PTR/TR for this upcoming trip but I think I'll put it under the regular trip reports section since there is much more traffic there. I'll be sure to post a link here in case anyone would like to read it.

Have a magical day!

 

[praisehisname]

It has become a tradition for us to have breakfast at 1900 Park Fare! So glad you liked it!

 

[Disney9.9.10]

It has become a tradition for us to have breakfast at 1900 Park Fare! So glad you liked it!

I've eaten there a few times now and have always enjoyed it. Plus the GF is my favourite resort so I'll take any excuse to visit it lol

 

[Disney9.9.10]

I started a PTR/TR for my upcoming April trip, link is in my signature if you feel like joining in!

 

[Disney9.9.10]

I left us off at the GF just about to pick up a monorail...

We were headed to my favourite park - Magic Kingdom!!

When we walked in we decided to hop in line to see Talking Mickey. This was a new one for me so I was looking forward to experiencing it. We waited in the standby line, which said the wait would be about 35 minutes and if I remember correctly it was pretty accurate.

Evelyn broke out in the biggest smile ever when she saw Mickey

Mickey had her jump up and down with him

Group shot with Mickey

When we came out from seeing Mickey there was a parade happening. Evelyn was super excited to see it and was smiling and clapping. It made my heart so full to see her enjoying herself so much.

After the parade was finished we took a turn towards Tomorrowland - which is almost always the first land that we visit in the MK.

We decided to take E on the TTA Peoplemover

I love this ride. It's a nice break during the day to get out of the heat and explore a bit of Tomorrowland.

I still have no notes but according to the photos we headed to Fantasyland next. E and I got in line to ride Dumbo. Another first for this trip was exploring the new interactive queue.

It was a bit crazy in there with kids running around with minimal supervision but E had fun so overall I was happy with the new queue.

While in Fantasyland, my dad took Ev over to the little splash pad area

We also did a bit of shopping in the Big Top tent. I absolutely love the theming in this shop. I can't recall if we bought anything while there or not.

 

[Disney9.9.10]

I had the day off from work today so I figured, why not spend some time on the DIS?

I left us off at MK.

Evelyn had to ride the carousel again - she loved this ride!

I looked at the castle while her and my dad rode

Then we decided to head back to the resort for an afternoon rest before our big evening. I took a few photos of our room while it was still in decent shape.

We had some really exciting plans for this evening, I'll give you a little clue...

Can anyone guess where we were going??

 

[MickeyReeds]

Off to a great start! I look forward to reading more!