They Don't Eat Hash Browns in Princessland - May 14 COMPLETE! 2/8 pg. 73

[RGirl]

Hi Danielle! Back from our trip and caught up enough with real life to get caught up on the DIS.

I have read and enjoyed all the updates and look forward to joining in more regularly again. I always like seeing the pics of and hearing about Universal - we haven't been yet, so it's neat to see what is in store for us when we get there.

 

[SkubaDis]

I've been following along, but instead of being a creeper, I figured I would at least let you know! I love your TRs!

 

[emmysmommy]

Hi Danielle! I swear I don't try to get so far behind... it drives me crazy to be so far behind... so, while I'm not completely caught up but I wanted to comment on your Universal time. I am in LOVE with Universal! Yep, definitely different than Disney. Not better, just different. Seeing photos of the DA area under construction is so cool. As much as I had no clue about HP or US/IoA before our last trip. I am now completely obsessed.

Now to read more.

 

[glaserjm]

Totally in agreement with you on Universal v. Disney. They're not the same thing and they're not trying to be the same thing, so why lament? I get tired of the harping on and on about who did what, how fast they did it and how the other park is severely lacking b/c they didn't do the same thing....

Can't wait to see pics from the 24 hour party!!

 

[melduckie]

Catching up after being on my own little getaway

Chik-fil-A is the greatest! I just moved to FL about a year and a half ago, and the first time I had it, I was in heaven. Unfortunately, every time I'm craving it, it happens to be a Sunday Great way to help my diet though

I'm completely in love with your "Royals" shirt. My boyfriend's mother makes me sing that song a'capella at her shindigs all the time, and I will now think of that shirt every time I sing it

Lame-O on the Transformers ride. We're opting for Universal APs this year and bf is all excited to finally go on Transformers, but I'll hold back from telling him about the ride experience in case of disappointment.

Fingers crossed Gringotts will meet/exceed expectations!!

 

[PracPerfPatricia]

Subbing on - better late that never -as the saying goes...

Read through about 25% so my comments are way behind ... but

I like that you change your hair color- it's like reading trip reports from different characters...

The lady on the bus... sigh.. the people who know the least seem to always think they know they most and talk the loudest...

That room is awesome ... I want to stay there...

As has already been said many times many ways -you're parents really are awesome -your dad is too much - I hope his sunburn doesn't bother him through the whole trip ... if you're not use to it... uggghhh horrible - if you have pale or fair -is the preferred term - (basically I can blend in with the snowmen at Blizzard Beach ...) a couple of burns early on -and sunscreen becomes your best friend..

looking forward to more reading...

 

[IheartDDuck]

Great updates, as usual. Can't say too much on Universal, since I haven't been there for so long. Cool to see, though. The only thing I keep thinking is: thank goodness your mom got some Coldstone to make up for that sad little salad!

Awww, thanks. Yeah, a lot has changed at Universal. It's not like it was a few years ago.

That salad was sad, wasn't it? Like a McDonald's salad or something.

Hi Danielle! Back from our trip and caught up enough with real life to get caught up on the DIS.

I have read and enjoyed all the updates and look forward to joining in more regularly again. I always like seeing the pics of and hearing about Universal - we haven't been yet, so it's neat to see what is in store for us when we get there.

Yay! Being away on a trip is always a good reason to fall behind on the DIS though.

I've been following along, but instead of being a creeper, I figured I would at least let you know! I love your TRs!

I'm glad that you decided to come out of creeper status!

 

[IheartDDuck]

Hi Danielle! I swear I don't try to get so far behind... it drives me crazy to be so far behind... so, while I'm not completely caught up but I wanted to comment on your Universal time. I am in LOVE with Universal! Yep, definitely different than Disney. Not better, just different. Seeing photos of the DA area under construction is so cool. As much as I had no clue about HP or US/IoA before our last trip. I am now completely obsessed.

Now to read more.

That's okay Brenda! We've all been there before where we've fallen behind.

That's so awesome that you guys had a great time at Universal! I'm so excited to see DA in November. I've seen the facade twice now, and I've kept thinking about when I would be able to see the inside!!

Totally in agreement with you on Universal v. Disney. They're not the same thing and they're not trying to be the same thing, so why lament? I get tired of the harping on and on about who did what, how fast they did it and how the other park is severely lacking b/c they didn't do the same thing....

Can't wait to see pics from the 24 hour party!!

Exactly! I just treat them all as different things and enjoy them for what they are.

Catching up after being on my own little getaway

Chik-fil-A is the greatest! I just moved to FL about a year and a half ago, and the first time I had it, I was in heaven. Unfortunately, every time I'm craving it, it happens to be a Sunday Great way to help my diet though

I'm completely in love with your "Royals" shirt. My boyfriend's mother makes me sing that song a'capella at her shindigs all the time, and I will now think of that shirt every time I sing it

Lame-O on the Transformers ride. We're opting for Universal APs this year and bf is all excited to finally go on Transformers, but I'll hold back from telling him about the ride experience in case of disappointment.

Fingers crossed Gringotts will meet/exceed expectations!!

Chik-fil-a is pretty awesome. Very yummy. Every time I've been near the one in our area, it's Sunday, so it works out for my diet anyway. LOL.

Hahaha, that shirt is awesome. That's awesome that you sing it at your boyfriends Mom's parties.

Transformers is a good ride, it's just not anything unique.

Subbing on - better late that never -as the saying goes...

Read through about 25% so my comments are way behind ... but

I like that you change your hair color- it's like reading trip reports from different characters...

The lady on the bus... sigh.. the people who know the least seem to always think they know they most and talk the loudest...

That room is awesome ... I want to stay there...

As has already been said many times many ways -you're parents really are awesome -your dad is too much - I hope his sunburn doesn't bother him through the whole trip ... if you're not use to it... uggghhh horrible - if you have pale or fair -is the preferred term - (basically I can blend in with the snowmen at Blizzard Beach ...) a couple of burns early on -and sunscreen becomes your best friend..

looking forward to more reading...

I'm glad you're here!

My Pop really is a handful. But we like him that way. He got over the sunburn eventually.

I am white as driven snow as well, so I am very familiar with the need for sunscreen. And I've been up close and personal with some pretty severe sunburns.

 

[IheartDDuck]

Hi everyone!

So before I start on my update, I wanted to share with you the lovely DISmeet that I had yesterday.

If you read KatMark's TR's, you're probably already aware of it, but I'll share it with you again.

Kathy and I had made plans to meet up in my neck of a woods a while back, and Saturday was the day! We met at Gurnee Mills, which is a mall about 15 minutes away from my house. We had plans to meet at Ruby Tuesday's and have lunch there. Kathy posted pictures on her update here.

http://disboards.com/showpost.php?p=52139771&postcount=950

Kathy and Mark are just as fun in person as they are on their TR's. My Pop and Mark are like two peas in a pod. I actually couldn't imagine the two of them together in Disney. I think we'd all be laughing all day!

They were nice enough to bring us gifts as well, which I have not take pictures of yet, but will post later. They brought an awesome picture frame from the Chicago Disney Store for my parents and a Tinkerbell journal and Chicago Disney pin for me. Since I write notes on my TR's, Kathy thought it would be appropriate. Thanks again Kathy!

I'm definitely looking forward to meeting up with them again in the near future. We live somewhat close to each other, so it won't be too difficult.

Now if only we could figure out how to go to Disney at the same time.

Day 5 - Monday May 19, 2014 continued:

So I left you guys hanging before in regards to what restaurant we would be eating at for dinner. Everyone guessed Raglan Road, with the exception of Mary Ellen (MEK), who went rogue and guessed Earl of Sandwich, and Timmy (PlutosRHM55) guessed either Raglan Road or Wolfgang Puck.

DING DING DING DING DING. Timmy is the winner (well kind of, because he said two restaurants), because our reservation was at Wolfgang Puck: The Dining Room tonight!



Just to make it more complicated, the Dining Room part of Wolfgang Puck is like a restaurant in a restaurant. You walk into normal Wolfgang Puck, and then they direct you upstairs, which is a totally separate restaurant. Much smaller and more intimate. It has a lovely view of the water at DTD.



See the staircase to the right with the sign that says "The Dining Room"? That's where we be!



We were led upstairs and seated right away. We had a 7pm reservation, so not too early, but the upstairs wasn't really super full yet.

This was our view from our table. Not bad if I do say so myself.



The first thing I have to note here is that we had an amazing server named Christine. If you ever choose to eat at the Dining Room, ask for her, she's totally awesome. She's super sweet, and upon talking to her, found out that she was from North Chicago, which is pretty close to us. She grew up at the naval base there, and then they relocated to Florida. She talked about her love of Florida, and really told me that we needed to move down there.

Girl, don't I know it.



Since this was a super fancy meal, we decided to order appetizers and stuff. That's how we roll when we fancy.



So Mom and I got the apple salad to share, which was a really nice starter. The sweetness of the apple offset the endive really nicely. It was a good choice.



Pop got the split pea soup, which Christine recommended. It was really good, so her suggestions were working out so far.



For our entrees, Pop and I ordered the Maple Glazed encrusted Pork Loin. Christine again recommended this. This was what I had wanted to order, but Pop was tossing back and forth between this or the steak. Christine commented that she's normally a steak girl, but this was much better than the steak.



Oh dear lord was it. There was an apple chutney on top, which was just perfect. The balance of the sweet and the savory was just right. Sweet and savory are a favorite combination of mine if you didn't already know. I'm dreaming about it right now.



Mom ordered the fish of the day, which was a red snapper. She also said that it was absolutely fantastic.



All in all, this meal was a winner for us. The food was great and it was so nice to just sit and relax through our meal. Christine actually told us that she didn't want us to leave. I told her that we would have to, but that we would make sure when we come back to stop in the restaurant again. She was so sweet.

We opted not to get dessert, because hello. I was at DTD, and the plan was to go to Ghirardelli. However, first I wanted to stop at D-Street to check out the vinyls.

Candy Cauldron had some lovely candy apples in the window.



After D-Street, Pop said that his leg was hurting. We said that we would go back to the hotel, but he reminded me that I wanted Ghirardelli, so he said he would drive around to the Marketplace. Sweet man that he is.

There is a reason behind why his leg was hurting. Oh, you haven't heard that story yet? Well then sit back and enjoy, because it's story time with Danielle!

So back in April, Pop had a little bit of an incident. See, he rides a motorcycle. Has been riding a motorcycle for many years. As long as I've been alive, that's for sure.

He came home and parked his bike. Now, he has a BMW touring series bike, so it's large. And parking large bikes it's best that you put it on it's stand. Not just the kick stand, there is a larger stand that you need to pull the bike up on to.

So while doing this, he dropped the bike. Of course he tried to stop the bike from falling, which resulted in him pulling the muscle in his leg.

Oh, I left out a pretty big detail.

He dropped the bike........

ON MY THREE WEEK OLD CAR.

That's right folks. Right into the drivers side of my brand spanking new, beautiful car.

So, that pain he had was still residual pain from this.

No Popadon's were hurt in the aftermath of the bike drop. I mean, I'm not gonna lie....it was rough for me at first.



He felt super terrible about it, and it was just a little bit of damage on the outside. But being the family that we are, we now have a super awesome story to tell!

"Remember that time your car was only three weeks old and Pop totally dropped his motorcycle on it!?"

My car is in perfect condition now, in case anyone is curious. Insurance fixed it up right away. See?



So anyway! Pop's leg was hurting, but he said he would drive me to Ghirardelli for some dessert. I'm not going to turn that down.

On the way back to the car, we found some Disney bunnies!

BUN BUNSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!








We made it to the car and actually found parking on the Marketplace side. Miracles. They do happen people.

Of course, on my way in, I had to take some pictures.

Personally, I would love to have a dress like this.







Continued in next post:

 

[kastoney]

Wow, your meal looks totally awesome dude. We love wolfgang puck, I'm not sure why it doesn't get much more love. Every meal we've had there has been perfect from the service to the food and the ambiance. Plus love that ADRs can usually be gotten the day of.

How nice for papadon to drive to ghiardelli. Sounds like its a good thing you had a car and not a motorcycle for the transport ; ) glad to hear the car is fine, but keep milking it ; )

 

[IheartDDuck]

Continued from previous post:

Mom and I headed in Ghirardelli's, which was insane as it usually is. The cashier actually said it was a little on the slow side for them. Seriously? Hahaha.

The general look on people's faces in this picture is that they were impatient waiting for their sundaes.



I got the sea salt caramel sundae again. This thing is lovely. Mom got the espresso one.



Since Pop's leg was hurting and he was nice enough to drive us over to get the ice cream, we basically headed straight back to the car so we could head back to the hotel.

Spoiler alert. I'm a pig and totally ate the entire sundae before we got back to the hotel.

LIKE A BOSS!



Back at the hotel, I had to document my purchases from D-Street.

Of course Donald!



Hahahaha, I love this purse. It's so cute.



And since he was back in the room and getting ready to relax, Pop had to start acting like. Well. Like Pop.



But the best part of the night? I bought one of the Silly Symphony vinyls. And I got the chaser! In case you're wondering, the chaser is the mystery one that has a question mark on the back of the box, so no one knows what it is. This one is pretty awesome. I've actually never gotten a chaser.



We also got Mr. Pricklepants.



Another Silly Symphony.



And Alpha from the Pixar series.



At this point, there were EMH going on at DHS that night, and I wanted to go. At first I told Mom that I would go by myself, in case she was ready to pack it in for the night, but she told me that she was up for it. So, out the door we went on our lovely stroll to DHS. We told Pop not to get into trouble while we were gone.

I posted on Facebook that I was on my way to EMH, and Caitlin responded that she and her parents were there already too. We decided to meet up when we got there.

We arrived and as soon as we got through the gates, Mom and I decided we would get a PP taken.



Caitlin and her parents were at Toy Story Mania, so we headed off in that direction. Their mission that night was to ride TSM as many times as possible in a row. They had already been on once, so we figured why not! The wait time is only about 20 minutes during EMH.



Our first spin around, I rode with Mom and these were our scores. Best in car!





Dale basically began bowing to me at that point, saying that my skills were crazy. Caitlin had mentioned that I'm crazy when it comes to TSM, and I completely agree with that. We decided to ride again and Caitlin and I rode together. We wanted to team up to unlock as many of the easter eggs as possible (hidden points basically). She started to joke that she was getting intimidated by my skills.

So we had to put our game faces on.



The verdict was that riding together was awesome, because we were dang amazing at unlocking the easter eggs!

Best in vehicle again!





Caitlin was laughing at me at this point, because she got to see firsthand what I'm like on the ride, and she said I'm crazy. I'll take that as a compliment my dear!

After that, we decided that our arms couldn't take it anymore, so we moved on to one more ride. And we made that the Great Movie Ride.



The one thing about this particular ride was that the CM was cute, but it was weird. Like, a bit over the top. Now, I understand the job, but it comes across as disingenuous and then it feels....awkward. That how I'll describe her.



Our gangster was a wee bit long in the tooth too. Which would have been fine, had he killed it. Which he did not.



After our ride, there were only about 10 minutes left of EMH, so we all parted ways at that point. It was so awesome that we had the opportunity to meet up again and ride a few rides together. Another major highlight of our trip. They are so much like my parents and I, and I love seeing that.

Thanks again guys for spending time with us on our trip! We'll be doing it again sooooooon!

Mom and I took a very leisurely stroll back to the Boardwalk and made it back to a sleeping Popadon. We were very quiet as we got ready for bed. Another fabulous day on a fabulous trip.

Up next: That is the craziest ride photo I've ever seen.

 

[Poolrat]

Dinner looks great and I am lad you had a good meal.

I have had great luck finding a spot at the Marketplace lately, kinds scary how lucky I have gotten...

So sorry Popadon's leg was hurting and that he dropped the bike on your car. Glad everyone and everything is okay now.
Way to rock EMH- I have never had good luck at DHS EMH. Always stupid crowded and I end up frustrated. Glad you got a few TSMM rides.

 

[PlutosRHM55]

YAASSSS I WAS RIGHT

I only put down two really because I wasn't sure if you had been to Raglan Road yet and didn't bother to luck and that was a strategical guess because I could. Wolfgang Puck was my spur of the moment guess so... my instincts were right, my brain was wrong lol

Anyways, everything looks SOOOOOO good there! Christine had some fantastic recommendations for y'all. I'm definitely making sure to stop there for some QS next time I'm there.

Awww, that stinks about Popadon's leg. Poor thing, but he's such a good trooper about it. I hope you guys shared some of your delicious Ghirardelli sundaes with him though I'm sure you still remembered the car incident. That's one swanky car btws

MR. PRICKLEPANTS!!! (#spiritanimal) I think that's the best Vinyl I've seen yet. There seriously needs to be more Pricklepants merch in the parks, he's awesome.

Sounds like you had quite a fun night with Caitlin and family! I honestly feel so ashamed of my score when I see yours. I need to put in some major extra effort. I'm not even at half your score. Shameful, I know. My DCP cannot come soon enough.

Sorry that the gangster and hostess on the Great Movie Ride weren't that great, but I know exactly what you're talking about that. I think I've had one of those hostesses before, but it's still an enjoyable ride, right?

Can't wait to read more!

 

[Wood Nymph]

I see by your score on TSMM that a little serious competition brings out the best in you. You were pretty close to the high score of the hour!

The sundae looks delicious! Being able to get a delicious dessert like this is one of the reasons why the dining plan doesn't work for us. If I want a dessert it is definitely going to be something special like this.

Your Dis meet with Kathy and her husband in Gurnee Mills looked like it was lots of fun.

 

[ddstratton]

And since he was back in the room and getting ready to relax, Pop had to start acting like. Well. Like Pop.

I absolutely love this shot. Your dad is so funny, and your poor mom looks like she's thinking, "Oh no. He's doing it again, isn't he?"

Your dinner looked delicious, but I think I like the looks of the sundae even more! Oh, yum.

Sounds like a good EMH night at DHS. Fun with friends - doesn't get much better!

 

[lauren_elizabeth]

I always forget there's a table service restaurant part of Wolfgang! Everything looks and sounds delicious! I'm glad yall were able to enjoy a nice meal there

Oh my gosh... the Ghiradelli sundaes... I want one right now! I'm making it a mission to grab one when we're down there next month. And I'm a pig, too because that sundae would've been gone before I got back to the hotel as well! You can't eat ice cream slow when it's so dang yum!

LOL I love that picture of your dad with the towels over his head! He is too funny!

Awesome night at Hollywood Studios! You're a BEAST at TSM!

 

[DWGal210]

What an awesome meet with Kathy!! How fun. I had a chance to meet Kathy for a brief few minutes last summer and she is a very neat lady.

I will have to go to Wolfgang Puck and ask for that waitress; she sounds awesome!

YUM, that Ghiradelli is TOTALLY worth waiting in line for. I would have been right there with you, and finishing before we got back to the hotel.

You were on FIRE at TSMM! You go, girl!! Now I am going to have to do some research on those Easter Eggs so I can get some major points next week.

 

[amazingact21]

I'll admit, I was totally drooling a little over your dinner recap. Everything sounded delicious and different than the normal fare. And that sundae...... I don't blame you for devouring it. It looked amazing.


I love your chaser Vinyl! Very cool. (We've only gotten the chaser once, too, so I understand how neat getting one is.) and Mr. prickle pants is pretty awesome, too.



That's fantastic that you got to ride TSMM with Caitlin. I can only imagine what that ride vehicle was like during your turn. pretty intense.

 

[SkubaDis]

That dinner sounded amazing. I think I'm going to try the WP express in DTD on our arrival night in November. I love me some good food.

Congrats on the chaser! I just recently started collecting Vinyls, and at first my husband gave me all kinds of weird looks, but now I've got my kids opening them and getting so excited about it. I have never gotten a chaser! But my day will come soon I hope.

Where/what are these easter eggs on TSM? My DH always beats me on these kinds of rides, so I need to have some inside info!

 

[DisneyKid4Life]

While I do love a good Disney DISmeet, there is something extra special about one outside of Disney. You really have to work extra to make that happen and really WANT to meet. So awesome!!!!

So glad I didn't guess because I would have been wrong. Still haven't eaten at WP, dining room, express, or otherwise. In fact, I'm not sure I even knew there was a dining room since most people talk abut the QS part.

Haha, for a second I was thinking the the leg pain was from when you kicked him after the dropping of the bike on said 3 week old car. And speaking of which... I see a Bumble Bee! Pretty car.

OK... I know there are always times when one comments that they LOL'd. But that photo... Popadon... Mouse Ears... I think I need oxygen.