"To Disney & Beyond" ~ Road Trip 2010 ~ Final Drive & Final Thoughts

[lovebuzzandwoody]

JUST A QUICK NOTE TO ALL MY FELLOW SPARTAN FANS...YAY TO A FANTASTIC VICTORY OVER NOTRE DAME LAST NIGHT!!!

Too late to celebrate with you???

I think not!




GO GREEN!!!

 

[Spartangirl]

Great update. Love the tiger pictures.

Thank you so much!

The bats are a bit creepy but interesting to view.

I agree completely!

It's Tough To Be A Bug is one of my favorite in AK. Thanks for continuing to share.

I love it too...it's so much fun!

I showed my DH some of your pictures and now all he can talk about is going back to Disney World. To bad it won't be until sometime in 2012. Need to pay for the daughter's in June 2011. And we have already been planning a trip similar to the first half of your trip for after the wedding.

I want to head back to WDW too!!! I don't know when it's going to happen for us either. The wedding will be so much fun...June is a good month...that's when Chris and I got married! You'll love TN...just gorgeous in the mountains!

Don't you just love Big Blue World? I need to buy that CD...

I do love it...I should really get that CD too! The songs are so catchy!

I love your pics! The tigers in the water are really cool! And that blue bird! Love it!

Thanks so much!

Haha, that little boy must have been funny! I think a lot of kids feel that way after riding Dinosaur!

He was so funny and cute! I bet you're right...it's got to be scary for kids! I know I "jump" during certain parts of the ride!

Beautiful tiger pictures!

Thank you!

What a wonderful day at AK!

It really was fantastic!

Too late to celebrate with you???

I think not!




GO GREEN!!!

It's never too late to celebrate a SPARTAN victory!

 

[Spartangirl]

Friday, July 30, 2010
Uncle Phil, The Baby & A Yummy Meal

Chris and I decided to continue our animal adventure as we headed to the Pangani Forest Trail.

Here are a few animals that we encountered on our journey...

We stopped to watch the gorillas for a really long time...they are a favorite for both of us! And guess who we saw?

THE BABY!!! Mom and Baby played for awhile...

And then "Big Daddy" made his appearance!

Here is a short video clip of Mom and the baby together...watch how she puts the little one on her feet...I think I stopped breathing for a few seconds...



We finally pulled ourselves away from the family and made our way around the corner. Here we saw one of the "bachelors," or as "Stacey" (From WDW Resort TV) likes to call him, "Uncle Phil!"

After our long and hot day, we decided to head back to our resort for some down time. But first, we hit EE one final time because we had grabbed a set of FPs after lunch.........we just LOVE to see that Yeti!

As we made our way back to the entrance of the park, we caught the tail end of Mickey's Jammin' Jungle Parade. We have seen this parade on numerous occasions and it is fantastic!

Chris and I made it back to the French Quarter and took a swim break with no threat of thunder or lightning...we couldn't believe it!

After chillin' out for a few hours, we headed over to Downtown Disney...

Here, we headed to the Marketplace to eat at Wolfgang Puck Express.

I had the Rotisserie Turkey Cobb Salad. It had eggs, bacon, tomatoes, gorgonzola, green beans, avocado, onions, and balsamic and it was delish! I truly LOVED it...I get really weird and picky about salad dressings and I thought this one was fantastic!!!

Chris had the spaghetti and meatballs, after consulting with a couple of CMs...he loved his meal too! Have you noticed that Chris has asked the CMs about their "expert opinion" on several of his meals? I asked him about this, thinking he was just being indecisive...Chris said he might as well ask about the best foods from the people who eat them regularly. He had a ton of fantastic meals, so I'd say his strategy paid off!

For dessert we both had the vanilla bean cheesecake...scrumptious!

After a fantastic meal, we were off to shop! We had a mission in mind...an ornament for our "vacation Christmas tree" and a "Cars' hat" for our 2 year old nephew.

After toiling over several ornaments at the Days of Christmas, we decided on this beauty!

Our next mission was truly the "mission impossible!" Our nephew loves Cars, and when we say loves, we mean LOVES!!! Here's a picture that I took of Eli, just so you know who I'm talking about...isn't he adorable?

Eli plays outside a lot, so he is always wearing a hat. Because of this, we thought a Cars' hat would be the perfect gift to bring home for him. Unfortunately, the "Wonderful World of Disney" dashed this dream for us. Chris and I went to MANY vendors in all of the parks and DD with no luck. The smallest Cars' hats are for "youth," and those are way too big for him. We also asked several very nice CMs to help us out and they apologized profusely about not carrying anything in a toddler's size. I guess we were just a little disappointed and surprised that WDW, of all places, didn't have anything close to what we were looking for. Thankfully, we're both pretty easy going, so we didn't dwell on this for too long...

Chris and I weren't overly excited about the limited selection of T-shirts for toddler boys either. There were quite a bit of Cars' shirts for "youth sizes," but not much for toddlers. We were pretty bummed, but continued to shop and ended up getting Eli a "matchbox McQueen" that came with a launcher. To be perfectly honest, Eli would be happy with anything that we brought to him, so we were ok with our choice. You should have seen his face and the excitement it held when I gave him a Disney sticker the other week! Missions accomplished, we headed "home" for the night.

Up Next: Rope Drop ~ Car #3!

 

[lovebuzzandwoody]

Aw, Eli is adorable!

Your meal at WPE looked delish! That's one we have not tried ~ we have picky kids. Someday.... *sigh*

 

[MeMom]

Precious, precious, precious!
I love that one.
I want to see the baby! Last time I tried, they were around the corner at the cave entrance just out of sight.

As we made our way back to the entrance of the park, we caught the tail end of Mickey's Jammin' Jungle Parade. We have seen this parade on numerous occasions and it is fantastic!

Yes, it is!

For dessert we both had the vanilla bean cheesecake...scrumptious!

Looks incredible!

 

[Charleston Princess]

How neat that you were able to see the baby gorilla!!! It's getting so big!!!

That vanilla bean cheesecake looks delicious! Yum, yum, yum!

Love the Christmas ornament! Do you get one everywhere you go for your vacation tree? Glad you were able to find something for Eli -- what a cutie!

 

[Aburns8]

Love the update, of course! Your nephew is adorable! It's a bummer that you couldn't find him a Cars hat.

Awesome that you got to see a baby gorilla! That is my favorite area in AK. I can spend a lot of time on that trail. After seeing the picture of the spaghetti and meatballs it made me want to Wolfgang's to get that dish. Can't wait to hear more about the trip!

 

[Shannon84]

YAY update!!! The video with the baby gorilla scared me at first, looks like she was just tossing the baby around but I guess that is just normal play for them!! We leave Monday and it is RAIN forecasted for us the whole time...hopefully it will still be lots of fun!

 

[MAGICFOR2]

That baby is precious! Sadly, he will be pretty big by the time we get there again - I'd love to see him. Glad you got to swim - I love DTD! Your dinner looks really yummy!

 

[floridascgirl]

Thanks for another super update. I think that I've replayed your video clip at least 10 times.

 

[redsox721]

Love the animal pictures. The baby gorilla is so precious.

Your nephew is adorable. Sorry you had so much trouble finding items for him. I love the ornament you picked for your tree. Very pretty.

Wolfgang Puck Express is one of my favorite places to eat in Disney. I have never had a bad meal there.

 

[Jennifer48]

Eli is so adorable! I found the same at WoD store with lack of toddler clothes. Not only that but unisex infant outfits. I had 2 sister-in-laws prego and they were not finding out the gender and I couldn't find anything unisex!

Uncle Phil sad that that is what I thought you meant when I read the next update title!

 

[Spartangirl]

Life Update

Hey Everyone! Sorry my updates haven't been as regular as I'd like! Life is a bit crazy right now! I have been swamped at work (with testing my 1st graders) and water practically "dumped" into our basement due to a problem with our air conditioner and furnace. We just spent this past weekend getting a new furnace, air conditioner, and water heater. With this whole crazy incident, our carpet was completely ruined. So, now we're packing up our basement and waiting for a call as to when our new carpet can be installed. I will try and update as much as possible, but it might be limited to the weekends right now. I appreciate you all staying with me!!!

 

[Tracy161]

Eeeck!!! So sorry to hear about your news! Hope things get better soon! We'll wait patiently for another update!

 

[Spartangirl]

Aw, Eli is adorable!

Awww, thanks! He's such a cutie! I just love my nephew!

Your meal at WPE looked delish! That's one we have not tried ~ we have picky kids. Someday.... *sigh*

It was fantastic!!! My fingers are crossed that you'll get to try it sooner than later!

Precious, precious, precious!
I love that one.
I want to see the baby! Last time I tried, they were around the corner at the cave entrance just out of sight.

We felt so fortunate that we were able to see the baby! My bet is that you'll see the baby on your next trip! (Although it might be a little bigger! )

Yes, it is!

I just LOVE that parade!

Looks incredible!

It was delish!

How neat that you were able to see the baby gorilla!!! It's getting so big!!!

Seeing the baby was one of our highlights from that day...what a cutie!

That vanilla bean cheesecake looks delicious! Yum, yum, yum!

It was fantastic!

Love the Christmas ornament! Do you get one everywhere you go for your vacation tree? Glad you were able to find something for Eli -- what a cutie!

Thanks! We do get an ornament from each place that we visit! Our Christmas tree has truly become a TRAVEL TREE! It is fun to look at each ornament and remember the memories from all of our different vacations. Isn't Eli a doll? We were so glad to find something for him too! I was just a bit surprised at the lack of items for toddler boys...

 

[Spartangirl]

Love the update, of course! Your nephew is adorable! It's a bummer that you couldn't find him a Cars hat.

Thanks...I just love my nephew to pieces! I was bummed I couldn't find him a hat either...however, he was SO EXCITED about what we did bring him. Every time I see him, he runs to see me with his Lightning McQueen car.

Awesome that you got to see a baby gorilla! That is my favorite area in AK. I can spend a lot of time on that trail.

We were thrilled to see the baby...what a highlight from that day. I know what you mean about that trail...I get sucked into watching the gorillas for such long periods of time!

After seeing the picture of the spaghetti and meatballs it made me want to Wolfgang's to get that dish. Can't wait to hear more about the trip!

Chris LOVED it...we really did enjoy our meal there! I plan on getting my next chapter up this weekend...possibly Friday!

YAY update!!! The video with the baby gorilla scared me at first, looks like she was just tossing the baby around but I guess that is just normal play for them!!

Let me tell you...it scared me watching it too!!!

We leave Monday and it is RAIN forecasted for us the whole time...hopefully it will still be lots of fun!

YAY...your trip is ALMOST here! Hope you have a magical time!!! Ugh...rain. Well, at least you'll be in Disney! I would pick up and go right now, rain and all, if I could! You will have a blast!!!

That baby is precious! Sadly, he will be pretty big by the time we get there again - I'd love to see him.

The baby was so cute...I was so surprised, yet excited that we had the chance to see him!

Glad you got to swim - I love DTD! Your dinner looks really yummy!

We LOVED our dinner...what a great choice for a CS meal!

Thanks for another super update. I think that I've replayed your video clip at least 10 times.

You're welcome! Thank you for reading! You are too funny...isn't that clip something else? It was so fun to see the mom interact with her baby!

 

[Spartangirl]

Love the animal pictures. The baby gorilla is so precious.

Thanks so much! I just loved watching the baby...so cute!

Your nephew is adorable. Sorry you had so much trouble finding items for him. I love the ornament you picked for your tree. Very pretty.

Thanks...he's such a doll! I was just so surprised at how hard it was to find something for a toddler boy! Thank you...it was so hard to choose an ornament...there were so many that I liked!

Wolfgang Puck Express is one of my favorite places to eat in Disney. I have never had a bad meal there.

It was fantastic! We will be back for sure!

Eli is so adorable! I found the same at WoD store with lack of toddler clothes. Not only that but unisex infant outfits. I had 2 sister-in-laws prego and they were not finding out the gender and I couldn't find anything unisex!

Awww...thanks! I just love my nephew! Isn't it amazing? I still have a hard time thinking about the lack of toddler clothes. You would think that WDW, of all places, would have quite the variety!

Uncle Phil sad that that is what I thought you meant when I read the next update title!

I think there are quite a few of us who "think" that way!

Eeeck!!! So sorry to hear about your news! Hope things get better soon! We'll wait patiently for another update!

Thanks so much! My goal is to have an update by Friday!

 

[Charleston Princess]

Yikes about all the water and the carpet! Good luck getting everything back together!

 

[Aburns8]

Sorry to hear about your basement issues! I miss having a basement since it is a great place to store all of your junk! We are too close to sea level down here that we can't have one I hope everything works out well!

 

[Spartangirl]

Yikes about all the water and the carpet! Good luck getting everything back together!

Thanks so much, Jackie! Still waiting on the carpet guy...once that's in, hopefully everything will go smoothly...fingers are crossed!

Sorry to hear about your basement issues! I miss having a basement since it is a great place to store all of your junk! We are too close to sea level down here that we can't have one I hope everything works out well!

Thank you so much! I can't imagine NOT having a basement! We actually use ours as our main means of entertainment...it's where we hang out with our family and friends when they come over! It's kind of like a huge living room, but downstairs! I'm hoping to get the ball moving REAL SOON...I'm so ready to have my "space" back...