Two Weeks until Two Weeks! - Update 3/22 - NEW TR LINK!

[Charleston Princess]

Whew! I was worried that Bo wouldn't make the list, but I am so glad he did! I know Chelsea misses him.

 

[OhMari]

Followed your link over from my pre-trippy.
How exciting to be at WDW for 2 weeks,
Some day, it would be so cool to meet up, with you and your family
and Sarah "wdwgirl" and her sisters. I may see Sarah though-we almost had the same flight home, but I extended our vacation by a day.
Off to read the rest.

OK, back.
Have to comment on ESPN weekend.
I was there last year, and it is mostly guys,
wanting to watch the show, near the hat.
Most of the rides are walk-ons.
The moved so many of the ESPN attractions
over to the Sports Complex.
I wish I would be there this year though, I"m wondering
if any Packers are going to show up, but I doubt it.

 

[wdwgirl03]

Two Weeks from Today....February 28.

The AIE has never really sparked our interest enough to take time to do it. However! I've read several TRs with it, and more than once I have read that people didn't expect to like it, but did! Not once have I read where someone thought it was a waste of time. So, it's certainly worth a shot. Plus, Sarah has thoroughly convinced me it's a good show and a lot of fun by explaining it through her TRs!

It is most definitely not a waste of time. I'm glad I convinced you to try it. I promise you won't be disappointed!

Oh, and you know how I have a newfound love for the Animation Academy too! I think you should have a contest to see how many characters you can draw in 2 weeks.

Followed your link over from my pre-trippy.
How exciting to be at WDW for 2 weeks,
Some day, it would be so cool to meet up, with you and your family
and Sarah "wdwgirl" and her sisters. I may see Sarah though-we almost had the same flight home, but I extended our vacation by a day.
Off to read the rest.

Agreed! We will have to figure out a good time to meet up.

 

[tiggrbaby]

Henry will just adore Tom Sawyer Island! There is so much to run around and try out. My boys especially loved the guns in the fort, the checker games, and the Lincoln Log table. It's been many years, so I'm not sure if they have all of that still.

As for BTMRR, if he feels ready, then let him go. If he decides to back out right around the time you are ready to board, let him bail. I think if he can handle the tea cups and Soarin', he will most likely enjoy it.

 

[blessedby3]

Wow, I get over here to post and its 10 pages deep
Just wanted to say that I love the countdown calendar...so adorable
We have used garden grocer on our last two trips and they have been great (Alexa wanted me to use this smily)
My kids started riding BTMMRR when they were about 4. They loved it and you can fit 3 in the seat so you can sandwich Henry in between both you and Joe if he wants to ride it. It is one of our family favorites...and if you ride it at night it feels MUCH FASTER...beware
I cant believe you guys have never done Peter Pan. It is great, but usually has a long wait. We try and get fastspasses for this and never wait standby. The line is deceiving...it snakes around and it appears to be short....but it never is!!

We love the Animation Academy at DHS and my kids usually do this a few times. It gives you a great free souvineer at the end. Alexa loved VOTLM last time. Its a fun show. We have never done AIE either. I always zoom right past it. Im intrested to hear what you think of it.

Your trip is getting so close (more Alexa smily choices)

 

[MaryAz]

All this talk of the Plaza has made me add it to my March trip-got the exact time I wanted-must be fate. I was scared on Barnstormer-thought Cayley was going to fly out!! She loves,loves BTMR-think Henry will too. Get thee to VOTLM-you will like it.

 

[claryche]

We did the animation academy for the first time, last trip. My DS was a little over 4 and a half and he enjoyed it. He stayed engrossed the whole time. It helped that we were drawing Mickey Mouse.

We really like Voyage of the Little Mermaid.

So glad you said that about Playhouse Disney. I was wondering if it would change. We are actually watching Jake and the Neverland Pirates right now. Glad to that it will work into our schedule, because I know that we will be at DHS on March 7th for the extra magic hours dance party. That is about the only thing I have planned for our trip.

If you see the parade before we do, it would be nice to know what you think. We loved the previous one and have great videos of my DS dancing with the dancers. He loved it.

 

[Poolrat]

ok...I am crawing out of the closet and admitting to you and the world that I AM SUBBING ON YOUR PTR!!!

and from NC. It looks like you might be close to me.

 

[disneyfan61]

Glad you are going to the Plaza. We have been a few times & have always had a good meal. I love the cheese steak & the ice cream!!

Have not tried HM????

I agree with Katie on the cream cheese pretzel. Yum!!!!!!

With two weeks you should get to sample all those great snacks. (And hopefully our beloved Shamrock Shakes)!!!!

 

[Poolrat]

Love hearing all about your DHS plans.

You know you can get to the Drawing class through the gift shop without going through the whole tour right?

VOLM is a cute show- it does get dark but only the Ursula scene is really dark.

I have never really wanted to experience AI so I always skip it.

i need to get back to IJ since it was so hot the last few times I went, I knew the theater would be an oven.

 

[tinacaplan]

Happy Valentine's Day to all of you, too! That picture of Henry is adorable. But, then again, aren't all of them?

 

[thewesterberg]

Sounds like a great plan for DHS! Have fun at the Animation Academy... we tried this for the first time in December and had a great time! We got to draw Rapunzel (which was sort of weird because we hadn't seen Tangled yet so I wasn't too sure what the final outcome was really suppose to look like!) N tried it, got frustrated right away and then he just doodled on his page for the rest of the class. A fun keepsake for all of us.

AIE is fun too. We never watch the show but I checked it out for the first time when I went down with a friend a year and a half ago. It was Sept, it was hot. Sitting down in A/C sounded divine so we gave it a try. It was fun, much more than I had thought it would be. I made a reluctant DH give it a try in December and he liked it okay. Once again, a good place to sit down for a bit and relax.

Happy Valentine's Day!

(Oh, so I ended up falling asleep last night before I could make it to the grocery store and fetch myself a bit o' heaven in the form of a Shamrock shake. So tonight after N's karate class, we ran over to McDonald's so I could get one. AND THEY DIDN'T HAVE THEM YET!!! Much sadness. Guess I'm glad I didn't go on a wild goose chase for one yesterday evening!)

 

[brookelizabeth]

we ate at 50's Prime Time for lunch this past June and REALLY liked it! We had one of those crazy in character server who was the BEST!!!

he was running himself ragged with his tables so at one point I asked him to sit and take a break with us and he DID! He sat next to me in the booth (1/2 booth & 1/2 table) and chatted for a few minutes - he had been working at this restraurant FOR EVER - like years and years and year..and loved it..

I had the fried chicken and it was TO DIE FOR...DH had the pot roast and kept saying the whole time.."I should have gotten the chicken"..

my boys, 11 & 8 really enjoyed the atmosphere and the food...oh, and the ice cream - DELISH!!

and that same day we ate at Hollywood & Vine for b'fast (just to get us in the parks before they opened) and the food was really good - I know it gets a bad wrap, but we found b'fast to be very hot and quite tasty - and we even had a server from N.C. - which was kinda nice...

now, the boys knew NONE of the characters and I had to ask our server a few times to tell us who we were getting pictures with - but the boys took those pictures in good spirits!!

Have you done the Muppet show? WE LOVED IT! All of us - like falling out of our chair funny...I'd do it again in a heartbeat..

We have done 50's twice, one time both Joe and I weren't feeling the best and our waitress really took that in stride and didn't do the antics, but was really sweet. Then we went last year with Joe's parents and OH MY WORD! HILARIOUS!!! His dad got put in the corner! It was a hoot! And we all really enjoyed our food too! We will go back to 50's again in the future for sure. I had the PB&J shake....deeeeeeeelish.

I'm glad you say that about Hollywood & Vine! You'll find out why in a future update.

And yep! We've done the Muppet show! It's one of Joe's favorites, and I like it too. I am totally impressed at the animatronics they have in that show.

I really have no idea about what to expect at the Hess Station, especially since I find American groceries to be quite a bit different from what is available here in Germany. I don't expect them to have many vegetables like cucumbers, tomatos and such? I am not really planning on eating a lot of food in my studio anyway, but some healthy snacks besides baby carrots might be welcome. And it seems like you did the same searches that I tried and which did not come up with much... At least for the BW store the DVC member site has a list of things available. So thank you very much for planning to do this!!

And on your update:

I think we seem to have very similar never done lists!! especially at DHS.

On Space Mountain: keep in mind, that Henry would have to sit on his own, I have seen a child once that got all upset when he was supposed to be in the train by himself.

And on the Astro Orbiter: I don't know how Henry is dealing with heights, but this is pretty high up and can get quite fast. I loved it, but for me it seemed to be quite a bit more thrilling than I ever expected it to be!

Sometimes you can find cucumbers and tomatoes at a gas station...but not often. Usually it's baby carrots. For fresh produce I imagine bananas, apples, baby carrots, yogurt cups, maybe strawberries, maybe grapes. And maybe potatoes. I hope they do have more options though!

Oh, Henry isn't tall enough for Space Mountain yet, so it will be a while before he can ride that. Did I slip and write Space Mountain somewhere for him riding it??? I didn't mean to. Just Splash and Big Thunder for him.

I barely remember the Astro Orbiter - Joe and I squeezed into one on our honeymoon and haven't bothered with it since. I don't think Henry would mind/notice the height...but the speed....I forgot that it went fast. Hmmm...I might have to re-think that one! Thanks for the tip!

Happy Valentine's Day to you too Henry!

All of your plans looks great.

I get to make my ADR's tomorrow I'm getting excited 6 months out, I can't imagine how excited you are! So close....

ADR day!!! I hope you get everything you want! And yes, I cannot believe we are ELEVEN days out.

 

[brookelizabeth]

Whew! I was worried that Bo wouldn't make the list, but I am so glad he did! I know Chelsea misses him.

Bo HAS to make the list! He's a star! And I have to tell him Chelsea says hello, of course.

Followed your link over from my pre-trippy.
How exciting to be at WDW for 2 weeks,
Some day, it would be so cool to meet up, with you and your family
and Sarah "wdwgirl" and her sisters. I may see Sarah though-we almost had the same flight home, but I extended our vacation by a day.
Off to read the rest.

OK, back.
Have to comment on ESPN weekend.
I was there last year, and it is mostly guys,
wanting to watch the show, near the hat.
Most of the rides are walk-ons.
The moved so many of the ESPN attractions
over to the Sports Complex.
I wish I would be there this year though, I"m wondering
if any Packers are going to show up, but I doubt it.

I'm very excited about staying for two weeks! I doubt we'll ever be able to do that again anytime soon, so it's a rare opportunity that we just had to take advantage of! And yes, I'd LOVE to meet up with both you and Sarah!!!

That is what I have read a few times about ESPN the Weekend, so we weren't going to let it stop us from doing DHS on any of those days - we couldn't give two hoots about what happens at the hat. I read something on the ESPN website about having a kids basketball court there at DHS, so that could be fun. We'll check it out probably and just see what they have going on. If I see any Packers I will be sure to snag some pictures!!!

It is most definitely not a waste of time. I'm glad I convinced you to try it. I promise you won't be disappointed!

Oh, and you know how I have a newfound love for the Animation Academy too! I think you should have a contest to see how many characters you can draw in 2 weeks.

Agreed! We will have to figure out a good time to meet up.

You convinced me to try the morning show and I got no singing....that better not be the case with AEI! Just kidding of course! You really have me convinced to try it though! I am sure I won't be disappointed, it will be a fun new experience and it gets great reviews, so I'm looking forward to it!

If Henry gets into the AA we probably will be going back more than once or twice! He could draw or paint for hours here at home, and he's getting really pretty good for a 3 year old!

 

[Flossbolna]

One trick for Astro Orbiter: you can adjust the height of your rocket. At first when you go up you will go faster because you are getting further away from the central core, but once you are getting higher than when the arm to the central core is horizontal you will slow down again since you get closer to the core again. So you can actually adjust the speed a bit!

I also thought that you might be interested in what I found recently: the Betamouse podcast. It's a podcast from Disney fans who are tech geeks (the host is Henry Works, the touringplans.com webmaster) and they recently had two podcasts (# 41 and # 42) about the science of touringplans where they talk with Len Testa. It is very nerdy (in another podcast they even discuss a patent in detail), so definitely not for everyone, but I though you might appreciate it! I really liked those episode and started to listen to a few more of their podcasts.

 

[brookelizabeth]

Henry will just adore Tom Sawyer Island! There is so much to run around and try out. My boys especially loved the guns in the fort, the checker games, and the Lincoln Log table. It's been many years, so I'm not sure if they have all of that still.

As for BTMRR, if he feels ready, then let him go. If he decides to back out right around the time you are ready to board, let him bail. I think if he can handle the tea cups and Soarin', he will most likely enjoy it.

There are guns in the fort???

We will never be able to leave.

I might as well take up residency on Tom Sawyer's Island.



That's my plan for BTMRR after hearing everyone's advice here too. I'll show it to him, let him decide and go from there. I really want him to ride, but also don't want to push him before he's ready and traumatize the kid! Thankfully they have chicken exits!

Wow, I get over here to post and its 10 pages deep
Just wanted to say that I love the countdown calendar...so adorable
We have used garden grocer on our last two trips and they have been great (Alexa wanted me to use this smily)
My kids started riding BTMMRR when they were about 4. They loved it and you can fit 3 in the seat so you can sandwich Henry in between both you and Joe if he wants to ride it. It is one of our family favorites...and if you ride it at night it feels MUCH FASTER...beware
I cant believe you guys have never done Peter Pan. It is great, but usually has a long wait. We try and get fastspasses for this and never wait standby. The line is deceiving...it snakes around and it appears to be short....but it never is!!

We love the Animation Academy at DHS and my kids usually do this a few times. It gives you a great free souvineer at the end. Alexa loved VOTLM last time. Its a fun show. We have never done AIE either. I always zoom right past it. Im intrested to hear what you think of it.

Your trip is getting so close (more Alexa smily choices)

Oooh, good to know about BTMRR at night. I will keep that in mind!

Joe and I have done Peter Pan, but I don't recall ever bringing Henry on it - due to the lines. It wasn't a favorite for Joe or I, so we've just skipped it. Even in September when Sorain' had a 5 minute wait, Peter Pan was 55! We will either ride right away in the AM, or grab FPs. I want to ride it again because I can't really remember it, and I want Henry to experience it - we can pretend we are really flying! It will be fun!

I love all of Alexa's choices! The cheerleader is one of Henry's favorites as of late.

All this talk of the Plaza has made me add it to my March trip-got the exact time I wanted-must be fate. I was scared on Barnstormer-thought Cayley was going to fly out!! She loves,loves BTMR-think Henry will too. Get thee to VOTLM-you will like it.

It's meant to be!!! I hope you enjoy it! Kathy has raved about it for several TRs and I've been drooling over it. I love me a good sandwich, steak fries and ice cream. Not good for the WW, but well.... (I won't eat all the fries, no mayo on the sandwich!)

I've heard great things about VOTLM and we wanted to go last trip, but it never worked out with our touring. I'm excited to try it! The Little Mermaid is one of my favorite princess movies.

 

[brookelizabeth]

We did the animation academy for the first time, last trip. My DS was a little over 4 and a half and he enjoyed it. He stayed engrossed the whole time. It helped that we were drawing Mickey Mouse.

We really like Voyage of the Little Mermaid.

So glad you said that about Playhouse Disney. I was wondering if it would change. We are actually watching Jake and the Neverland Pirates right now. Glad to that it will work into our schedule, because I know that we will be at DHS on March 7th for the extra magic hours dance party. That is about the only thing I have planned for our trip.

If you see the parade before we do, it would be nice to know what you think. We loved the previous one and have great videos of my DS dancing with the dancers. He loved it.

It will help if they pick a character Henry is familiar with. My only concern is sometimes he gets frustrated with things he can't quite do yet - and gets frustrated after about 1 or 2 tries. I think before we go in, I'll explain what we are doing and how it might be really hard and how Mommy or Daddy might have to help. Hopefully that will help avoid the possible meltdown.

We haven't watched Jake yet - we only watch Playhouse Disney on the computer and Henry had NO interest in it yesterday when I saw it on their website. I want to watch it with him...maybe later today. What did you think of it?

And speaking of the dance party...that is on our list as well! On March 7! We can do our DIS MEET! I have wanted to do this since you first told me about it many trips ago, and I think Henry is finally old enough to want to do it, enjoy it, and stay up late enough! I'm super excited for it!!!

Glad you are going to the Plaza. We have been a few times & have always had a good meal. I love the cheese steak & the ice cream!!

Have not tried HM????

I agree with Katie on the cream cheese pretzel. Yum!!!!!!

With two weeks you should get to sample all those great snacks. (And hopefully our beloved Shamrock Shakes)!!!!

That's twice I've heard good reviews on the cheese steak...it wasn't at the top of my list, but it's creeping up there! Tempting!!

Nope, no HM yet! I know, I know. But last trip I did try popcorn and a Mickey Waffle, so I could keep my DISer Card. I gotta get HM in before it gets revoked again.

I am nervous as to what the scale will say after two weeks of Disney food!

Love hearing all about your DHS plans.

You know you can get to the Drawing class through the gift shop without going through the whole tour right?

VOLM is a cute show- it does get dark but only the Ursula scene is really dark.

I have never really wanted to experience AI so I always skip it.

i need to get back to IJ since it was so hot the last few times I went, I knew the theater would be an oven.

No! I didn't know that! I actually have NO idea where the drawing class even is - or that there was a real tour?!? I gotta do some more research. I was just gonna walk in and go from there and try to find it! What is the tour?

Thanks for the tip on the darkness in VOLM. I'll warn Henry so he won't freak totally.

Joe might want to do IJ again too...that might be another Mommy goes shopping moment. I like it, but I've seen it enough that I don't care to again...maybe in another trip or two. Both that theater and the LMA theater can get SO HOT! Ugh. I hope Feb/March has perfect weather...not too hot, not too cold. Fingers crossed.

More replies later during nap time - gotta get ready to face the day. Henry has a doctor appointment this morning, just a normal check-up thing-he's not sick. Joe is getting over a cold, so that better be GONE within the next 11 days and better NOT pass to me. I've got some things on my Disney list to tackle and grocery shopping. A busy, busy day lays ahead! As MeMom says, I hope you all have a "terrific Tuesday!"

 

[lovealldisney]

I really have no idea about what to expect at the Hess Station, especially since I find American groceries to be quite a bit different from what is available here in Germany. I don't expect them to have many vegetables like cucumbers, tomatos and such? I am not really planning on eating a lot of food in my studio anyway, but some healthy snacks besides baby carrots might be welcome. And it seems like you did the same searches that I tried and which did not come up with much... At least for the BW store the DVC member site has a list of things available. So thank you very much for planning to do this!!

I find this interesting Magadlene that you would think American don't have many veggies?? or is it just the Hess Station your referring to? I feel American stores have an over abundance of food. I found Germany stores different that American ones to. Well except Aldi! They were VERY simalar.

Hmmmm gets me thinking I need to take some pictures for you of our local grocery store. You know how I like to take pictures....

 

[jenseib]

I got several pages behind...and I admit, skimmed over the responses.
But I wanted to make sure you knew that the Barber shop now takes appointments. So you probably should make one if you don't want to wait in long lines. just in case you didn't know.

I like your leisurely approach

 

[that's nice]

I'm off the DIS for the weekend and this is how you repay me? I'm 6 pages behind!

Your plans look awesome!!! I love the laid back approach.

The picture of Henry getting his haircut in MK is so cute!