Universal Adventures of Dreams AND Magic, and an expanding World!

[jenseib]

I love all of those movies myself! Jurassic Park is a fav as is the HP movies. I haven't seen 6,7 & 8 yet. I have all of them except for 8, will be getting it also.

I want to see the Harry Potter thing at Universal so much. Someday!

I love limas beans, but they have to be fresh or frozen. Those canned things are terrible!

I'm a little obsessive about Harry Potter. I don't talk much about it here, but I am kind of a geek....not nearly as bad as some people, but more than others.
We like the frozen ones...canned are disgusting. WE had them for supper tonight and Claire had two huge helpings and hardly ate anything else on her plate. I had to force her to eat a bit of other stuff before I would give her a 2nd helping.

 

[rndmr2]

I found this a few days ago and I thought I posted but I guess I didn't. That's great you are doing a trip, wow it's coming up soon! I was at US back before they put in IOA, in fact they had a preview area/display the last time I was there and I remember thinking that the Dr Seuss area would be great for kids.

I'm sorry about your flood in the basement, Hope all is going well with the clean up.

 

[jenseib]

I found this a few days ago and I thought I posted but I guess I didn't. That's great you are doing a trip, wow it's coming up soon! I was at US back before they put in IOA, in fact they had a preview area/display the last time I was there and I remember thinking that the Dr Seuss area would be great for kids.

I'm sorry about your flood in the basement, Hope all is going well with the clean up.

Yay! You made it. I'm excited about the trip. I know it won't be Disney, but it will be fun. If you go in with that mind set, I feel you can do better than if you worry about things. Getting away is the best part...being in Florida also is great!

 

[jenseib]

 

[jenseib]

Day 2 planning. March 27

My plans may change, depending on my family...and how cooperative they are, but the "plan" right now is to get up very early this day. I'll have to check and see what time the breakfast buffet opens, but hopefully we'll have a chance to get down and get a bite to eat before 7 AM. I want to be on the road by 7:15 at the latest. We have early entry for Islands of Adventure, so I want to get there well before * AM, which is when we are allowed to go in. Actually I think they open the gates up and let us in to a certain point prior to then. We also have to get our tickets at a will call kiosk.
If all goes according to plan, we wil lhead in early and go straight back to get in line for Ollivanders wand show. A child is picked to participate in each show. Claire is prime age for this. I know there is no gaurentee that she will get picked, but I do want to at least try. I do know that if the line is too long, I will skip this and possibly check it out another day.

Next on the agenda is going to the Forbidden Journey. Claire has watched Youtube videos of this to get an idea of what it is like. She says she won't be scared and knows it is all fake, and she really wants to ride it. You cannot take bags on this ride, so we'll put them in the locker, but I plan to keep my point and shoot with me and try to get some castle shots.
They also offer a "castle tour" for those who don't ride this or want to take their time walking through. This is only allowed when it's not too busy and you basically just go through an empty line and look around, then exit. If I can't get great shots with the point and shoot, I may try to do this as well as some point in time.

Flight of the Hippogriff is the last ride in this area we want to try. I have been told it's very similar to Barnstormer, on Harry Potter themed. Claire should like that.

I also NEED to get at least 1 butterbeer. I hear the frozen is better. And of course I want to go through the shops. I want to get pictures of everything I can, but I have been told the shops are small and very crowded, so I guess I'll see how that goes.

After we tackle the WWoHP, I am not sure what we'll do next. My guess is Seussland, since Claire is very excited to check that area out.

Of course I want to try out the Jurassic park area too. We'll kind of play it by ear and see how long lines are. We may skip over to the Studios for a bit too.

We'll also look for some characters too.

I have a couple of places I want to eat at, so it depends on how things are going, and what Skip would like to do as well.
My first thought when we planned this trip was that I want to go back to the Cheesecake Factory that we visited last year. I'm keeping it on my list to do, but it might not be so convenient since we are here just a short time and will have jammed packed days.
If we stay till closing and haven't eaten yet at that point, then we may just head over there this night.
I am guessing things won't work out that way though. I have 3 other onsite places that have had good reviews. One is margaritaville. I do want to try and get here one day. I am thinking if we can get an early dinner and take a break, that might work out best. If we are hungry after we leave the park, we could always just go pick up a piece of cheesecake later...or another idea...go to Beaches and Creams and get an icecream!
The other 2 places I would like to try are Bubba Gumps and the NASCAR Cafe. (I'm not a big NASCAR fan, but have heard this place is really good)

We obviously cannot not eat at all these places in the 3 days we have to explore, so we'll have to decide once we get there.

We will eventually end up back at the Quality Inn and depending how late it is, we might take Claire for a swim. This is a highlight for Claire, so we do have to fit that in as much as we can. If it is really hot (and when I last looked, the weather is to be mid to high 80's) we may take a break in the day and let her swim for a bit and then head back to the parks.

My updates are pretty boring with out pictures......I do expect Claire's dresses to arrive today or tomorrow, so I'll take a picture of her in them once they do. Maybe I can dig out some old Universal pictures from our 90's trips too.

 

[Disneychix]

Looks like a great day Jenn!
Where is the Cheesecake Factory? Is it right at CityWalk? I do love to eat there and that couldbe a nice off-site option for us next trip.

I can't wait to see Claire in the dresses!

 

[jenseib]

Looks like a great day Jenn!
Where is the Cheesecake Factory? Is it right at CityWalk? I do love to eat there and that couldbe a nice off-site option for us next trip.

I can't wait to see Claire in the dresses!

It's actually a few miles away at a mall. Thats why I am more doubtful about going there. It won't be easy access to get to and we may be tired and not wanting to drive the extra distance. It's darn good though.

 

[MEK]

Sounds like a great day. I have been dying to try bubba gumps. I've been to Margaritaville and that was a great atmosphere and good food!

 

[mom2rtk]

Sounds like a great plan. But I have no idea why you thin your family might want to change anything.....

I completely missed my job responsiblity yesterday...... I'm so embarrassed.... so here you go.......




And I'm gonna do this now so I don't miss the boat again.........

 

[jenseib]

Sounds like a great day. I have been dying to try bubba gumps. I've been to Margaritaville and that was a great atmosphere and good food!

I have heard it's good from a few people, so I hope we get there.....and Bubba gumps looks great as well.

Sounds like a great plan. But I have no idea why you thin your family might want to change anything.....

I completely missed my job responsiblity yesterday...... I'm so embarrassed.... so here you go.......




And I'm gonna do this now so I don't miss the boat again.........

I am worried mostly about Claire waking up early.....she really likes to sleep in and stay up late. I already told them I may leave them and go if they can't get their rears in gear.

 

[mom2rtk]

I am worried mostly about Claire waking up early.....she really likes to sleep in and stay up late. I already told them I may leave them and go if they can't get their rears in gear.

Yeah.... I feel for you on that, especially the day after you arrive late. But with a short trip, you really need to make the most of each day. Hopefully she'll be so excited she'll get right up.

I have to say I have it pretty easy with Katie in that regard. She's pretty good at getting up when I need her to. Heck, she sets her Donald Duck alarm clock on a daily basis so I never even have to wake her for school. HUGE life improvement!

Can't wait for your mail delivery!

 

[mickeystoontown]

First off, I'm glad to hear that the really bad weather missed you guys. I know that dealing with the broken pump and the leaks was bad enough but at least it wasn't as devastating as I have read about other places in your area.

Second, it looks like your trip is shaping up nicely. It's been years since we've been to Universal so I know I can't help out on the planning part. I did see that you went over and read Dee's Universal report. She had some great information there.

 

[jenseib]

Yeah.... I feel for you on that, especially the day after you arrive late. But with a short trip, you really need to make the most of each day. Hopefully she'll be so excited she'll get right up.

I have to say I have it pretty easy with Katie in that regard. She's pretty good at getting up when I need her to. Heck, she sets her Donald Duck alarm clock on a daily basis so I never even have to wake her for school. HUGE life improvement!

Can't wait for your mail delivery!

Every school morning here is a challenge with her. And every evening she has every excuse in the book on why she can't sleep.
I think day 1 might work because of excitement.
I can't wait for the day when Claire gets up with an alarm clock for school!!! And then actually gets ready with out prodding constantly!

 

[jenseib]

First off, I'm glad to hear that the really bad weather missed you guys. I know that dealing with the broken pump and the leaks was bad enough but at least it wasn't as devastating as I have read about other places in your area.

Second, it looks like your trip is shaping up nicely. It's been years since we've been to Universal so I know I can't help out on the planning part. I did see that you went over and read Dee's Universal report. She had some great information there.

Dee had a fabulous report. I have gone and reread some of Bubbasmoms stuff too.
I stole Dee's top 10 "Thing's" to do and put it on my tip sheet. That was just too cute not to have.

We now have a square hole is Claire's ceiling...waiting for it to rain again so we can see where the water is leaking in from so we can fix it. Her room isn't too big, so I had to drag a few things into the living room so I could move her bed over. It probably won't rain hard now till we leave.

 

[mickeystoontown]

Dee had a fabulous report. I have gone and reread some of Bubbasmoms stuff too.
I stole Dee's top 10 "Thing's" to do and put it on my tip sheet. That was just too cute not to have.

We now have a square hole is Claire's ceiling...waiting for it to rain again so we can see where the water is leaking in from so we can fix it. Her room isn't too big, so I had to drag a few things into the living room so I could move her bed over. It probably won't rain hard now till we leave.

I won't tell that you stole Dee's top 10 list because I was planning on taking it too when we thought we were going to Universal on one day of our upcoming trip.

Yeah, when you're waiting for something to happen (in your case...rain so you can see where the leak is coming from), it doesn't even happen when you want it to.

 

[dizneeat]

Voted!
Looks like your loyal voters have been busy ..... you have 62% of the votes!

 

[Beth D]

OK Jen, Here goes below my tips/tricks/advise for Universal.

Allegiant - yes, you can add bags until the day before. Also, they may offer to counter check any carryon wheelies for free if the plane will be crowded. My brother was on the Friday night flight this last week, and they weren't thrilled about the late arrival time either, but such is the price for a cheap ticket!

Universal - it will take at least a full day for each park, no matter what Skip is thinking. Also, getting back and forth down I-4 to Disney is a major haul, any time of day. The traffic on there is a nightmare, day, night or whenever! Count on a 1/2 hour...

Food recommendations - eat breakfast at your hotel, go to the park for a few hours, and then go eat a big lunch at one of the City Walk restaurants. Our favorit is Jimmy Buffet's Margaritaville. The kids all get parrot hats, and the music just feels like a giant party. DS always has to sit by the volcano to watch it "blow". And their volcano nachos are the best. Try to avoid the City Walk restaurants for dinner as they get quite busy near park closing. Get food inside the park or go offsite.

Offiste food - I highly recommend Giordano's pizza. It's fantastic deep dish Chicago style pizza, and they have them near Universal on Sand Lake Road.

Rides - the most intense rides are HP Forbidden Journey, and Incredible Hulk coaster. Claire may not be tall enough for Hulk. Dueling Dragons is similar to Raptor at CP, except there are two different tracks.

The scariest parts about forbidden Journey are the spiders, the Dementors, and the darkness. It's not like a ride where you can see what is coming in advance, the not knowing was half the scare. But it was just about the best ride i've ever been on. DS said at 6 that it was scary, but way cool.

And sorry to disappont you, but unless you hide your camera in your pocket, they will NOT let you take it in the queue line. EVERYTHING goes in the lockers, even sunglasses. The ride is just way too crazy motion filled. You go in every direction from laying flat out on your stomach to up, down, and back. I wouldn't want to risk it.

Definitely get back to Hogsmeade right away when you get into IOA. We didn't wait for the wand show at Ollivanders, as the line for that was almost longer than FJ! If you still want to buy a wand, they sell them at a cart outside, and also at the main gift shops. They were $35 when we went last year, but high quality. You can also get scarves and other items from the houses too, those were also pricey, but also good quality.

Butterbeer - MMM definitely frozen!! Have one person wait in the line (again quite long, but worth it) while you snap pics of the outside of the shops. The candy shop is also worth a visit for a chocolate frog!

Bring Claire's autograph book, as some Dr. Seuss characters do signings.

That's all i can think of for now. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions, as I haven't been checking the DIS a whole lot lately, but I get PM notices on my e-mail on my phone.

Have fun!

 

[Kathy Jetson]

I voted!

River said the part of FJ that scared him the most was that the ride vehicle moves around so much, it tilted back pretty far and he thought we were upside down and that he was going to fall out of the vehicle and he couldn't hold our hand or talk to us. We couldn't even hear him crying until the ride was over. Just warn her before the ride that she won't fall out and probably won't be able to hear you or talk to you.

We never spend that much time swimming at Disney beacuse we have a pool and River is always going somewhere swimming around here. We would always spend all day in the parks and get back late and go to bed. Universal closed so much earlier then Disney does that River was able to spend each night in the pools when we went. It was a nice relaxing way to end the hot days!

 

[jenseib]

I won't tell that you stole Dee's top 10 list because I was planning on taking it too when we thought we were going to Universal on one day of our upcoming trip.

Yeah, when you're waiting for something to happen (in your case...rain so you can see where the leak is coming from), it doesn't even happen when you want it to.

I don't even see rain in the forecast either right now. You know our luck...it will pur hard while we are gone.

Voted!
Looks like your loyal voters have been busy ..... you have 62% of the votes!

WooHoo!!!

OK Jen, Here goes below my tips/tricks/advise for Universal.

Allegiant - yes, you can add bags until the day before. Also, they may offer to counter check any carryon wheelies for free if the plane will be crowded. My brother was on the Friday night flight this last week, and they weren't thrilled about the late arrival time either, but such is the price for a cheap ticket!

Universal - it will take at least a full day for each park, no matter what Skip is thinking. Also, getting back and forth down I-4 to Disney is a major haul, any time of day. The traffic on there is a nightmare, day, night or whenever! Count on a 1/2 hour...

Food recommendations - eat breakfast at your hotel, go to the park for a few hours, and then go eat a big lunch at one of the City Walk restaurants. Our favorit is Jimmy Buffet's Margaritaville. The kids all get parrot hats, and the music just feels like a giant party. DS always has to sit by the volcano to watch it "blow". And their volcano nachos are the best. Try to avoid the City Walk restaurants for dinner as they get quite busy near park closing. Get food inside the park or go offsite.

Offiste food - I highly recommend Giordano's pizza. It's fantastic deep dish Chicago style pizza, and they have them near Universal on Sand Lake Road.

Rides - the most intense rides are HP Forbidden Journey, and Incredible Hulk coaster. Claire may not be tall enough for Hulk. Dueling Dragons is similar to Raptor at CP, except there are two different tracks.

The scariest parts about forbidden Journey are the spiders, the Dementors, and the darkness. It's not like a ride where you can see what is coming in advance, the not knowing was half the scare. But it was just about the best ride i've ever been on. DS said at 6 that it was scary, but way cool.

And sorry to disappont you, but unless you hide your camera in your pocket, they will NOT let you take it in the queue line. EVERYTHING goes in the lockers, even sunglasses. The ride is just way too crazy motion filled. You go in every direction from laying flat out on your stomach to up, down, and back. I wouldn't want to risk it.

Definitely get back to Hogsmeade right away when you get into IOA. We didn't wait for the wand show at Ollivanders, as the line for that was almost longer than FJ! If you still want to buy a wand, they sell them at a cart outside, and also at the main gift shops. They were $35 when we went last year, but high quality. You can also get scarves and other items from the houses too, those were also pricey, but also good quality.

Butterbeer - MMM definitely frozen!! Have one person wait in the line (again quite long, but worth it) while you snap pics of the outside of the shops. The candy shop is also worth a visit for a chocolate frog!

Bring Claire's autograph book, as some Dr. Seuss characters do signings.

That's all i can think of for now. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions, as I haven't been checking the DIS a whole lot lately, but I get PM notices on my e-mail on my phone.

Have fun!

Thanks. Allegiant offered that last year to us too...with the carryons. But this one I'm taking will have some important stuff, so I'll keep it with us.

I do plan on putting my point and shoot in my pocket in the line. I guess there is also a spot to put them on the ride in the back of the seat from what I've been told. It's hard to see unless you know it's there.

An early dinner/late lunch is the plan for us too. I heard it can be pretty busy later on. I just have to watch the watch to be sure we get there on time.
Good to hear about dueling dragons. I like Raptor...so maybe I'll give it a try. We'l lsee how my neck and back are doing that day.

I am bringing a pillowcase for signatures. I just got the appliques today, so now I just need to get the actual pillowcase.

1 week form now we should be sitting on the plane getting ready to take off!

I voted!

River said the part of FJ that scared him the most was that the ride vehicle moves around so much, it tilted back pretty far and he thought we were upside down and that he was going to fall out of the vehicle and he couldn't hold our hand or talk to us. We couldn't even hear him crying until the ride was over. Just warn her before the ride that she won't fall out and probably won't be able to hear you or talk to you.

We never spend that much time swimming at Disney beacuse we have a pool and River is always going somewhere swimming around here. We would always spend all day in the parks and get back late and go to bed. Universal closed so much earlier then Disney does that River was able to spend each night in the pools when we went. It was a nice relaxing way to end the hot days!

Thanks!
I have told Claire some of those things, but I'll remind her. I was told by someone else too that it does flip pretty far back, but never upside down...just kind of feels like it is.

The parks are open till 8 and 9 while we are there, which is pretty late for Universal. But i'm sure we'll have to squeeze some pool time in. My BIL has a pool across the street, but of course, here in Ohio we can only use it a few months of the year. Though this week has been low 80's almost everyday. Totally unreal. It does look like it will go back in the 50s next week.

 

[jenseib]

They have arrived! Well some of the things have!

Here are 2 of the outfits and bows we are bringing along.

I also recieved some iron on appliques that I am going to put on a pillowcase for signatures. I just need to go buy a pillowcase for that and do it.

I talked to Jeanne today, but forget to ask if she sent out the Harry Potter outfit. The bow has shipped, but I'm not sure if it wil lbe here on time or not.
Also, my fabulous portable charger went on the fritz already. I have come to the conclusion that the cord went bad. I can plug in Claire's ipod cord and it works just fine, but I don't have a compatible cord for my phone. So I ordered a different brand of charger for my phone. (I did that before I figured it was the cord that went bad). I probably could find a cord that works somewhere, but I won't be bad having two charges. The old one can before Claire.
Amazon has assured me that my charger will be here before Friday, but it hasn't listed as shipped yet. I actually contacted them about pying more for faster shipping since it hadn't shipped after a few days of ordering, but she said it was already boxed to be shipped and couldn't add it now. She swears it will be here no later than the 24th....It better!