*update 1/10 Am I done?!!* How to get your child to grow 1" in 120 days....

[SAT887]

Ahhh so I want to update this but my laptop battery died!! So while I can type whatever up on my iPhone/iPad it's getting pictures over that's a pain... So in the meantime while I wait for my battery from amazon here is some pumpkin pictures!

Zoey and I had a carving party Zack is busy as always so I did his for him too. Zoey requested Jack Skellington for her, Oogie Boogie for Olive, I chose Tink and after convincing Zoey that we shouldn't do a Christmas tree we chose Ralph for my husbands pumpkin

 

[teekathepony]

Those are awesome! I especially love Oogie Boogie! (But why not a Christmas tree!?!? )

 

[SAT887]

Those are awesome! I especially love Oogie Boogie! (But why not a Christmas tree!?!? )

Honestly... I was actually having too much fun doing the designs - and Christmas tree patterns weren't so plentiful.... . I really like the Oogie Boogie one too- his was hard because Olive's pumpkin was a bit smaller.... I have some toothpicks as additional support

 

[DaveinFallsChurch]

Those are some awesome pumpkin carvings!

Happy Halloween Sarah!

 

[Valgoof]

Awesome carvings!!! I love your Ralph!! When I first read it I thought, who the heck is Ralph?!

 

[SAT887]

So finally…. With my new laptop battery fully charged I am ready to go! I am a complete slacker when it comes to using my laptop plugged in… I prefer the comfort of my couch with a cup of coffee! Soooo… Where were we………

Well, instead of heading over to AK we decided to move our ADR to 4:35 and hang out in the room. Basically I spent the time getting things unpacked, pre-making breakfasts for Zack, and overall just relaxing and soaking in the fact we were in WDW. By now we had all changed into warm weather wear after leaving the cooler temps of Northern NH, and we had definitely had our fix of Disney Jr (the girls loved it, we canceled our satellite years ago and don’t miss it too much) Around now it was about 3:30-3:45 so we packed up some essentials and headed over to Jambo…. Did I mention I loved the underground parking at Kidani???

Few more room pics…










After our super short drive over we headed in…. Entering the main lodge is always an amazing experience, it is truly stunning. As we headed in, I noticed that the Photopass Location was open and instructed my husband to take the girls out to the viewing area while I got our PP+ card. It took just a few minutes and I was on my way… Quite slowly I might add, as I took in all the sights and sounds of the lodge.

The girls were running around and having a ton of fun, the viewing area was virtually empty and they were so happy to really stretch their legs, plus they got to see so many awesome animals! Zoey still talks on and on about her adventures in the Animal Kingdom.

Here are a couple photos I took of the wildlife….



Butterfly…



Here piggy piggy…..



Tweet Tweet… Wait… this isn’t a book for Olive….



Eeek! Scary spider!

So here I want to express some of my difficulties in capturing pictures of my kids…

Yep I have lots of the back of their heads…



Or ones like this… Deep in thought because they are always on the move!!



While we were out we heard thunder in the distance and saw some lightening – it was time to go in because guess what? It was around 4pm in Florida and that means rain!!! On our way in, I saw this giant grasshopper hiding in the tall grasses; I could not get a photo because I didn’t want to disturb him by moving any of his surrounding…. I was somewhat afraid he would jump on me… The think was seriously 4” long…. Waaaay bigger than I am used to!!

It was a good time to head in… Olive was looking a bit overheated…



Yep – Zoey found the TV….



Maybe if I smile at mommy I can stay and watch longer….



Ijele Mask



Zoey watched TV with Zack… While Olive was moving around the stools – apparently there was a better setup she was envisioning…. I walked around and looked at all the artwork. As I was taking a few snapshots a CM at the concierge called me over….. At first I thought he was going to yell at me for taking pictures – by accident my flash had gone off once… Well, I asked him if he was going to yell at me for taking a picture with the flash…. He got a good laugh at this and assured me there was no yelling to be had. What he wanted to ask me was if I had ever see Mystery Science 3000… Ummm OF COURSE!



Notice an uncanny resemblance?


Taken from google images…..


Well, after some chatting he gave me a pamphlet that was an overview of the artwork at the resort. I was very thankful and he then clued me in on a hidden mickey contained in the lighting. According to him, the shields were shipped and one was damaged in transit, and instead of replicating the shield perfectly they changed it a bit an added a hidden Mickey. He then challenged me to find it…. Now, did the shield truly get damaged or was this in the design all along…. I don’t know… However, this CM was awesome, and a lot of fun and all around fun – so I am not going to question it and just go along for fun…. So my response to his challenge…. “Challenge accepted!” Yes, then I went off in search of a hidden mickey… I told Zack the story and he joined me… And after a few neck breaking minutes looking up and walking in circles he called me over again…. This time he handed me a sheet of paper with a hidden Mickey scavenger hunt… He also provided me with a hint… A very obvious hint!! So I gathered my family and brought them up to the 5th floor where I found this…








It was fun, and the CM was very entertaining… We were feeling the Disney magic…. If this was setting the tone to our trip I was more than happy to continue it…. It was not about 4:30 and time to go to Boma! We headed back to the elevators and got to the restaurant just in time for the opening… There were drums, music and dancing… I had never experienced this hear and it was really interesting! Olive was enjoying the music as we checked in and in about 5 minutes or so we were seated. We had an excellent server and a fantastic meal. I am terrible at food pictures… Absolutely terrible – I could never do a dining review ever!! We love eating at Boma, the flavors are so unique and really appeal to us – I think we have been there 5 times at least and it has never disappointed us! As our meal was coming to an end our server brought us out two treats One for Zoey as a birthday celebration and one for us for our anniversary celebration….

Zoey’s was a chocolate filled Mickey tart with a bit of raspberry filling… And sprinkles.. her favorite



Ours were chocolate truffles… And they were so tasty! Even Olive stole one!!

​

 

[SAT887]

Well, it was a wonderful dinner, but it was time to go… The girls were getting antsy and Zoey was starting to become a handful. All in all she was okay, but I always prefer better behavior. Luckily we were seated next to a family with a daughter about the same age acting about the same way… Sometimes that level of understanding is pure awesomeness! It’s like – just relax… we get it… So after rescuing their crayon from impending doom we were off! Next stop Epcot!

We got to Epcot and because it was late and the first rows of parking were half empty the CM’s were directing people up front… We were about 3 or 4 rows back… AWESOME! So we park, get the stroller and girls together and we were off to Guest Relations… Wow… This was an experience… We waited in line for at least 20 minutes – there were so many people exchanging tickets for RFID cards and then of course with people with praise, issues and complaints… So we were now in line we had a few things to pick up and I should have done my research to see if I could have picked these up at concierge… First on our list – exchange our APs for RFID enabled Aps…. 2nd exchange Zoey’s voucher for her AP and 3rd pick up our MNSSHP tickets…. Well, this was a process, apparently with all the updates there is a bit of work to do to change things over. Our CM looked like he had been beat up on all day – he was so nice and so pleasant that I joked around with him, told him to take his time and to relax. I asked if the transition had been easy and by the look of despair I didn’t think it had been. After all was done I graciously thanked him and told him to have a great day… Now to go get on line to enter EPCOT! Super Yay right? Well we get to the Mickey posts and Zack goes green, Zoey goes green and me nothing… It doesn’t work So the CM calls over a manager who tells me I need to go to guest relations… Ummm seriously? I explained I already waited forever and didn’t want to go through that again especially since I just came from there. She seemed to understand and told me to just go to the window they were calling over… I asked her if she saw the line of people scowling… She then walked over with me… Phew! Right? As we get there she explains to the waiting guests that I had already waited and that they needed to correct something (mind you they had all available windows open). If looks could kill I wouldn’t be here right now! I felt a Gaston-like village mob could have ensued…. Pitch forks and all!! I asked that the original CM who helped me at the window help me again and when he saw me he looked a bit nervous! After he was done assisting his current customer he helped me, and was so apologetic - I told him not to worry – if this was the worst thing currently happening in my life I have nothing to complain about! He helped me and gave me a new AP and off I went! I really really feel for CMs in Disney – some are less than stellar, some are awesome and some shouldn’t be in the service industry – but overall they are all very good at their jobs and get beat on quite a bit. After 13 years dealing with customers (good, bad and awesome) I definitely try to put things into perspective and always try to make sure I am directing my issue at the appropriate person… Now don’t get me wrong when there is poor service I am fully behind constructive criticism!

So now for the true test…. Would my pass work…. The original CM at the gate saw us waved me over and we crossed our fingers! And in a matter of moments I too had the green Mickey I was waiting for and we entered Epcot…. As we entered we saw a Photopass photographer… Yeah – we were exhausted and probably looked worse… So we agreed – no pictures tonight… No one needs to remember that Well, the most important thing we needed to do was to get coffee… I love Starbucks being in WDW, I can now go get a decent cup of coffee and I am happy with that. That’s what we got two grande iced coffees with milk, I shy away from the lattes because of all the milk and generally use them as a treat… Heaven I tell you – after all the bad coffee I have had in WDW this really made me very happy…. With coffee in hand we strolled past Test Track and it had a ridiculous standby wait (like 75 minutes) and no FP left – so we then decided it was time to just walk the World Showcase and relax. This is exactly what we did, the only ride we went on was in Mexico – I started playing with my rented lens on the ride because it is sort of dark and realized it would be staying in my bag at night – and I would stick to my 35mm 1.8… However I did get a few shots of the ride…

I liked these skeletons!


Hmmm I wonder why this reminds me of IASW…..




So after the Mexico Pavilion we wandered aimlessly towards Canada – the announcements were playing that Illuminations would be starting shortly… Originally we decided to leave beforehand but then decided, why not stay for the fireworks… We arrived near Canada about 5 minutes before the show started and plopped down on a curb and didn’t even care there was a huge tree obstructing our view…. We all got comfortable and enjoyed the show Here are a few pictures I took with my phone… My favorite being of Olive enjoying the fireworks with that look that makes it all worthwhile….








Well, the show was over and we followed the masses in our zombie-like state to the exit. We were lucky and parked so close we were at our car in minutes! We programmed the GPS and off we went…. Back to the room for rest and relaxation… Upon entering our room the girls were asleep in minutes and we were vegging on the couch planning out our next day…. ​

 

[SAT887]

Those are some awesome pumpkin carvings!

Happy Halloween Sarah!

Happy Halloween to you too!! And thanks!! I really liked them

Awesome carvings!!! I love your Ralph!! When I first read it I thought, who the heck is Ralph?!

Thanks! Ralph made my hand go numb.... But they were definitely worth the time and effort!!

 

[DaveinFallsChurch]

LOVE your pictures of AKL! Beautiful close up shots! It looks like that zoom came in handy for the animal shots. That's where we'll be staying at in January and I got to do a very brief tour on my departure morning last week. I can't wait to walk around the resort with my camera in hand after the kiddos are in bed.

You can bet we'll be eating at Boma again in January. Going to try to break my previous record of four plates of food from the buffet.

Sounds like it was a relaxing evening at Epcot to start your trip off! I had forgotten until last week how often they announce over the speakers that Illuminations is going to start in just 30 minutes, 15 minutes, 10 minutes, 5 minutes. I laughed to myself thinking I bet there are still lots of people who walk up to the CMs despite these announcements asking "Umm, what time does Illumination start again?"

 

[afwdwfan]

I am a complete slacker when it comes to using my laptop plugged in… I prefer the comfort of my couch with a cup of coffee!

I'm the same way. That is what extension cords are for.

Here are a couple photos I took of the wildlife….

Great pictures. Both of the wildlife and the artwork at the Lodge.

I was somewhat afraid he would jump on me… The think was seriously 4” long…. Waaaay bigger than I am used to!!

I think it must have escaped from It's Tough to be a Bug.

Luckily we were seated next to a family with a daughter about the same age acting about the same way… Sometimes that level of understanding is pure awesomeness! It’s like – just relax… we get it…

Other parents who "get it" are always the best people to be seated around.

So we park, get the stroller and girls together and we were off to Guest Relations… Wow… This was an experience… We waited in line for at least 20 minutes

Wow... this whole experience with the tickets is just brutal. I'm glad that they were eventually able to straighten it all out and get you all in, but that isn't exactly a fun way to start things out.

And what you say about the CM's is true. I feel bad for the ones in the line of fire taking the brunt of the backlash for something they have no responsibility for, but some are definitely much better than others.

My favorite being of Olive enjoying the fireworks with that look that makes it all worthwhile….

Perfect end to the day, right there.

 

[emmysmommy]

Sarah I started reading early this am and had to come back and finish getting caught up.

Your Halloween pumpkins were awesome! What fun for the girls although I'm sure mom smelled like pumpkin.

Loved the hidden Mickey challenge from the AKL CM! What a great guy!

I need to try Boma for dinner some time. I hear such high praise for the buffet options. Your celebration desserts were a nice touch.

Ha ha at least the people in the guest relations line didn't break out their torches and pitchforks. Nice iphone pics.

 

[SAT887]

LOVE your pictures of AKL! Beautiful close up shots! It looks like that zoom came in handy for the animal shots. That's where we'll be staying at in January and I got to do a very brief tour on my departure morning last week. I can't wait to walk around the resort with my camera in hand after the kiddos are in bed.

You can bet we'll be eating at Boma again in January. Going to try to break my previous record of four plates of food from the buffet.

Sounds like it was a relaxing evening at Epcot to start your trip off! I had forgotten until last week how often they announce over the speakers that Illuminations is going to start in just 30 minutes, 15 minutes, 10 minutes, 5 minutes. I laughed to myself thinking I bet there are still lots of people who walk up to the CMs despite these announcements asking "Umm, what time does Illumination start again?"

They do a lot of warnings for Illuminations and I'm sure you are correct that people probably ask CMs over and over again!

Th zoom was very handy with the animals.... I think even at 300mm it was very good. The scary spider while soft, was at 300mm and cropped.

Have you stayed at AKL before? If you haven't your kids will love it! Try and set aside some time at the resort, there is a lot of CMs with considerable animal knowledge, and lots of activities. There was also a considerable amount of artwork throughout out both resorts.

I'm the same way. That is what extension cords are for.

We have a sectional and both our outlets are behind it.... It's a pain to move! Didn't I say I was a slacker?

Great pictures. Both of the wildlife and the artwork at the Lodge.
I think it must have escaped from It's Tough to be a Bug.

I think you're right!! One of hoppers thugs!

Other parents who "get it" are always the best people to be seated around.

Wow... this whole experience with the tickets is just brutal. I'm glad that they were eventually able to straighten it all out and get you all in, but that isn't exactly a fun way to start things out.

It was tiring but after working for a big corporation these things are not easy on the tech side. I think that was the biggest problem it seemed like the two systems didn't communicate.... However, what would have made sense is they set up a kiosk solely for ticketing issues at the gate.... It could be temporary until the conversion is nearly complete to MDE and RFID

And what you say about the CM's is true. I feel bad for the ones in the line of fire taking the brunt of the backlash for something they have no responsibility for, but some are definitely much better than others.


Perfect end to the day, right there.

Perfect is right We did fireworks almost every night because of that reaction - now even when Olive sees the ones in the beginning of a Disney flick she goes "Wow!"

Sarah I started reading early this am and had to come back and finish getting caught up.

Your Halloween pumpkins were awesome! What fun for the girls although I'm sure mom smelled like pumpkin.

Loved the hidden Mickey challenge from the AKL CM! What a great guy!

I need to try Boma for dinner some time. I hear such high praise for the buffet options. Your celebration desserts were a nice touch.

Ha ha at least the people in the guest relations line didn't break out their torches and pitchforks. Nice iphone pics.

I think you would enjoy Boma - it's so good It has the seal of approval from both Dave & I! We always get fantastic servers as well. I am still feeling fortunate about avoiding torches and pitchforks - I definitely hope our next trip is a bit better on the ticket end... We will have AP vouchers to pick up again - I'm hoping concierge can help me or we may try to stop at DTD because we will need new TiW card....

Also congrats on the banner!! I logged in via safari just to check it out!

 

[DaveinFallsChurch]

Have you stayed at AKL before? If you haven't your kids will love it! Try and set aside some time at the resort, there is a lot of CMs with considerable animal knowledge, and lots of activities. There was also a considerable amount of artwork throughout out both resorts.

Our upcoming trip in January will be our first stay at AKL and I'm super excited! I made sure to clear out some time in the afternoon and evenings to spend at the resort. DW did a double take when I told her that our first two full days at WDW we were leaving the parks and coming back to the resort at 3:30pm! Got Jiko and Boma planned for each of those evenings along with resort activities and pool time. Can't wait!

 

[SAT887]

Our upcoming trip in January will be our first stay at AKL and I'm super excited! I made sure to clear out some time in the afternoon and evenings to spend at the resort. DW did a double take when I told her that our first two full days at WDW we were leaving the parks and coming back to the resort at 3:30pm! Got Jiko and Boma planned for each of those evenings along with resort activities and pool time. Can't wait!

Nice! If I remember I can PM you a pic of the activity schedule, We are checking out on the 20th... I also hear they have night vision goggles... Kidani in my opinion is also worth a stroll too Much quieter, 3 viewing platforms, and Sanaa is wonderful! We are trying Jiko on this trip - I am hoping for a repeat of our Artist Point experience where the kids were unbelievably awesome!

 

[DaveinFallsChurch]

Nice! If I remember I can PM you a pic of the activity schedule, We are checking out on the 20th... I also hear they have night vision goggles... Kidani in my opinion is also worth a stroll too Much quieter, 3 viewing platforms, and Sanaa is wonderful! We are trying Jiko on this trip - I am hoping for a repeat of our Artist Point experience where the kids were unbelievably awesome!

That would be awesome if you could shoot me a copy of the activity schedule. I heard about those night vision goggles and have it on my list of things to do. In addition on my radar are the African Drum Lessons, the campfire, storytelling by the CMs, and some kind of parade for the kids in the lobby.

I'll definitely have to take a stroll down to Kidani at some point. I debated whether we would do Sanaa this trip but decided to go with Jiko and Boma instead. My brother and his family are newbies to Disney so they haven't tried Boma yet.

 

[SAT887]

Ahhh so our first full day at Disney! What better way to spend it than at the Magic Kingdom! Like any good DIS’er with Enchanted Tales with Belle on their agenda we were going to be there for rope drop! So, we arrive at the TTC early (like 2nd row parking!) and take a quick stroll to the ferry. Within minutes we were boarding and on our way to the Magic Kingdom. While I was still waiting for the coffee to kick in we were getting pretty excited! We walked to the front of the ferry so it would be easier to get off when we finally arrived at our destination. After the quick ride, we unloaded and we started walking to the main gate. We could hear the sounds of the opening ceremony just barely beginning to start. As we approached Zoey was getting more and more excited and Zack picked her up so she could get a better vantage point. She thought it was so awesome to see some of her favorite friends and it was starting to sink in that this is what we are doing on vacation….




Zack took this walking in…



So, as we entered the Magic Kingdom with the masses we just kept going – no stopping for pictures – we headed straight to ETWB. On the way we saw a lost family in front of Cinderella’s castle looking for the right way to Fantasyland – of course we offered them proper directions so they didn’t end up wandering around lost on what appeared to be their first day in the Magic Kingdom! We were quickly on our way and headed off to the new Fantasyland. We were waiting in Maurice’s cottage within minutes. It was a short wait (less than 5 minutes) but Zoey managed to find a friend in a young girl who appeared to be 5-6, this is one of the things we love about Disney, it really helps Zoey come out of her shell (she can be painfully shy). Soon enough we were completely inside and they were looking for volunteers in the story telling. Unfortunately we were unable to get Zoey a part while the CM was with the wardrobe. We asked afterwards and FYI the wardrobe can’t be emptied once it has been closed, but the CM’s in the library can hand out additional “parts” if asked. We did this, and Zoey was now part of the group! Because we asked the seats we were able to get were very poor (back row) and they will not allow standing. So this means no real pictures. Olive was a bit apprehensive about the dim lighting but we managed to get through the show, Zoey loved meeting Belle and these experiences are fantastic. I push Zoey into them a little just to help her be a little more outgoing in different situations. In the end, I think she appreciates them (she talks about them over and over again with lots of positive feelings) The CM’s also allowed Olive to go up and take a picture with Belle and Zoey at the end. It was a great time and as we left, we grabbed out PP card and headed out to Fantasyland.












Next on our list was the Little Mermaid ride, Zoey and I grabbed a clamshell while Zack and Olive grabbed the next one. We practically walked on to this ride – and had virtually no time to enjoy the theming (except for that silly blue crab!) – Rope drop in September is awesome – we felt like we had the park practically to ourselves! We had a lot of fun on the ride, however Ursula did make Zoey uneasy – but after watching her sink into the ocean at the end, she was fine. As we exited Zoey was getting more and more excited to be in Disney. As we walked out I saw that they had opened the walkway from the Little Mermaid ride out to the Big Top Circus – WOW! What a time saver. We then walked over to Goofy’s Barnstormer. This was probably Zoey’s favorite on our last trip, and it didn’t disappoint again! The wait time was 5 minutes but we still asked for a rider swap pass just in case the lines built up while we were riding. Since it was going to be a few minutes Zack headed off to grab our stroller from the parking area near ETWB. Zoey and I took and advantage of this and rode 2x! We actually speed walked/ran so Zack would not see us getting on again… It was so much fun to hear Zoey laughing and screaming on this little coaster and I can’t wait for Olive to be tall enough to ride it as well! Zack was waiting by the exit and had tried to get a couple photos of us while we were on. He captured our “plane” but you can’t tell it is us. He then had the opportunity to ride with Zoey and she did not mind going on a 3rd time! While they rode Olive and I headed to the Big Top gift shop to cool off. It was already getting very hot, and Olive gets very warm so I thought it would be a good cooling off period. After about 10 minutes Zack and Zoey met up with us and we went and rode Dumbo We went straight on and skipped the queue for playing. Again, virtually no waits! With more laughs and smiles we had a great time. As we disembarked we decided it was time to go to Pete’s Silly Sideshow. We walked over with a quick run through Casey’s Splash and Soak Then we were off to meet some of our favorite friends. This was our first time at Pete’s Silly Sideshow – it was so incredibly cute!! We decided to meet Minnie & Daisy first because it had a wait of 10 min (yeah it was less than 5!) and after a fun meet for the girls to warm up to the characters we decided to do it again and meet Goofy & Donald which we walked right up to!!! It was about 10:30-10:45 am and we had done everything in the New Fantasyland area except meet Ariel (We skipped this because of our lunch plans….)
























So after realizing we had conquered so many attractions we decided it was time for a break and we stopped at Gaston’s Tavern, a quick snack (no idea what we ate, maybe fruit, but I know we had an iced tea!) and some crackers for the girls (yeah, note to self, bananas and heat – ehhh not so portable!) We then had a quick potty stop and thought it would be a good time to head over to Frontierland. On the way we decided to take a few more minutes and relax in Liberty Square. It was a pain carrying the iced tea pushing the stroller and basically managing the kids. We were not in a rush so a few more minutes weren’t a big deal. As Zack finished the iced tea I took a couple pictures….








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[SAT887]

Now it was time… The most anticipated moment of the ENTIRE trip… As we strolled up to Splash Mountain, before we got Fastpasses and before we did anything else… We measured Zoey…. The verdict….. She was finally tall enough to ride!!! With shoes on I am going to guess Zoey is around 40.5 inches, she just fit under the arm and had to bend her neck slightly…. Needless to say we were pumped! The standby line was 20 min, the FP window was a bit in the future so we decided to walk over to BTMRR. The standby again was 20 min and FP window about the same. So I decided to grab FP’s for BTMRR and then do stand by with Splash Mountain. I had started to get AP’s and I had put the card in wrong. The CM manning the FP machines noticed our cards were annual passes, he then gave me three (unconnected… free… not sure of the correct term here….. )FP’s! He said he wanted to thank us for being AP holders. It was a small gesture and it was greatly appreciated Now off I went to meet Zack at Splash Mountain so we could do stand by. Before meeting up with him I grabbed FP for Splash Mountain to do after lunch…. Zoey and rode stand by – it was pretty close to a 20 minutes wait, but it was so worth it! Zoey really loved the ride! The fact that Zoey can do some of the bigger attractions was a huge plus – it was a ton of fun especially since Zack and I would not do them alone (most likely). So after our fun we decided to head over to BTMRR right before lunch so Zack and Zoey could go on – and again another big hit! She loved it and Zack loved being able to experience it with her. Instead of riding again we decided to start heading towards the castle…. For Zoey’s Birthday lunch at Cinderella’s Royal Table




We slowly wandered our way to the castle – it was midday and the heat was becoming very hot. We went through Liberty Square and went up the path that is next to Sleepy Hollow Waffle Amazingness… We stopped to take a couples picture (this was a trend throughout our vacation, Zack thought everyone is always so nice to us that he too wanted to be nice to everyone) After the quick picture, we got a glimpse of the waffle sandwiches and knew we needed to get out of there quick before we ditched CRT in favor of the waffle goodness…. So up the path we went and still had about 20 or so minutes before our ADR. We took a quick walk to see Merida’s wait time which was too long with our upcoming ADR. The one thing that I found slightly annoying is there is a smoking location right at the top of the path near the castle; it was gross to walk through. I understand people smoke (former smoker!) and that Disney has tried to find locations that are suitable but even still – it seemed like a highly traveled area with the Merida M&G right down the path…. We then went back up to the other side of the castle, hung out in the shade and enjoyed the fountain and even snapped a few pictures chatted with a CM (who complimented my matching princesses!)…. Soon enough it was time to check in.








Zack took this because he noticed the crown over Cinderella’s head… He starting to get the hang of this Disney thing!!


We were the last in our grouping to get seated and while we waited inside for our picture we checked out the details of the castle. We spotted Jaq and Gus and it was there I decided I really need to buy a castle or build one… For some reason Olive developed an odd fear about people going through doors while we were in Disney so waiting for Cinderella became a bit tedious… Eventually we got up to meet her and Cinderella was wonderful! She fawned over the girls and even sang the “itsy bitsy spider” (one of the songs I sing to soothe Olive) to help Olive relax. This was a “wow” moment for Olive… I think she thought only I knew the words to that song






Soon we were seated and we enjoyed our lunch. The food was pretty good, not super memorable but in no means bad. We all enjoyed our meal and meeting with the princesses. Zoey was still being shy, and even though she isn’t smiling she skipped out of the castle talking about the beautiful dresses and meeting some of her favorites. Aurora was her favorite (Zoey confided into her that her shot at the Dr.’s days earlier hurt) and even Olive got in on the fun! Jasmine gave Olive some extra attention because she kept craning her neck backwards to get a better look! It was fun and a great way to celebrate Zoey’s birthday.
















As we left the castle, being far too full and way too hot out.... We decided to skip using our FP and Rider Swap for Splash and BTMRR and head back to our room. We thought it would be a great time to go relax in our room. On our way back to Kidani we decided against going to Epcot and head back to the Magic Kingdom after dinner because we had so much fun! We had already gone to Epcot the night before, and MK was open later….

When we got back to the room I went to the gift shop in the lobby. I don’t recall what I needed but I remember buying Mickey Bars for the girls and wandering down and taking quite a few snapshots with my phone…. Since we decided on going to the Magic Kingdom again we needed to pick a new place for dinner. After browsing the menus really quick online we decided on Captain Cooks at the Poly. So now we were off again! We were on our way to the Polynesian! I have to say Captain Cooks did not disappoint. We shared a few items between the four of us, sushi, a chicken and noodle bowl, some sort of kids meal and a very tasty pineapple coconut cupcake! We then headed to MK via the monorail…





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[SAT887]

It was a fairly uneventful evening in MK…. As we entered we stopped at every PP photographer to get some family photos – after that we were on our way to Tomorrowland which I think looks so cool in the dark with all its neon lights! We hopped aboard the people mover, had a wonderfully relaxing ride and then headed over to the teacups! We had a ton of fun, as simplistic as this ride is it is one of my favorites! There is only one catch, when Zack rides with me we can’t spin too fast…. After our fun ride and trying to convince Zoey there are other places to go we finally got to Winnie the Pooh. Olive loved this ride! She is a big fan of Pooh Bear so it was easy to figure out why! Our original plan was to go ride BTMRR and Splash after this during Wishes! However that was soon derailed…. We had finally walked to the other side of Fantasyland when we saw the Rapunzel area; it was so pretty we stopped for a few moments to take in all the details. As we left they started announcing that Wishes! Would be starting shortly, so we changed directions and headed back to the area behind Cinderella’s Castle to watch the show. This was a great idea because the girls were in awe – staying out late to see the fireworks turned out to be one of the things we enjoyed almost every evening. Whether it was in a park or a nearby resort…. After the fireworks we left the Magic Kingdom (along with everyone else!!) The pace was slow but with both the girls in the stroller we were good to go. After our long day we were ready for bed! It took a bit to get to the car but within 2 minutes the girls were fast asleep – and soon enough we were back at the resort with the kids in bed, we watched a little TV talked about the next day and went to bed…. All in all a wonderful day!




Paging Mr Morrow… Mr Tom Morrow…. Space age stuff from the People Mover























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[afwdwfan]

On the way we saw a lost family in front of Cinderella’s castle looking for the right way to Fantasyland – of course we offered them proper directions so they didn’t end up wandering around lost on what appeared to be their first day in the Magic Kingdom!

I applaud you. Since you were headed that direction, I know it had to be tempting to send them to Tomorrowland or something so that they aren't trying to get into lines in front of you.

I push Zoey into them a little just to help her be a little more outgoing in different situations. In the end, I think she appreciates them (she talks about them over and over again with lots of positive feelings)

Great! I'm glad that she was able to get a part and had a good time with it, even if she was a little reluctant at first.

It was about 10:30-10:45 am and we had done everything in the New Fantasyland area except meet Ariel (We skipped this because of our lunch plans….)

That really was a great morning! You got through a lot of things, and most importantly, Zoey seemed to be having a blast!

Now it was time… The most anticipated moment of the ENTIRE trip… As we strolled up to Splash Mountain, before we got Fastpasses and before we did anything else… We measured Zoey…. The verdict….. She was finally tall enough to ride!!!

The CM manning the FP machines noticed our cards were annual passes, he then gave me three (unconnected… free… not sure of the correct term here….. )FP’s! He said he wanted to thank us for being AP holders. It was a small gesture and it was greatly appreciated

Wow! Nice!

She fawned over the girls and even sang the “itsy bitsy spider” (one of the songs I sing to soothe Olive) to help Olive relax. This was a “wow” moment for Olive… I think she thought only I knew the words to that song

Love those great character interactions that have that little extra touch.

There is only one catch, when Zack rides with me we can’t spin too fast….

In that case, I'd say you're lucky that he even gets on it.



I like how you just kind of went with the flow. I enjoy planning Disney trips, but I always love just deciding at the last second that I want to go to the MK and make it happen. It looks like it was a great evening and sometimes you just have to stop and watch the fireworks.

 

[DaveinFallsChurch]

What a fun day in MK! Your morning touring plan was pretty much identical to what we did on one of our MK days last January!

As for taking a family picture on the Barnstormer I have learned from my own trial and errors that they have to be seated in the front third of the coaster for them to be recognizable in the pictures. I have yet to have succeeded but that's what January is for, right?

We haven't done CRT in a couple of trips but we are going back this January because my brother's family is coming with us and they have yet to have experienced the magic that is just being inside the castle! DD loves the experience as well. The food has been mostly average for us but I still love sitting inside the castle.