VWL Lovers & Groupies thread: It all started with a Moose

[horselover]

I read another person's update which indicated that the roof would become metal, not necessarily the walkway.

I shouldn't fret about it...I'm sure Disney wouldn't put up something that wouldn't work with the theming. We're just naturally nervous when they want to do anything to "improve" the perfection of VWL!

Exactly!

 

[Nicoal13]

I am sure enjoying all the pictures! Looks like fun was had at the meets.

Trying to stay warm here in WI. Had some snow yesterday and more on the way tomorrow. Then frigid temps.

Busy packing. Closing on both our homes this coming week! Moving and Christmas time, means a very overwhelmed Nicole!

Counting down til May...

 

[Muushka]

Happy packing Nicole! Aggravating and exciting at the same time!

Well we got home last night. Travel mercies once again. It amazes me how blessed we have been with all of our journeys.

We had such a great time at WDW this year. It is the first time since 2007 being at the Lodge for the Christmas season. And it was beautiful as always.
We did the Candlelight Processional and enjoyed it as always. We did the MVMCP on Thursday night. It was pretty crowded this year (sold out). I thought there were less people at MK on Monday night!

We only ate one official dinner at WDW (at Morocco). We had a couple of counter services at MK, but for most meals we either ate in our villa or went off site. We did have an extremely disappointing meal at Wolfgang Puck Cafe. In the past it has been wonderful. This time it was just expensive and not very good. We will not be eating there again.

Our highlights are:

Mine was getting together for our Groupie meet and finally seeing Groupies! I loved running into Groupies throughout our trip. What a great bunch of people.

Mr Muush's was getting to be the Flag Family. Don't get me wrong, that was just a tiny notch below the Groupies. It was wonderful getting to go up on the roof with Ranger Joe. I know that RS has some mighty shoes to fill, but Ranger Joe will come very very close. He is personable and knowledgeable. He has a true admiration of our beloved and it shows. He is going to be a ranger that I look forward to seeing again. And he is young, so we don't have to worry about him retiring!

I won't go on and on about how cold it was. But it was COLD!!

They draped our DVC Mickey topiary with a white sheet so that he would be protected. He looked like a ghost!

We had brought the proper clothes to stay warm, thankfully.

Well, it was wonderful meeting everyone at the Lodge. Those of you who have my phone number, keep in touch!

 

[Granny]

Muush...thanks for the recap. Sounds like a magical trip!

And our new countdown clock shows 20 more days until we head south. Yeah!!!

 

[tea pot]

Morning Groupies! I'm back home again, and wishing I were still in Florida! 9 this morning. Brrrrrrrrr

Here are a few pics from breakfast this past Monday at WCC, followed by a visit to the MK...

Just wanted to add one very important picture

Stopher 1 with our favorite Christmas tree just behind him

We had such a great time meeting all our Kindred Spirits as well as being able to spend time with them in our "Happy Place"

They draped our DVC Mickey topiary with a white sheet so that he would be protected. He looked like a ghost!

Boo to You !

 

[Muushka]

Muush...thanks for the recap. Sounds like a magical trip!

And our new countdown clock shows 20 more days until we head south. Yeah!!!

Granny, I'm not seeing the clock? I believe you though!

Tea Pot!! You are home. It was such a pleasure to finally meet you. I hope all is well now.

Thank you for posting Mickey and that bad boy Stopher.

 

[blossomz]

All of those photos are sooo great! Next best thing to being there! Thanks..

 

[stopher1]

Granny, I'm not seeing the clock? I believe you though!

Tea Pot!! You are home. It was such a pleasure to finally meet you. I hope all is well now.

Thank you for posting Mickey and that bad boy Stopher.

You're too funny Barb! I just waved at her... she's the one who kept waving and swooning - just doing her job you know. It's not like she would really be interested in the "real world" But I'll tell you a little "secret" - I do the same kind of thing in front of my DW too. I even had the other sister in my arms at 1900 PF - and I've kissed Minnie numerous times, once even on DW & my honeymoon.

So there you go JT... the cat's out of the bag. Just a little fun with Drizella during the MSEP. I waved, she swooned, and waved back, and kept waving back and swooning until the float was sufficiently far enough away - and then she moved on to some other guy. Humph...the nerve of her.

 

[DiznyDi]

Well Groupies, we're home now, too. The Lodge was beautifully decorated and immediately puts you into the holiday spirit. Other than the C-O-L-D, this didn't deter us from our list of scheduled activities. The cold weather was perfect the evening we went over to Fort Wilderness for a sleigh ride through the campground.

We enjoyed the Illuminations Cruise along with Inkmahm, her husband and family along with two other guests. A special treat was to share their anniversary cake. We've not ever done this cruise and found it do be delightful. The perspective of viewing Illuminations from the water was quite remarkable.

The Candlelight Processional with Jody Benson was one of the best we've seen. The signing interpreter, a gentleman, brought such drama and emotion with his presentation. Watching him while hearing the music spoke to my soul. The Voices of Liberty were excellent, as always.

It appeared to us that many more lights have been added to the Osborn Family lights at DHS. We stayed for quite a while just listening and watching - truly amazing!

The DVC discounted tickets for MVMCP on the 8th found the party Sold Out! There was a tremendous amount of people in the park - 24,000 according to the guard. We enjoyed ourselves and even met Muush and Mr. Muush along with their friends and rode Peter Pan with them.

Certainly a highlight of our trip was to meet up with Groupies, Ranger Stan and his Sweetie. It was so much fun, we did it 3 times! We missed meeting you, Granny and hope we'll have the pleasure another time.

Thanks JT, Muush and stopher for your organizational efforts. We'll have to do it again sometime!

 

[stopher1]

The Candlelight Processional with Jody Benson was one of the best we've seen. The signing interpreter, a gentleman, brought such drama and emotion with his presentation. Watching him while hearing the music spoke to my soul. The Voices of Liberty were excellent, as always.

I was there the night before you, and we had a lady interpreter, and I too was quite caught up with her own presentation. It was a happy "distraction" that was by no means distracting. It truly augmented the presentation for me, and I was so thrilled to keep my eyes on her much of the time. When I write my TR (for which I've now selected and uploaded photos to photobucket) I'll speak of the CP and my overall impressions, but for now, the interpreter was truly the hightlight.

Certainly a highlight of our trip was to meet up with Groupies, Ranger Stan and his Sweetie. It was so much fun, we did it 3 times! We missed meeting you, Granny and hope we'll have the pleasure another time.

Thanks JT, Muush and stopher for your organizational efforts. We'll have to do it again sometime!

That was truly a highlight for me. I would love to do it again, and hopefully next time have my lovely bride along with me as well.

 

[jimmytammy]

You're too funny Barb! I just waved at her... she's the one who kept waving and swooning - just doing her job you know. It's not like she would really be interested in the "real world" But I'll tell you a little "secret" - I do the same kind of thing in front of my DW too. I even had the other sister in my arms at 1900 PF - and I've kissed Minnie numerous times, once even on DW & my honeymoon.

So there you go JT... the cat's out of the bag. Just a little fun with Drizella during the MSEP. I waved, she swooned, and waved back, and kept waving back and swooning until the float was sufficiently far enough away - and then she moved on to some other guy. Humph...the nerve of her.

I was beginning to have concern there ol Buddy

We got home Fri., travel was great. Got up Sat and went to work, then to the Panthers game Sun. So just catching up.

It was great meeting all the groupies! And running into yall again unexpectedly, thats always fun too. BTW, I saw Ranger Stan hanging out in the main lobby on Wed. night just after I talked with Mr and Mrs HappyDinks. I took a bag out to our van, and moseyed back into the lobby to get a peek at the tree lit up when there in the doorway was Stan and Sweetie. They were meeting friends who were former CMs at the Lodge. It was so great to have the chance meet!

 

[Muushka]

You're too funny Barb! I just waved at her... she's the one who kept waving and swooning - just doing her job you know. It's not like she would really be interested in the "real world" But I'll tell you a little "secret" - I do the same kind of thing in front of my DW too. I even had the other sister in my arms at 1900 PF - and I've kissed Minnie numerous times, once even on DW & my honeymoon.

So there you go JT... the cat's out of the bag. Just a little fun with Drizella during the MSEP. I waved, she swooned, and waved back, and kept waving back and swooning until the float was sufficiently far enough away - and then she moved on to some other guy. Humph...the nerve of her.

Yeah yeah yeah....... As I review the "evidence", the interaction between you and I is almost as funny!
My comments and your giggles. That was a hoot.
And I swear that Drizella was ready to jump off of that float to get back to you!

Well Groupies, we're home now, too. The Lodge was beautifully decorated and immediately puts you into the holiday spirit. Other than the C-O-L-D, this didn't deter us from our list of scheduled activities. The cold weather was perfect the evening we went over to Fort Wilderness for a sleigh ride through the campground.

We enjoyed the Illuminations Cruise along with Inkmahm, her husband and family along with two other guests. A special treat was to share their anniversary cake. We've not ever done this cruise and found it do be delightful. The perspective of viewing Illuminations from the water was quite remarkable.

The Candlelight Processional with Jody Benson was one of the best we've seen. The signing interpreter, a gentleman, brought such drama and emotion with his presentation. Watching him while hearing the music spoke to my soul. The Voices of Liberty were excellent, as always.

It appeared to us that many more lights have been added to the Osborn Family lights at DHS. We stayed for quite a while just listening and watching - truly amazing!

The DVC discounted tickets for MVMCP on the 8th found the party Sold Out! There was a tremendous amount of people in the park - 24,000 according to the guard. We enjoyed ourselves and even met Muush and Mr. Muush along with their friends and rode Peter Pan with them.

Certainly a highlight of our trip was to meet up with Groupies, Ranger Stan and his Sweetie. It was so much fun, we did it 3 times! We missed meeting you, Granny and hope we'll have the pleasure another time.

Thanks JT, Muush and stopher for your organizational efforts. We'll have to do it again sometime!

We loved bumping into you and DDad. We got to do some great Disney classic rides with you.

We love to watch the conductor during the CP. Once we sat right behind him and saw the enthusiasm that the man has for the CP. Ever since that, he is a part of the show for us.

I was kind of sad that our friends who were with us didn't really like the CP. One fell asleep 3 times and the other didn't think the message went quite far enough. I think for a Disney park the message was great!

 

[Dizny Dad]

As expected, up to my eyeballs in stuff here at the office – so no real time to play on the Dis.

Thanks to all who took time to make DiznyDi’s and my time in The World extra special.

Jimmy, Tammy, and Family – Thanks for coordinating so much to allow others to meet and greet. What an outstanding family you all are!

Stopher1 – Thanks for breakfast and the inside word on stuff at MK! Keep pumping those opinions in to Disney!

Muushka & Mr. Muush – Your enthusiasm is refreshing and contagious. Thanks for sharing your friends with us.

Tea Pot & Mr. Tea – So cool to see you guys again. Sorry to hear of Tea Pot’s down time. And i appreciated hearing Mr. Tea’s “elevator speech”.

HappyDinks 1 & 2 – a pleasure to finally meet. We enjoyed our conversations with you both and the unexpected run-in at Mouse Gear. I should have bought you something - oh, well, next time . . .

Anny T – Good to see you again (yes, we met before). Keep us informed of the inside DVC stuff.

Helen - always a smile!

Ranger Stan and Carolyn – Always a pleasure. Take care of each other. And as much as Arnold thought you had on a nice "costume", I remember it as a status symbol of years of work in an endeavor you loved.

Wilderness Dad – good to meet you and family. Keep dancing.

Inkmahm – Thanks for sharing part of the deck on our evening sail.

Looking forward to seeing all again . . . . . . now back to the pile of stuff.

 

[eliza61]

Happy Tuesday gang. Welcome back all those who recently hung out at the world. Just in time for the holiday gourge fest, here are some simple rules.

1. Avoid carrot sticks. Anyone who puts carrots on a holiday buffet table knows nothing of the Christmas spirit. In fact, if you see carrots, leave immediately. Go next door, where they're serving rum balls.

2. Drink as much eggnog as you can, and quickly. Like fine single-malt scotch, a good eggnog is rare. You can't find it any other time of year but now. So drink up! Who cares that it has 10,000 calories in every sip? It's not as if you're going to turn into an eggnog-oholic or something. It's a treat. Enjoy it.

3. If something comes with gravy, use it. That's the whole point of gravy. Gravy does not stand-alone. Pour it on. Make a volcano out of your mashed potatoes. Fill it with gravy. Eat the volcano.

4. Do not have a snack before going to a party in an effort to control your eating. The whole point of going to a Christmas party is to eat other people's food for free. Lots of it.

5. Under no circumstances should you exercise between now and New Year's. You can do that in January when you have nothing else to do. This is the time for long naps, which you'll need after circling the buffet table while carrying a 10-pound plate of food and that vat of eggnog.

6. If you come across something really good at a buffet table, like frosted Christmas cookies in the shape and size of Santa, position yourself near them and don't budge. Have as many as you can before becoming the center of attention. They're like a beautiful pair of shoes. If you leave them behind, you're never going to see them again.

7. Same for pies: Apple, Pumpkin, Mincemeat. Have a slice of each. Or, if you don't like mincemeat, have two apples and one pumpkin. Always have three. When else do you get to have more than one dessert? Labor Day?

8. Did someone mention fruitcake? Granted, it's loaded with the mandatory celebratory calories, but avoid it at all cost. I mean groupies we have to have some standards.

Enjoy!

 

[stopher1]

I love it eliza! Especially #8.

 

[Muushka]

I love the list too. And mincemeat pie! But not fruitcake, unless it is held together with walnuts.

 

[horselover]

Thank you Eliza!

 

[Granny]

Eliza...thank you for your public service announcement for the Groupies. I'm always impressed in how we look out for each other and help each other. Very nice.

 

[tea pot]

Yes thanks eliza for taking such good care of us
I have already agreed to # 5

 

[horselover]

Yes thanks eliza for taking such good care of us
I have already agreed to # 5

Me too! I also have a sudden urge for a very large glass of egg nog with some Kahlua thrown in for good measure!