Wait, do we have a Fast Pass for that? Final Update, Final Thoughts and Favs 1/26

[PrncessA]

OH my gosh first of all that was way out of line for those other parents to treat you that way in the lounge. What do they think happens at school? Does the boy run up to the teachers and tattle on his friends every time he hears a child say "stupid"? Granted calling another human being stupid is not ok but saying it about a Goofy cartoon is another story. You did a very good job keeping your cool. Probably a better job than I would have

That pic of Ethan with the Donald Duck hat is so cute and what a night you had at MK with no lines!

I think that sometimes I have to weigh "how bad" the situation is with Ethan. We have a lot of drama that happens with his impulse control and in our family calling a Goofy cartoon stupid doesn't rank up there with the time he stepped off the side walk in Chicago with a car coming! Thank goodness I had a firm grip on his hand and yanked him back as quickly as I did.

Evening EMH as MK rock!

luvin the magic shot pics. I don't think that calling a cartoon stupid is bad

I love magic shots!!!

Well.. I just read your whole report so far in one sitting!!
Love your report and I am in love with your darling children!! They remind me sooooo much of my kids at that age
Will be sticking around to read the rest, GREAT job so far!

Thank you for joining!! A new update is coming up!!

 

[PrncessA]

Last time on our TR Donald Hats and Minnie glasses were bought and we were on our way to Tower of Terror!


We headed into the FP line and started to get scared:



We made our way through the line very quickly, although this is one of the lines that standing in line for a while to look at everything would have been fun! It definitely was cool in there! Before we knew it we were being directed to stand on our numbers and we were ready to get dropped!

As we were standing on our numbers I looked up as another number was filled… and wait I think I know her!! After my epic fail at meeting Alan a few days before, I was not going to miss this one! This time I knew I wasn’t wrong, because no one could miss adorable Avery! So who was it?

Of course the one and only Kathy (katmark)! I called out to her and sure enough it was her! We had a quick hug before the doors were being opened and we were being loaded into our elevator! How funny is it that we ended up on the same ride and the same elevator by complete chance?!

Ethan had a quick realization at the beginning of the ride, that a seatbelt was all that was holding him onto the seat, and he started to freak out a little bit. To be honest I don’t remember a lot about the build up to the drop, because all I was thinking about was the drop! And boy do they drop you! I didn’t count but we were dropped about 4-5 times I believe, Erik seems to think that it was more…






Well what was the verdict?

Erik and Ethan were not fans, Ethan said his stomach didn’t like it, and he looked a little pale. Lorelai was putting on a brave face, but when it came to “do you want to do it again?” the answer was a “No thank you!” I am terrified of heights, but I loved it. You don’t see how high you are constantly, so I am okay with that I guess. I am the person who cannot under any circumstances go on the giant farris wheel on Navy Pier, and I freak out at the Sear’s tower (yes, I know it is now the Willis, but I am stubborn). See Kathy and Avery in front of us a few rows?

After we gathered ourselves and headed outside we visited a little with Kathy and Mary and the girls, and of course it didn’t happen if there isn’t a photo, so here is our proof!



It is so great getting to meet all of the girls! After a few minutes of visiting, we each headed out on our separate ways but don’t worry we would see each other again!

After ToT we weren’t sure what we wanted to do next. We walked over to a FP+ kiosk and all RRC fast passes were gone… there was hardly anything left to be honest, but we grabbed a Star Tours for later in the day. We headed down Sunset Blvd and found a wall to relax on for a few minutes. Our plans were to see the next showing of Beauty and the Beast but we had a little while to wait before the show. We decided on getting a few ice cream bars and waiting. Ethan and Erik waited and Lorelai and I headed off to find Mickey Bars.

Lorelai was a bit grumpy and when we found a cart she refused to tell me what she wanted. I even stepped back and let another family go ahead of us, but she was being stubborn. So I ordered two Mickey Bars for Erik and Ethan and a strawberry bar for me, I gave Lorelai one last chance and she refused to pick anything, so she didn’t get anything. Tough love. That was until Erik gave her his Mickey Bar…



As you can see with the fast melting Mickey Bars it was pretty warm, not as warm as a few days later but warm all the same.





After eating our Mickey Bars we headed into Beauty and the Beast and while we had been eating apparently a lot of people had filed in! We still got pretty good seats and it was a fun show. I love Beauty and the Beast, so there is no way I wouldn’t have loved it. Can you believe the one and only other time we had ever been to DHS we didn’t see one show!







After Beauty and the Beast we cooled down a bit and browsed a gift shop, where Ethan held firm to the fact that he really really wanted Buzz Lightyear as his “end of the trip” toy.













After some bio breaks we headed off to find DH’s favorite Disney characters other than Jack Skellington (who obviously is impossible), Mike and Sully! I assumed that it wouldn’t be to hard to find them next to the Backlot Tour, we walked past them 4 times before we ask and finally found them! The line was pretty long considering how hidden I felt they were, just sayin!

Continued next post!

 

[PrncessA]

The Mike and Sully who were doing the meet and greet were kinda dull and lifeless, bummer. They were obviously at the end of their shift because right before it was our turn we were told that Mike and Sully would be right back and they exited through a mysterious door and returned super excited and bouncy! Hummmm…. wonder why.





The kids were super excited to meet them as were Erik and I!







I loved that they put the kids into a “monster sandwich” for a few seconds. It made for a fun interaction!! It could have been the Monster U shirts they were wearing…







After Mike and Sully we still had a little while before we had to be at our dinner ADR but we needed a break, so where to go. We considered our options and we decided to head over to the animation building to do some meet and greets in air conditioning.

We stopped in to see Woody and Buzz on the way, but for some reason we decided not to wait in the line. We never did get back to meet them, so bummer!





After we got there the kids were not interested in meeting Mr. Incredible and Frozone and their line was pretty big, but they were however excited to see Wreck it Ralph and Vanellope.







I have never watched Wreck it Ralph, but both the kids and Erik say it is really cute.

We let the kids color and play around with the computers in the area while we took a load off on a bench. You just can’t beat air conditioning and a padded bench!

We were really lazy sitting there for a while, but up next was a meal that we all were looking forward to… our Jedi Mickey Dining and I get fought over by Chip and Dale!

 

[mickeystoontown]

Yay for an impromptu Dis Meet! What a coincidence that you guys were on the same elevator as Kathy and Avery. Like you, I'm scared of heights but love Tower of Terror because I can't actually see how high I am or how far I am dropping.

I'm happy that Mike & Sulley came back out happy and ready to make a kid sandwich. Those kind of character interactions are the best!

 

[KatMark]

Sara, what a great update...and it has nothing to do with the fact that I'm in it.

Seriously, it was so nice to meet you and the family. I remember the kids were not fans of TOT, but I'm so glad you enjoyed it. It is my favorite ride in all of Disney. I'm glad we got to visit a bit after the ride and got that all important photo.

I'm glad you go to see Beauty & The Beast; we did that last girls trip, but skipped it this trip (actually, we did it in December now that I think about it when Nicki surprised everyone and showed up).

I've never seen Wreck It Ralph either and would have had no idea who those characters were if you hadn't told us.

I'm glad you got the fun Sully & Mike. My guess is those costumes are extremely hot as is the area they are in (we've seen them before) and they probably just want a break 5 minutes before their break time. But so happy you had a good interaction with them. LOVE the hug.

 

[JPFamilyMom]

Very cool about the unexpected DIS meet.

WTG getting your whole family on ToT, I'm scared of heights too and I went on my honeymoon once and then never again. My kids are not adventurous so not sure they will want to ride that one ever.

Those Mickey bars sure do melt fast on a hot day, when we went in May half my 6 yo's bar ended up all over him Looks like your kids managed to not get it all over them

Wreck it Ralph is definitely a cute movie, so cool you met the characters.

You got so many cute character pictures, LOVE your family picture with Mike and Sully

Oh I'm so looking forward to seeing pictures about your Jedi Mickey meal, our May trip was so last minute and I didn't even know about the meal until we got there, hoping to do it next year. Can't wait to read your review about it

 

[FancyNancy]

Yay that you met up with Kathy and Avery! So neat seeing that pic of you all in the same elevator I love the Mike and Sully monster sandwich with the kids. That was too cute!

 

[PrncessA]

Yay for an impromptu Dis Meet! What a coincidence that you guys were on the same elevator as Kathy and Avery. Like you, I'm scared of heights but love Tower of Terror because I can't actually see how high I am or how far I am dropping.

Your Dis Meet surprise appearance is coming up as well!

I'm happy that Mike & Sulley came back out happy and ready to make a kid sandwich. Those kind of character interactions are the best!

I knew it was going to be fun with Sully came out and was knocking on the door. It was that character interaction that I wish I had on video, but the photo pass photographer didn't take any "monster sandwich" photos, just the staged ones, so I am glad I was taking them!

Sara, what a great update...and it has nothing to do with the fact that I'm in it.

It was so fun meeting you!

Seriously, it was so nice to meet you and the family. I remember the kids were not fans of TOT, but I'm so glad you enjoyed it. It is my favorite ride in all of Disney. I'm glad we got to visit a bit after the ride and got that all important photo.

I am glad as well, if there isn't a photo it didn't happen.

I'm glad you go to see Beauty & The Beast; we did that last girls trip, but skipped it this trip (actually, we did it in December now that I think about it when Nicki surprised everyone and showed up).

I've never seen Wreck It Ralph either and would have had no idea who those characters were if you hadn't told us.

I'm glad you got the fun Sully & Mike. My guess is those costumes are extremely hot as is the area they are in (we've seen them before) and they probably just want a break 5 minutes before their break time. But so happy you had a good interaction with them. LOVE the hug.

We had so many wonderful character interactions on this trip!

Very cool about the unexpected DIS meet.

WTG getting your whole family on ToT, I'm scared of heights too and I went on my honeymoon once and then never again. My kids are not adventurous so not sure they will want to ride that one ever.

To be honest I was surprised that my kids were both so adventurous. It was Disney magic!!

Those Mickey bars sure do melt fast on a hot day, when we went in May half my 6 yo's bar ended up all over him Looks like your kids managed to not get it all over them

Mickey Bar messes are worth it right!

Wreck it Ralph is definitely a cute movie, so cool you met the characters.

You got so many cute character pictures, LOVE your family picture with Mike and Sully

My husband looks like he is :cloud9:

Oh I'm so looking forward to seeing pictures about your Jedi Mickey meal, our May trip was so last minute and I didn't even know about the meal until we got there, hoping to do it next year. Can't wait to read your review about it

Coming up next!!

Yay that you met up with Kathy and Avery! So neat seeing that pic of you all in the same elevator I love the Mike and Sully monster sandwich with the kids. That was too cute!

The coincidence was pretty cool!

Mike and Sully

 

[MarbleBob]

Great updates! After looking at your kids enjoying their Mickey Bar's, I'm wishing that I had one right now!

I love the TOT ride photo. It's always fun to look at peoples expressions on ride photos. That couple in the front row cracked me up.

I really liked Wreck it Ralph. Much more than I thought I would. The character meeting and greet photos are cool. That Ralph costume is HUGE.

 

[PrncessA]

After getting a good amount of air conditioning, and I felt a little more like a human, we headed out to our ADR for the night at Hollywood and Vine. We had only had one meal here before and it was a breakfast. Our lasting impression was that it was COLD in the restaurant, I assured Erik that there was a good possibility that the air temperature had changed in 5 years. Erik and Ethan both pulled their Star Wars t-shirts over their other shirts on our way over.

I was so excited for this dinner, in fact I was up at the crack of dawn to sit on hold for an hour to get it and I reorganized a few days of our trip to fit it in. When we made the decision to go during SWW, we also made the decision to only visit DHS during the week, especially since Mark Hamill was announced to be there during our trip. The fact that they were offering these dinners during the week was surprising and we were very happy!

Our ADR was for 5:15pm and we arrived at about 5:00 or so and the check-in line was crazy! Finally we found the check-in kiosk and after giving our names we were told to go to the end of the line to wait for our photo with Chip and Dale. The line was super long but it seemed to move, which is good. We waited about 15 minutes before we were at the door.

The kids kept themselves entertained:







Finally it was our turn to meet with Chip and Dale! I just love Chip and Dale! They are so fun, and I told them. That’s when I got in the middle of a tug of war between Chip and Dale, as to where I was going to stand for the photo. The kids thought it was hilarious!

Chip ended up winning and we took our photo!



We were shown to our table, which was very close to where we sat 5 years ago and the kids were given papers that they could make light sabers out of (one side of the paper was red and the other blue). This was a headache because 1. There was no way to keep the rolled paper together and not coming apart and 2. Exactly where are you suppose to keep paper light sabers on a crowded Disney dining table? Nonetheless I finagled some weird way to keep the lightsabers together, kinda. We learned a few minutes later that that if you made a red light saber you were on the dark side and if you made a blue one that you were a rebel. I am pretty sure the kids switched light sabers to be on the dark side, Ethan because Donald was a stormtrooper and Lorelai because she likes the color red of course.

We ordered our drinks and headed up to hit the buffet. I don’t remember a lot about the food except that it was normal buffet food and wasn’t horrible but wasn’t memorable. I didn’t try the lobster mac & cheese after my experience at Coral Reef. Lorelai found a love for tater tots, which until that point she had refused to eat, so if we left with nothing else we had that! I did the pasta bar, and that was the only thing that I was really unhappy with. I had the white sauce and it was YUCK! But at that point I had already had salad and a host of other hot foods, so I wasn’t going to go hungry! I did venture to try the blue milk ice cream, but Ethan and Lorelai did and they liked it. The main thing for me is caffeine and refills and our waitress was great and kept the refills coming!

But we were not here for the food! We were here to see Jedi Mickey, Leia Minnie, Darth Goofy and Stormtrooper Donald (who was very much anticipated by a certain duck hat wearing little boy)!

First up was a very polite Darth Goofy! He started with shaking Erik’s hand.


Then Ethan’s hand…



Then a group picture!



Anyone else find his Darth Vader costume HILARIOUS!

Next up was the main Jedi Mouse himself… but it looks like I only have one photo of the entire interaction. I am almost certain that I was taking video and Erik took some photos with his phone. Which brings me to the awful announcement that Erik accidentally deleted all of the WDW photos off of his phone a few days after we got back. Luckily we had nearly everything on other cameras, except Ethan’s pirate makeover, which Erik only used his phone. We did however lose the most adorable video that Lorelai shot without us knowing while we were sitting and resting in the MK after their makeovers. It was hilarious! I wish I had backed up his photos sooner, like I had planned. Oh well!

So as I was saying next up was Jedi Mickey!




Followed up by Leia Minnie:



And last but definitely not least, Stormtrooper Donald! Donald did not disappoint and made a big deal over Ethan’s hat. Ethan even ask him to sign it, which he proudly showed off the rest of the week.







Looks like Minnie stopped by again:



After eating and visiting our favorite Star Wars characters I ask Erik if he thought it was worth the 2 DDP credits and he said the food wasn’t but avoiding the lines at SWW to see characters totally was worth it. I agree!!
We paid our tip, got our Fantasmic vouchers, and headed back out to play around a little more until it was time for our Fantasmic. The kids were in no way interested in Rockin’ Rollercoaster, and Erik wasn’t keen on the idea after eating and we still had a little while until our Star Tours FP was good. I knew exactly where we needed to go since we were on a roll with meet and greets.

Along the way we found the Hollywood busts and Lorelai freaked out when she saw Bill Cosby. The girl LOVES the Cosby show; she can sit forever and watch it. She also like Gilligan’s Island and The Brady Bunch, she is a retro TV kinda girl I guess.



We had to get our picture taken with Walt as well!



After our photos we were on a mission… to see our favorite set of brothers!

Continued in next post

 

[PrncessA]

Phineas and Ferb of course! Who doesn’t love that show?

The kids were a little antsy in line…







But it was worth it!







We took a quick photo in front of the Muppets fountain to compare to the one 5 years ago, but no one was interested in the show. I slept through it last time and we aren’t big Muppet fans.

2009 (ignore the date stamp, it is wrong)


2014


So we headed back to Star Tours and we were stopped by this:





That is the last photo I took that night! I don’t know why, because my camera was fine, I just stopped taking photos, so the last of the night is done by memory!

After Star Tours (which was very much like our first adventure, but just as fun) I believe we started to head toward Fantasmic. The last time we had done Fantasmic the entrance for package holders had been different than the general admission, but this time we all entered together. There was a little split off but then we all merged again inside the stadium. It was WILD in there and we definitely should have come earlier because it was PACKED. We ended up almost all the way at the far left side, but Fantasmic was wonderful like always!

The entire time I was dreading leaving though! And I was right to dread it; it was a madhouse trying to get out of there. After standing deadlocked for 10 minutes, Erik had a great idea, go through the bleachers and avoid the entire crowd. We went down to the middle of the bleachers and started walking to the far right side of the stadium and where we entered and exited last time and within minutes we were out and walking “backstage” toward the front of the park. DHS had EMH that night until midnight, but after a full day at the park we decided that we would call it a night and we followed the crowd out of the park and veered off to the boat dock and headed back to the YC in no time at all.

Normally that would be the end of the tale but this tale continues for me! When we got back to the room Ethan was really complaining about a bug bite he had on his leg, he has allergic reactions to bug bites, so it was huge! Out of all of the medicines that I did pack, I forgot anti-itch cream. So I decided to head over to the BC Marketplace to pick up our refillable mugs and some cream. And so my adventure begins…

I assumed that it would be a no brainer to get from the YC to BC, but I was running on 4-5 hours of sleep and a full park day, nothing was simple. I headed through the lobby and kept walking toward the BC until I came to a door that opened to a covered walkway… which I assumed lead to the BC. When I reached the end of the walkway I realized I was at the Convention Center. I ran through the map in my head and I could picture the YC/BC/Convention center in my head, and if I just walked around the convention center I should make it to the BC…. right?

Well that is true, after walking a forever around the convention center, down the road, past the maintenance building and finally arriving at the BC bus stop. I was so happy to make it the BC lobby and AC that I thought I would dance, but I was too tired! I found the marketplace, and picked up 4 mugs and the itch cream and was determined to find a faster and easier way back… which I did by walking along Stormalong Bay. I don’t know if there is a way to completely make it from the YC to the BC indoors, but I never found it and I guess I wasn’t that motivated to do it either!

Erik had a good laugh at my adventure and Ethan was so happy to have the itch cream, I don’t think he heard a thing I said. Everyone was wiped after our last two days, and we needed to be up extra early to make it to our 8am Crystal Palace breakfast. I ask Erik if he wanted me to cancel it and we could sleep in a bit and eat at the lounge, and that was a big yes!! So a few minutes before midnight I cancelled the ADR and instead of a 6:30 wakeup call, we scheduled a 9am wakeup call! So ends our 4th night at Disney World!

Next up!
A Princess, a Queen and a Duck… a real duck….

 

[ashleymrush]

Wow! What a night! That is so awesome that your son got his hat signed by Donald. I'm sure he'll cherish it for a long time.

Too funny about your daughter and retro TV. You don't see too many little girls that love Bill Cosby.

Glad to see you finally found the cream and got some good sleep.

 

[KatMark]

You had a full day at the Studios.

We ate at H&V twice for dinner...never again. It is only one of two restaurants at Disney that we have vowed we will never return to. But I'm glad you were able to take the kids for the Star Wars character meal (even I might have given in if my hubby wanted to do it).

I have never seen an episode of Phineas and Ferb.

Tell Lorelai that she has great taste. The Cosby Show is one of my all-time favorite shows. I too can sit and watch it over and over again.

Sorry for the misadventures getting from the YC to the BC. I'm not sure the one year we stayed at the BC that we ever attempted to walk straight through the lobby. I think we did all of our walking outside.

They let you cancel your breakfast without a penalty? I thought it had to be 24 hours beforehand.

Can't wait to hear what the next day's adventures bring.

 

[petals]

Luvin all the updates.

That TOT picture all the kids except Avery who's holding on for dear life look terrified still braver than me I won't go on it at all

 

[JPFamilyMom]

Great pictures at the Jedi meal. sorry to hear about the food, I'm going to have to read up on that more. We'll probably do it regardless though.

I always forget about those statue heads, gonna have to do that next trip as both my boys are retro tv show kids. They also love Bill Cosby, Brady Bunch, and Full House. Our kids sound pretty similar in what they enjoy.

Phineas and Ferb are awesome, that was our best character meet a few years ago.

Love the look back picture in front of the Muppet fountain and then after. We have yet to see the Muppet show. And we have yet to see Fantasmic, was hoping next trip but my 6 year old is still scared.

Your adventurous walk sounds like something I would do too. Glad you made it back with the itch cream.

Hooray for change of plans for sleeping in. Looking forward to reading about your next day.

 

[PrncessA]

Great updates! After looking at your kids enjoying their Mickey Bar's, I'm wishing that I had one right now!

I love the TOT ride photo. It's always fun to look at peoples expressions on ride photos. That couple in the front row cracked me up.

I really liked Wreck it Ralph. Much more than I thought I would. The character meeting and greet photos are cool. That Ralph costume is HUGE.

Tell me about it! Going through the photos makes me wish I was at the YC Stormalong Bay right now, with my feet up relaxing!

I wish that we were cool enough to stage a ride photo, be we were lucky just to hold on for dear life!!

I think Ethan was in shock at how big Ralph was!!

Wow! What a night! That is so awesome that your son got his hat signed by Donald. I'm sure he'll cherish it for a long time.

Too funny about your daughter and retro TV. You don't see too many little girls that love Bill Cosby.

Glad to see you finally found the cream and got some good sleep.

That hat is one of his most important possessions!!

I know! She walks to her own drum!!

Anti-itch cream is on my packing list for EVERYWHERE from now on.

You had a full day at the Studios.

We ate at H&V twice for dinner...never again. It is only one of two restaurants at Disney that we have vowed we will never return to. But I'm glad you were able to take the kids for the Star Wars character meal (even I might have given in if my hubby wanted to do it).

I have never seen an episode of Phineas and Ferb.

Tell Lorelai that she has great taste. The Cosby Show is one of my all-time favorite shows. I too can sit and watch it over and over again.

Sorry for the misadventures getting from the YC to the BC. I'm not sure the one year we stayed at the BC that we ever attempted to walk straight through the lobby. I think we did all of our walking outside.

They let you cancel your breakfast without a penalty? I thought it had to be 24 hours beforehand.

Can't wait to hear what the next day's adventures bring.

After two full days (and another one planned the next day) we were ready for a rest!

I don't think we will do H&V again without some special event like that. The themeing isn't much either, which we really like in a lot of Disney restaurants.

I love that she will watch wholesome TV. I will take that over Spongebob any day!! I hate Spongebob!!!

You can cancel your ADR's up until midnight the night before, I believe, and we didn't get any cancellation fees.

Luvin all the updates.

That TOT picture all the kids except Avery who's holding on for dear life look terrified still braver than me I won't go on it at all

LOL, I love that photo!

Great pictures at the Jedi meal. sorry to hear about the food, I'm going to have to read up on that more. We'll probably do it regardless though.

The food wasn't horrible, but I guess like you, we were there for more than the food. We wouldn't have done it without the Jedi Mickey dining, since the kids do not watch a lot of Disney Jr.

I always forget about those statue heads, gonna have to do that next trip as both my boys are retro tv show kids. They also love Bill Cosby, Brady Bunch, and Full House. Our kids sound pretty similar in what they enjoy.

TV land is a favorite in our house! It makes me feel old that TV land now has shows from when I was a child on it. I don't feel that old!!

Phineas and Ferb are awesome, that was our best character meet a few years ago.

They were fun!

Love the look back picture in front of the Muppet fountain and then after. We have yet to see the Muppet show. And we have yet to see Fantasmic, was hoping next trip but my 6 year old is still scared.

They grow so fast!!We love Fantasmic!

Your adventurous walk sounds like something I would do too. Glad you made it back with the itch cream.

Erik said that the walk was so me!!

Hooray for change of plans for sleeping in. Looking forward to reading about your next day.

Sleep!!

 

[mickeystoontown]

Such great pictures! I especially like the ones taken with the characters in their Star Wars garb. We did the SW meal too and, like you, I thought that it wasn't horrible but it wasn't great either. Thank goodness the character interaction made up for it.

 

[amberg93]

Just got caught up

I don't think you were doing bad parenting. Those people were just being jerks.

ToT is not for everyone that is for sure (it's not for me).

Looks like you had a great meal with the characters and of course Donald didn't disappoint. The hat story is precious though.

Phineas and Ferb are always a great choice.

And that is quite the adventure But I'm glad you made it eventually and I'll remembers this if I'm ever trying to get from one to the other.

 

[FancyNancy]

Phineas and Ferb rock! I can't believe the park doesn't have any Ducky MoMo merch. I looked for it last time and could not find one thing!

You meal at Hollywood and Vine looked like a lot of fun. I didn't realize that the restaurant had the characters dressed in Star Wars gear during the week!

 

[PrncessA]

Such great pictures! I especially like the ones taken with the characters in their Star Wars garb. We did the SW meal too and, like you, I thought that it wasn't horrible but it wasn't great either. Thank goodness the character interaction made up for it.

Sometimes not having to stand in line outweighs really good food!

Just got caught up

I don't think you were doing bad parenting. Those people were just being jerks.

I say don't sweat the small stuff and that wasn't up there for me, ya know!?

ToT is not for everyone that is for sure (it's not for me).

It wasn't for the rest of my family either!


Looks like you had a great meal with the characters and of course Donald didn't disappoint. The hat story is precious though.

He loves that hat! When we went to Chef Mickey's in 2005, Ethan brought a stuffed Donald with him and the Donald freaked out over it. It was one of the best moments of the trip. I love a good character interaction, makes it all worth while!


Phineas and Ferb are always a great choice.

We love Phineas and Ferb!

And that is quite the adventure But I'm glad you made it eventually and I'll remembers this if I'm ever trying to get from one to the other.

Yes! The easiest way that I found was to just walk along Stormalong Bay!

Phineas and Ferb rock! I can't believe the park doesn't have any Ducky MoMo merch. I looked for it last time and could not find one thing!

I am surprised at the lack of Phineas and Ferb merch. all around. It is a favorite for our entire family! It is a really funny and smart show! This past weekend Ethan randomly looked at Lorelai at breakfast and said "Hey Lorelai, I know what we are going to do today!" and we all just cracked up!

You meal at Hollywood and Vine looked like a lot of fun. I didn't realize that the restaurant had the characters dressed in Star Wars gear during the week!

It was such a treat that they had the dinner during the week, and we got to avoid the Star Wars Weekend crowds. We come back a couple of days later to do the Jedi Training Academy, which we did during the week as well. Ethan wanted to do it during he weekend to see Darth Maul, but there was no way we were going to fight SWW crowds.

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Hopefully I will have a update this week, it is just a very hectic week! I have three huge papers, one for almost half of my grade, that are due over the next two weeks. I am so ready for August 2, which officially means I have 2 weeks of no school, before it begins again! Oh for life to slow down!

On top of school the kids have been busy. Ethan has been doing a lot of basketball clinics to prepare for tryouts in the fall. This will be his first year trying out for a traveling team! His skill has improved past the local park district leagues and he has really been pushing himself. Last night after practice he was exhausted and I told him that it was good pain, he said I had lost my mind! Lorelai begins fall cheerleading for the first time tonight. Their practice schedule is insane, IMO! They will practice 5 nights a week (6-8pm) from now until the end of August, when games begin. That is a little extreme to me, but she wants to do it and the field that they practice at is a block and a half away from our house, so we can walk over, which makes it easier.

This is my official break from my paper that is due today, so now I have to go and work. Hopefully I will be able to work on an update soon!