WDW and Disney Wish - Land and Sea Adventure (Complete 1/11)

[Disney102015]

Hi all, it’s H here, reporting fresh from an amazing land and sea Disney trip! I’m still working on my report from our summer adults only trip, but let’s be honest, I have major post vacation blues at the moment and all I really want to do is relive this most recent trip! So buckle up because I am diving right in.


Our crew for this trip was my immediate family of 5 - me, my husband N, my 5.5 year old son C, my 3.5 year old daughter G, and 1.5 year old “baby” E.




C is usually our daredevil but he was a bit more cautious this trip! He loves meeting Mickey and giving him a high five. G is our princess-obsessed girl who was so excited to get her first chance to visit Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique. She also had high hopes of riding roller coasters now that she meets some height requirements, but as you’ll see, her first experience may have traumatized her! Baby E is usually along for the ride but she found her running legs this trip and sprinted away from us to be chased basically every chance she got! My husband N is not much of a roller coaster guy (he hates heights) but he shocked me before the trip when he said that he wanted to try Guardians of the Galaxy. Would he do it?? Stay tuned to find out!!



We had been scheduled to do a trip to Disney World in December to do all the Christmassy stuff but health issues prevented us from traveling. When we rescheduled, we decided to shorten the parks portion and tack on our very first Disney cruise! We did 5 nights at Old Key West, hitting all 4 parks, followed by a 4 night cruise on the Disney Wish.



I won’t lie, traveling with 3 kids 5 and under is not for the faint of heart! The biggest thing I noticed this trip is that we accomplished maybe 1/4-1/2 of what I expected each day. We were just moving a lot slower than usual with 2 strollers (and E who insisted on walking/waddling whenever she got the chance), plus a lot of extra bathroom breaks with a newly potty trained kiddo, plus the million snack breaks I just had to kind of adjust my expectations on day 1 that we weren’t going to be able to do everything we planned and had to adjust accordingly, just prioritizing the things we absolutely didn’t want to miss, and not worrying about the rest. This strategy worked out great and overall this was SUCH a magical trip. Having everyone logged off and the screens put away for the cruise was major icing on the cake.

I think I say this every trip report, but my favorite part is always seeing how the kids have changed and what things they like and don’t like versus our last trip. They’re growing up so fast and we are so blessed to get to make these memories with them.


Our (harrowing) travel day is coming up next…thanks for following along!

 

[buteraa]

Following!

 

[Ensusieasm]

Can’t wait to hear more!

 

[footballmouse]

 

[Paulaparm]

Following!

 

[Disney102015]

Travel Day, Part 1​

Our trip report begins at midnight on our travel day. As we often do when we fly JetBlue, we book the cheapest flight (as long as it’s $75+ of the flight we really want) and wait til the day of to do a same day change for $75 each to switch to the flight we really want. Unfortunately this can only be done beginning at midnight on the travel day, so I set my alarm for 11:59 and was able to quickly do this via chat on JetBlue’s app. Our original flight had us landing at 10:30pm and our new flight would land around 7:00pm so I was more than happy with the change (and saved about $250 vs. booking that way initially). As soon as we had our flights finalized I texted our ground transport (Away We Go) to see if they could accommodate our new flight time, and back to sleep I went!



The alarm went back off by 6:30 to start our day because we had quite a busy morning planned! I dropped the kids at daycare and school around 7:40 and right after that got the reply from Away We Go that we were all set with the new flight time - hooray! I went to the bank next to take out cash for tips throughout our travels, only to realize I had no debit card - I had lost mine the week before (great timing right??) so Husband and I had been passing his card back and forth, and I didn’t have it that morning. Oops! Back to the car I went. I filled the gas tank in the car and quickly got my eyebrows done (#priorities) then scurried home for some last minute packing and wrapping things up with work.


Around 10:50 I went to pick up the kids, with C being first.

“Mama, got my tablet?”



“Yup!”



“Charged?”



“You betcha!”



“Souvenir money?”



“Packed!”



“Ok, looks like we’re good to go!”​

This kid cracks me up. We got the girls at daycare next where G told anyone who would listen that she was off to meet Mickey. We were home by 11:10, finished packing the car, and headed to the train station where we’d catch the shuttle to the airport. We unloaded the bags and set up the kids to wait under an awning since it was raining. G and E ran circles around us jumping in puddles despite my warnings that we had no extra shoes if they got wet. E was soaked up the knees before we even boarded the bus



We boarded the bus right at 12 and I got the email that our Garden Grocer order had been delivered while on the ride. I was worried about this because we had Prosecco and wine in our order and I had heard mixed things about drop offs being accepted without being there to pick it up, but we had no issues!



We got to the airport around 1:00 and holy moly, what a cluster was waiting for us. The kiosk wouldn’t print our luggage tags for some reason so we had to hop in the line, and what a line it was! They only had 2 agents working and they must’ve had complicated issues crop up because we did not move at all for ages. I was feeling very grateful we were so early for the flight because otherwise I would’ve been freaking out. We weren’t thru security til almost an hour later, around 1:55, and we have TSA precheck!



Finally we were seated at our go-to preflight spot, Boston Beer Works. By this time, E was frantically signing to eat and everyone was a little grouchy. We got drinks and food pretty quickly, thank goodness. We were still a little antsy because we didn’t have seats assigned yet due to switching flights so close to departure. Every so often I’d pop by our gate to see if anyone was working the desk yet, but no dice. Finally I saw an agent at the desk and ran over to ask about seats. He looked everything over and gave a big sigh and my heart sank…I was fearing we’d all be separated, kids included!



But then he said, “the only way I can seat you together…….……is in the very last row.” Yes, yes, we’ll take it! I had visions of seating my 3 year old with a stranger so this was a totally fine solution by me! We were so relieved to have the seats sorted out. We grabbed one last drink (have I mentioned I’m a nervous flier? I’m a very, very, very nervous flier) and cashed out to head to the gate.



Which brings me to when we got to the gate, and the agent announced: “Attention everyone traveling to Orlando! If you need to go to the bathroom, please do so now. We have been advised there will be very heavy turbulence and no one will be getting up on this flight.”



Gulp. Did I mention I’m a nervous flier?! We quickly put pull-ups on the big kids in case they needed the potty during the flight. I was trying not to let the kids see how badly I was freaking out (I’m trying not to pass my fear of flying into them) but I was literally soaked in sweat I was so panicked. I really did not want to get on the flight but I also REALLY wanted to get to Disney World so I was going to have to be brave!!

Up next…the worst flight of my life!

 

[Disney102015]

Travel Day Part 2​

Take off was ROUGH and there were a few moments where I truly did not think we were going to make it up in the air. Right after takeoff a guy got out of his seat and ran to the bathroom with a bloody nose. The flight attendants freaked out trying to get him to sit back down but apparently he was more worried about his nose than the turbulence. It was a little chaotic but momentarily distracted me from the bumpiness.



Once we got in the air, the captain let us know we’d be flying pretty low to avoid the worst turbulence. If what we experienced was avoiding the worst of the turbulence, I cannot even fathom what the worse turbulence must’ve been like!!! Baby E had fallen asleep on takeoff in my lap but quickly woke up due to all the jostling and even smacked her head on the window during one of the worst stretches. She was absolutely screaming and she’s usually such a good flier so I can only assume the bumpiness coupled with an interrupted nap was getting to her. It was a rough hour while she sobbed and tried mightily to get out of my arms, while I tried to hold her as tight as I could while we bumped through the sky. Again, soaked in sweat! At least C wasn’t nervous - he was shouting “THIS IS SO FUNNY” as the plane dipped and shook like I had never experienced before.



Around 6:00 I got our Old Key West room ready message. I was SO psyched because our room request was granted! Our main request was not to have to change rooms during our 5 night stay (more on that later) but we had also requested to be in one of the elevator buildings closest to Hospitality House, and we got building 62. Perfect!! I was so thrilled, it took my mind off the turbulence for a moment. I had had visions of hauling 2 strollers up 3 flights of stairs every evening (not to mention our 7 or so pieces of luggage) so this was a very welcome development.



Finally we hit a smoother patch and the captain let the flight attendants up for a quick drink service. You better believe I ordered myself a cocktail!! The smooth patch didn’t last long and the flight attendants were quickly instructed to sit down again. We were rocking and rolling again within minutes and I thought I might be sick. I fly fairly frequently, and this was truly the worst flight I have ever experienced. Things smoothed out again just before we descended, and the flight attendants came around with towels to wipe up everyone’s spilled drinks. It was a mess. We touched down a bit early at 6:45 and I have never, ever been so happy to be on the ground safely!!! I was already dreading our return flight and knew I’d have to try to put it out of my mind if I was going to enjoy the trip.



We obviously had to wait a while to get off the plane since we were in the very last row. C was a little chatty Cathy while we waited, and asked everyone around us “where are you headed?” It was really cute. He couldn’t believe there were people headed to Orlando who WEREN’T going to meet Mickey.



JetBlue lands in the new terminal C and…wow. This terminal is gorgeous but MAN it is huge!! It took forever to get to baggage claim especially since E insisted on walking. Our bags took a while, too - almost 30 minutes from the time we got to baggage claim - so needless to say the kids were BONKERS by the time we were all squared away. I couldn’t really blame them - it had been a long day!



We used Away We Go for ground transportation and they were waiting for us in a van with the car seats all set up. We were finally off to Disney World!!! We had done online check in so we were able to go straight to building 62 - we loved our room as soon as we walked in. It was super spacious for a studio and there was plenty of room under the beds to store our suitcases. Honestly, we booked OKW because it was all we could get for 5 consecutive nights at the last minute, but we were thrilled with this resort and would definitely come back.



We made our phone calls home and unpacked quickly (I always like to unpack and get organized!) before heading downstairs to grab some quick dinner. We were at Good’s Food to Go by 9:10. The kids split a mac and cheese and chicken tenders and N got a sandwich. I still hadn’t recovered from the flight so I didn’t get anything! We used QS credits for the meals and also picked up our refillable mugs. We really liked the new designs!!



Our next stop was the front desk. Due to availability, we had booked 2 nights on DVC points, 1 night cash, and 2 more nights on DVC points. I was praying we would not have to switch rooms. I talked to the CM about our issue and she was really making it seem like we were going to have to move at least once - I was so bummed! But then she made a call to the back office and voila - they had seen our reservations and proactively put us in the same room for the duration of the trip! Hurray!! I was SO relieved not to have to pack everything up mid-trip. We also grabbed our strollers which we had delivered from ScooterBug - we prefer a different company usually but ScooterBug is now the only one that’ll drop off when you aren’t present so that’s what we went with.



We were back up to the room by 10:00 and called down to have our groceries delivered, which came quickly. We also called for a pack and play and hopped into bed while we waited. Well, the baby fell asleep in the bed and the pack and play never materialized so we all just went to sleep and figured we’d worry about it tomorrow. It had been a BIG day and we were all exhausted!



Next up….Animal Kingdom!

 

[Ensusieasm]

Wow! Quite the bumpy travel day!

 

[DLo]

Following along. Looking forward to reading more

 

[Disney102015]

Animal Kingdom Morning​

Before I move on from our travel day I wanted to share this - C had to fill out a travel journal for school about his trip and this was his entry for our travel day:



“The flight was bumpy.” He says the grey lines are all the bumps in the air Made me laugh.



Moving on to the following day…



It was our first day at Disney! Is there anything better?! I had a bit of work to finish up before I could fully log off so I got up around 6:00 and hopped on the computer. I switched to Disney mode at 7:00am, grabbing a Seven Dwarfs Mine Train ILL for that evening ($11 x 4 = $44). I wasn’t sure if this would work since we only had the After Hours ticket for MK but I had no problems. We weren’t doing Genie+ today.



We got the kids moving around that time, and G announced that since we were in Disney, she’d be wearing her Elsa dress to Animal Kingdom. Who was I to argue?! E, seeing her big sister putting on a princess dress, eagerly marched over to the suitcase and dug out her Anna dress, which was adorable. We were in Disney, why not!!



We left the room at 7:50, were at the Hospitality House bus stop by 8:00, and on the bus by 8:09, pulling into AK at 8:22. Very smooth transportation morning! We did get tripped up at the entrance as the kids’ Magic Bands weren’t linked to our tickets. G’s band was brand new (she was under 3 on our last visit) and C’s had last been used in Disneyland which causes some tech confusion apparently, so the Cast Member just linked their tickets to plastic cards and we used those throughout the trip. Honestly this worked fine and was better than worrying about their bands falling off.



Once we entered the park I grabbed a DAS for the Safari for a ten minute return time, which is just about how long it took us to walk back to the ride. We had a GREAT safari! A pair of zebras walked right in front of our truck, we saw a bunch of giraffes close up, we saw the male lion giving us some side eye… it was seriously awesome!!





Next we grabbed a DAS for Festival of the Lion King. I hadn't seen this show in years so I was psyched. Unfortunately C got spooked as soon as we walked in the building, I think because it was kind of dark in there. Overall I think he was just kind of overwhelmed with being at Disney and still adjusting to all the stimulation because he was acting extra anxious. He was saying he didn’t want to ride anything and REALLY did not want to watch the show, but we decided we were going to stick it out and watch. It can be really hard as a parent to know when to push your kid to stick it out and ride a ride or watch a show, and when to let them bail, but with C we know 9/10 times he’ll end up enjoying himself so sometimes we just have to make him try it. Luckily as soon as the show started he was totally into it, and so were G and E. Everyone was singing along and clapping and generally loving it, thank goodness. All 3 kids got pretty nervous during the fire juggling part but after that they relaxed again.



Before the show started we placed our order for Flame Tree BBQ because we were all getting hungry for lunch already. This turned out to be a mistake because I didn’t realize mobile order windows expire!! I had a moment of panic when I realized it had expired and thought we’d have to wait another hour for an open window. The troops were hangry!! Luckily I was able to place a new order with an immediate return time - whew!!



We stopped on our way to Flame Tree for some Tree of Life photos. The photographer was awesome and really took his time with the kids. We got a ton of great photos!



Next, off to Flame Tree we went! This is probably my favorite quick service in Disney and SUCH a good value on the dining plan. I wasn’t thrilled with my meal last time I ate here but it was great on this trip- I was relieved! I always get the pulled pork sandwich and Husband got the St. Louis ribs dinner. We got the kids hot dogs but they mostly snacked on the bars and bananas I had packed in our little cooler.



Then…we decided to leave the park! C and G were saying they didn’t want to ride anything else (even Dinosaur, which shocked me - C LOVES dinos!!) I think everyone was still tired from the travel day and still settling into the trip. I felt bad for a moment that we were leaving having only done 1 ride and 1 show but sometimes that’s how it goes traveling with little kids. We had a big night planned so it was best we ended the morning here. We were on the bus by noon and on our way back to OKW!

 

[jrmint427]

Before the show started we placed our order for Flame Tree BBQ because we were all getting hungry for lunch already. This turned out to be a mistake because I didn’t realize mobile order windows expire!!

Your trip is off to a great start, aside from that bumpy flight! I learned this same lesson the hard way while at the Lion King show. We placed lunch orders, then couldn't figure out how to modify the window once we realized it was going to expire before the show even ended. Thankfully, the QS was really kind about still getting our orders when we showed up late. I can't wait to read more!

 

[erinch]

Wow. Following!

 

[Woth2982]

Following! I flew down in December and as we flew into Orlando the flight got so bumpy and rough! I was praying to get on the ground ASAP and i am NOT a nervous flyer! Glad you all made it safe and sound! Disney cruises are the absolute best! Cant wait to hear all about the trip!

 

[awrites]

Following! Even with just one young child (4.5) we wound up often missing at least 1/4 of what we’d planned each day, so I can see how easily that goes even higher with 3! Going with the flow is definitely best.

And we have a DCL cruise booked for next year so I’m looking forward to reading about that too!

 

[Disney102015]

Sorry for the long delay in posting, all! Life happened, plus another wonderful Disney trip (TR coming soon!!) but I’m back on track now!

MK After Hours​

We were heading back to OKW by about 12:00. Now, here is my one complaint about an otherwise lovely stay at Old Key West - the resort is HUGE. Our room was closest to the Hospitality House stop, which was great when leaving the resort - we were the very last stop so we were off to the parks as soon as we boarded. However, when returning from the parks….ouch!! We timed it and from entering the complex to getting off at our stop, it was a full 12 minutes. That feels like a lot at the end of the day!! As you’ll see we ended up getting Minnie Vans back from the parks a few times to avoid the long ride home. This was our first time taking the bus back to the resort which is why I am mentioning it now.



Once back at the room, N and I worked for a bit while the kids either napped or watched some TV. I think everyone benefitted from the “chill” time! Around 3:00 I walked down to Gurgling Suitcase - what a cute little bar!! I grabbed a Bourbon Berry Lemonade for me and a Sparkling Hibiscus for N. We each enjoyed a cocktail while we got the kids ready for some much needed pool time.



The weather felt a bit chilly but the water was surprisingly warm! We had a lovely swim for an hour or so. I wasn’t sure how the baby would react since she hadn’t been swimming in a while but she absolutely loved it, especially when daddy threw her up in the air! C spent his time going up and down the slide over and over - I joined him a couple times and WOW that slide goes fast! We had a great time and it was just the chill time we needed.



We ran back to the room and quickly changed for our 5:30 reservation at Olivia’s. This was such a great meal! We just picked it because it was local but it worked out great. They had a little scavenger hunt for the kids to do while they waited which kept them entertained, and we were all really happen with our meals. We started with the beer braised mussels and since we were using the dining plan, we each got a drink - N had the rum swizzle and I had another bourbon lemonade. I had the Southernmost Buttermilk Chicken which was amazinggg and N had the pork. The kids also got chicken but they all just picked at their meals - C and G were really not big eaters this trip, but Baby E sure was and she wanted a bite of everything! We were leaving around 6:45 and C picked up his prize for completing the I Spy game - a little squeaky toy.



We were headed for MK After Hours but the bus said it’d be a half hour wait! We checked the app for a Minnie Van but there was nothing that would arrive any quicker so we just had to wait. We were on the bus by 7:20 and were walking in about 10 minutes before the fireworks. The kids were asking to meet Mickey so we got a DAS right away for about 20 minutes later, and went to watch the fireworks from the end of Main Street.



I wasn’t too worried about seeing Happily Ever After since we had the dessert party booked for later in the week but I never turn down a chance to see it so we watched while we waited for our DAS time. The kids lasted about halfway thru the fireworks - G was a little sensitive to sound on this trip so she was blocking her ears and ready to be done. We headed to meet Mickey next!



G was nervous again here and clung pretty close to N, but Baby E was not shy at all and was very smiley as we met Mickey. It was so sweet!! C wasn’t nervous either and gave Mickey a high five as always. Last time we were here it was both Mickey and Minnie but tonight it was just Mickey in his magician outfit so that must’ve changed.



After our visit with Mickey we walked onto the carousel - this is always one of the rides the kids want to do first. We were off by about 8:50. We had purchased an ILL earlier in the day for Seven Dwarfs Mine Train - C wasn’t feeling it which was SO surprising since he’s usually my roller coaster buddy but we didn’t push it. G was finally old enough to ride so I was very excited to bring her along but in retrospect I think nighttime might not have been the right choice because it’s definitely a bit scarier at night. She also asked just before boarding if we were going to see the witch - I didn’t want to lie so I told her yes, we were going to see the witch very quickly at the very end but she wasn’t going to bother us - well, this got our ride off on a rough foot because G adamantly didn’t want to ride after hearing that! But we were literally boarding so I just scooped her up and popped her in her seat - bad mom? Possibly! It’s hard making quick executive decisions like that as a parent! Ultimately she did not love the ride and ended up covering her eyes but she didn’t cry or anything so hopefully she’s not too traumatized.



After the ride C needed the bathroom…then we realized E needed a diaper…and right after that G said she also needed the potty The adventures of traveling with 3 kids under age five! That triple restroom break took a while and I was tapping into Big Thunder at 9:48, and on the ride by 9:57. N rode after me. Normally C would ride this with one of us but he was beat and just wanted to wait in the stroller. Pretty soon he was asleep! We got a cute castle pic of all 3 kids asleep in the strollers.



Next we walked over to Tomorrowland so I could ride Space Mountain but it still had a 35 minute wait posted. I tried to pivot and ride Tron but it had just gone down and they were emptying the line so it didn’t look like it was coming back up quickly. We decided to cut our losses and grab some free popcorn and soda, and head to the hub for fireworks. We were in place for Enchantment at 10:50, right in front the castle, in a nearly empty hub. It was pretty amazing!! This wasn’t my favorite fireworks show but I did enjoy it so it was cool to see it again. I was worried the fireworks would wake the kids but they were out COLD so I didn’t need to worry!



Overall, After Hours was not a great value for us with 3 kids under age 5. But we didn’t really expect that it would be, so we weren’t disappointed. I forget if I mentioned this before but the only reason we did After Hours was because we had to cancel a trip a few months prior due to illness, and were able to convert our MVMCP tickets into After Hours tickets. So, since it was already kind of a sunk cost, we just sort of took whatever we were able to accomplish as a bonus and not worry too much about it.



We took the loooong bus ride back to OKW, got the kids into bed, and passed out! We had done 16276 steps!



Up next….Hollywood Studios and Epcot Moonlight Magic!

 

[Disney102015]

Hollywood Studios Day​

We had a slow morning after our late night at MK After Hours. N and I did some work while the kids watched cartoons. I bought Genie at some point during the morning - it was $93.72 for the four of us (E is under 3 and doesn’t need it yet). I should’ve bought it at 7am and started stacking but I kind of forgot about that! I made our first selection around 10:45 which was for Minnie and Mickey’s Runaway Railway for 1:00.



We had an early dinner reservation at Mama Melrose but we were all feeling a little hungry and were able to modify it to lunchtime which worked perfectly! We left the room right at noon - the posted wait for the bus was 15 minutes but we waited closer to 30. It was 80 degrees and cloudy this day but felt a lot warmer to us for some reason!



We were tapping into the park at 12:55, cutting it close for our 1:00 reservation but we made it! I also picked up a DAS for Millennium Falcon which had a return time in an hour.



We loved Mama Melrose as always, this is usually a go-to spot for us. N and I both got the Mama’s Italian Pasta - mine with shrimp and his with chicken. We each got a drink since we were using the dining plan - I got the peach Bellini and N got the Mama’s margarita. We also ended up splitting the wine flight - I love trying all different types of drinks so almost always choose a flight if it’s available. We got the kids the cheese pizza with apple slices and ice cream - I’ll let you guess what they actually ate! Lastly we got the tiramisu - neither of us are big dessert eaters but since it was included on the dining plan we indulged!



I mentioned before that our trip was booked as 2 nights DVC, 1 night cash, 2 nights DVC. This allowed us to only do the dining plan for part of the trip which was perfect for our needs. During part 1 of the trip I kept really close track of our dining expenses to see if it was “worth it” or not - as you’ll see this totally fell apart by part 2 of the trip! But for data purposes, our Mama Melrose lunch would’ve been $130 plus tip (for the items included on the dining plan - excluding the wine flight).



Next up we rode Minnie and Mickey’s Runaway Railway with our LL. This ride has really grown on me (but RIP Great Movie Ride) and the kids really enjoyed it. After we tapped in I got an LL for Alien Swirling Saucers which we didn’t end up using. At 3:00 I was tapping in for Millennium Falcon, which C kept calling the Peregrine Falcon, which was hilarious. C didn’t want to ride, and we didn’t push him - as long as he was content hanging out in the stroller we weren’t going to rock the boat! I was assigned to be a pilot which was hysterical because I am an absolutely terrible driver. It went about as well as you’d expect! I was off by 3:18, and N took his turn to ride while I waited with the kids. G actually dozed off for a bit in the stroller which is very out of character for her!



While I waited for N, I ordered us some grown up lemonades from Woody’s Lunchbox, and also picked up a DAS for Toy Story Mania with a 30 minute return time.



I also had our prebooked DAS for Slinky at 4:00 so C and I rode that one and were on and off in about 12 minutes. He was a little nervous but he did great!! He’s ridden before but was still a little anxious about it. Next up we had Toy Story Mania which was a huge hit with the kids. They were especially psyched about the 3D glasses, even Baby E! G was a little nervous about the spinning when the ride first started but she got into it as the ride went on. She picked out a green alien stuffie at the gift shop as we were leaving.



Next up was the Frozen show, which was on our must-do list. We got there at 5:10 and were brought right into the theater for the 5:30 show. This was a huuuuge hit for all 3 kids and one of my best memories from the trip. They all thought it was hilarious and during the songs, Baby E was waving her arms in the air like she was at a rave. It was really a blast. After the show, C picked out a stuffed Sven as his souvenir, which was an adventure to get in the suitcase!



We got some cute photos as we exited the park then headed for the boat to Epcot. (N does not do heights and therefore does not ride the Skyliner!) We were at the boat at 6:35 and at International Gateway at 7:10.



As I am typing this I’m realizing we only did 1 LL selection today, which is painful to think about from a cost perspective! I’m sure we would’ve used a couple more if we hadn’t had DAS - since we likely won’t qualify for DAS going forward, hopefully we’ll make better use of Genie+ in the future (especially with the upcoming changes, which I’m pretty psyched about).



Next up…Epcot Moonlight Magic!

 

[Disney102015]

Epcot Moonlight Magic​

We were at Epcot for the DVC Moonlight Magic event and waited about 15 minutes in line to enter. We did a Moonlight Magic event at Animal Kingdom the previous summer and this entry was MUCH more organized!! We got 3 or 4 snack credit vouchers each which could be used at a bunch of the booths (but not at some of the more popular booths) as well as a bunch of QS locations.



We ended up using our snack credits for almost $51 worth of DDP snacks (plus our drinks, which we paid cash for). We got:

• Japan: Hanami ramen cup
• Japan: Ichigo breeze cocktail
• Fleur de Lis: Goat cheese crossant
• Fleur de Lis: Pulled duck confit
• Fleur de Lis: Lemon lavender thyme cake
• Fleur de Lis: La vie en rose cocktail
• Northern bloom: seared scallops
• Northern bloom: Beef tenderloin tips
• Northern bloom: sparkling blackberry wine

Fleur de Lis had a 15+ minute wait or we would’ve gone back for more - everything we got there was SO good!! We ended up not using most of our Moonlight Magic vouchers since we still had the DDP credits, so we gave them away to another family. Hopefully they put them to good use! C was saying he was still hungry so we mobile ordered at Connections but we missed the mobile order window and it wouldn’t let us redo the order (I think because it was too close to closing?) so I got in line. Unfortunately he was asleep by the time the food came! We used up our last quick service credit for $26.29 on a cheese pizza and a mango margarita.



I won’t lie, I had tracked our DDP spending very closely and this night was the end of our first dining plan segment, and I was feeling some serious (and admittedly silly!) anxiety about finishing our plan to its full potential. We had planned out this 2 day period to maximize our credits and I was horrified when I realized 1 snack credit would go unused. I realize this is a really silly thing to worry about and that the plan is prepaid so I should just relax and enjoy. But that’s just not how I’m wired!! Even though we left 1 snack credit unused, we still came out ahead - the DDP was $495.88 for 2 nights for 4 people, and we got about $580 out of it, saving us $84.12. I felt really good about this - but also kind of silly for stressing about it so much only to save $84!



Anyway… we finished up at Connections and 2/3 of the kids were asleep so we decided to splurge on a Minnie Van to get back to OKW. We didn’t do any rides at Epcot on this night - Test Track was down most of the night, and the kids didn’t want to do Remy’s or Frozen. But we had a great time leisurely sampling some booths and it was a free event so we felt like it was totally worth it for us for a few hours! We left the park at 9:45 and the Minnie Van was $30. Today’s steps: 13987!

Up next…another Epcot day and we sneak in a date night in Disney!

 

[Disney102015]

Back to Epcot (and the Pool)​

We had another slow-ish morning after our night at Epcot, and didn’t get up til almost 8am! I immediately bought Guardians for 7:25pm as N and I had an Epcot date night planned for later. We decided to skip Genie on this day and just rely on DAS. We initially had a reservation for Homecomin’ for 10:20 and thought we’d take the boat from OKW - but, then we realized the boat didn’t start running til 10, plus buses wouldn’t be running from Disney Springs to the park after breakfast - so we just decided to cancel it and avoid the various transportation hassles.



We were at the bus at 9:00. The screen said the bus to Epcot would arrive at 9:02 but then suddenly it jumped to 9:24. Some families had been waiting a while already so they hopped in a Lyft - but then a bus came almost immediately after! I felt bad for them. We were off the bus at Epcot by 9:30.



This was a recurring source of frustration on this trip: I bought a bunch of breakfast items for the room and planned to have everyone eat before we left the room each morning. But without fail, everyone would insist they weren’t hungry and no one would eat - then everyone would suddenly be starving as soon as we got to the park!! It drove me a little nuts. (And I hadn’t really gotten items that we could easily bring with us to the park - it was fruit, yogurt, etc. that was easier to eat in the room.)



That was exactly what happened this morning - the kids were suddenly ravenous the second we tapped into the park. We tried to go to Connections Eatery for breakfast but it wasn’t open yet. None of the booths were open yet either. And the line for Connections Cafe was longer than any line we had seen the entire trip!! There really aren’t a ton of breakfast options at Epcot. Finally we found a Joffrey’s cart that had donuts so we got those for the kids. I was worried they wouldn’t eat them because they had blue frosting but they surprised me and actually loved them! Go figure.



Now that everyone was fed we decided we’d head to the Seas first and grabbed a DAS for 5 minutes later at 10:00. This was actually worth it because it had just come back up from some downtime and had an unusual 35 minute wait. I actually really enjoy this ride - I think it’s super cute and the song makes me tear up. We got stuck in the turtle tunnel for quite a while - we saw the little scene with Crush and Squirt no less than 10 times and I was starting to feel a little motion sick! We got moving again and had a really cool sight right by the exit - two dolphins swam right by the window. It was so cool!! We weren’t off til 10:40 so the shutdown in the middle was quite lengthy!



Next we picked up a DAS for Frozen for 11:45 and decided to spend some time in the Seas aquarium while we waited. The kids ADORE stuff like this. This is one way I’ve really changed since becoming a parent - before, I never would’ve spent time doing stuff like this, instead focusing on the bigger rides and shows and feeling like I was “wasting time” if I slowed down. Now, I know poking around exhibits like this isn’t wasted time and often forms some of the very best memories from our trips. We met a Cast Member who used to work at our local aquarium so it was really cool to talk to her for a bit and we submitted a cast compliment when we left. The kids also found little booklets for a Dory scavenger hunt I had never heard of before, and had a blast placing all the stickers in the booklet for each creature they saw. It was a really fun 45 minutes or so in the aquarium!



Continuing our “stop and smell the roses” morning, next up was our first time at Journey of Water. This was another huge hit with the whole family.



The kids had a blast with all the water features, especially Baby E, who was flabbergasted by the water that created music sounds. We also joined a really fun group working together to try to make the big wave happen. We spent a good amount of time in here.



When the kids were done, we headed toward World Showcase and grabbed a beer to split while we waited for our Frozen entry time and took turns supervising potty breaks.



Frozen had a 105 minute wait posted! The kids enjoyed this but everyone always gets a little bit nervous at the part that goes backward. We also had a DAS for Remy’s but ended up skipping it. For some reason my kids are very spooked about this ride! I think because it’s kind of dark in the loading area? They’ve all ridden it once but we haven’t been able to get them back on it since.



Test Track had been down all morning and we were getting ready to leave the park for the morning, so C wouldn’t get to ride it, which was a bit of a bummer. Next trip (when it’ll be revamped!) We were on the bus by 12:54 and back at OKW at 1:18. I was feeling a little over heated so we decided to grab lunch and some cold drinks right away at Goods to Go. The burger was nothing special but a quick meal in the shade had me feeling like myself again.



It was time to hit the pool again since this had been such a hit the night before! We stayed almost 2 hours and got a round of mojitos to finish our pool time off. I couldn’t even count how many times C went down the slide! Everyone had a ball and then it was time to head back to the room. N and I were sneaking out for a date night!



Up next…the parents take on Topolino’s and Epcot!

 

[Disney102015]

Grown Ups Night Out​

Our sitter came around 4:30. She’s someone a friend of ours has used on her trips to Orlando, and we had used her once before on our September 2022 trip (when she watched 5 kids!) so it was nice the kids had met her before, even if they didn’t really seem to remember. She said the kids were veryyy tired so hopefully that made her night a little easier! She took the kids down to Good’s for dinner and to play some of the lawn games set up at OKW. She sent us pictures of them throughout the night so it was great to see they were having fun! The last picture was all 3 kids asleep in 1 bed which was really cute.



In the meantime, N and I were in a Lyft headed to the Riviera! We had a 5:50 reservation at Topolino’s - possibly our favorite restaurant in all of Disney World. We arrived early, close to 4:45 and the bar wasn’t open yet. Lots of people were waiting around in the lobby and there was a mass exodus toward the bar right at 4:59! We grabbed a seat at a bar table and had our drinks in no time - French Rose for me, Reviver No. 2 for N.





We were hungry already so decided to do our apps at the bar table and wait to be seated at a real table for our entrees. I got the ricotta and N got the octopus - exactly what we got last time - but we lucked out because the waiter told us the menu would be changing the following day and octopus would no longer be on it! What a bummer. Everything was delish and our table was ready right on time at 5:50.





N got the sole meunière just like last time - he maintains this is one of the very best things he’s ever eaten. I got the filet but substituted plain mashed potatoes because I don’t do truffle. I also got a pomegranate paradiso and N got for Marseille spritz. Everything was SO crazy good!! This restaurant is seriously amazing.



I mentioned before that I tracked our dining plan usage very closely on the first leg of the trip. Well, now we were on the second leg and I was done tracking or trying to maximize. It just took up too much of my brain space and caused me stress!! Please tell me I’m not the only one like this?! Anyway, we decided to just use dining plan credits for this meal which I know isn’t the best use, for a 2 credit signature meal, but oh well. At this point my main concern was just making sure no credits went to waste, so mission accomplished! I’m assuming we had dessert since we used the dining plan but I don’t have any notes or photos and honestly don’t remember!



We did pop out to the balcony for pics after dinner but it was too dark to see anything in the photos. N was going to be brave and try the Skyliner but then I realized we weren’t aiming for International Gateway so the Skyliner didn’t make a lot of sense - so he got a reprieve! I’ll get him on it one of these days! Instead we got a Minnie Van to the front entrance - I was worried about missing our Guardians LL and didn’t want to risk getting stuck hiking from a far away ride share area. (Did they move the ride share drop at Epcot? I have a specific memory of it being REALLY far but on my last trip it was a pretty quick walk!)



We were at Epcot at 8:00 and tapping into N’s very first ride on Guardians at 8:10. He SHOCKED me by saying he wanted to ride this!! He is not a big roller coaster guy and hates heights and I was worried it be too intense for him, but he did it!!! We also wound up in the very front row, go figure! The photo is so funny - he’s clutching my whole arm for dear life. When we got off I kept asking if he liked it and he just kept saying, “that was (bleeping) insane! That was (bleeping) insane!” It was sooo funny. Our song was One Way or Another which is my absolute favorite. We were off 35 minutes later at 8:45, so this ride always takes a bit even with an LL.



Next up we had a DAS for Test Track which was finally up and running. The fireworks were going off just as we came out of the tunnel which was so fun. We had had an absolutely fabulous date night and took a Minnie Van back to the hotel because we were BEAT. 16540 steps today.



All 3 kids were out cold when we got home so we said bye to the sitter and passed out ourselves!



Next up…a very special Magic Kingdom day!

 

[Disney102015]

An Epic Magic Kingdom Day​

Today was our last park day of the trip, and it was a big one!! Early entry started at 8:30 so the alarm went off at 6:15. I bought Genie for $106 and change - ouch!! I didn’t buy an ILL for Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, figuring we’d use DAS for that one. When 7am hit, SDMT and Peter Pan were already booking out to noon! Looked like it was going to be a busy day. We were out the door by about 7:25 and it was actually a little chilly - 66 degrees and drizzling. We got the bus stop and the sign said the next bus wasn’t until 7:50 but that quickly jumped to 7:41, hooray! We were getting off the bus at Magic Kingdom at 7:54.



At which point my husband was stunned to discover that early entry didn’t start til 8:30. He couldn’t fathom why we were there over half an hour early. Husband, this is not your first Disney rodeo!! He thought I was completely insane for having us arrive so early. But by the time we went thru security, scanned in, and did some castle photos, it was about 8:15 and we were obviously nowhere near the front of the pack - you all know how rope drop goes!!



This day totally solidified the choice to get Memory Maker. The girls were in their princess dresses - E was Snow White and G was Cinderella - and we got SO MANY cute pictures throughout the day, starting in front of the castle.



I passed around Pop Tarts while we waited for rope drop - we didn’t have time for any breakfast meltdowns today! We had plans to hit Peter Pan first and headed straight there but as we hopped in line at 8:33 the CM said the wait was likely an hour already! We quickly bailed and set up a DAS for this one for later. (See, Husband?! We should’ve arrived even earlier!!)



We headed to Small World instead, which was a walk on at 8:35. The kids really love this one so it was a nice way to start the day. Next we doubled back to use our DAS for Peter Pan - the kids are always just a little nervous on this one but I think they enjoyed it. After that we got a DAS with an immediate return time for Pirates so we headed there next.



Side note about DAS. We do not expect we will qualify for DAS under the new rules, based on all the reports I am reading (our DAS holder has terrible anxiety - not a developmental issue) which is a bummer. So this was likely our last trip using it. We’ll see how it goes in the future - we usually get Genie anyway, to maximize our flexibility. We very rarely used the DAS preselections anyway - the 1 hour return window just doesn’t often work out. We’ll probably end up skipping a lot of things rather than waiting in longer lines, because it’s just not physically possible, but we’ll try to make the best of it.



Anyway. Next we picked up a DAS to meet Tiana, which we’d save for after our girl G had her Princess makeover. Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique was our next stop!! We were splitting up for this - N was taking C and Baby E to accomplish a few things while Princess G and I headed to BBB. N’s goals were to get E a pair of Mickey ears embroidered with her name (family tradition!), get her silhouette done (another tradition), and get her first haircut at Harmony Barber Shop - I was really hoping to make it in time to join for this last stop.



We were about 10 minutes early for BBB and they wouldn’t let us check in yet, so we took a quick detour to the Rapunzel bathrooms for a potty break. We checked back in right at 9:45 and were given a booklet to look at to choose her package.



I have really mixed feelings about the BBB experience - it was 100% worth it for us because G absolutely loved it, in the end, but it was a LOT of waiting around, and for the price point I felt like it should be a more enjoyable experience overall. Like I said, I had hoped to make it to E’s 11:30 Harmony Barber Shop appointment and thought that would hopefully be doable with a 9:45 BBB appointment - they did ask at checkin if we had any reservations in the next 90 minutes and I said no - because we didn’t have any reservations within 90 minutes of her appt - but by the time we finally made it to the makeover chair there was nooo way we were making it for the haircut as well, so that was a bummer!



After we got the booklet, we sat for almost 30 minutes just waiting for the next step. Then we were brought back to a dressing room but G had brought her dress so this was a quick stop. They did a little bit of “Magic” in the mirror with the Fairy Godmother which was cute, then brought us to a seating area inside the store, where we sat…for another 30 minutes. There were not enough seats so G sat on the floor and got increasingly grouchy. I was really wondering if this experience would be worth it - it was almost an hour and 15 minutes past our reservation time by the time she finally made it to the makeover chair.



And from there….the experience was absolutely, 100% worth it. G looooves all things makeup and princess and girly, and she was absolutely over the MOON. She was so serious through the whole thing and just looked so tiny and adorable in the chair getting all dolled up.



It was kind of amazing to watch how the Fairy Godmothers do those perfect little princess buns - it’s quite a process!! (I was going to let G choose whatever makeover look she wanted but I was secretly thrilled when she chose the classic princess bun.) They also painted her nails, and did lip gloss and glitter….ohh, it was so fun to watch. She was so excited and sitting so still like a big girl. It was hands down one of my favorite Disney memories ever. As soon as we were done I took G to the photo area at Sir Mickey’s for a photo shoot, then to meet Rapunzel and Tiana.



Meanwhile N successfully completed his missions, including E’s first haircut. I was bummed to miss it but he got lots of pictures and videos, and she did great!



We all met back up behind the castle, and my absolute favorite memory of the entire trip occurred. C saw his little sister for the first time all fancied up from her makeover and said “G!!!! Look at you! I’m going to cry!!!” Which made ME cry, obviously. It was so sweet!



We had a prebooked DAS for Enchanted Tales with Belle so we all headed there next. None of my kids wanted to participate - G was CONVINCED the Beast was going to pop up and scare her so she stuck close to us and wouldn’t go up to meet Belle at the end. E was fearless though, and the picture of her and Belle is one of my favorites of the trip.



Over the last couple hours, I had made DAS and Genie reservations for BTMRR, SDMT, and Jungle Cruise for the afternoon and evening. SDMT was next so we set up N, G, and E in a shady spot in the stroller while C and I went to ride. Unfortunately we forgot the CM actually needs to see the baby to issue a rider swap so we had to trek back to our crew and leave our shady spot to get this sorted. (The CM was actually very rude as well - worst interaction of the whole trip, I think.) G was NOT interested in riding after her little adventure riding it a few nights prior. C and I rode, and then we all headed to Cinderella’s Royal Table, saving N’s SDMT rider swap for after lunch.



We checked in right on time at 1:05 - the check in area was crazy crowded!! We eventually made it upstairs to our table. We had scheduled this lunch so G could meet the princesses after her BBB makeover but it actually wound up being one of the best meals of the trip! I got filet mignon (for the second day in a row - #yolo) while N had the lamb chops. For apps we got the chilled jumbo shrimp and braised beef. The kids got mac and cheese and they even brought out a little dish for baby E which was great. The character interactions were awesome - we met Ariel, Aurora, Merida, Jasmine, and then Cinderella on the way out. To drink, I had the Castle Flight and N had something that was kind of like a cross between an old fashioned and a mimosa which sounds weird but was actually delicious! We were so glad we did this meal, it really exceeded our expectations.



After lunch we used N’s rider swap so he and C could ride SDMT, while I took both girls to Sir Mickeys for more photos in their princess dresses. This was so amazing!! They had a ton of props and the CM took a lot of time with them - we got some great shots.



The skies were about to open up and it was looking very ominous out.



We pushed our Jungle Cruise LL to 9pm, and BTMRR went down and converted to a multi experience pass, which worked out better for us anyway. As it was, we were leaving the park later than I had anticipated!! I was feeling very stressed about getting us packed and organized for the cruise the next morning, and we still had laundry to get done. We decided to get a Minnie Van back to OKW to expedite things and were on our way around 3:30.



Up next…midday break and back to Magic Kingdom for our last park night!