Yeah and it Smells Like Hotdogs...A January 2017 TR *Completed 10/27*

[missangelalexis]

Sounds like a nice end to your time at Epcot!

 

[StarWarsMomofGirls!]

Walking to the car DS2 was very stubborn and wanted to walk by himself and hold his milk and cereal. This was the result.

​

Too Funny! Kids...

It was a great meet and I’m glad we got to do it before the line got too long.

I really loved meeting Joy and Sadness. I think the time they put into the meet def makes the wait long but it also makes it more memorable.

However we quickly realized this was a mistake. It was windy and cold. We just tried to eat as quickly as possible. We got cheese empanadas and nachos to split and Joe got the tacos de barbacoa and then two orders of the churros.

​

We did almost the same thing when we ate there. We really liked it. It is a solid quick service option and something different than burgers and hot dogs. And my DD really liked the kid empanadas!

I want to do a hat challenge next time we go, have everyone get there pic taken with a hat in each country... So, cute!

 

[ariane37]

Nice you got to sit in the West Wing in your bday! That's my favorite room. Ido love the stark there but......best on property Not sure about that lol.
Sorry to hear about DH's job and the move; I do hope it ends up being a positive thing and that you're over the worst of it now On the bright side YAY for a solo trip!!! So cool your agency is doing a training there. I went to a TA training in Universal back in Feb. and I'd love if we had one in WDW but as of now, none on the horizon.
I kind of want to go next year for the Arts festival just to say I went to it lol, but honestly other than one or two things that looked neat this year doesn't really excite me. I did read about the food booth offerings being on the expensive side which is a negative.
La Cantina is one of our favorite WS QS!

 

[afwdwfan]

We chose La Cantina because it was close and I was in the mood for Mexican. We chose to sit outside because it was beautiful.

This is a definite favorite of ours... those nachos are the best.

However we quickly realized this was a mistake. It was windy and cold.

Definitely one of the drawbacks. Especially on our recent winter time trips. It's a lovely setting, but if it is cool and that wind is coming in off the water...

Honestly, I wasn’t that impressed with it.

It seems that this is the consensus about the Festival of the Arts. I'm glad you at least got your shirt.

 

[ashw100]

Sounds like a nice end to your time at Epcot!

I was, we ended it on a positive note thank goodness.

I really loved meeting Joy and Sadness. I think the time they put into the meet def makes the wait long but it also makes it more memorable.

I definitely makes the meet better if they're more interactive, even if there is a longer wait.

We did almost the same thing when we ate there. We really liked it. It is a solid quick service option and something different than burgers and hot dogs. And my DD really liked the kid empanadas!

The empanadas were so yummy. I can't wait to go back, it was so good.

I want to do a hat challenge next time we go, have everyone get there pic taken with a hat in each country... So, cute!

I always wanted to do a challenge around the world, but I always forget once I'm there.

Nice you got to sit in the West Wing in your bday! That's my favorite room. Ido love the stark there but......best on property Not sure about that lol.

I really liked it in there, glad we were sat there. The steak is good but cannot be called the best when there are places like Yachtsman on property.

Sorry to hear about DH's job and the move; I do hope it ends up being a positive thing and that you're over the worst of it now On the bright side YAY for a solo trip!!! So cool your agency is doing a training there. I went to a TA training in Universal back in Feb. and I'd love if we had one in WDW but as of now, none on the horizon.

Yeah, I think it will be for the best once we're all in texas together. I am nervous about going solo, but I wanted the extra time to experience all the new stuff, plus MVMCP and F&W. I work for a Disney only agency, so there trips are only Disney based. Maybe one will come up for you in the future.

I kind of want to go next year for the Arts festival just to say I went to it lol, but honestly other than one or two things that looked neat this year doesn't really excite me. I did read about the food booth offerings being on the expensive side which is a negative.

It was okay, but not worth a special trip that's for sure.

La Cantina is one of our favorite WS QS!

Now it's one of mine, it was so good.

This is a definite favorite of ours... those nachos are the best.

I can't believe this place doesn't get more love, it is so good.

Definitely one of the drawbacks. Especially on our recent winter time trips. It's a lovely setting, but if it is cool and that wind is coming in off the water...

Yeah and we forgot jackets that morning...oops

It seems that this is the consensus about the Festival of the Arts. I'm glad you at least got your shirt.

I am very happy with the shirt, but the festival was just meh

 

[ashw100]

Day 3: Part 3
I Will Remember this Moment for the Rest of My Life

We drove to DHS and because we got there so late, we were directed to park in the premium parking or whatever it’s called, which was nice. It was still very windy, but we got a picture in spite of that.

He's much more interested in looking at Chewie on the map
​

We had gotten so much done the night before that we didn’t have much of a plan for this evening.

​

We ended up near Launch Bay and the boys wanted to see Pluto, so we got in line. DS2 saw Doc and decided he wanted to see her more, so Joe took him over to that line.

​

They actually finished right as our turn with Pluto happened, so he got to do that meet as well.

​

We were all getting a little bit hungry so we stopped for popcorn and pretzels while a waited for the final performance of A Galaxy Far, Far Away.

​

We were told about 15 minutes before the show that it might be too windy for them to do the show. We decided to wait it out, since we a great spot. While we waited, Stormtroopers came out and the boys loved that. DS6 asked to have my phone so he could take a picture. The Stormtrooper called him out for recording him.

Photographer in the making right here




​

Unfortunately when the show was due to start they did officially cancel it. While we were disappointed, Joe was happy because now it meant we had time to see the Indiana Jones show. When we got to the theater, there was a CM standing outside with a fake snake. DS2 was intrigued by it so we stopped.

​

She let them “pet” the snake and started talking to the boys. She asked me if they were shy, to which I responded no and next thing I know she is giving them certificates to be guest directors on the set that evening. I was so excited for them as we were led to the front of the theater to our reserved seats. The cast directing came over to talk to the boys and told them what they had to say when the show started. DS4 told us that he did not want to go up there. We tried to gently convince him to do it, but he was adamant that he would not do it. DS6 however, was ecstatic to kick off the show. When show time rolled around DS6 jumped up, ready to make his debut, and DS4 refused to go up. Here is a video of how it all unfolded.

[GALLERY=]

​

I was such a proud mama, I can’t even tell you. Connor said I will remember this moment the rest of my life. We were so happy that they got that opportunity and I rode that high the rest of the night. We of course enjoyed the show as well.

​

Last time we saw this it was raining and we missed the end. It was very cool to see it and especially at night.

Next Post​

 

[TXMNie]

Just caught up! Enjoying reading about your trip! Animal Kingdom Lodge looks lovely! How fun that two of your boys got to kick off the Indy show. What a magical moment!

 

[cstorm65]

Just found your report! What an awesome experience at Indiana Jones! That is a fantastic Disney memory.

Looking forward to reading more!

 

[missangelalexis]

Cute character pics! So awesome that the boys got to participate in the Indiana Jones show, what a cool thing for them!!

 

[MamaCoop]

Too cute! They did such a good job!

 

[afwdwfan]

He's much more interested in looking at Chewie on the map

Priorities...

Photographer in the making right here

Going for the artistic shot rather than well framed.

was such a proud mama, I can’t even tell you. Connor said I will remember this moment the rest of my life. We were so happy that they got that opportunity and I rode that high the rest of the night. We of course enjoyed the show as well.

That is awesome!!! I'm glad they had a chance to do that. Excellent job!!!

 

[ashw100]

Just caught up! Enjoying reading about your trip! Animal Kingdom Lodge looks lovely! How fun that two of your boys got to kick off the Indy show. What a magical moment!

It was, so proud of them

Just found your report! What an awesome experience at Indiana Jones! That is a fantastic Disney memory.

Looking forward to reading more!

Definitely, so happy they got picked.

Cute character pics! So awesome that the boys got to participate in the Indiana Jones show, what a cool thing for them!!

I know, they are so lucky.

Too cute! They did such a good job!

Thank you, I was a proud mama.

Priorities...

That kid's ONLY priority is Star Wars

Going for the artistic shot rather than well framed.

He likes to think he's got the artistic touch

That is awesome!!! I'm glad they had a chance to do that. Excellent job!!!

Me too, it was such an awesome experience.

 

[ashw100]

Day 3: Part 4
Happiness is Where You Are

After the Indy show, Joe and DS6 went to use a rider swap at Star Tours, while I took the other two over to meet Olaf.

​

They were still on the ride after we met Olaf, so we decided to watch the end of the Jedi Training.

​

DS4 has told me that he did not want to do this before we went on the trip, but I am so glad that he did the Indy thing and then saw this. He has lost is stage fright and got to see how awesome it is to fight Darth Vader and then changed his mind. Nicholas of course wanted to do it as well, but he was happy to use the force on the side of the stage to push Kylo back into the door. After the show, they still hadn’t gotten off the ride, so we decided to check out how long the wait was for Moana. On the way, we checked out some of the celebrities outside of the Chinese Theater.

​

The wait for Moana said 10 minutes so we decided to get in the line, Joe and Connor had met up with us at this point as well. The wait ended up being more like 20 minutes, but we had fun being goofy and enjoying the Moana soundtrack.

​

When it was finally our turn Nicholas was so excited as he loved the movie and listening to the soundtrack with me. This is now his current favorite movie, he asks to watch it every day. The meet was a little lackluster, though, but the boys had fun.

​

After the meet Joe and I wanted to watch the movie, but we had gotten a fastpass for TSMM and it was about to expire.

​

I had DS2 this time, and man is it hard to do that with a two-year old on your lap.

That score


Joe got best in vehicle
​

The wait was only 15 minutes, so we decided to ride again standby.

​

The park was now closed, so we made our way toward the front. I had some shopping to do, so Joe took DS2 to the car, while I bought what I needed.

He doesn't seem to pleased with his new hat


​

When we got back to the hotel, we were all starving, so decided to get something at Mara. There were CMs outside Boma drumming, so we stopped to watch. And they invited the boys over to play with them.

​

Once the boys had their fill of drumming, we walked over to Mara for a very late dinner. I have nothing in my notes about dinner or pictures, but it was like 10 at that point so who knows. After dinner I know we crashed for the night, because we had a super early morning the next day.

Next Post​

 

[Dugette]

Just caught up on the last few updates. Love that the boys got to start the Indiana Jones show! What a great memory!

 

[missangelalexis]

SOunds like a great evening! Cute pics with Olaf

 

[ashw100]

Just caught up on the last few updates. Love that the boys got to start the Indiana Jones show! What a great memory!

It was, we were on

SOunds like a great evening! Cute pics with Olaf

It was a great night. Olaf has a really cute meet, glad we got to do it.

 

[afwdwfan]

Nice evening at DHS. I'm sorry the Moana meet was lackluster. I know that one will be a must do for us because our kids love the movie.

 

[ashw100]

Nice evening at DHS. I'm sorry the Moana meet was lackluster. I know that one will be a must do for us because our kids love the movie.

I'm sure your kids will love it. Mine never notice whether the character is good or not, it's only me that seems to notice it.

 

[ashw100]

Day 4: Part 1
I Just Like Taking Pictures Okay?

We were up bright and early at 6:30 to get ready for the day. We left the hotel at 7:15 and drove over to Hollywood Studios. We were there so early we were only the third card in the lot. Once we got to the turnstile there was actually quite a few families in front of us, but we passed the time going over our day, the boys even got stickers from the CMs which they loved.

​

We were let in at 8:00 and went straight to the Jedi Training sign-up. If you have kids that this is their priority, I would highly suggest getting a pre-RD reservation at Hollywood and Vine. It was so nice to not have to fight a crowd over there and then there was no line, so sign up was quick. And then we got to check-in for our breakfast and have a nice time there, HIGHLY recommend.

​

Once we were seated, our awesome server came over and got our drink orders and then Sophia was upon us.

​

DS2 was a little cranky this morning and not quite ready for a meet and greet, but the other two had fun. I then got everybody food quickly before handy Manny showed up.

​

We had a little bit of wait for the next characters, but it gave us time to enjoy our food. I really liked this buffet. I am not a huge fan of the restaurant in general, but I have to say breakfast was by far superior to what we had at Crystal Palace in my opinion and the characters were much more timely. One HUGE downside if you have been here before is they got rid of the singing and dancing. This was DS6's favorite part of this meal and it was for sure a letdown. We then met Doc and Jake.

​

We were out of there a little after 9, ready for some rides. We headed to TSMM to use our first FP of the day. I had DS2 again, but a much better score. No pictures though apparently .


DS6 had shown a lot of interest in trying out GMR. I was nervous about the shooting and the Alien scene scaring them, but they all wanted to try it so we got in line.

DS2 and I swapped glasses
​

Our tour guide CM, was the same woman we had as our gangster back in May which was fun. We had a great trip through the movies.

My favorite




No fear during the alien part



​

All the boys really enjoyed it, I’m glad we took the time to do this one. Joe and DS6 had missed out on the hand and footprint the night before so we looked around.

​

While we were looking around, we heard the music to the March of the First Order, and ran over to the stage to check it out.

​

The boys really enjoyed the stormtroopers show, but now it was time to use our next FP for Disney Junior Live on Stage.

​

After a painful 20 minutes on the floor, I was ready for a thrill.

Nope, not here


Here

​

Joe took the boys over to the stage to get a good spot for the Star Wars stage show, while I ran off in the direction of the Tower of Terror to use my last FP of the day. I of course, took full advantage of my alone time to get lots of pictures.

​

I could take a million pictures here, it never gets old. Speaking of which, a man in line asked me why I was taking so many pictures when I'm never going to look at them again.

​

Well stranger if you must know I look at my Disney pictures often, post them on Instagram, use them to market my TA business, and write trip reports, so there .


After my ride, it was getting close to the show time so I power walked as fast as I could over to the stage.

Next Post​

 

[MeghanEmily]

If you have kids that this is their priority, I would highly suggest getting a pre-RD reservation at Hollywood and Vine. It was so nice to not have to fight a crowd over there and then there was no line, so sign up was quick. And then we got to check-in for our breakfast and have a nice time there, HIGHLY recommend.

Such a smart idea! Glad this strategy worked so well for you guys!

I could take a million pictures here, it never gets old. Speaking of which, a man in line asked me why I was taking so many pictures when I'm never going to look at them again.

​

Well stranger if you must know I look at my Disney pictures often, post them on Instagram, use them to market my TA business, and write trip reports, so there .

Um...woah. It always strikes me funny when total strangers think they get to have an opinion about what you like to do on your vacation. Like, why even bother saying that to a total stranger? Obviously he wouldn't look at those pictures again if he took them. I happen to look at my pictures all the time! It helps get through the Post-Disney depression between trips. And I enjoy sharing them with family and friends and putting them in TRs too. People are weird.