Trip Report *COMPLETED* No bouche for you! But do you want to build a snowman?

Hello all! We've been back for almost two weeks now, and while the holidays are still winding down, I still wish I was back in Disney so I figured I'd get this TR started! First the intros -

Who: Myself (Frank), my wife K, and our 4 year old princess C. This would be our second trip as a family in just as many years. I had been many times when I was younger with my family, and K had been a few times in the past. Once we hit college years we had stopped (for some reason), but after last year we were hooked (again for me).

Also joining for the first half were my in-laws, G & P. They prefer to not have pictures on the internet, so they won’t be visibly appearing in this report.

When: December 9 - 15th 2018 (G & P were the 9th - 12th)

Where: Caribbean Beach Resort, stayed in Aruba 4626. I've always wanted to try this resort, and when I saw the concept art for the renovations I was really excited. We knew it was a risk that construction could get pushed back (and I started getting really nervous in August/September), but with a free dining promotion it was a deal I couldn't pass up! I'll give my thoughts on the resort including the renovations in the report.

Why: I detailed this more in the PTR, but long story short - we're expecting a little mouseketeer in April, and wanted one more big trip just the three of us. Plus the past year had it's ups and down and we could use a good vacation to round out the year. 65 days out G&P asked if they could join, and while it meant re-arranging a bit, we figured the more the merrier!

What this trip report has in store for you: Transportation failures, face-stuffing and imbibing, magic band failures, scooter drama, seasonal merriment, DVC dilemmas (do we join? you'll have to find out!) and of course quite a bit of magic.

 

[Spash007]

We were thinking of heading over to Yacht Club, but we were actually getting pretty tired and like I mentioned, felt pretty comfortable, so decided to hang out a bit and rest. The lobby was actually pretty emptied, so while K and I talked about our trip so far, and how we would love to stay at Beach Club for our next trip, C watched some cartoons.

Funny thing was she actually played musical chairs with herself, and kept switching. Since no one else was around, it really didn't matter though.

I made my way over to the market to pick up some of the Gingerbread shingles to bring back home for some family members (not going to lie, it was part of their Christmas gifts). While we could have taken a bus, we wanted to get back to enjoy the pool before dinner. Would third time be the charm for a Minnie Van?

Yes!

While it was more expensive than a regular lyft for the three of us, I was determined at this point to take one. We made our way outside to wait, and C had a mini photo shoot.

Soon enough, I got the alert on my phone and our ride was coming! The layout of the driveway to the Beach Club made it seem pretty dramatic actually with it slowly coming up, and I couldn't help humming a tune to announce it's arrival. (What can I say, I'm weird )

Our driver was awesome. She talked to us about our trip, how long we were staying, all the construction, and gave us some interesting info. Overall, it just felt more "Disney" than an Uber. To top things off, she got us even closer to our room, and helped me fix the stroller that somehow lost a wheel in the back. I probably could have figured it out, but it would've meant sitting on the curb trying to see how it fits together. I wouldn't take Minnie Vans constantly when there is a free option, but it's nice to have a Disney option when you need to get to a more difficult location.

 

[Spash007]

Once we were back in the room, we quickly got changed to head down to the pool.

Somebody was more than ready to go

We decided to go to the splash pad first, before heading to the pool. As I mentioned before, C was very skeptical of the big splashes coming down, but after some convincing, she made her way to the slides. It was pretty funny though, because she found the areas that would get wet, and looked like a ninja avoiding them.

As I was watching her on the pad, we saw some older boys get kicked out for being too tall. I felt somewhat bad because they did have younger siblings there, but at the same time, they were running all over the place, so I was a little relieved. After the lifeguard kicked them out, I guess he was sick of dealing with kids and came over and started talking to me about Galaxy's Edge and if I was excited for it. Soon enough C got bored of the splash pad (and tired of trying to avoid the downfall of water), and came over to ask about going to the big pool.

As C and I headed over, K stayed behind to relax a bit more.

After swimming for a bit, and letting C come up with some silly games (I think she was a princess and I was Ursula/a sea witch ), K came over and joined us in the pool. While we were all in the pool, I admitted to K I was jealous of the kids going down the slide, but felt weird as I didn't see any adults. She swore she saw plenty of grown guys going down, so I ventured off.

Sure enough, there was no body on the slide as I went over, but I heard teens coming up behind me. I had a moment of awkwardness, but went down. I think this was my first water slide since I was 14, and it was just as much fun. The sensation of water going up your nose though stays the same!

Soon enough it was getting cold, and late, and we had to pry C away from the pool. We stayed probably longer than we should have, since we had ADRs and we were all shivering by the time we got out. As we were drying off and getting ready to head back to the room, C "had" to use the bathroom and "couldn't wait". While K went with her, I made a pit stop of my own to hydrate for the walk back.

This beer was interesting. The initial taste was a little darker than a regular lager, but the after taste would alternate pretty sharply between that smooth, dark taste and a Bud Light taste. It took some getting used to, but it grew on me.

On the walk back, I also took a picture of our (admittingly simple) window decorations.

We also found a surprise in the room, that K and I were much more excited about than C. She really didn't get the big deal about a towel on the bed.

As we were getting ready, it became clear we were not going to make our 5:40 ADR at Homecoming on time. We finally made it down to the bus around 5:25, and a DS bus was due around 5:30. Of course that started going further and further back. Since this was the one meal K was really looking forward to, I called the restaurant to let them know we were running late due to "travel issues", and the hostess told us it was fine, just let them know when we were there.

We finally got to DS a bit before 6, and quickly took in all of the Christmas decorations.

Pictures really don't do the main tree justice. The "garland" was constantly twinkling, and was pretty mesmerizing.

As we were already 20 minutes late, we sped walk over to Homecomin, while quickly taking some pictures.

Going off the time stamps, it looks like it took us 7 minutes to get from the front of DS to Homecomin - not shabby!

 

[Spash007]

After I put our name in, we sat outside since it was shaping up to be a beautiful night. The hostess did mention that it was cold, but to us, it was perfect. After about 10 minutes they called our names, and we were led into the back room.

I never knew there were different rooms, and in any other restaurant, I think I would have enjoyed this one. It was small, and overlooked the water. There's something about the main room in Homecomin that I really enjoy, with the high ceilings, and the feeling of being in the middle of the hustle.

Part of the problem with the room in my mind might have been the waitress, who started awful. She was just very curt, and really seemed like she wanted to be anywhere else. We asked for a few minutes to review the menu, and when she came back, she just stood there. I know I'm an awkward person, but this was another level. We were just looking at each other, and her response was "hey". Not "Are you ready?", not "May I answer any questions". Nope. "Hey". The wise acre in me wanted to respond "hay is for horses" like my grandmother used to say, but I bit my tongue and just ordered.

I will say that after that, she did get better. While she didn't bring us our food, she did come over to ask how it was. She wasn't a great waitress, but it wasn't as bad (which might not say a lot). And for the second time this day, I actually got food pictures!

C got the mac n cheese with chicken tenders. She liked the mac n cheese, but hardly touched the chicken (she's 4, what can I say).

K got the fried chicken with mashed potatoes, something she's been waiting a year for.

And... she was disappointed. She figures it was the pregnancy, but she just wasn't wowed this time. I felt really bad because I knew how much she was looking forward to it, but she said we'd just have to come back another time. That works for me!

I got the fried chicken and doughnuts.

I had read a report before going (maybe by @Rista1313 ?) who said the doughnuts were dry. I was really nervous going in, but I love having sweet with fried chicken (I can never turn down Chicken and waffles) so I figured I would try it. Luckily, this time the doughnuts were perfect and not dry at all! The one thing I wasn't a fan of was the mashed potatoes - they were just a bit too "creamy" for me. I know a lot of people like them like that, and it's a personal taste for me.

For a drink I was tempted to try a flight, but wanted to stick with something on the dining plan. I'm honestly not sure what it was, other than it had Moonshine in it, and while it was good, it wasn't anything special in taste.

For dessert we split the hummingbird cake, and the pecan pie. This is only picture I got -

The pecan pie was delicious. Rich, but not too dense. The crust wasn't too hard, but didn't have a soggy bottom either (for anyone who watches the British Baking show).

It's funny, when writing this, there were negatives to our Homecomin experience. However, I know we'll be back, because the food really is fairly consistent.

 

[krisri18]

After I put our name in, we sat outside since it was shaping up to be a beautiful night. The hostess did mention that it was cold, but to us, it was perfect. After about 10 minutes they called our names, and we were led into the back room.

View attachment 351883

I never knew there were different rooms, and in any other restaurant, I think I would have enjoyed this one. It was small, and overlooked the water. There's something about the main room in Homecomin that I really enjoy, with the high ceilings, and the feeling of being in the middle of the hustle.

Part of the problem with the room in my mind might have been the waitress, who started awful. She was just very curt, and really seemed like she wanted to be anywhere else. We asked for a few minutes to review the menu, and when she came back, she just stood there. I know I'm an awkward person, but this was another level. We were just looking at each other, and her response was "hey". Not "Are you ready?", not "May I answer any questions". Nope. "Hey". The wise acre in me wanted to respond "hay is for horses" like my grandmother used to say, but I bit my tongue and just ordered.

I will say that after that, she did get better. While she didn't bring us our food, she did come over to ask how it was. She wasn't a great waitress, but it wasn't as bad (which might not say a lot). And for the second time this day, I actually got food pictures!

C got the mac n cheese with chicken tenders. She liked the mac n cheese, but hardly touched the chicken (she's 4, what can I say).

View attachment 351884

K got the fried chicken with mashed potatoes, something she's been waiting a year for.

View attachment 351885

And... she was disappointed. She figures it was the pregnancy, but she just wasn't wowed this time. I felt really bad because I knew how much she was looking forward to it, but she said we'd just have to come back another time. That works for me!

I got the fried chicken and doughnuts.

View attachment 351886

I had read a report before going (maybe by @Rista1313 ?) who said the doughnuts were dry. I was really nervous going in, but I love having sweet with fried chicken (I can never turn down Chicken and waffles) so I figured I would try it. Luckily, this time the doughnuts were perfect and not dry at all! The one thing I wasn't a fan of was the mashed potatoes - they were just a bit too "creamy" for me. I know a lot of people like them like that, and it's a personal taste for me.

For a drink I was tempted to try a flight, but wanted to stick with something on the dining plan. I'm honestly not sure what it was, other than it had Moonshine in it, and while it was good, it wasn't anything special in taste.

For dessert we split the hummingbird cake, and the pecan pie. This is only picture I got -

View attachment 351887

The pecan pie was delicious. Rich, but not too dense. The crust wasn't too hard, but didn't have a soggy bottom either (for anyone who watches the British Baking show).

It's funny, when writing this, there were negatives to our Homecomin experience. However, I know we'll be back, because the food really is fairly consistent.

I think soggy bottom would make a great drinking game! We're big GBBO fans.

 

[Spash007]

I think soggy bottom would make a great drinking game! We're big GBBO fans.

I'm so glad somebody got the reference. It's become so normal for us to refer to soggy bottoms, but when I was writing it, I was wondering if it would just come off weird!

 

[Spash007]

As we finished up with Homecomin' we decided to head over to World of Disney.

It was our first time in the new layout, and my feelings are definitely mixed. I miss all of the old touches, and the store does seem much more generic. At the same time, it is much more efficient of a layout. I don't understand why they couldn't have kept some of the pieces overhead with the new layout, but I also do really appreciate the backstory of the store being a fruit packing plant turned animators studio. There were a lot of details from that story, but I feel like that story is just too complex for a store. If I hadn't read it on some website, I would have had no idea about it.

Anyway, back to shopping...

We looked over the Christmas merchandise and got some ornaments for us and some family members. C decided she wanted to get one of those baby Mickeys in a blanket for her brother, which of course meant we let her pick one our for herself (the cuteness compensated for her starting to get cranky at this point).

About midway through the store though we all hit a wall. C was clearly exhausted and was ready to pass out, K was hurting, and I was just feeling run down. Our initial plan was to spend the night at DS, check out the Christmas tree trail, see about getting some Joffreys at the kitchen store, and playing in the lego store. We figured we could just come back on the last night, and check off those items then.

We took our time heading back to the buses, and first ran into this tall gentleman:

I of course kept admiring the Christmas decorations.

The one thing I thought was a bit obnoxious and really brought home my issue with the Town Center feeling more Rodeo Drive than Disney, was these Chandeliers in the garland.

When did that become a thing?

These I very much liked though.

And the balloon was up! Maybe some time in the future.

One last picture of the tree.

By the time we got to the bus, C was already fast asleep and it looked like we just missed a bus. IIRC we probably waited 20-30 minutes for a bus. When we made it back we all quickly fell asleep.

 

[krisri18]

I'm so glad somebody got the reference. It's become so normal for us to refer to soggy bottoms, but when I was writing it, I was wondering if it would just come off weird!

Lol, not weird in this house. Baby E even likes it, stares intently at it and loves Mary Berry's voice. Here's him watching an episode:

 

[Spash007]

Day 5 - Thursday, December 13th

This was the one day I wanted to try to be up early, as it was Hollywood Studios day! We didn't have a FP for Slinky Dog (I didn't want to get one for something we all couldn't do, even though I realized in the long run that made no sense). The park was opening at 9, so I wanted to be at the bus by 8. I think since the night before was slightly early, this actually ended up not being that hard. Everyone moved fast without any nagging from me, and we were soon on our way to the bus stop with a light breakfast packed up.

Of course as we got the bus stop, my hopes and dreams of an empty park were dashed. I knew it wasn't that early, but TP had the park as a 2 crowd level this day, so I was hoping for the best. The bus stop was filled with people though, mostly in Toy Story or Star Wars garb and there was no question where everyone was heading. Luckily a bus came soon enough, and we were soon on our way.

Last year we didn't make it HS, so I was really looking forward to it. We also were a little unfamiliar with how to get in, and even with the new entrance, it seemed like the weirdest entry into a Disney parking lot. Once we entered though we saw these - the test gondolas!

This was I believe the first day they appeared, so I felt super in the know when nothing was even posted in the news section here when I saw them (yes I did check on the bus haha).

Soon enough we arrived in Guam at the bus depot, and started the long walk. I had warned K about how long it was going to be, and we made our way slowly with the herds while questioning that this is the best Disney can do for a temporary walkway.

I see you Crossroads!

Getting close.... (K had asked what I was doing, and I promptly told her I was documenting our walk haha)

The bag check wasn't actually bad at all and they moved people quickly.

This is probably one of the most unique buildings/structures in my mind, but I just love it:

As you can tell it was a pretty dreary day, but there was only a very slight chance of rain. It was humid this day though, and we were soon missing our cold AK day!

We've found that the lines in are like the checkout lines at the grocery store - go to the further end and it usually is the shortest. So this is just what we did. But we realized the error in our ways pretty quickly here.

There was only 1 touchpoint working here, and only 1 CM. So it was slow. Very slow. And then a group of CMs (looks to have been in training) appeared out of the gate to the left, and used our line to get in. Luckily they didn't all scan, but there definitely was a universal groan in our line as they appeared.

Finally we made it in, and lined up on Hollywood Blvd.

I have to admit - I love the HS retro Christmas decor. Especially the garland draping overhead.

Here's where something else hit me - Hollywood Blvd is tiny. Since this was the first time making it back to HS as an adult, I got that feeling of going to your childhood home as an adult for the first time in a long time. I felt huge, the buildings looked tiny, and I was sadly underwhelmed. The Christmas decor definitely helped to keep my spirits up haha

The one thing HS also definitely has going for it though are all the details. I couldn't stop taking pictures of everything. While everything felt smaller than I remembered, there was so much more detail than I ever noticed before. I do wish there wasn't such a crowd/rush to get to TSL so we could meander down towards the Chinese Theater. With Galaxy's Edge coming, I doubt that time will happen any time soon.

Soon enough though, the real Slinky Dog Dash began. I read in other TRs about people sprinting to Toy Story Land, but witnessing it in person was quite amusing. Especially when dads were ditching their kids and elderly parents, and others were looking for shortcuts just to have to be turned around. Looking at the time stamp, it looks like they opened the gates around 8:40 this morning.

The other thing that struck me here, and kept coming back, was just how much you can tell HS was cobbled together. There is no straight path anywhere, and the original plans of the park are still clear in this way.

 

[Spash007]

Once got over by Walt Disney Presents, the CM split the crowd for SDD over to the side, and we were soon stopped.

Normally I'd worry, thinking the line would take forever. But my gut was telling me they didn't open the queue yet. The fact I didn't see the trains yet made me further believe this. We slowly made our way forward.

After about 10 minutes, we made it finally to say hi to Woody.

We were a bit skeptical going in. Toy Story isn't our favorite, and I know some reviews are mixed. Once we heard all of the "characters" talking though, it was pretty neat. They really nailed the immersion here. It wasn't done to the same level as Pandora, but I don't think it had to be. It's just plain fun to be in here.

Once we got to this point, I had my "bad parent" moment. C saw the trains go, and while at first she thought they were cute, that first "big" drop terrified her. She went from being super excited, to not wanting to go on at all. It didn't help that now the line was moving, and K was going to have to leave us. We tried talking to C about it, and mentioned if we got out of line, we were not going to be able to ride it. She didn't care though, she did not want to go on.

Here's the thing - C is a speed demon. She loves roller coasters, fast spinning rides, anything. I was taking a slight gamble as this would be the biggest coaster she's been on, and without being on it myself, I was relying on other people's reviews and videos. So I told her we were going to go on, and I assured her it would be ok. So she calmed down.

Haha yeah right. She was crying, saying she didn't want to go on. I felt like everyone was staring at me (no one was in reality), but I just had a gut feeling she would like it. I told her I would hold her for a while in the line though, and that calmed her a bit. After watching more of it, and pointing out all the details in the line, she got distracted enough and calmed down.

Does anyone know who James is? I feel like this was purposefully put there.

 

[Spash007]

So close!

One thing I forgot to write earlier was in line there was a couple with two young kids. It turned out that the couple were actually friends, and the kids' parents came into line about halfway through. They were super nice about it though, and it ended up not bothering me as much as I would've thought.

45 minutes after first stopping by Walt Disney Presents, we were loading. Counting the stand-by was now over 120 minutes, I wasn't complaining! We got seated the second row from the back. C made me promise I would hold on to her the whole ride. I started putting my arms up at one point, and told her she could too, and she just quickly said "no, hold me!".

I believe this was pre-launch (see how unhappy she looks?):

I know it doesn't look like she had fun, but the minute it stopped she asked to go on again! She said the drop was a little scary, but loved the part with the bumps. I have to admit that was my favorite part too. It's just a good, fun ride, with just enough thrills. The rest of the trip she kept talking about the dog ride and said it was her favorite, along with Dumbo. I'm very glad I decided to push her a bit going on it.

After we met up with K and the stroller by the exit made our way to explore the rest of TSL, but first watched a few more trains go by.

I was getting a bit hungry, but wanted to enjoy the low crowds first.

I really enjoy when they do pop-up characters, and this guy was a ton of fun for the kids. And there was hardly any wait which was awesome!

Do you think those shoes get annoying with the green hanging off the side?

C was definitely now in a great mood, and was in the mood for photos.

As we were heading to our next destination, we couldn't help but try to peek into another galaxy. I'm not a huge Star Wars fan, but seeing the details from the road, and now inside the park is making me really look forward to this.

Before getting in line for Saucers, there was a lonely PP photographer, so we let him take our picture

Side note: My shirt said "It's still MGM to me" with the Earffel tower on it. I saw this advertised on Facebook, and a truer statement probably couldn't be said. I don't care what they name it, I will always call it MGM in passing. What I couldn't believe is I had at least 5 CMs comment on it, plus a number of guests, all forlorn wishing it was still MGM. I'm just so used to having CMs be the face of Disney, you tend to assume they take the position of Disney without question. It was actually pretty refreshing and definitely added a more relateable side to them.

 

[Spash007]

The wait for Aliens was about 25 minutes.

This area around here I have to admit I don't really understand. I know I'm overthinking it, but where as the rest of TSL makes you feel like a toy, all of the greenery (while pretty) clearly doesn't. It compliments the "space" feeling of the ride, but to me sticks out compared to the rest of the area.

The same could be said for the line itself. There are so many "toys" around the line, but they all lack the interactive component. So many kids were pushing buttons expecting something to happen, but they're just decoration. With Disney really pushing the interactive queues lately, the budget cuts here are little too obvious.

Also, in this line we met the family we would see the rest of the day. First off, the kids were climbing everything (at least then the props served a purpose). Any railing, fake toy, literally anything they could find, they would climb on top of and sit. The problem was C is in a "Monkey see, monkey do" phase, and would question why they could do it and she couldn't. The dad was also a doppelganger for Coby Bell, to the point where I think it could have been him.

We ended up seeing this family at least 3 other times this day, and we ended up to talking them a bit. They actually were really nice, so I'm glad I kept comments to C about climbing stuff fairly quiet.

When we were in line, one of the sides ended up going down for a bit, so the line slowed a lot. Overall we waited just about 40 minutes before got on. Since I went on SDD with C, this time C and K got in one spacecraft, and I got in the other.

Overall, it was definitely fun. Not sure if I have to do it again any time soon, and I also don't think I'd ride it by myself as I kept sliding back and forth. C though absolutely loved it. Anytime it would whip she would apparently start laughing.

 

[Tuvalu]

Does anyone know who James is? I feel like this was purposefully put there.

View attachment 352636

Richard James invented the Slinky.

Slinky - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

And the reason for all the greenery in TSL is because it's Andy's backyard.

 

[Spash007]

Richard James invented the Slinky.

Slinky - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

And the reason for all the greenery in TSL is because it's Andy's backyard.

Ah I should've known I could count on you!

Greenery makes sense (and I like the break on the eyes it gives), it's the size of it by Saucers that doesn't make sense to me. Tthe round bushes fit in by looking futuristic, but are not proportionate in my opinion to everything else. I know I'm being really particular and most people can just enjoy greenery without it's size haha

 

[Spash007]

Once we got off the Saucers (I seriously have to stop myself from typing the acronym every single time) our FP window for TSM had opened, so we made our way over there. We got a short glimpse of Mr. Potato Head, but even without being able to see too much of him, the level of detail in the queue is something else.

Once again C went with K, and I rode alone. I was a little worried because I usually don't do well with 3D glasses (I think it might be because I have astigmatism in both eyes), but this time I had no problems. Not that my score shows that...

While we were in line I was starting to get a bit hungry. Actually hangry, as I only had a bit of coffee and a banana that morning in the room, and it was now 10:30. As we were walking out I pulled up the menu from Woody's so we could Mobile Order. While I do enjoy the convenience, I tend to like seeing all of the options at once so scrolling up and down takes me longer to decide. But the time saved definitely makes up for that.

We are not really "wall" people, but I did enjoy all of the details in the exit.

We walked over to Woody's, and picked up our food. C wasn't hungry as she had already eaten all of the snacks we had packed for that day. I though got a cold brew coffee and a Hazlenut "poptart", and K got something sweet that I can't remember or see on the menu. Maybe a root beer float? Anyway, it was really good and really hit the spot.

Since it was before 11 and we were already done with TSL, we were pretty proud of ourselves haha. We had a FP coming up for Frozen, so we started heading that way.

I thought I had read that FP gets a different section to sit in, but when we scanned our bands we all just went into one holding area. Oh well.

We ended up waiting about 10 minutes, and then went in to the theater and found some seats just off center.

When I saw who our historians were going to be, I got super excited.

 

[Spash007]

It was Eric! (I think that's his name? If it's not, I know someone will correct me haha)

I think at this point K just got used to me being weird, and was skeptical when I told her that I was 99% sure he was the "really good" one. Sure enough these boards were helpful again, and I didn't make a fool of myself as he was hilarious.

I don't think we were the only ones who liked it.

Of course the snow was a big hit too.

This was by far the biggest unexpected hit of the trip. K even said this was probably her favorite attraction at HS. I'd put it in the top 3 probably.

 

[Tuvalu]

Awesome accuracy score on TSM.

 

[Spash007]

Awesome accuracy score on TSM.

Thank you! You just made me feel better, because I thought I did pretty poorly and was chalking it up to it being my first time (I also have no sense of comparison). I guess I was actually just trigger shy!

 

[Songbird76]

It was Eric! (I think that's his name? If it's not, I know someone will correct me haha)

View attachment 353456

I think at this point K just got used to me being weird, and was skeptical when I told her that I was 99% sure he was the "really good" one. Sure enough these boards were helpful again, and I didn't make a fool of myself as he was hilarious.

View attachment 353457

View attachment 353458

View attachment 353459

I don't think we were the only ones who liked it.

View attachment 353460

View attachment 353461

View attachment 353462

Of course the snow was a big hit too.

View attachment 353463

This was by far the biggest unexpected hit of the trip. K even said this was probably her favorite attraction at HS. I'd put it in the top 3 probably.

Isn't his name Ben? @blgauger could probably tell you.

 

[Spash007]

Isn't his name Ben? @blgauger could probably tell you.

That does sound right now that I think of it. Not really sure where I got Eric from

 

[Spash007]

After we left Frozen, we had some time before our Beauty and the Beast FP, so we figured we would get some characters out of the way. Of course when we went over the Olaf, the wait was listed as 20 minutes, but the CM warned us it would probably be closer to 40 minutes since the show just let out. I was afraid of that happening so we bailed, and took a restroom break while deciding what to do instead.

Well, the wait for the restrooms were just as bad, and by the time we finally got done, the wait for Olaf was down to 15 minutes.

While in line, Chip and Dale walked by.

Soon enough, we were inside and finally met Olaf. C, like Olaf's, likes warm hugs. If anyone has seen the Santa Clause 3, she actually reminds me of Lucy with her propensity for hugs (if you haven't seen it, you really don't have to. It's not particularly good IMO).

Who can resist getting a hug from Olaf?

We were a bit disappointed he wasn't signing autographs, and instead got a little card with his "drawing". If anything I'd think his hands would be easier than other characters like Pluto, but oh well.

Once we were done here, we were thinking of checking out Indy, but weren't sure how C would react to the explosions, gun fire etc. Our one must do this day was seeing Sofia, so after picking up the stroller (now with the balloon attached for easy finding!) we decided to head that way instead.

Sofia had a pretty considerable line, but she has been C's absolute favorite lately. She went as Sofia for Halloween, Saturday mornings were Sofia Saturdays, and we probably watched all 4 seasons on Netflix at least 3-4 times. To say she was thrilled to meet her is a huge understatement.

Yes, she even has Sofia sunglasses.

When it became her turn, I don't think I've ever seen her run faster.

She actually wouldn't let go.

After we finished up with Sofia, we asked which other Disney Jr characters she wanted to meet. Her answer: all of them. If we did this, there was pretty much no way were going to make Beauty and the Beast, especially because they seemed to be taking a mid-afternoon break, and we were hoping to leave in the next 2 hours.

Considering how much she loved meeting the characters this trip though, we decided just to do it. Before we know it, she won't want to do characters anymore so might as well enjoy it when we can.

Next up - Vampirina. Charlotte has a weird relationship with this show. She says she wants to watch it, and is happy when it's on. But within a few minutes, she gets bored of it. She was still very excited to meet her though.