Trip Report ‘Tis The Season For More Disney! *COMPLETED*

Fa la la la la
la la la LA

But let’s be honest.
Which season isn’t the season for more Disney?
In 2017 I have been fortunate to experience winter, spring and summer in the world.
And now the holidays!
Since December is such a festive time of year at the parks, I think two trips are in order....don’t you?

Trip #1
Cast: Tuvalu and Em
When: December 1-4, 2017
Where: Port Orleans Riverside
Why: A Jingle BAM Birthday 2.0

Join us as we attend our first MVMCP, wander around World Showcase like a couple of newbies, meet a forum friend and intentionally watch LOTS of fireworks....did we get to Illuminations this year?

You’ll have to wait and see.

 

[Gabe1]

And late to the party I am. I haven't done my Hurricane Irma lockdown at the Wilderness yet let alone My Very Merry Christmas Party
mid-December get away....and then moving 3 days after we came back, but what the heck...time to read a Tuvalu adventure!!!

 

[Gabe1]

To all my WDWMagic friends ~

View attachment 251912

Thanks for following along! Back soon to continue the report.

Hey! We have that photo too!

 

[Lyssa]

That's so cute that Em met up with her students I would love it if I saw my students at Disney.

 

[MinnieM123]

You must have gotten duds. My snowcones were evenly distributed and my pretzel was soft and warm. I guess you should have been with me.

Hey @Tuvalu , sure sounds like ajrwdwgirl has taken over your # 1 Shirley status!

 

[myhappyplace]

My students are shocked to find me at Walmart, I can't even imagine what would happen if one saw me at WDW!!

 

[Tuvalu]

After our trip through the galaxy we paused to watch some of the A Totally Tomorrowland Christmas! show with the kids. Caitlin begged for another ride on Space Mountain and her mother graciously became the “bad guy” and said she would take her, since Miss Em needed to spend time with her mom. With that we were able to say our goodbyes and take the (working!) ramp up to the MPB 2.0, aka the Peoplemover.

Another attraction that is infinitely better at night!

And speaking of infinity......

....we got ourselves some #ShirleyStatus!

Em insisted we ride in separate cars. And she beat me!!

What happened to our Buzz Photopass pictures, you ask? A Zurg hack....some alien family pictures ended up in my account!

 

[Matt and Kelly]

Love that she she rode space mountain with her students! Something they will remember for a long time.

 

[lostpro9het]

What happened to our Buzz Photopass pictures, you ask? A Zurg hack....some alien family pictures ended up in my account!

More like Prophet hacks getting you back for all the Tuvalu Space Mountain hacks you conspired in the early days of my Tuvalu poses...

 

[Tuvalu]

Em and I went in search of more treats. We saw an illuminated candy cane outside Auntie Gravity’s.

More blue ice snow cones....we passed....but took a Santa sugar cookie.

Em, usually a fan of sugar cookies, deemed this “just okay.”

Next stop was The Friar’s Nook for some DOVE chocolates and sparkling apple cider.

We saved the chocolates for later and drank the cider, which wasn’t more than a couple sips.

We noticed an uptick in the crowd level and realized the first parade had ended. Tonight’s party was sold out (which had made us both nervous) but until this moment we hadn’t been bothered by crowds at all. Wait times in Fantasyland now averaged 30 minutes. We decided to duck into Pinocchio’s Village Haus and see what the “seasonal favorites” were.

We hit the mother load!

Wrapped in a large napkin were all 4 cookie varieties being offered in other locations throughout the park ~ gingerbread, sugar, peppermint chip and snickerdoodle. Accompanying the cookies were cups of hot chocolate....the BEST hot chocolate I’d had in recent memory.

We nibbled on the cookies (my fave was the peppermint chip; Em’s was the snickerdoodle) as we watched the activity at IASW below us.

 

[Pirate Magic]

To all my WDWMagic friends ~

View attachment 251912

Thanks for following along! Back soon to continue the report.

Merry Christmas to and yours!!! May all your Disney Dreams come true!!!

 

[ajrwdwgirl]

I thought the peppermint chip cookie was the best cookie at the Christmas party.

 

[Tuvalu]

After leaving the Haus we made at pit stop at the Tangled toilets. There was a Photopass photographer taking lantern shots, but the line was super long and we didn’t want to wait. We did come upon a PP with no line and used it to our advantage.

With only a few minutes until the start of Holiday Wishes we set out to find our favorite bench. No need to fight the crowds in the hub!

Love the snowflakes on Harper’s Mill!

Perimeter fireworks!

 

[Tuvalu]

Since we were close to my favorite attraction, I asked Em if we could visit the ghosts of Christmas past, present and future. (Oh wait, wrong story....but you know where I’m going with this!)

To our delight we came upon another PP without a line. He also had a lantern.

And I liked this one much better!!

Is this room actually stretching?

 

[Tuvalu]

“Let’s watch the parade in Frontierland,” Em suggested. “I’d like a front row spot for taking pictures.”

I told her to claim her space and I would find her after using the restroom. Either a lot of people had already left the party or were waiting to watch the parade on Main Street because I had no difficulty meeting up with Em. While not exactly #ShirleyStatus private, we had plenty of space and a great angle for viewing.

A few Country Bears were the pre-parade entertainment. Big Al is even cuter wearing a candy cane striped scarf!

Though this was our first MVMCP, we have seen the Once Upon a Christmastime parade several times. How, you ask? In previous years we have visited MK later in December, when Mickey’s Christmas parties are over, and the regular daytime parade is replaced by Once Upon a Christmastime. It is Disney’s longest parade, clocking in at nearly 30 minutes with 300 performers. It is a wonderful parade despite its inane soundtrack (“Once upon a Christmastime at Christmas....” ad nauseum will never win an award for originality.)

You may have seen numerous parade photos but you’ve not seen Em’s (til now!)

@Ciara ~ Christmas costumes for you and Billy!

For you, @MinnieM123!

These guys were terrific!

 

[Tuvalu]

Here comes royalty.....

Ralph’s not gonna wreck it, is he?

 

[Tuvalu]

This segment was one of our favorites.

Here’s looking at you, @Tony the Tigger!

Although @blgauger is not a fan, I love Clarabelle Cow!

She’s got the moooves!

It’s the Seven Dwarfs! (Dwarfs being the correct spelling, not dwarves...they’re Disney characters, not J R R Tolkien’s.)

Misspelling Dwarfs is just Dopey!

 

[Tuvalu]

 

[Tuvalu]

The BEST part of the parade is definitely the end segment! Toy soldiers, reindeer and Santa!

And now the Marchers!

Don’t you just want to give him a hug?!

Santa! I know him!

 

[MegRuss626]

View attachment 252989

View attachment 252990

View attachment 252992

As a new Mom who has a 6 month old who LOVES Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, I must say I share in the dislike for Clarabell Cow! She drives me moo-arvelously bonkers!!!

 

[MinnieM123]

For you, @MinnieM123!

Glad you noticed my lovely holiday ensemble -- I really like my red shoes with green holly, in particular!