Trip Report *COMPLETED* The More the Merrier - November/December 2020

Hello friends!

We have been back from our most recent trip to WDW for over two months, but I have just wrapped up my September trip report, so I am a little delayed in starting this one. Nevertheless, I am excited to share this trip report with you, and hope you all enjoy following along! Let's get down to the nitty gritty!

When: Sunday, November 29th - Saturday, December 5th. Six nights! That's a long one for us.

Where: The Cabins at Fort Wilderness! If you read my trip report from September 2019, you may recall that we absolutely fell in love with Ft. Wilderness when we stayed there, and we were itching to go back! When I found a great deal on the cabins for our favorite week to go during the holidays, it was a no brainer!

Who: By this point, many of you already know me (Katie), and my husband Jason:

We also had another passenger along for the trip, which brings me to the reason for the title:

We are expecting! I am due with a baby boy in June! Due date right now is the 10th, but he's measuring a little big, so I'm hoping they'll move that up, because I'm not trying to give birth to a 10-pounder! . Some of you know that we struggled with infertility for a few years, so we are over the moon to finally be welcoming our firstborn. I was around 12/13 weeks pregnant while we were on this trip, so an alternate title for the TR could be "The One with All the HoRmOnEs."

And because I have made you wait so long for this TR, here's a bonus pic of Little Man. He does have a name, but we won't be sharing it until after he's born. And I'm not 100% decided on whether I want to share it on this platform...we'll see.

Doing Disney while pregnant was a totally different experience, and I hope that this trip report can shed some light on what that is like, in case any of you are planning future pregnancies, or traveling with a pregnant woman in the future.

I hope you all enjoy following along on our trip, and make plenty of popcorn, because this is going to be a long one!

 

[Songbird76]

Am I the only one who can't see the pictures?

Did you find the video when you got home? My husband insisted he had never seen Beauty and the Beast, but I remembered renting it the first time he visited me, and he commented on the part where Cogsworth's hands are like windshield wipers. So we went to the video store, and I had them look up my rental history, and sure enough, the ONLY thing I had ever rented there was Beauty and the Beast, and it was rented during his visit. He tends to have a very selective memory.

 

[k8einwdw]

Am I the only one who can't see the pictures?

Did you find the video when you got home? My husband insisted he had never seen Beauty and the Beast, but I remembered renting it the first time he visited me, and he commented on the part where Cogsworth's hands are like windshield wipers. So we went to the video store, and I had them look up my rental history, and sure enough, the ONLY thing I had ever rented there was Beauty and the Beast, and it was rented during his visit. He tends to have a very selective memory.

The pictures show up on my end!

And no, I never found the video, so Jason still thinks he's right. I think selective memory is a trait that all men share!

 

[k8einwdw]

Wednesday, December 2nd - Epcot Day - Continued

After we got back to the cabin, we relaxed for a half hour or so before leaving the cabin around 10:45. We hopped into the golf cart, drove up to the bus stop, and waited for an Epcot bus. It took a while for one to come, and we started to notice that a lot of the same people had been waiting there for a while. It seemed that there was quite the crowd headed to Epcot, and when the Epcot bus finally arrived, it was a mad dash to see who could make it on the bus. While the buses at the Value resorts can be a little crazy, one thing I think they do better at the Value resorts is separating out the bus lines. Having separate lines for each park and Disney Springs allows the people that were there first to get on the bus first, whereas the free-for-all at the Moderate and Deluxe resorts' bus stops can be a problem when there is limited room on the buses, like during COVID times when they are only loading a handful of parties on each bus.

Anyway, we made it on the first Epcot bus, and arrived at the park around 11:30, for a 12:00 park opening. Spaceship Earth was closed - shocker - we're convinced that they just keep SSE closed for the first part of the day to prevent the crowd from heading straight to the SSE line and creating a log jam right at the front of the park. We decided to keep walking and head over to the Seas pavilion first. If you've been reading my trip reports for a while, you know exactly where I'm going with this...

It's manatee time! The Seas w/ Nemo had not yet opened for the day, so we decided to head straight into the aquarium portion of the Seas pavilion to visit Lou and Lil' Joe. It was breakfast time, and they were chowing down on some lettuce.

After watching them for a while, we checked out the rest of the aquarium. It was practically empty - maybe ten guests total inside the pavilion, so it was nice to get to enjoy the aquarium without feeling like we were in someone's way.

We even got to see some CMs in scuba gear! We couldn't quite figure out what they were doing - cleaning maybe?

Once the ride opened, the pavilion started to get a little crowded, so we decided to head out.

Up next: Just listen to the land and use your imagination

 

[amjt660]

Your trip around FW to look at decorations is something we do every Christmas in our neighborhood.

Although we do not make the trip in a golf cart!!!

Thanks for sharing

Following along

Max

 

[Songbird76]

The pictures show up on my end!

And no, I never found the video, so Jason still thinks he's right. I think selective memory is a trait that all men share!

I went back and looked and now the pictures are working fine.

Yes, the selective memory drives me nuts sometimes!!

 

[BigDis]

The pictures show up on my end!

And no, I never found the video, so Jason still thinks he's right. I think selective memory is a trait that all men share!

What is this thing you call "selective memory" that all men share? I don't remember ever hearing about it.

 

[Back!Elbow!Shoulders!]

Totally agree on the bus line set up for the values being better.

 

[k8einwdw]

Your trip around FW to look at decorations is something we do every Christmas in our neighborhood.

Although we do not make the trip in a golf cart!!!

I can imagine that might be just a little chilly!

Yes, the selective memory drives me nuts sometimes!!

What is this thing you call "selective memory" that all men share? I don't remember ever hearing about it.

Totally agree on the bus line set up for the values being better.

While the buses tend to be more crowded, at least they're organized!

 

[k8einwdw]

Wednesday, December 2nd - Epcot Day - Continued

After waving goodbye to our friends in the Seas (get it???), we popped next door to the Land pavilion. First up, Soarin'. Now the general rule for rides that are safe for expecting mothers is that any ride a baby can go on (aka no height requirement) is safe. There are two exceptions - 1) Kilimanjaro Safaris - no height requirement, but way too bumpy, and 2) Soarin' - obviously babies aren't allowed on since it's high up in the air, but it's perfectly safe for expectant mothers. The wait time was posted at 20 minutes, but we only ended up waiting about 10 minutes. We ended up in the top row, on the left side, but closest to the center, so the view wasn't too skewed. After Soarin', we made our way to Living with the Land. It was posted at a 10 minute wait, but it's almost always a walk-on first thing in the morning (at least when we go).

We thought these snowmen...er, sandmen...were super cute!

As was the Santa Mickey Topiary!

And of course, I had to get a pic of the hot air balloons on the way out of the pavilion.

After we left the Land, we headed over to the Imagination pavilion. Journey into Imagination is usually a take-it-or-leave-it attraction for us, but we had to see Figment in his holiday sweater!

And that wrapped up our time in Future World! I couldn't ride Test Track, we never ride Mission Space, and we decided to hit up Spaceship Earth on the way out of the park later that night, rather than backtracking all the way over there to ride it before moving on to the World Showcase. Before starting our journey around the world, we had to stop in one of the shops at the Showcase Plaza to grab our map for Olaf's Holiday Tradition Expedition - you guys know we are suckers for the World Showcase scavenger hunts! And of course, we had to grab a pic of the Epcot holiday tree in the daylight.

We started our tour of the World Showcase in Mexico, as one does, and we started off with some grub. We hit up the Mexico festival booth for the Giant Tostada de Chorizo: Chorizo served on a Giant Tostada with Chipotle Black Bean Purée, Salsa Verde, Queso Cotija, Crema Mexicana, and Pickled Onion – $9.25, and the Tamal de Pollo: Braised Chipotle Chicken served in a Corn Masa topped with Mole Verde, Queso Cotija, Crema Mexicana, and Toasted Pumpkin Seeds - $6.75. J and I both enjoyed both dishes, but agreed that the tamale was better (and cheaper!).

After our snack, we headed inside the pyramid - I think there was a short wait, but it was all in the lobby area. We bypassed the shopping, and headed over to the Three Caballeros attraction. It was posted at a 10 minute wait, but it was a walk-on. We always seem to go on a day when they're having a fiesta...

Pobre Donald...

After getting off the ride, we found the Olaf for our scavenger hunt, and headed out on our merry way.

Up next: More World Showcase, and more food!

 

[Songbird76]

Wednesday, December 2nd - Epcot Day - Continued

After waving goodbye to our friends in the Seas (get it???), we popped next door to the Land pavilion. First up, Soarin'. Now the general rule for rides that are safe for expecting mothers is that any ride a baby can go on (aka no height requirement) is safe. There are two exceptions - 1) Kilimanjaro Safaris - no height requirement, but way too bumpy, and 2) Soarin' - obviously babies aren't allowed on since it's high up in the air, but it's perfectly safe for expectant mothers. The wait time was posted at 20 minutes, but we only ended up waiting about 10 minutes. We ended up in the top row, on the left side, but closest to the center, so the view wasn't too skewed. After Soarin', we made our way to Living with the Land. It was posted at a 10 minute wait, but it's almost always a walk-on first thing in the morning (at least when we go).

We thought these snowmen...er, sandmen...were super cute!

View attachment 546010

As was the Santa Mickey Topiary!

View attachment 546011

And of course, I had to get a pic of the hot air balloons on the way out of the pavilion.

View attachment 546012

After we left the Land, we headed over to the Imagination pavilion. Journey into Imagination is usually a take-it-or-leave-it attraction for us, but we had to see Figment in his holiday sweater!

View attachment 546013

And that wrapped up our time in Future World! I couldn't ride Test Track, we never ride Mission Space, and we decided to hit up Spaceship Earth on the way out of the park later that night, rather than backtracking all the way over there to ride it before moving on to the World Showcase. Before starting our journey around the world, we had to stop in one of the shops at the Showcase Plaza to grab our map for Olaf's Holiday Tradition Expedition - you guys know we are suckers for the World Showcase scavenger hunts! And of course, we had to grab a pic of the Epcot holiday tree in the daylight.

View attachment 546014

We started our tour of the World Showcase in Mexico, as one does, and we started off with some grub. We hit up the Mexico festival booth for the Giant Tostada de Chorizo: Chorizo served on a Giant Tostada with Chipotle Black Bean Purée, Salsa Verde, Queso Cotija, Crema Mexicana, and Pickled Onion – $9.25, and the Tamal de Pollo: Braised Chipotle Chicken served in a Corn Masa topped with Mole Verde, Queso Cotija, Crema Mexicana, and Toasted Pumpkin Seeds - $6.75. J and I both enjoyed both dishes, but agreed that the tamale was better (and cheaper!).

View attachment 546015

After our snack, we headed inside the pyramid - I think there was a short wait, but it was all in the lobby area. We bypassed the shopping, and headed over to the Three Caballeros attraction. It was posted at a 10 minute wait, but it was a walk-on. We always seem to go on a day when they're having a fiesta...

View attachment 546016

Pobre Donald...

View attachment 546017

After getting off the ride, we found the Olaf for our scavenger hunt, and headed out on our merry way.

Up next: More World Showcase, and more food!

Yum...I love tostadas. I make them pretty regularly. We make our own tortillas, and we add cheese, frijoles, shredded chicken, and lettuce. So good!

 

[k8einwdw]

Yum...I love tostadas. I make them pretty regularly. We make our own tortillas, and we add cheese, frijoles, shredded chicken, and lettuce. So good!

 

[k8einwdw]

I'll eventually update this report - just need to finish editing my Epcot pictures - but I wanted to take a second to say how much I appreciate how kind everyone is on the Trip Reports forums. I made the mistake of poking my head into the News and Rumors forum to see how people were reacting to the new Fifth Key of Inclusion (i.e. updates to the "Disney Look")...



Yikes. Some Disney fans are just not nice people.

 

[Darstarr]

Yikes. Some Disney fans are just not nice people.

 

[Songbird76]

I'll eventually update this report - just need to finish editing my Epcot pictures - but I wanted to take a second to say how much I appreciate how kind everyone is on the Trip Reports forums. I made the mistake of poking my head into the News and Rumors forum to see how people were reacting to the new Fifth Key of Inclusion (i.e. updates to the "Disney Look")...



Yikes. Some Disney fans are just not nice people.

I don't go in there. I've been warned. The politics thread was another one I never went into, but it's closed now.

 

[k8einwdw]

I don't go in there. I've been warned. The politics thread was another one I never went into, but it's closed now.

 

[Songbird76]

Exactly!! I was looking for the Simba/mufasa gif....where he says that's beyond their realm and Simba must never go there. But I couldn't find it.

 

[The4mousekeeters]

Hello friends!

We have been back from our most recent trip to WDW for over two months, but I have just wrapped up my September trip report, so I am a little delayed in starting this one. Nevertheless, I am excited to share this trip report with you, and hope you all enjoy following along! Let's get down to the nitty gritty!

When: Sunday, November 29th - Saturday, December 5th. Six nights! That's a long one for us.

Where: The Cabins at Fort Wilderness! If you read my trip report from September 2019, you may recall that we absolutely fell in love with Ft. Wilderness when we stayed there, and we were itching to go back! When I found a great deal on the cabins for our favorite week to go during the holidays, it was a no brainer!

Who: By this point, many of you already know me (Katie), and my husband Jason:

View attachment 532763

We also had another passenger along for the trip, which brings me to the reason for the title:

View attachment 532764

We are expecting! I am due with a baby boy in June! Due date right now is the 10th, but he's measuring a little big, so I'm hoping they'll move that up, because I'm not trying to give birth to a 10-pounder! . Some of you know that we struggled with infertility for a few years, so we are over the moon to finally be welcoming our firstborn. I was around 12/13 weeks pregnant while we were on this trip, so an alternate title for the TR could be "The One with All the HoRmOnEs."

And because I have made you wait so long for this TR, here's a bonus pic of Little Man. He does have a name, but we won't be sharing it until after he's born. And I'm not 100% decided on whether I want to share it on this platform...we'll see.

View attachment 532765

Doing Disney while pregnant was a totally different experience, and I hope that this trip report can shed some light on what that is like, in case any of you are planning future pregnancies, or traveling with a pregnant woman in the future.

View attachment 532766

I hope you all enjoy following along on our trip, and make plenty of popcorn, because this is going to be a long one!

I’m soooo late to this TR - huge congratulations!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[k8einwdw]

I’m soooo late to this TR - huge congratulations!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thank you!!!

 

[k8einwdw]

Wednesday, December 2nd - Epcot Day - Continued

After our Gran Fiesta tour, we continued on our journey around World Showcase. In Norway, the line for Frozen Ever After stretched allll the way to China, so we skipped the ride, found the Olaf for our scavenger hunt, and moved along. In China, none of the festival food tempted us, so we checked out the gift shop and took some pics before heading on to the next destination.

After China, we headed into Germany. We stopped by the festival booth, where we had to make the choice between the Cheese Fondue in a Bread Bowl with Steamed Baby Vegetables and Marble Potatoes – $8.25, or the Pork Schnitzel with Mushroom Sauce, Spätzle, and Braised Red Cabbage – $6.25. We decided on the Pork Schnitzel. We should have picked the Cheese Fondue. the pork wasn't bad, it just wasn't that great.

While we were in Germany, we also stopped into Karamell Kuche to get the Gingerbread Salted Caramel Buttercream Cookie Sandwich to enjoy later, and we meandered through the shops. We always love stopping in the Christmas shop!

Next up was the Italy pavilion. We stopped by the festival booth, where we got the Sacchetti alla Boscaiola: Four-cheese Mini Beggar’s Purses filled with Sweet Sausage, Caramelized Onions, Pancetta, and Cremini Mushrooms with a Creamy Sauce – $9.50. OMG these were so good! We could have easily eaten a second portion, if they weren't $10 each!

We've never cared much for the shops in the Italy pavilion, so we wandered around the outside trying to find the Olaf for the scavenger hunt. After a few minutes of searching, Jason turned the map over and realized...there was an answer key on the back. We slapped the correct sticker on the map, and continued on to the American Adventure pavilion.

While in America, we watched the American Adventure show...well, Jason watched, and I took a nap. A pregnant lady's gotta do what a pregnant lady's gotta do. The show got out in the middle of a Voices of Liberty performance, so we scurried across the way to the American Gardens amphitheater to catch the rest of their performance.

After the show, we popped back over to the festival booth, where we got the Pumpkin Gingerbread Cheesecake with Cranberry Whipped Cream and Candied Pumpkin Seeds – $4.25. We both really enjoyed it!

Up next: More festival fun

 

[k8einwdw]

Wednesday, December 2nd - Epcot Day - Continued

After enjoying our cheesecake, we headed out of the American Adventure pavilion, and onto one of our favorites - Japan! None of the food items on the festival booth menu interested us, so we took our time meandering through the Mitsukoshi shop, found the Olaf for our scavenger hunt, and took some pics before heading on our way.

Next up was Morocco - again, none of the festival booth menu items interested us. We spent some time wandering around the pavilion taking pictures...I probably say this every trip report, but Morocco is such a photogenic area. I even got a rare shot of the fountain without a million people sitting on it.

After Morocco, we made a pitstop at the L'Chaim! Holiday Kitchen booth.



There, we shared the Pastrami on Rye with House-made Pickles and Deli Mustard – $5.00, and the Potato Latkes – $3.75.

I loved both dishes, especially the pastrami sandwich. I've been limiting deli meat since getting pregnant (listeria risk and whatnot), so anytime I get it, it's a special treat. J didn't like the sandwich at all - I think it was the deli mustard that turned him off. He did enjoy the latkes.

Up next: You guessed it, more food and Epcot fun