Home again, home again jiggity jog!

Hey All! :wave:

A short 2 night/ 1 day trip to the World report: (bear with me if the photos don't upload, Flikr has changed things around on me - who here knows what BBCode is? Please raise your hand! :lol

It was difficult to leave the beach:

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But we knew that Walt Disney World was waiting! :sohappy:

This was a trip just for my son's birthday, so I only brought the point and shoot, didn't take too many pics.

We took the short 1 1/2 hour trip from the beach to WDW and pulled into Pop about 3 pm. Got checked in, but had some trouble with our room key. We requested the 50's section with a lake view. At check in, the CM gave us one room number verbally, but then wrote down a different room number. So we walked to the room number on the check in sheet - no go. So we walked to the room number she had given us verbally - no go.
So the kids and I had a snack while my husband went back to the front desk to figure out the problem:

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Turns out both room numbers were wrong and she had written down (and said) the wrong number. Finally got to our room to find it was a refurbed one! Yay!

[/url]http://www.flickr.com/photos/33534182@N04/5070017414//IMG]

Love the curtain that closes off the sink area. Great, great idea.

Off to the pool!

[/url]http://www.flickr.com/photos/33534182@N04/5069411553/ /IMG]

 

[erstwo]

Seriously. Flikr is driving me crazy. If you know how to upload like you used to - clicking on All Sizes and the link - let me know! Thanks!

Then we headed to Chef Mickeys to see if we could snag a walk up! Once we got to the Contemporary it was already 6:30, pushing it as far as dinner time for our kids. They said a possible 1 hour wait, so we decided to cut our losses and hope for a walk up at The Crystal Palace the next day. We wanted to watch Wishes from the beach at the Poly, which were scheduled for a shockingly early 8pm that night! So we hopped on the monorail and headed for the Poly and Captain Cooks.

After a yummy meal - I had the bbq sandwich - we headed out on the beach for fireworks:

It was great! But our kids could have cared less. After 4 days of sun and sand you'd think they would have been ready for some fireworks. Instead they sat and played in the sand! (That's my daughter in the green dress down at the front, playing in the sand.) It was super windy that night too, so it felt like I spent the entire time telling my kids to sit down and not knock sand into the air because the sand was getting into people's eyes.

After the fireworks, we planned to stay for the Water Electrical Parade, but we headed back to Captain Cooks for a Dole Whip instead and then back on the monorail to the MK to catch a bus for Pop. We had a big day ahead!

 

[sweetpee_1993]

Oh! I don't even care that it's short! I'm INNNNN!!!!

OMG! So funny about the room number mix-up. I mean, yeah, I'm sure in the moment it wasn't so funny for you trekking around with stuff and kids and Pop is NOT a small resort. But can you imagine what it must be like to be THAT person with all those crazy numbers all mixed up in your head??? I have this mental picture of a totally frazzled person laying in bed trying to go to sleep at night with all these random room numbers swimming around in their brain. :lol:

Beeeeyooooteeefull beach! Ready for more! Hurry hurry! :sohappy:

 

[erstwo]

Wednesday, October 6

Good Morning, good morning!

After a great breakfast, we headed off the Magic Kingdom which opened at 9. We arrived at 8, got our park tickets and were through the gates by 8:10!

Watched the Good Morning Show - I just love this show! and then we were off!!!

Took a left and headed straight for.......

It was a great ride. We were the first boat of the morning, and I thought our skipper was great, but am I the only one who has trouble hearing the skipper on this ride?! She was pretty funny, but I didn't catch some of her jokes because I simply couldn't hear them.

Next we went on the carpets:

I just love early morning in the MK. The sights, sounds, everything about it!!

Then it was on to Pirates which was walk on. We had a great ride, but there was a mom and dad right behind us with their daughter who was about 3 years old. I could tell by their conversation that this was their first day at Magic Kingdom and this was their first dark ride with their daughter. Well, the daughter flipped out. She was seriously terrified. I gave them my iPhone with an episode of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse on it, so she could watch it during the ride and her mom hugged her close to her side and "protected" her and those 2 things together made the ride a little easier for her, poor thing! Made me rethink my touring strategy for our December trip with my 4 year old niece who hasn't been to WDW before. I was going to start in Adventureland, now I think we'll start in Fantasyland!

We headed over toward the "mountains" both were walk on....... decisions, decisions...... this was my daughter's first trip where she was tall enough to ride either of the mountains and she decided to try Big Thunder. It was a great ride, but she didn't like it much. :lol: It was the second "section" of track, with the little dips, that did her in.
After BTMRR, she wasn't too keen on the idea of Splash, which now had a 10 minute wait, so while my husband and my son rode Splash, we went to meet Ariel with legs!

Without a doubt, the best Ariel ever! She was so sweet and chatted with my very shy daughter. They even discussed hairstyles and Ariel showed her her fork/comb - Ariel really did have a fork in that plant to the right!- and was just as kind as could be. Thanks Ariel!

 

[erstwo]

We walked over to Fatasyland after Splash/Ariel. It was 11:00 by now and Fantasyland was PACKED! And by packed, I mean Peter Pan was a 30 minute wait! :lol: (Give me a break..... after walk on at BTMRR, 30 minutes seemed like eternity!) So we Fastpassed Peter Pan - getting a bonus Fastpass for Philharmagic in the process- and headed to the Carousel, which was walk on.

Having eaten breakfast at 6:30ish, we were already starving, so we headed to the Crystal Palace to see if we could get in for lunch (the plan was to try again at dinner if we couldn't get lunch.) The Crystal Palace is a favorite of our family, and my son requested to eat here for his birthday.

We were in luck! At 30 minute wait! Which was really a 15 minute wait and soon we were seated inside, hanging with Pooh and his Friends, celebrating "Friendship Day" - whatever that is? :shrug:

Edit: I had to post this. While we were waiting, my husband tried to recreate his "infamous" shot from our last trip - the one in my avatar. This is as close as he got. Hahaha. Some things just don't happen twice.

No more green napkin swinging during the "parade," I noticed! My daughter was kind of disappointed in that. She had her napkin all ready to go! :lol:

I have some CP pics, but I'll have to post them later.

After a yummy lunch, we rolled out onto Main Street for some shopping. My son had some money burning a hole in his pocket! After we had deposited all that cash in the Disney register, we headed over to Buzz Lightyear Spaceranger Spin. Where I dominated - Score! :king:

Then, while my husband and son rode Space Mountain, my daughter passed out in her stroller. This is the real look of a Disney afternoon if you have preschoolers! LOL

She was still sleeping after 2 rides, so the boys rode Buzz again while I waited with her. By the time they exited Buzz, she had slept for about an hour and a half, so we made our way slowly over to Fantasyland to redeem our Philharmagic and Peter Pan Fastpasses.

 

[erstwo]

Philharmagic was great. But isn't there supposed to be an apple pie smell when Donald holds out that pie?? Or am I crazy?

Peter was lovely, as always.

We made our way over to Toontown, always wanting to linger here, as we never know when it might be our last chance. I know some are glad to see it go, but we'll miss it greatly. We rode the Railroad around the park before hitting up the playground, and then the Barnstormer:

I have no earthly idea why took more pictures of the Barnstormer than any other ride?

The day was slipping through our fingers and it was already time to consider eating dinner and staking out a spot for our first ever viewing of the Main Street Electrical Parade!

Dinner was at Caseys. :slurp: What can I say? Enjoyable, as ever.

Then it was time to stake out our parade spot! DH found a spot on the "outside" circle of the hub, next to a lovely couple with a 4 or 5 month old baby.

I needed to look for some bride & groom ears for a family member who will be honeymooning at WDW next year, so I made my way up Main Street while DH guarded our spots.

This was our first Fall trip to Disney. I love the decorations!

(I know that Disneyfalcon was there the same time as me. I'm hoping she'll post a TR with some of her fantabulous pics of the decor as well! Hint, hint!!! )

 

[erstwo]

And that's really the end of it!

After nearly getting into an altercation (thankfully not at the Food and Wine Festival!! :lol: where is that thread anyway....can't believe someone hasn't resurrected it this year!) with some not nice woman over saving my spot for the parade while I was "ears" shopping, she relented and we had a nice viewing of MSEP.

My husband and daughter stayed in the hub to watch Wishes, while I took my son on 2 rides on BTMRR during Wishes. It was fantastic and just what he wanted to end his birthday!

We went back to Pop Century for one last night in the magic and packed up early the next day and drove the 12 hours home!

Next trip: December for 10 days! :sohappy: With my super awesome, super crazy family! :xmas:

 

[erstwo]

Oh! I don't even care that it's short! I'm INNNNN!!!!

OMG! So funny about the room number mix-up. I mean, yeah, I'm sure in the moment it wasn't so funny for you trekking around with stuff and kids and Pop is NOT a small resort. But can you imagine what it must be like to be THAT person with all those crazy numbers all mixed up in your head??? I have this mental picture of a totally frazzled person laying in bed trying to go to sleep at night with all these random room numbers swimming around in their brain. :lol:

Beeeeyooooteeefull beach! Ready for more! Hurry hurry! :sohappy:

Thank you! I think I'm done. I may remember a thing or two to add in, but I really didn't take many pics this time, knowing we would be back soon.

I really wasn't upset about the room mix up. I should probably edit my "frowny faces." I think we threw her for a loop by asking for a room by the water. She had us in a room closer to the main building, but with our little kids we need quiet more than we need walking distance.

That's Siesta Key beach. It's pretty amazing! We get to visit for free, which makes it even better!

 

[HollyBelle]

After a great breakfast, we headed off the Magic Kingdom which opened at 9. We arrived at 8, got our park tickets and were through the gates by 8:10!

You are so my kinda family, showing up to the park at 8 am... and what a great family picture! I love that Ariel talked with your daughter about dinglehoppers and such! I have to agree with your son, two trips in a row on Big Thunder does sound like the perfect way to end a birthday. Great report. :sohappy:

 

[erstwo]

You are so my kinda family, showing up to the park at 8 am... and what a great family picture! I love that Ariel talked with your daughter about dinglehoppers and such! I have to agree with your son, two trips in a row on Big Thunder does sound like the perfect way to end a birthday. Great report. :sohappy:

Thank you Holly! Even though my husband and I would prefer to sleep in most non- Disney days, ever since our little ones came along, early morning does tend to be our thing.

 

[WDWmazprty]

Great pics and TR! We always stay at Pop too, love the cafeteria at Pop, soooo good! :sohappy:

 

[tiaragirl]

Such a CUTE family. I know I've said it before (last TR?) but your daughter's bows are too adorable.

That picture with her and Ariel is amazing.. is it just me, or are Ariel and Jasmine always drop dead gorgeous and the other princesses can be hit or miss?

 

[meeskamickey]

Great trip report! Love the pic with Ariel! Very cute!

 

[LeafsFanNL]

Thanks for the great TR

 

[erstwo]

Great pics and TR! We always stay at Pop too, love the cafeteria at Pop, soooo good! :sohappy:

Pop is our new favorite! I loved your trip report too! My favorite part was how you surprised your children and their cousins with not only a trip to Disney, but also a "meet up" with their cousins! :sohappy: Makes me wish my sister and I had done that too. But I think it would have been too much for us to keep a secret. We're so excited, we can hardly stand it.

Such a CUTE family. I know I've said it before (last TR?) but your daughter's bows are too adorable.

That picture with her and Ariel is amazing.. is it just me, or are Ariel and Jasmine always drop dead gorgeous and the other princesses can be hit or miss?

Thanks! We're big hairbow lovers here. I do think Ariel & Jasmine always look amazing.

Great trip report! Love the pic with Ariel! Very cute!

Thank you!

Thanks for the great TR

Thank you for reading! Looking forward to the rest of yours!

 

[disneygirl1]

Great report so far!!! I just love POP! We are staying there again next Sept!

 

[erstwo]

Great report so far!!! I just love POP! We are staying there again next Sept!

Thank you! I was about to ask what happened to your December trip! But then I remembered you're going Deluxe in December!!!!:sohappy:

 

[sweetpee_1993]

I just love early morning in the MK. The sights, sounds, everything about it!!

Then it was on to Pirates which was walk on. We had a great ride, but there was a mom and dad right behind us with their daughter who was about 3 years old. I could tell by their conversation that this was their first day at Magic Kingdom and this was their first dark ride with their daughter. Well, the daughter flipped out. She was seriously terrified. I gave them my iPhone with an episode of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse on it, so she could watch it during the ride and her mom hugged her close to her side and "protected" her and those 2 things together made the ride a little easier for her, poor thing! Made me rethink my touring strategy for our December trip with my 4 year old niece who hasn't been to WDW before. I was going to start in Adventureland, now I think we'll start in Fantasyland!

Ariel with legs!

Without a doubt, the best Ariel ever! She was so sweet and chatted with my very shy daughter. They even discussed hairstyles and Ariel showed her her fork/comb - Ariel really did have a fork in that plant to the right!- and was just as kind as could be. Thanks Ariel!

Adorable pic of your family! I love love love these shots!

I love 1st thing in the morning at MK (& all the parks), too! I'm not a morning person by nature but I know it's worth it. Those early mornings there's just something to it. Yeah, the obvious is the lack of lots of other people and great photo ops. But it's more. It's like the the magic magnified. There's always a palpable air of excitement and anticipation. I just don't know how to describe it. By far my favorite thing to look forward to on trips is the early mornings. I love 'em!

Ariel! She's so freakin' awesome! I agree with tiaragirl, Ariel & Jasmine are the most consistent princesses I've encountered. I've seen Aurora's that weren't quite up to the 'beauty' part of 'Sleeping Beauty' just because in my mind she's supposed to have the perfect angelic face in every way. In May '09 with my nieces I thought the Cinderella in our pics looked evil. Seriously on the frightening side. I've also met Belle's that just came up short. Not that I think I'm some raving beauty but then I'm not trying to pull off a princess either. LOL! Also have to agree with Holly, Ariel's dinglehopper rocks. Plain & simple. That's an unexpected but perfect interaction. The pic of your daughter is just perfect. I know you had to have been in absolute bliss in that moment. :animwink:

Thank you! I think I'm done. I may remember a thing or two to add in, but I really didn't take many pics this time, knowing we would be back soon.

I really wasn't upset about the room mix up. I should probably edit my "frowny faces." I think we threw her for a loop by asking for a room by the water. She had us in a room closer to the main building, but with our little kids we need quiet more than we need walking distance.

That's Siesta Key beach. It's pretty amazing! We get to visit for free, which makes it even better!

LOL! I'm sure the CM's hear requests for rooms close to the main building a whooooole lot more than far off out of the way. Very cool you scored an updated room, too.

Oooohh...Siesta Key Beach! So pretty! And free makes it that much more awesome! I know the feeling. I have a ton of relatives who live in Pensacola so we can go stay in town for free and visit the gorgeous beaches there as well as one of our absolute favoritest places in the whole wide world: the Naval Air Museum.

Sounds like your son had one fantastic birthday. It doesn't get much better than Disney, huh? LOL!

Your trip, although short, sounded sweet as could be! I thoroughly enjoyed reading it. Thanks so much for the quick, easy, and wonderful read! Can't wait to read your December report! :wave:

 

[PrincessASquare]

Great looking family! I love your sons shirt. Where did you get it?

 

[erstwo]

Great looking family! I love your sons shirt. Where did you get it?

Thank you! That shirt was all my mom; she is an amazing seamstress.

But here is a similar one on etsy:
http://www.etsy.com/listing/58165751/personalized-mickey-mouse-birthday-shirt?ref=sr_gallery_7&ga_search_query=mickey&ga_search_type=category&category=clothing.children&ga_page=&order=&includes%5B0%5D=tags&includes%5B1%5D=title
I have no experience with this seller myself, but she has 100% positive feedback and it seems to be a good price.