Trip Report Meet the Floridians

Hello humans!

Most of you know me by now, but for those of you who haven't followed my past TR's (particularly my most recent), I'll do some brief introductions. Feel free to check out my past reports (in my signature) if you'd like!

Who: I'm Brittany! I'm 25 and completely Disney obsessed. My better half is Dylan, also 25 and not quite as Disney obsessed. Prior to meeting me, he had never been to WDW! It was obviously top priority to remedy that.

This is our baby, Tink. She also loves Disney.

We got engaged in Magic Kingdom in June.. my dream come true! Though our wedding won't take place in Disney, it will be Disney themed.

While we were enjoying our time in the World, I accepted a 1st grade teaching position in Osceola County, Florida. Fast forward a month, and we packed up a U-Haul to relocate from Pennsylvania to the Sunshine State!

We currently live 20 minutes from Disney property, and one of our first purchases should come as no surprise. This report will be a collection of our adventures as annual passholders, and I'll update it with a Table of Contents as we go. Now, without further ado...

To all who come to this happy place, welcome!

 

[amjt660]

I stopped by Echo Lake to look at the beautiful tree and decorations. Weird lighting, unfortunately.

I actually liked this pic with the reflection of the tree in the water

Max

 

[MegRuss626]

Wednesday, December 6

As I mentioned, Dylan's dad and girlfriend were in town visiting for the week. Dylan was given some free tickets for Christmas from work, so we were able to take them to Disney for a day. I obviously had to work, so didn't join them until later in the afternoon. They started the day at Hollywood Studios.
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They rode RnRC single rider and ended up with this gem of a ride picture. Somehow Dylan and Temika ended up in the same car, while his dad rode separately.
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I'm not sure what all they accomplished at HS, but their next stop was AK which is where I met up with them.
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We were all hungry so headed to Satu'li Canteen for dinner. I had the beef bowl with rice and the creamy herb dressing. This is such a great QS meal and is super filling!
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I also tried the Blueberry Cream Cheese Mousse FINALLY and oh my was it worth the wait. This is a must-try!
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After dinner, we grabbed a Night Blossom and hopped in the standby line for FOP. I think it was posted at something like 210 minutes. We had only been waiting for a little while when the line suddenly began moving at a rapid pace. We ended up waiting a total of 45 minutes before we were sitting on our banshees, waiting for our flight to begin. It was the strangest thing, but we certainly weren't complaining! Everybody was naturally very impressed with the ride.

We then headed out of the park and over to MK, just in time to claim a spot for Happily Ever After. It was pretty busy, but we were able to find a pretty good view. Once again, they were super impressed with the spectacle that is HEA.
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A perfect way to end any day!

Love your Lularoe!

 

[blreinsel]

Sunday, December 10

I had been wanting to see the Christmas Tree Trail at Disney Springs for weeks but just hadn't made it there yet. Dylan was working this morning so it was the perfect opportunity to go check it out. My main motivation was the free Disney Weddings pin that they were giving out. The trail was PACKED and naturally people can't just take their pictures and then move out of the way. I was extremely frustrated by the time I finished, but kept meeting up with a lady who was feeling the same way and we had some good laughs about it.

Anyway, enjoy the magic of Disney tree decorating! Sorry that the lighting is bad in some of them.

I love this one!

My FAVORITE of them all!

 

[blreinsel]

Sunday, December 10 cont.

More trees!

This was SO neat and I'm happy that I finally got to see them in person. I wanted to get back to see them all lit up at night, but it just didn't happen. Something else to accomplish next year.

 

[krause]

I finally found him on Instagram so now know his showtimes daily.

Ahhhh what is it?!!! I have no need to go to this show if he’s not there haha

 

[blreinsel]

Sunday, December 10 cont.

After my Disney Springs adventure, I headed over to Epcot to try out the Holiday Kitchens. Dylan met me there and we immediately headed toward WS! Dylan suggested that I angle this picture so that Spaceship Earth was in the middle... don't even try to tell me that he hasn't been converted.

We stumbled across this show so decided to stop and watch. I had just been telling Dylan about this a few days earlier, so it was pure luck that we got to see it today.

After the show, we were still having trouble finding something that sounded good enough to try. We finally stopped in Italy and tried the first two options on the menu.

I don't do seafood and Dylan thought the salmon was nasty. The other offering was okay, but not great. This was the only booth we ended up trying... we were both highly disappointed in the Holiday Kitchens.

We decided to head back in the other direction to find a real meal at one of the QS restaurants. Germany looked beautiful in its holiday outfit.

We decided on Lotus Blossom Cafe in the China pavilion.. this is one of our favorite QS spots and we eat here often!

Now with full bellies, we headed back to Future World for our FP+'s. I wanted to get a picture in front of this, but the line was pretty long so we passed.

Our first FP+ was for Soarin'! We got the middle glider so were able to enjoy most of the ride sans-distortions.

 

[blreinsel]

Sunday, December 10 cont.

Our next FP+ was for Living with the Land. Their Christmas decorations were adorable!

After our boat ride, we backtracked a bit to get some sweet treats from the Holiday Kitchen that actually had worthwhile offerings.

We both had the Warm Apple Fritter and it was soooo good! I also had a hot chocolate, which was also good!

We decided that it was time to head out.. Spaceship Earth looked stunning under the setting sun.

Again, a picture in front of this would have been great but the lines were just too long for our liking. This will have to do.

 

[blreinsel]

Friday, December 15

We haven't spent a whole lot of time at Disney Springs since moving here.. we typically go to DS with a single destination in mind and that's the only place we go. Tonight was a different experience and was the first time that I've actually taken the time to walk around and take in the evening atmosphere that DS has to offer.

We started with dinner at The Polite Pig.. we had a decent wait before placing our order, but our food came out quickly after doing so. Dylan had the BBQ Cheddar Sausage with sweet potato tots. I had the Smoked & Fried Chicken Sandwich with mac and cheese. Our mains were pretty good but the sides stole the show. DELICIOUS!

After dinner, we just started walking around and checking out the nighttime scene. We stumbled across this band, Mighty Swell, which turned out to be amazing! They play every Friday and Saturday night, so I'm hoping to get back to see them again in the future.

We were also entertained by these people dancing.

We had a really fun evening and I think that this experience will encourage us to spend more time at DS in the future. It really does have a lot to offer!

 

[blreinsel]

This is a random picture from back in September that I forgot to include, but I figured it was worth mentioning because some people may not be aware. There's a photo booth in the gift shop that you exit into after riding Space Mountain. If you have Memory Maker, the pictures are free with your package and are loaded onto your account like any other PhotoPass picture. The more you know!

 

[blreinsel]

How thoughtful of you to have ice cream in honour of my return to the UK - that looked real yummy!
Looks like a fun time with your friends - the picture poses are adorable and what a nice thing to look back on over the years. They should have known better and listened to you and done the full Disney thing (over a Universal one)
Happy belated birthday to Dylan.

Love that brownie sundae!

Thank you for the birthday wishes! I always think of you when eating ice cream in the World. I'm sure that my friends will listen to me if they book another trip in the future.

I actually liked this pic with the reflection of the tree in the water

Max

Thanks Max! Patiently waiting for the rest of your report!

Love your Lularoe!

Thank you! It's a sick addiction.

Ahhhh what is it?!!! I have no need to go to this show if he’s not there haha

Lol right!? It's @equityben

 

[amjt660]

Thanks Max! Patiently waiting for the rest of your report!

I will start a Shanghai report soon
Work is very busy
We stopped building cars on Dec 21 but that is when the fun begins for me (in the Engineering group)
I was off 25 and 26 and plan to be off on Jan 1.
Hopefully be able to start a report next week

Max

 

[blreinsel]

I will start a Shanghai report soon
Work is very busy
We stopped building cars on Dec 21 but that is when the fun begins for me (in the Engineering group)
I was off 25 and 26 and plan to be off on Jan 1.
Hopefully be able to start a report next week

Max

I'll be patient for just a little bit longer.

 

[blreinsel]

Sunday, December 24 - Merry Christmas Eve!

I still hadn't made it to see the decorations at the monorail resorts, so that was my goal for today while Dylan was working. I parked at the TTC and upon seeing the line for security, decided to take the peaceful walk to the Poly instead.

MUCH better.

I was hungry, so stopped by Captain Cooks for some pulled pork nachos before beginning my tour of the resorts! These are good, but I do prefer the ones from Tambu Lounge.

Speaking of Tambu, I made my way upstairs after lunch to grab a Pina Colava for the road.

I continued my quiet walk along the path to the Grand Floridian.

I was already enjoying my Christmas Eve adventure, but nothing could prepare me for what would happen next.

 

[blreinsel]

Sunday, December 24 cont.

I came around the bend and to my absolute delight, the wedding pavilion gates were OPEN! As I made my way down the ramp, I was downright giddy!

Looking back the other way.

Boat dock

I think I actually squealed when I saw this.

View from underneath the arch

Now let me take a selfie A freaking selfie standing under the wedding pavilion arch!!!

I stayed here for a lonnnnng time, enjoying the rest of my drink and mentally preparing myself to go inside.

 

[blreinsel]

Sunday, December 24 cont.

One last picture before going inside!

Beautiful mirrors right inside the doors

One of the sitting areas.. I assume this is maybe where the guys would get ready?

LOOK AT THE MIRROR!

Another sitting room on the other side of the building

And its adorable bathroom mirror details

Pretty lights for @Doc Disney

And the stunning double doors that lead into the chapel Can you imagine having those doors pulled open for you to walk down the aisle?

Here's a video of the lobby area... they played Disney music the entire time I was inside.

 

[blreinsel]

Sunday, December 24 cont.

Are you ready for this? It took my breath away. There were a couple of people inside when I first got there, but they left just as I was ready to walk into the chapel. I literally had the entire place to myself. There's not much I can say to put this all into words, so I'll keep my commentary to a minimum.

Looking back the other way

How's this for a light @Doc Disney?

Details and hidden Mickey's on the wall

 

[blreinsel]

Sunday, December 24 cont.

A few selfies

When I walked down the aisle, At Last I See the Light was playing and I cried the whole way down. A mixture of my dream of being there come true and imagining walking down the aisle to Dylan in a little over a year... that's my excuse. It was such an amazing experience and being in there alone made it even more special.

I spent quite awhile walking around and just soaking it all in, but eventually other people came so I decided to walk over to the other building. I think this is probably where the ladies would get ready. I sent pictures to my matron of honor and she was 100% on board.

That vanity is what dreams are made of.

I made myself at home.

 

[blreinsel]

Sunday, December 24 cont.

I continued making myself at home and relaxed in the comfy chairs scattered throughout the room.

I actually went back into the main building for a little while after this, as the other people had left. More time to enjoy the place all to myself.

This was seriously a dream come true. I've obsessed over the wedding pavilion for years and never imagined that I would have the opportunity to go inside, let alone without other people around. Pictures will never do it justice.. it was absolutely stunning, spectacular, beautiful, and every other word you can come up with. I'm going to start begging Dylan now to renew our vows here someday.

I continued the walk to the GF and was soon greeted by this lovely view.

I made my way over to the gingerbread house next. It really does smell amazing!

Window details!

 

[riverside]

That is so cool that you got to see that!! Great pictures!! It is beautiful!!

 

[blreinsel]

Sunday, December 24 cont.

More gingerbread house details!

Other decorations around the lobby

I had to buy a gingerbread house shingle to try! Spoiler alert: it was disgusting. I love gingerbread, but this didn't taste anything like it.