Trip Report Met my #GOALS, but I need do-over trip report!!

gobstoper27 · Jun 17, 2021

End of Day 3
After we picked up the wheelchair our first stop was Basin to see if they had some salts with epsom that Bryan could soak his feet in that night and thank goodness that they did.
We had a little time to kill before our dinner reservation so we made our way over to Paradiso 37 where its happy hour all day!! Every DS outing we always hit up Paradiso 37 for a margarita and to our surprise, they raised the prices from $5 to $7. We were feeling kinda iffy because on our last trip the margaritas were VERY weak. We went out on a limb and got 2 and man o man they hit the SPOT. I'm the biggest lightweight especially on an empty stomach, so I was definitely feeling it tonight.

One of the rare photos I took maskless, I almost forgot what I looked like

Outside of the Ganachery is one of our favorite people watching spots, its also kind of a choke point. This is one area where I struggled pushing the wheelchair big time, especially after that drink.

After our libations we decided to head over to The Boathouse for dinner, another DS tradition of ours.
As many times as I have dined here,I never realized how many dining rooms were inside. I think we've ever only been 3 rooms deep but tonight when we followed the host to our table, we kept going and going and going, I think we were in the 5th or 6th dining room. As always, it was FREEZING which was surprising considering it was a cooler evening.
There was a large group in the center of the room and they a lot of them had their hoodies up due to the air being on blast.
FLASHBACK:
I remember our first time dining here, Bryan was really cold and had his arms tucked into his shirt. Our server noticed and did the sweetest thing. She actually brought him out a tablecloth to wrap himself up in. At first we thought she was joking but nope, she was dead serious. This was the first and last time that I've ever seen someone wrapped in a restaurant table cloth

Circa Nov 2018.
This was hands down the best experience we've ever had dining here; from the food to the service to the atmosphere.
Each subsequent time has just gotten more meh, so we actually decided while dining this past trip to give The Boathouse a break the next time we head down

After we ordered our meals, E decided to pretend to be sleeping which he actually is really good at. He fools me and his dad all of the time, lol

And here's dinner!

Mike tried something other than his usual Steak and Fries. This is the Gibson Burger; he really enjoyed it and stated that he'd order it again.
I forgot how much of a piggy I was that night. My eyes were definitely bigger than my stomach.
I got my usual coconut shrimp but decided to add on Filet Mignon sliders. The Shrimp was great as usual and the sliders had a nice flavor but were kind of dry.

Bryan ordered the Shrimp and Andouille Mac' N Cheese, the most expensive meal at the table. I knew he wouldn't eat it all and he proved me right. He said it was tasty but was really spicy and the portion size was really generous.

After we ate I was in such a hurry to get outside, it was just way too cold in there.
All in all the meal and service was OK, definitely justified our decision to take a Boathouse break and expand our horizons.
Sadly after dinner we decided to call it a night. I was having a hard time pushing the wheelchair through the crowd and we wanted to pack a little before bed.
Let me say this, I have a new understanding for guests with physical disabilities who visit WDW. Trying to navigate through throngs of people for a couple of hours with a wheelchair was tough. I couldn't imagine having to so all day everyday, I will definitely have more patience when encountering mobility vehicles in the future

Up next, our last day

gobstoper27 · Jun 17, 2021

Day 4, our last day
Usually I'm really sad to leave our Disney bubble, but I was actually ready to head home. But first, we had a few more things we needed to accomplish before we headed to the airport.
On the way to the car we encountered Goofy frolicking in the lawn, it was a pleasant surprise and Easton got a kick out of it.

Our plan for the day was to head to DS one last time to do a few things we hadn't been able to do, have brunch at Homecomin and most importantly, try to snag some cookies from GIDEONS!!!
We made it to DS around 9:30 and I hightailed it to Gideons to grab a spot in line. HOLY SMOKES. I underestimated how busy it would be before they opened; the end of the line was at the entrance to Homecomin.
We signed up for the virtual queue at 9:40 and our return time was 90 minutes. Ok, not terrible. I was kind of nervous because our brunch reservation was at 10:45 and the times were going to overlap.
While in line we overheard this woman asking her husband what was the big deal about the cookies and we ended up striking up a convo. Eagle eye Mike spotted her Ohio DL and we learned they lived 20 minutes from us back home. We talked about that and our flight itineraries; DS is kind of a large place and we ended up running into them 5 times throughout the afternoon. #STALKERVIBES (When we ran into them later on at World of Disney , we found out they never made it back to Gideons..so sad.)

Since we had an hour to kill, I decided to head to Amorettes to grab one of the Petite WandaVision TV cakes. There were about 9 parties ahead of me waiting for the shop to open. While in line, the kid at the front of the line apparently had been in line for an hour. I learned he was a Youtuber because of buddy who came over to him who was also a Youtuber.
He said he stood in line for about 45 minutes before anyone else joined him in line. Ouch, guess the cakes weren't that in demand that early in the day.
I also learned that his buddy Josh, had just hit 40k subscribers and Josh was filming this whole interaction for his channel.
The odd thing is, after I got home, Josh's video from that day popped up on my recommended videos. I watched the encounter on Youtube that I had witnessed in person.

With social distancing, they were letting 1 party in to 1 party out so it took a while but I finally snagged my cakes. Because I'm so impulsive, I regrettably bought 2. They were $20 bucks a pop which stung a bit but they were so freaking cool, and DELICIOUS!! I remember being extra cautious going through security with my cakes. They made it home mostly unscathed.

Chocolate and Vanilla Chiffon Cake, white chocolate and dark chocolate mousse with cookie crumbs and chocolate pieces.

After Amorette's, I met up with the boys and we headed over to World of Disney, since it was early in the morning we were able to walk right in. We walked around the Market place a little but not too much because of the foot thing.

We spotted a new Sorcerer Mickey lego display, I think I read that it was installed a week or so prior to our arrival which was cool.
I was glad we got to see it before the sun faded the bright colors.

Before we knew it, it was time to check in for Brunch. Let me say that I was so pumped for this, I've heard great things about Homecomin's Brunch. This is such a hard reservation to snag but lucky for us I got one. We were seated out on the outdoor patio which was lovely since the weather was amazing at this point in the day.
We placed our order and literally 5 minutes after that I received the text to head over to the Gideons' queue. UGHHHHHH. I mean I was excited because this was the ultimate goal but the timing stunk.
No worries though because from past experiences Homecomin takes a while to bring the food out and I'd be back to the table in no time.
I made Easton go wait in line with me since I knew the decor was creepy and that was right up his alley.
We stood in line for a few minutes and it started to drizzle so I called Mike and asked him to bring my umbrella. After he dropped the umbrella off, Easton decided that he didn't want to go inside "thought it was a better idea to go back and sit down at the table with Daddy." UGHHHH this boy. I called Mike back and told him to come get Easton. As he was getting up to leave, wouldn't you know it, the food came out.
The one time that I hoped the food took a while and the opposite happens.
Mike came back to grab Easton and the line slowly crept forward. I had no idea that it took this long once you got called back to the queue and I was mentally freaking out.
I kept thinking that the server was going to tell them that our time was up and I would miss getting a chance to eat my meal. After about 25 minutes I finally made it inside!!!
It was amazingly creepy and was totally worth the wait.

I need this whole portrait display for our powder room!

At the cash wrap when you pay, they have this faux fire that your arm goes into. It was the coolest illusion!

I finally made my way back to the table to eat my stone cold breakfast. Mike said the server asked where I disappeared to. He explained the Gideons situation and she was like, Ohhhh I totally get it. She had offered to have the kitchen reheat my food and box it up and give me disposable cutlery if they finished eating while I was gone, so I really appreciated that.
For the 1st time ever I was thrilled that Easton is the worlds slowest eater. He still had a ton of food to eat plus the table next to us was still there and they were seated well before we sat down. I didn't feel so bad being gone for 30 minutes.

I ordered the Grand Daddy plate and even though it was cold, it was actually still pretty tasty. I got a side of the best tasting hot sauce that I've ever had. It had a sweetness to it, that I've never experienced with a hot sauce. It made my cold eggs taste so much better.

This was actually Mike's OJ and let me tell you, it was the freshest orange juice that we've ever had. I usually just have water with my breakfast so I was super jealous that I didn't get a glass myself.

I definitely can't wait to try this again, next time just a tad but warmer

Up next End of day 4

gobstoper27 · Jun 23, 2021

End of day 4.
After brunch while we were walking towards Gideons, Easton says "Ok, I think I'm ready to go into the cookie store now."
Crickets.....
I finally broke the silence and let him know that I already went inside and because you need reservations we can't go back. I told him that I tried to have him go with me but since he wanted to go back to the table he missed his chance.
I offered up a quick consolation prize, how about he take a picture with the gargoyle in the background.
Literally mid snap this was the end result...

Devastated doesn't even describe him in this moment. Ughhh, I felt so bad for my baby.
Usually I'd get frustrated but he was so upset that he couldn't go inside. Michael actually lost his patience on this one because the same thing happened with Big Thunder Mountain. I hope going forward he realizes that sometimes there are no take backs when you decide to change your mind.
After the meltdown, we checked out Uniqlo, Lovepop and made our way over to the M&M store to purchase some gifts for the grandparents back home.
Bryan needed another rest break so we had him sit outside the store. We were hoping to get Easton's face printed on some M&Ms but we learned it was a 40 minute wait for photo personalization.
We passed on that and opted to get park icons and custom text instead since they'd still be cute and our folks would love them.
After about 15 minutes, Mike left to go hang out with Bryan; he felt bad that he had to sit outside by himself. Once we got in the line to pick colors and get the M&Ms printed it was an absolute cluster.

These are the colors that Easton choose for Mike's parents and this $20 worth of candy fills a 10oz bag.

We waited while the couple in front of us were finalizing their order. Upon inspection of the final product they noticed that some of their candies had stuff printed on them from the previous customers. The staff decided to reprint the order but first the printers would need to be cleaned and dried. We waited for about 30 minutes for the printers to come back on line. While we waited, I must have directed 10 parties to where the registers were located; they thought the customization counter was the checkout line and it was just a mess.

Easton was such a trooper, he was so patient waiting for our turn even though he asked several times how much longer we had to stay.

They got everything situated with the previous customer and it was finally our turn. He got to press the "magic" button to get the printing started. After another 10 minutes or so we were ready to make our way to the actual cash wrap and finally make our way out.
I remember thinking that for as long as we waited for the technical difficulties to get ironed out, we could have gotten the custom photo option that we originally wanted, grrrrrrr.

50 minutes later, lol..
I know that Red is pointing up, but it really looks like he is throwing up the loser sign

We decided to head to the airport after we left the M&Ms store. There was more I wanted to do but the foot thing was killing my vibe so it was just better to head out.
One more last bit of fun before we made our way through security.

I cannot wait to head to universal to check out the Velocicoaster, I've heard that it's amazing.

So all in all, our mini trip had it's up and downs and we met most of the goals that I set out to accomplish.
This was my 3rd time down since the pandemic began, with each time being different and there were pros and cons. I loved the "lighter" crowds but missed certain favs like Laugh floor and Caseys corndog nuggets.
I've always known that everything doesn't always go according to plan on trips to WDW but that was in full effect this time around. The biggest takeaway is the next time I travel with someone else's kids, I'll do my due diligence for my own sanity and for their well-being

When we got back home, I couldn't wait to dig into the big ol heavy bag of Gideons goodies. These things were the real deal and lasted for quite some time. My 2 favorites were hands down the 1. Chocolate chip and 2. Peanut butter.

Wishing they shipped these bad boys right now...

<<<<I HAVE NEWS>>>

A few days after we got home we started discussing our recent trip and what we enjoyed and what we wished had gone differently.
I often get the Disney blues but this time was something different. I mentioned feeling unfulfilled, we rushed through a lot because of the foot thing; primarily Epcot, some areas of Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom. I've really slept on Epcot the past few years; it's always been my least favorite park but lately I've really been starting to dig the world showcase more and more and we didn't even see half of it this past visit. There were so many booths I didn't get to try and gosh dang it, I wanted to finally try the Violet Lemonade.

I floated the idea of going back, getting a "do-over" and Michael shot down his chance of participating in another trip, lol.
We thought of who I could go with and he came up with the greatest idea ever; "How about you go down by yourself?"
I'd always threatened it in the past, me going and doing whatever I wanted when I wanted but deep down I was never serious. I had made plans a couple years back to take a solo trip just to hang out at DS on Mothers day weekend. Michael quickly hijacked that trip due to his fear of me being alone and it turned into a couples trip. But this time around I had his blessing.
For fun I checked out possible flights and checked to see resort availability but still hadn't decided on if I could seriously visit Disney by myself. My biggest turnoff was Ubering alone. We talked about it and determined that ridesharing in Orlando is a different beast. I know how to protect myself and really just needed to stop thinking the worst.
After about a week of deep contemplation, I decided that I was going to get my do-over, it would be a Mother's Day gift to myself!!!

I originally booked a 2 night stay at Pop for May 16th through the 18th; since I had just visited, that was enough time for me to do what I needed to do. I planned to hang out at DS and just chill out on arrival day, Sunday and park hop Monday and Tuesday. On Tuesday, because the parks still closed early, I'd finish at AK @ 5pm and catch an Uber in enough time for my 8pm flight home.
When I originally purchased my ticket online I spent $78 but I planned to see if I could save money at the ticket counter the next day. Because you can cancel up to 24 hours after purchase I made my way to the airport to cancel my original booking and repurchase at the ticket window. Certain budget airlines like Frontier and Spirit don't charge the same fees that are charged when you buy online. I was able to score a $32 round trip flight from Cleveland to Orlando and I saved $56 bucks doing it this way.

So if you can and you fly Frontier, Spirit or Allegiant, buy your tickets at the airport and save a few dollars; I've tried this 3 times and it really works!!
A few weeks after I booked, I got a flight change email and of course they bumped my flight up 3 hours, to say I was ed is an understatement. My whole day would have been a wash since it was supposed to be a full park day. I had to change my return flight to the next day and ended up using credit card reward points at a Disney Springs area hotel for another nights stay. Thankfully I didn't have to come out of pocket any more for the unexpected extra day.

Up next a recap of my DO-OVER!!

Katiekitten · Jun 24, 2021

What a lovely mothers day gift, I hope you enjoyed!

cgersic · Jun 24, 2021

Yay!!!! For solo trips and do-overs!!

MickeyCB · Jun 27, 2021

Thank you for sharing your first trip and I am looking forward to hearing about your solo re-do!

gobstoper27 · Jul 7, 2021

Katiekitten said:
What a lovely mothers day gift, I hope you enjoyed!

Thank you, It was a "different" experience to say the least!!

gobstoper27 · Jul 7, 2021

MickeyCB said:
Thank you for sharing your first trip and I am looking forward to hearing about your solo re-do!

Thanks for following along for my first trip report, I've been many times prior, but never had the nerve to document it.

gobstoper27 · Jul 7, 2021

Part II
Do-over Solo trip May 16th

Departure day on my first ever solo trip to WDW. I was feeling a range of emotions from nervousness to sadness. I was bummed to leave my men, especially the little one. Not going to lie, watching them drive off as I entered the airport made me teary

and when I spoke with Mike I learned Easton cried to...awwww my baby.

I had some time to kill and decided to grab a quick breakfast. Since it was Sunday, Chick-fil-A was closed so a bagel it was.
During this trip I learned that while rolling solo, folks are drawn to striking up conversations with you, maybe they feel bad, lol. While waiting to board, there was a couple with their baby girl. The woman noticed my spirit jersey and we struck up a convo about Disney and our daily park plans. I appreciated the small talk as it made me feel a lot less awkward being alone.

The flight had a 9:09am departure and we were scheduled to land around 11:39. Another source of my anxiety was the necessity to depart and arrive on time. I had a 12:45 reservation for my makeup brunch at Homecomin and I DID NOT want to miss it. I even purchased a seat in the front of the plane to ensure I got off as fast as I could. Luckily we landed on time and since I had no checked bags, I was outside and hailing an Uber in no time!!
I mentioned in the previous report that I was nervous about ride-sharing alone. Once inside the Uber, I sent Mike a screenshot of the driver info and his license plate. I proceeded to call him and on our convo I pretended that I was meeting up with him and that I'd be there soon. I only raised my eyebrow once during the ride; he veered off the GPS directions and took a shortcut but he quickly explained that it was to bypass traffic ahead. I remember thinking, dude don't play with me like that

I got to Disney Springs with time to spare and witnessed maskless crowds!! This was the 2nd day where masks weren't required outside and holy moly, it was WEIRD. I had been so used to wearing masks here so it took some getting used to. My first order of business was to head over to Gideon's to join the virtual queue. It was a few minutes past noon, so the wait shouldn't be too long right? WRONG, I was informed that it was a 240 minute return time. Ok......well I knew my room wouldn't be ready and I really didn't have any other plans; Looks like I was hanging out at DS until 4.
I walked around a bit and eventually made my over to Homecomin; apparently it was the place to be because at 12:15 they weren't taking anymore walkups for the day. I was seated on the side porch and had a nice view of the water and was treated to a nice breeze. It was away from the hustle and bustle of the other rooms and I appreciated the seclusion.

I ended up ordering the same thing that I ordered last time. If you recall, last time while I stood in line at Gideon's our food came out, so when I returned to the table for my meal, it was stone cold but still pretty tasty, lol.

I was excited to try a hot and fresh grand daddy plate.

Unfortunately the biscuit was a little burnt and the grits were just weird, the had an odd texture and they may have tasted better if they were warmer. Overall the meal was still pretty good but I'm for sure trying something new next time.

After brunch I walked around some more and did a bit of shopping. There was a lot of mask on/mask off whenever you entered/exited a shop. It actually would have made more sense to just keep my masks on. There were a few times when the crowds got a bit thick so on the mask went again, I was still having slight comfort issues with the crowds.
Once inside World of Disney, I finally got my hands on this Monster's Inc. scare canister. I'd seen it online sometime last year but it sold out so I was surprised to see it in store.

After having this for about 2 months I definitely don't regret buying it; I feel like I drink more water, plus when you unscrew the lid, a child's scream escapes the canister. So stinking cute.

I will say that I've never sat so much and people watched in Disney Springs as I had this day. I didn't know how much longer I could hang in there. I really wanted my cookies but I was wearing my new travel backpack and after carrying it for 4 hours it was starting to get uncomfortable plus it was a warm day. Thankfully, I got the Gideon's text 30 minutes early and made my way over.

Behind the masks I was cheesing big time, so ready to get my treats and GO!!!

Once inside, to my surprise they had the special edition Frankenstein Halloween cake in the case for one day only. There was one slice left. I didn't need it and didn't even plan on buying cake so of course I had to grab it. I will say that I paid for it later

Halfway to Halloween!!!

This thing was massive and heavy and it was a pain to carry around with my 3lbs of cookies.
In the end, it was to rich and every time I got back to the room to eat it after the parks, I was stuffed from eating so much during the day that I couldn't even eat it. I ended up wasting it and felt bad robbing someone who may have really wanted it. #GREEDY

After Gideon's I decided to head over to the buses. I checked the app and saw that I had a room number assigned and even though I hadn't received a text I made my way over to POP.

Quick bratty moment...
I was so annoyed with my room assignment. I had put in a request for 50's or 70s, and Yes, I know they aren't guaranteed. I think I'm just spoiled because my requests have always been granted

My assigned section was 90's. First off where in the heck was the 90s building anyway, it sounded far from everything and it was. Oh well, at least I was on the 4th floor.
After I got off the bus, I made the trek to 90's. I have the worst sense of direction and got misplaced once or twice.
My shoulders were on fire from my backpack and that stupid bag of cookies and cakes was a pain to carry. Can you tell I was aggravated? Lol
Once I finally get up to the room, I tapped my magic band and no green light just red. I tried my phone and nothing either. LORD help me. I checked in weeks ago and I know that I did everything right. I've read stories of guests who experience trouble opening the doors but I've always dodged that bullet.
I know the housekeeper cleaning the room next door heard some choice words from my colorful vocabulary. To say I was ed is an understatement.
My bags and I made the trek back to the lobby to get the situation remedied. The line for the front desk was long and apparently there were several parties who were experiencing the same issue with room entry.
There was a gentlemen who had been to the desk 4 times because he still couldn't get in his room. This made me nervous because if I had to make that walk a 2nd time I was going to have a fit.
It took the cast member 10 minutes to get my magic band re-synced. She said it didn't want to cooperate and soon after I received the official room text. The system was definitely sketchy this day. Luckily the 2nd time around worked and I was able to get inside.
I took a quick, much needed break before dinner.

I will note that there was a dance/cheer competition this weekend. Because we had been visiting in the fall the past few years, I haven't been around the dance crowd in years and they were everywhere.

View from the room. I had no plans to be in the room except for sleeping and a midday break so this was OK with me.
I was just happy that I didn't have a pool view as the pools are loud. My location was out of the way and quiet..minus the neighbors, they were the worst at night. Because I wake up early, I was so tempted to turn my TV up loud to pay them back for their late night shenanigans.

I always wonder if they decided to renovate the building exteriors, how many years it would take. I'd never been in this section of the resort before so this laptop made me laugh. I think it was the old MGM icon..

The original dinner plan was to give Three Bridges over at Corando a try. After much thought; since I didn't have a car or feel like Ubering it would take forever to get over there. I decided to hop on the skyliner and make my way over to Primo Piatto at the Riveria.
I had my sights on this burger that my husband ordered last trip and he bragged how tasty it was.
Alas, tonight just wasn't my night and I struck out again. Unfortunately they toasted my buns (lol) too much so they were hard and inedible. On the plus side, I noticed that the Riveria brought back out all the lawn games like chess, bocce ball and corn horn; slowing getting things back to normal.

After a quick ride back on the skyliner, it was time for a quick shower, video call with the boys and Sunday night Bravo reality TV before bed. Hoping the morning would have a better start than this evening.

Zipadeelady · Jul 8, 2021

I didn't know I needed a monsters inc. canister until you told us about it! I have to find one.

Love your maskless selfie!

ajrwdwgirl · Jul 8, 2021

So cool about the Monsters canister. I didn't know about the little scream. Bummer about the 90's location and the room not working the first time. I haven't had any of my requests honored the last few times either. I usually put in 70's and ground floor and think I'll get at least one of those two. I only went to the front desk and asked for a different room this past trip since I was there for 15 nights and wanted to make sure I had a decent location for that long of a trip. Also, I'm always disappointed in Homecomin's biscuits, it always looks good but tends to be really dry, everything else is usually good though.

cgersic · Jul 8, 2021

Ditto on the canister! Didn't even know it existed! I love the 50's section and have been fortunate enough to get it each time I come. Can't wait to hear how much better this gets!

sheriffwoody · Jul 11, 2021

Just caught up with everything! The trip with your fam sounded like such a fun, quick getaway! Easton's meltdowns sound very very familiar to me :hilarious:

I always feel bad when it's about something I have no control over!!

So glad you got a little solo trip in. I can't believe how cheap your flight was! I got burned by Frontier, so I won't fly them again, but dang that's tempting. ha!

Trip Report Met my #GOALS, but I need do-over trip report!!

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