I love the photos of the Christmas Tree Trail!! I was there Sunday evening and only got to see 3 of them b/c it was so crowded!!Day 1: Friday, November 24th- Arrival Day, Part 4
Considering how I hadn’t been to Orlando in almost 10 years, I was pretty impressed I was able to find this store without a map... although I’ll admit I was just wandering around when I found it again.
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Ah, the World of Disney, my second Disney home growing up. I have so many memories running around this place on all of my WDW trips with family.
I was on a mission though: find Mickey Mouse outfits for a coworker. My favorite colleague and his wife adopted a baby, and even though she’s only 7 months old, she is obsessed with Mickey Mouse. I kept finding the cutest things and was having a hard time deciding what to choose. I ended up picking out a pair of Mickey pajamas and this cute little outfit:
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They also had a Donald onesie that I would totally have bought if I had a baby.
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I also spent way too much time searching for pins to bedazzle my backpack with.
I took a quick look in the Princess room, and I swear I never would have left if I was a kid. There was a lot when I was growing up, but now there’s even more. Good luck to all you parents and grandparents with young daughters. Took a quick peek at the Star Wars area, and man, Disney is milking that property for everything it’s worth. I’m still a little worried about it being overdone, tbh.
After staring at a map trying to figure out where the heck the Dress Shop was, I ended up stumbling upon the Christmas tree trail.
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I want these in my house so badly.I didn’t plan on taking pictures of all of them at the start, so my photo collection is missing Mickey & Minnie and Pinocchio.
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More trees in the next post. And soon, a post with friends! I won’t be alone anymore!
GorgeousAlright, a bit of background on this trip in case you haven't read the pre-trip report (if you want to, it's here- Thanksgiving/Birthday 2017):
My best friend Katie and I have been planning this trip for about a year and a half. Initially we considered going in September, but decided on Thanksgiving weekend due to a) already taking time off work for Black Friday and b) my birthday! Joining us would be her then boyfriend, now fiance, Josh, and her former college roommate Erin. I'd asked my sister if she wanted to come, but unfortunately, it wasn't going to work with her work schedule. Also when we started planning this, we kept an 'open boyfriend space' for me up until like March, because we thought "Who knows, maybe Liz will find love again and her man friend can come too". Well, I did end up meeting someone... in late June, so it was a little late to ask someone to take a vacation to Florida with me. But he understands.
Katie and I began planning this trip a couple months after I lost my paternal grandfather, but at the time, my other three grandparents were alive and mostly well. My mom's parents were both struggling with different forms of dementia, but mostly okay, and my paternal grandmother was pretty great, all things considered.
In January, my remaining grandpa started receiving hospice care at home. Surprising all of us, he kept chugging along through February, March, April, and May. At the end of May, I left for my first trip to Alaska to visit some of my family. I received a call from my aunt when I arrived at the airport telling me that my grandmama (my paternal grandma) had broken her hip and had to go to the hospital. She was sent to a rehab nursing home, and since she always made full recoveries, I thought she would be okay. Flash forward another month, and my beloved dog Maci, who had been my constant companion for 14 years, was in failing health. The decision was made to put her down when I took her to the vet with my mom. So naturally, that made me think of my upcoming Disney trip more and more, because I thought "this is as bad it's going to get, right? Maci was 14, and I've been preparing for Grandpa since January. I will be okay."
Well, literally 4 days after I put my dog down, I was on the lake with some friends and found out that my grandmama was back in the hospital and needed more surgery. Less than one month later, I had to say goodbye to her. 6 weeks after she passed away, my grandpa took a turn for the worse, and 4 days later, I said goodbye to my grandpa (tomorrow actually marks 2 months without him).
So, in short, essentially since I began planning this trip seriously, I lost 3 grandparents and my dog. I gained about 12 pounds over 4 months from stress eating and general lack of wanting to do anything, and that's led to some serious body confidence issues. I wasn't crazy about a lot of the pictures taken of me, since I gained more weight than I wish I would have, but when I look at the pictures, I'm trying not to think of my weight gain, but instead, that I was having the time of my life.
Sorry for the downer post. Just puts things in perspective a little because I really had an amazing trip (hadn't been to Disney in 9 1/2 years and it really felt like I was coming home), and it's definitely lifted my mood just thinking about the memories I made in Orlando
So, who went? (from left to right)
Josh, Katie, me (Liz), and Erin
When? November 24th-29th
Where? WDW and Universal (We stayed at Pop Century)
I’m an Ohioan, but live closer to Metro than Columbus or Cleveland.
Nope, if we go, it will be our first time there
Day 1: Friday, November 24th- Arrival Day, Part 3
I got off of the bus and waited for my luggage. And waited.... and waited some more. My suitcase was literally the second to last piece of luggage pulled from the bus. Luckily, I was in no hurry. I’d received a text from Katie saying that their plane had some issues and needed to be fixed, but they would meet me at Disney Springs later. Find by me, more time for me to explore
I thought the jumbo bowling pins looked pretty neat.
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I walked into Pop, luggage in hand, and checked the MDE app to see if I could check in. The answer was most definitely no, so I asked a CM where I could store my luggage, and if I could possibly have a birthday pin.
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This really put me in the Disney mood.
I walked out and waited for the bus to Disney Springs. It was getting close to 1 and I was starting to feel a bit hungry.
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On my way
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After walking around a bit in Disney Springs (trying not to get lost because holy flip this place is huge), I found myself near Raglan Road. It was about 1:30, and I looked at the app and saw there was a 1:45 reservation open for 1 (All by myyyyselllff). I asked a hostess if I could reserve it, and she said I could eat at the bar, reservation free, if I wanted to. As I was alone and didn’t exactly want to take up a whole table for myself, I decided that was a pretty great idea... if I could only find a seat.
Raglan Road was packed. Absolutely filled to the brim. I found the one open seat at the bar and made myself at home. The bartender brought out some soda bread, which was heavenly (I need to find the recipe for it and the dipping sauce).
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Michael was the head bartender, and he was phenomenal. He wished me a happy birthday like 5 times, was very attentive, and asked other guests if they “were here for Elizabeth’s birthday parade?” Major kudos to him.
As it was my birthday trip, I thought I should start off with a drink.
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Hello wonderfulThis was the Iced Irish, and I enjoyed it very much.
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After a bit, my fish and chips arrived behind me.
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I wasn’t expecting one large strip of fish, but it was so incredibly flaky. The fish literally fell away from the breading too.
I tipped well, because the service was great, and I noticed that by the time I left, half the people who had been there had filed out. It was unbelievable to see the difference.
I was on my way, but to where?
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And off we went to Jock Lindsay’s! It was about 60-some degrees, and for the first time ever, I was not the cold one. Katie and Josh kept trying to get me to put on my jacket, but I was weirdly warm.
We haven’t even gotten to the parks yet. I love the dress though, I’ve worn it a couple times to work since buying it. 
Looks like a wonderful trip you've had!
Day 1: Friday, November 24th- Arrival Day, Part 4
Considering how I hadn’t been to Orlando in almost 10 years, I was pretty impressed I was able to find this store without a map... although I’ll admit I was just wandering around when I found it again.
View attachment 249480
Ah, the World of Disney, my second Disney home growing up. I have so many memories running around this place on all of my WDW trips with family.
I was on a mission though: find Mickey Mouse outfits for a coworker. My favorite colleague and his wife adopted a baby, and even though she’s only 7 months old, she is obsessed with Mickey Mouse. I kept finding the cutest things and was having a hard time deciding what to choose. I ended up picking out a pair of Mickey pajamas and this cute little outfit:
View attachment 249491
They also had a Donald onesie that I would totally have bought if I had a baby.
View attachment 249492
I also spent way too much time searching for pins to bedazzle my backpack with.
I took a quick look in the Princess room, and I swear I never would have left if I was a kid. There was a lot when I was growing up, but now there’s even more. Good luck to all you parents and grandparents with young daughters. Took a quick peek at the Star Wars area, and man, Disney is milking that property for everything it’s worth. I’m still a little worried about it being overdone, tbh.
After staring at a map trying to figure out where the heck the Dress Shop was, I ended up stumbling upon the Christmas tree trail.
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I want these in my house so badly.
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More trees in the next post. And soon, a post with friends! I won’t be alone anymore!
Awwwwwww
