The Dream That You Wish Will Come True : A February Engagement TR

Hi lovies! I am so happy to finally be getting to this TR and share this story with you all! Prior to this trip my than boyfriend and I took our last trip to WDW in November 2012 for my birthday. I had hoped the entire trip we would get engaged than but sadly, it didn't happen. The day we left to come home I made a wish in Cinderella's Wishing Well..


Little did I know that just a little over 2 short months later the dream that I wished, did come true! So without further ado, here we go!


For those of you who don't know, Ryan and I have been together for 4 years, this trip was to celebrate our anniversary and was Ryan's idea. We first came to WDW together in February 2010 for our 1 year anniversary and have been obsessed ever since; we are current passholders, and yes, we live in NJ! This TR will have TONS of pictures and lots of pixie dust, I hope you all enjoy reading this as much as I am enjoying reliving it with you! xox

February 2010 (our 1st anniversary and 1st trip together)



November 2012 (our last trip together)


Day 1 - February 3, 2013
When we booked this trip we didn't realize at the time that today was in fact Superbowl Sunday. Normally that wouldn't matter except that my 49ers were finally back in the big game! I have been a huge fan since I was just a little girl in the early 90s and I had been waiting years for them to get back to the Superbowl. Ryan was working until 2:00 and our flight was at 6:00, just in time for kick-off, wonderful! I got dressed in my 9ers best, which allowed me to meet lots of "friends" at the airport, flew through security and we waited at the gate. Thankfully, we were on JetBlue so I was able to watch (and cry while doing it). JetBlue also had $1 drinks for the game, woo hoo! By the time we were about to land the blackout had happened, and well, you all know what happened, we lost. I was so hoping up to see Colin Kapernick in the parade at MK the next day and Ryan was hoping it wasn't Joe Flacco because I find him attractive (LOL).

Anyway, he made our way to ME and hoped the bus for Pop. We had stayed here on our first visit together and since it was our 4 year anniversary trip we decided there was no better place than to stay where it all started. We checked in to the 80s section on the 1st floor, put our stuff in the room at grabbed something to eat in the food court. Before bed Ryan kept asking me where we were going in the morning, I said Magic Kingdom obviously because I wanted to be there for the Superbowl Parade, he said good and off to sleep we went. At the time I had no clue what tomorrow would bring, but boy oh boy, surprises were in store!

 

[WDW_Princess24]

Day 4 - February 6, 2013

It was another beautiful morning of engaged bliss and we were up and out headed to Hollywood Studios. I'm pretty sure it was closer to 10:00am by the time we actually got into the park and we made the mad dash to Toy Story. Ryan grabbed the fast passes which were not until much later in the afternoon and we decided since the posted wait time was about 45 minutes, we would wait as well. We only really waited maybe 20 minutes to ride...score!




After another heated TSMM battle which I lost we headed towards Tower of Terror. For some reason the parks were much more crowded than we had expected them to be at this time of year, not to mention the hoard of tour groups that seem to follow us wherever we may go. The wait was longer than we wanted to stand around so we decided to get an early lunch. I was able to get a last minute reservation at 50's Prime Time, another first for us!



I had read some reviews and was secretly worried about what it would actually be like in the restaurant. We checked in and were called to our table not soon after. Thankfully, our "cousin" wasn't too hard on us however the server at the next section over from us was. He gave those people such a hard time, it was hilarious! He was sitting at one table, yelling across to another, I was cracking up. We both had the fried chicken which was the best fried chicken I've ever had! I was thankful at this point to have the server we did because I was no where close to finishing all of that and I never touched my greens.



I had heard the desserts here were to die for so we went ahead and split a sundae...so yummy!


After lunch we were headed back towards Tower of Terror and we decided to stop for a photopass picture. The photographer seen our just engaged buttons and wanted to have some fun with us, she asked Ryan to get back on his knee and reenact the proposal.

 

[WDW_Princess24]

We made our way to ToT and jumped in our elevator.


There was still time before we could use our TSMM fast passes again so we decided to go to the Tune-In lounge for some drinks. I had known about the little bar before but had never really known where it was and since we had lunch at 50's Prime Time, we knew exactly where it was!


I had Dad's Electric Lemonade, which came complete with a glow cube! At this point I have almost a dozen of them LOL. As we sat at the bar the server we had earlier in the day came out of the kitchen and yelled at us "HEY, WHAT ARE YOU KIDS DOING AT THE BAR??", Ryan just turned around and said, drinking, we all had a laugh. While we were there we got to talking to an older couple about the impending snow storm that was supposed to hit the northeast in a few days. Being the worry wart I am, I started wondering if we would make it out in a few days, but enough of that for now.



The bartender talked us into another round, twist our arms why don't ya, and we took it to go. By this time the parade was coming through and we stopped as it passed since we knew it was the last time we would be able to see it.





We took to the Streets of America.


Ryan thought he was a Globetrotter


We visited Muppet Labs


I sat in wet paint


After taking a ride on Star Tours it was finally time to use our fast passes for TSMM. I'm pretty sure Ryan beat me again, my arm always gets so tired after the first few rounds, one day I will get him! We decided to take the boat over to Epcot but we ended up getting off by the Boardwalk and walked the rest of the way. Not without stopping to toss some beanbags in front of ESPN first.



We entered at the International Gateway and my first stop was back over to Morocco for more henna. This was my first time getting it on someplace other than my foot, I've now become obsessed with it on my hands and have it on both of them as I type this.


It was getting late and we wanted to get a good spot for Illuminations, we walked all the way around world showcase and I am pretty sure we stopped around the Italy pavilion to watch. On our last trip in November we really fell in love with Illuminations so I was excited to see it again. I was able to get some great shots.








It had been another amazing yet long day and we were exhausted. After Illuminations we made our way out in no hurry. Lucky for us a tour group was waiting for us at the bus stop back to Pop and they were kind enough to serenade us with their chanting and singing. Am I the only one who finds it strange that these groups of 100s of girls are being led around by 5 guys in their 20s?? To boot it's the leaders who start all this singing/chanting/yelling! Thankfully we ended up not being on a bus with them and had some piece and quiet, we arrived back at Pop and it was time for some shut eye, another day awaited us tomorrow!

 

[prfctlyximprct]

Loving your trip report!! You guys are so cute! I'm from NJ too and love Disney! I tell my boyfriend all the time he better propose to me there! LOL.. we went once in 2011 together, and our now celebrating 6 years so next time we visit together better be the time Thanks for sharing your report

 

[PolynesianPrincess]

I LOVE that dress you wore to DHS!! So super cute!!

Isn't 50s awesome? We love it there!! The chicken looks really good! I always get the pot roast. It's amazing!!

 

[foreverbelle]

OMG how fabulous was the engagement, and the whole building up. I think you just got what every girl wants. And that ring is absolutely amazing. I mean seriously, way to go!!!!!

Congrats on the engagement!

Fantasyland looks amazing. I can not wait to eat at BOG restaurant thank you so much for sharing some pictures...loving the report

 

[erstwo]

We were there at the same time! I am carefully scanning your pictures for myself! Ha! Loving the TR!

 

[plaz10]

Wow loving your TR! How great is it to be engaged in Disney? Seriously loved showing off the bling all over Disney.

2 things...

1 - I'm glad to read good reviews from a picky eater for Marakeesh because my fiance wants to try it and I'm scared! Lol. But their flower and garden booth had some excellent chicken/cucumber salad so I'll think about it!

2 - Is Ryan wearing Mickey socks at DHS? If so...that's AWESOME. It always makes me smile when my fiance comes out of our room ready to go somewhere and he's wearing a Disney shirt. Or if I'm in the living room and he's on the treadmill and I can hear him watching Hercules or something. Disney loving fiances - very cool!

 

[WishIWasAtWDW]

I'm a little late to this trip report but I'm so glad I found it! Congratulations on your engagement! How exciting! Poor guy must have been so nervous that first morning! It was a good idea for him to do it first thing so he wouldn't be worried the whole trip. That's awesome that the PhotoPass photographer was there to capture it all on film!! And I love your Main Street photo session with the other couple. That is so cute!

I love your comment about being a pro at walking quickly. I am very proud of my skills at bobbing and weaving through a crowd at Disney! Nice to know there are others out there who are also pros.

I can't wait to read the rest of your report!

 

[PartOfYourWorld]

I have to second Darolyn on that comment and love the dress you wore to DHS!!

Love seeing you have fun at the Boardwalk...you know that's my favorite resort! I love the walk inbetween DHS and EPCOT. Have you ever done the whole thing? I think it takes the same amount of time as taking the boat to be honest. With all the stops it makes. But boats are still my favorite way to go around there!

 

[heatherkatheleen]

Thank you so so much! He did do good didn't he?!?! I still find myself staring at it all day long!

He did.. I give my man hints every few months just so when the time comes he knows what to go for! LOL! Is that a bad thing?

 

[heatherkatheleen]

I love your comment about being a pro at walking quickly. I am very proud of my skills at bobbing and weaving through a crowd at Disney! Nice to know there are others out there who are also pros.

Totally agree with the bobbing and weaving thing!!! Last trip was my boyfriends first and my 19th.... Needless to say he ended up getting lost in a sea of people behind me every once in a while and it'd take us a solid 10-15 mins to meet back up! Hoping he'll be more of a pro during our next vacation (but I believe it is a life skill developed over many trips to WDW.... hahaha)

 

[WDW_Princess24]

Loving your trip report!! You guys are so cute! I'm from NJ too and love Disney! I tell my boyfriend all the time he better propose to me there! LOL.. we went once in 2011 together, and our now celebrating 6 years so next time we visit together better be the time Thanks for sharing your report

Thanks for reading along! It's always awesome to meet fellow Disney lovers from NJ! I will be keeping my fingers crossed for you on your next visit!

I LOVE that dress you wore to DHS!! So super cute!!

Isn't 50s awesome? We love it there!! The chicken looks really good! I always get the pot roast. It's amazing!!

Thanks lovey, I got it at Mandees haha The chicken was soooo good, the best fried chicken I've ever had, 50s was such a fun time!

Wow loving your TR! How great is it to be engaged in Disney? Seriously loved showing off the bling all over Disney.

2 things...

1 - I'm glad to read good reviews from a picky eater for Marakeesh because my fiance wants to try it and I'm scared! Lol. But their flower and garden booth had some excellent chicken/cucumber salad so I'll think about it!

2 - Is Ryan wearing Mickey socks at DHS? If so...that's AWESOME. It always makes me smile when my fiance comes out of our room ready to go somewhere and he's wearing a Disney shirt. Or if I'm in the living room and he's on the treadmill and I can hear him watching Hercules or something. Disney loving fiances - very cool!

Thank you, thank you, it was so awesome to be engaged there! You guys should def. check out Marakeesh, I was hesitant too but so glad we went for both the food and the atmosphere! Disney loving finaces are fantastic !! He was wearing Mickey socks LOL for whatever reason he forgot to pack socks or didn't bring enough pairs so he had to buy some down there but he is ALWAYS rocking a Mickey shirt, I love it!

I'm a little late to this trip report but I'm so glad I found it! Congratulations on your engagement! How exciting! Poor guy must have been so nervous that first morning! It was a good idea for him to do it first thing so he wouldn't be worried the whole trip. That's awesome that the PhotoPass photographer was there to capture it all on film!! And I love your Main Street photo session with the other couple. That is so cute!

I love your comment about being a pro at walking quickly. I am very proud of my skills at bobbing and weaving through a crowd at Disney! Nice to know there are others out there who are also pros.

I can't wait to read the rest of your report!

Better late than never, right?!?! So glad you are enjoying it! He was a nervous wreck, when I looked back at the two weeks before we left I kept asking him what was the matter with him because he was acting like a tart LOL I was so grateful to have that photopass photographer there to take all those pics, most people don't get to capture the moment so I was glad she caught all of them!

Professional walkers unite woo hoo!!!

I have to second Darolyn on that comment and love the dress you wore to DHS!!

Love seeing you have fun at the Boardwalk...you know that's my favorite resort! I love the walk inbetween DHS and EPCOT. Have you ever done the whole thing? I think it takes the same amount of time as taking the boat to be honest. With all the stops it makes. But boats are still my favorite way to go around there!

Thanks Jess, I've only worn that dress that one time, it's obviously been too cold for that in NJ, hopefully soon! When I was there two weeks ago my aunt and I walked from the Beach Club to DHS, it was a mile, geez! Ryan and I have done the walk to Epcot from the BW before and loved it! I just love that whole area, except it looks nothing like Atlantic City lol

He did.. I give my man hints every few months just so when the time comes he knows what to go for! LOL! Is that a bad thing?

LOL not at all! You're going to wear that ring for the rest of your life, gotta make sure its right! I was more surprised at the ring than the question, I had sent him pictures of rings I liked months before just to make sure he got it right LOL

Totally agree with the bobbing and weaving thing!!! Last trip was my boyfriends first and my 19th.... Needless to say he ended up getting lost in a sea of people behind me every once in a while and it'd take us a solid 10-15 mins to meet back up! Hoping he'll be more of a pro during our next vacation (but I believe it is a life skill developed over many trips to WDW.... hahaha)

LOL otherwise we will have to sign him up for my walking school!

 

[heatherkatheleen]

LOL not at all! You're going to wear that ring for the rest of your life, gotta make sure its right! I was more surprised at the ring than the question, I had sent him pictures of rings I liked months before just to make sure he got it right LOL


LOL otherwise we will have to sign him up for my walking school!

Truth! The "I'm gonna wear it for life, so make it good!" is a comment I frequently make to my bf. Glad yours did so well Lol!

And yeah..... I'll let you know how he does this trip.... If it's not so good, you'll have to send me your info packet and tuition fees! Bahahaha!

 

[WDW_Princess24]

Day 5 - February 7, 2013

Today was the day the panic started to set in for me. From the time we arrived in FL we had been keeping an eye on a nor'easter that was supposed to hit NJ. Our flight was for tomorrow and that was when the snow was supposed to hit, I checked with the airline and they were waiving fees and charge differences to anyone flying into Newark. My mom called and had our flight changed from Friday night to Saturday night, woo hooo we get one more day! Before we left for the parks I was searching to see if we could get a room anywhere on property only to find out all Value and Moderate resorts were booked, again I start to panic. Ryan, as always, tells me to not worry and let's just go to the park and figure it out later. So, off to Animal Kingdom we went!




The park was pretty empty when we arrived in the morning so we headed over to get a fast pass for the safari and decided to make our way towards Everest. Of coarse, we stopped for a few pics on our way!




We arrived to find Everest had a 5 minute wait, which was really just the walk to the load in area. With no one around it was the perfect opportunity for me to take more pics!




For me, Everest really isn't that great, it's a pretty relaxed ride so I was able to take pictures throughout the entire ride. Oh how we all wished the Yeti would get fixed :::womp womp:::



Photo-bombed!!





After 2 or 3 rounds on Everest we headed over to the safari. This is one of my absolute favorite things to do in WDW, and I would love to do the Africa Trek one day. The animals are beautiful and the whole experience just amazes me, plus I am obsessed with the giraffes! Lucky for us the animals were all out in full force that morning!









We decided to head out after this, after only being in the park for maybe 2 hours max! We always just go to AK, do what we want, and leave. Every time we go back we say we will spend more time in the park but never do, I'm not sure what it is about AK that just doesn't put a hold on me like the other parks. We headed to the bus stop and decided to go to Epcot and grab some lunch. As we sat and waited for the bus I went back into panic mode about where we would stay tomorrow night, which was our 4 year anniversary. We kept going back and forth saying maybe we would get a bounce back and could stay at a deluxe resort for one night and how nice it would be since it was our anniversary and we were originally supposed to be on a plane back to NJ that night....

 

[WDW_Princess24]

We arrived at Epcot and stopped for pics, of coarse! The photographer wanted to have a little fun with us since he seen our Just Engaged buttons. Funny thing is you can see him in the reflection of my giant bug glasses LOL






Ryan decided he wanted to go to France for lunch. We had eaten at Le Chefs once before and loved it, Ryan never stops talking about the beef short ribs, so it was off to France we go.


We didn't have an ADR but we were able to get a table right away. This usually seems to be the case here, either the place is huge or they are never that busy because I always see tons of empty tables. This was the view from my window.



I decided on the pre-fix menu, can't beat a 3 coarse meal for $19.99! I started with the french onion soup which is sooo good and oh sooo cheesy! I'm pretty sure Ryan had one too but I can't remember; I know I wasn't willing to share mine!


For lunch I had the baked macaroni and cheese which was AH-mazing! Ryan had the short ribs, which he devoured.



For dessert I had the creme brulee which I shared with Ry, it was also delish!


During dessert we had a little visitor at our table; Remy came to visit! Last time we ate here we did not see him so this was very exciting. He is adorable and I love how he moves and squeaks as he interacts with you..so cute!



After all of that it was hard for me to get up and walk, or rather waddle out, can we say fat bride LOL. Since I had fallen in love with my hand henna I went back for more and got my other arm done. She also added glitter to the one I had gotten a few days before, this was the first time they were trying it on anyone, I was super excited. The glitter was attached with an adhesive, almost like eye lash glue, and it stayed for 10-14 days!


We continued our waddle around the world and made our next stop in China where I took some artsy-fartsy photos.




We made the move towards Norway, because Ryan is obsessed with Vikings, aren't most guys?? He begged me to take his picture here haha

 

[PartOfYourWorld]

Thanks Jess, I've only worn that dress that one time, it's obviously been too cold for that in NJ, hopefully soon! When I was there two weeks ago my aunt and I walked from the Beach Club to DHS, it was a mile, geez! Ryan and I have done the walk to Epcot from the BW before and loved it! I just love that whole area, except it looks nothing like Atlantic City lol

Hey you can get a work out walking around over there!!! I love that area too! And that's okay if it doesn't look like the actual Atlantic City, still gorgeous! I've never actually been to Atlantic City....one day!

 

[WDW_Princess24]

After our Epcot adventure we took the monorail back over to MK



One of the first stops we made was Dumbo. We had been on the "new" Dumbo before but never used the pager system. I think it's pretty darn nifty that they do this and the kids play area is so cute; I just wish adults were allowed to play too :womp womp:





We were only sitting for maybe 15 minutes before our pager went off and we were on our way to ride. After we headed over to the Barnstormer since it's posted wait was only around 20 minutes. As we waited people in front and behind us in line were all talking about the huge storm that was about to hit the northeast and I remembered although we had changed our flight, we had no where to sleep tomorrow night...zoiks! There was nothing I could do about it at that time so Ryan just reassured me everything would be fine and we would figure it out as soon as we got back to Pop.




We were making our way towards the tea cups and I stopped to grab these shots. I think it's adorable the Dwarfs are themed to the attractions around them.


We're painting the roses red!


We jumped right into a waiting tea cup, there was no line



After our spin through Wonderland we walked through Fantasyland towards Liberty Square. I had hoped the Tangled restroom area would be open by this time, but it wasn't. Nothing could be seen from behind the walls, all you could see was the top of the tower, I was so anxious to see! We visited 999 happy haunts before securing our spot for Celebrate the Magic and Wishes!









After Wishes we headed back to Pop, once we arrived it was straight to guest services. The CM behind the counter was very nice when I explained our situation; we were supposed to check out on 2/8 but due to a noreaster our flight had been cancelled and we would need to extend our stay by one night. The CM confirmed what I already knew, there was no value or moderate resorts available on property. UCA cheerleading nationals were this weekend and the teams had already started to arrive; I began to panic. The CM made a few calls and than put me on the line with another CM. He told me that although the resorts are sold out they often hold several rooms in case of an emergency such as this, he continued to tell me that we would be able to stay at Pop, we would only need to switch buildings in the morning; no problem! The CM told me since we booked with a passholder discount he would put that through for the new room, but because the time frame for that had passed he was unable to. I told him not to worry about it and thanked him for trying, he told me no, he would give me a discount anyway! In the end we only ended up paying $80 for an additional night. I thanked both CMs so many times, I finally felt at ease. They told us tomorrow morning to come back to the desk for new keys and to not even worry about our luggage, they would move it to the new room for us! I tell ya, Disney knows how to do it right! Finally feeling at ease, I was so thankful we were getting to extend our stay, instead of leaving tomorrow night we were leaving Saturday night and would be able to spend our entire anniversary in the parks!

 

[fractal]

I'm glad Pop took care of you in such a fine way and you got to stay an extra day!

 

[WDW_Princess24]

I'm glad Pop took care of you in such a fine way and you got to stay an extra day!

Me too, they were wonderful!

 

[WDW_Princess24]

Day 6 - February 8, 2013

Today was the day we were supposed to be going home but thanks to noreaster' Nemo, our 930pm flight had been cancelled and we were not flying home until 930pm the following day. The previous night when our flight had been changed we decided to make a breakfast reservation, for today was a special day. Four years ago this very day Ryan had asked me "Is it too soon to ask you to be my girlfriend", of coarse I said yes, and the rest is history but today was our 4 year anniversary. We got ourselves together and headed down to the front desk to switch rooms. Our new room was ready and we had to move from the 80s to the 50s wing. We were excited because we had stayed in the 50s section on our first trip to WDW together which was for our 1 year anniversary! The CM at the desk gave us our new keys and told us our luggage would be taken care of so with that we headed to the bus stop. We took the bus to MK than the resort monorail to the Poly; breakfast was at Ohana!



Apparently this was the only picture I took at breakfast. I remember that we were not there long and the only characters to come to the table were Pluto and Lilo, we also didn't get leis but we didn't mind. We were just happy to get another night in WDW to celebrate our engagement and our 4 year anniversary. After breakfast we headed back out and took an empty monorail over to the TTC.


Nap time already!?

We switched monorails at the TTC and headed over to Epcot for the day


When we arrived we headed straight to the UK. World Showcase had just opened and we were literally the first people into the Rose and Crown, hey! It was 5:00 somewhere wasn't it?!?


We spent lots of time chatting with the famous Carl, who has been serving us drinks for 3 years now. Ryan adores him!


After our trip to the UK we spent sometime wandering around World Showcase, it was a beautiful day, not a cloud for miles!

'

Fiesta Nicole than made a stop to visit fiesta Donald. Donde esta Donald?!?


For whatever reason I didn't take many pictures during the day. I'm not positive but I am pretty sure we spent the afternoon in Epcot and than took the monorail over to MK for our last night in the world. Little did we know the magic that was in store for us that evening.