Trip Report We needed a little (Disney) Christmas, right that very minute!!!

This isn't going to be much of a trip report, but Sam (DD16) and I did spend about 3 hours on WDW property yesterday because we were in Florida, she was done with showcase play, Clearwater/St. Pete isn't too far of a drive, we weren't flying out of Tampa until 5:30am this morning, and I had some reward dollars to burn. Ya know, sometimes you just NEED some Disney style Christmas in your life.

I literally went back and forth debating with myself for several days about booking an ADR. I knew we wanted monorail loop and I was leaning towards casual because I'd have a kid covered in dirt. Yeah, I could have taken her back to our hotel to shower and clean up first, but once she gets dirty, she's just sort of done for the day until a pre-bedtime shower. I had thought about Narcoosee's (before thinking about my dirty child), but we had really good seafood in Indian Rocks Beach on Friday, so I passed. My parents had made the drive up from south FL to watch Sam play and were also staying through Monday. So, I initially decided to book a party of 4 at Steakhouse 71 for all of us thinking we all might like that, but my dad treated us to Bascom's Chop House in Clearwater on Saturday night. So, I changed gears for WDW and booked a 6:25pm spot at 'Ohana. My parents decided to back out of our WDW plans yesterday afternoon because of my dad's mobility issues. They're going in a few weeks as they still have their APs. I think they were afraid of how rushed Sam and I were going to be and just decided it best to sit this one out.

We got a little bit of time with my parents back at our hotel before it was time to head off towards Orlando. I had tried taking a pic of one of the first Disney highway signs, but see how that went...

Sam took over after that.

She initially mentioned wanting to soak in the moment and put the phone down (I left my camera gear at the hotel). She went as far as telling me that I've been here before and have plenty of pictures. I made a brief challenge, saying we hadn't been on WDW property in nearly 4 years and surely things have changed. I think my phone sat there for all of a minute at most before she just started taking pics. I also think she realized she could soak and photograph.

We were running a little early. We had a 6:25pm ADR, it was just after 5pm and I wanted to use our time wisely, because we'd definitely need a trip around the monorail. Still, I wanted to see some other spots just to make it feel like we were really there. So, I ticked off my navigation and turned from World Dr. towards the Epcot area resorts. We haven't been since February 2021, so I guess this was our first time seeing the fully completed Swan Reserve...not that she took any pictures and it was behind me by the time I stopped.

I took over my phone briefly while we were stopped at the light, getting some random pics of people playing golf at Fantasia Gardens as well as a street sign to remind myself of where I turned. Riveting stuff.

 

[HouCuseChickie]

We were trying to pace ourselves because we truly were hungry, but if we went too fast, we wouldn't be able to handle it all. Thankfully, this was not like 2017. Our cousins were taking a nice leisurely pace and weren't overloading us with food at breakneck speed. We got our beef, chicken and shrimp as our pasta and veggies were sufficiently depleted.

Sam isn't a shrimp person, so those were all me. We each had some of the beef and chicken. The chicken was nice and tender, but we both preferred the beef. At this point, we were even debating about more dumplings, but we were starting to feel full and it's 'Ohana, so dessert is kind of important.

I'm mixed on the pineapple. I love pineapple, so I was good with it, but I feel like the bananas may have worked a little bit better.

Oh, those also weren't our only desserts. The birthday girl got some extra treats.

Those Rice Krispie treats are soooooooooo sweet! I still had one, but it was more of a sugar rush than I was planning. We both also agreed that the bread pudding was the best thing on the table. For a hot second, we thought about seconds, but decided we would regret it.

We also got some front row ukulele entertainment as we were finishing up.

It was time for the bill. I was thankful for reward dollars as well as happy that they didn't make me use my Disney Visa for the rest of the check. I've had that happen before at some of the retail spots. The reality is that we don't do Disney very often these days, so it doesn't make sense to build rewards.

All in all, I was really happy with our 'Ohana experience. I was nervous. Sam wanted the Poly or the Contemporary. I just wasn't feeling Kona's menu, I couldn't get a safe ADR time for Steakhouse 71, and I was still being haunted by bad 'Ohana experiences of the past. Thankfully, this was great and really hit the spot.

We took a few pics on the way out.

(this cracks me up!)

We then decided to head downstairs to walk around a bit before leaving.

I don't know what it was, but as we were walking away from Capt. Cooks and nearing Trader Sam's, I got a whiff of a scent that my brain said was pretty spot on to the old Poly lobby water feature. Considering my mind was playing tricks on me with the towels, I didn't trust it, but it definitely triggered something Disney in my nostalgia center.

 

[HouCuseChickie]

So, I actually wrote up what was going to be the last post in this mini-TR when I realized that I hadn't shared anything (beyond the sunsets) of why we were actually here. I won't get too long winded (just one post) but I just wanted to share a little taste of our time playing in Clearwater.

Side note- my action shots of Sam have really taken a nosedive. This was a showcase with a ton of college coaches, so it's not the kind of environment where I'd be on the field taking pictures, but I've been staying behind the fence/net ever since May by choice. While it didn't occur while I was taking pictures, I did take a ball to the head while throwing for Sam during some hitting work. I was behind an I-screen, but I guess I was too close. The screen and my glasses absorbed some of the impact, but I still took a line drive just above my right eye. It bled like a war wound, I was "lightly" concussed, and I now have a noticeable scar just above my right eyebrow. Needless to say, I'm more than a little "ball-shy" these days. In case you didn't know...softballs are not soft. In any event, some games were better than others for me blurring the fence. I did best on day 2, but I was better at catching the action on day 1, and she had on my favorite uniform on day 3. All in all, it makes it harder to focus, it darkens the pictures, and edges tend to be a bit softer.

I also mentioned birds. There were a couple of ospreys nesting in the field lights. They 'talked' the entire weekend. I also forgot that the parking lot was filled with eastern bluebirds. The lighting was awful and I spooked them every time I got out of the car. So, I was stuck taking pics through the windshield while Sam was warming up. Either way, if you've seen some of my non-Disney national park trip reports, you know I have a thing for bluebirds. These are also the fields used for the annual NCAA D1 Clearwater Invitational. I know the main nest is along the 3B side of one of the fields they usually use, so I'll be looking out for these birdies in February.

I took close to 170 photos on the big camera, so this really is just a sample. Again, I'm just so out of practice and not in the best set up to really get anything great. It's still something.

 

[rshell68]

Well, wanted to like the post but didn't want you to think I was actually liking you getting hit
Thank you for sharing your pictures and your visit with us!!!

 

[HouCuseChickie]

So, this is it...

When I first got this idea about heading to WDW on Sunday night, my mind immediately went to a meal with a fireworks view...or at least one that would put us in a good position just before or after our meal. Then reality set in. I didn't at first know it was a party night, but as soon as I found that out, I realized that fireworks would be at 10pm. If we were staying the night at WDW and flying out of MCO the next day, or even if we had a late morning flight out of Tampa, this would have been completely doable. Our reality...

• We had a 5:40am flight out of Tampa the next morning.
• I think I'd set a 5am drop off for the rental car but wanted to be there by about 3:30am.
• We still had to finish packing, which included securing her bats and spikes to be checked.
• My gut said the airport would be busy. We flew Southwest and when I woke up to check in at the 24-hour mark, I was still only able to get B2 and B3. When that happens with a pre-dawn flight, you know it's going to be packed.
• Surely, I wasn't the only parent that saw how much cheaper it was to fly out Monday morning while still being able to get their kid to school on time.

So, I was happy we had an earlier ADR and were seated on the early side. I didn't want to rush, but we were running out of time to make this a reasonable evening with the travel details on the horizon.

We headed out along the water by the left side of the pool.

There were some sections closed off, so we started to head back. As we turned around, I realized we were being treated to a truly epic moon rising. It almost looks animated/illustrated. I guess this made up for sunset. This was one of two. I think this was the better one.

Time to head back in to get to the other side of the pool...but not without one last water view on this side.

This is when I really started missing the Dreamlights. Again, this is very pretty, but for a moment there...I was thinking back to our November 2014 kid-free trip when we stayed at the Poly and how we were treated to a sparkly castle every single night. Ugh.

Not quite as spectacular from this angle, but the moon was still putting on a show.

When we saw the boat, Sam even inquired about a quick ride, but we both revisited that bulleted list above and knew it would be unwise.

It was right around this time...looking out on the castle, thinking about what used to be (including some memories on this beach), and what we just didn't have time for right now that I started hearing Polynesian style Christmas music start playing on the resort speakers. This was the first and only Christmas music I noticed in our short little visit. It was finally that little bit of Disney Christmas that I really needed. I'm still not in the mood to decorate, but that triggered some holiday spirit.

As we walked towards the entrance, we saw they had the evening movie playing. It was Wish...not a big fan...so it was pretty easy to move on. Still, I love seeing everyone gathered for one of those fun treats at a Disney resort.

On our last pass through the lobby, I looked at BouTiki...thought about going in but was more in the moment and wanted Sam with the Poly's tree. I guess that Polynesian holiday music was still doing its trick!

This was it...this was the last official pic of this visit.

A side note occurred to me that I forgot to mention when we were in the early stages of our monorail rides. We got to see the new DVC building going in at the Poly. I know it's not finished, but I am not getting Poly vibes. I'm sure it'll grow on me, but I'm not in love.

Oh yea, I also forgot where we parked. I had a pretty good idea, but we wandered the lot with me pressing the buttons on the key fob for a bit before we finally heard our rental honking back.

We talked about making a drive past Epcot to see SSE lit up, but I was worried about time and ending up a little lost in the dark. Sam kept repeating "Epcot Baaaallll...Epcot Baaaalllll" in this goofy voice. Some was to be funny (I think it's from a reel she'd seen), but some was because she wanted to see it. No pics, but pretty much right after she started saying this, we were able to pick out SSE through the trees. It was sporting some lovely shades of blue and green.

Just like our drive in, I was also playing some of the half marathon course in my mind as we drove out along World Dr. Soon after, I could see the back of the Main Gate and audibly said "See Ya Real Soon!" Sam looked at me like I was crazy and gave me a "huh," but then she saw it and I think we both got a little choked up.

The drive back to our hotel in St. Pete was uneventful. I think it was just after 9 PM when we made it back. We were packed and in bed by 10. Alarm went off at 3 AM and were at the rental car drop off around 3:30 AM as planned. Also as expected, the airport was crazy busy and there were tons of softball families and even a few coaches in the mix. We went through security with one family flying back to Kansas City and another heading back to California. There were at least six softball families around us on our flight. One of which was even on one of the younger teams in our club and another that used to play with our friend and goes to another high school in our district.

Oh, and in case anyone was wondering, Kendall (DD18) is doing well at school. I've seen her 3x in person since I dropped her off back in August. We went up over family weekend in September, I took DH's insane advice and drove up to Norman to get her while Sam played at a camp in Denton TX in early October, and then I brought her home for a whirlwind weekend just before Halloween so she could vote in person (absentee ballot issues). Pray for my nerves this spring! I've already had my first round of tornado warnings for the campus and I think I'm going to be a wreck over spring storm season!

One final thing...no regrets about this. I was worried because I really wish we only did DLR for 1 day this summer...or just skipped the parks altogether. This mini visit to WDW was great and I'm so happy we did it. Thanks for sharing in our unexpected little visit to WDW!!!

 

[HouCuseChickie]

Well, wanted to like the post but didn't want you to think I was actually liking you getting hit
Thank you for sharing your pictures and your visit with us!!!

I totally understand. Yeah...taking a ball to the head was definitely not something I liked either. Not an experience I wish to repeat!

 

[rshell68]

Oh, and in case anyone was wondering, Kendall (DD18) is doing well at school.

Thank you for letting us know. I was indeed wondering how she was doing. The last I think I read somewhere on here there was a problem with her bed....

 

[HouCuseChickie]

Thank you for letting us know. I was indeed wondering how she was doing. The last I think I read somewhere on here there was a problem with her bed....

Thankfully, the bed issues were corrected before I had a complete meltdown The roommates are still drama, but it’s one of those life lessons you have to live through to learn.

 

[cgersic]

Thank you so much for this mini report!! The moonrise photo is spectacular, and it's amazing to see your daughters grow into young ladies. Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family.

 

[HouCuseChickie]

Thank you so much for this mini report!! The moonrise photo is spectacular, and it's amazing to see your daughters grow into young ladies. Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family.

Thank you!!! You too