Updated 7/28 - SWGE Preview trip planning! - Coooo-rrect! Mom/Daughter Do WDW—A Feb 2019 TR

The CM escorted us up the elevator and gave us a tour of the lounge area, though the food was closed for another 5/10 minutes or so while they set it up. We then headed to our room--room 7058. We loved it! I don't know what the view would be categorized as, but we could definitely see Space Mountain and if you strained, Astro Orbiter. And of course, it had the normal two queen beds. :) I loved all the rustic touches and just the personality of the room. We both loved the Ghiradellhi chocolates left on the bed though!
Your room looks lovely!!

That foot rub came in super handy--Mom really liked it, and used it every morning.
I love that foot rub too! I had it in my room at the Poly this summer and it came in very handy!

She came back a few minutes after the housekeeper stopped by, eating a shrimp cocktail. I swear guys, the shrimp cocktails in the lounge were one of the highlights of the trip: she said they were really good, and compared all the shrimp the rest of the trip to these, and I think these still came out ahead. I think this one she's eating in the picture is her 4th or 5th? A very enjoyable late lunch/snack for her. :) I was just happy to see her so happy.
The picture of happiness!

Also look at this view--ridiculously gorgeous!
It certainly is. :)

Our server was great--very friendly. She was also from Shanghai, which Mom thought was neat. Mom lived for a year and a half in Taiwan when she was younger, so she used to speak Mandarin, and has recently (in the last year or so) been using Duolingo to refresh/remember her Mandarin. So I encouraged Mom to speak to our server in Mandarin--it took a bit of encouragement, but eventually Mom got up her courage (she's a bit insecure about her speaking skills), and our sweet server just got so excited and practically fawned over Mom, even calling over her manager to say that Mom spoke to her "in my language!" It really made Mom feel good, and the CM seemed excited to speak a little bit of her own language. It was really fun! And again, I was grateful for the CM to be so enthusiastic and kind about Mom speaking Mandarin and to speak with her a bit, rather than brushing her off or something. Can you tell I was worried about Mom having a good time? I needn't have worried, all these fun little things.
I love this story so much! What a great moment.:goodvibes

Grumpy was our last meet at the table, and by that point Mom was feeling a bit more comfortable, which set the stage for a great interaction with the Evil Queen. Mom basically went head to head with the Evil Queen about who was older and therefore wiser. The Queen wasn't breaking and Mom just kept giving it to her about how she [Mom] was older and how the Queen should respect her and the Queen just wasn't having it. I was cracking up. It was a fantastic interaction.
Oh my goodness, that is just an awesome interaction! I would enjoy every minute of that.

Anyways, once we arrived, we checked in and got our wristbands (no more lanyards, apparently; bummer), and headed back to Toy Story Land! I had been refreshing the Disney app sporadically throughout the afternoon/evening, and managed to score an evening fastpass for Slinky Dog Dash! I almost let it go, but figured that having a fastpass would mean that we could spend our Disney After Hours time elsewhere, rather than waiting in line for Slinky. So I grabbed it. Bwahahahaha :)
Yay!

Shopping done, it was time for Tower of Terror! They were still running the pre-show at this point, which actually worked out really well since Mom had never ridden it before. And then we ended up on our own elevator! Score!
How fun to have your own elevator!

Mom loved this ride--she loved the feeling of "flying" from the freefall. Her thing was flapping her arms like she was flying. My thing was laughing with/at her. :D When our first ride ended we asked the CMs if we could ride again and they graciously took us up the chicken exit so we could ride again. The second time we were riding while the fireworks were going, which was an amazing experience! I highly recommend that view of the fireworks, if possible. You can see Mom pointing at them in the photo.
I love it!

We then kept going towards Star Tours, which was happily no wait. I don't remember how the conversation started, but Mom and I ended up chatting with the CM there and talking about how it was Mom's first time to WDW, first time on Star Wars, and we were celebrating her 60th birthday. The CM was really friendly--again, happy relaxed CMs really make Disney After Hours have a different vibe than the regular park days. But I'll admit I had a bit of an ulterior motive for engaging with the CM--I was hoping to get Mom picked as the Rebel Spy! Was I successful?
Well done!

You see that gentleman in the front of our the elevator? He told Mom that you catch more air if you keep your seatbelt loose. This blew Mom's mind--she loved the flying feeling--and she wanted to try it immediately. We headed back around (the normal way this time) and while putting our seatbelts on, Mom forgot to hold the seatbelt loose so it wouldn't automatically tighten. So she asks the CM if he can please reset the seatbelts 'cause she wants to keep her's loose. He looks at her like she's crazy and is basically like "um no, can't do that, cause you know, safety" Mom's response: "But then I can't fly!" The CM: "Coooo--rrect!" and he immediately shuts the elevator door and starts the ride. Mom and I were both *dying* laughing the entire ride--the CM's delivery was just deadpan perfect. "Coooo-rrect!" *slam* Mom still didn't have a loose seatbelt, but worth it. And yes, we totally quoted "Coooooo--rrect" to each other the entire trip.
:rotfl2::rotfl2::rotfl2:

So yea, that was day 1! All the pixie dust, and just a fantastic day all around. Mom and I absolutely loved Disney After Hours: riding whatever we wanted with no lines, and the despite the occasional sprinkles throughout the night, the rain held off 'til the night was over. Side note: having done Disney After Hours at both the Magic Kingdom (with Trevor, last September) and Hollywood Studios, I think I like the MK event just a little bit better, but then I like MK as a park a bit better. There aren't a lot of rides at Hollywood and that becomes super apparent when there are no lines for anything, and the atmosphere at MK is better. But MK only wins by a hair: you can't put a price on having your own elevator multiple times at Tower of Terror, and we had some great CMs all night. One of the CMs at Tower of Terror was totally in character and pretended the elevator was full, even thought it was only Mom and I. He loaded each row (even though they were all empty) and did the whole safety check, asking (non-existent) Jeffrey to put his seatbelt on from left to right "no, your other left" and to raise his hands "raise your hands Jeffrey. All the way. I can wait. I'll wait.......... Thank you Jeffrey". I realize it's not super funny written out, but in person, his delivery was spot on--it was great. If you're thinking about doing Disney After Hours, I recommend it wholeheartedly! Honestly, I think it spoiled Mom a bit for the rest of the trip. #worthit
The two of you had such an amazing night....what a magical first day!
 


I just got caught up!

We boarded right as I finished my bagel; I was in my seat and ready to go by 8:30.
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You are always so happy! I love it.

Between that and the in-flight snack of stroopwafels (thanks United!), my morning was off to a great start!
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Fancy!

Turns out I was the only one on the bus going to Wilderness Lodge! I arrived at 12:20. It was my first time visiting (much less staying at) Wilderness Lodge...look at this beauty!
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So, beautiful! It really is an amazing lobby.

She was calling to let me know that not only was she able to find me a room with 2 queen beds, but that she was upgrading me to Club Level! What?!

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So amazing!!!!

One of the things I love most about Disney is the theming and the music as I wander through the parks. And as I got off Peter Pan I noticed this adorable little door up a staircase next to Pinocchio Village Haus I'd never seen before. Little details like this--there's always something new to notice.
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I have never noticed that either.


So good! So, glad your mom warmed up so quickly!


that is so cool that you got to ride by yourselves.

ence! I highly recommend that view of the fireworks, if possible. You can see Mom pointing at them in the photo.
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Man you just totally spoiled your mom on her first trip to a park.


Looks like you guys had a great time!

After riding, she wanted to ride again so I pulled up the app and was able to snag another fastpass for it for 1:30--30 minutes in the future at that point. We figured we hadn't eaten yet, so might as well grab a snack from Sunshine Seasons while waiting (we still had hopes that the rain would stop and we could eat lunch from the festival booths...)
Lucky!


I wanted to try this but I was too full by the time we made it over to that booth.
 
Following along! Glad the rain finally stopped in Epcot! What an awesome trip you’ve had so far!
:welcome: Us too! The rain was def harshing our style. But it worked out :D

I love this story so much! What a great moment.:goodvibes
It's these magical moments that really make Disney so special. I think it really helped Mom get into the Disney spirit/fun as well :)

Really enjoying your TR! :)
:welcome: Thanks! I'm really enjoying writing it :D

I love the photo ops. My favorite is GW crossing the Delaware :D.
Aren't they so fun? They were part of the reason I wanted to go to this festival. And I think that one is my favorite too....that one or the Peter Pan one... :)

Love all the pictures!
LOL good--thought this one might be a bit picture heavy but...oh well :D

I just got caught up!
:welcome: And welcome back (is that appropriate?) to reality after your Disney trip!

I wanted to try this but I was too full by the time we made it over to that booth.
Limited stomach space is the bane of my existence at festivals...just not enough space/time to eat all the yummy things!
 
Broadway Concert and the Yacht Club
Sunday February 10th (part 3)

So when we left off, Mom and I had just split up. Why, you say? Well, Mom wanted to see the Jewelled Acrobats do their full (outside) show (at 6:10 pm), as opposed to the abbreviated show inside the temple we'd seen earlier. I had looked on the Times Guide and noticed that Princess Aurora was going to be meeting in France at 5:20 pm and 6:20 pm. It was about 5:30 then, so I figured I'd probably miss Princess Aurora at 5:30, but that I could for sure meet her at 6:20. Our reserved seats for the 6:45 concert opened at 6:30, so we'd be cutting it close with a 6:20 character meet & greet and a 6:10 acrobat show, but I was sure it would be fine.
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Mom camped out on a bench there in China, and so I hurried my self around to France. I know that walk is long--we all know that walk is long--but I never quite realize just how long it is until I'm trying to hurry to get from one side to the other. And then when I finally made it to France, I couldn't find Princess Aurora! It was 5:40 or so and I'd found her portrait, but no Princess.
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There was a group of several adults standing near the portrait, so I asked them if they were in line. I must have looked/sounded as out of breath as I actually was, 'cause they were kind of laughing at me as they responded that no, they weren't waiting for her. But they volunteered that they thought she was over in the Impressions de France lobby doing her meet and greet, so I hurried over there to see if she was.

Success! Not only was she there, but there was absolutely no one meeting her or waiting in line to meet, so I just got to waltz right up and meet her. Nice! I was expecting to have to wait, and so not having to wait was pretty sweet. We had a fun interaction; she liked the picture I brought to have her sign, and so we talked about that with her handler for a little bit. Unfortunately the candid photos all look really strange--they catch me with my mouth open funny as I talk, or making a bizarre facial expression. So you just get the posed shot. :)
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That accomplished, it was only 5:45! I was not expecting to be done, but I wasn't going to complain. Especially since I was still pretty hot from my speed-walk over to France and so decided to use my extra time to get ice cream from France! I actually ended up getting the chocolate ice cream macaron. It was SO GOOD. Absolutely hit the spot. I kind of want one now, actually....
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That eaten, I headed towards the American pavilion to get in line for the concert. I grabbed some photopass pictures at Japan as I walked by, but they didn't turn out great, so you don't get to see them. I did have a fun conversation with the photographer, who saw my shirt and wanted to know what I thought about Mary Poppins Returns (verdict: good but not great, except for Emily Blunt who is a goddess).

Once at the pavilion I decided to get some food from the Festival food booth there (I don't remember the name): sipping chocolate and the Beef Wellington.
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I totally forgot to get a picture of the Beef Wellington. Bad Dis Trip reporter! It was really good. A bit soggy, but I really enjoyed it. The sipping chocolate on the other hand, not so much. It was hot, which I wasn't expecting, and was just so thick and rich and just....no. I finished the Beef Wellington; I did not finish the chocolate. This was also my only "on top of the trash can" food picture--I used the trash can as a table and listened to the last little bit of the 5:30 concert while eating my food. It was really nice, actually.

Then I got in line for our reserved seats for the 6:45 concert. I ended up in line behind these two girls who apparently were attending most (if not all? it wasn't clear) of the Broadway concerts and who liked to hang around at the stage door and meet the artists after the concert. It was fun to talk to them for a little bit, but then they started complaining about two of the singers and how they either wouldn't come out the stage door to meet people and sign autographs, and how they were only polite when they met fans, rather than effusive and wanting to be best friends. Now, I'm a huge Broadway fan (I picked the dates for the this trip entirely on the Broadway singers doing the concert), and when I was younger I liked to hang out at the stage door and get autographs from the singers, but I never ever thought that the artists *had* to come out and meet me or that they owed me friendship or anything beyond normal politeness. The entitlement of these girls was kind of crazy to me--They were complaining that one particular singer just smiled at them and said "thank you" to their compliments, rather than continuing the conversation and wanting to be best friends with them. I tried to offer a bit of a counterpoint(this particular artist has a young child, maybe the artist is tired and just wants to go home to their kid, or maybe the artist is shy and doesn't really want to be friends, and that if they are polite that's really all the fans can ask for) but the girls were not having it. Oh well. *shrugs* I mention it only 'cause I'm shocked at the entitlement: is this a thing now? Singers/actors are supposed to be all super best friends during interactions and if they are "merely" polite they're being rude? Crazy.

ANYWAYS. Sorry for the digression there! They opened up the reserved area pretty soon after and I ended up getting a front row seat, right in the center. It was a fantastic seat. Mom found me pretty soon after--about 6:40 or so? So all my worry about timing earlier was for nothing--we were in our reserved seats in plenty of time. (Side note: we totally didn't need the reserved seats, it wasn't that crowded. But this was the concert I was most excited to see so it was really nice to have the reserved seats. Probably wouldn't do it again though).
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And I just realized I didn't tell you who the singers were tonight! It was Gavin Lee and Heidi Blickenstaff. Gavin Lee was the original "Bert" in Mary Poppins on Broadway and in London: he's a great singer but a FANTASTIC dancer (in Mary Poppins he tap danced all up the proscenium and on the roof! Super cool to see). Heidi Blickenstaff has been on roadway a bunch, but you wouldn't know her unless you're a big Broadway fan. She was a replacement Ursula in Little Mermaid on Broadway, and most recently she was in the Disney musical "Freaky Friday", which got turned into a Disney Channel Original Musical (also and surprisingly called "Freaky Friday") that she starred in as the Mom and then the teen in the body of the Mom. I got to see the premiere of "Freaky Friday" on stage (they did it at a theatre company here in the DC area) and LOVED it; the Disney channel movie isn't as good but still decent.

Anyways, I'm a big fan of both of them and so was really excited to see them live in a concert, especially up close and personal. If you don't care about the concert, feel free to skip the next little bit.

They started with a song from "High School Musical": Bop to the Top. I have never seen any of the High School Musicals (it happened inadvertently and now I'm gonna see how long I can go without ever seeing them), so meh. Whatever. But the banter between the two of them in between songs was hilarious--tonight was their last night and they seemed to be just having a ball hanging out and singing songs. Very low key and relaxed. Lots of making fun of all the "WOO!"-ing that would happen whenever they'd mention Broadway names or Disney names, so then we (the audience) started "WOO!"-ing harder and more over the top just for kicks. It was great.

Second song was actually a medley of several songs from Mary Poppins, since Gavin was the original Bert.
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3rd was Heidi singing "Poor Unfortunate Souls" from Little Mermaid and she knocked it OUT of the PARK! My Mom likes Broadway but isn't super familiar with it and she commented to me after that Heidi has got a set of pipes! I wish I'd filmed it--fantastic.

4th was Gavin singing "Positoovity" from the Little Mermaid on Broadway. The song here is meh, but Gavin did a bunch of tap dancing during it, so that was worth the forgettable song.

Heidi then sang two songs from Freaky Friday, which were also great. I had a hard time not singing along ('cause I really like the songs) but people who sing along during concerts are one of my absolute pet peeves so that held me back. Didn't want to see myself become the villain.

Finally they sang "Somebody's Got Your Back" from the Aladdin Broadway musical. A cute duet, and a fun way to end the concert. My only complaint is that the concert wasn't long enough! and even being right up front it wasn't too loud or anything like that. Mom's more sensitive to noise than I am and she had no problem. We both really enjoyed it. Say what you like about the "Disneyfication" of Broadway (and that's not considered a positive thing), Disney knows talent when it finds it.

The concert over at 7:15, we decided we were ready to go to the hotel and relax for the night. We grabbed a quick selfie first, of course!
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Luckily we didn't have to go far: we were staying at Yacht Club for the night! You best believe we took advantage of that quick walk from International Gateway. :) We checked in at the lobby and picked up our bags.
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I liked the lobby, but I think I like the wide expansiveness of the Wilderness Lodge lobby better. Still pretty though.

I'd requested our room to be close to the lobby and I think I pretty well got that. We were in room 1093, on the ground floor. I was worried it would be loud, but it wasn't at all, and it was indeed just a quick walk from the lobby.
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These cabinets line the hallway into the room.

I'm pretty sure this was a refurbished room, with usb ports all over the place and hardwood floors and the beds on risers. I was pleased to see they still had the individual toiletries too!

Our view was lovely, again:
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Fun fact: that tree is in the perfect spot to block all the Epcot fireworks. When we heard them start going off we headed out to the balcony to see them and instead we saw the tree. Even standing on chairs (I know, I know), the tree had them blocked perfectly. It would have been irritating if it wasn't blocking them all so perfectly! That made it more funny than irritating.

Once in the room, I decided I wanted to run over to the Boardwalk to get Ample Hills ice cream and to look in the gift shop for a particular shirt. I also wanted to see about taking advantage of Stormalong Bay and go swimming but BOO Stormalong Bay closed at 8 pm. So the swimming was a no go, but at least Ample Hills was still open! Mom decided to stay in the room and rest, so I headed over myself.
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I love the Boardwalk. It's so pretty all lit up. I even got to see one of the Boardwalk performers out and about!
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First stop was the gift shop. I'd bought a Boardwalk t-shirt in September that I absolutely loved, and so I wanted to get an extra one since I tend to spill or stain my shirts. Luckily they had it in stock in my size (you know how quickly stuff goes in and out of stock at Disney!), so I grabbed that, and then headed over to Ample Hills. I got a scoop of chocolate chip cookie dough (for Mom) and fudge brownie (for me), and then walked back over to the Yacht Club. The ice cream still melted (that's a bit of a long walk when one is carrying ice cream!) but not nearly as bad as it would have in September! I call that a win. :)

Once back, Mom and I ate our ice cream and kind of collapsed into bed. Rest, we need it. I did take a picture of the pictures I was having characters autograph--I got a bunch yesterday and today! Every signature is new this trip except for the giant Gaston across the middle of the castle--that was from MNSSHP last year. There's Chip and Dale and Mickey Mouse and Pluto and Mary Poppins, and then Aurora (obviously) and then Snow White, the Queen, and Dopey and Grumpy. Pretty awesome.
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But yea, we were pretty tired at that point. It had been a good but exhausting day. We needed our rest! Tomorrow was planned to be more Epcot and Festival of the Arts...but would we stick with that plan? You'll have to tune back in next time to see!

Fun with Metrics:
Steps walked: 21200 steps (8.9 miles)
Ride count: 6 (Living with the Land, Spaceship Earth, Soarin x2, Gran Fiesta Tour, Frozen Ever After)
 


I love all your Epcot pictures, what a fun day you all had!

I love the Epcot area resorts, I have stayed at BC and BW and will be trying the YC in May!

What a neat idea for your autographs!
 
I love all your Epcot pictures, what a fun day you all had!

I love the Epcot area resorts, I have stayed at BC and BW and will be trying the YC in May!

What a neat idea for your autographs!

Me too—Epcot resorts are fantastic. I just need Beach Club to complete my trifecta. Curious to hear your opinion of Yacht Club. I liked Boardwalk better but that could have been a function of having more time there and a better view.
 
Wow you fit a lot in to your EPCOT day!

The Broadway Concert series sounds like it was awesome!
So reading over it it seems like a lot, but it didn't really feel like it! It felt really low-key and just meandering around. Best kind of Disney day--lots of stuff done but no stress about it!

It was *so* good. Highly recommend it if you get a chance to go--the performers are just so low key and relaxed and there's nothing better if you're any kind of Broadway fan. :)
 
Sounds like a great day!

We haven't actually watched any of the performances. Maybe one day.

It was! :)

They're fun, if you ever find yourself at loose ends while one is going on. though the odds of finding one's self at loose ends in Epcot during a festival...probably pretty low!
 
ALL of the Fastpasses! (No, Seriously, Not Even Kidding)
Monday February 11th (part 1)

I know, you are all anxiously waiting to find out whether or not we decided to go back to Epcot or throw the plans out the window and head to Magic Kingdom instead. Well, despite all my hints to the contrary, Mom decided she'd rather do something new and so at like 9 pm Sunday night, we decided the next day was going to be a Magic Kingdom day!

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Side note: if you've been looking for those hard to get Magic Kingdom fastpasses with no luck, I highly recommend looking late the night before. I spent 90 minutes or so refreshing and messing around, and managed to get us a pretty stellar lineup: Haunted Mansion at 10:00, Pirates at 11:00, and then Seven Dwarves at noon! I was pretty psyched to grab that Seven Dwarves one, and fitted in the others around that. It helps that this was a pretty low crowd time, and that it was just Mom and I, but still, pretty good work for only 90 minutes!

To take advantage of the Yacht Club proximity to Epcot one last time ('cause only one night at Yacht Club....)
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we decided to walk through International Gateway and Epcot, rope drop Soarin', and then take the bus over to the Magic Kingdom. As you may be able to guess, Mom loves her some Soarin'!

Pretty good plan, right? I thought so. But unfortunately I didn't sleep well (again). I literally woke up at 4:30 and was not sleepy at all, so I played on my phone for an hour or so, and alternated between dozing and playing on my phone until 8 am, when we got up. Blech. I do not recommend insomnia or sleeping troubles at Disney. Yay for excitement adrenaline to keep me going through the day!

We got up at 8. Look at this gorgeous morning! If that's not motivation to get up, I don't know what is.
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However, we ended up moving a little bit slow and getting to the International Gateway slightly after 9 am (no lines--huzzah International Gateway!). We really enjoyed the quiet stroll through the UK and Canada--a beautiful sunny morning, not too hot...lovely.

We made it to Soarin' and luckily the standby line wasn't too long, despite us not being there for rope drop. We went for the top row in the center again (Mom was adamant :D). I don't remember how long we waited, but this picture is time-stamped 9:28am.
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Made Mom take a picture again! :)

After our flight around the world, we got breakfast at Sunshine Seasons: cinnamon roll for me, steel-cut oatmeal for Mom.
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Guys, I highly recommend Sunshine Seasons. Super easy, super quick, and good food. Though admittedly all we got from here was the grab n go type stuff and the cupcake. Still enjoyed it though.

We decided to eat while we walked, cause our Haunted Mansion fastpass opened at 10 am and we didn't want to miss it, cause it was about 9:45 or so by the time we got our food. So we headed to the front of the park and started heading for the buses before I realized duh, you have to take the monorail from Epcot to the Magic Kingdom. They weren't doing any buses--dang. And right as we got to the bottom of the ramp up to the monorail (WHICH IS SUPER LONG BY THE WAY) the monorail pulled up! And for whatever reason I had it in my head that the monorails only came every 15 minutes and I didn't want to miss it, so we hustled our way up the ramp and made it just in time. They actually held it for us (a tiny bit), which was really nice! We even got a seat. A+. Mom appreciated the seat so she coudl finish eating her oatmeal. My cinnamon roll was long gone. :)

I also forgot/didn't realize that the monorail would stop at the Transportation and Ticketing Center and we'd have to transfer to another monorail to get to the Magic Kingdom. Can you tell I don't usually hop from MK to Epcot? Good grief. And this was right around 10 am--totally the worst time to be heading to MK. It was packed. The monorail line was super long, and so we decided to take a chance on the ferry, as that looked slightly less packed!

It ended up working really well, as the CMs were all like "fill in all available space" and so we were able to get up to the front up of the bunch of people, and were one of the first on the next ferry. Look at the pretty view!
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Boat selfie! We were just so excited to be almost there. And as cool as it was to be one of the first on the ferry (so we could be one of the first people off...), it ended up feeling like it took a really long time to actually go. And it had started to get just a tad warm...but eventually (maybe 10 minutes or so?) we finally started going!

It's a really quick boat ride--before we knew it we were at the Magic Kingdom. And bonus, no need to go back through security! Yay! So since we saved that time, I'm sure you all can guess what we did: picture time! Mom is such a saint to put up with me. :)
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It's blurry, but look at the Peter Pan up there!

It was 10:30 when we took that picture, so we had some time before our Haunted Mansion expired, thankfully. This was Mom's first time in the Magic Kingdom, so of course we had to get a castle picture!
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This posed one isn't great--all of them are slightly blurry...but I love this one where she told us to look at each other and laugh. It came out much better, I think (though still a little bit blurry).
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So we took our time walking over to Haunted Mansion, enjoying the MK atmosphere. The fastpass line for HM wasn't very long, which I appreciated. Mom liked it, but dunno if it became an immediate favorite like it is with Trevor and me. :) But she was willing to put up with a couple more pictures. She really got into it when the photographer told us to look scared!
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Once we were done with Haunted Mansion, and with our newly-minted ghostly friends, we headed over to our Pirates fastpass.
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I'm clearly way more excited than Mom is. Or maybe Mom's the sane one and I'm just being crazy. :)

Mom was teasing me about how she was gonna start hiding from the on-ride photos (she didn't like how she was never ready for them and she thought the photos from the rides were exceptionally unflattering. I disagreed, but hey), so my goal was to get her to look right at the camera for the Pirates on-ride photo. I was successful (sort of), but it still didn't result in a great picture! Though to be fair that pirates photo is in a horrible spot.
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After Pirates we were hot. And if you're hot by Pirates what's the best snack? A Dole Whip, of course! Well, a dole whip float. I did mobile ordering but they must have been understaffed 'cause even mobile ordering had a bit of a line. Probably took about 5-10 minutes or so to get. But it was worth it! Mom had staked out a table in shade by making friends with random strangers who had extra seats at their shady table, so that was nice.
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And yes, Mom loved the Dole Whip!

By the time we finished, guess what time it was? Seven Dwarves Mine Train time! Well, sort of. We had to stop at the Tangled restrooms for a potty break, but even so we took advantage of the 5 min early grace period, but the fastpass line was a bit long. But at least most of the fastpass line is in the shade in that cave!
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I showed Mom how we could make the car swing, and I'm pretty sure that was her favorite part, though she liked the whole coaster anyways. She's a lot like me--we had fun singing along in the mine itself. :D

One benefit of a long fastpass line is that I could take the time to look for our next fastpass! I scored an immediate use fastpass at Winnie the Pooh, so we hopped over there. That line had a decent fastpass wait (honestly, not bad, maybe 5 minutes?), which I remember cause the lady behind us was talking with her husband about getting additional fastpasses on the app, and you know how you totally butt in to stranger's conversations at Disney while in line? No? That's just me?
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Well anyways, she mentioned something about how you couldn't get fastpasses for rides you'd already ridden that day and so I was all "no, you totally can!!" And basically we became fastpass buddies in line, swapping tips about how to get extra fastpasses: we both agree that grabbing a fastpass for a ride when it pops up and then using the "modify" button to get it to a sooner time is the best tip. And actually that's what I was doing while we were in line--got a Space Mountain fastpass and was able to modify it for 15 minutes later!
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Winnie the Pooh was Winnie the Pooh--I pointed out Mr Toad handing over the deed to Pooh and then we sang along with the songs and enjoyed our hopping honey pot. But once done, we headed over for the slightly more exciting ride awaiting us at Space Mountain.

Something weird must have happened though, 'cause the fastpass line was all the way backed up. Like, to that very first room. We ended up waiting 25 minutes. In the fastpass line. That was absolutely bonkers. And we were hungry too! My thought was we'd ride Space quickly and then go get food, but we ended up waiting a bit longer than planned. Oh well!
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I like Mom's very sedate, resting face in this picture in contrast to me being like "SPAAAAAAAAAAAAAACE". :)

Verdict: Mom liked it, but she didn't like how dark it was. She apparently likes being able to see where she's going so she can brace and not get whiplash. This bit about seeing where she's going on coasters pops up again later....

Once done traveling into outer space, food was our #1 priority. And where were we going? Sleepy Hollow! Disney had just released their footlong corn dog there, and I'm a sucker for a corn dog. I didn't realize Sleepy Hollow doesn't do mobile ordering though.
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The line wasn't too long, so Mom and I divided and conquered again. She got a table; I waited in line. And in a happy coincidence, got to cross the churro ice cream sandwich off my snack bucket list! I forgot that Sleepy Hollow was the place to get those, so when I saw it on the menu, you best believe I ordered it.
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For $11, Mom and I split the corn dog. And it turned out to be a good amount of food for the two of us, even if half of it was ice cream and churros aka sugar. Yummy though! The churros were warm and fresh, and the chips were fresh too...it was a good lunch. Also recommended.

I'm sure you can guess what I was doing at lunch, right? More refreshing for fastpasses! I know it was a low crowd time, and there were only two of us, but I swear it was like Disney was giving us more pixie dust: I got a Peter Pan fastpass for only 30 minutes later! So we slowly finished our lunch, then headed back up to Fantasyland.
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Mom is humoring me again for a picture...I know, my selfie skills suck. I think they're funny. :D

We took advantage again of the 5 minute early grace period, and soon were flying off to Neverland!
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The reason I said it was like Disney was dusting us with extra pixie dust was partially for the Peter Pan fastpass, but really more for this next fastpass. I pulled up the app in the Peter Pan fastpass line (which wasn't very long), did one refresh for that time, and guess what I found: SEVEN DWARVES MINE TRAIN. For RIGHT THEN. My eyes about bugged out of my head, but I kept my cool and luckily Mom was distracted and hadn't noticed my reaction.

So after Peter Pan, which Mom thought was cute but short, I was all like "so, what do you want to do next?" and Mom was like "oh, whatever--what's our next fastpass?" LOL see, I'd spoiled her already with my mad MDE fastpass skills! And so I got to be all "you know how I said last night how lucky it was we were able to get a fastpass for Seven Dwarves 'cause it's a really hard one to get? Well, I just got another one!" I may have been a bit more excited than Mom. But that's 'cause I get really excited at Disney--she was pretty psyched too.
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I really like this pic with Mom's hands all up in the air. :)

We were pretty hot at that point, so I got on the app to see if I could get a Splash Mountain fastpass. I did, for half an hour in the future or so (2:00 pm). That gave us just enough time to meander over to Frontierland and look around a bit before hopping in line.

We look pretty dry in this photo, but that's only cause we got soaked right after it was taken! Cooled us down though, which really was the point. :)
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Next up, an immediate fastpass for Big Thunder Mountain. I know it's a big popular ride, but I've always found it pretty easy to get a fastpass for (dunno why), and today was no different. Mom really liked Big Thunder. She's a coaster junkie, what can I say. :)
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After Big Thunder (which as usual had a backup after the merge point, when you split into those two lines), I'd gotten another fastpass for Splash Mountain. I guess people weren't wanting to get wet that day? Dunno why, it was hot by then. We decided to take a little nap this time.

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So, remember how back on the first day before Mom arrived I was trying to catch the parade so I could see the fire-breathing Maleficent float? I was trying to do that today too, but Mom wanted to ride Splash Mountain again. It was about 2:40 when we entered the line, but something happened when we were one party away from getting on the boat, and they just stopped the ride for about 10 minutes. We didn't board and go until 2:50. So I was starting to get a bit anxious on if we'd get out in time! Would I miss Maleficent again? Would we make it out in time and be able to find a last-minute spot to see her? Tune in again next time!!!!
 
Oh man, I got way far behind.

It looks like you guys are having a great trip so far. The DAH night looked like tons of fun and what a nice day in Epcot. To your comment about the girls being entitled to familiarity with celebrities, I feel like that's a result of social media. Now, you can follow your favorite people, even potentially interact with them, and it makes you "feel" like you know a person better than you really do. I think that leads you to expect more engagement from people than you really should.

Your MK FP luck was so good! Two 7DMT, with only 12 hours notice and day of, must be some kind of record :-)
 
The line wasn't too long, so Mom and I divided and conquered again. She got a table; I waited in line. And in a happy coincidence, got to cross the churro ice cream sandwich off my snack bucket list! I forgot that Sleepy Hollow was the place to get those, so when I saw it on the menu, you best believe I ordered it.
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This might need to be on our hit list for May!

The reason I said it was like Disney was dusting us with extra pixie dust was partially for the Peter Pan fastpass, but really more for this next fastpass. I pulled up the app in the Peter Pan fastpass line (which wasn't very long), did one refresh for that time, and guess what I found: SEVEN DWARVES MINE TRAIN. For RIGHT THEN. My eyes about bugged out of my head, but I kept my cool and luckily Mom was distracted and hadn't noticed my reaction.
Man!!! You were not kidding! That was some serious FP magic!
 
It looks like you guys are having a great trip so far. The DAH night looked like tons of fun and what a nice day in Epcot. To your comment about the girls being entitled to familiarity with celebrities, I feel like that's a result of social media. Now, you can follow your favorite people, even potentially interact with them, and it makes you "feel" like you know a person better than you really do.

I notice that especially when celebrities divorce and people start talking like they were intimately familiar with their relationship and it will impact them personally.
 
I'm 31, a librarian (though I currently do records management...it pays better and Disney ain't cheap, yo), and I love Disney!

Fellow librarian! And I'm a cataloger, which is pretty much entirely records management. But sadly the lower-paying kind.

Turns out I was the only one on the bus going to Wilderness Lodge! I arrived at 12:20. It was my first time visiting (much less staying at) Wilderness Lodge...look at this beauty!
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That looks really similar to the Animal Kingdom Lodge lobby. Especially those higher levels and all the wood.

I was unreasonably excited about the toiletries! Club Level comes with some fancy ones, including sunscreen (not fancy, but nice), aloe cooling gel, and softening mint foot rub. And even in the tub they still had the individual shampoo/conditioner/bodywash.

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That foot rub came in super handy--Mom really liked it, and used it every morning.

I wish I'd noticed the foot rub. We could have really used it!


OMG that Le Creuset.


I really like something about those Yacht Club rooms. I wouldn't have thought it was my thing.
 
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Oh man, I got way far behind.

It looks like you guys are having a great trip so far. The DAH night looked like tons of fun and what a nice day in Epcot. To your comment about the girls being entitled to familiarity with celebrities, I feel like that's a result of social media. Now, you can follow your favorite people, even potentially interact with them, and it makes you "feel" like you know a person better than you really do. I think that leads you to expect more engagement from people than you really should.

Your MK FP luck was so good! Two 7DMT, with only 12 hours notice and day of, must be some kind of record :-)
Oh, that's a really good point--social media making it seem like we're closer to people than we really are. I was just blown away by them admitting that she was good at her job (singing) but they didn't like her because she wasn't acting like best friends with them, but was "merely" polite. I didn't think of the social media aspect though.

We really were having a great trip! I couldn't believe our fastpass luck--sometimes the MDE gods work in your favor!!

This might need to be on our hit list for May!
Do it! It was much better than I expected, all warm and fresh...yum. :)

I notice that especially when celebrities divorce and people start talking like they were intimately familiar with their relationship and it will impact them personally.
Right? So odd. I guess it's just human nature.

So many great FPs! That churro ice cream sandwich looks delicious.
We got so lucky! And yes it was--over the top indulgent, over course, but that's par for the course at Disney. :D

Fellow librarian! And I'm a cataloger, which is pretty much entirely records management. But sadly the lower-paying kind.
Hey librarian buddy! Yea, I live in DC and have all the loans from getting my MLS, so pretty much had to go into records management (its the only thing that paid my student loan bills!). It's a bummer that so many librarian jobs are so low-paying--it's good, important work. Gonna stop now before I get on my soapbox! :)

That looks really similar to the Animal Kingdom Lodge lobby. Especially those higher levels and all the wood.
Oooh really? I've never been to AKL, but I loved WL. May have to check out AKL!! :)
 

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