Just Keep Swimming - a January 2019 TR (Complete & new TR link 8/26)

[missjackiemcg]

I know this place sometimes gets a bad rap, but I've really enjoyed both our breakfasts here. The food is good, the staff is super friendly, and the characters are fun.

My husband loves Hollywood and Vine We've always enjoyed it!

 

[TheOneWithTheTriplets]

What a nice start! Great that you still had a short wait on TSM, even if you were a bit behind the RD crowd. Good to know in case we're running a little late.

My girls are on the fence about Jedi training: they're total hams, so anything on stage is up their alley, but they are a little scared about fighting a "bad guy". I'll see if sign ups are still open when we get there and, if they aren't, then so be it.

 

[ksinniger]

Another DC-suburb living government employee here! Looks like our August trips will overlap -- my middle daughter and I will be there August 16-20 -- and we may see you at one of those pre-park opening BOG meals.

 

[evre13]

I'm a DC resident, too! I like how many of us escape to WDW - and after the weather we have had recently, I don't blame you for booking a warm-weather trip.

I went a few summers ago with friends in August, and while the heat was bad, it wasn't that much worse than being at home. Just make sure you stay hydrated and don't be a hero with running around. I think I was actually worse off on a December trip where it was in the 80s/90s the whole time because I had assumed it would be cool-ish (dumb), and I wasn't used to the heat. It helps that by August you're used to being hot all the time.

 

[SweetSerenity]

I'm enjoying your report!

I'm glad you decided to go on your trip with your family. I'm terribly sorry about the loss of your mother, but I hope that you enjoyed the time you had in Disney.

 

[ariane37]

Ugh about DH's ear! I had a similar issue a few months ago and the pressure plus feeling like my ear was full of water constantly almost drove me crazy
I hadn't been to H&V in years but we did like our lunch back then. Surprised it was so empty! Bad reviews or not I know it's very popular

 

[cinderaimee]

My husband loves Hollywood and Vine We've always enjoyed it!

When my kids are out of the Disney Jr. phase, we might try lunch or dinner here, but I just love a breakfast buffet.

My girls are on the fence about Jedi training: they're total hams, so anything on stage is up their alley, but they are a little scared about fighting a "bad guy". I'll see if sign ups are still open when we get there and, if they aren't, then so be it.

It's very controlled and the helpers are great - DS1 was pretty intimidated when he had to step up to Kylo Ren, but the girl helping the trainees was super encouraging. There still seemed to be quite a few slots open for the later shows when came back at 10:00, I'll be interested to see what you think if you end up doing it.

Another DC-suburb living government employee here! Looks like our August trips will overlap -- my middle daughter and I will be there August 16-20 -- and we may see you at one of those pre-park opening BOG meals.

Hey, thanks for following along! August can't get here soon enough!

I'm a DC resident, too! I like how many of us escape to WDW - and after the weather we have had recently, I don't blame you for booking a warm-weather trip.

I went a few summers ago with friends in August, and while the heat was bad, it wasn't that much worse than being at home. Just make sure you stay hydrated and don't be a hero with running around. I think I was actually worse off on a December trip where it was in the 80s/90s the whole time because I had assumed it would be cool-ish (dumb), and I wasn't used to the heat. It helps that by August you're used to being hot all the time.

That is a great point about it being hot in DC too! I guess if I'm going to be hot somewhere, I'd rather be hot at Disney World!

I'm enjoying your report!

I'm glad you decided to go on your trip with your family. I'm terribly sorry about the loss of your mother, but I hope that you enjoyed the time you had in Disney.

Thank you so much

Ugh about DH's ear! I had a similar issue a few months ago and the pressure plus feeling like my ear was full of water constantly almost drove me crazy
I hadn't been to H&V in years but we did like our lunch back then. Surprised it was so empty! Bad reviews or not I know it's very popular

Oh man, I felt so bad for DH and his ear, plus it really didn't help his mood, but he was great about just powering through. That stinks you dealt with the same thing - did it work itself out or did you have to go to a doctor?

 

[cinderaimee]

Saturday, January 12 - Hollywood Studios - Part Two

Where I left off, DS1 was about to begin Jedi training. I am so glad there is a PP photographer capturing this show because they really got some great shots. (Sorry - this is a lot of pictures!)

(this cast was just fantastic!)

DS1 did great! I'm interested to see what happens with Jedi training once Galaxy's Edge opens up, if it moves or gets changed at all, but I know it's something my boys would love to do every trip.

We rode Star Tours right after with a FP, which really wasn't necessary at all as it was only a 10 minute wait for stand by. This was a fun one and the boys really liked it, if I'm remembering correctly I think we got the podracing scene and the one with the Death Star. I think poor DH had to ride it with his eyes closed because he was still feeling queasy. The kids decided they wanted lightsabers for their souvenir of the day, so we let them pick some out in the gift shop (the cheap kind, not the fancy ones), DS1 picked red and DS2 picked green.

After ST, we got some pictures on the speeder bike and it was pretty funny trying to get DS2 to act like they were going fast. (I just saw on a new Tim Tracker video that the speeder bike is behind a construction wall right now, so I'm glad we had a chance to do these pictures. I hope it comes back soon!)

We were heading for Muppet Vision when we saw Chip and Dale had a very short line, so we jumped in line to meet them, they're so fun!

After we got all the chipmunk hugs, we headed up to Muppet Vision, and this was so cute! There is a new Muppet Babies show on Disney Jr. that my kids have been really into, so they really had an appreciation for the show, which was great! At this point, DH couldn't even look at the 3D movie without feeling gross so we decided to take a break and get some drinks.

We headed for Starbucks and the March of the First Order was about to start, so DH parked the stroller with the kids to watch that while I went inside to get the drinks.

DH got a trenta passion iced tea lemonade and I got a trenta cold brew (gotta love those snack credits) and I got ice water for the kids. When I came out with the drinks, the kids had found a quiet spot to practice their lightsaber moves so we just hung out for a few minutes and let the kids blow off some steam.

Next, we walked over to the Star Wars Launch Bay and there were some stormtroopers outside doing pictures, so we walked up to one and the boys had their lightsabers out and the stormtrooper made them switch - DS1 was wearing a Chewbacca shirt and had a red lightsaber and DS2 was wearing a First Order shirt and a green lightsaber, so obviously it made sense to switch., but DS1 was Darth Vader for Halloween and I think his loyalty actually is to the First Order, but that morning he decided he wanted to wear the Chewbacca shirt.

Anyway, when the stormtrooper switched their lightsabers, DS1 burst into tears. You just never know what will set these kids off.

(Look at that face, he's so mad )

Once the picture was done, we switched them back and everything was fine again.

Since that wasn't traumatic enough, we decided to go inside and meet Kylo Ren!

I waited outside because they said I couldn't bring my drink in and mama wasn't about to toss the coffee.

The boys also met Chewbacca and BB8, which I guess was cool? Sorry, I love coffee more than Star Wars.

The lines for each were no more than 10 or 15 minutes, so it was pretty painless.

By time we finished meeting everyone, our ToT FP was up!

I really love this ride, and DS1 was so excited to ride it since some kid he watches on YouTube had ridden it, but as we walked up to it he started getting cold feet, and just kept getting more and more freaked out as we went through the line to the point where he was crying on the loading platform, with random guests and the CM trying to tell him it would be fine, even DS2 was like "it's okay! don't be scared!"

So I did what any loving mother would do, and made my crying child ride Tower of Terror.

And yeah, every member of my family hated it and tried to make me feel bad for taking them on it.

This was about the time I started planning a trip with my sisters because these boys were being a total drag.

Next up: trying to regroup and figure out what to do with these wimpy boys for the rest of the day.

 

[TheOneWithTheTriplets]

Jedi training looks like lots of fun.

The boys also met Chewbacca and BB8, which I guess was cool? Sorry, I love coffee more than Star Wars.

This was the correct decision!!

Sad they didn't like ToT. Perhaps they'll grow into it.

 

[missjackiemcg]

"Wimpy boys" LOL I absolutely loved all the pics of Jedi training. Your son is simply adorable! (well they both are, to be honest)

 

[cinderaimee]

Jedi training looks like lots of fun.



This was the correct decision!!

Sad they didn't like ToT. Perhaps they'll grow into it.

Jedi training was great! I was really sad that the boys didn't like ToT. We'll try again when they're older. I was super annoyed at the time though.

"Wimpy boys" LOL I absolutely loved all the pics of Jedi training. Your son is simply adorable! (well they both are, to be honest)

Thank you so much!

 

[missangelalexis]

A little late but joining in! I'm so sorry about the loss of your mother. Hope you are doing ok I'm sure it was nice for you all to get away and have some happy times together.

Your AK day sounds great! Tusker House is such a great character buffet, glad you enjoyed it.

I am with you on the purple ears!! The pink ones are nice and all but I just HAD to have the purple ones!

Sounds like a great morning at DHS! I've done Hollywood & Vine for lunch/dinner and have always enjoyed it.

Haha the wimpy boys!! You totally earned that girls only trip!

 

[disneyAndi14]

Such cute Jedi training pictures. I’m so proud of myself because I will ride ToT and actually like it now, I am a wimpy lady!

 

[ariane37]

Anyway, when the stormtrooper switched their lightsabers, DS1 burst into tears. You just never know what will set these kids off.

Ok I know this most likely wasn't funny at the time but as a fellow boy mom I have to say I do love his face!

Next, we walked over to the Star Wars Launch Bay and there were some stormtroopers outside doing pictures, so we walked up to one and the boys had their lightsabers out and the stormtrooper made them switch - DS1 was wearing a Chewbacca shirt and had a red lightsaber and DS2 was wearing a First Order shirt and a green lightsaber, so obviously it made sense to switch., but DS1 was Darth Vader for Halloween and I think his loyalty actually is to the First Order, but that morning he decided he w

And I had to quote this because as someone who isn't a SW fan and knows basically nothing about it, the movies, the characters- this paragraph is all Greek to me lol

And yeah, every member of my family hated it and tried to make me feel bad for taking them on it.

This was about the time I started planning a trip with my sisters because these boys were being a total drag.

You did the correct thing!

I did end up going to an ENT for my ear and had this totally messed up infection. No problems since. I hope it didn't last long for your DH!

 

[cinderaimee]

A little late but joining in! I'm so sorry about the loss of your mother. Hope you are doing ok I'm sure it was nice for you all to get away and have some happy times together.

Your AK day sounds great! Tusker House is such a great character buffet, glad you enjoyed it.

I am with you on the purple ears!! The pink ones are nice and all but I just HAD to have the purple ones!

Sounds like a great morning at DHS! I've done Hollywood & Vine for lunch/dinner and have always enjoyed it.

Haha the wimpy boys!! You totally earned that girls only trip!

Thank you for following along!

Such cute Jedi training pictures. I’m so proud of myself because I will ride ToT and actually like it now, I am a wimpy lady!

Well, you are less wimpy than my husband!

Ok I know this most likely wasn't funny at the time but as a fellow boy mom I have to say I do love his face!

No, it was pretty funny at the time.

And I had to quote this because as someone who isn't a SW fan and knows basically nothing about it, the movies, the characters- this paragraph is all Greek to me lol

I've learned so much more about Star Wars than I ever wanted to from these boys. Red lightsaber = bad guy. DS1 had a good guy shirt and a bad guy lightsaber and the stormtrooper tried to fix it.

 

[Princess Meg]

just joining. Looks like you had a wonderful time!

 

[cinderaimee]

just joining. Looks like you had a wonderful time!

thanks for following along!

 

[cinderaimee]

Saturday, January 12 - Hollywood Studios - Part Three

After torturing my family on ToT, we had to decide what to do next. We wandered back to the main area of the park and the Star Wars stage show was starting in a few minutes, so we got a spot for that. The boys had some granola bars and applesauce that I'd packed while I refreshed my phone like a crazy person trying to get a FP for something. I managed to get a AS2 FP for a few hours later and put my phone away.

The boys enjoyed the Star Wars show. I'm also interested to see what happens to this and the Launch Bay when Galaxy's Edge opens.

After the show, we gave the boys the choice of watching the Frozen show, the Little Mermaid show, or the Disney Jr. dance party. They picked the dance party, so we headed over that way. We had a few minutes before we needed to get in line, so we met Pluto and did some PP pictures.

The dance party was super cute, and the boys really had a fun time! The old puppet show wasn't bad, but I thought this was a better experience for little kids to be able to move around and see the characters.

I didn't get a ton of pictures because I was living that FP refresh life, and managed to swap the AS2 FP for TSMM.

After the show was done, we went to the ABC Commissary for a little lunch. Since they don't separate the QS credits into adults or kids, we ordered two adult size bacon cheeseburgers and fries that we cut in half and everyone got some, and we split the bbq ribs platter, which is pretty dang huge. I didn't take any pictures, but this was probably the most disappointing meal of the trip. The burgers were dry and flavorless. The ribs were okay, but they were super saucy and gloppy. Maybe that's how some people like ribs, but I'd rather have the sauce on the side.

The best part of the meal was my drink - I got a Happy Daze - "Parrot Bay Coconut Rum, Melon Liqueur, Banana Liqueur and Grenadine with Orange and Pineapple Juice", and that made me not really care about the rest of the meal.

While we were eating, we decided that after we did TSMM we'd head back to the hotel so we could have some time at the pool - it was already time to switch resorts and we wanted to try out the CBR pool at least once.

After we ate, we were heading back to TSL and in front of the Chinese theater, they had put out a bunch of hoola hoops and there were a lot of kids running around, so we spent quite a bit of time there letting the boys play and work off their lunch.

Heading back to TSL we got some PP pictures done and made our way over to TSMM.

Somehow, I got an even worse score the second time around, but I still love this ride and think it's so much fun.

It was about 5:00 at this point and we headed out for the buses. We got back to the resort and had only planned to go to the pool for about an hour since it was getting dark, but ended up staying until they closed at 9:00! The kids were having so much fun on the slides and swimming and just couldn't be happier. DS2 figured out how to float on his back and would just float around looking at the moon and stars. It was such a nice night.

After we got back into dry clothes, we were all so hungry so we went back to the food court - we got a chicken nugget meal, and a grilled cheese for the kids, I got a rice bowl and DH had a chorizo burger - everything was great!

While we were eating, DS2 could not even keep his eyes open, sign of a good vacation right there, lol


Back in the room, the boys were asleep instantly while I packed.

DH took the bus over to Disney Springs because we realized we were going to need another bag by the end of the trip, at the rate we were accumulating souvenirs. He also wanted to get a luggage lock since we had iPads and laptops in our bag and he was worried about something going missing while they were in transit to the new resort. He ended up finding a lock at the Tumi store and a decent duffel bag at Under Armour, plus a bunch of new shirts for himself.

I called Bell Services and arranged for the bags to be picked up at 9 the next morning and then it was time for bed!

Tomorrow is our first Magic Kingdom day and moving to the Wilderness Lodge for the next six nights!

 

[missjackiemcg]

After the show was done, we went to the ABC Commissary for a little lunch.

We have only eaten there once and it was easily the most disappointing meal I've ever had at WDW!!

The best part of the meal was my drink - I got a Happy Daze - "Parrot Bay Coconut Rum, Melon Liqueur, Banana Liqueur and Grenadine with Orange and Pineapple Juice", and that made me not really care about the rest of the meal.

This does seem like the key to making ABC Commissary more delightful

 

[missangelalexis]

Sounds like a great afternoon at DHS and a really nice night at the pool and resort!