Disney Trip 2013 - Departure Day and Final Thoughts

This is the final post of my Disney Trip report – click for  post #1, post #2, post #3, post #4, post #5, post #6, and post #7!

We got up early on our departure day. We had to be out of the room by 11 and needed to do most of the packing. Emily and I went to the car to load some things up and I got some pictures of her in the resort which was really beautiful.

We had some credits left on the dining plan so Emily and I got some breakfast. Todd wasn’t hungry because he was a bit sick – he thought he might have gotten food poisoning though Emily and I were fine.

Todd finished up loading the car while I amused Emily in the arcade since we had some credits left. We got checked out and then went to the food court to spend the rest of our dining plan credits so we could have snacks for the drive home.

The drive home was pretty uneventful and we got back late that night. I was sad to go but it was nice to be home.

Emily and I want to go back to Disney World as soon as we can, though Todd is less thrilled about going back. We are tentatively planning on going back in 2016, probably in September.

I thought the trip went really well. We didn’t see everything but we had a pretty relaxed time with taking afternoon breaks. It really helped Emily be able to keep going by taking a nap in the afternoon.

The new Magic Bands are great! They work for everything from opening the room, to the dining plan to Fast Pass +. I was really intrigued when I first heard about the Magic Bands and I’m really glad that we got to try them.

I also loved the new Fast Pass +. We never used Fast Pass that much before, and we still didn’t for a lot of things. But it fits our style of touring which is laid back. I didn’t mind scheduling our Fast Pass + selections in advance. The only thing I would have done differently would have been to print out all our Fast Pass + selections for each day so I wouldn’t have to try and fiddle with the My Disney Experience app.

All in all, it was a pretty magical first trip for Emily. I asked her last night what her favorite things to do at Disney were. She said that she loved meeting the characters and riding Dumbo and Star Tours. Hopefully she’ll still love it once we go back in a few years!

Being Different Is A Good Thing – A Children’s Book

Image: http://furry-feline.com/

As a geek, I have always known that I’m a little different from many folks out there. My daughter, who is five, has already expressed interest in geeky things at a young age. So the children’s book, Being Different Is A Good Thing, which features Furry Feline characters, has been great in helping her know there is nothing wrong with being different.

The Furry Feline characters are a line of plush animals, but this new children’s book brings these characters to life. Being Different Is A Good Thing tells the story of Chef Tako, who is an octopus. He becomes concerned because all of his friends have tails and he doesn’t. He does finally realize that being different is a good thing, by embracing the things that are good about him and not worrying that he doesn’t have a tail.

This was a really sweet story with cute characters. My daughter really enjoyed it. I’d recommend Being Different Is A Good Thing to any parent of young kids to help bring the point across that being different is just fine.

Note: I received a copy of this book for review purposes.

Three Times Lucky by Sheila Turnage – A Preteen Murder Mystery

Image: http://sheilaturnage.com

You may think that a murder mystery might not be the ideal subject matter for a novel geared towards kids 10 and older. But Three Times Lucky by Sheila Turnage is a great introduction to this genre for preteens.

Three Times Lucky tells the story of sixth grader Mo LoBeau. Mo is an orphan who washed ashore after a hurricane as a newborn. She lives with her guardians, Miss Lana and the Colonel. Her family is about the most unusual thing in the small North Carolina town that they live in, until a policeman comes to town, looking for clues for about a murder. The Colonel, who found Mo as a baby and has no memory before that time, comes under scrutiny from the lawman. Because of this, Mo and her friend Dale start investigating as well and find themselves swept into the mystery.

This book is a great introduction to the murder mystery genre. All the parts, such as the murders, that could be gory are done “off camera” and none of the kids in the book are exposed to it. Even as an adult, I enjoyed Three Times Lucky a great deal, in part because it is set in my home state of North Carolina.

Three Times Lucky is currently available in hardcover, for the Kindle and for the Nook.

Disney Trip 2013 - Disney's Hollywood Studios

This is the 7th post of my Disney Trip report – click for  post #1, post #2, post #3, post #4, post #5, and post #6!

Even though I had had a long night before, we got up early for our last park today. We were heading to Disney’s Hollywood Studios. We had to sit down reservations so Todd decided that we were going to rent a stroller in hopes Emily would nap there instead of going back to the room for nap time.

My in-laws met us in the lobby at 8:30 am and we took the bus to the park together. Emily was a little cranky today but was excited to have a stroller. The first thing we did was we went to see Pluto and Goofy. Emily decided that she didn’t really want pictures anymore just autographs. These two were the last we needed for because of the disappeared Chef Mickey’s pictures and we were able to convince her to take a picture.

From there, we went to Star Tours with my in laws. Emily hasn’t seen Star Wars yet because I’m paranoid

that she’s not going to like it. But she’s see the Lego Star Wars games and has a limited understanding of what Star Wars is.

I love Star Tours and was excited to ride it since I haven’t been since they upgraded it. Emily was a little unsure, especially since this was the wildest ride we had been on. She said she didn’t like it when we got out and we headed over to see the Muppets show.

The Muppets was good and Emily enjoyed herself, especially playing with the 3D glasses while we waited. Once we got out of the show, we went to meet Phineas and Ferb. They were really awesome and I got in the picture too because Emily was being shy. I also got a picture of myself with a Ducky MoMo statuesince I’m planning on making a Ducky MoMo costume for Dragon Con next year.

It was more characters after that. We went into the Animation Building to meet Wreck-It Ralph and Vanellope. Emily wanted both Todd and I to come up with her so we did. That’s how we got our only full family pictures the entire vacation!

It was nearing the time of our first reservation so we headed over to Hollywood and Vine. Our reservation was at 11 when they started serving lunch. It was also a character meal with some of the Disney Junior characters. We were a bit early and got checked in. The cast member checking us in had chalk that she was giving to the kids, so Emily had

fun drawing on the ground. The characters also kept coming up to the windows and waved at the kids
waiting

Finally we were seated and June from the Little Einsteins came over right away. Emily was happy to get her

to autograph her book but wanted no part in the pictures. So Todd got his picture with June. Same thing with Jake, so I got my picture taken with him.

Oso came around next and Todd took one picture with me and Oso standing behind Emily’s chair. I was sad that it didn’t turn out because it was really blurry. I got in the picture with Handy Manny too, I actually photobombed the picture because I had been coming back from the buffet.

The food was excellent and the chef came out and advised me which foods were dangerous to me with my shellfish and tree nut allergy. Todd agreed the meal was very good though surmised it was partly because the food was fresh.

After we ate, we headed over to get in line to meet Sofia the First. She is the newest character available for meet and greets so the line was long. Todd left us since he didn’t care about meeting Sofia to go ride Rock 'n' Roller Coaster. We waited probably a half hour for Sophia. A couple of times she had to take a break – the cast members with her always said that she needed to go back and check on her winged horse, Minimus.

Emily got a kick out of that and still talks about how Minimus was just backstage.

Again Emily didn’t want to be in the picture by herself so I got in it with her. Sofia was very sweet and well worth the wait. I got Emily in her stroller and we went over to Star Tours where we were going to meet up with Todd. Emily didn’t nap or even get sleepy as I rolled her over there so I got us a snack to eat while we were waiting.

Once Todd joined us, Emily decided that she wanted to brave Star Tours again. This time she loved it and wanted to ride it again. Since there was very little waiting we rode it again. She wanted to keep riding it but there were other things we wanted to do.

I had Fastpass + for the Disney Junior Show and the Toy Story Mania ride. But they were both a little later in the afternoon. Even though the Toy Story Mania standby wait time was listed at two hours, we decided to get in line.

The queue had all kinds of different toys large sized and a giant Mr. Potato Head who sang songs and told jokes. Once we got past Mr. Potato Head the line moved pretty fast. The ride itself was a lot of fun. You put on 3D glasses and then get spun around to different scenes were you get to shoot at targets and earn points. It was fun and Emily really enjoyed it.

After that, we met up with my in-laws and we all decided to go to the next showing of the Disney Junior show. It had all of Emily’s favorite characters from her favorite shows in puppet form. There was Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Sofia the First, Doc McStuffins and Jake and the Neverland Pirates. The show was really cute and things would fall from the sky like bubbles and tissue paper gold doubloons.

There was time left so we all decided to go ride on the Great Movie Ride. I was little afraid that some of the scenes, like the one from Alien, would scare Emily but she loved the ride. I’m a big movie nut and have a degree in Broadcasting, so it’s one of my favorites.

From there decided to go to where we had dinner reservations early since our reservations were pretty late. We ate at 50’s Prime Time Café. We were seated pretty quickly and had a nice meal. Emily was excited because I got her a special class with a light up Ariel and our server also gave her a light up Tinkerbelle.

Once we were done, it was after 7 pm and we had been in the park for about 10 hours. Emily was getting tired and we were driving home the next day so we opted to skip the fireworks show and head back to the resort.

Up next post - Departure Day and Final Thoughts

Disney Trip 2013 - Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party

This is the 6th post of my Disney Trip report – click for  post #1, post #2, post #3, post #4, and post #5!

On our Disney honeymoon, my favorite thing that we did was Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party. I love Halloween and the party didn’t disappoint. I knew I wanted to do the party again this trip and originally wanted all of us to go. Todd felt that Emily was too young and instead of fighting about it, it was decided that I would go solo.

Since I love costumes, I knew I wanted to wear one to the party. Since I wanted to ride the rides, I knew my Kaylee layer cake dress was out even though it would have been so fun to wear. I ultimately decided on my Petit Charat costume since it was fun, comfortable and I could remove my tail if need be.

The party ticket is a separate cost and while the party starts at 7 pm, partygoers can gain entry into the Magic Kingdom at 4 pm. I got dressed and was down at the bus stop in time to get to the park right at 4.

Not all the rides and attractions are open for the party so I decided to use my three hours of regular park time to ride some things I didn’t get to do the previous today. I hightailed it to Tomorrowland so I could go on the Carousel of Progress, which is one of my favorites.

From there, I went to Adventureland to ride on the Jungle Cruise. The line was really long but I decided to

wait for it anyway. After the Jungle Cruise, I caught the last showing of the Enchanted Tiki Room.

It was nearly 7 pm and the start of the party, so I went back to Main Street. I had decided to find a spot and

sit there for the parade, the Villians show and then the fireworks. This wasn’t the best idea because I spent a lot of time sitting. I did have an awesome front row spot for the parade – I even got high fived by Tigger! The Villians show happened after that, and it wasn’t that exciting. They did a couple of songs and then went down in front of the Castle for a meet and greet.

Since I was sitting right in front of the Castle and Main Street was getting really crowded, I opted not to move before the HalloWishes fireworks. The hour arrived and they turned off all the lights on Main Street and the fireworks started. I love the Halloween fireworks and really enjoyed them this year as well.

Once the fireworks ended, I got caught in a brief traffic jam to get out of the hub. I headed off and stopped at the first trick or treat location I saw since I had promised Emily I would bring back candy. I waited for about 5 minutes to go through the trick or treat line. I went to other candy stations and didn’t have to wait at all.

I headed first to New Fantasyland because was really thirsty and I wanted to try LaFou’s Brew. It was really good but really sweet after I had gotten about halfway through. I made my way to my favorite ride, the Haunted Mansion which was awesome as always.

I got caught by the 2^nd parade going through Frontierland, so I ended up doing another trick or treat trail and then some shopping. Once the path was clear, I headed over to ride Pirates and hit a few more trick or treat trails. By this time, it was past 11 pm so I decided to start heading towards the exit. I did some shopping on the way out, finding the Maleficent Ears that I had been searching all evening.

I got back to the room around midnight and I fell into bed. It was a long but really fun evening.

Up next post - Disney's Hollywood Studios

Disney Trip 2013 - Rest Day

This is the 5th post of my Disney Trip report – click for  post #1, post #2, post #3, and post #4!

On our Disney honeymoon, we went non-stop. Long days in the park, one rest day and our trip was eight days long. Three weeks after we got back, Todd ended up in the hospital with a heart attack scare. He didn’t end up actually having a heart attack, but he likes to say that Disney tried to kill him.

So when planning this trip, we decided only to be less commando about it. We planned on taking mid-day breaks so Emily could rest and nap. We also put in a rest day near the middle of the trip so we could just relax. Also, this was the day that I was going to go to Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween party solo.

We started out the day just sleeping in. Emily got up around 7 am and we watched cartoons while Todd slept. After he got up we

started moving because we did want to go to Downtown Disney for a little bit. After taking the bus, we got down there just before the shops started opening up.

The Christmas shop was the one that I really wanted to go to so I could get my 2013 ornament. Right outside the Christmas shop was a carousel. Emily wanted to ride it, but didn’t want to go alone. We purchased two tokens, but since I was just going with her it only cost us one. We used the other token to ride on the little train that was nearby.

While Emily was riding on the train, I went into a nearby pin shop. I love Disney pins though I’m not into pin trading. All my pins are special to me and I actually try to collect Haunted Mansion pins in particular. I got a Madame Leota 2013 pin and then saw the end of Emily’s train ride.

We hit the Once Upon A Toy shop where Emily played with the Mr. Potato Head parts and then we went to the Lego store. I love the Lego store and could spend a lot of money there. Emily had fun playing with the Legos. I restrained myself and only bought two minifig key chains.

Since Emily had spent the last of her money the day before we opted not to go into the World of Disney store. It was getting close to lunch time so we just went back to our room. We got lunch from the food court and ate it in the room. Emily really wanted to go swimming in the Big Pool Blue so I went down with her for an hour or so.

Emily currently doesn’t know how to swim so I was very vigilant about being close to her. She did want to get out of the pool and wipe her face. That kind of became a game as I would say

“Wow, that didn’t take too long!” each time she came back.

We headed back to the room so Emily could nap. I just vegged out with Todd while for a few hours and then I started to get ready for the party. I thought Emily was old enough for the party but Todd disagreed and instead of fighting with him, it was decided that I would go by myself. We’ll be back so I figure Emily can go to the party sometime. 

Up next post – Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party!

Disney Trip 2013 - Magic Kingdom Part 2

This is the 4th post of my Disney Trip report – click for post #1, post #2, and post #3!

After we all got some rest, we headed back to the Magic Kingdom for a few more hours. As part of the new Fantasyland expansion, there is a new restaurant called Be Our Guest that nearly everyone wants to eat at. For lunch, its counter service so you can just walk up, though the lines can be very long from what I’ve heard.  For dinner, its table service so you have to have a reservation.

When it was time to make our reservations (which was six months before our trip), my travel agent warned that she might not be able to get a reservation for Be Our Guest. I was fine with that but luckily she got us one for 4:05 pm on our Magic Kingdom day.

There were other people waiting when we got to Beast’s castle (where Be Our Guest is located) but it didn’t take us long before we were seated at our table. We were in the room that had a giant music box of Belle and Beast.

Dinner was really good and for dessert Emily got The Grey Stuff, which is a grey pudding that they only give to guests who are having a celebration. There is a dessert that has the grey stuff on top because it was so popular. Emily also got a special birthday card signed by Belle and the Beast.

After dinner, it was time to go meet the Beast who only meets guests at Be Our Guest after they have had dinner. The Beast was huge! Emily got a little freaked out and wouldn’t take her picture with him. I love Beauty and the Beast so I got my picture with

him. Beast tried to come over and say hi to Emily but she just hid behind Todd.

From there, we headed to ride some more rides. Since this was Emily’s birthday trip we decided to let her decide what we rode. She knew that my favorite ride is The Haunted Mansion so she wanted to ride it. I thought she would be fine, Todd though she would be really scared. Emily decided we were going to ride it.

Since the last time we were at Disney World, they re-did the queue area for The Haunted Mansion. Now it’s interactive where the kids can go up and touch some of the busts. There is a big organ with music instruments on the side. If you touch theinstruments, it will play spooky music.

Finally we got inside the stretching room and I knew that this part

could be scary so I picked Emily up. She didn’t seem very scared even when the lights went out (though I don’t think she looked up either to see the ‘surprise’ in the ceiling). We got into our doombuggy and off we went.

After we got off the ride, we looked at her and she looked at Todd and told him that it wasn’t scary but fun. So I won that one! We were near where Tiana does meet and greets so we went over there to see if we could meet Tiana. The handler said that Tiana and her prince, Naveen, were going to take a break after the current line was done and the queue usually filled up fast.

Because Tiana is Emily’s favorite princess we got in line behind some people who were already waiting. They ended up leaving so we were first in line. Emily had gotten a Woody doll earlier in the day and had brought him with her. So she had something to

amuse herself. Todd and I both took turns going to look in the nearby gift shops.

Finally it was time to meet Tiana and Naveen. This was best character meeting we had. Tiana and Naveen sang Emily a very short birthday song. Emily told Tiana that Emily was Tiana’s favorite (instead of the other way around), Tiana just gave her a big hug and told her yes, Emily was her favorite.

It only lasted about five minutes but it cemented Tiana as Emily’s favorite princess. She liked Naveen too and said later that he was very handsome. It was a very magical moment.

Since it was getting dark and Emily was silly tired, we headed back to our hotel. Emily had kept her hair up all day and it still retained its shape even once I got the crown and hair ties out. We gave her a bath and got a lot of the sparkles out. It took another bath before the majority of the sparkles were gone.

Up next post – Downtown Disney!