A Guide to Taking it Easy at WDW. Oct 2014 Mother/Daughter Trip Updated 3/6x2 The End!

[Chicago Mo]

you saw a LOT sitting on that bench!!! how dreamy!!! and how adorable for the proposal! i totally would have been snapping away.

 

[KatMark]

I think Pirates closes the day after I leave in May and will be open for October (I think the girls will be disappointed that it is not open in July).

AWESOME parade pictures. I have this on the top of the list for one of my three trips. I will NOT miss it this year. I was so sad to have missed it last year.

I'm glad you were able to get a FP+ for POTC and then got to see it the Shake It parade.

 

[Kirby]

I saw the flag lowering ceremony in December for the first time. It was a very moving experience, especially when the chosen veteran of the day received the flag. We walked down Main Street not realizing we were following them and was able to witness him also receiving a certificate.

 

[Pluto0809]

Ever since FP+ pirates has had long standby lines. I love the Halloween decor one day I'll see it in person. That was a cute way to do a proposal most do it front of the castle. That seemed like a more secluded area for them.

I think part of the line that day was also due to it being down most of the morning. The Halloween decorations are pretty cute but I still think I prefer the Christmas ones.

For just sitting on a bench, you sure did see a lot! But I guess that's the beauty of Disney, there is always something to look at So cool that you got to witness a proposal!

Yep, there is always something going on to watch and we had a very nice time doing that.

Oof, 45 minutes for Pirates. Thank you FP+.

Every single trip I promise myself that I'm going to see the Tiki Room, and every single trip I fail. Next time!

Awwww what a great proposal. I love seeing stuff like that in Disney.

It was a pretty long line but part of it was due to the ride being down for half the day. I was very relieved to snag a FP. You need to see the Tiki Room! I'm surprised you haven't with your love for the Country Bears. Not exactly the same thing but a similar concept.

you saw a LOT sitting on that bench!!! how dreamy!!! and how adorable for the proposal! i totally would have been snapping away.

I should have taken pictures! And yes, there is always something going on on Main Street.

I think Pirates closes the day after I leave in May and will be open for October (I think the girls will be disappointed that it is not open in July).

AWESOME parade pictures. I have this on the top of the list for one of my three trips. I will NOT miss it this year. I was so sad to have missed it last year.

I'm glad you were able to get a FP+ for POTC and then got to see it the Shake It parade.

I'm kind of glad I don't have a trip planned this summer because I would badly miss Pirates. Granted I would still go regardless! Definitely make the parade a priority this summer! And watching it from Fronterland was nice because it was less crowded than Main Street.

I saw the flag lowering ceremony in December for the first time. It was a very moving experience, especially when the chosen veteran of the day received the flag. We walked down Main Street not realizing we were following them and was able to witness him also receiving a certificate.

We didn't get to see the actual ceremony at the flag pole from where we were sitting but we could hear it happening. I had no idea they would then come down the alley where we were sitting!

 

[Pluto0809]

Step 24: Climb a Tree to Watch the Sunset Part 1

At about 6 pm, we headed back into Adventureland for the third time that day and used our 5th FP+ for Pirates. I did not take one photo because I was worried about getting my camera wet. This was the first time that I noticed that they were not filling the last row of the boats any more. I’m guessing the boats were too heavy and that’s why people were getting so wet on the ride. Mom and I were far enough back in the boat that we didn’t get wet this time.

Pirates did not take nearly enough time up so we still had a bit before our dinner ADR. Neither of us had climbed the Swiss Family tree in years so we decided to do that to waste some time. The sun was starting to go down so it wasn’t as hot.













We paused towards the top so I could try to get some sunset pictures from up there.





I think this next one is my favorite. It might even be my favorite from the entire trip.

















Continued in Next Post

 

[Pluto0809]

Step 24: Climb a Tree to Watch the Sunset Part 2

Continued from Previous Post

After that, we headed once again back out to Main Street and checked in at our dinner destination, The Plaza Restaurant.





I wasn’t long before we were called in and seated. We were given the same exact table I sat at when I went solo in 2013. The view was not as good this time due to the construction around the Hub.



Mom got the Cheese Steak Sandwich.



And the Broccoli Slaw as her side.



I went with my go to meal here and got a burger and fries. Ketchup only on the burger of course.



For dessert, Mom got vanilla ice cream with caramel sauce.



And I got a chocolate milk shake.



Our meal was very yummy and we enjoyed it a lot.

We decided to head out after dinner but of course did so via the stores. We stopped at the Emporium and I got a pack of 5 lollypops. They weren’t for me but rather for the five kids I send Halloween gifts to. This was a no brainer since there were five in the pack and I could take it apart and put one in each kid’s bag.



I also got a Pluto toy.



I picked up two more of the Duffy Series 1 Vinylmations. I got four total throughout the week and here they are after I opened them all.



Luckily I didn’t get any repeats and I ended up getting the other four off of Ebay after I got home.



We then headed over to the crystal arts store and I got a mini Pluto. He was on sale because the design was discontinued. Bonus for me!





We headed out of the park and back to our room at 8:30 pm.

I did quite a bit of pin trading during this day. Does anyone know what the Goofy one is supposed to be? I just thought it was neat so I got it.



Up Next: Step 25: Have a Lazy Morning Shopping at DTD

 

[missangelalexis]

Beautiful pics while climbing the treehouse, especially those sunset ones! Sounds like a good dinner, I'm glad you both enjoyed it! Those Duffys are too cute. Heading out via the gift shops is always so fun!

 

[rteetz]

Great treehouse pics! I don't remeber the last time I was in the treehouse. I have also never eaten at the Plaze but it looks like a good meal. Great pin finds and mini Pluto.

 

[DisneyKid4Life]

My goodness it's been a while since I climbed the treehouse. I don't know if there's any attraction that gets as little interest as this one. But it is pretty cool with some nice views at the very least. I'd live there.

That does look like a nice colection of food right there. I can't wait for the Hub construction to finish. It really does look pretty awful.

Pluto toy... of course.

 

[Chicago Mo]

fantastic Photos!!!!!! They are SO SO BEAUTIFUL!
Awesome Finds! Love your little pluto!!! Sorry i have no idea about the Goofy?!?! Looks like a crazy HM type of thing???

 

[KatMark]

I enjoy going up in the Treehouse. Mark doesn't, so I've only done it once the last three years and that was with the girls. I'll have to see if they want to do it again in July. Great pictures, and love the ones of the sun starting to set that you got.

As you know, we LOVE the Plaza, and so glad that you had yet another good meal there.

Nice pin trading collection.

 

[missjackiemcg]

I am in love with your tree house pictures! I have never gone up and have no idea why!?! After seeing the gorgeous pictures you were able to get from the top, I think it's clear where I'm heading next time I'm in Adventureland

Not sure about the Goofy pin, but it definitely seems Haunted Mansion-ish

 

[PrincessInOz]

What a great idea to climb the treehouse at sunset. Lovely colour in the pictures.
Nice looking meal at the Plaza.
Love the merch!

 

[Pluto0809]

Beautiful pics while climbing the treehouse, especially those sunset ones! Sounds like a good dinner, I'm glad you both enjoyed it! Those Duffys are too cute. Heading out via the gift shops is always so fun!

Thanks, it was really pretty to see the park from up there at that time of the evening. I really was only collecting the Pluto vinyls before this trip but now I'm addicted to them! I couldn't resist the cute Duffy ones at all.

Great treehouse pics! I don't remeber the last time I was in the treehouse. I have also never eaten at the Plaze but it looks like a good meal. Great pin finds and mini Pluto.

I actually climb the Tree House quite often but I grew up watching the movie and it's one of my favorites. The Plaza is always good for a meal. I've eaten there four times now and it's been excellent every time.

My goodness it's been a while since I climbed the treehouse. I don't know if there's any attraction that gets as little interest as this one. But it is pretty cool with some nice views at the very least. I'd live there.

That does look like a nice colection of food right there. I can't wait for the Hub construction to finish. It really does look pretty awful.

Pluto toy... of course.

Oh I'd live in that tree house too! I loved that movie growing up and always wanted to move to that island and live in the trees. If it has Pluto on it, I can almost guarantee you that it's coming home with me.

fantastic Photos!!!!!! They are SO SO BEAUTIFUL!
Awesome Finds! Love your little pluto!!! Sorry i have no idea about the Goofy?!?! Looks like a crazy HM type of thing???

Thanks! I'm thinking you may want to add the Tree House to your list for next trip. I've also heard it's fun to watch Wishes from up there. I'm thinking Goofy is something from the HM too but it's hard to tell. I was thinking Pirates at one time but the little ghost faces seem to be more HM.

I enjoy going up in the Treehouse. Mark doesn't, so I've only done it once the last three years and that was with the girls. I'll have to see if they want to do it again in July. Great pictures, and love the ones of the sun starting to set that you got.

As you know, we LOVE the Plaza, and so glad that you had yet another good meal there.

Nice pin trading collection.

It was definitely a great time of day to climb the tree with the sun starting to set. The Plaza is becoming a must do for me, I love eating there.

I am in love with your tree house pictures! I have never gone up and have no idea why!?! After seeing the gorgeous pictures you were able to get from the top, I think it's clear where I'm heading next time I'm in Adventureland

Not sure about the Goofy pin, but it definitely seems Haunted Mansion-ish

I climb it a lot but mainly because I'm a big fan of the movie and I love seeing it recreated. I do think the pin has something to do with the HM but who knows for sure?

What a great idea to climb the treehouse at sunset. Lovely colour in the pictures.
Nice looking meal at the Plaza.
Love the merch!

It did turn out to be a great time to climb the tree and the photos turned out pretty good. I love how the light is reflecting off of the Astro Orbiter in the one photo.

 

[Pluto0809]

Step 25: Have a Lazy Morning Shopping at DTD

Well folks, we have come to the last day of this trip. It was probably the laziest day for us and I only have enough photos for two posts. So I'm going to go ahead and finish this one off today. That way I can start concentrating more on the other two TRs I have going.

We took our time in the morning on Thursday, October 16th, 2014. We were heading to DTD to shop and since the stores didn’t open till 10 am, we had some time.

We stopped for a few photos on the way to breakfast.



Wish I was smiling a little more on this next one.



We had a light breakfast again, I had a bagel and Mom had oatmeal but I didn’t take any pictures. We stopped at the front desk on the way out because they always put Mom and I on different buses back to the airport. She had an earlier flight than me but I didn’t want to sit at the resort without her or send her to the airport by herself. That taken care of, we headed to the bus since the boats to DTD were not running yet. We caught a bus very quickly and arrived at DTD before the stores were even open. We found a bench outside Once Upon a Toy and I finally took some more pictures.





We headed into Once Upon a Toy as soon as it opened because Mom couldn’t remember going in there before. She was a little disappointed because she was expecting old toys like they had in the decorations outside the store. But of course it’s just the same toys you see in all the stores. We did spend some time looking at the dolls in there, I think they are Precious Moments? If there had been a Pluto one, I might have bought it.

We moved on to WOD and I finally found the other Alex and Ani bracelet I was looking for.



Mom bought a watch there too but I didn’t get a picture. We continued to the Lego Store where I took pictures of the Architecture sets to send to Jim since I can never remember what he has. He had all the ones that were there so I didn’t get him any.

We stopped at D Street where I took more pictures of the Star Wars shirts to send to Jim so he could let me know if he wanted any of them.

We kept walking, stopping only for a minute to check out the concert schedule at House of Blues. Jim’s favorite band, Lacuna Coil, was playing that coming Sunday and he was flying down to see them. I really thought about extending my vacation a few days and joining him but I already had my flight home and it would have been expensive to change it. I took pictures of the schedule for him.





We did have a purpose for going that far in the West Side. We were catching a boat to Old Key West for lunch at Olivia’s Café. The boat for that resort launches from the far end of the West Side next to the House of Blues.

There was a boat waiting for us so we got underway pretty quickly. I snapped photos as we sailed along.

















Our ADR was at 12:30 but since we walked right onto a boat, we were pretty early. We looked around the resort a bit but then decided to check in for lunch at 12:00 pm. They took us right away even though we were early.

Mom started with a cup of the Conch soup.



For my meal I got a chicken dish that I can’t seem to find on the menu now. I’m sure it came with something other than the mashed potatoes and I did a substitution. Mom ate the asparagus for me.



Mom went with two appetizers as her meal. She got the Crab Cakes.



And a salad.



We were both somewhat disappointed in our meals. My chicken was very bland. So much so that I actually put salt and pepper on it and I never do that. Mom said the crab cakes were mostly breading and very little crab. She did like the soup but it was a little spicy for her.

We looked at a dessert menu but decided to skip because we wanted something different back at DTD. This seemed to make our server mad and he was quite snippy with us after that. We both agreed that while Olivia’s might be ok if you were staying there, it just wasn’t worth the trip for us to get there. I took one more photo before we got the boat back to DTD.



Up Next: Step 26: Eat Around the World Again

 

[Pluto0809]

Step 26: Eat Around the World Again

Well, the notes in my journal end right after lunch. Guess I ran out of time when I was working on them and then never went back and finished. I also took a dismal amount of pictures the rest of the day so the rest of this is strictly from memory. I know we stopped back in D Street so I could get the T-shirts that Jim wanted. There were actually three he picked from the pictures I sent him but one of them was sold out in his size by the time we got back from lunch.





I found a limited edition Halloween Vinylmation set with Pluto.





We stopped back at the Co Op Marketplace so I could see if the Dooney I had wanted had come back in. Of course it hadn’t so we moved on to the pin store. I bought a Passholder Exclusive pin.



We stopped at Ghiaradelli’s and got ice cream for dessert. Like I said I was horrible with the photos this day and did not take pictures. I know I got chocolate ice cream but I have no idea what Mom got.

We may have looked in some other stores but didn’t buy anything and then we headed to the new Marketplace boat dock to catch a ride back to the resort. That’s when I finally took another picture.



We stopped back at our room for at least a little bit to drop off packages and freshen up. I restocked my pin lanyard so I took a photo of the ones I traded for that morning at DTD.



We headed out via the lobby and I think Mom might have gone to use the restroom because I took a few lobby photos.







We were headed back to Epcot to do another lap around WS for Food and Wine. We stopped at the entrance for some PP pictures.





We did walk through Mouse Gears because I wanted to try to find where you could trade Vinyls there. There were not a lot of places in the parks to trade, basically just one place in each park. And now of course, they’ve completely eliminated the trading just when I got into it. I found the trading box at the back register and stopped to trade. I hadn’t had much luck with finding cute ones out of the boxes although I did trade for a Tumble Monkey one the day before at MK. I forgot to mention that when I was writing about that day. This time I did get lucky and pulled out a little turtle that is from an old Cartoon called “Pluto’s Housewarming”. Here he is with the Tumble Monkey.



We started out around WS again on the Mexico side. Mom was still on the hunt for cute coin purses for gift card holders and I figured Mexico or China might be good options. We didn’t find anything in Mexico but we did stop for another round of frozen Margaritas. I stuck with my Strawberry but Mom got Lime this time.

When we got to China, Mom decided she was going to be brave and go ahead and try the Black Pepper Shrimp with Sichuan noodles. She was worried it would be too spicy but she ended up loving it.



We spent quite a bit of time in the China store and Mom finally found some change purses to buy. We also stopped in to see the Tomb Warriors. Mom was amazed because she had no idea they were even there to look at.







We passed the Singapore booth and I almost got another Mahi Mahi but decided to wait. We went into the Caramel store in Germany so Mom could get some caramel popcorn for herself and to take home for my Great Aunt. I have a DIS friend who is very fond of the chocolate covered pineapple so I snapped this picture.



And that was the last picture I took the rest of the way around WS. I know we stopped at the Italy booth and the France booth and I had the Cheese Ravioli and the Beef Short Ribs again. I’m sure Mom had something too but I cannot remember.

Our final stop for the night was at the Canada booth where we each got a Wild Mushroom Beef Filet Mignon. It was dark at that point and most of the seating was filled with people waiting for Illuminations. We ended up eating our food standing up while trying to balance it so I didn’t get a picture. I’m sure you’ve all seen the dish before. We definitely enjoyed the filet and then headed out of WS and towards the front of the park. I took one last crappy picture of Spaceship Earth.



And then I stopped at an ice cream cart to get a Mickey ice cream sandwich. I had $3.00 left on my gift card so I dug a quarter out of my bag since the sandwiches are $3.25. Mom was still munching on her caramel popcorn so she didn’t get anything.

I only traded for one pin that evening, I’m pretty sure it was off of the pin board in the POFQ gift shop again.



I only have one picture from the last day so I’m just going to tack it on here. We had to catch the bus around 10:30 so we headed over around 8:00 am to check our bags and get some breakfast. Unfortunately Mom could not check her bags because I had messed up and booked her one way on Southwest and the other way on Airtran. No idea why this was a problem since they were basically the same company. At least Airtran is gone for good now so this won’t happen again. We ended up leaving her bag with bell services while we got breakfast. I had one more Mickey waffle. We went back to the room for a bit to pick up our carry-on bags then headed to the Magical Express stop to catch our bus. I took one last picture out the bus window as we pulled out.



The bus dropped us off about as far away from the Airtran counter as possible so poor Mom had to drag her checked suitcase halfway across the airport. I at least was able to help by carrying her carry-on bag for her. We got her bag checked and went through security pretty quickly. Mom’s flight was earlier than mine so we got her a McDonald’s sandwich for lunch and said our goodbyes. I went back to McDonald’s after she was gone and got myself a fish sandwich and then crashed at my gate till it was time for my flight home. I remember absolutely nothing from the flight home so I’m guessing it was pretty uneventful.

And that folks is the end. If you haven’t already joined me on my December TR and/or the Universal one, the links are in my signature.

 

[rteetz]

I absolutely loved your TR as always. The POFQ looks great I haven't stayed there since I was about 2 years old so i don't remeber much from it. Some great Vinylmation finds, i collect them as well and was saddened by the news that they don't trade anymore because I have two of the same Star Wars ones and i wanted to trade it for something else. Food and Wine looks like a great time to go to epcot and hopefully sometime in the future I can get to it. World Showcase is always fun but I don't think I have ever gone in China before. I tenatively am looking at another marathon weekend trip with my grandma and great aunt for january 2016. I am looking at tackling my first half marathon.

 

[DisneyKid4Life]

I think I need to get on one of the DTD boats sometime. The views look spectacular.

Hmmm, that server at Olivia's getting snippy because you didn't want dessert? That seems so odd.

You know, I bet there are loads of people who have never seen the warriors in China.

A DIS friend who is fond of the chocolate covered pineapple? Whoever could that be?

So glad you got to do this trip with your Mom. Sometimes "Taking it easy" really pays off.

 

[missjackiemcg]

Aww, another trip with Mom in the books! Sad it's come to an end but glad you're still going on the other two TRs so I can continue to enjoy the magic!

I don't know if I've ever asked what you do with all your pins back at home?? I have traded pins a couple of times but usually just get one or two each trip as a keepsake. My lanyard has room for about one more pin before it's full and I'm not sure what to do next!!

See you on the other TRs

 

[PrincessInOz]

Aww. Last day and the end of another TR.
This one looked like it was fun hanging out with your mom.
The vinylmations and pins are fantastic. I love that you get a few every time you go.

Thanks for sharing another trip with us.