And Off To WDW We Go

jsanders82

Mouseketeer
Joined
Nov 6, 2011
Where do you even start? We had an awesome trip to WDW. It was worth all the planning and YouTube videos. Thank you to everyone who took the time to answer my questions on this board. It’s hard to believe it is over.

I guess the best place is to start with who we are.

Who:

Me – 36, mom to 4 kids, works in insurance, 5 trips to WDW since I was a kid

DH – 38, works in sales, never been to WDW before

DS – 11, in 5th grade, loves Star Wars & Chewbacca, 2nd trip to WDW

DD – 10, in 4th grade, likes Disney but no a hardcore fan, 2nd trip to WDW

DSD – 10, in 3rd grade, loves Disney princesses, never been to WDW

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My brother and his family also joined us on the trip so we had 9 people in our group. We spent some days split up and others together. Hopefully, my trip report will help other planning a large family trip.

When: March 16 – March 23

Where did we stay: Windsor Hills (5 bed / 5 bath)

I started planning this trip about 1.5 years ago. I went before when I was previously married and my two kids were 4 and 3. They don’t remember it. My husband and stepdaughter had never been before. It was almost like a “first” trip for everyone except me. I planned some special events just for them.

Pre Travel Day, March 15 – we started our travel day the day before we flew out of Dallas. Since we live about 1.5 hrs away from the airport with a 6am flight, we all decided to stay in Dallas close to the airport. My brother actually lives in Oklahoma so he is about 3 hrs away.

We had a lot to accomplish this day. My husband had to work while I took the day off. I needed to pick my stepdaughter up in Oklahoma at 2:00. I wouldn’t be back home until around 4:00. I had finished packing our suitcases a few days earlier.

My husband gets home, packs the truck, meets with my coworker who is watching 2 (out of 4) of our dogs, and double checks the house. His brother will be staying at our house watching the other 2 dogs. I arrive back and it’s hard to believe… but we are on schedule. We planned to leave no later than 5:00 (I was thinking more like 7:00) but we were on the road by 4:30. We have time to kill so we drive out to Ft. Worth (about 40 mins from the airport) to have dinner with my MIL.

My brother had booked Crown Plaza on is points for all of us. When I spoke to him that afternoon, he said he would be getting in late as he had to finish up work before he started the drive. We made a few stops as we realized I forgot to pack my husband’s underwear… Whoops! We arrived at the hotel at 9:15 and had to wait until about 10:00 for my brother to arrive to check in. The kids were so excited. We set our alarms for 3am and tried to get some sleep.

Travel Day, March 16 – OMG! That alarm comes quickly! We slowly get up and start moving. Remind the kids that “guess what we will be in Disney World this afternoon”. The hotel is about 12 mins from the airport. We arrived about 4am as we were not sure how the flights would work out with the grounding of the MAX 800. We were lucky that our flight was not that aircraft but ½ the flights to Orlando were cancelled that day due to the aircraft. Our flight which is usually not sold out had a waiting list for families trying to get on it.

I love flying SouthWest. We keep pretty cheap fares and the customer service is always great. The pilot came out and talked to our kids while they were waiting to board. He showed them his pilot’s license and talked about flying with them. Flight was uneventful and I slept most of the way. We had planned the late afternoon and evening at HS so I knew I needed more sleep.

I rented a 14 person passenger van from Alamo. We ended up paying $654 for it. Small snag came when we were pulling out and Alamo tried to charge me for an extra driver for my husband. I told them that I confirmed twice with customer service that he would be covered at no additional charge. They then wanted to charge me and held us at the gate. I told them to call management as this is not the information I was told. After waiting about 10 mins, mgmt waived the fee but told me in the future they would charge me.

Got to the house, which was just as pictured. Settled in for a minute and then off to the Walmart pick up for our groceries. I love that this is an option now. I never once went in to the store but my husband said it was a mad house when he ran in later. Our guy Freddie was really nice. We tried to tip him but we were told they couldn’t accept it.

Lunch and adults napping. Kids were too hyped up to sleep so they swam and hung out. Back in the van, and off we go to HS. It was a short at most 15 min drive. We saved a lot by staying off site. I liked being able to decompress from all the people. It was a life saver not to share a room and bath with my kids :)

Hollywood Studios, March 16 – Got to the park just before 4:00pm. Our family was having a Star Wars day while my brother’s family was off to other things. Wave goodbye and off we go.

The only rude behavior we encountered our whole trip was this moment and from another guest. Our family lined up to take our first picture in front with the Chinese theater behind us. When it was our turn, the March started so the photog asked us to stand to the side. Once they had marched on, I walked back up to him and he gave me the SB sign. There were a couple of younger girls (early 20’s) who tried to grab the sign. They said that they thought they were first. I literally said “no, we were here before the March started and he asked us to wait on the side while they were marching.” I was trying to explain we were not cutting. The young girl called me a fat B under her breath and they both proceeded to talk crap about me cutting while we were having our pics taken. My husband afterwards said he couldn’t believe that the girls were talking about me. Told him who cares we are in Disney World.

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Off to our first FP which was Star Tours which had started at 3:40 pm. Loved the ride and we had Darth Vader appear in our show. Then it was off to RnR to try and get to the concert. I was nervous to ride this as I remember from before being kind of sick afterwards. Unfortunately, we had made a deal with the kids that they had to ride all the rides at least once so I did too. Below is our pic so you can see how that went :)

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I got lucky and scored a SD FP at 5:45. It was cute and I liked it better than SDMT but I don’t see the hype. I’m glad we rode it as the kids were excited to try it. We had a FP for it again on our other HS day.

Finally, it was time to start meeting the SW characters. When we ducked in to the Launch Pad, it looked like it would rain. I told my DH that I hoped it rained while we were inside. BB8 was first and had the shortest wait. Only took about 5 mins. DH was disappointed with it. Next up was Kylo Ren. I am not a big Star Wars fan…I’ve actually never seen one of the movies. Either way, this guy was creepy. The kids and DH loved how they stay in character. Lastly, Chewbacca was on the list. We waited about 30 mins. My DS is a hugger. Chewy and him no kidding just about hugged the whole M&G. DS was over the moon as Chewie told him in Chewbacca language that he was his son.

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We come out of the M&G and saw it was pouring – not a light rain. While everyone else is taking cover, we don our ponchos and head out for dinner. ***On a side note, we passed some older girls – maybe late teens – lying in a rain drain with the water pouring through their hair. They were completely soaked. I got a little grossed out watching all the dirt and leaves drain around them. ***

We went to BackStage Express for dinner. We even found a table inside in the right side of the restaurant. It was still raining while we ate. My husband and I got the Chicken and biscuits which was pretty decent. DSD got the kids chicken strips; DS and DD got the adult bacon cheeseburger. We got one soda and for some reason my DH bought bottled water. Total was $65.64. We were going to buy the peanut butter brownie but we didn’t realize the restaurant closed at 7:30. We were lucky that we got t o eat as we should up at 7:15.

We decided to hit up Toy Story Land. Let me tell you – the rain clears out people. Not to mention those who were there, were lining up for Fantasmic. We walked right on for Alien Saucers. It was ok. Glad we rode it but never did it again. Then we hopped on Slinky Dog again with a 15 min wait. I don’t even think it was that long. We liked this one at night better. The whole TSL was pretty at night. Then we were heading back for Star Wars fireworks.

It was not crowded at all. We sat in front of the trees / planters to the left of the theater. A family sat in front of us but no one stood between us and then show. We saw the Disney movies show – not sure what it is called. As I mentioned, I don’t follow Star Wars but I thought the show was great. My DH even got sports tears as it reminded him of his childhood.

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It was a great night and a long day. It took us about 15 mins to get back to the house where we all collapsed in exhaustion. Told the kids to get to bed as we had to leave the house by 6:45 to RD Magic Kingdom the next day.
 
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Enjoying your trip report! I'm sorry you had that encounter with the 20-something gals but glad it didn't affect your whole day! I have question - what is SD? I'm terrible with abbreviations for attractions (I did guess SDMT tho!) Love your t-shirts!!
 
Following along. Great start to your trip! Just curious, what are sports tears?

It’s tears for guys that are usually reserved for sports like when your team wins the Super Bowl or some old football player retires.

My husband doesn’t cry much but he said literally told me after the fireworks that he got sports tears. The clips during the show reminded him of watching the movie with his father when he was still alive.
 


Enjoying your trip report! I'm sorry you had that encounter with the 20-something gals but glad it didn't affect your whole day! I have question - what is SD? I'm terrible with abbreviations for attractions (I did guess SDMT tho!) Love your t-shirts!!

Sorry, SD was for Slinky Dog. We rode it twice that night.

Thanks! My husband got stopped a few times about his. I went a little crazy on the shirts and got some for most days.
 
Magic Kingdom, March 17 – My alarm went off at 5:45am. Way too early after our long day before but we had BOG breakfast reservations at 8:05. I wanted to be in the turnstiles by 7:45am. The plans was to be out of the house by 6:50. We paid for parking at 7:07. Since we were so early, we parked close enough that we didn’t even have a tram and could walk up to the security check. After security, we tried to ride the ferry but they were not operating yet so on to the monorail. The kids were so excited watching everything come in to view.

We were in the park a little bit after 7:45. We took some great pics in front of the castle. I got a little lost trying to get to BOG. I thought we could go by the path in front of SDMT but nope – it was roped off. You have to go towards Frontier Land and then hang a right behind the castle. I had pre-ordered our food which was 5 cupcakes and 2 hot drinks. I know, I know … cupcakes for breakfast? It’s vacation! I had booked this reservation to beat the RD crowd but I wasn’t sure how it would work since Early Morning Magic was going on.

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So... what did I think of BOG? Meh. The castle itself was beautiful and everyone loved it. My husband was amazed at the details. The cupcakes were a different matter. We paid $4.99 each for mini cupcakes. I don’t expect jumbo ones but at least be decent in size. Taste was fine. There was no hot chocolate that was listed on the menu. I don’t drink coffee so we paid for a drink I couldn’t use. Total was $33.58. Would we do it again? Maybe. It worked perfectly for RDing the SDMT. We were held until 8:57 and then led in to the line. We were off the ride by 9:05 ish. It had a 75 mins wait when we exited. As long as the girls really enjoy it and the goal is to RD SDMT, then yes, we will do it again. If it was just DH and I, no, we would skip this.

After SDMT, we did Splash Mountain, FP Big Thunder Mountain; DD and DSD rode the carousel, and saw Elena / Cinderella while the boys tracked down the cat tail chocolate twists. BTW, we loved these. After that, we FP Peter Pan then circled back for Rapunzel / Tiana. Next up, was our last FP Space Mountain. I sat on a bench trying for FP #4 while everyone else went off in search of snacks. My brother and his family met up with us and we all did People Mover together. We had plans to leave close to 1:00 but had FP for Buzz’s Ranger Spin at 1:00. We scanned in at 12:47 while my brother’s family did the Laugh Floor.

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Made the long trek out of MK to the parking lot and I believe were home about 1:45. We had plans to be back at 4:00 so we didn’t get as much rest as we wanted. It pretty much repeated from the day before – lunch, adults napped and kids swam. We were back in the park by about 4:15 and we all went our separate ways again.

We rode FP#5 Pirates, snuck in Mickey bars while the kids rode the flying carpets (15 min wait), FP#6 Jungle Cruise, FP #7 Laugh Floor (not needed), and then FP#8 Under the Sea ride. I have to mention our Jungle Cruise Skipper Jen. I wasn’t expecting much of this ride bc you know… fake animals but DH and I laughed harder than we should have. Skipper Jen was great!

We had plans to eat at Casey’s Corner but we were starving plus we had big plans later. We were doing the Happily Ever After Dessert Party whoot-whoot! We grabbed 5 hot dogs with chips and 5 waters from the Lunching Pad. DH also got sides of plastic cheese. DH didn’t keep the receipt but the total was about $55.00. It wasn’t great but it did what we needed it to do. Time for dessert :)

The dessert party for us was expensive since we had to pay for 5 adults. I believe we paid $324 (used Target / Disney Gift cards for discount). We checked in at 7:50 and were seated immediately. The kids were off to the buffet and came back loaded with sweets. They got cupcakes, fruit, build your own sundae and cookies plus the sparkling cider. None of our kids were interested in the s’mores station. My husband and I also tried the cheeseburger egg rolls and crackers with the dips.

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We decided to head out around 8:45 with cups of hot chocolate (it was low 50’s). TIP: Grab drinks to go! It came in handy while we waited. We grabbed a patch of grass against the fence in the left corner. It was not crowded and I liked being able to sit down with my family.

This was an expensive experience but we would do it again. We all really enjoyed this as it gave us space and time to decompress from all the people. We got to have some funny conversations with our kids and how they liked the day so far.

We all really liked Happily Ever After fireworks. The kids were amazed with the castle projections. I did find it hard to look at both the fireworks and the projections but it was still a great show. We hung out about 10 mins taking pics so that the crowds would clear out.

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We then headed over to Space Mountain. On the way over, a dad had his daughter on his shoulders, and she was kicking her feet around. Somehow, she kicked my husband in his groin as he was walking by them. He saw stars and almost threw up. We had to take a few minutes for him to collect himself. It was a total accident but parents should try and keep their kids contained. I know it’s hard but it was crowded and she hurt him.

We had about a 25 min wait for Space Mountain. It was a great way to end the night. We had such a great day (minus the groin kick). We ate in the Beast’s Castle, rode 14 rides, saw 4 Princesses, ate sweet desserts and watch some great fireworks. It doesn’t get more magical than that!
 
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EPCOT, March 18

Today was our EPCOT day! We left the house and pulled in to the parking lot just a few minutes before opening. We had planned on getting there earlier but we just couldn’t do it. The park had just opened when we cleared security. Our entire party of nine bee lined it for Soaring as we did not have a FP. We were planning on riding the first two rides together before we split up. When we got in line it was 20 mins. We waited close to that. It was a great ride as we sat in the middle section and didn’t have any distortion.

We got off Soaring around 9:30. We headed toward Test Track for our 9:15am FP. The wait was already 60 mins. We built our cars which all the kids really enjoyed. Off we zoomed down the track as my husband and I took one for the team and rode with 4 of the kids. Our son rode with his uncle and aunt. All the kids gave this ride five stars!

After this ride, we decided to part ways as my brother and his family were off to SE and we were going to Mission Space. I cannot ride Mission Space due to motion sickness and claustrophobia. My husband took our three kids on the green side as he didn’t want to puke either.

I research and read so many opinions on if Soaring or Test Track FP was the better way to go. We decided to go with TT right in case of rain. After the ride, while I was waiting for the kids to get off Mission Space, I heard the announcement that TT was down. I don’t know if it ever went back up but I was glad we were able to get on and had a FP for it.

On our way over to Finding Nemo, we stopped in to the Coca Cola store so we could try the free drinks. I filled everyone up with Beverly and immensely enjoyed their reactions. I believe Brazil was the favorite.

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I got so lost trying to find Nemo. I don’t know if other have this issue, but I kept thinking it was further back, closer to where the World started. This detour cost us about 20 mins and a bathroom break. Finally showed up close to the end of out 10:25 FP window. The wait was 45 mins. We spent about 30 mins exploring the aquarium.

We then headed over to SE for our 11:25am FP. I love this ride as it gives us a moment to get off our feet, enjoy a quick ride through history and enjoy the AC. Our son enjoys history and really liked this ride. We got stuck for about five minutes on the descend. After we got off the ride, it was time to explore the countries around the world.

We started with Mexico. We went to the Cava del Tequila and waited abut 20 mins for a table. My husband and I just sat and enjoyed the atmosphere. The kids ran around playing the Agent P game. They were able to play all 3 sessions while we were in Mexico. We ordered the trio dip at Cava with margaritas. It was really good. The kids enjoyed it too. Best guacamole! My husband and I discussed an adult only trip in the future so we could spend more time here. Total here was about $45.

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On ward to Norway, where my son fell in love with the house that housed the Norwegian Gods. He went by and read each station. He ended up wanting a picture with Odin. After our tour of the Norwegian Gods, we hopped in to the Kringla bakery. The kids got the trio cupcakes, I got the Troll Horn and DH ot the club. Let me tell you the club won! It was fantastic. I was so surprised. I enjoyed the Troll Horn – cup cakes were decent.

In China, we grabbed the crab wontons, spring rolls and a Chinese beer. We split all of these… except the beer with the kids The kids played Agent P for about 30 mins while I enjoyed the sunshine.

The kids sat front roll in Germany for the spoon band. They even got their pictures taken with them afterwards! The girls said this was their favorite part of the Worlds. My husband bought a boot while I got the kids snacks from the bakery. I got a salted caramel square and I wish I hadn’t. It just wasn’t what I expected. It was hard to eat and just not good. We also had a caramel apple, salted caramel brownie, and a caramel rice crispy treat. Brownie was great!

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We bypassed Italy since we had dinner reservations later. The kids got slushes in America and another bathroom break. Sushi in Japan which was decent. I love sushi and these were just a bit fishy tasting for me. I shopped in the Mitsukoshi store while the kids played another game of Agent P. I got my friends some green tea items. It was a neat store to just browse around. Morocco was pretty. I told the kids how the king of Morocco sent his own painters to do this land. We stopped in France for the orange slush drink. The kids watched the French act where they stack chairs.

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By this point, my DH and I were slacking, I was exhausted, but we had a 6:50 Via Napoli ADR. I called Disney to see if we could move the ADR earlier, but it was not with any luck. We had planned on taking a mid-day break, but we had pushed through to explore all the countries. We made the executive decision to go back to Via Napoli to see if they could seat us. We had luck on our side and were able to get in at 4:20.

Via Napoli was great! I know there is a little bit of a debate on this restaurant, but we all loved it. My DH got the beer flight and then a glass of his favorite. We ordered a kid’s meal appetizer of fried mozzarella bites and one order of Arancini. We then ordered a large pizza of half spicy sausage and pepperoni and a large Quattro Formaggi pizzas. They are thin pizzas but so good. I was doubtful and came close to canceling this ADR. I am so glad we kept it. The only misstep was mine as I order the Sicilian Sunrise. It wasn’t a drink I enjoyed. The glass of wine was much better. The total was about $175 plus tip.

After our dinner, we decided we couldn’t go much further. We called my brother and they were ready to go. We met up and took some pictures on our way out. I have never seen Illuminations and I wish I had seen it. Unfortunately, we were all cooked.

After our trip was done, I asked each kid which their favorite park was. DS said EPCOT was his. He liked learning about the different countries, Agent P and TT.
 

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Great TR so far!!

I love your shirts!! :thumbsup2

You did so much in your first two days! Wow!! Good job at getting the family moving so early! My boys liked sleeping in so we didn't do rope drop when they were young. We were the late bunch! Now that it's DH and I we like to get to the parks early!
 
Great TR so far!!

I love your shirts!! :thumbsup2

You did so much in your first two days! Wow!! Good job at getting the family moving so early! My boys liked sleeping in so we didn't do rope drop when they were young. We were the late bunch! Now that it's DH and I we like to get to the parks early!

Thanks! I went a little overboard with the shirts. I believe we had matching shirts / outfits for 4 out of 6 days.

It was hard getting everyone up especially with a big group. We made it to all our rope drops (I count EPCOT since we were there when it opened). I am a morning person but my brother, DH and DSD are not. I had to threaten them a time or two :)
 
Hollywood Studios, March 19

I know some people say that Hollywood Studios is only a ½ day park but we decided to go back twice. Our reasoning was that since our previous 1/2 day was mainly SW, we needed more time to do other rides and shows. We arrived at the parking lot about 8:00 for the 9am opening. Everyone is my group was starting to get grumpy about these early mornings

We lined up behind and to the left of the Chinese theater. I am not sure if it was quicker but there were at least less people. We walked with the hordes to Toy Story Land. We went on Toy Story Mania first. The wait was listed as 20 mins but it took, I believe about 14 mins to go through. I had never ridden this ride before, but it was so much fun. My anti Disney brother said that this was his favorite ride. Who would have thought?

After this we walked over to SDD, the wait was about 180 mins by now. I don’t know how effective it is to rope drop this ride. Everyone, and I mean everyone, rushes here. We had a fast pass for this ride that started at 9:45. We waited maybe 5 mins and all rode together.

After this, we went on Star Tours again but with all 9 of us. We waited about 30 mins. Once we got inside, the wait was pretty quick. We figured out that there are 2 lines – one to the left and one on the right. Everyone lines up on the right. We thought the left side, which was completely open, was only for FP. I asked the cast member and he said nope, come on in. We walked up and everyone else looked at us like we were crazy and then came in behind us. It always pays to ask questions!

The ride was great, and we had a different stimulation that the one from the other day. Even the non SW loving side of the family thought it was a great ride. As we exited in to the gift shop, the kids were ready to burn through their money. They each had $100 to spend. DSD got a light saber, DS got handcuffs and DD got a $75 SW backpack / purse. I asked her several times if she was sure she wanted to spend most of her money on this. Yep… she is a girl of expensive taste. But even to this day, she uses the backpack and gets multiple compliments on it.

I almost forgot that we stopped in the Incredibles areas before we hit up Star Tours. We got some Jack Jack cookies. We split 5 of them between the 9 of us. Let me tell you these were sooo good. They were warm, gooey thick cookies. We should have just done 4 of them. Easily split able.

It was now time for our RnR FP that started at 10:55. The SB wait was about 75 mins. We breezed on pass everyone and were back off to try and make it to the concert. I always laugh at these pics! The take off just gets you every time. I actually enjoyed this ride better the second time.

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Our last FP was for TOT at 11:55. We had about 45 mins to kill so my husband grabbed a Jack and Coke. We took pics of the kids under the upside down car and then just rested our feet outside the gift shop.

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While we were waiting, we snagged a Indiana Jones show FP. There were not a whole lot of options. I know some say this show doesn’t need it, we took it so we could get in early and rest. See a theme yet… We are all tired.

We dropped 14 stories and the girls screamed and held hands. As the parents, we heckled them. It’s the little things in life. After the ride, we posed for some pictures in front of the TOT.

We were off to Indiana Jones around 12:15 for the 1:00 show. We were seated about 30 mins before it started. It was nice to just sit back and talk. We all enjoyed the show. Afterwards, my family was done. My SIL had a 4:30 ADR for 50’s Café so we parted ways as we were headed to the parking lot. I believe they did the SB line for RnR again until their ADR. And would you imagine this, my anti Disney brother rode Toy Story Mania again. :)

My family had lunch offsite and I promptly fell asleep on the drive home. I pretty much napped while the kids swam. DH went back about 6:00 to pick up the rest of our group. I made dinner and we all just sit back and enjoyed the house. We were all looking forward to the rest day tomorrow.
 
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Following along. Enjoying your report and looking forward to reading more
 
Nice ride pics from RnR!! I do enjoy having the Memory maker. So fun to have all the ride pictures!
 
Rest Day, March 20

It’s a REST Day, FINALLY! This day was extremely needed. There isn’t any Disney magic this day but I figure some may be interested in the pool area of Windsor Hills and The Chocolate Emporium.

We all slept in and let me tell you… I felt like a new person. My family got 1 ½ days of rest. It was much needed.

We went down to the pool around 11am. The pool set up is decent. One large pool with 2 smaller ones connected on each side. The hot tub was to the far left side. The down side – no bar. They only have a convenience type store so cheap drinks like prepackaged wine. I really wished there was a bar so I could sip on a margarita and watch the kids swim.

The kids all went down the 2 slides. One was faster than the other. Since they are older, they didn’t spend hardly any time in the kiddie play area. DH and I sat in the hot tub with some underage Spring Breakers. They were guys talking about the girls they wanted to score and how they wish they could get some alcohol. That was the extent of the “wild” Spring Breakers we encountered. Windsor Hills is very much family oriented. They had security at the front gate that would check you in and give you a pass for the gate during your stay. We felt very safe there and during the week, our kids even walked back from the park together. It was about .5 miles from the house.

For dinner, we went over to Universal City Walk to eat at The Chocolate Emporium. We had about a 1.5 hr wait so the kids and DH cruised through the gift shops. DSD ended up buying some Harry Potter items. We only ended up waiting about 45 mins for a table inside. Our table was upstairs in the bar area. It was surprisingly quiet, and we enjoyed this area. We had a great view out the huge open windows. We did not have any characters visit us which was fine because I didn't know who they were.

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We order the chocolate bread which was hit and miss depending on who ate it. I got a glass of wine and DH got a beer. Everyone else got a soda. I ordered the Chicken BLT, DH and Brother each got the Bacon Burger with the bacon jam, Kids all got kids meal chicken fingers / hamburgers. My SIL got a salad of sorts. Me and DH really liked our food. My Brother is harder to please and was just ok with his burger. For dessert, DH and I split a cookie jar shake, the girls did the candy jar, boys did cookies and my SIL and Brother ordered the peanut butter cookie brittle sundae. That thing was huge! I like the shakes here – def big and wouldn’t eat one on my own. I think the one I got last year - strawberry cheesecake was better but DH thought sour cream ice cream sounded awful. My brother picked up this bill but I believe the total was about $220.

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On our way out, I stopped and bought the kids macaroons as they had never had them. Needless to say, DD and DSD didn’t like them but my niece and nephew did. I got a Salted Carmel cake truffle thing. I got one for DH as well. I got this last year and it was just as good as I remembered. My bought my SIL a Key Lime version which she said was sooo good. I believe the cost for these items was $42.

We took pictures on the way out and stopped at the Bubba Gump store for DH to purchase a hat. We had valeted our 14-person van. It was worth every penny not to deal with it. While it was not super crowded, it was still Spring Break time. I was there in February 2018, and I could tell the difference in the crowds. I was laughing as it felt like we were at church camp with all the passenger vans pulling up and large families hopping in.

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On the ride home, I asked the kids / DH, would they rather eat breakfast in the park at the Plaza or sleep in? I bet you can guess what they wanted. With that, I pushed our ADR out a few days so I could cancel it later without penalty. I missed not eating Mickey waffles, but it is more important to spend time with a well rest and less cranky family. We also decided to rope drop Haunted Mansion as it was one ride the kids wanted to do.

Next up will be our second day at Magic Kingdom. It did not go as planned but still ended up being a great day!
 
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Magic Kingdom, March 17

This was our 2nd and last day at Magic Kingdom. We slept in until about 7am and still made it into the park preopening.


The number one ride the kids wanted to do today was Haunted Mansion. We decided to rope drop it since I couldn’t get a FP for it the night before. I believe there was a 13-min wait and then we were haunted by the ghosts. After that, we headed over to do the Runaway Mountain, but the wait was already 45 mins. Splash Mountain was only an 8 min wait so the three kids decided to do that instead.

DH and I sat on the rocking chairs and waited. It ended up being closer to a 15 min wait but they came out wet and happy. After this ride, it was time to start our FP’s. First up was the SDMT again. We arrived about 9:45 and got right on.

Next up was Space Mountain. I asked the kids to do the teacups since the wait was only 10 mins, but they didn’t want to. On the way to Space Mountain, we stopped at the DVC booth. We signed up for a tour that day at 3:45. We got $50 gift card plus 12 FP’s. I was curious about what the program was and if it would work for us.

We head over towards IASW for our next FP. We grabbed some drinks on our way. It bought way more Coke’s and water bottles than I thought we would. We would get tired and all want the caffeine. I tried to get another FP on the IASW but can’t remember what I got. I put away my phone so I could enjoy the ride with the kids.

It was now close to noon, so we decided to grab lunch with the rest of the park at Columbia Harbor House. I wish we could have done the Order Ahead through the app but since we had loaded all of our dining money on to the gift card, it wasn’t an option. Unless I missed it, only a credit / debit card can be added for payment.

I went upstairs with the girls to grab a table. The boys ordered our food. We got 1 chicken and shrimp combo, 1 trio combo, 1 tuna sandwich combo and 3 sodas to split. DH and DS split the trio and said it was decently good. Reminded him of a Long John Silver’s. I had the Tuna Sandwich which was enjoyable. There is not any celery added which I liked. Kids also got slushes. We were here for close to 45 mins.

After lunch, we moseyed over to the President’s Hall. We watch the Muppets do the Declaration show. Kids had no idea who the Muppets were but liked it. I really enjoyed the Presidents show. It was inspiring and made me proud. You don’t have to agree or disagree with our current politics to like this show. DH served in the military and liked it as well.

Around this time, DS started complaining of a headache. He has gone to the Dr for the last year and in a nutshell, he gets kid migraines. I didn’t have any meds on me, so we walked over to first aid. They gave him some Tylenol and he sat in the AC. We know that the heat and dehydration bring them on, so we rested him. DH said that first aid was great.

It was about 2:00 by now, so we headed over to Main Street to grab seats for the parade. We parked the kids and DH and I went into the stores getting gifts for family back home. We decided to get the kids Frappuccino’s at the Starbucks on Main. This took about 20 mins with mine being made after everyone else’s. Got it just in time for the parade to start. Loved the parade. I am glad that we made the time and effort to catch this.

After this we high tailed it over to the DVC meet up, took about 20 mins for the van to show up. After that we checked in and got snacks and drinks. We met with a DVC agent. He gave us some information, but I felt like he didn’t take us as serious since we stayed offsite. It almost felt like he thought we couldn’t afford it but in a very nice way. I’m not any closer to knowing if DVC is for us but I am leaning towards no. We take 2 trips a year and like to travel. I don’t know that I would want to tie that amount of money up in just Disney. I also looked at the aftermarket and it was about ½ the cost.

After the tour, we had the driver drop us off sat the Contempo for dinner. While in the van, I made a FP for Buzz at 7:50. We ate at Contempo Café. We got the Smokehouse Bacon Burger, Spicy Chicken Sandwich, 2 kids grilled shrimp plates and 1 kids’ cheeseburger. We also got 1 soda. Our total was about $55.

After this, I decided we should jump on the monotrain and go to the Poly. The Poly is so nice. This would be where I stay if I decided to splurge. I sat on the outside patio area of Trader Sam’s with drinks. DH got a Hawaiian type beer and I got Shrunken Head Rum drink. I didn’t like it. The cinnamon just didn’t sit well with my taste buds. The Spikey Pineapple was better :) The kids wanted dessert, so I went with the two the 2 different quick service restaurants getting cups cakes and ice cream. I got the PB&J one. It was ok – somewhat dry.

I saw my Brother and SIL waiting for Ohana’s. We decided to meet up afterwards and watch the fireworks from the Poly. We just relaxed and enjoyed the atmosphere. It was cold though. They turned on the heaters. I know people say that Florida is warm, but we actually had quite chilly weather. I We all put our hoodies on and were still cold by the heaters.

Brother finished their dinner to ok reviews. We parked it in the area above the pool area. Kids sat on the rock and we watched the fireworks. They look so different from a distance than up close. We then walked quickly over to the TTC to catch a tram back to our car. We beat the crowds and had no wait. We were out of the parking lot before it got crowded.

I wished that we had made it back into the park, but I am glad we didn’t. We had a relaxing time just going to the resorts – eating and drinking.50D4AF0A-BABE-40B8-8F61-A4C85753B179.jpeg
 

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