Bibbidi-Bobbidi-DEUX our own kind of marathon ~ A Nov '14 TR ~ Updated 11/2 ~ THE END

[khertz]

Oh my gosh, that meet with Flynn & Rapunzel is FABULOUS!!!!!!! I'm am just dying over the whole thing...putting the crown on their heads, blocking his ears from Pascal, the frying pan bit, the smolders...SO SO FUN! I was way too bummed that he was not at the Halloween party this year.

The parties have definitely gotten more crowded, or at least it sure seems that way. I get that everyone wants to be in the Main Street/Hub area because that's where most of the activities are happening, but it shouldn't make the area completely impassable!

 

[StarWarsMomofGirls!]

I am totally following along. I finished reading your first trip report and am finally caught up on this one! I don't know how you do it with 4 kids!!! I have two little girls and they are a handful in themselves! I am inspired to try and write my own trip report. Haven't ventured into that yet. Can' twait to hear how this trip ends and how your next one goes too!

 

[TruLovesKiss]

Oh my gosh, that meet with Flynn & Rapunzel is FABULOUS!!!!!!! I'm am just dying over the whole thing...putting the crown on their heads, blocking his ears from Pascal, the frying pan bit, the smolders...SO SO FUN! I was way too bummed that he was not at the Halloween party this year.

The parties have definitely gotten more crowded, or at least it sure seems that way. I get that everyone wants to be in the Main Street/Hub area because that's where most of the activities are happening, but it shouldn't make the area completely impassable!

That meet was fabulous! Totally worth the wait! I saw that they didn't have any of the princes out for MNSSHP this year.... what a bummer! I'm wondering if it's going to be the same way for the Christmas party too. Hopefully not, meeting Flynn was definitely a highlight of the party for us.

We definitely noticed a big difference in the crowds for the Halloween party that we did last month as compared to the party that we did in 2013. It's definitely impossible to fit everything in that you want when you're having to stake out a spot for a parade and castle show so far ahead of time. I guess you'd almost have to attend two or more parties to get to do everything!

I am totally following along. I finished reading your first trip report and am finally caught up on this one! I don't know how you do it with 4 kids!!! I have two little girls and they are a handful in themselves! I am inspired to try and write my own trip report. Haven't ventured into that yet. Can' twait to hear how this trip ends and how your next one goes too!

I'm so glad that you're here and enjoying my TRs! I'll have a new update soon and then it won't be too long before our next family trip. Eeeek! Getting super excited. The kids are definitely more than ready to go back!

Yes, you should write a trip report! It's a fun way to get to experience your trip all over again.

 

[TruLovesKiss]

Day 9 - November 14, 2014
Our Last Day in Disney


Our alarm was set and we were all up bright and early - (I'm only a morning person in Disney) We wanted to be sure to fit in as much as possible before it was time to be picked up by the very Un-Magical Express. Yes Folks, it was the dreaded last day of vacation. *tears*

Luckily we didn’t have far to go once we were up and dressed, just a short monorail ride away to the Grand Floridian Resort.



I looked at this sign and thought, why yes we are indeed heading home… to our home resort! Eeek!



The GF is just gorgeous!



And this morning, the lobby smelled especially sweet….. we spotted the Gingerbread House! Oh my!



It was enormous!



Wow!



It wasn’t officially open yet and there were workers still putting some finishing touches on it in the back.



But we wanted to take advantage of the lack of crowds and check it out!



The details were just so, so amazing.



Each one of those flowers looks like this. Just incredible…. and edible!



I can’t even imagine the amount of work that went into putting this together. We sure were glad that we were able to enjoy it!

We then headed across the lobby to our 8:30 ADR at 1900 Park Fare.



We had a not-so-great experience here for dinner on our last trip and Joe was pretty fine with not ever eating here again. It actually took a lot of convincing to give it another try.

Yikes, I’m looking pretty run down this morning, I guess all those late nights and early mornings (and everything in between, ha!) was really catching up with me.





Bronwyn looks thrilled, doesn’t she?! Maybe she remembers the terrible service from last trip too, lol.



We were quickly seated at a table in the first room that you enter… and this time there was plenty of room for the 6 of us to fit. So far, so good. Our drink orders were served and we wasted no time getting some food from the buffet. We all filled our plates and enjoyed all of the yummy-ness.







There weren’t any characters in sight, so we all went up for seconds… and some of us thirds. Can we say, Strawberry soup? Delish! I was one happy girl. But that only lasted so long when I realized that we were all finished eating and none…. not one… of the characters had stopped by our table yet. What the heck?

Maybe Pooh warned the others to stay away from our table….(note Isla's finger and Jorie strangling Bronwyn hahaha)















It was bam, bam, bam. Each character arrived one on top of another and barely spent any time with us. It was a quick “Hi”, smile for a photo, sign the autograph book and on to the next table. Really?

And when another character was already at our table, the Mad Hatter decided to skip us altogether. I was no longer a happy girl. Grrrrr. As we were paying our bill, we explained to our waitress that we would like to meet him before we left. aka: We were was not leaving without meeting the Mad Hatter. A few minutes later, he arrived at our table and seemed a bit annoyed. So there was no silliness, no antics. Not what we were hoping for. Such a shame since he was one of the main reasons for booking this breakfast.





Last time we had fantastic character interaction but lousy service. This time was the opposite, great service & food but the character interaction was definitely lacking. It felt rushed and we left feeling less than magical. Will the third time be the charm at 1900 Park Fare? We will not be finding out anytime soon.

 

[TruLovesKiss]

We hopped back on the monorail and made our way back to BLT to pack up our room.



Time to check out.



While Joe stayed back to handle the bags and the airport check-in counter…. the kids and I made our way to Magic Kingdom. We had someone special to meet and we didn’t want to be late!

Who were we rushing to see… why the White Rabbit of course!

















Look, I have a white fluffy tail, do you?!











Now that was fun!

While we waited for Joe to meet up with us, I tried to talk the kids into riding the Tea Cups but Donovan was having no parts of that. So we settled on some SOTMK



Cast your spell!



and Mickey’s Philharmagic instead.







We then found Joe waiting outside the show for us. He had had some fun rearranging items in our checked luggage to keep them all under the 50 lb weight limit. Darn, I was sorry to have missed that. He declared a 1 outfit per kid, per day limit for our next trip. Haha, yeah right!! That's not going to happen!

Anyway, he was just in time for our 12:45 Liberty Tree Tavern lunch reservation.



The kids kept themselves busy while we waited to be called to our table.





Dinner is served family-style, but lunch is a la carte off the menu.





Joe and I shared the Crab and Lobster Dip for Two, which was just alright.



And I don’t remember much about the sandwich that I ordered, it looks to maybe be the Liberty Boys BLT



But there’s no forgetting the dessert…. Ooey Gooey Toffee Cake! This one sure lives up to all the hype. It may be at the top, if not very close, to being my favorite Disney dessert. Yum!



The kids all seemed to enjoy their Ice Cream Sundaes too.

 

[DisMomO3]

Sorry posted multiple times.

 

[DisMomO3]

I love reading your TR updates they are always so entertaining! I saw you printed your own autograph book from Creative DISigns. Do you happen to remember which DISigner they are by? I have mild OCD tendencies and I love that your pages have a specific spot for the autograph! Looking forward to your next TR

 

[TruLovesKiss]

With full bellies, we headed up Main Street to the lockers and stopped for some PP pics along the way. I love how Bronwyn is holding out her dress here, too bad the sun was in our eyes.



Let’s try again…





Donovan stopped in the Fire House to pick up a new pack of SOTMK cards. I love these posters.





Then it was back down Main Street for our first FP+ of the day. When we arrived to the front of the castle I was a little irritated to see that they were allowing people into the parade FP area when it wasn’t even close to the 2:45-3:05 FP+ timeframe. What is that all about? If I would have known this, I wouldn’t have wasted time changing our outfits beforehand. Ugh! Luckily we were able to grab one of the last front row spots available.





Here she is....Miss America



There was still a few minutes before the parade would start so, I stepped back to snap this photo, and some guy stepped right into my spot. I looked at him like, REALLY?!



Joe gave up his spot to me so that I could photograph the parade. He’s so sweet. Here are some of my favorites of the Festival of Fantasy Parade!




















































Oh my goodness! It was love at first sight! The floats, the music, the costumes…. everything was perfection! My smile was beaming from ear to ear throughout the whole parade. The FOF parade is now a must-do on every trip from now on!

 

[TruLovesKiss]

We then made our way over to Fantasyland to use our next FP+ for Peter Pan’s Flight. We made a quick stop in Castle Couture, for some glitter. The girls absolutely loved this!







Pixie Dust Away!



After our flight through Neverland, we decided to use one of our bonus “DVC” Fastpasses for Space Mountain. Bronwyn was too short to ride and both Donovan and Joe declined to ride….so it was just me, Jorie and Isla riding for the first time!








Both girls loved it! I loved the thrill of it… but it was SO jerky. I felt like I walked away with an instant headache. So what do you do when you have a headache?..... apparently ride BLSRS. Who's idea was that anyway?! hahaha.














Then we used our third FP+ for a spin around the Tomorrowland Speedway.



We bumped into Mindi, a coworker of mine and her family. We had been texting each other throughout our trip but we never seemed to be in the same place, at the same time, until finally when it was time for us to leave. Wait, what?! LEAVE????! Yup leave the park. Wah!!! We still had another freebie FP+ and I had wanted to meet Tink too but we were out of time. Whomp, whomp. Isla's face says it all.




Or maybe she was just done with having her photo taken. If you remember from our first trip, Isla can be very….. ah how do I put this nicely?...... very emotional. She had done SO well on this trip and I was so proud of her for that…. but as we were leaving MK for the last time, she was definitely getting emotional. I was too. Saying Goodbye was not going to be easy.

Running to catch the monorail...









And.... then it was time to board the Tragical Express. No one was happy to leave…









Goodbye Walt Disney World.... it's been truly magical!.....we'll see ya real soon..... February 2016!!!

Thanks for reading along!

 

[Tinkerbell's Mom]

So sad to see your report ending, I have loved all the costume changes and seeing all of your beautiful children!!! I hope you do another report after your February trip!

 

[TruLovesKiss]

I love reading your TR updates they are always so entertaining! I saw you printed your own autograph book from Creative DISigns. Do you happen to remember which DISigner they are by? I have mild OCD tendencies and I love that your pages have a specific spot for the autograph! Looking forward to your next TR

Thank you!!

Actually yes I do remember which DISigner, only because I was just checking out the post again because I need to make a new book for our upcoming trip. Most of the pages that I used were photos from Otterpop (found under the 8x8 pages in "A Simple Guide to making an Autograph Book" thread) Let me know if you have any trouble finding them.

 

[missangelalexis]

The kid's morning outfits are so great!! I'm sorry the character interaction at breakfast wasn't too great. Love the pictures with White Rabbit!

Sounds like a great last day, even though it's always sad to say goodbye

Thanks for sharing your Trip, I really enjoyed it!

 

[Vernie822]

I absolutely love all of their 1900 PF outfits! Actually who am I kidding - all of their outfits You are super mom for sure. Thanks for letting us follow along on your trip.

 

[Mom2m&k]

Loved your trip report! I think we will be there about the same time...I will have to keep a look out for all those cute outfits!

 

[khertz]

Loved your TR once again! I'm so sad we are missing each other in February, but I can't wait to read about your next trip and of course, see what cute outfits you have for your girls!!

 

[familyabgar]

Great report, as always! Makes me super excited for our trip next week!

 

[minnieprincess]

Such a great trip! Thanks for sharing it with us.

 

[epsmith921]

Lurker here! Sorry! I read your previous trip report too. I showed my 4 year old the meet and greet with Rapunzel and Flynn last night and she just was in awe and kept trying to check out all the pictures and pored over it for quite some time. She basically now is expecting everything she saw!

Anyway, she about lost her mind at Jorie's frying pan dress. Do you mind my asking did you find that through here or Etsy? I remember you said you do some swaps (probably getting my terms wrong there).

Sorry to pry! I kind of searched Etsy but didn't get anywhere.

The kids are gorgeous, their clothes are amazing! Oh and I wanted to show my husband the luggage pile you had! It could put mine to shame and I am a serious overpacker.

 

[Hawkeyegirls]

I loved reading your whole report! Thanks for sharing! Cant wait for the next one.

 

[TruLovesKiss]

So sad to see your report ending, I have loved all the costume changes and seeing all of your beautiful children!!! I hope you do another report after your February trip!

Thanks for following along! I always have high hopes of writing a PTR... but that has yet to happen. The trips always end up sneaking up on me! I'm definitely planning to do another TR for our February trip and I'll post here once I start on that one.

I see that your daughter is dancing in the Christmas parade. What an amazing experience!!

The kid's morning outfits are so great!! I'm sorry the character interaction at breakfast wasn't too great. Love the pictures with White Rabbit!

Sounds like a great last day, even though it's always sad to say goodbye

Thanks for sharing your Trip, I really enjoyed it!

Thanks so much for all of your posts! They definitely helped me get through to the end of this TR, even if it did take almost a year to write. It's always reassuring knowing that I actually have readers that are following along.

I absolutely love all of their 1900 PF outfits! Actually who am I kidding - all of their outfits You are super mom for sure. Thanks for letting us follow along on your trip.

Loved your trip report! I think we will be there about the same time...I will have to keep a look out for all those cute outfits!

Our dates are Feb 17- 26 and we are doing a triple-stay!!! AOA, BLT & BWV (wish me luck with all of that switching around!) Definitely say "Hi!" if you see us!

Loved your TR once again! I'm so sad we are missing each other in February, but I can't wait to read about your next trip and of course, see what cute outfits you have for your girls!!

I know, it would have been great to meet up! Hopefully someday!
My niece will be joining us for the second half of our Feb trip, so I'll have 4 girls to dress! I have lots of cute things planned!

Great report, as always! Makes me super excited for our trip next week!

Yay!!! Have a magical trip! I can't wait to see pics!

Such a great trip! Thanks for sharing it with us.

Thanks for following along!!

Lurker here! Sorry! I read your previous trip report too. I showed my 4 year old the meet and greet with Rapunzel and Flynn last night and she just was in awe and kept trying to check out all the pictures and pored over it for quite some time. She basically now is expecting everything she saw!

Anyway, she about lost her mind at Jorie's frying pan dress. Do you mind my asking did you find that through here or Etsy? I remember you said you do some swaps (probably getting my terms wrong there).

Sorry to pry! I kind of searched Etsy but didn't get anywhere.

The kids are gorgeous, their clothes are amazing! Oh and I wanted to show my husband the luggage pile you had! It could put mine to shame and I am a serious overpacker.

No worries! I'm a lurker most of the time too, shhhh! Don't tell anyone!

I do most of my customs buying through Facebook. The designer that made Jorie's Rapunzel dress is Sweetbetty Co (I don't think she is sewing any longer though) Search for Disney Boutique Clothing, or Disney custom resell on FB and that should get you started.

I loved reading your whole report! Thanks for sharing! Cant wait for the next one.

Aww, thanks so much!!!