ShellieMay, Slinky Dog, and the SCRUNCHIEST Thanksgiving Ever! - A Nov 18 TR *FINISHED! 4/28*

thank you for sharing your photos. I have been planning a bucket room stay at the Poly. I like the Macadamia nut pancakes at the Kona cafe. The famous pressed pot of coffee was meh. other than the poly, what are your favorite hotels. It was great to see your Fast Pass choices were not the standard Pandora/seven dwarfs/slinky dog choices!
 
I'm back and all caught up!! Your Epcot day sounds like a lot of fun, despite all the crazy crowds!

Your pictures of Morocco are so perfect, I just can't stand it.

Ok the no salad dressing thing is weird...maybe someone just forgot it?

Also odd that a manager would address a complaint you didn't have...that dessert looks fantastic though!!
 
thank you for sharing your photos. I have been planning a bucket room stay at the Poly. I like the Macadamia nut pancakes at the Kona cafe. The famous pressed pot of coffee was meh. other than the poly, what are your favorite hotels. It was great to see your Fast Pass choices were not the standard Pandora/seven dwarfs/slinky dog choices!

Hey, thank you so much for being here and leaving feedback-- I really appreciate it! Other than the Poly, I love the Contemporary, and the Boardwalk is on my bucket list!

I'm back and all caught up!! Your Epcot day sounds like a lot of fun, despite all the crazy crowds!

Your pictures of Morocco are so perfect, I just can't stand it.

Ok the no salad dressing thing is weird...maybe someone just forgot it?

Also odd that a manager would address a complaint you didn't have...that dessert looks fantastic though!!

YAY YAY YAY YOU'RE BACK!!! I SERIOUSLY cannot wait to hear about this trip, all of your photos were adorable!!! :tigger:

You're making me blush-- thank you! :lovestruc

Yeah, we're also pretty sure that the no-dressing thing was an oversight.

Right?!? Wasn't it weird?!? o_O SUCH an odd thing to bring up! In any case-- I'm here, waiting eagerly for your TR to be posted!! popcorn::
 


I've learned something here - if possible, stand behind the pp and snap my own 'original' photo to compare. :laughing:

YES! :rotfl2: I will ABSOLUTELY be doing this next time my dad decides to participate with a photo booth!
 
YAY YAY YAY YOU'RE BACK!!! I SERIOUSLY cannot wait to hear about this trip, all of your photos were adorable!!! :tigger:

You're making me blush-- thank you! :lovestruc

Yeah, we're also pretty sure that the no-dressing thing was an oversight.

Right?!? Wasn't it weird?!? o_O SUCH an odd thing to bring up! In any case-- I'm here, waiting eagerly for your TR to be posted!! popcorn::

Oh my gosh you're the sweetest! I'm so excited to get started--just waiting on PhotoPass to track down some pictures that we never got, and then we'll be ready to go!
 


Following along! :)

:welcome: Thank you so much for being here, it means a lot to me!

So cute!


This sounds so ominous :eek:

"Your cadaverous pallor betrays an aura of foreboding, almost as though you sense a disquieting metamorphosis..."

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Got a bit behind on my TR reading!

It's too bad about the high crowds, but at least you have about 50 yrs left of Disney visits with the DVC membership! We're renting points and staying at the Poly in about 1.5 months - hopefully it will be a good room!

Also, Living with the Land does have FP!
 
I'm glad you enjoyed the GM slush, it's soo good!

I'm sorry the crowds were making you feel discouraged :( Hopefully the next day isn't as bad as you though it'd be!
 
Got a bit behind on my TR reading!

It's too bad about the high crowds, but at least you have about 50 yrs left of Disney visits with the DVC membership! We're renting points and staying at the Poly in about 1.5 months - hopefully it will be a good room!

Also, Living with the Land does have FP!

That's what I kept telling myself-- crowds make me anxious, but with DVC, we know we'll be back year after year, so if something doesn't get done during one trip, there's always one coming up!

I stand corrected, then! I don't know why I feel like I've never even seen a FP+ line!

I'm glad you enjoyed the GM slush, it's soo good!

I'm sorry the crowds were making you feel discouraged :( Hopefully the next day isn't as bad as you though it'd be!

It really was the best drink of the trip!!

DHS definitely wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, but we also spent less time there. I'll post the next update soon!
 
Joining in...great report so far...you have a knack for writing..we go in 14 days ....11 of us. Not sure how smooth it will go..but fingers crossed .
 
Joining in...great report so far...you have a knack for writing..we go in 14 days ....11 of us. Not sure how smooth it will go..but fingers crossed .

Hi, Sheri! Thank you so much for following and for your kind words, it means a lot to me! :welcome:

It sounds like you'll be arriving at the perfect time, just past the marathon and holiday crowds! A party of 11 can get tricky, but I know you've been planning for a while-- you guys are going to have a blast! Let us know how things go!
 
Day 3: Hollywood Studios
Bienvenidos... a SLINKY DOG DASH!

Having been so nervous from our crowded day at Epcot, I wasn't planning on rope dropping DHS. But I was up at 6, had this rush of energy and just felt the need to be at Toy Story Land. So guess where I was headed early that morning?

I was on the first bus to Hollywood Studios by 7:30. I was alone, which was a good sign... until the bus started playing the Halloween theme song. :eek::rotfl:

I was at the park by 7:50-ish, and through bag check/in line for the ticket touch points by 8:00. That walk from the bus stop to the gate was LONG though. The crowd was already starting to build by the time I was there, and it only got crazier as we got closer to park open!

The park was supposed to open at 9:00. At 8:20, they started letting us into the park! We were able to scan our Magic Bands and we were held at the end of Hollywood Boulevard, at that little corner where it meets Sunset Boulevard. Never, ever, EVER in my life will I forget the announcement that came overhead at 8:30-- Attention, toys! Andy's Backyard is now open and ready for playtime! Please follow the Cast Members as they guide you. The rest of Disney's Hollywood Studios will open at 9:00. Now, it's time to play big!

I had no idea that they would decide to open TSL 30 minutes early, and I'm not sure if that's been the norm for a while to accommodate TSL crowds in general or if they decided to do it to accommodate Thanksgiving crowds. Either way, as soon as I heard that announcement, I had these chills run up and down my spine and everyone went "WOOOO!" and we made our way over... UGH it was definitely the most exciting moment of the trip! Writing about it now still gave me the chills, it was just so much fun.

Being alone was definitely a benefit today as we made our way to TSL en masse. I was able to weave my way very easily through the hundreds of families with mothers pushing their strollers as fast as possible, screaming at their husbands and younger family members to keep up. My heart was racing as we rounded the corner past Animation Courtyard and were greeted by this guy!

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Like the majority of the us, I rushed into the Slinky Dog Dash standby line.

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The wait time was posted at 45 minutes, but I definitely did not wait that long. We sped through the queue because it wasn't 9:00 yet, so FP+ service hadn't started!

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My FAVORITE detail in the queue is this: Wheezy Bath Toy... not for use in water :rotfl:

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I also really appreciated the fraying crayon wrapper. There's SO much detail in Toy Story Land... it's unbelievable!

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Finally, it was my turn to board!

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My heart was racing. I was seated next to the father of the mom & son behind us. He turned to me and said, "I promise I won't scream like a girl," but I said, "I promise I will!"

I have absolutely NO idea what I was looking at in this picture, I didn't know where the camera would be but I think I was looking out for Wheezy.

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Final verdict on Slinky Dog Dash? It was perfect. I laughed. I cried. I screamed in pure joy. I really liked the part that Tim Tracker calls "the upsy-downsies," named appropriately as the coaster goes up and down and up and down multiple times. The spring sound effects were also a nice touch! And of course, that grand finale just can't be beat. Oh, Wheezy... what a crooner! :lovestruc

I kept bragging about how when I got off of SDD, the park hadn't even opened yet. It was, in reality, like 8:58 exactly. Alien Swirling Saucers and Toy Story Mania were both up to about 40 minutes, and it would probably be a true 40 minutes by the time the FP+ crowd made their way over, so I decided to check out the souvenir stall and buy a souvenir I really wanted: the Alien Headband! I was between Alien and Slinky for the longest time, but decided on the Alien headband since Grace already had Slinky and I was wearing an Alien shirt. While I was checking out, I was informed that the Alien popcorn bucket was sold out property wide. It did not get restocked during my trip. Sadness. :sad1:

I took a selfie with my new best friend afterwards.

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A really sweet mother and daughter saw me and offered to take my picture!

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With SDD crossed off my bucket list, I wondered if it might be smart to leave TSL until the rest of my family got here. Besides, at this point, I was desperate for caffeine-- and a lovely Joffrey's stand was waiting for me just outside of TSL! I decided to exit the land and see what else might be in store for me at the less-crowded parts of DHS.

(Click here to continue!)

 
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I can’t see all your pictures, not sure if just my computer, glad you got in TSL early and able to ride SDD!

I really enjoyed SDD, very fun and smooth!

Ugh! It is my Firefox, I see all of the pictures on Safari!
 
UGH, you're making me NEED to go see Toy Story Land. I'm so glad you had such a magical morning and that SDD was everything you hoped it would be. And you are SERVIN with the Alien headband and shirt and Alien in the back. Stunning. Can't wait to hear about how the rest of your morning in DHS went! :mickeyjum
 
Following! Love the Shellie May bag. I didn't know they opened TSL early either, but I'm not really a rope drop person. I'm glad you were able to get through the SDD line so fast and had a great time!
 

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