The Race Is On.... COMPLETE 14/7: Now with index

[scoobydooby]

Excellent report, do keep posting You're little girl is making be broody. I have had to remind myself that 6 weeks ago I paid my last child care fees (been paying child care for 15 years) and I'm not wanting to start again !!!!!

Looking forward to reading the rest.

 

[nat1234]

A down day is always needed. I always plan one when I go to Disney. That way you get to enjoy the pool and resort.

 

[jockey]

Well done...really enjoying your report..I had planned to do the princess 1/2 but never made it this year....hopefully 2014!!!

 

[stewie]

Sometimes you just need a chill day.

Absolutely! As much as I love Disney and Orlando it's anything but relaxing!

Excellent report, do keep posting You're little girl is making be broody. I have had to remind myself that 6 weeks ago I paid my last child care fees (been paying child care for 15 years) and I'm not wanting to start again !!!!!

Looking forward to reading the rest.

Glad you're enjoying it, much more to come!

A down day is always needed. I always plan one when I go to Disney. That way you get to enjoy the pool and resort.

We usually like to try and fit a couple in if possible

Well done...really enjoying your report..I had planned to do the princess 1/2 but never made it this year....hopefully 2014!!!

Thanks for reading, we talked about doing the Princess one year too.

 

[stewie]

Day 5 - Animals and Fireworks

Day 5 started early when Isabella woke up at 6. We were supposed to be getting up at 7 anyway as today was our first proper park day at Animal Kingdom. Based on every previous visit to Animal Kingdom we expected rain! No lie, every year we go to Animal Kingdom it rains, usually quite heavily! We hoped today would be different.

So with an extra hour for getting ready we were able to spend a little bit more time over our coffee and breakfast, and we were ready to leave by 8 (for Extra Magic Hour), and we loaded Janet, Ivor and Isabella in the car and headed to the park.

One of the great things about staying on Disney and having a car is how quick it is to get everywhere, and the free parking. We were at Animal Kingdom in 20 minutes, and once inside did what anyone who’s ever been to Animal Kingdom does and headed straight to Expedition Everest.

There was no queue, so Janet and Ivor went on first while Jo and I fastpassed it, just in case there was a huge rush (there wasn’t). Ivor enjoyed it so much he decided to go on again with Jo and I. Janet took Isabella, who was very grumpy this morning, for a walk in her stroller.

"Hey, how you doin?"

Daddy and Isabella enjoying the sunshine

After being chased off the mountain by the Yeti, it was time for a snack. I think Jo had been looking forward to a jalapeño cheese stuffed pretzel for about 2 years so she had one of those while I stuck to a normal, VERY salty, pretzel. Janet and Ivor had coffee and a danish pastry, which looked really nice and made me regret getting a pretzel.

After our snack we headed to the Harambe Wildlife Reserve to join the Kilimanjaro Safaris. Isabella loved seeing all the animals and also made friends with some American teenagers sitting behind us. This is a much better ride now that it doesn’t have the silly elephant poacher story, although I do miss Winston saying “Come in Simba One” on the radio, although Jo does a very good impression.

Going on safari

"Hey dad"

Zebras

All the excitement of seeing zebras, cheetahs, lions, giraffes and various other African animals had made Isabella sleepy so Jo and I put her back in the stroller for a nap and went for a wander round the park while Janet and Ivor went off and did their own thing for an hour or so.

It was really very relaxing walking round the park and so far the Animal Kingdom rain curse had held off and the weather was lovely.

Taking a break

Mummy and Isabella relaxing in the park

Gorilla minus the mist

When Isabella woke up it was time for lunch and we’d arranged to meet at the Flame Tree BBQ. Lunch turned out to be a disaster as Isabella was scared of all the birds that were around. Jo ended up having to take her away and so we had to eat our lunch in shifts.

Because of this, I have no idea what we had although I seem to recall it was quite nice. I’d advise you not to eat there if you don’t like birds though, as they’re all over the place waiting to pick up anything you drop or leave unattended.

With lunch done it was time for a nappy change (Isabella, not me) and then we headed to Flights of Wonder. We wondered whether this was a good idea after the lunch debacle, but Isabella seemed to enjoy watching the birds flying. We’ve now come to the conclusion that she loves animals as long as they can’t touch her. We have two rabbits who live in our garden and she loves helping me feed them and waves to them out of the window but if they come anywhere near her she looks terrified!

The hot weather was making everyone tired so after we did the Pangani Forest Exploration Trail we decided to call it a day. We were planning on returning again later in the holiday.

At this point I thought it would be worth sharing Jo’s amazing schedule that she put together for us. She’s extremely organised as you can see!

Jo's Schedule

Once we got back to our room we had a quick shower and gave Isabella a bath and then we headed out again to ‘Ohana at the Polynesian Resort, which was one of our favourite meals last time around.

On the short drive to the Polynesian she fell asleep in the car and we hoped that this meant she was going to be better during dinner than she was last night.

So far she’s not been great at meal times, which was the one thing we didn’t expect, as at home she’s so well behaved whenever we take her out for lunch or dinner.

We were a little early as we’d planned to have a Lapu Lapu before dinner, so we told Janet and Ivor to go in while we sat in the car with the sleeping baby.

Eventually we had to go in even though she was still sleeping, so Jo carried her. We met Janet and Ivor at the bar and I ordered Jo and I a Lapu Lapu each. Try one if you ever get the chance, they serve it in a hollowed out pineapple. Be warned though, they’re pretty strong.

Ready for dinner

Jo was determined to enjoy her Lapu Lapu

Pot stickers and chicken wings

Noodles and stir fried veg

Bread pudding with Banana Foster sauce

Isabella was still asleep when it was time to be seated, but she woke up in time for the food although she didn’t really eat anything - I’m not sure Polynesian cuisine is her cup of tea.

The food was as fantastic as it was last time and the bread pudding was amazing - I think they’ve changed it since we were here before.

After eating as much as we could we left the car at the Polynesian and jumped on the monorail to Magic Kingdom to watch the Wishes Nighttime Spectacular. We arrived in time to catch the Main Street Electrical Parade. Isabella enjoyed both the parade and the fireworks so it was definitely worth the brief visit.

"Hey, you guys!"

The parade was dragon on a bit

The castle looked spectacular...

...As did the fireworks

Mummy and Isabella

The many faces of Jo


With Wishes finished we got back on the monorail and headed back to the Polynesian to pick up the car and head back to Saratoga Springs.

Isabella was hungry when we got back as she’d not really eaten anything so we gave her some Cheerios before bedtime.

Can’t believe that we’ve done five days already, the holiday felt like it was going too quickly!

 

[nat1234]

Loving your updates and pictures. It looks like your family were having a great time. Time does fly by when you're having a great time at Disney, doesn't it?

 

[stewie]

Loving your updates and pictures. It looks like your family were having a great time. Time does fly by when you're having a great time at Disney, doesn't it?

Thanks for reading, it certainly does go too quickly, especially when you're having so much fun

 

[stewie]

Day 6 - Showcase to Market Place

Day 6 was going to be spent at our favourite park - Epcot.

Isabella had a bad night’s sleep and ended up sleeping in till 8, it wasn’t going to be an early start!

We had a quick breakfast in the room, porridge for the baby, toast and peanut butter for us, and then headed to Epcot. Jo had already let Janet and Ivor know we were running late so we arranged to meet them there but had neglected to arrange a time or location, we were going to rely on “We’ll text you when we get there” and hope they remembered to check their phone.

Unbelievably, as we entered the park we saw them walking past the fountain, Jo ran after them (as if she hadn’t run 13 miles two days ago) and three became five once more.

As it was another hot day, we headed to Club Cool for free drinks of questionable taste. My iPhone’s autocorrect changed the name of this place to Club Colon - perhaps it’s got a point!

The flavours on offer are:

• Krest Ginger Ale from Mozambique

• Fanta Kolita from Costa Rica

• Beverly from Italy

• Vegeta Beta from Japan

• Kinley Lemon from Israel

• Lift Apple from Mexico

• Smart Watermelon from China

• Mezzo Mix from Germany

After we’d had our fill of “exotic” flavours of the (Coca-Cola) world (including the interesting Beverly from Italy) we headed to Test Track to get a fastpass.

"Do you mind dad, I'm on the phone"

By this time Isabella was ready for a nap. I found a nice quiet area by the start of the World Showcase between Mexico and Canada and walked her around until she fell asleep. Jo and I then had churritos from Cantina de San Angel as we walked around the world. I love this part of Epcot early in the day before the crowds get there, it’s really peaceful and relaxing.

By the time we’d walked round it was time to head back to Test Track to use our fastpasses. Isabella was still asleep so Janet stayed with her while Ivor, Jo and I tried out the new and “improved” ride.

I must confess it was massive disappointment and I preferred the old version of the ride to the “reimagined” one. Also, considering it was new there was a lot of stuff that wasn't working in the pre- and post-ride area including my RFID card and at least half of the interactive touch screen.

It was now time for lunch and we headed for Sunshine Seasons. Isabella was STILL asleep and as you're not allowed strollers inside the Land Pavillion we almost went somewhere else - Morocco was our probable choice. However, we decided to wait for Isabella to wake up as we were convinced she would be awake very shortly. Janet and Ivor were starving so they headed in and Isabella woke up about 2 minutes later so we caught up with them in the queue.

We'd never been to Sunshine Seasons and we were really impressed.

We had the following:

Me - Turkey and Monterrey Jack on Ciabatta with Chipotle Mayonnaise and Potato Salad / Carrot Cake Cupcake

Jo - Caesar Salad with Oak Fired Chicken / Strawberry Shortcake

Janet - Spicy Cashew Chicken with Vegetable Stir Fried Noodles / Danish Pastry

Ivor - Spicy Cashew Chicken with Vegetable Stir Fried Noodles / Danish Pastry

The food was really good and Isabella enjoyed it a lot.

After a lovely lunch we went on Living with the Land. Jo and I love this ride and have been on the Behind the Seeds tour twice before. Isabella enjoyed looking at the plants and the exotic fruit and vegetables.

Isabella enjoying her lunch

Isabella explaining hydroponics to Jo

After this it was time for Jo's favourite ride in the whole of Epcot, Disney, Orlando, America and indeed the World - Journey into Imagination with Figment!

All together now... "...iiiimaaaag-i-nation ...iiiimaaaag-i-nation"

After the pure adrenaline ride through Figment's house (!) we decided to slow things down and visit The Three Cabelleros in Mexico.

Janet and Ivor decided they'd had enough for the day and headed back to the resort on the bus.

After a lovely little boat ride through Mexico it was also time for us to leave Epcot.

When we got back to the room Isabella fell asleep feeding and Jo and I relaxed in the room.

Dinner was at Raglan Road in Downtown Disney, so after Isabella woke up we all got ready and walked over there.

Downtown Disney was very busy as was Raglan Road. Isabella was very restless and I took her for a little walk. We all ordered beers, I had the perennial Samuel Adams Boston Lager, Jo had the Samuel Adams Winter Lager, Ivor had Samuel Adams Cherry Wheat and Janet had Orange Blossom Pilsner. They were all very tasty.

Me: Beefy Murray / Bakewell Beauty

Jo: Serious Steak / Ger’s Bread & Butter Pudding

Janet: Lambo Italiano / Moore Street Market

Ivor: Kevin’s Heavenly Ham / No dessert

My Beefy Murray was too hot (it’s a curry pie) so Jo very kindly swapped with me about half way through (as I have the spice tolerance of a child). I didn’t enjoy eating there this time around as much as last time. Of course, it didn’t help that I chose the wrong thing and that Isabella was in a difficult mood.

Our little family

After dinner we headed back to the Marketplace and had a look around the World of Disney shop. We had wanted to buy Isabella a pillow with a character on it, but she couldn’t decide on which one she liked, so we decided to leave it. We did buy her a Mickey Mouse sippy cup though.

Janet and Ivor had decided to spend some more time at Downtown Disney having a drink and wandering around, so Jo and I took Isabella home on the boat which goes to Saratoga Springs every 30 minutes in the evening (hourly during the day) and drops you off at the back of The Turf Club restaurant which is part of the Carriage House, where the reception and Artist’s Palette quick service restaurant are.

We got in and went straight to bed, tomorrow was supposed to be a shopping day - more on that next time!

I took this photo because I work at a digital agency called Chameleon

The Market Place at night

 

[nat1234]

Nice update. It's making me look forward to my trip in September. Time's just not passing fast enough.

 

[stewie]

Day 7 - A Supercalifragilistic Day

Today was supposed to be a shopping day, but as it was a really hot day, Janet and Ivor wanted to go to a park. Jo and I thought as it was really hot day we’d be better off NOT going to a park, but we decided to go anyway.

Isabella hadn’t had a great night’s sleep because she’s teething, so she was a little grumpy. She got up quite early but then fell back to sleep in our bed.

We were hoping that this morning’s Supercalifragilistic Breakfast at 1900 Park Fare at the Grand Floridian Resort & Spa might cheer her up as she would get to meet Winnie the Pooh (and Tigger too), Mary Poppins and characters from Alice in Wonderland (including Alice).

Our very own sleeping beauty

On our way to a Supercalifragilistic Breakfast

Close your mouth, please, Joanne. We are not a codfish.

Isabella gave the Mad Hatter's opinion a lot of thought

Isabella had never seen a tiger that bright before

Tigger does great cuddles

"I knew I could smell pooh" said Isabella

I love these Mickey Waffles!

The breakfast was a buffet and the food was really nice. Isabella wasn’t sure about the characters but the rest of enjoyed having a cuddle with Tigger and Pooh bear and found The Mad Hatter quite amusing.

After breakfast and a little wander round the Grand Floridian lobby, which is really nice, we headed back to the car. The car parking for the Grand Floridian is about 5 minute walk across the road, which must be a real pain if you’re staying there.

Isabella loved the comfy chair...

...And the flowers

She wanted to show off her piano skills too

Nanny, Daddy, Baby, Mummy, Poppa

One thing I’ve not mentioned about our car journeys yet is how much Isabella hates being in the car. Janet and Ivor were sitting with her in the back all holiday and Janet had to keep her constantly occupied, which usually involved singing a number of songs including Old MacDonald Had A Farm and The Wheels On the Bus, or reading her books. I think we were all fed up of those songs by the end of the holiday; everyone except Isabella of course!

So back to Day 7. After traipsing back to the car we were off to Hollywood Studios for the day.

When we arrived we headed straight to Pixar Place to fastpass Toy Story Mania, which has notoriously long waits and can run out of fastpasses within the first couple of hours on some days. The longest wait time we’ve seen was 120 minutes. Our fastpass was for late in the day.

With the fastpasses received, we headed for the Backlot Tour, which is feeling dated in my opinion and could do with a makeover.

It was then time for Isabella’s nap, so Janet and Ivor headed off to do their own thing and Jo and I wandered around the Streets of America while Isabella went to sleep in the pram. While I walked with the pram, Jo got herself a coffee and got me a Coke from Writer’s Stop.

What?

Nap time on the Streets of America

Janet and Ivor did the Tower of Terror

The lobby could use a bit of a dust

Awake and ready to eat

As it got close to lunchtime Jo headed off to meet Janet and Ivor at the ABC Commissary, she also picked up some fastpasses for Stars Tours too, while I had to do a detour to avoid a large group of Brazilians who decided it would be great for everyone to hear them sing.

Isabella finally woke up and I took her to ABC Commissary, however Janet and Ivor hadn’t arrived yet, so we all waited for them outside. Jo and I always eat here when we come to Hollywood Studios as the food is generally good, but on this day it wasn’t up to it’s usual standard - the chicken burgers in particular were dry and chewy.

Me: 1/3 lb Angus Cheeseburger and Fried Shrimp
Jo: Chicken Bleu
Janet: Shrimp Platter
Ivor: Chicken Bleu

After lunch it was time for Jo and I to tryout the new Star Tours. Ivor had already been on it but decided he’d have another go, and despite not having a fastpass got on the same time we did - albeit in a different Starspeeder.

As a Star Wars fan, I’d never really been that impressed by the original Star Tours: Tour to Endor ride, having felt it always seemed dated.

This new version, Star Tours: The Adventures Continue, was a huge improvement. In case you’ve not had the chance to try it yet, the ride sequence is randomised and there are eleven random segments of the film (two opening segments, three primary destination segments, three hologram message segments, and three ending destination segments). When combined, they allow 54 different possible ride experiences.

If you want to read more about visit Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Tours:_The_Adventures_Continue

Briefly, our ride was:

• The Millenium Falcon intro
  
• Land on Kashyyyk (Chewbacca ends up on the windscreen)
  
• Hologram from Leia
  
• Land on Coruscant

After a thoroughly enjoyable ride we were reunited with Ivor, Janet and Isabella and after stopping to get fastpasses for Rock n Roller Coaster we headed for the Great Movie Ride.

On the way there Jo stopped to give Isabella a feed in the Baby Care Centre. This was the second of WDWs Baby Care Centres that she'd used, and whilst it was nicer than most mother and baby facilities, the first one at Animal Kingdom was nicer and had private cubicles for feeding and loads of changing tables.

The Great Movie Ride is another ride which is in serious need of a makeover. It seems to deteriorate in quality with each year and this year’s “acting” performances from the driver and, in our case, the cowgirl were particularly lacklustre.

With the Great Movie Ride done it was finally time to do Toy Story Mania. Jo and I took Isabella in the vehicle with us and she seemed to have lots of fun being spun around and watching mummy and daddy try to shoot things!

Isabella was unsure of the 3D glasses

It was nearly time to go home, and we had one last ride to do: Rock n Rollercoaster. I’m not really sure whether I like this ride or not. The 0-57mph in 2.8 secs start is exhilarating but the rest of it is a bit boring and I hate Aerosmith with a passion! I’ve never understood why they used Aerosmith, who likes Aerosmith?!

After that was done, we all headed back to the car and once loaded up we went back to the resort.

After getting ready for dinner we drove to Animal Kingdom Lodge for our reservation at Boma.

On the way Isabella slept in the car and when we arrived Jo and I waited in the car with her while Janet and Ivor went inside to have a look round the resort and see the animals.

When Isabella eventually woke we went to meet them, and they suggested we spend the 10 minutes until our reservation outside looking at the animals.

At dinner, Isabella wasn't in a particularly good mood but the food was really good and Jo especially enjoyed it.

We were all tired after dinner so we headed straight back to the resort and, after a quick stop for coffee and a little browse in the shop, we went to bed.

Isabella thought this hat made her ears look big

 

[Chilly]

I'd missed loads of updates! I love all your photo captions.

Jo's spreadsheet looks a lot like mine.

 

[stewie]

Day 8 - Back to the Future (World)

Halfway through our Disney holiday, and this is where things take a slight turn for the worse. Dun dun duuuun.

More on that later, let’s start at the beginning of Day 8.

Isabella woke up once in the night because she was hot and after I eventually got her back to sleep she ended up sleeping till about 8.30.

Jo and I woke up before that and had some coffee and got ready. When Isabella woke up she had some porridge and then the three of us headed to Epcot. Janet and Ivor wanted to visit a different park today as they only had a few days left till they went home.

When we got to Epcot, which is our favourite park by the way - I don’t know whether I’d mentioned that - we headed to France on the World Showcase and had a croque monsieur, a Napoleon and a coffee in the new Les Halles Bakery. We really enjoyed the food and the decor.

Les Halles

Notre petite fille

Paris, Florida

Hands up if you love Disney

After that, we headed back to Future World and went on Jo’s favourite ride... Journey into Imagination with Figment. Afterwards Isabella enjoyed making music in ImageWorks before we had a wander around Innoventions and took her on Spaceship Earth.

As it was now lunchtime we decided to go to Sunshine Seasons as we enjoyed it when we went there earlier in the week: http://www.thedibb.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?p=8403221

This time around Jo and I had the same thing - Turkey and Monterrey Jack on Ciabatta with Chipotle Mayonnaise and Potato Salad. It’s very nice!

With lunch done we decided to leave Epcot, just as the weather turned from very hot to cold and drizzly. On the way back to the resort we stopped at Publix to get some supplies, Isabella fell asleep in the car again so Jo went shopping on her own again.

When we got back to the resort we got ourselves a drink in our refillable resort mugs and headed back to our room where Isabella played for a couple of hours and we got to relax before dinner.

Ivor took Jo by surprise!

Shops on the Boardwalk

A club on the Boardwalk

We hadn’t seen Ivor and Janet all day, which was probably a nice break for them! Dinner was at Kouzzina at Boardwalk. This was going to be our first visit to Boardwalk, even though Jo and I had talked about going there for a few years but somehow never got round to it. After having a walk round for half an hour or so before our reservation, it felt like we hadn’t really been missing anything, and I won’t be heading back there in a hurry. The food at the restaurant was fantastic though, the best I’d had so far, and the restaurant itself had a nice atmosphere.

Me: Fishermans stew / Baklava

Jo: Kouzzina Trio (Lasagna, Lamb burger, Chicken) / Loukoumades (Greek doughnuts)

Jan: Wood-grilled Rib Eye Steak

Ivor: Wood-grilled Rib Eye Steak

Unfortunately Isabella didn't really eat anything and was very clingy. We thought she was tired as she hadn’t slept in the car.

Having the time of their lives...

Isabella kept nanny occupied

"Round and round the garden..."

Ivor got a photo of the Epcot fireworks

After dinner Janet and Ivor decided to head to Epcot and watch Illuminations: Reflections of Earth (whenever I read that title I always say it in the dramatic American accent voiceover they use at the park!) and we headed home.

Isabella was really tired and when we got to our room she was suddenly sick. Twice. We cleaned her up and eventually got her to bed. Unfortunately she was sick four more times in the night. We were very worried as she’d never been ill before.

 

[Chilly]

Hope Isabella gets better quickly.

Give the Boardwalk another chance, sometimes they have magicians and such preforming.

 

[stewie]

Hope Isabella gets better quickly.

Give the Boardwalk another chance, sometimes they have magicians and such preforming.

Thanks Chilly. We are going back in January so perhaps we will.

 

[laurab84]

hurry up with the next up date! I'm addicted to this thread. hope Isabella is ok. Xx


Posted from DISboards.com App for Android

 

[stewie]

Day 9 - Shop 'til You... Get Thrown Up On

One thing I've realised about this day is that a) I didn't make enough notes and b) I didn't take enough photos, which doesn't make for an exciting trip report!

Oh well, too late to change that now, so here we go!

Today was to be our first shopping day of the holiday, which based on our previous eight visits is very late in the holiday.

Unfortunately Isabella was feeling unwell after last nights bout of sickness and we were a little worried. We hoped that a more relaxing day away from the park would be a good idea.

After a quick breakfast of porridge and toast in the room we headed to Premium Outlets International Drive formerly known as Prime Outlets which in turn was formerly known as Belz, which is what Jo still calls it.

As far as shopping trips go it was pretty unsuccessful. I dont think we bought anything apart from a pair of little adidas trainers for Isabella. We split up and shopped on our own and had agreed to meet Janet & Ivor in the food court for lunch. The mall was very busy and we had Five Guys burgers for lunch, which were pretty good.

Isabella liked the taste of her new trainers

Unfortunately the shopping trip ended prematurely when Isabella, who was in the Ergo baby carrier at the time, was sick on herself and Jo.

We headed back to the resort soon after and she was sick again in the car.

As tomorrow was Janet and Ivors last day, tonight would be their last night. We had originally planned to got to Saana at Animal Kingdom Villas  Kidani Village bit we decided to cancel because of Isabella. Instead, Janet & Ivor went to The Turf Club Bar & Grill which is on our resort, and they really enjoyed it. I think they both had steak, which they thought was one of the best meals theyd had all holiday.

For our dinner, I drove to Downtown Disney to get us Earl of Sandwich. What we thought would be a quick trip ended up taking about an hour and a half! Downtown Disney was ridiculously busy and I ended having to park in the West Side car park and walk all the way to Market Place - which if youve ever been to Downtown Disney youll realise is quite a slap, especially when the place is crowded.

When I finally got to Earl of Sandwich I had to wait about 15 minutes to get served as well. Having said that, the food is exceptionally nice, and Im lucky that I now work in Smithfield in London about five minutes walk from the Earl of Sandwich on Fleet Street - I have to resist the temptation to go there every day for lunch!

After a later than expected dinner we got Isabella to bed and she was sick again once in the night. We were still worried, as you can imagine, but fortunately she was drinking lots so there was no danger of her getting dehydrated.

We hadn't found her a hat whilst shopping so Isabella decided to improvise

 

[stewie]

Day 10 - ...And Then There Were Three


This was Janet and Ivor’s last day. Isabella was sick again in the morning and wouldn’t drink much, which was very worrying. We talked about taking her to the hospital but decided to wait to see how she was during the day.

Janet and Ivor met us at our room as they wanted to drop their suitcases off. They had to be out of their room by 11 and they weren’t getting the Magical Express back to the airport until about 2.30 for their early evening flight back to a very snowy England!

Isabella thought her new snowboard would come in handy when we got home

This is a very pretty photo that requires no words... oops

We thought Isabella might sleep in her pram on the walk over to Downtown Disney but she didn’t. By the time we got over there it was lunch time. It was a Saturday and Downtown Disney was very busy. We discussed where to go for lunch and ended up back at Wolfgang Puck Express in Marketplace where we went on Day 4.

Me: Roasted Seasonal Vegetable Pizza

Jo: Rotisserie Turkey Club Sandwich

Janet: Roasted Seasonal Vegetable Pizza

Ivor: Pepperoni Pizza

We sat outside again in the quiet area round the back and Isabella had lots of fun playing with Ivor and she got some Mickey Mouse stickers that Janet had been saving for her which she loved. We also had a friend join us for lunch, I think he may have been related to Kermit.

Fun!

Really fun!

Check out my stickers

They don't serve frogs in Wolfgang Puck

"Here you are nanny, have a sticker"

Er...

After lunch, we had a wander round the shops and then it was time for Isabella’s nap. Unfortunately she still didn’t want to sleep in her pram, so I had to walk round the Marketplace car park for a while and eventually she fell asleep.

Janet and Ivor wanted to stay at Downtown Disney and have a drink so Jo and I headed back to the room.

The afternoon was spent relaxing in the room and after Janet and Ivor came to say goodbye and pick up their cases we got ready for dinner.

Tonight we were going to Chef Mickey’s at the Contemporary Resort, and we were hoping that Isabella would enjoy meeting Mickey and the gang.

This was my first visit to the Contemporary and I found it quite a strange experience. Having been used to visiting the various resorts throughout this and the last Disney holiday, the Contemporary felt much more like a hotel than any of the others, and much busier.

Thankfully Isabella really enjoyed meeting the characters, although she was a little shy with them. Jo and I also enjoyed meeting them too! We were also happy that Isabella drank lots of water and ate. The food was really nice and we’re definitely going back there when we go again in January - oh, by the way, did I mention that we’re going again? We booked it last week! Just the three of us this time though, so no Half Marathon but we’re still going in January.

Isabella loves Minnie... no, really

Donald

Goofy

MICKEY!

Isabella really loved meeting Mickey. Honest.

Daddy met Pluto!

After dinner we went straight home and I played with Isabella while Jo got on the phone and rearranged Monday night’s dinner reservation. We were originally going to be having lunch at Liberty Tree Tavern but Jo saw on her My Disney Experience app on her phone that there was a reservation free at ’Ohana on Monday night. As ‘Ohana reservations are hard to come by we thought we’d make the most of the opportunity. We’d been discussing whether we really wanted a big lunch at Liberty Tree Tavern on that day anyway, so it seemed perfect.

So with Janet and Ivor now on their way home it was just the three of us for the next five days. Isabella was sick once in the night, which was the first time in 12 hours, so we were hoping she was on the road to recovery.

Love your hat mum

 

[Chilly]

Love her face in that last photo!

 

[thestevied]

Enjoying the updates. I love seeing how other families holiday differently.

 

[stewie]

Day 11 - Shop 'til You... Get Thrown Up On - Pt 2

Today was a shopping day.

We weren’t in a rush, so had a lazy morning and had a breakfast of toast and porridge.

As it was a Sunday we thought we’d avoid the outlets so headed to Mall at Millenia, our favourite mall, which usually meant Cheesecake Factory for lunch.

On the way to the mall we stopped at the Super Target just off Millenia Boulevard. Jo wanted to see whether they did the drinks holder console for our new stroller. Isabella fell asleep in the car on the way, so Jo went in on her own while I waited in the car with a sleeping baby and did a lot of people watching.

Super Target is massive, the biggest supermarket Jo had ever been in, and she was in there for what felt like a really long time stocking up on some much needed supplies.

Possibly the dullest photo on this board!

Isabella with a fork... this wasn't a day for good photos!

When Jo returned to the car, she rather expertly managed to put the shopping in the car and get in without waking Isabella - a task made all the more difficult due to annoying ding-ding that happens every time you open a door.

We made the short drive to the Mall and parked in our usual area outside Bloomingdale’s. We waited until Isabella woke up until we headed into the mall.

There are a few shops that we usually visit when we go there like Abercrombie & Fitch, Hollister, lululemon, Macys, American Eagle, Walking Company (for the Uggs) and Gap.

Isabella enjoyed lululemon and Gap but didn't like the smells, loud music and lack of lighting in Hollister and Abercrombie - in about 10 years I know that will not be the case! Whilst looking round Abercrombie she was actually a little sick on Jo (she was in the Ergo baby carrier), I’m sure she’s not the first person that’s happened to.

We decided that maybe Cheesecake Factory wasn’t the best idea as Isabella was obviously still not 100%, so instead we went upstairs to the Orangerie Cafes Food Court and got some calzones from Tony & Bruno's, one of the fast food counters there.

After lunch, we decided to head home but on the way out of the mall Isabella discovered how much fun you can have going up and down escalators!

As we were still after this console for the stroller, we popped over to Babies R Us. As it was a really hot day we also got ourselves an ice cream before driving back to the resort.

On the way home I started to feel unwell and when we got back to the room I felt really sick and started shivering, so had to go to bed. It was only 5 o’clock and I spent the rest of the evening in and out of bed throwing up and alternating shivering and sweating. We found out the next day when Jo spoke to Janet that Ivor had also felt ill when they got home so obviously Ivor and I caught whatever Isabella had, which we think was probably Norovirus. Jo heard recently that there had actually been a lot of cases reported in the area at that time.

Fortunately we didn’t have any reservations booked for this night as we’d expected to have a late lunch/early dinner at Cheesecake Factory, so Jo took Isabella down to Artist’s Palette.

Jo: Vegetarian Flatbread / Mickey Bar

When she got back she tried feeding Isabella before putting her to bed and Isabella was sick again and didn’t want to go to sleep.

I was still feeling really rough and wasn’t able to help out like I usually do.

It had turned out to be a pretty bad day and we hoped that the next day would be better as there wasn’t long left of our holiday and we wanted to make sure we enjoyed it.