Fun Day today! YAY!

Got up a bit after seven this morning for Chef Mickey’s! We got there at about 8:30ish, and Goofy was the greeter. Aidan was happy about that! The food was amazing, and I finally got a chance to meet Minnie Mouse (in her regular dress)!! 😀

Yes, Chef Mickey’s. Highly recommended. Yes. 😀 I sat at the table eating while Chris took Aidan to see Goofy AGAIN! Apparently, a bunch of people were being very unfair and cutting in line. It seems that Goofy took note and made sure to spend a lot of extra special time with Aidan. 🙂 Yay for Goofy. No wonder Aidan loves him.

Aidan calls him FOOKY. HAHAHA. 😀

After breakfast, we went to Epcot. I got to ride Test Track (five minute wait) and Mission Space (five minute wait)!! Test Track was awesome. I loved it. Mission Space was awesome while I was experiencing it, but I was nauseated for at least 90 minutes afterwards. Mission Space is INTENSE and don’t let anyone tell you differently. I don’t plan on riding it again for several years. But I bet I’ll ride it next year (yes, we’re already planning next year’s vacation)! Before Mission Space, I got to meet Space Goofy and Mickey!

We did The Living Seas (I missed most of that–I sat on a bench and tried to recover from Mission Space), and then we headed back to the countries. I went to the bathroom and then we ate at that awesome Mexican restaurant that I’d smelled a few days back and desperately wanted. IT WAS SO GOOD! I mean, YUM. Again, YUM. OMG. It was so good. So yeah, San Angel Inn. Highly recommended!

After lunch, we began the trek through the World Showcase. There were character stops all along the way:

Mulan and Mushu in China

Rafiki and Timon at the Outpost

Snow White and Dopey in Germany

The Genie in Morocco

Some of the highlights of World Showcase:
– Matsuriza – an amazing Japanese Drum Show.
– Dragon Legend Acrobats – Chinese acrobats. Holy cow. No words. Really.

Chris made me watch The American Adventure. Voices of Liberty was cool, but The American Adventure Attraction was boring. It was stuff I already knew–I wanted to learn about different cultures, not recap all the history classes I was forced to attend all my life! I was happy to get out and get into Japan. The store was different than I remembered, but still awesome. Although the incense made me feel high and disoriented. I am not sure if it was Mission Space residuals, or the incense. (I bought some of the incense). 🙂 I also got lots of Japanese snacks, a gift for Greg, and a pair of socks.

Morocco brought with it some really beautiful belly dancing outfits (I wish I could afford them) and the Genie and Aladdin! 🙂 Then there was France. We’d missed the Beast and Belle by about 40 minutes. Boohoo. I wanted to visit the UK again, but Chris said no and Aidan was clammoring for chicken and french fries. We got them from a little McDonalds stand. We all shared a 9 piece and a large fry. I sat on a bench by the lagoon and there were two ducks just sitting there. I found out why. Those guys eat from your hands! 🙂 The girl duck is an aggressive little sucker, always stealing from the guy duck. There was a white birdie that popped in from time to time too. Aidan giggled like crazy when the duck ate fries from his hand.

After World Showcase, we went back to Future World and rode Journey Into Imagination. After that ride, Aidan had a blast running around in the “What If” lab before we headed over to watch Honey, I Shrunk the Audience. That is an entertaining 3D show. I will not give it all away in case you go someday, but man, it gets the best audience reactions, that’s for sure!

By now, Aidan and I were about done. I’d been up since early, was still dealing with Mission Space residuals, and had only slept for about 4.5 hours or so. I was ready. So we caught the bus and headed back and here I am. 🙂

Guess what we found when we got back to our hotel room!

How cute is this?

Tomorrow is Friday, our last full day. Can you believe it? 🙁 This week has flown by and I can’t believe it’s going to be over soon. Although I do miss broadband (A LOT – dialup is driving me NUTS) and my friends. And the fun begins when we start the planning for Disneyworled 2006! Yeehaw!

Til next time…

Edited to Add: DO NOT USE THEIR COMPLIMENTARY SHIPPING! Our picture collage is broken and the shot glass box is all banged up. Not cool. We have some returns/exchanges to do tomorrow. 🙁

This morning, we got to Disney/MGM Studios about 920ish. We were there to see Playhouse Disney. Aidan was in a bumbly mood, and it wasn’t until after Playhouse Disney that we realized that he was probably hungry. With stops to visit characters in betweeen (I met Stitch!)…

…we found a place to eat. Little birdies were hopping all around and we fed them. Aidan chased them. He was in an okay mood then. Ran into more characters. Rafiki was there, but while we were in line, Rafiki went away and Eeyore came out. I was a bit disappointed. We’d met Eeyore twice already. But he came up to me and gave me a really long hug which was so special. And he and Aidan played forever. It was so cute! 🙂 So it was okay.

We watched Voyage of The Little Mermaid, and do you know that dang show made me get choked up? Just like the movie. Darn it. It was pretty good. After VOTLM, I got my chance to meet Rafiki! Aidan was in a horrible mood by now, but he got happier once he saw Rafiki:

We made our way over to the Indiana Jones show. Chris was deadset on seeing that. It really was cool. Chris and Aidan got their picture with the stunt double people afterwards.

We tried to go to the Drew Carey Sounds Dangerous show but Aidan was not having it at ALL. Even playing with the stuff in the lobby was not making him happy. We finally had to leave. On the way out, we strolled past the 50s Prime Time Cafe. Now, I’d heard wonderful things about this place and expected a huge wait. But guess what? We practically walked right in. I had fried chicken, mashed potatoes and green beans. Aidan’s mood lightened a lot once he ate. 🙂

The food there was great, and you really do feel like you’re at home!

Headed back to the hotel for a nap while Aidan and Chris went swimming. Then we went to Downtown Disney! Shopped like crazy, and then had dinner at Planet Hollywood.

Shopped a bit more, then came back. I got my shower tonight because we have to be up early tomorrow for breakfast at Chef Mickey’s! YAY!! G’night!

I’m in the room relaxing a bit. We were supposed to go to Downtown Disney, but seeing as Chris and Aidan have just crashed, I don’t know if that will happen tonight or not.

Had a great time today. Went to Magic Kingdom. I got to meet Pinnochio!

That was really cool! Mickey Mouse (in the tux) was in Town Square, so I met him too. We went to the back to Toontown Fair (stopping at the Cinderellabration again–Chris is obsessed with it), and tried to ride the Barnstormer. The first guy said Aidan was tall enough, but the ladies up top said no. Chris raised sort of a stink, so they gave us a priority pass onto any other ride in the park! So, I went through on the Barnstormer, and then we headed to Mickey’s house. At the end of Mickey’s house was guess who! Mickey Mouse! 😀 That makes FIVE Mickey Mouses so far that we’ve met!!!! 😀 (Last time, it took a character meal for me to meet one!)

After Mickey’s house, we went to the Big Tent, and I got to meet some Princesses! Highlight Number One of my day! 😀 There was Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, and Snow White! Sleeping Beauty and Snow White told me that I was pretty! 😀 Snow White gave Aidan a big smooch, and now he has a big red lip mark on his cheek.

We then caught the train to the front of the park. I got off (leaving the boys behind) and headed to the monorail, for I was headed to the Grand Floridian for a Swedish massage! Chris surprised me with it. Oh wow, it was divine. I fell asleep countless times during it. It felt so good. Mmmm. I love massages. Highlight #2 of my day! 😀 Simply glorious, I’ll tell you. The Grand Floridian Resort is beautiful. I totally want to stay there someday.

After my massage, I caught the monorail back to Magic Kingdom. Haha. I was excited to get on the ghetto one again. Most of them say “PLEASE STAND CLEAR OF THE DOORS” or something like tha tin English then in Spanish just before the doors close. This one says “Please. [silence] Please.” Then the doors close and off we go. We got that one before, and I was so happy to get it again. It’s a lot funnier than it sounds, trust me.

I got to Magic Kingdom just in time to catch almost the entire Share a Dream Come True Parade. Prime seating too, right up front. 😀 Finally met up with Chris and Aidan afte the parade and headed back to the back. I think another Cinderellabration may have been happening. I’m not sure. We ate at that yummy cafe again (Starlight Cafe?), and then we rode the Peter Pan ride (bypassed a 50 minute line thanks to our priority pass), and then Haunted Mansion. Then we walked back to Frontierland. Let Aidan meet Woody and Jesse from Toy Story, and then I was in pursuit of Jasmine and Aladdin. We found them by the Swiss Family Tree House (okay, so all I had to do was look at the Times Guide & New Information Sheet to find them). Highlight #3 of my day! 😀

Aidan was about at his wit’s end by now, but just as we were heading out, we saw some ducks that were freaking out. It was too funny. And Chris noted another Cinderellabration starting. I got way up front this time.

More awesome pictures soon. 😀

So yeah, the boys are snoring on the bed beside me. I think that defintely means no Downtown Disney tonight. 🙁 Maybe tomorrow, eh? Although there is MGM. Aidan’s going to watch Playhouse Disney! YAY for that.

Good Things:
+ Meeting lots of characters.
+ Weather that isn’t too unbearable.
+ Swedish massages.
+ The Grand Floridian.
+ The Disney Monorail System.
+ Hitchhiking ghosts.
+ Practically walking on to any ride in the park.

Bad Things:
– My nose is still running.
– I have FOUR bug bites.
– A blood vessel burst in my eye.
– Davis Men falling asleep before 8pm! What is up with that??
– The threat of thunderstorms.

Restaurant Review:
Crystal Palace – 3.5 stars
Starlight Cafe – 3.5 stars
The Pizza Place in MGM – 1 star
The Garden Grill – 400 stars
The Electric Umbrella – negative 99 stars

Meh. More soon. 😀

Hola! Yet another fun day at Disneyworld!

Today, we hit Disney MGM Studios. We did a little bit of shopping before heading towards the back. With really no plan in mind, we did whatever struck our fancies. The first thing was the Animation Studio. We watched a cute little show about how Mushu (from Mulan) was created, then Aidan and I met The Incredibles! 😀

I got an ice cream bar after that, and we wandered to the Movie Ride. What a neat ride. While waiting, they show previews of several movies on a huge screen. I really want to see Footlight Parade now, and I think I’ll have Chris rent it when we get back home.

After the movie ride, we headed back to the Backlot Tour, but got caught up in some character greetings along the way! There was Jo Jo (who loved Aidan’s hair) and Goliath from Jo Jo’s Circus (Aidan was THRILLED times nine!), Donald Duck (who loved Aidan’s hair), and Fantasia Mickey Mouse! Last time I was here, the only way I got to meet Mickey was during a character meal, and this year, I got to meet him THREE times. And it’s only Monday!! 😀

We grabbed some lunch, then watched Muppetvision 3D. I love Disney’s 3D shows. The Muppets are crazy. As we were rounding the corner to the Backlot Tour, we ran into the guys from Toy Story! YEA!

Then there was the Star Wars Tours ride. Chris and I had to do the parent/baby switch off thing because Aidan isn’t 40 inches yet. A man gave him a card that said “Future Rider” on it. While Chris was riding and I was in line, I met this funny girl named Alyvia. We acted silly throughout the entire ride! 😀

We finally went on the Backlot Tour, and Catastrophe Canyon was great as usual, but they took down the Golden Girls house which disappointed Chris and me greatly. But it was okay nevertheless.

After the Tour, we made our way to the front of the park. Chris and Aidan were getting cranky and I was getting really tired. We went and picked up the Mouse Ears hat we had personalized for Aidan…

…and noted that people were settling on the curbs. Oh darn, we were just in time for a PARADE! Oh fun. We sat right in the sun, and got to see so many fun characters. I got lots of kisses blown to me from Donald and Mickey! 😀 Mary Poppins was in the parade, and Alice (in Wonderland) and DARTH VADER! I can’t even begin to describe it, but it was so great to see so many characters. A Power Ranger and Alice came right up to Aidan. So did Zoe from Rolli Poly Olli!! 😀 Aidan had a blast during the parade!

On our way back to the room, Aidan fell asleep on Chris. We came back to the room and everyone crashed. We’d planned on going to Downtown Disney, but decided against it. By the time I woke up, it was pretty late, so we decided to eat dinner here and take it easy. Much needed.

Tomorrow should be another fun day. I think we’re planning on hitting Magic Kingdom again! Mickey’s Toontown (yay, Aidan can see Goofy, or FOOKY as he calls him, again!) and then, I’m not sure what else.

Things I’ve Learned:
– Magic Kingdom’s fireworks are better than Epcot’s.
– Disney Villians are not nice and don’t like for you to take their pictures! 😉
– The Muppets are insane.
– As soon as I’m off the bus, I am overcome with an overwhelming desire to speak in a British accent. I always succumb.

The Few Minuses:
– Our neighbors go on the balcony and smoke. The smoke drifts directly into our room. I can smell it now. Gross. 🙁
– Our bathroom is a handicap bathroom. Hence the weird shower set up.
– We’re in the All-Star Movies, so we’re always the last ones to be dropped off when coming home from the parks (unless we’re on an exclusive All-Star Movies bus).
– Sometimes THREE Blizzard Beach buses come in a row and no Epcot bus forever.
– Dial-up Internet. Boo!

I’m pretty sleepy right now, and I have a sore throat. I refuse to get full on sick, though. I am not wasting my vacation lying around in bed!!

So good night, all.

Got up a bit later this morning. I decided to skip the Tarzan show because Chris and Aidan had gotten sick, and because I was tired! 🙂 We got up at 9:15 thanks to Aidan, and I showered and got dressed. We ate breakfast in the food court here. (RIPOFF)

We went to Animal Kingdom and had a really good time! 🙂 We got lost trying to find theatre for The Lion King Festival–but I did catch a glimpse of Lilo and Stitch–(and when we found them back and Camp Mickey and Minnie, I realized that we’d missed our priority seating for that, not for Tarzan!). But the cast members at Disneyworld are awesome, and they moved our priority reservation to 1:00. It was barely noon, and there were character greetings all over the place. There was hardly any line for Goofy, and so we got to meet him, then Mickey! 😀 Check it:

After that, we went into the “and friends” line and guess who was back there! Donald Duck! 🙂 I’d never met Donald before so I was so excited. And then, I did my very first pin trade. 😀 YAY for me!

The we watched The Lion King Festival. WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW. I can’t even describe how awesome it was. Just wow. If you come here, you need to make sure you catch that show! We were in the FRONT ROW (thank you Priority Seating!) and they were totally interacting with us, especially with Aidan! 🙂 It was so much fun.

We headed back to the hotel for a nap. Aidan fell asleep on the way back to the hotel, but somehow woke up between the bus and the room. Chris and I dozed while Aidan had a field day playing around the room. He spent a lot of time in the window, I remember that. Weird. After naptime was dinner at THE GARDEN GRILL! They changed their menu, but the food and service was still superb (I had beef loin and orzo with spinach, and we shared a chocolate fondue for dessert) and it’s still my favorite restaurant. Our waitress, Jeannie, was really nice and cool. I probably would have stood there talking to her forever if Aidan and Chris hadn’t started clammoring for me after dinner.

But the character greetings during the dinner was so much fun!! They are so great with Aidan. Pluto was a BUCKEYES fan! And when Aidan said “Go Buckeyes,” he almost fell to the floor! It was the cutest thing ever. At one point, he danced with Dale, and he danced with Pluto (actually, he and Pluto were having a blast, rolling on the floor and dancing and all sorts of silly things), and Chip and Mickey! Then these two little boys came over from the next table and they were all dancing with Mickey and omg, it was the funniest and cutest thing! 😀 Chris got video of it all! 😀

After dinner, we went over to look at a few of the countries in World Showcase. We went to Canada and looked at a 360 circle movie. I thought it was okay, but Aidan LOVED it. He was absolutely fascinated. Then, we headed over to England. I just wanted to go in and listen to the workers speak; I LOVE THEIR ACCENTS! The really cute guy in one of the shoppes clued us in on Pooh being in the toy store. We went over, and not only was Pooh there, but Tigger and Eeyore too. We were the last family and boy did we get the VIP treatment. The family before us finished up and walked out, and then Tigger made a beeline for me and gave me a huge hug! Pooh and Eeyore fawned all over Aidan, and they all were giving him loads and loads of attention. Oh gosh, we must have been there for at least eight minutes, playing and taking pictures and having a wonderful time. Aidan got so many hugs and kisses from them, and they gave him three group hugs! 🙂

We watched the fireworks again. Good times. 🙂 Well, not really. There was lightening in the distance and I got a bit nervous. And my throat was hurting, and since it was so humid out, the smoke hung in the air. ButI bought two new pins for my lanyard. And I realized that most people around here are very nice. I’ve talked to more people from more places than ever, it seems. People sitting next to you at parades or on the bus like to talk, especially older ones. It’s great, and helps pass the time. 🙂

Other things I’ve learned:
– At the walk up counters, the kid’s meals are just as filling, a lot cheaper, and tastier.
– May is a great time of year to go to Disneyworld!
– Characters LOVE curly-haired 2 year olds named Aidan.
– Certain curly-haired 2 year olds are not allowed to have ANY MORE APPLE JUICE!

I think Aidan is going to be a Disney cast member someday. A performer. He has the look, the charisma, and the attitude for it. I think he’d be great at it. 😀

There is no agenda for tomorrow. We’ll probably play it by ear. Ear, haha. 🙂 Who knows what will be in store for us? 😀

I had another very good day. 😀 ‘Til next time…

PS I did have an update for yesterday. Somehow, I’d coded it Friends Only when it wasn’t supposed to be. 😀 It’s fixed now.