Epcot 2015

Hi! I know it's been a while. It takes a lot to put one of these posts together, and I've been super busy with work. But today my brain is scattered in 23849 different directions, so I thought, why not catch up. Or try to, anyway?



Aidan and I went to Epcot twice while on our trip. The first day, it was the two of us, and we had a good time. There was adventuring and characters and rides! There was one part that sucked, though. We were in line to meet Donald Duck when my phone started going crazy, showing me all these fraudulent charges using my Capital One. Then we were next and Donald had to go eat a taco (It was the Mexico Donald Duck.) I'd been trying to get a Donald all trip and argh. The card stuff eventually got sorted, so it all worked out. And that evening? We ate at Garden Grill and had an amazing time. Seriously, that restaurant blows me away EVERY SINGLE TIME I go, and this was my 11th time there.



We got the HOOKUP for dessert, thanks to Sam, the amazing manager. Check this out:



Can you even believe? I still can't.

We watched the fireworks with my friend Joey and he dropped us off at the hotel after which was so nice of him.

The 2nd day we went, it was our last day in a Disney park for our trip. So those days are always bittersweet. Aidan wanted a hat, but not any hat. THIS HAT:



I'd just gotten the official word that Humana wanted to hire me as a contractor, so I was happy to buy it for him from the China pavilion.

We did the Character Connection, which is always different every time we go!



Eventually, Aidan and I met up with Joey and his daughters (Bella and Victoria) that afternoon and ate pizza at Via Napoli. That pizza tasted FREAKING DELICIOUS. We rode Test Track and Mission: Space with them as well. Aidan wanted to ride Orange: More Intense and so did Bella. Joey didn't want Bella to ride it at first; I just think he didn't want her to go alone. When I told him that I was letting Aidan go, he let her go too. I love that I can let Aidan do that. I was never going to tell him "no."

Victoria and I played the games in the Mission Control part while we waited, and when that ended, I got her some astronaut ice cream, which she'd never even heard of, let alone tried!

At some point during the day, this bird somehow got ahold of a mayo packet. There was a cast member standing under the tree trying to get him to drop it but this bird was like LOL.



That night, I had to pick up my rental car. Aidan and I were crashing out at Joey's for a couple of nights before heading up the Florida coast. Joey made us dinner and let me do laundry, and we got to talk to Ricky Luna on video chat, and watch Wishes (the Magic Kingdom fireworks) from Joey's window. Then we had to go to bed. It was LEGOland the next day!

All Hail Mickey Mouse!

Guess who recently returned from a really cool Disney vacation? If you guessed ME, you'd be right! :) I didn't post much about it here because well, it was such a random, sorta last minute thing. See, my brother-in-law Eli and his wife Melissa both work for the Disney company in California, so they get free tickets (four each!) and discounted accommodations for the parks. They also run marathons and crazy things like that. They came to Orlando to do the Wine & Dine Half Marathon and then to vacation a bit. Adam's family was joining them, along with Melissa's mom. That left one space for me! I just had to pay for my flight and contribute a bit to the room cost, which was VERY VERY reasonable, what they asked. And of course, buy my own food, etc.


the gang!
The trip was from November 7-15. I had to be with Eli to get let into the park, and then I could do whatever I want the rest of the day. Sometimes I stuck with Adam's family (his mom, dad, sister, and niece), sometimes I hung with Melissa, Eli, and Vicky. Sometimes we were ALL together. A lot of times I went off by myself. I took a lot of selfies! Ha.


The Magic started right away, when I went to check in and the guy at the desk gave me a pile of stickers and coloring books and crayons and buttons! And it just kept continuing, with people doing nice things, my friend Joe getting us into Garden Grill for dinner even though it had been booked for months, big hugs from Mickey Mouse and the gang, and so much more.

Here are the things I've learned the times that I was on my own at Disney World:

1. It's an interesting experience. I loved the freedom of doing what I wanted when I wanted. It was much faster and easier to weasel my way through crowds when I was by myself. I enjoyed just answering to myself. If I wanted to do something, I did it. I didn't have to get approval or wait for people, I could just go for it. And single rider lines for rides are the best. I pretty much walked right on to Test Track more than once. And there are some really warm and open people at Disney World. I talked to one wonderful woman about ten minutes and by the end of the conversation, she was embracing me. Little girls seemed to love me--so many would just stop and smile and/or say "hi" to me or just start talking to me. Little boys, too! And I got a free churro because I was at the Christmas Party by myself. If I wanted to sit and people watch, it was OK for me to do that. I didn't feel like I was putting people out when my tiny bladder made its needs known loudly and often. If people in the group were doing something I wasn't all that into, I liked being able to say "I'm going to do [some other thing] and I'll catch up with you later." I loved that.

2. Eating was so cheap when it was just me! Before I left for Disney, I purchased $150 in Disney gift cards from Target (using my RedCard so I'd save 5%), and I didn't use all of it. Granted, one meal was an expensive one and I paid for that NOT using the gift card, but the rest? Well, I came home with $20 left, and I'd even bought a souvenir with some of the gift card money. This was done with some extra help though: I had granola bars and Pop-Tarts in my room. I bought one bottle of water and kept refilling it, and I also bought a refillable drink mug (with a gift card!) to use when I was at the resort. Seeing as I was there so many nights, it was a good investment, especially on my resort day. I also have a small appetite, so many times, the kid's meal was adequate for me. I also forgot about my gift cards and got a couple of Food & Wine entries with cash. So, truthfully, I probably spent about $180 to feed myself at Disney World for nine days, including a refillable drink mug, a fancy sit down meal, and novelty snacks. I'd say $20 a day isn't bad.

3. During a long trip like this, a day in the middle to do NOTHING is a fantastic idea. I never knew the value of it until last week. I realized that I am absolutely capable of melting down like the toddlers at the end of the night (or morning or whenever) who have had ENOUGH. I was like that Monday night after the Christmas party. I was just DONE. Then I dropped my brand new phone INTO the Murphy bed that I was sleeping on (which was very comfortable by the way). I didn't sleep well. By Tuesday morning, I was a mess. I got on my computer while waiting for maintenance to come and help me get my phone out. I took my medication, and tried to calm down. It worked. Maintenance came and my phone was rescued and unharmed. The meds kicked in. I pulled on my bathing suit and decided to stick around the resort all day. I hung out at the pool and had a drink, and talked to my mom and Aidan on the phone. Then I took a nice, hot bath before heading to the food court for something yummy to eat. (Probably corn dogs, seeing as I can't seem to get enough of the things lately.) It was a nice, relaxing, much-needed day of downtime and self care. I highly recommend a resort/pool day for all long Disney trips.

I got to spend time at Disney with a little kid, which doesn't happen often. I mean, there are kids THERE, but they're not with me, so yeah. Hanging out with Lola was great. To hear that little voice say "I want to sit with RONNI" was soooo fun!


how cute is this?
And I had to admire how they kept her fed and happy with PB&J, fruit, cheese sticks, popcorn, etc. They didn't have to spend a lot of money on her nor worry about feeding her since she can be a picky little eater. And because she was in her stroller, they could just feed her just about anywhere. Chris and I didn't do that with Aidan! Not that he'd have eaten PB&J anyway....


I got to do some new things this trip. I finally got to see Fantasmic! :) I'd been hearing about this fireworks show for years and years but it always seemed like a pain in a butt to get to. You had to line up a million years before to get a good seat or even a seat at all, blah blah blah. But FastPass+ made it possible for Cassidy and me to get front row center seats (now, we'd have normally never wasted a Fast Pass on a show but that's about all they had available by the time we made it to Hollywood Studios that evening), so there it was. And I LOVED it! It lived up to the hype for sure!

I sat at the Pinocchio restaurant and waved to people riding it's a small world. That was fun.

The Seven Dwarfs Mine Train is so much fun! Such a cute coaster!

I saw Finding Nemo: The Musical. I liked it, but The Festival of the Lion King wins. I missed the Jammin' Jungle Parade. So sad it's gone. I heard it is coming back after all the work is done in Animal Kingdom. I hope so.


Animal Kingdom in the dark! That was certainly new! It either closes so early or it stays dark so late that I've never see it at night. It's just as pretty.

And there was Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party, where I got to meet these guys:


And see Main Street look like this (complete with fake snow):



The pictures do not do the castle justice, how pretty it is. It's incredible, and now they've incorporated Elsa and Anna and Olaf (from Frozen) into the castle lighting in a very clever way. I approve! :) Here's a video of the very ending, complete with a "wooo" from me.


And oh oh oh, I got to see the Osborne Spectacle of Dancing Lights! It was sooooo cool. Definitely will put you in the holiday spirit, as long as you can handle the crowds!! Here's a snippet!


Honestly, I cannot even begin to put all the stuff I got to see and do. It was just a nice, long, awesome vacation. If you'd like to see more photos, click here! There's lots to see! :)

And I leave you with a photo of Mickey and me. Because yes.


Till next time! :)

(crossposted to my personal blog)

Ten Trips to Garden Grill

Garden Grill is my favorite restaurant at Disney World. It's a family-style all-you-can-eat place, with fresh vegetables, succulent meats, and the best character interaction in the parks. Instead of going to a buffet, they bring the food to you. And the restaurant rotates, so guests are looking over the ride "Living With the Land" for part of their meal. This restaurant also has the best character interaction in all of Epcot and possibly Disney World.


The menu changes ever so often, but they tend to keep a few favorites: turkey, mashed potatoes, and gravy; some sort of beef; some variety of fish; and a type of cobbler for dessert. They're often accommodating when I ask if I can have some of the macaroni & cheese from the kid's menu. They used to use Stouffer's macaroni & cheese, but this year they seem to have come up with their own recipe.


I've been on ten trips to Disney World, and managed to eat at Garden Grill on every single one. Check out this picture history!


August 2001 - my first Disney trip and my first time ever meeting Mickey Mouse!

May 2005

September 2008 - on my DisneyMoon with Adam

August 2009 - Chip and me.

January 2011

June 2011

Valentine's Day 2012.

February 2013

June 2013

November 2014
Interesting to note how the outfits have changed over the years! Mickey got a completely new makeover from when I first saw him. At one point, the chipmunks wore overalls. See?


Some things that have not changed though: amazing service, delicious food, and awesome characters. I will continue to go back to Garden Grill.

Two Worlds

previous posts:
epic disney world!!
a magical day.

Our second day at Disney World consisted of a trip to Epcot! It looked to be another wishy washy weather day, so once again, we all lugged along our ponchos and raincoats. I even brought my umbrella.

We started the day in The Land, where I got us Fast Passes for Soarin'. Then we went on Living with the Land, which my mom thought was really cool. Living With the Land is a favorite of mine because I love hearing about all the food they grow there, and the research they're doing. And seeing everything growing is also really cool.

We walked around and did things as we were exploring--saw Captain EO, went into one of the Innovations buildings, and met some characters at the Character Spot. Now, back in MY day, the Character Spot had loads of characters to meet, even though it still felt rushed. But now, there are fewer characters, so the line goes quicker, but I was disappointed that Goofy wasn't there, or Donald Duck, like they used to be.

But I wasn't that disappointed. We still had fun with Mickey, Minnie, and Pluto, who were all sweet.





Of course, we tasted the sodas at Club Cool. I got video of Falandos tasting the infamous Beverly, but my camera would NOT FOCUS so I didn't upload it. The the rain caught up to us. It poured for quite a while, and we hung out under the awning at Club Cool until it let it. Then we made our way to World Showcase. We stopped in some countries along the way, and we also ate at the America Pavilion because that's easy. The rain had let up enough for us to sit outside and enjoy our lunch.

We played in some of the stores in the countries, but we didn't have a lot of time to really explore. I remember last time I was there with Adam, we found places in the countries that we'd never seen before.

I had to take a photo from the bridge over the lagoon. I was so used to seeing this particular section of the park in February, when it looks like this:


That it was neat to see it all green and lush in June:


We made our way back to Future World, where we took pictures and Aidan and I got Fast Passess for Mission Space. Then we headed to The Land again, because I do like the pavillion even though it can get crazy in there. Plus, it was time to redeem our Soarin' FPs!

Soarin' is when one of my favorite moments of the ENTIRE trip happened. We took off, and I glanced over at my mom. I have NEVER seen such a look of pure awe and joy on her face in my life. It was ADORABLE. On the other hand, Falandos looked like he wanted to poop his pants, and his reactions were cracking up the little girls on the other side of him. Riding Soarin' with them was definitely one of the Top Five moments of my trip. I'll never forget the look on her face.

The rain started full force, so when it came time for our FPs to be redeemed, Aidan and I braved the elements and went over while my mom and Falandos stayed in The Land and watched that Circle of Life movie and people watched. Aidan and I had a blast, splashing in puddles and walking barefoot. The rain had scared a lot of people away, and plus, Epcot is so spread out that walking barefoot feels really good and liberating. I'd NEVER walk barefoot in Magic Kingdom--I'd get my toes crushed in a heartbeat.

By the time Aidan and I made it back, it was time to check in for dinner at The Garden Grill! :) I was really excited for this because this was my mom's time to FINALLY meet Chip & Dale, her favorites!!

Here she is with Dale. So cute! :)


I also adore this picture of Aidan, Chip, and Falandos!


We had a wonderful dinner, and then we just randomly explored a bit more. Rode Spaceship Earth, went to some shops, and then ended up catching part of Illuminations. We were on our way out the park, but the fireworks started and well, if you leave in the middle of fireworks at Disney World, there is something very strange about you. So we didn't get to see the huge display with the Earth and stuff, but we saw the high, loud stuff and that was just fine.



aidan sitting with my mom during the fireworks
My mom said that Epcot was her favorite of the parks, and that Soarin' was her favorite attraction. Despite the rain, it really was a pleasant and relaxing day. :)