Monthly Archives: November 2014

Day 57- Big Bad Voodoo Daddy at Epcot & Building Homes for Veterans

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Today is cool and the high is almost 70 degrees! It is overcast and perfect for the last day of the Food and Wine Festival. The band for tonight’s Eat to the Beat Concert is Big Bad Voodoo Daddy.

As we arrive, we see it has just rained, and we are on the far end of our row for parking. That makes it good for finding our car later, and since we are at the very end of the row, we decide to walk. From where we are parked, the walk to the Epcot entrance is about the same as the walk down the row to catch the tram. Those are some really long parking rows! I enjoy our walk and we get to the gate in about 10 minutes.

We get our bags checked, scan our MagicBands, and I see all of the excited faces of first time visitors to Epcot. Their smiles are always amazing, it reminds me of our first days at Epcot! Everyone is full of excitement, ready to explore all that Epcot holds within its dreamy borders. I see a lady sitting in front of one of the Food and Wine signs; her husband is taking a picture, so I ask if he would like to be in the picture. She begins talking to him in another language, and soon he agrees, thanks me and sits by his beautiful wife. 1, 2, 3, smile! They laugh and thank us for their picture. I love getting to help.

Now, I am checking to see if the Friendship boat is at this port near Mexico at the World Showcase Plaza. Yes, it is! I ask if they are still boarding, the First Mate looks at us, chuckles, and says that they are! Do I look too happy and excited to get to cross the World Showcase Lagoon on the boat? We go aboard and it is mostly full. Soon we are off, crossing over to Germany. As we are docking the boat, I see that they are letting people in for seating at the American Gardens Theater for the concert. Oh, my, it is so very crowded as we cross through Italy. I love Italy!

People are still being seated as we walk to the back of the theater and wait for the ropes to drop. We sit fairly close and have a great view. We waited to see Big Bad Voodoo Daddy until tonight, the last night of the Food and Wine Festival, in hopes that the crowds would be less on a Monday. And, sure enough, the crowds are perfect at the concert.

The first song is finished, and the announcer comes on stage to honor our veterans. He calls for those who have served to stand and the audience explodes with cheers and clapping as we look around at so many people who have sacrificed and served our great country. Then, he announces that they are giving two military families their own mortgage-free homes. It is the coolest thing to see as the families come on stage and are given the homes from Building Homes for Heroes.

The concert was a blast and listening to the music is almost like stepping back in time!

After the concert, Twinkie and I get a Kaki Gori to eat on the way to France. Oh, it is getting really chilly and this shaved ice is so cold! But, they are so good that it is worth being extra cold on this chilly night!

We go to Guerlain and find they have a new perfume called French Kiss. It is so perfect, so soft, and so on my Christmas list! Our friend is working tonight; she is an amazing lady, always so positive and encouraging when we get to talk. She was asking how our move is going and how wonderful God is when he moves us into the right place. I love her friendship so much! We hug and say our goodbyes for now.

We make our way back through France, the United Kingdom, Canada, and to the front gates. The breeze is perfect and I am glad we brought our warm jackets as we walk to our car. What a fun, chilly evening!

Day 56- Boardwalk Meetup, Big River Grille and Hollywood Studios

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Happy Sunday Morning! It is a beautiful day in Florida, overcast, and a cool 68 degrees at the hottest part of the day! This is a Disney marathon weekend and the parks have been busy, especially Epcot in its final days of the Food and Wine Festival.

We are meeting a group on the Boardwalk after lunch with Taking the Florida Plunge and WDW Mousenger followers. The only parking available at the Boardwalk today is valet. We don’t mind, we have Tables in Wonderland and it covers valet parking at many of the resorts if you eat at one of the participating restaurants. There are a bunch of people who have shown up, and it is fun to meet fellow Disney enthusiasts. We meet several fun people and the leader of the Florida Plunge group; their family moved down here a year and a half ago. It’s fun to talk with others who have made the move or are hoping to make the move to FL in the near future!  Twinkie even won one of the awesome giveaway prizes from MMP Travel- A Disney Dooney & Bourke Cosmetic Case!

I love the Boardwalk, it is very interesting and a good place to walk and enjoy the sights. This afternoon, it is very quiet and there is plenty of room to meander around on the Boardwalk, we even get to watch the ducks play in the water. One thing we want to do one day is rent one of the Surrey Bikes so we can pedal our way around.

After the meeting we went to a couple of places to see if there was walk up seating, but the longest line was at the ESPN Club. After seeing the line, we decide to walk to the other end of the boardwalk to eat at Big River Grille & Brewing Works. We asked about gluten free and they had nachos; Twinkie’s were made with freshly cooked Kettle Potato Chips and ours, the old fashioned way! They were great, and it’s a happy occasion when Twinkie gets to have potato chip nachos!

Now, we are off to valet and they quickly bring us our car. The attendant is extremely courteous and kind.

Our next stop is Hollywood Studios. We grab some Joffrey’s Coffee to drink as we look for the new Big Hero 6 MagicBand, featuring Baymax and Hiro Hamada. As we are heading for the Muppet’s 3D Shop, the back part of Hollywood Studios is so busy that it is hard to walk through Pixar Place. We are trying get to the Streets of America, and realize that the Lights, Motors, Action! Extreme Stunt Show has just finished and the people are pouring out of the stands.

We finally get to the Streets of America. I love the buildings and can imagine how beautiful they will be tonight when the Osborne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights are turned on. It will be amazing!

I sit in the courtyard by the Stage 1 Company Store while the kids are shopping. I love watching families go by and hearing the fun sounds of happy kids! Soon, they are back with their awesome new Big Hero 6 MagicBands and we are off to walk around Hollywood Studios.

We are walking to the front when we see a beautiful tropical plant; it has perfect symmetry in its leaves and flowers. The evening light makes it look so picture-perfect. If you love tropical plants and trees, you will love seeing all of the landscaping all around Disney! We even saw four deer on the way to the Boardwalk this afternoon, and then, we saw eight more on the way back home. I love all of the deer, birds, and ducks that you can see during the day.

Day 55- The JINGLE Cruise at Magic Kingdom

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It is an absolutely beautiful day at Disney! It is cool and cloudy, and there are marathons going on at Disney today. Mickey’s Jingle Jungle 5K was this morning at Animal Kingdom, and tonight is the Wine and Dine Half Marathon. We were getting ready to head to Epcot when a friend let us know that Epcot was already so very full. It was so full that the Epcot parking lot was full, so they were parking people at the Transportation and Ticket Center and taking the Monorail to Epcot. With that new info, we chose to go to Magic Kingdom.

I don’t know how, but each time we get to Magic Kingdom, it looks so different and so beautiful! Today the sky is overcast and it makes Main Street USA pop! It looks so pristine and lovely. It is wonderful to be at Magic Kingdom today!

We get to meet up with some friends and they have a few moments to say hello and catch up on a few things. Then, they were off to Fantasyland and we were continuing on in Adventureland to the Jungle Cruise… I mean, the Jingle Cruise! I am so excited to see the Christmas decorations and see how it has changed for this Christmas season!

On the way, we were going to get a Dole Whip, but the lines are longer than they were in the middle of summer! Even a week ago we had a short wait, but today the lines are so long and our FastPass+ is in just 10 minutes! Oh my goodness! Look how big that Dole Whip is and the dad is carefully handing it to his little princess in her carriage! I loved getting to see her happy face.

So, we are off to the Jingle Cruise. As we go through the lines, we see all of the new Christmas decorations. As we get close to the boats, we see the little caged tarantula has a Santa hat and beard on for the holidays. Too funny!

This ride is entertaining and the interaction with the skipper is always fun! We have a great group of people on our boat and they are really getting into the jokes! It is really cute to se all of the Christmas presents and decorations sprinkled all throughout the Jingle Cruse.

Later, we are heading for the front gates and see that the line to get pictures with the toy soldiers in front of Main Street USA is very short. So, we get in line and get our picture taken with the toy soldiers! The mom in front of us is calling all of her kids, and they are gathering just in time. Our turn! Smile!

What a beautiful night! I wish you could see Cinderella’s Castle at night, it is so beautiful and it looks so icy with all of the beautiful lights for the holidays.

Day 54- Osborne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights at Hollywood Studios

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It is a sunny day in Florida! Tonight is the first night of the Osborne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights at Hollywood Studios this season. This is an absolute must see, and it is so very spectacular! I cannot wait until tonight at 6pm!

First, we must see the Disney running shoes at the Wine and Dine Half Marathon Health and Fitness expo being held at ESPN Wide World of Sports! We have never been to EPSN. The attendants direct us to park on the grass, then we hike over to the walkway, and make our way up to the various buildings. Oh, look! The Yum Yum cupcake truck! We will have to come back to this! The staff is really organized and have us walking down the stairs into the Expo in Jostens Center. We see the Disney shoe display, including the Minnie Mouse shoes and the Cinderella shoes; it is almost like you can hear the music of wonder… I think I saw glitter and sparkles in the air! Oh, maybe that was just my imagination, but they are beautiful.

Instantly, a lady asks if she can help us. We asked if they had our three different sizes in the Minnie Mouse style. She said, “No!” with a smile. Our mouths dropped open and we were shocked, but not shocked since they are so popular. Then, she said, “Just kidding! I’ll be right back!” We were so glad to see her arms full of shoeboxes. She had Tooti’s shoes and mine. They had some that would work for Twinkie, but it was a half size bigger than usual. We were checking out when the lady came running up with a shoebox—she had found the exact size Twinkie needed! YAY!

We got the Pink Minnie Mouse shoes! 🙂
GF Apple Cinnamon!

Now, off to Hollywood Studios to see the Osborne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights. It is busy at 5:30pm and a lot of people are still arriving! We go toward the giant Mickey hat and the cast members have arrows showing us which way is the best way to go to The Streets of America! We follow the arrows, and soon we are stepping onto The Streets of America. We can hear the band Mud, Sweat, and Shears playing Christmas songs at the end of the street. There are so many people and you can feel the anticipation in the air!

Soon the narrator begins telling us the story of the Osborne Family from Arkansas. I am thinking that this family’s dream of having these fabulous lights on their homes is now in Mr. Walt Disney’s dream at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.

The snow begins to magically fall on this warm night, and soon the lights come on! It is fabulous. Next, I feel my eyes tearing up as the music begins (Carol of the Bells by Trans Siberian Orchestra) and the lights dance to Christmas music! It is so beautiful and something that must be experienced! A little baby girl is in her dad’s arms and her little hand is pointing at the angels spinning around on the roof. That is so sweet to see. As you walk down The Streets of America, you will see a side street that is so beautiful and absolutely covered in lights.

Now, we are full of the joy of this upcoming season, Christmas. What a beautiful night!

Day 53- Epcot

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This evening is beautiful as we arrive at Epcot. There are quite a few people arriving late this evening.

We are getting to Disney late today because we got to go and see a Steve Harvey Show taping! He is in Orlando this week and we got to be a part of the audience for the taping of the Steve Harvey Show! We arrived at 11:30am for the 3pm taping. A staff member let us know that being in line early did not make a difference in where we would be sitting, so feel free to go and enjoy lunch or something until 1pm. We got coffee and sat in a really cool Starbucks.

We get back to the check-in at 1pm and the line is very long. It was moving fast; soon we had our bag checked and were admitted into The Groove to wait to be seated.

At 3pm we were called by the numbers on our tickets and were seated. Then, we got rearranged and ended up on the end of a row. We could see Steve Harvey really well and totally enjoyed the taping! Being there was so much fun and it was so exciting to see an icon of our time!! We left at about 5pm and started the drive to Disney’s Epcot Park!

There is a line for bag check and then a line to scan our MagicBands. We are here for supper and I didn’t make reservations ahead of time, so, we chose to go to Sunshine Seasons in The Land. They have great walk-up food stations with a good variety with several gluten free choices. The chef is called and comes out quickly to let us know that our Power Salad is perfectly fine as a gluten free choice.

We enjoy our time eating, and watching how many people there are in this area.

Time to eat!
Cheese!
Yummy Power Salad disappeared!

It is getting dark earlier tonight and it is so pretty with the full moon. Twinkie stopped to look at pins, and we had a nice chat with the cast member.

What a fun day!!

Day 52- A Frozen Holiday Wish arrives at Magic Kingdom!

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This evening is the first ever performance of A Frozen Holiday Wish at Magic Kingdom! It features the lighting of Cinderella’s Castle for Christmas, and we want to see the very first one of the season (and the first one ever with Elsa)!

We get to the parking lot and are able to park about five cars down from the tram! Oh, I love when we get to park close. We hop on the tram and once we get to the Transportation and Ticket Center, we catch to the Monorail. We get on the Monorail and the doors close, open, close, open, a few more people hop on, and the doors close. Now, there is an announcement that we are holding for a few moments due to a routine maintenance check. The people waiting to board are redirected to the Resort Monorail that stops at the Resorts and Magic Kingdom. The doors on our Monorail open and close, and open and close, and then open again. We are advised that we will be moving to the Resort Monorail across the way, and Magic Kingdom is the third stop.

So, we exit this Monorail and head across the platform, and wait a moment to board the Resort Monorail. We waited for our turn to board, but all of the cars were full since everyone had been redirected to this Monorail. We walked all the way down, and back to the middle. They just loaded two scooters and there was room for three on the seats, so, I ask the cast member if we could board this car, and he said, “Sure!” Another cast member jumped in our Monorail car just before the doors closed, then we were off and running.

When we were sitting at the second stop (Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort and Spa), we noticed that the other (Express) Monorail was passing us on the left. Tooti said, “Hey, they’re going the wrong way!” We knew it was because the Express Monorail and the Resort Monorails run in opposite directions on their separate tracks. I said, “It’s a race, it’s a race!” Our car began to laugh! As we got to Magic Kingdom, we looked and the other Monorail was still moving as we stopped! The cast member in front of us said, “Looks like we win!” Of course we had to holler, “Yay! We win!!!” as we started clapping; our whole car was cheering and laughing. The cast member thanked us for having such a good attitude about the delay and changing of Monorails. You’re welcome!

Main Street USA looks so beautiful at night! The moon is to the right and it is so beautiful. The Christmas wreaths are beautiful and brightly lit tonight. We have a few minutes before we need to be at Cinderella’s Castle for A Frozen Holiday Wish. Coffee? We stop at the Main Street Bakery for a cup of coffee at Starbucks, and then go to find a place to stand and wait for A Frozen Holiday Wish. We stand near a nice family.

The anticipation is great and there is a lot of chatter about tonight being the first lighting of Cinderella’s Castle this holiday season. The lady behind me talked about how even she is a kid at heart; she is the second person my age that told me that this evening! I love hearing ladies who love to be at Disney, and I love to hear how much Disney means to them.

Oh, listen to the beautiful sounds as A Frozen Holiday Wish begins. I love hearing the audience as Elsa and Anna take the stage. Kristoff is there too, and soon we get our very first glimpse of… OLAF! The crowd goes wild as Olaf, in all his huggable glory, appears on the castle balcony and greets us.

Soon, Elsa lights the castle with ice and snow. There are no words to describe how truly beautiful and fantastic this is, and the awe that falls over the crowd is phenomenal. This is an absolutely magical must see!

We wait a few minutes and step aside as we are waiting for the crowd to disperse a little before we make our way down Main Street USA. Soon, we are on the Ferry Boat back to the Transportation and Ticket Center. It is a warm night and a beautiful evening featuring the first ever performance of A Frozen Holiday Wish.

Day 51- Be Our Guest Restaurant at Magic Kingdom

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Today is pretty and it looks cold outside, but actually, it is in the mid-70s with a gentle breeze. Tonight, we have late reservations at Be Our Guest.

It is after 8pm as we arrive at the Transportation and Ticket Center, and we are able to park really close. We walk to the Monorail and head to Magic Kingdom! As we arrive at Magic Kingdom, we begin to see the Christmas decorations as we pull into the Monorail station. How exciting!

We get through bag check, scan our Magic Bands, and go to see the Mickey Mouse formed in the flowers (in front of the train station), along with the new Christmas trees. Christmas decorations are beginning to go up on Main Street USA. It is so pretty.

We make our way to Fantasyland and watch the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train. It is really fun to be close to the ride watching it go by; it seems that the people riding in the front have their hands up, and the further back you go, the more they seem to be hanging on and bracing themselves. Also, where we are standing, it looks like the Mine Train is coming right at you! It is a fun spot to watch from.

There is still a little time before we can check-in at Be Our Guest so we go to the Bonjour! Village Gift Shop to look at the new arrivals for Christmas.

It is almost 8:45, so we can go check-in at Be Our Guest at The Beast’s Castle. We arrive, and there is a very long line to check-in, but as we wait, there are so many who are checking for walk-up availability and are turned away. We had heard that you should plan several months ahead to get a reservation. We have been checking often and found one three weeks ago, so we get to go tonight.

Soon, we are summoned by the Beast to be seated. We are escorted to the Rose Gallery, Belle’s favorite room, featuring beautiful pictures of Belle and the Beast’s love story on the walls. It is so pretty and the music box that Maurice, Belle’s father, built as a wedding present for Belle, plays in this room. As soon as we are seated, we hear the Wishes Fireworks starting. Oh, I forgot they were early tonight. However, it is fun to hear and the dad at a nearby table says, “They are trying to storm and raid the castle!” His kids laughed, but it did sound like the movie when they storm the castle! The little kids beside us are asleep on their parents, and stretched out on the chair and bench. It looks so cute. These are late night dinners; little ones are so very sleepy.

We meet our waiter, and the chef comes out to check on our gluten free order. We have Potato Leek Soup and Pommes Frites (French Fries) with Truffle Mayonnaise. They are amazing! Then, our favorite dessert! Lemon Raspberry Cream Puffs! Yes, it is totally gluten free and so very yummy!

We are notified that the Beast will be taking pictures until 10:45pm. It is 10:15 and we are on our way to the study to meet the Beast and take a picture with him. It is so fun to meet him and get a big hug.

After our picture, we know it is time to leave Magic Kingdom. The park is open until 10pm tonight. We stop a few times to get pictures and enjoy the Disney Kiss Goodnight as we watch Cinderella’s Castle.

As we near the front exit, we see a sign that says 51 days until Christmas! We three laugh, that is so cool! We are on our 51st day at Disney and there are 51 days until Christmas. What a really neat thing to happen!

It was such a fun evening with such fun people. We even chatted with a mom and her daughter who is working in the Disney college program. They were very nice and it made the ride on the Monorail more fun! What a lovely, cool evening!

Day 50- Akershus Royal Banquet Hall at Epcot

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Today is a sunny day in Florida! Disney’s Epcot parking lot is busy… Oh, look! We are on the very last row, facing away from the other cars! I didn’t even know this row was here! 😀 The parking attendants are alternating, parking cars to the left, and we are to the right!

Now, we cross over to the front of the line of cars, and walk to the tram! We are seated and the family behind us is chatting about their grandson, who decided to walk to the entrance. The dad said that his son thinks he can make it to the front before we make it on the tram. So, I just had to say, “It’s a race!” They chuckled. We watched as we got closer and yes, we won! It was a close race, though; the grandson was about to cross the road and had to stop to let the tram pass, just as we turned. I love hearing fun things like this happening!

We are celebrating our 50th day in a row at Disney! This is a day to celebrate with the Disney Princesses at Akershus Royal Banquet Hall in Norway!  We get to Norway and have a little while to wait, so we go to the Frozen inspired Norsk Kultur Gallery, shop in the Norway shops, and then sit for a minute to enjoy the cool breeze.

Now, we are right on time to get checked in and get in line. It is just a few minutes, and we are called to enter into the Akershus Royal Banquet Hall. We are escorted to get our photo with Belle. She is so beautiful.

We are seated, and soon the chef comes out to let us know what not to eat on the banquet’s “cold buffet.” Our gluten free dinners are ordered and we soon have our first pictures with the princesses at our table.

Menu
The “cold” buffet
Lots of great foods and cheeses!
Norwegian Meatballs
Roast Beef Sandwich and warm potato salad
Salmon and salted cod potatoes

Our first princess picture is with Cinderella. She is an absolutely beautiful princess and so kind. Quickly, Aurora was chatting with us. She was so cute as she talked with us and took our pictures with her. Then, Ariel was asking us how we liked walking on our legs today. Aren’t legs absolutely wonderful? We giggled and had our pictures taken with her! To my surprise, the most beautiful Snow White touched my shoulder and began asking Twinkie, “Did the bluebirds do your hair today, too?” So cute! What a wonderful experience to get to meet so many princesses today! As we enjoyed a wonderful celebration, our photo with Belle was delivered to our table.

After we finished our delightful meal, we were back on the walkway around the World Showcase, and chatted about how much fun it was to meet all of these princesses. In no time, we were exiting through the front gates. The tram ride was quick and we recognized the driver. Now, we will easily find our car on the last row of the parking lot! 😀

The sky is so blue, with pretty white clouds on this mid-70-degree day! What a fun way to celebrate the 50th day of our 365 at Disney journey.

Day 49- Epcot: La Hacienda de San Angel, Canadian Lumberjack Show & Spaceship Earth

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Happy Sunday Morning! It is cool and breezy on this sunny day, so we threw on our ugly sweaters and headed for Epcot!

We arrive at the park and ride the tram to the front gates, check in at bag check, scan our MagicBands, and head for Mexico! We have lunch reservations at La Hacienda de San Angel. We are seated quickly and look at the menu. Tooti has been talking about the Queso Fundido cheese dish at La Hacienda de San Angel. We are served chips and 2 salsas, the red one is hot, and the green one is not. Soon, we have our tacos and Queso Fundido, gluten free. It is a nice lunch.

There is a concert tonight with 38 Special. I was not the right age for this group, but the concert is packed out with people standing along the edges! We took a minute to listen and see the huge amount of people watching. Already, the line for the next show is growing.

Our next stop is the UK Pavilion for a Chai, and next-door is the Canadian Lumberjack Show! I have tried for a couple of weeks to be here at the right time to get to see them. It is a great show, and very fun! At the close of the show, they said they are going to be available for handshakes and pictures. The kids got a picture with them!

Next, we have a FastPass+ for Spaceship Earth! It is a very chilly walk, and I am so glad that the ride is much warmer inside. I really like Spaceship Earth and the story of how communication began and transformed over the years. Then, near the end of the ride, they put together a little video specific to you and your choices to the multiple-choice questions they ask. It is really cute and fun.

Now we are off to the front gates, it is dark and even cooler outside. The tram is very full, to the point the tram attendant said, “We are full, so full that I have to say there is no more boarding, since there is no more room.” I agree, we have 3 of us already in out row, and then a very tall, large couple got on our row, and kept scooting us over. I put my arm behind Twinkie, and the lady kept pushing me over, saying, “Excuse me!!!” I had to not laugh, there was room for 1.33 of them and they were 2+. We kept ooching over until they both fit. If I had the breath to chuckle, I would have. I did enjoy the family behind me, and I had to tell the grandmother, “I love your accent!!!” She was bashful and said, “It is not much of one,” in a very thick British accent, “It is not very good, not very sophisticated.” I said, “I am from Texas and this is what I have!” She laughed so hard, “Texas?” “Yes, but we moved down here in the summer!” “Oh, so you are living the dream!” she said. We laughed and then it was time to disembark! We all shouted, “Have a wonderful evening!” and we were off to walk to our cars. Nice to be in the warm car on a cool day!

Day 48- Magic Kingdom’s Jungle Cruise

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Florida is a very windy 64 degrees today, so we get to pull out our leggings, sweat shirts, and jackets to head for Disney! We had the first cold front blow into the Orlando area last night.

We get to the Transportation and Ticket Center and the parking lot is not as full as it usually is by this time. We parked close, so we decided to walk to the Monorail on this brisk afternoon. We get Monorail Black, with the black and red stripes!

Magic Kingdom is perfectly busy. We get our bags checked quickly, scan our MagicBands at the gate, and now we are ready to walk down Main Street USA. We make our way towards Cinderella’s Castle! As we near Cinderella’s Castle, the Dream Along With Mickey stage show begins. It is a really good show.

Our first FastPass+ is for Peter Pan’s Flight in Fantasyland. If you are unable to go through Cinderella’s Castle during a show, you can go around the Castle. There is a walkway to the left, as you walk toward Liberty Square, if you turn right at Sleepy Hollow Refreshments, there is a path that goes up and around Cinderella’s Castle. It is a very pretty walk with the trees on the left and you can still see Mickey and his friends on stage! Oh, now they are changing groups! The princes and princesses are taking the stage!

We arrive at Peter Pan’s Flight and soon we are on our flying ship!

Next, we are going to the Jungle Cruise. I love this ride. It is so fun to interact with the skipper of the boat!

I know it is really chilly with the sun just beginning to set, but I must have a Dole Whip Float! I said to the kids, “I am getting a Dole Whip if you’d care to join me!” We will have three! We were off and enjoying our Dole Whips on the way to the front gates.

We turn down Main Street USA and I can hear the music! Oh, I just missed the Flag Retreat Ceremony, but they are walking down the street, and pause just before their final turn; I step into the street and take a moment to see the Veteran they are honoring. He has the American Flag that has flown over Magic Kingdom today, and he is surrounded by fellow patriots. As they turn, their steps are in perfect sync, and our Veteran’s face is so full of emotion. I am so touched that Disney does this for our men and women that have served our great country.

Yes, it is beautifully cool and sunny and time to head home. I enjoy watching a little family on the Monorail. The dad is sitting the little dude on the seat by the window and then, he slides over, picks him up, and sits him on his lap so the little boy can see out the windows. Their interaction is so sweet. I love seeing so many families having fun with their little ones.

What a beautiful fun day!