Day 7 - The Boardwalk, Contemporary, and Polynesian

This was a bonus day and we decided not to go to any parks. Instead, we visited a few resorts. We started at The Boardwalk and had lunch at Big River Grille and Brewing Works. 

This was our appetizer! These nachos were REALLY delicious!

The Boardwalk is so pretty. After lunch we just strolled around and shopped. 

We stopped here and got peanut butter/chocolate fudge. We sat at that little table to the right of the door and devoured it!

Isn't this so pretty? It is waterfront and has one shop after another.

One of the Cast Members took our picture. 

The resort is beautiful and takes you back to another time. I felt really nostalgic being there. Here's the lobby ceiling. 

One hundred and eighty days prior I made reservations for dinner at Chef Mickey's at The Contemporary.

We only had to wait a few minutes and the girls took advantage of the huge ottomans in the waiting area. They never miss an opportunity to climb onto one!

Before being seated you get a PhotoPass picture with Chef Mickey! One of the Cast Members clicked this one with our camera. 

Another cupcake for the Birthday Girl! The Mickey head is edible! They went ahead and gave us the cupcake really early while they were singing Happy Birthday so she wouldn't miss out. 

The characters started trickling by our table. Donald is a sneaky rascal!

Is there someone behind me? 

Ah ha!

Here she is! The Mouse we had been waiting for! Macie wasn't thrilled about being nose to nose with her!

Mattie, however, was thrilled! Minnie "commented" on the matching dresses! I think this is my favorite picture from the trip. 

"Fluto"!

Dessert! And this is only a sampling of what was on the buffet. 

In Macie's words....Goof Goof!

She'd rather talk about him than visit with him. 

He took the hint and backed off! :-)

I love the mosaic murals in the Contemporary. 

Another ottoman/coffee table opp!

We took a quick Monorail ride to the Polynesian and watched the Wishes fireworks show from the beach. There is also a water parade!

The Poly is an extremely nice tropical place to stay. There is a zero-entry pool right by the beach.

We stopped in on Bob Jackson's show again. He remembered and acknowledged us! It was so late and the girls were worn out so we only stayed for a couple of songs this time. 

When we made it back to our room Macie disappeared into the bathroom and took a seat! Ha ha! She has never done this before!

I spent the rest of the night into the wee hours of the morning getting everything rounded up and packed for our trip home. 

This trip was such an enjoyable experience and looking back I only have the happiest memories. I'm so glad I took so many pictures and documented our favorite things. We have already been talking about our next trip! It can't get here soon enough!

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If you are planning a Disney vacation, including cruises, I highly recommend Becky Lollar, Authorized Disney Vacation Planner. She is a friend of mine and her services are absolutely FREE! 

She can plan as much or as little of your vacation as you'd like. If you have already booked a vacation directly through Disney (via internet or telephone) you can transfer it to Becky and she can work with you to see if any additional discounts have been released or adjust the trip to better suit your needs. 

Here is her contact info:

Becky Lollar

1-800-883-1535 ext. 25

901-482-2218

beckymagicaltravel@att.net 

She even has a Facebook page with lots of helpful info!

I do not hesitate to recommend Becky's services! She is one of the most detail oriented people I know and is a wealth of Disney knowledge! 

Disney World - Day 5 - Epcot (Part 2 of 2)

Really, Day 5 could take three posts, but I promise to try and keep it brief! 

Maybe it doesn't take much to amuse me, but one of the reasons I love Epcot so much is the KidCot Fun Stop at each country in World Showcase. Children get to decorate a paper mask with *gasp* Sharpies (I will not tell you how I really feel about permanent marker Sharpie use by preschoolers in an effort for my posts and view of Disney World to remain positive). Anyway, I love to complete a task, mark things off a list, scavenger hunt, so I was all in on this! 

Since we were already in Norway for lunch at Akershus we started there. While the girls and I decorated masks DaDa took the stormy Viking boat ride, Maelstrom. 

Macie had no say-so as to the color of charms for her mask so Mattie insisted that they ALL be red!

Mattie chose a variety of colors for hers. Here are the finished products.

At several of the stops the cast members will write your child's name on the back of the mask in their native alphabet. 

Mattie got the cute yellow bow as a birthday gift! I thought that was really sweet. 

From Norway, we backtracked the short distance to the Mexico pavilion. There is almost always live entertainment and shows at each pavilion. 

it's a small world in Magic Kingdom was closed while we were there which is a bummer because we really love it. Gran Fiesta Tour Starring The Three Caballeros is the closest thing to it and is similarly charming. 

Mattie was a little apprehensive upon getting on the ride because of the darkness. One of the cast members gave her a flashlight which was a stroke of genius!

As we were departing the ride we discovered that Macie had a momentary lapse of judgment. She had picked up a bag of candy while walking through the market on the way to the ride. We were horrified and will not address why it took us the entire ride to notice that it was in her hands. We returned it without incident...whew...and tried to explain to her why is it unacceptable to take things without paying for them. It went something like this..."Macie. Candy. Not yours. No no!"

The next pavilion after Norway is China. There is a short film in the temple and Mulan sometimes makes an appearance...but never in the three times we've been! Maybe you can catch her there!

Germany is a beautiful pavilion.

We all loved the miniature village and train set.

Italy is next, then The American Adventure. 

The Japan pavilion is next. 

KidCot Fun Stop in Japan! 

In Morocco you will find Aladdin, Jasmine, and Genie if you get there at the right time. Check the schedule to be sure you do not miss them! We were dealing with a full-blown meltdown and didn't get to see them. 

I really enjoyed the exotic feel of the Moroccan pavilion and loved the atmosphere. We took a snack break and watched a belly dancer for a while.

Marie was doing her thing across from the beautiful France pavilion.

Mary Poppins was going on her break just as we were arriving in the United Kingdom. You can also find Pooh and Tigger there. 

It was up to me to finish the charm and stamp collection!

The last stop (or first, depending on where you start) is peaceful Canada. 

Back at The Land is another one of our favorites, Soarin'. After getting on the ride and waiting for over half an hour during a 'technical difficulty' I decided to leave and try again another day. I didn't want to waste any more precious time. It is such a fun ride and we always love it!

In the same pavilion, we rode Living with the Land. It is well worth 14 minutes of your time!


While the girls and I visited customer service to report our missing Sleeping Beauty hair clippie and reclaimed our lost Photo Pass card DaDa rode Mission: SPACE and Test Track and loved both of them. So much so that he excitedly insisted that I ride Mission: SPACE. He was so enthusiastic and eager for me to experience it that I couldn't NOT ride. 

I really hate to do it, but I must tell you....it was the most unpleasant five-and-a-half minutes of my life. And by unpleasant I mean I thought I was going to die before I got to Mars. I made the very unwise decision to ride on the ORANGE/INTENSE side. I just knew I would throw up whilst being slingshot around the moon and then choked to death by my own vomit at 2.4Gs...sorry, but it's the ugly truth (so much for keeping it positive)! I was clammy, nauseated, dizzy, and miserable the entire ride. So, if you like this sort of INTENSE, weightless sensation as my husband does...go for it!

Pioneer Woman had a similar experience. If you click here to read her post you have to promise you'll come right back to my post. I know how it is to get sucked into her WONDERFUL blog of witty writing and gorgeous pictures. So come right back, okay? 


Thanks for coming back! Be sure to bookmark her or add her to your blog reader. You won't be sorry. 

After the Mars encounter it was time for us to go! The awesome fireworks, laser, and water show, IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth would be starting soon. We made our way back to Downtown Disney for another dinner at Earl of Sandwich.

This (with the exception of the Mars experience) was by far the best day of our vacation! We LOVE Epcot and will probably make it our first stop on our next visit!

***********************************

If you are planning a Disney vacation, including cruises, I highly recommend Becky Lollar, Authorized Disney Vacation Planner. She is a friend of mine and her services are absolutely FREE! 

She can plan as much or as little of your vacation as you'd like. If you have already booked a vacation directly through Disney (via internet or telephone) you can transfer it to Becky and she can work with you to see if any additional discounts have been released or adjust the trip to better suit your needs. 

Here is her contact info:

Becky Lollar

1-800-883-1535 ext. 25

901-482-2218

beckymagicaltravel@att.net 

She even has a Facebook page with lots of helpful info!

I do not hesitate to recommend Becky's services! She is one of the most detail oriented people I know and is a wealth of Disney knowledge!