THE BEST WEEK LONG BIRTHDAY PARTY EVER!!! The best part was we were all together! Trip Report: Sept 7th - 17th, 2008 **Updated 10/3** About This Page:

[disneymom9092]

Great start! More please

[I_am_Annie]

Thurs., Sept 11th, 2008
Our Day in EPCOT

Our day started early with a wake up call from Stitch and Mickey Mouse. We got ready and stopped for breakfast in the POFQ food court and sampled some Beignets. Awesome! (But not quite as good as Tim Hortons. I’m sorry!) While Aaron and I were finishing up breakfast, Marc left the table for a bit and went to “see to some birthday business”. He came back with my birthday button which was the beginning of the best birthday party ever.

We were sure to be at EPCOT for park opening and when we were let in the gates, we made our way to the rope closest to the Land Pavilion and waited for that rope to drop. Just before opening the classic 5 came out to visit and yet again Pluto came barrelling towards Aaron. He ended up coming over and patted Aaron on the head. It all happened to get it on tape. But I did get a really good picture of the before and the after.






Meanwhile, there was a Year of a Million Dreams CM who was chatting away to the group of us waiting for the rope to drop. He was asking people where they were from and I ended up singing a few bars of “Oh Canada” with the lady standing beside me who was from Calgary, Alberta. It was a fun moment, and went a little bit farther towards confirming to me that I was in a whole new world here at Disney.

Once the rope dropped we quickly made our way to The Land pavilion and got sidetracked when we had to leave our stroller (we weren’t expecting that. Silly I know.) I got to ride Soarin’ first. I loved it! It was such a complete experience and I couldn’t wait to ride it again later on.

Marc hit the rider swap line for Soarin’ when I came out, and ended up getting to ride it twice in a row because of his “first time” button. After that, we broke our touring plan and decided to hit up Character Connection because we had heard the big cheese himself was going to be there with Minnie, Pluto, Goofy, Chip & Dale. This quite possibly could have been the best decision we made on the entire trip. I know the moment is definitely in the top 3 of best vacation moments in both Marc’s and my heart. I know that if Aaron remembers nothing else of our trip, he will remember meeting Mickey Mouse because of the look in his eyes.






This was the first day that I had my birthday button on and I think I must have received somewhere in the neighbourhood of 50 “Happy Birthday” greetings throughout that day. Every CM, and sometimes even the other guests were wishing me well. IT WAS AWESOME! And it kept going for the remainder of our stay. I can’t say enough about celebrating a birthday at Disney. It was a fabulous experience that I think everyone should have at least once.

Anyway, after our stop at Character Connection we made our way over get Fast Passes for Test Track, and were about to get lunch, when I saw the wait time for Mission: Space was only about 5 minutes so I suggested we ride it. I didn’t realize how hungry Marc was, or I would have left it till later in the day. But, he agreed and soldiered on. If you asked him now, he would tell you that this was his favourite ride. But, once I was done on it, Aaron was deep in a bout of (let’s see... whats the PC term here...) “testing his boundaries” and Marc had just about had enough. I suggested we make our way to Japan in the World Showcase for Yakitori House. But, he wanted to get something closer. I told him there wasn’t really too much to grab in Future World and that we should head to the World Showcase anyway. I didn’t think it was too far away. And, it wouldn’t have been if I hadn’t gotten the map turned around the wrong way.

We got straightened out and by the time we got to the World Showcase, Aaron had fallen asleep for his nap. (Early. But, he still hadn’t had lunch. BAD MOMMY!) Marc didn’t want to go any further than China for lunch. And because it was so hot and humid, he didn’t want to eat outside (and to be honest, I didn’t really want to either.) I knew that Nine Dragons was closed for refurb. But, we headed over there anyway to see what else was around. Nothing that fit the second criteria of being indoor... So... back to Norway we went and tried Akershus Banquet Hall. But they were unable to seat us until 1:30pm.

Eventually, we moved back to Mexico where I knew the San Angel Inn fit our criteria. Problem was that Aaron was still out cold and neither one of us wanted to wake him. The staff was SOOO accommodating and the manager even helped Marc carry the stroller down the stairs! The food was fabulous! I had the empanada for the appetizer (which I saved half of for Aaron for dinner), Marc had crab cakes. Then for our main courses, I had a flank steak platter and Marc had a beef tenderloin dish that came with a chicken enchilada. We both loved our food and were way too stuffed for dessert. But, we ate it anyway! (We had the deluxe dining plan and it was WAY TOO MUCH FOOD!) I had something with ice cream (sorry I can’t remember) and Marc had the flan. By this point Aaron had woken up and he was feasting on empanada and veggies. And some ice cream too...

He got a little antsy. He was ready to go and we coaxed him into finishing a little more lunch by telling him that when were done we’d be going on a boat ride to see Donald Duck.

I really enjoyed the new version of the Gran Fiesta tour. I loved the details I spotted while riding. For instance Donald’s clothes are hanging on the wall while he’s on the video looking for them...

After that, we headed back to Future World to do Test Track, The Living Seas with Nemo and Turtle Talk with Crush.

Aaron is a big Nemo fan. (Actually, to be honest, he’s a big Pixar fan.) He spent the entire ride hollering “Hi Nemo!!! Hi Dory!!!” and spent the entire rest of the day/next morning talking about how he had seen them. Crush, didn’t go over quite as well as I had hoped it would. (Aaron and I sat on the floor, but with Daddy a few rows back, Aaron was more interested in where he was, than Crush.)

Test Track was great! I let Marc go on it first because our portion of Ike was rolling in and I didn’t want him to miss it if it closed. But, we both got on and off with no issues at all. As I was getting on the ride, another CM said “Happy Birthday Angela” and I said thank you. The lady in the front of our “car” said “Happy Birthday. Are you getting sick of hearing that yet?” To which I said “Actually, no. Its still as fabulous as it was this morning!” (I really am an attention addict when it comes to my birthday (life is short, and I figure you might as well celebrate what you can, when you can.) and something like being wished happy birthday repeatedly over and over, would never get old to me.)

Once we were done on Test Track, we played around in the Coke Cool Off garage for a bit with Aaron and then took a break on the bridge heading over to the World Showcase. Marc chilled out for a bit, and Aaron and I examined the little lizards popping out of the gardens.

Eventually, we made our way to the World Showcase and since Canada was right there, and I knew Marc wanted to see Oh Canada! We got in line and waited about 2 minutes for the show. The newer version is pretty good. I loved how it started with Martin Short telling everyone that Canada is not covered in snow all the time. But there were a few bits in the video missing. (I live in Ottawa and was a little sad that they didn’t show off the Parliament buildings enough. )

When we got out of the show, the rain was coming down in sheets. We were just about soaked through before we even hit the main walkway, so we stopped under the overhang of the kiosk that sells Canada souvenirs and pulled the 2 ponchos on. I still had to buy one for the stroller for Aaron though (we had left the storm cover back in the hotel room because it took too much room. *eye roll* ) So off I went to buy the poncho, and then decided to stop in and see if we could get into Le Cellier early. (Yeah. Because EVERYONE ELSE didn’t try that too... I felt so bad for the hostess at the check in desk. People weren’t very kind to her when she turned them away!)

There wasn’t even any room to hang out in the doorway so we made our way to England to find some shelter.

All the stores were jammed. All the doorways were too. Except for in Hyde Park where we found some shelter under one of the faux front stoops. I imagine the 3 of us and our jogging stroller looked quite humorous. In retrospect, I wish I’d taken a picture because it was truly a moment I will never forget. Even if I was grouchy and 2 seconds from a mental meltdown, it was still fun to be there doing that with my 2 favourite people. (I think the biggest issue was that all Aaron wanted to do was play in the puddles/rain and we wouldn’t let him because we were very close to our dinner reservation, and didn’t want him to catch a cold from the A/C)

We made it back to Le Cellier in time for our dinner reservation only to be told that being seated was going to be delayed because people weren’t clearing out of their tables because of the rain. But, at least we had a place to stand in the opening! We had some time to think about things while standing in the doorway... And we decided that if we folded our stroller up, it would make more room for people to stand and, for other strollers as well. So, that’s what we did! And the hostess saw us and asked if we wanted her to put it inside with the ECVs.

Our dinner was AWESOME! If anyone has the recipe for the Spicy Chicken and Chipotle Sausage, I think Marc would gladly marry you for it as I have been unable to find it anywhere and he is still going on about it over a week later! I had the beer soup which was really great. I make one of my own, but it’s a little different and doesn’t have bacon in it.

For dinner both Marc and I had the Mushroom Filet Mignon, although I substituted for the cream cheese Mashed Potatoes because I’m not such a fan of Risotto. (I did try Marc’s though and was a little sorry I didn’t have it.) By this point, I was STUFFED! (Have I mentioned the Deluxe Dining Plan is too much food?) I really wanted to try the Chocolate Moose though, and our waitress was super nice and packaged both the rest of my steak up, and the moose too! She also gave us a milk for Aaron for the road, a plate of fries, and some ice cream for him free of charge.

It was a half hour away from the start of Illuminations, so we checked out the stuff in Mouse Works (I thought I needed socks because I was getting a hotspot from the wet shoes. Although, now that I’ve thought about it, I don’t think that would have helped much unless they were waterproof socks... :P ) and then pulled up a spot on the pavement right outside and waited with a couple of ducks hanging out on the other side of the fence. Aaron eventually fell asleep in the stroller and didn’t wake up till half way through the fireworks. This (very unfortunately) set us up for a long week of him being scared of fireworks which he loved only 2 months ago.

After Illuminations, we hung around on the bench outside the store until the majority of the people had left. We eventually walked back to the bus depot and thankfully there was a Port Orleans French Quarter bus right there for us to get on. Not only that, but about 5 minutes after we got on it, the bus driver got a call over the radio telling him to leave the depot regardless of how many passengers he had. So we had the whole bus to ourselves and didn’t have to make any other stops!

We got back to the resort in record time and walked in to find that Aaron's stuffed dog (who's name is "Poopin'"... It was Aaron that named him.) had made a friend.



After admiring our towel animal, we retired for the night after we hung out the ponchos and shoes to dry.

[I_am_Annie]

Originally Posted by Colexis Mom

Another great update!! Glad you got a new Mickey bar!! Sorry about your knee and the rude server at HDDR!! Sounds like a great first day!! More please

I was really surprised that I did get the new Mickey bar. Normally, the vendor would have just handed me the napkins and let it go. But then, Disney isn't normal and that is the kind of hospitality Disney is famous for.

My knee was kind of stiff for the next few days, and it did have a pretty good bruise on it. But, eventually it got better. I wasn't going to let it effect my vacation though. I went to Vegas at 8 mos pregnant. A sore knee was really nothing in comparison. :P

Originally Posted by a&a's mama

This is a great trip report and I live near Charlotte and never eaten at either of those places. I am going to have to try them now!!

Definetly! All 3 are a must on our next trip past!

(And, I should tell you that this is my first trip report and your comment about it being a great one really boosted my confidence too!)

Originally Posted by njsmama

Great start! I can't wait for more! Your son is darling....I love toddler language!

Thanks! I can't believe how much his vocabulary increase while we were away. My parents have even commented on it and I know that both Marc and I noticed it while we were there. I guess he was learning along with having fun!

Originally Posted by mcc0313

Sorry about your knee - I hope it did not give you much trouble during the rest of your trip. What a great day at MK (minus the rain) but low crowds and little lines....glad you got to enjoy so much.

Originally Posted by mcc0313

I am glad the manager was able to help you at the HDD and that you were able to have a drink. I can understand why the server was following the rules but he could have been less snippy or even offered to talk to the manager for you....

Glad you were able to grab a POR bus and enjoy your walk - we did that a few times on our trip when we stayed at the POR.

I think that is what bothered us most about the situation at the HDDR. It was almost as if the waiter took pleasure in not serving us. And, while I totally get why he was following the rules, he didn't need to behave as though we were giving him attitude because we truly weren't.

I loved the walk between the 2 resorts. It was a good opportunity to decompress and enjoy the tranquility!

Originally Posted by Lemap760

Great start to your trip. I love watching Diners, Drive ins and Dives. One day I hope to actually make it to one of those places they showcase.

I used to have a real problem with the host, Guy. But he's grown on me and after eating some of the stuff he recommended, I like him even more.

Originally Posted by cynholjot

You take such great pictures of your son. I wish I could remember to actually use my camera, when I remember to bring it that is. I the one of him looking in the mirror admiring his ears. Great TR so far.

Thank you. I love taking pictures and a lot of the time I think I see the world through my lens because I'm so busy trying to capture every moment.

I can't take credit for the pictures in the siggy though. They're all Disney Photopass. Including the one of him admiring his ears.

[Colexis Mom]

Another great update!! What a great day at Epcot, and some very yummy meals!! The picture with the Big Cheese himself is fantastic!! More please

[lissybri]

Just catching up. Great update. I'm sorry you hurt your knee. Hoop Dee Doo sounds like a great time. I'll have to try it sometime. I celebrated both my birthday and anniversary at Disney this year and everyone was so nice. You're right, it never gets old. Can you imagine how much fun a kid would have there on their birthday? Oh yeah I forgot DS7 celebrated his birthday there last year, lol. Can't wait to hear more.

[mcc0313]

Glad the rain did not stop you from enjoying a wonderful day at Epcot. I am glad you were able to find a place for lunch, I love the atmosphere in Mexico....and Le Cellier for dinner (I love the food there - and so they we will be missing it this December)

Love the photos with Mickey....those are definitely ones to treasure....

[DyanKJ130]

Just catching up!! Great start!! Your photos are wonderful! Looking forward to more

[chezp]

I just found your trip report and am loving it. What beautiful photos of Aaron - you've got some real shots there to treasure.

[I_am_Annie]

Originally Posted by Colexis Mom

Another great update!! What a great day at Epcot, and some very yummy meals!! The picture with the Big Cheese himself is fantastic!! More please

Thank you! I love that in the one of him going to hug Mickey, you can only see Aaron's profile, but his smile is still evident.

The food WAS fabulous! I think both Marc and I were very happy we went to the San Angel Inn for some respite from the humidity.

Originally Posted by lissybri

Just catching up. Great update. I'm sorry you hurt your knee. Hoop Dee Doo sounds like a great time. I'll have to try it sometime. I celebrated both my birthday and anniversary at Disney this year and everyone was so nice. You're right, it never gets old. Can you imagine how much fun a kid would have there on their birthday? Oh yeah I forgot DS7 celebrated his birthday there last year, lol. Can't wait to hear more.

I know! I am hoping to take Aaron when he turns 5 for his. (If not before then. I'm dying to go back now!) So far since my return, I think I've convinced both my parents and my BIL to celebrate their next "big ones" there. (Hopefully they'll take me with them!)

Originally Posted by mcc0313

Glad the rain did not stop you from enjoying a wonderful day at Epcot. I am glad you were able to find a place for lunch, I love the atmosphere in Mexico....and Le Cellier for dinner (I love the food there - and so they we will be missing it this December)

Originally Posted by mcc0313

Love the photos with Mickey....those are definitely ones to treasure....

The rain almost stopped us! It did definetly slow us down and that is why we didn't get to do much of the World Showcase. But, I am still happy with our day.

Originally Posted by DyanKJ130

Just catching up!! Great start!! Your photos are wonderful! Looking forward to more

Originally Posted by chezp

I just found your trip report and am loving it. What beautiful photos of Aaron - you've got some real shots there to treasure.

Thank you to both of you! It was definetly our best trip ever and I loved seeing how excited Aaron (and even Marc) were at every turn. I'm seriously considering DVC depending on where we end up residence wise in the next year.

More to come later today I hope. Marc has a wicked viral infection and there is a huge load of housework to take care of. (Not to mention the leaves are changing and I want to get out to take some pictures.)

[valegirl5292]

Great trip report, We love Chocolate World, its funny my boys love the singing cows too, we go on that ride at least 3 times everytime we go.

I agree it is great to spend your birthday at WDW, I have spent a few of mine there and I have the birthday cake hat you mentioned. Its amazing how much attention it draws I can't tell you how many birthday wishes I received. Now it is a tradition if we are celebrating a birthday at WDW that person must wear the birthday cake hat. Next year we are going for my son's 10th birthday and he better wear it, at least for one picture anyway.

I am sorry that you hurt your knee I hope it didn't bother you for the rest of your trip.

Hurry back, I can't wait to read more.

[I_am_Annie]

Fri., Sept 12, 2008
Our morning expedition into the Animal Kingdom.


Once again we were woken bright and early by Mickey and Stitch. As tired as we were from EPCOT the day before, we knew that we had to be at the Animal Kingdom for opening if the day was to go off as planned. (We needed to fit an African safari, an Expedition up (and down) Everest and some other fun into our morning before returning to the resort for a long nap and to prep for Mickey’s Not So Scary Hallowe’en Party.)

We were up and out in record time and we were sure to pack a few of the things we’d been missing from the day before in our park bag. (Not the storm cover for the stroller though. We checked the weather and we were secure in the idea of a sunny day)

The bus to Animal Kingdom took forever to arrive. But, we still made it to the park on time for opening and as we stood in front of the Tree of Life for the opening ceremonies/rope drop, I was awed by the intricate detail in the Tree of Life’s trunk.

We went commando touring style this morning. (It was really the only time we did the entire trip. Despite my touring plans/itinerary cards) Marc and I went our separate ways when the rope dropped. He went and got fast passes for Everest, and I took Aaron and went and ‘got in line’ for Kilamanjaro Safaris. (Although, I only went about half way in because I knew once I went inside Marc wouldn’t be able to see me and wouldn’t come in.)

Eventually, Marc met us and we made our way almost directly onto the safari. Here in Canada, we have a few animal reserves where you are allowed to take your vehicle through (or the park bus) and observe the animals. One is located in Cambridge, Ontario (African Lion Safari) and the other is in Montebello, Quebec (Parc Omega). And while these places offer you more opportunity for pictures (and feeding at Parc Omega) because the vehicles are allowed stop, the view is marred in a lot of places by electric fences so you never really forget that it is not the real thing. (This is being written by someone who has never been on the real thing though. So, I’m very sure it is quite different.) Even with the constant movement of the safari jeep, we took a billion photos between the 2 of us. (Yes, we have duelling cameras at times while we’re on vacation. We both like taking pictures)

Once we were done with the safari, we made our way back through the Pagani Forest Trail and spent some time with “Timon” and the gorillas. By this point Marc was foraging for his breakfast (and remembering the lesson I learnt the day previous in EPCOT), we began looking for a place to eat.
Enter Tusker House and Donald’s Safari Breakfast which (miraculously) still had a table. After a quick 10 minute wait we were seated and ready to eat!!! Actually, it was more like gorge ourselves which set us up to not even consider Flame Tree BBQ for lunch much less anything else either! But, it was SOOOOO worth it.

First of all, the servers and the characters were so friendly and hospitable. Aaron was so excited to see them that they made many return visits to our table. (He was especially taken by Donald and Daisy who were not at Character Connection at EPCOT the day before. He had been asking where “Dohald Duck n’ Daysee” since then.”




The hostess at check in must have made special note of my birthday button because after I was done with breakfast, our waitress came to the table with a special birthday cupcake with a candle in it and a card signed from Donald, Daisy, Mickey, and Goofy! It was totally unplanned and a GREAT bit of surprise magic!



Around the same time the host announced that all the children were invited to dance with Daisy around the room, so I quickly blew out my cupcake candle and grabbed Aaron for a little dancing! (Yes. I am a big kid. And I am SOOOO lucky that having a toddler affords me the opportunity to act like a kid whenever I want to because as much as Aaron enjoyed dancing around with Daisy, I enjoyed it too.)



It was then time to leave Tusker House and make our way over to Expedition Everest. I was uncertain as to whether I was going to ride it or not because I was already feeling a little sick from all the food. So, it was a pleasant surprise and a “must stop” when we ran into Baloo and King Louie from the Jungle Book. (This was the first movie I ever saw in a movie theatre and one that Aaron just recently received and LOVES). We were running a little behind schedule because of the unexpected breakfast and Marc was itching to ride Everest. But, we stopped anyway and Marc and Aaron went off to play the drums while I waited in line and found the appropriate pages in the autograph book.

When it was almost our turn, my men returned and Aaron proclaimed to Marc “Baloo and King Louie from Jungle Book Daddy” (So cool because Marc had questioned whether or not he would recognize them) King Louie cannot sign autographs. But, he certainly makes up for it in other ways. And Baloo got the biggest hug from Aaron and returned it with a true ‘bear’ hug.



After that, it was almost off to Everest. (Almost because we had a major “I WANT MILK” meltdown that sent me back to the bakery to burn 3 snack credits on milk. And on the way, we got a few pics taken in front of the Tree of Life, and I ran into DeVine.)


(its ok to laugh.)

Then we hit Everest. By this point, I had digested enough to be comfortable riding it when Marc came off of it and insisted that I needed to go. It was pretty cool. I do have a bit of an issue keeping my eyes open on roller coasters because of my contacts. But I did manage to see the yeti tearing the track up.

Still on a coaster high, and Aaron still awake (we had thought that maybe we wouldn’t need to return to the resort for naptime because he had been napping in the stroller the past few days) we decided to hit “It’s Tough to be a Bug”. The show was great. And I am so thankful for the up close and personal look it afforded us at the Tree of Life because getting to see it any other way was not meant to be on this trip. Both Marc and I really enjoyed the show. It was entertaining and funny. But Aaron was terrified. (Again, it was getting to be naptime).

And with that, we decided it was truly time to return to the resort for naptime.

[DyanKJ130]

Great update!! Tusker House looks like so much fun!! And, you just look sooo happy to be there - I can totally sense your excitement! Looking forward to more

[Colexis Mom]

Glad you had a great time in AK and were able to get into TH!!! Great pictures!!

[chezp]

How great that you were able to get into Tusker House like that - and what a wonderful time you had there!

[I_am_Annie]

Originally Posted by valegirl5292

Great trip report, We love Chocolate World, its funny my boys love the singing cows too, we go on that ride at least 3 times everytime we go.

I agree it is great to spend your birthday at WDW, I have spent a few of mine there and I have the birthday cake hat you mentioned. Its amazing how much attention it draws I can't tell you how many birthday wishes I received. Now it is a tradition if we are celebrating a birthday at WDW that person must wear the birthday cake hat. Next year we are going for my son's 10th birthday and he better wear it, at least for one picture anyway.

I am sorry that you hurt your knee I hope it didn't bother you for the rest of your trip.

Hurry back, I can't wait to read more.

We`re still talking about the singing cows around here (along with asking to ride Dumbo or the Magic Carpets daily. Thrown in with the once daily request to go see Mickey Mouse... Oi... We`ve created a monster! )

I will definetly be getting the birthday hat on our next go round! (Not sure when that will be. But I`m hoping soon!)

Originally Posted by DyanKJ130

Great update!! Tusker House looks like so much fun!! And, you just look sooo happy to be there - I can totally sense your excitement! Looking forward to more

It was a blast! And the food was fab I thought. I should have gotten the recipe for the potatoes though...

Originally Posted by Colexis Mom

Glad you had a great time in AK and were able to get into TH!!! Great pictures!!

I think its a must do any time we`re in AK now. I`m hoping to create a tradition out of it.

Originally Posted by chezp

How great that you were able to get into Tusker House like that - and what a wonderful time you had there!

It was a lot of fun. Thanks!