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[KMB733]

That's awesome that you were able to get a table at Cape May. Sorry Hope wasn't into the characters, but I think its so cute that she said Donald's name!!

[islandgirl]

So glad you were able to get into CMC for breakfast. We loved dinner there....the food, service, & atmosphere were the best! Sorry Hope wasn't loving the characters this trip, but glad you had a better interaction with them here. I love this picture of Hope...she's like...uh uh uh.... don't you get any closer!!!


all of the Beach Club pictures! This TR just seems to brighten my day!! How nice that you are getting ready to make plans for your next trip. You have awesome resort choices!!! deciding. What are the dates of your next trip? Hurry back soon......

[dsteiny23]

We loved CMC and thought the characters were great...too bad Hope didn't have the same perception
Don't you just LOVE the walk over to Epcot. Craig has decided that BC is his ONLY resort now.

[chezp]

So glad you were able to get into the Cape May Cafe, just sorry about the reaction to the characters.

[BeckiO5]

Melissa, I'm all caught up now with your TR. What can I say, fabulous pictures for being a Beginner with your new DSLR Camera. I love Hope's adorible curley hair. So sorry to hear that some of the characters freaked her out, especially at Cape May. Congrats on getting a table there. I certainly plan to try there the next time we're there. Although Hope wasn't too keen on the characters, I'm glad they were certainly a lot better there for you than CM. I certainly have to say though that your Fireworks portion of your TR had me in tears and certainly reminicing about watching them with my mom, & Skyler too when we were there, and feeling the same exact thing (except Skyler didn't want to be held by Mommy, he wanted to stay in his stroller). The Beach Club looks like a great hotel, and I'm sure the walk to Epcot has to be such a leg up on AKL, which also looks amazing, and the animals being right there. I would say if you wanted the close proximity to parks for your next trip, BCV is the way to go unless you wanted a change and be surrounded by all of those beautiful Jungle Animals. Good luck with your decision. More please Melissa!

Oh and BTW, I was hoping to check out CHH for Lunch our last day at WDW on my trip, and never made it there. I certainly have to try them out the next time as I love Clam Chowder and you have me sold on eating there.

[luvnwdwgal]

I know just how Hope must have felt. I was terrified of Santa Claus as a child, in fact to this day he still gives me the creeps. I really don't care for any characters in costume and clowns are the absolute worse! I hope Hope grows to like them though!

[MayraLR]

Sorry Hope didn't enjoy the characters. Hopefully she'll like them next trip.

[sc507]

Hope is SO adorable! I have to laugh at her reaction though, poor girl! My DS was the same way the first year we went. He was 2, and couldn't say his sister's name yet - he called her 'Ma'. Whenever a character came near, he would cry and point at Sabrina, telling the characters, "Go see Ma..." over and over......we, being the bad parents we were, made sure to capture it on video I did snuggle with him so he wasn't scarred for life.....

[mommapants]

So nice to hear this character breakfast was better than the last one, but not so much for Hope. Hey maybe next year. Evan was the same way. He LOVED Elmo and wanted nothing to do with him when he met him at age 2. He is much better now that he is older and even sat with Santa this past weekend. My vote would be BCV but then again club level AKL sounds nice too. Just don't know if anything can compete with SAB. Have you stayed at both resorts already? If not than maybe AKL would be nice to do a comparison.
More please!

[honeybee723]

Originally Posted by debrabrown

Awww... too bad the character meetings aren't going well. The pictures of her crying will be funny to show to Hope when she's old enough to see a character and race for them. She won't believe she was any other way!

The photos of Cape May are so pretty. Personally, I would love to walk on over to Epcot from my resort so that gets my pick.

It looks like we were torturing her in those photos with Donald. Definitely something to keep on hand.

Originally Posted by Colexis Mom

What a great breakfast! Sorry Hope wasn't enjoying the characters! It's our favorite place to go!

I think it's my favorite character breakfast spot we've gone too. I have a few more to try out, but this one tops the list.

Originally Posted by lexiemom

Breakfast looks delicious. I have yet to try a breakfast buffet and think Cape May may be our first.

I really enjoyed CMC and I will definitely be going back!

Originally Posted by lazanya

Awww....Poor Hope! I'm sorry she was so freaked by the characters. But that was really neat that she said Donald's name & knew who he was.

She definitely was freaked out. Now she's trying to say Donald's full name with the Duck on the end...whenever she see him on tv she trys to say his name.

Originally Posted by countrykid

Sorry Hope wasn't having fun! My daughter would have acted the very same at that age. She would have NOTHING to do with Santa for years!! I am glad you loved your meal!
I don't know which resort I would pick either both are sooooo beautiful!! Which do you think your DH & Hope will enjoy the most? Maybe write all the things you love & if there are any drawbacks make your choice from there. It's Disney so no matter what you know you'll have a marvelous time!! I already want to go back!! I pray it will be sooner than later!! As of right now I plan on going in Nov of 2012. Great update & beutiful pictures!!

Yeah, Santa was a big fat "no" this year. Anytime we got near him she would say, "no no no" and start crying. I'm hoping she'll grow out of it. We've been to both resorts and love them just as much as the other, so I guess it all depends on if we can get the club level or not. We may just reserve the rooms and then make the choice later or BVC.

Originally Posted by disneyfreeeak

Sorry Hope didn't have much fun at Cape May...but I'm glad you were able to have fun, and that the characters didn't behave like they did at Chef Mickey's!

As far as the AKL vs. BCV debate goes, I'm all for trying new resorts, so I would say AKL if you havn't stayed there first, but if you've stayed at both then I'd go for BCV again just because of its better location, pool, and choices of restaurants.

We've stayed at both and each one has great qualities. AKL is my all-time favorite resort, the theming and the animals are tops for me. But now that's I've stayed at BCV I'm on the fence. If I can get a savannah view rooom since I've never had one, that may just do it for me.

Originally Posted by KMB733

That's awesome that you were able to get a table at Cape May. Sorry Hope wasn't into the characters, but I think its so cute that she said Donald's name!!

I'm not the luckiest person in the world, so that was a big deal for me, and I'm glad we did because we really loved it there.

Originally Posted by islandgirl

So glad you were able to get into CMC for breakfast. We loved dinner there....the food, service, & atmosphere were the best! Sorry Hope wasn't loving the characters this trip, but glad you had a better interaction with them here. I love this picture of Hope...she's like...uh uh uh.... don't you get any closer!!!


all of the Beach Club pictures! This TR just seems to brighten my day!! How nice that you are getting ready to make plans for your next trip. You have awesome resort choices!!! deciding. What are the dates of your next trip? Hurry back soon......

That is so funny about the picture! That's exactly what it looks like she's saying. Love it! I would love to try dinner there one time, so you thought it was good? If we do the dining plan next year, there are lots of different places I want to try. We are thinking about going from the 19th to the 26th or 27th.

Originally Posted by dsteiny23

We loved CMC and thought the characters were great...too bad Hope didn't have the same perception
Don't you just LOVE the walk over to Epcot. Craig has decided that BC is his ONLY resort now.

Craig seems like a smart guy! It really is the perfect resort, but AKL is my all-time favorite so it's a really hard decision to make. I just hope I don't get there and wish I was staying at the other one.

Originally Posted by chezp

So glad you were able to get into the Cape May Cafe, just sorry about the reaction to the characters.

Despite her reaction to the characters, it really was a wonderful breakfast.

Originally Posted by BeckiO5

Melissa, I'm all caught up now with your TR. What can I say, fabulous pictures for being a Beginner with your new DSLR Camera. I love Hope's adorible curley hair. So sorry to hear that some of the characters freaked her out, especially at Cape May. Congrats on getting a table there. I certainly plan to try there the next time we're there. Although Hope wasn't too keen on the characters, I'm glad they were certainly a lot better there for you than CM. I certainly have to say though that your Fireworks portion of your TR had me in tears and certainly reminicing about watching them with my mom, & Skyler too when we were there, and feeling the same exact thing (except Skyler didn't want to be held by Mommy, he wanted to stay in his stroller). The Beach Club looks like a great hotel, and I'm sure the walk to Epcot has to be such a leg up on AKL, which also looks amazing, and the animals being right there. I would say if you wanted the close proximity to parks for your next trip, BCV is the way to go unless you wanted a change and be surrounded by all of those beautiful Jungle Animals. Good luck with your decision. More please Melissa!

Oh and BTW, I was hoping to check out CHH for Lunch our last day at WDW on my trip, and never made it there. I certainly have to try them out the next time as I love Clam Chowder and you have me sold on eating there.

You've had a lot on your plate so I understand you not being around for a while. Yeah, both resorts are great and that's the problem. I just have to make a decision that I'm happy with...which in reality, either one would make me happy! And yes, you need to eat at CHH and get the clam chowder...yummy!

Originally Posted by luvnwdwgal

I know just how Hope must have felt. I was terrified of Santa Claus as a child, in fact to this day he still gives me the creeps. I really don't care for any characters in costume and clowns are the absolute worse! I hope Hope grows to like them though!

Hope didn't do well with Santa either...maybe next year! I hate clowns too! But I'm okay with everyone else. I guess you can't go swimming at BWI...hahaha!

Originally Posted by MayraLR

Sorry Hope didn't enjoy the characters. Hopefully she'll like them next trip.

I really hope so because I want her to really love the characters! Is that bad...I want to force the character love down her little throat?!?

Originally Posted by sc507

Hope is SO adorable! I have to laugh at her reaction though, poor girl! My DS was the same way the first year we went. He was 2, and couldn't say his sister's name yet - he called her 'Ma'. Whenever a character came near, he would cry and point at Sabrina, telling the characters, "Go see Ma..." over and over......we, being the bad parents we were, made sure to capture it on video I did snuggle with him so he wasn't scarred for life.....

I think if Hope could have said "go away" she would have. That's so funny that you son called your daughter Ma because he couldn't say her name. My brother did the same thing when he was little. He would call me Baa. Don't know where he came up with that but I was Baa for a year I think.

Originally Posted by mommapants

So nice to hear this character breakfast was better than the last one, but not so much for Hope. Hey maybe next year. Evan was the same way. He LOVED Elmo and wanted nothing to do with him when he met him at age 2. He is much better now that he is older and even sat with Santa this past weekend. My vote would be BCV but then again club level AKL sounds nice too. Just don't know if anything can compete with SAB. Have you stayed at both resorts already? If not than maybe AKL would be nice to do a comparison.
More please!

It's so funny because she loves reading about the characters and watching them on tv, but when they got up close she wanted to head for the hills. I hope she outgrows it. When did Evan get better? SAB is great, but I don't know how cold it will be when we go. I know it's heated, but you have to get out of the water at some point!

[Cam22]

I've gotten a bit behind, but I've really enjoyed catching up! Your breakfast at Cape May brought back all kinds of good memories of our breakfast there last month.

[mommapants]

Originally Posted by honeybee723

It's so funny because she loves reading about the characters and watching them on tv, but when they got up close she wanted to head for the hills. I hope she outgrows it. When did Evan get better? SAB is great, but I don't know how cold it will be when we go. I know it's heated, but you have to get out of the water at some point!

Evan really got better during his 2 1/2 - 3 1/2 year. When he was 2 he sat on my lap and I sat next to Santa (after his cousins visited). Last year when he was 3 he sat next to Santa but not on his lap and this year he sat on Santa's lap. It takes time for them and I know Evan took steps - like giving high fives rather than hugs. Now that he is 4 he is really good. We have a few local mascots that he hugs and gets photos with. My advice for Hope is give it time, watch from a distance (with you) or have the characters come down to her level. - Expect big changes over the next 12-18 months.

[honeybee723]

Originally Posted by Cam22

I've gotten a bit behind, but I've really enjoyed catching up! Your breakfast at Cape May brought back all kinds of good memories of our breakfast there last month.

Well, now your TR is bringing back memories for me! It's funny how much you miss something when you see pictures from everyone else's trips. My report is almost over, so now I'll have yours to give me my fix.

Originally Posted by mommapants

Evan really got better during his 2 1/2 - 3 1/2 year. When he was 2 he sat on my lap and I sat next to Santa (after his cousins visited). Last year when he was 3 he sat next to Santa but not on his lap and this year he sat on Santa's lap. It takes time for them and I know Evan took steps - like giving high fives rather than hugs. Now that he is 4 he is really good. We have a few local mascots that he hugs and gets photos with. My advice for Hope is give it time, watch from a distance (with you) or have the characters come down to her level. - Expect big changes over the next 12-18 months.

I hope so. That's what I've done at the mall...watched with her from a distance, which she is fine with, but when we get close just forget it. Next year she will be 2 1/2 when we go, so maybe something will change, if not it will be fun to watch her progression.

[honeybee723]

September 25, 2010: Part Two

We made our way into Epcot, and enjoyed the emptiness of World Showcase.


I noticed that they were starting to set up for the Food & Wine Festival that we were missing by a couple of days, but maybe on one of these trips I will be able to enjoy it.


I also noticed a nice little photo opportunity.


We decided to head on over to SE first since there was absolutely no line. While on the way over Dawn sent me a text saying that they had slept in a bit that morning and were just getting ready to have breakfast and they would call me when they got to the park. That was fine since this was our favorite park, and we wanted to just take our time doing what we wanted to do anyway.

We finally made it to SE and before we had even climbed the big hill in the beginning of the ride, Hope was fast asleep! We enjoyed our relaxing trip and after we got off we had to think about what to do next. We couldn’t get on another ride because I didn’t want to wake her, so we headed over to Innoventions. We walked around until we found something we would like to try….The Great Piggy Adventure. At first they weren’t going to let us go through because we had the stroller, but because they realized I had a sleeping child inside they made an exception.


So this is basically a fun little game that teaches you about saving money. You start off by receiving your little piggy.

She could have been the next Vannah White!

Then there are a couple of stations where you have to do fun little things to try and collect coins, or hide them in a safe place and in the end you see how much money you’ve kept.


We did horrible, but I think everyone does because the ultimate message is that it’s very hard to save money…and you’re telling me this as I’m on a vacation where that’s all I do! Anyway, Hope slept through the whole thing, and we were once again trying to decide what to do next.


Eventually, like within 10 minutes of walking around again, she woke up, and we decided we wanted to make a frog... a frog. I don’t remember the name of this place, but you could make a frog with these little Velcro pieces, so we all made one to take home.


We figured since we were so close to The Seas we would head on over there to try our luck at finding Nemo. I still hadn’t heard from Dawn, and it was getting a little hot, so even though they may have wanted to see this again later, I was going to do this now and try to stay cool. We boarded our clamobiles and found Nemo and then we took our time exploring the place.

She's very serious here

We waited for all of the kids to get out of the way so we could try to get a picture, and this is how it turned out…are you kidding me?!?


Next stop was Turtle Talk with Crush, and while we were waiting for the show to start, Hope was making friends with the fish.


She loved Crush, and sat quietly through the whole show. We left The Seas and headed on over to The Land.


We decided to take a ride on Living with The Land since we haven’t done that for a while.


Towards the end of the ride Hope started getting antsy for some reason, and started to have a major meltdown on the boat. We were in the last row, so that was a plus, but no matter how hard I tried she just wouldn’t stop crying, and this lasted a good 5 minutes. People kept turning around looking at me, and I kept apologizing, but there was absolutely nothing I could do. Eventually she calmed down, but by then we only had a few more minutes of ride, so I felt totally embarrassed and I’m sure those people were hoping they would never see us on a ride with them again.

We left The Land and I finally got a call from Dawn. They were in Innoventions because they hadn’t had a chance to do that when they were there the first time. I told her that we had already been there, so we decided to meet up in a half hour or so to catch Captain Eo together. We figured we’d take a Journey into Imagination in the meantime, and after that we let Hope play around with lights on the floor.



We went back outside and waited a little bit longer for them to come out of Innoventions. I tried to take a really nice photo of Hope, but she wasn’t having any of it.


Then we saw the Jamminators making there way over for a show, so we watched them, and as we were watching Dawn and her family found us. When it was over we headed to Captain Eo, and we just made it for the next show. I’m standing around talking and my mom is letting Hope walk around and all of a sudden I see her waving for me to come over to her.

“Is everything okay?”

“Hope just pooped.”

“What?!?” So I walked back over to Dawn and Brian and told them the situation. I told them we would meet them at the exit of the show because there was no way we could make it back in time to see the show. We bolted out of there, found our stroller, grabbed a diaper and wipes and headed for the bathroom. I changed her in record time, ran back out, dropped the wipes in the diaper bag, ran back into Captain Eo and up to the CM to explain what had happened, that I had friends in there and I wanted to get back in. She explained that because the floor moves they can’t open the doors to let me in, so basically I ran around for nothing…and it was hot! Hotter than I remember Florida getting. I couldn’t believe that it was this friggin’ hot in September, and all I kept thinking was that we had a wonderful pool at our resort, but unfortunately we weren’t on a long enough vacation to enjoy it more than once. So, we were going to sweat it out!

I honestly didn’t feel like waiting at the exit when there were things to do and see, and besides that, we were starting to get . I texted Dawn and told her we were headed to Norway to get something to eat and when they were done to give me a call.

In 2002 when my mom and I went on our very first girls-only trip, we found a little slice of heaven called Chocolate Mousse Cake at the bakery in Norway, and ever since that wonderful trip we try to eat that for lunch at least once during our vacation. Today was that day, and that’s where we were headed.

Up Next: Best laid plans go awry

[Sleeping*Beauty]

Yum! Cake for lunch is one of the best parts of vacation.