The Magnificent Seven - April 2018 - Day 1 - Celebration, Disney Springs and MK

[Redrach1903]

Travel day is here

Saturday 7th April

I first woke at 12.45. LOL. It gets more ridiculous every year! I did manage to get back to sleep for a bit, but was awake again at 3am. I really had to force myself not to get up, so I lay there until I dozed off again! By 5.30am Chris and I were both properly awake! Chris made us tea and coffee and had his shower first. I haven’t noted what time Jake woke, but I seem to remember it being not too long after us.

I wore my new Mickey Mouse strappy top which cost me a massive £3 from Primark. Love it!



We were all ready to leave at 7.15am and headed off towards Celebration! On the way I was trying to take an arty photo of the sunrise in the wing mirror…..





It was a beautiful morning and the traffic was nice and light at this time too. Perfect!



Chris kept revving the engine of his beast car and was pretty delighted with life



We arrived in Celebration at 7.40. Not sure if I've mentioned it, but we bloody love Celebration. It's one of our favourite things about Orlando and it's the ultimate dream to live here one day.





It also houses Chris's favourite golf course in the world. Wish he looked at me like this



We parked up near Market St Café, look how pretty the street is





Since we were so early the café hadn’t actually opened yet, so we went for a wee walk over to the hotel until it did. Regular readers will know that Chris and I got married at the Bohemian Hotel, so it's always so lovely to come back and reminisce.





For Christmas, Jake got an iPod touch from Chris & I and he was getting right into taking photos on this holiday. Was really sweet actually. Here he is trying to snap some local wildlife!











Once 8am ticked round, we were off like a shot to the café as we were all super hungry! It had been closed for months to undergo a massive refurbishment and they have done a great job! It looks fab!





Our server was the same English lady we have had on more than once occasion. She didn’t seem to remember us though. Hurtful



Jake remembered the big pancake he had here the year of the wedding, so he had already decided he was having that again, with his new found love – bacon! I also ordered pancakes with bacon and Chris ordered his usual BLT toastie. We are SO boring





Those breakfast potatoes that came with Chris's BLT were SO delicious. Jake and I helped him finish them The total for breakfast was $38.72 plus tip and we left with very satisfied tummies

We then went for a close look at "our" hotel. So many feels





The boys were side tracked by some fancy looking car. Another new obsession of Jake's is cars! He seems to know all the makes and models!



We looked out onto the terrace where our ceremony was before heading out and off for a walk around the lake.





More gator spotting happened…..



And a little squirrel spotting….





We didn’t do our usual loop of the 3 lakes, instead opting to do a circuit round the main lake and leave the longer walk for another day.







We were soon back at the fountains and Jake couldn’t resist a wee play!









He of course got soaked, so we hung out in the sun for a bit so he could dry off! I could think of worse places to sit down for ten minutes…..







We left Celebration at 9.30 and headed back to Bahama Bay. We stopped off briefly at Walgreens to grab some swimming goggles for Jake and a 3 Musketeers bar for me, which I didn’t actually eat until about day 12! What a failure! On the way back we passed this dude who was having the time of his life on that mower. He was whizzing about like a bat out of hell! Haha!



[continued in next post]

[Redrach1903]

[continued from previous post]

We got back to Bahama Bay around 10.15am where we all got changed in our swimming stuff and headed for the pool beside the reception building. It had clouded over a fair bit by now, but it was really hot when there was a break in them! The forecast was not looking too great for the evening though.







Not sure why Chris is giving me a death stare here. Definitely not the same look he reserves for Celebration Golf Club anyway…..



I opted to stay out of the pool and only had a wee dunk in the Jacuzzi. This is because I really couldn’t be annoyed with washing and drying my hair again! Girl problems! I also just wanted to lie on the sunbed and enjoy some peace and quiet. However, there was a very large (in more ways than one) family that had other ideas! They were doing that really annoying American pastime of playing Marco Polo so loud that everyone within a ten mile radius could hear them!

At one point Chris decided to go and do some weights in the gym. What a maniac! I can't think of anything less appealing to do on holiday. Or any other time actually.

Anyhoo, we got back to the condo about 12 and chilled out for half an hour with some snacks including Lays for me and GIANT cheese puffs for the boys!



We then all got ourselves ready and were leaving again by 1.30pm!



We were off to Disney Springs to get new magic bands and some very special pizza The sky was looking a bit ominous, but it didn’t take away from the excitement of driving under here! Never gets old!



It was nice to see one of the new fly-overs was open!



We headed for the Orange parking garage which, for no particular reason, seems to be our favoured one!





Love Disney Springs! I really want to stay at Saratoga Springs one day, just so we could walk over to DS whenever we felt like it!

P1020057

I can’t believe they are building yet more restaurants down here! The choice is unbelievable these days! Are they closing the original Wolfgang Puck then?





Speaking of food….



We are Blaze Pizza fans!



I went for the same as last year – mozzarella, chicken, mushroom, peppers, onions and balsamic glaze! Chris had mozzarella, pepperoni, onions, mushrooms and jalapeños! Jake had a plain cheese and tomato! The CM at the till told Jake his sunglasses (which he was still wearing inside, cos he's a celeb) were cool and high fived him, so Jake was totally thrilled Including drinks, the total was $35ish. How's that for preciseness?







So, were they as good as we remembered? Yes! 100% the best pizza in all the land! Jake couldn’t finish his, so he decided he would box up the rest for later. You can imagine how long carrying around the box lasted, can't you? Roughly 4 minutes…..



From here we walked back through Town Centre and onto World of Disney.







There is a whole section of this store now closed due a refurb (the Stitch side), so it doesn't feel quite as massive as usual! Although, we did notice that there is a temporary store in Town Centre called The Disney Corner or something which is housing stuff until the refurb is complete. Anyway, we left empty handed and then went on to Pin Traders to buy our new magic bands I think our bands from 2016 would have been fine, but I wanted the new style ones I went for a Minnie design, Chris went for a Mickey design and Jake got a 2018 design. The CM talked me through how to link them on the app (which was easy peasy) and we were good to go! Oh, and $84 lighter….



We enjoyed watching this guy do his thing for a few minutes.



And then it was time for a light refreshment. Chris had a beer and I had a strawberry margarita. Delish!



We enjoyed those while having a stroll round the Springs. Did I mention I love it here?



We stopped to watch this guy and the MOST AMAZING Custodial CM started dancing along! It was one of those moments in Disney that just make your heart happy What a legend!







After that we wondered round to the Soccer shop next to Splitsville etc as Jake had spending money that was burning a hole in his pocket! Between Christmas, his birthday and some kind hand outs from family for the holiday, he had over $400 spending money!



He settled on a Real Madrid and a Juventus top! He also wanted to pay to get names on the back. There was an option for standard lettering or authentic. He of course wanted the authentic, but they only had that available for one of the names. I didn’t write down the names, but Chris just informed me he got Ronaldo on the Real top and Dybala on the Juventus one! The damage? $213! Well, it was his money and he could do with it what he pleased! He was chuffed.



Chris spied some limited edition Disney Ray Bans in the Sunglass Hut and told me to go have a look. I of course instantly fell in love with them!

y



So cute! We asked how much and were surprised that they were only (ha) $193. Ok, not cheap, but I thought given there were only a thousand or so released that they would up the price a bit. Chris earned himself some massive husband points by treating me to them! I love love love love them!





They even came with this adorable cloth!



The girl who served us was really sweet and funny. She noticed by Haunted Mansion top and said "You are so Disney, but its not in your face Disney. Like if you know Disney, you know you are Disney" Hahaha! She also thought our Postcode was hilarious?!

After that excitement, we nipped back to collect Jake's tops as we had to give them 10/15 minutes to do the lettering and then I popped into Splitsville for my annual purchase of the brightest and comfiest socks known to man. This year I went for orange and red



[continued in next post]

[Redrach1903]

[continued from previous post]

We left Disney Springs at 4.05pm and were now off to Magic Kingdom The weather was starting to turn a bit grim and I was concerned that our first viewing of Happily Ever After was going to be a wash out!



We were parked in Simba 126 by 4.20pm and got the tram over to the TTC. As you can see from the photo below, Jake changed into one of his new footy tops on the way over!





It was quite windy and as I was at security, I said to the CM "ooh it’s a bit breezy tonight" and he said "yes, a wee bit of a breeze as they say in Scotland" Hahaha! We opted to take the Monorail over and as one drove in the captain waved to Jake which he was totally chuffed about!





When we got to the entrance we were greeted by this monster mob. It wasn’t unexpected given it was still Easter hols and a Saturday, but ugh!



Nevertheless, we were back at the Magic Kingdom and I was very very happy!





First stop was of course for a PhotoPass on Main Street! This started an obsession with Jake asking for magic shot photos at nearly every photographer!









Our first FastPass wasn’t until 5.20pm, so I had a look on MDE to see what the wait times were like and there was NOTHING for under 30 minutes! Not even the rubbish rides! So, with that in mind, we had a wander through Adventureland where we stopped briefly for Jake to try and get spat on by a camel. As you do.



With the wait times being what they were, there was only one option….



I didn’t think I’d ever get Chris in here, but the lure of air con and escaping the crowds was too strong, so in we went…..





Now, I only did this for the first time a couple of years ago, but ever since I did the Marceline to Magic Kingdom tour and learned how invested Walt was in this attraction, I've developed a bit of love for it!



Turns out Chris couldn’t remember it from when he was younger and actually liked it better than he thought he would. Not that he'll be rushing back, but still! Jake quite enjoyed it too, he thought the drunk looking totem poles were funny!



It was now time for our first FastPass which was Jake's fave from 3 years ago – Splash Mountain!



The before photo….



As we rounded this corner at the start of the ride, a log came down and absolutely drenched us! Hahaha! Soaked before it even really began!



On with the ride!





Despite Jake's face on this photo, he loved it again!



And here's the after photo



I then wanted to drag the boys to the Country Bear Jamboree, but there wasn’t another show for 15 minutes. We did see one of the bears though (is this Big Al?) and Jake wanted a photo with him. Big Al (?) seemed in a hurry though, so it was just a quick snap!





We were just about to go elsewhere when all of a sudden there was a big hoedown flash mob thing starting! It was UHMAZING!





It was theeeee best! More and more characters and dancers kept appearing! It gave me that warm fuzzy Disney feeling Here's a wee video….



THEN the characters starting picking kids to go up with them and Brer Bear came for Jake! It was such a lovely moment







The video is so funny! He is trying his best to look cool, but clearly loving life! Hehe!



After all that excitement, it was now time for the next CBJ show! Hurrah! I love this show It's so wonderfully bonkers! The CM did the usual corny jokes. What do you call a bear with no teeth? A gummy bear! What do you call a bear caught in the rain? A drizzly bear! Boom boom





This guy is still blootered



And poor old Trixie is still in a world of pain!



Jake's mate….



I think, despite being completely bewildered by the whole thing, Jake actually enjoyed this! His favourite part was the corny jokes though!

[continued in next post]

[Redrach1903]

[continued from previous post]

Our second FP window was open now which was for Big Thunder Mountain. We passed this marching band on the way!



The FP queue was huuuuuuuge, but it moved pretty quickly thankfully. We were behind this guy who possibly takes the award for wearing the most inappropriate garment at Disney?



BTMR selfie! Check the nick of my hair! What a mop hahaha!



We all love this ride. It's such a shame there's not a ride photo on it!

We were hungry again by now, so we thought we’d head into Columbia Harbor House for some grub!





We all fancied chicken tenders. Very adventurous! I waited for the food while the boys went upstairs to grab us a seat. Total was $21.97 and it was delicious. I love Disney chicken!



While we were eating we saw that the heavens had opened. It was torrential We decided to take our time in the hope that it was just a passing shower, but no such luck. 30 minutes later and it was still pouring. MDE was still showing crazy queue times, so there wasn’t much we could do. Haunted Mansion was showing 35 minutes, so given that it was the closest attraction, we decided just go suck it up. At least we were sheltered under the canopy thing!







Jake enjoyed reading all the gravestones!





Jake was a little nervous about this one, but he kind of knew what to expect as he'd been watching videos on YouTube! He was a little freaked in the stretching room and didn’t like when the ghosts popped up in the graveyard scene towards the end of the ride, but other than that he loved it! We were very chuffed he had even gone on. 3 years ago he wouldn’t even consider it!



When we got out it was still chucking it down. According to Accuweather it wasn’t going to get better any time soon. In fact, a raging storm was predicted. We decided we should probably call it a night, but I made Chris promise we'd come back tomorrow for Happily Ever After though! So off we went through a very soggy Fantasyland and Tomorrowland towards the exit. I jumped on MDE and cancelled our final FP which was for 7DMT. A decision I would come to regret in about ten minutes!





We stopped at the freshly painted Purple Wall….



And then continued out. Even in the rain, Main Street is a thing of beauty at night all lit up









By the time we got to the exit the rain had eased off and the air had changed completely! Chris was assessing the situation and announced that he thought the storm was going to miss us and that we should go back in for the fireworks! My husband, the meteorologist! He didn’t have to tell me twice though and we were soon heading back in. That is after Chris had some issues with his "magic band". He was tap tap tapping and it wouldn’t go green. He soon realised he had been tapping his watch by mistake! LOLOLOLOLOLOL. I'm very sad I didn’t see this, but very happy he told me about it

Oh hey MK, it's been a while







We found a spot on Main Street and waited for our first ever viewing of Happily Ever After. It felt weird knowing that it wouldn’t be Wishes, but I was hopeful I'd love it.



There was a kid having a meltdown right beside us just as it began! WHY? Why do these people always end up near us? There were other folk stood near us that were really annoying and loud too. Grrrr! You can hear them at the start of the video. I think it's SO rude to speak at full volume during shows. BEAT IT!

Anyway, annoying buffoons aside, I absolutely LOVED it. It is so clever! I really loved the wee details, like Maui's hook etc! Just brilliant! The "you'll be in my heart" scenes made me totally emosh too!









If I hadn’t have been so efficient earlier, we’d have been going to do 7DMT now! Bah! However, it was probably just as well as Jake was very sleepy all of a sudden! So for the second time that night we headed for the exit! We got the Resort Monorail and were back in the car at about 9.40pm Jake fell asleep approx. 7 seconds later!



There were lots of giant puddles on the drive home, so we had obviously missed the worst of the weather! We were home just after 10pm and Jake went straight to bed. Chris and I weren’t far behind! Such a fab first full day

Thanks for reading Tomorrow we go to Whispering Canyon Café for breakfast, Epcot and check in to the villa!

Steps today – 17,753 (8.62 miles)

[MrsSilverStar]

What a great first day! "you're so Disney" - what a compliment

[caitlinsmummy]

Wow what a fab first day! I dunno how you manage to keep going, I'm anticipating naps for us

Those Raybans are beautiful, I'm just a wee bit jelous!

That CM dancing in DS is awesome, I just had to show Mr Grump. When I last went to Florida it was Downtown Disney so it's obviously changed a lot since then.

Is the Haunted mansion quite scary for little ones then? My problem won't be the youngest (5) it'll be the oldest (turns 12 when we're there) who is frightened of her own shadow

Such a packed first day you must have been exhausted, looking forward to the rest of the report x

[HelenJNT]

Loved this! So nice you went straight to Celebration. We’ve still never been. Those breakfast potatoes looked amazing ❤️

I love the white magic bands you got. The custom ones are so much nicer than the standard resort ones. Absolutely peeing myself about Chris tapping his watch to get back in the park.

Love that Jake isn’t too cool to pretend not to enjoy the magic. Looks like he had so much fun today.

Can’t believe you got so drenched on Splash. I always try to sit on the left but it looks like that didn’t work for you!

Ahhhh Blaze. It’s made me really want to be in Disney Springs today but alas I’ll have to settle for a trip to Lidl, sigh.

Amazing first day. So many boxes ticked. Thrilled you managed to see HEA as well. *whispers* - it’s so much better than Wishes...

Day Two please #chopchop x

[vics18]

Wow you crammed a huge amount into day 1!
Nice to see Marketplace open again - was still closed for us in December, we will have to go back!
Bless Jake with the bear. Disney magic.
Glad you managed to see Happily Ever After as planned

[Redrach1903]

Originally Posted by MrsSilverStar

What a great first day! "you're so Disney" - what a compliment

See more...

Hehehe Thanks for reading xx

Originally Posted by caitlinsmummy

Wow what a fab first day! I dunno how you manage to keep going, I'm anticipating naps for us

Those Raybans are beautiful, I'm just a wee bit jelous!

That CM dancing in DS is awesome, I just had to show Mr Grump. When I last went to Florida it was Downtown Disney so it's obviously changed a lot since then.

Is the Haunted mansion quite scary for little ones then? My problem won't be the youngest (5) it'll be the oldest (turns 12 when we're there) who is frightened of her own shadow

Such a packed first day you must have been exhausted, looking forward to the rest of the report x

See more...

We barely napped at all this holiday which is most unlike us, especially me! Haha!

I love my Ray Bans

Oh its SO different now, you will hardly recognise it!

Hmmm it has some really dark bits, but I don't think it's scary to be honest! Jake was mostly fine, he just didn't like it when those ghosts popped up from behind the gravestones!

Thanks for reading xx

Originally Posted by HelenJNT

Loved this! So nice you went straight to Celebration. We’ve still never been. Those breakfast potatoes looked amazing ❤️

I love the white magic bands you got. The custom ones are so much nicer than the standard resort ones. Absolutely peeing myself about Chris tapping his watch to get back in the park.

Love that Jake isn’t too cool to pretend not to enjoy the magic. Looks like he had so much fun today.

Can’t believe you got so drenched on Splash. I always try to sit on the left but it looks like that didn’t work for you!

Ahhhh Blaze. It’s made me really want to be in Disney Springs today but alas I’ll have to settle for a trip to Lidl, sigh.

Amazing first day. So many boxes ticked. Thrilled you managed to see HEA as well. *whispers* - it’s so much better than Wishes...

Day Two please #chopchop x

See more...

I KNEW you'd be all over those potatoes

Love my Magic Band. I wish I could wear it again soon

I know, bless him. Was too cute!

Man, we were drenched! It was that bloody log coming down as we passed that did the most damage!

You'll be back at Blaze before you know it! And i'll be here sobbing into my ham sandwich.

HEA was so fab. Wishes still holds a very special place in my heart though

Thanks for reading so quickly! Day 2 shouldn't take too long as its a less packed day!

xxx

Originally Posted by vics18

Wow you crammed a huge amount into day 1!
Nice to see Marketplace open again - was still closed for us in December, we will have to go back!
Bless Jake with the bear. Disney magic.
Glad you managed to see Happily Ever After as planned

See more...

Thanks Vic!
I know, that was too adorable!
Me too and I loved it! xx

[yellowrose78]

Brilliant first day Jake looks like he was having a ball. The pizzas look awesome