First Ride!

We left off after finishing our yummy meal at the new La Cantina restaurant in Mexico.

On our walk over to Mexico, Henry had spied one of the light up glow carts selling it's goods before the nightly fireworks show, Illuminations, and he saw a young child with a glowing sword.

Put two and two together - and yep - he wanted one!

After we finished up at La Cantina he was still itchin' for a sword, so I asked him if he wanted fireworks or sword and a ride?

I obviously wanted to get my ride on. LOL

He picked sword, of course!

But, first things first - a quick stop at the Baby Care Center..which I am ECSTATIC to report that we will not need diapers on our next trip because Henry is almost completely potty trained!!!!!!!!!!!

Okay - I have to share this. A couple weeks ago Henry started to show some signs of willingness to potty train...he would actually sit on the potty and even went in it once...which was a complete change from last time we tried. I was taking this bull by the horns and running with it - fully thinking it would result in a day of exhaustion and frustration like the many, many times before. But, all well, I'm half crazy, let's go for it! We had "boot camp potty training," an entire day dedicated to it. Lots of juice, WAY more than I ever give him, and glass after glass of milk - along with a bazillion little treats for successful attempts were readied. The boy wasn't allowed to wear pants until he at least tried - and he DESPISES not having pants on. Some tears were shed, but he got it. Again and again and again. He ROCKED that potty!

Since then things have been awesome!  He's had a few accidents, but not regularly.  He's even staying dry through the night! He is rockin' the little potty chair AND the big potties - even in public. And he's loving it all. He WANTS to do it. It's AMAZING! I am still in awe and a bit of disbelief and wonder when he does it all.

Okay - side note over - I just had to share it, we've been through countless attempts at potty training, it's seriously incredible that it's about done. I can't believe I can even say that.  Woo-hoo!

Back to Disney World! We were in the Baby Care Center...


He thought this water station was very cool.


Info pic for anyone that might need it! The Baby Care centers are very nice. The only one we haven't been in is the one at Hollywood Studios. They have a TV with cartoons, toys out, high chairs, nursing areas, changing areas, baby needs for sale and are staffed by great Cast Members.

Back outside we went straight to a glow cart where the little man got his goods!


And just an FYI - these carts only take cash.

Now it's ride time...Soarin' or Test Track?

"Test Track!" came the reply from the stroller - so off we went to our first ride of the trip! It didn't surprise me one iota that he chose Test Track as his first ride, it was a favorite from September.

"My" fountain was dancing, which put a HUGE grin on my face.


I cannot get enough of this fountain!


Ahhh, I can hear the music now.





Henry ran over to the measuring stick, even though we told him he didn't have to.


Yay! Plenty tall enough! The Cast Member here did measure him, but I think this was the ONLY time of the entire trip happened. Otherwise they would usher him right in.




That chick threw the collision test in there as a "surprise"! Tsk, tsk! ;-)


No lines! Woot!




Ready to ride!!!

Henry was so excited for the ride, he kept talking about all the different tests and rooms that you go through and was completely over dramatic when we went over the bumps and through the hot and cold rooms. It was hilarious - he was acting out what we do at home when we YouTube it.

Then we got to the lap outside. He LOVED this in September, but it completely freaked him out this time. Joe and I always put our arms criss cross over him, and he grabbed onto us so tight! He didn't say anything about it this time, so we didn't realize how scared he was until later in the trip...

Into the after show we went.

Uggggggggggggggggggh! Cars + little boys = 17 hours in the after show.  Doh!

Joe laid down the lay with Henry though, he knew I didn't like just walking around cars for 45 minutes and was about to high tail it over to Mouse Gear for some shopping!  I was grateful. Henry was allowed to sit in 3 cars and then we'd be going. I can handle that!



After we left the Test Track building Illuminations was over and WHOA! serious crowds. We walked against the flow, with a stroller, attempting to make our way to the International Gateway to make our way out the back entrance...but it wasn't working. We eventually just stopped and waited it out.

I didn't mind. I'll stay in Epcot.  Oh ya!

Within a few minutes we were on our way again and quickly we found ourselves here





Standing there, overlooking this beautiful resort area, I remember being giddy. Our trip was just starting, it was really happening! I was in Disney World!!!!! (and how I miss it now!)



Back in our room we opened our door to find our luggage! LOVE THAT.



Before we called it a night, I did some unpacking while Joe gave Henry a bath and got him ready for bed. A bath is a big highlight for Henry each trip since we don't have a bathtub at home. We bring bath toys and he spends at least 45 minutes in there splashing around.

I; meanwhile, was having a dilemma. I had been trying, without success, to formulate a plan for us to be able to run over to the Hess Gas Station (located basically across the parking lot from our hotel, and sometimes a cheaper place for snacks than at the hotels) to pick up milk and other needs before we were off to Magic Kingdom in the morning. We had planned on running to Hess on our arrival day, but a delayed flight changed those plans. So, here I was laying awake in bed trying to figure something out - talking out loud about it and completely irritating Joe who didn't understand why we needed a plan for it at all.

Ahhh, marriage. Two completely different people trying to make life work.

I wanted a plan because we had a 10:30 appointment for Henry's hair cut and I wanted to get to the Magic Kingdom before that even so we could hit a ride or two. I didn't want to have to think about getting milk in the morning, or sit around twiddling our thumbs in the AM, only to have to rush to the park for the appointment.

Joe just wanted to fly by the seat of his pants, figuring it would work out.

After we spoke, Joe compromised a bit and we figured out a plan. He understood my point of view, and I understood his. And we found a plan that satisfied us both. Right away in the morning Joe would get ready and go get milk at the Screen Door shop down on the Boardwalk. Everything else that we wanted to purchase could wait until we made it to Hess...whenever that would be!

Up Next: Would we make it to the Magic Kingdom in time for some rides?

Epcot Eats!

I left off in this Disney adventure after we had arrived at Disney's Boardwalk Villa Resort, Henry was jumping on the bed and then we headed straight out for Epcot in search of food.

We had one mission.

THE MEXICO PAVILION!

We were more than ready to eat and excited to try the new quick-service dining in Mexico, La Cantina.

On our way to Epcot





Through the International Gateway and through the UK where we saw


I couldn't wait to see it in the daylight! And this was before the Flower &Garden Festival had actually started, so things weren't all out yet. Henry recognized Captain Hook from Jake and the Neverland Pirates.

And around the lagoon to Mexico where we easily found the entrance



It was around 8:00 pm, the nightly show, Illuminations: Reflections of Earth, that night was at 9:00 pm and La Catina was PACKED!! It was unreal. Many people pile into this place in hopes to snag a table on the waterfront for Illuminations. So if you ever want to do that, be sure to arrive early and eat sloooooowly.



None of the lines were short, so we just waited our turn. When it was finally my turn a random woman came up next to me and demanded the attention of the Cast Member, speaking in Spanish, but obviously complaining about her drink. The conversation took another 5 minutes. The Cast Member kept glancing at me with an apologizing look - but couldn't shake the woman.

It was a bit annoying, but it did give Joe and Henry the time to find and snag a table.

Yes, we snagged a table before we had our food, which is kind of a Disney no-no.  Not a written rule, but after you've been to Disney so many times you pick up on the unwritten ones...if you know what I mean.  Anyway, it would have been a mess trying to find a table if we had waited - I can only imagine us trying to push the stroller balancing a tray of food through that crowd.  The dining area isn't very big and with that number of people in there it was just chaos.  And no one was stopping us from snagging a table, it was certainly the best decision for the moment and situation.


Mayhem! But, it's pretty, isn't it?

The food for some reason took quite some time to be done, but eventually it was and I found Joe and Henry easily.


Henry's choice. The kids picks are either a cheese epanada or chicken strips.


Joe's choice - Cheese epanadas. He said they were good-not great....but he also didn't leave a single bite behind.


Mine - beef tacos. HOLY MOLY. Love, love.


Yay! We are at Mickey's and we have food!


Dessert - deeeeeeeeeeeeeelish. They come with a caramel dipping sauce that is yummy too! And this is one serving - we had two baskets of these.


They also gave us one cup of nacho cheese sauce. It was just your average nacho cheese, nothing extra in it. But, standard is good.

That was a LOT of food. We all were having a great time, enjoying every bite. Henry kept eying those churros and soon it was time.

Of course, to a little boy that is not only a churro, but also a sword.


I guess it's a sword to a big boy too. ;-)

Our bellies were full. We were happy (did I mention it was 80 degrees out and BEAUTIFUL?!).

La Cantina was a hit. We really enjoyed it despite the very crowded status, it was worth dealing with the crowd for!

A few more pictures as we maneuvered our way out..






An awful picture, but you get the idea - this is the seating area over the water. It would be a wonderful spot for Illuminations! There is also that little cart on the right with napkins, straws and that sort of thing. Also has 2 types of salsa. Both were good!

No questions asked, we would eat here again.

And as a matter of a fact...we did later in the trip!

Up Next: What will our first ride be?

Hello Mickey!

A while ago I posted the first installment of our September trip to Disney World...and then completely dropped the ball on continuing the story on here. However, we just returned from another trip (2 weeks this time!  Woot!) and I'm determined to share the story here! So, let's get started...

February 26, 2011

After a not-so-great night of sleep (yes, I was too excited!) this gal finally faced the day. Joe and Henry were already awake and doing the regular morning routine of breakfast and cartoons.

For all Henry knew, today was a normal day. We hadn't mentioned the M-word (Mickey) in over 24 hours, on purpose. If Henry had known the night before that we were going to Mickey's the next day NO ONE would have slept well!

The bags were packed and hidden away in the closet. Joe and I readied ourselves and then...

Video: Henry, you want to go to Mickey's House TODAY? (2 minutes, 3 seconds)

Needless to say, the kid was excited!

Eventually my phone rang and our car arrived to pick us up.  We generally take public transit to the airport, but this time were flying out of JFK (which is further away), had a lot of luggage and a 3 year old and stroller. We decided to fork over the extra bucks and take a car.

NO REGRETS.

We hadn't told Henry we were riding in a car, so when we walked outside and he saw a car waiting for us the kid almost launched to the moon in excitement.

It's the little things, right?

Our driver was polite and a good (read: safe) driver. Momma was happy.

So was little man

A car and Mickey in one day?!?!

We get to JFK, we go through all the normal procedures and make it to our gate. We are about an hour early, which is cool. It's lunchtime, we get some food and sit at our gate...and then see it's been delayed.

At first I saw a 20 minute delay. No biggee.

Then I saw a 1.5 hour delay.

Ugh.

Thankfully there was free WiFi and we are a family of geeks who love their technology. iPhones and iPads were pulled out to enterain us, walks were taken, we watched the planes, we ate


Which is bigger, Henry's head or the black & white?

Friends were made with the people next to us. They were meeting friends in FL and had 6 pm dinner reservations. They were NOT happy.

But eventually, at 1:52 pm, an hour after we were supposed to take-off, a plane arrived.



We boarded at 2:20



and then sat there.

And sat there.

And sat there a little more.

We finally took off at 3:25! 20 minutes before we were originally scheduled to arrive. I bet the passengers at MCO waiting for that plane weren't too happy...

The flight itself went just fine. We had been upgraded to Row 1, extra leg room seats, for free. That was veryyyyy nice for these tall, long-legged folks. (well, except Henry, who's legs barely get off the seat...)


How is it that the 3 year old gets the Bose headphones and the iPad???

However, there were no blue chips on board! This was our first time flying JetBlue and I had been informed about the blue chips and was looking forward to them. I had to make due with



They were tasty.

We landed at 5:40, about 2 hours behind schedule.

Down to the fake monorail that takes you from the gates to the main terminal at MCO







And onward to the Magical Express bus that will take us to our hotel,

PALM TREE!

which, thankfully, was a complete ghost town!  Sometimes the lines here can be very long!



Into the line for our hotel...we were the only ones in line. My heart sank a tiny bit, we were going to have to wait a while for more guests. Hey, it's okay, this is a long trip, we don't have any agenda for tonight, it's fine. Henry was VERY excited pointing out every picture of Mickey or the Castle that he saw.


"MICKEY'S BUS!"

Oh, but wait! What's this? A Cast Member smiling at me, heading our way...and YES! he's opening our gate. I might have muttered a, "I love you!" as we scurried through and to our


big yellow bus.

No Mickey themed bus for us...instead just a big yellow one.

Bummer!

Henry was a tad confused, but mostly didn't care - as long as this bus was going to Mickey's he was ready to get on!



We had a short wait and then we were off!

It was a fun and smooth ride.



About an hour later we were HOME!


I love you Boardwalk Inn!

Stepping into the lobby at 7:10 pm, we all had smiled plastered on our faces.


 
The Boardwalk often has balloons sitting out that the children can just take. Henry had been eying them while I was busy checking us in and I figured we would grab one on our way up to our room, but two kids came by and took the last two.

His face fell.

Our amazing Cast Member noticed this and pretty soon



That made him happy!


He's a good sharer.



We went up to our villa



This room wasn't quite the excellent location we had last time at the Boardwalk, but it still wasn't bad at all. We hadn't made any room requests and my fear was to be at the end of their looooooong hallways, but this one was only about 2 "segments" down.


Waiting for us on our bed

Our view

I found it ironic that we had a view of that particular building, which is called Community Hall. Last trip I had a Mommy Meltdown while trying to find that darn building...LOL!

The waterway is there too behind Community Hall, it was a relaxing and beautiful view.

Henry was itchin' to do one thing





Video: Jumping at the BWV (53 seconds)

We gave him a couple minutes to do that...but we were HUNGRY! It was past 7:30 by this point and we hadn't eaten since lunch.

Up next: Eats in Epcot!

Crave.

We go out for dinner almost every Friday night.  Tonight was no different...except one thing.  Joe wanted to try some place new.

We've lived here for 9 months, so we have our list of regular places - but there are literally hundreds of places around us that we haven't yet tried.  I; however, was not in the mood to try a new place tonight, but he won.  He researched and found a yummy looking joint that we had seen the store front of a few weeks ago.  It had great reviews on Urban Spoon and the menu sounded good.

Okay, let's try it!

And I'm so glad we did!

The little joint is called Crave and it's about 6 or 7 blocks from our house.  It was a beautiful Spring day, unnaturally warm at 70 degrees, so we opted to sit outside.  The interior is just about 4 tables large anyway, so I'm not sure we even had a choice.  :)  It was a perfect evening and we enjoyed watching the sun set as we nibbled.

We had a wonderful waitress who was a natural with little kids and Henry just loved her.  He flirted with her all night, showed off his dance moves, showed his muscles and drew her a picture.  It was adorable.

Joe ordered the Crave burger with "chips" (fries).  He said the house sauce on the burger was a bit odd, but he didn't leave a bite behind either.

I had the chicken soulvaki platter with chips.  It was delish.  Every bite.  Yum.  This is also available with vegetables for a healthier choice.

Henry had a little thing that I can't even pronounce, let alone spell on here-some Greek word - but it is basically ham and cheese in a puffy, flaky bread.  He gobbled it!  (And ate part of my meal as well!)

We were happy and stuffed full.




Then we saw the dessert menu.

Oooh boy.  Dessert could NOT be missed.

Joe ordered the fried cheesecake.  But they were out.  So, oh, darn, we have to go back for that sometime...shucks. ;)  He ended up with Crave Bites.  Which were little donuts with honey to dip them in.  They took a while to be delivered to our table because they were freshly made.  Worth the wait!

I ordered the double chocolate molten brownie with ice cream.  I've been craving for a molten chocolate cake for about 9 months, I just haven't found one in our neighborhood until tonight! (not that I've looked all that hard...but...)  This was sooooo good.  Also hot and fresh.

The dessert portions were BIG.  We could have easily just shared one.  And it's completely reasonably priced.  2 entrees, Henry's meal which was basically an appetizer, 2 Diet Cokes, 2 cups of coffee and 2 desserts was $40!  Great service, great food.

In all, I love our list of regular places, they are good and we know what to expect.

But, I'm always happy to add a new place to that list, and Crave has definitely made that list!

Lost

No matter how small your home is, stuff still gets lost.