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Disney Springs with the Baby

3/20/2019

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I've been in that new mom fog... feeling trapped in my house, lonely, bored, covered in baby vomit. One day, when I could stand it no longer, I called my sister and asked if she'd be interested in meeting up at Disney Springs one day soon. As luck would have it, she and her wife had a Disney trip planned for the near future, and they'd be thrilled to spend a day at Disney Springs with us. YAY!
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We picked an excellent day. The weather was perfect - a cool breeze, not too hot, not too cold. The spring break crowds had not yet descended on Walt Disney World. Seriously, I don't know how or why, but it worked out better than I could have hoped. 

I knew it was going to be a good day when we pulled into the parking garage and there were plenty of spots available on the second level (this is the level with the pedestrian bridge to get into Disney Springs). We parked and waited for my sisters. 

Once my sisters arrived, we all headed toward the World of Disney store. This might be my favorite store at Disney Springs. It's enormous. Reagan was on the hunt for a new backpack bag to use as her everyday bag. 
Both boys hated it. Riley is always a pill when we are shopping - even shopping at Disney. Remy wanted to be held the entire time. He would have none of his stroller. While Jackie and Meghan were in line to purchase stuff, I took my babies outside. Riley said, "You know, Disney has the best popcorn." So naturally, we had to buy some. 

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Port Orleans Riverside

9/17/2018

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As I told you before, my husband asked me to book a room at Disney for our family. Whenever I make a Disney reservation of any kind, I call. Yes, you can book online... But I MUCH prefer to call and speak with someone. The cast members on the phone are incredibly helpful. They will search multiple dates, resorts and all sorts of combinations of Disney fun for you. When you call, make sure you ask for a Florida Resident or Annual Passholder discount (if you fall into either category). 
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So I called. It was between 2 nights at one of the All Stars (which are meh in my honest opinion) and 1 night at Port Orleans Riverside. I ran it by the hubs and he opted for Port Orleans. I was happy with his choice.

Port Orleans is an excellent Resort. It's near Epcot and Disney's Old Key West Resort. The Resort offers bus transportation to all the Parks and boat service to Disney Springs. 

There are two "sides" to the Resort - the Riverside and the French Quarter. They each have their own lobbies, gift shops, sets of eateries and pools. And the themes are different. The French Quarter is brightly colored, the outside of buildings resembles architecture from Bourbon Street. Basically, it's Mardi Gras every day at the French Quarter. 

We stayed on the Riverside. I prefer this one. It is a nod to the beautiful southern, grand plantations you find in the South. The cafeteria has a large mill on the outside, I suppose to resemble an old sugar mill. My kiddos love this one. And here, if you ask for it, you can book a room with some Tiana magic (complete with a light-up headboard). 
I've stayed at Port Orleans several times. It is one of my mom's preferred Resorts. And we have eaten here on numerous occasions - the first night we all arrived in Orlando for my sister's Disney wedding, when I brought the kids up last summer for a spontaneous day trip, and much more). But this was Stu's first time sleeping here, so it was a nice treat. I highly recommend this Disney Resort. 
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Post-Labor Day Vacay

9/7/2018

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About a month ago I received the greatest text message from my husband. It said, "Call and get a room at Disney for sometime in early September." In the 14 years Stu and I have been together, this is the second time he has ever initiated a Disney trip (The first was our 1st wedding anniversary. He surprised me with a room at the Animal Kingdom Lodge.). Anyway, I called him right away to make sure he hadn't been hacked. 

Then I booked our trip and began counting down the days. For this mini vacay, we stayed at Port Orleans Riverside. It's a gorgeous resort. 
We drove up on Tuesday (day after Labor Day) morning and headed straight for the Magic Kingdom. The kids had picked out Fast Passes ahead of time. The first was for Space Mountain at noon. 

The drive up was easy. Actually, it was incredible. The traffic was nearly nonexistent on the Turnpike. The funniest part was that Riley fell asleep in the backseat. I cannot remember the last time he slept in the car - including the drives from North Carolina and Tennessee. Crazy. 
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He woke up just as we exited the highway. 
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Epcot, Finally

5/23/2018

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Finally because, as you know from my previous post, I had entertained the idea of hitting Epcot first. Oh well, better late than never. 

And actually, I kind of mislead you. We have one brief stop to make. We spent about an hour at the pool. Coronado Springs Resort has an excellent pool area called The Dig Site. Reagan and I discovered it on our December trip. She raved about the slide for months. Now it was time to introduce it to her bro. Stu chilled in the pool. I reclined on a lounge chair, as is my usual poolside custom. It didn't take long for my skin to feel the effects of the blazing Florida sun. I called it quits at an hour. Buddy returned to the room with me. I left in the nick of time... one more minute and I would have become a painful tomato. 
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Ok, NOW Epcot.


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Turning 40 at the Happiest Place on Earth

5/14/2018

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Who says Disney is only fun for a child's birthday? 

This year Stu turned 40. We threw a party for him at our house the weekend before his birthday. It was awesome. I took the liberty of booking a room at Disney's Coronado Springs Resort for a mid-week birthday extravaganza minivacay. 

Coronado Springs Resort

The kids and I have stayed at Coronado Springs before. You can read about it here. The Resort is nice.  It is located in the Animal Kingdom Resort section of Walt Disney World's Orlando property. At the time of writing this (May 2018), the Resort is still undergoing a major renovation. The rooms have been overhauled and they are beautiful. Currently, they are constructing a massive tower which will hold more hotel rooms and convention center space. The project is expected to be completed in early-mid 2019. Don't let the construction deter you... this is a great time to get excellent rates at this Resort. 

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Hoop Dee Doo Musical Revue

5/5/2018

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One of our favorite dinner spots at Walt Disney World is definitely the Hoop Dee Doo Musical Revue. The food is great. The show is amazing. The ambiance is playful. 

Our most recent trip to Disney World was to celebrate my husband's 40th birthday. Perhaps you read about his poopy birthday party already. We had fun celebrating at home. But I am ALWAYS up for any excuse to head to Orlando. And a 40th birthday is nothing to shrug off and let simply pass by. I booked us a room at Coronado Springs Resort and got a table at the Hoop Dee Doo. 
*I've written about Coronado Springs before. We stayed there in December 2017. I'll be posting about our experience this time later. 
We drove our car from our hotel to the Fort Wilderness Campgrounds. From the Outpost we hoped on a Disney bus and rode it down to the settlement. For the first time ever, in our Disney experience, everything went without a hitch and we made it to Pioneer Hall in record time... which meant we had an excess of time to kill before we needed to check in. Luckily, there is a playground. 

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Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party 2017

12/11/2017

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This year, Reagan's birthday is going to be overtaken by a cousin's wedding. So we went to Disney early in December to celebrate! This was the first time we had been to Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party. We've been at Walt Disney World for Christmas festivities a handful of times in the past - including actually being there when Santa came (the two images below are from 12/25/10 at the Magic Kingdom)!

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Coronado Springs Resort

12/8/2017

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Last weekend the kids, my mom and I went to Disney. It was an early birthday celebration for Reagan. She really wanted to go to Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party. Walt Disney World is quite busy during December. But, with the help of a great cast member on the phone, we were able to book a two-night stay at the Coronado Springs Resort. This was our first time at this Resort, so the kids were pretty excited to check it out. 

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Magic Kingdom - October 2017

10/19/2017

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It feels like we were just here... maybe because we were. 

Perhaps my goal should be to hit up at least one of the Disney theme parks each month for the duration of our passes. What do you think?
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Anyway, the kids had Monday off. Teacher workday. I scheduled some FastPasses and we headed up to the Magic Kingdom. Our first FP+ was for the Haunted Mansion. I was super bummed we didn't ride it in September, so I made sure it was on our list this time. This is one of my absolute favorite rides. 
Haunted Mansion

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Animal Kingdom - September 2017

10/10/2017

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This was a great morning. Maybe it was the best part of our quick trip. I don't know. It's hard for me to pick one moment of a Disney trip that is better than another... any time at Disney is a win. But this particular morning seemed to go exceptionally well for us. 
We woke up early. Well, I woke up early. Then I dragged the rest of the family out of bed. We packed up our stuff and the car. For breakfast, we ate at the hotel cafeteria. It was meh. 

After we fueled our bodies, we hopped in the car and drove over to the Animal Kingdom. The plan was to be there when it opened, run over to the new Pandora section, and get on one of the new Avatar rides. 
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