I hope we love it! I am sure we will! Uh no - we don't! Mickeystoontown's 16 day trip! Updated 9/5!

[crazylady]

I've been waffling about a trip for just my husband and I in November. I really didn't think I wanted to go but your trip sounds like so much fun, now I kind of want to go.

 

[mickeystoontown]

I've been waffling about a trip for just my husband and I in November. I really didn't think I wanted to go but your trip sounds like so much fun, now I kind of want to go.

We were used to traveling to Disney the last week of May through the first week of June. But, my boss passed away and I was hired by a new attorney who takes off almost the entire month of November to go duck hunting. Since we were a one attorney/one paralegal firm, it was easier for me to take vacations during November. I do not miss the heat!

 

[Trinity524]

I have always loved your trip reports! Thank you for sharing with us!

 

[mickeystoontown]

I have always loved your trip reports! Thank you for sharing with us!

Hello and welcome! I'm so glad that you are here for another Mickeystoontown report!

 

[mickeystoontown]

Pretty in pink! Well, he/she is pink!

Y'all, I'm realizing that I did a semi-crappy job on taking pictures during the Christmas party. I guess that we were more focused on enjoying ourselves than documenting the party itself. Trip report wise, that's not a good thing but having fun wise, it was a great thing.

The next set of pictures that I have are of Piglet looking pretty in pink...well being pink, on the porch of the Crystal Palace.






It was snowing on Main Street USA!













Continued in next post

 

[mickeystoontown]

Pretty in Pink continued:

Well, guys and gals, other than the picture below, that's all that I took during the Christmas party! I can't believe that's all that I have. I remember us seeing special characters from afar (remember this was before they started close contact interactions. We also got several more treats...I know that we had popcorn, bottled drinks, chocolate covered marshmellows. We rode some attractions with short waits. I guess I really was just taking in the atmosphere. I have this one last picture that I took outside of the park entrance.


**Up next: Shoppin', Snackin', Relaxin' and Eatin'! My kind of day!

 

[mickeystoontown]

Shoppin', Snackin', Relaxin' and Eatin'! My kind of day!

After having enjoyed the Christmas party, we went back to the resort and called it a night. The next day was November 17th and the kids weren't set to start their drive until the 18th and arrive on the 19th. We knew that the trip would be go, go, go once they arrived so November 17th was a no plan day. I say no plans but we did have dinner plans.

We slept in and because it was too late for breakfast, we ate some fruit bars that I had brought with us (one of the advantages of driving is the ability to bring along snacks, water, drinks, etc.) while we were getting ready for the day. Our nephew had just turned one and is a Mickey Mouse lover through and through. John and I had bought him his first Mickey Mouse and it was getting pretty worn so I wanted to buy him another. Our thoughts for the day were to head to Disney Springs, do a little shopping, have lunch and then come back to the resort for some hammock time.

We were at the bus stop around noon and it took forever and two years for the bus to come. We, along with many others at the stop, were getting p.o.'d because it was taking so long. Y'all, it took over an hour for a bus to come and for us to get to Disney Springs. Over an hour!

Our first stop in Disney Springs was World of Disney. They had moved things around since our last tip and there was an entire section of nothing but 50th anniversary merchandise.

One of my friends/clients had asked me to look for something Minnie Mouse for her little girl and I sent her pictures of several things including this one which I thought was cute:

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I also sent this one to my niece to show her that I had found my nephew a new MIckey:



I may very well be wrong about this being our first stop because I am noticing a shopping bag in John's hand. We either shopped somewhere else first or I made a purchase at World of Disney and then found these two cuties.

We also went to Basin, Crystal Arts, and Marketplace Co-Op. I found some cute retro style merchandise and purchased a few things in the Co-Op. By this time, our fruit bars had worn off and we were hungry. We were close to Earl of Sandwich and it wasn't too busy. Sandwiches it is! And a side of potato salad.







We were sitting near the window and a young couple were sitting just outside the window. They finished and left and an older lady and two others came and sat at the table. We noticed that they kept looking down at their feet but, since we were almost face to face (with a window in between us), we tried not to look directly at them 'cause it was awkward. Then we saw them get up and walk away quickly with a couple of bags that they didn't arrive with. About two minutes later, the young couple was back. They were looking for their bags that they left! We knocked on the window, waved them in and told them to what the people were wearing and which way they headed. They thanked us and ran out. We wondered if the other people were taking off so quickly because they were going to keep the packages or if they were taking them to a lost and found. We will never know.

We ate our lunch at a leisurely pace and then went out and about some more. This time, we went to the Spice and Tea Exchange, the Christmas store and the Art store (not sure of it's name). I found a couple of canvas paintings that I loved but, me being me, didn't buy a darn thing. Having done much of that side of Disney Springs, we started towards Starbucks. John usually drinks several cups of coffee a day and he needed a coffee break.

Once we had our coffee in hand, we found a place to sit and people watch.



There was a couple with two little boys and they were letting them run through all the bushes (behind us in the picture) and they were ripping off the leaves and acting like active little boys. I'm fine with kids being kids but don't let them tear up landscaping.



The kids were all working but we did send them the picture of us enjoying our day at Disney Springs and told them that we were anxiously waiting for them to get there. We finished up our drinks and walked over to the bus stop. I made a quick stop in the restroom near the bus stops because who knew how long it would take for the bus to get there. Luckily, the wait was not the hour like when we came to Disney Springs. Once back at the resort, we dropped our bags in the room and walked down to the beach. It was hammock time! We had it all to ourselves.




See that black thing sticking out of the sand? That was a speaker and it was playing Christmas music which was fine but after a while, I was ready for some peace and quiet. Even John who has a radio on at work all day long said it got irritating.



Continued in next post

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[mickeystoontown]

Shoppin', Snackin', Relaxin' and Eatin'! My kind of day! continued

First of all, I have no idea why my fonts are one size and one color and then another or why my pictures are all not centered because when I type them and look at them prior to posting, they are all fine. So please forgive the messiness.

We stayed in the hammocks for quite some time. It was a pretty day and we didn't have a care in the world.



The sky was pretty and the resort was beautiful:








We had a dinner reservation at House of Blues and, given the wait time to the bus earlier in the day, we wanted to be at the bus stop with plenty of time to spare. I took these two pictures as we walked out our door. The time stamp is 5:58 p.m.




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We had a dinner reservation at House of Blues and, given the wait time to the bus earlier in the day, we wanted to be at the bus stop with plenty of time to spare.

Continued in next post

 

[Clarf]

The Christmas Party looked like so much fun! And you get all those treats included with the price? That's awesome. One year we'll get there.

Yay for a relaxing day. I'm serious though, that wait for an hour for a bus would have had us in our car so fast.

I hope that couple got their purchases back. I hope the people who found them were doing the right thing and turning them in to lost and found.

Aaaah, those hammocks. so nice!

 

[pwdebbie]

I've been waffling about a trip for just my husband and I in November. I really didn't think I wanted to go but your trip sounds like so much fun, now I kind of want to go.

November was my favorite trip. Almost perfect weather the first two weeks of the month, F&W was still going on, and Christmas was gradually appearing in our resort and the parks. If I ever go back again, November it will be.

 

[VanillaThunder]

Great read! Looking forward to the next posts! I visited Thanksgiving 2021 and I've never done a trip report before so I'm trying my hand at it. I look to stories like yours for inspiration and formatting. Somehow I can't get any pics to upload to my post, but I'm working on it

 

[vamassey1]

Hi Lisa!

I'm here and finally caught up. I'm really loving your report. You were there right before out Nov/Dec Trip. You and John are having so much fun, thanks for sharing. We stayed at Coronado for the first time in June but it was a very short trip so I didn't get to enjoy it like you did. Thanks for sharing so many photos of the beautiful resort.

Looking forward to more.

 

[CinderEmma94]

I am loving reading your report so far and look forward to future posts! I love WDW at Christmas time, there is something extra magical about it.

 

[Wood Nymph]

I am very late to the party - but better late than never. I've been enjoying your report.

it took over an hour for a bus to come and for us to get to Disney Springs. Over an hour!

That is really bad. I would think they would try harder to have fast buses to Disney Springs so that guests have time to spend more money. This is why we seldom go to DS unless we are staying at a resort that has a boat there.

 

[DogMomof2]

Are we the only adults on this ride?

We were both thankful that we had brought the hoodies as it was getting a little cool out. We got in line for the Magic Carpets and put on the hoodies while we were waiting which was about five minutes. I know that this may seem like a kiddie ride but the line was short and we hadn't ridden it in a few years.
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We made sure to maneuver the carpet out of the line of camel spit. My behind was already wet and I didn't want to be any wetter than I had to be.

Ride over, we meandered over towards Main Street but not before stopping to take a picture with the cute Orange Bird mural 'cept we blocked the darn bird. Oh well, I tried!

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Y'all, the castle was stunningly beautiful! The 50th anniversary colors were gorgeous! I may not be able to take a picture with Orange Bird but I think that I did well with the castle pictures:


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My selfies really need some more work:

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Up next: Our first treat of the Christmas party evening!​

Hi. Longtime lurker here. Selfie tip - put your arm out and up. This will change your angle so you are shooting downward. I find it a much more flattering angle.

 

[mickeystoontown]

The Christmas Party looked like so much fun! And you get all those treats included with the price? That's awesome. One year we'll get there.

Yay for a relaxing day. I'm serious though, that wait for an hour for a bus would have had us in our car so fast.

I hope that couple got their purchases back. I hope the people who found them were doing the right thing and turning them in to lost and found.

Aaaah, those hammocks. so nice!

Yes, they had refreshment stations and locations throughout the park and the treats came with the price of the party admission!

I hate hate hate driving in Disney. John gets more stressed out if we drove than waiting.

John and I hoped that the couple got their bags back. I

November was my favorite trip. Almost perfect weather the first two weeks of the month, F&W was still going on, and Christmas was gradually appearing in our resort and the parks. If I ever go back again, November it will be.

The weather is almost always great in November!

Great read! Looking forward to the next posts! I visited Thanksgiving 2021 and I've never done a trip report before so I'm trying my hand at it. I look to stories like yours for inspiration and formatting. Somehow I can't get any pics to upload to my post, but I'm working on it

Thank you and welcome! If you start a trip report, let me know. I'd love to read along!

Hi Lisa!

I'm here and finally caught up. I'm really loving your report. You were there right before out Nov/Dec Trip. You and John are having so much fun, thanks for sharing. We stayed at Coronado for the first time in June but it was a very short trip so I didn't get to enjoy it like you did. Thanks for sharing so many photos of the beautiful resort.

Looking forward to more.

Hey and welcome! I saw that you were at Coronado and wondered how you liked it.

I am loving reading your report so far and look forward to future posts! I love WDW at Christmas time, there is something extra magical about it.

Thank you! I'm glad that you are here and are enjoying the report.

 

[mickeystoontown]

I am very late to the party - but better late than never. I've been enjoying your report.


That is really bad. I would think they would try harder to have fast buses to Disney Springs so that guests have time to spend more money. This is why we seldom go to DS unless we are staying at a resort that has a boat there.

It's never too late! Thanks for joining in! You would think that they'd be doubling up on the Disney Springs buses because, like you said, people spend money left and right there.

Hi. Longtime lurker here. Selfie tip - put your arm out and up. This will change your angle so you are shooting downward. I find it a much more flattering angle.

Thank you for posting! I hope that you will more often. I am still trying to master a selfie and will try that tip!

 

[mickeystoontown]

There's no blues at House of Blues!

We had some time to spare before our dinner reservation so we stopped in the new M&M store. You guys, there were walls of M&Ms! Walls of 'em.
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Wait that picture doesn't really show much of the walls of M&Ms. These next two do.

I've been collecting Christmas ornaments or things that can be made into Christmas ornaments during our road trips. They had a few to choose from as well a whole lot of other merchandise.

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I ended up purchasing a Christmas ornament and John bought a pair of shoestrings. Yes, a pair of shoestrings. Not the bright colored ones but a pair of brown which would match a pair of Converse shoes he had packed for the trip.

Continued in next post

 

[mickeystoontown]

There's no blues at House of Blues!

Purchases made at the M&M Store, we left and took our time walking to House of Blues. It had been a couple of years since we had eaten there and we were looking forward to our dinner. We were seated as soon as we checked in.

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There are so many details to take in at House of Blues. Even the ceiling had tiles of famous artists and there are paintings everywhere.






Our waitress took our drink order and asked if we wanted an appetizer. We typically do not because the portions are large but we decided spur of the moment to order the loaded brisket fries:



I could have eaten just the appetizer and walked away satisfied. But then the waitress brought our entrees and we stuffed ourselves full!

I ordered shrimp and grits which were different than when I ordered the dish elsewhere. The grits were grit cakes. When you cut into them, the sauce around oozed into the grits. Goodness, it was good!



John ordered jambalaya which is unusual for him. Usually, if shrimp and grits are on the menu, he orders that.



Oh and John ordered a small skillet of cornbread because who can eat jambalaya without cornbread.


There was no way we were going to be able to have room for our usual dessert, bread pudding. Just no way at all. The portions at House of Blues are so large AND the loaded fries. I couldn't put another bite in my mouth. While we were waiting on our ticket, I paid a visit to the restroom. If you have never been to the bathroom in House of Blues, you need to. Every square inch is painted differently.







Continued in next post

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[mickeystoontown]

There's no blues at House of Blues! continued

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John was waiting at the entrance/exit of the restaurant when I walked out. He had paid the bill and was about to make a restroom stop himself. I snapped a picture of this cute-ishly weird painting:





The Cirque du Soliel building is near House of Blues and I took a picture to send in our family text. We were going to see the new Drawn to Life show while the kids were there.



There were a couple of entertainers out and out. There were masked up and posing for pictures:




I have no more pictures of the evening but it was getting late and I believe we did nothing other than going to the bus stop and bussed back to the resort.

Up next: How's your day going? Safari so good!