Our reception ended at 2pm, and we didnt have to be back at Epcot for the dessert party until 8pm. When we first started planning, I was worried about the festivities losing momentum because of this break, and we couldnt fix it because Epcot locations require 9am ceremonies. However, I am now so glad to have had this time in the middle of our day it gave me and DH a chance to compare notes about the wedding and share our excitement, and it meant we had more wedding festivities to look forward to later that night. I think if wed followed up a spectacular ceremony and spectacular reception directly with a spectacular dessert party, the impact would have been diminished (kind of the way the guests didnt bat an eye when we got on a boat because theyd been riding them all weekend!).
DH and I spent more than two hours just going over the events of the day and sharing the parts the other one missed. We were like a couple of giddy school girls! Then we took a nap, which we totally needed if we were going to make it through the DP. (Everyone always asks if I took my dress off between the reception and dessert party. The answer is Heck yes!). When we woke up, it occurred to us that all these delicious cookies and brownies we were having at our DP would taste even better with a big glass of milk. I figured anything was possible with Disney (thats right, even milk dream big, ladies!), so I started looking for phone numbers. I didnt have my WPs cell, but I remembered it was Monday and DFTWs offices were actually open! I called my WPs assistant and asked if it was too late to add milk to our DP menu. She said shed see what she could do. As it turned out, not only did we get milk, but our server saw the milk and assumed kids were coming to the party, so he brought glow cubes cool!! At about 6pm we ordered room service and had a quiet dinner while I touched up and re-accessorized my outfit like Day-to-Night Barbie.
What $30 worth of rubber chicken looks like
I had accumulated so many accessories during my search for The Perfect Look that I thought itd be nice to get some use out of them. My eBay treasure trove:
Swarovski necklace that my buddies on the Boards all liked
Earrings that arrived the day before I left, so I wore them even though they turned out to be the wrong style
Alternative fascinator
Customized bolero
(I turned out not to need the bolero the weather was perfect that night but I wore it anyway cuz everyone loved it.) DH and I walked from the Beach Club to International Gateway, where a guide met us to escort us into Epcot and UK Lochside, as they call it now. I was so excited to be wearing my dress inside the park! The DP location turned out to be perfect it was down a meandering garden path that shielded it from the main walkway, and we were right on the water.
DH and I arrived so early that we had about 20 minutes to kill before the bus brought our guests. I was really impressed by the setup sometimes, in pictures, the dessert parties look kind of... how do I describe it? Under the glare of the flash, the black chairs and the plain tables (unless somebody splurges for floral) make it look kinda like a convention event. But in person, its gorgeous! The standard candles and white tablecloths looked perfect in the twilight, and even the black plastic chairs didnt bother me.
We decided to take a walk back to Morocco for old times sake, and lemme tell you, I felt like SUCH a rebel wandering around Epcot in my dress unescorted! When we got back to UK Lower, er Lochside, our guests still hadnt arrived, so we just enjoyed our moment together in this beautiful place... and loaded up a plate full of desserts to eat before we had to start posing for pictures! Id heard too many horror stories of brides not getting to enjoy the food at their own parties, so I was sure to scarf down one of everything and
two and-a-half Chocolate Peanut Butter Marshmallow Squares! Please tell me someone has the recipe for those...!
When the first guests started arriving, DH and I positioned ourselves under a lamp on the pathway and greeted everyone as they walked in. They all made it but one, who didnt wake up from his nap til 9pm doh! We had 30 minutes before IllumiNations to mingle with our guests, which felt like a nice amount of time. I was really pleased to get to speak in depth with my two friends whod originally said they werent into theme parks. (These are the ones for whom Id compiled that list of alternative things to do in Orlando.) As it turned out, they spent a really nice day in Epcot and went to Celebration twice! They were just beaming it was so nice...
Nathan & Jensey arrived about the same time as the guests and began taking practice shots so they knew the best way to capture the low-light setting. They also took a couple of fun ones where theyd shoot us and then wiggle the camera around to make a light effect.
Before the show started, my MIL came over and showed me all the bags shed brought to smuggle out leftover desserts were talking grocery bags, here. It was hilarious!
Thanks to other brides trip reports, I knew that in order to get the best pictures, we wouldnt really be able to watch the show, so I warned DH. (It was a little hard to resist turning around to gawk because neither of us had seen IllumiNations before, but we went back the next night to see it in its entirety.) We also used the standard Magic Kingdom photo shoot directions as our guide: Look at the camera, look at each other, kiss, repeat! I have to admit, I am disappointed by how much smoke was blowing toward us that night I didnt get as many clear fireworks shots as Id hoped, but DH disagrees and says the smoke adds to the effect.
That is uncanny - I actually told them at my Planning Session, "I want it MY way - you know, like Burger King!"
Your buffet looked delicious and I love that you took the friendship boat back to the Y&B Club. 
Are they automatically part of the "For the Child In You" menu? If they're not, I'm definitely asking for them! 
