Minions take over the MK and cause havoc at Gringott's Update 1/8

[jmskinner]

It's been a few years since I've written a true TR. This was a special trip with just me, Melissa and my DH, Jonas.

Here we are.



Just a few months ago at his retirement ceremony. 21 years in the Air Force, so proud of him. That is why this was a special trip. He was told to take a trip while on terminal leave before he found a new job, because who knows when we will be able to go again.

We already had a trip planned to NC with all of Jonas' family at a beautiful log cabin in the mountains. This was to be the big trip before retirement. That was in July, but in May Jonas mentioned he would like to do MNSSHP again. I thought "Wow, I would too." Then the man really shocked me when he said "I want to go to Universal and see the Harry Potter areas, think we could go this year." Well, that didn't need to be repeated, I got on FB and sent one of my Dis/FB friends who is a travel agent an email asking her to book us a trip. Now I usually do this myself, but thought, "why not let someone else do it and help them out".

So we were booked, September 22-26. This would give us 2 or 3 days at the parks in WDW and one day at Universal. We would be able to not only go to MNSSHP, but also to Epcot's F&W. We had done this two years ago and had a great time.

Gotta go to homecoming, next update will be a little more about us and our arrival to see that very special Mouse! I hope you join along on this special trip!

 

[natebenma]

Right Place, Right Time!!!

I was wondering if you were going to do a report.

Can't wait to hear all about it!!!

 

[jmskinner]

Right Place, Right Time!!!

I was wondering if you were going to do a report.

Can't wait to hear all about it!!!

Hi! Glad you found me. I need to go do an update on the PTR. I also need to get caught up on yours, crazy life getting in the way.

 

[jmskinner]

Who are the "minions" on this crazy trip, first there is me, Melissa. 45 years old and still lovin WDW. I never really wanted to go to WDW until my BFF sent me one of their planning CD's and we finally went as a family when I was 35. I work at Kohl's, which means I am a little crazy because you have to be a little crazy to work retail. I love photography, roller coasters and hanging out with my boys. And of course, WDW and Mickey Mouse. I am not a Princess person and don't watch all the movies...I like the parks.

So, who are my boys, first there is my hubby, Jonas.



As you can see, he loves Princesses, especially the redheads. We have been married 19 years, survived 6 moves together, and at least 5 long deployments anywhere from 3-12 months. He is currently looking for a new career. Since he was 3 he had a plan...to be in the Air Force. After 21 years, he has done that and not totally sure what he wants to do. Something in Project Management. He is my cool geek, he loves Star Wars, Star Trek, comic books, Lord of the Rings, and history. He also loves Mustangs and has a 2007 GT. That is the in him.

My other boy is my son, Jacob.



This is from our trip Labor Day weekend in 2013, just me and my boy, at WDW, doing nothing but looking at cars. Mustang Club of America held their Nationals at the WDW Speedway and there was a Dream Car Weekend at CSR. We flew out and had a great time relaxing at our favorite resort, POR, and looking at lots of great cars. (I'm a car person too!) Poor Dad had left for Afghanistan two weeks before this event took place. Jacob is almost 16 and growing up to be a nice young man. He joined the marching band this year, performing in the pit. He loves Star Wars just like his Dad. Still builds with Lego's and has joined the Anime Club at school this year. Him joining the band and the club are big for him. Due to him having ADHD and Asperger's, school and making friends have never been easy for him, but he loves his school and is happy, which makes us happy. That is part of the reason we have decided to retire in VA, so he can stay in the same school.

We were very fortunate to be stationed in Tampa from 2008-2011. That meant we were one hour away from WDW. Seems I forced Jacob to go so much, he got tired of it, so he did not mind one bit that we didn't take him this trip. He stayed home with Jonas' Mother and her boyfriend.

Another member of the family is Bubblegum,



She is suppose to be Jacob's dog, but she doesn't know that. She thinks she belongs to me. That couch is part of our living room set, that we never use, so it is now called hers. She uses every part of it, couch, loveseat, and chair. She will normally lay in the living room until everyone is home for the day. But she loves my MIL's boyfriend, so she probably didn't use it much while we were gone.

Ok, so the basics are out of the way, I'll get us to the world. I booked a noon flight, so we would be home to help my MIL get Jacob to school and get use to the routine. We arrived at the airport, got through bag check and security, which of course was a madhouse. We stopped in a Pub there at the airport for a bite to eat. I had the fish and chips. Jonas had a sandwich. After eating the fish and chips I thought "that may have not been the best decision". See, several months ago, I started having stomach problems, then two months ago my whole abdomen started hurting and I had my gallbladder tested, but nothing was found. The pains went away before the test. After eating that fish and chips, I thought I might be starting to feel bad again.

Here we are waiting to board


Flight was uneventful, except for once we were ontime, no delays.

But there was a glitch, Jonas turned his phone on and there was an email saying he was turned down for a job. He took this really hard since this was a position, the company called him and said they were submitting him for the position. What a way to start the trip.

We made our way to Magic Express, we were trying to get the Magic Bands on, but they whisked us off to the bus and we were on our way. Got those bands on and




We had made it to WDW!

 

[natebenma]

I think I said it in your pre-trip report, but just in case, congratulations and thank you to Jonas for his service and to you and Jacob for your sacrifices!



A good start to your trip. I sure hope your stomach doesn't bother you during the trip! Especially a Food & Wine trip!

home!

 

[jmskinner]

I think I said it in your pre-trip report, but just in case, congratulations and thank you to Jonas for his service and to you and Jacob for your sacrifices!



A good start to your trip. I sure hope your stomach doesn't bother you during the trip! Especially a Food & Wine trip!

home!

I thought I had responded to you, so sorry.

First off, thank you.

The stomach does cause some problems, but it was due to the strangest thing. More on that later.

 

[jmskinner]

Sorry I have not done an update in a few weeks. Between work, marching band competitions, and crazy me volunteering to take charge of the concert attire at the school I have been super busy.

Back to the TR. Before Jonas retired, we were hoping to take a trip to Scotland next year for our 20th Anniversary through Adventures by Disney. I had been saving my Disney Visa Reward Dollars for three years. When we realized Jonas would be retiring, we knew that would not be occuring, so I thought why not splurge on a room at WDW. Our favorite resort is POR, but thought why not give the Contemporary a try, Jonas had always wanted to stay there. We weren't able to get a military room rate, so the next best thing would be the Grand Floridian. We had always discussed GF, but never thought we would actually stay there. I had enough dollars to pay for three nights, so only the down payment came out of pocket.

Now, the week before we left for WDW, I realized the Rewards card I had ordered was missing. I think Jonas threw it out. I was worried the GF would bill our regular account for the room and I didn't want that to happen. I called the GF and they said I could pick up a Rewards card at a guest service window at one of the parks and then take care of my room by Midnight.

We arrived at the resort and Jonas waited to get my carryon off of the ME and I was greeted by a CM who took me to the check-in desk. I told the CM there about needing to get me a rewards card to pay for my room and she said it was noted on my reservation. Gotta love Disney for handling little things like this well. We were able to get in our room and change before our first night.

Here is our room:











We were in Conch Key, which isn't what I requested. And we had two beds, we were suppose to have a King, but when I saw this view...






I did not care about the location or having two beds. I did ask for the dormer room, just looked a little more private and we really did like having the high ceilings in the rooms. There will be many more pics of the view and some tips about that location later on.

We got our stuff and headed over to MK. No wait at guest services this time of day. We got the rewards card, which I then had to call and have all of my reward dollars transferred. I laughed when the person helping said "I just have to congratulate you on having such a high balance." I laughed, she congratulated me for spending a lot of money. She was very nice.

While at Guest Services I also had to get our military salute tickets activated and pick up our MNSSHP tickets.

And we were on our way into the parks....

 

[Minnie&Nana]

Thanks for the heads up... Looking forward to hearing all about your trip! Love the pics already!

Congrats to Jonas...you two look so young!! (Not that you're old. )

 

[jmskinner]

Thanks for the heads up... Looking forward to hearing all about your trip! Love the pics already!

Congrats to Jonas...you two look so young!! (Not that you're old. )

Thank you Christine!

 

[natebenma]

Yikes on the missing rewards card, but glad you were able to get it straightened out!!!

Your room at the Grand Floridian looks beautiful. I haven't really seen many pictures of the resort room. A few of the villas, but not the actual resort.

Wow! What a view! I can see why you would stick with that.

 

[jmskinner]

We headed into MK. Our original plans were not to go into the park our first night. We were going to have dinner at Narcrooses, but as our trip got closer and Jonas hadn't found a job, we changed our minds. Plus a friend mentioned something I had never done...the Monorail Crawl. Cancelled our ADR and planned a night of drinking, but as our arrival date got closer I kept thinking, "What if we decide to go in the parks?" And after I purchased the Memory Maker, I thought it would be fun to just wander around and get our pictures taken. But I also felt like we had to have a few FP's. I honestly cannot remember what one of them was for, but it wasn't one of the main ones. It was all the stuff you should never get a FP for. The second one was for The Little Mermaid ride since we had never ridden it, but we entered the park to late.

We made it to our third FP, anyone know where this is



This will give you a better idea





We are suppose to be Pirates in this one


So yes, I did use a FP to meet Mickey. I know I had told Jonas that they had a Mickey that spoke, but of course it just went in one ear and out the other. But it was a nice little surprise for him. I was a little disappointed that we didn't get a picture with each of us next to Mickey, but I knew lots of little ones were waiting.

Jonas decided he was hungry, which wasn't part of the plan. We were suppose to grab food as we did the Monorail Crawl, but he mentioned our favorite quick service place...CHH!

On the way, we stopped for a few pics




Before this trip, I had read an article written by a Photopass Photographer who mentioned how it is always nice to be asked to take a picture, so I made sure to do that and mentioned we had the Memory Maker.

We made it to CHH, I always get the fish and Jonas gets the chicken, but they had changed the menu since our last visit and only had a platter with chicken and fish. I told him to ask and sure enough, they could do just the chicken. I am so glad this restaurant has started staying open later than 4pm. We made our way upstairs and over the walkway between Liberty Square and Fantasyland. We were shocked when we saw this scene


This was September 22! Why aren't all these kids in school? We could not believe how busy the park was, but I had been reading on FB how crowded the parks were.

Here is my food


Jonas' looked about the same. Remember, I had fish earlier in the day and thought with my stomach it probably wasn't the best idea, so I have no idea why I did it again. I started to try the Salmon. I was ok, but a little worried my stomach would act up.

From here, we tried out the new bathroom. I didn't take pictures. But here is the outside





Decided to hop in line for The Little Mermaid. Those that know me, know I love to take ride photos, and I NEVER use the flash. It is an obsession to try to get those dark ride photos, and one day I will have my camera that will do it all for me, but here is what I got with my 'ol Canon.





This is the one I thought came out well




No, we didn't ride 7DMT, just got a quick shot of it.

I know we rode HM, but I didn't take any pics. HM is Jonas' favorite ride. He makes me crazy during the stretching room because he repeats the monologue in my ear. I think it bothers me more that he may be ruining it for people near by.

Now it was time for the Monorail Crawl because the plan was to make it to our room in time for Wishes!



Can I ask for a prayer and/or some for Jonas. He has his first interview tomorrow morning. He has been a little depressed since he has applied for about 40 jobs and hasn't heard anything back.

 

[jmskinner]

Yikes on the missing rewards card, but glad you were able to get it straightened out!!!

Your room at the Grand Floridian looks beautiful. I haven't really seen many pictures of the resort room. A few of the villas, but not the actual resort.

Wow! What a view! I can see why you would stick with that.

You are posting as I was updating and just got caught up on your TR.

The Rewards card was really my fault, when it came in it was open and considering how much it would have on it, I kept thinking I would order a new one and never did.

The view was amazing!

 

[Minnie&Nana]

Melissa....there is an upstairs walkway between Liberty Sq and Fantasyland? Is this new? If it has been there all these years and I never knew ...well...darn!!!

Gosh, I really love the pics ...you two look so good! Retirement from the military must agree with you both.

Your view was wonderful! The rooms looks so different now...I would miss the wallpaper and more regal feeling of the room. Back in 2004 our room was SO pretty! We also had a phenomenal view...I love that view more than the view from CR Tower. How did you like GF overall?

Perfect way to begin the trip...MK and CHH!!

 

[jmskinner]

Melissa....there is an upstairs walkway between Liberty Sq and Fantasyland? Is this new? If it has been there all these years and I never knew ...well...darn!!!

Gosh, I really love the pics ...you two look so good! Retirement from the military must agree with you both.

Your view was wonderful! The rooms looks so different now...I would miss the wallpaper and more regal feeling of the room. Back in 2004 our room was SO pretty! We also had a phenomenal view...I love that view more than the view from CR Tower. How did you like GF overall?

Perfect way to begin the trip...MK and CHH!!

Christine, I think I worded that all wrong. I meant the eating area that is above the path between Liberty Square and Fantasyland. You may not know this existed, it is usually empty upstairs at CHH.

GF was lovely, not sure I would stay there again, but more on that later.

 

[Minnie&Nana]

Oh, yes, upstairs is my favorite place to eat at CHH. It is usually so quiet and, as you said, many have no idea it even exists.

I am interested in your GF experience.. Overall CMs were nice enough and a manager sent a gorgeous basket of GF goodies from Mickey and Minnie because it was my 35th stay in a WDW resort...but...not sure if I would stay there again; especially with the new room decor.

 

[jmskinner]

We headed out of MK and hoped on the Monorail, first stop was The Contemporary. Felt like a teenager running around going "Where's the bar?". We ended up at the Outer Rim.



I apologize for the dark pic, I haven't had time to work on any photos.

I had the Heather & Honey Sidecar
Dewar's Higlander Honey, St. Germain Elderflower Liqueur, Agave Nectar, and fresh Lemon Juice


Jonas went for a double shot of Jameson. He was trying to make the pain of that rejection email go away.

We sat and enjoyed our drinks. It was nice and quiet here.

Here we are after having a few sips


After finishing our drinks we headed over to the Polynesian. I didn't take any resort pics since there were construction walls everywhere.

Here is the Tambu Lounge:


This place was a little crazier with everyone waiting to go into O'hana.

I've always just drank the same 'ol thing, but not tonight. Tonight was about a little adventure, so I went for one of these


Here is a description I found online
"One of the most beloved drinks at Disney's Polynesian Resort has got to be the distinct and delicious Lapu Lapu. Served up in a pineapple, this concoction of rum and juice is a classic Disney must do on any monorail crawl. Made by combining Myers's Original Dark Rum with Tropical Fruit Juices and topped off with Bacardi 151 Rum the Lapu Lapu is a fun island delight, but not for the faint of heart."

By this time, we were feeling really relaxed and having a very nice time. We decided to order the bread and dips




Can you tell I was feeling no pain?

Everyone kept asking what I was drinking, the funny thing was, I had no idea. I didn't look at a menu when I ordered, I saw other people with the big Pineapple and knew that was what I wanted. We were there about an hour and then headed for the monorail again.

Since we had spent so much time at the Polynesian, we skipped the GF portion of the Monorail Crawl. Guess we will have to give it another go one day.

Got to the room and found one perk of being at deluxe...


And since we had two beds, we got double chocolates!

Next up...Wishes and dessert.

 

[jmskinner]

We had made it back to our room and Wishes was about to start. We decided to order dessert and some coffee. Jonas wanted Cheesecake, just plain Cheesecake. I can't remember what kind was offered, but plain was not on the menu. I called room service and the CM put me on hold. She came back on and said she tried every dining facility at the GF and none had plain Cheesecake. Jonas decided we could try the Dessert Sampler, but he still wanted Cheesecake.

About that time, Wishes started.










I have seen Wishes from the Dessert Party, the Grand Yacht Cruise, The Contemporary, the beach at the Polynesian, but my favorite spot is still where Walt wanted us to see them...on Main Street.

Then it was time for the parade


While we were watching the parade, the desserts arrived. It so funny because all of the sudden we heard someone say "Hello". Seems he had been knocking and we didn't hear him. I'm sure the CM's are always scared to open hotel doors like that.

Here is what we had







And since it was so late, our coffee was fresh since most don't ask for coffee that late.

The desserts were great...Jonas still wanted the plain cheesecake though.



And that was our first day back in the Happy Place!

Next up...Magic Kingdom

 

[jmskinner]

Sorry I haven't written in so long. Hope everyone had a nice Thanksgiving. Between work and dealing with concert attire at the school, I have been exhausted. Plus, having Jonas home, I only seem to want to be on the computer when he decides to paint and my desktop is in the same room as his painting table. I like my alone time when I Dis...unless I see a great pic I want to show him.

It was now Tuesday morning, I have to admit, it was really nice to wake up to this view





We decided that since we were so close to the boat dock, we would take a nice ride across the bay. Here is a pic of our room from the dock.



Our room was on the top floor, between the trees. The one with the curtain halfway open. Really is a great spot.





See this castmember hard at work


We was dusting all of the spiderwebs off of the ropes. A job I never thought about.


The new DVC.





I haven't done much research on these new Villas. But to me, they take away from having a beach area.








We made it into MK. First pic of the castle for the day



Remember, I purchased that Memory Maker, so I wanted to get as many shots as possible. On the way to the front of the castle, all of the photographers were busy, but we made it until the last one and thought the Hub would be a good shot to wait for. Glad we did, the photographer was great.



This shot cracks me up, because it looks like Jonas is swinging his arm back to pop me on the rear...but it is another woman's arm in the shot.





And me with my big, strong, hunk of a man...




The following shot cracked me up when I saw it. The photographer said he would use my camera for one. I told him my autofocus was messed up and then thought, "Dummy, I'm sure he knows how to use the thing better than me."

Look how out of focus it is


He was still wonderful and having a great time. Wish I could remember his name, I want to say John.

I'm sure I am close to the pic limit, so I will do another post.

 

[jmskinner]

We made our way back to Jonas' favorite ride the Haunted Mansion

And after our ride, we stopped for another pic


Then we headed out of the park. What, just one ride and a few photopass pics, what were we thinking?

Well, there was one goal this morning.



We tried to eat at Chef Mickey's about 6 years ago...well, Jonas tried to eat there. Jonas' favorite meal of the day is breakfast and 6 years ago we were there with our son and Jonas' daughter. Jacob decided to have a meltdown and Jonas said he would take him back to the hotel. Jacob was asleep by the time they got on the bus, so poor guy was just exhausted. But ever since, I have had to hear Jonas complain about how he still wants his Chef Mickey's breakfast, so I was determined this trip to get him there. For months I checked and nothing. One day I tried and I guess they opened up a bunch of 11am slots. I don't think Jonas believed me until he saw the ADR show up on his My Disney Experience App.

We had a great table...right next to the buffet line. Didn't have to walk far at all.















He gave me a kiss by the way, someone I know will be extremely upset, but I won't name names.

And the one who started it all








And yes, we did stuff ourselves



Now it was time to hop on the monorail and head back to MK



First FP of the day


I can't believe I am posting this pic, I was trying to remember which side the camera would be and then it startled me.


Then it was off to Buzz




That top score is mine...I never win on Buzz so I was excited. Jonas and Jacob always beat me on Buzz, but I always beat them on TSMM.

See how Jonas takes this battle against Zurg so seriously


Next, we were off to Jonas' second favorite ride



And now it was time for my favorite



For years I have tried to get a pic of these guys



Looks like more trips are necessary.

They had the water shooting out at as the boats drop turned off, so we thought we wouldn't get that wet. But then we got stuck here




Only Jonas really got wet, but we already knew he was all wet.

I know I called this days chapter "A day of rain at MK" and there hasn't been any rain, but it was coming.

 

[natebenma]

I have gotten WAY behind on the DIS, both on my reports and everyone elses, but I'm getting caught up.

First off- you were asking us to think good thoughts for Jonas' job search. How is that going?

I love that you had a Fast Pass to meet Mickey! I did that during my solo August trip.

Columbia Harbor House is my favorite MK CS spot. They have some really tempting dinner menu items (I'm looking at YOU shrimp and lobster mac and cheese)!

Holy Smokes!!! Is that the line for Peter Pan???

In your shot of the Tangled bathroom, why is that boy hugging a pole? I haven't seen Tangled so I don't know if that is something from the movie or if it is just random?

Pretty darned good Little Mermaid photos!

Earlier in the report, did you mention Jonas might have a bit of "thing" for Ariel?

Your monorail crawl looked fun! I have never had a Lapu Lapu, but I heard that they really pack a punch. In a good way!

The dessert sampler looked super yummy, but I can't believe they couldn't find a piece of plain cheesecake for Jonas I guess everything has to have it's own special twist.

What a fantastic viewing spot for Wishes and the EWP.



The picture of the GF rooms, boat and monorail in the background is really cool!

I have never seen a photopass photographer in that spot at HM before!

You guys look like you really enjoyed Chef Mickey's.

Then what a nice lineup of classic rides:

Space, Buzz, Pirates and Splash.

I always try to get a decent picture of the vultures, too, and I always fail miserably!!!