OK here I go....My first ever TR! DAY 5 ON PAGE 21

[goofycathy]

This day started out a little different than our other days. It was our Magic Morning day. We got to the park at about 7:45 and got in line.

When they did the rope drop we headed straight for Fantasyland. It was dead. We walked onto everything, with the exception of Peter
Pan, that had a 5 minute wait. We were able to ride everything at least twice before 9a.m. Now thats the way I like to do Disneyland!

By 9a.m. we were hungry so we headed over to Main St to try Carnation Cafe. None of us had ever been there but I swore to everyone that
the ladies on the DIS boards said it was good so we had to try it. We were not disappointed! The kids all ordered hot chocolate. I got a
picture of it. Everyone was used to me taking pics at this point so when the waitress delivered food the kids made sure not to touch it till I
got a picture, what good kids, LOL

DD8 got the Mickey waffle kids meal with strawberries

BFF got the bacon and egg croissant

DH got the cinnamon roll french toast which came with a generous amount of cream cheese frosting, I tried a bite, it was fantastic!

I got the eggs benedict on croissant halves, so yummy.

DS15 got a mickey waffle

and last but not least DS12 got the Oscar scramble special thing, he said it was delicious.

While we were waiting Oscar came over and I was enthralled! I was so excited that I got to meet him. I dont think anyone at the restaurant

even knew who he was because at one point he went to another table to see how everything was and to introduce himself and the lady at

the table didnt even look up, just asked for more butter, he kinda gave a small laugh and got her some butter and moved onto another

table. Im sure alot of people were wondering why we were taking pics with him. I even asked about the recipe for the famous soup and he

quietly chuckled and got me and my BFF a copy of the recipe and then bent down and gave us the secret to making the soup even more

delicious. (I swore I wouldnt tell, LOL)

After our amazing breakfast we all stood out in front of the carnation cafe to decide what to do. The kids all wanted to go ride Calif

Screaming but mu tummy was too full, that is when BFF said "how about I take the kids over to Calif Adventure and you guys can have

some alone time?" ARE YOU SERIOUS? DH didnt even say anything, he just whipped out their tickets and handed them to BFF with a "you

are awesome" look on his face. LOL So they headed out towards the front gate and we were left standing wondering what to do. We

figured this would be a great time to head to the castle and get some photopass pics of just the two of us. We found a PP photographer and

he said he would take our picture, when all of a sudden we were interupted by another photographer, he apologized and explained that

there was a guy there who wanted to propose in about two minutes to his GF and he needed the PP Photographers help. I cant believe we

get to see this! The girl had no idea! He got down on one knee and proposed and I cried, lol I was so excited that I got to see that and be

a part of that. awww DH even took a picture, not sure if they appreciated that or not, but he couldnt help it!

The people around the castle didnt even know what was going on around them, lol too funny.

After that excitement we headed to PotC and Haunted Mansion, when we got off that ride we both noticed our phones going off. I got a

text from DS12 saying they were chosen as "family of the day" at California Adventure! They were pulled out of line, got tons of pics taken

with Mickey, Goofy, Minnie and Chip 'n Dale and were personally escorted by those characters to Tower of Terror where they were allowed to

ride in the elevator all by themselves before the park even opened!!!! Then at the end the cast members gave them the picture they had

taken while on the ride. Some people have all the luck! All the pics are on my photopass, so when the CD comes in the mail I will post pics

of all of this!!!
While im on the phone with DS12 I notice my husband on the phone with a really serious/happy look on his face. I get off the phone and ask

whats up and he says, "that was liberty tax service, we got a $1500 refund check waiting for us in their office" somehow someone there

made a mistake and told us we werent getting a refund, but the IRS caught it and issued us a check....ARE YOU KIDDING ME??? I had my

dad go down there and pick it up and deposit it into our account. I think it was at this point we decided WE ARE DOING NAPA ROSE

TONIGHT!!
WHAT A DAY SO FAR!!!
We still had time to kill so DH and I headed over to Tomorrowland and went on Innoventions, neither of us had ever done this and were

curious, it was neat, but DH definitely liked this better than I did, im not too impressed with technological stuff like this, lol

Got a picture of a fruit tree, which always impresses me, not sure why, but it does.

We walked back down Main St to meet up with BFF and the kids and saw that they had a new window dedicated that morning so we took a

few pics of it.

I'm ending my TR right before lunch because I think im getting close to my 25 pic limit and I still have a ton of pics from this day left, when

I pick up again it will be at Thunder Mountain Ranch for some awesome bbq and then will finish it off with Napa Rose for dinner.
Thanks again everyone for reading!

 

[Cameo818]

Really enjoying your TR!

I can't wait to eat at Cafe Orleans during our trip next month - thank you for the food porn! Too bad there isn't a drooling smiley.

So awesome that you got to meet Oscar and your kids got to open DCA!

Many congrats on your surprise refund check, too! Extra money for Disney - yay!

 

[Littleprincess2010]

After our amazing breakfast we all stood out in front of the carnation cafe to decide what to do. The kids all wanted to go ride Calif

Screaming but mu tummy was too full, that is when BFF said "how about I take the kids over to Calif Adventure and you guys can have

some alone time?" ARE YOU SERIOUS? DH didnt even say anything, he just whipped out their tickets and handed them to BFF with a "you

are awesome" look on his face. LOL

This made me laugh out loud. Its amazing how a couple of hours of adult time can mean so much

Once again, Im so impressed with your post, I love the details and the photos, especially with Oscar. I so hope that we are lucky enough to meet him when we go. I thought it was funny how the lady at the next table didnt even look up when he asked how the meal was, she passed up a rare opportunity to meet a Disneyland Legend.

Cant wait to read more!!!

 

[kaoden39]

How cool that you were able to meet Oscar. I would love to meet him. And you have "the" recipe. I can tell from the pictures that you made him feel good. How nice to have grown up time too.

 

[goofycathy]

Really enjoying your TR!

I can't wait to eat at Cafe Orleans during our trip next month - thank you for the food porn! Too bad there isn't a drooling smiley.

So awesome that you got to meet Oscar and your kids got to open DCA!

Many congrats on your surprise refund check, too! Extra money for Disney - yay!

Oh yeah and after we got that check we went for it, bought way too much stuff and pretty much let the kids have whatever they wanted, but hey, you only live once and im not quite sure when I will ever be there again with all 3 of my kids, the boys are getting older and im not sure with all their sports and such they will have time to go for awile :-(

This made me laugh out loud. Its amazing how a couple of hours of adult time can mean so much

Once again, Im so impressed with your post, I love the details and the photos, especially with Oscar. I so hope that we are lucky enough to meet him when we go. I thought it was funny how the lady at the next table didnt even look up when he asked how the meal was, she passed up a rare opportunity to meet a Disneyland Legend.

Cant wait to read more!!!

Absolutely! we had no idea she was going to do this and we appreciated it so much! AND on top of that she watched the kids back at the hotel that night so we could go to Napa Rose, she definitely gets BFF of the year award!!!

And as far as the lady goes, I wanted to get up and grab her by the shoulders and say "dont you know who that is??? hes a legend!" but of course I didnt, just shook my head and mumbled "what an idiot" but hey, he spent alot of time with us and maybe if she had known who he was then we wouldnt have got so much time

How cool that you were able to meet Oscar. I would love to meet him. And you have "the" recipe. I can tell from the pictures that you made him feel good. How nice to have grown up time too.

He really made me feel good! I was honored to have met him!

 

[franandaj]

What an amazing day you had, and we haven't even heard about Napa Rose yet! That proposal is so romantic, and your kids were family of the day, and an unexpected tax refund. Plus you got to meet Oscar and then alone time with your DH . Sounds like a magical day and it's not even noon yet!

 

[DizNee Luver]

Lots of good stuff!! Refund, time alone & family of the day!!!!! Did you happen to buy a lottery ticket that day???? lol

Can't wait to see those pics on your Photopass CD!!!

 

[deejdigsdis]

Wow, sounds like an incredible morning! Your breakfast pics made me hungry and I just barely finished dinner! That looks like a lot of strawberries/cream and syrup for those 2 little waffles...more like a "Have some waffles with your strawberries and syrup" instead of the other way around. Any idea what time Carnation Cafe stops serving breakfast? When we were there last fall Oscar gave me a signed copy of the soup recipe as well. He told me to put a picture of me and him together on the recipe (in that little tiny blank spot!) and frame it and hang it in my kitchen. He was so cute!

 

[goofycathy]

Wow, sounds like an incredible morning! Your breakfast pics made me hungry and I just barely finished dinner! That looks like a lot of strawberries/cream and syrup for those 2 little waffles...more like a "Have some waffles with your strawberries and syrup" instead of the other way around. Any idea what time Carnation Cafe stops serving breakfast? When we were there last fall Oscar gave me a signed copy of the soup recipe as well. He told me to put a picture of me and him together on the recipe (in that little tiny blank spot!) and frame it and hang it in my kitchen. He was so cute!

OMG he told me the same thing! I think he must tell everyone that! and here I was feeling so special! lol j/k I still feel lucky to even have met him!

I will try and work on my TR later today....promise!

 

[incruzcontrol2]

Wow.. congratulations on all of the great things that happened on this day! How fabulous.. Let's see where to start..

Magic Mornings.. all the rides in one hour.. nice!

the breakfast looked scrumptious.. We will eat there too next week And it seems we will order everything you did

Family of the Day.. oh my.. Please please load up the pictures.. And details of how it happened? What an experience--once in a lifetime.. so happy for you

Nothing beats hearing you've got some money waiting for you.. Refund checks are always a welcome site.

And alone time with the hubby.. that is priceless

Can't wait to read the next installment.

 

[goofycathy]

Wow.. congratulations on all of the great things that happened on this day! How fabulous.. Let's see where to start..

Magic Mornings.. all the rides in one hour.. nice!

the breakfast looked scrumptious.. We will eat there too next week And it seems we will order everything you did

Family of the Day.. oh my.. Please please load up the pictures.. And details of how it happened? What an experience--once in a lifetime.. so happy for you

Nothing beats hearing you've got some money waiting for you.. Refund checks are always a welcome site.

And alone time with the hubby.. that is priceless

Can't wait to read the next installment.

We really did have a fantastic day, this by far, was our best trip ever! Im afraid to plan another trip because I dont want to be let down if our trip doesnt go as well?!?!? does that make sense!?!? ok im working on the rest of day 4! should be posted soon!

 

[goofycathy]

I'm pretty sure when I left off last time we had just got the news that we had received the tax check and the kids had been chosen for family of the day over at Calif Adventure. The day was going great and we still had some time before we were supposed to meet up at Big Thunder Ranch BBQ. We dont have pictures but I know that we went on The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (we love that ride and there is NEVER a line) and then headed over to Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. We love that ride and we ALWAYS do the "goat trick" after this ride we hung around the BBQ area until the kids and BFF got there, we were a little early but it worked out because they were so excited to tell me all about what happened at Calif Adventure. I had such a good time looking thru BFF's pictures and when she gets around to emailing them to me then I will post them, they are awesome!


We had PS for 1 and were seated right around 1:10, not too bad but it seemed like people who didnt make PS arrangements were being seated before us, so Im not sure its even worth it to make PS!?!? I dunno!
We got seated right in front of the stage and got alot of interaction with the people on the stage, I think her name was Ms. Chris and she sang and dance and she was a kick in the pants!

We all thought it would be funny to put our napkins on and make silly faces....Im still not sure why we did this, but I will share the pics, LOL

We got our food and it was very yummy...
It was served family style and was all you can eat. The kids didnt think they would like the coleslaw but they did. There was bbq chicken and ribs, bbq beans and the best cornbread ever! If we needed anything the servers were very quick and very friendly. We will visit this place everytime were there from now on!

When we were done with lunch we headed over to The Stage Door Cafe (I think thats what it was called) so we could watch Billy Hill and the Hillbillies...OMG funniest show ever! the kids were exhausted from their big lunch so they werent as into it as DH and I were but it was great. My only regret is that I had such a big lunch that I didnt get any of that yummy looking chocolate cake they were selling, next time I wont eat as much and I will treat myself!

I'm pretty sure we spent the rest of the afternoon just wandering and looking at stuff without a real plan. We did a few Fantasyland rides and then wandered around Main St. DH saw the the candy makers making some almond toffee and got a tray of it, we headed over with our candy to watch the flag retreat ceremony.

I had never seen this but have always wanted to. Wow talk about being proud to be an American! This ceremony almost had me in tears a few times! This was great, if you havent seen this, make sure you make some time at 430 to go watch this. Very touching!

The 4 tenors singing God Bless America

My BFF fell in love with the guy dressed in Yellow, it was her mission to find him the next few days, but she didnt and was disappointed, LOL

The guy in this pic off to the right in the black hoodie must have been involved with the military at some point because he followed right along with the guys and knew when to salute and you could see the pride in his eyes, I watched him more than I watched the actual flag folding routine.

After we watched this we decided we would head back to the hotel so the kids could go swimming and DH and I could get ready for our big date at Napa Rose. We took the tram back and got back and did a load of laundry, ordered the kids some pizza, BFF was actually excited about staying with the kids and I have to admit I was looking forward to a night by ourselves!

I have to end this segment of my TR and do Napa Rose on the next one because im running out of picture space and I have a few from our dinner I really want to post. I will work on it right now though so it will be up soon! Thanks again for reading!

 

[kaoden39]

I have always wanted to do the flag ceremony. I know that DH who was in the Army will enjoy it.

I really would love to do the BTM Bbq. It looks amazing. I love your silly face pictures.

 

[goofycathy]

Day 4, Part 3, Napa Rose

So DH and I had reservations at Napa Rose for the 8:10 seating and since the last ART bus left Disneyland that night at 8:30 we decided to drive there. We drove up to the valet area but after seeing how the valet took off in one of the cars we decided to self-park, not that you would want to accelerate really really fast in our van, but either way we werent taking the chance so we found a spot and headed to our dinner. I was really impressed with the decor of the lounge, so casual but elegant at the same time! I ordered a Napa Apple martini and it was so yummy...I wish I had 3 of them but stuck with only one.
We were seated in about 15 minutes and had a great view of the kitchen. Yay! I saw Andrew Sutton in clear view! I felt like I had seen a star! woohoo. I ordered off the Vintners Menu, I kept track of what I ate but totally flaked on what DH ordered, I can tell you all basically what he ordered but not the exact names.

One of the things I do everytime were at a restaurant is look at the wine list, being born and raised in the Napa Valley I always look for wines that im familiar with, like wineries that my dad grew grapes for or people who are making wine that I went to school with, just for giggles. I scrolled down the wine list just to see what wine was the most expensive and I found it, Screaming Eagle. This wine is very exclusive and my dad grew these grapes! I was so proud! I even made sure the waiter knew, he seemed impressed too! But hey, when your dad has something to do with a bottle of wine being $3650. you cant help but brag! LOL

Here is a picture of the menu and my Napa Apple martini...

The server brought our bread basket and butter out next, everything was so beautiful, I was sure that people would think I was weird for taking pics, but I soon found out that I wasnt the only one!

The chef sent over a little Amuse Bouche (I think it means "little bite") it was a tender mediterranean octopus escabeche and it was so good. DH doesnt eat seafood but he said it looked too good to pass up and he ate it and said it was better than he thought it would be, I was really proud of him for trying it and even happier that he loved it! but unfortunately it was the only thing I didnt take a picture of!

I got my first course, it was called : "California Asparagus" with Oak Roasted Green & White Asparagus Panna Cotta in a Meyer Lemon Tartare Sauce
it was beautiful and cool and refreshing!

DH got a pizzetta, it had carmelized onions, red grape halves, pancetta and goat cheese. It was wonderful!

Next I had Roasted Leg of Spring Lamb with Warm Sundried Tomato Panzanella, Wild Arugula and Kalamata Olive, Fresh Artichokes with Green Garlic Aioli. It was cooked perfectly and was the best piece of meat I have ever had.

DH had the arugula salad, I remember that it had walnuts, pears and Rogue Valley Blue cheese, which they make in Medford, which is about 30 minutes from where we live!

Our main courses came out next, I had Grilled Veal Rolitini Stuffed with Blue Crab, Risotto "Milanese Style", and Blood Orange Mustard Jus
I had never had veal before and was a little nervous about trying it. I was a little suprised that it was so light, I figured it was more like a red meat, similar to beef but it was very mild and light, kind of like chicken. It was wonderful and the crab inside was so flavorful, it really just melted in my mouth!

DH had the braised short rib. I had a bite of this and it was so tender, he never used his knife once, it just fell right off the bone. This meal was very good and very rich and the risotto it sat on was out of this world, cooked perfectly! he liked it, and I almost wished I had ordered it!

Next up was dessert, I forgot to keep track of what I had but I will try to describe it as best as I can. It was 4 raviolis filled with a lemon pie like filling, very good but not too sweet, on top of the raviolis was cane sugar that they had carmelized. The ravioli sat on top of finely diced strawberries, peaches, nectaries and baby kiwi and all of that sat in a bowl of cold mango soup and topped with a sprig of mint and a burnt sugar curly-Q decoration. It was so refreshing and the PERFECT end to a fantastic meal!

DH had the Perfect Hot Chocolate which was served with a hazelnut donut and a vanilla filled donut. The hot chocolate was topped with some sort of burnt sugar crystals (the only way I could describe it) He took a sip and the only way he could describe it was "I think if you could describe heaven in a cup it would be this" so im guessing he loved it, LOL I tried it and it was amazing!

I got a few pics on the way out of the restaurant and the wine that my dad helped grow, one of the magnums was signed by Heidi Barrett, who is the winemaker at Screaming Eagle and a close friend of my dads. So cool, but then again, im easily impressed!!!

We left Napa Rose very happy and will for sure make this a tradition everytime were at DL. We left there and walked slowly to our car, not wanting our night at the Grand Californian to end. We got back to the Hotel at about 1015. Hope you all enjoyed our night at the Napa Rose. I cant wait to go back and sit at the chefs table and actually get to meet Chef Sutton in person!

Thanks again for reading, day 5 & 6 should be along fairly soon!

 

[kaoden39]

Every thing from the Napa Rose looks amazing. How cool that you could see the chef. That is really cool about the Screaming Eagle. I think it's great that you have that connection.

 

[franandaj]

That dinner looks so amazing! You are helping to add to my excitement of next months F&W Festival. That butter you took a pictures of...at the Cooking School Chef Sutton told us that a roll of that (about the size of those Pilsbury slice and bake cookies) costs $90, isn't it heavenly butter?

Every course looked great! I had that hot chocolate with the little donuts in December, it was excellent. Next time definitely sit at the chef's counter, I do every time I got there and Chef Sutton is such a nice guy, he talks to everyone who sits there and often gives you little freebies like the Mushroom Cappucino that they serve.

I love the Vintner's menu and can't ever seem to order anything else when I go there. I'm so looking forward to my Birthday!

Thanks for sharing!

 

[goofycathy]

That dinner looks so amazing! You are helping to add to my excitement of next months F&W Festival. That butter you took a pictures of...at the Cooking School Chef Sutton told us that a roll of that (about the size of those Pilsbury slice and bake cookies) costs $90, isn't it heavenly butter?

Every course looked great! I had that hot chocolate with the little donuts in December, it was excellent. Next time definitely sit at the chef's counter, I do every time I got there and Chef Sutton is such a nice guy, he talks to everyone who sits there and often gives you little freebies like the Mushroom Cappucino that they serve.

I love the Vintner's menu and can't ever seem to order anything else when I go there. I'm so looking forward to my Birthday!

Thanks for sharing!

We tried to get the chefs table but called about 5 minutes too late they told us, what really sucked is the table on the right side of the kitchen didnt get seated the whole time we were there, we meant to ask about it then got overwhelmed with our dinner! next time for sure!

 

[onelilspark]

That's so neat that your Dad helped grow the grapes! We live in NY Wine Country, I always get excited when a local restaurant serves NY wine

With the flag retreat: I know at WDW veterans can be part of the ceremony. My dad is a Navy Vet, we headed into City Hall at the beginning of the week we were there and he was able to do it a few days later. I would imagine DLR is the same way. We have some great pictures from it!

 

[DizNee Luver]

I love going to the flag retreat ceremony. The Dapper Dan's performed when we were there last spring, but think I remember reading that the Disneyland Band will play for the summer ceremonies....so excited about that!!!

The Napa Rose looks really interesting & I'd like to say I've done it...but to be honest with you......I'm not sure I'd eat anything there. Let's just say.....I'm finicky & obviously not classy enough to eat that kind of stuff.....

Loving the pics!!!!!

 

[incruzcontrol2]

Another great installment. I loved the Napa Rose pictures.. I'm glad you both got to spend some quality time together.. very very important