Pearl and Sug Get a Very Magical Christmas Surprise! A Dec 2016-Jan 2017 Updated 1/23

[Jackiemarie21]

Thank you! Those were a last minute add to the wardrobe but I loved them!

I know he came back with a whole bag full, way more than a couple!

That stroller line was crazy, but it was also there later in the week only this time they had another CM out front explaining it to everyone. Must have been a holiday thing? But I found it unbelievable they would expect families to separate.

 

[Jackiemarie21]

Time For a Little Dancing!

When I left off we had just finished up our Living with the Land ride. It was a great first ride of the trip. We had about 40 minutes until our ADR in WS but I had no idea how hard it would be to get back there so I thought it would be best to make our way to Germany. So we gathered up our stroller and Sug had to go to the restroom, this was a theme of the trip, she went after almost every activity. After a quick pit stop, we were on our way. I was expecting wall to wall people, but shockingly we made our way back to Germany without any issue and still had about 15 minutes before our ADR. I went up to Beirgarten check in and to my surprise they said we couldn't check in until our exact time. So we went back outside and waited. I took this pic while we waited:

This pic really explains the mood here, Sug was still beyond words exited just to be in Disney and Pearl was overdue for a nap and lunch and a little cranky. Finally it was our ADR time, we checked in and had to wait some more. Bob took Sug to look around Germany a little bit. She was was amazed by all the different things made of crystal, but what really impressed her was that she found REAL tiaras (and she knew they were real, not dress up ones, cause they were in Disney world and where else would actual princesses buy tiaras but in Disney world?)


After about 10-15 more minutes of waiting we were called back to our table. We did have the dining plan but we decided to pay for this one out of pocket. We were doing the Candlelight processional package and it seemed like a waste to me to use two meal credits on this one. By going at lunch instead of dinner time, this meal was about the same price as any other ADR and I would rather have another meal rather than spending two credits on this one. We have always wanted to try Beirgarten but in all our previous trips it got cut in favor of another restaurant. This time we kept it and boy am I glad we did! Our table was right against the dance floor and the girls had such fun! In case you don't know here you sit with another family, and we were sat with a very nice family also from the midwest. We enjoyed their company. We ordered drinks, I got a coke, Sug got an orange soda, and Pearl an apple juice, Bob being a beer enthusiast, had to order one here.

I took Sug up to the buffet and helped her make her plate and made one for Pearl.
I swear I took pics of our food, but I can't find them, this may be the reason why:


Pearl played on my phone quite a bit and very well could have deleted pics at some point. At one point she also deleted a FP

Anyhow, we enjoyed the food.


And the beverage


My notes say we really liked everything here. The standouts were the bratwurst and pretzel rolls.
Oh and I do have a dessert plate pic:


Most of it was really good! The chocolate cake was outstanding! See,the pretzel rolls were so good they made a dessert appearance as well.
After stuffing ourselves it was time for some dancing!





The girls had a blast, for a long time they were the only two out there! We let them dance until the band finished. We paid our bill, and got our Candlelight processional tickets. Sug had to use the restroom and Pearl was due for a diaper change so we took care of that and made our way back out. Between waiting and eating and dancing that meal took around 2 and a half hours. So, we pretty much had to go straight from the restaurant to candlelight processional.

I was sort of on the fence about doing this. But when Bob heard the narrator was Cal Ripken Jr. (Bob is a huge baseball fan), he really wanted to do this. I was glad to have the package, the stand by line was really long! And some people had be standing there a really long time. By the time we had gotten there, only two or three families were still in line with packages. So, we didn't have a ton of seat choices, but we didn't have to wait very long. We wanted a quick exit in case we had an uncooperative child. Pearl still had not taken a nap and I was sure we were due for a meltdown. So we picked seats on the end towards the front. The show started. The girls were not interested in this at all. So, Sug played on my phone, and Pearl napped on Bob. However they didn't disrupt anyone around us or Bob and I, so I would call it a success. But, because my phone was being used and Bob had no hands we only got one pic:


This is a fantastic show! It was very beautiful and moving. However, I wish my kids would have been older to really experience this. We will do it again eventually.

After the show we put Pearl back in the stroller in hopes she would nap a little more, which she did. And the rest of us set out to explore World Showcase a little bit, and of course use the restroom again!


UP NEXT: The Best Ride Ever, and I have to pee!

 

[Jackiemarie21]

Real Life Update #1:

So you may be thinking, has she abandoned this TR? are we ever going to get past the first day? The answer, nope I am committed to finishing this! Even if no one else reads it! Its so fun to me to have our trips documented in this way. So yes Ill be back and if you are reading along, don't forget to comment!
I'm going to give you a bit of a real life update and explanation for my absence and then I'll finish up day 1!

So where have I been? Well, I have always had a bit of a side sewing/embroidery business. I pretty much abandoned it completely in 2014. My mom was sick and it was more important to me that I spend time with her rather than make money. Also, at that time I was pregnant with Pearl and I always have rough pregnancies. So that part of my life went by the wayside. Well, at the end of Feb. a company I use to purchase embroidery designs came out with a new product, pocket pets. Little stuffed animals that fold up inside of plastic Easter eggs. I thought about it for around a month and at the end of March I decided what the heck I'll try selling some of these.



Well apparently there are lots of other parents out there looking for candy alternatives to put inside of Easter Eggs because within 4 hours I sold 70 of them! It took me about a week of doing lots of work to get them done! I can't believe what a seller these little guys are but I'm really excited about expanding choices for next year!

In the middle of trying to do all those little guys I got a call from Sug's school. She tripped over a chair and fell into a corner. We took her to the ER and she had to get 6 stitches. The poor thing was so pitiful!

After pocket pet mania and the ER trip, we had Pearl's second birthday. My baby is 2 how did this happen?
She had a puppy party because she is obsessed with our dogs.






Then we had Easter festivities:










And this past week, Bob's side job of scoring standardized tests really picked up since it is testing season, so I have been doing all the kid stuff on my own and I'm exhausted every night! I'm used to having help in the evenings!
Now back to what you are really here for the Disney fun!

 

[Jackiemarie21]

The Finale to Day 1: The Best Ride Ever and I Have to Pee!

So, we last left off with the end of the candlelight processional. We put Pearl in the stroller in hopes of her napping while the rest of us walked around WS. She was still sleeping when we got her in the stroller. Our first order of business was to get Bob a beer. It has long been a goal of his to drink the beers of the world, but he often ends up just getting beers at the country's he knows he likes. And this trip he seemed a little stuck on German/UK beers. So, we stopped for a beer in Germany:


We had a 7:15 SSE earth FP so we started making our way out of WS. We saw a Pluto meet and the line was short Sug wanted to stop so we jumped in line. Pluto had to take a "bone break" even with the break I think we waited about 15 mins.

Pluto is always a fun meet and I wanted to be sure she would still love meeting the characters like she did in the past. And she was a little nervous but warmed right up to Pluto.

Pearl woke up just as we finished up with Pluto. Sug joined her in the stroller and we made our way to SSE.

I think here is where I will make a weather note. For the majority of our trip the weather was HOT mid - upper 80's. This day started pretty warm in the low 80's but this evening rain was supposed to move in and it cool down for one day before getting warm again. While I packed for all 4 seasons. I left our cold weather gear in the room this day. I thought we had until later in the evening before the cold front came through, mom fail!

So we were on our way to SSE. We parked the stroller and jumped in line. While the standby line was something insane like 70 mins we pretty much walked right on with our FP. Sug sat with me and Pearl with Bob. On our way up we got stopped a few times but it was no worry to either of the kids. They ooohed and ahhed the whole time. They loved this ride. Pearl called it "ball ball" and cried as we exited (she cried when most of the rides stopped actually). I looked at the time and we had about 15 minutes until our FFE FP time. So back to WS we went.

Here is where I made another mom mistake. I didn't ask Sug if she had to use the potty. She was so excited to do the Frozen ride as most girls her age, she is really into the movie. We scanned our bands and jumped in the FP line. The standby was like 300 minutes, I'm not exaggerating here, it literally was like 300 mins! I think with our FP we waited 10-15 mins. We got up to the front and Sug starts saying she has to" pee right now!" I didn't know what to do? We were almost up there and it hadn't been that long since our last rest stop, so I forced her to wait. The next day I realized she was having some anxiety about the thought of using the bathroom while waiting in the long lines. We fixed that by stopping every time we saw a restroom. After a couple of days of realizing there are bathrooms everywhere in Disney this wasn't a huge issue anymore.

So we got on our ride and made our way into the world of Frozen.
Our ride photo:

Pearl was in there she was just blocked by the people in front of us.

And the review from Sug: "It was the best ride ever and I have to peeeeeeee!"



So we found a restroom. We used the ones in Norway and Sug declared them the Elsa bathrooms. After our pit stop I had planned to meet Anna and Elsa, but there line was still 30 mins and I didn't think we had that long of a wait in us. So we made our way to Mexico. Everyone was getting a little hungry so we stopped at the QS in Mexico to grab some dinner. All the seats were full, but you could grab carryout and find someplace else in WS to eat. As Bob was walking away with our food a table right near the water opened up. Bob grabbed them and texted me. I parked the stroller and got the girls out and over to the table. It was a great table but a little chilly sitting that close to the water:


As you can see Pearl was super hungry and had no time to be bothered with pictures.

As we ate I noticed the little ripples in the water, as if was raining. I stuck my hand out and sure enough it was. At that point it was just a sprinkle, but pouring rain was coming. I asked Bob to go put the rain cover on the stroller. He loves Mexican food and was being a huge baby about leaving his food and going out to cover the stroller. At little couple argument ensued because I thought he was being a jerk. And I ended up running out to cover the stroller. When I came back and he saw how wet I was he felt really bad. With the rain the weather cooled down a lot! And as I mentined before I didn't bring our cold weather stuff with us. So one of the most memerable moments of the trip happened. Charlotte said "My arms are cold, my legs are cold, my eyes are cold, my toes, are cold, my knees are cold, everything is cold!"


So, we decided it was time to head back to the resort. I wanted to stay for illuminations, and meet Anna and Elsa, but other than that we had accomplished everything I had planned for the day, we were all tried, wet and cold so it was time.

On our way out we got a few photopass pics:



These really illustrated how done the girls were.

We stopped by the restroom again, and made our way to the buses. We didn't wait long at all and it was a quick trip from EPCOT to POFQ.
We put the kids to bed took showers and headed to bed ourselves. Overall, it was a pretty good first full day!

 

[annie170]

Those pocket pets are adorable! I can see why they sold quickly.

Poor Charlotte and her stitches! Such a brave girl.

Cecilia's second birthday shirt is too cute! You are so talented.

Guessing the weather that time of year is so difficult. We were there in mid-January and hit 84 degrees all four days. Quite a few years ago when we were there at the exact same time, we never got out of the 50's. It's like you have to bring everything.

 

[heaven2dc]

What darling girls you have! A beautiful family <3 Loved that you surprised the girls with the trip - it's so hard for me to keep a secret (we're going the end of October 2017 taking my oldest son, wife and 2 granddaughters ages 3 & 6) and my son ended up telling the girls.

So sorry to hear about your mom I love that you wanted to include your dad but hopefully next trip!

Sug reminds me of my 6 yr old granddaughter in that when she goes somewhere where she's unsure of where restrooms are, she wants to use one whether she needs to or not (kind of like me lol). We will definitely make great traveling companions

Your daughters were so cute dancing in front of the stage at Biergarten. How did the girls enjoy FFE? It looks like such a cute ride!

 

[Dugette]

Haha, boy do I understand the plans going off the rails like that. Glad you were able to make some FP+ edits and work things out. Off to read the next update...

 

[Dugette]

Okay, I read the rest! Your Biergarten meal is reminding me that it's still on my list (we went once when I was sick, so didn't do much eating...and it was before our dancing-loving kid). Glad things went okay with the CP and that you enjoyed it.

I love those Easter egg critters you made! I came VERY close to ordering some from you, but I already had all of Izzy's basket stuff and didn't want to spend more. But they are super cute and you are very talented!

Aw, poor kiddo getting stitches! Glad she's okay, but how scary. That explains the band-aid in the Easter photos, though, haha.

I love your dog-themed birthday party stuff too - so cute and clever!

Glad the rest of your Epcot night went reasonably well and that you figured out how to deal with the potty anxiety. Sorry it got cold and rainy, though!

 

[Jackiemarie21]

Those pocket pets are adorable! I can see why they sold quickly.

Poor Charlotte and her stitches! Such a brave girl.

Cecilia's second birthday shirt is too cute! You are so talented.

Guessing the weather that time of year is so difficult. We were there in mid-January and hit 84 degrees all four days. Quite a few years ago when we were there at the exact same time, we never got out of the 50's. It's like you have to bring everything.

Thank you! I really enjoyed making all those pocket pets!

It took 3 drs to find someone she would let take those stitches out! Man its been an exprience

The next day I was ready for the weather, but yes this time of year is tricky!

What darling girls you have! A beautiful family <3 Loved that you surprised the girls with the trip - it's so hard for me to keep a secret (we're going the end of October 2017 taking my oldest son, wife and 2 granddaughters ages 3 & 6) and my son ended up telling the girls.

So sorry to hear about your mom I love that you wanted to include your dad but hopefully next trip!

Sug reminds me of my 6 yr old granddaughter in that when she goes somewhere where she's unsure of where restrooms are, she wants to use one whether she needs to or not (kind of like me lol). We will definitely make great traveling companions

Your daughters were so cute dancing in front of the stage at Biergarten. How did the girls enjoy FFE? It looks like such a cute ride!

Thank you!
Oh it was so so so hard to keep it a secret, it ended up sug knew we were going she just didn't when. She drew her own conclusions that we were going on our birthday, I didn't correct her, so she wasn't totally surprised but she was caught totally off guard!
Yes once we pointed out where the restrooms were things got a lot easier!
Our girls LOVED FFE! Sug kept asking to ride it again. I sure wish the line wasn't so long so we could have! I enjoyed it as well.

Okay, I read the rest! Your Biergarten meal is reminding me that it's still on my list (we went once when I was sick, so didn't do much eating...and it was before our dancing-loving kid). Glad things went okay with the CP and that you enjoyed it.

I love those Easter egg critters you made! I came VERY close to ordering some from you, but I already had all of Izzy's basket stuff and didn't want to spend more. But they are super cute and you are very talented!

Aw, poor kiddo getting stitches! Glad she's okay, but how scary. That explains the band-aid in the Easter photos, though, haha.

I love your dog-themed birthday party stuff too - so cute and clever!

Glad the rest of your Epcot night went reasonably well and that you figured out how to deal with the potty anxiety. Sorry it got cold and rainy, though!

You should totally try Biergarten! It always ended up on the cut list for us as well, but we really loved it! My Grandpa was a German immigrant and the menu reminded me of the food he used to make.

I had no idea there would be such a demand for the pocket pets. I really enjoyed the work though.

The stitches were a huge ordeal, and Sug had to match her band aid to her outfit each day. I'm so glad thats behind us!
We really only had that night and one more day of the cold and rainy weather the rest of the week was gorgeous!

 

[Jackiemarie21]

Day 2: Dec. 30
Look Its a Castle!

After a great night at EPCOT, we decided once again to not set an alarm and just let everyone wake up on their own. I woke first and started getting ready for the day. Our original plan was call it a somewhat early night and do animal kingdom the next day, NYE. However, I decided that we would rather not brave a park on such a notoriously busy day. So, I canceled our ADR and debated about where we might squeeze AK in, spoiler alert: we never did! We decided to play the entire day of NYE by ear. So, with those plans adjusted we went on about our plans for today. The only thing we had scheduled was Tiana's Riverboat dessert party and parade viewing. Because I canceled the plans for AK the next day, we were now planning on staying at MK till after the 12 am fireworks. Sug was up next after me, shortly after her Bob and Pearl woke up. Since we had the dessert party in the middle of the day, we wanted to eat a late breakfast and skip lunch to get our money's worth from the dessert party.
Once everyone was ready we went to the Floatworks for some "Brunch", it was about 10am when we got down there. I went in and got two breakfasts for me and the girls to split:


It wasn't anything exceptional or special but it filled our bellies. Bob went up and got something, but I don't have any record of what he got. I do remember that all of these meals took FOREVER! We went back to our room to get packed up for the day. Now, I want to add here that I had made special cute dresses for the girls to wear for our dessert party with Tiana and Neveen:

But it was way too chilly to wear this! So the girls just wore the outfit they were supposed to wear for the evening all day. I also packed, jackets, coats, hats and gloves. I did not want a repeat of the night before!

We were finally on our way to the MK for the first time this trip! We walked up to the bus stop just as a MK bus was arriving. We got on and had a nice pleasant ride, which seemed really short to us. Security was a breeze and before we knew it we were posing for these pics:






I know the girls looked a little miserable here, but they didn't want to stop for pictures. So, they were mad at us for stopping.

We walked in and Charlotte saw her first glimpse of the castle and she was in awe. She was still in the stroller and kept saying get me closer I want to see that castle. I wanted to stop for a photopass pic. but there were so many people on main street. I knew it was going to be crowded, but my word so many people everywhere! So, we just kept walking to try and get through the crowd. The good news is once we got past main street, it wasn't too bad at all. I snapped this pic behind me after we finally got through the crowd:


Its a little blurry but it was crazy!
The first thing I wanted to do was locate the check in for the dessert party. I was pretty sure I knew where it was but I didn't want to take any chances and miss this expensive treat!
We stopped when we got a little closer to the castle so Sug could get a good look.

She stared at it for a long time then, we finally hurried her along to find the check in for the dessert party. We found it with no issue and sure enough Sug had to use the potty. So, we walked up to the Rapunzel bathrooms. Sug loved them but was disappointed it was just a bathroom and not a more exciting attraction.

After a pit stop we still had time before our party. I took a look at wait times on the app and everything was super long, but the carousal was only 15 minutes. The girls love a good carousel, so we went that way. Bob said he couldn't find the place to park the stroller so he just watched us ride. The girls really enjoyed the ride:


After our ride, I noticed they had a photo opp set up for the new year so I made everyone stop for a pic:

The girls were not thrilled about waiting in line for a boring picture!
After our pic, it was about 1:45 and I thought you could check in for the party at 2:15 so I thought it would be a good idea to use the potty and head back to the check in location. I wanted to be sure to use the restroom because you can't on the riverboat and if you have been following along, you might see how this could be a problem.

We got down there right about 2:10, only to find out you can't check in until, 2:45 oops.

Sug wanted to take a pic in the stockades while we waited

And Pearl kind of dosed off in the stroller.
Sug wanted to use the restroom again so back to the bathroom we went, and shortly after it was time to line up for the party! As big fans of Princess and the Frog we were so excited for this experience!

The party deserves its own post so I'll be back to tell you about it soon!

 

[Britbrie]

I'm joining in!! Your Disney shirts are super cute! I can't wait to read more!

 

[Lfsdromero]

I'm joining in also!!!!

 

[melk]

Your girls are adorable!

I'm following along as we are going roughly the same dates this year. I'm starting to stress out a little about the crowd levels. I'm hoping you can give me a little reassurance!

 

[Dugette]

Can't wait to hear about your Riverboat adventure!

 

[Jackiemarie21]

I'm joining in!! Your Disney shirts are super cute! I can't wait to read more!

Thank you! Happy to have you along!

I'm joining in also!!!!

Welcome! I hope you are still in after this long break I took, lol

Your girls are adorable!

I'm following along as we are going roughly the same dates this year. I'm starting to stress out a little about the crowd levels. I'm hoping you can give me a little reassurance!

Thank you!
I think first before I tell you how I really feel about the crowds, I need to tell you as a family we don't stress over crowds and generally attack life with a positive attitude. We don't mind spending some time standing around "people watching" and don't mind if we miss a thing or two. With that said, we LOVED this time of the year, so much so we are planning to go again in 2018. Yes, its crowded but so much fun! We never get to go during low crowd times and would rather go at Christmas when its a little more crowded but not so hot and humid. Where there moments of frustration? Absolutely! But I never found it totally miserable. Two pieces of advice 1. extras like dessert parties are more worth it during this time. its a short period of time were you don't have to face the insane crowds and its nice. 2. if you are on property a resort that is smaller, and quieter is worth it. We stayed at POFQ and although it was booked solid we felt like we were the only people there. It was calm and quiet. I couldn't imagine going back to the all-star resorts after the parks
during this time. As they are also noisy and crowded like the parks.

Can't wait to hear about your Riverboat adventure!

I can't wait to share it!

 

[Jackiemarie21]

Real Life Update #2:

So, I really didn't mean to leave you all hanging for several months! But its for a good reason, I promise!

We had a busy summer! We went to the beach with Bob's family, had a Little Mermaid birthday party for Sug, Sug did camps and swimming lessons. The days were full and short!

We also found out that we are once again growing our family! Baby #3 is making there way in Feb. 2018!!!! So around the time we went to the beach at the beginning of July, morning sickness kicked in. I have felt terrible since then and everything in my life has been pushed on the back burner. So that is why I have been away. But I am starting to feel better and sitting up no longer makes me , so I plan to catch up on reading TRs and get the ball rolling on this one too! I really want to share this adventure with whoever may still be interested in reading along!

I have a fun playdate planned this afternoon with one of my bestfriends, who I meet on here by the way! And this evening I hope to come back and tell you all about the Tiana party!

I also want to add that Bob and I have been tossing around plans for our next trip and we considered July 2018 (but we decided its too hot! Especially because we will have a young baby), we considered Labor Day 2018 (again sooo hot! and Bob will have to take personal days which he hates to do) So we settled on Christmas 2018! We are thinking Dec 26-Jan 2. So I hope to finish this and someday start a PTR for that because we will do fun stuff to prepare for that!

So I'm going to leave you for now, but I will be back soon, I promise!

 

[Dugette]

Congrats, Jackie!!!

 

[annie170]

Congrats! That's wonderful news!

 

[Jackiemarie21]

Congrats, Jackie!!!

Congrats! That's wonderful news!

Thank you we are thrilled! We always dreamed of three kiddos and can't wait to meet the final member of our family!

 

[TinkLoverSam]

Congratulations!