This Sparks Joy! A Feb/Mar 2019 Birthday Trip NEW 7/6 x2 THE END of an Amazing Healing Trip!!

[SimplyGoofy]

I'm here! I'm pretty excited to be here near the beginning of a report - it was easy to catch up!

I'm glad this trip gave you such joy after the sadness of losing your dad.

You squeezed in a ton of fun on your first day! I love the photos of Toy Story Land - it will be fun to see it in-person one day!

I'm sorry you weren't a fan of the POR quick service. I really enjoyed the make-your-own pasta station, but I only ate at the resort once so I didn't try many things. I'm sure you have much more delicious food to come!

The royal rooms are lovely. I've never stayed in one, but I do love all the details! I understand why they've moved to the all-white bedding, but I feel like it takes some of the pizazz out of the room décor. The bolster pillow was so nice!

 

[chunkymonkey]

Day 2 Part 1: Adventure is out there, even on a lazy day.

Today was MK day but I was a little worried because it was also half marathon day and all the bus transportation would be backed up and take forever. I knew this from experience traveling between parks 2 years ago on princess half day which took forever, so I ended up pushing our morning FP back to start at around 10:30am, which gave us more time to get to the parks. We did get up early anyways because I wanted to walk over to POFQ for breakfast!

This is my MK look which combines like 3 different princesses: Cinderella castle ears, Beauty and the Beast necklace, and you can't see it now but my tank top is a Jasmine tank. I guess I'm just like a princess mashup.

The journey to POFQ was quite nice, with a lovely walk along the river.

I love POFQ and can't wait to stay there again in 2.5 weeks!

At the food court we decided to order the Mickey beignets and the shrimp and grits with poached eggs. OMG this was the most amazing breakfast ever from a food court!

Although I liked the previous version of the beignets because they were hollow and lighter, these Mickey beignets are more like doughnuts really, which carries no complaint from me. They kinda remind me of zeppole...not sure if you all know what that is but it is a popular Italian street fair food in NYC - basically fried dough with powdered sugar, yum.

And the piece the resistance...this amazing bowl of shrimp and grits! It was so flavorful with the tasso ham, hint of spice. The shrimp were tender, the eggs were perfectly runny. I can't wait to have this again!

The portions were also huge so it was plenty for us to share. I consider this combo the best breakfast I've had at a Disney quick service ever!

After our delicious breakfast, we went to the bus stop and waited for the bus, which of course was delayed but not as much as I'd expected. I timed an hour to get to MK from POFQ and it indeed took an hour because of all the traffic. When we arrived at MK, it was right within our first FP window. We had some extra time to spare so we took some PP pictures.

I love my castle!

And this gem of a PP picture with the balloon, which came out really cute to my surprise! Usually the balloon pictures look like I'm using my body weight to hold Steve on the ground much to his chagrin. So the fact that the balloon pictures did not resemble a hippo hanging from balloons and Steve was a relief.

So happy to see the castle again!

We made a pit stop at the most famous bathrooms:

Before our FP at HM expired. It was good timing. I can't wait to see the new ride pictures in a few weeks!

Our next FP window opened for the Wildest Ride in the Wilderness! I love it when the timing is just right.

We were in the second to last row I think. The people behind us were screaming so loudly, it was hilarious.

So a few days before our trip, it was revealed that the new Hei Hei cone would be on sale on that very day at Aloha Isle. So of course I was one of the first people to get on mobile order to get one of these beauties:

It really was cute! I was not the only one who had ordered it, at least 4 people around me had ordered and approached the window at the same time. It's basically a blue wafer cone, with dole whip, raspberry whip, two candy sugar eyes and a sour candy strip on the top. I loved the contrast of the sour strip with the whips. The candy eyes were just pure sugar so I just tossed them. It was a little hard to eat the sour strip as you kinda had to pick it off and bite it but it was good nonetheless!

Hei Hei cone is sparking joy!

We went to enjoy some A/C in everyone's favorite tropical hideaway...the Tiki room, while I finished my cone while waiting for the show.

When we got out I had to run to the bathroom then I saw that Jasmine and Aladdin were about to meet and there was no one on line yet. So I stepped into line. Steve decided to just use our FP for PoTC because I told him I didn't want to go, I wanted a picture with Jasmine and Aladdin because I was wearing a Jasmine shirt! I also love it when princes and princesses meet together and this is one of the few places you can find them together!
I was first on line which never happens! I had a nice chat with a guy who just ran the half that morning waiting in line behind me. Soon the line grew long, and Jasmine and Aladdin came out!

OMG my legs are so pale. I really need to self-tan my legs or something to catch up with the rest of me!

I dunno but I feel like Aladdin's legs could use some self-tanner as well, LOL.

Here's Steve's ride picture. I'm kinda glad I didn't go, look how crowded it was, they squeezed so many people onto this boat!

I told Steve to "Meet me at the Peoplemover" LOL so that's where I headed!

Obligatory Peoplemover feet picture:

So not only was the Hei Hei cone on sale that day, two other cones as well. The Adventure is Out There cone at Auntie Gravity's was a mango soft-serve also on a blue cone with a candy balloon piece. I knew I had to try it as well.

The verdict on this? Blech. The mango flavor was very artificial tasting and off-putting to me. The candy balls were fine, they were like chocolate in the inside, but it was hard to eat because it was one piece and I ended up biting into it and some of it fell to the floor, boo. Probably the best part was the cone which is just a regular wafer cone! I would not get this again but I'm glad I got to take a picture of it!

We had our last FP+ over at Mine Train. This is Steve's "we have an FP for mine train face" . I'm actually not sure why he's making a face, haha.

And our ride picture:

After mine train I decided to be a little more snacky so we went to try something I've always wanted to get...the springs rolls from the cart outside of Aladdin's Magic Carpet Ride. We got one of each of the 2 flavors offered: Cheeseburger and Buffalo Chicken.

They were both hot and crispy and filled with lots of cheese. The buffalo one had a bit of a kick but weren't spicy. They were pretty good, although maybe a little smaller than I thought they would be. I thought they would be massive egg rolls, but the skin were the lighter and crisper skins rather than the doughier egg rolls, both of which I do enjoy. It's probably a good thing they were small as we shared these and felt really full after. It must be all the cheese!

We ate them while waiting in line at Jungle Cruise. I think it was about a 25 minute wait.

After Jungle Cruise we headed to Disney Springs as the buses there started running (They run after 4pm from the parks). We were pretty tired even though we didn't park hop or do anything crazy, I think it's just getting used to all the walking we were doing. We had an early dinner at Morimoto Asia and then headed back to the room!

I spent a while walking around World of Disney. So much cute D-Lish stuff!

Steve doesn't like shopping so he went off on his own, sitting in Starbucks and hanging at the Lego store until dinner where we met at Morimoto.

I posted this in my Instagram stories:

And of course all my DIS friends knew exactly where I was! Those who weren't Disney people said stuff like "paradise" or "anyplace but at work" LOL!

We were seated in the upstairs section and had a wonderful view of the chandeliers:

We started with some cocktails. I think I got the one with the Yuzu martini which I really like. You can also see the tuna tartar that we got as one of our appetizers.

We also got some sushi! It was quite tasty!

We also split an order of the ribs. These ribs are different because they are deep fried. They are good and I love the crisp tenderness but I thought it was too salty I think there might have been too much salt on ours, I could only really eat one piece!

(ok I called them wings before but they are definitely ribs, as in pork ribs)

Then we shared the Angry Chicken entree, which is basically a thai green curry with fried chicken on it. It's really good, but the portions are HUGE!

We had to take some back to the room that night, as we couldn't eat any more and we were so tired! I ate more of the chicken later while watching the Oscars. We took the boat back to POR just in time for the start of the broadcast. There was no way I was going to miss Lady Gaga sing with Bradley Cooper! Even though it was a low-key kinda day, I had an amazing time eating lots of ice cream/whips, riding the Peoplemover, shopping and eating!

Here are some other details in the Royal Room that I didn't notice earlier:

Pretty cool how they have the hidden Mickey's in the curtain and lamp pattern!

We were pooped so I'm glad we had an early night. I definitely should try chilling a bit more as usually I'm a park-hop-till-you-drop kinda girl!

Coming up tomorrow, it's the last day of the Festival of the Arts and we take full advantage of it!

​

 

[schmass]

Your photopass pictures with the balloons are so cute! And so are the specialty desserts! Due to some food allergies in our family we stick with the traditional dole whip floats, so I'll live vicariously through other people's fun desserts! (Not that a dole whip float isn't delicious!)

That seriously was a packed boat for PoTC! Wow!

Your dinner looks amazing. I feel like we should make more of an effort to go to Disney Springs since there are so many good restaurants but it always seems like such a hassle to get back to the resort.

 

[missangelalexis]

Love your princess themed outfit! Glad you made time to meet Jasmine & Aladdin!

Mmm the hei hei cone looks yummy!

Sounds like a great day!

 

[Jenny Sanders]

I just made a Morimoto reservation for our August trip. I am dying to try the ribs.

 

[xlsm]

Oh my gosh, I have never seen a boat packed that full before, yikes!!

I'm impressed by the guy's hair in the front row, with the three layered flip thing, LOL

I hate wallpaper border, but this is definitely acceptable. So cute!

 

[Cloe Colton]

Sounds like a great day in MK! I so want to try the new cones but all of the flavors sound a bit strange for me (I'm a vanilla or cookie dough kinda girl lol) I think next trip I need to try the Lost Princess or Peter Pan float though!

I agree about the resting more! I have such a hard time doing anything but go-go-go but slowing down is definitely an awesome feeling too!

 

[Grumpy's Wife]

The new ice cream cones are really cute. I'm not a mango fan so I'll be skipping that one for sure.

Am I the only one who doesn't like Jasmin's new outfit? It just looks so hot. Maybe it's fine for winter but in the summer I really like the other one.

Your ears are adorable! I don't think I've ever seen those before.

Morimoto looks fabulous! The chandelier is just, WOW!

 

[pkondz]

all the bus transportation would be backed up

I hate that. When it happens to me, I eat McDonalds. Always solves that problem.

We did get up early anyways because I wanted to walk over to POFQ for breakfast!

Nice walk. Did it once, years ago.

I guess I'm just like a princess mashup.

But a very cute princess.

I love POFQ and can't wait to stay there again in 2.5 weeks!

It's such a nice resort.

At the food court we decided to order the Mickey beignets and the shrimp and grits with poached eggs.

Hmm... while the beignets sound really good... I've yet to have grits that I like.

They kinda remind me of zeppole...not sure if you all know what that is but it is a popular Italian street fair food in NYC - basically fried dough with powdered sugar, yum.

Nope. Hadn't heard. Sounds good, though.

And the piece the resistance...this amazing bowl of shrimp and grits! It was so flavorful with the tasso ham, hint of spice. The shrimp were tender, the eggs were perfectly runny. I can't wait to have this again!

Hmmm (again). Maybe this is the grits I could get behind?

I timed an hour to get to MK from POFQ and it indeed took an hour because of all the traffic.

I love my castle!

So the fact that the balloon pictures did not resemble a hippo hanging from balloons and Steve was a relief.

Oh dear.

It is a really good shot!

We made a pit stop at the most famous bathrooms:

Funny how the Tangled Tinkle spot has taken on a life of its own.

You sure look like you're having a blast!

So a few days before our trip, it was revealed that the new Hei Hei cone would be on sale on that very day at Aloha Isle. So of course I was one of the first people to get on mobile order to get one of these beauties:

Hope you want another one in... 21 days.

The candy eyes were just pure sugar so I just tossed them.

But... then how will he see????

I wanted a picture with Jasmine and Aladdin because I was wearing a Jasmine shirt!

Of course. This only makes perfect sense.

OMG my legs are so pale. I really need to self-tan my legs or something to catch up with the rest of me!

Then you'll burn them and you'll have to burn the rest of you to catch up with your legs.

I dunno but I feel like Aladdin's legs could use some self-tanner as well, LOL.

Here's Steve's ride picture. I'm kinda glad I didn't go, look how crowded it was, they squeezed so many people onto this boat!

Lucky it didn't sink!

Obligatory Peoplemover feet picture:

The Adventure is Out There cone at Auntie Gravity's was a mango soft-serve also on a blue cone with a candy balloon piece.

Looks nice... too bad it didn't taste nice.

Love this shot!

the springs rolls from the cart outside of Aladdin's Magic Carpet Ride.

I'm sorry.. the what the what????

Steve doesn't like shopping so he went off on his own

Steve is smart.

Those who weren't Disney people said stuff like "paradise" or "anyplace but at work" LOL!

And they were right.

Wow!!

We had to take some back to the room that night, as we couldn't eat any more and we were so tired!

All the food look good (too bad about the ribs, though.)

 

[FantasiaMagic]

Your Royal Room is beautiful! Your first full day seemed like a lot of fun! That meal at Morimoto looked delicious.

I'm excited to hear all about FoTA!

 

[suse66]

This is my MK look which combines like 3 different princesses: Cinderella castle ears, Beauty and the Beast necklace, and you can't see it now but my tank top is a Jasmine tank. I guess I'm just like a princess mashup.

I love your necklace! Have you seen the princess necklaces at Hot Topic? They are very pretty. I just got Merida and Alice.

And this gem of a PP picture with the balloon, which came out really cute to my surprise! Usually the balloon pictures look like I'm using my body weight to hold Steve on the ground much to his chagrin. So the fact that the balloon pictures did not resemble a hippo hanging from balloons and Steve was a relief.

Great picture!

So a few days before our trip, it was revealed that the new Hei Hei cone would be on sale on that very day at Aloha Isle. So of course I was one of the first people to get on mobile order to get one of these beauties:

Yum!

Here's Steve's ride picture. I'm kinda glad I didn't go, look how crowded it was, they squeezed so many people onto this boat!

That is ridiculous!! I would rather wait in line longer than get in that boat.

I told Steve to "Meet me at the Peoplemover" LOL so that's where I headed!

You ca't beat the People Mover!

After Jungle Cruise we headed to Disney Springs as the buses there started running (They run after 4pm from the parks). We were pretty tired even though we didn't park hop or do anything crazy, I think it's just getting used to all the walking we were doing. We had an early dinner at Morimoto Asia and then headed back to the room!

Morimoto looks amazing!

We also split an order of the ribs. These ribs are different because they are deep fried. They are good and I love the crisp tenderness but I thought it was too salty I think there might have been too much salt on ours, I could only really eat one piece!

I need to try these.

Pretty cool how they have the hidden Mickey's in the curtain and lamp pattern!

Awesome theming!

 

[Tracy161]

I guess I'm just like a princess mashup.

I love it!

I can't wait to see the new ride pictures in a few weeks!

I'm super excited for this too! I hope it's better placed than PotC

I'm a park-hop-till-you-drop kinda girl!

You know I can relate

 

[annie170]

Your breakfast at POFQ looks delicious! We rarely stop for breakfast in the food courts, just bring muffins or granola bars with us, but I need to try that next visit.

Your ears are adorable! How many pairs do you usually bring with you!

The hei hei cone looks yummy, but so tall you'd have to eat it quickly.

That's too bad your ribs were salty. After reading so much about those ribs, I tried them last December and loved them. Definitely worth the trip there.

 

[Steppesister]

At the food court we decided to order the Mickey beignets and the shrimp and grits with poached eggs. OMG this was the most amazing breakfast ever from a food court!

The portions were also huge so it was plenty for us to share. I consider this combo the best breakfast I've had at a Disney quick service ever!

High praise! I'm sure I'll stay there again at some point and it sounds like I should try the shrimp and grits!

Super-de-duper cute!

They were both hot and crispy and filled with lots of cheese.

Sounds like a solid snack plan!

Isn't it beautiful there! I love how it's decorated!

We also split an order of the ribs. These ribs are different because they are deep fried. They are good and I love the crisp tenderness but I thought it was too salty I think there might have been too much salt on ours, I could only really eat one piece!

I've never heard of ribs being cooked that way. Intriguing!

 

[knewton64]

Having fun "lurking around" -
Like your writing style -


Gonna have 2c whats up with the Void... never been to it - sounds like fun.



Enjoying yer TR -





T.T.F.N.
&
CHEERS Y'ALL

 

[kastoney]

oday was MK day but I was a little worried because it was also half marathon day and all the bus transportation would be backed up and take forever. I knew this from experience traveling between parks 2 years ago on princess half day which took forever, so I ended up pushing our morning FP back to start at around 10:30am, which gave us more time to get to the parks. We did get up early anyways because I wanted to walk over to POFQ for breakfast!

It Jason an hour and a half to get back to Shades of Green after the half. Never again will we stay at an MK area resort during Princess weekend. It was insane!

These are adorable. We've had the regular beignets there before which were great on their own. I had no idea they were Mickey shaped now.

These are great, though I think the one with no balloons is my favorite Its like Steve is on a bike and getting ready to stop.

Hei Hei cone is sparking joy!

This is a great picture!!!! Hei Hei is definitely one to photograph with. We ended up getting one but had to wait in line as they took it off the mobile order.

OMG my legs are so pale. I really need to self-tan my legs or something to catch up with the rest of me!

I'll be right there with ya next month. I'm all sorts of pale and pasty.

Love the hair on the guy in front of you.

They were both hot and crispy and filled with lots of cheese. The buffalo one had a bit of a kick but weren't spicy. They were pretty good, although maybe a little smaller than I thought they would be. I thought they would be massive egg rolls, but the skin were the lighter and crisper skins rather than the doughier egg rolls, both of which I do enjoy. It's probably a good thing they were small as we shared these and felt really full after. It must be all the cheese!

We tried these too for the first time, though with 3 of us we didn't find them all that filling. I also thought they'd be bigger for the price.

These ribs are different because they are deep fried. They are good and I love the crisp tenderness but I thought it was too salty I think there might have been too much salt on ours, I could only really eat one piece!

How disappointing these were salty. We had them a few days after you did and thankfully they were perfect. Best ribs I've ever had.

Then we shared the Angry Chicken entree, which is basically a thai green curry with fried chicken on it. It's really good, but the portions are HUGE!

That is a humungous portion and looks divine!!!

 

[Bebella]

I love your trip reports! Can't wait to follow along

 

[StephanieE]

Just found your report and I'm all caught up! I love POFQ but those Princess rooms are very tempting! I will end up in one of them eventually!

Looks like you guys are having a blast so far! Can't wait to read the rest!

 

[Shellbells]

Joining in! I have to tell you that I love your reports. We leave in 29 days and your report is making me so pumped up for our trip!

You also taught me that the buses don't go to DS until 4 from the parks, so thank you!

 

[natebenma]

OMG that doesn't sound like class at all, are you sure you're not paying for a semester long vacation?

He is working on his research project now. Counting and monitoring native birds on an island with no predators.

Congratulations!! That is an amazing school!

Thanks! We are very proud of him and thrilled that he is going to DC.