Christmas in Walt Disney World 2013

Wow it has been a rough December! I was sick the first few days, then we went to Walt Diseny World (ok that was not rough!) then a day after we came back, both Jeff and I got really sick - most likely the flu. A week and a half later, and I am finally feeling human again (see what i did there?). Thankfully the kiddo did not get it. Now we are off on vacation again to go visit my parents for Christmas.

 I did want to post some pictures from the trip. We crammed in as much Disney Christmas spirit as we could in only 4 days! It was amazing :D

Bay Lake Tower/Contemporary lighted wreath

Gingerbread tree at Contemporary

 We stayed at Bay Lake Tower, of course. Love how close it is to the Magic Kingdom, and that is the park we went to most. I loved hoe decorated the Contemporary was - love being surrounded by Christmas!

Eager to get to the Magic Kingdom!

 We started in the Magic Kingdom then went to the studios. Had to see the Osbourne lights! A-maz-ing!!!!

centerpiece

love this one - Santa pulling the reindeer!

 Before heading back to the hotel, we checked out the Christmas decor in the Grand Floridian.

Life size gingerbread house!

 Day 2, we went to EPCOT. Had lunch at Via Napoli - so delicious!!! Then we went to Candlelight. Whoopi Goldberg was the narrator. The shoe was spectacular. So moving.

Very cool gingerbread WDW setup, complete with a train

had to meet Mickey!

Just so amazing.

 Day 3 was the Magic Kingdom. We went to Micky's Very Merry Christmas party. Well worth the money. Free cookies and cocoa, tons of characters and short lines for rides. Plus there was a special fireworks show, Christmas parade and castle show!

Breakfast at Gaston's tavern. YUM.

ready for the party!

he got to dance with Pluto!

fireworks!

such a great show

The princes were in the parade! Cinderella in the pumpkin carriage, pulled by real horses

love love love those toy soldiers

Mickey doing the nutcracker dance

so many characters

GORGEOUS!!!

 Last day :( The parade was taped while we were there, so this was the first time we saw the tree. We were able to run over to EPCOT to go to the DVC party, luckily. We just ducked in and ducked out, though, since we had to catch the Magical Express.

great tree, and I love all of the stuff under it

he finally got to meet Pluto!

big hugs

Mickey and Minnie at the party in their winter gear

We had such a great trip. It was a whirlwind, but that is what happens! I strongly suggest going to WDW during the Christmas season.

S is for...

S is for Soarin' (Over California or Not)

Sorta kinda like riding Soarin'

 Soarin' Over California (renamed just Soarin' at WDW) is one of the coolest rides ever. The ride vehicle is like a huge hang glider, and once your eat belt is tightened and the roof comes down, the thrill begins!! You are lifted up into the sky and a HUGE screen in front of you comes to life! Suddenly you are among the clouds and the Golden Gate appears! And you are in for a wild ride. Not to be missed!

Soarin' sign in WDW

 

Q is for...

Q is for Quality

Yes, I did not post Q yesterday because I could not think of any character, song movie, ride, etc that I liked enough to write about. But rocking the baby to sleep in the middle of the night last night, I thought of my Q. I have mentioned this in passing, but I thought it deserved a whole post - Disney is quality. Not just in the movies - storylines, characters, music - or in the dedication and love of the company that so many of its employees have,  from the guys in charge down to the CM sweeping up the parks. It is also shown in the little details of the parks, the "plussing" that makes the Disney parks stand out form their competitors. What follows is a few pictures to demonstrate.

animals made out of washcloths and towels are a cute surprise

The Tree of Life in the Animal Kingdom is just amazing. Search for pics of the whole thing if you've never seen it!

Even the Disneyland parking garage levels get themed seasonally!

O is for...

O is for Orange Bird

Look at this cute guy! Orange bird is back!

Well, I need an O, and lookie what happened... Walt Disney World brought back the Orange Bird YESTERDAY, the same day that the letter O was the letter of the day**! And the same day that I had no clue what to post for the letter O! What a co-ink-i-dink!


A quick Orange Bird history, thanks to the Orlando Sentinel:  Back in 1971 when the Magic Kingdom opened, it was called Tropical Serenade and featured animatronic birds and flowers doing their thing for more than 25 years before transforming into The Enchanted Tiki Room -- Under New Management in 1999.

The bird greeted families at Sunshine Tree Terrace, which also hocked citrus drinks and Orange Bird gifts. The Orange Bird was gone from Walt Disney World by 1981.

Now more than 30 years later, the Orange Bird has returned to the signage for the terrace and also on "quirky drink cups." One bit of history that isn't returning, at least not yet, is the Orange Bird character who walked around the park. But the actual, original bird figurine itself will retake its perch at the terrace.

Truth is, Jeff is a HUGE fan, and is crazy excited that they bought this totally cute little bird back, at least for the time being.

Orange Bird Sipper Cups... so cute!!

**I know I am still a day behind! Hopefully tomorrow I will catch up...

F is For...

Back on track after the past few crazy days, here is catch up post #1:

F is for.. Figaro's Feet

from dpasmagic. look in the bottom left corner. for the cuteness...

There are some rides that have cute little feature or extras away from the main part of the ride. For instance, on Pinocchio's Daring Journey in Disneyland, in the second to last scene, the main action is shown above - the Blue Fairy, Geppetto, Pinocchio... and down on the floor at the at the end of the scene, little kitty Figaro, snuggled in bed with his kitty feet moving back and forth. It is one thing i look for every time I ride. That is one reason why I love Disney - so many little details that actually do make a difference.

I was considering using Figaro Fries for this post... Oh I miss them!!!

C is For...

C is for Cinderella's Castle

Cinderella's Castle - the icon

What makes me cry every single time I see it? Cinderella's Castle, the centerpiece of the Magic Kingdom. It just gets me, makes me realize I am "home" and I can relax, have dun and leave all of my worries behind me for just a little while.

Cinderella's Castle  - stunning in December

B is For...

Big Thunder Mountain!

Artsy picture of Big Thunder Mountain In Disneyland

My favorite roller coaster in all of Disneyland and Walt Disney World. If you read yesterday's post, you'd know a little about MiceChat and how it has affected my life. Before MiceChat, I was scared to ride roller coasters. Of course, when I saw children riding them with ease In knew that had to change! I built up my courage, and now I will ride any Disney coaster and will try just about any coaster in any other park.

I am not sure why I love Big Thunder Mountain so much. The speed, the turns, the goat trick, the turtles, being outside, the scenery, pretending the rocks are caving in...It is milder than some and that makes it more fun to a scaredy cat like me :D

Big Thunder Mountain in Magic Kingdom starts and ends inside. Pic from Jeff.

A is for...

A is for Absent

Disneyland in 2007, with two of my best friends

couldn't leave out Miss Teresa!

Does "absent"  seem like a strange way to start this blogging challenge about a place and company that I love? Let me explain...

My journey with Disney really started in 2004. I was a Disney fan as a child, as we went as a family to WDW  for Magic Kingdom's 15th anniversary. (I was 10!). But it wasn't until I moved to Los Angeles (much older than age 10) and planned a trip to Disneyland with my friends that I really got bit by the Disney bug. In planning that first trip and several that followed, I joined a few message boards, including a new one called MiceChat. It was through MiceChat that I made so many friends, including my husband!

The night Jeff and I met, with another great friend

We now live in New York and go to Disneyland/World once or twice a year... not once or twice a moth like I used to. So I am absent. Absent from my friends, absent from the place makes me the happiest, absent from seeing where so many memories have taken place, absent from maknig more memories... out of the loop on so many things. My heart is there but the rest of me is absent.

couldn't leave out Walt Disney World!

We have trip to Disneyland and a trip to Walt Disney World planned for this year. They cannot get here soon enough!

Walt Disney World's NEW Announcement!!

If oyu are a Diseny fan, you probably have heard about the Fantasyland Expansion happening at Walt Disney World right now. Construction on The Little Mermaid Ride (squee!) and a Beauty and the Beat restaurant are already underway. The Pooh queue was already redone, and it sounds really neat! Mickey's Toontown Fair is closing soon - the barnstormer will be re themed and a double Dumbo ride will be added!

Today Disney released some new concept art, and it is spectacular!

You can click on it to make it bigger [it is cut off on the blog]. To the left, you can see the village haus and then the Beauty and the Beast area. that includes the restaurant and Belle's village. Next to that, nestled in the rocks is the Little Mermaid ride.

But the new and most exciting part is the announcement of the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train coaster! that HUGE green rocky area is the coaster! It sounds exciting: The coaster will feature a first-of-its kind ride system with a train of ride vehicles that swing back and forth as they whisk along the track. Cool! The current Snow white ride will be re themed into a princess meet and greet area for the leftover princesses lol Sadly Tink will be pushed to EPCOT, where it sounds like she'll only be out during the Flower and Garden Festival  >:(

Also announced was the new Star Wars attraction will open May 20th!

Exciting news! Can't wait until 2013 when everything will be completed! Thatm ight be the first time we get to go back to WDW anyway :(

Info from the disney parks blog