May/June 2019, Day 1: Magic Kingdom, 1900 Park Fare

 We were so excited to make it back to Disney at the end of May.  Patrick was in a wedding the first weekend of June in the Orlando area, so of course we made a Disney trip out of it.  The wedding was an adult-only event, so we took Grandma with us to help babysit.  LittleCJC was so excited to have Grandma with us this trip, and honestly, so were Mom and Dad!  We stayed at the All Star Sports hotel, but as usual, we arrived a day early and stayed at our usual Holiday Inn  add on hotel the first night of our trip.  This meant we were able to start bright and early on our first day at Disney. 

8:00

 We decided this trip to start at Magic Kingdom.  Since we didn't originally plan on arriving this early, we had afternoon fastpasses and a dinner reservation at 1900 Park Fare.  We parked in the lot at 7:30 and our first stop inside the park was with Tinkerbell, character #1.

We really shouldn't have stopped here first, because the line was not moving, but as you can see we had a need to see Tink today.  Eventually, we got in and got our pictures.

I'm pretty sure this was our first trip experiencing the photo boxes instead of photographers.  This resulted in many interesting pictures.  I think what we ended up with was okay, but obviously an actual photographer would probably have gotten better pictures.  When we finally left Tinkerbell, we made our way to Tomorrowland.  I love that my 6 yo knows about Disney instagram trends and had to stop at the purple wall as we passed it.

9:00

With her photo taken, we were able to continue on to her next destination Space Mountain, attraction #1.  The girls got the first ride.

LittleCJC was so proud of her face.  She told us about it before we saw the picture and she told Grandma to do it to when they used the rider swap pass with Dad for Space Mountain, attraction #2.

As you can see, LittleCJC left Grandma hanging on her picture idea, lol.  Maybe the opposite track threw her off, I don't know.  Either way, it made for a funny picture of Grandma.

We then decided to ride the Tomorrowland Speedway, attraction #3.

LittleCJC was excited to drive.  I was just excited she chose me to ride along with her.

When we got off the speedway, we noticed Alice, character #2 was out meeting guest and she barely had a line, so we stopped to visit.

I don't know why I like this picture so much since they're not even looking at the camera, but I do.

10:00

We were unable to stand so close to the teacups watching them spin around without taking a ride ourselves.  So, before moving anywhere else, we rode Mad Tea Party, attraction #4.

We were a little tight with three adults and Tinkerbell, but that made it all the more fun.  From here, we decided to go to the circus.  We probably could have walked straight through to the ride, but we can never do that when the play area is open.  So, we played for just a few minutes.

I was impressed we got LittleCJC out of there in about 10 minutes and then were able to ride Dumbo, attraction #5

Before leaving the circus, we decided to visit Donald, character #3.

And of course, after meeting Donald, you immediately meet Goofy, character #4.

I love how the photographer captured this beautiful smile while she was just admiring Goofy.

11:00

I love that my little girl is such a thrill seeker, but it's also a little sad willing chooses to move on without riding the Barnstormer.  I don't remember, maybe the line was really long by this point and we talked her out of it, but I doubt it.  Instead, maybe she was just thirsty, because we decided on a snack at Gaston's Tavern.  However, as we arrived we spotted Gaston himself meeting guests and we decided to wait in line while Dad alone went in to get our snack.  Fortunately, he made it back in time to meet Gaston, character #5.

I have to include one more, because I love the look she's giving him in this next one.

We then enjoyed our snacks and made our way to Frontierland.

12:00

We may have added something else in here, but I don't remember.  If not, we really took our time traveling and snacking, as we eventually made it over to the Tom Sawyer rafts, attraction #6.  We spent a lot of time over on the island exploring everything as this was possibly Patrick and LittleCJC's first visit.  I know it had been a long time at least since any of us had been over here.  LittleCJC loved all the caves and play areas.

While on the island, LittleCJC spotted the riverboat and decided she wanted to ride that too, so eventually we made our way off the island and back across the rafts.

1:00

We had pretty good timing and made it over for the 1:00 cruise of the Riverboat, attraction #7

.

Aww, LittleCGC was out.  LittleCJC, on the other hand, was off and about exploring the boat.

I believe we stopped in at the Hall of Presidents, attraction #8 once we got off the boat.

2:00

When the show finished, we went back to Frontierland, as we had some fastpasses we could now use at Splash Mountain, attraction #9.

LittleCGC and I found a picnic table to sit at under a shade tree while we waited on the others.

3:00

Once they were done, Grandma and I swapped out making Splash Mountain, attraction #10.

As you can see, Patrick decided we needed two rows this time instead of just one.

With our dinner reservation quickly approaching, we didn't want a full meal, but we never actually stopped for lunch.  So, we decided to stop in for a snack at Peco Bills.

4:00

After our snack, we moved on to Fantasyland and decided to ride Prince Charming's Royal Carrousel, attraction #11.

LittleCGC was so adorable on here.  Check out her little giggle during this video.

By this point, we were able to use another fastpass on Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, attraction #12.

While the first group rode, LittleCGC cooled off by playing with the leftover ice from my ice water.

We then promptly switched riders making Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, attraction #13.

We figured ending on LittleCJC's favorite ride was a good place to stop, allowing us plenty of time to leave the park, ride the monorail, and arrive at the Grand Floridian hotel for our dinner at 1900 Park Fare.  This was our first time eating here, so we all were a little excited. This experience is your typical Disney buffet.  While eating, the typical roaming characters here are Lady Tremaine, Anastasia, Drizzella, Prince Charming, and Cinderella.  The meal itself was nothing to carry on about, but let's be honest, it's the characters you're there to see, and they were a lot of fun.  Before you even enter the restaurant, there is some beautiful decorations that LittleCJC was kind enough to take some pictures of.

I love how she is getting interested in taking her own pictures now.

This restaurant is pretty, even if there isn't a lot to it.

The first character to stop by our table was Prince Charming, character #6.

Next to visit us was Cinderella, character #7.

After Cinderella, Lady Termaine, character #8 stopped by to see us.

I have no idea why, but LittleCGC did not like our next visitor, Anastasia, character #9.

LittleCJC didn't care, but poor Anastasia.

The last character to visit our table was Drizella, character #10.

She was so much fun, even LittleCGC seemed okay all of a sudden with her.

Not only were these sisters fun at our table, but they also interacted with each other and their mother throughout our dinner providing some fun entertainment.  Before leaving, the characters took a break from meeting guests at their tables for a dance, and LittleCJC was the luckiest girl in the room, as Prince Charming asked her to dance with him.

She may be too young to always remember this, but I probably won't forget this any time soon.

As usual, my picky little eater stuck with what she knows, making this the most expensive hot dog ever.

Of course, we usually enjoy splurging at least once on these trips to try something new and experience these fun character interactions.

After our dinner, instead of heading back to the park, we called it a day and went to check-in at the hotel.  We actually took advantage of the online check-in and were able to head straight to our hotel room and get settled in.

Disney Dinner: Robin Hood

 This week, was Robin Hood.  I didn't remember all the details of this movie, and LittleCJC didn't remember any of it.  She was excited, and I was surprised that she really watched it and got into it.

For our dinner, we had beef stew and crescent rolls.  I told LittleCJC we should really be having some big biscuits or crusty bread, but we already had the crescent rolls, so I kept it simple.

I think this is the first time I've ever made beef stew.  I'm now wondering why.  It was not a hard meal to make and it was tasty.  In fact, I used my instant pot and it was ready in a little over an hour.  I wasn't sure how well that would work, but it was tasty and perfectly cooked.  As for our drinks, I had a glass of wine, while LittleCJC finally finished off the cranberry grape juice that I picked up for our first Disney dinner, that was pretty close to same color as my wine.  It was cute that when I handed her the drink she asked what it was called, as in what the theme of the drink was.  So, I told her it was called mead, and then explained how back in the day everyone drank wine.  This of course led to a talk about what wine taste like and alcholic drinks in general.

Now, in the movie, they are selling (and then tossing) blackberry and currant pies.  Which LittleCJC definitely called me out on since we had apple instead.  She thought the thrown pie was cherry, but neither her or Patrick will eat a cherry when topped on their ice cream, so I didn't have faith that they would actually eat a cherry pie.  I personally, was just proud of myself.  This was the first pie I think I've ever made as well.  Now, yes, I did use a store bought crust, but I peeled all the apples myself instead of using bought pie filling.  Just like the stew, it took a little time but it wasn't difficult to make and it made me wonder why I've never made a pie before now.

I think I need to start theming my meals every evening, because she actually eats these meals.  I know if I had given her beef stew any other night she would have turned up her nose and said she wouldn't eat it.  Since this was a themed meal, she tried it and said the "chicken" was good.  For some reason, she wouldn't try the potatoes, carrots, or onions, but I'm excited that she tried it at all.  She did ask if the onions were apples and I wonder what she would have done if I said yes, but I just couldn't lie to her like that.  This girl's food logic never makes sense to me, but I'm happy when she eats.

Overall, LittleCJC and I had a great evening!

Hello Monday

 Weekend Update

On Friday, LittleCGC and I ended up going to a toddler time event that LittleCJC's gym hosts.  We had so much fun.  LittleCGC loved bouncing on the trampolines.

From one to another

They even had an inflatable, that she loved too.

We ended up having some visitors this weekend.  Patrick's parents decided to come down Friday evening and spent the night at our house.  We had a really nice visit, and the girls loved reading and playing games with them.

It's always so sad when they leave.  

Saturday evening, we snowed.  I wasn't aware that we were suppose to get snow, so it was a bit of a surprise to me at least.  We didn't get a whole lot, but it was pretty while it lasted and the girls had fun playing in it.  Especially, LittleCJC who was determined that she was going sledding, even though the only hill on our property has a fence at the bottom of it.

Hello Monday

This week is another casual week, other than the weather.  It's suppose to be real cold with the chance of more snow and/or ice.  You never know, but we'll see if we get anything.  I'm just hoping school doesn't decide to close.  This weekend is also Valentine's Day, so we'll see if we end up doing anything special.

Hello Movies

This week, my movies were picked with Valentine's Day in mind, and Mardi Gras.

Musical Monday - The Last 5 Years

Tune Tuesday - Chess

Way Back Wednesday - Casablanca

Throwback Thursday - Sleepless in Seattle

Friday First - When Harry Met Sally

Seasonal Saturday - Sabrina

Disney Dinner - The Princess and the Frog

I'm definitely most excited to finally watch Casablanca.  This classic has been on my watch list for a long time now, so I hope it doesn't disappoint.

Hello Books

Last week was a good week for reading.  I did finish The Paper Menagerie and Other Stories by Ken Liu, but it was my least favorite of the week.  My thoughts on this book didn't change much from last week's post.  Not to repeat myself, I'll just say some stories were enjoyable, but not all.  I also finished Trail of Lightning  by Rebecca Roanhorse.  This book I did enjoy.  It's set in the future after the Big Water floods most of the United States.  This story takes place on an Indian reservation that has survived, but monsters are now attacking.  So, naturally, the main character is a monster-slayer.  I know this sounds weird, but I liked it and now I'm excited for the next book in this series.  I also started the folk of the air series by Holly Black, and I devoured the first two books.  The first book The Cruel Prince introduces us to the faerie world and the characters.  In particular, Jude who is a human girl living here with the man who killed her parents.  I don't want to give the story away, but I enjoyed it.  The second book in the series The Wicked King was just as good.  At the beginning, I didn't think I would like this one as much since it was filled with more politics, but then it took off.  This is a fast-paced adventure in the land of the fey.  This author definitely knows how to write an ending that leaves you on the edge of your seat waiting to see what happens next.  Unfortunately, I have to take a break from the series to read some books that I've had on hold for a while at the library.  They never fail to all come available at the same time.

First up, is Red, White, and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston.  I've heard a lot of talk about this book, but I hadn't really paid attention to what the book was about, I just assumed it was a light romance.  I was surprised to find out that it is a light romance, but about two guys.  I hate to admit that this might be my first romance with a same sex couple.  I've read some books that have that storyline before, but I'm not sure if I've read a book where that is the main plot.  I'm not surprised that I'm enjoying the book, because I have no problem with same sex relationships, but I'm happily surprised that I've heard so many good things about this book without even realizing that this was the storyline.  It makes me feel good about my reading community.  Next up from my holds list will be The Guest List  by Lucy Foley.  This is another popular book, that I didn't know anything about when I added it to my list.  It's classified as a thriller, so not my go to genre, but hopefully it's not too dark as it sounds like a who done it book.  The timing seems perfect as Clue is currently LittleCJC's favorite game.  I'm also trying to finish up the lost magic series with the final book, Sapphire Sun by Suzi Davis.  We'll see where else the week takes me and what progress is made.

Happy Monday everyone!

February 2019, Day 8; Hollywood Studios

 We decided to spend one last morning in the park before leaving town.  We scored fastpasses for Slinky Dog and made our way to Hollywood Studios after packing up the car.

Goodbye Pop Century.

By 8:45 we were in the park and on Alien Swirling Saucers, attraction #1.

9:00

Before swapping riders, we all rode Toy Story Mania, attraction #2 before that line got too long.

After trying to beat our high scores, we returned to Alien Swirling Saucers, attraction #3 with our rider swap passes.

With these two rides done and a little more time before we could use our fastpass, we decided to get some breakfast from Woody's Lunchbox.  With full bellies, we stopped for a picture.

Our timing couldn't be better, and we were ready to ride Slinky Dog Dash, attraction #4.

10:00

We immediately swapped riders making Alien Swirling Saucers, attraction #5.

We passed the soldiers on our way out of Andy's backyard.

We also found Buzz Lightyear, character #1.  These little girls were so cute sharing one seat in the stroller, waiting our turn.

We had one more stop before leaving the park and officially ending our vacation.  We needed to visit with our dear friend and castmember at Hollywood Studios.

As we made our way to the front of the park, we came across the march of the first order and LittleCJC wanted to watch.

Since LittleCGC woke up, we decided to stop and nurse her before getting in the car.

LittleCJC used that time to do a little last minute shopping.

At some point, we had to say goodbye and start our journey back home.  I have to share yet another picture of the girls in their stroller, because doesn't LittleCJC look comfy?

We had a wonderful long vacation, but it's always hard to say goodbye until next time.  I'm so glad that we took this trip, even with LittleCGC being so young.  We had a great time.

Musical/Movie Project Week 4

 This week was interesting.  I don't want to say it was a dud, but it was definitely my least favorite thus far.  

Musical Monday - Brigadoon (1954)

To be fair, I was enjoying this movie until the film stopped playing.  This is another problem with some of the videos from the library.  I missed a bit, but I did eventually get to at least see how the movie ends.  I was familiar with this title, but I didn't know either the storyline or any music, or so I thought.  I was surprised while watching the show to hear Almost Like Being in Love.  While enjoyable to watch, I didn't find the music staying with me after the show.

Tune Tuesday - Ragtime (1996)

This was another new show for me.  I found the storyline a little confusing at times.  The show follows three different stories.  As I've stated before with these YouTube shows, maybe if I was watching the show live instead, it might have been easier to follow.  As it was, one story, or two once they merged seemed to get so much of the musicals time, that I'm left wondering why they even included the third.  I also did not finish the musical and start singing all the songs.  However, I will say that I was really impressed with the music.  These actors have some pipes.  So many of these songs seemed like finale songs.  The music in this is very powerful, I can't imagine hearing these songs live.

Wayback Wednesday - It Happened One Night (1934)

This movie was fun! It had funny moments, but also sweet romantic moments as well.  Let's be honest, it's a cute rom-com.  

Throwback Thursday - Iron Will (1994)

This movie was nice to watch again.  This was a pretty emotional movie for a kid, I'm kind of surprised that I remember enjoying it so much.  A classic movie that yes, everyone should watch.

Friday First - Moonstruck (1987)

I remember this dvd cover from when I was a kid, but obviously had never seen it before.  I don't remember if my grandma loved the movie or just happened to have it, but I definitely remember it.  As for me, I didn't find it that great.  To be honest, my favorite part was seeing how young Cher and Nicholas Cage were during this film.

Seasonal Saturday - A Walk to Remember (2002)

I have a soft spot for this movie.  It came out when I was in high school, and I thought it was amazing.  I'm pretty sure this was also my introduction to Nicholas Sparks.  I'm not a fan of his in the sense that I've read all his books or keep up with what he has coming out.  But, I did go through a faze where I read several of his books, and who hasn't seen most of those movies.  I hadn't watched this in years and I still loved it and still cried.

Sunday Disney Dinner - Robin Hood (1973)

LittleCJC and I both enjoyed watching this classic film.  I definitely didn't remember all the details and she didn't remember it at all.  I was a little surprised that she really did watch the movie and then told me she liked it.  Overall, we had a great evening, so check out my Disney dinner post next week for all the details.

Disney Dinner: 101 Dalmatians

 Last week was 101 Dalmatians for our Disney dinner.  For the main idea, I repeated my old 101 Dalmatians dinner since I've already learned LittleCJC doesn't remember those at all.  We had spotted waffles with spotted milk.  I also added dog tails, aka bannanas.

I let LittleCGC help spot the milk.  Can you guess which glass she did, lol?

I couldn't help but smile at her excitement to help.

I also attempted a new dessert, Cruella Deville Meringue cookies.  Here's the beautiful example I found online.

I have never made meringue cookies before and I had no idea what I was doing.  I don't know if my peaks were stiff enough, or if it was just that I couldn't find my nice star tip, but here is what mine turned out like.

So first of all, I couldn't find black food coloring so I mixed what I had at home.  Then I couldn't find my star tip, but I found a cheap plastic one and tried that.  In all honesty, I'm surprised these didn't turn out worse than they did.  In fact, the girls loved these.

I don't know why, but I didn't expect them to like them and instead, they devoured them.

I also made some puppy chow in case the cookies were a complete loss.  In hindsight, it was a very sweet dinner, but also a success.

Hello Monday

 Weekend Update

Well, what do you know? We had another lazy winter weekend.  Especially on Saturday at least.  On Sunday, we did go to church and then Grandma came over to play some games with us.  LittleCJC has recently learned how to play Clue so she had to play that with Grandma along with some Mario Party on the Nintendo Switch.

Hello Monday

We've made it to another week, and yet again, I have nothing on my calendar other than LittleCJC's normal weekly activities.  I'm starting to wonder if I should change up this normal format as I don't seem to have much to report anymore.  I haven't decided if it's because it's winter or Covid.  Maybe it's both, but either way it seems strange having a post devoted to what's going on each week, when the most I can report on are what movies and books I'm watching and reading.

Hello Movies

Musical Monday - The King and I

Tune Tuesday - Dear Evan Hansen

Wayback Wednesday - An American in Paris

Throwback Thursday - The Mighty Ducks

Friday First - A Star is Born

Seasonal Saturday - Moulin Rouge

Disney Dinner - ?

So, I originally had planned on watching Cinderella on Sunday, but now I might be changing my plans.  As Patrick pointed out to me, Sunday is the Superbowl.  Whether we have people over or not, we most likely are not eating a Cinderella themed dinner.  I could either change my days around or my whole plan and that's what I have yet to figure out.

Hello Books

I guess I didn't read as much last week, because I only finished two books and one of those was finally Silver Dew by Suzi Davis.  I struggled a little with this one, because I like the story idea but the writing bothers me.  She tends to repeat her thoughts so much more than is necessary.  I sometimes feel as though I'm rereading so many parts of the book when it's instead just the writing.  Which honestly annoyed me more than it probably should have done.  The second book I read was The Book of Lost Names by Kristin Harmel.  I really enjoyed this book.  I'm not sure if it's just y book interest of late, but it seems like there are so many stories recently written during the World War II era.  I find these stories filled with emotion and inspiration.  I know the tales are so sad and sometimes hard to read, but the characters of these stories are inspirational in how they continue to fight and survive.

This week, I have started two books already.  I'm listening to The Paper Menagerie and Other Short Stories  by Ken Liu.  I don't normally read short stories so I'm struggling with my thoughts on this book.  Some stories are enjoyable, but others I don't care for at all.  I guess I'll just have to hope the last story in the book is really good so that I'm left with a great feeling when I finish the book.  The other book I've started is Trail of Lightning by Rebecca Roanhorse.  This is actually the first physical book I've picked up this year and that alone feels great, just holding a book in my hands.  (The other books I've read instead of listening to, were ebooks.)  I'm not too far into it yet, so I can't say much, but I'm interested already, intrigued with where the story will go.

Happy Monday everyone!