Bear Hugs & Piggy Kisses - Baby's 1st Trip ~ Updated 12/6: Aulani TR Started!!!

[Majordis]

Krona looks yummy. We've only done breakfast but I want to try dinner next time. Izzy is such a good baby. I loved the pics of her in the closet. She was having so much fun

 

[SimplyGoofy]

I'm in!

I remember all of your planning posts and am excited to see how your plans unfolded! Izzy looks just adorable, and I can't wait to see her reactions to all the Disney magic!

(I laughed when I saw the temperature on your car dash picture. Hasn't the weather in the Midwest been ridiculous this year?! I understand it's winter, but I'll be pretty thrilled when this sub-zero temperature trend comes to an end...)

 

[Leshaface]

DS does the same thing with my iPhone as well. I'm amazed that he knows how to unlock my phone!

Your walk story gave me chills. So happy for you guys!

Love both the videos of Izzy! She looks so happy and excited!

Brilliant idea to use all that extra counter space as a changing table

Your meal looks delicious! I still haven't been able to try that bread that everyone talks about. I've been to Kona now for breakfast and lunch, but think they only serve it at dinner?

Can I just say, I TOTALLY agree with everything you said about having a meal with a baby. There are even times for me when i'm so busy tending to him, that I never finish my entire meal since i'm not as hungry as when I sat down. It's nice when DH and I get the rare occasion to go out and have a meal to ourselves!

 

[khertz]

Oh, that's awesome that you were just at Aulani!! Dug wants to know if you went to the Polynesian Cultural Center and/or the Kualoa Ranch? He's looking for feedback on them. And I would say - if you have any general do's/don'ts, please let me know. This is all so new to me and I've been drinking up Aulani TRs, but there are not many of them, so the more info the better (you didn't do a TR on that, did you?)

I know you didn't direct this to me, but I noticed and wanted to mention, we did both on our trip to Hawaii a couple years ago and highly recommend both! We did the luau at the PCC and both the luau and nighttime show were absolutely AMAZING. Unfortunately, we did not get to spend as much time there as we had hoped, so we only got to visit a couple of the countries and see the demonstrations/shows, but it was still a lot of fun. And there are so many activities going on! We easily could have spend a day there.

For the Kualoa Ranch, we took one of the Hummer tours through KOS Tours run by Ed Kos. We did the 2 hour tour (because I am a HUGE fan of Lost, but DH is not, so we didn't do the longer one). In addition to all of the Lost stops, we visited a lot of locations used to film movies. It's so funny because there is this one huge valley used in a lot of movies and Lost scenes, and now I recognize it in a lot of other movies too when I see it!

Another fun stop we did while there was the Dole Pineapple Plantation. Lots of gorgeous flowers, a train ride, and DOLE WHIPS! Half of the fun of doing ANYTHING in Hawaii is driving the coast and taking in the scenery.

Anyway, on to the update...

I LOVE the video of Izzy playing in the closet. I can totally see Paxton doing the same thing at that age with a closet like that! And oh my gosh, do I feel you on the dining out with a baby/toddler thing. It's amazing how your perception of a "successful" dinner out can change once you add a child into the mix. As long as my food is still relatively warm by the time I finish eating it, and there have been no major spills or meltdowns, it's a success. Well, actually, if all those criteria are met, it just might be a miracle!

 

[Imagineer5]

Aw I loved your update but COMPLETELY understand what you mean about eating out now. However after going through the AWFUL terror in a restaurant phase, I have a very different idea of a successful meal out! Lol. But no, it has finally caused me to get a couple nights out for just a meal with andrew, because I do miss those times. It will get better though (still waiting for that time...haha...).

Kona looks wonderful though. Haven't been for dinner in a long time and would love to go back.

 

[Dugette]

Not exactly. I'd been working at Camp Friendship in Annandale. Everyone else went to New York, Chicago etc. and I went to Disney.

Oh, that's cool. Glad you made it to Disney!

We've scheduled the flights during naps, but he's never been an easy napper, so sometimes he'd sleep, and others he'd fight it. Thankfully he's never full on cried, just fussy. Thank goodness for breastfeeding, or I think flying would have been much harder.

Ah, yeah, nap-fighting is the worst (that may be coming up in the trip report...) I've heard that nursing in flight can help. We are down to just nursing at night/overnight/morning now, but I had it in the back of my mind if she needed help settling down.

Looks like you had a nice dinner. Even if it was dinner with a baby!

It sounds like those chicken women were just looking for something to complain about. Maybe that's how they like to vacation... by making themselves miserable.

Yeah, it was a really nice dinner to start off the trip. That whole chicken thing was just so strange. I can understand being disappointed or whatever, but the way they were carrying on...I mean, let it go, you're in Disney World, go find some pixie dust!

Funny about the chicken. I remember it being decent sized. That's been 2 1/2 years ago though. I'm normally full from all of the bread & butter though so maybe it just seems decent sized because I'm not hungry by the time it comes

That's what I wondered - I figure it probably was a decent size and they were just picky. But I didn't see it. Maybe they didn't fill up on bread, then? It sounds really good, by the way.

Your room looks really nice! I love that there was an open counter space for you to create a changing table.

I really liked the new look of the rooms. I liked the old ones too, but this was better, especially the bathroom. And that built in changing table was great, especially in the middle of the night because I could turn on the bathroom light to change her and leave the bedroom dark for sleeping Dug.

The bread at Kona is the best. It's hard to pace yourself and not completely fill up on it before you entree arrives.

You're always going to have people that complain about their meals. I don't get it, but whatever. In my mind, it's their vacation they are ruining by griping and looking at the negative aspects.

Meals with kids is quite the adventure. It can be hard to take in all the beautiful surroundings when you're playing Pick Up for the 1000th time.

I could eat that Kona bread with every dinner, I think. Not that I should...

I agree on the complaining thing. I just didn't get how they could be so focused on it for so long. I also kinda wondered if they were trying to get something for nothing, like a comped meal or a free dessert (I don't think they did).

On dining with kids, I agree. Of course, all the times I had to pick things up off the floor gave me a great view of the Hidden Mickey in the carpeting.

Great trip report so far. Your little one is adorable!

Welcome and thank you! I also just have to say that your avatar picture is adorable!

Great update! The Poly is so beautiful, I don't think I could ever get sick of seeing that place! I'm glad that the magic bands seem to be working well for you guys - it is definitely nice to not have to fish around for a key card when your hands are full. Izzy is such a great traveller so far! She is just going with the flow and loving it

The Poly really is beautiful. Despite construction going on around it, we loved it and barely even noticed the work going on. I hope it's still as magical once they finish the project (adding DVC, updating the pool, etc.) If we could afford it, we'd happily stay there every trip. Even when we're not staying there, I don't doubt we'll eat there and wander the place each visit.

The Magic Bands worked really well for us. The only issue we had was more related to the Fast Pass + and lack of info on how to use things. I really liked them for opening the door and making purchases.

We're very lucky to have a pretty adaptable, happy baby. She did quite well with all the disruptions to her routine. I think she had a great time.

We did not make it to the Polynesian Cultural Center but we did go to Kualoa Ranch. We took the 2 hr horseback riding tour and it was awesome! The ranch is unbelievably beautiful. They have lots of different tours to choose from. We wanted to go there because we are huge LOST fans!

I didn't write a TR but there were 2 that I found helpful. I think you can find them on the DVC TR board. I'll try to find out who wrote them later. I believe one was candesmom or something like that.

I can't say I have any don'ts. The island is amazing. We rented a car and DH loves to drive so that's what we would do, drive! If you like to snorkel, Haunauma Bay is amazing as well. Friends of ours did a few hikes if you want more info on that I can find out for you. That candesmom TR has lots of info on that as well.

The food at Aulani is very expensive but there are these small stores called ABC Stores that have everything from prepackaged sandwiches to liquor for reasonable prices and its located directly across the street from Aulani, walking distance.

Thank you for all feedback! We are LOST fans and that would be cool to see. I think we just need to decide which ranch activities we want to do and what's best/allowed with a 2-year-old.

I believe that TR (eandesmom, I think?) was the first one I read and it was great. I've found a few others, but not that many. Maybe I need to dig more after I finish them. The most helpful I've found is the one by Captain_Oblivious. Love it!

Krona looks yummy. We've only done breakfast but I want to try dinner next time. Izzy is such a good baby. I loved the pics of her in the closet. She was having so much fun

Yes, definitely try dinner. I think it's a hidden gem - good food, nice atmosphere, reasonable prices, etc.

She is a really good baby. She was having so much fun in that closet!!! Who knew - all she needed was a small empty room with a bar?

I'm in!

I remember all of your planning posts and am excited to see how your plans unfolded! Izzy looks just adorable, and I can't wait to see her reactions to all the Disney magic!

(I laughed when I saw the temperature on your car dash picture. Hasn't the weather in the Midwest been ridiculous this year?! I understand it's winter, but I'll be pretty thrilled when this sub-zero temperature trend comes to an end...)

Welcome! Glad you're here! Ha, it will be interesting to see how the plans unravel...uh, I mean, unfold.

This winter has been crazy! And that was before it was even winter, technically! I'm so glad we're finally warming up here. After several sub-zero days, it was in the 20's today, which felt relatively balmy!

DS does the same thing with my iPhone as well. I'm amazed that he knows how to unlock my phone!

How do they learn this stuff? I bet they are face-timing each other to share tech tips when we're not looking.

Your walk story gave me chills. So happy for you guys!

Love both the videos of Izzy! She looks so happy and excited!

Brilliant idea to use all that extra counter space as a changing table

Thanks!

And you know you're a mom when you see extra counter space in the bathroom and immediately think of diapering!

Your meal looks delicious! I still haven't been able to try that bread that everyone talks about. I've been to Kona now for breakfast and lunch, but think they only serve it at dinner?

I think you're right about dinner. I remember going for lunch once and I think we even asked about it and they said they didn't have it ready until dinner. I've also heard that you can get it from the Kona Island sushi bar too - in case you drop by between meals or something. I haven't tried that, though.

Can I just say, I TOTALLY agree with everything you said about having a meal with a baby. There are even times for me when i'm so busy tending to him, that I never finish my entire meal since i'm not as hungry as when I sat down. It's nice when DH and I get the rare occasion to go out and have a meal to ourselves!

You can absolutely say that! I've also had times that I've wolfed down the meal while she's been occupied and then can't even remember what I ate. It's really hard to just enjoy any meal with a baby dining alongside you. I agree about going out alone with DH once in a while - we've only done it a handful of times, but it's so nice!

I know you didn't direct this to me, but I noticed and wanted to mention, we did both on our trip to Hawaii a couple years ago and highly recommend both! We did the luau at the PCC and both the luau and nighttime show were absolutely AMAZING. Unfortunately, we did not get to spend as much time there as we had hoped, so we only got to visit a couple of the countries and see the demonstrations/shows, but it was still a lot of fun. And there are so many activities going on! We easily could have spend a day there.

For the Kualoa Ranch, we took one of the Hummer tours through KOS Tours run by Ed Kos. We did the 2 hour tour (because I am a HUGE fan of Lost, but DH is not, so we didn't do the longer one). In addition to all of the Lost stops, we visited a lot of locations used to film movies. It's so funny because there is this one huge valley used in a lot of movies and Lost scenes, and now I recognize it in a lot of other movies too when I see it!

Another fun stop we did while there was the Dole Pineapple Plantation. Lots of gorgeous flowers, a train ride, and DOLE WHIPS! Half of the fun of doing ANYTHING in Hawaii is driving the coast and taking in the scenery.

Thank you so much for chiming in! Great info! Sounds like the PCC is a must-do. I'm thinking the Hummer tour sounds fun, but is probably not toddler-friendly? We're willing to split up and take turns to do things, though, so I'll keep that in mind. And we already have the Dole Plantation on the list - gotta have some Dole Whip and I think Izzy might like the train ride. And the Dole Whip.

Anyway, on to the update...

I LOVE the video of Izzy playing in the closet. I can totally see Paxton doing the same thing at that age with a closet like that! And oh my gosh, do I feel you on the dining out with a baby/toddler thing. It's amazing how your perception of a "successful" dinner out can change once you add a child into the mix. As long as my food is still relatively warm by the time I finish eating it, and there have been no major spills or meltdowns, it's a success. Well, actually, if all those criteria are met, it just might be a miracle!

Ha ha, that sounds about right for meals. And we have a relatively well-behaved kid too, but it's still a big change from the pre-child days. I always feel like I'm in a race to eat before her patience runs out.

Aw I loved your update but COMPLETELY understand what you mean about eating out now. However after going through the AWFUL terror in a restaurant phase, I have a very different idea of a successful meal out! Lol. But no, it has finally caused me to get a couple nights out for just a meal with andrew, because I do miss those times. It will get better though (still waiting for that time...haha...).

Kona looks wonderful though. Haven't been for dinner in a long time and would love to go back.

I know I've seen you mention that Aria got to be really difficult in restaurants. I'm hoping that Izzy doesn't go that route, but we'll see. Her main issue is that when she's done, she's done. Everything gets thrown to the ground and she demands to go. Luckily, we can usually stretch out the time until that moment to last through the meal (i.e. - timed release of food). I'm glad you've gotten some meals out with just you and Andrew. I hope it gets better soon for you!

 

[Dugette]

After Izzy and I purchased her milk, we headed downstairs to make our way back to the room. However, on the way, I noticed that the nice little seating areas in the lobby were completely empty. It seemed like a nice place to let Izzy run around and explore a bit. And who doesn’t love relaxing in the Great Ceremonial House? So, I plopped our stuff down and grabbed a chair, setting Izzy free:



The fun thing in looking at our pictures from this time is that iPhoto has combined my iPhone photos and Dug’s iPhone photos in chronological order. So, as we were hanging out here, he was apparently seeing this:



I have a tiny little 4-second video here (of Izzy walking over to me), if you enjoy hearing the waterfall, like I do:

(click to watch)

“I have total freedom, but all I want to do is hang out with Mommy!”:



“Oh, wow, look at those stairs!” (she loves stairs):



At that point, I decided we should head back to the room. It was a nice, though brief, bit of down time.

On the walk back to the room, heading towards the pool, I realized that I could see the castle show in the distance. I texted Dug to tell him. He texted me back saying “me too” with this picture attached:



A few minutes later, this one:



He didn't send these to me, but I think they may have been taken around that same time:





As much as I would have loved to stay and watch the rest of the show and see the fireworks (and I briefly entertained the thought of heading down to the beach), I knew Izzy needed to get to bed. So, back to Samoa we went. I figured I could see the show and fireworks on my solo late night at the Magic Kingdom.

Got to the room, tapped the Magic Band, and headed in. Got her milk put away and got her changed into jammies and sleep sack. The Pack ‘n’ Play had indeed arrived and had been set up exactly where we wanted it. I just switched out the sheet for the fitted, quilted one that we brought along.

At some point during this, our connecting room neighbors arrived home. I know this because they all (parents and kids) were still using their “outdoor voices.” So, so noisy. I texted Dug saying, “Well, our adjoining room neighbors are home.” To which he replied, “Upgrade!” I’d been thinking about that too – last time we had issues with noisy neighbors, we’d been upgraded to the Hawaii Club Level building. But those neighbors had been much worse – kids trying to open and banging the connecting door while we were sleeping, etc. Luckily, these current neighbors either realized that they were loud and quieted down or maybe they left, as I never heard a peep from them again the whole trip after that 5 minutes of noise. So, no big deal.

Time for the bedtime routine. Turned on the white noise machine, turned down the lights, nursed her using my new pillow, and put her in bed with teddy, blankie, and a couple pacis. Perfect, she would go right to sleep after a nice, normal bedtime routine and a long day, right?

Ha ha ha ha ha ha.

She wanted nothing to do with that Pack ‘n’ Play. She only wanted to stand and demand to be let out. At home, I would have put her in her crib and left the room and, if it were a tough night, she would have been upset for a minute, then laid down. But I couldn’t exactly do that here. I could, however, take all her dishes and stuff into the bathroom to wash out for the next day. So, I did that.

The hard part about hotels is that I know she’ll be fine if she cries for a few minutes and, at home, I’d let her. But in a hotel, I worry about disturbing neighbors. In this case, though, I figured it would be okay since they had already disturbed us. Fair enough. And maybe they weren’t even there. So, I washed out her milk cup and her bib and her snack container and the blueberry/raspberry container and her milk transport bottles (I had brought a sample dish soap and her bottle brush). Used a towel on the counter between the closets as a drying rack.

When I peeked back out from the bathroom, she was still standing. But not really upset so much as having a little party in her crib. Well, this was shaping up to be a long night.

I figured that, other than hiding in the bathroom, my only option to get her to lie down was to set an example. So, I got into my jammies (Tinkerbell pants!) and climbed into bed.

Izzy did not approve of this move. Apparently, Mommy didn’t get the memo about the all-night party in our room. I just kept telling her goodnight and that it was time to sleep and she kept standing and babbling and complaining and I think she threw things from her crib that I probably retrieved. Maybe I even nursed her again. I might have played the Soarin’ soundtrack on repeat, since she finds it soothing. I no longer remember, as I was really tired by that point. In fact, I was so tired that I actually fell asleep before she did.

The next thing I remember was Dug returning to the room somewhere around 2am (MK had been open until 1am). Izzy was asleep and stayed asleep while he got ready for bed. Dug had had a wonderful time and couldn’t stop talking about how great it was. I was happy for him and wanted to hear about it, but was way too tired at that time. He got to bed and I think Izzy woke up shortly after to nurse and go back to sleep. Maybe. Because neither of us can really remember.

But back to Dug’s night, which was significantly more fun than mine!

Once he got off the monorail, he had to fight his way through the crowds on Main Street. He went through the Tomorrowland Terrace to the bridge, since he couldn’t walk through the Hub at that time. When he got to the Rose Garden, a Cast Member called out asking if there was anyone who had a Fast Pass. He responded that he did and she had him come over and let him in, no Magic Band scan required.

The viewing area was a little off to the side, so not great for the castle show, but good for Wishes. He saw the castle show:



And then was Wishes. Tinkerbell flew overhead:



And there were fireworks:



After Wishes, he headed over to the Monsters, Inc. Laugh Floor. It was a fairly long wait. Here’s some pictures:





He loves this show and said that they updated some parts of it with Monsters University content.

So, before he had gone to Monsters, Inc., Dug had asked some Cast Members on the bridge where he needed to go to use his Fast Pass+ for the Electrical Parade. In rather un-Disney-like fashion, they basically shrugged it off saying they didn’t know and to go check on Main Street or in the Hub. He had some time to kill first, so that’s when he did the Laugh Floor. After checking his My Disney Experience app, he decided to head down to the Town Square area, as that’s where the icon was showing for the parade. He had to make his way though the parade-ready crowds to get there. Once he did, he asked a Cast Member and they said the viewing area was in the Hub. There was no way he was going back up there, but he noticed that there were not very many people in that area, near the fire station and where the parade comes out, so he just found a spot there. The view was great:













Up next: A whole bunch more parade photos.

 

[Dugette]

No explanation needed:





































During the parade, Dug had noticed that the Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom game was in the fire station. He headed in right afterwards:



They gave him a demo and he set out on his mission. Which apparently involved things such as these:











He did this for about 30-45 minutes around the Main Street area. First, the fire station. Then, the movie theater store. Then, side streets. He found it to be somewhat tricky to use and glitchy, but sort-of fun. When he finished, though, he was finished and did not take it up on the Adventureland offer to continue.

Up next: Time to conquer all the mountains. Triple Mountain Whammy!

 

[Dugette]

Before the Laugh Floor, he had grabbed a paper Fast Pass for Buzz Lightyear and that was now ready. He took a picture of City Hall all decorated before heading back to Tomorrowland:



He did fair:





At this point, it was after midnight and time for his Fast Pass+ for Space Mountain:







After that ride, he boarded the TTA (where the Cast Member directed him to “get in the blue one!” Guess they weren’t too busy:



He didn’t have a lot of time left by that point before the 1am closing, but he wanted to make the most of it. So, he raced over to Big Thunder Mountain, arriving with maybe 10-15 minutes left before close.

Some pictures along the way:







He rode Big Thunder:



Then he dashed over here:



It was almost exactly 1am when he entered the queue for Splash Mountain. He and the Cast Member at the entrance were both excited that he just made it. He took his time walking through and enjoying the queue. By the time he got to the loading area, he was the only one there. He was the very last person of the day to ride and got a log all to himself. It was pretty warm and he didn’t mind getting wet before heading back, so he sat in the very front. And got drenched. But had a great time.

Pretty castle picture as he made his way out:



On the way out, he stopped at all the Photopass stations. Here’s one:




As he was near the Hub, the Kiss Goodnight happened:



It was a touching moment. He continued down Main Street afterwards:



More Photopass:





And the one where he decided to try to do a funny pose and it cracks me up. He looks upset to be in the Magic Kingdom. Or maybe just sad to be leaving, I’m not sure:



Making his way out:







Still were undecided about going to this later in the week:



He took the boat back to the Poly, as the monorail looked crowded. This is a neat shot of the walkway from the Magic Kingdom to the Grand Floridian (doesn't fully connect):



He got back, tired but happy and you heard the rest already.

Up next: All our plans fly out the window!

 

[reelmom]

Great update! Makes me wants to be there now. Our next trip in June is at Universal. My boys love roller coasters and they tell me they have outgrown Disney. Yikes!!!!!

I love that Dug had photopass taken. The last one cracked me up. Looks like he accomplished a lot and had fun.

 

[wiigirl]

Great pics!

 

[JillianLeigh]

Loving all of the pictures!!

Glad your neighbors quieted down, although that would have been amazing if you were upgraded again!!

 

[SimplyGoofy]

It looks like Dug had a great time at Magic Kingdom!

It's too bad the cast member was confused on where to send him for the Electric Parade - you'd think they'd give the CM's a heads up on all these new FP+ options! Hopefully now they're "in the know" so they are able to direct guests.

 

[Dugette]

Great update! Makes me wants to be there now. Our next trip in June is at Universal. My boys love roller coasters and they tell me they have outgrown Disney. Yikes!!!!!

I love that Dug had photopass taken. The last one cracked me up. Looks like he accomplished a lot and had fun.

Wow, outgrown Disney?! Ah, they'll be back, I'm sure. We do want to do Universal sometime, but it seems that taking a toddler there isn't really the best, so it may be a while.

We had pre-paid for the Photopass CD (well, download), so Dug decided to make full use of it. That picture is so silly!

Great pics!

Thank you!

Loving all of the pictures!!

Glad your neighbors quieted down, although that would have been amazing if you were upgraded again!!

Thanks! Yeah, we figured it was unlikely to get that lucky with an upgrade again, so that was okay. Club Level does kind-of mess up your dining plans anyway, as you always want to be taking advantage of the offerings there. We wanted to stick with our ADR plans. Of course, I do remember seeing a family with toddlers stocking up on Goldfish and other snacks for their toddlers in the Club Lounge - that could be handy!

It looks like Dug had a great time at Magic Kingdom!

It's too bad the cast member was confused on where to send him for the Electric Parade - you'd think they'd give the CM's a heads up on all these new FP+ options! Hopefully now they're "in the know" so they are able to direct guests.

He really had a blast!

Exactly, you'd think they'd know or at least be able to find out. Oh, well. It ended up working out okay, since he found a great viewing spot despite not using the FP+.

 

[Dugette]

We were up early this first morning, as we had a breakfast ADR for 7:30am at the Grand Floridian Café before heading to the 9am park opening at the Magic Kingdom. Sounds good, in theory, right?

We got Izzy dressed in her pre-planned Little Mermaid outfit, since we had plans to ride the new ride and meet Ariel:



I should mention that we lucked out big time on the weather for this trip. It was absolutely beautiful every single day. Highs in the 80’s most days, with a couple in the 70’s. No rain, other than a couple drops one day. I think lows in the 60’s. Just great. Very comfortable and pleasant.

Anyway, after getting her dressed, we also let Izzy try on her Magic Band:



She really liked it. She wore it every day. She’d actually hold her arm out for it after getting dressed. I think she liked to be like Mommy and Daddy. She never used it for anything, but seemed to get a kick out of wearing it.

As we were trying to get everything together, Izzy got a bit restless until I pulled out her snack container and filled it with her favorite cheese puffs:



This became a morning tradition. She would wander around the room munching on goodies from her snack cup while we finished getting ready to go. It really helped to keep her happy and out of trouble.

Being this was our first day in the parks after a day of airline travel, all our stuff was in disarray. We hadn’t yet unpacked our checked bags and ended up just sifting through all sorts of things and trying to find what we’d need with us for a day at the Magic Kingdom with a toddler. This was a much bigger task than we’d anticipated. So big, in fact, that it soon became clear that there was zero chance of us making our ADR even remotely close to on time. Plus, we didn’t want to get to the Magic Kingdom too much after park opening. Because we didn’t consider the Grand Floridian Café a “must do”, we cancelled it and decided we’d just go down to Captain Cook’s instead. The bummer is that we never did get over the Grand Floridian to see the Gingerbread House and Christmas Tree there. Oh, well.

During the baby-stuff-gathering exercise, I realized another thing that we forgot to bring. I had bought a Thermos straw sippy to put her milk in every day, since it was supposed to be able to keep it cold up to 10 hours. My plan was to transport the milk in that and pour into her sippy cups at meals. I was really mad at myself for forgetting to pack this. Just a couple days before the trip, I had found a slightly-melted straw at the bottom of our dishwasher and freaked out a bit worrying that it belonged to this cup, as I’d bought it specifically for the trip and there wasn’t time to order a new one online. Turns out that straw was for a different, less useful cup, so no big deal and this one was fine. So, after all that, I somehow managed to not have this item on any of my packing lists that I had made and used to pack. Ugh. Not sure how I missed that. I think I’ll blame long-term sleep-deprivation, though.

As luck would have it, however, I’d grabbed our little purchased-on-clearance-for-dirt-cheap Tommee Tippee bottle coolers (2 of them) before we headed to the airport. They aren’t that great at keeping things cool, but they do okay. I only grabbed them because I figured they might be handy just for attaching sippy cups to our bag. And they were. We ended up just putting milk in her sippy cup each morning and then putting that in one of the cooler bags and strapping it to the stroller and/or diaper bag. On the days where we stopped back midday, we could refill with cold milk. On days where we stayed out, we ordered milk and poured into her sippy at restaurants. It all worked out okay and her milk was never overly warm. But, still, I was upset about forgetting it that first morning.

Once we felt reasonably confident that we had everything we needed for our day, we headed out:



Gotta love this view while walking to breakfast:



We each were craving a croissant sandwich, so that’s what we ordered (one for each). That part was quick and painless. Dug and Izzy went to grab a seat and get her started with breakfast while I waited to pay and get our pager.

At 8:11am, after standing in line at the cash registers for what seemed an eternity, I texted Dug, “Who knew we’d need FP+ for Captain Cook’s?” The line was super slow and I’m pretty sure I was in it longer than I wait for most rides. At any rate, Dug responded with “COFFEE. NEED COFFEE.” He wasn’t feeling all that great so far and hoped that would help him feel more alive. When I finally made it to the register, I ordered his coffee and got us each a glass of water also. Paid with the Magic Band again. It was kind-of tricky to get Mickey to turn green for some reason. I finally got it angled just right. Those things can be a bit finicky. Got our pager and went to the table.

Dug got his coffee and I hung out with Izzy until we got buzzed. I returned with these:



They hit the spot! Simple, but yummy. Looks like Izzy was enjoying her pouch:



We gave her a bit of our sandwiches too. Looks like we gave her a baby-cookie also. And she loved playing with a fork:



Once we finished up and Dug was feeling a bit better, we were off:



To the monorail:



Um, so you see all this sunshine?



Well, we forgot to bring something else. Although we had sunscreen packed, we forgot to apply it and put it in the diaper bag for the day. Great, a baby out for hours on a super-sunny day with no sunscreen. I was feeling like a lousy parent by that time. We considered going back for it and/or trying to buy some overpriced version somewhere, but ended up just trying to minimize time in the sun that morning, use her blanket, and take advantage of her stroller canopy. Luckily, she didn’t appear any worse for the wear. No burn or anything. We made sure to apply it that afternoon and all of the other days. And our own too, for that matter.

View of what should have been our breakfast location from the monorail:



Peeking in the stroller window:



I did this a lot, trying to determine when she was awake vs. sleeping, etc.

Yay, we arrived at the Magic Kingdom:



However, we had just missed the opening show. And never did end up seeing it this trip. Ha, I’m really starting to feel like we missed a lot of things! Oh well, we’ll be back someday.

Izzy took in the sights from her stroller:



This was our view of her most of the time:



By the way, we put the leis on the stroller handle to help us find the stroller in the stroller parking areas. Helpful when it was relocated.

We successfully got through our first bag-check with a stroller. No problems. My random note: some of these Cast Members take their jobs much more seriously than others. During the course of the trip, some just briefly looked in the diaper bag we handed them, some wanted to see the little Minnie Mouse bag we had down in the stroller basket (usually just had some spare clothes/jackets in there), some squeezed the bottle cooler(s), etc. Nobody ever checked the stroller handlebar storage console, though. Weird.

Once we made it through there, we went up to enter the park. Using our Magic Bands. Cue ominous music…

So, maybe I’m just oblivious and missed some sort of instruction that is obvious to everyone, but I don’t think so. Nobody ever showed me how to use my Magic Band for park entrance. I knew how to hold it up to the Mickey until it changed color, since I’d purchased things and entered the room.

So, I was in front of Dug and went up and held my Magic Band up to Mickey. It lit up (white) and then the light started swirling quickly around. Looked good to me. I moved up and let Dug go next. It wasn’t immediate – it took a minute for me to get out of the way with the stroller and him to get up there with Magic Band at the ready. He held his up to the Mickey while holding his finger against another scanner that I hadn’t even noticed. It lit up green and I then realized that I did it wrong. However, the Cast Member – who had not said a word to us until this point – started barking orders at Dug to do it again and that it didn’t work. I told her that his lit green and worked just fine and it was me who needed to re-do it, since I didn’t know to scan a finger too. She didn’t care about that and insisted that I was fine and he needed to go again. He did and it turned green again (we also learned that you don’t need to scan the band and finger simultaneously, as he’d thought – it’s band and then finger).

So, now we were confused. Why was I okay without using my finger and getting a green light? She said (and not in a particularly friendly way) that Dug’s first green was for me and his fingerprint was now attached to my Magic Band. WHAT?! I was baffled that she was totally indifferent to this, as if it happens all the time. I asked how we were supposed to fix it, as I might not always have him around to scan his finger when I wanted to go to a park. She seemed completely uninterested in this, and seemed to indicate I’d just have to deal with it, but suggested we could try Guest Services.

She clearly just wanted to get us out of her way, so we moved on, a bit upset about the total lack of Disney magic in our park entrance. She just seemed so annoyed to deal with us. I wish she would have said something in the first place, when I was scanning my band. I don’t know if she just wasn’t paying attention or what. And the thing that I find really weird is that, if I had been behind Dug:

1.) Some random stranger could have had their fingerprint linked to my Magic Band.
2.) I could have just strolled right into the park without using a day of my ticket (because I would’ve, had I not been waiting there for Dug).

Now, I still don’t know if the Cast Member was right about what happened or just not attentive enough, but this was all just so strange and makes me think they need to work out some Magic Band logistics more. We went to Guest Services later on to fix this and encountered yet another rude and impatient CM (future update).

So, trying to wipe those unhappy moments out of our mind, we entered the Magic Kingdom:



We encountered the trolley as we made our way down Main Street:



Izzy liked seeing the horsie. It was apparently the morning to bring out all of the vehicles, because we saw several:



Obligatory castle shot:



Izzy wasn’t particularly focused on the castle, but was just looking around at all the sights and taking things in. Oh, look, another vehicle:



We decided to try to copy Imagineer5 and do a shot with me and Izzy walking up to the castle. These were the best we could do on this attempt:





Izzy was far more interested in walking back and forth over the train tracks and flirting with the Dapper Dans.

Up next: Flirting with the Dapper Dans. And we attempt to go Under the Sea, but end up under the antlers instead.

 

[jeni16]

I definately think our first trip with DS is going to be an interesting one as well. Not the same as the other ones. Which isn't a bad thing, I can't wait to show him our "happy" place, it's just going to be different from now on. And a lot more hectic

Have you guys ever done any pin trading? I'm thinking about starting this as a family tradition & want to start with his first trip even though he will be a little young. I think it would be fun to trade a few & then buy one or two to commemorate the trip.

 

[Jennifer48]

Thank you for all feedback! We are LOST fans and that would be cool to see. I think we just need to decide which ranch activities we want to do and what's best/allowed with a 2-year-old.

I believe that TR (eandesmom, I think?) was the first one I read and it was great. I've found a few others, but not that many. Maybe I need to dig more after I finish them. The most helpful I've found is the one by Captain_Oblivious. Love it!

Yes, eandesmom, Captain_Oblivious, podsnel & lurkyloo. All very helpful TRs!

 

[Leshaface]

Sounds and looks like Dug had a great time at the MK that night! Geez, he got so much accomplished, in what seemed like so little time. Good for him! Love his sad/angry/upset PP picture!

Hope your mornings got easier each day of the trip. That's how I felt too. Until the second day when it turned into a routine.

Too bad about GFC, but your breakfast sandwiches look delicious! And coffee saves me every morning too

The CM just annoyed me, can't imagine how annoyed you felt!

 

[khertz]

Thank you so much for chiming in! Great info! Sounds like the PCC is a must-do. I'm thinking the Hummer tour sounds fun, but is probably not toddler-friendly? We're willing to split up and take turns to do things, though, so I'll keep that in mind. And we already have the Dole Plantation on the list - gotta have some Dole Whip and I think Izzy might like the train ride. And the Dole Whip.

Not toddler-friendly, for sure. It's a very bumpy ride with a lot of stopping and getting out to look around. In fact, there might even be an age limit, I'm not sure. But if you are willing to split up, it's worth it if one or both of you are Lost fans! On our tour, it was just me and DH along with two other people, and I was the only really big Lost fan in the group, so I was in heaven with all of the photo ops while everyone else was just kind of meh about the whole thing.

On to the updates...sorry night one was so rough getting Izzy to sleep! That's what I dread about sleeping in hotel rooms with DS...there's no getting away from him to give him the signal that the fight is over and he should just give up and go to sleep. At least now I can tell him what to do and he actually understands. Doesn't mean it isn't a struggle, but I can't wonder if he knows what I am trying to get him to do!

It's so hard to know everything you need with a toddler when it comes to packing up for the parks! It was so good that first trip with DS that we were able to go to a park in the evening on our arrival day, because we got our first hit of EVERYTHING we had forgotten to take with us!! So we were much better packed for our first full park day. It's a task, that's for sure!

Love the photos of you & Izzy in front of the castle. That would be a lot like me and Paxton trying to re-create Imagineer5's photos too!! Now that you mention it, Aria seems SO well behaved to get that same photo on all their trips!!! I know Paxton is definitely the type of kid that isn't going to do something just because you want him to, especially when there's so much going on around him!

 

[lilmape]

I'm finally following along! I am more of a lurker but love your trip reports. My little one is now 20 months and I'm trying to talk the hubby into a trip to the mouse this November or December. I figure if I save up and pay for it myself how can he say no. lol!