How Many Times Did I Meet Pluto This Trip? A Dec Solo TR - New TR Link 11/30!

[DisneyKid4Life]

They do a "read to the cats" program every summer.

I love this idea.

And here is all of us with Elsa.

You know, I hate to say it, but I like her more than the "real" Elsa at Disney. Granted she's a little young, but the thing that always bothered me in the parks was Elsa's hair and how it never seemed to truly "fit" properly. Her's either is or at the very least looks completely natural.

Your pictures are making me really miss Disney Christmas. I have to get back for that soon.

Having tried the orange, I much prefer the lemon slush as well.

Every time the parents would lead her away, she would turn around and go back for more hugs.

I love that too. Even though it extends the wait, it is so worth it to witness.

 

[missjackiemcg]

I love the Read to the Cats program idea!!! My son is an eager beginning reader and he would simply LOVE to do this!! I will have to check around Chicago if any programs like that exist.

Your Spaceship Earth pic at the end of the day is AWESOME!!

 

[xlsm]

I like your Elsa much better than the park's Elsa!!

I love that you volunteer at the shelter. I'm a mom to 3 rescue dogs, so I love finding others who love animals so much

I can't wait to finally book a Christmas trip (we're semi-considering December 2016)!! That's awesome that Jonathan Groff was your narrator...I'm a fan of his work on Broadway and Glee (and of course, Kristoff).

still loving your updates!

 

[PrincessInOz]

Catching up.

Christmas is such a lovely time to visit.
Love the Owl decorations!

 

[hokieinpa]

I love all of the Christmas decorations at Epcot - the teapot and cups in the UK are cute!

I'm sorry you missed your cupcake for the day - maybe 2 on another day would make up for it?

 

[Pluto0809]

I was really glad to see the Christmas decor for the first time in January. Epcot really is decorated well during Christmas. The only thing that wasn't up when I was there was the big Christmas tree. You have some great Photopass photos! My mom has some of those houses from that Disney Christmas village. Can't wait to hear about your four park quest!

Epcot is very pretty at Christmas, Disney does a great job of decorating. I don't have any of the houses but I do have a few of the smaller pieces that have Pluto on them.

The program sounds really nice, love the Frozen theme

That shop sounds so cute, I love the precious moments dolls.

Love all your nighttime pics!

Great pics with Pooh & Tigger!

Ahh sorry you didn't meet your cupcake quota that day!

I really wish they would come out with a Pluto version in those dolls. I swear they have every character but him.

Thanks, Epcot is fun to photograph at night.

I was pretty happy with those photos with Pooh and Tigger.

I love this idea.

You know, I hate to say it, but I like her more than the "real" Elsa at Disney. Granted she's a little young, but the thing that always bothered me in the parks was Elsa's hair and how it never seemed to truly "fit" properly. Her's either is or at the very least looks completely natural.

Your pictures are making me really miss Disney Christmas. I have to get back for that soon.

Having tried the orange, I much prefer the lemon slush as well.

I love that too. Even though it extends the wait, it is so worth it to witness.

The read to the cats program really is a great idea both for the cats and the kids.

Yep, definitely young, she was only 15 and a sophomore in high school but she did a great job as Elsa. We talked for a few minutes when there were no kids around and she is already planning on doing the College Program in a few years. I'm almost positive that was her real hair.

I miss Disney every day, I would live there if I could!

Not sure why I didn't care for the orange one. I think I'm just not a huge fan of orange flavored stuff to begin with. My absolute favorite one was the Cosmo version they had at Food and Wine in 2013. I hope they bring that one back someday.

I love the Read to the Cats program idea!!! My son is an eager beginning reader and he would simply LOVE to do this!! I will have to check around Chicago if any programs like that exist.

Your Spaceship Earth pic at the end of the day is AWESOME!!

I do hope you are able to find something like that around Chicago. The shelter that I volunteer at is very progressive so I'm not sure how prevalent that kind of program is at other shelters.

Thanks! That's one of my favorite photos from this trip.

I like your Elsa much better than the park's Elsa!!

I love that you volunteer at the shelter. I'm a mom to 3 rescue dogs, so I love finding others who love animals so much

I can't wait to finally book a Christmas trip (we're semi-considering December 2016)!! That's awesome that Jonathan Groff was your narrator...I'm a fan of his work on Broadway and Glee (and of course, Kristoff).

still loving your updates!

She was a really wonderful Elsa that's for sure!

Yep, definitely an animal lover here! Two of my dogs came from the shelter I volunteer at but we did buy the other two. DH is allergic to cats and most dogs so we have to have hypoallergenic dogs. Those are hard to find at a shelter. But I am very, very careful when we purchase to make sure we are not dealing with a puppy mill.

I hope you get your Christmas trip, it's a wonderful time of year to go! I've gone twice the week after Thanksgiving and crowds aren't too bad then.

Catching up.

Christmas is such a lovely time to visit.
Love the Owl decorations!

I definitely love going at Christmas time. Disney does such a wonderful job with the decorations.

I always pick up those little owls in the Japan store so this time I decided I needed one. He sits on my dresser in my bedroom.

I love all of the Christmas decorations at Epcot - the teapot and cups in the UK are cute!

I'm sorry you missed your cupcake for the day - maybe 2 on another day would make up for it?

Disney does a great job decorating all the parks for Christmas!

I didn't even think about trying for two in one day.

 

[Pluto0809]

The Four Park Quest Begins

This was the day, the day that I was going to do all four parks in one day! I picked Friday, Dec 5th because MK opened early at 8 am (not EMH just regular hours that day) and Epcot was open with EMH till 11:30 pm. So my plan was to start at MK, hop to AK, then to HS where I had my FP+ for the day and finally end at Epcot.

I was up at 5:30 and out the door by 6:50 am. Once again I walked right onto a bus and arrived at MK at 7:20 am. I was so early that they weren’t even letting people through the gates yet.



Once they let us in, I secured a good spot to watch the Welcome Show. I wasn’t planning on doing the Anna and Elsa or Mine Train dash so I avoided that crowd.





While I was waiting I had my very first DIS meet of the trip. Yep, I had been there almost a week and this was the first one! You may remember Katt (katt789) from my previous trip reports. I think I’ve met up with her four or five times now. She is currently a CM on the International program and works in the Canadian Pavilion in Epcot so she’s not on the DIS much anymore. She was at MK that morning with a friend and spotted me in the crowd. We chatted for a few minutes while we waited for the show to start. Of course we forgot to take a picture so sorry, no proof that we met up!

Then it was time for the Welcome Show. I really love this show and make it a must do on most of my trips. For some reason it just really personifies the magic that WDW is to me. And of course I took lots of pictures!













I was a bit sad this morning because Pluto wasn’t on the train.



My new buddy Stitch was there though.





After the show, I slowly made my way under the train station. I wasn’t going far so I let the crazy people headed to Fantasyland go first. I had already failed at my cupcake quest but I would not fail at the four park Pluto quest. This was the last park I needed to meet Pluto in so that was my number one priority for the morning.

I knew he met right near the entrance but I wasn’t sure exactly where to start the line. So I saw a CM in the area and asked. She directed me to the right spot and I headed there. As I was walking away I realized that I knew that CM. It was Barbara, the CM that dances with the parade and was featured in the old Magical Express videos! I turned back to see about getting a picture and she had completely disappeared. She came back out a few minutes later driving one of the Main Street Vehicles so I never did get a chance to talk to her again.

Pluto came out and I was first in line to meet him! I had now met him in all four parks and this was meet #6 for the trip.





I’m not quite sure what is going on in this next photo. I think he was admiring my bag?



And this next one became the photo I framed for this trip. Yes, it’s probably not the best picture of Pluto and me from the trip but it really represents what this trip was all about, Pluto and Christmas.



After I finished with Pluto I headed on down Main Street and into Tomorrowland so I could meet with my new found love, Stitch. He wasn’t out yet and Space Mountain was a walk on so I headed there. I decided to try to get a ride photo in each park that represented where I was in my 4 park quest. Hence the #1 I was doing here.



A few pictures on the way out of SM.







Stitch still wasn’t out yet so I asked a CM working the Astro Orbiter. He was kind enough to call and found out that Stitch would be out in about 5 minutes. I decided to hang out for those few minutes and took some pictures of the Christmas decorations on the Tomorrowland stage while I waited.





Stitch came out and I was first in line again. He was a little annoyed that I had Pluto all over my clothing and not him. But I told him about my stuffed Stitch back in the room and promised that next time I would have a Stitch shirt and he seemed happier. There was no PP photographer but the CM took a picture for me.



There was no line for Buzz Lightyear so I decided to hit that ride up next. I can never get a good picture of the Buzz in the line.



My score was a bit of a letdown after being a Galactic Hero earlier in the week.



I can’t seem to find the ride photo from Buzz but I have a vague memory that the photos were not working at that moment. That’s probably why I can’t find it.

Up Next: Jingle Cruise Round 2

 

[missangelalexis]

Yay the 4 park challenge!

I agree, there is something about the welcome show that is so magical

Great pictures with Pluto! I'm glad you completed your mission to meet him in every park!

Love your picture with Stitch too!

I'm with you, I can never get a good picture of Buzz either!

Sounds like a great start to the day

 

[rteetz]

Woohoo four parks in one day! That's so cool that you had a dis meet before the park even opened. I would've tried to avoid the fantasyland dash as well. It's also really cool that you met Barbara, she is probably the most famous CM. I have yet to meet her. Love your Pluto and stitch pictures. I missed out on buzz last trip. Can't wait to hear about the rest of the day.

 

[DisneyKid4Life]

I'm almost ashamed to say that I have yet to attempt the 4 parks 1 day adventure. But this is absolutely high on the bucket list. The park hours seemed very much on your side for this day.

Haha, yeah, I think you've met up with Katt quite a bit now. Don't worry... I believe it happened.

Isn't Barbara amazing???? I haven't seen her for so long

I decided to try to get a ride photo in each park that represented where I was in my 4 park quest.

That's the rule right? At least one attraction has to be done in each park?

 

[hokieinpa]

4 parks in one day! I love that idea! And cute idea with the ride photos and park number!

I agree that the Welcome Show is so special. I love the music and get chills every time I see it.

Very cute Pluto pictures. Love that you finished your Pluto quest for all the parks!

And I love Barbara! Of course, I've only seen her on TV but she looks awesome!

Fun Stitch pictures as well. He seems so cuddly and cute!

 

[wiscbugs]

I love 4 park challenges!!!

 

[KatMark]

Ugh...two updates behind again.

I loved those Precious Moment dolls. I was very tempted. But I just gave away about 325 or 350 of my 400+ collection of Precious Moments and knew I didn't need it. They do have Pluto in the statues if interested (here's one sample)

We serve Twinings tea at work. I don't drink it either, but I'm told the Alice in Wonderland teas are very good.

Great pictures around World Showcase. And look at you...wine and a slush.

I LOVE MK for the opening show and glad you saw it. Sorry Pluto wasn't there, but glad your new best friend was.

Those are great pictures of you with Pluto.

Four parks in one day, really? You have a lot of get go...I couldn't do it.

 

[marDgreen88]

4 parks, 1 day, yessss. Love it. Hope you succeeded, I'm sure you did! Good idea about the ride photos!

Hooray for completing your Pluto mission. Impressive! Haha I love your newfound love for Stitch. I cannot even remember the last time I met him but AHHHH he's just adorable.

 

[Pluto0809]

Yay the 4 park challenge!

I agree, there is something about the welcome show that is so magical

Great pictures with Pluto! I'm glad you completed your mission to meet him in every park!

Love your picture with Stitch too!

I'm with you, I can never get a good picture of Buzz either!

Sounds like a great start to the day

Yep, time for the 4 parks challenge!

I'm not even sure what it is about that welcome show but it is just so Disney to me and a must do!

I was very happy to succeed at at least one of my missions for the week.

Woohoo four parks in one day! That's so cool that you had a dis meet before the park even opened. I would've tried to avoid the fantasyland dash as well. It's also really cool that you met Barbara, she is probably the most famous CM. I have yet to meet her. Love your Pluto and stitch pictures. I missed out on buzz last trip. Can't wait to hear about the rest of the day.

I was very happy to see Katt again, I saw her for a few minutes in October too when she was just starting her training.

I was excited to meet Barbara even though I didn't realize at first it was her. It was the first time I saw her in person.

I'm almost ashamed to say that I have yet to attempt the 4 parks 1 day adventure. But this is absolutely high on the bucket list. The park hours seemed very much on your side for this day.

Haha, yeah, I think you've met up with Katt quite a bit now. Don't worry... I believe it happened.

Isn't Barbara amazing???? I haven't seen her for so long

That's the rule right? At least one attraction has to be done in each park?

You should definitely give it a try. It was very easy to do being solo!

I should go back and try to figure out how many times we have met up. I know we saw each other on 3 of my 4 trips last year!

Yep, that's the rule, at least one headliner per park. I was trying to take it one step further with the ride photos.

4 parks in one day! I love that idea! And cute idea with the ride photos and park number!

I agree that the Welcome Show is so special. I love the music and get chills every time I see it.

Very cute Pluto pictures. Love that you finished your Pluto quest for all the parks!

And I love Barbara! Of course, I've only seen her on TV but she looks awesome!

Fun Stitch pictures as well. He seems so cuddly and cute!

I thought the ride photo in each park was a good idea, we'll see if I actually managed it though!

I really enjoyed both meet and greets that morning, Pluto and Stitch were very fun.

I love 4 park challenges!!!

It was definitely a lot of fun to do!

Ugh...two updates behind again.

I loved those Precious Moment dolls. I was very tempted. But I just gave away about 325 or 350 of my 400+ collection of Precious Moments and knew I didn't need it. They do have Pluto in the statues if interested (here's one sample)

We serve Twinings tea at work. I don't drink it either, but I'm told the Alice in Wonderland teas are very good.

Great pictures around World Showcase. And look at you...wine and a slush.

I LOVE MK for the opening show and glad you saw it. Sorry Pluto wasn't there, but glad your new best friend was.

Those are great pictures of you with Pluto.

Four parks in one day, really? You have a lot of get go...I couldn't do it.

I do have that Pluto Precious Moments! I also have another one that is Mickey and Pluto as firefighters. I just really want one of the dolls dressed as Pluto. They seem to have every other character so why not Pluto?

Both tea and coffee make me sick to my stomach for some reason, but my SIL loves them so it was an easy gift to get her for Christmas.

I know, I went a little wild that night with two drinks!

I was very happy to see the welcome show, I try to make it a must do.

It was definitely a long day but very fun.

4 parks, 1 day, yessss. Love it. Hope you succeeded, I'm sure you did! Good idea about the ride photos!

Hooray for completing your Pluto mission. Impressive! Haha I love your newfound love for Stitch. I cannot even remember the last time I met him but AHHHH he's just adorable.

It was a lot of fun that day! I thought the ride photos would add a nice touch to the day.

Of course Pluto will always be my #1 but Stitch is so cute also.

 

[Pluto0809]

Jingle Cruise Round 2 Part 1

After finishing up on Buzz, I crossed back over the Hub and headed towards Adventureland. An outdated picture of the Hub construction.



And one of the castle. As you can tell, the park was still fairly empty.



I stopped for some PP pictures. It was a bit cloudier on this morning and was threatening rain.





Continuing on into Adventureland.





Check out the huge crowds. It was about 8:45 at this point.



Everything was still a walk on so I decided to hit up the Jingle Cruise again.





The guide this time was hilarious. He was actually making fun of the cheesy jokes which made them even funnier.







He mentioned something about the real ducks on the shore here. I can’t remember the exact joke but it was hilarious. Guess that’s what I get for taking over 6 months to write this report.





The obligatory backside of water shot. There were other people on the boat with me but not very many.







Trader Samta:



I continued on and walked onto Pirates. I was placed in the front row but luckily I was able to talk a father and son into trading with me. And yes, they got quite wet. For some reason my pictures were horrible this time through the ride so I’m only going to post a few.











Next I headed towards BTMR to see how the line was. I passed by Splash and thought about it for a second or two. But I really did not want to be wet all day so I kept going.



Continued in Next Post

 

[Pluto0809]

Jingle Cruise Round 2 Part 2

Yet another walk on with BTMR so that’s what I did. This time I actually remembered to take some line photos!















As I exited BTMR and walked towards Liberty Square I ran into Katt and her friend again. We talked for a minute and compared notes about how empty the park was. I’m pretty sure that was the morning that she got to ride the carousel with the Tremaines.

We were headed in opposite directions so we said goodbye. I saw that the line was very short for Chip and Dale and since I had never met them in their western gear, I hopped in line.

They were very interested in my Pluto gear.





Then they “fed” me some of the soup they had cooking.



It was very good.







I had a lot of fun with that meet, one of the best of the trip.

I would have hit up HM next but as it was closed for renovations I had to move on. I feel so badly for the CMs that have to stand out front and tell people it’s closed.



Next I went a little crazy and walked onto IASW! I apologize for those that don’t like this ride but it’s one of my favorites so I take lots of pictures.





















Up Next: Finishing Up Park #1

 

[rteetz]

You got a lot done at MK! I got to ride the jingle cruise in January and loved it. It's definitely a nice change to the ride for the holidays. Your meet and greet with chip and dale looks like it was a lot of fun. I also love IASW and ride it every time we go.

 

[missangelalexis]

So many walk-ons, that's awesome! I'm glad you were able to do so much that morning. I especially love the pics with Chip & Dale

 

[DisneyKid4Life]

The guide this time was hilarious. He was actually making fun of the cheesy jokes which made them even funnier.

I've always wondered how much leeway they have with the script. I think they should absolutely be able to inject some of their own personality into it.

I was placed in the front row but luckily I was able to talk a father and son into trading with me.

How fast did you have to run after the ride was over, lol.

Wow, one single soul

I feel so badly for the CMs that have to stand out front and tell people it’s closed.

As sad as a closed HM is, I look at that and I see a massive opportunity for a big group HM CM photo!