# Grinchmas @ RPR- Dec 2017 PTR -Completed 12/18, TR Coming Soon



## Raeven

*Introductions: *






My name is Raeven and I'm 24 years old. I'm the planner, shopper, TR writer, (and photographer!) for our trips. I'm a Slytherin, expert shooter at Men In Black, french fry connoisseur, lover of Jurassic Park River Adventure, Jeopardy champion of the family couch (although my dad would probably say he is), and was raised on superhero movies. My favorite park is IOA, but some of my favorite rides and areas are at Universal Studios. This trip I'm especially looking forward to the banana chocolate gooey cake at Mythos, and strawberry cheesecake milkshakes at Toothsome! 



My trip partner for this trip is my boyfriend of 3 years, Josh. He's 31 years old. He's a Gryffindor, likes thrill rides, has been spoiled by express pass, and loves being beat by me at Men In Black (I have to assume), Mythos, and the Terminator (or anything Arnold). Universal Studios is his favorite park. As always he is looking forward to Mythos Tuscan tomato soup, and the alfredo at Toothsome.



This is trip 3/4 for our year having APs (and our 4th trip ever). We'll also being going back in September, which will be added to this PTR as it comes up.

This trip is for my 25th birthday!  



It's just too hot and crowded around my actual birthday to make it an enjoyable trip, and I want to go to Flower and Garden at Disney too. So we choose May! 

The dates for the trip are May 5-7th. So we'll be arriving in USO first like we did last September.

So far for this trip we have the Disney portion booked, the flights, annual passes to both parks (from last year) and the Hard Rock booked for two nights with the AP discount! We don't have much left to do at this point, but we are getting close since we're at 3.5 months!

​


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## macraven

You picked a good date to return

One of these days you'll be able to say you have been to the darkside every month of the year


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## Raeven

macraven said:


> You picked a good date to return
> 
> One of these days you'll be able to say you have been to the darkside every month of the year


Haha yes one day! ​


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## schumigirl

Another trip to look forward to! How lovely.........

I love seeing that little clip of Snape and Dumbledore.........


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## Raeven

schumigirl said:


> Another trip to look forward to! How lovely.........
> 
> I love seeing that little clip of Snape and Dumbledore.........


Yes!

Me too it always makes me laugh. ​


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## buteraa

Following.  I really enjoy your trip reports!


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## Raeven

buteraa said:


> Following.  I really enjoy your trip reports!


Thank you!​


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## Raeven

*We're just under 15 weeks!*

 

(By the way all my gifs in this post are from Crazy Ex Girlfriend which is a really hilarious show, and there were a ton of HP references in the last episode). 

I don't think I have any news about May besides that the new Jimmy Fallon ride is going to be open when we go there!  I love the look of the NBC store type area. We almost saw the real NBC building last year and did the NBC tour when we were in NYC, but we missed the train.  Volcano Bay won't be open until our second trip of the year, but I'm okay with that because we'll have more Universal days on that trip.

Speaking of our second trip there's been some potential HHN dates leaked, and I really really hope they're true. For our September trip (which will probably be added to this PTR as we go along) we need HHN to start the same weekend as last year. We'll only be in Orlando until the 17th so we'll have to go on opening weekend. Also our AP's expire on the 16th, I'll be renewing mine, but we won't be renewing Josh's. (I'm going next year with a friend I met here on Disboards! We are considering going for HP weekend too. But Josh is only joining us for HHN). 

By the way I've been watching Celebrity Apprentice this season, and the second episode tonight took place at Universal Studios in Hollywood. They were supposed to make a themed digital brochure advertising the HP portion of the park. I think that's a challenge all of us on here would've won!  I definitely have enough pictures to advertise the parks. But only one person out of all the teams had any HP knowledge, and they all looked at him like he was crazy. 

 

The biggest challenge they had was taking pictures around the crowds  I know that struggle. And they were sabotaged by the team member with Voldemort's wand! Crazy stuff! Now I want a Butterbeer 

Also we're getting snow tonight  we haven't had any snow stick around so far this year so I'm hoping that trend will continue into tomorrow!

*Next up we'll look at some food choices for both trips! *​


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## macraven

_goody...
_
_still reading along.._


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## pattyw

We love the Hard Rock! We recently spent my birthday (Sept 2016) there and it was THE BEST BIRTHDAY EVER!!!!!  We just returned from our January trip and my DS had his birthday celebration there as well!  We did HHN for the first time in Sept and loved it- would love to do it again this year!  

Looking forward to reading your PTR!


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## Raeven

pattyw said:


> We love the Hard Rock! We recently spent my birthday (Sept 2016) there and it was THE BEST BIRTHDAY EVER!!!!!  We just returned from our January trip and my DS had his birthday celebration there as well!  We did HHN for the first time in Sept and loved it- would love to do it again this year!
> 
> Looking forward to reading your PTR!


Yay! I love hearing that other people had a great time at the Hard Rock it makes me even more excited! 

HHN is so much fun I hope you get to go again.

Thank you! ​


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## babynala

We stayed at HRH in 2013 and really liked it. Headed backnowledge in April and we will be staying there again.  I followed your Sept 2016 TR as we were in WDW at the end of September too and enjoyed it. Will you be spending all 3 days of your Universal portion of the trip in the Parks?

Also, I think your signature needs to be changed from May 2016 to 2017???


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## Raeven

babynala said:


> We stayed at HRH in 2013 and really liked it. Headed backnowledge in April and we will be staying there again.  I followed your Sept 2016 TR as we were in WDW at the end of September too and enjoyed it. Will you be spending all 3 days of your Universal portion of the trip in the Parks?
> 
> Also, I think your signature needs to be changed from May 2016 to 2017???


That's good to hear! We don't have 3 days this time  We'll get there wed night but we'll be at disney all day and then thurs and fri night we leave. But we will go to the parks both days!

Yes! Good catch! I just changed it.​


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## Raeven

Since it's almost the weekend we'll call this *14 weeks*!



We have a bit of an update that changes everything. Sorry guys I should have forewarned you how often I make changes 






We've decided to change the resort and the dates for May.

So yesterday  I was leaving my apartment complex, and the maintenance guy was plowing. He was far away from me (which is why I felt okay backing up in the first place), but he suddenly started going in reverse very fast without looking. I had time to honk quickly before he hit my car, but not to move. My driver's side door has quite a bit of damage, but luckily it was only the doors. Unluckily, I recently took collision off because my car is so old. The company that owns the apartment's insurance should cover it (the police ruled he was at fault) but I think the insurance might give me a tough time because he said it wasn't his fault and since we were both backing up there's a fair chance it could be ruled both our faults by the insurance. It seems like I probably won't have to pay this out of my pocket, but it did remind me that my car needs some other work done and you never know what will come up. 

So I started looking at ways to save money on the trip. I had thought about it before, but hadn't really looked into it.The biggest way I had been thinking was to change from a deluxe to a moderate at Disney (Universal hotels are usually a good price anyway). 

So I switched the Universal and Disney days and....it worked!

So now we're staying at Universal from May 5th-7th, and going to Disney from Sun-Fri.  But the price for HRH hotel went up for a weekend stay, and RPR was lower. I think all the hotels we've stayed at, at USO are amazing though so it's not a big deal. I even like the value hotels at Universal, but we wanted EP for this trip. But we're still going to stay at HRH in September! We'll actually be going to Universal for a little more time than usual this September so that works out great! 

We'll also get more time at Universal because we won't have to leave for the flight we can leave whenever we want on Sunday! 



And I promise I'll get to the food next post!​


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## macraven

Glad you are not forgetting the food for us....


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## schumigirl

So glad you didn't get hurt in any way. Cars are totally replaceable.........

Yep, looking forward to the food choices!


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## tink1957

Looks like we'll be there at the same time in September...hope we can meet up.

Can't wait for the food porn...


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## macraven

Oh my forgot to mention this....


Wonderful you were not injured
The only thing that will hurt is your bank account 

Money comes and goes but your health is much different

Blessed that you are fine in that accident


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## Raeven

schumigirl said:


> So glad you didn't get hurt in any way. Cars are totally replaceable.........
> 
> Yep, looking forward to the food choices!



Thank you. It's true and luckily the damage is mostly on only one door and just the outside of it. Still annoying to deal with, but it could've been worse.



tink1957 said:


> Looks like we'll be there at the same time in September...hope we can meet up.
> 
> Can't wait for the food porn...



Yes! We should be there in Sep from the 13 or 14th to 17th.



macraven said:


> Oh my forgot to mention this....
> 
> 
> Wonderful you were not injured
> The only thing that will hurt is your bank account
> 
> Money comes and goes but your health is much different
> 
> Blessed that you are fine in that accident



Thank you I'm grateful that though he was going faster than he should he was not going fast enough for there ro be any injuries. Still hoping my bank account won't be injured either but we're still going through the insurance process. Theirs should pay but it seems likely it will be a fight to get the money. ​


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## Raeven

*13 weeks! *

No new car news this week. The insurance processed everything, and now we're reaching out to their insurance. I haven't heard back yet, and neither has my insurance so we're just waiting now. 

Now onto the food!

We're definitely going back to Toothsome again since there's still so many things we haven't tried! And so many milkshakes to try! Maybe I'll have to stop here more than once for a milkshake....

This chocolate brownie one looks good...






or the Red Velvet....






or the banana one....






or the chocolate x5 one...






and of course I want to get my favorite strawberry cheesecake again! 






Okay now that you're all drooling from the milkshakes I'll move on. 

We're also doing Mythos again (and getting some banana chocolate gooey cake this time!) But I'm also thinking of trying Antojitos 

(BTW I did borrow all these pictures off Yelp and all the above ones off an article on milkshakes so they aren't mine). 

















Oh yum that all looks so good too! 

We may finish off our stay with breakfast at Islands if we're hungry the morning we move to Disney. For snacks I of course want some Galaxy Bowl nachos, but I also want to try a drink at Moes, a new flavor of ice cream at Florean's, and some of the desserts at the Leaky Cauldron.

As for our September trip we're still thinking HRH but I'm also considering CBBR because we really wanted to go back there but we do enjoy having EP. We'll just have to see when we get closer to booking! ​


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## macraven

Loved the food pics!


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## 101Katie

Hi there!

Like you, I'm the trip planner for my best friend and I! She's a Slytherin, I'm a Gryffindor (I guess that combo just works!), and I'm doing a lot of research for our first split stay at Universal and Disney!

We stayed on-site Disney in 2015 for a week and took a shuttle to Universal for two separate days and loved it so much that in 2016 we just did 4 days at Universal staying at the Royal Pacific (LOVED IT). 

This year, we're planning a trip also for May 2017 to Disney (staying on property for 2 days to try to park hop all of the parks--pray for us!), then transferring back to Royal Pacific and Universal for 4 days. 

We don't plan on renting a car, and I had just planned on using uber or lyft to switch us (and our massive amounts of luggage)  over, but I was wondering if you had any tips for making the transition smoother?. 

Thanks! Your excitement about your trip is getting me pumped for mine-and the gifs are perfection!


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## Raeven

101Katie said:


> Hi there!
> 
> Like you, I'm the trip planner for my best friend and I! She's a Slytherin, I'm a Gryffindor (I guess that combo just works!), and I'm doing a lot of research for our first split stay at Universal and Disney!



Hi! 

That combo does seem to work! 



101Katie said:


> We stayed on-site Disney in 2015 for a week and took a shuttle to Universal for two separate days and loved it so much that in 2016 we just did 4 days at Universal staying at the Royal Pacific (LOVED IT).



Yay! Glad to hear you like RPR. All the hotels we've stayed at, at USO have been great! We always try to split our trips so that we have 2-3 Universal days, and 5-6 Disney days. 



101Katie said:


> This year, we're planning a trip also for May 2017 to Disney (staying on property for 2 days to try to park hop all of the parks--pray for us!), then transferring back to Royal Pacific and Universal for 4 days.
> 
> We don't plan on renting a car, and I had just planned on using uber or lyft to switch us (and our massive amounts of luggage)  over, but I was wondering if you had any tips for making the transition smoother?.



Haha I will! Those are going to be 2 busy days! We've only rented a car briefly for our first trip, we needed it for some of the plans we had at the time; but I also didn't really know about Uber at that point. We haven't needed to rent a car anytime since. We used Uber for our transfers between the 2 last year and it went very smoothly both times.

I guess the best tip for changing hotels would be one we don't always follow and that would be to make sure everything except what you need in the morning is packed the night before you transfer. It's always such a pain to do, but it's worse in the morning. You either have to wake up really early or you end up late for what you want to do that day. (I'm also horrible at packing neatly so Josh mainly packs). After that you can just store it with the baggage services until it's time to take the Uber/Lyft over to Universal. And if you buy something breakable they'll put it in a separate bag and label it fragile. 



101Katie said:


> Thanks! Your excitement about your trip is getting me pumped for mine-and the gifs are perfection!



Thank you! We're getting close! ​


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## macraven

And another day closer to the trip today


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## 101Katie

I was definitely a little worried about our luggage in an uber/lyft, but I'm glad to hear that you've had good experiences with it! Packing will be the hard part for sure...it's hard to make yourself pack the night before when there's fun to be had! Thank you for the tip! I can't wait to continue to read about your plans!


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## Raeven

*12 weeks!*

So this past weekend was the Superbowl. I'm not a sports person at all so I don't find it very entertaining. My aunt made a lot of food for my cousin to put out, but she didn't feel like it so we barely got to eat any of it  Food is the reason I go every year! 






During the Superbowl I was looking up flights and trying to see if we could do a Mardi Gras trip this year, but it's too late for good prices. I always get so excited for the Mardi Gras stuff at Universal, and last year I almost planned a trip for this year but I thought I shouldn't plan so many, and now I'm regretting that. I've decided next year we may go for a long weekend and I told Josh we should go for a long weekend for Christmastime too, so we'll see if he agrees.  (If we do the weekend trips on top of my longer trip next year I'll probably be renewing both my Disney and Universal AP instead of just the Universal one). 

Next week is Valentine's Day, and we're going to a new steakhouse in the mall. (It sounds weird that it's in the mall, but we have a huge mall nearby and there are many nicer restaurants in there). It's called Rascals, and the menu looks good so we'll see if it's as good as it looks!

Also for Valentine's Day VH1 has been playing all those old celebrity dating reality shows. I've been re-watching Rock of Love, and it's just so entertaining. I can't believe it was on t.v. 10 years ago though it makes me feel old. 



I've also got some updates on the car first of all last Thursday my door handle finally fell off so no more entering through the driver's side.  Finally the other insurance contacted me back, they've of course determined 50/50 liability. They said I was "backing up in unsafe conditions". But that means they'll still take care of half, and their appraiser came out yesterday and I think his estimate is pretty high and we'd be able to get everything fixed for half that anyway. Today I called them with my statement (I already gave one to my insurance, but they needed one too). I found the lady quite rude, and she told me my statement "conflicted" with the police report and the other guy's statement. Basically the police report doesn't outright state who is responsible so they've found a loophole. But I still get 50% of the estimate which should be enough to fix the damage. She had already told me this in another conversation though, so I'm not sure why she was rude to me and acted like I lied in my statement only to tell me the exact same thing I already knew. (They had determined the liability before we had even spoken). 

And we finally got a snowstorm! My car was buried (twice) yesterday  Work was still open, but no customers came in. 

For May today I'm going into some changes we made  I know the changes are never ending! But we've managed to change the flight home (in the Disney portion of the trip). But I couldn't find a good deal on a Disney hotel for the extra night, so we shifted the stay a day forwards and added on 2 days at Cabana Bay! We're now doing 1 day at RPR, and 2 at CBBR I know that kind of changes this trip reports title, but I think I'm sticking with what it says. I just wanted to add one day at a value, because we're actually heading over to Disney still on that day; but when I thought about it since you get EP on check out day as well I decided we'd save more if we headed to CBBR for 2 nights. I'm really excited to stay there again, and get some Galaxy Bowl nachos. 






I'm not thrilled with the moving around, but since we usually move more than once on a trip I can deal with it. I booked a volcano view room  it made me laugh because 2 years ago when we stayed and booked the same room category the view was of dirt pit and construction so the view wasn't advertised then! 

Since we saved money, and the prices changed when we shifted things we were able to rebook at the Wilderness Lodge for Disney. So far for September we're looking at the PORS and the Hard Rock. 

I can't wait for some HHN dates!
​


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## macraven

I read the above post twice

Can't remember where you stay and when it will be

Hahahahahaha

I'll figure it out later


But do know you will in Orlando for the vacation


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## Raeven

macraven said:


> I read the above post twice
> 
> Can't remember where you stay and when it will be
> 
> Hahahahahaha
> 
> I'll figure it out later
> 
> 
> But do know you will in Orlando for the vacation


Basically  We'll just arrive in Orlando and figure it out from there!​


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## macraven

_now that sounds like a great plan.

kind of the way i do vacations.

book the room and flight and then wing it when there..._


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## pattyw

We  change plans with our vacations, too!  Thank goodness for no change fees on Southwest!  The important thing is you get to Orlando - get there often- and make it work financially!


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## Raeven

*11 weeks!


*
(If you read my Disney PTR update for this week, this is generally the same thing minus the Disney planning stuff so feel free to skip this, if not read on!) 

I have no car updates, we're just filling out paperwork, notarizing it, and sending it back. After I do that I should have the check to fix it. I think I'm going to fix my muffler as well soon. I did my taxes by myself for the first time (and it's the first year I claimed myself) so I got back enough to help with repairs, pay some bills, go shopping, and pay for some trip stuff! 

We went out for our Valentine's Day dinner last night, and let's just say things didn't go according to plan. So we got to the mall, and we couldn't find the steakhouse anywhere.  We kept thinking we walked by it, but that's really not possible. So I asked someone who worked in the store next to where it was....and it's closed...permanently closed.

I'd say it was only open about a month, but it was open last time I was at the mall. Obviously a last minute reservation on Valentine's Day just isn't happening, and I was kicking myself for not just reserving The Melting Pot in the first place. Josh suggested going home and going out another day, but we were all dressed up so that felt like it would be a major letdown. So I suggested one of my favorite restaurants: Mexican Radio. It's a local restaurant (I think there's 2 or 3). Honestly it's pretty hit or miss with people. No one in my family liked it when we went, but I always love what I get. Anyway because of that there's never really too many people there so that's part of why I suggested it. They were a little busier than usual so service was kind of slow. I didn't feel like it was the waitress' fault though because they seemed understaffed. (And I'd rather have some slower service than a waiter or waitress who only talks to Josh as you all know ).











I did not take pictures of most the food so I borrowed these from Yelp. They are really not the best pictures, but these are my appetizer, the Radio Roll Ups which I think is cheese and black beans in a fried tortilla with queso and pico del gallo on top and tomatillo sauce on the plate. Josh had a chicken tortilla soup. 






For dinner I got a burrito and Josh got carne asada fries. His fries looked good, but I was too full to have any! 











My only complaint was with the drink which was a strawberries and chocolate margarita. It was their Valentine's Special, but tasted nothing like strawberry in fact it tasted like oranges. Something wasn't right with it, and I ended up not finishing it.  I probably should've said something at the time but I just ended up drinking some of it. 






My favorite is desert. They have these amazing banana chocolate chimichangas! I was too full to eat them (this picture is from a previous trip), but I took them home! 






Here's my cute Valentine's gifts from Josh: 











So cute! We usually go small for holiday gifts lately to save it for the trip or an experience. This year we decided dinner would be our gift to each other.  

I don't have any planning updates this week. Though I have been wondering when we're going to know more about Volcano Bay tickets/AP holders getting into VB. September will be our first trip when it's open! Normally I'm not a waterpark person, but I'll make an exception for VB! ​


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## macraven

_I'm not into water parks either but Volcano Bay will be worth checking out

Love the food pics _


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## Raeven

*25th Birthday Trip-*10 weeks
*Halloween trip-*28 weeks







Nothing new is happening with the car. I didn't get the form for the check until last weekend, and I need to get it notarized so I can't send it back until my only day off during the week (Friday). After that I should have the money to fix it. 

I'm also sorry that lately I haven't had much different news to post on this PTR so again if you've read my Disney post from this week then this is going to be really similar. 

Tonight I went to restaurant week with my friend Tammy and her friend. and we had: Risotto balls






An ny strip steak sampler






They were gorgonzola crusted, bernaise, and some signature Southwest sauce. 

Finally cookie dough cheesecake and apple crisp. 






I was not thrilled with the steak sampler or the restaurant itself, but the meal was alright. Since it's part of restaurant week it's not going to be anything too crazy, but we wanted to get out and try something. However since the steak wasn't that great and we missed out on steak on Valentine's Day; I'm still craving a good one....Luckily we're going to Shula's in Chicago. Just one more month! 

I posted these because I know we all love our food photos, but I don't think I've mentioned my Chicago trip in this PTR yet...Last year I started talking to @DexLabDeeDee on the Disney PTR board because we had trips around the same time, but with no cross over. We eventually started messaging, then Instagram messaging, then texting. We planned our May trips for the same week this year, but when I realized I had a Southwest credit that was about to expire we also planned a long weekend in Chicago for March! So when I mention my Chicago trip if you haven't read my Disney trip PTR you'll know what I'm talking about. And when I mention Jenna you'll know who I'm talking about!



As you can see I have almost no actual trip news! Just a few small things. 


I don't know if I mentioned this before either, but this year I want to do two nights at HHN!

I can also add another trip to the countdown (I guess that'll go in this PTR too but I'm not sure how long we'll spend at Universal on that trip), but we're going back for a weekend in December!  I'm not sure exactly what days yet Wed-Sat or Thurs-Sun? (And coming down a night early depends on flights). The idea is to get on a flight after work one night, then have the next 2.5 days before we leave). So I have AoA booked from Wed-Sun the first weekend in December until we're sure of the dates. With a possible trip to USO one day for Grinchmas. 
​


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## macraven

May would be better weather wise than March trip in Chicago 

Lived there most of my life

March is unpredictable and some years freezing cold


Now you've been warned..... lol


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## Raeven

macraven said:


> May would be better weather wise than March trip in Chicago
> 
> Lived there most of my life
> 
> March is unpredictable and some years freezing cold
> 
> 
> Now you've been warned..... lol


Haha sadly we had to pick then because I had credits that expired before May or I would've used them to book our May flights. And it's a cheap flight for us both (me in NY and her in MN). We're mostly sticking to indoor activities though! Lots of shopping ​


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## CatNipRules

I'm so looking forward to trying Toothsome. Of course my non-adventurous child won't eat anything chocolate. LOL!! He's convinced that's all there is to eat there. I tried telling him there is more, but he's convinced.  I told him I'm eating there regardless. LOL!!

Can you do me a big favor when you go? Can you check and see if the quarter machines to squirt people are still at Dudley Do Right or the Popeye ride? I've heard that they are gone, but I'm hoping that one of them is still there.

I'm seriously loving the food pics. They are making me hungry!! LOL!!


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## macraven

Machineswith quarters gone when I went earlier Thisbe month

Thought it went to a token set up from as I walked by it


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## Raeven

CatNipRules said:


> I'm so looking forward to trying Toothsome. Of course my non-adventurous child won't eat anything chocolate. LOL!! He's convinced that's all there is to eat there. I tried telling him there is more, but he's convinced.  I told him I'm eating there regardless. LOL!!
> 
> Can you do me a big favor when you go? Can you check and see if the quarter machines to squirt people are still at Dudley Do Right or the Popeye ride? I've heard that they are gone, but I'm hoping that one of them is still there.
> 
> I'm seriously loving the food pics. They are making me hungry!! LOL!!



You have to show him the menu there's so much more! Even all the shakes and desserts aren't chocolate. I had a great strawberry cheesecake one last time.

I would trust @macraven's answer but I can double check when I go. It's about time we rode at least one ride in Toon Lagoon since we always seem to skip those.​


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## CatNipRules

macraven said:


> Machineswith quarters gone when I went earlier Thisbe month
> 
> Thought it went to a token set up from as I walked by it


Okay good. I'm glad they just changed them to tokens instead of getting rid of them altogether. It gives me something to do while the boys ride the Dragons. LOL!!


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## CatNipRules

Raeven said:


> You have to show him the menu there's so much more! Even all the shakes and desserts aren't chocolate. I had a great strawberry cheesecake one last time.
> 
> I would trust @macraven's answer but I can double check when I go. It's about time we rode at least one ride in Toon Lagoon since we always seem to skip those.​


I've tried. I've even watched videos with him in the room. He is really convinced that everything is chocolate. LOL!! 

My child is so weird that he doesn't even like cheesecake....I can, on occasion get him to get vanilla ice cream, but anything more exotic is a challenge. 

Thank you. I think I understand that they use tokens now instead of quarters....hehehehe


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## Raeven

CatNipRules said:


> I've tried. I've even watched videos with him in the room. He is really convinced that everything is chocolate. LOL!!
> 
> My child is so weird that he doesn't even like cheesecake....I can, on occasion get him to get vanilla ice cream, but anything more exotic is a challenge.
> 
> Thank you. I think I understand that they use tokens now instead of quarters....hehehehe



They have ice cream sundaes so he could just get one with vanilla ice cream and some toppings 

I don't think I've had anything there that even had chocolate in it except the chocolate bread pudding which I think was lacking chocolate! They have chocolate bars there but those aren't as good as the food. ​


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## CatNipRules

Raeven said:


> They have ice cream sundaes so he could just get one with vanilla ice cream and some toppings
> 
> I don't think I've had anything there that even had chocolate in it except the chocolate bread pudding which I think was lacking chocolate! They have chocolate bars there but those aren't as good as the food. ​


Toppings? Hahahaha....I had to laugh at that. Unless it's bubble gum forget it. My child is plain Jane no frills. Me on the other hand. Give me everything. LOL!! I just asked him and he said, "Unless it's on there I won't order it. I just want plain ice cream...."

Told you. He's weird....

Oh, that chocolate bread pudding sounds amazing, but if it was lacking chocolate that defeats the purpose....Argh...LOL!!


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## Raeven

CatNipRules said:


> Toppings? Hahahaha....I had to laugh at that. Unless it's bubble gum forget it. My child is plain Jane no frills. Me on the other hand. Give me everything. LOL!! I just asked him and he said, "Unless it's on there I won't order it. I just want plain ice cream...."
> 
> Told you. He's weird....
> 
> Oh, that chocolate bread pudding sounds amazing, but if it was lacking chocolate that defeats the purpose....Argh...LOL!!



Tell him he can get his plain ice cream 

It said triple chocolate bread pudding which was a chocolate bread pudding with chocolate chips but that is not what I got! It was just a regular bread pudding with some chocolate chips in it. The name implied a lot more chocolate. ​


----------



## CatNipRules

Raeven said:


> Tell him he can get his plain ice cream
> 
> It said triple chocolate bread pudding which was a chocolate bread pudding with chocolate chips but that is not what I got! It was just a regular bread pudding with some chocolate chips in it. The name implied a lot more chocolate. ​


My son is not very adventurous. Jordan regularly calls him a communist. LOL!! 

Wow...That would be disappointing. If I saw that I would definitely be expecting more chocolate....


----------



## Raeven

*25th Birthday Trip*-9 weeks
*Halloween Trip-*27 weeks

This part of the post will be similar to my Disney post again skip to the bottom if you want just Universal news!


You're probably all sick of the car updates, but I'll include one anyway! (And I get to use that car driving emoticon!) Still nothing much going on, I'm waiting on the check, and looking at getting my muffler repaired on Friday (unrelated to the accident). They called today to say they haven't even received the paperwork I sent in on Friday so it'll probably be another week or more till the check goes out. 



We also booked our September flights last week! Each flight was only $92 each way! Plus we had points so we only paid for 1 (literally 1, just Josh's flight home), fees, and earlybird check in! It came to around $220. We get in at 10:25 am on the 8th and depart at 12:40 pm on the 17th.

They also announced HHN dates! And the first weekend is during our trip! We're thinking of going the first 2 nights, probably only doing Express Pass for 1 of those though.

Also you'll hate me for all this confusion but I changed something with the hotels again.

I know and I'm so sorry!

At the point I'm going to change my TR title to reflect the double PTR, but stop making it revolve around the hotels. So no more changes after today! (I hope). 

I was looking at Sep pricing and I liked the price for RPR better even prior to the AP discount. So we booked that for Sep! 

But I still wanted to stay at HRH so I checked it for our first night in May again...and it was only $20 more so I made the switch. When I first looked it was for the whole weekend so that price was a no go, but now for 1 night why not? As of now in May it's HRH 1 night, CBBR for 2, then WL for the rest of the trip. However we are spending more time in Disney this trip. With some dismeets and days planned at Disney while at CBBR we probably won't get as much Universal time in, but I think we'll at least get a day and a half in. Then in September we'll be there even longer than usual. 

I know my planning is confusing so here's when we're going or thinking of going in 2017 (complete with hotels for those trying to keep up with the changes): May 5-13th 2017,-HRH, CBBR, WL Sep 8-17th 2017,-PORS, RPR. Dec 6-10th? -AoA (Not all those days but the dates depend on flights).​


----------



## macraven

_WOOT !_


----------



## Raeven

*25th Birthday Trip-*8 weeks
*Halloween Trip-*26 weeks
Sadly I don't have food pictures this week, but I will next week! I'm going to Mexican Radio again! With my dad's girlfriend and her daughter before we see Wicked on Friday!) 

Now I feel bad leaving you without food pictures since this update is so devoid of pictures after the last few so here's some nachos! 






If you read my Universal TR you know that we never made it to the Galaxy Bowl to get nachos, and the ones we got at Bumblee Man's Taco Truck were...less than pleasing.  So Josh promised to make some at home, which he has now done about 20 times over. We have them (usually) every Friday! He's still honing his technique so they're a little different every week, but he's pretty much mastered the cheese 

Since we've gotten closer, and are about to do FPs I made our daily itineraries so I could plan for the FP better. Once I did that some things we're moved around and adjusted a little. I find that writing it all out helps you see what you have time for and when. I plan to have some more relaxing time than in the past.

Here's my plans for our Universal days even though the last one is mostly in Disney. 

*Friday-Arrival/IOA/DS for dinner *
*Food: *The Kitchen or Cowfish for a small lunch, Homecomin' with @DexLabDeeDee and her MIL-7:20 pm
*Other: *Check into HRH

Has anyone had the Burgerushi before? I was thinking of trying that at Cowfish for a small lunch.

*Saturday-IOA for lunch/USO*
*Food: *Mythos, Toothsome
*Night show: *Cinematic Spectacular- 9 pm
*Other: *Check into CBBR

*Sunday-Uber to Disney/Epcot for a dismeet and some rides/Ds for dinner/MK for FP's before Wishes*
*Food: *Cali Grill brunch-10:30 am, DLuxe Burger
*Fps: *Talking Mickey, Space Mt, 7DMT
*Night show: *Wishes from the Contemporary at 9 pm

My Chicago trip is also coming up in 2 weeks! Maybe I'll also include some of our plans for the trip next week. ​


----------



## Raeven

*25th Birthday Trip-*7 weeks
*Halloween Trip-*25 weeks



I have 0 car updates once again  The check just cleared this week, but since we've been buried in snow I haven't made an appointment yet to get the door fixed. 
We had a work snow day today! They didn't let us know till 7:30 am, and I guess our other store had to go in.  Although at this point we've had almost 2' of snow, and I don't know what to do about tomorrow! The roads still aren't completely clear and my car is buried  Josh had promised me he would dig it out for me after he got out of work, but it doesn't look like he's getting out tonight. So I guess we'll wait and see what happens! Here's how I passed some of the day: 



Yes while everyone was frantically at the market getting supplies I bought caramels. 

Because I promised you food pictures from Mexican Radio again here they are! Sorry I'm boring and ordered pretty much the exact same thing as I did last month, and also sorry because these pictures are pretty much terrible. (*edit *due to Phothbucket issues I no longer have a lot of the original pictures, so I'm using ones I took more recently. So some of these will looks very similar to another post). But I did convert my dad's girlfriend and her daughter into loving that restaurant! First they brought us chips, salsa, and guac. 



That's literally the only decent picture. Sorry about what comes next. It was so incredibly dark in the room they seated us in that people were using their phones to read the menu. It was worse than San Angel Inn.  If we had left the place during daylight hours we would've been blinded when we walked outside after getting used to the lighting in there. 

Here's the radio roll ups again: 



Not only was everything coming out dark but also blurry...I got the same burrito again. I think Alisha got fajitas and Nina got enchiladas. I usually have no problem taking pictures of other people's food, but that's because Josh is used to it. I try to tone that down around people who don't know about disboards and ptrs/trs 



Alisha and I decided to have a margarita. I got a frozen strawberry one which was much better than the drink I had last time that didn't taste like strawberries at all. 



And finally we all shared the banana chocolate chimichangas. 



So good, but so filling 

Next we headed over to see Wicked! 



We were in the dress circle this time which were great seats! 



I loved the show as always. The woman playing Elphaba could sing really well, it's really hard to match Idina's singing because it's just so powerful, but I think she did great. The Nessarose was actually really good as well though she doesn't sing too much. So all in all a great show! 

I was also very proud that we beat the bathroom lines at intermission. Intermission is always right after "Defying Gravity" which isn't really a song anyone wants to miss. 

Also when we came out afterwards it was snowing like crazy! But even that was nowhere near today.    

We've decided on our first day to stop by Cowfish before the parks. I'd like to try the burgushi this time! 






And I've been talking about meeting up at Toothsome with @CatNipRules in September! 

Also who else watched The Vampire Diaries? I've been watching it since it started, and I think it started to decline over the years; but I still watched every week. The finale was on Friday, and while there were some parts I didn't love overall it was emotional to see the end of these stories I had been following for so long. 

​


----------



## macraven

Nachos make everything better
Do you hire him out for making nachos?


----------



## Raeven

macraven said:


> Nachos make everything better
> Do you hire him out for making nachos?


Exactly!  I should!​


----------



## CatNipRules

I can't wait until we meet up. I'm looking forward to trying Toothsome. The menu looks soooo good. LOL!! 

I'm going to try and gather up the courage to do a video or two between now and the trip. I hate the way my voice sounds on video. Everyone tells me I sound the same, but not to me. LOL!! We even bought a Go Pro a few months back, but haven't used it. 

I've never watched the Vampire Diaries. I might have to.


----------



## Raeven

CatNipRules said:


> I can't wait until we meet up. I'm looking forward to trying Toothsome. The menu looks soooo good. LOL!!



I can't wait either! There is so much on the menu! I've been curious about both the burgers and the apple crepes. But there's so much on the menu sometimes I can't think of what to order when we get there  So many milkshakes to try too.



CatNipRules said:


> I'm going to try and gather up the courage to do a video or two between now and the trip. I hate the way my voice sounds on video. Everyone tells me I sound the same, but not to me. LOL!! We even bought a Go Pro a few months back, but haven't used it.



Yes do it! I've decided to try it out even though I feel so awkward and don't like how I sound either. I also wanted to get Josh in some of the future ones but he wasn't home when I made the other ones. I bought a small tripod to make it easier though. 



CatNipRules said:


> I've never watched the Vampire Diaries. I might have to.



The first couple seasons are so good! You'll be hooked by episode 4-5 (the first few aren't that great). But the later seasons I might not have watched if I hadn't been watching it from the beginnig. Some was good, some was not so good.
​


----------



## Raeven

*Chicago*-Tomorrow!
*25th birthday trip*-6 weeks
*Halloween trip*-24 weeks


Btw sorry to keep you in suspense last week, but Josh did come home in time to dig me out!  

This weekend we went out on Sunday to say goodbye to one of our coworkers. We went to a new(ish) restaurant at a mall nearby.  I got a strawberry margarita 



And a cheese quesadilla (sorry no pics of the quesadilla!) and it was $25!  

I also noticed when I was there that they had a trivia night there at 7 on tuesdays. We've been looking for a new one at that date and time. (The place we go is fun...but has terrible food. It's sort of like Josh's friends default bar and I've never understood it since no one likes the food). Most bars do trivia later but we have too many people in our group that get up early to go out later. I mentioned this trivia to my friend Tammy and she told her boyfriend (who sets up the trivia) and I guess he wanted to try going there. It went better than I thought. We were really the only people there so we played against the staff. They asked us for our input on how to make it better, and we won every round so we got a lot of free stuff (game cards for the arcade, free passes to bowl, tickets to their comedy club, and beer). Here's Josh holding it all and making a face:



I got loaded fries and a pineapple margarita. We all agreed to go back next week and we still have the bowling passes and comedy club tickets to use.



I decided to get some celebratory buttons for the trip and one is for USO!: 


The only change I did make this week was to change to an earlier flight into Orlando. I wanted to be able to sleep in originally (but doubt I would because I'd be so excited). We have so many dismeets and places to be on our first day that we decided it would be better to arrive a couple hours earlier. So we can actually have lunch, go to IOA, and meet our disfriends. Now we get in at around 10 am! The newest dismeet we have planned is meeting @Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina

I'm so excited to meet so many people on this trip! 
Bonus food picture from Juicy Burger: 



​


----------



## CatNipRules

That food all looks soooo yummy!! LOL!! Where did you get those buttons? They are so cute!! 

Have a great and safe trip!


----------



## Raeven

CatNipRules said:


> That food all looks soooo yummy!! LOL!! Where did you get those buttons? They are so cute!!
> 
> Have a great and safe trip!



I got them from a site called ParkboundButtons they have a lot of choices! 

Thank you!​


----------



## Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina

Very excited to meet you both in person!!    So happy that our dates lined up (albeit barely!!) .

It's racing up FAST .


----------



## schumigirl

Raeven said:


> *25th Birthday Trip-*7 weeks
> *Halloween Trip-*25 weeks
> 
> 
> 
> I have 0 car updates once again  The check just cleared this week, but since we've been buried in snow I haven't made an appointment yet to get the door fixed.
> 
> This part is going to be similar to the Disney PTR post, but I'm also going to include some Universal only plans.
> 
> We had a work snow day today! They didn't let us know till 7:30 am, and I guess our other store had to go in. I was actually planning to call in sick if work was still open...I hate calling in sick because it makes me so anxious. (I used to have a job where they were jerks to anyone who called in). But it would've been insane for them to stay open. Although at this point we've had almost 2' of snow, and I don't know what to do about tomorrow! The roads still aren't completely clear and my car is buried  Josh had promised me he would dig it out for me after he got out of work, but it doesn't look like he's getting out tonight. (If you don't know Josh works for the town and they're the ones that plow in the storm. So he's been at work almost 18 hours right now, and they've told him he might not get to come home before tomorrow morning when I have to leave). If I had known I might've tried to keep my car clear, but honestly there is so much snow I don't think that would've been realistic either. So right now my options are to a.) call in sick tomorrow, b.) hope Josh gets home in time to clear off the car or give me a ride, or c.) wait until the store opens and call and ask my manager to pick me up because I live close by but then I'd be late. I really don't think they'll keep him the whole night. Because that sounds kind of illegal (he'll have had no time to sleep in over 24 hours), but the roads are still so bad I guess they could. So I guess we'll wait and see what happens! Here's how I passed some of the day:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Yes while everyone was frantically at the market getting supplies I bought caramels.
> 
> Because I promised you food pictures from Mexican Radio again here they are! Sorry I'm boring and ordered pretty much the exact same thing as I did last month, and also sorry because these pictures are pretty much terrible. But I did convert my dad's girlfriend and her daughter into loving that restaurant! First they brought us chips, salsa, and guac.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> That's literally the only decent picture. Sorry about what comes next. It was so incredibly dark in the room they seated us in that people were using their phones to read the menu. It was worse than San Angel Inn.  If we had left the place during daylight hours we would've been blinded when we walked outside after getting used to the lighting in there.
> 
> Here's the radio roll ups again:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Not only was everything coming out dark but also blurry...I got the same burrito again. But I cut it up before I remembered to take a picture. I think Alisha got fajitas and Nina got enchiladas. I usually have no problem taking pictures of other people's food, but that's because Josh is used to it. I try to tone that down around people who don't know about disboards and ptrs/trs
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Alisha and I decided to have a margarita. I got a frozen strawberry one which was much better than the drink I had last time that didn't taste like strawberries at all.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> And finally we all shared the banana chocolate chimichangas.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> So good, but so filling
> 
> Next we headed over to see Wicked!
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> We were in the dress circle this time which were great seats!
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I loved the show as always, but sometimes I feel like the Glinda's get a little too silly and don't show off their singing chops enough. (I know it's supposed to have funny parts). The woman playing Elphaba could sing really well, it's really hard to match Idina's singing because it's just so powerful, but I think she did great. The Nessarose was actually really good as well though she doesn't sing too much. The only minor character I didn't think was saying his lines/singing all that well was Boq, but he's hardly in it. So all in all a great show!
> 
> I was also very proud that we beat the bathroom lines at intermission. Intermission is always right after "Defying Gravity" which isn't really a song anyone wants to miss.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I told Nina since we've seen it before and we were near an exit that we'll know right when the number is ending and to just run to the bathroom. So that's what we did! The only one faster was a guy who jumped over 3 rows of seats and just ran  He must've really had to go! We were first in line and when we came out the line had hundreds of people in it!  Also when we came out afterwards it was snowing like crazy! But even that was nowhere near today.
> 
> We've decided on our first day to stop by Cowfish before the parks. I'd like to try the burgushi this time!
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> And I've been talking about meeting up at Toothsome with @CatNipRules in September!
> 
> Also who else watched The Vampire Diaries? I've been watching it since it started, and I think it started to decline over the years; but I still watched every week. The finale was on Friday, and while there were some parts I didn't love overall it was emotional to see the end of these stories I had been following for so long.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I also had time to record 2 "about me" vlogs for my channel today. I'm kind of nervous to post these because stuff like this is so far outside my comfort zone, but part of doing this was I wanted to push myself to try something new that I had been wanting to do. If you want to go watch the link is on my insta and in my signature! Or just google "Happiest Haunt youtube channel".
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ​



How'd I miss this post!!!

Adore Wicked! Seen it 3 times in New York........Amazing.......and once in London..........got to be my favourite show ever.........

Yep, defying gravity then rush for the bathrooms........I always book the end two seats, so I get out quick......and time to buy two more cocktails for us too........

Need to catch up on your plans properly tomorrow........looking so good so far..........

Now I want some sushi........


----------



## Raeven

Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina said:


> Very excited to meet you both in person!!    So happy that our dates lined up (albeit barely!!) .
> 
> It's racing up FAST .



We're excited to meet you both too!

It is!



schumigirl said:


> How'd I miss this post!!!
> 
> Adore Wicked! Seen it 3 times in New York........Amazing.......and once in London..........got to be my favourite show ever.........
> 
> Yep, defying gravity then rush for the bathrooms........I always book the end two seats, so I get out quick......and time to buy two more cocktails for us too........
> 
> Need to catch up on your plans properly tomorrow........looking so good so far..........
> 
> Now I want some sushi........



I don't know! But Wicked is awesome! And yes we had end seats and rushed out the door 

Thank you! 

​


----------



## Raeven

I'm back from Chicago!

​


----------



## CatNipRules

Yay. Love the videos. Still haven't gotten up the courage to,do any. Lol. I really need to work on it. Lol.


----------



## Raeven

CatNipRules said:


> Yay. Love the videos. Still haven't gotten up the courage to,do any. Lol. I really need to work on it. Lol.


Thank you! Lol you've got some time to work up the courage. Plus I didn't have anything to film until we went to Chicago so it was hard to start. ​


----------



## tinkerbell1991

Following along


----------



## Raeven

*25th birthday trip*-5 weeks
*Halloween trip*-23 weeks

Okay time to briefly interrupt my Chicago TR since I want to take a little more time to edit the vlogs and post them with the TR posts. Because I have a planning post! 
If you've read my Disney PTR you know we're signed up for the Pandora AP previews!  Ahh so excited!

But an even more exciting thing happened this afternoon! 

*THEY ANNOUNCED THE FIRST HHN HOUSE AND IT'S AMAZING!*






So last year I was mildly disappointed by the seasons they chose to portray in the HHN house because they left my favorite (Asylum) out. But we ended up loving the house and it was overall my favorite. This year they're bringing the AHS house back with the Asylum, Coven, and Roanoke seasons! Those are 3 of my favorites! (I didn't love the way Coven ended, but that's a story for another time and place). The most important thing is they all will make for a fantastic house. 
​


----------



## Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina

Raeven said:


> I also got the email about the new food options at Volcano Bay, but I haven't really gotten a chance to watch it yet. We have till September to get information on Volcano Bay though. So far I didn't plan to eat at Volcano Bay, but if I see something that looks good we may. ​



We were hoping that Volcano Bay was going to be offered at no extra cost to preferred and premier passholders, but alas.....with the latest announcements, we now know its not the case.  So, we're trying to decide if we should add on a day at Volcano Bay and pay out of pocket, or a MNSSHP.  

It's a tough choice.  

I suppose we could do both, but we're already planning for HHN with an RIP tour and the Scareactor dining experience, and we're having family join us for the week (Steve's brother and sister-in-law).  We have to be mindful of their budget (as they will also need to purchase Universal tickets......we are passmembers but they are not) and they are Canadian, so they have a 35% exchange fee to add on to all costs.

Volcano Bay is sounding pretty darn cool, though.  And I wasn't too horrified by the single day admission price of $67 per adult.  That's actually less than I was expecting.

I suppose we'll wait for the MNSSHP ticket prices and compare for 'value'.


----------



## Raeven

Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina said:


> We were hoping that Volcano Bay was going to be offered at no extra cost to preferred and premier passholders, but alas.....with the latest announcements, we now know its not the case.  So, we're trying to decide if we should add on a day at Volcano Bay and pay out of pocket, or a MNSSHP.
> 
> It's a tough choice.



Me too! If I had to choose I'd pick Mnsshp because I'm not a big water park person. But if you can do both... 



Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina said:


> I suppose we could do both, but we're already planning for HHN with an RIP tour and the Scareactor dining experience, and we're having family join us for the week (Steve's brother and sister-in-law).  We have to be mindful of their budget (as they will also need to purchase Universal tickets......we are passmembers but they are not) and they are Canadian, so they have a 35% exchange fee to add on to all costs.



Ooo that sounds cool! I want to do 2 HHN's this year so it'll be a little more costly than usual (although we did the Unmasking the Horror tour last year and I don't think we're doing it again this year). But I'm debating the Scareactor Dining still since last year's wasn't great.



Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina said:


> Volcano Bay is sounding pretty darn cool, though.  And I wasn't too horrified by the single day admission price of $67 per adult.  That's actually less than I was expecting.
> 
> I suppose we'll wait for the MNSSHP ticket prices and compare for 'value'.



The price isn't bad. But it's not worth it to upgrade passes for since we'd probably go only once in a year. I guess we're just going to buy 1 day tickets and I don't know about EP for those. I had thought the new system would take the place of EP for Volcano Bay but that's not the case. I know Mnsshp tickets will be more expensive unless you're adding EP to Volcano Bay's then they would be.
​


----------



## Raeven

Chicago TR Day 2

(I'm going to post about our night at Shulas and the last day next time). 


And the vlog from day 2 & 3:


----------



## Raeven

Because I'm still deciding on my outfits, and there's a few things I haven't gotten just yet, I'll probably post my weekly post over the weekend. But tonight I'll post about our night at Shula's! (I know I said the last day of the Chicago TR was coming too, but that will probably also be over the weekend since I'm still working on the vlog for that day).
​


----------



## Raeven

*25th birthday trip*-4 weeks
*Halloween trip-*22 weeks






I have a lot to share with you guys coming up! I still have the third and final day of our Chicago trip upcoming (and Josh thinks I should make a blooper reel), and I have to get to our daily itineraries before we go! 
This weekend I have to work on Saturday  because I'm taking the civil service test on Sunday! I'm hoping I do well enough on it to get a job with the state.

So before I post our May outfits I've got some planning stuff: 

They  released the Volcano Bay ticket info right after my last post! With the prices it actually makes sense for us just to buy a day ticket during September instead of adding it to our APs. I don't know if we'll be back to VB again within the year and if we do it would only be maybe one other time. They also released a food preview, and I'm excited for the desserts and drinks, but I don't know if any of the other food really stands out for me. 

(*Edit:* This was originally a post of the outfits for our May trip, but due to Photobucket issues the pictures can no longer be seen. I usually delete those pictures after I post them so I no longer have them to repost). 
​


----------



## pattyw

I like your outfits!  Three pairs of shoes?  You're good!  I always bring too many.  I'm interested to hear more about the fan.  DS has a battery operated fan we got on Amazon and it works good. This one looks interesting.  Definitely needed for those late spring, summer, and fall visits!


----------



## Raeven

pattyw said:


> I like your outfits!  Three pairs of shoes?  You're good!  I always bring too many.  I'm interested to hear more about the fan.  DS has a battery operated fan we got on Amazon and it works good. This one looks interesting.  Definitely needed for those late spring, summer, and fall visits!



Thank you!  yeah I've tried switching sneakers before and it didn't really work for me because these are the most comfortable ones I have. So I still ended up with blisters and less room in my luggage. I probably wouldn't even bring sandals if it weren't for nice dinners. With so much walking sneakers are the only shoes that are really practical for me. 

I'll report back about the fan! ​


----------



## Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina

You're shaming me with your organization.  I leave before you do and I haven't given a thought to clothing yet.  I guess I need to get cracking!


----------



## Raeven

Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina said:


> You're shaming me with your organization.  I leave before you do and I haven't given a thought to clothing yet.  I guess I need to get cracking!



 I need too much time to go through all my clothes. I am starting to feel like it's time to start packing though... I keep forgetting that you leave earlier than me. I think it's about a week or so earlier, right? Remember to PM me your phone number before you go so we can get in touch to meet up! ​


----------



## Raeven

Chicago Day 3 TR
​


----------



## Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina

Raeven said:


> I need too much time to go through all my clothes. I am starting to feel like it's time to start packing though... I keep forgetting that you leave earlier than me. I think it's about a week or so earlier, right? *Remember to PM me your phone number before you go so we can get in touch to meet up! *​



Done!


----------



## schumigirl

Oh I have to get me one of those fans!!  

Wonder if they have them in purple...........

Nice updates..........it's so close to your trip now!!


----------



## jagafen

Love your outfit choices...a girl after my own heart. I'm a chronic overpacker...but FL in the summer is so hot and sticky, I find that I need 2 outfits a day sometimes. Don't get me started on shoes. I'm trying to be good this time, and I'm planning on 2 pairs of sneakers, and 2 pairs of flip flops...one blingy for dinners at nicer places (but let's be real, I'll pack at least 2 pairs of blingy), and one pair for pool lounging. I haven't started any "real" packing yet, so I'm not sure what's going to make the list.

Also, I invested in packing cubes, if you're an "organization" kind of girl. Park clothes in one, dinner clothes in another, shoes, etc. saves a ton of room in your bags. Also going to check out those fans!


----------



## Raeven

schumigirl said:


> Oh I have to get me one of those fans!!
> 
> Wonder if they have them in purple...........
> 
> Nice updates..........it's so close to your trip now!!



They do have them in purple!

Thank you! And yes I'm so excited!



jagafen said:


> Love your outfit choices...a girl after my own heart. I'm a chronic overpacker...but FL in the summer is so hot and sticky, I find that I need 2 outfits a day sometimes. Don't get me started on shoes. I'm trying to be good this time, and I'm planning on 2 pairs of sneakers, and 2 pairs of flip flops...one blingy for dinners at nicer places (but let's be real, I'll pack at least 2 pairs of blingy), and one pair for pool lounging. I haven't started any "real" packing yet, so I'm not sure what's going to make the list.
> 
> Also, I invested in packing cubes, if you're an "organization" kind of girl. Park clothes in one, dinner clothes in another, shoes, etc. saves a ton of room in your bags. Also going to check out those fans!



Thank you! Right, I feel like I need 2 a day? I hate walking around feeling sweaty.  Shoes are a little easier because I don't find a lot of shoes comfortable. 

 Yes they do I bought packing cubes before out first trip and I use them whenever we go now.​


----------



## Raeven

*25th Birthday Trip-*3 weeks
*Halloween Trip-*21 weeks

*Friday is 20 days!*
*So now I'll start my itinerary posts! *Each week till we go I'm going to post the plans for one of the 3 days we'll be in Universal. The Disney portion will be in my other PTR. 

For those of you keeping track of how many days we have at Universal you're probably confused....and now I've given it away...but we're adding an afternoon at Universal while we're in Disney! Confusing, I know. Why not just spend Sunday there? It makes more sense, but we have to go over to Disney that day. There's too many things only happening that day we can't miss (Cali Grill brunch, dismeets, last time seeing Wishes, etc). But we do have some free time, and so we discussed going back to Universal on Friday afternoon. 

But for now here's day 1: 

*May 5th*

We of course changed our flight to the bright and early time of 6:45 am.


I don't know why, but while I love to sleep in; it doesn't quite feel like vacation if we don't have to get up at 4 am and then board a plane! Plus we get there early (so extra day!), and who can sleep the night before vacation anyway?


We should get there at 9:40 am, although we've gotten there up to an hour earlier before.

Our first hotel will be the Hard Rock, and we've never stayed there before! (Though we did visit in December). 

Far enough into the day to avoid any delays (hopefully) we have a lunch planned at Mythos (*edit: *we may do Breadbox or NBC Grill instead), and a dismeet planned at Floreans with @Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina . Though hopefully far enough apart from lunch to regain some stomach room because I am eating that banana chocolate gooey cake this time, but I really want some Florean's ice cream too!




We will be going back and forth for this via the Hogwarts Express, because we'll be spending the rest of our time for the day in IOA. I love it there, but we generally tend to spend the least amount of time here because I don't ride a lot of the rides.

I'd like to get in: Poseidon's Fury (if we ever get there in time to get in line), Dragon Challenge, The Hulk, and Forbidden Journey for Josh, another Raptor Encounter, Jurassic Park River Adventure, Reign of Kong, Spiderman, and maybe a water ride or two if we want to get completely soaked.

Around 4pm I'd like to get back to the hotel to shower, change, or whatever we need before heading to Disney Springs!

We're having one dismeet at Jock Lindsey's, and then meeting Jenna (from my Chicago TR) and her MIL for dinner at Homecomin'.

 in case I forget to say it Happy Easter everyone! I'm very glad next work week is only 4 days!

​


----------



## macraven

Your trip is so close now!!!


----------



## Raeven

macraven said:


> Your trip is so close now!!!


​ ​


----------



## Raeven

*20 days!*

This is kind of a non weekly update...update.

I also have some hotel updates for all our trips! First I should mention what prompted this: Universal just released the news that they're decorating the HP areas for Christmas and doing a Christmas HP show  I am so incredibly excited for this. It was rumored last year, but obviously didn't happen then. So I decided that completely changes our Christmas trip. Instead of being mostly Disney with one afternoon at USO it's going to be mostly USO and we'll just go to MVMCP and DS one day. This actually frees up some money because I won't be renewing/rebuying my AP until sometime next year then, and Josh won't have to buy a ticket for the parks.

So with that AP renewal money I'm going to upgrade hotels (and fix my car if we don't find a door)!

*So for the May trip:  *We booked HRH the whole first weekend! The reason I couldn't see availability before is because there's nothing for the 5th-8th at the AP rate, but there is availability the 6th-8th (and we were already booked the first night). My only thing is I'm not sure if they'll combine our reservations or if we'll have to check out and check in again, but I'll ask at the desk. 

*September trip*: I kept switching around moderates and nothing felt 100% right. I even looked at BC again, but the cheaper rooms appeared to be gone. Then this morning I checked again, and it was there! 

*December trip*: We decided to switch from AoA to something at USO since that's where we'll be most the time now. We've decided to go with Portofino Bay again because we had such a good Christmastime there last year.
​


----------



## Raeven

*25th birthday trip*-2 weeks 
*Halloween trip*-20 weeks
*HP Christmas trip*-33 weeks 

First of all



the nacho tradition is still going strong!

I'm also marking the return of the food pictures I like to post. Skip to the itinerary section if you already read the Disney TR. We went to the Standard this weekend. This is the kind of restaurant I'd call Faux Brown Derby. They are going for a similar theme and have a similar menu but everything has kind of a modern twist.




I've eaten here many times in the past and have enjoyed burgers, the parmesan crusted chicken, and the cobb salad. To drink I had the frozen Atomic Chill (which if I posted about it before I ordered this when I went with my friend Tammy too). It's Bacardi Superior, strawberry, and pineapple. 



Filet Mignon Carpaccio Thinly Sliced Raw Filet Mignon Topped with Arugula, Black Olives and Coach Farms, goat cheese, and shaved parmesan.

Josh wanted to try some carpaccio again after loving the one at the Brown Derby, but he wasn't as big a fan of this one. He said there was way too much arugula. 



I ordered a Cobb salad in appetizer form which doesn't exist there it's considered "gourmet". And now I know why. It was good as usual, but completely missing any chicken. We were seated close to where the waitstaff grabbed orders, and I overheard our waitress asking her boss about turning this into an appetizer for me (which I paid extra for). His response was to leave off the chicken because that made it "gourmet"  I probably should have called them out on it, but it was just so strange to me.

I ordered a small side so I could order more food which = more money for them. It also wasn't really chopped like a Cobb salad but I rarely see anywhere that actually seems to do that. 



Josh got ribs for dinner. I don't remember entrees being huge last time, but he said he wished he didn't get an appetizer. Half of this came home with us. 



I went with an old favorite parmesan crusted chicken. Which was good, but half of this also got boxed up. 



We didn't stay in the mall long besides buying Josh new work boots, but we did stop in ThinkGeek...



Sorry I'm one of those people that like Negan. I thought the Walking Dead was getting kind of boring before him and Lucille arrived 

The next day was Easter and my aunt was preparing a brunch feast. Her kitchen (and the food) was kind of all over the place so no pictures there.



Later on I ate again at my dad's and he asked me to photograph his cheesecake: 
 





Oh also my aunt gave us the rest of her strawberries and we found a mutant 





Okay back to the itinerary posts! 

*May 6th*

We were previously changing to CBBR for the rest of the weekend, but managed to score a last minute AP rate at HRH!






I know, right?

The plan is to get a french braid done that day at Portofino Bay's Mandara Spa since I can't go a trip without seeing this beautiful place and I planned a late start for the day with an early lunch at Toothsome. (*Edit:* I think we're switching the meals up a bit and doing Mythos then Toothsome this day instead of Vivo, and moving Vivo to Sep).

I want to try all the milkshakes but that strawberry cheesecake one...






Anyway the day will be spent in Universal Studios. Where we will get to ride Race Through NY for the first time, and I will beat Josh at Men In Black.  Many times...I was reading some tips the other day so I plan to beat him by a lot 

I'd like to do all the rides we like, and see both the Horror Makeup show and Terminator 2 3-D. If not we can see one when we go back, but I love both those shows. I plan to do the things Josh normally doesn't want to because I can pull the birthday card  (Like Shrek 4-D and Kang and Kodos). 

Once we do all we want there we'll probably go freshen (and dress up!) before we go to Vivo for dinner. We've never been there, and I felt like we couldn't leave Italian food out of my birthday trip because it's my favorite so we're trying it out!

We'll head back to USO afterwards to see Diagon Alley at night again, and catch Cinematic Spectacular. (This is the first time it's been playing while we were there).​


----------



## macraven

Sounds like you have it all planned down to a T !!!


----------



## Raeven

We went to the Melting Pot this weekend to celebrate 2 weeks till our next trip! Here's our first weekend vlog:





​


----------



## Robo56

Hello Raeven  Enjoying your PTR and your vlog videos. You are a cute couple. So nice that you have a boyfriend who loves to go to the parks too.

You and your friend are brave souls to go to into the city off Chicago. I was raised in the a suburb of Chicago and used to go to the city for shopping and dining trips. Moved away from there 33 years ago. Go up to area for shopping trip every year with younger sister , but have avoided the city do to crime and protests last 2 years.

Grandkids and I visited the Sugar Factory in Orlando last year and had the exact same drink you and your friend had.
They enjoyed it. It's a bit of a theatre drink. With all the bubbling. 

Your trip is coming up soon. Looks like you are all organized with your trip plans and outfits. Very cute outfits. Food pics are very nice too.

Will look forward to your trip report.


----------



## macraven

Ha!
I lived in Chicago for years and then moved out of the city for n suburbs

Still crowded there

Nice place for a tourist
Living there all your life meant cold weather and snow and short very short summers

I moved to Georgia now and life is good
Did go back last week to chgo to visit and was glad to return home

There are great places to visit in the city 
I'm sure you will enjoy it there !!


----------



## Raeven

Robo56 said:


> Hello Raeven  Enjoying your PTR and your vlog videos. You are a cute couple. So nice that you have a boyfriend who loves to go to the parks too.



Hi  Thank you! I'm very lucky that he enjoys going too. 



Robo56 said:


> You and your friend are brave souls to go to into the city off Chicago. I was raised in the a suburb of Chicago and used to go to the city for shopping and dining trips. Moved away from there 33 years ago. Go up to area for shopping trip every year with younger sister , but have avoided the city do to crime and protests last 2 years.



I think we were in a pretty nice part of the city. I'm not as familiar with the area, but she lives 8 hours away and has been there before so I trusted her to tell me where we should go for what we wanted to do. I didn't think it was too bad, we've been to a few big cities, and I felt like NYC was worst. Walking around there at night made me a bit more uncomfortable. However we also didn't do much walking at night here either. 



Robo56 said:


> Grandkids and I visited the Sugar Factory in Orlando last year and had the exact same drink you and your friend had.
> They enjoyed it. It's a bit of a theatre drink. With all the bubbling.



It is! They definitely embrace the rep of being theatrical and having people take pictures of/film their drinks. 



Robo56 said:


> Your trip is coming up soon. Looks like you are all organized with your trip plans and outfits. Very cute outfits. Food pics are very nice too.



It is I'm so excited! Thank you!  I post lots of food pictures so I'm glad people actually like them. 



Robo56 said:


> Will look forward to your trip report.







macraven said:


> I moved to Georgia now and life is good
> Did go back last week to chgo to visit and was glad to return home



One day we're going to move somewhere warm too! Sounds much nicer than Chicago ​


----------



## macraven

Love living in Georgia 

Wish we would had been able to move here years ago!


----------



## Raeven

*25th birthday trip*-1 week!
*Halloween trip*-19 weeks
*HP Christmas trip-*32 weeks​
​
So this isn't my last post before I go, but we are at SINGLE DIGIT DAYS! More specifically 8 days, 4 hours.​
​
​
​
I am really partying it up right now listening to old Nick Lachey songs when I should be in bed for work. ​
I consider myself "on vacation" the minute I get out of work on Thursday, and then it'll be about 12 hours till our flight.  I've got one more vlog before we go, and I'll probably post throughout next week because I'm just so excited!

Onto our last day! 


*May 11th
*
We'll start the morning with a Grand Floridian Cafe reservation. Or will we?  I do want to shop around at the GF at some point, but we're actually going back to USO for the day. As we were planning we were both kind of disappointed we didn't get our usual 3rd day at Universal due to all the Disney stuff on Sunday, so I planned it for a day we (hopefully) have enough free time. So now I kind of want to do lunch there, and give Cowfish another try. I'm not sure if we'll be hungry enough to do both before dinner.​


(Sorry I had too Pre Nick Lachey I was just marathoning Men In Black movies while starting the packing...er getting totally distracted by Men In Black movies so we'll start packing on Friday).​
I don't have any plans at Universal just do the things we missed and then whatever we want. We have a reservation at SciFi that night and I'm afraid we'll have too many burgers that day too  Is there such a thing?​

​
Dean Winchester doesn't think so, so I'll have to conclude there is no such thing.

And a bonus: ​
*May 12th*

This is neither Disney or Universal but...

At 3 pm we're going to Amazing Animals Inc (hence why we need the car). It's an animal sanctuary about 40 minutes away that does private tours. We saw them in one of the TimTracker's vlogs, and then I made an appointment for a tour. You get to hold and pet most the animals too  I'm also pretty sure you can't pet this one but they have a fox...I'm so in love with foxes that I was pretty much done when I saw that. I knew I needed to see the fox for my birthday. If there's even the potential to pet one I'll be a very happy girl. ​





(Me over foxes) But if you know what that gif is from there will be sloths there too...​
​
​
​


----------



## jagafen

Raeven said:


> I consider myself "on vacation" the minute I get out of work on Thursday, ​


​Me too. In fact, I just registered for a continuing Ed conference for my last official work day for vacation....So I'll be "off" after work on a Thursday as well!! We don't fly out until Sunday, but that gives me all of Saturday to do last minute stuff like manis and pedis. DH will spend that day packing. How do men do it like that?


----------



## Raeven

jagafen said:


> Me too. In fact, I just registered for a continuing Ed conference for my last official work day for vacation....So I'll be "off" after work on a Thursday as well!! We don't fly out until Sunday, but that gives me all of Saturday to do last minute stuff like manis and pedis. DH will spend that day packing. How do men do it like that?



 

I don't get it either! Josh isn't allowed to pack last minute or without a checklist anymore because he misplaces important stuff ​


----------



## vrajewski10513

Raeven said:


> french fry connoisseur


YOU TOO?!?! 



Raeven said:


> This is trip 3/4 for our year having APs (and our 4th trip ever).


You're definitely getting some good use out of those APs!



Raeven said:


> This trip is for my 25th birthday!


Happy Birthday!



Raeven said:


> I don't think I have any news about May besides that the new Jimmy Fallon ride is going to be open when we go there!


I have high hopes!! But, things I've read are a little disappointing 



Raeven said:


> Speaking of our second trip there's been some potential HHN dates leaked, and I really really hope they're true. For our September trip (which will probably be added to this PTR as we go along) we need HHN to start the same weekend as last year. We'll only be in Orlando until the 17th so we'll have to go on opening weekend.


Since they've been released since you wrote this, its safe to say you lucked out!



Raeven said:


> So yesterday I got in a car accident, I'm fine and my car is alright (I can still drive it)


Oh no! I'm glad you're ok!



Raeven said:


> We're definitely going back to Toothsome again since there's still so many things we haven't tried! And so many milkshakes to try! Maybe I'll have to stop here more than once for a milkshake....
> 
> This chocolate brownie one looks good...
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> or the Red Velvet....
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> or the banana one....
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> or the chocolate x5 one...
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> and of course I want to get my favorite strawberry cheesecake again!
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Okay now that you're all drooling from the milkshakes I'll move on.


I WANT ALLLLLL THE MILKSHAKESS!



Raeven said:


> As for our September trip we're still thinking HRH but I'm also considering CBBR because we really wanted to go back there but we do enjoy having EP. We'll just have to see when we get closer to booking!


We're actually staying at both of those in October! We did love CBBR last September, but I'm looking forward to trying out HRH.


----------



## vrajewski10513

Raeven said:


> And we finally got a snowstorm! My car was buried (twice) yesterday  Work was still open, but no customers came in.


Haha this isnt usually something we're excited for in my neck of the woods, but hey, whatever floats your boat! haha



Raeven said:


> But we've managed to change the flight home (in the Disney portion of the trip). But I couldn't find a good deal on a Disney hotel for the extra night, so we shifted the stay a day forwards and added on 2 days at Cabana Bay! We're now doing 1 day at RPR, and 2 at CBBR


Thats awesome! So you'll still get two days with Express pass!



Raeven said:


> I booked a volcano view room


Yayyy! Thats awesome too! Its crazy how much the park has progressed since we were there 6 months ago. 



Raeven said:


> Since we saved money, and the prices changed when we shifted things we were able to rebook at the Wilderness Lodge for Disney.


I haven't had the chance to check out this hotel yet. We have a meal there in December so I;m looking forward to seeing it all decorated!



Raeven said:


> I also don't know if I mentioned this before either, but this year I want to do two nights at HHN!


US TOO! We got alot done in one night, but it would be nice to not have to go all commando to get it done 



Raeven said:


> but we're going back for a weekend in December!



So much fun!! We will be down there too!!


----------



## vrajewski10513

Raeven said:


> We also booked our September flights last week! Each flight was only $92 each way! Plus we had points so we only paid for 1 (literally 1, just Josh's flight home), fees, and earlybird check in! It came to around $220. We get in at 10:25 am on the 8th and depart at 12:40 pm on the 17th.


Thats a really good deal. 



Raeven said:


> I know my planning is confusing so here's when we're going or thinking of going in 2017 (complete with hotels for those trying to keep up with the changes): May 5-13th 2017,-HRH, CBBR, WL Sep 8-17th 2017,-PORS, RPR. Dec 6-10th? -AoA (Not all those days but the dates depend on flights).


 Holy moly thats alot of hotels lol ON a side note, we will be down there 12/1-12/9 



Raeven said:


> *Friday-Arrival/IOA/DS for dinner
> Food: *The Kitchen or Cowfish for a small lunch,​


Is there such a thing as a "small lunch" at Cowfish??



Raeven said:


> Also who else watched The Vampire Diaries? I've been watching it since it started, and I think it started to decline over the years; but I still watched every week. The finale was on Friday, and while there were some parts I didn't love overall it was emotional to see the end of these stories I had been following for so long.


I totally agree. It started off so great then kinda fizzled out. This last season wasn't incredible but I did have ALL the feels for the finale!



Raeven said:


> decided to get some celebratory buttons for the trip and one is for USO!:


LOVE!



Raeven said:


> If you've read my Disney PTR you know we're signed up for the Pandora AP previews!


I'm so jealous. I'm so excited to see this!!!



Raeven said:


> So last year I was mildly disappointed by the seasons they chose to portray in the HHN house because they left my favorite (Asylum) out. But we ended up loving the house and it was overall my favorite. This year they're bringing the AHS house back with the Asylum, Coven, and Roanoke seasons!


It was my favorite too!! I think the things they could potentially do this year with Asylum, Coven and Roanoke will be incredible!!



Raeven said:


> I also got the email about the new food options at Volcano Bay, but I haven't really gotten a chance to watch it yet. We have till September to get information on Volcano Bay though. So far I didn't plan to eat at Volcano Bay, but if I see something that looks good we may.


The food looks delicious! We booked a Cabana for our October trip so I'm interested to see whats on the "special" menu for cabana guests. I'm sure its posted I just haven't researched yet. 



Raeven said:


> Tank is from Hot Topic, lanyard and hat from Universal, all my shorts are from Aeropostale:


Hot Topic is where i get all my Disney/HP gear as well. That tank is super cute, I cant believe I missed it on the website!



Raeven said:


> We of course changed our flight to the bright and early time of 6:45 am.


The earlier the better on departure day!



Raeven said:


> I don't know why, but while I love to sleep in; it doesn't quite feel like vacation if we don't have to get up at 4 am and then board a plane! Plus we get there early (so extra day!), and who can sleep the night before vacation anyway?


I'm totally the same way. Earlierst flight in, latest flight out. Gotta maximize vacation time!



Raeven said:


> We've decided to go with Portofino Bay again because we had such a good Christmastime there last year.


I've never had the chance to stop over there.. it looks like a beautiful resort!



Raeven said:


> Sorry I'm one of those people that like Negan. I thought the Walking Dead was getting kind of boring before him and Lucille arrived


I LOVE NEGAN! Jeffrey Dean Morgan does an excellent job, but I will forever picture Henry Rollins at Negan. 



Raeven said:


> o this isn't my last post before I go, but we are at SINGLE DIGIT DAYS! More specifically 8 days, 4 hours.






Raeven said:


> Dean Winchester doesn't think so, so I'll have to conclude there is no such thing.​


No such things as too many burgers.. no such thing as too much pie either


----------



## Raeven

vrajewski10513 said:


> YOU TOO?!?!







vrajewski10513 said:


> You're definitely getting some good use out of those APs!



That was the plan 



vrajewski10513 said:


> Happy Birthday!



Thank you! 



vrajewski10513 said:


> I have high hopes!! But, things I've read are a little disappointing



I don't have super high hopes for the rides itself, I think it might make me motion sick; but I do love what I've seen of the queue area. 



vrajewski10513 said:


> Since they've been released since you wrote this, its safe to say you lucked out!



I was pretty sure it would be that weekend, I'm glad it's confirmed now. 



vrajewski10513 said:


> Oh no! I'm glad you're ok!



Thank you, I still haven't fixed the door yet 



vrajewski10513 said:


> I WANT ALLLLLL THE MILKSHAKESS!



Right? 



vrajewski10513 said:


> Haha this isnt usually something we're excited for in my neck of the woods, but hey, whatever floats your boat! haha



I don't remember if that was meant to be excited? It looks that way in the line you quoted  It wasn't a bad day at work though since we didn't do much, and one of the guys ended up clearing off my car so I didn't even have to worry about the snow. 



vrajewski10513 said:


> Thats awesome! So you'll still get two days with Express pass!



That was the plan  although we found a good rate for HRH for the whole time now so we're not doing that.



vrajewski10513 said:


> Yayyy! Thats awesome too! Its crazy how much the park has progressed since we were there 6 months ago.



I was sad about no longer having the volcano view though. It is crazy how fast it went up. When we stayed there less than 2 years ago it was just a dirt pit.



vrajewski10513 said:


> US TOO! We got alot done in one night, but it would be nice to not have to go all commando to get it done



With EP we get it all done, but I just love it so much I want to go more than once. 



vrajewski10513 said:


> Holy moly thats alot of hotels lol ON a side note, we will be down there 12/1-12/9



Yay! You'll be there part of the same weekend as us. 



vrajewski10513 said:


> Is there such a thing as a "small lunch" at Cowfish??



 that's true. 



vrajewski10513 said:


> I totally agree. It started off so great then kinda fizzled out. This last season wasn't incredible but I did have ALL the feels for the finale!



Yeah, and I did totally cry at the finale but wasn't 100% impressed with what they chose to do with it. 



vrajewski10513 said:


> It was my favorite too!! I think the things they could potentially do this year with Asylum, Coven and Roanoke will be incredible!!



Yes!



vrajewski10513 said:


> The food looks delicious! We booked a Cabana for our October trip so I'm interested to see whats on the "special" menu for cabana guests. I'm sure its posted I just haven't researched yet.



Ooo. I was thinking of booking the loungers for us in September. Maybe I should do that now. 



vrajewski10513 said:


> Hot Topic is where i get all my Disney/HP gear as well. That tank is super cute, I cant believe I missed it on the website!



I got it like 2-3 years ago they might now have it anymore. 



vrajewski10513 said:


> I'm totally the same way. Earlierst flight in, latest flight out. Gotta maximize vacation time!







vrajewski10513 said:


> No such things as too many burgers.. no such thing as too much pie either



 Yes! ​


----------



## Raeven

*25th birthday trip*-Friday!
*Halloween trip-*18 weeks
*HP Christmas trip-*31 weeks

So we're at 1 day, 3 hours!



Tomorrow morning we check in for our flight (though we have Early Bird Check In I like to make sure because they haven't checked us in, in the past like they're supposed to). Then it'll be less than 24 hours till we go!

Tonight we're finishing packing, and tomorrow night we're making what is clearly the smartest before vacation decision and going to see Guardians of the Galaxy 2. We're going at 7 pm so we won't get out too late. 
I've been trying to wrap my head around the idea that this weekend we'll be  meeting with Disfriends and having a good time and it doesn't feel real yet! It's still crazy to me that I can talk to some of my Disfriends and say "see you this weekend!"

Here's our itinerary summary:

(Because I like to change things and I don't expect you all to scroll back through all the posts if you missed any).

*May 5th
Flight arrives at 9:40 am
Check into the Hard Rock Hotel*
*Plans:* IOA, DS
*Other: *Lunch will be either Breadbox or NBC Grill, Cinco De Mayo-maybe stop at Anjoitos for a margarita

*May 6th*
*Reservations: *Mythos-11 am
*Plans:* USO, Pool hop and explore hotels
*Night show*: Cinematic Spectacular
*Snack Plans*: Galaxy Bowl for nachos
*Other: *Dinner at Toothsome

*Extra USO Day-May 11th*
*Plans: *USO, HS
*Other: *Cowfish for lunch

​


----------



## ChipDale

Yippee!  There's nothing like the Day Before Vacation Excitement!   Have a *fantastic *vacation!  I am looking forward to reading about it when you return!


----------



## vrajewski10513

Raeven said:


> Tonight we're finishing packing, and tomorrow night we're making what is clearly the smartest before vacation decision and going to see Guardians of the Galaxy 2.


I see this as a nonissue and clearly the correct choice 



Raeven said:


> 've been trying to wrap my head around the idea that this weekend we'll be meeting with Disfriends and having a good time and it doesn't feel real yet! It's still crazy to me that I can talk to some of my Disfriends and say "see you this weekend


How much fun!! I hope you all have a great time!


----------



## Raeven

ChipDale said:


> Yippee!  There's nothing like the Day Before Vacation Excitement!   Have a fantastic vacation!  I am looking forward to reading about it when you return!



Yes! 

Thank you!



vrajewski10513 said:


> I see this as a nonissue and clearly the correct choice
> 
> 
> How much fun!! I hope you all have a great time!



Haha, right?

Thank you!​


----------



## buteraa

Just caught up with everything and it seems I'm right on time for the main events.  Have a safe trip and looking forward to hearing about your first day!


----------



## schumigirl

I'm woeful at keeping up with pre trip reports.......

But, have a wonderful trip.........


----------



## Raeven

On the way!

​


----------



## vrajewski10513

Safe travels!!!


----------



## KsGiGi

Hope y'all have a great trip!!  I'm just a little jealous.  We are headed to Florida next weekend, and wish we were going to Orlando, but a four day trip to the beach will have to do for now.


----------



## macraven

Woot!

You are there and know you having fun!!!


----------



## Raeven

USO TR is up now: 

A Rockin' 25th Birthday at the Hard Rock May 2017-25th BDay TR

And the Disney portion is as well:

"I'm Mary Poppins Y'all" May 2017-25th BDay TR (WL, AKL)
​


----------



## Raeven

*Halloween trip-*15 weeks
*HP Christmas trip-*28 weeks?

*September News*

So I've been neglecting my PTRs while I work on the TR's from my latest trip. But I do have some news! We've booked our Volcano Bay tickets and loungers for 9/15!

I am excited to see Volcano Bay (and eat the food there!) But I am kind of disappointed in the fact that all the slides and such seem too "high thrill" for me.  I'm glad I didn't add it to our passes because right now I only see us going once to check it out. Aside from the lazy river there's only one slide I would consider going on and maybe the aqua coaster. (Now I know I'm just one person and other people probably don't feel this way, but I think making it a water park is already a deterring people who might not be a fan of water parks. But then having all the slides be "high thrill" is deterring even more people. The only way I could see adding it to my pass is maybe if I lived in the area).

Still like I said I'm excited to see it! I was thinking of renting a cabana, but decided against it as I didn't see us staying the whole day and getting our money's worth out of it. So we decided to add it to the morning of a horror nights day, and then do HHN that night. The plan is to do HHN on Friday and Saturday that week.



And since I don't think we'll need EP in the parks Wed and Thurs (and we'll have it one night at Horror Nights), I switched our resort to Sapphire Falls, and added Tuesday night. So now we're staying at Universal the night of 9/12-9/17. I'm planning on approaching my boss soon to ask if it's alright to take my comp day on that Sunday (we don't get the comp day till September so normally you ask then) just to make sure I don't need to change my flight and that we can do both HHN nights before tickets come out. 

*December News*

I'm also having a bit of a dilemma with December. The flights were a little expensive this last week so I decided to hold off on buying them, but I checked again this weekend and the flights are now astronomically expensive. With Southwest I usually don't see flights coming back down because it means they're selling them fast when the prices rise (several flights in Nov-Jan are already sold out).

Since the HP Christmas stuff goes up in Mid November-the beginning of Jan I've been looking at every weekend within that in every combination I can, but the cheapest I see is $800 RT for us both which is A LOT more than it ever costs to fly to Florida from here. Even switching to a cheaper hotel still isn't bringing the numbers down to a feasible amount. I also don't have any other vacation days so I can't add days or go mid week when it's cheaper. No other airlines have anything cheaper, and Josh doesn't like flights with stops in them (not that, that would really save us any money because then we'd have to leave super early and lose a day). I really really want to see this stuff, but I'm kind of at the point where I'm thinking of scrapping the December trip because it's more work and money than it's worth to go for a long weekend. ​


----------



## CatNipRules

Oh we are going to be there for three days together. LOL!

I feel the same way about Volcano Bay. I like water parks, but this just seems kind of blah to me. They kept saying that it was a theme water park. Chris and I were watching the DisUnplugged Video that they did. To me, it didn't seem like that great of a park.

Have you checked Frontier Airlines? They are insanely cheap. For Chris, me and Jordan it would have been $240 round trip. That's for all three of us. I believe you have to pay for checked bags, but it's still cheap. I was going to fly, but we would need a car when we are there so we decided to drive.


----------



## Raeven

CatNipRules said:


> Oh we are going to be there for three days together. LOL!



Yes! Maybe we'll run into each other more than once. 

Edit: I just saw your message! I'll answer this part in there!



CatNipRules said:


> I feel the same way about Volcano Bay. I like water parks, but this just seems kind of blah to me. They kept saying that it was a theme water park. Chris and I were watching the DisUnplugged Video that they did. To me, it didn't seem like that great of a park.



Thank you! I wasn't sure other people agreed. I am still so excited to see it, but I don't think it's for me. I watched the videos too! I'm glad they described some of the slides because it's hard to tell how intense they are just watching people go down them. But they even seemed to think a lot of them were too intense. Another reason I'm not too keen on water parks is because I can't swim very well, and I have sinus issues so going underwater isn't fun for me. I actually almost drowned coming off a waterslide as a kid in a local water park...

 Also there's one slide where I've seen a few videos of people falling off or the floats capsizing, and if there's any chance of that I probably wouldn't go on. 



CatNipRules said:


> Have you checked Frontier Airlines? They are insanely cheap. For Chris, me and Jordan it would have been $240 round trip. That's for all three of us. I believe you have to pay for checked bags, but it's still cheap. I was going to fly, but we would need a car when we are there so we decided to drive.



I just looked and unfortunately Frontier Airlines doesn't fly out of our airport. The closest is NYC. If we were willing to go to NYC or NJ then we could get a cheap flight through a number of airlines, but then we'd also be on a train for 3 hours on top of the flight and it would come out to be the same cost anyway. ​


----------



## tink1957

Yay for adding more days to your trip...that's always good 

I also feel the same about VB, I  will not do the drop slides...no atomic wedgie for me.  I can see us enjoying the  rest of the park in nice beach chairs with an attendant to fetch us food and whatnot...that part sounds heavenly


----------



## vrajewski10513

Raeven said:


> We've booked our Volcano Bay tickets and loungers for 9/15!


Awesome!



Raeven said:


> So we decided to add it to the morning of a horror nights day, and then do HHN that night. The plan is to do HHN on Friday and Saturday that week.


We actually got our Cabana for a day before HHN. Granted, it is going to be our 4th night in a week of HHN so were not in a rush to get there right at opening.



Raeven said:


> And since I don't think we'll need EP in the parks Wed and Thurs (and we'll have it one night at Horror Nights), I switched our resort to Sapphire Falls, and added Tuesday night. So now we're staying at Universal the night of 9/12-9/17.


I've been wanting to check out Sapphire Falls, it looks very relaxing.



Raeven said:


> I'm also having a bit of a dilemma with December. The flights were a little expensive this last week so I decided to hold off on buying them, but I checked again this weekend and the flights are now astronomically expensive. With Southwest I usually don't see flights coming back down because it means they're selling them fast when the prices rise (several flights in Nov-Jan are already sold out).


I ALWAYS book as soon as the flights are released for Southwest. Those have always seemed to be the lowest prices, barring the semi-annual sale. I think that goes on in June and October? Maybe you'll get lucky in June!



Raeven said:


> I really really want to see this stuff, but I'm kind of at the point where I'm thinking of scrapping the December trip because it's more work and money than it's worth to go for a long weekend.


As much as I am excited to see it all, I would have to agree with you. I definitely couldn't bring myself to spend that much on flights for a long weekend either.


----------



## schumigirl

Such a good idea to rent the Cabana for part of your HHN day.......you'll be well rested I imagine to enjoy a longer night.......I'm looking forward to going in and seeing VB.....but I don't like water parks, so it's really just to see everything, not actually go on anything.......we will be in and out in an hour, maybe longer if we eat some food there which does look good! 

Shame about the December flights......I feel your pain. Our flights from the UK are high this year, more than we usually pay, but hey ho, it is what it is...........hope you get something sorted though and don't have to cancel your plans.


----------



## Raeven

tink1957 said:


> Yay for adding more days to your trip...that's always good
> 
> I also feel the same about VB, I  will not do the drop slides...no atomic wedgie for me.  I can see us enjoying the  rest of the park in nice beach chairs with an attendant to fetch us food and whatnot...that part sounds heavenly



It's true I don't want an atomic wedgie  but someone else fetching us food sounds nice.



vrajewski10513 said:


> Awesome!







vrajewski10513 said:


> We actually got our Cabana for a day before HHN. Granted, it is going to be our 4th night in a week of HHN so were not in a rush to get there right at opening.



We definitely want to get there at the opening on our day because it's the first day of HHN, and I want to see the little opening ceremony.



vrajewski10513 said:


> I've been wanting to check out Sapphire Falls, it looks very relaxing.



We stayed there last September and it's really beautiful!




vrajewski10513 said:


> I ALWAYS book as soon as the flights are released for Southwest. Those have always seemed to be the lowest prices, barring the semi-annual sale. I think that goes on in June and October? Maybe you'll get lucky in June!



I try to. Usually it doesn't matter if you catch it later that week or something but this time it seems like the prices just skyrocketed! In September I got an excellent price on the first day, and the next opening is coming up for flights through March next year so I'm planning to buy our flights for a long weekend during the Mardi Gras events then. Usually out of our airport the only sale fares are to Washington, but I'll keep a lookout!



vrajewski10513 said:


> As much as I am excited to see it all, I would have to agree with you. I definitely couldn't bring myself to spend that much on flights for a long weekend either.



Yeah  it's just not worth it. 



schumigirl said:


> Such a good idea to rent the Cabana for part of your HHN day.......you'll be well rested I imagine to enjoy a longer night.......I'm looking forward to going in and seeing VB.....but I don't like water parks, so it's really just to see everything, not actually go on anything.......we will be in and out in an hour, maybe longer if we eat some food there which does look good!
> 
> Shame about the December flights......I feel your pain. Our flights from the UK are high this year, more than we usually pay, but hey ho, it is what it is...........hope you get something sorted though and don't have to cancel your plans.



We ended up renting the loungers instead since I know we won't be there all day, but I think it'll be worth it to have a place to sit since I know Josh will want to go on everything but I won't 

I do think they're higher this year! We went the same week last year and we always fly on weekends and I didn't buy them right away and they were still a good price. These went from okay to unreasonable much faster than ever before. Since I wanted to do a long weekend during Mardi Gras too I'm looking at just doing that right now since the window for those flights isn't open yet. I might be able to get those for a good price. ​


----------



## schumigirl

I did read you had booked loungers......lol.......I'm looking at my nieces pictures from Volcano Bay and admiring their Cabana on my other IPad at the same time as reading on here on this iPad! 

Can't even blame wine as I haven't had any........

Yes, I wouldn't do any of the water things......I hate water, don't like getting my face wet or in my ears......I'm a wimp! I'd be on a lounger or a Cabana too if we were going for longer than an hour or so........


----------



## Raeven

schumigirl said:


> I did read you had booked loungers......lol.......I'm looking at my nieces pictures from Volcano Bay and admiring their Cabana on my other IPad at the same time as reading on here on this iPad!
> 
> Can't even blame wine as I haven't had any........







schumigirl said:


> Yes, I wouldn't do any of the water things......I hate water, don't like getting my face wet or in my ears......I'm a wimp! I'd be on a lounger or a Cabana too if we were going for longer than an hour or so........



Haha I don't blame you I don't like that either! ​


----------



## nouvellefleur

Not to be creepy, but you're upstate NY aren't you? Have you checked JetBlue out of Albany? I fly out of Albany and got good prices for my upcoming visit (7 days to go!)


----------



## Raeven

nouvellefleur said:


> Not to be creepy, but you're upstate NY aren't you? Have you checked JetBlue out of Albany? I fly out of Albany and got good prices for my upcoming visit (7 days to go!)



Yes, that's where we fly out of. But I've checked every airline that flies out of the airport and unfortunately none of them are cheaper than $800. JetBlue is even more and most the flights are already sold out. 

Have a great trip!​


----------



## Raeven

*HHN trip-*14 weeks

*September news*

This post is going to be all about food!

We'll have 4.5 days of food on this trip which is longer than usual, and I have lots of plans for it. 

*Wednesday*
Cowfish
Caribbean Carnaval

I'm disappointed we missed Cowfish on this trip so I hope to remedy that. We also booked the Caribbean Carnaval because I've heard so little about this and I'm curious. The food sounds good (similar to Strongwater Tavern). We booked priority seats because it was only like $7 more a person so why not? I figured it would be better for pictures and video anyway.

*Thursday*
Margaritaville
Toothsome

We were so sad we missed Toothsome this last time! But the plan is to eat there with @CatNipRules. 

*Friday*
Volcano Bay food
Breadbox

In the morning we'll be at Volcano Bay, and then I want to grab something quick before HHN. I wasn't able to taste anything due to being sick the only other time we went to Breadbox so I really want to try it again.

*Saturday*
 Amatista Cookhouse
Jake's

Originally I thought Amatista made sense on the last day because it's in our hotel, but going to RPR for breakfast and then later dinner seem to make much sense either so I think this works better. BTW for anyone who remembers our horrible breakfast at Amatista last time we will NOT be going back for that buffet. We had wanted to go for entrees the first time, and that's what we'll do this time. Now I know to go before 10:30 am. I love huevos rancheros and this is the only place with them on the menu so I'll give them a second chance.

*Sunday*
Islands

Our flight out is at 12:40 pm so I don't think we'll really have park time, but we can eat breakfast before we go. I originally thought Amatista because it's in our hotel so that's convenient. But we would have time to go to Islands. We could possibly have a leisurely breakfast instead of trying to force park time where it wouldn't fit. 

*Snacks*
Galaxy Bowl-nachos
Floreans-Ice cream
Dhurm Kantine-Alcoholic lollipops
More Toothsome milkshakes
Butterbeer

I still really want to eat at Anjoitos and Vivo, but they sadly don't fit into our plans since we have 2 things that can't be moved on the first 2 nights, and the next 2 are HHN. I wish they opened before 5 pm! Maybe next time though. 

*December News*

This is the last time they'll be December news because I've officially decided to cancel the December trip. The flight prices are only going up higher as more and more of them are sold out. Since we went last year (the same weekend we'd leave this year), and had very reasonably priced flights; I didn't think this was going to be a problem. But yes I've checked every single airline flying out of this airport on just about every combo of flights. There isn't any for any weekend we've looked at below $800 RT, and we're just not willing to spend that for a weekend away.   

Since this wasn't a fully fleshed out trip though I'm feeling positive about the change. 

Well until it starts snowing here and I see all the sunshine and HP decorations.

On a more positive note now we'll be able to go to Disney on Ice (usually around the time we would've gone in Dec), we'll have more money to spend on Xmas presents and our September trip, and a Mardi Gras trip is a definite now in either Feb or March (well flight prices permitting but they aren't out yet so I should be able to catch them while they're cheap)!  And yes a PTR for that will start after this next trip is finished, because I definitely want to do a long weekend for Mardi Gras. ​


----------



## Raeven

*HHN trip-*13 weeks

So this week HHN tickets went on sale! It seems like there were some issues with being able to buy them the first couple days, but I did manage to buy them when they first came out. We went with Rush of Fear passes because it was cheaper than buying 2 separate days. In my excitement to buy them though I missed the AP prices, but I think it would've only saved about $20 so I'm not going to go through the hassle of exchanging them for the AP price. We also bought EP for Saturday night. It wasn't working when I clicked on it at first, but eventually it just showed up!

I did debate if I should get EP for Friday because it's cheaper and I've heard it can be busier opening night, but I decided to stick with my original plan. My plan is on Friday night to go with no EP and probably do the AP holding area (if they have that again this year). I figured we can get a few houses in early, then check out scare zones, food, games, go on on some rides, spend some time in Diagon Alley, the shows, etc. Basically take our time and see everything which we can't usually do when we go one night and spend the whole night going from house to house. The following night we'll have EP and we'll do all the houses then, maybe ride some rides, and repeat any of the shows we liked. 

(You can skip this part if you follow my Disney PTR as it's pretty much the same).

Other than that we did go out with the idea in mind of trying a new restaurant in the area this weekend. It's called the Tipsy Moose and seemed to have a pretty interesting menu. However when we arrived there I realized it was very small, and kind of looked like a sports bar (which is not at all what the menu or pictures I saw made me think). We waited for a couple minutes once we got inside before anyone even noticed us then they directed us to the back counter where a lady said we could wait to sit inside (despite there being tables) or sit outside now. We sat outside, and it took awhile for the menus and then awhile longer for a server to come over. Josh asked about the gluten free options, and the server just looked at him like she was annoyed and said "you can order a salad".  Truly I think that's the rudest and least accommodating a place has ever been about his allergy. I told him if we can't both eat a meal then we'll go somewhere else. It can be really hard to judge a place's gluten free options because they often aren't on an online menu or anywhere to be found, but we've never had that happen.


So we found a burger place up the road with gluten free options called Burger 21. I think it's a chain (so maybe some of you have one nearby), but it was really good  Great fries, juicy burgers, and I got a bananas foster shake that was very good. The only thing was I ordered some chili cheese fries that I definitely didn't have enough room for 

 

 

 

 

Later that night we went to see our friend's new place, and my friend Tammy made some cute drinks for us. So adorable that she went out to get tiki glasses, flamingo stirrers, and little umbrellas! 

 

As for now, today I'm headed to my sister's recital!  ​


----------



## Raeven

*HHN Trip-*12 weeks

If you've seen my TR you know my TRs/PTRs etc are having some technical difficulties with Photobucket, so I'm in the process of changing the photos over so you might not be able to view some of the pictures in older posts for a couple days, but these new ones will be fine. And next weekend is my actual birthday weekend! 



Today we went strawberry picking!
















Yum apple cider slush






Speaking of apples the orchard we go to is typically the place we pick apples. We've never picked strawberries, but there wasn't a lot to choose from. I don't think it's the orchards fault, but we've had really weird weather in NY, and it was cold a lot later than usual. The orchards opening was actually pushed back a few weeks because of it. 

So with those strawberries I'm making a gluten free strawberry pound cake: 








We're about to try it now! 

​


----------



## macraven

So cute you wear your strawberry shirt for strawberry picking !!!!!


----------



## Raeven

*HHN Trip*-11 weeks

For my birthday we ended up just going out to dinner at Mexican Radio. 

Here's my "usual" order: 

Radio roll ups 

Black beans, melted cheese and pico de gallo, stuffed into a flour tortilla, deep-fried and drizzled with crema. Served on a bed of tomato-jalapeño sauce. 






Josh got carne asada fries again: 






This is a huge portion and he barely made a dent in it. 

I got my usual burrito: 

Stuffed with your choice of filling (I got spicy ground beef) along with cheese, beans, peppers & onions. Topped with tomatillo sauce, queso añejo, and fresh crema.






I decided my birthday dinner wasn't a time to try something new that might be gross. There was something else I considered getting, but Josh said he'd had it and while he said it was good it didn't seem like he thought it was _that _good. 

I thought his coffee mug was cute. They should sell these!






I also couldn't leave without at least 1 banana chocolate chimichanga. 






We were seated next to the loudest family ever though! It was a huge family with several kids, but the adults were actually louder. One lady ate her meal and when the waiter came over she goes: "I just want to deal you this was made wrong. I didn't like it at all, but I ate it all because I was hungry. It wasn't shredded like it was supposed to be, it wasn't creamy like it was last time I had it. I did eat it all so you can't see, but I just wanted to let you know". 





On the way out we saw a rainbow: 






My dad also made me a cake earlier in the weekend: 






I had mentioned I like bread pudding, but that wasn't really suitable for a birthday cake when he was asking for general ideas, but he ended up making a chocolate bread pudding cake. (Actually he made two, but apparently the first one was a disaster because he'd never tried to make one before). He's a bit of a perfectionist though when it comes to cooking, and I think this came out good for a first try. 

*And with that month and a half of celebrating over...I'm 25! 

Onto the trip news! *

This week I got an email that they were canceling our showing of Caribbean Carnaval. I'm guessing maybe the interest wasn't there? Or maybe it was just our date? I don't really know anyone else planning to do this so I'm not sure. 
So right now I have: 

*Thursday 9/14*
*Park: *USO, maybe IOA
*Dining: *Margaritaville, Toothsome 
Dinner is hopefully with @CatNipRules 

*Friday 9/15*
*Park: *Volcano Bay, USO for HHN
*Dining: *Volcano Bay food, Breadbox

*Saturday 9/16*
*Park: *IOA/USO for HHN
*Dining: *The Kitchen breakfast, Cowfish or Anjoitos 

*Sunday 9/17*
*Park: *No park, leaving day
*Dining: *Amatista Cookhouse breakfast before leaving

​


----------



## schumigirl

Nice birthday cake.......very sweet of your dad to make that for you........ Looks lovely too....hope you had a lovely birthday! 


Nice plans. Yes, I wonder if the event at SF is being cancelled altogether, haven't seen many folks mention it at all.......or of course it may just be that one night. 

Photobucket is an absolute nightmare. I'm going to change to another hosting site I think. Kathy who posts amazing pictures in the pic of the day thread had recommended me one a while back, so will look into it this summmer.


----------



## Raeven

schumigirl said:


> Nice birthday cake.......very sweet of your dad to make that for you........ Looks lovely too....hope you had a lovely birthday!



He is sweet! And he's a really good cook so it was delicious. Thank you!



schumigirl said:


> Nice plans. Yes, I wonder if the event at SF is being cancelled altogether, haven't seen many folks mention it at all.......or of course it may just be that one night.



Yeah I've heard very little talk about it, and don't know of anyone who's done it even on here. I saw a media site do a review on it but nothing else. The food sounded good though so that's a little disappointing although I think you can get most the choices around the resort anyway. 



schumigirl said:


> Photobucket is an absolute nightmare. I'm going to change to another hosting site I think. Kathy who posts amazing pictures in the pic of the day thread had recommended me one a while back, so will look into it this summmer.



It is a nightmare. It was troublesome before this, but now all my pictures aren't visible; and they want me to pay $40 a month. ​


----------



## macraven

What's great dad you have and making you a birthday cake!!

I'm impressed 
Looks like a labor of  

He even did a practice cake too
What a loving kind father


----------



## amalone1013

So somehow I was not watching this thread... Which is when our days overlap! D'oh!

We ended up adding a day so we're flying in late Thursday night. I have zero plans other than us being at US those days, I've been slacking. I actually was typing up our schedule in my PTR today, and was almost done, and I lost it  Maybe I'll get it redone tonight or tomorrow.


----------



## CatNipRules

I'm still planning on meeting with y'all.... I'm looking forward to trying Toothsome. That banana chocolate dessert looks amazing.... That woman was weird... LOL!! 

And that cake is so sweet. My dad used to make me a cake for my birthday every year. In fact, I believe that my love for Disney started when I was 2 and my dad made me a Mickey cake for my birthday. I have pictures of me with it and he decorated it to look just like Mickey.


----------



## Raeven

macraven said:


> What's great dad you have and making you a birthday cake!!
> 
> I'm impressed
> Looks like a labor of
> 
> He even did a practice cake too
> What a loving kind father



He is great! And he's definitely a perfectionist when it comes to the cakes. 



amalone1013 said:


> So somehow I was not watching this thread... Which is when our days overlap! D'oh!
> 
> We ended up adding a day so we're flying in late Thursday night. I have zero plans other than us being at US those days, I've been slacking. I actually was typing up our schedule in my PTR today, and was almost done, and I lost it  Maybe I'll get it redone tonight or tomorrow.


 Hey there! That's right it's our USO days that overlap. So you'll be there the Fri and Sat we are? Let me know what your plans are for those days! We'll be at HHN each night, but during the day are just doing the parks. 



CatNipRules said:


> I'm still planning on meeting with y'all.... I'm looking forward to trying Toothsome. That banana chocolate dessert looks amazing.... That woman was weird... LOL!!



Yes! Banana chocolate dessert you say  which one is that? Or is that the milkshake? Because I saw that and it looked good. 

So weird! I was wondering what the waiter was supposed to do with her empty plate and her saying the food was gross 



CatNipRules said:


> And that cake is so sweet. My dad used to make me a cake for my birthday every year. In fact, I believe that my love for Disney started when I was 2 and my dad made me a Mickey cake for my birthday. I have pictures of me with it and he decorated it to look just like Mickey.



It was sweet, and your dad sounds sweet too. When I was 2 I think I had a Winnie the Pooh cake  So I was also a Disney lover back then. My dad actually decorated my cake to look like Mickey last year, but the texture of this one made it hard to decorate. ​


----------



## vrajewski10513

Raeven said:


> And with that month and a half of celebrating over...I'm 25!


Happy belated birthday!!!



Raeven said:


> That day I actually saw the Eat to the Beat concert listing for Epcot too, and since the show was canceled we ended up adding Wednesday onto that portion of the trip so I could see the Plain White T's.


We missed them last year due to the hurricane   However, this year we're gonna see Postmodern Jukebox which I'm pretty excited about!


----------



## Raeven

vrajewski10513 said:


> Happy belated birthday!!!



Thank you! 



vrajewski10513 said:


> We missed them last year due to the hurricane  However, this year we're gonna see Postmodern Jukebox which I'm pretty excited about!



Aw  I've heard about them and that sounds like a good one to see! ​


----------



## Raeven

*HHN Trip-*9 weeks

So I haven't updated this in about 2 weeks, mostly because I've been binge watching Twin Peaks. 



At this point I'm all caught up even with the newer episodes, and I love it! I think I may have even convinced Josh to watch it from the beginning.

But a lot has happened and we're at 60 days out!

I gave HHN my soul....






I'm really excited to see what they do for this year. We both signed up, but we only got the email basically stating what the website said. I'm also excited for them to reveal the houses/scare zones. I'm terribly biased now because I've been watching it non stop, but wouldn't Twin Peaks make an awesome house and/or scare zone?  (I doubt that's happening though). 

I also went to see Silversun Pickups and Third Eye Blind with my friend Tammy.











I love Silversun Pickups! (And ice cream apparently).






These fried dough bites looked so good and were sooooo stale  We couldn't even chew them.






Oh yeah it poured before we got there so we got all wet going into Panera on the way. So by the time we took this halfway through the show our hair looked rough.



I will say I enjoyed Silversun Pickups more.

The lead singer of Third Eye Blind went on a tirade about how "he's looking in our eyes and we're looking at him through our iphones" (During their most popular song (which of course people were recording)! I know some people will disagree, but it really rubs me the wrong way when artists shame people at concerts for recording and taking pictures (and were not talking about a place where pictures/recordings aren't allowed). As someone who does take pictures and videos frequently I don't feel it gives me any less of a connection with reality and others as he implied, I love recording memories. I don't think it makes you less present in a moment, I think it just means you find this a moment to be worth remembering. 






Then this happened for most their set.






People in my section were putting on sunglasses and turning away. We ended up leaving a bit early.

My brother also turned 20 and we had pancakes!






(And real cake)!






And Shrek cuddles. 






Random but ever since we went to The Kitchen, I've been dying to try this cake; but Josh can't eat it and I can't do it alone. 

Anyone want to join us at The Kitchen one night to order dessert?  We can have Kitchen Sink cake eating dismeet.






I'll leave you with this...






​


----------



## amalone1013

Raeven said:


> Anyone want to join us at The Kitchen one night to order dessert?  We can have Kitchen Sink cake eating dismeet.


Off to read about this cake lol



Raeven said:


>


Wisdom.


----------



## Raeven

amalone1013 said:


> Off to read about this cake lol



I should've put the description because I had trouble finding it: 

3 lb slice of Kitchen Sink Cake (“A 3 pound slice of cake with seven layers of heaven including – brownies, peanut butter crunch, chocolate chunk cookies, cheesecake, pecan pie, devil’s food cake, vanilla chiffon cake, all covered in chocolate butter cream frosting, chocolate chips, chocolate sauce, and heath bar crunch.”

I think we could work out a cake eating dismeet if you want 



amalone1013 said:


> Wisdom.



​


----------



## schumigirl

Nice update......and yep, I'm with the wine woman..........well I can give it a bash! 

The original Twin Peaks is one of my most favourite shows ever........even named my son Kyle after Kyle McLachlan......lol......better than Dale! But........I cannot get into this new series at all. I was so looking forward to it after waiting 25 years........yep, I saw it first time around.......it's too weird, too David Lynch and I wonder if it's all a big joke on the viewer to see how much of his weirdness we can take......lol.......

So, I was out after 4 episodes......so disappointing.........


----------



## Raeven

schumigirl said:


> Nice update......and yep, I'm with the wine woman..........well I can give it a bash!



Wine women is quite wise. 



schumigirl said:


> The original Twin Peaks is one of my most favourite shows ever........even named my son Kyle after Kyle McLachlan......lol......better than Dale! But........I cannot get into this new series at all. I was so looking forward to it after waiting 25 years........yep, I saw it first time around.......it's too weird, too David Lynch and I wonder if it's all a big joke on the viewer to see how much of his weirdness we can take......lol.......



Lol much better than Dale! 

Haha I guess I don't mind the weirdness. Some of the storylines do seem to be progressing a little slowly (I want Agent Cooper back and reunited with the people of Twin Peaks so badly)! and I'd love to see more of the the people of Twin Peaks. But overall I'm enjoying it. But they did recently promise it'll all come together in the end.



schumigirl said:


> So, I was out after 4 episodes......so disappointing.........



Aw. I wonder if I'd feel differently too if I didn't watch them one right into the other for the first time. I do agree the tone is pretty different from the original. 

I also see that you're going to be at HHN the 2 nights we're going, I hope we get to meet up! ​


----------



## amalone1013

Raeven said:


> I think we could work out a cake eating dismeet if you want


Could there be a better kind of Dismeet? 






*edited for proper gif*


----------



## Raeven

amalone1013 said:


> Could there be a better kind of Dismeet?
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> *edited for proper gif*



I'll message you!  ​


----------



## macraven

Should I change my trip dates for the kitchen sink cake eating marathon?


----------



## Raeven

macraven said:


> Should I change my trip dates for the kitchen sink cake eating marathon?



 the more people the better chance we have at finishing that thing. ​


----------



## CatNipRules

LOL!! I would have had a major headache with how bright that set was for them. Of course my husband always said that I was a vampire. I usually sit in my living room with the lights off. LOL!!

Pancakes!!! I love pancakes. LOL!!

We had a cake at a deli when I lived in Florida. It was called the Killer Cake. It was a sinfully chocolate cake. That sucker must have weighed 10 pounds and it was a little cake. It was a very dense, very good cake. LOL!! It was to die for. But you definitely needed a huge glass of milk with it.

What night are ya'll gonna be doing it? LOL!! I might just make my way over there one night! LOL!! 

Wow....My little sister is going to live forever. She loves wine. LOL! I can take it or leave it. LOL!!


----------



## Raeven

CatNipRules said:


> LOL!! I would have had a major headache with how bright that set was for them. Of course my husband always said that I was a vampire. I usually sit in my living room with the lights off. LOL!!



Most people in the section looked like they had a bad headache by the end.  Josh is like that he used to have blackout curtains on every window in his room, and when he's home he doesn't let any sunlight in.



CatNipRules said:


> Pancakes!!! I love pancakes. LOL!!



They were apple cinnamon 



CatNipRules said:


> We had a cake at a deli when I lived in Florida. It was called the Killer Cake. It was a sinfully chocolate cake. That sucker must have weighed 10 pounds and it was a little cake. It was a very dense, very good cake. LOL!! It was to die for. But you definitely needed a huge glass of milk with it.



 10 pound cake wow! I don't know if I could do that much in pure chocolate. When we were kids we'd order chocolate cake at restaurants, and I'd have a few bites, and then my brother would devour the rest 



CatNipRules said:


> What night are ya'll gonna be doing it? LOL!! I might just make my way over there one night! LOL!!



I don't know  I think @amalone1013 is getting in Thurs night, so it would probably have to be Fri or Sat if we were all trying to get there. But we have HHN both nights, so it would either have to be right before HHN or possibly around lunch time for us. I'll let you know what she says, and then we can figure something out! I'll message you too. 



CatNipRules said:


> Wow....My little sister is going to live forever. She loves wine. LOL! I can take it or leave it. LOL!!



Not a huge wine fan myself, but my cousin is. I guess she'll live forever too  ​


----------



## tink1957

Oooh cake...I  think we will be there when you are and Trey can polish off the leftovers...he's good that way.

I think I'll go buy wine today


----------



## Raeven

tink1957 said:


> Oooh cake...I  think we will be there when you are and Trey can polish off the leftovers...he's good that way.
> 
> I think I'll go buy wine today



Haha I'll announce what we end up deciding on here! 

Good idea! ​


----------



## Raeven

*HHN Trip*-8 weeks (53 days) 

I had to switch with someone and work 6 days in a row this week so I don't have much free time or news 

The Kitchen Sink cake meetup with @CatNipRules & @amalone1013 before HHN the first night is officially a go! 






Which I can't wait for! I do want to confirm with The Kitchen that they serve the cake around lunch time too, but I don't see why not. Has anyone gone recently, and seen it offered at lunchtime too? 






I couldn't leave you without some food pictures though!






We went to our local Blaze Pizza. (I haven't been back since I didn't like my pizza the first time, but since I've heard you can order a high rise dough). I got gorgonzola, parmesan, ricotta, mozzarella, roasted red peppers, and applewood smoked bacon with an olive oil glaze. I'd probably go with just a typical cheese next time, I'm just not crazy about the pizzas here. Josh got a smoked applewood bacon, pepperoni, mozzarella, and smoked garlic pizza with an olive oil glaze on a GF crust...he ate this before I finished waiting for mine to cool 

Close up:






I got a salted chocolate chip cookie too and that was pretty delicious. 





​


----------



## amalone1013

Raeven said:


> The Kitchen Sink cake meetup with @CatNipRules & @amalone1013 before HHN the first night is officially a go!


----------



## Lesley Wake

So, I had scheduled our Universal day for Sunday, Sept 17. Didn't realize until this morning it was HHN opening weekend! Serves me right for only reading your Disney PTRs! Through manipulating our schedule, we will now be going to Universal on Thursday, 9/14! We will be doing a park-to-park with focus on HP, so maybe we can try to meet up there as well as Disney!


----------



## Raeven

Lesley Wake said:


> So, I had scheduled our Universal day for Sunday, Sept 17. Didn't realize until this morning it was HHN opening weekend! Serves me right for only reading your Disney PTRs! Through manipulating our schedule, we will now be going to Universal on Thursday, 9/14! We will be doing a park-to-park with focus on HP, so maybe we can try to meet up there as well as Disney!



Sounds good! We'll be at USO for sure that day. I'm going to message you I keep forgetting to get your number.​


----------



## Raeven

*HHN Trip:* 7 weeks (47 days)! 

Nacho Friday has a gif now: 






 First time I've tried doing that and I think it came out alright. 

Since we switched to Sapphire Falls I've been periodically checking the rates for RPR too. It's the only USO hotel we've never stayed in, and I was still hoping it would be possible. Well we've been talking about canceling a dessert party on the Disney side of things, and the difference is enough to cover a resort change. (Although I still haven't canceled that so this is turning into a real:






scenario). Because we also switched to RPR! 






So now we're back where we started.  I don't know why I even bother to make changes honestly, things usually seem to end up right back where they started in the first place. I blame Josh because I think Sapphire Falls is lovely, but when I asked Josh he picked RPR. That boy, he loves EP. And once I told him HP rides are now included he seemed to think it was a no brainer. I can't help but agree it might really come in handy on certain days. ​
So I'm still working on where to eat since, I changed our resort. I'm thinking we'll want to do breakfast at Islands, and maybe lunch or dinner at Jake's while we're there. 

Now onto my weekly food review/pictures: 

My aunt and I headed to a place called Aperitivo Bistro this week where I continued my country wide search for the best burger (doesn't it sound impressive when I say "country wide"?  What that really means is here and Orlando): 

TERRONE

provolone cheese, caramelized balsamic onions, peppers

 

It was good, but nowhere near the best.

We also stopped at a bakery so here's a close up of some delicious baked goods. 

A cannoli cupcake

 

And a chocolate chip cheesecake

 

These were both really good, they're from a new local bakery, but the bakery is called Sprinkles (no relation to that Sprinkles) and it seems like they should change their name to avoid confusion/a lawsuit. ​


----------



## CatNipRules

LOL!! How did I know that you were going to change? I had a feeling that you would. You're just like me. I make changes and then I don't like the changes so I change back. I swear I'm the Queen of changes. LOL!! 

Those cupcakes look amazing. Yummy!!


----------



## amalone1013

Raeven said:


> Nacho Friday has a gif now:


Love it!


Raeven said:


> Well we've been talking about canceling a dessert party on the Disney side of things, and the difference is enough to cover a resort change. (Although I still haven't canceled that so this is turning into a real:


Resort buddies! 

Our treat yo self is worse... Originally we had $X budgeted for the honeymoon. After I worked out my credit card points to stay at the Dolphin for cheap, I started figuring... Since we're saving $Y now, we can take $Y out of the $X amount and could use that to go in January (earlier this year). So we did. And we did stay within our budget of $Y, surprisingly. But I never actually took the $Y cash out of $X... So now I look back and it's like yes, that trip became a four figure treat yo self thing...








Raeven said:


> And once I told him HP rides are now included he seemed to think it was a no brainer. I can't help but agree it might really come in handy on certain days.


I missed this... Yay! 



Raeven said:


> where I continued my country wide search for the best burger (doesn't it sound impressive when I say "country wide"?  What that really means is here and Orlando):


Such dedication! My friend and I always said our dream job would be something like Dinners Drive Ins and Dives 

Also I want a cupcake now.


----------



## Raeven

CatNipRules said:


> LOL!! How did I know that you were going to change? I had a feeling that you would. You're just like me. I make changes and then I don't like the changes so I change back. I swear I'm the Queen of changes. LOL!!
> 
> Those cupcakes look amazing. Yummy!!



Lol I think you knew when I asked you that I was going to do it! 



amalone1013 said:


> Resort buddies!



Oh cool! Maybe we'll see you around the resort then too! 



amalone1013 said:


> Our treat yo self is worse... Originally we had $X budgeted for the honeymoon. After I worked out my credit card points to stay at the Dolphin for cheap, I started figuring... Since we're saving $Y now, we can take $Y out of the $X amount and could use that to go in Janunary (earlier this year). So we did. And we did stay within our budget of $Y, surprisingly. But I never actually took the $Y cash out of $X... So now I look back and it's like yes, that trip became a four figure treat yo self thing...



I do that too! I'm like we're saving money here so we can now do this! But somehow we usually end up spending more 



amalone1013 said:


> I missed this... Yay!



Yes I saw this a couple weeks ago! Definitely a nice bonus to EP. 



amalone1013 said:


> Such dedication! My friend and I always said our dream job would be something like Dinners Drive Ins and Dives
> 
> Also I want a cupcake now.



 #DreamJobs I also recently found out there's a top cannoli eating champion in the world so there's another dream job 

And soon we'll be eating giant cake!​


----------



## disneyAndi14

Wait a minute when did HP rides start to be included in the EP, this is awesome, spill please!


----------



## macraven

_it started beginning of July this year_


----------



## Raeven

*HHN Trip*-6 weeks! (39 days)

We fine tuned our dining plans this week. 






So now we have: 

*Sep 14th*
Margaritaville
Toothsome with @CatNipRules 

*Sep 15th*
Volcano Bay food
The Kitchen dismeet for the Kitchen Sink Cake-3 pm with @CatNipRules & @amalone1013 
Scareactor Dining (I caved and booked this because I'm hoping they'll be some really cool characters this year, and every time I bring it up Josh says he wants to go again ). I can't get a time slot for this until mid August, but as far as I remember 4:30-5ish were the earliest times available so we should just be able to walk over there after going to The Kitchen. Hopefully I don't fill up too much on cake! (Or hopefully I do because the food isn't always the best ). 

*Sep 16th*
The Kitchen-9:30 am
Cowfish

*Sep 17th*
Islands-8:30 am

*They announced another HHN house this week! *






I'm so excited for Ash Vs Evil Dead. The show's been on our "to watch" list for awhile, and we're going to watch it next. (Currently we're watching Twin Peaks again, well again for me, because Josh wants to watch it now after hearing how I liked it ). I also love the Evil Dead movies. 

With the announcement of the new house I bought Josh 2 shirts for HHN from 6 Dollar Tees: 






I have an AHS shirt I bought last year and never wore so we have all the houses covered so far ​


----------



## CatNipRules

LOL!! I told my sister about the houses they are having so far this year and she practically screamed in my ear. She's a HUGE Halloween fan. LOL! She starts counting down to Halloween the way some people do for Christmas. LOL! She's not a huge theme park fan, but she says that she would make an exception for HHN. LOL!! 

I can't wait to meet up with you guys. I keep forgetting about what we are going to eat for the Universal part of the trip. LOL!! I guess it's because we really can't make reservations. So we just kind of go with the flow. LOL!! 

That's my worry about our dinner at T-Rex.I just figure that I'll do dessert first and dinner last. LOL!! We can't go wrong with that.Snickers...

I think if I buy any more shirts Chris will kill me. LOL!! He made the comment that we won't be able to fit any souvenirs in the car because of the luggage. I'm like, just watch me. I'll strap the boys to the roof of the car in that case. LOL!!


----------



## Raeven

CatNipRules said:


> LOL!! I told my sister about the houses they are having so far this year and she practically screamed in my ear. She's a HUGE Halloween fan. LOL! She starts counting down to Halloween the way some people do for Christmas. LOL! She's not a huge theme park fan, but she says that she would make an exception for HHN. LOL!!



We are too! lol We take our trips in September so we can make it to everything Halloween. She would love HHN then it's fantastic!



CatNipRules said:


> I can't wait to meet up with you guys. I keep forgetting about what we are going to eat for the Universal part of the trip. LOL!! I guess it's because we really can't make reservations. So we just kind of go with the flow. LOL!!



Yes! Did you think of any other places you wanted to go? Some in the hotels and in parks take reservations. The hotel ones are open now, and the park ones open at 30 days. 



CatNipRules said:


> That's my worry about our dinner at T-Rex.I just figure that I'll do dessert first and dinner last. LOL!! We can't go wrong with that.Snickers...



You can't! 



CatNipRules said:


> I think if I buy any more shirts Chris will kill me. LOL!! He made the comment that we won't be able to fit any souvenirs in the car because of the luggage. I'm like, just watch me. I'll strap the boys to the roof of the car in that case. LOL!!



 ​


----------



## Raeven

*HHN Trip*-5 weeks (31 days) 

Now normally at 5 weeks I try to post all my outfits for the trip (not that you could tell that from my old PTRs though since those posts were completely lost in the Disboards Photobucket Disaster of 2017). 






But I just finished picking everything out last night (I think I probably should go through them one more time), and I haven't had time to take any pictures. So that will be next week's post!

This week my main concern has been some repairs they're doing at our apartment complex. We got a letter than soon they're starting to replace the windows, sliding glass doors, and porches. Which is great because we told them weeks ago our window was leaking and there was mold around it, and they didn't do anything because this was coming up. However they are terrible at giving us notice about things, and I'm concerned our date is for repairs is going to fall during our vacation. Because isn't that how it always works? I don't want anyone to come in if we're not home, but they are allowed to as long as they give notice and come in with an employee of the complex. Which normally would make me feel better, but that employee is the same maintenance man who hit my car, lied about it, and doesn't seem to like me for no reason.  We can maybe have Josh's brother come and make sure everything is okay if we know ahead of time. My family thinks it's silly to worry about anything being stolen or damaged, but I'd rather one of us is here when it happens. 

I'm quite disappointed that Volcano Bay removed so many food choices.  The food was part of the appeal for me, as I wasn't planning to spend a lot of time in the water. I also don't really see anything Josh can eat (besides salad). Though I'd like to see it I feel like I should've waited on tickets as I think they're still working out the kinks and we don't have a lot of time on that day to spend there. 

For that reason I think on that day we'll go grab a quick breakfast at CBBR before hitting the park. I heard online that AP holders get in an hour before opening through Sep? But I've seen nothing on Universal's site to back this up so I'm not sure. Grabbing food might depend on the time it opens since it opens at 9 am so an hour earlier would have us getting up prior to 8 am. I'm also debating getting rid of a breakfast to eat at Jake's or Emeril's in our hotel, but I also really want to try both breakfasts 

Yesterday we had an ice cream date at Emack & Bolio's. 











I had the chocolate addiction flavor in a chocolate dipped cone.











I didn't even know we had an Emack and Bolio's nearby.​


----------



## macraven

_did you get the notice from UO on AP appreciation perks for the time period in August (forgot start up date) thru the end of september?_


----------



## Raeven

macraven said:


> _did you get the notice from UO on AP appreciation perks for the time period in August (forgot start up date) thru the end of september?_



The last email I got was for passholder appreciation days I think and those were only in August. But I did google it and it looks like it only applies to the 3 park AP's so that wouldn't be for us. ​


----------



## warriorping

I saw that they updated the menus at VB. I think they wanted to cut down of guest wait time because it was taking to long to cook/prep the meals  , which sucks cause the previous menu looked amazing. Hopefully after the summer ends, they bring some of the previous menu items back.


----------



## Raeven

warriorping said:


> I saw that they updated the menus at VB. I think they wanted to cut down of guest wait time because it was taking to long to cook/prep the meals  , which sucks cause the previous menu looked amazing. Hopefully after the summer ends, they bring some of the previous menu items back.



I know that maybe some things may not be working for them, but to me it feels like a bait and switch. It was advertised as different than other waterparks, with amazing food, and no lines. But all I've heard is that things aren't working yet, waits are huge, and now food is just basic burgers and pizza.  Not sure if we would've bought tickets for this trip if we knew this before it opened, I think we would've waited till next year when it would hopefully be running smoother. ​


----------



## warriorping

Raeven said:


> I know that maybe some things may not be working for them, but to me it feels like a bait and switch. It was advertised as different than other waterparks, with amazing food, and no lines. But all I've heard is that things aren't working yet, waits are huge, and now food is just basic burgers and pizza.  Not sure if we would've bought tickets for this trip if we knew this before it opened, I think we would've waited till next year when it would hopefully be running smoother. ​



I am in the same boat. One of the reason I wanted to stay at CBBR this trip is because it was close to VB and I love waterparks but after hearing they are still working out some kinks, I am debating on getting the tickets for VB when I go for our trip next week. I hope that we're able to go at least half a day next week but I'll see how crowded the lines gets in the morning before it opens at 9 am before I decide to get the tickets.


----------



## Raeven

warriorping said:


> I am in the same boat. One reason of the reason I wanted to stay at CBBR this trip is because it was close to VB and I love waterparks but after hearing they are still working out some kinks, I am debating on getting the tickets for VB when I go for our trip next week. I hope that we're able to go at least half a day next week but I'll see how crowded the lines gets in the morning before it opens at 9 am before I decide to get the tickets.



That's a good idea. I got caught up in the pre opening say excitement when people were saying tickets and things were selling out so I wanted to get them asap. But now that the park is at capacity so often I wish I waited and then if it was sold out or at capacity then we could go next time. 

I thought maybe the Aps would get us in early too, but it looks like that's only for people who added VB to their passes, which just isn't worth it for us. ​


----------



## CatNipRules

Raeven said:


> I know that maybe some things may not be working for them, but to me it feels like a bait and switch. It was advertised as different than other waterparks, with amazing food, and no lines. But all I've heard is that things aren't working yet, waits are huge, and now food is just basic burgers and pizza.  Not sure if we would've bought tickets for this trip if we knew this before it opened, I think we would've waited till next year when it would hopefully be running smoother. ​


It sounds to me like things aren't working out. They are having lots of issues with different things. The food changing was the last straw for me. I was thinking about letting the boys do things at one of the other parks and going to VB myself. Now I think I'll just scrap that idea.  They have a lot of kinks to work out. I've got to wonder whether they should have taken the time and waited to open the park until it was completely ready.


----------



## macraven

_pass holders appreciation dates go thru sept 30

*Passholder Appreciation Days*
Annual Pass Home

Annual Pass Benefits

Annual Pass Renewals & Upgrades

Annual Pass Early Park Admission

Blockout Dates

Annual Pass Appreciation Days
*It’s Time To Celebrate You*
It’s that time of year again. We’re celebrating our biggest fans and thanking you for being a part of the UOAP family by offering you special opportunities to experience our resort in a bunch of unique ways.

Check out all of the offerings available to you during Passholder Appreciation Days from Aug. 14–Sep. 30, 2017._


----------



## Raeven

CatNipRules said:


> It sounds to me like things aren't working out. They are having lots of issues with different things. The food changing was the last straw for me. I was thinking about letting the boys do things at one of the other parks and going to VB myself. Now I think I'll just scrap that idea.  They have a lot of kinks to work out. I've got to wonder whether they should have taken the time and waited to open the park until it was completely ready.



Yeah they definitely opened too soon, and I feel like we're seeing things that maybe would've been cleared up during a preview or soft opening. However it's been awhile since they opened, and it seems like the issues still haven't been solved. 

I think if we knew ahead about the food and such we would've held off a bit longer. I still want to see it, but since we only planned to go once I'd prefer to see it in working order. Plus we don't have a ton of time that day and I fear Josh will spend all day waiting to go on 1-2 things while I sit around not having much to do. ​


----------



## warriorping

Raeven said:


> Yeah they definitely opened too soon, and I feel like we're seeing things that maybe would've been cleared up during a preview or soft opening. However it's been awhile since they opened, and it seems like the issues still haven't been solved.
> 
> I think if we knew ahead about the food and such we would've held off a bit longer. I still want to see it, but since we only planned to go once I'd prefer to see it in working order. Plus we don't have a ton of time that day and I fear Josh will spend all day waiting to go on 1-2 things while I sit around not having much to do. ​



Hopefully by the time you go they will have some of new or old items back on the menu and the crowd levels die down for you to enjoy some rides with shorter wait times.


----------



## Raeven

warriorping said:


> Hopefully by the time you go they will have some of new or old items back on the menu and the crowd levels die down for you to enjoy some rides with shorter wait times.



I'm hoping! I don't think they'll add anything back that soon, but maybe! I hope the crowds do die down too, and Josh gets to try all the slides he wants. ​


----------



## macraven

_Don't forget the sunscreen!_


----------



## Raeven

macraven said:


> _Don't forget the sunscreen!_



Haha I can't forget it or I start sizzling!  Josh never wears any though because he works outside daily so he doesn't burn but I always tell him he should be wearing some just to protect his skin ​


----------



## Raeven

*HHN Trip*-4 weeks (25 days) 

Stay with me for a moment because the outfits are coming up in this post! 






I have a windows and doors update! The work on the building is still going on, but as of the end of this week they started putting the doors and windows on the front. We're in the back, and supposedly they will actually let us know ahead. Of course in order to be home one of us will probably have to call out of work, but we have a better idea of when it is now. I have no idea why the office told us a week and a half ago that they could be doing the repairs while we're on vacation (about a month from now) when they had all the materials and were already starting the next week 


Starting with my HHN outfits: 













I also bought Josh 2 shirts from 6DollarTees: 







Next up regular park wear: 










This is my new Slytherin shirt: 

I buy one new one just about every trip. 











One more thing: 






Yum! We have a Cold Stone around here and their Cake Batter is my absolute favorite. This sounds fantastic!
​


----------



## CatNipRules

That's weird about them starting early. I guess it's better for you so that way you aren't worried about weird people in your apartment while you're gone. LOL!! 

I love all of the outfits. My sister would die over the Slytherin shirts. LOL!! I think I mentioned this before, but practically everyone but me is Slytherin. I'm Hufflepuff. Snorts. I'm always the odd one out. 

I love that shirt for Jurassic Park. I love those movies. I have a Jurassic Park shirt that I got at Target a few years ago. I can't seem to find it anywhere, so another trip to Target might be in the cards for me.

OMG!! How cute is that Groot backpack? LOL! 

We have a Cold Stone here also. Believe it or not I think I've only been once maybe. I've only tried their smoothies. It was pretty good. LOL!! Cake Batter ice cream sounds interesting.


----------



## Raeven

CatNipRules said:


> That's weird about them starting early. I guess it's better for you so that way you aren't worried about weird people in your apartment while you're gone. LOL!!



I think that lady was trying to cover up that she knew almost nothing about it. She said they were "waiting on materials", but the materials all came together on the day I called her. (They've been in a big trailer type thing they parked in the parking lot). I know they didn't know when exactly they'd get to the actual window part (like which day), but I do think they knew the windows were being done directly after the roof and siding so I don't get why they told us "it's happening in a couple of weeks" vs "it's happening over a period of a couple of weeks starting now". 



CatNipRules said:


> I love all of the outfits. My sister would die over the Slytherin shirts. LOL!! I think I mentioned this before, but practically everyone but me is Slytherin. I'm Hufflepuff. Snorts. I'm always the odd one out.



Thank you! Josh isn't Slytherin either, he's a Gryffindor. 



CatNipRules said:


> I love that shirt for Jurassic Park. I love those movies. I have a Jurassic Park shirt that I got at Target a few years ago. I can't seem to find it anywhere, so another trip to Target might be in the cards for me.



You can't just go to Target for one thing you'll come out with everything! 



CatNipRules said:


> OMG!! How cute is that Groot backpack? LOL!



It's got a lot of pockets too which we need for water bottles. They had a ton of different bags at Hot Topic. 



CatNipRules said:


> We have a Cold Stone here also. Believe it or not I think I've only been once maybe. I've only tried their smoothies. It was pretty good. LOL!! Cake Batter ice cream sounds interesting.



We used to have one even closer, and my dad used to take us quite a bit when it was new. (The one we have now that, that closed is a bit out of the way). It's really good! I used to buy the cartons of it from them. ​


----------



## amalone1013

You've reminded me, I wanted to get lanyards for Universal. Maybe I'll dig out our Frozen ones from the Disneyland show last summer... or maybe I'll be stopping at Hot Topic on the way home... 

Don't tell Zack about the ice cream. Cold Stone cake batter is his favorite. He'll want US APs too 

And Rugrats! I always forget about them until something pops up. I've been looking at a few Jurassic Park shirts... I have a Minions shirt from our first trip to USH, but I don't know if I want to wear it. I feel like lately, I see characters and think I would love a shirt with them/that quote! And then they don't make anything for adults. Last summer I really wanted a Secret Life of Pets keychain, and all I could find were stuffed animals and kids shirts   Of course, maybe I should just use this as an excuse to buy three HP shirts...  I'm actually wearing a HP shirt today


----------



## Raeven

amalone1013 said:


> You've reminded me, I wanted to get lanyards for Universal. Maybe I'll dig out our Frozen ones from the Disneyland show last summer... or maybe I'll be stopping at Hot Topic on the way home...



 They have a lot of fun choices there too. 



amalone1013 said:


> Don't tell Zack about the ice cream. Cold Stone cake batter is his favorite. He'll want US APs too



It'll be our secret unless you want me to sneak you some 



amalone1013 said:


> And Rugrats! I always forget about them until something pops up. I've been looking at a few Jurassic Park shirts... I have a Minions shirt from our first trip to USH, but I don't know if I want to wear it. I feel like lately, I see characters and think I would love a shirt with them/that quote! And then they don't make anything for adults. Last summer I really wanted a Secret Life of Pets keychain, and all I could find were stuffed animals and kids shirts  Of course, maybe I should just use this as an excuse to buy three HP shirts...  I'm actually wearing a HP shirt today



I can never forget Rugrats  I think I watched it every day of my childhood. Kids get the coolest shirts! I would love a shirt with that Pomeranian from Secret Life of Pets  Hot Topic also has lots of HP shirts so going there is a good plan!​


----------



## vrajewski10513

Wow, I gotta get to Hot Topic to up my Universal outfit game! I have tons of Disney shirts but only a handful of Universal themed ones. I love all your outfits! I especially like the Clever Girl Jurassic Park one. 

I'm really looking forward to your trip report, we will be down there about a month after you guys so I'm stoked to hear all about HHN this year!!


----------



## Raeven

vrajewski10513 said:


> Wow, I gotta get to Hot Topic to up my Universal outfit game! I have tons of Disney shirts but only a handful of Universal themed ones. I love all your outfits! I especially like the Clever Girl Jurassic Park one.
> 
> I'm really looking forward to your trip report, we will be down there about a month after you guys so I'm stoked to hear all about HHN this year!!



Yes they seem to have a shirt for everything! And the ones I've been getting lately are slightly different than the ones they had before they're very soft and comfy. Thank you! That shirt was a nice surprise find because I needed a second to get the sale price. I got it a couple weeks ago so it's probably something they still sell if you wanted to look for it. 

I'm so excited for HHN too! (Although we're going the first night so we won't hear about anything beforehand). I can't wait to hear about the remaining houses though. ​


----------



## Raeven

*HHN Trip*-3 weeks (17 days) 

*Window and door update: *We have a new window and door! 






They ended up scheduling it for Thursday so I had to take the day off. I don't know if I mentioned part of why we needed the window replaced was ours was leaking for over a month, we couldn't close it all the day, and the area that was rotting due to rain leaking in had mold and a hole in it that bugs were crawling in through  Josh actually duct taped the hole as a temporary fix, and that worked surprisingly well. Anyway the day of I took the tape off, and when I did ants started pouring out.






And I guess we weren't the only ones with that problem. I was pretty annoyed because I reported the issues we were having before it got bad, and they chose to not come and look at it because they were replacing the windows soon. But the people replacing the windows and maintenance are not the same so it wasn't the fault of the people installing it.

 But when the window installers got to us they had their work cut out for them! But they managed to get all the ants out and a new window in and the door (which wasn't nearly as problematic). They did leave behind some peeled paint and a crack in the wall that they told me was for maintenance to fix (the one guy that works as maintenance later told us if we wanted him to fix the small spot he would have to spend 3 days in our apartment and he didn't really want to fix it...so I declined. I just wanted them to know we didn't do it, and I photographed it as well as told him so I feel like I can prove we didn't do it). 

 
(The crack in the wall and also the frame of the door they installed was dirty but ignore that I cleaned it). 

The day after they installed the window it poured...and I noticed the window was leaking! Worse than before and from a different part. It was pouring water from the top. I called maintenance asap, as I was kind of panicked that they had done something wrong. They put some plastic outside the window that stopped it from getting in, and said once the siding is finished that won't happen.  I guess so, but it seems like the window still wasn't properly installed so they'll run into this problem again down the road. But I'm guessing by then we won't live here anymore, so that'll be for the next tenants to deal with. 

I'm excited that we have scare zone and show announcements for HHN!  I'm actually more excited for the non IP scare zones since I'm not a big fan of The Purge or Trick r Treat. Other than that I love all the announcement! 

*Since we're at 3 weeks (actually under but close), it's time for itinerary posts to start! *

We'll be transferring to RPR late on 9/13 after a full day at Disney so we won't be doing anything more than checking in that night. The next day we plan to start off with a meal at Margaritaville after sleeping in a bit. This is our only full park day without HHN so we want to get to a lot of rides/shows this day. One thing we've never done before that I'd like to do is see parts of KidZone we've never seen before since it's not going to be around for long. I'd like to ride Woody Woodpecker's coaster  and see Animal Actors. And Josh wants to at least see the Fievals Playland because he used to love that movie as a kid. I'd like to do our favorite rides including Gringotts which we missed last time, and also do somethings we haven't done since our first trip (Shrek 4-D, Terminator 2 3-D). 

When we were first planning the park hours said until 9 pm, but now it looks like the park closes early at 7 pm. 






Shortly before park closing we're going to head to Toothsome so that we hopefully beat the crowds there. In the parks and then for dinner at Toothsome we'll be meeting up with @CatNipRules and @Lesley Wake!






We also went to a restaurant called Peaches Cafe this weekend. I tried a California Eggs Benedict which was perfect because I don't like ham, but I've always wanted to try an Eggs Benedict. This had avocado and tomato instead yum 











​


----------



## amalone1013

I read your window/and door update and my reactions went something like this:

Yay!
Eek! *insert me having heart attack if I pulled the tape off an ants poured out*
What the heck is with your maintenance guy? Jeesh. I mean, I'm sure he's still grumpy about being at fault for the accident, but it seems like he was a, um, ray of sunshine even before that 



Raeven said:


> But I'm guessing by then we won't live here anymore, so that'll be for the next tenants to deal with.



I know this feeling. My dorm room in college leaked in the window. We tried to get it fixed all year. They did get on the roof a few times, but nothing changed. They kept saying they didn't want to do anything major because they were tearing down the building at the end of the year. Spoiler alert, it's STILL in use. At some point we gave up... my roommate and I always joked we were going to send anonymous postcards to that room the next year...

Here's a picture from a weekend in April when it rained ALL WEEKEND.






"final count: 2 buckets, 3 bowls, 4 cups, 4 mugs, and 1 pitcher. 32 gallons"

Yup. It's cool.



Raeven said:


> I'd like to ride Woody Woodpecker's coaster  and see Animal Actors.



I bet we ride that coaster, because I'm pretty sure it's physically impossible for Zack to be within 500 feet of any coaster and not ride it. I know I will end up on Rip Ride Rock-it or whatever at least once, and I'm already dreading it! But I love Animal Actors in Hollywood - cheesy jokes, adorable animals, and cute kid audience interactions? What more could you want??



Raeven said:


> When we were first planning the park hours said until 9 pm, but now it looks like the park closes early at 7 pm.



Basically how I felt every time I read the park hours 



Raeven said:


> In the parks and then for dinner at Toothsome we'll be meeting up with @CatNipRules and @Lesley Wake!



Yay! I think we'll hit Toothsome for sure one of our days.


----------



## Raeven

amalone1013 said:


> I read your window/and door update and my reactions went something like this:
> 
> Yay!
> Eek! *insert me having heart attack if I pulled the tape off an ants poured out*
> What the heck is with your maintenance guy? Jeesh. I mean, I'm sure he's still grumpy about being at fault for the accident, but it seems like he was a, um, ray of sunshine even before that



I almost had a heart attack too when the ants started coming out. We were sucking them up with a vacuum, but we luckily they came right after. 

I don't know  To be honest I don't think he does much in a day (I think he tries to avoid doing any actual work), and since it's owned by a company that isn't onsite I think he gets away with it most days since he doesn't report to anyone. So I think when you call him for help he doesn't want to help/doesn't seem to know how in most cases. I am fine with him slacking (like not fixing a small chip in the wall) as long as he repairs the important things, and we don't have a problem getting our security deposit back when we move out. 

I'm not sure if that was personal, but there have been some cases where he was weird towards me and responded better when Josh calls. I think it's because I'm a woman, since he sometimes treats me like I'm being hysterical. (He acted like I was freaking out at the scene of the accident and for weeks later even though I was calm and had to make all the calls/get all the info because he just went and sat in his truck).  



amalone1013 said:


> I know this feeling. My dorm room in college leaked in the window. We tried to get it fixed all year. They did get on the roof a few times, but nothing changed. They kept saying they didn't want to do anything major because they were tearing down the building at the end of the year. Spoiler alert, it's STILL in use. At some point we gave up... my roommate and I always joked we were going to send anonymous postcards to that room the next year...
> 
> Here's a picture from a weekend in April when it rained ALL WEEKEND.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> "final count: 2 buckets, 3 bowls, 4 cups, 4 mugs, and 1 pitcher. 32 gallons"
> 
> Yup. It's cool.



Oh no! Ours wasn't dripping down (well it was this time before they put up the plastic). But the window has a slider portion that would fill up with water then overflow. We soaked through 3 towels once! But it happened for awhile before I think we noticed it (the window was stuck a crack open because of the leaks which I think caused more water to leak in). This seems to be their oldest building, and I don't think it's quite up to snuff (hence the extensive renovations they've been doing). I feel sorry for future tenants, we obviously had no idea about any of this when we moved in. I kind of wish I could warn future tenants too. It's hard because on one hand it's not too expensive, it's a good location (for us at least), the apartment itself doesn't seem to have anything terribly wrong with it. But there's really no helpful staff, they don't seem to repair the building often, and there's definitely minor things wrong (like there's something wrong with the dishwasher, part of our toilet broke awhile back etc). 



amalone1013 said:


> I bet we ride that coaster, because I'm pretty sure it's physically impossible for Zack to be within 500 feet of any coaster and not ride it. I know I will end up on Rip Ride Rock-it or whatever at least once, and I'm already dreading it! But I love Animal Actors in Hollywood - cheesy jokes, adorable animals, and cute kid audience interactions? What more could you want??



 I haven't successfully persuaded Josh to ride that coaster yet because it's in the kid's section. Oh goodness I would not get on that!  Although technically it doesn't go upside down just inverts. I still couldn't do it. I feel like we should try to see it one time before it goes away.



amalone1013 said:


> Basically how I felt every time I read the park hours



Right? How could they do this to us? 



amalone1013 said:


> Yay! I think we'll hit Toothsome for sure one of our days.



Yes! It's definitely worth it! 

I also just remembered today that we're staying at the same hotel since we changed back to RPR. I know we're already seeing each other to eat cake. But maybe we can grab drinks or something on Sat too if you're around the hotel! I think we're going to Jake's for dinner.  ​


----------



## amalone1013

Definitely! It sounds like most of the people from our big group have bailed except for a few on Sunday, so we'll just be wandering around again Saturday


----------



## Raeven

amalone1013 said:


> Definitely! It sounds like most of the people from our big group have bailed except for a few on Sunday, so we'll just be wandering around again Saturday



Awesome! (Not awesome they bailed but awesome you're free). 

Our plans for that day are lunch at 11, then IOA for a bit, then probably back to shower and change.

Our dinner at Jake's is at 4:30 before we head to HHN so maybe we can meet up a bit before then like 3:30/4ish. I know Jake's has a bar so even if we just headed there before dinner. If you don't know for sure we can work something out when we get closer! ​


----------



## CatNipRules

Wow...Your maintenance man sounds like a real piece of work. Kinda lazy if you ask me. I would have freaked out with the ants. Although they don't scare me as much as spiders do. LOL!! 

I'm still upset about the park hours. I feel like it's a double edged sword. I'm thinking that it won't be as busy, but I want all the park time I can get. LOL!! 

Those eggs look so yummy. However, I love avocados. I mean really love them. When we go to our local Mexican restaurant, I always ask for guacamole. So good....LOL!! 

I love the Woody Woodpecker ride. LOL!! I embarrass Chris with how I put my hands up and scream. Of course I do the same thing at the end of Small World. You know where you have the small hill that you go up at the end. I put my hands up and woo-hoo. LOL!! Chris used to do it with me when he was little, now I just get a rolling of his eyes.

Been looked over the menu for Toothsome. There seems to be a lot of good food. I'm looking forward to meeting everyone too.


----------



## Raeven

CatNipRules said:


> Wow...Your maintenance man sounds like a real piece of work. Kinda lazy if you ask me. I would have freaked out with the ants. Although they don't scare me as much as spiders do. LOL!!



I think that's what it boils down to most the time that he doesn't really want to do any work. It must be easy most the time because he's the only employee on property and as long as he hangs around he can say he's "working". The hard part is when you ask him for help. We were really lucky with the ants, and the fact that they were literally walking over to replace the window when we saw them so we didn't have to deal with it for more than a couple minutes. 



CatNipRules said:


> I'm still upset about the park hours. I feel like it's a double edged sword. I'm thinking that it won't be as busy, but I want all the park time I can get. LOL!!



It is! I like having a longer day so if we take a break and have 2 meals we can space it out more. 



CatNipRules said:


> Those eggs look so yummy. However, I love avocados. I mean really love them. When we go to our local Mexican restaurant, I always ask for guacamole. So good....LOL!!



They were and I love avocados too! Josh doesn't like them for some reason, but they're so good! 



CatNipRules said:


> I love the Woody Woodpecker ride. LOL!! I embarrass Chris with how I put my hands up and scream. Of course I do the same thing at the end of Small World. You know where you have the small hill that you go up at the end. I put my hands up and woo-hoo. LOL!! Chris used to do it with me when he was little, now I just get a rolling of his eyes.



 So I guess I know what we're riding now. 



CatNipRules said:


> Been looked over the menu for Toothsome. There seems to be a lot of good food. I'm looking forward to meeting everyone too.



I need to look at it again there's so much on it I can never decide! Although now I have more people split apps and stuff with because Josh can't always (and if he can he usually chooses completely different food than I would). Me too we're getting so close ​


----------



## Raeven

*HHN Trip*-2 weeks (11 days)






Though the people working on our building still aren't done yet






and wake me up every week day morning, they do appear to have placed the piece of siding over our window that stops the rain from coming in. And so far it's stayed dry! I'm kind of hoping they won't be done when we go, so I can feel like I escaped the ruckus they're making by leaving for on vacation and they'll be done when we get back 

I found some cool iPhone camera lenses on Amazon, I'm excited to use them for vlogging and pictures. The wide angle lens will be nice during the fireworks especially, and the 2x zoom might be helpful too. 

 

Since the last time we went I've changed settings on my phone camera (I think it'll make things look smoother), bought the lenses, and I think I've gotten a bit better at editing so that should make for some much better vlogs!

Tonight I bought this year's HHN book: 

 

I loved last year's, I know it'll be mostly the same; but they add some new stories every year. I'm going to read that at work this week. 

*9/15*

We'll start the morning with an early breakfast at The Kitchen. It'll be our earliest morning on the whole trip because we want to be in Volcano Bay when it opens (er well don't want to be but feel obligated to because I don't want Josh to have to wait all day and ride 1 thing). 






We don't have the 3 park AP so we still won't be the earliest group let in, but we can get in at 9 am. I plan to grab the loungers while Josh tries to get on some slides. Then most my day will be spent snacking, relaxing, exploring, and maybe in the lazy river; while Josh tries the more thrilling attractions. 

We'll be leaving relatively early to shower and change before meeting up with @amalone1013 and @CatNipRules for our Kitchen Sink Cake Dismeet! 






Afterwards we have to head into Universal to check into Scareactor Dining. Then it's HHN time!







We won't have EP the first night so we'll probably try to do a couple houses in the beginning and then just take everything in. The scare zones, Diagon Alley, snacks, the shows, go on a few rides, etc.

Next weekend I'll post our final 2 days, it's also our 4 year anniversary on Friday!





​


----------



## CatNipRules

Congrats on your 4 year anniversary! 

I can't wait to meet up with you guys. Even more so with the eating. LOL!!


----------



## Raeven

CatNipRules said:


> Congrats on your 4 year anniversary!
> 
> I can't wait to meet up with you guys. Even more so with the eating. LOL!!



Thank you!

I can't wait either  I know food makes it 10x more exciting ​


----------



## macraven

Woot on 4 years together


----------



## chs27

Congratulations on 4 years together!


----------



## Raeven

macraven said:


> Woot on 4 years together



I'm excited we're going to have a nice dinner! 



chs27 said:


> Congratulations on 4 years together!



Thank you! ​


----------



## vrajewski10513

Your trip is so close!! I'm getting excited for you. Can't wait to live vicariously through you guys until we get down there!


----------



## Raeven

vrajewski10513 said:


> Your trip is so close!! I'm getting excited for you. Can't wait to live vicariously through you guys until we get down there!



Yeah it is! Because of the hurricane we're not 100% sure what's going on yet and are just waiting for more news. I'll post about it later but we may be looking at canceling this trip and just going for HHN the first weekend, but moving our trip to Dec. Sadly, I feel more stressed than excited when usually I'm super excited the week before the trip. ​


----------



## vrajewski10513

Raeven said:


> Yeah it is! Because of the hurricane we're not 100% sure what's going on yet and are just waiting for more news. I'll post about it later but we may be looking at canceling this trip and just going for HHN the first weekend, but moving our trip to Dec. Sadly, I feel more stressed than excited when usually I'm super excited the week before the trip. ​


Ugh, I know how you feel. We were down there for hurricane Matthew last year


----------



## tink1957

Hope Irma goes away before both of our trips...we arrive on Tuesday afternoon.


----------



## Raeven

tink1957 said:


> Hope Irma goes away before both of our trips...we arrive on Tuesday afternoon.



Me too! I'm not sure what we're going to do. ​


----------



## tink1957

Raeven said:


> Me too! I'm not sure what we're going to do. ​


I guess we just wait and see as hard as it is.


----------



## macraven

_If the flights are still on for you, go.....

parks will be so light then when you are there.

sending you Mummy Dust!_


----------



## Raeven

*HHN Trip*-2 days? 8 days? 13 weeks? (Don't worry it's still on just not sure of the dates anymore, keep reading for more. And I do realize 13 weeks wouldn't be for HHN anymore ). 






First of all has anyone been watching Midnight Texas? I kind of love it. It's a lot better than I thought it would be. 

So for our anniversary we went to Black and Blue Steak & Crab! 






Look at that cutie 











They started us out with some bread arranged in a fancy manner that only I could partake in. 






For sides we ordered: mac & cheese orzo pasta, three cheeses






and mashed red bliss potatoes, scallion.






These were both kind of bland and not the best. 

But the steaks more than made up for it! 

Josh got a cowboy ribeye with B&B steak sauce.






I got a filet mignon with bearnaise sauce. 




 

These were delicious! The char on the outside was especially good. Josh didn't really like his sauce...because he used half of mine 

Here's our full table:  






I was way too full for dessert, but they did give us some chocolate truffles. 






So another delicious anniversary! 

But now onto the part you've all been waiting for: 

So since last Wednesday I've been stressing about the hurricane and waiting for more answers. It's been hard to get excited at all so I haven't been posting much. It's 2 days before the trip and where normally I'd feel excited...I just don't. We haven't even really made much progress with packing because I think packing then unpacking everything would just be really disappointing. At this point, I think we're probably going to end up having to cancel things. I'm still waiting since it's really all we can do, but I'm having doubts that the trip will look exactly the same as before. 





(What I feel like right now) 

The USO part of my trip wouldn't have been affected by the weather (9/14-9/17), but if my plans change we may only be going to USO (9/15-9/17). We both agree HHN is worth doing a long weekend (and F&W)! So if we end up canceling this trip, we'll still be in USO/sometimes Disney for those 3 days. We'd then move the rest of the trip to December 9/8-9/16, where we'd get another 4 days at USO. I do not want to wait another 3 months, but at the same time I also don't want to end up sitting in the hotel room in the middle of a disaster and/or no disaster but things are canceled anyway and losing 2-3 days off a trip I could move. Plus we have no idea how the changes in weather will affect Josh's migraines, or if the weather will be terrible even if the hurricane doesn't directly hit the area. 

My boss and Josh's have been kind enough to allow us a last minute switch if needed. (I would've switched it to the following weeks if they weren't already taken). As long as no one is using the time we want (so Dec is the next clear dates at my work) we can switch as late as Friday. There's many people I've promised to update on my decision and you will all be updated when I know! 






I have a funny story about our maintenance man to lighten the mood. Last week we found a dishwasher in front of our door with a note saying he'd be back in the early morning to install it.  I mean we could use one, but we had no warning beforehand. I was really having quite a day. Just one of those super frustrating days so that stressed me out even more. Then we called him, and when he finally called us back he said he never put that there  That he wrote the note, but someone else carried it in and left it in front of the wrong apartment. It was meant for 6...we're 8 in a totally different hallway. 




​


----------



## chunkymonkey

Ive been thinking about you guys! All weekend the news in FL tv is all about the hurricane. Hope everything works out and it's better to be safe than sorry. Will write more soon but my flights about to take off!


----------



## amalone1013

I've been thinking about you guys! Zack has been worrying about the storms too. I keep telling him we don't know what will happen and to not stress so much because our dates aren't as affected. Hopefully everything works out. If you end up down there in December again... I think that's just one _more _reason I'd look at a weekend trip to see the Christmas decorations


----------



## Raeven

amalone1013 said:


> I've been thinking about you guys! Zack has been worrying about the storms too. I keep telling him we don't know what will happen and to not stress so much because our dates aren't as affected. Hopefully everything works out. If you end up down there in December again... I think that's just one _more _reason I'd look at a weekend trip to see the Christmas decorations



So we decided to change this morning. Post coming soon! I was going to text you today! We're still going down next weekend for HHN, not sure what we're doing but the dismeet is still on for now and we're still at Rpr. But in Dec we'll hopefully be going the 8th-16th pending work approvals. ​


----------



## amalone1013

Raeven said:


> So we decided to change this morning. Post coming soon! I was going to text you today! We're still going down next weekend for HHN, not sure what we're doing but the dismeet is still on for now and we're still at Rpr. But in Dec we'll hopefully be going the 8th-16th pending work approvals. ​



Sounds good! I had been eyeing the weekend of the 9/10th or whatever it is in December... we'll see. We recently paid off our student loans so maybe I can call it a celebration for that?


----------



## Raeven

*F&W/HHN Weekend*-1 week!
*Grinchmas Trip*-13 weeks

I meant to post this last night but I was on hold for 2 hours  and I had a headache from listening to "It's a Small World" 80 times so I didn't get to it. *We did ultimately decide to cancel our trip. *


(I'm on my phone so I can't do gifs). 

*But we are now going for 9/15-9/17 for F&W & HHN, with our actual trip moved to 12/8-12/16!

*

But I did really want to go for Christmas again! And to see the new Harry Potter Christmas stuff at USO! Plus now we have 13 (more like 12 with flight times though) days of vacation vs 10! Plus these changes mean our Disney Ap's expire so we'll do more USO days. We also cancelled Volcano Bay because we wouldn't get here on time to go, which is something I didn't really want to do after more info came out, and kimd of wished we could cancel. 



*So how did this happen?*

On Wednesday morning I looked on the SW site and there was the perfect flight available next Fri (for our weekend trip to F&W and HHN that would happen if we canceled this one). It was the exact same flight as we had this week, but a week later with only 2 seats left (it wasn't an option before). We had to decide quickly so even though we had both decided to give it till midnight on Wed we made the decision yesterday morning to cancel.

Even if the storm is not bad (fingers crossed). I feel this is the best choice. We've never had to deal with any hurricanes (besides Sandy and there wasn't much damage here from that). And I still think we'd lose days off the trip and be stressed the whole time. And why when we could move it?

I was also really stressed out and just not at all excited for the trip this last week anyway, and I don't think a vacation should add stress.   

I managed to cancel everything last night. And currently the December planning is starting, we just need to get final approval at work before we book flights. (Both bosses knew we were probably doing this, we just need to officially change it). 

So I'll be back this weekend to post our new plans! (Still pending work approval, but I've still booked a few things). 
​


----------



## Raeven

*HHN Trip*-Tomorrow! 
*Christmas Trip*-12 weeks

So I haven't made too much progress in planning our December trip, besides booking our hotel. But tomorrow we leave for our quick HHN trip so I wanted to make a little post about our plans. Basically this is what was left from our longer trip that got canceled. I still had a 3 day weekend, and we could only move our flights forward 14 days without paying the difference. We already had the tickets, and we really wanted to go still so we decided to try our first short trip. I was pretty nervous about the flights because a lot of them have been canceled since the hurricane, but it seems like the airlines are starting to run normal routes again. 







So here's an overview of our plans: 

*9/15*

We'll be arriving around 10:30 am, and then heading over to the Royal Pacific Resort. We plan to meet up with @CatNipRules and maybe @amalone1013 for lunch at Toothsome. 






After that we'll head quickly through some attractions at IOA and USO. I definitely want to do Terminator 2 3D one more time before it closes in October. 

We have to check in at the HHN holding area for AP holders at 4 pm. At 5:30 pm I think we can start going into certain houses. We don't have EP this first night, and plan to just take in all the entertainment, and ride some rides. Since we don't have EP and our last meal will have been lunch we may leave shortly before the restaurants close and head to either Jake's at our hotel or Cowfish on Citywalk. 

*9/16*

We plan to pack a lot into this day! We'll be heading to Epcot for it's opening, and riding some rides before the F&W booths open. We'll snack our way around the world, before heading over to MK. I have a few FP's there including Buzz, Haunted Mansion, and I snagged a last minute one for 7DMT.  After that we'll head to DS to grab some treats and do some shopping. Depending on how we feel we'll either grab Dluxe Burger or head to dinner at Homecomin'. 






We'll get to HHN after opening, but we'll have EP this night so I don't mind arriving a bit later. We'll do all the houses, and maybe redo some things we enjoyed the night before. 

*9/17 *

Our little trip ends here!  We'll have breakfast at Islands in our hotel, and that's probably all we have time for before heading to the airport early to catch our flight back (at around noon). 
​


----------



## amalone1013

We just landed! We worried about our flights too but we just had a 15 minute delay because our plane came in late. Actually I had a moment the other day where I thought our flights were cancelled and I panicked and booked some for tomorrow night... and then i realized i was looking at the wrong day. Oops! But we're here and up for lunch! I meant to shoot you a message and time just got away from me getting ready to leave.


----------



## Raeven

amalone1013 said:


> We just landed! We worried about our flights too but we just had a 15 minute delay because our plane came in late. Actually I had a moment the other day where I thought our flights were cancelled and I panicked and booked some for tomorrow night... and then i realized i was looking at the wrong day. Oops! But we're here and up for lunch! I meant to shoot you a message and time just got away from me getting ready to leave.


​​It looks like our plane has been at the airport since last night. (I found a website that tells you where they are haha). So I'm hoping we should be all set! I'll text you when we get in and are ready for lunch! ​​


----------



## Raeven

On the way!   ​


----------



## macraven

Last minute trips are the best!


----------



## warriorping

Have fun!


----------



## Raeven

*Here's the TR Link for our weekend trip to HHN: *

HHN 27 Weekend With a Dash of Disney

I'll probably keep going with this PTR though because we have another trip coming up in December, but I'll change the name in about a week or so to reflect that trip. ​


----------



## Raeven

*Now that we're back from our weekend trip, I've changed the title of this PTR to reflect our Christmas trip.*

*I'll mostly be working on my TR from that, but will try to update here weekly! *

*Grinchmas Trip*-11 weeks

We do have a bit of extra Universal time on this trip so we can try some
new restaurants! Without further ado here's our dining line up: 






*12/8-No parks*
Anjoitos-Can't make reservations till we're closer. But it would probably be at 6:30 pm ish.

Typically we fly in very early in the morning to have as much vacation time as possible, but in order to get our 3 day weekend trip in Josh had to take a half day instead of a full day on our first day. So we'll be leaving on our latest flight yet at around 1-1 something pm! (I forgot what time it takes off, but I know we get in at 4:55 pm). We'll be arriving at Cabana Bay first, and since Universal parks are closing around 7 pm that night we probably won't have any park time. 

*12/9-We're heading to Disney for this day.*

*12/10-USO/IOA*
The Kitchen-10 am
Vivo-Can't make reservations yet, but aiming for after the park closes. 

*12/11-USO/IOA*
Margaritaville-(They don't take reservations so probably around 11 am when they open).
Emerils-8 pm 

*12/12-12/16* (Disney, see Disney PTR for those dining plans)

We also have official vacation approval from work!




​


----------



## vrajewski10513

Raeven said:


> 12/9-We're heading to Disney for this day.


This is our last day at Disney! We will be at MK, maybe we will run into each other!


----------



## Raeven

vrajewski10513 said:


> This is our last day at Disney! We will be at MK, maybe we will run into each other!



We'll be heading there around dinnertime maybe we will!​


----------



## vrajewski10513

Raeven said:


> We'll be heading there around dinnertime maybe we will!​


That's about when we will be heading out  our flight leave at 8pm that night.


----------



## Raeven

vrajewski10513 said:


> That's about when we will be heading out  our flight leave at 8pm that night.



Oh no! I guess we won't see you there then ​


----------



## Raeven

*Grinchmas Trip*-10 weeks

Since we figured out dining I don't really have any news on the planning front. I figured maybe this week I'll just post about what we want to do/see this trip, and what we already have booked with our approval from work being official. 

*Dates:* We'll be at USO Friday the 8th-Monday the 11th, but we'll be heading to Disney on Saturday for the day so we have 2 days and 1 night at Universal. 

*Flight: *Our flight leaves at 1:55 pm on Friday the 8th and arrives in at 4:55 pm. 

*Hotel: *We'll be staying at Cabana Bay Beach Resort in a volcano view room. We haven't stayed here since our first trip, and we really loved it here. I've been waiting for an excuse to go back, but Josh prefers the hotels with water taxis. This was the first time I could convince him since the first time we went because most the hotels were booked up this close. 

*Meals: *I posted this in my last post but so far we've decided on Anjoitos, Vivo, Emerils, Margaritaville, and The Kitchen for our dining on this trip. ​
*Things I'm looking forward to the most: *

Harry Potter Christmas decorations, snacks, etc
Harry Potter Christmas castle show
The volcano view room
Eating nachos at the Galaxy Bowl again
Seeing CBBR for Christmas because I've heard it looks awesome
The weather
Trying (almost) all new (to us) restaurants
Exploring more of Grinchmas (we didn't see the show last year) & other Christmas offerings
Trying to catch Cinematic Spectacular
Going on some favorite rides that we missed the last time or last 2 times/getting to do some shopping
Hopefully meeting the characters from Shrek (I've never seen them out yet)
I also got these sneakers to hopefully alleviate my blister problems: 

 

These are supoosed to be amazing. Lightweight, mositure wicking, and super comfortable. I can’t wait to get them and try them out.​


----------



## Lesley Wake

Raeven said:


> We'll be staying at Cabana Bay Beach Resort in a volcano view room.



I've seen photos from those rooms and the view looks amazing! 



Raeven said:


> Harry Potter Christmas decorations, snacks, etc
> 
> Harry Potter Christmas castle show



I would love to see HP at Christmas! I think they are doing some HP christmas stuff at USH this year. Maybe I can convince my brother's friend to get us comp tickets (he's one of the Grinches and has been for years)



Raeven said:


> I also got these sneakers to hopefully alleviate my blister problems:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> These are supoosed to be amazing. Lightweight, mositure wicking, and super comfortable. I can’t wait to get them and try them out.



I may need to check those out too! All my blister planning was futile!


----------



## Raeven

Lesley Wake said:


> I've seen photos from those rooms and the view looks amazing!



Awesome! We stayed there back when the view was of a dirt pit and construction  Since we aren’t going to VB yet I can’t wait to see it!



Lesley Wake said:


> I would love to see HP at Christmas! I think they are doing some HP christmas stuff at USH this year. Maybe I can convince my brother's friend to get us comp tickets (he's one of the Grinches and has been for years)



I’m so excited they’re doing something for Christmas this year. It’s part of the reason I really wanted to try doing at least a small trip in Dec (back when we were going in sep). I know Hollywood already has a light show, and we’re getting some kind of light show on the castle for Christmastime. Not sure if it’ll be the same.



Lesley Wake said:


> I may need to check those out too! All my blister planning was futile!



I really hope they work! No matter how much blister planning I do it’s always futile ​


----------



## amalone1013

I would die for Harry Potter Christmas stuff. We ate at Anjoitos and enjoyed it. Especially my margarita  I think I've ruined Zack after RPR and express pass  Especially between there, the Dolphin, and BLT - much fancier than we've traveled before!


----------



## Raeven

amalone1013 said:


> I would die for Harry Potter Christmas stuff. We ate at Anjoitos and enjoyed it. Especially my margarita  I think I've ruined Zack after RPR and express pass  Especially between there, the Dolphin, and BLT - much fancier than we've traveled before!



I'm so excited for that I really want more details! Yes I've definitely ruined Josh too he's always like we need EP, we need to stay deluxe now  I'd love to hear about the Dolphin I heard they just remodeled everything and I think it looks amazing. ​


----------



## Raeven

*Grinchmas Trip*-7 Weeks! (50 days) 

I haven't updated my PTRs in awhile, because I've been a bit busy and I don't have any planning news; but I did want to show you what I've been up to! 

Last week was my dad's birthday party and here's his 2 cakes: 






Yes 2, he is spoiled  (and yes his favorite cup does say "I pooped today").

Nacho Friday is still going strong: 






And last weekend we went to a wedding for one of Josh's friends: 












If you can believe it my cousin made all the desserts! She's an excellent baker.
















They served BBQ at the wedding. 






And then I found the chocolate covered oreos  Did I mention my lovely cousin also works in a chocolate store? 






​


----------



## rmw1313

Raeven said:


> f you get a big group of people together and give them alcohol in my experience there is a lot of drama! This wedding was no different.



LOL..weddings are ALWAYS good for brining the drama 



Raeven said:


> It was very awkward to be in the middle of that but also awkward since I think she expected me to relate



It's so awkward when people try to project their problems on to you and you can't relate but they really want you to


----------



## amalone1013

Raeven said:


> Nacho Friday is still going strong:


Amen  We had nachos last week and I thought of you!



Raeven said:


> If you can believe it my cousin made all the desserts! She's an excellent baker.


They look beautiful and delicious!


Raeven said:


> And then I found the chocolate covered oreos  Did I mention my lovely cousin also works in a chocolate store?


Ok wait... can we rewind and I can go to the wedding with you guys?


Raeven said:


> She had a cold and drank quite a bit so I was trying to watch out for her, but she got very emotional about how they weren't right for each other and almost broke up with her boyfriend  It was very awkward to be in the middle of that but also awkward since I think she expected me to relate, but Josh and I get along very well and I love him very much. We've never broken up, and I can't even think of a time I've been mad at him for more than a minute.


Eek. About a month after Zack and I started dating, my roommate got drunk at a party and cried to us about how she thought we were going to break up and ruin our group friendship.  I think we're doing okay  It's so awkward when people do that. I just want to be like, why are you telling me this? Are you even going to remember? And it doesn't matter if they do or don't, because either they don't and you still know, or they do remember and try to down play it and it's still awkward.


Raeven said:


> They're putting down new carpets at work so they pulled the old ones up and let me tell you they haven't replaced the carpets in over 25 years, that's 25 years worth of dust in the air.


Ewwww. My workplace is like that... like letting things go and mine seems confused when it's really bad then  Earlier this year we tried to get the vents cleaned in my area. They were so bad that the thick layer of dust and fuzz started to fall off in little chunks!  And it still took almost a month to get it cleaned by our maintenance people. Now did they put it on a cleaning rotation? Of course not, we don't do preventative here


----------



## Raeven

rmw1313 said:


> LOL..weddings are ALWAYS good for brining the drama



They are 



rmw1313 said:


> It's so awkward when people try to project their problems on to you and you can't relate but they really want you to



It was. Like no that problem is specific to you 



amalone1013 said:


> Amen  We had nachos last week and I thought of you!







amalone1013 said:


> They look beautiful and delicious!



They were! Well the ones I had sadly I didn't get to eat them al. 



amalone1013 said:


> Ok wait... can we rewind and I can go to the wedding with you guys?



I wish!



amalone1013 said:


> Eek. About a month after Zack and I started dating, my roommate got drunk at a party and cried to us about how she thought we were going to break up and ruin our group friendship.  I think we're doing okay  It's so awkward when people do that. I just want to be like, why are you telling me this? Are you even going to remember? And it doesn't matter if they do or don't, because either they don't and you still know, or they do remember and try to down play it and it's still awkward.



Oh yeah I don't know how awkward it's going to be when we see her again next. I have no idea what happened with things, but I doubt they actually broke up.



amalone1013 said:


> Ewwww. My workplace is like that... like letting things go and mine seems confused when it's really bad then  Earlier this year we tried to get the vents cleaned in my area. They were so bad that the thick layer of dust and fuzz started to fall off in little chunks!  And it still took almost a month to get it cleaned by our maintenance people. Now did they put it on a cleaning rotation? Of course not, we don't do preventative here



Gross! So I went in yesterday and they were finishing, and the fumes from the carpet and painting were actually really bad. We also don't have windows and only 1 door and it was closed. Well I guess someone called OSHA on them, I think it was a customer. But anyway they had to bring out fans, open the door, and my boss asked if I wanted to go home. I stayed because it was fine with the door open, but I can't believe they didn't think about this stuff and stayed open while doing massive renovations like that. ​


----------



## Raeven

*Grinchmas Trip*-6 weeks (40 days)






We've made some changes!

Last weekend we made the decision to stay at Disney the first night of our trip as well since we get in when the USO parks close, and head to Disney the next day. I rearranged our ADRs, and took a night off the CBBR reservation, and thought we were all set.

But then this week I made the biggest change. I’ve been lamenting since the beginning of trip planning that there was nothing available for the beginning of the week we’re going, and I’ve been checking all along. Ideally I wanted to be in Disney Fri-Wed then Universal Thurs-Sat instead of going back and forth and breaking things up. Josh and I had agreed if anything came up it didn’t really matter where (as long as it was about what we were already paying or less). Well on Friday I looked and the dates were there! But only for one hotel. So now we’re booked in a preferred room at Pop Century for those dates!

So that means we also changed our Universal dates too, and we were able to switch to Sapphire Falls for our Universal stay for the same price. (I really want that volcano view but it’s hard to beat the convenience of water taxis).



This weekend we went to see Evil Dead the Musical!










I also have decided to return the Allbirds as sadly they aren’t working for me and now I have to find other sneakers with only a couple weeks to go. After I wore them a bit more I just really didn’t like them. They feel really tight with socks on, clammy with socks off, and the tops feel too narrow maybe? Kind of like their pressing on my big toe. I can absolutely see where I’d have the same problems with blisters even with these and if that’s the case I’d rather just buy regular sneakers.
And I saw these Christmas corgi leggings and knew I needed them:






I got them yesterday and they fit really nicely and are so comfortable (more like a pair of light joggers), and they are so cute!
And Happy (early) Halloween!
Here's a picture of my dad playing with Halloween decorations:






​


----------



## schumigirl

Evil Dead the musical........lol........now that sounds like fun! And cool Freddie picture..........

Love the leggings.........and yep, I’d have gone for Sapphire Falls too.......


----------



## Raeven

schumigirl said:


> Evil Dead the musical........lol........now that sounds like fun! And cool Freddie picture..........
> 
> Love the leggings.........and yep, I’d have gone for Sapphire Falls too.......



Haha it was fun! And thank you! 

I really would like to stay in a volcano view room someday, but Sapphire Falls is just way more convenient. ​


----------



## vrajewski10513

Raeven said:


> And then I found the chocolate covered oreos  Did I mention my lovely cousin also works in a chocolate store?


Is that candied BACON?!



Raeven said:


> Well on Friday I looked and the dates were there! But only for one hotel. So now we’re booked in a preferred room at Pop Century for those dates!


We love Pop! I know it’s a value and you guys normally stay deluxe, but we’ve really enjoyed all of our stays there and the bus service is spectacular! I don’t think they’ve done the preferred rooms yet, but fingers crossed you get one of the newly refurbished rooms!



Raeven said:


> So that means we also changed our Universal dates too, and we were able to switch to Sapphire Falls for our Universal stay for the same price. (I really want that volcano view but it’s hard to beat the convenience of water taxis).


Understandable. But honestly, when we were at CBBR we never waited for a bus. There was always one waiting at the bus stop when we walked out and the ride is only about 5 minutes. So, for future trips, if you need to stay at CBBR, I’m sure you’ll be happy with the transportation!



Raeven said:


> I got them yesterday and they fit really nicely and are so comfortable (more like a pair of light joggers), and they are so cute!


So cute! I just got some Lularoe Christmas leggings to go with the shirt I ordered for the Christmas party.


----------



## Raeven

vrajewski10513 said:


> Is that candied BACON?!



Yes!



vrajewski10513 said:


> We love Pop! I know it’s a value and you guys normally stay deluxe, but we’ve really enjoyed all of our stays there and the bus service is spectacular! I don’t think they’ve done the preferred rooms yet, but fingers crossed you get one of the newly refurbished rooms!



Sadly, we won't be getting a refurbished room because they haven't done the preferred ones yet and that was the only category available to book for our dates. We've really only stayed deluxe the last 2 trips, and while I love AKL, we did have good bus service our last time at Pop too! 



vrajewski10513 said:


> Understandable. But honestly, when we were at CBBR we never waited for a bus. There was always one waiting at the bus stop when we walked out and the ride is only about 5 minutes. So, for future trips, if you need to stay at CBBR, I’m sure you’ll be happy with the transportation!



We didn't either when we stayed there, but Josh loves the water taxis so much it's been hard to convince him to go back to CBBR  It was actually a hard choice, I was looking forward to CBBR because of the volcano view rooms and the Christmas decorations, but I do think SF is beautiful and I want to do the dinner show there anyway.



vrajewski10513 said:


> So cute! I just got some Lularoe Christmas leggings to go with the shirt I ordered for the Christmas party.



​


----------



## Raeven

*Grinchmas Trip*-5 weeks (32 days)

So we're almost down to a month! And I still don't have any outfits picked out so that's going to have to wait till next week  This post is also basically the same as this week's post on my Disney PTR if you want to scroll towards the bottom for some new Universal news. 






I'm in full Christmas mode right now, but here's some pictures from Halloween last week:

I made roasted pumpkin seeds.






And Instagram has some fun vampire filters.





He looks like he's in a CW show about handsome zombies 






Ok now back to Christmastime!






(I'm still trying to convince Josh we need to put up the Christmas tree asap). I'm really excited to start hearing about the Christmas stuff going on in the parks including everything going on in the Harry Potter sections. This week after looking around a bit more I was able to change our Disney hotel to the hotel I had wanted before I changed the dates around. I had also changed our hotel to SF last week, but after looking at the prices a few times I was a bit torn since RPR has EP and was only $170 more. But we did just stay there...  Still EP would be nice to have if it does end up busy so I decided to move us there.

I realized since I changed resorts I never posted our dining plans because I was still moving things around. I think things are pretty good though I'm still undecided on a few things. 






*12/14-*Margaritaville-11 am
The Palm-9:15 pm

*12/15-*Lunch on this day is only one I'm still undecided on. Maybe Toothsome, maybe somewhere new to us...
So last week we had been talking about Caribbean Carnaval at SF, 
but since we moved hotels we're looking at doing the Wok Experience at Islands instead. 

*12/16-*Islands-9:30 am
(Ideally this is what I'd like to do but there's no reservations available for our whole week. 
I feel like this might be a glitch though so we'll see when we get there. 
If not we'll head over to SF and eat at Amatista or the Hard Rock and eat at The Kitchen).​


----------



## Raeven

*Grinchmas Trip*-3.5 weeks (24 days)

This weekend Josh's mom got kittens! Here's Paprika and Basil:






We also saw Thor Ragnarok last week. We really liked it so here's some awkward pictures of us holding Thor's hammer at a Viking museum last year:






And now what you've all been waiting for...

The Outfits Post!





(Shirt from AllThingsCuteDesigns, flannel from Cakeworthy)





(Sweatshirt from Etsy) 

I would not recommend the shop so I won't name it. I didn't realize it was shipping from a distant country and the seller was very uncooperative with updates, it never arrived for the trip we were taking last year even though I ordered it months ahead, but when I asked for my money back it showed up suddenly so Etsy wouldn't process any refunds.  So I guess I can wear it this year. 





(shirt from Hot Topic)

It was actually very hot last year when we were in Universal so I'm bringing layers and tanks. 





(Dress from Uniqlo) 

For dinner at The Palm. 

And this picture (and these shirts are from last year but we're going to wear them again): 





(Antlers from Walmart, raglans from TeesandTankYouShop)

Next week I'll start the itinerary posts, have a weekend vlog from the aquarium hopefully, and tell you where else we've decided to eat (currently learning towards Cowfish again) ​


----------



## macraven

_Still reading along_


----------



## Raeven

*Grinchmas Trip*-3 weeks (18 days)

Welcome to the first itinerary post for our December trip!






*12/13-12/14*

We'll be checking into RPR on the 13th, but we'll probably be getting there around 9-10 pm so we won't be doing much besides going to bed. The next day we'll head to Cowfish first thing, then to Universal Studios. I'd like to meet Shrek and Donkey, see some attractions that might not be around for much longer, check out decorated Diagon Alley, and ride some of our favorite rides. 






We'll probably stay in the park to see the Macys Parade before returning to RPR. We may see the Hogsmeade show this night or we may save it for the next night. I'd personally see it every night, but I don't know if Josh will want to see it more than once. Finally later that night we have an early birthday dinner for Josh at Shulas around 9:30 pm. 






*Day 2 will be my next post!*

This weekend we went to the aquarium aka the zoo for fishies.






(Please do yourself a favor and go look up the song  "I Go To the Zoo" from  the show Crazy Ex Girlfriend )

It's been at the mall down the street from us for almost a year, but we hadn't gone yet. And there is definitely a vlog coming in the next few days! But here's some pictures:


































































Also Happy (early) Thanksgiving! I'll be going to my dad's for dinner on Thanksgiving, and watching Thanksgiving Food Network specials all week to celebrate! 




​


----------



## Raeven

*Grinchmas Trip*-2 weeks (11 days)!

Here's some pictures from Thanksgiving at my dad's (If you read my Disney PTR you can just skip to the itinerary post the rest is the same):


























I think the corn pudding is always a highlight, but it usually takes forever to cook, and by then we all had food and my dad was like "why are you taking pictures of all the food?"











Pumpkin cheesecake, coconut custard pie, and chocolate creae pie:






Yum!






My family also watched Elf on Thanksgiving #ReadyforChristmas






Later that night we watched Criminal Minds, and I want to share these hilarious pictures I took of the screen (a guy was finding people to kill from a dating site). My guess is they didn't think anyone would look closely at their screen but once we saw "competitive duck herding" under hobbies we had to take a closer look 
















Who doesn't love dancing with the wind?






*Itinerary Posts Continued:

12/15*

We'll start our day with lunch at Margaritaville before heading to IOA. We'll be checking out the Grinchmas show since we missed it last year, and going on all our favorite rides (and maybe some we haven't done before). Before heading back to the hotel for a nacho break at Bula Bar. 

Later that night we'll head back to the park to see the new Christmas show on the castle. I can't wait! I watched a video of it, and it was amazing! It far surpassed anything I thought they'd do so I can't wait to see it in person. 

*Stayed tuned for day 3!*

I did also get my time off request for next year this week! I knew right away what dates I wanted to put in for, but since I've decided to wait till we get back to talk about our next trip I'll save that for then. Besides we don't get the official approval till early Jan.
​


----------



## amalone1013

Raeven said:


> I think the corn pudding is always a highlight, but it usually takes forever to cook, and by then we all had food and my dad was like "why are you taking pictures of all the food?"


Because it's delicious, so I can dream about it until Christmas dinner! 

Still me, when taking food pictures:








Raeven said:


> chocolate creae pie


My favorite. Zack's family never gets this kind for some reason. Maybe for Christmas I should use the Village Inn pie certificate I've had in my wallet for 5 years... Also, I love the turkey centerpiece!


Raeven said:


> My family also watched Elf on Thanksgiving #ReadyforChristmas


We watched Christmas Vacation the weekend before Thanksgiving. With wine #notashamed








Raeven said:


> Later that night we watched Criminal Minds, and I want to share these hilarious pictures I took of the screen (a guy was finding people to kill from a dating site). My guess is they didn't think anyone would look closely at their screen but once we saw "competitive duck herding" under hobbies we had to take a closer look


Hahaha I bet someone had a lot of fun writing that and though no one would ever notice! We watched The Good Place  But we went back and watched the first 4 episodes again with Zack's parents over the weekend, because we thought they'd like it. Every time they show the point values for different actions we try to read a bunch.


Raeven said:


> I did also get my time off request for next year this week! I knew right away what dates I wanted to put in for, but since I've decided to wait till we get back to talk about our next trip I'll save that for then.


Yay! 

The Christmas show looks so cool! It makes me wish we had more time 

Also I still want to eat at Margaritaville, *somewhere*. They did have good margaritas at their little outdoor bar area across the sidewalk


----------



## Raeven

amalone1013 said:


> Because it's delicious, so I can dream about it until Christmas dinner!
> 
> Still me, when taking food pictures:







amalone1013 said:


> My favorite. Zack's family never gets this kind for some reason. Maybe for Christmas I should use the Village Inn pie certificate I've had in my wallet for 5 years... Also, I love the turkey centerpiece!



Aw it is delicious. Although my dad froze his a little too much and it was a bit slushy near the top 



amalone1013 said:


> We watched Christmas Vacation the weekend before Thanksgiving. With wine #notashamed



You shouldn't be ashamed it's Christmas time! 



amalone1013 said:


> Hahaha I bet someone had a lot of fun writing that and though no one would ever notice! We watched The Good Place  But we went back and watched the first 4 episodes again with Zack's parents over the weekend, because we thought they'd like it. Every time they show the point values for different actions we try to read a bunch.



Ooo I bet those would be fun to read. And another Good Place fan! 



amalone1013 said:


> Yay!
> 
> The Christmas show looks so cool! It makes me wish we had more time



I wish you had more time too! Then we could see each other and you could see the Christmas show! 



amalone1013 said:


> Also I still want to eat at Margaritaville, *somewhere*. They did have good margaritas at their little outdoor bar area across the sidewalk



I really like their burgers and margaritas ​


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## Raeven

*Grinchmas Trip*-4 days, 11 hours!

This weekend we finally got our Christmas decorations up! 











We have a lot of fox ornaments: 






Here's some Disney ornaments from my childhood: 
















I love these chubby chef snowmen with pies (they're Josh's)  & here's a closer look at the UOAP ornament we got this year: 






Also yes I have a bacon and eggs ornament: 






Christmas ornament selfie!











If you were wondering, yes our tree topper is Robin Hood riding a Coca Cola polar bear  Here's a close up:






We do have more ornaments I didn't get pictures of, but I'm hoping to buy a few more during our trip too!

*Itinerary Posts Continued:

12/16
*
Originally we thought of just eating breakfast at the hotel then heading to the airport, but if we wake up early we'll actually have time to head to the parks before we leave so we decided to do that instead! 






We ended up deciding to book the Grinch breakfast at 8:30 am! After breakfast we'll have some park time before we have to leave around 11ish. 






We're hoping to get to the airport early enough so that if we want lunch we can sit down somewhere and eat (like at Cask and Larder). And that's it for our trip itinerary! 

*I'll probably post throughout this week too, with a short vlog and summary of our final plans the night before we go! *

*



 *​


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## macraven

_Less than two weeks and you’ll be there!_


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## Raeven

*Grinchmas Trip*-1 day, 11 hours!

*It's almost time!!!*






Just one more day at work to get through...





(Me at work tomorrow)

After work I have to go get my bangs trimmed (I know you have yet to see any photos of them, and I haven't taken any because I think she left them a bit too long but I was waiting till right before the trip to trim them). Then we're trying a new restaurant called the Cuckoo's Nest. We leave for the airport at around 11:30 am on Friday. It's going to be chilly in Florida when we're there  which is so strange, but I think we have enough warm clothes packed. 

So here's a final itinerary summary:

*12/8-12/13-Disney*
*12/13-Check into RPR*

*12/14-USO
Dining: *Cowfish, (Going over to Shulas that night for dinner)
We'll probably see the Macy's Parade this night, 
but I don't know if we'll make it over to IOA for the castle show. 

*12/15-IOA
Dining*: Margaritaville, Jake's
*Night show*: Christmas Castle Show

*12/16-IOA/USO
Dining*: Grinch Breakfast-8:30 am, Probably eat lunch in the airport
We have to leave around 11 am to get to the airport we'll probably stay in the parks until then.

And Josh bought me a Reptar bar the other day:





Note what it says in the upper right hand corner.

Inside view:






As someone who watched Rugrats nonstop as a kid this was cool, but a candy bar filled with frosting is pretty gross in my opinon.

The most important thing:






Josh liked the instructions, but I didn't get a super clear picture of them:





​


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## shh

Raeven said:


> It's going to be chilly in Florida when we're there



Excited for your trip - sounds like you're going to have an amazing time! 

I know the cold doesn't make Northerners happy, but as a Floridian, I'm OVER all the brutal heat, humidity and hurricane warnings the past 6 months. LOVING it and keeping fingers crossed the forecast doesn't change, as we'll be there around the same time as you. (Although a much shorter trip than yours.) 

We had cold weather for HHN and it made the trip 10x more special. Plus, feels like the crowds are more tolerable when I'm not sweating at the same time!


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## Raeven

shh said:


> Excited for your trip - sounds like you're going to have an amazing time!



Thank you, I can't wait!



shh said:


> I know the cold doesn't make Northerners happy, but as a Floridian, I'm OVER all the brutal heat, humidity and hurricane warnings the past 6 months. LOVING it and keeping fingers crossed the forecast doesn't change, as we'll be there around the same time as you. (Although a much shorter trip than yours.)



Well it has already been cold here for awhile so we're used to it. I would prefer if it's cooler in FL, but some of the forecasts have the nights a little too cold for FL   But it will be warmer than here. 



shh said:


> We had cold weather for HHN and it made the trip 10x more special. Plus, feels like the crowds are more tolerable when I'm not sweating at the same time!



Ugh our HHN weekend was soooo hot it's part of why we've cut down the length of our September trips. ​


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## Raeven

*On the way to the airport now! *



If you want to follow along on our trip my Instagram is happiest_haunt. **




​


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## nicco5family

I hope you are having a most excellent time!


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## macraven

_Still in Florida???_


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## Raeven

macraven said:


> _Still in Florida???_



Just got back 2 hours ago. ​


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## Raeven

We're back!  & here's my new TR link for the Disney portion of our trip: 

"Kurt Russell Read Us the Story of Christmas!" Dec 2017 Xmas & Bday TR

I'm doing something new this time and so the vlogs can catch up I'll probably finish that one before I begin the Universal one. And I'll probably be continuing this PTR with news for our trips next year.​


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## schumigirl

Raeven said:


> We're back!  & here's my new TR link for the Disney portion of our trip:
> 
> "Kurt Russell Read Us the Story of Christmas!" Dec 2017 Xmas & Bday TR
> 
> I'm doing something new this time and so the vlogs can catch up I'll probably finish that one before I begin the Universal one. And I'll probably be continuing this PTR with news for our trips next year.​



Glad you’re back safely.........hope you had an amazing time.......looking forward to reading about your Universal side of the trip.........


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