I wanted to be sure and get an update in this weekend - so here we go!
Sunday, August 31st was my first full day at the world. I woke up, packed the few items I'd taken out of the suitcase and called Bell Services to transfer my luggage to Coronado Springs. I wasn't meeting my cousins at Splittsville until 10:30, so it was a pretty leisurely morning.
Everything Pop, however, was a ZOO! It was pretty crazy in there. This was Sunday of Labor Day weekend and although the crowds were predicted to be light during the week, you could tell it was still holiday crowd time. I attempted a picture of the breakfast rush, just to give you an idea.
After grabbing a quick muffin and Diet Coke, I made my way to the bus stop to catch a Downtown Disney bus. Holy Mother of God, I had forgotten how HOT it is in September - gracious!! Not like your normal heat, or even summer-level heat at Disney. It was center of the sun, we're hotter than Mars, HOT and HUMID which just made it worse. Luckily, the bus came in about 5 minutes and I entered into its air-conditioned goodness! (Whoever invented air conditioning - God Bless You!!)
After a quick ride to Downtown Disney, we were dropped off at the Marketplace area. I had some time to kill as I was there about 20 minutes before they opened at 10:00, so I just sat on a bench and read some emails.
I then witnessed one of my favorite "Aww!" Disney moments. You know those, when you witness something super-cute and sweet between guests, cast members, etc? There was a family with two young boys, and as they were walking by, "Kiss The Girl" from Little Mermaid was playing. The husband remarked to his wife, "Well, the song DOES say to kiss the girl!", and he leaned over to his wife and gave her a smooch. The looks on the boys faces were PRICELESS, a mixture of disgust and embarrassment. So cute!
The stores opened, and I wandered around for a bit. I had about 20 minutes to kill before I had to make my way over to Splittsville, so I wandered in and out of the shops. I was on a mission to see TrenD and the newly redesigned Marketplace Co-op area.
WOW! It looks amazing. I was super impressed; it has this "boutique" feel to it, and is very cool. A much-needed update, I think.
I knew my big souvenir purchase this trip was going to be a Disney Dooney and Bourke purse. I didn't want to buy it online, I wanted to see it in person, the placement of the characters on the bag, etc. A very nice cast member helped me look at the bags and inspect each one, and then I made my selection! Isn't she gorgeous?!?!
I was SO happy; I have been looking at this particular pattern for a few years, and was very happy with my choice.
Giant purse bag in hand, I made my way through the construction are, and to Splittsville. It was a gorgeous day and even though, as mentioned, it was hotter than you-know-where, the sky was very blue and pretty.
I saw my cousins, we greeted each other, and then made our way in for bowling and lunch!
Next time, I'll share how we did bowling (spoiler alert - I suck!!) and my thoughts on Splittsville.
So glad you're here!!
at least he caught himself!
CANNOT. WAIT. I've had a cabana once before and it was INCREDIBLE. Since this trip is to celebrate my birthday, I thought it was pretty cool that I got some "cabana karma". 
