This Bridge is Old, Like You! - A July 2017 and April 2018 TR *Completed + New TR Link Posted

[Cloe Colton]

Too cute! Evie is going to be a Disney instagrammer before you know it! haha

 

[Lesley Wake]

The biggest downfall that comes with staying somewhere off property is that we never get to the parks when we intend to. Alex and I were up and moving by 5:45 on this morning, yet we still didn’t get on the road until eight a.m. Part of it was because we were saying our goodbyes to family, but another part was because it was hard to get motivated. When I’m at a Disney resort I’m surrounded by Disney so the parks aren’t far from my mind. Whereas at the condo, the lure of the laptop and a fresh pot of coffee was distracting me. This might not be an issue with a lot of you guys, but now that I’ve had kids it’s hard to get me to break away from other folks to head into the Disney bubble.

Oh we feel that too here at home! I never get to the parks as early as I want!

Anyways, Alex and I drove straight to our resort for the night – the amazing Polynesian Village – parked our car and went inside to check in. There are no photos of our trek to the reception desk because I always like to absorb the feelings I get when I step into our temporary “home.” Especially when the resort is a splurge.

When you only get one night on property, go big or go home, right?

Sounds good to me! I can't wait to stay there for 2 nights in February!

And at the end we got a special treat:

Landon and my name popped up on the goodbye screen! I got way more excited than Landon did; I think he was too busy reading all the different languages on the flowers to notice his name. Silly kid…

So cool! I haven't gotten it yet!

While eating, Evie insisted on wearing her sunglasses and lei and kept brushing her hair out of her face in the most casual manner, that Alex and I just looked at each other and went, “Oh boy.” And then when she saw me pull out my phone, she stood up, spread her arms, and went “CHEESE!”

Oh Evie - that's pretty adorable! You have to get her into BBB one day!

If I can adapt to Alex’s Disney shopping addiction and Landon’s deep rooted love of Peter Pan then I can fit Evie’s designer eye into the equation.

I love all of those obsessions! Well...maybe replace "designer" with "fun etsy clothes"

 

[MeghanEmily]

We both agreed that Disney had gotten the Magic Kingdom figured out.

They just gotta put their heads together and figure out Epcot now…

Agreed!

Man how I miss those days! There’s something to be said about walking around the Magic Kingdom without worrying about tiny fingers touching handrails or the snack count in the backpack.

Mmm...everyone keeps asking us when we're having kids, or why we'd ever go to Disney without them...and then I think of this and how much work it would/will be with kiddos! I know how much we'll love taking our kids to Disney if we ever have any, but I also really value the couple time we have their now!

I don’t know why, but I plan our MK mornings the same way ever since we had Landon. We start off at It’s a Small World then Fastpass Peter Pan’s Flight. Every. Single. Trip.

I’m like a broken record. Once I find a way that works with my kids, I stick to it without fail.

Hey, why mess with a good thing!

While eating, Evie insisted on wearing her sunglasses and lei and kept brushing her hair out of her face in the most casual manner, that Alex and I just looked at each other and went, “Oh boy.” And then when she saw me pull out my phone, she stood up, spread her arms, and went “CHEESE!”

Oh. My. Goodness!!

She's hilarious and spunky and I love her. I'm sure you and Alex will have your hands full with her at times, but what a confident and unique little person you'll be raising! And that picture is that cutest thing I've seen in a long time.

My friend said E could talk, so I video called them and had E convince Landon to give HM a shot.

So smart! What a good idea.

It was hilarious and showed us that you can’t wear that kind of shirt without people expecting you to be current on the films.

Ugh, I feel this! I still haven't seen Infinity War, eek: I know,) but I plan to finally watch it next week. I'd made it through 2.5 months without any spoilers, and then just yesterday had the ending spoiled for me.

Hard to tell, but he was fine with the overall attraction. I wouldn’t say he loved it, and when asked he said he didn’t want to go again, but there was no screaming or ensuing nightmares. Hooray!

I'd count that a win.

 

[Lifelong_Dreamer]

It was then that I walked over to her and asked her, “Evie, do you like the rides?”

“No!”

“Do you want to meet Pluto?”

“No!”

“Do you like wearing your Ariel shirt and being in Rapunzel’s area?”

“YES!”

Give her a few years and she will want all the newest mouse ears and her photo in front of all the pretty Disney walls and other pretty Disney backdrops. You will have to take her to Bibiddi Bobiddi Boutique!

 

[amazingact21]

The message in Small World is cool. I would be so excited about that

It was a really cool perk that came with the MagicBands!

Small World and Peter Pan are 2 perfect rides to start the day! Why fix what isn't broke, right?

That's so cute that Evie is such a girly girl! And that she's always ready for her closeup!

Woo hoo for finding a way to get Landon on HM! Glad he didn't completely hate it!

Bummer about BTMRR

That's a good point. I just had that thought as I was writing about our morning. I was like, "I swear, I write this same recap every year."

Too cute! Evie is going to be a Disney instagrammer before you know it! haha

Oh gosh! Probably so...

Oh we feel that too here at home! I never get to the parks as early as I want!

Glad to hear I'm not the only one who has a hard time getting their day going when not on property.

Sounds good to me! I can't wait to stay there for 2 nights in February!

I go back and forth all the time on whether the Polynesian or AKL is my favorite Disney resort. After you stay at the Poly, you'll have to tell me what you think.

I love all of those obsessions! Well...maybe replace "designer" with "fun etsy clothes"

I'm pretty sure after the kids saw your fun Groot shirt they are going to question me before our next trip. "Why can't you wear cool Disney shirts?" I'll probably scope out Etsy for all of us.

Mmm...everyone keeps asking us when we're having kids, or why we'd ever go to Disney without them...and then I think of this and how much work it would/will be with kiddos! I know how much we'll love taking our kids to Disney if we ever have any, but I also really value the couple time we have their now!

Sssshhh, don't tell the kids but my favorite Disney trip was one I took without them! Don't get me wrong, there's nothing like seeing Disney through their eyes but it's way more exhausting and stressful than when you're visiting with other adults. I completely understand why couples visit Disney without kids!

Oh. My. Goodness!!

She's hilarious and spunky and I love her. I'm sure you and Alex will have your hands full with her at times, but what a confident and unique little person you'll be raising! And that picture is that cutest thing I've seen in a long time.
I'd count that a win.

Without a doubt. I hope her strong attitude evolves into confidence as she gets older. Somehow I ended up with two strong-willed, bold kids that I'm sure will give me a run for my money as they grow up. It's no wonder I can't wait for a Disney trip without them....

Give her a few years and she will want all the newest mouse ears and her photo in front of all the pretty Disney walls and other pretty Disney backdrops. You will have to take her to Bibiddi Bobiddi Boutique!

Oh, this made me laugh! I didn't even think about the Disney walls! But that's precisely what I could see her wanting to do when she gets a little older!

 

[petals]

It was a really cool perk that came with the MagicBands!

We won't have magic bands unless the hotel give them for the room. We have plastic card park tickets. I wanted a pink magic band!

They do something similar on the ET ride in universal though as you go in they give you a "passport" then when you get further down they scan the passport and ask your name and at the end of the ride ET is saying thank you or goodbye or something but says your name. You have to listen really carefully though because it happens really quick and sometimes it goes to early and you miss it.

 

[natebenma]

Sorry I got so behind here!

Continuing around the World Showcase, Alex and I stopped briefly at the African Outpost to let the kids bang on the drums.

These pictures are very cute!

The selfies with Alex are also precious.

Yum, the pretzel looks amazing. I'm glad you were able to get that. Perfect with a beer!

Sorry to hear the afternoon was so rough on the kids and on you and Alex. You did a great job keeping their spirits up and knowing the limits and boundries you could push.

Naturally, the best way to get to the tanks is through the Under the Sea attraction

This reminds me of one of my favorite memories from EPCOT past.

Back when this attraction was the Living Seas, you had to sit through a movie about the Ocean. It was good, but when Mark and I had seen it about a million times, the start of the movie "Imagine. Just for a moment. Drip. Drip. Drip." we were over it. We wanted to get into the aquarium part, but we didn't want to sit through the movie again.

We waited by the exit of the "Hydrolators", the fake elevators that shook and appeared to move with bubbles on the walls as you left the aquarium and were getting to the exit level of Sea Base Alpha.

When a group exited the Hydrolator, we got in. The exit closed, the doors opened (no shaking or bubbles) and the surprised look on the Cast Members face as we exited was priceless!

 

[natebenma]

Alex had splurged and got us the canoli cake to split:

YUM!!!

Sounds like a great detour to Animal Kingdom. The Tree of Life truly is amazing!

I love your souvenirs. I'm not much of a purse gal, but I agree with you. The print on this one is awesome, and I'm so glad you have found it so practical.

How nice that you got to spend a little time with family as you were leaving AK.

 

[natebenma]

f3 by Alicia Wolch

I love the way you are showcasing your mani, pedi and Dooney!

And while I was pampering myself, Alex was back at the house letting the kids go swimming:
f4 by Alicia

Perfect! I bet they had a great time.

Do you have any pools you can use in Germany, or is this an extra special vacation treat?

 

[natebenma]

You guys clean up nice!!!

AWWWWW!!!! So pretty

 

[natebenma]

What a perfect morning!

You got some amazing pictures in front of the castle with very few others in the shots!

Checking into the Poly, hitting a couple of family friendly classics, finding a way to convince Landon to ride Haunted (and him not hating it) and discovering the key to Evie's happiness at Disney.

Sorry that Big Thunder did not work out. I do hope you are able to catch it later.

Tiki Birds is not normally on my itinerary, but we did go on it during my most recent trip with the girls.

 

[amazingact21]

We won't have magic bands unless the hotel give them for the room. We have plastic card park tickets. I wanted a pink magic band!

They do something similar on the ET ride in universal though as you go in they give you a "passport" then when you get further down they scan the passport and ask your name and at the end of the ride ET is saying thank you or goodbye or something but says your name. You have to listen really carefully though because it happens really quick and sometimes it goes to early and you miss it.

I've never been on ET before, but this is good information to know! I love little touches like that on rides.

We waited by the exit of the "Hydrolators", the fake elevators that shook and appeared to move with bubbles on the walls as you left the aquarium and were getting to the exit level of Sea Base Alpha.

When a group exited the Hydrolator, we got in. The exit closed, the doors opened (no shaking or bubbles) and the surprised look on the Cast Members face as we exited was priceless!

You gave that Cast Member quite the surprise! Least you broke up a potentially monotonous workday for the poor guy/girl.

Do you have any pools you can use in Germany, or is this an extra special vacation treat?

We do have a couple pools around where I live. Indoor pools are a big thing here, especially in the winter. The kids go swimming while the parents visit the sauna!
I'm not sure why, but we haven't visited any, though. I think it's because my kids are at an awkward age right now. Evie has to stay in the wade pools and Landon wants to run off to bigger play structures, and I worry about trying to keep an eye on both.
And in DLP, the boys have to wear speedos in the pools which would never happen with Alex.

 

[amazingact21]

I’m going to try and knock out a quick update today while the kids are playing with Play Doh. (Anyone else going crazy having the kids out of school for the summer?)

I hope everyone has been having a good July. My latest adventure took me to:


Switzerland!

Only this time, I ditched the kids with Alex and went with my good friend, Ashley:


She is the one who’s also the big Disney fan and will inevitably end up at WDW the same time as me one day in the future. The two of us got to visit a small town called Gruyeres, tour a cheese factory, a chocolate factory, and take a chocolate train!



Switzerland was great, and I loved seeing the Alps in the summertime versus the winter when they are covered in snow and it’s freezing outside. This Florida girl is keeping her fingers crossed our next home is located somewhere warm year round!

So far, Alex and I don’t have any more set trips for the rest of the summer but I’m sure something will pop up. Although, August is my favorite month to be in Germany so I’m looking forward to participating in all the happenings that go on in my local area. I’m trying to enjoy everything as much as possible…

All right, now on to the quick update:


Monday, April 30th, 2018 Part 2:

After sitting through the Enchanted Tiki Room, Alex and I were ready to head back to the Polynesian and grab some food. Personally, I love Captain Cook’s offerings and prefer to eat there over any of the QS locations in the MK.

Alex wanted to take the resort monorail back, but I wanted to use the resort boat once and knew it would be less crowded at this time versus at park closing. Alex wasn’t thrilled with having to wait for the boat with the midday sun beating down on him, but he was nice and let me have the win.
There were only a few other families on the boat with us, and most of them got off when we docked at the Grand Floridian.




When we got off the boat, Alex and I got a little turned around and weren’t sure how to get from the docks to the lobby. We hadn’t been back in that area since before the major refurbishment and ended up walking towards the pool rather than around the side. Of course, the pool area is gated and when we scanned our bands it wouldn’t recognize our reservation.

We weren’t sure why it wasn’t working; our only guess was that because we didn’t have a room assignment yet the reservation wasn’t appearing on our bands. Lucky for us, a dad saw our struggles and hurried over to let us in. We could have walked around until we found a pathway that would work, but this enabled us to walk straight through.


Once inside, I led us to the restaurant and took the kids to find an empty table. Alex ordered chicken nuggets for Landon and Evie and the pulled pork slider sandwich for each of us.



I love this dish so much. The pineapple slaw takes it the extra mile, giving it a very signature taste and a fitting theme for the island-like resort. I predict that my family will stay at Shades of Green many times over the years, and if that assumption pans out then you’ll probably see that sandwich in a dozen more trip reports. I’m pretty sure it’s already appeared on here twice…


Our room still wasn’t available by lunch’s end (we didn’t expect it to be) but I wasn’t ready to head back to the parks yet, so Alex ran to the car and got Landon’s swim gear. He would have grabbed Evie’s, as well, but she was starting to get grumpy and needed a nap more than a swim.

Since I could spend an entire week just hanging out by the pool and relaxing, I offered to take Landon to the kid’s water play area while Alex tried to get Evie to rest. During lunch, we were commenting that I’d forgotten to bring Lysol wipes to clean the room and that our sunscreen was running low. Ever since the Disney plague of 2016 I always do a pre-cleaning of the hotel rooms before we unpack, and it was bugging me that I didn’t have anything to use for this night.

Sweet Alex knew this would be a distraction for me all afternoon, and faced with the prospect of sitting by the pool doing absolutely nothing, he agreed to check out the gift shops to see if there was anything I could use. We also didn’t have any swim diapers for Evie, so if we wanted to take her swimming at a later time we had to buy some.

The Polynesian had the diapers but no wipes. I was willing to accept the risk and take our chances with the germs, but Alex was antsy and wanted to wander some more. He tossed Evie in the baby carrier and announced that he was going to walk to Shades of Green and check their shop for the items.

I thought he was crazy! That was a good ten minutes of walking one way, and doing it with a toddler strapped to his chest made the trek even harder. He might as well have been doing one of his ruck runs, only in cargo shorts and improper shoes.

However, he seemed pretty determined to do it.

Anything sounded better than sitting at the pool.

That’s my husband’s worst nightmare right there.

Wasting time off doing…nothing? What kind of crazy person considers that fun?

His wife, that’s who…

The two of us mesh on a lot of fronts, but how we approach trips is not one of them.


Alex went off on his long walk while I got Landon changed and headed to the pool. Once again my band wouldn’t work, but I waited until another guest was leaving and grabbed the gate as it was closing. I felt like a criminal trying to sneak into a deluxe pool and was ready to whip out my phone and prove my reservation number to anyone who shot me a disapproving look.

“See, look, I belong here! Don’t kick me out!”


Landon always had a blast at the Shades pool, but he took one look at the Polynesian one and it instantly became his new favorite.



(I didn't realize until I took this photo and posted it to social media that there was someone mooning my camera in the shot.Because I was in the sun, I couldn't even see my phone screen when I took it and only snapped the one shot.)

The main component of the water area was the same as others, a few small slides with a rope bridge and water guns, but the exception on this one was the rather large tunnel slide at one end. It was the most “intense” one Landon had ever done up that point, and he felt like a big kid getting to go on it.

f1 by Alicia Wolchick, on Flickr

Immediately after he went on it the first time, he ran up to me and exclaimed, “That was awesome!!! It has a light to tell you when to go and a tunnel and it goes fast!!!”


The slide was the best thing ever, and I spent the following hour watching Landon go on it over and over again. The only problem was that after he got off, he wanted to run back to the stairs and I had to yell “WALK!” continuously. I am sure the other parents around me were getting sick of hearing my voice, but Landon was having a terrible time remembering that rule. As soon as he heard my voice he’d slow, but his excitement always overloaded his brain once his feet hit concrete.

Bless the lifeguard’s heart, he tried to help me out. He made a circuit from one end of the pool to the other, and every time he was at the slide’s end when Landon got out, he’d ask him for a high five or a fist bump or a cheer to try and get him to keep a safe pace. He walked over to me at one point and said, “I’m trying!”


It had been a few days since I called my mom, and I wanted to tell her about the wedding, so I decided to use my time alone to do that. We chatted for about twenty minutes, and when I happened to mention where Alex had run off to, she told me, “Oh, I have some Lysol wipes in the center console in my car. You could have just used those.”



We had borrowed my mom’s vehicle for the trip, and when she told me that I instantly remembered seeing them a few days earlier when we were driving to the rehearsal dinner. Oh jeez…poor Alex walked all that way just to have what we needed a couple hundred feet away in the parking lot.

I felt ridiculous, and when Alex got back I was the recipient of a big head shake and eye roll. Whoops.


Like I said earlier, I let Landon play at the pool for an hour, but then I had to drag him away from the fun. Left up to him, he would have stayed in the water the rest of the afternoon. Unfortunately, we had a big evening ahead of us with several reservations; skipping park time wasn’t an option.




I got him changed back into his regular clothes and found Alex and Evie hanging out in one of the lobby couches.



I joined them and charged my phone for a few minutes while Landon and Evie ate the rest of the animal crackers we had packed.


How they were still hungry after eating lunch an hour earlier is beyond me. These kids are bottomless pits, sometimes.

When the crackers were gone and the phone had a rejuvenated battery, Alex and I hauled the kids back to the monorail station and prepared ourselves to spend the rest of the night inside the magic Kingdom.



Up Next…You’ll Never Make it in Time

 

[paradesintherain]

That panicked Landon, though, and he walked away shouting at her, “Tell Kristoff I’m in Germany! If he looks for me in Florida I won’t be here much longer!!!”

That is SO CUTE! I've honestly never had great luck meeting Anna and Elsa, I don't know what it is.

He cried and threw a fit, so it wasn’t the most enjoyable experience for us, but once we were off the ride and viewing the tanks in the dark rooms things got better.

Poor little guy!

Skipping it turned out to be a great decision!

Love it when it works out that way with Fastpasses!

But bags…oh they are my weakness.

Same!! They're just so nice!

It was brilliant!

Mobile ordering is really fantastic and I bet it's so helpful for families like yours with small children

some spaghetti eis.

Eis is ice cream, right? what is spaghetti ice cream?!

The crazy man likes Animal Kingdom least of all the WDW parks!!!

How is that even possible?!

So cute! Love the purse style you ended up with

that we had a hard time getting past all the tomato sauce on the pizzas.

Oh, ew, there was so much tomato sauce when I last ate there. I had to scrape it off to make it palatable.

My family made it on the right bus and back to our car without incident, then we drove the 25 minutes to our rental house.

So much traveling!

The ceremony was at 4:30, and Landon and Evie pulled off their roles as ring bearer and flower girl perfectly:

They were so cute!

Awwwww such a fantastic family photo!

Look at that happy girl!

They just gotta put their heads together and figure out Epcot now…

For real!! It's so ridiculous to have to go through bag check twice.

Adorable! She's going to need to start posing with the walls of Disney

I’m not sure what magic words E used to convince Landon, but by the time I hung up and put my phone back in my pocket my son was ready and excited to give the attraction a shot!

That's too precious. Love that your scheme actually worked!

Lucky for us, a dad saw our struggles and hurried over to let us in.

What a kind soul!

He walked over to me at one point and said, “I’m trying!”

Awwwww. I don't know why but that struck me as so adorable

 

[rdkeim]

Great update! That spot in Switzerland looks beautiful and perfect for a scenic walk. We are going on a river cruise in Sept. and extending at the end with 4 nights in Lucerne. Can't wait to see it! Of all the vacations we took with our boys, I think their favorite was always the hotel pool

 

[natebenma]

Wow! Your visit to Switzerland looked amazing. Chocolate and Cheese? YES, PLEASE!

You had a really nice resort break. I have never eaten at Captain Cooks, because Kona is our go-to (any meal) at the Poly.

I'm so glad to hear Landon enjoyed the pool and slide so much.

Kudos for Alex for taking Evie on the wipes expedition. Did she rest?

 

[Lifelong_Dreamer]

Personally, I love Captain Cook’s offerings and prefer to eat there over any of the QS locations in the MK.

Me too! We really enjoy heading to the monorail resorts to grab a bite and have a break from the park.

(I didn't realize until I took this photo and posted it to social media that there was someone mooning my camera in the shot.Because I was in the sun, I couldn't even see my phone screen when I took it and only snapped the one shot.)

 

[MeghanEmily]

I hope everyone has been having a good July. My latest adventure took me to:

Switzerland!

Beautiful!! All of your European excursions look amazing, but Switzerland in particular is somewhere I'd like to see.

I love this dish so much. The pineapple slaw takes it the extra mile, giving it a very signature taste and a fitting theme for the island-like resort.

Yum! This looks good! I'll have to add it to the list of things we need to try someday at Disney.

Ever since the Disney plague of 2016 I always do a pre-cleaning of the hotel rooms before we unpack, and it was bugging me that I didn’t have anything to use for this night.

Good call there!! It's so lousy to be sick on vacation, especially at Disney. I always do the airplane surfaces around me, and I've recently started doing the rooms, too.

(I didn't realize until I took this photo and posted it to social media that there was someone mooning my camera in the shot.Because I was in the sun, I couldn't even see my phone screen when I took it and only snapped the one shot.)

Oh my goodness!!

Bless the lifeguard’s heart, he tried to help me out. He made a circuit from one end of the pool to the other, and every time he was at the slide’s end when Landon got out, he’d ask him for a high five or a fist bump or a cheer to try and get him to keep a safe pace. He walked over to me at one point and said, “I’m trying!”

Haha the poor guy! Landon was just so excited!

We had borrowed my mom’s vehicle for the trip, and when she told me that I instantly remembered seeing them a few days earlier when we were driving to the rehearsal dinner. Oh jeez…poor Alex walked all that way just to have what we needed a couple hundred feet away in the parking lot.

I felt ridiculous, and when Alex got back I was the recipient of a big head shake and eye roll. Whoops.

Oh no!! An easy thing not to think of it...but poor Alex!!

 

[missangelalexis]

Glad you had a nice time in Switzerland!

I am with you, I love lounging by the pool! Glad Landon had such a blast at the pool! So funny that Alex would do anything to stay active while you guys were hanging out!

 

[piglet1979]

The two of us mesh on a lot of fronts, but how we approach trips is not one of them.

This is my husband and I too. I want to be in the parks all day (rope drop to close) and DH wants breaks by the pool to rest. I am slowly learning to slow down some.