Kona Cafe, Downtown Disney & T-Rex

While we were staying at the Bonnet Creek resort, we dined out at several resort restaurants and spent a lot of time at Downtown Disney.

The morning we were checking out of the Boardwalk Resort, we had breakfast reservations at Kona Cafe. I had the Tonga Toast and Christopher ordered the Big Kahuna platter. Mom & Dad enjoyed it as well. The service took forever and we were getting really close to check out time, so Mom and I decided to head back to checkout. But...the monorail we were on broke down! So we had to take the water taxi to Magic Kingdom and then the buses. The delay took a while and it turned out we got on the same water taxi as Dad and Christopher! We got to the resort late, but they were very accommodating! We packed up and headed to the pool. Dad went and got the rental car. Then we all drove over to the Wyndham resort.

Our room wasn't ready, so we left for Downtown Disney. We shopped and had a shake at Ghirardelli.  Christopher spoiled me and got me a new Vera Bradley Disney Bag and a beautiful necklace.

We then had an early dinner at T-Rex. None of us had been and we were all excited to try something new together. It was super cute inside. The food was delicious but the service sucked (it was a common theme that day!). I had a meatloaf dinner and Christopher had a burger. All was delicious. And we ordered some fun drinks. I got the Cotton-tini - which is a martini glass filled with cotton candy that they pour the liquor over! Very cool presentation. Christopher also got a fun cocktail too.

At night we relaxed at the resort and had some drinks at one of the pool bars. We ate some coconut shrimp skewers too.

The next day, Dad brought breakfast to the room and we relaxed for a bit then we wandered down to the pool. It was a glorious warm day. We all got some fantastic sun/color. Christopher and I enjoyed the lazy river and we both fell asleep in our tubes.

We treated for lunch at the pool. We had a pepperoni pizza, bread sticks and boneless chicken wings. All were delicious. In the afternoon while we were drying off, we played checkers in one of the playgrounds on site. It was so much fun, except Christopher kicked my butt.

Then later at night, we drove over to Universal City Walk to try that out instead of Downtown Disney...more on that later!

Last Day of Annual Passes :(

After a fun breakfast at Hollywood Studios, we headed over to the Animal Kingdom for the morning/afternoon. Mom and Dad haven't really spent a lot of time in the park and we thought this would be fun for them to see. 

We are so proud of Mom who rode on Expedition Everest! Got to love the pictures Disney takes. 

We also rode Dinosaur and I still get scared during the ride! You would like after riding this several times that I would know when the dinosaur pops out! Maybe next time. We also rode the Kilimanjaro Safaris ride and walked though the Pangani Forest Exploration.

For lunch we ate at the Flame Tree Barbecue which was so delicious! Christopher and I split a combo platter and it was plenty of food for two.

After lunch we headed back to the resort and relaxed for a bit at the pool. Later in the afternoon we decided to walk over to Epcot and enjoy the night there. We split a fish and chips in England, then walked over to France for a Croque Monsieur, Bordeaux and a coffee flavored mousse. All was delicious.

We then strolled around the entire World Showcase. We rode the Three Caballeros ride once more and Spaceship Earth. Then we caught Illuminations. We could watch it every night and still be impressed! 

We then walked back to the Boardwalk. Christopher enjoyed a cigar and beer and I got a slice of pizza and a margarita. We relaxed and people watched for the rest of the night. It was very special. 

Mom and Dad decided to have dinner at the new Italian restaurant on the Boardwalk and enjoyed it very much. They then met us out afterwards and we hung out with our drinks. A great way to end our stay at the Boardwalk. 

Our 4 Park Challenge Day!

During this trip we did a 4 Park Challenge. Our goal/rules of the challenge: go to each park in one day, enjoy at least 3 attractions per park, and eat at least a snack at each park. And....we did it! It is definitely exhausting, but added a different element to our trip

Our first park was Animal Kingdom to capitalize on the extra magic hours in the morning. We were able to ride Expedition Everest TWICE, walked on Kilimanjaro safaris and walked through the Pangani Forest Exploration uninterrupted. We grabbed breakfast at a kiosk and enjoyed some espresso and a croissant.

Next park: Magic Kingdom! We rode Pirates of the Caribbean, Haunted Mansion and the WDW Railroad. We had lunch at Friars Nook (Christopher wanted the pot roast macaroni and cheese) and I shared a pepperoni pizza from Pinocchio's Village Haus. 

Next park: Hollywood Studios. This is our least favorite park, so finding things to do that we both liked was hard. We rode Star Tours, walked through One Man's Dream and then did the Star Wars Lego Experience since it was Star Wars weekend. For our snack, we had a Mickey Ear Ice Cream to help us cool off. 

Since we were making excellent time, we decided to walk back to our resort and take a little nap. It felt so awesome to put our feet up and relax. We probably would have made it through Epcot, but we would have been a little grumpy.

After our nap it was off to our final park - EPCOT! We rode Test Track (thanks to our free fast pass from the ride breaking down), The 3 Caballeros and Mission: SPACE. 

We then relaxed until our dinner reservation at Spice Road Table. We had some celebratory drinks - Christopher picked up a beer from England and I had my favorite martini - no surprises there.

Dinner was delicious but the service was awful. We ordered our favorite pitcher of sparkling sangria, baked brie, calamari and mixed skewers. And of course we finished with coffee and dessert. We caught Illuminations from our table and had a great view of it. We also ran into my co-worker Titi! It was her first trip to WDW and she was having a great time.

And because we are crazies, we ran back to the resort, dropped all of our stuff and ran over to Hollywood Studios to catch Symphony in the Stars. It was so much more huge from outside of the park. We definitely have a new appreciation for the fireworks show.

So...WE DID IT! The 4 park challenge was fun yet exhausting. Definitely not to do with young children, but I would say pre-teen, teens could handle it.

Saturday Breakfast & Epcot

Saturday morning we had breakfast at The Grand Floridian Cafe to catch up with Mom and Dad on their date night and to share with them ours. They had a lovely time at the California Grill. Our breakfast was delicious as usual. Christopher got his fill of steak and eggs and I got the breakfast platter (I like a little bit of everything).

We then made our way to Epcot via the monorail. We went on Imagination with Figment, walked through Innoventions plaza, did Ellen's Energy Adventure and waited in line for Test Track only to have it break down right when we designed our car. Bummer! But we did get a free fast pass to use whenever we would like.

We checked out some of the gardens during the festival. We then walked around World Showcase Lagoon catching the last weekend of the Flower & Garden Festival and all of the fun treats.

We ate a spicy pineapple hot dog, blueberry pomegranate margarita, the lucky combo in China, a beer flight in Germany, Maple Bacon stout from the Smokehouse (while catching the new acappella act perform too - they were AWESOME!) and of course a trip around the world would not be complete without a Grey Goose Grand Marnier martini!

We had a very nice afternoon walking around. We then refreshed ourselves and walked over to the Beach Club for dinner at Beaches & Cream Soda Shop. I had a burger and Christopher had a turkey sandwich. Mom and Dad both had burgers and of course we all indulged in a sundae. It was so cute inside and we had fun selecting tunes from the juke box.

After dinner, Christopher and I walked over to Hollywood Studios to catch Symphony in the Stars. We had some time to kill so we waited and rode Star Tours and had a flight sequence we have not seen before! It was our favorite yet. We then staked our spot on Hollywood Boulevard for the show and fireworks. It did not disappoint. So incredible to have the fireworks go off to the Star Wars score. Christopher videoed it so we can watch it again and again. 

Our First Day in Walt Disney World!

So we flew to Orlando out of the Buffalo airport at 5:30am! It was an early morning flight, but totally worth it so we could have a full day of fun in the sun. We spent our first day in Epcot, which was walking distance from the first resort we stayed at - the Boardwalk Villas. Our room was ready when we arrived, which we were really impressed with considering it was only 9 o'clock in the morning! So we dropped off our carry-ons to the room and got ready to hit the park!

We got to ride Soarin', caught a sneak preview of Tomorrowland, which they were showing in the Captain EO theater (Captain EO was "down" for the special sneak preview) and one of our favorite attractions, Spaceship Earth. We walked around quite a bit to look at all of the gardens and topiaries, since we were able to catch the last week of the Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival. I even braved going into the Butterfly garden and no - I did not freak out when the butterflies landed on me (like I did last year - people probably thought I was nuts!). We got to see the new Anna & Elsa topiaries, which were quite exquisite. Mom and Dad's favorite topiary was the Lady & the Tramp one located outside of Italy. They said it reminded them of Marv and Jameson.

Speaking of Marv and Jameson, they "vacationed" with my parents, who decided not to join us on this trip. They had a great time and enjoyed chasing Buddy around.

A funny situation did happen while we were walking around World Showcase, Dad was taking a picture of Christopher and I in Japan and a Disney World security officer stopped Dad and gave him a ticket! No worries - it was a citation for him not being in the picture with us. We have never seen this in the parks before. The officer was very nice and funny, he even made Dad a Junior Officer to protect the magic, complete with a badge sticker! Dad was very proud and wore his sticker for the rest of the trip.

As we walked around World Showcase, we also sampled some of the food offerings for the flower & garden festival. We sampled the Crispin' Blackberry Pear cider, a cronut (Christopher's favorite", duck confit with parsley potatoes, smoked debreziner sausage and pineapple sparkling wine. All were yummy!

We had lunch at Via Napoli and split a huge pepperoni and sausage pizza. It was delicious and so fresh. Then we split tiramisu, which was so amazing and authentic. We really liked our experience at this restaurant and hope to return in future trips. For families, this was a very affordable option for dining.

We then took a little break in the afternoon and went back to the resort to unpack and freshen up. Christopher and I then took a little walk around Crescent Lake and he treated me to my pearl for the trip. I ended up picking an oyster with an 8mm pearl! I am one lucky girl!

Dinner was at Le Cellier in the Canadian pavilion. And it was of course fabulous. Our server was pleasant and from Ontario. Christopher and I split the famous beer cheddar soup and we all ordered the filet mignon with wild mushroom risotto (yes, even I ate the risotto - it was worth the headache). Mom and Dad split creamed spinach to pair with their steak and Christopher and I split the mac & cheese. We were too full for dessert (I know - the Maple Creme Brulee - next time!). Since our reservation was late (at 8:50 pm), when we left the restaurant, we were one of the last ones left in the park. Which is an experience in itself since the park is so empty and quiet.

It was such a wonderful first day at Walt Disney World. We all fell right asleep and got to sleep in on Thursday.

Our Upcoming Trips FastPass+ Plan

So excited that our trip is about two months away!!! For all the Disney veterans out there - you know what this means - FastPass+ time, pre-arrival check in, etc. I am sure you will not be surprised when I tell you that we have a FP+ plan before we hit our 60 day mark. I thought I would share it with you all and to cheer us on that we get close to what our wishes are!

Day 1 - we will be in Epcot as it is just a short walk from our villa at the Boardwalk. Although our goal is to try as many different tastings during the Epcot Flower & Garden Festival, we do want to fit in some ride breaks. We are hoping for: Soarin', Mission: SPACE and Spaceship Earth. Mom and I will probably pass on Mission: SPACE, but our parents love Soarin'. And of course we have to hit Spaceship Earth too.

Day 2 - Magic Kingdom Day! FP #1 - Seven Dwarfs Mine Train. Our parents have not been on this attraction yet and the lines are usually long. The coaster is cool, but we don't think it is worth the 2 hour wait. Definitely FastPass+ it. Other two rides are Space Mountain and Peter Pan's Flight. Peter Pan's Flight is a slower transfer for guests getting on and off the ride, that is why the wait times soar in the afternoon.

Day 3 - Hollywood Studios Day & Star Wars Weekend! Our FastPass+ plan is to hit Toy Story Midway Mania (a must unless you want to wait in really long lines), Star Tours (because it is Star Wars Weekend) and Tower of Terror - Christopher's favorite.

Day 4 - this is kind of a flex day, but Christopher and I are planning on going back to Epcot to eat at some more marketplaces. So we are planning for Test Track and the Epcot Character Spot - to get our pictures taken with the Fab 5. But this may change - we shall see how the vacation takes us.

Day 5 - Christopher and I's 4-Park Challenge Day. Goodness wish us luck! It was tough trying to pick which park we should use our FastPass+ selections at. Animal Kingdom has early extra magic hours, so we feel we should have no problem hitting three attractions in the early morning. Next we are heading to Magic Kingdom and since there are so many attractions available, we don't think we will have an issue here either. The next park is Hollywood Studios - and this is where we are thinking we should use our FP+ selections because the park doesn't have that many attractions and we will be getting here later in the day. Our plan is Toy Story Midway Mania, Star Tours and Muppet Vision 3D. It may not work out with the times, but if we could at least get Toy Story Midway Mania, we should not have to wait too long for Star Tours and Muppet Vision 3D. Then of course we are heading to Epcot for the last three attractions and our celebratory dinner. We are planning on hitting Captain EO, Journey Into Imagination with Figment and Spaceship Earth.

Day 6 - Since our parents haven't really been to Animal Kingdom, we figured this was a must on this trip. So we are planning to use our FP+ selections on Expedition Everest, Kilimanjaro Safaris and possibly Mickey & Minnie at the Adventureers Outpost to get some cute family pictures.

Days 7 - 12 we will not have passes, so no need to worry about FP+ selections. We are going to spend the second half of our trip relaxing by the pools, enjoying the fabulous resort fare and shopping.

Our Disney December Trip - Day 5

Day 5 of our trip, we did a "resort" tour to catch a bunch of the Christmas decorations and exhibits that were up. We decided to take the monorail to Epcot and then walk through Epcot to get to the Crescent Lake resort area. I tried to tempt Christopher with a cronut, but he was being good. 

Our first stop was Beach Club. It was a lovely warm day and by the time we got to the resort area - no jackets were necessary!

Inside the Beach Club, they had many decorated Christmas trees and a lifesize carousel made out of gingerbread! It was even spinning too!

We then walked over to the Yacht Club. This resort also had a lot of Christmas trees decorated, but their centerpiece was a model train village. It was huge and beautiful. This inspired Christopher to set up our train sets when we got home from the trip. 

Then we walked over to the Boardwalk Resort - one of our favorite resorts (and staying here in May!) The poinsettia garden was beautiful! Wish it was warm enough in Buffalo to do this.

Inside the Boardwalk Resort they had a classic stand for some cones! Made out of...you guessed it - Gingerbread!

We then took a bus over to the Magic Kingdom and walked to the Contemporary resort. Their gingerbread exhibit was themed for Frozen. And instead of Hidden Mickeys - they did Hidden Olaf's - how cute!

We then took to the monorail over to the Poly to relax and catch some football. Unfortunately they did not show the Buffalo Bills game. But we still sat at the bar - ordered our Lapu Lapu's and Christopher received play by play updates through his dad, brother Mike, friends and ESPN.

After relaxing and finishing our drinks at the Poly, we headed back to our home resort and grabbed lunch out on the beach/pool area. Christopher was in a good mood, despite missing the Bills game.

We then headed back to our rooms to change for dinner! Our last night, we did dinner at Citricos inside the Grand. Before dinner, we got some more pictures in front of the HUGE tree inside the Grand, did a little last minute shopping and then headed to the lounge for some pre-dinner drinks. 

We relaxed at the lounge and listened to the live band that was playing. It was truly an exception experience and we will definitely be doing that again. (Side note: you are warned - service at the lounge is very slow).

Citricos is our new favorite restaurant! The service is incredible and the food is absolutely out of this world. We ordered a bottle of wine and started with some appetizers. Christopher ordered the arancini and I had the cheese course. For our entrees Christopher had the Swordfish and I had the veal chop. Both were AMAZING and I still think about that meal.

Although we really did not have any room left for dessert, I wanted to get the warm chocolate torte just so I could get the chocolate crown. Our table was near the dessert station and I caught the pastry chefs making the crowns while we were there.

Christopher ordered the gelato sampler - and it was so cute. They served it in three mini ice cream cones in this cute stand.

We then ran down to the dock after dinner (more like waddled) to catch Wishes over Magic Kingdom. It was so romantic and a great way to end our Christmas vacation at Disney.