Andrew's Bar Mitzvah Bash....THREAD TWO....COMPLETE WITH WRAP UP.....5/18 About This Page:

[LLaffinPlace]

Ah! Flying Fish! One of my favorites. Glad you got to enjoy your day. I find that a quiet day makes a trip actually seem longer.

[KandJluvdisney]

great updates dani
glad you got to enjoy your mickey bar and score a bouceback offer
hurry bacl with more please

[DyanKJ130]

Great update, Danielle!! How nice to have the morning to yourself! Sounds like you had a wonderful meal at FF. Can't wait to hear the reaction to you booking the bounceback offer. More please

[BelmontBelle]

I'm just getting caught up again. I'm glad that you had such a nice relaxing day after all your planning and hard work, you sure deserved it! How exciting too that you booked your next trip. I'm anxious to hear everyones reaction to staying at AKL!

[tammyd_rn]

What a nice relaxing afternoon and even better that you got to relax while you planned another trip for hopefully more relaxation at the end of the summer.

[Disney_Scarlett]

Originally Posted by disneydani

Don't go shouting it from the rooftops, yet...the pink was originally just for Valentine's Day and when we went, we were lucky there were some leftover. When I asked our Fairy God-Mother in Training, she said it was immensely popular and they were looking to add it to the current offering.

danielle

Mum's the word! I hope they do add it as a regular option, though.

Great update! I'm glad you enjoyed a morning to yourself. Flying Fish sounded devine, and how cool to see a friendly face in your Chef! Can't wait to hear more!

[Caldercup]

Sounds like a great slow day to fend off those side effects of the shot. (I have to be better about doing this when I'm on property!)

Love that you finished up the bounceback plans seconds before the fam damily came back and the "jig would've been up!"
Eileen

[PrincessSharon]

Sounds like a great day, Danielle! Glad you recovered from the side effects quickly. And I guess booking another trip would make you feel better too! Ready for more!

[DawnDenise]

What a wonderful and relaxing afternoon! Love how you scored a bounceback offer!! Dinner at Flying Fish sounds wonderful!! Looking forward to more!

[disneydani]

Tuesday, March 17th

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

It was our last full day and honestly, we were all pretty tired by now. However, we were determined to enjoy our day and happily dragged our tired rear ends outta bed. We took turns hitting the lounge for breakfast and picking up Izzy’s dairy free treats. We had previously agreed to meet my in-laws in the lobby and we were all timely in our 8:30 rendez-vous. We made the quick drive over to DHS and parked somewhere in Siberia….apparently the front parking lots are saved for the guests who sleep in!

Again, my memory is sketchy and pics are practically non-existent. I seem to recall we hit the first showing of Voyage of the Little Mermaid…which is still one of my favs and something I practically have to beg Andrew to join in on. Today, though, he must have been feeling generous and graciously joined the rest of the family. As we were exiting the show, I run into a friend of mine, who is DVC owner and frequents WDW too. With all the hoopla, I totally forgot she was going to be there but was pleasantly surprised when we practically collided!

Afterwards, we headed to Star Tours where I went through the cue with the kiddos but then took the chicken exit before they boarded their ship to Endor. I sat in the outer hallway until they exited. Next up, we headed to the Backlot Tour. We have not done this in ages so we thought we would give it a whirl. Turns out, it was a great choice because Paul and my in-laws were chosen to be the ~volunteers~ in the film scene. It was great for me and the kids because the CMs put us front and center for a perfect view!





Much to Andrew’s chagrin, they all remained relatively dry! We next walked a bit and then headed onto the vehicles for the rest of the tour. It was great fun to watch Izzy’s reaction on Catastrophe Canyon as reacted as if it was her first time…in actuality; she has no recollection of the last time she was on it.

Lunchtime was approaching so we grabbed a table at Studio Catering Company and had lunch…though it couldn’t have been very memorable because I have no idea what we ate! The Great Movie Ride was next and once again, I think this ride needs some serious updating. However, everyone else in my party seemed to enjoy it. We then headed to another one of our family favs, Magic of Disney Animation. Of course, we have seen the show quite often so we headed in the back way and just went right into the queue for the class. As luck would have it, we were drawing Goofy again. Although, the choice was fitting because we had the goofiest CM leading the class!

By Andrew’s request, we made One Man’s Dream our last stop of the afternoon. My in-laws enjoyed listening to Andrew’s anecdotes throughout the exhibit. We then took them to see the film which was a first for them. I think they enjoyed it, especially my FiL. The kids wanted to walk though the shops which we did as we made our way out. I was sad that we would miss the Block Party Bash but we just didn’t have it in us. I knew we would just have to make it priority on our next trip!

We headed back to the GF and everyone was happily to lounge around a bit and relax. After a bit, the kids wanted to do a little pin trading so we headed to the gift shops. Izzy immediately made a trade while Andrew was hemming and hawing. He finally decided he wanted to trade and went out to a CM. She took one look at Andrew and pointed to a little sign she was wearing that said something to the effect of ‘I only pin trades with kids 12 and under’. Andrew smiled and politely told her he was 12. She totally did not buy it and let me know it. I understood her point….Andrew looks 15 or 16, however, I felt bad for Andrew. I told the CM that yes, he was 12, he was turning 13 next week and yes, he many times is mistaken for an older child. Truly, I don’t think she believed me but she did agree to trade with Andrew.

Mission accomplished, it was time to freshen up and get ready for our last evening out. We had ADRs at Artist Point and were eager to share it with my in-laws. Again, everyone was timely as we met in the lobby and hopped in the car for a short ride to WL. We headed to the check in desk and were seated almost immediately at a large, round table close to the windows. My in-laws were impressed with the vastness and stark beauty of the restaurant. We made some recommendations to them and ordered as follows.

Apps…

Crispy Venison Spring Rolls with hot sweet and sour sauce

Mixed Greens Salad - Roasted Beets, Hazelnut Gremolata, Echo Mountain Blue Cheese, Blackberry Vinaigrette

Smoky Portobello Soup with Roasted Shiitakes and Chive Oil

Main…

Our Signature Plate - Cedar Plank Roasted King Salmon with pear and smoked pork belly hash and pear ginger glaze

Roasted Chicken Breast - with quince root vegetable mash, haricot vert and and Port Anise Reduction

Pan-seared Scallops with fire-roasted Corn, Fava Beans, Caramelized Onions, Bacon, and Corn Nectar

Dessert….

Artist Point Cobbler - Seasonal berries and housemade black raspberry ice cream


Warm Heirloom Apple Tart - with buttermilk ice cream, candied pecans, and spice syrup

Yum, Yum, Yum…another fabulous meal. And, an awesome CM server, Gary! In fact, he was amazing attentive and interested without being overbearing. At one point, I neede a pen because I was adding his name to my ‘list’… (For those who don’t know, I keep a least of special CMs and always write a letter after trip is over.) In any case, he brought me a pen but also brought me a few of these purple CM Recognition slips. Gary explained to me that CMs love when a guest fills one out as not only is it noted in their file but also the slips are placed into raffles and the CMs can win great prizes, too. I happily took a stash of them and started scribbling away!


As tradition seems to dictate, we knew our last evening would be at MK. Paul was going to pick up the car, drive back to the GF, and then hop the monorail and meet us at MK. The rest of us headed towards the dock to grab the boat to MK. Know where this story is going??? Paul was not-so-patiently waiting for us at the MK. Don’t know if it was an off night but it took us forever to get from WL to MK. Arghhh.

I had told the kids they could each pick 2 rides/attractions for the evening. We first hit PoTC which was Andrew’s first pick. I love riding this at night…I am not sure why as once you are inside, you have no idea what time of day it is anyway. Next, we headed to Izzy’s pick of Winnie the Pooh. Lucky for us, people were minding the pavement waiting for Spectro so it wasn’t long before we were in our hunnypot! We continued on to Buzz, Izzy’s second pick, where I rode with her and had another pathetic score, I am sure. Lastly, we headed back to the Laugh Floor, again. I swear, my kids do not tire of this. I was sort of dreading it but was surprised, again, because there was more new shtick from Mac and Cheese involving a brief overview of Monster, Inc. And, happily for Andrew, the joke he texted made it to the show. “Why did Goofy tiptoe around the campsite?”….He didn’t want to wake the sleeping bags. (ba-ba-cha)

Spectro was in full swing and we were ushered down a side exit in between the The Noodle Terrace and The Plaza….very neat to get a little peak behind the scenes! We hopped on a boat and were back at the hotel within minutes. Happily, we had enough time to grab a evening snack from the lounge, head to our room, and out onto the balcony for our last viewing of Wishes. It was particularly wonderful and an amazing way to cap off our last evening inside WDW.

[Jillybean]

What a busy, jam packed day! Great way to end your trip!

Jill

[Wendyismyname]

What a great day!!
i was also able to get a sneak peek of backstage there one time in 2005. It's like being back in the real world!!

[PrincessSharon]

Sounds like a wonderful day. How cool that Paul and your ILs were stars of the show! And your meal at AP sounded delish! I'm sad that this TR is coming to an end, but can't wait for more.

[RobDVC]

Wow! You sure squeezed every last bit out of your final day!

I hear ya about the DHS parking....That front lot is always empty - who do they save those spots for?!?
How cool that Paul and the in-laws were part of the backstage movie tour!
Your meal at Artist point sounds delicious.

[Colexis Mom]

Great day at DHS, and what a great meal at AP Capping the night off at MK sounded just perfect I'm sorry it's all coming to an end