Happy Thanksgiving!

I am dreaming of Disney on this Thanksgiving Eve.... oh what I wouldn't do to be in Disney for the holiday!!! When I was a little girl, I went to Disney for the Thanksgiving holiday. We had such a good time! I remember eating hot dogs for lunch at Casey's Corner and then dinner at Crystal Palace which did a special Thanksgiving dinner. I cherish all the memories I have of going to Disney with my family, I love it :) While I was thinking about another trip to Disney for Thanksgiving, I started to think where I would want to have the famous Thanksgiving feast. I couldn't help but come back to the same place.... Liberty Tree Tavern at the Magic Kingdom. Their "routine" food is already pretty well themed for the holiday, but I understand that they do a special Thanksgiving feast for the holiday.

The location in Liberty Square and "soul" good gives it that all American and home-cooked meal feel which we all look forward to for Thanksgiving. I am now officially ready for some super yummy food tomorrow!!! Have you ever gone to Disney for Thanksgiving, if so where did you eat????

Snack Review: Carrot Cake Cookie :)

I love reading other Disney blogs and finding new and exciting things about Disney, especially new food ideas. On several of the Disney blogs that I follow people were raving about the Carrot Cake Cookie at the Writer's Shop in Hollywood Studios.
After seeing the pictures and reading the reviews, I knew we had to give it a try (not to mention that we love carrot cake!)
Well the reviews and pictures did not disappoint.... it was delicious! So delicious that we had two on our trip!!! They are huge, very nice snack to share with someone (great way to make the most out of your snack credits!) Very moist and the icing in the middle is so creamy!!
If you have not tried one, make sure you add it to your list of snacks for your next Disney World trip!!!
Enjoy!

3 Year Anniversary- Disney Style!!

Rusty and I celebrated our three year wedding anniversary in Disney! We had a great romantic night in Epcot- walking around the world showcases is always a good time!
We had dinner at La Hacienda de San Angel (Mexican restaurant) which was super yummy. The food was delicious and it offered a good viewing of illuminations.
My only complaint was our seat.... when we booked our reservation we informed them that it was going to be our anniversary and we would like a window seat since we had a 8pm reservation (just enough time to watch the 9pm illumination show). We also called when we arrived to Disney to state the above and informed them at the hostess station when we checked in. We were disappointed when we were sat in a table with NO view of the windows/fireworks at ALL! I was very upset, so my wonderful hubby went to the manager to request another table. We were not able to get another table right away, but the manager did clear a table for us to sit at just for the fireworks.... not totally the same thing but it worked! Once the show was over we headed back to our table just in time for our food to be done :)
Overall, it was a wonderful experience with some really good food (but we might be partial, we love Mexican food) and it was a great anniversary! I look forward to many, many more years to come with wonderful Disney Vacations!!!


View of the Epcot ball at night- beautiful!


Mr. and Mrs.


Mexico Pavilion!


Anniversary Dinner


Rusty's Dinner- Shrimp Tacos


My Dinner- Mexican style Fish and Rice


Dessert- Apple Crisp thing (sorry, I forget the name but it was WONDERFUL!)


View of Illuminations- fireworks!


Again!


I love HIM!


And because this picture makes me laugh... haha

Happy 40th Anniversary MK!

Rusty and I were lucky enough to experience Magic Kingdom's 40th anniversary celebration. It is hard to believe that the most magical place has been open for 40 years!!!
We were not able to celebrate at the Magic Kingdom in the morning due to other plans but we were able to enjoy the evening at the park!
We had dinner at Tony's Town square around 7pm and were finished just in time to enjoy the fireworks! It was sooooo crowded, like 4th of July crowded but the fireworks were amazing!!
After the fireworks we enjoyed the main street electrical parade and then spent the rest of the night enjoying some of our favorite MK rides!!!
Enjoy the pictures :)


Look at all of those people!


Every where you turned, there were five more people!


Castle, so pretty at night!


Fireworks


Again, I got lucky catching this one!


I could watch these fireworks every night!


So Pretty


Parade time.... I don't have too many pictures, but it was great!

It was awesome to experience the 40th anniversary celebration, something I am sure we will remember for many years to come. I hope I will be able to celebrate the 80th celebration in another 40 years.... that will make me 66! I am sure I will love Disney just as much then as I do now :)

Disney's Old Key West Resort!

I have been a total slacker since I came home from Disney.... I really need to start blogging about our amazing trip!
So, here it goes :)

We stayed at the Old Key West- it was amazing! It is one of the Disney Vacation Club resorts, actually it is the very first vacation club resort they opened. It is based on the Florida Keys and truly makes you feel like you are on a tropical vacation! It is considered one of the downtown Disney resorts and provides a nice boat ride over to downtown Disney.

Our room was located right off the hospitality house and less than a 30 second walk to bus stop, which was wonderful. Nothing beats closer to the bus stop after a long day at the parks!

We had a two bedroom villa that we shared with another couple. There were two bedrooms- one master with a king size bed and another room with two queen beds. There were two bathroom, the master had a stand up shower and Jacuzzi tub. There was also a large living room area with a dining room and kitchen. You could also sleep more people in the living room if needed. The room also had a balcony with a outside table, ceiling fan, and beautiful view of the golf course.

There were several pools on the property, the main pools and quiet pools. We were close by to the main pool which had an awesome water slide along with a play area for children, huge sand area, tennis courts, and a fire pit.

The resort has a sit down restaurant, Olivia's, which services breakfast, lunch, and dinner. We didn't try it out, but it always smelled good. There are two counter services available which we did try, they have your basic Disney counter services (think burgers, salads, and sandwiches). There is also the Generals Store which was stocked with food, drinks, and everything you would need at Disney!

Here are some pictures that we took of the resort and inside our room!


Living Room Area (sitting area, dining room, full kitchen, and balcony area)


Master Bedroom


Master Bathroom


Master Bathroom


Laundry in our room, best EVER!


Bedroom


Bathroom


Full Kitchen


View from our Balcony


View from the Bus Stop by our room!


Main Pool


Play Area by the Pool


Slide, notice the mickey head ;)


I loved all the palm trees!!

Overall, we LOVED Old Key West and will definitely be staying there again. The rooms were very spacious and well decorated. Our only complaint was the multiple bus stops, we were the first bus stop to be picked up and it took about 15 mins to ride around the resort. Not the end of the world, but not always fun!!

Back to Reality....

Well all good things must come to an end, and that means our Disney vacation too! I can't believe 9 days and 8 nights went by that quickly!!
We had such a good time...... I will be sure to do more posts about our trip over the next couple of weeks.
I will leave you with a couple of pictures from our trip, we had so much fun.... we are already planning our next trip- ha!~

Twas The Night Before Disney!

Twas the night before Disney and craziness through the house
All because of that magical mouse!

The suitcases are packed and the cars full of gas
We came from PA, only four more states to pass.

It's time for bed, we are done with the hassle
Next stop is that beautiful castle!!!

- Hope you enjoyed our silly little poem, we are headed to to Disney in the morning. Time with the hubby and great friends, will be wonderful!!
- I will try to stop by during the week for an update, stay tuned :)

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The Lion King 3D

Not that Rusty and I needed something to get us in the Disney spirit, but we decided to go to the movies the other night and check out The Lion King 3D.
It was GREAT! Just like I had remembered it from when I was younger, but the 3D added some new fun! Rusty had never seen the movie before, so it was all new to him- he enjoyed it as well.
The meaning of the story is really powerful and the songs are wonderful..... had me signing "Can You Feel The Love Tonight", "Just Can't Wait To Be King", and "Hakuna Matata" for days to come!!!
If you have not checked it out yet, I would highly recommend it! I think it is only going to be out for another week, so get going!!!
Until then, I will leave you with this little video.... best song of the movie :)

7 Days and 7 Things To Look Forward To!!!

We have 7 days until Disney!!!!! I thought I would do a countdown of seven things that I am looking forward to :)

1. Walking down main street in Magic Kingdom for the first time, when you turn the corner and spot the castle it is simply amazing. The smell from the bakery, the cast member selling the balloons, and the barber group signing.... its all so magical!

2. The first ride on space mountain- always makes me think of the first time I was old enough to finally ride it for the first time! I love how you can feel like a kid again while at Disney :)

3. Watching Wishes over the castles- I always get teary eyed watching this show. Reminds me of the night Rusty proposed to me in the castle which we followed up with a fantastic show of wishes!

4. Late night walk on the beach at the Polynesian Resort.... we are not staying there but I always love to walk around at night with the tiki torches and view of the magic kingdom, easy romantic date with the hubby!

5. Jellyrolls- The Dueling Piano bar at the Boardwalk....actually something new we are going to be trying this trip, I can't wait (I have heard very good reviews!)

6. Food- I can't even begin to list everything that I am looking forward to, so I will just leave it at "FOOD" hahaha

7. Looking for Hidden Mickeys! Always something Rusty and I enjoy doing while at Disney!!

I have caught a pretty bad cold this week, I am trying to take lots of medicine, drink my OJ, take lots of vitamins, and get plenty of res. I WILL NOT go to Disney with this cold.... please pray for me that it goes away soon :)

10 Day Mark!!!

We have hit the 10 day mark for our Disney trip!!!! I am so excited, I hope these next 10 days fly by!
Here are the details of our trip!
1. We leave Thursday 9/29- we will be driving to North Carolina on Thursday to stay the night with our friends Alex and Fred
2. We will leave Friday 9/30 for Disney. We are doing a road trip for the first time- I am actually pretty excited about it! It is about a 8.5-9 hour drive from NC.... not too bad. I have downloaded some Disney music and made a trivia game to help the time go by a little fast! I might even make a little Disney treat for the road as well- stay tuned ;)
3. We will arrive in Disney later afternoon/early evening on Friday.... just in time to enjoy a few hours at the Magic Kingdom!!!
4. We will have 8 wonderful nights at Disney's Old Key West- will be our first time staying at this vacation club resort but I am sure it will be great (just like all the other Disney resorts)
5. We will celebrate our three year anniversary while down... 10/04!~
6. I am soooooo looking forward to all the Disney food.... I just can not wait! I have been dieting for the past 7-8 months and have lost about 67 pounds, so I am ready for some GOOD food!!!!!

I can't wait to update when I get home.... until then I have lots to get done. I am working on making my Disney To-Do list.... but its all so exciting!

Family Traditions!

Every Disney fan has their own family traditions they enjoy each and every trip! I grew up with Disney family traditions and now have made new family traditions with Rusty! :)
Growing up we had several traditions:
1. We would always go to the Magic Kingdom as our first park
2. We always walk down main street to take in the amazing view of the castle and the smells on main street
3. The first ride we would go on would be the Pirates!
4. We would always eat at 50's Prime Time Cafe.... at least once!
5. Riding Tower of Terror with my Dad!
6. Staying at the Fort Wilderness Campground- best memories EVER!
7. We would always have a dole whip as a snack

Now Rusty and I have been fortunate enough to make our own memories/traditions on our past trips!
1. We carry on the tradition of going to Magic Kingdom as our first park and walking down main street to view the castle!
2. Our first ride is usually always Space Mountain (except for the one time it was closed for refurbishment- sad day!)
3. We always eat at O'hanas!!!! So yummy :)
4. We always stay at one of the vacation club resorts- best decision we made to join!
5. Snacks include dole whips, popcorn, and white chocolate Reece's pieces covered rice crispy treat!

Wordless Wednesday!!!

23 Days until this wonderful, magical place!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hidden Mickeys!

Who else loves to find Hidden Mickeys? My husband and I love to walk around Walt Disney World and find these little hidden treasures!
Hidden mickeys are hidden all around Disney World and are created by the Disney imagineers, a way for them to leave their mark on their project. Rusty and I first started looking for hidden mickeys while we were on our honeymoon. We got this book, which provides clue and hints for the location of each hidden mickey.



















It has become a favorite past time while we are at Disney ever since. It's a thrill to find a new hidden mickey and still fun to point out ones you have found in the past. It definitely makes waiting in line a bit more fun and go by faster when you have your book to look at and "plan" for the hidden mickeys coming up in the attraction you are waiting for.


I don't want to give away too many of the locations but I thought I would share my favorite hidden mickeys around Walt Disney World.



This is actually a hidden Minnie Mouse (I don't want to give too much away, so I am not going to share the location) but once you find this little treasure you will never forget it!









If you love looking for hidden mickeys too, let me know some of your favorites! If you have not started looking for hidden mickeys, I highly suggest you start on your next trip! You will LOVE it!!!!

I can't wait to find some of my old favorites on our trip (which is in 31 days!!!!) and find new hidden mickeys! There are always new ones to be found :)

Snack Time!

We have 36 days until Disney..... yay!!! I find myself daydreaming about Disney more and more every day! I can't wait to step into the magical world of pure bliss.
Every evening as my husband and I lay in bed I ask him "so what snacks are you most looking forward to?" We get the Disney Dining Plan so we each get one snack per day. As you probably have guessed, I love Disney food and especially the snacks!
Here are some of the snacks we are most looking forward to:

Pineapple Dole Whip at Magic Kingdom- so refreshing and yummy!














Popcorn- when it is fresh and warm, I don't know how Disney does it but it tastes so good (especially when your waiting for a show or parade!)

















Cinnamon Bun at the Magic Kingdom Bakery. Oh my goodness, they are simply delicious. They are served warm.... and very large so they are great to share. We love to get one after we spend a late night at the MK for extra magic hours, it makes a great "midnight" snack!!












Rice Crispy Treats- Again, there must be something magical Disney uses on these things because they are sooooo addicting. We eat at least 3-4 per trip!!!









Jalapeno Cheese Stuffed Pretzel at Animal Kingdom- super yummy. Just the right amount of cheese and spice!












Cannoli's from Italy, world showcase at Epcot- one of my husband's favorite snacks!















I could go on and on.... Disney has lots and lots of snacks to pick from. You should never go hungry during your visit, that is for sure!!!