Donald
Day 7 - December 26, 2002  
December 26, 2002

Disney Studios
Mama Melrose Fantasimic
Dinner Package
 MGM

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We had originally planned on going to the Animal Kingdom today, but we had done everything we'd wanted to at the AK on our previous visit, so we slept in a bit more and then headed to the Disney Studios.  We arrived before opening and it wasn't too crowded at all.  As soon as they let us in, the girls headed for the Great Movie ride while I ran to get Fast passes for Rockin Roller Coaster (RnR).  I met them at the entrance to the Movie ride and we basically walk right through the queue and onto a waiting car and were off!  (Shortest non-wait ever!)  Grandma really liked this ride, but the girls get a bit scared at the gun fights and Alien segment.  Wizard of Oz makes up for that though, we all love that!  After we exited we headed over to the first showing of Little Mermaid.  Again - walked in for the first show, and Kristen was even able to take Maddy for a potty break (timing is everything!)  ;-)  and come back after the doors were open with no problem.  The theatre was maybe half full.  We all love this show, and Grandma's favorite is Ariel, so she really liked it as well.

After the show, the adult girls were in dire need of coffee!  (I'm not a coffee drinker myself, so I tend to miss this priority in my planning sometimes!)  We stopped at the bakery on the way to RnR so Grandma could relax with the girls while Kristen and I rode RnR.  We had a great time using our 4 fastpasses (I got 4 so we could both go twice!) to walk right on the ride both times.  There was about a 30 - 45 minute standby wait at that time - gotta love those Fastpasses.  Soon I'm hoping Brinn will give this coaster a try.  She is just tall enough now, but still freaked out about the idea of riding in the dark and going upside down.  After riding it myself, I agree she isn't quite ready... Maybe next year!  :-)

We met back up with the girls, and grabbed a drink and snack and then headed for the Beauty and the Beast show that was starting in about 15 minutes.  Again we walked right in, got great center stage seats and really enjoyed the show.  They have a singing group that opens before the stage show, and they were both amusing and very talented.  Lots of fun to get you ready for the main performance.  Grandma loved the show, as does the rest of the family.  It is really well done, and I hope it stays around for years to come..

It was only about 11am, but the girls were a bit worn out today.  I was surprised that we had done so many favorites so fast.  We decided to shop a bit and hit the Villain Store.  Love this store, and bought several things we hadn't seen elsewhere.  Grandma bought a bunch of items here.  She liked the shirts and Christmas ornaments they offered, along with a great Maleificent as the dragon stuffed toy.  (That one was for ME!) :-)

We decided to head back for an early nap since we had to return to MGM by 3:30 for Dinner at Mama Melrose around 4pm.  As we exited getting our hand stamped (which they never seem to check upon re-entry) the CM there made a comment about maybe not getting back in later.  There were TONS of people entering the park.  The entry line was at least 4 times as long as it was at opening!  I guess this is another advertisement to make sure to hit the parks EARLY during peak times.  Short waits, minimal crowds, and then leave as the throngs arrive!  We love doing that.

There are two sides for busses, the left and the right.  Since we typically stay in the Epcot resort area and take the boat, I didn't realize this and walked all the way up the wrong side!  After backtracking (tired feet HATE backtracking!)  we found the other side.  Note to self: Pay attention when the bus drops you off!  Anyway, the bus back was pretty empty (not surprised!), and we soon had the girls down for a short rest.
  MGM Tree

Girls under the MGM Tree

Grandma with her favorite - Siamiese cats

Santa Stitch


Maddy gives Rudolph Pluto's tongue a pull

Lifesize Nativity at MGM

Tigger in the Osbourne Lights

Penguin in the Osbourne Lights

Snowman in the Osbourne Lights

Oscar for Snow White and the Seven Dwarves

  
 
Back on the bus, which was much more crowded now, but not packed.  No problem re-entering the park - it didn't seem super crowded - or maybe we were just getting used to the crowd levels.  Headed back toward Mama Melrose area of the park and jumped in what looked like a reasonable line for the Muppet 3D movie.  Hah!  It wrapped back about a MILE behind the building and back.  We hopped out of THAT line and just headed to the restaurant to check on getting in a bit early.  It was NO problem getting in early and while waiting for the table I ran for a fastpass for Star Tours.  Turned out the return time was right when we needed to get to Fantasmic entrance, but I got them anyway.  Back to the restaurant to find that the girls were already seated.  Our server looked and really SOUNDED familiar to me.  Turned out to be our 'Mom' - Deb from our very first trip in 1998 when we visited Primetime Cafe for dinner one night.  I asked her if she used to work there, and sure enough.  She said she though we looked familiar (LOL - yeah, us and the other 5 million patrons since 1998!)  I mentioned how she had 'yelled' at Brinn (then only 18 months old) when she started fussing and she had calmed right down.  We had wanted to bring her along for the remainder of that trip!  Deb is also responsible for Kristen's inability to eat cooked carrots now!  She force fed her the carrots that first trip when she felt Kristen had not eaten enough! :-)  She made a great 'mom' and ran a tough kitchen!  She said she had only been at Mama Melrose a few months and had gotten in trouble once or twice for following old habits!  I can just see her yelling at the patrons to clean up their plate!  :-) 

We had a great meal and the package included TONS of food.  A huge salad to share (we barely dented it!) and two flatbread pizza appetizers.  (OK.  I'm full)  Our main entree and then Tiramisu for dessert (delicious!).  They had to roll us out of there!  Deb was great throughout the meal and has the personality that makes her seem part of the family.  As we finished up the girls gave her an Appreciation Card and she loved it.  She started digging through her order book and pulled out a Monsters Inc. Appreciation Card she had received a few months earlier.  Surprise!  It was from NancyBJ at Magic Alley (an old friend!).  Small World!  It made for a fun bit of magic to end our meal.  We said bye to 'mom' and it was time to head to Fantasmic (glad we got in early!)  We got good seats near the top (great for quick exit!) and enjoyed a fun surrounding crowd before the show started.  The crowd likes to do the 'Wave' a few times, and we had fun interacting with the people sitting around us while yelling out for popcorn and cotton candy!  But the show started about 30 minutes after we arrived and it was great!  Grandma was really impressed, and Madison was glad we brought her earplugs and had me cover her eyes for the scary parts! :-) 

We headed out with the masses and worked our way back over toward Star Tours.  Stopped and took a few night time pictures of Mickey's Hat, and then arrived at Star Tours about 10 minutes past our end time.  The CM at the entrance was VERY nice, and let us in anyway.  The girls used to be afraid of this ride, but after seeing Star Wars they now love it!  :-)  It was fun, and Grandma waited in the store (She wasn't up to a simulator thrill ride).

We headed for NY Street and the Osborne Spectacle of Lights.  We ran into Reindeer Pluto and Santa Goofy on the way.  It was 'snowing' on NY street.  Very fun!  and the lights were already amazing!  I can't imagine how long it must take to put all these lights up.  WOW.  There huge buildings just covered in lights with angels filling the sky.  The 3D glasses add a nice touch, but you only need to use them once in a while (IMHO).  As we walked down the 'residential' streets it was very festive with the lights (different for each house), a stand selling Hot Chocolate and Holiday characters spread throughout.  We saw Tigger with a Santa hat, a Mary Poppins Penguin in holiday hat and even a snowman.  We really enjoyed these lights will miss them during our summer trips.  If you travel there during the Christmas season be sure not to miss the Osborne Lights!

After that we walked past an empty Millionaire show (guess they were done for the day) and went into the Walt Disney Show.  Love seeing all the displays.  My favorites are Walt's office and the Oscar for Snow White.  The models of different attractions are great, and it made me realize that the ship in the Peter Pan ride is a full ship (going through the ride, I just didn't realize it before).  The movie at the end is great, and gives you a quick history of Walt and how it all came into being.  It was a great way to end our day. 

We headed back and caught the bus on the RIGHT side this time!  Very crowded, but we soon returned to the GF and headed off to bed.  Another great day!


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