Check-in at the airport was a breeze and the flight to Dallas was very short. We arrived in Dallas and had a bit of a layover. Interestingly, we actually bumped into a couple of colleagues from home in the Dallas airport on their way to the US Virgin Islands on vacation. The kids kept themselves busy watching DVDs on their portable players - one of the best investments we made last year on Black Friday. While in the Dallas airport, Rhys blew his first-ever bubble with the chewing gum I gave the kids while on the plane. He was quite proud.
At any rate, our driver grabbed a Sky Cap to help us with our luggage and we were soon walking out of the airport and easily located the limo outside. This limo looked longer than the one that picked us up 2 years ago. The kids were thrilled to get to ride in another limo. This one was not only longer but it sported a LCD tv monitor inside and Chicken Little was playing.
The kids were in heaven. I was duly impressed because it wasn't even 1 pm yet when we pulled out of the airport. Our driver took us to a Publix grocery store where we left the kids in the limo watching Chicken Little while DH and I split up the grocery list and took separate shopping carts to find our supplies. We were shopping for 11 people but I had made a comprehensive shopping list and copied half of it down for DH who actually got done with his list first. We were in and out of the Publix in under 20 minutes with about 10 bags of groceries.
Our villa was ready for us and we boarded a motorized cart that took us to the Paddock along with our bags and all of our groceries.
The CM was extremely friendly and pointed out the pool, the rec center, the path to DTD, and the 2 closest bus stops on the way to our villa: Congress Park and the Paddock. Unfortunately, our villa was quite far from the lobby (Carriage House). LESSON LEARNED: apparently, they are buildling more villas and The Grand Stand will be right across the street from the Carriage House. This is definitely what we would request the next time was stay at SSRS.
Our villa is just gorgeous. I made a mental note to take pictures of it but never did remember to do that. We walk into a small entryway with one bedroom immediately to the right that had a coat closet with the vacuum cleaner and pack 'n play in it, coat hooks on the wall which made it easy to keep track of the kids' jackets and backpacks, a bathroom with tub/shower/toilet, double sink vanity, and 2 double beds. There is also a table with chairs, tv, and a large closet. This one bedroom is more roomy than some of the hotel rooms that I've seen. It's about as big as our room that we had at the Grand Floridian 2 years ago. Just to the left of the entryway is the breakfast nook, kitchen, and living room. There are sliding glass doors leading out onto a balcony. The living room has a tv and DVD player. The stacked washer/dryer are located in a small closet right next to the breakfast nook. To the left are 2 doors - one leading to a bathroom with a sink and shower. The toilet is in another room within this bathroom. The other door leads to the master suite which has another bathroom, sink/vanity, whirlpool tub, small closet, king sized bed, and tv. This arrangement reminds me a bit of the split bathroom on the Disney Cruise. The master suite is interconnected with the 2 half-bathrooms.
We spend a little time unpacking a bit, getting organized, and putting groceries away. We then leave to walk back to the Carriage House to have lunch. It's already almost 2:30 pm. We walk behind the buildings and take a long bridge that leads to the bus stop closest to the Carriage House. Along the way, we see 2 otters playing in the water. We find the Artists' Palette right next to the lobby and place our orders. I decide to try the roasted vegetable flatbread sandwich but was disappointed that the veggies were COLD and the bread was really tough.
My BIL calls during our meal - they've actually arrived in Orlando and were on the Magical Express making their way to the resort. We decide to wait for them in the lobby.
When my sister, BIL, nieces, and mom arrive, it's already past 4 pm. We let my sister, BIL, and mom get settled in their villa and take the twins with us to MGM to see the Osborne lights. We've never seen this light show before and wouldn't have any other night to see it so we walk back to the bus stop and catch the bus to MGM. We arrive at about 5:30 pm and make our way to the Streets of America finding a curb to sit on while waiting for the lights to come on. The crowd really wasn't bad and we easily found a spot to sit and wait. At about 6 pm, the show begins and the kids enjoy man-made "snow" which basically looks like soap foam. The lights are very impressive and actually "dance" to the music and the kids/twins enjoy walking down the street and looking at the displays. DH and I each have a twin riding on our shoulders so they can see the lights dance.
When my sister, BIL, nieces, and mom arrive, it's already past 4 pm. We let my sister, BIL, and mom get settled in their villa and take the twins with us to MGM to see the Osborne lights. We've never seen this light show before and wouldn't have any other night to see it so we walk back to the bus stop and catch the bus to MGM. We arrive at about 5:30 pm and make our way to the Streets of America finding a curb to sit on while waiting for the lights to come on. The crowd really wasn't bad and we easily found a spot to sit and wait. At about 6 pm, the show begins and the kids enjoy man-made "snow" which basically looks like soap foam. The lights are very impressive and actually "dance" to the music and the kids/twins enjoy walking down the street and looking at the displays. DH and I each have a twin riding on our shoulders so they can see the lights dance.
It's just past 6:30 pm and we start heading out of MGM to make our 7:40 pm ressie at Fulton's Crab House. We took the bus from MGM back to Saratoga Springs and got off at the Paddock stop and tried to follow the CM's directions to walk to DTD. He had pointed down the street and instructed us to make a right at the end of the street after we passed the gate. There was no sidewalk and we found ourselves walking through the grass with buses whizzing past us. The CM had mentioned that the pathway leading from SSRS to DTD closed at dusk so we didn't even try to find the path. DH made the comment that it was so "un-Disney" for us to have to walk through the grass like we were. We eventually found the sidewalk and our way to DTD.
DH and I first visited Fulton's Crab House on our 10th wedding anniversary trip to WDW in 2002. At that time, we had the "platinum package" which included our accomodations at the Grand Floridian, all activities at the resort, park hopper plus passes, and all meals. We had ressies at SO many restaurants we ate ourselves silly. One of our favorites was Fulton's Crab House so we went back 2 years ago when we took the kids for their birthdays and wanted to eat there again this time around. Our meal this evening would not be on the dining plan.
The kids were easy - they all wanted the kids' fried shrimp meal. We had the calamari for the appetizer and all of the kids LOVED it. I then had the seafood trio which was Grilled Mahi Mahi, shrimp and Alaska King crab claw with basil cream sauce, garlic whipped potatoes and seasonal vegetables.
DH and I first visited Fulton's Crab House on our 10th wedding anniversary trip to WDW in 2002. At that time, we had the "platinum package" which included our accomodations at the Grand Floridian, all activities at the resort, park hopper plus passes, and all meals. We had ressies at SO many restaurants we ate ourselves silly. One of our favorites was Fulton's Crab House so we went back 2 years ago when we took the kids for their birthdays and wanted to eat there again this time around. Our meal this evening would not be on the dining plan.
The kids were easy - they all wanted the kids' fried shrimp meal. We had the calamari for the appetizer and all of the kids LOVED it. I then had the seafood trio which was Grilled Mahi Mahi, shrimp and Alaska King crab claw with basil cream sauce, garlic whipped potatoes and seasonal vegetables.
Yum! By the time we got done it was after 9 pm and we found our way to the boat dock and took the boat back to Saratoga Springs. DH's mom and dad had just arrived at the resort via the Magical Express and we met up with them at the Artists' Palette where they were grabbing a bite to eat. We hopped in a van with all of their luggage and the kids and headed back to our villa for the evening. We had ressies in the am for CRT so the kids were in bed and asleep instantly with the adults following closely behind. Unfortunately, at around 1:30 am, Rhys woke us up to tell that he had vomited in his bed. He was sleeping on the pull out bed in the living room so I pulled off all the sheets/pillow cases and threw them in the washer, grabbed the bed cover off of our bed and put him back to sleep. I waited for the washer to finish and then put the sheets in the dryer before going back to bed. Thank goodness we had a washer/dryer. I'd be thinking this same thought over and over during our trip.
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