Remembering the Magic - Part IV

Many mornings it was slow-going to get to the breakfast table because of all the lush scenery at our resort! I think this last year of homeschooling and cultivating more of an appreciation of nature is to blame, not that I'm complaining! Sienna became an expert gecko spotter and managing to detect about half a dozen of these little fellas throughout our stay. Here is some of what we would see on our way to breakfast....

:: Sienna especially loved these lily pads and had to stop and look at them each time we passed by. ::

:: And now on to the food - Breakfast - Chocolate Croissant (yum). Can you ever go wrong with a Chocolate Croissant? ::

:: Sienna wanted in on the breakfast picture taking. Here is her meal & her stylish thrift store Jasmine sun-glasses. ::

:: Sienna was always excited to see this Mary PoppLins (yes, she says it with an "L") Balloon, which hovers over the Marketplace area at Downtown Disney. She made sure I got a picture of it. ::

:: Our second (did you guess it?) visit to Wolfgang Puck Express. ::

:: Truth be told, we weren't coming for the food (which happens to be delish); we were coming for the Tropical Iced Tea (yum, yum)! ::

:: Wood-fired pepperoni pizza for the girls ::

:: Greek Salad (0) - it wasn't bad, but it was "light" on flavor. ::

:: Wood-fired BBQ Chicken pizza (yum) ::

:: Is this as funny to you as it is to me? ::

:: We went for many late-afternoon swims.  Very refreshing after lots of hours of walking in the heat.::

:: My view of the pool ::

:: Two of the Seven Dwarfs: Grumpy & Happy ::

:: Looks like baby poop food, but it's really sun-dried tomato and black olive hummus with pita bread (both 0) ::

:: from top - Mealie Bread (yum), Fufu (yum), Rib Roast w/Spicy African Mustard (yum), Durbun marinated chicken (0), Greelie's Rice (0) ::

:: Seafood Gumbo (yum), Watercress salad (yum), Watermelon Rind Salad (this tasted of spicy ginger!) (yum, yum) - Not pictured: House Juice (yum) ::

:: And for the grand finale - I tried one of each dessert. This was the best mini-dessert selection I had seen in Disney. Instead of doing yum/0/yuck, I rated them each on a 10 point scale - From top: Zebra Dome (adults only) (8, very sweet), Caramel Cheesecake (9.5, would've been a 10 if it were served colder), Passion Fruit Panna Cotta (10), Peanut Butter Mousse Crunch (9.5, if that ganache on top were of a more similar consistency, it would've been a 10), Coffee Tartlet (9.5, needed just a little more coffee flavor), Chocolate Cinnamon Mousse (8) ::

Tomorrow will be our last full day in Disney. Sad, I know. Stay tuned for a very exciting breakfast!

Remembering the Magic- Part III

Well, we've made it to Part III. (See Part I and Part II, in case you missed them.) Today we're venturing outside of the Kingdom (*gasp*, I know) because my oldest daughter is a big whale fan. Ya know what that means?

But I'm getting ahead of myself. Let's have breakfast first.

:: Breakfast - Cafe Rix - Vegetable Quiche (yum) and O.J. (yum) ::

:: Believe (Shamu show!) - It took a little practice to be able to shoot the picture so I'd capture the orcas in mid-air. ::

:: Next, we drove to lunch. Just kidding. We walked. ::

:: Thank God for air-conditioning. It was so hot and humid that day. We were melting. ::

:: Smoky Ribs (yum), french fries (0), dinner roll (yum), Diet Pepsi (YIPPEE!) in a Souvenir Cup. Plastic theme park cups make great frugal souvenirs. The kids' meals were served on plastic SeaWorld plates. I'm sure many people just throw them away, but I wiped ours off and brought them home! ::

:: Shark encounter - You walk through the shark tank & you can see them swimming above and around you. ::

:: "Just keep walking swimming, just keep walking swimming...."

:: Key West area - You could reach in and touch the stingrays. Sienna desperately wanted to do it, but just couldn't bring herself to. She ended up in tears, but being the brave Mommy that I am, I helped her reach her arm in and we "petted" several stingrays together. P.S. They feel slimy. ::

:: Dinner - Wolfgang Puck Express in Downtown Disney - BLT Turkey Sandwich (yum) with Fries (yum) and Tropical Iced Tea (yum, yum) ::

:: Homemade Chips (yum) ::

:: Kid's dessert - Have you noticed a theme yet with the kids' desserts? ::

 :: Creme brulee (yum, although the creme part would've been better had it been colder) ::

That concludes Day Three. Tomorrow is our big fat shopping "rest" day. Which restaurant was so fabulous that we had to eat there twice in one trip? Stay tuned to find out.....

Remembering the Magic - Part II

If you're just joining in, this is my foodie-style tour through Disney using a yum/0/yuck rating system. Part I is here.

:: Breakfast - Cafe Rix (quick-serve place at our resort) - Pecan Roll (yum, dripping in sugary syrup). Couldv'e had about twice as many pecans though. Do you say "PEE-can" or "pee-KAHN"? ::

:: It's our first day at the Magic Kingdom! ::

:: perfect shot in front of the iconic Castle. All the girls wore pink! ::

:: Lunch @ Casey's Corner ::

:: Corn Dog Nuggets (yum- dipped in Ketchup) and French Fries (0) ::

:: There was a parade going on during our meal & I had to hop up and take a quick picture of one of Sebastian's favorite characters! ::

:: Dinner @ 'Ohana - 'Ohana Welcome Bread (yum), Mixed greens with a honey-lime dressing (yum, yum) - this dressing was so fabulous that I'm going to try to make it at home! Also pictured is pomegranate lemonade (yum)::

:: Honey-Coriander Chicken Wings (yuck),
Pork Dumplings with Sweet and Sour Sauce (yum) ::

:: Lo mein Noodles, tossed in a Teriyaki sauce (yum) with stir-fried broccoli (0) ::

:: Dipping Sauces: Peanut (yum), Spicy Mustard (yum), and Sweet n Sour Sauces (yum) ::

:: All-you-can-eat skewers cooked over an oak fire. You can choose from pork (yum, yum), chicken (yuck -overcooked & dry), steak and shrimp. Pictured are steak (yum, yum) and shirmp (yuck). I actually *love* shrimp, but this was overcooked and so tasted quite chewy. You should also note that at this point in the meal the girls started singing "Steak, steak, eat it, eat it. Shrimp, shrimp...." from the Veggie Tales Jonah movie (where they are in the Seafood Restaurant). ::

:: Disney has all the standard "kid" fare, such as this child's favorite: mac & cheese. ::

:: Sienna styled her meal for me so I could get a beautiful close-up ::

:: Kid dessert. Notice the sprinkles?! ::

:: Coconut Pineapple bread pudding served a la mode with Bananas Foster sauce (yum, yum) ::

:: night-time at the Castle. Getting ready for Wishes (choreographed musical fireworks display) ::

:: so, so excited about the fireworks! Or was she excited about the tropical smoothie she requested right before the fireworks started? (pineapple-orange-mango, yum)

:: As wonderful, exciting, and amazing as the display was, I couldn't help but think that it still pales in comparison to what Heaven must be like. I thought about myself being at the "happiest place on earth", but Olivia being at the happiest place of all! ::