Photo Flashback! Magic Kingdom at Night

I love the Magic Kingdom at Night.  As wonderful as it is during the daytime, it is extra special at night.  In February 2016 we were at the Magic Kingdom for the 25th Anniversary party for Disney Vacation Club members where the Magic Kingdom was open from 9 to midnight just for DVC Members.

The Hall of Presidents

The River Boat at night

During the 25th Anniversary Party there were only about 10000 DVC Members allowed in.

I love Cinderella Castle at night

DisneyMom

Disney Vacation Club 25 and Beyond

Let us know if you love the Magic Kingdom at night.

The Disney Vacation Club celebrated 25 years in 2016.  We have been members since 1993.  February 2016 was the first party for DVC Members to celebrate the 25th Anniversary. Free tickets were given to 10000 DVC Members for an after hours party in the Magic Kingdom.

--DisneyDad

Photo Flashback! Hall of Presidents

Every four years we have a national competition to select the next person we want to enshrine on the stage of The Hall of Presidents at Walt Disney World.  There is an addition every four or eight years. With this election year we will see a new addition to the cast on the stage.  It's been on TV a lot just in case you have missed it.  Once again it's an interesting competition to see who is added next.

George Washington

Abraham Lincoln

Andrew Jackson

George Washing delivering his inaugural address

Great Seal of the United States

The Hall of Presidents is one of the original attractions which opened in 1971.  It was the further growth of the 1964 Worlds Fair show Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln to include all 43 of the people to have served as president.  (Yes, President Obama is the 44th President.  Grover Cleveland served 2 non-consecutive terms as 22nd and 24th President.)

The pre-show atrium contains portraits of presidents as well as memorabilia from presidents and their wives.  The history on display is worth the few minutes it takes to look around.   I have taken lots of pictures here over the years.  These photo were taken in October, 2015.

--DisneyDad

Trip Planning for 25 and Beyond Bash

Trip Planning for Vacation Club Members

It's been a while since I've had to plan a trip to Walt Disney World.  Mom and I have been going since we first were married.  We have done a lot of family trips over the years.  When we do a family trip Amy does the planning for the group.

Mom & DisneyDad December 1973

Amy will check the crowd calendars and plan which park we are to go.  She will make FastPass+ reservations for us.  She will make dining reservations.  All which are based around what my granddaughters, Tink and Minnie would like to do, see, and eat.  The rest of us are happy for her to do this for us and watching the girls have fun at Walt Disney World is the best payoff for the trip.  And if one of the FastPass+ just happens to take us to see Mickey, I don't mind getting my picture taken with him either.

Tink, Minnie and DisneyDad with Mickey

Well, in February, Mom and I are going to Walt Disney World for the first event for the 25th Anniversary celebration for The Disney Vacation Club, the 25 and Beyond Bash.  The first resort in the Disney Vacation Club family was The Disney Vacation Club Resort, now called Disney's Old Key West Resort, opening in October, 1991.  We became DVC Members in April 1993 after first visiting and touring OKW in 1992.

Disney's Old Key West Resort

We've lost count of how many trips we have made to Walt Disney World over the years.  Mom and I have been a lot of time by ourselves.  Gone are the days where you can just walk into the parks and experience all the attractions you have on your list to see.  We would get up with only a vague plan of what we were going to do based on where we wanted to eat that day.  Now, if you don't have a FastPass+ for an attraction you can stand in line for a long time just to see one ride.  And if you  don't have a dining reservation you may not be able to eat where you want.

As a Vacation Club member I use to call Member Services for all reservations but for this trip I have been on line to make our reservations on the member pages on www.disneyvacationclub.com.  I booked our room on the DVC Member site, our FastPass+ were all booked using My Disney Experience both on my iPhone and computer and dining reservations were made on line at www.disneyworld.com.  I did have to call DVC Member Services to book our reservation for the 25 and Beyond Bash at the Magic Kingdom.

After making reservations for our stay at OKW, I started by checking crowd calendars just as Amy has done for us in the past.  I followed her lead and started a spreadsheet to map out our trip by first mapping out crowd levels for each day for each park.  Thursday, February 25th. is the 25 and Beyond Bash so we are planning to be at the Magic Kingdom Thursday.  So, planning around Thursday I picked what days to visit the Studios, Animal Kingdom, and Epcot.  Our first day at WDW we will forgo a park and go check out all the changes to Disney Springs.  So after planning out a Park for each day, I could book FastPass+ and dining reservations.  Most days we booked lunch, but on Epcot day, we have dinner reservations at Le Cellier Steakhouse.

Once Parks were selected for each day I used My Disney Experience app on my iPhone to pick FastPass+ reservations for each day.  Then once Mom and I decided we wanted to do a table service lunch each day, it was back to the computer and onto www.disneyworld.com to check restaurant availability and book dining reservations.  Then it was back to My Disney Experience and adjust the FastPass+ times to work around the dining reservations.

When all plans were made it was back to the computer to create another spreadsheet for Mom to use.  My Disney Experience has all my plans, including what park, FastPass+ and dining reservations for each day on my iPhone.  Mom believes pencil and paper are the best thing ever so I make a printed schedule for her.

So now we just wait until it is time to travel to Old Key West.  Check-in has already been done on line for the resort.   DisneyFloral has my order for Valentine's Day flowers to be delivered to our room.  Now for the hard part, we just wait until it's time to go.

--DisneyDad
Thanks for stopping by Growing Up Disney.

How do you plan for your trips to WDW?  Have you ever put together a spreadsheet to keep everything organized?  Do you do your own planning or do you use the service of an authorized Disney Travel planner?  Do you make dining reservations or do you try to find some place to eat where ever you are in the park when you get hungry?  Do you make FastPass+ reservations in advance of  your trip?

Mom & DisneyDad October 2015

Photo Flashback! View from the Liberty Belle

A view of the Magic Kingdom from the Liberty Belle.

Liberty Belle

October 2015 Mom and I took a ride on the Liberty Belle riverboat on the Rivers of America in the Magic Kingdom.  If you haven't been on the riverboat in a while you have missed some views of the Magic Kingdom you don't see from any other vantage point.  This is a few of the pictures I took riding the river around Tom Sawyer Island.  See if you can catch where Tom and Huck were white washing a fence.

Haunted Mansion

Harper's Mill

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad

Train Car on Big Thunder Mountain Railroad

Alligator Swamp

The "original" Animal Kingdom

Keel Boat

Liberty Square Landing

Riding on the Liberty Belle is a nice escape from all the crowds of people at the Magic Kingdom.  The Liberty Belle carries about 450 passengers on 3 decks.  The views  as you transit around Tom Sawyer Island are beautiful and unmatched anywhere in the Magic Kingdom.

--DisneyDad

Oh! By the Way.  Tom and Huck were here.

The fence.

Photo Flashback! Kidani Village 2 Bedroom Villa

October 2015 the Growing Up Disney family stayed at Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge - Kidani Village.  This is a short review of the resort with some pictures of the 2 Bedroom Villa.

We had me (DisneyDad), Mom, Amy, Andy along with Tink and Minnie in a savanna view 2 bedroom villa.  Ridge had his own  deluxe studio just down the hall from our villa.  We arrived early on our check-in day as we drove and waited for Amy and family to arrive on Disney's Magical Express.  We had lunch reservations at Sanaa and had an absolutely fantastic meal.  If you have never been to Sanaa, don't miss the Bread Service.  Naan with dipping sauces.  Yumm!

Amy, Tink and Minnie

We were all full from lunch and enjoying visiting around the table at Sanaa when we received a text with our room number.  We made our way to our villa to see where we were staying for the next week.  Our room was in the middle of the curve of the building at the end of the Sunset Savanna.  We could not have asked for a better room.  The view from our balcony was fantastic and I spent several mornings with a cup of coffee watching animals on the Savanna.

Shield on Kidani Village Doors

Kidani Village is one of the Disney Vacation Club properties at Walt Disney World.  Over the years we have stayed at most of the DVC properties.  Each of the DVC resorts are unique with their own theme.  Kidani Village is themed after the African savanna with a good dash of The Lion King thrown in for good measure.  

Kidani Village 2 br Living Room

 Our two bedroom villa would sleep up to 9 with a king sized bed in the master bedroom, two queen beds in the 2nd bedroom and a full sized sleeper sofa and an over sized chair that made into a bed.

Dining Table in 2BR Villa at Kidani Village

Amy and Andy's bags had been delivered to the villa before we arrived and we brought up all our bags from our cars and began to settle in.  The villa has a full kitchen and comes stocked with cooking utensils and dishes.  Kidani Village is near US192 so off we went to the Publix at Celebration and stocked up on milk, bread and other goodies to make breakfast in our room.  Eggs, bread for toast, bacon, cereal, and ingredients for making sausage balls made sure we had plenty to eat for breakfast.  Dining reservations in the parks and Epcot's International Food and Wine Festival made sure we didn't go hungry,

Kitchen in 2 Br Villa

Kidani Village has a large zero entry pool with a water play area next to it.  The girls loved going down the big waterslide with dad at the bottom of the slide waiting on them..  There were plenty of activities around the pool and the cast members had a modified dunking booth that popped a water balloon over your head instead of dunking you.  The kids at the pool lined up for a chance to "dunk" someone and be the next to be "dunked".  

Master Bedroom Kidani Village - note the Lion King Headboard

2 BR Villa 2nd Bedroom Kidani Village

Community hall had movies playing on the TV as well as plenty of games and activities.  Across the hall was the Arcade with lots of games there too.  I think Tink liked the arcade ride along a roller coaster the best.  That and beating me at Air Hockey.

It was not too far of a walk to go from our room to Jambo House where we had breakfast at Boma one day and dinner there another.  There was a shuttle that would take you but it was not but about a 5 minute walk.  Transportation to the parks was by bus.  Disney has placed video screens at the bus stop to let you know how long until the next bus comes.  I thought this was a great idea and the times displayed were always right.

The walk to Jambo House is important if you are not making breakfast in your room.  There are some groceries available at Kidani Village, but there is not a true counter service restaurant.  At the pool you can get some pre-prepared sandwiches or order from room service that will deliver to the pool.

Mom and baby from our balcony, taken with my iPhone

The real draw of Kidani Village is the Savanna.  From our room you had a great view of the animals on the Savanna. Sitting on our balcony each morning you could watch animals come out for their breakfast.  Tink and Minnie loved watching the giraffes from our room.  There was even a baby giraffe that follow its  mother around.  Near the front desk were two areas to watch from inside or you could step out onto a balcony and sit in a rocking chair as you watch the animals.  Down on the grown floor you can walk out around a fire pit and watch the animals from ground level.  At night you could see the fire pit from our room, but we never made it there for the activities around the fire pit.  Also at night from our balcony you could watch trucks come through for a nighttime safari across the Savanna.

Let us know if you have been to Kidani Village and what you think of the resort.

--DisneyDad

PhotoFlashback! Fall is in the Air... and Fireworks!

 Fall is in the air.  The nights are getting cooler and Halloween costumes are being bought for our next trip to Walt Disney World.  This year the entire Growing Up Disney family will be attending Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party.  Ridge and I attend MNSSHP last year.

Magic Kingdom lamp post in it's Mickey Pumpkin best

Happy Hallowishes Fireworks and Castle show are fantastic

Fireworks and Cinderella Castle with lighting

Firework and Cinderella Castle in the dark

Tink and Minnie (my granddaughters) don't know about the trip and going to MNSSHP yet.  Amy is packing their Halloween costumes for a little Trick or Treat Magic Kingdom style.

--DisneyDad

Let us know if you are going to MNSSHP this year.

Photo Flashback! EPCOT International Food & Wine Festival

The EPCOT International Food & Wine Festival is just around the corner.  It is celebrating 20 years. 

This year the dates are September 25 - November 16, 2015.  The Growing Up Disney family will be there in October once again.   This year the theme is:

Taste Your Way Around The World
Embark on a culinary adventure celebrating 20 years of culture and cuisine with the finest wine and beverage offerings at the Epcot Food & Wine Festival, presented by CHASE®.

This year they have, as described by Disney's website, over "30 unique market places.  I've looked over the list and there are some old favorites as well as some new marketplaces that will be favorites.

In 2007 the theme was "Tastefully Inspired" and featured Oklahoma.  This fit well as Amy and her husband of 2 years lived in Owasso, Oklahoma at the time.  

Mom and DisneyDad

Tastefully Inspired

Oklahoma's Marketplace

A little Seared Buffalo anyone?

Some of Oklahoma's Famous residents

Somehow Amy didn't get her picture taken with her husband, but she did make sure I took her picture with Toby Keith.

--DisneyDad

Thanks for stopping by Growing Up Disney

Photo Flashback! Kidani Village

Amy has posted about our upcoming trip to Walt Disney World.  We are staying at the Animal Kingdom Lodge - Kidani Village.  In 2012 I took these pictures when we went to SANAA for dinner one evening.  

I know Tink and Minnie will love watching the animals from our room.  Ridge has stayed here on previous trips and said you not only see the animals, but you smell them too.  I'll have to see what the girls think of that.

Kidani Village entrance to the fire pit

You get some wonderful views from here

The savanna is beautiful

Kidani Village balcony's over looking the savanna

On our day of arrival we have lunch scheduled at Sanaa.

--DisneyDad

Thanks for stopping by to visit with us at Growing Up Disney.