Moms Panel - The big unknown

We had a few glimpses into the training weekend prior to arrival. One of the big unknowns was Saturday. We had not been made aware of anything going on this day until we received our itinerary at check in. On tap for today was Resort Tours, lunch at the Contemporary Resort then on to Disney's Hollywood Studios for more fun, playing, eating...and more FUN!

I will admit it was somewhat easy to get up and get moving. Having cameras present more often than not inspired me to impose a little more effort into appearance than I normally would while Disney World...considering on my "normal" Disney World mornings I would have three kids underfoot ready to start the day. However today would not be "normal", and as much as I missed my three underfoot kids & husband...I was thankful to be here.

We had a quick breakfast at Coronado Springs before we loaded up the motor coach and headed on our way. Here is a great picture of Laura & Leanne, they are the master Disney cast members behind the Moms Panel, and I have them to thank for this fantastic journey. Thanks ladies and a big thumbs up to you!


And the rest of the ladies are ready to board and head out for our day of adventure!


We first stopped at Disney's All Star Music Resort. Since they recently opened their new "family suites" I was really excited to get the opportunity to take a look. Unfortunately I didn't think to snap any pictures. I will say though, what a great option for families that don't want to book two rooms for their family of 5. The suites have the added bonus of a mini-kitchen which could be really helpful in offsetting some of the food expenses!

Back to to the bus and on to Disney's Caribbean Beach Resort. The highlight here was getting to see the newly refurbished (not yet opened) pirate themed rooms. VERY COOL. From what I have seen of the "moderate" resorts, I'd guess they are going to give the "deluxes" a run for their money. Attention to detail - CHECK! They had carpet made to look like wood plank flooring...who does that??!!



While looking at the pool, again all I could think about was how much my kids would LOVE this!


NEXT UP - DVC! Yea, I'm home!
I know both Tanya and I rave about the Disney Vacation Club, and it was so fun to see the models of the newest additions to the DVC family. The motor coach took us over to Saratoga Springs where the models are located, and it was a bit bizarre to walk through one door into an African safari theme, to moments later be immersed in the middle of retro-contemporary updated brady bunch style! Can you tell which is which?



Diane L. enjoying the savanna!

Once the tours were over, we headed over to the REAL Contemporary Resort to dine at the Wave restaurant. Here is a picture of Diane L. with her suicidal Tink.


The meal was excellent, and one of the highlights was passing by Deb Wills of allearsnet.com fame. She asked if we were the "new moms" and told us she would be joining us for breakfast in the morning. Very cool!

We caught ourselves a break before heading over to Disney's Hollywood Studios for...you guessed it, more fun & food! During that time we had arranged a covert operation to assemble our swag bags for our Disney dream team, Laura & Leanne. On the way to the "meet", I passed by this sign and had to snap a picture. Thinking of you and missing you Maya! The covert meet in Cathy's room - we all brought items significant of our home states as gifts for Laura and Leanne.



That evening they had plenty in store for us. We started on the back streets of New York at Disney's Hollywood Studios where we got an up-close look at the Osborne Spectacle of Lights, along with thousands of other guests. It was way too crowded for my pleasure, but neat to see.

Next we were treated to a ride on Toy Story Mania. **insert guilt here** This is one of Disney's latest and greatest attractions. Wait times typically in the 90-120 minute range with fastpasses disappearing within first few hours of park opening. This was certainly the case when I was here with my family back in October. My family passed on waiting in standby, figuring we could all see it on our trip scheduled for January. However now Mom is jumping the gun and previewing it without the kiddos. *gulp* I felt terrible, but at least now my WOW's have been uttered and I give my undivided attention to capturing their reaction to experiencing this attraction come January. It really is indescribable, Disney imagineering at it's finest. Jodi, Diane L. Kay, Anna, Cathy, Jennifer, Joanne


So now what, they wined & dined us of course! We had reservations at the Brown Derby, another of Disney's finest restaurants and one that I've never had the pleasure of dining in, until now! The food was very good, and the Very Merry Berry Margaritas were to die for! Unfortunately the service was quite slow, so the dinner took much longer than I would have anticipated. Thankfully we were in great company and had a lot of good laughs. We were joined by Gary-Jerry or whatever his name was :) which in itself was great entertainment. Gary is part of the public relations department at Walt Disney World and had some really great stories to share. He then brought us over to the all-new, yet-to-be-opened American Idol attraction. We were one of the very first groups to tour it! No pictures were allowed, and it was amazing knowing that just hours ago our favorite American Idol Davids (Cook and Archuletta) had been there. The tour was really neat, and I truly wish I had a vocal talent because this is really going to be something!

The time spent at idol was a gift, something unique and unexplored by others up until now. We did spot 2 hidden Mickey's, but I won't spoil it!

Now I'm spent, anxious to get back to my room, and my intent was to catch up on the blog...followed by some zzzzz's. But of course, our Disney magic makers had more in store for us, which made the above goals of blogging and sleep impossible. I arrived to a room full of swag, which just made me way-to-excited-to-sleep all over again.




The blanket is personalized, seriously - how cool is that!?!?
Celebrate, um yea...this is certainly worth a celebration! Thank you Disney magic makers!