Monthly Archives: November 2013

Magical Memory Monday – Walk Around the World Brick

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We took our first trip to Disney World with children in 1996.  Megan was four and Joseph was 13-months old.  This trip was taken during what I fondly refer to as “the lean years” – you know, the just-starting-out part of your lives when you’re living on love ’cause there’s not much else.  It was a big deal for us to take this trip.  A family reunion was planned at an off-site motel, so we flew down a few days early and splurged for an on-property stay at a value resort.  All Star Music is where we ended up.  In July.  Yes, just imagine!  We knew so little back then!!!  I will say, the Brazilian teens we encountered were very sweet and the girls all wanted to hold Joseph, marveling over his (then) blonde hair and blue eyes.  He soaked up the attention (and candy) they heaped upon his little baby self while he practiced his charm with the ladies at the guitar-shaped swimming pool.

Even though money was so tight back then, we were, of course, completely and totally IMG_1980enthralled by the perfection of Disney World as a vacation spot for The Fam.  We decided on an additional splurge: a Walk Around the World brick to mark our spot at OUR Happiest Place on Earth – even if we couldn’t visit again for a while.  I have found that Disney does a great job of inducing you to make emotion-driven purchases, but that’s another topic for another day.  Plus, I’ve never been a fan of being TOO practical anyway.

IMG_2076So the deal was, you dished out about $250 (if I recall correctly) for a personalized brick paver to be placed on the walkway which had been planned to circle the Seven Seas Lagoon.  Now, unfortunately, the circling was scrapped, but hundreds (thousands?) of us purchased bricks nonetheless.  Look down on the walkway outside Magic Kingdom!  It made us feel part of the magic – even if we couldn’t be there.  It took us a while to go back – about 8 years, but once we made it, it was time to see our brick.

A code on the certificate we received with the brick’s purchase indicated the brick’s location.  Ours started with a “W” so we knew our brick would be west of the Magic Kingdom heading on the walkway towards (but never reaching) the Grand Floridian.  Raymond did the research to narrow down the exact location.  We went in search of our little mark on Disney World.  A lot worn down and worse for IMG_1981wear, we were thrilled anyway when we found it!  Even though a long time had passed between trips, knowing that our hexagonal marker was waiting for us, made it’s very impractical purchase worth every penny.

 

 

Disney Twitterverse – Week Ending November 9th, 2013

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Oh, there was some major tweeting going on this week!  Here’s what Disney fans were talking about…

RunDisney Events – This week was the lead up to the Wine and Dine Half Marathon Weekend at Disney World.  Saturday morning included the Jingle Jungle 5K with the half marathon on Saturday night.  The twitterverse was humming with tweets from runners and fans alike.  If you’ve ever dreamed of completing a runDisney event, these races looked like great ones.

Halloween is over and Christmas has arrived in all places Disney.  The holiday decorations have gone up, the “snow” has started falling, and the first Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party of the year is over.  What happened to Thanksgiving?  Anyway, if you’ve been or are going to Mickey’s Very Merry, I’d love to hear about it!

Tony Baxter, Imagineer and Disney legend, received a Window on Main Street USA in Disneyland on Friday, November 1st.  Mr. Baxter’s new window, installed above Main Street Magic  pays tribute to a man who has contributed so much to the Disney we all love.  Please take a minute to read this excellent article at Laura’s Miscellaneous Musings blog.

Still more Thor!  As Thor: The Dark World opened in theaters this week there have been quite a few excited fans.  I caught this newest installment in the Marvel Avengers movie series yesterday.  Now I feel qualified to tweet about it too.

What were YOU tweeting about Disney last week?  Follow me @life_of_green

 

Saturday Salute – Boma’s Chicken Corn Chowder

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If you ever have the opportunity to eat at the Animal Kingdom Lodge, jump on it!  We eat there every time we’re at Disney World and have enjoyed every single bite.

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Topsy from South Africa

The lobby of the Animal Kingdom Lodge is worth a visit even without the delish food!  It’s HUGE and themed extremely well.  PLUS, you can walk right out onto the savannah for a look at the many different African animal species that roam all around the Lodge.  You know how I feel about Kilimanjaro Safari, so you can just imagine how much I like the savannah overlook area.  There is usually at least one castmember from Africa out there to answer any and all questions you might have about their homeland.  Raymond and I spoke to a young man from Botswana for quite a while one evening and enjoyed hearing him talk about Africa and what it was like growing up there.  Topsy from South Africa was there on our last visit.  She was so funny when we introduced her to Perry the Platypus.

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Raymond Checks out the Animals on the Savannah with Joseph’s Assistance

Okay, back to the food.  We’ve eaten at The Mara (quick service), Boma (buffet) and Jiko (table service), but I’m sure Sanaa (maybe next visit) is equally as fabulous.  It’s Boma and Jiko that keep us coming back – the food is unlike any other found at a Disney World resort and the service is always top notch.

Let’s just focus our taste buds on Boma.  The African-flavor-inspired dishes on this buffet are so plentiful, everybody finds something to love.  As with all Disney buffets, there are plenty of options for less-adventurous diners like mac-n-cheese and pasta.  Boasting an impressive variety of salads (oh, that watermellon rind salad is to die for!), several soups (thus, today’s Salute!), and main dishes (rice dishes, ribs, chicken, beef at a carving station, and much more)  to choose from.  And lets not forget about dessert and Boma’s famous Zebra Domes (little striped cake bites from heaven)!

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I found the recipe for Boma’s Chicken Corn Chowder at Magical Recipes.  The weather here has finally cooled off a bit and that always puts me in the mood for soup.  We (Raymond and I of the empty nest) particularly like this soup because it’s not only satisfying, but it has a spicy kick that makes it not-just-another chowder.  Bread and a side salad make it a meal.  Since this post is a tribute to Boma’s recipe, I made it exactly as written.  I did specifically use Tobasco brand sauce because to use anything else in Lousiana is at least a sin (if not illegal).  The result?  Mmmmmmm…Good!

What’s your favorite place to eat at Disney World?

First Time Disney Cruise? This One’s for You – Fish Extenders!

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Fish Extenders!  Ever heard of ‘em?  No?  Well, if you’re cruising on Disney, you’re bound to see them.  Next to the outside of every stateroom door is a metal fish.  The fish’s main/original purpose in life is that it serves as a place where Disney Castmembers can leave mail for you – excursion information, spa treatment reminders, invitations to kids/teen club events, etc.  What turns this unassuming, ordinary looking, mail gathering fish into something MORE is the addition of a hanging pocketed receptacle called a Fish Extender (aka FE)!

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In order to even want or NEED a fish extender, you first must join a fish extender GROUP.  See…the fish extender is like a Christmas stocking.  Its sole purpose in life is to gather little surprises from other members of your FE group while YOU are distributing little gifts to them as well.  Think Secret Santa on the high seas!  (Which is, I believe, how this whole thing actually started.)  Where, pray tell, does one join a FE group?  There’s one teeny tiny extra step you must take to join.  First you have to find and join an online group where other members of your cruise are meeting up…there are benefits to doing this other than participating in a FE exchange, but I’ll save that for another day.  Anyway back to the group-finding part – the easiest place to find a group is on Facebook.  Enter your cruise in the search box and if a group’s been started, it’ll pop right up.

Once your request to join the group has been approved, you can start interacting with your fellow cruisers.  If a FE group is being put together, you’ll see usually in the group files or a pinned post.  Don’t wait too long to decide about joining.  Usually, the ability to join expires two-to-three weeks prior to sailing to give all the participants time to assemble and pack their FE gifts.

You’ll need a Fish Extender.  I made mine a long time ago and, while humble, it served its purpose well on more than one occasion.  My sewing skills tend to lean toward a combination of hand stitching and hot glue.  But that was before the days of Etsy and Pinterest.  Now you can find FE’s to purchase or get ideas for making your own.  I hear they even sell them on ebay.

About the gifts – small, portable, and inexpensive are the main criteria.  We’ve given bubbles, glow-sticks, candy, Disney party favors, puzzles, Disney magnets (suitable for use as DSCN3596stateroom Door Décor!), pirate-themed items, etc.  We’ve received some awesome stuff:  Disney Pez dispensers/candy, Disney washcloths, pool toys, small items representative of the other participants’ home towns, buttons, pins, and more!  You do not have to give a gift everyday and you don’t have to even give more than one gift – especially if dealing with a large FE group with many staterooms.  Just make sure you at least bring something for everyone participating in each cabin – you’ll know how many adults and children are involved in each cabin (by cabin #) as the FE group is formed.

Then once you sail away from port – let the fun begin!  Kids enjoy not only finding FE gifts waiting for them, they also have a great time “sneaking” around delivering surprises to everyone else.

Have you done an exchange on Disney Cruise Line?  What were your favorite gift items to give and receive?