Disneyland Souvenirs – What Did We Buy?

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We can’t help ourselves.  One of us has a Disney Christmas ornament addiction and the other one is extra sentimental.  Makes us great news for the shops in Disney parks!  Our September Disneyland vacation was no exception to our well-established Disney shopping ways.  What was a bit different was that we actually had a plan and a shopping list and managed to stick to it without going overboard!  Yay us!

Disneyland Souvenirs – What Did We Buy?

Since it was our first visit to Disneyland and we only had three days, we decided to scout out the items on our list before making any purchases.  This turned out to be both a brilliant and terrible idea at the same time.  It was great to get the lay of the land and see what the various shops had to offer, but we almost missed out on one of the items on the list by waiting too long.  The Sally costume we wanted for our granddaughter was suddenly nearly impossible to find on the last day, but Raymond finally spotted one.  Crisis averted.

What was on the list?  A souvenir for our son-in-law, Grant, some more Christmas ornaments (’cause we can never have too many), the costume and a traditional, embroidered EarHat for Violet, and some special something to commemorate this trip to celebrate our 29th anniversary.  What about Megan and Joseph, you ask?  We’d already purchased their souvenirs on the West Coast Disney cruise we took before visiting Disneyland.  Megan got a Disney Cruise Line spirit jersey in a beautiful watermelon color and Joseph got a tee shirt from a fantastic brewery we visited in Astoria, Oregon.

Grant’s souvenir was so easy, we spotted it on the very first day.  Who wouldn’t love a Thanos Infinity Gauntlet Mug from the gift shop at Guardians of the Galaxy:  Mission Breakout?  We made a note to pick it up on the last day and moved on down the list.  We spotted that Sally costume early on too, but made no such helpful note.

Moving on.  The ornaments were plentiful and we found them in many locations.  Choosing just a few was way more difficult than I’d imagined.  I’m a pretty decisive person, but there were so many great one’s I didn’t have!  I mulled over my choices in several stores so I’d be ready when the time came.  See?  Mrs. Potts and Chip, Mushu and Cri-kee, Jack and Sally, and Mickey and Minnie were my final selections.

On the last day, as we made our purchases, we still needed one special something for ourselves.  Raymond and I have always loved Carl and Ellie from Up, so while I was busily debating the merits of one ornament over another and making my final choices, Raymond was looking at sketches being drawn by an artist right there in the store.  There were Carl and Ellie!  A very helpful Cast Member explained the custom framing options and we knew we’d found exactly what we were looking for.

We left our packages to be shipped home and ordered our sketch with a Grape Soda pin and our wedding date added at the bottom.  When we got home, waiting for our souvenirs did quite a bit to soften our post-Disney depression.  The anxiously awaited packages finally arrived and we were so pleased with how the framed sketch turned out.  Absolutely, it’s one of our favorite Disney purchases ever!

What’s your most favorite Disney purchase? 

Merry Christmas, Disney Friends!

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“I don’t deserve to be so happy.  But I can’t help it.  I-I I just can’t help it”. – Ebenezer Scrooge (A Christmas Carol, 1951, Alastair Sim)

I don’t know when a year has flown by so quickly.  We just wished everyone Happy New Year and here we are; it’s already Christmas morning.  Maybe it’s just me, but I’m going to try my best starting right now, to slow time down so I can enjoy every second of this day.

Merry Christmas, Disney Friends!

Our family loves Christmas traditions.  For us that means a Christmas Eve bonfire and fireworks followed by Christmas morning Mimosas and leisurely gift opening with lots of laughter.  I’ve set myself up for enjoying each moment by planning to not spend all day in the kitchen! I made a giant pan of lasagna ahead of time.  I’ll just pop that baby in the oven and hang out with my favorite people in the world until it’s time to eat.  Whatever you’ve got planned, I hope it’s just as relaxing and fun.

Since it wouldn’t be Christmas at our house without Disney gifts, I want to show you what I found for our granddaughter!  She’s still a bit young for this, but I couldn’t resist and she’s growing so fast.  It won’t be long before we’re having 3 o’clock parades together!  (I hope you got all the Disney gifts on your list!)

Disney friends, I appreciate you more every year.  On social media, I’ve enjoyed your Disney vacation pictures, Disney thoughts and opinions, trip reports, restaurant and food reviews, lively discussions and, most of all, sharing your joy and common love of family and Disney.  Your children are precious and I love your pride in their accomplishments.  Your pets are adorable and some of you are as crazy about your furry friends as I am about Junior and Ricky.  I am grateful for your friendship every single day…I don’t tell you as often as I should.

From our family to yours, we wish you the happiest of Christmases and hope the peace and joy of this most special holiday are with you today and always.

Merry Christmas…Lisa

 

Disney Recipes – Whispering Canyon’s Cornbread

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When the weather finally cools off here in Louisiana, one of the first things I always crave is chili.  As a family of spicy food lovers, we take our chili extra hot and like to pair it with bread or cheese and crackers.  This fall, Joseph decided we needed to try cornbread and chose this Disney version served at places like Whispering Canyon, Trails End, and Hoop Dee Doo.

Disney Recipes – Whispering Canyon’s Cornbread

For me, the fun of cooking Disney food at home is that it always brings back happy vacation memories and this time was no different.  We’ve loved our evenings at the Hoop Dee Doo Review and have had some great lunches at Whispering Canyon Café.  One time in particular stands out – the time we ate at Whispering Canyon as Hurricane Matthew was bearing down on us!  Unsurprisingly, the food and service were still as great as ever.

We were a bit concerned when we heard that Disney (fairly recently) decided to tone down the antics (due to noise) at Whispering Canyon.  We thought the rowdy Cast Members always added to the restaurant’s charm.  With or without the shenanigans, the food is still absolutely solid and the beer menu is usually pretty good as well.  This makes Whispering Canyon a perfect place for a mid-day break from Magic Kingdom.  A convenient and scenic boat-ride away, Wilderness Lodge is both majestic and a relaxing place for a meal.

I’m sure this recipe would have been fine in either a cake pan or made into mini-loaves, but we decided on muffins.  This is a cake-like, very sweet cornbread which made it a great contrast to our extra-spicy chili.  It would also be great with breakfast foods like bacon and eggs.

If you prefer your cornbread more savory, you’ll want to approach this version with an open mind.  If you love Wilderness Lodge and Fort Wilderness dining and know this cornbread, prepare for some happy Disney flashbacks!

Do you like cooking Disney recipes at home?  Which ones are your favorites?

Disney Cruising – Concierge on the Wonder

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Disney Cruising – Concierge on the Wonder

We splurged for a cabin in the concierge category on our recent Disney cruise. Let’s talk about what amenities we enjoyed (and which ones we skipped) and the bottom line:  Was it worth it and would we do it again?

It was a short (four night) repositioning cruise from Vancouver to San Diego with one stop in Astoria, Oregon. This cruise was perfect for us as it gave us the opportunity to celebrate our 29th anniversary in a special way while avoiding the unfriendly East Coast hurricane season.  It was also the right length to allow us to add a 3-day visit to Disneyland to the end of our trip.

Pre-Cruise

We booked cabin 8044 and, having never splurged on concierge before, didn’t exactly know what to expect. We were pleasantly surprised to find out that the excellent service begins long before the actual cruise!

The concierge team called us and asked us what activities and dining we would like them to book for us. This was just about our favorite perk since we take our cruise activities seriously and do whatever it takes to get what we want including setting our alarm for middle-of-the-night online booking.  We asked for Palo dinner and brunch, the bicycle tour in Astoria, and both a whisky tasting and a chocolate and liquor tasting (we’d been trying to do this one for several cruises).  Everything we asked for was magically taken care of when the booking window opened without any extra effort on our part.

When we did our online check-in for the cruise, instead of getting a boarding time, we were told to arrive at the port whenever we pleased and that’s just what we did. We took our time getting ready and right at the Fairmont Waterfront’s checkout time, we walked across the street, down the ramp, and into the cruise terminal.  After making our way through an uncrowded, but lengthy trek through customs, we found the concierge waiting area.  This was not fancy, just a bunch of folding chairs in a separate, closed off area.  After a short wait, it was time to board the Wonder and concierge guests are the first to get on.

Setting Sail

The onboard concierge team was made up of three Cast Members: Glenn, Selena, and Cristelle.  Glenn was in the lobby to greet us and direct us to Tiana’s Place for lunch.  While in Tiana’s we enjoyed complimentary adult beverages with our meal and Glenn came around with personalized folders for each family.  The materials included a customized itinerary and information about concierge amenities.

The Concierge Lounge

Once lunch was over, we checked out the concierge lounge on Deck 10 where a representative from the spa helped Raymond book a massage for later that afternoon. The lounge offers food (coffee/tea, non-alcoholic specialty drinks, light breakfast items, sandwiches, fruit, sweets, and snacks) throughout most of the day and in the evenings serves cocktails from 5-10 pm.  We did take advantage of breakfast, some of the lunch offerings, and bags of free popcorn.  Surprisingly, we never made it to the lounge in the evenings.  We did attend a special character meet & greet there one afternoon.

Our Cabin

Stateroom 8044 was located midship. It was in great shape and very clean.  There were two TVs – one larger one in the sleeping section of the room and another, smaller, in the seating area.  Our veranda was used quite a bit and we loved the toiletries provided.   As an extra-nice touch, we received a pre-soaped loofa-like sponge for the shower that was great.

When it came time to disembark on the last morning, we took our luggage up to the concierge lounge with us and, after enjoying one last breakfast, were escorted down to deck three and sent on our way with a warm goodbye from Glenn. The concierge staff was professional, friendly and helpful in exactly the Disney way one would expect.

Bottom Line

So, while we opted out of a few opportunities for group activities and amenities, we enjoyed our first experience with Disney Cruise Line’s concierge level. For just the two of us, I’m not sure we’d splurge on it again.  I could see, absolutely, wanting concierge level if travelling with our entire family…IF we could afford it.  Sailing concierge added convenience and time-savings, some nice extras, and expedited boarding and disembarking.  For Raymond and I, it didn’t make this cruise any more fun or magical than the 8 that came before it.