joining in! (also my first post after the migration so I hope this works out ok
)
We just went to Disney last August for the first time as a 3-kid family - so know how much fun it can be - but also how it can cause the need to adjust and be flexible)
My in-laws live in Central PA (in Perry County - kinda near Mechanicsburg and Charlisle) and have flown to Disney with them in the past (we usually fly out of DC in those cases). Sounds like while a long day, the travel down went fairly smoothly.
Sounds like a fun and productive trip to DTD - so hard to keep the purchases in check at times - especially with some of the new stores like the Co-op Market place
Chef Mickey's is one place we have not done yet (menu doesn't wow us and we have focussed on other character meals - often those with princesses) but do think we need to try it at some point. I don't think I ever noticed that they had plates with "compartments" - that is a great idea for kids though
Interested to hear what you thought of your room/family suite at AoA as I think we could try that out during a future trip.
Everyone has those nerves the first time you use MagicBands. Glad to hear yours worked fine (we seemed to do well with them as well, but can see that as being frustrating for people that have had issues with them)
Cute picture with all three boys giving Mickey a hug
Fully agree with you that I love when the PP Photographers capture the candid moments as well. Some were definitely better at that than others but they led to some great shots for us as well.
Of course there was a 10 minute posted time for Nemo - it takes at least that long to walk through the ~37.4 mile long queue
Fully agree that the FP+ for a lot of the shows is not really helpful. One downside to the system we found is that you
have to make 3 FP+ when you might not need that many given the members of your group
Living with the Land is one of our favorite attractions - we hit it up every trip (sometimes more than once). Also would like to do the Behind the Seeds tour at some point in the future.
Your lunch at SS was almost the same as ours. Those fish tacos are pretty darn good. I was a little surprised how spicy they were (generally things are toned down at Disney) but I very much enjoyed them
Wow 60 minute wait for SSE! - good thing you had those super secret special passes
Glad things worked out with taking the breaks and not having any melt downs .... big goal for a successful trip
I think we have trained our kids to go along with Food & Wine but it is definitely most fun as just adults. Wow, having a but kids came in handy for getting a free treat. Bringing glow sticks is such a great idea - and saves a ton of money vs. buying glow toys in the park
A few trips ago we spent some time exploring AoA and really loved the theming and that Nemo themed play area. We also had to get a picture with every. single. car. in the Cars section.
Love the pool area - looks great for kids of all ages
following along. I've got three boys 4 and under as well so I am looking forward to seeing how you all managed for this trip. My DS 18 months when we traveled last year had to squeeze all the noses. It must be pretty common but the characters do not seem to like it and try to push the hand away
. Can't wait to hear more. Btw I hate the the Chef Mickey's bathroom it is so far away, what is up with that?
Just too much cuteness between those meets with Minnie and Donald and everybody being DONE at the end.
Next year!
). She thought he was just the cutest thing and kept talking to him while she rang up the customer in front of us. Jake happened to be holding the caramel corn bag at this point. The cashier saw that he was holding it and said "Oh you can just take that with you if you want! You're too cute!". I laughed and thought she was just joking. But she rang us up for the 4 caramels and then blew Jake a kiss. Yay pixie dust! 
