Leaving Commons

July 10th was the day I had to leave The Commons.  I got up early, finished packing the car, took my final pictures of Commons, handed in my ID's, and received my package.  When you complete your program you receive a letter recognizing your employement, your final paycheck, your relocation reimbursemet, and a program certificate.

 

After leaving Commons I met up with Heather (my old roomie) who checked me into the Animal Kingdom Lodge.  My mom wasn't flying in until Saturday, and I figured if I was going to spend one last day at Disney, why not spend it in a savannah view room?

 

When Heather left I had some free time to properly pack my car (I had to vacuum pack things so that we could fit my mom's stuff), but fortunately, I didn't have to spend the night by myself!  Alison was free and was willing to join me for the night.  We went to dinner at Boma and then spent the evening watching the sun set over the savannah.  It was a perfect end to a wonderful program.

 

Rob's Last Visit

The first week of May all I really did was work.  I mean, you have to work sometime, that is what they brought me down to Florida for!

May 6th I worked an AM and then Rebecca, Alison and I had reservations  for Sanaa.  I fell in love.  The only reason we'd booked reservations is that one of our old managers, Brandon, left to work as an opening manager at Sanaa.  The restaurant features indian inspired dishes and is found in Kidani Villiages, the new Disney Vacation Club addition to the Animal Kingdom Resort.  From the restaurant lobby and most of the restaurant you have a view of the Savannah... ours was dampened a little since it was dark out, but it was still nice to know there were wild animals roaming about.

We started our meal off with delicious mango margaritas, and a traditional bread service with naan bread, and another bread that was kind of like a pita (you get to choose 3... we just chose 2 naan).  We also chose our 3 sauces: mango chutney, roasted red pepper hummus, and a garlic-lime pickle.  They were all delicious, but I definitely agree with our server, it's impossible to explain the taste of the pickle, because it takes your brain about 30 seconds just to understand what you're eating!  Such a complex flavour.  We then split an appetizer trio: samosas, duck rillette, and a rice pilaf.  It was incredible!  Finally we had our entrees.  Mine was a delicious beef short ribs, rice, and red wine curry chicken.  I also went for the trio for dessert, getting to try mango pudding, chocolate cake, and another cake... mmm.  I definitely reccommend Sanaa for anyone visiting the WDW resort who loves exotic food.  I'd definitely visit again!

For all our amazing and delicous pictures, click here.

May 7th I had a lucky extra day off!  Someone needed a trade, so of course I said yes! I used the day to clean, do laundry, and get ready for Rob's visit!

May 8th Rob arrived for his final visit!  After picking him up from the airport we went to Sanaa for lunch.  I loved it so much the first time I had to show Rob!  We had the bread trio, and then I tried the naan burger with mango chutney.  So delicious!  After leaving Sanaa we were so full we could burst, so we decided to go check in to our room at the All Star Movies resort.  It wasn't ready, but they gave us the keys, and said they would call us with the room number when it was ready.  So we went back to the Commons to relax until we could finally move in!  We were in the Dalmations section of the resort, which was really neat because everything was decorated with the 101 Dalmations theme in mind.

We didn't have much time to settle in, because we had to head to the Hoop Dee Doo Revue for dinner!  We were seeing the late show so we were able to watch Wishes from the beach and still make it to the show in plenty of time.  The perfect start to a vacation!  The Revue was amazing, it's an all you can eat, all you can drink menu including Sangria, beer, and wine!  Plus, it's a dinner show!  All the food is delicious, homestyle country meals like fried chicken, beans, and ribs, and the show is hilarious!  After the show they have buses there to all the resorts! It's perfect!  A wonderful night out!

May 9th was Rob's first visit to Seaworld!  We started the day out right with a trip to see the Stigrays, but then we saw it was dolphin feeding time!  Of course we got in line to feed the dolphins, since Rob had never pet or fed one before.  I took lots of nice pictures while Rob got to play (but I still fed them too), it was a wonderful experience!  Next we headed to the rollercoasters!  We saw that the new Manta ride was working and we couldn't resist!  It's a very unique coaster.  You sit down and then they rotate you forward so it's like you're flying.  We waited for the front... I haven't screamed like that in a long time!  After that we had to go on Kraken, followed by a walk to the beer building... but the beer building doesn't give free beer anymore!  It's tragic!

There was still a fair amount of time before the Shamu show, so we decided to pass time the old fashioned way... by playing!  I love the ropes and I always used to climb on them as a kid, so why not now?!  Rob definitely thought I was crazy, but we had a lot of fun.  I also realized how tiring it is to be a kid.  Those things aren't easy to climb!  We kept falling and it took a lot of strength... still... we mastered it!  Finally we saw the Shamu show.  It was amazing as always, I really love what they've done with the screens.  For people who haven't seen it they have four large screens which they can move side to side or rotate to make various shapes or for different effects.  It's really neat.  The whales also rock.  After the show we were pretty tired so we decided to call it a day.  We'd only seen a couple shows, but Rob was going to have a whole other day at the park and I didn't want him to run out of things to do!

After a quick nap we started our hunt for Hidden Mickey's!  We found all of the Hidden Mickey's in all of the All Star Resorts using our Official Guide to Hidden Mickey's!.  It was quite a challenge!  Sometimes even the hints don't really describe where or what you're looking for.  Sometimes you think the Mickey is so obvious they couldn't possibly classify it as hidden, and sometimes it's just impossible to see!  After all of that, we were ready for a good night's sleep!

May 10th we were up early to check into the Boardwalk Villas!  Our room was ready (even at 8am) and so we moved in right away!  Then I dropped Rob off at Sea World and went in to work for 10 AM. I picked Rob up after work (he had fun!) and then we went to Boma (another first). It is such a good buffet featuring lots of American and African food, and some of the best deserts! We also went Hidden Mickey hunting around the Animal Kingdom Lodge and found them all, though we needed help for some, they were difficult! When we got home we had just enough time to walk over to Hollywood Studios (because you can do that from the Boardwalk) and see Fantasmic.  The entrance people thought I was crazy maingating someone when it was almost park closing, but it was worth it!  When else was Rob going to get to see his favourite show now that they only have it one or two nights a week?!

May 11th was our Magic Kingdom day!  The day started off excellently when we got to meet the Dapper Dans, and Rob even got his picture with them!  Then we started our long trek of going on rides to look for Hidden Mickey's.  They are not easy to find!  Some are pretty hidden, and can only be seen from certain views or positions in the car.  You miss them sometimes, too... so you end up going on rides more than once, just looking for the Mickey and ignoring most of the interesting parts of the ride.  My only other complaint about the Hidden Mickey hunt is that the book isn't organized how I'd like it.  It isn't planned out into sections or worlds, but rather it plans your day for you, and it doesn't do it how I would normally go around the park.  As a seasoned Disney veteran I have my own routine and I hate having to backtrack because I didn't know the other Hidden Mickey's in that land were at the end of the section!

And again, I have to mention how some Hidden Mickey's are ridiculous... like a mailbox that literally has Mickey's face on it in Toontown... that's not hidden!

And what's with this "Hidden Pluto"?

There are some good things about Hidden Mickey hunting!  Many Cast Members saw us with the book and offered to help.  The best was the custodial Cast Member in Tomorrowland.  He tried to help us find the oldest and most hidden Hidden Mickey, and when we couldn't find it he even got his manager involved and they offered us a any-use Fast Pass if we found it... which we did!  It was a Magical Moment I'll never forget!

I promise we did things other than hunt for Hidden Mickey's!  Since it was the Shuttle Launch day, we found the best spot to view the launch and watched with several other Cast Member's and Guests.  It wasn't much to see, just like a line of clouds (like any other jet or airplane) but it seemed farther away.  It was still really nice to see!  We also watched the 3-o'clock parade!

Dinner at Cinderella's Royal Table was also on our agenda!  I'd booked this 6 months in advance to celebrate this amazing vacation (not knowing it would prevent us from seeing the shuttle launch up close).  We started off with an amazing picture with Cinderella and were taken upstairs for our even more delicious meal!  It was perfect and incredible.  The Fairy Godmother even sang a couple lines of her song directly to us!

After dinner we continued to look for Hidden Mickey's (somewhat reknewed after dinner), and then stayed around for SpectroMagic and Wishes!  After it all we were very tired, and went home to get some sleep!

May 12th we headed to Busch Gardens!  I underestimated the drive so we were a little later than I'd planned, but it didn't matter because the lines weren't huge.  The only downer for the day was that it kept raining, and by raining I mean pouring.  We ended up hiding in the que for Shiekra for over an hour!  So we left mid-afternoon, went to a Cracker Barrel, and headed home for the night.

May 13th was another busy day because we explored Universal Studios!  We even met Homer Simpson!  We managed to see all of both parks, and went on our favourite rides a couple of times!

Then, in the evening we decided we were up for a challenge.  Rather than going out for dinner, we thought we'd go out for a treat.  I'd heard about this legendary "Kitchen Sink" sold at the Beaches and Cream ice cream shop at the Beach Club, so we went to check it out.  Eight scoops of ice cream, a can of whipcream, and all the toppings.  Sounds like a challenge, but not too bad.  That's 4 scoops of ice cream and a bit of whip cream each.  Little did we know "all the toppings" included peanut butter, oreos, brownie, reeces peanut butter cups, shortbread, pineapple, m&m's, and more!  It was quite a challenge to tackle.  Even worse, once they've made it they sound the alarm and announce that "TWO" people are going to eat it... eek!  If you can eat it by yourself in an hour, it's free.  Rob and I made some nice dents, but sooner (rather than later) we felt sick.  Very sick.  We pushed through, but it was no use.  The Kitchen Sink definitely beat us!

May 14th started with Hidden Mickey Hunting around the Boardwalk.  We went through the three resorts (the Boardwalk, Beach Club, and Yacht Club) and wound up at the Big River Grille & Brewing Works for lunch.  This is the only microbrewery on Disney property, and I knew Rob would love it!  Lunch was delicious, and Rob got a testing flight to sample all of the delicious beers.  I think he chose the middle one, though I can't remember which beer it was.

In the evening we dressed up and headed over to the Contemporary Resort for the famed California Grill Restaurant.  The restaurant is at the very top of the resort, and is one of the most beautiful places to watch a sunset on Disney property.  Plus, it has a fantastic view of the fireworks over Cinderella Castle (if you're lucky enough to be sitting at a table near the window).  We were just that lucky!  I was a little worried that our reservation was too early for fireworks, but with a full three course meal the fireworks came right at dessert!  The fireworks were just as good as the food, and after our meal we went out on the balcony to view the water parade (always a favourite) before heading back to the Boardwalk.

May 15th we got up early to visit Animal Kingdom, go on some of our favourite rides, look for Hidden Mickey's, and eat at our favourite restaurants.  The Yak & Yeti quick service is still one of my favourite places to eat!  Once we'd completed our Hidden Mickey hunt we decided to head to Epcot for more Mickey's and Extra Magic Hours (EMH).  I really don't know how people do this.  I'll admit, by this point we were pretty exhausted with the hunt for Mickey's.  Many of the Mickey's were starting to look similar, and so the thrill just wasn't there.  But still, attending EMH was grueling... the day was so long.  I think that for Guests and CM's they really are Extra Tragic Hours.  We went on a couple of rides and then walked home to get some sleep.  While we were there we did pictures with the some of the Flower & Garden Festival attractions!  They were just being set up for the festival which begins later this month.

May 16th we went to Hollywood Studios for our final Mickey hunting adventure, and more! We had reservations at one of my favourite restaurants: the 50's Prime Time Cafe. I always love that restaurant because the food is delicious, and the servers are hilarious. I don't think there's anywhere else where servers are allowed to enforce manners. Rob was shocked when our server (who was hilarious) asked us to set the table, and kept threatening him not to put his elbows on it! The day was also exciting because we got to watch a friend of mine in the American Idol Experience! His family wasn't there so we got to sit in the VIP/Family section... I was so proud! Unfortunately, he didn't make it through to the finals... but we did get to see Fantasmic!

May 17th we had to leave the Boardwalk Villas, but it wasn't too sad because we were moving up to the Grand Floridian!  This is a place I've always wanted to stay, but I don't think I'd want to pay the un-discounted prices!  It was definitely worthwhile for one day, though!  When we checked in we were given a room with a balcony overlooking one of the main pools.  We relaxed on the balcony with some beer and wine before heading to the pool ourselves.  We had a "rough" day of relaxing by the pool and in a hammock overlooking the lagoon.  It was paradise.

For dinner we headed to 1900 Parkfare, Cinderella character dining!  We got to meet Cinderella, Prince Charming, Lady Tremaine, Drizella, and Anastasia.  It was so much fun!  After dinner we were hoping to catch Wishes, but it was cancelled due to poor weather.

May 18th I had to leave this fantasy world, drive Rob back to the airport, and work a PM. I felt so out of it at work, and just wished I was back lounging by the pool with Rob!

If you'd like to see all of our pictures click on the numbers below!

1 | 2 | 3

If you'd like to find all the Hidden Mickey's we found, check out these photo albums!

1 | 2 | 3 | 4

After Disneyland

After Disneyland most of what I did was work. Since I had four days off in a row, I had to work for over a week straight until my next day off. Inbetween shifts at work my goal was to get as much studying done as possible for the GMAT (test date is April 8th!). Still, I did have some fun, and some interesting days!


Friday February 27th I worked an AM and Heather had the day off, so after work we headed to Walmart to grab groceries. Neither of us had bought groceries in a really long time. Then we got ready for our fancy dinner! Before Disneyland we'd planned to go out to the Grand Floridian Cafe for a girls night, since we hadn't done anything fun together in awhile. We arrived at the Grand Floridian just as the fireworks (Wishes) started, but unfortunately the buildings blocked our view. We headed to the restaurant to check in, and people-watched until our table was ready. People watching is fun at the Grand Floridian because there's SO many different people there. You see people dressed up going to and from Victoria and Albert's (a super fancy restaurant), casual families just enjoying their vacations, and everything inbetween.


The food at the Grand Floridian Cafe was amazing. For appetizers I had a strawberry salad (similar to the raspberry one at Steakhouse 55, but strawberry with cashews). It was so good. Heather had a squash soup, which she enjoyed! Then for our entrees we both had the ribeye steak with green beans and mashed potatoes... and the portions were large! Both of us ended up taking almost half of our meal home. But we saved a little room for dessert, which was nice because the desserts they offer are small. I had a mini chocolate mousse and Heather had a Tirimisu. They were literally the perfect size, any more and I would not have had room! Overall, it was delicious food, and not too expensive! I would definitely go back again!

For the next week, my main goal was to study as much as possible. The only problem is that I don't really have a place to study. I can use the kitchen table in my apartment, but if anyone else is home and in the living room it's really distracting. Most of the time I study lying on the floor in my bedroom. Not the best layout, but it works. The preparations are going well. I've started with the quantitative section of the GMAT and so far so good. All of the concepts are things I've learned before, so I'm mainly refreshing my knowledge, learning tricks to complete questions faster, and familiarizing myself with the question types. Next I'm going to have to starton the verbal section, which has sentence correction and other questions. It might be the harder section for me, but it shouldn't be too bad!


The next big event was March 4th when I met Andrea at Hollywood Studios! It's so nice to see people from home! Unfortunately the next day I had to work a MID while they were off playing at Universal Studios. I really would have liked to use my pass again. Fortunately I had the next day off! So I headed to meet up with them at Cocoa Beach! It was so much fun. The only sad thing was that this was my first time at a Florida Beach. It took me 8 months to make it to a beach... and I have a car!

March 7th was the Royal Family 5k! For some reason I wasn't as excited to run as I was for the Circle of Life 5k back in January. Still, I got up, donned my skirt (with shorts underneath), pink tank top, and Princess tiara and headed to the races! During the race I wasn't feeling well so I ended up walking more than running but it was still fun. All through the course they had princesses and different characters dressed up like royalty! I would love to do it again, and if you ever do it... bring a camera! After the race I felt really sick, so I went home and prepared for my PM shift.

Here are some pictures of the race!

Here you can see that it's true... even when I'm running if I know there's a camera I smile! Sometimes I'm just too focused on running... and running isn't pleasant!

But I finished and got my medal!

March 11th was the next interesting day... not for a good reason. It was just a bad day. The day started wrong when I locked myself out on my way to work. Usually I grab my keys but something was just off and I forgot. The problem with that is my Company ID is on the same lanyard as my keys so without it I couldn't get into Cast Services (or the park), and couldn't clock in at work. So immediately I knocked on the door, I thought at least one of my roommates was home but no one answered so I went to security. Normally I'd just go to Housing to get a key but since this was a Wednesday they weren't open yet. Security didn't have a key, and couldn't let me in. They tried calling my apartment - no one answered. Finally, we saw Jess (the VERY nice person who's been trying to get Heather and I our own apartment) and she was able to give me a key. So I ran to unlock the door and noticed that the bolt was locked. WHAT!? Clearly, since I didn't have a key I didn't lock it, and I didn't see anyone go into the apartment while I was running around. I wasn't impressed. The heat was also on and one of my roomies was clearly in the shower. Ugh.

Luckily I still made it to work on time... but that's where the luck stopped. People seemed to get angry at me for stupid little things, and I just wasn't in the mood. I survived my shift and arrived home to an overheated apartment. I turned the heat off but was still sweating so much I couldn't get to sleep. This heating battle is ridiculous... I don't know how we're going to survive the summer!

March 12th was an AWESOME day. I got to meet up with Emma! I met her at the townhouse she was staying at with cookies (and sunscreen) and we headed to Animal Kingdom together, since that was the park she hadn't seen yet. We did a lot of the rides, the shows, and had SO much fun. While we were there I got a phone call from Heather, WE'RE MOVING INTO A 1 BEDROOM TOMORROW!!!! I don't think anything could have made me more excited! No more heat battles, hello airconditioning, and quiet, and a place to study! When Emma and I were done with the AK I came home, packed, and started packing my car!

March 13th I woke up really early, around 7:30am for no reason, I was just so excited I could sleep. It didn't matter, though, because we couldn't get the key until 9am. We went exactly at 9am to get our keys and found out we were moving into 413, right around the corner from our current apartment! Within 2 hours we were all moved in! Our new apartment is amazing, it's so huge, PLUS we'll keep it clean! We each have our own closet, there's a large living room, tons of cupboard space and the washer and dryer are in their own rooms. After we unpacked we did a Walmart trip and then I cooked shake and bake chicken, fried rice, and veggies for dinner! It was so good! It's nice to have a clean kitchen you feel good cooking in. I'm definitely looking forward to cooking/baking more in our new apartment. It's also nice, because Heather and I can each be in our own room and have a little privacy!

This new apartment is a whole world of awesome!

January with Dad!

January 6th-8th was pretty uneventful. I relaxed, unpacked, and started to settle back into my apartment and life at Commons. I had a lot more stuff (or so it seemed) that I needed to fit in the room, as did Heather, so that made things a little more interesting. I still don't think our room is as neat and organized as it was before Christmas, but it's getting there. On the 8th I literally came home from work, stopped by the Wide World of Sports and then pretty much went to bed because the 9th was one early morning!

Friday January 9th was the day I didn't think would ever come. If you remember, back in the summer I signed up for the "Circle of Life Family 5k". Well, it was finally the day of the race! I've never really mentioned running in my blog, and that's because I haven't run at all since coming to Florida. Yep, no running at all. Still, I got up at 5:30am so I could get ready, pick up Rebecca and get to Animal Kingdom. I was pretty excited and nervous because I'd never been to a race before. The setup was very cool. There was a stage with our two MC's, a package pickup, bag check, and lots of space to warm up (we started off in the parking lot after all!) It was cool, and dark still but Rebecca and I got ready, warmed up, and got ready for our race. Here are some pre-race photos!


I definitely underestimated myself, and so Rebecca and I started way too far back in the sea of people. The start was really cool, they had Timon and some of the cast of "The Lion King" musical to wish us luck, and fireworks to start the race! It took us two minutes to reach the starting line, almost half a mile before we could get into a running pace, and we spent over a mile passing people, trying to find people around our pace. Once I got started, running wasn't so bad. Usually I give up after a couple of minutes of running, but running in a crowd there's more motivation to keep up the pace. That, and the exileration of running a race pumped up my adrenaline and kept me going. If you want proof here are some photos Disney took during the race!


Yeah, it looks like I enjoyed running, but once you get the un-posed picture, it's not so true!


Rebecca and I finished the race in under 35 minutes! I was so proud, and once I caught my breath and had some breakfast I was smiling again!


Rebecca and I are hoping to run a couple more 5ks! There's one in March that's Princess themed! Our goal is to run the next one in under 30 minutes and I'm very excited! After the run, I relaxed and then went to work AM seating. I'm definitely glad it was an AM shift because by the end of it I was exhausted and wanted nothing more than to crash and watch tv!

Saturday January 10th I had the day off but I spent it relaxing in bed, catching up on my tv shows. I was pretty sore from running... I guess once the adrenaline wears off all you're left with is being sore.

Sunday January 11th I decided I should probably keep up this running thing so I went for a "run" which turned out to be more of a "walk-run". Shortly after, my dad arrived and so we checked into Old Key West, and went shopping! We went into Best Buy and looked at some of their laptops. My dad was still using the laptop we'd bought in 2000 so we thought maybe it was time to get a new one.

Monday January 12th was my first day of food runner training! I was pretty nervous because I wasn't sure if I would be good at carrying all the heavy plates.... especially carrying three plates at once. In the morning I went over to Old Key West and my Dad made me a very nice pancake breakfast with fruit to start me off on the right foot. Turns out it worked! Food running wasn't so bad! The first half an hour Tim (the permanent food runner, and the only trainer) showed us how the position points are determined for the various tables in the restaurant. Position points are important so that you don't end up auctioning off the food when you get to the table. The day went well, and time flew by fast. You constantly have something to do and so the 9 hour shift seems like nothing (especially compared to the 6 hour seating shifts that would drag on). It wasn't too hard, the most difficult part was just remembering the temperatures and position points you were going to. It's easy for the first little bit but then it all blends together and you can't remember whether this time it was medium, medium well, medium... or medium rare. Ha ha. After work I stopped by Old Key West to hang out with my Dad, and then headed home to Commons.

Tuesday Januray 13th my Dad and I decided that we were going to buy a new Dell laptop from Best Buy. They had the Studio laptop (in pink!) on sale on their website, so we thought we'd use my Partners Visa Check card to buy it online! So we spent the morning trying to deposit money into my account. At first we deposited in the majority as travellers cheques, which apparently are not considered cash at banks (like they are everywhere else), but are considered cheques and so a portion of the money is held for a week. Since we wanted to buy the laptop that day, we ended up having to deposit cash as well, knowing that I'd just take the money out from the travellers cheques as soon as the hold was off. It was a very frustrating and confusing processes, but at least it was done. Work went well... practice makes perfect and I was getting a lot of practice! My hands were starting to hurt and I was definitely feeling my non-existent muscles starting to get a little stronger!

Wednesday January 14th was Rebecca's birthday, so in the morning I met her, her mom, and her boyfriend's mom at the Magic Kingdom for breakfast at Crystal Palace! It was so delicious! I love character breakfasts! Afterwards, I headed to Epcot for more food runner training. Day 3 of training went fine, and Mariah and I got to remove our "Earning our Ears" flags.

Thursday January 15th was my day off! Fortunately, it was also the day my laptop was supposed to arrive. So Heather and I waited patiently for the laptop all day. In the early afternoon my Dad came to join us, brining Olive Garden takeout. It was delicious! The laptop finally came around 4:30pm, after Dad had left, so I went to Old Key West to show him and set it up! I'm definitely loving the new laptop, not only because it's pink, but I actually like Windows Vista, and having a webcam built into my computer (it makes skyping easier)!

Friday January 16th was my Dad's Birthday... and also, inconveniently, my first day as a tipped food runner. Still, we managed to do some celebrating! We got up and went into Epcot early so that he could get his present from Disney (he already had a season's pass so they gave him a $75 gift card!). Then we ate lunch at Sunshine Seasons, one of our favourite quick service restaurants. It was delicious, and so nice, because everywhere we went people wished him a Happy Birthday! Unfortunately, after lunch I had to head into work. There's something about knowing that you're actually making decent money that makes working much more satisfying. I definitely enjoyed food running SO much more that night!

Saturday January 17th I had the day off. Go figure I'd get the day before AND after my Dad's birthday off. We spent the morning relaxing and then went into Epcot in the afternoon. Despite the fact that it was my Dad's birthday celebration day, he wouldn't wear his pin. He said because it was a day after he couldn't wear it. So we wandered around and into the O'Canada film where Heather and Katie were working. Heather saw he wasn't wearing his button, so she made him a new one (which he had to wear). Even better, when Katie went up to do her spiel she made note of a very special Canadian celebrating his birthday, and he had to stand while everyone there sang him 'Happy Birthday'! It was incredible, since the waiting area was almost packed! After the film we went to our reservation at Le Cellier and had a delicious dinner, complete with a "Happy Birthday" dessert! After dinner we relaxed, wandered around Epcot, and watched Illuminations. I think it was the perfect birthday celebration day!

Sunday, January 18th I was a food runner, but I can't really think of anything else I did that day. Food running really occupies most of your day since you're at the restaurant from noon until 9:30 or 10pm.

Monday January 19th I had another day off, so my Dad and I decided to spend a day at the parks! We spent the morning in Animal Kingdom, going on the Safari and Primeaval Whirl, seeing Finding Nemo the Musical, and doing a little bit of shopping. I'd forgotten my ears at The Commons so I decided to buy a new pair! Since I still had the 50% discount I decided to invest in some sequined Minnie Ears. They are VERY cute. In the afternoon we headed to Hollywood Studios for a couple rides, the Stunt show, dining at our favourite 50's Prime Time Cafe, and of course, seeing Beauty and the Beast and Fantasmic!

Tuesday January 20th I had the day off so we spent the morning running some errands, getting groceries and a couple other things at Walmart, and went to KFC for lunch. I don't know why, but KFC is a million times better in the states. It just is. They have better options (mashed potatoes and gravy, for example) and better chicken. It's actually good in the states! Then we went back to Old Key West to relax until I had to go to my Candlelight reunion dinner at Ohana's! There were 12 of us who came together for dinner and it was a great time! We got to see a little hula show, and have the best food ever, with some of the best people ever. Honestly, the people I met through Candlelight are inspirational. The attitude they have towards daily life is wonderful and infectious. You just can't help smile around them. Dinner was even more amazing because some of the group knew one of the Chefs, and so he brought us a special scallop dish as well as fried bannanas and chocolate sauce (both not on the menu in addition to all the regular food you get at Ohana's! It was by far the best meal! We're hoping to have another one at Raglan Road in March... I can't wait!

Wednesday January 21st my Dad had to fly back to Canada for my Grandma's knee surgery so I drove him to the airport in the morning before my food running shift. Since I had Old Key West to myself, Rebecca came over after work and we chatted while munching on some snacks my Dad left us.

Thursday January 22nd was another day of food running and then Heather and Rebecca came to Old Key West for a girl's movie night. It was so much fun, and we got to watch "House Bunny". Definitely a cute movie!

Friday January 23rd was yet another day of food running... but it was exciting because it was my last food running shift before server training! By the end of the day I was so sore! I don't know if it's the fact that we have to carry heavy plates, or that I'm not used to walking so much but my hip was sore! I sound like an old person, but I was literally limping as I walked into the airport to pick my dad up!

Saturday January 24th I had the day off, so Dad and I decided to go to Sarasota and the Keys around it. Check out the pictures!

Sunday January 25th I had another day off so we headed to the Kennedy Space Center! I ended up having a ton of fun and getting a season's pass! I can't wait to go back. Check out the pictures! Part 1, and Part 2 :)


Monday January 26th was my first day of service training! As a new initiative training was supposed to start an hour before the regular shift started. So I arrived at work at 9:15am, and for the first half an hour I was the only person there. Then a manager arrived and gave me a binder to look over. Turns out there was a confustion over who was training me, and when they were supposed to show up. So I spent the morning shaddowing Emily, which was a lot of fun. My dad met me after work with some popcorn and we headed to China for some quick service food, followed by some Fantasia mini-golf. It was SO much fun, and FREE with my Disney Holiday Pass. What was even better was that I won... I rarely win at mini-golf against my dad!

Tuesday January 27th my Dad and I made a morning run to Walmart for a wine key, and then I had PM service training with a newlywed Chelsea! She had just been married at a small ceremony over the weekend and was just back from her mini-honeymoon! It was a very fun night, I was even able to take some tables myself!

Wednesday January 28th my Dad and I spent the morning at Downtown Disney because he needed to spend his birthday gift card from Disney! While we were there we headed to Wolfgang Puck's Express for lunch (they have amazing rotisserie chicken) and then I went into work for PM service training with Patrick! This time we were in a section with two 6T's and a 4. I was given two tables at a time (sometimes the two 6's) and so I found it a much more stressful day. Patrick said I did okay, but I definitely think I need more practice at this!

Thursday January 29th was my last day of service training. The last day is a morning shift. You write your written assessment (a series of questions about different things you need to know as a server), then you work in the Northwest Territories section fo the restaurant. You are supposed to be running the section yourself with your trainer just watching. Overall, I found it stressful having someone just watching over your shoulder. Near the end of your shift you have your service assessment, where your trainer and a manager are guests in your section. This I found extremely stressful but I passed! After work I met Dad at the Magic Kingdom. It was raining but that meant the park was empty so we could have some fun. We went on some rides and bought some Disney art. I also gave in and bought the giant Mickey I've been eyeing. It's huge. Mickey's head is much bigger than mine! Fortunately, the rain cleared up just in time to watch Wishes!

Friday January 30th I had the day off. Dad and I went to Walmart to grab a couple of things then spent the afternoon relaxing at Old Key West before heading to the Magic Kingdom for more shopping, Dinner at the Crystal Palace, rides, and Wishes.

Saturday January 31st Dad headed home. He left early so he could get a good start and make it most of the way back to Canada. I slept in a little more and then worked as an AM Server... my first official server shift. It went well, and I had a lot of fun, but it was sad not to go back to Old Key West after work!

January with Rob!

Thursday January 1, Rob and I slept in. After our big long day we definitely needed it! Then, we got up and made breakfast. Lots and lots of bacon that my mom had left us. Then we got ready for our big date night! We got dressed up and headed to the Grand Floridian for dinner at Citricos. I always love the Grand Floridian, it's amazing, and that night was no exception. They had a fantastic jazz band playing, which we watched while waiting for our reservation. Citricos was excellent as always. As you can see, Rob's dessert was incredible!



After dinner we explored the Grand Floridian and then walked along the path to the Polynesian, where we sat on the beach and watched Wishes. It was a perfect evening!



Friday January 2nd we moved out of our resort in Celebration and into Disney's Port Orleans Riverside. I'd never been there, and it was a really nice resort! Next, we headed to Epcot for our reservations at the Teppan Edo.


After that we decided to wander around the world sampling beverages from all of the different countries. It was a lot of fun!


Saturday January 3rd we decided to go to Downtown Disney! We grabbed the bus from our resort, and decided we were hungry, so we took a trip over to the Earl of Sandwhich. If you like warm sandwhiches you should really try the place. They use freshly baked, warm, bread and it's absolutely incredible! I had their Christmas specialty, the Holiday Sandwhich. It's basically Christmas Dinner in a sandwhich: turkey, stuffing, cranberry, and gravy. It was SO delicious.

Then we decided to head over to Disney Quest (an indoor theme park with tons of virtual reality and arcade games). We had a lot of fun playing old school games on the big machines you'd find in arcades, as well as enjoying some of the Disney made attractions such as "Buzz Lightyears Astro Blaster". Though it wasn't long before we both started to get a headache from all of the flashing lights, video games, and noise. Now I definitely understand why my parents didn't want to go here often. So we took a break and went for dinner at Bongo's Cuban Cafe. Warning: Bongo's has delicious food, but there's a whole heck of a lot of it! Seriously, the meal I had could have been two meals (in fact it was... we ate the leftovers the next day!) Just look at it!


After dinner we headed to AMC Theatres to watch Bedtime Stories. It was a cute movie, you should see it if you haven't already! Afterwards we headed back to Disney Quest to visit our favourites again, and then took the boat back to our resort. We also took the time to wander around the resort. We hadn't really looked around much since arriving, and they had a REALLY nice playground, so we had to explore!

Sunday January 4th, Rob and I decided to go to all four parks and use all the different modes of transportation... since I was very behind on my blogging we thought we'd help by making a video blog!






We never did get to make a final "vlog" about what we did in the Magic Kingdom, so I guess a normal blog and some photos will have to do!

Once in the Magic Kingdom we looked around in the shops until it was parade time! Then we had exactly enough time to watch the "Dreams Come True" parade for the last time (there's a new one coming out) before heading to the Crystal Palace for dinner! The Crystal Palace was amazing! The food was great PLUS we got to take pictures with Pooh and his friends!



After we managed to waddle out of the restaurant (we ate a LOT), we enjoyed the Magic Kingdom, going on all the rides we could! Since we were staying at a Disney Resort, we had Extra Magic Hours that night we could take advantage of. We tried our best to stay as late as we could, but definitely ended up heading back to the resort before the park closed... it had been a long day!

Monday January 5th was Rob's final day. Time to check out of Port Orleans and drive him to the airport... but not before we could take some pictures of our beautiful resort!



Overall, it was the perfect mini-vacation for me (especially since I had so much time off). Working PM seating that night felt weird since I hadn't been at work in ages, and I was sad to see Rob go.... still, I knew my Dad would be arriving soon!