Magic Kingdom

Saturday we went to Disney's Magic Kingdom for a day full of fun. Warning to those of you wanting to plan a visit soon, their new fastpass+ system is absolutely terrible(I'm still trying to decide if I should dedicate a whole post to this fact). It allows you to reserve three rides 90 days before you go to the park. Seeing as we planned ours only a month out, the newest Snow White ride was already all booked (which is completely absurd if you ask me). We never rode it as we didn't want to wait over an hour for it. 

Moving on… We arrived early enough to see the rope drop, it was wonderful. I highly recommend getting to the park at least 30 minutes before opening (or even earlier if you can score a reservation at one of the two restaurants that serve breakfast).

Our first stop was to charge our batteries with a quick shot of caffeine. 

We then promptly headed to find some Minnie ears. For some reason we've never bought them, but we absolutely had to have them this trip. I had a very hard time deciding between three pairs, and Jared wasn't answering my texts to tell me his opinion, hence the sad face. 

After much deliberation, I finally decided and we headed off to get our pixie dust.

After that, we were finally ready to ride the teacups, and Space Mountain, and everything else!

Hungry and not willing to wait in the lines much longer, we settled into our spots at Toni's Restaurant in Town Square. This is the place that Lady and Tramp can be seen sharing their famous spaghetti and meatballs. Their food is rather delicious, we highly recommend the zucchini fries. 

After our lunch, Ashlyn was surprised when the lovely server brought out a birthday ice cream!

We went and enjoyed a few more rides before getting a snack and a LeFou Brew at Gaston's Pub. It's by far one of my favorite stops, and partly because Gaston is absolutely hilarious. He and the evil stepsisters from Cinderella may be my favorite characters in the park. Oh how fun it would be to be them for a day!

The rest of the day was spent mingling between the many lands of the park. 

And of course we had to add a little more caffeine to our systems. After all, we didn't plan on leaving until they kicked us out. 

We took on the rides just as cool as cucumbers. 

One thing we did stop for was the Celebrate the Magic show that night. It's something that you don't want to miss. We watched the second show, as it was less crowded but still fabulous. Here's just a taste of what you'd be missing.

Several hours later, we finally tired ourselves out enough that we were ready to leave, but not before a few more photo ops. 

We returned to the hotel around 1am, propped our feet up for some much needed rest, and went right to sleep. 

We had such a fantastic time, I can't wait to do it again. Although the next time may be a little different as it won't be able to be as "spontaneous" as we usually like to have it.

Universal Parks

Our first day in Orlando was spent at the Universal theme parks, mainly the Harry Potter portions. We woke up bright and early to prepare for a day full of wizards and butter beer. We were all rather eager to see the new park and arrive about an hour before it opened. We wandered around City Walk until they finally let us in (15 minutes early by the way).

We made our way to the back of the park to London and the hidden Diagon Alley. 

Tank found here. They also have some others I really liked. I would definitely buy a size up though, it was a tad tighter than I would have liked on my shoulders. 

After getting our first round of butter beer, we ran into the dragon that was guarding the Gringotts vaults!

We scurried into the local shops to avoid being seen by the ornery beast. While we waited, we tried the dragon ale The Leaky Cauldron had to offer. I'm not big on beer, but my sister seemed to like it.

I took a risk and tried the new Fishy Green Ale. It was pleasantly delicious, a bit of mint with some little squishy sweet "eggs" at the bottom. The food was also excellent, especially the fish & chips. I would highly recommend it. 

After riding everything at Diagon Alley, we made the trip over to Hogsmeade. It was as fun and magical as we remembered. It's still our favorite part of the two parks. 

I haven't gotten the rest of our pictures from my sister at Universal, but we didn't take that many seeing as we were too busy enjoying all the new parts of the park! Check back tomorrow but be warned, I have tons of photos from Disney!

Disney World | for kids at heart

This week marks my last week in the Emergency Department and the last week of my summer quarter. In celebration of being halfway through rotations, my mom, sisters and I are taking a trip south to Orlando. We've been dying to go back since we had such a fun time last year, and in 10 days we'll happily be on our way! Yes, I know I'm not a child, but I don't care. Disney World is one of my favorite places and I don't care how silly it sounds. We will also be spending a day at both Harry Potter parks. I can't begin to explain my excitement to explore the new Diagon Alley!

I've put together a some tips we've learned as a "big kid" in the Happiest Place on Earth:

Planning and Park Tips:

1. Undercover Tourist crowd calendar to research the best day to go is a must. I highly recommend checking them out if you're planning your vacation. They also offer great ticket options for all the parks in Orlando. In past years we have purchased them at the gate, but this year we purchased early and are skipping the lines.

{Lucky for us, September happens to be a pretty great time to visit the parks. We've previously been in November which was probably our favorite time as the park was decorated for Christmas, but the Halloween decorations will be out in September and the weather isn't too bad.}

2. Skip the ferry boat and take the monorail for a quicker trip to start the magic! We've made this mistake a few times.

3. You can get early access to the park by making reservations for breakfast at Crystal Palace or Cinderella's Royal Table. Book early. By early, I mean as soon as you have your hotel. I've been looking for 3 months and they're all full.

4. Our usual plan of attack is a beeline for Space Mountain. If you get there early (9-10) you can typically ride once or twice before the crowds get too busy. You can then pop over to the fantasyland attractions and avoid the crowds of little people.

5. When it comes time for nibbles or drinks, Tortuga Tavern and Be Our Guest restaurant have drink refill stations for free refills.

6. If your feet get a little tired from all the walking, the railroad is a great place to see parts of the park and rest for a bit. There's hardly ever a line, and you can sit as long as you want. It will also save your skin from the sunlight for a while.

7. If you're staying at a Disney hotel or resort, anything you purchase in the parks can be sent to your rooms.

8 a. We haven't yet stayed at Disney. Last year we decided at the last minute {Thursday night and left Friday} and booked our rooms with Priceline name your price. We did this again this year as we had a great room and paid very little for it {We stayed 2 miles from Downtown Disney for $40 a night}. If you have children and plan on spending several days in Disney, go ahead and stay at one of their resorts. We have always spent the entire day in the parks, so we prefer to spend our money in the park instead of on the room.

Packing Tips:
1. Snacks and water are allowed in the park, and there are several water fountains throughout the park for refills. Just make sure to tell the folks at the gate that you have them.

2. If you're more comfortable in dresses no worries! All the rides at Magic Kingdom are closed bottom, so worries for a wardrobe malfunction. Plus dresses are nice and breezy in the warm Florida weather.

3. Pack a poncho. It's bound to rain at some point. Pick a few up from the dollar store and save a bundle. While you're at it, pack a few ziploc bags. Put your phone and camera in them when you take a ride on splash mountain. I hear they have free lockers, but we haven't used them.

4. Bring an easy to carry bag. My sister prefers her sling backpack. It's spacious for ample snacks, ponchos, sunscreen, and cameras and is easily thrown over the shoulder. I prefer totes or clutches. Whatever you do, don't plan on bringing a bag that's heavy when it's empty. It will only make your shoulder hurt once it's full of your necessities. Less is more {unless you have a non-rider in your group}!

5. Don't forget your phone charger. You're going to be snapping pics all day, and if you're in the park from rope drop til the firework show, odds are your battery won't make it.

Weekend Recap

On Friday Jared and I headed to upstate Georgia to visit my sister and her husband. We arrived pretty late Friday night and poked around their house. Saturday we headed for some fun at the Panther Creek Trail. We tracked down a "local" trail that cuts the 5.5 miles into about 1 total. The views were phenomenal, but I don't think I have it in me to hike such treacherous terrains.

This was taken approximately one minute before she slipped and injured her bum quit bad. Fair warning to others planning on this hike, it's not easy.

We had planned on enjoying a quick swim, but due to certain circumstances we didn't.

After thoroughly wearing ourselves out, we headed to chow down on some barbecue. My sister told us that it was the best she'd ever had, and she was not mistaken. It was definitely worth the hour drive, but be warned that they are busy! The line was out the door when we arrived, but we did get a seat and some great food too.

After we filled out bellies to the brim, we drove to the lovely Three Sisters Vineyard for a wine tasting. They have a large selection, and we found it hard only choosing five or six to taste. After tasting, we chose a few bottles to bring home with us. 

I also found a delectable champagne truffle that I absolutely had to try. I wouldn't have minded having a few more of those.

Just as we were heading back home for the evening, we found a game of KanJam on the lawn. We played a game or two over a bottle of wine before they closed.

The rest of the weekend was spent relaxing at the house before we made our way back east. We had such great time. I can't recommend the vineyard enough! If you find yourself in Dahlonega don't miss this spot!

V-neck | Factory J.Crew

Shorts | Francesca's in store

Take a Hike

Ok, I swear this is the last St. John dedicated post. Any day that begins with blueberry banana pancakes is bound to be a blast. These were absolutely delicious, I'm still dreaming about them.

We dropped the hubby off for a fly fishing charter and the rest of us took a hike to Solomon's beach Wednesday. Have you ever wanted a beach where you could do just about anything and no one is there to see you? That's how this little gem was. We saw a total of 6 people the four hours there.

Sun Bum chapstick was in all the stores down there and for good reason. I don't know of any other brand that has 30SPF and tastes delicious too! And I have yet to find a coconut water brand that compares to the real thing.

The rest of our week was spent swimming with turtles, rays, and admiring the local animals. I took way too many pictures, but I couldn't help myself.

Just chatting on the shell-phone, some calls are too important not to take. 

Remember that questionable parking job I told you about? Here is a pic from later in the week.

To say we enjoyed our time in the islands is an understatement. I can't wait to return (we may or may not have discussed investing in a sailboat eventually). I would highly recommend a trip down there, but beware that many of the "transplants/locals" in Cruz Bay are rather rude. The hospitality isn't nearly as great as in Harbour Island, Bahamas, but the views and beaches are unparalleled. Most of the people in Coral Bay were very friendly. It's a 20-30 minute drive through the mountains, but it was worth it for a great food and people. You also get a bit of a roller coaster ride on the drive.