Halfway There

These past 10 days have been nothing less than exciting, exhausting, and fun. I finished out my time at Cosmic Ray's, spent some time in the sun, and started up my new position at the Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival. I also passed the halfway point of my program! I can't believe that I've already been here for over 2 months, but it's crazy to think that I'll be on my way home in 2 months. Planning has begun for my trip home and I'm starting to plan my summer jobs, classes, and activities. Reality is slowly creeping back into my life and I'm not quite sure how to feel about it. I'm also very excited for my mom, aunt, and grandma to arrive on Monday! My aunt and grandma haven't been to Walt Disney World for quite some time, so I'm anxious to show them everything and give them the full Disney experience.

My 4 Keys Fanatic Card

Last Sunday night, the 9th, was my last night at Cosmic Ray's Starlight Cafe. It was an 8 hour, closing kitchen shift, so they really sent me out with a bang. The whole day was a bit melancholy because I was looking forward to getting out of the kitchen, but I was bummed to be working with my coworkers for the last time. That day I also received my first 4 Keys Fanatic Card (shown above). These cards are given out as recognition or thank yous for helping, going above and beyond, or just doing your job well. I got this particular card for doing a "fantastic job on chicken side when we were really busy". If I remember correctly, I was scooping fries during that time, so clearly I've reached a professional fry scooper status. ;) Another cool thing about these cards is that they go on your company Record Card. It's kind of like a report card and shows times you've been late for work, gotten in trouble, and gotten 4 Keys Fanatic Cards!

The Mike and Sully topiaries!

On Monday, the 10th, I spent some time at the pool before heading over to Epcot with Denise to really experience Flower and Garden. It was such a hot day, so I was glad to be able to spend it outside.

Tuesday, the 11th, I, again, spent my morning by the pool. I had my Disney Heritage class in Magic Kingdom that day and I still hadn't seen the new Festival of Fantasy parade yet, so I made my way to MK for the 3:00 parade. It was super cool; they definitely went all out for this parade. The floats are so extravagant and really allow the parade to come to life! Since I was focused more on the parade than photographing the parade, my pictures really didn't turn out, but above is a picture Kelsey's mom took of the two of us before the parade! Notice the tank tops, I'm telling you, it was HOT! A highlight of the parade for us was when Peter Pan and Wendy pointed at us and waved! We were in the back of the crowd, so that was really neat! My class that night mentioned my uncle Blaine again and how he did both the Partners statue with Walt and Mickey and the statue with Roy and Minnie near the front of the park. They said that he was the official sculptor for the Walt Disney Company until he retired. How cool, right!?

Last Wednesday I finally started at Flower and Garden! From Wednesday to Sunday I worked at 4 of the 5 outdoor kitchens that are available to me and I got to try a bunch of the food that they offer (woop woop!). At Urban Farm Eats I was able to try the ghost pepper dusted tilapia which was so spicy, but so good! Pineapple Promenade serves "pineapple soft serve" aka Dole Whip, a signature Disney snack of which my brother is especially fond. Buttercup Cottage boasts a delicious cheese potato biscuit with salmon tartar and lemon scones. And the Smokehouse has brisket, pulled pig sliders, and a BACON CUPCAKE. I know what you're thinking "Ewww, bacon cupcake!? Why?!" And the answer to that question is BECAUSE IT'S DELICIOUS. The bacon is actually much less prominent than you'd expect and it's not greasy or overpowering because it's baked into the cupcake as small "sprinkles". On top is a maple syrup flavored cream cheese frosting with crumbled pretzel bits. Is your mouth watering yet? Yeah, mine too.

On register at Smokehouse on my first day!

My move to Epcot has been pleasant so far. I'll admit it's weird not having a home location since I'm at a different outdoor kitchen every day, but my coworkers, management, and even guests are much more relaxed, making it an enjoyable experience. I mean, it's the Flower and Garden Festival, festivals should be fun! Another perk of being at Epcot is that it closes much earlier than Magic Kingdom, usually 9pm every night. So instead of getting home at 3am, I'm getting home before 11pm!

Beauty and the Beast!

St. Patrick's Day was wet, rainy, and cold. It poured almost all day! Despite the weather, though, Kelsey and I played in Hollywood Studios for a bit, going on Rock'n'Roller Coaster and watching Beauty and the Beast and The Little Mermaid on stage.

#ThugLyfe at Forever 21

Yesterday I decided to visit the salon underneath Magic Kingdom. Yes, Magic Kingdom does have a salon in the utilidor specifically for cast members called Kingdom Kutters. There is also another cast only salon at Epcot called Hairport International! After my heritage class that focused on the conception, planning, and execution of Epcot, Kelsey and I adventured to get pizza and visit the outlet mall nearby. Long story short, we took the wrong bus, but ended up discovering how close our apartment complex actually is to "civilization" (stores, restaurants, etc). Above is us enjoying ourselves in Forever 21's clearance section.

Displaying my butt pouch for my rain gear!

Today I had my Disney Marketing class and learned a lot more about Disney's public relations and special events branches! This afternoon and the next 4 days will mostly be spent working and getting excited for my family to visit! So much to look forward to this week!

Family Ties & Kitchen Life

Where does the time keep going? Suddenly it's been 9 days since my last blog post! I can't believe how fast my time here is going. I only have about 2 months left and there are so many things that I still want to do. I know it's only the 9th of March, but I already have my work schedule through the 22nd and my mom, grandma, and aunt will be here the 24th! This program definitely hasn't been what I thought it would be but, now that I think of it, I'm not sure what I really expected. It's so surreal to be able to hang out in Magic Kingdom after work or go to Epcot just to ride Test Track. I've had to keep reminding myself lately that my opportunity to visit the parks all the time won't last forever; I can feel myself taking it for granted! (And the weather, the weather is so perfect!)

One thing I didn't anticipate or prepare for were the weird, long hours I have been scheduled. Last Saturday (the 1st) I randomly had the day off. I was so exhausted, though, that I spent most of the day sleeping and relaxing. Last Sunday I worked until midnight, rode the bus home, and then had to leave at 9:30am the next morning to get to work at 11am on time!

Before we went to work on Sunday, Kelsey and I stopped at Beaches & Cream at the Beach Club Resort. Kelsey got a huge brownie a'la mode while I got a huge chocolate shake. We tried to soak up the sun a little bit and let ourselves slip into vacation mode for a few minutes. We took a resort bus to Magic Kingdom and rode the People Mover before I had to head down into the tunnels to get ready. I'm going to miss these little trips!

The front walkway to get to the lobby of the Beach Club Resort!

My Monday shift was another greeter shift, so I got to be out of the kitchen and talking to guests. At Cosmic Ray's, we get really really busy during lunch time. So busy, in fact, that we have to block off doorways in order to control the crowds. We have one dining room where we seat guests based on the number in their parties. In order to be seated, the whole party must be present with all of their food. I was assigned to the position where I stop the guests, ask the number in their party, tell the seaters, and wait for a table to open up. As you can imagine, people don't want to wait for a table, especially when they're hungry! Some people were not pleasant, while others were just grateful to get a place to sit. It's amazing how different people are!

Broccoli, cous cous, and salmon!

After my greeter shift, I spent some time in Magic Kingdom. I walked around aimlessly for a while before settling in to Columbia Harbor House for dinner. Columbia Harbor House is just across from Haunted Mansion and is well-known for its seafood menu! I had some delicious salmon, cous cous, and broccoli. I also got a great view!

The view from Columbia Harbor House

Last Tuesday was PIZZA DAY! Kelsey and I had been craving pizza the week before, so we planned to order in and pig out on Tuesday. I slept in and planned my classes for fall semester (boo, back to reality!) before my Disney Heritage class. In my class, I got to watch videos and hear audio files of Walt, which was so cool! It got even better, though when I saw Walt talking to my great uncle, Blaine Gibson! I was so surprised! My great uncle Blaine worked for Disney for quite some time. He really wanted to be an animator, but ended up doing much more with sculpting. In the video that I watched, Blaine was sculpting Abe Lincoln for Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln in the 1964 World's Fair. It was unbelievable! It's so cool to think that my relative knew Walt and got to be apart of both the golden age of animation and the building of Disneyland and some Disney World.

Picture from the clip I watched of Walt and Blaine!

Blaine and me in 2009

After class, Kelsey and I ordered our pizza for PIZZA DAY, watched Disney proposals on Youtube with Gemma and Sarah, and then watched Mary Poppins!

Me at the Beach Club with the BoardWalk in the background

On Wednesday Kelsey, Sarah, and I strolled around the BoardWalk and the Yacht and Beach Clubs before walking over to Epcot for the first day of the 21st Annual Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival! All of the themed, character topiaries were out and I took way too many pictures. It was nice to be there just to scope out where I'm going to be and take notes of where things are at so that I can be more helpful when guests need to find something.

Both Thursday and Friday I had 9 hour greeter shifts. Unfortunately, it was rainy all Thursday morning, so the expected attendance for Magic Kingdom dropped from 48,000 people to 30,000 people. Needless to say, it was very very slow. I've never seen Cosmic Ray's be so dead before! It was a long 9 hours even though I spent my time giving stickers to the few kids that came in (I've now realized that everyone loves stickers). Friday went by a bit quicker because it was pretty busy. It was a little bit wet that morning too, so I spent 2-3 hours mopping up the water that people dragged in. It wasn't what I expected to do as a greeter, but I suppose it helped the time pass!

After work on Friday, I watched the fireworks pre-show, Celebrate the Magic, in which the castle comes to life! It's such a cool show and it's amazing what a bunch of lights and some great music can do!

Rapunzel's Lanterns!

Last night I worked in the kitchen at Cosmic Ray's. Tonight is actually my last kitchen shift since I'll be starting at Flower and Garden on Wednesday! It's pretty bitter sweet to be leaving since I've met some great people and gotten used to the kitchen and Cosmic Ray's now, but I'm also excited to spend more time at Epcot and switch up my responsibilities a bit.

I'm hoping to spend some more time in the sun this coming week! I don't quite look like a Floridian yet!

Yikes! I'm a Busy Bee!

Oh boy, I don't like trying to play catch up! It's been about a week and a half since I last blogged and I finally found some time again to sit down and fill you all in. If you've been keeping up with my Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, you know I've been a busy bee! (If you haven't, that's fine! Catch up now!) I'm going to attempt to recall the last 10 days in as much detail as possible. Ready?!

Last Wednesay, the 19th, I had my Disney Marketing class, quickly ate lunch, and headed over to the Magic Kingdom with Sarah and Kelsey. It was 80 degrees and sticky, sweaty, humid. We rode the bus from our apartment to the Polynesian Resort, walked to the Transportation and Ticketing Center, and finally took the ferry to the Magic Kingdom. Yes, we work there and find ourselves there every other day of the week, but what's not to love about MK?! We not only did Haunted Mansion, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Space Mountain, but also watched the Country Bear Jamboree and the Enchanted Tiki Room. I'm definitely not a fan of the Country Bear Jamboree, but the Enchanted Tiki Room was pretty neat! I also got video of Kelsey and Sarah on the Mad Tea Party since the tea cups and my stomach don't really agree.

Thursday through Sunday that week I found myself in a routine of sleep, eat, work, shower, repeat. I am so thankful for my friend, Vivian, and her car for bringing me to and from work, allowing me to evade the long bus rides!

Monday was my first day of training for the Epcot Flower and Garden Festival. [Note: A few weeks ago I found I was being transferred to Epcot to do quick service food and beverage for the festival!] The first day of training was called Discovery Day in which I learned about the history and layout of Epcot. I love learning about Walt Disney World and The Walt Disney Company! I'm so glad I was able to learn, in depth, about two of the four theme parks and get the opportunity to work in two very different quick service locations.

On Tuesday morning, Denise and I woke up early and hopped on the bus to Animal Kingdom for the soul purpose of riding Expedition Everest. We rode it 3 times in a row and promptly left, making our way to Hollywood Studios. At the Studios, we tried to get Fastpass+ for Toy Story Midway Mania (since Denise has never been on it) but they were already gone! The wait time was 75 minutes, but we didn't have anything else to do, so we jumped in line. To our disbelief, we were on and off the ride in under 40 minutes! We couldn't believe it! With our new-found time, we were able to meet Mike and Sully from Monster's Inc and Monster's University before we watched Lights, Motors, Action, a live stunt show, before I had to head home and get ready for class.

Don't you think I'd be a good Alice? ;)

On our way out of class, another welcome event (Alice in Wonderland themed) was just beginning. Kelsey and I ran into Alice and the White Rabbit before we got to our apartment and took a quick picture! We got back to the apartment, changed our clothes, grabbed Denise, and headed back out to the event for some free food! When we got our free food, we were marked on our hands with smiley faces so that we only came through the line once. I asked the guy marking my hand why he wasn't doing Mickey ears instead of a smiley face and he proceeded to change my smiley face into an intense Mickey (shown below)!

After we ate (and debated for quite some time), the three of us left for Downtown Disney. We walked the entire complex, got sprinkled with pixie dust, and took pictures with some princesses. We also scrubbed our hands at an amazing store called Basin and ate delicious ice cream at Ghirardelli! Once we got back, a rare happening occurred... all 6 roommates were home together! Even though it was only for a few minutes, it was fun to be all together again!

We tried to get a pic of our pixie dust.

We're cute!

Wednesday brought another morning of class and another day of indecision. After class, Kelsey and I decided to go to Coronado Springs (a moderate resort) so that she could pre-check in her family and do an assignment for her other class. From there we went to Epcot! First, we went on Test Track, watched Captain EO, The Sea with Nemo and Friends, and Turtle Talk with Crush. It was my first time watching Captain EO. I have no words to describe it; it's pretty weird. But, I think if you were a fan of Michael Jackson back in the day, you may have a soft spot for it. Then we ate steak at Liberty Inn, watched the France pavilion's introduction video, ate a delicious funnel cake, experience the American Adventure, and met Snow White. Did I mention this was all in the rain? Because we embraced it the whole day! You can see the pictures of Snow White and Kelsey and I on my Facebook timeline.

Yesterday was my first real day of training and my first day in my new costume (shown above). It's not the most flattering or the most cute, but it's all part of the show! Through the course of my training both yesterday and today, I've learned all about the Flower and Garden Festival, the cash register, and pouring beer and wine. It's a unique training experience because the festival hasn't actually started yet! We won't actually be able to learn how to do things until it's time to do things! Which means I'm a bit nervous to start in the next few weeks on top of being so excited.

Here's some poolside Florida sun to help you get through your (probably chilly) weekend!

President's Day Weekend

The last few days have been pretty busy not only for me, but for Disney World and doesn't seem to be slowing down any time soon! For Walt Disney World, this upcoming weekend is the Princess Half Marathon Weekend and it's probably going to be a zoo around here. Then the Epcot Flower and Garden Festival starts on March 5th and the rest of the month is peak spring break time. Things are picking up for me too!

As I clocked out on Friday night, one of my coordinators handed me a new training schedule. I welcomed the papers with a confused look as she explained that I am being deployed to the Epcot Flower and Garden Festival! This means that I'll be trained in at a quick service location specifically for Flower and Garden and primarily work there, in Epcot, until the end of my program. I'm a little bummed to be leaving all of the great people I've met at Cosmic Ray's and the Magic Kingdom in general, but I'm also pretty excited to get to experience orientation at another park and better understand how Disney's festivals really work. I start training next week!

At work on both Friday and Saturday, I had to close and they actually trusted me enough to close specific bays! Usually when I have closed, I've been asked to take out the trash, stock the freezers, sweep the floors, and basically hang around until we're totally closed. At Cosmic Ray's, each bay closes at a different time, so if you close a bay before the restaurant as a whole closes, you get to go home "early"! So, instead of getting done at 2:15am on Friday and Saturday, I was able to clock out before 12:30am! My Sunday shift was 9 hours long, but that meant I got an hour long break and I didn't have to close!

Yesterday was also 9 hours, but I was greeter, so I was able to hang out with guests all day. I got out early enough yesterday that I was able to watch Celebrate the Magic (for the first time) and the beloved Wishes fireworks show. Celebrate the Magic was much more amazing than I ever imagined it to be! If you ever find yourself in the Magic Kingdom, stick around for Celebrate the Magic and, of course, Wishes. They're some of my favorite things to do/see at Disney!

This morning, my roommate, Denise, and I woke up bright and early to catch a bus to Magic Kingdom. Denise has never been at the park right when it opens! It's quite the experience. A few citizens of Main Street USA greet you from the train station and welcome you with song and dance (typical, right?) while Mickey and his friends ride in on the train just in time to count down! It's pretty exciting and it's great because the park is pretty empty for a lot of the morning, so getting on rides is a breeze!

Phil Holmes!

Before we got in the park, though, I spotted a famous face. He may not be a household name, but around here, he's pretty high up! Phil Holmes, pictured above, is the Vice President of the Magic Kingdom! (Yes, he looked right at me when I took the picture...)

Today we rode plenty of rides (Peter Pan, Small World, Haunted Mansion, Big Thunder Mountain twice, Carousel of Progress, Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin, PhilharMagic, Winnie the Pooh), met Buzz & Gaston, and spent some time in Gaston's Tavern. Buzz was great and we were lucky enough to see him interact with some of his adorable little fans. They were soooo excited! Gaston is always such a flirt. He's been perfectly himself every time I've met him. He's a hoot! I also ate the largest cinnamon roll I've ever seen when we were at Gaston's Tavern.

It's also worth noting that I was able to get a second, back up name tag with my hometown on it! So this is a shout out to good old Cloquet!

I hope you're all surviving up north and, as always, please feel free to live vicariously through my sunny, 75 degree life right now. It's pretty wonderful! And it's almost Wednesday, so hang in there!

Showing Some Disney Love Today!

This past week has been, no surprise, busy and full to the brim with work, sleep, and Disney!

On Sunday I took a trip to Walmart. I took the above picture on the bus; it was beautiful! Of course the day after my parents left the weather was perfect! After finally stocking up on food, I headed over to West Clock, where most of the Magic Kingdom cast parks and rides the shuttle to the Utilidoors. West Clock is also home to Magic Kingdom costuming, Cast Connection, and Property Control. Cast Connection and Property Control are cast only stores with awesome discounts. Cast Connection has discounted clothes and food, it's cool, but Property Control is much more fun. Property Control is where all of the damaged park goods go to be reborn. Most of the items are mangled, broken, or otherwise, but sometimes you can find items with little to no damage at all! That day I found a perfect pink Mickey baseball cap, a pristine white sweatshirt, and a hoodie with Donald, "the original angry bird"! I made my extremely discounted purchase and made my way to the shuttle for work.

Partners Statue & Cinderella's Castle

I worked as a greeter again on Monday. I've realized that many different people from all over the world love Disney and make their way to Disney World. When I'm greeter, I'm able to see them all--the excited/confused first timers, the seasoned Disney addicts, and the world travelers. For me, personally, the world travelers take the most energy to serve. Many speak Portuguese, French, Italian, or Spanish, and do not understand much English. It's a frustrating situation for all involved and it always makes me wonder what motivates these people to come to the United States without knowing English. Then it dawned on me. Disney inspires people internationally. Disney World has the same effect on the French as it does on me in America. And the fact that they're willing to spend tons of money to visit an extremely foreign place really says something about the Disney brand and legacy. It's amazing and makes me feel proud to work for such a company. Too bad it doesn't make those encounters any less frustrating!

She's cute, right?

After my greeter shift, I spent the rest of the night in the Magic Kingdom! I visited my roommate, Sarah, at work and rode on the Tomorrowland Speedway and Space Mountain (I'm too predictable).

Tuesday I had the day off and my first Exploration Series class! The Exploration Series is a cool opportunity because, although I don't get any college credit, I get to spend two hours a week learning about Disney Heritage in one class and listening to Disney marketing cast members. Before my Disney Heritage class, I did my laundry which was, let me tell ya, way over due. Once I was in class, I volunteered to help write down everything that other students in the class were expecting to learn. When I was told to sit down, my instructor asked me what I expected from the class. Feeling a bit on the spot, I told him that my great uncle made the Partners Statue and that I'd love to learn about the company during his era. I was completely shocked when he looked at me and said, "Blaine Gibson? Oh yeah, we'll talk about him." WHAT! I'm pretty excited for what this class holds in the next 7 weeks!

After class Meg, Kelsey, and I went to Magic Kingdom. Can you tell it's my favorite? ;) After we met TALKING Mickey (!!!), we got FastPass+ for Space Mountain, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, and Peter Pan's Flight. We watched Wishes from Tomorrowland and sung along the whole time! We rode Big Thunder while the Electrical Parade was happening, so we were able to go on, run off, and ride again! Riding Peter Pan was fun because Kelsey works there and was telling us a little about the history and pointing small tidbits out. We also ate at Pinocchio Village Haus and sat in front of the Small World window so that we could wave to guests on the ride! It was a great night!

My Wednesday consisted of my marketing class and lots of sleep! Then Kelsey, Sarah, and me had an eventful night at the BoardWalk! It was pouring, but we made the best of it with pizza and funnel cake. We also had a bit of a scare when we ran to the bus and Kelsey realized she had lost her phone, so we ran around like mad men trying to find it! Once we made it back to the bus stop, after basically giving up, we spotted her phone nestled next to the curb of a barely used street! Though it was a bit wet, it wasn't cracked or damaged in any way! WOO!

Yesterday was spent at work as a greeter again. I had an earlier shift that included a major lunch rush! It was absolutely insane! I felt a bit overwhelmed and squished, but we all made it through. People can be pretty crabby when they're hungry, but also very willing to accept help and guidance in a large, bustling restaurant. After work, I met up with Sarah and we rode Haunted Mansion, Space Mountain, Dumbo the Flying Elephant, Barnstormer, Under the Sea ~ Journey of the Little Mermaid, and Peter Pan's Flight. We also ate a bread sticks and fries at Pinocchio's! After Magic Kingdom, we headed to Downtown Disney and made the most of our 40% off that ended last night! Booooooooo, why can't discounts last forever!?

Today I'm catching up on my blog, sleep, and working in Cosmic Ray's kitchen again! I am also happy to report that my mom, grandma, and aunt will be making their way down to Disney World at the end of March. I'm excited to be able to show my aunt and grandma around since they haven't been in quite some time!

Happy Valentine's Day to all and to all a lovely night!

Fabulous First Week of February

Yikes! It's been over a week since my last post! So sorry to have kept you out of the loop for so long, but I've been a busy, busy bee. I started working more and more independently and my family came to visit for the week! Saying I'm exhausted would be a major understatement, but I've been having such a great time! Sorry about the novel, but I've got a lot to share!

Friday, January 31 & Saturday, February 1
I was completely worn out on both of these days. I worked 17:45-1:00 on Friday and 17:45-00:00 on Saturday. All of our shifts and bus schedules are listed in military time, so I've been doing my best to get used to it and even changed my phone to it in order to get more practice in. It's coming much more easily now and I'm not as worried about being late or misreading things! My Fri and Sat shifts were both 6+ hours (which isn't a lot here) but they were late and my feet had had enough by Saturday night. It didn't help that I was excited to see my family on Sunday morning! Just knowing they were in Florida on Saturday night made work a little more enjoyable, even if it did feel like it was taking forever!

Sunday, February 2
After a bit of sleep, I met up with my family in Magic Kingdom. It was so nice to see them again; I hate being apart! Once there, my dad got his hair cut at the Harmony Barber Shop where he even got a sticker for not crying!

We then spent some time in the sun and high 70s watching the Move It! Shake It! Celebrate It! Street Party! Then of course we rode on Space Mountain, the PeopleMover, Haunted Mansion, Jungle Cruise, and Pirates of the Caribbean and visited Kelsey at Peter Pan and Sarah at Storybook Circus! I also took this selfie while my family used their FastPass+ on Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.

Jungle Cruise

Haunted Mansion

After lunch at Cosmic Ray's Starlight Cafe, my stomping grounds, we did a bit of shopping since I have such a great discount right now! We also watched a bit of Dream Along with Mickey. Later that night, we ate dinner at Liberty Tree Tavern. It's a buffet/family style restaurant where they bring as much food as you can eat to your table. On the menu for us was steak, pork, turkey, sweet potatoes, green beans, macaroni and cheese, mashed potatoes, and "Johnny Appleseed Cake". It was so good and one of my favorite table service dinners of the week. As we finished our meal, the firework show, Wishes, was just starting. The combination of music, fireworks, and lights is really amazing. I'd definitely recommend you see it at least once. When Wishes ended, my mom and I sprinted over to Big Thunder Mountain Railroad to take advantage of the short line. If there's anything we learned on this trip, it's go on the rides when fireworks are happening. The lines are always short!

In addition to the firework show, we watched the Electrical Parade from Liberty Square. It wasn't too busy in that area and music and lights were great! I had never seen it before and was pretty impressed! Then I rode Space Mountain one last time before I had to head home for the night. There were Extra Magic Hours that night, so my family was able to stay in the park for an extra 2 hours longer than me!

Aren't we cute?

Monday, February 3

Because it takes my buses just about an hour to get to each destination, I woke up early to meet my family at Hollywood Studios, formerly MGM. I was able to get there early enough to get my own FastPass+ to match what my family had already set up. It's a pretty slick system. That day we rode Tower of Terror, Rock 'n' Roller Coaster, Toy Story Midway Mania, and Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular. We also ate at the famous Pizza Planet from Toy Story! In the Indiana Jones show, they choose audience members to be apart of the show and, of course, I volunteered!

Getting ready for the show! (I'm in red!)

Rock 'n' Roller Coaster with my bro!

When I was finished being an Indiana Jones sensation, I had to run over to Magic Kingdom for work (pinch me!). That shift wasn't my usual kitchen shift, though. It was a greeter shift and it was magical. As a greeter, my job was to hand out menus, answer questions, direct line traffic, and, as the name implies, greet. It was fantastic. I was able to talk with people, wear the Cosmic Ray's front of house costume, and even practice my Spanish knowledge. Most of the Spanish included words like "over there", "here", "all of them", and assorted menu items like green beans, chicken, hamburgers, and kids meals. I was shocked by how many families know little to no English, but still make the trip to Walt Disney World. The shift was also fun because I got to sing the Cosmic Ray's signature birthday song to a few people, visit with guests, and interact with the little "princes" and "princesses" that I saw. It was a great experience and it seems as though I'll be scheduled as greeter ever so often, so I'll be looking forward to those shifts!

A few special guests stopped by during my greeter shift!

Tuesday, February 4

#model

Tuesday was a bit askew. We started at Hollywood Studios. Again riding Rock 'n' Roller Coaster and Tower of Terror. We glanced through the shops when my mom and I decided we needed to spend some time in Downtown Disney. So, we left and ate lunch at Earl of Sandwich and shopped at World of Disney until we made enough room for some Ghirardelli ice cream. After our little adventure, we went to Epcot and met up with the guys who had gone to Magic Kingdom. They ate lunch at Colombia Harbor House, a quick service restaurant that serves seafood! I'll have to check it out sometime! Once in Epcot, we walked around the World Showcase and checked out each country until it was time for dinner at Via Napoli. We ate delicious pizza, calamari, and pasta along with three amazing desserts. The food was great! Then, again during the fireworks, we raced over to Test Track to get on without a wait!

My dad's car

Dakotah's "car"

The car my mom and me designed

The great pic of us on the ride!

Wednesday, February 5

My family had already gotten FastPass+ for Fantasmic Wednesday night so, that morning, I headed to Hollywood Studios to get my own FastPass+ for the spectacular show. Once I got it, my dad and I met up with my mom and brother at Epcot. There we did Journey Into Imagination with Figment, Innoventions East, Innoventions West, and Living with the Land before heading over to China for lunch at the Nine Dragons. I have to say, the food was better than I had expected it to be! After lunch Dakotah and I had dessert churros in Mexico and then went back to Coronado Springs, where my family was staying, to swim for a bit since it was over 85 degrees! We met up with my parents again at Hollywood Studios where we rode Tower of Terror (yes, again!) and ate at Fairfax Fare before using our FastPass+ to get into Fantasmic! It was such a cool show!

This doesn't even come close to doing the show justice!

Thursday, February 6
I met up with my family at Animal Kingdom and, of course, the first thing I made them do was ride Expedition Everest with me! We also went on the Kilimanjaro Safaris and saw lots of animals (despite the cold!).

Once we had had enough of the animals (and cold, windy, rainy weather), we headed to the hotel to grab sweatshirts and make our way out to Epcot again. In Epcot we went on The Seas with Nemo & Friends and saw smiling dolphins. Kotah and I also designed and experienced our own rollercoaster at Sum of All Thrills in Innoventions East. It's an out-of-the-way attraction that's tailored exactly to your liking!

Cheese!

Then we had to do Test Track one more time before making our way to the Polynesian for the Spirit of Aloha dinner show. It was fantastic! I even got to go up on stage and learn how to hula! And, yes, we all got lei-ed.

Friday, February 7
Yesterday was quite a long day for me. We spent most of the day at Magic Kingdom and popped over to the Polynesian for lunch. At the Polynesian, Kotah discovered a new-found love for the famous Dole Whip. It's a pineapple and vanilla flavored, soft serve ice cream that can only be found in two places at Walt Disney World. The best place to get one is definitely Capt. Cook's in the Polynesian because it's in a self-serve machine as opposed to in Adventure Land in the Magic Kingdom when they simply hand you one they make behind the counter.

He couldn't even function, he was so excited. ;)

After a few more rides at the Magic Kingdom, I had to head down into the tunnels to work in the kitchen. It was an 8 hour shift from 6pm-2am, but I was cruising and ended up getting done at 1:30am! Woo! I was able to get a ride home with my fabulous friend, Vivian, who is also in the kitchen and got home around 2:30 since we had to change out of our stinky costumes and freshen up!

Saturday, February 8
When I got home, I took a shower, got ready, and headed over to Coronado Springs to see my family off. I got to the resort around 5am (still without sleep) and made it into bed in their room before 5:30am. WHEW! What a long, long day yesterday turned out to be! This morning I moped around the hotel room as my family packed their bags to head back to Minnesota (and 0 degree highs). I am so glad they were able to come and hang out with me and put up with my annoying Disney trivia/facts every day. I'm going to miss them; the parks just aren't the same when they're not here! Now, everyone wish them safe travels while I find myself some food and (FINALLY) catch up on some sleep!