Tom Sawyer's Island

Tom Sawyer's Island opens at 10am on most days - if you've never been, it's a great place to explore or take a leisurely stroll without the crowds.  Tom's Island offers mills to enter, caves to explore, forts and even a barrel bridge to navigate.  While providing lots of adventure, the island can also provide something unexpected - FAST PASSES - that's right, if you are among the first to make your way over to the island you might find one of the handful of paintbrushes hidden throughout the landscape.  Find one and bring it to the cast member at the boats and they will give you a free family fast pass for a ride (usually it is a choice of Splash or Thunder).

Now, when you are searching for these brushes, there are some simple rules you can count on - the brushes are always somewhere "on the path", meaning you will not need to go crawling though the undergrowth or stepping outside the boundaries to find them. They are not often hidden in plain site, but they could be - look in buckets and behind trash cans.  They are usually gone pretty quick - I'd say almost always by 11:00 or so at the latest.  Look everywhere - they have been known to hide in all areas of the island - from the Fort to the caves and even in the waiting area for the boat home.

Happy hunting - makes a great family competition..

G&J

Kodak Experience

Dear Reader,

Have you ever really wanted to feel special?  Maybe just get treated a little better than you expected?  Well as you probably know, Disney is all about making the Magic real - there are so many ways for you and your family to experience the Magic - I want to share a very simple yet memorable experience we had at the Magic Kingdom.

We had been at Epcot all day long and were riding one of our favorite rides (Journey to Imagination with Figment).  After the ride, they used to have the Kodak Exhibit and there was always a very friendly and outgoing cast member running the show.  We met one young lady, Ms. Heather, she was very interactive and funny as can be - we got along quite well with her and told her a little about our family - visiting from Kansas on vacation.  Now the time of year was October, and we had decided to hand out Halloween gift bags to the cast members who made us smile.  Ms. Heather got one for sure.  The baggie had a lollipop, a little oriental fan and a spider ring in it - she was as excited as can be (after declining the gift three times, she was obligated to accept it) and simply loved the spider - or so she said.  We were happy to have made her smile and thought that would be the end of our story.

Fast forward 1 year - we had decided that Kansas was just too far from Disney World, so we had packed up the clan and moved - now we had season passes and were visiting all of the time - Epcot is a common destination and Figment is still a favorite.  So one one of our trips, we saw our old friend - Ms. Heather.  Now as you can imagine, there had been quite a few people through since we had last spoken with Ms. Heather - but she remembered us right away - not only that - but she still had the fan and spider ring IN HER POCKET - she said she was always talking about that large family from Kansas who brought magic to her day.  I can't tell you how magical it feels to interact with the cast members - you'd be surprised how few people actually take the time to thank them and make sure they know they are appreciated - so few in fact, that they share stories of the guests who do and remember them for years to come.  So if you want a little bit of extra magic - try what our family has always done at Disney - take time out to visit with the cast members who work so hard to make the magic happen - as is usually the case, when you focus on being a blessing to others, you will find the true blessings are yours.

Sadly, the Kodak Experience is long gone - but we still get to see Ms. Heather - she's in Italy now - dancing up a storm and being as fun and friendly as ever - Thanks for the Magic, Ms. Heather!

The Kansas Crew....

Magic Mickey & Army Scramble

Ok, so we took a little break, but we are back - so see if you can figure out where these two items are - they are NOT in the same place...

Picture # 1 is......

And now for picture # 2

That one's not too hard.... Good luck one and all!!!

George and Jenny

Where in the World is this?

*Answer from last week: Jungle Cruise - Magic Kingdom

Character Favorites

Mickey of course!

I like the one on the left

FIGMENT

Indiana Jones

Donald

Tinker Bell

Peter and Wendy

Where in the World Wednesday

Ok Disney fans, Where in the World is this?

*Answer for last time: This fish from the Finding Nemo ride in Epcot. While waiting in line the fish entertain you by making different object and you can try to guess what they will be.

Cinderella's Christmas Lights

Howdy folks,

Hanging lights on your castle this weekend?  Well Cinderella's team has already finished the job and let me tell you, they look GOOD!  If you have ever walked into Disney World and marveled at the beauty of Cinderella's Castle, you absolutely have to see it during the holiday season.   All covered in bright lights, the castle looks like it has been dipped in sparkly diamond dust.  Of course, the colors still change, so the beauty comes in a variety of colors - I promise you, it is well worth the trip in just to see the castle.  Usually comes on around 6ish pm every night and will be on display through the end of the Christmas season.

Ahh - so pretty...

Wish I had these on my house!

Wishes adds to the Beauty - Merry Christmas!!!

See ya tomorrow...

George and Jenny

Fridays Flavors - Club Cool

Well Thanksgiving is now over and we move into the Christmas season.  I for one love the Christmas season, especially around Walt Disney World.  They do a beautiful job of decorating and really making it feel like Christmas time in sunny Florida.  Throughout the season we will be bringing you some snapshots of the holiday happenings around the World.  Hope you enjoy!

  Today it's Friday Flavors! Even though you are probably still stuffed, like that turkey you ate yesterday, it's time to highlight some kind of culinary delight (or maybe sometimes not so delightful).   Since you probably ate so much yesterday I thought I would highlight a drink.

   If you are hanging out at Epcot and are ready for a little break and something to wet your whistle I suggest you stop by Club Cool.  Inside Club Cool you will get to sample cokes from around the world.  There is no charge for this taste test and some of the different drinks are very interesting.  Take the Beverly for example.

On the count of 3 take a drink! 1,2,3

How was it?

No not good!!!

Will anyone notice if I spit it back out?

Worse thing EVER!!!

UGH!!!! 

Don't let our pictures fool you, it really does taste great! Go check out Club Cool and see for yourself, trust me....

Scrapbook Sundays-Riding the Ferry

Riding the ferry boat from the TTC is one of our favorite things to do.

 What a great site!!!

The excitement is building

Grand Floridian Wedding Pavillion

HELLO over there!!!!

The sites you can see from the ferry boat are exciting, that is why it is one of our favorite ways to get to the Magic Kingdom from the TTC.

Saturday Showcase - Big Thunder Mountain

I asked our 8 year old son what his favorite ride at the Magic Kingdom was and his answer was THUNDER MOUNTAIN hands down.  His words were - "it's fun, fast and I just really like it."  Thunder mountain is a runaway train ride that takes you on an exciting adventure.  With big dips, dashes through bat caves, and a spin through a flooded town,  this ride earns it's nickname - "The Wildest Ride in the Wilderness."  The backdrop is a beautiful, reddish mountain that looks really cool, especially when there is a thunder storm behind it.  Thunder Mountain is a really neat night time ride, so make sure you ride it after sundown.  If you time it right, you can even see some of the fireworks over the castle from the ride.

Wildest Ride In The Wilderness

       

Bradley on his favorite ride!