You down with O.O.P? Yeah you know me! March 11-15, 2017 Updated 4/7 Final Day-COMPLETED

I totally agree w/ you on the OOP thing. I find that it's easier to budget because you're only there for so long. We were there last weekend and I realized after we got back we ended up doing bars/lounges for 3 of our meals. It's just so easy to pop in there, or split a meal later in the day.

That pb cookie sounds amaaazing! I always see them and then I'm hesitant because there are so many other things to try!
 
I totally agree w/ you on the OOP thing. I find that it's easier to budget because you're only there for so long. We were there last weekend and I realized after we got back we ended up doing bars/lounges for 3 of our meals. It's just so easy to pop in there, or split a meal later in the day.

That pb cookie sounds amaaazing! I always see them and then I'm hesitant because there are so many other things to try!

I have the hardest time deciding on treats from display cases in Disney. I was very unexcited about my cookie order to be honest. I just knew that the other snacks weren't really practical for eating and walking or holding hands with a kid or pushing a stroller. But I was super psyched when it turned out to be so darn delicious.
 


Awesome report! Can't believe the cold and crowds you all had to endure though. I'm totally with you on the pulling the kids out of school train. Looks like Clearwater was a nice change of pace to the insanity of disney. Thanks for sharing.
 


Great report, super cute family, and I appreciate parents who sometimes know everyone just needs to veg at WDW. Your avatar still makes me smile!
 
Loved, loved your TR! So sorry its over! :( Your TR was so helpful to me as this August will be our first time OOP. We are staying 5 (2 adults & 2 kids) nights and I went to the restaurants that we are planning to go to, my estimate is that we will spend 1500. (I budgeted the food / restaurant tax as 10% because I was unsure of what it is, but I did a post and now I realize that it's 6-ish, so i'm probably overestimating what we will spend).

I'm excited to have a trip with less ADR's (on the deluxe plan that we usually get, we usually did a character breakfast every morning and a dinner every night). We are doing a 1 bedroom villa and I have a garden grocer order all set when I plan on only having one breakfast out at our AK morning, the rest will be in our room with cereal or i'll bring a quick service meal back to the room. We will be having dinner out every night & lunch pool side i'm thinking. I'll be doing a live dining report, so keep an eye out for it August 23

Anyway your family is absolutely beautiful & thanks for taking the time to include much helpful info!! :D
 
Nooooo not the end! :sad:

How cute are they? Look at all the sass Alice is giving! Loves.
ALL. THE. SASS. I love her.

Ooh! My drink look low! Time to visit my one and only F&G booth....The Smokehouse. I have been DYING over the burnt ends hash. Living in TX I acquired an appreciation for brisket and especially the burnt ends. YUMMMMMMMM. Scott and I shared the beef Brisket Burnt Ends Hash with White Cheddar Fondue and Pickled Jalapeños and a pulled pork slider with coleslaw on top. I also ordered the blackberry moonshine frozen lemonade because why the heck not??? The pulled pork sandwich was pretty good. The bread was fresh and slightly sweet, but there was A LOT of bread on the top bun. I basically just cut it with a fork and knife. The burnt ends were amazing. The cheese sauce was sharp and the brisket had a really nice char and the jalapenos were not to spicy but added that nice vinegar kick. The blackberry moonshine was also delightful. Not super strong tasting but I definitely felt it afterwards. Total for all 3 items was $24.50.
Spoiler alert: my hash was more "charcoal" than burnt ends when I had it and I totally missed the moonshine thing. Who am I!? At least you did it right and I can enjoy this booth vicariously.

Would love to maybe see them in a new outfit?
:rotfl2: "You're not wrong, Walter."

We got napoleons, creme brulee, a strawberry tart, chocolate mousse dome, chocolate croissants and a couple eclairs.
And speaking of a $350 tab... at least it was $350 of french snacks rather than a $350 ninja...

Now, we just got the kids tablets and headphones for Christmas. Not to ever be Sanctimommy about it, but we really try to get our kids to behave in restaurants without using phones and tablets. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. Unfortunately, us parents these days get heat from both sides. Either our kids are mindless zombies that we're not bonding with every moment of every day, or our kids act like maniacs in restaurants and we have no control over them. I think there's a balance. Sometimes both the kids and parents need a break from talking to each other. Sometimes, you are in a primarily adult lounge and recognize that people are trying to have a quiet meal. This was a little bit of both. I was looking forward to catching up with my parents and my kids were just over stimulated. This worked out for all parties involved :)
Seems like a fair balance and good logic.

Signature Blend Beef, Swiss, Brandy Peppercorn Sauce, Sautéed Mushrooms, Onion Jam, Bacon, Lettuce, and Tomato $18.00 (I asked for no mushrooms). Ehrmergerd you guys. It was AMAZING. I am so sorry I didn't take a picture of this burger :( I feel bad because this burger was probably one of the best I've ever had.
MY FAVORITE. It's been too long...

When my mom left the night before, she took our laundry which also had all the kid's leggings/pants!
Oh no! Nekkid kids! Wait... maybe they had shorts...

Rowan was so pumped. Look at him looking up at Buzz. So stinking cute.
ALL THE POINTS FOR GOOD PHOTO BEHAVIOR!!! This is adorable.

"I want to make sure you booked us on the Happy Place ride"
I am 99% sure the "Happy Place Ride" is how she got those 7-11 year old kids... :rotfl:


img_9099-jpg.229879


Clearwater Beach is gorgeous.
So is that beverage!

Totally get what you mean about the reverse sticker shock. Whenever we eat off property in Orlando I am like "WHAT IS THIS MADNESS"
 
Loved, loved your TR! So sorry its over! :( Your TR was so helpful to me as this August will be our first time OOP. We are staying 5 (2 adults & 2 kids) nights and I went to the restaurants that we are planning to go to, my estimate is that we will spend 1500. (I budgeted the food / restaurant tax as 10% because I was unsure of what it is, but I did a post and now I realize that it's 6-ish, so i'm probably overestimating what we will spend).

I'm excited to have a trip with less ADR's (on the deluxe plan that we usually get, we usually did a character breakfast every morning and a dinner every night). We are doing a 1 bedroom villa and I have a garden grocer order all set when I plan on only having one breakfast out at our AK morning, the rest will be in our room with cereal or i'll bring a quick service meal back to the room. We will be having dinner out every night & lunch pool side i'm thinking. I'll be doing a live dining report, so keep an eye out for it August 23

Anyway your family is absolutely beautiful & thanks for taking the time to include much helpful info!! :D

Thank you so much!!!!!!! I'm glad I could help at least allay your fears about going OOP. We're not big eaters or soda drinkers. So DDP is just a bit restrictive. On our last trip, my DH and I ended up with like, 10 half drunk bottles of Aquafina and 6 cupcakes in our mini-fridge. Garden Grocer is a great idea, but I've heard Amazon might be a bit cheaper? I've also heard of people Ubering to Publix. I was lucky my sister was driving from Clearwater Beach which made it easier to stock up.

I think with all the new restaurants and how good QS are getting, it makes it easier to "wing it" food-wise. Can't wait for your Live report! And have a pool side mai-tai for me :)
 
Nooooo not the end! :sad:



ALL. THE. SASS. I love her.


Spoiler alert: my hash was more "charcoal" than burnt ends when I had it and I totally missed the moonshine thing. Who am I!? At least you did it right and I can enjoy this booth vicariously.



:rotfl2: "You're not wrong, Walter."



And speaking of a $350 tab... at least it was $350 of french snacks rather than a $350 ninja...



Seems like a fair balance and good logic.



MY FAVORITE. It's been too long...



Oh no! Nekkid kids! Wait... maybe they had shorts...


ALL THE POINTS FOR GOOD PHOTO BEHAVIOR!!! This is adorable.



IMG_9509.JPG

I am 99% sure the "Happy Place Ride" is how she got those 7-11 year old kids... :rotfl:



So is that beverage!

Totally get what you mean about the reverse sticker shock. Whenever we eat off property in Orlando I am like "WHAT IS THIS MADNESS"

Ugh. I am going to try replying again. This time with multi-quote. Hold please.
 
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Nooooo not the end! :sad:

I know :( This was a very quick trip and not super food focused. So I appreciate not getting kicked off this board for my mostly TR DR. LOL.

ALL. THE. SASS. I love her.

She is the best. For 2 years of her life she refused to take pictures or look at the camera. All her infant and toddler pics are blurry. Now she's a total hambone.

Spoiler alert: my hash was more "charcoal" than burnt ends when I had it and I totally missed the moonshine thing. Who am I!? At least you did it right and I can enjoy this booth vicariously.

I would take over cooked ends any day to have one of your dining and drinking trips!!

:rotfl2: "You're not wrong, Walter."

Like watching a Jane Fonda workout video.

And speaking of a $350 tab... at least it was $350 of french snacks rather than a $350 ninja...

That's another great thing about grandparents being there. Free french pastries! Viva la France!

Seems like a fair balance and good logic.

This seems sorely lacking when it comes to parenting these days. I see it on these threads where people get "sad" when they see a family on their phones in Disney. It's like, hellloooo...they've likely spent 5 days straight with each other. Day and night! All I did was entertain and run around after my kids. I deserve a brain break too. Plus, who cares anyway. If people want to spend $10k on a vacation to stare at their phones the whole time, whatevs. Live and let live man.

MY FAVORITE. It's been too long...

Crews Cup is my little oasis. I an hesitant to even talk about it's awesomeness lest I not be able to pop in for a quiet drink and truffle fries :)

Oh no! Nekkid kids! Wait... maybe they had shorts...

That's all they had poor things. But honestly, they didn't complain at all about the weather. Us adults were all dying.

ALL THE POINTS FOR GOOD PHOTO BEHAVIOR!!! This is adorable.

You'll be happy to know that we're implementing the behavior chart at home too. Points for getting dressed by yourself!! hahahahahha

IMG_9509.JPG

I am 99% sure the "Happy Place Ride" is how she got those 7-11 year old kids...

I feel like as an American you should know something about Disney World. It's like she was from another planet not knowing SMALL WORLD.

So is that beverage!

Totally get what you mean about the reverse sticker shock. Whenever we eat off property in Orlando I am like "WHAT IS THIS MADNESS"

We loved loved loved that restaurant in Clearwater Beach. $5 bogo Margaritas?!?!?!? WHAT?

I can't wait for your next trip to see all your shenanigans! Hopefully soon??
 
I can't believe it's over. It was so much fun following your report. I totally agree with you on pulling kids out of school for quieter times to go to WDW. I've done it until my DS was 6th grade. We enjoyed the empty parks and quiet resorts. Now it's not possible to pull him out of school for vacay, as he will be entering high school this fall. Enjoy it while you can!!!

I totally need to try that peanut butter cookie!
 
I can't believe it's over. It was so much fun following your report. I totally agree with you on pulling kids out of school for quieter times to go to WDW. I've done it until my DS was 6th grade. We enjoyed the empty parks and quiet resorts. Now it's not possible to pull him out of school for vacay, as he will be entering high school this fall. Enjoy it while you can!!!

I totally need to try that peanut butter cookie!

Well I made a promise to myself that as long as the kids were doing well in school and we caught up on school work we would do it. Especially because I'm on PTO and the principal scares me a little lol. Glad you enjoyed our little family vacation! That cookie was magical :tinker:
 
Hi Natalie, I am Jessica! I am from PA, we usually fly out of PHL on Southwest and save a lot too compared to our local smaller airport. I am just loving your reviews. Your children are so cute, and it seems like you guys have had a wonderful time. I personally love the Avocado Margarita, it is just so amazing, hard to describe but wow! However, I am now going to try the one you had. It looks delicious as well, and based on your review I will try it. I also have to try Art Smith's Homecoming. I fell in love with Morimoto Asia and The Boathouse at Disney Springs, but Art's is next on my list. Thanks for the reviews!! :)
 
Loved your report and can't wait t0 hear about your 2019 plans:cutie:

They devoured the pasta, and even ate a few of the green beans, although I didn't even push it. Sometimes you get tired of parenting lol.

you seriously crack me up!! :rotfl2:

I ended up with the Yacht Club burger
Signature Blend Beef, Swiss, Brandy Peppercorn Sauce, Sautéed Mushrooms, Onion Jam, Bacon, Lettuce, and Tomato $18.00 (I asked for no mushrooms). Ehrmergerd you guys. It was AMAZING. I am so sorry I didn't take a picture of this burger

YUMMMM. We're staying at the BC at the end of this month, I think this needs to be added to our itinerary

She was like "I want to make sure you booked us on the Happy Place ride" and she just kept repeating "Happy Place"

O.M.G.

am already planning our next Disney vacation --- I'm thinking we'll try early November 2019. I've never seen Disney decorated for fall, so that should be fun. The kids will be a little older and I'm hoping there will be some new attractions too!
 

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