Sunday, June 29, 2014

FastPass+ Planning, and That Elusive Be Our Guest FastPass!

It's so fun to plan a Disney vacation.  You get stuff like this:


It's a magnet, and it has all my personalized "important dates" to help me plan!  One of the dates was June 24.  On that date, I would be able to begin selecting my "FastPass+" experiences!  I spent some time talking to my boyfriend (who's never been!) asking what he wants to do while we're there, and together we selected a few "experiences" we'd like to book.  I received a second reminder a week before that date:



So I stayed up till midnight the night before to make my selections (since this is so new, I didn't know if they "ran out" or "got booked").  But when I signed into "My Disney Experience," they said I couldn't start booking my FastPass+ selections until August 23, the date of our arrival in Disney!!  I shot off a polite-but-honest-about-my-feelings e-mail (since their online chat services run from 7AM-11PM).  I tried again in the morning at 7 before leaving for work and was able to use it!  I wonder if everything on their site operates within those hours, too, 7-11?  (They did reply to my e-mail very politely and saying they could see I was able to book, yadda yadda, did I have any further questions.)

After snagging FP+s for everything I wanted (I didn't even plan all 5 days yet--I just wanted to make sure we had FP+s for Toy Story Mania!), I remembered hearing about Be Our Guest quick-service lunch FastPasses.  I googled it and found some weird, secretive-looking sign-in to a website that gives you the FP!  You need to enter your first & last names and an ID number.  Hmmmm.  I tried my booking confirmation number, but it had a mix of letters and numbers, and the letters just didn't show up!  

I read a Disney blog that said if you are staying at a Disney resort, you receive this FastPass to Be Our Guest, and they said that after you "check-in" you will get an e-mail invitation to it.  I checked in online (which you can do starting 60 days before your vacation begins) and waited.  No e-mail.  

I used the online chat service for probably the 3rd or 4th time since beginning planning this trip, and asked a very helpful cast member about it!  She said that we will indeed be receiving this FP, and that we will get it when we "finish" checking in, when we're physically at the hotel.  

So there you have it, folks, if you will be staying at a Disney resort hotel, you are given a FP to quick-service lunch at Be Our Guest Restaurant!!  You even get to pick your meal before you go!  How wonderful!  I was worried we wouldn't be able to see the restaurant (I want to take pictures even though I've pretty much seen them all on blogs already)--I didn't want to waste any time waiting in line especially since we already have a Character Breakfast booked at Magic Kingdom (Crystal Palace).  But now we're going, and I can't wait!!  Hope you can enjoy this perk, too!

Monday, June 9, 2014

Happy Birthday, Donald!


Donald Duck turns 80 today, and he's looking divine!!  Here is a small collection of Donald memorabilia I wrangled up when I found out!  The gold one is from a charm bracelet I had as a kid (I have more pictures of it in an earlier post) that I got in the parks!  The other is a more recent one… And the rubbery one is from a line that was at Toys R Us a couple years ago (that I don't think lasted).  The vinyl is from a parks collection that came with Pluto in a sorcerer hat :)  Super pumped for my trip in August!!

Mrs. Potts Cookies!

For those of you who don't know, I actually have 2 blogs on blogspot!  This one and a cupcake one.  Sometimes they collide.  For instance, I made Brave, Wreck it Ralph and Muppet cupcakes.  You can see them all on my cupcake blog, Easy There, Cupcake!  My most recent post was Mrs. Potts cookies (one of very few deviations from cupcakes)!

I used a couple souvenirs to make them: Mickey measuring cups from Disney (from my parents):


and teapot cookie cutters from London (from my friend Katherine):


So… I kind of HAD to make these!


To read and see more, click here!  

Remember a couple months ago (May 1) when Hollywood Studios was celebrating its 25th anniversary?  The Disney Parks Blog posted the recipe for this exclusive cupcake that would only be sold that one day in that one park!  That is my next venture.  Stay tuned!!