All in Vacations

February 2017 Disney World Trip Report Part Two

February 2017 Disney World Trip Report Part Two

Brittany Payne
Vacations, Kids

So as the title implies, this is part two of my trip report.  Part one can be found here.  So a brief recap, Melody just had her first trip to Walt Disney World.  We did plan quite a bit, but we were also open to changes.  Days one and two (part one of our trip report) were spent outside of the parks.  So day three was our very first park day.  We decided to go to Epcot first.  One because this is our favorite park as a couple.  Two because we wanted to try out the Garden Grill for breakfast, and if for some reason we were unable to make it our first day, we could attempt it again later in the trip.  So read all about our day at Epcot below!

D-Luxe Burger

D-Luxe Burger

Brittany Payne
Vacations

On our February trip to Walt Disney World, we decided to try out D-Luxe Burger.  We wanted to spend our first night at Disney Springs, and the food here looked really good.  The reviews I read were also really positive.  Brad loves a good burger, and I love good fries.  So we thought this place would be perfect for us.

February 2017 Disney World Trip Report Part One

February 2017 Disney World Trip Report Part One

Brittany Payne
Vacations, Kids

So Melody just had her first trip to Walt Disney World!  You can read all about the planning here.  There are so many pictures and details, I decided to break up my trip report into different "parts".  Part One is our general visit to Orlando days one and two.  On this trip, we wanted to spend time with Brad's grandparents who live in Orlando.  So we opted to do that at the beginning of our journey.  Read all about it below!

San Angel Inn

San Angel Inn

Brittany Payne
Vacations

I had dinner at San Angel Inn on our recent trip to Disney World with mom.  I have always wanted to eat here just because of how pretty it always looked to me.  I also love Mexican food.  I was a bit hesitant based on the menu, but we decided to be adventurous and try it anyway.  

February 2017 Disney World Trip Planning (with a baby!)

February 2017 Disney World Trip Planning (with a baby!)

Brittany Payne
Vacations, Kids

Brad, Melody, and I just got back from Melody's first trip to Disney World!!!  What is super funny about Melody going to Disney World at the age of 8 months old...Brad made a comment that we would never take a baby to Disney.  He/She would have to be at least a few years old before going.  Well Brad is the one who initiated this trip!  We also used this trip as a visit to see Brad's grandparents who live only a few miles from Disney.  I want to share some details that went into planning our trip.  This is very basic.  I plan to write more about doing Disney with a baby in future posts.

Be Our Guest Dinner - Revisited

Be Our Guest Dinner - Revisited

Brittany Payne
Vacations

While I have had dinner at Be Our Guest before, mom had only had breakfast there.  For our January trip to Disney, we had dinner reservations for both Crystal Palace and Be Our Guest this night.  But we decided to cancel Crystal Palace a few days before since it was an earlier reservation and we both have had it.  We did not regret this choice.

Garden Grill Dinner

Garden Grill Dinner

Brittany Payne
Vacations

We ate at Garden Grill on our recent trip to Disney World.  It was not on our original agenda when planning our trip.  My mom got sick eating here two years ago (from the motion not the food).  So I have always been hesitant to book it again.  However, we were ahead of "schedule" on our third day (last full day), so we looked into restaurants that had availability that night.  It was between Garden Grill and Cape May Cafe.  Mom said she thought she could handle the motion better because she felt like it as a fluke the time before.  She also knew how much I love eating here, so we opted to go it.

Be Our Guest Breakfast - Revisited

Be Our Guest Breakfast - Revisited

Brittany Payne
Vacations

My mom and I just returned from my annual birthday trip to Disney World (here is the planning info and trip report).  While there, we revisited Be Our Guest for breakfast.  It is definitely our favorite breakfast reservation to make.  I have reviewed Be Our Guest before (here and here), but the breakfast sandwich that I raved about in the past has changed.  So I wanted to do a quick update in regards to that and show off some pictures.

January 2017 Disney World Trip Report

January 2017 Disney World Trip Report

Brittany Payne
Vacations

As I mentioned before in my Disney planning post earlier this week, my mom and I just got back from our annual girls' trip to Walt Disney World for my 31st birthday.  It was a different trip this time around since I wasn't just leaving Brad behind, but I was also leaving my 8 month old baby behind.  I was surprised at how well I handled leaving her since this was literally my first time away from her.  I have never not spent a day with her.  But thanks to technology, I was still able to see her everyday and chat with her too.  Anyhow, I wanted to give a quick trip report from our visit to Disney.  It was a jam packed 4 days, but we accomplished a lot and now we are super exhausted!  Check out all the fun details below!

January 2017 Disney World Trip Planning

January 2017 Disney World Trip Planning

Brittany Payne
Vacations

So my mom and I just got back from our annual Disney World trip.  This year was going to be a little different because it would be my first time away from Melody.  We decided to only go for 3 nights so that I could get home sooner to see Melody (oh and Brad!).  I wanted to share all of the planning that I did for this trip!

Our Trip to the Opryland Hotel

Our Trip to the Opryland Hotel

Brittany Payne
Vacations, Kids

Brad was lucky enough to be able to take off almost the entire month of December to spend time at home with Melody and me during the holidays.  We wanted to do some sort of small trip while he was off of work already.  We had considered Disney World just the two of us, but then we hated to leave Melody at home.  So we decided to go somewhere closer to home, but something that would still be lots of fun...Nashville.  

Hotel Stay with an Infant

Hotel Stay with an Infant

Brittany Payne
Vacations, Kids

Recently, Melody and I went on a trip with my mom to South Carolina.  We wanted to stay at a Hilton to get points, so we investigated different options.  I knew staying in a hotel room with an infant was going to be different and possibly a struggle.  We narrowed it down to Home2 Suites and Hampton Inn.  Because we knew we would be spending a lot of time at the hotel during the day, we opted for the Hampton Inn because it had an indoor pool (which we never ended up using sadly).  The Home2 Suites did have a full kitchen, but the room itself was going to be smaller than the Queen Suite at the Hampton Inn.  The Hampton Inn was also fairly new, and it had the necessities.  Below are some tips and tricks I discovered helped us while staying in small quarters with a baby!

Why We Love Disney World

Why We Love Disney World

Brittany Payne
Randomness, Vacations

So Brad came up with a fun idea for each of our blogs.  Once a month, we are going to each write about a topic.  Each month alternates who comes up with the topic.  We will not read each other's post until they are live!  Brad was up first this month.  He picked the title "Why We Love Disney World".  You can check out his post over at his blog! 

Traveling with a Baby

Traveling with a Baby

Brittany Payne
Vacations, Kids

So I did not want to make this post a "tips" post because what works for Brad and me will not necessarily work for everyone else.  However, we have found a few things that does work for us when we travel with Melody.  We have only taken three 'big' trips: two to Memphis (approximately 3.5 hours away) and one to Gulf Shores (approximately 6 hours away).  Each trip seems to go easier than the last.  I am sure as she continues to get older, we will have to tweak things.

Travel Baby Formula

Travel Baby Formula

Brittany Payne
Household, Vacations, Kids

Brad and I travel a lot.  We decided while I was pregnant that we would not let a baby slow us down.  We are really trying to stick to that goal after having Melody.  Of course some trips are not realistic and traveling is definitely not as easy as before, but we are doing pretty good.  We have a baby that loves the car, so that definitely makes traveling easier.  One thing we faced on our first big travel (it was 3 1/2 hour trip to Brad's parents' house) was making Melody's bottles.  We now usually make all of her bottles for the day in advance, but that has not and will not always be the case.  I decided to make use of some of our breast pump supplies and create my own travel baby formula containers.  Check it out below!

What to Wear to Disney World in January

What to Wear to Disney World in January

Brittany Payne
Vacations

Winter is my favorite time of year to go to Disney World.  I especially love going in January.  My mom and I go almost every year for my birthday, and the crowds are extremely low.  You do have to be careful if you go on the weekends, however.  There are cheer competitions going on most weekends in January, but during the week is perfect crowds.  Some rides are usually closed, but you will honestly find a ride or two closed during all parts of the year.  Beyond the low crowds, I love the weather.  It is rarely too hot or too cold.  However, it can be difficult to dress.  The reason is because it starts off chilly in the morning, warms up in the afternoon, and gets chilly again.  Below are my tips and suggestions for what to wear in January (or general winter time):

DragonCon 2014 and 2015

DragonCon 2014 and 2015

Brittany Payne
Vacations

I already kind of discussed DragonCon back in May when I was going over what Brad and I wear to it.  I thought it might also be informative to discuss some of what we did at the last two DragonCons that we have attended.  It is highly unlikely we will be attending DragonCon 2016 (primarily because we have a little one now, and we prefer she not get the ConCrud), but if you are and have never been, hopefully this will give you some idea of what to look forward to.

What to Wear to Disney World in September

What to Wear to Disney World in September

Brittany Payne
Vacations

As most of you know, I go to Disney World quite frequently.  One of the most difficult tasks for me is what clothes to pack for the weather.  This is primarily because Orlando weather isn't always the easiest to predict.  However, in September, you can pretty much guarantee it is going to be humid, hot, and maybe even rainy!  So dress appropriately. 

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