Guest Post From J.R.- Day 1

Now, before I get started with our trip report, I have to give props to our amazing Disney Travel Expert, Amanda Mann. My husband and I have been to Disneyland twice, Disney cruised once, and been to Disney World a grand total of 9 times together within the last 7 years. I’ve been proposed to, married at, babymooned…you name it, we’ve done it.

I’ve also planned some trips myself without a Disney travel expert, which I wouldn’t recommend, unless you have A LOT of free time. I also used another Disney Travel Agency with a few different experts, but was often frustrated with the impersonal service and poor communication. It wasn’t until our wedding planning trip that I ran into the ever-so-wonderful Amanda Mann and Mouseketrips.

I don’t think I could plan any Disney trip without her. She gives great advice and tips, responds via e-mail faster than any expert I have ran into, and just is an absolute pleasure to work with. I hope to keep working with her for years to come! Thanks Amanda for all your work into helping us make magical memories!

Now onto our trip report- Day 1 (Flying with a baby, Animal Kingdom Lodge, Jiko)

The big thing about this trip, it was my 6-month-old daughter, Hana’s first. This meant her first time flying too.

To help with the flying experience, we flew during her sleeping times. Hana is an observer. The airport left her excited at all the things to look at that. By the time we boarded, she was just exhausted. Just to be safe, we did bring some crackers, and a soft book she likes to play with to pacify her until we took off. After her take-off bottle, she passed out and slept for the entire flight.

Here she is enjoying those crackers I was telling you about.

I think the hardest thing about traveling with a baby is all the stuff that comes along. We did wait to buy some necessities once we arrived, since we did have a rental car. Things like diapers, formula, water, and food. Less stuff comes less stress. Speaking of rental car, we can’t say enough about National Rental Car. We are part of the emerald club, so once we arrive at the airport, we walk across the street, from where the busses are, into the garage, and down to the “emerald aisle” to pick what car we want.

Plenty of room for our stuff in this bad boy!

We try to book a stay at a different resort every trip, if we can help it. This time it was Animal Kingdom Lodge. The decor and overall theme is just stunning. You are going to read this phrase a lot during this report…. I wish I took more pictures.

On one of our days, we saw kids down there with sheets of paper and crayons shading on the paper. Apparently there are animal carvings on the center part. Kind of cool.

They just started doing the RFID key cards. No need to slide the cards, just wave them over the lock. My mom found out that you don’t even need to take the card out. Apparently it worked right through her id badge she brought. My husband decided to see if her card would work through his thick wallet. It did! Can’t say this technology was flawless in the parks at the gate and in the shops, but to get into our room it worked nicely.

“Hana! There is a Mickey made out of towels!”

Hana received her very own room card. We actually collect these, along with park tickets, and frame them. She was pretty excited.

In fact, anytime we wanted to calm her down, we just would hand her the card. Best toy ever!

The theming of the Animal Kingdom Lodge doesn’t just focus on gorgeous décor, but also animals too.

My mom was particularly thrilled when she saw giraffes out the hall windows. This became a thing we did every time we went back to the room. I wish we took pictures of this. I do have some sweet night vision video footage, but no pictures. They do have a tour they give, with educational information about the authenticity and inspiration of the décor, along with the animals, daily. There was a sign about it in the lobby with the time. I plan on coming back just to check this out.

I like to come up with general ideas as to what days we will hit up what parks, and include dining reservations. We take our food very seriously and look forward to eating while at Disney. I purposely picked Jiko for our first night’s dinner, so we didn’t have to travel far with the baby after such an exhausting day of travel.

Hana taking a quick nap while we all got ready for dinner.

For those who haven’t eaten here, DO IT! I was always intimidated by the idea of African cuisine, but decided to be adventurous and eat here on our last trip. It is now one of our favorites! I love the atmosphere of this place as well. I wish we would have wandered some and took more photographs. My favorite part is along the back wall where the booths are. Over the course of your meal, the lighting changes to symbolize the setting of the sun. It is pretty. You’ll just have to go there to see what I mean.

My mom is a picky eater. By picky, I mean, she doesn’t like things that have different textures or consistencies than she is use to. She also doesn’t eat a lot and I often end up just splitting my meal with her. It works out great budget wise, but when I see her scarf something down, it is a real treat.

The Crusted fish with tomato butter sauce (the one you see her already digging into) was suppose to be a dish we were to split. She left me one bite! My husband and I were stunned. I remember her raving about the sauce on the last trip, but wow! It really made me smile to see her really enjoying dinner. Lucky for me, my husband was not too hungry and shared his braised short ribs. YUM! We also ordered an appetizer of the Tibs in Brik, which is drooltastic, a side of the famous macaroni and cheese, and some delicious squash soup. OH and the African bread with the tandoori butter they bring out is pure heaven.  I would eat that every day if I could.

We happened to be celebrating my mom’s birthday on our trip. Our server did a great job to make her feel special. Since we couldn’t make it to dessert, she packed my mom a to-go bag with cake and a candle. Also, on birthday’s, they make a card and have everyone write a greeting in their country’s language. She cherishes this card.

After we tucked the little one into bed, we decided to nibble on the dessert. It was so yummy that we ate all but one bite before I remembered to take a picture. 

I don’t remember seeing it on the menu, but it was a coffee flavored creamy type cake with a seafoam candy on top. Needless to say, happily stuffed and tired from travel, we zonked right out!