Day 3: Downtown Disney and Princess Storybook Dinner

Wednesday April 4, 2007:
Wednesday was our morning to sleep in with no plans to "make rope drop"! Of course I still woke up early but I took the time to enjoy the peace and quiet, sip my coffee, and spend a little time on the computer before Tom and Kacie got up. (btw- If you notice more than the usual number of typos it's because the "P" key is acting up so that I have to really punch it to get it to work!) I decided it would be a good idea to do some laundy, too, especially since we had our dirty RenFest garb from the weekend before arriving at WDW. I decided there wasn't time to dry the clothes and still make it to Kacies' appointment so I had Tom carry the wet laundry back to our room and we hopped in the car and headed over the Downtown Disney for Kacie's appointment at the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique!

We had been cautioned by members of the DISboards that it might be a good idea to arrive a little early so we checked in at the BBB desk about 11:45 for the 12:00 appointment. We were given a brochure that said "Princess Kacie" on the front and a beeper and told that there was a short wait. We wandered around the World of Disney store for a bit (the BBB is inside the store) and picked out a rhinestone tiara with a skull and crossbones on it. At just about noon the beeper went off and we were escorted into the boutique and introduced to Jamie, our Fairy-godmother-in-training (as the stylists are called). Chatting with Jamie we found out that she is also from Michigan, a student of Henry Ford college, and working at WDW through their college program. She is also the youngest FGIT at only nineteen. Kacie had looked at photos online before our trip and decided that she wanted her hair done in the "Disney Diva" style which involves having your own hair pulled back and having fake hair with long curls and streamers with Mickey heads attached as well as bobby pins with rhinestone Mickey heads. Jamie even searched out a strawberry blonde hairpiece to match Kacie's hair. This style does not include a tiara but, when Kacie requested the addition of the skull and crossbones tiara, Jamie was happy to oblige. While Jamie was finishing up the hair, another FGIT painted Kacie's nails with glitter polish then Jamie applied makeup. (Note to older princesses: The makeup included lip gloss, blush, and eyeshadow only so you might want to bring your own mascara. We wished we had.) The final step was telling Kacie to close her eyes and make a wish while she was sprinkled with fairy dust and turned to face the mirror. I think this was Kacie's highlight of the whole trip and I wouldn't hesitate to take her again. It was $35 very well spent! Her hairstyle actually stayed in until we got home late Sunday with very minor touchups each morning. Who knows how long it might have lasted with all that gel and spray if she hadn't washed it out before returning to school. LOL

After the BBB we had lunch at the Earl of Sandwich then spent the afternoon shopping in DTD. We stuffed a box with Disney character Mr. Potato Head parts at Once Upon a Toy, picked up some things for Easter and got a slurpy in a cup with Minnie Mouse ears and shoes at Goofy's Candy Company, picked up some Christmas presents for Jason at the Lego store (Boy, do I wish I could have taken him there when he was about 10. He would have been in seventh heaven!), and we bought Kacie a silver ring with her name carved into it from one of the carts. We also made a stop in the photgraphy studio to get photos of Kacie with her fancy hair and tiara added to the PhotoPass. As you may have noticed in the photos down the page, Kacie was wearing a t-shirt we bought the day before that said "NO PHOTOS PLEASE" and the photograher got such a kick out of it that, in addtiton to the standard shots, she also did a few as if Kacie were trying to avoid the paparazzi! LOL Then we headed back to the hotel for some rest before dinner. Well, Tom and Kacie rested. I still had laundry to dry.

We arrived at the Epcot World Showcase about an hour or so before time to check in for our 8:00pm dinner reservation so we spent a little bit of time wandering through Mexico and China before returning to Norway and checking in at the Akershus Royal Banquet Hall. Princess Aurora (Sleeping Beauty) was greeting guests in the entrance hall so Kacie stoped for an autograhp and photo. They do not put this photo on your PhotoPass card and, while I did take a couple myself, I forgot to flip up the flash so mine didn't turn out so great. We were a little concerned about whether or not we would like the Norwiegan food but this was the only option we had for a princess dinner during our trip since Cinderella's Royal Table in the Magic Kingdom and 1900 Park Faire in the Grand Floridian resort were booked solid that week. We need not have worried because there were plenty of options other than the traditional Norweigan foods and, if you have a really picky eater in your group, there is the option of ordering from the childrens menu. Tom chose the ribs covered in lingonberry sauce as his main course and Kacie and I both chose a chicken and pasta dish that was very much like chicken alfredo. The meal also included a salad and cold appetizer bar with traditonal american foods as well as some unusual cheeses, and fish dishes from Norway. We found plenty of theings we liked and tasted a few things tht were new to us. Dessert was a platter with lingonberry cheesecake, a chocolate cream cake, and rice pudding with strawberry sauce to be shared faily style. I also ordered a Viking coffee (cofee, Bailey's, & Kahlua) with dessert. Then there was the reason we were there: the princesses! First to make the rounds was Ariel from The Little Mermaid. Of course for this occasion she had legs and was wearing a beautiful aqua gown. I was a bit disappointed that she spent no more time than absolutely neccessary at our table and had already moved on before I noticed that I hadn't raised the flash on my camera so the photo was dark. I tried to politely get her attention to ask for another photo but, though I'm sure she could hear me, she chose to ignore me completely rather than politely decline if her schedule was so important.:( The next princess to come around was Belle in her blue "town dress". By this time I had the flash ready to go and got several nice photos of Belle signing Kacies autograph book as well as the posed photos. The next celebrity to come to our table was not technically a princess but she is a princess in my book because she was so nice! Alice (from Wonderland) was so sweet and funny teasing Kacie about her "NO PHOTOS PLEASE" t-shirt in her perfect British accent and letting me take a ton of photos that she more than made up for Ariel's quick visit! The last princess at dinner that evening was Jasmine. I must say that girl had the most beautiful eyes and eas erfect for the role! She was signing Kacie's autograph book and complimenting out handmade book when Alice came running back to our table! She had to make sure that Jasmine noticed what Kacie's t-shirt said which turned into a conversation that icluded all of us about where we got it and how we had enjoyed our day at MGM. I got some great photos of both of them talking with our family. About this time many of the diners left to catch the Illuminations show but we opted to enjoy our dessert and watch the show another evening. I forgot to mention that the photograher came round during dinner with the photos taken with Aurora which of couse I bought for a whoping $35! We left the restaurant just as the fireworks were ending and enjoyed a leisurely stroll to the exit.