Monday, October 15, 2012

Disney Luncheon Crashing

A text. A message. Abby was trying to get in touch with me! Do this!! Do this!! I was sure I missed the sign up window, but being the super fan of all things Disney, Abby was a dear and registered Jessica and I. For what? For a Mom's Panel luncheon. If you had asked me what the Mom's Panel was at that time I could have fibbed my way through it - sort of. I got a confirmation email and thought maybe I was wait-listed, but a couple of days later they sent me the details ... be here at this time with this waiver. Whoa! We were in .. and I totally felt like a crasher. I mean it was legit how we got in -- but was I a "fan" like the luncheon was intended for? No.

I found Abby and myself in a Disney blog post!!!
Not knowing what at all to expect, it became an absolutely hysterical portion of our 24 hour non-stop day. I was up at 4am, did the 5K race, showered, hurried to Magic Kingdom, ate some fries at Pecos Bill Cafe (where I started my Disney career in 1997) then rode the monorail to the Contemporary Resort. (As you'll recall, after all of this I then went back to MK and did the 10 Mile race at 10pm!) Abby was waiting for us and soon the three of us girls were on our way to check in for the Mom's Panel Fan Luncheon!  

We waited in line to get wrist bands and lanyards that I guess were our key to entrance up at the California Grill. If you haven't been to Walt Disney World, California Grill is up at the very top of the Contemporary and VERY swanky. This is not a cheap, quick dining location. You have to check in to even get access to the elevator to take you to the restaurant! While mingling and  pretending we belonged, apparently Abby and I were photographed and our photo went global in a Disney blog that recapped the event!

Jessica and I kind of didn't care that we were twins, it was too hot for other clothes!
Getting to the restaurant took a while. We realized it is because we were waiting for the elevator and then the line for photos with Chip and Dale ... all dressed up in their tuxedos! It felt fitting since last time Abby and I were together we were doing the Chip'n'Dale Marathon Relay! After photos, Jessica, Abby and I made our way into the restaurant and found ourselves a table. We really had no idea how it all worked or what we were doing so we just dropped our purses and headed to the buffet. It was a pretty nice spread with a lot of vegetarian options and they were very tasty!


Back at the table I saw Jessica getting some free wine --- and what a lightweight she was, too! The food was really good and I used it to keep myself engaged. Why was I so intrigued and always staring at my plate? The panel members were circulating! They were working the room to talk to all of us super fans. Oh no! We were doing a good job of being invisible and just talking with each other. Abby assured us that she'd take over if they came to talk. Good, because I was petrified!

We each got one the most fabulous cupcakes ever!! Strawberry lemonade cupcake (with matching frosting and a white chocolate topper, which naturally I did not eat) with lemon filling! I can't stop fantasizing about it! It was during cupcake time that it happened. Not once, but twice we were greeted by panel members. Abby was smart - we quickly turned the convo to the cupcakes and to racing! Phew - we did it!! And I must say the ladies that talked with us were VERY nice and it wasn't totally scary, just kind of.

Enjoying the Magic Kingdom view in my Mom's Panel lanyard
Before we left we took advantage of the views and snapped some photos of Walt Disney World from an aerial shot. It was quite beautiful and peaceful up there, even with all of our giggling! On the way out we were given totes filled with things like candles, notepads, hats, t-shirts and more! I guess I'm an honorary Mom's Panel fan now!
Showing off our swag bags and new hats ....
We about died laughing. Fan hats? Really?
In conclusion, if you are ever at a Disney park and you see strawberry lemonade cupcakes ... GET ONE!!

2 comments:

  1. Haha. Love it!

    Next year, we are applying to be on the panel. You have enough time to research ;)

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  2. That cupcake looks so good!!! And how cool was that view? I need to eat this restaurant just for the view!

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