Love the report; looking forward to Day 2 
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Loved your report! Thanks for sharing
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Great report! Looking forward for more updates!
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Great report! Loved following your pics on the Insta too.
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And you said no one would want to read it lol…
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Yeah!! Cannot wait to read this when done lil man routine 
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Thank you for the report and pictures! When I saw this topic I was more excited than any over the hill grown ass woman should be! Thanks!
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This is so awesome. Thanks so much for sharing. You can see the joy in both of you in your pics. I hope my DS and I have a wonderful relationship like this when he’s older!! 
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@Okie This tr makes me cry. It’s fabulous but as I have told you before, as a mom of an only child (boy) I so admire the relationship you and Shane have.
xxoo
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I’m going to read this when I have a chance.
DAY TWO
We were up early and after a quick stop at El Centro for a caffe latte cuz Mama needs her caffeine, we were off in a cab for our day trip to Universal and Islands of Adventure. We had a brief moment of panic when our driver crossed three lanes of traffic to get to the proper exit. We just giggled and wondered if we were going on a long road to nowhere. The ride ended up only taking 20 minutes from CSR to the drop off area and the fare was $38.40 before tip. The security guard at bag check teased me that I wasn’t allowed to bring my Disney coffee cup inside his park. The predicted crowd level for the day was 2 and there was hardly anyone there that wasn’t an early entry guest. I stopped worrying that one day wouldn’t be enough to do all that we planned at that moment.
We waited about 25 minutes for official park opening at 8:00 and headed directly to Diagon Alley to ride Gringotts. We stopped to chat with the driver of the Knight Bus and the interactive Dre Head, who was hilarious. He wanted tips on how to do his hair like mine. It turned out to be a smart move, as he had a long line the rest of the day.
Stepping into Diagon Alley was a feast for the eyes and senses. The theming was incredible and even more so inside Gringotts. We were able to ride twice in 45 minutes. I recommend waiting a few extra minutes to get in the front row of the ride vehicle for an unobstructed view of the 3D effects. We were on Hogwarts Express by 9:00 and enjoyed exploring Hogsmeade and a frozen Butter Beer before riding Forbidden Journey, Flight of the Hippogriff and Dragon Challenge Ice. We took Hogwarts Express back to Diagon Alley and took our time exploring all the shops, get me another Butter Beer and take in the Wand Show at Olivanders. We agreed that both areas of Harry Potter were spectacular and well worth the price of admission.
We ended up eating lunch at Cletus Chicken Shack in the food court of the Simpsons area. Let’s just say it was palatable to two starving people, albeit pricey for what we had. We then rode Men in Black, Simpsons, Transformers, Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit (twice) and Revenge of the Mummy in rapid succession utilizing our express passes. We caught the parade on our way back to Gringotts for our third ride of the day and a last Butter Beer for me and Wizards Brew Stout for Shane. We started dragging butt a bit and decided to recharge on the remaining thrill rides: Incredible Hulk, Spider-Man and Dr. Doom’s Fearfall at IOA before grabbing a cab back to CSR. At close to rush hour, the drive still only took 25 minutes and fare was $41.00.
I changed clothes and we grabbed a quick dinner at Pepper Market. I was surprised and disappointed that Pepper Market had changed so drastically since we last visited. The burger was no longer one of the best on property I’m sad to say. I eased my sorrows with a delicious, fruity margarita and off we went to the bus stop.
The EPCOT bus came immediately so we jumped on it. We both love the monorail and took it from there to MK to use the FPP I had scheduled late in case we were up for a park after Universal. We rode PP and then 7DMT. It was the first time Shane was riding 7DMT and he absolutely loved it. We sat in the way back with a couple of larger people so we had our car rocking like crazy and had a blast. We then rode Little Mermaid and Haunted Mansion and explored the new HM store. Exhaustion was setting in so we watched part of Wishes and made our way out of the park. The secret passage was open and empty behind Main Street and we were outta there in mere minutes. Again, there was hardly a wait for the bus back to CSR and we beat the onslaught of humanity so everyone had seats on the bus. It had been a very long and incredible day and we crashed into bed by 11:30. Shane said I was out practically in the middle of saying goodnight.
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Another excellent post! I love the HP photos. We really wanted to fit it in but it’ll have to wait until next trip.
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Oh my I am totally loving these reports. I love seeing the Universal pics and it totally makes me want to take the kids next time!! The pics of you guys are amazing. The last one with the head band from HM - my DD10 wore this for halloween. I will have to send you a pic so you can see it
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This is PURE AWESOMENESS @Okie! Love love LOVE! Your pictures are terrific and your write-up is amazeballs! Thanks so much for sharing!!! 
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I would love to!
OMG, I love this! Now I want to go to US. Haven’t been in over 10 years.
I can’t. Wait to read more!
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Love this! DH and I are planning to dedicate one day of our January trip to Harry Potter (and some other Universal fun, if time allows). We’re also planning to cab over, so I’m glad to hear that can work well! We’re just planning a late dinner at Artist Point at the end of the day, though. We just don’t expect to have enough energy for a WDW park that night. You guys are hardcore! 
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Thank you sir! You really must get there someday. I’m in awe!
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Thank you, love! 
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I’ll hug you in person very soon!
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