How EMH saved our trip-Doing the World on West Coast Time! 8/18-mini nonTR update p27

[eandesmom]

Intro and Takeoff!

Arrival at Fort Wilderness (http://disboards.com/showthread.php?p=30529434#post30529434)

A walk through the Fort (http://disboards.com/showthread.php?p=30567038#post30567038)

Where in the world is Wall-E? (http://disboards.com/showthread.php?p=30684712#post30684712)

Test Track or Bust (http://disboards.com/showthread.php?p=30813538#post30813538)

Beer...I mean Bier...are we illuminated yet? and the first lanyard (http://disboards.com/showthread.php?p=31067998#post31067998)

Valentines Day at the World!
(http://disboards.com/showthread.php?p=31324860#post31324860)
Pixie Dust, little boy style! (http://disboards.com/showthread.php?p=31332289#post31332289)

The first Mickey Bar! (http://disboards.com/showthread.php?p=31385251#post31385251)

There is no bus to the Magic Kingdom (http://disboards.com/showthread.php?p=31409717#post31409717)

Scrooge's big day (http://disboards.com/showthread.php?p=31522225#post31522225)

No fireworks for you, will a volcano do? (http://disboards.com/showthread.php?p=31530825#post31530825)

A Towel Animal Party in the cabin! (http://disboards.com/showthread.php?p=31703587#post31703587)

we WILL get there early today. Right? (http://disboards.com/showthread.php?p=32061541#post32061541)

What do you want to do? I don't know, what do you want to do? (http://disboards.com/showthread.php?p=32073816#post32073816)

Oh what the heck, it's vacation! (http://disboards.com/showthread.php?p=32112623#post32112623)

Belle is the Bomb (http://disboards.com/showthread.php?p=32229177#post32229177)

RRC or Bust (http://disboards.com/showthread.php?p=32368967#post32368967)

The finale and...."did you wash your hands?" (http://disboards.co/showthread.php?p=32403856#post32403856)

Faster Faster, Higher Higher! (http://disboards.com/showthread.php?p=32442497#post32442497)

MY day (http://disboards.com/showthread.php?p=32493269#post32493269)

The Best Burger in the World (http://disboards.com/showthread.php?p=32517370#post32517370)

Shopping, Strolling and Spinning (http://disboards.com/showthread.php?p=32546869#post32546869)

A wild west end to the day complete with a Hoop...Whoop...or two (http://disboards.com/showthread.php?p=32583066#post32583066)

A Hoop, or Two and More for You! (http://disboards.com/showthread.php?p=32601344#post32601344)

Where's the bus? There is a bus, right? There will be a bus, right? and Yakking and Yeti-ing....locally. (http://disboards.com/showthread.php?p=32687144&posted=1#post32687144)

Kali? or Safari? Kali? or Safari? FP pay it forward! (http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?p=32707259&posted=1#post32707259)

A Goody and Tink photo-safari (http://disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2100536&page=19)

Gorillas and Gazelles, the Pagani Trail (http://disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2100536&page=21)

The fast pass gods of Presidents week strike again! Pay it forward Kali Karma (http://disboards.com/showthread.php?p=32840929#post32840929)

EE, some EMH, a view of AK at night and a Bombastic dinner! (http://disboards.com/showthread.php?p=32914041#post32914041)

What do you mean we are already checked out?

Why we love FW

A week on the DDP, $ignificant $avings for us. A dining recap and garden grocer review (http://disboards.com/showthread.php?p=33045076#post33045076)

Final Thoughts, Sniff!
(http://disboards.com/showthread.php?p=33133577#post33133577)

Ok first, a little bit our gang. We have our fabulous blended family which includes


Belle (me) and Scrooge McDuck
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/img248.jpg
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Yellowstone%20and%20Tetons/GrandCanyonTri00062.jpg

otherwise known as the parental units

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/scan0005.jpg
And the brood
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Yellowstone%20and%20Tetons/GrandCanyonTri00059.jpg

Steven Tyler, DSS16, the cool rocker
Tink, DSD12, budding soccer star and official tween (meaning hormones, makeup and hard to wake up)

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/scan0003.jpg

Goofy, DS9, high energy that one.
Wall-E, DS8, low maintenance that one, except when he hasn't had enough sleep.
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/scan0004.jpg


I'm a working mom trying to juggle full time work, pta and 4 different schedules at 4 different schools, and I tend to over volunteer for just about everything much to my husbands dismay. I am married to a fabulous engineer. Or enginerd as I lovingly call him. Who likes to fly as you can tell by the plane shot. He plans to build a seaplane in our garage. Sigh. We've been together for almost 7 years, married for almost 5 and are blessed to have navigated the blended family thing surprisingly well. I keep waiting to be the evil step mom but it hasn't happened yet.

I'm a huge disney fan with many trips over the years. Being from the west coast, not as much as I'd like! Scrooge is also from the west coast but grew up in CA so grew up going to Disneyland ALL the time. He'd never been to the world until 4 years ago and has always wanted to go back with all 4 kids.

Wall-E and Goofy went with us 4 years ago and all the kids had been to Disneyland but 4 years is a long time when you are a kid and none of them really remembered much. This was our Christmas present to the kids and we were all pretty excited, the little ones more than the big ones but everyone was ready to get out of Dodge, it had been quite cold. Originally we had wanted to go over thanksgiving but Tink's relentless soccer schedule and ridiculous airfare had us rebooking for spring break, and then rebooking again for mid winter break once there became yet another soccer conflict. Scheduling vacation dates in blended family world is never easy and this one was as difficult, or more, than most for a variety of reasons. The kids are in 2 different school districts with 2 different school calendars and that just complicates things more. But summer is even worse, we can't plan until we know soccer schedules and at least for this trip, frankly, we didn't want to wait that long. So we held our ground and kept getting luckier with our rebookings.

At first we were at BWV, for thanksgiving. Then OKW. Then I got laid off and I almost cancelled but instead decided to try and just downgrade. So we moved it to spring break, those thanksgiving airfares were too insane and were able to get into the FW cabins. For a family of 6, there aren't a lot of options! Then mid winter break, some killer airfares AND the buy 4 get 3.

It was meant to be!

We are avid campers so the cabins seemed actually more "us" than either OKW or SSR which was all that was available. We'd spent one night at ASM and I just couldn't face a value with 6 in a family suite. The cabin would be tight enough but we'd have a deck and a full kitchen which made up for a lot.

All that set, ADR's made (and surprisingly we got everything we wanted at the 45 day mark except LeCellier) we got ready to go. I found DIS and did a LOT of research and planning. Quite the opposite of our previous trip where we just showed up!

Despite the headache coordinating dates with the other household, once we actually get on our vacations, we have a GREAT time.

Our trip started with the somewhat frantic rounding up of kids. With 4 kids at different schools and 2 different school break schedules there were some logistics involved. Our flight was at 1:30 PST and all kids had gone to school except Wall-E. Wall-E however had a monster project due the next day which, despite my best efforts (and his) was NOT done and would need to be completed on the plane and emailed out when we arrived. He had delivered his class valentines the day before so he got to have a nice lazy morning. Not really. I ended up with a surprise work conference call when I should have been loading the van and Scrooge oversaw Wall-E's story report effort. Which, although I wasn't in the room, clearly wasn't going well given the noises I was hearing.

Not the ideal start to the day!

Finishing my call an hour before we were supposed to leave for kid collecting I dashed into the shower and started jamming the rest of my toiletries into whichever suitcase I could find. We also had to repack Tink and Steven's bags a little, we always like to get their bags the night before to check and make sure they really have what they need and apparently all of Tink's LS shirts were at our house and I had her texted list of what she wanted to add.

So...sweating a little but everything done, we load up.

First stop. Goofy. I'd originally planned to keep him home that day as his school starts late but had forgotten he had math olympiad practice and that if he missed it...no competition. So he'd gone in for that (which had meant driving him to school before my work call) and then stayed for his math period and to turn in his classroom valentines.

He is SUPPOSED to check out at the office and I was supposed to meet him there. I had something else to drop off in a teacher box (the homework Goofy had left on the counter that was due the next day) and then I went into the office. Only to see Goofy RACING through the hall to the van. Gee dude...excited? :) The head admin joked that he needed to come back in and sign out as he was breaking the rules.

Next stop was Tink's MS. We've actually never picked her up mid-day before and were timing it for lunch break. Her lunch break and Steven's were 15 minutes apart but the schools were only 5 minutes. It was Steven's pickup time we were ultimately worried about as it was making it tight for airport timing but we really didn't have a choice. He had a big biology test he couldn't miss and we were picking him up after that. While the younger 2 had a full week of mid winter break, Tink and Steven only had 3 days and as a result, had more "due". Plus of course they are older! At any rate we waited. And waited. And waited. We were a little early but we started to see the crowds milling for lunch. And we waited.

Finally Scrooge went in to see what was going on. She eventually showed up. Nice to be in middle school and have all the time in the world. It was their "friday" and valentines were being passed out. Tink showed up holding a rose...ah hah! Now the real reason for the delay :)

Off to the HS. As with Goofy, Steven had also left homework on the counter. So he had to come to the car, get it, go turn it in, and come back. His classroom must have been in Egypt! Finally, seriously like 10 minutes later, we were off to the airport!

Check in went relatively smoothly. I'd printed boarding passes before we'd left so it was just baggage check in. Thankfully our outbound was on Alaska so the 1st bags were free. Good thing when you have 6 of them! Of course...my bag was too heavy. For some reason my suitcase, empty, is heavier than most. One pair of shoes out and smashed into Steven's bag and we were ready to go!

Our "fancy" plane lunch
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-12/WDW_090212_0383.jpg
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-12/WDW_090212_0386.jpg

Animals excited for take off (both kinds!) The younger boys had really wanted to bring 2 animals each but we drew the line at one :)
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-12/WDW_090212_0387.jpg
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-12/WDW_090212_0388.jpg

and...Homework on the plane.
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-12/WDW_090212_0390.jpg
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-12/WDW_090212_0392.jpg
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-12/WDW_090212_0393.jpg

Wall-E literally did homework the entire time we were flying. As did the rest of the kids but his was the worst. One 11 page paper later, we had it up and in my outbox, ready to go once we got to the cabin and logged in. Steven should have been doing more but we didn't find that out until we got back!

Next...DME, arrival at Fort Wilderness and dinner in the cabin. Plus a surprise for the gang!

[msce2]

Love the title! I'm subbing, Cant wait to read more!!!

[Faustous]

I am on board!!

Alaska Air? Are you flying FROM Alaska??

[OhMari]

Hi,
I had 4 kids and they are all in college or out, so I know how hectic 4 kids schedules are.

Can you please not post your pictures side by side.
It makes the pictures to large.

Thanks,
OhMari

[kimiza]

I'm in, sounds fun so far!

[MissBellesMommy]

awe look at those kids! I am so on board

[eandesmom]

Hi,
I had 4 kids and they are all in college or out, so I know how hectic 4 kids schedules are.

Can you please not post your pictures side by side.
It makes the pictures to large.

Thanks,
OhMari

I can't figure out how to resize anything in photobucket, it just shows the original image data. I was hoping side by side at least it was shorter length wise!

[eandesmom]

I am on board!!

Alaska Air? Are you flying FROM Alaska??

otherwise known as the ONLY non stop way to get to orlando from Seattle :)

I guess we might as well be in alaska huh! :)

[eandesmom]

Given that we had a late arrival (10pm) we'd elected NOT to DME our baggage. They arrived quickly and we were off to the DME check in. That too was amazingly fast. Landed at 10 and we were on a bus by 10:20. The bus however sat for a while before taking off. The video's on the bus were not working so the kids kept me entertained while we watched the same image over and over again with Mickey and his flying wings.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-12/WDW_090212_0395.jpg

Upon arriving at FW I scooted off the bus to beat the check in line and it worked, I was 2nd in line. It took a bit to get us checked in. I'd had 3 packages shipped ahead and it took them 2 trips to find them all. Then I'd requested to be in loop 2200, we'd been assigned 2700 so they went to see what they could do. I'd pre-ordered groceries so we could make dinner and was informed they were already in the cabin. Whoo hoo! I'd been dreading schlepping groceries on top of the packages and all our stuff to the cabin.

They could move us the next night but for tonight they were full so we stuck with 2703. A great choice. My other request had been for the front of the loop and this was right there, close to the internal bus stop, close enough to walk to the outpost for all our buses if we didn't want to wait for the internal bus but super private and absolutely lovely (not that I could tell that in the dark!).

Upon arrival we were greeted with our first set of towel animals...towel top hats!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-12/WDW_090212_0399.jpg

We walked in, dumped our stuff and set out to make dinner. First order of business was tossing the beer in the freezer lol. While all the true perishables had made it into the fridge, the beer and wine had not. I had my priorities! :)

While I was making dinner, I had the kids open one of the surprise boxes (and hid the other two). Here is what was in it.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-12/WDW_090212_0401.jpg

I'd ordered special trip mugs for everyone to use during the trip. For a couple of reasons. One, just a fun way to commemorate. Two, the kids needed at least one of their "own" mugs at home, three, I like a big mug for my coffee in the morning and rarely do hotel mugs meet that need (and the forts were ESPECIALLY tiny). The new disney shopping customizable item program was so fun to work with to make these and I was absolutely thrilled with how they turned out. So was the entire crew. They were a godsend for the trip, we all used them almost exclusively, liking them better than the fort mugs and the fort glasses (which are like mason jars...cute for the theme but a little odd to drink out of...unless maybe it's kungaloosh which I've yet to try).

Dinner at the cabin

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-12/WDW_090212_0398.jpg

Next....playing with towel animals and a full day of EPCOT!

[msce2]

I'm in awe of your organization! :thumbsup2 :thumbsup2

You thought out every detail!!!:worship:

[eandesmom]

I'm in awe of your organization! :thumbsup2 :thumbsup2

You thought out every detail!!!:worship:

Scrooge makes fun of me for it but it does generally pay off. It's funny, our last WDW trip we completely winged it, just showed up. And it was fine. But it was really really nice to have a plan, still have flexibility but know that the big things were taken care of. And I had fun with my surprises...there were more in store for the crew.

[KittyKat08]

I'm in!

Great start so far, looking forward to the rest.

[eandesmom]

Our first day dawned beautifully! Sunny and 70 at wakeup was a perfect way to be greeted. We sat outside on our deck while the big kids slept.

Enjoying breakfast on our deck
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090212_0402.jpg

Our views
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090212_0404.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090212_0410.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090212_0409.jpg

We decided, once the lazy people were up and finished playing around, to walk through the Fort and take the long way to Epcot. While we could have just grabbed a bus and gone straight to Epcot, it was EMH day and I wanted to at least SEE where we were staying.

Playing around with the towel hats...

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090212_0406.jpg

On our stroll we went by the swimming hole (otherwise known as the quiet or cabin pool). The "Big" pool is under a major reconstruction. The fun part of that meant we had access to WL's pool and we planned on hitting that later in the week.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090212_0412.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090212_0411.jpg

We enjoyed walking through the fort, seeing the cabins, then the RV's and tent sites. The Fort was quite full!

Then it was off to the Marina to catch the boat to the MK.

View from the dock, the beach at the Fort

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090212_0415.jpg

Waiting for the green boat

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090212_0413.jpg

It's a pretty boat ride, one we did many times. Seeing the abandoned River Country is something else...a movie should be set there and Discovery Island was just beautiful. It was also nice to be "up close" to a few of the MK resorts.


Sailing by the Contemporary.
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090212_0417.jpg

And finally, the MK is in sight!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090212_0420.jpg

Two short monorail rides later and
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090212_0427.jpg

Epcot!

Or as Wall-E says...Ecpot. While the child still can't say it right is beyond me!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090212_0430.jpg

Next...the reality of WDW during President's week and moving Illumination hours

[cjsteiger]

Subbing
I can't wait to read more of your TR we were in Fort Wilderness Cabins from 2/16-2/22. We were in 2644. Love the cabins!!

Cheryl:)

[eandesmom]

Subbing
I can't wait to read more of your TR we were in Fort Wilderness Cabins from 2/16-2/22. We were in 2644. Love the cabins!!

Cheryl:)

We were there the 12th-19th. Wish I was there now!

[eandesmom]

Wow, I am so behind on this! Darn job getting in the way of my trip report, what is up with that!

Our plan, upon arrival, was to grab TT FP's, dumb the bags in a locker and grab some lunch. With the weather having pretty big swings and knowing we would not want to leave to go back to the Fort to get jackets, we had packed a bag to get us through EMH. We grabbed the FP's and were a bit taken aback to see they weren't until 4:30! I'd been to the World 3 times previously, and DL many times and Scrooge grew up near DL. We have never had that kind of gap on a FP. It was probably noon at this point. This was our first taste of the Presidents Week crowds.

Now, I love Epcot. Love love love it. One of my favorites for many reasons. But I cannot stand the layout of Future worlds. It is not intuitive, it always feels crowded and just isn't as pretty as the other parks. The WS more than makes up for it but I tend to find myself frustrated at times navigating FW. This happened right after grabbing our FP's. For some reason we thought lockers would be at, I don't know, guest services? Information?. Nope. Inside the camera shop. In retrospect it was kind of funny and it did help us find lockers super quick everywhere else but it was really annoying at the time. However, as with everything, there was a silver lining to the 20 minutes "where in the world are the lockers" tourists looking lost saga.

After finally finding them, and stowing our stuff, Scrooge came back to announce that there was NO wait at Spaceship Earth! Lunch plans abandoned for the moment, we took off! Now I've been to Epcot probably 6 times over 3 different trips but none of us had ever gone on Spaceship Earth. Sad I know. I think we thought it was dated or something or were just too busy heading straight to TT or to the WS for good. Clearly we'd been idiots and were missing out!

It was SUCH a great start to the trip, a perfect perfect first ride. The kids absolutely loved it. We had been fearful that Tink and Steven might find some things at the World a bit cheesy, or dated and we might get some teen/tween attitude. They were just as captivated with it as the rest of us and in a small way I feel like it set a super positive tone for the trip that never left us.

This is a lame picture but...as our first ride of the trip, I had to include it

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090212_0431.jpg

By the time we finished it was 1:30 and the gang was seriously hungry so off to the WS we went. You can read about our lunch here, in post #8. We were on the DDP and hit Tangerine Cafe and Cantina de San Angel. LOVED Tangerine Cafe and the dining setting at the Cantina was lovely (as long as you didn't feed the birds). The food reviews for the Cantina were less glowing but the gang ate everything.

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2095766

While eating, we enjoyed these guys
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090213_0323.jpg

Full and happy it was off to the rides! We tried to go get FP's to Mission Space and it wouldn't let us. I didn't remember what the timing rules were but knew on past trips we'd been able to have more than one at a time. Like idiots we thought this meant we couldn't get another set until after we went on TT which bummed us out as that was quite a ways away and the FP's would be gone by then. We clued into the 2 hour thing much much later in the trip, I don't know how I missed that in all my research but rest assured, it won't happen again. If we'd have waited another 30 minutes we could have gotten them but oh well.

Thankfully the wait at Mission Space really wasn't that bad, 20 minutes for green and 30 for orange so we just went for it.

Our kids are funny when it comes to rides. When we went to the world in 2005 it was just the 2 little ones, they were 4 and 5 at the time. We took them on EVERYTHING that they were tall enough for. Wall-E missed a bunch but Goofy went on everything. A couple of things freaked them out (taking my 4 year old on ToT was not a mommy of the year highlight for me...lol) but for the most part, they were ride rockstars. The big guys on the other hand, are, well, wimps. They avoid intense rides like the plague but had been getting better about it. One of the reasons we decided to skip Universal Islands of Adventure (though Scrooge and I LOVE it) was that the "thrill" rides really aren't what Steven and Tink love. We may have converted them on this trip but I'm getting ahead of myself.

At any rate, Tink is completely paranoid about the unknown. Every ride has to be dissected before she gets on it so she knows what to expect. Except I don't always really remember! She is always fine once she gets on it but she kills me before :) It's pretty cute actually. So 4 of us headed into green and two into orange (Scrooge and Steven)

Going in...
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090213_0324.jpg

Coming out
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090213_0327.jpg

In between those pictures, we had a blast on the ride. However immediately afterwards we went into the main area to wait. It was PACKED. And...Wall-E has a tendency to wander. He was given some pretty specific instructions. We (all 4 of us) headed into a corner and started playing the little astronaut game, Goofy on one computer, myself and Tink on another. Somehow Wall-E thought weren't there and...LEFT THE BUILDING.

I was wrapped up in my own astronaut attempt to save the other astronauts and thought he was with his brother (and had just given him VERY strict instructions to stay with us and his brother and had reminded his brother and Tink to help keep track of him) Yes he is 8 but...he is in his own world, completely oblivious to what is going on around him. He pulled a similar stunt at Christmas but I digress.

Right then, Scrooge and Steven show up and we start talking about the ride, the game we were just playing and I realize...no Wall-E. We split up to go look. Scrooge finds him outside, crying, talking to a CM about how he has lost us. Now...the good news is he knew what to do and had found a CM right away and he does know my cell phone number by heart. But...suffice to say for the remainder of the entire trip I did make my second grade eight year old hold my hand, every day, everywhere we went. I can blame it on how crowded the Mission Space Pavilion was but the reality is that he probably walked right by me and kept going. It's dark in there and hard to see but he's done this in broad daylight. It's scary!

Drama resolved...off to more rides.

[msce2]

How scary! Thank goodness he knew exactly what to do and found a CM. I agree completely about EP. It's almost like FW and WS are 2 totally different parks. If it was that busy in Feb, I can't imagine what it will be like in May!!!! Thank you for the update, looking forward to hearing more!

[Eeyore18]

Enjoying the trip report! We were there from the 16 to the 19.
We usually are summer people- but was very surprised about the crowds!
Felt like summer, but without the heat! Actually, wished it was a bit warmer down there!

[eandesmom]

How scary! Thank goodness he knew exactly what to do and found a CM. I agree completely about EP. It's almost like FW and WS are 2 totally different parks. If it was that busy in Feb, I can't imagine what it will be like in May!!!! Thank you for the update, looking forward to hearing more!

I've been in June twice and in November (during F&W!) and have never seen anything like it with the crowds. The bummer is in reality, school breaks for the foreseeable future are likely our best bet. The good news is that really, for the most part, we really "did" 3 out of the 4 parks quite well but the MK was pretty brutal. So I need to go again. And soon! :)

I can dream right?

[eandesmom]

Enjoying the trip report! We were there from the 16 to the 19.
We usually are summer people- but was very surprised about the crowds!
Felt like summer, but without the heat! Actually, wished it was a bit warmer down there!

Thankfully we'd packed appropriately but it did get pretty cool in the evenings and I found myself layering in the morning, stripping during the day (ok not literally but...) and then layering up again at night. In six days I went from tank top to parka! I wouldn't have minded it a bit warmer as well, it will make me reconsider Feb as the month to go but, on the flip side it was a REALLY nice time to get away from home at, we've never done a full week at that time of year and I liked it.

[eandesmom]

After finding Wall-E we headed off to enjoy the park. We still had a little bit of time before our FP's were ready for TT, and frankly I was still shaking. so...snack time! We tried the Fountainview Cafe first but the line was so hideous we headed off to Sunshine Season instead. Espresso may not have been the best idea for me, still shaky from the lost kid episode but it did taste great!

Soaring still had a 2 hour wait, no thanks! So snacks, then a ride in some clams to see Nemo. Some serious playing with the squirting fountain for everyone including Scrooge. You can see Tink trying to "get" him.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090213_0334.jpg

Then...Honey I Shrunk the Audience. So far, our timing, as long as we skipped the "big" rides was amazing. Walking right on!

After that the line had gone down at Fountainview so Steven got the first of many many trip smoothies.

FINALLY....it was time. It felt like it had taken all day. OH WAIT! It had.

Which meant,
.
.
.
.
.
.

MY favorite Epcot ride. Test Track!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090213_0335.jpg

Love those dummies.
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090213_0337.jpg

Tink was freaked out about the concept. Check her out in the picture! This picture kills me everytime I see it. She actually liked the ride and had fun. This was the first in a series of Tink looking petrified pictures on the trip. I think this is the best picture of it though!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/image02.jpg


Look at me grinning like an idiot.


We actually video taped the ride (as you can see with Scrooge holding up the camera), it's a riot to watch!

After TT, and plenty of gift shop poking around, it was time to head towards the WS. First, a stop in Mexico to ride with the Three Caballeros.

I confess to being entirely lame in the past about really checking out each country in the WS. So we went "into" Mexico as I've not done much more in the WS than eat, drink and watch Illuminations. And really, there is nothing wrong with that! It was nice to see the TS restaurant, the kids kept asking why we weren't eating there and were mesmerized by the fact that it looked like we were outside, but we weren't.

The ride CRACKED me up! All those old cartoons...set in a Mexican "It's a small world". So cheesy it was absolutely delightful. Everyone got a kick out of it except Scrooge.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090213_0350.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090213_0355.jpg

Next. The Biergarten, an Illuminations Fiasco AND.....some "first" lanyards aka the creation of the pin monsters. To be followed by.....the souvenir that got away and EMH Rocks!

[splashmtnfan]

Our first day dawned beautifully! Sunny and 70 at wakeup was a perfect way to be greeted. We sat outside on our deck while the big kids slept.

Enjoying breakfast on our deck
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090212_0402.jpg

Our views
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090212_0404.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090212_0410.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090212_0409.jpg

We decided, once the lazy people were up and finished playing around, to walk through the Fort and take the long way to Epcot. While we could have just grabbed a bus and gone straight to Epcot, it was EMH day and I wanted to at least SEE where we were staying.

Playing around with the towel hats...

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090212_0406.jpg

On our stroll we went by the swimming hole (otherwise known as the quiet or cabin pool). The "Big" pool is under a major reconstruction. The fun part of that meant we had access to WL's pool and we planned on hitting that later in the week.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090212_0412.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090212_0411.jpg

We enjoyed walking through the fort, seeing the cabins, then the RV's and tent sites. The Fort was quite full!

Then it was off to the Marina to catch the boat to the MK.

View from the dock, the beach at the Fort

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090212_0415.jpg

Waiting for the green boat

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090212_0413.jpg

It's a pretty boat ride, one we did many times. Seeing the abandoned River Country is something else...a movie should be set there and Discovery Island was just beautiful. It was also nice to be "up close" to a few of the MK resorts.


Sailing by the Contemporary.
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090212_0417.jpg

And finally, the MK is in sight!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090212_0420.jpg

Two short monorail rides later and
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090212_0427.jpg

Epcot!

Or as Wall-E says...Ecpot. While the child still can't say it right is beyond me!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090212_0430.jpg

Next...the reality of WDW during President's week and moving Illumination hours

Oh My Gosh... Tink looks like the girl in that cruise commercial... where the family is trying to find the girl's smile. ????? and they catch it on camera, and then it's GONE! Cute pics.

[eandesmom]

Oh My Gosh... Tink looks like the girl in that cruise commercial... where the family is trying to find the girl's smile. ????? and they catch it on camera, and then it's GONE! Cute pics.


Awww! Thanks :) Lots of pics of her smiling as the trip went on. Thanks for peeking, inspiring me to get back to this TR! Funny though as I'm about to start a PTR! Whoo hoo!

[splashmtnfan]

Awww! Thanks :) Lots of pics of her smiling as the trip went on. Thanks for peeking, inspiring me to get back to this TR! Funny though as I'm about to start a PTR! Whoo hoo!

When are you going back? How do you stay soooo organized? I was really on top of it for our Sept. trip but then Hurricane Ike hit us and I got a little off-track for the Dec. trip and just "winged" most of it... we still had a blast, but like you said you started shoving your toiletries in any available space on the morning of... yea, kinda like that A LOT though! Glad I inspired you.

[eandesmom]

3 weeks later..yikes! Time to pick this back up :)

After riding with the 3 Caballeros, Scrooge and Steven headed back to our locker to get our jackets, we'd known it would cool down and it was definitely time for another layer. The rest of us headed over to check in at the Biergarten. We noticed crowds forming around the WS and just figured it was normal dinner time. Should have been a RED FLAG! but we were clueless.

Upon checking in we were informed that they would not seat us until our entire party was present. Rats, hadn't realized that and we could have gone in right away! Instead we went back out into the courtyard and I ordered a beer for Scrooge and I from the "Bier" cart. A very very yummy Spaten Ocktoberfest. That took forever to get but was worth the wait.

Kids entertained themselves by the fountain.
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090213_0357.jpg

Upon Scrooges and Steven's arrival we re-checked in and then had to wait another 15 minutes. It was a very enjoyable meal and a great dinner show, a great "first night" dinner. My pictures are pretty crummy, low inside light :(

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090213_0360.jpg
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090213_0361.jpg

The Bavarian cheesecake was the bomb!!! During dinner we kept an eye on the time, not wanting to miss Illuminations. We rushed to pay our bill (server kind of fell of the map towards the end of dinner and headed outside.

To.find.the.WS. EMPTY!

Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaatttttttttttttttttttttt t???????????????

I had specifically timed our ADR's so we would be done eating in time for the 9pm Illuminations based on no less than 3 different calendars I had consulted. I had not however re-checked those calendars in the past 21 days. We'd chosen Epcot for our first day for EMH. The EMH part was still correct but THEY MOVED ILLUMINATIONS to 8pm!

Illuminations is our FAVORITE fireworks in the world and DH and I were devastated. None of the kids had a clue. While Goofy and Wall-E had seen it before, they were 4 and 5 at the time and didn't remember what they were missing.

The worst part was now it was 9pm and I'm realizing that our entire week of ADR's was now potentially in conflict with all the fireworks shows (well MK and Epcot, we couldn't get a fantasmic package and the wait with 4 kids, no matter how cool that show is, just wasn't worth planning on doing plus it wasn't on an EMH night).

I felt ill.


I still feel ill.


I have to go back and fix this for the next trip.


So...morosely we strolled around the WS and dove straight into....THE FIRST LANYARD.

Somehow we had missed this on other trips but not this one.

Right by the America Pavilion we hit a pin cart and a wonderful wonderful CM who educated the kids on the joys of pin trading, hidden mickeys and special CM only pins.

He went so far as to point out HIS hidden mickey pin and Fast Pass pin...basically telling the kids (without saying so directly) to ask him to trade. It took a lot of hinting until finally, Goofy asked to trade for the hidden mickey!

It was a ton of fun. Here they are with their new bling.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090213_0362.jpg

That eased my pain a little. We strolled around the rest of the WS, saw a mug I really wanted in the window of a shop but didn't go in. Figured we would be back in 2 days for dinner anyway.

I know better! When you see it, you BUY it. Now known as the souvenir that got away. A white mug with mickey heads in each countries flag. 2 days later, after dinner, on a non EMH night...that shop was closed. MUST GO BACK AND GET THE MUG NEXT TRIP! (hey any excuse for another trip, right?)

We headed over to Soarin to see if now that it was EMH we could actually get on. It was still a 60 minute wait! We decided to do it as it was the only "main" ride we still hadn't been on and we were concerned about getting back to it later in the trip. Glad we did as we did not really do any Epcot rides again though we did go back to the WS for dinner 2 days later.

Even though it was drizzling on the way out we made it back to the cabin, full, happy and ready for some good sleep and a new day of adventures. A very very good day, missed fireworks and all.


Next...VALENTINES DAY at the world!

[saratogadreamin09]

Great TR, cant wait for more

[saratogadreamin09]

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-13/WDW_090213_0323.jpg

.

After showing this picture to my family we are 100% positive my dad is in the background:eek::eek::eek: We were eating in Mexico when the band was playing and we were at EPCOT that day!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[eandesmom]

After showing this picture to my family we are 100% positive my dad is in the background:eek::eek::eek: We were eating in Mexico when the band was playing and we were at EPCOT that day!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


OMG that is so funny! My Dh and the older boys were in line getting CS food, I took this while Tink and our youngest and I headed off to Tangerine Cafe for our late lunch. Small world!!!!!!1

[Skyw]

I love FW...so this report caught my eye. Don't wait three weeks to update!!!!

[saratogadreamin09]

OMG that is so funny! My Dh and the older boys were in line getting CS food, I took this while Tink and our youngest and I headed off to Tangerine Cafe for our late lunch. Small world!!!!!!1


it is LOL first I was reading the TR thinking "wow we were there the same time" then I saw this pic and I was like "i remember that band" then I noticed my dad


i dont know if i said this before but great TR, cant wait for more:)

[nikkipowell1]

Scrooge makes fun of me for it but it does generally pay off. It's funny, our last WDW trip we completely winged it, just showed up. And it was fine. But it was really really nice to have a plan, still have flexibility but know that the big things were taken care of. And I had fun with my surprises...there were more in store for the crew.

We are traveling by airplane as well from MI and its our first time staying in the cabins. Where did you order your food from? :hippie:

[eandesmom]

We are traveling by airplane as well from MI and its our first time staying in the cabins. Where did you order your food from? :hippie:

We got everything from Garden Grocer

http://gardengrocer.com/

We were quite happy with the service.

[eandesmom]

Valentine's day dawned sunny and lovely! We (I) had some special plans for the day, not all of which the crew knew about. It was somewhat of an open day, no EMH anywhere so it was a day we'd planned to let the kids decide where they wanted to go. MK was the winner for a couple reasons, 1) boat straight there from the Fort and 2) dinner was booked at the Poly.

First up.

Scrooge. I had shipped some of Scrooge's favorite candies ahead and gave them to him that morning with a card. This place is the BOMB! The Tiffany's of chocolates.

http://www.woodhousechocolate.com/

Scrooge is a caramel freak and their salted caramels are well, a slice of heaven.

In planning the trip we had tried to figure out something special for each person. Today we were starting with Tink. She and I arose a wee bit early and headed off too...

The Grand Floridian! For pedicures :) Nothing like some girly girly stuff on Valentine's day!

I had let her choose which spa she wanted to check out and this was her top choice. We had hoped to arrive in time for breakfast prior to the pedicure but of course, did not. The pedicure was lovely. I think Tink was more interested in the GF and the idea of staying there someday, the spa was a little sedate in their polish color choices for her preference but she was impressed with all the extra treatments (leg wraps etc...must have used 3 different treatments on our legs and feet) versus the standard pedi she's had before. The spa was strewn with rose petals, a nice touch.

Afterward we wandered around and checked out the GF and then hit Gasparilla's for lunch. Yum! Tink and her incredibly healthy (NOT) lunch of dorito's, pizza and a coke. Note the refillable mug. It lasted 3 days before she left it somewhere. I think I still saved money but it was a bummer!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-14/WDW_090213_0367.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-14/WDW_090213_0371.jpg

While Tink and I wandered, checking out pools, lobbies and beaches, the other natives had gotten restless and began their trek to the MK. We told them to go eat and we'd meet them.

Finally she and I finished and headed over to MK. After grabbing FP's to Space Mountain (the boys had theirs) we met them at Cosmic Rays.

A note. It took us forever, it felt, to get to Space Mountain, and then to Cosmic Rays. Of course, part of that could have been the stop for a photopass picutre or two but the place was PACKED! Like non stop parade (Celebrations was going as we walked in) can't walk down main street, can't move to even get to the FP line, packed. I have never seen crowds like this. While the rest of the trip was pretty ridiculous crowd wise, this was one of the worst. And ultimately a bit of a bummer as the effect, as the week went on, is that we never "really" got a full day at the MK and when we were there, it was insane. We still had fun though!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-14/image10.jpg

After finally getting to the boys (it was so warm, I stopped and changed to something sleeveless, Tink had done that back at the GF) we sat with them and waited for them to get their food.

And waited.

And waited.

And waited.

Steven had wanted a cheeseburger and had gone in ahead of Scrooge and the boys who had waited for Tink and I to head in so we could save the table. Scrooge and the little boys came back out with their food. Still no Steven.

Finally we call him.

He's still in the cheeseburger line. Scrooge had skipped it as it was so long!

I know Cosmic Rays gets good reviews and the boys seemed to like their food but it looked pretty basic and the crowds were ridiculous. I have to admit it will not be on my top list of CS to try the next time at MK (for me).

By now it is yes, once again 1pm and we've done not a single ride. Everywhere we go the lines are so bad, we opt out. Still a little too early for another FP. So we decide to split up, the big kids and Scrooge head off to Big Thunder and the little boys and I head off to....

the Main Street Barber! I had peeked while grabbing a locker (I'd run back once everyone had food) and there wasn't much of a line. All the boys knew was...they could get a haircut. Which they really really wanted (and needed). What they didn't know about was...

Pixie Dust!


The "Before Picture"

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-14/image11.jpg

Next.....

Pixie Dust, a lime green mickey head...MORE parades (TWIRL Mania) and finally! A RIDE!!

[OneTreeHillAddict]

I'm in! We're staying at the cabins again in Nov/Dec. Can't wait. I already noted a special cleaning after my last visit. :goodvibes Dust free those babies are going to be a lot of fun!

[eandesmom]

I'm in! We're staying at the cabins again in Nov/Dec. Can't wait. I already noted a special cleaning after my last visit. :goodvibes Dust free those babies are going to be a lot of fun!

A special cleaning? We had no dust and incredible mousekeeping..

Oh wait...pixie dust! ???? in that case I hope you are NOT dust free. lol.

[eandesmom]

Ok, a little backstory here.

My kids LOVE to get their hair cut. I'm not sure why but they think it's the greatest thing since sliced bread. And they needed one. Big time. I'd planned to do it before they left and had originally booked them for a "cool dude" at DTD's BBB but when I found out about the Main Street Barber, I cancelled it.

Scrooge was happy about that, he didn't want to be tied to heading to DTD for boy glitter lol. So I had mentioned to the boys that they could get a cut at MK and they had been asking...when when when...since we arrived. I'd made them leave their hats in scrooges backpack (visions of them being forgotten at the barbers) and as you can see, it was bright! Wall-E is squinting away. He isn't unhappy, just blinded by the sun. It was a GORGEOUS day!

Check out their hair...yikes!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-14/image15.jpg

Scrooge is calling and texting as they head over to try and get on Thunder Mountain. All the lines are pretty bad, 60 minutes+ and no FP's. They then get stopped by celebrations and are kind of stuck. He's not happy. Tink and I had seen the front end of it before we met them at their lunch and I couldn't believe it was the same parade but who knows.

The line had increased by the time we got to the MSB. For those who are not familiar with it, it's a basic barber shop, with 2 CM's giving haircuts and pixie dust and a truly magical 1st haircut for babies. We got to watch 2 of those, one of the babies slept thru the entire cut! They each got a first set of ears embroidered with my first haircut, and a special certificate.

After the babies, a dad was up. He had a cut, and then a BOUQUET OF ROSES created on the back of his head! It was very very cool. I should have taken a picture. His kids were up next, for girls they would do an updo of some sort (one pony or 2 pigtails) and then get them with the pixie dust, boys would get a cut and then pixie dust. After those kids were done we still had a 19 year old and an older man in front of us. The kids were pretty patient and happy to be out of the sun during this.

Waiting in the shop...
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-14/WDW_090214_0284.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-14/WDW_090214_0285.jpg

Pretty soon we realized we had some live entertainment outside our window. Twirl Mania!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-14/WDW_090214_0287.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-14/WDW_090214_0286.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-14/WDW_090214_0288.jpg

The boys were not all that into it, far more fun to play in the chair and watch other people get their cuts.

Finally it was our turn! I think we waited about 30 minutes, not too bad!

First up, Goofy.

The Barber. I was SOOOOOO impressed with the barbers as stylists. Goofy wanted a buzz cut so not a big deal. Wall-E on the other hand has tricky, nightmare hair and likes a little boy cut (precision) that is hard to get right and can be a disaster. These guys took their time to get it right and were so entertaining and friendly, you can tell they love their job.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-14/WDW_090214_0289.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-14/WDW_090214_0290.jpg

Next....Pixie Dust! Goofy requested "lime green" so the mixed up a special blend to create the color, just for him.

A little on the top
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-14/WDW_090214_0291.jpg

Followed by a liberal sprinking of pixie dust
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-14/WDW_090214_0295.jpg

and...

A Hidden Mickey!


http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-14/WDW_090214_0294.jpg

One happy little boy. He will be stopping at MSB for the rest of his life. I am convinced. He will be the dad getting a bouquet of roses on the back of his head. I love it!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-14/WDW_090214_0293.jpg

Next up. Wall-E

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-14/WDW_090214_0296.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-14/WDW_090214_0297.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-14/WDW_090214_0299.jpg

We could NOT convince Wall-E to get dusted. He had a bad bad experience with colored hair spray a couple of years ago (sensitive skin, super dry scalp, BAD reaction). not good. Since then, no go on the color. Tried to convince him it was gel, not spray and it'd be fine, but no dice.

These big girls were all for it though!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-14/WDW_090214_0298.jpg

Finally....two MUCH better looking little boys!


http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-14/WDW_090214_0300.jpg


After we came out from the barber, guess what, Celebrations parade. AGAIN!

Scrooge was stuck too, just coming out of Pirates. We agreed to head over to the Haunted Mansion and meet them there.

Here's a few pictures of Celebrations. The boys were not that into it, until they saw goofy. They LOVE Goofy.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-14/WDW_090214_0302.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-14/WDW_090214_0303.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-14/WDW_090214_0301.jpg

Next....Off to meet up with the rest of the gang, first ride of the day and....

THE FIRST MICKEY BAR!

[msce2]

The boys look so handsome with their new haircuts!!! I love the Mickey in green!!! We are planning to take DS (2) for his first haircut. I'm not sure he will go for the paint and glitter though. Hoping he won't scream!!!

I just got caught up on the rest of your TR. That stinks that they changed the times of all the fireworks!!!:rolleyes1 I mean I know it's within their right to do so, but it just makes it so hard for all of us who have planned for months to make sure we got to see them. :mad: It's one of my biggest fears because we are a party of 9, and it would be impossible to get new ADR's for anything.

Looking forward to hearing more about your trip!

[Stefy]

Hi, just thought I would pop on over. Great start and enjoying reading your report popcorn::

Until I read this I did not know you could pixie dust your hair at the barbers, I am so there next year :cool1:

Can't wait to read more :thumbsup2

[eandesmom]

Hi, just thought I would pop on over. Great start and enjoying reading your report popcorn::

Until I read this I did not know you could pixie dust your hair at the barbers, I am so there next year :cool1:

Can't wait to read more :thumbsup2

Thanks for popping over! I've been rather behind on it as I keep trying to con folks into a trip for next fall but...I don't think it's going to happen.

I'm hoping one of these days to go with just my siblings and we would be ALL over it! The girls anway...one of my brothers shaves his head so...maybe just a mickey for him! LOL!

Not going to work this fall, sadly. The barbers were amazing, there was one set of girls who popped in and didn't have time to wait so they just sprayed the heck out of them with hairspray and sprinkled away on the pixie dust. Didn't even charge them! It is one of the best deals there, even if you are paying!

[Stefy]

Well it makes it all the more exciting for next year as you have that to look forward to, didn't you say you wanted to go for 2010, how cool would it be if we were there at the same time :)

I don't know if I could go nuts and let them spray away, as I am v picky with my hair. How much do they charge? Also, do they do close shaves with real barber straps or strops (don't know the name of them)?

[ckdsnynt]

Your kids are precious! I know, the girls probably don't want to be called that due to their teenage years!:lmao:
Okay, silly question. Can or will they do adultsat the barbershop? I mean put the hair up and dust it with pixie dust/sparkles? I had a very neglected childhood :sad2:and now I love to dress up:rotfl: Would absolutely love to have this before the huge Dis meet on May 17 in epcot!:rotfl2:
Do you know?

[eandesmom]

Well it makes it all the more exciting for next year as you have that to look forward to, didn't you say you wanted to go for 2010, how cool would it be if we were there at the same time :)

I don't know if I could go nuts and let them spray away, as I am v picky with my hair. How much do they charge? Also, do they do close shaves with real barber straps or strops (don't know the name of them)?

I'm not sure how much they charge to just "dust" you (which is colored gel and the pixie dust, and for a girl, putting it into the pony tail). For a haircut it was $14 and that included the "dust".

I have no idea if they do a "real" shave. My DH would actually get into that if they do, might have to check into that.

We are for sure going 2010 (I think!), turns out my MIL's husband (DH's stepdad I guess although they married in their 50's so that sounds weird) is a huge WDW fan and the plan is to go with them, for F&W in 2010. Going to try to hit the Free Dining overlap, if there is one. So it'll be last week of Sept/1st of Oct ish! Dh would rather wait until 2011 but his mom and I can overrule! We won't have all 4 kids though, just the younger 2.

We hit F&W on accident 4 years ago but the younger ones were 4&5 and we didn't really get to do much other than enjoy the food and wine. Which was amazing! I think I visited New Zealand every night. Ever since I've wanted to go back and really "do" it, checking out the seminars, cookbooks, whatever and my MIL is completely into that! I also feel like I've never (despite 4 visits) really "gotten" to do the WS as it is more adult. This would let me do that. SOOOO excited!

I'm hoping we can get a 2Bvilla at BWI or BC but they are hard to come by, if not it will probably be BLT. I'd LOVE to stay in a Treehouse (and they cost less!) but convenience will win out for that group plus for dining reasons if we can't be at an Epcot resort, I want monorail! Plus MIL is a "deluxe" resort kind of gal lol, and I can't quite picture here in a Treehouse, and definitely not the cabins (much as we loved them, it just isn't for the in-laws). Plus....her hubby SNORES! LOL!

[eandesmom]

Your kids are precious! I know, the girls probably don't want to be called that due to their teenage years!:lmao:
Okay, silly question. Can or will they do adultsat the barbershop? I mean put the hair up and dust it with pixie dust/sparkles? I had a very neglected childhood :sad2:and now I love to dress up:rotfl: Would absolutely love to have this before the huge Dis meet on May 17 in epcot!:rotfl2:
Do you know?

Yes! they did tons of adults while we were there, maybe more adults than kids! Let me think. While we were there we saw...

2 babies (cuts and ears)
1 9yo-ish girl (pony and pixie dust)
1 5yo-ish boy (cut and pixie dust - mickey head)
1 man in his 40's (cut and elaborate rose pixie dust)
1 man in his 60's (cut only)
3 girls in their 20's (up do and pixie dust)
1 teen (19 or so) (cut and pixie dust - mickey head)

and then my boys.

For the girls they did mostly "stripes" of the colored gel (and they have or will mix any color you could possibly want) on the top part of the head where the hair was pulled tight. Unless you had a close cropped cut the mickey heads or whatever really wouldn't work on girls hair.

Hope that helps!

[Stefy]

I'm not sure how much they charge to just "dust" you (which is colored gel and the pixie dust, and for a girl, putting it into the pony tail). For a haircut it was $14 and that included the "dust".

I have no idea if they do a "real" shave. My DH would actually get into that if they do, might have to check into that.

We are for sure going 2010 (I think!), turns out my MIL's husband (DH's stepdad I guess although they married in their 50's so that sounds weird) is a huge WDW fan and the plan is to go with them, for F&W in 2010. Going to try to hit the Free Dining overlap, if there is one. So it'll be last week of Sept/1st of Oct ish! Dh would rather wait until 2011 but his mom and I can overrule! We won't have all 4 kids though, just the younger 2.

We hit F&W on accident 4 years ago but the younger ones were 4&5 and we didn't really get to do much other than enjoy the food and wine. Which was amazing! I think I visited New Zealand every night. Ever since I've wanted to go back and really "do" it, checking out the seminars, cookbooks, whatever and my MIL is completely into that! I also feel like I've never (despite 4 visits) really "gotten" to do the WS as it is more adult. This would let me do that. SOOOO excited!

I'm hoping we can get a 2Bvilla at BWI or BC but they are hard to come by, if not it will probably be BLT. I'd LOVE to stay in a Treehouse (and they cost less!) but convenience will win out for that group plus for dining reasons if we can't be at an Epcot resort, I want monorail! Plus MIL is a "deluxe" resort kind of gal lol, and I can't quite picture here in a Treehouse, and definitely not the cabins (much as we loved them, it just isn't for the in-laws). Plus....her hubby SNORES! LOL!

Am so gonna try that out next year :D

I heard about the treehouses, hope you get lucky (fingers crossed for you). Your MIL could always stay in one of the rooms and yourself and the others could stay in the treehouse :D

[eandesmom]

Am so gonna try that out next year :D

I heard about the treehouses, hope you get lucky (fingers crossed for you). Your MIL could always stay in one of the rooms and yourself and the others could stay in the treehouse :D\


Well, we will see. I'd rather we were all in one villa and the others would be better for F&W but it will just depend on what we can get. She'd probably pick the main SSR or OKW though, both of which I have zero desire to stay at. She's a GF kind of gal. LOL! If I can't get into BC, BLT is the best compromise I think.


But...I promise you this. Someday, I WILL stay in a treehouse! lol

[momthechauffer]

I am reliving our trip reading your review. We were staying from 2/14-20 and when I saw the pictures of the parade, especially the one of Goofy, I have the SAME picture, taken on 2/14! It was so warm, we were not missing the cold of NY.

And the Twirl teams! My dd does Irish Dancing and let me tell you, she is used to wearing wigs (or a bun cover) so seeing these girls in their curly bun covers had us giggling. We enjoyed their enthusiasm.

We must have taken over 200 pictures from this trip. Can't wait to go back!

[eandesmom]

I am reliving our trip reading your review. We were staying from 2/14-20 and when I saw the pictures of the parade, especially the one of Goofy, I have the SAME picture, taken on 2/14! It was so warm, we were not missing the cold of NY.

And the Twirl teams! My dd does Irish Dancing and let me tell you, she is used to wearing wigs (or a bun cover) so seeing these girls in their curly bun covers had us giggling. We enjoyed their enthusiasm.

We must have taken over 200 pictures from this trip. Can't wait to go back!

It was a HOT day! But not too hot! I think it hit 80. What an incredibly change from 40's Seattle! Couldn't have been more lovely. The one day we really wished we could have gone on Splash Mountain. The lines were insane, FP's long gone and the other days where we "could" have gone, it was not nearly as lovely out!

The sun felt SOOOOO good! How funny that you were right there at the exact same time, we probably have other overlaps!

I am SOOOO jealous you are going back so soon. I wish! We had about 350 pictures plus another dozen photopass and then about 100 on Steven's camera. Next time I'm going to push for more photopass

[eandesmom]

After the haircuts we headed over to meet up with the rest of the gang. They had just finished POTC and were heading to Haunted Mansion. Although ahead of us in line we decided to get in line anyway, it was 2pm and no rides yet...which just seemed WRONG!

Standing in line was a RIOT. Goofy was THE center of attention. And loving it. In heaven. "look at that boy's hair"..."where did you get that done"...and on and on and on. He is beaming, glowing, just loving it. Magical moment for mom too! At this point the rest of the gang hadn't seen him yet, their reactions were pretty funny too but more on that later

We finally head in, it was about a 20 minute wait which given the crowds wasn't bad. And the room starts growing...the voice talking....Goofy GRABS my hand. Huh? My tough almost black belt 9 year old is scared????

Now my little guys had actually been on the HM before. Twice even. DL and WDW. But..at that age, they don't remember much but really didn't have a clue. They love rides. Thrill rides. At 4 and 5, the last trip they went on everything they were tall enough for. At the time I thought we'd scarred Wall-E for life with TOT (on our first night none the less...the kid didn't trust us for the rest of the trip but once he got on the ride, loved every one). But whatever trauma he had then, didn't stick. Wall-E is my cautious one but when it comes to rides, he is fearless. Goofy on the other hand is a lot of talk, and incredibly reckless in real life (as in wring his neck wreckless) but on the rides...a lot of talk but deep down...scared at times (not that he'd generally admit it!).

As the ride went on, he slowly relaxed by the end. But not without a few jumpy moments for him.

Of all the rides in the parks these 2 didn't find the big coasters to be scary at all. Nope. For Goofy it was...Haunted Mansion and for Wall-E it was...Dinosaur (which I get a little more though it surprised me). It didn't even occur to me he'd find it scary but truth be told, it was kind of cute and reassuring that under all that bravado and hip pixie dust, he still gets scared and can tell me about it.

I have zero pictures from this part of the day and for the life of me, I don't know why. Completely lame. After the ride, despite being scared, Goofy wanted to look at pins and other HM souvenirs. Anything with Jack on it was very attractive to him but...we had to keep going. We headed over to meet the gang, soon we would be up for our FP's at Space Mountain! Hoping to get some Indy cars in we went to check out the wait time at the Speedway. 60 minutes. NOT! So instead we decided to have a snack.

Yep. The first. Ever.

Mickey Bar!!!!!!!!!!!!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-14/WDW_090214_0305.jpg

Wall-E became obsessed with the Mickey Bar. Goofy went for a fruit bar and Tink...well Tink and I hit somewhere else on the way out but more on that later. Steven grabbed a smoothie.

I'm not sure what Goofy is doing here, other than being Goofy. Or maybe saying "my snack is better than your snack". LOL!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-14/WDW_090214_0304.jpg
Finally...SPACE MOUNTAIN!

As with Test Track, Tink had to be talked through the ride, constantly, until we actually got on. Thankfully with the FP's that part went pretty quickly. LOL! Though he was only 5 last time, this was a ride Goofy remembered. Scrooge and Goofy had been on it but I'd always stayed behind with Wall-E so hadn't been on Space Mountain in....10+ years! I was just as excited as everyone else.

Sure it's dated. But I don't care. It's a classic and ohhhhh it was worth it! I will say it is the one ride that does tweak my neck a little (not that it stopped me from going on it 2 more times on the trip) but there is something about flying in the dark like that that just can't be beat. Huge hit with the crew. Huge. And it's funny, even though 1/2 of the crew would say (after the trip) that RRC is their favorite, or EE, it was MK that was everyone's favorite park and this ride that we actually went on the most. I will be super excited to see what they do (if it's more than adding a third wheel or whatever to the track). But it will always be a favorite.

Now. The kids each had $50 to spend on the trip, thanks to the $200 visa gift card that came with the 4/3 package. It was so nice to give them that amount up front, and let them choose how to spend it over the course of the trip instead of dealing with a constant "can I have that, can I have that, I want that...etc). Between that and the DDP snacks, we never had to deal with any of those kinds of requests b/c the kids knew what they could have and were basically being spoiled rotten so never had the need to ask for more! It was great.

Before the trip they'd talked (the littler 2) about what they might want to get. Poor Wall-E had REALLY wanted something from TT. He has a fabulous t shirt and sweatshirt from 2004 that actually still (barely) fit b/c they were bought large. Sadly the TT store had nothing remotely cool that he liked and he'd been hugely bummed about it. All 4 kids had put a little dent in their funds with the lanyards and bling (I held them to 1 pin at the time so they didn't regret it later but even Steven got a pin...that he wore every day and still wears often). Goofy had really really wanted something from Space Mountain.

But again, nothing super cool other than a special security badge with Wall-E's name on it. Which he got and attached to his lanyard. Goofy was becoming obsessed, wanting to buy any hat he saw at any time. None of which fit...he has a small head and kept picking these adult hats! We saw one that was good but asked him to hold off one day as we knew we were hitting DTD the next day and the world of disney store would give us another 10% off with our Disney Visa. And that we'd be back at Space Mountain.

Besides...with his fabulous 'do, he couldn't exactly WEAR the hat!

So we headed out. It was a little after 5 and we figured we had enough time to go back to the Fort, change and head to dinner at the Poly. Tink and I made a stop at...

Main Street Confectioners! OMG talk about snack credit heaven! Why I have zero pictures of this is just a crime. She had a giant piece of fudge, I had some toffee covered pretzels and we grabbed a giant caramel for Scrooge.

Next....There is no bus to the Magic Kingdom, Dinner at the Poly and riding roller coasters in the dark.

[eandesmom]

I feel official! I finally figured out how to update my links so you don't see the whole url, got around to adding the gang to my siggy and made a new avatar and tag line! Tagline is from my favorite souvenir of the trip! I didn't realize it would then update all your previous posts, that's kind of cool!

Of course I'm not actually sure if the links work but...it's progress :)

The animals asked me last night when we were going back.

These animals.
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-12/WDW_090212_0387.jpg

Spot, aka Psycho Puppy. One hyper little dog.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-12/WDW_090212_0388.jpg

Kong.

LOL! At bedtime, both hit me up wanting to know when they could go back. Spot is pulling for the Fort, Kong for WL but mama is planning on BCV (and SAB!) but it's so far away...wah!

Now if I can only figure out how to make my pictures smaller!

[eandesmom]

After Space Mountain we decided to head back to the fort. We had ressies at Kona for 8. Which would have been tight for Wishes at 9 (my plan was to watch from the beach at the Poly) but....Wishes, like Illuminations was moved up and was now at 8. So we knew we were going to miss it which was a huge huge bummer. Kids had no idea.

By this time it was about 6:30, somehow the confectioners and locker stop, plus the boat ride added up to 6:30. We got back to our cabin, got changed and before leaving, at about 7:15, worried we were cutting it close, Scrooge asked me to confirm the best way to get to the Poly. Now I knew we could get there by internal bus, boat to the MK, boat to Poly or Internal bus, boat to Contemporary, monorail to Poly.

Scrooge was anti boat and asked me to confirm that there wasn't another option. I knew we could take a bus to DTD and then to the Poly but that seemed really out of the way. Called the front desk.

Which is not REALLY the front desk.

They said...

"Take the bus to the MK and then bus to the Poly". I questioned this. really? There is a bus to the MK? I didn't think there was.

"Oh yes."

Really?

Are you sure it's faster?

"Oh yes."

Really?

"Well, would you rather be in an air conditioned bus, or an open air boat?"

they thought this was a funny comment and laughed.....

So I said thanks and told Scrooge. Now, in his defense, from our cabin the walk to the outpost was 5 minutes tops which to him seemed far faster than waiting for an internal bus, heading to the marina and then 2 more transports from there.

So we head up.

And wait.

And wait.

And wait.

No MK bus.

No MK bus.

Finally we ask the 15th DTD bus that has come by.

THERE IS NO BUS TO THE MK!

I KNEW that. And yet still let myself be persuaded by the CM at the front desk.

Who is not really at "our" front desk.

So we hop on an internal. It is now 7:50.

It is VALENTINES DAY.

It is PRESIDENTS WEEK.

The parks are insanely packed.

We are a party of 6.

Our ressies are in 10 minutes

I feel ill.

While on the internal bus heading to the marina I call back the "front desk". Ask for a manager.

Explain why.

Am put on hold.

Get a non manager. Ask for a manger. Have to explain why.

Am put on hold

Get a non manager. Ask for a manger. Have to explain why.

Am put on hold

Finally...a manager. I explain the situation and let them know that as a direct result of bad information, we will miss our ressie and need his help in getting our table held.

He says he will take care of it and call me back.

We get to the marina. 7:55 now. Hop on a boat to the Contemporary, really whatever boat would have been loading, we'd have gotten on.

We BARELY make it. The boat is packed, we have to scramble for a spot.

Boat heads out

And then stops.

WISHES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Now, bear in mind these are with my very basic point and shoot on a very bouncy small boat. :) The fact that any are semi visible is mind boggling if you ask me.

But hey, we GOT TO SEE FIREWORKS!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-14/WDW_090214_0306.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-14/WDW_090214_0307.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-14/WDW_090214_0309.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-14/WDW_090214_0317.jpg

After Wishes ended we tooled over to the Contemporary, hopped on the monorail and got to Kona exactly 1/2 hour late. Which, all things considered was not too bad!

Of course our table wasn't ready but the wait ended up being only about 10 minutes. Right as Scrooge and I were about to order a drink from the Tambu lounge, our pager went off.

We had an AMAZING meal. Check out my dining report if you want details but the Tuna Oscar was to die for. My favorite meal of the trip. We ended our dinner with these.

Sugar Free Caramel Apple Stack. On Won Tons. A must have for me from now on.
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-14/WDW_090214_0319.jpg

Chocolate Torte
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-14/WDW_090214_0318.jpg

Kids Sundae
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-14/WDW_090214_0320.jpg

After dinner we headed back to MK and were able to hit

Thunder Mountain (walked right on!!!!)
POTC :) Also, walked right on!
Space Mountain (again)

and then...TIME FOR BED!

What a day :)

[carissanboys]

Hello! :goodvibes I'm here and I've subscribed. It might take me a bit to get caught up, but I will. :thumbsup2

[eandesmom]

Hello! :goodvibes I'm here and I've subscribed. It might take me a bit to get caught up, but I will. :thumbsup2

:) welcome!

[tinkermamaof2]

Sounds like a hectic, but amazing day! Sometimes those days end up to be the best!

Patti

[eandesmom]

Sounds like a hectic, but amazing day! Sometimes those days end up to be the best!

Patti

You know it's funny, it actually was a pretty relaxing day though it sounds hectic. I think b/c it started with the pedicure and a lazy lunch at GF for DSD and I! But b/c of the crowds once we got to the MK we couldn't really move all that fast anyway. The dinner thing was a little hectic and stressful but actually the fact that the boat HAD to stop for wishes (well it didn't have to I guess but chose to) kind of made me de-stress about it and just enjoy the magic. It was really fabulous! Things happen for a reason.

And I have to say, even though it wasn't a ride or anything like that, the trip to the barber was magical for all of us. It was worth missing out on splash mountain every time I look at the picture of the boys in front of the barber pole. I was just complaining about DS8's haircut (took the boys on Sunday, 1st cut since the MSB) and was not thrilled with the results.

DH looked at me and said...but I thought you loved his last haircut. I did. It was at the MSB! lol. If I could only find a barber who did as good of a job on DS8's hair as the CM at the MSB did, I'd be happy.

I LOVE your siggy...and hey if you make it Feb 2010 you'll beat me! For a non-Disney lover if you can get your DH back in that 2 year range I think you are doing pretty good! My DH would really prefer 2011 but I am overriding him (with help from his mom lol!).

[carissanboys]

I'm through the first page and wanted to comment before I forget. :rolleyes1

Your family looks like a lot of fun. :thumbsup2

I don't think I've ever read a TR of someone who stayed at the cabins - very cool! :cool1: I so want to stay at FW someday.

You mentioned one of your sons doesn't say Epcot right. My middle son use to call it "Ep-i-cot" - kind of like apricot. :rotfl: He says it correctly now and always corrects his younger brother when he says it the same exact way.

[eandesmom]

I'm through the first page and wanted to comment before I forget. :rolleyes1

Your family looks like a lot of fun. :thumbsup2

I don't think I've ever read a TR of someone who stayed at the cabins - very cool! :cool1: I so want to stay at FW someday.

You mentioned one of your sons doesn't say Epcot right. My middle son use to call it "Ep-i-cot" - kind of like apricot. :rotfl: He says it correctly now and always corrects his younger brother when he says it the same exact way.

Awww, thanks! I like my gang.

LOL! DS8 calls Epcot

Eckpot.

Even after being there.

Twice.

Eckpot.

About 1/2 way through the trip he started saying it right but has to concentrate (he has very mild speech issues, just starting therapy at school but the funny thing is his issue is "th" sounds, not at all related to this).

But now that we are home? 2 months later

Eckpot.

I love Fort Wilderness and highly highly recommend it! The cabins are great for a family, especially if you have teens that need to sleep a little later! They are lazy as it is but add a 3 hour time difference and...no rope drop for us! lol.

The little guys are dying to go back there for the next trip but I have a feeling we will be staying elsewhere, I can't see my MIL at the Fort but I'm sure we will stay there again at some point! I didn't take enough pics of the Fort so there is a reason to go back right there, plus they just redid the pool (closed while we were there).

[eandesmom]

The super relaxing part of day 3. Thought I'd share since the rest of the day sounded nutty! It was funny, with the early boat ride over and stroll around the grounds, even though we could see the castle....it felt like we were somewhere else on vacation. And I mean that in a nice way.

I was curious to see how kid friendly it might feel and can honestly say after walking around quite a bit, we'd fit in fine here. I didn't get a stuffy feeling at all. It was lovely of course but not too feminine. It probably wouldn't bee DH's first choice, or Steven's but DS9 loved the look of it as well.

Tink REALLY wants to stay at the GF one day, just loved it. Her dream resort (and when I was 12 I'm sure it would have been mine!) We decided we'd go back one day, just the two of us. She couldn't see Steven staying there but I think he'd be fine, she'd just rather he wasn't there!

We did a lot of poking around and it was so lovely out! Before the heat of the day really hit.

I've been trying to con some folks into a fall f&w trip for 09 but it's not going to happen (though it might for a spring flower and garden lol). So I decided to look at these to make me feel better. DH and I are off to San Diego in a month for a "date" weekend and the hotel we wanted to stay at (but will be next door to so will be eating there and checking it out anyway) looks so much like the GF it's amazing!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-14/WDW_090213_0378.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-14/WDW_090213_0366.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-14/WDW_090213_0364.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-14/WDW_090213_0373.jpg

It's interesting though getting the kdis takes on where they'd like to stay for the next trip. While we were there we visited

GF
Poly
AKL
Contemporary
WL

I really expected the kids to love the Poly. Maybe it's b/c we are west coasters, or b/c Tink and Steven have been to Hawaii but every time the conversation comes up, Poly isn't even on their list! And yet they all loved the WL which really feels like home in terms of decor (so not as "away" to me). Go figure. Their top choices are WL, GF, AKL or the Fort! (and not necessarily in that order lol). As a party of 6, safe to say GF will never happen but that's ok. I want to eat there on the next trip, that's a requirement!

Pretty cool though when you can visit all those deluxes and while the kids liked them (and we pretty much spent the day at WL on day 6) and they still loved the Fort just as much as the idea of staying at a deluxe.

[SeattleRedBear]

I'd ordered special trip mugs for everyone to use during the trip. For a couple of reasons. One, just a fun way to commemorate. Two, the kids needed at least one of their "own" mugs at home, three, I like a big mug for my coffee in the morning and rarely do hotel mugs meet that need (and the forts were ESPECIALLY tiny). The new disney shopping customizable item program was so fun to work with to make these and I was absolutely thrilled with how they turned out. So was the entire crew. They were a godsend for the trip, we all used them almost exclusively, liking them better than the fort mugs and the fort glasses (which are like mason jars...cute for the theme but a little odd to drink out of...unless maybe it's kungaloosh which I've yet to try).
This is a GREAT idea!! We have four adults for our trip this fall (all big coffee drinkers) and this would be a great surprise.

Did you have the mugs sent to the resort or did you bring them with you? If possible, I'd like to have them shipped to the resort to surprise HusBear.

[eandesmom]

This is a GREAT idea!! We have four adults for our trip this fall (all big coffee drinkers) and this would be a great surprise.

Did you have the mugs sent to the resort or did you bring them with you? If possible, I'd like to have them shipped to the resort to surprise HusBear.

Hi! I had them sent straight to the resort. It's kind of funny. I spent WAY more time on this than I probably should have. First I really tried to see if I could get Fort Mugs (or other cool WDW mugs) into a basket with coffee and goodies, waiting there in the room for us through Disney Floral. That was a no go, they were limited on what they could do custom. I also tried to do the candy through them...no good caramels.

Then I looked at a local basket maker who could have done something cool with Fort Mugs and almost went that route but found the custom ones on Disney Shopping. I had a ton of fun picking out the prints for each person and making them really different. Everyone loves the mugs. But...I will be honest. We've had a couple of issues with them. I think they may have gotten washed on the bottom rack at the Fort and 2 of them "bled" (colors seeping off the edges of the print and then fading subsequently). Disney gave us a full credit and replaced them and so far the new ones are good. I'm hopefull it was just a bad batch or they did in fact get washed incorrectly but I'm slightly paranoid.

The funny part is that when I first called them about the bleeding issue, they'd said they'd just credit us as it was too hard on the order to tell which was what to replace. Then they emailed me to say they'd sent a replacement on one of them (mine) as they figured it out, in addition to the credit. Problem is they sent it to the Fort. We of course were long home. The Fort called and said it was there, and said they'd send it to me.

It has never arrived. I called the Fort and it's just disappeared. So I had to actually order the replacement. Which I'm happily drinking out of now :) They had a special when I ordered the 2 replacements so we ended up saving money overall as we'd gotten a full credit on 2 and the replacements cost quite a bit less.

I will do this again on our next trip for sure!

[eandesmom]

Sunday the 15th dawned a little grey, but thankfully not raining.

Thankfully because this was Scrooge's big day!

Scrooge is a engineer/plane nut. He is building a plane in our garage. And today he was going to test fly his baby. Not his actual plane, but the same model. This will be a 2 year project I am guessing, right now he's just working on the avionics so it'll be a while (a year I think) before the actual build starts and then the build will take at least a year.

He's been doing a lot of prep, flying some other small sport planes that are similar in how they handle.

This is the plane he was flying before the trip, it's now changed to something else (a Sportstar maybe?) but he liked this plane quite a bit.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/img248.jpg

What is different though is his will be amphibious. Like a pelican, no pontoons. Where we live, it makes a ton of sense and will be absolutely wonderful. I am excited for him which is good as really, it will be our "boat" or timeshare, or vacation home lol. Someday maybe we will have a cabin we can fly it to (or at least we dream that will happen!) but for now it will be little jumps in the area and there are tons and tons of places to do that where we live.

So the company that makes the kit he is building, is based not too far from WDW and he had made plans to go fly that morning. We'd picked a day that wasn't EMH anywhere and slotted it to be an open day, meaning we'd do whatever the kids wanted and not have a specific park picked. Rain would have been a big problem. The poor man had been pouring over weather reports for days, by the hour, and by the minute as it got closer. It was grey, it was overcast, it was threatening. But it was DRY!

After what seemed like hours of asking the kids what they wanted to do (once the big ones actually got up that is) and rounds and rounds of them saying

I don't know

I don't know



I don't know



It came down to this.


Steven had homework that he needed to do and the rest of the kids wanted to....


SWIM!

It was not terribly warm in my opinion but the kids didn't care and for my part it was awfully nice to just stay in my sweats and stroll over to the "quiet" pool with coffee cup and book in hand.

I did not have the camera as I'd given it to Scrooge to take with him flying. I'd charged the battery the night before and had it all out ready for him to take. So Wall-E, Tink, and Goofy hung out and played all morning in the pool. Lots of Marco Polo and got several other kids involved. They had a blast.

Our plan had been to meet up around lunch. We'd rented a car for this day so Scrooge could get to the lake he'd be taking off from, which was about 45 minutes away. Steven's one request had been to go to House of Blues and so that was our lunch destination. We'd talked about the kids and I meeting Scrooge there but now that Steven had homework..and didn't seem to be moving quickly on it, it seemed best to just have Scrooge pick us up when he was done and head out from there.

Scrooge called as he was passing the main gate, he'd gotten turned around quite a bit coming back but I'd wanted a warning, assuming (correctly) that the kids would not be happy about getting out of the pool.

The joys of 16 year old boys. Steven had supposedly ONE paragraph that needed to be written and emailed to his teacher by midnight that night (Seattle time so he really had until 3am to get it done). I'd brought my laptop for work so he was dialed in and online. We left for the pool by 9:30 I think and came back at noon, maybe even 12:30. Steven was NOT done. "Almost" done was the quote.

So Scrooge pulls up in....a Toyota Sienna. The exact same car we have at home. For some reason, we all thought this was really funny. I don't know why. The teen and tween had to get all primped up (even though Steven had had 3 hours in which to write a paragraph and take a shower) so it must have been 1:30 before we left the cabin.

I was not happy. Not my finest moment. A nice cold beer on the deck and some chips and salsa with Scrooge while they were dressing helped lol but I couldn't help feeling we were wasting a very valuable day. Scrooge felt a little the same but was pretty high from his flight.

He said it was amazing. That there were alligators EVERYWHERE in the lakes and the take off's and landings were incredible. More so than ever he was pleased with the choice he'd made. Which was good as we'd actually put a deposit (gulp) down about 1 month prior. So I asked to see the pictures. Or if he'd taken any video. He looks at me and says.


He forgot to put the battery in the camera!

:(

Which he then covers by saying he was too busy to take many pictures anyway.

Yeah.

Right.

FINALLY we are ready to leave. I truthfully don't think I will allow a fully unplanned day again. I think there were simply too many options and it overwhelmed them. We had a lazy day at the resort planned for day 6 so I think my irritation was that IMHO they should have picked something else. Which is my issue entirely, they had fun and for the most part didn't have a clue I was semi annoyed.

HOB here we come. The plan was live music, we eat there, no live music we go somewhere on the DP (I was thinking Wolfgang Puck Cafe or Earl of Sandwich) I wasn't thrilled about an OOP meal but on the flip side their menu looked really good and lunch was a heck of a lot cheaper than dinner.

Live music, outside! But no food actually "served" outside. So we ordered at the bar, take out, to eat outside.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-15/WDW_090215_0242.jpg

The food was really really good. I didn't take any pictures but admit it was nice to sit down and be able to do apps, or salads and not deal with dessert. I had a lovely salad with blackened chicken (which I'd added, it didn't come with it) and blue cheese and a coconut rum and coke. Scrooge had a pulled pork sandwich and a beer, Steven went for a plate of buffalo wings (which put him in heaven) and the other 3 split a pizza. For some reason that rum and coke was my favorite drink of the trip! It suited my mood though it certainly didn't match the weather, it was a chilly day.

I think we liked the band more than Steven did. It was very much "our generation" of music and Scrooge and I were rocking out. Steven liked it but we REALLY liked it.

He loved the atmosphere though. I still need to look at his pics, he took a ton on his camera. Which he still need to upload. But here is one happy 16 year old. Who is an aspiring musician so this was perfect.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-15/WDW_090215_0241.jpg

Of course Scrooges folks don't think he looks happy in this pic and are convinced that the hood on makes him look like a gangster but all I see is a happy teen who is basically shy.

Afterward it was shopping time. We split up, the big boys heading to Virgin Records with the rest of us off to look at pins and hats. We took our time and enjoyed ourselves but for the most part I would have to say I was not overwhelmed with the merchandise selection anywhere.

Steven had bought this crazy Mickey shirt at the MK the day before, black and grey it was like Mickey was melting. I had it with me to exchange for a larger size but they didn't have it anywhere.

Each kid did get a pin and Goofy and Wall-E, a hat. And, thanks to the Disney Visa, we got 10% off on the hats, so it was completely worth it.

Next stop was....GOOFY's!

The kids went nuts in there. 3 of them anyway. Actually Scrooge may have gotten something as well, I'm not sure. Of course Tink wanted bulk candy, which was not a snack credit but I was so happy to see "real" espresso and use a snack credit for a doppio, I didn't care.

Here the 3 sweet tooth kids are with their new hats, pins and SUGAR!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-15/WDW_090215_0243.jpg

Tink with Buzz. Tink was a HUGE tomboy as a kid, was obsessed with Buzz and even WAS Buzz for Halloween one year. No princess dresses for her back then!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-15/WDW_090215_0244.jpg

By the time we got all of this done it was, maybe 5? 5:30? We had ressies at 8 at Teppan Edo, and a car, so we decided to hit DHS as the kids have been dying to go there since our first day. We do have a full day planned there for the following day but since we've got a couple of hours, why not!

OMG.

DHS was INSANE. We walk in and literally, can hardly move. Rnr? 60 minutes. TSM? 90. ToT? 60. FP's gone. Everywhere.

So we sadly stroll around the back side, to the set section. It is DESERTED. Very very weird feeling after the crush of the front. Surreal even. We walk by Star Tours.

No wait.

Seriously? We actually think the sign might be broken but sure enough, we walk right in! Yeah!!! One ride today at least. The tour starts. Just as we are about to come out of the meteor field it....stops. Threepio is cutting in and out...Fuzzy. Scrooge and I cannot remember if this is really part of the ride or not.

They start it again.

Same thing happens.

Nope, not part of the ride.

Nope. It broke.

We exit, get ushered back around into another theater and this time complete our star tour successfully. The kids enjoyed it, at least the little ones but gosh, I remember it feeling more "real" in the past. I still liked it, in a nostalgic kind of way.

We left, filled with concerns about how crowded the park might be the next day and I vowed we'd get there earlier than we'd been trending. I vowed we'd eat BREAKFAST there. The combination of the insanely crowded MK the day before and now this, one ride for the whole day had me...cranky.

Sadly, I was actually glad to leave, hoping Epcot wouldn't be so nutty. We'd discussed taking the boat over there but didn't want to deal with getting back after dinner and figured that would give us more options after dinner since Epcot would be closed by the time we were done but MK would be open for several more hours.

Next....Teppan Edo, a few rain drops, will we get to see Illuminations? Will the kids stay awake to hit the MK? Will Steven be able to exchange his shirt?

And....will Steven get his homework in?

and not to be missed...a towel animal party in the Cabins!

[Happydog]

Hi! I didn't notice before that you had a TR! So I just caught up. Two random things -- I love Alaska Airlines (we use them and my parents use them, especially Horizon! since they live in the middle of Oregon!)
We stayed one night in the cabins at FW. I thought they were cozy and fun!

There was something else.... I will have to go back and look... Oh! Yes, the comparison between the GF and the Coronado in San Diego, that is the hotel, right?!

And I wanted to also say that if I worked across the street from the Wild Ginger I'd eat there every day !!! :lmao:

[eandesmom]

Hi! I didn't notice before that you had a TR! So I just caught up. Two random things -- I love Alaska Airlines (we use them and my parents use them, especially Horizon! since they live in the middle of Oregon!)
We stayed one night in the cabins at FW. I thought they were cozy and fun!

There was something else.... I will have to go back and look... Oh! Yes, the comparison between the GF and the Coronado in San Diego, that is the hotel, right?!

And I wanted to also say that if I worked across the street from the Wild Ginger I'd eat there every day !!! :lmao:

Hey! Those aren't random :) Yes, my fairly lame trip report that is taking me forever to complete! It is kind of nice to stretch out the memories though!

I love Alaska Airlines too! If we could use them to go everywhere, we would! Horizon is even better. Free wine. I'd forgotten about that perk until last fall when my sister and I decided to fly to Portland instead of driving. LOL

Yep! The Del Coronado in San Diego. DH and I are headed there in less than a month for a "date" trip (no kids) on Alaska miles. We really wanted to stay there but there is no way we could justify the price. We are staying literally next door though at a historic mansion B&B/Inn that looks fabulous so we will definitely be checking it out, to dine or for drinks or just a stroll.

http://www.hoteldel.com/

I'm fairly sure the Del has been around longer but...am not positive. Makes me wonder!

It's funny though, when I first saw the Del all I could think was it looked like the GF and DH had the opposite reaction since he is from S. Cal he thought the GF had copied the Del. :)

Wild Ginger is a "default" business meeting place...it's rough I must admit. I can't afford to eat there every day though.

[eandesmom]

Heading over to Epcot we parked and strolled over to the World Showcase. We were hoping to get seated a little early and hopefully, maybe, get to see Illuminations. With 8:00 ressies, it was tight.

Still, on the way there we went by these guys. We typically head left upon entering the WS and decided to go to the right today as it seemed a little closer. These guys were quite good and we would have loved to listen to them a little more. Gotta love a rock band in kilts. Steven kept trying to get good pictures both with his camera and mine but it was just too dark, we weren't close enough and our cameras weren't cut out for it.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-15/WDW_090215_0249.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-15/WDW_090215_0251.jpg

It was nice to get a better look at the entrance to LeCellier at this time, it was where we'd hoped to be dining but couldn't get a ressie, Teppan was our back up choice.

Rushing the group on, I did not realize that Teppan Edo and Tokyo Dining have the same check in area so was a bit confused as to where to go until we figured that out. The place was insane with one combined waiting area, so full that people were sitting on the floor all over the place. We check in and get our pager, find a spot on the floor for the little ones that seems semi clean.

Wall-E asks to go to the restroom. Remembering that they will not see us unless we are all present (and that includes bathroom trips!) I ask him to wait. And then realize....Steven is missing.

I ask Scrooge about it. "Oh, he was thirsty, he went to get a smoothie."

Great. Just great. So fine. I take Wall-E to the restroom. Sure enough, upon our return, the pager goes off.

No Steven.

No Seat for you.

I make Scrooge call him, reminding him about Illuminations.

Steven is in line for some green tea smoothie of some sort. Line is not moving. Scrooge tells him to come back. Steven doesn't want to. This goes on for a bit but finally Steven shows up. Of course, we have to wait as that table is now full. All of us were quite thirsty at this point. Finally, at maybe 8:20 we are seated.

The first 3 CM's who came by (drink orders, explain the menu and hot towels) were sadly very very hard to understand. Super nice and I felt bad but the kids were really struggling. We had 2 other ladies at our table who were super nice and we enjoyed chatting with them for the remainder of the evening.

Drinks, thankfully in hand and thirst sated we ordered and then our chef arrived.


He started with a bang. Or at least some steam
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-15/WDW_090215_0252.jpg

Dished up our sauces and explained them
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-15/WDW_090215_0253.jpg

Did some nice twirling moves (by this point, all 4 kids were MESMERIZED)

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-15/WDW_090215_0254.jpg

And then launched into the schtick. I've been to Teppan places before. I've never had a running storyline that involved Disney as part of the dinner show! He made Nemo swim and fly, created Mickey (wiped out Mickey) and the story went on and on and on. He was truly truly wonderful.

Mickey!
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-15/WDW_090215_0256.jpg

The famous volcano!
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-15/WDW_090215_0257.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-15/WDW_090215_0258.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-15/WDW_090215_0259.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-15/WDW_090215_0260.jpg

The food was very good. The kids absolutely loved it. Our sweet server that we couldn't understand made the little ones rubber-banded chopsticks so they could use them too, they thought that was the bomb!

Basically we all had the same thing, just a matter of who had chicken, shrimp or steak lol. It was a very nice change on the kids meal for the little guys.

At this point it was 9 and our entire table was trying to pay, including the lovely ladies dining with us, to rush out and see Illuminations. We rushed out, the ladies, myself and a couple of the kids to find.

Rainy sidewalks and people walking away. Yep. We'd missed it again.

We went back in to finish up dessert and I went to take another picture of our chef. Who asked if the boys wanted to be in the picture!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-15/WDW_090215_0261.jpg

This was by FAR the kids favorite meal of the trip. All 4 of them! While there weren't any they didn't like, they loved Teppan and I will have a hard time not going back there with them on a return trip, I think there might be mutiny.

After dinner we walked out, back the way we'd come. It was odd, it was not an EMH night so the park was pretty close to deserted. I'd hoped to pick up the mug I'd seen 2 nights ago but the shop was CLOSED! Wah! We headed back to the car, the kids skipping in the sprinkles. It looked like it had rained pretty good while we were eating but now, just some sprinkles. Upon arriving in the car we decided that Wall-E and I would go home and I'd toss him in bed, the rest, on to the MK as it was still open for another 3 hours!

Next...some surprises await at the cabin!

[Stefy]

Am loving your report, was annoyed for you with regards to your Kona ressie and bus fiasco.

Yay you went to Teppan, we love love love Teppan and can't wait to go back, twice :D

Can't wait to read more :D

[carissanboys]

Page 2 completed! :yay:

I love TT too. :thumbsup2

That really stinks about missing Illuminations. I hate when they change the times like that so close to your trip. That happened to us as well.

Very cool about starting pin trading. It's a lot of fun. :goodvibes

[carissanboys]

Page 3 - movin' right along. :woohoo:

What a great way to spend Valentine's Day - getting pedicures! :goodvibes

Too bad about the crowds. :eek:

We went to the Barber Shop because dh was thinking of getting his haircut. We saw a boy who had the pixie dust and wondered how hard it was going to be to get that stuff out of his hair. Not sure if you've commented on that or not, but I'm curious to know how it went.

[carissanboys]

I'm all caught up! :banana:

I've heard good things about Teppan Edo - guess I may have to add it to my list for the future. :thumbsup2

Can't wait for more! :goodvibes

[eandesmom]

Am loving your report, was annoyed for you with regards to your Kona ressie and bus fiasco.

Yay you went to Teppan, we love love love Teppan and can't wait to go back, twice :D

Can't wait to read more :D

Well the not so funny part was that I KNEW better. I KNEW there wasn't a bus and allowed myself to be convinced otherwise as DH as sick of riding the boat and was convinced there was a faster way. Very sad that their information could be that off though.

But...it all worked out and had it not, we wouldn't have seen wishes at all! And seeing it from the boat, which was one of the small boats, was pretty darn special

So.... A silver lining! Platinum even!

We figured the kids would like Teppan, just underestimated how much. Favorite food AND show, and we had great meals every night! It will definitely be a must-do from now on I think!

[eandesmom]

Page 2 completed! :yay:

I love TT too. :thumbsup2

That really stinks about missing Illuminations. I hate when they change the times like that so close to your trip. That happened to us as well.

Very cool about starting pin trading. It's a lot of fun. :goodvibes

TT is my fav. Hands down :) To be fair, not really any rides I don't like (though ToT freaks me out, I will do it lol).

I was SOOOOO upset about the fireworks thing! I had planned everything to death around it, all our ADR's etc so that we would potentially see them EVERY night. Which couldn't have been farther from what actually happened. I'd have pushed for Fantasmic to sort of make it up but we already had our DHS day planned for a non Fastasmic (but EMH) day. Oh well.

The only way I can see to avoid that on the next trip is to either do CS for dinner (no way jose!) or eat earlier than we normally do and I can't see that working either with the time difference adjustment, not to mention the fact that we are late eaters by nature normally! Hopefully not going in Feb...will mean later sunset and less of a chance of them being moved earlier.

8pm is too early for fireworks!!!

I did get one pin for myself, should have bought another one the kids wanted me to get and could kick myself. But I didn't see a lanyard that "I" liked so...next trip! Boy that can add up FAST!

[eandesmom]

Page 3 - movin' right along. :woohoo:

What a great way to spend Valentine's Day - getting pedicures! :goodvibes

Too bad about the crowds. :eek:

We went to the Barber Shop because dh was thinking of getting his haircut. We saw a boy who had the pixie dust and wondered how hard it was going to be to get that stuff out of his hair. Not sure if you've commented on that or not, but I'm curious to know how it went.

Well as long as DS9 didn't touch it (the gel is pretty think and didn't really "dry" where the mickey head was) or lean against anything it was fine. He had the buzz cut so I think the washing was pretty easy. He took a shower and washed it all out and while I cringe to think of what that does to the Fort's drain...nothing was at the bottom of the tub! However with BBB...I imagine their drains can handle it.

LOL

[eandesmom]

I'm all caught up! :banana:

I've heard good things about Teppan Edo - guess I may have to add it to my list for the future. :thumbsup2

Can't wait for more! :goodvibes


You must go!

[eandesmom]

Oh my goodness! I see that there is now a pirate makeover for boys at the MK opening this summer. I wonder if my guys will be too old for it when we go next (fingers crossed for fall 2010...I can't stand not being able to plan it yet!).

But...I digress :)

We headed back to our car, skipping through the deserted Epcot in the sprinkles...

Or more accurately Goofy and Tink playing tag until someone, of course Goofy, bit the dust on the wet walkway. She tends to forget just how much smaller he is than she is. And of course he eggs it on. One messy knee semi doctored...we resumed our trek to the van.

It was WEIRD walking through it after it was closed...almost eerie.

Scrooge managed to get us back to the cabin relatively quickly but it really didn't feel like it was any faster than taking the bus so that was interesting. By the time you took the tram to the car, car navigated to the Fort, into the gates correctly etc..the bus felt faster and less complicated. It was nice having the car but definitely could live without it too.

While theoretically Scrooge was just dropping Wall-E and I off, everyone came in to get jackets, put on pants in a couple of cases (as it was now a pretty steady drizzle) add a small umbrella to the backpack, confirm that the poncho's were in there, and of course, use the facilities.....

Upon opening the door we found....

A Towel Animal Party!


Check it out

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/towel%20animals/WDW_090215_0265.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/towel%20animals/WDW_090215_0266.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/towel%20animals/WDW_090215_0264.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/towel%20animals/WDW_090215_0262.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/towel%20animals/WDW_090215_0263.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/towel%20animals/WDW_090215_0267.jpg

ok, the boat isn't an animal but we still thought it was cute!

Surprisingly, hugely so, Wall-E didn't throw a fit and got in his jam's and went straight to bed. The big kids headed out, I got my jam's on and had my "dessert"...a glass of wine...nestled in with my laptop for a wee bit on the couch...in peace :)

I didn't bother going to bed until the gang got back as they'd have just woken me anyway lol. They didn't take pictures but by all accounts had a good time. They got to do a ton of rides...HM, POTC, SM, BTMRR...and I swear something else but I can't recall what. I was quite happy about this as they all felt like they "got" a lot more time at MK than I think Wall-E and I did so were pretty happy about it. Plus it was neat for Scrooge to have that alone time with the kids, that is always kind of special. Over the week I had lots of alone time with the younger 3 so it was nice especially for Tink and Goofy to be included with the "really" big boys :)

Steven was able to exchange his melting mickey t-shirt for a longer one so he was pretty darn happy about it. He wears it all the time and I've got to get a picture of him in it. Nothing like like seeing your rocker "cool" teen...in a mickey shirt to make you smile.

As we all settled in and drifted off to sleep...the sound of heavy rain lulled me.

And stayed in my dreams all night. Would it be dry in the morning?

[eandesmom]

I'm trying to find the boys first Disney trip pics and while I know they got "lost" with the death of a previous computer...I swear I have hard copies somewhere! Need to find and scan :) They are from Disneyland but still!

However....since that was all "pre" Scrooge I thought I'd share his first trip!

And I finally figured out how to make the pictures smaller. Or more accurately when and where! LOL

My DH grew up in S. CA. So LOTS of Disneyland and all the southern California parks. He'd never been to the world and really didn't have a clue. For this trip, we basically just showed up. No DIS, NO ADR's....I can't even imagine!

My parent had made all the arrangements other than flights.

20 of my family members went together and rented two houses next door to each other, 5 minutes from the main gate. It was a BLAST! Scrooge still married me after this trip so he must not have hated it too much. About 6 weeks later!

We left a day ahead of much of my family and got our first taste of staying on property with one night at ASM. We vowed to come back, stay on property and bring all 4 kids and wouldn't come until we could. We actually missed 2 other family trips as a result but it was worth the wait!

DS9 was looking at this the other day and commented that he STILL has some of the clothes in these pictures. Which is true. And scary. Although I "think" I've tried to take that tank top away from him several times he seems to keep finding it and poor DS8 is so white he looks ridiculous in tank tops period. My kids just get taller but that's about it. He was five at the time!

Brings back the memories though...back when they were obsessed with shiny soft clothes...the kind the show every stain known to man.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/scan0007.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/scan0002.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/Copyofscan0003.jpg

Playhouse Disney was a BIG deal for us on this trip, DS9 LOVED Stanley. Loved him. And yet...when looking at the little album my mom made him the other day...didn't have a clue who the guy with the big head was. Of course once I mentioned "the great big book of everything" it all came back.

Here is DS8 with his map. He was obsessed with maps. Had quite the Dora fetish for a long while actually. We were very surprised this year that he wasn't trying to walk and read maps constantly on this trip, I think we'd taken it for granted that he'd always do this that it really was a huge shocker to watch him just enjoy where ever we went!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/scan0001.jpg

Goofy and Tink didn't join us as 1) we weren't married yet...I was just the GF and 2) their mom had already pulled them out that same year for a vacation to Mexico. Later that same year, Scrooge took Goofy and Tink to DL for the first time (to kind of make up for them missing this trip) and those pics are lost as well. Sigh.

I am somewhat (ok a lot lol) pleased to look at these and realize I still have BOTH hats that the boys are wearing in these pics!

It's the little things :rotfl:

[OneTreeHillAddict]

OMG I have a lot of catching up to do here. How did I miss this much? See...dang TR causes me trouble sometime! Well first off I have to say we love the MSB too! If we were closer that's the only place the boys would get their hair done. They LOVE it. I will tell ya...once DS got the blue hair gel in his head and IT DID NOT COME OUT! :scared1: We had to wait for his hair to grow out. He has super white hair (well, he did before that....then it was light blue) :rotfl2:. Disney tried everything...they gave us clarifying shampoo. Offered to dye his hair (which I was like NFW!) :eek: They returned the money for all three haircuts and hooked the kids up w/ a bunch of toys. It looked like Christmas that day. Stuff everywhere! OMG. Anyway, watch out for that gel!

I can't wait to get back to the cabins! We love it over there! So nice and peaceful and the inlaws said we could use their golf cart when we go. THAT will be nice.

YUM! Teppan Edo. My kids' fave too! (And mine as well...must add that.) I love everything about that place. We have a lot of Hibachi here too but at WDW everyone there seems so authentic. The servers have such deep accents and that's so cool!) Here ya might have the blonde hair blue eyed surfer boy serving your hibachi. :rotfl2: I am starving now.

Oh and one last thing...love the older pics. I am a sucker for the older stuff. So cool to see how much everyone changes. GREAT updates girl! :thumbsup2

[KathyRN137]

Okay... someone else posted they just noticed you had a TR, so I don't feel quite so bad admitting it myself!

Off to work now, but will be back later to read in it's entirety! :thumbsup2

Kathy

[eandesmom]

OMG I have a lot of catching up to do here. How did I miss this much? See...dang TR causes me trouble sometime! Well first off I have to say we love the MSB too! If we were closer that's the only place the boys would get their hair done. They LOVE it. I will tell ya...once DS got the blue hair gel in his head and IT DID NOT COME OUT! :scared1: We had to wait for his hair to grow out. He has super white hair (well, he did before that....then it was light blue) :rotfl2:. Disney tried everything...they gave us clarifying shampoo. Offered to dye his hair (which I was like NFW!) :eek: They returned the money for all three haircuts and hooked the kids up w/ a bunch of toys. It looked like Christmas that day. Stuff everywhere! OMG. Anyway, watch out for that gel!

I can't wait to get back to the cabins! We love it over there! So nice and peaceful and the inlaws said we could use their golf cart when we go. THAT will be nice.

YUM! Teppan Edo. My kids' fave too! (And mine as well...must add that.) I love everything about that place. We have a lot of Hibachi here too but at WDW everyone there seems so authentic. The servers have such deep accents and that's so cool!) Here ya might have the blonde hair blue eyed surfer boy serving your hibachi. :rotfl2: I am starving now.

Oh and one last thing...love the older pics. I am a sucker for the older stuff. So cool to see how much everyone changes. GREAT updates girl! :thumbsup2

LOL! Your TR gets a lot of traffic, that's a lot of (fun) work to keep up on. Love the flower pics by the way :)

OMG the blue gel staining would have freaked me out. I'm glad I didn't know that. This is the episode that scared DS8 from ever putting color in his hair again.

He's got REALLY dry skin and still had some cradle cap (which I didn't realize) and the colored spray actually fried his skin/scalp. It was awful!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/ericcrazyhair.jpg

Of course...DS9 probably wouldn't have minded if the top of his head stayed lime green!

A golf cart would be a ton of fun, we couldn't justify the cost but the kids would have loved it and we could have squished. If we stay at the cabins again it'd be fun to have one for a couple of days at least!

Thanks on the old pics....I have so few from that trip I went digging this morning. Found the 2001 DL pics which are a hoot and found all my TRAVEL docs from 2004 (maps, KTTW, etc) but not a single picture. I think my mothers day mantra will be to organize all the pics, it is a disaster down there! I just got my shutterfly book from this trip and it is SOOO cute it makes me want to go back and do one for each of our vacations but...have to find the pics and either upload them, or scan them.

Okay... someone else posted they just noticed you had a TR, so I don't feel quite so bad admitting it myself!

Off to work now, but will be back later to read in it's entirety! :thumbsup2

Kathy

LOL! Considering you've got 2 going on right now (TR and PTR, right?) you are pretty darn busy. And considering I'm only on day 3 and that's taken me 2 months....it's not a very popular TR! Trying to work on it though.

[OneTreeHillAddict]

Poor baby. I was always scared that stuff would color my hair. I had really white hair as a kid.

The golf cart rentals are expensive! My in laws have one though and they said we could use it. If they don't let us I think my neighbor will load us his. Maybe. :rolleyes:

I loved Ft Wilderness though. There was so much to do over there. I can't wait to get back.

You sound like me. I've spent the past couple of days getting pictures in order. I have to order a clandar and now I can't decide on which 12 to use. :rotfl2:

[eandesmom]

Poor baby. I was always scared that stuff would color my hair. I had really white hair as a kid.

The golf cart rentals are expensive! My in laws have one though and they said we could use it. If they don't let us I think my neighbor will load us his. Maybe. :rolleyes:

I loved Ft Wilderness though. There was so much to do over there. I can't wait to get back.

You sound like me. I've spent the past couple of days getting pictures in order. I have to order a clandar and now I can't decide on which 12 to use. :rotfl2:

Calendar's are brutal. I didn't do one this year lol!

The Fort is the best. I can't believe how many trips you have in one year...so not fair! You'll get to test out the new water slide, very fun, the kids are very focused on staying there again versus anywhere else so they can try it! Kind of cute.

I am so dying to go again this year and it is SOOOO not going to happen :(

[eandesmom]

I had to share this, while digging through old pics...I found this.

Then
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disneyland%202001/scan00072.jpg

and now


http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-15/WDW_090215_0243-1.jpg

Yes...the giant sucker still gets him every time!

[carissanboys]

I forgot to say last time how jealous I am that you got to see Off Kilter. I started falling for two of those guys when I first saw pictures posted in someone's TR. :love:

Awesome towel animals!! :thumbsup2

Loved the old pictures. :goodvibes

[eandesmom]

I forgot to say last time how jealous I am that you got to see Off Kilter. I started falling for two of those guys when I first saw pictures posted in someone's TR. :love:

Awesome towel animals!! :thumbsup2

Loved the old pictures. :goodvibes

I need to poke around online and see if I can find their music. They were REALLY good. We could have watched a whole set and DS16 was none to happy about being drug away (and none too happy that we couldn't get better pictures!). Of course in his case that just means quiet but I felt bad.

[eandesmom]

On the subject of old pictures...I wanted to share these

They are from DL but oh...I was shocked when I dug these up at how clear they really were from a '01 Advantix camera! I can't recall Spectromagic at WDW as even though I KNOW we saw it in 04, I have a shocking lack of pictures. I need to ask my mom about that!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disneyland%202001/scan00012.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disneyland%202001/scan00032.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disneyland%202001/scan0031.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disneyland%202001/scan0032.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disneyland%202001/scan0010.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disneyland%202001/scan00092.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disneyland%202001/scan00082.jpg

and...

my dad :)

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disneyland%202001/scan00042.jpg

Hard to see those mickey ears in the dark but let me tell you, the man has gotten an amazing amount of wear out of that hat!

[KathyRN137]

All caught up now.... Yay! :cool1:

I love the old parade pix!

I have a 19 yr old stepson who was able to join us for part of our vacation in '06... those school schedules are horrible to plan around! Anyway, your report reminded me how much fun it was to see the "big" 16 yr old brother play with the "little" (8 and 10 yr old) kids at Disney... :cloud9:

Kathy

[Happydog]

Wow! :goodvibes What delightful updates here! Totally enjoyed the photos then and now! And the towel zoo you came home to! I really enjoyed the Wilderness cabins when we stayed there (only one night but fun!) What a fun surprise I am sure that was!

Looking forward to the rest of your trip!
popcorn::

[Happydog]

:sunny: Happy Mother's Day to you! :sunny:

[eandesmom]

:sunny: Happy Mother's Day to you! :sunny:

I hope you had a lovely one! I did :) Update coming soon!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[eandesmom]

Wow! :goodvibes What delightful updates here! Totally enjoyed the photos then and now! And the towel zoo you came home to! I really enjoyed the Wilderness cabins when we stayed there (only one night but fun!) What a fun surprise I am sure that was!

Looking forward to the rest of your trip!
popcorn::

Thanks for reading! I love the cabins, I'm sure we will be back. Not the next trip (can't see my MIL there lol) but one of these days!

[eandesmom]

Check it out! Off Kilter!!!!!!!!!!!!!

DSD will be stoked lol.


Off-Kilter's Website (http://www.offkilter.net/)

Off kilter video (http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=7223329312070584261)

[carissanboys]

Check it out! Off Kilter!!!!!!!!!!!!!

DSD will be stoked lol.


Off-Kilter's Website (http://www.offkilter.net/)

Off kilter video (http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=7223329312070584261)

Cool! Jamie and Mark are my favorites. :love:

[eandesmom]

And once again, I am woefully behind! Not only in my own TR but in reading others! A relatively good reason though. A 4 day get away with DH (no kids), followed by a short but intense work week, a holiday weekend which included the stomach flu or food poisoning for yours truly and now another short work week. Whew! I plan to get back on top of things this weekend! But...in the meantime a few "date trip" pictures.

Remind you of anything? Anywhere?

:)

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/San%20Diego%202009/IMG_2054.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/San%20Diego%202009/IMG_2056.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/San%20Diego%202009/IMG_2058.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/San%20Diego%202009/IMG_2206-1.jpg


more to follow... it was a GREAT trip!

[KathyRN137]

Bring it on! popcorn::

Kathy

[eandesmom]

Bring it on! popcorn::

Kathy

:)

A small side trip!

These were too wonderful not to share!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/San%20Diego%202009/IMG_2053.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/San%20Diego%202009/IMG_2052.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/San%20Diego%202009/IMG_2051.jpg

my favorite
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/San%20Diego%202009/IMG_2050.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/San%20Diego%202009/IMG_2049.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/San%20Diego%202009/IMG_2046.jpg


I know it's not Disney but.... they were SO wonderful!

:)

[eandesmom]

Day 4! Or 5. I never know whether to count the first day! We didn't go to a park but...we WERE on vacation so I guess this is day 5. :)

The plan was...get there EARLY and have breakfast there. We had CS credits to burn so it seemed like a great plan.

Or at least that was MY plan. Scrooge bought in.

Right?

Right.

Sigh.

16 year old....

back around 1am EST.

One page of homework due via email by midnight PST.

What time do you think he went to bed?????????

I don't know. I was asleep. Scrooge was in charge. And flunked. And based on the grades that showed up upon our return, so did Steven.

But I digress. At this point we were on vacation and largely blissfully unaware of all the homework one 16 year old was really blowing off...and of a major math test he had upon return.

Said 16 year old could NOT be woken up in the am. It was brutal! Brutal brutal brutal. Drums could have been going off...cannons....you name it. By the time we got to DHS, our plan for the day, it was um...11.

waiting for the bus
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090215_0268.jpg

our view, usually it was quiet at the Circle D when we were at the bus stop so it was fun to see a few folks there!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090215_0269.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090215_0270.jpg

or as they liked to remind me, 8am at home. Which seemed perfectly early to the older ones. We were so late that upon trying to get CS bfast at Starring Rolls we found out...it was lunchtime.

Sigh.

We got FP's for RRC, ate and then the big boys took off to check out the Richard Petty Driving experience.

The "little ones" and I?

We kept plenty busy.

[eandesmom]

First....

we found Stitch

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/image24.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/image23.jpg

and then....

the Hat.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090215_0271.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/image18.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/image22.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/image21.jpg

The kids couldn't decide what they wanted to do (beyond TSM which had a 90 minute wait and we'd already gotten RRC FP's) So I happily found the photopass guy. The kids didn't seem to mind.

With TSM a bust (for now and we really wanted FP's for all anyway and of course, Scrooge and Steven had left with their KTTW) the next stop was...

American Idol! Open for all of 2 days. What would the wait be?

[OneTreeHillAddict]

The photopass pics turned out so good! You look like one of the kids. :goodvibes Can't wait to see what you think of AI. We've yet to see it. Next time for sure!

[Happydog]

Glad to see you have returned to your TR! Looking forward to more, a fun post! :thumbsup2 loved the "Stitch" photos :laughing:

[eandesmom]

The photopass pics turned out so good! You look like one of the kids. :goodvibes Can't wait to see what you think of AI. We've yet to see it. Next time for sure!

:rotfl:

yeah...complete with the same zit Tink had! Rosacea is my punishment for acne free teen years. Sigh. FL humidity and 5 hour plane rides are not terribly kind to my skin.

Still I really like these pics, framed one of them. It cracks me up how DS9 is not looking the same way as the rest of us in the Stitch shot.

What kills me about this round of pictures is how tall she looks! My MIL was out about a month after the trip and remarked that we were getting close in size. I pooh-phooed her but then about a month after that had to invest in a fair amount of new clothes for the girl, she HAD grown. Crazy how it sneaks up!

[eandesmom]

Glad to see you have returned to your TR! Looking forward to more, a fun post! :thumbsup2 loved the "Stitch" photos :laughing:

Thanks! More to follow :)

[eandesmom]

What do you want to do? I don't know, what do you want to do?



***Hollywood Public Works saves the day!***


or the morning at least :)

Now our morning had been just about as indecisive as the entire day before from the minute we'd finally arrived. First it was about what to eat.

No one could actually TELL me what they wanted. Vague mentions of pastries were made so off to Starring Rolls we went. Despite all the bad reviews it was the only place I could think of that would have pastries. Really, finding a muffin shouldn't be that hard! Breakfast was over and while they had tons of pastries, none were pleasing DH who was being rather Scrooge like. So we headed over to Anaheim fruit which had...fruit.

Not many other options, I wasn't interested in even looking at the ABC Commisary so we headed back to Starring Rolls where 4 of us got lunch (which was actually AMAZING...the turkey on foccacia was surprisingly fabulous) and the very wonderful CM helped us cobble a full meal together out of extra sides or desserts for the 3 meals (no one needed or wanted a side AND dessert, AND the giant sandwich...which included chips somehow....) plus one snack credit for Wall-E which included a chocolate muffin as big as his head. Seriously. That CM was so cool, I'd have done another full CS and she very nicely said I didn't need to and the 3 meals would cover it plus the one credit. Seriously? So cool.

Scrooge decided to get a Turkey Leg.

Okay....no blueberry scone so you'll sub a Turkey Leg? And then text me b/c you don't trust it's really on "the list" and you are back all the way over at Toluca? Even though I'm trying to get 4 kids through the line at SR?

Good lord that thing was huge. And if memory serves, it was a SNACK credit!

Suffice to say the plan for burning CS credits at bfast AND lunch that day was shot.

No one needed lunch.

After we'd eaten it there was much discussion about what to do, everyone having a different opinion. So we split up, big boys to check out fast cars and we checked out TSM.

NO luck but, another photo op!
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090215_0273.jpg

Here is Tink looking cool and Wall-E I am sure describing to all exactly where we should go. No clue but he is clearly being very descriptive to the other 2! LOL.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090215_0272.jpg

So, TSM out, with the 90 minute wait it became the

what do you want to do?

I don't know

what do you want to do?

I don't know.

Sigh.

So we wandered. Quite a bit actually, the 3 younger ones and I. And found that photpass guy that Scrooge wasn't keen on dealing with. He's since reformed, seeing the errors of his ways now that we are back and how cute the very few photos we had taken turned out.

We'd planned to do Idol later that day with the whole gang and with it being only day 2 of AI we assumed the waits would be hideous. We weren't in a rush to go stand in line and since no one could agree, we headed to the locker to check our bag for the night (EMH and dinner at PTC we expected it to cool off and had no plans to go back to the resort. Walking out I drug them into a couple of shops, searching for the wine glasses my mom had asked for. Spotted them and made a mental note of where to go back later.

HSM was floating by or playing everywhere we went all day so we kept trying to go around it, it was almost comical. DS8 likes HSM, DSD 12 is far too cool (or "over it" lol) and DS7 could care less. But it became a bit annoying....it didn't stop. All day! And we'd seen it before when we'd hopped in the day before. Kind of like the Celebrations Parade at MK, we couldn't escape it.

So the shops were a bit of a hiding spot too. Coming out of one of the shops we were stopped by a crowd.

What could it be?

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090215_0279.jpg

The Hollywood Public Works!

These guys were HYSTERICAL! And got DS8 right into the mix, he was in heaven. Tink, who I assumed would be bored was rolling with laughter. The kids got sooooo into it and had so much fun, it really set the tone for the rest of the day and made it very "Hollywood" and less "ride" focused which was kind of a cool switch to flip as at this point, we'd really not seen any shows.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090215_0274.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090215_0275.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090215_0276.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090215_0277.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090215_0278.jpg

You can't really tell from the pics but they were engaging with DS8 most of the show. He still talks about it and has these pictures up in his room. So cute!

Afterward it was getting warm so we decided it was snack time. As with the CS credits, we had snack credits to burn.

I seriously cannot imagine DDP. We are eaters. Foodies even. We couldn't use the credits we had on the regular DDP to save our soul. Granted some of it was bad flight times but still, it was pathetic!

We headed over to Indiana Jones to see what the wait was and grabbed a snack at a cart near there. Wall-E almost lost it as they did not have mickey bars (only sandwiches) but was consoled with something (though I can't recall what) and the bigger kids got frozen lemonades. I got an espresso! Our timing was off on the Indy show so we figured we'd check out AI. The next show was soon so we assumed they'd already let that group in and would get in line for the next one which would give us plenty of time to finish our snacks. To our huge surprise despite the large outside waiting area, the line MOVED almost immediately and all to soon we were at the "toss your drink" point of no return.

Tink and and Goofy had not made a dent in the lemonades (and weren't loving them).

What to do??????????

Throw food away?

I have a very hard time with waste.

I have a very hard time with kids asking for a treat and then not liking it.


Even it was already paid for and we had more than we could use. It's the principle of the thing!

Hmmmn.........

[eandesmom]

Oh what the heck! It's vacation!

First you wait outside on a slanted area where they come out and "film" the crowds reactions, pretty funny. We got onscreen a couple of times, the kids got a huge kick out of that.

Then you are ushered in. The set looks fabulous. In the arm rest of each chair is the voting and they explain how to do it. And then I re-explained more than once, to the kids how it worked lol!

There are up to 6 shows a day and then the final for that day, I think. We were on show 2 or 3 at this point.

The set
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090215_0280.jpg

The host, he was good
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090215_0281.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090215_0283.jpg

The three contestants
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090216_0185.jpg

The judges
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090216_0186.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090216_0187.jpg

3 contestants at each show, the winner goes on to the final.

They were surprisingly good, all of them. I'd expected at least one horrible singer but nope! Cute packaged clips of each.

I actually snuck some video of each, it was fun!

Overall I was impressed with the quality of the set, the show and the singers. And glad we'd gone to one of the individual qualifying shows. Would we make it back for the final later that day????


Stay tuned!

[Happydog]

Hey! Looks neat! Not going to do the American Idol on our trip, but it sure looks like it was a neat addition to DHS. Also loved the Public Works shtick!
Fun times! :thumbsup2

[eandesmom]

Hey! Looks neat! Not going to do the American Idol on our trip, but it sure looks like it was a neat addition to DHS. Also loved the Public Works shtick!
Fun times! :thumbsup2

Hi!

No AI? why? Just curious. The kids really really liked it. There are only so many shows you can fit in though!

[carissanboys]

Our snack credits would have gotten out of control if we hadn't used them for breakfast items every other day.

Loved hearing about AI! I so wanted to do it on our trip, but it just didn't work out. And this is the first time I've heard anyone actually check it out. :thumbsup2

[eandesmom]

Our snack credits would have gotten out of control if we hadn't used them for breakfast items every other day.

Loved hearing about AI! I so wanted to do it on our trip, but it just didn't work out. And this is the first time I've heard anyone actually check it out. :thumbsup2

Isn't that funny? We had breakfast stuff at the cabin but it's not like anyone ate huge breakfasts but we had zero issues using up the snack credits. The CS credits were a whole other story! But if we hadn't had the breakfast stuff we could have easily used them for breakfast items and been just fine.

More coming on AI! :)

[eandesmom]

update coming!

It's been crazy around here....DS9 turned 10 and is preparing to test for his first degree black belt in tae kwon do this coming friday. I swear the test is as much work for the parents...my goodness it's been intense! Tonight he's at 4 hours of class and then we will do some more studying tonight and tomorrow and then...we will see.

I'm worn out! And on top of it, after the final test, he has his birthday party with his friends and then on Sunday gets to go get his bday present...a new cat!

So...I'm behind in my TR as usual!

Here's my now 10 year old doing his normal birthday event...a game with grandpa, who also has the same birthday! They got to run the bases which was pretty cool.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Kids/Evan%20Birthday%202009/DSCF2772.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Kids/Evan%20Birthday%202009/DSCF2774-1.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Kids/Evan%20Birthday%202009/DSCF2785.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Kids/Evan%20Birthday%202009/DSCF2771.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Kids/Evan%20Birthday%202009/DSCF2786.jpg

And a "small" piece of birthday desert.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Kids/Evan%20Birthday%202009/DSCF2794.jpg

[OneTreeHillAddict]

What a fun birthday! "Small" piece of dessert? :lmao:I'd gain 10 pounds from that!

[KathyRN137]

Said 16 year old could NOT be woken up in the am. It was brutal! Brutal brutal brutal. Drums could have been going off...cannons....you name it. By the time we got to DHS, our plan for the day, it was um...11.




I feel for you! My DSS (now 19) was such a heavy sleeper, we nicknamed him "The Log" (as in, "Sleeps like a...) ;)

The photopass pix are great!!

AI looks like fun... but DD13 says she's not interested!! (With rolled eyes.) She's the same way about HSM, too...

Funny how you "couldn't escape it!"

Kathy

[eandesmom]

What a fun birthday! "Small" piece of dessert? :lmao:I'd gain 10 pounds from that!

LOL!

yeah, it's mile high mud pie, a dessert they always bring out for birthdays at one of our favorite family restaurants (and my dad's favorite too so he picked). Dad and DS each got one so Dad's got split 6 ways with the adults that were there, DS's 4 ways with his little brother and 2 cousins. Those things are monstrous!

The kids got it made, I think he'll get a total of 5 birthday desserts. A cake by my mom at the family party, ice cream for our immediate family dinner at home, the slice of mud pie and then I'm sure he'll have something at his friend party this sat night...not to mention the cookies he took to class!

Jeesh....I was lucky to get ONE cake at his age. Or still! :)

[eandesmom]

I feel for you! My DSS (now 19) was such a heavy sleeper, we nicknamed him "The Log" (as in, "Sleeps like a...) ;)

The photopass pix are great!!

AI looks like fun... but DD13 says she's not interested!! (With rolled eyes.) She's the same way about HSM, too...

Funny how you "couldn't escape it!"

Kathy

Oh teen sleeping is something else isn't it! DSS actually missed youth group on Sunday (which is one of the few things he is motivated to do) as he stayed up to late, didn't set the alarm, didn't ask to be woken up and so DH let him sleep. DSS was not happy but hopefully it was a lesson. Still, even when he DOES set the alarm...it just goes off and off and off and off...until DH goes in and pokes him!

He's better than he used to be, DSD is horrid on the weekends but the girl works so hard all week between school and sports that if she doesn't have something sports wise in the am, I'm a little more lenient, she's got to catch up sometime.

DSD was fairly ambivalent about AI but loved it once we were there and she isn't that into the actual show....I think it's the tween MO for just about everything. Unless it's related to Twilight :)

Although she does think the guy from Prince Caspian is kinda cute!

[cap'njack.]

Loving your trip report so far...:thumbsup2

[eandesmom]

After AI we had time to kill before our RRC FP's were ready and the big boys were not back yet. After yes, another swing by TSM (up to 120 minutes and at this point I suggested we give up until EMH and RUN to the FP stands the minute EMH started) and a consult with the general schedule, I tentatively suggested what "I" wanted to do, never expecting the kids to go for it. Much to my surprise, they were all for it!

And so we were off!

On the way we decided to get another snack. I'd been holding firm on not letting the kids use snack credits for soda's as that just seemed like a huge waste but the fact was...it was hot...we had plenty and...it was vacation!

DHS was SO great with the snack credit labeling. Really all the parks were except for Epcot so it made it nice, I "could" look at my cheat sheet but so many places were well marked that we could peruse as we walked by which was nice.

As we headed over we were entertained by more of the street performers, the infamous floozy, but I didn't take any pictures. We were thirsty!

Tink opted for popcorn over soda, it was one or the other but man...I can't eat popcorn without soemthing to drink so I thought she was crazy and it was warm out but...when you are 12 I guess you don't care if you want popcorn! In retrospect a good thing though as she's "off" the popcorn for the foreseeable future...it doesn't mix well with braces!

So, one bottled water, 1 large sport drink, 1 soda and a popcorn later we were ready to go in to

Beauty and the Beast!


Yep, I'm a huge Belle fan. Not really a princess-y girl per-se, partially from not having girls (Tink was 7 when I met her and was NOT girly at all...a super jock even then) and as a child I was definitely a tomboy, even now I don't really "do" pink, but.... Belle is the bomb. It might be the yellow dress (my favorite color), it might be the brown hair (like mine) or the fact that she's a bookworm but...Belle is the bomb.

I'm not a character clothing kind of person (on adults anyways) in general but I did pick up a Belle shirt while there, at AK on the last day, I hadn't seen it before all week. It says "I'm with Beast".

Scrooge was less than thrilled especially as I wouldn't let him buy the "I'm grumpy because I'm with Dopey" shirt for himself. I had to remind him that


I'm not Dopey
Beast turned out to be a great guy

:rotfl:

I hadn't seen the show before, last time the 2 little ones were only 4&5 and Scrooge wasn't remotely interested in seeing it, not to mention the fact that we never seemed to hit it at the right time but it always seemed to fill up anytime we'd gone by so it looked like a "hot" ticket lol. Or at least 4 years ago it had and I wanted to see it.

We got some great seats. Of course, right as we were walking in I get a text from Scrooge saying he and Steven are there. I let him know where we are and get a giant NOT from him. As in he is not interested lol! So we agree to meet at RRC after the show and they go to get a snack themselves.

Not the best pictures in the world, I was watching more than snapping
:goodvibes

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090216_0198.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090216_0199.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090216_0200.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090216_0201.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090216_0202.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090216_0203.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090216_0204.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090216_0205.jpg

Goofy and Wall-E were surprisingly enthralled and spent a lot of time discussing just how the beast turned into the prince, they were quite fascinated by it. I think I get so used to movies and special effects that I forget at times how effective a stage show can be for that aspect.

Tink loved it, but I knew she would. Besides, she knows Belle is the bomb!

It was funny, it had to be at least 3pm by this point, and all we'd done were shows all day, not a single ride. And yet, we were all quite content.

Next...RRC!


Will Tink survive the suspense?


Will she actually get on the ride?

Will I survive the questioning of what to expect before we get on the ride?

[eandesmom]

Loving your trip report so far...:thumbsup2

Hi! Thanks for stopping by, glad you are enjoying it. Welcome!!

[eandesmom]

My goodness what a week! black belts, birthday parties and a new cat! More updates coming soon. We've all been wrapped up in DS10 this week but as we told him last night, his reign as king has come to a close and we will move back into equal share :)

It's been a lot of fun to see his moment in the sun. According to him, it was

"the best weekend of my whole life!"

I should say so!

Friday night started with DS10's (aka E1 aka Goofy) actual black belt test. The E1 thing has been around for a while, Both of the younger boys names start with E (hence the eandesmom) and E1 adn E2 has long been a joke based off of Thing 1 and Thing 2. But I digress.

A written test followed by a fitness test. He had to do a 5 page essay but that had been due a few days before so that was over. Originally 43 candidates (adults and kids) could have qualified for some level of testing (first degree or higher), they only test 2x a year. By the time testing came it was down to 16 that had done what they needed to, to take the test. Of those 16, 7 were going for first degree national level, the rest already had their black belt and were going for higher levels (1st degree international, 2nd degree, etc. Up to a 4th degree international!).

It was brutal. Of the 7, only 5 passed the written test. They say that if you don't pass the first time, 99.9% give up and don't try again. I truly hope they do try again and prove the odds wrong, it was absolutely heartbreaking. It wasn't helped by how AWFUL one of the parents was when their child didn't pass, stating loudly so everyone could hear how his child will quit and won't be back. Nice example dude. Now I have my 10 year old talking about what a poor sport a dad was. :confused3 One of the principles of TKD is to never quit, no matter what and to try and try again.


For those that did pass the written, (E1 got 108%!) it was on to the fitness test, a 3 mile run followed by 50 sit ups, leg lifts, back arches and push ups. Ugh! If you make it through that, the next day is the rest of the test. So Saturday dawned bright and early and the remaining 14 candidates completed their test in full uniform, in front of a crowd. 4 random Poomses (the form of tkd, by belt level), mystery board break where the candidate stands in the center of the room, 6 instructors surround them in different positions, different angles with boards while the candidates eyes are closed and then they open them and have to figure out what technique to use to break each board and go quickly around the circle without stopping, sparring and then power break which is breaking through multiple boards at once to get to their new belt.

It was something else! And, if I have to say so myself, he was amazing.
Pictures don't really show much but the videos are so cool! But here he is. He is so excited, tonight will be the first class he gets to wear it to and he can't wait.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Black%20Belt/IMG_2298.jpg
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Black%20Belt/IMG_2307.jpg

Following that (and the RELIEF of it being over) we got ready for E1's friends party. He wanted his own "signature dining" experience for his birthday. He's been dying to eat at the top of the Space Needle. And thanks to the fact that they had a kids menu, we let him pick 2 friends to come and then they had a sleepover. Originally I'd planned it for the 6th and then realized that was insane as he'd be gone all day on the 7th with grandpa at the M's game and the test was coming up in less than a week so it was his last full prep day. Rescheduling the party made all the difference in the prep, I am SO glad I did it. However I forgot to call the restaurant until a couple of weeks after that. When I did I was informed they couldn't fit us! Thankfully if we split into 2 tables they could do it. One of the other kids mom's offered to take DS8 (E2) for the night (he's buddies with E1's friends little brother it works out well). We were able to have booths next to each other, the boys had their own table and DH and I had a lovely evening of our own. I have to admit, it might have been my favorite "kids" party as a result!

It's funny, you do the parties at a bowling alley, a pool, whatever or even at home and by the time you get food, cake, snacks, treat bags or pay any rental fees, it adds up SO fast! This might seem over the top, I don't know, but what I do know is that I didn't spend any more than I would have with all that other stuff for a party at my house with 4 times as many kids and my house wasn't trashed, I didn't have to do any prep work, it was stress free and I had a lovely evening with DH. And E1 had a truly special night with his best friends...much better than the parties with 8-10 kids.

The restaurant spins around and does a full 360 every 47 minutes. We tried to time our reservation to see the sunset. I hadn't been there in decades and the restaurant had been redone. I'd heard the food was better but "just ok". It was actually fabulous, we were so pleasantly surprised! The service was fabulous, they'd asked if we wanted anything special at the table when I made the original ressie and I'd selected a balloon. When I switched dates I didn't bring it up but not only did they have it, they had the kids table preset just for them upon arrival, no "who sits where" and then coming back with the kids menu. They did a great job of checking with me on drink orders being ok, and the suggesting the "lunar orbiter" dessert for the birthday boy. The boys were beautifully behaved (for the most part, there was some french fry stealing and they got a little squirrely at the end but that was post sugar...I mean ice cream and it had been 2 hours at the table by then) and they received several compliments.

Of course, all that, and they ordered cheeseburgers (and a ceasar salad with chicken). LOL! I thought for sure they would all get salmon or steak, which didn't really cost much more but...whatever. Their burgers were HUGE! And gone, in relatively short order.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Kids/Evan%20Birthday%202009/IMG_2311.jpg


http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Kids/Evan%20Birthday%202009/IMG_2320.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Kids/Evan%20Birthday%202009/IMG_2323.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Kids/Evan%20Birthday%202009/IMG_2324.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Kids/Evan%20Birthday%202009/IMG_2330.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Kids/Evan%20Birthday%202009/IMG_2331.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Kids/Evan%20Birthday%202009/IMG_2338.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Kids/Evan%20Birthday%202009/IMG_2339.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Kids/Evan%20Birthday%202009/IMG_2347.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Kids/Evan%20Birthday%202009/IMG_2349.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Kids/Evan%20Birthday%202009/IMG_2354.jpg

With that over we spent yesterday getting E1 his birthday present. An new cat!

I haven't had a chance to take pictures yet but will, he is adorable. Our current cat isn't quite sure so we are keeping them separated for now, we will see how long that lasts!

We've also been trying to figure out a summer vacation (non disney, wah!) and I think I forget (selectively) just how nightmarish this is every summer. Between dual households and K's crazy soccer schedule I'm feeling very discouraged and beaten down. The one week that worked, K was invited to vacation with another family so we were trumped. The other potential week, she is an alternate for the Region IV ODP camp so if anyone gets injured, she goes. Which means we don't know until the day before that camp starts. It's tough. I remember being almost 13 and I'd have rather vacationed with a good friend too (not that it was every a us versus them thing mind you), and we also support her soccer, these are very very good things, she works hard and has earned it. But finding a free, full week, is next to impossible. DSS16 may have a job and I fear our days of family vacations are changing rapidly into something different.

We're trying to do it on the cheap, camping wise but have been getting stymied on many fronts and I've gotten tired of looking. K is going to one of the places we had in mind with her friend, T is going to another with his youth group...so it kind of takes the wind out of my sails. I've been joking that the 4 of us (E's, DH and I) shoudl just go to Hawaii and visit my cousins.
But, even though airfares are amazing, that doesn't exactly count as "cheap" and we are saving for THV next summer and maybe DC in the spring.

So we will see, right now I'm not motivated to plan and have told DH if he want's to plan it, go for it but I'm tired of doing all the homework to have it not work out. We've already missed out on all the main campsites I had in mind.

But on to happier things like new kitty's, and then soon, another update!

[Happydog]

Wow! I enjoyed your update! The boys looked like they had a blast!!! I have never been in the space needle, but hear it is really cool! looking forward to another installment! :thumbsup2

[eandesmom]

Wow! I enjoyed your update! The boys looked like they had a blast!!! I have never been in the space needle, but hear it is really cool! looking forward to another installment! :thumbsup2

Thanks! They did have a blast. Unfortunately we didn't really have time to look at all the interactive information on the interior of the observation deck, there is some great stuff there.

Updates this weekend, I've been busy getting the birthday boys present...aka a new cat, acclimated :)

[carissanboys]

Wow! Congrats to your son on the black belt! :thumbsup2

Btw - I'm the same way about princesses and Belle. Princesses I can do without. But, I love Belle. I think it's because she loves to read. :goodvibes

We saw the same Belle perform - she was great. :thumbsup2

[eandesmom]

Wow! Congrats to your son on the black belt! :thumbsup2

Btw - I'm the same way about princesses and Belle. Princesses I can do without. But, I love Belle. I think it's because she loves to read. :goodvibes

We saw the same Belle perform - she was great. :thumbsup2

Belle is the bomb.

[eandesmom]

Now, where was I?

Oh yeah.

RRC or bust!


Beauty and the Beast concluded we headed over to meet the big guys. The entire walk over, the entire time we were in line, Tink badgered me.


"Does it go upside down?"

"What is a barrel roll?"

"Does it go upside down?"

"I'm scared!"


She wanted a play by play, minute by minute, explanation of exactly what to expect on the ride.

I hadn't been on RRC in 4 years and while I remembered it was fast, dark and cool, and the aforementioned barrel roll, I couldn't remember much more than that.

To be fair...the roll DOES go upside down. And we didn't tell her that. Deliberately. She would not have gotten on. Scrooge and I figured that explaining it a more of a side roll, which it is, would go over better. Which it kind of is.

We both completely forgot that there is a second full upside down loop. Completely. I was so grateful the entire trip that neither of the little boys seemed to care that Tink HAD to sit next to me on every ride, they didn't seem to mind being next to each other.

The boys were in the car in front of us
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/RockandRollerCoaster.jpg

I think her expression on test track is the funniest of the entire trip, but this one is pretty good too! Her hair cracks me up. (just wait till we get to EE!)

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/RockandRollerCoaster2.jpg

Getting off, she admitted she liked it. I confessed that we'd kind of lied about the barrel roll but that we really had forgotten about the 2nd loop. She admitted she wouldn't have gotten on had she known but was glad she did :)

Huge progress for both Steven and Tink. It was by FAR the most intense roller coaster they'd ever been on, historically they've avoided them like the plague. A turning point, they got the bug and it lasted the rest of the trip. Very cool for the rest of us as we are coaster junkies.

As the big boys has missed all the shows we decided to head over to Indiana Jones. It had been quite a warm day at this point so we did a slight detour by the PTC lounge to grab scrooge and I a beer lol. Question is, would they let us into the theater with them?

Scrooge made a big show of hiding his, which was pretty silly and not necessary, it's an outside show of course (and we'd had beverages and snacks during Beauty) but he was cracking me up like he was trying to do something SO wrong.

Unfortunately, I have zero pictures because....

5 minutes into the show, Wall-E starts in..

I have to go to the bathroom.

I have to go REALLY bad

REALLY bad mom

Dude, just hold it about 20 minutes, we are in the middle of the row of a REALLY packed theater.

Mom, I can't.

NO really, I can't.


He is dancing and wiggling on the bench, grabbing himself, you know how it goes.

ok. here is my less than stellar parenting moment of the trip.

Wall-E is 8. With a bladder of steel. Sure, he will wait until he is dying to say he has to go and then start dancing around but holding it until he can, never a problem.

Trust me. We did a 3500 mile road trip last summer and Wall-E was never the issue in this area.

He's whining at this point. Really loudly. Won't stop. People are looking. So we exit. Not easily. It is very very full, standing room only, middle of the show. People are NOT happy that we are trying to get out. Not fun. As we walk over to the restroom....Wall-E loses it.

Literally.


Not completely but enough to be, uh, noticable in his clothing.

In a million years I didn't see that coming. I'm mad, at him, at me and at the fact that he's got wet shorts and we do not have a change of clothing. Nor am I going to reward him (he had plenty of time to tell us he needed to go, after beauty, after RRC, while I was in the lounge getting the beers for Scrooge and I, etc.) with a new Disney pair. But we had a long evening still to go and no plans to go back to the cabin.

So after he's completely relieved himself, I send him back and forth bringing out wet paper towels, and with a bottle of water and a messy "hand" wash/spot clean in front of the restroom, I sent him back in to hold his shorts under the hand dryer as they are now far wetter than they were. If anyone saw him and thought I was horrible for doing that, I apologize! At 8 he's too big to go into the ladies room and the rest of the gang was still in the theater.

While it felt like it took forever I was still surprised that the gang came out just as we were finishing. Next on our agenda was the AI finale but Wall-E needed to drip dry so Scrooge spent some time perusing the Indy hats, he's been looking for a specific hat for while (no go) and the rest checked out pins.

Next.

The American Idol finale, will Scrooge and Steven like it as much as we did?

PTC, what will the kids think of the "show"? I hadn't warned them....

and EMH at DHS!

[eandesmom]

Happy Fathers Day!!!!!!!!!!!

I hope everyone has a wonderful day! We are off to go watch Scrooge fly, go out to lunch and then see Night at the Museum. I think the kids are happier with his plan then when on Mothers Day, I drug them out to a nursery to look at Japanese Maples. :)

[15isto2]

Loving the report so far

[eandesmom]

Loving the report so far

Hi and welcome!!! I hope you keep checking in :)

[eandesmom]

As dry as Wall-E was going to get, we headed over to the AI finale for the day. The 3 of us that had been earlier were quite curious to see how our girl stacked up against the other finalists for the day.

Here they are, the final six for the day!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090216_0206.jpg

a slightly different line up of judges
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090216_0207.jpg

Close ups... the winner from the show we'd seen earlier is 2nd from the left, for some reason I didn't take a close up of her although I did shoot some video.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090216_0208.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090216_0209.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090216_0210.jpg


and...the winner!
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090216_0212.jpg

we'll see if he makes it far on the "real" auditions with his fast pass to the front of the line. They ALL were surprisingly good. This guy clearly had more experience. But most of them should really try out, for real.

Scrooge and Steven were blown away by the talent, they apparently hadn't believed my texting and our conservations about how good people really were.

Shows over for the day, we headed to PTC to check in. Now we'd been burned a couple of times with people getting a drink, etc and not being with us when our pager went off so the gang was under strict instructions not to move.

Scrooge and Steven were freaking out as our ressie was at 7....the EMH switch over and they were dying to run and grab FP's. The place was a MOB scene. So many families turned away, trying to get a bite to eat. They were sold out for the entire night through EMH, so for the next 3 hours! It reminded me of our trip 4 years prior when we hadn't made a single ADR (who knew? We didn't! We do now!). Scrooge really appreciated all the planning at that point. He'd been concerned about being "limited" by our ADR's but not once did we have an issue (well, other than missing fireworks!).

Finally we were taken to our table. I had NOT warned the kids about the "show" at all. Our CM launched right in, seizing on Steven and Tink.

"Did you wash your hand's?"

Yes

"What color was the soap"


uh

uh

uh


Tink looks at me....

uh

uh

pink?

WRONG ANSWER!

She was pretty abused for the rest of the night but oh, our guy was hysterical and the service impeccable. We ordered drinks, a picnic punch for me and a beer for Scrooge. Then Steven and Scrooge ran to get FP's and our jackets (but left rest of the stuff in the locker...something we'd regret later).

Their mission? TSM for 4 of us, RRC for the 2 big guys. They were gone forever!

My drink arrived.
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090216_0217.jpg

Tink was hassled.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090216_0224.jpg

I was abused...our CM joking that we'd been ditched and they were never coming back.

We wondered what the heck was going on!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090216_0213.jpg

Our CM kept calling Goofy "Scooter" which we all though was hysterical. He didn't think so although I'm not sure why.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090216_0214.jpg

Our view. the kids were very entertained by the old shows,

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090216_0215.jpg


FINALLY they arrived. After the food! TSM did NOT reset for FP's and they'd gone there first. So instead they got 4 RRC and 2 TOT.

Yep. WALL-E had been dying to go on TOT all day. All week actually. Which is pretty funny when you consider that he'd been traumatized by it as a 4 year old. Which meant I got to go on it with him (Scrooge is not a TOT fan). It is not my favorite kind of ride, at all. But heck, if Wall-E of all people can handle it, I figured I had to.

The food was the BOMB! Best tuna noodle casserole ever!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090216_0221.jpg

Tink's salmon
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090216_0222.jpg

Steven's pot roast. For some reason he didn't realize this is what pot roast was and was initially taken aback by the onions but he said the flavor was outstanding.
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090216_0223.jpg

The boys drinks (we let them use our adult drinks at each meal lol)
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090216_0218.jpg

Tink checking out the dessert menu
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090216_0220.jpg

We ordered dessert even though we did not have an ounce of room for it. I recall a cobbler and a bread pudding...I think. They were good, but we were so stuffed we didn't enjoy them and took only token bites. Kind of sad!

Next..

Will I survive TOT?

What about those wine glasses for my mom, will I remember?

Will we ever get on TSM??????????

[Happydog]

Wow! Really fun post about the 50's prime time and your day at DHS!!! I have an ADR there for lunch, can't wait to try it!

I don't know much about the AI show, I just know it wouldn't be interesting for our DS's -- too young, and I don't know that I would want to sit through it. Not a big fan of the regular show, sooo..

Anyway, looking forward to the TOT tale!!!

[eandesmom]

Wow! Really fun post about the 50's prime time and your day at DHS!!! I have an ADR there for lunch, can't wait to try it!

I don't know much about the AI show, I just know it wouldn't be interesting for our DS's -- too young, and I don't know that I would want to sit through it. Not a big fan of the regular show, sooo..

Anyway, looking forward to the TOT tale!!!

We loved PTC, I will look forward to hearing how your lunch is! It was definitely one of my favorite meals of the trip, I'm trying to duplicate that tuna noodle casserole (egg noodles but with red and green peppers and then a full seared ahi steak on top with bread crumbs...not my mom's tuna noodle casserole for sure!). I did it once and while it was quite tasty, it wasn't the same. Need to keep trying :)

Re: AI. Yeah, if you aren't into the show IRL then I can see it not being much of a draw. We enjoy AI (well further into the show at any rate) but for the singing only. We tend to DVR it and FF through all the judges comments. Our kids loved it but at the ages you have...I'd skip it too!

TOT.:scared1:

[Angies1274]

I'm really enjoying reading your TR. I found it yesterday and spent the afternoon catching up.:goodvibes Great pictures!! Can't wait for more...popcorn::

[eandesmom]

I'm really enjoying reading your TR. I found it yesterday and spent the afternoon catching up.:goodvibes Great pictures!! Can't wait for more...popcorn::

Hi Angie! Thanks for stopping by :) update coming soon!!!!

[eandesmom]

Full, and with fast passes in hand, we split up. Big kids and Scrooge to RRC, Wall-E and I to..

TOT.

Now, TOT is not my favorite ride. But Wall-E is my timid guy, my "geek" if you will. He finds his thrills in books, in science, in nature. His idea of adventure is taking on work that is 2 grades above him. But if someone ELSE is driving...and he isn't the one having to be in control it's

Faster Faster Faster!

Higher Higher Higher!


He was not always this way and I love the dichotomy of it all.

So...off to TOT we go.

We breeze to the front, not even enough time for me to get freaked out. I have falling issues. I can do some pretty intense coasters but falling, I really don't like. But hey, he's 8 and he's all over it. Almost immediately we are in our elevator, seated in the back row.

I've done this before.

I should be prepared.

Bag in lap I remind Wall-E to take off his hat so it doesn't go flying.

And we go.

UP

Dowwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwnnnnnnnnnn



Up!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Downnnnnnnnnnnn.........


My purse pop opens and the contents go

UPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPP

and Down.......................

I grab stuff, sitting on it, jamming it back in and we go


Up!!!!!!!!!!!!!

and Down........

and my camera goes


Up!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

and Down............

My phone goes

Up!!!!!!!!!!!!

and Down..........

I was EXHAUSTED by the end.

Not to mention the fact that I screamed my head off the entire time. I'd look outside when the doors opened, freak out, my stuff would go flying...and then THUMP land in my lap, oh my!

Wall-E's hat went up and down too but I was too freaked out about my camera and phone to notice.

I did NOT have a big bag with me. A clutch really, nicely placed under my belt in my lap (no pockets to hold stuff or I missed that somehow).

Whew!!

Ride over we went to check out the pictures. Sadly people in front of us had their arms up so Wall-E was completely blocked.

Texting the rest of the crew, they weren't even on RRC yet, even with FP's. So what's a girl to do?

Go shopping.

I had gifts to get.

I got my mom these. She's bought some on their last trip and my aunt somehow broke them? I didn't want to know....

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/8624M-1.jpg

And my sister this. She'd specifically requested any Disney game, in a tin. This seemed appropriate!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/pic274008-1.jpg
Wall-E and I headed over to TSM. The plan was to meet there and try to get on it. It still was showing a crazy wait but we figured what the heck, just do it. It took those 4 FOREVER to get there. First they sent Tink and Wall-E ahead, the big boys wanted to go on RRC again. Great idea but I needed their KTTW cards. So they had to come back and get them to me.

Would we make it?

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-16/WDW_090216_0230-1.jpg

No joke...2 minutes before EMH ended we were in line for TSM! Finally! After what felt like days of trying!

I have no pictures. All I can say is Scrooge was a Scrooge to pass up TSM for yet another ride on RRC. He didn't know what he was missing. My arm was SORE afterwards.

And with that we headed back to the cabin.

Next...a LAZY day, A massage and some serious spinning.

[Angies1274]

Great Update:thumbsup2 I've never rode TOT before but your description made me feel like I was riding right along with you!! That was too funny reading about your stuff going up and then down.:rotfl: (although, I'm sure it wasn't for you at the time.) I hoping to talk the boys into riding it when we head back in August. My oldest son is timid also and although my youngest is somewhat of a daredevil, he didn't want to ride last time if his big brother didn't.:confused3

Glad you finally got to ride TSM:goodvibes and with only 2 minutes to spare...wow!!

[labordefam3]

Have had a great time reading this! Can't wait for more.

[eandesmom]

Have had a great time reading this! Can't wait for more.

Welcome welcome!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:goodvibes

[KathyRN137]

Hooray!! I'm so happy that you finally got to go on TSM!!

We love 50's PTC! I think it's hysterical that you didn't "warn" the kids about the schtick!!

And the Up...Down...Up...Down... sequence was a riot! :rotfl2:

Looking forward to more...


Kathy

[TarzansKat]

I'm here, I'm here, I'm here! :yay::yay::yay:

Hi. :wave:

It took me a couple days, but I finally made it through your thread. :goodvibes First of all, you have a lovely family. Second of all, I lov reading about them!

You have a lot of moments that are so similar to mine, I just have to laugh.

"What do you want to do?"

"I don't know, what do you want to do?"

"I don't know."

I swear, it's the curse of traveling with that many people, I know it is! :rotfl2:

[eandesmom]

I'm here, I'm here, I'm here! :yay::yay::yay:

Hi. :wave:

It took me a couple days, but I finally made it through your thread. :goodvibes First of all, you have a lovely family. Second of all, I lov reading about them!

You have a lot of moments that are so similar to mine, I just have to laugh.

"What do you want to do?"

"I don't know, what do you want to do?"

"I don't know."

I swear, it's the curse of traveling with that many people, I know it is! :rotfl2:

Welcome welcome welcome!:dance3:

and thank you thank you thank you :) I rather like them....most of the time!

We have the "I don't know" syndrome all the time. At Disney it is about what do you want to do. At home we have.


"What do you want to eat?" (for breakfast, for lunch, for snack....)

"I don't know"

At night it's "what do you want to watch?" (on tv)

"I don't know"


Hmmmn...

"What do you know?"

"I don't know"

:)

[TarzansKat]

I rather like them....most of the time!

And that pretty much sums up how I feel about my family! :lmao:


We have the "I don't know" syndrome all the time. At Disney it is about what do you want to do. At home we have.


"What do you want to eat?" (for breakfast, for lunch, for snack....)

"I don't know"

At night it's "what do you want to watch?" (on tv)

"I don't know"


Hmmmn...

"What do you know?"

"I don't know"

:)

Well, glad to know I'm not the only one who has to deal with this. Except here, it's more like,

"Mama, I'm hungry."

"Okay, what would you like?"

"I don't know."

"Do you want strawberries?"

"No."

"Do you want toast?"

"No."

"Do you want an apple and cheese?"

"No."

"GO IN THE FRIDGE AND PICK SOMETHING!!!!!!" :rotfl2:

Granted, he is four, but most of our struggles are that he wants something he shouldn't have for breakfast like...ice cream. :lmao:

[eandesmom]

Day 6 dawned absolutely lovely. Today was "my" day. We had tried to schedule one "special" thing for each person during the trip.


Scrooge got to go fly
Steven got to go to HOB. He has another one still coming (and he doesn't know) and he got to go watch the Richard Petty experience.
Tink got her pedicure
Goofy and Wall-E went to the MSB.


This morning I woke up before the rest of the crew. Scrooge, being the love that he is, popped up and made me coffee. I used Tink's refillable mug so I could take it to go. I strolled out to the bud stop and it was so lovely, and i had enough time, I just kept walking until one came by. I headed down to the marina. Where was I going?

I hopped on a very empty boat and soon my destination began to show.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090216_0231.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090216_0232-1.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090216_0233.jpg

I had never been to the WL before and decided to stroll a little bit. I figured out where I needed to go so I wouldn't be late and then since I was still early and decided to burn some of those CS credits with breakfast at the Roaring Fork. I had a lovely yogurt parfait from their "bar", some oj, a banana and a nice refill on the coffee. So far so good.

My time was drawing near so I headed out.

And down.

And through.

Into the WLV.

To...

the Fitness Center!

Which also has

MASSAGE!


This was my birthday present from the boys. My birthday had been the previous week (so no button or free entry for me, wah!) and this is what I'd wanted.

I checked in.

They didn't have me down. Or at least not at the time I had written down!

They’d had me down for an hour earlier than I had written down. Thankfully they were able to get me in a mere half hour later and it was not a problem at all. I was able to get a little workout in while I waited which was really nice. Rachel was my masseuse, I believe the famous Rachel R (for anyone looking through the spa threads) and I did tell her that I preferred firm. She asked if I wanted deep tissue and I said I’d LOVE that, she mentioned it would be an up charge which I said was fine.

I had a 50 minute massage and it was just heavenly. Definitely plenty of pressure, on the verge of too much which is actually perfect as it does the job so much better for me once we are done! I thought she was fabulous and at check-out there was no up-charge and the rates seemed about $18 lower than what I thought I’d seen online so that was a nice treat! I would absolutely go back and it was a nice little gym as well.

After I was done I called the crew.

Today was "lazy day at the resort". And since the FW main pool was undergoing rehab, our plan was to use the WL pool...since we could! We had an "official letter" and everything! :cool1:

The original plan had been for them to come over, have breakfast there (again, those darn CS credits that seemed to be breeding and multiplying), hang out at the pool, have lunch there and then play the rest by ear. Dinner was the late show at HDDR so we had lots of time to do...whatever!

The rest of the crew was, however, still on west coast time. The little ones were very anxious to get going but those older ones were NOT moving. Of course part of it "could" have been the fact that I'd let Tink and Goofy hit the quiet pool when we got back to the room at midnight but Goofy had no issues getting up according to Scrooge. As usual it was Steven that he couldn't budge. So Scrooge decided to just ditch him and bring the pool hounds over to WL.

While I was waiting, I did some wandering.

Checked out the geyser.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0107.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0106-1.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0105.jpg

Checked out the pool
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0108.jpg

and the pool bar. I was clearly right back at home, one of our favorite local brews was on tap at the pool bar. WL is VERY pacific northwest, no doubt. I was excited to see the tap selection. Sad but true, we are beer snobs and it made for something to look forward to for a poolside lunch.

Looking down at the pool.
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0127.jpg

Finally, they arrived!

What's first? Lunch or Pool? Pool or Lunch?

I don't know, what do you want to do?

I don't know, what do you want to do?

I don't know, what do you want to do?

oh my goodness! It's 11am...I have NO interest in ruining the relaxation from my workout, massage and lovely healthy breakfast. What's a girl to do?

Head to that poolside bar for a Redhook ESB of course! (to share with Scrooge while the minions debated what to do first).

Next....are we capable of being lazy? really?

[TarzansKat]

I love it! A well deserved massage for mom!

You know how to travel, my friend. I really like that each one of you got their own special thing to do, that makes the vacation so nice.

And oh my goodness, are your photos of WL making me very nostalgic. This chapter should have come with a disclaimer. TK, you can't change your resort now, but prepare yourself to drool over your happy place. :lmao:

[eandesmom]

I love it! A well deserved massage for mom!

You know how to travel, my friend. I really like that each one of you got their own special thing to do, that makes the vacation so nice.

And oh my goodness, are your photos of WL making me very nostalgic. This chapter should have come with a disclaimer. TK, you can't change your resort now, but prepare yourself to drool over your happy place. :lmao:

awwww..... thanks!

I think that's why I have PDD. It isn't really so much PDD. It's NTD. No travel depression.

I am a planner and I (we) love to travel. We usually have 1-2 fun things planned for each summer. Last summer it was a 2 week road trip to the Grand Canyon.

This summer.

Nada.

Life is getting in the way and it's making me cranky and resentful and I need to get over it. It "is what it is" but...it still bums me out and I need to snap out of it! A planner who can't plan is a frustrated soul. And while we DO have plans for 2010 THV...it's a wee bit early for a PTR and any "real" plans in that area.

I may vent about it, I need to get it out but really, just need to get over it. LOL! Blended life can be a PITA at times suffice to say.

Ah...WL. DH REALLY wants to stay there badly. It reminds me quite a bit of where we got married, a very very special place. Part of me wants to stay there and part of me thinks it really isn't very vacation-like if we pick something so much like home and so "not" away from home! But....the place we got married IS "our happy place" so......there you go :)

Then again, I'm not sure the THV are much of a stretch either. THV wins only b/c is sleeps 9 for less $$ and the layout is the bomb for the tentative group we have going. But I'll tell you this, if we EVER get to go for Thanksgiving or Christmas (and DH did a double take when he saw Free Dining was extended, he actually considered turkey day on his own for 09....for a millisecond), it will be WLV for sure!

We had a GREAT day there...more to come...but the kids want to stay there as their "2nd choice" after FW for the next trip. Having not seen THV they can't quite grasp it but like the idea. I'll miss the boat to the MK though, that's for sure!

[burly]

Still loving this TR. Thanks for sharing with us.popcorn::

[TarzansKat]

I know how you feel, hon. The thought of not booking bounceback when I go in September sends my stomach into knots. It's extremely rare that I don't have a Disney vacation planned, at least one per year.

What with DS going to kindergarten in fall of 2010, and my desire to go back to school, I'm just not sure it'll be feasible or financially responsible.

I hate being an adult. :lmao:

I love the Wilderness Lodge, and I had some of the reservations you did. Where I live has a very outdoorsy feel to it, and I thought, is this not enough "away from home" for me. But it so, so is. I love it there. :goodvibes

[eandesmom]

Still loving this TR. Thanks for sharing with us.popcorn::

:) Thanks!

[eandesmom]

I hate being an adult. :lmao:



Yeah. Me too.

It's funny, I was ok not booking bounceback. Free Dining and the buy 4 get 3 are better promo's for our clan and I knew it would come up. Bounceback was just too soon for DH. I have to pace him. He'd be on the every 3 year plan and I'm trying to move that up. 18 months is pretty soon for him. We are big on travel. Both with the full family, and as a couple and I am used to (spoiled?) planning some fun things even if they aren't exotic or expensive. So I'm ok with waiting till 8/10 for the world. For us, it's a big and far away trip and the blended family logistics/scheduling is difficult at best.

Which brings me to my current malaise. Or part of it anyway.

We are a blended family. In our case that means we have my 2 (the younger ones) 24/7. We have DH's 2, my skids, EOW and every Thursday. We are also supposed to get the skids for 2 weeks in the summer, 1 week at xmas and "other time" as reasonably split (i.e. presidents week/spring break, the schools do not always take a full week for presidents so that varies).

We alternate thanksgivings and xmas is always a negotiation nightmare. Don't get me started. At any rate, (and here is the vent) Dh's plan really has no PLANNING provisions when it comes to the summer vacation part. Sure, he gets 2 weeks but there is no notification period, no right of first refusal, no real guarantee that the kids mom will ever actually agree to the weeks we request.

Before anyone thinks I'm slamming the skids mom, I'm not. She loves her kids, she does. She is very different than I but she'd do anything for her kids. The problem is "anything" in her mind is a very different parenting style than DH and I have. Anything means that the kids dictate what they do at the other house. Where they go, who they go with, when they go. Or not go. They call the shots. And she would prefer that they called the shots over here, or that she dictated where we go. So, for example on our Feb trip she was NOT supportive of them going. She wanted us to ask them if they wanted to go and if not, choose somewhere else that they picked. She felt they were too old. Well, as it was a xmas present, that didn't really work. Not to mention the fact that we felt strongly a 16 and 12 year old should get to pick where the family goes! So we decided to go ahead and give it as they gift and the skids could chose to join us or not. As you can see, they chose to come, and had a blast. We have GREAT family trips together but the drama around it with their mom is, well, draining to say the least.

Tink is a jock. And then some. Part of the drama for the Feb trip was that she'd miss 2 basketball practices for her middle school team. Which meant that she'd miss the 1st 2 games as she wouldn't have enough practice in by school rules. No issues with Tink missing school but sports come first with her mom (granted as a straight A student, we don't have to worry about grades with Tink).

Now, if basketball was her primary, or favorite sport, I could get it. But it's not. It is by far her least proficient sport and she barely made the team. But until the 11th hour there was the possibility that Tink would pull out due to the disapproval of her mom for her missing those 2 practices. It puts Tink in a hideous position which I can't stand.

Fast forward to summer. As I mentioned, Tink is a jock. And then some. She plays select soccer, which is year round. This year they changed the tryout schedules to better time state cup games with high school soccer. That meant that we didn't know what team she'd be on (officially) until late may and didn't get a summer tournament schedule until early June.

We knew that and had figured that once we had it, we'd figure out a week that worked around the tournaments (as of COURSE she can't miss one, or the practices right before) and go then. Since we'd done a huge 2 week road trip last summer (which was also met with dissaproval from the other house but the kids had a blast) and had just done Disney in Dec, we figured we'd just camp somewhere new...be flexible about where and it wouldn't be that hard to make something fit locally.

Except it is that hard.

Bottom line is a total of 3 weeks/weekends worked. Except none of them do.

The first week, which would have fallen over "our" weekend, and was ideal from our perspective, we put our request in for. That won't work as Tink had been invited to go on vacation with a friends family and her mom had already told them she could go. Ok...that was OUR weekend and she is supposed to ask before she does stuff like that. She never does and it puts us in that bad spot, we like her friend, of course we want her to be able to go, but it literally steals critical time from us. Not to mention the fact that it falls over Tink bday, which she historically has at our lake club and had planned to this summer as well. Since her bday fell on the weekend, our weekend, we assumed that would be the day for the party. Guess not.

After much huffing and puffing a weekend trade was made. Which, had they simply asked up front, would have eliminated the drama and bad feelings.

2 other potential weeks/weekends were left. Except those were iffy. In addition to Tink's regular team, she's in our state ODP pool. Which means Olympic Development. There is a regional camp that the top 16 girls go to. Tink had been playing on their "b" team so DH felt assured she wouldn't go. Her mom was convinced she had a good chance.

Sure enough...she was named an alternate.Which means life is on hold until up to 2 days before the 1 week camp, waiting to see if someone gets hurt.

Again, DH was convinced no one would get hurt so requested that week from the ex, stating we'd go with or without Tink (go where is another issue but I'll get to that separately).

Sure enough, now Tink is being invited to scrimmage with the "a" team and is on all the "a" team emails. Is she going? Is she not? Who knows. All I know is it's in 2 weeks and we can't plan anything.

We "have" to take that week with Steven at a minimum and now DH is all stressed as there isn't anything cool planned. And I'm cranky as we shouldn't have to romance his kids. This is NOT coming from the skids at all, purely stuff DH puts on himself and his ex well, feeds on, sadly. The skids rock. They truly do. I love those kids. I'd walk through fire for them. I am blessed to have them in my life. And DH fights these battles, they aren't mine but it is hard to watch.

So here is where I'm at and I need to snap out of it. I am always the vacation planner, I love it. I can't plan this time. More importantly (and disturbingly) I don't want to plan.

I'm not going to book things, to have to go back and cancel. I don't even have anywhere I want to book. 2 of the places that were highest on our list are kind of "ruined" for me, for this summer anyway. One, Tink is going to with her friend and the 2nd, Steven went to last week with his youth group! We like to do new things with the kids. And sure, it'd be new to the little ones but the older ones would be bored, BTDT kind of thing (or at least that's DH's fear). Again, his issue but it's such a pervasive issue, now I'm paranoid!

I have told DH I'm not planning anything. I'm fried. I've come up with idea after idea after idea. I've sent links. We can't schedule anything and I'm done. What we could have done is gone now anyway. So if he wants to do something then, he has to plan it. Which he won't. And so I have

NTD. No travel depression.

We do have a 3 day camping trip with friends with just the little boys. We will go to all of Tinks tournaments, none of which are local. And on one my FIL and his wife will join us. I do have a girls retreat weekend in late August. But we have no true FAMILY trip and I really really look forward to those. Right now I "guess" we are going to my family's cabin for a couple of the days but DH is so less than excited, part of me is "why bother". :( NOT LIKE ME AT ALL!

It's the first day of summer for me, mentally. The younger boys just got out of school last Wednesday. Technically I am sort of out of a job as of tomorrow. I cleared out my desk yesterday. So I have the ability to actually enjoy summer days with them which I should be excited about. I have plans to go to the lake with them later today and meet friends, hopefully that will jump start me. But I'm cranky about this whole vacation thing (and mildly stressed about the job thing). So I am not as much fun to be around as I'd like to be....especially when the conversation turns to "what are you guys up to this summer?"

Sigh.

I really, truly, seriously considered running away with the 2 younger ones to Hawaii for a week to visit cousins. Airfares are amazing right now. But with the job thing...a no go. I looked at DLR. We could drive. It's a long drive (and also cheap flights) but....it's not the World. I can't justify the cost, which is the same as a deluxe in the world, for DLR. I've stayed off property there before...not the same.

I have a lead on something amazing on the job front...have had 2 interviews but...won't know till the end of the month. Because the hiring folks are on their OWN vacations. Kind of ironic.

So, 8/10 THV. We are going to go then no matter what. We are going to book regardless of the fact that we will not have a clue when soccer is. If the skids can go, want to go, are allowed to go, great. If not, well then it's an if not. My MIL and her husband will be with us so hopefully that will sway the skids into correctly prioritizing family. But we won't know until June. Makes the ADR thing kinda hard :(


Allright. If you read any of this, thanks and I'll stop whining now.

[Angies1274]

Love the update.:thumbsup2 oohhh....a massage!! What a great birthday present!! I love all the pictures of the WL!!:goodvibes I'm hoping to stay there one day. It looks like a beautiful resort.:cloud9:

[eandesmom]

Love the update.:thumbsup2 oohhh....a massage!! What a great birthday present!! I love all the pictures of the WL!!:goodvibes I'm hoping to stay there one day. It looks like a beautiful resort.:cloud9:

More pictures coming! We will stay there one day for sure, it is just lovely!

[AmandaSparks730]

Nice TR :)

Steven is cute :blush:

And I'll be 16 in a month!

[TarzansKat]

Aw, hon. :hug: I read the whole thing, and I feel for you. In some ways, I really understand how you feel. My husband's parents are divorced, and for a long time, it wasn't pretty. Without going into it, we had very, very similar issues that you do. My husband is one of four, and the younger two siblings were still at home, and...what a mess.

It's much better now but there's still a lot of animosity and a lot of manipulation. I won't go into it, you don't need my whole laundry list of family issues, but suffice it to say, I get you. And it is frustrating not to be able to plan anything, especially when you're someone who loves to travel. :hug:

[cjackearl]

Hello.:wave2: Stopping by to say you have an adorable family and you truly do look like you could pass for one of the siblings.

We saw some of FW when we went to the HDDR and it looked like a fun place to stay. It sounds like a great fit for your crew.:thumbsup2

Sorry about all of the vacay planning drama.:sad2: Hope something works out soon.

Oh and congratulations to E#1 on his black belt! WOW!! What an amazing accomplishment.:woohoo:

[KathyRN137]

MASSAGE!


This was my birthday present from the boys. My birthday had been the previous week (so no button or free entry for me, wah!) and this is what I'd wanted.

Next....are we capable of being lazy? really?


NICE!!:thumbsup2

It is so hard to be truly lazy at Disney (at least I think so!!)

Kathy

[eandesmom]

Nice TR :)

Steven is cute :blush:

And I'll be 16 in a month!

:) He is cute (though I'm not sure he'd like hearing me say so!). But then again, I'm biased.

[eandesmom]

Aw, hon. :hug: I read the whole thing, and I feel for you. In some ways, I really understand how you feel. My husband's parents are divorced, and for a long time, it wasn't pretty. Without going into it, we had very, very similar issues that you do. My husband is one of four, and the younger two siblings were still at home, and...what a mess.

It's much better now but there's still a lot of animosity and a lot of manipulation. I won't go into it, you don't need my whole laundry list of family issues, but suffice it to say, I get you. And it is frustrating not to be able to plan anything, especially when you're someone who loves to travel. :hug:

Ah you know...really I whine too much. Truly, this is the only issue that really impacts me. And most of the time I can really roll with it. I was a stepkid, heck I still am. And I was blessed. My mom IS my stepmom. A long long story but she really, truly saved my family. DH's folks are both remarried as well and his stepmom is the bomb. So is his mom. Leave it to me to have 3 MIL's! (my ex's MIL refuses to give me up she says lol).

So I get it. And I get that it's hard, and I am incredibly lucky. I personally have zero issues with the skids mom, and vice versa. She's never brought my boys or I into any issues she and my DH have. And for the most part she doesn't put the skids in the middle, for which I am grateful for.

I'm on a step parenting board. It could be SOOOO much worse. I actually don't go there much anymore as I don't need to, which is pretty cool. I can step back and let DH fight his battles when he needs to, it's the best thing for all of us.

And she does honestly, I believe, have what she thinks are the skids best interests at heart. They are her life. She is allowed to have different opinions on what is right for them, I respect that. I'm blessed to have 2 really great skids....who don't seem to think I'm the evil step mom (yet lol). It's been 7 years total so I'm hoping it may never happen. You never know though! I truly enjoy those kids and it seems to be mutual.

I'm just a planner who can't plan and it bums me out. I'm not mad at anyone, it really "is what it is" but that frantic planning energy needs to get directed somewhere....I'm just not sure where! I love planning our family trips and I guess I'm having a hard time letting go of the idea of something this summer. You know, they are getting older and with DSS in particular, it's slipping away, the "family" vacation thing. I just wasn't quite ready to let it go, I think it's thrown both of us for a loop. I completely support what Tink is doing, just having my own pity party I guess! I'll get over it but thanks all, for listening.

[eandesmom]

Hello.:wave2: Stopping by to say you have an adorable family and you truly do look like you could pass for one of the siblings.

We saw some of FW when we went to the HDDR and it looked like a fun place to stay. It sounds like a great fit for your crew.:thumbsup2

Sorry about all of the vacay planning drama.:sad2: Hope something works out soon.

Oh and congratulations to E#1 on his black belt! WOW!! What an amazing accomplishment.:woohoo:

:lmao: It must be the giant sunglasses. 40's are the new 30's. LOL! But thank you, that's incredibly sweet!

FW is absolutely wonderful, a very good (albeit tight!) fit for our gang. Not sure I'll share a bed with Tink again though...that girl is a snuggler...and heavy! And a heavy sleeper! I'd forgotten. It was kind of funny...but I didn't get much sleep the first couple nights until I acclimated. We need more beds next time.

Thanks on E1. We are incredibly proud of him. He really blew us away at the testing. You think you know your kids and then sometimes, they just blow you out of the water.

[eandesmom]

NICE!!:thumbsup2

It is so hard to be truly lazy at Disney (at least I think so!!)

Kathy

It was nice! I HIGHLY recommend the massage at WL! The GF was fancier to be sure...if you want a spa, WL is not it but oh, did it do the trick! :)

I'm not good at lazy period... thankfully the rest of the gang isn't all that lazy either or we'd have a real problem! Teens in the morning don't count and heck, with as hard as Tink works....she deserves to sleep in when she can (not that it kept me from being cranky about it once or twice lol!).

[eandesmom]

No one could really decide what they wanted to do. It was a bit breezy and Tink was feeling cold so Tink and Scrooge decided to hit Roaring Forks for food, Wall-E and Goofy hit the pool.

They came back with this.


http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090216_0237.jpg

Officially dubbed the best burger in the world by our entire crew. WHY I didn't get one, I still don't know. Scrooge had a double, Tink a single. I had Scrooge get me a turkey panini...or at leas that's what I thought the menu said. Had I looked more closely I'd have realized it was the same sandwich I'd had the day before at Starring Rolls! Except the one at Starring Rolls was a million times better! That's what I get for trying to have a healthy lunch, it was the wrong call! I WILL have that burger one of these days!

The Wall-E had to check out the slide, first slide of the trip.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090216_0235.jpg

But soon enough, they too were hungry. And wet, I had no interest in bringing them into RF to pick out their food so I took their orders and went in to get it.

Now, I'll be honest here. Prior to leaving I'd understood that a CS credit was a CS credit and was a CS credit. Meaning no difference btw adult and child CS. They certainly were never broken out on receipts. And not once on the trip had it been an issue, the kids were with us when we ordered and ordered what they wanted. However, at RF it was different. They asked when I placed the order if it was for a child. I was getting Wall-E a the burger and Goofy chicken strips. The kids burger was tiny and the kids nuggets were also tiny (and nuggets versus strips). Here's the thing. At this point I knew we were going to have serious CS credits left over. So...I said they weren't kids meals as I saw no reason why we couldn't use our adult credits (even though they weren't actually broken out as such!). It's true. I lied. And I don't feel bad about it either. We still had 11 unused CS credits at the end of the trip so I can't say I feel like we took advantage of anything.

Flame me now, it's ok. I'd have had to get another kids meal for them to split to fill them up, they both ate the whole thing.

Just about the time we all finished eating, Steven finally straggled over. He was hungry.

Back to this

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090216_0237.jpg


And Scrooge got a flatbread pizza, burning yet another CS credit lol.

No picture of the pizza but MAN did it look good (and was according to Scrooge) who then groaned and asked why I made him eat that. I think he felt he HAD to try and use up our CS credits...lol!

The group debated what to do, we had the whole day "free". Swim, rent bikes, go to any park they wanted, DTD, whatever. Tink didn't care, the younger boys wanted to swim and Steven and Scrooge took off to rent...

Searaycers! We had a voucher for 90 minutes at the 60 minute price so they were all over that. But there was ONE small problem.

Scrooge couldn't find his sunglasses. He assumed I had them with me. Uh...nope. Apparently he'd looked everywhere for them at the cabin.

Uh oh. I looked down. I was using a different bag and wearing different sunglasses. We looked at each other.

Holy guacamole. We left the bag in the locker at DHS! A basically empty bag
that had 4 pairs of sunglasses in it and some sunscreen. Yikes. Ok, that meant a little bit of a regroup. Scrooge decided to tough it out and SeaRayce anyways...he and Steven would go get the bag after they raced around Bay Lake. Oops! We assumed the bag would still be there but of course the KEY to the locker was back at the cabin in the backpack, Scrooge hadn't brought it with him to WL. So they'd have to go back to FW, then to DHS. UGH!

Feeling mildly guilty (though it takes 2 to space out lol) I watched the big boys head down to the marina.

The wind had died down a little and so it was POOL time for the younger ones.

Tink wasn't so sure but then...

CUTE GUY ALERT!

Which meant....

a little showing off :)

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0114.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0115.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0116.jpg

This is a ritual with Tink. She does handstands and I judget them on a 10 point scale. These were 8's I think.

we had some wrestling...
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090216_0238.jpg

some more sliding
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0122.jpg

a little chilling out in the hot tub

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0112.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0111.jpg

hey, the sun is bright!
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0113.jpg

and some limbo!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0118.jpg
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0119.jpg
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0120.jpg

Hey! that's cheating!
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0123.jpg

It was funny, at first they were less than impressed with the WL pool! I think it was a combination of the wind chilling them and the fact that they "said" that the water was colder than the water in the FW quiet pool. Personally I think it was simply b/c they kind of owned the quiet pool and with it being more of a lap pool it was much more conducive to some good marco polo and this busy pool didn't work so well for that. Soon enough, they got over that and loved their pool time.

While Goofy was doing the limbo I decided it was time to reapply. First off, Tink

She grabs the sunsncreen and goes "wait!" "watch" "I have an idea"

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0124.jpg

:rotfl2: love it!

By the time the limbo was done they had been in the pool for over 2 hours, maybe closer to 3. I hadn't been paying attention to the time. I'd been strolling around with the various "look at me, look at me's" all over the pool. And I'd watched the geyser, snagged another Redhook and was just generally being mellow.

Second up for sunscreen....Goofy, he was dry and I wanted to get him before he went back in the pool. "But MOM....I don't burn!" he wailed. Tough big guy. And time to put your shirt ON!

Wall-E had NOT been out of it since we got there and wasn't happy about the idea at all. But he needed another application.

Upon close up inspection.... Wall-E was PINK! That kid burns if you look at him. I'd slathered him with 70 but typically I also make him wear a hat, even in the water at all times. I was out of practice. So we re-lubed everyone up, hat went back ON and they got a little more pool time. Tink was kind of "done" and everyone wanted to check out the mercantile and pin kiosks (not to mention hit the restrooms) and refill Tinks mug with soda this time. So inside we went. Scrooge and Steven were not yet back but caught up with us inside, I wanted to change and so we met in the Lobby. The big boys told us about their adventure.

Apparently they SeaRaycers "can" hold 2. But 2 big adults made it like a put put race. So they went back and got 2 of them instead. Ouch ($$) but oh well. They had fun and really enjoyed the sights. Scrooge was bummed he didn't take the camera with him. They headed off to do the FW/DHS run and we went....

Shopping!

[TarzansKat]

Okay, that last chapter made me hungry. :lmao:

I'm so glad everyone had a good time swimming! I love the Wilderness Lodge, we had a great time at the pool on our last trip. And Roaring Forks has some great basic counter service type stuff (and yummy sandwiches too). :thumbsup2

[Sunset Cliffs]

Hi there! I'm jumping in late to your TR. Right now I am only on page 5, but I wanted to comment so far. First, what a fun family you have. It seems like you are able to navigate a vacation with ease and I'm sure most larger families can not say that!

As for the Del hotel, I used to live in San Diego and I LOVE that hotel. We used to drive over and go to their beach because it was so pretty there. I've always thought that WDW copied the Del as well. ;) I'm pretty sure you have already gone on that trip and come back by now, so I hope you had a great time!

[cjackearl]

Ok lady, I haven't even had dinner yet and now I want a Disney burger AND a micro brew!:rotfl:

I spy a hidden Mickey in sunscreen. Cute idea, Tink.:)

Well I went back to look at your pictures again and now I want my Disney burger and micro brew in a hot tub.:cloud9:

No flames here for the CS usage. Disney definitely didn't lose any money on you and the kids meal choices get old fast for some kids, although I'm pretty sure Ian happily ate cheese pizza every day of our trip.:rotfl:

Those SeaRaycers do look pretty small. Renting two, although more $$, was probably a good idea.

[Angies1274]

Another great update as always.:thumbsup2 That burger looks so good!!! It's making me hungry just looking at it......

It looks like everyone had a great time swimming!! I love the sunscreen Mickey--too cute!!;)

Cant wait for more...popcorn::

[eandesmom]

Okay, that last chapter made me hungry. :lmao:

I'm so glad everyone had a good time swimming! I love the Wilderness Lodge, we had a great time at the pool on our last trip. And Roaring Forks has some great basic counter service type stuff (and yummy sandwiches too). :thumbsup2

It's funny, I spent a lot of time on the dining board before the trip and all the deluxes seem to get slammed for their CS offerings. In comparison to the value's in particularly I guess. I am not a food court kind of gal so for me, the CS offerings at both GF and WL were perfect. Small and limited? Maybe, but varied enough for me! The lines were long in the am, I will agree with that and I guess the size of RF compared to the size of WL...maybe it is on the small side but still, I was pleasantly surprised.

Hi there! I'm jumping in late to your TR. Right now I am only on page 5, but I wanted to comment so far. First, what a fun family you have. It seems like you are able to navigate a vacation with ease and I'm sure most larger families can not say that!

As for the Del hotel, I used to live in San Diego and I LOVE that hotel. We used to drive over and go to their beach because it was so pretty there. I've always thought that WDW copied the Del as well. ;) I'm pretty sure you have already gone on that trip and come back by now, so I hope you had a great time!

First off, Welcome Welcome!:goodvibes

Oh gosh, thanks! It's a great crew, we are really really blessed and we do have a lot of fun. I am from a large family and I think it helps...it's all I know!

I loved the Del. I did have a shock upon walking inside it though. I really expected it to be all light and airy on the inside and wasn't prepared for all the dark wood! The contrast was wild. Still....unless I could have one of the cottages or a walk out beach room, I think I'd pick the hotel we stayed at (Glorietta) across the street, over it, every time. The price difference was insane! We spent a lot of time on that beach though and I am quite sure we will be back! Coronodo was a perfect weekend getaway from here, I could make it an annual date weekend!.

[eandesmom]

Ok lady, I haven't even had dinner yet and now I want a Disney burger AND a micro brew!:rotfl:

I spy a hidden Mickey in sunscreen. Cute idea, Tink.:)

Well I went back to look at your pictures again and now I want my Disney burger and micro brew in a hot tub.:cloud9:

No flames here for the CS usage. Disney definitely didn't lose any money on you and the kids meal choices get old fast for some kids, although I'm pretty sure Ian happily ate cheese pizza every day of our trip.:rotfl:

Those SeaRaycers do look pretty small. Renting two, although more $$, was probably a good idea.

I have to admit, that sounds pretty darn good. That burger, a microbrew and a hot tub! About all I'm likely to see anytime soon is a microbrew. :lmao:

DH and Steven aren't exactly small, I wish I had a picture of both of them in the Searaycer and it just put putting along....speed demons those two, it would have been funny! :rotfl:

Tink cracked me up with her hidden mickey, We'd been spotting them all week and then of course Goofy had one in his hair. Sadly, she did have to destroy it and rub it in.

Another great update as always.:thumbsup2 That burger looks so good!!! It's making me hungry just looking at it......

It looks like everyone had a great time swimming!! I love the sunscreen Mickey--too cute!!;)

Cant wait for more...popcorn::

I am getting one of those burgers next time....even if we are staying elsewhere. Seriously. I should have just tossed my sandwich and gotten one but I couldn't be that wasteful (but it was ok to just not use 11 cs credits?:confused3)

We can always go to RF for lunch on a MK day...right?:rotfl2:

[eandesmom]

Today we are off to check this out

http://disney.go.com/disneypictures/christmascaroltraintour/

It's free, it's Disney, it's Jim Carrey so...why not?

I don't really get how a Christmas Carol translates to a Train Tour but who cares! A way to keep kids entertained on a summer day.

[cjackearl]

Sounds like a good use of a summer day. Take some pictures for us, ok?:flower3:

[eandesmom]

We had all headed over to WL that day with pool stuff and not much more. I had the clothes I'd worn on the way to my massage but it had warmed up considerably. Despite that I cobbled together an odd combination of items so I wasn't walking around in my pool cover up for the rest of the day. As cute as it might be, I draw the line somewhere!

Tink was less than thrilled with her clothing options but none of us were motivated enough to go back to the fort to change...we'd just deal with it. I was less than thrilled with her clothing options too. Her shirt was filthy! I expect Wall-E's to be covered with food most of the time but hers...ugh! I don't think I'd looked that closely at it until then. She and Scrooge and gone for a run before heading over and then she'd worn it as her beach cover up.

UGH!

Our plan was...


hit the mercantile

hit the pin kiosk

get a snack

head to the MK.


First. The mercantile. I had hit this earlier and had bought the 3 younger ones some charms for their lanyards. I gave them to them before we went in. Goofy found a really cute Jack charm that he hung from his necklace (very creative thinking on his part) and it looks very cool. He still wears it all the time. Other than that though, there wasn't much unique. Except for a pair of red Minnie Mouse capri sweat pants that I really kind of wanted for me!

Tink had used up most of her $$ the previous night at RRC. She got some killer peach capri RRC sweats that she still lives in. They came in handy too as it cooled off that night. So while she was eying things and charms, she was about out of loot. I decided to hold on the sweats. If there had been a cute tank to go with them...I'd probably have done it but I didn't love the shirt that matched it. I still kind of want those sweats though!

Then....to the pin kiosk.

We didn't see much for the kids here but got one for Scrooge, my dad and my mom. Scrooges is the best. He isn't a lanyard guy but he put this right on his daypack where it still lives. It has Grumpy on it and kind of looks like a beer label. It says

Xtra Stout...always bitter..never boring.


:rotfl2:

We got the same one for my dad, he has a lot of grumpy gear and this fit with that. For mom, a St. Patrick's day mickey. She is obsessed with St. Patrick's day. Growing up we ate green food all day.

The kids wanted me to get a mothers day pin for myself, I didn't and I should have. Next time!

Then...snacks. We filled up the mug and got mickey bars for Wall-E and I, I think Tink had a huge chocolate muffin or brownie, or cookie and I"m sure Goofy picked a fruit bar. While we were finishing the snacks we decided to take a couple of pictures, exploring the upper part of the pool area.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0125.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0126.jpg

One more trip to the rest room and it was time to go. I asked Tink if she wanted another refill for her mug.

No mug.

Where is the mug.

I don't know.

When did you have it last?

I don't know.

Sigh.

We retraced every single step but...no mug. While I think I got my money's worth out of it, at best I probably broke even and worse we wouldn't have it to bring home as a souvenir. I wasn't about to buy another one with only 1.5 days left but still, it was sad!

We headed down to the marina..me a little cranky with kids who ask for stuff and then leave it everywhere (we'd had 2 cell phone incidents on the trip already, one earlier that day, one the night before...she would leave it in the bathroom stall!) so I was mildly irritated at the utter lack of responsibility for her own things.

Amazing how one little boat ride can help shake it off!

Again the MK was PACKED! OMG. Packed. And hot. I was NOT dressed for it. I am not a "jeans in warm weather" kind of gal. I'm not as bad as some Seattleites who put on shorts when it hits 50 but still! Ugh. Not an outfit I'd have ever put together but better than the long sleeved thermal top and vest I'd worn over in the am!

First stop....a couple of pictures. What else can you do when the 3 kids ALL have different opinions on where to go first. :)

Laugh Floor!

Buzz Light Year!

Space Mountain!

BTMRR!

oy.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0139.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0137.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0138.jpg

The lines for all of the above however, and the lateness of the day meant long waits and no FP's.

We did a quick swing by the speedway and I grabbed a much needed espresso and we debated. And debated. And realized there was an opportunity!

We were sans Scrooge!

Who is the teacup hater!

I LOVE the teacups :)

Whoo hooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Prior to takeoff

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0128.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0129.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0130.jpg

Notice Wall-E's VERY pink cheeks. Bad mama.

They spun.

I tried to take pictures.

And yes, I was in the teacup with them.

Here are the results.:rotfl2:

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0133-1.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0132.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0131.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0134.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0135.jpg

Goofy doesn't look so sure at the end !
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0136.jpg

Next.....will the guys make it back from the great bag recovery before we have to head back to the fort?

And...The Hoop De Doo Review!

[KathyRN137]

Hi Cynthia!

Glad you're back to posting... I missed you guys!

DD(13) was chuckling at Tinks's response to losing her mug... sounded just like her!!

I'm the sunburn police officer in my house, too! :rolleyes:

Kathy

[cjackearl]

The top of cheekbones are a hard spot to screen just right. My red heads have gotten some pink cheeks a time or two.

Just looking at you in your jeans and black tee is making me sweat. Hope the sun went down extra quickly for you.

Cute tea cup pictures.:)

[lisalonglash]

I followed your link from DisMomAmy's trippie :goodvibes Thanks to your handy-dandy links, I've read the whole shebang now :cool1:

You and your lovely family have had a pretty good time so far, I hope that continues! :thumbsup2 Your Goofy sounds a lot like my Tigger (10yo) and your Wall-E sounds like my Mickey (7yo), that just makes your trippie more fun to read for me! Oh, also that you flew out of SEA - we had direct redeye Alaska Air flights to/from MCO last trip, but they've discontinued the direct red-eye flight darnit, so we had to take a one-stop red-eye on Delta this time.

I'm looking forward to reading more... popcorn::

[eandesmom]

Hi Cynthia!

Glad you're back to posting... I missed you guys!

DD(13) was chuckling at Tinks's response to losing her mug... sounded just like her!!

I'm the sunburn police officer in my house, too! :rolleyes:

Kathy

Hi Kathy! awww...Thanks :) nice to be back. I think "I don't know" is universal 13 year old girl language. lol!

Once again I didn't "screen" enough today...although slathered and in spf swim shirts...E2 is pink! Clearly, I am a bad police officer.

[eandesmom]

The top of cheekbones are a hard spot to screen just right. My red heads have gotten some pink cheeks a time or two.

Just looking at you in your jeans and black tee is making me sweat. Hope the sun went down extra quickly for you.

Cute tea cup pictures.:)

Yeah it was really poor planning on my part. It did cool down quickly though...I think our tempatures that day ranged from 50-80, huge swing and pretty breezy most of the day. On the way to WL that morning I had on long sleeves and a vest. I don't know what I was thinking not packing something for "after". But really, I was only miserable, really, for maybe an hour. And it wasn't that bad, I just was more uncomfortable than anything.

I actually wore my parka to dinner that night (Scrooge though I was nuts but it was cold!).

Wall-E's cheekbones are my downfall...I can never seem to get them well enough. Of course it could be that he squeals like a pig and wriggles while I'm putting it on as he is ticklish...that might have something to do with it.

:rotfl2:

[eandesmom]

I followed your link from DisMomAmy's trippie :goodvibes Thanks to your handy-dandy links, I've read the whole shebang now :cool1:

You and your lovely family have had a pretty good time so far, I hope that continues! :thumbsup2 Your Goofy sounds a lot like my Tigger (10yo) and your Wall-E sounds like my Mickey (7yo), that just makes your trippie more fun to read for me! Oh, also that you flew out of SEA - we had direct redeye Alaska Air flights to/from MCO last trip, but they've discontinued the direct red-eye flight darnit, so we had to take a one-stop red-eye on Delta this time.

I'm looking forward to reading more... popcorn::

Welcome welcome welcome!

We took that direct redeye 4 years ago. I loved that flight. It gives you a whole extra day there! I was less than thrilled with our flight times this year BUT I still prefer that direct by a landslide. Hmmmn....5 hours...versus 7...

lol!

Next trip, assuming flight times are the same, we will do the 9am direct there and then the afternoon one back. We did this trip around school constraints and ended up with an 11pm arrival at FW and then (GASP) leaving at 4am. Way back was a one stop Delta, the non stop alaska got us home too late. No way jose next time.

Where in BC are you?

[eandesmom]

Sounds like a good use of a summer day. Take some pictures for us, ok?:flower3:

It was SOOOO cool! I took a ton of pictures and will get them up. We had a blast and the kids loved it.

[MEK]

Ok. I am only on Page 3 but I absolutely love :love: your TR......

First of all, the pictures of the mountains were you live are absolutely beautiful. I have always lived on the East Coast, but I swear I was meant to live on the West Coast. Up until a few years ago (until I got altitude sickness) we used to ski out west every winter and I would be sooooo depressed everytime I came home!

Secondly, you have a beautiful family!

Third, I love the pics of Fort wilderness because I rarely read TR's from people staying there. I think it would be cool to visit and do a Segway tour or horseback riding.

Fourth, You had some major crowds during president's week. I hope things slow down a bit for you as the trip progresses.

Fifth, the hair cuts and adornments - so totally cool. I want to do that now! I wonder if I can get my DH to get his hair cut there????? :laughing:

I will be back later to read more! (1/2 hour and I am only on page 3)

[DisMomAmy]

Hello!! I'm finally here... well actually this is about the 4th time I've started reading your TR but thought I'd finally say hello. I've made it through the start of Day 2. Sounds like the crowds are a bit crazy!! Luckily our school vacation weeks usually run a week later than most so we've been able to avoid the busiest weeks of the year. I love the idea of girls only pedicures. :thumbsup2

[TarzansKat]

The only issue I had with Roaring Forks, and this is more my own fault, is that because we weren't park hopping on my last trip, we ended up eating there a lot. In that sense, it gets very repititive.

Now on to the next post! OMG, I love the pictures from the Teacups! Those are great! I love the swirly effect, and you're a brave woman for trying to take those while in motion. :thumbsup2

[lisalonglash]

Welcome welcome welcome!

We took that direct redeye 4 years ago. I loved that flight. It gives you a whole extra day there! I was less than thrilled with our flight times this year BUT I still prefer that direct by a landslide. Hmmmn....5 hours...versus 7...

lol!

Next trip, assuming flight times are the same, we will do the 9am direct there and then the afternoon one back. We did this trip around school constraints and ended up with an 11pm arrival at FW and then (GASP) leaving at 4am. Way back was a one stop Delta, the non stop alaska got us home too late. No way jose next time.

Where in BC are you?

Yes, we're doing the one-stop Delta there and the non-stop Alaska back this time. We miss that direct redeye too - it was awesome arriving at MCO at 7:30am with the whole day in front of us! The Delta one isn't bad - we leave SEA at night, connect at ATL and arrive at MCO at about 9:30am. The direct one is better though :laughing:

We're in White Rock - about 5 minutes from the Peace Arch border crossing. We're going to Seattle later this month for a Mariners game - both of my boys are baseball-aholics :rotfl:

[pixleyyy]

Just found your trip report and caught up on it. Fabulous report! Can't wait to read the rest.

[eandesmom]

Ok. I am only on Page 3 but I absolutely love :love: your TR......

First of all, the pictures of the mountains were you live are absolutely beautiful. I have always lived on the East Coast, but I swear I was meant to live on the West Coast. Up until a few years ago (until I got altitude sickness) we used to ski out west every winter and I would be sooooo depressed everytime I came home!


Welcome!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

:cool1:

That picture is actually Jackson Lake, in Wy from our big road trip last summer. But we are pretty spoiled out here too. This is here (well about a 40 minute drive lol) and one of (if not) my FAVORITE hikes in the world.
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/MyPictures0025.jpg
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/MyPictures0024.jpg

Too funny....I lived in Chicago for about 10 years and would go ski east...it was SO not the same. Ice skiing. Hills. Not mountains. Ugh.
Altitude sickness is awful.

Secondly, you have a beautiful family!

Aww, thanks!

Third, I love the pics of Fort wilderness because I rarely read TR's from people staying there. I think it would be cool to visit and do a Segway tour or horseback riding.


I really wanted to do a bike ride but only Goofy was up for it. Tink and Scrooge ran twice (state cup training lol) and loved it). Pretty good searaycer exploring around discovery island though according to Scrooge.

Fourth, You had some major crowds during president's week. I hope things slow down a bit for you as the trip progresses.
well.....

Fifth, the hair cuts and adornments - so totally cool. I want to do that now! I wonder if I can get my DH to get his hair cut there????? :laughing:
The cuts were so well done! I think next time ALL the guys should go. Only goofy will get dusted though, the rest were like "no way!".

I totally would have gotten mickey heads on my big toes at our pedi, as would have Tink, but the GF was far too stuffy for that. :(

I will be back later to read more! (1/2 hour and I am only on page 3)


:) See you then! My hands are still tingling from my ride...I need to adjust my handlebars.

[eandesmom]

Hello!! I'm finally here... well actually this is about the 4th time I've started reading your TR but thought I'd finally say hello. I've made it through the start of Day 2. Sounds like the crowds are a bit crazy!! Luckily our school vacation weeks usually run a week later than most so we've been able to avoid the busiest weeks of the year. I love the idea of girls only pedicures. :thumbsup2

Hi Amy! Welcome!!!

Tink and I usually get a pedi on vacation...where ever we go. I would try to find more of a salon and not a spa though next time. We were both looking forward to silly toes but ended up sedate instead. I can honestly say I have no desire to go that week again crowd wise. Although I imagine next august will be equally brutal. At the end of the day though we were THERE and that's what counts!

[eandesmom]

The only issue I had with Roaring Forks, and this is more my own fault, is that because we weren't park hopping on my last trip, we ended up eating there a lot. In that sense, it gets very repititive.

Now on to the next post! OMG, I love the pictures from the Teacups! Those are great! I love the swirly effect, and you're a brave woman for trying to take those while in motion. :thumbsup2

I can see that, no matter where you stay. I can't stand eating at the same place more than once. Or twice...over a whole week....lol!

The teacup pics crack me up. I did a shutterfly album with them as a collage and I get dizzy looking at it. It still makes me smile.

[eandesmom]

Yes, we're doing the one-stop Delta there and the non-stop Alaska back this time. We miss that direct redeye too - it was awesome arriving at MCO at 7:30am with the whole day in front of us! The Delta one isn't bad - we leave SEA at night, connect at ATL and arrive at MCO at about 9:30am. The direct one is better though :laughing:

We're in White Rock - about 5 minutes from the Peace Arch border crossing. We're going to Seattle later this month for a Mariners game - both of my boys are baseball-aholics :rotfl:

Why you're a hop skip and a jump away! We drive by you on our way to Whistler. I :love: Whistler. No directs from Vancouver, eh? :)

We are big M's fans around here :) My parents have season tix.

I looked at that Delta one...But Steven had a test that morning so needed to not miss the whole day. I don't think I could con Scrooge into a 1-stop red eye. Unless is was a lot cheaper which it wasn't this last trip, it was actually more! I hope your aren't doing the 6:30 am Alaska one back. That was BRUTAL. Our internal clocks were off for days when we got back. I think there is a 1:30 one...that's what I"m hoping for next time, the 9am down (ish) which at least gets you there in time for dinner and fireworks and then the 1:30 ish back.

[eandesmom]

Just found your trip report and caught up on it. Fabulous report! Can't wait to read the rest.

Welcome!:cool1:

[KathyRN137]

Today we are off to check this out

http://disney.go.com/disneypictures/christmascaroltraintour/

It's free, it's Disney, it's Jim Carrey so...why not?

I don't really get how a Christmas Carol translates to a Train Tour but who cares! A way to keep kids entertained on a summer day.


Looking forward to reading about that!


Kathy

[lisalonglash]

Why you're a hop skip and a jump away! We drive by you on our way to Whistler. I :love: Whistler. No directs from Vancouver, eh? :)

We are big M's fans around here :) My parents have season tix.

I looked at that Delta one...But Steven had a test that morning so needed to not miss the whole day. I don't think I could con Scrooge into a 1-stop red eye. Unless is was a lot cheaper which it wasn't this last trip, it was actually more! I hope your aren't doing the 6:30 am Alaska one back. That was BRUTAL. Our internal clocks were off for days when we got back. I think there is a 1:30 one...that's what I"m hoping for next time, the 9am down (ish) which at least gets you there in time for dinner and fireworks and then the 1:30 ish back.

Nope, no directs from YVR - not to mention, it's WAY cheaper to fly out of SEA anyway (much less tax/extra charges). A 2-hour drive is more than worth the moolah we save :thumbsup2

The red-eye with a stop was substantially cheaper, thankfully. To be honest, I must admit that I watched several airfare sites for months before buying the tickets :laughing: Nope, not the 6:30am flight back - we're taking the 6:30PM Alaska flight back :goodvibes

[carissanboys]

I've had a deep tissue massage three times and I LOVE them. I have issues with my neck and shoulders so I wish I could have one every week. I could so use one right now! I think I need to plan one for my next Disney trip. :thumbsup2

Looking forward to hearing about HDD!

[MEK]

I have been reading for what seems like an eternity and I am only up to page 8. This TR is just packed full of little goodies and side bars. I don't know if I can even begin to remember everything......

1. Nice meal at DTD!

2. Sorry HS was so crowded on your first afternoon visit. DS is always crowded when the attendance is high.

3. I love Teppan Edo. Your waiter sure was entertaining. Sorry you missed illuminations, AGAIN! Another reason for a redo.

4. Great misinformation about the bus to MK - bummer!

5. Loved your son's birthday party pictures. I hope there are pictures of the new kitty and I just haven't gotten there yet.

6. Thank you for the lovely pictures of Wyoming. DH and I skied in Jackson Hole (prekids) and loved it there. We snowmobiled at a placed called Towattee Pass (not sure about the spelling) and it was probably the most gorgeous place I have ever been in my life. We also loved seeing the grand Titans. amazing!

7. Your DS 16 sounds like my DS14 in terms of sleeping. This kid can NEVER get up. It is sooooooooo frustrating. And it gets really bad in the summer. He stays up to 3am, sleeps until 1pm.

I know there is more, but I can't remember what. Be back soon!

[eandesmom]

Nope, no directs from YVR - not to mention, it's WAY cheaper to fly out of SEA anyway (much less tax/extra charges). A 2-hour drive is more than worth the moolah we save :thumbsup2

The red-eye with a stop was substantially cheaper, thankfully. To be honest, I must admit that I watched several airfare sites for months before buying the tickets :laughing: Nope, not the 6:30am flight back - we're taking the 6:30PM Alaska flight back :goodvibes

Me too on the airfare watch! We did miss the better return flight waiting to make sure the xmas gift was a hit with the skids but got an amazing fare...$224 I think! I can only hope that happens next year, in 04 it was kids fly free. I miss that! We postponed Nov to feb due to the airfares...it was almost $700 each if we'd have gone then.

Funny, sometimes it's cheaper for us to flu out of YVR. I've not done it but DH has. I like that 6:30 pm one back...if we go in August an 11pm arrival home would be completely doable...it just wasn't on on a school night lol!

[eandesmom]

I've had a deep tissue massage three times and I LOVE them. I have issues with my neck and shoulders so I wish I could have one every week. I could so use one right now! I think I need to plan one for my next Disney trip. :thumbsup2

Looking forward to hearing about HDD!

I wish I could have one every week too! Hopeing to squeeze one in this week...or a facial. I can't decide which one I need more :) I'll do one on the next trip for sure...at SSR if we are at THV as currently planned!

[eandesmom]

I have been reading for what seems like an eternity and I am only up to page 8. This TR is just packed full of little goodies and side bars.

aww thanks!


I don't know if I can even begin to remember everything......

me either lol!

1. Nice meal at DTD!

2. Sorry HS was so crowded on your first afternoon visit. DS is always crowded when the attendance is high.

I don't think it would have mattered where we went, all the parks were insanely packed that week and that day in particular was bad

3. I love Teppan Edo. Your waiter sure was entertaining. Sorry you missed illuminations, AGAIN! Another reason for a redo.

exactly!

4. Great misinformation about the bus to MK - bummer!

Yeah but I blame me (and scrooge who was anti boat...he WANTED there to be a bus). I knew better, I'd done my homework and well, Scrooge wanted a bus so.... it all worked out beautifully though.. we DID get fireworks out of it!

5. Loved your son's birthday party pictures. I hope there are pictures of the new kitty and I just haven't gotten there yet.

nope but I need to (and the old one too! ) I've taken some, just not uploaded yet. He is adorable! And crazy. Just like his owner.


6. Thank you for the lovely pictures of Wyoming. DH and I skied in Jackson Hole (prekids) and loved it there. We snowmobiled at a placed called Towattee Pass (not sure about the spelling) and it was probably the most gorgeous place I have ever been in my life. We also loved seeing the grand Titans. amazing!

I think the Tetons are some of, if not the most, amazing mountains anywhere and I'm in mountain country. Very mean mosquitoes though!


7. Your DS 16 sounds like my DS14 in terms of sleeping. This kid can NEVER get up. It is sooooooooo frustrating. And it gets really bad in the summer. He stays up to 3am, sleeps until 1pm.

Funnily enough, with age, he's getting better and Tink's getting worse. I think the time difference really kicked his....you know what.

I know there is more, but I can't remember what. Be back soon!

thanks for making it to page 8!!

:)

[eandesmom]

Ok...before I get to the Hoop De Doo review (and there was a LOT Of Hooping....Whooping...) A side trip to a little unexpected, unplanned Disney magic.

Last week I got the Nov/Dec FD Pin Code in the mail. Sadly we looked at and put it away (just in case, I dunno....I win the mega millions). Oh wait, I would have to buy a TICKET to win the mega millions. Hmmmn. Not going to happen.

A few days later, in with my usual weekly Disney trying to sell me something from somewhere emails that I get....I got...this....

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/MemoStyle-2.jpg

Hmmnnn

what could this be? Did it matter?

It was FREE

It was here

and since I was suddenly no longer gainfully employed...

why not? Friday was WIDE open as far as I could see.

So without really knowing squat about it...I forwarded it on to my sister. Aka "Aunt Mel". Far cooler than I am (according to my kids). My nephew Q used to be obsessed with trains and while he no longer is, we are all pretty obsessed with Disney and it just seemed like a fun thing for a summer day.

They had swim lessons to hit in the am and then our plan was to meet up and head down there. We chatted early in the am and since the train was open basically all day we decided to make a day of it. Doing what, we weren't sure!

She called in the am to confirm and we discussed what to do about lunch. For some reason the idea hit me to head to the complete other side of town from where we live and get fish and chips and eat at the beach. Why, I've no idea. I hadn't been to that beach in years and while it is an amazing fish and chips chain, there are two closer locations. My kids had never been to that beach and for some reason, on this very hot day, it seemed like a good idea.

She loved it. Even better, our other sister lives on that side (the dark side we call it) so a call was placed.

The pre-train outing

fish and chips (Wall-E and his cousin Stitch)

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2455.jpg

beach and sand

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2463.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2465.jpg

cousins

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2453.jpg
Goofy with Stitch and Stitch's big brother Q. Stitch's t shirt cracked me up. Stitch cracks me up but that's another story.

the view from our lunch spot...rough I know.
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2456.jpg

:)

after a side trip for some AMAZING homemade ice cream at a nearby deli (thanks to the dark side sister knowing where to go on the other end of the earth)

we were off!

Disney magic hit us when we arrived. We found street parking right away, started to walk to the pay station and someone was pulling out and still had an hour on their parking ticket so they gave it do us. So cool!

And sure enough.. there was the train!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2476.jpg

And carolers (they had to be DYING in those outfits, it was HOT out!...everyone but me got a little pink at the beach)

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2477.jpg

CM's were everywhere directing traffic. We were given train tickets and then they were punched. With a mickey head punch. Of course!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2478.jpgv

next...

ok cool...but what's INSIDE the train? What does it have to do with a Christmas Carol?

[eandesmom]

Upon entering the train we were encouraged to take pictures but warned that we couldn't use flash on the cases.

Why, I wondered? Then I looked in the cases...

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2494.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2492.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2493.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2497.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2498.jpg

I could have spent quite a bit more time looking at the papers but the kids were moving on and if I'd have been a 8-11 year old boy...I'm sure I would have been moving on too.

The first car was a gallery of Dickens items and full of wonderful information. Costumes that served as inspiration and a wall gallery of the characters filled the car.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2484.jpg

The cast.

Jim Carrey as Scrooge

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2481.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2482.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2480.jpg

Robin Wright Penn as Belle

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2488.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2489.jpg

Gary Oldman as Tiny Tim

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2486.jpg

and as Bob Cratchitt
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2487.jpg

Pictures of concept art

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2491.jpg

Models

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2501.jpg
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2502.jpg

Detail models of locations

Big Ben (too big to get in one shot, I need to edit these together)

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2503.jpg
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2504.jpg

Scrooges office
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2506.jpg


Ok...at this point it was interesting but kind of...huh. Kind of like going to a museum of artifacts for a movie that hasn't been made yet. Or at least one you haven't seen. It was a little wierd and the kids didn't quite get it. Not bad wierd but none of had an emotional connection to the movie so it was hard to get "too" into it.

next...the "cool" stuff

[eandesmom]

we moved into the next car and were greeted by this

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2507.jpg

okay...what is this?

Well apparently it's what the actors wear when they are making an Imax/Disney 3D movie.

It gets better

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2510.jpg

they put all those dots all over their faces to catch all of their movements and then take the real life actors every move and put it into 3D animation.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2509.jpg

tons and tons of tiny cameras catching all of these movements

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2508.jpg

From this, they turn it into this

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2512.jpg

and then this

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2513.jpg

to this
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2518.jpg
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2516.jpg

and then to this!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2517.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2519.jpg

This was a very cool car. So much to look at and watch. Interviews with the actors, producers, all the technology folks. Very very interesting, the kids were fascinated.

in the next car there were lots and lots of screens. What did they do?

Well...they took your picture. And then morphed you into one of the main characters! We supposedly emailed them to ourselves (courtesy of walgreens?) but I've not seen a notice that they are ready for downloading yet. They were HYSTERICAL!

At the end of the car there was of course, a Christmas feast. And it smelled like gingerbread. No joke.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2520.jpg

From here you headed out to a blow up 3D movie theater (no joke) for a 12 minute preview.
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2475.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Family/Christmas%20Carol%20Train/IMG_2523.jpg

the 3D was AMAZING. The kids were hysterical, OOOOHHHH AAHHHHH

and that was just the Disney logo.

All in all, a very good, magical day.

Now. Back to our regularly scheduled report. HDDR coming up next!

[TarzansKat]

WOW! What a great treat for everyone! I saw that e-mail as well, but it was nowhere near us. I'm so excited that you went and took all these great pictures so I can live vicariously through you. :goodvibes

[Angies1274]

Great pictures!:thumbsup2 It looks you guys had a lot of fun!!:goodvibes Can't wait for HDDR!!!

[eandesmom]

After the teacups we heard from the big boys. They'd arrived!

We still had maybe an hour before we needed to head back to the Fort, probably less and of course we took more! We hooked up with the guys and headed to...

BTMRR.

Again. :)

We'd had some amazing karma with this ride, walking right on more than once and with the still crazy crowds, we decided to try it again. Briefly we contemplated SM but no one really wanted to get wet. Besides Goofy. And I just wasn't up for letting a 9 year old go by himself. Scrooge however REALLY wanted a snack and remembered that we'd been able to use snack credits for popcorn the day before at DHS.

So first, we had a mission. Popcorn for Scrooge! We found a cart in Liberty square and despite the absence of the little snack credit logo (the man didn't trust me!) sure enough, he could get popcorn.

Since popcorn and BTMRR was not really a good fit, we strolled through Liberty Square and into Frontierland, taking our time and doing a wee bit of browsing. This was somewhat bittersweet for me. At this point in the trip we'd been to the MK what, 3 or 4 times and I felt like we'd never really gotten to just enjoy it due to the crowds. Not enough hours in the day. When I add it up all we really did in MK was


BTMRR 3x
SM 4x (for some, 3 for most)
Teacups
Pirates 2x
Haunted Mansion
Speedway and Buzz lightyear (the night I didn't head over so I could put Wall-E to bed)
WDW railroad (boys with Scrooge, waiting for Tink and I)


Not a single show aside from the Celebrations parade that we couldn't escape. I'd used the crowd calendars to plan, I'd used EMH. Other than giving up our lazy days or heading over early sans teenagers, I'm not sure there is much more I could have done but still, heading into the end of what I knew was our last day in the MK I was saddened by all we hadn't done.

But here's the thing...it was only ME that was saddened. Burdened with what could have been.

No Jungle Cruise
No Swiss family treehouse
No Small world and the rest of fantasyland
No SM.
No Tom Sawyer Island and Country Bear Jamboree
No Spectromagic and wishes had been from a boat
No laugh floor

And yet...upon polling, every kid stated that MK was their favorite park.

Hmmn. How could that be? For each, their favorite ride was elsewhere (a split between RRC and EE). We'd been rushed, pushed, crowded and stuck.
We hadn't shopped there (much), we hadn't eaten there (sit down anyway)

But it was their favorite park. Hands down. All of them.

Disney Magic.!


Meandering around and lost in my own thoughts, Scrooge spotted something and got that gleam in his eye.

Who knew. The man likes to shoot 'em up.

Anyone know where we are?
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0143.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0142.jpg

Poor Wall-E could NOT hold the gun up to save his life, those things are heavy!

And then it was time. Our last MK ride.

Fittingly, it was getting dark. The first time we'd ridden BTMRR on the trip had been in the dark. It is really really pretty in the dark, clattering through the ride and seeing all the lights.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0145.jpg

Afterwards it was time. Time to leave the MK. We did not go quickly, soaking up the atmosphere but as we neared main street we did realize it was time to pick up the pace. For 2 reasons. One, most of the teens and adults really really wanted/needed a shower before dinner. Two, spectromagic was coming and we didn't want to get stuck!

Run run to the boat!

Aackkkk!

The boat is pulling away!

Now the beauty of FW and MK is the boats (one of the many beauties of the Fort). While there is a direct boat to the Fort, there are also many other ways to get there either from the Contemporary or WL if you take a different boat (to WL or Contemporary) or the monorail to the Contemporary. For that matter I guess we could have walked to the Contemporary and caught the boat from there as well.

We debated, and debated, and decided to wait for our "regular" boat. Which was a good 20 minutes. Upon landing at the Fort it was a bit of a wait for an internal bus as well. We'd planned to have at least an hour, hour and a half at the fort for decompression and showering and ended up with closer to 45 minutes.

And one tween who shall remain nameless who completely hogged the one bathroom. This, for me was the only night that the one bathroom was really a problem. I'd had a massage (think massage oil in the hair), then out in the sun by the pool (sunsncreen) and then had been somewhat hot and icky in the MK due to being over dressed in those darn jeans. I really wanted a shower!

But it was not to be. I was able to wash my face. Oh well.

It had REALLY cooled down so we all dressed warmly and headed out to the bus. It was pretty darn cool to be eating at our own resort for once, knowing transportation would be simple and quick. We were really looking forward to it. Had our lazy day actually been at the Fort I think we'd have explored a lot more than we did but the slide (and excuse to play at WL) had trumped the many cool things at the Fort. We will go back, there is no doubt. We had not had a bite to eat yet here, the only exception being that I'd filled up my coffee cup there on the way to WL that morning, that was the extent of my exposure to the food offerings before the Hoop. One of the big complaints people have about the Fort is the lack of a CS offering. And I concur. We would have used it more than once, had there been one. I think that the feeling may be that since the majority of guests are camping and the cabins have kitchens that no one needs CS. Just b/c we "can" cook doesn't mean we want to! We're on vacation! So while the mercantile was stocked with better than average grocery selections (I think), I do think they are really really missing the boat without a CS offering that is actually on the dining plan.

Crockett's tavern has plenty of room! A CS espresso bar....that's what they need, right on the porch. Giant muffins and old fashioned scones. Fruit. It would be so easy! lol. We never did sit in those porch rockers, yet another reason to go back.

Upon arrival we saw the huge line and got in it, not really having a clue what we were doing. Thankfully a CM directed me inside to pick up our tickets and we got our table assignment.

First we did the obligatory group shot. Which turned out surprisingly good (with the exception of Wall-E's VERY pink cheeks!).

It was COLD! I had my parka. I took it off for the picture but I was so glad I had it for the bus ride before and after. Scrooge made fun of me, as it usually does, calling me Nanook of the North but it was cold! I was happy I'd packed my scarf, that's all I knew :)

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/HoopDeeDoo.jpg

That done we had about 15 minutes to poke around outside.

Pin kiosk!!!! Sadly there wasn't a FW pin that we all loved. But there was a very cool mickey wings pin. As in pilot wings. For scrooge. It still lives on the jacket in this picture, that he put it on that night.

And then it was time to go in. I'd read reviews, I had a general idea of what to expect but found it hard to explain to the kids. I don't think they all cared much at this point. They were hungry and loved the sound of the menu.

But....would the tween and teen think it was cool? Funny? or be mortified....that was the real question.

Scrooge was just excited that the menu INCLUDED beer, wine or sangria.

It's the little things sometimes :)

[eandesmom]

WOW! What a great treat for everyone! I saw that e-mail as well, but it was nowhere near us. I'm so excited that you went and took all these great pictures so I can live vicariously through you. :goodvibes

It was a ton of fun. I am doomed now though, having seen the preview in 3D there is no way we will escape seeing the real thing in 3D...i.e. paying more for it. We are going to make it a group event though so that should be fun. The only part I didn't like was the ghost of Christmas past, I do not like the animation they chose for it at ALL. Just plain weird if you ask me.

Great pictures!:thumbsup2 It looks you guys had a lot of fun!!:goodvibes Can't wait for HDDR!!!

We did!

[cjackearl]

Thanks for the train tour pictures. What a perfect summer adventure.:thumbsup2 I agree, I could poke around with the old books and papers for a long time. I majored in English in college and love Dickens.:) I can see why the boys were so anxious to move along, though. Wow, you saw some amazing stuff! I bet it will be especially fun to see the movie in November, knowing some of what went into its production.

That last day at the MK is sad, isn't it? How great that your gang enjoyed themselves despite the crowds. I think it behooves us uber planners to remember that our families expectations are not nearly as high as our own. You did a wonderful job listening to what your family really wanted to do and made time for them to do those things.:goodvibes

Your group photo at HDDR is really nice. We ate there too, so I'm looking forward to hearing what you thought.

[eandesmom]

That last day at the MK is sad, isn't it? How great that your gang enjoyed themselves despite the crowds. I think it behooves us uber planners to remember that our families expectations are not nearly as high as our own. You did a wonderful job listening to what your family really wanted to do and made time for them to do those things.:goodvibes



Awwww....thank you so much! I was quite a bit mollified by the teacups. It really really is the little things and those spinning cups made me very happy. I actually could have left the park then and been ok. Sad, but ok. I didn't need BTMRR again, much as I like it (I'd probably have taken the shower over it lol). I think I was more just....surprised, shocked even, that we'd done so little. But what we HAD done was perfect and fabulous and magical. And of course, I kept those thoughts to myself.

Scrooge and I went into the trip very strongly stating that it wasn't about us and what WE wanted to ride or see, it was whatever the kids wanted to do. And I think we did a decent job of holding to that, even if it made me silently crazy at times:lmao:

But....there are a COUPLE of things that are must do's next time and that's ok. That's why there is a NEXT TIME!

hee hee:thumbsup2

[TarzansKat]

It was a ton of fun. I am doomed now though, having seen the preview in 3D there is no way we will escape seeing the real thing in 3D...i.e. paying more for it. We are going to make it a group event though so that should be fun. The only part I didn't like was the ghost of Christmas past, I do not like the animation they chose for it at ALL. Just plain weird if you ask me.


Was it that really ethereal looking one, very wispy in one of your pictures? Just curious. :goodvibes

Hey, what a great update! I know how you feel. I think on every trip I leave one park with a...dang, I didn't do that feeling. I'm working on not doing that to myself, because as long as everyone's having fun (much like your kiddos were) it just doesn't really matter what you didn't do.

It's like one of those huge life lesson type metaphors. If we always focused on what we didn't do, we'd never get anywhere.

And that concludes my "yes, mom" lesson for this evening. :lmao:

I can't wait to hear what everyone thought of the Hoop De Doo Revue. I haven't been in years, but I remember loving it as a kid.

[MEK]

Wow - Thanks for all the updates today! The train tour looked super cool. What a way to promote a movie. Nothing like going all out.

I missed a couple pages of your TR. I think I got to page 10 last night and then hoped over today for the latest installments. I love Hopdeedoo. So much fun. Hope you guys liked it.

[SunnieRN]

Really enjoying your trip report so much and when I read your dining review I loved that also!

Thank you for posting the train tour information. We have lived in Texas for about 2 years now and haven't been to San Antonio yet, so we will try to catch it there!

Did I read somewhere that you are going back to WDW in September? We will be there from the 20-29th.

[Happydog]

Hi! Just caught a few pages. Will be back tomorrow to read the rest, TOT:laughing:, what a story!!! And I read your lament on the family vacation conflicts, sounds frustrating, but I know what you mean, you just deal with it, but it is nice to just get it off your chest!

CAN'T do TOT. Didn't, won't, no way!!! ONLY once. five years ago!

[eandesmom]

Was it that really ethereal looking one, very wispy in one of your pictures? Just curious. :goodvibes

Hey, what a great update! I know how you feel. I think on every trip I leave one park with a...dang, I didn't do that feeling. I'm working on not doing that to myself, because as long as everyone's having fun (much like your kiddos were) it just doesn't really matter what you didn't do.

It's like one of those huge life lesson type metaphors. If we always focused on what we didn't do, we'd never get anywhere.

And that concludes my "yes, mom" lesson for this evening. :lmao:

I can't wait to hear what everyone thought of the Hoop De Doo Revue. I haven't been in years, but I remember loving it as a kid.


Yes mom :)

No it wasn't the ethereal looking one, that's actually Marley and I liked him. It's the wierd dude with the flame on his head. I must be missing something in the symbolism.

[eandesmom]

Wow - Thanks for all the updates today! The train tour looked super cool. What a way to promote a movie. Nothing like going all out.

I missed a couple pages of your TR. I think I got to page 10 last night and then hoped over today for the latest installments. I love Hopdeedoo. So much fun. Hope you guys liked it.

We did! update coming today, running behind...you know...soccer tournaments lol!

Really enjoying your trip report so much and when I read your dining review I loved that also!

Thank you for posting the train tour information. We have lived in Texas for about 2 years now and haven't been to San Antonio yet, so we will try to catch it there!

Did I read somewhere that you are going back to WDW in September? We will be there from the 20-29th.

thanks for reading my dining review :) I hope you enjoy the train as much as we did, it was really neat. I WISH I was going in Sept. Right now the plan is next August which is a LONG ways off!

Hi! Just caught a few pages. Will be back tomorrow to read the rest, TOT:laughing:, what a story!!! And I read your lament on the family vacation conflicts, sounds frustrating, but I know what you mean, you just deal with it, but it is nice to just get it off your chest!

CAN'T do TOT. Didn't, won't, no way!!! ONLY once. five years ago!

Hi! ToT was pretty humorous, I have to say. I'm impressed you are reading TR's when you just got back! Things happen for a reason, y'know? I needed to vent but DSD did get into the camp, which is a really really cool thing for her and financially we just can't justify anything, anyway so in a way, it lessens the pain of that :)

Generally speaking I am a half full kind of gal, I just needed to vent.

[eandesmom]

Finally it was time to go in

We had FABULOUS seats. I had elected to to the Cat 1 seating at the later show. While 9:30 sounds awfully late to eat....to our tummies it was still 6:30 PST so it was perfect.

First off, salad, cornbread and some drinks. Scrooge and I each opted for wine as the beer (included beer) offerings were scary to us. And, while they also offered sangria...nothing makes a worse headache than bad sangria so we decided to play it safe.

According to the table next to us, the Sangria was quite good but we stuck to red wine. Tink was pretty sure she saw the cute boy from the WL pool but, we'll never know. She at least had something to look at if she didn't like the show.

We were excited to have salad, we hadn't had any all week. The great thing about HDDR's food is it just keeps coming, as much as you want. We had seconds on Salad.

Hey! Where's mine?
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0146.jpg

The salad vultures.
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0148.jpg
Our table

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0147.jpg

While salad was coming around, the show started
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0150.jpg

Hey, there are people around our table! This threw Steven off at first

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0151.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0160.jpg

It was true old fashioned review. And it was hysterical. The kids were cracking up left and right the entire time.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0156.jpg
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0157.jpg
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0159.jpg
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0163.jpg
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0164.jpg
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0165.jpg

While the show continued...so did the food.

mmmnnn, Ribs!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0152.jpg

Ahhh! fried chicken!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0153.jpg
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0154.jpg
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0155.jpg

There was also mashed potatoes and baked beans. The food was good. Was it earth shattering? No but the cornbread and chicken in particular hit the spot for me and Scrooge had thirds on the spuds :) Comfort food, nothing like it!

Now, the HDDR would not be complete without

Napkin Waving!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0161.jpg
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0162.jpg

Apparently Goofy was hitting Wall-E in the face with his napkin. A little over excited napkin waving I guess!

As the main course drew to a close, it became clear, it was time for dessert. But where was our waiter?

[cjackearl]

We LOVED this show!! Like you guys, we laughed often and much. We'd definitely go again. What is it with WDW and napkin twirling? Don't they know its a dangerous sport?:rotfl:

[eandesmom]

We LOVED this show!! Like you guys, we laughed often and much. We'd definitely go again. What is it with WDW and napkin twirling? Don't they know its a dangerous sport?:rotfl:

No kidding! I think it should be called napkin whacking. Because more often than not you are getting whacked in the head by the napkin next you. It could take an eye out! Thank goodness Wall-E had glasses on lol. It could have been ugly.

I was really worried that the tween and teen would think it was stupid. One of the reviews I read before it said their 15 year old laughed so hard soda came out their nose. That did it for me. And while they didn't laugh QUITE that hard, they were rolling, for sure.

Completely worth the 2 TS credits!

[Happydog]

Just finished the rest of your updates, so now I am caught up! ;)

The hoop de doo looks like a great time, and we were considering it for our Dec trip, b/c it seems so festive! Glad to know the food was pretty good too...

Great comments about Roaring Forks CS, I think they do a good job with burgers, too! I agree with the CS credits... we had to try and use them up the last day since we had a few extras... though we did discover a CS breakfast burrito at the Contemporary, along with nice beverage choices to select from ... It was really pretty good!

Hey that Train event is wild! What fun... I had heard they were remaking the movie -- I wonder if it is coming to our neck of the woods or already passed us by! I will go check that link :thumbsup

[Angies1274]

I'm all caught up.:goodvibes Last day at MK is always so sad:sad2: There were many rides/shows we missed last year including the parades and fireworks. But just like your kids, my boys declared that MK was their most favorite park!!:goodvibes It must be the Disney Magic..pixiedust:

Your family photo at HDDR turned out great!!:thumbsup2 HDDR looks like so much fun and the food so yummy!! Definitely something my boys would enjoy.;)

[eandesmom]

Chicken eaten.

Potatoes inhaled.

Wine savored. (Free always tastes better and "included" feels like free on the DDP!)

Napkins twirled.

Plates had been cleared.

No eyes had been lost.

But where where was our waiter?


Our CM was a hoot and we enjoyed him every time he came by.

Apparently it was time for dessert. Much Hooping onstage about it.

Oh wait! There he is!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0168.jpg

Complete with a can can kick!


Ok, I knew it was a musical review.

I knew the audience got involved.

I didn't expect dancing waiters.
:thumbsup2

Only in Disney could CM's be dancing and serving Strawberry Shortcake and having SO much fun doing it.

I just found the perfect post retirement job for my dad!;)

Now that he's done with the census (which makes him sad). From Church plays to the HDDR. It's such a perfect fit I can't stand it.

Wall-E Not big on Strawberry Shortcake but MAN I love the whip cream!


Just give me a plate of that!
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0169.jpg

Can I play the washboard with this spoon mom? Ugh, ok, I'll give it to Wall-E...I can't stand whipped cream.
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0172.jpg


no way dude, this one's mine!
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0170.jpg


I'm going in anyway!
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0171.jpg

This teen just hated it

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0175-1.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-17/WDW_090217_0176-1.jpg

So glad he's not too cool for the HDDR! Too funny, looking at this picture I thought for sure he bought that necklace at AK, the next day but now looking....I think he got it at MK on the way out of the park. Now I recall that there WAS "real" shopping involved on the slow walk out from BTMRR. And if memory serves we were telling him there would be many such items at AL...lol! In retrospect it occurs to me...he wanted to WEAR it to AK...hence "needing" to buy it before.

It was a wonderful wonderful evening. While the kids collectively still felt that Teppan Edo was their favorite all around...this came in a close second!

Next...the last day!


Some Yaking

Some Yetting

Locally anyway

Wild Animals

African Amber

Will Tink survive EE?

Dinosaur?

What will happen if her hair gets wet?

Will "I" get a souvenir? or go home empty handed?

and Boma!

[eandesmom]

I'm all caught up.:goodvibes Last day at MK is always so sad:sad2: There were many rides/shows we missed last year including the parades and fireworks. But just like your kids, my boys declared that MK was their most favorite park!!:goodvibes It must be the Disney Magic..pixiedust:

Your family photo at HDDR turned out great!!:thumbsup2 HDDR looks like so much fun and the food so yummy!! Definitely something my boys would enjoy.;)

Your boys are a great age for the HDDR, they would love it!

[eandesmom]

Just finished the rest of your updates, so now I am caught up! ;)

The hoop de doo looks like a great time, and we were considering it for our Dec trip, b/c it seems so festive! Glad to know the food was pretty good too...

Great comments about Roaring Forks CS, I think they do a good job with burgers, too! I agree with the CS credits... we had to try and use them up the last day since we had a few extras... though we did discover a CS breakfast burrito at the Contemporary, along with nice beverage choices to select from ... It was really pretty good!

Hey that Train event is wild! What fun... I had heard they were remaking the movie -- I wonder if it is coming to our neck of the woods or already passed us by! I will go check that link :thumbsup

The Fort is SO cool at Christmas...You should do it! I would love to see the decorations there :)

If FW would have had CS available, we'd have easily used them up on breakfast items but they don't even really have any snack items to speak of. It is a huge hole! We skipped the TS there, while it sounds good it's been getting mixed reviews but the shows both seem to do really really well. Kind of sad really, they assume people will travel to the Fort for Mickey Backyard BBQ and the HDDR but don't give the people actually staying there much to choose from. It is a mod and should have the same type of food selections as the other mods. It's my only real complaint. It's like saying that all DVC locations shouldn't have access to a CS location because they have kitchens. That said, it wouldn't stop me from staying there again!

[TarzansKat]

Oh, what a great time! I feel like I was there with you. It brings back memories, it really does. :goodvibes

[KathyRN137]

Hooray for the Hoop-Dee-Doo!! :yay: I just love it!

Glad your worries about the teens not enjoying it were unfounded!

Our (then) 16-year old loved it, too!


Kathy

[eandesmom]

Oh, what a great time! I feel like I was there with you. It brings back memories, it really does. :goodvibes

We'll definitely do it again, it would be fun with a big group!

Hooray for the Hoop-Dee-Doo!! :yay: I just love it!

Glad your worries about the teens not enjoying it were unfounded!

Our (then) 16-year old loved it, too!


Kathy

me too....nice to see that silly 11 year old is lurking in there somewhere...I love it when he pops out to say hi.

[SunnieRN]

What a great update!! HDDR is on our list to do after both boys are over 3!! Man the food looked good! I'd read some not so great reviews, but the chicken looks really yummy!! I am oposite from you. Red wine straight gives me a terrible headache, but if I don't have too much I can drink sangria, yummm! Lookimg forward to hearing about your AK day.

[MEK]

We did HDDR in 2005 before they had the different categories of seating. I remember getting a table right behind the piano player, although the balcony looked pretty cool. Back then you were seated according to when you booked. I booked pretty early. My kids loved it and DS 16 has asked to go back. Unfortunately we haven't since for various reasons. It was an enjoyable show and I recall the sangria as being pretty good! :rotfl:

Your DS16 looks very handsome in his pictures! And the younger boys seemed to be enjoying themselves! Where is Tink? Hiding from the camera?

Looking forward to reading about your AK day.

[eandesmom]

What a great update!! HDDR is on our list to do after both boys are over 3!! Man the food looked good! I'd read some not so great reviews, but the chicken looks really yummy!! I am oposite from you. Red wine straight gives me a terrible headache, but if I don't have too much I can drink sangria, yummm! Lookimg forward to hearing about your AK day.

The dark meat was better than the white, the white was a wee bit dry. Of course for me (who generally avoids friend chicken but LOVES it and prefers the dark meat anyway, it's always less dry!) the best part is the fried part so....:rotfl2: If memory serves we had a second bucket of everything except the baked beans. It was good. It wasn't outstanding but it was good, basic, picnic comfort food. Which, after several fancier meals was good. Especially for Steven and Tink who are a bit more "conservative" shall we say in their food exploration.

We did HDDR in 2005 before they had the different categories of seating. I remember getting a table right behind the piano player, although the balcony looked pretty cool. Back then you were seated according to when you booked. I booked pretty early. My kids loved it and DS 16 has asked to go back. Unfortunately we haven't since for various reasons. It was an enjoyable show and I recall the sangria as being pretty good! :rotfl:

Your DS16 looks very handsome in his pictures! And the younger boys seemed to be enjoying themselves! Where is Tink? Hiding from the camera?

Looking forward to reading about your AK day.

Our seats were outstanding. Right in the middle, about 2 tables back from the stage. Just close enough without being too close. The guy they picked to the be fairy was one table over from us.

I love those pictures of Steven, we have it framed and up in a couple of spots in the house. I smile when I look at it. Not only does he look great but he's happy, wearing his MK necklace and his Epcot pin. (Whereas Tink wanted a lanyard and pins but then wouldn't wear it if I wasn't wearing one...and I don't have one...meant to get one...didn't find one I liked). He just looks happy and self assured and grown up, but in a good way.

Not bad for a kid who was "too old and wouldn't like it" according to his mom. I really wouldn't mind letting him bring a friend next time. I don't see it in the cards but....

Tink was sitting next to me, you catch her sleeve and the side of her face in one of the pictures. Awkward angle!

Lots of pics of her at AK though!

Ok you guys...next time I will try the Sangria! :)

[burly]

Still loving the TR.:thumbsup2
Love love the hoop de doo. Go everytime we are in WDW. Funny stuff. :rotfl2:

[lisalonglash]

What wonderful updates! :banana: The HDDR looks like so much fun and I'm glad that you all enjoyed it lots :goodvibes The food looks pretty good, but I'm guess the entertainment is what "makes the meal" there :thumbsup2 Can't wait for the next update!!! popcorn::

[SLM]

I'm really enjoying your trip report! I've read quite a bit of it together, and considering you were traveling at a very busy time of year with six people (two of them being teenagers!) I think you got an amazing amount of things done! Looking forward to the AK update-like Tink I need alot of info before I go on a ride and EE scares me a little-I've made up my mind to ride it this August, but I'll be glad to read her take on it! :)

[eandesmom]

Still loving the TR.:thumbsup2
Love love the hoop de doo. Go everytime we are in WDW. Funny stuff. :rotfl2:

:)

What wonderful updates! :banana: The HDDR looks like so much fun and I'm glad that you all enjoyed it lots :goodvibes The food looks pretty good, but I'm guess the entertainment is what "makes the meal" there :thumbsup2 Can't wait for the next update!!! popcorn::

Yes, the entertainment, the crowds reaction, the overall ambiance :)

I'm really enjoying your trip report! I've read quite a bit of it together, and considering you were traveling at a very busy time of year with six people (two of them being teenagers!) I think you got an amazing amount of things done! Looking forward to the AK update-like Tink I need alot of info before I go on a ride and EE scares me a little-I've made up my mind to ride it this August, but I'll be glad to read her take on it! :)

Thanks! I'm almost the opposite...better off not knowing. Which is how Scrooge got me on this ride once.

X-Scream - A giant teeter-totter that propels you 27 feet over the edge of the Tower, 866 feet above the ground.

:scared1:OMG:scared1:

NEVER again!

lol

[OneTreeHillAddict]

Thanks for the review on HDD...we're going there for the first time in Sept. Only problem...my son will not eat a single thing on that menu! I'm going to call and see if they can get him pizza fro Trail's End. If not I'll cancel him and let him hang with my sister. He's the pickiest eater in the World and I can't swallow $60+ for hi to just sit there. I think the rest of us will enjoy it though.

[eandesmom]

Thanks for the review on HDD...we're going there for the first time in Sept. Only problem...my son will not eat a single thing on that menu! I'm going to call and see if they can get him pizza fro Trail's End. If not I'll cancel him and let him hang with my sister. He's the pickiest eater in the World and I can't swallow $60+ for hi to just sit there. I think the rest of us will enjoy it though.

Yeah, that would be brutal. I know they are great about dietary restrictions and the like but not sure about "outside" food, even if it is only outside food from TE or Crocketts!

He's not really $60 though...if you are on the DDP it's 2 kid TS or if OOP I think it's $26-31 depending on the category.

He won't eat strawberry shortcake?

[MEK]

Somebody must be doing something with soccer, because I haven't seen a post for awhile. :laughing: My DS leaves for ODP came this week and is playing in a tournament this weekend with the team he just joined, oh.....2 weeks ago. I went yesterday, but am staying home today!

[carissanboys]

Your pictures of HDD bring back so many great memories of our dinner there. :goodvibes My dad got chosen to be in the show when we went and it was so hilarious (he was the one wearing the tutu in the end). I would love to go back and do it again. :thumbsup2 Glad you guys enjoyed it too.

[eandesmom]

Somebody must be doing something with soccer, because I haven't seen a post for awhile. :laughing: My DS leaves for ODP came this week and is playing in a tournament this weekend with the team he just joined, oh.....2 weeks ago. I went yesterday, but am staying home today!

Surprisingly, no! :) although we have been trying to solve the mystery of the missing ODP polo shirt. Sigh. DSD leaves on Tuesday for camp.

No soccer, but I haven't been home for a few days.

I had a 2 day surprise road trip with my sister and nephew to pick up my other nephew from camp about 7 hours away, (and back) and now need to prepare for a family party this afternoon with my gourmet club (12 college friends).

Crazy weekend!

We did get to go on the "longest floating boardwalk in the world". Who knew!

It ended up being surprisingly fun other than DS10 really pushing some buttons...that too has kept me away from the boards (and computer). He doesn't have ADHD. He has attention-seeking disorder. Sigh.

Off to the store and then to try out 2 new recipes! Sweet lemon fritters and a mediterranean potato salad (new potatoes, tomatoes, capers, olives...yum!). Or at least I hope yum.

Hopping for an AK update in the AM!

[eandesmom]

Your pictures of HDD bring back so many great memories of our dinner there. :goodvibes My dad got chosen to be in the show when we went and it was so hilarious (he was the one wearing the tutu in the end). I would love to go back and do it again. :thumbsup2 Glad you guys enjoyed it too.

Ok that image is enough to make me consider going this next trip. If my dad or Step-FIL got picked that would be such a riot! What wonderful wonderful memories!!!!!!!!!

[carissanboys]

My pictures didn't come out real well, but here are the ones I took:

http://i228.photobucket.com/albums/ee163/carissanboys/Disney%20January%202008/Disney2/IMG_3268.jpg

http://i228.photobucket.com/albums/ee163/carissanboys/Disney%20January%202008/Disney2/IMG_3271.jpg

http://i228.photobucket.com/albums/ee163/carissanboys/Disney%20January%202008/Disney2/IMG_3274.jpg

[eandesmom]

My pictures didn't come out real well, but here are the ones I took:

http://i228.photobucket.com/albums/ee163/carissanboys/Disney%20January%202008/Disney2/IMG_3268.jpg

http://i228.photobucket.com/albums/ee163/carissanboys/Disney%20January%202008/Disney2/IMG_3271.jpg

http://i228.photobucket.com/albums/ee163/carissanboys/Disney%20January%202008/Disney2/IMG_3274.jpg

Oh I love it!!!!!!!!!

[eandesmom]

Well, I've survived two unknown recipes and learned a couple of things.

I really need a new baking thermometer
I am not a baker
I don't like dealing with yeast, and "rising" things.

But

the results were worth it.

I could become addicted to sweet lemon fritters,

if.I.didn't.have.to.make.them.

lol!

AK update tomorrow

as Steven sits next to me in his AK necklace!!!!!!!!!!!

[TarzansKat]

Well, I've survived two unknown recipes and learned a couple of things.

I really need a new baking thermometer
I am not a baker
I don't like dealing with yeast, and "rising" things.

But

the results were worth it.

I could become addicted to sweet lemon fritters,

if.I.didn't.have.to.make.them.

lol!

Oh, hon. Do you need a hug? :hug:

I'm the baker in the family, but I am also very wary of things that need yeast and have to rise. I did successfully make Easter bread this past year though, so I was quite proud. :lmao:


AK update tomorrow

as Steven sits next to me in his AK necklace!!!!!!!!!!!

Can't wait! :goodvibes

[cjackearl]

Well, I've survived two unknown recipes and learned a couple of things.

I really need a new baking thermometer
I am not a baker
I don't like dealing with yeast, and "rising" things.

But

the results were worth it.

I could become addicted to sweet lemon fritters,

if.I.didn't.have.to.make.them.

lol!



Sweet lemon fritters? Those sound devine. I'm with you though. Yeasty things are just too persnickety for my level of patience (low).

[eandesmom]

Our final day dawned lovely. Off to Animal Kingdom! We did some morning packing, not wanting to have to do everything at night when we got back as our flight was hideously early the next day. Semi organized we headed for our stroll up to the outpost bus stop.

And waited.

And waited.

And waited.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-18/WDW_090217_0177.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-18/WDW_090217_0178.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-18/WDW_090217_0179.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-18/WDW_090217_0180.jpg

Instead of "are we there yet", we got "is it here yet?"

We must have seen, I kid you not, 6 buses for DTD, Epcot and DHS.

Nary a one for AK.

The bus stop was actually semi full with people waiting for the AK bus, either headed to AK or Blizzard Beach.

Families took turns asking other buses where our bus was. No one could say, other than to say it was coming. No one changed their route to AK even though several buses had no one to pick up when they stopped, as a like bus had just left.

40 minutes later, perhaps more, the bus arrived. And went to Blizzard Beach first.

A full hour after we'd gotten to the bus stop, we arrived.

We'd planned to get fastpasses to EE and then do some rides but the journey had taken so long, the crew needed sustenance. Idea's of Flame Tree barbeque were SHOT down in flames....we'd had BBQ last night I was informed. So it became "what do we see after we get the FP's?"

Fast passes in hand we then headed towards Kali so we could see what the wait was. Near to Kali, (90 minutes wait) was...

Yak and Yeti Local foods cafe!

The place (and park) was PACKED. We sent Steven to snag a seat and stood in line. And stood and stood and stood. The lines were pretty long and did not move quickly.

Finally it was our turn and after inquiring about whether the kids would have to stick to the kids meals (no, they could order whatever they wanted) and whether or not we could trade sides for desserts (no which bummed us out, Scrooge and I were eying the egg rolls but consoled ourselves with the fact that they were clearly marked as a snack credit so planned to come back later and get some) we ordered the following:

Scrooge: Sweet and Sour Pork
Wall-E and myself: Shrimp Lo Mein
Tink: Honey Chicken
Steven: Mandarin Chicken Salad
Goofy went for the Pork Egg Roll Kids meal and got it with french fries (a scary combo if you ask me)

For dessert we had Chocolate Chip Cookies, Mango Pie and a Chocolate Cake.

Scrooge and I each had an African Amber and a bottle of water to save for later.

They serve the food in very cute Chinese take out containers and have a nice selection of condiments over in the seating area.

Our table: It was a warm day and there were very few umbrellas so we were pretty toasty sitting there!
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-18/WDW_090218_0001-1.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-18/WDW_090218_0002-1.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-18/WDW_090218_0003-1.jpg

And our food. These are somewhat pathetic, I wasn't thinking to take pictures but hey, you can see the carton!

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-18/WDW_090218_0004-1.jpg

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k308/eandesmom/Travel/Disney/2-18/WDW_090218_0005-1.jpg

I did not get a picture of Tinks Honey Chicken. It was a crispy chicken and she loved it. Chinese Nuggets if you ask me (definitely finger food) but she was quite pleased.

The African Amber was, hands down, our favorite beer of the trip. We don't know what it really was brand wise, but it was good. So good that Scrooge had it again at dinner, at Boma, later that night. Reminded us of a local African Amber we have quite often, Mac-n-Jacks but I've never seen it outside of the area so I doubt that is what it was.

We would absolutely eat here again. It was a refreshing change of foods, a pretty (if toasty) setting and although the wait was long, the service was very very pleasant. One note...We did NOT care for the mango pie. At all. It was more of a mango custard tart and it was...ugh. Goofy was SO bummed, he'd been excited to try it. He ate his egg roll so fast I didn't get a picture but it was quite large and he said it was tasty.

Later in the day, for our afternoon snack, both Scrooge and I got one. Make that TWO. The kids meal is one pork egg roll. The side, or snack credit order, is TWO. They were huge. And yummy! Crispy and flaky on the outside, full of moist & juicy pork and veggies on the inside. My favorite savory snack credit of the week, hands down. Scrooges too. It will be a must have snack for us, at AK, from now on!

Next...Kali?

Or Safari?

What to do?

[TarzansKat]

I am now officially hungry. :lmao:

Sorry you had such a long bus wait. That's a bummer. But oh my goodness, what a yummy lunch! And I love the novelty of the containers. We are definitely going to have to try this with my son, I know he'd think it was great. :thumbsup2

[eandesmom]

Oh, hon. Do you need a hug? :hug:

I'm the baker in the family, but I am also very wary of things that need yeast and have to rise. I did successfully make Easter bread this past year though, so I was quite proud. :lmao:



I haven't made anything with yeast in...gosh. I don't even know! I like to cook and tend to think I do a pretty good job. For gourmet club I use it as an excuse to try new things. In this case I needed to bring a dessert and a salad. I'd envisioned making a lemon tart and topping it with raspberries, one I'd made before. Sat night I go to look through my recipes and I can't find it. Pretty sure it was from a VERY old issue of Bon Appetit that I swore I'd saved.

So instead I looked through a couple other back issues and found about 5 lemon things (I was focused on lemon, who knows why) and then let DH pick which one. The sweet lemon fritters (from Capri lol), won.

I had a very hard time getting my yeast to dissolve, had to toss out the first one and then start again. That one never got "foamy" like it was supposed to, so I made another one. That one didn't get foamy either but I was out of yeast, so I used it. Worried about it already I was amazed at how HARD it was to stir the dough. I probably should have made it in my kitchen aid mixer with the paddle but don't do bread things enough to have thought of that ahead of time. 10 minutes later I thought that

1. my arms would fall off
2. no way it was mixed well enough
3. it might be doomed.

I don't know why the recipe called for it to be stirred instead of kneaded. Kneading would have been a million times easier.

I seriously thought it was NOT going to rise.

But it did.

OMG they were GOOD!

but a lot of work.

little balls of lemon deliciousness (lemon, vanilla, brandy and golden raisins dusted with sugar)

they were gone. inhaled. gone.

The salad was not nearly as popular! Probably b.c we were late due to my frantic fritter frying! It turned out well though.

So I'd love to eat them again but... not sure I'm up for making them myself. I think I'm just used to winging it in the kitchen and following random recipes and things generally go the way they are supposed to, easily. This was unexpectedly stressful!

[eandesmom]

Sweet lemon fritters? Those sound devine. I'm with you though. Yeasty things are just too persnickety for my level of patience (low).

exactly! They were devine but I have a hard enough time with waiting for pie crust dough to chill. The stress of will it rise, or not, killed me!

[eandesmom]

I am now officially hungry. :lmao:

Sorry you had such a long bus wait. That's a bummer. But oh my goodness, what a yummy lunch! And I love the novelty of the containers. We are definitely going to have to try this with my son, I know he'd think it was great. :thumbsup2

It was good, and fun. Was it better than your average take-out asian? Maybe not, but I like good take out! It was a nice change after the burgers, chicken and ribs, that's for sure.

I do have one regret. They had a cocktail called a "yak attack" at the outdoor bar. I didn't get it wanting to try the amber and hoping they'd have it at Boma that night.

It's the drink that got away....

I don't remember what was in it but it sounded so good and I'd spent the week searching for that perfect cocktail (which is funny as vacation is the only time I really do cocktails...unless you count the lemon drops at the gourmet club party yesterday lol). I remain:rotfl2: convinced that the Yak Attack would have been IT.

Oh well.

[TarzansKat]

It was good, and fun. Was it better than your average take-out asian? Maybe not, but I like good take out! It was a nice change after the burgers, chicken and ribs, that's for sure.

That's what I'm thinking, a nice change from the other counter service options.


I do have one regret. They had a cocktail called a "yak attack" at the outdoor bar. I didn't get it wanting to try the amber and hoping they'd have it at Boma that night.

It's the drink that got away....

I don't remember what was in it but it sounded so good and I'd spent the week searching for that perfect cocktail (which is funny as vacation is the only time I really do cocktails...unless you count the lemon drops at the gourmet club party yesterday lol). I remain:rotfl2: convinced that the Yak Attack would have been IT.

Oh well.

Gosh, I have heard of that and I can't remember what's in it, but I thought I read on here it's supposed to be good.

Shall I have one in your honor in September? ;)

And in regard to the lemon fritters and stirring the dough, I know how you feel. I have some recipes like that and it feels like my dang arm is going to fall off. There's not a lot in the kitchen that I ask for help with, but I beg my DH to come help me when I have a recipe like that.

He also grew up working in his father's restaurant and is an expert at dough. They made pizzas, etc, so he's really good at kneading. :thumbsup2

[MEK]

The lemon fritters and mediteranean potato salad sound delish. The Yaki & Yeti found sounds (I can't see it) really good as well. I really want to eat Y&Y TS for lunch during our next trip, but can't get it. It's totally booked. I guess I can always use a snack credit for egg rolls....good to know! I love creative ways to use up those snack credits.

Enjoyed your lastest update. I can just picture the crowds. I hope you get to ride some rides. How awful to have to wait 45 minutes for a bus. This happened to my DS waiting for a bus from AK to Epcot. I guess their GPS tracking system must get really screwed up from time to time!

[eandesmom]

Gosh, I have heard of that and I can't remember what's in it, but I thought I read on here it's supposed to be good.

Shall I have one in your honor in September? ;)

And in regard to the lemon fritters and stirring the dough, I know how you feel. I have some recipes like that and it feels like my dang arm is going to fall off. There's not a lot in the kitchen that I ask for help with, but I beg my DH to come help me when I have a recipe like that.

He also grew up working in his father's restaurant and is an expert at dough. They made pizzas, etc, so he's really good at kneading. :thumbsup2

Oh YES! pretty pretty please if you would! And take a picture! that would be fantabulous!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:banana::banana::banana:

I just want to know, why stir versus knead? I used to be able to throw a pizza in the air to get the dough to spin out....that brings back some really fun memories!

[TarzansKat]

Oh YES! pretty pretty please if you would! And take a picture! that would be fantabulous!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:banana::banana::banana:

Oh my goodness! I had no idea you'd be so excited.

Tell you what. I'll get the Yak Attack, is it, toast in your honor, AND when I get home I'll send you a picture of me to your personal e-mail WITH my head on. How about that??? ;)


I just want to know, why stir versus knead? I used to be able to throw a pizza in the air to get the dough to spin out....that brings back some really fun memories!

You know, I wish I knew. Most recipes call for kneading. It must have something to do with how much air gets into the dough, that would be my uneducated guess.

I am horrible at pizza dough. I make it in my bread machine and then have DH do all the fun twirling and stuff.

[eandesmom]

The lemon fritters and mediteranean potato salad sound delish. The Yaki & Yeti found sounds (I can't see it) really good as well. I really want to eat Y&Y TS for lunch during our next trip, but can't get it. It's totally booked. I guess I can always use a snack credit for egg rolls....good to know! I love creative ways to use up those snack credits.

Enjoyed your lastest update. I can just picture the crowds. I hope you get to ride some rides. How awful to have to wait 45 minutes for a bus. This happened to my DS waiting for a bus from AK to Epcot. I guess their GPS tracking system must get really screwed up from time to time!

Those egg rolls were the BOMB! I could make a lunch of two of those. Or 4.

YUM! It's funny, I didn't consider TS inside AK as it has such short park hours but I may consider it next time (though right now Sanaa is on my list for AK day!).

Yeah it was kind of frustrating, the bus thing. to the point of ridiculous as you watch bus after bus after bus come, have no one to pick up as they were so frequent but no one willing to change to AK/BB!

We were really worried about the "home" trip, after dinner....we will see how THAT worked out.

lol!

[eandesmom]

Oh my goodness! I had no idea you'd be so excited.

It's the little things.

Tell you what. I'll get the Yak Attack, is it, toast in your honor, AND when I get home I'll send you a picture of me to your personal e-mail WITH my head on. How about that??? ;)


:worship: I feel so honored! I hope it lives up to my completely unrealistic expectations of it!

[TarzansKat]

It's the little things.

Agreed. :goodvibes


:worship: I feel so honored! I hope it lives up to my completely unrealistic expectations of it!

I really need to get a menu and find out what's in this drink. What have I agreed to? :rotfl2:

[GreatBiscuit]

I'm late, but I'm in! :thumbsup2 So far, I've only read the first post, but already I'm loving it. I'll be catching up shortly. :surfweb:

[eandesmom]

I really need to get a menu and find out what's in this drink. What have I agreed to? :rotfl2:

You know

and this will break your heart

I am sure

truly devastate you.

I may not remember exactly what is in the drink but I do know this much.

...............................

it includes RUM.

:laughing:

[eandesmom]

I'm late, but I'm in! :thumbsup2 So far, I've only read the first post, but already I'm loving it. I'll be catching up shortly. :surfweb:

Welcome!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

and Happy Anniversary :)

[TarzansKat]

You know

and this will break your heart

I am sure

truly devastate you.

I may not remember exactly what is in the drink but I do know this much.

...............................

it includes RUM.

:laughing:

:rotfl2::rotfl2::rotfl2: pirate: ;)

I just this second looked it up. No joke.

It's a mango daquiri with rum and wildberry flavors.

I don't know what I've agreed to, but it sure sounds interesting. And you know what? Not something I'd normally try, so I will try it, enjoy it, and toast you, my dear friend! :thumbsup2

[eandesmom]

:rotfl2::rotfl2::rotfl2: pirate: ;)

I just this second looked it up. No joke.

It's a mango daquiri with rum and wildberry flavors.

I don't know what I've agreed to, but it sure sounds interesting. And you know what? Not something I'd normally try, so I will try it, enjoy it, and toast you, my dear friend! :thumbsup2

Me either but I do branch out on vacation....wildberry.....wonder what that tastes like! Thanks for living on the wild side for me :rotfl:

[TarzansKat]

Thanks for living on the wild side for me :rotfl:

Well, it is the Animal Kingdom.

[Happydog]

SO sorry about the bus, bummer, but YAY on the Yak and Yeti counter service, we go there too! And the lo mein totally hit to spot this past trip in Nov, when it was somewhat dreary outside -- warm lunch hit the spot! This trip we got them again, because we remember liking them and again they were equally good :thumbsup2 Never tried the spring rolls, though, great tip! Looks like you enjoyed your lunch outside, I can't wait to see how the rest of the day goes!!!

These lemon cookie things sound very very good.... gonna share the recipie?

[Angies1274]

Glad you enjoyed Yak and Yeti.:thumbsup2 Everything sounds so yummy!!! We will definitely have to give it a try!!!

Sorry about the bus. It is frustrating when you are watching bus after bus arrive but none of them is the bus you're waiting for.. We played that waiting game with a bus to DTD this year. :sad2: We were sooooo happy when one finally showed up.:thumbsup2

Can't wait to hear how the rest of your day goes.:goodvibes

[eandesmom]

SO sorry about the bus, bummer, but YAY on the Yak and Yeti counter service, we go there too! And the lo mein totally hit to spot this past trip in Nov, when it was somewhat dreary outside -- warm lunch hit the spot! This trip we got them again, because we remember liking them and again they were equally good :thumbsup2 Never tried the spring rolls, though, great tip! Looks like you enjoyed your lunch outside, I can't wait to see how the rest of the day goes!!!

These lemon cookie things sound very very good.... gonna share the recipie?

Sure, I'd be happy to! I can PM it to you if you want. I'll try to scan it but it's probably easier to just write it out lol! It's a good arm workout! And it does make quite a lot. Supposedly 7 doz but I'm guessing it was closer to 6.