The "I Broke My Toe but Still Had an Amazing Time" Trip Report-Magic October 10, 2009

[JDBlair]

I love reading TR's!! :love: I especially love reading TR's with pictures!! :lovestruc :lovestruc On the plane ride home this morning, I put together Day 1 of my TR so as soon as I have uploaded pictures to my Photobucket account, I will post Day 1. Stay tuned.. :happytv:

[JDBlair]

Thursday, October 8, 2009

Here we are, the night before our vacation. DH and I head to bed and set our alarms for 6 am, lots to do in the AM before we can head to the airport for our 12 pm flight. I wrestled with the “I’m too excited to sleep” situation for most of the evening. DH’s phone rang at 4 am and we both kind of looked at each other with confusion. Who would be calling at 4 am? DH gets up to check the phone and sees it’s an 800 number so he gets back in bed. I debate getting up and starting my list of things to do, I was too excited to sleep, but surprisingly fell back to sleep. When the alarm sounded at 6 am to wake up, I jumped out of bed and ran downstairs to do my hair. As I am pulling the straightener through my hair and imaging the fun in store for us very soon, I hear DH’s voicemail on speaker phone but it’s an automated voice. He is coming closer to where I am and I figure he is coming to play for me some funny voicemail, as is usually the case when he listens to voicemail on speakerphone. He hits the key to replay the message and shatters my happy little world, “Hello, this is US Airways to inform you your flight has been canceled due to aircraft maintenance. If you have any questions, please call us at blah-blah-blah.” Canceled? If I have any questions???? Are they for real?

DH heads back upstairs to call US Air with our “questions” and I follow behind him. While he’s talking to the US Air rep, he’s relaying to me there are no flights, everything to Orlando is booked, and they have us on a red-eye to Orlando tomorrow, Friday. I tell him, no, we need to be in Orlando today! He says, Do you want to talk to them? I say, Yes, I do! So, I get on the phone and tell the US Air girl I need to be in Orlando today, I have hotel reservations, rental car reservations and the like today in Orlando and a red-eye flight tomorrow is unacceptable. “Today” being the operative word in each of my sentences. She gives me the same excuses she gives DH and I explain to her that if US Air knew at 4 am that my 12 pm flight would be canceled, they had time to get another plane but because they chose not to get another plane, they’d have to go ahead and figure out a way to get me and my family to Orlando today. I told her I don’t care what class, what airline, etc., but it would be today. She tells me there isn’t anything else she can do but she does offer to cancel my reservation entirely and issue a refund. So I ask to speak to a supervisor but she gives resistance. I insist I want to speak to a supervisor and shortly, I am transferred to “Anthony”. Anthony immediately informs me he is looking in to all the options. I waited on hold quite a bit and he’d come back and ask questions like, “How soon can you be to the airport?” and “Can you fly in to Tampa?” With the ,“How soon can you to be the airport question,” I inform DH we need to start pulling everything together and get it ready just in case we have to rush out the door to the airport. The scene in my home was like that in the movie, Home Alone, when they oversleep and the family rushes about trying to get out the door, well…that was us and suddenly, that scene was no longer funny!!! When Anthony takes me off hold, he informs me he has us booked on an 8:59 am flight (it was currently 6:55 am and we are a good ½ hour from the airport, without traffic), and connect in Atlanta and transfer to Delta, arriving Orlando that evening around 6 pm. I explain to Anthony I am concerned we won’t make it in time and he tells me as long as we are checked in by 8:14 am, we’ll be fine. I tell Anthony he is my hero, hang up, and holler to the family – we have to go NNNNOOOOOWWWW!!!!!!

I think my heart was pounding a million miles a minute. The only thing I was absolutely sure we had was our passports and my wallet, figuring that was all we’d absolutely need to board the Magic, we were good to go. It was a nail biting drive to the airport. Rush hour in Phoenix starts at 6 am and so we hit bumper-to-bumper traffic. We arrived at the airport at 7:30 am. No time for long-term parking, we had to park in short-term if we had any hopes of checking in by 8:14 am. We quickly parked and ran towards the US Air counter only to find the line winding and winding back and forth. I almost burst in to tears for fear we were defeated. DH tells me to be positive; it’s self-service check-in and goes fairly quickly. I’ll admit I was positively freaked out. We managed to check-in with time to spare and actually made our way to the gate with enough time for a potty break. US Air said my bags were checked to Orlando so at least I wouldn’t have to deal with a bag transfer in Atlanta from US Air to Delta. Soon, we were on our way to Atlanta. Phew..but don’t take that sigh of relief just yet.

Happy to be on the plane to Atlanta..
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Expressing my exhaustion from the ordeal that morning..
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Upon arrival to Atlanta, we make our way to the gate for our connecting flight with Delta. I give the male Delta rep our confirmation number and he prints us some boarding passes. Except before he hands them over, our situation is taken over by RUDE female Delta rep. She tells me my confirmation number doesn’t do anything for her and I splash on a look of confusion on my face– how did he just print us boarding passes then? She tells me she needs a ticket number, confirmation we purchased tickets. I explain we didn’t, US Air did and give my condensed nightmarish story but the look on her face clearly indicated she did not care. I don’t understand what she means by ticket number, US Air only gave me a confirmation number and she said I need to get tickets. Does that mean I need to go down to ticketing? She says no, I need to call US Air. She is unhelpful, to say the least and the clock is ticking. I call US Air, thank goodness I still had the paper with their special “In case you have questions 800 number” with me and explain we’re having problems with Delta and tell them they want ticket numbers. US Air seems confused by this request as well but gives us ticket numbers. Megan at US Air says she will stay on the line with me and I get back in line to deal with the Rude Delta Rep. I give her the ticket numbers and she types, very slowly, in to the computer. She tells me the ticket numbers for 1 member in my party doesn’t work, so US Air gives me another ticket number. Then Rude Delta Rep tells me ticket numbers for 2 members in my party won’t work, so US Air gives me 2 more ticket numbers. Would you believe US Air had to give me 3 sets of ticket numbers?? US Air didn’t understand why this was such a problem and informed me we could sit all day and give her as many ticket numbers as she wanted but explained the ticket numbers they were providing were valid. Meanwhile, my family is standing to the side of the podium watching me with fear in their eyes. My DS and DD looked so sad and miserable and I was on the verge of tears. They start boarding the plane and I have already heard this plane was oversold by 8 seats. DH asked me how far the drive to Orlando was and I tell him I think it is 8 hours. Finally, and I don’t know why, but Rude Delta Rep hands me four boarding passes and as she does, she spits out, “But none of you are sitting together.” It’s a good thing I was able to keep a cool head because I could have easily gone off on her but then I would have wound up in airport jail and miss my boat, entirely.

This is me on the walkway to the plane. I am near tears and boiling but at least we were getting on the plane!
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We get on the flight and have to use the Flight Attendants to rearrange at least two seats because they didn’t give us seats together and we are flying with a 5 year old. The flight attendant was a bit snippy with us, informing us our 5 year old can’t sit alone and certainly can’t sit in the exit row they have her seated for. We know this, Rude Delta people, thus the reason we are asking for help in rearranging seats. Sheesh.

I take my seat sandwiched between two business travelers and both express to me they could not believe how rude Rude Delta Rep at the counter was to me. They said they watched the entire thing and just could not believe it and said Delta is usually so good to them. I realize you are only getting my side of the story but I assure you, I simply provided Rude Delta Rep with everything she asked for and I made sure to hold my tongue and curb my anger. Fighting fire with fire wasn’t going to get my family on the flight and I’d have to save my battle for another time. You attract more bees with honey than vinegar so I was doing everything I could to coat myself in honey. I have a feeling if I had copped an attitude with Rude Delta Rep, I would have been stuck in Atlanta. One of the passengers beside me also explained there were 3 gates surrounding us that had passengers all overbooked (21 at 1 gate, 23 at another gate, and 27 at another gate). DH and I had to wonder if those passengers were from the flight US Air had canceled on us and it would make sense that they were since our canceled flight was a nonstop to Orlando. We have a hard time believing US Air called every passenger to announce the flight was canceled. DH had checked us in online the night before and when US Air called, they called his cell number. I had originally booked the flights so it was my information US Air had on file for our reservation but DH checked us in. So..it leads us to believe they only called those who had checked in the night before and left the others to figure out their flight was canceled upon arrival to the airport.

We arrived in Orlando around 6 pm and I’m exhausted, VERY cranky, and starving. When I was dealing with US Air on the telephone that AM, I had instructed DS and DD to eat breakfast. On the US Air flight to Atlanta, DD and DH shared a snack pack. So, everyone had had something to eat at the point, except me. I inhaled two little packets of peanuts Delta gave me but that was about it. Fortunately, all of our bags arrived in Orlando – I was worried they wouldn’t considering the adventure we’d had thus far. There were no problems with our Budget Rental Car, thank goodness. Soon, we were on our way to our hotel but I refused to breathe a sigh of relief just yet. When you start your vacation in this fashion, it jades you and makes you very skeptical everything else is going to go horribly wrong.

We breezed through check-in at Springhill Suites in the Marriott Village and discover a clean room awaiting us. First item on the agenda was to eat dinner and we tried the food court but a stale pizza wasn’t going to cut it for me. DS said he had seen a Chik-Fil-A back out the way we came in and while that was not my ideal meal, it was food and that is where we headed. I don’t think I have eaten a chicken sandwich and fries so fast in my life but once the food was in my stomach, I was starting to feel better. Maybe things would turn around for us. Maybe.

Back at the hotel, DH and I settled the kids in the room with their own television programming and DH and I went to the bar. We had a $25 incidental credit, per night with our room reservation so decided we’d take advantage of that with a drink. I definitely needed one. So, we had 2! We toasted to being in Orlando and decided to put the day behind us..until I get home and have it out with US Air for my short-term parking feees.

Yay for incidental credits and a hotel bar!!
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Tomorrow is a new day and some Pixie Dust was headed our way!!!

[E&BMom]

OMG!!! I can't believe all that happened! I'm glad you made it. Hope the rest of the trip goes more smoothly but based on your title I'm not so sure????:goodvibes Can't wait to hear the rest.

[Alice_on_WONDERland]

Your poor family! I cannot believe the horrible experience you all went through. And then you broke your toe too?! Gesh!

I'm subscribing, not because I love reading about your MISERY, but I am hopeful that it gets better from here!

[Mojodisney]

As I'm reading your tale to DH, he piped up and reminded me that our last interaction with a Delta flight that was booked thru another airline had problems too. They were not very helpful and resisted very hard in helping us. We insisted and the NW airlines counter people were great and helped us thru it. This was a flight for MIL, so crucial!!!:rotfl2:

Glad you got there safe and had a drink to decompress. Can't wait to hear the rest of your trip.

[TotallyAngelic]

OMG - how stressful - you poor things. What a nightmare start to your vacation!:mad:
I only hope things start to improve - although the title of your trip report suggests there is more trauma yet to come :scared1:
Love the photo of you both a bit more chilled after the drink!

[delo4]

I totally understand your frustration with Rude Delta people. I was stuck in Atlanta this summer after a thunderstorm had grounded everything for 3 hours. After rescheduling my flight numerous times, changing gates and traversing the airport all night long, they cancelled my flight at 2:00 in the morning. I spend the rest of the night on the phone trying to get on another flight. Absolutely no one in the airport would help me. I was returning home after caring for my inlaws after surgery. Everyone in that airport (delta employees) were mean. They could care less if you were stranded and at their mercy. I will never fly Delta through Atlanta again. I finally was able to get on a standby flight later that morning, but many people from my originial flight were still waiting to get out hours later. I spend 15 hours in the Atlanta airport and hopefully never again. I don't understand how you can be so mean to people after you have just disrupted their entire travel plans. It was a nightmare.

Glad everything finally worked out for you, but sorry you had to go through all that drama.

[JDBlair]

OMG!!! I can't believe all that happened! I'm glad you made it. Hope the rest of the trip goes more smoothly but based on your title I'm not so sure????:goodvibes Can't wait to hear the rest.

I can't believe it either. :scared1:

Your poor family! I cannot believe the horrible experience you all went through. And then you broke your toe too?! Gesh!

I'm subscribing, not because I love reading about your MISERY, but I am hopeful that it gets better from here!

My DH tells me today that the ordeal with the airline didn't sound so bad when he relayed it to his co-worker today. I told him he must have left out some details because it's pretty bad. I guess in the end, we ended up where we needed to be. But I swear the entire ordeal shaved at least 6 months off my life.

As I'm reading your tale to DH, he piped up and reminded me that our last interaction with a Delta flight that was booked thru another airline had problems too. They were not very helpful and resisted very hard in helping us. We insisted and the NW airlines counter people were great and helped us thru it. This was a flight for MIL, so crucial!!!:rotfl2:

Glad you got there safe and had a drink to decompress. Can't wait to hear the rest of your trip.

We flew Delta in 2007 to Orlando and although they were okay, I didn't rebook with them for this trip because the months leading up to our vacation, they rearranged our flight information at least 10 times. It was crazy. Trust me, Delta people will get an E-mail from me about their represenative. Even though I don't have her name, they can certainly look through their records to figure out who was helping me. At one point, the Rude Delta Rep gets on her walkie talkie and tells someone she needs a supervisor to come "deal with this" except what needed to be dealt with was her attitude.

OMG - how stressful - you poor things. What a nightmare start to your vacation!:mad:
I only hope things start to improve - although the title of your trip report suggests there is more trauma yet to come :scared1:
Love the photo of you both a bit more chilled after the drink!

;)

I totally understand your frustration with Rude Delta people. I was stuck in Atlanta this summer after a thunderstorm had grounded everything for 3 hours. After rescheduling my flight numerous times, changing gates and traversing the airport all night long, they cancelled my flight at 2:00 in the morning. I spend the rest of the night on the phone trying to get on another flight. Absolutely no one in the airport would help me. I was returning home after caring for my inlaws after surgery. Everyone in that airport (delta employees) were mean. They could care less if you were stranded and at their mercy. I will never fly Delta through Atlanta again. I finally was able to get on a standby flight later that morning, but many people from my originial flight were still waiting to get out hours later. I spend 15 hours in the Atlanta airport and hopefully never again. I don't understand how you can be so mean to people after you have just disrupted their entire travel plans. It was a nightmare.

Glad everything finally worked out for you, but sorry you had to go through all that drama.

I'm sorry to hear about your nightmare experience as well. All I can say is I am so glad DCL is bringing a ship to the west coast. I may never, ever have to fly east again and will certainly do everything within my power to avoid the Atlanta airport. There's just no reason for people to be that mean! And here's a hint, folks, if you hate your job that much - get a different one! And if you can't get a different one, make the most of the one you have!

[JDBlair]

Friday, October 9, 2009 Part I

The day before our nightmare travel day, I received an unexpected E-mail from a wonderful person asking if my family would like to go to all 4 Walt Disney World Parks on Friday. They knew we had tickets for MNSSHP and knew I had never been to WDW before but really thought my family should experience more than the Magic Kingdom. I was very, very touched and excited about the offer and humbly accepted. :wizard:

DH and I didn’t tell the kids about the exciting news and headed out Friday morning explaining to the kids we were meeting someone and then running some errands. When we cruised September 2007, I delivered a verbal message to a Guest Services rep per a request from someone on the DIS boards. It was a cute message passing from one friend to the other and I was happy to do it. So this time I told the kids we were picking up a package to deliver to a Cast Member on board from a friend because they don’t get to see each other very often. The kids believed me, even though DH thought I was a horrible liar and said the kids saw right through my story.

We walked up to the entrance of Hollywood Studios and even after we went through the turnstiles, the kids still didn’t understand we were there to enjoy the park. It wasn’t until we were getting on rides that they realized we were spending the day at the parks but we kind of had to spell it out for them:idea:-guess my lying wasn’t so horrible after all!

We were all very excited about this generous offer to spend the day in the parks and we extend a HUGE thank you to those who bestowed Pixie Dust on us Friday. :hug:

Our day began in Hollywood Studios promptly at 9 am and we rode the Aerosmith Roller Coaster (DD couldn't ride due to height restrictions but she sure can pose for pictures!),
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Tower of Terror and Toy Story Mania (DS kicked my butt in that game).
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After Toy Story Mania, we stood in line to have DD’s picture taken with Buzz and Woody, her heroes, except she didn’t know they were at the end of the line. For those of you who may not know, the line queues through some other photo ops and DD (and sometimes DH) posed for each of those. She was pretty content with this as it was all Toy Story themes.
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As we neared the end of the line and she was able to peak around the corner and see what awaited her next, she spun around, grabbed her beating heart and gasped, “Buzz and Woody are here?!!” :love: It was precious. As DD and DH finished posing for photos with Buzz and Woody, Woody motioned me in for a group photo but had to pull DS in to join us.

I call this, “The Gang’s All Here”.
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We leave Hollywood Studios and through our Pixie Dust grantor’s tip, drive over to the parking lot for Magic Kingdom/Epcot and take the monorail to Epcot. It was a very hot and muggy day in Florida and our energy levels were zapped. Getting from one place to another was a bit taxing and slowed us down more than we would have preferred. We decided against going to Animal Kingdom because the one ride we’d want to ride DD wouldn’t be able to. It was too hot to just stand outdoors and look at animals and that wouldn’t interest my kids too much, anyway. So, we skipped Animal Kingdom. (I’m a little sad about that but it was probably for the best, can’t press my luck too much. :rolleyes1)

At Epcot we rode Test Track (we all loved it!), got some tasty salmon and beer from the Canadian stand (thanks to a tip from our Pixie Dust grantor!) and rode Finding Nemo.
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First we have an awful travel day and now Bruce is swallowing my DH and DD?
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Happy to not be in a sharks mouth!
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Like I said, it was very hot and humid and we were doing everything we could to stay indoors. There’s a lot to be said for the dry heat we have here in Arizona because that wet heat in Florida was killing us! Would have liked to have seen more of Epcot but that would have required a great deal of walking outdoors and the family was starting to fade. :faint: We hadn’t had lunch yet and we were nearing the 2 pm hour. We decide we’ll go to Magic Kingdom and find some food and maybe some shade!! :blush:

[E&BMom]

What a great surprise you got in that email!! :thumbsup2 You guys deserved it after the day you had flying to Orlando. Great pics!!!!
Can't wait for the rest!!!!

[natale1980]

All I can say is WOW!! What a crazy day!
I'm glad your family got to enjoy a nice day in the parks.

-nat

[pmama]

Love the TR so far. What a terrible way to start out the trip but kuddos for you for finding a way there.:thumbsup2

[Disney Nana 4]

Pmama, I love those ears on your girls....where did you get them? They make a great photo!!!:banana:

[matthewsmom1]

Wow! You're inspiring me to do a trip report too!! :)

[ragdoll]

Jac, I am loving this trip report! I also went back and read part of the Sept. 2007 trip report of the cruise that we were on with you. It brought back some great memories. Whenever I see one of your posts the first thing I think of is "big scary guy".:rotfl2:

[engle]

WOW...awesome report!!! Your first day of travel entitles you to the most wonderful rest of your vacation!!! Can't wait to read the rest!!

[MagicMe]

Rats - can't believe I'm at the end of the report (to date). Really enjoying your trip report. What a way to start your vacation. Can't wait for more updates!!! :thumbsup2

[JDBlair]

Friday, October 9, 2009 Part 2

We made it to Magic Kingdom sometime after the 3 pm hour. As we entered the park, we realized the parade was taking place but in the tunnel, I got stopped by a CM asking me to take a survey. I sent DH ahead with DD because she was so excited to see the parade.
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When I rejoined the family, the parade was ending and we lined right up behind the parade to follow them down Main St. This was my first time at Magic Kingdom and the family’s first time following the parade down the street so it was a neat way to start our time in the park.
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It was really when the Cast Member carrying the “end of the parade” sign motioned to DD to assist him in holding the pole. She happily obliged and another Cast Member took my camera and rushed ahead a bit to get a picture of DD helping with the sign.
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As we rounded in front of the castle, we were told it was the end of the line for us. How cool is that? We were part of the parade and then had a front and center view of the castle!
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Now it was time to find something to eat. It was a little frustrating not knowing too much about Magic Kingdom. I know Disneyland like the back of my hand and can tell you where you can sit indoors and eat and where you cannot. We had to rely on our map and I think we ate at a place named Peco’s Bills? We just had burgers and they were your typical Disney burgers but that was fine by us – we were indoors and finally eating something.
From linner (late lunch/early dinner), we rode Pirates. Pirates in the Magic Kingdom was definitely different than Disneyland but it was still cool. I love Pirates! After Pirates we made our way to the front of the castle to obtain our wristbands for the party and were also given our treat bags. The kids and I then rode the tea cups and I think these tea cups spin faster than the ones in Disneyland because I had to beg DS to stop!! Whoa..I was dizzy.

We also rode the cars (Autopia in Disneyland but I have no idea what it’s called at Magic Kingdom). After the cars, DD got in to her Minnie Mouse costume for the party and then we rode Buzz (our favorite ride), except none of us liked that you couldn’t remove the gun. We also saw the Monster’s Inc show and DH was part of the show-that was fun but I can’t remember the character he played. We also saw the Stitch show but none of us liked it. Does anyone? We rode the People Mover and then it was time for the party to get started.
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I know a great appeal to MNSSHP is the characters and dance parties. Character pictures would only appeal to DD so we didn’t stand in any of the lines to take advantage of those photo ops. I would have liked to have taken her picture with Snow White and the 7 Dwarves but when we passed by, she never said a word about it. I think DD was more interested in riding rides and we were all struggling with the heat and humidity still plaguing our day, the more time we could spend indoors away from the mugginess, the better!


We rode some Fantasyland rides and did some trick-or-treat lines.
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DD and I got face paint!
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It had been a really long day for us and we were starting to wear down. We sat in front of the castle to watch the fireworks. That was pretty cool!! We had a great view and were able to sit down.
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We were annoyed by the people that were still walking around would step over us and go back and forth. Really? Pretty sure the guy on the loud speaker had told people not to move around. Not only that but there was clearly a path around where we were seated, didn’t really understand why people felt the need to step over and between us. After the fabulous fireworks, we rode the Haunted Mansion. From October – December, the Haunted Mansion in Disneyland has the Nightmare Before Christmas overlay and DH was so bummed Magic Kingdom didn’t have the same set-up! After Haunted Mansion, we made our way towards Frontierland because that is where I wanted to see the 2nd parade. We treated ourselves to Mickey bars and staked out a spot for the parade. While waiting for the parade, DH took DD to see Woody.

It wasn’t long before the Headless Horseman made his way down the parade path and then the parade began. We really liked the parade, it was very cool and different.
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Across the street from us, a small group watching the parade was joined by Jesse from Toy Story. She was really in to the parade and was dancing, interacting with people in the parade, and she got really excited when the cowboys in the parade made their way down the street. It was a lot of fun watching her interact with those around her and those in the parade!! Disney really knows how to put on parades and this one didn’t disappoint!

We rode Thunder Mountain and made our way out of the park. It was near closing time and we figured we should get a head-start on the crowd. We had a great time at MNSSHP and Walt Disney World but were exhausted.

Our combined booty from the party!
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We really had a great time and were so thankful for the special offer to see the parks!!! Tomorrow we get "on the boat" and we were very excited. Thankfully the long day at the parks afforded us all a good night's sleep!

[Lucille1963]

I love your trip report!

[tow-mater-1]

Great trip report!! How awesome that you got to spend the day at the parks.:thumbsup2 Love the pics, can't wait to read more!

[jajomo0118]

Great trip report so far Jac... :) Glad I get to read it...even if I couldn't be in it this time!!

[Alice_on_WONDERland]

I can't wait to read MORE! :thumbsup2

[brittanyherndon]

I can't wait to read MORE! :thumbsup2

neither can I

[disneyfaninaz]

Hi neighbor,

I just found your report. We were gone for fall break too.

I can't believe your story and what you went through just to get to Orlando. I don't think I could have been as "nice" about it. Persistence pays off. That is one reason I love to fly SWA! No surprise cancellations!

Anyway, what a great surprise about the tickets to the parks. Didn't you just love the Halloween Party?

Can't wait to hear more!

[praisehisname]

What a horrible start to your vacation! I'm glad you were able to enjoy some time in the parks, despite the humidity!

Can't wait to hear about your cruise!

Denise

[TotallyAngelic]

Loved your account of MNSSHP - brings back memories of this time last year when we were there the night before joining the Magic. Looking forward to reading more!:goodvibes

[JDBlair]

Saturday, October 10, 2009
Embarkation Day!!

The big day had finally arrived but the family was a little less excited than expected. The humidity and long day in the parks the day before may have had something to do with it but nonetheless, we had a goal to be at the cruise terminal at 10 am and so, we were up early enough to make that happen. :thumbsup2

On the way to the cruise terminal, we had to stop for bottled water and alcohol. One of the best tips I learned on the DIS was to bring our own bottled water onboard. We bring an empty duffel bag to Florida and use it to check the bottled water in with the porters. We also bring onboard a couple bottles of spirits-helps us save money on our bar tab on the ship!

During our last major family vacation in 2007, DH and were not prepared for tipping porters, room service and the like. :headache: We were always struggling to pull together tip money! On my to-do list for this vacation I added the chore of getting $1 bills from the bank. Right before the trip, I had received a $90 check and retained it for the purpose of using it to obtain my singles from the bank. When DD and I went to cash the check, the week before the cruise, the bank teller asked if I wanted the entire $90 in singles. With a million things running through my mind, I could not quickly think of a way to ask for the $90 so I told him 90 singles were fine. Have you ever seen 90 $1 bills? Well, in case you haven’t, it’s a thicker stack than one might expect. :laughing: One thing that I don’t see mentioned very often on the boards is the toll roads in Orlando. I was very, very thankful for those 90 $1 bills every time we encountered a toll booth otherwise, we would have been in trouble as DH and I rarely have cash on us.

I mentioned at the beginning of this TR, I love to read TR’s and have learned a lot from the adventures of others. Another reason I love the DIS is it allows an opportunity to develop strategies and better game plans. This cruise vacation was different than our last cruise vacation in many different ways. For this vacation, we rented a car from Budget and had to drop the car off in Port Canaveral. After researching on the DIS, I asked DH to drop me, the kids and our luggage off at the terminal and sent him alone to return the car and use the shuttle to join us back at the terminal. It was about 10 am that DH dropped us at the curb of the terminal :banana:and we were immediately greeted by a porter, my tip money was already out and handy, and soon the kids and I were making our way to security.

Once inside the terminal, with my paperwork confirming our online check-in and Passports in hand, I was shown to the Castaway Club check-in line. Meanwhile, my children roamed inside the cruise terminal.
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The wait in line actually took longer than last time but I wasn’t worried. We beat the buses to the terminal and had boarding pass #5 so I was cool, calm and collected.
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After receiving our KTTW and Silver member lanyards, I proceeded to the kids club check-in. I had pre-registered DD online so I immediately got in line. There were plenty of families in the area but they didn’t seem to know the process so they were speaking with the CM standing at the entrance of the line and asking questions. There were about 5 CM’s for club check-in but they were all taking awhile. My check-in was smooth and easy, I am guessing it’s because I checked in online. Soon DD was tagged, I was weighed down with pager and we were on our way.

Shortly after kids club check-in was completed, DH appeared. He told me my idea to drop us off and return the car on his own was genius. He explained he rode the shuttle to the cruise terminals with another family and they asked him why he didn’t have any luggage or family members and he explained he had dropped us and the stuff off before taking the car to Budget. The family expressed they should have done the same thing – would have been so much easier! In the time it took DH to return the car to Budget and join us back at the cruise terminal, I was able to check us in for the cruise, check DD in for the club and all that was left to do was take our security photo. DH’s timing was perfect because nobody was in line for security photos and all 4 of us did that with no wait - easy-peasy!

While we waited for the boarding process to begin, we chatted with fellow DIS friends. Soon it was time to get on the ship and before we knew it, we were being welcomed back to the Magic and getting on the boat. I had scored Palo dinner and brunch reservations at the 90 day mark so I didn’t need to rush to Rockin’ Bar D but I did have to get in line at Guest Services for tickets to Tea with the Mad Hatter. The line at Guest Services took a little while but it wasn’t too bad.

We journeyed to Topsiders for lunch and chose to eat indoors; it was another hot and humid day in Florida! DH ordered us up some sail away drinks, yum-yum, and we enjoyed our lunch.
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For the past 2 years, DD has talked about the Mickey slide and that she couldn’t wait to return and ride the slide. Just as I did for the last cruise, I packed DD’s swimsuit in our carry-on bag so she could enjoy the less-crowded pools on embarkation day. After lunch, she changed in to her swimsuit and we made our way to the Mickey pool. Except once we were at the Mickey pool, she wasn’t interested in that pool – oh no, she wanted to go to the Goofy pool. I had enrolled her in swim lessons at the beginning of summer and she no longer required the use of arm floaties. She was very excited to get in the Goofy pool and show off her mad swimming skills.
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Did I mention it was another hot, humid Florida afternoon? Well, it was! Standing outside was really uncomfortable for all of us but DD! DH and I cannot simply move to the shade and allow her to swim without supervision so one of us was always on the side of the pool watching her at all times. It astonished me there weren’t more parents supervising their children. :confused3 If you sit in the lounge chairs, you cannot see the water and the rule we have with our children is if they cannot see our eyes, they cannot be in the water. DH and I took turns baking in the sun but as soon as we were able to get in to our stateroom, we made our way there. This displeased DD but it’s no fun carrying around our day bags and it was hot!

We took some time to relax in the room a bit. I worked on putting the magnets on our door signs so we could properly decorate our door.
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At 3 pm, we had a DIS meet in the promenade lounge and we attended that. We went to the mandatory lifeboat drill and I was mortified as I felt sweat dripping down the backs of my legs. Man, it was HOT!!! After the lifeboat drill, we returned to the stateroom and I was forced to make a decision about dilemma of the Sail Away party. I certainly didn’t want to be inside our room while we sailed away but I didn’t want to be up on Deck 9 or 10 either. I suggested we go to Deck 4 and let me just tell you, that was a fabulous idea!! :woohoo: We were shaded, it wasn’t crowded, and we had a great view of sailing out to sea.
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The kids played DD’s version of shuffleboard.
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We were all pretty happy and nobody seemed miserable or seemed to feel like we were missing out on the party up above. :cutie:

Time for dinner and we started in Parrot Cay. Our assistant server was Jess, from Canada, and we all just loved her. Our server was Beethoven, we’ll chat more about him later. Prior to the cruise, I had called DCL and requested a 4 top per the request of DH and DS. We were pleased to see our request was honored. Although, we were sandwiched between two other 4 tops and our tables were close enough that we were able to chat with members at one of the tables next to us.
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After dinner, DS bee-lined it to the Stack and DD asked to go to the club. DH and I went to the show but after the show, we picked DD up and made our way to bed. It was a long day, already had been a long trip and we were ready for some sleep. DD was very excited to call dibs on the top bunk for this trip and we ordered cookies and milk from room service to help settle us in for the night.
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Not a bad start to our cruise and we were all happy to be back in our cabin away from home! :lovestruc

[JDBlair]

What a great surprise you got in that email!! :thumbsup2 You guys deserved it after the day you had flying to Orlando. Great pics!!!!
Can't wait for the rest!!!!
I was very touched by the offer to go to the World, it really meant a lot to me. The day at world helped chase the previous day away!!


All I can say is WOW!! What a crazy day!
I'm glad your family got to enjoy a nice day in the parks.

-nat
The day in the parks were very nice. My only wish is that it had been a little cooler but even still, we had a nice time and are SO thankful for the offer we had received.

Love the TR so far. What a terrible way to start out the trip but kuddos for you for finding a way there.:thumbsup2
It took every ounce of my being to not go completely ballistic on the airlines but I knew the moment I started losing control, they would shut down and not help me in the slightest. I think my ability to stay as calm as I could only helped us get to Orlando.

Wow! You're inspiring me to do a trip report too!! :)
You totally should!! Trip Reports are awesome!! :thumbsup2

Jac, I am loving this trip report! I also went back and read part of the Sept. 2007 trip report of the cruise that we were on with you. It brought back some great memories. Whenever I see one of your posts the first thing I think of is "big scary guy".:rotfl2:
Hello there!!! That's right, big scary guy! LOL

WOW...awesome report!!! Your first day of travel entitles you to the most wonderful rest of your vacation!!! Can't wait to read the rest!!
I have to admit, that first day really set the rest of the vacation up to be less relaxing than I had hoped it would. I kept waiting for the other shoe to fall. I had a hard time getting excited about things because I was worried something would go wrong. Stupid airlines!

Rats - can't believe I'm at the end of the report (to date). Really enjoying your trip report. What a way to start your vacation. Can't wait for more updates!!! :thumbsup2
I'm sorry it has taken me so long to get another posting done. I know the feeling of getting to the end of a TR, it does stink!

I love your trip report!
Thank you!

Great trip report!! How awesome that you got to spend the day at the parks.:thumbsup2 Love the pics, can't wait to read more!
Thank you!! It was an awesome day in the parks.

Great trip report so far Jac... :) Glad I get to read it...even if I couldn't be in it this time!!
:hug:

I can't wait to read MORE! :thumbsup2
Thank you!

neither can I
Thank you, too!

Hi neighbor,

I just found your report. We were gone for fall break too.

I can't believe your story and what you went through just to get to Orlando. I don't think I could have been as "nice" about it. Persistence pays off. That is one reason I love to fly SWA! No surprise cancellations!

Anyway, what a great surprise about the tickets to the parks. Didn't you just love the Halloween Party?

Can't wait to hear more!
I couldn't believe it either. I just kept shaking my head thinking, "Is this really happening??" :eek: I did love the Halloween party. It was awesome. I just wish we hadn't been so drained by that point. That Florida humidity really zaps it out of us. We kept saying, "Where is our dry heat??"

What a horrible start to your vacation! I'm glad you were able to enjoy some time in the parks, despite the humidity!

Can't wait to hear about your cruise!

Denise
LOL We are a big bunch of whiners, aren't we? LOL :sad2: After that beer in Epcot, DH and I whined a lot less. Maybe we should have drank some more? :confused3

Loved your account of MNSSHP - brings back memories of this time last year when we were there the night before joining the Magic. Looking forward to reading more!:goodvibes
I read your TR and loved it. I'm so excited and honored you're reading mine! I did love MNSSHP. To be honest, your TR is what inspired me to buy tickets to MNSSHP!! How ironic is that?

[JDBlair]

Monday, October 11, 2009
1st Day at Sea Part 1 of 2

Although there were many differences between this cruise and our cruise in 2007, some things stayed the same. Day 1 and I am up early and out of the room to leave my sleeping beauties to continue their snore orchestra. I grab some coffee from Deck 9 and head to Quiet Cove to watch the world sail by.
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Such a beautiful moment and relaxing. I felt so blessed and fortunate to be in that moment, on that ship and in this place in my life. :cloud9: A tear or two escaped down my cheek as I thought of my blessings and the blessing to have this time on board to unwind. I kept my vacation ADD at bay a little more this cruise and sat on the comfy blue lounger for awhile before I made my way to Deck 10 to get some pictures.

Whoa! It was way windy!!! Self portrait!
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Deck 10 was empty, as was much of Deck 9.
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When I left the room, I told DH when I’d return. Before heading back to the room, I went through Topsiders and picked up some breakfast for the family.;)
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I figured they’d be more apt to rise and shine if food was presented. The food didn’t necessarily jump them out of bed so I opened the curtains!
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That worked and soon, everyone was snacking on what I brought for them.
As a foursome, we made our way to the portholes by Rockin’ Bar D. I love the photos taken in the portholes and wanted to get some from this trip.
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I had already resigned myself to the fact that we would not pose for professional photos this trip. Although I loved the pictures we got in 2007, it wasn’t worth the hassle of getting everyone to cooperate :mad: and then to stand in line. No, thank you! :headache: So, lots of casual photos would be in order!

If you read my last TR, you know my DD has a thing for bathrooms. This hasn’t changed in 2 years! While near Rockin’ Bar D, I wanted to show her the bathroom in that area because she would appreciate it. Sure enough, she did. She thought it was very cool.
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It was Palo Brunch day for us so DD went to her club, DS took the pager for his pager-duty and DH and I spent some time relaxing in Quiet Cove before our reservation.

I loved Palo Brunch on our last cruise and have been so eager to have more salmon mousse. I don’t know what it is about that mousse but I just love it. YUM!!
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1 thing has changed from 2007 in that I have started eating healthier and limiting my portions but somehow, I was going to make brunch work for me. Another thing that has changed is I have been more open to trying new foods. There were things on my plate at Palo I would have never tried before but am so glad I did. The grape and blue cheese pizza was devine! It was delicious. When it came time to order hot food, DH and I were so full and didn’t want to waste food so we ordered the chicken parmesan and risotto to split. O..M..G!!! The risotto melted in my mouth, it was just absolutely amazing. Palo Brunch did not disappoint!
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When we returned to the room, we found DS and DD inside, eating ice cream. We were pleased and amazed they weren’t at each other’s throats but instead, sitting quietly, eating and watching TV. :eek: DS quickly tossed the pager our way and made his way to reconnect with friends. DD changed in to her suit and we made our way to the pool!
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Can you see me in her sunglasses?
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We spent a few hours at the pool with DD and fellow DIS friends. It was a nice day, DH and I were drinking cocktails and Nemo was on the big screen. Score!!
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While we were enjoying our afternoon by the Goofy pool, we noticed DS and his group of friends get in line for a picture with Pluto! What? :confused: DS hates to have his picture taken with characters. Armed with camera and as slyly as I could, I snuck over to the area and snapped away while DS and gang posed for pictures. He never saw me until the picture taking time was over and I grabbed his arm. Surprise!!!
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We had tickets for Tea with the Mad Hatter at 3 pm and DD and I attended the event with DIS friends. Good times! It was a fun time, the girls really seemed to enjoy it and I know I enjoyed it!! I give mad props to the CM that plays the Mad Hatter. His voice is spot on to the real deal!
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[JDBlair]

Monday, October 11, 2009
1st Day at Sea Part 2 of 2

Tonight was Formal night and Captain’s Reception. DH and I enjoyed a cocktail or two, maybe 3 or 4, courtesy of the captain, but they weren’t strong so no worries. Dinner was lovely and the food was good. My opinion on the food this cruise: I was impressed and was never disappointed. Last cruise it was simply “okay” but this time, I thought it was quite tasty! I had such a beautiful day and thought my family looked so lovely at dinner, it was a beautiful night.
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Mickey Ears!!
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After dinner, DH, DD and I joined our DIS friends at the Golden Mickey’s. I can’t help but look at this picture and think my baby is growing in to a lovely little girl. My sister has expressed she doesn’t like this dress on DD because it makes her look too grown-up. I think the reality is simple-she is growing up!
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I think this was the night we had quite a few drink spills. Whoops! :rolleyes1I can't remember how the first drink spilt but I do remember there were 2 drinks that met an early demise. :rotfl: DH had to leave the Golden Mickey’s show before it began because DD spilt my drink on him. So, let this be a warning to you-hold on to your drink in the Walt Disney Theater! ;)

After the show, DD went to the club and DH and I joined our DIS friends in Rockin’ Bar D for some adult time. We watched Root Berry, they are funny!
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After Root Berry's show, we then enjoyed some fun dancing. One of the theme songs for our cruise meets has been, “I’m on a Boat.” The DJ played the song for us and we danced our booties off. It was a lot of fun but soon the pager announced it was time to pick up DD, the club was closing. It was an awesome day followed by an awesome evening. It was great to be on vacation! :dance3:

[JDBlair]

This picture got a lot of reaction from my friends before the cruise. As mentioned about my tip money, here is the 90 $1 bills I got for our vacation to handle tolls, tips, baggage carts in airports and the like. One might think $90 for the trip would have been too much, I certainly thought so, but it wasn't. It was almost just right. So..carefully plan and arrange to have $1 bills with you on your vacations, especially if you'll be driving from Orlando to the port!
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[praisehisname]

Great updates; you're on a roll! Your first two days onboard sound like they have gone well. I love Palo brunch!!!