Escaping Irene: A NY family "evacuates" to Disney! *Update 5/30 Universal*

[DrMomof3]

I'm going to try to start my trip report. Finally.

This was our 2nd Annual August Trip to Disney World. Our schools traditionally start the day after Labor Day so we like to take advantage of the low crowd levels in late August and enjoy an end-of-summer family trip.

Cast of Characters:

Me = Amanda. I'm an almost 40 year old mom of 3 who works full-time as a pediatric urologist.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d724b3127ccefe5e12207d3800000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

Amazingly, in over 800 pictures from the trip, this is one of the few pictures of me! (And it's not even a very good one!)

Tom. Chronological age = 42. Maturity level = ??? :lmao: Tom is an adult urologist and father to our wonderful children.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c6e95a4af00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

Nathaniel, age 7.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c609ca4a100000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

Jessica, age 5.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5db58f453c00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

Zachary, age 3 (Zachary was ill during the trip so we allowed the pacifier much more than usual so please ignore the "ba-ba" in his mouth in every picture)

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5df115458400000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

Poor Buffy the dog was stuck in NY, braving the hurricane! :love:

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

I'm the "official" Disney addict in the family but truthfully we all love Disney. Tom complains that he's getting a little Disney-ed out but I know he enjoys it almost as much as I do. I went a few times as a young child (in the mid to late 70's before even Epcot was built) and then didn't return until January, 2008 when I was pregnant with Zachary. We went back again around Zachary's 1st birthday (May, 2009) and again in December that year. April, 2010 I went to a work conference at Yacht Club and brought Tom along for a weekend trip. Our 1st annual family trip was that August. I ran the half marathon in January, 2011 and then we returned in August. I'd say we've had a pretty good run!!!

The original plan was to fly out of White Plains Airport on Saturday, August 27th at 11:15am. We'd arrive at MCO around 2pm, pick up our rental car, and head to BLT for a lovely week in Disney. Sounds great, right? The Hurricane Irene came into the picture. The Monday before our trip it seemed that Irene was likely to hit Orlando and possibly mess up our arrival. As the week progressed it became clear that NY was in danger and not Orlando. Thursday morning I noticed that JetBlue was offering a fee waiver to people who wanted to change their flights to/from affected locations. Tom quickly picked up the phone to see what JetBlue could do for us. After waiting on hold for a considerable amount of time and watching many of the flights become unavailable as we followed online, we began to worry. A lot. Tom had a full day of work ahead of him on Friday and I had a half-day followed by an important dentist appointment (to get a temporary crown - I've had a nightmare with the dentist over the last month) so we needed a pretty late flight.
There were no longer any available flights out of White Plains and we settled for flying out of JFK (about 45 min to hour away instead of about 15 min). Problem was that we couldn't get 5 seats on the same plane. We decided that I'd fly at 7pm with Jessica and Zachary and Tom would take Nathaniel at 9pm (Nathaniel is pretty much the only child in our family who can tolerate staying up really late without completely melting down). We also figured that I could take a car service to the airport so our nanny could wait with Nathaniel until Tom got home. Then she could drive Tom and Nathaniel to JFK. So far, so good.

(Posting so I can take Nathaniel to his violin lesson. More to come!)

Amanda

[disneydreamingdebby]

I'm here!:dance3:

Your hurricane story takes me back to our winter flight when we had to get out ahead of the bad weather. I am so glad you were able to change flights! Can't wait to hear how the flights were!

[Twoboysnmygirl]

I'm here! I'm here! Just subbing so I can be on the first page...then I'll read! :lmao:

[ZFamily5]

I'm in! Can't wait to hear all about it!

[kokotg]

I'm in! another three kid family here. And my 8 year old had surgery when he was a baby to fix his kidney reflux, so I have a special place in my heart for pediatric urologists. :laughing:

[natebenma]

I'm so in!!! Now I need to go back and read. :)

Edit- caught up! Love a trip report that starts out with drama in Post 2! I know there is more to come!

I can relate to your absence in trip photos! We pay the price being the official photographers of the family.

[dismagiclover]

I'm here too:goodvibes

[luvdisney00]

Definitely in...I was there too and the storm hit at home in NJ.

[DrMomof3]

I'm here!:dance3:

Your hurricane story takes me back to our winter flight when we had to get out ahead of the bad weather. I am so glad you were able to change flights! Can't wait to hear how the flights were!

We're very lucky that we could change flights!

I'm here! I'm here! Just subbing so I can be on the first page...then I'll read! :lmao:

Welcome Karen!

I'm in! Can't wait to hear all about it!

Welcome! Welcome!

I'm in! another three kid family here. And my 8 year old had surgery when he was a baby to fix his kidney reflux, so I have a special place in my heart for pediatric urologists. :laughing:

I know one of the pediatric urologists at Emory very well. I probably know some of the other ones by name.... Thanks for the love! :love:

I'm so in!!! Now I need to go back and read. :)

Edit- caught up! Love a trip report that starts out with drama in Post 2! I know there is more to come!

I can relate to your absence in trip photos! We pay the price being the official photographers of the family.

The irony is that Tom is the one with the better camera. He has a DSLR (which I still haven't learned how to use) and I have a several year old point and shoot. Which I often have to share with the kids.

I'm here too:goodvibes

Welcome Jenny!

Definitely in...I was there too and the storm hit at home in NJ.

I hope your home was ok. Our house was intact. My parents lost power for a few days (Long Island) and my brother's house boat had some minor damage (he and his family stayed with my parents - obviously!).

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

I got home from work on Thursday and realized that I had lost my packing time. I was supposed to have all afternoon/evening on Friday and a few hours Saturday morning to pack. Now I was working Friday morning, going to the dentist around lunchtime, and then racing home to hop in a car to the airport. That left NO packing time. Luckily I'm a crazy Disney person and had already started packing a few weeks earlier. And I knew that we'd have a washer/dryer so I was going to try not to overpack. I'm notorious for overpacking for everyone except me. I usually underpack for me! At bedtime I suddenly realized that I had left my iPad in my office at work. My office hours were at an off-site so now I was going to have to stop in the Bronx on my way to my closer-to-home office. :rolleyes:
Friday morning I headed off to work. Things seemed to be going well - my patients all showed up early and I was ready to head off to the dentist. As I was walking into the dentist office I got a phone call from work with some patient drama. A patient who had never called the office for an appointment was told by the ER to show up in my office and was waiting for me. I felt horrible that I couldn't see the patient but there was nothing I could do. I still feel a little bad about that situation (there's more to the story but essentially the patient never told our office that she was coming and my office tried to call on Thursday to see if she was coming and then showed up anyway).
The dentist went fine and took about an hour. When the novocaine wore off I was in horrible pain - which scared me a lot because I had been in dental pain for over a week and the pain meds were causing stomach pain - but I took some tylenol and never had another issue for the whole trip.
I had asked my nanny to pick up Zachary from daycare around 3pm so he wouldn't be underfoot as I finished up packing. For some reason she brought all 3 kids home by 1pm. Jessica was so excited that she couldn't sit still. My nanny cooked lots of food so they could eat a mid-afternoon "dinner" since our flights were late. I finished the last minute checks and waited for the car service to arrive.
I am crazy about getting to the airport on time. I *need* to be there 2 hours early. Anything less than that and I get very nervous. We have used this car service many times and, while they have always gotten to the airport in enough time, I feel that they get me there later than I like. I told Tom to arrange for a 4pm pick-up. It can take well over an hour to get to the airport in rush hour traffic and with the hurricane evacuations on Long Island (JFK is in Queens which is on Long Island, for those who don't know).
Jessica was so antsy that she and I decided to bring all the bags to the end of the driveway. The first traveling group (Jessica, Zachary, and I) were bringing a stroller, 3 "check" suitcases, 2 car seats (to be checked), 3 carry-ons, plus my purse. The driver showed up around 3:45pm. Not the friendliest of drivers. He didn't look happy to have 2 young kids in his car. He put the stuff in his trunk. There was one funny moment when Nathaniel thought he was coming with us and I had to tell him that he was staying home for a few more hours. He was a little unhappy about that! :sad1:
We finally got into the car with the kids in their car seats. I made a few mistakes. Zachary's pacifier and blankies were in his carry-on bag which was in the trunk. He kept asking for them during the entire trip. While I did have my iPad and iPhone for entertainment, I should have grabbed some kid toys to entertain them during the ride. There was quite a bit of traffic but we seemed to be doing ok. We had gotten on the road by 4pm. I think we pulled into JFK around 5pm but I'm not 100% sure. As we pulled into JFK, Zachary decided to vomit. :scared1: Most of it went into my sweatshirt but it was all over him and all over me. Very little of it was actually on the car itself. Not a good start to the trip....

(More to come!)

Amanda

[kthshh]

Interesting trip report. I'm following along.

[Twoboysnmygirl]

Omygosh Amanda! I think I would have been stressing out BAD! :eek: I can't wait to hear more!

[DrMomof3]

Interesting trip report. I'm following along.

Welcome!!!!

Omygosh Amanda! I think I would have been stressing out BAD! :eek: I can't wait to hear more!

I was totally stressing out!!!

Sorry to keep everyone hanging. I'm trying to start my TR while still getting the kids to all the activities this weekend. Which includes 2 hours of Hebrew School for 2 children, 3 birthday parties, a tae kwon do try-out, and 90 minutes of gymnastics! Plus, I still have to finish unpacking, do laundry, and my parents are coming over for dinner tomorrow night.... :eek:

Amanda

[jmamom]

Joining in!
What a stressful day! Hope it gets better!

[DrMomof3]

Joining in!
What a stressful day! Hope it gets better!

Welcome! It got worse before it got better...:eek:

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

So here we are, pulling into JFK, with a child who just vomited all over himself and me. The driver wasn't nice to begin with and was ticked off that my child had just vomited in his car (there wasn't a lot of vomit in the car, it was mostly on my sweatshirt - which I wasn't wearing - and on Zachary and me). He pulls up to the Jet Blue curb at the point furthest away from curbside check-in. He takes our stuff out of the car and leaves it on the curb. I got the kids and car seats out, wiped up any vomit from inside his car (I'm really too nice - he was a jerk), and he drives off. :mad:
I'm now at the airport with a 5 year old and a 3 year old. The 3 year old and I are both covered in vomit. I have a stroller, 2 car seats, 3 rolling suitcases (to check), 3 carry-on bags, and my purse. I'm by myself and I have to get all of this stuff to the other end of the drop-off area. And I want to cry. I'm also furious at the driver for being such a complete jerk (I'm trying to watch my language here) and just leaving us. He could have taken 2 more minutes to drop us off in a convenient location.
The first thing I did was grab Zachary's pajamas from his carry-on bag and I changed his shirt. I travel with lots of plastic baggies so I put my sweatshirt and his dirty shirt in baggies. I used diaper wipes to mop up the best I could. I had a clean shirt for me in the diaper bag but no clean pants. I reached into the closest suitcase and grabbed the first bottoms I could find - which was my running skirt. NOT ideal travel clothes (the running skirt has built in spandex shorts but it's quite short). But it was clean and not covered in vomit so I put it in the diaper bag for when I could change clothes.
At that moment something else went wrong. The zipper on Jessica's carry-on bag broke. Last year I bought the kids small rolling suitcases with Disney characters on them. They also have straps so you can use them as backpacks. The zippers on Jessica's bag were completely broken. There was no way to close the bag at all. Great. :rolleyes:
I have to say that Jessica definitely rose to the occasion. She took care of her own carry-on bag and one of the big suitcases. Zachary sat in the stroller and I put the car seats in the back seat of the stroller (we have a Phil and Ted's with a back seat - I'm sure I have pictures later). I would walk 10 feet with the stroller, park it, run back to grab the suitcases, etc. Jessica was a huge help.
We finally got into line at curb side check-in. At that point I think I would have paid $100 to get rid of the bags and car seats!!!:sad2: I brought large, clear garbage bags for the car seats so I could check them. The check-in guy was nice and gave us our boarding passes. Most importantly I got rid of 3 large suitcases and 2 car seats which made the load manageable. Unfortunately he couldn't give me 3 seats together but he reassured me that when I got to the gate they would help me.
We walked into the airport and headed straight for the bathroom. The bathroom near the entrance was very small and crowded. I quickly realized that I would have to temporize here and really clean up later. I changed Zachary's diaper and pants (he just wore PJs) and I changed my shirt. At that point we were ready to attempt security.
We headed over to security and I must have looked pretty desperate because they waved me over to the priority security check-in. The security line wasn't terrible but there was definitely a line (and remember I was probably still almost 2 hours before flight time). I wasn't worried about getting to the gate on time or anything, just getting to a place where I could get organized and cleaned up. And make sure we were sitting together on the plane!
Security was pretty quick and easy. Our stroller is too big for the belt and there was nobody to tell me what to do with it but we figured it out. Kids did great and Jessica helped Zachary get his shoes back on while I retrieved our belongings. By this time Zachary seemed much better and I assumed he had just been car sick.
We then headed to the gate to see what they could do with our seats. One of the issues was that my flight was booked on miles and therefore was a separate reservation from the kids' reservation. The gate agent was able to work through this. We were given seats in the last row (not an issue for me - close to the bathroom and we had so many checked bags that there wasn't a rush to get off the plane). Zachary was in a middle seat, I was on the aisle, and Jessica was in the aisle seat across the aisle from me. The gate agent thought the person in the window seat next to Zachary would be happy to switch with Jessica but I was perfectly satisfied with the seat arrangement. I let Jessica know that she wasn't going to get a window seat and she was totally fine with it.
The next stop was to find Jessica a new carry-on bag without spending a small fortune. The first few shops only had bags that cost $50 or more. Not what I wanted to replace a $15 bag! We finally found a surf shop that sold an oversized tote bag for about $25. It's a cute bag and something we can use again. The one downside is that it doesn't have a zipper or anyway to close the bag. Jessica was thrilled with it. :love:
We then went to the family restroom so I could change, Jessica could put on her PJs, and we could get a little cleaned up. I re-packed Jessica's stuff in her new bag and we threw out the old one. We went to the counter-serve place to grab some dinner (we got pizza) and went back to the gate area to eat.
The kids opened some of their travel gifts that I had packed for them and I took some pictures with my iPhone (which I still need to upload - sorry!). We finally boarded the plane and took off.
The flight was fairly uneventful. Zachary was a bit active which was exhausting and stressful for me but he wasn't bad. Jessica was awesome. She sat next to 2 women with a very young baby. They kept asking me if they could share snacks with her (I said yes). Jessica was happy and they thought she was adorable. (The baby was a very good and very cute baby.) Zachary fell asleep as we were landing. This was a bit stressful because it meant I had to carry him in addition to the carry-ons. Luckily the stroller was waiting at the gate. He slept through the night from that point on!!!
We went down to baggage claim. We had arranged to spend the night at the Hyatt in the airport. For $10 they will send a bellhop down to baggage claim to help you. What an amazing service!!!
The bellhop was lovely. I can't tell you how much I appreciated this guy. He waited with us for all of our stuff (the car seats were the last 2 items off the plane), brought us to the check-in desk, and then up to our room. There was a roll-away already set up and he opened the sofa bed for me. He was the kind of person who said hello to every guest he saw and asked them how their stay was. Really amazing! I couldn't tip him enough. After the nightmare day he was exactly what I needed to get settled.
There were a few minor issues - like my contact lens case and pajamas were in one of Tom's bags but I managed. Tom and Nathaniel's flight was delayed 45 minutes so they didn't get to hotel until 1:30am. Their flight was uneventful except the delay.
And our original flight on Saturday was canceled.
So we made it! It wasn't pretty but we made it!

Amanda

[kokotg]

Oh my! This isn't causing me to reevaluate my hatred of flying :laughing:. Glad you finally made it and hope things were better from there!

[Twoboysnmygirl]

Shew! I sighed in relief when you said you all had finally arrived! I hope that was the last of the stress, I would have been in tears!!!!!!

[DrMomof3]

Oh my! This isn't causing me to reevaluate my hatred of flying :laughing:. Glad you finally made it and hope things were better from there!

The flight itself was the best part of e day. The kids watched tv and stayed in their seats! Driving would have been much worse!!!

Shew! I sighed in relief when you said you all had finally arrived! I hope that was the last of the stress, I would have been in tears!!!!!!

I was close to tears before we got settled at the gate at JFK. Then I felt like d make it. My biggest fear was that Tom and Nathaniel's flight would get canceled. The flight attendant reassured me that he would have heard something. The bellhop at the Hyatt was like a ray of sunshine on a stormy day!

Amanda

[Where'sPiglet?]

Wow...what a stressful travel day! I'm glad you all made it to Orlando!

The way some of those car service drivers drive around NYC, I'm not surprised Zachary got car sick! Poor kid!

I do hope the rest of your trip not so stressful!

[DrMomof3]

Wow...what a stressful travel day! I'm glad you all made it to Orlando!

The way some of those car service drivers drive around NYC, I'm not surprised Zachary got car sick! Poor kid!

I do hope the rest of your trip not so stressful!

Thank you! I agree about the car service drivers. He was definitely driving aggressively to get around rush hour traffic.

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

A few pictures from JFK:

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d730b3127ccefe4355b5779e00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Jessica wearing her "blankie" as a cape.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d730b3127ccefe43ea61b6bd00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d730b3127ccefe43f62037c200000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Showing off their new sunglasses! (Which cost less than $5 per pair from the Disneystore.com)

That batch was taken with the iPhone so not the best pictures ever!

The Hyatt at the Orlando Airport.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d508484ed00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Round table with 4 chairs which was immediately to the left of the door of our room.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d6251842100000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Sofa bed when opened. There is a tv in the "living room" area of the room.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d3ed7848900000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Rollaway bed and then king-sized bed. Zachary watching tv.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d02ce05be00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Standing near door to balcony and looking back at front door of room. That's the sofabed and the "dining table."

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c8f0265e000000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Very dark picture of Tom standing on balcony with view of Orlando Airport.

Not the best pictures but I think it gives an idea of how lovely our room was! I would definitely stay there again. I think taking a late-ish flight and spending the night at the airport hotel is a great travel plan!

Amanda

[Mary Anne]

I was looking for a really good trip report to read and your title caught my eye!
As a NewYorker, I knew Irene well :eek:

Looking forward to reading more.

[starann]

When we flew on our last trip, we flew out of Philly (rahter than Lehigh Valley, which didn't have direct flights or early flights), so the night before we drive to Philly, and stayed at one of the hotels that offered a parking package. We still had to wake up early (who am I kidding, we barely slept!!!) but it was nice to be 10 mins from the airport.

Your plan worked out soooo much better!!! Can't wait to hear more!

[sstewart]

Subbing!

[Pills]

If we had booked JetBlue originally (which I did regret later on), we probably would've been on one of your flights. We changed our Sunday night flights to Friday to avoid Irene.

[natebenma]

Wow, Amanda! That is a stressfull travel day!

Between the shrinking packing window, a surly driver, puke, leapfrog with the bags and the less than comfortable travel attire- not to mention the thought of Hurricane Irene and the family members still needing to travel...

YOU DONE GOOD!!!:worship:

I'm so glad you found a great helping hand in that bellhop. Sounds like he is a shining star at Hyatt.

[DrMomof3]

I was looking for a really good trip report to read and your title caught my eye!
As a NewYorker, I knew Irene well :eek:

Looking forward to reading more.

Welcome! I hope I live up to expectations!!! :lmao:

When we flew on our last trip, we flew out of Philly (rahter than Lehigh Valley, which didn't have direct flights or early flights), so the night before we drive to Philly, and stayed at one of the hotels that offered a parking package. We still had to wake up early (who am I kidding, we barely slept!!!) but it was nice to be 10 mins from the airport.

Your plan worked out soooo much better!!! Can't wait to hear more!

The Hyatt isn't cheap - at all - but the service was wonderful. We stayed in a junior suite and it was fantastic. I can't say enough nice things about the experience.

Subbing!

Welcome!!!

If we had booked JetBlue originally (which I did regret later on), we probably would've been on one of your flights. We changed our Sunday night flights to Friday to avoid Irene.

Too funny! I'll try to get caught up with you later....

Wow, Amanda! That is a stressfull travel day!

Between the shrinking packing window, a surly driver, puke, leapfrog with the bags and the less than comfortable travel attire- not to mention the thought of Hurricane Irene and the family members still needing to travel...

YOU DONE GOOD!!!:worship:

I'm so glad you found a great helping hand in that bellhop. Sounds like he is a shining star at Hyatt.

Dee - Thank you! It was a very stressful day but I think I did a great job managing all the curve balls. I guess I'm used to unexpected curve balls - it goes with my job - but it's particular hard when you're supposed to be on vacation! ;) Last summer I flew to Florida with all 3 kids by myself but the travel was without incident and my nanny helped me get the bags checked in so I didn't deal with the leapfrogging. That was an easier trip than the stress I had with only 2 kids this time. :scared1:
The bellhop was not the exception at the Hyatt but the rule. They've hired and trained some great people. Everyone we met at the hotel was wonderful!!! (More to come on that note.)

Amanda

[dismagiclover]

That may be one of the worst airport travel stories I've heard. The thing that is sad about it is without much effort at all that driver could have made it so much better. (Plus he probably would have gotten a bigger tip so it was in his best interest too.) There is a light at the end of the tunnel though. Traveling with my kids is sooooo much easier these days. They all carry their own stuff, we have no car seats (we always just pick up a $20 booster at a local Walmart for the youngest), and I walk and they follow right behind. Your day will come too.

[DrMomof3]

That may be one of the worst airport travel stories I've heard. The thing that is sad about it is without much effort at all that driver could have made it so much better. (Plus he probably would have gotten a bigger tip so it was in his best interest too.) There is a light at the end of the tunnel though. Traveling with my kids is sooooo much easier these days. They all carry their own stuff, we have no car seats (we always just pick up a $20 booster at a local Walmart for the youngest), and I walk and they follow right behind. Your day will come too.

There is some consolation in being the worst! :lmao: And, I agree about the driver. I tipped the bellhop at the Hyatt very generously. And I kept tipping him more because he was so wonderful. If the driver had tried to help me - at all! - I would have tipped him generously also.
Nice to hear that things that better as the kids get older. Honestly, once we were through security things weren't bad. Having to carry Zachary off the plane was only a minor issue.

Amanda

[disneydreamingdebby]

Yay for Jessica being a big girl and helping! Just think how much easier future trips will be minus the car seats and sleeping tot!

Glad you made it out before the storm.

[DrMomof3]

Yay for Jessica being a big girl and helping! Just think how much easier future trips will be minus the car seats and sleeping tot!

Glad you made it out before the storm.

Thank you! We wouldn't have chosen to take such a late flight but it was a blessing to get out of NY before the storm hit! My kids are really able to rise to the occasion in situations like this. I flew solo with the 3 kids last summer and they were troopers!

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

Saturday morning my precious darling Zachary decided on a 5:20am wake-up. Needless to say I was less than thrilled since I had gotten to bed well after 11pm and had responded to some text messages from Tom after they landed around 1am. I also quickly realized that I had to prevent him from waking up the rest of the family or our entire day would be doomed. :scared1:
First things first. I gave Zachary a bath. No matter how good a job I had done with diaper wipes, he still hadn't been properly cleaned after his vomiting incident. So into the tub he went. Once he was cleaned and dressed, it was time for me to rid myself of any residual vomit. Fortunately the bathroom was huge enough that he could sit in the chair at the vanity (is that what that thing is called - it looks like a desk but has a mirror?) and play my iPad while I took a much-needed shower. I found some clean clothes and all of my necessary toiletries and got ready to face the day.
At that point it might have been 6am. Maybe even 6:15am if I was lucky. And I realized that we needed to leave the room before I had 3 overtired, crabby children instead of one. And an overtired and crabby husband. (Ever notice that mom's need to sleep is rarely important to anyone but mom???? :eek: )
So Zachary and I headed downstairs into the airport for some early morning entertainment. We were headed for Disney so first things first!

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d730b3127ccefe42d92cd63d00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Zachary needed to give his old friend a high five!

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d730b3127ccefe4297fdd6cb00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
And a hug.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d730b3127ccefe4234a9176600000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
The nose didn't squeak...

And then we wandered past a book store. I must say my child has an uncanny ability to find his beloved characters. He found a Diego DVD. No amount of negotiating would get him to let go of this DVD. So I did what any sleep-deprived, slightly hysterical mom would do. I bought him the DVD. Sadly, our villa at BLT had a DVD player. And Diego was our constant companion. :sad2:
On a more happy note there was an open Starbucks next to the book store. And they serve coffee. A slight improvement already. Zachary and I sat down for a few minutes so I could drink my coffee and try to get him to eat something (as I recall Nathaniel later ate the blueberry muffin that Zachary said he wanted). Eventually it became clear that Zachary wanted to go back to the room and there wasn't enough open in the airport at 6:30am to distract. So we went back upstairs to face the troops...

Amanda

[dismagiclover]

Gotta hate those early morning wake ups! Hopefully everyone else is happy when they wake up (though it still sounds like they are going to get woken up early.)

[DrMomof3]

Gotta hate those early morning wake ups! Hopefully everyone else is happy when they wake up (though it still sounds like they are going to get woken up early.)

You must be a mom or something... It's like you KNOW my family! :lmao:

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

As Jenny correctly guessed, Zachary and I returned to our room and slowly but surely his little voice woke up the rest of the family. I think I probably bought them at least an extra hour of sleep, if not more. Nathaniel woke up particularly cranky but he had only gone to bed a few hours earlier. Everyone got dressed (not in a particular hurry) and we eventually headed to the restaurant for our free AAA rate breakfast (we got 2 free buffet breakfasts with our room).

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d730b3127ccefe43fb09f64500000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d730b3127ccefe425093176e00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d730b3127ccefe42d285960900000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d730b3127ccefe438f4ff63900000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

These were taken in the hallway outside our room using my iPhone so not the best quality pictures.

The breakfast buffet was nice and fairly simple. About what you'd expect: oatmeal, eggs, bacon, sausage, bread products, smoked salmon, potatoes, etc. Nothing super fancy but everything was good. The service was excellent. Kids were antsy and didn't really eat much. And they almost left my iPad on a seat at our table. Luckily the waitress came running out to me!

We got back to our room, packed up whatever needed packing, and called bell services to help with our stuff. Once again we got a fabulous young man who had been well-trained in service. He walked us down to the rental car counter (Budget) and noticed a very long line. He left the luggage trolley with us and ran to the other terminal to see if the line was shorter. Sure enough, no wait. So we ran through the airport to the other side and were first in line for our rental car.

This was our first experience with a rental car in Orlando and Tom wasn't so sure this was a good idea. I was excited to have a car. I got a good rate but we decided to add insurance (we've had a few fender benders and need to keep any accidents OFF our insurance for another year or 2). Our friendly bellhop waited with us and then walked us over to the parking garage until we found our rental car. He then put our luggage into the trunk of the minivan before leaving. Amazing!!! :cloud9:

Finally we were on our way to Disney!

Amanda

[firecracker725]

I am stressed out just reading about your harrowing airport adventure. Can't wait to read more about your Disney adventures!

[DrMomof3]

I am stressed out just reading about your harrowing airport adventure. Can't wait to read more about your Disney adventures!

I was pretty stressed! I guess I just put on my game face and did the best I could. I was pretty relieved when I got the text from my DH saying they had landed in Orlando! :thumbsup2

Amanda

[2xcited2sleep]

Climbing aboard to hear about your trip! Whew, what drama in getting there. Bravo to you for holding it all together. I would have had a breakdown, for sure. :rolleyes:

Hopefully now you are heading for nothing but fun ( and maybe some sleep!) for the rest of vacation! :)

[DrMomof3]

Climbing aboard to hear about your trip! Whew, what drama in getting there. Bravo to you for holding it all together. I would have had a breakdown, for sure. :rolleyes:

Hopefully now you are heading for nothing but fun ( and maybe some sleep!) for the rest of vacation! :)

Thanks Christine!
We had a great trip despite the drama! My kids are not great sleepers so I never get a lot of sleep! :lmao:

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

We had rented a minivan. I think it was the Town and Country which was quite lovely. I had printed out directions from here and All Ears and was the official navi-guesser. The kids were awful in the car. Absolutely awful. Tom actually pulled over at one point because the fighting was so bad. Not a good start to our trip. :sad1:
We had a few funny moments on the drive over. Does anyone remember those tolls where there is a net and you throw change into it? Tom and I haven't seen that in years! And Tom missed the first time. :scared1: :lmao: I think I'll be able to make fun of him for that for many years to come. :rotfl2:
Pretty soon we saw a happy sight!

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d730b3127ccefe42564b968500000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

We stopped in front of the main part of the Contemporary so they could take our bags and I ran to check-in. For some reason this took a long time. Our room wasn't ready but I re-iterated that I'd prefer a high floor. We parked the car and decided to walk over to MK. We had to pick-up our APs and buy a TIW card from Guest Services. And it was getting close to lunch time.

For reasons that are not clear to me, Guest Services took FOREVER to print out 5 APs (which had all been paid for already) and then to get me our TIW card. The guy was nice but it was really slow. And the kids were still overtired and a bit cranky. Finally we had our cards and were ready to go! I suggested that we try to grab lunch at the Plaza. Tom suggested "that little restaurant right off of Main Street where you can see the castle?" And I said, "Right. The Plaza." Great minds think alike, even if they don't always remember names. :lmao:

They told us it would be a 20-40 minute wait and that seemed fine with us. We didn't have our grocery delivery yet so I wandered over to the ice cream shop to buy some water. I also bought a pre-lunch root beer float for us to share! We were at Disney afterall!!!

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c96bda4fb00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c6e95a4af00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5df9cec46b00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5cc7c5e43300000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

Amanda

[dismagiclover]

:yay: You've arrived! I do remember those net toll things. My dad used to always try and beat the light so he wouldn't stop. He'd throw the toll in while we were moving. He never did beat the light though:laughing: Starting out the trip with a meal at the Plaza is perfect! I hope the meal goes well.

[klacey1]

Hi Amanda! Didn't know you started yet! I can't believe how stressful your airport adventure was! Glad you arrived at Disney in one piece, though-- excited to read more.

[Twoboysnmygirl]

Yay for MK and impromptu pre-lunch rootbeer floats! :thumbsup2

[Kat in GA]

I am so glad that you updated your PTR today so I noticed that you had started here!

What a day you had getting to Disney. I can't imagine. And thankfully you had those fabulous people at the Hyatt to make things a bit better.

We have never eaten at the Plaza - mostly because we are usually on the dining plan and it doesn't seem like a good use of our credits. But, with all our upcoming trips, we are not on the dining plan and I am thinking we ought to try it out.

[DrMomof3]

:yay: You've arrived! I do remember those net toll things. My dad used to always try and beat the light so he wouldn't stop. He'd throw the toll in while we were moving. He never did beat the light though:laughing: Starting out the trip with a meal at the Plaza is perfect! I hope the meal goes well.

We arrived. It felt like it took forever. Too funny about the tolls! :lmao:

Hi Amanda! Didn't know you started yet! I can't believe how stressful your airport adventure was! Glad you arrived at Disney in one piece, though-- excited to read more.

It was quite the adventure. But apparently you had your own adventure!

Yay for MK and impromptu pre-lunch rootbeer floats! :thumbsup2

Pre-lunch treats are always good! It was fun because I'm not usually someone who will let the kids have a treat before a meal.

I am so glad that you updated your PTR today so I noticed that you had started here!

What a day you had getting to Disney. I can't imagine. And thankfully you had those fabulous people at the Hyatt to make things a bit better.

We have never eaten at the Plaza - mostly because we are usually on the dining plan and it doesn't seem like a good use of our credits. But, with all our upcoming trips, we are not on the dining plan and I am thinking we ought to try it out.

The people at the Hyatt were like a life ring in a storm. :love:
I agree that the Plaza would be a poor value with the dining plan. For a cash meal it's worth it!

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

We were actually seated at the Plaza in about 20 minutes - so the early side of the time range they gave us. It didn't feel like a very long wait. We did feel a few drops of rain while waiting and we listened to a parade in the background (12pm parade?). We were seated in the little room off to the left of the larger dining room. Our server was clearly experienced and very helpful and nice.
One thing that I loved about the Plaza - it's probably the only healthy TS meal on property! Seriously, instead of lots of french fries and stuff, the kids got carrots with ranch dressing and sliced fresh fruit. The boys had chicken nuggets with their healthy sides and Jessica got peanut butter and jelly. I had a delicious turkey sandwich and Tom ate a chicken sandwich. With each order the waiter offered alternatives for side dishes. Very nice! The food was fresh and nutritious and yummy. One annoying thing is that the bathrooms are next door and require leaving the restaurant. The Mayor came during our lunch to celebrate a family (not us) and we got his autograph to start our book. He drew a little picture of a face with a top hat!
After lunch we went to check the watch store on Main Street. Tom has a Mickey Mouse watch that isn't working and he wanted to see if they could fix it (they could not). I had seen a ring on the Disney Store website that I wanted to buy but it's no longer on the website and the store on Main Street didn't have it either. So that was annoying. We then stopped by the Barber Shop but the line was crazy so we skipped that too.
At that point there was nothing to do but try a few rides! :thumbsup2 We went on Pirates first (a favorite of mine!). Nathaniel was a little nervous about doing Pirate League later in the trip so we stopped by the counter to ask some questions (he really didn't want face make-up and he wanted to make sure it would still be fun). The CM at Pirate League was awesome and explained all the cool things he would get without any make-up and totally convinced him (I think he was convinced at "You get a pirate sword."). That was really helpful because he was still on the fence.
The line for Splash was pretty long but the line for Big Thunder was reasonable. Zachary passed the height test :thumbsup2 and we were could to go!!! I was a little nervous that Zachary would freak out. He chose to sit with Tom so I couldn't see his face. He looked a little scared at the end but he said he would go again. We hopped back in line when one of those epic thunderstorms erupted. Sadly, they closed the ride until the storm passed. The rain was really torrential so we waited a few minutes. It became clear that the storm wasn't going to be super quick so we broke out the rain ponchos and headed on our way.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d730b3127ccefe43cc48b68700000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d730b3127ccefe439642379000000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d730b3127ccefe435e87b60100000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

They held the 3pm parade for the thunderstorm so I told the kids we were the parade. We laughed and danced down the streets of Frontierland and got soaked. It was really fun! On the walk over to BLT, the kids found a snail.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d730b3127ccefe42e825178400000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5cfbd8650000000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d50d3058a00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5dd15ac4eb00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5ca42ea47100000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

And some pics of me.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5ddc79056600000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d0b83c45f00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

Amanda

[dismagiclover]

Great update! I love the Plaza! In fact after reading your earlier update I decided that sounded like the perfect way to start a vacation. So I made a lunch ADR at the Plaza on our arrival day in January. So right after checking in at BLT we will head over to the MK for lunch! I also love how you had a parade in the rain. I love summer rain!

[natebenma]

I was way behind, but all caught up now!

Good call on taking Zachary on the little early morning airport excursion. Even better to find a Starbucks!

I am very impressed with all of the great Hilton employees who helped you out. Great bellhops who definitely went above and beyond!

"Navi-guesser!" :rotfl2:

I love your picture of the WDW entry arch!!!

A nice, but soggy start at the MK! I have never eaten at the Plaza- same reason as a PP- not a great dining plan value, but it sounds like it really fit the bill for you guys.

Yeah on Zachary's first ride on Big Thunder Mountain!!!

Your pictures of the kids with the snail cracked me up. Kids at Disney are always so amazed at "real animals" they encounter there.

Looking foward to more of your report.

[starann]

It amazes me that I can spend thousands on a WDW trip and my kids rather look for wildlife than go on ride...the mini lizards, snails, tree frogs.....they get SO excited when they see them!

[Kat in GA]

Your pictures of the kids with the snail cracked me up. Kids at Disney are always so amazed at "real animals" they encounter there.

Me too :) We have snails in the garden that your kiddos are welcome to come and check out anytime! (The secret to getting rid of them - beer!) I am amused too with the people fascinated by the ducks and the squirrels, too. But...we are enthralled with all the bunnies - so I guess we are "those" people too!!

[beebeeryan]

YAY for your TR being started, I just found it and got all caught up.

OMG the trip sounds dreadful! What you went through is exactly why we decided to just suck it up and change our flight even if we had to pay, to avoid that. Of course, we would have been fine, but I was so scared of exactly that scenario. That car service driver sounds awful. Jerk. Glad at least the Hyatt staff made things easier.

I remember that Saturday storm, we had left DHS earlier than planned to go back to the CR for a swimming break and we only had 15 minutes in the pool when they closed the pool. We shopped and snacked till it was done, but it was longer than most storms.

[DrMomof3]

Great update! I love the Plaza! In fact after reading your earlier update I decided that sounded like the perfect way to start a vacation. So I made a lunch ADR at the Plaza on our arrival day in January. So right after checking in at BLT we will head over to the MK for lunch! I also love how you had a parade in the rain. I love summer rain!

I was very pleased with our Plaza meal! :thumbsup2
When the rain started we pulled out the ponchos but soon realized that there was little hope in actually staying dry. :lmao:

I was way behind, but all caught up now!

Good call on taking Zachary on the little early morning airport excursion. Even better to find a Starbucks!

I am very impressed with all of the great Hilton employees who helped you out. Great bellhops who definitely went above and beyond!

"Navi-guesser!" :rotfl2:

I love your picture of the WDW entry arch!!!

A nice, but soggy start at the MK! I have never eaten at the Plaza- same reason as a PP- not a great dining plan value, but it sounds like it really fit the bill for you guys.

Yeah on Zachary's first ride on Big Thunder Mountain!!!

Your pictures of the kids with the snail cracked me up. Kids at Disney are always so amazed at "real animals" they encounter there.

Looking foward to more of your report.

I have to admit that I sometimes get annoyed that I'm always the parent who gets up early with Zachary. This time I was annoyed to be awake but knew that Tom got to bed at 1:30am so I was the grown-up!
The Hyatt was an oasis in the storm. We're actually staying there pre-cruise in October and might change our January Marathon Weekend reservations to stay there one night. I can't see paying GF prices that first night when we won't arrive at the hotel until 8:30 or 9pm!
I love the Entryway arch! It tells me to relax because I'm officially at my happy place!
The Plaza is a perfect example of why I love TIW. It's a yummy and healthy meal that doesn't cost a fortune. And yet it's overlooked by those on the dining plan.
We thought that Zachary would be tall enough for the 40 inch rides but that was the moment when we were sure! :cool1:
The kids were obsessed with "wildlife" - lizards, snails, ducks, etc.

It amazes me that I can spend thousands on a WDW trip and my kids rather look for wildlife than go on ride...the mini lizards, snails, tree frogs.....they get SO excited when they see them!

Oh the lizard obsession.... It never stopped!

Me too :) We have snails in the garden that your kiddos are welcome to come and check out anytime! (The secret to getting rid of them - beer!) I am amused too with the people fascinated by the ducks and the squirrels, too. But...we are enthralled with all the bunnies - so I guess we are "those" people too!!

We have bunnies who live in our yard? Our black lab spends hours chasing them! So I guess you could come visit us in NY and we'll come down to GA! :rotfl2:

YAY for your TR being started, I just found it and got all caught up.

OMG the trip sounds dreadful! What you went through is exactly why we decided to just suck it up and change our flight even if we had to pay, to avoid that. Of course, we would have been fine, but I was so scared of exactly that scenario. That car service driver sounds awful. Jerk. Glad at least the Hyatt staff made things easier.

I remember that Saturday storm, we had left DHS earlier than planned to go back to the CR for a swimming break and we only had 15 minutes in the pool when they closed the pool. We shopped and snacked till it was done, but it was longer than most storms.

Our trip down was misery but we were glad to escape NY!
With the Saturday storm we could have waited in the queue for Big Thunder but the kids were getting antsy. I don't mind getting soaked as long as I know I can change into dry clothes soon!

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

After our adventures with the thunderstorm and the snail, we headed over to the main building of the Contemporary to see if our room was finally ready. It was about 3:30pm. I had given them my cell number for a text message but hadn't yet received anything. I knew there was a chance that our room still wasn't ready but we were wet and tired and ready for a break. I waited in line (the man directing traffic at the check-in desk wasn't terribly nice) and had a lovely Australian girl help me.
Our room was ready (who knows since when - she said the CM who originally checked me in forgot to check the box for a text message :rolleyes: - this is the 2nd trip in a row where I didn't get notified when my room was ready). She told me she needed to print out new room keys for me because the ones I was given weren't working. I waited for that and then we took the elevator up to the 4th floor and took the bridge across to BLT.
Our room was on the 14th floor so they met my request. We were facing South and actually had a great sky-view of Epcot. From the balcony we could watch the monorails go through the Contemporary. I had secretly been hoping for one the of Lake View rooms with a secret MK view (the North side of the building) but this ended up being lovely. One of the fabulous things about BLT is that the one bedrooms have 2 full bathrooms!

Dark pics...

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d5ca505fa00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Front bathroom

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d309e84c700000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
tub/shower in front bathroom

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c4a36252e00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
dining table with pics of Space Mountain

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5ccfefe41d00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
living room before we opened the various beds

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5db0b7059e00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
kitchen

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d2d20c4ef00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
sink area of master bath

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d668605c400000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
He Be a Pirate Gift basket

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d8e2e051800000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Epcot view

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d48d484b100000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
View of pool at Contemporary (this is the main pool not the BLT pool)

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c657165e600000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
View of monorail

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d02bc05cc00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
View of GF when monorail isn't blocking it!

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d77f9c41b00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Pirates!

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c72be25ba00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
yes, the pirate hat came with the basket

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5cc526e4d100000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
towel fish waiting in our bathroom

The only pic of the master bedroom was too dark to be useful. There was only one balcony with a door to the living room and a door to the master bedroom

My kids thought this room was awesome. They liked it better than our room at BCV from last summer. It was hard to get them to rank their favorite hotels at Disney. They definitely like SAB (and BC is probably my DH's favorite). I loved BLT. The location was awesome, the room was nice, the views were lovely. We all like Poly. It's really hard to have a favorite!!!

Amanda

[dismagiclover]

I love your view! I actually prefer the lake view at BLT to the MK view. The MK view has too much parking lot. Sure it is great for the fireworks, but that is only 15 minutes a day. The lake view, on the other hand, is so relaxing all day. Plus you get to see the water parade. Did you catch that this trip?

[beebeeryan]

YAY for getting into your room when you were ready to. Nay on them not letting you know. I was scanning that picture of the pool to see if we were in it, we were there so much! LOL I wouldn't have been surprised to see us. Was thinking that might have been DH talking to a guy in the pool, but not sure. I don't see me or the kids. Looks like this was right after the storm so we were probably back in the room changing to go back to the pool.

On second thought, there is someone in a white cover up by the chair under that tree where we sat the first couple of days, that could be me and I see two kids in the pool, one on the steps and one at the bottom of the slide. It very well could be us. LOL

[disneycruising]

I am loving your trip report and pics. :thumbsup2

[klacey1]

Wow, your room is gorgeous! I'm not surprised BLT is almost completely sold out for DVC!

[natebenma]

Views:

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d8e2e051800000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d48d484b100000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c657165e600000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d02bc05cc00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d77f9c41b00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/





OMG- your views are incredible! I didn't know you could see EPCOT from the BLT!!! If I'm recalling correctly, didn't you have a view of the golf ball from your BCV room? I'll stay tuned to see if you are able to view Illuminations from your balcony.


Great gift basket for Tom! I love the kids (big and small) all trying to be pirates!


But the picture I am really focusing in on is the one below.

We are remodeling our master bathroom. When I saw your pictures, I couldn't help but remark that we are using a similar design and colors of the little block tiles! Who knew our style was "Contemporary?"

Front bathroom

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d309e84c700000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
tub/shower in front bathroom

http://i657.photobucket.com/albums/uu294/natebenma/IMG_7268.jpg


OK, it is not exactly a match, but I'm going with it!!!

.

[kokotg]

Wow--that room looks great!

My pictures are heavy on kids admiring the Disney wildlife, too :). Lizards, snails, rabbits, squirrels...you'd think living in the middle of the woods they'd get enough of it at home...I guess the Disney wildlife is more...magical.

[DrMomof3]

I love your view! I actually prefer the lake view at BLT to the MK view. The MK view has too much parking lot. Sure it is great for the fireworks, but that is only 15 minutes a day. The lake view, on the other hand, is so relaxing all day. Plus you get to see the water parade. Did you catch that this trip?

We saw a bit of the water parade. I've heard that the noise from the water parade can be annoying but it didn't bother us at all!

YAY for getting into your room when you were ready to. Nay on them not letting you know. I was scanning that picture of the pool to see if we were in it, we were there so much! LOL I wouldn't have been surprised to see us. Was thinking that might have been DH talking to a guy in the pool, but not sure. I don't see me or the kids. Looks like this was right after the storm so we were probably back in the room changing to go back to the pool.

On second thought, there is someone in a white cover up by the chair under that tree where we sat the first couple of days, that could be me and I see two kids in the pool, one on the steps and one at the bottom of the slide. It very well could be us. LOL

Too funny!!!

I am loving your trip report and pics. :thumbsup2

Thank you!

Wow, your room is gorgeous! I'm not surprised BLT is almost completely sold out for DVC!

I really liked BLT. If I were buying DVC, it would be hard choice between BLT and BCV.

OMG- your views are incredible! I didn't know you could see EPCOT from the BLT!!! If I'm recalling correctly, didn't you have a view of the golf ball from your BCV room? I'll stay tuned to see if you are able to view Illuminations from your balcony.


Great gift basket for Tom! I love the kids (big and small) all trying to be pirates!


But the picture I am really focusing in on is the one below.

We are remodeling our master bathroom. When I saw your pictures, I couldn't help but remark that we are using a similar design and colors of the little block tiles! Who knew our style was "Contemporary?"



Too funny about the bathroom pics! :lmao:
We honestly had a better view of Illuminations from BLT than we did from BCV last year. Crazy, right? :confused3

Wow--that room looks great!

My pictures are heavy on kids admiring the Disney wildlife, too :). Lizards, snails, rabbits, squirrels...you'd think living in the middle of the woods they'd get enough of it at home...I guess the Disney wildlife is more...magical.

Glad that my kids aren't the only ones more focused on wildlife than Disney attractions. :laughing: I'm only kidding.... Mostly... :scared1:

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

At this point it was almost time for our early dinner ADR at Chef Mickey's. We all changed into nicer clothes and took the sky bridge over to the restaurant. I like Chef Mickey's. I think it's one of those iconic restaurants that screams Disney World. The food is fine - I'm not a huge buffet person - and the characters are fun. Yes, it's very noisy but it's very Disney.
What I hate at Chef Mickey's is the stupid picture they make you take before you are seated. And then try to convince you to spend too much money on a mediocre picture. Why not make it photopass? Or include the picture in the cost of the meal? We did NOT buy our picture. Obviously. :rotfl:
We were seated near the buffet in a pretty decent location. Tom and I enjoyed a much-needed adult beverage while waiting for the character arrivals. We took turns filling plates for ourselves and the kids. There were several annoying people in the buffet line (filling 5 plates and taking forever while the line just filled behind them). I guess some people feel they really need to make sure to get their money's worth! :rolleyes: There is plenty of food at the buffet that I like. I don't know that this buffet is worth the cost but I don't mind it at all.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5cdd02e4f900000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Minnie arrived first. And earned huge brownie points for noticing that Jessica's dress matched her own. :thumbsup2 I had put Chef Mickey autograph pages in our book and they were much admired by the characters.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c1689a48f00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d1969458c00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d1e24055a00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5da067054600000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

Followed by Pluto:

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d876045ca00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5db804841900000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

And Goofy!
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d52d584bd00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

Donald:
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5deab605b200000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5cb034a46100000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

And, Mickey himself!
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c169825ae00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d1611845b00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c93c9e41500000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

The kids enjoyed the meal but I was very glad that we had an early dinner because we were all exhausted.
We headed back to the room and got the kids ready for bed. And realized that Zachary was burning up with a fever! I gave him some motrin (I travel prepared!) and brought him into bed with us. He had a very restless night. He did drink some water but was pretty miserable.

Amanda

[dismagiclover]

Great pictures! I love Chef Mickey's too. It is just so Disney! We've been to Chef Mickey's and just skipped the picture. No one said anything about it.

[natebenma]

We honestly had a better view of Illuminations from BLT than we did from BCV last year. Crazy, right? :confused3



Crazy, but we actually had a really great view of Nightastic from our balcony at the Beach Club. We actually could see some of the fireworks from Illuminations from the balcony too, but had a better view of the MK fireworks!

[natebenma]

Looks like the kids had a great time at Chef Mickey's. Glad to see some smiles on Zachary's face before he started to rapidly go downhill. :sad1:

It is a good thing you were so close to "home"

We have been to CMs twice for breakfast. I know that last time we skipped the picture.

[Pills]

When you were dancing in the downpour in Frontierland, we were stuck on IASW.

Oddly, we didn't hit Chef Mickey's this time. It's normally a favorite, but we wanted to shake things up.

Those pics of the room at BLT really make me want to join DVC. ;)

[DrMomof3]

Great pictures! I love Chef Mickey's too. It is just so Disney! We've been to Chef Mickey's and just skipped the picture. No one said anything about it.

I think the picture has become part of the ritual for us. As has refusing to buy the picture. :lmao:

Crazy, but we actually had a really great view of Nightastic from our balcony at the Beach Club. We actually could see some of the fireworks from Illuminations from the balcony too, but had a better view of the MK fireworks!

Last year we could see both Illuminations and Wishes from our balcony at BCV. Not a great view of either but still a view!

Looks like the kids had a great time at Chef Mickey's. Glad to see some smiles on Zachary's face before he started to rapidly go downhill. :sad1:

It is a good thing you were so close to "home"

We have been to CMs twice for breakfast. I know that last time we skipped the picture.

I always think that breakfast buffets are a poor value from my family since I'm the only one who eats pork. Then again, my kids all love smoked salmon which is probably more expensive than the pork! ;)
Zachary loves the characters. At this point Jessica is truly the darling of the character meals but both Zachary and Nathaniel (who is just naturally shy) are coming along!

When you were dancing in the downpour in Frontierland, we were stuck on IASW.

Oddly, we didn't hit Chef Mickey's this time. It's normally a favorite, but we wanted to shake things up.

Those pics of the room at BLT really make me want to join DVC. ;)

I totally agree that staying at BLT made me re-think DVC again. I loved it. A lot! And I loved walking to MK. There were some monorail issues (minor) during our trip and it made the ease of walking that much better!

Amanda

[beebeeryan]

Walking to MK was the BEST thing ever! Love it. So convenient. There wasn't a day we didn't hop over there even for just an hour or so. We walked by the DVC desk at the CR so many times and the guy tried his best to get us to stop. LOL Hey, if we had the money we'd buy BLT in a heartbeat buddy, no need to sell us.

[klacey1]

Aww, you can tell your kids had a great time at dinner! I'm sorry Zachary started to get sick, though-- no fun!

[Mary Anne]

I own DVC but we do not own at BLT. You can however stay at all of them no matter where you own. Be careful of your children's Disney addiction.... they grow up, go to college and then run away to Disney to be a CM. Trust me, I speak from experience :) You have made me want to plan ahead and book a night or two at BLT next year. Sorry your son was not feeling well.

[firecracker725]

Just checking in on you. Hope things are going well. I *think* you're either at Disney or shortly returned.

[DrMomof3]

Walking to MK was the BEST thing ever! Love it. So convenient. There wasn't a day we didn't hop over there even for just an hour or so. We walked by the DVC desk at the CR so many times and the guy tried his best to get us to stop. LOL Hey, if we had the money we'd buy BLT in a heartbeat buddy, no need to sell us.

I know. I know! I loved BLT!

Aww, you can tell your kids had a great time at dinner! I'm sorry Zachary started to get sick, though-- no fun!

We did have fun at dinner. And poor Zachary!

I own DVC but we do not own at BLT. You can however stay at all of them no matter where you own. Be careful of your children's Disney addiction.... they grow up, go to college and then run away to Disney to be a CM. Trust me, I speak from experience :) You have made me want to plan ahead and book a night or two at BLT next year. Sorry your son was not feeling well.

Thank you! We've gone back and forth on DVC for several years. It's been a long debate in my house! :lmao:

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

Just checking in on you. Hope things are going well. I *think* you're either at Disney or shortly returned.

I know I've been missing! We did just get back from a short trip to Disney!

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

First an apology for abandoning my trip report. My eldest son ended up in the hospital for 2 weeks at the end of September and we're still recovering. We were supposed to be on a cruise right now but had to cancel due to concerns about being unreachable in the Bahamas. Tom and I did get a quick 2 day trip to Disney (returned last night). It was a great trip and I will write about it soon!!!

Back to our summer trip.....

We woke up Monday morning and Zachary was still sick. His fever did not break. He was a bit lethargic but pretty mellow. We ate breakfast in the room (Zachary maybe drank some water and took some motrin) and piled in the car for DHS. We easily made RD at DHS and Tom sent me off to get FPs for TSM. I literally cut through stores to get a good position at RD and off I went! We had originally planned to get in the stand-by line after getting FPs but.....

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d8a89848d00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
This was what happened between RD and TSM. :confused3

I guess that's what happens when you try to drag your sick child through the Disney parks. :rotfl2: Bad mommy! Bad mommy!!! We headed over to the new Star Tours instead and did baby swap (the nice thing about a sleeping child is that the CMs can't see that he *is* actually tall enough for the ride!). While Tom rode with the kids, I headed to Guest Services for this:

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c942d255a00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
No, no, no. Not a diet Coke.
A GAC and stroller = wheelchair tag for Zachary.

I have to admit that Zachary's motor skills are coming along to the point where we might not need a GAC for very much longer. However when one child has a fever and you're trying to give the other 2 a vacation, it's really nice to keep the sick child in the stroller all day!

On the way back to Star Tours, Zachary and I ran into a CM that I met last year at Epcot. He's a veteran from Brooklyn who lost his legs and sits in a wheelchair. He used to work at Kim Possible but now is at the Indiana Jones show. Zachary was still sleeping but this very kind CM took some time to talk to me. He noticed the stroller = wheelchair and had some advice (like the fact that the stunt show is very loud and might not be good for Zachary). He's really a nice man. I told him that I remembered him from Kim Possible.

We got back to Star Tours and Tom took Zachary so I could ride with the big kids.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5da129459000000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Gotta love those 3D glasses!

I love the new Star Tours! Really awesome!!! Then we took some required pictures:

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5dd216050e00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5cd17565b800000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

Before racing off to meet Tom in line for the Phineas and Ferb meet n greet area.

Posting...

Amanda

[natebenma]

Poor Zachary!!! No fun not to be feeling well at Disney :sad2: At least he was sleeping and hopefully was not uncomfortable.

I'm glad to hear that you loved the new Star Tours! I'm excited to check it out myself.

Love the story about the CM you talked to. It is nice when you reconnect with people from previous trips.

VERY cute pictures of the kids on the speeder pods.

[DrMomof3]

Poor Zachary!!! No fun not to be feeling well at Disney :sad2: At least he was sleeping and hopefully was not uncomfortable.

I'm glad to hear that you loved the new Star Tours! I'm excited to check it out myself.

Love the story about the CM you talked to. It is nice when you reconnect with people from previous trips.

VERY cute pictures of the kids on the speeder pods.

Zachary did pretty well in the stroller. I reclined it so he could sleep comfortably.

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

So we joined Tom and Zachary in the queue to meet Phineas and Ferb. We are huge fans of the show so this was quite exciting. And our autograph book had a Phineas and Ferb cover:

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1dd24b3127ccefcdf8709c6b700000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

The family behind us in line were British and absolutely adored my autograph book. I think they were more impressed than my children! :lmao: It was a mom, a teenage daughter (older teen - she can drink in England but not in the U.S.), and a tween or younger teen son. They were nice and I enjoyed talking to them.

Zachary slept through the whole encounter. :sick:

They do a cute little spiel before the characters come out. There's a CM who's pretended to be a director of a new P&F movie and his pulls people out of the line to do things (I think he had someone hula dancing in a grass skirt, etc.). We were toward the front of the line but the line got quite long.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c9bbe655600000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Phineas entering the meet n greet.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5ce92ee4cf00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Joined by Ferb.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe654ab194fd00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe6571af555600000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
I wore my NY shirt in honor of Hurricane Irene. :thumbsup2

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe64a427356000000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d504c842500000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
I thought it was very sweet that Phineas went by Zachary so we could have a picture with him and Phineas. :love:

Right next door was the Cars meet n greet. There was basically no line so we headed over. Please note that Zachary has woken up - a little bit, anyway. :lmao:

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5dff1bc4bd00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe655552d48900000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

After that it was time to use our FPs for TSM....

Amanda

[klacey1]

What a stressful time for you! :hug: I hope Nathaniel is okay now. Sorry you had to cancel your cruise, but I'm glad you got to sneak away for a little break.
The Phineas and Ferb meet sounds great-- that's so sweet that one even stepped by Zachary for you!

[beebeeryan]

YAY NY!!!:thumbsup2 The craziness of the weather phenomenon continues upstate, we got snow last night and it's still on the ground this morning, before Halloween!!!

Awesome book cover and that was super sweet of Phineus. We love that show too.

Sorry about the cruise, but at least you got a couple of nights away, it's something. Hopefully Nathaniel is on the mend.

[natebenma]

Hi Amanda- hope everything is going ok with Nathaniel.

I love the pictures with Phineas and Ferb- that looked like it was a lot of fun! And so nice to have Phineus came over to Zachary. That was really nice! What does Zachary think about that picture?

At least you all got in for the Cars photos.

[DrMomof3]

What a stressful time for you! :hug: I hope Nathaniel is okay now. Sorry you had to cancel your cruise, but I'm glad you got to sneak away for a little break.
The Phineas and Ferb meet sounds great-- that's so sweet that one even stepped by Zachary for you!

Nathaniel is doing better. Lots of doctor's appointments still.

YAY NY!!!:thumbsup2 The craziness of the weather phenomenon continues upstate, we got snow last night and it's still on the ground this morning, before Halloween!!!

Awesome book cover and that was super sweet of Phineus. We love that show too.

Sorry about the cruise, but at least you got a couple of nights away, it's something. Hopefully Nathaniel is on the mend.

Thank you! We are big P&F fans so it was fun to see them. I thought they did a good job of making the whole meet a fun experience.

Hi Amanda- hope everything is going ok with Nathaniel.

I love the pictures with Phineas and Ferb- that looked like it was a lot of fun! And so nice to have Phineus came over to Zachary. That was really nice! What does Zachary think about that picture?

At least you all got in for the Cars photos.

Zachary loves the picture! :love: Sadly I didn't think the Cars photos turned out so well.

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

It was finally time to redeem our hard-won TSM fast passes! Zachary was still pretty mushy so we decided to use the stroller as wheelchair for the queue. Interestingly, this definitely slowed down our loading. They have a separate loading area for wheelchairs and there are only a few ride vehicles that stop at this area.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c5574e4cb00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Poor Zachary!

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d2360459800000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5cd5fd653200000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

I really enjoy TSM. I would never wait in line for an hour to ride it but it's a ride that I really enjoy. I wish they could figure out a way to get more people on the ride quicker so it wouldn't be such a hassle!

When we got off the ride, Zachary cried and cried because he wanted to ride again. :sad1: Poor kid.
We stopped on a nearby bench and enjoyed some snacks.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5cb8c925a800000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
One of the few things that Zachary ate that day!

After TSM we headed over to Disney Junior to check out the updated show. It's basically the same old, same old except that they've traded out Tigger and Pooh and added in Jake and the Neverland Pirates. The Jake part was the best part of the show (maybe because I have't seen it many, many times already? :lmao: ). My kids - especially Zachary - are huge Jake fans so this was enjoyed by all.

We left that show and headed over to Jessica's favorite Disney thing - Disney Channel Rocks! :rolleyes: She loves this street show.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c6ee7a4dd00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

Nathaniel, however, was not pleased!

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5de44a847900000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

Nathaniel and I (and maybe Zachary - I can't remember now) headed over to grab FPs for ToT so we could ride after lunch. Jessica chose not to participate in the Disney Channel Rocks! show. I was surprised but she was fine with her decision.

Next up: lunch at Hollywood & Vine (again!)

Amanda

[natebenma]

It's good to see Zachary up, at least for a bit! What was his snack? Fruit rollup?

When we first took the boys to Hollywood Studios, they were 7 and 10, so we haven't done any of the Playhouse Disney shows and we have never eaten at H&V (although we did have reservations there, in 2008, for both breakfast and a Fantasmic package, but had to cancel both because Nate was sick)

Looking forward to hearing more about your day!

[klacey1]

DHS needs another family friendly ride-- I think it's the only thing that would make TSMM's line less crazy! Or maybe they should just build another one (forget about two Dumbos!)

[DrMomof3]

It's good to see Zachary up, at least for a bit! What was his snack? Fruit rollup?

When we first took the boys to Hollywood Studios, they were 7 and 10, so we haven't done any of the Playhouse Disney shows and we have never eaten at H&V (although we did have reservations there, in 2008, for both breakfast and a Fantasmic package, but had to cancel both because Nate was sick)

Looking forward to hearing more about your day!

Yup. Fruit by the fooot.
H&V is a requirement of my children. :rolleyes:

DHS needs another family friendly ride-- I think it's the only thing that would make TSMM's line less crazy! Or maybe they should just build another one (forget about two Dumbos!)

I agree. My kids all like Star Tours - and Zachary is tall enough to ride now but he's particularly tall for his age. DHS is really a half day park for my family!

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

We've had lunch at H&V on almost every trip to Disney since we started going in 2008. It's really a favorite for my kids. Even Nathaniel, who complains endlessly about Disney Junior (I almost typed Playhouse Disney!), insisted that we should eat at H&V, "For Zachary." :thumbsup2 Now that Zachary is 3 I'm trying to avoid buffets in general because I don't feel they are a great value for us. At a regular sit-down restaurant, my kids can share entrees but at a buffet you pay for each person. Since Zachary wasn't feeling well, it was pretty clear that he wasn't going eat much - if at all!
We were seated at a table in the corner near the emergency exit door. Not a great location. And it was a table for 4 with a 5th chair stuck at the end so it was a bit squishy. I much prefer the tables that have a booth-bench on one side. Lunch was not off to a great start!
Zachary ate nothing. Or close enough to nothing to count as nothing. He enjoyed the characters to a certain extent but got tired of sitting at the table and wanted to leave. I ate quickly - I actually think the food here is pretty decent. I especially like the seafood pasta alfredo. And they have some yummy salads and veggies. I like to eat relatively healthy (not that alfredo sauce is terribly healthy), even on vacation.
Zachary and I left while the other kids were still eating. Tom told me that one of the characters never came by.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5dc0b505a400000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Jessica with June from Little Einsteins

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5cfb13e4fb00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Being silly with Handy Manny

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c2058a44500000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Jessica with Secret Agent Oso

Looking at my pictures I can see that Leo never came by. We have generally had a really good experience at this restaurant but I thought this particular meal was a waste - certainly of money and probably time. Zachary wasn't feel well enough to eat anything but we still paid for him. And while Jessica was a great sport with all of the characters, my older 2 are really getting a bit too old for Disney Junior. If Zachary had felt well enough to enjoy his favorite characters, I would have been happy to pay for this lunch.

In the meantime Zachary and I went for a walk. We found an ice cream stand that was selling ice pops. Zachary said he would eat one so I happily bought it (anything to get him to put something in his little body). The young girl selling them noticed my I "heart" NY shirt (where the heart is a Mickey head) and asked if we were affected by Hurricane Irene. Turns out she's from NY. So that was nice. Zachary and I sat near the dinosaur until the big kids and Tom finished lunch.

Then we headed for Tower of Terror to use our FPs...

Amanda

[jecskc]

Wow .... I'm exhausted just reading about your life !! You are super mom for sure !! Loving your TR. I hope that Zachary got to feeling better later on in the trip. It seems like one of ours always gets a little bug when we go too. We want to stay at BLT one day, so I am interested in seeing what other photos you took.

[DrMomof3]

Wow .... I'm exhausted just reading about your life !! You are super mom for sure !! Loving your TR. I hope that Zachary got to feeling better later on in the trip. It seems like one of ours always gets a little bug when we go too. We want to stay at BLT one day, so I am interested in seeing what other photos you took.

My kids LOVED BLT. Just today they were telling me that they want to go back to BLT because "our room was sick!" I offered them Boardwalk, Beach Club, Animal Kingdom Lodge, Polynesian, Grand Floridian and both of my older kids said "BLT!!!" I wouldn't have thought the theming would appeal to them. :confused3 And the slide was fun but the BLT pool is on the small side whereas the BC pool is huge and awesome. :worship: It just goes to show that you can't always predict what the kids will like. Jessica has always liked the Contemporary ("the hotel where the monorail goes thorough") so I guess I shouldn't be so surprised.

Amanda

[natebenma]

Too bad the lunch was disappointing. I don't really mind spending money, but I *hate* wasting money. What a stressful and draining day it must have been for you, worried about how Zachary was doing.

I'm glad the kids think your room at BLT was "sick", but unfortunately it sounds like at least at the beginning it really was.

I look forward to reading more when you have the time to update. Have a fantastic Thanksgiving!

[DrMomof3]

Too bad the lunch was disappointing. I don't really mind spending money, but I *hate* wasting money. What a stressful and draining day it must have been for you, worried about how Zachary was doing.

I'm glad the kids think your room at BLT was "sick", but unfortunately it sounds like at least at the beginning it really was.

I look forward to reading more when you have the time to update. Have a fantastic Thanksgiving!

Thanks Dee! Happy Thanksgiving to you too!!!

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

After lunch it was time to conquer (insert dramatic music here) TOWER OF TERROR!!! This ride has some history with my family - although many of you have probably heard the story before. When Nathaniel was 5 and we were visiting WDW, he insisted on riding ToT. Tom and I both knew this was a bad idea. I had never ridden the WDW version but had been on the DL one. And I think Tom had been on both (he may have ridden the WDW version when I was pregnant with Zachary). Anyway, Nathaniel was unrelenting so Tom took him to ride ToT while I took the little kids to what was then Playhouse Disney. When we met up afterwards, Nathaniel looked at me very seriously and said, "Mommy. That ride tried to KILL ME!!!" It is still one of my favorite Disney quotes for our family. The end result was that Nathaniel swore he would never ride ToT again and successfully convinced Jessica that she should never ride ToT either.
This was going to be our re-attempt to salvage ToT in our family. We used good judgment in deciding that Zachary should NOT ride and got a baby swap. Tom took Zachary while I took the older 2 to ride ToT. We got into the pre-show room. At the end of the pre-show, both Nathaniel and Jessica were a little shaken and Nathaniel announced that he had a bad stomachache and couldn't possibly ride. I will confess to a bad mommy moment because my initial thought was (inserted sarcastic inner voice), "Great. Another trip without me getting to ride ToT." However the CMs were perfectly happy to take Nathaniel to the chicken exit to wait while Jessica and I rode. I gave him my iPhone to entertain himself and Jessica and I boarded the elevator of doom.
Jessica was a trooper but she was also scared out of her mind by the end of the ride. We met up with Nathaniel who was still claiming some mysterious ToT induced illness and went to find Tom and Zachary.
It turns out that Tom and Zachary had a more successful time than we did. They had visited the Rock n Rollercoaster gift shop and bought Zachary some Aerosmith drum sticks (Zachary has a drum set - blame Tom for that) and Tom bought himself a DJ Mickey t-shirt (which led to some very entertaining DJing imitations from my kids).
Tom offered to NOT ride but I sent him on his merry way while the kids and I hung out in a shady area re-hydrating and eating snacks to recover. Tom enjoyed his ride and we reconnected.
The final act of the day was to take Nathaniel and Jessica to Animation Academy. Zachary and I went browsing in stores while Tom and the kids drew Tinkerbell. At this point everyone was hot and tired and we started the long walk back to the car. Lots of whining ensued (it is a long walk to the car, btw) but we successfully got everyone to the car and buckled up for safety and back to BLT.
We took a little time to chill out before getting dressed and ready for a trip to Downtown Disney. Nathaniel had insisted on dinner at T-Rex and I wanted to go a little early so we could shop a bit....

Amanda

[dismagiclover]

Hi Amanda! I haven't been the most diligent DISer lately. How is that marathon training coming? Not too much longer! It get brutal about now, but you can make it through!

[DrMomof3]

Hi Amanda! I haven't been the most diligent DISer lately. How is that marathon training coming? Not too much longer! It get brutal about now, but you can make it through!

I'm getting there. Not going to win any speed prizes but I think I can finish! :thumbsup2

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

Remember me? I went on a trip to Disney in August, 2011? I'm going to try to work on my trip report again. Since this trip Tom and I did a 2 night 40th birthday getaway to Disney (which was supposed to be a cruise - long story), Nathaniel and I went to DISapalooza at Universal, and my family traveled back to Disney so I could finish my 1st full marathon. And I want to talk about all of those trips but 1st I need to finish this!!!
So for anyone still reading....

Sunday evening was scheduled as a Downtown Disney evening. Back in 2009 we stayed at Saratoga Springs and spent a little bit of time at DTD but we haven't done much there since. During the 2009 trip we had dinner at T-Rex with my family, my parents, my step-sister, and her family. My mom generously had offered to take the 3 eldest grandchildren (my niece and my older 2) over to the Lego Store while the rest of us finished dinner. When we wandered over to the Lego Store after dinner, Nathaniel was gone. :scared1: After what seemed like an eternity, we found him back at our table at T-Rex looking for us. It was the 1st of many times that we have lost Nathaniel at Disney. :rolleyes: :lmao: (And, no, I'm not kidding.)

I had originally planned Sunday night as a Kona Cafe dinner. I figured a half day or so at DHS and then some pool time with a quick monorail ride to the Poly. Out of the blue Nathaniel asked if we could go to "that dinosaur restaurant where I got lost." (This was a few weeks before the trip.) While I greatly prefer the food at Kona, I was not going to deny him this request. Of all the times where having a car came in handy, going to DTD was the most useful.

We drove to DTD and quickly found a decent parking spot. We decided to go shopping first. We spent quite some time in World of Disney and bought lots of stuff. Tom picked out a Mickey Mouse apron, a Mickey Mouse spoon rest, and a Mickey Mouse oven mitt. :love: The kids entered the fabulous world of pins by each buying a lanyard and a few starter pins. I tried to find my elusive ring - which they had but not in my size - and finally gave up after waiting 15 minutes for someone to help me. As Tom said, "We're trying to spend $500 on a ring and nobody seems to want our money!" We got lots of great stuff though.

We also trekked through the Lego Store and each child picked out a Lego. We have a great Lego Store in NYC and it's easy enough to buy them from amazon but it is what it is. I love all of the legos they have on display!

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c25fee47900000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5ddde9456e00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c3dfb654000000070O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d730b3127ccefe4261d157ac00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d730b3127ccefe433328773000000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

Zachary was still feeling quite "mushy" and I didn't think he'd eat much. I honestly don't remember much about dinner. Halfway through dinner Zachary decided he wanted to eat but then he ate almost nothing and he spent most of the dinner sitting on my lap. We had printed out the kids' discount coupons and I think I also had a gift card from mypoints so that was a plus. While Tom and the big kids finished up, I took the quickly decompensating Zachary for a walk. Which is when I took a lot of the preceding lego pictures.

We hoped in the car back to BLT and got Zachary out just in time for him to vomit all over me. Again. (Theme of the trip!) Luckily he vomited in the parking lot of BLT and not in our rental car. :flower3: Thank God for small favors. I have also never been so happy to stay in a villa with a washer and dryer!!!! :laundy: Zachary had a fever and slept poorly all night but at least there was no more vomiting.

Monday was scheduled as an AK day but Zachary was clearly not going any where. I volunteered to sacrifice myself for the sake of the team and hang out at BLT watching Diego movies all day. :rolleyes1

Amanda

[Twoboysnmygirl]

Oh no! I can't believe he got sick again. Poor guy and poor you for having to miss a park day! Of course, the first thing I thought was "at least it was AK" ;) ...but if AK is your fav, then bummer!

I can't wait to see some of the newer Lego stuff! They didn't have most of those the last time we were there! Did you by any chance get anything at Babycakes? This is what I'm most looking forward to at DTD b/c the cupcakes are vegan! :goodvibes

[DrMomof3]

Oh no! I can't believe he got sick again. Poor guy and poor you for having to miss a park day! Of course, the first thing I thought was "at least it was AK" ;) ...but if AK is your fav, then bummer!

I can't wait to see some of the newer Lego stuff! They didn't have most of those the last time we were there! Did you by any chance get anything at Babycakes? This is what I'm most looking forward to at DTD b/c the cupcakes are vegan! :goodvibes

Luckily this was Zachary's last vomiting episode. Notice I said Zachary's.... :rotfl:
AK is definitely my miss-able park so I was ok with it. Except that I still have never been on Expedition Everest. :sad1:
I didn't go to Babycakes but I've heard good things!

Amanda

[Twoboysnmygirl]

Oh no! NEVER been on EE?!?! You must make it your mission. When Hope & I go for the Princess next Feb. we are skipping AK BUT...I told her we had to just pop over there so I could ride EE a few times and then we could leave! If EE weren't there, I might never go, but Savannah loves AK, so I guess I would either way!

Uh oh...more vomiting from other people does NOT sound fun! :eek:

[natebenma]

Sorry to hear that your attempt to redeem your family's interest in ToT did not work out as you wished. Will Jessica ride it again soon?

The Lego Store and T-Rex are must-dos for my boys when we go to DTD.

Sorry to hear that Zachary was still sick and got sick again. Not sure I am thrilled about your foreshadowing!

[DrMomof3]

Oh no! NEVER been on EE?!?! You must make it your mission. When Hope & I go for the Princess next Feb. we are skipping AK BUT...I told her we had to just pop over there so I could ride EE a few times and then we could leave! If EE weren't there, I might never go, but Savannah loves AK, so I guess I would either way!

Uh oh...more vomiting from other people does NOT sound fun! :eek:

It's hard to believe that I've never been on EE. Especially since I'm the biggest thrill ride lover in my family. :confused3
There are a few things at AK that I truly enjoy - Safari, FOTLK, Kali. I've never been on Dinosaur, EE, or Primeval Whirl. Tom took the older 2 on Dinosaur in 2010 and nobody really liked it and none of the children is tall enough for Primeval Whirl.

Sorry to hear that your attempt to redeem your family's interest in ToT did not work out as you wished. Will Jessica ride it again soon?

The Lego Store and T-Rex are must-dos for my boys when we go to DTD.

Sorry to hear that Zachary was still sick and got sick again. Not sure I am thrilled about your foreshadowing!

Jessica will not ride ToT again. And I don't imagine Nathaniel will even try it for a few more years! :scared1: Even though Zachary is tall enough, I think we'll wait until he's older in the hopes that at least one child learns to like that ride! I think what we'll do in August is take the kids to the Honey I Shrunk the Kids playground (which they absolutely love) and then the adults will take turns running over to ToT and RnR.

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

Monday morning Tom packed up the 2 big kids and took them, sans stroller, over to AK. It was an EMH morning and I honestly have NO idea when they got there! :lmao:
They rode Safari and took lots of pictures. I know they rode EE at least 3 or 4 times. This was the kids first time on EE and apparently they love it! Yes, these are the same kids who refuse to set foot on ToT. :confused3
Tom remembered to use Photopass:

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe646f17f49d00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe65505a941b00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
As you can probably tell from this picture, this was not Nathaniel's best trip...

They had lunch at Rainforest. Our former au pair works in Guest Relations at Epcot and her sister and niece were visiting AK that day, too. Tom treated the whole group to lunch (I was very sad to miss it but I saw Delphine later in the trip).

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d991ec48b00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Nathaniel as Atlas. Weight of the World on his shoulders.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c7607a43100000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d2be3c42f00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5cf73be4d500000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Jessica with Delphine who took care of her when she was a baby!

In the meantime. Back at BLT....

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d730b3127ccefe425a81964900000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Nothing in life that a Mickey Mouse lollipop doesn't make better!

Zachary got a little antsy as the day went on so we went exploring....

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d730b3127ccefe431fe3f6dd00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d730b3127ccefe4396d3b63100000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

Zachary was sad that the big kids were going on rides without him so we walked over to MK. A big plus of BLT!!!

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d730b3127ccefe433f0e771000000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe659110d4a900000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Excuse my weird expression. We did photopass!

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe65612d55dc00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe65a212151a00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe64816ef49300000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

We used stroller as wheelchair to go through the queue at Buzz and then popped on the Peoplemover. By the Zachary was starting to fade and we headed back to the hotel to rest.

When Tom and the older kids returned home, we changed into dinner clothes and drove over to Epcot for our ADR at Teppan Edo. Dinner was fine. Tom is not a huge fan of Teppan Edo. He feels that our local Hibachi place is better and less expensive. He's probably right but sadly my kids LOVE Teppan Edo and think it's a must-do. :rolleyes:

We did stop for some photopass pictures:

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe6438c4b4fd00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe647783f40500000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

There was NO vomiting on Monday! :banana: I still remember lots of children NOT sleeping well but at least there was no vomit. :rotfl2:

Amanda

[firecracker725]

You are rolling with the updates today. The kids must be otherwise occupied. :)

It's awesome that you were able to take a short outing to MK with Zachary. When we were there in May 2010, Avery (who was just over 2 at the time) spiked a high fever and ended up at urgent care. Luckily my MIL was with us and just kept her entertained with movies in the room. Once we found out it was just an ear infection and nothing contagious, we dosed her with ibuprofen and headed back to the parks. Horrible parenting, I know, but she felt fine and enjoyed herself.

[DrMomof3]

You are rolling with the updates today. The kids must be otherwise occupied. :)

It's awesome that you were able to take a short outing to MK with Zachary. When we were there in May 2010, Avery (who was just over 2 at the time) spiked a high fever and ended up at urgent care. Luckily my MIL was with us and just kept her entertained with movies in the room. Once we found out it was just an ear infection and nothing contagious, we dosed her with ibuprofen and headed back to the parks. Horrible parenting, I know, but she felt fine and enjoyed herself.

Considering this trip was in August I figure I better finish it up! :lmao: it's very cold in NY so we were indoors a lot today. And I can't remember all the details anymore so I might as well just summarize? :rotfl2:

On Sunday we dosed Z with ibuprofen but after another vomiting incident we thought we should keep him quiet.

Amanda

[natebenma]

So sorry that you and Zachary missed out on AK. It is great that you could easily make it over to MK, but the fact that he faded fast really should underscore that you made the right call.

There was one trip we had when I had to stay behind with Nate while Mark and Ben visited HS. It was the first and only time Ben did Jedi training! And had his picture taken at the end with Darth and the Stormtroopers and the hosts from the show! At least Mark got a picture. ONE!

Wow, the EPCOT ball is so beautiful at night!

[beebeeryan]

Well I'll admit, this is the first I've been back on the DIS Boards in quite awhile with no planned trip in the future. I'm trying not to torture myself. :lmao:

But I saw the email update from you and thought, wait, did she ever finish??? Did she go back? Did she just do the Marathon? So here I am.

It's awful the kids kept getting sick, but you guys seemed to work around it quite well. My boys love AK, it's not my favorite park either, but they love it so we ended up there twice this last August trip. I finally got to do EE for the first time and did it twice, it was AWESOME! I don't do upside down rollercoasters, but that kinda thing I love. I have to agree that being able to walk over to MK from BLT or the CR is incredible. We did that so often, just walk over to do a couple of things or eat and then go back to the hotel. So convenient. You just cannot beat that.

I have not been doing well on my running in the past few months but want to do that 5k in June again and maybe one in May so I gotta get back on track here, can't wait to hear about your marathon weekend!

[DrMomof3]

So sorry that you and Zachary missed out on AK. It is great that you could easily make it over to MK, but the fact that he faded fast really should underscore that you made the right call.

There was one trip we had when I had to stay behind with Nate while Mark and Ben visited HS. It was the first and only time Ben did Jedi training! And had his picture taken at the end with Darth and the Stormtroopers and the hosts from the show! At least Mark got a picture. ONE!

Wow, the EPCOT ball is so beautiful at night!

Thankfully a day of rest seemed to be just the thing Zachary needed! Tom can be good about taking pictures but I think being outnumbered was stressful for him! ;)

Well I'll admit, this is the first I've been back on the DIS Boards in quite awhile with no planned trip in the future. I'm trying not to torture myself. :lmao:

But I saw the email update from you and thought, wait, did she ever finish??? Did she go back? Did she just do the Marathon? So here I am.

It's awful the kids kept getting sick, but you guys seemed to work around it quite well. My boys love AK, it's not my favorite park either, but they love it so we ended up there twice this last August trip. I finally got to do EE for the first time and did it twice, it was AWESOME! I don't do upside down rollercoasters, but that kinda thing I love. I have to agree that being able to walk over to MK from BLT or the CR is incredible. We did that so often, just walk over to do a couple of things or eat and then go back to the hotel. So convenient. You just cannot beat that.

I have not been doing well on my running in the past few months but want to do that 5k in June again and maybe one in May so I gotta get back on track here, can't wait to hear about your marathon weekend!

I totally agree about walking to the park. CR/BLT and the Epcot resorts all are great for this!
Definitely sign up for the 5k. It'll motivate you!!!

Amanda

[klacey1]

Aww sorry the AK day was a bit of a wash for you! I'm glad you got to get out to MK at least for a little while-- poor Zachary! Being sick is no fun, especially in Disney!

[DrMomof3]

Aww sorry the AK day was a bit of a wash for you! I'm glad you got to get out to MK at least for a little while-- poor Zachary! Being sick is no fun, especially in Disney!

Thanks Kylie! We had a decent day. I was feeling a little sorry for myself but we managed to have fun!

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

Tuesday was AM EMH at Epcot. We ended up driving over instead of taking the monorail because we were having trouble mobilizing the troops. We missed rope drop but made it well before regular park hours. The plan was for me to run to Soarin' to grab FPs and then meet everyone at Test Track. The one glitch is that Nathaniel insisted on coming with me for FPs. The difference in speed between someone training for a marathon and a 7 year old without an agenda.... well, you get the picture! :lmao:
I guess Tom and the younger 2 got antsy waiting for us because they hopped in line for Test Track. Nathaniel and I got in line once we were back. I was a little sad because it was Zachary's 1st time on Test Track and I missed it. :rolleyes:
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c862a255400000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Nathaniel
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5db7ebc46900000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
A rare picture of me with my oh-so-sexy hip pack! :thumbsup2

Nathaniel and I played a game in line where he decided he'd be the grown-up and I would be the child. The single rider who sat with us was an older teenager/young adult (I'm guessing college age) who played right along with our game. When Nathaniel told me to put my arms in the air, this guy did too. It was really fun. I thanked him at the end of the ride for being such a good sport (he was at Disney with his similarly aged brother and his parents - we saw them later in the day).
We met up with the rest of the family in the car exhibit. Unfortunately, Zachary was having fun playing in the cars and didn't want to leave....:rolleyes1
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c4006a42b00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c56e225f400000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Look at how well-trained he is! He's putting on a seatbelt!

I finally bribed him enough to leave Test Track and we had a quick snack before heading to Nathaniel's favorite ride - Mission:Space. There are 2 issues with Mission:Space for my family. One, Zachary isn't tall enough. Two, Tom gets motion sick on the Orange Side. Tom first took the big kids on the Green Side while Zachary and I went to the indoor play area at the exit of Mission:Space. Then I took Jessica and Nathaniel on the Orange Side (which is ok for me but I just don't love it).

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c918ce45100000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5de0f084c100000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c45cf654800000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

At this point it was time to head over to France for lunch....

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

One them of this trip (besides vomiting ;) ) was the obsession with wildlife. Especially Nathaniel. So on the way to France we had to stop for some ducks.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c3d23659800000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

And the obligatory Totem Pole pictures in Canada:

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d72df84a700000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5da795c41f00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
I think the pacifier really adds to the photo. :rolleyes1
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5cb50165fe00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Nathaniel, who is part monkey, climb to the highest opening.
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5cf85ca42d00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

We had a nice lunch in France. My kids weren't super well behaved which didn't make me terribly happy. This trip it became obvious that Zachary is not at a great age for sit-down meals. I left many meals early to take Zachary for a walk when his behavior became unacceptable. In the beginning of the trip I figured it was because he wasn't feeling well but later it became clear that he just gets super antsy. He's not really old enough for the games on the children's menu (his fine motor skills are at least 6 months behind his chronological age) and there's a limit to how long an iPad can entertain him.
On the way out of World Showcase, we stopped in England.
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d4fd9c42700000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c340f252800000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5dd9fd457800000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5dae39842f00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

While the kids were playing in the phone booths, something magical happened. The telephone which is not in a booth (there is a phone in between the 2 phone booths) rang. I decided to pick up the phone. :confused3 It was Belle calling! She was trying to pick out some books for Beast's library and wanted some recommendations. She and I had a lovely conversation (I couldn't get my kids' attention in time for them to talk to her). I know it's silly but it was a really fun little thing! :love:

At this point we decided to head back to the hotel for a swim.
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5df897059a00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
and maybe a nap???? :lmao:

The BLT pool is small-ish. It was not an issue at all for us during this trip but I can easily see that during peak season, it could get crowded. The slide was good. Not the best one on Disney property but good enough to be fun. Zachary was able to go down with a life jacket and we'd "catch him" at the bottom.
Another little bit of magic occurred while we were at the pool....
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5cc168e49d00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Miss Jessica lost her 1st tooth!!!!

The skies started to get a bit dark and Tom and I had a dinner reservation at Jiko that night so we headed back for a warm bath and to put some PJs on. And we learned an important lesson about adding bubbles to a whirlpool tub...

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d430bc4f300000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
There were bubbles still in the tub in the morning! :rotfl2:

At this point the skies opened up in a most impressive way! Torrential downpour is actually an understatement!!! Fortunately our Kids Nite Out sitter arrived on time and Tom and I were ready to go to AKL for the 1st time. Our babysitter was a college-aged girl with lots of fun ideas. Since the weather was bad, she took the kids to the completely empty convention level and had them run around. She created games and scavenger hunts for them. She also slipped a note to the front desk and got a button from the tooth fairy for Jessica. It was an I'm Celebrating button and said "I'm celebrating losing my 1st tooth at Disney World". Very sweet.

Tom and I hopped in a cab to AKL. I think it cost about $20. So worth it so that we didn't need a designated driver!!! :thumbsup2 AKL is beautiful. We were a little early so we stopped in the store to buy Jessica a Tinkerbell pin (we figured that at Disney Tinkerbell must help the tooth fairy). We also bought a NY Yankees Mickey Mouse pin for Nathaniel and a Mickey Mouse keychain for Zachary. That Tinkerbell is very generous!!! :rotfl:
We had some time to see some animals outside before heading to the restaurant. It really is a beautiful place! Jiko is gorgeous. Our server was very knowledgeable. We ordered a lovely bottle of wine and started with some appetizers. I always find that the servers get a look of relief when we say we have a TIW card instead of the dining plan...
I was a little worried about Jiko because I hate any and all forms of curry. I've tried a million times and I just don't like curry. Thai curry, Indian curry, it doesn't matter. I also find that many people don't understand that I can identify the smallest trace of curry in something and then I won't eat it. (Tom swears that I can identify spoiled milk 2 days before anyone else - I'm sensitive to smells and tastes.) I'm not a picky eater - I like spicy and I'll eat a lot of things - but curry is a no-no for me. Tom ordered the taste of Africa appetizer which I knew I couldn't do. The waiter tried to convince me that I would probably be ok tasting it but Tom immediately knew that 2 of the 4 dips were not ok for me (there are advantages to 11 years of marriage!). I think I ordered a salad but can't remember anymore (and we shared a bottle of wine!). I had the filet mignon for an entree. The waiter recommended that I have no sauce. The food was outstanding. We shared a cheese plate for dessert. Apparently they moved the cheese plate from dessert to appetizer because of the dining plan but since we were paying out of pocket we were able to have it for dessert. It was delicious. Feeling very full and happy, we hopped in a cab back to BLT.
One beautiful thing about a babysitter is that all 3 children were sleeping soundly. The tooth fairy did her thing and we went off to sleep. Another good day!

Amanda

[natebenma]

A much better day!!!

Too bad about not riding TT together, but it sounds like you made it fun.

With Zachary's recent illness, it's actually a good thing he couldn't ride Mission Space.

Cute pictures in Canada and the phone booth. I didn't know about the Belle phone calls, but I do have the telephone number for the booths:

Phone numbers for booths in United Kingdom

Right Booth 407-827-9861 (closest to the road)
Left Booth 407-827-9862
Center Booth 407-827-9863

Other phones in the world showcase

Canada 407-827-9884
Morocco 407-827-9747 (back by Restaurant Marrakesh)
Germany 407-827-9662 (at the restrooms near the model railroad)


Great picture of the bubble bath.

Congrats to Jessica for losing her first tooth. Ben lost one at Disney one year, too. Not the first. I think it was on the day we were leaving so we didn't have to worry that the tooth fairy wouldn't find him.

I'm glad you had a nice dinner at Jiko. At least you got close to AK.

[firecracker725]

I feel the same way about curry. I just can't handle it, even though I came to develop a taste for spicy foods during my first pregnancy. I'm glad you found something good at Jiko. I think my DH would love it there, as he's a curry fan.

[DrMomof3]

A much better day!!!

Too bad about not riding TT together, but it sounds like you made it fun.

With Zachary's recent illness, it's actually a good thing he couldn't ride Mission Space.

Cute pictures in Canada and the phone booth. I didn't know about the Belle phone calls, but I do have the telephone number for the booths:

Phone numbers for booths in United Kingdom

Right Booth 407-827-9861 (closest to the road)
Left Booth 407-827-9862
Center Booth 407-827-9863

Other phones in the world showcase

Canada 407-827-9884
Morocco 407-827-9747 (back by Restaurant Marrakesh)
Germany 407-827-9662 (at the restrooms near the model railroad)


Great picture of the bubble bath.

Congrats to Jessica for losing her first tooth. Ben lost one at Disney one year, too. Not the first. I think it was on the day we were leaving so we didn't have to worry that the tooth fairy wouldn't find him.

I'm glad you had a nice dinner at Jiko. At least you got close to AK.

I knew that you had the phone numbers for the booths. I thought about looking them up on my phone but decided to just go with the flow. It was a special treat for me to talk to Belle!
Zachary seems pretty immune to motion sickness but you're certainly right that it's lucky that we didn't have to test his stomach. :lmao:

I feel the same way about curry. I just can't handle it, even though I came to develop a taste for spicy foods during my first pregnancy. I'm glad you found something good at Jiko. I think my DH would love it there, as he's a curry fan.

Jiko was lovely. It was a pretty restaurant with good service. And there was enough for me to choose from. I know it's hypocritical but when we get our date night at Disney I always hate when there are poorly behaved children in the restaurant. We tend to dine early with our kids to try to not bother adults who are dining so our children won't be the problem. ;)

Amanda

[beebeeryan]

I feel the same way about curry, not a fan. I can't do aspartame either and I swear I can taste it in the tiniest of sips. I can't to diet or zero sodas at all. Good thing I'm not a big soda fan.

I remember the Tuesday downpour. That was our last night. We got wet at MK if I recall.

How fun that Belle called, those little magic moments make the trips so special, those are the things that just make you want to keep going back.

I swear we are all getting the itch right now. No trip planned for this year, but this is the time we'd be thinking about it and booking and comments are flying around the house by everyone. LOL

I thought the slide at BLT looked really cool and was better than the CR? but we've never tried it or seen it up close. So is the CR slide better? My boys loved it and I did go down it twice. It was a lot better than the WL one which is much small and not as high. Slides are a very important feature for us, since we spend a lot of time at the pool on these trips. :)

[DrMomof3]

I feel the same way about curry, not a fan. I can't do aspartame either and I swear I can taste it in the tiniest of sips. I can't to diet or zero sodas at all. Good thing I'm not a big soda fan.

I remember the Tuesday downpour. That was our last night. We got wet at MK if I recall.

How fun that Belle called, those little magic moments make the trips so special, those are the things that just make you want to keep going back.

I swear we are all getting the itch right now. No trip planned for this year, but this is the time we'd be thinking about it and booking and comments are flying around the house by everyone. LOL

I thought the slide at BLT looked really cool and was better than the CR? but we've never tried it or seen it up close. So is the CR slide better? My boys loved it and I did go down it twice. It was a lot better than the WL one which is much small and not as high. Slides are a very important feature for us, since we spend a lot of time at the pool on these trips. :)

I think the BLT slide was better but we haven't stayed CR for a few years so it's hard to compare. I liked the BLT slide but BC (obviously) and probably Poly are better.
I'm glad my DH let me book a bounceback... :thumbsup2

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

When planning the trip, I realized that we would want a more mellow day after our date-night dinner. Wednesday was that day! It was also probably the single most expensive day we've ever had at Disney but it was so worth it!
We got up in the morning and decided to check out breakfast at the Wave. They have 2 options for breakfast - a la carte (order off the menu) or a breakfast buffet. The buffet was nice. It wasn't huge like Chef Mickey or Cape May but had everything you could want. My family doesn't eat pork (except me) so I don't always feel that breakfast buffets are a good value but my kids love smoked salmon which probably makes up for the lack of meat! :lmao: Anyway we enjoyed a nice breakfast and then headed over to the dock for our 1st ever fishing excursion!!! :banana:
A little background about the fishing trip. My kids, especially Nathaniel, are obsessed with fishing. Tom and I are complete non-fisher people. I don't know the first thing about catching fish. And, to be perfectly honest, I'm a teeny bit squeamish about the whole thing. So booking a guided fishing trip seemed like an excellent solution. And it was!
We got life jackets for the kids and hopped into the fishing boat. The driver was great! He had a cooler full of cold beverages (water and soda) and lots of fishing poles and bait. He taught us everything. It was nice and quiet on the lake and we had great views of everything. Zachary was a bit of a handful and Nathaniel got a little stressed about doing everything by himself. And then there was the emergency bathroom stop at Fort Wilderness for Jessica. But overall it was really fun and something I would recommend.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c029625aa00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d4622057000000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
The Poly from the water.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d7cfb05b400000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
The Contemporary. You can see the beautiful weather!

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d2c2e847900000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5dc48a84a900000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5cae39a46300000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d5219847100000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5de79e450400000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c6263a45f00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5cabae655e00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c5b87e43f00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5ddc16843900000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Yes, I was the only one who didn't catch a fish. :sad2:

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5cc757e4a100000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5db2c605ee00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

It was all catch-and-release fishing.
I can honestly say it was worth the price (I can't remember how much it was but it was expensive) and I would totally do it again.

Amanda

[natebenma]

What a fantastic backdrop for a fishing trip! I love your pictures- such a beautiful view.

The fish everyone caught look HUGE! In the pictures, they almost look as big as the kids.

My DH grew up in a family of 3 boys, and they all fish, so he will take out our boys locally. Always catch and release.

It looks like everyone was feeling ok for the trip, so that's good!

[DrMomof3]

What a fantastic backdrop for a fishing trip! I love your pictures- such a beautiful view.

The fish everyone caught look HUGE! In the pictures, they almost look as big as the kids.

My DH grew up in a family of 3 boys, and they all fish, so he will take out our boys locally. Always catch and release.

It looks like everyone was feeling ok for the trip, so that's good!

It was a really good experience. It's so nice to just "show up" for something like that and have someone else do all the prep. No illness on the boat - just some crabbiness. ;)

Amanda

[beebeeryan]

That looks like fun, I wouldn't be doing any catching, but the boys would love it. I'd be taking the pictures. :)

That was the day we left to go home. :sad1:

[Shannon84]

hi!!! :goodvibes

I am catching up and following along!!

[ddluvsdisney]

The fishing trip looks like fun! Your kids are so cute!

[klacey1]

Just caught up on the last two updates-- that baby-sitter sounds wonderful! Fishing is definitely not my thing either, but I love that the deluxe hotels offer activities like that out of parks! Really makes it feel like a true "resort."

[DrMomof3]

That looks like fun, I wouldn't be doing any catching, but the boys would love it. I'd be taking the pictures. :)

That was the day we left to go home. :sad1:

I didn't catch anything. One nice thing was that you didn't have to touch anything unless you wanted to!

hi!!! :goodvibes

I am catching up and following along!!

Welcome Shannon!!!

The fishing trip looks like fun! Your kids are so cute!


Thank you!

Just caught up on the last two updates-- that baby-sitter sounds wonderful! Fishing is definitely not my thing either, but I love that the deluxe hotels offer activities like that out of parks! Really makes it feel like a true "resort."

It's amazing that we spend so much $$$ to stay at these resorts and then most of us never take the time to enjoy all the resort offers!!!

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

After fishing it was time for some lunch, clean up, and then Jessica and I had to head over to MK for some BBB action. I was really looking forward to some girl time. It's funny because I offered to do this on one of the trips with my mom and my mom was totally turned off by the idea of BBB. :confused3 I thought Jessica would love it!
After washing her hair and changing into clean clothes, she and I walked over to MK. We had time for a few rides...

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d7619846300000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c4d94e42700000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe652c7a940500000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
I look pregnant in this picture. Ugh. :rolleyes:

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe65771855e200000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

Finally it was time for Jessica's appointment!!! We had discussed princess costumes and she decided that she wanted Rapunzel. We have Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Belle and Snow White in various forms at home (her Snow White costume was her ballet recital outfit last year). I was happy that she picked Rapunzel, if only because it was different! They didn't have Rapunzel in her size (I think she's a small and they had XS and M). They tried to convince me to get the XS but I chose the M. I was a little annoyed that they thought I should spend a small fortune on a costume that she would outgrow in a few weeks instead of one that she could grow into...
Jessica and I went to the changing room in the back and she put on her costume.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c2763e4e500000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
It's a little big but we pinned it in the back.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c845b252400000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
And then we waited for her fairy godmother to come...

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe656365d4a500000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
I loved that there was a photopass person taking TONS of pictures. I took some, too, but the photopass ones were good.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe649df1753200000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe65ff84553a00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
One person did her nails while the other did her hair.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe6578bd15d800000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe654c15156a00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
They kept her back to the mirror the whole time.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe64b98f755e00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe65d6e015d200000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe658cc115de00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe64c599757600000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe65fac194d500000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
A sprinkle of pixie dust!

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe64f12ef4eb00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
The finished product!

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe64ae2e356c00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
The big reveal!

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe64037c75f000000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

And then we went for a photo-shoot....

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe64dd0775e400000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe65724b941b00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe64b6f035be00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe642aa3b49300000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

There are a million more but you get the idea. Jessica was awesome! She was great at BBB and even better at the photography place. They loved her!!!

In the meantime the boys were becoming pirates....

Amanda

[Twoboysnmygirl]

Awwww! :lovestruc What fun! I LOVE the shot of her in the mirror! LOVE IT!

[natebenma]

GREAT pictures from BBB! I enjoyed seeing them- don't think I will be getting there anytime soon...

The picture in the mirror is awesome.

I'm glad you had some fun mother-daughter time. :)

[ddluvsdisney]

BBB looks so fun! Like Dee said not going there anytime soon.:laughing:
Although I do have princess loving niece that gives me some hope. I did meet my parents, sister and niece in Disney 2 years ago, but I got there a day late for my niece's BBB appt. I wasn't even suppose to go- it was a last min. decision so she couldn't change the appt. :(
I told her next year auntie is taking her!! :thumbsup2

Deb :)

[DrMomof3]

Awwww! :lovestruc What fun! I LOVE the shot of her in the mirror! LOVE IT!

Thank you! It was great!

GREAT pictures from BBB! I enjoyed seeing them- don't think I will be getting there anytime soon...

The picture in the mirror is awesome.

I'm glad you had some fun mother-daughter time. :)

Nathaniel and Zachary are both much needier than Jessica so it's fun to get time with her.

BBB looks so fun! Like Dee said not going there anytime soon.:laughing:
Although I do have princess loving niece that gives me some hope. I did meet my parents, sister and niece in Disney 2 years ago, but I got there a day late for my niece's BBB appt. I wasn't even suppose to go- it was a last min. decision so she couldn't change the appt. :(
I told her next year auntie is taking her!! :thumbsup2

Deb :)

I highly recommend it! I don't think we'll do it again anytime soon - too expensive and time consuming to be a regular feature of our trips - but I enjoyed it.

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

So while Jessica and I were drowning in estrogen at the BBB, Tom took the boys to the Pirate League for a different sort of make-over. Nathaniel was a little uncertain, especially about the face paint aspect, but agreed to give it a try.
Tom bought them pirate shirts to wear:

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c8ea425de00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c7658255e00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d8c52845500000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c1ab5a4b500000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d7219846100000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
He agreed to face paint afterall...

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d07a2454800000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c0f5e65fc00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Pirate Oath

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d42ad84cd00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d7f6bc48d00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5ccc84a4ef00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe64775075e600000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Photopass pics included

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe64485cb45d00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

Jessica and I must have finished first because we headed over to Pirates of the Caribbean to meet the boys. The sky was turning dark and stormy so I had Jessica wear a poncho over her dress to protect her make-over. When we got to Pirates, Nathaniel had disappeared. Tom had taken the boys on the ride after their Pirate League experience. After getting off and going thru the store, Zachary went one way and Nathaniel the other. Nathaniel was nowhere to be found.
Anyone who has read previous trip reports knows that this is a theme with our family. And it's always Nathaniel getting lost. I will say that the CMs at Pirates were GREAT about helping us. Much better than the CMs at AK the previous year. We found him about 5 minutes later and headed over to the Castle for dinner.

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

We waited in line for the check-in at CRT only to be told we were too early (by about 15 minutes) and we had to come back. It was raining at this point so we headed over to the nearest store to "window shop." Finally the rain passed and the kids could run around.
What happens when you cross one princess with two pirates???

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c324da45900000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d620e054e00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c6f0be4a900000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d28f684a300000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
And who's brilliant idea was it to give my children SWORDS???

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c8cff258400000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Please notice that she's already traded in her princess shoes for some Minnie Mouse flip-flops.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5de033053200000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d9e5d845300000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d3056840f00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Nathaniel is truly part monkey...

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

This was our 1st experience with CRT. I honestly don't think my kids even realized that you could eat in the Castle. You enter downstairs and wait to meet Cinderella.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c3af9a4e900000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5dc33645be00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5cce40251a00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c68b925b000000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe645197753200000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe64ee49b41b00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Nathaniel refused to go near Cinderella. :sad2:

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe64225bb46f00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

When they called our name we headed upstairs to the dining room.
All the boys received swords (again, really??? :eek: ) and the girls were given wands. Zachary, of course, wanted a wand. :rolleyes1
Unfortunately we were about the last table in the restaurant to see the princesses. I had read bad reviews of the food but I honestly thought it was decent. Tom and I both regretted the lack of alcohol in MK! :rotfl2:

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5ca4e7258800000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d7769c48b00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5dcbc2454e00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5ce9d3650200000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5dfefc05f200000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Glass Slipper dessert that I pre-ordered.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c7ae625e600000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5cf2b7a4c300000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5db53ec4bd00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d36a005ca00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
The highlight of the meal. Zachary ran over to Ariel and gave her a big hug and told her, "I love you, Ariel." It was so adorable!!!

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d7de4c40300000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

Overall a wonderful experience!

Amanda

[Twoboysnmygirl]

Awww! That was so sweet! :lovestruc

Love the pirate makeovers as well and TWO swords in one day! FUN! :lmao:

[ddluvsdisney]

I wish they had the Pirate League when my boys were little. Especially my DS14 he loved pirates!
My DSs probably wouldn't go near Cinderella either :laughing:.
My DS10 has that same pirate shirt, he got it in August.
2 swords, are you kidding?!!
Someday I will make it to CRT even if I need to drag all the boys!!!!

Deb :)

[DrMomof3]

Awww! That was so sweet! :lovestruc

Love the pirate makeovers as well and TWO swords in one day! FUN! :lmao:

My step-dad is a Quaker so I grew up in a relatively weapon-free house and have a pretty weapon-free house myself. FOUR swords in one day was a little much for me. :rotfl:

I wish they had the Pirate League when my boys were little. Especially my DS14 he loved pirates!
My DSs probably wouldn't go near Cinderella either :laughing:.
My DS10 has that same pirate shirt, he got it in August.
2 swords, are you kidding?!!
Someday I will make it to CRT even if I need to drag all the boys!!!!

Deb :)

CRT was a good experience for us! If I ever run the Princess Half, I'm going there for dinner again! For a typical trip I feel the Norway dinner is perfectly adequate for our needs but this was very special.
Pirate League was great. A fraction of the cost of the BBB but enjoyed by all. I'm thinking of having us all go this year.

Amanda

[natebenma]

WOW!!! The boys look great all pirate-d up! What a great experience. Fantastic photos of the kids just enjoying themselves at the castle.

I totally know what you mean about the face paint. My son Nate had some mild sensory issues when he was younger and would not allow face painting (he didn't like finger painting, or walking in the grass barefoot or loud noises either). Food textures were a big issue, too. He has outgrown a lot of it, though, fortunately.

Looks like a fun family meal at the castle. The slipper desserts look awesome!!! Did you get to try a bite or two?

[DrMomof3]

WOW!!! The boys look great all pirate-d up! What a great experience. Fantastic photos of the kids just enjoying themselves at the castle.

I totally know what you mean about the face paint. My son Nate had some mild sensory issues when he was younger and would not allow face painting (he didn't like finger painting, or walking in the grass barefoot or loud noises either). Food textures were a big issue, too. He has outgrown a lot of it, though, fortunately.

Looks like a fun family meal at the castle. The slipper desserts look awesome!!! Did you get to try a bite or two?

Nathaniel has his own set of sensory issues. For him it includes NEVER wearing shoes. He's also picky about food textures. He will not drink fruit smoothies if there are "pieces" or "seeds" inside, as one example. But I wouldn't say he's a picky eater in general. I wasn't specifically worried about face paint with Nathaniel but whether or not he would participate in any aspect of the experience. He only agreed to participate when he learned that face paint was optional - and then he chose to have face paint anyway! :thumbsup2
The chocolate slipper dessert was delicious! I felt like I needed to order 3 but honestly one would have been enough food. Maybe next time (if there is a next time at CRT) I'll order it for myself and share! :lmao:

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

My photos aren't completely in chronological order so here are a few more pictures from after CRT...

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe64ef1c75e600000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe642c0eb43d00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe640112f4af00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe65089d15c000000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe6570c4949500000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe65c5d7557400000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe646d0375b800000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe65c72e558c00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

One of my very favorites things to do at WDW is to watch the Opening Ceremony at MK. It's one of those Disney things that puts tears in my eyes each and every time. So my goal for Thursday was to make it to Rope Drop. There was some fighting on the walk over from BLT and I almost turned around and took the kids back to the hotel but we made it!

Heading to RD:

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d724b3127ccefe5ebb6bbc8f00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d724b3127ccefe5f806b5d7600000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Waiting...

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d724b3127ccefe5f20fcdc8100000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
This was NOT a good day for Nathaniel. In retrospect we should have split up the kids.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d724b3127ccefe5fe56b1ddc00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
I think this sums it up pretty well. :eek:

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d724b3127ccefe5f1f259cdf00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d909305aa00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
The Mayor

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d733445e400000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Good mornin'! (Which is from one of my favorite movies - Singin' in the Rain - but I digress...)

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c2435251a00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c44e125fe00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d0fb5c46b00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d4bf7c40b00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

Anyone who has never seen this show MUST go see it!!! :love:

After RD we headed towards....DUMBO!

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5ced83655000000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d724b3127ccefe5f590b1de200000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5cb239a46d00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c0b90653000000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Like a good DISer, I took lots of pics of the Fantasyland construction!

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c432065a400000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
I have even better pics from our recent trip...

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5dd2b605ae00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Interactive queue at Winnie the Pooh. Unfortunately when the line is short, this serves as a distraction....

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d724b3127ccefe5f6cc15daa00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d724b3127ccefe5ea1a2bc4b00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
I hate Stinky Cars. My kids, however, love it.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5da408841b00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Rocket Ride!!! My kids love Astro Orbiter...

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d724b3127ccefe5f553a9ce500000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

And then we went on Buzz. All I can say is...

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5cd307e4fb00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
My highest score ever!


To be continued....

[DrMomof3]

I know we saw Carousel of Progress, went on PeopleMover, and Baby Swapped Space Mountain. I think we had lunch at Liberty Tree Tavern. I think their lunch is pretty good but I hate, hate, hate the bathroom! :lmao:
Nathaniel was basically being horrible by this point. Tom wanted a haircut. Zachary fell asleep in the stroller after lunch so we went by the Barbershop and Tom waited for a haircut while I had Nathaniel and Jessica. I tried to get some Photopass pics but....

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe64a69e35d800000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe65e40b152000000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe649829357000000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Not exactly the look I was going for.... :mad:

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe65daf615c200000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

While Tom was getting his haircut, I enjoyed the Dapper Dans...

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5df6f984c300000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5da2ee05ce00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

But I guess not everyone agreed...

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c261e253000000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

So we headed back to BLT for some swimming and non-park time.

Dinner that night was at Le Cellier. The first time I have ever eaten there. We had a HUGE rain storm as we were heading over there. I have no pictures from that night except:

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d877845d200000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

I really liked Le Cellier but Zachary was having trouble sitting still which meant that I had to rush through my meal and take him outside to run around. This is when we started thinking that maybe our family needs fewer sit-down meals and more counter service.... I was a little disappointed but I also realize (now, at least) that by the 2nd half of the trip, the kids are tired and over-stimulated. Maybe we need to pack more into the first few days and then take it easy towards the end? As I start planning our August trip, I really need to think about that!!! Maybe the solution is 4 straight park days followed by several unplanned days??? Hmmm.

Amanda

[natebenma]

Wow, great photo pass pictures in front of the castle with the kids in their princess and pirate gear! I won't comment on those other photo pass pics except to say I have some of those in my collection, too!

Yeah for making RD!!! I enjoy the opening show too.

Lots of Fantastyland and Tomorrowland fun! Congrats on that great Buzz score.

Bummer that you are starting to see signs of the kids "hitting the Disney wall"

I think you are smart to start to think about sitdown vs. counter service meals. IIRC, Tom likes a sitdown lunch. Is it because of the airconditioning? Being waited on instead of dealing with the ordering issues? (I can see how that can get confusing with the kids and all the trays). But there are lots of great indoor options if you need them- Especially if you are early, like an 11 lunch.

We like CHH at MK, Sunshine Seasons at the Land and Tamu Tamu at AK. Tamu Tamu seating is outside, but it is shaded and usually not crowded.

[DrMomof3]

Wow, great photo pass pictures in front of the castle with the kids in their princess and pirate gear! I won't comment on those other photo pass pics except to say I have some of those in my collection, too!

Yeah for making RD!!! I enjoy the opening show too.

Lots of Fantastyland and Tomorrowland fun! Congrats on that great Buzz score.

Bummer that you are starting to see signs of the kids "hitting the Disney wall"

I think you are smart to start to think about sitdown vs. counter service meals. IIRC, Tom likes a sitdown lunch. Is it because of the airconditioning? Being waited on instead of dealing with the ordering issues? (I can see how that can get confusing with the kids and all the trays). But there are lots of great indoor options if you need them- Especially if you are early, like an 11 lunch.

We like CHH at MK, Sunshine Seasons at the Land and Tamu Tamu at AK. Tamu Tamu seating is outside, but it is shaded and usually not crowded.

Nathaniel was very stressed about starting school and I think the closer we got to the end of the trip (and school starting), the worse the behavior.... You know how that all worked out in the end. :rolleyes:
Counter service.... With a family of 5 we can easily end up with 3 trays worth of food and then no place to sit. NOT fun. There is something nice about sitting down and having someone bring you food. It's my same issue with buffets - by the time I get my food, it's time for me to get up and get something for one of the kids. I just think a sit-down lunch can be a nice break in the middle of a busy day. With young kids we aren't going commando touring or anything but that break allows us another hour or 2 of park touring.
The problem at Disney is that we make ADRs 180 days in advance instead of deciding at the moment what we feel like eating. So if someone is having a bad day and we'd be better off - at that moment - getting something quick at the resort counter service place, you're still stuck trekking over to Epcot or another resort or DTD or wherever your ADR is. I think this is a huge advantage of BC or the other Boardwalk area resorts. In August almost 100% of our dinners will be walking distance to BC. We aren't 180 days out yet but we're thinking about Epcot restaurants and then Boardwalk area restaurants for every dinner. And I don't think we have too many ADRs which require the $10 hold.

Amanda

[Twoboysnmygirl]

I hate to laugh, but I'm glad to see that my kid isn't the only one that gets a little crabby at WDW! We had our moments on the trip too!

Yes, I usually pack the first couple days and then we slow down in the middle and then speed back up at the end (although we don't HAVE to b/c we've already done a ton at the beginning) It seemed to work well for us!

[DrMomof3]

I hate to laugh, but I'm glad to see that my kid isn't the only one that gets a little crabby at WDW! We had our moments on the trip too!

Yes, I usually pack the first couple days and then we slow down in the middle and then speed back up at the end (although we don't HAVE to b/c we've already done a ton at the beginning) It seemed to work well for us!

The grumpy pictures are too funny to leave out. Although I will admit that it was less funny at the time. ;)

Amanda

[ddluvsdisney]

Loved the photopass pics!!
The kids look so cute. Like others have said I think we all have pics of grumpy kids at WDW. I think it's really smart to think about how to make it better. I used to do the same thing when DS10 was younger (heck what am I talking about I still do!) maybe just not as much.
I know what you mean about the sit down dinners. Restaurants were always difficult for DS10 and we had to time it just right. Sometimes it got so stressful when you just wanted to relax and enjoy your meal.
I loved Nathanial's green Mickey shirt- where did you get it?

Deb:)

[DrMomof3]

Loved the photopass pics!!
The kids look so cute. Like others have said I think we all have pics of grumpy kids at WDW. I think it's really smart to think about how to make it better. I used to do the same thing when DS10 was younger (heck what am I talking about I still do!) maybe just not as much.
I know what you mean about the sit down dinners. Restaurants were always difficult for DS10 and we had to time it just right. Sometimes it got so stressful when you just wanted to relax and enjoy your meal.
I loved Nathanial's green Mickey shirt- where did you get it?

Deb:)

I've been talking to my family about what to do differently this year. I have some good ideas!
We ordered matching Mickey shirts from Etsy. I can't remember the vendor right now. My red shirt has the same Mickey but it's hard to see. You can see it on Jessica's pink shirt.

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

(I just wrote a huge post and hit the wrong button and lost everything so I'm trying to re-create it but will probably make it a few smaller posts to save me agony.)
Friday we did everything wrong! We slept in. Took our time getting ready. Ate a hot breakfast in the room. And headed over DHS. Our double stroller had a flat tire that made it unusable (this had happened before and Tom reassured me that it would be fine for the trip :mad: ). We parked the car and entered the park. We stopped at stroller rental and got a stroller for the day (they stored our broken one for us). Tom sent me to TSM to grab FPs while he headed to the JTA sign-up area. It was probably about 10am.
The FP return time for TSM was around 6-7pm. The return time for JTA was around 4:30. We weren't planning to still be at DHS for either. Oh well! We waited it quite a long line for Star Tours and then headed to the Honey I Shrunk the Kids playground. This was also the hottest day of the week!

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d724b3127ccefe5f91229c9f00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d724b3127ccefe5e43ebbc7300000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d724b3127ccefe5ef2c07da800000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

Tom and I had this brilliant plan of taking turns riding RNR or ToT while the other one stayed in the playground. He ran over to RNR - only to discover it was broken. And the line for ToT was prohibitively long.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe64bc61352a00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe6515c0d43b00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe6430a335ae00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d730b3127ccefe43ca0637fa00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

We grabbed a quick-serve lunch at whatever that counter service place is right next to the playground. And decided to cut our losses by heading back to the pool! We returned our rental stroller, retrieved our broken one, and herded 3 crabby and overheated children back to the car.

LESSON: Do not bother going to DHS if you miss the early morning!!!

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

After leaving DHS we changed into bathing suits and headed to the pool. The kids had a blast and even participated in some of the group activities. I know there was a water balloon toss that they enjoyed. Then it was time for showers/baths and getting ready for dinner in Epcot.
We took the monorail to Epcot, picked up a rental stroller (which lead to multiple fights over who got to ride in the rental), and headed to Innoventions.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d724b3127ccefe5e8bedbc1100000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

Garden Grill is a favorite in our family and this trip proved why!

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d724b3127ccefe5f99951d1c00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d724b3127ccefe5e1d60bcd700000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d724b3127ccefe5e82e1fc8100000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

Then Dale noticed that Nathaniel was playing a baseball game instead of paying attention to the characters...

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d724b3127ccefe5ea9133dce00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

Dale got to work...

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d724b3127ccefe5ea687fcf500000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

And hit a long fly ball to deep center field! (My kids will tell you that Dale flew out. Dale, however, believed that he hit a home run!)

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d724b3127ccefe5ec5693d8200000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d724b3127ccefe5f67979c5100000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
He even signed our autograph book as Dale, home run champ!

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d724b3127ccefe5fdfd01d7a00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d724b3127ccefe5fbfc41d5e00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

Anyway we had a blast! I think Dale spent at least 10 minutes at our table and we had good character time with the other 3.
We headed back to the front of the park.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe65905d154c00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d705b3127ccefe652c0a947500000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

And hopped on the monorail home.

Amanda

[ddluvsdisney]

How do those FPs for TSM go so fast!!??? What a bummer! I love that ride.
We love Garden Grill too! We ate there for the first time in August, and we have an ADR for April- can't wait!
The pool solves everything :laughing:

[natebenma]

Woah! Everyone looks HOT at HS!!!

Sounds like you made a wise choice to get out of there!

Glad to hear the afternoon/evening was better. I forget about the Garden Grill. We have never eaten there. But Chip and Dale are my favorite characters, so I know I would love it.

Really cute pictures with the baseball stance and everyone smiling.

[DrMomof3]

How do those FPs for TSM go so fast!!??? What a bummer! I love that ride.
We love Garden Grill too! We ate there for the first time in August, and we have an ADR for April- can't wait!
The pool solves everything :laughing:

This is one of the problems that Next Gen will hopefully fix. It really stinks that the only way to ride TSM is to arrive at rope drop OR stand in line forever.
Garden Grill is so much fun!

Woah! Everyone looks HOT at HS!!!

Sounds like you made a wise choice to get out of there!

Glad to hear the afternoon/evening was better. I forget about the Garden Grill. We have never eaten there. But Chip and Dale are my favorite characters, so I know I would love it.

Really cute pictures with the baseball stance and everyone smiling.

It was really hot! And frustrating.
We love Garden Grill. The food is fine. I like it but I don't know that I'd go there JUST for the food. The characters are consistently awesome!

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

We weren't in a hurry when we woke up Saturday morning. We knew we were checking out but our flight wasn't until evening. Our plan was to pack things up, take our bags to get checked-in for the flight, and then wander over to MK. Or so we thought. As we were getting out of bed and starting the packing process, Jessica started to vomit. :scared1: Remember the foreshadowing that Zachary wasn't the only sick child on the trip??? ;) I got her clothes into the washer/dryer right away and we agreed that Tom would hang out with her after we got rid of our bags and I would take the boys to MK. Tom went with the bell services person to the check-in desk and I got our carry-on stuff organized. Once he got back, the boys and I walked over to MK.
It's really become clear to me that the only way to do the Disney parks efficiently, is to get there early! That having been said it wasn't a bad day in MK. We went left instead of our usual right. The boys were curious about Swiss Family Treehouse so we did that. NEVER AGAIN! I really don't see the point. It was tons of stairs (not good for Zachary) and the kids were completely bored. At least I can say we did it! :rotfl:
We shopped a bit in Adventureland. The boys both wanted hats. We stopped and rode Pirates before heading to Splash Mountain. Zachary had never ridden Splash before! I felt a little guilty because Splash is one of Jessica's favorite rides. I was also worried because I had all sorts of electronic devices in my purse (ipad, 2 phones, camera, etc.) and had no plastic bag. Spalsh was enjoyable as always and nothing got wet. Zachary seemed to like it!
Tom called to let me know that Jessica had vomited again but they were ok. :rolleyes: I wasn't sure if I was supposed to rush back to the hotel to help or if he was just sharing his misery.
The boys were both getting a little hot and tired so I bought them ice pops.
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c9ab1a4f100000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c68b325ba00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c9d86e45d00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d972a458800000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5c4448a46700000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d725b3127ccefe5d2a8784d300000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
We stopped in the Emporium and bought Tom a polo shirt and Jessica a pirate shirt. Before saying our good-byes to MK.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1d724b3127ccefe5fe01cdc0100000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

We grabbed lunch at the Wave. The food was pretty good. I had a tomato soup with a grilled cheese sandwich that tasted great! Then we packed up the car and headed back to MCO. Thankfully there was no vomiting in the car (although Nathaniel and Jessica did manage to fight the whole way!). Our flight was fairly uneventful and our nanny was waiting for us at the airport.
We were happy to see that our house suffered no damage in the storm. Jessica did vomit one more time on Sunday but was recovered enough to go to her 1st day of Kindergarten on Monday. Nathaniel never seemed to get it. :confused3
I think we learned several lessons from the trip:
1. Fewer ADRs until we see how things are going.
2. Having a car is both a blessing and a curse. There are definitely some benefits but I'm not sure it's worth the cost.
3. Dividing up the family may make for happier children.

That's pretty much it. I think I'm going to continue this TR with our brief trip in October rather than starting a new thread.

Amanda

[ddluvsdisney]

Too bad Jessica got sick:sad1:- At least it was the last day:).
And the boys got to enjoy MK one last time.
Getting to the parks early is the best!! Last year was the first year we missed RD a couple of times b/c of our teenage son. Those boys do like to sleep! I swear the kid NEVER slept past 7am until 7th grade :laughing:
Looking forward to reading about your other trips (I heard you have quite a few, I'm jealous!) Thanks for sharing.

Deb :)

[DrMomof3]

Too bad Jessica got sick:sad1:- At least it was the last day:).
And the boys got to enjoy MK one last time.
Getting to the parks early is the best!! Last year was the first year we missed RD a couple of times b/c of our teenage son. Those boys do like to sleep! I swear the kid NEVER slept past 7am until 7th grade :laughing:
Looking forward to reading about your other trips (I heard you have quite a few, I'm jealous!) Thanks for sharing.

Deb :)

I've been very lucky with my trips! :love:
I could spend a day in MK and never go on a ride. I just love being there. I had the "whatever the boys want" attitude on the last day so they enjoyed ice pops in the morning. I'm usually strict about that stuff at home!

Amanda

[ddluvsdisney]

Amanda- I forgot to say- glad you didn't have any damage to your house when you got home. When we got home after hurricane Irene, a big branch fell on our jungle gym. ( Didn't really matter- we were going to take it down this year anyway.):thumbsup2

[natebenma]

Poor Jessica! Poor mom & dad! Like Deb said, it's good she made it through most of the trip feeling ok. I was worried when you commented that there would be more sickness.

I look forward to reading about your upcoming travels!

[DrMomof3]

Amanda- I forgot to say- glad you didn't have any damage to your house when you got home. When we got home after hurricane Irene, a big branch fell on our jungle gym. ( Didn't really matter- we were going to take it down this year anyway.):thumbsup2

At least things weren't worse for you!
My parents - on Long Island - lost power for a few days but no damage.

Poor Jessica! Poor mom & dad! Like Deb said, it's good she made it through most of the trip feeling ok. I was worried when you commented that there would be more sickness.

I look forward to reading about your upcoming travels!

She wasn't too bad. I think she vomited 2x on Saturday and once on Sunday at home. She was sad to miss Splash Mountain!
I'm excited to write about my abbreviated birthday trip and then Nathaniel and my trip to DISapalooza. And then the marathon.... Although I did a detailed race report on my running blog....

Amanda

[luvpoohandcompany]

Hi I've just realised that I dont think I've posted here but I've loved reading your report:)
Sorry you had sick kids on your trip but I'm glad they made it home ok!
Love your attitude to your last MK day-like you I could simply walk there all day without doing any rides (also dont get the treehouse:confused3)

Looking forward to reading all about your upcoming travels:thumbsup2

[DrMomof3]

Hi I've just realised that I dont think I've posted here but I've loved reading your report:)
Sorry you had sick kids on your trip but I'm glad they made it home ok!
Love your attitude to your last MK day-like you I could simply walk there all day without doing any rides (also dont get the treehouse:confused3)

Looking forward to reading all about your upcoming travels:thumbsup2

Thank you SO much! I wish I had been able to write this closer to the time of our trip but, well, life happened! :thumbsup2

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

This next part of my trip report is going to be about my 40th birthday trip. I turned 40 in October. I've been thinking about taking a trip with Tom for my 40th birthday for at least a year. For Tom's 40th I planned a surprise trip to Las Vegas for the 2 of us. It was amazing! We stayed at the Bellagio and ate incredible meals and had a wonderful time. For my 40th birthday I wanted something more relaxing. So I booked us on the Disney Dream for a 4 night cruise. My 40th birthday fantasy was to spend hours sitting on a quiet verandah enjoying the views of the water while sipping either coffee or a cocktail (depending on the time of day) and reading a good book. Sounds good, right?
We booked our cruise and bought our plane tickets. We were flying down late on Saturday for a Sunday departure. We planned to stay at the airport Hyatt and then take Disney cruise transfer to the Port in the morning. We were checked in, shore excursions picked, Palo dinner reserved, ready to go.

And then LIFE happened.

To protect Nathaniel I won't post all of his medical details but he was hospitalized for 2 weeks in late September into early October. Although he was home and stable, his doctor vetoed our trip a few days before we were scheduled to depart. Feel free to judge me as a bad mom but I was devastated! I do A LOT for my family and have an extremely stressful job (which was particularly stressful last summer and fall and is slowly getting better). I ask so little for myself and this was my special birthday trip. To make matters worse it was one of the few trips we've booked WITHOUT trip insurance. :sad1:
Just to add to our overall stress, this was also the week that our beloved Black Lab was diagnosed with a tumor. We knew she'd need surgery to remove the tumor and we didn't know if it was cancer or benign.
While I totally understood that being in the middle of the Caribbean with no cell phone access was out of the question, I figured we might be able to salvage a trip to Disney World for Food & Wine. I mean we had plan tickets and Annual Passes, right? :thumbsup2 My parents were willing to take Nathaniel for a few days and my nanny could keep the younger 2.
I called my travel agent who got us a good rate at the Swan and I moved our return flight from Thursday evening to Monday evening. The plan was to fly to MCO on Saturday night, spend 2 days enjoying Food & Wine Festival, and then fly home late Monday night and face reality again.
Something is better than nothing, no? :confused3

Amanda

[ddluvsdisney]

OMG poor Nathaniel, and you!!
We all do way to much for our families and deserve a break once and a while. Our yellow lab had a tumor too and passed away 3 yrs. ago right before our Disney trip.

[DrMomof3]

OMG poor Nathaniel, and you!!
We all do way to much for our families and deserve a break once and a while. Our yellow lab had a tumor too and passed away 3 yrs. ago right before our Disney trip.

I'm sorry about your dog! Buffy is doing pretty well but we know we likely have limited time with her.

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

As any good Disney geek knows, pre-planning is a big part of most Disney trips. it's hard to pre-plan with 2 days notice! :lmao: I started thinking about what we could do on this short trip and quickly came up with 2 good ideas (beside F&W, of course!): Keys to the Kingdom tour and MNSSHP. I signed us up for both!
Friday night before our trip was my 40th. My parents joined us at a local Hibachi place for dinner. Nathaniel went home with them which was scary for me. Saturday morning we had the regular activities.
I had already purchased a pirate wench Halloween costume for myself. On Saturday between Hebrew School and ballet, Jessica and I went shopping for Tom's costume. We found a Captain Jack Sparrow costume in XL Tall that would be perfect! Then during ballet I ran to a local luggage store and found a nice rolling carry-on suitcase (no need to check bags when 2 adults travel for 2 nights!).
The timing was going to be tight since Tom was performing a bris in Long Island. (My husband is a mohel which is a person who does religious circumcisions on Jewish babies.One of his colleagues had a new baby and Tom had promised to do the ceremony which has to be done on day 8 of life.) Once he got home and packed, we were off to JFK.
JFK is perhaps my least favorite of the NYC airports. The traffic is unpredictable and it can take a while to get there. Tom drove and we parked in an off-site lot with free shuttle service. Quick and easy! It's amazing how easy security is when you don't have children! :lmao: We were soon in the JetBlue terminal.
My last time in this terminal was in August with a vomit-covered child and a child with a broken carry-on. Very different experience this time around!
Tom and I went to the bar/restaurant near our gate. We grabbed some dinner and a beer and enjoyed some adult time. Before long we were boarded and ready to go. Our flight was easy and we were met a MCO by our FL Tours driver. We checked into the Swan, dropped our stuff off, changed out of travel clothes and ran down to Il Mulino to see if we could get some food and a drink. As luck would have it, the kitchen was open for 15 more minutes! We ordered some appetizers and drinks and hung out at the bar.
The food was good. Our bartender was lovely, although there was a slightly creepy Canadian guy trying to hit on me. Weird. :confused3. After we finished, we headed upstairs and went to bed.

Amanda

[natebenma]

Can't wait to read more! And seeing photos of you and Tom in costume!

Sounds like a really good start (other than worrying about Nathaniel and having to cancel your cruise, of course)

I can't tell you how many times my husband and I looked at each other during our past few familly Disney trips and said "This would be really fun without the kids!"

MNSSHP is definitely on my Disney bucket list, hopefully sooner rather than later! I know I would love Keys to the Kingdom too.

[DrMomof3]

Can't wait to read more! And seeing photos of you and Tom in costume!

Sounds like a really good start (other than worrying about Nathaniel and having to cancel your cruise, of course)

I can't tell you how many times my husband and I looked at each other during our past few familly Disney trips and said "This would be really fun without the kids!"

MNSSHP is definitely on my Disney bucket list, hopefully sooner rather than later! I know I would love Keys to the Kingdom too.

Too funny! Tom said to me at the end of the trip, "Disney is really fun without children!"
I really loved MNSSHP. I listen to several Disney podcasts and have heard complaints about the parties getting worse over time. As 1st timers we didn't feel this at all!

Amanda

[ddluvsdisney]

We went to Disney "kid free" for a week in 2008 for our anniversary. It was the best!!!! Who said Disney is just for kids??:confused3 LOL
My 40th was in Sept. We celebrated it while in Disney in August.
Can't wait to hear about Keys to the Kingdom. We'll like to do that someday.

[DrMomof3]

We went to Disney "kid free" for a week in 2008 for our anniversary. It was the best!!!! Who said Disney is just for kids??:confused3 LOL
My 40th was in Sept. We celebrated it while in Disney in August.
Can't wait to hear about Keys to the Kingdom. We'll like to do that someday.

Disney is completely different kid free and awesome!

Amanda

[luvpoohandcompany]

Hi Amanda-glad things have settled a wee bit for you and hope Nathaniel is doing ok:)
I'd have been gutted too if I'd had to cancel my trip so I totally get the need for a break sans kids:rotfl2:
I would definitely have made my getaway even if it was only for a few days so I'm glad you did too;)

[DrMomof3]

Hi Amanda-glad things have settled a wee bit for you and hope Nathaniel is doing ok:)
I'd have been gutted too if I'd had to cancel my trip so I totally get the need for a break sans kids:rotfl2:
I would definitely have made my getaway even if it was only for a few days so I'm glad you did too;)

Thank you for the support! Obviously my kids come 1st but it was a really bad time for the adults, too ;)

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

I started an update, clicked the wrong button, and lost the whole post! Yikes!!!

We woke up earlier than I would have expected given that we were traveling without the children. Then again, I wake up at 5:30am most mornings so maybe it isn't that surprising! After showering and dressing we headed downstairs to find some coffee. One nice thing about S/D is that there is actually GOOD coffee to be had! :thumbsup2
We decided to take a nice stroll over to DHS. I think this pathway is really pretty (although having taken the same path in the opposite direction during the marathon, it has a whole new meaning for me now! :scared1: ).

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1cf06b3127ccefee26f41bbef00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
We did not take a lot of pictures on this trip and many of the ones we took were taken with my iPhone so I apologize to the photo snobs for the lack of good pics!

We reached DHS and to our great surprise it was still a few minutes before Rope Drop! :love: We really weren't even trying to make RD. Amazing how efficient 2 adults can be. :rolleyes1 After RD we headed off to one of the E ticket rides that I'd never be on before - RnR!!! We'd made a valiant effort in August but the ride was broken that day. (As a side note I believe that both Nathaniel and Jessica will be tall enough to ride in August.)
We hopped right in line and we soon riding upside down. I will confess that the initial acceleration was definitely thrilling! :scared1: After RnR we headed over to ToT. My children will NOT ride this ride. This was only my 2nd time on it (although I have been on the one in California once). I loved it!!!
At this point we stopped at Starring Rolls for some breakfast.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1cf06b3127ccefee2fcc77a8800000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

And then started heading over to Star Tours.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1cf06b3127ccefee39201db0500000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

I love the new Star Tours!!! We decided to head back to RnR to see if we could get another ride. Someone offered to take our picture:

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1cf06b3127ccefee27b3fbb9b00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

When we reached RnR, a nice man asked us if we wanted to FPs. The return time was right then so we were thrilled! A little pixie dust....

We stopped at Guest Services so I could have a Birthday Button before hopping on a Friendship Boat over to Epcot for F&W. (Our lunch plan was to eat and drink our way around the World!)

Amanda

[ddluvsdisney]

That sounded like a fantastic morning!!
RnR is one of my favorite rides even though I get terribly anxious waiting in line b/c I know how fast it starts. Sometimes knowing too much isn't very good.
Isn't it so easy to get ready when you only need to worry about yourself!!??:thumbsup2
Celebrating B-days in Disney are so much FUN!!
:woohoo: for FPs!
F&W must be so fun-yet another thing on my bucket list

Deb :)

[natebenma]

What a super morning! Nice walk over to HS. Riding rides YOU want to ride! No tantrums :) Friendly strangers taking your picture and giving you Fast Passes! Love it!

Can't wait to try to the new Star Tours in June with the teens! I see a lot of ToT and RnR in my near future, too.

[DrMomof3]

That sounded like a fantastic morning!!
RnR is one of my favorite rides even though I get terribly anxious waiting in line b/c I know how fast it starts. Sometimes knowing too much isn't very good.
Isn't it so easy to get ready when you only need to worry about yourself!!??:thumbsup2
Celebrating B-days in Disney are so much FUN!!
:woohoo: for FPs!
F&W must be so fun-yet another thing on my bucket list

Deb :)

I actually enjoyed RnR more the 2nd time because I was prepared for the fast start! :hippie:
Tom and I were up and out. And we weren't even trying to get anywhere quickly. :lmao:

What a super morning! Nice walk over to HS. Riding rides YOU want to ride! No tantrums :) Friendly strangers taking your picture and giving you Fast Passes! Love it!

Can't wait to try to the new Star Tours in June with the teens! I see a lot of ToT and RnR in my near future, too.

It was lovely! Everything was magical.
I love the new Star Tours. I liked the old one but it's even better now!

Amanda

[WDW2012]

I'm sorry you had to cancel the family vacation but glad to see you got to escape for a weekend. DH and I did a kid free trip for our ten year anniversary and we had a great time. We also did the Keys to the Kingdom Tour which was something we would obviously not be able to do with kids. Sadly we went too early for F&W. Maybe next time.

P.S. I'm in Westchester too! Our favorite local Hibachi is Edo's. Yum. My kids love it!

[luvpoohandcompany]

What a lovely chilled start to the day;)Your photo brought me back to our last holiday-I loved going for a wee dander along that path:)
I've never done RnR but hoping to persuade 1 of the chickens I live with to have a go this summer:lmao:
I would love to go to food and wine (who wouldnt:rolleyes1) but need to win lottery first:rotfl2:

[DrMomof3]

I'm sorry you had to cancel the family vacation but glad to see you got to escape for a weekend. DH and I did a kid free trip for our ten year anniversary and we had a great time. We also did the Keys to the Kingdom Tour which was something we would obviously not be able to do with kids. Sadly we went too early for F&W. Maybe next time.

P.S. I'm in Westchester too! Our favorite local Hibachi is Edo's. Yum. My kids love it!

Is Edo's the one in Ardsley? We've been going to the new one - Banzai - which is on Central Avenue in Hartsdale. It's SO close to us that it's hard to convince ourselves to drive further away. :lmao:
That's exactly why we did Keys to the Kingdom on this trip!

What a lovely chilled start to the day;)Your photo brought me back to our last holiday-I loved going for a wee dander along that path:)
I've never done RnR but hoping to persuade 1 of the chickens I live with to have a go this summer:lmao:
I would love to go to food and wine (who wouldnt:rolleyes1) but need to win lottery first:rotfl2:

I was amazed by how much $$$ we spent at F&W! I love the path to DHS. So quiet and peaceful.

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

One funny moment. We were on the Friendship Boat to Epcot and were surrounded by retirees. Not exactly what you expect at Disney! :rotfl: The boat driver was announcing the Eat to the Beat concert series and said that Howard Jones was going to be playing that day. All of the grandparents on board were wondering who the heck Howard Jones was! I, of course, having come of age in the 80's knew exactly who he was. :hippie: We were trying to explain who he is - without much luck. (His biggest hit was probably "What is love?")

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1cf06b3127ccefee347d39b2500000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

So we had to take this picture!

Upon arriving at Epcot we went straight to that little shop near the International Gateway and bought a gift card on a bracelet for the F&W festival. We made a right and started our counter-clockwise tour by going to France. We started things right by getting delicious frozen Cosmopolitans (yum!) and some escargots. Tom had some coq au vin. YUM! France definitely had one of my favorite booths.
I found the whole F&W experience a little overwhelming. Maybe we should have read up on everything before starting our journey. We looked at each booth and ended up skipping many. I tried some lobster in America which was quite disappointing. We had delicious cheese in a "cheese booth" over near Germany.
The lamb chop from Australia was to-die-for and the nice young man from the Bronx gave me a piece of chocolate cake for free because it was my birthday (I also work in the Bronx so we talked about it - I'm sure that helped!). The fisherman's pie in Ireland was probably my favorite. Like Shepard's pie but with lobster and scallops. Yum!
We also tried some champagne at a special champagne booth. Also yum! I think we put about $100 on the gift card and it was mostly gone by the time we made one loop.
The temperatures were getting warm and we were full of food (and drink) and so we decided to take a little siesta. Tom was tired and wanted to take the Friendship Boat back to the Swan. I wanted to walk over to Beach Club to see if I could find my favorite Cast Member who works on Sundays! :love:
Teena was VERY surprised to see me because I wasn't supposed to be at Disney. Anyone who gets a chance to see her at BC - GO! She's awesome. She works as a greeter in the lobby on Sundays and Mondays. Teena and I probably spent an hour catching up. No kids to distract me. No place I had to be. Lovely!
I finally headed back to the hotel, put on a bathing suit, and headed down to the quiet pool where there was a hammock with my name on it! I took a nap in the sun. When I'd had enough, I grabbed some ice coffee and went back to the room to get ready for MNSSHP. We had asked some CMs at the IG of Epcot if we could walk through Epcot in costume to get to MNSSHP and they said yes....

Amanda

[ddluvsdisney]

Sounds like the perfect kid free day!
F&W does sound a little overwhelming. I love food!:thumbsup2 but it does sound like a LOT of it.
Did you not tell Teena so you could surprise her? I met her in 2010.:)
I'm sure I know who Howard Jones is too but I just can't picture him right now.

[luvpoohandcompany]

Ooooh I remember Howard Jones-my friend and I when to one of his concerts here when we were both student nurses:) Concerts didnt happen here very often as most musicians wouldnt play here in the 80's. It was a great night but we left early because we were scared to travel back to the hospital (we lived in) too late at night as we had to cross some rough parts of town:scared1:
Loved his spikey hair-it was so tall:rotfl:

[DrMomof3]

Sounds like the perfect kid free day!
F&W does sound a little overwhelming. I love food!:thumbsup2 but it does sound like a LOT of it.
Did you not tell Teena so you could surprise her? I met her in 2010.:)
I'm sure I know who Howard Jones is too but I just can't picture him right now.

I didn't really know if I'd get to see Teena so it was a complete surprise. She and I have talked on the phone several times when she was having medical issues and needed support and advice. I've also met her in person a few previous trips!

Ooooh I remember Howard Jones-my friend and I when to one of his concerts here when we were both student nurses:) Concerts didnt happen here very often as most musicians wouldnt play here in the 80's. It was a great night but we left early because we were scared to travel back to the hospital (we lived in) too late at night as we had to cross some rough parts of town:scared1:
Loved his spikey hair-it was so tall:rotfl:

Too funny about Howard Jones! I was a fan. I had his cassette - remember cassettes???? - and might have even seen him in concert once.

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

I've always wanted to attend one of the Halloween Parties. We did the Christmas party back in 2009 and enjoyed it. But everyone says the Halloween Party is even better.
Tom and I changed into our costumes and hopped on the Friendship Boat over to Epcot. We figured we'd get a drink or 2 - MK is dry afterall! - and maybe some food before taking the monorail over to MK. We did get some funny looks but mostly it was fine. The monorail was filled with people in costume so it was a bit less awkward.
We rode Splash Mountain, stopped at the Trick or Treat stop at the exit, and then headed to Big Thunder. AWESOME! We rode Haunted Mansion (of course - Halloween!) and headed to Tomorrowland. Some of the Trick or Treat spots were jam-packed (Liberty Square was ridiculous) and others were fine (Tomorrowland near Carousel of Progress). We rode Buzz, Space Mountain, TTA. At this point we were hungry so we went to Cosmic Rays and got burgers. We sat outside within view of the castle.
These were taken with an iPhone...

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1cf06b3127ccefee3c8275a3e00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1cf06b3127ccefee221393a8000000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

We were near the Noodle Station for the fireworks but it ended up being an ok spot.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1cf06b3127ccefee3ad2a9ba900000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1cf06b3127ccefee324015a6e00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1cf06b3127ccefee297edbb3f00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1cf06b3127ccefee3894b1aea00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1cf06b3127ccefee2fb6bbb8f00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1cf06b3127ccefee36b6e1abe00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

We headed over near the train station, in front of Guest Services for the parade. We figured we'd be near the exit so we could make a clean escape. I'm not a huge parade person but this was AWESOME! While we were waiting for the parade, some Disney geeks were on twitter and I got to meet them! JL Knopp of the Disney Driven Life with me:

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1cf06b3127ccefee2e5e93a3200000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1cf06b3127ccefee2773a3aa800000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
A very blurry Headless Horseman!

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1cf06b3127ccefee257a03a2200000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
My parade pictures aren't great....

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1cf06b3127ccefee237bbbb3900000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

Blackbeard kissed my hand and wished me a Happy Birthday! Captain Jack yelled birthday wishes down from his float. :love:

The parade was awesome! I couldn't get good pictures so I just enjoyed it. Loved the grave diggers! Loved the music. I had Boo to You stuck in my head for weeks and weeks!

As soon as the parade ended, we raced out. We were soon on a bus back to the Swan!

Amanda

[natebenma]

Like, you guys are going to have to TOTALLY take away my leg warmers and shoulder pads and revoke my Duran Duran fan club card! I didn't know who Howard Jones was! :scared1: Had to google him and the What is love song and I guess I have heard it before, but I'm not really familiar with this 80's gem.

Food and Wine sounds like a lot of fun, but oh my, $100 in an afternoon? Yikes!

Loved reading about your visit with Teena, and I agree with everything you said, Amanda. If you get a chance to talk to her, do it!!! The BC is going to be switching her hours to Saturdays and Sundays very soon.

I have never been to MNSSHP, probably the thing I want to do most at Disney. My birthday is on Halloween, so this has always been a very special holiday for me. I love seeing everyone's creative costumes.

I love your pictures of the castle and it looks to me like it was a pretty decent place to see the fireworks.

[DrMomof3]

Like, you guys are going to have to TOTALLY take away my leg warmers and shoulder pads and revoke my Duran Duran fan club card! I didn't know who Howard Jones was! :scared1: Had to google him and the What is love song and I guess I have heard it before, but I'm not really familiar with this 80's gem.

Food and Wine sounds like a lot of fun, but oh my, $100 in an afternoon? Yikes!

Loved reading about your visit with Teena, and I agree with everything you said, Amanda. If you get a chance to talk to her, do it!!! The BC is going to be switching her hours to Saturdays and Sundays very soon.

I have never been to MNSSHP, probably the thing I want to do most at Disney. My birthday is on Halloween, so this has always been a very special holiday for me. I love seeing everyone's creative costumes.

I love your pictures of the castle and it looks to me like it was a pretty decent place to see the fireworks.

I think I was just at the right age for all that 80's stuff. I graduated high school in 1989 so it really does represent my coming-of-age...
Food & Wine was pricier than I expected. I think we could have planned a bit better but this was a last minute trip.
Teena is awesome. She had such a difficult summer and I had such a bad autumn so we were able to commiserate.
I really think you'd love MNSSHP. It's right up your alley! It was definitely on my Disney bucket list and I'm hoping to go again this year when I run ToT.
It was a decent viewing spot. We just lucked out! I really enjoyed Hallo-Wishes and the Boo to You parade!!! We don't usually make an effort for fireworks or parades but these were both awesome.

Amanda

[Twoboysnmygirl]

I love Howard Jones! Does that make me old? :p I'm trying to figure out how much money we need for F&W, Rey wants to eat around the world, and I was thinking 100$ sounded about right. I LOVE LOVE LOVE MNSSHP!!! The parade is my favorite and I don't usually like parades that much! :thumbsup2

[luvpoohandcompany]

Like, you guys are going to have to TOTALLY take away my leg warmers and shoulder pads and revoke my Duran Duran fan club card! I didn't know who Howard Jones was! :scared1: Had to google him and the What is love song and I guess I have heard it before, but I'm not really familiar with this 80's gem.
:rotfl2::rotfl2:Loves my dove grey legwarmers-matched my jacket with shoulder pads sooo big a good gust of wind would have lifted me off my feet:rotfl2::rotfl2:

Food and Wine sounds like a lot of fun, but oh my, $100 in an afternoon? Yikes!
:scared1:
Loved reading about your visit with Teena, and I agree with everything you said, Amanda. If you get a chance to talk to her, do it!!! The BC is going to be switching her hours to Saturdays and Sundays very soon.

I almost talked to Teena last year but by the time I'd plucked up my courage she was busy ;)

I have never been to MNSSHP, probably the thing I want to do most at Disney. My birthday is on Halloween, so this has always been a very special holiday for me. I love seeing everyone's creative costumes.

I love your pictures of the castle and it looks to me like it was a pretty decent place to see the fireworks.
Love your costumes-Tom was a good sport for dressing up. I'd love to visit at halloween but doubt I'd be able to convince my husband to dress up:)

[DrMomof3]

I love Howard Jones! Does that make me old? :p I'm trying to figure out how much money we need for F&W, Rey wants to eat around the world, and I was thinking 100$ sounded about right. I LOVE LOVE LOVE MNSSHP!!! The parade is my favorite and I don't usually like parades that much! :thumbsup2

I'm older than you are so you aren't old in my trip report. :rotfl2:
$100 would be work. Especially since you're a vegetarian and the meat dishes tend to be more expensive! ;)

Love your costumes-Tom was a good sport for dressing up. I'd love to visit at halloween but doubt I'd be able to convince my husband to dress up:)

Tom wasn't so sure about the costume as it was a bit tighter and shorter than he wanted. But we definitely got good reactions for being dressed up and I'm 99% sure we were given tons more candy because of it. And I wouldn't have gotten so much attention during the parade without a costume!.
Also, you MUST visit Teena at some point in time! She's awesome!

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

Despite getting home at midnight on Sunday night after the Halloween Party, we were up early on Monday to check-out of the hotel and get over to MK for our Keys to the Kingdom Tour. Tom and I were both super-psyched for this tour at it is something we've talked about before. For all Tom pretends that I'm the Disney addict, he really is one too!
We packed up our stuff and dropped our bags with bell services and went to wait for a bus. MK was scheduled to open at 9am but our tour was earlier and we were supposed to get there 15 minutes before. We left plenty of time! We were only at the bus stop for a few minutes before a bus pulled up. The sign didn't say where it was going so we asked the bus driver. She said, "Where are you going?" We said, "Magic Kingdom." She said, "Hop on!" We picked up one other couple at the Dolphin before heading straight for the MK. Talk about luck!!!
We went to the gate for people with dining reservations and tours. This was the first time we'd ever been in MK before Rope Drop. SO COOL!!!! We went to the check in area, got our name tags, headsets, and Key pins. We were offered coffee and bottled water. The tour person then told us that we could wander around Main Street and take pictures of the empty Main Street until the tour. We really didn't take any pictures but used the opportunity to window shop and read the names in the window. We tried to find the names of Imagineers that we had heard about.
While we were meandering, a well-dressed 30-something man came over to talk to us. (He had a name tag but I don't remember his name.) He asked if we were lost. We explained that we were waiting for our Tour and were just enjoying the atmosphere on Main Street. We chatted for a while and he asked if we would still be at MK for the 3pm parade. We told him maybe - we didn't have definite plans after the tour. He offered us VIP seats for the parade and said he'd put our name on the list. :thumbsup2
We went back to the Tour area and met our Tour Guide. I don't want to go into too much detail on the tour because I really think it's something everyone should do. I will only say it was a great experience. We learned some of the secrets and some of the details. We rode Pirates and Haunted Mansion. We were served lunch at Columbia Harbor House. And we saw the Utilidors. All in all it was a very, very cool experience. The tour ended in the early afternoon. We grabbed a Dole Whip and then decided to head to Liberty Square for the VIP seats.
The CMs at Liberty Square did not have our names but we told them the name of the man who had talked to us in the morning. They were quite impressed because apparently he's a manager at MK (and their boss!). They talked to him and we got the ok. It was great to sit on benches in a roped off area in the middle of everything!!!! Our friend from the morning even came over to us before the parade to make sure we'd had a good day. I love Disney World!!!
I was still wearing my birthday button and almost every single participant in the parade wished me Happy Birthday. I had my hand kissed multiple times and must have been grinning like a kid on Christmas! It was really fun. (I don't think we took any pictures on Monday!!!!!)
After the parade was over we took the monorail back to Epcot. We stopped to enjoy a few favorites from Food & Wine - Fisherman's pie, Frozen Cosmo, etc. - before heading back to the Swan for our car ride back to MCO. A great trip!

Amanda

[Jake & Crew]

What a fun trip for two! We might just have to do that sometime.

I did the Keys tour in 2007 with my dad, sister and bil on a big family trip and it was fabulous! Will definitely do it again when the girls are old enough.

Thank you for sharing your trips with us, I enjoy your reports:)

[DrMomof3]

What a fun trip for two! We might just have to do that sometime.

I did the Keys tour in 2007 with my dad, sister and bil on a big family trip and it was fabulous! Will definitely do it again when the girls are old enough.

Thank you for sharing your trips with us, I enjoy your reports:)

Thank you so much!!! I feel like I'm so behind on my trip reporting but I'm trying to catch up.

I'm going to do a quick report of my son's and my trip to DISapalooza in December, 2011 and then I'll probably be done with this trip report. And I can start my Marathon Weekend report!!!

Amanda

[kadesha]

Just started, and finished, your trip report today! I enjoyed it very much. You handled all of the difficulties of the first trip very well. I would have probably just sat in the room! lol! I also enjoyed the trip report without the kids. I have always wanted to go on the Keys to the Kingdom tour. It's definitely on my "Disney bucket list." :)

[natebenma]

What a fantastic day at MK!!!

I haven't done any tours at Disney, but Keys to the Kingdom is at the top of my wish list. I love stuff like that.

That is so cool that you had some time in MK before it opened and got VIP seats for the parade.

Mark and I travelled to Disney a few times before the kids were born, and often on family trips we will look at each other and exclaim "This would be a lot of fun with just the two of us!"

[DrMomof3]

Just started, and finished, your trip report today! I enjoyed it very much. You handled all of the difficulties of the first trip very well. I would have probably just sat in the room! lol! I also enjoyed the trip report without the kids. I have always wanted to go on the Keys to the Kingdom tour. It's definitely on my "Disney bucket list." :)

Thank you!!!
One advantage to being a surgeon is that you learn how to think through problems quickly and logically. It definitely has helped when traveling with kids! :thumbsup2
Keys to the Kingdom should be on every Disney bucket list!

What a fantastic day at MK!!!

I haven't done any tours at Disney, but Keys to the Kingdom is at the top of my wish list. I love stuff like that.

That is so cool that you had some time in MK before it opened and got VIP seats for the parade.

Mark and I travelled to Disney a few times before the kids were born, and often on family trips we will look at each other and exclaim "This would be a lot of fun with just the two of us!"

It really was magical. We kept saying to each other that this was obviously the trip we were supposed to have, instead of the cruise, because of all the magic.
And Tom ALWAYS says that Disney is more fun without the kids! :lmao:

Amanda

[luvpoohandcompany]

What a wonderful day! Sounds like a perfect way to end your trip:). Love the sound of the tour and VIP seating is just the icing on the cake:banana:
Great birthday:cool1:

[Kat in GA]

We LOVE the food and wine festival. And I have just booked a room for my husband and myself at the AoA for October - doing deluxe dining - and I think we can easily spend all our snack credits at the booths! I so agree with you that France (and the escargots this past year were their best yet - loved them in the brioche) and the lamb chop from Australia were the most delish (oh and that Fisherman's pie, too!). My girls wanted to eat their weight in those lamb chops - I think we spent quite a bit more than $100 in our tasting!

[DrMomof3]

What a wonderful day! Sounds like a perfect way to end your trip:). Love the sound of the tour and VIP seating is just the icing on the cake:banana:
Great birthday:cool1:

The whole trip was just perfectly magical! It's hard to fully explain. It felt like every time we turned around something else special happened!

We LOVE the food and wine festival. And I have just booked a room for my husband and myself at the AoA for October - doing deluxe dining - and I think we can easily spend all our snack credits at the booths! I so agree with you that France (and the escargots this past year were their best yet - loved them in the brioche) and the lamb chop from Australia were the most delish (oh and that Fisherman's pie, too!). My girls wanted to eat their weight in those lamb chops - I think we spent quite a bit more than $100 in our tasting!

can't wait to hear about AoA!
Spending snack credits is a great idea. You're going to be able to eat yourselves silly between F&W and deluxe dining!!! I'm a little jealous. :lmao:

Amanda

[blessedmom4]

I am late to the party (I started reading Friday, your name caught my eye :laughing:); however, I just had to say I agree your trip WAS magical! I LOVE trips like that!! Thanks for sharing it with us.

[DrMomof3]

I am late to the party (I started reading Friday, your name caught my eye :laughing:); however, I just had to say I agree your trip WAS magical! I LOVE trips like that!! Thanks for sharing it with us.

Thank you Judy! I believe in Pixie Dust and Disney Magic!

Amanda

[Shannon84]

How awesome that you got VIP seats for the parade...I have seen that little area roped off, that must have been such a cool experience!!

I am glad to hear you liked the tour so much, we have that booked for our honeymoon in September and we are really excited!! :goodvibes

[DrMomof3]

How awesome that you got VIP seats for the parade...I have seen that little area roped off, that must have been such a cool experience!!

I am glad to hear you liked the tour so much, we have that booked for our honeymoon in September and we are really excited!! :goodvibes

Hi Shannon! Did you see that I'm doing the Goofy in January? Want to join me??? :lmao:
You will LOVE the Keys to the Kingdom tour. I think it's about the right amount of time - long enough to be informative but not so long that you don't have some time to explore on your own afterwards.

Amanda

[Twoboysnmygirl]

The tour sounds GREAT! How much is it??? :confused3 Rey would love something like that, but I'm not sure we could fit it into our trip, how many hours is it?

[DrMomof3]

The tour sounds GREAT! How much is it??? :confused3 Rey would love something like that, but I'm not sure we could fit it into our trip, how many hours is it?

$74 and about 4.5 hours. It included lunch at Columbia Harbor House. We pre-ordered lunch and it was waiting for us upstairs at the restaurant in a roped-off area.
It was great!

Amanda

[Rochester Disney Fan]

Thanks for sharing your trip,I just started reading it last night so I didn't have to wait to hear it all.
My wife and I have twin boys ( nine this year) and we keep saying we're going to go once without them and do the Keys tour. Glad you were able to enjoy a weekend trip.

[DrMomof3]

Thanks for sharing your trip,I just started reading it last night so I didn't have to wait to hear it all.
My wife and I have twin boys ( nine this year) and we keep saying we're going to go once without them and do the Keys tour. Glad you were able to enjoy a weekend trip.

Thank you Jeff! And Welcome!!!
I love traveling to Disney with just my DH. It's a totally different but wonderful experience. I think Tom would say it's a better experience. :rotfl: I just think it's different.

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

I'm supposed to be working on a PowerPoint presentation right now but I'm taking a little break. This will be an introduction to my next section of this trip report. I'll save more of the trip report for when I have a little more time and can add the details.

I am a HUGE fan of Harry Potter. I started the series when there were only 3 books. From book 4 on to the end, I purchased each book the day it came out and read the book in the entirety on that very same day. I just love the stories. I've seen all of the movies (almost all in the theaters and almost all opening weekend).
I'm such a big fan that I actually got a ticket to the World Premiere of Harry Potter 7, Part 1. My brother is a big media executive in London and had 2 tickets. His very pregnant wife is not a Harry Potter fan and was thrilled that I would take her place so she didn't have to go. I actually flew to London and spent a wonderful 4 day weekend in order to attend the premiere. I walked down the red carpet and everything!!!!
I'm also (obviously) a huge Disney fan and have become very addicted to various Disney podcasts, including the podcast that is affiliated with the DISboards. When John (of podcast fame) announced that the December podcast event was going to be a private party at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, I flipped out. I really, really wanted to attend. I also knew that the event was taking place during a very bad weekend.
Problem #1: My wedding anniversary is December 9th. The event was on December 10th.
Problem #2: My senior partner at work has a timeshare in St. Maarten during the 2nd week of December and would almost definitely be away. Meaning that I would have to stay behind and cover the hospital.

I asked my DH if he wanted to attend the event but he had no interest. After much negotiating he agreed that we could go out to dinner on our anniversary and I could fly down on Saturday morning. Provided that I didn't have to be on call.
I talked to my senior partner. He was totally cool about me going. "Don't worry. We'll find someone to cover that weekend. Go. Have fun! What a great opportunity."
So I booked the event. I was able to get "free" airfare on JetBlue using miles. I booked one night at the Hard Rock Hotel. And purchased my ticket to the event.
And then, of course, LIFE happened. As my faithful readers may recall my eldest son spent a rocky 2 weeks in the hospital this fall. Which led to the cruise being cancelled and our wonderful weekend at Disney World. I was afraid that my son would do poorly with me away. I sent a frantic email to John (of Podcast fame) asking if I could purchase a ticket for my child. I wrote about his hospitalization and how I wanted to surprise him. John totally hooked me up! And then I tried to book a plane ticket on JetBlue. I ended up having to call so they could link our reservations together. Otherwise he would be flying as a solo minor. The woman at JetBlue was awesome and didn't charge me the fee for booking over the phone. She got us seats together on the plane and was lovely about it. His ticket cost quite a lot. :scared1: I also added him to my Hard Rock reservation and bought both of us 2 day tickets for Universal.
I then started my obsessive research. I downloaded a brand new Universal Podcast (in fact I was the first listener to ever have a question answered on their show!). I bought a book about Universal. I hounded the ever generous Dee for advice (Thank You Dee!!!). I haunted the Universal boards. All in secret because none of my children knew about the trip.
I will admit here that my hope was really for a solo trip. I wanted to meet some of my fellow DISers and have an opportunity to do whatever I wanted. This trip turned into something very different. It was still special but was definitely NOT about me. I will get that some day.

More to come...

Amanda

[natebenma]

Thanks for the shoutout! Glad I could be of some assistance. :goodvibes

I, too, am a huge HP fan. :wizard: I think I got into the series when the 2nd book was out. I read the 3rd book in the hospital when Ben was born. The thought occured to me that it would almost be worth it to have another baby so I could have some free uninterrupted reading time at the hospital.

Um, maybe not!

:dance3:

Our trip to Universal last summer was "Mom's trip". Selfish me. All the guys did was complain about how we weren't going to Disney. But they all loved the trip.

Who knows best?

I can't wait to hear about your trip and see the pictures!

[DrMomof3]

Thanks for the shoutout! Glad I could be of some assistance. :goodvibes

I, too, am a huge HP fan. :wizard: I think I got into the series when the 2nd book was out. I read the 3rd book in the hospital when Ben was born. The thought occured to me that it would almost be worth it to have another baby so I could have some free uninterrupted reading time at the hospital.

Um, maybe not!

:dance3:

Our trip to Universal last summer was "Mom's trip". Selfish me. All the guys did was complain about how we weren't going to Disney. But they all loved the trip.

Who knows best?

I can't wait to hear about your trip and see the pictures!

Thanks Dee! You were very helpful. Except about Jaws. :rolleyes1 :lmao:
Isn't it funny how the kids complain but then have fun? I think that's universal kid behavior. :eek:

Amanda

[luvpoohandcompany]

Cant wait to hear all about your adventures to "the dark side":rotfl:

[DrMomof3]

Cant wait to hear all about your adventures to "the dark side":rotfl:

:lmao:

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

Friday, December 9th was our 11th anniversary. Tom really wanted us to go out to dinner THAT night so I couldn't leave for Florida until Saturday morning. He made dinner reservations at a really nice (and expensive!) restaurant in NYC. I think he intentionally made our reservations for super late so I'd be extra tired on my trip! :lmao:
(Just an aside: I keep trying to type ADR instead of reservation. A sign of mental illness??? :scared1: )
We decided to take the train into NYC and walk from Grand Central to the restaurant (Ai Fiore, if anyone wants to look it up). The restaurant is on the 2nd floor of the Setai Hotel on 5th Avenue. The restaurant was beautifully decorated for the holidays and we were seated promptly. After looking over the menu and asking some questions, we decided to do a tasting menu. We explained our food likes and dislikes (Tom doesn't eat any pork, for example). We decided to order a bottle of wine instead of doing the wine pairing. The sommelier was lovely and very helpful.
One of the many things that I loved about this restaurant was the staff. This is one of the most expensive restaurants in NYC. It could be incredibly snooty. Instead it was delightful. The wait-staff spent time explaining everything and answering questions. We never felt rushed and never felt like they were talking down to us.
One of the nice things I got at dinner was a new wedding ring. A few years ago I developed a severe platinum allergy and haven't been able to wear my wedding ring (or engagement ring). We bought a gold ring with a subtle Mickey Mouse ears and 2 little diamonds on either side. It's perfect for who am I right now! My original ring is fancier but this is subtle and makes me smile. You may recall we spent a lot of time trying to buy this ring at Disney World in August and they finally had it on the Disney store website! :love: I know it may sound cheezy to have a Mickey Mouse wedding band but it's great for me. I can't wear rings in the OR and big rings are a disaster in the office when seeing patients. This is thin and not bulky. And it helps me remember the wonderful family memories we are making together at Disney World.
As with most tasting menus, dinner was a long process. Everything was delicious (except the sardines - I still don't care for sardines). The wine was wonderful. And we finally waddled our way back to Grand Central and took the train back home. We probably got home close to midnight and my alarm was set for 4:30am...

Amanda

[natebenma]

A wonderful anniversary meal and a Mickey Mouse ring.

Not a bad way to start your trip. Except for that early morning wake up call.

[blessedmom4]

I :love::love::love: that you have a Mickey Mouse wedding band! I want one! Do you have pics??? The anniversary dinner sounds DELIGHTFUL and fun...but I must admit. I LOVE HP!!! I can't wait! What an incredible experience! I AM the original Harry Potter fan, I read the book before anyone had ever even heard of it. I got it for Christian for his BD one year and debated if I wanted to spend that much money on it (It was 12.95 though scholastic books). I am certain Christian had the first Halloween costume, because I made it from the picture on the front of the book. Nobody had heard of HP at that point in time, so we had to tell everyone he was a character from a book. They thought I was nuts (well, I AM, but not because of that)!

[Twoboysnmygirl]

Yes, yes, pics!!! I have never seen a mickey ring, it sounds right up my alley! :thumbsup2 Can't wait to hear more...

[Kat in GA]

Yes, pictures, pictures!!

Looking forward to reading all the details about this trip :thumbsup2

[DrMomof3]

A wonderful anniversary meal and a Mickey Mouse ring.

Not a bad way to start your trip. Except for that early morning wake up call.

Very early morning! But totally worth it. :love:

I :love::love::love: that you have a Mickey Mouse wedding band! I want one! Do you have pics??? The anniversary dinner sounds DELIGHTFUL and fun...but I must admit. I LOVE HP!!! I can't wait! What an incredible experience! I AM the original Harry Potter fan, I read the book before anyone had ever even heard of it. I got it for Christian for his BD one year and debated if I wanted to spend that much money on it (It was 12.95 though scholastic books). I am certain Christian had the first Halloween costume, because I made it from the picture on the front of the book. Nobody had heard of HP at that point in time, so we had to tell everyone he was a character from a book. They thought I was nuts (well, I AM, but not because of that)!


I will try to post the picture of the ring from the Disney Store website. I'm sometimes a bit technologically challenged!
So awesome that you're a big HP fan, too!!!

Yes, yes, pics!!! I have never seen a mickey ring, it sounds right up my alley! :thumbsup2 Can't wait to hear more...

My ring is awesome!

Yes, pictures, pictures!!

Looking forward to reading all the details about this trip :thumbsup2

Thank you!!!!

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2da06b3127cceffa27990d8d700000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

So here's the magical ring. It's fairly thin and smaller than it looks in the picture but lovely. And it's exactly what I wanted! :love:

Amanda

[blessedmom4]

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2da06b3127cceffa27990d8d700000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

So here's the magical ring. It's fairly thin and smaller than it looks in the picture but lovely. And it's exactly what I wanted! :love:

Amanda

SO BEAUTIFUL!!! I love it! Thanks for posting it.

I Found the Link. (http://www.disneystore.com/disney-store-official-site-for-disney-merchandise-14-kt-gold-and-diamond-mickey-mouse-ring-from-the-disney-dream-collection/mp/1283744/1000295/?D=mickey+ring&Nr=pPublished%3A1&Ntk=All_Shopping&Nu=pProductID&Ntt=mickey+ring&Dr=pPublished%3A1&Ntx=mode+matchallpartial)

[luvpoohandcompany]

Your anniversary dinner sounds amazing! Tut tut to Tom keeping you up late the night before your trip lol:rotfl2:
Love the ring:). So nice that something you wear every day brings aa smile to your face with all the great memories it stirs up:thumbsup2

[natebenma]

Love the ring! Good job Tom.

[DrMomof3]

SO BEAUTIFUL!!! I love it! Thanks for posting it.

I Found the Link. (http://www.disneystore.com/disney-store-official-site-for-disney-merchandise-14-kt-gold-and-diamond-mickey-mouse-ring-from-the-disney-dream-collection/mp/1283744/1000295/?D=mickey+ring&Nr=pPublished%3A1&Ntk=All_Shopping&Nu=pProductID&Ntt=mickey+ring&Dr=pPublished%3A1&Ntx=mode+matchallpartial)

Thank you!

Your anniversary dinner sounds amazing! Tut tut to Tom keeping you up late the night before your trip lol:rotfl2:
Love the ring:). So nice that something you wear every day brings aa smile to your face with all the great memories it stirs up:thumbsup2

That's exactly how I feel. I get to look at the ring and think about all of our great family experiences.

Love the ring! Good job Tom.

Thanks! Tom doesn't get too much credit... :rolleyes1 I found the ring and he just did the check-out online...

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

After not much sleep following a lovely Anniversary Dinner, I was up bright and early on Saturday morning. I had pretty much packed everything for both Nathaniel and me, including have travel clothes ready for him. I had purchased shirts for both of us. His said on the front, "I solemnly swear I'm up to no good" and on the back "Mischief Managed." Mine just said, "Mischief Managed" on the front (I couldn't find his shirt in a women's cut shirt in my size and I liked his better). For those who are unfamiliar with Harry Potter, this is from the Marauder's Map - a map that shows where people are located within Hogwart's Castle. The way to activate the map is to tap it with your wand and say, "I solemnly swear I'm up to no good." In order to turn off the map you say, "Mischief Managed."
I took my shower, dressed in my shirt (and some pants and other appropriate clothing items ;) ), and finished my last minute packing. I then went into Nathaniel's room to wake him up. I shook him a bit and announced that he needed to get dressed because we had a plane to catch. He gave me this weird look so I said, "You need to get dressed. We're going to Florida." He said, "Are you serious?" I said, "Yes. You and I are going to Florida. You need to get up and get dressed so we can catch our plane."
It was one of those precious moments as a parent. He was in a state of disbelief and excitement. We got him dressed in his new shirt and grabbed some breakfast items. My nanny arrived shortly thereafter and took us to our local airport.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2da07b3127cceffa1447ee0df00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
Waiting at our airport.

Our flight was wonderful. There was a very gay but super fantastic flight attendant named Matthew who liked us a lot. He brought us free snack boxes (JetBlue usually sells them for a few dollars), extra drinks, extra snacks, and even pillow and blanket kits. He packed a "goody bag" for me before we landed. Really great flight! Nathaniel was a bit wound up and super excited.

When we landed in Orlando the driver from FL Tours was waiting for us. We didn't have any checked bags so we hopped in his car and headed to Universal Studios.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2df30b3127cceff423153aeb700000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
In the car service car heading to the resort.

The driver gave us a bit of a guided tour as we headed over to Universal.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2da07b3127cceffa0a85ac0c100000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
A bit distant but this is the entrance to Universal!

We were booked at the Hard Rock Hotel. Our room wasn't ready yet so we left our bags with bell services and decided to head over to Universal Studios to go on some rides.
I had pre-purchased park tickets but, unlike Disney, these weren't on our room key. Nor did they give us park tickets when we checked into the hotel. Nor we were told what to do. We walked over to Universal Studios, stopping to visit the butterfly garden on the property of Hard Rock.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2df30b3127cceff43227ace4300000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/
(And obviously eating a very healthy snack... :rolleyes1 )

It took a few minutes to figure out the deal with our tickets. We basically had to wait in a relatively long ticket purchase line. A not-terribly-nice woman was able to print out our tickets and we were able to enter the park. I had purchased a book on Universal and started following their touring plan. Unfortunately Nathaniel was about a 1/4 inch too short for Mummy (which meant that he was too short for Forbidden Journey, too). So the first ride he could go on was Jaws.

I knew that this would be our one and only chance to ride Jaws because, well, Jaws no longer exists. I had queried everyone I knew about the "wetness" of Jaws and was reassured that Jaws was NOT a wet ride. Unfortunately Nathaniel and I had tremendous bad luck because we not only got wet, we were completely and totally soaked! :scared1: On a hot summer day this would be delightful. On a day where the temps were low 70's and we were wearing long pants.... Not so much. Nathaniel was miserable and I knew we'd have to find dry clothes. It took a while to find a shop selling bottoms that would fit us but we finally succeeded. Nathaniel was very, very grumpy about getting so wet but cheered up considerably once we were dry. Needless to say this wasted a good portion of time.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2df30b3127cceff43faf6cea300000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2df30b3127cceff4217732fb400000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

It's probably hard to see but we are both drenched in the above pictures!

The other issue with having to shop for clothes - already - is that I had intentionally brought a belt pack so we wouldn't need to use the lockers. Now I had to drag a bag of wet clothes all over the park and use lockers for every ride...

Amanda

[natebenma]

:rolleyes1:blush:

Thanks for not naming names or assigning blame!

Wow! Nathaniel looks really mature in the airport pictures.

What a great shirt. Must get this for Ben!

[DrMomof3]

:rolleyes1:blush:

Thanks for not naming names or assigning blame!

Wow! Nathaniel looks really mature in the airport pictures.

What a great shirt. Must get this for Ben!

:rotfl2:
In all fairness I had several sources ALL of whom agreed that Jaws was "safe" from a wet ride perspective.

And I ordered the shirt from the Warner's Brothers website...

Amanda

[luvpoohandcompany]

:rolleyes1:blush:

Thanks for not naming names or assigning blame!

Wow! Nathaniel looks really mature in the airport pictures.

What a great shirt. Must get this for Ben!
Oh Dee-poor you:rotfl2: Are you feeling guilty lol?
:rotfl2:
In all fairness I had several sources ALL of whom agreed that Jaws was "safe" from a wet ride perspective.

And I ordered the shirt from the Warner's Brothers website...

Amanda

Now not that I'm guilty;)of giving you false info:rotfl2: but I just wanted to add I've never got even a teeny tiny bit wet on Jaws!
How on earth did you manage to get soaked? Maybe Jaws is getting revenge for being closed down lol!:rotfl2:

[DrMomof3]

Oh Dee-poor you:rotfl2: Are you feeling guilty lol?

Dee guilty??? :rotfl2: Could it be??? :lmao:

Now not that I'm guilty;)of giving you false info:rotfl2: but I just wanted to add I've never got even a teeny tiny bit wet on Jaws!
How on earth did you manage to get soaked? Maybe Jaws is getting revenge for being closed down lol!:rotfl2:

We had several CMs (ok, I know they aren't called CMs at Universal but work with me here) comment that we were the wettest or 2nd wettest people they had ever seen after Jaws. It was truly bad luck. Not just being in the "right" seats but being in those seats on that particular boat ride.

Amanda

[blessedmom4]

Just wanted to say:


http://dl9.glitter-graphics.net/pub/2236/2236149lr18iw8t8q.gif (http://www.glitter-graphics.com)

Looking forward to more updates when you have time! popcorn::popcorn::popcorn::

[DrMomof3]

Thanks Judy!

Amanda

[DrMomof3]

Once we were into dry clothes we headed over to MIB. I'm a big fan of this type of ride in general. I love Buzz Lightyear and I love TSM. So I was bound to love this. I found it much more intense than I expected. I enjoyed it a lot but felt slightly dizzy at the end. And I did poorly from a score perspective. Nathaniel seemed to enjoy it but when I offered the chance to ride again, he declined.
We stopped for a treat....

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2df30b3127cceff433d880f1600000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

And then headed to The Simpsons. Despite our "front of line access" the wait for this ride was quite long. I watched lots and lots of Simpsons in college and I'm a big fan of the show (I haven't watched in years). I really enjoyed the simulator but found it more intense than I was expecting. And again Nathaniel declined a re-ride.
I may get the order wrong but we rode E.T. which I thought was fine. It was cute but outdated and I thought the later scenes were just stupid. We rode Spiderman which is AWESOME (and this was before the refurb). I was sure Nathaniel would want to ride again but he didn't.
We headed over towards the kiddie play areas and Nathaniel thoroughly enjoyed them.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2df30b3127cceff4285d82f5600000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2df30b3127cceff42301bee6700000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2df30b3127cceff436845ce5900000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2df30b3127cceff42a92a2fb200000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2df30b3127cceff429881eea900000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2da07b3127cceffa10bc021ee00000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2da07b3127cceffa0b2b1c02700000030O09IZtmzNo1B7e fBg/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D550/ry%3D400/

At this point it was mid-afternoon and we hadn't eaten lunch yet. I dragged Nathaniel out of Curious George and we found some quick-serve. We were both tired and hungry. We headed back to Hard Rock for some rest (which involved me napping a little and Nathaniel watching Nick).

I learned a lot on this day. I thought that Nathaniel, as an eldest child, would appreciate doing more "grown up" things with me since his younger siblings weren't there to "drag him down." To my surprise he reveled in being a child and preferred the attractions aimed at a younger age group. This was not what I expected at all. And since I was hoping to take this trip as a solo trip to do adult things, this wasn't really the trip I had planned. On the other hand I was going to enjoy spending quality time with Nathaniel, even if it meant giving up what I wanted to do. (Please don't think I'm a horrible mother for saying this. I'm being brutally honest and this was supposed to be MY weekend getaway which I changed into a mother-son trip. We had some wonderful bonding time but it wasn't what this trip was supposed to be. Please don't judge! :thumbsup2 )

Amanda

[natebenma]

MIB- I can't figure out how to score points on this ride!

Simpsons- Fun. Once a day is plenty for me though.

ET- I can take it or leave it.

The play area looks like fun, so glad to see you pictures. We never even got close to it. But all I see is water. Didn't you guys JUST get dry???

[firecracker725]

I learned a lot on this day. I thought that Nathaniel, as an eldest child, would appreciate doing more "grown up" things with me since his younger siblings weren't there to "drag him down." To my surprise he reveled in being a child and preferred the attractions aimed at a younger age group. This was not what I expected at all. And since I was hoping to take this trip as a solo trip to do adult things, this wasn't really the trip I had planned. On the other hand I was going to enjoy spending quality time with Nathaniel, even if it meant giving up what I wanted to do. <b>(Please don't think I'm a horrible mother for saying this. I'm being brutally honest and this was supposed to be MY weekend getaway which I changed into a mother-son trip. We had some wonderful bonding time but it wasn't what this trip was supposed to be. Please don't judge! :thumbsup2 )
</b>
Amanda

No judging here. I think it's pretty amazing that you took him with you on your "solo" trip, and it's okay to feel disappointed that it didn't turn out the way you envisioned it.

That being said, you totally deserve a real solo trip very soon. As do I, especially since DH has been traveling so much this past year.

[DrMomof3]

MIB- I can't figure out how to score points on this ride!

Simpsons- Fun. Once a day is plenty for me though.

ET- I can take it or leave it.

The play area looks like fun, so glad to see you pictures. We never even got close to it. But all I see is water. Didn't you guys JUST get dry???

There were 2 different play areas. The water slide with the tube was actually pretty dry. And in the Curious George area, he mostly avoided the wet parts. :rotfl:

No judging here. I think it's pretty amazing that you took him with you on your "solo" trip, and it's okay to feel disappointed that it didn't turn out the way you envisioned it.

That being said, you totally deserve a real solo trip very soon. As do I, especially since DH has been traveling so much this past year.

Thank you Crystal. I'm getting my solo trip for ToT weekend. I hope. ;) This past year has definitely been a challenge.

Amanda

[luvpoohandcompany]

Love hearing about your trip to the "other" side:lmao:

Sometimes it''s hard when things dont turn out as we'd planned (especially when we like the "planning" so much;)) but I appreciate your honesty (no judging here) and it's good to hear that I'm not the only mum who sometimes wishes for some "me" time even if it was my idea to sacrifice it in the first place!

Bet Nathanial and you will both treasure this trip for many years to come and it will make your solo trip all the sweeter when it happens.

[DrMomof3]

Love hearing about your trip to the "other" side:lmao:

Sometimes it''s hard when things dont turn out as we'd planned (especially when we like the "planning" so much;)) but I appreciate your honesty (no judging here) and it's good to hear that I'm not the only mum who sometimes wishes for some "me" time even if it was my idea to sacrifice it in the first place!

Bet Nathanial and you will both treasure this trip for many years to come and it will make your solo trip all the sweeter when it happens.

You are 100% right. We both remember the trip fondly. Thanks!

Amanda