Katiebug
06-14-2003, 04:55 PM
Hello Again!
Who went:
Jennifer Age 29 - Travel Agent
Dennis Age 28 - Computer Technician
Kaitylnn Age 3 1/2 - Aspiring Princess
Julie Age 2 - Junior Princess in Training
Monday, May 19, 2003
Wow, was it hot that day! We didn't realize how hot until we got back to our car & the temperature was 105 degrees F at 5:30pm! I do apologize if my kids or me accidentally squirted you with our blower fans. They were an absolute necessity on a day like that! We picked ours up at Wal-Mart for $6 each (instead of $20 each at the Disney parks).
DH left it up to me which park we did first. I picked AK b/c there is still a lot of things we haven't done in there. I hate the fact that this park closes at 5pm! I think they should at least extend the hours until 7:00pm. When DH & I were childless we probably could have done this park easily in one day - however - with two chickee-monkeys in tow, it has taken us three trips to cover the whole park.
We parked the car at 10:30am and took the crazy tram ride to the entrance of the Kingdom. We noticed that the trams are very efficient, but when they say to hold on to your stuff and your children - you have to hold on - because they zoom -zoom - zoom!
I was looking for the Guest Relations counter so I could pick up my hopper pass, when I noticed a tree following us around and talking & singing to us. "Hey, you in the green dress with watermelons! Hi! What are you looking for? You go in over there!" At this point the girls noticed the “talking” tree and were getting totally excited. They tried touching it and the tree said appropriately, "Ow, don't do that! What's your name little girl? Oh, there are two of you - double trouble!" At this point a CM asked if he could take our picture. We agreed and the tree of course wanted to be in it. It sang some silly song that kept the girls smiling.
We parted ways from the tree eventually. He went off to harass other guests while humming the star wars theme song. Katie kept looking over at the tree and asking, "Mommy, how did that tree know what I was wearing? It didn't have eyes?" I told her the tree must be psychic. That placated her, but only because I don't think she knew what psychic means. DH and I couldn't figure out if there was a person in the tree or if it was being remote controlled from somewhere else. In either case, it was hilarious being harassed by a tree and definitely a highlight of our day.
I finally found guest relations (no thanks to the tree) bought my hopper pass and we entered the park.
We did the “Tough to be a Bug” show first. For those of you who haven't seen it - this is a 3D movie/show based on A Bug's Life. We explained to Katie that she saw this show 6 months ago and liked it. We told her there were lots of icky bugs and she told us she still wanted to see it. She sat in my lap the whole time and I told her that if she got too scared I would take her out. She said she would be fine as long as she could sit with Mommy. Julie (2) loved it and Katie (3) was traumatized, especially when the big spiders dropped down. She was yelling at them to "Go Away Icky Bugs!" Within the last 6 months, Katie has turned into a big scaredy cat. Bad guys, loud noises and the dark are the phobias she has developed quite recently. Unfortunately, this show involved all those things. However, after the show she asked to go again?
Next we got a fastpass for Kali River Rapids. Katie looked at the ride and decided she wanted to go on. The only problem was she was scared to stand under the wood post to be measured! (Add wood posts to the list of phobias). Several very nice CM’s tried to coax her under by telling her they would give her a princess bracelet. I finally physically moved her under the wood post and they gave her the bracelet so she can ride.
We moseyed over to the Maharajah Jungle Trek. This is a very pretty themed area, however, we did not see many animals – or animals that were awake. I guess the tigers were all sleepy because it was so hot outside. The bat exhibit was interesting though. There were lots of them hanging upside down and looking creepy.
We still had time before our fastpass time so we hung around an interactive fountain that sprayed water from the ground. The kids enjoyed themselves immensely and we all got wet which felt good because of the extreme hotness I mentioned before.
We got on Kali River Rapids right away with our fastpass. I took Katie on the ride with me. DH waited in the baby swap area with Julie. If Katie wanted to ride again DH would go with her the second time while I hung out with Julie. Katie was excited at first because she was going on a big-girl ride. However, I was unaware of the big drop in the beginning of this ride b/c I have never been on. (Add big drops to the list). This freaked Katie out – and she got even more upset when she realized her pretty “Barbie” sundress was also getting all wet. For the last half of the ride she kept telling me she wanted her Daddy and wanted to get out. Needless to say, after we did get out, she did not want to go on the ride again with Dad, and told him how she got all wet and it was Mommy’s fault. Now that we are home she has told me that she will go on this ride again with DH next time but will not go on with me. Maybe she thinks Daddy is going to keep her dry somehow?
We were all getting a little crabby from the extreme heat, so we went over to Pizzafari to have lunch in the air-conditioning. This is a cute little counter service restaurant. Each room is themed differently. We ate in the bug room, which Katie found fascinating. I guess her earlier phobia of the bug show has worn off a little. DH got the really big chicken Caesar salad and I got the really big deli sandwich with chips. I got the chickee-monkeys a cheese pizza to share. DH requested a very large coke and I got a strawberry frozen lemonade (very yummy). The kids drank ice water which is free!!!
Next we did the Tarzan show. It was very loud because apparently Tarzan rocks! There was a lot of singing of the songs from the movie - and some dancers – then some skateboarder guys dressed like monkeys. Finally, Tarzan comes out! And let me say that Tarzan does indeed rock! He was gorgeous with lots of muscles – even with the fake wig and loincloth. DH made sure to get some video of him so I can watch him over and over. He wasn’t that impressed with Jane though. That part of the show was pretty good. Tarzan and Jane do some Cirque de Soleil stuff on cables, which makes them appear to be flying. The last part of the show Turk the gorilla came out and danced around which the kids liked.
Next we found a spot for the Jammin Jungle Parade. We had a very bad parade experience. We sat down about ten minutes before the parade. Normally, I don’t do this because I prefer not to fight with people for a spot of concrete, but DH had to go to the restroom and I kind of wanted to sit in the shade. We were sitting up front with the chickee-monkeys in our lap. So right before the parade starts these parents let their kids cut right in front of our younger (much shorter) kids. Fine, so DH & me stood and put the kids on our shoulders. We moved over a little so we were still up front. Then this old lady with a really big hat asked DH if she could just snap one picture? DH is a gentleman and fell for it. Old lady with the big hat cut right in front of DH and remained there for the entirety of the parade, obstructing Katie’s view severely. Despite all the rudeness, we enjoyed the parade. It’s very cute and there is a lot of interaction with the characters & CM’s. The characters thankfully interacted with the chickee-monkeys and not old lady with the big hat. The theme is basically that Mickey and the gang are on safari. The floats are packed with all their necessities. Minnie has a bathtub – Goofy had a barbeque. I agree the music was very “jammin”.
Next we went over to Dinoland. Julie rode the Triceratops Spin. Katie refused to go on. I told her it was just like Dumbo. Maybe she thought we were taking her on the much scarier “Dinosaur” ride. Katie enjoyed watching me and Julie ride, but still didn’t want to go on with DH or me afterwards. Maybe something about the Dinosaurs were freaking her out? (Add Triceratops Spin to the list!) She has watched our video and told me she should have gone on this ride and she will next time.
It was 4:45pm so we left. We cranked the air & went back to our hotel for a much needed nap. We woke up at 7:30pm and ate some left over pizza from last night for dinner. Then we drove back to Epcot to go see Illuminations, which is so beautiful. Every time I see it I think, “Wow, this is the best fireworks display I have ever seen!” Katie, of course, was scared and kept complaining the fireworks were too loud. I told her to cover her ears and she did better, but still wanted to go because it was too dark outside.
The kids fell asleep in the car on the way back. We stopped at Wal-Mart for supplies. Then at Denny’s for some late breakfast. I had a craving for an omelet.
I could barely sleep. Tomorrow is breakfast at the Castle with Cinderella!
Breakdown of what was spent:
My 4-day hopper pass: $105.97 (with discount)
DH’s 4-day hopper pass: $209.00
Katie’s 4-day hopper pass: birthday present from Grandma
Lunch Pizzafari $24.23
Dinner Denny’s $24.88
Wal-Mart $99.96
__________________________________________________ __
Total Spent $464.04 (Ouch!)
Who went:
Jennifer Age 29 - Travel Agent
Dennis Age 28 - Computer Technician
Kaitylnn Age 3 1/2 - Aspiring Princess
Julie Age 2 - Junior Princess in Training
Monday, May 19, 2003
Wow, was it hot that day! We didn't realize how hot until we got back to our car & the temperature was 105 degrees F at 5:30pm! I do apologize if my kids or me accidentally squirted you with our blower fans. They were an absolute necessity on a day like that! We picked ours up at Wal-Mart for $6 each (instead of $20 each at the Disney parks).
DH left it up to me which park we did first. I picked AK b/c there is still a lot of things we haven't done in there. I hate the fact that this park closes at 5pm! I think they should at least extend the hours until 7:00pm. When DH & I were childless we probably could have done this park easily in one day - however - with two chickee-monkeys in tow, it has taken us three trips to cover the whole park.
We parked the car at 10:30am and took the crazy tram ride to the entrance of the Kingdom. We noticed that the trams are very efficient, but when they say to hold on to your stuff and your children - you have to hold on - because they zoom -zoom - zoom!
I was looking for the Guest Relations counter so I could pick up my hopper pass, when I noticed a tree following us around and talking & singing to us. "Hey, you in the green dress with watermelons! Hi! What are you looking for? You go in over there!" At this point the girls noticed the “talking” tree and were getting totally excited. They tried touching it and the tree said appropriately, "Ow, don't do that! What's your name little girl? Oh, there are two of you - double trouble!" At this point a CM asked if he could take our picture. We agreed and the tree of course wanted to be in it. It sang some silly song that kept the girls smiling.
We parted ways from the tree eventually. He went off to harass other guests while humming the star wars theme song. Katie kept looking over at the tree and asking, "Mommy, how did that tree know what I was wearing? It didn't have eyes?" I told her the tree must be psychic. That placated her, but only because I don't think she knew what psychic means. DH and I couldn't figure out if there was a person in the tree or if it was being remote controlled from somewhere else. In either case, it was hilarious being harassed by a tree and definitely a highlight of our day.
I finally found guest relations (no thanks to the tree) bought my hopper pass and we entered the park.
We did the “Tough to be a Bug” show first. For those of you who haven't seen it - this is a 3D movie/show based on A Bug's Life. We explained to Katie that she saw this show 6 months ago and liked it. We told her there were lots of icky bugs and she told us she still wanted to see it. She sat in my lap the whole time and I told her that if she got too scared I would take her out. She said she would be fine as long as she could sit with Mommy. Julie (2) loved it and Katie (3) was traumatized, especially when the big spiders dropped down. She was yelling at them to "Go Away Icky Bugs!" Within the last 6 months, Katie has turned into a big scaredy cat. Bad guys, loud noises and the dark are the phobias she has developed quite recently. Unfortunately, this show involved all those things. However, after the show she asked to go again?
Next we got a fastpass for Kali River Rapids. Katie looked at the ride and decided she wanted to go on. The only problem was she was scared to stand under the wood post to be measured! (Add wood posts to the list of phobias). Several very nice CM’s tried to coax her under by telling her they would give her a princess bracelet. I finally physically moved her under the wood post and they gave her the bracelet so she can ride.
We moseyed over to the Maharajah Jungle Trek. This is a very pretty themed area, however, we did not see many animals – or animals that were awake. I guess the tigers were all sleepy because it was so hot outside. The bat exhibit was interesting though. There were lots of them hanging upside down and looking creepy.
We still had time before our fastpass time so we hung around an interactive fountain that sprayed water from the ground. The kids enjoyed themselves immensely and we all got wet which felt good because of the extreme hotness I mentioned before.
We got on Kali River Rapids right away with our fastpass. I took Katie on the ride with me. DH waited in the baby swap area with Julie. If Katie wanted to ride again DH would go with her the second time while I hung out with Julie. Katie was excited at first because she was going on a big-girl ride. However, I was unaware of the big drop in the beginning of this ride b/c I have never been on. (Add big drops to the list). This freaked Katie out – and she got even more upset when she realized her pretty “Barbie” sundress was also getting all wet. For the last half of the ride she kept telling me she wanted her Daddy and wanted to get out. Needless to say, after we did get out, she did not want to go on the ride again with Dad, and told him how she got all wet and it was Mommy’s fault. Now that we are home she has told me that she will go on this ride again with DH next time but will not go on with me. Maybe she thinks Daddy is going to keep her dry somehow?
We were all getting a little crabby from the extreme heat, so we went over to Pizzafari to have lunch in the air-conditioning. This is a cute little counter service restaurant. Each room is themed differently. We ate in the bug room, which Katie found fascinating. I guess her earlier phobia of the bug show has worn off a little. DH got the really big chicken Caesar salad and I got the really big deli sandwich with chips. I got the chickee-monkeys a cheese pizza to share. DH requested a very large coke and I got a strawberry frozen lemonade (very yummy). The kids drank ice water which is free!!!
Next we did the Tarzan show. It was very loud because apparently Tarzan rocks! There was a lot of singing of the songs from the movie - and some dancers – then some skateboarder guys dressed like monkeys. Finally, Tarzan comes out! And let me say that Tarzan does indeed rock! He was gorgeous with lots of muscles – even with the fake wig and loincloth. DH made sure to get some video of him so I can watch him over and over. He wasn’t that impressed with Jane though. That part of the show was pretty good. Tarzan and Jane do some Cirque de Soleil stuff on cables, which makes them appear to be flying. The last part of the show Turk the gorilla came out and danced around which the kids liked.
Next we found a spot for the Jammin Jungle Parade. We had a very bad parade experience. We sat down about ten minutes before the parade. Normally, I don’t do this because I prefer not to fight with people for a spot of concrete, but DH had to go to the restroom and I kind of wanted to sit in the shade. We were sitting up front with the chickee-monkeys in our lap. So right before the parade starts these parents let their kids cut right in front of our younger (much shorter) kids. Fine, so DH & me stood and put the kids on our shoulders. We moved over a little so we were still up front. Then this old lady with a really big hat asked DH if she could just snap one picture? DH is a gentleman and fell for it. Old lady with the big hat cut right in front of DH and remained there for the entirety of the parade, obstructing Katie’s view severely. Despite all the rudeness, we enjoyed the parade. It’s very cute and there is a lot of interaction with the characters & CM’s. The characters thankfully interacted with the chickee-monkeys and not old lady with the big hat. The theme is basically that Mickey and the gang are on safari. The floats are packed with all their necessities. Minnie has a bathtub – Goofy had a barbeque. I agree the music was very “jammin”.
Next we went over to Dinoland. Julie rode the Triceratops Spin. Katie refused to go on. I told her it was just like Dumbo. Maybe she thought we were taking her on the much scarier “Dinosaur” ride. Katie enjoyed watching me and Julie ride, but still didn’t want to go on with DH or me afterwards. Maybe something about the Dinosaurs were freaking her out? (Add Triceratops Spin to the list!) She has watched our video and told me she should have gone on this ride and she will next time.
It was 4:45pm so we left. We cranked the air & went back to our hotel for a much needed nap. We woke up at 7:30pm and ate some left over pizza from last night for dinner. Then we drove back to Epcot to go see Illuminations, which is so beautiful. Every time I see it I think, “Wow, this is the best fireworks display I have ever seen!” Katie, of course, was scared and kept complaining the fireworks were too loud. I told her to cover her ears and she did better, but still wanted to go because it was too dark outside.
The kids fell asleep in the car on the way back. We stopped at Wal-Mart for supplies. Then at Denny’s for some late breakfast. I had a craving for an omelet.
I could barely sleep. Tomorrow is breakfast at the Castle with Cinderella!
Breakdown of what was spent:
My 4-day hopper pass: $105.97 (with discount)
DH’s 4-day hopper pass: $209.00
Katie’s 4-day hopper pass: birthday present from Grandma
Lunch Pizzafari $24.23
Dinner Denny’s $24.88
Wal-Mart $99.96
__________________________________________________ __
Total Spent $464.04 (Ouch!)