A Halloween Adventure in Autism (11/7) Prayer Request for Catie (p.129)

[mom2mek]

Sounds like a fun show - we missed that when we went. But I do know that music!!! We just love our party music CD!

Great pic with Maleficient! That makeup job is so incredible - I can't imagine how long it takes for that CM to get ready!

Waiting patiently....

Sara

 

[KathyRN137]

Hey Everyone! I know I promised an update "tonight" but I fell asleep while cuddling with Billy, so you're getting this pretty late! I know you're all on the edge of your seats so...



Chapter Fifteen: Where's Billy??



Saturday Night
October 31, 2009
The Magic Kingdom
Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party



Well, well. We’ve finally made it to 11:30 pm; the end of my family’s first full day at WDW… and it only took fifteen chapters! When I left off, the clock was ticking and time was running out on our chance to meet the Wicked Queen after the Villains’ Mix and Mingle. I will keep you in suspense no longer…



We made it by the skin of our… poisoned apple!



Like Maleficent, the Wicked Queen was understandably haughty and condescending. No smiles for the camera for this Mistress of Darkness! Billy made up for it with another big “Cheeeese!”

We weren’t the last ones to make it, but it was close. We began to walk in the direction of Ed’s bench when I suddenly had the sensation that Billy was no longer by my side. I whirled around could not find him in the crowd! My stomach dropped and my heart began to race. “Where’s Billy?” I asked the girls and without waiting for a response I began to shriek, “BILLY! WHERE ARE YOU?!” The girls began calling his name, too.


Immediately, we heard him cry out, “I’m over here!”


I heaved a sigh of relief when I saw him come trotting toward us. I ran to him and gave him a huge “I’ve got you!” he said as he wrapped his arms around me. Billy’s not one to wander off. Then I realized that he had automatically gone on to the next character queue while I was talking with Tricia and Catie. Ever ritualistic, he had simply assumed that we were going to see each and every character one at a time and didn’t realize that we were done. I hugged him tight and so did the girls.


“Sorry,” he said into my costume. Then he looked up at us and grinned. I took him by the hand (tightly) and we went off to find Ed.


Side Note: Sometimes I wonder if he is getting too old for me to be holding his hand whenever we go out; then I remember moments like this and I think: his chronological age may be eleven, but I still need to look after his safety as if he were a pre-schooler. Fortunately his language skills have improved greatly over the past several years. When he was younger, we used to worry that if he became lost he wouldn’t be able to communicate at all, so we had him wear an ID tag on his shoe. Now he is able to tell a CM his name, address, phone number, etc… even the resort where he is staying…if he was to become separated from us.


My heart was still pounding when we reached the bench on which Ed was sitting, still chatting away on his cell phone. He hung up and told me that his brother would go to our house the following day, pick up my cell phone charger and mail it to us. I was relieved, although a bit embarassed... I had left our bedroom a bit untidy! Then Tricia and Catie felt compelled to tell him the story of my photography blunder and our double-queueing for Maleficent.


“…and then she said, ‘It’s so hard to get good help these days!" My dear daughter thought that was particularly funny. Ed made a comment about me having another “blonde moment” and I had to endure the three of them ribbing me about it as we began walking back up Main Street.



A few pictures of the Castle are always in order when one is departing the MK:

The party officially ended at midnight but since we were all fairly tired we decided that a nice, leisurely walk down Main Street would be best. We did not go inside any of the shops… they were mobbed… but we did take a few moments to admire the window displays and the autumn decorations. It's not so bad leaving the MK when you know you'll be back later in the week!

Uh-Oh! Almost Midnight!!

Some last photos outside the MK:

We could not have had much of a wait for our bus because we left the MK at about ten to twelve and I made a note that we passed through the main gait of AKL by ten after! We went immediately to our rooms and everyone flopped down on the couch and chairs for a few moments and we talked about the fun we had at the party before getting ready for bed.


Although there were a few minor boo-boos made in the execution of the touring plan, I thought that the party was a great success over all. We accomplished the top three things on our “to-do” list: the Boo-to-You Parade, Hallowishes, and the Villains’ Mix and Mingle. We also had a fun DIS-meet!


Perhaps we didn’t get quite as many character pictures as I would have liked… I was sorry we didn’t make time to seek out Snow White and the Seven Dwarves and it would have been fun to get pix of the kids dancing with the characters at one of the dance parties. We did, however, get to meet the Queen of Hearts, the Wicked Queen, and most importantly, Maleficent….none of whom we have ever met on any of our previous trips to the World. It was lots of fun dressing in costume…although we certainly would have been more comfortable had it not been quite so warm and humid that night, but you can’t control the weather, can you! I was simply grateful that it didn’t rain!


We settled in for the night so that we could get ourselves a good night’s sleep. The next day would be Rope Drop at the Animal Kingdom!





Wait a minute, did I say, “Rope Drop?”






Fughettaboutit!! We’re sleeping in!




Kathy

 

[MEK]

Phew....I am all caught up with your last 4 updates. I love that you post late on Saturday night so I can be the first to read early on sunday morning. I am so glad that you had such a wonderful time at the party. Let's see.... aDis meet, beautiful parade shots, Hallowishes, a meeting with the Villians (wow....you had me going there....I thought for sure you were going to run out of time). Oh....and reliving the memory of the Yankee's win.

thanks for all the great updates.. Wonderful read and I just took a 1/2 hr to get caught up. Now I have to get myself organized for church. MUST TEAR SELF AWAY from the Dis boards!

 

[Charleston Princess]

Whew! I am so glad you made it to see the Wicked Queen -- I feel better now!

How scary to lose Billy for those few moments!

I can't believe you had originally planned rope drop for the next morning!

 

[kimmylaj]

ok all caught up, the mnsshp sounds really fun. i would love to see it but two teachers and two kids in school do not make for a likely scenario. oh well i can live vicariously right? you had me very panicked when i read the title of this section, thank God Billy was very close by, but what a nervous few moments you must have had.

 

[shannn]

OH, I'm so glad you found Billy quickly. I did that with Lily a couple of times this trip and it scared me to death. I'm not usually one to get over-worried, but with all those people around.... it's scary!

Your evil queen picture is great! And now that I see it, I think she was the one who made the mouse comment to Lily. All those evil people must look alike to me!

Great party time! MNSSHP was the one of my very favorite things we did! We actually did make a rope drop the day after our party. (only due to very long mid-day naps!)

 

[praisehisname]

We made it by the skin of our… poisoned apple!

Phew!

Then I realized that he had automatically gone on to the next character queue while I was talking with Tricia and Catie. Ever ritualistic, he had simply assumed that we were going to see each and every character one at a time and didn’t realize that we were done.

You gotta love the fact that he was following "the plan" and not just wandering off aimlessly! (Even though it WAS scary for you!)

The next day would be Rope Drop at the Animal Kingdom!

My jaw had dropped until I read a bit further!

Denise

 

[carissanboys]

I was gonna say, "Rope Drop?? After you've stayed up so late???"



Glad Billy was close by. I can imagine those few moments of worry.

 

[DisMomAmy]

Sounds like great ending to a magical night!

And thanks for not leaving us with a "Where's Billy?" cliffhanger! You made my heart skip a beat! That's my greatest fear at Disney! Alex used to be a wanderer - more like a runner.

 

[Mickey_Mom]

Worst feeling ever. At the moment, I can't think of anything else that comes close. That hug must have felt pretty good huh?

I often wonder the same thing when Ariana and I are out and about and I'm holding her hand. What must people be thinking... "isn't she a little old for that?" But when I think of the possibilities .... and, I simply enjoy holding her hand. I miss that as the kids get older.

I think your pic with the Wicked Queen is my favorite so far... the smiles!

 

[buzz for boys]

Gosh my heart was in my mouth for the whole paragraph where Billy was missing - lucky for you it seems you realised he was missing before he did - phew !!!

An amazing fun packed first day - cant wait to read more x x x

 

[SwansLoveDisney]

I'm glad you decided against making rope drop the next morning!

It's great that you were able to do all the things on your list at the party. A wonderful first full day at Disney World!

 

[Poolrat]

Great Update!
Glad you got to do what you set out to do.
Sorry you thought you lost Bily for a bit.
Glad he did not realize he was lost!

I look forward to your Ak day - whenever you get there.

 

[All7OfUs]

So glad a potential disaster was averted! Billy didn't seem to fazed so all's good!!

I like that you set reasonable goals for the party, and to to do them all. If you had gone in expecting to do everything there was to do, it might have been terribly disappointing!

Once again, you all looked fabulous!! Your exit pictures look so nice!

You certainly went to bed with Happy Hallowishes Dreams that night!

 

[KathyRN137]

Phew....I am all caught up with your last 4 updates. I love that you post late on Saturday night so I can be the first to read early on sunday morning..... thanks for all the great updates... MUST TEAR SELF AWAY from the Dis boards!

I feel the same way at night when Im DISing and it's getting way past my bedtime...MUST GO TO BED!!

Whew! I am so glad you made it to see the Wicked Queen -- I feel better now!

How scary to lose Billy for those few moments!

I can't believe you had originally planned rope drop for the next morning!

It was a terrifying forty-five seconds!

I was only teasing about rope-drop. No way, Jose!

ok all caught up, the mnsshp sounds really fun. i would love to see it but two teachers and two kids in school do not make for a likely scenario. oh well i can live vicariously right? you had me very panicked when i read the title of this section, thank God Billy was very close by, but what a nervous few moments you must have had.

Thanks... the adreneline was pumping, that's for sure!


Kathy

 

[irish dancer]

Yay, you made it! So glad you didn't get cut off from meeting the Wicked Queen.

Yikes, scary about losing Billy. That happend to us too when Daniel was smaller. I was walking with him through Fantasyland, let go of his hand to get something out of my bag and it was like he disappeared into thin air! Luckily it only took a few seconds to find him but it certainly seemed a lot longer!

It sounds like you had a wonderful time at the party. Can't wait to hear about the rest of the trip!

 

[joy13]

Your title scared me - thank goodness it was a short period of time - that is the worst feeling in the world!

You really did have a good time at the party and got alot done! It's nice that you have kids old enough to understand the concept of sleeping in. Maddie's getting there, but no quite yet. That was our issue our party day - she woke up earlier than I was hoping.

 

[mommytothreeboys]

The party sounds like a fantastic SUCCESS!! Way to go!

Those moments when a child is "missing" are SO scary. I think we can all relate. As far as being too big to hold hands.....my 12 year old still lets me hold his hand! My 15 year old would die, but Isaiah still lets me grab his hand and hug him in public on occasion! He's my cuddle boy and I'm glad he still allows it once in a while!

Billy's "cheese" in the Wicked Queen pic is priceless!

Can't wait to hear about AK!

 

[Lovemy3babes]

Whew, so glad you got your characters meets accomplished and that Billy wasn't missing for too long. That's scary!

 

[KathyRN137]

Sorry.... lost my internet connection for a couple of hours right in the middle of doing replies!!

**************************************************​

We loved the Mix n Mingle show too! We also went to the last of the night.

I can only imagine how crowded the earlier shows were!


Lovemy3babes - I can tell you the constant countdown by the CMs is most certainly stressful for both the parents and kids!

Definitely more annoying than helpful!

Great Updates! Looks like you all had sooo much fun at the party! And the Yankees winning that night made it even better, I'm sure Geeze, the countdown of EVERY minute would have driven me crazy...so, were you successful in meeting the Wicked Queen?

Still can't get over Ed giving up the game... of course who could have known when we purchased our party tickets in May!

...And thanks for not leaving us with a "Where's Billy?" cliffhanger! You made my heart skip a beat! That's my greatest fear at Disney!

Aww, I would never do something like that to you guys!

Worst feeling ever. At the moment, I can't think of anything else that comes close. That hug must have felt pretty good huh?

I often wonder the same thing when Ariana and I are out and about and I'm holding her hand. What must people be thinking... "isn't she a little old for that?" But when I think of the possibilities .... and, I simply enjoy holding her hand. I miss that as the kids get older.

Sometimes Tricia (13) asks me for a hug... but if I tried to hold her hand in public, she would probably slug me!


Kathy