The Darling Family June 2010 Trip Report: When are the Parents Showing Up?11/5 New TR

[Stefy]

I love that PP pic of the kids. They look so close and sweet

 

[Happy Elf]

Loved hearing about the cruise! I would love to do a cruise sometime...maybe when Owen is a bit older.

You hit the character jackpot! I agree about Lotso, he looks so cute and cuddly!

 

[LMN]

Am enjoying your TR!! Love, love the pics with the umbrella! Where in DHS is that located?? I've never seen it before! Would love some pics with the kids there in December. Thanks!

 

[Angies1274]

The cruise looked like so much fun! I'm so glad that Wendy had such a wonderful time!

Great character pics in the Animation Building!! That's so cool that Lotso smells like strawberries!! Too bad he was so mean in the movie because he looks so cuddly.

Yay for finding the Singing in the Rain umbrella! I don't know why but for some reason we miss it every trip.

Love the photopass pics of your kids!! So sweet!!!

 

[dismagiclover]

Gracious! I was behind. I took notes about what I wanted to comment on but I betcha I still forget something.

I, too, have never understood why Triceratops Spin is a walk-on and Dumbo is not?

The pic of John with Terk is too cute. We've run into Terk several times and he interacts with the guests a lot which I like.

I have never seen the dance party at Animal Kingdom. Where is that?

Too bad Michael didn't want to pose for the Photopass pics at the AK. He just wasn't have any part in it was he?

Okay, let's see....oh yeah...Wendy's arrival and her cruise. I have either never seen or never noticed the opening of the slide at Old Key West. It looks like a Mickey head. Michael was too funny trying out the bamboo.

From the cruise pictures, it certainly looks like Wendy and the family had a great time on the cruise. I've always wanted to do a Disney cruise but can't talk my hubby or son into going on one. Wendy and her cousin posing reminded me so much of my daughter and niece. They were always together and always posing for pictures.

Back to the trip report: We didn't get to see Lotso when we were at HS. How can a bad guy smell so sweet? There certainly were a lot of characters in the building. Too bad the kids didn't want to meet more of them.

We have eaten at Prime Time once and it was okay. We weren't blown away by it but we would go there again.

I was happy to see Michael in the last Photopass pic you posted. Glad that he was in the mood to give his siblings some hugs.

Wow you sure did take notes! That is pretty impressive! Now I have to take notes to be able to reply to your reply The AK dance party was in the area in Camp Minnie Mickey where the Pocahantas show used to be. Michael was definitely a bit grumpy that day, but he'd been great most of the week so I'm not complaining too much. The Mickey head slide opening at OKW is one of the main reasons my boys wanted to stay there. They just loved that! It was great that Wendy was able to spend so much time with and have such fun with her cousin. They live down in FL so we don't see them as often as we would like, but they get along great when they are together I'm glad Michael had perked up by the last PP picture too. Glad we got that shot!

I love that PP pic of the kids. They look so close and sweet

Like I said, that is my favorite picture of all 3 kids together from the entire trip. They do like they are all great friends (which is true most of the time.)

Loved hearing about the cruise! I would love to do a cruise sometime...maybe when Owen is a bit older.

You hit the character jackpot! I agree about Lotso, he looks so cute and cuddly!

You can join my would love to do a cruise too club! It was fun to see all the characters. I'm definitely more into the characters than my kids.

Am enjoying your TR!! Love, love the pics with the umbrella! Where in DHS is that located?? I've never seen it before! Would love some pics with the kids there in December. Thanks!

I can't remember exactly where it is located, but it must be somewhere between the Honey I Shrunk the Kids Playground and the front of the park. I think it might have been on the Streets of America? I'd never noticed it before, but I'd seen pictures of it on the DIS. Since I'd seen the pictures it was easier to spot. Maybe one of my readers can give more info. Sorry.

The cruise looked like so much fun! I'm so glad that Wendy had such a wonderful time!

Great character pics in the Animation Building!! That's so cool that Lotso smells like strawberries!! Too bad he was so mean in the movie because he looks so cuddly.

Yay for finding the Singing in the Rain umbrella! I don't know why but for some reason we miss it every trip.

Love the photopass pics of your kids!! So sweet!!!

Lotso was so cuddly. I'm actually glad I didn't believe Wendy about his meanness. I didn't get disturbed about his cuddliness until after I'd already met him This was our first time finding the Singing in the Rain umbrella and it was pretty much just luck. As you can tell from my previous reply I'm not even sure exactly where we were.

 

[praisehisname]

Great pic of the kids! Note to self: if you want a great picture of all three kids together, tell them to "act like they like each other."

 

[klacey1]

Great PP pictures! The umbrella ones are soo cute-- I HAVE to find that next trip! Sorry your meal wasn't so great, but at least you know to stick with your favorite next time!

 

[dismagiclover]

Great pic of the kids! Note to self: if you want a great picture of all three kids together, tell them to "act like they like each other."

Well that worked once at least. Hopefully it will work for you

Great PP pictures! The umbrella ones are soo cute-- I HAVE to find that next trip! Sorry your meal wasn't so great, but at least you know to stick with your favorite next time!

The meal wasn't bad. It just wasn't memorable. Sci Fi to us is memorable. Plus I love the quiet atmosphere of the movie theater. It distracts the kids

 

[dismagiclover]

Four months from today I'm going to be running my first marathon That absolutely terrifies me. Back to the report.

Another Disney day began and we were excited to get started. No rope drop for us this morning. Instead we had a Pirate Cruise scheduled for the boys. So after a quick breakfast in the room we hopped in the car and drove over to our beloved Beach Club. The Beach Club will always hold a special place in my heart. We spent a glorious 7 days there last summer and had the time of our life. So as we walked through the lobby it felt a bit like coming home. Then we headed outside towards the dock and were greeted by this beautiful site.

See the Boardwalk Villas across the lake. Now that really is our Home. We bought DVC last fall and Boardwalk is our home resort. I hadn’t seen it since it became our official home. Seeing it made me so excited for our upcoming January trip when we will stay there. We headed over to the dock and the pirate ship was sitting there waiting for its passengers.

We checked the boys in and then put on their lifejackets.

Had to take another picture with our Home behind the boys.

The CM came over and gave the kids instructions about the cruise. The most important thing they practiced was how to ARRRGH. Here are the boys practicing

A few last minute instructions

Then they loaded into the boat and were off.

Wendy and I were left all alone. What could we possibly do to keep ourselves entertained?

 

[klacey1]

Aww, fun! I bet the boys had a blast!

 

[norybell]

Wendy and I were left all alone. What could we possibly do to keep ourselves entertained?

Let's see, two WDW-lovin' gals, all on their own at Disney...I have no doubt you found something!

 

[Stefy]

Wow four months until your marathon, hope you are training hard

Hmm I think you and Wendy would have got up to something girly

 

[DrMomof3]

Great pics!
I had no idea about the character extravaganza at DHS! I doubt I'll ever convince my family that we need to do that but I would enjoy it.
What a beautiful day for the pirate cruise!

Amanda

 

[dismagiclover]

Aww, fun! I bet the boys had a blast!

They did have a great time. It was a highlight of the trip for them

Let's see, two WDW-lovin' gals, all on their own at Disney...I have no doubt you found something!

We found something good! It is coming right up!

Wow four months until your marathon, hope you are training hard

Hmm I think you and Wendy would have got up to something girly

I'm up to 6 miles in my marathon training. Only 20 more to go Wendy and I definitely found something girly to do.

Great pics!
I had no idea about the character extravaganza at DHS! I doubt I'll ever convince my family that we need to do that but I would enjoy it.
What a beautiful day for the pirate cruise!

Amanda

My family wasn't as in to the whole character extravaganza near as much as me either. I was in charge though so they had to go

 

[dismagiclover]

Wendy and I walked away from the dock and by the very best pool on property.

Stormalong Bay. How do I love thee? Let me count the ways. (We’d be here all day if I really did that. Suffice it to say I was very nostalgic as we walked by this lovely place.) However, we were on a mission. Our destination was right here at the Beach Club.

Wendy was going to pick a pearl. I know most people do this in Japan, but the World Showcase wasn’t open yet. Plus it always seems so crazy there. So I was excited when I read about this place right at the Beach Club. Seemed like a perfect girly thing to do while the boys were off reeking havoc. Here is Wendy picking her oyster. The CM told her to pick the ugliest one she could find.

Here it is being opened.

Here is the pearl.

It is pretty decent size with a silver color (though they called it a blue pearl.) Really quite lovely.

Wendy picked out a setting for it.

The CM set it and packed it up for us. She told us not to remove the tape for 24 hours, but then it would be good to go. Here is the final result.

Wendy loved every minute of this. She kept thanking me over and over. She talked about how grateful she was she was the only girl in the family because she got to do special things like this. It was very sweet. Of course the cruise was the highlight of her trip, but the highlight of her time at Disney World was definitely the Pick a Pearl. I’m glad I decided to do it here too instead of in Japan. We had all the attention and could take as much time as we wanted. We were the only customers the whole time we were there. Definitely something I would recommend if you’re looking for a special souvenir. So with our pearl pocketed we still had time before the boys returned. We ambled along and I couldn’t resist taking this shot of the Beach Club entrance.

Here is a view of the Yacht Club with the Pirate Slide.

It took all of five minutes to arrive at the Boardwalk.

And what did we see parked at the end of the dock? It’s the boys’ pirate ship. They were in the area hunting treasure.

Here came the little treasure hunters

Wendy never passes up a gift shop if she can help it so we headed into the Boardwalk’s shop. They had some silly hats.

Wendy also found a pin she just had to have. She collects both Minnie and Tinkerbell pins so this one was perfect. It is the Tinkerbell Minnie at the top on the right.

We still had time to kill. Where did we head next?

 

[jmskinner]

Glad your boys liked Little Mermaid, maybe I can get my boys to go see it then. And all those characters were fantastic. You do have to wonder about Disney making such a cute bad guy?

I hadn't heard about the pic a pearl there at Beach Club. That shop in Japan is always so crazy and love Wendy's reaction. Very appreciative young lady.

I know how you feel about certain resorts feeling like home, I always feel that way about POR. So relaxing, more so than home.

What will you two crazy girls do next?

 

[klacey1]

That's so sweet that you and Wendy got to have a girls-only time to pick a pearl! I loved doing this-- although, you're right, doing it in the World Showcase is definitely hectic. Mine was set on a ring and I wear it often. Such a perfect souvenir.
I've never really had a desire to stay at the Epcot resorts, but Stormalong Bay is absolutely GORGEOUS! The theming is better than at some water parks.

 

[norybell]

Wendy sounds like such a sweetheart...it's wonderful that you have such a good relationship. I have that with my mom, too, and it's always been one of the best things in my life.

Great pics of the Epcot resorts! My upcoming October trip will be the first time in many years that I'm not spending at least part of my time staying at one or the other of them...I'm not sure how I'll handle it!

 

[heaven2dc]

What a fun relaxing day! Thanks for sharing your tip about Pick A Pearl over at Beach Club - I will have to walk over there from the BW on our upcoming trip. Even though it is fun how they do it in Japan (with drum banging and all), this is much more quieter. Her necklace is lovely (I just wish my relationship with my daughter were going better right now - I miss the days when we has special moments like this. She moved out w/my grandson to live with her bf and under not so good circumstances and it saddens me. She and my oldest son & gf were supposed to join us for a family reunion at WDW on our trip in a couple months and now the only ones going are my DS28, DS23 and DS17 and myself. oh well...sorry about the pity!)

 

[DrMomof3]

That's awesome that Wendy loved the pearl so much!!!!

Amanda