Let's turn around. Magic Kingdom is open till 1AM! 3/23 Some Final Thoughts

[amandaw]

That stinks about the room view!

But, it sounds like y'all had a really nice day at the beach. And I LOVE the picture of DS in front of the AC unit. Too cute! Of course, I'm sure the re-appearing chocolate milk wasn't too cute.

 

[afwdwfan]

How long were you guys at the beach? I'm thinking of taking Everett on a cruise, but I'm not sure how much "beach time" he could log without getting bored or crazy. I'm also concerned with the "running into the water in an attempt to drown myself" factor.

We spent 2 full days there. The first day, we spent probably 2 hours at the cabana, went and ate lunch, and then came back for another hour or 2. Second day, we spent about 3 hours at the cabana, ate lunch, went to the room for naps and then returned to the beach for 2 more hours.

He really enjoyed just playing in the sand. If he hadn't started eating sea shells we probably could have stayed longer that first day. He loved getting into the water and playing, but actually was afraid to walk into it by himself. If he wanted to go in the water, he'd grab my hand, drag me to the edge of the water and wait for me to pick him up and take him into the water.

Too bad you had to clean up chocolate milk puke, but I agree its better to clean it up off the bed, then off of you!

Yes... at least he pretty much kept it on him and the pillows. I just grabbed a trash bag to drop the pillows into while DW hosed him down in the shower.

See I knew this would be a fun report to follow!

I'm glad I'm not disappointing you... yet.

Well… you know how it is. Sometimes computers just have a knack for causing problems or adding frustrating complexity to processes that would have been just fine without the electronic upgrade. I’ve even heard tell of otherwise reliable mechanical equipment being brought to a complete standstill due to nothing more then a little bit of a computer glitch.

But I don’t suppose that you’ve had to deal much with that type of nuisance recently.

“And then you…”

No, no, no, no… I’m not going there.
The beach is relaxing, calming… a place of Zen like magic.
Ahhhhhh….
What could go wrong?

Hurricanes? Tsunamis? Oil slicks?

Ummmmm…. Spoke too soon did I?

Oh, yeah. Stupid hotels and stupid inaccurate room types.

Don’t you just love when a downgrade or a “non-grade” is promoted as an upgrade (and then they went and included a price adjustment to emphasize the point)?

Granted our bedroom window was what I'd call a direct beach view, but I'd have rather had that view from my balcony. I do think that since we were in a corner room, it seemed a bit bigger. Or I might just be trying to find reasons to justify the extra money I spent.

There’s that Zen like experience I was talking about.
Ahhhhh…. that’s better.

I do miss the toddler years…

Whooo… did I say that out loud?

Well, it certainly is a fun age right now.

Am I going out of my mind?

Yes. Yes you are. It has nothing to do with your comments though.

Oh wait… Maybe I do miss the toddler years just a bit.

Hey, you never know what will happen next.

No… no, I was right when I second guessed myself the first time.
I love my son… and he was absolutely adorable when he was an itty-bitty, but…
It’s just easier now. The problems are different and of the type that I’m more geared to deal with.

Well, it ain't glorious, but puke clean up is pretty easy.

Sounds like a good trip so far. Eventful… to be sure, but good so far.
Looking forward to the next update Andy.

Thanks!

So cute! I'm joining in!

Hi! Glad you're here!

I see the Wilderness Lodge and DVC logos in your sig... do you own at WL? If so, I'm jealous...

Love the pics of the beach and the sunset.

Oh no on DS being sick but like others am glad he missed you

Me too! I didn't even hear anything. He was just sitting there like nothing happened. We had a rule the rest of the trip... no running around and jumping on things after drinking chocolate milk.

That stinks about the room view!

But, it sounds like y'all had a really nice day at the beach. And I LOVE the picture of DS in front of the AC unit. Too cute! Of course, I'm sure the re-appearing chocolate milk wasn't too cute.

He has always loved to sit, lay and stand on top of the AC and heat registers at home, so it really doesn't surprise me that he was hanging out in front of the AC in the hotel. Apparently his belly must have gotten a little warm though.

 

[KatMark]

Sure...go ahead and ignore my coment (even though I was the first to post after your update). I know when I'm not loved.

 

[afwdwfan]

Sure...go ahead and ignore my coment (even though I was the first to post after your update). I know when I'm not loved.

Just checking to see if you're still paying attention.

Sorry. That's what happens when I try to multi-quote and work at the same time.

I would NOT have been happy with that "full view" either. I can see why you were irritated.

Yeah... quite a disappointment.

Sounds like a fun day on the beach.

Yeah, very relaxing. I needed that. I need one of those days right now, actually.

I love the above picture...so typically a boy thing to do.

Thanks... I think...

Sorry DS got sick from his chocolate milk, but glad housekeeping was good to bring clean bedding and that DS missed you.

Yes, it could have been worse. Much worse.

 

[khertz]

That is a great pic of him with the a/c unit!! Kids come up with the funniest things to keep them entertained.

That really sucks about the beach view. I would have been VERY annoyed!! We had a great experience at the Wyndham in Panama City Beach. ALL of the units had beach views! You would think more hotels would catch onto this when they are beachfront properties. Who wants to stay at a hotel on the beach and not be able to SEE the beach??

Oh man, DS just switched recently to whole milk and we still have protein spills from time to time, but not as bad as when he was younger and puked every time he ate. Sour milk pukes are the WORST! Haven't experienced a chocolate milk one yet, thank goodness. Although yes, it is MUCH easier (and less unpleasant) to have it go on the sheets instead of yourself. DS did that to us in Best Buy a couple weeks ago, and it was horrifying!! You just can't get away from that smell when it is on your shirt directly under your nose!!

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

On Saturday morning, we woke up at around 8:30 am… well, I woke up at 8:30 which is unusually late for me. I went to sit on the balcony and enjoy this view while I waited on DW and DS to wake up.

Did the beach have a Rope Drop? Because you're in serious jeopardy of missing it.

Allow me to vent a bit now. We have stayed at this hotel at St. Pete Beach before and enjoyed it… that’s why we came back.

Sorry you had a bit of a bait-and-switch there. Good thing your DS had revenge on the hotel later that evening.

We’ll try to put this train back on the tracks now… we headed down to the beach to grab a cabana at around 10:00 am. We sat out there and just relaxed.

Ahhh...

Didn't have anything to say, just wanted a chance to use that smiley.

We even got to see some dolphins playing just a short distance off shore right in front of us until somebody on a water trike got a little too close and ran them off. We kept trying to get pictures, but by the time the camera would actually take one, this all we’d get.

Dolphins, huh? Surrrre they are. Hey, look, I see the Tooth Fairy!

DS didn’t want to eat much for lunch, but when we got back to our spot for the day, he showed us he was more interested in eating shells than chicken nuggets.

I'm sure they're rich in minerals.

I rolled over and tried to sleep while DS was jumping on the bed and running around the room doing things like this.

Did you teach him that one, or did he learn it on his own?

Unfortunately, the chocolate milk had made a spectacular reappearance all over him and a couple of pillows.

Hopefully his head wasn't spinning around.

 

[FreezinRafiki]

I'll bet you forgot about me, didn't you? You can't get rid of that easily. Maybe with penicillin...I've never tired that yet.

I had my alarm set for 11:45 and we were going to be on the road by midnight.

I've tried that before - trying to "bank up" some sleep. Never works for me. I just lay there in bed thinking about what I need to be doing in 4 hours and 17 minute. In 4 hours and 6 minutes. In 3 hours and 52 minutes....

That and we didn’t want DS to be “that kid” on a plane.

Evan screamed from take off in Orlando to literally 5 minutes before we landed in Milwaukee.

We pulled out onto the road and that’s when I realized this might not be a fun drive. There was fog. Heavy fog.

If you had packed a butter knife, you could have cut through it and had a better drive. Remember that for next time.

We made it to Georgia after just one quick stop for gas in Tennessee.

You sure can go far on a 26 gallon tank.

But it sure does hurt when you do have to stop and fill it up.

Atlanta is always the wild card of the trip and we wanted to make sure we had a full tank of gas and full stomachs before we hit the metro area. McDonalds did the trick for a quick breakfast and we sailed through Atlanta during the tail end of a Black Friday morning rush hour without hitting any traffic to speak of.

Those HOV lanes really help in Atlanta. Except they don't always follow the main route of I-75 and really confuses my GPS. We'd be in a tunnel and it would tell us to turn right in 500 feet.

This was the first time I had ever driven through Georgia during the fall and I was kind of excited when I saw mature cotton plants standing in the fields. Better yet, I even got to see them harvesting it. Not something you ever get to see in Indiana. I really wish I had stopped to take pictures, but we pressed on. I thought it was interesting to see something new though. Little discoveries like that make the drive worthwhile!

Cool! I would love to stop and watch that some time. Bambi of course wouldn't, but Evan and I out number her. And she won't hit him with a frying pan.

Awesome picture!

On Saturday morning, we woke up at around 8:30 am… well, I woke up at 8:30 which is unusually late for me.

Did you forget to pack the rooster?

All in all, it was a relaxing, enjoyable day. We grabbed some lunch at the hotel’s beach bar and headed back to our cabana. DS didn’t want to eat much for lunch, but when we got back to our spot for the day, he showed us he was more interested in eating shells than chicken nuggets.

What do shells go better with? Ranch dressing or BBQ Sauce?

There's old saying that goes "Sometimes your belly gets hot.". It's not a very good saying, but I think it applies here.

Unfortunately, the chocolate milk had made a spectacular reappearance all over him and a couple of pillows.

I've seen many a "second coming of chocolate milk." It's never pretty.
Oh, and welcome to the club. The Loyal Order of the Guys Whos Kids Have Puked in a Hotel Room meets on the 2nd Thursday of every month. But never at a hotel.

He missed me by at least a couple of feet.

Don't worry, his aim will get better.

 

[afwdwfan]

That is a great pic of him with the a/c unit!! Kids come up with the funniest things to keep them entertained.

It's rare that a day goes by that he doesn't do something to just make me shake my head and laugh.

That really sucks about the beach view. I would have been VERY annoyed!! We had a great experience at the Wyndham in Panama City Beach. ALL of the units had beach views! You would think more hotels would catch onto this when they are beachfront properties. Who wants to stay at a hotel on the beach and not be able to SEE the beach??

We like PCB a lot. We stayed at the Holiday Inn Sunspree there a few years ago for free on points. It had all the rooms facing the beach too. We'd probably just have gone there if it wasn't farther out of the way. It might be worth thinking about doing that next time though. There's more to do there within walking distance of all the hotels too.

Oh man, DS just switched recently to whole milk and we still have protein spills from time to time, but not as bad as when he was younger and puked every time he ate. Sour milk pukes are the WORST! Haven't experienced a chocolate milk one yet, thank goodness. Although yes, it is MUCH easier (and less unpleasant) to have it go on the sheets instead of yourself. DS did that to us in Best Buy a couple weeks ago, and it was horrifying!! You just can't get away from that smell when it is on your shirt directly under your nose!!

I don't envy that situation one bit. Fortunately, aside from the "spit up" puke from back in the bottle days, we've only had 2 incidents to clean up. Both were in beds and both resulted in him being the only one puked on. We've been pretty lucky.

Did the beach have a Rope Drop? Because you're in serious jeopardy of missing it.

If we missed it, then so did the cabana rental guy.

Sorry you had a bit of a bait-and-switch there. Good thing your DS had revenge on the hotel later that evening.

If there is one positive thing I can say about that hotel from this trip, it is that they responded quickly when we called the front desk that night.

Ahhh...

Didn't have anything to say, just wanted a chance to use that smiley.

Dolphins, huh? Surrrre they are. Hey, look, I see the Tooth Fairy!

No, the Tooth Fairy is in Don's trip report.

I'm sure they're rich in minerals.

I'm sure there's good calcium content. Between the shells and his newfound love for chocolate milk, his bones are going to be solid as steel.

Did you teach him that one, or did he learn it on his own?

No comment

Hopefully his head wasn't spinning around.

I'll bet you forgot about me, didn't you? You can't get rid of that easily. Maybe with penicillin...I've never tired that yet.

Tried it and you came back...

I've tried that before - trying to "bank up" some sleep. Never works for me. I just lay there in bed thinking about what I need to be doing in 4 hours and 17 minute. In 4 hours and 6 minutes. In 3 hours and 52 minutes....

You know, sometimes it works for me and sometimes I get that way too and my mind won't let me relax. Fortunately, it worked this time and it didn't take long before I was out.

Evan screamed from take off in Orlando to literally 5 minutes before we landed in Milwaukee.

At what point did Evan's screaming make you start screaming?

If you had packed a butter knife, you could have cut through it and had a better drive. Remember that for next time.

I'll remember that. Thanks.

You sure can go far on a 26 gallon tank.

But it sure does hurt when you do have to stop and fill it up.

Don't remind me... I just traded trucks this week too. Now I get to fill a 36 gallon tank with diesel fuel. I've got to have 5 credit cards just to get fuel. At least I should be able to go a couple of weeks between fill ups.

Those HOV lanes really help in Atlanta. Except they don't always follow the main route of I-75 and really confuses my GPS. We'd be in a tunnel and it would tell us to turn right in 500 feet.

Did you listen to the voice in your van?

Cool! I would love to stop and watch that some time. Bambi of course wouldn't, but Evan and I out number her. And she won't hit him with a frying pan.

We actually probably could have stopped. DW wouldn't have minded and Landon would have loved it. We wanted to try to get to the hotel before it got dark though, so we didn't have a lot of time to waste.

Awesome picture!

Thanks!

Did you forget to pack the rooster?

My sister and Bil have chickens and a rooster that runs around the yard with her dogs. DW told them we'd watch the rooster while they're on vacation. I then reminded her that the rooster likes to play with the dogs and our dogs kill animals that are smaller than they are. Problem solved!

What do shells go better with? Ranch dressing or BBQ Sauce?

Neither. It's seafood. Tartar sauce.

There's old saying that goes "Sometimes your belly gets hot.". It's not a very good saying, but I think it applies here.

I've seen many a "second coming of chocolate milk." It's never pretty.
Oh, and welcome to the club. The Loyal Order of the Guys Whos Kids Have Puked in a Hotel Room meets on the 2nd Thursday of every month. But never at a hotel.

Better to be in that club than the Loyal Order of the Guys Whos Kids Have Puked in the Van.

Don't worry, his aim will get better.

It can't get any better than it is now.

 

[FreezinRafiki]

My sister and Bil have chickens and a rooster that runs around the yard with her dogs. DW told them we'd watch the rooster while they're on vacation. I then reminded her that the rooster likes to play with the dogs and our dogs kill animals that are smaller than they are. Problem solved!

My brother and I hit a chicken with his truck once. We we doing about 50mph down a country road and it wandered out. No time to hit the brakes and we certainly weren't going to swerve into the ditch to avoid a chicken. POOF. All you could see behind us was a big ball of feathers.

Neither. It's seafood. Tartar sauce.

Better to be in that club than the Loyal Order of the Guys Whos Kids Have Puked in the Van.

We meet on Wednesdays.

 

[afwdwfan]

We just got our Photopass CD, so after the Christmas craziness slows down, I'll get the second beach day posted and get to the good part!

Thanks to everyone who is following along.



Merry Christmas!!!!

 

[Moodyzblu]

Have a wonderful holiday ! Looking forward to the pics.

 

[KatMark]

Andy, Merry Christmas to you and your family.

 

[afwdwfan]

My brother and I hit a chicken with his truck once. We we doing about 50mph down a country road and it wandered out. No time to hit the brakes and we certainly weren't going to swerve into the ditch to avoid a chicken. POOF. All you could see behind us was a big ball of feathers.

Reminds me of the best Randy Johnson pitch ever.

Have a wonderful holiday ! Looking forward to the pics.

Andy, Merry Christmas to you and your family.

Thanks for the Holiday wishes. We had a great Christmas and I hope you all did as well!

 

[My sister's princess]

My email dinged that you had posted here... I come over expecting an update to distract me from work and I was sad

Kidding, but really, I wana know what happens next!

 

[afwdwfan]

My email dinged that you had posted here... I come over expecting an update to distract me from work and I was sad

Kidding, but really, I wana know what happens next!

Sorry to disappoint.

^^ I'll have to remember where I wrote this so I can just quote this post for future instances.


I think I can make it up to you though...

 

[My sister's princess]

Sorry to disappoint.

^^ I'll have to remember where I wrote this so I can just quote this post for future instances.


I think I can make it up to you though...

And another email with no update. What are you doing!!!!!???????

 

[afwdwfan]

Life’s a Beach 2.0

This will be a quick and boring update. I don’t have any beach pictures from this day, so you’ll have to tolerate my use of words.

Our second day at St. Pete started at around 8 am once again. We ate some cereal in the room for breakfast and watched for the cabana guy to start setting up for the day. Once we saw the 4 wheeler head out to the beach, we decided it was time to head down and pick our spot for the day. We were the first ones there, so we chose one on the front row at the very end so DS would have plenty of room to run and play without having to worry about him bothering other people.

We sat on the beach until about noon and headed up to the hotel’s outdoor bar to grab some lunch. DS was getting a little impatient but we made it through lunch and took him into the pool for a bit. We (meaning DW and I) decided it was time to get out of the pool and go back to the beach. DS didn’t agree with that idea and decided to let us know about it.

Change of plans… I let DW go back to the cabana to relax while I took DS back to the room for a bath and a nap. We laid down on the bed with a Mickey Mouse Clubhouse DVD playing and he was out fairly soon. I turned the DVD off and started watching football. I think it was Tampa Bay vs. Tennessee. A game I didn’t really care about, but it was something to watch.

DS slept a couple of hours and DW came up to the room to check on us. Apparently she felt that everything was fine and I was doing an adequate job of the parenting duties so she headed back down to the beach. DS finally woke up about an hour later and we headed back out to join her. Today would be different from yesterday, and they would be awake to enjoy the sunset… on the beach, from our cabana.

After the sun set, we went back to the hotel’s outdoor bar for some (nasty) buffalo wings and (delicious) potato skins. I always love some good buffalo wings. I saw someone eating them at lunch and thought they looked great. I decided then that we would come back and just share some appetizers for dinner. They brought the wings out and they looked good, but that is by far the nastiest sauce I’ve ever had. I really can’t even describe it. It really wasn’t all that hot, but I was drowning the wings in ranch just to make them edible.

We finished our dinner and headed back up to the room. We got everything packed with the exception of the clothes we’d be wearing on Monday and a couple of bags. I went ahead and carried everything else out to the truck so that we could get an early start in the morning.

We went to bed early that evening. We were going to need our rest. We had to get up early and drive about 2 hours so we wouldn’t be late for our breakfast plans with a few of our favorite rodents, water fowl and dogs.

 

[afwdwfan]

And another email with no update. What are you doing!!!!!???????

Wow, you're fast!!!

 

[My sister's princess]

Wow, you're fast!!!

Makes me appear to be far creepier than I am



Great update though!!!

 

[FreezinRafiki]

This will be a quick and boring update.

Oh, so par for the course, huh? (Sorry, I've got a lot of work ahead of me if if I want to catch up to the number of zingers I've felt from you. )

Our second day at St. Pete started at around 8 am once again. We ate some cereal in the room for breakfast and watched for the cabana guy to start setting up for the day. Once we saw the 4 wheeler head out to the beach, we decided it was time to head down and pick our spot for the day.

To heck with the cabanas, I want to take the 4 wheeler for a spin. Those things float, right?

We (meaning DW and I) decided it was time to get out of the pool and go back to the beach. DS didn’t agree with that idea and decided to let us know about it.

I'm sure he did this is calm, dignified manner befitting any toddler.

and they would be awake to enjoy the sunset… on the beach, from our cabana.

They brought the wings out and they looked good, but that is by far the nastiest sauce I’ve ever had. I really can’t even describe it.

How's this for a description --->

so we wouldn’t be late for our breakfast plans with a few of our favorite rodents, water fowl and dogs.

That sounds almost as nasty as the buffalo wings...