Morning came on August 21st. And while I'm usually up with the sun, on this particular morning, I beat it. I quietly grabbed my running shoes and snuck down to the Boardwalk for a pre-dawn run. (For those that don't know, I'm training for the Walt Disney World Half Marathon in January 2013.)
I did a little stretching, started up the Disney playlist on my iPod and hit the path. Carefully. The only people out at this hour and idiot runners and grounds maintenance people, washing the Boardwalk. It was a bit slippery, but I'm nimble like a cat after a baggie full of capnip so I managed to stay upright. I cruised around Boardwalk, past the Beach Club, Yacht Club, Swan & Dolphin, finally taking the path down to Hollywood Studios and back, conveniently finishing right in front of the Boardwalk Bakery! I couldn't have planned it any better. OK, I could have planned to finish after they actually opened in the morning, but that's besides the point.
I returned to the room and showered (at Bambi's insistence) and found Ryder playing with his new
Lego man. Or playing with his toes while the Lego man watched and wished he had toes. Poor guy.
The view from our patio - the sun rising over the bus stop.
But the bus would not be our method of travel today. Nope, we all laced up our shoes (or flip flops or whatever) and took a nice morning stroll along the water way to DHS. And what a beautiful Disney morning it was - the sun was just starting to peak through the trees, it wasn't at all hot (yet), and we were able to see some local wildlife on the walk. squirrels, chipmunks, ducks....this guy....
He seemed very peaceful, just sitting there with his wings spread. Contemplating the meaning of life....puzzeling over the great questions posing mankind..."why are we here?"...."what else is out there?"...."how many licks
does it take to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop?"...
It's very zen. You should try it sometime.
After our morning meditation session, we continued on to our destination.
You can't see it in the picture, but these guys had a really, really big Q-tip.
As were were approaching the end of the path near the bus stop at Hollywood Studios, I realized that we, as humans, may not hold the spot as the smartest species on Earth for very long. Evidence (Honey Boo-Boo) suggests that we, as a species, are getting dumber, and I found proof that other creatures are getting smarter.
That may look like just a balloon to the untrained eye, but trust me, it's much more than that. Clearly, it was placed near the water's edge by an alligator. It's true! He puts the balloon - a beloved toy by children the world over - right at the edge of his habitat. He lies next to it, waiting for a sweet, delicious child to run up to it and ....well, you get the idea. No more searching for food. Just wait for it to come to you. Alligators clearly are evolving into very intelligent creatures.
I for one welcome our new reptile overlords.
We interrupt this Trip Report for a Cute Baby Picture.
We arrived at the park about 15 minutes before opening. I got in line with the now-sleeping baby while Bambi took the kids around to the various character meet & greets set up outside the turnstiles.
While waiting, Brian & his Canadian Posse used their RCMP ninja skills to track me down. (Also, I texted him my location.) Our plan was to get into the park and while Brian and I did a FastPass run to Toys Story Mania, Bambi and Sheri would take the kids to get signed up for the Jedi Training Academy. Despite some issues with Brian's ticket (clearly, he sneaked into the park without getting his ticket scanned) we were able to make it back to JTA sign up just as the the end of the line snaked it's way out the door and along the building. But at the front of the line were our families. I love it when a plan comes together.
So while Brian went up to Guest Services to straighten out his ticket situation, Bambi volunteered to stay back with Ryder while Sheri and I took there rest of the kids on Star Tours.
Watch out for the padawan in the front on the left. He appears to have an attitude. Or just something stuck on his tongue.
We were all counted out and placed in row 6 with some other travelers. The doors to our StarSpeeder opened and we piled in - with 2 more people than seats. Clearly the CM working the "counting" job was not strong in the force. So I took the boys on the ride while Sheri and the girls waited for the next transport vessel. And wouldn't you know it - Madison was the Rebel Spy! Few things make a dad more proud than knowing his daughter is carrying information vital to bringing down a Galactic Empire.
But while Madison was attempting her intergalactic espionage, Evan, Seth and I were hanging out in the way-to-crowded dump shop. Next thing I know - Evan's gone. Now, he's a smart kid and knows not to wander out of the store, so I he's (probably) in there somewhere. I tell Seth to stick close, because if I lost him it would probably be an international incident and they'd get Canadian law enforcement involved and they'd come down with thier funny riding pants and red jackets and silly hats and probably get heat stroke in the Florida humidity in that get up and then we'd have a real mess on our hands. Luckily, Evan had just tucked himself up in a corner looking at Star Wars Action Figures (They're not dolls!) and balance was returned to the force.
And like a proper little lady, Madison rides her Speeder Bike side saddle.
And like a proper little lady, Madison....ah, forget it. I have no idea what's she's doing here.
Our next stop was just down the hill, where we met up with another DisDad, Ron (Disney Commando). But more importantly (I feel pretty safe in saying that because I'm not sure he's reading this TR. If he his: HI Ron!) Phineas & Ferb!
A quick stop by Lightning McQueen and Mater (of which I appear to have no pictures
) and we hit up one more meet & greet:
I showed you that last picture for 2 reasons:
1. To prove than Brian and I did meet up with Ron
2. Despite his smile, I'm sure Mike Wazowski gets really sick of people use his head as an armrest.
Up Next: We use the Jedi Mind Tricks to Control Toy Story Maina. Then we actually learn Jedi Mind Tricks at JTA.
's might be moving in to chase 
