Surprised the kids, wife, and my readers w/ a 2 week trip to AoA!(*NEW* 11-7)

[emilyindisney]

Had no idea that Chicago Fire was filmed at a real station- very cool pictures! The city makes a great backdrop on that picture of you and Candi!

 

[pjfranklin]

Beautiful Family!!! Looks like you all had tons of fun!!!

 

[scottny]

Storybook Circus is a fun area for both kids and adults.
Her Tink dress is adorable.
That is great for him on Splash Mountain. Handled it much than Vinny.
I love that seat by the window to see the boats on IASW. Maybe in 2 weeks I will sit there. :O)
Noelle’s face on Peoplemover is too cute.
Taking the train is always fun to do.
We had to sit through the same COP scene twice. I wonder if that was the reason for us.
Great parade pics.
Great pics at TL. I would love to try it once and also do the swim with sharks.
That is too bad about Parker at T-Rex.
Glad to see he was able to get his dino.
Your safari pics came out really good.
Fun trip to Chicago. I love that show.
All caught up again.

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

Chicago is such an awesome city. And I love that view from the Hancock Tower.

 

[FauntleroyFAN07]

Seeing as it is Dinosaurs Marv, you would qualify

Whenever my husband gets a job. He is the bread winner, so it has to pay well as well. He has been looking for about 6 months and no luck.

What a view and what a great way to spend Valentine's Day!

Always here to help............. well, when I'm not.....

MAYbe.........

You need to take that girl on a trip to Disney soon so she can work on getting a little sun.............

i know looking a little pasty huh?

darn white flash not being kind do her.

Looks like a fun trip! I haven't watched Chicago Fire yet. Not sure if it is because there is something else on that night, or if maybe that is one of the nights I don't get to watch much TV. Can't remember which night it is on.....

its on during the week, or that one day ending in Y forget right now.

Had no idea that Chicago Fire was filmed at a real station- very cool pictures! The city makes a great backdrop on that picture of you and Candi!

yep sure is...they guys who work there for real were very nice to show us around and tell us anything we wanted to know.

Beautiful Family!!! Looks like you all had tons of fun!!!

and thanks very much...does that little one belong to you sitting in the toilet...(something i never thought i would say or type) on your picture under your name.

Storybook Circus is a fun area for both kids and adults.
Her Tink dress is adorable.
That is great for him on Splash Mountain. Handled it much than Vinny.
I love that seat by the window to see the boats on IASW. Maybe in 2 weeks I will sit there. :O)
Noelle’s face on Peoplemover is too cute.
Taking the train is always fun to do.
We had to sit through the same COP scene twice. I wonder if that was the reason for us.
Great parade pics.
Great pics at TL. I would love to try it once and also do the swim with sharks.
That is too bad about Parker at T-Rex.
Glad to see he was able to get his dino.
Your safari pics came out really good.
Fun trip to Chicago. I love that show.
All caught up again.

thats awesome you get to go back again so soon scott.

i hope you get to tryout the water parks some time, i think you would have a really good time.

Chicago is such an awesome city. And I love that view from the Hancock Tower.

it sure is we love visiting there...i found out that the area we were in is also open at lunch time so plan to take the kids up there next time we visit the city.

 

[FauntleroyFAN07]

Chapter 34. Not another melt down?

With out pasty snack complete we headed back in to use our fast passes for the safari.

We saw a huge amount of giraffes again, and they were very close to our vehicles once again.

We then saw on the far away hill where they were storing the zebras for the time being while they built there home...They were located just across the old crickety bridge.

And who doesnt like a little baby elephant picture.

And not to be outdone by the baby elephant the baby rhino and his mommy were hanging out as well.

At this point i started to think that if there was not the whole issue of this giant vehicle i was in, this guy would seriously consider taking a shot at me.
just look at that face staring us down.

After our second safari ride of the morning. we were off on the train to the rafiki area, parker was loving the train that morning just like he loves all trains.

One of our favorite hidden mickeys and one of the first we ever found before we even knew what hidden mickeys were.

if u end up riding back there check out the bathrooms they have some fun soundtracks playing in there, or the guy in the stall had some really unusual talents.

Rafiki was out and about greeting his quests so we stopped to say hi...Parker wasnt feeling him at first but once he saw his sister go up and say hi and get an autograph he had no problem going up and getting one of his own.

didnt see pocahontas back there like we have in the past, hoping to find her later in the day.

checking out the local wildlife that was on display.

I thought this little animatronic gator was neat.

Parker and i petted his tail.

Noelle wanted in on this action, and i made sure to tell her to pet not squeeze him...she did very well.

we looked in the animal research/exam room and didnt see anything to peek our interest.
No wife almost fainting this time around (read the 1 year anniversary trip for that back story)

It was time to talk to the nutrionist about the food she was measuring out for the animals...I would stop and talk to them it was pretty interesting to hear all about there diets and such.


Then we moved outside to see the goats. At first parker said he just wanted to walk around then he said he was up for brushing a goat.

He found a friendly one to brush and really enjoyed it.

We also spotted this guy with a funky hair cut. Nothing like sucking up to your boss.

After we saw everything we wanted to see, we headed back on the train to the jungle trek, where we checked out the huge fish tank.

and im sure if there wasnt the danger of this big guy totally crushing you, he would be fun to use as a pillow.

From there we went and had lunch. we ate at flame tree BBQ and the line was really long with a bunch of angry people who were not getting all of there orders or no orders at all...almost 15 minutes later we got our food and i went off to find the family holding down a table.

we enjoyed the food but not sure how quick we will be back. We really enjoy pizzafari so that will most likely win out next trip.


It was time for NEMO.

we made it just in time to get in and get seats down on the left hand side with great views.

on with the show.

once the show was over we headed out....wait a minute you might be thinking no pictures of the show even if they are dark and blurry.

WELLLLL......


as soon as the show started the lights went out and they start the scene with the mean looking fish that eats all the fish eggs right...well, parker hit the floor and was under my legs.

No smooth talking to get him out at all...even when the bright scenes started up shortly after.

he wanted nothing to do with it.

so instead of fighting with him and keeping him scared we left the show...with short memories from the night before we started to all get angry with each other...well we dialed it back in before it got to the night before approach we had. and were off to find something fun for parker to do.

so to the dino area it was.

we took a few spins on the tricaratops to get his mind off it and to relax everyone. no pictures of it but we had video as everyone was still not fully happy after the whole nemo show

then it was on to the dino dig sites for some fun, there was a huge t-rex skeleton that they checked out.

parker and then climbed all the way up in the rope nets to see what there was to offer we had a really good time up there.

that is all for this time.


this was another point that you hate as a parent, you think that you would learn the first time to not get angry with a situation like the night before, but we found that we did get upset again when we left nemo.
It is all a learning process and do we always get it right as parents, nope, do we sometimes fail, yep, do we crash spectacularly after having a similar situation less than 24 hours earlier. absolutely. just learn to move on and keep trying to get it right.

we have one more shot coming up this day to see if we can figure out how to work with and solve the whole getting scared on rides event. but that is a story for another chapter and another day.

and sorry for so much time from the last update, i just figured out how to find my pictures onthe new photobucket.(i hate there changes.)

 

[jecskc]

I hate the new photobucket, too. Why fix what isn't broke ???

 

[englishrose47]

Great Update Dan !! I am gonna try FTB again in October on the Free Trip!!! I am not a huge Ribs fan, but I do remember seeing someone with a Turkey Sandwich that looked delish and I remember the Lime dessert was tasty!!!

 

[Trentmom]

Great safari pics

We discovered Rafiki's Train thing 2 years ago and really enjoyed that. Lot of fun over there and interesting stuff to learn about.

Bummer on the long wait for food

Poor Parker getting scared again. It is hard not to get upset as you want the perfect vacation and for everyone to have fun. Every parent makes mistakes and takes awhile to learn not worth getting upset with them. Been There Done That.

Looks like you redeemed yourself in the DINO area. Looks like a lot of fun there

 

[cheekypoppins]

Every parent gets frustrated or goes through times when they might be a little hyper sensitive but it doesn't mean anything other than we're human n we all have our moments.

 

[khertz]

You know, I am really glad you posted about this experience with Nemo! My DS will be turning 3 on our October trip, and he loves Nemo. DH and I have not seen the Nemo show since our honeymoon trip in 2007, so I didn't remember about that first scene and how scary it can be for kids! Now I will have that in mind so we can either skip the show again this time and try again when he's older, or have his eyes covered for that part of the show.

The pictures of Noelle with Rafiki are absolutely adorable! I'm glad she could show Parker there was nothing to be afraid of. In that picture of Candi & Parker on the train, you can definitely see where Parker gets his great smile from!

 

[FauntleroyFAN07]

I hate the new photobucket, too. Why fix what isn't broke ???

im with you there, it showed my items were uploading but would not let me get t hem from the library i had to create a new sub folder then make sure that is where they were uploading too...took 3 times but i finally got it...still a pain though.

Great Update Dan !! I am gonna try FTB again in October on the Free Trip!!! I am not a huge Ribs fan, but I do remember seeing someone with a Turkey Sandwich that looked delish and I remember the Lime dessert was tasty!!!

i know candi got the turkey sandwich, i had the pulled pork...they were okay...not great. i think im just used to my smoked meats, and how they taste so i am not always a fan of how others do theres. while theres may be more traditional to the way others cook, mine are usually alot more tender with brining the meat first, i dont think they take that extra step.

but you are right that lime dessert was very good i do remember that.

Great safari pics

We discovered Rafiki's Train thing 2 years ago and really enjoyed that. Lot of fun over there and interesting stuff to learn about.

Bummer on the long wait for food

Poor Parker getting scared again. It is hard not to get upset as you want the perfect vacation and for everyone to have fun. Every parent makes mistakes and takes awhile to learn not worth getting upset with them. Been There Done That.

Looks like you redeemed yourself in the DINO area. Looks like a lot of fun there

i know rafikis, gets a bad wrap with most people but we love it, alot of the kids to do and see back there.

we did have fun in the dino area, but didnt play really long as we had to keep on schedule to get the kids to see everything there, one thing i hate trying to schedule that day around all the different show times and trying to get everything in.

but i think it worked out good for us that day and we did do everything we wanted.

Every parent gets frustrated or goes through times when they might be a little hyper sensitive but it doesn't mean anything other than we're human n we all have our moments.

i agree with you there, you sometimes need to learn along with them.

and just hope you dont repeat that to many times.

You know, I am really glad you posted about this experience with Nemo! My DS will be turning 3 on our October trip, and he loves Nemo. DH and I have not seen the Nemo show since our honeymoon trip in 2007, so I didn't remember about that first scene and how scary it can be for kids! Now I will have that in mind so we can either skip the show again this time and try again when he's older, or have his eyes covered for that part of the show.

The pictures of Noelle with Rafiki are absolutely adorable! I'm glad she could show Parker there was nothing to be afraid of. In that picture of Candi & Parker on the train, you can definitely see where Parker gets his great smile from!

thinking back if we had distracted him during htat part or let him know it was coming up i think it would have been better, but just the shock of it right away didnt help, no matter how big and bright and happy everything was after that.

if you go to the show good luck in it.

that is a good picture, he Definitely loves trains...

 

[englishrose47]

I must havemissed the being afraid of NEMO show part!! For the life of me I can't think which part is scarey !!Of course I roamed the earth wiith Dinasaurs accrding to Marv, so I am a little older !!

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

At this point i started to think that if there was not the whole issue of this giant vehicle i was in, this guy would seriously consider taking a shot at me.

Yeah, somebody definitely did you-know-what in his cornflakes.

After our second safari ride of the morning. we were off on the train to the rafiki area, parker was loving the train that morning just like he loves all trains.

Even big boys love trains. Although I have to admit, that one eventually has me wishing it would hit the gas pedal. Or whatever trains do to speed up.

One of our favorite hidden mickeys and one of the first we ever found before we even knew what hidden mickeys were.

That is a good one.

We also spotted this guy with a funky hair cut. Nothing like sucking up to your boss.

Nice!

From there we went and had lunch. we ate at flame tree BBQ and the line was really long with a bunch of angry people who were not getting all of there orders or no orders at all...almost 15 minutes later we got our food and i went off to find the family holding down a table.

Wow. Wonder what the issue was there.

as soon as the show started the lights went out and they start the scene with the mean looking fish that eats all the fish eggs right...well, parker hit the floor and was under my legs.

so instead of fighting with him and keeping him scared we left the show...with short memories from the night before we started to all get angry with each other...well we dialed it back in before it got to the night before approach we had. and were off to find something fun for parker to do.

so to the dino area it was.

C'mon Parker! Let's ride Dinosaur!

this was another point that you hate as a parent, you think that you would learn the first time to not get angry with a situation like the night before, but we found that we did get upset again when we left nemo.
It is all a learning process and do we always get it right as parents, nope, do we sometimes fail, yep, do we crash spectacularly after having a similar situation less than 24 hours earlier. absolutely. just learn to move on and keep trying to get it right.

...and then screw it up again somewhere down the line. That's my experience, anyway.

 

[cherbear]

Dan, I LOVE this picture! he is so stinkin cute.

I read several updates. Felt so bad that he was scared of the dino, but it happens. And he seemed fine after getting Bronty so it's all good!

 

[KatMark]

Great pictures of the safari, Dan. So happy you got the baby elephant (I couldn't get a shot) and that you also got the baby rhino (she/he wasn't out when we were there).

Sorry about the fiasco with Nemo; it's been a few years since we saw it (okay two years I guess) and I don't remember the beginning that well.

I have to get Mark to Rafiki's Planet...we've not been there together since the kids were little (I did go with Mary and the girls last year).

I wonder why it was so crowded at Flame Tree? We've gone and never had much of a wait no matter what time of the day. Mark refuses to eat Florida pizza so Pizzafari is out for us.

I love Noelle's eyes when she is looking at Rafiki.

 

[MEK]

I love these two pictures, especially the fish tank shot. That's awesome!

UGH - I have heard so many complaints about the new photobucket today that I am seriously worried with only days to covert.

Great update. I have not been to Rafiki's planet in forever. I almost went on my last trip. I really need to check it out again. The animal interaction looks very cool.

 

[FauntleroyFAN07]

I must havemissed the being afraid of NEMO show part!! For the life of me I can't think which part is scarey !!Of course I roamed the earth wiith Dinasaurs accrding to Marv, so I am a little older !!

the very first scene is when the big long skinny fish comes and eats the fish eggs...it comes up quick so it can scare a little kid pretty easy. might even scare prehistoric rosie's as well.

Yeah, somebody definitely did you-know-what in his cornflakes.



Even big boys love trains. Although I have to admit, that one eventually has me wishing it would hit the gas pedal. Or whatever trains do to speed up.


That is a good one.


Nice!


Wow. Wonder what the issue was there.





C'mon Parker! Let's ride Dinosaur!


...and then screw it up again somewhere down the line. That's my experience, anyway.

it is a slow mover, but riding past the animal pens does help the time to go by.

not sure what the issue in our line some people had special diet orders that were not coming out, others were missing a few items...it was the peak lunch rush but just seemed to be very hectic that afternoon, even for a lunch crowd.

Dan, I LOVE this picture! he is so stinkin cute.

I read several updates. Felt so bad that he was scared of the dino, but it happens. And he seemed fine after getting Bronty so it's all good!

hey cheri, glad to see you on the boards.

that is a fun picture thanks.

Great pictures of the safari, Dan. So happy you got the baby elephant (I couldn't get a shot) and that you also got the baby rhino (she/he wasn't out when we were there).

Sorry about the fiasco with Nemo; it's been a few years since we saw it (okay two years I guess) and I don't remember the beginning that well.

I have to get Mark to Rafiki's Planet...we've not been there together since the kids were little (I did go with Mary and the girls last year).

I wonder why it was so crowded at Flame Tree? We've gone and never had much of a wait no matter what time of the day. Mark refuses to eat Florida pizza so Pizzafari is out for us.

I love Noelle's eyes when she is looking at Rafiki.

i was reallyhappy with the safari pics this time, the 3 shot action motion burst worked good on the camera to get the moving animal shots.

i think mark would enjoy it back there lots to see and learn about and something new for him.

if he refuses pizza he might like there hot italian sandwich, we always enjoy that at pizzafari.

I love these two pictures, especially the fish tank shot. That's awesome!

UGH - I have heard so many complaints about the new photobucket today that I am seriously worried with only days to covert.

Great update. I have not been to Rafiki's planet in forever. I almost went on my last trip. I really need to check it out again. The animal interaction looks very cool.

thanks, i was happy to get that shot in front of the tank, sometimes the unposed ones are way better than the stand there and smile and me ones.


i think the changes are just annoying people, but once i figured it out it is okay.

i changed my settings to have it show the links and now that i created a sub folder and just send all my uploads there it works good...

it is very hands on and interactive, and the CM's love to tell you anything you want to know about the animals

 

[Tinker326]

I stumbled on to your trip report about a week ago & finally just got caught up on my lunch hours! Love it!

Great stories & pictures & adorable family!!

Can't wait to keep reading!

And love the Chi-town pic! I love that city as well. So much, I live there!

 

[Millie12591]

this was suppose to be part of the signs i was "going" to take a picture of as many as i could to find all the letters of the alphabet and make a flash card game for the kids...i did get a few other letters...but missed close to 20 of them...i just forgot.

What letters did you get? Mackenzie and I can try and get all the letters for you while we're there.