Life Stinks Season 4: The Surprise

[Mozart]

Originally Posted by miztigg

I say parents smarents I would have taken them to magic kingdom but your probably a better person than me

Not better. I just know not to invoke the wrath of a mother who also happens to be my sister-in-law.

Originally Posted by Tink rules

does your nephew realize that Buzz is now 3 stories tall???

You know what's funny? He had a total fascination with Woody's cord. He insisted that he was going to pull the cord in Woody's back to get Woody to talk. I told him he probably wasn't strong enough to pull a cord that weighed that much, so he said I would have to do it.

Originally Posted by DsneyNana

Enjoying the TR...actually LOVING the TR...anxiously waiting for the next chapter...

Originally Posted by disneychic

YAY! The TR is underway!!!

Hope everyone is. I'll have another update either tonight or tomorrow.

Originally Posted by pierresgirl

Mozart! How cool of an aunt and uncle are you guys?! Can't wait to read more...

We are the coolest. Best way to become a great aunt and uncle is through simple bribery.

[CRUIZEN MAMMA]

We are the coolest. Best way to become a great aunt and uncle is through simple bribery. [/QUOTE]

and buying them stuff Mom & Dad won't let them have-
can't wait for that update

[Tink rules]

Originally Posted by Mozart

We are the coolest. Best way to become a great aunt and uncle is through simple bribery.

Originally Posted by CRUIZEN MAMMA

and buying them stuff Mom & Dad won't let them have-
can't wait for that update

How do you think I made Aunt of the Year (at least to the only 5 kids that count for me... )

[Mozart]

So the interesting part of the vacation has officially begun. We have kids with us. Right now all is well because they’re excited, but how about those times when they’re frustrated, tired, or downright irritable. We don’t deal with that on a regular basis. But for now, it’s a walk through the Toy Story and 101 Dalmations area of the resort, and they’re excited.




Time comes and goes, and we figure we need to leave about an hour beforehand to catch a bus to Downtown Disney. We head through the food court, and even though they left an hour ago, we run into Mommy and Daddy eating dinner there. The kids say goodbye one last time in a brief manner. After all, they’re more excited about all the Disney stuff around them.

I’ve never been a fan of the bus system at WDW. It seems slow and cumbersome to me. Our adventures of the next two days would simply confirm that. When we got to the bus stop, there was no one in line for Downtown Disney. No problem. We must have just missed the bus. So we begin our wait. 4 buses for Animal Kingdom go by, about 3 for Magic Kingdom, a couple for Hollywood Studios and EPCOT, but nothing for Downtown. After about 30 minutes, and us getting close on time, a bus comes rumbling down. They have enough room for 4 people on the bus. So while we got on, all those other families who had been waiting for so long had to watch the bus go driving away.

The bus system stinks.

And then another thing about the bus that annoyed me. We had two children with us. For safety reasons, I would expect someone to say, let the child sit here, but no. Niece and nephew had to hold on to my shorts for dear life because they couldn’t reach anything, and I was having trouble holding on because the turns were being taken so hard. Please, if you’re on a bus, make sure that kids can sit somewhere so they don’t go flying all over the bus when it turns.

The first treat of the trip. We’re hoping the kids will find the Rainforest Café fascinating. All the animals, the gorillas, the zebras, the snakes. Either they’ll love it or it will freak them out. What I loved about it was the fact that we had reservations. The line just to check in was long, so I butted in at the front and asked simply “Where do I go if I have reservations?” This would make all the people in line mad at me. Why? Because she took care of me right away. Handed me a slip of paper and said “Wait for your name to be called.” I then heard her tell the people behind me that the current wait was 2 hours outside and another 15-30 minutes inside. Within 30 seconds, literally, our name was called.

Next up is yet another line. This one is inside the Café. We walk up to the back of the line and figure it’ll take 15 minutes to reach the front. Nope. After about 2-3 minutes a server comes walking back calling out our name. “Please come to the front of the line” she says. So, let me get this straight. Walk ups have a 2 hour wait outside and 15 minute wait inside. With our reservations, from the time I walked up to the stand, it was less than 10 minutes, probably closer to 5 that we were seated. I love reservations.

Kids Mac and Cheese

Kids Popcorn Shrimp

Something with shrimp

Volcanic Cobb Salad

Volcano

The whole gang:


Up next: You have got to be joking.

[Tink rules]

Ok... so how many times did people come up and tell you you have beautiful children and as the uncle you are... puffed out that chest and said "Thank You..."... (yeah... I don't correct them either...

[UGAFan0829]

What a great installment. The food looks so yummy, and I love that y'all were able to pretty much walk right in!! Guess those other folks will learn to make reservations too!

[CRUIZEN MAMMA]

Love nephew's expression -is that for the volcano dessert?

[Mozart]

Originally Posted by Tink rules

Ok... so how many times did people come up and tell you you have beautiful children and as the uncle you are... puffed out that chest and said "Thank You..."... (yeah... I don't correct them either...

On the one hand, you don't want to go around correcting everyone you meet, but I feel like I'm lying to them if I take credit for how gorgeous they are. (And yes, my niece and nephew are the most gorgeous kids in the world, just like yours are to you!)

Originally Posted by UGAFan0829

What a great installment. The food looks so yummy, and I love that y'all were able to pretty much walk right in!! Guess those other folks will learn to make reservations too!

I highly recommend the salad. That was mine. I've had it before and it's really good. The popcorn shrimp wasn't bad either, and my wife said the mac and cheese was good. I'd tell you what the kids said, but they never bothered to eat anything. That's why we ate it all.

Originally Posted by CRUIZEN MAMMA

Love nephew's expression -is that for the volcano dessert?

In all of his pictures he has this warped little smile when he poses. If you can catch him without warning, he looks great, but ask him to pose and you get this weird evil looking smile.

I just noticed how drugged I looked. That's how you look at 9 PM when you've been up since 3 AM.

[miztigg]

where have ya been
waiting not so patiently for the next segment
your TR is passing time till my 3 day WITHOUT the kids for the first time

[MN Dis Fans]

This is fun. I would love to bring neices and nephews along!

[MagicMe]

Waiting for the next wonderful installment.

[Mozart]

Originally Posted by miztigg

where have ya been
waiting not so patiently for the next segment
your TR is passing time till my 3 day WITHOUT the kids for the first time

Originally Posted by MagicMe

Waiting for the next wonderful installment.

Next installment will be here in the next couple of days. It's written I just need to get a chance to upload it on my home computer.

Originally Posted by MN Dis Fans

This is fun. I would love to bring neices and nephews along!

You may change your mind after reading some of my trip report.

[ickletarakins]

Well, I randomly popped into this TR and now I'm glad I did, seeing as you're from the Upstate! We moved to Greenville in October of last year (from CT) and LOVE IT!

Can't wait for the rest of your TR, but I have to say...better you than me with bringing those kids along! I have a 3 and a half year old niece and as much as I love her, I'm pretty darn sure I wouldn't have the patience to take her to Disney or on a cruise, haha.

[JohnsPrincess]

Not only can I read your TR from work - I can see the pictures!! KEEP IT COMING! 13 hour days feel much less while following things like this!

[Mozart]

$98. Are you freaking kidding me? $98 for a party of 4, 2 of which are kids, and no alcohol involved. Granted, we got a volcano, but still. How do parents afford to take their kids to WDW? I remember taking the kids to Wendy’s one time and it ended up being about $20. And some parents make it on a single income which, to be frankly honest, is less than half of what we make. Now I could understand it if we had gone someplace that was supposed to be nice, but Rainforest Café? I don’t understand it. We can go to the Melting Pot (one of our favorite places) for a less money than that.

The kids loved Rainforest, except for the snake. They really didn’t like the snake, and they weren’t happy that the rainshower didn’t really have any rain. They wanted to get wet.

Finally, we were done at the Ripoff Café, and we walked outside to walk through Downtown Disney. Nephew is a huge Stitch fan (more on that later, don’t worry) so he loved the spitting Stitch outside the World of Disney.

We walk through that store, and I can’t take it. Normally, we go to WDW during the off times of the year because we’re DINKs. However, having to take the kids during their spring break meant that there were crowds everywhere you went. Crowds annoy me. People don’t pay attention to where they’re walking. Kids running everywhere and parents are in their own world and don’t try to control them. That’s what I love about Niece and Nephew. They never throw tantrums, listen when you call them, and, for the most part, do what you say. I have to give a lot of credit to my sister-in-law, she’s done an excellent job of teaching them how to behave. Of course, I also have to admit that part of it may simply be because we’re not used to it. Parents become numb to constantly trying to control everything that goes on with their child, while aunts and uncles, who aren’t as worn out on it, have the energy to really pay close attention to everything the kids are doing.

The crowds though. Unbelievable. After about 30 minutes of crowds, I’d had all I could take. I went to look for the wife and discovered that she felt the same way. So, we began to make our way back. This night was cold, and here I am in Florida shorts. It felt more like South Carolina than Florida, and I froze all the way back.

I was confused on the bus. After all, when you do the Richard Petty Driving Experience, you use old NASCAR cars. However, it appeared that we were doing it in a fully loaded bus. Our driver passed every other bus at WDW and took corners like Rusty Wallace. I swear at one time the back end of the bus was sliding like they do at dirt tracks on the corners. (Just trust me. That means they’re going fast.) After a seemingly short trip on the bus, we were back.

That’s when I looked over and saw my niece. She was out. It had been a long day and she had all she could take. Uncle Mozart then played Dad and carried her back from the bus stop. Aunt and I got her ready for bed without ever waking her up, and she crashed. Soon, the other 3 of us would follow her. It would be the hyped up sounds of Stacy and the Must Do Items at WDW that we would fall asleep to.

But the night wouldn’t be that restful.