Yall probably dont remember, but the sleeping arrangements consisted of Marie and Daniel in the Murphy bed in the den, me in the full bed in the bedroom, and 2-3 kids in the bunks on any given night. This arrangement suited me fine, as I got my own bed each night, but it did require that I be in a rather small room with a good number of kids breathing hard and, on occasion, talking in their sleep, every night. Well, all that was fine this trip, as it always is, but it does make for some interesting moments. Monday morning, that moment was when 4-year-old Ryan started talking unintelligibly shortly before my alarm went off, when he suddenly hollered our, Muffins! Hysterical.
So, after muffins for breakfast, we all headed to the outpost to catch the bus to HS.
Buddy and Paw Paw, and all their grandkids that made it on this trip (they have 3 more younger ones at back at home):
Everything was shaping up for a perfect morning with one exception that day Daniel had those problems with his ear again last night and decided it was time for him to go see a doc-in-a-box to make sure nothing was really wrong. Happily, he wound up fine with just an infection, but he missed part of our morning at HS. He made it in time to get a good feel for the park, though, so it all worked out.
We grabbed another pile of GAD FP exchange cards, then headed in.
(As photogenic as he is, Evan has a hard time keeping a straight face in bright sun
)
We wanted to save the big fun rides till Daniel got back from the doctor, so we grabbed FPs (using our regular park tickets) for RNRC, then headed to Star Tours.
After that, we were kind of killing time hoping for a quick return by Daniel, so we threw a bone to Buddy and Paw Paw and all rode the Great Movie Ride. It was better than I had anticipated, but still definitely isnt a headliner. The younger kids enjoyed the shoot-em-out scene, but the older kids barely were able to tolerate it without texting.
After that, it was time to take everyone (except Ryan, who sadly wasn't tall enough) on RNRC with our FPs. Ryan was disappointed to not be able to go, but Buddy and Paw Paw entertained him well at the playground. It was Evans first time on the ride, as well as Maries, and they both thought it was great.
After than, we hung with the Little Green Men for a few minutes:
and then Daniel was back, so we proceeded straight onto TSMM!
Of course, everyone loved it, as always. Not in a Soarin way, but in a really fun way.
After TSMM, we all rode TOT together, including even my dad who loved it. After that, Danielle and I broke off from the group and saw Beauty and the Beast, as her choir is going to be performing that show in May and she wanted to get a glimpse of it on stage before her big performance.
(One of her best friends will be playing Ms. Potts, so this is the only picture we got.)
After the show, Danielle and I grabbed some Mickey bars, did some shopping and finally headed back to the Fort. Meanwhile, everyone else did RNRC again, LMA and then one more ride on TOT before calling it a day.
Back at the fort, I finally did what I had been wanting to do the whole trip - got out on a bike by myself and just went exploring. Most of the loops appeared to be very full, and it was just a very relaxed atmosphere (as usual). I went to loop 500 to try to meet DaveInTn, but he wasn't at home. (Happily, I did get to meet him later in the day.) He had a very nice site that apparently is perfect for fishing.
Right after I left his site, though, I figured out that my cell phone (brand new at that) had fallen out of my pocket somewhere between loops 1100 and 500. I retraced my steps multiple times, but couldn't find it. Ugh. But, being that the fort gods were smiling on me, someone turned it in at Trails End and I had it back within about an hour. Amazing. It just goes to show what kind of people stay at FW.
Anyway, we finally eventually made it to the pool where the kids (all but Brad) swam for a looooong time. There was a good crowd at the pool, but really only kids in the pool. Most adults just weren't up for swimming in the windy conditions. (Either that, or they didn't want to have to get themselves back to their site cold and wet.)
Tonight was my night to provide dinner for the crowd. When it is Maries turn, she will make the chicken casserole she cooked and froze a few weeks back. My parents have cooked homemade meals most every night for all of us. What do I do for my turn? Takeout from Trails End.
Two pizzas plus a giddyup and go with fried chicken, fries and biscuits and we were set. Plus, I got to sit at Crockett's Tavern and enjoy that scene for a while. Very nice. And, Brad at least seemed thrilled to get his hands on some pizza.
We got to eat both lunch and dinner outside on the porch today. It was a beautiful day - sunny but cool very nice.
One more picture from Monday. Im not sure when it was taken, but I have to share just to show how cute Buddy and Paw Paw are:
More to come soon!
Leslie
I saw some people raise their arms on ToT on my last trip and my daughter asked why they did that and I reminded her people do it on roller coasters and she said "but this isn't a roller coaster and if they raise their hands, how can they hold on during the drop?" 
I think she was over analyzing things lol
Keep it coming...
)
Ever since then, I've been anxious to get there. The food was very good, but of course I liked some parts better than others. The good thing that I could figure out was that there were some more exotic choices and several less exotic ones, so regardless of where you came down on being adventurous in your dining, you would likely find plenty that you liked. And, the desserts were definitely a big part of the buffet - I saw more people trying to get at the desserts (including the Zebra domes) than anywhere else. Try it on your next trip - I think you'll really enjoy it.
