Bumps, bruises, too many teenagers & swimming with sharks! NEW 11/17 pg. 32

[Moodyzblu]

Joining in !

Great TR so far ! I love all the pics and Zach is doing a great job on his as well. I let my boys take pics during Kilimanjaro and they loved it. I think I"ll get a new camera for myself and let the boys use my old one for next trip.

Looking forward to reading more !

 

[DisMomAmy]

WOW....massive update.

I love the pictures of World Showcase from the International Gateway entrance (so nice to get pictures without a million people in them).

Sounds like a very productive and fun day at Epcot.

That was sweet of Alex to buy Zach a gift.

Teppan Edo is always on my mind, but we do hibachi with Nicki and Todd in Naples so we always end up skipping it. But it does look yummy.

Love your departure pictures of the Beach Club (the one resort I still want to try).

Keeping fingers crossed that you get the section you requested at Vistana Villages.

I love entering Epcot through the WS! It really is such a nice walk.

I bet you would LOVE staying at the BC!

I'll have an update on our second home away from home soon!

Such pretty pictures of the Beach Club area.

Teppan Edo - so good!

I love that Alex bought Zach a gift.

I wasn't there when Alex bought the gift for Zach so I'm not sure how the whole thing went down, but it was very nice of him!

Teppan Edo...

WOW!!! Great update, you got a lot done so far this day.

Love all your pictures, you really captured each country. So sweet of Alex to buy Zach a gift. Love your meal, Jack liked looking at the pictures, and can't wait to eat there in Sept.

Glad Zach was able to ride Sum of all Thrills.

Your pictures of Beach Club are great, can't wait to see if you got a room near Heidi.

I think you guys will really enjoy Teppan Edo! It's such a fun restaurant.

I'm REALLY glad Zach got to ride SoAT!!

Loving your TR so far, but I'm just wondering why you think that Soar'n needs an update? If it's a problem with the film they can easily just change that out as it is just a loop of IMAX film which is the largest film format used today. If you are waiting for it to be done in digital don't hold your breath on that one as it's not very likely as right now the only projector that IMAX is happy with the overall quality of for a digital projection of IMAX film is made by Kodak and is fairly expensive right now and not likely to be put into a theme park attraction any time soon.

The main reason for this is because of the overall size of an IMAX film and the screen everything is magnified and the bulb is so bright that you could see it from the moon. Also with film they are able to show colors as they are in real life where as current digital technology tends to no show black and darker colors well as film does.

I'm not sure what's wrong with Soarin'. The film looks old & dirty. You can see all the lines of the screen & lots of pieces of junk (what looks like dust on the film). I would have thought it would be easy to change out the film so I don't understand why they haven't done it. I have no idea about the technology so I wasn't holding out for digital. All I know is it doesn't look very good right now. (And hasn't for about the past three trips.)

You did get a lot done on that day.

Ah I just love walking thru the IG in the morning. Another reason I love staying at BC.

Great job to Alex for 4 medals!!!

We did get a lot done. I wasn't sure how it would work out with it being our moving day but I was happy with what we got accomplished.

Thanks about Alex! We are so proud of him!!

Wow, mega update! You got a lot done at Epcot that morning.

So, did they let you in the IG right at 9:00 a.m. or before? When we were there for EMH, they didn't let us in until right at 8:00 a.m. It was frustrating as we wasted a lot of the EMH walking to the front of the park (I don't run!!! like most everyone else was). I really expected there to be a rope that would let us go so far and then wait, kind of like what they do at the front of the park.

Trust me, even if the kids could have pedaled it wouldn't have helped on that surrey bike!!! Jeremy was up front the first time around and on the back the second time and it didn't make a difference either time. Based on your story, I think it must be a yelling match for the spouses as I was accused of not pedaling either! Hate that it happened to you but I am glad it just wasn't me.

Anxious to see if your request comes through.

So funny that your surrey bike story is very similar to mine! We won't be doing that again any time soon!

I think they would have been letting people into the IG before 9am but they were having trouble with the turnstiles when we got there. They finally got one working & we all went through there.

 

[EastYorkDisneyFan]

I'm not sure what's wrong with Soarin'. The film looks old & dirty. You can see all the lines of the screen & lots of pieces of junk (what looks like dust on the film). I would have thought it would be easy to change out the film so I don't understand why they haven't done it. I have no idea about the technology so I wasn't holding out for digital. All I know is it doesn't look very good right now. (And hasn't for about the past three trips.)

From what I gather from the Wikipedia article on IMAX which is what the Sorin' film is it runs through the projector at 48 frames per second (normal speed is 24). They try to keep the film and the projector as clean as possible but sometimes it seams to pick up more dirt and dust as time goes buy. I believe they do change the film out often as because of the speed of the film there is some increased wear and tear on it. I think it just comes down to whenever it's bad we notice it more then when it's good, which is when you don't notice it.

 

[DisMomAmy]

Life keeps getting in the way of my DIS time! We're down to four days of school and two more baseball games, then hopefully things will settle down! Tuesday night is Alex's 5th Grade Celebration! I can't believe they will be a 3rd grader & a 6th grader!

Wow! Great updates....so much

accomplished on moving day!

So glad to see the sun came out for you!

The sun was a very welcome sight!

great update.
You did accomplish a lot.
I love love love!!! walking through IG early in the morning. It's great to get pics with no other people in them.
How long does a KP mission take?
Can't wait to hear about Vistana.
We liked SVR.
Teppan Edo is delish

There's no better way to enter Epcot than the IG!!!
Most of the Kim Possible missions take 20-30 minutes. The Mexico mission felt on the shorter end & the Norway mission seemed longer.
Glad to hear you liked SVR.

Zach's pictures turned out great!! I'm thinking about having Noah do the same on our trip. He loves to take pictures and did a great job when we were at the lake last year. It will be interesting to see what he comes up with.

Aww..that's too bad about Cape May. We have been wanting to see Chimpanzee! Glad you enjoyed it!

Wow! Love your Epcot update! We can't wait to ride Sum of All Thrills for the fist time! I'm glad Zach was able to ride after all!

The camera really kept Zach busy - it was a great distraction, especially when we had to wait. And it's really cool to look at his pictures.

Sum of All Thrills is very fun!

Was reading "mom2k" TR and she posted this..
I thought you would enjoy this as well....


http://www.shmoolok.com/Blog/tabid/62/EntryId/51/Snow-Whites-Scary-Adventures-A-Retrospective.aspx

Thanks for sharing! I took a peak and read that blog post but want to go back and read more!

Oh, that surrey bike -- I can promise you that we will not be doing that!

Your New York trip sounds like lots of fun! I am sure you are looking forward to it.

Your Epcot day sounds just about perfect -- so glad everyone was able to go upside down on Sum of All Thrills.

Oh Jackie... I highly recommend skipping the surrey bikes!

I can't wait to take the boys to NY!!

It was a huge relief that the CM remeasured Zach & let him go upside down!

Joining in !

Great TR so far ! I love all the pics and Zach is doing a great job on his as well. I let my boys take pics during Kilimanjaro and they loved it. I think I"ll get a new camera for myself and let the boys use my old one for next trip.

Looking forward to reading more !

Thanks for reading!
I'm thinking of letting Alex use my old camera then both boys can take pictures... I'm just not sure Alex will be into it.

From what I gather from the Wikipedia article on IMAX which is what the Sorin' film is it runs through the projector at 48 frames per second (normal speed is 24). They try to keep the film and the projector as clean as possible but sometimes it seams to pick up more dirt and dust as time goes buy. I believe they do change the film out often as because of the speed of the film there is some increased wear and tear on it. I think it just comes down to whenever it's bad we notice it more then when it's good, which is when you don't notice it.

You are right about that... you don't notice it when it's good but you can't miss it when it's bad!

 

[DisMomAmy]

Before I post this next update, I remembered one more bump I got on this trip. On our last day at AK, when riding EE, somehow I managed to smack my head on the bar between the two headrests! Can you believe it? We're always telling the kids to keep their heads back and what do I do? Life my head up & smack it on the bar! Ouch!

Moving on... literally! We arrived at Vistana Villages in no time & I went in alone to check-in. The first thing I noticed was NO LINE! The line was huge at Vistana Resort and the Diamond Lane check in was really worth it. This time, it really made no different in the wait time. When I stepped up to the desk, the first thing I said, after my name, was that we had friends in St. Augustine 23 & really wanted to be close to them. She said that unfortunately they didn’t have anything in that building but we were in 26, which was also in St. Augustine! The resort was much smaller than Vistana Resort but since it was new for us, we followed the map to the parking lot near our building. There was construction going on behind our section but it never bothered us. Our other request had also been granted, top floor! Although I’m not sure we needed the top floor in a six story building! We spent a fair amount of time waiting on elevators – which were much slower than at the BC!

Our villa was fantastic! There was one little stain on the carpet but otherwise it was in perfect condition. We walked around barefoot quite a bit & never had dirty feet, so the stain was truly a stain & not just a dirty carpet.

The first pictures I took were from the pool because that’s the first place we headed after unloading our stuff into the villa.
Our building… we were the third screened porch on the top:

The slide, which emptied into its own little pool:

The little kid play area, which even at 8 & 11, the boys enjoyed:

I headed back upstairs before everyone else so I could disinfect & take some pictures:
Kitchen:

Laundry room off kitchen (it had a pocket door that you could close if it was too loud, there was also an iron and ironing board in there):

Second bedroom:

View into bathroom from 2nd bedroom:

Second bathroom:

Balcony (the door is just where the water heater is, not connected to another villa):

View from balcony (sorry picture is bad because camera kept focusing on the screen):

Continued...

 

[DisMomAmy]

Living room & dining room:

Master Bedroom:

View from master bedroom:

Master bathroom (there were two smaller sink areas - one between the tub & toilet area (with my junk on it) and the other between the closet & the shower (that DH used)):

Toilet was behind pocket door:

Closet on left, door back to master bedroom on right:

I have more pictures from around the pool & resort that I post when I get to them. I'll also post a review a little later. Please ask if you have any questions in the meantime.

After swimming and getting settled in, Tim went out to find dinner. He got McDonald’s for the boys & Panera for us. Zach was in bed by 8:00 and Alex followed around 8:30. I did some laundry & prepared for the morning before we headed to bed early ourselves.

Up next: Animal Kingdom & Hoop Dee Doo Revue

 

[KatMark]

Amy, sorry you didn't get in the same building with your friends, but it looks great -- from the pool to the villa. Beautiful and spacious.

 

[JPFamilyMom]

Sorry about your other bump

WOW!!! on the resort. LOVE everything about it. Sorry you weren't in the same building as Heidi and fam, but at least you were in the same section. The pool looks like a lot of fun, the rooms look spacious.

Can't wait to read more

 

[EastYorkDisneyFan]

You are right about that... you don't notice it when it's good but you can't miss it when it's bad!

I also just reread your post about it, in regards to the holes in the screen and line that is actully how an imax screen is constructed due to it's size (about 10 stories high) and also some of the speakers are hidden behind the screen so the holes need to be in it so the sound can be herd.

 

[WDWCP96]

Wow the new resort looks really nice. The pool area looks like a lot of fun.

 

[Charleston Princess]

Ouch to the head bumping!

I am quite jealous of all that space in your villa, especially that kitchen! I really think I (and the rest of the family) have outgrown the normal hotel rooms at Disney. The pool looks like a lot of fun, too!

 

[MeMom]

It would certainly be nice to have all of that room and the nice balcony. We're not ready to start staying off-site yet, but I am not ruling it out for future trips, as the family grows. A house with a private pool would be really nice for me, so I could actually swim. We've stayed a few first nights off-site before when we've added an extra day.

 

[mommytothreeboys]

Beautiful resort! I'm glad check-in was smooth.

 

[Angies1274]

Wow! Your resort looks amazing Amy! We have been talking about maybe staying off-site on our next trip. It would be so nice to have all that extra room!!!

 

[eandesmom]

Love all that space, it looks like a lovely resort! Bummer on the head bump though, OW!

 

[ddluvsdisney]

Wow beautiful resort!!
You can tell it's newer than SVR.

 

[DisMomAmy]

Amy, sorry you didn't get in the same building with your friends, but it looks great -- from the pool to the villa. Beautiful and spacious.

We were really happy to be in the same section as Heidi - it wasn't a big deal at all to not be in the same building.

Sorry about your other bump

WOW!!! on the resort. LOVE everything about it. Sorry you weren't in the same building as Heidi and fam, but at least you were in the same section. The pool looks like a lot of fun, the rooms look spacious.

Can't wait to read more

The resort was really nice! I think it's at the top of our list for our next visit.

I also just reread your post about it, in regards to the holes in the screen and line that is actully how an imax screen is constructed due to it's size (about 10 stories high) and also some of the speakers are hidden behind the screen so the holes need to be in it so the sound can be herd.

Thanks for the info! I guess I just didn't notice those lines & holes until one of our more recent trips.

Wow the new resort looks really nice. The pool area looks like a lot of fun.

The pool was GREAT!

Ouch to the head bumping!

I am quite jealous of all that space in your villa, especially that kitchen! I really think I (and the rest of the family) have outgrown the normal hotel rooms at Disney. The pool looks like a lot of fun, too!

If you don't mind driving to/from the parks, staying off-site really doesn't take longer than using buses. The only issue you might have is if you split up & one or two of you want to go back to the hotel but the others want to stay in the park. Otherwise - the extra space is well worth it!

It would certainly be nice to have all of that room and the nice balcony. We're not ready to start staying off-site yet, but I am not ruling it out for future trips, as the family grows. A house with a private pool would be really nice for me, so I could actually swim. We've stayed a few first nights off-site before when we've added an extra day.

I can see you & your gang in a private house! You definitely don't feel as immersed in the magic when you stay off-site but the space is worth it for us... especially if we do a partial on-site/partial off-site trip like this one was.

Beautiful resort! I'm glad check-in was smooth.

Thanks! I finally felt settled once we got checked in.

Wow! Your resort looks amazing Amy! We have been talking about maybe staying off-site on our next trip. It would be so nice to have all that extra room!!!

Off-site would be a great choice for your family too! Sheraton Vistana Resort or Vistana Villages are both good choices.

Love all that space, it looks like a lovely resort! Bummer on the head bump though, OW!

I couldn't believe I smacked my head on EE! The resort was great!

Wow beautiful resort!!
You can tell it's newer than SVR.

We were in the newest section too. Based on the pictures of the other sections (which have been refurbed), St. Augustine is the nicest.

 

[cinderella crazy]

Oh my goodness! I have no idea how I haven't seen your TR till now! Going back to catch up...

 

[DisMomAmy]

Before I move on to the next update... hopefully early next week... I thought I'd fill you in on what's been keeping us so busy.

The kids had their last day of school yesterday so we're enjoying our first day of vacation today. It's nice to finally have some time at home!

We've been very busy with baseball, which finally comes to a close tomorrow.

There are always baseball games too! A few weeks ago we went to a Red Sox game at Fenway park and last weekend we went to a Portland Sea Dogs game:

Funny side story for those of you who have followed my previous TRs & know our extended family a little bit... While we were at the game, DBIL (Jeff) texted that he wanted to talk to Zach. We called him up & let Zach talk. When Zach hung up, apparently Jeff had too because he wasn't on the line when Zach handed us the phone. So we asked him what Jeff said. He said it wasn't Jeff, it was Karen and she had called for nothing. Then after some probing, he says that she said something about being married. Moments later we got a text from Jeff & Karen, with their wedding photo! They had eloped in New Orleans earlier that day! It's all good, but was a big surprise!

Alex has also had a couple swim meets, including the Special Olympics state games a couple weeks ago. He won four gold medals.

Alex has been on the Special Olympics team for about 5 years. He also joined the local swim club (which is run by the same coach) this year. The swim meets will continue all summer for him, with a meet this weekend that has us as a pool 30 minutes away at 7am tomorrow and 6:30am Sunday.

We've had a bunch of school activities in the past couple weeks too, starting with field day:

That's Alex out in a kayak with one of the lifeguards. It's hard to find pictures of field day without a bunch of other kids in them!

We also had Alex's band concert last week:

He did "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" as a solo!

Last weekend we got to visit with Heidi & her family up at their house, which is about an hour & fifteen minutes away (if you don't get lost).

They also had a big bounchy house set up from Liam's birthday party the day before!

This week, we (luckily Tim was working from home that day) attended the Young Author's Tea in Zach's 2nd grade class. The teacher also presented each child with an award. Zach got the "Most Enthusiastic" student.

Tuesday night we attended Alex's 5th Grade Celebration (graduation).

It was a really fun night & we got to enjoy a slideshow/video with pictures of all the kids from kindergarten on. One of the other moms spent almost the whole school year putting it together.

And finally, on their last day of school, the boys had a talent show yesterday afternoon. Alex played his trumpet solo (and it was his first time participting in the talent show). Zach did a karate sword form. Sorry haven't downloaded the pictures from my camera yet...

And with that, I have a third grader & a middle schooler!

 

[DisMomAmy]

Oh my goodness! I have no idea how I haven't seen your TR till now! Going back to catch up...