Downpours, DIS meets, and the Dining Plan - Our Week at WDW May 16-23 Final Thoughts

[longing2Batdisney]

Leanne,
How are things going? and the girls...I know it took Dayne (and us) a while to get over Tracker when he passed two yrs ago...we just got a new lab "Buddy" in Feb.; I did not want to get a replacement so we waited a while; it's funny now we all call him Tracker (they look sooo much alike) we should have named him Tracker II --lol!

It does get easier as the days go by...

 

[OneTreeHillAddict]

Can't wait to see pics of the Grand Gathering-sounds like a good time. Joe was the safari photographer. He gets all excited cause he has a reason to put the big lens on the camera...

Sidney gets like that too. I only used the "big lens" one time and it was to shoot baby pineapples.

 

[leamom2princesses]

Leanne--I'm so sorry to hear about Hannah. (((HUGS)))

I love your AK pictures!! We didn't get many from AK because we were there on Tuesday--the day of the super-heavy rain. We did get some pics of the safari, though. Can't wait to see more!!

Hi Becky! Thanks for stopping by!

Leanne,
How are things going? and the girls...I know it took Dayne (and us) a while to get over Tracker when he passed two yrs ago...we just got a new lab "Buddy" in Feb.; I did not want to get a replacement so we waited a while; it's funny now we all call him Tracker (they look sooo much alike) we should have named him Tracker II --lol!

It does get easier as the days go by...

The girls are having a hard time as are Joe and I. Hannah was everyone's dog. It's sad to log on at home because she always laid on feet at the computer. It's good to hear that others have been through it and made it through though. Thanks for checking on us.

Sidney gets like that too. I only used the "big lens" one time and it was to shoot baby pineapples.

 

[chicagoshannon]

How fun that you got to see that elephant in the water! Great pictures! I don't think those cows (or whatever those things with the horns are) ever move. I have almost the exact same picture of them.

 

[mkluvsmickey]

You got some great safari pictures! And 1900 Park Fare looks like so much fun. There is just never enough time to get it all done

 

[msgrimm23]

great pics from ak. this time we did not go and i wish we did. not enough time in the day

 

[3princesses+aprince]

Oooo, looks like you guys had a great Safari, I though mine was good, but the animals were out even closer for you.

 

[MaryAz]

HAPPY BIRTHDAY LEANNE!!!!​

 

[my2disneyboys]

HAPPY BIRTHDAY LEANNE!!!!

 

[ladybugmom]

Happy Birthday Leanne!! Hope you're having a great day!!

 

[leamom2princesses]

How fun that you got to see that elephant in the water! Great pictures! I don't think those cows (or whatever those things with the horns are) ever move. I have almost the exact same picture of them.

I don't think they move either. I think every picture I have of them they are doing the exact same thing in the exact same spot....maybe they are animatronic african cattle...

You got some great safari pictures! And 1900 Park Fare looks like so much fun. There is just never enough time to get it all done

Thanks! 1900 Park Fare was a good time. I know what ya mean...I guess not getting it done is a great reason to go back right!

great pics from ak. this time we did not go and i wish we did. not enough time in the day

Oooo, looks like you guys had a great Safari, I though mine was good, but the animals were out even closer for you.

They were pretty active when we went through. It's our favorite AK attraction. We have a big lens that Joe uses to get up close shots. We did get to see lots of action though for the most part.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY LEANNE!!!!​

Awww thanks so much!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY LEANNE!!!!

Thanks Nickie!!!

Happy Birthday Leanne!! Hope you're having a great day!!

Thanks Becky! It was a nice, quiet, relaxing day.

 

[leamom2princesses]

Okay so on with the updates....sorry it took so long.

So after the safari the girls and I stopped and got some autographs and pics with these guys...

and I stopped to take this one too...

Joe called and said he got the fastpasses and they were only 30 minutes later than the time at that point so we headed over to Expedition Everest. We met Joe by Flights of Wonder and stopped to get a family photo with EE in the background. Don't have my photopass CD yet but it turned out pretty good. We managed to burn the 30 minutes so I took Josie up to the front entrance to get a Baby Swap. Joe went on it first with Lindsey and then Lindsey rode it with me. I had some gummies and Doritos in my backpack that I gave to Josie. That kept her occupied while the big kids rode the ride. I took this shot while waiting on Joe and Linds.

I love EE. It's probaby my favorite WDW roller coaster next to Space Mountain. SM is better only for nostalgia reasons. After everyone took their ride on EE (Lindsey gets to do the major stuff twice and loves it!) I told Joe I wanted to see the Nemo Musical. In all our trips I had never seen it. A show was starting in about 45 minutes so we went and got in line. While waiting I shot this....it's a little bitty gecko sitting on a leaf way down...

The wait to get into the musical wasn't too bad but we were one of the first one's in and the kids got really antsy waiting for the show to start. Finally the show started and the kids loved it. Joe took these with his IPhone. Not the greatest but you get the idea!

After the show, I asked if the fam was getting hungry. Lindsey proclaims "Momma We gotta eat!!". That cracked me and Joe up and became the answer to "are you hungry?" all week long and part of our first week back.

We headed over to Pizzafari. Joe and I got the sandwiches and chocolate cake and the girls got a "cheezy pizza" and a cookie. All were good. They were pretty hungry because there wasn't a thing left after they were done.

After lunch it was getting pretty close to 2pm so we decided to hit "It's a bug's life" and head over to the Dis Meet in EPCOT.

Here's some pics we shot waiting for the show to begin...see the pizza on Josie's face. I never noticed it!

After it's a bugs life we headed to get the stroller and Josie immediately jumped in. We started to make our way to the buses. Along the way I stopped to look at the anteaters and noticed my little peanut doing this..

We decided to walk around a little and let her get at least 30 minutes. Anything less and she would be really cranky. On our way out we ran into Meeko. He stole Lindsey's mister and tried to give it away to another little girl. It was cute. He was on his way to a snack break but did manage to give Lindsey a hug and an autograph...

After the autograph we headed to a bus to EPCOT so we could make it to the DIS meet. There wasn't enough time to change so we just got on the bus and rushed over to the France Pavillion....

Up Next...the meet

 

[racefanof88]

Happy Birthday

I love the update. I see blue skys . I don't remember those. Where did you come up with them? Josie looks so sweet alseep in the stroller. I have some cute ones, when Dallas was little, of him sleeping in the stroller. . Where does the time go?

 

[ckdsnynt]

Hi there! We've been back about a week now and I'm starting to get over the post-Disney depression, so it's time to start our trip report. I haven't done a TR before but did do a PTR for this trip. You can check it out by following the link in my siggie.

Like the title says we were at Walt Disney World from May 16-23, 2009. We stayed at the Caribbean Beach Resort. Here is a pic of the cast of characters from our trip. It was taken day 1 on the boat dock at the Grand Floridian

Me-Leanne (will be 35 on June 7 ), I'm the big one in the pink. I'm an engineer but I make my living by managing engineers and technicians for an aftermarket performance automotive company. I love all things Disney, do 98% of the trip planning and I'm already drafting plans for our next trip.

DH-Joe (turned 38 on this trip). He's the one in the bucket hat. He is loving Disney more and more each trip. His first visit was two weeks after our engagement.

DD8-Lindsey. She is a Disney fanatic like her Momma and has never met a stranger in her life. She is starting to outgrow the princesses and is starting to move more towards the tween Disney stuff. She thinks Zac Efron and the Jonas Brothers are the greatest things since television. She is a thrill junkie - loves the roller coasters and rider swap - she gets to ride everything twice.

DD3- Josie. She loves Disney also but unlike big sis is shy. This was her fourth trip. We've taken her every May since she was born. She loves Mickey, Minnie, Tinkerbell, and the princesses. She was so fun on this trip.

Well there you have it! That's my crew.

Up next: Day 1 Our arrival, dinner at 1900 Park Fare and the Spectro Meet!

Ok, I am in with ya!
Your girls are adorable!

I have done nothing but complain about the weather that week (we were there at the exact same time). But we looked at out photo pass last night and apparently, we had a great time, according to the smiles in our pics! So, I want to read all about your trip!
P.S. I am the master planner also and I am already planning our next trip too!

 

[AlohaPolynesian]

Hey I just found your TR! I was there starting on the 22nd so I know what you meant about the rain!!!!!! I love your photos and (you've already heard it a million times!) your daughters are so cute! Also, I cried for a good 20 minutes after reading about Hannah. Sounds similar to how we found our dog and everything happened so fast before she died. I read the book "Dog Heaven" which helped a lot. I know how long it takes to get back to "normal" but I hope you are all starting to feel a little better Can't wait to read the rest!

 

[Lifelong_Dreamer]

What a great day at AK! I love EE too, so much fun!

 

[ladybugmom]

Aww!! I love your pics! Your girls look so cute in their giraffe tops! Wasn't the Nemo show great?! We just LOVED it--so well done!

 

[Queenofallthings]

Happy belated birthday!!! I can't believe I forgot to send you a message yesterday....I'm a bad Dis-friend

Another great review the girls are absolutely adorable!!

Can't wait for more

 

[kaysmommie]

I love the girls AK outfits . How did you like the Nemo Musical? Also did you like it better than Lion King? Your pics are great! Wow Lindsey has nice straight adult teeth. Just noticing since Kaylee has a split and will need braces.

 

[leamom2princesses]

Happy Birthday

I love the update. I see blue skys . I don't remember those. Where did you come up with them? Josie looks so sweet alseep in the stroller. I have some cute ones, when Dallas was little, of him sleeping in the stroller. . Where does the time go?

Thanks for the b-day wishes. Yeah, those blue skies were few and far between that week. Josie is sweet....WHEN SHE'S ASLEEP... Time flies with kids doesn't it. Seems like yesterday I was just bringing them home...

Ok, I am in with ya!
Your girls are adorable!

I have done nothing but complain about the weather that week (we were there at the exact same time). But we looked at out photo pass last night and apparently, we had a great time, according to the smiles in our pics! So, I want to read all about your trip!
P.S. I am the master planner also and I am already planning our next trip too!

Thanks for the kind words about the girls and thanks for joining in on the fun! So are you going back in May? I've been toying with going in September for free dining but I was looking at the calendar and I just think that May is going to be it again next year. Next year school will be out for sure and I just really love May. This year the weather was a bit disappointing but I'm not going to let one year throw me off....I don't think.

Hey I just found your TR! I was there starting on the 22nd so I know what you meant about the rain!!!!!! I love your photos and (you've already heard it a million times!) your daughters are so cute! Also, I cried for a good 20 minutes after reading about Hannah. Sounds similar to how we found our dog and everything happened so fast before she died. I read the book "Dog Heaven" which helped a lot. I know how long it takes to get back to "normal" but I hope you are all starting to feel a little better Can't wait to read the rest!

Thanks for coming over and joining in on the fun! Thanks about the girls too. Sorry for making you cry and so so sorry that you know how we're feeling. I will be looking for that book. I really miss Hannah. I'm starting to feel better but I think I'm a little depressed about the whole thing-don't feel like doing much right now. Each day is getting easier though. Funny how attached you can get to an animal.

What a great day at AK! I love EE too, so much fun!

Aww!! I love your pics! Your girls look so cute in their giraffe tops! Wasn't the Nemo show great?! We just LOVED it--so well done!

Thanks Becky! The Nemo show was good. It was much better than I expected. I like it when I'm pleasantly surprised.

Happy belated birthday!!! I can't believe I forgot to send you a message yesterday....I'm a bad Dis-friend

Another great review the girls are absolutely adorable!!

Can't wait for more

More on the way! Thanks for being so nice about the girls. Don't let those cute looks deceive you...they can be real handfuls. No worries about the b-day-you're still reading so you're a great Dis-friend.

I love the girls AK outfits . How did you like the Nemo Musical? Also did you like it better than Lion King? Your pics are great! Wow Lindsey has nice straight adult teeth. Just noticing since Kaylee has a split and will need braces.

The musical was much better than I expected but in my opinion not as good as the Lion King. I like the full size characters better than the puppets. The puppet thing was neat though. Thanks about the pics. Lindsey is going to need braces too. We had a lot of work done last year. She had to go to the hospital (for anesthesia) to have spacers and sealants applied. I think the spacers helped the new teeth come in straight. She didn't have enough room for her adult teeth prior to that. I'm still fighting with the billing at the dentists office though from that visit. They billed an office visit ($45) and a hospital visit ($330) on the same bill to insurance. Of course insurance paid the $45 and rejected the $330 because you can't bill for two "visits" on the same bill. Now the dentists office wants me to pay the $330. Not happening. They need to straighten the billing out. I checked with insurance 3 times now and they just need to pay back the $45 and rebill for the $330. Not a big deal but I can't get the dentists office to go back and fix it. I shouldn't be responsible for the $330 for their billing error - IMO. Until it gets straightened out we won't be going back. You'd think after we've spent 2k in there that they'd try to fix the problem but apparently we're small potatoes.
I hate that he does such great work and I can't see him because the billing clerk is being a pain. Anyway sorry for the long story...you probably didn't care to hear all that.