Escape from the North - A Week at the Yacht Club - April 2015- Complete* 1/5

[afwdwfan]

Did you guys see that video of all the tourists wandering around with their cameras... while a Momma bear and her cubs were nearby?
Can you say "How freaking stupid are you???"

And you can't help but root for the bear in that case.

One of the ways I got the boys to agree to meet Merida, aside from guilt and threats, was the fact that they would get to try out a bow and arrow and shoot at a target. Boys and their weapons. What are you gonna do?

I'd want to shoot it too.

There was a family of ducks walking across the path, a mama and 4 or 5 ducklings. They had the misfortune of coming across a cheerleader group

I found the problem.

The girl did not take the hint. She actually tried to catch the ducklings.

This is one of those cases when you kind of hope that mama duck would grab a beak full of booty.

The CM goes, "It says here that you're 7 hours late."

Maybe that CM had just clocked in because she seemed to have no clue what was going on. Another CM let us through and by the time we reached the 2nd kiosks our bands were green.

I'm glad that you were able to get it cleared up and ride.

There's just all kinds of funny in this picture. I just can't get over the guy riding next to you, turned around taking pictures.

They're terrified!

Sam actually enjoyed it, he told Jamie it was awesome. Aidan said he needed some time to get the spit back in his mouth.

Suck it up and go again boys!

We loved this! But I think I would enjoy listening to Morgan Freeman recite the phone book.

We split both 4 ways. I didn't enjoy either as much as I thought I would but it may be because splitting them was a pain with only plastic utensils.

I thought it might be less enjoyable because that 4 way split left you on the light end of the split.

I like this one because Aidan was trying so hard to get Goofy to see him in his Goofy hat and when Goofy waved at him he was thrilled!

That's cool! And that is one of my favorite floats in that parade.

Earlier in the day we'd all run through some puddles and our sneakers had gotten wet except for Sam who wore Crocs. After an entire day we all had really disgusting feet. We stunk.

Yuck. Not fun. I always wear sandals for that reason alone. I only wear sneakers if the forecast looks clear and I won't be doing any water rides. Not fun at all and I'm sorry it brought the day to an early end. I just hope that the blisters didn't put a damper on things for the rest of the trip.

 

[ursalita]

It's your fault.
We were just fine... and then:
"Urg! Go get meat! Me sick of grass stew!"
"But me want to sit with feet up and read cave paintings."
"Urg! Now!"
"Grumble, grumble, grumble."

So now it's hard wired.

You're nuts.

That kills me.

She's cute.

In Disney! No! You must be the only one, ever!

Shocking, I know.

Say, sweetie. I'm just going to tie this rope around your ankle and dangle you over a cliff.
Don't worry, we'll all have a good time watching you scream and struggle.
How about that, then? Hmmm????

No????

THEN KNOCK IT OFF!!

Seriously.

Be honest. How close did you come to losing it right there?

You know, it didn't really anger me as much as it confused me. The way she said it, 7 hours late all straight-faced. It was too unbelievable. I mean she did know it had been raining and the ride was closed, right?

<phew> At least it was handled right... and right away.

Super quick, I barely stopped moving.

OMG! Those are priceless! And look at you. You got both hands up at the end there.

Yeah. I don't know if you can tell but I'm holding Sam's hand but he eventually let go.

Maybe just a little scared?

Poor kid. His mouth gets so dry when he gets scared. It happens at home when he's anxious, too.

Get ready for when they want two meals.... as an appetizer.

I'm dreading it. I can't believe how much I spend on groceries now and they're not even teenagers.

It's Mickey!!!

Thumper.

ALL CAUGHT UP!!!!!

Merida is so much fun to interact with!!! On my trip down when I proposed to my fiancé we went to meet her and she asked all sorts of questions. She asked where I asked the big question and I told her I front of cinderellas castle. She said oh well now you have to do it again but I front of MY castle. She proceeded to make us reenact the entire proposal it was so funny and so much fun.

I haven't seen the festival of fantasy parade yet I'm definitely looking forward to seeing it next week on the honeymoon!

I can't imagine how badly your feet must have hurt after a long day in wet shoes and socks. I normally wear sandals with socks. ( I know not very fashionable) But then if my feet get wet I can just take the socks off for the rest of the day and throw them in my backpack.

That's sounds like such a fun meet with Merida. Congrats on the engagement and upcoming wedding.

The parade is so beautiful.

Yeah, it was not a wise decision not to change our shoes but it worked out okay.

Dumbo and Ariel are more my speed than 7DMT too lol. Those pics are priceless though!! Sorry about the wet and stinky and sore feet...that's just the worst...but I'm sure it was hard to take the time to go back and change when it takes away from park time. Tough call. I hope feet were ok the rest of the trip! I love your MSEP pics too!

Yeah, it was probably not the best decision but it was ok. I did not get blisters and Aidan's was on the side of his foot where it rubbed and he was ok. We lucked out. Thanks!

 

[pkondz]

I just saw that on IFLScience. Wow. Humans are idiots. Running from bears. Great idea. Some of them didn't even seem scared. Some idiot gets mauled by a bear so bear gets put down. This is why we can't have nice things.

Unfortunately... you are correct.

I have to justify the $7 somehow.

Of course you do.

The State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations is a mouthful.

Never heard that one either!

Luckily I never did get a blister and Aidan's was on the side of his foot so we weren't bothered for the rest of the vacation.

Oh, that's good.

 

[ursalita]

And you can't help but root for the bear in that case.

Definitely. But if the bear mauls the dumb human they'd probably put it down, right? Like I said to pkondz, this is why we can't have nice things.

I'd want to shoot it too.

Like I said, boys and their guns.

I found the problem.

That's terrible.

I'm glad that you were able to get it cleared up and ride.

Yeah, it wasn't a hassle. More funny than anything.

There's just all kinds of funny in this picture. I just can't get over the guy riding next to you, turned around taking pictures.

He was nice. He was separated from his family, they were behind us. I wanted to tell him to just enjoy the ride, it'd be over soon.

I thought it might be less enjoyable because that 4 way split left you on the light end of the split.

I'm always on the light end of the split which is fine. It would weird me out if I got more than them.

That's cool! And that is one of my favorite floats in that parade.

Really? I like it for Goofy but I think a lot of the other floats are more visually stunning.

Yuck. Not fun. I always wear sandals for that reason alone. I only wear sneakers if the forecast looks clear and I won't be doing any water rides. Not fun at all and I'm sorry it brought the day to an early end. I just hope that the blisters didn't put a damper on things for the rest of the trip.

I can't believe I never considered that my sneakers and socks would get wet. I usually wear flip flops but my back was bothering me that week - of all times, right? - and I thought I'd be better off with sneakers. I wore the flip flops the rest of the trip and it didn't make the back worse so that's good.

Never heard that one either!

We're the smallest state and we have the longest name. I'm a fount of useless information.

 

[pkondz]

You're nuts.

Stop talking about my... oh. You said you're, not your.... nevermind.

and yes.

Thumper.

Whoops! I zoomed in and thought it was a mouse or squirrel. My bad.

I'm a fount of useless information.

Heh. That's my line!

 

[afwdwfan]

That's terrible.

I know... but in my defense, DW coaches cheerleaders so I'm speaking from personal experience.

Really? I like it for Goofy but I think a lot of the other floats are more visually stunning.

Ok... I just said one of my favorites. I mean it is a train... and Goofy is driving it. What's not to like? I probably like the 7 Dwarfs and the patriotic float better though. I see what you're saying about other floats being more visually stunning. But I'm just not a big fan of Pinocchio or Pete's Dragon so that puts a big chunk of that parade at a disadvantage.

I can't believe I never considered that my sneakers and socks would get wet. I usually wear flip flops but my back was bothering me that week - of all times, right? - and I thought I'd be better off with sneakers. I wore the flip flops the rest of the trip and it didn't make the back worse so that's good.

I've pretty much resigned myself to the fact that pain and discomfort are just part of all the walking and standing I'm going to do at Disney. So I just go with the sandals and take plenty of Advil. I did get some last summer that are about as comfortable for walking as any sneakers I have though, so it really is the best of both worlds.

 

[SarahDisney]

Wow, I'm gone for like 2 days and I miss 3 updates!! You're really getting those updates out fast!

All the signatures look great!

Aidan's scared face looks completely sarcastic. I really committed to the whole thing but everyone else just phoned it in.

Yeah, that's definitely an amusing picture. You're scared, Aidan's pretty much rolling his eyes, and everyone else is just like "whatever." It's the Haunted Mansion people, look scared!

We got into the very long line. It was in the hot sun so Jamie took them off for awhile so they wouldn't have to stand in the sun. It was frustrating because the line didn't move at all for a long time. I'm glad I stuck it out because once it started moving we were brought into the meeting area and it wasn't long until it was our turn.

That's the one thing I hated about Merida's line - the area outside the actual M&G area. The wait is long, you're in the same place for a long time, and it's not very comfortable. But once you get inside, it's great!

Bear grease. That's the answer.

Statements like that make me very happy that I have straight hair. Not something I'm willing to try.
Sounds like you guys had a great time with Merida. She really is such a great character to meet!

As we left the meet and greet we witnessed some truly idiotic guest behavior. There was a family of ducks walking across the path, a mama and 4 or 5 ducklings. They had the misfortune of coming across a cheerleader group and one of the gals - definitely old enough to know better - started chasing them. Mama duck was separated from the babies and started quacking like crazy. The girl did not take the hint. She actually tried to catch the ducklings.

Stupid people. Seriously. I really have no words for this stupidity.

The CM goes, "It says here that you're 7 hours late."

Like you didn't already know that ...

Maybe that CM had just clocked in because she seemed to have no clue what was going on. Another CM let us through and by the time we reached the 2nd kiosks our bands were green.

I'm glad there was someone there who knew what was going on.
And as I learned on my last trip, once they let you through at the first touchpoint, the second one will always turn green - once they authorize you on the first touchpoint, it works for the second one too. We missed a FP+ last trip because the ride was down and were very happy to not have to explain it to more than one CM (although in our case, the first CM didn't question us).

I hate to say this, but ... the guy sitting next to you steals the picture. Why is he turned around trying to take a picture?

After this we rode Under the Sea

That was probably a nice relief for Aidan after 7DMT.

We used to finish their meals, now they steal our food.

Kids ...

I love this ornament!!

Beautiful picture!

I took a lot of pictures but I'll post 8 of my favorites:

I love all of these pictures! (Then again, I love MSEP, so I'm biased)

I like this one because Aidan was trying so hard to get Goofy to see him in his Goofy hat and when Goofy waved at him he was thrilled!

Yay! It's so nice when the characters in the parade notice you and wave.

Despite some hiccups and shoe problems, it sounds like a pretty good day!

 

[deedee2177]

All caught up! Great updates and I'm really enjoying following along with your report

 

[ursalita]

Whoops! I zoomed in and thought it was a mouse or squirrel. My bad.

Yeah, it was really hard to see in the picture. It was so cute when he was peering over that little wall. His camo works a little too well.

Ok... I just said one of my favorites. I mean it is a train... and Goofy is driving it. What's not to like? I probably like the 7 Dwarfs and the patriotic float better though. I see what you're saying about other floats being more visually stunning. But I'm just not a big fan of Pinocchio or Pete's Dragon so that puts a big chunk of that parade at a disadvantage.

Oh, I was just wondering what you liked about it. It's definitely not all about the looks of it but also the characters. Goofy and train makes perfect sense. I don't know if I could pick a favorite.

Wow, I'm gone for like 2 days and I miss 3 updates!! You're really getting those updates out fast!

I'm just really motivated right now and I know I'll starting forgetting stuff. I already forgot something I did during the MK day that I'll include in my first Epcot post. I have terrible short term memory.

Yeah, that's definitely an amusing picture. You're scared, Aidan's pretty much rolling his eyes, and everyone else is just like "whatever." It's the Haunted Mansion people, look scared!

Yeah, they definitely weren't as into it as I was.

Sounds like you guys had a great time with Merida. She really is such a great character to meet!

I had a little crush on her I have to admit.

And as I learned on my last trip, once they let you through at the first touchpoint, the second one will always turn green - once they authorize you on the first touchpoint, it works for the second one too. We missed a FP+ last trip because the ride was down and were very happy to not have to explain it to more than one CM (although in our case, the first CM didn't question us).

Oh, that makes sense. I was just happy it didn't hold us up too much. But 7 hours late? Even I'm never that late.

I hate to say this, but ... the guy sitting next to you steals the picture. Why is he turned around trying to take a picture?

His family was behind us. When we got in the boys were scared and I was trying to reassure them from where I was sitting and the guy could relate because he was separated from his family.

That was probably a nice relief for Aidan after 7DMT.

He needed to get his saliva flowing again.

I love this ornament!!

Thanks. They had some that were already painted 2015.

Beautiful picture!

Thank you.

Yay! It's so nice when the characters in the parade notice you and wave.

Despite some hiccups and shoe problems, it sounds like a pretty good day!

`It was a great day. Even the rain only lasted a short while.

 

[ursalita]

All caught up! Great updates and I'm really enjoying following along with your report

Thank you! I'm happy you're here.

 

[pkondz]

His camo works a little too well.

Yeah. That's it. His camo works too well. It's not that I'm an idiot. Sure. Let's go with that.

 

[ursalita]

Day 4
Epcot Part 1

Before we get into Epcot, I wanted to just vent a bit about RL. We have a major home improvement project to do because our home is nearing 100 years old and it needs some TLC. What a pain it has been trying to find a contractor to do the job. It's giving me a complex! Part of me wants to take the $$ and buy DVC points with it.

And I misplaced my trip notes so I left out an important part of Day 3. After our Merida meet but before we rode 7DMT we split up. The boys headed to Tomorrowland Speedway and I got in line to ride Space Mountain for the first time ever.


I stood there listening to all the warnings and started to get a little freaked out. There was a older man with a little girl (maybe 6 years old) behind me. The man had a cane and a back brace. I just kept telling myself that if they could do it, I could do it. I did warn the kid in the car with me that it was my first time and apologized in advance.



It looks like I'm expecting in this photo and I won't even mention the hair. The ride was awesome, I'm so glad I got a chance to do it. I thought I'd get to ride EE solo but Space Mountain was a great alternative.

I met up with the boys where we'd planned. They'd finished up earlier than I did so they'd been waiting a little while. During this time they saw a girl that goes to school with Aidan - same grade, different classroom.

They'd also met someone with the same hat as Jamie. Some background: Jamie's a rabid Yankee fan and he has caps for all of the Yankee farm teams. The hat he was wearing was the Single-A Charleston RiverDogs so I thought it was pretty unusual that he met someone with the same hat. What a small world!

Back to our regularly scheduled program...

On this day we didn't have to rush too much. We had a FP for Turtle Talk for around 10-11ish so we took our time getting ready. At about 9am we were in line for the Friendship Boat to Epcot.



Once again we stopped to get our photo taken.



Sammy had jumped on the bandwagon and purchased a Pluto hat for signatures.

We headed over the bridge towards France to get breakfast. I'm pretty sure I'm required to post this:



I got some pics of the topiaries here.










We had breakfast here:



I wrote more in my DR but we enjoyed breakfast. I was a bit overwhelmed by the choices but we all enjoyed what we ended up with. I made the boys get plain croissants because I'm a mean mommy.

On the way out we took advantage of the empty fountain to get some pictures.



I made Jamie take this one because I couldn't pass up the opportunity. I also took some selfies that I posted to Facebook to make my friends jealous. They let me know that it had snowed at home that morning. We were so smart to go to Disney.

Next up we walk to Future World.​

 

[KathyM2]

Looking forward to hearing more about Epcot Sorry about your IRL house troubles....it can be really hard to find people to do the work..at a fair price...and also do what they say they will...shouldn't be that way...but sadly...often is. Good choice of FP+ for Crush....Epcot is a tough one to figure out what to use your FP+ on...

 

[ursalita]

Day 4
Epcot Part 2

This is a really quick update with just some of the pictures I took that morning as we walked over to Future World.

Winnie the Pooh in daylight.







I really dug this William Shakespeare garden.





Bambi again in the daytime.









The bright sun was really bothering Sam.



Love this one.

Future World is next.​

 

[pkondz]

What a pain it has been trying to find a contractor to do the job. It's giving me a complex!

Sorry to hear about all your troubles.

But.... I read the above and the first thing that pops into my (admittedly warped) head?
"Trouble with renos, so she sold it all and bought a complex."

I got in line to ride Space Mountain for the first time ever.

Good for you!

I stood there listening to all the warnings and started to get a little freaked out.

Meh. Some day, someone's going to ride it with a hangnail and somehow try to sue Disney. Then they'll add that to the list too.

I did warn the kid in the car with me that it was my first time and apologized in advance.

For the screaming, I presume?

It looks like I'm expecting in this photo and I won't even mention the hair.

You're expecting a good ride, right?
And I love the hair. It looks (and is) windblown by the ride.

They'd also met someone with the same hat as Jamie. Some background: Jamie's a rabid Yankee fan and he has caps for all of the Yankee farm teams. The hat he was wearing was the Single-A Charleston RiverDogs so I thought it was pretty unusual that he met someone with the same hat.

That is a coincidence, isn't it!

We headed over the bridge towards France to get breakfast. I'm pretty sure I'm required to post this:

I made the boys get plain croissants because I'm a mean mommy.

While you had crème brulée I hope?

On the way out we took advantage of the empty fountain to get some pictures.

:: "Empty fountain"

Winnie the Pooh in daylight.

At night he goes rogue and mugs the tourists so he can score some contraband honey.

I really dug this William Shakespeare garden.

I'm surprised they allow guests to dig in the garden.

Bambi again in the daytime.

Part of the Pooh posse at night.

Love this one.

Me too!

 

[irene_dsc]

Good luck finding a contractor. We've found that since lots of people went out of business during the recession, now anyone good is totally swamped. You may need to be patient, ashard as that is. Direct referrals may help, so keep asking around.

As for coincidences, that is too funny! Especially the matching hats! I was ssurprised we didn't see anyone we knew, considering it seemed everyone in Illinois was down there for spring break! (We did run into a family from school on our first trip.)

You got some great topiary photos! I definitely missed seeing a bunch of them!

Yay for solo Space Mountain! I'm also forgetting stuff - and I didn't take notes!

 

[afwdwfan]

Part of me wants to take the $$ and buy DVC points with it.

Do it!!!

I feel your pain though. Our house is even older than that. We aren't sure exactly how old, but it has been added to over the years and we think the main part of it might be pushing 150+ years old. That also happens to be where our kitchen is now located. And it needs some major work.

The boys headed to Tomorrowland Speedway and I got in line to ride Space Mountain for the first time ever.

Well, I'm glad you finally had a chance to ride it! Always one of my favorites!

Jamie's a rabid Yankee fan

Nobody's perfect.

Love this one.

Great pictures. And I like Sammy's Pluto hat. I don't think I mentioned it, but I think I still have an old Goofy hat at home that my parents got me on a trip when I was 4.

 

[deedee2177]

So sorry for all the home repair drama...ugh!! We just had our carpets cleaned and new furniture delivered for our living room and that was enough of a headache...I can't even imagine the stress of major home repairs!

Glad you got enjoy Space Mountain...it's one of my favorites. Your pictures of Epcot are beautiful!

 

[CaseFace5]

Good luck getting a contractor!! We are in the process of finishing our basement, which is about a ten by ten area and it's taking us forever so we might look into getting someone to do it for us.

Glad you got to ride SM!! We love that ride!

Love the morning pictures of EPCOT. I have a lot of the same pictures coming up in my next update! Love the fun ones of the family, those are the best!

 

[ksl5f123]

It sounds like you had a pretty good day at MK despite the rain and wet shoes - yuck! Hooray for getting to see some of the opening show. Getting that timing right is SO hard!

I have never seen pictures of the Fantasyland Goofy and Donald. I guess it is magician themed. Donald looks odd to me with that big hat. I can't decide if I like it.

I LOL at the boys wanting to stay at the GF because it is fancier, because you had the much cooler pool!

I am glad it was easy to get the MB replaced. It is tough for kids without sensory issues to keep track of those.

"Bear grease" - that's creative!

The boys certainly looked *concerned* on SDMT. I am glad they joined you though.

Sorry about your shrimp dinner. My kids have been stealing my food since day 1. I almost never get all of my own food.

I am pretty impressed that you managed an "8 AM open until the parade" day. That would be about 13 hours, right? It looked like a pretty fun day - you hit attractions in every land I think!