He's with the Band! a DL Performing Arts TR- 7/13/15 A little Tiki Tiki Tiki Rum!

[Pinkocto]

40 days to Aulani, how cool is that!!!!


I hope your work trip goes well

 

[franandaj]

That said, I may just have a super special view on my April getaway, very excited to see that!!!!

I hope it's all it's hyped up to be!

Doesn't it though? Man. We were talking about this last night. Our kids have NO clue really how good they have it. I mean they "know"....but not really. Not at all.

My mom used to tell me I lived in an ivory tower. She wasn't kidding!

It was pretty crowded actually for the size of the space but nothing near the "main floor" for sure and it was so lovely to be able to just stroll back to the villa and not be freezing.

I hope all 20 of us aren't fight for space on the balcony of the Master bedroom!

 

[eandesmom]

40 days to Aulani, how cool is that!!!!


I hope your work trip goes well

Well it's not starting off exactly ideal lol. 90 minute delay which means I'll land after midnight which is after 2:30 am my time. However in the making lemonade spirit I did get upgraded (though not really sure there will still be a dinner service at that hour) and I'm getting a mani pedi at the airport

I hope it's all it's hyped up to be!



My mom used to tell me I lived in an ivory tower. She wasn't kidding!



I hope all 20 of us aren't fight for space on the balcony of the Master bedroom!

Lol! I'll just be so happy to be there I don't care!

 

[Pinkocto]

Ugh, sorry about the delay Hopefully you got to sleep in a little and work didn't start right away.

 

[eandesmom]

Ugh, sorry about the delay Hopefully you got to sleep in a little and work didn't start right away.

I should have slept but wasn't tired right away and actually got a lot of work done. Which was good as I got a new work laptop so needed a few hours of work to find, organize and clean stuff up. Then, thanks to the upgrade I decided to watch a movie. Should have slept but it was SUCH a good movie I am glad I watched it. I was wiped out though and super grateful I ended up with zero live appointments on Tuesday as yesterday, today and tomorrow will be nuts, I even have a Saturday morning meeting before i hop back on the plane. Really productive trip so far though and I did manage a really nice run in there so zero complaints.

 

[Steppesister]

I love that you gave everyone the option of getting to eat whatever struck their fancy at the time. And I can't think of any better place than the Wharf. Great options for food and drink! The Terrace is a perfect place to just "be". Mom and I did that last trip too and shared a nice time of vinotherapy.

And I totally can relate and appreciate the "we don't have much planned except making memories" mode. You just can't put a price tag on that, can you? Lovely day, Cynthia!

 

[Pinkocto]

I should have slept but wasn't tired right away and actually got a lot of work done. Which was good as I got a new work laptop so needed a few hours of work to find, organize and clean stuff up. Then, thanks to the upgrade I decided to watch a movie. Should have slept but it was SUCH a good movie I am glad I watched it. I was wiped out though and super grateful I ended up with zero live appointments on Tuesday as yesterday, today and tomorrow will be nuts, I even have a Saturday morning meeting before i hop back on the plane. Really productive trip so far though and I did manage a really nice run in there so zero complaints.

I have been terrible getting on here lately. I hope the week continued to go well and safe travels home

 

[scottny]

The show sounded like fun.

Those bread bowl soups look delicious.

Sounds like a good night.

 

[eandesmom]

The show sounded like fun.

Those bread bowl soups look delicious.

Sounds like a good night.

It was! Thanks Scott!

 

[eandesmom]

It has been forever and a day since I have been here! I am SOO sorry! Lots of work travel and of course the big PHM trip! Which was a blast. I am now off on my LAST work trip before our Spring Break Aulani getaway and determined to wrap up this TR.

Yeah, we’ll see how that goes lol!

When I left you I had finally retrieved Evan and the gang was fully united, we’d had a lovely evening in DCA and watched WoC from the GCV and then a movie back in our villa. It had been a lovely day!

Some of us though were feeling a bit park and ride deprived and decided to use our Early Morning Magic Hours for some extra DCA time!

It appeared so did the rest of the hotel

Once in though, it wasn't bad!

We made it in by about 8:20 and apparently headed this-a-way. I honestly thought we did Soarin' first but don't have any evidence to prove it.

Guess we wanted some more Mater time! Or…Evan hadn’t ridden it yet which I think is what had happened

Once that was finished there was a line we needed to get in

Except… I had some super secret plans and we had a lunch reservation at Blue Bayou that we needed to work around. We ran into another family, good friends, in line which was fun. I actually ended up letting a ton of folks pass me up while we waited for the clock to get to the FP return time we wanted. That was a first for sure!

This was my goal

Mission accomplished, even though we had an earlier lunch ressie at BB coming up shortly, we were HUNGRY!

And decided to hit up Boudin Bakery to see what they might have

Plenty of sugar to choose from

But something on the menu really intrigued me

YUM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Some of us got that, others got the breakfast sandwich

I have to say, this was a GREAT breakfast option! Absolutely delicious and great bang for the buck especially after my 20% discount. The only drawback was that we all ate too much. Far too much. I mean how can you not just nibble away on that bread bowl??? And, I learned something. DL bacon is FAR superior to WDW bacon. It was actually, dare I say, crisp?

Despite our full stomachs it didn’t stop some of us from doing this next

which was a really good thing! Check out this line!!!

This is such a fun, little, silly, spinny ride!

We did stop for a group photo after. Why my mom isn't there I am not sure and truly can’t recall. Did she go to a shop? Bio break? Back to the room to grab something? No clue. She was definitely at breakfast, Mater's and Chew Chew but wouldn't have ridden Goofy's with the boys and I.

My camera

and photopass

Of course the one where Eric is actually smiling is dark!

I have to say. These are some of my favorite trip pictures EVER. I don’t know if it’s the composition, the fact that every “boy” in the picture has on a Disney garment of their own volition and choosing ( I am wearing my now gone Alex and Ani bracelets in the picture) of the fact that it’s my boys and my Dad but I love love love this set of pictures. Just a happy happy time and day and kind of a full circle kind of thing.

Evan had a request after this.

So we complied.

It had a bit of a wait

Can you guess?

Look familiar to anyone?

I mean really, what (then) 14 year old high school freshman wouldn’t request to go on this?

No joke. Heimlich's Chew Chew Train.

It was a riot! Man I love my kids sometimes.

After that we headed over to DL for our lunch ressie. I was still on an art mission though so we did make a quick stop for me to document yet more offerings. I even looked at the “special” book.

I liked these a lot

my wallet….not so much

this was fun

except it’s now available online, which makes it not remotely as cool lol.

I didn't have that much time though so it was more of a "drive by" visit for documentation purposes.

Continued in next post

 

[eandesmom]

Continued from previous

Soon enough we had checked in to our destination.

Which sadly, really doesn't photograph well with an iPhone! And it doesn't look like my mom took pics or maybe I didn't get hers after the actual parade (more likely lol).

Because we were in the dark anyway, and because it was a special occasion and because this was an absolute must to for me….I let the boys…be boys.

A bit of backstory here for those who do not know. I have written about it a few times but it bears retelling at times. When my dad was dating my stepmom, back when I was 10 and very much in need of an actual mom, we went to Disneyland for the first time. My dad was a teacher, with 4 kids and a crazy ex and didn't have much money to his name. His girlfriend worked for the city in parks and recreation and didn't make diddly squat. We drove to California in a car that legally, today, would seat 4. There were 6 of us. I rode on her lap the whole way down and back. We camped, it was the only way it was affordable. One day, on a trip with so many magical memories for me, we went to Disneyland.

And we ate at the Blue Bayou.

I will never, ever forget that day.

I am so very grateful that my dad had the good sense to marry the amazing woman who drove to California and back with his 4 kids and took us all on, lock stock and bagel.

I had not been back since. I had been to Disneyland, but not to the Blue Bayou. This, this was full circle, for me, to do it with my boys and my parents.

It was just as magical as I remembered

And though you cannot see them, imagine if you will, all the boats cruising by on their way to see some pirates.

There was only one thing I would consider ordering here.

Le Special de Monte Cristo Sandwich $26.49

Turkey, Ham, and Swiss Cheese battered and fried to golden brown served with a Fruit Skewer. Choice of Blue Bayou House Salad or Cup of our Signature New Orleans Gumbo or upgrade to our zesty Shrimp Cocktail

I am quite sure it cost a bit less than that 40 years ago (ok, 39) but I imagine it felt equally as crazy overpriced at the time. It is a SANDWICH! Oh, but to me (and to my folks I suspect) it was so so much more than that, and worth every penny. For my parents, back in the day, I cannot even imagine what a splurge that really was. What the entire day was for them. Oh how it stuck with all of us kids!

The problem was….

We ate a HUGE breakfast

We ALL ordered a Monte Cristo.

Can you say

LEFTOVERS?

LOL!

Yay for a Villa with a fridge!

I have had other Monte Cristo's since then and actually prefer it when it is more of a French toast egg batter style than the battered and fried, at least for lunch. If you've not had it, it’s like deep fried French toast on steroids!

It also didn't photograph well in the conditions

Even if you put an overpriced lemonade with a glow cube next to it!

We literally each ate half of each sandwich. It is good, REALLY good, but it is huge!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!We did all inhale our gumbo’s which didn't help but really, we could have ordered 3 for the 5 of us (and we are big eaters) and not only saved 50 bucks, we would have been quite content. Granted, had we not eaten the breakfast 3 out of the 5 of us would have probably inhaled the entire thing and my parents could have split one. I still find it funny that they too didn't want to share.

Still. No regrets. Not one. Not even about the fact that we knowingly way over ordered.

Some things are worth every penny. Some times it isn't about bang for the buck. Some times, the experience, the memory, trumps all.

This was one.

I don't know that my boys will remember this the same way I remember it as a child. I suspect that "their" Blue Bayou is actually called Teppan Edo.



But oh I loved sharing "mine" with them.

 

[Pinkocto]

What a fabulous story going back to Blue Bayou I'm sure your folks felt the specialness of the event as well

Too cute Evan wanting to go on Heimlich's Chew Chew Train! I love when teenagers aren't 'too cool' for things.

 

[pamcarey]

What a great story! I'm sure it was a huge splurge for your parents to take you all to Disneyland and Blue Bayou, and it's great that it's still such a special memory to you all these years later.

 

[afwdwfan]

Some of us though were feeling a bit park and ride deprived and decided to use our Early Morning Magic Hours for some extra DCA time!

It appeared so did the rest of the hotel

Wow! DCA must be the place to be this morning!

I actually ended up letting a ton of folks pass me up while we waited for the clock to get to the FP return time we wanted. That was a first for sure!

I did that at BTMRR one time... just trying to buy some extra wiggle room. But it definitely feels wrong.

YUM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Some of us got that, others got the breakfast sandwich

It certainly looks delicious. And filling.

I have to say. These are some of my favorite trip pictures EVER. I don’t know if it’s the composition, the fact that every “boy” in the picture has on a Disney garment of their own volition and choosing ( I am wearing my now gone Alex and Ani bracelets in the picture) of the fact that it’s my boys and my Dad but I love love love this set of pictures. Just a happy happy time and day and kind of a full circle kind of thing.

Ok, I'm going with Eric's facial expressions being the highlight of the pictures. But they were certainly good pictures of the 4 of you just having a good time together.

I mean really, what (then) 14 year old high school freshman wouldn’t request to go on this?

Oh my! He must have been craving some candy corn or something.

We camped, it was the only way it was affordable. One day, on a trip with so many magical memories for me, we went to Disneyland.

And we ate at the Blue Bayou.

I will never, ever forget that day.

I am so very grateful that my dad had the good sense to marry the amazing woman who drove to California and back with his 4 kids and took us all on, lock stock and bagel.

I had not been back since. I had been to Disneyland, but not to the Blue Bayou. This, this was full circle, for me, to do it with my boys and my parents.

It was just as magical as I remembered

That is just an incredible story. I'm so glad that you took the time to plan this meal and experience the location together... some once again, others for the first time.

The problem was….

We ate a HUGE breakfast

We ALL ordered a Monte Cristo.

Can you say

LEFTOVERS?

LOL!

Yay for a Villa with a fridge!

Hey, it just means that's one less meal you have to buy later.

Still. No regrets. Not one. Not even about the fact that we knowingly way over ordered.

Some things are worth every penny. Some times it isn't about bang for the buck. Some times, the experience, the memory, trumps all.

This was one.

I don't know that my boys will remember this the same way I remember it as a child. I suspect that "their" Blue Bayou is actually called Teppan Edo.



But oh I loved sharing "mine" with them.

I just really love this. I think it is great that you were able to kind of relive that experience and share it with the boys. You really did a great job conveying how much it really meant to you, both then and now. And you didn't need any pictures, no matter how clear or how dark, to get the point across!

 

[CarolynK]

That is such a nice story Disneyland is truly a special place.

 

[Poolrat]

How nice to be able to recreate that memory. With so many leftovers you can recreate it it twice.

DL is great for just bouncing back and forth.

for Heimlich.

 

[PrincessInOz]

Heimlich's Chew Chew Train! We haven't been on it for over 10 years! I think I'm going to MAKE DS go on it with me next time we're there.

What a great recreation meal! I was in tears reading it.

 

[franandaj]

I had no idea the bakery served breakfast!

Nice PP pictures!

It's hard to get decent shots inside the Blue Bayou. Nice you got to share your memories with the kids.

Wonder what happens next?

 

[Flossbolna]

I love reading your first trip to Disneyland story every time you post it! It is just so magical.

I am also pretty sure that I first read it after I had met your parents in person. And I have to say that I can totally see your mom being up for a trip like that. And I would never have suspected that she was not the woman who gave birth to you. Seeing you two together, it was so obvious that she was your mom!

How wonderful that you were able to share that special meal with your sons and your parents! I am sure that thanks to your history, it will become an important place for them as well - even if their Blue Bayou is called Teppan Edo!

 

[Leshaface]

Lots of fun places in OR! Are you driving up the Coast or 5? If the coast, some of my favorites are Florence in the South, then Lincoln City and Canon Beach. We also love Tillamook and do the cheese factory tour and eat ice cream. If coming up 5 there is a ton of neat things in Portland, just kind of depends what you want to do. OMSI is one of the best museums around and the Rose Garden is stunning. Great eats downtown and the best bookstore in the world (Powells). Some gorgeous hiking too, a super fabulous but a little out of the way spot is Skamania Lodge. It's just on the WA side of the Bridge of the Gods. If you saw the movie Wild, that is where she ends her hike, at that bridge. Tons of great hiking around there, Stevenson, a town pretty close is right on the gorge and you can watch all kinds of crazy windsurfing and one of the best brew pubs I've ever been to. Defintiely on the slower and outdoorsy side but I absolutely loved it there. If Liesa pops by I am sure she could weigh in with more.

Thank you so much for this info! I had obviously put this trip on the back burner ever since DH got his 'vertigo' weeks ago so after our Vegas trip, i'll be in full planning mode with this trip, so haven't planned which route to take yet. But Tillamook was definitely on my list (HUGE cheese lovers here!) And as much as I would love to go hiking, that would be a little difficult with DS. I'm also a donut fanatic so VooDoo is a must.

Plus, do kids clothes shopping in OR...no sales tax

I think you meant to say, "Plus, do Alicia clothes shopping in OR..." Totally happening too! I probably can't get much shopping done since we'll pretty much be living out of our car, but i'll make room in all of the consoles, glove compartments etc

Except… I had some super secret plans and we had a lunch reservation at Blue Bayou that we needed to work around.

Yum!

Oh my this looks delicious.

DL bacon is FAR superior to WDW bacon. It was actually, dare I say, crisp?

I totally agree!

This is such a fun, little, silly, spinny ride!

I still haven't been on it since it's changed over from Mulholland Madness years ago! I"m sure it's the same thing, but it is such a cute ride that makes you laugh out loud for sure!

Oh Eric.

( I am wearing my now gone Alex and Ani bracelets in the picture)

No joke. Heimlich's Chew Chew Train.

For reals? Now I have to know, has he been on this before and loved it so much to go on again? Or has he never been on and wanted to try it?

my wallet….not so much

Oh come on Cynthia, just add another 20 hours to your 80+ work week already.

Fun!

And we ate at the Blue Bayou.

I will never, ever forget that day.

I am so very grateful that my dad had the good sense to marry the amazing woman who drove to California and back with his 4 kids and took us all on, lock stock and bagel.

Very cool story!

This, this was full circle, for me, to do it with my boys and my parents.

it was so so much more than that, and worth every penny