Sometimes.....you just gotta stop & smell the Sharpie! Sept./Oct. 2015 at AKL ~ Updated 9/25 pg 10

[MrsSykes2014]

I stumbled onto your trip report and I love it. You are descriptive but straight to the point. I am commenting because the wedding your son was in is the same place I got married at. HAHAHA May of 14 lol I am actually from Nashville. Small world lol back to the trip report now.

 

[punkin413]

Wow...looks like such a fun time! I would love to do it, just not sure it's in the cards this trip. I love the meet and greets and all the food. Good view...different, but still good!

It's so crazy how long the kids last at Disney! My boys lasted pretty much every night - with naps thrown in at odd times throughout the day...lol - but crashed either on the way back or, usually, right when we got back to SSR.

Glad you got an update in. I'm having so much trouble with mine solely bc of (multiple) computer problems. Hoping I can get it fixed soon.

Looking forward to more!

It was fun! I'd do it again but not something we have to do every trip.

The only time Seth crashed out was at the very end of the Halloween Party, so he hung in there pretty good! I do remember when he was 13 months and he'd fall asleep the minute we'd get to a park. It was baffling!!

Hope you got your computer issues worked out....how annoying!

That cruise looked so fun!! I may have to add on my to do list now! Seth is just too cute!

It was a blast! I'd definitely recommend it.

Wow, you're right -- there's an unbelievable resemblance between you and Seth in that picture of you from when you broke your arm.

I'm glad that he had so much fun being a pirate for the day. Looked like a great day.

We had so much fun on the pirate cruise....was a great experience!

Soooooo first of all glad I found this. Secondly....i have been following your trips for a longer time than i thought as Seth wasnt in all your trip reports....and now I just read that he is 5?! What?! Time.....flies too fast....
Meanwhile sorry I am late to the party. Getting ready to read!!!!!

He actually just turned 6 earlier this month. I know, right?? No worries in being late. Just glad you're here now!

Fun update!! The Pirates cruise sounds like a lot of fun, definitely a great way to see the fireworks without huge crowds.

Glad he is liking school so far.

We thought it was great and loved the experience!

Love the review of the Pirates and Pals Cruise and the pictures I do like the idea of watching Wishes without the crowd; we watched from the Poly beach once and it was fantastic. So were there any adult parties on the cruise sans kids or parties with only kids over say, 12? I know my boys wouldn't actually ask to do this and would probably complain if I told them I booked it lol, but would then most likely enjoy it once there. But they'd probably feel more comfortable, especially DS14, if there were older kids on it. Which you can never guarantee I know but curious about your experience.

Yes! There were at least 2-3 parties without kids. I remember specifically a party of women about my mom's age that were there for a birthday. And I don't remember specific people but I do feel like there were kids of all ages, including teenagers. More little kids than anything but definitely a wide range. Just tell your boys that this a good way to watch the fireworks without the crowds and also that there's free food! Maybe that will get them on board. They'd probably love it!

Your pictures wanted me to sign right up for the pirate criuse.

It was so much fun!!

I just have to say I find it so funny people are coming up on their fall break-my kids have been in school a total of 9 days so far

Yeah, we started on July 29th! We are always the first ones in our area to start, but we are also the first ones to get out (our last day is May 19) and we also get a full week for fall break (next week...yay), a full week at Thanksgiving, 3 weeks at Christmas, a full week at spring break and various other holidays. I like all the breaks throughout the year and the early ending to the school year, so I can't complain!

I stumbled onto your trip report and I love it. You are descriptive but straight to the point. I am commenting because the wedding your son was in is the same place I got married at. HAHAHA May of 14 lol I am actually from Nashville. Small world lol back to the trip report now.

Awwww....thanks so much!!!! You are sweet. What a small world!! It was a great location to get married. I went to that park as a kid all the time and was surprised....never imagined it as a wedding venue. But it turned out so beautiful! Thanks for reading.

 

[punkin413]

Hi, everyone! Long time, no see. Again, so sorry for the hiatus. Just been busy! Before I get back to the trip report, I wanted to share a few pictures from Seth's 6th birthday party. Yes, 6.....can you believe it??? I can't. We had a glow party and he and his friends had an absolute blast! Probably my favorite birthday party he's had yet. I wish I could share some videos but they are so super slow to upload! Anyway, here are a few pictures....

Getting their glow on! We had fedoras, sunglasses, jewelry, blinking rings, finger lasers and glow balloons. We also had glow bowling with inflatable bowling pins but we had to put those away because the kids were hitting each other (not to hurt each other but just being kids) with them and they're hard on the bottom, so I was afraid they'd get hurt.



Being silly....



This is one of the games we played - mummy wrap! This is Seth and his friend Sophia. They are peas in a pod....inseparable! When I told them to pick partners for this game they both grabbed each other and wouldn't let go.



The sign of a good party....a mess!!!



Anyway he had such a good time!

Also, in other news, see that little ticker down in my signature?? It's been there for awhile but it wasn't a definite thing yet. Well, now it is!!!! We are officially heading back to Disney World on January 7th! I had to wait for a few things to pan out financially, and also had to get approval to pull Seth out of school for a week. But we are a go for launch and I'm super excited!!!! It will be me and Seth going with Erica and Will. Some of you know Erica from my September 2008 TR when she and I left the hubbies at home (before we had kids) and headed to WDW for a few days - if you are curious it's linked below. She and I are both from the Nashville area but had never met, and then met through Memom's TR. I saw her name was VandyFan and being a Vanderbilt fan myself, we hit it off. The rest is history! She's one of my best friends now and it just so happens that her son Will is about 5 months older than Seth. They usually have tons of fun together and we've been wanting to plan a trip for awhile. And the stars have finally aligned for us to do so! We are staying at Saratoga Springs for 6 nights and I'm really excited about it, especially since 1 year ago tomorrow we were heading down to Disney for the trip this TR is about! I'm not one that has to have a trip booked all the time, but it is nice to know when the next one will be and have it booked and not too far away. Never been during that time of year and I'm looking forward to low crowds! 104 DAYS!!!!

Okay, so back to the TR! We are on to the next day in our little adventure - Wednesday, September 30th. Today was our "rest" day, meaning no parks today. And boy, did we need it! We had had a ton of fun but just needed a break. And good news - Ray was finally feeling human again! Not fully normal but waaaaaaaay better than he had been the last 3 days.

The first order of business that day (besides sleeping in) was breakfast! We had a 10:00-ish breakfast at Cape May Cafe. We drove over since it's so much easier than transferring buses. I love this resort!



We got checked in and had a seat in the pretty lobby. I think Seth was still tired.





We didn't wait long until we were seated and got a table over to the right after you walk in. I had never been over in this area, always in the bigger dining room. This is my 3rd time eating here and I love it - they probably have my most favorite breakfast food of all the buffets!

Before we even got food Minnie appeared to say hello!



Here is Seth's not-very-adventurous plate -



And here's mine - cream cheese danish, french toast, asparagus, mushroom egg casserole, bacon, link sausage, breakfast potatoes....all good!



I also got a Seabreeze-type drink. Vodka for breakfast....I'm on vacation, right?? What's funny is I think the servers make these at breakfast, and our little server had no clue what was in it. She had to come back and get the drink menu to make it. And she was heavy-handed with the vodka!!!! Wow!



My second plate - pineapple, grapes, spinach salad with apples and vinegarette, strawberry and blueberry mix, and more breakfast potatoes.



Goofy showed up as we were finishing up.....





We still hadn't seen Donald. I ended up having to ask our server about it because there was no sign of him anywhere. Still not sure what was going on there. We waited at least 20 minutes after we paid before he came. This is why I tell people, always allow like 90 minutes for character meals....you just never know when it will take longer than you expect!



I wanted a picture with Donald too!



On the way back to the car Seth decided to take a ride.....





So after breakfast our plan was to head to Disney Springs (then still Downtown Disney....until the next day, I think) for some shopping. If you remember, the parking situation there a few days before this was a nightmare. But we were thinking we'd go around the back way, by Saratoga Springs, and maybe it would be better. Right?? No such luck. It still had us funneled into the parking deck ALL THE WAY down at the opposite end we wanted, near Disney Quest! So annoying. This time I did make a point to get a stroller though!

First stop was Goofy's Candy Company....again!



Seth got a banana/blueberry slushie there.



I can't remember where I was but I went into some store while Seth rode the little train.



Here's a little video. (Click link to play.) I swear, that kid will talk to anyone!

View My Video

I think we spent like an hour in World of Disney and Once Upon a Toy buying souvenirs, then we stopped by the Lego store again. Seth built a car to race.



Here's a video. He wasn't even paying attention when the race started....

View My Video

We probably stopped in a few more stores along the way, but we tromped back to the car and headed back to AKL for the afternoon. Down to the pool we went about an hour later. This time Ray came too and I was so glad he was feeling up to it! He missed out the first pool afternoon we had.

I got one of these.....white sangria. It was SO yummy! I'm pretty sure I got a second one while I was out there.



Seth again went on a sliding rampage. Only now he added screaming like he was on a roller coaster. He had everyone in that pool cracking up....it was hilarious! We knew when our kid was coming down the slide because he'd scream like he was dying!

We finally got him off the slide long enough to jump off the side of the pool 300 times.





We found these guys back behind the pool....



We headed back up to the room around 5:00. We had a dinner reservation to get ready for and wanted a bit of a break. I had a snack! I always get one of these at Goofy's Candy Company and munch on it during the trip. It always takes me a few days to finish! It's covered with white chocolate, pecans and dark chocolate drizzle. Yum!!!



That's where I'll leave you for now! Next update will be a tour of our resort and our dinner that evening. It will be after we get back from the beach though - heading to Panama City for fall break this year! We leave a week from today. It's not Disney but we need some beach time!

 

[vamassey1]

What a great break day. I keep saying we need to do this but never really do. Love the pictures of Seth driving. It's really going to take me a while to get use to Disney Springs. I haven't been down there yet since they changed it up but the pictures make it look really different. I think we're going to be lost when we do go. It looks like Seth really enjoyed his time there. I'm still cracking up thinking of Seth screaming as he's going down the slide. That is definitely a way to keep up with your child.

A Glo party for kids sounds so fun. I'm glad everyone enjoyed it. It's hard to believe he's already 6, I remember when you were pregnant. So happy you've got a trip with Erica and Will planned. Seth and Will will have a blast together. Can't wait to see that trip report.

 

[akemom]

Happy belated birthday, looks like you had a good time! I have 2 more years until the big 40 I'm thinking a fall disney trip since my birthday is in September and we've never been during that time.

The pirate make over is too cute and the pirate cruise looked like so much fun! You really got some great photopass pictures!

Love your childhood picture.....Seth is your mini me for sure!

Seth and his friends looked like the were having a blast at his birthday party, what a cool theme! My baby will be turning 5 in May and starting Kindergarten next year, I'm sure I will be a mess!

Cape May breakfast looks yummy! I hope to try it on a future trip.

Yay for pool time and yummy drinks... Too funny about him screaming down the waterside!

The Lego store was my boys favorite when they were younger! I can't wait to see the "new" Disney Springs... I've read mixed reviews, what did you guys think?

 

[ArielSRL]

Love Cape May breakfast! It was one of our faves. Unfortunately it's not gonna work out for a repeat next June but we will be back, I'm sure!

Looks like you had fun at (formally) DTD! We missed a lot of it last trip but we are doing arrival night there next June so hopefully we will be able to spend a bit more time.

Nice relaxing pool afternoon! And yay on a booked trip! I'm wondering how January will be but I'm sure you'll have fun! And SSR is so nice and peaceful. Should be a fun trip with Erica and Will!

 

[jwwi]

I loved your idea for Seth's party! The pictures are very cute. The last couple of times I went to Disney springs I was staying at SSR so it was very easy to walk over. I hope to make it there on my next trip, but I think the parking situation has improved?

 

[punkin413]

What a great break day. I keep saying we need to do this but never really do. Love the pictures of Seth driving. It's really going to take me a while to get use to Disney Springs. I haven't been down there yet since they changed it up but the pictures make it look really different. I think we're going to be lost when we do go. It looks like Seth really enjoyed his time there. I'm still cracking up thinking of Seth screaming as he's going down the slide. That is definitely a way to keep up with your child.

A Glo party for kids sounds so fun. I'm glad everyone enjoyed it. It's hard to believe he's already 6, I remember when you were pregnant. So happy you've got a trip with Erica and Will planned. Seth and Will will have a blast together. Can't wait to see that trip report.

We always try to have a break day if we are staying more than 5 days. We just need it! Otherwise we all become vacation monsters! As far as Disney Springs, I think Marketplace is the least changed so it shouldn't give you any problems. Everywhere else is very different! Yes, he SCREAMED on that slide, but it was a fun scream and we were cracking up at him!

And tell me about it.....I feel like he should be 6 months....not 6 years!!!! He's such a little person now. Can't wait for the January trip with Erica and Will!

Happy belated birthday, looks like you had a good time! I have 2 more years until the big 40 I'm thinking a fall disney trip since my birthday is in September and we've never been during that time.

The pirate make over is too cute and the pirate cruise looked like so much fun! You really got some great photopass pictures!

Love your childhood picture.....Seth is your mini me for sure!

Seth and his friends looked like the were having a blast at his birthday party, what a cool theme! My baby will be turning 5 in May and starting Kindergarten next year, I'm sure I will be a mess!

Cape May breakfast looks yummy! I hope to try it on a future trip.

Yay for pool time and yummy drinks... Too funny about him screaming down the waterside!

The Lego store was my boys favorite when they were younger! I can't wait to see the "new" Disney Springs... I've read mixed reviews, what did you guys think?

Thank you! That's one thing I will never do for my birthday....go to Disney! But that's only because my birthday is in July and I refuse to go to Florida in the summer! Way too hot for me. September is nice but can be muggy. But not near as bad as July!

We love Cape May and this next trip will be the first one in the last 3 trips I haven't been there! But we are wanting to try something new, so we're going with Garden Grill breakfast instead.

I liked Disney Springs but I didn't really have much time to enjoy the new stores in the Landing and West Side areas. Not much shopping happens when Seth and Ray are with me! Maybe I'll get to see more next time. Marketplace hasn't changed all that much. It wasn't bad except for the parking situation, but hopefully that's improved over the last year!

Love Cape May breakfast! It was one of our faves. Unfortunately it's not gonna work out for a repeat next June but we will be back, I'm sure!

Looks like you had fun at (formally) DTD! We missed a lot of it last trip but we are doing arrival night there next June so hopefully we will be able to spend a bit more time.

Nice relaxing pool afternoon! And yay on a booked trip! I'm wondering how January will be but I'm sure you'll have fun! And SSR is so nice and peaceful. Should be a fun trip with Erica and Will!

Yeah, we always try to hit Cape May but we are trying Garden Grill for breakfast in January instead. We aren't on the DDP this time and are only doing 3 reservations - Tusker House, Garden Grill and Be Our Guest lunch. Don't want too many committments with 2 6-year-old boys! I'm sure I'll miss Cape May but wanted to try something new.

Oh I'm excited about January. I've never been during that time of year and I'm looking forward to the mild temps and hopefully low crowds. I think the Saturday/Sunday we get there won't be dead but the crowd numbers for the rest of the time are 2-4 so that looks awesome to me!

I loved your idea for Seth's party! The pictures are very cute. The last couple of times I went to Disney springs I was staying at SSR so it was very easy to walk over. I hope to make it there on my next trip, but I think the parking situation has improved?

Thank you! I'm sure the parking situation has improved - I haven't seen it with my own eyes but I haven't heard people complain lately either. And we are going to request Congress Park or the south end of the Paddock so we can hopefully walk to Disney Springs when we were at SSR. Can't wait!

 

[ArielSRL]

Yeah, we always try to hit Cape May but we are trying Garden Grill for breakfast in January instead. We aren't on the DDP this time and are only doing 3 reservations - Tusker House, Garden Grill and Be Our Guest lunch. Don't want too many committments with 2 6-year-old boys! I'm sure I'll miss Cape May but wanted to try something new.

We are planning Garden Grill for breakfast, as well. And Via Napoli on our other Epcot day. We are skipping the DDP as well, but I'll just put what we would've spent on it, on a gift card bc we are planning an ADR a day, as usual. Just not doing as many character meals/buffets. More off the menu TS because the DDP was just too much food. The boys don't eat that much so they can split something and sometimes I just want an app and a dessert.

Oh I'm excited about January. I've never been during that time of year and I'm looking forward to the mild temps and hopefully low crowds. I think the Saturday/Sunday we get there won't be dead but the crowd numbers for the rest of the time are 2-4 so that looks awesome to me!

I couldn't do it that cold. I have been beginning of December, which was nice, but I think that's my cold limit. But the crowds sound great!

Thank you! I'm sure the parking situation has improved - I haven't seen it with my own eyes but I haven't heard people complain lately either. And we are going to request Congress Park or the south end of the Paddock so we can hopefully walk to Disney Springs when we were at SSR. Can't wait!

The parking situation has definitely improved. In June, we had no issues whatsoever the two nights we drove over. Walking over will be nice though!