The Darling Family June 2010 Trip Report: When are the Parents Showing Up?11/5 New TR

[dismagiclover]

Aww bless, such a cute photo with Tink.

Love the interaction with the Tremaines

The Tramaines really were funny! They are just such great characters. We've never actually "met" them. One of these years!

You sooooo made me want to schedule an appointment at the Pirates League. I wonder if my 13 year old son would think he's too old? Probably not. I just wish they had something like this for the boys years ago.

I bet your son would love it! He seems like he is the fun loving type! Maybe you could get your DH to do it with him

I'm terrible at guessing but you mentioned leaving the park so I'm going to guess.....heck, I'm terrible at guessing I should pay more attention!

I didn't give any good hints. That makes guessing much tougher!

Great pics!!!! I agree about photopass. If you've already paid for a cd, you might as well get lots of photos!
Glad the kids liked the Albatross Cruise.

Amanda

I'm definitely a photopass addict Your kids will love the Albatross Cruise too.

 

[dismagiclover]

Hey Jenny!

Y'all make awesome pirates! And wonderful parade photos. I need to go back and see what I've missed.

Hey Carissa good to see you back on the DIS

You guys look great! How fun and what great memories the boys will have of their mom having fun with them!

Way to go with the flow! Your parade pics turned out great; thanks for sharing!

Well, looking back at your PTR, today was supposed to be a CS at the resort. Sooooo, I have no idea where you are headed!

Great job going back to the PTR. You are one dedicated reader My plans did get switched around there a bit at the end of planning because of my parent's arrival. I had to give up my 1st night Ohana's dinner and then I just had to keep trying to get one whenever I could. Once I got the Ohana's dinner I then had to switch some of the other dinners around so I could fit everything in. It all worked out great though!

I hope we are able to catch the parade, but I do not think it is going to work out for us. We will see though.

We haven't seen the afternoon parade in quite a while because we usually take an afternoon break. It was fun to see it this trip.

 

[dismagiclover]

We headed out of the Magic Kingdom and hopped onto the monorail.

We’d already had a day full of adventures, but we weren’t through yet. Once we hit the TTC we switched lines and were soon on our way to Epcot. It didn’t take us too long to get there. Once we arrived we headed toward the Land pavilion, but we did not go unnoticed. We received a decent amount of attention in the Magic Kingdom in our pirate garb, but in Epcot it went to a whole new level. It was as if no one there had even seen pirates before! Everyone we walked by growled at us and Michael especially was in full character with a huge scowl on his face. People just loved it. We reached the Land and checked in for our ADR at Garden Grill. We sat down to wait and I got a shot of Michael doing his “ARRRGH.”

While we were waiting a couple of young Japanese women walked by and saw the boys. They thought they were absolutely hilarious and couldn’t stop giggling. By this point Michael was pretty tired of all the attention and just scowled at them. That sent them into even greater giggling fits. They asked to take a picture with him and didn’t stop giggling the whole time. I really wish I would have thought to take a picture with my camera too. Michael wasn’t finding any of it even remotely amusing and scowled the entire time.

Eventually our buzzer went off and we were seated at Garden Grill. Michael was quite worried that the characters wouldn’t recognize him. He thought they might actually be scared of him and he wasn’t happy about that. He’d been wishing we’d scheduled the Garden Grill for another day. It didn’t take long for Mickey to show up and guess what?

He wasn’t one bit afraid and seemed to recognize the boys right away. This was a huge relief to Michael and he actually cut out the scowl after that. After Mickey showed up our food arrived. I didn’t realize Garden Grill had changed their menu. The server said they were trying to be healthier. In my opinion the food was quite a bit tastier than it used to be. Nothing was fried and it was all very fresh. There was plenty of it because they don’t bring plates for one. (They have an adult platter and a kid’s platter.) My boys didn’t feel the same about the food. They prefer their food deep fried They had sweet potato sticks instead of French Fries. Michael and I thought they were quite tasty. John not so much. John also wasn’t impressed with the Macaroni and Cheese which was actually baked and in my opinion tasted decent. John prefers the Kraft kind. Anyway as we were eating Chip snuck up on us.

He even insisted on a cuddle with me.

Then Michael’s favorite Pluto arrived. Michael was very happy to see his old pal.

Mickey stopped by for another chat. He just couldn’t stay away.

But where was Dale? Would he make it before the end of dinner?

 

[mickeystoontown]

I didn't realize they had changed the menu at Garden Grill. Wonder if that's posted on allearsnet?

Your pictures turned out great. The character interaction is always so good at the Garden Grill. I am sure it was a load off your boys' minds when they saw that Mickey and the gang weren't afraid of their pirate faces.

 

[praisehisname]

Aw, that is so sweet that Michael was worried about the characters' reactions! Judging by the pictures, though, he needn't have worried! What great interaction!!!

 

[Stefy]

bless them, I guess it is a bit much when you get people staring and pointing, would have been funny to see their scowls.

Great update Hope Dale made it to your table

 

[mermaid764]

Great updates and I'm finally all caught up.

Love the pirate pic with tinkerbell and the ones with Mickey from Garden Grill.

Can't wait to hear more

 

[dismagiclover]

I didn't realize they had changed the menu at Garden Grill. Wonder if that's posted on allearsnet?

Your pictures turned out great. The character interaction is always so good at the Garden Grill. I am sure it was a load off your boys' minds when they saw that Mickey and the gang weren't afraid of their pirate faces.

I checked out Allears and it shows the updated menu. It really isn't that different than the old menu. It's like they took the old meal and just tweaked it to make it healthier..

Aw, that is so sweet that Michael was worried about the characters' reactions! Judging by the pictures, though, he needn't have worried! What great interaction!!!

Michael perked up immediately when he realized the characters wouldn't be scared of him. I think he really had been worried about that.

bless them, I guess it is a bit much when you get people staring and pointing, would have been funny to see their scowls.

Great update Hope Dale made it to your table

The attention was fun for the boys at first, but Michael especially got tired of everyone growling at him. I guess he should be glad he's not a Jolie-Pitt

Great updates and I'm finally all caught up.

Love the pirate pic with tinkerbell and the ones with Mickey from Garden Grill.

Can't wait to hear more

I got the idea of the pirate pic with Tink from a lady in the Photo Center at MK. So we had to head back up Main Street just to find a Photopass guy to take it. Sometimes I'm a little crazy! I love the Mickey at Garden Grill pictures too. The lighting is perfect so it makes the pictures seem to glow.

 

[dismagiclover]

It was almost time for dessert and we still hadn’t seen Dale. Not to worry though. He showed up and boy was he in a playful mood.

He even did some booger flipping. I guess he figured since there were no grown ups around it wouldn’t be a problem. Plus he must have known nothing is funnier to little boys.

So the characters had made their rounds, but we still had dessert. I had a yummy fruit crisp all to myself and the boys had these.

I think the dessert may have made up for the dinner for John.

So it had been a full day. After our fun meal we decided to head back to the resort. We made our way towards the entrance, but you must all know by now I can never pass up a Photopass opportunity. Michael was not feeling the same way, however. John, on the other hand, is a little bit in love with me. So he likes to make me happy and was more than willing to take a picture with me.

The photographer then told Michael she would take the coolest pose ever of him. So he agreed. The photographer then tried to get Michael and John to pose back to back like several of the other photographers had them do. I could tell by the glint in his eye that this was not what Michael had in mind. I chuckled to myself and explained to the photographer that Michael was hoping for a sword fight. So here is the Epcot Battle.

That may be the coolest pose ever (at least for a 5 year old boy). Anyway we headed back to the monorail. The swords had been unleashed and the boys battled all the way up the ramp. The battle continued on the platform.

I finally convinced them to put the swords away and we had an uneventful ride back to the TTC. Remember many updates ago when we were the 10th car in the Magic Kingdom parking lot. Well our car was still there. We managed to find our way back to Old Key West. Believe it or not it was only a little after 6:00 and the boys were itching to go swimming. A storm was definitely on its way, but I told the boys we could at least stay until they closed the pool. We dragged out the makeup remover for Michael and John hopped in the tub to finally wash out his “cool hair.” (I didn’t think the pool would take too kindly to the makeup or hair gel.) Then we headed over to the pool. And it was already closed. So then the boys were hankering to go in the community center. I agreed, but I didn’t want to stay too long because I didn’t want to get stuck there during the storm. Well that plan didn’t work. Pretty soon the storm came and it was a doozy. We ended up staying in the community center for over an hour. The boys happily played Playstation and I read one of the books left in the library. I can’t even remember it. Something about someone in 19th century England I think. But there was also some Native American in there too. Who knows? Anyway eventually the storm let up enough we could head back to our room where the boys quickly settled in for the night. Once again I went out on the balcony where I listened to the light rain still falling and read my book. This was a great vacation.

 

[Angies1274]

I got a little behind...but all caught up now!

You were able to get some great parade pics!! That's so wonderful that you had such great interaction with the characters dressed as pirates!

Loved all your photos from Garden Grill!! That's another character meal we haven't tried yet. Although, I'm sure the boys would love it! Chip and Dale!

Ahh...poor Michael....worried that the characters wouldn't recognize him. I'm sure he was so relieved when they did!! That's so cool that you got to see Mickey twice!! And YAY for Dale finally showing up!!

Too cute about the Epcot battle pictures!!

What a great day you had!!!

 

[mermaid764]

Love the epcot battle pics...too cute!

You guys had an awesome day overall, but too bad about not being able to swim.

Hopefully they were able too swim on a different day to make up for it

 

[praisehisname]

He even did some booger flipping.

Perfect for little boys!

I had a yummy fruit crisp all to myself and the boys had these.

No picture?

What a sweet picture!

Looks like fun!

Then we headed over to the pool. And it was already closed.

Bummer about no swimming, but it sounds like they had a good evening anyway.

 

[Planning fanatic mom]

What a fantastic day!!

I had been waiting to see where you were when the storm hit?? It was a bad one. We had gone back to MK and puddle jumped our way around in an empty MK!

I love the pics. Your boys are such good sports to pose for all of those. My faves are the sword fighting ones.

 

[dismagiclover]

I got a little behind...but all caught up now!

You were able to get some great parade pics!! That's so wonderful that you had such great interaction with the characters dressed as pirates!

Loved all your photos from Garden Grill!! That's another character meal we haven't tried yet. Although, I'm sure the boys would love it! Chip and Dale!

Ahh...poor Michael....worried that the characters wouldn't recognize him. I'm sure he was so relieved when they did!! That's so cool that you got to see Mickey twice!! And YAY for Dale finally showing up!!

Too cute about the Epcot battle pictures!!

What a great day you had!!!

I'm tough to keep up with The Garden Grill is a great character meal. The way it is set up feels much more private than other character meals. We always have great character interaction and I love that it isn't a buffet. You should give it a try!

Love the epcot battle pics...too cute!

You guys had an awesome day overall, but too bad about not being able to swim.

Hopefully they were able too swim on a different day to make up for it

The Epcot Battle was fun for the boys! And don't worry we got plenty of swimming time in this trip!

Perfect for little boys! You are right about that!

No picture? I didn't take very many food pictures. Mostly just if the kids insisted on it. (They must be budding DIS dining reviewers)

What a sweet picture!
John is a sweet kid
Looks like fun!
Bummer about no swimming, but it sounds like they had a good evening anyway.

We ended up having plenty of swim time. The boys were probably happier with video games anyway

What a fantastic day!!

I had been waiting to see where you were when the storm hit?? It was a bad one. We had gone back to MK and puddle jumped our way around in an empty MK!

I love the pics. Your boys are such good sports to pose for all of those. My faves are the sword fighting ones.

It was a great day! Probably one of the best Disney days ever! I bet that storm did empty out the MK! It was a big one. Probably made for a light crowd for fireworks and the parade. My boys really are good sports about the pictures most of the time. Later on in the trip Michael got tired of it. Most of the time though they want their pictures taken.

 

[dismagiclover]

Today was a bit of a down day. The previous day had been packed full so I figured we’d relax a bit more this day. First things first though. It was Father’s Day and we’d left poor DH home all alone. We’d left an ice cream cake in the freezer and the kids had all made gifts they left for him. I’m sure it wasn’t the same though. We did call him and here is John chatting with his dad on Father’s Day.

DH seemed to be in decent spirits. He had a bit of fun while we were gone and did note the house stayed much cleaner without us around. Anyway after our chat we all got ready and headed over to breakfast. We were headed back to Ohana. I snapped a picture of the boys in the lobby.

Then we went and checked in at the desk. Let me just tell you, this place was craziness again. I’d always thought it would be fun to stay at the Polynesian someday, but now I’m not so sure. It always felt so busy and hectic. A much different vibe than Old Key West. After a bit of a wait in which we browsed the stores and the boys did some pin trading our buzzer finally went off. We were seated and given a yummy bread basket and some fruit while we waited for our hot food and the characters. The rest of the food arrived pretty quickly and it was yummy. I may have mentioned this before, but I’m a big breakfast fan. Plus I love the character meals where they serve you instead of having to schlep to the buffet. So both those things were a huge plus at this meal. That isn’t even mentioning the characters which included my boys’ favorites. First up was Michael’s best bud.

Followed shortly by Lilo, a character we had never met.

Notice Michael still seems to have a bit of eye makeup on from the night before. Then came John’s partner in crime, Stitch.

John has a large Stich pin collection so he showed them to Stitch and he was appropriately appreciative.

Then last, but not least came our Pal Mickey.

Overall it was a great meal. In fact we enjoyed breakfast more than we’d enjoyed dinner here. We’d definitely do it again. (In fact I’ve got an ADR here for October.) We headed back to Old Key West (once again enjoying having our car.) The plan for the afternoon was to spend it relaxing at the pool with the Disney family. And that is exactly what we did.

We spent a great afternoon playing and chilling at the pool. I wish I would have taken pictures, but I didn’t have my camera. The boys all get along great and I always love just chit chatting with Liz. She is always fun and relaxing to be around. Sure do miss you neighbor. We stayed at the pool for a few hours. If I remember correctly my boys went into the community center for a few minutes to do a little pin trading. (It was on the activity schedule.) Eventually the skies started to darken. Liz and her boys were planning on heading to DTD to see Toy Story 3 and we had another early dinner ADR. A storm was clearly coming so we said goodbye and made plans to see each other at Epcot tomorrow. As we headed to our room the rain started coming down. How bad would this storm be? Would we make it to our dinner?

 

[DrMomof3]

I'm totally loving your trip report! It's making me SO excited for our trip. Glad to hear a good report of the Garden Grill. This will be our first time there. We eat reasonably healthy at home (nothing crazy but I do try to serve a vegetable every night! ) and I like that the food is a bit healthier than the Disney norm.
Your pictures are fabulous!

Amanda

 

[Queenofallthings]

I think instead of dinner next year at O'Hana's we'll definitely do breakfast! I'm with you...I love a good breakfast, I would much rather go out for breakfast than dinner, the rest of the family don't agree with me though

 

[jmskinner]

Love the pics of your pirates at Epcot. Made for a much different photo opportunity, especially the sword fighting.

Too cute about Michael being worried the characters would be scared. That is sweet.

Sounds like you had a nice relaxing day at the resort. It's funny how after spending all that time picking out the best resort, we don't take the time to enjoy it.

 

[Stefy]

Great updates Glad Dale came along in the end and it seemed like he was very entertaining

Love the PP pics and you and John look so cute as well. Isn't PP just the best

Not liking the sound of the Poly being hectic, but then DF says its always like that because of all the popular restaurants, glad you liked Ohana Best Friends. How was the food and did they refill quite regularly?

 

[wdwgirl03]

Aww, you guys look awesome in all your pirate gear! That picture of the three of you is great! Too funny the stepmother and stepsisters didn't like it though.