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

[dismagiclover]

So here are the pictures from Day 2. Just remember we'd spent the night on a train and still hadn't gotten a room to freshen up in. (Still I should have paid more attention to my hair)

 

[creativeamanda]

I have never gotten a fastpass for TSM. We always seem to go two days to Hollywood Studios for Rope Drop or at least once for PM EMH, so we just do the regular queue and live with two rides. I think for us, the plan works best.

It's nice getting to see the queue for TSM. I think when Star Tours has finished its refurb, the TSM group will be cut down immensely. Our only problem will be then deciding where to go.

 

[creativeamanda]

And your photopass pictures are so cute! Thanks for sharing them!

 

[Planning fanatic mom]

Love the FP pics. It is nice that it was cloudy. The sun isn't shining right in your eyes.

 

[DrMomof3]

I like your FP pics! You look great!!!

Amanda

 

[dismagiclover]

I have never gotten a fastpass for TSM. We always seem to go two days to Hollywood Studios for Rope Drop or at least once for PM EMH, so we just do the regular queue and live with two rides. I think for us, the plan works best.

It's nice getting to see the queue for TSM. I think when Star Tours has finished its refurb, the TSM group will be cut down immensely. Our only problem will be then deciding where to go.

I hadn't thought about the impact that the Star Tours rehab will have on the rope drop crowd, but you may be right. I bet Star Tours will become much harder to get on.

And your photopass pictures are so cute! Thanks for sharing them!

Love the FP pics. It is nice that it was cloudy. The sun isn't shining right in your eyes.

I like your FP pics! You look great!!!

Amanda

You are all kind because I don't think I look too great.

 

[dismagiclover]

So after exiting the Great Movie Ride we made our way over to Star Tours. This is one of my boys favorite rides. It makes me nauseated. So usually DH takes the boys on it while Wendy and I browse the shops. DH was in a galaxy far, far away though so I was forced to accompany the boys and Wendy was forced to ride. It was another ride she was doing for the first time and she peppered me with tons of questions I didn’t have answers for. We made our way through the queue.

Then we hopped into the ride vehicle and this ride still makes me sick. I spent most of it with my eyes closed. I opened them every once in a while to stare at amazement at Michael. FYI Michael gets carsick so often we always have a “puke bowl” and a change of clothes in our car. Tell me how does he not get sick on Star Tours? Anyway once it was all over I bolted out of the theater. My kids followed behind me all raving about how great this ride is and begging me to do it again. I cited time constraints and herded them into the Star Wars shop where the boys were quickly distracted. They browsed for a few minutes while I let my stomach settle. Wendy now loves Star Tours so when DH is with us that means I get some alone time in the parks during this ride. I know they are going to refurbish it soon, but I’d bet my stomach still won’t like it.

We left the shop and the boys spotted the Speeder and hopped on for a quick picture.

It was 9:20 and we needed to be heading back to pick up my parents soon, but we still hadn’t eaten breakfast. I decided we’d stop by Starring Rolls Café on the way out. We used a few snack credits and had a couple of cinnamon rolls and a chocolate muffin along with a plethora of drinks. (I don’t get the 2 drink thing with breakfast CS credits.) I especially enjoyed the Cinnamon rolls. Though I have to mention there is not enough seating at this venue. We actually ended up sitting in the corner on the ground. A nice couple offered to share their table, but I declined. It wasn’t a big deal, but it would be nice if they had a larger seating area. So after our quick breakfast we headed towards the exit. But of course I couldn’t leave without a few Photopass shots. Here is what we got on our way out.

Michael saw this next picture after the fact and said, "Hey I didn't know Stitch was going to be there." Apparently John did

It was around 10:00 so we needed to head back and pick up my parents so we could drive the cruise goers to the port. We headed back to Old Key West and met them at their room. It didn’t take long to get on the road. After about an hour we went over a bridge and we saw the Disney Wonder. It was so exciting I immediately began squealing. I’d been excited for Wendy before, but seeing the ship made it all so real and now I was ecstatic! We pulled up to a waiting area and I had to snap a picture of Wendy with the ship.

Before we knew it my sister-in-law was pulling up with kids in tow. We all hopped out and said hello. Then it was time to see everyone off. Here are my parents, Wendy and my niece. (Sorry about the obscured faces, but I'm not sure my parents and niece want their pictures all over the DIS.)

Wendy was a tad bit nervous. Remember she doesn’t like the unknown. She’d never been on vacation with anyone besides me and DH and she had never been on a cruise before. Her excitement, however, outweighed her nervousness and no one had a hard time with the goodbyes. Except maybe the boys who were pretty jealous. They kept talking about their 10 year old trips and coming up with ways we could save money so the whole family could just go on a Disney cruise. It didn’t take too long until we were once again passing under the Disney World sign.

As we pulled into Old Key West there were puddles of water by the roadside so obviously a storm had just blown through. The skies were still looking threatening as well. We were hungry so after parking the car we walked over to Goods to Go for lunch. The boys had hot dogs and I ordered chicken strips. We sat down to eat at the outside tables, but the wind picked up and I sensed another storm. So we carried the food back to the room and made it right before the rain started. We finished up our lunch in the room and figured swimming was out for the afternoon. The boys wanted to play a little DS. So while they did that I went out on to the patio and read my book. What a great way to spend an hour. We did however have big plans for later that afternoon. Where would we head next?

 

[Planning fanatic mom]

I am so jealous of Wendy. She is one lucky girl!! Your parents ROCK!!

I don't know where you went next, but I do remember that evening was beautiful once the rain stopped. We were still at DHS and loving every second of it.

 

[praisehisname]

Your PP pics turned out great! (And your hair looks fine!)

Are you going to include an account of the cruise in this TR? I'd love to know how Wendy liked it!

We did however have big plans for later that afternoon. Where would we head next?

Is this the day you had dinner at 1900?

 

[DrMomof3]

Sorry that Star Tours makes you sick. I've never ridden because my kids weren't tall enough in the past. My kids know that the tea cups make my DH sick so I have to take them alone! It's a big joke in my family!
I'm so excited for Wendy, too. I'm itching to take the cruise!!!
You do look better in the DHS pics but I didn't think you looked bad in the Epcot ones!

Amanda

Adding: When you first bought your pins, did you do a grab bag of pins? Is that a good way to start?

 

[Stefy]

Great PP Pics Sorry Star Tours makes you queasy, I refuse to go on it from all the motion sickness stories I hear about. You're one brave woman

Just look at that Cruise ship, Wendy is such a lucky girl. Bet she had a wonderful time

 

[dismagiclover]

I am so jealous of Wendy. She is one lucky girl!! Your parents ROCK!!

I don't know where you went next, but I do remember that evening was beautiful once the rain stopped. We were still at DHS and loving every second of it.

My parents are pretty cool We do have a beautiful evening ahead of us. I'm impressed you stayed in DHS all day. We never make it very long in the parks during the summer.

Your PP pics turned out great! (And your hair looks fine!)

Are you going to include an account of the cruise in this TR? I'd love to know how Wendy liked it!
Is this the day you had dinner at 1900?

I'm hoping to include an account of the cruise, but there are a couple of challenges to overcome. One being all the pictures are on my dad's computer and he isn't very good about sharing. (He just gets busy and thinks about other things.) However, we're visiting them in a couple of weeks and I'm hoping to just be able to make copies myself. Secondly 10 year olds don't always give details in a sensible order I'm hoping that once we get the pictures from my dad, Wendy and I can look through them together and she'll give me enough info for a decent summary at least. So the short answer is hopefully yes, I'll get an account of the cruise in this report. I'd forgotten I'd had a reservation at 1900 Park Fare during the planning. By the time of the actual trip that had changed so no it's not 1900 Park Fare.

Sorry that Star Tours makes you sick. I've never ridden because my kids weren't tall enough in the past. My kids know that the tea cups make my DH sick so I have to take them alone! It's a big joke in my family!
I'm so excited for Wendy, too. I'm itching to take the cruise!!!
You do look better in the DHS pics but I didn't think you looked bad in the Epcot ones!

Amanda

Adding: When you first bought your pins, did you do a grab bag of pins? Is that a good way to start?

We started pin collecting by buying a bunch of traders online. I recommend mousepinsonline. They sent me a bunch of great pins for this past trip. There were quite a few my kids actually wanted to keep instead of trade. I'm sure I'll order another lot for our upcoming trips too. It really gets quite addictive.

Great PP Pics Sorry Star Tours makes you queasy, I refuse to go on it from all the motion sickness stories I hear about. You're one brave woman

Just look at that Cruise ship, Wendy is such a lucky girl. Bet she had a wonderful time

Star Tours could be a lot worse. It's amazing the things I do for my kids You're right about Wendy. She loved the cruise!

 

[creativeamanda]

Wow--Wendy looks so happy, and the boys will get their turn. My kids have gone on trips like that, where it's just one of them, and I think it's great for every kid to get that chance with the other siblings knowing that their turn will come.

Awesome update. My Sweetie gets carsick, too, but can ride Star Tours and Mission Space no problems. I don't get it.

 

[FairyGodmotherJen]

I love your photopass pics! I can't wait to get ours...if DH ever gets done messing with them... I'll keep prodding him.

The cruise pictures are exciting! We went on a Royal Caribbean Cruise with my parents in 2006. At the time, the TA my mom worked with said Disney Cruise Line was way too expensive. However, I've learned a little since then (thanks, DIS and DIS Unplugged podcast!) and I think we might have to try it sometime in the future. Still not cheap, but if you plan far enough in advance, I think it's doable. I'm glad to see Wendy's excitement outweighed her uncertainty! Were you ok saying goodbye? DD is traveling to Oregon with DH in a month for a family wedding (we couldn't afford to ticket everyone - $700 just for the two of them to stay for 4 days!), and I find myself already thinking about it. Just the idea that she's traveling without me - even though she'll be with DH - gives me a mild case of the willies, even a month out!

 

[goofy's_gurl]

The photopass pictures look good. Im jealous I want to go on a Disney cruise.

 

[Queenofallthings]

Your PP turned out great! They are so good!

I'm with you, Star Tours makes me a little sick to my stomach too! I have avoided it like the plague the last few trips.

 

[dismagiclover]

Wow--Wendy looks so happy, and the boys will get their turn. My kids have gone on trips like that, where it's just one of them, and I think it's great for every kid to get that chance with the other siblings knowing that their turn will come.

Awesome update. My Sweetie gets carsick, too, but can ride Star Tours and Mission Space no problems. I don't get it.

Wendy was incredibly excited about the trip and it didn't disappoint. Nice to know that Michael isn't the only one who gets carsick but can handle Star Tours. I still can't wrap my head around that.

I love your photopass pics! I can't wait to get ours...if DH ever gets done messing with them... I'll keep prodding him.

The cruise pictures are exciting! We went on a Royal Caribbean Cruise with my parents in 2006. At the time, the TA my mom worked with said Disney Cruise Line was way too expensive. However, I've learned a little since then (thanks, DIS and DIS Unplugged podcast!) and I think we might have to try it sometime in the future. Still not cheap, but if you plan far enough in advance, I think it's doable. I'm glad to see Wendy's excitement outweighed her uncertainty! Were you ok saying goodbye? DD is traveling to Oregon with DH in a month for a family wedding (we couldn't afford to ticket everyone - $700 just for the two of them to stay for 4 days!), and I find myself already thinking about it. Just the idea that she's traveling without me - even though she'll be with DH - gives me a mild case of the willies, even a month out!

It really wasn't a problem saying goodbye. She was with my parents and I knew she was going to a place that she would love. And like I'll explain in my next update she is sometimes more responsible than me. So I knew she wouldn't get into any trouble. Though I don't know if I'll be as sure of that when it's my boys turn.

The photopass pictures look good. Im jealous I want to go on a Disney cruise.

I'm jealous too! Wendy has been on a Disney cruise and I haven't. That just kills me!

Your PP turned out great! They are so good!

I'm with you, Star Tours makes me a little sick to my stomach too! I have avoided it like the plague the last few trips.

Thank you about the PP pictures. These are OK, but there are a few really great ones we got this trip that you'll see soon!

 

[dismagiclover]

Before I get into what we did the rest of Day 3 I want to tell you something about the Darling Family. We always say we have 2 grown ups in this family. They are DH and Wendy. That’s right. I’m not considered one of the grown ups. And both DH and Wendy were a bit worried about how this trip was going to go. I mean us kids were at Disney World for 4 days with no adult supervision. (By the way this knowledge should give you some insight into the trip report title.) So now that the real party had begun what should we do? You guessed it. We were headed to the Magic Kingdom. We headed out to the bus stop and hopped onto the first Disney bus of the trip.

We were the first bus stop at OKW so there were plenty of seats for us. But we then had to travel all around OKW, a definite disadvantage of being the first bus stop. Anyway it didn’t take too long to get to the park. What was the first thing I wanted to do? Stop the photopass guy, of course.

After getting that out of the way what was our next stop?

That’s right. These boys were in desperate need of haircuts (In fact, John just saw those photopass picture today and said, "Ewww. What is wrong with my hair?) What better place to get a haircut than in the Magic Kingdom barbershop! We headed into the shop and after a short wait Michael was up.

Then John took one of the other chairs.

Now you can’t have a Disney barbershop haircut without getting a little something special. Here is Michael.

And here is John.

John’s hair was very patriotic, but there were several CMs throughout the day who weren’t sure which country’s patriotism we were displaying. It was more than one person who asked if that was the French Flag on John’s head. As we left the stylist warned us the gel takes a while to dry and she wasn’t kidding. The boys left some of that gel on probably every ride they were on that night. It was fun to do, but just be aware the drying time is several hours. The boys wanted some after shots so these are what we got.

John especially was quite proud of his hair. He so wanted Wendy to be able to see it. Wendy is the style guru of the Darling Family and he was sure she would have been very impressed.

We had a couple of hours before our dinner ADR. So where did we head to continue the party?

Up next: One of my favorite moments of the trip

 

[creativeamanda]

I have always wanted my son to get his hair cut at the Main St barbershop, but never have done it. Yet again, another reason to go back. . .

 

[DrMomof3]

Love the hair!!! Did it wash out easily or last awhile?
We meant to get Zachary's 1st haircut at MK but the line was too long. I'm glad we didn't because he hated his 1st haircut!

Amanda