06/06-06/11 Assault on Disney's Beaches: Update 8/13, Swag Pics on last page

[SurfinTX]

Rawr! Let's Shop and Dine!

Ahhh. After a nice stretch at the pool, that was interupted by a mid-afternoon thunderstorm, we dress and jump in the van for a drive over to...

This was the first time driving on Disney property for me but I had studied all the maps I could beforehand. The signs were pretty clear but it never hurts to plan ahead. After finding a fairly good parking spot we walked up to the entrance between Cirque and Disney Quest.

Making a right turn at the House of Blues we pass shop after shop. Very soon we find ourselves browsing and taking everything in. Since it was Saturday night many of the restaurants had live bands out front to entice us.

Crossing over to Pleasure Island we see the Harley Davidson store and decide to check it out. Kyler really liked all of the clothing and I snapped a few pics of the kids being "serious" bikers.

As we cross over to the other side of Downtown Disney we happen upon one of the most looked forward to destinations...the Lego Store.

I have a bunch of pictures from the inside but the kids kept moving too fast to really get a good shot. They all had ideas to get stuff but me and Dianna really had to put a damper on that. We have a Lego Store within miles of us and it seemed such a waste with the next store on our list coming up...World of Disney.

Now it was time to spend some money!
Just so everyone knows, we had promised the children that they would each get $25 to spend and a hat. Kyler already had a $25 gift card to add to his pool. I'll try to gather some pictures of what we bought later. Kyler liked the classic Mickey Ears. I found that I liked the top hat and Dianna picked out a set of white sequined ears to match for our much delayed honeymoon...with the kids... The two youngest did not like the hat selection though. Michael just doesn't wear hats so we agreed to convert the cost of a hat to something else later on. Knowing Michael that would be tomorrow at DHS. Madison did find a necklace with her name on it so we picked that up as well.

With our gear in hand it was about time for our dinner reservations which was a very short walk over to...

The wait to get in was quite short. In fact the line to set up reservations stretched way out the door. Minutes later we were seated near the back on the edge of the ice cave. The first thing you notice is that its very loud, especialy during the meteor showers. During the calm we clicked off a few pictures.

Service was great. The server came by several times but did not pressure us with the bill. The food was ok. I could probably find the same at Chili's for half the cost but that is not why we are at Disney, right? After finishing we went right next door to Build-a-Dino.

Madison is a huge fan of Build-a-Bear and this was going to be her spot.

Michael wanted one as well. I think it's just due to Madison getting one but we could not talk him out of it.

On our way out of Downtown Disney I noticed that Kyler was wearing the mouse ears...which gave us quite a shock. I made sure to take a picture.

Now for some reason as we reached the parking lot we lost our van. I think it was due to our having nabbed such a good spot and we marched right by it heading to a further point. Eventualy we found it and drove back to the Holiday Inn. Getting everyone in bed and ready for tomorrow I clicked one last picture of our trip mascot.

So far everything is going well. We didn't get lost and the children are tired enough to go right to bed.

Plan: See Downtown Disney and shop. Check!
Eat at T-Rex. Check!

Next Up: The Grand Tour and Other Delays

 

[SurfinTX]

A Grand Tour and Other Delays

All too early the next morning the alarm goes off at 6:30 am. The kids didn't seem to need much motivation this morning and a nice breakfast from the hotel helped speed up the process. At 7:25 we were checked out and on our way. In a few minutes what did we see?

and soon thereafter?

The excitement was building as we were waved through the main gate. A few minutes later we were pulling up to our home for the next six days.

We decide to valet thinking it would be faster for us to unload what we need here and get the car quickly after we were checked in. It turned out that we probably didn't need to bother with that. The concierge desk was still setting up and we were the first arrival of the day. What happened next was the wierdest combination of wonderful and horrifyingly bad sequence of events.

We wait for the concierge cart to come around as we pull out what we think is necissary for them to hold for us until the room is ready. A few minutes later the cart pulls up and the driver tells us that our room is ready and to load everything up! That's great! On the other hand now we have to unload everything and this will take some time. I was not thinking clearly and we should have hurried up and only unloaded a few things. Instead it was just too convenient and we unloaded nearly everything. Remember the picture of our van a while back? That's a lot of stuff and it took some time.

After a bit we were all loaded on the cart and we were speeding off to Hawaii...or were we? I'm not sure if this is normal but the driver took us around on a grand tour of the resort heading past the Great Ceremonial House, the Volcano Pool, around the Quiet Pool and finaly to the doors of Hawaii. On the way I was admiring the lovely view and the kids were loving the various animals they saw on the way.

By the time we were escorted in to the concierge desk I was really starting to have that wierd feeling. Everything is so amazing and everyone is being so friendly...but in the back of my head a growing sense of unease began to settle on me as I realized that we are getting well past 8:00 am. According to our plan we absolutely had to get to DHS for Star Wars Weekends before 8:45 to have any chance to do anything Star Wars related.

Still, I couldn't overcome how happy everyone in the family was and we finally start the process of checking in. Leis were handed out and Alohas all around. Everything was in order and our bags were brought up to us. We had a garden view room on the second floor facing the quiet pool.

Upon opening our door we see the following...

Dianna went crazy over the towel animals. I began to unload the bags and with cards in hand I check the time: 8:30 Off to the car we go. We hop in valet and turn onto the road when I realize I didn't have my card key or my parking pass. We had everyone elses but I had left mine as well as the welcome packet on the table while I had unloaded the bags. Turning around I realized there was no point in rushing anymore. I kicked myself a few times and then reset my expectations in my mind. I parked in the Poly lot, ran to the room and grabbed everything while everyone else waited at the bus stop. Running back I arrive just as a DHS bus drives up. That clinched it and we hopped aboard for our first ride on Disney Transportation to what promised to be the busiest park of the day if not the week.

Plan: Check into Poly by 8:00 am. Almost
Heading to DHS at 8:20. Failed

Lessons Learned: If I had known I would have arrived as early as we did Saturday I should have booked that day at the Poly as well. With as many critical items needing to be done on Sunday it was too much to try to rush Sunday morning and expect everything to go right. This would lead to some huge consequences later in the day.

Next Up: May the Force Be With Us. We're Gunna Need It.

 

[jake&samsmom]

Howdy fellow Texan! I am enjoying your TR and cannot wait to hear more! Thanks for sharing with us!

 

[SurfinTX]

Howdy fellow Texan! I am enjoying your TR and cannot wait to hear more! Thanks for sharing with us!

Thanks for joining in! I've been through Houston on the way to Surfside many times over the last decade. Actually I used to live there in 1977-78 but things have changed a bit since then.

 

[SurfinTX]

May the Force Be With Us. We're Gunna Need It.

After a false start we are finally on our way! On the way there I was nervous because the park was opening and we were going to be there after the initial rush. As we sat down me and Dianna noticed that Kyler sat next to Madison without prompting.

Was the Disney Magic already having an effect? Anyhow, about 10 minutes later we pulled up to our stop and hopped out. It was now 9:20. I wasn't going let that get me down though. Grin firmly set in place we started to see the Star Wars presence immediatly.

The Stormtroopers were still on top of the gate entrance and there was just a long enough line to hear a few of thier lines on the way in. That brought a smile to everyone. Now it was time for all that work on the Disboards to help us out, right? I tell everyone we are heading straight to Padawan Training to sign up for a spot. On the way there were characters about but we made a beeline for Star Tours. Arriving at 9:35 there was a line 40 deep for signup and you could tell that many were already set for the first few shows. We asked a CM and they said that it was just about booked solid for the day. That really put a downer on Michael. He was really looking forward to this and never in my dreams did I think it was necissary to sign up so early just to get any slot. There were dozens that didn't get in.

Time for Plan B. I drop everyone off at Tatooine Traders so I can make a fastpass run over to Toy Story Mania. On my way I see character photos are starting at several locations but the streets of New York are still effectively deserted. It was a wierd feeling going from absolute mayhem to nothing in less than a hundred steps. Arriving at TSM at 9:45 I get in line for the fast passes. Stand By was at 80 minutes and growing. After a bit I snag my FP for 3:45 pm. Still the plan was workable as long as everyone can take this June heat which was already bearing down on south Florida.

I meet everone back at Tatooine Traders and found that Dianna had kept everyone entertained.

Strong in the force he is.

I surrender to the pink Bounty Hunter.

Right next door we get in line for Star Tours. It was less than 20 minute standby at this point and there is plenty to see in the queue.

These robo-birdies are loud!

Soon we were sitting in our shuttle and ready to blast off.

The kids loved it but I think Dianna was a bit woozy afterwards. Passing through the gift shop again both Michael and Kyler wanted some blasters. I thought for sure they would go for the build your own lightsaber but it didn't happen. I promised we would come back later since there was still so much to do.

Next up was Muppet Vision 3D.

All of the family are big fans of the Muppets and we even take along the first two seasons of the 70's Muppet Show in the van with us. Again there was no wait due to all of the crowds lining up for Star Wars and TSM today.

A big hit for the kids again! I'm not sure but I think most of the audience was not aware that there were things happening behind them during the show. Again we exit through a gift shop and we get sucked in for a bit. We did get this picture while there.

Even though it's black and red I don't think I'll pick that one up.

On our way out we bump into these jawas wanting to trade for our gear.

After a bit of shopping at the Dark Side Kyler picks up a photo of Darth Vader. By now everyone is hungry and we decide to make our way back to Toy Story Pizza Planet. Boy was that a mistake. The crowds were wall to wall by now. I got in line after the kids figured out what they wanted and Dianna began to hunt for a seat. According to her it was quite the adventure as people would camp out spots waiting for others to leave and then someone else would jump in...Anyway, I got through the line and we started to eat. Just about everyone had a peperoni pizza with mouse ear marshmallow rice crispies. It wasn't bad at all in my opinion. Overall I have to give it an avoid during crowded seasons though.

Finishing up it was about time to snag the second fast pass. I sent Dianna back to Tatooine Traders to pick up the blasters as I hightailed it over to Tower of Terror to grab a FP. This was set at 4:30 pm. I also noticed along the way what the Indiana Jones show times were and that the next few were not going to work out. Getting back together again we head out to see the Star Wars parade. Even looking 15 minutes early there were few spots that were not several people deep. The kids did eventualy find an OK spot and me and Dianna tower over most of the crowd anyway.

I made sure to take this picture of the 501st banner. I might be showing a bit of my Star Wars geekiness here but the 501st in Timothy Zahn's novels are nicknamed Vader's Fist.

Also in the parade were several celebrities including Billy Dee Williams and Ray Park who played Darth Maul.

With the crowds clearing out following the parade it was time to continue our tour. I knew that at the end of the parade there was a Q&A with the celebrities but there was no way we were going to stand in such a huge crowd again at mid-day. It was time again to do some less busy rides and next up is the Great Movie Ride.

The line was about 30 minutes and all indoors. I really enjoyed the CM involvement with the ride. Madison and Michael were a bit freaked out by the Alien scene and wouldn't look up. Afterwards they understood it was an effect and questioned us what it looked like.

From there it was over to the Backlot Tour. The line here was also about 30 minutes but outdoors. This really took it out of us having to stand in a very stuffy area waiting. Once inside we were all smiles as the live demonstration of effects were displayed on a group of volunteers. Soon after we were loaded up on a tram for more special effects and props.

Finishing the tour up it was once again time to grab a FP. I was sweating this one because it was well past 2:00 pm now and there was a good chance that the FP would be gone for RockinRollercoaster. That wasn't all I was sweating either. The temperature on all of the black asphalt started to feel well over 100 degrees. We agreed that it was time for a break. I knew this was going to probably happen but the kids are getting cranky and there really wasn't much left to do without standing in some huge lines. Time to grab the FP and go. Just to show how busy it was, on the way over to RnRC we bumped into some stormtroopers heading over to thier greet spot. All the way they were surrounded by picture takers and kids wanting to see them. They kept moving as fast as they could without being too rude about it. This is the best picture Dianna could get.

Oh well. We finally get to the FP station and it was still available for 8:10. With all three FastPasses in hand we were all set for a great evening. As the sun gets even hotter we make our way out of the park and onto a cool bus back to the Polynesian.

Plan: Arrive at DHS at 8:40 to see Stormtrooper Pre Show. Failed
Go to TSM to ride. Failed but did get FP.
Padawan Training. Failed
Gathered big 3 FP. Check!

Next Up: The Poly, Hoopla and Sci-Fi

 

[jake&samsmom]

Still a fun-filled morning in spite of the heat and schedule snafus
I know y'all weren't the least bothered by that little ole Folrida heat when y'all are from Texus, right?!
Ok, I am off to see patients now. I hope to read another awesome update when I get back I can't wait to hear about the Poly and your first evening.

 

[SurfinTX]

Still a fun-filled morning in spite of the heat and schedule snafus
I know y'all weren't the least bothered by that little ole Folrida heat when y'all are from Texus, right?!
Ok, I am off to see patients now. I hope to read another awesome update when I get back I can't wait to hear about the Poly and your first evening.

Well, in Houston you would be right at home but in Dallas it's a dryer heat but to be honest it was manageable. The Backlot Tour's queue was a torture test with walls on all sides and in the sun for half of it. Even sitting on the trams was not much of a respite.

Your looking for an upate? That will be coming right up.

 

[SurfinTX]

The Poly, Hoopla and Sci-Fi

Ok. Now we areheading back to the Polynesian to rest and check things out. It's aproaching late afternoon and that should give us a couple of hours before heading back to DHS. As could be expected, the kids wanted to head for the pool immediatly. Quickly changing and applying plenty of sunscreen we found a spot on the beach.

Pretty crowded, eh? No matter. The kids went right in and the temperature was about a comfy 84 degrees. The slide in the volcano was a big hit as well as the waterfall. Michael and Madison must have jumped through the falling water twenty times. After an hour or so it was time to head back up. The kids beg for thier card keys to open the door to the lobby and room so I hand them off to them. You know kids. Always wanting to press elevator buttons and electronic door openers.

So, all changed and refreshed we hop on the bus again to head back to DHS. It's about 6:30pm with plenty of time to see Hyperspace Hoopla. Well upon exiting the bus we start gathering the card keys. Remember that I had handed the cards to the kids because they begged for them? Well me, Dianna and Kyler had ours but both Michael and Madison had left thiers in the room. It was totaly my fault. I should have known better that we should have emphasized how important it was to keep the cards with them anytime they left the room.

Now we were at the low point of the trip. Standing there for a moment images of missing everything and having nobody to blame but myself were floating through my head. Dianna ended up making the sacrafice, however, and said she would take the kids back to retrieve the keys. Me and Kyler headed on in. Now it was at this point I realized that Dianna had the camera in her bag as well so we have no pictures of Hyperspace Hoopla. Anyone who is curious can check it out on Youtube. It was very funny and had many of the Star Wars characters doing crazy things such as Vader and Stormtroopers dancing to Beat It!

Now we had a problem. The plan, as it were, would have had us riding Toy Story Mania next before having to check in for our Advanced Dining Reservation. Kyler and I were still waiting for the others to come back. I call Dianna to see how she was doing and she said she could not find Michael's key anywhere. I told her that Michael opened the room door with it and the most likely place it would be was on his bed or the bathroom since he changed. A few minutes later it was found under some towels in the bathroom and shortly thereafter they hop on the bus back to us.

Meanwhile, I go ahead and check in at

and wait for Dianna to arrive just about on time at 8:10 pm.

The service was excellent as I subbed the Chocolate Milkshake for my dessert. In fact I think everyone else did as well. Our server even took this picture of us.

I had the shrimp pasta which was huge if a bit bland. Overall I will give the Sci-Fi a big thumbs up.

We finish up and head for the door realizing it is now 9:20 pm. Amazing how the time flies. This might give us time to ride 2 rides if we are lucky. We head off to the back of the park to TSM. As we arrive there is a small crowd milling around. We ask a CM what was going on and we find out that TSM is down for technical reasons.

Quickly leaving there it is off to the other side of the park. Coming around the corner we see that RockinRollercoaster was running. In we dive through the FP lane and within minutes we are loading up. This ride saved the night for the kids. After the trip it was unanimously voted the best ride by all of the kids. We are thrill seekers and this rollercoaster is a big blast with the Aerosmith tunes in your ears as your looping indoors to blacklit scenery.

Finishing that ride we run out to Tower of Terror but find it had already closed. Still, we were leaving on a high note and had learned a few lessons today. Getting back to the bus stop we found a huge line waiting to go home. The TTC line was no better. There was nothing to do but wait. Eventualy we got back home around 11:00 pm. Just so that everyone is aware of this, the Poly shares a bus with the Contemporary and the Grand Floridian on it's routes. This can increase transit time considerably as it did this night.

That's the end of our first full day at Disney. Sorry there were not as many pictures in this update. There were ups and downs but plenty of fun for all. As our heads hit the pillows I was making promises to myself that tommorrow would be better.

Next Up: Failure is Not an Option!

 

[jake&samsmom]

You know kids. Always wanting to press elevator buttons and electronic door openers.

OOhhh, I have two boys, 9 and 6 y/o's, and they literally fight about who gets to press the elevator buttons or who gets the room key to get into the room first.

Well me, Dianna and Kyler had ours but both Michael and Madison had left thiers in the room. It was totaly my fault.

It happens to the best of us, don't beat yourself up over it. It happened to me and the boys while we were in Vegas, and the bad part was that all of our room card keys were left inside the room!! Luckily, the folks at the Mandalay front desk knew us quite well (DH is a semi-pro poker player, so we get to go to Vegas several times a year and Mandalay is our hotel of choice), and immediately issued another card key.

Dianna ended up making the sacrafice, however, and said she would take the kids back to retrieve the keys.

Awww, that was super nice of her! Awesome Mom! I would have had DH go back instead!

Me and Kyler headed on in. Now it was at this point I realized that Dianna had the camera in her bag as well so we have no pictures of Hyperspace Hoopla. Anyone who is curious can check it out on Youtube. It was very funny and had many of the Star Wars characters doing crazy things such as Vader and Stormtroopers dancing to Beat It!

How did Kyler like it? I bet you both had a great time! And I think it is wonderful to have some "bonding" time between yourself and just one of the kids. I have three total, and its nice to give one your full attention (sometimes! )

I had the shrimp pasta which was huge if a bit bland. Overall I will give the Sci-Fi a big thumbs up.

Cool! We have never been at Sci-fi before. We usually end up at Hollywood and Vine or 50's Prime Time. We always want to try this place, but end up canceling for whatever reason.


We finish up and head for the door realizing it is now 9:20 pm. Amazing how the time flies. This might give us time to ride 2 rides if we are lucky. We head off to the back of the park to TSM. As we arrive there is a small crowd milling around. We ask a CM what was going on and we find out that TSM is down for technical reasons.

NOOOOO! I am so sorry you didn't get to ride this time...I am betting y'all did eventually later on in the week...sorry, didn't mean to get ahead of the story


After the trip it was unanimously voted the best ride by all of the kids.

This is DH and Jake's favorite ride at WDW as well !! Unfortunately, Sam and I always take the chicken exit on this one



That's the end of our first full day at Disney. Sorry there were not as many pictures in this update.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading all about your family's adventures. Keep the updates coming!

 

[SurfinTX]

How did Kyler like it? I bet you both had a great time! And I think it is wonderful to have some "bonding" time between yourself and just one of the kids. I have three total, and its nice to give one your full attention (sometimes! )

Kyler right now is the typical 15 yo boy. He doesn't want to show that he is really enjoying something in front of strangers. Once the show reached the dance off I could tell he was really enjoying it though. We had a good time afterwards commenting on the people who were wandering the park dressed in full Star Wars costumes.

I'm glad your enjoying the updates. I know I have some family out there lurking due the huge number of hits I'm seeing on photobucket right now. Hopefully I'll convice some of them to sign up eventually.

 

[jake&samsmom]

By the way, did y'all get to see Fantasmic on this day? If I recall correctly from your PTR, this was also one of the family's goals.

 

[SurfinTX]

Day 2: Failure is Not an Option!

It's now Monday morning and we have the alarm set for 7:30. The family today is a bit sore and a bit slower to wake up. Still, with the help of a convenient quick breakfast in the lounge it doesn't take long to get ready this morning for a trip to Epcot at 9:00 am. This time we walk over to the TTC from the Poly and hop the monorail over. We arrive ten minutes before opening and wait first for them to open the turnstiles. Once through there who do we happen to see but Daisy Duck along with Mickey and Goofy.

Everyone in matching pink. The Coke is from the fridge in the lounge BTW. What can I say? It's super convenient.

Before long we reach the holding point inside the park where the CMs stop everyone on each end of Innovations. We are heading off to Soarin' this morning. The announcement is made that the park is opening and we are off! Well...it wasn't quite the stampede but it certainly got crowded once we approached the doors to The Land. We were greeted by the workers of the Sunshine Seasons along the way.

The wait was not very long at all and we were loaded within 15 minutes. Everyone loved it but we all agreed that we didn't need to repeat it later. Madison said it was cool and boring at the same time.

With that out of the way we jump over to the other side of Future World and size up the situation. Mission: Space was a 10 minute standby while the crowds seemed to be milling around Test Track. I tell Dianna to head over to Space and I'll grab the FP for Test Track. These were set at 10:45. Heading back to Mission Space I arrive at the entrance but I can't see anyone else there. I look around a second with no luck and then a thought hits me. There is a small jumping water fountain between Innovations West and M:S. It was just too obvious that Micheal and Madison would be there. Walking back lo and behold I was right. Back together again we grab Orange - More Intense Training and head on in.

While we were in line Dianna commented that it seemed that Disney put most of the nerdiest CMs at this ride. After a minute I had to agree as well. Soon Lt. Dan was telling us our mission and we were loaded in to the capsule. Madison soon sees the barf bag and grabs it. She can be a bit dramatic at times and once she saw that the ride came equiped with them she started getting all tensed up and worried. Afterwards she handed back the crumpled and slightly worse for wear bag to me. On this ride Kyler, Madison and me were spilt from Dianna and Michael.

For me it is my second most favorite ride in Disney World. The G's you pull during the ride are amazing and fairly realistic feeling. This time Failure was NOT an Option and we all made it out unscathed if slightly dizzy.

Exiting the gift shop we saw that a downpour had occured while we were out in space. It had let up just as we walked out and the temperature had come way down! It was a short walk over to Ellen's Energy Adventure anyway. Dianna and the kids love Bill Nye and it was a selling point of the ride to them. Me and Dianna cringed when they started talking about offshore drilling. You need almost a solid hour to do this ride in total. We all agreed that this ride had to be done once as well but that was all.

The long Energy ride worked perfectly for us because now our FP for Test Track was now up. The park was starting to get a bit more crowded and standby was up to 40 minutes. So far the plan is paying off. In about 10 minutes we are loaded up and racing through a road course.

After finishing I asked what everyone thought about it. The consensus was a good ride but not a repeater again. It's amazing how much alike we all are. That was my same exact opinion when I rode it in '07. Back then there was still tremendous hype surrounding that ride but it just doesn't deliver. It's not a bad ride but expectations easily get too high for it.

Now it's past 11:00 and now we have to head back across the park again to visit

for our ADR at Coral Reef.

We were seated on the second row facing the huge tank windows. The kids loved the tank and used a chart to try to identify the sharks that would swim by. The service was friendly if a bit slow. I would call it, in my old Steak and Ale days, paced service. We were never short any drinks at any time though. I had the Salmon and it was excellent just as last time in '07. Afterwards I ordered the Chocolate Wave and wow! So nice! Warm with the cooked in alcohol flavors. Mmmmm. Polling at the end of the trip indicated that overall this was our best dining experience.

Full and rested we head out of the Coral Reef and over to Finding Nemo. This is one of those continual loader rides that really wipe out huge lines quickly. This was the longest line we waited in all day at about 20 minutes. Still, the queue is very nice and there is plenty to see on the way.

Again, polling everyone it was nice for the little ones but Kyler gave it a Lame with rolling eyes.

Finding Nemo unloads right into the tank area of the Seas which we explore for a while.

The kids loved it when the sharks and dolphins would swim by.

Next up is a short walk over to Turtle Talk with Crush.

Me, Dianna and Kyler sat on a bench as Michael and Madison sat up front with all of the other children.

Soon Crush makes his appearance and I have to tell you...the interaction with the children is great! Either the kids were laughing at the jokes or the adults were laughing a some of the reactions of the children. It's perfect for families with small children.

Now it's barely 12:30 and we have crossed off all of our must see items in Future World. Gathering everyone around it was agreed that it was yet again time to head back to the Poly for some rest and preparation for a big evening. Where will that be? You'll have to stay tuned to find out.

Going Above and Beyond at the Poly

 

[SurfinTX]

By the way, did y'all get to see Fantasmic on this day? If I recall correctly from your PTR, this was also one of the family's goals.

Oh! I had forgotten about that. Disney had added a second showing after 10 pm but we had given up on F! when we realized we had to finish the day with the big 3 rides. We were very tired by the end of the day and even though we were close by there was no way we would be able to make rope drop the next day and sit through the late F!

If we had to do it again I would have returned to the park a little earlier with all passes in hand and rode TSM, TT, and RnRC around the Hoopla showing. Have a counter service and then catch the early F! There was no way we could have known and forgetting the passes killed any real plan we had anyway.

 

[jake&samsmom]

Day 2: Failure is Not an Option!


This is too cute!!:

Everyone in matching pink.

The Coke is from the fridge in the lounge BTW. What can I say? It's super convenient. So when do we get to see photos of the CL at the Poly? I've only seen the one at AKL (our home resort). I am curious to compare both...


Everyone loved it but we all agreed that we didn't need to repeat it later. Madison said it was cool and boring at the same time.

Awww, Soarin is my #1 favorite ride in Epcot. The boys get mad at me though cause I make them ride it at least 3 times when we're there! I think my boys have the same opinion of Soarin as Madison.


It was a short walk over to Ellen's Energy Adventure anyway. Dianna and the kids love Bill Nye and it was a selling point of the ride to them. You need almost a solid hour to do this ride in total. We all agreed that this ride had to be done once as well but that was all.

We always skip Ellen. I have heard multiple complaints of "boooriing!" when people in the Dis talk about this attraction.

Now it's past 11:00 and now we have to head back across the park again to visit

for our ADR at Coral Reef.

I think Coral Reef is one of the better Epcot restaurants. Glad y'all enjoyed that one. Were there divers when y'all were there?

Full and rested we head out of the Coral Reef and over to Finding Nemo.
Again, polling everyone it was nice for the little ones but Kyler gave it a Lame with rolling eyes.

My older son Jake is getting to that point too!


Next up is a short walk over to Turtle Talk with Crush.

Soon Crush makes his appearance and I have to tell you...the interaction with the children is great! Either the kids were laughing at the jokes or the adults were laughing a some of the reactions of the children. It's perfect for families with small children.

LOVE Turtle Talk!!! The California surfer dude accent is just super awesome and the interaction is hilarious!!!

....it was yet again time to head back to the Poly for some rest and preparation for a big evening. Where will that be? You'll have to stay tuned to find out.

[Staying tuned!]

 

[SurfinTX]

The Coke is from the fridge in the lounge BTW. What can I say? It's super convenient. So when do we get to see photos of the CL at the Poly? I've only seen the one at AKL (our home resort). I am curious to compare both...

You don't have long to wait!

 

[SurfinTX]

Going Above and Beyond at the Poly

This will be a quick update since I'm back on my regular work schedule...so let's dive on in!

After leaving EPCOT we travel by monorail bakc to the resort for some more swimming. Today we have a lot more time to spend at the resort so we decided to check out the Great Ceremonial House a bit more.

After checking out Boutiki and the waterfalls I head over to Tambu Lounge and grab the signature drink of the Poly, the Lapu Lapu.

Boy do they have long pours of rum there! It was very good for a pineaple rum drink but I'm more of a vodka man myself. It was worth it just for the looks I got walking towards the pool. I had two couples ask where I had picked them up as well. No sooner had I finished mine when I noticed a steady stream of them near the pools and lounge for a while.

Anyway, I head back to the room and noticed that the concierge and mousekeeping had left a couple of things for us!

A lovely B'day greeting from Donald! We also recieved a nice welcome letter with a decorative chocolate in a package as well. I'll upload that soon since I found the picture finally. We made sure to thank the concierge desk before we left that night.

The kids finish up swimming and get dressed for the evening. We head over to the lounge for a quick bite to eat. Towards the front of the lounge there is a TV running Disney Channel or ABC Family shows. Around that are kid sized tables and chairs for them to hang out. Often me and Dianna could relax by the windows and the children would camp by that TV. Ahhhh.

You can really tell that they positioned the windows of the lounge to face the Magic Kingdom.

The selection every night is varied and although I wouldn't consider it a full meal (at least for the adults, the kids kept getting more PB&Js) it was very tasty and satisfying.

Well, that's all for now. I'll have a bigger update for the night coming up soon!

 

[SurfinTX]

Magic Kingdom Wanderings

Now if you check our plans we were to use both the Lounge and a couple of CS credits tonight. Me and Dianna realized that after the big meal at the Coral Reef and snacking in the lounge that we were not really hungry for now. Following our plan it was now time to leave for the Magic Kingdom.

This time we were going to use the most convenient transportation option available to us and ride the boat over. It was setting up to be a lovely evening as the temperatures started to moderate.

I never realized how many pictures we had of drinks from the Poly. At this point Madison wanted to use the camera so the following are by her during the boat ride.

Honestly these launches are about the single best thing included with a stay at the Poly. You just feel so relaxed after you arrive at your destination - which this time was

It was now around 7:30 pm so I had left plenty of time for us to look around and browse what Main Street, USA had to offer.

After a bit we had made our way to the end of Main Street and made a stop over at the Plaza Ice Cream Parlor. In here we use our first snack credits for two rootbeer floats and two single dip chocolate cones. What occured next is something we were worried about but knew it would happen eventually.

If you remember on the first page my description of Michael is that he is very fearless and will in a moment make a decision about where he is going. Several times at DHS and EPCOT he started to wander a bit or slowed down to look at something without telling us. Every time we made sure to look out after every turn just in case and we had a few close calls. No matter how much we warn him though he gets on the verge of going out of sight anyway.

Back at the Ice Cream shop I'm picking up the desserts and handing them out as they come. I notice Dianna and Kyler heading out the door closer to the bakery. I hand Michael his cone and then Madison last. Michael was not around as I picked up the reciept and Madison was heading for the door Dianna had gone out. Following them I come outside and Dianna asks me "Where is Michael?" Uh, Oh!

Well, it had been mere seconds so he couldn't have gone very far. Backtracking through the shop I walk out the entrance I had come in through and still didn't see him. At this point a man walked up to me, I guess seeing my dismay, and asked me if I were looking for a boy. He then pointed me over to the entrance of the Plaza Restaraunt. Thanking the man I head in to find Mikey sitting towards the back with a CM with him. Big tears were starting to well up right as we came in. Soon we were all back together and this time I think the message got through. We did tell him that he did a good job going inside and finding someone to help after we all had settled down. From then on the cases of Michael just heading off in a direction without anyone went way down.

Now it was getting past 8:30 and people were already starting to line up around Main Street to see the Electrical Parade at 9:00 pm. We get situated near where the Tip Board is indicated on the Park Map.

Here we are just before the parade starts. You can see that Mikey was still recovering from the earlier incident.

Continued in the next post.

 

[SurfinTX]

The Return of a Classic

After about a 30 minute or so wait and as the sky grew dark the anouncement that the Main Street Electrical Parade was about to begin! The crowd was really pumped up due to this version of the parade had not been seen at Magic Kingdom for nearly 10 years. The lights go down and the show begins.

At this point the Seven Dwarves walk by with Dopey in the carts. For some reason all of the kids around us start start shouting "Grumpy! Grumpy!" Our kids join in as well. Grumpy pauses and looks at us...and then waves his fist at us and continues on. This brought a big laugh to all the parents.

Me and Dianna had to tell the children that Pete's Dragon was a movie when we were kids since they had never seen it.

All too soon the parade was over and the lights came back up. Don't leave yet! The night is far from over.

 

[SurfinTX]

Honey, They Blew Up the Castle!

Now that the ElectricalParade was over we had about 30 minutes before the Summer Nightastic Fireworks would start. I told the rest of the family that they could go shopping or look around for a bit and I would try to hold a spot for us. They all agreed except for Michael. He was starting to wind down a bit so he decided to stay with me.

Looking north towards the castle I noticed that I had a big lamp post right in my line of view. Moving in a bit closer I found an area next to the lamp post that might hold all of us...maybe. Many people had not moved since the parade and the sides of the street were pretty packed. Sitting down, Michael decides to take a nap and he nods off half on the ground and half on my lap...and that's how the next 20 minutes pass. While I was waiting a group right next to me decides to up and leave. Waking up Michael I move over to that spot and find a nearly perfect view.

Soon the anouncement by the Fairy Godmother that the presentation would start momentarily. I began to worry a bit since I hadn't heard from Dianna yet. Right on cue the phone goes off. After a bit she finds me and we all settle in for the show.

Make it pink.

Make it blue.

The Pirates move in.

Honey, The Pirates blew up the Castle.

Tinkerbell takes flight. Take note that I took this picture as she traveled due east of us and you can still see fireworks behind her.

Finale.

During this amazing show I turned towards Dianna and I saw her crying a bit. She has dreamed about this since she was a young girl and the moment was here.

Now that the show had ended there was a huge crowd making their way to the exits. Our plan was to go farther back into the park. This took a bit of time to go against this flow of people but once we reached the steamboat the crowd all but disapeared. Turning right we made our way to the Haunted Mansion.

As we get in view of the Mansion the kids all of a sudden start getting nervous. I had billed this ride up as one of my favorites as a child and told them not to be nervous. We reached the entrance and it is only getting worse. Madison grabs my arm and starts to shake. Both me and Dianna continue to reassure them but it's a near thing that one doesn't chicken out at any moment.

It was only a few minutes wait until we were led to the stretching room and the kids were hanging on for dear life. They were not going to take one more step without us helping them.

They calm down during the stretch but when the room goes dark that almost did them in again. When the side door opens into the loading area it gets really dark again and Madison is hanging on to me as if her life depended on it.It was time to load up on the Doombuggy and it was a mad scramble for the kids to sit as close to mom as possible. I hung back and then decided it would be better to sit alone behind them.

According to Dianna after they entered the first scene thier mouths dropped open in disbelief. Once they saw what the ride was really like they recovered quickly and enjoyed the rest. Afterwards they joked about some of the lines...

"There's always MY way."

Looking through my pictures nothing turned out well during this period. I had to keep the shutter open way too long and everything is very blurry. Oh well.

From there we head behind the castle to walk through it and get some pictures now that the park is getting to be empty.

We soak up the atmosphere for a bit and then make our way to the front. There we saw a mass of people still waiting to head home. The monorail had lines all the way down the ramp. The Ferry to TTC was backing up to the bag check and our boat had at least 4 loads worth of people waiting. We picked the boat. After about 20 minutes we were really getting concerned when only one boat had come by. Then suddenly one of the larger boats normaly used for Ft. Wilderness diverts to us and nearly everyone is loaded.

Just a bit after 11:00 pm we arrive back at the Poly. When we reach the room the kids head directly for bed. Two long days in a row has taken it out of them. Can they handle a third? Can they handle a morning EMH?

Stay tuned to find out!

 

[jake&samsmom]

OMG! Updates galore. The CL at the Poly looks !. Love the fireworks pics! Glad everyone had a memorable night!
I'm so sorry about Mikey getting lost
We love HM, but the boys were pretty nervous the first time they rode it too.