3 Years in the Making: Our return to WDW...with diapers! SAD NEWS 7/1 page 41
- Thread starter punkin413
- Start date
happenin2you
Mouseketeer
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Glad to see that you made it home safely.
I've been checking here almost daily for your TR and of course the one day I didn't check is the one you start 
Oh well, I'm here now. I have to balance my Dis life with being a full time student at UNLV and working full time, so I'll try to stay on top of checking in with the progress. I love reading your reports, they are definitely a nice escape from writing research papers and reading textbooks. 
Oh, and a bit of exciting news only my Dis friends seem to understand: In september my husband and I took a long weekend to Disneyland to celebrate our fourth anniversary and bought DVC. We had been thinking about it since we first toured them on our honeymoon in DW, and since we just finished building our house in June, we didn't have anything holding us back anymore. We are now proud owners at AKV
Gonna start planning our first trip home after this semester is over. 
I've been checking here almost daily for your TR and of course the one day I didn't check is the one you start Oh well, I'm here now. I have to balance my Dis life with being a full time student at UNLV and working full time, so I'll try to stay on top of checking in with the progress. I love reading your reports, they are definitely a nice escape from writing research papers and reading textbooks. Oh, and a bit of exciting news only my Dis friends seem to understand: In september my husband and I took a long weekend to Disneyland to celebrate our fourth anniversary and bought DVC. We had been thinking about it since we first toured them on our honeymoon in DW, and since we just finished building our house in June, we didn't have anything holding us back anymore. We are now proud owners at AKV
Gonna start planning our first trip home after this semester is over. 
punkin413
feel the magic, dang it!
- Joined
- Jan 9, 2007
- Messages
- 9,581
Can't wait for the first installment..hopefully your TR makes the next 12 weeks until our trip fly by
I hope so too! Thanks for all your help with this trip!
I knew it was something like that. You are a brave woman!
Hopefully the good and not the bad or the ugly.
The good and bad part about this trip is that you will never have another one like it.
Very true! And of course you weren't part of the bad or the ugly. Now Batman....that's a different story.
Glad to see that you made it home safely.
Oh, and a bit of exciting news only my Dis friends seem to understand: In september my husband and I took a long weekend to Disneyland to celebrate our fourth anniversary and bought DVC. We had been thinking about it since we first toured them on our honeymoon in DW, and since we just finished building our house in June, we didn't have anything holding us back anymore. We are now proud owners at AKV
Wow...congrats on DVC! I hope to buy one day but it will be awhile...we need to pay off some debt first. Thanks for reading!
Poolrat
I am alive, sometimes I wonder too.
- Joined
- Jan 6, 2008
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- 9,189
Very true! And of course you weren't part of the bad or the ugly. Now Batman....that's a different story.
punkin413
feel the magic, dang it!
- Joined
- Jan 9, 2007
- Messages
- 9,581
So the tale of our return to Disney World after an almost-three-year wait begins on Thursday, September 29th. Anna and I both worked that day, getting off early and we left my office around 3:00 that afternoon. I had to stop by Seth's school to pick him up (he goes to school on Thursdays and Fridays) and then we were off! Ray stayed behind for an extra day b/c he could only get the next week off, so he was planning on leaving the next day after work.
I was preparing myself for a VERY long trip - having a 13mo and a 7yo in the car together is sometimes not so fun. Of course Seth is going to cry at times, especially when he's sleepy and tired of being in his car seat. And Luke, although usually so awesome with Seth, sometimes doesn't understand, being 7 years old. But I was surprised that we had a decent trip with very few melt-downs from Seth and Luke.
We stopped just south of Macon for dinner at a little Mexican restaurant. I wanted to give the boys a good break from the car and let Seth stretch his legs a bit.
We were lucky enough to be serenaded by the mariachi band there....
And of course I have video! Listen to the first song they played....fitting, huh? And they had no idea where we were going!
We had our iPad set up in a case on the back of the passenger seat so Seth could watch movies....well, as much as a 13mo watches movies! But it keeps him entertained for the most part!
Stopping for gas and a stretch break!
We saw this sign around 9:30....
Seth slept from about that time until we hit the first toll once we got on the Western Beltway. That woke him up and he was pretty whiney for the next 15 minutes until we got there. Thankfully that road is not very long before you get to Disney World!
We saw this glorious sight around 12:30am....
Oh, how I've missed you!!!!!
We made our way to All-Star Sports (I'd never stayed at the All Stars before but we found them pretty easily) and I went to check in. I asked for a luggage cart and the CM told me that bell services keeps those locked up and that they were closed right then. Huh? Great....do you know how much stuff we have to carry to our room, along with two very tired boys, at 1:00am???? That was one thing that really ticked me off. Talk about inconvenience.
I also had a box that I had shipped to myself full of supplies for Seth (it's truly shocking how such a little person requires so much stuff!) and asked about that. She said I could call bell services at 8:00 the next morning and they would deliver it to my room.
On the bright side we had gotten adjoining rooms, which I had requested, and we had a great room location - on the bottom floor (hello, turbo toilets!) in the Surf's Up section near the parking lot and just around the corner from the pool.
Silly (and tired) me didn't take any pictures of the hotel when we got there, but we got some later which I will post when the time comes. And I didn't really take any pictures of the room, either. It was late....that's my excuse.
I did get this that was laying on our bed when we arrived....
I stayed with the boys and unpacked things while poor Anna got to unload the car. Did I mention how much I love her?
Seth exploring the room....
Two tired little boys who were apparently too tired to sleep!
We finally got in bed around 1:45am. I let Seth sleep the next morning until he woke up, which was around 7:40, VERY late for him. But I was fine with that.
At 8:00 on the dot I called bell services and was transferred several times, but then finally talked to someone who located the box in the "system" and said they'd have it delivered to my room. We proceeded to get ready for our day and to go get breakfast at the food court. Well, 8:45 rolls around and we are all ready to go and....no box. I needed that box - it had things in it that I had to have for the parks. So I waited until 9:00 and called again. The man I spoke with this time said that he was in charge of bell services and no one had told him about delivering any box, that if one would be delivered it would HAVE to go through him. For serious? Are you joking? So THE MAN finally located the box and they FINALLY delivered it. Geez. Late start anyone???
As soon as that was over we headed for the food court for breakfast.
This was basically what we saw on our very short walk over....
The food court was of course a madhouse but we work well together - I grabbed a table and sat with the boys while Anna got all our food. Seth had oatmeal and fruit which I had brought myself and just needed to warm up, so Luke was a good babysitter for 2 minutes and watched him while I did that.
My little man waiting on breakfast.....
Our view...
The food court....
Luke's Mickey waffle, bacon and grapes...
Anna and I both got the breakfast platter....
I forgot to mention, we were on the DDP during this portion of the trip. I had booked the rooms with the free dining deal awhile back. Once we get to VWL, we were no longer on the DDP.
Breakfast there was good as we were all starving.
Anna enjoying her breakfast....
Continued in next post: http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=43000366&postcount=66
I was preparing myself for a VERY long trip - having a 13mo and a 7yo in the car together is sometimes not so fun. Of course Seth is going to cry at times, especially when he's sleepy and tired of being in his car seat. And Luke, although usually so awesome with Seth, sometimes doesn't understand, being 7 years old. But I was surprised that we had a decent trip with very few melt-downs from Seth and Luke.
We stopped just south of Macon for dinner at a little Mexican restaurant. I wanted to give the boys a good break from the car and let Seth stretch his legs a bit.
We were lucky enough to be serenaded by the mariachi band there....
And of course I have video! Listen to the first song they played....fitting, huh? And they had no idea where we were going!
We had our iPad set up in a case on the back of the passenger seat so Seth could watch movies....well, as much as a 13mo watches movies! But it keeps him entertained for the most part!
Stopping for gas and a stretch break!
We saw this sign around 9:30....
Seth slept from about that time until we hit the first toll once we got on the Western Beltway. That woke him up and he was pretty whiney for the next 15 minutes until we got there. Thankfully that road is not very long before you get to Disney World!
We saw this glorious sight around 12:30am....
Oh, how I've missed you!!!!!
We made our way to All-Star Sports (I'd never stayed at the All Stars before but we found them pretty easily) and I went to check in. I asked for a luggage cart and the CM told me that bell services keeps those locked up and that they were closed right then. Huh? Great....do you know how much stuff we have to carry to our room, along with two very tired boys, at 1:00am???? That was one thing that really ticked me off. Talk about inconvenience.
I also had a box that I had shipped to myself full of supplies for Seth (it's truly shocking how such a little person requires so much stuff!) and asked about that. She said I could call bell services at 8:00 the next morning and they would deliver it to my room.
On the bright side we had gotten adjoining rooms, which I had requested, and we had a great room location - on the bottom floor (hello, turbo toilets!) in the Surf's Up section near the parking lot and just around the corner from the pool.
Silly (and tired) me didn't take any pictures of the hotel when we got there, but we got some later which I will post when the time comes. And I didn't really take any pictures of the room, either. It was late....that's my excuse.
I did get this that was laying on our bed when we arrived....
I stayed with the boys and unpacked things while poor Anna got to unload the car. Did I mention how much I love her?
Seth exploring the room....
Two tired little boys who were apparently too tired to sleep!
We finally got in bed around 1:45am. I let Seth sleep the next morning until he woke up, which was around 7:40, VERY late for him. But I was fine with that.
At 8:00 on the dot I called bell services and was transferred several times, but then finally talked to someone who located the box in the "system" and said they'd have it delivered to my room. We proceeded to get ready for our day and to go get breakfast at the food court. Well, 8:45 rolls around and we are all ready to go and....no box. I needed that box - it had things in it that I had to have for the parks. So I waited until 9:00 and called again. The man I spoke with this time said that he was in charge of bell services and no one had told him about delivering any box, that if one would be delivered it would HAVE to go through him. For serious? Are you joking? So THE MAN finally located the box and they FINALLY delivered it. Geez. Late start anyone???
As soon as that was over we headed for the food court for breakfast.
This was basically what we saw on our very short walk over....
The food court was of course a madhouse but we work well together - I grabbed a table and sat with the boys while Anna got all our food. Seth had oatmeal and fruit which I had brought myself and just needed to warm up, so Luke was a good babysitter for 2 minutes and watched him while I did that.
My little man waiting on breakfast.....
Our view...
The food court....
Luke's Mickey waffle, bacon and grapes...
Anna and I both got the breakfast platter....
I forgot to mention, we were on the DDP during this portion of the trip. I had booked the rooms with the free dining deal awhile back. Once we get to VWL, we were no longer on the DDP.
Breakfast there was good as we were all starving.
Anna enjoying her breakfast....
Continued in next post: http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=43000366&postcount=66
punkin413
feel the magic, dang it!
- Joined
- Jan 9, 2007
- Messages
- 9,581
Luke being a 7yo boy!
So after breakfast we headed to the car and drove over to Animal Kingdom. I can't remember for sure but I think we got there around 10:15 or so. This was my first experience with getting a stroller on a tram.
Oy! Luckily Anna is no prissy girl and she was able to heave it up on the row in front of us while I held Seth. I'm going to invent a modification to the tram that allows people to maneuver their strollers easier and make millions. 
While waiting at the bag check I realized we had left my camera in the car....my nice Sony SLR camera that I had bought with pictures of the Pangani Forest Trail dancing in my head....
Anna offered to go back and get it but I was like, "No, we are already running so far behind, let's just go in." We both had our iPhone cameras so those would have to do.
Inside the park....at last!
(By the way, I have Photopass pictures and will post those once I get the CD, which shouldn't be very long.)
About 30 seconds after I took that last picture I looked down to see this....
Too much excitement already!
We headed for Africa to take a safari ride. The wait was 30 minutes but with Seth asleep we decided to get FPs and just walk the Pangani Forest Trail, one of my favorites!
I didn't take many pictures but here are a few that turned out good...
Luke and I looking at the meerkats....
I really love the gorillas - I could sit and watch them all day long.
Video....
So pretty!
Seth slept through the entire trail! I don't know if it was the heat (it was HOT that day!) and the excitement combined or what, but he was snoozin'!
Okay, I'm breaking here. Next installment will include the safari, Festival of the Lion King and a couple of surprises from Ray.
So after breakfast we headed to the car and drove over to Animal Kingdom. I can't remember for sure but I think we got there around 10:15 or so. This was my first experience with getting a stroller on a tram.
Oy! Luckily Anna is no prissy girl and she was able to heave it up on the row in front of us while I held Seth. I'm going to invent a modification to the tram that allows people to maneuver their strollers easier and make millions. While waiting at the bag check I realized we had left my camera in the car....my nice Sony SLR camera that I had bought with pictures of the Pangani Forest Trail dancing in my head....
Anna offered to go back and get it but I was like, "No, we are already running so far behind, let's just go in." We both had our iPhone cameras so those would have to do.Inside the park....at last!
(By the way, I have Photopass pictures and will post those once I get the CD, which shouldn't be very long.)
About 30 seconds after I took that last picture I looked down to see this....
Too much excitement already!
We headed for Africa to take a safari ride. The wait was 30 minutes but with Seth asleep we decided to get FPs and just walk the Pangani Forest Trail, one of my favorites!
I didn't take many pictures but here are a few that turned out good...
Luke and I looking at the meerkats....
I really love the gorillas - I could sit and watch them all day long.
Video....
So pretty!
Seth slept through the entire trail! I don't know if it was the heat (it was HOT that day!) and the excitement combined or what, but he was snoozin'!
Okay, I'm breaking here. Next installment will include the safari, Festival of the Lion King and a couple of surprises
from Ray.
disneyfan61
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- May 1, 2005
- Messages
- 3,984
How ironic they played It's A Small World.
Wow Bell Services dropped the ball didn't they?? What was up with that?
You had a beautiful first day weather wise.
I love the gorillas also.
Aw poor little guy all pooped out already.
Wow Bell Services dropped the ball didn't they?? What was up with that?
You had a beautiful first day weather wise.
I love the gorillas also.
Aw poor little guy all pooped out already.
Poolrat
I am alive, sometimes I wonder too.
- Joined
- Jan 6, 2008
- Messages
- 9,189
YAY you are finally on property.
The trouble you had were some of the small issues I had with ASSp.
The food court closes and hour earlier 11pm and no luggage services at 1 am?
At POP I was able to get into luggage services at some really odd hour, I just needed to knock on the door.
I am glad you were able to juggle all the stuff with both kids. It really is a process and you do get better each time. By the time you have it perfected, they grow out of it, and the process changes.
As for the room I have pictures of my room on my TR and well I suspect it looks a lot like yours.
The trouble you had were some of the small issues I had with ASSp.
The food court closes and hour earlier 11pm and no luggage services at 1 am?
At POP I was able to get into luggage services at some really odd hour, I just needed to knock on the door.
I am glad you were able to juggle all the stuff with both kids. It really is a process and you do get better each time. By the time you have it perfected, they grow out of it, and the process changes.
As for the room I have pictures of my room on my TR and well I suspect it looks a lot like yours.
CandleontheWater
Forever in love with Hathaway Browne
- Joined
- Mar 5, 2007
- Messages
- 3,399
Wow, how cool that the mariachi band played Its a Small World! I would have been rolling! 
I'm sorry that your check in to Sports didn't go well. How crazy that they couldn't get you a luggage cart! I also can't believe they gave you such a run around about the package you mailed! We always order diapers and wipes and such, and they just give it to us when we check in, I've never had to go through luggage services!
I'm glad it all got sorted out and you were on your way without too much delay! You are one brave woman to lug a stroller on the trams. I have always been afraid to try, and have walked from the parking lot (yes even from the furthest lot- I figure it earns me an extra mickey bar).
Poor little sleepy Seth! You guys had a big travel day, so I can understand why he was so tired. I hope that he wakes up soon so you can take him on his first ride!
I'm sorry that your check in to Sports didn't go well. How crazy that they couldn't get you a luggage cart! I also can't believe they gave you such a run around about the package you mailed! We always order diapers and wipes and such, and they just give it to us when we check in, I've never had to go through luggage services!
I'm glad it all got sorted out and you were on your way without too much delay! You are one brave woman to lug a stroller on the trams. I have always been afraid to try, and have walked from the parking lot (yes even from the furthest lot- I figure it earns me an extra mickey bar
).Poor little sleepy Seth! You guys had a big travel day, so I can understand why he was so tired. I hope that he wakes up soon so you can take him on his first ride!
jeremysdisneymom
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jan 3, 2008
- Messages
- 1,956
Joining in! Seth is just adorable. That photo of him asleep with Pluto in his stroller is too cute.
Raspberry Bubbles
I was Cinderella for the day!
- Joined
- Jan 19, 2007
- Messages
- 1,309
Love the update! You must have been SO mad with bell services, getting passed around ~ and what was with the no carts? I would have been crying I think! LOL. Seth is so cute in that little Mickey shirt ~ I can't wait to hear more!
mickeyfan71
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Jan 7, 2009
- Messages
- 449
Yay! Y'all made it! Boo for bell services being closed!
Great start on your first morning! It rained the entire day we were at AK so most of the animals were under cover or sleeping. Enjoyed your gorillia pics. The only one that was out when we were there was laying right by the glass but all you could see was his hiney!
Great start on your first morning! It rained the entire day we were at AK so most of the animals were under cover or sleeping. Enjoyed your gorillia pics. The only one that was out when we were there was laying right by the glass but all you could see was his hiney!
mouseketeer70
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Jun 30, 2008
- Messages
- 174
Great update! Glad the drive down went well cause I know how road trips can be with kids, even when they are 17, 16, and 9 
You are blessed to have such a good friend like Anna! It would have been hard to get everything done by yourself, especially with NO HELP from Bell Services! It always surprises me that they don't realize after all these years that people do indeed check in at all hours! I mean, couldn't someone else have a key to get to the carts after hours?
But, isn't it a wonderful feeling when you see the sign and drive through the gates???!!!!!!
You are blessed to have such a good friend like Anna! It would have been hard to get everything done by yourself, especially with NO HELP from Bell Services! It always surprises me that they don't realize after all these years that people do indeed check in at all hours! I mean, couldn't someone else have a key to get to the carts after hours?
But, isn't it a wonderful feeling when you see the sign and drive through the gates???!!!!!!
xoktenox
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 5, 2008
- Messages
- 3,176
Wow, Seth and Luke did so well on the drive down! I love that picture of Seth sitting in the drivers seat of your car So cute!!
What a pain that you couldn't get a luggage cart when you got to ASSp. I'm anxious to see how you liked it there otherwise (oh and the box situation too), because that's where we're staying in Jan/Feb and I haven't stayed there since 2005.
Seth was pooped out by the magic so quickly! And Luke seems like a great little babysitter. Oh, I love the Halloween cups! I can see them in your breakfast pictures.
I hope you make the stoller/tram invention by the time I have a baby. I will totally be a user of your invention and help you make millions
So cute!!What a pain that you couldn't get a luggage cart when you got to ASSp. I'm anxious to see how you liked it there otherwise (oh and the box situation too
), because that's where we're staying in Jan/Feb and I haven't stayed there since 2005. Seth was pooped out by the magic so quickly! And Luke seems like a great little babysitter. Oh, I love the Halloween cups! I can see them in your breakfast pictures.
I hope you make the stoller/tram invention by the time I have a baby. I will totally be a user of your invention and help you make millions
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