9 Days of Princess Hair - a June 2010 trip report - update 9/24 the drive home

[ksl5f123]

We all met up to watch the parade in Frontierland. We had a great spot! It was right next to a little stand with drinks. I got a Diet Coke for myself and a frozen lemonade for the kids while we were waiting. Here are pictures of DS1

and DD4 waiting to watch the parade. You can still see DD4's princess hair. It is now the end of day 4 and looks almost as good as day 1.

Now it was time for the Main Street Electrical Parade!!! I may have been the most excited person in our group for this one. The music is just so nostalgic! I mentioned earlier that I had an album with the Country Bears songs on it. It also had the music to MSEP and I probably listened to that album hundreds of times growing up. I just loved it! One of the things that was really interesting about this parade is that it is a classic in the sense that all of the characters featured are from pre-1980 movies. There are Cinderella, Snow White, Peter Pan, Alice in Wonderland, but no Ariel or Jasmine or Buzz Lightyear. I am SO glad that I had my girls watch all of the classic movies before we went! Here are a few pictures of the parade.
Tinkerbell!

Minnie!

One very hot and sweaty Cinderella after watching the parade. It is hard to see in the photo, but her dress has a Cinderella in the center with lights around it. The dress actually lights up. During the parade, Cinderella was able to see DD6 and pointed at her dress and waved! DD6 was thrilled!!!

Up next, Summer Nightastic!

 

[lexmas]

I was too tired last night, but now it's naptime so I can enjoy both updates!

Too bad about you missing naptime. I'm always like, "really? no nap? Because I know if I laid down I could definately take a nap right now!"

I'm glad you could exchange the minnies.

Too funny that DD6 ate all your food! Must have been all that swimming she got in. How do you even use a kids credit for an adult meal, out of curiousity?

Glad you liked Monsters, Inc. The idea of being called on terrifies me, so it's not for me!

I am really impressed with how good her hair looks on day 4 of princess hair. How much hairspray did they use, exactly?

How special that Cinderella noticed your DD6! And I love a dress that lights up for a nighttime parade. Perfect!

Can't wait for more!

 

[TinksThree]

I love the cake! That was too cute!!

I honestly think you copied me just a tad on my next couple of updates!!

You all were able to fit a lot in, though, even with some having short naps! That is awesome!

 

[ksl5f123]

Too bad about you missing naptime. I'm always like, "really? no nap? Because I know if I laid down I could definately take a nap right now!"

I know, when will these kids learn that mommies need naps too!

Too funny that DD6 ate all your food! Must have been all that swimming she got in. How do you even use a kids credit for an adult meal, out of curiousity?

I didn't think about the swimming. You are probably right. With counter service credits, they don't actually divide them child/adult. If your KTTW card says 2 adults/2 children, at a single pass through the line you can get up to 2 adult and 2 child meals. You could however get 2 adult meals, take them to your table and go back and get 2 more adult meals. You are just "on your honor" to use child credits for children which we did at every other meal except this one.

I am really impressed with how good her hair looks on day 4 of princess hair. How much hairspray did they use, exactly?

None actually, they just use gel to put it up - lots of gel!!!

How special that Cinderella noticed your DD6! And I love a dress that lights up for a nighttime parade. Perfect!

I bought that dress for her for our 2006 trip when she was 3 years old. I got it on ebay and supposedly it was a size child small. However, you can see that now at almost 7 years old it is still a little big. It was just waiting in the closet for a good opportunity.

 

[ksl5f123]

I love the cake! That was too cute!!

I honestly think you copied me just a tad on my next couple of updates!!

Thank you! It was a lot of fun to make the cake and a lot of fun to eat it. It only lasted 4 days!

We seem to tour MK in very similar ways!!! You mentioned that MK was really hot that day - it is the day we were at AK when DH and the nephews spent 2 hours in the middle of the afternoon using fastpasses for EE.

 

[ksl5f123]

First, let me apologize to all my wonderful DIS friends for going AWOL for a week. DH and I went to Costa Rica to celebrate our 10th anniversary while my folks watched the kids. It was wonderful – we hiked around an active volcano, saw monkeys and toucans in the rainforest, and lots of birds and butterflies in the cloud forest. But, this isn't a Costa Rica trip report, so back to the Disney stuff!

One quick thing that I left out earlier. While MIL and I were staking out a parade spot with the little ones, DD6 rode her first rollercoaster! I mentioned that she went with DH, DC + kids, and the nephews to ride Splash and BTMRR. Apparently, she was pretty nervous on both. She sat with her favorite buddy (DN12) and he was very sweet and told her it would be OK the whole way. I guess she cried a little before they got started but she later declared BTMRR was her favorite ride! She is the type of kid who takes really great pride in facing a fear and then wants to do it over and over again.

All right, back to Summer Nightastic! And a few pictures of the fireworks:

Pirates take over the castle!

Good Prevails!

After the fireworks, DC and her kids left while the rest of us went to Tomorrowland. DH took the nephews on Space with the fastpasses from the morning while MIL and I took DD6, DD4 and DS1 on TTA. I love TTA, but this night for some reason, it stopped while we were inside Space Mountain. This means that we were stopped with 3 kids in complete darkness. DD6 was convinced we somehow were now ON Space Mountain and that it was about to take off like a roller coaster. None of the kids were really happy to be sitting in the dark. It was probably only about 3-5 minutes, but at that time, it felt like eternity. After that, we were planning to go over and use our Pooh fp, but we were too tired so we left and took the bus back to POR at 11:30 PM.

And so ends day 4 with princess hair!

2 snack credits used at Riverside mill for cinnamon rolls
price if paying oop = $5.94
4 TS credits used at Crystal Palace. 4 remaining
Price for this meal if paying oop - $89.59
4 QS credits used at Columbia Harbour House, 15 remaining
Price for this meal if paying oop = $48.47
Total paid for dining plan (8 days) = $975.68
Total cost of meals if paying oop = $958.87
Money spent this day = $12.95 tip at Crystal Palace, $5 tip for mousekeeping
Money available after 4 days = $657

Up next, will we be awake for SWW?

 

[lexmas]

Sounds like you had a great vacation! Kidless, even! I'm glad you had a wonderful trip!

Great pictures of the fireworks! I never manage to get ones that good!

That is crazy that you stopped in the middle of space mountain, and I -ed at DD6 thinking it was going to shoot off like a rollercoaster. 3-5 minutes in darkness with 3 small children sounds like an ETERNITY.

And I see you're inching up there to how much the dining plan cost you!

 

[TinksThree]

I was wondering where you had gotten off to! I even checked to be sure I hadn't accidentally unsubscribed. (I tend to do that sometimes!) The trip sounds so wonderful!! What a beautiful place to get away!!

Great pics of the fireworks! I just loved that show!! Poor DD6.......that would have to be scary not knowing there was just a glitch!!

 

[ksl5f123]

Sounds like you had a great vacation! Kidless, even! I'm glad you had a wonderful trip!

It was fabulous!! It was our first no-kids trip so that was extra special.

Great pictures of the fireworks! I never manage to get ones that good!

I would love to take credit...but I can't. DH took all of those pictures. He has a much steadier hand than I do.

That is crazy that you stopped in the middle of space mountain, and I -ed at DD6 thinking it was going to shoot off like a rollercoaster. 3-5 minutes in darkness with 3 small children sounds like an ETERNITY.

It as pretty bad. I was just about to start yelling, "Can we please turn on a light?!!!" when we finally started moving. It may be a few trips before I get them back on there.

 

[ksl5f123]

I was wondering where you had gotten off to! I even checked to be sure I hadn't accidentally unsubscribed. (I tend to do that sometimes!) The trip sounds so wonderful!! What a beautiful place to get away!!

Sorry about that! I have this paranoia about announcing on the internet that I am going to be out of town. I obviously don't mind sharing once we are back!!

I am so glad you didn't unsubscribe!

 

[ksl5f123]

So, I ended my last installment by asking the question: Will we be awake for Star Wars Weekend? The answer: Some yes, some no. Now, the plan all along had been for only DH and I to take the nephews to SWW while MIL, FIL, and our kids slept in. However, the nephews are not really early risers to start with and after a late night the night before, they were out for the count on Sunday morning. So, DH and I went by ourselves!

We had some quick food in our room and then drove over to DHS. We arrived at about 7:30 AM. I had images in my head of masses of people and absolute chaos, but in reality aside from the folks waiting in line for celebrity autographs there were probaby less than 100 people near the turnstiles. We found a spot with only one family in front of us. We spent the time relaxing and looking over the maps while we waited for the show to start. We hadn't been to this park since 2001 and are really unfamiliar with it – in fact, we got lost more than once!

Soon it was time for these guys to come out!

I really enjoyed their banter. For those who haven't seen them before, they talk about how there is a bunch of good looking stuff in the park, but that they need to stay and guard this large crowd. Eventually, they decide that they couldn't stop us all if we just “decide” to go which is when they open the turnstiles. It is really funny!

Once the turnstiles opened, we did much better getting through and managed to get right up to the rope. The crowd behind us was huge and people filled in pretty solid from the rope back to the turnstiles. We enjoyed chatting with the people around us while we waited for the rope to drop, but the minute it did, it was every man, woman and child for themselves! Everything that I read about the TSMM dash didn't quite prepare me for how intense it really is. We did fine on the original street, but once we made the left turn, people started running past us. It was crazy! When we made it to the fastpass machines there were about 6 people in front of us but we still got a 10:10 return time (the first set that day had a 9:50 return). I spent the entire walk trying to imagine doing it on Tuesday with my 3 kids.

Up next, our first Star Wars characters!

 

[lexmas]

Ooh, somehow I didn't realize you were there for a star wars weekend! I can't wait, I love the characters all in costume and such. Funny that you ended up alone...those early mornings just seem earlier on vacation, somehow. I'm hoping to not feel that way on my upcoming trip since DS gets up when the sun comes up (no kidding, I have seen him, still half asleep, open his eyes, crawl up the bed to the window, and peer out to see if the sun is up yet at like 3 am) so 5 am will be early on vacation!

I can't believe you waited from 7:30 on though. I am just not good at standing in one place for a long time! I'm glad it wasn't hoards of people though, I would have thought the same. The storm troopers (that's what they are, right? I'm not really up on my star wars...DH is ashamed) sound like they made for a great opening show!

 

[TinksThree]

Sorry about that! I have this paranoia about announcing on the internet that I am going to be out of town. I obviously don't mind sharing once we are back!!

I am so glad you didn't unsubscribe!

I am totally with you on that one! Even on Facebook I try to avoid this...sometimes I slip though!

Isn't the TSMM rush crazy?!?!? DH didn't realize what we had been trying to tell him until he saw it for himself! It is definitely a live it to understand it experience!!

Cool that you got to go just you and DH!

 

[mermaid764]

I'm joining in and loving your TR

Your kiddos are adorable and i'm looking forward to hearing more

 

[ksl5f123]

Ooh, somehow I didn't realize you were there for a star wars weekend! I can't wait, I love the characters all in costume and such. Funny that you ended up alone...those early mornings just seem earlier on vacation, somehow. I'm hoping to not feel that way on my upcoming trip since DS gets up when the sun comes up (no kidding, I have seen him, still half asleep, open his eyes, crawl up the bed to the window, and peer out to see if the sun is up yet at like 3 am) so 5 am will be early on vacation!

about your DS "checking on the sun"! I can imagine my kids doing that too. Mine get up at 7 AM at home like clockwork. Early rising seems to be pretty simple for the preschool set, but not so much for the tween nephews.

I can't believe you waited from 7:30 on though. I am just not good at standing in one place for a long time! I'm glad it wasn't hoards of people though, I would have thought the same. The storm troopers (that's what they are, right? I'm not really up on my star wars...DH is ashamed) sound like they made for a great opening show!

The time really went by fast. We enjoyed talking to the people around us (one of the great parts of a Disney trip!) and planning our attack. , they are stormtroopers!

 

[ksl5f123]

Isn't the TSMM rush crazy?!?!? DH didn't realize what we had been trying to tell him until he saw it for himself! It is definitely a live it to understand it experience!!

It is absolutely insane! After experiencing all four parks, I rate the "rushes" at rope drops like this:
AK - easy
MK - moderate
Epcot - tough
DHS - crazy!

 

[ksl5f123]

I'm joining in and loving your TR

Your kiddos are adorable and i'm looking forward to hearing more

, a new reader!!!!! Mermaid 764!

Thank you for the compliment on the kids. I am lucky that mine love getting their pictures taken and will smile anytime you aim a camera at them.

 

[ksl5f123]

After getting our fastpasses, we went to see Darth Vader first. I hear his line gets really long later in the day. We were in line for about 15 minutes.

I have a little side story to tell for those who didn't read my PTR. When I was 6 years old (the year that Empire Strikes Back came out) there was a day where Darth Vader made an appearance at my hometown grocery store. I had broken my arm that summer and Darth Vader signed my cast. So, getting a picture with Darth was more important for me than DH (although he is also a big SW fan!)

At one point we were in line and Darth needed to take a break. There was only 1 family in front of us when he left. Everyone started asking how long he would be gone. I felt very informed to be able to tell them only a few minutes and I was really surprised when people left anyway. I would say he was gone less than 5 minutes. Anyway, here we are acting silly with Darth Vader! I love the background for Star Wars Weekends!

My next request was to go and try to find Chewbacca. The maps for Star Wars Weekend just say that dark side characters will be at these 3 spots and light side characters will be at these 3 spots. The maps don't tell you who will be where. Of course, we went to each of the light side spots and Chewbacca was at the last one. We also spent a little time going the wrong way. I don't know why I find DHS so confusing!! When we arrived, his line seemed incredibly long, but it was only about 9:40 and our only goals for the day were Darth, Chewy, TSMM, and the parade, so we got in line.

I have a Chewbacca story too. When I was 4 years old (the year the original movie came out) I needed a little minor surgery and my grandma felt sorry for me being in the hospital. So she went to the gift shop and bought me about a 18” tall plush Chewbacca. I still have him!! I have always LOVED Chewbacca, so he was a must for me too!

When we got into line, Chewy was out. He soon left and Wicket came out.

We continued to wait and saw Princess Leia leave for her break.

Then, Wicket left

and Chewy came back

about 4 families in front of us.
I had decided that I would be happy with either Chewbacca or Wicket, but was thrilled that we did get Chewbacca!

DH and Chewbacca

A GIANT Wookie hug!!

All 3 of us:

Up next, our first ride on TSMM and the SWW parade!

 

[ksl5f123]

By the time we finished with Chewbacca, it was 10:10 and we could go ride TSMM!!!

Just outside of the ride, we say this guy.

I wanted to get a picture with him but other folks were being more aggressive getting next to him than I wanted to be. So, we settled for some pictures of him alone.

We also passed by Jedi Mickey and R2-MK on their way to a break.

Now we were ready to ride TSMM for the very first time!!! We breezed through the fastpass line and had a GREAT time on the ride. We thought the size of the projectiles made the ride easier than the lasers in Buzz at MK. The theming was also really cute. That said, DH felt some of the spinning was a little much and was not interested in riding again that day. This altered my plan for Tuesday when I had intended to ride 3 consecutive times.

After getting off of TSMM, we went to watch the parade. We found a nice spot in the shade, but we had to wait for a performance of HSM3 to end. It was loud – and that is all I will say. When it ended, we slowly made our way right up to the tape, on the corner and had perfect seats for the parade (although the sun did get to us eventually).

Jedi Mickey leads off the parade

Stormtrooper Donald

Imperial guards

Tuscan raider!

Wicket

Mace Windu

Kit Fisto

Clone trooper

R2D2

Jango Fett

Stormtrooper

Guido

And the celebrities:

In general, I thought the parade was absolutely fabulous!!!!! I enjoyed seeing all of the characters and all of the celebrities (without having to get there in the middle of the night to stand in line for autographs). We had a wonderful spot!!! I would certainly do this again giving the opportunity!

Up next, will we get a nap?

 

[pinkxray]

I love your SWW pictures. I wanted a picture with Darth Vader soooooooo bad but the line was insane. DD wanted a picture with Chewy but he was never out when we were there. It was always an Ewok or no one was out

SWW was fantastic. DD was talking about it again last night and I told her we most likely won't be in Disney in May again so the SW characters won't be there. She was a little upset about that, but is excited about seeing either the xmas or halloween parties next time depending on when we go.

I still can't believe how much you were able to get done. It was packed the day we went to SWW and it seemed like we got nothing accomlished.