Hey everyone, sorry this chapter took so long. That dang flu really did a number on me...it's actually still hanging on. It is a wretched evil virus.
*ahem*
I AM happy to report that the Campbellscot's are officially booked for 10 days at the Animal Kingdom Lodge this August!
I am beyond excited!! Even though I was hanging in there for the Wilderness Lodge once again, Jay really wanted to "do something different before I wear him down and we spend the rest of our
Disney vacations at Wilderness Lodge Villas!"
how SMART a man is my husband?! He knows it's inevitable!!
Mostly though, it was Teddy and his deep abiding love for animals that forced my innate terror of change to give way to new possibilities! The child is going to be over the moon at having "animals outside his window"!!! Sally is more like me and will wonder why on earth we changed something we so dearly loved...but we'll get through it!
Most of all, this trip is SET IN STONE. Nothing on this earth will change it, or shorten it, or mess with it...in any way. No matter how hard one may try.
*ahem*
ANYHOW....
on with the show!!!
------------------------------------------------------------------------
After frolicking about in Italy, it was time to find us some grub. My tummy was a wee bit rumbly. As luck would have it, our next stop in the world showcase was AMERICA!!!!
Which was good...b/c American food is familiar food. And since we'd already stretched our culinary horizons in Norway, I didn't want to push it!
Jay and I had attempted to eat somewhere "exotic" last year...we wandered all over the world showcase, looking for something new and appetizing. About 45 minutes into the hunt Jay wanted to know if we could just go get a cheeseburger as he was starving and getting close to grouchy!
we tried.
America it was. We actually had a really good lunch.
Turned out pretty much the same way this time around.
We wheeled the kiddos towards The Liberty Inn, parked and headed inside.
Sally very cautiously asked me what kinds of things we could eat here.
Jay and I automatically answered with:
"snails and slugs"
We like to tease Sally b/c we are mean...and wicked.
Teddy chuckled and said "We aren't in FRANCE MissCammie!!!"
I batted my eyelashes and said
"You're right Teddy...no snails...just slugs..."
Sally gave my hand a slightly impatient squeeze.
"MissCammieeeee....I'm serious..."
I gave her a look.
"I KNOW...VERY!"
We tease because we love!
Jay scooped Sally up and they walked over to the front to see what sorts of terrifying food might be forced upon unsuspecting Disney lovers!
Teddy and I found a table.
To Teddy's utter delight there was a "BIRD INSIDE THE BUILDING!!!"
Said bird flew off in a panic at the sound of Teddy's squeals!
Teddy took his seat and said,
"This place is just too much fun!"
That it is Teddybear!
Sally came running over to the table to announce that there were HOT DOGS!!! She was much relieved and ready to eat.
While Jay was ordering I wiped down the table with my handy dandy Clorox wipes, then I wiped down the kids with my handy dandy anti bacterial wet ones, THEN gave each kid a squirt of Purell.
We were ready to eat! (I was just too tired to do the "bathroom shuffle/panic dance" with Sally at that point. I figured I'd covered the germs pretty well with the wipes and the Purell...nobody got sick any how!)
Jay arrived with a tray of American Food! Hot dogs, cheeseburgers and a turkey sandwich on wheat bread!! And since I'm always worried about the amount of junk intake that is vacation eating, I fished two packets of baby carrots out of my park bag!! SEE nutrition IS possible...even in the smallest amounts! Both kids pounced on the carrots first. Hungry little bunnies!
We were just about to have some fun family conversation when the "Drum and Fife Corps" came marching in!
Sally covered here ears immediately. I couldn't say I blamed her...it IS really loud in that space with snare drums and a fife playing! Teddy loved it though. As soon as they finished and marched out, Teddy turned to me and commented that the wigs the men were wearing were white because of powder and mostly judges and lawyers wore them in the 1700's...
wow. Is this child really five?
The very next second he practically sticking a french fry up his nose b/c it "smelled so good"...
yep he's five.
full of contradictions is Teddy.
After our lunch I was ready to see the American Adventure film/show thing. I had never gotten a chance to see it. I really wanted to. A lot. Jay and I had tried to catch it the year before and we missed it...twice...by like 5 minutes...
So after we ate and had a potty break I hurried everyone outside and over to the entrance of the American Adventure show...and guess what...you'll never guess...
yep...we'd just missed it...by...like...5 minutes...
*sigh*
Oh well. The kids were happy enough to do the Kidcot station and collect their America tag.
Sally brightly said "Well, maybe next time we can see the show if we can come back right? If we get to come again next time?"
Jay was giving Sally an answer as the kids hopped into the kid transporter and we headed out of America.
For some reason missing this show really bummed me out. Of course it wasn't really so much the show that I was bummed about missing. It's not like it was Test Track or Soarin...or some MUST DO ride. But the fact was, we didn't have time to come back and see it the next day, or even for the next showing. We didn't have time to back track. We were on a tight schedule and to back track would mean missing out on something else.
I was bummed out and more than a little annoyed that I felt so "rushed". This trip was supposed to be 10 days, NOT six...which was actually only four full days of park going. So we've got four huge parks...two water parks and four days to do it all.
We were trying to squish every single thing in that we possibly could, and if we missed it we were out of luck. I do NOT like to feel rushed. It makes me panic. That feeling of HURRY HURRY HURRY sets my heart to racing like mad. I'd had very little time to adjust to our trip being cut short...it was rather sudden...and vindictive...
RAR!
I felt annoyed for the kids. I felt very annoyed that some people felt it more important to win some ridiculous battle over who's day was what and shorten our vacation, than to think about what was being taken from the kids in the process.
What was killing me the most was that the kids weren't complaining. They were such troopers. They just took it in and soldiered on.
All of this is going on in my head and I could feel myself working up a head of steam. This happens to me sometimes...which is why God invented Xanax.
*ahem*
But instead of popping a happy pill that would have rendered me very sleepy more than happy, and not much fun, I stopped in my tracks and said:
"Sally!Teddy! I need an emergency hug QUICK QUICK QUICK!!!"
Like a well oiled machine they hopped out of the kid transporter, ran to their designated hug spot and threw their little arms around me.
Teddy hugs very fiercely in these situations. He was squeezing the life out of me and smiling like mad. Then for some reason I will never comprehend, he LICKED Sally's arm...licked it...
Just the comic relief I needed. Teddy never fails to deliver a laugh when I am about to burst into tears.
In all the activity of hugging, Sally actually hadn't noticed what Teddy had done, so I rubbed my hand over her arm really quickly...declared the emergency hug a success and released the troops back to the kid transporter!
it worked. She never knew a thing about it!
Teddy never told her either.
probably b/c he likes his life.
Jay gave me another emergency hug, just to be sure we were out of the woods. He's a good husband that way. He knew full well what had caused my little internal melt down. He was annoyed too, but he is Jay. He does what he can to make the most of every moment. Only crazy MissCammie has melt downs out of nowhere.
It's part of my charm.
Moments later we came across a rather large, shaggy bunch of bears.
PHOTO OP!!!!
Sally was already pulling her autograph book out.
Teddy exclaimed:
"LOOKIT!!! FAT BEARS!!!"
I think they were from the Country Bear Jamboree...not sure what they were doing in Epcot between America and Japan, but we weren't complaining!!
AND there was no line!!
YEE-haw!!!
With the FAT Bears
Sally waiting for her autograph!
Gotta love some FAT BEARS!!!
Sally noted that the fat bears were "hot to hug". Yeah I'll bet! It was so humid that day! UGH! I would not have been happy to wake up a fat bear from the jamboree on that day let me tell you!!
Pictures taken and autographs in books, we headed into Japan.
As we passed a little out of the way stand, Pal Mickey started jumping around and giggling, reminding us that "Kaki Gori was yummy!!!"
(did I mention that we had a Pal Mickey with us? We did. He came to the parks with us every day. He looked very handsome in his Sorcerer outfit! I carried him...the kids weren't over interested in him after the first few corny jokes...and he was a pricey little Pal and I didn't want him being dropped...or forgotten somewhere...and holding him satisfied my controlling nature! I actually found him a little bit annoying at first b/c he kept giggling as we walked through MK but he wasn't SAYING anything. Being a Pal Mickey novice, I had no idea what he was giggling at or that I should push his tummy to hear the information he was giggling about! I thought if he had something interesting to say, he'd say it. (I hadn't read the directions very well!) Once I figured it out though, I was the Disney Dork who was often seen walking about the parks with Pal Mickey pressed to my ear so I could hear what he was saying. I actually found him quite useful and interesting! YAY Pal Mickey!!)
I thought about stopping for some shaved ice as per Mickey's advice...but we had just eaten and Teddy was pretty bouncy as it was. I didn't want to add sugar to that mix! Another thing to try "next time".
As we entered Japan Sally and Teddy both thought "we were already HERE...Over THERE!!" So we did a little geography lesson and explained the difference between China and Japan!
We wandered through Japan and oohd and ahhd over pretty stuff. Jay commented on the architecture. At one point the "Taiko drummers" came out and added some ambiance with the thump thump beat. The kiddos found their kidcot station. I think it was here that we watched a woman make animals and other things out of what looked like bubble gum. We saw some goldfish...it was very calming over all! I bought some rice paper candy for my little sister who is just crazy for the stuff. I bought some for the kids too...it will show up a little later in the TR!!
NEXT!!
We waved goodbye to Japan and headed into Morocco.
We actually didn't stay very long in Morocco. We had an early-ish ADR at Coral Reef and we had a costume change for that..which would take a little time. And I wanted to give the kids time to see France and England and Canadia too. So we did a "once around" and looked at this and that. The kids found their kidcot station...and climbed back into the kid transporter. They both were looking a little wilted in the heat, so I handed out some cold Capri Sun water pouches, misted everyone down with our Misty Mate and handed out the battery operated fans. Those things were SO worth the 99 cents we paid for them at Wally World!!
As we headed into France, Teddy was instantly revived at the sight of man balancing on CHAIRS!! Both kids jumped out and joined the crowd. Jay and I had seen this guy last year. I always wonder what it is that would make a person even TRY to balance on rickety chairs that appear to be missing legs and such.
I was worried that Teddy would start to get ideas about the fun factor of balancing on chairs. I made a mental note to tell him NO before he tried.
And I SWEAR y'all...when the street performance was done and the kids came back to us, Teddy was saying "I'm gonna TRY THAT!!!"
He looked up at me as he was finishing that sentence, saw the eyebrow of DEATH and amended the statement to "I'm gonna try that when I'm a grown up"
Sally gave him a look and said
"Nuh UH Teddy...you'd break yourself!"
INDEED.
I'm a big Beauty and the Beast fan and I really like the stained glass window in France that features the Rose!
We headed in that direction.
For some reason that completely escapes me, I walked into the "Perfume store" as Sally called it. I actually wasn't paying the least bit of attention and thought it was something else. Perfume stores can be a Migraine sufferers worst nightmare...they usually are for me. I can wear perfume just fine, but heavy concentrations of scent gets the Migraine monsters all het up and they start pounding away with their big heavy clubs. Turns out, a migraine was the LEAST of my worries!
what happened next was closer to a near death experience than I had ever wanted to get!! It was very surreal and slo-mo...y'all know what I mean?
As I walked into the store, I was ASSAULTED by a perfume ninja! The woman appeared out of nowhere and spritzed perfume into my face. Not kidding. Right directly into my face. Into my EYES even...and not just once, nope, she did it TWICE. Like one squirt of whatever that horrifc perfume was supposed to be wasn't enough...nope, I got it rapid fire. A ONE TWO punch. I could TASTE it even!
Of course I was not expecting this to happen...why would I expect such a thing? Most people whose job it is to annoy passersby with squirts of perfume usually at least ASK before they get you with it...and they spray it on to your wrist, not directly into your eyes like it's mace! It just so happened that I was inhaling at the exact moment that the perfume ninja was spraying. Quite suddenly I was being asphyxiated by this horrible cloying scent.
OF course...being that it's me...I happen to be rather asthmatic...the sudden intake of such a concentrated amount of perfume into my lungs started me doing the "I'm pert near about to die" gasp for breath. It's scary. It's like trying to breathe through a coffee stirrer straw....y'all know the ones I mean!
This was not good. I was quite literally blinded and choking. I could NOT get air into my lungs. Which was making me panic...which was making the attack worse...I was getting dizzy...I was seeing black. I sincerely thought I was going to fall down dead right there in France.
<--THAT was pert near me...the fainted emoticon!
I had sort of staggered towards a wall out of the way and I was thinking that if I fell down no one would find me!
Thank goodness for Super Sally. She heard my gasping and quickly assessed the situation. Sally has seen me have an asthma attack once before and she knew what was going on.
Good gracious the things I have done to wound these children psychologically...I shudder to think...
Sally came running over and said rather coolly to the Perfume Ninja,
"You can't do that to people when they have BREATHING PROBLEMS!"
I absolutely LOVE it that Sally will put her sassy pants on right quick when she deems it necessary...even to adults!
It annoyed Sally no end that this person with the spritzer of death merely smiled at her, said something in French and squirted the next person who came through the door!
Sally took my hand and actually led me back out to Jay and Teddy.
The response I got from Jay was
"GEEZ CAM! What happened?! Where's your inhaler? GEEZ!!" He said all this as he was reaching for my bag.
Sally knew exactly where my inhaler was. She grabbed it out of the front of my bag, took the cover off and handed it to me. After the first "asthma attack" incident a few years ago, I made a habit of telling Jay and both kids where I keep my inhaler, just in case! Turns out that was a very good idea on my part!
*ahem*
Sally sure is her father's daughter. When it counts, she is cool as a cucumber. She knows what to do, when to get help, and she stays calm doing it.
I did my best to get a breath of my inhaler but I was really struggling. It's that whole "fish out of water" thing. You can't get the medication into your lungs because you can't get a breath. It's a one of those vicious cycle deals!
Jay sat me down on the edge of the kid transporter. As I sat, Sally held on to the hem of my dress to make sure I remained lady like even while oxygen deprived...she knew that the possibility of my flashing my undies to the crowd would only distress me more! My dress wasn't super short or anything, but sitting on a low to the ground ledge without all your senses about you can lead to accidents!
Teddy, bless his heart, started singing "Let it be"...Sally was muttering hail Mary's under her breath. (her grandmother does this whenever anything happens...hang nails...splinters...anything...she was pleased that Sally was following so angelically in her footsteps!
)
Once I got a little bit of the albuterol into my lungs I felt a teensy bit better. But I'll tell y'all what, it was touch and go there for a minute or two.
On top of that I was so embarrassed. People were "LOOKING" and a VERY nice young man had approached us and identified himself as a paramedic.
kill me now.
I really just wanted to gasp in peace. I appreciated the help and concern, but I was wishing for a hole to crawl into at that moment. I knew that if I could get a good breath off my inhaler I'd be fine. We did not have time for a breathing treatment! We had an ADR at Coral Reef!!!
The very nice young man reached to take my pulse and my Sally said:
"Umm, MissCammie doesn't like it when people touch her when she's having breathing problems..."
isn't she just a hoot? Sally is my dragon. You gotta get past her to get to me...which would of course make me the Princess
He laughed and took my pulse anyway. He was telling Jay that it looked like I was in need of a nebulizer...and he was right. But seriously, we did NOT have time. I was NOT going to waste one second of this trip sucking down asthma mist!
some of you may want to point to out that a little time on a breathing machine beats out sucking wind like a fish out of water...and you'd be right...but I wasn't really in the mood to be reasonable!
I shook my head and tried to wave him away as politely as possible.
To make matters worse I'd gone and drawn a rather large crowd.
I got a bigger breath of my inhaler.
"I'm fine" croaked its way out of my mouth.
Sally announced that I had said I was FINE!
Jay was giving me "I don't think so" looks.
I was giving him my own looks...and they weren't friendly.
I don't tend to be a good "sick person". Because I'm bossy. And I don't like it when people talk about me like I'm not there.
So it was just painful to hear Jay and the nice paramedic having a conversation that involved a lot of "Well she needs to..." And "We could take her too..."
QUACK!
MissCammie was fixin to have herself a tantrum...if I could just get enough breath to throw a good one!
Up Next: To breathe or not to breathe...
I am banned from work until further notice. Jay brought it from work and shared it with me...
Perfume Ninjas in France! How scary. 
