A Gem of a Birthday-Celebrating my 40th@AKL(No Kids!)11/03 Link to Next report!

[Diamondintheruff]

Personal Update
The bad news.
Still battling this illness. Not sure what it is but it keeps moving around inside of me. It's pretty much gone out of my chest but has attacked my sinuses and I'm just sick of being sick. So sorry I haven't been around. I haven't had much energy lately.

The good news
As I had mentioned my oldest son Eeoyre (ds10 almost 11) loves to dance. He spent the month of July in toronto with my parents auditioning for Canada's National Ballet school. They have a full-time school program which would mean he would have to live in Toronto (an hour away) with my parents. We found out that the school thinks he has what it takes physically to enter their program. They would love to have him starting this fall. However, Eeoyre is just not quite ready to leave the nest yet. So they have given him (and us) this next year to think about it and offered him the chance to try out again next summer. We are thrilled he made it in and grateful that we don't have to give him up yet.

Men and shopping = annoyed women

Aww, I'm sorry you weren't feeling well. I hope you were feeling better in the morning too!

My sons are just as bad to shop with. Thanks I did feel better in the morning.

Okay awesome I have heard from other resorts that some have gotten a card from mickey or one of the princesses. I would really love to decorate the room but I feel thats kind of tooting my own horn or something ya know?

Sometimes you have to toot your own horn but just in case why not have someone else phone the hotel to arrange it?

You were a sick girl, I am so sorry to hear that. I hate being sick at the best of times, never mind in the summer

Sucks that your tummy was acting up in WDW, I feel for ya, when those wonderful smells don't entice you, you know something is amiss

Glad you found your memory card, can't wait to hear more.

I spent a few hours at Peg's today helping her get some more packing done, this was the only day this week I'm not running around doing something. I'm so glad your back!!!

Still pretty sick. I have to keep my head as still as possible. But at least I can breathe easily.

You're at WDW as I write this. Sending heaps of pixie dust your way.

Diamond!! Hurray, you're back!! Hope you're feeling better. Love the Happy Birthday photo in front of the castle!!

Thanks. I think I like my Tink from the next morning the best.

I am glad you are back. I hope you found all the goodies for the kids. I am sorry to hear that you got sick at Disney. Hopefully you felt better the next day

There's more to tell about the search for the kids trinkets. Stay tuned.

I was wondering if you were okay...didn't see you around DIS or FB. So sorry to hear that you were sick. Glad to hear you are doing better.

Great update!!! They always crack me up!!! I'm so sorry you missed WISHES with your bellyache. I've fallen victim to that myself at WDW- I blame it on the humidity combined with the high fat diet.

Can't believe AKL didn't do anything on your bday. Shame on them!

Yes Mara is really small and doesn't have a very good . The worst we saw it was first thing in the AM. It was madhouse. The rest of the day it was ok because most people were in the parks.

Can't wait to see what is up next

I've really decided that I'm okay about missing the fireworks and the parades. I hate battling the crowds that much that I'm willing to give up watching them. Perhaps I'll try a wishes cruise or the beach at the poly. I think I could handle that.

 

[Tnkrbelle565]

Wow!! DH is getting no lovin on this trip is he???

Again you guys amaze me with your fast dressing skills. You woke up at 6:50 and were at the bus station by 7:26? HOW????

Where you doing the Good Morning Show on the train track by yourself???

Poor Roy! That was nice of you to ask the CM to clean him up

 

[akayek31]

I want to see Piglet! Two meetings with the other 3 and no Piglet. I guess I will have to do a character breakfast after all

Hope you feel better soon.

 

[DearDaisyinDurham]

(((Feel better Diamond)))
Did you get hit by the storm Thursday night??
LOVE CP!!! Can't wait for the next update.

 

[lazydoxy66]

Diamond,

I'm sorry you haven't been well. I hope it gets out of your system soon!!!

You look terrific in all of the photos! I love Piglet!!!

Yay for Eeyore!

 

[Diamondintheruff]

Just booked another trip today!



I had some southwest credits to use up and although Dh tried to find a cheap weekend getaway elsewhere nothing was cheaper than heading back to WDW so here we go again.

We're trying to keep it on a budget so we're staying at POP and plan to go to MNSSHP instead of getting park passes. We might hit a water park since we've never done one but we'll wait and see what the weather brings. Besides it's supposed to be a "relaxing" vacation. Apparently Dh didn't appreciate the running around I made him do for my birthday weekend.

We're eating OPPs this trip. So tonight I'm going to sit down, look at the menu prices and figure out what fits into the budget.

About this trip report. I'm still waiting for Dh to fix our computer before I load the pictures on again. He keeps promising to get it done and the kids are after him more than I am so hopefully it will get done soon.

Thanks for hanging on.

Wow!! DH is getting no lovin on this trip is he???

Poor Roy! That was nice of you to ask the CM to clean him up

How sweet of you to worry about Dh. Not to worry though. He got more than enough lovin.

I want to see Piglet! Two meetings with the other 3 and no Piglet. I guess I will have to do a character breakfast after all

Hope you feel better soon.

Funny how you didn't see piglet and yet he(or is it she?) was the only one I got a picture with.

(((Feel better Diamond)))
Did you get hit by the storm Thursday night??
LOVE CP!!! Can't wait for the next update.

We did experience some pretty crazy weather. It was actually Jedi's birthday and we had just left the ballpark when the weather turned.

I'm finally feeling better thanks.

Diamond,

I'm sorry you haven't been well. I hope it gets out of your system soon!!!

You look terrific in all of the photos! I love Piglet!!!

Yay for Eeyore!

Good to see you. Haven't updated on enchanted for ages. Not that I'm doing much of a better job here lately either.

 

[Charleston Princess]

Woo hoo for an extra trip!!! Halloween at WDW is just the best!!!

 

[purplepeg]

My dear friend, I am so far behind, I had no idea you were so sick, you poor dear! I'm glad you're feeling better. Are you back at school yet or is that next week? Take care, I'll just be waiting....

 

[Tnkrbelle565]

How are you going again before me?!?! I'm so jealous!!!!

Sounds like a totally different adventure this time!!! You are going to love MNSSHP! How are your kids accepting that you are going TWICE this year w/o them?!?!

 

[Queenofallthings]

First off, hope you are feeling better....we thought of you when we were at the Magic Kingdom where we ran into you last year

So excited for you to have another trip to look forward too!!! Jasmine is trying to talk me into a graduation trip next summer for 2 weeks...she tells me she'll pay half....we'll have to see, if not it will be 2011 for us.

Can't wait to read more

 

[lazydoxy66]

Congrats on another trip. I'm assuming it will be in October?

 

[Diamondintheruff]

Saturday April 25 2009

The Plan
Crystal Palace 8:15 am
MK Park Opening (Splash Mountain & Big Thunder Mountain)
Keys to the Kingdom Tour 9:30am
________________________________________________________

After breakfast we quickly visited the little boys and girls room (Dh barely missed an opportunity to visit each and everyone in WDW) and were off to the slow release opening of Adventureland.

I love this picture. It's so peaceful.

It was already about 12 people deep. I took the pictures earlier while waiting for our names to be called at the Crystal Palace. I could just make out the CM's walking in the front. Once we were released we quickly made it up to the front and got a fast pass for thunder mountain before heading to splash mountain. We were huffing and puffing and it reminded me that if I kept eating like Pooh then I was going to start moving like him too.

I took some pictures of the cues at Splash mountain. I took so many that the man behind me was annoyed with me for stopping to take them. I guess it was because Dh and I blocked the line and made them stop behind us to wait. I may be Canadian but I’m not always polite.

Here are the pictures.

Here's a picture of us waiting to unload.

And here is my rednecked photo from the ride.

We had to wait for two loads before we could get on the ride. We got placed in the front. Which I must say I didn’t really want so I was just about to offer the front to the man and his family behind me when I heard him grumble, “It figures SHE gets the good seats.” Now as I mentioned I was planning on being nice. But his grumpiness stopped me. Instead I said loud and clear “Oh Honey, Aren’t we so lucky to get the front seat? I’m so glad we did.”

Dh looked at me funny. He knows I prefer the middle of rides and gave me that squished eyebrow look. I don’t know if he ever understood and clued in or not. I guess he just figured it’s one of those quirky girl things that he’ll never understand. Like not just having colour coordinated purses but having seasonal colour coordinated purses.

So I pretended to be excited about being in the first car and off we went.

Of course you all know what happens to that first car.

It gets soaked.

Thankfully we were both wearing dry-quick bottoms. I had forgotten about water rides and had chosen to wear a white tank top but I did have a jacket to cover up.

Unfortunately we did not have time to ride Big Thunder Mountain before our 9:15 tour meeting time so after a quick dry off and cover up (on my part anyhow) off we ran to the front gate near city hall to meet our tour. I didn't want to be late. We had to head back to Main Street and as it is getting anywhere in the MK, it was a bit of a hike.

As we entered the building a CM said you must be Diamond and Dh. (Okay so he used our actual firstl names but you get the picture.) I was surprised that he knew who we were but then I realized I had my birthday button on and that we were the last two people to sign in for the tour. No one else attempted a ride before checking in.

The CM who ran our tour was Gregg. He had us pick out what we wanted to eat for lunch from a menu complete with pictures from the harbor house counter service menu. Then he gave us time to grab a free coffee or bottle of water and to hit the washrooms. Of which we were very grateful. Then he helped us set up our microphones.

There were 21 of us on the tour including Gregg's father who was taking the tour for the first time. Gregg was very knowledgeable and friendly. I enjoyed him and the tour very much. It was quite a hot day but there was a lovely breeze that made it more manageable.

Here is Dh checking in for the tour.

I don't wish to spoil the tour for you. I know others have described it. It was long. We were finally released at 2:30 but I had as much as I could take by about 1:30. I was totally zonked.

I did know most of the Disney lore presented in the tour but it was new to Dh. It was an odd bunch of characters taking the tour. Again I looked for any lime green Mickey Heads but didn't find any.

We sat with a lovely couple at lunch. They were from New Jersey and had left their kids at home to celebrate her birthday weekend as well. Only her was tomorrow. They were about the same age and had two girls in the same age bracket as our kids. They had bought a four-bedroom house in Kissimee years ago with the intentions of staying there when they came to Disney and renting it out the rest of the year. However, they ended up buying into DVC instead and have never stayed at their house. Dh has been toying with the possibility of buying a vacation property. He wants it in Myrtle Beach where we go each March Break but of course I had always wanted it in Orlando. Now I figure I just want the DVC instead because I can't fathom staying off property so it really doesn't matter where it is anymore.

Although I'm not going to tell you anything specific about what we saw on the tour. I think you really need to take it yourself. It's a bargain at around $60. I will tell you how impressed with Disney I was. Not just with what I saw on the tour but they way they handled us. We just walked on rides like VIP's with no wait whatsoever. Plus for lunch they had our meals already waiting for us at the tables with our name cards in front of them. All our meals were hot and we were placed in a roped off area. Just the sight of those velvet ropes got me feeling all VIPish. I was super impressed.

Here is a picture of the velvet ropes. It's a little fuzzy. I think I must have started getting tired here and couldn't hold the camera straight.

The flying dutchman display at the restaurant caught my eye.

As did the collection of beer steins. My Dad has a small collection himself.

Here is a picture of our tour guide Gregg talking to us at the beginning.

Here we are riding the jungle cruise.

I took some of the haunted house but they really didn't turn out well.

Now for my criticism of the tour. I was told it was a four-hour tour. So mentally I set myself up for four hours. When 1:30 came and went (the four-hour mark) and we were still going strong I was exhausted. So if you take the tour know that it might go longer than four hours. Sitting here at the computer I'm thinking it's a great thing we went longer but in the heat of the day when I had mentally booked four hours that extra hour really hit me hard.

When we ended Dh was hungry. He wanted to get a dole whip. As I mentioned I was exhausted and we ended the tour where we started at the tour guide office right by the front gate. I just wanted to get back to the hotel for a nap. In my defense I had been up later than Dh with my stomach issues the night before.

I just didn't have it in me to travel to Adventureland for a dole whip. In truth, I don't really like dole whips. They are okay but for me to travel that distance in the parade crowd that was gathering I would need to be getting something chocolate. Or at the very least alcoholic. Pineapple juice and vanilla ice cream just wasn’t going to do it for me.

I should have just headed back to the hotel myself and let Dh go. Instead I whined that we'd get caught in the parade and that I didn't have the energy to walk all that way and well we had a small row. Like I said, I was tired. I had hit the Disney wall. Apparently Dh was still a bundle of energy which is strange as he's usually the one to say he's had enough.

In the end he decided a frozen banana would do and picked one up from a cart nearby. Since it had chocolate in it I got one too. I think part of my whine was because I had low blood sugar. Also it was really getting crowded waiting for the parade and I realized on this trip that I really and truly hate the whole crowd thing. I thought I could handle it but apparently not. Although I like the idea of that new desert buffet option that has you in a roped off area eating chocolate while you watch the evening parade program they just started. Now that sounds pretty good to me. It wasn't going yet during this trip. Maybe next time.

We slowly made our way to the buses eating our bananas. It was a pretty empty bus ride back to AKL. Now we had full intentions of visiting “Napville” but the banana and the quiet air-conditioned bus ride back soothed our souls, the frozen banana must have melted my heart some as we even did a little “canoddling” at the back of the bus (like I said it was quiet and empty). We strolled off the bus hand in hand looking so lovely-dovey that the bus driver asked us if we were on our Disneymoon. So instead of hitting the hay for a nap we decided to …




















hit the pool.


You didn't think I was going to say something else did you? Dh may have had some other indoor activity on his mind but I didn't want to waste another moment of the florida sunshine indoors.

I believe I was so gung-ho on swimming that I made a dash for the hotel room door yelling “Last one in the water's a rotten egg.” while Dh was all octopus arms attempting to pin me down.

I dashed and he darted and ...

Click here to find out http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=33627709&postcount=242

 

[Diamondintheruff]

I know I've been tardy with this report and I'm sorry. I think I've got this new hardrive figured out and should be much more timely. After all I

30 days

until my next trip. I have to get this done before that.

First off, hope you are feeling better....we thought of you when we were at the Magic Kingdom where we ran into you last year

So excited for you to have another trip to look forward too!!! Jasmine is trying to talk me into a graduation trip next summer for 2 weeks...she tells me she'll pay half....we'll have to see, if not it will be 2011 for us.

Can't wait to read more

It was supposed to be 2011 for us too. You never know.

I am feeling better thank you. It was a really rough summer illness wise for me.

How are you going again before me?!?! I'm so jealous!!!!

Sounds like a totally different adventure this time!!! You are going to love MNSSHP! How are your kids accepting that you are going TWICE this year w/o them?!?!

I've had no time to really talk to the kids about my upcoming trip. It's happening so quickly and we're so busy with school and all the after school activities starting that I'm pretty quiet about it. My oldest Eeoyre (DS11 he's since had a birthday since I was last on here) is pretty much over the whole disney thing. Or so he tells me. It makes me sad. So enjoy your DD enjoying it while you can.

My dear friend, I am so far behind, I had no idea you were so sick, you poor dear! I'm glad you're feeling better. Are you back at school yet or is that next week? Take care, I'll just be waiting....

We were back at school on the 8th officially but staff had to be there on the 3rd.

Thank you for your sympathies about my illness. My family is so DONE with any sympathy for me.

Woo hoo for an extra trip!!! Halloween at WDW is just the best!!!

I'd love to see it at Christmas sometime too. Shh! Don't tell Dh that. I need to work him into it slowly. So I will settle for Halloween for now.

 

[Tnkrbelle565]

And here I was thinking that your DH was finally getting some Disney lovin' with all that canoodling going on

We are doing the WISHES dessert buffet...did you guys book it for your next trip???

I would love to do the Keys to the Kingdom tour...I didn't know that you got to ride the rides during it! That might make it more doable! Maybe I need to think about this for my next girls' weekend to WDW???

BTW...it has to be said...white shirt/Splash Mountain?? And you consider yourself a veteran

Sorry about Eeyore losing the Disney Magic.

 

[Diamondintheruff]

And here I was thinking that your DH was finally getting some Disney lovin' with all that canoodling going on

We are doing the WISHES dessert buffet...did you guys book it for your next trip???

I would love to do the Keys to the Kingdom tour...I didn't know that you got to ride the rides during it! That might make it more doable! Maybe I need to think about this for my next girls' weekend to WDW???

BTW...it has to be said...white shirt/Splash Mountain?? And you consider yourself a veteran

Sorry about Eeyore losing the Disney Magic.

I tried to book the dessert buffet but it was full. It look great. I hope they keep it so on my next trip (so far it's looking like 2011 but I have something up my sleeve for 2010).

You have to do the Keys to the Kingdom Tour. In fact I order you to do it. It's something you could even do by yourself should you find you have some solo time on a girls trip. They seat you with people for lunch so that takes away some of the awkwardness of it.

Now about the white shirt. I don't know what I was thinking. When I packed I was pretty rushed and although I remember thinking about the white t-shirt thing but then I must have lost that train of thought. Dh was happy I forgot. He made multiple comments about enjoying the view.

 

[DearDaisyinDurham]

Diamond, I am so happy for you!! Hurray for another trip & trip planning!

Loved the update, as always! I find myself mentally plugging DH & I into your TR & feeling like we're really there. Very fun!

On my solo trip I did the KTTK & liked it but our tour was much shorter so I would have been exhausted if it had gone on like yours did.

Happy Happy Halloween trip planning!!

 

[Diamondintheruff]

Diamond, I am so happy for you!! Hurray for another trip & trip planning!

Loved the update, as always! I find myself mentally plugging DH & I into your TR & feeling like we're really there. Very fun!

On my solo trip I did the KTTK & liked it but our tour was much shorter so I would have been exhausted if it had gone on like yours did.

Happy Happy Halloween trip planning!!

As I mentioned I was sooo not prepared for our tour to be that long. I'm sure it was because the tour guide's father was with us.

Just today I was tweaking our trip planning. I've almost convinced Dh to get the free dinning plan instead of just room only. I've been working on pricing out all the places we'll be eating. I think I've got DH convinced. Stay tuned and I'll let you know. I already have the ADR's and we were just going to eat OPPs.

 

[Charleston Princess]

Love those lovely peaceful shots at the entrance of Adventureland!

I would have done the same thing with that rude man!

I so tried to convince Charles that he wanted to do the Keys to the Kingdom tour on this trip, but he was being obstinate. Your description makes it sound like a lot of fun overall!

Don't you love that AKL pool?

 

[Diamondintheruff]

Love those lovely peaceful shots at the entrance of Adventureland!

I would have done the same thing with that rude man!

I so tried to convince Charles that he wanted to do the Keys to the Kingdom tour on this trip, but he was being obstinate. Your description makes it sound like a lot of fun overall!

Don't you love that AKL pool?

Now I only know about Charles what you have told me in your reports but I highly suspect that a four hour walking tour is not his idea of a fun vacation activity. But you could do it by yourself. We had some people going solo on our tour and since you just walk around listening to your earpiece and Disney assigns you a place to sit at lunch so it's a pretty doable solo activity.

 

[Charleston Princess]

Now I only know about Charles what you have told me in your reports but I highly suspect that a four hour walking tour is not his idea of a fun vacation activity. But you could do it by yourself. We had some people going solo on our tour and since you just walk around listening to your earpiece and Disney assigns you a place to sit at lunch so it's a pretty doable solo activity.

That's a good idea -- I will have to remember that!