A Smile in my Heart–Magical Week of Friends,Fun & Freezing-10/28-COMPLETE!

[mrsksomeday]

Loved your Epcot update!! I like reading about your Poly experiences and will need to get some tips from you some time soon .

I loved the PP picture with SE in the background. You took an awesome shot at MS! The kids looked so excited with their green tickets. It was hilarious how Michael was instructing everyone, too cute.

What a horrible father making that boy take the picture like that. Disney is supposed to be about having fun, not making your child cry, BAD DAD!!!

I can't wait to see if you met up with your friends and what you did!!

 

[mom2mek]

February 8, 2010
Epcot
Chapter 2

Oh, I forgot to update you on Michael's tooth. After a fairly uncomfortable day, I had a feeling I was going to need to find out about a local "Disney" dentist when I got up that morning to go to Epcot. However, Michael and Shawn had talked that morning when they got up to see the shuttle launch, and Michael told Shawn that he thought he would be fine until our "break"day which was scheduled for Thursday.

So...if you remember, I brought every medicine known to man with us in that trunk, and that included ambesol! Michael dabbed that on to his tooth and took some tylenol and we packed both of those with us in his fanny pack to use periodically during the day - fingers crossed that it would work.

So back to the day's report....

After our late arrival to Epcot, some photopass pictures in front of SE, a visit to Space, a little snack, a ride to find that always-missing Nemo, and witnessing a horrible father sit on top of his kid, it was darn near 11:30 already! Seriously, how did that happen? Ok, anyways, we decided to head over to the Imagination Institute. We were ready for a journey into our imaginations!! The kids were very excited to try and "trick" Daddy about the skunk smell since Shawn has never been on the ride before.

The kids stopped to pose like Dr. Nigel Channing.

Of course there was no wait (is there ever??) and we were on our way on our journey.

They love the upside down room:

As we approached the smell room, the girls were ready. They kept telling Daddy "it's gonna smell like coffee, Daddy," "See the canister marked COFFEE" "It's gonna smell good!" all the while, turning to me and snickering.:

Then we got sprayed with the skunk smell. I was shocked that my picture turned out with such a funny capture considering the delay in digital cameras, and it cracks me up every time I look at it:

I can hear the music....can you??

As we exited the ride, Shawn took the kids to the Kodak area to play around for a while and I took that opportunity to scoot on over to Test Track to grab a set of fastpasses!

As I was walking, I got a text from Monica that they were heading to TT to ride. After I grabbed my fastpasses, I got a call from her and saw her on the phone talking to me as I was approaching her. Michelle was there too and they were all going to ride Test Track together with their fastpasses they got earlier. Bummer. Ours wouldn't be ready for another hour or two so we agreed to try and meet up in Innoventions (I think this is where we thought we would try for anyway ) in a little while. I chit -chatted for a quick while with my two good friends and then said our goodbyes and I headed towards Innoventions West to meet up with the family.


The first thing we did was the new interactive video game exhibit sponsored by IBM.

Oh. My. Word.

How fun was this?

It was called Run Time and it was part of the new IBM area in Innoventions. We were divided up - girls together and boys together, and went through a process of capturing ourselves doing different things - running, jumping, dancing., etc.. Then we looked at what we did to decide if we wanted to try it again or if we were satisfied with our captures. Then they make that into a little avatar and put you into a video game that you then play! It's great fun! We were laughing so hard watching ourselves in the video game! We were able to email our avatar to ourselves at home, but just like the things we have done in the Imagination pavilion, we never got it. If you have a chance, I highly recommend stopping and trying this out. We took only video in here, so I'm including a couple of pictures from allears that show the area where you do this.

(This is where you do your "captures")

(And this is where you play "your" game).

For video game junkies like Michael and Shawn this was right up their alley...but the girls and I really enjoyed it as well.

As we left that area, we made our way around to the "Where's the Fire" exhibit but unfortunately they had just started a session, so we decided to go get a fastpass for Kim Possible for the kids to do later on in the World Showcase, and then we went to take our picture with the firetruck. The kids had fun putting captions all over the picture and dressing us up to look like firemen. Before too long, it was time to go in for the game. Again, we divided up - boys on one side and girls on the other and got ready to find the fire hazards in our respective "houses". Each side has six rooms that you explore with your special flashlights and look for fire hazards. We had a lot of fun and the girls side won!! Woo-hoo!!

We would have loved to stay a little longer and play some more of the games (I really wanted the kids to play the piggy bank adventure game as I hear it's really cute), but hunger was starting to overwhelm us, so we headed out to find some lunch. We were going to meet up with Monica and Michelle but she had texted me that they were stuck on Test Track, so we kept moving.

Oh lookie here kids...Club Cool! Hey kids, did you know you could get free soda at Disney?

The kids tried each and every one of those sodas and we got some funny reactions on video of them trying out Beverly. Michael's reaction was actually very strange. Maybe his toothache was affecting his taste buds because his reaction was not one of disgust, as the girls (and the rest of the world) had. He actually made a "eh, it's not too bad" face but then quickly turned into a yuck face after seeing our surprise at his lack of disgust! LOL!

Their favorites were the one from China - watermelon flavored, and the one from Costa Rica - Fanta Kolita. They each took a cup full of the Fanta one as we left the sticky floor place. They were very excited to be able "trick" Grandmommy and Pop Pop later on in the week!!

Then we headed towards the World Showcase....stopping to get a few pictures in front of the fountains (or behind them....LOL).

(This one cracks me up...Michael is holding a Bakugan he brought with him that day, Emily is holding out her Club Cool cup, and Katie is showing off her Epcot shirt!)

Classic Tink shot:

Then we asked her if she could do the "Soarin" shot. The girl had no clue what we were talking about but she asked the other photopass girl who was standing not too far away and she came over and helped "our" girl with the shot. Unfortunately, she missed the mark a little bit in telling the kids where to point, but I still really like it!

We continued towards the World Showcase...it was a beautiful day....

and we stopped to check out this very strange looking turtle...

So, with some major rumbly in our tumbly....which way did we go????


Sara

 

[mom2mek]

Loved your Epcot update!! I like reading about your Poly experiences and will need to get some tips from you some time soon .

I loved the PP picture with SE in the background. You took an awesome shot at MS! The kids looked so excited with their green tickets. It was hilarious how Michael was instructing everyone, too cute.

What a horrible father making that boy take the picture like that. Disney is supposed to be about having fun, not making your child cry, BAD DAD!!!

I can't wait to see if you met up with your friends and what you did!!

TRACY!!!! Your ticker!! So WL AND POLY???? Woo-hoo!!! Can I come? Seriously, I would love to stay at WL some time and the holidays have to be THE absolute best time to do it I think! And the Poly??? Ahhh....

I can't wait to hear more about your plans.


Sara

 

[vamassey1]

Beautiful pictures! We could spend hours in Innoventions but there is just so many other things to do. The girls did the video game thing for the first time too. What a hoot! We always have to stop for our free drink too. And you're right the floor is always sticky. You really got a great shot of the Skunk blast. The girls look priceless. I hope Micheal's tooth gets better.

 

[BippityBoo]

YAY!! Great update!

Just LOVE all of the pics. Especailly the "smell" pics. They are like twins

I am so impressed that Michael did not make a face! The meds in his mouth probably overwhelmed his taste buds

Looks like an absolutely beautiful day in Epcot. Can't wait to see where you eat.

 

[lovebuzzandwoody]

Woo-hoo!!! Glad you liked it, Nicole! How was the rest of your weekend?

Sara

We had a wonderful time... even without a park visit. And I made some new friends... their names are Dooney and Bourke!

wanna see?



I cracked up at the skunk smell shot! That is fabulous! And I've never seen the Soarin shot... how cool is that?!?

 

[SurfinTX]

Maybe Beverly + Ambesol = Not too bad!

Great update! We will definantly try to work in some time to visit Innoventions and Imagination if we can get to the park at rope drop. They are taking lower priority to Soarin', TT and M: Space but if all the stars align we should get them done. The IBM game looks like it's right up DS(7) and DD(9) alley!

 

[mom2mek]

Beautiful pictures! We could spend hours in Innoventions but there is just so many other things to do. The girls did the video game thing for the first time too. What a hoot! We always have to stop for our free drink too. And you're right the floor is always sticky. You really got a great shot of the Skunk blast. The girls look priceless. I hope Micheal's tooth gets better.

Thanks! I think we may have gone in Innvoventions a long time ago, but we have NEVER gone in there with the kids! What were we thinking? I have always read good things about it so I definitely didn't want to miss it this time. I wish we could have stayed a little longer in there though.

I love the skunk picture!

YAY!! Great update!

Just LOVE all of the pics. Especailly the "smell" pics. They are like twins

I am so impressed that Michael did not make a face! The meds in his mouth probably overwhelmed his taste buds

Looks like an absolutely beautiful day in Epcot. Can't wait to see where you eat.

Thanks Katie! You may be on to something - the ambesol could have totally affected his taste buds! It was indeed a gorgeous day! Actually warmed up enough later that a couple of us took off jackets!

We had a wonderful time... even without a park visit. And I made some new friends... their names are Dooney and Bourke!

wanna see?



I cracked up at the skunk smell shot! That is fabulous! And I've never seen the Soarin shot... how cool is that?!?

LOL Nicole! Yes, I wanna see!!!! I will be able to do some shopping down there in a couple of weeks, so let me know what I will be tempted with!

Maybe Beverly + Ambesol = Not too bad!

Great update! We will definantly try to work in some time to visit Innoventions and Imagination if we can get to the park at rope drop. They are taking lower priority to Soarin', TT and M: Space but if all the stars align we should get them done. The IBM game looks like it's right up DS(7) and DD(9) alley!

I think you are on to something - Ambesol may be the key to liking Beverly!

Yes, Innoventions and Imagination are certainly not must-dos as compared to Soarin, TT and MS, but definitely worth a try going to if you can get there at rope drop. This is what we would have done had we made it for rope drop:

* Kids and I to Character Connection while Shawn got FPs for Soarin
* Meet at Seas - do Nemo, TTWC
* Imagination
* Do Mission Space and get FPs for Test Track as soon as window opened
* Spend time in Innoventions
* Ride Soarin with FP (get another if able)
* Ride Test Track with FP or save for later on
* Hit World Showcase

So we still managed to "kind of" do most of that - with the exception of Character Connection and riding the rides with FP. All in all, it worked ok, but rope drop is always the way to go!!

Are your kids interested in Sum of All Thrills? It's in Innoventions East, I believe. The video game thing is on the other side though (near The Land) and it is great fun!!! They will love it!

Sara

 

[lovebuzzandwoody]

 

[mom2mek]

is right! I want one!!!! What store in DTD did you get this??

Sara

 

[lovebuzzandwoody]

is right! I want one!!!! What store in DTD did you get this??

Sara

I bought it in Trend ~ the one attached to the Disney Sports store but I also saw them in World of Disney in the Collections section.

It was a big splurge that I wouldn't normally do but my loving husband has been talking me into it for months.

 

[MaryAz]

Great Epcot update. Very cute PP pics.

 

[cdotla]

Great update Sara!

I hope we get more time to spend in Innovations this trip. Sounds like they have some really great additions!

Great family photos!

And love the turtle picture!

 

[Poohtigeey]

Great update! Well, as good as it could be considering you're already in mid day and we STILL were not together!! Thanks for the shout out though! Love the Photopass pics! Sure wish I could see mine. JK!! I'm trying to think if I know where you ate... I'm glad you're ahead of me in this so it can jog my memory. Keep up the good work!

Nicole, LOVE the purse!!!

 

[Mrs. D]

This is a fun trip report...your kids are adorable and troopers! Gosh I was so involved in the report when you typed that you'd been there all day I was kinda shocked...time flies when you're having fun I suppose...

 

[mom2mek]

I bought it in Trend ~ the one attached to the Disney Sports store but I also saw them in World of Disney in the Collections section.

It was a big splurge that I wouldn't normally do but my loving husband has been talking me into it for months.

Hmmm....I need your loving husband to talk to my loving husband....

Great Epcot update. Very cute PP pics.

Thanks!!

Great update Sara!

I hope we get more time to spend in Innovations this trip. Sounds like they have some really great additions!

Great family photos!

And love the turtle picture!

For the short amount of time we were in there, we had a lot of fun! You should definitely check it out!

That turtle was very strange looking! I had never seen one with such a long and pointy nose!

Great update! Well, as good as it could be considering you're already in mid day and we STILL were not together!! Thanks for the shout out though! Love the Photopass pics! Sure wish I could see mine. JK!! I'm trying to think if I know where you ate... I'm glad you're ahead of me in this so it can jog my memory. Keep up the good work!

Nicole, LOVE the purse!!!

I know, Monica! I can't believe that quick stop outside of Test Track was the most I had seen you this day so far! Good grief!

This is a fun trip report...your kids are adorable and troopers! Gosh I was so involved in the report when you typed that you'd been there all day I was kinda shocked...time flies when you're having fun I suppose...

Thanks for reading! Oh don't worry....the kids have their moments!!

Sara

 

[SurfinTX]

Yes, Innoventions and Imagination are certainly not must-dos as compared to Soarin, TT and MS, but definitely worth a try going to if you can get there at rope drop. This is what we would have done had we made it for rope drop:

* Kids and I to Character Connection while Shawn got FPs for Soarin
* Meet at Seas - do Nemo, TTWC
* Imagination
* Do Mission Space and get FPs for Test Track as soon as window opened
* Spend time in Innoventions
* Ride Soarin with FP (get another if able)
* Ride Test Track with FP or save for later on
* Hit World Showcase

So we still managed to "kind of" do most of that - with the exception of Character Connection and riding the rides with FP. All in all, it worked ok, but rope drop is always the way to go!!

Are your kids interested in Sum of All Thrills? It's in Innoventions East, I believe. The video game thing is on the other side though (near The Land) and it is great fun!!! They will love it!

Sara

If we can hit rope drop I'm hoping to get Soarin' done without FP. My kids are not much into character greets so if we can head directly to Soarin' then after finishing I will run to FP Test Track as they finish up the Land and we meet back up at Imagination. After that the Sea and TTwC and Finding Nemo.

I have an 11:55 ADR at the Coral Sea so I will have to gauge how we are doing at this point. If we have some time send the kids to Innventions and I will FP M:Space. After that we will see how much we can do in FW before going back to the Poly at 3:00 pm. We will handle World Showcase the next day.

 

[mkluvsmickey]

That picture on Imagination with the smell is fantastic! I've never tried taking pictures in there but now I must. And I love the photopass picture with Soarin'. I've heard about that one but never have actually seen it.

Sounds like you guys did lots of neat things in Innoventions. We always enjoy ourselves in there but don't always make it in there. Haven't done the piggy bank game yet either but I've heard it's good.

 

[kcandbella]

It looks like it was a really beautiful day! Innoventions sounds like a lot of fun...we may have to plan for some extra time there. The kids look like they had a great time!

 

[mommytothreeboys]

Love the update Sara! The pic in the smell room on Figment is TOO cute! Nice catch!

The Run Time game was really fun! Of the three we emailed home, we only got one. My boys absolutely had a blast doing that! Glad you all enjoyed it as well!

Too funny about Michael and the Beverly! Can't wait to hear if the girls are able to trick grandma and grandpa later in the week!