Our last day in the parks also had the potential for the crummiest weather, as luck would have it. There was a chance of showers all day long. I know what you're thinking: a chance of showers in the middle of hurricane season in Florida?! Inconceivable!
Given the previous late night, we slept in a little, which means our kids (and by extension, the adults) were up at 7:00 a.m.
We didn't hurry ourselves and missed rope drop at the Magic Kingdom this time, which was fine since we'd already seen it. The unhurried pace was nice for a change. My parents were both sick at this point and had told us they'd catch up with us later in the day, so we were on our own. Upon entering the gates, Scotty announced the need for his standard Park Entry Potty Break, so Dave and I went to explore the fire station on Main Street.
It was here that we found the perfect souvenir for Dave: a MK baseball cap with a monorail on it. I flipped it over and found that rarest of the rare items in Disney World: a clearance price tag, marking the cap at $5.99.
We wandered up Main St. and ran into a Photopass photographer whose aim and focus was just as good with our camera as with hers. Here's the picture you saw from the first page of the TR. Dave is already modeling his new MK hat, while Sarah is showing off her stylish EPCOT visor we'd bought the previous evening. Photoshop services were provided by a highly reputable firm: FreezinRafiki's Ace Rendering Technology (© 2010). I highly recommend his work, and pay no attention to the fact that I get a 10% commission from all of his fees from referrals.
The boys really, really, really, really, really (did I mention really?) wanted to drive the race cars. We'd avoided them all week, but could do so no longer. So, off we went, with a stop at Space Mountain for Fast Passes.
The wait was posted at 20 minutes already, but the line didn't look too bad, so we hopped in. I think we made it to the cars in 15. While in line, I met a guy who had attended the University of Delaware and noticed my school t-shirt. All together now: it really IS a small wor--no, I'm sorry. I just can't bring myself to say it. Anyway, I'm always thrilled to meet people who have actually heard of Delaware.
Julie took Scotty and Sarah in one car while I rode with Dave in the other. The ultra-cautious Big Dave didn't want anything to do with driving--after all, these are high-speed, highly dangerous pieces of equipment. I tried to get him to steer while I pushed the gas pedal, but he was hands-off.
We raced* through the course at blazing speeds**, somehow managing to keep our hats on our heads. We managed to pass a couple of cars on other tracks with some driving issues***, so I played it up to Dave as though we had the best car that day. The only items I saw passing us at top speed were a butterfly, some ants, a custodial worker carrying heavy equipment, and a hamburger wrapper caught in the breeze.
*crawled.
**7 mph.
***Parents whose kids weren't scared to drive
But who cares what I think? The kids had a blast. And that's kind of the point, right?
This is going to become a reality in 8 short years. Pray for us:
It was so much fun, they wanted to do it again! (insert grumbles here) The line had gotten a little shorter, so--why not? This time, Dave felt comfortable enough to drive, so I gladly gave up the pilot's seat for him. And we proceeded to bang the crap out of the center rail for another 10 minutes. His big grin was worth it, though.
It was time for a ride on Space Mountiain, so we polled the family to see who was willing to go. No prize if you guessed that Sarah was the only one who raised her hand. Julie took the boys to go see some characters while Sarah and I headed for our spaceship.
She got quiet as we moved through the line, and I could tell she was getting nervous. After all, the place is dark. I kept re-assuring her that the ride was basically Thunder Mountain in the dark. She would nod grimly and keep moving. So I stopped her and told her how proud I was of her, that she was brave and a model for young girls everywhere, and a credit to society. She asked if I'd been practicing that speech, and I said yes. Did I rush it? It felt like I rushed it.
We got split up a bit at the loading point--I was in the back of the first car, an she was in the front of the trail car. I wasn't too happy about that, because I wouldn't be able to talk to her at all. But it was too late for that. We were blasting off to...well, wherever it was we were going.
The "new, improved" Space Mountain is basically the old one, only darker. Not that it really needed a lot of improving in my eyes--it's a great ride. The twists, turns and drops are sudden enough to be surprising, but not huge enough to make your life flash before your eyes. They added a ton of pinpoint "star" lights that basically make sure you're unable to guess which way the track goes. There's also some music playing as well, although it's not through onboard speakers and you'll only notice it intermittently, like Muzak wafting through Black Friday crowds at the mall. Didn't really add anything. But the ride is pretty awesome as is.
When we reached the exit, I turned around in my seat. There was Sarah, a big grin on her face. "That was FUN!" she shouted.
Space Mountain...
CONQUERED!
Meanwhile, the boys met up with Stitch.
This was followed by another round with Chip and Dale, who continued to be two of the best characters as far as interacting with our kids. The boys couldn't get enough of their antics. Note the placement of Dave and Scotty's hats:
Of course, Chip and Dale were very amused by Scotty's Chip and Dale stuffed animals, and had a ball comparing them to each other.
We all met up and left for ToonTown. It was time to lovingly convince* Scotty to try another new ride: the Barnstormer.
*drag him kicking and screaming
I'm not a huge fan of ToonTown--it doesn't quite fit in with the rest of the MK to me. But then again, it isn't designed for grumpy young(ish) men like me. And the Barnstormer had been a favorite of our kids on the last visit. We walked up to the entrance and got right in line. Scotty watched the ride go overhead. It's time for a pop quiz. What did Scotty say?
A) "Mother dear, this looks exceedingly exciting, and I am giddy with anticipation! Good show!"
B) "I don't wanna ride this!" (sob) "I don't wanna ride this!"
C) "Stella!"
D) "Eve-a!"
E) "The new phone book's here! The new phone book's here!"
F) All of the above.
No points for guessing the right answer, which is B). Incidentally, my rule has always been, "when in doubt, guess B". It worked when I took the Professional Engineering exam, which should make you very worried if driving through the state of Delaware at any time.
Scotty cried through the whole line, all the way up to loading. We held firm (did you send in those Parents of the Year ballots yet?). The Cast Member at the loading dock was a saint. She leaned in real close and asked Scotty, "Would you like me to push the SLOW button?"
Scotty nodded yes.
"Hey Maggie, we're pushing the SLOW button for this group!" she called to her helper. Maggie gave a thumbs-up. So the CM went behind the table and announced she had just pushed the SLOW button, which seemed to calm Scotty down.
Now, let's say there is no SLOW button for the Barnstormer.
(There is no SLOW button for the Barnstormer.)
Let's say Scotty doesn't know this.
(Scotty doesn't know this.)
How long before he realizes he's been had? About 2 seconds after the first drop. "This not slow, it's FAST!" he yelled. Being loving and compassionate, we laughed. With him, not at him, of course.
Still, we made it. At the end, the CM saw he was still a little distraught and came up to him with a small card, saying it was a prize for his first ride on the Barnstormer. This cheered Scotty up immensely--he'd won a major award! Maybe that wasn't so bad after all!
The Barnstormer...
CONQUERED!
After that, we went to see Mickey. We bypassed the tour of his house. I like house tours as much as the next guy, which is to say...um, never. When it's a fake house, I'm still not interested. Thankfully, my kids were more interested in meeting Mickey. Along the way, I noticed that Goofy was teaching a course that trennr might be interested in:
("Crop-dusting" is an inside joke on the DIS Dads Club forum. It's a technique suggested by trennr for dealing with unruly guests at WDW, such as those who enter an auditorium and refuse to move all the way to the end of the row.)
Without further ado, here's the Big Cheese:
After the requisite pictures and autographs, we boarded the train for a complete circle of the park. Why? Because the train is iconic, that's why. And our boys love trains. And our feet get tired after a week in the parks.
We got off right where we had started and walked back through ToonTown. We were getting hungry, but the kids spotted the Mad Tea Party and wanted to ride it. Hmmm...Tea Part before or after lunch? We went before, and I think it was the right call.
<shudder> 
I should have titled this chapter, "The Day We Could No Longer Avoid the Rides Everybody Tries Like Heck to Avoid." There's no good way to ride this one. I tried to keep my eyes locked in on the kids, but there's still stuff spinning in view all around. Julie needed to sit for a few minutes afterwards. But we recovered enough that we were able to have a nice lunch at Cosmic Ray's, with no Mission: Space bags required.
Coming Up Next: As it turns out, Disney really cannot control the weather.
I put that one in there just for you, too...
Total magical experience.
for Scotty's victory!
