E(ticket)lizabeth
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- Mar 4, 2002
- Messages
- 46
Cast: Me, Elizabeth (39); DH, Art (49); DS, Stuart (17 mos); MIL, Marlene (70-ish)
Setting: All Star Music, Dec. 3-11
We wake up about 6:30, get showers, & then Marlene & I walk to the food court for breakfast while Art plays with Stuart. We bring food back and are on our way to the Magic Kingdom at about 8 am.
After parking and taking the tram to the TTC, we take the ferry to the gates. Stuart likes the ferry, because he can run aroundhe especially likes the benches that run practically the entire length of the boat. They provide him with a railing as he walks, so he feels safe.
Our plan was to get Stuarts hair cut first thing, so as soon as we get our bags checked and make it through the turnstiles, we head for the barber shop on Main Street. A note on the turnstilesthis is our first experience with the finger scans, and none of us like them at all. They slow things down, they dont work well, and they dont fit my hands well, so every time I used them, it pinched. Not a lot, I grant you, but stillnot the best way to start ones day.
The barbershop already has 2 customers, one older man and one child. Stuarts time comes quickly, and I seat him on the booster seat they keep in one chair. Maura starts putting stickers all down the front of Stuarts shirt and sweatpants, then some on his shoes. Whenever he gets squirmy, she puts one on her nose and lets him pull it off. She is wonderful! Daddy takes a video, Grammie snaps pictures, and I helps keep him in his seat for Maura. I had no idea what the cut would cost, but am pleasantly surprised when the total comes to only $14, including the First Haircut certificate with Stuarts name on it, and the First Haircut Mickey ears Maura gave him when she was done. I heartily recommend the Main Street Barbershop for first haircuts! We had cut Stuarts hair a few times, but just trimmed it ourselves, so this is his first official barbershop cut, and it is great fun for all of us.
We next head to Dumbo, and Stuart & I get in line. After we wait a few minutes, I realize I'm being silly. It looks like at least a 10-minute wait, and although Stuart is being really good, playing with the chains in the queue, he doesn't care about riding Dumbo! Not at his age. So, we leave the line and walk on to Winnie the Pooh instead. We ride Pooh, Peter Pan, and Snow White in quick succession, then head for Small World, which Stuart adores. I keep asking Art to video him instead of the ride, but he says it's too dark. He can film the ride because the dolls are lit, but Stuart sits in the dark. Its a real shame, though, because Stuart laughs and dances, and claps, and thoroughly enjoys the ride. He loves every bit of it, and I now like the ride much more myself!
After Small World, we're beginning to get a little hungry, so we step in to the Columbia Harbor House for a snack. I really want some fish & chips, they smell so good, but when I see the grilled chicken salad, I know thats what I really want. Stuart has the kids chilled chicken and cheese, but he just doesn't eat much. (I was really worried about him for most of this trip. When were home, he eats huge meals, three times a day, but at WDW, he usually ate only one good meal a day, and sometimes not even that, in my eyes.)
MIL & DH both have clam chowder, and after a bit of a rest, we go over to Frontierland. We were really hoping to get Marlene on Splash Mountain, using the Baby Swap optionshe doesn't much want to get wet, but she kind of wants to see the ride. We think this is our best chance. We can ride Splash, then take the train back around to the front gate and head home for a rest. We're already pretty tired, since the day before had been so long, and weve been moving all morning. The first day in the parks is usually kind of hard on uswe want to do everything, and its really hard to pace ourselves at that point. So, when we get to Splash and there is a 20-minute wait, we decide maybe wed better just head back to the resort. It was already after noon, and I had wanted to get home by 1 or so.
We decide since we're right there at the station, we'll just take the train. Yes, walking would have been faster, but not necessarily faster for MIL, and it would have killed her. Unfortunately, the "station master" is a creep! He kept leaning over the railing yelling at people who came up the wrong way (the signage here is really bad--it looks like you should be able to go up one way, but you're supposed to go around another way instead). He doesn't explain things, or say "excuse me, please use the entrance stairs over there," he just yells, "hey, that's the exit. The entrance is over there." Sometimes he even just yells "you're going the wrong way!" Then he walks back over to the waiting area shaking his head as if all the guests are complete idiots. Okay, a lot of people are going up the wrong stairs. Art and I almost do ourselves, but we figure it out. So he yells at Marlene, then he yells at everyone else. Now, if he has to tell that many people, do you think maybe WDW needs better directional signs? Maybe a gate? Something? Instead we get treated to this jerk screaming at people the whole time we waited for the train.
By the time we wait for the train, get to the TTC, and make it back to our car, it's nearly 1 pm. We need to leave our resort at 3 to make it back to Crystal Palace for our early dinner reservations, so we really dont get much of a rest!
I get nearly no rest. I hadnt picked up our MVMCP tickets when we checked in, so I have to get them before we head back to the MK for our dinner & party. So, I lie down with my book for a few minutes, and then I head to the concierge desk. By the time I get the tickets for the party and for our Candlelight Processional package coming up later in the week, and then briefly check out the gift store, it's time to get back to the room. I change into the sweatshirt I had made for the party (thanks to the Disney Design Addicts!), make sure everyone else has their sweatshirts, and out the door we go.
Even though wed just been to the MK that morning, I didn't leave enough time for driving, parking, tramming, monorailing, bag-checking, and walking in through the gates, so we're about 15 minutes late for our dinner ressies by the time we hit Crystal Palace. They are very gracious about it, and we get seated in about 10 minutes. Our server pops by to take our drink orders, then we hit the buffet. It is surprisingly good! There is a huge variety, and the food is much more adult than we had expected. As a matter of fact, the only food they have specifically for kids (at the kids stations) is chicken nuggets and mac & cheese. I'm pretty disappointed in that, since the Crystal Palace is a character meal, geared towards kids. Many kids Ive known would not be happy with the food on the regular buffet, and they wouldnt enjoy nothing but chicken & macaroni. However, our kid will eat anything, so we're perfectly content. I just feel sorry for so many of those picky eaters who might expect food they like at a kids buffet!
The server is very prompt at taking our drink order, but then takes forever to come back. We have each gone to the buffet by the time she comes back, and even when she finally brings our drinks, she doesn't have Marlenes hot tea. We are not impressed. She apologizes, but her attempts at being attentive later are a little less than they should have been. At least the characters are great! It takes a long time for them to come around to where we're sitting, but they each took time to high-five Stuart, who just loved them. This is his first experience with characters, so we aren't sure about his reaction. He has a blast! He claps and blows kisses at them and laughs when they play with him. It is truly wonderful to see. He gets to see Pooh, Eeyore, Tigger, and even Pigletand we get autographs. We had already collected autographs from most of these characters on previous trips, but weve never seen Piglet before, so that is fun for us, too. One note--I say the characters take a long time to get to us--the way they work the room, Stuart sees them on the other side of the room LONG before they get to our table. We are able to distract him with food and things because he's so young, but this might be a problem for a child who's really been anticipating meeting the characters. I don't know what Disney can do about this, but most kids don't have a lot of patience! When they see the characters, they want to interact with them NOW!
After dinner, we need to go get our party wristbands. We see the LONG, LONG line in the rose garden, but a CM tells us there are many CMs down in the pavilion handing out wrist bands, and it won't take long. It's only about 5-10 minutes before we all have our wrist bands and are ready to celebrate Christmas with Mickey!
It's now time to go see Mickeys Twas the Night Before Christmas. However, Art suggests maybe we can go check Toontown for any party merchandise they might have. We are stopped by a CM putting a rope across the path, who explains that Toontown is closed until 7 pm. He tells us that only Adventureland, Frontierland, Liberty Square, and Main Street are open. I ask about Tomorrowland and the show, and he shakes his head. Nope, maybe in other years, but this year, its closed. Go hang out on Main Street or something. So, we head back to Main Street and grab some chairs outside the ice cream shop. Stuart falls fast asleep in his stroller, so I leave Art & Marlene chatting and go to see if maybe I can find a hat or some party merchandise. Main Street is closed. Liberty Square is closed. Even the Christmas Shoppe in Liberty Square is closed, getting ready for the party. I head back to the others, a little footsore and disappointed.
It's approaching 7 pm, so we get up and head for the show. We are stopped on our way in and told
it is standing room only. What? Tomorrowland just opened, right? No, it seems that the show HAD been going on while we sat and waited. I am completely furious, and the CM (I think Chuck was his name) asks if he can help me in any way. I ask him about the info we had received, and he admits that many CMs are not well informed, and so are passing on misinformation to guests. I tell him I think that was slightly acceptable for the first night of a party, but not for the fourth or fifth night. He agrees. He offers again to help us, but has no suggestions for how he will manage that. We left. Since Marlene & Stuart are with us, we can't wait around for the next showwe need to stake out our parade spot pretty early. Marlene walks with us to the castle forecourt area, and then says she just can't make it. She had thought she could do the party with us when the first thing would be a show that she could sit through, but standing and waiting for the parade are just beyond her physical capabilities at this point. I am disappointed, but I certainly understand. We took Stuart, and she went back to the resort.
Stuart wakes up just a little before the parade starts, and walks up and down through the crowd. Art & I have to take turns chasing him and watching our stroller with all our stuff, but Stuart makes many friends! He enjoys the parade, as do we. Disney changed the order of things around a bit this year, and it's really fun. I still hate those blasted reindeer, though! Why in the world are their tongues hanging out? Id like to sneak into costuming some time and cut them all off, they look so stupid. Disneyland has some really nice reindeer costumes, and Id love to see those used at Florida.
Anyway, Stuart enjoys the parade, but he likes running around more. He had only started walking about a week or two before our trip, so it is all new and exciting to him. We finally give up and pop him back into his stroller for the fireworks. He fights it for a minute, but then the fireworks start! What a showand Stuart loves every minute of it. He claps with the music, he laughs, and he tries to catch the fireworks out of the sky. Those booms don't bother him at all.
After the fireworks, we go into Tomorrowland and get our picture taken. It's really sad to go inside the Timekeeper attraction without actually seeing the show. Someone had put a scarf around Timekeepers neck to give him some holiday cheer, but I think it just makes us sadder to see him that way.
We leave after the picture, since all of us are tired. Stuart is the freshest, since hed had an hour-long nap or so in his stroller, but it is very late for him to still be up. We wander down Main Street (wheres the snow? We never saw snow at the party!), and I finally get a chance to pop in to Le Chapeau. I had really hoped they would have my hat, and they did! They have a bucket hat that I had seen no where else (and on no one else), and it even fits (I have a large head, so one size fits all hats usually dont). Hurray! After that little stop, we make our way back to the resort. Stuart gets a quick sponge bath, and when we lay him down in his crib, he makes one little waah and then goes right to sleep. Poor tired baby.
We hit the sack right away ourselves. Tomorrow is a late start day, thank heavens!
Setting: All Star Music, Dec. 3-11
We wake up about 6:30, get showers, & then Marlene & I walk to the food court for breakfast while Art plays with Stuart. We bring food back and are on our way to the Magic Kingdom at about 8 am.
After parking and taking the tram to the TTC, we take the ferry to the gates. Stuart likes the ferry, because he can run aroundhe especially likes the benches that run practically the entire length of the boat. They provide him with a railing as he walks, so he feels safe.
Our plan was to get Stuarts hair cut first thing, so as soon as we get our bags checked and make it through the turnstiles, we head for the barber shop on Main Street. A note on the turnstilesthis is our first experience with the finger scans, and none of us like them at all. They slow things down, they dont work well, and they dont fit my hands well, so every time I used them, it pinched. Not a lot, I grant you, but stillnot the best way to start ones day.
The barbershop already has 2 customers, one older man and one child. Stuarts time comes quickly, and I seat him on the booster seat they keep in one chair. Maura starts putting stickers all down the front of Stuarts shirt and sweatpants, then some on his shoes. Whenever he gets squirmy, she puts one on her nose and lets him pull it off. She is wonderful! Daddy takes a video, Grammie snaps pictures, and I helps keep him in his seat for Maura. I had no idea what the cut would cost, but am pleasantly surprised when the total comes to only $14, including the First Haircut certificate with Stuarts name on it, and the First Haircut Mickey ears Maura gave him when she was done. I heartily recommend the Main Street Barbershop for first haircuts! We had cut Stuarts hair a few times, but just trimmed it ourselves, so this is his first official barbershop cut, and it is great fun for all of us.
We next head to Dumbo, and Stuart & I get in line. After we wait a few minutes, I realize I'm being silly. It looks like at least a 10-minute wait, and although Stuart is being really good, playing with the chains in the queue, he doesn't care about riding Dumbo! Not at his age. So, we leave the line and walk on to Winnie the Pooh instead. We ride Pooh, Peter Pan, and Snow White in quick succession, then head for Small World, which Stuart adores. I keep asking Art to video him instead of the ride, but he says it's too dark. He can film the ride because the dolls are lit, but Stuart sits in the dark. Its a real shame, though, because Stuart laughs and dances, and claps, and thoroughly enjoys the ride. He loves every bit of it, and I now like the ride much more myself!
After Small World, we're beginning to get a little hungry, so we step in to the Columbia Harbor House for a snack. I really want some fish & chips, they smell so good, but when I see the grilled chicken salad, I know thats what I really want. Stuart has the kids chilled chicken and cheese, but he just doesn't eat much. (I was really worried about him for most of this trip. When were home, he eats huge meals, three times a day, but at WDW, he usually ate only one good meal a day, and sometimes not even that, in my eyes.)
MIL & DH both have clam chowder, and after a bit of a rest, we go over to Frontierland. We were really hoping to get Marlene on Splash Mountain, using the Baby Swap optionshe doesn't much want to get wet, but she kind of wants to see the ride. We think this is our best chance. We can ride Splash, then take the train back around to the front gate and head home for a rest. We're already pretty tired, since the day before had been so long, and weve been moving all morning. The first day in the parks is usually kind of hard on uswe want to do everything, and its really hard to pace ourselves at that point. So, when we get to Splash and there is a 20-minute wait, we decide maybe wed better just head back to the resort. It was already after noon, and I had wanted to get home by 1 or so.
We decide since we're right there at the station, we'll just take the train. Yes, walking would have been faster, but not necessarily faster for MIL, and it would have killed her. Unfortunately, the "station master" is a creep! He kept leaning over the railing yelling at people who came up the wrong way (the signage here is really bad--it looks like you should be able to go up one way, but you're supposed to go around another way instead). He doesn't explain things, or say "excuse me, please use the entrance stairs over there," he just yells, "hey, that's the exit. The entrance is over there." Sometimes he even just yells "you're going the wrong way!" Then he walks back over to the waiting area shaking his head as if all the guests are complete idiots. Okay, a lot of people are going up the wrong stairs. Art and I almost do ourselves, but we figure it out. So he yells at Marlene, then he yells at everyone else. Now, if he has to tell that many people, do you think maybe WDW needs better directional signs? Maybe a gate? Something? Instead we get treated to this jerk screaming at people the whole time we waited for the train.
By the time we wait for the train, get to the TTC, and make it back to our car, it's nearly 1 pm. We need to leave our resort at 3 to make it back to Crystal Palace for our early dinner reservations, so we really dont get much of a rest!
I get nearly no rest. I hadnt picked up our MVMCP tickets when we checked in, so I have to get them before we head back to the MK for our dinner & party. So, I lie down with my book for a few minutes, and then I head to the concierge desk. By the time I get the tickets for the party and for our Candlelight Processional package coming up later in the week, and then briefly check out the gift store, it's time to get back to the room. I change into the sweatshirt I had made for the party (thanks to the Disney Design Addicts!), make sure everyone else has their sweatshirts, and out the door we go.
Even though wed just been to the MK that morning, I didn't leave enough time for driving, parking, tramming, monorailing, bag-checking, and walking in through the gates, so we're about 15 minutes late for our dinner ressies by the time we hit Crystal Palace. They are very gracious about it, and we get seated in about 10 minutes. Our server pops by to take our drink orders, then we hit the buffet. It is surprisingly good! There is a huge variety, and the food is much more adult than we had expected. As a matter of fact, the only food they have specifically for kids (at the kids stations) is chicken nuggets and mac & cheese. I'm pretty disappointed in that, since the Crystal Palace is a character meal, geared towards kids. Many kids Ive known would not be happy with the food on the regular buffet, and they wouldnt enjoy nothing but chicken & macaroni. However, our kid will eat anything, so we're perfectly content. I just feel sorry for so many of those picky eaters who might expect food they like at a kids buffet!
The server is very prompt at taking our drink order, but then takes forever to come back. We have each gone to the buffet by the time she comes back, and even when she finally brings our drinks, she doesn't have Marlenes hot tea. We are not impressed. She apologizes, but her attempts at being attentive later are a little less than they should have been. At least the characters are great! It takes a long time for them to come around to where we're sitting, but they each took time to high-five Stuart, who just loved them. This is his first experience with characters, so we aren't sure about his reaction. He has a blast! He claps and blows kisses at them and laughs when they play with him. It is truly wonderful to see. He gets to see Pooh, Eeyore, Tigger, and even Pigletand we get autographs. We had already collected autographs from most of these characters on previous trips, but weve never seen Piglet before, so that is fun for us, too. One note--I say the characters take a long time to get to us--the way they work the room, Stuart sees them on the other side of the room LONG before they get to our table. We are able to distract him with food and things because he's so young, but this might be a problem for a child who's really been anticipating meeting the characters. I don't know what Disney can do about this, but most kids don't have a lot of patience! When they see the characters, they want to interact with them NOW!
After dinner, we need to go get our party wristbands. We see the LONG, LONG line in the rose garden, but a CM tells us there are many CMs down in the pavilion handing out wrist bands, and it won't take long. It's only about 5-10 minutes before we all have our wrist bands and are ready to celebrate Christmas with Mickey!
It's now time to go see Mickeys Twas the Night Before Christmas. However, Art suggests maybe we can go check Toontown for any party merchandise they might have. We are stopped by a CM putting a rope across the path, who explains that Toontown is closed until 7 pm. He tells us that only Adventureland, Frontierland, Liberty Square, and Main Street are open. I ask about Tomorrowland and the show, and he shakes his head. Nope, maybe in other years, but this year, its closed. Go hang out on Main Street or something. So, we head back to Main Street and grab some chairs outside the ice cream shop. Stuart falls fast asleep in his stroller, so I leave Art & Marlene chatting and go to see if maybe I can find a hat or some party merchandise. Main Street is closed. Liberty Square is closed. Even the Christmas Shoppe in Liberty Square is closed, getting ready for the party. I head back to the others, a little footsore and disappointed.
It's approaching 7 pm, so we get up and head for the show. We are stopped on our way in and told
it is standing room only. What? Tomorrowland just opened, right? No, it seems that the show HAD been going on while we sat and waited. I am completely furious, and the CM (I think Chuck was his name) asks if he can help me in any way. I ask him about the info we had received, and he admits that many CMs are not well informed, and so are passing on misinformation to guests. I tell him I think that was slightly acceptable for the first night of a party, but not for the fourth or fifth night. He agrees. He offers again to help us, but has no suggestions for how he will manage that. We left. Since Marlene & Stuart are with us, we can't wait around for the next showwe need to stake out our parade spot pretty early. Marlene walks with us to the castle forecourt area, and then says she just can't make it. She had thought she could do the party with us when the first thing would be a show that she could sit through, but standing and waiting for the parade are just beyond her physical capabilities at this point. I am disappointed, but I certainly understand. We took Stuart, and she went back to the resort.
Stuart wakes up just a little before the parade starts, and walks up and down through the crowd. Art & I have to take turns chasing him and watching our stroller with all our stuff, but Stuart makes many friends! He enjoys the parade, as do we. Disney changed the order of things around a bit this year, and it's really fun. I still hate those blasted reindeer, though! Why in the world are their tongues hanging out? Id like to sneak into costuming some time and cut them all off, they look so stupid. Disneyland has some really nice reindeer costumes, and Id love to see those used at Florida.
Anyway, Stuart enjoys the parade, but he likes running around more. He had only started walking about a week or two before our trip, so it is all new and exciting to him. We finally give up and pop him back into his stroller for the fireworks. He fights it for a minute, but then the fireworks start! What a showand Stuart loves every minute of it. He claps with the music, he laughs, and he tries to catch the fireworks out of the sky. Those booms don't bother him at all.
After the fireworks, we go into Tomorrowland and get our picture taken. It's really sad to go inside the Timekeeper attraction without actually seeing the show. Someone had put a scarf around Timekeepers neck to give him some holiday cheer, but I think it just makes us sadder to see him that way.
We leave after the picture, since all of us are tired. Stuart is the freshest, since hed had an hour-long nap or so in his stroller, but it is very late for him to still be up. We wander down Main Street (wheres the snow? We never saw snow at the party!), and I finally get a chance to pop in to Le Chapeau. I had really hoped they would have my hat, and they did! They have a bucket hat that I had seen no where else (and on no one else), and it even fits (I have a large head, so one size fits all hats usually dont). Hurray! After that little stop, we make our way back to the resort. Stuart gets a quick sponge bath, and when we lay him down in his crib, he makes one little waah and then goes right to sleep. Poor tired baby.
We hit the sack right away ourselves. Tomorrow is a late start day, thank heavens!
Maybe now that the company has some new management, some of the poor CM training we experienced will get better. I'm certainly crossing my fingers--
