Adventures of the "Moms" Panel

[PartyOf5]

Just saw the latest copy of the MMC newsletter. I believe it features our very own 3pirates1princess (Heather)! Great write up and your family is beautiful!!!

 

[Twende]

I got picked to host a party too!

I have no idea what they will be sending but I was so excited to get picked!

I just saw the write up on Heather and her family. I agree it is a great family pic and good write up! Congrats!

 

[PartyOf5]

Congrats, Twende...the originator of the best thread on DIS!

I do hope someone will post a pic of their goodies! Anxious to see what you all received!

 

[Twende]

Congrats, Twende...the originator of the best thread on DIS!

I do hope someone will post a pic of their goodies! Anxious to see what you all received!

I have had such a busy year that I have hardly been around!

I just got back from taking four over 90 year olds to Disney! We did all four parks in 2.5 days! What a riot. They had a blast! I am exhausted!

 

[poohmomof5]

I have had such a busy year that I have hardly been around!

I just got back from taking four over 90 year olds to Disney! We did all four parks in 2.5 days! What a riot. They had a blast! I am exhausted!

Wow, that sounds like an awesome trip! Share the details!!!!!

 

[Twende]

Wow, that sounds like an awesome trip! Share the details!!!!!

That is such a funny request. I am sitting here laughing my head off. I know they had a great time but really it was a very difficult thing to do.

The cast: R, my Dad, age about 95 years;
B my Mom, age 91 with mid stage Alzheimer's;
their friends D and M both over 90 and M with a recent knee replacement;
and my older brother who is in his 60's and is a huge bar/party fan, not a Disney person at all.

My parents live in the West Palm Beach area part of the year so I flew in a week early to get them packed and ready. We left at 4:30 AM for the drive to Disney on my birthday, 3/17.

We arrived at OKW and got checked in there, got two wheel chairs and left our luggage there with the Bell Services.

We headed to Coronado Springs Resort where D & M were staying and pulled in right behind them. They had wisely spent the night in the area after having driven in from the West Coast of FL. We checked them in, grabbed them some fruit and rolls and headed to the cars.

The older adults in this groups decided that driving two cars around was going to be a hazard of losing someone so they decided to cram themselves into the back seat of R's car. Now it is a large car but none the less the poor CM at the unloading area of CSR stood their laughing at these crazy old people trying to play clown car. I told him that if he video taped the whole ridiculous event that I wanted my share of the winning money from Funniest Home Videos! It was also a bit disconcerting to hear these four relive their youth from the back seat. The discussion quickly went to back seat teenage behavior and who had sat on whose lap and what they did!

With my brother driving and me directing turns, and both of us ignoring the behavior in the back seat; we headed to AK.

We had to validate of Military Salute tickets, get my birthday voucher, and then get GACs for B & R. I had our old GACs from the December '08 trip and just asked that they be reissued with our leaving date of 3/19. For the first time ever I was given a hard time.

I said that R uses the reflective captioning and ASL when offered and that there are shows that he can only see if we are near the front and center (he has macular problems that have taken away much of his center field of vision). I was refused an alternate entrance for R. I explained that he cannot see in dark cues and when we get in those kind of situations we enter at the exits. The Nemo Ride in EPCOT is a good example. We have tried getting him through the line and he stumbles over uneven floors, hits the walls and rails, and in general is a danger to himself and all around him. We run into the same problem at HM in MK. Well the CM decided that that was not a good enough reason for him to enter at the exits and kept insisting that he was in the wheelchair. I think I said 4 times that B was in the wheel chair and not because she can not walk but because if she gets out of the wheel chair she wanders off and we loose her. I finally gave up trying to reason with this CM and I took the GAC that was marked for the wrong things and I left.

We all entered AK and spent a lovely day there enjoying the Safari, The Nature Trail (especially the gorillas), the Tree of Life, Flights of Wonder, Lunch at Flame Tree, Expedition Everest (only B and I this time), and the FOTLK. We took our time leaving and enjoyed the animals on the way out. It was the first time I has ever noticed the kangaroos!

My mom comments every time that the paths in AK need to be made wheel chair friendly. The cobble stones and animal prints are so nicely themed but are very hard on ones butt after being pushed over them all day long. If there was a smooth area of path on one side or the other just for wheel chair use, well it would be heaven!

We headed back to CSR to get D & M in their room. They were in the Cabana section near the main building so that worked out well. We then headed to OKW to get our 1 bedroom villa. It too was lovely and in a great location with an elevator. We cleaned up a bit as we waited for the Bell Services to bring our luggage, unpacked a bit and headed to MK.

This whole schedule was R's idea. He told me that this trip he wanted to just take it easy and not have to fit into such a tight schedule, so I told him go ahead, plan away, and I will go along with it! I guess his idea of taking it easy is 4 parks in 2.5 days. I would hate to see a busy schedule for him! Also the whole idea of this quick trip was to get the Military tickets that we wanted to use in December '09 activated since my brother, the retired Military member, could not be there in Dec. We had started out with one night and one day and things just grew from there.

Off we went to MK. They all wanted to see the GF and sit for a few minutes to enjoy the band that plays there. We have a family member who is a music major and loves this band so it has become a tradition to stop and listen to them and enjoy the surroundings there! The elders went into the lobby while my brother and I got the bags with jackets and the wheelchairs. I took the second wheel chair out of the truck and it literally fell apart on me! The webbed seat came apart from the frame on both front and back. I was left standing there with a handful of tubes and rusty springs.

One of the very competent CM's near the front desk saw my distress and rushed to get us another chair. I left our name, room number and resort so they could call and have the broken chair returned and taken off our account. You do leave a credit card number and you are responsible for the wheel chairs from resorts. He had another wheel chair for me before the elders even really knew what happened! What a wonderful CM! The elders did their GF thing and soaked up the lovely fresh flowers and glassed in elevator. We walked a bit of the grounds, did a bit of shopping and headed via monorail to MK.

At the MK we headed directly for CP for dinner. The food was great as normal but the server just a bit slow in removing our plates. I ended up with a cupcake, candle and birthday song. It was sweet!

After dinner we headed to the Jungle Cruise, very nice in the dark; then we did Pirates but R & B stayed on a bench. It is another bit dark cue and he did not want the hassle. As it turned out the cue was relatively empty and I really think he could have managed fine with the light level and lack of people to run into but that was hind sight. We put M & D in the front of the boat and my brother and I in the next seat. Off we went. I love this attraction! Through the smoke screen and into the storm. I hear exclamations from the front seat but I figured it was just dark and they have never been on this before. We finish the ride and go to exit and we discover that both M & D are soaking wet! Now I know you can get wet on SM but on Pirates? That has never happened before! I gave D my jacket and M my sweatshirt and they were fine. They swore I set them up to get wet and no amount of protesting on my part could get them to believe that people do not normally get soaked to the skin on Pirates!

We met up with R & B and headed to Main Street for the fireworks. They were great as usual but the crowd was huge! We headed back to GF via the monorail and enjoyed a bit more of the resort before heading to SSR to drop M & D off for the night. It was near midnight when we returned to OKW. I think I remember sleeping!


We started out at 6 AM the next morning. I got breakfast ready for all and then my brother and I made our way to CSR to pick up M & D. We had a nice breakfast in the villa, enjoying the ducks and wildlife on the porch and the incredible water view. We headed to BC as that is our home resort and we all wanted to show it off to D & M who had never seen it before. We walked all over the resort including the pool areas and then headed to EPCOT via the IG.

We took our time walking through the closed world showcase, enjoying the first day of the Flower show. I was a bit disappointed to see that the plantings in the water were not blooming yet. The banks of flowers were perfect but the pots in the water were mostly green at this point.

We headed to the front of the park and entered into the wheel chair entrance for Earth. It is nicely redone with a padded benched waiting area where you transfer out of wheel chairs. The wait was about the same as for the outside cue but the system of taking your name, party size and medical needs along with the place to sit made this easier. The redo inside was nice. I enjoyed the monitor in the car and the story line that goes with it. From there we took lots more photos of the topiary. Some of them are just stunning this year. Next we did the Seas and enjoyed the Clam ride. Somehow the narration at the end that tells you to come out of your shell was particularly funny to the elders.

From there we headed to Soarin'. That walk in cue is so very long. I wish there was an easier way to get there for people with difficultly walking. R was fine but D was really slowing down at this point and with M being pushed by my brother and B being pushed by me there was no one left to help D.

B has to use a wheel chair. She would not be able to safely drive a scooter. M seldom drives her car these days so she was more comfortable being pushed in the crowds. D really should have gotten a scooter and I think we convinced him that next time he would enjoy more things if he drove himself around a bit.

They all enjoyed Soarin' and just marveled at the technology that makes it all happen. We had lunch at Sunshine Seasons and then rode the Land. All of the elders love to garden so this was right up their alley. Next we did the Imagination Pav. I love that place and both attractions in it. We played a bit in the water fountains and then headed across the park to TT.


Now M had never in her life even ridden a roller coaster so she was not really prepared for the end of this attraction. Getting all of us into the car was a riot. It is a pretty good step down and the poor CM was cracking up at us. We all have very good sense of humors and we have no problem laughing at ourselves. It was such an event just getting everyone in the car that I was trying to fasten seat belts and off we went.

We had a blast and the sounds coming from M were a bit un-human! As we come to a stop, I look back at them and they are laughing, hair straight up, D's glasses ajar, and tears running down their faces. : We were all laughing so hard that we forgot to pick up the wheelchairs. I had to go back to the unloading ramp to get them and because of that we missed our photo. I bet it was something!

From TT we took a boat over to the other side of the world. We wandered around Morocco a bit and then headed to Germany for dinner.
We had ADR's for Biergarten and ended up at a really big table on the top tier. I think it sat 10 people instead of the usual 8. We shared with a nice family from FL and enjoyed their company. We ate, the elders had a glass of beer or wine, my bother thoroughly enjoyed the beers, and we ate and danced a few hours away. At the end of the first show I realized that we had missed the alpine horns and bells so we slowed down and ate more and waited for the next show. When it started D & M headed to the dance floor since M was upset that B & I had done the chicken dance in the first set. They danced away and enjoyed themselves!

In coming back to the table D caught his hand on the back of chair. There must have been a jagged bolt there and it sliced the back of his hand wide open. It was a bad cut, about 5 or 6 inches in a "C" shape and laid his skin completely back. The manager, Ruben, grabbed some gauze and bandages and quickly helped me stop the bleeding. We decided that we had better get better bandages on it and headed toward the first aid station near Mexico.

I guess I misjudged the length of the walk and I just plain could not find the first aid station. It was about 8 PM and the crowds were thickening for Illuminations. It was dark, R can't see in the dark and D was bleeding up a storm. Things were not looking good! I asked a CM in front of Mexico where the first aid station was and she pointed and said by the branches. I headed to the tree line the other side of Mexico and NOTHING! I asked again as we passed a cart vendor and they said over the bridge. I think the CM from Mexico had meant "bridges" but had said "branches". At this point R was struggling in the dark and my brother ended up dropping out to help him walk. I ended up pushing two wheel chairs up the bridges to the first aid while trying to keep D's hand above his heart! It is funny now but at the time I was pretty frustrated with the whole event!

The nurse in first aid took one look and said that there was no way she was touching that. She said he needed to go to an ER or Urgent Care Center and she called for them to come pick them up. The driver was very quick getting there and drove them to the Urgent care facility. D said the care there was top notch. They cleaned it all out and closed it with a type of super glue. His skin was too thin on the back of his hand for stitches. After treatment the driver took them to their resort and made sure that they found their way to their room.

In the meantime my brother settled R, my dad, into a rail area to wait for Illuminations and B, my mom who was with me at the First Aide Station, had a melt down. It happens when she is tired and confused. I was literally ready to sit down and cry! I got her back under control, took her by wheelchair to the area where my brother and dad were waiting, well that sounds easy but it took me 30 minutes to find them in the crowd! I headed alone to the restroom, called my DH (who was back at home) and sobbed over the phone. I was just plain worn out! I got myself back under control and headed to watch the show. It was good but the Holiday version is so much better! I am spoiled by it.

We headed back to BC, had some ice cream and then returned to OKW. We checked up on D & M and the were just about done at Urgent Care and ready to head back to their resort. We talked about plans for the next day and they wanted to proceed. Crazy elders!

We were back up at 6 AM and about 45 minutes later we got a call from D saying that they were going to eat breakfast at the resort and then head home. I suspect his hand was really hurting him but he said M was not feeling well.

They headed home, we ate breakfast, packed up, and checked out of our villa. We headed to HS for the day. We did Midway Mania right off the bat. This one cracks me up so much. As children we were not allowed to watch a lot of TV or play shoot'em up games and my my dad decides this is the best attraction in the park. I rode with my brother who was member of the Marine's National Pistol team and I beat him! All was right with the world!

From there we did the 3-D movie with the Muppets, Indiana Jones (I got to be in the show!), we ate a quick sandwich near Back Lot (which was closed, so very sad for the CM and her family) and then on to Lights, Motors, Action. Something must have gone wrong with the show because it was very different from the first and only other time I had seen it. There was a lot of down time after the first red car black cars chase scene and we waited forever for the driver to come out. I remember a part with the Herbie Car and a part where a car jumped toward the audience and none of that happened. It was still good but just very jumbled up with long waits between things and no explanation of why.

From there I had to head back to OKW to catch my ME. I had a flight into PIT in a few hours. We returned wheel chairs, got the luggage back from Bell services and I said my goodbyes to my family. My brother drove them to their home and then he drove back to the Tampa area to his home.

I made it home about 11:30 PM after an uneventful flight. I was so tired!

My parents and their friends are ready to go again and can't wait until the December trip! If someone finds a spare mind.......... I am still looking for mine!

 

[poohmomof5]

That is such a funny request. I am sitting here laughing my head off. I know they had a great time but really it was a very difficult thing to do.

The cast: R, my Dad, age about 95 years;
B my Mom, age 91 with mid stage Alzheimer's;
their friends D and M both over 90 and M with a recent knee replacement;
and my older brother who is in his 60's and is a huge bar/party fan, not a Disney person at all.

My parents live in the West Palm Beach area part of the year so I flew in a week early to get them packed and ready. We left at 4:30 AM for the drive to Disney on my birthday, 3/17.

We arrived at OKW and got checked in there, got two wheel chairs and left our luggage there with the Bell Services.

We headed to SSR where D & M were staying and pulled in right behind them. They had wisely spent the night in the area after having driven in from the West Coast of FL. We checked them in, grabbed them some fruit and rolls and headed to the cars.

The older adults in this groups decided that driving two cars around was going to be a hazard of losing someone so they decided to cram themselves into the back seat of R's car. Now it is a large car but none the less the poor CM at the unloading area of SSR stood their laughing at these crazy old people trying to play clown car. I told him that if he video taped the whole ridiculous event that I wanted my share of the winning money from Funniest Home Videos! It was also a bit disconcerting to hear these four relive their youth from the back seat. The discussion quickly went to back seat teenage behavior and who had sat on whose lap and what they did!

With my brother driving and me directing turns, and both of us ignoring the behavior in the back seat; we headed to AK.

We had to validate of Military Salute tickets, get my birthday voucher, and then get GACs for B & R. I had our old GACs from the December '08 trip and just asked that they be reissued with our leaving date of 3/19. For the first time ever I was given a hard time.

I said that R uses the reflective captioning and ASL when offered and that there are shows that he can only see if we are near the front and center (he has macular problems that have taken away much of his center field of vision). I was refused an alternate entrance for R. I explained that he cannot see in dark cues and when we get in those kind of situations we enter at the exits. The Nemo Ride in EPCOT is a good example. We have tried getting him through the line and he stumbles over uneven floors, hits the walls and rails, and in general is a danger to himself and all around him. We run into the same problem at HM in MK. Well the CM decided that that was not a good enough reason for him to enter at the exits and kept insisting that he was in the wheelchair. I think I said 4 times that B was in the wheel chair and not because she can not walk but because if she gets out of the wheel chair she wanders off and we loose her. I finally gave up trying to reason with this CM and I took the GAC that was marked for the wrong things and I left.

We all entered AK and spent a lovely day there enjoying the Safari, The Nature Trail (especially the gorillas), the Tree of Life, Flights of Wonder, Lunch at Flame Tree, Expedition Everest (only B and I this time), and the FOTLK. We took our time leaving and enjoyed the animals on the way out. It was the first time I has ever noticed the kangaroos!

My mom comments every time that the paths in AK need to be made wheel chair friendly. The cobble stones and animal prints are so nicely themed but are very hard on ones butt after being pushed over them all day long. If there was a smooth area of path on one side or the other just for wheel chair use, well it would be heaven!

We headed back to SSR to get D & M in their room. They were in the Cabana section near the main building so that worked out well. We then headed to OKW to get our 1 bedroom villa. It too was lovely and in a great location with an elevator. We cleaned up a bit as we waited for the Bell Services to bring our luggage, unpacked a bit and headed to MK.

This whole schedule was R's idea. He told me that this trip he wanted to just take it easy and not have to fit into such a tight schedule, so I told him go ahead, plan away, and I will go along with it! I guess his idea of taking it easy is 4 parks in 2.5 days. I would hate to see a busy schedule for him! Also the whole idea of this quick trip was to get the Military tickets that we wanted to use in December '09 activated since my brother, the retired Military member, could not be there in Dec. We had started out with one night and one day and things just grew from there.

Off we went to MK. They all wanted to see the GF and sit for a few minutes to enjoy the band that plays there. We have a family member who is a music major and loves this band so it has become a tradition to stop and listen to them and enjoy the surroundings there! The elders went into the lobby while my brother and I got the bags with jackets and the wheelchairs. I took the second wheel chair out of the truck and it literally fell apart on me! The webbed seat came apart from the frame on both front and back. I was left standing there with a handful of tubes and rusty springs.

One of the very competent CM's near the front desk saw my distress and rushed to get us another chair. I left our name, room number and resort so they could call and have the broken chair returned and taken off our account. You do leave a credit card number and you are responsible for the wheel chairs from resorts. He had another wheel chair for me before the elders even really knew what happened! What a wonderful CM! The elders did their GF thing and soaked up the lovely fresh flowers and glassed in elevator. We walked a bit of the grounds, did a bit of shopping and headed via monorail to MK.

At the MK we headed directly for CP for dinner. The food was great as normal but the server just a bit slow in removing our plates. I ended up with a cupcake, candle and birthday song. It was sweet!

After dinner we headed to the Jungle Cruise, very nice in the dark; then we did Pirates but R & B stayed on a bench. It is another bit dark cue and he did not want the hassle. As it turned out the cue was relatively empty and I really think he could have managed fine with the light level and lack of people to run into but that was hind sight. We put M & D in the front of the boat and my brother and I in the next seat. Off we went. I love this attraction! Through the smoke screen and into the storm. I hear exclamations from the front seat but I figured it was just dark and they have never been on this before. We finish the ride and go to exit and we discover that both M & D are soaking wet! Now I know you can get wet on SM but on Pirates? That has never happened before! I gave D my jacket and M my sweatshirt and they were fine. They swore I set them up to get wet and no amount of protesting on my part could get them to believe that people do not normally get soaked to the skin on Pirates!

We met up with R & B and headed to Main Street for the fireworks. They were great as usual but the crowd was huge! We headed back to GF via the monorail and enjoyed a bit more of the resort before heading to SSR to drop M & D off for the night. It was near midnight when we returned to OKW. I think I remember sleeping!


We started out at 6 AM the next morning. I got breakfast ready for all and then my brother and I made our way to SSR to pick up M & D. We had a nice breakfast in the villa, enjoying the ducks and wildlife on the porch and the incredible water view. We headed to BC as that is our home resort and we all wanted to show it off to D & M who had never seen it before. We walked all over the resort including the pool areas and then headed to EPCOT via the IG.

We took our time walking through the closed world showcase, enjoying the first day of the Flower show. I was a bit disappointed to see that the plantings in the water were not blooming yet. The banks of flowers were perfect but the pots in the water were mostly green at this point.

We headed to the front of the park and entered into the wheel chair entrance for Earth. It is nicely redone with a padded benched waiting area where you transfer out of wheel chairs. The wait was about the same as for the outside cue but the system of taking your name, party size and medical needs along with the place to sit made this easier. The redo inside was nice. I enjoyed the monitor in the car and the story line that goes with it. From there we took lots more photos of the topiary. Some of them are just stunning this year. Next we did the Seas and enjoyed the Clam ride. Somehow the narration at the end that tells you to come out of your shell was particularly funny to the enders.

From there we headed to Soarin'. That walk in cue is so very long. I wish there was an easier way to get there for people with difficultly walking. R was fine but D was really slowing down at this point and with M being pushed by my brother and B being pushed by me there was no one left to help D.

B has to use a wheel chair. She would not be able to safely drive a scooter. M seldom drives her car these days so she was more comfortable being pushed in the crowds. D really should have gotten a scooter and I think we convinced him that next time he would enjoy more things if he drove himself around a bit.

They all enjoyed Soarin' and just marveled at the technology that makes it all happen. We had lunch at Sunshine Seasons and then rode the Land. All of the elders love to garden so this was right up their alley. Next we did the Imagination Pav. I love that place and both attractions in it. We played a bit in the water fountains and then headed across the park to TT.


Now M had never in her life even ridden a roller coaster so she was not really prepared for the end of this attraction. Getting all of us into the car was a riot. It is a pretty good step down and the poor CM was cracking up at us. We all have very good sense of humors and we have no problem laughing at ourselves. It was such an event just getting everyone in the car that I was trying to fasten seat belts and off we went.

We had a blast and the sounds coming from M were a bit un-human! As we come to a stop, I look back at them and they are laughing, hair straight up, D's glasses ajar, and tears running down their faces. : We were all laughing so hard that we forgot to pick up the wheelchairs. I had to go back to the unloading ramp to get them and because of that we missed our photo. I bet it was something!

From TT we took a boat over to the other side of the world. We wandered around Morocco a bit and then headed to Germany for dinner.
We had ADR's for Biergarten and ended up at a really big table on the top tier. I think it sat 10 people instead of the usual 8. We shared with a nice family from FL and enjoyed their company. We ate, the elders had a glass of beer or wine,my bother throughly enjoyed the beers and we ate and danced a few hours away. At the end of the first show I realized that we had missed the alpine horns and bells so we slowed down and ate more and waited for the next show. When it started D & M headed to the dance floor since M was upset that B & I had done the chicken dance in the first set. They danced away and enjoyed themselves!

In coming back to the table D caught his hand on the back of chair. There must have been a jagged bolt there and it sliced the back of his hand wide open. It was a bad cut, about 5 or 6 inches in a "C" shape and laid his skin completely back. The manager, Ruben, grabbed some gauze and bandages and quickly helped me stop the bleeding. We decided that we had better get better bandages on it and headed toward the first aid station near Mexico.

I guess I misjudged the length of the walk and I just plain could not find the first aid station. It was about 8 PM and the crowds were thickening for Illuminations. iI was dark, R can't see in the dark and D was bleeding up a storm. Things were not looking good! I asked a CM in front of Mexico where the first aid station was and she pointed and said by the branches. I headed to the tree line the other side of Mexico and NOTHING! I asked again as we passed a cart vendor and they said over the bridge. I think the CM from Mexico had meant "bridges" but had said "branches". At this point R was struggling in the dark and my brother ended up dropping out to help him walk. I ended up pushing two wheel chairs up the bridges to the first aid while trying to keep D's hand above his heart! It is funny now but at the time I was pretty frustrated with the whole event!

The nurse in first aid took one look and said that there was no way she was touching that. She said he needed to go to an ER or Urgent Care Center and she called for them to come pick them up. The driver was very quick getting there and drove them to the Urgent care facility. D said the care there was top notch. They cleaned it all out and closed it with a type of super glue. His skin was too thin on the back of his hand for stitches. After treatment the driver took them to their resort and made sure that they found their way to their room.

In the meantime my brother settled R,my dad, into a rail area to wait for Illuminations and B, my mom who was with me at the First Aide Station, had a melt down. It happens when she is tired and confused. I was literally ready to sit down and cry! I got her back under control, took her by wheelchair to the area where my brother and dad were waiting, well that sounds easy but it took me 30 minutes to find them in the crowd! I headed alone to the restroom, called my DH (who was back at home) and sobbed over the phone. I was just plain worn out! I got myself back under control and headed to watch the show. It was good but the Holiday version is so much better! I am spoiled by it.

We headed back to BC, had some ice cream and then returned to OKW. We checked up on D & M and the were just about done at Urgent Care and ready to head back to their resort. We talked about plans for the next day and they wanted to proceed. Crazy elders!

We were back up at 6 AM and about 45 minutes later we got a call from D saying that they were going to eat breakfast at the resort and then head home. I suspect his hand was really hurting him but he said M was not feeling well.

They headed home, we ate breakfast, packed up, and checked out of our villa. We headed to HS for the day. We did Midway Mania right off the bat. This one cracks me up so much. As children we were not allowed to watch a lot of TV or play shoot'em up games and my my dad decides this is the best attraction in the park. I rode with my brother who was member of the Marines National Pistol team and I beat him! All was right with the world!

From there we did the 3-D movie with the Muppets, Indiana Jones (I got to be in the show!), we ate a quick sandwich near Back Lot (which was closed, so very sad for the CM and her family) and then on to Lights, Motors, Action. Something must have gone wrong with the show because it was very different from the first and only other time I had seen it. There was a lot of down time after the first red car black cars chase scene and we waited forever for the driver to come out. I remember a part with the Herbie Car and a part where a car jumped toward the audience and none of that happened. It was still good but just very jumbled up with long waits between things and no explanation of why.

From there I had to head back to OKW to catch my ME. I had a flight into PIT in a few hours. We returned wheel chairs, got the luggage back from Bell services and I said my goodbyes to my family. My brother drove them to their home and then he drove back to the Tampa area to his home.

I made it home about 11:30 PM after an uneventful flight. I was so tired!

My parents and their friends are ready to go again and can't wait until the December trip! If someone finds a spare mind.......... I am still looking for mine!

Wow, that must have been ALOT of work. But it sounds like you helped them have a GREAT time. I really enjoyed reading that. Thanks for sharing and have a GREAT day.

 

[Karibeth19]

What a great trip report, Twende! Thank you so much for sharing it; it really made me smile. Right now my parents, DH and I are dealing with my 82 year old grandmother who has dementia. It was only slight for a long time, but recently it has started to worsen, and I can't help but think her total lack of activity has something to do with it. She has never wanted to go anywhere, do anything, or participate in any activities at her retirement home. She will come over to our homes, or let us take her shopping and to lunch, but after only a short time out, she is ready to go home. Once there, she just putters around, not really doing anything. It's so sad, and frustrating at the same time. It was so great to read about 4 90-somethings enjoying life and having a wonderful time at WDW. If you don't mind, I'm going to forward your story to my mom. She is the one who is primarily responsible for my grandmother, and it has been very stressful on her. I know it will make her smile as well. Hopefully, she and my dad will be just like your parents at that age!!! I know DH and I will be!!!!!

 

[Twende]

What a great trip report, Twende! Thank you so much for sharing it; it really made me smile. Right now my parents, DH and I are dealing with my 82 year old grandmother who has dementia. It was only slight for a long time, but recently it has started to worsen, and I can't help but think her total lack of activity has something to do with it. She has never wanted to go anywhere, do anything, or participate in any activities at her retirement home. She will come over to our homes, or let us take her shopping and to lunch, but after only a short time out, she is ready to go home. Once there, she just putters around, not really doing anything. It's so sad, and frustrating at the same time. It was so great to read about 4 90-somethings enjoying life and having a wonderful time at WDW. If you don't mind, I'm going to forward your story to my mom. She is the one who is primarily responsible for my grandmother, and it has been very stressful on her. I know it will make her smile as well. Hopefully, she and my dad will be just like your parents at that age!!! I know DH and I will be!!!!!

Thanks for reading my novel! I tried to shorten it so it was at least readable.

My mom can be a real handful. It takes a lot of planning to do trips with her but it is possible. We have to pack everything up without telling her or letting her see us. She was a great mom and did all the work for years. It is just impossible for her to let anyone else do the work so we have to hide it from her. A few years ago we tried letting her help and she kept forgetting that she had already packed. She unpacked the car seven times during the night. I got no sleep at all and it made things impossible. We have since learned to not tell her that we are going anywhere until we are on the road. She had a fit for a few minutes and then we distract her and that seems to work.

I have to pick out her outfits every morning and only allow her access to one outfit a day. Other wise it is too confusing for her. She is very paranoid about her things and something as simple as putting dirty clothes into a laundry bag can put her over the edge. She thinks someone is stealing her things. We had trouble at MK getting through security since she decided that the officer was trying to take her waist pack with her glasses and tissues in it. Thank goodness he seemed to understand.

Long cues that are crowded are impossible for her. She reverts to a toddler stage and can be a real handful. We have learned to wait in other places away from people. Yet she loves the fastest coaster and scariest rides. She fusses when I will not let her do Rockin Roller Coaster any more.

I told a story here about the time someone stepped in front of her view of the Candlelight Processional. She grabbed the man by his ummmmmm ...... round man parts ..... and twisted. He screamed and moved, I about died of embarrassment and we left the area!

It makes every second a surprise. It is quite the scene to be in the bathroom, saying to your parent that you are not leaving until you go! Or reminding her that she needs to use a fork when she eats or that it takes time to have a food order taken and having food placed in front of you.

Never a dull moment! It is worth the time it takes. As I said she was an incredible mother to me and now it is my turn to take care of her.

I have lots of tricks I have learned that make travel smoother. If you mom needs anyone to talk to, I would would love to be there for her!

 

[Karibeth19]

She sounds exactly like my grandmother!! She behaves in much the same way due to her dementia, and my mom and I say all the time that dealing with her is just like dealing with a toddler. The only problem is that my grandmother is not always the nicest of people, and she never has been. For example, when my mom and uncle were little, they saved their money to buy her a jewelry box for a gift. She not only didn't like it, she dragged them with her to take it back to the store, and chewed out the saleslady for selling it to them! Add dementia on top of that, and she is a handful! She hates her retirement community, hates her home health nurses, hates the people who live there, hates going out, hates crowds, and pretty much hates people in general (except her family, because we do stuff for her). We wouldn't even try to take her on any vacation, much less WDW, so I admire you for taking your mom!

BTW, the CP story made me lol!!!!

 

[cdotla]

Wow -what a great trip report Twende! And what a fantastic experience for you all to have shared.

Thanks for sharing it with us!

 

[mom2_2girlz]

I just blogged about the contents of my box if anyone is interested in seeing pics. Unfortunatley my box looked like it was dropped a few times too many by fed-ex and my fortune cookies were smashed. Although they were very yummy (my girls and I dogged them), I was bummed I couldn't include them in the celebration.

We have our party planned for April 11th, day before Easter.

Twende - what an awsome and inspiring story about your trip, how wonderful and sooo full of memories! Got any pics to share?

Marleen

 

[DisneyJo]

Marleen those goodies look fantastic, hope the party goes well

 

[Twende]

I just blogged about the contents of my box if anyone is interested in seeing pics. Unfortunatley my box looked like it was dropped a few times too many by fed-ex and my fortune cookies were smashed. Although they were very yummy (my girls and I dogged them), I was bummed I couldn't include them in the celebration.

We have our party planned for April 11th, day before Easter.

Twende - what an awsome and inspiring story about your trip, how wonderful and sooo full of memories! Got any pics to share?

Marleen

I am still working on pics and I need to make sure that my parents friends do not mind me sharing pics!

My kit just arrived at my front door too! I am stuffing my lunch in my mouth as I type so I do not get the contents of the kit all sticky!

It too looked like it had been dropped a few dozen times. I can't wait to dig all the way through it! Later!

 

[mom2_2girlz]

For those hosting a In-Home Celebration, here is the email I received from Mickey Mom's club about the conflicting deadlines and information for post-party and they asked me to share it:

Hi Marleen,

Thank you so much for contacting us. Due to the fact that the packages were shipped late, we are extending the date to April 26th. If you can post a message on the dis boards that would be great.

We will also be back in touch with a post party survey in early May. If you have pictures you'd like to share you can send them to this email address mmc@momselect.com. Thanks.

 

[mistydoodles]

Thanks for posting the info. I have been selected to host a party as well but haven't received my package yet. I was wondering if I had been forgotten. I am so excited that I was actually selected. I can't wait to get the package!!

 

[mom2_2girlz]

Thanks for posting the info. I have been selected to host a party as well but haven't received my package yet. I was wondering if I had been forgotten. I am so excited that I was actually selected. I can't wait to get the package!!

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2121390&page=27

if you click on that link, it will take you to "Time to plan! Mom's Club in home celebration" for everyone so far on the dis who was chosen to host one. It will give you a reference # from fedex that you can use to try and track your package.

Good luck!

 

[mistydoodles]

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2121390&page=27

if you click on that link, it will take you to "Time to plan! Mom's Club in home celebration" for everyone so far on the dis who was chosen to host one. It will give you a reference # from fedex that you can use to try and track your package.

Good luck!

Wow. Fantastic Thank you so much for that info. I appreciate it!!

 

[Mcmillanmom]

There will be some fun stuff there around the 20th. . .

 

[magic2go]

There will be some fun stuff there around the 20th. . .

LOL! Now that's a way to bump a thread!

Can't wait to see whats up!