All the Makings of a Disaster, The Wrap up 11/20

[lurkernj]

We were up by 5:30 on this morning. The race was at 7am, and we had to be on a bus by 6a.

It was just Brian, Chuck and I. Matt didn’t want to participate and was planning to sleep in. Nanny and Pop were coming to spectate. We were very quick in getting ready, and were at the bus stop by 5:45. A bus came immediately. As I mentioned previously, there are separate buses for this event. They are very nice charter buses. They were extremely efficient. But I was a little grossed out thinking of all the sweaty people who will be sitting in these seats after the race while the fabric just absorbs the moisture and stink.


So we got to the race and got on line for a pic with farmer Mickey. The line was crazy. He seemed to be the only character around, unless I was missing something. We made it pretty close to the front before they shut the line down to go line up in our corals. Too bad, it was a pretty cute background.

It was CRAZY humid this morning and you can see the fog in the background of some of the photos. Love this pic.

Here's our fans, how cute are they?

I think Chuck and I were in Coral E, Brian was in B. Brian was bent out of shape that he wasn’t in A. There were some really small kids in A, but I’m assuming not everyone is honest about their times. He was complaining afterward how many slowpokes he had to try to get around while trying to run and it took forever to finally have some space where he didn’t have to walk.

Anyways, I decided I’d stay with Chuck for the first half so we could get some character photos together along the way. He did really well during this race. I had mentioned previously that he was a runner, and has actually run a marathon years ago, and quite a few races with Brian and his cross country friends. But, he had a pretty bad stroke two years ago, and now he doesn’t have full use of his ankle muscle on his right side and when he tries to run, his foot will drag a little. He’s actually pretty lucky this is the only debilitating physical disability he has, but he gets pretty upset that this was once something he loved to do and now can’t.

Since the ground was pretty wet, the trail was pretty mushy leaving the ground really soft, so when his foot dragged, the ground moved with him. So, he was able to run (slowly, but still) quite a bit of the way. I ended up staying with him the whole race, but the characters were so lame we didn’t get any pics except at the end.

I guess I was hoping for some of the Fab 5 in costumes, or some villains since it’s the Halloween race, but what we saw was the Country bears in one location, and brer fox (I think that’s who it was, unless it was the big bad wolf), in another location.

That was really disappointing, I thought they’d have more stuff along the way. I think there was a deserted pirate ship with no characters, and some bats/bugs hanging from some branches somewhere else.

At the end when we were coming down the track, the grave diggers were there, so we stopped for them.

Apparently Chuck crossed the finish line a step before me, so now I have to keep listening about how he beat me. I guess if it makes him feel better.

When we finished, they gave us these cute medallions, and a Gatorade and snack box with a protein bar, banana, and a few other things I can’t remember since I didn’t eat any of it.

Then we had Nanny take a couple of pics and we left.

This part was stupid. There was a really long line to go up the stairs to leave. We waited over 10 minutes just in this line to go up the steps. People were cutting and others were getting irate. Not sure if there was another way out, but it wasn’t obvious if there was. Maybe on the other side.

So, overall, I don’t think I’d do this again. I do love the medallion and the t-shirt, and even the bib, but it was really early, it was hot/humid, the on course entertainment was blah, and just not worth losing valuable sleep and/or park time over. Combined with losing an hour and a half for the packet pickup the day before, it’s just not worth it to me.

We got back to our room around 9:30, took some showers, and headed out to Animal kingdom.

 

[shalom]

Your fans were adorable!

So, overall, I dont think Id do this again. I do love the medallion and the t-shirt, and even the bib, but it was really early, it was hot/humid, the on course entertainment was blah, and just not worth losing valuable sleep and/or park time over. Combined with losing an hour and a half for the packet pickup the day before, its just not worth it to me.

The one in January would be cooler, at least. Longer, though, I think? There's more than one but I forget how long they are. But, yeah, the fact that it cost you time the night before and the day of wouldn't excite me.

 

[lurkernj]

Your fans were adorable!

Why thank you!

The one in January would be cooler, at least. Longer, though, I think? There's more than one but I forget how long they are. But, yeah, the fact that it cost you time the night before and the day of wouldn't excite me.

The one in January might be quite the opposite in temperature. In 2010 BFF and I came for a short December trip and it was crazy cold, literally record breaking temps. At the time I said I'd never go in December again. But, like childbirth, the memory fades and I'd actually love to see all the holiday decorations again.

They do have several races at different lengths. I know for sure there's a marathon(no thank you), half marathon(no thank you), and a 5k (would be ok). There's no real draw for me in January though (halloween, christmas, food/wine).

There's another race weekend this coming weekend, the Wine and Dine half marathon. We had considered doing the 5k that goes with this when we were originally planning to go this week in November.

I'm glad we did the one race just to experience it, but I think I"ll have a hard time doing another and sacrificing parks/sleep, especially since I'm not a serious runner. I suppose if it was the only way I could get back there(I'm referring to blackmaling Chuck), I'd do it, but not voluntarily again.

 

[lurkernj]

We arrived at Animal kingdom around 10:30.

Everyone was in a good mood so far, so we did some photopass photos.

We were all starving since we hadn’t eaten, so we got in line at flametree to await their 11am opening. We sent the kids over to everest to get 4 fastpasses. Chuck actually wanted to go on. He tends to get motion sickness, so I was sure he’d sit this one out, but nope.

We got seats by the water, and saw this guy waiting for a sandwich, or a small child. Pop had to tell everyone he saw that there was an alligator over here

Here's some food pics

When we were done, we went over to dinosaur. We rode, then got stuck near the end, right before unloading. We sat for maybe 10 minutes. I was just really thankful we weren’t stuck somewhere inside cuz it’s really loud in there. They gave us fastpasses to ride again. Uh, no thanks once was enough. We took the fastpasses and gave them to a family we saw a bit later.

We went over to Everest and used our fastpasses that the boys got earlier, Chuck actually liked it and was laughing. We continued our trek over toward the Safari. Along the way we stopped to see Devine.

We also watched the monkeys putting on a show swinging from rope to rope, but I don't seem to have any pics of this.

It was actually a very relaxing day so far.

We got in line for safari, the wait said 20 min. Here's two happy campers.

Chuck was getting the pouting face, and I was quite honestly surprised it took this long. It got pretty hot, and we were up early, plus the late night. Once we got up toward the front of the line, there was this kid who was flipping out, just downright screaming and hitting his parents. He was pretty small, maybe 2.

I asked Chuck if he just wanted to leave since I figured this wasn’t going to help matters. He said no. I think he was sympathizing with the boy and started to try to make him laugh. The family was thanking us, when I probably should have been thanking them.

Here's a couple of pics.

Look how close this guy is to our truck!

When we were done, we headed out of the park. I wished I would have gotten to see Lion King, as it won’t be there next time I go, but I was pretty tired too. We went back to the room and were getting ready for a nap.

I was surprised that the kids actually wanted to go to Disney quest and said they would just meet us at Beach club for dinner. I told them to leave disneyquest by 5:30, our res was 6:30.

In the meantime, I’m really tired and want to sleep, but Pop is knocking on the door.

He got his ME documents and what should he do with them. I go over the process with him on how we will drop our bags at bell services in the morning then get them later and take ME back to the airport.

I open my ME docs and only Chuck is listed, so I have to call. They don’t have me and the kids in the system, even though I’m holding my booklet in my hand that came in the mail with my reservations on it. Apparently when I changed Chuck’s flight to go to Europe instead of coming home with us, they cancelled all of us and changed his.

So they add us back on and tell me I have to get my boarding pass from concierge or at the airport since we aren’t in the system. Not a big deal since I need to go up to the Airtran counter in order to check our bags and use the credit I have.

Just to brief you in on what happened here, I had booked us all on Airtran to return home. A couple of weeks before our trip, Chuck found out he had to fly to Europe the day we returned. Instead of him flying back to philly (would have had to move up his time), he just had them book him directly out of Orlando, and the flight is only ten minutes before ours. This gave me a $57 on Airtran when I cancelled his flight, so we decided this gave us more room to pack and check 3 bags, but I can only use this credit by checking the bags at the actual Airtran counter, not the resort counter, so we have to take all our bags with us on the bus.

While this is going on, Pop has been at the door 3 times asking me if he should put his luggage tags on now, where do we board ME, how do we check our bags. I’m tired and in need of a nap and want to close the adjoining door.

Finally everything seems straightened out and we get to sleep for a bit.
When we woke up, we got ready and left the hotel at 5 for our Cape May Clambake res. Pop is a nervous wreck about the boys finding their way to the restaurant (pretty ironic eh?). He’s asking me tons of questions about how they will get there. Can we check in without them. Do they have their phones. I just found this really humorous. I wasn’t the least bit concerned about the kids finding their way.

We took a bus to DHS, then the boat over to Beachclub. It was a nice ride, but Pop kept asking me questions about the resorts there, what kind of transportation do they use, what kind of restaurants, etc.

We got there 20 minutes early and the kids were already in the lobby. I checked us in and was told they were running on time, so it would be about a 20 min wait.

I needed a little peace, so I went for a walk. I found a chair on the second floor overlooking the lobby, which was perfect, so I could see them, but they couldn’t see me. I had the buzzer, so when it went off, I got everyone to head in.

Dinner was really good here. I hardly got any pics, but can tell you that I had the seafood salad, which was delicious. The shrimp cocktail was incredible, since they were pretty large and were already peeled. I had some clams and a lot of crablegs. I really didn’t eat much else since I was there for the seafood. Well, except for dessert of course

Here's the few pics I did get

I know there was a lot of hoopla about them getting rid of the oreo bon bons, and I must admit, I was disappointed I wasn't going to get to try them, but these desserts were delicious. I don't know what Disney does to their cookies, but they are just perfect.

Chuck and Matt really weren’t fond of this restaurant and said they would’t return. But Brian, Nanny and I were loving every minute of it.
We discussed what we want to do tomorrow since it was an open day to repeat a park. I suggested either the Magic kingdom or back to Epcot for food/wine fest. Everyone wanted Magic kingdom.

So after dinner, we took a bus to DTD to do some last minute shopping. Of course we were standing again, and there was a bus broken down in one of the lanes, so the ride took 40 minutes. My feet already hurt before we even got to DTD, and it was really crowded since it was a Saturday. Everyone separated here.

Nanny and Pop were going back to the room, Chuck and I just wanted to wander, and Brian and Matt wanted some stuff from Goofys.

Since we barely used any of our snack credits at food/wine, I told them they could each use two for some bagged candy to take home, and to charge the make your own rice krispee treats back to the room card.

Apparently they were allowed to use snack credits for the make your own treats. This was disallowed a few years ago, and I’m not sure if they just lucked out with a certain CM, or if they really are allowed again, but I asked to see their receipt since I couldn’t believe it, and sure enough, they were charged 6 snack credits for the two treats and 4 bags of sour gummies.

I don’t remember what time we got back to the room, but when we did, I took a shower and started packing up a bit. Kids were back shortly after us and everyone went to sleep.

 

[shalom]

I don’t remember what time we got back to the room, but when we did, I took a shower and started packing up a bit. Kids were back shortly after us and everyone went to sleep.

Getting that "trip is winding down" feeling. That's one advantage to driving, IMHO -- since we do a few things on the way home, kind of softens the initial "trip is winding down" impact, then by the time it's the night before we're truly heading home, we're so exhausted we're ready for it to be over!

 

[lurkernj]

Getting that "trip is winding down" feeling. That's one advantage to driving, IMHO -- since we do a few things on the way home, kind of softens the initial "trip is winding down" impact, then by the time it's the night before we're truly heading home, we're so exhausted we're ready for it to be over!

Yup, the trip is winding down. The next day is our check out day, which was almost as much fun as day 1.

But don't worry, once I'm done with the last day, I'll give a synopsis of the first week back. The fun just keeps on coming!

 

[lurkernj]

But not for the reason you're thinking...

Anyway, here goes...


Chuck and I got up around 7, we finished packing quietly while the boys slept. We went to the food court to have a quiet breakfast alone.

As soon as we got in there, Chuck got a table and I went up for my food. I ran into Nanny and Pop checking out the food options. Apparently Pop received their boarding passes, and wanted to know what to do with them.

Should he attach his luggage tags, what should Nanny do with her sweater.

Nanny starts asking when will someone come get the bags, even though we talked about this the day before. I tell her she can call bell services if she doesn’t want to bring them there and have someone come get theirs, but I was planning to bring my own like we discussed the day before, she says she didn’t realize we were bringing them there.

She starts asking what she should do with her sweater and how will she get it from luggage services onto the plane, should she just carry it to the park. OMG, I’m at my wits end now.

Chuck, in the meantime is at a table with his laptop (had to do something for his work trip), waiting for me to get my food, so he can go up to get his (so I can watch the laptop).

I tell them he’s waiting for me to get back to the table so they will stop asking me questions. I get my food, fill my mug, then go sit with the laptop, while Chuck gets his food. They get their food and sit with us. I guess it would have been weird if they didn’t, so this is fine, til the questions start again.

I quickly finish eating (I don’t even know what I ate) then tell them I’m going to go up to get the boys food and bring it back to the room.

I get back to the room and Pop is knocking on the door again, repeating all the same questions. It takes all the patients in me to not rip the papers out of his hand and tear them up and put them in the trash.

I think Chuck finally catches on that I’ve had it and tries to change the subject and talk to Pop about something else.

Five of us are all on the same airline reservation, so I have to go up to the Airtran counter to get all my stuff printed, and check the bags, so it really doesn’t matter what he does with his documents, as we will be getting all new stuff anyway. I finally told them to not worry about anything and just follow me.

The boys ate in the room, then we all took our stuff to bell services and got a bus to the Magic kingdom, all by 9:30. And I can’t wait to get on the plane to go home, but now we have an afternoon in the Magic kingdom to contend with.

Things are fine and the questions are on hiatus for the time being. We are trying to take a slower pace since we’ve done most of the headliners. We stopped and got cards for the sorcerers, and everyone needed to get one (except me, I passed), so I know this is going to be trouble.

Three of them are located near each other, so we do those first. Brian of course has no issues and manages three different stops with his card. Same for Matt, but Pop screws his up after the first stop, which oddly enough is the same location as the last time (Diamond Horseshoe).

Chuck goes off to do his and Nanny follows him. They seem to have success. Nanny never did end up using hers, which was probably best for all.

We got a few pics along the way.

I think we went on jungle cruise and pirates again. Definitely Haunted mansion, buzz lightyear, and Monster’s inc. We also did the TTA, since that was a former favorite of Matt’s.

We had a lunch res at Liberty tree tavern at 12:30, so we headed over there.

Here's my view while I was hiding out by the bathroom.

This lunch was really good. I had been seeing pics of the pot roast and oooey gooey toffee cake for years and knew this was what I was getting. I have to say that this pot roast was much better than 50’s prime(although that was good too).

There was more gravy and just more flavor. Everyone was very happy with their entrees and Nanny declared her burger the best burger she ever had. I can’t remember what everyone else had, except Chuck had the salad with the chicken and cranberries and he really enjoyed it.

Once we were done with our entrees, our desserts came out and we gave the waiter our cards. I knew I had 4 credits on mine, and Nanny had just one on hers (confirmed by the waitress at Beachclub who thought it was strange that there was only one left), and they were going to pay oop for the other one.

I just start to dig into my oooey gooey toffee cake and am in total heaven. This dessert is incredible. Here's a pic...

The waiter appears after I’ve only had a few bites, and says that Nanny has no credits on her card. So we start to go back and forth and I tell him it was confirmed last night that there was one left.

He says we can pay for it and go to our concierge to get it fixed. I finally relent and tell him to just charge it to their room. He comes back and says the card has been completely shut off. Pop gives him his card, and his doesn’t work either. So I pay for it with my card, so we can get out of there.

I’m disappointed that I didn’t get to enjoy my dessert, except for the first couple of bites. I had a few more bites, but just wasn’t into it anymore since I now had this to deal with. We decided we’d just leave MK so I would have time to go to the concierge to take care of this.

On the way out, we pass a popcorn cart and there is the Mickey popcorn bucket that I forgot to get at the halloween party. Thank God for small favors.

I am also aware that there is just one snack credit left on our card, so I tell them that I am using it for a cinnamon bun to take home for breakfast for myself. I pop into Main street bakery and get one to go. I’m feeling a little less sorry for myself now.

We get back to POR and I head up to the concierge and Nanny and Pop follow me. I’m trying to explain to the girl what happened and she said that apparently their cards were turned off as if they expired, she has no idea why. Strange since they managed to get into the park with them.

Pop is asking me what’s going on, while I’m still trying to talk to the girl. Anyway, Nanny had 4 more CS and 5 more snacks. The girl said she couldn’t put them back on the card but Nanny could go pay for these things and get reimbursed. She gave me the money for the one TS credit (she just divided the bill in half and gave me that, which actually wasn’t really the cost of the credit since one was more than the other, but whatever, just get this overwith). Fortunately Pop has returned back to Chuck and the boys, so I don’t need to re-explain the issue.

I take Nanny into the food court and she chooses some bagged snacks and some mickey rice krispie treats.

I ask her to get some sandwiches and she doesn’t want to. So I charge her stuff on my card since she doesn’t want to use the rest of her cash (not even sure what she had with her). This turns into some huge ordeal since it’s on my card, but they finally give me the cash.

I still have 7 CS credits, so I get me and Matt each a sandwich and some of those delicious homemade chips, and I get some caramel apple slices for Brian since he won’t eat a sandwich, brownies, magic cookie bar, etc and the girl packs a bag for us so we can take it on the plane for dinner.

The cashier starts to tell me that I can’t get the caramel apple slices, but stops midsentence and says she’ll do it. Again, thank you. I used 3 credits.

I had read about people sometimes getting 3 snacks for a CS in the giftshops, but either I got the wrong CM, or they don’t do this anymore. So I left 4 CS credits behind, and Nanny lost her 4 credits too.

This all took up the entire 1.5 hrs we had left before ME came.

Chuck and Pop and the boys had gone to get the bags while we were doing all of this, and were waiting on a bench for the bus, so we joined them.

On our way to the bench, Nanny thanks me for another great trip and tells me that her own daughter wouldn’t have been nearly as patient with them as I’ve been .

ME picked up on-time, at 4:10. I seem to think we stopped at the other resorts, but I think I was just so out of sorts, we might not have.

 

[shalom]

We had a lunch res at Liberty tree tavern at 12:30, so we headed over there.

I had been seeing pics of the pot roast and oooey gooey toffee cake for years and knew this was what I was getting.

This was totally the first WDW meal I had planned to get (well, with the addition of a salad). Sounded sooooo good, that I got impatient and decided to make it at home. Then I looked at the recipe for the oooey gooey toffee cake and went "Uh, oh" -- I'd made something like that before we had kids and had not liked it, although hubby and my brother did. Thought I'd like the oooey gooey toffee cake more because you have the ice cream on it, which I did, but still not my fave. Must be me, because hubby and the kids thought it was the best ever. Up until they tried another WDW dessert, that is.

Loved the pot roast -- so good! Only pot roast I like better is the one I'm making today, which has a horseradish sauce made with whipping cream. All the vegetables make it healthy, right? Actually, I'm surprised Disney doesn't have that one somewhere; throwing that extra layer of fat on there is just their speed!

Glad you got the popcorn bucket you wanted. And nice timing, it sounds like -- you didn't have to haul it all over the park!

On our way to the bench, Nanny thanks me for another great trip and tells me that her own daughter wouldn’t have been nearly as patient with them as I’ve been .

She is just such a sweetie. Well, they both are, really, but your FIL would have me pulling my hair out sometimes. I am so glad you guys were able to have this trip with them, hair-pulling moments and all. You knew it would be a challenge going in and it was, but you did really well, IMHO. Your family is going to treasure those memories for a long time.

I dunno, with that winkie smilie, now I'm feeling a bit of trepidation about your week back!

 

[lurkernj]

This was totally the first WDW meal I had planned to get (well, with the addition of a salad). Sounded sooooo good, that I got impatient and decided to make it at home. Then I looked at the recipe for the oooey gooey toffee cake and went "Uh, oh" -- I'd made something like that before we had kids and had not liked it, although hubby and my brother did. Thought I'd like the oooey gooey toffee cake more because you have the ice cream on it, which I did, but still not my fave. Must be me, because hubby and the kids thought it was the best ever. Up until they tried another WDW dessert, that is.

Loved the pot roast -- so good! Only pot roast I like better is the one I'm making today, which has a horseradish sauce made with whipping cream. All the vegetables make it healthy, right? Actually, I'm surprised Disney doesn't have that one somewhere; throwing that extra layer of fat on there is just their speed!

Glad you got the popcorn bucket you wanted. And nice timing, it sounds like -- you didn't have to haul it all over the park!





She is just such a sweetie. Well, they both are, really, but your FIL would have me pulling my hair out sometimes. I am so glad you guys were able to have this trip with them, hair-pulling moments and all. You knew it would be a challenge going in and it was, but you did really well, IMHO. Your family is going to treasure those memories for a long time.

I dunno, with that winkie smilie, now I'm feeling a bit of trepidation about your week back!

Oh my gosh, I absolutely loved the pot roast here, and that toffee cake mmmm. I might have to re-create the cake at home. Preferably when no one's home so I can just enjoy it and not risk interruption That potroast with horseradish sauce sounds delicious too. Anything with heavy cream in it is yum.

I thought the same thing about the popcorn bucket, it was nice not to have to cart it all over with me. And the gross thing is that we brought it home with the popcorn in it, and Chuck ate it when he got home from Europe that following Friday He said it was good.

FIL did indeed have me pulling my hair out. He still does. He just doesn't know how to sit quietly for a minute. He's always telling us about his neighbors business, and he even knows my neighbors business. I barely have time to say hello to my neighbors and he knows all about their porch being repaired and where the woman's father works, etc.

Apparently their antics aren't limited to Disney. MIL called me this morning about their ordeal at Shoprite getting her free turkey, giving the cashier the wrong card and not getting credit, not understanding why they didn't get credit for the turkey, then having to go up to customer service twice and it seemed like Disney all over again.

 

[shalom]

Anything with heavy cream in it is yum.

Totally agree. Just re-read a Disney Food Blog on all the creme brulee in WDW, and now I'm thinking about rearranging all my meals around that.

I barely have time to say hello to my neighbors and he knows all about their porch being repaired and where the woman's father works, etc.

My dad's like that -- when he drives you into his neighborhood, he'll give you a rundown on what all the various neighbors are up to as you pass. Maybe it's that he grew up on a small town where knowing everyone and what they're up to is really important? I dunno. My mom grew up in small towns, too (although her family moved a lot, which dad's didn't), and she's almost as oblivious as I am. Dad always grumbled about how her family is a bunch of recluses, though.

Of course, all the stories your FIL creates, you've got a good stock going without worrying about the neighbors -- since he thinks what he's doing makes perfect sense, maybe your FIL has a greater need for neighborly entertainment.

 

[lurkernj]

Totally agree. Just re-read a Disney Food Blog on all the creme brulee in WDW, and now I'm thinking about rearranging all my meals around that.


mmmmm the creme brulee at Puck Express was our favorite, though I haven't tried any at the signature restaurants



My dad's like that -- when he drives you into his neighborhood, he'll give you a rundown on what all the various neighbors are up to as you pass. Maybe it's that he grew up on a small town where knowing everyone and what they're up to is really important? I dunno. My mom grew up in small towns, too (although her family moved a lot, which dad's didn't), and she's almost as oblivious as I am. Dad always grumbled about how her family is a bunch of recluses, though.

Of course, all the stories your FIL creates, you've got a good stock going without worrying about the neighbors -- since he thinks what he's doing makes perfect sense, maybe your FIL has a greater need for neighborly entertainment.

Yes, my SIL and I entertain each other regularly with our encounters with FIL and MIL. I don't think my FIL thinks there's anything wrong with him, though he's quick to point out when MIL has a moment.

 

[lurkernj]

Alright, let's get this show moving along and complete the trip home.

The ride to the airport was uneventful. We got there, grabbed all our stuff and headed in. We said our goodbyes to Chuck and off he went to find the United counter, while we went to the Airtran counter.

I have to admit, I was fully expecting to have an issue using the $57 credit for our baggage. I couldn’t decide if I was beaten down enough to just hand over my CC, or if I was going to go into full blown battle mode.

Well, imagine my surprise when she looked it up, applied it, asked for the $3 difference, gave me new boarding passes and sent me on my way. Thank you very much. I have to say I was hesitant to fly Airtran since we've never flown with them, but they were great.

Security was uneventful and Pop didn’t get called aside for his hip this time. He was trying to get to security ahead of us because he didn’t feel like having the boys make fun of him for it, but no need this time.

We got to the gate and I read a book. Kids played games on their laptops, and Nanny and Pop read their books. Thank you.

The flight was also uneventful. I sat between the boys, and Nanny and Pop were up a little from us. Brian did homework, Matt played a game, and I read. I think we landed 20 mins early again.

As soon as we landed, we headed for baggage claim and everything came up very quickly. We headed out and there was already a van to our parking lot. We got on immediately and were off.

We are doing really good here right?


We have two cars here now, so the boys and I get dropped off at our car and Nanny and Pop get dropped off at theirs. I find them and we drive to the line to pay at the drive up window. Nanny has asked me to put hers on my card since they won’t use credit cards, so I have my ticket and hers.
I made these reservations about 6 weeks before our trip. I got a discount, put down a deposit for each car, and received a confirmation of what I owed. Chuck apparently had the printout for our car (because he brought it home from Europe with him), and I have no idea what I did with Nanny and Pops printout, but I have both confirmations on my smartphone and I pull them up.

When it’s my turn at the window, this girl is like mmmmnope, I can’t use that. I need the paper. I tell her to scan in the barcode from the phone, nope can’t do that, I need the paper. I show her the balance due, nope can’t honor it, I need the paper. Ok, fine, well, how about the deposit I put down, nope no can do, I need the paper. Can I speak with a manager, nope not here. All with an attitude.

I’m not one to have violent tendencies, but I’m feeling like I’m going to have to hit her and end up getting arrested(or put in the hospital since she was much bigger than me) if I don’t get out of there, so I just hand over my cc and pay.

Then I tell her I want to pay for the car behind me and here is their ticket. She tells me I have to pull out of the parking lot and walk back up to the window to pay her if I want to do this. I am ready to reach through the window and grab her by the collar at this point.

I pull out, walk back in, Pop is watching me wondering what the heck I’m doing and leans out the window and starts asking what’s going on. I cut him off and tell him I got it, don’t worry about it. I’m ready to snap and don't need the interrogation now. I give the girl their ticket and my card. The balance I owed on the two reservations was $98. Since she would not honor my reservation number or the deposit I put down when I made the reservation, the balance it actually cost me to get both cars out of the lot was $138. This was really disappointing as we’ve used this lot before and it really is convenient, but I must have always had the paper.

In my haste, when I took my signed copy (from Pops reservation), I took the cashiers too. I didn’t notice til I got home, but I at least felt better that she now doesn’t have a “paper” to prove I signed for this charge, because I plan on disputing this.

So that’s how the story ends. Seriously.


Well ok, if you insist, I’ll include some more ugly details of the return week, then really, I must go for hypnosis to have it all removed from my brain, because the week before our trip, the actual trip, and the week after our trip were some of the most mentally exhausting weeks I’ve endured.

Stay tuned next week

 

[xDisneyAngelx]

Hey,

Great trip report and beautiful pictures. It seems like you had loads of fun

 

[lurkernj]

Hey,

Great trip report and beautiful pictures. It seems like you had loads of fun

Thanks!

Yes, despite all the annoyances there was indeed some fun had by all.

 

[lurkernj]

I didn’t sleep well after our return, I was so perturbed by the final day events from the resort credits to the carpark.

I got the kids off to school, and thankfully I had off this day, so I did some laundry, and tried to relax with my Main Street bakery cinnamon bun and a coffee. The carpark situation was really eating at me, so I tried to call 4 times and was told that the manager would be back in an hour (all 4 times). I gave up on that and the next morning contacted my credit card company. I scanned all the documents over to them, and was issued a credit a few days later (the $40 difference of course). Thank you Chase.

I needed to take Matt to the urgent care facility to get his pinky x-rayed on my first day back, so he could get back to football. No break, just sprained thank goodness, and another week off from practice.

But when we got home from there, my dog was limping. He does this often, since he is constantly running up and down the stairs and jumping on/off the furniture. He’s a pretty big dog, a Weimaraner, and he’s about 85-90lbs. I didn’t think much of it at the time. Yes foreshadowing again. We’ll get back to that. And keep in mind, Chuck is in Europe, so I’m on my own here.

On Wednesday Matt complained that his tooth was hurting a lot, so I got him a dentist appt for the next day, where I was told he had a pretty bad infection in his jaw bone from a fractured root and the tooth should come out, so he was put on pain killers and antibiotics and had the tooth out the following week. Fortunately it is the last molar in his mouth, so the orthodontist will connect a brace to the wisdom tooth growing in and move it into this now available space.

Well, the dog got worse throughout that week. On Thursday he only got up twice to go outside and cried/yelped the whole time. By Friday morning, he could no longer walk at all and I can’t lift him, so I waited til Chuck got home from Europe that afternoon. I was sure he had a broken hip or something. I got Chuck from the train station around 3p, I think he was upset that he didn’t get such a warm homecoming, but I was afraid of what was wrong with the dog and worried that we might have to make a terrible decision at the vet.

We stopped by the house and carried the dog on his bed into the car and took him to the vet, where he was diagnosed with severe arthritis due to his off the charts lymes disease (I think they said most dogs with lymes range between 200-300 and poor Winston was over 600). The poor thing couldn’t walk for almost a week. Everytime he stood up he was crying, so he only got up twice a day to go outside, which was really an effort for him. He’ll be 9 in January, so he’s not very old. It’s been almost two months now and he's back to normal, but it took several weeks for him to not be in pain.

I also wrote a letter to POR regarding the room situation and the difficulty with older people and my request to be moved a little closer to the main building, though I didn’t expect them to reply since I chose a standard room this was the chance we took. I also included the final day issue with the in-laws dining credits. This was about seven weeks ago and the only response I got was that they would forward my response to management. Wasn’t looking for anything, just wanted to make them aware how these issues were handled.

I can say with all seriousness that it took me a full two weeks to recover from this trip. I was moody and pensive when I got home since this wasn’t at all the trip I had expected, and was really a lot more work than actual enjoyment. Oddly enough, I thought the kids would have been the issue, but they were really good sports about it. It was the three adults I was with.

There were moments when it made me sad to see the difference in Nanny and Pop from our trip 4 years ago when they were so much more able to handle themselves, to basically being helpless and childlike this trip. Pop’s questions weren’t really anything new, though they did seem a bit more frequent and repetitive, but I think I was just around him too much this trip since they couldn’t be left alone much.

All in all, I still feel like it was worth it, as I know Nanny had a great time and really does enjoy Disney. She really is a sweet person and does so much for others, that I’m glad she had a chance to go. Sadly, I think this will be their last trip, as I don’t think the boys will be wanting to go as a family again, and the in-laws won’t go alone (nor should they).

As for Chuck, he keeps seeing the RunDisney stuff on my facebook page and has asked when we will run another Disney Race. I flat out told him that I don’t think I’d go to Disney with him again until we have grandkids. He’s just not much fun there between the attitude, the sleeping, and not being able to eat what I want, it’s just not fun for me to be there with him, and it’s just not the ideal vacation for him. We go on other trips and have a great time, with and without the kids (heading to Vegas in January), but I think Disney will be my thing from now on.

Usually when I get home, I am already checking the calendar to see when I will go back (or I’ve booked the bounceback), but this time, I felt like I was done and would be for quite some time.

Now that it’s been almost two months, and I’ve had time to recuperate, I am starting to think that I need to start planning my re-do. I mentioned it to Matt and he said he’s good for a while, that I should go with my BFF. I’m thinking next October for food/wine again, either solo or with BFF. I think I’d actually love to do a solo for 4 or 5 nts at Art of Animation or Pop. I tried to do a solo two years ago but BFF wanted to go and we did have a great time.

Thank you all for reading along. I hope it entertained you. I’m glad I wrote this trip report, so if I think about going again with the group, I can re-read this and make a better decision.

Happy Thanksgiving to you all!!!!

 

[shalom]

he had a pretty bad infection in his jaw bone from a fractured root and the tooth should come out, so he was put on pain killers and antibiotics and had the tooth out the following week

Is every football season like this? (It's football, right?) Infection in the bone is pretty unnerving. Glad to hear there's a work-around for that lost tooth.

He’ll be 9 in January, so he’s not very old. It’s been almost two months now and he's back to normal, but it took several weeks for him to not be in pain

Aw. Poor puppy. Glad to hear he's doing better. But before you said "not very old," I thought nine years was well into old age for a dog that big. We're cat people, where average age is determined more by whether the cat goes out than breed, so I dunno.

This was about seven weeks ago and the only response I got was that they would forward my response to management.

The mantra on the Disney resorts board is, "Get it taken care of while you're there," which kind of bugs me, to be honest. We always get stuff taken care of while we're there with our resort network (Bluegreen) -- but getting it taken care of there is far less hassle than it sounds to be with Disney! People will report calling and calling and calling, and, even when someone shows up, nothing gets done.

Granted, we're hearing from people who are ticked off enough to report their problem to the Dis board, so Disney's average could be a lot better than it looks, but people report gripes about my resort network to other boards, and "they never showed when promised" is not often on that list. "I shouldn't have to tell them about this" is the more common one. Granted, I tend to discount slow response on holiday weekends, because you know they're swamped, but I get the impression that Disney, which is filled to much nearer capacity much more of the year, doesn't seem to cope any better.

Which is one of the reasons I waffle a lot about staying onsite. I think the magic would make up for a lot for me, but not so much some of the other members of the family.

He’s just not much fun there between the attitude, the sleeping, and not being able to eat what I want, it’s just not fun for me to be there with him, and it’s just not the ideal vacation for him. We go on other trips and have a great time, with and without the kids (heading to Vegas in January), but I think Disney will be my thing from now on.

With your first sentence, I was going to suggest separating while in the parks, because that's the only way I would enjoy them going with hubby, but it sounds like this is more of a Disney-specific deal with you guys. The parks amplify it with us, which is why we mostly don't tour together, but we have those moments on all our trips. I think your half solo/half BFF trip sounds terrific, though.

This trip report definitely makes me feel better about the fact my parents aren't going this next time. But I still want to get them in the parks some time. It may have been a lot of work, but you got a lot of memories to treasure, I think.

Thank you for your trip report, and Happy Thanksgiving!

 

[lurkernj]

Is every football season like this? (It's football, right?) Infection in the bone is pretty unnerving. Glad to hear there's a work-around for that lost tooth.

Oh D D D Dear, sorry if it was misleading, the tooth had nothing to do with footbal. It was a root canal he had about a year and a half ago, apparently the root cracked inside his gums (maybe he bit down on something hard, not sure), then the infection formed.



Aw. Poor puppy. Glad to hear he's doing better. But before you said "not very old," I thought nine years was well into old age for a dog that big. We're cat people, where average age is determined more by whether the cat goes out than breed, so I dunno.

Generally 9 isn't that old (and he's actually still 8, won't be 9 til January), usually they live to be around 12. My SIL's larger dog died last year and he was 15.




The mantra on the Disney resorts board is, "Get it taken care of while you're there," which kind of bugs me, to be honest. We always get stuff taken care of while we're there with our resort network (Bluegreen) -- but getting it taken care of there is far less hassle than it sounds to be with Disney! People will report calling and calling and calling, and, even when someone shows up, nothing gets done.

Granted, we're hearing from people who are ticked off enough to report their problem to the Dis board, so Disney's average could be a lot better than it looks, but people report gripes about my resort network to other boards, and "they never showed when promised" is not often on that list. "I shouldn't have to tell them about this" is the more common one. Granted, I tend to discount slow response on holiday weekends, because you know they're swamped, but I get the impression that Disney, which is filled to much nearer capacity much more of the year, doesn't seem to cope any better.

I attempted to have us moved on day 1, but that didn't get me anywhere, and once we were all unpacked and settled I didn't want to repack if they could find us a place. I thought it would only be an issue for a day or two. Honestly, I did just pay for a standard and got what I paid for so I didn't want to make a big stink over it, but just wanted them to know how it impacted our trip so maybe they can be more accomodating when such a request comes in. I don't think people should have to pay an extra $250 per week(per room) to be able to find the food court.

Which is one of the reasons I waffle a lot about staying onsite. I think the magic would make up for a lot for me, but not so much some of the other members of the family.

I would absolutely still consider on-site. The flexibility with the buses is huge for us so everyone can head back to the room when they want and everyone else doesn't have to go. Kids were free to go to DTD etc and I didn't have to worry about picking up/dropping off.



With your first sentence, I was going to suggest separating while in the parks, because that's the only way I would enjoy them going with hubby, but it sounds like this is more of a Disney-specific deal with you guys. The parks amplify it with us, which is why we mostly don't tour together, but we have those moments on all our trips. I think your half solo/half BFF trip sounds terrific, though.
Yeah, I think it's just Disney specific for us since we do a lot of things together normally and don't have any major issues. I'm loving the idea of a solo trip, now just to figure out how to make it happen

This trip report definitely makes me feel better about the fact my parents aren't going this next time. But I still want to get them in the parks some time. It may have been a lot of work, but you got a lot of memories to treasure, I think.
Yes indeed it was a lot of work, but yes, worth it. But not again When the urge hits you to go with them, come back here and read this

Thank you for your trip report, and Happy Thanksgiving!

Thanks for reading along and commenting so often so I didn't feel like I was talking to myself

 

[shalom]

I would absolutely still consider on-site. The flexibility with the buses is huge for us so everyone can head back to the room when they want and everyone else doesn't have to go. Kids were free to go to DTD etc and I didn't have to worry about picking up/dropping off.

Yah, that's a big part of the draw. I don't care about driving to the parks -- actually I would probably drive to the parks even if staying onsite -- but being able to have my teens and hubby use the onsite transportation would be terrific. The biggest issue really is that we find their two bedroom villas too small, and I'm not willing to pay for a grand villa. Once we're not traveling with all five kids we'll definitely give onsite a shot.

But I'm not convinced Disney is as good at hotel/villa management as they are at theming.

Thanks for reading along and commenting so often so I didn't feel like I was talking to myself

I enjoyed it very much.

 

[luckylady]

Wow I can't believe I let so much time pass since I last read. All done now. I was thinking if DH really wants to run with you you could always go a week before and since the race, more then likely, isn't until the weekend he could join you for that. Just a thought. Having gone through the question stage with my inlaws I feel for you. I know it isn't easy and makes you want to rip your hair out. it's the pits growing old. I truely enjoyed readin all about your trip and thanks for posting it. Hope it was a good football season for DS and Happy Thanksgiving.

 

[preschoolmom]

I just read your whole trip report in one night! It was great!!! Nicely written, just the right length updates... Lots of pictures... You were really honest about all of your ups and downs - and that was really nice to read!

Thanks for sharing it!