ANOTHER Adventure in Autism (4/15) A Taste of What's to Come...

[Halloweenqueen]

Okay, forget the trip report....

just make an appearance, Kathy! Hope everything is okay.

 

[Hedy]

Best wishes, Kathy!

 

[KathyRN137]

Oh boy, Tricia was right!

Today we were riding in the Mommy-Van and she made a comment like, "You know, Mom, everyone on the DIS is probably dying of suspense... you really need to get back to your report!"

Out of the mouths of babes.

I'm really, really sorry guys. I've been totally ensconsed in plans for our total home renovation that'll be going on this summer. What can I say? When I get into something, I really go overboard.

Anyway, I figure since our next trip to the World is practically around the corner, I'd better get back to work on the report of our last one before its time to leave!

Now, where are my notes??


Kathy

 

[jcc0621]

Oh boy, Tricia was right!

Today we were riding in the Mommy-Van and she made a comment like, "You know, Mom, everyone on the DIS is probably dying of suspense... you really need to get back to your report!"

Out of the mouths of babes.

I'm really, really sorry guys. I've been totally ensconsed in plans for our total home renovation that'll be going on this summer. What can I say? When I get into something, I really go overboard.

Anyway, I figure since our next trip to the World is practically around the corner, I'd better get back to work on the report of our last one before its time to leave!

Now, where are my notes??


Kathy

Thank goodness, we were all worried about you Kathy. Now (in my best mom voice) don't ever scare us like that again

Janet

 

[mrsksomeday]

You had me very worried, thank Tricia for me, in fact give her a huge hug . I am so glad everyone is ok. I hope you update soon, but I understand if you are busy.

 

[Linnie The Pooh]

I was worried too- I wondered what happened to you! Take your time and get back to it when you can!

 

[DisMomAmy]

So glad you are back Kathy! Next time you have an extended absence you have to at least check in to say, "Hi". I've got a little weekend trip planned now too - I'll start a report about that pretty soon. Can't wait to read more of yours! Glad you guys are all OK!

 

[DISchick]

Thanks for a great trip report, Kathy!
I'm a first grade teacher and work with kids of all different abilities, including some with Autism. Your report is giving me some great tips that I haven't heard before, so THANKS!
I love hearing about your family's fun at the world. It helps the time go by until our trip......

Thanks for the great report....keep it comin'!
Jill

 

[Hedy]

Oh boy, Tricia was right!

Today we were riding in the Mommy-Van and she made a comment like, "You know, Mom, everyone on the DIS is probably dying of suspense... you really need to get back to your report!"

Out of the mouths of babes.

I'm really, really sorry guys. I've been totally ensconsed in plans for our total home renovation that'll be going on this summer. What can I say? When I get into something, I really go overboard.

Anyway, I figure since our next trip to the World is practically around the corner, I'd better get back to work on the report of our last one before its time to leave!

Now, where are my notes??


Kathy

She's a smart girl. Good luck with the renovation.

 

[mousescrapper]

Hi Kathy,

girl you had me worried there! I'm so glad all are OK. Can't wait to hear the end of this TR and the start of next. Hope you can find a moment to steal for the Disboards!

PS see my ticker??? almost into the "last trimester" of my 10 mo PTR!!!

 

[Halloweenqueen]

Hooray, Kathy's back

 

[DisneyJo]

Wooohooo more TR coming

 

[jordanyosh]

Oh boy, Tricia was right!

Today we were riding in the Mommy-Van and she made a comment like, "You know, Mom, everyone on the DIS is probably dying of suspense... you really need to get back to your report!"

Out of the mouths of babes.

I'm really, really sorry guys. I've been totally ensconsed in plans for our total home renovation that'll be going on this summer. What can I say? When I get into something, I really go overboard.

Anyway, I figure since our next trip to the World is practically around the corner, I'd better get back to work on the report of our last one before its time to leave!

Now, where are my notes??


Kathy

Thank God you're okay.....stop by my TR when you get a chance.

 

[KathyRN137]

Chapter 17: Two Ships Pass



Chance favors the prepared mind.
- LOUIS PASTEUR, 1854


*Just a brief editorial comment here, simply because I find it just too incredible not to make a note of it: Ed has actually been requesting that I get back to trip report-writing! Every time he observes me sitting at the dining room table, pouring over the blueprints for our “new” home and hears, “You know, sweetheart, while we’re at it, we might as well… _______ (fill in the blank)”, he sees dollar signs floating in front of his eyes and breaks out into a cold sweat. Those annual trips to the World suddenly don’t seem so expensive now!


Anyway, where did I leave off? Ah yes, we were at Epcot.


It was still Monday, November 5th, and it was the second full day of our vacation. After a bit of early-morning angst, we had finally managed to coax an unusually slow-moving Aunt Rae out of her bedroom slippers so we could get to the park somewhere near opening. Next, we had to pry Ed’s cell phone away from him so he wouldn’t get his underwear in a jumble over a work-related drama that was unfolding back in Jersey. Can you spell V-A-C-A-T-I-O-N, honey? I kept forgetting that he was still having a lot of discomfort from the tooth he got pulled the day before we left….so, I guess he did have a reasonable excuse for being a bit Grumpy, this time!


All things being equal, however, we had had a great day so far. The weather was sunny and warm. Our morning had been spent blithely skipping from one Future World attraction to the next among the relatively light early Jersey Week crowds. We had lunched at the Garden Grill with Farmer Mickey and Friends – not bad, but not incredibly great, either. And after completing our mission to Mars and satisfying the need for speed on Test Track, much to the delight of a wildly shrieking and giggling Billy, we were set to have a nice, quiet visit with our friends the dinosaurs at Universe of Energy. Well, as quiet a visit as possible with our constantly humming, yelping, chuckling and scripting autistic child!

The guests from the previous “show” were pouring out of the pavilion, so we felt a bit like salmon swimming upstream as we approached the entrance to Ellen's Energy Adventure. We slipped into the cool darkness and found a place for AR on one of the benches encircling the perimeter of the holding area. The rest of us sat, cross-legged, on the carpet and stared blankly at the wide, empty screens and the vacant podium. It looked like we had a little time on our hands, so I took the opportunity to phone my sister, Marilyn, whom I thought would be herding her little ones through Animal Kingdom right about then. Imagine my surprise when I discovered that she was right there at Epcot!


For reasons I cannot recall at the moment, they had switched around their schedule and decided to visit Epcot that day. Not only that, but they had been trekking through Future World all morning and had just finished seeing Ellen and were now on their way to World Showcase! We had missed them my mere minutes! Ugh! Talk about two ships passing in the night…or day…or, well, you know what I mean! I had a fleeting moment where I considered scrapping the plan and running to meet up with them, but better judgement won out and I decided to stick with our original idea of getting together with them the following day at the Magic Kingdom. After all, we had been going all day without a rest and would probably be heading back to the Wilderness Lodge in about an hour anyway.


Flipping my phone shut, I exclaimed, “We just missed my sister!” Tricia wailed. AR tsk-tsked. Billy chuckled and said something indecipherable about monkeys and cheese.

“Oh darn,” Ed said sarcastically. (I think his Advil had worn off.) It’s not that he doesn’t like my sister and brother-in-law, I think he just doesn’t like the idea of trying to “do” Disney in a large group. He feels that he’s overscheduled as it is.


I consoled myself with the thought of our meeting them tomorrow. “It’ll be more fun with the little ones at Magic Kingdom, anyway,” I said to Tricia. Thankfully, she agreed. (You may recall, my nieces were ages 2, 4, and 6 at the time.)


We had no more time to ponder the question, however: the film was about to start. Hi, Ellen! Hi, Bill Nye, the Science Guy! Hi Alex Trebek! We zipped through the brief intro and were soon being shown to our seats. Hi, unnecessarily hard and uncomfortable bench! (It’s as thought the Imagineers knew we would all fall asleep during the 37-minute-long ride in the dark if the seating was too comfy!) Hard bench or no, I admit I did “close my eyes” through much of it, although I didn’t actually snooze. The kids enjoyed it and although Billy was a little bit anxious, there was enough dinosaur action to keep him interested and distracted from the fact that it was quite dark in there. As for Aunt Rae, fugghettabouttit! She was nodding two minutes into the ride!


We emerged, squinting in the bright sunlight, at about 3:15 or so. Time for “just one more” before we called it a day. Spaceship Earth was still closed for renovations, so we decided to let the kids unwind a little in Innoventions.


But first, we had to get past…

(Dum-dum-dum!)

THIS!!

Billy: I want a DVD, please!"

Oh, how I wish I had a crisp $20 bill every time I heard those words come out of that child’s mouth!

“Please, Mommy. Winnie the Pooh DVD, please!”


Now, I must share with you that Billy had been angling for the DVD of classic Pooh stories ever since he first saw the commercial for it on television. I had been putting him off for weeks because it hadn’t been released yet. (Try explaining the phrase “coming soon” to an autistic…and very determined…child!) In his mind, well, there it is, right there on T.V.! The next DVD to covet and add to his collection, advertised several times a day on the Disney Channel! Never mind that he already had all those same stories on VHS; he just had to have this DVD and would obsess about it until it was in his clutches!


“I’ll get it for you, Billy!” said Aunt Rae-The-Queen-of-Spoiling. “I’m not sure if it’s out yet….” I trailed off as Billy led us all into the mega-store.

“Winnie the Pooh DVD, Winnie the Pooh DVD,” he chanted over and over. Like a homing pidgeon, he made his way through the giant store and found the video/DVD section. (How does he do that?)


He searched...

And searched...

But, it was to no avail. I asked a salesperson, but she had no idea if the DVD was out yet. I offered Billy another DVD instead. Nah-ah, nothin’ doin’. It was Winnie the Pooh or bust!


“Come on, Billy, let’s go play Where’s the Fire,” Ed said. Billy began to cry and Ed took him by the hand and led him outside. *Sigh* Blast those commercials!


We popped on over to Innoventions and found we had just missed the start of the Where’s the Fire game, so the kids played on the nearby computer terminals and looked at the fire engine until the next show.

Aunt Rae, worn out and probably wanting nothing more than to finish the nap she began in UoE, took up position in a comfy chair in one of the nearby seating areas and put her feet up on a low table. Ed and I agreed that we would play one round of Where’s the Fire and then beat it back to the resort. We had an early dinner reservation at Whispering Canyon Cafe, anyway, and we wanted a chance to freshen up before our meal.


Soon it was time to enter the interactive game house and spot as many fire safety hazards as we could. The two teams had their work cut out for them since there were only four people on one side and five on the other! Ed took Billy on one team and Tricia and I joined the other side. We had a ball running from room to room shooting at the screens with our “laser guns” and racking up as many points as we could.

Afterwards, we drifted slowly over to the pin-trading kiosk so Tricia could look at the pins and perhaps score a trade.

She didn’t care for any of the pins that were on the green lanyards, so she just bought one (I forget which.) I bought an Octoberfest pin for my sister, Eileen, and my brother-in-law, Werner, who was born in Germany. (How can you pass up a pin of Mickey in lederhosen?)

Sorry, Goofster and YodaK, I didn’t take pix of the pins. Hopefully I’ll get to it soon!


A quickie shot of The Fountain on our way out...

Off we went to the bus stops and soon we were "home". Gratefully, we let ourselves into the villa and flopped down on any available bed, chair, or couch to relax a bit before heading downstairs for supper.


Next Up: They don’t really whisper in the Whispering Canyon, do they?


Kathy

 

[jordanyosh]

An update...what a great birthday present.

 

[KathyRN137]

Jordan!

Yahoo... Happy Birthday!

Oh nooo...I'm like 80 pages behind on your report!!!!


Kathy

 

[jordanyosh]

Jordan!

Yahoo... Happy Birthday!

Oh nooo...I'm like 80 pages behind on your report!!!!


Kathy

Which report? My PTR or TR?

 

[KathyRN137]

Which report? My PTR or TR?

Well now, I'm exaggerating I bit, I know!! Thanks for the links! It wasn't as hard as I thought!

Kathy

 

[DisMomAmy]

Chapter 17: Two Ships Pass

Billy: I want a DVD, please!"

Oh, how I wish I had a crisp $20 bill every time I heard those words come out of that child’s mouth!

“Please, Mommy. Winnie the Pooh DVD, please!”


Now, I must share with you that Billy had been angling for the DVD of classic Pooh stories ever since he first saw the commercial for it on television. I had been putting him off for weeks because it hadn’t been released yet. (Try explaining the phrase “coming soon” to an autistic…and very determined…child!) In his mind, well, there it is, right there on T.V.! The next DVD to covet and add to his collection, advertised several times a day on the Disney Channel! Never mind that he already had all those same stories on VHS; he just had to have this DVD and would obsess about it until it was in his clutches!


“I’ll get it for you, Billy!” said Aunt Rae-The-Queen-of-Spoiling. “I’m not sure if it’s out yet….” I trailed off as Billy led us all into the mega-store.

“Winnie the Pooh DVD, Winnie the Pooh DVD,” he chanted over and over. Like a homing pidgeon, he made his way through the giant store and found the video/DVD section. (How does he do that?)


He searched...

And searched...

But, it was to no avail. I asked a salesperson, but she had no idea if the DVD was out yet. I offered Billy another DVD instead. Nah-ah, nothin’ doin’. It was Winnie the Pooh or bust!


“Come on, Billy, let’s go play Where’s the Fire,” Ed said. Billy began to cry and Ed took him by the hand and led him outside. *Sigh* Blast those commercials!

Kathy

Hi Kathy! Great Update! Sorry to hijack for a moment - but I have to share our DVD story.

We have had similar experiences with the hunt for the yet-to-be-released Disney DVDs (as seen on tv) or in our case it was the just-released-3 milli-seconds-ago-Disney-DVDs! Alex can understand dates - a little too well... He is a bit of a "calendar savant". When the Disney channel says "Coming on February XX, 2008" we will set out on a mission to the DVD store on February XX, 2008. I don't quite remember when this happened, but it must have been during some kind of school break, because bright and early on a Monday morning we were at Wal-Mart looking for the just-released-3-milli-seconds-ago-Disney-DVD. Was it there? Nope. "We get our new shipments on Tuesdays." Alex began to panic - I began to panic... We called DH at work - he got on the phone, hunting and hunting for the illusive DVD. I think we finally found it at Barnes & Noble - the only other place open at 7am. And this same scenario played out again a few months later... but luckily we called ahead first! Thank goodness for Barnes & Noble!

Can't wait for another update!

 

[Hedy]

Gosh, what's this TR I'm subscribed to?

Glad to see an update!