Biscuit's Grand Adventure | An epic tale three decades in the making!

[jcc0621]

While they were thus engaged, I noticed that there was still plenty of open curb in the center of the hub.

Great location.

Tahlia was content to simply sit and hold her rock.

When you talk about the rock I think of the Charlie Brown Halloween Special. I got a chocolate bar, I got gum, I got a lollipop, I got a rock.

About half way through the parade, we got to see the standby tractor in action.

Cool!

We were going to breakfast with the princesses. And let me tell you, the results would not be pretty.

Coming on Episode 71 – Morning Meltdowns

Uh oh

 

[englishrose47]

Thanks! I needed a good laugh this morning. (I'm in training and just waiting for my brain to spontaneously hemorrhage.) Okay - Why is it that corporations feel compelled to have mandatory 4 day training on systems we A. Don't use in our group, B. Don't have access to even if we wanted to use them? I'm just saying.

I feel you!!!! I have sooooo many boring and unneccessary trainings too

 

[eandesmom]

May I just say, there is no better way to start my morning than with a biscuit update. My cup of coffee might get me going but your updates always fill my soul. What a lovely start to the day. The sun is shining for once here and as Eric would say..."Ahhhhh!"

Of course it would be in his best "alleluia" voice, as if the angels came out, it's a noise he makes when especially pleased. I love that sound.

Upon reaching the hub, we encountered a cast member who was bedecked with a stockpile of hula hoops. The girls were immediately drawn to him like Abu to the forbidden treasure. Within moments they were happily hooping in the middle of the street with several other children.

Have you ever wondered what kind of a parent lets their kids take their shoes off in the Magic Kingdom? Well, apparently this kind. Hailee had been wearing sandals earlier in the day and these were quickly shed to stomp in puddles.

After the girls were done, I figured we could still score a good spot to watch, but they wanted to go back to the resort and swim. I reminded myself of my pledge to not be that parent who forced his kids to stay in the parks, and we headed to the bus stop.

I love it. All of it. Hoops should be hooped. Puddles should be splashed in and swimming should commence! Very good things to remember, what a wonderful job of keeping it in perspective. Just lovely.

 

[shebaxric]

Your last evening looked absolutely delightful! I really want to see the parade this time. Hopefully, I can talk DH into it. If not, DMIL is always up for a parade!

I don't like the phrase "The results were not pretty". Having your one and only, not to mention last breakfast of the trip end in a bad way.....hopefully I'm wrong and you mean that a food fight of sorts broke out and that result wasn't pretty....

 

[GreatBiscuit]

When you talk about the rock I think of the Charlie Brown Halloween Special. I got a chocolate bar, I got gum, I got a lollipop, I got a rock.

You know I’ll never be able to shake that image right?

I feel you!!!! I have sooooo many boring and unneccessary trainings too

It’s annoying. I get cranky when I’m annoyed. And devious. Thoughts of social anarchy begin to permeate my mind.

I love it. All of it. Hoops should be hooped. Puddles should be splashed in and swimming should commence! Very good things to remember, what a wonderful job of keeping it in perspective. Just lovely.

Thanks! I totally concur. The girls loved it.

Your last evening looked absolutely delightful! I really want to see the parade this time. Hopefully, I can talk DH into it. If not, DMIL is always up for a parade!

I was a great evening. The girls especially enjoyed it.

 

[praisehisname]

Glad you were able to snag a great spot for Spectro! You have me worried about the next morning...

 

[Normangirls]

And let me tell you, the results would not be pretty.

Oh, boy, you with the cliffhangers!

I'm really enjoying your report. Great update!

 

[Rebecuberduber]

Well done, Great Biscuit! You executed this evening with brilliancy! Well done letting the kids hula hoop, well done leaving early to swim, well done enjoying the parade with your daughter instead of through the lens of a camera (a view we are all too tempted to take). It sounds like a magical evening, mostly by your uncanny willingness to go with the flow. Very impressive.

 

[GreatBiscuit]

Glad you were able to snag a great spot for Spectro! You have me worried about the next morning...

It was an awesome spot.

Oh, boy, you with the cliffhangers!

I'm really enjoying your report. Great update!

Thanks! It won't leave you in suspense long.

Well done, Great Biscuit! You executed this evening with brilliancy! Well done letting the kids hula hoop, well done leaving early to swim, well done enjoying the parade with your daughter instead of through the lens of a camera (a view we are all too tempted to take). It sounds like a magical evening, mostly by your uncanny willingness to go with the flow. Very impressive.

Thanks! We had an awesome night!

 

[GreatBiscuit]

Episode 71 - Morning Meltdowns

Previously on Biscuit's Grand Adventure, hoops were hula'ed, parades were viewed and the final Pop pool was conquered.

I surveyed the grand hall of the castle as the royal court dined. In attendance were the knights of the kingdom and all of the nobles of the realm. I had just begun to taste the most delectable of desserts when a piercing shriek filed the air with doom and dread. It was my arch enemy the Dragon of Dawnington. I immediately sent the queen and the princesses to their royal chambers and rallied my knights. "Stand fast noble warriors for this night we defend our kingdom!" "Matt." "Unsheathe thine swords and prepare to meet thy enemy!" "Matt?" "We fight for honor and country!" "MATT!" "What?" "Quit waving your phone around and go get in the shower." "Right!"

Where am I? What is the meaning of this? Alas! It is my ancient foe! The burr in my biscuit! It is morning! "Curse ye o' sunny one!" " Matt." "Shine thy rays of brightness on some other land!" "Matt?" "Your plans of wakefulness shall not prevail!" "MATT!" "What?" "Stop talking to the window and go get in the shower." "Right!"

Stinking-morning-waking-me-up-early-gotta-get-moving-want-to-sleep-not-happy-bisuit-gotta-shower-get-ready-eat-princess-breakfast...princess-breakfast...where have I heard that before? That's at Epcot! I'm at Disney World. OH WHAT A GREAT AND WONDEROURS DAY!

I entered the portal of cleanliness and offered up a prayer of hope that all fellow subjects of the kingdom which we would encounter that day might follow suit. I emerge revived, refreshed, and dare I say, Zest fully clean! It was time to journey forth to the Hall of Greatness to procure a morning cup of glorious caffeination. I girded my loins in the shorts of manliness and sallied forth to the front of the castle. What a grand day it was indeed! The rays of the sun sparkled off of the paisley moat. The birds sang a song of welcome.

I crossed the rampart to the tower of yo-yo and descended to the lower bailey. Upon entering the main hall, I was greeted by a loyal subject who required assistance with his photographic device. "Why yes my good man. I should be most honored to assist you in recording this moment of nostalgic posterity!" After arranging all parties concerned in an appropriate posture, it was incumbent upon me to bring out the true emotion that this occasion required. "As we approach this sacred moment, think fondly of all that has transpired in this iconic place of wonder." "Sir." "Revel thine selves in the joy that this day no doubt holds before thee." "Sir?" "Let this moment of indescribable jubilation fully penetrate the inner fibers of your being!" "SIR!" "What?" "Just press the button." "Right!"

Having fulfilled my photographic obligations, it was time to approach the enchanted founts of glory. I positioned my goblets below the magical spouts and soon my cup was running over with glorious bubbly goodness. What sort of magical place is this where one might partake of the resplendent Cola of Coca for breakfast! Soon the magnificence that is caffeine was coursing through my veins. It was time to return to my chambers and gather the queen and the princesses. Crossing back through the castle proper, the sweet sounds of music met my ears. Yes my minstrels, proclaim your message loud and strong! Truly this day we shall have fun, fun, fun till our daddy takes the T-bird away!

Soon I arrived back at my alcove. "Good morning princesses!" "Daddy." "What a grand and glorious day we have been allotted!" "Daddy?" "Let us ride forth and partake of this gift we have been given!" "DADDY!" "What?" "You're annoying me." "Right!" In preparation for this breakfast banquet with the princesses of other realms, we had brought our daughters' royal raiment with us.

Upon being clad in these silken garments, an inquiry was made into the logic of my personal wardrobe selection. Though I had plenty of other options before me, I had once again chosen to outfit myself with the royal crest of Biscuitdom. "This shirt shall be a beacon of DIS-ing to those about me." "Daddy." "It shall proclaim to all that I am Biscuit and my adventure is grand!" "Daddy?" "It shall serve as a pennon of inspiration to all parties concerned! "DADDY!" "What?" "You already wore that." "Right! But I did laundry, though I must confess the perils it entailed were severe."

Before long, it was time to seek out our royal coach that we might ride to the land of Norway. It is a good land, and not at all stuck up. Within moments the giant orb of Epcot came into view. "We have arrived my family. Let us journey together to this land of wonder. See the endless trail that stretches before me. See the gates through which the entrance is so tantalizingly near, yet so far away! See the line before us at the bag check table. Look my children at the entrance plaza shining in the morning sun! "Sir." "Behold the turnstiles beckoning us to spin their wheel of entrance to this glorious kingdom!" "Sir?" "Observe the great orb which houses Spaceship Earth!" "SIR!" "What?" "Open your bag please sir." "Right!"

Through the world of the future we journeyed, heading ever onwards to our ultimate destination, the Akershus Royal Banquet Hall. "We have arrived at the grand entrance to our royal hall of dining!" "Matt." "Let us register our names that we might be announced with proper royal fanfare!" "Matt? "Allow us to pass into this cavern of royal breakfast consumption!" "Matt!" "What?" "If you don't stop talking like that you are not going to live through royal breakfast consumption" "Riiiii...oh. right."

Where was I? We had just arrived in the Norway Pavilion and were preparing to check in for breakfast. For those of you who have not been to this particular establishment, the process is, for lack of a better word, wonky. When we arrived, we discovered two lines which served as bookends to a large group of folks milling about. Thanks to the TR's I had read, I knew that we needed to first stand in the registration line, then move to general "crowd area" and wait to be called, then enter the line at the door. I sent the girls to sit in the shade while I handled the particulars. Our check in time was 10:15 and thanks to perfect bus timing, we were a bit early so I hoped it would not be too long of a wait.

When I returned to the girls, I encountered meltdown number 1. The Shoes. The girls had worn sandals to the park and it was time to change into their "Princess" shoes.

Now there is something you need to know about Hailee. She doesn't like shoes. If the girl could be barefoot 24/7 she would be. Getting her shoes on is the most time consuming portion of getting her ready because she fusses over her socks endlessly. (I usually put her socks on first while she is still sleeping.) Well, once her sandals were off, she didn't want to put her princess shoes on. They didn't feel good. We finally convinced her that shoes were a prerequisite for entry, and she eventually settled down a bit.

Crisis averted, I took a few minutes to snap some photos for a panoramic.



They soon called our name and we moved forward to the line at the door.

The girls were hot and were ready to get inside. Apparently they were not the only ones who were cranky. When we got to the hostess stand, one of the hostesses launched into a fiery tirade of Norwegian to the other hostess. I have no idea what she said, but I'm pretty sure it had to do with a particularly, shall we say, "vocal" guest who had been seated a few moments before. Either that or her Fastpass for Soarin was about to expire and she wanted to go on break.

Soon we were admitted into the restaurant where we joined our third line at Akershus, that of the requisite Princess Photo. As soon as I saw Belle was the greeter, I knew things were looking up. Belle is Hailee's favorite princess. She had been talking about meeting Belle for weeks and the encounter did not disappoint. We sent the girls alone and I took my own picture before mister Official Photo Guy got one. His turned out better, but I don't have an electronic copy to post so this one will have to do.



When the photos were done, Belle gave the girls a hug. Then she said "Bye Aurora! Bye Little Me!" It was too cute We were soon seated in the room right next to where Belle was taking photos.

I knew going in that food would be problematic. The girls wanted to dine with a princess, but I couldn't bring myself to give up two dining credits to do Cindy's and 1900 Park Fare just didn't feel right. After perusing the menus at All Ears, we decided that of the Akershus options, breakfast would be the one most likely to satisfy our finicky eaters.

Hailee is not a huge breakfast fan but does like bananas. I had seen photos of the fruit bar before so I knew they had them here. Of course I made the mistake of telling her that before we arrived so she was expecting them. I went up to get her one and there were not any in sight. I asked the guy stocking the cheese if they had any more in the back. He disappeared for several minutes, then came back and advised that they were out. Seriously? Dude you got the world's coolest greenhouse a stones throw away. Cant you go pick a few? Apparently not.

I returned to the table where, as I feared, this particular intelligence led to meltdown number 2.

Fortunately, First Lady Biscuit is an expert in dealing with these sorts of things. I mean, she does it for a living for crying out loud and she's great at it. She placed a silly face game with Hailee and within a few minutes all was well.








Whew. Another crisis (or two) averted. They brought out the hot foods on a platter to the table, and I loaded up on pretty much one of the everything up at the cold foods bar. Food wise, I gotta say, we were not feeling the love for this place. Maybe lunch would have been a better choice after all. They had good cheese. That's about all I can say for it. The rest was just, well, blahs-ville comes to mind.

The princesses soon came around and it was time for the requisite photos.










Is it just me or does Ariel appear to have just caught a whiff of something? (It wasn't me, I promise!)

By the end of the meal both girls were starting to get a bit fussy and we knew we were living on borrowed time.

While we were waiting on the bill, Tracy and I made a command decision to skip any further morning touring and go back to the resort for a nap. We also discussed the meal and our thoughts on it. Overall impressions of the place? It was the least favorite meal all the way around. Had we not been on the dining plan and this was an out of pocket deal, I would have been extremely upset at paying over $100 on said dining experience. But like I have said about a dozen times thus far. Don't take my word on it. Try it yourself and see. Some folks love this joint.

On the way out, we stopped at the facilities. Apparently there was an issue with Hailee being upset over sticky hands. When they came out of the bathroom, she was in meltdown number 3 (or was it 4?) and needed to be held a few minutes.

I calmed her down a bit and let her ride on my shoulders when we left the restaurant. (One of her favorite things.) Of course this meant that after a few minutes, Tahli also wanted a turn.

Sidebar - Okay this is weird, but I actually felt a pain in my neck remembering that. They wanted rides on my shoulders all week long and it was a good two weeks after we got home before my neck was back to normal.

The girls were already fussing about being hot so I decided to drop them off at Mouse Gears while I headed over to The Land to grab us some Soarin Fastpasses for later that evening. They perked up a bit at the through of air conditioning and shopping. I left them to look at T-shirts while I ran to grab our FP's. Our return time was 6:50 PM so we had plenty of time for an afternoon nap. SCORE! I shot a couple of pics on the way back.

When I returned, the girls had picked out a couple of things. Hailee had gone with a Minnie Mouse, Polly-Pocket type doll set thingy. Tahli had elected to punt and wait to spend the last of her cash.

We did a bit more browsing after I arrived before we headed out to the bus stop. They were not happy to be walking in the heat again. By the time we got there, the girls were DONE. They just didn't have any gas left in their little tanks.



A bus eventually arrived and before it left the bus stop, Tahli was out. By the time we got out of the parking lot, so was Hailee. Tracy and I discussed the morning and decided that breakfast at The World was just not for us. This was the one and only time that we dealt with meltdowns and crankiness the entire trip. Even though our ADR was at 10:30, we had still gotten up pretty early to get the girls' hair done and get them all gussied up. We vowed from that point forward to stick with our late nights and sleeping in. It works for us. It's how we're wired. It's how we roll baby.

We got the girls back to the room and put them to bed. We hoped to do an evening EMH at Hollywood Studios so Tracy and I joined them. I set an alarm, killed the lights and returned to my castle of dreams.

Coming up next on Episode 72 - The Magic Returns

 

[bedillamouse]

Well I got 2 episodes for the price of one! Sorry that breakfast was not great. You would think for that price the guy could have found a piece of fruit (dining plan or not)! We did the Cinderella's castle breakfast last time...while the princesses were cool the rest was okay. I think the only reason why we would do it again was so that my youngest would have memories of it. Luckily we got to stay at the Wilderness Lodge last time....my DH doesn't want to stay anywhere else now. It was very nice and the lobby was always fun for my girls.

I hope you guys get to stay at the WL but really I think anywhere on Disney is good cuz well you're at Disney!!!

 

[GreatBiscuit]

Well I got 2 episodes for the price of one! Sorry that breakfast was not great. You would think for that price the guy could have found a piece of fruit (dining plan or not)!

My point exactly!

Luckily we got to stay at the Wilderness Lodge last time....my DH doesn't want to stay anywhere else now. It was very nice and the lobby was always fun for my girls.

Awesome!

I hope you guys get to stay at the WL but really I think anywhere on Disney is good cuz well you're at Disney!!!

Excellent Point!

 

[chicagoshannon]

I love the picture you took on the boat of the monorail and sunburst. So pretty!

I must say I"m jealous that your girls like to sleep in. I dream of a day like that!

 

[PrncessA]

I just got caught up! Glad you enjoyed the WL, we loved it and DH now refuses to let me even suggest another resort for our next trip. We had breakfast at the WCC and unfortunately we didn't get to experience ANY of the fun antics that make the WCC's atmosphere. I ended up canceling our lunch ADR and I regret it now.


Wow, looking at your Princess pics I noticed that none of the princesses are the same. We weren't that impressed with Akershus either but it will probally stay on our list since of the interaction. Tell Hailee I am right there with her on shoes I would go barefoot year round if I could!

 

[englishrose47]

Awesome update as usual GB!!!! Funny how for us it's early mornings that work !!! Kyle is up at the crack of dawn and then it's useless to even try to sleep!!!!Now by supper time he is DONE only wants the POOL!!! So it's what works for you !!!

 

[Millie12591]

Another update well done.....your talent for writing is why I started reading your TR's and it's why I keep coming back for more.
Looks like I'm going to have to rethink our ADR for Akershus's, my dd10 looked at reviews and liked what they had to offer for breakfast over what the Castle had. <sigh>
I still have the Castle ADR scheduled (scored that today) but I'm not sure if I'm willing to let either go at this point. I have roughly 6 months to decide.....oh the torture of ADR's. I think in the end I'll end up honoring what the little lady wants. This trip is big brothers high school graduation celebration, but we need to maker her feel she's just as special.
Sorry to hi-jack.

 

[Backstage_Gal]

what a funny update with the writing, GB. Sorry your breakfast was less than stellar, though.
I am not wired for mornings either, by a long shot.

 

[All7OfUs]

Masterful writing, oh scribe of great reknown! Chroncals such as these in history may go down!!

Yeah, we're so with you- late(r) nights, NO early AMs. They stink!

Bummer the food was so meh. I'd have been mad too at the bill- good thing you were on the noblemen's dining plan!

 

[eandesmom]

blahsville food, melting princesses and all from a writing standpoint one of my all time favorite Biscuit updates!

What a riot and it is lovely you are able, in retrospect, to make light of what sounds like a horribly draining morning with little reward at the time.

My family has a split personality, we have half of the sleep in late night variety and half of the up early late (but not AS late) night variety. It causes morning anst. It remains to be seen how that really pans out on this next blisteringly hot trip.

 

[vamassey1]

I'm so sorry your meal wasn't as Magical as the others. Early mornings are rough after late nights and the heat makes it even worse. I'm trying to remember if I saw any bananas when we were there. Although I like bananas my true love is strawberries and yes I do remember seeing those. I've eaten there 3 times and had good experiences except for the wait. Next trip we're going to try lunch.