Braved the Sept humidity in WDW - We're back! (new pics added 12/2/09)

[Todd_H]

The real TR starts on page 15, post #211



Hi everyone

This is my first TR, so I will do the best I can to keep it
1) coherent
2) clean
3) educational (whenever possible) and
4) entertaining

I've read some really great trip reports on the DISboards and I must say it's a little intimidating trying to put one of these together yourself. Anyway, I'll give it my best shot.

TABLE OF CONTENTS:
Page 1 - Intros - who are we and some background stuff - post#1 (this post actually )
Page 1 - A little more background, Day 1 plans, and a REALLY COOL PICTURE OF MADAME LEOTA! - post#8
Page 1 - A few pics from our September 07 trip - post#14
Page 2 - More thoughts on Day 1 - post#24
Page 2 - Day 2 - Our Magic Kingdom plans plus some pictures of Peter Pan's Flight and Pirates of the Caribbean from prior trips! - post#26
Page 3 - Some boring technical camera stuff for those interested - post#34 and #38-41
Page 3 - Day 2 (cont.) - some pictures of the Haunted Mansion from prior trips! - post#35
Page 3 - Day 2 (cont.) - still in the MK, evening plans, and some old pictures from Wishes - post#42
Page 3 - Need convincing to try The Plaza? Check out these pictures (not mine, btw)! - post#43
Page 4 - Severely OT - here are our dogs, who will NOT be joining us for the trip! - post#52
Page 6 - Day 3 - Animal Kindgom plans - post#84
Page 7 - Day 4 - Typhoon Lagoon and Epcot - & some Illuminations pictures - post #104
Page 9 - Day 5 - ??? and probably MK - post #125
Page 12 - Slight changes and Final Plans - post #166
Page 12 - Photography gear - post #177 - yes, more boring photography stuff


THE CAST:
Me (Todd) - 37 - In the real world, I'm a CPA and the Financial Controller of an international pest control product manufacturer, amateur photographer, and WDW vet. One of my favorite places to photograph is... you guessed it... WDW!

DW (Ali) - forever 25 - Full-time mom of two (well, 3 if you count me ), avid reader, WDW vet, and my best friend in the whole world

DD(7) and DS(4) - both are WDW amateurs, but we're trying to fix that!

Here we are

Now, somehow in the past two years (our last WDW trip was September 2007), our kids have gone from this:

to this:

You don't really notice how fast they are growing up until you look at some older pictures. It's a little scary


Before we get any further into this, I thought I might share our connection to WDW. Well, I was raised a "Disney Kid." I had the good fortune of having a father that loved taking us to WDW every 3-4 years in a travel trailer (this was early 70's - late 80's). We'd stay at Fort Wilderness Campground and those trips gave me some of the happiest memories of life. I love the sights, the sounds, the smells, and that general feeling of excitement you get when you first arrive at WDW. Ali is also a WDW nut (albeit not quite as much as me), but we share the same feelings toward the World and are usually itching to go back about 6 months after we return from a trip. She and I have been down together about 7-8 times and even though that doesn't hold a candle to some other members of this board, we like to think of ourselves as WDW vets. We've had so many great memories throughout our lives at WDW, one of the things we have always promised ourselves we would do is try to give those same kinds of experiences to our children. So far, our DD(7) has been to WDW twice (once when she was 4 and then again when she was 5) and our DS(4) took his first trip when he was 2.

O.K. so enough introductions (you'll get to know us better in the thread), let's get on with it!!!!

The WHEN:
September 19th through the 26th, 2009

The WHERE:
The Villas at Wilderness Lodge

Our GOALS:
To have lots and lots of FUN and build some great memories (and get some great pictures of the whole process )

Sometimes we get a little silly, but hey, that's part of the fun, right?

One question for us this trip is going to be "how brave are our kids?" We made the mistake of taking our DD(7) into the Haunted Mansion when she was 5 (she got really brave and insisted that we go in). Well, that didn't go over very well and she was done before we left the stretching room. However, she still didn't want to leave the ride, so we boarded our doom buggies and she buried her face in my lap for the rest of the ride. I think she might have popped up for the ballroom scene, but that's about it. She really wants to try the HM again this year, so we'll see. I hope she wants to do it when the time comes (it's my favorite ride in the entire resort), but we won't force her to do it.

I really wanted to write more for this first installment, but I've got to get ready to go to work, but please subscribe and I'll get our dinner reservations all posted up in the next installment along with some pictures from prior trips.

Thanks for reading. Please stick around, there's more to come!!!!!!!

 

[annnewjerz]

Woohoo!

I found it----and more importantly, you started one. Looking forward to hearing more about the trip and really looking forward to a full-blown photo filled TR when you get home.

 

[Todd_H]

Woohoo!

I found it----and more importantly, you started one. Looking forward to hearing more about the trip and really looking forward to a full-blown photo filled TR when you get home.

Hey, Ann! Glad you found it! I'll take any pointers you can give me about how to keep this PTR moving.

Don't worry... lots of pictures to come !

 

[All7OfUs]

Hi Todd,

Nice to meet you

Your title intrigued me, so I thought I'd take a peek. I must admit, I am already hooked and am excited to "make the journey" with you. You have a lovely family! and making memories at WDW is a GREAT thing to do!

Looking forward to hearing about your ADRs!

It will be especially fun to see how and why and what you are planning for Sept; I'll be there NEXT Sept, 2010 with maroo- (see our PTR, a link in my siggie) and we're always looking for ideas!

 

[SilverL]

Yet another person who is going at the same time as us!

When I was a little kid, my parents took me to a theme park in Oregon. There was a haunted house there---the witch's house---and I wouldn't even walk past it without screaming bloody murder. I'd say your kids are pretty brave!

 

[Johnson1220]

I'm in ! We will be there the week before you! Can't wait for more pics ... your kids are beautiful

 

[Todd_H]

Hi Todd,

Nice to meet you

Your title intrigued me, so I thought I'd take a peek. I must admit, I am already hooked and am excited to "make the journey" with you. You have a lovely family! and making memories at WDW is a GREAT thing to do!

Looking forward to hearing about your ADRs!

It will be especially fun to see how and why and what you are planning for Sept; I'll be there NEXT Sept, 2010 with maroo- (see our PTR, a link in my siggie) and we're always looking for ideas!

Welcome! Thank you for the compliment! September is a great month to go, but it's very very hot. It actually feels hotter (to me anyway) in September in FL than in August because of the humidity. Those FL afternoon showers feel pretty good sometimes!

Yet another person who is going at the same time as us!

When I was a little kid, my parents took me to a theme park in Oregon. There was a haunted house there---the witch's house---and I wouldn't even walk past it without screaming bloody murder. I'd say your kids are pretty brave!

Thanks for joining in! I was so proud of my DD during our last trip. She really got her confidence up riding Space Mountain and she got a little cocky wanting to do HM. Against my better judgement, I took her on it while Ali took DS to ride Winnie the Pooh. I'm glad she wants to give it another shot. We'll see what happens when we're standing right in front, the wolf howls and it's go time. Our DS is talking like he's fearless. He wants to do HM, Splash Mtn, BTMRR, and PotC (which happens to be his favorite ride from last trip).

I'm in ! We will be there the week before you! Can't wait for more pics ... your kids are beautiful

Aw, thanks very much for the compliment! I'm just glad the kids look more like Ali . I'm curious as to what the week before will be like as far as crowds are concerned. September used to be a fantastic month to go to WDW, but free dining has brought the crowds. However, these September crowds, even with free dining, are nothing compared to Spring Break and mid August crowds. Ali and I have been twice during Easter and have vowed never again.

 

[Todd_H]

Well, it was kind of rough waiting around until 90 days out to book our ADR's. Throw in free dining and you've got quite a challenge to make everything work according to plan. As a matter of fact, we usually have to scrap our first two plans and plan everything around when we can actually eat in the restaurants we want.

As of now, we're leaving on Saturday, September 19th (from NC) and driving straight to Jacksonville, FL (about a 7 hour drive). We'll stay in a two bedroom hotel that we stayed in during our last trip since that worked out very well for us. That puts us in "striking distance" on Sunday with only about a 2 or 2 1/2 hour drive to WDW. This brings up a funny story (well, funny now... NOT funny when it happened). On our last trip in 07, we drove straight to Jacksonville and we were literally two miles from our exit where our hotel was located. I realized that we had not had to refill our gas tank since we left. I checked our car's fancy computer that told me we had 54 miles left in the tank. "Cool" I said to Ali. "We made it all the way to Jacksonville without..." the car jerked one good time, then another, then appeared to be stalling, so I immediately got all the way over to the right lane as the car completely shut itself off. We coasted to a stop about 2 feet off of the highway (I-95 business on the SW side of Jacksonville, I think). We had run out of gas. We were very fortunate that a car pulled off the road and offered to go get gas for us. While they were getting gas for us, another car pulled up and offered to help me push the car a little more off the road. Someone upstairs was looking out for us that day. That only put us behind a couple of hours and we made it into Jacksonville about 7pm that night. That tought me two lessons: 1) I can't trust our car's electronic gas measurement system and 2) always carry an empty gas can in your car. Anyway, I digress, so on to the ADR's and our tentative schedule for the week.

Day 1
When we arrive at the VWL on Sunday (probably around 10:30 or 11:00 am, we'll get checked in and then head over to DHS (we still call it MGM at our house) where we have an afternoon ADR at the Sci-Fi Dine in Theater. Now, i'm not sure if we'll get a late lunch there or just some milkshakes (I personally LOVE the Sci-Fi, but I know many people who don't). It was a little tough getting an ADR anywhere in DHS that evening, probably because it's a Fantasmic night. Side note, because Fantasmic is playing this first night, we wanted to start our trip right with some Disney nostalgia and kind of "set the mood" for our trip. Fantasmic is perfect for that, IMO (plus the kids have never seen it). Another side note, I think that Mickey's Philharmagic is another attraction that should be visited early in your trip. It's a good mood setter as well. My motive for at least visiting the Sci-Fi is primarily to get some good indoor photos of the restaurant and also to shoot an entire video of the 45 minute old sci-fi movie loop they play while you eat. Not planning on doing anything with it, I just like it.

Next up: where are we going on Day 2 - Monday, our first full day in WDW? I'll give you a hint with a picture below that I took during my last solo trip back in May (I'll also explain why in the world I was down there without my family in May... another AWESOME month to go if you ever get the chance)

I may post some large size pictures in this thread, but if anyone has problems loading them due to their size, please speak up and I will use smaller versions.

Stay tuned!

 

[annnewjerz]

(we still call it MGM at our house) where we have an afternoon ADR at the Sci-Fi Dine in Theater. Now, i'm not sure if we'll get a late lunch there or just some milkshakes (I personally LOVE the Sci-Fi, but I know many people who don't). It was a little tough getting an ADR anywhere in DHS that evening, probably because it's a Fantasmic night. Side note, because Fantasmic is playing this first night, we wanted to start our trip right with some Disney nostalgia and kind of "set the mood" for our trip. Fantasmic is perfect for that, IMO (plus the kids have never seen it). Another side note, I think that Mickey's Philharmagic is another attraction that should be visited early in your trip. It's a good mood setter as well. My motive for at least visiting the Sci-Fi is primarily to get some good indoor photos of the restaurant and also to shoot an entire video of the 45 minute old sci-fi movie loop they play while you eat. Not planning on doing anything with it, I just like it.

We also call it MGM, or I call it "DHS is the new name for MGM" because my Mom looks at me like I have 5 heads if I just say DHS.

I also LOVE Sci-Fi. It's a must for us......

.........well, a must for me anyway. It's just such a cool atmosphere and like you, I am chomping at the bit to take some pics in here. It seems like there are hardly any "good" ones available, which is odd considering it's such a cool place.

I may post some large size pictures in this thread, but if anyone has problems loading them due to their size, please speak up and I will use smaller versions.

Stay tuned!

What a tease. Never got a chance to fix that spoiler, huh?

I'm speaking up to say I like the larger versions and I hope you don't switch to dinky little thumbnail sized ones.

Staying tuned.

 

[Todd_H]

I also LOVE Sci-Fi. It's a must for us......

.........well, a must for me anyway. It's just such a cool atmosphere and like you, I am chomping at the bit to take some pics in here. It seems like there are hardly any "good" ones available, which is odd considering it's such a cool place.

I definitely agree.

What a tease. Never got a chance to fix that spoiler, huh?

Hah! I actually keep forgetting to do that. I had one that was spoiler-free, but I can't seem to find it.

 

[All7OfUs]

Very cool shot of Madam Leota!! NICE!

Scary story about the gas... sometimes we all learn lessons the hard way.

We liked the Sci-Fi too, the kids really got a kick out of the old clips. My parents (64 and 67 yrs. old) especially liked the "come to the snack bar" sketches. Kind of their era ya know.

 

[jordanyosh]

Anytime a guy decides to write a PTR or TR, I gotta sign on. Great start

 

[Todd_H]

Very cool shot of Madam Leota!! NICE!

Thanks! That's one of the better ones I've been able to grab of her. If she only had her eyes open, it would be a perfect shot.

Anytime a guy decides to write a PTR or TR, I gotta sign on. Great start

Welcome! Yeah, I think I'm in the minority. I don't consider myself to be a good writer so we'll have to see where this thing takes us. Anyway, glad you came aboard!

 

[Todd_H]

Before I get into Day plans 2 of our upcoming trip, I thought I would share a couple of pictures from our September 07 trip. My parents went with us on our last trip. My Dad pulled his trailer down to Fort Wilderness and they stayed there while we stayed in the Villas at Wilderness Lodge. This was really fun and it really meant a lot to my parents that we invited them to go.

One of the things that we did last trip was Mickey's Backyard BBQ at FW. If you haven't done it (and you have small children), I highly recommend it. The characters get out there and dance with all the kids while the band plays. And this goes on for a loooooooooong time! It's also one of the two places (I think) on WDW where all your beer/wine is all included in your price for the meal (incl refills). Oh yes, it can get quite ugly (and funny). Anyway, in looking through some pictures that we took and some that my Dad took, I came across these that I have never noticed before:
Here's one my Dad took

and here's the one that my DD took of me and Minnie which actually is the picture that she is taking in the shot above (pretty cool, huh?)

My DD is very interested in photography. I gave her a little inexpensive digital camera that she is going to be taking her own shots with for this trip. I can't wait to see what she's going to do with it.

One thing that captivated DS on our last trip was Pirates of the Caribbean. After taking him through the first time, all he talked about was the pirate up on the bridge with the "dirty foot and dirty leg" and how he thought the pirate was "very sick." We have been laughing about that ever since . My son has been obsessed with pirates ever since that trip (still to this day) and I attribute that obsession to PotC.

Here he is meeting Captain Hook and Mr. Smee

Wow, I look at these old pictures and am amazed at how much he has grown in the past two years. This was taken this past weekend at Captain Hook's Golf in Myrtle Beach (Captain Hook... guess who chose this miniature golf course?)

I'll try to get Day 2 plans posted up a little later today.

 

[All7OfUs]

I hear so many completely opposing views on the BBQ. Some have said it was absolute chaos, with even adults pushing and shoving for "good" seats when they let people in, and bigger, older kids pushing and shoving little ones to see the characters. Was it like that when you were there?

We stayed at the Fort last trip, and it was fabulous! We loved it! There is sooooo much to do there!

Hope you've planned lots of pirate time for your son this time around. Sounds like he'll need it

 

[Todd_H]

I hear so many completely opposing views on the BBQ. Some have said it was absolute chaos, with even adults pushing and shoving for "good" seats when they let people in, and bigger, older kids pushing and shoving little ones to see the characters. Was it like that when you were there?

It was chaos, but it was controlled chaos. I guess it depends on how you look at it and what you're expectations are going in. For us, it was exactly what we thought it would be... a chance for the kids to dance around with a bunch of characters (who made a good attempt to try and dance with everyone when we were there). It was also the most interaction we got with the characters all week, so that was nice. Didn't see any bigger kids pushing little ones to get to the characters, but I can see how that would happen. For us, it was a great experience.

Hope you've planned lots of pirate time for your son this time around. Sounds like he'll need it

We thought about doing the Pirate League, but if we do that, we have to do the BBB for our DD and all of the sudden, we've just dropped A WHOLE LOT of $$. But don't worry, he'll be thrilled with seeing Captain Jack, Captain Hook, Mr. Smee and doing PotC and Peter Pan's Flight.

Speaking of Peter Pan's Flight, I think this is my favorite scene in all the dark rides in WDW

I took the photo above during my last solo trip back in May. Now why was I in WDW (in particularly riding PPF) by myself in May? Well, for the past couple of years, our company has been going through a software conversion. The closest training facility for this software is in Deland, FL (about an hour away from WDW). So what I have been able to do is stay at WDW and commute to class in Deland during the day and then play in the parks at night. This has been good for me because I got into photography about a year and 1/2 ago and I found that I absolutely love shooting the dark rides at WDW. It's not that these pictures of dark rides are worthy of blowing up to display over your fireplace, it's just the challenge to see if I can do it that draws me. That and also the fact that I loved the dark rides as a child and the fact that you never got to see the scenes in a dark ride for very long really peaked my interest. By taking pictures inside dark rides (without a flash, btw), you get to spend a little more time looking at all that great Disney detail. In going by myself, it gave me the chance to do a lot of practicing.

 

[annnewjerz]

It's also one of the two places (I think) on WDW where all your beer/wine is all included in your price for the meal (incl refills). Oh yes, it can get quite ugly (and funny).

Sounds like DH's kind of BBQ. Unfortunately, no kids yet---so I think we'll have to wait a few years until we partake in the drunken character fun.

and here's the one that my DD took of me and Minnie which actually is the picture that she is taking in the shot above (pretty cool, huh?)

My DD is very interested in photography. I gave her a little inexpensive digital camera that she is going to be taking her own shots with for this trip. I can't wait to see what she's going to do with it.

So cool that your DD is getting into the whole photography bit. Like Jeff demonstrated in a recent thread, it's nice to have something you and your kids can bond over. With me and my Dad it was always rock n' roll, but obviously photography isn't bad either.

Great shot and you're right---there is an incredible difference between those two shots. Does it make you feel older just looking at them?

By taking pictures inside dark rides (without a flash, btw)

You are a very smart man for adding this little tidbit of advice along with the photo. If you hadn't, I can only imagine there would be a sudden influx of people on Peter Pan next time with their flashes at the ready thinking that they'd get this photo if they just disobeyed those pesky little rules about flash photography on the rides.

 

[scoot241]

I'm in on this one. Looking forward to some more great pictures!

 

[Todd_H]

So cool that your DD is getting into the whole photography bit. Like Jeff demonstrated in a recent thread, it's nice to have something you and your kids can bond over. With me and my Dad it was always rock n' roll, but obviously photography isn't bad either.

Yes, absolutely. It's funny you mentioned rock n' roll because we bond over that too. I also play guitar which she has an even bigger interest in. For Christmas this year, I think Santa is going to bring her a youth sized guitar.

Great shot and you're right---there is an incredible difference between those two shots. Does it make you feel older just looking at them?

Uggh... yes it does.

You are a very smart man for adding this little tidbit of advice along with the photo. If you hadn't, I can only imagine there would be a sudden influx of people on Peter Pan next time with their flashes at the ready thinking that they'd get this photo if they just disobeyed those pesky little rules about flash photography on the rides.

I know, right? Unfortunately there will always be those who think they can capture a picture of some Disney magic inside a dark ride by using a flash . I guess there's really not much Disney can do about it. It's just incredibly rude to your fellow riders and some people just can't understand that.

 

[Todd_H]

I'm in on this one. Looking forward to some more great pictures!

Hey, Scott! Welcome aboard. Great to see another Photography board member over here.