By Land and By Air....We're Back!!

[MOmousefan]

Our TA sent us the confirmation that we are all set for another trip to WDW.
Here are the facts:

We are staying at the PoP Century from November 30 (Sunday) thru Dec 6(Sat). I requested two preferred rooms in the 70s building as we have enjoyed this area on previous trips. The rooms are close to Everything POP and the bus stop.
Who is going?

My daughter Amy and her husband Bryan

This will be Amy's fourth trip and Bryan's first. Amy is a dental hygienist and must request vacation at least six months in advance. Bryan owns his own business, a boat brokerage, SIMPLY CRUISERS and Dec is a good time for him to get away

Andy and I

Andy will be 22YO by trip time and has'nt been to WDW since 1995. He is a Marine Service Technician at a local boat dealer and December is the only slack time he has to get away. Between my son and SIL I can get a deal on a boat and have a personal mechanic to service it!
I have just retired after 31 years of teaching and can now go to WDW whenever I want.

Andy and I are driving down (straight thru) and Amy and Bryan are flying out of St. Louis and using DME.

This will be my fifth trip and the third in three years. A little background info on our previous trips:

Our first trip was in 1992. It was all so magical for us and the kids thought everything was real. We stayed off-site and had no plan, so we wandered around and had a great but tiring time.

We came back to WDW in August of 1995 and it was a miserable experience. The crowds and heat and humidity wore us out. We met Brazilian tour groups and my wife vowed to never return to WDW (and she has'nt). We also stayed off-site at a filthy Days Inn.

Fastforward 10 years to 2005 and my two daughters and I return. We drive straight thru in 18 hours and stay at PoP. It is late May and we have the most fantastic trip on record. Everything was near perfect and we vow to come back more often. Here is my first trip report: OUR 2005 TRIP REPORT
We received a free picture!

2007: By now Amy is married to Bryan and they have their own vacations to take, so I agree to go with Alison (My middle child) and her fiance Scott for a trip in early June. We fly to WDW and again stay at PoP and have another great trip. We experience late night EMH and take advantage of Photopass.
Here is the TR for this trip: OUR 2007 TRIP REPORT

Alison and Scott are now married, so I hope to go every year with one of the daughters. I can hardly wait to spoil some grandkids with Mickey!

This our plan so far. We don't do ADRs and will use Photopass again including the resort photoshoot. I hope see you in the parks. I will be the one with a camera in each hand and a LGMH on the camera bag.

 

[IlovemythreeC's]

I am loving this one. It is so precious to see your little ones with the Ninja turtles. I love your pretrippie's name by the way.

We went just about the same days that you are going last year and it was really great. I know you will all have a great time.

 

[MOmousefan]

IlovemythreeC's - Thanks for the response. We still laugh about the Turtles picture because Alison ( A typical middle child) had a major meltdown immediately after the picture was taken. I really wish that I had taken pictures of the kids in the same spot on each visit, but hindsight is 20-20.

 

[irky416]

I love the old pictures!

I can't wait to hear more about your upcoming trip!

 

[MOmousefan]

You are right about the old pictures. I never get tired of looking at them, especially since the kids are grown. They shake their heads when I spend so much time taking pictures and shooting videos, but we spend a lot of time reliving the memories thru the movies and photos. One thing about having grown up kids at WDW is I get to spend some time on my own taking lots of pictures and not slowing the group down.
We have never been at Christmas, so this will be a new "adventure" for us.

 

[Kristina]

I remember your last trippie and I loved your Pop Century video . We will be visiting WDW at the same time and arriving at our favorite Pop Century the evening before you guys do. It's going to be a magical time for sure, and here before you know it!
See you at the bus stops !

 

[MOmousefan]

In 10 days we will arrive at our favorite vacation destination. That's right, WDW! We are arriving in two groups by two different methods. You can read our pre-trip report below for general info on us. I will add several updates before we leave and then do a trip report when we get back.

So far everything is on track and (Hopefully) there will be no surprises before we hit the road.
Thanks to lovetoscrap and Mrs. The King for showing me how to make the correct links. That's what this forum is all about, sharing our experiences and know-how with others.


Our Pre-Trip Report This has been posted before, but I want to consolidate all of my 2008 trip threads into one thread.
I surprise the kids See what happens when the kids get the good news.
The Cast A little bit about us
Getting There Like The title says, by Land and by Air

 

[MOmousefan]

Even though we are listed in the Pre-Trip report, I would like to introduce our group in a little more depth.

Amy and Bryan:

Amy is my oldest and the most focused of the three. In the Fourth grade she told me she was going to get a job that "Pays good, wouldn't get her hands dirty, and she would only work four days a week". She is now a dental hygienist and meeting all three objectives. She hasn't been to WDW sincw 2005 and is my best co-Disney fanatic!

Bryan has his company, http://www.simplycruisers.com and brokers the sale of cruisers here on the Lake of the Ozarks. He can act like a gerbil on a high energy drink sometimes, but always has a good time and will have a great time on this trip. Bryan has never been to WDW and his goal is to ride EVERY ride while on this trip. It is a lofty goal that he just might meet!

Andy: Our youngest of three and Mom's favorite. Andy lives and breathes performance boats and is on the pit crew for an OSS race boat while working at a local marina. The Lake of the Ozarks hosts an OSS race every September.
Andy hasn't been to WDW since 1995. He is as quiet as Bryan is wordy.

Me: Dad, Mike, retired teacher. When I say I am retired I sound old, but I don't feel that old, at least not all of the time. I have to tell you that retirement is great I don't miss the classroom all that much. I substitute once or twice a week in the Career Center where I taught and get to BS with the guys. I will enjoy this trip as Andy will do the majority of the driving and I will make comments on his driving skills. Otherwise, weather permitting, I will just hang out on the porch.

 

[MOmousefan]

Amy and Bryan are flying out of Lambert Field in St. Louis on Sunday Nov 30 and will arrive at MCO around 11:30 Mouse time. They will spend Saturday night with Bryan’s parents in St. Louis. They will fly home on Saturday the 6th and be home in the Ozarks by midnight.
Andy and I are going to drive down to WDW and plan to drive straight through in around 18 hours. I base the time on our 2005 driving time. The 2005 trip was with my two daughters and we made several (Unnecessary) potty stops. I know I know, they were not unnecessary to the girls. It’s just that us guys can go farther on a can of soda.
In 2005 we drove our 1998 Toyota Avalon and it was a great traveling car.

I recently retired from teaching and I had 298.5 sick days accumulated. I missed 11.5 days of school in 31 years. Our school district gives us $50 for every unused sick day, so do the math. I decided to treat myself to a newer car, so on my birthday in October I bought a 2007 Toyota Avalon Limited with 15,00 miles on it.

The dealer wouldn’t give us enough for the ’98 Avalon, so we gave it to Amy and Bryan. She had been driving a 1995 Camry and my wife was getting worried about the reliability (That’s what moms are supposed to do).
So Andy and I will plan our departure to arrive at PoP the same time as Amy and Bryan.

Even though Amy and Bryan have DME tickets, we will haul their two bags so they can save $60 in baggage fees. You gotta love the airlines new gouging policies.

 

[MOmousefan]

We have come crashing back to reality after a great week with Mickey. As you will see, the weather was a mix of extremes, the crowds great, and everyone had a memorable time. My son Andy hadn’t been since 1995, my SIL Bryan’s first trip, and my daughter Amy last visited in 2005. We had a great adventure and experienced WDW at Xmas for the first time. I have never been to Disney two years in a row and hope keep this up from now on. I have 204 Photopass pictures to edit including our resort photoshoot. BTW, the resort deal for $25 is well worth the cost and there will be a post in this topic coming up.
Read our Pre-Trip Report to learn more about us. So sit back and I hope you are not bored with our adventures.
Leaving For WDW in which we encounter rain and mysterious blue lights

Sunday: DHS and a new Experience

Monday Morning: in which we encounter lions, tigers, and bears (Oh my)
Monday Night: in which we see Spectro and "fireworks"
Tuesday: the great coconut caper
Wednesday Morning: Our jay-walkin', dart-tossin', roller-coastin' fun!
Wednesday Night: In darkest Africa
Thursday Morning: Capt. Hook, EMH, and that darn tune.
Thursday Night: A Fantasmic Experience!
Friday
Coming Home

 

[KidGoofy]

subscribing

 

[MOmousefan]

Today is the day we leave for WDW!!! Saturday morning dawned with just me and the cat in the bed. My wife left Friday with my daughter Alison and her husband for Kansas City. They invited her to see a Trans-Siberian Orchestra concert, her favorite musical group. She would be coming home tonight after we leave.
The day is overcast and 47 degrees, but I like driving without the glare of a bright sun, so conditions are good. We are leaving at 3:00 PM and driving through the night and plan on arriving at PoP Century around 10:00AM EST. I am chomping at the bit to get on the road, but we can’t leave too early and then arrive early Sunday morning.
I have packed the car with 3 suitcases and two smaller cases, Diet Pepsi (for me), Redbull (for Bryan), and numerous snacks for the resort. We are bring Amy and Bryan’s suitcases to save them $60 in airline fees.

At last, 3:00! Andy drives the first part of the journey and we head south towards I-44 and then St. Louis. There is now a bypass around metro St. Louis by taking I-270 south and then I-255 to Illinois I-64 east to Mt.Vernon. It is an excellent solution to driving through the heart of St. Louis.

We stop for supper in Nashville, Nashville Illinois that is. McDonalds hits the spot and we are back on the road. At 8:30 we stop in Metropolis,Il home of Superman (It says so on the water tower). I drive through Kentucky and into Tennessee. Andy takes over driving around Chattanooga and we proceed into Georgia. Traffic is light, which is why we drive at night. As we are proceeding through metro Atlanta we round a curve and traffic is stopped. There are 30 cars ahead of us across all six lanes and ahead are flashing blue lights on several vehicles. It is 2:15 in the morning and the traffic is building up behind us. Here is where it gets weird. All of a sudden the lights go off and I swear as we proceed there no emergency vehicles to be seen. The traffic flow becomes intense as we are passed on the right and left even though we are going 80MPH. All through southern GA it rains hard enough to make sleep impossible and road construction is constant to the FL border.

The Florida Turnpike is comming up.

I know where to get my Okahumpka serviced

The rest of the trip is uneventful even though I miss the WDW turnoff 0n 429 and we take 192 to WDW. We arrive at PoP at 9:30 and check in.

Of course the room isn’t ready, so what else can a Dad do but take his son on his first Mission:Space experience!
After the ride we had a text message from Bryan that they were on the ground at MCO. We return to PoP to await their arrival.

Next: Hollywood Studios in the rain.

 

[heaven2dc]

Sounds like the beginnings of a great trip! I love family gatherings What a great idea taking Amy & Brian's suitcases saving them $$! I am leaving Saturday morning and was just planning to take mine as carry-on and then check my daughter's stroller (she, fiance & grandson age 1 will be arriving next Wednesday so I thought I'd save them the fee and trouble by taking the stroller w/me.)

Can't wait for more

 

[MOmousefan]

heaven2dc - The things we do for our kids! The locals were talking about a cold front moving in on Tuesday, so bring warm cloths.

 

[scottny]

Just found this and enjoying.

 

[MOmousefan]

As Andy and I return to PoP from EPCOT it starts to rain. Upon arrival I had parked in the parking lot in front of Classic Hall and it is appallingly full. I hoped it was people checking out and not in. We were given a number to call to see if our rooms are ready, but not call before 4:00PM. Andy tries to call Bryon and Amy with no luck, they don’t answer their phones.
Now it starts to rain hard; sheets of rain hard. The wind picks up and it feels like a hurricane is passing through. This picture does not show the amount of rain that is falling.

We sit in the lobby and wait for the DME buses to roll in. Finally at 1:30 Amy and Bryan arrive. We had waited an hour and a half for them and oh yeah, they had turned their phones off!

Our plan for today is to go to the Outlet Mall and visit the Disney Store before we buy anything in the parks. It has quit raining so we drive by the mall on I-4 as I look for the appropriate exit. It takes me awhile but we get their and then it takes some time to find a place to park. We eventually buy some items , I bought a nice polo shirt for $20.99. We now go to DTD to shop for more goodies. Everything is decorated for Christmas and there is lots of merchandise to look at.

By now we call the resort and our rooms are ready. We are staying in the 70s, building 6, rooms 6304 and 6305. I did not request a specific room, but I have stayed in this section on the previous two trips. Our room is one floor up from last year’s trip, so I am Happy.
Andy and I rest in the room until 7:30 then we head for DHS EMH and to meet up with Amy and Bryan. There is a slight drizzle falling and very few people on the bus (a good sign).

We meet up at the GMR and proceed to TSM, a new ride for all of us. I have read the great reviews of this ride but will decide for myself if this is worth a 20 minute wait. Since it is the EMH time, everyone must show their resort ID. I kept mine in the paper holder it came in and when I got it out, no key. I had used it to get in the park, but can’t remember after that. I told the kids to go ahead and ride while looked for it. Finally I found it in my wallet. Whew. A nice CM lets me join the kids and we proceed into the building. The theming is cute and we are entertained by Mr. Potatohead on our way to the ride. All I can say about this attraction is WOW. What an experience. We are so excited about this ride we will do this again.

We now proceed through the Osborn Lights and are again wowed by the beauty. The music, the lights all contribute to a great time.

We now go to Star Tours which is a 5 minute wait and observe the destruction of the Deathstar. Last year we were here during Star Wars weekend and I saw a Yoda tee shirt I wish that I had bought. They still had some but not in my size. This proves the rule to buy it when you see it as it might not be around later.
Bryan and Andy are wanting to do RnRC and ToT, so we head over there getting Photopass pictures along the way. Both are walk-ons and the boys want do these again. The time is now 10:50 and we slowly being herded toward the exit.
What a great park at night.

Back at the room I download the SD cards while Andy showers. We are in bed by 11:45.
The end to a long but enjoyable day (or so I thought)
Andy falls asleep immediately and I no sooner fall asleep when Andy’s phone rings. He sleeps through it, but now every 7 minutes it beeps, all night long. I found out later it was Bryan. From now on, the phone stays off.

 

[ChevyNat]

Great start! You guys must have been tired after that long drive there!

 

[scottny]

great update and pics

 

[MOmousefan]

I get up at 5:49 and shower while Andy sleeps. The agreement I have with kids is everybody can set their own agenda but I will always be at the park for rope drop. Andy gets ready and we go to Classic Hall for breakfast. Amy and Bryan are already there, a pleasant surprise.
A bad picture of a great sunrise.

It is EMH for AK, so we arrive around 7:35 to a moderate crowd. I go through bag check and we move to the front of the Tree and watch the cute pre-opening show.

Can you see the excitement in their faces?

We head for EE, get Fast Passes then ride EE.

It is everyone else’s first time and they are suitably impressed. The Fast Pass time is 9:10, so we do Dinosaur, ride EE and get FP for EE again. I really want to see NEMO as does Amy, so we head over to this show which is a walk-in. I mean there is no line, no wait. Once again this show is awesome.
I must point out that to Bryan, WDW is another 6 Flags and he loves thrill rides. Andy feels the same way, but will watch the shows with me.
We ride EE for the third time and now head for Safari, which is great as we had a great guide. We did manage to drive off the poachers and save Little Red.
The weather has really improved, blue skies and moderate temps, tee shirts and shorts.

We head to TTaB and I love watching the new guys reactions to all of the stimuli in this attraction.

We now eat lunch at my favorite counter service, Flame Tree BBQ. I think the onion rings are some of the best I’ve had. Bryan is easily distracted, so all of the ducks that gather at his feet drive him to distraction. They have gathered as a result of me discreetly throwing breadcrumbs around his feet.
We then explore both trails and enjoyed the tigers that were out.

All of the CMs on duty could answer any questions we had.
None of us has been to Camp Minnie Mickey, so we tour all of the sights and see the characters signing autographs.

I have no idea who these bears are.

No one wants to get autographs, so we head for the exit and meet up with Baluu who we are picture taken with. See my LGMH?

Animal Kingdom is my least favorite park, but I still enjoy the more relaxed atmosphere here.
We return to PoP at 2:30 and I take a nap while the kids explore the grounds.

 

[MOmousefan]

We have had a great day so far and tonight is EMH for the MK.

After supper at PoP we get MK by 6:00 and I said if we want watch Spectro we need to get a spot. The park looks very pretty with all of the lights and there is an air of Christmas.

Main street is filling up so we head to Liberty Square and camp out at the corner where they turn towards Frontier Land. Since the wait will be 45 minutes, Bryan can’t wait that long, so he and Amy take off leaving Andy and I to hold the fort. At 6:45 we call them and they are on It’s a Small World. They make it back in time for the parade. I never get tired of his show.

I cannot get the settings right on the camera and the pictures are fuzzy even though I am using a monopod.

One thing I am wondering is Alice. She appeared to be upset and pouted at all of the other characters. Is this in character for her?
At this point Wishes is getting ready to start, so I mention that we should head over that way. Bryan says that he can see fireworks at home, so he and Amy go ride more rides. While we all know that Wishes is more then fireworks, Bryan has a different concept of WDW. I do not agree with his concept, but I have to tell you he had a ball all week and enjoyed himself immensely.

After Wishes Andy and I rode Pirates (No wait),

BTMRR (N0 wait), HM which has been re-habbed since my last visit, Buzz (I beat Andy for once),

a forty minute wait for Space Mountain, and Stitch (N0 wait). SM needs some attention as the handrails were missing paint and it looked neglected. When we got into line for SM a family of four ahead of us all had 1st Timer badges on. I would have struck up a conversation with them, but they were having a major family squabble. Finally dad hauled off daughter leaving mom and son. Later in line a woman ahead of them asked about their 1st trip and mom informed her they have been here before, they got the badges to receive “extra magic”. I hope they are disappointed.
We return to Pop and are bed by 11:50. Another great day!