Chicago area Diser's - check in here Part 4

[Bunchkin]

Yesterday was really busy for us! There was errands to run, my mom came over for lunch (I went and picked up Chinese!!! YUM-O!!) and then before my mom left the neighbor kids came over to play. Then the kid's mom came over to collect them (these are the one's leaving for WDW tomorrow!!) and she ended up staying a while to chat. We lost track of time and at 4:25 realized I still needed to head out to pick up electrical supplies for Tony ( which I promised him I would.....before they closed for the day!!). So I told the neighbor's "I'm sorry but I have to click you out, I need to run!!".


Today we are off to do more running around. And I promised Hunter I'd take to lunch for a hot dog! The smallest things please this kid!!


slo Glad Stephanie had a great time yesterday!!! What did Stephanie get with all her tickets she won?


Tiggerrn Welcome back!! I can't wait to see your pics and read your trippie!!!

DMM Glad you're feeling better today!

Becky Glad your brother and family are enjoying their trip.


John Great pics! Thanks for sharing them with us! Love the pics of Italy!! We want to take the kids there to see where their family comes from. That's why we were thinking of that cruise. Let's hope Disney considers doing those ports again. Either way, we'll still be heading there but it would be nice to do it Disney style.

Sam Online shopping for me can be just as detrimental for me as going to the actual store itself!!!




Stay cool everyone!!

 

[Tiggerrn2]

DMM feet up today, lots of water with spritz of lemon to choke it down, saltines between meals (as well as before you get out of bed in the morning) and stay out of the heat. Hope things are going well for you.
piglettoo, bring lots of water for you. $4 a bottle is a little pricey. Have fun at GA tomorrow. Thankfully, it is a nice water park as well.
Slo, good luck with your new employee. HOpe all works out well.
Bunchkin, wish my kids were happy with just a hot dog lunch. Happy errand running.
John, great pix. Glad to hear you had a good time.
OK on to the trippie.

 

[macraven]

GOOD MORNING TO ONE AND ALL
It's been a while since I've checked in, so I'm checking and saying HI.

give us a reminder again so i don't miss it.
like maybe the day it will be on

i have so much on my mind, sometimes i don't know if i am coming or going..

Got all my new Mediterranian cruise photos online. As always, you can find them at http://disney.crissup.com/

beautiful pictures. thanx for sharing

Michelle Stay cool and hydrated. I hated being pregnant in the summer. It was the longest hotflash.

yea, me too. i hit every season in my pregnancies




was it hot for everyone yesterday?
we didn't have it bad here.
the high was at 84 degrees with the dew point of 62. we were saved yesterday......

it's noon time now and almost 82 here.

if you are going to six flags on thursday, it is hotter there than where i am.
it's too far from the lake in gurnee to get relief from heat.
i'm very close to lake michigan

 

[slo]

Hi all - I'm checking in for a mid-afternoon hello


bigben - good to see you!!

Crissup - Thanks for the link. I'm going to look at your pictures while I eat lunch today

DMM - I'm glad you're feeling better today I was very largely pregnant in the summer with both my girls. One was born in July and the other in August

HERSEY -

Becky - I'm glad your DB had a great trip. I bet his pictures will be fun to look at

Bunchkin - Stephanie got this large Sponge Bob blow-up thing. Katie loves playing with it, and is always stealing it

Tiiiiiiiigern - Thanks for the good luck with the new employee How's the ankle feeling?

Mac - That's nice that didn't get to hot for you yesterday. I think of you when it's going to be really hot, because I know you don't have air conditioning



Well, I gotta run and get some things done around here.
Later gaters!!!

 

[Tiggerrn2]

So, 4 hour flight, trip to DL over, what's a DISer to do? Start a TR of course!!! OK so trip not all DL, but anyway, for those of you who don't remember (or joined later in our forum) cast of characters here are myself (self proclaimed and admitted Disney addict), DH (so not a Disney addict, but loves me enough to suffer through it), DD-9 and DS-7 (both Disney lovers-probably due to the fact that at Disney the wallet freely opens and they get lots of junk food and many things they really don't need)
DAY1: arrive in San Jose and our plane is nearly 30 minutes early, only to wait extra long for luggage. Off to Alamo for our rental -a nice blue Toyota Corolla, and we are off to DSIL in MountainView. Visited a bit with DSIL and then we decided to head off to San Francisco.

Our view approaching the Golden Gate Bridge

Our view of the city

Unfortunately, with a gimpy ankle, this view of the bridge was left to DH and family as they had to climb up a hill to get it as well as the next view of Alcatraz (though I could see the view from where I stayed, it wasn't as pretty)

We drove out to Pier 39 with thoughts of dinner, but that place was hopping and someone was sure to take a crutch out from under me, so we just drove around and checked it out from a safe distance. We also drove around the Ghiradelli Chocolate Factory (and so unfortunate for me, we didn't get to go inside).

 

[Tiggerrn2]

DAY 2
Late start to our day. We drove to Six Flags Discovery Kingdom north of San Francisco in Vallejo. We had to cross the Bay Bridge this time. I am not a bridge over water fan, so these 2 days were rough for me. This Six Flags is sort of a San Diego Zoo, Sea World, Six Flags mix park. With our late start, we only had about 4-5 hours to spend there, but the kids had a good time.

Saw Shouka the Killer Whale show, got to touch the Sting Rays, saw the sharks and rode some rides. Skipped the zoo portion-we have Brookfield.

Then we headed back to DSIL. Her BF made a nice dinner for all of us-grilled salmon, crab legs, grilled veggies, and a nice glass of wine. He's not a chef, just a very good cook. Visited with them again for a while, then hit the sack.

 

[macraven]

love your report so far.
pics are beautiful!

 

[Tiggerrn2]

DAY 3 Monday
We set out for Southern CA stopping along the way to visit with DH college roomie. Was nice to see him and his family again. He is a computer guru and made a neat DVD for DD out of her pictures. Wished I'd already done DL so he could do something neat with those.
Then we headed out for DH friend's house in La Habra where we were spending the rest of the week. We had some beautiful scenery along the way.

Kids loved the double rainbow and we could see the entire thing from start to end.
LONG drive. We didn't arrive at our friends' until nearly 2AM.

DAY 4 Tuesday
This was a chill out poolside day. DH was sent for groceries and I did some laundry and relaxed and the kids swam all day. Burgers on the grill and chips for dinner and we were good to go.

 

[Tiggerrn2]

DAY 5: Wednesday
LEGOLAND!!! We got an early start today and arrived at the gates at opening. Not DISNEY. No big party at the start of the day here. I am glad we went this year. The park is really nice for small kids and families. But in another couple years, my kids wouldn't have enjoyed it much. Not many rides or attractions worth me getting out of the chair for, so I sat most of this day with DH pushing. Buttitis soon set in. (That's what I get for being cheap and not wanting to rent a scooter-saving the $$ for DL)

Cities are all built out of LEGOS. Somehow I missed taking the ones of Las Vegas. They were really cool. Working parts and fountains. But I have New York, SanFrancisco, and New Orleans.

The park closes early, and with my buttitis, I was glad to call it an early day.
Food here was a bit pricey. We spent $42 for 2 salads, kids chicken strips (2 strips), and kids mini hot dog (and it was mini) and 1 shared refillable mug drink. No food, snacks or drinks are allowed to be brought into this park. Wonder why

 

[Tiggerrn2]

OK you Disers. The days (and pix) you're waiting for.
DAY 6: Thursday
DISNEYLAND CALIFORNIA ADVENTURE!!

DCA opens later than DL, so we decided to hit this park today for a little later start to the day. DH decided to take a pass-his feet hurt from LegoLand and he decided to go shopping for new shoes and run some other errands. So it was just me, the 2 kids and my Disney loving friend for this day. No DIS party poopers allowed!!!
Rented a motorized scooter and we were off to SOARIN'

I love this ride and the music that goes with it. Got a fastpass before we got in line. No front of the line pass with a scooter at DCA. The lines are all wheelchair accessible. So we waited to ride, came off, shopped for pins, and then rode again with fastpass.
Getting warm, so we decided to hit Grizzly River Run.

Bagged my boot and we were off. 2 people on our raft cracked me up with their ponchos to keep dry. HELLO, can you say water ride? What's the point of going on if your object is to keep dry?
On to TOT. DS chickens out on us. So it was just DD and myself. DCA TOT is not as good as the one at the Studios. IMO. No elevator leaving the elevator shaft and traveling down the hallways. Just an up and drop. We did get several free falls, however.
After TOT DS was getting warm so we went to Animation and walked through the shows in there, discovered the characters we were most like (DD was Mulan, DS was Aladin, and I was....Maleficent), we saw Turtle Talk and went to see if we could act and sing. (I think I'll keep my day job).
Kids talked me into the Sun Wheel. I am not a fan of heights, but my friend kept reminding me what great pictures I could get from up there, so I agreed. But it had to be a stationary cage!!!

DD wanted to ride the swings, so my friend took her on that. I don't do dizzy sick rides.
We grabbed fastpasses for Mulholland Madness and went to eat at Pizza Oom Mow Mow. Had the penn pasta with alfredo sauce and the kids ordered pizza kids' meals. Now I must tell you, Disney is definately doing their part to fight childhood obesity!! Their pizzas were the size of a lid to a Mayo jar. I asked if I could get a second pizza-sorry only comes with the meal!! Thankfully, you are allowed to bring in snacks and drinks at DL parks. So they filled up on the snacks we brought along.
Went out for our ride on MM, stopped for some pin trading with a very Dis knowledgable CM. DS was chatting him up about his grand plan to go on to the "real DL" in a bit so he could get his light saber at Star Tours. He wanted to be a Jedi. The CM was giving him pointers on how to be picked from the crowd to get up on stage for the Jedi Training Academy.
Took a few more pix and then it was time for the parade-Block Party Bash!!

Had my annual Mickey Bar ice cream treat. After my alfredo lunch, figured I'd better only have 1 today.
Then we hit Monster's Inc. before heading over to DL.

 

[Tiggerrn2]

DAY 6 continues:
We arrive over in DL

just in time for the afternoon Parade of Dreams. We got a great viewing spot right in front of the train station at the start of the parade. Mickey and the Princess's float stopped right in front of us for the "show" portion of the parade.

DD had quite the time flirting with Mickey Mouse until Minnie noticed and planted a kiss on him herself.

After the parade we were off to ride Space Mountain. Now my boot and it's ability to get us access to rides comes in to play. We get right on SM, Buzz and FINALLY (according to DS)

.
Of course, we just had to go into the dumping store for him to purchase (and spend the rest of the money he had in his wallet) his light saber. Now he's happy. Oh, not yet. "Please can we take it out of the box?" Luckily I had extra camera batteries along. "Please don't hit anyone." I say. I should've been saying this to the CMs we encountered along our way to Fantasmic. They kept insisting upon fighting our young Luke Skywalker only adding fuel to his fire!!! But he loved it.
Seating for Fantasmic at DL is a little hectic to say the least. Gimpy foot to the rescue once again. We got a seat in the handicapped access area down in front. Unfortunately, due to our extended walk from Tomorrowland to Fantasmic, we couldn't get in the middle so we had to watch from a side view. IMO, Fantasmic is a neater show at DL. Peter Pan and Captain Hook come out fighting on a big sailing ship (Columbia), and the Mark Twain is beautiful. I was busy video taping this, so I only got a pic before the show started. Sorry

This is of Tom Sawyer Island (or as they are calling it right now,

Our goal was to escape for the exit right after Fantasmic, but we got stuck in the unmoving, have to watch Dreams fireworks tonight, crowd. So we sat til the fireworks were over (not a good view from there either) and then made our escape down Mainstreet.

 

[roseprincess]

Tiggerrn-I really enjoyed your pics and TR!
My DS would LOVE Legoland, never been there, but he would be gawking for hours with those miniature lego cities, etc.
At DCA, that Sunwheel ferris wheel ride, is that in the water?
Of course, I never been there or at DL either, but that ferris wheel and the roller coaster looks like it's built in the water- that's pretty cool if it is in the water!
You DS and DD are very brave for petting those stingrays . I take it those stingrays are very domesticated compared to what stung Steve Irwin in Australia last Sept.
Thanks for sharing the pics!

Oh, did you or anyone in your family run into the Dream Team? Or did you see anyone getting a Dream-the YOAMD thing going on? Just wondering.

 

[piglet too]

Wow, thanks for sharing the pictures! I have only been to DL, so it is neat to see the stuff that I know I have seen in person.

We are planning to drink LOTS of water tomorrow. Will have a cooler in the car with lunch or dinner plus all the water we can fit. We will not be going to the water park portion, because I am sure it will be very crowded and I am not a fan of water parks, especially not with Nathan.

 

[Tiggerrn2]

DAY 7
DISNEYLAND all day. Thought was to arrive early and head straight over to Nemo. So, DH, our friend and the kids went over that way and I get in line for day 2 of motorized scootering. (Having fun on that, by the way). I drove about taking pix and videoing the park a little.

Then headed over to Nemo, only to discover they had decided not to wait in the 3 hour line and had done the Matterhorn instead. We stopped to chat with a CM while DD traded pins with her. DS was disappointed. He wanted to trade but didn't want to give up any of his Star Wars pins. I had just told him I would go buy a cheap pin for him to trade when the CM pulled one out of her pocket for him to use as a trader. DS got all the pixie dust this trip!!!
We went back into Tomorrland and rode SM, Buzz and Star Tours again as DS was just "killing time" until he could try to become a Jedi.
We made it early enough for DS to get a seat down in front (in the sun) and wait for the show to start.

As his pixie dust luck would have it, the advice he'd received yesterday from the nice CM worked and he was picked. (Thank goodness because I wasn't treasuring the thought of returning to this sunny spot later in the day to try again)

So he had to battle Darth Maul. I know he would rather have battled Darth Vader, but being short got him put down to the lower stage (hence, DM)
All in all the show was well done for the kids and DS got a certificate as a Jedi in training and was quite excited for himself.
Now that we were all sufficiently roasted, we decided to hit Splash Mountain. I truly apologize to the 1 1/2 hour waiting in line people we got to pass up to ride this ride. Maybe not.
Once off Splash it was time for lunch. Disney diet plan for children once again with 4 "mini" corn dogs, a "mini" bag of carrots, and a "mini" drink. Back to the snack bag. I, however, had the best cheeseburger, grapes and fries. (OK,OK) I shared a few grapes. And a few fries.
Back to Spash for another good soaking.

and then off to BTMR. That shook my foot a bit. But not as much as Indiana Jones (think Dinosaur jeep different theme) DD and I and DH then hit HAUNTED MANSION. DS once again chickens out. Then it's off to Pirates where we had probably our longest wait in line. Apparently, there are a limited number of gimpy people allowed on this ride at one time. We waited about 30 minutes (to the 2 hour stand-by).

This was my favorite picture in pirates, but for some reason, my auto camera choice made it smaller than the others.
This pirates is,IMHO,infinately better than the one at WDW. The colors here just pop. Unfortunately, the "magic voice" told me to turn off my flash, so the rest of the pix I tried to take in there (including those of Johnny) did not turn out as well.
Quick trip through Toon Town. Not as fun as the kids remembered. HMMMM.

And one of those frozen lemonades

and we were off to NEMO. Cute ride but not worth the 3 hour wait. Thankful to be a little handicapped once again, we only waited about 10 minutes.

Over for dinner, and lesson learned, 2 regular slices of cheese pizza please. I repeated my alfredo chicken pasta thing and DH had the marinara pasta choice.
Then we headed on to Honey, I Shrunk the Audience and a repeat of SM. In retrospect, we should've headed to find a seat for the fireworks. It was very crowded and we once again had poor viewing. Thankfully, the show is the same as it was 2 years ago, and I do have it on DVD.
The crew was tired, so while I was really hoping to close the park down, we headed out.

Thank goodness we did the parks on the days we did. Kellie was starting to feel a sore throat coming on.

 

[Tiggerrn2]

Days 8 and 9
Back to rest and relaxation. Margaritas poolside, laundry and DD slept. Luckily, I had the refill for the antibiotics and she was taking those for the 2 days before our trip home. She would never have made it otherwise.
Sunday night, we headed over to DTD for shopping and dinner.

I didn't buy much. Just a photo album and sweatshirt for myself and T-shirts for the kids. They had used their own money for their souveniers this trip. And at DTD there are no wheelchairs, so it was hard to look for long or carry much, on the crutches.
Dinner at the Rainforest was good. I had the ribs, DH and his friend had fish and chips, and our other friend had the chicken fried chicken. Kids had Quesadillas and mini burgers (definately, the Rainforest is not on the same diet plan for children that Disney is.) We had leftovers for lunch.
Home to pack and get some rest.

Day 10 Monday:
Finished packing and off to return the rental. LAX is very disorganized and not very clean (at least at the Southwest gates). They had to have me take off my boot because it kept setting off their alarms with the wand thing. They had to send it through the scanner. The gaurd was like "are you saying you are volunteering to take it off?" And I was just like whatever you need to do to get us moving on DUDE!!! Then they wheeled me to the gate and left me sit. I was like, HELLO, need to use the bathroom. Thankfully DH still had my crutches and I was able to get back to the bathroom. But the flight was good, DD was feeling better, and we had a great vacation.
Now we're home, doing again and back to the same old thing. Kids ENT called today and their tonsillectomy is rescheduled for the 22nd. We don't start school til after Labor Day so hopefully, 2 weeks is enough recovery time for them to return to school on time.
Well, hope you all enjoyed the report and the pix. Needed to sit today with foot elevated after all the unpacking and being up yesterday, so I actually finished it all. Later everyone. Hope the mods don't move this anywhere. I'd never find it!

 

[Tiggerrn2]

Forgot Pooh's ride. How Silly of me!! Here's the pix anyway.

The seats are arranged a little different, but the ride is basically the same. We hit this before our second Splash.

 

[Tiggerrn2]

Thanks for the comments on the pix. I love my new camera!!
Rose, the Sunwheel just looks like it is in the water from that angle. But the loading area is down there. But it does look neat. We did not see a Dream Team member either day we were there, and I only saw 1 person with the dream fastpasses around their neck at DL, 2 people with ears at DCA and 3 with ears at DL. I just wonder if the dreams being given out are less for the summer so they will still have some left to be given out this fall. DS did get the free pin from the CM and picked for Star Wars. That is part of the YOAMD campaign. But no big things.
The sting rays all have their stingers removed for safety, just like the ones at Brookfield zoo. DH and I swam with stingrays in the Cayman Islands years ago at Stingray City. Those did not have their stingers removed. I am not so sure I would be as brave now.

 

[HERSEY]

tigger Great picture and trip report. You did very well with the reporting. Legoland looks very cool. Pirates and HM in California are my personal fav. I haven't been there since forever. Glad you foot didn't keep you down.

Oh I love pier 39 to bad about Ghiradelli. Really cool that your son got picked for the duel. Alex is going to be jealious

 

[paintnolish]

Hey, everyone! I am back, with regular internet access! I felt like I have been living in the dark ages! Anyway, I will never catch up, so I hope all is well!
Loving the pics, Tiggerrn!

 

[Bunchkin]

Tiggerrn Love your trip report and pics too!!!
So glad you all had a great time!! Loved the San Fran pics as well!!!!
We love POTC at DL!!! I love how long it is!!! Did you get to eat at the Blue Bayou??? It's great there!! We ate there in April right by the water. A few boats got backed up on the ride and one guy started signing opera to everyone eating....he was GREAT!!! Needless to say we had a great time there! Another great place to eat at in the Downtown Disney area is Ralph Brennan's Jazz Kitchen. This place has awesome food and the wait staff was wonderful. The kids really loved it there....but my kids are into jazz and New Orleans though.
Legoland looks very cool!!! Hunter is a Lego junky! He would have loved it there. I have to make sure to show him your pics!!!
Thanks again for sharing!!!



paint Glad you're back from the dinosaur era!!! Isn't it aweful to not be "connected"!!! Hope all is going well in the new house with the kids and BF!!! Going to school in the fall??