Coffee on the Verandah -The Last Slide, Recap & Souvies 5/29 - Link to Aulani TR 5/31

[Poolrat]

I can't imagine they have grounds for a lawsuit but I guess you never know.



Oh how scary! We've had a couple of scares at the lake. I made the mistake of assuming too much once. My nephew who I knew was a decent swimmer was at the lake with us. We went over the rules, no running on the dock, you can only jump in xx and xx (it was a sliding scale at which point the kids have been allowed to jump in based on ability and depth) and so on. I didn't think I needed to tell him not to dive without testing depth first, he'd been to the lake with us multiple times before.

A head full of sand and a wicked headache later, we all learned a valuable lesson.



The Lake is never supervised and at 13, they are allowed by the club to be there solo, or bring up to 2 friends I think, without an adult. It is quite shallow in the roped off area and at the end, all they really do is jump in and get right back out. Over and over and over.

Which is exactly how Evan bit through his lip last summer, kids pushing kids in, one almost landing on him and causing Evan to basically knee his own chin as he came up and then bit through his lip.

Is that kind of horseplay anything different than I did as a kid, no. Can it be dangerous? Yes. Would it have happened if I was there, I'm sure it would have, I'd have been on the lawn, not out on the dock.

So....I don't know what the answer is other than to really educate on the dangers of horseplay, holding breath and swimming with a buddy. Which they pretty much always are but...are they really thinking of it that way and watching each other all the time? No, I don't think they are. not my any malintent, just by the nature of being kids playing and being focused really only on themselves.

In the end, minor accidents and even moderate accidents happen. Common sense, limiting the really stupid horseplay and know when and how to get help is the key to a safe time. Good luck in finding peace this summer with the boys at the lake. It can be nerve wracking but in the end it is sort of a rite of passage and part of growing up.

I wish. Nothing really seems to stick. They have the attention span of a flea and the memory of a fruit fly. Bless their hearts.

It sticks but deep. It should come out in a few years..... like when they start high school. Both my kids got especisally dopey in middle school. It cleared up somewhat in high school.

 

[jedijill]

Ok, it's all Cynthia's fault. Just sent my TA an email to book me a veranda on the 10/20 Dream sailing. I can't wait to drink Tea on the veranda!

Jill in CO

 

[KatMark]

What a nightmare getting off the ship and waiting to get to your car! But what a wonderful surprise for the kids after lunch. I'm not surprised one of them figured it out.

I LOVE Mara...a variety of different things and then walking out to the see the animals is a great way to spend an afternoon.

 

[MomToPrincePhillip]

Oh man! Cliffhanger!! What was your view????

 

[MAGICFOR2]

Wow - crazy checkout line! When we left the ship in Canada, we hung out until one of the last groups so it wasn't such a crush to leave. Too bad the shuttle was so hit and miss. I love how you surprised the kids, and how long it took them to catch on!

 

[dizneeat]

Wow! Getting off the ship seems to have been a nightmare. We were in a line too, but ours started just past the bar, so nothing like yours.

And you have just convinced me that we WILL take a taxi back to the rental car company. We are going with Dollar again and were dead lucky last time as there was a LONG line and when they saw we were just two we could get on the shuttle that was already waiting. Had to juggle our luggage on our knees, but at least we were out without waiting.

No wonder the kids were sleeping during the drive back to WDW, the start of your day seemed to be a hard one.

Love the Mara and the stew, but loved it even more when it came in a breadbowl.

I had to when you put everyone into the car, drove out of the resort and went right in again. It must have been so much fun and the kids must have been so excited.

 

[carissanboys]

Your boys have changed so much. Guess that's what happens when they grow up, eh?

Glad you had a wonderful meal after your rough morning!

 

[afwdwfan]

And then I got yelled at. NO pictures! LOL! Oops, sorry.

So not only did you take pictures, you posted them for all of us to see. Thanks!

That was at right about noon just to give you an idea of how quickly things did not move that morning. I'd guess that disembarking took us a good 2+ hours by the time we were in our rental car and then the Starbucks stop added another 30 minutes total. I had hoped to be at our destination and eating lunch by noon.

Welcome back to the real world.

Jeff apparently had already eaten his cookie by this point and was NOT happy when he realized that there were ice cream sandwiches. For some reason he didn't know they existed, thought it was just bars.

Doesn't he realize that they'll sell just about anything that anyone is willing to buy???

I don’'t know that they really "did" know it but they did suspect it, apparently that 2nd refillable mug that had a turquoise instead of pink lid, was a giveaway.

You did a great job of planning and keeping the secret up to that point. Should have got a mug with the same color lid.

 

[MEK]

We rarely drive at WDW. We are Disney transportation people. As a result, to say we don’t know our way around would be an understatement and we rely on things like signage and GPS.

We always drive and I swear it was easier pre GPS. The signs are excellent, but Denny still has to turn that GPS on every single time. It is definitely possible to get lost heading to the AK.

So - two hours total to disembark and get the rental car. Reminder to self - Do NOT drink heavily the night before leaving. That would make the wait even more painful.

Love the Mara. It really IS one of my fav QS places.

Woo hoo for pulling off the surprise stay at AKL. They may have thought they guessed it, but not really!

 

[mickeystoontown]

Oh my word! What a pin in the backside trying to get off the ship! I'm glad that we didn't run into that when we disembarked.

How neat that you and Jeff were able to pull off the surprise on where you were staying! I can't wait to see the room pics.

 

[Chilly]

I agree about Mara its great to have some different counter service options. I liked the one at POFQ as well.

Did you see my new ticker

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

Now, what Jeff and I vividly recalled from the Wonder was that the menu was limited, boring and frankly, not very good.

I think they do that on purpose, because they want you out of there.

Fine. Go to Animators. Without us. LOL!

And then I got yelled at. NO pictures! LOL! Oops, sorry.

Yeah, you totally ruined the suspense of seeing that commercial.

taking that last bio break and peek from the verandah

For a second I read this as, "taking that last bio break from the verandah".

The line went from the lobby ALL the way back to the Theater.

Happily they exchanged my mug and agreed that any coffee cup really should be dishwasher safe!

on both counts!

Heading down we met up and proceeded to have them all order, then head out to sit while I settled up without them watching. They are all definitely smart enough to catch on if they'd have seen me paying with a KTTW card!

Sneaky, mom. Very sneaky.

Jeff apparently had already eaten his cookie by this point and was NOT happy when he realized that there were ice cream sandwiches. For some reason he didn't know they existed, thought it was just bars. He’'s been living under a rock all these years I guess. It was pretty funny and we all gave him a hard time.

I'm guessing he won't make that mistake again!

"Why are we circling back in?"

Should we just crash here for the night? Swim, check out some animals?

"YES!" (there may have been fist pumping)

"I knew it!"

Nice! Way to pull it off!

I don’'t know that they really "did" know it but they did suspect it, apparently that 2nd refillable mug that had a turquoise instead of pink lid, was a giveaway.

Dirty rats.

I still think you got 'em.

 

[afwdwfan]

For a second I read this as, "taking that last bio break from the verandah".

No, you're thinking of a Carnival cruise.

 

[disneydancer86]

What a fun update!! Disembarking aside...2 hours!!

You even had me caught up in the suspense. I was reading thinking, aw I wonder what the kids reaction will be!!?? What view did she get?!? I can't wait any longer!!

Looking forward to reading about the rest of your AKL stay. We just stayed in Kidani in January and we were in THE LAST VILLA at the end of one of the LOOONG hallways. Jambo house will forever be our home for future stays! (We calculated it..and we are pretty sure it was nearly 1/4 of a mile to our room each night..) Still...savannah view = incredible! Even if we could see the pens in the back, we didn't care. We could see a TON of animals.

 

[glennbo123]

Disembarking sounded like a drag. So, did the kids sleep-in the next day?

Great job pulling off the surprise. You had them eat there and everything. With my luck, check-in would've taken a half-hour. I can't believe that Jeff drove out of the resort and then back in.

 

[eandesmom]

Wow you really planned out well how to be sneaky! Too bad your need for a mug for the margaritas gave you away! I'll have to remember the little premade margarita! How did I not know that having stayed there so many times? Not as bad as Jeff not knowing there were Mickey ice cream sandwiches!

I don't think they had a clue, I just think they hoped. Who really knows though.

Well, remember this is a man who swore he'd never had a Mickey Bar, despite photographic proof showing otherwise.

What a crazy long time to get off the ship! I might enjoy going to Cabanas for breakfast, but wow - the line!!

Sounds like the kids were pretty happy about staying at AKL!!

I don't know if the line was better earlier or not, you could always go to Cabanas a lot earlier and skip the seated entirely, that might have helped. The wait for the shuttle was worse.

In the end, minor accidents and even moderate accidents happen. Common sense, limiting the really stupid horseplay and know when and how to get help is the key to a safe time. Good luck in finding peace this summer with the boys at the lake. It can be nerve wracking but in the end it is sort of a rite of passage and part of growing up.

So very very true, when I think of all the stuff that happened to my siblings and I...yes, it is a rite of passage but oh so not so very fun for the parents.

It sticks but deep. It should come out in a few years..... like when they start high school. Both my kids got especisally dopey in middle school. It cleared up somewhat in high school.

I hope so!

Ok, it's all Cynthia's fault. Just sent my TA an email to book me a veranda on the 10/20 Dream sailing. I can't wait to drink Tea on the veranda!

Jill in CO

Love it! I'm a big fan of enabling. You will love the Verandah.

What a nightmare getting off the ship and waiting to get to your car! But what a wonderful surprise for the kids after lunch. I'm not surprised one of them figured it out.

It was a good surprise, and there is still more to come. I was not expecting disembarking to be the ordeal it was, at all. Really kind of bummed me out, we lost a chunk of our day.

I LOVE Mara...a variety of different things and then walking out to the see the animals is a great way to spend an afternoon.

Generally I'm always kind of ambivalent about most counter service locations but we really really liked The Mara. AKL is a wonderful place to be and not feel like you are missing the parks at all.

Oh man! Cliffhanger!! What was your view????

view is coming up next!

 

[MEK]

I agree about Mara its great to have some different counter service options. I liked the one at POFQ as well.

Did you see my new ticker

Not to hijack - but Congratulations! That is wonderful news!

 

[eandesmom]

Wow - crazy checkout line! When we left the ship in Canada, we hung out until one of the last groups so it wasn't such a crush to leave.

I thought that is what we were doing but obviously not. Challenge is once breakfast is over, everything is shut down so unless you just hang in your room, really nothing else to do and I'm sure at some point they are really trying to get you out of the room too. It was SO much faster getting off the Wonder.

Too bad the shuttle was so hit and miss. I love how you surprised the kids, and how long it took them to catch on!

I am honestly not sure what I'd do the next time. The folks on DCL transportation had set leave times I think and that would have been nice. Was it another $125 nice? That's the question. Of course, had we done that I couldn't have exchanged my mug or pulled off the surprise the way we wanted so... I dunno.

Bear in mind though, we still had to return the car....

Wow! Getting off the ship seems to have been a nightmare. We were in a line too, but ours started just past the bar, so nothing like yours.

I was shocked and I really don't think it's normal, I've no idea why it was that long or if it was just that we were literally almost the last folks off.

And you have just convinced me that we WILL take a taxi back to the rental car company. We are going with Dollar again and were dead lucky last time as there was a LONG line and when they saw we were just two we could get on the shuttle that was already waiting. Had to juggle our luggage on our knees, but at least we were out without waiting.

I would absolutely take a cab next time, no question.

No wonder the kids were sleeping during the drive back to WDW, the start of your day seemed to be a hard one.

Unexpectedly hard. Not to mention all the kids were just really sad all morning during it, which I didn't even mention in the update as they though vacation was basically over. I am glad we did all the resorts and locations we did but ultimately we lost a lot of time on the 3 transfer days, more than I'd really expected and I thought I'd been realistic with the expectations.

Love the Mara and the stew, but loved it even more when it came in a breadbowl.

Jeff would have preferred the breadbowl for sure, I was all over the rice.

I had to when you put everyone into the car, drove out of the resort and went right in again. It must have been so much fun and the kids must have been so excited.

That was Jeff's idea

It was hysterical I have to admit.

Your boys have changed so much. Guess that's what happens when they grow up, eh?

Glad you had a wonderful meal after your rough morning!

Darn them anyhow, yep I guess so. Yours too! It was a really lovely lunch.

So not only did you take pictures, you posted them for all of us to see. Thanks!

exactly!

Welcome back to the real world.

Rude awakening, I wanted back in the bubble that's for sure.

You did a great job of planning and keeping the secret up to that point. Should have got a mug with the same color lid.

I don't think I even thought about it at the time.

We always drive and I swear it was easier pre GPS. The signs are excellent, but Denny still has to turn that GPS on every single time. It is definitely possible to get lost heading to the AK.

So - two hours total to disembark and get the rental car. Reminder to self - Do NOT drink heavily the night before leaving. That would make the wait even more painful.

Take a cab to get the rental car and maybe try to leave early and just do a Cabanas breakfast earlier. I don't think that is the average length of time and think it can be faster. I might also just see what the parking rates were and park the rental for a short cruise as that would definitely be faster as well.

Love the Mara. It really IS one of my fav QS places.

Woo hoo for pulling off the surprise stay at AKL. They may have thought they guessed it, but not really!

I have a hard time getting excited about much in the way of CS but I really did like it, it was so nice to have some unique options.

I don't think they really guessed it either, they'd been SO sad and depressed all morning, lunch had helped a little but boy did they perk up when we pulled back in to unload the luggage, it was a riot.

 

[eandesmom]

Oh my word! What a pin in the backside trying to get off the ship! I'm glad that we didn't run into that when we disembarked.

I had never read of lines like that so it truly was a shocker. Crowds embarking yes, not dis.

How neat that you and Jeff were able to pull off the surprise on where you were staying! I can't wait to see the room pics.

It was a fun surprise and there is more to come!

I agree about Mara its great to have some different counter service options. I liked the one at POFQ as well.

I want to eat at the one at POFQ, I've heard nothing but good things (and loved my beingnets that Mary Elln brought me on our first trip together!)

Did you see my new ticker

I did not!

​

I am so excited for you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You had made a comment a bit ago that seemed to hint at this news and I recall asking...and not getting an answer lol. How very very wonderful!

I think they do that on purpose, because they want you out of there.

Well, it does make you want to leave, I will give them that.

Yeah, you totally ruined the suspense of seeing that commercial.

Excellent

For a second I read this as, "taking that last bio break from the verandah".

Thankfully, no one was king of the world

from the verandah that is

Talk about bad form, we were port side!

Sneaky, mom. Very sneaky.


I'm guessing he won't make that mistake again!


Nice! Way to pull it off!

I still think you got 'em.

I think we did too, they just never like to admit it.

No, you're thinking of a Carnival cruise.

Eeew.

What a fun update!! Disembarking aside...2 hours!!

It was brutal

You even had me caught up in the suspense. I was reading thinking, aw I wonder what the kids reaction will be!!?? What view did she get?!? I can't wait any longer!!

View is up next!

Looking forward to reading about the rest of your AKL stay. We just stayed in Kidani in January and we were in THE LAST VILLA at the end of one of the LOOONG hallways. Jambo house will forever be our home for future stays! (We calculated it..and we are pretty sure it was nearly 1/4 of a mile to our room each night..) Still...savannah view = incredible! Even if we could see the pens in the back, we didn't care. We could see a TON of animals.

I would probably do Kidani next time if we were booking Savanna view as I would like that extra bathroom and we loved the pool there but I do love everything about Jambo too. Hard to pick and thankfully it's really only a hop skip and a jump in between.

Disembarking sounded like a drag. So, did the kids sleep-in the next day?

Well now you'll have to wait and see on that one. The more immediate question is, did they have an early night?

Great job pulling off the surprise. You had them eat there and everything. With my luck, check-in would've taken a half-hour. I can't believe that Jeff drove out of the resort and then back in.

Initially I was a bit bummed, it would have been sweet to just "stroll" up to the room after lunch, maybe in a lets checkout the look out points kind of way but the driving out and back in was pretty great too.

 

[MEK]

Take a cab to get the rental car and maybe try to leave early and just do a Cabanas breakfast earlier. I don't think that is the average length of time and think it can be faster. I might also just see what the parking rates were and park the rental for a short cruise as that would definitely be faster as well.

We'll be driving a rental car and dropping it off, but our friends are driving their own car to Florida. So my plan is to drive back to WDW with them. I am going to pack as light as possible for the cruise (yeah - I know that's hard with me ).

I was thinking that Denny and I could put our cruise clothes in one suitcase and leave the other one at luggage services at the resort where will be checking into post cruise (which is VWL right now, but I determined that for 12 more points I can book a 2BR standard view at Kidani instead of the two studios). So I think we will be OK and, since we won't have to wake any sleeping beauty children, we should be able to disembark early. I hope!