DDA chapter 21

[my3princes]

Anyone have any suggestions for Sea World? I looked at undercovertourist and it looks like AAA is a cheaper option for tickets. Any place else I should look for tickets?

I booked a towncar (SUV) for transport to/from MCO. They also offer other transfers like Disney resort to Seaworld.

I think DH & the kids would really enjoy it.

The hours are 9am to 10pm. I don't think we'd want to stay til 10pm but anyone have an idea of when a good pick up time might be? I guess I really need to do more research and check show schedules and such. And go check out the seaworld board here on the dis!

I just started looking for tickets for next year, but I have no answers for you. I'm interested in what you learn though.

 

[babytrees]

Anyone have any suggestions for Sea World? I looked at undercovertourist and it looks like AAA is a cheaper option for tickets. Any place else I should look for tickets?

I booked a towncar (SUV) for transport to/from MCO. They also offer other transfers like Disney resort to Seaworld.

I think DH & the kids would really enjoy it.

The hours are 9am to 10pm. I don't think we'd want to stay til 10pm but anyone have an idea of when a good pick up time might be? I guess I really need to do more research and check show schedules and such. And go check out the seaworld board here on the dis!

We lasted until about 9:00 almost 10:00. We got there a little before noon. I think we would have gone til close but it was the stormiest day of our vacation. We also talked about the fact that we wish we had another day of vacation to come back and use the other day of the ticket.

If they still offer it I would look at getting the all you can eat after 3(?) wristband....it was reasonably priced and we definitely ate our share.

 

[Glynis]

I'm not good at this. If one of your friends had a death in their family, what type of food/dish would you make and take over?

When mom died, there were several things that stood out in my mind as great ideas. One neighbor brought over a platter of deli meats and cheeses. She also bought a jar of pickles and some sandwich rolls. It was nice to be able to just set out the platter and let people help themselves.

Another friend brought breakfast over. She bought muffins, bagels, cream cheese, orange juice, bacon and a dozen eggs. That made things a lot easier in the mornings.

I will sometimes make a casserole that can be frozen. I'll bring that, along with instructions on reheating. Sometimes you just can't bring yourself to cook, so pulling something out of the freezer is a good thing.

Hope this helps.

 

[bear74]

one thing that stands out when Jeff's mom died was someone brought paper plates and napkins. I loved that so I did not have to wash dishes every day.

 

[Disney Yooper]

I'm not good at this. If one of your friends had a death in their family, what type of food/dish would you make and take over?

My mom used to get a ham, slice it and take it over with some rolls. That always went over really well. They could make sandwiches, easily store it, it lasted several days and it was easily cleaned up. No fuss and no mess.

 

[my3princes]

Chanon have you worn the heeled crocs that you bought? I'm wondering how comfortable they are?

 

[my3princes]

I called Universal to book a club level room for next August. Apparently their rates are not out yet so I can't book

 

[Mommy2EmMoLu]

Sorry to be MIA, but I promise, it's only in posting as I am reading along. Things just never, ever seem to slow down and I am just mentally exhausted. There is a HUGE situation brewing with my sister. As much as I love her, I cannot get myself involved in it. I will stay in the back. I WILL stay in the back. I WILL.

Mo was very excited to get to go to cheer leading camp with her best friend, Sydney, this morning. Camp started at 9am. Dana got a call at 10:15 saying Mo had hurt her arm and they could not get her to calm down. Dana went and picked her up and took Mo to our pediatrician's office. Her youngest, Kate had an appt. so she just brought Mo along. I met her there with my gaggle of kids, Em, Lu, Ty and Hayden. Dr. Horton was sure she broke her elbow and, sure enough, she did!!!! We had an appt with the ortho this afternoon. What a day! But Mo was a trooper and did really well. There were tears but all things considered, nothing horrible. I think that poor Syd will be traumatized for the rest of her life. She was devastated that Mo was hurt and missed out on camp, especially the foam pit (the best part of the day apparently) and that Mo would never, ever want to go back again or play ever again. The cast is waterproof so, at least, Mo can swim and bathe. Hopefully, in 4 weeks it will come off.

We have Lu's party here Thursday night. I feel horrible that I have sort of just thrown this together and not devoted much attention to it. But, oh well, it will be great no matter what. At least, that's what I'm telling myself.

I hope to be back a bit more regular once this weekend is over.

 

[tmfranlk]

one thing that stands out when Jeff's mom died was someone brought paper plates and napkins. I loved that so I did not have to wash dishes every day.

That's one I was going to mention too from when my grandma died. They also brough trash bags. Another good one was the family that brought several cases of soda and a cooler full of ice. The deli platters worked well with so many running in and out - you could quickly make your own when you were ready.

 

[MrsHeg]

I usually will buy soft drinks, coffee would probably be a good idea too. I figure they don't have to be refrigerated and can be kept for later use if not needed at the time.

 

[Glynis]

Sorry to be MIA, but I promise, it's only in posting as I am reading along. Things just never, ever seem to slow down and I am just mentally exhausted. There is a HUGE situation brewing with my sister. As much as I love her, I cannot get myself involved in it. I will stay in the back. I WILL stay in the back. I WILL.

Mo was very excited to get to go to cheer leading camp with her best friend, Sydney, this morning. Camp started at 9am. Dana got a call at 10:15 saying Mo had hurt her arm and they could not get her to calm down. Dana went and picked her up and took Mo to our pediatrician's office. Her youngest, Kate had an appt. so she just brought Mo along. I met her there with my gaggle of kids, Em, Lu, Ty and Hayden. Dr. Horton was sure she broke her elbow and, sure enough, she did!!!! We had an appt with the ortho this afternoon. What a day! But Mo was a trooper and did really well. There were tears but all things considered, nothing horrible. I think that poor Syd will be traumatized for the rest of her life. She was devastated that Mo was hurt and missed out on camp, especially the foam pit (the best part of the day apparently) and that Mo would never, ever want to go back again or play ever again. The cast is waterproof so, at least, Mo can swim and bathe. Hopefully, in 4 weeks it will come off.

We have Lu's party here Thursday night. I feel horrible that I have sort of just thrown this together and not devoted much attention to it. But, oh well, it will be great no matter what. At least, that's what I'm telling myself.

I hope to be back a bit more regular once this weekend is over.

I'm so sorry about the elbow! That's just awful!!! Give her a hug from me, please!

Try to catch your breath, and schedule in some "alone" time. Sounds like you need it!

 

[tmfranlk]

Sorry to be MIA, but I promise, it's only in posting as I am reading along. Things just never, ever seem to slow down and I am just mentally exhausted. There is a HUGE situation brewing with my sister. As much as I love her, I cannot get myself involved in it. I will stay in the back. I WILL stay in the back. I WILL.

Mo was very excited to get to go to cheer leading camp with her best friend, Sydney, this morning. Camp started at 9am. Dana got a call at 10:15 saying Mo had hurt her arm and they could not get her to calm down. Dana went and picked her up and took Mo to our pediatrician's office. Her youngest, Kate had an appt. so she just brought Mo along. I met her there with my gaggle of kids, Em, Lu, Ty and Hayden. Dr. Horton was sure she broke her elbow and, sure enough, she did!!!! We had an appt with the ortho this afternoon. What a day! But Mo was a trooper and did really well. There were tears but all things considered, nothing horrible. I think that poor Syd will be traumatized for the rest of her life. She was devastated that Mo was hurt and missed out on camp, especially the foam pit (the best part of the day apparently) and that Mo would never, ever want to go back again or play ever again. The cast is waterproof so, at least, Mo can swim and bathe. Hopefully, in 4 weeks it will come off.

We have Lu's party here Thursday night. I feel horrible that I have sort of just thrown this together and not devoted much attention to it. But, oh well, it will be great no matter what. At least, that's what I'm telling myself.

I hope to be back a bit more regular once this weekend is over.

Poor Mo! I'm glad she's doing well and I'm sure the cast will come off soon and well-healed. Lu's party will be great too! She'll love it and you'll do what's most important, celebrate her. We'll keep your sister's situation in our thoughts and prayers.

 

[my3princes]

Sorry to be MIA, but I promise, it's only in posting as I am reading along. Things just never, ever seem to slow down and I am just mentally exhausted. There is a HUGE situation brewing with my sister. As much as I love her, I cannot get myself involved in it. I will stay in the back. I WILL stay in the back. I WILL.

Mo was very excited to get to go to cheer leading camp with her best friend, Sydney, this morning. Camp started at 9am. Dana got a call at 10:15 saying Mo had hurt her arm and they could not get her to calm down. Dana went and picked her up and took Mo to our pediatrician's office. Her youngest, Kate had an appt. so she just brought Mo along. I met her there with my gaggle of kids, Em, Lu, Ty and Hayden. Dr. Horton was sure she broke her elbow and, sure enough, she did!!!! We had an appt with the ortho this afternoon. What a day! But Mo was a trooper and did really well. There were tears but all things considered, nothing horrible. I think that poor Syd will be traumatized for the rest of her life. She was devastated that Mo was hurt and missed out on camp, especially the foam pit (the best part of the day apparently) and that Mo would never, ever want to go back again or play ever again. The cast is waterproof so, at least, Mo can swim and bathe. Hopefully, in 4 weeks it will come off.

We have Lu's party here Thursday night. I feel horrible that I have sort of just thrown this together and not devoted much attention to it. But, oh well, it will be great no matter what. At least, that's what I'm telling myself.

I hope to be back a bit more regular once this weekend is over.

Oh no, that is not a good way to start the summer That things improve quickly. Lu is young enough that any party will be perfect and I'm sure yours will be spectacular.

 

[my3princes]

Just when I thought that our summer was going to be slow, the two older boys got invited to do a Peer Leadership Activities for Youth program. It sounds like a good program and they were nominated to it by our school. It is completely free of charge, meets in the evenings, provides meals and has a day long Adventure trip at the end. They are excited and really want to do it. Now we will have to work our schedules around that plus Colby's summer school and Chris has to go out of town on business for a few days. The aquatic center is also planning the very first employee meeting/ice breaker/barbeque/fresh start. It looks like July went from completely open to fairly busy in the course of a couple of days.

 

[my3princes]

If anyone is considering board shorts to go with your swimsuit, I highly recommend these

http://www.llbean.com/webapp/wcs/st...&catalogId=1&langId=-1&feat=sr&freeText=OGVC5

I bought a pair (full price of course) and they are wonderful. They dry quickly, are pretty slimming and have a nice pocket with a snap for money on the go They run small so order 2 sizes larger than you normally would. I just ordered 5 more pair so that I can have a pair for all my suits and more importantly for our cruise next summer

 

[Tammi67]

Anyone have any suggestions for Sea World? I looked at undercovertourist and it looks like AAA is a cheaper option for tickets. Any place else I should look for tickets?

I booked a towncar (SUV) for transport to/from MCO. They also offer other transfers like Disney resort to Seaworld.

I think DH & the kids would really enjoy it.

The hours are 9am to 10pm. I don't think we'd want to stay til 10pm but anyone have an idea of when a good pick up time might be? I guess I really need to do more research and check show schedules and such. And go check out the seaworld board here on the dis!

Are the tix still buy one day get another day for free?

 

[Tammi67]

Poor Molly! I hope she heals quickly and that it isn't too painful for her. Will she have a hard cast over her entire arm?

 

[Tammi67]

Thanks for all of the suggestions regarding the meal. If anyone has any great freezer casserole ideas, please share them. I like the panera breakfast idea too. The viewing is Thursday night and the funeral Friday morning. He passed away yesterday morning and today was spent making all of the arrangements. I know it has been emotionally exhausting for my friend. They knew this was coming. He had terminal cancer for the past year or so, but the wife couldn't bring herself to get arrangements made beforehand, which was also very upsetting for my friend. I don't know if she was in denial or what. Now they were scrambling today.

 

[Glynis]

Thanks for all of the suggestions regarding the meal. If anyone has any great freezer casserole ideas, please share them. I like the panera breakfast idea too. The viewing is Thursday night and the funeral Friday morning. He passed away yesterday morning and today was spent making all of the arrangements. I know it has been emotionally exhausting for my friend. They knew this was coming. He had terminal cancer for the past year or so, but the wife couldn't bring herself to get arrangements made beforehand, which was also very upsetting for my friend. I don't know if she was in denial or what. Now they were scrambling today.

I'll look through my recipes and see what I can find. I'm so sorry for your friend.

 

[Glynis]

Day 7:

Our goal today was to finish up the Fantasyland rides, and hopefully, get Jacob a chance at Jedi Training Academy. I got everyone up (this was becoming harder to do as the week progressed), and dressed, and we went for breakfast. I think Mary really found this the best part of the day! She loved the fact that she could help herself to the Froot Loops. This is not something I buy at home, so she made the most of it here! As we were finishing up brushing our teeth, I noticed that my wedding ring was not where I had left it. I began to panic! We tore the room apart, but couldn’t find the ring. I was kicking myself for even bringing it. Ever since my gastric bypass surgery, my ring has been too big for my finger! I tried to be optimistic, but was positive that I’d never see my wedding ring again. As we crossed the street to the Main Gate, I remembered that I had taken some trash out to the garbage can outside our room that morning. I mentioned it to Alan, and he simply handed the stroller to me and ran back across the street. Have I mentioned what a wonderful guy he is?

We headed toward Fantasyland, and part of the crew decided to ride the Matterhorn again. I was too upset to do a ride here, so I just cruise around by the teacups waiting for Alan and hoping for the best. The rest of the group got off the Matterhorn and got in line for Alice in Wonderland. As they were in line for this ride, Alan came up and just shook his head. I was so bummed! Alan got in line with the rest of the group, and I took Timothy for a diaper change. I was in the bathroom, going through the diaper bag and I FOUND MY WEDDING RING!!!! It must have fallen off my finger when I was packing the bag up for the day! I was so excited! I finished the diaper change, and raced back to Alice in Wonderland! They were just entering the ride, but I managed to get Alan’s attention and yell to him that I found the ring! Let’s just say that the mood of the day changed dramatically after that!

We now headed over to the Finding Nemo submarines. There was a wait of about 30 minutes, which wasn’t too bad, so we waited! We enjoyed our undersea voyage, and Timothy was absolutely fascinated by the bubbles, and the fish he could see out of his window!

Next up was a ride on the Carousel, a trip through Pinocchio’s ride, and Snow White’s Scary Adventure. There are never lines for these rides, so we were able to accomplish this within a relatively short time! I think it’s really odd that on the Snow White ride, she’s only in 2 of the scenes. It really ought to be called the Wicked Queen’s Adventure, since she’s in almost every scene! Anyway, it’s still really fun, and the kids think it’s really cool to rub the brass apple out front and hear the witch cackle.

Dad left us at this point to head over to DCA and stake out a spot in line for Aladdin. This is, hands down, his favorite thing in DCA, and this was the only day it was showing while we were there. He hurried over, and Alan took several of the older kids for a ride on Toy Story Midway Mania, since he had stayed off the night before. My brother, Addison, and I stayed in DL with Jacob, Leslie, Shaun and Emilee, and our 2 babies. We decided to try for the Jedi Academy. We got there early, and staked out a spot right in the front and center. The boys were told to jump up and down and do anything they could think of to get the Jedi’s attention. Emilee was terrified that she would be chosen, so we told her to just sit there, and they would not choose her. As the show started, Jacob, Leslie and Shaun began to jump up and down (along with all the other kids there!). Unfortunately, they were not chosen for this time. They were disappointed, but still sat there and watched the whole thing. I got really upset at the “stage mother” that had her son right next to our kids. She literally pushed her son’s way into the show, even though you could tell that he didn’t want to do it. After he had been picked and given his robe and training light saber, he started to cry, so they escorted him back to his mother, who began to berate him in front of everyone. She threatened to take him back to the hotel for the day, because he had just ruined the whole day for her. Nice, huh? Later that day, we saw them again at DCA, and she was still yelling at him about the Academy.

Anyway, the training academy was still cute, and Darth Maul had a great time growling at our little boys who were yelling at him the whole time. He would get right in their faces, and snarl at them, and Jacob and Shaun would snarl right back. We thought it was really cute, until Emilee came up to us afterward and said, “Daddy, Darth Maul growled at me.” My brother replied, “Well, did you spit in his eye? Did you growl back at him?” Emilee burst into hysterical tears, screaming, “NO!” Poor little thing had been terrified of him, but didn’t let on during the whole thing. Addison just gathered her into his arms, and let her cry for a while. When she calmed down, he apologized for making her feel badly. He’s such a good daddy!!!

We headed over to DCA and met up with Alan’s group at Grizzly River Run (of course). They took a couple of runs on the river, and then we headed over to the Hollywood Backlot for the Aladdin show. Unfortunately, we were not allowed to get to where my dad was, so we were separated from half of our group for the show. It was a great show, as always, and we got a much different perspective from the balcony. We usually sit on the ground floor, so this was new to us. We loved it, though! I think this was the first time we’ve seen the show that all the kids stayed awake. The little girls were entranced by it!

After the show, Dad wanted us all to hurry back to DL to see Billy Hill and the Hillbillies at the Golden Horseshoe. However, the kids didn’t want to sit through another show. So, we compromised. We decided to stay in DCA for lunch, and do some rides we hadn’t done, and then go to the Golden Horseshoe for the 4:00 show. Dad was ok with that (as long as we promised not to miss the show), and we all headed to the Pier area. On the way, I stopped in at the Baby Care Center to feed Timothy. While I was doing that the rest of the gang toured the tortilla factory and got a yummy warm tortilla to munch on! I caught up with them after that, and we headed into the Sourdough factory for that tour. I’ve never done this one, and it was very informative. My kids loved it, since their Daddy makes sourdough bread. They liked the video that explained the whole process. Of course, the yummy sample helped, too!

Next up, lunch! Dad had seen corn on the cob that he really wanted, and so we headed to the Pier to find it! Luckily, it was at the same place where hot dogs were sold. We loaded up on hot dogs and corn on the cob, and enjoyed a peaceful few minutes of eating. I don’t usually like hot dogs, but this one was really good! I think we were all really hungry!

After lunch, we headed toward Flik’s Fun Fair. First stop: Heimlich’s Chew Chew Train! I really wish this were a longer ride. It’s so much fun!!! Timothy liked it, and so did all the rest of the kids. After that, Timothy napped in his stroller, while the other kids went on Francis’s Ladybug Boogie (just like the teacups), then did Tuck and Roll’s Bumper Cars. At this point, Dad and I peeled away from the group to go to the Golden Horseshoe to save some tables for our group. It was nice to be just Dad and me! We made it back to Disneyland quickly, and were able to snag 5 tables in the middle of the room. We plunked backpacks and jackets on the tables, and then ordered ourselves some cold lemonade. The day had gotten very hot, and that tasted so good! The rest of the group straggled in, and we got ready for the show. I hadn’t seen it in about 20 years, so I was excited to see it again. No one else had ever seen the show. Should be fun! The kids were hungry, so I ordered a hot fudge sundae for them to split, and an order of chili fries for us all. The sundae was huge with 2 gigantic freshly made chocolate chip cookies. The kids devoured it. The fries were good, too! Large platter, with wonderful chili! My sister’s kids helped us eat all of this, so my sister ordered another sundae, strawberry, this time. It was a nice break! The show here was SO FUNNY! I wish I’d taken some pictures, but by this time, that was the last thing on my mind!

After the show, we all split up. Alan was on the hunt for a turkey leg, and then we planned on taking the kids back to the hotel for a swim. We found a turkey leg vendor on Main Street, right by the Partner’s statue, so Alan was happy. He and the kids split this and we made our way, slowly up Main Street. As we passed the silhouette shop, we decided to stop and have one done of Timothy. We had done one of the other 4 kids a couple of trips ago, so we needed Timothy to complete the deal. I’m always amazed at the talent here! We bought frames for both images, so we could give one to my Dad, as well. Then it was off to the hotel for a rest and a swim.

DL was going to close early tonight for Grad Night, so we weren’t sure that we would even head back there, but Jacob was absolutely dying to get a light saber! So, after a couple of hours in the pool, we made our way back to Tomorrowland. Alan took the kids on Star Tours, while I stayed off with Timothy. After their ride, they spent about an hour making light sabers for Jacob and Mary. They were both thrilled with their souvenirs! Leslie also found a Baby Minnie wrapped in a blanket that she chose for her souvenir, and Katie found some Tinkerbelle earrings.

Once all this was done, we met up with my brother’s family for a late night ride on Splash Mountain, and some more rides on Pooh Bear. These 2 rides never seem to get old!

At this point, we split up again. Katie had 50 dollars burning a hole in her pocket, and was dying to head into DTD for some shopping. I took her, my Dad and my niece, Marina and off we went. The rest of the gang went back to the hotel where they ordered pizza and watched Underdog. We had a great time at DTD. First stop was World of Disney, where I could easily go nuts! I did manage to restrain myself, however. I came out of there with a Mickey Mouse trivet, a spatula and some crystal earrings for Katie’s birthday. Dad loaded up on Christmas presents for his staff, and some baby outfits for the next baby to be born (this December!!!!). Marina found some stuff she liked, but wanted to bring her Mom back to look at, but poor Katie couldn’t find anything she wanted. She was coming to the conclusion that it’s much easier to spend your parent’s money, than it is to spend the money you’ve worked so hard for!

Next stop was Build A Bear Workshop. Katie was hoping to find some exclusive DL merchandise for her bear. She found some pink Mickey ears and as she was getting in line to buy them, my dad grabbed them out of her hand and bought them for her, along with some sandals for the bear. Can we say, “spoiled???” My brother met us there. He had brought his daughter Emilee in to pick out and make a bear. He was still feeling guilty for her scare earlier in the day, and this was his way to make it up to her!

We left and began to make our way out of DTD, however, we had to stop at Jamba Juice for a smoothie. These things are my dad’s weakness, and I have to admit that it was very refreshing.

As we headed back onto the plaza, we could see the Grad Night crowds gathering, and we thanked our lucky stars that we were not going to be in that crowd! We made it back to the hotel in plenty of time to share in the pizza and to watch a few minutes of the movie. As I finished my first piece of pizza, I looked around and noticed that with the exception of Katie, all my kids were sound asleep. Alan and I gathered up our kids, and made our way back to our own room. It took some doing to get everyone in their jimmies and brush their teeth, but pretty soon, they were all in bed again, and sawing those logs! All in all, a very nice day!