Divas, Zebra Domes, and Pixie Dust! A Week in an African Paradise! New TR Link Pg.145

[MAGICFOR2]

Hi Jackie! Sorry I missed wishing Chelsea a Happy Birthday - sounds like she had a great day!

Loved the photopass pics!

Shocker, loved the video, funny that Chelsea didn't know who was singing!

The scooter was the best!

Did her party look like this?

since I apparently have gotten 14 pages behind in the last couple of very busy weeks, it is possible someone has already mentioned this but I had to jump in. I do believe this is indeed a girl giraffe. How can you tell them apart? (without turning them over of course ) Boy giraffes have horns that are bald on top while girl giraffes have fur topped horns

 

[SunnieRN]

Happy Belated Birthday Chelsea!!! Sorry I'm late, but I was out celebrating mine yesterday!

Love your photopass pictures! I am looking forward to seeing more.

I honestly don't think you had a diva moment whatsoever. I think it was an "Oh my gosh, it's so frippen hot, I have a cranky kid, I'm starving because I only had a roll for breakfast, I can't believe Charles just got here a bit ago and he is changing our plans" justified moment!!! How's that for rationalization?

Love that Connor protected you from the storm and that you were sweet enough to go get fast passes while your family rode mission space!

Bye the way, I LOVE Phineas and Ferb and have to beg my grandson Connor to watch it with me, since we've seen them all so many times.

 

[Charleston Princess]

Happy Birthday Chelsea!! Hope you are having a great day!!!!

Tracy

Thank you! She did have a wonderful day!

What great Photopass pictures, Jackie!! Soo sweet!!

And Happy 12th Birthday to Chelsea!!!

Thank you! Chelsea enjoyed her day as the Birthday Girl!

Love the photopass pics. I was when Chelsea said you had to tell her who Paul is.

Happy birthday Chelsea!!

Thank you! Yes, my daughter knows who the Beatles are, but didn't know their individual names.

:0 Fun times.

They were!

CP - Love the photopass pic! Really, really cute!

Shocker - Love the video. Edited because I made an unkind remark about the drummer. That's what working in a hospital all week will do to you!

Crap - just burnt my greenbeans watching that video!

Thanks! I want to know what the unkind remark was now!

Happy Birthday to Chelsea...and congratulations to you Jackie-it is no small feat to have your daughter turn 12 and all the care, consideration and patience it takes to reach that point-so kudos to you too...

Thank you so much!

And I'm hear to tell you not to be afraid of the teenage years-I have a 14yr old DD who is lovely (95% of the time) and I have yet had a serious urge to sell her...

Lovely Photos as well!

I am hoping to have a relatively stress-free set of teenage years -- that would be just lovely!

Happy Birthday to Chelsea!!
Great photopass pics.
Yay for an update goal!

Thank you! Chelsea loved all the birthday greetings!

Happy Birthday, Chelsea!

It's amazing how fast they grow up. I love the photos from the Magic Kingdom! Very, very nice. And so cute with the ears, too.

They grow up way too fast! Thanks -- overall, I was very pleased with our PP pictures this year!

I hope your family had fun celebrating Chelsea's birthday! And I think your photopass pics are great!

We did! I ate way too many lemon cupcakes though.

Oh I forgot! YES, I have been to Key West, ONCE. When we were on our DISNEY cruise!!!!!

Seriously, we were not able to go to one island, I can't remember which port now, but it was because of weather.... so they rerouted us one day.... ANYWAY, it was really pretty, very cute, reminds me of the resort we just stayed at, but not so big!!

Hemingway's house is there.... the house and over 100 cats!!!! It is crazy!

We are very excited to explore Key West -- all the pictures of it are so beautiful and relaxing looking. Hemingway's house is the number one thing I want to do there, but what's funny is that it is also Connor's number one thing to do (besides the beach and the pool) because I told him about the cats.

 

[Charleston Princess]

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CHELSEA!!!!!!!


---Signed, the OTHER Chelsea. The one 2,000+ miles away. Yeah, that one. Have a great day!

My Chelsea says thank you! She had a great day!

Happy Happy Birthday Chelsea.....can't believe I almost missed sending you our best for your best day ever

Jackie, love the pictures, beautiful family

Thank you! Chelsea enjoyed being the center of attention yesterday.

First of all....

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CHELSEA!

and 2nd....

I have been to Key West twice. I KW for a LOT of reasons and DH and I had a lovely lovely trip there 2 years ago.

However.....I wouldn't take my kids there. I'm not sure if this is a couple trip or a family trip so just wanted you to beware. My sister tried it 2 years ago with her family and ended up back in Orlando, early with no place to stay b/c she felt it very inappropriate for her kids. Just a lot of debauchery in the streets at night. And during the day. As in stumbling down drunk getting sick in the streets drinking in public on the street encouraged inappropriate.

Which works as an adult if you want to ride your beach cruiser from your B&B in your swimsuit to Sloppy Joe's for a beer, or to Margaritaville for well, a margarita, (or both) and back but not so much with the small folk.

My sister likes her wine as much as anyone and it's not like her kids are completely innocent but...if you are bringing the kids just be careful in old town, especially at night. It is gorgeous, the drive incredible. The beaches not much to speak of. Plenty of good food and some truly truly lovely places to stay that are very private, lush and retreat-ish, but....it is far more geared to singles and couples.

Thank you for weighing in about Key West. It is going to be a family trip, so I will have to make sure that we aren't out and about at night (which isn't really a problem since my family tends to crash so early). What time of year did your sister go? Reading about Key West, it seems there are times of year that are crazier than others. If it is too bad, I won't be averse to finishing out the vacation at Disney!

since I apparently have gotten 14 pages behind in the last couple of very busy weeks, it is possible someone has already mentioned this but I had to jump in. I do believe this is indeed a girl giraffe. How can you tell them apart? (without turning them over of course ) Boy giraffes have horns that are bald on top while girl giraffes have fur topped horns

No one has told me that, Katie! I just knew she was a girl giraffe although I didn't know that about their horns! Too cool! Now I need to go look at the rest of my giraffe pics from later in the trip to see if my other assumptions are correct.

Hi Jackie! Sorry I missed wishing Chelsea a Happy Birthday - sounds like she had a great day!

Loved the photopass pics!

Shocker, loved the video, funny that Chelsea didn't know who was singing!

The scooter was the best!

Did her party look like this?

Actually we escaped from the Jonas Brothers theme this year -- for her big slumber party she wants it to be all tropical!

Happy Belated Birthday Chelsea!!! Sorry I'm late, but I was out celebrating mine yesterday!

Happy Birthday to you as well! Hope you had a wonderful day!

Love your photopass pictures! I am looking forward to seeing more.

There are more!

I honestly don't think you had a diva moment whatsoever. I think it was an "Oh my gosh, it's so frippen hot, I have a cranky kid, I'm starving because I only had a roll for breakfast, I can't believe Charles just got here a bit ago and he is changing our plans" justified moment!!! How's that for rationalization?

I like your definition of my moment!

Love that Connor protected you from the storm and that you were sweet enough to go get fast passes while your family rode mission space!

Bye the way, I LOVE Phineas and Ferb and have to beg my grandson Connor to watch it with me, since we've seen them all so many times.

Oh, I never mind FP running -- it is usually solo and a nice quiet walk.

My entire family is addicted to Phineas and Ferb -- even Charles likes watching it!

 

[2xcited2sleep]

So sorry I'm late to the party!

Miss Chelsea,

Hope it was a great day!!! ​

Photopass pics are too cute! Can't wait to hear more about the trip!!

 

[brookelizabeth]

Happy belated Birthday Chelsea!!!!!!!!

I hope you had a great day!

CP, from the very little I know about Key West, it looks amazing!!! I am sure you will have an awesome stay there as well!
​

 

[Charleston Princess]

So sorry I'm late to the party!

Miss Chelsea,

Hope it was a great day!!! ​

Photopass pics are too cute! Can't wait to hear more about the trip!!

Thank you! I know Chelsea will be thrilled to see that her birthday wishes are still coming in .

I am about to post an update!

Happy belated Birthday Chelsea!!!!!!!!

I hope you had a great day!

CP, from the very little I know about Key West, it looks amazing!!! I am sure you will have an awesome stay there as well!
​

Thank you, Brook! She had a great day!

We are looking forward to Key West -- I think it will be fun to explore someplace new to all of us!

 

[Charleston Princess]

Somewhere in the deep recesses of my mind, I heard Charles asking Chelsea what time they should wake me up. I opened my eyes to glance at the clock and it was about 4:30 -- time to get up and get ready to head back to Epcot for dinner, Test Track, Soarin’, and our Illuminations DIS meet.

Before we left, I switched bags. As much as I adore my Vera Bradley hipster, it was just too crammed with stuff and not working out for me. I changed to the little lime green Nike backpack that I have ended up using on every Disney trip since June 2007. It has lots of room and is just the right size for what I carry into the parks. I was hoping to minimize any sources of potential crankiness.

We reached Epcot very quickly and headed for our first destination: the Rose and Crown.

Our dinner reservation was for 5:50 that night, so we had some time to kill before eating dinner. We wandered around the United Kingdom just soaking in the atmosphere.

Chelsea said, “Take a picture of me holding up the Alice dress!” Clearly, someone has been reading trip reports over my shoulder.

And then she wanted to pretend to knock on one of the doors.

Meanwhile, all over the United Kingdom there were children holding Kimmunicators and completing KP missions. Now the KP missions are a series of clues/tasks and each new clue/task is introduced by this little ringtone-like jingle. If you have never heard it before, I found a youtube clip of the theme song -- the ringtone is at the very beginning.

Kim Possible Theme Song!

Any parent that has been forced to oversee the KP experience at Epcot knows what I am talking about. It haunts your dreams! Anyway, there were so many kids completing the UK mission that night, that we could hear that jingle all over the place. (A funny aside, last night when I was looking for it on the computer, Connor was watching television in the family room. He came over at one point and said, “Mom, I keep hearing the Kim Possible thing. It’s weird.” I resisted the urge to say, “Oh, is it haunting you, too?” and just explained what I was doing.)

Connor, still suffering under the cruel disappointment of having only solved one such mission, was becoming progressively more and more unglued. When I asked him what was wrong, he said, “It’s everyone doing the KP missions. I can hear the KP ringtone, and it’s not fair that everyone else is having so much fun!”

Ah, the bitter injustices of the world/World.

He had his hands over his ears and tears streaming, and I had about had it. It was Charles’s turn to handle the situation. He took him down to the International Gateway to sit on the benches and have a little chat with Connor about his behavior. Chelsea and I browsed the shop down there, and when we returned to the bench, Connor was in a bit better of a mood. I reminded him that we would be back to Epcot on Friday, if not before, and we could do more than one mission. (That statement was to be the cause of yet another chapter in the ever-frustrating Kim Possible Saga).

Finally, it was time to check in for dinner.

We got a beeper and had a seat on the bench out front. This was our view, so I had to take a picture.

We didn’t have to wait long, and soon we were seated at a table overlooking the lagoon. It was a gorgeous view.

Across the lagoon:

To the right:

There were birds patrolling along the railing, but they weren’t too pushy. I think they were just really hoping for some bread to fall.

I ordered a Welsh Dragon -- at that point in the day, I knew I needed something for my nerves. I even whispered to Charles, “Mommy needs a very strong drink!” It was delicious and so was the bread!

Chelsea, the only one unfazed by all the happenings of the day:

Chelsea and Charles ordered the steak, I ordered the fish and chips, and Connor ordered the bangers and mash. The food was very tasty, and we all enjoyed our meals -- although Connor was not thrilled with the gravy on his bangers. For dessert, both Chelsea and Connor got the ice cream sundaes (Chelsea didn’t see anything that she liked on the adult dessert menu), and I had the Bailey’s Irish Coffee Trifle! It was heavenly and went on my list of favorite WDW desserts!

After dinner, we headed out to use some Fast Passes!

UP NEXT: A Ride Chicken and a DIS Meet!

 

[Hollywoodhaha]

Mmm..food from Disney ..

 

[wigdoutdismom]

Looks like you all had some fun in the UK, well, except for Connor. I totally understand how he felt AND I totally understand how you felt....
I have to admit I've never had the chance to hold the Kimmunicator, while I did hear what seemed to me to be little chimes coming from them, I never got close enough to really hear what it was. Thanks for enlightening me!
It looks like you had a lovely view from the patio at R&C, enjoyed your dinner, and you have your whole family together. What could be better than that?

 

[Lady Lallie]

Did Chelsea and Charles have the steak that had the potato gratin and cheddar popover? Mmmmm.

Chelsea is too cute in these pictures. Sorry the Connor meltdown was continuing, that had to be really frustrating. I am so glad you got your Welsh Dragon too! It is so very pretty.

I had the same view waiting to be seated for Rose & Crown too!

 

[cjackearl]

I love that first picture with Connor. It's adorable.

Wow, the view from your bench is majestic!

Chelsea's got the hand on the hip pose down pat. Too cute!

Poor Connor. It probably felt like all of those KP mission doers were flaunting their fun in his face. I've been there, with fraying nerves, when one of my kids acts like a dog with a bone they won't let go. A Welsh Dragon sounds like good medicine. AND anything with Baileys in the title has got to be good.

 

[Hedy]

I'm amazed Chelsea was so unfazed (I thought picking up on any drama was in the teen/tween girls' handbook)

 

[KathyRN137]

Before we left, I switched bags. As much as I adore my Vera Bradley hipster, it was just too crammed with stuff and not working out for me. I changed to the little lime green Nike backpack that I have ended up using on every Disney trip since June 2007. It has lots of room and is just the right size for what I carry into the parks.


He had his hands over his ears and tears streaming, and I had about had it. It was Charles’s turn to handle the situation. He took him down to the International Gateway to sit on the benches and have a little chat with Connor about his behavior.

Small bags just don't cut it, especially when you've got kids! Let's face it... moms carry lots of stuff!

I feel for Connor... WDW can be tiring and overstimulating for any kid. Perhaps if he had taken the little nap like you did, he would've been much more in control of himself!

He must really have enjoyed those missions. Well, he's really the perfect age...


Kathy

 

[adamsup]

Before we begin our journey to the Happiest Place on Earth, let's revisit some moments that began just days before the trip which earned Charles his nickname of Road Trip Diva.


And this conversation which occurred seven hours before we hit the road:

Charles: Honey, wake up.
Me: WHAT?
Charles: I am going to go to the gas station and get drinks for the morning. What do you want me to get you?
Me: I don't care.
Charles: Honey, you need to decide.
Me: I DO NOT CARE!
Charles: Honey, you need to focus.
Me: Agghhh! Fine, get me a cream soda.

Did Charles come home with a cream soda? Nope, he came home with a Dr. Pepper for me.

Just five and a half hours after the last conversation took place, the alarm went off. It was Disney Day! I jumped out of bed, ran around like a maniac showering, throwing last minute items into suitcases, and making sure everyone was showered and ready. By 6:15 everything was in the car and ready to go. We made last-minute checks of the house and prepared to walk out the door when my eye fell upon something clutched in Charles' arms.

Me: What is that?
Charles: My pillow.
Me: Why do you have your pillow?
Charles: So I can be comfortable while I sleep in the car.
Me: Really?

I am surprised he didn't produce a sleep mask to go along with it.

It was 6:25 as we pulled out of the driveway.

By 6:36 we had paid and ordered at our local McDonald's; by 6:41 we were on I-75. I was driving and made great time through downtown Atlanta.

Curious.. why did you get drinks from the gas station ahead of time when you went to McDonald's for breakfast? Don't you like their fountain drinks? We love McDonald's drinks so we totally would have got them from there!

... hi btw

 

[2xcited2sleep]

R&C looks yum, yum, yummy!! Especially that Welsh Dragon. Mommy totally deserved a very strong drink! And what a view from your table. I can't wait to eat there in Sept!!

I feel for Connor... that has to be hard to have everyone around you seemingly doing what you want to do and you can't. It's like if everyone around me were drinking champagne and I couldn't have any. Anyway, glad he snapped out of it (with some help from Charles) although the Kim Possible foreshadowing has me concerned.

Love the pic of Chelsea with the Alice dress. Very cute!

 

[Nicole786]

I know the exact sound you are talking about and it haunts your dreams! lol

 

[twenty3curls]

You guys had a great view at Rose and Crown!

Also, I the way Connor was holding onto the KP thing is a boy thing. When my brother was that age he always wanted to do the one thing that was going to be the most time-consuming, involved the most plan-changing, and was the most disruptive to the rest of the family. My mom always struggled with it, because she was tired of always telling him 'no.' She just wished he would pick "easier" things to want!

Can't wait to read more!

 

[WrightFamily06]

Great update Love all the pictures of the UK , your kiddies are so cute in them Sorry to hear that there was alot of melt downs over KP So glad that my kids are still a little to young to know about this after seeing your troubles . LOL Rose Crown and Royal Pub meal sounds like it was very good , we actually had ressies there this year and skipped it but after reading what you had to say about it now I'm kinda disappointed we did, Oh well there's always next time .

 

[Flossbolna]

I love the look of that Rose & Crown Patio! I always wonder why so few restaurants have outdoor seating, but I guess it is because of the high temperatures in the summer. I am always there in January and would really love to sit outside! Perhaps I need to put the Rose & Crown back on the list because of that...