DS8 First Trip of Awesomeness - Dec 15-22 2013

[JamesMom]

Part 1 - Introduction

Sorry, no catchy title, but read on if you want a detailed, picture filled trip report of the World before the Christmas madness.

Cast:

Me: Homeschooling mom of two, married to DH for 12+ years. See siggie for Disney Wedding pic. This is my 10th trip to the world, 13 to Disney properties (2x to DL and once to Paris).
DH: A guitar playing system architect. This is his 4th visit to the world (not counting 2 trips to DL) and his first since our wedding in 2001.
DS11: Arrow of Light earning Cub Scout, cartoonist and resident minecraft expert. This is his 3rd trip to the world.
DS8: Will not be defined by acronyms (Autism spectrum, ADHD, Sensory, LD etc.), piano playing, Dr. Who maniac. This is his first trip to the world.

Reason for trip:
With his 'issuess' we have kept DS8 at home with DH during DS11 first two trips, but now that he has coped so much better with life's challenges it was time to see the World.
DH wanted to go at Christmas when the decorations are out and the weather is temperate. For DS11 and I, any reason is a good reason to see Mickey and the gang.

Details:

7 nights at Port Orleans Riverside
Free Dining Plan
8 day Park Hopper with Water Parks and More
Magic Bands with Fast Pass+

Brief Itinerary

Sunday - Arrive MCO, Dotwntown Disney, T-Rex, DisneyQuest, World of Disney [Posts #2 and #3]
Monday - MK, Fantastyland, Frontierland and Haunted Mansion, Hotel Pool, Chef Mickey, Grand Floridan Tree and House [Posts #4, #6 and #7]
Tuesday - Studios, Sci-Fi Diner [Posts #10 and #11]
Wednesday - AK, Hoop De Doo [Posts #12 and #13]
Thursday - MK Tomorrowland and Adventureland, Blizzard Beach and Winterland Golf. [Posts #14 and #15]
Friday - Epcot Future World, Coral Reef, San Angelo Inn, Illuminations [Posts #20 and #21]
Saturday - MK Christmas Parade, Epcot World Showcase
Sunday - O'hana breakfast, Downtown Disney/Typhoon Lagoon. Flight home.

Budget
~$6,500 Total
$3,500 Hotel, Tickets
$1,500 Flights
$1,500 Misc - kennel, cabs, drinks, tips, merchandise, photopass+

 

[JamesMom]

Part 2a - Arrival

Woke up at 5 am to catch our town car from our house to DFW Airport to catch our 7:30 direct flight. This was DS8 first plane trip and he was quite nervous about it (as he is with most new things), but he got on and soon realized it was no big deal. Plus, it was cool to ride above the clouds.

Magic Bands Ready to Go



Waiting at the Gate



First Plane



Nervous on the Plane



De-icing the Plane - It was 27 degrees when we left. Take off was delayed 40 minutes.



Much Happier Once in the Air



View from the Sky





On the Bus to the Resort




Long Check-in Line - room wasn't ready yet at 1pm



First Christmas Tree at the World

 

[JamesMom]

Part 2b - Downtown Disney

Boat Ride to Downtown Disney



First Stop - World of Disney Store. Nana asked me to pick up Ariel Princess outfit for DN3.



Then, off to Lego Store



Lunchner at T-Rex. Kids voted this the best meal of the trip. Adults enjoyed it, too! DS11 ordered burger, DS8 Pizza, me and DH had steak - mine also had scallops and shrimp - yummy!











DS11's Birthday is only a couple of weeks away and he decided to forgo a party at home to celebrate at the world. Here he is with his mango sorbet - which he loved.



Donut Dessert for 2 saved for breakfast



Next, off to DisneyQuest. DH played classic Robotron while the kids enjoyed the rest of the park.









Stop to watch a living Statue on the way to the bus



Finally our room is ready and every one tries to rest for our big day tomorrow.







Yes, we made DS8 sleep on the floor on top of pile of extra blankets (he still has toileting issues....). He sleeps on the floor half the time at home, too. Crazy kid.




Stay tuned for the next installment.

 

[JamesMom]

Part 3a - Magic Kingdom Morning

A phone call from Mickey woke us up. DH went to get drink refills and himself some breakfast, while the kids and I made due with last night's donuts. We were on the bus by 8am for the 9am opening. We caught the opening show and explored Fantasyland in relative peace.
We had three Fast Pass+ for today - 9:30am Peter Pan, 10:30am Belle and Noon Splash Mountain. We obtained paper fast passes for Under the Sea and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.

List of Rides in Fantasyland:
2x Dumbo
2x Barnstormer (1x for DS8 and DH)
2x Tea Cups
Carousel
Peter Pan FP+
Small World
Pooh
Enchanted Tales with Belle FP+
Philharmagic
Under the Sea FP-




Opening Ceremony



Using our Magic Bands to Get in



The Tree



First Look down Mainstreet



DS8 Reaction



First Stop- Dumbo - This was a walk-on but the boys wanted to explore the tent, so we got a pager for the couple of minutes before boarding. They got to remain on for another round. This was DS8 favorite ride of the whole trip! Look at the smiles! DS8 uttered his first of many "This is so awesome!"









Next, we hit Barnstormer and others until our Peter Pan FP+ was about to expire. We had fantasyland to ourselves with everything a walk-on until Peter Pan when lines started to develop.

Barnstormer - DS8 wasn't sure about this one and it proved to be the litmus test for all other 'scary' rides. No more coaster-like rides for him for the rest of the trip. Big Brother was all over it so Mom and he rode again.



Tea Cups - DS8 loves things that spin! Mom, not so much, lol. The kids rode by themselves for the next ride.



Pooh got a big thumbs up along with Philharmagic, Small World. Peter Pan was okay, but it is one of DH childhood favorites.



DS8 didn't prove valiant enough before riding the Carousel.





DS11 got picked to play the horse in Enchanted Tales with Belle



Doubt he will forget his first princess



Mom enjoyed singing along with Ariel Under the Sea




Next Installment, Frontierland Afternoon

 

[RDawn]

Can't wait to see more!

 

[JamesMom]

Part 3b - Frontierland Afternoon

List of Rides:

Haunted Mansion
Splash Mountain x 2 (DS11)
Big Thunder Mountain x 2 (DS11)
Tom Sawyer Island
WDW Railroad

Fast Pass Paper Runner - NOT. DS11 was our Fast Pass runner for this trip but not after Tuesday. Two incidents, today and tomorrow, would demote him from that duty and they weren't his fault. On our 2010 trip he was an expert on Fast Passes, but seemed to forget how they world. I sent him to Big Thunder while the rest of us waited outside Haunted Mansion with instructions to insert our cards. Well he came back with 1 valid pass and 3 dummy ones. Why? He inserted the same card 4 times. *Doh. So off we all went to get new fast passes and wasted 15 minutes of our day. On the Tuesday installment, I'll tell the other story. The bright side is we burned of more calories and had fast passes

Fast Pass Plus - worked great for us. I had screenshots ready in case there were problems, but there were none. Since DS8 was now skittish of anything that looked remotely like a coaster, DS11 got to ride 2x on the Mountain range of MK. We simply traded DS11 band for DS8 as each parent rode with him separately. Lucky boy! I quickly took to wearing DS8 band on my photopass lanyard as we were switching out so often over the course of the trip.

Onto the rest of the day...

Haunted Mansion was enjoyed by all, but was disappointed that the musical wall didn't work. We watched the special on the room TV and were looking forward to it. The bookcase worked though.





DS11 Loved Big Thunder. He got to ride 2x as the adults took turns staying with DS8 as he watched the gieser with great interest. DH and DS11 are the ones with their hands up in the middle of the train.





The same thing with Splash Mountain. This time DS8 played in the playground . DH and DS11 3rd row from front, then Mom and DS11 in last row.







Then we had lunch at Pecos Bill. DS11 and I ordered Taco salads while DH had a burger. DS8, who is the pickiest eater on the planet (sensory issues) had to be content with yogurt (the uncrustable had offensive grape jelly on it - he prefers just peanut butter - at least he took a bite before declaring it unedible). We thought it was yummy.



To run off some energy and stay out of lines we spent about an hour on Tom Sawyer Island. The kids loved it and didn't want to leave, but the adults wanted to some downtime at the hotel.



Our last ride of the day was taking the Railroad to the front gate.




Next Installment, Hotel Pool and Dinner at Chef Mickey

 

[JamesMom]

Part 3c - Hotel Pool and Chef Mickey

With a few hours to kill before dinner, we headed off to the POR pool. It was about 75 degrees, but we just had an ice storm the previous week back home so it felt warm enough to swim in. DS8 loved the slide while DS11 and I enjoyed the hot tub most of all. DS11 checked out the 'campfire' which DS8 skipped in favor of the pool. He regretted it when he saw the pic of marshmellows - lol.












DS11 and I had eaten at the Breakfast meal on our two previous trips, but with free dining we decided to give Dinner a try. DH and I were not impressed, especially when compared with the fantastic meal we had last night at T-Rex. But the kids enjoyed seeing the characters and DS8 LOVED the ice cream fixings bar.









One last birthday cupcake for the pre-birthday boy



After Dinner we checked out the decorations at the Contemporary and Grand Floridian.

Contemporary Gingerbread House



Grand Floridian Tree



Family Photo in front of Floridian Tree - wished we were better dressed, lol



Grand Floridian Gingerbread House - we bought a shingle and can attest that it tastes as good as it looks!



On the way back to POR we passed in front of the Wishes fireworks. This was as close as we got. Yes, there is a story to be told, but you have to wait for it.




Next Installment, Tuesday - Disney Studios

 

[jrj]

Yay... A fellow Texan... We're in North Dallas... Following along... Can't wait to read more

 

[Disneylover99]

We were at POR the 13th-16th. I remember that chilly Monday (the 16th). I wore my winter coat to get coffee in the morning but we were sitting by the pool in the early afternoon.

 

[JamesMom]

Part 4a - Studios Morning

List of Rides:

Toy Story Mania x 3 (DSs)
Backlot Tour
Great Movie Ride
Star Tours
Muppet Vision 3D
Honey, I Shrunk the Movie Kids Movie Set
Rock 'n Roller Coaster (Adults x 2)
Tower of Tower (Me x2)
Lights, Motor, Action Extreme Stunt show
Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular
Osbourne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights


DH got up early and brought back breakfast for everyone. To save on credits, he got the kids and I the Child's meals for cash. Therefore, DS8 got to try his first Mickey Waffle. And the amount of food was plenty for us.

Child's Mickey Waffle Plate at POR



DS8 First Mickey Waffle (in bed, even!)



Then it was on the first bus to Disney Studios and another Christmas Tree



Now, is the second part of the Fast Pass story. Recall, the first part getting Big Thunder yesterday. Well, today DS11 knew the deal - run to Toy Story and using EACH card get paper fast passes, then meet us to ride stand-by. That was the plan.
As we were entering the park, DS11 hopped lines as he was so excited to get in. He had a problem with his band, and he pointed to us out to a Cast Member who simply nodded in our direction after making eye contact.
Thinking DS11 was just pointing us out to the cast member, DH, DS8 and I continued on to Toy Story. We get there and no DS11. Originally thinking he got lost on the way with the crowd, DH doubled back to find him while DS8 and I got in line to ride.
Well, DH found him at the entrance where the Cast Member was detaining DS11. Not sure why they wouldn't let him the park, but all is well that ends well. We decided that we would go as family everywhere from now on.

Both DS got to ride Toy Story 3x - DS8 and I on Standby. Then using our 9:00am Fast Pass + we rode as a family. And, after taking a break to ride the Backlot tour, DH and DS11 rode using paper passes, then one final ride with just DSs.

DS8 in Standby line



Ready to Play



First Score



Outside while DS11 and DH - Yes 50 minutes already at 9:25



Boys with Army Man



DS11 beat Mom - Just barely



Backlot Tour - DS8 freaked on Catastrophe Canyon. Oh well.



Then it was off to lunch at DH new favorite Restaurant - Sci Fi Diner. He loves Mystery Science Theatre - a comedy group that heckles old fifties movies - so this place was right up his alley. And the food was pretty good, especially the oreo milkshake. Thanks Dining Plan And it was the quietest meal of the trip. The kids and my husband were enthralled with the previews on the big screen.



DH and I ordered the ribs while DS11 ordered a burger (his staple) and DS8 attempted the chicken nuggets but settled for the vanilla shake.





Yes the shake deserves it's own picture, lol



Cheesecake dessert that I took 1 bite of. Too full.




Next Installment - Studios Afternoon

 

[JamesMom]

Part 4b - Studios Afternoon

After lunch we did the Great Movie Ride. Fortunately, DS8 didn't freak when the alien came from ceiling. DH loves Wizard of Oz and made me take pics.



DS11 picked out this great souvenier for me. Sweet Boy! (Says "Worlds Greatest Mother")

]

Then the guys rode Star Tours. I feel awful after motion simulator rides, so I sat this one out and watched a Jedi Academy class.





DS11 had to have this hat after seeing it. The kids were given $100 each spending allowance, and neither spent more than half.



Snuck a shot of Phineas and Ferb with strangers as the boys didn't want to wait.



My fast pass plus times were coming up for Tower of Terror and nobody but me wanted to ride. And I had seen the Muppet show countless times, so we decided to split up. The kids and DH went to the Muppet show and then to the Honey, I Shrunk the Kids Movie Set playground.

So, I headed off solo to Tower of Terror. I sat next this other single rider. Turns out she was a cast member who waited in stand-by. Her plan was to ride it several times in a row on her day off. I only had 20 minutes left on my fast pass+ (of which I had 3 remaining), so I shared one with her. She was giddy as we strolled past the stand-by line of 30 minutes. She is the one with her arms up in the black sweater in the first row. I am on far left side in purple. It was great to pass on the magic to Cast Member for a change




Our Fast pass + for Rock 'n Roller Coaster was earlier, but the ride was closed. But DH loves that ride, so I rode it 2x on single rider line with only a few minutes wait each time. After my ride, I meet the rest of the family at the Playground when DH took off for his own ride on the Coaster. Forget to give him the Photopass card so no pic on his ride.

]

The kids LOVED the playground. They were there for an hour and half, so no more rides in the Studios. But, who cares, they had fun and that's what matters.



But we had to drag them out for the shows. First was the Lights, Motor, Action car show where we saw Lightening McQueen. Then to the Indiana Jones show.



Lastly, we walked up to the Osbourne Lights just in time for the opening show. Quite impressive. We thought for a second about staying for Fantasmic, but everyone was tired and ready to relax at the hotel. So we called it a night and got dinner at the POR food court.



Studios Tree on the way out




Next Installment, Animal Kingdom

 

[JamesMom]

Part 5a - Animal Kingdom Morning

List of Attractions:
Dinosaur (x2)
TriceraTop Spin (x2)
The Boneyard
Finding Nemo - the Musical
Expedition Everest (Adults)
Kilimanjaro Safaris
It's Tough to be a Bug
Meet and Greet with Mickey and Minnie

We took advantage of the Early Entry morning though my husband wasn't pleased about missing his beloved breakfast. The kids I got bagels and danishes on snack credits and ate them while in the admission line. DH is not a danish kind of guy. We had to catch the 7am bus and POR doesn't serve hot breakfast until 7. Sorry. He will miss it again tomorrow for the Magic Kingdom early opening, too. Opps.

Bright and Early!



Animal Kingdom Tree



The other Animal Kingdom Tree



We had Fast Pass plus for the Safari, Kali River Rapids and Everest so we headed to Dinoland U.S.A. first thing and had the place to ourselves for awhile - literally - check out the ride pics. As to be expected, DS8 hung out in the gift shop while us parents took turns riding with DS11.









DS8 finally got to ride something - TriceraTop Spin! We stayed on for 2 rides.





Surprisingly, both boys passed on Primeval Whirl, so we headed off to Tough to Be a Bug show. But not before we got a great family photopass shot.



After the show we still had a few minutes to kill before our Safari FastPass+ time so the boys walked on to a photo shoot with Mickey and Minnie. This was our Christmas card photo this year.



DS8 Loved the safari. I like that they took out the poacher story line and just left it about the animals.







I kept trying to find Wilderness Explorer Outposts. Then main station was closed when we first got there, and never found it again. So the boys never did get their books or stickers. Oh well. We did find these two though -



The guys banged on a few drums







Though not as well as these guys



We had planned to take the train to Rafiki's planet watch after the Safari, but DS8 couldn't wait to see his favorite movie portrayed as a show - Finding Nemo. So we hightailed to the great performance. Well, everyone besides DS8 thought it was awesome. DS8 didn't like the puppets. Oh well. Maybe the Epcot ride will be more to his liking.

After that we grabbed some lunch at Flame Tree Bar B Q. DS11 and DH got the pork sandwiches, I got the turkey sandwich, and DS had mousse. We didn't really need to conserve meal credits as DS8 barely ate on this trip. Oh well. We had a visitor during lunch. On our trays were cards specifically asking us not to feed the birds.



DH and I decided to drop the kids off at the Boneyard playground with stern instructions to not leave until we got back from Expedition Everest. None of the kids wanted to ride so we had 2 trips for the two of us. But one proved enough, especially after having just eaten lunch. The coaster was not our favorite - that honor belongs to Rock 'n Roller coaster.





After that we pretty much were done as we wanted to relax before the dinner show tonight. So we skipped Rafikki again and didn't use our Kali River Rapid's fast pass either. We spent a couple of hours just relaxing in the room before taking a taxi to Fort Wilderness.


Next Installment - Hoop De Doo Revue Dinner Show

 

[JamesMom]

Part 5b - Hoop De Doo

When I made the ADRs six months ago, we actually had reservations for Cindy's castle dinner for Thursday for just DH and myself. But, after inquiring about it on the DisBoards, we cancelled our 7pm reservation it was on a Party night. We would most likely be denied admission to the Magic Kingdom if we didn't show up before 4pm (or said the Cast member on the phone) so we scrapped the plan in favor of Hoop De Doo tonight.
Which worked out better in several ways. Didn't have to put the kids in the Neverland Club and DH kept a family tradition alive. He went to the show on his first trip to the world in grade school and watched his Dad perform in the Tutu. Luckily, DH wasn't picked for the role, but everyone enjoyed the food and the show. Well, except DS8 who ate the Pop Tarts I brought with us.

After relaxing in the room for a couple of hours (nobody wanted to go to the pool), we took a cab direct to Fort Wilderness and caught the internal bus to the Pioneer Hall. We didn't want to spent an hour or so catching a bus to MK and then the boat. The cab fare was only $9 bucks with tip - so we took it back to POR as well.

The show was corny and the food was good, and overall was a great way to spend 2 table service credits per person.

At the Playground before the show



Pre Dinner Hula Hooping



Family Photo



A Christmas Carol Serenade



Enjoying the show



Stick 'Em Up



Let's Make Some Noise





Just a quick story that about ruined the evening for DH. Before seating, he grabbed us some cocktails to enjoy in rocking chairs in front of Davy Crockets while we watched the kids play on the playground. He inadvertently left his credit card there (after telling him could just use the band to charge to the room), but didn't realize it until we were already back in the room after the show. After several phone calls, it was found. I talked DH into simply cancelling the card with the credit card company instead of taking time out the next day trasping back to Ford Wilderness. He agreed.

The kids and I enjoyed the POR ragtime piano player/singer Bob Jackson for about 15 minutes in the River Roost Lounge while DH handled business in the room without the kids to distract him (in other words, in peace and quiet, lol).


Next Installment - Magic Kingdom - Tomorrowland Early Entry

 

[JamesMom]

Part 6a - Magic Kingdom Tomorrowland/Adventureland

List of Rides:
Tomorrowland Speedway
Astro Orbiter
Space Mountain (x2)
Buzz Lightyear (x3, or x5 for DS8!)
Tomorrowland Transit Authority People Mover (x2)
Carousel of Progress
Stitch Great Escape
Monsters, Inc. Laugh Floor

Swiss Family Treehouse
The Magic Carpets of Aladdin
Enchanted Tiki Room
Jingle Cruise
Pirates of the Caribbean


This morning is another early entry day, this time to the Magic Kingdom. We caught the 7am bus and went straight for the entrance catching the opening show at an angle.

Armed with fast pass + to Space Mountain, Tomorrowland Speedway and Jungle Cruise we headed straight for Tommorowland. After seeing the lack of lines I immediately got on My Disney Experience app and changed Speedway to Pirates of the Caribbean.

Tommorowland! Paging Tom Morrow...



First stop was Speedway where DS8 needed to be prodded to push the pedal.







Next DS11 went solo on Astro Orbitor as no one else wanted to go. Then it was off to Stich's Great Escape. Which is appropriate as DS8 and I hung out with Stitch while ds11 was riding Astro.



Then 3 rides on Buzz Lightyear till Space Mountain Fast Pass+ time arrived.





The obligatory shot with Emperor Zurg



DS8 wanted nothing to do with Space Mountain so we went on Buzz another couple of rides before boarding the Transit Authority. DS11 and DH used our wristbands to ride 2x in a row.




After watching the Monsters Inc. Laugh Floor show we decided to save the short line rides of Transit Authority and Carousel of Progress for our last rides of the day, so we left Tommorowland for Adventureland.

But, first must get Castle shot. I forgot our first Magic Kingdom day so made up for it by having 3 (yes 3) sets taken today. Good thing as only this one shot was worthy - but it is an awesome shot. Others had DS8 hand in his face - didn't the photographer notice? This one made it worth it!



DS11 must have his Dole Whip before anything else happen in Adventure. He forgot about this, but Mom remembered how much he loved it. He wanted more, but there are rides to be had. DS8 had plain vanilla.




We walked onto Pirates, but my phone would not let me change the Fast Pass. Cast Member said we could if we went to the station, but didn't want to take the time to do and what would we have made the pass for? So we burned the pass on a walk on. But not before the cast member showed DS8 what to do with the rope DS8 was playing with.



After the ride we had fun in the shop and caught the Jack Sparrow show







Before our Jingle Cruise Fast Pass+ time we got in Aladdin's Magic Carpets, Tiki Bird show and Swiss Family Tree House.



After finishing Adventureland we got some chili dogs, cotton candy and cracker jacks at Casey's. We ate while listening to the piano player.





Then we headed back to Tommorrowland for the timeless favorites of People Mover and Carousel of Progress. And yes, we are the annoying family who sings the song with each spin.



View of Space Mountain from WEDWAY People Mover



Because there is no such thing as too many treats at the Magic Kingdom and there is a law that all visitors must consume at least 1 Mickey Ice Cream Bar while on property we indulged in a classic.



Caught the last bit of the Dapper Dans show



And tried to find "Goofy Burgers" in the Candy Store. It was an extra large gummy 'crabby patty', if you know what that is, that my DS11 had on previous trips. But, they apparently don't carry them anymore. DS11 tried to get this as a substitute - NOT.



Finally we mosied our way the rest of the way out of the park and boarded the bus to Blizzard Beach.


Next Installment - Mini Golf and Blizzard Beach

 

[JamesMom]

Part 6b - Winterland Golf and Blizzard Beach

After a fun morning at the Magic Kingdom we boarded the monorail to the Contemporary resort and planned to catch the bus to Blizzard Beach. But since time was off the essence (It was already 1pm), we called a cab to take us to the golf course.

Included with our Water Parks and More is a daily round of golf before 4 pm. We had been renting lockers to store our coats each day since the weather was cool in the mornings and evenings, but approaching hot during the day, we needed to store all our stuff at the golf course. Well, our MK rental wasn't accepted at the golf, but the staff spread Christmas cheer as well as pixie dust by giving us not just one but two lockers to store our stuff on the house. That saved us $6! Thank you.

Since we did not have enough time to play both courses and our tickets only allowed 1 free round per day, we chose to the popular winter course. We only had to wait for one other group to begin before it was our turn. I don't believe that DS8 had ever played mini golf before, but he got the hang of it pretty quick. It had been ages for DH and he had never played a Disney course. DS11 and I had played both of these courses on our last visit in 2010.

I am proud to say I got 2 whole in ones while DS11 got 1. Not that we kept score as several members of our party exceeded 6 strokes to get the ball in the hole. Eeek.

Here are some pictures of our fun time.







Fuzzy - but he got a Hole in 1!








James found a present for himself





After finishing our round, we changed into our swimsuits walked over to Blizzard beach for the last 2 hours in the deserted park. DH rode Summit Plummit 2x with absolutely no one else in line and a few slides with DS11. I stayed in the bobbing pool with DS8 with a pina colada before we headed to the water play area - which he totally LOVED!

Family in pool (DH in raft with grey shirt, kids are there somewhere, lol)


DH is somewhere up there on the slope while DS8 plays in the water (blue shirt in foreground)











Everyone had a great time.

Then we boarded the bus back to POR where we had another dinner at the food court and a quiet night after an early and long day. Well, I also got to do 2 loads of laundry, lol. We could have watched Hercules on the outdoor screen, but the boys just wanted to curl up in bed with their ipods. We let them.

 

[15isto2]

I love the report so far, thanks for posting. Your DS8 must be really tall he looks to be nearly the same height as your DS11

 

[JamesMom]

Thanks to the few who are reading!

Yes, my kids are 30 months apart to the day. But my youngest is only 2 inches shorter (as of this summer at check ups) and is 4 pounds heavier! I get asked if they are twins all the time.

Again, thanks for reading.

 

[pld5]

Great report! You look like you got so much done at what looks to be a busy time!

Loved your comments on Hollywood Studios. My DS freaked at Catastrophe Canyon and was NOT happy about the alien in the Great movie Ride.

And we are a family who sings at the Carousel of Progress in MK too.

My son is afraid of Haunted Mansion and has never even tried it, it seems that both of your sons enjoyed it though?

Looking forward to your report on your Epcot day.

 

[JamesMom]

Thanks for reading.

Both kids did great on Haunted Mansion. On DS11 first trip when he was 5, he hid in my shoulder the whole ride terrified. But DS8 took it all in stride as nothing was unfamiliar since he watched YouTube videos of it already.

Glad to hear you guys sing on Carousel of Progress, too. "It's a great big beautiful tomorrow..."

 

[JamesMom]

Part 7a - Epcot Morning

So far the trip has been according to plan. Other than skipping a couple of things at AK and switching a fast pass at MK, everything is on schedule.

This morning was to be a full day at Epcot - and it was. However, the plan was to hit Future World until lunch - World showcase until dinner and I was to enjoy Magic Hours after DH took the kids back to the hotel after Illuminations. Well, we followed most of that. Future took pretty much the whole day and my feet were begging to go home by noon, but I kept going until Illuminations.

World Showcase is one of my favorite parts of the World, and DH came to my rescue. Read on.

---

We got up early to have a hot (yay DH!!) breakfast in the POR food court with DH so we got to sleep in until 6:30am, lol. After another round of Mickey waffles we got on the bus to Epcot.

I really miss the opening shows with characters at the non-MK parks.

Having learned our lesson about Fast Passes, we went as a family to the Land. I hobbled most of the way with some really bad blisters on my foot, but after an hour or so I was feeling much better and could walk at my normal pace. We got Paper Fast Passes and hopped in the short-for-now standy-by line for Soarin'

DS8 tried to balk on this road. DH who had never ridden it and thus, didn't understand just how mild it is, was out of his seat ready to take DS out. But I put my foot down (the one without the blister) and basically forced DS8 to stay put. He was glad I did. He loved the ride. Sometimes, Mom's do know what's best.

We rode again using our Magic Band Fast Pass and then again with paper fast passes after the Land boat ride. Loved all the Christmas touches.

Never Knew that The Land had a Gingerbread "house"



Then we headed to the Imagination Pavalion where DH finally got to see Captain EO. It's dated especially with the 80s BIG HAIR so is was worth a couple of laughs. Then we rode Figment, which DS8 loved (the smell!), and played in the playground for a bit.

Leaping Waters



The Water had DS8 total attention



Huge "Simon" game









After a snack of soft pretzels and popcorn (we ate LOTS of popcorn on this trip) we headed to Test Track and grabbed Paper Fast Passes then rode our Magic Band passes.

Topiary Shot on the Way to Test Track



DS11 Thought this Coke Advertisment was Cool



Designing our Cars





Our ride broke down right before the speed test. DS8 could see the road ahead during the 5 minutes we sat there and started to freak. He wanted out. I did my best to calm him, so you can see he buried himself into my side for the rest of the ride. This was declared the worst ride of the trip. DS11 LOVED it and wanted to ride again, but our Paper Fast Pass was for 8pm that night (it was only 12:30pm) so he has to wait.

Well, maybe not. On the way out, a family of 4 approached and asked if we wanted free Fast Passes for 5pm, since they had Candlelight reservations and wouldn't be able to make it. So I offered our 8pm as a trade they gladly accepted. Worked out for everyone!



Racing Game after the ride



Don't know how many mailing lists we are one now, but we did the photo by the sports car and the commercials activities



After getting our new fast pass times, it was now time to head to lunch, but not before spending a few minutes at Innoventions. Sum of all Fears looked cool, but not the 45 minute wait so the kids had to be content with other stuff.



Lunch at Coral Reef was underwhelming. We had a 10 minute wait for a table. I had planned on the aquarium keeping DS8 occupied as he LOVES marine life, but we could barely see it from our corner booth way in the back row. We did get up and look at the fish before our meal arrived, though. We weren't terribbly hungry and none of the menu items stood out to us, so we made a last minute decision to not use the plan, but rather pay out-of-pocket for this meal. Our poor waiter was patient during our changes, but DH got the Chicken Ceasar salad, DS11 got the kids steak meal, DS8 "ordered" the kids pork tenderlion meal which I ate, and I asked for the Lobster Bisque. Came to $60 with tip and used the table service credits for our O'hana meal - a much better value. It was nice to be sitting down with food brought to us then another counter service meal line. So it was worth the stop.




Next Installment - Future World Afternoon