Dude, wheres my underwear? My first every TR!

[Kbendig]

Hello and welcome to my first trip report. I had a very interesting trip, throwing away almost all my plans by the first night and learning to go with the flow. I'll get to the fun, and not so fun stuff, later on. First let me introduce myself.

My name is Karenann, I am a 35 year old stay at home mom, part time child advocate (which unfortunately was important on the trip), full time grad student, and full time tired! I went to Disney for the first time when I was 13, my parents bought a timeshare while we were there and we went back almost every year after. I love the mouse, love being immersed in magic, and love vacations! We stayed on site for the first time in 2011 and I don't think I would do it differently anymore. This trip really sealed the deal with that though.


My husband is Dan, he is a 33 year old programmer. He went to Disney a lot when he was very young, but then didn't go back until our honeymoon when he was 23. He's not a big Disney fan, doesn't like walking and would rather spend his vacations sleeping. He wont admit it most of the time, but he really does have fun when we are there. Luckily for me, and not for him, I plan the vacations around here.


My son is Kevin, he is a 5 year old Disney lover. His favorite ride is Buzz Lightyear and his favorite restaurant is Garden Grill. This was his second trip, the first one was when he was 3. He has ADHD and SPD, so I was a little nervous before the trip. He can get very aggressive and hit people if he is overwhelmed, normally only hitting us but there is still a chance someone else would be in the line of fire. He also can't handle loud noises, but luckily we found out that massaging his fingertips calm him so I had a secret weapon ready.


We went from October 20-27, not our original plan. The trip was rescheduled a few times, originally we were going the first week in October to be there on our actual anniversary. Then in April of 2011 I got pregnant, the trip was postponed because I was having twins. We didn't want to try to juggle 2 infants in the parks, figuring we could wait a few years. Then in September I went into labor, my babies only lived a few hours. We were suddenly not only very sad, but very broke from hospital bills. The last year was crazy, but we made it through. Over the summer we decided that we would go to Disney in March of 2013, Kevin's spring break. After looking at prices and crowd estimates we decided against it.

We then moved the trip back to January of 2013, we had the week set and Dan took the time off of work. The thing is, last time we went in January is was freezing, we were miserable in the cold and not enough time went by for us to forget it. But, we did like the crowd level. Then I got an email about free dining in October, it fit into our original plan and it would be warmer. I didn't think Dan would go for it, but to my surprise he said ok!

So in June I made our reservation for a week in POP Century, upgrading to the regular dining plan. I had some fun things planned for the week: we were to have a pirate day with the Pirates League then the Pirate and Pals cruise, a few seminars from food and wine, a date night with Kevin at the Sandcastle Club, the Dessert Party, and a LOT of pool time. How much of that would we do? Just wait and see!

 

[CW4DW]

I'm here and can't wait to hear about your family adventure. I'm so sorry to hear about the loss of your twins ~ I can't imagine what that was like. I love Pop Century and look forward to the rest of the story!

 

[Kbendig]

The day was finally here! I woke up and showered and dressed by 7, then woke up Kevin so he could get ready as well. He was in a grumpy mood, but as soon as he remembered it was Disney day he was very happy. Dan got up a little later and by 8:30 everything was packed, unplugged, and in the van to go to the airport. This was the first thing to go wrong.

Dan’s friend was supposed to take us to the airport, then he made a doctor’s appointment for that morning. Dan has driven him to the airport multiple times so they argued a bit and decided he would come early. So the plan was that he would come to our place and drive us in our van to the airport, then head back and get his car and head to his appointment. He lives close to us, so we moved the pickup time up a half hour to 8:45 am and figured it would work out. 8:45 came and we are all strapped in the car waiting to go…

8:50…

9:00…

9:05…

Finally around 9:10 Dan gets a text saying “we’re on our way.” WE???

He shows up at 9:15 with his wife, so now we need to take out the luggage and rearrange the car. We start heading out and his friend tells us that he’s dropping us off and just taking our car to the appt. UGH! Our car was not for his personal use, he has a small car and not used to our Sienna, and it wouldn’t be necessary if he came on time.

We get to the airport just before 10, say bye and head on in.

Now here is the thing with Dan, he gets weirded out when he is stressed. And security lines stress him for some reason. Not because he’s nervous about safety, but because he feels he has to rush and he just gets nuts. One of these days he’s going to be stopped because his behavior gets all wonky.

We finally make it through security and head over to grab something to eat. A donut for Kevin and some coffee and croissants fur me and Dan. With our bellies full and well caffeinated we walk over to our gate to wait. Now, I know a lot of people like to go on first with kids but not us. I want to be on as close to last as possible. The more Kevin can run around the easier the flight. We travel often, and he has never had a bad flight so it works for us.

We had a very easy flight down and landed about 20 minutes early. During the flight Kevin made a friend, the family in front of us had a little girl who is 5 and they talked most of the flight. We got off the plane and they had to walk to ME together, hand in hand. They had to say bye because we were headed to POP and them to SSR, he was sad to see her go but got over it when he made a new girlfriend on the bus.

After a quick stop at CBR we were at POP. I ran in to check in as they waited for the bags. There was no line and in minutes we were ready to see our room. I had requested a lake view, but it came back as an error so I wasn’t sure where we would be.

We headed over, and we ended up in the 50’s section with a lake view. Beautiful!! It was nice to walk out in the morning looking out at the water and being able to see AOA. We dropped our stuff in the room, did a potty stop, and ran back to grab a snack and our mugs.

The three of us split a pizza with apples as dessert. We had a late breakfast and had a 7:40 ADR so we didn’t want to eat too much. After we ate we went back to the room to gather our things and drop off the mugs and go to our first adventure.

 

[Kbendig]

I'm here and can't wait to hear about your family adventure. I'm so sorry to hear about the loss of your twins ~ I can't imagine what that was like. I love Pop Century and look forward to the rest of the story!

Thank you for reading! And thank you, it's been a very crazy 2 years and this trip was very much deserved.[/COLOR]

 

[Kbendig]

We walked down and hopped on the bus to MK, we actually had really good luck the entire trip when it came to busses. Except when it was time for Downtown Disney, I almost gave up on going because I was sick of waiting for a bus.

Anyway, we got to the park and immediately went over to get a GAC. I wasn’t sure if we needed it or not, but I wanted to make sure it was on me just in case. After that we walked right in, got our first pics taken, and walked right up to the curb for the parade coming by. We were just trying to take it all in and walked down main street knowing where we had to go.

Buzz Lightyear!

Kevin has been talking about this ride for months, so it had to be the first. The wait was about 30 minutes so it didn’t leave any time for another ride after, so we walked back over and took a few more pics along the way. We checked in a little early for our ADR and were called in around 7:30. I love Crystal Palace, it’s such a neat atmosphere and the characters are great. We got to our seat and were told that Piglet was coming by, well he was 2 tables away and then went in the opposite direction.

Since Piglet walked away the boys went to the bathroom and I went to get my food. I was walking back to the table as they came out and I saw Tigger at the next table. I ran over and told Kevin to come with me, and we got there just in time. They did some bouncing and some signing and off he bounced. I was able to turn the page just in time because Pooh was right behind! Pooh and I had a very long embrace, he’s so squishy.

Then it was time to eat. Kevin managed to eat one chicken nugget, we tried to get him to eat but he kept saying he wasn’t hungry. I figured he was too excited to eat, and made him eat his salad if nothing else.

Next up was Eeyore, sad as usual. Then Piglet finally came by. Right after Piglet came they did their parade which was a lot of fun. When Kevin came back we told him he could have fruit since he didn’t eat dinner, he was fine and asked for grapes. So off to get some grapes and dessert for me.

Around this time Kevin started playing with the kid sitting next to us. Now, what bothers me about going to Disney is that I see a lot of parents who decide rules don’t apply in Disney. They don’t tell their kids no, let their kids do whatever they want, etc. I make it very clear going in that I can and will punish while on vacation. The kid next to us took his shoes off and was climbing on the back of our bench, with his little bare feet resting on the table behind us. Kevin tried to do that and I flipped, told him he was not to do that and it was disgusting and if he did he would have a long day in the hotel with no tv tomorrow.

Then people sat at that table, and the kid was still climbing all over it. I felt like I had to turn and tell them it wasn’t my kid, instead I made Kevin sit in his chair. He wasn’t happy, and the people gave me dirty looks, but come on! Who wants to eat with some kids feet in their food???

Anyway, so we are having dessert and Tigger comes back. Kevin tells Tigger he will share his grapes and Tigger pops one in his mouth. We laughed and Kevin took it from Tigger and ate it. Tigger put his head in his hands like OMG!!! And then high fived me. It was a great interaction, until Kevin said something that made me sad. “He’s not real, that’s a costume.” Tigger looked quite upset at that, and then Kevin explained that the real Tigger was busy, kinda like the real Santa, and then all was ok again.

We paid and then decided to head back to the hotel. We were tired and wanted to get out before the rush. We got to the bus stop right at 9 and watched the fireworks while we waited. The bus came quickly and Kevin fell asleep on the way back. As we pulled into POP we woke him up and started walking back to the room. We made it 2 benches when Kevin says “I need to do a big cough”. Big cough=vomit.

So we try to run Kevin to the garbage can but didn’t make it. I gave Dan some tissues and ran to find a CM to help us clean up. This CM made me very upset though, we tried to get him to the garbage, but he is 5 and couldn’t make it. Kevin also gets very nervous with big coughs so he was now quite upset as well as sick. The CM got snotty with us, I finally turned and said I would clean it up but I had no supplies so just get me what I need and he could go. Dude, I know this isn’t your idea of a good time but don’t make him feel bad about it.

Dan took Kevin up to the room and I tried to see if they had something to help his belly. They don’t. So I went back up and Kevin was changed and in bed already. I unpacked the rest of our stuff and went into bed myself.

Would Kevin be ok tomorrow?

 

[pooksma]

So sorry for your loss.


You TR has included all my fav elements so far! A trip to POP, the 50s section with a lake view (we have actually stayed in the same room twice and the one next to it as well), and Crystal Palace, a family tradition!

Looking forward to more! What a great title

 

[Kbendig]

Real Life Update: This week has left me very sad, cold, dark, and out of my home. The day after we came home we had to prepare for a hurricane, only hours later I watched tv as my memories were washed away. Around 3 pm on Monday we lost power, then the storm got to us. We stayed in our home for a few days but the cold was getting unbearable, so we packed up and headed to my brother’s. He only lives about 15 minutes away, but his part of town had power. We head home daily to check and to take care of the cats, but we are still without power. My entire town is without power. Areas are completely gone, I know we are lucky to have no physical damage, but this is taking a huge toll on Kevin. The lines for gas have him terrified we will run out, so much that he cries when we leave the house. He is absolutely terrified we will have another storm (last year a hurricane hit us and we had to cancel his birthday party, which was at the Jersey shore that’s now gone) and won’t sleep much. He has been out of school 6 days now, not counting the week in Disney. I don’t have the heart to tell him that we are supposed to get an ice storm on Wednesday, which may make everything worse. I want a normal life again, and we are slowly easing into some level of it.

Day 2​

I didn’t sleep well the night before, with Kevin being sick and it being the first night I was up and AWAKE by 5. I was reading trip reports and someone mentioned walking around the hotel at 5 am, good idea!! So I hopped in the shower and got ready, was out the door around 6. I took a long walk just looking at everything, it was our second stay there but the first time was COLD and other than the parks we stayed in. I almost walked across the bridge to AOA but decided to do it another time with Kevin. Once 7 came I went and filled my mug with coffee and grabbed a few bagels for the room. I stopped in the gift shop and got Kevin a little bus, we didn’t bring any toys with us and I figured if he was sick it would give him something to play with.

When I got back to the room Kevin was awake and confused because I was gone. Dan does not wake up well, so I think they were arguing about whether or not I was in the bathroom. Anyway, Kevin said he was hungry so I gave him some bagel and hoped for the best. Was able to eat half a bagel, and then Kevin played a bit with his new bus. After an hour Kevin said he felt ok, at that point he had vomited once and had no fever or any sign of problems. Dan and I talked it over and figured it had to be something he ate, and since he felt fine we would head to the park.

Around 9 Dan got up to get ready. Now, part of my original plan was to take Kevin in the morning and let Dan sleep in. He could always meet up with us. This only happened once, and not today. It was the first “plan” I made that had to be changed, and certainly not the last. We had a F&W demo at 5 and then Garden Grill reservations at 7, my plan was to go to MK in the morning and then monorail it over. Kevin has never ridden the monorail and begs us to let him. But alas, we ended up going right to Epcot.

Kevin saw “the big ball” and had to go in. We walked up and it was a 40 minute wait. Uh…we can wait. We headed over to the land first because at that point Dan was hungry and we figured we could have an early lunch and then snack at the booths until dinner. We went in and the FP for Soarin had a return of 5-6, which was the time we would be at the demo! So we walked to the land and there was a 30 minute wait. Dan walked up and asked where the FP machines were (we had some blindness and missed a lot of FP machines), the CM pointed them out and then said not to worry and to go right in. We said thanks, but we would wait it was fine. He said no, it’s our anniversary and we shouldn’t have to wait. LOVE the Magic! We walked right up and went right onto a boat.

Kevin loved the ride, he is a very healthy eater and loved his produce. We get an organic produce delivery once a week and he gets so excited when the box comes. He was trying to guess the vegetables and asking a ton of questions. A few we didn’t know, but the couple behind us were so sweet and answered some of the questions. When we left I was considering signing up for the Behind the Seeds Tour, but not today just in case Kevin felt bad again.

After the ride we headed over to Sunshine Seasons for lunch. Dan and I split some noodles and Kevin got a kids pizza Panini. I hadn’t had the bagel much before so I was full quickly. Kevin ate most of his food, then said that his belly hurt. Dan took him to the bathroom and I cleaned up. They came back a few minutes later and he said he was fine, so off we went.

Next us was the Seas, Kevin’s second favorite ride in all of WDW form the last time. We had a 10 minute wait which wasn’t bad, and soon we were…well…watching scenes from the movie. It’s cute and all, but not my favorite. We got stuck a few times which freaked Kevin out, but soon we were back on land and headed on over to Turtle Talk with Crush. I LOVE this!!! I could come back show after show, unfortunately I am the only one. After the show I walked out and Dan went to get Kevin, I stood at the exit forever waiting. Finally they come out, it turns out another father knocked Kevin over to get to his kid and Kevin was upset. Because waiting for 30 seconds would be too hard???

After yet another potty break it was time for the big ball! We walked right up (why do people wait in line?) and soon we were in space. Right when we started backwards it stopped, Dan took a nap and Kevin started getting worried about returning to Earth. It wasn’t long before we landed, and now it was just after 12 and we decided to head over to WS.

Next up: Would Kevin even like the WS?

 

[Kbendig]

So sorry for your loss.


You TR has included all my fav elements so far! A trip to POP, the 50s section with a lake view (we have actually stayed in the same room twice and the one next to it as well), and Crystal Palace, a family tradition!

Looking forward to more! What a great title

Thank you! I love the room we had, the location was great too. It was a little farther of a walk than last time but so worth it.

 

[Kbendig]

So I left off we were walking to the World Showcase. We walked up and decided to put on some sunscreen. I normally go at least a day without, I don’t burn and am really low on Vit. D. So unless I am in the constant sun, I try 1 day without and then put it on. So Dan has the bright idea to stop next to the first booth. Really? You are going to use spray sunscreen next to food? I finally convince them to move and they go over to the bathroom to put it on.

We stopped over by the UK and got some drinks and a snack. Kevin seemed fine, and after a short break we walked on. We got to the Agent P station and I asked if he wanted to do it, he was hesitant but said ok. We got our communicator and went off to France. We started our mission and then…nothing. Our communicator was broken. We tried a few times and finally Kevin wanted to give up. I knew he would like it, so Dan said he’d go get another one. Kevin was hungry, so we decided we would go looking for a snack and Dan would replace it and meet us in Japan.

Kevin and I walked along and stood outside Japan for a while. He wanted a pretzel and I didn’t want to walk to Germany and miss Dan. Kevin and I walked around and looked at the fish for a bit, then Dan came back. Before our mission we decided to go in the store and find a snack. Dan thinks he is Japanese, he actually speaks a little as well, so we spent a very long time in there. While they were looking I decided to go pick a pearl. I walked up and paid and only had 2 people ahead of me. Kevin came over and he wanted to choose for me.

Finally my turn came and Kevin was so excited. He loved the little show they do, and out comes a perfect pearl. 7.5 mm. I didn’t pick a setting there so I put it away and off we went to look some more. They finally chose some snacks and we headed back out for our mission. Now, because of France Kevin wasn’t very excited. But this communicator worked, and OMG he had a blast. He took it very seriously, and I loved how the CM’s we passed all stayed in character and asked how the mission was going. By the time we finished the mission it was a little after 3. We had a cooking demo at 5 so we headed around to drop off the communicator and grab the boat back to the other side. Last trip Kevin wanted a boat ride and we just never did, so this time if he wanted to ride the boat we said ok.

After dropping off the communicator in Italy and headed to Germany to get him his pretzel and some more drinks. Dan and I sat and drank and Kevin went over to check out the trains. Once the next boat started back we got everything we needed and got in line. After a quick ride we were back in future world again. We headed back to the old horizons building and went in to wait. We had about a half hour, so they boys made a potty run and I walked around.

I looked at my phone and had a text from the friend who was feeding the cats. “You’re going to be mad, I’m so sorry. I need to talk to you.” Now, she is a bit flaky so I figured she decided to go away and couldn’t feed them. I call her and it turned out she locked herself out of the house. So by the time we finish figuring out how to get her back in, it’s time to line up. I wasn’t sure what to expect, and the demo was a lot of fun. We tried to sit at a table and this couple walked over and said they were going to sit there and glared at Kevin. Not wanting to make a scene we walked off. He wasn’t the only kid there either, not worth arguing over. He made through 45 minutes of it before asking to leave. I grabbed him and we headed out to wait.

The demo was fun, it was interesting and the samples were good. It was definitely worth the $30 for us to go, but I wouldn’t do more than 1 a trip. It was now 6 pm and we had a 7pm ADR for Garden Grill. So we walked in that direction and I decided to ride Figment. I love Figment. I think it’s a cute ride, nothing amazing but cute. Kevin. Was. Terrified. This was the only ride he was crying on by the time we left. He was begging me never to make him go on again, and even now if I say Figment he pleads to never go on it again.

After calming him down we made our own Figment, which Kevin thought meant a stuffed one would be up front for him. It was cute, and will come into play another day. We left there and headed over to the Land. We checked in early and were seated in minutes. Here’s the deal with this place, Dan and I don’t like it. Dan thinks it smells like chlorine and neither of us are wild about the food. But this trip was part birthday present for Kevin, so a few things were planned specifically for that. He opened up different invitations on his birthday, and dinner at his favorite restaurant was one of them.

The problem was, Kevin still didn’t feel 100%. So throughout the meal he ate maybe 3 bites of food. Dan and I ordered seconds of the beef but it never came, well it did come but that was as we were paying the check about 30 minutes later. One thing I do love about this place is the interactions, the characters are great here. Mickey came by twice and even sat with us for a bit. Kevin reminded Pluto that he licked him last year, so Pluto licked him again. Then Kevin made sure to tell Mickey that he was a bad doggie. And Chip and Dale…well let’s say after I yelled SQUIRREL I was told to kiss their uh…tails…in the nicest way possible. I was hysterical!!

Kevin got his special birthday dessert…which he couldn’t eat much of. Oh and one cute story. Kevin is obsessed with buffalos. So as we are turning we get to the scene with a fire and there is the baby buffalo, he was yelling to put the fire out whimpering “poor fella” over and over.

We got out about 7:30 and decided to head on back. Kevin wasn’t feeling well and we had an early morning coming up. On the way back I decided that if he couldn’t eat I was going to cancel our ADR’s for the next day and we could think of something else. I didn’t want to go when he couldn’t eat. We were back to the room and in bed by 9.

Tomorrow is Animal Kingdom day…would it go as planned?

 

[Kbendig]

The original plan for today was to be at the park at 8am, do what we could the first hour, then have breakfast at Tusker House at 9. Do some more stuff at the park, then right after the parade head over to AKL for a Boma dinner at 4:30 before heading back to the room and hitting the pool. The plan was great, until Kevin got sick. The new plan was still to get there close to 8, but breakfast was on the go and dinner was going to be QS as well.

I got up at 6 and was showered and ready by 6:30. We wanted to be on the bus around 7:30 so I woke up the boys next. Kevin did not want to get up, he was cranky again this morning. I finally convinced him to go potty so Dan could go shower. As Dan was showering I had Kevin get dressed. I started putting dirty laundry away and couldn’t find Kevin’s underwear. I asked where it was and he didn’t know. By the time Dan got out the 3 of us were searching the place high and low for the missing underwear. At 7:45 I said forget it. It would show up, but we had to go!

We ended up getting to the park around 8:30, later than planned but I figured we could at least do the safari with no wait. Only, Kevin threw a fit about the safari. It was strange because the last trip this was his favorite park, this year he didn’t want to be here at all. We ended up going back to dinoland and riding the fake dumbo. After that we headed over to the train to go to Rafiki’s Planet Watch.

On the train there was a family sitting next to me, they had 1st visit buttons on. Apparently no one told them that Disney likes to stay in character. As we are going they announce we are on our one way trip…and the family starts to PANIC. The entire drive they are saying they need to ask how to get back, and the husband is getting mad at the wife for not asking first. When the train stopped the ran over to a CM in a panic asking how they get back. I finally was able to tell Dan, and he said I should have turned and asked how they thought the animals were fed. I did feel bad for them, but it’s Disney! Do they really think they would strand all their guests?

So we go in and Kevin is saying how his belly is bad again. We walked around a bit and it finally dawned on me…this kid hasn’t pooped! So Dan and I have a discussion and we manage to convince Kevin to go to the bathroom. He was freaked out about public bathrooms, so we said he could go to the companion one and he finally agreed. So off they went and I was left to “watch this turtle and tell me what it does.” Yep. I’m on that. They got back a little bit later and I gave a turtle update. We walked over to where they had some crayons and activity sheets and Kevin got to work. We talked to the CM who was from NJ too. We said we were about to leave when he was done and the CM mentioned Rafiki would be there in 10 minutes. So we stayed and ended up 3rd in line. Awesome!

We got a train back and none of the boys wanted to do anything. We got fastpasses for the safari, and Kevin became obsessed. Like, he would not stop talking about fastpasses the entire trip. After grabbing those it was around 10 and I wanted a snack. What I really wanted was a cupcake to split, but there were none. So we ended up grabbing some popcorn and nuts and grabbing a chair for a bit. We talked over the map and other than the safari, the only other thing anyone wanted to do was Kali. It was fine, by this time it got HOT and I was glad to be heading out early. We threw out our trash and headed to a store for a bit. Kevin played with a bunch of instruments and then did his first pin trade. It was a lot of fun, but it was getting late and we had a long trip ahead of us.

Remember how the people on the train got nervous? Well, now it was Kevin’s turn. It wasn’t until about halfway through with him looking nervous and upset that I realized what was wrong. “Kevin, it is just a ride. We aren’t going away for weeks, we will be back in like 20 minutes. RELAX!” But it was still fun, and all the animals were active despite the heat. We decided to go to Kali then grab some QS at Yak and Yeti and head out. Well, Dan and I decided. Kevin started crying he did not want to go on the ride. Part of his sensory issues is that he can’t handle his face getting wet, so this upset him. Finally I grabbed his hat and said that would help and he finally agreed.

He was still nervous on the way up. He was tapping everything like he does when he’s upset so we did a lot of massages. The wait, despite the heat, was only 10 minutes so soon we were on our boat. We got a LOT more wet than we had last time, and Kevin was not very happy. But the idea of lunch made him happy, so off we went. We ate quickly because by this time we were already dry and none of us wanted to be there anymore. We headed out and saw Dug, so of course we had to get in line.

As we were making the long walk to the bus I turned to Dan said that it was so much hotter inside the park. I think the put heaters on to make it feel more like Africa. We got on the bus and told Kevin we would hang out in the room for a little bit and head to the pool. We got back around 2 and up to the room we went. I tried to get him to nap, but after 30 minutes the only one sleeping was Dan. So I got us changed and headed off to the pool.

As much as I wanted to go swimming, Kevin would not go to the pool and only wanted the kiddie pool area. He made some friends and I rested a bit. I really wish I could have gone in, but he had fun so it was fine. We stayed until 4 and then went back up to the room. Dan woke up and we talked about what to do that night. After some quick showers we were heading back to the bus around 5.

Where would the night take us???

 

[SillyFamily]

Enjoying your trip report. Sorry your little man was sick. Have you heard of brushing? Its very helpful for sensory overload.

 

[CW4DW]

Sorry to hear that he was still sick - I'm hoping that turns around soon! Can't wait for more!

 

[Kbendig]

Enjoying your trip report. Sorry your little man was sick. Have you heard of brushing? Its very helpful for sensory overload.

Thanks for reading! I have not heard of it, what is it? We are pretty new to the sensory stuff. Our first Neurologist said it wasn't real, but the more we did with him the more we knew what he needed. All the therapists and the second Neuro gave us pointers but we are still learning.

Sorry to hear that he was still sick - I'm hoping that turns around soon! Can't wait for more!

Oh HE gets better soon! Let's just say we did end up with a scary Halloween party...

 

[Kbendig]

So I left off and we were leaving the hotel, but I forgot an important part! The missing underwear! As Dan was getting dressed I took Kevin’s bathing suit to dry out and inside was not 1…but 2 pairs of underwear. Apparently they were missing because he never changed them, just put a second one on and then went in the pool like that as well. Boys!

So the original plan was to head somewhere for dinner then go spend some time at MK. I checked and a lot of places had openings so we planned to go to the Poly and check out Kona. On the way to the bus Dan mentioned he had homework due at midnight. Uh….ok…new idea! Instead we decided to just go to MK and grab some QS and then a few rides, being home by 10.

The bus pulled up right away and soon we were back at MK. We decided to hop on the train for a quick ride. On the way we talked food, and decided Pecos Bill. We walked over and it was packed, we ordered and while Dan was waiting for the food Kevin and I went to stalk tables. We managed to get one right at the entrance just as Dan was heading back. We quickly ate and headed back out.

Our first stop was the Haunted Mansion. I LOVE the new queue, it was so much fun! The wait was only about 10 minutes and we were let in. We skipped the stretching room because last time Kevin could not handle it, and I didn’t want to chance it again. We got some looks when we headed to the side door, and when we were standing next to the same people minutes later I made it a point to say to Dan (loudly) that people thought we were cutting but here we are with them again. Seriously people, by the time we walked over we got out almost the same time. The only difference is that my kid wasn’t screaming. Good news is we made it out alive too!

Next up was Pooh, again another awesome queue! I could have played in that line for hours! After that was Peter Pan, well our first try anyway. There was a 40 minute wait but the line didn’t look nearly that long. I figured 30 at most, and 15 minutes in we were almost there..and someone had to go potty. So we left the line and then decided we would not wait again. Instead we walked over to Dumbo. We skipped Dumbo last time because of the wait, but I loved having 2 of them. The wait was pretty much nonexistent and the play area is very cute. We didn’t go in because of time, but it was a nice addition.

When we left Dumbo Dan suggested Kevin and I go on the teacups. I LOVE the teacups, Dan would get sick. Again, there was no wait and we were off the ride in no time. From there we walked back to tomorrowland and went back on Buzz, this time I got to spin and they both shot. I did my best to make Dan lose, but I failed. When we got off Buzz Dan looked at his phone, and immediately began to panic. It was after 10 by then, he HAD to get back! He started to get mad at me, and I kept reminding him he could have left (which I offered at least an hour before) and Kevin and I could have stayed. It’s ok though, because it was EMH so the bus lines can’t be THAT long. Right?

WRONG!! By the time we got there the line for Pop was at least 3 busses long. Now Dan is fuming, Kevin is cranky, and I am trying not to cry. I offer a taxi but he said no. Ok….and with that an AOA bus pulls up. Their line was shorter, so I tell him to get in that line and we will walk over.
Honestly, the bridge was right by our room so the walk wouldn’t have been that bad. As we are waiting in that line 2 Pop busses come and Dan wants to change lines. Now I am getting annoyed because it seems way too complicated and he is getting nervous and making it all last longer.

Luckily for us, there were 2 more busses right behind those and within 15 minutes we were on a bus heading back. When we got off I told Dan to run ahead. It was actually just past 11 at that point so the entire thing wasn’t THAT bad, later than we wanted and needed but looking back the busses were quite efficient. Kevin and I went inside to grab a snack. He wanted the tie-dye cheesecake so we got one to all share. Of course, when we went up to eat it no one else liked it. That’s fine, more for me! Kevin got ready for bed and he was quickly tucked and passed out. It was about 11:45 so I grabbed our mugs and ran down to get refills before they closed.

We talked about the plans for the next day and around 1 I was in bed sleeping. Dan did manage to get his stuff done, and ultimately he got a B+ in the class so it didn’t do much damage.

Up next: Dino’s and just how scary can MNSSHP be?

 

[Kbendig]

Tuesday morning we got up and had a quick breakfast in the room. We figured we could go to Downtown Disney for 10 then shop and lunch and be back around 3. We would relax for a while, then at 4 get our costumes on and go to MK for the party.

As usual in this trip, none of my planning worked out.

We got up and out pretty quick, and were at the bus stop around 9:30. We waited. And waited. And waited. 10:30 a bus finally comes. This was the only time that I was unhappy with the bus, and we almost changed our plans again. It also took forever to load and get there so it was around 11:15 by the time we got to DD. But, we were there and going to make the best of it.

Kevin went to the splash area and Dan and I talked lunch. We finally decided to go try T-Rex because he didn’t want to QS in one day and we planned a QS dinner. We walked over to the restaurant and Dan checked us in while I took Kevin for a potty run. By the time we got out Dan was walking to a table. Awesome! The waitress came over and took our order and told us to go walk around, which we did. I have to say, we aren’t big Rainforest Café fans, but this place was amazing. We loved the restaurant!

The food came out and the portions were huge. I wasn’t expecting it. As we are eating a little girl walks up next to the table, she looks scared and starts whimpering “mommy…mommy…”. I looked around and didn’t see any acknowledgement. Crap. A lost kid. So I jumped up and asked if she was lost, she said she couldn’t find her mommy. With that my husband said he saw a women walking around like she was looking for someone, could be her mom. I got the girl to walk with me over to a waitress and told her the girl was lost. The girl got to her mom who was only a few tables behind us, but at a booth and couldn’t see.

So I sat back down and Kevin is staring at me. He asked if that was like my job, protecting kids. I said sort of, my job is different but that I knew what to do and it was ok. “mommy, wouldn’t it be great if all moms were like you?” Aww! For a little while after he was terrified of losing us and stayed close. I had to encourage him to move away and do stuff, that as long as we knew and could see him it was fine.

Anyway, I noticed Kevin wasn’t eating and kept asking if he was ok. Finally he says he has to go potty and his belly hurt again. Dan took him to the bathroom and I finished up eating. The waitress came by 3 times while they were gone asking if everything was ok. I tried to explain he had been sick and I didn’t know if he was sick again or what. The waitress was amazing though, she didn’t seem upset but concerned that something was wrong. So they come back and Kevin actually eats. Dan and I decided to split a dessert and Kevin got some ice cream. After we were done the boys went to play on the other side and I took care of the check. Because we took so long and she was great I gave 25%, you would have thought I left her $100. She came back saying thank you, I shouldn’t have given so much, etc. When I told Dan we kinda wondered if some wait staff get less tips with some people on the dining plan. We always do 20% at Disney unless something with the waiter is very wrong, then we try to get it resolved. I just found her reaction very nice but also…worrying.

I met up with the boys and we looked around some more. It was getting late, lunch took 2 hours, so off we went to shop. We spent some time in the Lego store and Kevin made us out of legos. As we were leaving there I felt off, I mentioned to Dan that I may have eaten too much. Next stop was WOD where Kevin wanted everything! As we are in there I picked up a Figment doll to mess with him, and he runs over all excited asking if that was the one he made. We laughed over it, but after I thought I should have said yes and bought it for him. Oh well, if that was my only bad mom moment this trip we were doing great! Next stop was Once Upon a Toy, and while in there I realized it was already 3. I still wanted to do more shopping but we had to go.

We walked over to the busses and had another long wait, though less than before. I have to admit I really do enjoy DD, but the bus situation this time made me not want to do it again unless we drove. By the time we got back to the room it was a little after 4. I got Kevin into his costume and put mine on as well. Kevin was Mario and I was a Peacock. Dan was Louis CK (when I can post pics I’ll put one up, they look like twins) so he was already dressed. We didn’t get out until almost 5:30. Around this time I know I mentioned to Dan again that my belly still felt off, and said that I really must have had too much. I got a HUGE meal, but didn’t finish it.

We make our way to the bus and everyone we see Kevin is yelling to look at my mommy, she’s a beautiful peacock!” We get to the front and he runs ahead, not a problem he knows where we are going. I was talking to Dan and I looked ahead and I see Mario cutting in line. I scream to him and I get a response from a bench. Huh? We ended up in line behind another Mario. They talked about the game while we waited for the bus, it was very cute. His mom asked if she could take a pic of them and we said of course! The bus didn’t take long and soon we were off to the party!

Next up: Where’s Luigi? He should work here! And this is not good at all guys…

 

[pooksma]

Great updates

Looking forward to the Hallowe'en pics.

 

[CW4DW]

Loving the updates and can't wait to see pictures!

 

[Kbendig]

Great updates

Looking forward to the Hallowe'en pics.

Thanks! As soon as I can I will post them. I don't find Louis CK funny, same with my husband, so it was a good costume.

Loving the updates and can't wait to see pictures!

Thanks! I'll get them up as soon as I am able to.

 

[Kbendig]

I was so excited for the Halloween party! Halloween is by far my favorite holiday, I love decorating and seeing kids dressed up and just all the silliness that can happen. This was like a lifelong dream come true!

We got in and got our wristbands. The CM looked at Kevin and asked “Where’s Mario?” to which he had a very quick response. “Oh, he is at the hotel fighting Bowser.” The CM was cracking up, turned to me, and said “he NEEDS to work here, he is so quick with answers and totally staying in character.” They talked some video games for a few minutes then off to get our bags. I had brought bags with us just in case, I heard theirs were small, but honestly I didn’t think they were. Sure they weren’t huge, but you get so much I never felt the need to pull out the bigger bags.

We headed down Main Street and decided to turn left. First stop would be the Jungle Cruise! This can be awesomely corny and funny or just fall flat. Unfortunately, this one fell flat. The CM just didn’t really fit the part I guess. I mean, he was great and he tried but this ride really needs someone who can deliver those lines. Once we got off I decided I could no longer be a peacock. The wings were in the way and the partial mask was making me sweat, I felt like I was overheating in it and had to take it off.

Next up was Pirates of the Caribbean. I used to love this ride! Then on our honeymoon it broke down, 45 minutes of yo-ho-hoing was enough to make me never want to go back! Though, it was kinda neat to have to walk the plank to be rescued. Once I decided to go on last time I realized just how dark the ride got, and I was not happy. I like the old Pirates, I really don’t care for the new one. Alas, it’s a must do so we did.

After Pirates we decided it was close enough to 7 that we would check out the map for tonight. I wanted to meet the 7 dwarves, I talked about this for weeks, so we found their spot and off we went. To a very long line. That was expected. I stood in line and Dan took Kevin to the candy trail that is next to it. At the end he talked to the CM at the front of the line who said the wait was an hour and that if we came back later there would be a much shorter wait. I wanted to stay, said they could go but I wanted to wait. After a while and a lot of huffing and puffing I said fine, and off we went again.

Our first stop was Haunted Mansion! I LOVE this ride, and I wanted a horseless carriage pic. There was just no one in line so we walked right up, no playing this time. Again we got the looks as we skipped the stretch room and soon we were on our doom buggy. This time the ride stopped a few times, not long so probably just to help people get on. Not a big deal, but it being the HM and Halloween party I had a little nervous Kevin. After the ride we got our carriage pic, I don’t think Dan really “got” it at the time but now that he saw the pics he agrees it’s a cute idea. From there we walked over to get a hitchhiking ghost pic. Love that one!

From there it was another IASW trip, he loves this ride! Then we get in line for Peter Pan again. Only, yet again he has to go potty in line (you’d think he would learn right?) so we get out again and go find a bathroom. As the boys went in I walked around and found the FLE open! They walked out and I came running yelling “it’s OPEN!!!” so we headed back. I really wish we could have seen it during the day, I have bad night vision and I am sure my eyes didn’t do it justice. Well, that and Dan’s need to RUN everywhere. We went on the Little Mermaid ride and I found it cute, going under water was a great idea, but there wasn’t much that made it different than other rides. We made another quick run around and headed back to the rest of the park.

As we headed out Dan asked if I wanted to go see the villain show, of course I did! We started walking around and Kevin spotted Donald and Daisy and wanted to stop. We got in line and soon they needed a quacker break. We were in front of the carousel so a bunch of us in line decided to take the time to go for a ride. It was kinda funny cause it was almost a group decision, like if everyone did it no one would be annoyed. There was no wait and we were back before the ducks. By this time Kevin’s mustache had fallen off, and Donald was a little upset about it. Then Daisy gave Kevin a kiss….oh how I love ruffling Donald’s feathers!

We also missed the villain show, and the next one would be right before the parade so we would miss that one. Well, maybe after the parade. We kept walking and doing more trick or treating. Kevin hates loud noises, so the fireworks really bothered him. We were at a tot station when they started and he freaked worse than ever. The CM there came over and was trying to console him with me, he kept telling Kevin that it was ok and Mickey wouldn’t let anything hurt him. I am afraid of fireworks normally, but not at Disney, so while I understood his reaction I also wanted to see fireworks!

As we were walking I hear, for the 100th time, “hey, it’s Mario!” but this time it was a little voice. A little Luigi to be exact! We went over and talked to the family for a bit, the boys were so excited to find one another. After we parted the team the boys said they were hungry. We stopped in for some QS for them, I told Dan I couldn’t eat but maybe I’d pick from theirs. We got in line and the person in front of us looked familiar, finally it hit me. It’s the Kevin’s girlfriend from the plane! We said hello again and soon we parted ways. The boys ate and I had a few fries, more out of boredom than hunger. Dan asked if I was ok, I said I was sweating and felt weird but it had to be from the big lunch. They finished up, and after a quick potty break we were off again.

By now it was a little after 9 so we decided to just do another tea cups ride and go find a parade spot. We managed to find one right in the front on Main Street. We sat down and Kevin was in the stroller falling asleep. Then it hit me, the dwarves! Dan was like, oh it’s fine we can run back as soon as this is over. Ugh…fine. It seemed to take forever but finally the time came. Kevin was half asleep but the second the parade began he was up and dancing and having a great time. I got some awesome shots of him smiling. We loved the parade!

As soon as it was over we jumped up but…there was a mass exodus. There was no running back, we had to go through the crowds. We did our best but alas the line was over by the time we got there. I felt bad for the CM after, I hope he didn’t think I was mad at him. I turned to Dan and yelled “gee thinks, the one thing I asked for is now ruined!” Over reaction much? I wasn’t upset about the line, it was more that we didn’t wait before.

It was ok though, we walked back and did Peter Pan (finally) and IASW one more time before heading out. As we were walking back I got really hot, I stopped and told them to go ahead and I’d catch up. Kevin needed to go to bed, but I just couldn’t walk right. They said no and waited, heading out we was a stretcher with someone and Dan told me that was why he wouldn’t leave. I suddenly felt very bad, and we made the long walk to the bus.

We got on the bus and the ride back was fine, Kevin passed out. He didn’t wake up going up to the room, and was very cranky when we woke him up to go potty before bed. He was too passed out to chance it! We got him tucked in by 1, and I laid down. I almost immediately shot back up with really bad stomach pains. Dan asked if I was ok, I said yes and swore to never eat that much at one meal again. I probably fell asleep by 1:30. At 6 am I woke up with horrid stomach pains. I ran to the bathroom and began the uh…big coughs. By the time I felt safe to leave and come back to the room it was almost 7. Dan was awake and he asked if I was ok. No, the room was spinning and it was hard to walk.

Kevin was taking over the bed so I was able to crawl into bed with Dan, but laying down wasn’t much better. Whatever Kevin had got to me, and it seemed to hit me much harder. **We since figured out, after talking to people there around the same time, it was most likely rotovirus. Kevin was vaccinated and I was not, so while we both got sick it made sense that his was more mild**

I closed my eyes and tried to sleep. We had no morning plans which were good, but would I be able to do anything?

Next up: You’re mean when you’re sick!

 

[Kbendig]

So when we left off I was sick and just went back to bed. At around 10 Kevin woke up and Dan woke up with him. I tried to get up but still felt really bad. We talked it over and decided I would sleep some more while the boys went to the pool and to lunch. If I felt better we would go to AK for the parade then to Epcot. I was cancelling our lunch ADR, and we would go from there.

You see, this was a big day. We were supposed to go to Epcot for lunch at Chefs de France, which I had wanted to try and was most excited about. After lunch we were going to do another Agent P mission, then bring Kevin to the Sandcastle Club and it was date night. We were also supposed to watch Illuminations this night, since Kevin was terrified of them and I love the show.

So they got ready and headed out, I fell back asleep. Next thing I know it’s 1 and they are back! I sat up and felt…better but not great. Honestly, at that point I was still confused as to why we were getting sick. They boys showered and then told me they didn’t have lunch yet. I sent them to go eat, said I would shower and meet them at the food court. I also asked to get me a banana and some crackers, I would try to eat that before we left.

I showered fine, and headed out to the food court. The second I stepped outside everything started to spin. I can’t do this. Between feeling sick and the heat I could barely walk. There was a problem, they were waiting for me and Dan had left his phone so I had it. I made the very long (ok, it’s not that long but felt it that day) walk to the food court and found them eating. I sat down and said I couldn’t do it, I had to rest more. They finished eating and Dan said they would head to Epcot and let me rest more. I handed over the photopass card and Kevin’s KTTW card and we started walking, then I remembered the Sandcastle Club. Ok, off to the front to cancel it.

Now, making this reservation involved me talking to 4 people and getting hung up on twice. I was in tears when it was finally made! Now, I had to cancel it. I was sad and sick. So we go and I try to cancel and…

“I’m sorry, what restaurant was it?”

“It’s not a restaurant, it’s the Sandcastle Club, the child activity Center.”

“I don’t see a restaurant named Sandcastle Club.”

“That’s because it is not a restaurant. Can I talk to someone who knows anything!”

“I’m sorry ma’am, I am trying to find it. Do you have your conf number?”

“Not on me, can I call down when I get to the room?”

“No, you’d get a central number.”

…now here’s the thing about me. I am normally very nice and patient and realize things happen. When I am sick, I became a different person. The type of person I don’t like. I am adding this cause it happened, but I am not proud of it and did go to apologize the next day.

“It took me 4 calls to even make this reservation, you can’t find it in the system now. I am not sure I will even be able to walk back when I get to the room, but because I can’t call HERE I have to risk it? Either the system sucks or you do, but I will say I am glad I am cancelling this because if everyone is as incompetent then I don’t want anyone else watching my son. Find my reservation or find your boss, but I am done talking about this with you.”

At that point my husband was grabbing my arm, I didn’t realize how loud I had gotten and he came over to see what was wrong. They found the reservation, it was under Dan’s name which was odd because 1. I made all reservations and 2. They were all under my name. But it was done. And while I do think I overreacted I really don’t think I will ever use the child care center, only 1 out of 5 CM’s even knew what it was and that made me worry.

After my tantrum I walked back to the room. When I got there I send Dan a text saying I was back and in bed, he replied that he had downloaded the latest Walking Dead episode for me and it was on his computer. He does love me! I started watching and shortly after I got another text that they were in line for Soarin, 60 minutes and to wish him luck. I finished getting my zombie fix and was soon back asleep. The last time I looked at the close it was just after 3.

I woke up at 5:30, stood up and was suddenly hungry. I grabbed a muffin and some water and had a quick snack. At 6 I realized I was ok, I could stand and eat and felt like nothing happened. Well, mostly. I called Dan and he said they were just walking over to the WS, I said I felt better and would be on the bus shortly. He asked if I was sure and I said yea, I wanted to at least spend some time there. By 6:15 I was on a bus headed to Epcot.

Next up: Some Disney Magic and “no wonder people hate Jersey!”