From Pop to the Top - Funtastic Adventures in the Summer Sun!

[stace208]

Welcome home! I really enjoyed following along on FB!! That's so nice that you have the rest of the week off.

 

[MeMom]

I am finally able to come back to the TR. I am now up to page 170. Back on about page 164 you were talking about Taps. To this day I can not listen to Taps without tearing up.

For one, being an Army retiree, it hits home quite hard anyway. But what makes it hit even harder was back when I was stationed at Fort McPherson, Georgia, and was on funeral detail. I was on the firing squad for the 21-gun salute. We were standing up on a hill looking down over the burial site of this WWII veteran. What tore my heart out was that no one showed up at the grave site. Not one person. There was the flag detail/paul barers and the chaplain ... no friends, no family. He had outlived them all. When Taps was played, every single one of us had tears streaming down our faces (even the big, tough guys) and we went to the grave side after the services to give our respects. We were not normally allowed to do this out of respect for the families. But since he had no one else, our commander said it would be OK.

To this day, Taps brings this memory back and the tears start to come. I am tearing up now, just thinking of him.

What a touching story. I am so glad that someone was there in the end for that person. I once took a great aunt to the funeral home to see a man she had known a long time back. It was in mid-winter and there was snow and ice and I had little kids, but she wanted to go, so I was determined to get her there. We debated on dressing up, but due to the weather, we opted for warmth and went on as we just decided to stay in our long coats while we visited. When we got to the funeral home, they didn't even have the doors open! We had to knock, and someone let us in. They said no one had been to see him and they didn't figure anyone would come. I guess he had nobody, so I was very glad we made that effort to go. I know it meant something to my great-aunt, and I have always remembered it.

We are so glad to have you along on our reports. If you are ever in Magic Kingdom in the early evening - 5, I think - they do a very sweet flag lowering ceremony that you would appreciate, if you don't already know about it.

Welcome back!

Goodness, it's my 1000th post! It's cool that my 1000th post was in MeMom and Jill's thread because they are the main reason I signed up for the DIS. So i could converse with them. It's been a lot of fun and I've enjoyed meeting new friends here on the DIS and eventually in off the DIS in the WORLD.

You know, I didn't even take a picture when we met in MK. Glad your dad enjoyed the show. Now it's time to get him to Fantasmic. Jill got a kick out of him 'chasing us down' about the Dole Whip!

How is your kitty doing?

I'd say he's around 90% now. It was so good to come home and see him so much better. He's just a tiny, tiny bit sluggish compared to normal, and it is sure good to hear him purring again!

Oh, when you get a chance, go by my TR, there's been some changes to our Halloween trip...my ticker may be off by a day now.

As long as it is an extra day, all is well!

So glad you enjoyed the walk from DTD, that's one our favorite things about SSR. That is a nice walk with a great view especially at night...

It was a beautiful walk. We commented on how nice it is to be able to walk the Disney streets at night and feel so safe. Going past the lakes and fountains was so pretty and peaceful.

Welcome home ladies! I'm so glad to hear that the weather was fantastic!!! I can't wait to hear about your new adventures!

So that I can get caught up, I'm just going to use this as a starting point to say thanks to all of you for following along with us on Facebook. We are so glad you enjoyed the pictures. We had a lovely, but all too short time. It was great to spend time with Trent, of course, so a lot of time that might have been park time was just hanging out with Trent time.

I'm trying to catch up on your reports 3-4 at a time, and Jill will probably not catch up until the weekend.

Thanks for being our DIS friends. We truly do enjoy spending time with you here and when we meet you in real life. We were happy to have three DIS meets on this trip that we will share with you very soon - before the trip report actually starts.

 

[MeMom]

Welcome home! I really enjoyed following along on FB!! That's so nice that you have the rest of the week off.

I would like to have stayed until Thursday and then had a few days to rest up at home before going back to school. That's what my plan is for the March trip. As it was this time, I could have done that and stayed over at Pop with Brooklynn a couple more nights with Brandy and the boys, but I would have felt bad that Jill had to miss out on that. Plus, this was a budget trip all along. By March, things should be looking a bit better in that department, and Jill won't be missing out on time with our cousins, so I won't feel bad about staying until Thursday. She can travel back with Bella alone very easily on Tuesday, and I'll bring Brooklynn back on Thursday. At least that is what I have as Plan A. If Jill is able to stay until Wednesday night by some chance, then we'll probably all just come back together then.

 

[disneyfan61]

Welcome back MeMom, Jill & Family. So glad to hear you had a good trip with great weather, Dismeets & Trent time

Cannot wait to hear all about it!!

My sister was down there last week with her DD, DSIL, & grandkids. They called me once when they were leaving MK. Good thing I did not plan on going as I was home in bed with Bronchitis last week!!

So glad to hear your kitty is doing so well.

 

[disney<333]

Glad to hear you had a great trip.
MeMom- I sent you a friend request on FB!

 

[Poolrat]

Welcome back!

Goodness, it's my 1000th post! It's cool that my 1000th post was in MeMom and Jill's thread because they are the main reason I signed up for the DIS. So i could converse with them. It's been a lot of fun and I've enjoyed meeting new friends here on the DIS and eventually in off the DIS in the WORLD.

A wonderful milestone in deed. Congrats

 

[Poolrat]

Welcome Home

I am so glad you had another great trip. I am sure you have tales of misadventures to share, all in good time.

I am glad kitty is doing better. I am also glad you have all week to yourself. Please relax and do something special for yourself.

 

[hlrababy]

So glad you guys had a wonderful time and that you made it back safe and sound!!!! I can't wait to read about everything!!!

 

[TCKK]

Welcome home! I haven't been around here much lately, but I've been following on FB! Life has been really hectic for us lately but hopefully I'll actually get to read all of this report.

 

[Momto4DisneyFans]

Sounds like a great trip! Hopefully our weather will cooperate as nicely as yours did. Glad to hear your kitty cat is doing so much better. We recently had one of our cats go through something similar, so I know what a relief it is to see them start to feel more like themselves again. Can't wait to hear all about your adventures!

 

[momof2TNboys]

I am so glad your kitty is doing much better!! What a relief. I can't wait to hear all about your new adventures. I get to work all day and sit in a boring meeting all night where people will probably be arguing. Hope everyone else is having a better day than me today.

 

[carissanboys]

Welcome home! I'll have to get caught up on FB now that we're friends.

 

[declansdad]

Welcome Home! Looking forward to hearing about the trip.

 

[MeMom]

Welcome back MeMom, Jill & Family. So glad to hear you had a good trip with great weather, Dismeets & Trent time

Cannot wait to hear all about it!!

My sister was down there last week with her DD, DSIL, & grandkids. They called me once when they were leaving MK. Good thing I did not plan on going as I was home in bed with Bronchitis last week!!

So glad to hear your kitty is doing so well.

We knew about two of the DISmeets, but Lovemy2princesses surprised us and showed up at The Seas.

Sorry you've been sick. Hope that it doesn't last long. Trent used to ge bronchitis every year at around this time and it lasted for weeks. he was almost always feeling puny at Halloween. Good thing was, he couldn't have cared less about getting candy, as he has never been much of a sweets person.

Glad to hear you had a great trip.
MeMom- I sent you a friend request on FB!

I had to figure out who you were first. I'm glad you said it here. I like to know who people are on the DISboards before I 'friend' them.

We had a nice trip, but a short trip plus lots of hang out time with Trent, who could only go into a park one day made for not a whole lot of Disney time. It truly seemed like one of those 'blink of an eye' trips. I'm grateful, but it left me longing for more!

Welcome Home

I am so glad you had another great trip. I am sure you have tales of misadventures to share, all in good time.

I am glad kitty is doing better. I am also glad you have all week to yourself. Please relax and do something special for yourself.

I am doing a little housework and a little schoolwork. I'm going to the grocery store and maybe the Parent-Teacher Store today. Nothing special, but nice to have lots of free time, too.

So glad you guys had a wonderful time and that you made it back safe and sound!!!! I can't wait to read about everything!!!

I'm going to put up a few pictures in a minute.

Welcome home! I haven't been around here much lately, but I've been following on FB! Life has been really hectic for us lately but hopefully I'll actually get to read all of this report.

Well, it'll be here for as long as the DISboards keep it, so you can always read whenever you get the time, if you're still interested.

I hope your 'hecticness' is all good stuff.

Sounds like a great trip! Hopefully our weather will cooperate as nicely as yours did. Glad to hear your kitty cat is doing so much better. We recently had one of our cats go through something similar, so I know what a relief it is to see them start to feel more like themselves again. Can't wait to hear all about your adventures!

We could have not have had better weather. We said that many times during the trip. The skies were blue, and it was warm for swimming in the daytime and beautiful for strolling around at night.

It does feel very good to see the cat up and about again, and that sweet little "I'm a happy, spoiled kitty" purr is back!



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Here are just a few pictures from this trip. We'll start this one when the summer trip is done. It helps me to have a report going up until the next one, and the next one is not until March. Hope you guys don't mind seeing 'punkins' in the middle of February.

This is what Magic Kingdom looks like right now.

If you have not ever been in the fall, please consider a trip to see all of the Halloween/fall fun and decorations.

Current work going on at Animation Suites.

The plush Mickey and Minnie Thanksgiving dolls were not out yet. They had this pin, which we already have.

I'm hoping to go back for Thanksgiving next year.

This guy was not only up, he was making a bunch of noise, too.

We finally got to see this little girl!

Bubby and one of his favorite girls.

Where is this breakfast?

Walking along the river at Saratoga Springs.

On her own terms, Bella is warming up to the characters.

We had a nice DIS meet.

Brooklynn discovered that Bubby is the true rat!

I got some Japanese items for my culture event in December.

We accomplished a Kim Possible mission.

Jill texted Jackie her sympathies after it was over.

We met Duffy for the first time.

We said 'YUM!' a time or two.

We hung out with our cousins some.

Enjoyed one of Jill's favorite activities - having hot dogs out on the Boardwalk.

How many times will we get to go to Disney World in 2011?

More cousin time at Pop before we had to leave.

All too soon, we had to leave. Our cousins are still there until Sunday - those brats!!! I am hoping Jill will be able to get on with Brooklynn's school in the future and she can have full fall break weeks, too.

We had a very nice time. It left me wanting more, though. Short trips are just teases, unless you take a bunch of them. The year we went in October, November, and December - the short trips didn't matter so much.

Am I totally DIS crazy?
I don't know, but I do know I love that place and love, love, love being there with my family. I look at the pictures and just wish myself into them again. I recall so vividly the sights and sounds and smells, and I long to be in the midst of them again.

How many weeks until spring break?
I need to go count.

 

[declansdad]

Who is Duffy?

 

[dancin_princess]

You know, I didn't even take a picture when we met in MK. Glad your dad enjoyed the show. Now it's time to get him to Fantasmic. Jill got a kick out of him 'chasing us down' about the Dole Whip!

I know and I wanted to get a picture too. Hopefully there will be picture opportunities in March (and big hopes that boyfriend has moved back here by then, so I can still be here ) It is a must. I plan to get him to see it while we are there in December staying on property I'm so excited, is it silly for me to start a countdown? Although I was slightly embarrassed, it was pretty funny.

 

[MeMom]

I am so glad your kitty is doing much better!! What a relief. I can't wait to hear all about your new adventures. I get to work all day and sit in a boring meeting all night where people will probably be arguing. Hope everyone else is having a better day than me today.

Well, I am not having an exciting day, but it sure sounds better than yours. I finished moving stacks of stuff from here to there and back again until I think I have finally gotten everything into its rightful place.

I am going to dislike zipping the suitcase up for the last time until March. If we can find a good spot in the panhandle of Florida that is reasonable, we may take a weekend trip down there just to hang out with Trent in late January. That would make the wait not so long between Christmas and mid-March, plus it would get us out of the bitter January cold. The girls have not been to a real beach, either, so we've talked about that as a nice weekend option. I am actually going to go do some research on that here in a few minutes.

Welcome home! I'll have to get caught up on FB now that we're friends.

I was glad to see you on FB. It helps me keep up with the adventures that all of our DIS families are involved in.

Welcome Home! Looking forward to hearing about the trip.

Thanks. Your countdown is dwindling away. We are closing in on November, which touches December....

Who is Duffy?

He's a new old bear. He's been around, but just in the background. He used to have a little book, and he was just called the Disney Bear, but over in Japan he became a big deal. At least, I tink that is the way I have read and heard it. Disney capitalized on that and put some new marketing behind him here. He's going to have outfits from all over the world, and the new World Showcase craft is Duffy instead of the mask. Each of the girls have one from trips I took without them, but I never thought anything more than it being a Disney Teddy Bear. They may or may not get into the outfits and such later. He may grow on us, but right now, there's not too much interest.

Truthfully, it looks like a feeble attempt on Disney's part to make a few bucks on outfits - maybe something to compete for the Build-a-Bear age group. There was not a line waiting to see him. He has no connection with any movie or book or anything that kids can relate to, so nobody was interested in seeing him much, except for probably like us, just the novelty of seeing something new. I'd rather have a true Disney character in different outfits.

I know and I wanted to get a picture too. Hopefully there will be picture opportunities in March (and big hopes that boyfriend has moved back here by then, so I can still be here ) It is a must. I plan to get him to see it while we are there in December staying on property I'm so excited, is it silly for me to start a countdown? Although I was slightly embarrassed, it was pretty funny.

What happens if he doesn't come to Orlando by March? Are you going back up north?

It wasn't embarrassing. We thought it was funny. He didn't understand that it had to be the Dole Whip OR the Castle Show. Since he had never seen it, I am glad he got to do that. We'll be up for the Dole Whip in March.


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I found a calendar,
and the answer is:
about 20 weeks.

 

[tinkgurl]

Okay MeMom, how many times did you make it there in the past year? Counting all the way back to October 2009 to now.

 

[manntra]

It looks like you had a very enjoyable trip with your family I loved following along on FB and seeing all of the pictures
I know exactly what you are saying about wishing yourself back in the pictures. It is like you can feel all of the surroundings, smell the air and look up at that blue sky.

Very happy to hear that your kitty is doing better. I have been thinking about him.

Tracy

 

[Mic_n_Min]

So happy to hear that your kitty is feeling much better!

Is the Animation Studios Resort going in right by Pop Century? Is it taking over the resort area that they never fully developed? I'm thrilled to see that they are working on it and not-so-patiently waiting for the reservation lines to open so that we can reserve our room right away! My mom is just as excited as I am! Can't wait!!

What a wonderful teaser for your TR-to-be! Can't wait! I followed along with Jill's Facebook updates and pics and now can't wait to read the TR to go along with it! Still can't wait to hear about your kleptomania!

Really wish I was heading up to Disney while I was going to be in Florida next week. Only 3 hours away and my kids and I won't be there. Just have to be patient. It's just hard when it comes to Disney and I know all of you can understand that!