Houston, We Have A Secret: A TX Vacation With A WDW Surprise ...aaand Done! Page 43

[Captain_Oblivious]

(Deja vu, huh?)

Didn't you just ask me that?

You know who else had that idea? Every #$*^%! Elementary School and Day Care in the Greater Houston Area. (And by that, I mean everything south of Dallas) As we drove through Hermann Park to the Museum, we drove past dozens and dozens of school busses. There were vast armies of children - all in matching color shirts based on classroom - being marched around the park. To the outdoor theater, to the gardens, and much to our chagrin, the the Museum.

Just think of it as a taste of WDW's Brazilian tour groups, a day early.

He was a Blue Poison Dart Frog. And Madison flipped out. She had been looking forward to the Butterfly exhibit for weeks, and now all of a sudden, she's deathly afraid of all insects & creatures. As parents, we faced a choice. We could 1.) Calmly pull her aside, talk to her about her fears, and reassuringly let her know that all of the creatures are either dead or behind glass. OR 2.) tell her to knock it off and go though the exhibit.

Hey, no fair! I thought we had the Parents of the Year award locked up.

After learning about the creepy crawlies, we entered the butterfly exhibit. And I put my new camera lens through it's paces.

The butterfly pictures are awesome. I need to see about getting one of these here lenses.

In addition to the butterflies, they had a very happy looking Green Iguana. Who just happened to be orange. Whatever.

I think he looks like he just got away with something.

Items included chocolate covered insects, Sour Cream & Onion flavored Crickets (also available: Salt N' Vinegar & Bacon and Cheese) BBQ flavored Larvae and candied ants.

I only had $2 in cash on me, but one of the bills was fairly old and tattered so the machine wouldn't accept it. And I was actually looking forward to the chocolate ants.

That's too bad. Maybe next time. Who needs Dole Whips?

Our next stop just across the road at the statue of Sam Houston and the horse he rode in on.

And suddenly...they felt a dance coming on!

Texas two-step? I've said it before, but these kids are too cute.

With that rug sufficiently cut, we headed back to the car, under a canopy of Texas Live Oaks.

These offer much more shade than the Texas Dead Oak.

Madison wanted pizza for lunch, so we plugged "pizza" into the GPS.

Picky, picky. The BBQ-flavored larvae would have been cheaper.

Of the 8 or so plastic lawn chairs out in the "courtyard" none of them were structurally sound enough to sit in. The pool was not heated (it actually seemed like it was cooled, but maybe that was just the cloudy weather talking.) There was what appeared to be algae growing in spots. It kind of reminded me of the Hotel Coral Essex from Revenge of the Nerds 2.

There's a quality obscure movie reference. But aren't you the guy who told me to stay at Country Inns on my road trip this summer?

We had a 4am wake up to make it to our flight..."home".

 

[FreezinRafiki]

Actually, for some reason, I can see yours at work. Apparently it depends on where they're hosted.

I choose this host just for you! (you can tell yourself that, anyway)

That's a beverage. A different set of rules apply.

Riiiiiiiight.

Didn't you just ask me that?

Didn't you just ask me that?

Just think of it as a taste of WDW's Brazilian tour groups, a day early.

But with much less chanting. And no one holding a flag for everyone to follow. And a bus driver eating all of the kids' lunches while they're inside.

Hey, no fair! I thought we had the Parents of the Year award locked up.

Just trying to break the Oblivious Family's run of 9 consecutive years with the title.

The butterfly pictures are awesome. I need to see about getting one of these here lenses.

I splurged and bought a Tamron 18-270. Most of those were taken from about 3 feet away from the butterflies and zoomed all the way in to 270.

That's too bad. Maybe next time. Who needs Dole Whips?
[/QUOTES]
Who has two thumbs and needs Dole Whips?THIS GUY

Texas two-step? I've said it before, but these kids are too cute.

Thanks. I'd like to take credit for some of it, but we both know they get it from Bambi.

Picky, picky. The BBQ-flavored larvae would have been cheaper.

Mmm...the little creme filled kind!

There's a quality obscure movie reference. But aren't you the guy who told me to stay at Country Inns on my road trip this summer?

Thanks.
Umm...let me amend that.
Mark - when you take your road trip this summer, stay at Country Inns. Except the one next to Houston's Hobby airport. The rest are good.

 

[All7OfUs]

then ate sugary cereal and watched Phineas & Ferb as she drove away

WOW! Sounds like vacation to me!

There were vast armies of children - all in matching color shirts based on classroom - being marched around the park.

Getting everyone ready for a Disney vacation, I see.

The ticket line was only about 3 people long, but was taking F O R E V E R.

I knew it- pre-Disney vacation warm ups!

1.) Calmly pull her aside, talk to her about her fears, and reassuringly let her know that all of the creatures are either dead or behind glass. OR 2.) tell her to knock it off and go though the exhibit.

1 didn't work, so we went with 2.

I'd have gone with #2 first, but hey, I was at the top of my class in Cruel Parenting 101.

We were not allowed to touch any of the butterflies. (Their wings are very delicate and touching them will rub off their tiny scales and render them flightless. Then they're nothing more than a small, colorful penguin.)

This sounds like my mother.

Items included chocolate covered insects, Sour Cream & Onion flavored Crickets (also available: Salt N' Vinegar & Bacon and Cheese) BBQ flavored Larvae and candied ants.

When we lived in Thailand, we once got some flash fried in garlic and onion. I was too chicken to gave one to my son, who immediately burst out in tears after he popped it in his mouth. I don't think he liked it.

I only had $2 in cash on me, but one of the bills was fairly old and tattered so the machine wouldn't accept it. And I was actually looking forward to the chocolate ants.

DANG! That'll teach ya to hit up the ATM more often.

Our next stop just across the road at the statue of Sam Houston and the horse he rode in on.

Why do visions of Looney Toons suddenly swim in my head. He WAS the one who played opposite Daffy, right?

The side of their cups bragged that they were Houston's top pizza place in 2009, so I couldn't be that bad, could it?

They say one cannot judge a book by its cover, but apparently this isn't always true for pizza.

Our window faced the runway, so we got a great view of the planes landing.

Did you get any sleep whatsoever?

instead of flying home, our plane was headed to Orlando. And instead of sleeping in our own beds tomorrow night, we would be at Animal Kingdom Lodge. All we had to do was keep the secret for 12 more hours...

Suh-weeeet!!!

 

[FreezinRafiki]

Surprise! We're going to Walt Disney World!

Our day began at 4:00am, with everyone up and ready to get to the airport...

..or thereabouts.

It was pretty easy for Bambi and I to get out of bed and ready. We had the excitement of going to Disney World flowing through out veins. The kids thought we were getting on a plane to fly back home, so they were much less motivated. We did get everyone dressed and ready and I loaded the luggage cart with all of our bags - each one strategically placed so the yellow Magical Express tags were facing the wall and away from the kids.

The shuttle ride to the airport was uneventful and we checked the bags with Southwest. I do want to give a huge Thank You to the person working the security lines at Houston's Hobby airport this morning. All of the lines were 15 to 20 people deep. She saw us walking up, each child wheeling a backpack full of toys and immediately waved us into the 1st class line where there was only one person ahead of us. Could this be a little Disney Magic that we're feeling already?

Once through security, we headed to the food court area for some breakfast. Unfortunately, the Most Awesomely Terrific Fantastical Restaurant in the World™ was not open yet.*

*Note: I've never actually eaten here. But when their name combines two of my favorite things (Pizza and Me) it has to be good, right?

We settled for breakfast at Wendy's. Or Arby's. I can never tell those two apart. The food was...fine.

We made our way over to our gate and plopped down to wait for them to begin boarding - in about an hour and a half. Yes, we always err on the side of caution and get to the airport 2 hours ahead of time. Just in case. This is a flight to Disney World, after all. No way we're missing this one. (And remember, to err is human. To arr is pirate)

Our seasoned travelers waiting to board the plane.

Soon enough, though, the gate agent comes over the PA and says they will begin boarding flight 2202 to Orlando shortly. Uh oh, we thought. Surely, the kids would hear that and know something was up. But they didn't.

Not long after that, they call everyone in the "A" boarding group for flight 2202 to Orlando to line up. Uh oh, we thought. Surely, the kids would hear that and know something was up. But they didn't.

We boarded the plane and took our seats. After everyone was loaded on the plane, the flight attendant welcomed us all to flight 2202 to Orlando. Uh oh, we thought. Surely, the kids would hear that and know something was up. But they didn't.

As we prepared for departure, the pilot came on the PA, thanked us for chosing SouthWest, and said that our flight time to Orlando would be about 2 hours. Uh oh, we thought. Surely, the kids would hear that and know something was up. But they didn't.

Up until now, I was feeling pretty proud of Bambi and I for keeping this trip such as good secret. But slowly, those feelings of pride are slowly turning into concern that neither of our children's powers of observation is worth a hill of beans. Bambi and I did discuss it later, and came to the realization that we never call it "Orlando". Whenever we come down, we just refer to it as "Florida." That made me feel better.

Hmm...An upside down Lightening McQueen bag and a Princess Bag...I wonder where we could be going? (Yes, those are our bags)

Evan was sitting next to me, and as we started taxing away from the gate, he started to get pretty emotional. He said he wanted to stay and began to cry. Not like throwing a fit and screaming "I don't want to go!" but just quiet crying over having to leave a place that he had so much fun at. Right here is where I came the closest to letting him know where we were going, but I held it in. A few minutes of sadness on the plane would be more than made up for when he saw Grandma & Grandpa at the airport.

He felt better once he and Roscoe got to watch some cartoons.

I don't remember what Madison was watching, but it must have been important to be concentrating that hard on it.

The flight attendants welcomed us to Orlando several more times, but again, the kids didn't catch on.

It wasn't until right here that Madison got a clue as to where we were:

Instead of the voice in the not-a-monorail welcoming us to Orlando, it welcomed us to "Central Florida." That was the key word Madison picked up on. She looked a Bambi with a surprised look and asked why did that just say Florida. Bambi's parents were waiting at the other end of the not-a-monorail line, just past security. We were too close to blow it now. Not wanting to lie, Bambi told her that, yes, we are in Orlando for a layover before our next flight. She kept pressing Bambi to verify what state we were in, but Bambi steadfastly told her at we would not be at the airport very long. (Technically, she never lied once!)

Once we were off the not-a-monorail, we veered to the right around security. And what did we see?

Those are Bambi's parents off to the right under the Bag Claim "A" sign, holding signs for "Princess Madison and Prince Evan".

Video of the reveal is here

Please forgive the Blair Witchieness of the videography. You try shooting video while walking through an airport with your carry ons, while trying to not be busted by your kids doing it. Anyway, as you can see from the video, Evan was in the lead, but his view was blocked by the woman in the pink, then he got distracted by the security guard. So Madison was the first to see them, and took off like a bullet.

The view from the other side:

Hugs all around!

We all went down to the baggage claim. We didn't send one bag with the kids' car seats with Magical Express. The kids went off with Grandma & Grandpa to head straight to the Magic Kingdom (lucky kids) while we took Magical Express to our hotel, got checked in, then took Disney Transportation to MK.

And in perhaps a bit more Disney Magic, this is the line we waited in:

Busy, day, huh?

We did sit on the bus for quite a while waiting to fill it up and were soon rolling to...All Star Sports. Where about 80% of the bus got off for some kind of International Cheerleading Competition. (Remember that. It will will come back to haunt us later on. Well, maybe not haunt, but certainly annoy the crap out of us.)

After the cheerleaders got off, we were left with us, about 9 other teenagers and their chaperon - who very loudly and crassly informed us, the bus driver and anyone else that would listen that they were here for grad night, and that they "ain't no cheer leaders!" The driver seemed to be just as glad as we were when they got off the bus at All Star Movies.

We looked around and saw that it was just us heading to Kidani Village. Finally, a nice peaceful drive - even if it was only 5 or 10 minutes.


Meanwhile, our kids were having a little sit down with Snow White...

...and arriving at the Happiest Place on Earth

Check in was a breeze and we were soon dropping our stuff off in the room. And since it was Animal Kingdom, we were greeted with a butterfly.

I was also given a rose by the desk clerk when Bambi wasn't looking. I brought it up the room and surprised her with it.

(Side note: the roses at the desk were sitting in a vase full of ice water. I don't know if that is to keep the fresher longer, but I tried it with the flowers that I got Bambi for Mother's Day and they seemed to last quite a lot longer than flowers usually do. More Disney Magic!)

And the Disney Magic was just getting warmed up. (Really. That last bit of Disney Magic was Ice Cold.) We walked to the bus stop, and barely had time to sit down before a Magic Kingdom bus pulled up. The only people on the bus were a couple with their small child. They asked if were were headed to MK, then after we said yes, they handed us...

FastPasses! Two each for Buzz Lightyear and Mickey's Philharmagic.

Could this day get any more magical? I guess you'll have to read my next entry to find out!

Coming Up Next: A hot afternoon at the Magic Kingdom.

 

[KatMark]

Well, Barry I will even overlook the world's greatest breakfast place remark for that great REVEAL. That was very special...thank you for sharing. The kids were so excited to see grandma and grandpa...Madison is glowing.

How sweet of you to get Bambi a rose upon arrival at AKL...you're not such a bad guy after all.

And you gotta love all that Disney "pixie dust" you were getting before arriving at the parks.

 

[afwdwfan]

*Note: I've never actually eaten here. But when their name combines two of my favorite things (Pizza and Me) it has to be good, right?

Umm... sure!

We settled for breakfast at Wendy's. Or Arby's. I can never tell those two apart. The food was...fine.

Yeah, because they are soooo similar.

The flight attendants welcomed us to Orlando several more times, but again, the kids didn't catch on.

I'm glad that they didn't catch on to the mention of Orlando... any of the 500 some odd times they probably heard it.

Not wanting to lie, Bambi told her that, yes, we are in Orlando for a layover before our next flight. She kept pressing Bambi to verify what state we were in, but Bambi steadfastly told her at we would not be at the airport very long. (Technically, she never lied once!)

That's the kind of a layover I could handle.

Where about 80% of the bus got off for some kind of International Cheerleading Competition. (Remember that. It will will come back to haunt us later on. Well, maybe not haunt, but certainly annoy the crap out of us.)

What could possibly be annoying about a bunch of cheerleaders running around Disney? (you don't have to answer, I understand. My wife coaches HS cheerleading. )

"ain't no cheer leaders!"

Is dey gradjeyatin from the 6th grade after 4 years?

I was also given a rose by the desk clerk when Bambi wasn't looking. I brought it up the room and surprised her with it.

Why did you admit it was given to you by the desk clerk? If she wasn't looking you should have taken full responsibilty for getting her a rose.

 

[glennbo123]

Woo hoo! What an exciting chapter!

I'm so glad that no one spilled the beans until the kids were very nearly at the gates of the Magic Kingdom.

It makes sense though, that they might not recognize "Orlando".

 

[Jazzabelle508]

i LOVED how you told your kids where you were going! it was lucky that your kids never figured out the truth before getting there. Both of your kids were really cute in the video.

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

I do want to give a huge Thank You to the person working the security lines at Houston's Hobby airport this morning. All of the lines were 15 to 20 people deep. She saw us walking up, each child wheeling a backpack full of toys and immediately waved us into the 1st class line where there was only one person ahead of us. Could this be a little Disney Magic that we're feeling already?

Not to say Houston doesn't have any magic of its own, but there's only one place that truly is magical.

Once through security, we headed to the food court area for some breakfast. Unfortunately, the Most Awesomely Terrific Fantastical Restaurant in the World™ was not open yet.*

*Note: I've never actually eaten here. But when their name combines two of my favorite things (Pizza and Me) it has to be good, right?

Surely this place would have been awesome. You'll just have to go back to Houston to try it.

(with another layover in Orlando)

We settled for breakfast at Wendy's. Or Arby's. I can never tell those two apart. The food was...fine.

I didn't think either of them served breakfast. Just what did you eat?!

Yes, we always err on the side of caution and get to the airport 2 hours ahead of time. Just in case.

We do the same thing. Much less stressful that way.

(And remember, to err is human. To arr is pirate)

Uh oh, we thought. Surely, the kids would hear that and know something was up. But they didn't.

Uh oh, we thought. Surely, the kids would hear that and know something was up. But they didn't.

Uh oh, we thought. Surely, the kids would hear that and know something was up. But they didn't.

Uh oh, we thought. Surely, the kids would hear that and know something was up. But they didn't.

They didn't know anything was up. And stop calling me Shirley.

But slowly, those feelings of pride are slowly turning into concern that neither of our children's powers of observation is worth a hill of beans.

Makes you wonder, huh? But then again, some of us are just cursed that way (I got my screen name for a reason, you know).

Not wanting to lie, Bambi told her that, yes, we are in Orlando for a layover before our next flight. She kept pressing Bambi to verify what state we were in, but Bambi steadfastly told her at we would not be at the airport very long. (Technically, she never lied once!)

Impressive. Most impressive.

Video of the reveal is here

Can't watch it at work, so I'll have to check it out later. I'm guessing they were slightly happy.

And in perhaps a bit more Disney Magic, this is the line we waited in:

Where about 80% of the bus got off for some kind of International Cheerleading Competition. (Remember that. It will will come back to haunt us later on. Well, maybe not haunt, but certainly annoy the crap out of us.)

Ugh. But I so want to hear the story.

I was also given a rose by the desk clerk when Bambi wasn't looking. I brought it up the room and surprised her with it.

Great move, but I'm worried that the desk clerk was hitting on you.

They asked if were were headed to MK, then after we said yes, they handed us...

FastPasses! Two each for Buzz Lightyear and Mickey's Philharmagic.

So...now having both let the kids in on a trip and surprised them with one, which did you enjoy more? Or am I spoiling your final chapter here?

 

[Stringbean&Wingnut]

(And remember, to err is human. To arr is pirate)

Ahhh your Disney reveal is so cute!!! How great you were able to pull it off! The kids look thrilled

(And don't fret, geography skills are totally overrated )

 

[Lucille1963]

I watched the video and when your daughter yelled "Grandma!" I cried a little. I'm such a softie!

 

[chloe770]

I had to LOL about the kids not catching onto where they were going. Glad they didn't tho. It made the BIG reveal that more special. Yeah for all of the magic, especial at Hobby. Those lines can be rough.

 

[FreezinRafiki]

WOW! Sounds like vacation to me!

I knew it- pre-Disney vacation warm ups!

Yes, but as Dave mentioned above, Disney lines actually move.

I'd have gone with #2 first, but hey, I was at the top of my class in Cruel Parenting 101.

Congratulations! Did you start your valedictorian speech with "Knock it off, sit down and listen up!"

This sounds like my mother.

Your mother is a small, colorful penguin?

When we lived in Thailand, we once got some flash fried in garlic and onion. I was too chicken to gave one to my son, who immediately burst out in tears after he popped it in his mouth. I don't think he liked it.

I'm sure they were tears of joy....

DANG! That'll teach ya to hit up the ATM more often.

The only places I know that have ATMs that dispense singles are....
Well, never mind. This is a family friendly TR.

Why do visions of Looney Toons suddenly swim in my head. He WAS the one who played opposite Daffy, right?

You're thinking of Yosemite Sam. I think he drove the snakes out of Ireland with Acme Anvils and TNT. Then they named Yosemite National Park after him.

They say one cannot judge a book by its cover, but apparently this isn't always true for pizza.

I can judge a pizza based on how much of it sticks to the cover of the box. But this pizza came on really big plates. So it was good!

Did you get any sleep whatsoever?

Who sleeps on vacation?

 

[FreezinRafiki]

Well, Barry I will even overlook the world's greatest breakfast place remark for that great REVEAL. That was very special...thank you for sharing. The kids were so excited to see grandma and grandpa...Madison is glowing.

They were very excited! Evan was pretty subdued on the video, but trust me, he was just as

How sweet of you to get Bambi a rose upon arrival at AKL...you're not such a bad guy after all.

OK, I'd better nip this in the bud before it takes off and I get in trouble. I commented to the clerk that the roses smelled very nice and fresh. He pulled one out "for your wife." So I don't want anyone to get the impression that I went out of my way to set up the grand romantic gesture. Not that I wouldn't have. Let's just move on so I don't put my foot any further in my mouth.

And you gotta love all that Disney "pixie dust" you were getting before arriving at the parks.

Umm... sure!

I looked it up - they have 3 1/2 stars on Yelp.com based on 40 reviews. And I'll bet a fair percentage of those reviewers were not named Barry, so the scores probably trend a little low.

Yeah, because they are soooo similar.

The town I grew up in had a McDonald's and a Hardee's. You had to got about 3 towns over to find a Wendy's or an Arby's. Since I never went to either very much, I never really learned (or cared) what the difference was.

I'm glad that they didn't catch on to the mention of Orlando... any of the 500 some odd times they probably heard it.

We were sweating bullets there for a little while!

That's the kind of a layover I could handle.

I think I'll have to schedule a few more like that

What could possibly be annoying about a bunch of cheerleaders running around Disney? (you don't have to answer, I understand. My wife coaches HS cheerleading. )

<---a lot.

Is dey gradjeyatin from the 6th grade after 4 years?

It was a thick New Jersey accent. I'll let you draw your own conclusions.

Why did you admit it was given to you by the desk clerk? If she wasn't looking you should have taken full responsibilty for getting her a rose.

Awww... Andy, you're such a romantic!

Woo hoo! What an exciting chapter!

Thanks! I stressed over writing this chapter. I spent so much time on Houston that I really wanted to make the Disney reveal spectacular. The last thing I need are angry TR followers...

I'm so glad that no one spilled the beans until the kids were very nearly at the gates of the Magic Kingdom.

I don't think we could have asked for anything better!

It makes sense though, that they might not recognize "Orlando".

All of the credit goes to Bambi for the "Florida" vs "Orlando" ruling. Clearly, I married way out of my league!

 

[DancinDaisyDuck]

Hi! I am joining you just in time for the WDW part of your awesome trip! I just read your December report and came over here for a more recent update. Loved how you surprised the kids, I am sure they were so excited! Looking forward to reading some more!

 

[petals]

Luvin the video and the reveal in general so cool and yay you're at the disney part

 

[FreezinRafiki]

i LOVED how you told your kids where you were going! it was lucky that your kids never figured out the truth before getting there. Both of your kids were really cute in the video.

Thanks. We had debated ways of telling them, but decided it would be the most awesomeness to just see when they figured it out for themselves.

Not to say Houston doesn't have any magic of its own, but there's only one place that truly is magical.

Houston certainly isn't run by magic. It's run by money - and with all of the energy companies down there, it's got a lot to run on.

Surely this place would have been awesome. You'll just have to go back to Houston to try it.

(with another layover in Orlando)

I like the way you think! (In both cases!)
And stop calling me Shirley.

I didn't think either of them served breakfast. Just what did you eat?!

I looked it up, and it had to be a Wendy's. I remember the kids having some kind of breaded chicken sandwich on a biscuit. Bambi had breakfast burritos. I think I had some kind of egg & sausage sandwich. Like it said, the food was....fine.

We do the same thing. Much less stressful that way.

And depending on what airport and gate you have to be at, it can take the full two hours to walk through the terminal.

They didn't know anything was up. And stop calling me Shirley.

Man, that never gets old. Unless you ask Bambi. Then it most definitely gets old. But this is my TR, so it never gets old!

Makes you wonder, huh? But then again, some of us are just cursed that way (I got my screen name for a reason, you know).

Are you saying my kids could end up like you?!?

Impressive. Most impressive.

She is a master of the half-truths.

Can't watch it at work, so I'll have to check it out later. I'm guessing they were slightly happy.

Little bit.

Ugh. But I so want to hear the story.

Don't worry. It needs to be told.

Great move, but I'm worried that the desk clerk was hitting on you.

As I said above, he specifically said "for your wife". Poor guy must have had some kind of alergy or something, too. He kept winking at me as he handed it over.

Yeah, those Philharmagic FPs are like cigarettes in prison. Very rare, very valuable, and able to be used like currency.

So...now having both let the kids in on a trip and surprised them with one, which did you enjoy more? Or am I spoiling your final chapter here?

I hadn't really thought up my final chapter yet. But yeah, I think I use this. Thanks!

Ahhh your Disney reveal is so cute!!! How great you were able to pull it off! The kids look thrilled

(And don't fret, geography skills are totally overrated )

Thanks! It made Phase II of the trip that much more special to have it start out like that!

 

[FreezinRafiki]

I watched the video and when your daughter yelled "Grandma!" I cried a little. I'm such a softie!

Don't tell any of the guys on here, but I get a little choked up when I edited that video and posted it.

I had to LOL about the kids not catching onto where they were going. Glad they didn't tho. It made the BIG reveal that more special. Yeah for all of the magic, especial at Hobby. Those lines can be rough.

I've seen many videos where people announce their surprise trips in all sorts of ways. But to be able to wait until you are at the airport - literally 45 minutes away from walking into the Magic Kingdom was the best!

Hi! I am joining you just in time for the WDW part of your awesome trip! I just read your December report and came over here for a more recent update. Loved how you surprised the kids, I am sure they were so excited! Looking forward to reading some more!

Welcome! Glad to have you along! You got here just in time for the good parts!

Luvin the video and the reveal in general so cool and yay you're that the disney part

Thanks!

And a big THANK YOU to everyone that stayed with me through out Phase I of the TR. I hope I can make Phase II worth it!

 

[afwdwfan]

I didn't think either of them served breakfast. Just what did you eat?!

Actually, I know I've had breakfast from the drive up window at our local Arby's before. I don't see a lot of advertisement for breakfast food so I don't know if it is something they still do or not.

Everybody serves breakfast at the airport though (except for Barry's Pizza ). I've had airport breakfast at places like TGI Fridays and Chilis. I don't think I've ever seen one of those restaurants outside of an airport that is open for breakfast.

OK, I'd better nip this in the bud before it takes off and I get in trouble. I commented to the clerk that the roses smelled very nice and fresh. He pulled one out "for your wife." So I don't want anyone to get the impression that I went out of my way to set up the grand romantic gesture. Not that I wouldn't have. Let's just move on so I don't put my foot any further in my mouth.

I hope your foot tastes good. It seems to end up in your mouth quite frequently.

<---a lot.

Good idea, but for some reason they don't allow alcohol at high school sporting events in Indiana.

Awww... Andy, you're such a romantic!

Well, more like I see opportunities to score some points and I take full advantage. I need all the help I can get, and let's face it, you could use a few bonus points.

 

[Kat in GA]

Oh, I just love your reveal! I always cry. At least I can be a sap in the privacy of my own office

And the kids reactions - fabulous! Much better than my daughter. Who cried and accused me of lying to her. She eventually had a change of heart - but she was so not happy with the original change of plans. Ugh!