Part 13- Sunday 2/12/06- Day One
Ariels reveal and the whole spectro parade were too fantastic and had us on a high at the end of our first day. DJ actually said "Oh, your Dis friends will love this!" Funny thing is at that time, I didnt have any real Dis friends. I feel like I have quite a few now! I did have a few Dis acquaintances, one of whose phone numbers I lost during the trip, and thus I couldnt hook up with her during one night at Wishes. Sorry, Debbie! But nonetheless, I was thinking this unusual occurrence might cause a few chuckles in cyberspace. The poor girl who experienced the mishap must have been so anxious. Not only was it the beginning of the parade route, it was freezing out! I think she must have had on some type of nude leotard for warmth. At least I hope so. No one ever has replied saying they saw this happen. It was quick and if you didnt catch the actual falling of the clamshell incident, you might not have noticed as her beautiful locks seemed to cover her pretty well. It did put a damper in her wave, and I believe she only waved with her left hand after that.
Phew! It seemed like such a loooooong day, dont you think?!! We packed a lot in, given the kids had been up since 3 and we had been up since, well, yesterday morning. We were cold and tired and it really was time to go. So we trudged down the steps of the railway station, grabbed our strollers and headed to the buses. We decided to skip Wishes as we did not have the energy to fight the crowds, and felt like we had already pushed our luck with the kids. You know how meltdowns can start at any time
.The kids were eerily quiet on the bus. We enjoyed it, but it was eerie as they are never quiet.
Our rooms were wonderful to return back to. The toilet was fixed! No cyclone had hit as we were gone all day, my undies appeared undisturbed in the drawer and after a few required frantic rounds of jumping on the beds, our babies nodded off for the night. Studios at OKW can not adjoin, even though technically they could, because that would be suite of some sort. So, we had to walk outside between rooms. And we had a boys room and a girls room. Poor DJ got the hyper duty. Frolicky, giggling, pre-testosteronnie rambunctious boys whose bedlinens were all twisted and mangled within a few minutes, were being attended to by their dad. He sat there at the table with the bathroom light on--just sat there in the semi-dark. I slipped into the girls room with Sky. Bless this child. As overexcited as she generally is, when she is sleepy or tired at bedtime, she curls into bed, with a lovey and her beloved thumb. Doesnt make a peep. Stares off for a moment and savors the feeling of being warm, safe and happy. I have the light on next to the bed and scan the park hours, and EMH and try to sketch out a plan for tomorrow. After Sky drifts off, I shut the light and visit DJ. The boys are finally gone too. We sit and talk about the plan for the next day. I promise him that well start whenever, and there wont be any rushing. Its about 11:30 when we give little smooches and sleep separately in our Shaker style sleeping arrangements. Weve been up for over 40 hours. Exhausted, but elated. But poor DJ, the boys awaken a lot earlier than Sky. Tonight I am so glad to be a girl
Day two- Monday- 2/13/06
The walls are very thick at OKW and mercifully for the girls, there is not a peep from the boys room and vice versa. I think it is about 7:00 am when I awaken. My angel baby pootie doll is sound asleep. I tiptoe next door, to see poor DJ covering his head with a pillow. The boys are climbing on top of him, their feet squishing and distorting his face. he is too tired to even stop them. They have clearly been up for a while. The toon Diz is tuned in. There are shards of poptarts all over the carpet. Juice is spilled on the table. Pee is all over the seat of the toilet. Chaos.
Why are they not asleep? Oh yeah, they don't need much. Never have.... If they go to bed early, they awaken early. If they go to bed on time, they wake up early. If they go to bed late, they get up early. How early is early? Well for years, it was 5:00. It sometimes still is. Even after daylight savings time. Can someone 'splain that to me?! Sometimes it is 6:00, occasionally 7:00. Anything before 7 is early to me, folks. We have had many well-meaning types over the years, patronizing us with if you put them to bed, yada yada yada. We have had advice from everyone. The bottom line is our kids just have very specific internal clocks that clearly urge them to awaken with the roosters and go to sleep long after the sun. This is more the boys than Sky, but she stopped napping at that 18 month mark too
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They all stopped napping before they reached 18 months of age. No more napping after that. And before you start shaking your head or tisking, I tried everything. EVERYTHING --for years. I gave up, finally and accepted my parental fate. If you make 'em nap, they'll make ya' pay- like ripping up wallpaper, tiptoeing into the makeup kit with all the bare escentuals on the floor 15 minutes later, out of its jar, in a pile of fine powder now with cat prints marking it across the floor, shampoo after shampoo bottle emptied, all sweet smelling but oh such a waste of buckeroonies. Do you get my drift? Too much work going up the stairs 80 times, "get back into your beddie for nappie". Or all three downstairs on the couch for quiet time. "Lie down, now." "stop throwing the pillows" "You're moving the couch, let's not rock like that" "Get off your brother, no, let's stay on our own spot for some rest." Too much work and frustration dealing with the napping thing.
Did any of you have this issue with the daycare? You know, they continually comment that your child is not sleeping at their facility? "How was my baby's day?" I would ask. "Fine, but they wouldn't nap," with that tone to their voice, the put out provider would respond. Uh, hello. Were paying you to provide for their needs, not mold them into yours. We had lots of unhappy daycare providers because our kids prefer to be alive. Id go in to observe and watch each of our children writhing on their little mats on the floor, while most of the other little darlings were out like lights. I was jealous. I was envious. I was green, I was so envious. Just an hour or two, to pacify the daycares, to give me just a few minutes of sanity, to allow their little bodies and minds some peaceful rejuvenation. Nope. Never happened. And this morning was no different. All three were ready to go by 7:30.
We were dressed, fed and out the door by 7:45. We had to take a cab to pick up our rental car. It was $200 cheaper to rent it at the Doubletree in DTD, than pick it up at the airport. We probably would have waited a few more days but for two things. First I had been terrified of the buses at OKW having read many negative reviews on this site. And if we waited until Wednesday, the rate would have tripled for the time we needed it. They really, really put the screws to those who can only travel at school breaks and holidays. Doesnt seem right to me. Just doesnt. So we taxied to get our car.
They gave us a bigger SUV than our reservation was for, no extra charge. We inspected the vehicle for any damage. This always freaks me out. I am scared of these companies. Any nick and you are responsible. They could charge you 18 thousand million bazillion dollars at the return. I find a couple of scratches and go back in to have it written on the invoice. Off we go in our luxury wheels to Epcot.
We missed Eppie last time. We were just too caught up in the Magic of the Kingdom last time as the kids had been 2, 3, and 4 years. So I was looking forward to spending some time strolling through the cultural food and knickknack kiosks known as the World Showcase. It was just past 9 am. The parking lot was just about empty. We excitedly made our way through the turnstiles, and set our plan in place. I was to get the stroller, and DJ and Jack would zoom with the throne pram over to The Land to get fast passes for Soarin. Carson and Sky stayed with me and we made our way to the stroller rental world, or whatever it is called. I am rushing. Carson and Sky wanted ears. They had been promised them the day before. Carson was decisive that he wanted the gold ones. Sky tried on at least 10. Nothing suited her. She almost tried to get me to pick a toddler hat with Minnie polka dots and ears. It was hideous. Luckily it was too small. She finally, after gazing at herself, concluded that she required pink and pushed all the contenders away. We head out. The big kids love their double stroller. They would still want me to carry them everywhere if I could, but they are topping 50 lbs each now, so this is the next best thing. I go to grab the video camera, and it is gone! I start searching through our piles of crap that I had dragged along, the just-in-case bags. (We never use any of it, why do I weigh us down with these items all the time?) I retrace our steps, and head back to the hat and stroller world, or whatever it is called. The CMs are holding it and are looking at our video! This seemed weird to me. But maybe they were trying to see who the people were to try to identify the owners. Or were they hoping to get a glimpse of a malfunction?
It happens. Predictably like it always does. My dang hyper gotta-do-everything pang hits me. I fight this driven compulsion. I talk myself through all the way to the Land, forcing myself to walk not too briskly. I know there are others of you sufering this affliction. You want to stop too, don't you? Let me know if you find a cure..... It was forever, getting the stroller and the hats. I am only comforted by the fact that DJ is getting the fast passes. We finally meet up with him and we cant get in until 10:10. There is a huge line. How can this be? There didnt seem to be any cars in the parking lot. I did see people running here, and there were quite a few strollers, but gee, this was surprising. We would have to wait. So, we went to the little movie that lays out a bleak future for our world if things dont change. Circle of Life theater. We liked it. Good message. We are recyclers, reusers, not too ultra consumers. We agree with the Orwellian message and hope it makes an impact on our kids and maybe a few other folks who see it.
We have a few minutes to wait for Soarin. Things start unraveling with the kids. I am not sure what happened but they all ended up lined up in time out in the Land that morning. They were running about, nearly knocking over elders with canes, I believe. Cheeky and hyper, not a good thing in this crowded building. Jack began wailing. A CM seemed displeased that we chose to time out our children within earshot of him. Betcha he doesnt have kids
DJ is calmer with screaming kids than I am. I become anxious sometimes. This was one of them. I took the two non-crying beings for a walk, while the youngest being was soothed by his devoted and compassionate father. We agreed to meet at Soarin downstairs. We get there and the line is long, unless you have a fast pass. We grab fast passes for Living with the Land. I walk with Carson and Sky and wait to give our passes to the CM at Soarin, while DJ and Jack catch up. All the sudden, this woman, whom we shall call the DOZER, and her husband push Sky and Carson out of the way. WHAT?!?!?!@#$%$#@!? My she-bear instincts come out and I stop the woman. You just pushed my children. We are teaching them politeness and kindness, and your actions were not either of those. I said this. DJ was slightly uncomfortable. I was p.o.d. Really, I was. I was shocked to see an adult push little kids out of the way to get on a ride. She replied Well, they werent moving. Loudly I said to the kids When someone is rude like this, just let them by and remember how it felt so you never treat someone else like this. The Dozer heard me. I would have loved to have said so much more, but you cant teach an old dog, well, manners, so why bother.
If you are reading this rude woman, do not write in your trip report about how my children and I were rude waiting for their sibling and father to join them. They were just behind you. If you had stopped, I would have had my children move for you, even though DJ and Jack were right behind you.
I am quite certain she was convinced we were in the wrong. Isnt it frustrating when people convince themselves that their misbehavior was warranted? I often keep my tongue and avoid confrontations, but this infraction against my babies was too much for me. Errrrrrrr, rude people
.Not gonna let them ruin my day, but they suck.
Back to this flyin ride. We walk along at our own pace the very long entrance with no lines and see glimpses of the poor souls who havent figured out fast passes yet. We are moving fast, as fast as the little legs in our party will go. Jack has to be carried. He is tired. We are excited for this ride. I am afraid of heights, and might never hang glide.
A bunch of my friends parachuted once. I stood there alone on the ground, cheering them on. I went to the victory party that night. We watched each persons parachuting video 3,000 times, everyones but mine. Jumping out of a plane is just not something I could ever do. Never want to do. That feeling of falling is not something I enjoy. I understand the elation people get from the adrenaline rush, just like yeti surfing, but voluntarily jumping out thousands of feet in the air hoping the ripcord will work is just not an aphrodisiac that I am drawn to. The idea of pretending to fly is just my speed.
They strap us in. They raise us up, and they push us off the cliff and over the great state of California. It was breathtaking. I saw lots of feet dangling from the other passengers, above us. We had an elderly couple in wheelchairs next to us. I was tickled for them. Come to think of it. There were lots of blue hairs in there. You know, the little curled heads that just barely make it over the wheel, and make you wonder if a child, or dog, or no one is at the wheel of the car in front of you? Soarin is definitely a safe ride for any age, and the clientele strapped in that day reflected this. I loved the pine and orange scent through the groves. No one got dizzy or sick. Jack of course, was scared and again had his blanket over his head. Not good foreshadowing for the day. This ride was not scary. Not sure why the need for the blanket, but I was glad he had it.
Soarin was short, but a lovely ride and well worth the hype. Just get to The Land Pavilion lickety split first thing in the morn!
We hand over our FP to Living with the Land. Okay, Maelstrommers. Living with the Land
.Is a fastpass!?! I have seen references to this ride as being mundane, dull and boring. I think the only reason it is a fast pass is because Soarin is now in the Land and everyone that wants to fly has to sail first while their waiting. We really felt bad for the people who were waiting an hour and a half to get on this snoozer. But I do want to say, that we did like this ride, as much as I am downing it. We are farm folk, remember. We were impressed with the mickey shaped pumpkins, the two year-old tomato vine that earned a place in the Guiness book for most fruit bearing, and the space aged technology that was in full force in this project. It was also bucolic, peaceful and relaxing. This was a good thing this morning. Jack was cantankerous, in all his grumpidom. He was on edge. He sat quietly and happily during this entire ride, smiling. His speed? Living with the Land and the Tricertatops Spin. We love our child, but we did not pluck down thousands of dollars to do these two things for 6 days. Sorry Jack.
The Land Pavillion was very crowded by the time we left. We headed over to the Living Seas. Jack started crying. We dont know why. We scoop him up and move into the building. Crush, was well, crushed, and we were not able to even get near it. Packed with people. We strolled upstairs to see the tanks. Sky kept running ahead and disappearing. Carson was talking about being bored and Jack was still whining and sort of crying. This day was not going so well. Duh? We had minimal sleep. We are all tired. We should have taken the day off. But there was a lot we wanted to do before Grammy J came.
Grammy J? Who is she? A new character? Yes. I should have introduced her at the start of this tale, but she did not join us until Day three, or technically, day four, so I forgot about introducing her when I was recanting our tales of storm busting.
Grammy J is my dearest MIL, DJs mommy. She is a tiny wisp of a woman- all 51, size 2, 98 lbs of her. DJs dad had been a superintendent of a big school system on Long Island, and sadly died suddenly when DJ was in his early 20s. Grammy J adores her children and grandchildren and even finds love in her heart for her quirky daughter in law, me. She braves Diz with her kids and grandkids nearly everytime they go. So she ends up there more than any of us, and she doens't even really enjoy it! The New York Phil is more her style, followed by a good chardonnay and salad on the Upper East Side somewhere is more her style. Mine too, at least before kids......
She and I are very different in many ways. But we share the same political views, and love of family and classical music and the arts. I almost always tell her like it is. She is okay with it. She almost never does tell it like it is and I am okay with that. She knows I love her son, and try to be a good mother, sister, daughter, daughter in law, friend and human being and I think she approves. She is undoubtedly the most loving and attentive grandmother I could ever ask for, for my children. I cherish this woman, and love her deeply. It is so wonderful, because it didnt start out that way.
Grammy J knows me too well. She knows I am intense. She knows my zany, high pressured way of doing Diz, like I do Christmas, or the lake, or anywhere else. So this is why we didnt take today off. Grammy J was coming tomorrow and we wanted to have a chance to do a few more whirlwind moves before she arrived. She is not thrilled that her tiny only granddaughter is on these giant coasters and such. So we try to get these things accomplished before she arrives. To spare her and us, the angst
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Boy, having just proofed this, this entry seems about as dull as our morning at Epcot was. Nothing exciting happened. Why did we go here without Grammy J? Not a good move. Next time we bring Grammy J here instead of another park we took her to. There were no kodak moments, as our camera still has no batteries, and there were no sweet or outlandish details, really, to relate here. But this is after all a travel journal, and I suspect the lack of excitement reflects our fatigue which is clearly catching up to all of us at this point.
I got whatever ailed Sky and was down for the count for the past few days. It was ugly and so bad I didn't even Dis or look to see if Bushie went poof yet. Yeah, Lots of fun these past few days while hubby was at work and three loud and overactive younguns are on spring break all week. Let's just say I was glad we splurged for the premium satelite channels--the only babysitter I had in my extreme hour of need!
Hope your daughter is better and can enjoy her basket!
. Many wishes for your wellness! 
)and is all around miserable now. I hope that it goes fast as we leave a week from today for our Disney journey
are all feeling better! 
