i want adventure in the great wide somewhere - running journal! (comments welcome)

[xjillianpaige]

Enquiring minds want to know……where from and what flavor?

The Scoop & Scootery! They have 3 locations now. I get the PB Bomb.

 

[jmasgat]

The Scoop & Scootery! They have 3 locations now. I get the PB Bomb.

And I see they have a location that I have run by right along the Somerville Community Trail. Will have to try next time I'm there.

 

[xjillianpaige]

Wine & Dine Race & Trip Report Part 1

Some Basics
​

I was going to jump right into the recap, but then realized some context was needed around the players on the trip. I'll break us down by room:

AoA Room 1: Me, my mom, my dad
AoA Room 2: Sio and Miss M (almost 8 years old) - they live across the street from my parents back home
AoA Room 3: Kristen & Co. (Kristen is one of my dad's clients/friends and she was traveling with a slew of people)
Off Property: Jenna, Paul, Eric, Alex (you know Jenna, Alex, and Eric already; Paul is Jenna's husband)

Day 1: Travel Day
​

We had an early morning flight to Orlando. The crew going on this trip was Mom and Dad, Sio (pronounced Show), and Sio's almost-8 year old, Miss M. Sio wanted the convenience of a car, so at 5 am we managed to pack up her SUV and we drove to the airport! Once through security (pre-check for my family, regular line for Sio and Miss M since her pre-check had expired), we headed to the gate where I was left with everyone's carry on bags. Sio and Miss M went in one direction to get breakfast and my parents went in another, bringing me back a donut and drink.

​

For some reason, I have special status with JetBlue, so I was first to board, I settled into my middle seat since Miss M had requested that I sit next to her, and she had the window. My parents were directly across from us in a middle and window, too, so one poor guy was stuck between our group in the aisle. Miss M immediately needed to be entertained (so much for sleeping on the plane) and so we did some crafts while we waited to take off. Once we were in the air, she watched some of her iPad and snacked and before we knew it, we were landing!

We landed in Orlando and as we walked to the baggage claim, one of the staff members on those big cars that bring people from one end of the airport to the other asked my mom if she wanted a ride. That gave us a good laugh because my mom is tiny (4'9") and has short gray hair so maybe she looks *ahem* older, but she is NOT. She was there for the 10k, after all! She was totally fine to walk to baggage claim. We waited for our bags and then went downstairs for the Mears Transportation. While we waited, Sio ran into the global entry office and renewed her pre-check so that she could skip the line on the way back. And we were called for our bus just moments after she finished with that! Good timing!

​

More good luck - we were the first stop! Our home resort for the weekend was Art of Animation. My family was in a Cars room (as was my dad's friend), and Sio was originally in a Little Mermaid room, but asked for and received an upgrade to a Nemo room right outside the pool. We dropped our stuff and immediately changed into swimsuits so we could go get lunch at the food court and sit by the pool. We did a little bit of sitting by the pool with drinks, a little bit of playing in the pool with Miss M. And then it was time to go get dinner!

​

Miss M had been asking for fish and chips - her favorite food - all day. My dad is NOT a fan of Disney Springs ever since they added lots of non-Disney stores, but the only place I could think of was Cookes of Dublin and he LOVES Cookes. So we got to the springs via bus and went right to Cookes. I wasn't hungry, so everyone else got food and I had a few little tastes. I should have hopped in the Gideon's line while everyone was eating since it was very short, but I didn't. So once we finished dinner, I got in line with my dad while my mom went to the Disney store with Sio and Miss M to shop (dangerous).

​

We got a bunch of cookies, including the specialty ones for Halloween, and then met back up. Miss M left the Disney store like she had hit the jackpot with slippers and a giant Minnie plushie. She began to fade, so Sio took her back to the hotel while my parents and I went for ice cream at Ghirardelli. Then we also began to fade and headed home.

Day 2 - Expo & Halloween​

The next morning, Sio and Miss M were doing their own thing and heading to MK for the morning. My parents and I had the expo, so I woke up early and got us group 36! Not too shabby! We got breakfast at the dining hall and caught the bus to the expo. We took photos with the signage and then we were about to get in line for our bibs when we were called to the merch line. We chatted with folks and after waiting for some time (not sure exactly how long) we were in the merch area.

​

The atmosphere was much more relaxed than at marathon or princess weekend. Security and CMs were telling people that they couldn't sit with their piles of merch (crouching and standing was okay). We started a little pile and I grabbed some sweatshirts and pins and magnets for my friends flying in on Friday. My dad got a t-shirt and some pins. My mom got a bracelet that would be broken the morning of the 10k (it literally just fell apart). We managed to get it back together enough that it survived the whole morning.

After that we got into the bib line which was long but moved the whole time. My parents got their bibs (10k for Mom, half for Dad) then met with me in the challenge line. Then we went outside and they were directing everyone into a new line for the vendor hall/t-shirts. We ended up walking down to the fields and then entered the expo through a door on the expo floor in the back instead of entering from the top and going downstairs. Inside we went right over to get our shirts. I wanted to exchange my medium for a large, but they didn't have any so I stuck with my original size. We did a quick walk through vendors but left without any additional purchases.

From there we decided to go to Port Orleans French Quarter for lunch and because I wanted to show them where I stayed back in August. We started with a walk through and checked out the pool and the building where my room was. My mom was impressed and I think the next time we come as a family we'll be staying in at least a moderate resort. For lunch we got mac & cheese (me), a shrimp po-boy (Mom), and a beef po-boy (Dad). We followed it up with beignets for dessert. I didn't get pics of the po-boys which is a shame because they were good - I had a bite of each. Great flavors.

​

Then we had to get back to AoA for Halloween! So we grabbed our stuff and hopped on a bus to Hollywood Studios so we could take the skyliner. We were the only ones on the bus, too! I think there was a party at HS that night for Halloween (I could probably Google this and figure it out but I'm not going to) so it was very quiet. Then we transferred to the Skyliner.

Guys. This is where it gets a little crazy. I get off the skyliner at AoA with all my bags... except for my backpack. Yep. The backpack with y'know... my wallet and ID, the charging cord for my phone... some brand new Halloween pins. Not. With. Me.

I realized immediately, but the CM working there did not see anything in the one we had vacated and didn't really even direct us to what we needed to do. It didn't seem like there was anyone in charge. My dad and I stood there for a few minutes because they made it seem like someone was going to make a phone call. Luckily, my mom went right to the front desk of AoA and told them what happened while we waited to see if anyone at the skyliner would call over to the transfer station (no one did).

My dad and I met up with her at the front desk where the CM was on the phone. He called everywhere - the skyliner transfer station, Hollywood Studios guest services, the home area for all the buses, and the front desk of POFQ. Nothinggggg. (Also I want to say how lovely every CM working the front desk was and yes - I did put in cast compliments for all of them.) We also realized it SO quickly that it was a matter of it just being found. Oh! My magic band was also literally attached to the handle of my bag (I hate wearing them so I always attach them to a belt loop or bag handle) so the CM was very confident it would make it back to me.

But more on that later. At that time there was really nothing left to do. We had photographic evidence that it was on the bus with us from POFQ to HS so the question was did I leave it on a bus and therefore would it get returned to POFQ, HS, or the bus depot or did I leave it on the first skyliner leg and therefore would be returned to HS or stay at the skyliner. And we wouldn't know until it was found.

So we had one choice - put in a lost and found request and go on with our Halloween evening. So we went back to the room, put on our swimsuits for some pool time and more drinks and then our Halloween shirts! Then we met up with Sio and Miss M for our trick or treating through the Lion King section. Miss M was too hot in her costume, so we all wore parts of it - and yes, I did get a bag and fill it full of candy!

Then it was time for bed. Well, for Miss M. She was tired after a long day at the park (according to Sio it was very quiet!). My parents and I decided to grab some pizza since we hadn't eaten since lunch. And then after our pizza my mom and I had the same idea - go back to the front desk and see if there's an update.

A new girl was working at that time and when I mentioned what happened she shared that she had been informed and was happy to jump on it! This gave me some comfort that at shift change, pertinent info was given. I was so worried about my ID, mostly. I needed that back so I could get on the airplane without issue. My credit cards would have been nice, but I could also have had people pay for me and I pay them back via venmo.

Anyway, she decides to jump on the phone with the same people from earlier. We decided to go wait on a bench for her to finish having conversations since listening in honestly was more stressful. At one point she came over and asked if it had a water bottle in the side pocket. It did, so this got my hopes very high and my mom and I both started to cry a little bit because it seemed like it had been found.

Sure enough, she comes over and tells us that it was at the skyliner station lost and found at Caribbean Beach. We could wait for a runner to go pick it up around 11 pm, or we could go then and get it ourselves (it was about 9 am). I was going to wait because I didn't want to have to go, but we ended up back on the skyliner and heading to the transfer station.

When we got there, the girl who was working seemed confused when I asked about lost and found, so we tried to find it on our own. Some Disney lingo threw us off, as they call it "Trinidad lost and found" so it seemed like we had to go into the Trinidad section of the resort, but in reality that station is also called Trinidad. We ended up at the resort front desk where he explained the confusion (after he had to go back in the office to make a phone call) and then they offered us a ride in a van (I was so sick of walking and we had races coming up).

So finally. FINALLY, I had my backpack back and we got on the skyliner back to AoA and settled into bed for the night.

 

[xjillianpaige]

Wine & Dine Race & Trip Report Part 2

Day 3: Hollywood Studios
​

First park day! My friends were arriving this morning and then they had the expo, but my squad had Hollywood Studios!

We woke up and I wish I could tell you what we did for breakfast, but I don't remember. I have an inkling that we went to the food court again. But I could be wrong.

What I do remember is that we met at the skyliner for Miss M's first ride on it! She wasn't so sure about it at first, but then she warmed up to the idea and ended up LOVING it, so it's good that we took it somewhere every day after that. Our first stop in the park was the Tower of Terror. The line wasn't terrible - slightly shorter than stated. Miss M was not loving the waiting part, but we attempted to entertain her by looking for geckos and other critters in all the grassy parts.

Once inside she was like, "I cannot do this" and I was like, "You most certainly can." She held my hand a lot and I explained a lot of what was happening so she wouldn't be surprised/scared the way I was when I was little. Miss M was also in charge of all seating for every ride on the trip, so we were front row for this with her between me and Sio. My parents were just across the aisle. I would show you the photo of Miss M's hilarious face, but you know my rule.

After that we stopped for a snack and something to sip on and headed out back for Star Wars. We had a lightning lane for the Millennium Falcon and Miss M got to be the pilot with my mom. Sio and I were gunners and my dad was the engineer. She loved skipping the line! And she had so much fun on that ride she wanted to do it again, but we weren't waiting in line for it.

Instead we went and got lunch at Docking Bay 7. I wasn't hungry (this means I definitely ate a big breakfast at the hotel because a good big breakfast with protein holds me over for hours) so I just sat with the fam while they all ate.

Then we decided to leave Batuu and on the way Miss M got a premium bar and we ran into my dad's friends (again). So we sat for a bit while she ate her ice cream (and some popcorn). From there we decided to go do Star Tours which was a total walk on.

From what I remember, our next stop was Toy Story Mania. We got in line and while in line, a lightning lane popped up for 10 minutes from then, so we got out of line and waited outside the ride until we got called back. Miss M chose to sit with me, and she did great her first go at it (but I won)! It was raining off and on at this point, but we managed to stay dry as it was never a very strong rain.

​

Our next and maybe final stop was to wait in line for Slinky. This was a long one, but we managed to occupy Miss M (taking turns giving her various devices helped) and it was a great ride! I did Mike Wazowski her though. Oops. (Yes, she chose to sit with me again.)

We stopped in the shops on the way out and all of a sudden Miss M is walking out of one with so many pins. Yep! She had seen me make a trade that morning and decided to start her own collection. She also LOVES a mystery toy so she had fun unboxing some mystery sets.

Our dinner reservation that night was for Hoop Dee Doo and so we hopped onto the bus to Fort Wilderness. This was our post-Dopey celebration and I knew my dad would LOVE it. After the second bus to the back of the resort, my parents and Sio grabbed a drink while I took Miss M. to the playground.

I delivered her back to my family and went to check in at the desk where I ran into my friends who were running slightly behind us. We all reunited (yay) and then Miss M wanted to bring her pins over to the store to try trading for the first time! She loved it and the CM trading with us was so sweet.

Soon enough we were heading inside and upstairs to our seats. Our table was funky where we sat with our backs to the stage on swivel seats so we could turn to watch. My dad loved it. Miss M liked it until she was too tired and started to crash. She did love the mac and cheese and maybe she ate an entire skillet by herself. And then she loved it again at the end when they brought out the washboard instruments and got to bang it with a spoon.

Miss M is a November birthday so one of the cast came up to see if there were any birthdays and she proudly proclaimed it was her birthday month. So he said he wouldn't announce it but would sing directly to her. She faced away from him and toward the stage the whole time. Hopeless.

I loved it as much as the first time but was definitely feeling antsy as I wanted to get back and go to bed at a decent hour as Mom and I had a 10k in the morning! We had the middle show (6:15 or so) and I thought it would be over by 8 so they could prepare for the 8:30 show, but it went almost until 8:30.

The show now over, we parted ways from my friends and got on the bus to the front of the resort. I had read somewhere that they did resort buses from the show but that was a lie... so at the front of the resort we got back onto a Hollywood Studios bus and then the skyliner. Back the way we came. I think this was the first night of Jollywood Nights, too, but we went back to AoA.

From there it was right to bed!

Day 4 - 10k and EPCOT​

The alarm went off at 2:00 am and our goal was to get on the first bus at 3:30 am. We headed out on time and picked up a few quick things at the food court (they opened the mini marketplace area early) and then met up with my dad's friend Kristen before getting on the bus. It seemed like it was the first bus and we got there nice and early and met up with my friends.

​

We were in D corral and our outfit theme was Disney snacks. I was popcorn, my mom a dole whip, Alex churros, Jenna Mickey premium bar, and Eric Mickey waffles. I made the shirts for my mom and I, Jenna made her shirt, and Alex and Eric went with Etsy purchases.

This was a nice brisk walk. I wanted it to be a stroll but my mama MOVES. She can't stroll. We got some great photos and had lots of fun. The weather was perfect. Completely comfortable for our walk. We finished just as the sun was coming up and my dad was there to spectate at the finish line.

We all went our separate ways and hopped on the bus to AoA. The first stop was Pop, though, and CMs were lined up celebrating and cheering the runners as they returned. Nothing like that at AoA. Shame.

We changed for a day at EPCOT. If I recall correctly, Sio and Miss M spent some time that morning at AK and met us at EPCOT. We took some photos and then went out to the World Showcase for my first Food & Wine Festival!

FYI: I put all of my food photos in a few posts in the Restaurants section. I'll link them here: click for post number 1 and click for post number 2 and click for post number 3.

My first stop was the Portuguese Cheese Bread. Just $5 for two rolls and I shared with my parents. This is also where I learned about the passport stamps for the Fromage Montage. Five different cheese dishes and I get a free dish! Our second stop was Greece where I got the Griddled Cheese with Honey and another stamp and we also shared the lamb gyro.

After it looks like we went right to The Land for Living with the Land. They have a good Food & Wine theme in here with little bars set up with drinks and food themed to the foods in that part of the gardens. Our next stop was the new Moana themed water area which was very cute and interactive! We also saw Moana walking by and took a photo as she passed which I sent to my friend who has a 2 year old that loves Moana (and all things Disney/Princesses).

At one point we needed to kill time and decided to ride the monorail to the ticket and transportation center and back where we met someone who worked for RunDisney who gave us some cool insight into the course. I was curious as to why there was no Powerade and she explained that it had been delivered, but that they may have decided not to give it out because of the heat/humidity and something about salt? I forget the details.

​

Back in EPCOT, we did some shopping and then stopped for a flight (Mom) and some mac & cheese at Mac-a-tizers. I did the classic (cheese #3) and it was really good. Miss M and Sio made it to EPCOT at this time and we had dinner reservations at Via Napoli. We got the Arancini, Caesar Salad, and Caprese Salad to start and then shared some pizza. We didn't love our pizza choice, but it did the job. Next time I think we'd try pasta or a different pizza. We'd been before and really liked it, but just missed the mark this time.

We took the skyliner back to our hotel and got into bed at a really decent hour. I had been texting my friends to see what their plan would be for arriving. They decided on waking up before the time change as to not risk getting there too late. We, on the other hand, decided to wake up just after 2:00 am so that we could take advantage of the extra hour of sleep and then get ready quickly so we could attempt to get on the 2:30 am bus (the first out).

Day 5 - Half Marathon & EPCOT​

So how did our plan work out? The extra hour of sleep was amazing - I think I got 6 hours! And we got out at 2:45 and that seemed like it was still the first bus. Kristen decided to get out later and then ended up on our bus, so it seems like people weren't as rushed getting out in the morning as they are at other weekends.

​

We met up with my friends again and then got into our corral (D again). My friends were a Pizza Planet delivery person (Eric) and Aliens (Jenna and Alex). My dad and I wore matching Belle and Maurice shirts.

Our corral started to move and we mostly stayed together. My dad and I got slightly separated from my friends as we got into the starting chute and then just our luck, the rope came through and separated us into two groups. That means my friends got about a 2 minute head start on my dad and I. I didn't stay it then, but decided it would be fun to try to catch them later on.

We started our race with a 1:1 ratio to keep us steady. My dad had done a half in training so we knew he could do the distance. We decided to stop for Beauty and the Beast characters and Bambi characters if we saw them. Low and behold, the first character we saw was Gaston! So we stopped. As we walked up Gaston looked at our shirts and said, "Crazy old Maurice! You brought Belle right into my arms." Great laughs and good photos.

Then we got back into the run and kept moving at a nice and steady clip. The time change meant that instead of the sun coming up around the 6th mile, it was rising much earlier, around the 4th mile. So soon enough it was SUNNY. But we kept moving! Some extra walk breaks due to the heat and to fuel, one at the boardwalk to avoid slipping and falling.

I have Jenna's location on my phone so I was able to see where she was and around mile 8 we were catching up. They had decided that at mile 9 Eric was going to go off and do his own thing, and they were going to walk the final 5 miles. This was our opportunity to catch up!

We got closer and closer to Alex and Jenna, and then just as we entered EPCOT by Figment I saw them! I did a quick sprint to catch them and let them know we caught up, and then as we were walking my dad caught up to us, too.

We went back to our walk/run as we went through EPCOT and then into the finish chute where we saw my mom but she could not hear us calling for her, so we managed to get closer and she finally heard us. The wild thing about her not hearing us call her name? She was standing with a woman who HAS THE SAME NAME. Two Brendas didn't hear us yelling Brenda.

We crossed the finish line, got our medals, and took some finisher photos! Quick rewind, as my dad and I were starting the race, my mom and Brenda were taking photos with characters in the start area!

On the bus top Pop first and again a HUGE celebration for their runners. Nothing at AoA. This is when I surprised my dad with a "My First Half Marathon" button for him to wear. Some of the other people on the bus saw me give it to him and started crying.

At AoA, before the party, our priority was to have a drink by the pool and take a nap. All of us had our drink and all of us fell asleep by the pool. Sio and Miss M had spent the morning at a park again and then did some pool time, and then we all went to EPCOT again.

​

First up was England for a drink, Snakebite for me and Welsh Dragon for Dad, and some food for Miss M. You guessed it, fish and chips! It's her favorite meal.

​

Then we did more eating around the world. I got my fourth cheese with the Passionfruit Cheesecake from Hawaii which was out of this world delicious. We also got lots of food at the Australia booth including a slice of cake, a lamb chop, and spicy shrimp. The spicy shrimp were SUPER spicy but flavorful. The lamb chop with pesto and chips was one of my favorite snacks the entire week.

We also got some snacks from Mexico and China. I can't remember if we had a dinner reservation - I'm assuming not so that we could snack around the world. It was the party night so I had tickets for all of us. Quick note on that - what a learning experience. I know some kids can push and hang on until late, Miss M is not that kid. Plus the time change... she was tired. So she and Sio left right before or after the fireworks? I can't quite remember.

I do know that at some point before they left we rode Soarin'.

​

My family and I stayed until about midnight. The party for me was just not worth it. The lines were too long - I waited about 45 minutes for Frozen with my friends while my parents did other things. Then we all met up for Ratatouille and my feet were KILLING me from being on them so long and that was another 45 minute wait. Eric and I made a return because he didn't love his sweatshirt and then they went to ride Guardians while my parents and I went to the buses and back to AoA.

I think this would be a better party if they either limited tickets or closed the park earlier to non-ticketed guests. It was just too busy. Especially because the Eat to the Beat artists was Boys II Men.

Day 6 - Magic Kingdom​

We originally had a breakfast scheduled for 8 am, but the night before I switched it to 10 am so we could sleep in a little bit. So we woke up and met up at the buses for our trip to Magic Kingdom. Miss M was sad we weren't taking the skyliner for this one. I don't blame her.

We went to Crystal Palace and started our breakfast. I miss the puffed french toast but those churro Mickey waffles were a pretty good replacement.

Miss M shrugged when I asked if she was going to hug and take pics with the characters. Little liar. She was OBSESSED. Every time they came over she was bouncing in her seat and so excited to go give them hugs. Eeyore was my favorite. He walks over and she gives him a big hug and says, "Eeyore! You're so sad!"

We also met Piglet, Pooh, and Tigger, too! It was, as always, a delicious meal and the characters and server were fantastic.

​

After that we went on the Jungle Cruise and it was rough - a 90 minute wait - but still my favorite ride. This is when we realized how insanely busy it was that day. We then got a Dole Whip and I went to find out how much it would be to add another day to my tickets because I was scheduled to come back to the parks the next day with my friends. To the tune of $200, I instead went and found a quiet place during the parade and called JetBlue and changed my flight to a day earlier so I could go home with my parents, Sio and Miss M.

Yep - it was so freakin' busy that I decided a $200 park day was not worth it. I was OVER it. So I changed my flight for free (and was upgraded to the second row and no one was in the middle seat) and then we went over to Tron!

I had bought us a lightning lane and so we started making our way over. Miss M was very worried and so we went up and checked out the seat. "This is NOT safe," she declared, so she and Brenda decided to ask for an accessible seat so that Miss M would feel safe and because my mom doesn't have the best knees and would be more comfortable seated.

Guys, the ride is great. Miss M has another hilarious face in the ride picture - we all do. My only complaint is that my shorts made it so my bare leg was against the ride vehicle and it wasn't super comfortable as we sat waiting to go. I would want to be in slightly longer shorts next time or adjust them so that it was more comfortable.

Another day, another trip to EPCOT. After Tron we headed out as we had a hibachi reservation at Teppan Edo in Japan! Miss M was VERY excited about this because she was considering hibachi as her birthday activity later that month. She loved the show but didn't love the noodles - she wanted thin noodles. That's okay, we all enjoyed some of her food. I got the sashimi sampler because I needed something light. It was FANTASTIC.

However, before the hibachi we did stop for my final cheese dish, the melty cheese from Switzerland. It was okay. The cheese was nice but the bread was on its way to stale. But that meant I got my prize!

So after dinner, I went off to get my prize (vanilla and blueberry swirl soft serve) and Sio had been eyeing a soft serve from Whirl Showplace (or something punny to that effect) so we picked that up for her (she never got to Greece, unfortunately, which she had wanted to do). We were all overtired and slap happy as we finished our ice cream and left the park for the final time and got one last skyliner ride in back to AoA.

Miss M fell asleep in the skyliner, and I won't bore you with details. But the next morning we woke up, had breakfast, and then caught our pre-scheduled uber to MCO and flew home.

 

[accm]

Great trip report! Sounds like everyone had a great time.