MsSpinShady
Mouseketeer<br><font color="3d8e33">I'm always lat
- Joined
- Nov 9, 2003
- Messages
- 469
I have really enjoyed everyone's trip reports, so I thought I would share ours. Thank you all for taking the time to share your stories. I hope you enjoy ours...(I will keep adding the new links on as I finish each day)
MsSpinShady
Trip date: November 4-14
Cast of characters:
Mom (aka Me) -- DW, 39 The Keeper of the Plan and knower of all things Disney
Dad -- DH, 38 I came to Disney and I came.
Mini-Me -- DS, 15 Knows as much about Disney as me (probably more since hes young and can remember stuff better)
Mr. Bobolin -- DS, 12 a childhood nickname that has nothing to do with Disney but may cause some embarrassment should a future girlfriend ever read this report
The Irish Princess -- DD, 4 red curly hair, grey-green eyes, and the ability to turn her face red
and blow steam out her ears by clenching her fists and stomping her feet
Baby Abby -- DD, 1 along for the ride (kinda like Daddy!)
Day 1: Are we there yet?
This trip started out like every other adventure our clan undertakes late. The Plan was to leave at 12:45 p.m. to pick up Mini-Me from school, hit the highway and get to the airport in plenty of time to avoid The Bob and Run at the airport. We actually left at 1:00 p.m., which meant we were not even out of the driveway and already off The Plan.
As The Keeper of the Plan, it would be my job to rectify this (or perhaps, in order to avoid mass panic, just not mention this little detail to the rest of the clan). A quick assessment of the situation and I came up with a new plan: I would sit quietly on the drive to the school, and then, as soon as we pulled into the parking lot, I would spring into action and RUN to the attendance office, scoop up my first born, and RUN back to the car. That would surely save some time and get us back on The Plan.
So I did the spring and RUN thing, and there I was standing in the attendance office gasping for air, when I was greeted by THE STARE. Anyone who has attended high school and has had an encounter with the office lady has seen THE STARE. Now late, out of breath and panicked because my usually dependable DS was not in the attendance office (even though I was 15 minutes late which should have given him plenty of time to get there ahead of me), I blurted out something incoherent about being there to pick him up. The office lady slowly looked around the office, and seeing that we were still the only two people there, said rather sagely, Hes not here.
Thanks for that observation.
Does he know your coming?
Well of course he knows Im coming, were on our way to Disney. Ok, maybe I didnt SAY that, but thats what I was thinking. Instead, I mumbled something else about I didnt know he was supposed to meet me here, I sent a note this morning, blah, blah, blah help what do I do?
To which she replied (without blinking of course, I was still getting THE STARE), You dont need to write a note and come in. The kids can come down here and sign themselves out and meet you out front.
To which I replied in my head, Well, you see, Ive been signing him in and out and up for over 15 years now, and Im getting rather good at it, if I do say so myself. So if its ok with you, I will just sign him out now. Could you find him, uh, please?
This little stand-off continued for a while, me babbling and gasping and her staring.
Finally, I think she began to sense that I wasnt leaving until someone found him and brought him to me so I could sign him out, so she found someone to go get him, and in a matter of only 15 minutes we were finally on our way.
Ah, finally on the road! If we drive fast, we can still get to the airport in time to avoid The Bob and Run. But then, it started. Im hungry. Whats for lunch? Can we stop somewhere to eat? Eat? Doesnt everyone realize we have a plane to catch? Cant we eat in Orlando?
So it was a quick stop at a drive-through and away we went. Five minutes from our house came the first Are we there yet?
Well no, we just left.
This continued for about 30 miles until everyone fell asleep. The rest of the drive to the airport was painless and we arrived before our plane departed! Ah, maybe The Plan was going to work after all. Of course, first we had to park. Clearly, we should have gone on a reconnaissance mission ahead of time to scope out the long-term parking situation and figure out how to get from there to our gate. But no, being the wild and crazy clan we are we decided to wing it. Which meant 15 minutes of driving around in circles trying to figure out how to get the closest spot to the gate we could. It probably would have been faster if wed just ditched the car at the airport entrance and ran to the terminal.
Finding a spot was peanuts compared to unloading 6 people, a stroller, 2 carseats and enough luggage to spend the summer abroad. By this time, Dad was questioning the wisdom of bringing the booster seat for The Irish Princess. We didnt need it for the plane ride like Baby Abbys seat. Wasnt there one available through the car rental? Well, of course there is silly, but wed have to PAY for it, and Im already giving them ½ a years mortgage payments for the car, why should I pay for a booster seat when we have our own?
Hmm, well, ok, but it would be easier to just rent it.
That little matter cleared up, we all grabbed as much as we could carry, did a quick head count (you will see how important that is with four kids later in the story) and, you guessed it, RAN to the terminal. We checked in, went through security (where apparently my husbands cell phone set off an alarm resulting in a strip search fun for me but time-consuming, none the less) and then hit the gate with 5 minutes to spare. We avoided The Bob and Run! Dang, were good!
Once loaded onto the plane, Dad and I played an entertaining game of Musical Chairs (much to the dismay of the four or five rows of quiet, orderly people seated around us). See it was about this time that Baby Abby (who needed a nap) decided she didnt want to sit in her carseat on a plane for 2 hours and 25 minutes. No, she wanted out NOW!!! Of course, the plane was NOW taxiing out of the gate, so she had no choice. So Dad and I played the game, taking turns trying to amuse and entertain a tired, cranky baby. I was better at it than him, which meant that I got to spend most of the flight amusing and entertaining while he sat a row ahead reading the magazine featuring an article on Johnny Depp that he had bought for me! (Of course, as punishment for dumping baby whining duties on me, he spent the entire flight answering The Irish Princesss question -- Are we there yet?).
Finally, they let us off the plane and we RAN for the terminal (ok, maybe we didnt run literally, but we walked really fast we were in Orlando, after all). The Plan was for Dad to take the kids and get the luggage while I hopped the shuttle and got the car. We headed for the elevators that would take us to the luggage and shuttles. The elevator arrived and by the time everyone coming up had gotten off, the doors started to close! Fortunately, DH acted quickly and shoved the stroller, baby and all, into the door. Turns out babies make good door stops! Just kidding.
Baby Abby was fine, but Dad was so embarrassed his ears turned red. Several ladies also waiting for the elevator looked like they were pondering filing a complaint, but then realized how bad my DH felt and gave him a little smile. Whew dodged a close one. The Irish Princess decided she wanted to go get the car with me, so I gathered her, the diaper bag (The Plan holder) and her gigantic booster seat and off we went.
Our plan was to spend the night at POR, and check in early the next morning at the Poly. Check-in went smoothly, and we headed out to the boat dock. We were going to take the boat to Downtown Disney, grab some dinner, come back to POR and get ready for the big day we had planned for tomorrow.
By this time it was after 9 p.m. We boarded the boat and I could feel the stares. What kind of mom takes little ones to Downtown Disney after 9 p.m.? Why werent they in bed? Well, first of all, were not really morning kind of people. We eat late, stay up late, and complain in the morning how tired we are. Guess its just kind of our thing. Second, were at Disney, and we only have a short amount of time to do EVERYTHING. Lastly, were hungry. Fortunately, once we left the dock it was very dark on the boat (it was after 9 p.m., remember), so although I knew those people were still probably all staring, they couldnt see me in the dark. Ha!
After a great dinner at Planet Hollywood, we -- you guessed it again -- RAN to the bus, made it back to POR and called it a day.
Invasion of the Clan: Day 2 - Quick, Head Count!
Invasion of the Clan: Day 3 - We Failed Challenge 3!
Invasion of the Clan: Day 4 - She Ain't Called The Irish Princess for Nothin!
MsSpinShady
Trip date: November 4-14
Cast of characters:
Mom (aka Me) -- DW, 39 The Keeper of the Plan and knower of all things Disney
Dad -- DH, 38 I came to Disney and I came.
Mini-Me -- DS, 15 Knows as much about Disney as me (probably more since hes young and can remember stuff better)
Mr. Bobolin -- DS, 12 a childhood nickname that has nothing to do with Disney but may cause some embarrassment should a future girlfriend ever read this report
The Irish Princess -- DD, 4 red curly hair, grey-green eyes, and the ability to turn her face red
and blow steam out her ears by clenching her fists and stomping her feet
Baby Abby -- DD, 1 along for the ride (kinda like Daddy!)
Day 1: Are we there yet?
This trip started out like every other adventure our clan undertakes late. The Plan was to leave at 12:45 p.m. to pick up Mini-Me from school, hit the highway and get to the airport in plenty of time to avoid The Bob and Run at the airport. We actually left at 1:00 p.m., which meant we were not even out of the driveway and already off The Plan.
As The Keeper of the Plan, it would be my job to rectify this (or perhaps, in order to avoid mass panic, just not mention this little detail to the rest of the clan). A quick assessment of the situation and I came up with a new plan: I would sit quietly on the drive to the school, and then, as soon as we pulled into the parking lot, I would spring into action and RUN to the attendance office, scoop up my first born, and RUN back to the car. That would surely save some time and get us back on The Plan.
So I did the spring and RUN thing, and there I was standing in the attendance office gasping for air, when I was greeted by THE STARE. Anyone who has attended high school and has had an encounter with the office lady has seen THE STARE. Now late, out of breath and panicked because my usually dependable DS was not in the attendance office (even though I was 15 minutes late which should have given him plenty of time to get there ahead of me), I blurted out something incoherent about being there to pick him up. The office lady slowly looked around the office, and seeing that we were still the only two people there, said rather sagely, Hes not here.
Thanks for that observation.
Does he know your coming?
Well of course he knows Im coming, were on our way to Disney. Ok, maybe I didnt SAY that, but thats what I was thinking. Instead, I mumbled something else about I didnt know he was supposed to meet me here, I sent a note this morning, blah, blah, blah help what do I do?
To which she replied (without blinking of course, I was still getting THE STARE), You dont need to write a note and come in. The kids can come down here and sign themselves out and meet you out front.
To which I replied in my head, Well, you see, Ive been signing him in and out and up for over 15 years now, and Im getting rather good at it, if I do say so myself. So if its ok with you, I will just sign him out now. Could you find him, uh, please?
This little stand-off continued for a while, me babbling and gasping and her staring.
Finally, I think she began to sense that I wasnt leaving until someone found him and brought him to me so I could sign him out, so she found someone to go get him, and in a matter of only 15 minutes we were finally on our way.
Ah, finally on the road! If we drive fast, we can still get to the airport in time to avoid The Bob and Run. But then, it started. Im hungry. Whats for lunch? Can we stop somewhere to eat? Eat? Doesnt everyone realize we have a plane to catch? Cant we eat in Orlando?
So it was a quick stop at a drive-through and away we went. Five minutes from our house came the first Are we there yet?
Well no, we just left.
This continued for about 30 miles until everyone fell asleep. The rest of the drive to the airport was painless and we arrived before our plane departed! Ah, maybe The Plan was going to work after all. Of course, first we had to park. Clearly, we should have gone on a reconnaissance mission ahead of time to scope out the long-term parking situation and figure out how to get from there to our gate. But no, being the wild and crazy clan we are we decided to wing it. Which meant 15 minutes of driving around in circles trying to figure out how to get the closest spot to the gate we could. It probably would have been faster if wed just ditched the car at the airport entrance and ran to the terminal.
Finding a spot was peanuts compared to unloading 6 people, a stroller, 2 carseats and enough luggage to spend the summer abroad. By this time, Dad was questioning the wisdom of bringing the booster seat for The Irish Princess. We didnt need it for the plane ride like Baby Abbys seat. Wasnt there one available through the car rental? Well, of course there is silly, but wed have to PAY for it, and Im already giving them ½ a years mortgage payments for the car, why should I pay for a booster seat when we have our own?
Hmm, well, ok, but it would be easier to just rent it.
That little matter cleared up, we all grabbed as much as we could carry, did a quick head count (you will see how important that is with four kids later in the story) and, you guessed it, RAN to the terminal. We checked in, went through security (where apparently my husbands cell phone set off an alarm resulting in a strip search fun for me but time-consuming, none the less) and then hit the gate with 5 minutes to spare. We avoided The Bob and Run! Dang, were good!
Once loaded onto the plane, Dad and I played an entertaining game of Musical Chairs (much to the dismay of the four or five rows of quiet, orderly people seated around us). See it was about this time that Baby Abby (who needed a nap) decided she didnt want to sit in her carseat on a plane for 2 hours and 25 minutes. No, she wanted out NOW!!! Of course, the plane was NOW taxiing out of the gate, so she had no choice. So Dad and I played the game, taking turns trying to amuse and entertain a tired, cranky baby. I was better at it than him, which meant that I got to spend most of the flight amusing and entertaining while he sat a row ahead reading the magazine featuring an article on Johnny Depp that he had bought for me! (Of course, as punishment for dumping baby whining duties on me, he spent the entire flight answering The Irish Princesss question -- Are we there yet?).
Finally, they let us off the plane and we RAN for the terminal (ok, maybe we didnt run literally, but we walked really fast we were in Orlando, after all). The Plan was for Dad to take the kids and get the luggage while I hopped the shuttle and got the car. We headed for the elevators that would take us to the luggage and shuttles. The elevator arrived and by the time everyone coming up had gotten off, the doors started to close! Fortunately, DH acted quickly and shoved the stroller, baby and all, into the door. Turns out babies make good door stops! Just kidding.
Baby Abby was fine, but Dad was so embarrassed his ears turned red. Several ladies also waiting for the elevator looked like they were pondering filing a complaint, but then realized how bad my DH felt and gave him a little smile. Whew dodged a close one. The Irish Princess decided she wanted to go get the car with me, so I gathered her, the diaper bag (The Plan holder) and her gigantic booster seat and off we went.
Our plan was to spend the night at POR, and check in early the next morning at the Poly. Check-in went smoothly, and we headed out to the boat dock. We were going to take the boat to Downtown Disney, grab some dinner, come back to POR and get ready for the big day we had planned for tomorrow.
By this time it was after 9 p.m. We boarded the boat and I could feel the stares. What kind of mom takes little ones to Downtown Disney after 9 p.m.? Why werent they in bed? Well, first of all, were not really morning kind of people. We eat late, stay up late, and complain in the morning how tired we are. Guess its just kind of our thing. Second, were at Disney, and we only have a short amount of time to do EVERYTHING. Lastly, were hungry. Fortunately, once we left the dock it was very dark on the boat (it was after 9 p.m., remember), so although I knew those people were still probably all staring, they couldnt see me in the dark. Ha!
After a great dinner at Planet Hollywood, we -- you guessed it again -- RAN to the bus, made it back to POR and called it a day.
Invasion of the Clan: Day 2 - Quick, Head Count!
Invasion of the Clan: Day 3 - We Failed Challenge 3!
Invasion of the Clan: Day 4 - She Ain't Called The Irish Princess for Nothin!
I am looking forward to more of your report! 
