Island Hopping: A Highly Inappropriate TR. (Boom.)-- Link to NEW TR! 10/8

[Jackiemarie21]

I am so jealous of your pictures they are beyond awesome! We stopped at that same popcorn cart twice! They really know how irresitable that smell is as you leave! Can't wait to read more!

 

[majrn75]

Love your trip report!! Your children are beautiful and all of the pictures you have posted are breathtaking. Can't wait to read more!


Melissa

 

[disneygirl520]

I loved this update! Minus the raft ride over which I agree is hot and slow and crowded Tom Sawyer's island is a nice escape from the crowds. It's fun to just be able to run around.

 

[xdanielleax]

Hi! I've subbed! I love, love, love reading trip reports and hopefully I can actually write one this trip! DH, myself and our 2 kiddos are staying at Caribbean Beach this trip and I can't wait!

 

[Dancegrl624]

Yay for double updates!

We have not been to Tom Sawyer Island ever...maybe not that we have a boy we'll go over there, but the whole raft to the island makes me nervous!

Maybe Tortuga Tavern was open due to Free Dining? That's the only time I've seen it open besides during peak times. Sounds delicious!

Are you bouncing off the walls with excitement yet about your upcoming trip? I just got an email the other day and I'm not staying at the Contemporary instead of Coronado!!! AHHH!!!

 

[tiggerfan77]

Just saw your new video! Your husband is doing an awesome job with the family vacation videos!

I loved all your pic from Tom Sawyers Island. I have been to MK many times and have never been there!This year I was determined to go and told everyone that's where we were going and got totally distracted by Splash Mountain and Big Thunder! LOL! What is wrong with me!!

 

[ronnmel]

I'm a big fan of Tom Sawyer Island! The raft... not so much. It's true that it's hot and packed. At the same time, I appreciate them as a means to an end: a way to leave TSI relatively uncrowded as opposed to the rest of the park.

 

[merbobear]

Thank God for those waiting areas. Even with Adison NOT having sensitivities to crowds and such, it is kind of awful waiting in that packed area for **** (I *just* realized that Monsters Inc Laugh Floor shortens to ****..those monsters, making me laugh all the way up here in NY). I am just glad that Disney is wise enough to include all disabilities, disorders, afflictions or illnesses in their umbrella of "Disability" so that all children are hopefully able to enjoy their attractions.

Laughing again, because I just realized that you can't say "the word that Monsters Inc Laugh Floor" abbreviates to on the Dis. Whoops! I was just trying to avoid typing out Monsters Inc Laugh Floor over and over again, I swear officer!!

 

[Fantasyland Mom]

Are you guys doing MK the morning of your MNSSHP?? Or on the 18th? We’ll be back in the MK those days too!! But definitely at MNSSHP, especially since one of the dance parties is now Monsters U themed! Yay!

I seriously always get SO excited when I see that you’ve updated!!

Loved the Panama video!! Oh my gosh Brynn sounds just like me on my first trip, yes, the one where I was legally an adult, bahaa, I kept asking where the drops were, would it be scary, how fast did it go? Lawl. Scardey cat right here! I still have no idea how to play that game properly, I love TSM so much more cause I can tell where I’m hitting Paige hit the magic spot last trip though! She even had no idea what she did!

AWE! Love that they took reference of Stacy, that’s awesome! Awe man, I saw this thing on tumblr that was all about remaking Tom Sawyer’s Island into Neverland, complete with mermaid lagoon, the Indian playground, the crocodile’s area, everything down to pixie hollow where you were shrunk down to meet tink and her friends, and peter and everyone would be running around the island kinda thing, and then at the end it was all “did this for a school project” and I was all “NOOOO I THOUGHT THIS WAS REAL!!!”….are the girls into Tinkerbell movies at all? *random*

I really need to get over to the Island at some point, I remember absolutely LOVING the one in DLR when I was a kid, and I feel like it’d be a fun thing to do, so it’s definitely on our list of things for Sept! You guys certainly had a BLAST! And I was totally thinking that when watching the Panama video, the kids have grown so much since Sept!

AH! Tortuga tavern is one of my favorite places to eat! They also used to have non alcoholic sangria that was absolutely delcicious! It’s been open the past two Sept’s so I’m hoping it’ll be open again, gotta love that topping bar!

I think my Mom wants to skip Small World this time around, I may hop in a boat with you guys this time bahaha! Also, WHAT ABOUT that new show! AS IF! I feel like it’s gonna be awesome! Have you seen the Designer dolls from IASW they released?! They’re totally awesome! I love that you guys have this love for such an underappreciated ride…at WDW that is, DLR it’s jammed all the time!

Those pics are great, I’m such a sucker for a balloon on Main Street pic!

Dude…there is ONE MONTH until we leave…actually exactly one month til you’ll be there, and I’ll be headed off for a MNSSHP!! AAAAAAHHH Like, I seriously cannot wait to meet you guys in person!

SHE CANNOT SKIP SMALL WORLD!!!! But, yeah, you can totally hop on with us. It's always a hoot.
We're doing DHS the morning of MNSSHP, and I think we have AK on the 18 . I'm going to message everyone in our little group on FB to let everyone in the know all at the same time, with cell phone number, etc.
I loved TS Island, but I would DIE of happiness if that Neverland thing was real!! Yes, my girls are into the fairy movies, but not as much as they used to be. They do love Tink in Peter Pan, too!
I HAVE NOT SEEN THESE DESIGNER DOLLS OF WHICH YOU SPEAK!

What fun updates! I've never been to the island myself, but I think you described it perfectly. It does seem like a little kid's dream.

I do look for every excuse not to leave MK

I cannot begin to imagine how huge and exciting it looked from their points of view!

Great updates - love the pictures from Tom Sawyer Island!

Oh, and in Brynn's defense, you just never know when the mood will hit you for a spot of tea - she just wanted to be prepared

LOL, kudos to Brynn! You're so right!

I know this is from a few updates ago-but I adore the tea cup picture! Beautiful! Can we borrow your husband for our trip? He could be our own private paparazzi! and your Panama City video is too cute! I need to learn your video making secrets!
We've never gone to the island but it looks like a blast! We may have to try it out next time. I can totally see the girls chasing DH through it.
Oh, you are so lucky to eat at tortuga tavern!! It smelled so good last time we were there. We decided to do pirates first and by the time we got done they were closed. I was so sad! That delicious smell was still hanging in the air, tormenting me! Fingers crossed its open when we go in January!

I am sure he'd love to be your paparazzi, just for an excuse for another Disney trip!
It does close early, even on one of the rare days it's open. It is very yummy!

We love the island! The barrel bridge is our favorite!! But I can't stand the escape tunnel from the fort. We were in there once and there was a group of people in front of us and a group behind us. The people in front stopped for a minute and I almost hyperventilated! Slightly claustrophobic!
When we went to Stone Mountain I had Jeff go ahead of me all the way through the Eye of the Needle and Fat Man's Squeeze so I didn't have to worry about getting trapped!

I HATED THE ESCAPE TUNNEL! Brandon loved it. I hate small spaces, he likes to see how many people can cram in them. I didn't know how long it was and was freaking out. I couldn't breathe. They went through it more than once. NOT ME.
I don't do Fat Man's Squeeze; I take the "chicken exit!" LOL!

We love Tom Sawyer's Island. It is a great break from a crowded park-gives the kids some running space!

They loved being free to run around and explore...and so did I!

 

[Fantasyland Mom]

Sing with me- Update, update, update. Update, update, update!
So exciting to read a new updates!

I love your family- like totes a lot. And I can't wait until we all get to hang out together!

I haven't been on Tom Sawyer's island in so long. It's probably been since 2002? I want to go back over!

And the t-shirts?! LOVE THEM. And Brynn's love for IASW, I indenting, because I have a deep, abiding love for that attraction. I know people find it annoying, but nuts to 'em!

Anyway... Our trip is in 30 days! (Well, mine is 29, but semantics.)

GET EXCITED, PEOPLE!!!!!

We don't have to GET excited; we ARE excited!!!!!!!!!! I cannot wait to hang with you!

I don't have a ton of time to comment, but I'm caught up again and I just wanted to say that I AM SO EXCITED TO SEE YOU GUYS! Like, it's just going to be fabulous. I also love that you visited Tom Sawyer Island. Matt and I went over and had so much fun on there, and we're not even little kids. It's super fun to explore though! I also love Julia's face as she's trying her hardest to pull out that sword, hahaha.

She was serious about pulling it out. Every time.
I am just beyond excited to hang with you guys!! My brain cannot even comprehend that it's REALLY GONNA HAPPEN!!!

I love your photos for this update! I've never been to Tom Sawyer's Island in WDW either. I went to the one in DL, it was super hot. Yes, I always procrastinate while leaving the parks! Main Street shops are great for that -Amanda (ps I just sent you a friend request on FB in case you were wondering who that was )

Glad to have you as a FB friend now!! Hope you enjoy the random updates about my wild family, lol!

Great update! I am embarrassed to admit that I've never done Tom Samyer's island...but I bet DD would love it, so I have a feeling it will be on our list on November!

You've got to try it! I mean, it took until our fourth trip to try it because it's one of those out of the way things people overlook, but I'm so glad we finally did! I bet my kids will never let us skip it again!

Tom Sawyer Island is on our to-do list this trip.. About how long did you stay there? I know it could really eat up time.. especially taking 5 kids (ages 5-13!) I can't wait!

Hmmm...I want to say about an hour total, with raft trips and all. It could eat up time, but it's not really all that huge (though it seems like it because you feel like you're in the middle of nowhere!) and kids pretty much RUN through the different places! It seemed like we were there for a long time, but in reality it wasn't.

I just found your TR and have only read day 1 but am fascinated by how Brynn is responding to WDW.

My 9 year old niece has aspergers and loves her set schedule and order, most of the time she's the sweetest kid in the world but when she gets overwhelmed she can have major meltdowns. I'll have to send a link to your TR to my sister because I think she'll love reading about how you and your daughter handle and respond to the chaos of WDW. They've taken a weekend trip to DL but they've never been to Disney world.

I think it's great Disney allows special passes to make it easier to navigate the parks with your daughter (don't think my sister knew this, at least she didn't mention it)and loved reading about the special care given at the Pirate makeover.

Off to read day 2 but thought I'd check in. Loving the report and pictures.

I love that sharing our trip can help other people! I pretty much forget that we even do special things to help her sometimes, because it is just second nature--always have done them, always will. I forget that others may not have thought about things or may not know some accommodations. Makes me happy to be helpful !
WDW IS chaotic, but with some ways to block out the world (sunglasses, earmuffs, separate waiting area away from crowds, stroller shade pulled down, breaks in the baby care area, etc.), we can manage. I think the number one thing we do is what most parents of any kid does--watch for warning signs, respond accordingly. If any of our kids seems like they're about to melt down, we take a break. You don't have to rush. It ends up taking more time to calm down a child than to just pause and move on when they're ready. We don't push Brynn, and we let her do what she needs to do a lot of times, even when it doesn't make sense to us.
Hope you (and your sister!) enjoy the rest of the TR!

Such a great update as always!

I may have to do Monster's Inc Laugh Floor this trip, though I live in mortal fear of being "that guy".

I love Tom Sawyer Island! I just wish there was an easier way to get there. But I guess that would ruin some of the appeal. I need to make sure to spend some time there next trip!

Yay for It's a Small World! No matter how old I get, I'll always love that ride. I love how much love Brynn has for it.

Such great detail photos in this update.

And I echo Danielle's thought that I AM SO EXCITED TO SEE YOU GUYS!!!!!

Brandon has that fear, too! But the odds are against you (though you ARE tall... ).
Yeah, I hate the raft. Brynn didn't like it too much, either, but that's just what you've gotta do. I think it makes you feel even MORE free once you get there, lol!
Can't wait to ride Small World with you in LESS THAN A MONTH!!

Thanks for posting the video link, I must have missed it on fb! From the moment that Brynn and Julia held the dolphin's hands, there start the water works. I am seriously a huge sap when it comes to family vacation videos. I thought it was just Disney vids, but I guess beach vacations get me too. It just looks like you all had the best time ever, from playing and laying on the beach, to eating ice cream and gooey cheesey pizza. Your husband and Sawyer are besties, huh? He always has the little man with him in the video Please tell him that he did an amazing job, again! Which I am sure that you have told him already, but just tell him again!

And now on to read your updates

They are besties! I give comfort when he's hurt or tired, but he's Daddy's shadow any other time! I will pass on your compliments!

Thank God for those waiting areas. Even with Adison NOT having sensitivities to crowds and such, it is kind of awful waiting in that packed area for **** (I *just* realized that Monsters Inc Laugh Floor shortens to ****..those monsters, making me laugh all the way up here in NY). I am just glad that Disney is wise enough to include all disabilities, disorders, afflictions or illnesses in their umbrella of "Disability" so that all children are hopefully able to enjoy their attractions.

Disney is awesome with their helpfulness. It's the best place in the world for any family, but especially those that have disabilities in the family. No one could be more accommodating.
And, yeah, they could have thought through that acronym, huh!?! Or maybe they did and it's a subtle joke just for adults!

Great Video, Great update!!!!
We love Tom Sawyer Island too, its a nice get away inside the park.

Great break for all ages! I do wish they still had the QS over there instead of just vending machines, but we survived .

I am so jealous of your pictures they are beyond awesome! We stopped at that same popcorn cart twice! They really know how irresitable that smell is as you leave! Can't wait to read more!

They know you can't leave without some once you smell it! It's a trap!!

Love your trip report!! Your children are beautiful and all of the pictures you have posted are breathtaking. Can't wait to read more!


Melissa

Thank you so much !

I loved this update! Minus the raft ride over which I agree is hot and slow and crowded Tom Sawyer's island is a nice escape from the crowds. It's fun to just be able to run around.

I had so much fun. But next time, no tea set.

Hi! I've subbed! I love, love, love reading trip reports and hopefully I can actually write one this trip! DH, myself and our 2 kiddos are staying at Caribbean Beach this trip and I can't wait!

It's so much fun to write your own TR; you get to re-live your trip! Thanks for subbing!

Yay for double updates!

We have not been to Tom Sawyer Island ever...maybe not that we have a boy we'll go over there, but the whole raft to the island makes me nervous!

Maybe Tortuga Tavern was open due to Free Dining? That's the only time I've seen it open besides during peak times. Sounds delicious!

Are you bouncing off the walls with excitement yet about your upcoming trip? I just got an email the other day and I'm not staying at the Contemporary instead of Coronado!!! AHHH!!!

The raft ride is seriously like a minute long. No worries. It's hot, but once you get there you forget about it.
I don't know why it was open, but I was SO GLAD!!
I really am beyond excited! OMG, what an awesome upgrade for you!!

 

[Fantasyland Mom]

Just saw your new video! Your husband is doing an awesome job with the family vacation videos!

I loved all your pic from Tom Sawyers Island. I have been to MK many times and have never been there!This year I was determined to go and told everyone that's where we were going and got totally distracted by Splash Mountain and Big Thunder! LOL! What is wrong with me!!

It is easy to forget it. We have had it on the list every year, and finally made it on the fourth trip!

I'm a big fan of Tom Sawyer Island! The raft... not so much. It's true that it's hot and packed. At the same time, I appreciate them as a means to an end: a way to leave TSI relatively uncrowded as opposed to the rest of the park.

It's true. Some people don't want to cram onto that raft, or they forget about the island altogether because you have to use the raft to get to it. The uncrowded nature of it adds to the experience. And the raft ride is quick, at least!

Laughing again, because I just realized that you can't say "the word that Monsters Inc Laugh Floor" abbreviates to on the Dis. Whoops! I was just trying to avoid typing out Monsters Inc Laugh Floor over and over again, I swear officer!!

NOPE! The Dis won't allow such horrible acronyms! Shame on you, lol!!

 

[lvcourtneyy]

Love the new vacation video! I can't believe how much they've grown since your WDW video. Sawyer has such a big boy face now!

That's great that you were able to stand in a separate area. I started to get claustrophobic in there so I can only imagine how stressful that could get for Brynn. Glad it worked out well though!

Yeah that raft didn't please me. Especially because a large, sweaty foreign man with no deodorant and a lack of understanding for my death glares was basically plastered to me.

Tom Sawyer's Island is basically paradise of a play area for kids. I enjoyed it in January but really, I would've been in heaven when I was little!

So cute that you ran into a similar Brynn story. What a small world I make terrible jokes.

I totally take any excuse not to leave any Disney park but especially MK. And those balloon photos are SO gorgeous!

 

[rachel09985]

Yay updates!!

First- I LOOOVE your PCB video. Your husband is so talented. It is literally like a music video. Also love the song- I love that band. How did you end up liking Splash?? It is funny seeing the same places in your video that we go to. We tried that little ice cream shop for the first time.

Tom Sawyers Island looks huge!!! I have never done that either!! It does look fun

 

[Fantasyland Mom]

Love the new vacation video! I can't believe how much they've grown since your WDW video. Sawyer has such a big boy face now!

That's great that you were able to stand in a separate area. I started to get claustrophobic in there so I can only imagine how stressful that could get for Brynn. Glad it worked out well though!

Yeah that raft didn't please me. Especially because a large, sweaty foreign man with no deodorant and a lack of understanding for my death glares was basically plastered to me.

Tom Sawyer's Island is basically paradise of a play area for kids. I enjoyed it in January but really, I would've been in heaven when I was little!

So cute that you ran into a similar Brynn story. What a small world I make terrible jokes.

I totally take any excuse not to leave any Disney park but especially MK. And those balloon photos are SO gorgeous!

They really have grown so much lately! ALL of them! But it's really apparent when you look at Sawyer; he looks like a kid now!

Yay updates!!

First- I LOOOVE your PCB video. Your husband is so talented. It is literally like a music video. Also love the song- I love that band. How did you end up liking Splash?? It is funny seeing the same places in your video that we go to. We tried that little ice cream shop for the first time.

Tom Sawyers Island looks huge!!! I have never done that either!! It does look fun

Splash was a lot of fun for the kids (and for me because I could watch them have fun!). Honestly, it's not somewhere I'd stay if it were just Brandon and me or if our kids were older, but while they're young it a great place. They never want to stay anywhere else ! My parents HATED it...but did they really think it was going to be a relaxed atmosphere with a bunch of people their age?! Obviously not. It's full of loud music and kids. We had a lot of fun, but not a lot of relaxation!

 

[ausdreamingofdisney]

I'm finally caught up! I want to know what the magical brush was too, my almost-5 year old has curly hair similar (but not as long) as Brynn. We do have a Tangle Teezer, which is fabulous, and I love it for it's brushing-while-wet awesomeness, but not perfect. It's a neverending quest for a perfect curly-hair brush!

 

[Fantasyland Mom]

I'm finally caught up! I want to know what the magical brush was too, my almost-5 year old has curly hair similar (but not as long) as Brynn. We do have a Tangle Teezer, which is fabulous, and I love it for it's brushing-while-wet awesomeness, but not perfect. It's a neverending quest for a perfect curly-hair brush!

I so wish I knew the name of that brush! It wasn't one of the ones that are only as big as your hand, but a full-sized brush, and I know she mentioned what they call them there (but I can't remember even that much!), though it wasn't the official name. I am definitely going to find out when we're there in a few weeks! Brynn's getting her hair cut again, along with her sister, so her hair won't be this incredibly long anymore. It touches her booty now !

 

[Fantasyland Mom]

I thought I actually had more left to this day in terms of pictures, but really there aren't that many left...SO, I will finish the day in this update with barely any photographic evidence, but lots of stories. Sorry!!

We were back at Poly just in the nick of time! In fact, it was a bit of a rush! The girls really wanted to do hula lessons in the Grand Ceremonial House (lobby), so we were speeding back. We dropped off our things in our room...including our keys.

As soon as I heard the door click behind us, I knew we were locked out. Doh! Luckily, a Mousekeeper saw the whole thing happen. I asked her to let me back in to get my key--after all, she'd just seen me come out of the room and knew it was mine. She said she wished she could, but she couldn't, and that I'd have to go down to the lobby and get another one. I might have pouted a little. I think she felt bad, so she led us over to a phone (never noticed that there!) near the elevator and called her supervisor. She literally gave the lady a code word, then the supervisor grilled me, then she talked to the Mousekeeper again and told her she was allowed to let us back in, but not to let it be known since it was breaking resort policy big time. The Dis doesn't count, right??

We ran in, grabbed our keys, and rushed right back out to hula lessons. We really didn't know what to expect, but we knew we had to jump at the opportunity to participate in all things Hawaiian while we were at Poly.
I love the smell when you walk in this place! WHAM! It smacks you in the face with all the tropical goodness! I have a candle that smells similar to it, and I sniff it all the time. Welcome to my world. It's interesting here.



We actually ended up being a couple of minutes early (or they were a couple of minutes late) and the little kids went straight for the coloring table!



Remember how I mentioned before that if Brynn doesn't complete whatever task she thinks she has to complete in her head, she cannot force herself to move on? Well, that was the case here. She had wanted to hula. But now there was coloring, and she wasn't finished. So, when the hula lessons started, she stayed put.

Three cast members came out right in front of the fountains, carrying boxes and a portable CD player. Including Julia, four kids joined them for lessons. They were all issued instruments and grass skirts, and Ku'ulei began instructing them on a short hula dance.











I was over in the coloring area, but I heard the music and knew Julia would know it. It was "Pearly Shells," which is a song featured on one of our family's very favorite Disney Sing-a-longs, Beach Party at Disney World. AND, it turned out that they were doing the movements also on that DVD! Obviously Julia was a pro at this. She's been doing that dance since she was two years old! The other kids obviously did not have the movie, lol!
Once they danced, they then picked up maracas and did a parade around the whole GCH, with all the people and cast members clapping for them. She loved that!!



Julia came running up to me when it was done, very excitedly. "IT'S HER," she was yelling! I had no idea what she was talking about...until the instructor turned around. It was THE lady from the movie!!!!!! Ku'ulei was a celebrity in our household, pretty much, and here she was RIGHT IN FRONT OF US! SHE TAUGHT MY DAUGHTER TO HULA!!!

If you don't know what I'm talking about, go right now and watch this link. Go now. I'll wait.

BEACH PARTY AT WALT DISNEY WORLD

So, that's her! We were standing around waiting on Brynn and Sawyer to finish coloring, and Ku'ulei came up to me (eeeep!) and said very quietly, "Has she seen the video?" And she knew I would know which video she was talking about. I was all nervously giggly because, HELLO, CELEBRITY TALKING TO ME! I told her we have watched it approximately a zillion times, and she said she could tell because Julia already knew the dance so well. She said I should tell her that she was the lady on the video eighteen years later, and I told her that Julia had already realized who she was and was so happy to meet her. (Side note: the video came out in 1995, so I guess they filmed in 1994 according to that math.) She asked if Julia would like to take a picture with her, in that case! DUH.



She was a little bit happy about that.

See the card Julia is holding up in that picture? It's one of those magical moments cards you sometimes get if you experience...well...a magical moment. Ku'ulei gave one to Julia AND to Brynn, even though Brynn didn't hula, because Brynn knew who she was, too, and wanted to badly to be able to break herself from the coloring but just couldn't.

Sooooo, yeah, we were all a bit overwhelmed about our celebrity sighting! And, no, probably most people have no idea who she is, but to us?!? FAMOUS.

Brynn and Sawyer were STILL coloring, but outside there was a poolside dance party, so Brandon took Julia out there. No picture proof, but you can see her dancing in our video. It was yet another activity at the resort Brynn would have loved, but...coloring.

When Brynn was finished, I picked up Sawyer and held her hand and we walked around the pool to find Brandon and Julia. We headed back up to our room (thank goodness we had the key!) to change clothes. We wanted to swim in that volcano pool!

Everyone got sunscreened and bathing suited. As Brandon and I went to change, Sawyer decided to stand up in a chair to get a better view of Baby Einstein on my computer screen, and he promptly fell off and scraped the his bumpy spine on the chair, allllllll the way down. He has scars there to this day from it, that's how bad it was. Obviously there was lots of crying and comforting and cleaning of wounds. And then we mentioned playing in the sand, and he snapped right out of it. We were on our way!

And WOMP WOMP, here's where there are no pictures. PLEASE go watch my video right now, even if you've seen it before, because apparently we took tons of video of this afternoon, but no pictures (it's in the "Hawaiian Roller Coaster Ride" section). Go now. Links are in my signature. Again, I'll wait.

We played at first in the very lacking kids area. It is very unimpressive compared to other resorts' splash pads, and I'm guessing they'll fix that when they do DVC or add the hot tub.

The zero entry pool here is great, and the kids loved sort of crawling on their bellies on this part because it looked like they were swimming. Kids. Gotta love 'em.

Julia wanted to ACTUALLY swim, so Brandon watched the littles while I took her to the deeper end. Eventually she spotted the slide and went down several times. The clouds were rolling in, and I knew we didn't have much time before it rained. We fought all kids over to the beach area, where they built sand castles and threw sand at each other and ran crazy for a while.
While they were occupied, I decided I wanted to do one time down the slide myself. I made my way to the top, where there were three kids who immediately looked like they got caught doing something bad. I was suspicious, but had no idea what they were up to. They were speaking to each other in another language and acting nervous.

If you don't know how the slides work at resorts, there's a traffic light with only red and green at the beginning of the slide. It turns green, you go. If it's red, it's not clear and you do not go. They followed the directions and one by one went down the slide.

Then it was my turn. Guys, it's dark in there. On my way down, I caught a kid. That's what they'd been up to. Going down the slide, then putting out their arms and legs to hang onto the sides and stay there inside the slide. My mom instinct kicked in and I cradled him all the way down the slide and into the water, then I pushed him up to the surface, where I made sure he was okay. My instinct was to take care of him, even though he had clearly been doing something wrong and causing trouble. Moms. Sheesh.
Then the lifeguard blew his whistle at me and yelled at me that only one person could go down the slide at a time. That's when the anger came out.

I kept cradling that up-to-no-good kid all the way over to the lifeguard and set him down in front of him. Then I yelled at the lifeguard that I didn't know this kid at all and told him exactly what he had been doing in the slide. And then I pointed out his co-conspirators, looking sheepish on the side of the pool. Then two other mothers started yelling at the lifeguard that they had done the same thing to their kids and they were NOT happy that the lifeguard had yelled at their kids for something they didn't do. Then I left the scene. The lifeguard was trying to find parents for these three, who were clearly not around. Clearly.

Droplets of rain were starting to fall as I forced my kids unwillingly down the path toward our room. It seemed like just a little rain. I was wrong.
We bathed everyone and then just decided pajamas were the way to go. We had thought of going to DTD for the night, but that didn't happen as torrential downpours started happening. Instead, we laid around on the comfy Poly beds for hours, played with that darn tea set, and watched some tv. All in all, it was a wonderful night that allowed us to enjoy our resort room...and when you pay that much, you SHOULD enjoy it!!





We called around to some pizza places and were told no one could deliver to Disney resorts, so I went out in the rain in my pajamas to get some dinner from Captain Cook's. I got a couple of the Hawaiian flatbread pizzas, a chicken sandwich for Brandon, some of their house chips, and a grown-up grilled cheese (which I did not enjoy at all...something was very off about it, and I love cheese and grown up things). We nommed on this buffet and our treats from the Confectionery.

Since it was a MNSSHP night (yes, in this rain), we decided to go out to the little private beach next to our longhouse and watch Hallowishes. We put the kids in the strollers and rain covers over them, but the rain stopped just in time to watch the show. There's no music piped in right there, but it was still cool to watch! When we got back inside, we noticed that both Brynn and Sawyer had fallen asleep in the strollers. We took that as a sign that it was time for lights out! The next day would be our final park day, and we planned to make the most of it!

Coming up: Spinning in Space! Our last day.

 

[STLMickeyMom]

Oh my gosh!! Just watched the hula lesson video. We HAVE to do hula lessons at the poly!! I would love to stay there sometime, but until we do, a visit over for lessons seems to be in order. Julia is so cute in the video/pics! How fun that she got to meet a celebrity! That totally is magical!
I can understand Brynn not wanting to stop coloring. We love coloring--seriously, are we the only ones who think they smell great? (We love the smell of books too. See? Your candle sniffing seems totally normal now!)
I totally cringed when you said sawyer fell and scraped his back. Our oldest did that on our front concrete steps. Why do they have to have such boney backs!?! At least it didn't ruin his fun at the pool!
And I have to say, I hope the naughty kids parents got in trouble. I hate when parents aren't being responsible for their kids. I nanny a boy on the autism spectrum and we had problems at a park one day because of unsupervised kids. Their grandma thought it was fine to sit in the car while her grandson was bullying everyone. Ooooh, I was ticked! Anyway, glad you set that lifeguard straight!
Oh and I wanted to put this on here--I've looked for detangling brushes for our girls too. I haven't bought any yet, but the two I keep looking at are the tangle teezer (tangleteezer.com) and the Denman tangle tamer (bigdaddybeauty.com). Don't know if either of those were what they used, but thought I'd let you know about them.

 

[disneygirl520]

We definitely have that video and have watched it countless times. She is a celebrity in our book too! That's so cool that you guys got to meet her.

 

[katt789]

Looks like you guys had a nice relaxing and awesome afternoon!!

Lucky that they were able to let you back into the room to get the key, big hassle otherwise!

Yay for hula dancing and a celebrity! I bet she doesn't get that a whole lot and was happy that you guys knew her! Wow, those kids on the slide were really not behaving okay, of course their parent's were nowhere to be seen... eck.. glad that you expressed yourself and then got out of there!

Loved the poly playing section of the video too!!

Nice that you guys got some room appreciation time! That rarely ever happens on my vacations! I want to stay at the Poly again and spend more time in the resort, it really is a fantastic place!!