It smells like dirty knickers in here! An August Trip Report!

[xoprincessmomxo]

So, now that I have your attention...the title of my thread will come in later in this report. For now, you're in the clear for dirty knickers. I will warn you as we approach that subject...

First, an introduction to my family. Hi, I'm Jamie. I'm a 27 year old stay at home mom for the moment. I traveled to Disney World many times as a child with relatives living in the Kissimmee area and a cousin that worked for the Disney company. She was able to get us into the parks free. Woo hoo! Unfortunately, she decided to get married and move to Colorado to be with her husband. Geesh, she only thinks of herself! (kidding, xoxo!) I hadn't been to Disney World since I was 13 years old, and have been dreaming of the moment that I would be able to take my girls to experience the magic of Disney. In fact, when my husband and I were first dating I told him that I couldn't be with someone who would not go with me to Disney World someday.

And that brings me to my husband, Dustin. He's a 31 year old ex-hard rock musician. We've been together 8 1/2 years and this was his first time to go to Disney World! In fact, before me the only amusement park he'd been to was our local one, which isn't saying much. He was skeptical on the whole Disney experience, but was happy to indulge me with my obsession. He's a lovely man and I am lucky to have him! To make sure that he would like this trip, I got La Nouba tickets for him and the older girls.

Our oldest DD, Zillah, is my husband's from his first marriage. I've been with her since she was 2 and she is now 11. She lives with her mother, but we get her every other weekend and for 4 weeks in the summer. We've never had a problem with her before. She's precocious, bright, and always (usually) willing to lend a hand. Unfortunately, this trip tested all of that! It was definitely a struggle at times...But all in all, I believe and hope that she had more fun than not.

Our middle daughter, Lydia, is 6. She just started 1st grade today and has not stopped asking about when we are going back to Disney since we returned. Her goals in life: be a pet doctor, a movie star, a singer, and a Disney worker. She is easy going, happy most of the time, and slightly conceited! No self esteem issues with her!

And our baby, Helena, who is 1 1/2. And thankfully, it will be the last time we go with a 1 1/2 year old! She did as well as can be expected, but there were moments of frustration on all ends. But, she was mostly happy, seemed to have a lot of fun, and is now in love with the mouse himself! She is Mickey's biggest fan!

We left on August 4 and got back on August 16. The weather was definitely hot, but not unbearable, and the crowds weren't as bad as I had thought they would be. It was still crowded though. There were a few days of rain. We had 8 day park hoppers with the water parks and more option. We were on the Disney Dining plan and I will include some food reviews. But no food pics, I couldn't bring myself to snap photos of food. Maybe next time. I'll have a review of the Cirque Du Soleil La Nouba from my husband and older girls, our thoughts on some of the grown up drinks we indulged in, and our thoughts on our Resort: All Star Movies.

 

[xoprincessmomxo]

From the Cornfields to the Palm Trees: Our Travel Day!

The morning of August 4th was a very busy, busy one! After not sleeping much the night before (way too excited to sleep) I woke up groggily to the alarm clock at 6 am. Lydia's school registration was set for that morning as well as her photoshoot for school pictures. I dragged myself out of bed, went into the kitchen to make coffee. To my dismay, we had no coffee filters left. UGH! How do I function? Oh well, I figure I will just go get some at my sister's coffee shop later in the morning. No big deal. So, I shuffle through the darkness, nearly tripping over the luggage and make my way into the bathroom to start getting ready for the day. I flip on the light and my jaw drops open! My step dd, Zillah, had decided to clean the bathroom the night before without telling anyone. Nice idea, bad execution. I coulnd't find my makeup, deodarant, lotions anywhere! I dig frantically though drawers and cupboards when I finally find all of my stuff smashed inside a box under the sink! This is not turning out to be such a good morning! I stuff my frustration down, no time for being mad. I had school registering to do.
I wake Lydia up at 7 and get her dressed and ready for her pictures. Off we go, to a relatively easy and painless morning of school preparation. She gets her picture taken and after 5 tries they finally get her to smile. So, back to home we go. And I forget to stop and get the coffee.
I walk into the house and my husband and other daughters are now awake, watching tv and snacking on breakfast. Lydia joins them, and I am about to slump onto the couch, when Dustin says:
"You're Grandpa called. He wants you to call him." Now, while I will not go into heavy details, a couple of weeks before we found out that an offer might be made for us to move onto the farm that I grew up on. My dream ever since I was little. It is something we've been working on for a few years, but I never believed it would actually work out. So, I called my Grandpa, who informed me that I needed to stay off the phone as the lawyer was going to be calling. They were working up the papers so that I could sign to put the house into my name. Wow! A trip to Disney World and a move back into my dream home! What more could you ask for? So, I agree to stay off the phone and Dustin and I finish our last minute packing.
I decided we should get the memory card into the digital camera and get it all packed. We take the card out and I try to put it into the camera. But NOTHING happens. It's not a compatible card! I should mention, Dustin and I are very behind when it comes to technology! But, the lady at Wal-mart told us it would work and we believed her. We shouldn't have! So, Dustin decides to make a flying trip to the closest Wal-mart about 1/2 hour away! This is turning into a very eventful day!
And of course, while he was gone, the lawyer calls. We have to go sign the papers before noon. And it was all ready after 11! Could this day be any more stressful? Luckily, at 11:45 am Dustin's van pulls up. I run out with all of the kids, jump in the van and say:
"Lawyer's office: NOW!" He knew what was happening and away we went. Papers signed, we went home, ate a little lunch, and then went to pick up Grandma and Grandpa who were driving the van home from the airport. We were finally off at 1:30 on our way to the Des Moines airport. Our flight was leaving at 5:35 pm. The first flight for everyone but me!

Helena at the Des Moines Airport, enjoying some chips.

Lyd's and Zillah waiting for the plane

Dustin looking nervous

The flight to Memphis wasn't so bad. The baby fussed a little, but luckily there was another baby a few rows back that wasn't too happy either. The girls liked looking out the windows and Dustin's nerves settled a bit. We made it to Memphis and had 30 minutes to find our next flight. We've both decided that we HATE airports. It was a complete maze, around and around, untill finally we found the NWA flight we needed with only minutes to spare! We got on the plane bound for Orlando! This is where the flight got bad. I sat with Lydia while Dustin sat with Zillah and the baby. I noticed my ears getting pressure but nothing too terrible. The baby began crying on the descent. Not a hurt cry, but a tired "I want mommy cry" so I turned around to offer a reassuring smile. When I turned around, I saw she wasn't the only one crying. Zillah had tears streaming down her face, her hands cupped over her ears. Dustin didn't look much better, his face pale and his eyes distant. There ears just couldn't take that pressure. After the flight was over I tried to console Zillah while Dustin tried to help us find our way to the ME counter. Orlando is a big airport and it was nearly 11pm. THe girls were exhausted, Dustin was in pain, and I was in not the best of moods. We ended up getting in an argument over something really stupid and it ruined the whole good feelings of getting into Orlando that we should have been feeling. Not a good start to the vacation. We finally found the ME counter, but by this time we were no longer speaking to each other, just tossing dirty looks back and forth. No point in arguing, he couldn't hear a word I was saying anyway. Poor guy! We got on the bus, which was a Disney Cruise Line bus, and headed to our resort. It was way after 11:30 pm by the time the bus got headed and we still had to stop at Port Orleans,Coronado Springs, All Star Sports, and All Star Music before we made it to our resort. I had a terrible migraine and was starting to feel motion sick. I couldn't even enjoy the movie. I just kept thinking I hope I make it to the hotel before I get sick! Luckily, I did and the rest was just a blur. I was sick most of the night and finally got to sleep around 3:30 am. And we had ADR's for the Castle Breakfast the next day at 8:20 am! Would I even feel like going???

 

[tybrilinja]

Oh no, I hope you felt better the next day! I'm here for your journey, I can't wait to hear all about it!
I hope the flight didn't scare everyone away from flying again, its a long drive to the "World" LOL.
Great start can't wait to here more!

 

[xoprincessmomxo]

Oh no, I hope you felt better the next day! I'm here for your journey, I can't wait to hear all about it!
I hope the flight didn't scare everyone away from flying again, its a long drive to the "World" LOL.
Great start can't wait to here more!

HI and thanks for joining me...I was definitely miserable that night. I think just all of the plane anxiety and the bus motion got to me. You are right about it being a long drive! I don't think we could have done it if we had to drive. Way too much time in a car for me...

 

[GiGiJoeysMom]

Subscribing

 

[MegRaeWhay]

Subscribing

 

[xoprincessmomxo]

On August 5th, I woke up still with a splitting headache, but the upset stomach had subsided. So now I was still exhausted, but hungry. I had tried to set the bed side alarm the night before, but it never went off. I hadn't even thought about the wake up call service, which I went on to use every other time. Luckily, I woke up around 6:30 anyway. I was excited to really start the trip!
I woke up Dustin first, who was groggy but his ears were feeling much better, thus putting him in a much better mood! Thank goodness. We went on to wake up the older girls and they dressed in their dresses I had laid out on the bed. They both wanted to wear there hair down, which was a big mistake with the Florida heat. But, being the nice mom I am , I let them have their way. Big mistake. Not to be repeated. I got the baby up last, dreading the way she would handle the early morning after the excitement and late night of yesterday. Luckily, she was the happiest of anyone and ready to go. I put her yellow dress on her and she climbed into the stroller, ready to go. We grabbed our bags which were filled with all the essentials when traveling with kids: diapers, wipes, water bottles, fans, mister fan, etc...And started out the door when we turned around and saw Zillah back under the covers! I was ticked, but nicely told her we had to get a move on if we wanted to make our reservation to have breakfast in the castle. She gave me the big eye roll, a common occurance this vacation, and got her shoes on. We were finally ready to go!
We got to the bus stop for our first experience with park busses. There was a long line due to it being extra magic hours morning for the Magic Kingdom. The bus pulled up, and I think both Dustin and I panicked! How were we going to fold up the strollers while carrying our backpacks and grabbing the baby? We slowly developed a plan, to the dismay of the people behind us. Sorry guys! I grabbed the baby and the backpacks, Dustin folded up the first stroller, handed it to Zillah who was now awake and back to her helpful self, and then folded up the next one. Lydia held the mister fan. Great system that prooved useful throughout the trip. Unfortunately, there was only standing room available. I held on to the baby and grabbed a bar next to me, while Lydia held on to my leg for support. The bus started moving, and the baby started sliding down. I held on to her as tightly as I could but she kept slipping. I was afraid to let go of the bar for fear I'd fall with her or on top of her. And then Lydia would get hurt to! I kind of hoisted my leg and hip and was able to scoot her up a little more, but my back was aching and my arm was quivering. She is definitely not a little baby! She's about the size of a 2 1/2 year old! Then, Disney magic helped out! A young woman grabbed her little girl and put her on her lap, freeing up a seat for Helena and I. I was incredibly grateful to her and her little girl, who was definitely not as amused about sharing her seat as her mother was. Then, the ladie's husband who was across the aisle offered his seat to Lydia. What a gentleman and lovely family! I am so thankful they were there to help us out! Lydia wasn't sure about sitting so far from me, but she accepted and thanked him.
Our bus arrived at the Magic Kingdom and we all filed out of the bus. I was so excited to see the castle in the distance! So was Zillah! She kept pointing and saying she wanted a picture of the castle and how beautiful it was. I told her to wait untill we got in the park and we'd take pictures. She looked over in the direction of the park and said:
"But we can't see it when we're in there!"
"Sure you can, right when we get on main street, you'll see it."
"No, we won't. That's impossible when it's way over there!" She pointed behind us, to the beautiful white "castle" that is the Grand Floridian. I explained that it was not Cinderella's castle, but a resort that we would be eating at on our last day! That made her happy, and we took a quick picture for her. Then, off we were to the Magic Kingdom!
We made it in time for the opening ceremony, which started about two minutes after we got through the gates. Out came Alice, Marry Poppins, the Mad Hatter, Pinocchio, and others waving and dancing. I held Helena, who "ooohed" and "ahhed" and fawned over the characters. I had never seen her so excited. She waved her little hands in the air and sang. It was so precious. I looked at her little face, it's big smile, and I knew all the money was worth it. She was beside herself with excitement!
After the ceremony ended, the herd of people started to push through the entry way into the park. We managed to stay together, but it was a job. We were in a rush to Cinderella's castle! Breakfast was to be had with the Princesses!
We made it onto main street finally and we all just stopped in our tracks. There was the Castle, in all it's glory. I believe everyone gasped at the same time! That's when I started losing it. Tears were running down my cheeks. It's just so magical to share that first experience of seeing the castle with my girls and husband. The emotions really started to boil over. Of course, my husband laughed at this and we were off to the castle.
We checked in and they gave us a little slip of paper as well as a little bookmark looking thing with a picture of a stained glass window of Cinderella dn Prince Charming to give to the photographer. We had to wait in a bit of a line to make it up to Cinderella. Helena waved at her the entire time we were in line. Lydia kept grabbing my leg, saying:
"Look at her Momma, she's beautiful!"
It was finally our time for a picture and the girls went up to Cinderella timidly. We let Helena down so that she could go up and wave to her in person. But, it didn't go exactly as planned. Helena started screaming! We learned that she loved the characters, as long as the characters kept their distance. She did not like them within touching distance. So we let Zillah and Lydia introduce themselves, and Cinderella asked them for their autograph books. Dustin looked at me with panic and I realized we forgot the autograph books in the room! The young lady that was leading people up to the photographer said:
"Wait just a minute, I think I have something you can use!" and in just a couple of minutes she was back with 3 of the bookmark Cinderella tags and a pen. It worked! She was so nice and really wanted our girls to get those autographs. Cinderella signed them and then we got a family picture taken with her as well. She was very sweet and so pretty. After our photo session we were led upstairs to the dining room. The lady at the entrance asked for that little slip of paper they gave us at check in. Dustin looked at me and said:
"I gave it to you, hon." Knowing right well he didn't, I shook my head no and told him that he did not give it to me. He had kept it. We panicked, both searching our bags for this tiny slip of paper I knew I had never had. After what seemed like forever, Dustin found it down deep in one of his pants pockets he rarely uses. I said:
"So you gave it to me, huh?" He laughed nervously, said he was sorry and we were lead to our table, all ready filled with fruit and bread. Our server came over and explained how the meal worked. It was served family style and she told us the different foods we would be getting. I must say I was not impressed with her at all. She really had no excitement and kept coming out of character. When she called Lydia a princess, I joked to Lydia that she thought she was one of the princesses. The server actually than said, it was part of her job to address all the children as prince and princess. Well, DUH! I really didn't need that explained.
After a few minutes, the princesses came out in all their regal beauty! The girls were enthralled, and it made it very difficult for Lydia to eat anything in all the excitement. Helena never has a problem eating, though. She devoured the fruit and bread and was brought out her own little plate of french toast sticks which she loved dipping into her syrup. Well, she pretty much loved dipping anything into the syrup. Her croissant, her honeydew, her cantaloupe, her egg...you get the picture. The food was very good, especially the spicy sausage and you definitely get your fill. I don't think it is one we would go back to again based on the price, but it was nice to eat in the castle on our first trip! The princesses were nice, but very short. Sleeping beauty was gone in a flash it seemed! Overall, I'd give the experience a B mainly based on the atmosphere....

I'll post pictures from our Cinderella's Royal Table Breakfast later. But now, I am off to pick Lydia up from her very first day of first grade! Thanks to all of you who are reading!

 

[xoprincessmomxo]

Mary Poppins tried so hard to make Helena love her, but it was to no avail!

Sleeping Beauty

Mary Poppins

Princess Jasmine

They loved their wands!

Princess Belle

Cinderella

 

[MAJ RN]

Great start to your trip report!! Seeing the castle for the first time always gets to me too, no matter how many times we go. Can't wait to read more.


Melissa

 

[xoprincessmomxo]

Great start to your trip report!! Seeing the castle for the first time always gets to me too, no matter how many times we go. Can't wait to read more.


Melissa

Thanks for reading Melissa! There is definitely something about turning that corner and seeing that castle that is just magical!

 

[Macysmom32]

I'm in!! I want to hear what you think of All Star Movies, as I just booked it....the disney dining plan, as I have never used it but added it for the first time to our upcoming trip, and also was considering LaNouba with my Mom and my daughter who will be almost 5 1/2 on the next trip!! Can't wait to hear what happens next.... (and don't you LOATHE travel day... ughhhh)

 

[xoprincessmomxo]

I'm in!! I want to hear what you think of All Star Movies, as I just booked it....the disney dining plan, as I have never used it but added it for the first time to our upcoming trip, and also was considering LaNouba with my Mom and my daughter who will be almost 5 1/2 on the next trip!! Can't wait to hear what happens next.... (and don't you LOATHE travel day... ughhhh)

Thanks for reading Macysmom32! I can all ready tell you I loved the resort, dining plan, and my husband and girls loved La Nouba. I can honestly say that I will not go to Disney without the Dining plan. It was just so convenient! Vacations would be even more enjoyable if they would finally invent telaportation. Beam me to Disney World, Scottie!

 

[xoprincessmomxo]

With our bellies now full, we were off to make our way to Tommorrowland and Space Mountain! I was so excited for Dustin to experience this ride. He had never been on a roller coaster in the dark and I knew he would love it. We were planning on getting fastpasses, but the line was only 20 minutes long. He and Zillah jumped in line and I got my rider switch pass when Lydia looked up at me and said:
"But I want to go, too, Mommy."
I knew that she would be terrified once she got on, so I told her that Daddy would go first and tell her wether or not she would like it. This seemed ok to her, and she, I and Helena went over to the People Mover (aka TTA, but it will always be the People Mover to me!). The girls LOVED this ride. We got right on and made our way around Tommorrowland. Lydia loved the part where we got to go through Space Mountain after I assured her there were no hills on the People Mover. I like the part that you go past the miniature concept of Epcot, although it always makes me a little sad. After it was over, Lydia decided we should ride it again, so we did. Great way to waste some time while waiting and an easy one to do with two kids on your own.
After we finished our second time around Tommorrowland, we went back to Space Mountain to check on Dad and Zillah. They were still not out, so we continued to wander around Tommorrowland some more. That was when Lydia saw the Buzz ride. 15 minute wait! We hurried in line and I asked the attendant if there was a height limit, which thankfully there was not! The timing was just about right and we made our way into our little vehicle. Helena and I shared on lazer beam and Lydia had her own. I must say, this was one of my least favorite rides, though Lydia had fun. It just all seemed a little cheesy. We both scored exactly 1300. Pretty pathetic, but I found myself more interested in watching what was going on than shooting.
After Buzz was over, we headed back to Space Mountain where Dad and Zillah were waiting for us. I asked them what they thought about Space Mountain.
"That was awesome!!!!!" was Zillah's response.
"No way can Lydia go on that!" was Dustin's. He loved it, but thought it would be a little to dark and fast for Lydia. No problem, I told him to take her and Helena back on the People Mover or Buzz.
Zillah and I moved quickly through the FP line past the steadily growing stand by line, much to the dismay of people in the slow moving side. As we were walking down the long hall, I heard a woman in the stand by line say,
"Well, they OBVIOUSLY fast passed as soon as they got into the park." I learned that there could be some very snotty people at Disney! Oh well, who cares what she thought! We were on our way to one of my favorite rides! It seemed like only minutes before we were in our rocket car headed into space! Man, that ride was a lot rougher than I remembered it! I loved it just as much as I did as a 13 year old! Zillah was in front of me, and if I didn't know she had just been on it and loved it, I would have thought she was having a panic attack!
"AHH, AHH, AHH" followed by hyperventillating breaths "AHH AHH AHH!" she was so funny to hear! When we finished up, I looked at her and just burst into laughter! She started laughing, too. I asked her if she was sure she was ok because she sounded like she might be having a heart attack. We hurried through the exit and found Dad and the girls waiting for us....Where to next?
We decided it was time to hit fantasyland, but the 10 minute wait for Stitch was calling Lydia. I let Dad go on this one with them while I waited with Helena. I had no desire to go see Stitch as I was still angry that they changed it from Alien Encounter. That was one of the best rides/ experiences ever!
While waiting for them to get done with Stitch, I let Helena out of her stroller to stretch her legs. She was getting a little fussy and the temperature was really starting to rise! We drank some of our now very warm water bottles and I made a mental note to fill them up with ice tommorrow. Then, out of the corner of my eye, I saw a trash can coming towards us! It was Push, the talking trash can! He was making his way back out of the crowd, and we watched him for a little while. Helena really didn't get it or care much about it. But I thought he was adorable! I was sad Lydia missed him. She would have really thought a talking trash can was crazy!
They made their way out of Stitch and I asked them how the smell was. The girls both plugged their noses and Dustin rolled his eyes. Lydia thought it was great, but Dustin and Zillah both said I didn't miss much. Dustin had wished he'd had the chance to see it as Alien Encounter. He said Stitch was just dumb.
So we continued our trek to Fantasyland. I was really excited to take the girls on Small World, my favorite ride, but Winnie the Pooh was only sporting a 20 minute line so we hopped in. This is where Zillah started sporting her teenage attitude. She was hot, miserable, and tired. The line would move and she would sit down on the pavement, grudgingly scooting forward and almost being stepped on. I told her that she needed to stand like everyone else, to which she rolled her eyes. Rolling eyes is not acceptable in my house nor is it on vacation. I told her to lose the attitude! She stopped speaking to us now, and would only glare at us! I was so angry at her! We were all hot and tired, but even the little girls were still having fun and being good. Anytime we tried to say anything to her, she'd huff and roll her eyes and every ten seconds she'd say "I'm hot!" After about the 100th time of her rolling her eyes, I told her we would leave after Pooh so that she could take a nap and get a better attitude. She then said:
"Well, maybe then you'll actually take us swimming!" I was appalled! We were not there to swim at the resort pool, although I knew we would. She has a pool in her apartment complex at home and swims nearly daily! I tried my best to just ignore her and have fun, but it was hard.
We all loved the Pooh bear ride, especially the Tigger part and the dream sequence. Helena kept oohing and ahhing, trying to reach for the characters as our honey pot traveled past. I remember when the ride used to be Mr. Toad's which was my mom's least favorite ride in the entire park! She thought it was demented! I don't remember it all that well, but I know that the Pooh ride was one of our favorites this trip! So cute and cuddly.
After that ride ended we discussed going back to the room for a nap, but noticed that Small World had no wait! So we got in line for one last ride before nap time. This was the ride I had dreamed of taking my daughters on. I knew that they would love it!
Helena's eyes barely blinked the entire time she was on. She squelled in delight with every new thing she saw and every room we entered. Lydia kept picking out the "prettiest doll" in the ride and singing along. Zillah even managed to have fun! Dustin, whom I thought would hate the ride, really enjoyed it, too. At least a couple of times I heard a bewildered, "Whoa!" come out of him. Needless to say, we all really loved this ride!
After Small World, we decided it was definitely time for a nap. So, we headed back to the bus stop and to All Star Movies for a much needed rest time....

It's A Small World Photos

From Opening Ceremonies

 

[xoprincessmomxo]

So we made it back to our hotel for our nap...Our nap that didn't happen! Everyone seemed to get a sudden burst of energy from being out of the park, so we decided to go swimming!

We borrowed one of the free life jackets for Lydia and got our swim on! The girls loved the pool...the temperature was nice and it was pretty big. We all loved the Mickey water fountain. Lydia even got brave enough to go right up close to the water squirting out, though she did "drownded a little" every time. lol! She was very proud of the fact that she only "drownded a few times" while swimming. After swimming, we were all starving so we headed to the food court! Dustin and I got Turkey and Muenster on foccacia bread with chips and a chocolate brownine. The sandwhiches were EXCELLENT and a repeat choice at other times! Zillah got a taco salad with all the fixings which was also very good. Helena shared with everyone and Lydia got chicken nuggets and grapes. She didn't care for the chicken nuggets, but ate them anyway.

At around 5pm, we decided to head back to the MK. On our bus ride back, we noticed that the skies were starting to get pretty dark and we feared there might be some rain showers in store. I was determined to get on Pirates and the Haunted Mansion that night, rain or no rain. So, we headed straight to Adventureland and pretty much walked right on to Pirates. Everyone loved this ride. Lydia loved pointing out Captain Jack, even though she's never seen the movies! We then headed over to the manision.

The line was really long! I was suprised that it was as long as it was. But, we jumped in line anyway, and braced ourselves for a long wait. Luckily, the line moves pretty fast and we had fun pointing out the pretty flowers over on Tom Sawyer's Island. Finally, it was our turn to go in, and Lydia gripped tight on shorts. She was getting nervous. I assured her that it went slow and even Helena could go on it, so it couldn't be that bad. We got into the stretching room and now Helena was whimpering a little, too. I knew that they would be fine on the ride, so I really wasn't being that bad of a parent! Zillah and I both made sure to watch the ceiling for the hanging guy, which we saw but Dustin missed. I guess were forgot to tell him to look. oops. Lydia, Helena and I got into our doom buggy and made our way through the mansion. As the ride got darker, Helena literally started to try to climb over me to get out! I gripped her tight and hoped that she would not be too traumatized! After we saw the bride and the graveyard down below us, I asked Lydia what she thought.
"It's cool", she said in a slightly shaky tone.
"Do you want to go down there?" I asked her pointing to the graveyard party.
"Nope," she said casually,
"Well, we've got to!" I laughed. She gripped my arm and down we went. She hated the ghouls popping out of the grave, but it was all worth it when she saw the singing busts! She remembered them from the Haunted Mansion movie and how funny they were. She giggled and sang along with them. She didn't like the hitchhiking ghosts either, but still preferred them over the pop outs in the graveyard. Overall, it ended up being a hit for the whole family and a repeat attraction!
We decided to head over to frontierland and see about fast-passes for Thunder Mountain or Splash Mountain. Splash Mountains return time was right during the parade so we got some for Thunder Mountain and a rider switch. Lydia decided she wanted to try this one and we let her. She went on with Dad and Helena and I went into the little store nearby Splash Mountain, as the skies were really getting dark now and it was starting to rain a little. Lydia loved this ride! She was so excited and was ready to go again right away. I switched Helena over to Dustin and I and the older two got into the FP line and took our ride on Thunder Mountain! Lydia waved her hands in the air and shrieked with laughter! I couldn't believe how brave she was. After that ride, it was almost time to get a place for the parade! But by now, it was really starting to rain so we made our way to the shops on main street, just like everyone else in park! We hid out in one of the shops while the skies opened up and poured. Luckily, the rain didn't last long and we were able to get a few souvenirs in our down time. We left the store and found a perfect place for the parade. Untill a cm came and told us that the parade didn't go that way!
According to the map it did, but I trusted that the cm knew what he was talking about. So, we got up and tried to shuffle our way through the ever growing crowd and find a new spot. We looked back at our old spot and saw people taking over that area and no cm's moving them! I was really angry! I knew I was right and should have just trusted myself.
We went into Liberty Square and found a spot in front of The Hall of Presidents. It wasn't great, but we could see fine and the girls were able to go up closer.
Over the loud speaker, they informed us that the parade had been delayed because of the weather. It was all ready 9:10 by then, but what could another few minutes hurt. There was a family behind us that were letting there kids have light saber fights behind the ropes of The Hall Of Presidents. They nearly clobbered my husband a few times! Everyone around us was making comments, but the parents were to busy complaining to each other to care. Another 15 minutes passed and another loud speaker voice telling us of the delay. I was beginnig to wonder if they were ever going to start. Zillah started to get her attitude back on, complaining that it was too hot and being rude to Lydia. I told her we were all hot, Florida is hot, and that she needed to stop complaining. She started the silent treatment again and I was starting to get really frustrated. After waiting that long, should we just chuck it and go back? Finally, at around 9:45 they started the parade. I'd seen it before and I still really enjoy it! What a magical way to end the day....even more magical if it would have started on time and everyone's attitudes would have been in check. But still, it was great! Helena waved at all of floats and chirped at all the pretty lights. It was going wonderfully, untill about a block and a half down, one of the floats narrowly missed running over a group of people!!! They had to stop the parade in it's tracks and try to configure the float so that it would not plow smack into the audience! It took about 15 minutes to get the parade back going! Peter Pan and Smee were walking behind the float that was trying to kill people and they had quite the act going on to keep people entertained. The villains float was stopped in front of us, and the evil queen from Snow White never stepped out of character. She kept staring down people in the audience with her wicked expressions. How much fun would it be to have her job? We decided to try to make our way out now and made the run for the exit. We made it with little of a problem and to the bus stop. There wasn't a big line and we made it back to the resort in record time, with a sleeping baby to boot! Zillah still was not talking to us and went to bed without a kind word. I was frustrated with her, but tried to think about all the good that happened that day and the fun times we had. Dustin and the little ones were exhausted and ready to go to bed! All in all, we'd had a good day and I hoped they would only get better. Tommorrow was Epcot and I was sure we'd all be in better moods after getting a full night's sleep. Tommorrow night we'd be eating in Mexico at a restaurant I'd always wanted to eat at. I couldn't wait!