It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.

[Wish_I'd_known_Walt]

Our end of Oct. 2010 trip, starring:
Me – 40
DW – 32
DD7
DD5
DD2

We arrived at Pop Century between 2 and 3 on Saturday afternoon. The girls were bouncing off the walls excited, especially after seeing the swimming pool. We were in the 60’s building overlooking the Hippie Dippie pool. The girls assumed we were going to have a nice leisurely evening and then hit the parks the next day. Actually, DW and I had long ago decided to “surprise” the girls by paying an extra $12 for a 7th day pass and take them to MK that night (especially since EMH were from 12-3am). BUT FIRST, we would need to take a good nap, seeing how we got up at 5:00am that morning to catch our flight to Orlando. The girls were reluctant, but after 5 minutes of lying down in the room with the lights off, they were out. We took a good 2.5 hr nap. It was much needed rest. After a quick dinner there at PC, we were on the bus to MK.
My mother and father couldn’t join us on this first WDW trip for their granddaughters due to health issues. Therefore, my mother requested that I video tape the girls reaction to seeing Cinderella’s castle for the first time. Therefore I went into the park 30 seconds quicker than DW and the girls, so I could get their facial expressions on tape as they came in. To make a long story short, their reactions were less than stellar (My mom was expecting a bigger, happier response). I think the girls were overwhelmed by the crowd of people, loud music, bright lights of Main Street USA, etc. But, as the night progressed, they enjoyed the park more and more. One area of concern was our DD5’s fear of the characters. We figured we would have a problem when just the week before she went to a birthday party at Chuck E. Cheese Pizza and was deathly afraid of Chuck E. Cheese walking around visiting children. As we entered the park and started walking down Main Street, ‘Pluto’ walked by and DD5 came running and screaming for me to hold her. I just rolled my eyes and thought, “Ah, this is going to be a long week!”
To make a long story short, we had the BEST time of our vacation that first night. We saw the Wishes fireworks, the Main Street Electrical Parade and rode many Fantasyland rides. Then, DW wanted to take DD7 on Space Mountain. So we walked over to Tomorrowland and found a 30 minute wait for SM. I didn’t want to wait 30 min for them to ride SM, so I took DD5 & DD2 back to Fantasyland. We walked by and saw Mickey and Minnie signing autographs. DD5 decided she wanted to get in line to get their autographs. I said, “Are you sure?” I was concerned after seeing her scared reaction to Pluto. But she persisted and we got in line. When we got to M&M, DD5 was a little hesitant to be with them, but enjoyed seeing them. That really boosted her confidence. Then she found Donald duck and decided she needed his autograph, then Goofy and then finally Pluto. She did very well. Plus, she was very proud to show her older sister all the autographs she acquired while older sister was riding SM. DD7 was jealous.
BTW, we LOVED the EMHs. They were awesome. As the EMHs progressed, the crowds diminished and there was no waiting at IASW, PP, HM, etc. It was great. We went back to PC exhausted, but very happy.

 

[Wish_I'd_known_Walt]

The next day we got up and went to HS and had a great time. DW wanted to take DD7 and DD5 on TofT. They had no idea about what they were getting into. After both DDs got off the ride, I said, “Did you have fun?” They shook their head no. I said, “Do you want to ride it again?” They said, “NO!”
We made the mistake of waiting too late in the day to get fastpasses for TSM and they were sold out for the day.  We had a trip back to the resort for an afternoon nap planned before our dinner at Hollywood and Vine. But DW decided she wanted to stay at the park and watch the Beauty and the Beast performance instead. I reasoned with her that we needed the nap if we were gonna enjoy EMHs that night. Well, I’ll let you guess who won that battle.
So, after Beauty and the Beast, we went and had dinner at Hollywood and Vine buffet. I was pleasantly surprised. It was a good meal. Later that night, we attended Fantasmic! To me it seemed more of an animated performance on water rather than a fireworks show. I was a little disappointed with it.  Towards the end of the evening, DD2 was sacked out in our stroller. DW took DD7 and DD5 into some dance place (it was right next to Playhouse Disney) while I stayed outside with DD2 in the stroller. Well the 2 older girls danced the rest of the night away with Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Jojo, Handy Manny, etc. They had a ball.

 

[Wish_I'd_known_Walt]

The next day was a MK day. But first, we had a breakfast buffet at 1900 Park Fare at the GF. Before we went in the dining room, they took our picture in front of a mural featuring Cinderella’s castle in the background. At breakfast, the girls got to meet Mary Poppins, Alice, The Mad Hatter, Pooh and Tigger. The girls had a great time. When Alice came over to our table, she asked me if I knew that it was rude to wear a hat inside the building. I sheepishly removed my hat and looked ashamed. But after a while, I put my hat back on. Then, some lady came out and showed us our picture that they had just took of us before we went in for breakfast. It was a great picture. She asked if we would like to purchase it? I said, “Uh, ok.” That will be $29.95. DANG! What an expensive photograph. Oh well. Lesson learned. A little while later, Alice came over again and wagged her finger in front of my face for wearing my hat again. It was funny. I had never been to the GF before. It was very beautiful inside the lobby of the resort. But it was very white. White walls, white rails, white banisters, etc. DW and I decided we liked the multicolored buildings at PC better than the elegant white interior of the GF.
At MK that day, we went and I got fast passes for Splash Mountain early, so we’d be sure to have them before they ran out. So when it was time to ride, we made our way back to Splash Mountain. Since we had DD2 in the stroller, I stayed with her and DD5 while DW and DD7 rode the ride. Well, they immediately came back out and DW was furious with me. I had mistakenly got fast passes for Big Thunder Mountain Railroad rather than Splash Mountain. Oops! Oh well. Momma and DD7 enjoyed BTMR instead. We enjoyed the daytime parade. It was pretty good.
That afternoon we went back to the resort to swim and take a nap. It was much needed. And that night we got back to the MK just in time for the Main Street Electrical Parade. I loved that parade the 2 nights before and loved it just as much that night as well. It has such a catchy tune. I’m still humming it here at home. After the parade, we went to Casey’s hotdog joint hoping to find a table outside to watch the Wishes fireworks. It took a while, but we finally got an empty table. I went and purchased hotdogs for all of us so we could eat while we watched fireworks. Once again, it was a wonderful performance. I enjoyed every minute of it. After fireworks, we made our way over to the Haunted Mansion. This time, all 5 of us went on the ride. DD2 did fine. But DD5 was deathly afraid. I had to hold her the whole time (except when we got into the Doom buggies, of course). BTW, I was disappointed in HM, POTC, PP, SW, etc. because all these rides seemed darker than I remembered them being. Is Disney trying to be politically correct by dimming the lights to kowtow to the environmentalist? Or rather, are they dimming the lights to save $$ on the electric bill, all the while giving a wink and a nod to the green earth movement? Either way, I think it stinks that they are reducing the quality of the ride by dimming the lights. Even the lights outside in the park at night seem dimmer than what I remember. Does anybody else agree with me???

 

[Wish_I'd_known_Walt]

During the middle of the night DD2 woke up vomiting. Then she had diarrhea. This was the day we were supposed to go to EPCOT.
To make a long story short, the vomiting continued thru to the morning. It finally stopped, but the diarrhea continued. We were going thru little girls panties very quickly. So we bought some diapers at the ‘Everything Pop’ store, put them on DD2 and headed to EPCOT. I think we had one or two more accidents that day, but nothing the diapers couldn’t contain, thank God!
At EPCOT, we met my DW’s aunt who lives in Orlando (she works as one of the characters at Universal Studios). She joined us for the afternoon and we had a good time visiting with her in between attractions. But, it was very HOT and HUMID. I believe they tied a record high temperature for that day (the 2nd reason we went in Oct. was for the cooler weather ). Oh well. Then we left to go back to the resort to get our little princesses in their dresses and ready to have dinner with the Disney princesses at the Akershus Royal Banquet Hall restaurant in Norway at EPCOT.
At the Akershus house, we were taken in and had the girl’s picture taken with a very beautiful ‘Belle’ in her lovely yellow gown. Then we were seated and had a wonderful meal. Then the princesses came one at a time to the table to sign the girl’s books and pose for a picture. I think that was the highlight of our girl’s trip. Just to see them brighten up each time a princess came over and visited with them. It thrilled my heart as a parent. Then, this nice lady came over and showed us a professional pic of our girls with Belle that had just been taken when we came in. She asked if she could put it in a bag for us to take home? My first thought was, “Oh, great! Another $30 picture for me to pay for.” But before I could decline, she placed the pic in the bag and merely gave it to me. Apparently, this pic was on the house. What a pleasant surprise. All in all, we had a great time at Akershus house. I would do it again in a heartbeat.
Then, DW and the two older girls were to go to Downtown Disney to see DWs aunt perform at Pleasure Island (she works for both Universal and Disney on occasion). Myself and DD2 were going to go back to Pop Century to do laundry. But, after further review, I decided I didn’t want to spend an hour plus time in the small, chairless laundrymat there at POP with a 2 yr old. Therefore, we went to bed early (DD2 could use it since she was up a lot the night before vomiting). I would go to bed early, then get up early and go do laundry. DW, DD7 & DD5 had a great time at Downtown Disney getting to sing and dance on stage with auntie. They didn’t come back to the resort till after 1:00am. (yawn!)

 

[Wish_I'd_known_Walt]

So, the next morning I got up, took the laundry to the laundrymat, started 2 loads of clothes in the washing machines, then went to breakfast. Then, I came back and put the clothes in the dryer, then went and sat out by the pool for a while. That was a nice and relaxing time. Then, I took the cleaned clothes back to our room. Today was to be our second and last day at EPCOT. But, first, we went to the Contemporary Resort to eat a late breakfast at Chef Mickey’s. Again, the girls LOVED seeing the characters and getting their picture taken with them. And I found the breakfast buffet very good.
After breakfast was over, we decided not to go to EPCOT just yet, but go back to the resort and swim in the pool. The girls had been wanting to do this all along, but we didn’t want to waste good park time swimming in the pool. BUT, DW and I were exhausted, and if we wanted to enjoy EMH at EPCOT that night, we were gonna need to slow down and relax. So we watched the girls in the pool while we sat in the lounge chairs and rested. After swimming we went back to the room for a nap. Ah! Refreshment. It was a nice nap time.
That night we had dinner reservations at Teppan Edo Japanese Steakhouse in the Japan section of the World Showcase. We got there and DD7 failed to tell us that she wasn’t feeling well. When we walked into the restaurant, the exotic smells and aroma of the place was too much for my DD7 who wasn’t feeling well. Therefore, she proceeded to vomit all over herself right there in the lobby. (Yuk! Enjoy your dinner folks!) I rushed her back to the bathroom with DD5 & DD2 following behind while DW was unaware of what was going on since she was at the reservations desk checking in. FINALLY, DW came back to the restroom to assist DD7 who was already inside (I couldn’t go in, of course). DD7’s shirt was completely covered with vomit, so DW had to remove it and wash it in the sink. In the meantime, I ran out of the restaurant, looking for the nearest shop to buy DD7 a new T-shirt. I found a small pink shirt with a Japanese girl on the front for $25. I wouldn’t have necessarily purchased it otherwise, but I was desperate. So I took it back to the restroom, she put it on, and we were good to go.
We sat down to eat, being very cautious about DD7. We suggested she not eat, and she whole heartedly agreed. She just drank water. She did fine throughout the meal. The rest of us enjoyed the meal. I ordered some sushi that had wasabi on one side of the plate and some kind of pickled ginger on the other side. It was different, but very good. I had some steak and shrimp for my entrée. It was good also. During dinner, we noticed it was getting close to fireworks time outside on the lagoon. Thus, we weren’t gonna have time for dessert. I told DW and the girls to go ahead outside, so they don’t miss a minute of the fireworks while I stayed and took care of the check.
The fireworks were good. Not great, just good. Certainly they were not as good at the fireworks at MK. After that, we went to future world and went to the sea section. We rode the Finding Nemo ride. Then DW said she started feeling sick. She went to the bathroom and stayed in there quite a while. Then I started to not feel well. I was feeling kind of nauseated but not to the point of vomiting. But then I started burping up the pickled ginger. OMG, that was awful the second time around. Ugh. But I endured, so I could show my family a good time. When DW got out of the bathroom, we decided to do the Turtle Talk with Crush. That was a fun time. The girls really enjoyed it. Crush even talked a little bit with DD5. She thought that was pretty neat. After Crush, DW said she needed to go to the bathroom again. So we waited a little while for her. When she came out, I decided I needed to go to the restroom also. I started about 24 hrs of diarrhea, but not bad enough to ruin our park plans. Just as long as there was a bathroom close, I did OK. Since we were still there, and the line was very short, the girls wanted to ride the Finding Nemo ride again. They enjoyed the ride all over again.
Then we decided to go check out the Soarin’ line. The wait was only 10 minutes. So I sent DW, DD7 and DD5 in while I waited with DD2 and got a parent swap pass (or whatever it’s called). When they came out, DW said the smell of oranges flying over the orange grove in the ride made her sick. DD7 said she needed to go to the bathroom. So we pointed here to the bathroom just outside Soarin’. She vomited on the way in the restroom. This time it wasn’t as messy. She didn’t get it on her clothes. DW, who was feeling ill anyway, went to assist DD7. When they came out, DW said, “Let’s go home.” Darn, I didn’t get to ride Soarin’ Oh well. But then DW said, “Oh, but you want to ride now don’t you?” I said ‘yes’ and then went. I didn’t realize it, but DD7 was following me in to the ride. When I got to the end of the short line, I turned around to see DD7 was there. She said she wanted to ride it again. I said, “even though you are sick?” She said, “I feel better now.” Well, OK.
So, after we got through at Soarin’, it was midnight and we started walking toward the exit of the park. But DW kept getting worse, and needed to visit every bathroom between Soarin’ and the exit. All the while, I was still burping up pickled ginger. Needless to say, it took us an hour to get from Soarin’ to the bus stop due to all of DW’s bathroom pitstops. As we got on the bus, DW had an empty plastic Disney World merchandise bag in her hand. She said that was for ‘just in case’ she got sick on the bus. Well, sure enough, 30 seconds into the bus ride, she started vomiting into the bag. The whole while everyone on the bus was staring at her (with pity, of course). But it was embarrassing to her anyway. I felt sorry for her and tried to comfort her the best I could. Then DD7 said, “I need that bag!” So I grabbed it from DWs hands and quickly gave it to DD7. She vomited into the bag. Fortunately, all the vomit was contained, i.e., no mess on the bus. But, we made quite the impression on the rest of the poor souls on the bus fearing they might get this contagious stomach bug also. So when we got to the room, we all immediately went to bed.

 

[Wish_I'd_known_Walt]

The next day we slept till noon. We were sick, exhausted and needed some extra rest. That day we were supposed to go to HS again, but we didn’t think it was worth the effort. We thought we would relax at the resort until we went to MK that night for MNSSHP. So, late in the afternoon, we ordered a room-service pizza on our DDP for our supper. We hadn’t eaten anything all day, so it tasted wonderful! We enjoyed it a lot. Then we got the girls dressed up in their princesses dresses for the party. Then we left for the MK.
The MK was decorated all over with Halloween garb anyway, but for the MNSSHP they add scary music and shine orange, green and purple lights everywhere to give a ghostly look. We enjoyed the parade and we enjoyed the fireworks. The girls wanted to spend more time trick-or-treating thru the park rather than ride rides, like I wanted to. But the trip was for the girls, so we did lots of trick-or-treating. About the last 30 minutes of the night we went and rode IASW and PP. The girls really enjoyed those rides. Then we went back to the resort and slept. Overall, we had a good time at MNSSHP, but other than the trick-or-treating, I didn’t think it was much different than a typical EMH night at the MK. In other words, I didn’t think it was worth the extra ticket prices.

 

[Wish_I'd_known_Walt]

Our final day we planned on going back to MK, but at the last moment, we decided we had enough of the MK and decided to try AK, which we had planned on not visiting out of lack of interest. So we went to AK and to make a long story short, I wasn’t impressed. I didn’t think that park was up to Disney standards. I just didn’t feel the magic while I was there. We went on the safari ride, which was just OK. Then we had a late lunch at the Tusker House. It was just OK. Then we went and watched the Lion King show. That was pretty good. Then we went and rode the Dinosaur ride. That was pretty good, but again, it was a very dark ride that I thought could have used a few more lights. Then we went to ride the Himalaya rollercoaster ride. That was pretty good. DW and I enjoyed that ride, but again, it was very dark. I would have enjoyed it more if I could have seen more. I really had to squint to see the Yeti at the end due to lack of light.  After AK, we went back to POP and packed to go home.

 

[Wish_I'd_known_Walt]

The next morning, we were to catch our flight out of Orlando at 9:05. Therefore, they said we were to catch our DME bus at 6:15 in the morning. We had bell service pick up our 10 pieces of luggage at 5:45, then we got a breakfast muffin at 6:00 when the POP restaurant opened. Then we went out to where we catch the bus. We went to check our bags in that had been brought up by the bell service. BUT, unfortunately we were too late. HUH? What are you talking about? We should have checked in our luggage no later than 6:05, but since we didn’t, the computer automatically locked us out of being able to check our bags. DW was furious! Therefore we had to carry our own 10 bags to the bus, off the bus, and to the check-in desk at the airport. It was a pain in the backside. But we did it. So let this be a lesson to you who are going soon on their Disney vacation. MAKE SURE you check your bags 3 hours before your flight. Just getting the bell service isn’t good enough for “checking-in”. We missed it by a mere 7 minutes. 
So we were finally on our flight home. Yea! We had a great time, but we were also ready to get back home and in our own beds. And wouldn’t you know that DD5, who had avoided all the sickness that the rest of us had endured, decided she was sick on the plane and started vomiting in the aisle. DW rushed her to the bathroom and had a hard time in those tiny airplane bathrooms. So when they came back to their seats, DW kept the barf-bag handy, just in case DD5 had to blow again. And sure enough, it happened two more times.  It was a 4 hour flight with 2 stops in between w/o changing planes. Then when we did get to our car, DD5 barfed 2 more times on the way home. AHHHHHHH!!! We couldn’t get home soon enough.
And that was our trip.