MickeyNicki
It is pretty darn sad when a valet picks you out a
- Joined
- Sep 22, 2005
- Messages
- 21,518
Ok I am addicted, wanting more!!
It's Summer Vacation! Let's Go! **Updated 8/9; Page 9; Last Day Posted!**
- Thread starter nataliz
- Start date
This turned out to be a really long chapter. Hope you enjoy it. 
Day 2, Attack Squirrels at Animal Kingdom
So, when I left you last, we were all getting settled for a good nights sleep.And all of us slept well, except me. You see, I have a terrible time staying asleep in hotel rooms. I have a tendency to wake up early. Really early. This morning was no exception. When I first peeked at the alarm it was 3:30. Go back to sleep, I told myself. You need to rest for today. I fell back asleep. When I woke up again it was 4:30. I talked myself back into going to sleep. The next time I woke up it was 5. I lay in bed and listened to my kids breathing. I couldnt get back to sleep. There was no way. So I just stayed as still as long as I could because I didnt want to wake anyone else up. At 5:30 I got twitchy and decided to take a shower and get dressed.
I decided to go out on the balcony so that I could read my Tour Guide Mike plans for Animal Kingdom before we left. Goofy popped out on the balcony a little while after me with a pop tart (breakfast of Disney Champions) and a juice box. We chatted for a while about our day. It was really nice.
We finally decided that we were going to go and look around the resort since we didnt do any exploring the night before. When we walked into the room Tink and Minnie were starting to wake up. DH was still out. Tink decided to get dressed and come explore with us while Minnie climbed into bed with DH. We went over the bridge and down the elevators to the first floor. We figured out where the Mara and the pool were. We saw the arcade. Goofy was on cloud 9 because they had not 1, not 2, but THREE Star Wars games. How could an 11-year old Star Wars fanatic get so lucky? We went up to the third floor and looked around the beautiful lobby. Finally, we decided that we had better get upstairs to make sure that Minnie and DH were ready to go to the Animal Kingdom today.
They were ready. We made sure that everyone ate and looked presentable, and made our way down to the bus stop. The Magic Kingdom was having morning EMHs today. At 8:20 a.m. there was a huge line for MK. There was no one waiting for AK. I felt proud of my decision to listen to TGM, even though I had really wanted to see the castle first thing today. We rode a relatively uncrowded bus over to the Animal Kingdom.
Thats when I saw it. The crowds! There were tons of people already lined up at the turnstiles. I had hoped that I would be there early enough that I would be at the front of that line- not at the back of it. We actually make our way through the turnstiles fairly quickly and stop at the other side to gather maps and entertainment guides. There is just a mass of people coming into the parks. Kids were crying, parents were yelling. It was just a mess!
This is when I saw my first shocking, as heard on DIS, moment. I turned around to corral my three kids and saw a woman smack her small child in the face because she was crying. Now, I understand being frustrated with a child. Believe me, Ive been there. I have three of them. I also have a class of 20 of them during the school year. But most rational people should realize that hurting a child would not make them stop crying, it has a tendency to make it worse. What a crappy way for that little kid to start their day.
My family and I got some separation from that lovely group and made our way to Expedition Everest. Everyone was excited about this ride. They were building it when we came two years ago so we were ready to ride now. I had shown the ride video to Goofy and Minnie. Both were ready to go! Tink was too small and she was a little bitter. We assured her that she would get to do something fun while her brother and sister rode.
As we got closer to Everest, the crowds were massive. We decided to get fastpasses; so DH stood in line while I took the kids down to Dinoland. We got onto Triceratops Spin without a wait. Tink and I rode up in the front seat, while Minnie and Goofy rode in the back. We got off the ride and Minnie and Goofy really wanted to ride Primeval Whirl. There wasnt any wait, but Tink couldnt ride. Just as I was trying to decide what to do, DH came back with our FPs for 10:30. So, I rode PW with Minnie and Goofy while DH rode TS with Tink two more times.
We decided to go on Dinosaur next. DH and Goofy assured us girls that it would be fine. So we all went. Big mistake! This was the worst ride for our family! I sat next to Minnie- she was terrified. Tink sat terrified between DH and Goofy. The ride jerks you around so much! It was not a family favorite, I can tell you that. When we got off, Goofy was done. Somehow he had hurt his neck during the ride. He was in tears. We gave him a little pep talk and sat down to all catch our breath.
It was about time for our FPs for Everest so we took a bathroom break and made our way towards Everest. Goofy then decided that he would not ride. I tried to talk him into it, but he had made up his mind. There was no way he was going. So we decided that Minnie and I would ride while DH, Goofy and Tink got FPs for Kali River Rapids (Tinks favorite from our last trip).
This was Minnies first real roller coaster and I was nervous about that. But Minnie was determined that she was going to ride it and love it. Her best friend had ridden one of the biggest roller coasters at Worlds of Fun, a local amusement park, in the fall. Mom, if she can ride the Mamba, then I can ride any of these rides, she told me.
I really had nothing to be worried about. She loved it! I loved it! We both screamed girly screams and had a great time. It is such a cool ride. I was so glad I got to share it with her. After we got off, Minnie declared, I want to ride that again!
I met up with DH and the other kids over in the Jungle Trek. We looked at the tigers sleeping and made our way out. I tried to talk Goofy into riding Everest with DH, but he wasnt budging. So DH rode with Minnie while the three of us hung out in the gift shop. DH loved the ride just as much as I had. Minnie had made sure that he sat on the side that Yeti came down on. She thought it was just as great the second time as the first.
It was now our FP time for Kali, so we decided to do that. Minnie got to carry the badge to help determine how long it took us through the ride. She thought that was pretty cool. It did take us a while to get to the front. A person on a motorized scooter was in front of us and had a really hard time navigating through the line. It was not very accessible. We finally got on with a couple of different families. I sat with Tink, Goofy and Minnie sat together and DH sat with a child from another family. This boy did not want to sit next to DH, but he preserved.
Tink, Minnie, and I got the wettest on this ride. I dont think there was a dry spot on my entire body. It was great as always. We all laughed and had a great time. Goofy even seemed to perk up a little bit.
We decided that this would be a good time to stop for lunch. I had heard great things about Tusker House and we decided to give it a try. Tink had mac & cheese, Minnie had a drumstick, DH had rotisserie chicken, and Goofy and I had the fried chicken sandwich. The kids got chocolate cake for dessert; DH and I got carrot cake.
There was no indoor seating and we had just gotten cooled off on KRR, so we ate out on the back patio. There were no other families when we sat down so it was very quiet and peaceful.
The girls started chowing down on their food. Minnie and Tink split my french fries while I ate Minnies mashed potatoes instead. Goofys nose got bent out of shape when he noticed there was something green on his sandwich. Why yes, I think it might be lettuce. He scraped off the lettuce and started eating. Goofy was not enjoying himself anymore. That dark cloud was starting to form over his head.
Then suddenly, a crow flew down and perched on the table right next to us and eyeballed Tink. I had heard about these friendly, and hungry birds here on the DIS. Tink squirmed in her seat a little. Dont look at him, honey, I told her. He wants your food. Hell go away in a minute. When he realized that she wasnt going to drop any of her food, he flew away to stare at another family sitting out there with us.
By this time, the outdoor seating was getting a little crowded. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a squirrel. I point him out to the girls. Hes a cute little thing, scurrying around from one place to another.
All of the sudden, he scurries to our table- under Goofys feet. Goofy jumps up and yells, What is he doing! He literally freaks out about the squirrel. Because squirrels in Missouri dont get that close. They run from people; they dont run at them. Everyone is now watching Goofy freak out about the squirrel.
DH finally calms Goofy down. He tells Goofy that he probably is eating some food that was accidentally dropped. Finally the squirrel leaves to crawl under another couples legs and we convince Goofy to sit down. We all have a good little chuckle as we watch the squirrel scurry around near other people now.
Only, the little squirrel isnt done with us yet. Nope. He decides that we must have something really good at our table because he comes between Goofys feet under our table and circles over to my side. Yes, right next to my toes. I tried to play it cool for the kids (and the rest of the people watching) but I was secretly screaming inside. We decided to finish up our food quickly and get the heck out of Dodge.
That was our lunch nemesis. So if you see him, be wary.
Next up: Day 2, Part 2
Day 2, Attack Squirrels at Animal Kingdom
So, when I left you last, we were all getting settled for a good nights sleep.And all of us slept well, except me. You see, I have a terrible time staying asleep in hotel rooms. I have a tendency to wake up early. Really early. This morning was no exception. When I first peeked at the alarm it was 3:30. Go back to sleep, I told myself. You need to rest for today. I fell back asleep. When I woke up again it was 4:30. I talked myself back into going to sleep. The next time I woke up it was 5. I lay in bed and listened to my kids breathing. I couldnt get back to sleep. There was no way. So I just stayed as still as long as I could because I didnt want to wake anyone else up. At 5:30 I got twitchy and decided to take a shower and get dressed.
I decided to go out on the balcony so that I could read my Tour Guide Mike plans for Animal Kingdom before we left. Goofy popped out on the balcony a little while after me with a pop tart (breakfast of Disney Champions) and a juice box. We chatted for a while about our day. It was really nice.
We finally decided that we were going to go and look around the resort since we didnt do any exploring the night before. When we walked into the room Tink and Minnie were starting to wake up. DH was still out. Tink decided to get dressed and come explore with us while Minnie climbed into bed with DH. We went over the bridge and down the elevators to the first floor. We figured out where the Mara and the pool were. We saw the arcade. Goofy was on cloud 9 because they had not 1, not 2, but THREE Star Wars games. How could an 11-year old Star Wars fanatic get so lucky? We went up to the third floor and looked around the beautiful lobby. Finally, we decided that we had better get upstairs to make sure that Minnie and DH were ready to go to the Animal Kingdom today.
They were ready. We made sure that everyone ate and looked presentable, and made our way down to the bus stop. The Magic Kingdom was having morning EMHs today. At 8:20 a.m. there was a huge line for MK. There was no one waiting for AK. I felt proud of my decision to listen to TGM, even though I had really wanted to see the castle first thing today. We rode a relatively uncrowded bus over to the Animal Kingdom.
Thats when I saw it. The crowds! There were tons of people already lined up at the turnstiles. I had hoped that I would be there early enough that I would be at the front of that line- not at the back of it. We actually make our way through the turnstiles fairly quickly and stop at the other side to gather maps and entertainment guides. There is just a mass of people coming into the parks. Kids were crying, parents were yelling. It was just a mess!
This is when I saw my first shocking, as heard on DIS, moment. I turned around to corral my three kids and saw a woman smack her small child in the face because she was crying. Now, I understand being frustrated with a child. Believe me, Ive been there. I have three of them. I also have a class of 20 of them during the school year. But most rational people should realize that hurting a child would not make them stop crying, it has a tendency to make it worse. What a crappy way for that little kid to start their day.
My family and I got some separation from that lovely group and made our way to Expedition Everest. Everyone was excited about this ride. They were building it when we came two years ago so we were ready to ride now. I had shown the ride video to Goofy and Minnie. Both were ready to go! Tink was too small and she was a little bitter. We assured her that she would get to do something fun while her brother and sister rode.
As we got closer to Everest, the crowds were massive. We decided to get fastpasses; so DH stood in line while I took the kids down to Dinoland. We got onto Triceratops Spin without a wait. Tink and I rode up in the front seat, while Minnie and Goofy rode in the back. We got off the ride and Minnie and Goofy really wanted to ride Primeval Whirl. There wasnt any wait, but Tink couldnt ride. Just as I was trying to decide what to do, DH came back with our FPs for 10:30. So, I rode PW with Minnie and Goofy while DH rode TS with Tink two more times.
We decided to go on Dinosaur next. DH and Goofy assured us girls that it would be fine. So we all went. Big mistake! This was the worst ride for our family! I sat next to Minnie- she was terrified. Tink sat terrified between DH and Goofy. The ride jerks you around so much! It was not a family favorite, I can tell you that. When we got off, Goofy was done. Somehow he had hurt his neck during the ride. He was in tears. We gave him a little pep talk and sat down to all catch our breath.
It was about time for our FPs for Everest so we took a bathroom break and made our way towards Everest. Goofy then decided that he would not ride. I tried to talk him into it, but he had made up his mind. There was no way he was going. So we decided that Minnie and I would ride while DH, Goofy and Tink got FPs for Kali River Rapids (Tinks favorite from our last trip).
This was Minnies first real roller coaster and I was nervous about that. But Minnie was determined that she was going to ride it and love it. Her best friend had ridden one of the biggest roller coasters at Worlds of Fun, a local amusement park, in the fall. Mom, if she can ride the Mamba, then I can ride any of these rides, she told me.
I really had nothing to be worried about. She loved it! I loved it! We both screamed girly screams and had a great time. It is such a cool ride. I was so glad I got to share it with her. After we got off, Minnie declared, I want to ride that again!
I met up with DH and the other kids over in the Jungle Trek. We looked at the tigers sleeping and made our way out. I tried to talk Goofy into riding Everest with DH, but he wasnt budging. So DH rode with Minnie while the three of us hung out in the gift shop. DH loved the ride just as much as I had. Minnie had made sure that he sat on the side that Yeti came down on. She thought it was just as great the second time as the first.
It was now our FP time for Kali, so we decided to do that. Minnie got to carry the badge to help determine how long it took us through the ride. She thought that was pretty cool. It did take us a while to get to the front. A person on a motorized scooter was in front of us and had a really hard time navigating through the line. It was not very accessible. We finally got on with a couple of different families. I sat with Tink, Goofy and Minnie sat together and DH sat with a child from another family. This boy did not want to sit next to DH, but he preserved.
Tink, Minnie, and I got the wettest on this ride. I dont think there was a dry spot on my entire body. It was great as always. We all laughed and had a great time. Goofy even seemed to perk up a little bit.
We decided that this would be a good time to stop for lunch. I had heard great things about Tusker House and we decided to give it a try. Tink had mac & cheese, Minnie had a drumstick, DH had rotisserie chicken, and Goofy and I had the fried chicken sandwich. The kids got chocolate cake for dessert; DH and I got carrot cake.
There was no indoor seating and we had just gotten cooled off on KRR, so we ate out on the back patio. There were no other families when we sat down so it was very quiet and peaceful.
The girls started chowing down on their food. Minnie and Tink split my french fries while I ate Minnies mashed potatoes instead. Goofys nose got bent out of shape when he noticed there was something green on his sandwich. Why yes, I think it might be lettuce. He scraped off the lettuce and started eating. Goofy was not enjoying himself anymore. That dark cloud was starting to form over his head.
Then suddenly, a crow flew down and perched on the table right next to us and eyeballed Tink. I had heard about these friendly, and hungry birds here on the DIS. Tink squirmed in her seat a little. Dont look at him, honey, I told her. He wants your food. Hell go away in a minute. When he realized that she wasnt going to drop any of her food, he flew away to stare at another family sitting out there with us.
By this time, the outdoor seating was getting a little crowded. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a squirrel. I point him out to the girls. Hes a cute little thing, scurrying around from one place to another.
All of the sudden, he scurries to our table- under Goofys feet. Goofy jumps up and yells, What is he doing! He literally freaks out about the squirrel. Because squirrels in Missouri dont get that close. They run from people; they dont run at them. Everyone is now watching Goofy freak out about the squirrel.
DH finally calms Goofy down. He tells Goofy that he probably is eating some food that was accidentally dropped. Finally the squirrel leaves to crawl under another couples legs and we convince Goofy to sit down. We all have a good little chuckle as we watch the squirrel scurry around near other people now.
Only, the little squirrel isnt done with us yet. Nope. He decides that we must have something really good at our table because he comes between Goofys feet under our table and circles over to my side. Yes, right next to my toes. I tried to play it cool for the kids (and the rest of the people watching) but I was secretly screaming inside. We decided to finish up our food quickly and get the heck out of Dodge.
That was our lunch nemesis. So if you see him, be wary.
Next up: Day 2, Part 2
MickeyNicki
It is pretty darn sad when a valet picks you out a
- Joined
- Sep 22, 2005
- Messages
- 21,518
Oh god, I would have freaked if the squirrel came that close to me!
pooksma
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jan 4, 2005
- Messages
- 3,375
Great report! I thought I was the only one who woke up early in hotels~its a given at Disney tho. Take your time writing. I completely understand how Masters courses can take up precious time. Mine has cut my DISing time down considerably! 
Looking forward to more!
Looking forward to more!
I haven't finished the next installment yet, but I wanted to tell everyone who is reading and commenting thank you. It is very nice to know that people are enjoying my report.
sraps4u: Thanks for reading my report. I thought the AKL was a beautiful hotel, didn't you?
UtahMama: We all get a big kick out of the squirrel story now. Goofy even laughs about it-although he didn't think it was the least bit funny at the time. 11 seems to be a pretty hard age for him right now. Thank you for the comments about Tink. I think she's a pretty girl also. I'll try to post more pictures as I have them. Sometimes I got into having too much fun to take that many pictures. Plus, the batteries on my digital camera seemed to run out at the most inconvienent times.
MagicMe: Thanks for reading! I'm glad that you're enjoying it!
MickeyNicki: I really wanted to freak out, but I had to hold it inside. I didn't want to scare my kids. I also didn't want someone else to write a trip report with a section on the crazy woman standing on her chair and screaming at the top of her lungs outside of Tusker House.
Pooksma: I always wake up early in hotel rooms. It doesn't matter what time I go to sleep. It drives my DH crazy. My Masters classes are 1 weekend a month for the entire weekend. We have a new class every two months. In the summer it's not too bad, but during the school year it can kick me in the rear.
Well, I have some homemade birthday cards to read from my kids. Today is my birthday!
sraps4u: Thanks for reading my report. I thought the AKL was a beautiful hotel, didn't you?
UtahMama: We all get a big kick out of the squirrel story now. Goofy even laughs about it-although he didn't think it was the least bit funny at the time. 11 seems to be a pretty hard age for him right now. Thank you for the comments about Tink. I think she's a pretty girl also. I'll try to post more pictures as I have them. Sometimes I got into having too much fun to take that many pictures. Plus, the batteries on my digital camera seemed to run out at the most inconvienent times.
MagicMe: Thanks for reading! I'm glad that you're enjoying it!
MickeyNicki: I really wanted to freak out, but I had to hold it inside. I didn't want to scare my kids. I also didn't want someone else to write a trip report with a section on the crazy woman standing on her chair and screaming at the top of her lungs outside of Tusker House.
Pooksma: I always wake up early in hotel rooms. It doesn't matter what time I go to sleep. It drives my DH crazy. My Masters classes are 1 weekend a month for the entire weekend. We have a new class every two months. In the summer it's not too bad, but during the school year it can kick me in the rear.
Well, I have some homemade birthday cards to read from my kids. Today is my birthday!
Lisa_Belle
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Apr 28, 2006
- Messages
- 450
nataliz said:
Happy Birthday
I, too, am enjoying your trippie. We fly in at 2:30 as well and wanted to make an ADR for the Fantasmic Dinner package that evening. Wasn't sure if we would have time. What time was your ADR?
lauren_elizabeth
Disney World Lover
- Joined
- Feb 1, 2006
- Messages
- 3,223
We'll be sure to say hey to your new squirrel friend when we go down at the end of August! We'll let him know that you & your family miss him dearly!
Day 2, Part 2: The Rest of the Animal Kingdom
So we hightailed it out of there, hoping that our squirrel friend only liked us for our food and wasnt planning to follow us. We decided to get fastpasses for the Safari ride. We had quite awhile before our return time, so we went to see Festival of the Lion King. The next show was getting ready to start so we hightailed our way in there. We ended up sitting in the Lions section and had a pretty nice view. The show was great, as always.
After the show we made our way over to Its Tough to be a Bug. We got a fastpass for that as well. We decided to look through the gift shop across from the entrance because we had some time before we could use our fastpasses. We wandered around in the shop, looking for nothing in particular. Minnie decided that she really needed to spend some of her money on a pair of Mickey shaped earrings. They were cute. She was happy. We looked around at the Disney statues and oil paintings. There was a really nice one of Captain Jack Sparrow behind the cash register. Im sure the women that work there enjoy having that one to look at every day.
We decided to walk around the Tree of Life and look at it a little more closely while waiting for our fastpasses. It had started sprinkling so it was nice and cool. We watched the flamingoes and looked at the otters. The Tree of Life is amazing. There is so much detail that went into designing it. We watched the lizards darting around. It was so quiet and relaxing. We had the whole area to ourselves. The only people that we saw were CMs. It was hard to believe that we were in the same park as all those people by Everest.
After touring the tree, we went to see Its Tough to be a Bug. The show was good as always. Minnie got a little scared during the bug attack. She had forgotten about that since the last time. Tink sat on DHs lap and hid her face. The exit portion was great for a laugh. Because we knew what was going to happen, we watched for other peoples reactions. About four adults behind us jumped up from their seat and screamed. My kids thought that was great.
From there we went on to the Safari. I really enjoy this ride. I love riding in the truck and seeing the animals. I think that the storyline is LAME though. They just need to scrap it. They could just tell us about the animals and everyone would be happy. I sat next to Minnie, who made sure to share all the facts she had learned about each animal from her National Geographic for kids. The rest of the family was quiet because I think that we were all tired.
After the ride, we decided that we should probably go back to the hotel. Everyone was hot, sticky and tired by this point. We made the long trek back to the bus and waited a short while before we got on a nice air-conditioned bus back to AKL.
We snapped this picture before we left:
We went to our room, checked out the savannah (no animals), and rested. The kids watched the Disney Channel while DH and I got showered and ready for dinner. We were going to Boma tonight and I was really excited because I had heard so many good things about it here on the DIS.
Im happy to say that Boma did live up to the hype. Even for a non-adventurous eater like myself, I found lots of good food to eat. I tried a little bit of everything. The chicken was great. I also really liked the fufu. DH and the kids enjoyed it as well. Our waiter was very attentive to us. There were people playing the drums in the waiting area. The whole atmosphere was welcome and inviting. The desserts were amazing. The girls and I went up and got samples of everything. It was all wonderful. I think that my favorite were the zebra domes.
After our bellies were full and happy, we decided that we would go swimming. So we went up to our room and then we heard it. Thunder. There would not be any swimming tonight. The kids were bummed. I was bummed for them. So I bribed them. I took them down to the gift shop. They looked around and finally settled on what they wanted. Pins. Tink picked out a starter set with some cute princess pins. It was $50!! So I steered her towards a less expensive Tinkerbelle set. She was happy. Minnie and Goofy both picked out a couple of pins and a lanyard. We went back up to the room to show their dad what they had bought.
DH was getting antsy so he decided to take the kids out to hunt for Hidden Mickeys and get them a late night snack. I stayed behind and just sat on the balcony to watch the storm. I have loved thunderstorms ever since I was a little girl. I used to sit on my front porch and watch them for hours. My house today doesnt have a covered porch or deck, so I dont get the opportunity to do that anymore. I was happy to sit and watch the rain from my balcony at AKL-even if I didnt see any animals.
I had sat there for quite awhile before DH and the kids came back. He had bought them some pops and brought back a Victoria Falls Mist for me. They all joined me on the balcony and we watched the rain for a little longer. Then we went to bed- with dreams of Mickey Mouse dancing in our heads.
Next up: Day 3, Our Anniversary at the Magic Kingdom
So we hightailed it out of there, hoping that our squirrel friend only liked us for our food and wasnt planning to follow us. We decided to get fastpasses for the Safari ride. We had quite awhile before our return time, so we went to see Festival of the Lion King. The next show was getting ready to start so we hightailed our way in there. We ended up sitting in the Lions section and had a pretty nice view. The show was great, as always.
After the show we made our way over to Its Tough to be a Bug. We got a fastpass for that as well. We decided to look through the gift shop across from the entrance because we had some time before we could use our fastpasses. We wandered around in the shop, looking for nothing in particular. Minnie decided that she really needed to spend some of her money on a pair of Mickey shaped earrings. They were cute. She was happy. We looked around at the Disney statues and oil paintings. There was a really nice one of Captain Jack Sparrow behind the cash register. Im sure the women that work there enjoy having that one to look at every day.
We decided to walk around the Tree of Life and look at it a little more closely while waiting for our fastpasses. It had started sprinkling so it was nice and cool. We watched the flamingoes and looked at the otters. The Tree of Life is amazing. There is so much detail that went into designing it. We watched the lizards darting around. It was so quiet and relaxing. We had the whole area to ourselves. The only people that we saw were CMs. It was hard to believe that we were in the same park as all those people by Everest.
After touring the tree, we went to see Its Tough to be a Bug. The show was good as always. Minnie got a little scared during the bug attack. She had forgotten about that since the last time. Tink sat on DHs lap and hid her face. The exit portion was great for a laugh. Because we knew what was going to happen, we watched for other peoples reactions. About four adults behind us jumped up from their seat and screamed. My kids thought that was great.
From there we went on to the Safari. I really enjoy this ride. I love riding in the truck and seeing the animals. I think that the storyline is LAME though. They just need to scrap it. They could just tell us about the animals and everyone would be happy. I sat next to Minnie, who made sure to share all the facts she had learned about each animal from her National Geographic for kids. The rest of the family was quiet because I think that we were all tired.
After the ride, we decided that we should probably go back to the hotel. Everyone was hot, sticky and tired by this point. We made the long trek back to the bus and waited a short while before we got on a nice air-conditioned bus back to AKL.
We snapped this picture before we left:
We went to our room, checked out the savannah (no animals), and rested. The kids watched the Disney Channel while DH and I got showered and ready for dinner. We were going to Boma tonight and I was really excited because I had heard so many good things about it here on the DIS.
Im happy to say that Boma did live up to the hype. Even for a non-adventurous eater like myself, I found lots of good food to eat. I tried a little bit of everything. The chicken was great. I also really liked the fufu. DH and the kids enjoyed it as well. Our waiter was very attentive to us. There were people playing the drums in the waiting area. The whole atmosphere was welcome and inviting. The desserts were amazing. The girls and I went up and got samples of everything. It was all wonderful. I think that my favorite were the zebra domes.
After our bellies were full and happy, we decided that we would go swimming. So we went up to our room and then we heard it. Thunder. There would not be any swimming tonight. The kids were bummed. I was bummed for them. So I bribed them. I took them down to the gift shop. They looked around and finally settled on what they wanted. Pins. Tink picked out a starter set with some cute princess pins. It was $50!! So I steered her towards a less expensive Tinkerbelle set. She was happy. Minnie and Goofy both picked out a couple of pins and a lanyard. We went back up to the room to show their dad what they had bought.
DH was getting antsy so he decided to take the kids out to hunt for Hidden Mickeys and get them a late night snack. I stayed behind and just sat on the balcony to watch the storm. I have loved thunderstorms ever since I was a little girl. I used to sit on my front porch and watch them for hours. My house today doesnt have a covered porch or deck, so I dont get the opportunity to do that anymore. I was happy to sit and watch the rain from my balcony at AKL-even if I didnt see any animals.
I had sat there for quite awhile before DH and the kids came back. He had bought them some pops and brought back a Victoria Falls Mist for me. They all joined me on the balcony and we watched the rain for a little longer. Then we went to bed- with dreams of Mickey Mouse dancing in our heads.
Next up: Day 3, Our Anniversary at the Magic Kingdom
wvdislover
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- May 31, 2006
- Messages
- 1,368
Happy Birthday!!! 
Lovin' your TR! I, too, have a little Tink (DD4, almost 5), who is about the same height as yours. She, however, was not concerned with not being able to ride the "big kid" rides. Sounds like a fun trip for all of you! Can't wait to hear more!
Lovin' your TR! I, too, have a little Tink (DD4, almost 5), who is about the same height as yours. She, however, was not concerned with not being able to ride the "big kid" rides. Sounds like a fun trip for all of you! Can't wait to hear more!
June 28, Day 3, Part 1
I slept fairly well on this night. I think it was due to walking around the Animal Kingdom all day and the Victoria Falls Mist. I actually didnt wake up until 6. This is really a feat for me in a hotel room.
I snuggled up next to DH and wished him a happy anniversary. We cuddled up next to each other and listened to our 3 wonderful children sleep. And Im not just saying theyre wonderful because they are mine, or because they are sleeping. They really are wonderful kids. All three of them are kind and thoughtful. They fill every single day with joy. I wouldnt want to trade my worst day with my family for anything in the world.
Everyone started waking up around 7ish. Everyone except Tink that is. Tink is our notoriously late sleeper. She also takes forever to get motivated and out of bed. So the rest of the family is completely ready and Tink is still lying in bed with her pillow and blanket over her head. That is until the phone rang. I put it on speaker for everyone to hear. Is that Mickey! she said as she jumped up from her bed. She rushed to get dressed and we handed her a pop tart as we walked out the door.
Today we were wearing our matching Mickey head tie-dye shirts. Because as DH says, I have way too much time on my hands when school is out. Even Goofy, his ever-cool preteen self, had agreed to wear it along with us.
We rode the bus to the Magic Kingdom. It is not a short bus ride. But, I wasnt complaining. I wasnt driving so it was all good. We were really excited about our first day at the Magic Kingdom. We got through the turnstiles and positioned ourselves for a good view of the Opening Ceremony.
This is what happens when you come back from Disney World with tons of pictures and you learn how to make a collage in Photoshop during your Masters class.
After the ceremony we joined the throngs of people and strollers to make our way towards Dumbo. People were in full sprints trying to jockey for position at the front of the rope. My family was just not ready for the intensity of the morning crowds.
As the ropes dropped people made another mad dash with their little princes and princesses. Some hooked a left to elbow each other so their princess could wake up Tinkerbelle. Others just wanted to get to the ride of the morning- Dumbo.
We decided that DH, Goofy, Tink, and Minnie would ride Dumbo while I would stay out to take pictures. This is easier said than done. I never seemed to be able to time it right. So here is one the pictures that I ended up with:
We made our way quickly through Fantasyland riding Pooh, Snow White, the Carousel, and watching Philharmagic with no wait. Goofy was not too terribly excited about these rides, but knew wed be getting to what he wanted to ride a little later. We then decided to line up to go into Toon Town so that we could ride the Barnstormer before we made our way to Frontierland. I rode with Tink, who spent the whole time giggling as she held on hard as she could.
After Barnstormer, we rode the train over to Frontierland. The area was already getting full, so we grabbed FPs for Splash Mountain and made our way into Adventureland. Goofy saw the Pirates of the Caribbean ride was closed, and was a little disappointed. So I told him that I heard it would be open before we left and that Jack Sparrow would be in the ride. We made a deal that we would definitely be riding.
So we continued to wander until we came to the line for the Magic Carpets. This was one of our favorites, so we were willing to wait in the 15-minute line. The wait was bearable, although hot. The ride was fun as usual. I rode with Minnie and DH, Goofy, and Tink rode on a separate carpet.
Our FPs were ready, so we then made our way over to Splash Mountain. Goofy was ready. He had spent most of the morning riding the rides the girls wanted to, and now he was going to ride of his favorites. He had read the Official Guide for Kids which gave recommendations on where to sit on the raft to get the wettest. So he was ecstatic when we got the first row of the log. The ride was great as usual, and all the kids loved it. DH and I were starting to get hungry so we decided to get a FP for Big Thunder Mountain and get some lunch.
Next up: Lunch, a meeting with the Presidents, and Big Thunder Mountain
I slept fairly well on this night. I think it was due to walking around the Animal Kingdom all day and the Victoria Falls Mist. I actually didnt wake up until 6. This is really a feat for me in a hotel room.
I snuggled up next to DH and wished him a happy anniversary. We cuddled up next to each other and listened to our 3 wonderful children sleep. And Im not just saying theyre wonderful because they are mine, or because they are sleeping. They really are wonderful kids. All three of them are kind and thoughtful. They fill every single day with joy. I wouldnt want to trade my worst day with my family for anything in the world.
Everyone started waking up around 7ish. Everyone except Tink that is. Tink is our notoriously late sleeper. She also takes forever to get motivated and out of bed. So the rest of the family is completely ready and Tink is still lying in bed with her pillow and blanket over her head. That is until the phone rang. I put it on speaker for everyone to hear. Is that Mickey! she said as she jumped up from her bed. She rushed to get dressed and we handed her a pop tart as we walked out the door.
Today we were wearing our matching Mickey head tie-dye shirts. Because as DH says, I have way too much time on my hands when school is out. Even Goofy, his ever-cool preteen self, had agreed to wear it along with us.
We rode the bus to the Magic Kingdom. It is not a short bus ride. But, I wasnt complaining. I wasnt driving so it was all good. We were really excited about our first day at the Magic Kingdom. We got through the turnstiles and positioned ourselves for a good view of the Opening Ceremony.
This is what happens when you come back from Disney World with tons of pictures and you learn how to make a collage in Photoshop during your Masters class.
After the ceremony we joined the throngs of people and strollers to make our way towards Dumbo. People were in full sprints trying to jockey for position at the front of the rope. My family was just not ready for the intensity of the morning crowds.
As the ropes dropped people made another mad dash with their little princes and princesses. Some hooked a left to elbow each other so their princess could wake up Tinkerbelle. Others just wanted to get to the ride of the morning- Dumbo.
We decided that DH, Goofy, Tink, and Minnie would ride Dumbo while I would stay out to take pictures. This is easier said than done. I never seemed to be able to time it right. So here is one the pictures that I ended up with:
We made our way quickly through Fantasyland riding Pooh, Snow White, the Carousel, and watching Philharmagic with no wait. Goofy was not too terribly excited about these rides, but knew wed be getting to what he wanted to ride a little later. We then decided to line up to go into Toon Town so that we could ride the Barnstormer before we made our way to Frontierland. I rode with Tink, who spent the whole time giggling as she held on hard as she could.
After Barnstormer, we rode the train over to Frontierland. The area was already getting full, so we grabbed FPs for Splash Mountain and made our way into Adventureland. Goofy saw the Pirates of the Caribbean ride was closed, and was a little disappointed. So I told him that I heard it would be open before we left and that Jack Sparrow would be in the ride. We made a deal that we would definitely be riding.
So we continued to wander until we came to the line for the Magic Carpets. This was one of our favorites, so we were willing to wait in the 15-minute line. The wait was bearable, although hot. The ride was fun as usual. I rode with Minnie and DH, Goofy, and Tink rode on a separate carpet.
Our FPs were ready, so we then made our way over to Splash Mountain. Goofy was ready. He had spent most of the morning riding the rides the girls wanted to, and now he was going to ride of his favorites. He had read the Official Guide for Kids which gave recommendations on where to sit on the raft to get the wettest. So he was ecstatic when we got the first row of the log. The ride was great as usual, and all the kids loved it. DH and I were starting to get hungry so we decided to get a FP for Big Thunder Mountain and get some lunch.
Next up: Lunch, a meeting with the Presidents, and Big Thunder Mountain
cjhinch
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Feb 28, 2005
- Messages
- 436
I am so enjoying your trip report.......and even though I am sad I don't have anymore updates to read right now.......it is probably for the best since I have been sitting here for over an hour reading!!! This trip report thing is just soooooo addicting!
I am beginning to start thinking about our next trip...hopefully next spring....AKL is on the list of places we might stay so I like reading about your experiences there!! Keep em coming!
I am beginning to start thinking about our next trip...hopefully next spring....AKL is on the list of places we might stay so I like reading about your experiences there!! Keep em coming!
KathyRN137
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Apr 14, 2006
- Messages
- 7,882
Thanks so much for the "review" of Boma; we're planning to eat there in November and I wasn't quite sure if my kids (10 and 8) would like it. Sounds like your family enjoyed it so I'm feeling more confident about it!!
Looking forward to more!
Kathy
Looking forward to more!
Kathy
studentmom
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jan 13, 2005
- Messages
- 846
Great trip report! Sounds like a lot of fun, despite the rain. I know you must be very busy with school and three kids. I will be attempting to finish school after my 3rd baby is born. 
for you, gotta give you your props.
for you, gotta give you your props.
SmithFamily2003
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Jun 11, 2006
- Messages
- 228
Great trip report. Can't wait for the next installment! If you get a chance, post a pic of the shirts you made!
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