It's Summer Vacation! Let's Go! **Updated 8/9; Page 9; Last Day Posted!**

[PolyAddict]

To the OP, can I ask what room category you needed for the five of you and how much it was per night? I am always confused on what type room holds 5 and what my options are. I would think it would be cheaper than say the Poly, but it always seems like the $ is very close.

 

[javamom]

Subbing, great report!

 

[nataliz]

After the bus drama, we were ready to eat dinner. We made our way into the Wilderness Lodge. My husband and I were in awe when we walked into the lobby. This is another beautiful Disney hotel.

“I think we should stay here next time?” I whispered to DH.
“Next time?!” DH looked at me like I was crazy. He isn’t *quite* as ready to come back. The kids and I are working on him. We’ll be back- it’s just a matter of when.

DH checked us in while the kids went to play with the mass of kids at the Lincoln Logs. I was really excited about this dinner. Only DH and I knew that this was not an ordinary restaurant. I was nervous though. There had been quite a few people on the restaurants board discussing that things were no longer quite as fun here. I was worried that the kids wouldn’t have any fun.

They told us that we would have a 15-minute wait, which was nice because we still needed time to decompress after the events from our bus ride over. The time flew by and we were soon seated at our table in the main dining section.

Our waitress was Lazy Susan. And she was a lot of fun. She looked at Goofy when she came to the table. “Two sisters!” she said to him. “They must be a lot of trouble.”

“That’s why I wear this shirt,” Goofy told her as he pointed to his ‘you can have my sister’ shirt.

She laughed really loud, which Goofy enjoyed and it started the two of them off on the right foot. Minnie smiled, but wasn’t sure what to think of her.

Goofy, DH and I all ordered the skillet, which was really, really yummy. The kids enjoyed yelling for ketchup and Lazy Susan did a great job of keeping us all entertained. She gave lots of extra attention to Goofy, which he loved, and the girls enjoyed watching her tease him. He needed that dinner. No princesses, just fun.

Lazy Susan didn’t like Goofy’s long hair which was getting in his eyes. So she made him stand up as she pulled his hair straight up on his head.

“Does anyone have a scrunchie?” she yelled to the whole restaurant. Goofy turned about 10 different shades of red.

The 11-year old girls next to us were happy to assist with a bright pink colored scrunchie. The 13-year old boy with them just looked at Goofy sympathetically. So, Lazy Susan put up his hair. Of course, DH and I were laughing so much we forgot to take a picture. Goofy was okay with that though.

The rest of the meal was filled with laughter. DH got up with all the other men in the restaurant to sing and dance to “My Little Buttercup.” Tink did the pony race. Minnie just sat and soaked in the atmosphere. She was a bit timid here.

When we left, Minnie looked at me with the most serious expression on her face. “Mom, there aren’t any restaurants like this back home!” she said to me.

My kids had so much fun at WCC. They still talk about it today when we go out to eat. It’s also one of the first stories they shared with their grandmas and grandpas when they got back.

You can see how much Goofy enjoyed it. Look at that smile.

After we finished eating, we made our way back to the Magic Kingdom and rode Big Thunder Mountain and Splash Mountain. We were going down the big drop at Splash during Wishes. That was a great view. Minnie rode with her hand up the entire time. She may be timid with Lazy Susan, but she sure isn’t a roller coaster chicken.

Next up: A rude awaking and MGM.

 

[nataliz]

Thank you so much those of you who are reading and commenting. I enjoy reading everything that you write back to me.

lauren_elizabeth: I think you will have a great time at WCC. My family certainly did.

Tanya90210: 11 is a tough age, isn't it? I'm glad that I caught a few pics of him smiling, to prove that he did enjoy himself. Thanks for the compliment on my girls.

tashasKraz4WDW: It was really scary for me too. I'm sure even more so for the girl's mom. I'm very glad it wasn't a crowded bus- otherwise it could have been a lot worse.

PolyAddict: I'm glad you came to visit. We stayed in a deluxe savannah view room. We had a queen, bunkbeds, and a daybed. The price was very close to a Poly room. I think it was about $395 for the regular season, rack rate. I may be wrong though.

AStamm: There is so much to learn in Photoshop. I'm hoping to learn some more. Going to DW to celebrate the end of summer vacation sounds great! I hope you have a great time.

MelanieC: I hope that you're having a great time! I hope to hear from you when you get back!

javamom, mishasmom, remfam5, SparklePower, missmun52, dramagirlem, and anyone I may have missed: Thanks so much for reading and commenting.

Right now, I've got to get ready for the carpet installers. Hope everyone has a great day!

 

[lauren_elizabeth]

After reading that, I really can't wait to go to WCC!

 

[wvdislover]

I was so worried about that little girl! I'm glad you were there to help her. I can't imagine what her parents must have felt! I was SO glad to see Goofy's smile after dinner! What a cutie! I'm sure you'll have girls knocking down your door for him soon! As always, your girls are adorable! Can't wait till the next installment!

 

[missmun52]

I wanted to make ard's for a dinner like this but i know that my DH would not enjoy the attention.

 

[ely3857]

Great WCC meal



Jodie

 

[4forWDW]

Great TR!!! I've been reading it off and on during work today--needless to say I've gotten as much done as I should have!!!
I had a question about the BBB--we are going in Aug 07 and my DD will be 9 1/2--do you think that is too old? I haven't done much research on it and didn't know if they even had an age limit. TIA for the info and looking forward to hearing more

PS--I get moody also when it is time to leave--my DD will even cry the night before. I asked her "Why is this the happiest place on earth but the night before you leave it becomes the saddest place on earth??

 

[nataliz]

lauren elizabeth: You guys will LOVE WCC.

wvdislover: Goofy really enjoyed that dinner. He loved the attention from Lazy Susan. Especially since he sat through all the attention his sisters were getting during the Princess breakfast.


4forWDW: I don't think that there is an upper age limit. I think that they have to be over 3. There was an older girl, early teens maybe, in there getting made up. The hairstyles are really fun.

missmun52: This was a fun dinner. We're a pretty quiet family, but we still enjoyed this meal.

ely3857: Thanks for reading!

 

[nataliz]

Day 7: A rude awaking and MGM 7/2

Stitch woke us up early again today. “No sleepy!” he yelled. Minnie giggled and jumped out of bed. Tink groaned and threw the blankets over her head. This was not going to be a great morning.

Goofy was moping around, trying to find animals on the balcony (there weren’t any) and eating a pop tart.

“Mom,” he said with a very serious look on his face. “Today’s our last full day. We’re going home tomorrow.”

My heart sank into the pit of my stomach. I was still pretending that our vacation was not coming to an end. I patted him on the back. We were both not ready to leave. But, we couldn’t let it ruin our last full day. We had to enjoy ourselves.

Plus, we had matching t-shirts again. I had found $5 Incredible t-shirts for the whole family. So, we all wore them. Even Goofy, because he’s a good sport.

We grabbed bottles of water and our bag and opened the door. That’s when the whole family saw it.

The Disney Magical Express return time ticket.

It sucked the fun out of all of us.

Everyone knew our time was slipping away. None of us were prepared for it.

We moped all the way to the bus stop- which seemed really far away today.

None of us felt very incredible.

We had a quiet and sullen bus ride over to MGM. Once we got off the bus, DH brought us all together.

“I know it’s our last day,” he said looking at all of us. “And we’re all sad about it. But, let’s have fun today. Let’s not worry about tomorrow. We’ve got to make it last.”

I was glad he said that, because I really needed it. We walked into the park just as they were opening. “Look at that Incredible family!” one of the CMs shouted.

DH and Goofy turn around and looked at me. “That’s not going to get old,” DH said sarcastically. I smiled. I filled myself up with some more of that Disney magic. We walked over to the 2 big rides of the day: Rock & Roller Coaster and the Tower of Terror.

We decided to ride RRC first, because it’s Goofy’s favorite ride. It was the first roller coaster he ever rode. He’s much more comfortable in a dark roller coaster like this than riding one where he can see what’s happening next. Minnie was ready to ride too. Tink, of course, was not tall enough. So we get a child swap and I go to ride with Minnie and Goofy.

But wait, Minnie has to get measured. So about 20 people push past us because there’s no way they’re waiting. We end up in the middle of family of about 12 people who all want to ride together. When we get to the next CM, Minnie has to get measured again. About 10 people careen past. Now, I don’t mind my daughter being measured. I know it’s for safety. But couldn’t they have a stamp for this ride, so they only have to be measured once. I’m pretty sure they do this for Kali River Rapids. It would keep the line moving much smoother.

So we finally get on R&RC and Minnie enjoyed herself. She wasn’t too keen on going upside down though. She wasn’t tall enough to have the shoulder harnesses really close. We looked at our pic when we got off the ride and then DH went to ride with Goofy and Minnie. She wanted to ride again.

Tink and I hung out in the gift shop and looked at pins. I bought all the kids pins from the ride. We looked around and chatted about what she wanted to do today. Was there anything that we had not done that she wanted to do? Nope- she was great. She wanted to ride the Tower of Terror.

DH, Minnie and Goofy got off. “Mom! We rode in the front!” Minnie yelled. They waited for their picture, but unfortunately they didn’t turn out. DH was bummed. He was ready to buy that one.

We got our pictures taken by the nice Photopass photographer. I regret not taking advantage of that earlier. Those are the only pictures with me in them from the whole trip. However, this pic wasn’t very cute. We were squinting into the sun. Then he had us jump and play air guitar. We looked like idiots. A bunch of Incredible idiots. None of us really look like we’re playing air guitar.

DH had gotten FPs for ToT while we were riding earlier, and the time was up. We made our way over. “I don’t want to ride,” Goofy told us. We decided to let him hang out in the gift shop while we rode.

Tink ran up to the FP return and went to measure herself without being asked. It was pretty funny. She was now trained. She was excited to ride. So was Minnie. This ride had scared her pretty badly the last time we went. But she knew it was going to be fun this time.

“O-o-o-h, I’m so scared,” Tink kept saying playfully and then laughing. Minnie was just ready to go.

Then we got on the ride. They made Tink sit with her legs straight in front of her, instead of criss cross. Which is much safer, but didn’t make her very ahppy.

She sat between DH and I. Minnie sat on the other side of me. AS soon as the ride started moving, I could tell that Tink was scared. I forgot all about enjoying the ride at that point. I held Tink’s hand and whispered in her ear. Then the doors flew open. And we went up. And down. And up again, and down. Minnie and DH were screaming and laughing. I was holding on to Tink’s legs, because they kept flying up to about eye level. I didn’t have a lot of time to enjoy the ride. I was more concerned for Tink.

We got off and she walked up to Goofy who was in the gift shop. “Remind me, I am NEVER riding that again!” she said. “My feet touched my head!”

We sat down on the bench so Tink could calm down and gain her composure. While Minnie enjoyed herself, her hand was shaking as she drank her water.

Here are the girls in the aftermath.

Next up: Parents Behaving Badly.

 

[withay]

I am LOVING your report! I look forward to each new installment! I know the last-day-at-Disney blues quite well. I usually go through a "post-Disney depression" as well. Ha! Those shirts are adorable!

 

[ely3857]

Great T-Shirts



Jodie

 

[missmun52]

your shirts are so cute and so are those girls.I know they must get everything from your DH with those bright eyes (I have to repeat to myself no more kids for now...........)

I am already sad about my last day and my vacation has not even started

 

[nataliz]

Thanks for all the nice comments. I'm sorry that it has taken so long between installments. Hope you enjoy it!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Once we were finished riding the ToT, we had a little time to kill before our lunch reservation. So we wandered aimlessly in the direction of the big hat.

There we saw quite a few different characters greeting people. The kids decided they wanted to get in line for Chip & Dale. So we did.

Unfortunately, Chip and Dale had to leave, so we got their substitutes- Chicken Little and Abby Mallard. “Who are they?” parents were whispering to one another. “Let’s go find a different character. Suzy’s never seen this movie.”

Tink was not happy about Chicken Little either. She wanted to see Chip and Dale. Goofy and Minnie were okay with the change in characters. Although Minnie did tell me that she wished Fish was there instead.

We finally get up there and Tink refuses to get her picture taken. She purses her lips and mutters under her breath, “I want Chip and Dale.” So, I gave her the Mommy pep talk and promised her that I would find a place for us to see them later.

Goofy and Minnie did enjoy their picture though.

It was getting really close to our ADR time for Sci-Fi Drive In, so we made our way down there. This was the meal Goofy was the most excited about. When the girls decided that they wanted to do a princess breakfast, I told him that he could pick out a restaurant to go to. So the two of us looked at different restaurants online. He decided that Sci-Fi looked really cool. So that’s where we decided to eat.

We had a few minutes to wait, so we people watched for a while. A woman, who must come to the restaurant on a pretty regular basis, came in. She was on a scooter and had a little yappy dog on her lap. She wanted to know if a specific server was there. Nope- they left to work at a different restaurant. Then she asked about a different server. Nope- they were on vacation. Then she asked about a third. Nope- it was their day off. She kind of huffed for a moment and then decided that she would eat there anyway. It must be nice to get to Disney World enough that you know servers by name.

We were seated in the way back in one of the cars. The kids enjoyed watching the movie clips and the whole atmosphere at the restaurant. Our food was decent. It wasn’t anything spectacular- but good burgers and fries.

After our meal was over, DH noticed that it was time for Lights! Motors! Action! to start. We hustled our full tummies down to try to get in. The CMs told us, and the other family coming in at about the same time to hurry because the show was starting.

The other family, especially the dad took this information very seriously. He kept telling his kids to hurry up or they were going to miss the show and was pulling his little boy along with him. “Hurry up or we’ll miss the cars,” he kept saying to him, and he’d walk a little bit faster.

After a while the little boy stopped and said, “I don’t even like cars. I don’t want to go.”

The dad, who was probably hot and tired, lost all his Disney magic at this point. He turned around and swatted the little boy on the bottom! “Don’t ever say that. You love cars!” he told him.

His other son, who was about 9, broke down at this point. He was just in tears. I felt bad that the whole family. They all stopped to regroup and calm down and we passed on by them. Hopefully, they got a little bit of the Disney magic back.

We had to sit in the way top to watch the show, which had already started. It was really hot, but the kids enjoyed it. They were especially excited when Herbie came out. We are a family of VW bug lovers. So I tried to get a picture of Herbie. Unfortunately, he was too fast for me.

First attempt

Second attempt

A good, but non action shot of Herbie

After the show we decided to go on the Backlot Tour. That is not a very interesting ride, in my opinion. We could have skipped it. But, my kids loved the Villans display at the end. Goofy was especially excited to see the Darth Vader and Storm Troopers costumes. He also made me take a picture of this to put up in his room.

We stayed in there for quite a while looking at all the different costumes and props. I was amazed at the details from the White Witch’s costume.

After this, Minnie was looking really hot and tired, so we decided to head back to the hotel.

Next up: Fulfilling my promise to Tink

 

[jmskinner]

Great trip report. I saw that you were one that was reading mine and thought I would read yours.

You have beautiful (and handsome) kids.

I'll be looking for the ending.

 

[missmun52]

 

[JERSEYGIRLINSI]

I have no idea how I missed your trip report But I am so glued..I know I have lost like 2 hours catching up! This is such a good read. Your little girls are so cute...I have a neice that is so Tink its scarey. And your son is just as cute as he can be. Can't wait to hear how this ends

 

[ilovepooh]

I'm still really enjoying your TR!! Thank you!!!

I can't wait to read the rest and am actually sad that your TR is almost complete!!

I can imagine how sad you were on that last day. I know I was just reading about it!!

 

[Tanya90210]

wow... this TR is just awesome... Yes I'd have to agree... 11 is something else... I don't know about you but mine is "always" right.

I wish we could have found some shirts that fit us all... but the baby puts a kink in that plan as most stuff that would fit the rest doesn't come in infant. oh well...

Keep it coming I am just loving this report!!