June 6-13 Trip Report. Sisters, Misters, Rain and Blisters--The Whole Story *Long*

[jennymouse]

This report is going to be all in one thread.

Pre-Trip

The cast of this excursion changed many times before we left. It began as a trip for just my granddaughter Skye (9) and me, then I decided to let her bring along a friend. She chose Hanna, an 11 year old girl who she’s been friends with all her life. The problem was that Hanna has a 7 year old little sister, Zoë, who Skye is equally friends with and every time they would get together they would talk about their trip and Zoë, would look at me with those big blue eyes and I would feel so bad that I decided to invite Zoë too.

For a while my daughter, Jessica, (remember her? The one that made my October 2002 trip the trip from hell.o) and my brand new grandbaby, Haley (6mos), was going to join us so I upgraded to a 2BR villa at Beach Club Villas and booked another room at Animal Kingdom Lodge where we were spending two nights following our DVC stay.

About three weeks before we were to leave, my daughter Jessica discovered that she had to have a hysterectomy and wouldn’t be able to go. That may sound like a bad thing but it’s not. I had been dreading going with her again, even though she’s been pretty kind to me since my mother passed away. Another good thing about the surgery is that I’m hoping that it will change her temperament around that time of the month if you know what I mean. Cut out the demon so to speak, take out the parking lot and install a playground.

Well, since I had the extra room, I thought I’d ask a friend of mine, Diane, that I used to work with if she’d like to come and bring her granddaughter. Neither of them had ever been to WDW before and her granddaughter, Kerstin, is 7 years old and would be a good buddy to Zoë. Diane jumped at the chance to take her DGD for the cost of air, meals and passes and quickly found reasonable airfare with US Air that was arriving in MCO at almost the exact same time as our Delta flight so they could use the same FL Tours transfers as us. We’re all set.

Jessica’s surgery was scheduled for June 1st. We were leaving June 6th. Surgery went well and I spent the week at her house taking care of her and my two granddaughters. Two days before we left Jessica says she’s getting worse not better. She wasn’t running a fever but I couldn’t get her to eat or drink. She cried all the time and I didn’t believe her because she tends to be a drama queen. I thought she was trying to make me feel guilty for going or get me to cancel our trip. I feel bad about not believing her but for a week before I go on a trip, I’m paranoid that something will happen and we won’t be able to go. I know, I’m an evil mother.

Just like the storms that came. I felt they were going to cause me to cancel the trip. A tornado touched down just 4 miles from my house. Am I worried for my life? No. All I’m thinking was what if a tornado hits us would we still get to go.

June 5th came and even though she said she wasn’t getting better I left Jessica’s house after staying there for 4 nights and went home to get ready to leave, but she said to go. I brought Skye home with me, and Hanna & Zoë’s Dad brought the girls over to spend the night with us since we had a 6:20 flight the next morning. We all went to bed early but I couldn’t sleep worrying about Jessica, the flight and everything in general.

 

[jennymouse]

Sunday, June 6th

The Cast of Characters:

Me: 45 year old grandmother to Skye and Haley. DVC owner at Beach Club Villa’s & trip planner.

Diane: 50 something year old grandmother to four including Kerstin who would be joining us this trip. First trip to WDW, loves Las Vegas.

Skye: 9 year old granddaughter and official Disney nut to jennymouse. Loves all thrill rides, but doesn’t like monster scary rides. Major pin trader. 5th trip to WDW.

Hanna: 11 year old friend of Skye’s. Loves roller coasters but not spinning rides. Doesn’t like to dress up, a hippie chick in the making. Has a problem with patience and a little bit of a smart mouth which I didn’t know about until I spent 7 nights with her. 2nd trip to WDW.

Zoë: 7 year old friend of Skye’s and little sister to Hanna. Thrill rider wannabe. Loves to dress up. Weighs about 45 pounds soaking wet. Looks quiet & shy but will let you know what’s on her mind. I fell in love with this kid. 2nd trip to WDW.

Kerstin: 7 year old granddaughter to Diane. Dark brown hair & brown eyes with glasses. Cute as a button and quick to challenge her grandmother but minded me well. Loved the thrill rides and princesses. 1st trip to WDW.



I was up at 4:30am, filled my Mickey Mouse mug with hot coffee that was ready thanks to the timer, ran through the shower, giving the important parts a wipe and a promise then dressed before I woke Skye, Hanna & Zoë. The night before, I had them lay the clothes they were wearing out so all they had to do was jump in them, wash the sleep from their eyes, brush their teeth and hair and they were ready to go.

I have been living with my 80 year old father since my mother passed away a year ago in May. I knocked on his door to wake him up as he was taking us to the airport. He was already awake, probably due to all the giggling in the hallway. We got the 5 suitcases out to my Ford Explorer and loaded them up, I grabbed the donuts and milk from the fridge for our breakfast on the plane and we were on our way to the airport at 5:00am. We live real close to the airport, and it’s a small airport so no need to arrive too early.

While doing the curbside check-in, Diane and Kerstin arrived for their 5:45 flight on US Air. The girls met and introduced themselves to Kerstin who was a bit shy at first. We parted with our plan we had with Andy from FL Tours, our ground transportation. Since Diane and Kerstin were to arrive at MCO first and it was their first time at MCO, the driver was to meet them at the bottom of the escalator. My group was scheduled to arrive about 5 minutes later and we were to get our luggage and walk down to the US Air luggage carousel and meet up with them. That was the plan anyway; it didn’t quite go down that way.

We had no problems or delays with the flight. The first leg of the trip the girls were excited and had their donuts and milk while I drank coffee and prayed silently. We changed planes in Atlanta and the second leg of the flight we all napped off and on. When we got to MCO we got our luggage and walked down to the end of B terminal to meet the rest of our party and the FL Tours driver at the US Air luggage carousel. No one was there.

We waited a minute or two and then I asked to find out if Diane’s flight arrived yet. It had arrived about 30 minutes prior. Maybe I misunderstood the plan? We went downstairs to look for them outside, but still didn’t see anyone. It was hot out there too. Skye and Zoë were doing the “Gotta Pee” dance so we went to the restroom. When we came out I spotted Diane and Kerstin and ran through the terminal like an OJ commercial to catch them. Diane said there wasn’t anyone with her name on a card to meet them. Their plane arrived about 25 minutes early and they’ve been wandering around the airport ever since looking for us.

I got on a pay phone and called Andy’s (FL Tours) cell phone and got the answering machine and left a message saying where we were. Within 10 minutes our driver was there. They track the flight on the internet and it was showing that their flight was 10 minutes late so by the time he arrived Diane and Kerstin were off wandering around looking for him or us so they missed each other.

The girls all ended up liking the driver as he kidded them about needing a car seat or booster chair and stuff. He was quite chubby and dressed nice in dark slacks and a clean starched white shirt, but the last button before the shirt disappeared into his pants was unbuttoned and his belly button showed. I turned around once while in the van and saw the girls all sitting in a row with their T-shirts tucked in but their belly buttons showing and giggling. They don’t miss a thing, do they? He put in The Lion King on the DVD player in the van for the girls to watch while Diane and I did the grocery stop thing. On the way to the Beach Club Villa’s the girls got to know Kerstin and by the time we arrived they were all singing the Pepto Bismo commercial song. You know, “Nausea, heartburn, indigestion, Upset stomach, diarrhea, Hey Pepto Bismo!” or something like that. Leave it to a Pepto Bismo commercial to bring them all together.

We arrived at the Beach Club around 11am and I sent Diane and the girls to look around the lobby while I checked in. I hadn’t even gotten to the front desk area when a nice looking young man CM approached me to fill out a daily journal survey thing while I was there. I told him I would then get us checked in and believe it or not our room was ready, then talk to him some more. He followed us halfway to our villa and I promised to fill out the journal. We had rooms 219 & 221 a 2BR lock off with a view of the courtyard. My only request had been to be close to the elevator and it was. The view was fine, not great but it would do. It ended up being too hot to sit out on the balcony much anyway. I gave the girls the master bedroom with the king sized bed so their mess that I knew would come would be confined to that room. Plus, I didn’t want to watch cartoons for a week. It was a good plan as this time the next day it looked as if a tornado had come through. I didn’t let them eat or drink in there so it wasn’t a sticky nasty mess; just clothes strung everywhere and stuffed animals and stuff. I didn’t want to be a nag so I tried not to look. I gave Diane the second bedroom and I took the sleeper sofa in the living room.

We put away the perishables and headed out to see if we could get into Beaches & Cream. There was a 45 minute wait so we decided to find something at MGM. After getting a look at Stormalong Bay, the girls wanted to nix our plan and go swimming. That would’ve been fine with me, but we had a PS for San Angel Inn for dinner that night and they still wanted to go to that. I told them it wouldn’t be wise to use one of their days on their hoppers to just go to dinner. Skye and I have annual passes but the rest of the group had hoppers. After rolling eyes from Hanna, that I let slide, they agreed to save the swimming for later. So it was off to catch the boat to MGM to see some Star Wars characters as Diane is a fan. Guess what song the girls started singing on the friendship boat? You got it. After dirty looks from Diane and me, they quit. They would later start singing “Everybody was Kung Fu Fighting” all the time which wasn’t quite as bad.

I was surprised to find that even though MGM was busy with Star Wars fans, the attractions weren’t too busy at all, but it was hotter than new love and we were melting. Diane’s face was red as a turnip and I was afraid she’d keel over at any minute. We ducked into a nice air conditioned Toy Story Pizza Planet where we grabbed some pizza’s to share. That’s when the complaining about the cost of food started. I had given Diane the link to the menus at Allears.net and we even read them together before we left home, but you wouldn’t have known it. I’d even talked to her about splitting meals with Kerstin as the portions were large, but I guess it’s just different after you get there.

I don’t want you to think that I don’t like Diane, I do, and she’s a good woman who’s had a hard life. Her husband used to beat the hell out of her and the whole nine yards. But, in order to be honest with my reporting here, I’ve got to dog her a bit, okay. Diane has one characteristic that I’d forgotten about it until right then when the girls were squirming around in their seats ready to see some sites. Diane eats v e r y s l o w l y. When I worked with her she’d caused us to be late getting back from lunch on several occasions because of it. I was chomping at the bit ready to go too, but I tried to hide it. I’m afraid the girls weren’t so kind. I shot them daggers with my eyes, they shot them right back at me until finally there was no pizza left on any of our plates and she was ready to go.

We were able to catch Star Tours, Muffet Vision 3D, Beauty & The Beast Show, Rock & Roller Coaster & Tower of Terror. Everyone except Diane rode R&R but it was too much for Zoë and she was in tears when we got off. I bought her an R&R pin since she was so brave and tried it. Just three of us rode ToT. Me, Skye and Kerstin. For those of you who read my trip report from last June I want to add here that I purchased a product that looks like a stick of deodorant called Bodyglide to prevent chaffing. So far it was working. Just every so often I felt the need to reapply it and I would use dark rides or restrooms for this.

We took the boat to Epcot for our dinner in Mexico. I requested a table by the river and we rode the ride while we waited. I used this as a good opportunity to reapply the Bodyglide. If anyone saw a woman who looked as if she was rubbing deodorant on the insides of her thighs on dark rides all over WDW it was me but it wasn’t deodorant, okay. We got the table by the river and everyone enjoyed their meal except mine wasn’t as good as usual. Since Diane was still eating, I let the girls go ride the ride and they went by waving from the boat four times before she was done. After dinner we walked around the World Showcase and caught Illuminations.

When we got back to the villa I took the girls down to the villa pool for swimming as I’d promised earlier. Diane stayed in the room to recuperate from her first day in the world. After swimming the girls all piled in the Jacuzzi and went off to bed.

 

[jennymouse]

Monday, June 7th

We were up early to go to Magic Kingdom. We had a late breakfast PS at Crystal Palace so we just gave the girls honey buns to tied them over, my group filled our water bottles with ice water, but Diane decided she didn’t want to pack their water bottle around all day, yes, I told her how much water was in the parks. We all slathered down in sunscreen except Diane who declared she couldn’t wear sunscreen as she had sensitive skin, and then we headed out the door at 7:45am. The bus came quickly, too quickly really as I’d allowed time to wait for the bus and then stop at BWI & Swan/Dolphin too, but we went straight to MK arriving around 8:15am with 45 minutes to wait. This group doesn’t wait well. They huffed and puffed and asked how much longer. I could tell that Diane wasn’t happy with me for getting them there so early either. Skye and I knew the drill, knew the importance of being there early, wanted to see the opening show, but the rest just didn’t get it.

It opened and we went in and headed for Fantasyland. Skye wasn’t happy about this as she’s used to heading straight to Splash Mountain, but Diane and Kerstin wanted to ride Dumbo and I thought they might like to see the rest of Fantasyland too. We rode Dumbo, Snow White, grabbed a Fastpass for Peter Pan, saw Mickey’s Philharmagic then went to Pooh and that’s when Skye turned on me.
She said, “Nana, why are we doing this?”
“Doing what Skye?”
“Riding Pooh. We haven’t ridden Pooh since I was six. I don’t even like Pooh.”
“Skye, in case you haven’t noticed, there’s more people than just you on this trip. Maybe, the rest of us want to see Pooh. Let’s take a vote, who wants to see Pooh.”
Five out of six raise their hands. We ride Pooh.
Then we use our Fastpasses for Peter Pan.
Then it was time to go have breakfast with Pooh and friends at Crystal Palace. I made this PS when I thought my new grandbaby Haley, was going to be with us. And didn’t change it after our group changed as the food is good there and I thought the rest would like it. They did.
As Pooh approached the table I looked at Skye and she looked at me and I said, “I’m going to tell him you don’t like him.” She looked terrified and said “No, Nana!” I laughed and said I wouldn’t.
After breakfast they wanted to get to the serious rides so we headed to Space Mountain. The standby line was 90 minutes. They didn’t want to wait so I suggested that we get Fastpasses to use later as we were returning that night for Spectromagic and Wishes. It was hot and crowded so we went back to the BCV to try out Stormalong Bay. When we got there, the message light was blinking and it was from the BC staff saying Stormalong Bay was closed for the rest of the day. I broke the news to the group and they got ready to go to the villa pool instead. While they were getting ready, I called to check on Jessica, but didn’t get an answer.

I changed too and helped the girls reapply their sunscreen and again suggested that Diane put on some too to no avail before we headed out to the pool for a few hours. The villa pool was quite crowded but not unbearably so and the girls had fun. I swam a bit too and it felt so good as it was really hot & humid. Afterwards we took showers and headed back to the Magic Kingdom for dinner at Liberty Tree Tavern, Spectromagic and Wishes.

The girls were anxious to use those Space Mountain Fastpasses and I wanted to buy a Mickey Mouse watch since my watch battery died and I’d wanted a Mickey one anyway. Plus, I didn’t want to keep asking Diane what time it was. Zoë was too scared to ride Space Mountain after her experience with R&R and Diane and I didn’t want to ride so we gave Skye, Hanna & Kerstin all the Fastpasses so they could ride twice. We took Zoë and went shopping for ears and watches and would come back to meet the riders at the Space exit by the trash can next to the building. This was the first time I’d given Skye any time away from me in the parks. Both she and Hanna are pretty responsible and Skye knows MK like the back of her hand, and knows to go to a CM if she gets lost and I told them that this was a test. When we came back to meet them they were where they were supposed to be and said they had gotten to ride it once but it got stuck and all the lights came on during their second ride and was mad that they didn’t get their Fastpasses back to ride again later.

It was now time for dinner at LTT so we had to move on. Since we’d had a late breakfast we weren’t hungry for lunch so we were starving by dinner time. Everyone ate plenty of food here and declared it delicious. The characters were fun and attentive, and Kerstin was especially having fun with them. Of course Diane was still eating her main meal while the waitress was clearing everyone else’s plates and while desert was being served. I dished out the apple cobbler for the girls and found myself not leaving her much so it wouldn’t take her so long to eat it. Her ice cream was melted by the time she got to it anyway. This time she sensed our impatience and said “If I’m paying $24 dollars for this meal, I’m going to eat my money’s worth.” I’m thinking, but can’t you do it faster, it’s time to find a spot for Spectro.

It didn’t matter anyway, as while we were having dinner it started to storm outside and it was still storming as we tried to tour. Diane couldn’t believe that we would keep on going, but I took them to see rides I knew would be open. The Farmer’s Almanac had called for a rainy week so I’d bought a whole bunch of rain ponchos at the Dollar Tree for 2 for $1 and I’d passed them out earlier. Somehow, Hanna’s didn’t make it into her fanny pack and I ended up buying one in the Christmas store. Zoe was dragging behind so I found an abandoned stroller with no name tag that had about 4 inches of water standing in it, turned it over to empty the water out, used the washcloth I carry in my fanny pack to dry it the best I could and we put Zoe and Kerstin in it. The storm made it a perfect night for the Haunted Mansion so we had to ride it three times. Haunted Mansion is the perfect spot to reapply your Bodyglide too. Plus, Pirates, Tiki Room, Buzz and Space again as the park was emptying out due to the storm. Both parades of Spectromagic were cancelled too. Wishes went off but we didn’t have a good spot for it. On our way out of the mostly empty park, Hanna & Skye took turns giving Zoe and Kerstin Erides in the stroller. We sloshed ourselves out of the park and got the bus home. A wet but fun night.

When we got back the phone rang and it was Ginger, a friend of my daughters to tell me that Jessica was back in the hospital with a bad infection and dehydration. They were keeping her overnight to give her antibiotics and get her hydrated again through the IV. Ginger had my grandbaby and other friends of Jessica’s was going to keep her the next day when Ginger had to go to work and then go get Jess when she got out of the hospital. Hanna & Zoë’s mother was going to go spend a couple days with her when she got home to help out since I had her kids. Needless to say I felt guilty as hell since I hadn’t believed she was getting worse and I felt that I should be there taking care of her and the baby. I decided not to tell Skye until the next day when Skye could talk to her and see that she was alright. It was too late to call the hospital since they shut the phones to the rooms down at 10pm. I gathered wet tennis shoes up and put them in the dryer then went to sleep to the sound of tennis shoes tumbling. Thumpity thump.

 

[jennymouse]

Tuesday, June 8th

I got up early and added more dryer time to the tennis shoes as some people didn’t bring two pairs like I suggested and that’s all they had to wear. I woke the crew and started breakfast of frozen waffles and frozen precooked sausage links while everyone got ready. It was good and fast and no problem to fix. After breakfast I’d hoped that Diane would pitch in and clean up but she disappeared into her room to watch TV. I had the girls load the dishwasher and I cleaned up the rest. Then I got ready.

The girls were in their room while I got the water bottles and Misty Mate ready. As we were getting ready to walk out the door I asked the girls if they’d brushed their teeth and Hanna said yes but that “she thought it was ridiculous that Zoë had had to brush her teeth with her finger ever since we got here.”
“What do you mean; Zoë’s brushed her teeth with her finger ever since we’d got here?”
“She can’t find her toothbrush; she must’ve left it at your house.”
“Nobody told me she didn’t have her tooth brush. How was I supposed to know? It’s not as if I can read minds or that you all have your things arranged in the bathroom so neatly that I could tell a tooth brush was missing.”
I opened the door to the master bedroom, “I don’t see how you all can find anything in there. We aren’t going anywhere until this room is cleaned up and your bags are unpacked.”
All their suitcases were still unpacked and laying open on the floor, clothes and stuff was everywhere. I gave Hanna ten bucks and sent her and Zoë to the gift shop to buy a toothbrush. I sent Skye and Kerstin to the trash room with the trash. When they got back I set them to cleaning their room. And what do you think they found whilst cleaning up? You got it, the toothbrush.

Our day had gotten off to a rocky start and the girls were quiet as we walked to Epcot’s International Gateway. I was sort of mad at every one of them and worried about Jessica too so I was dragging behind instead of leading the way. We got through the turnstiles and were heading in the direction of Future World when the girls looked back at me and asked which way. I said where ever you all want to go is fine with me. I suggested doing Mission Space and Test Track before the lines got too long and the Fastpasses were gone, but then followed them to the Imagination pavilion where we saw Journey and they played around after the ride, then Spaceship Earth, and then they headed to MS where there was a 70 minute wait and Test Track had a 90 minute wait. I suggested getting Fastpasses for Mission Space even though the return time was later that night, riding Ellen’s Energy ride, then getting Fastpasses for Test Track for later that night too. Our plan was to go to MGM and see Fantasmic, but we could come back to Epcot and use our Fastpasses and then head over to MGM.

We had a PS for Afternoon Tea at the Grand Floridian so we decided to take the monorails over since nobody except Skye and I had ever ridden them. For the trip from Epcot to the TTC, I snagged spots in the front for all but Skye and me as we’d done it before. Skye didn’t like that much, but she has to learn to think of others. I was then able to get the four girls in the front for the trip to the Grand Floridian from the TTC so Skye got to ride up front after all.

The Tea was a great afternoon break from the heat and we all enjoyed the experience. I believe I got some good photos here but won’t know until I get the film developed. As we were leaving, it started to storm, but it ended as quickly as it came. We went back to the BCV for a little swim before heading out again to use those Fastpasses and see Fantasmic.

When we got back to the villa, I called Jessica to see if she was home yet and she was. She told me all about what happened and I apologized for not taking her seriously when she said she was getting worse. She was feeling a little better but was still on antibiotics and tired. Hanna & Zoë’s mom, Kim, was there so the girls got to talk to their mother’s.

I called the front desk to inquire if Stormalong Bay was opened yet and they said it was so we set about getting ready. I’d bought inflatable inner-tubes at the Dollar Tree at home so the girls grabbed those and tried blowing them up to get them ready in between getting their bathing suits on. They weren’t having much luck with the inner-tubes so I blew up four and was higher than a cat’s back when I was done. No need for cocktails tonight my head was already swimming!

SAB had just then opened from being closed for almost two days and I asked what the problem had been and the lifeguard told me that it had blown 5 pumps. Hardly anyone knew that it was open and we practically had the place to ourselves. As a matter of fact, the little Poolside Gifts nor Hurricane Hanna’s was open. I’d been worried about keeping up with the girls here, but I solved that problem right away. I didn’t keep up with them. There was no way I could so I didn’t even try. I went and found them occasionally and joined them for a swim and every now and then I’d spot one of our colored inner tubes go by with a kid attached, and I did get Zoe and Kerstin lifejackets to wear but other than that I didn’t worry about them too much. I told them to stay together, at least two and two. If they’d been smaller, it would’ve been a different story.

The girls were having so much fun that they didn’t want to go to MGM and see Fantasmic. We had another night when we could see it so pool time it was. We also had a PS for Sci Fi Dine Inn that we wouldn’t make.

Diane was red as a beet with sunburn. I tried again to get her to use the sunscreen that I’d brought for everyone to use. It was No Ad sunscreen for babies so I thought it would be gentle on her sensitive skin but she still wouldn’t use it. Go figure. We stayed at the pool until they ran us out at 10pm then went and got burgers and onion rings at Beaches & Cream and called it a night.

 

[jennymouse]

Wednesday, June 9th

This was a scheduled pool/nonpark day at Stormalong Bay so everyone slept in a bit. I woke early as usual though because I just can’t sleep late for some reason, not even at home. I can take naps, but once I’m up in the morning I’m up for a while. I turned on the Weather Channel, made a pot of coffee, and set to frying up bacon. I found that the villa kitchens have about everything that you’d need except for a pitcher for tea or Koolaid. Since we had the extra coffee maker in the studio portion I used that pitcher for tea and made Koolaid in the coffee pitcher during the day. I’ll have to remember to bring my own next time.

When the group started stirring I started the scrambled eggs and toast and we all got our fill of breakfast before heading out to SAB around 11am. We had a great day swimming and watching the blisters on Diane’s arms and back rise. I played musical chairs with her at the table trying to keep her under the umbrella and out of the sun as much as possible, but she was on her own when she got in the pool.

We’d brought chips, Cheetos and cheese dip to the pool that we grazed on all afternoon, and then I put our name in the pot for a table at Beaches & Cream so we could get a Kitchen Sink for lunch. We all loved that and ate it up except for about an inch of soupy stuff left in the bottom. Bad grandmas feeding the kids ice cream for lunch!

Our bellies full, we swam until about 6:30 or so. Diane suggested making sandwiches and tater tots in the room for dinner and I said that was fine with me so we all went back to the room. I called Jessica to check on her while the girls got their showers and Diane got hers in the studio bathroom. After the girls were done, I got in the shower and when I came out, Diane said, “Are you going to cook or not? We’re hungry already.” I bit my tongue but said that I didn’t feel like cooking again and that I was going to take my girls down to dinner at Cape May Café and she could go with us if she wanted to or she could stay here and cook her and Kerstin dinner in the room if she wanted to. I know it wouldn’t have been a big deal to go ahead and whip up some grilled ham & cheese sandwiches and tater tots, but she just rubbed me the wrong way. They ended up coming with us.

After dinner the Hanna and Skye were antsy so I suggested going to Downtown Disney for a while and looking around. Diane didn’t want to go as she was sun burnt and Zoe and Kerstin were already in bed asleep so she stayed home with the little ones and I took the two older girls. It came a hard thunderstorm while we were gone, but we were mostly inside World of Disney while it was going on. We didn’t buy much but it was fun looking around.

We came upon the jumping water fountains and the girls asked if it was alright if they played around in them for a while. They already had their ponchos on and I really didn’t mind going to sleep listening to tennis shoes drying so I said okay. There were several kids taking turns trying to cross the fountain without getting wet and adults were all standing around watching them. Hanna and Skye had taken several turns through dodging the water squirts then it was Hanna’s turn again. She was about in the middle of the fountain when a big squirt of water came up and somehow got underneath her poncho just right and it sprayed her poncho right off her and sent it flying straight up in the air. Everyone saw it and was cracking up, but it happened so fast I don’t know how it happened. After that the other kids with ponchos were trying to make the water do it but couldn’t get it to work.

We headed home shortly after that and I went to sleep to tennis shoes drying again. Thumpity Thump.

 

[jennymouse]

Thursday, June 10th

Today is Animal Kingdom day and we wanted to beat the heat & crowds for sure. I got up and started our breakfast cooking up the last of our waffles and sausage while everyone got dressed. “Slather on the sunscreen girls!” “Brush your teeth girls!” “Your tennis shoes are in the dryer girls!” You get the idea.

**Gross Warning** Diane’s blister’s are now oozing yellow stuff through her T-shirt. Nuff said there.

We eat, well the girls did, there wasn’t enough syrup left to go on Diane and my waffles so we just munched on sausage. No biggie, neither one of us are used to breakfast at home anyway. I cleaned up the kitchen real quick then got dressed. I sent two volunteers, can’t remember who, to the trash room with our trash of empty waffle and sausage boxes. Plus, I reminded everyone that this was our last day at the villa and we’d need to be packing up today.

Off to the bus stop. I must say, the bus service from Beach Club was excellent this trip, much better than the last. Although we did share buses in the afternoon during non peak hours, the mornings and after park service went straight to the BC and/or the parks. Of course we had to wait in line at the turnstiles again which didn’t set well with some of the crew, but I nipped the whining in the butt right off the bat. They want to go to the parks, but they whine about the heat when they get there. I can’t help it if it’s hot, I’m hot too but I’m not whining about it. “Diane, if you don’t want to stand in the sun and wait, go sit in the shade then join us when the line starts to move.” Can you tell I’m turning into a real witch?

The gates open and we head straight to the safari. I grabbed Fastpasses for another ride later and the line moved quickly. I must say, the animals were in hiding today as we didn’t see as many as in the past. After we successfully saved Little Red we headed to It’s Tough To Be A Bug.

Skye doesn’t like this show. She doesn’t like getting stung, having the bugs craw up her leg, or the stink bug. The first time we saw it I had mentioned that I smelled that stink bug for three days afterwards. Everyone else wanted to see it though so she would just have to see it again. On the way there, I heard Skye say to the girls, “The last time we saw this Nana STUNK for three days!” I cracked up. Instead of saying I smelled it for three days; she said I stunk for three days. We all got a good morning laugh out of that one. Skye had to sit in my lap for the show and she’s getting way to big to sit in my lap. No one got stung this trip and my father and I didn’t get stung when we saw it in February. Did they quit stinging people?

I always have a hard time with the timing of the shows at Animal Kingdom. All the shows start at the same time and it seems that when we’re ready to see them they’re just starting and we don’t have time to get there. I must be doing something wrong. The girls wanted to ride the Kali River Rapids but the line was too long so I got Fastpasses for it. They didn’t want to go to Dinoland so we decided to use our Fastpasses for the safari again so we hiked back to Africa. No more animals this time than last time, too hot I guess. After the safari we hiked to Asia to use our Kali River Rapids Fastpasses but the ride was shut down when we got there. I don’t know why that was. We were all hot & frustrated at this point, but I had a cure. Ice Cream! Mickey Bars for everyone! We regrouped and sat in the shade eating our ice cream bars and discussed what to do next. It was already about lunch time so we decided to head back to the BCV and hit SAB. It sure didn’t seem like we got much done at AK, only two attractions although we did do the safari twice.

Back at the villa, I cooked up those grilled ham & cheese sandwiches and tater tots. I stuck the tater tots in the oven and had two skillets going for the sandwiches so it didn’t take any time to do. Over lunch I broke the news to the girls. They had to get their room cleaned up and pack up all their things except for what they were going to wear tonight and in the morning before going to SAB. I knew we’d be too tired to do it tonight as we were going to try to see Fantasmic so we’d be getting in late. There was only one more park day after today and the last night was Enight so if we were going to see Fantasmic at all this trip, it would have to be tonight. It seemed our trip was almost over and we’d not seen much at all.

The girls got packed up in record time with SAB as a motivation. I packed my stuff and the nonperishables in the kitchen that we would take to AKL for our last two nights. It didn’t take long and we were off to SAB for the last time this trip. Diane stayed behind as she didn’t need any more sun. I found a nice table over at the Yacht Club end by the sandbar and watched the girls bury Skye in the sand while sipping frozen cocktails. I had two and needed them both. Even the big girls liked this sandbar area, heck they all loved the whole pool with its different areas and features. I’m soooo glad I bought at BCV and can’t wait to bring my new grandbaby, Haley, and turn her into a Disney snob too. I could just picture her playing in this area, playing in and eating the sand. *sigh* I think this moment was the best and most relaxing of the trip.

Too bad it had to end. We had a lot of territory to cover tonight so I rounded the girls up and we set about giving away our inner tubes, sand toys, and turning in the life jackets. Hanna and Kerstin just gave their tubes to the first people they saw while Skye and Zoe browsed around to find the perfect matches for theirs and then made a big production of presenting it to them. I gave away the sand toys to a family with little ones who didn’t have any and we said goodbye to Stormalong Bay for this trip. We’ll be back though!

Showers were quickly taken and soon we were off to Epcot where we had a 6:30 PS for Teppanyaki in Japan. A first for us. But first I had these Mission Space and Test Track Fastpasses that had been burning a hole in my fanny pack since Tuesday. On the way, Hanna tried to tell me that they wouldn’t take them. We had to use them within that hour window. I asked her, “How many trips have you taken, Hanna?” Two. “Do you read the DISboards?” No. “Well, I do so you just watch and let this DISer show you how it’s done, okay.” We walked right in Test Track with our old Fastpasses, no problem. Well, no problem except for the thunderstorm that had been brewing up on the way. You got it. They shut it down before we could get on, but they did give us more Fastpasses to use later. We ran through the storm to try Mission Space. No go there either. It was now raining hard with lightening and thunder getting closer and closer.

We huddled just inside Mission Space and waited to see if the storm would pass quickly. It wasn’t so we took a vote and voted to go for it. On with the ponchos! We stopped at the Odyssey building to use the restroom and huddled some more. It was still storming but we were hungry so our hunger drove us on around World Showcase. Water was standing ankle deep and I had worn kaki pants that were now soaked up to my knees. At least the girls were having fun! They started going into China and I called “That’s not Japan, that’s China! Keep going!” Diane was lagging far behind. I called back and asked if she was okay, she was. We kept going until we finally reached Japan and not a minute too soon as it was our PS time. I looked around in the store downstairs to see if they had a pair of shorts I could buy and change into but couldn’t find any. I was going to have to eat in wet pants.

We checked in at the podium then ducked into the restroom to try and make ourselves presentable. There was nothing I could do about my pants but we brushed out our hair and dried our arms and legs with paper towels then sat in the lobby area and waited for our party to be called. A nice Japanese gentleman entertained the girls with paper birds and frogs and soon it was time to eat. We all enjoyed this meal and agreed that it was well worth the harrowing trip getting there. Believe it or not, Diane finished her meal at the same time we did as she used a fork and the rest of us used our chopsticks! An excellent meal with an excellent server and chef! My pants even dried out during dinner.

It was still raining when we left Japan. Not as hard as earlier but still steady. I figured there was no way that Fantasmic would be showing so we made our way back to BCV stopping briefly at some countries along the way. No Fantasmic this trip unfortunately.

We stuck our tennis shoes in the dryer as I worried about us not having that dryer beginning tomorrow. Well, not one as handy as this one had been anyway. Everyone was exhausted so we hit the bed about 10:30. Here we go again…Thumpity Thump goes the tennis shoes in the dryer.

 

[jennymouse]

Friday, June 11th

Here it is our last park day and I feel that I have failed my group. We haven’t experienced very many attractions and haven’t seen Fantasmic or Wishes. Heck, we haven’t even ridden Splash Mountain or Big Thunder Mountain yet, our favorites, and we usually do that right off the bat! If it storms again tonight for our Enight we won’t do them at all this trip. We’ve hardly experience anything in World Showcase. No living statues, no drummers in Japan, no acrobats in China, none of the movies in the countries. We’ve only ridden R&R and ToT one time! No Festival of the Lion King or Kali River Rapids! I’ve carried Fastpasses to Mission Space and Test Track almost all week and we’ve yet to experience those. In my defense, the storms, heat and the attraction of Stormalong Bay has played a big part in this, but still. I’m feeling like a total DISboard failure! I’ve got to redeem myself! I’ve got to save our vacation! And I’ve got to do it today!

I woke the girls and asked who wanted to go ride Mission Space and Test Track. Diane, Hanna and Zoe didn’t want to go so Skye, Kerstin and I headed out to ride those first thing BEFORE breakfast. I still had six Fastpasses for each so maybe we could ride them twice each. We used our Fastpasses for Test Track first, why, because we got to it first. The funniest thing I have to mention is that in front of us in line were a group of six men and women executive types dressed in suits for the men and suits and heals on the women. The women had their hair all pinned up in buns. I don’t believe they were CM’s as they didn’t have badges but there was a CM escorting them. The ride broke down while we were on it and we were stuck in the room right before heading out to the track so those people had to be stuck on the track. It was stuck for about 20 minutes or so. I saw them getting off the ride when it was over and you should have seen those women’s hair! They were trying to climb out of the cars and fix their hair at the same time and it was a hoot.

It was now almost 10am so we had to rush on over to Mission Space. They let us in with the old Fastpasses here too and we were about to try Mission Space for the first time. I admit to being a little nervous. Of course all of the warnings before you actually get to ride don’t help matters. We had a single rider with us, a young fellow about 13yo who’d ridden it once before just that morning. We all loved the ride! No one got sick, but I did feel a little disoriented, but it went away after I finally got something to eat. We wanted to ride again but it was already 10:20 and we had to be out of BCV by 11 so we made a Bee Line back to the villa.

We finished our last minute packing up and called for Bell Services to take our bags and transfer them to Animal Kingdom Lodge. Doing a last search of the room to see if we were leaving anything, I found the little journal survey thing on top of the TV that I never filled out. I’d forgotten all about it. Oh well, sorry Beach Club! We were all starving so we went down to Cape May Café to see if we could get in there. They turned us away so we went to Beaches & Cream and got right in. I would’ve rather had breakfast food but this would do. We had cheeseburgers and onion rings and split a No Way Jose for our breakfast! We discussed what we were going to do while eating. We could either go to MGM and try to ride R&R and ToT again and see some of the attractions that we missed there or go back to Animal Kingdom and see Festival of the Lion King and use the Fastpasses for Kali River Rapids I still had tucked away in my fanny pack. We took a vote and AK won since not everyone wanted to ride R&R and ToT and everyone wanted to ride Kali and see FoTLK. After brunch, we said our goodbyes to the Beach Club and grabbed a bus to Animal Kingdom. Our first stop was FoTLK and it was excellent as usual, everyone enjoyed it. Next we headed to Kali and rode with our old Fastpasses with no problem. Diane and Zoe got drenched, Skye and I got pretty wet but not drenched like the others and Hanna and Kerstin didn’t get a drop. Too fun! We slowly made our way out of AK hoping to dry off a bit before we had to present ourselves at Animal Kingdom Lodge.

We had two rooms reserved here, one deluxe savannah with bunk beds and one regular savannah room. They were on different floors as I expected but at this point I didn’t mind a little separation. We’d decided to split the girls up and have Zoe and Kerstin who’d been buddies the whole trip would stay in Diane’s room and Hanna and Skye would be in mine. Our rooms were ready and our luggage had arrived so we went straight to the room. Our deluxe savannah room on the 5th floor 5212 had a horrible view, but the regular savannah room on the 2nd floor 2311 had an incredible view. I didn’t complain as I did receive the bunks that I’d requested even though I didn’t really need the bunks now that Zoe was sleeping in the other room. We ended up not spending much time in our room anyway.

The Weather Channel was forecasting a 40% chance of thunderstorms so we kept our fingers crossed that our Enight would be rain free. We all settled down to take a nap before our long night ahead. We all slept for about an hour and a half then got up and ready to go. Diane had decided she wasn’t feeling well enough for Enight so I agreed to take the girls alone. Since it had been about a while since we’d eaten we were hungry but I didn’t want to totally ruin our dinner plans. We stopped at Mara and got a small pizza to split, just enough to kill the hunger pangs and we left out of there around 6 o’clock. I had made our dinner PS in the castle for 8:30 when I thought we would be seeing Wishes from outside of the castle earlier in the week. Since we didn’t get to see Wishes outside of the castle earlier as planned we decided to try to eat and leave the castle in time to see them outside.

We arrived at MK in time to get a double stroller for Zoe and Kerstin then ride Jungle Cruise and Pirates before dinner as well as look around some shops. I just love Magic Kingdom. We arrived right on time for our dinner PS and Kerstin and Zoe got to visit with Cinderella while we waited for our name to be called. Dinner was much better than I had hoped for and we all cleaned our plates. No time for desert as we had to find a spot for Wishes. I had hoped to make our way over to the rose garden but Fantasyland was blocked off so we couldn’t exit that way and a crowd was already too thick to make our way around there from the front of the castle. A CM had a rope blocking the ramp like walkway into the castle so when she let us out we just sat down right there at the rope. Even though the fireworks all seemed to appear on the right side of the castle we still had a good view of everything and were even sitting right under Tinkerbelle as she flew from the castle. Since we were right in front of the castle we could enjoy all the special lighting on the castle for the show and no one was sitting in front of us. Not too bad at all.

We let folks kind of thin out a bit before heading to Splash Mountain to get our wristbands for Enight. It was a great Enight without a drop of rain! We rode Splash and Thunder several times each, saw the Haunted Mansion, Pirates, Jungle Cruise again, and went back to ride Splash some more. The last thing we did before leaving was to see Mickey’s Philharmagic again. We never made it to Tomorrowland and the three hours of Enight went by so fast. I walked backwards so the girls in the stroller could watch the castle as we slowly made our way out. I know we’ll be back, but I don’t know about Kerstin and she seemed to understand that she might not be back as well. We stopped at the candy store and got some treats to take home and generally took our time leaving. Just trying to soak up all the magic we could before leaving. It was 2am before we walked out of the MK and got our bus back to AKL. I was afraid they’d all fall asleep on the bus and I’d have a hard time getting all four of them off alone, but they were still wired up and stayed awake the whole trip back.

We dropped Zoe and Kerstin off in Diane’s room then went to ours and crashed. I don’t know what my problem was during the night. Maybe I was still riding rides in my sleep or something but I woke up about 4:30 am and I was laying crossways at the foot of the bed. I NEVER do that. I didn’t know where I was and when I did figure out where I was I couldn’t find my way to the top of the bed. So strange.

 

[jennymouse]

Saturday, June 12th

The next thing I knew it was 9am and Mickey was calling to wake us up for breakfast. I called Diane and told them we’d meet them in the lobby at 9:30. We jumped in some clothes, brushed our teeth and hair and met the rest down in the lobby then went and had a big breakfast at Boma. So good. After breakfast I really wanted…NEEDED a nap, but the girls were biting the bit wanting to go to the pool. I asked Diane if she minded watching them at the pool while I took a nap. She sort of snapped at me and said, “I’m not going to no pool today.” I said that was okay that I understood because she was sun burnt and blistered, but I really thought she could’ve have sat in the shade and done it since I’d taken the girls to Enight by myself. I told the girls that they’d just have to go to their rooms and wait a while whilst I slept another hour or so. I was that beat. We went to our room and as soon as we got there I told the two older girls that they could get their bathing suits on and go on to the pool. Before they even got out the door Diane was calling to ask if there was any place in the shade where she could sit and I said yes. She said Zoe and Kerstin were driving her crazy wanting to go to the pool. I sent Skye and Hanna down to meet them and show them the way. I slept soundly for two hours and felt much better when I awoke.

I got up and changed into my bathing suit and headed down to relieve Diane from pool duty. It was almost time for the cookie decorating at Boma too so I wanted to see if the girls wanted to do that. I met them all on the way to wake me up. Diane went to her room to rest and I took the girls to Boma for the cookie decorating and back to the pool. At 2:15 they had a craft by the pool, but they were charging $20 for it. The craft was painting an ostrich egg and it must’ve been a real ostrich egg since they thought so much of it. We didn’t do it as I couldn’t see spending $80 for a thirty minute craft. No one else did either since they only had one taker out of all those people at the pool that day. We swam until about 4 o’clock then went in to get ready for our dinner at Ohana. Our last meal at WDW. Zoe asked if she could wear her grass skirt she brought and I said that would be perfect. I was surprised when I met them in the lobby to find that all she had on was her little two pieced bathing suit, sandals, and the grass skirt! I was afraid they wouldn’t let her in Ohana like that so I sent Skye and Hanna up to get her a T-shirt just in case.

Surprisingly Diane felt up to going too, so we took a taxi to the Poly so we wouldn’t be all hot and sweaty when we arrived. Everyone enjoyed dinner and it started storming again while we were eating. The girls enjoyed the coconut races and hula hooping and ate really well there as they had all week. I was glad for the entertainment for the girls as we didn’t bring our chop sticks so we’d finished long before Diane did. The girls were entertained and I had another cocktail while we waited.

We took the monorail to MK then hopped a bus back to Animal Kingdom. During dinner the girls wanted to swim some more when we returned but they were falling asleep on the bus so it was straight to bed for them all when we returned. Andy from FL Tours called and confirmed our pick up for the next morning. I slept much better this night.

Sunday, June 13th

We were up and out of our room by 6:30 and went to Mara for donuts and breakfast sandwiches. Then our driver picked us up at 8am. It was the same driver who had picked us up at the airport and he still had his belly button showing! The girls were glad to see him as they’d each saved him a donut for his breakfast. He got us to MCO on time where we parted company from Diane and Kerstin. The flights were good and we had no problems or delays. Jessica, now feeling much better, picked us up.

Afterthoughts

I’m going to do my best not to go in the hot summer months again. The heat and rain just kept us from seeing/doing so much. I would much rather deal with the spring break crowds and have cooler/dryer weather, but I prefer October – the first week of February even more. October was the best as far as having both good weather and low crowds, but I don’t want to take Skye out of school again. It certainly makes it hard, doesn’t it?

Also, I think from now on I’ll limit guests to one or two instead of four. I think immediate family with Skye bringing along one friend would be perfect.

**UPDATED 6/25/04** Diane has been to the doctor's office twice since our return. She certainly did have sun poison and the doctor perscribed antibiotics and a bunch of other stuff. She's allergic to penacillin(sp) and her doctor gave her something with penacillin in it? anyway she had an allergic reaction to it and her face swelled up, eyes closed, big lips and they whole bit. She had to go back to the doctor over it. Today, I saw her for the first time since we've been home and I think she's going to have scars on her arms from the blisters. She's all peally...is that a word? Looks awful. I felt bad for her, really did. I said, "Damn it, Diane. All you had to do was put sunscreen on!" She said, "I know, I know."

People! Wear sunscreen!

 

[bobcat]

So glad to see that you had a better trip this time. Well, at least Diane doesn't rival your daughter. Great report!

 

[deedee67]

Wow! You are one cool grandma. Your grandchildren are so lucky to have you. You are really nice to take your granddaughter's friends as well. It sounds like you showed everybody a great time. Well done!

 

[kilee]

Great report-- it's so hard sometimes to travel w/ lots of people. I don't know that I could of kept up w/ 4 full of energy girls. Glad your DD is also feeling better.

 

[wannabee princess]

Enjoyed your report! You are quite a woman to take 4 young girls and a slow-eating, non-cooking, sensitive skin non-sunscreen user to the World, and still accomplish so much!

Thanks for sharing!

 

[Credit Man]

Enjoyed your report! Thanks for posting.

 

[fantasia73]

Great report. You don't really know people until you've travelled with them! I remember right after college going on a cruise with one of my college roommates. She drove me absolutely insane and I thought that I knew her since I had lived with her in college for a whole year. She couldn't have any of her foods touching. If her mashed potatoes touched her asparagus, she wouldn't eat it! Then she'd complain an hour later that she was hungry.

 

[chelsea's nana]

HI Jennymouse
You certainly are a SAINT to go through that and still maintain such a great attitude. I'm leaving in 5 days...taking my Mom, Son, his sig other and her two children (13 and 4). I'm thinking I may need some space so we don't get on each other's nerves (ya know what I mean!!) Got two rooms at POFQ...

They already told me that they just don't understand all the "planning" I have done...(I've been there 8 times, my son once, the rest never)...told them they can do whatever they want, but I am making sure I get to do my "thing" while there and that requires good planning to be sure to fit everything in...

Anyway, my real question for you is....WHERE did you get the "Bodyglide" stuff? Sounds like something I could use too!!!

Thanks

 

[WDWLinda]

"Can you tell I’m turning into a real witch?"

Are you crazy??? You're a saint for putting up with all of that! Between keeping track of all the girls, making sure they had a good time, cooking on YOUR vacation, and not punching Diane out, you're a saint!

Don't you hate those people that don't have any initiative so you're responsible for everything? I can't believe she'd go back to her room to watch TV after dinner and not help clean up. I think she got what she deserved with her sunburn. I doubt that this will ruin your friendship cuz you seem too nice, but I don't think I'd be too anxious to see her again - definitely not travel with her again.

They should all be very thankful to you for a great trip. I just hope you had a good time too. And I'm glad your daughter is feeling better - you don't need anything else to worry about.

Here's hoping the next trip is less stressful with better weather!

~Linda

PS - I didn't know you could use Fast Passes after they expired. Do you have to come back in the same timeframe?

 

[jennymouse]

Originally posted by chelsea's nana
Anyway, my real question for you is....WHERE did you get the "Bodyglide" stuff? Sounds like something I could use too!!!

I got at a local running shop. We have a New Balance store here in town too that sells it. It was only $7 and I would pay 10 times that as it worked so well. It's about the size of a Sure deoderant stick and fit in the fanny pack no problem. Skye and Hanna put it on one day as they were starting to get chaffed too.

 

[jennymouse]

Originally posted by WDWLinda
[BPS - I didn't know you could use Fast Passes after they expired. Do you have to come back in the same timeframe? [/B]

No, those MS & TT fastpasses I held onto for 3 days before using them. It was early in the morning when I used the MS ones and the FP said to come between 3:45-4:45 so the CM at MS said I had to wait. I pointed out that they were from Tuesday and he said "Okay, go right in." I'd heard someone else here on the DISboards saying that you can use them anytime after the start of the time window, even days away, so I gave it a try and it worked on all of the rides that I tried.

I got to thinking about it since I've been home and a person could probably tour a park in the morning just doing the attractions that had no lines while collecting fastpasses for the ones that did have lines. Then come back that evening or the next day or so and walk on all the ones they'd collected the FP's for.

Instead of having to wait until the time window opens up now to get another FP, it gives you a time when you can get another.
Like that day I got the FP's for MS & TT. We got our FP's for MS then went and rode Ellen's Energy Ride. When we were done with that it was time to get another FP so we got the TT ones. Just one of those things you can only learn on the DISboards!

 

[tammy]

As always, I have enjoyed reading your reports. I laughed out loud several times at slow eating Diane. This is why we don't travel with people outside our immediate family to Disney.

 

[airhead]

What a great Gram you are!!! You really had me laughin' at some of your expressions: "hotter than new love" that's a good one! And I loved this one; "higher than a cat's back"
I 've never heard those expressions before,very funny.
You are extremely patient Jenifer! I woulda bopped diane in the head !!!
Hope your daughter is feeling better!
Can't wait for your next trip!!!!!

CJ