Knucklehead, Bo Bo, and Cousin String Bean Survive August '05 at the CR - Part 1&2

[Stitch Inside]

We decided to take a trip down before Knucklehead started what he calls "real school." He started 1st Grade at a public school Tuesday 8/9/05. He went to a private Kindergarten last year.
We shrewdly offered to take Cousin String Bean (just turned 14 in July) along with us. It was part of our birthday present to her.

She was a joy to have around. The boys love her, and she thrives on their attention. It was almost like bringing our own nanny.

The rest of our crew consisted of: Knucklehead (turning 7 this trip)


Bo Bo (turning 2 this trip)


DW and Me (the Camera Man and smart enough not to list DW's age).

We woke up early Wednesday (8/3/05) morning and hit the road at 5:00 a.m. We had no problems getting to WDW this time. We made our usual gas stop right before entering Florida, and our traditional juice stop at the Florida Welcome Center on 95.

We drove up to the Contemporary Resort at 11:30 a.m. and checked in. Our room wasn't ready, so we received our call back card, got back in the van and drove over to MGM. Knucklehead wanted to ride the Rockin' Roller Coaster before he changed his mind. He just recently discovered that he was 48 inches tall. DW volunteered me to ride with him first, just in case he hated it, he could blame me.

We picked up some fast passes for 2 hours later, and quick thinking DW went back with Bo Bo and asked for a Rider Switch Pass. So Knucklehead, String Bean and I went ahead and jumped into the Fast Pass line with the Rider Switch Pass. Knucklehead was so excited and nervous, he couldn't stop talking. We just let him. I had to keep reassuring him that it was no worse than Tower of Terror, which he has ridden many times.

Knucklehead loved it, and so did String Bean. This was her first time riding it also. The first year we took Knucklehead to WDW, we spent the whole time riding The Barn Stormer. The 2nd year we had to make special trips into the MK to ride Space Mountain. During his 3rd trip this past May, he split his time fairly equally between all the Mountains and The Tower of Terror. Now he had a new favorite, The Rockin' Roller Coaster.

Bo Bo and DW were in the shop when we exited the ride. DW handed me a Rider Switch Pass for Tower of Terror. Knucklehead didn't want to ride it, so DW, Bo Bo and he went to find something to eat. String Bean was the only one who really wanted to ride it, and DW rode it once and swore never again, so that left me to ride it with String Bean. It wasn't as terrifying as in May. There were more short drops this time, instead of fewer long drops like there seemed to be in May.

We were just in time for the start of Beauty and the Beast when we exited the Tower. Have I not mentioned how hot it was? I didn't really notice until we were sitting among the crowd at the show. We enjoyed the show anyway. This was the first time DW and I had seen it since our honeymoon. The kids saw it with their Grandparents in May.

After Beauty, DW and the older kids rode Rockin' Roller Coaster. Bo Bo and I strolled around and bought another one of those misting fans. We had two in the van. We cooled ourselves as we strolled back to the Coaster. Knucklehead still loved it.

As a storm started to blow in, we decided it was time to check out our room. Here's the cool part. When we had checked in earlier, we were already given our keys. String Bean didn't have an AP so we had to buy her a 4 day Park Hopper. They were able to make her key her ticket without swiping it. The guy just took my money and entered something in his computer. So, when we called in, we were given our room number and told that the keys we already received would work. We didn't have to stop back by the desk.

The sky opened up and dumped tons of water on us as we left the park. It looked like the bellmen and valets were about to blow away when we pulled up to the Contemporary. We unloaded, gave the bellman our room number, and I handed the valet the van keys. I love Valet Parking, especially during a thunder storm.

The bellman wasn't 2 minutes behind us with our bags. The room (7110) was much nicer and cleaner than I expected. It was in a great location, just a few doors down the first floor hallway of the North Wing. I believe we were closer to the Food and Fun Center than the people staying in the tower. We unloaded, took showers, and made a dinner reservation for the Concourse Steak House.




The view from our room. We paid the AP rate for a Standard Wing Room.

 

[heaven2dc]

Thank you for sharing your trip and including pics! Had read your last trip report and loved it - always looked forward to the next day! Please keep them coming (your boys are adorable and seem so much fun to have along - esp nice String Bean could enjoy this trip w/you also).

 

[jugglinfish]

How fun - another Knucklehead and Bo Bo trip report. I really enjoyed your last one - especially the Incredibles Family Picture! I'm looking forward to the rest of your report.

 

[Stitch Inside]

I decided to keep this report all in one thread.

So we finished freshening up and headed over to the Concourse Steak House. This was one of our best meals. I ate the Chipotle Rib Eye and DW and String Bean split the big cut of Prime Rib. The service was what made this the best meal. Instead of bringing DW and String Bean the one plate of food and giving them an extra plate, the Concourse Steak House went ahead and served their meal on two seperate plates. It was a gesture that really stood out when Cinderella's Royal Table did not do the same. Anyway, the kids even ate their meals, Knucklehead had the children's burger and Bo Bo ate most of a kid's pizza.

After dinner, we walked over to MK. Did I mention that it was hot? At least we were prepared this time. I had a fan on me all night. We planned to stay to closing at 11:00 p.m. but just couldn't do it. The pool was calling our names.

But first I had to take a few castle pictures.

Hey! There's Simba, Poomba and Timon!

Then we had to ride Bo Bo's favorite. He's the only person I know who can dance to "It's a Small World."

We then obtained some more Rider Switch Passes for Splash Mountain and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. DW did Splash with Knucklehead and String Bean. I got to do BTMRR. We decided to go swimming after that. Heading out of Frontier Land we were trapped by the Spectro Magic Parade. We stopped and watched it. It was spectacular, but it was still hot. We exited the park and took the short monorail trip back to the CR.

The pool was just what the doctor ordered. The kids enjoyed it even though we didn't stay long. I had plans for an early morning. DW, String Bean and Bo Bo left the main pool to go shower and bathe. Knucklehead and I went exploring and discovered the other pool by the lake. It was deeper and almost no one was in it. We left the pool when our agreed to time was up.

Knucklehead's covertable bed was made up and waiting for him. The couch flipped into a twin bed. He loved it. And String Bean liked the idea that she didn't have to share a bed with "the kicker." Bo Bo was already in his pack-n-play, and he was asleep by the time Knucklehead and I finished showering.

We expected the kids to give us a hard time going to sleep in a strange bed and crib, but even Knucklehead was out 10 minutes after his head hit his pillow. I wasn't far behind to the chagrin of DW. She claims that I snore.

 

[nwdisgal]

That picture of Bo Bo on the phone is too cute! He's a man with a purpose. Looking forward to more reports.

 

[Minniespal]

Enjoyed reading your report ~ Thanx for posting.

 

[summersfam4]

LOL! I loved your last report, and these are just as good! Thanks for sharing, I can't wait to hear more!! My DD is just 6 (will not be 7 untill December), after reading about Knucklehead's braveness, I wonder if mine will be willing to try some more new things this year (fingers crossed, as I love the bigger rides )!

Kelly