Lauryn wants to ride the Round and Round, So Let's GO!!!

[Sneezie]

Hi All who care to enter. Welcome to the Trip Report for our February 2011 trip. I have tried writing trip reports before, but as you can see from my tag, I'm not good at finishing them. Wish me luck!

Here we go:

First, the cast:

Me, Sneezie (Tamara to family and some friends) The Disney trip planner of this group.

My sister, Farrah I just have to tell her when we're going and she's onboard.

Next up, is Donnie Jr., my brother. He hasn't been on a trip with us in a little while, but he and his wife were going through some things, so he needed to get away. In the pic with him is Bubby, or Brandon if you're being formal. This is Bubby's first trip to Disney.

Finally, here's Lauryn, our excuse... err reason... for this trip. This is Lauryn's third trip to Disney Word and the girl is a Disney fanatic. She came with Farrah and I in September and had been crying to ride the round and round ever since, so we just had to go back, right?

And here's another pic of Bubby just because he's so dagum cute.

Okay, so now that you know who we are and why we are going, we can move on to the when, how and where.

My sister lives in Austin, my brother lives in Ft. Worth and I live in Louisiana. I do not fly, so while they're were planning to fly in to MCO, I was going to drive and meet them at the airport in my Hyundai Santa Fe. My brother's wife works for a major airline so they get to fly cheaply but its on stand-by. Unfortunately, he could not get a flight out of Dallas to MCO, but he could get one to New Orleans. Oh well, looks like I'll have company on my ride to Florida. He arrived in New Orleans on Monday, February 7th and we prepared to leave for 4am on the 8th.

I was happy for the company, but I knew it would take a little longer with two toddlers with us. I didn't mind at all!

We were ready to leave at about 4:15. Not bad. The kids were up, but quiet. Very good. After a quick stop to fill up we were on our way. Donnie drove the first leg.

Here are the kids:
Lauryn has found a game on my phone

and Bubby has found someone to talk to.

They are so adorable. I wish they were here now.

The ride wasn't bad. We stopped for a breakfast at McDs when we got into Florida, around 8am. Stopped for gas a few times and stopped at Wal-Mart where it took Lauryn an hour to decide on a toy to keep her occupied on the ride when the phone games lost their appeal.

Farrah was flying in from Austin and was set to arrive around 4, Disney time. We were going to swing by there to pick her up, which we did, about an hour and a half late. She was happy to see us, late or not. And we made our way to the Wyndham right outside of Downtown Disney.

Some more pertinent information: We were staying at Port Orleans Riverside during our trip, but thanks to our travel days we'd gotten a Priceline night at the Wyndham. We still needed a room for the last night of our trip, but we were going to cross that bridge when we got to it.

So, here we are, on our way to the Wyndham. We passed these people on our way.

There signs said No Toy Story 3 and there were a couple of people dressed as Woody and Buzz. I believe it had something to do with Disney and the union, but I'm not sure.

I had no idea how close it was to the Downtown Disney area. We were really excited when we saw that. I went in to take care of getting the room and the front desk attendant gave us a book of coupons which included one for T-Rex. Guess we have our plans for dinner.

Up Next: Our first night off site

 

[Sneezie]

I figured out the picture thing so.... here we go!

We got settled in our room at the Wyndham. Nice room with a big television. We got our overnight bags out of the car then made about four trips back to the car for all of the things we forgot to pack into our overnight bags. Next, we headed Downtown, which fortunately was just across the street. \

We had to get a picture Lauryn and Bubby with this couple because this was about as close as Lauryn would get to Mickey and Minnie last year.

Next, we headed to dinner at T-Rex!

We had a blast! The food was good. I had the nachos, Farrah had crab dip and queso dip with chips and Donnie Jr. had the bruschetti. The kiddies ate off of what everyone had. We all enjoyed our food. Donnie Jr. liked the bruschetti so much that he went back to get some more later in the trip.

We enjoyed the atmosphere as much as we loved the food.

I would recommend this restaurant if you are in the Downtown area and are looking for somewhere to eat. We didn't need reservations and the wait was not long.

After dinner, we walked around the Downtown area and took a look inside the World of Disney but didn't make any purchases.

Soon, it was time to head back to the hotel, but before heading to the room, we took a detour to see the cool as all get out splash park. The kids wanted to get in, but it was late and kinda cold. Would have been fun though!

We got back to the room, got ready for bed and were all sleeping within an hour.

Tomorrow we check in to the Port Orleans Riverside!!!

 

[Sneezie]

We were up bright and early for Epcot day. The kids took a little longer to talk into waking up, but when they woke up they were smiling, which is a good start to the day for us.

After a quick trip to Wal-mart to get some snacks for the room, some shirts to wear later on in the trip and some souvenirs for some of the people we left behind we were on our way. Ready to be submerged in giddy! It started to drizzle as we were passing under the wonder arch and Donnie Jr. turned the wipers on just as I was taking the picture. I screamed at him to turn it off, but it was too late.

We got to the room and stashed our stuff. The room was a little smaller than the one at Wyndham and the TV was a little smaller, but it was inside Disney World so we were happier than a kid in a candy store!

After a bit of table exercises, we were on our way to EPCOT!!!

When we were waiting at the bus stop, this picture was taken. I really don't remember what was going on, but it was too hilarious for me not to include in the report.

As we were walking in, we ran into this guy:

Last year, Lauryn was scared of every character, even the princesses. Every character, except for Drusilla so I was not surprised when she wouldn't go up to Stitch. Bubby had absolutely no problem with meeting Stitch and since there was no one around he got to spend a lot of quality time with him. He went straight for his nose and was promptly put in his place by the handler, so we moved on .

Next up, was Daisy and surprise, surprise Lauryn ran right up to her and gave her a big hug. We had to hurry and get a pic of that!

Donnie Jr. had to get a pic with his kids in front of Spaceship Earth!

It was cold out there today, surprisingly cold.

We then headed to The Land to ride Soarin, but before we got there we ran into a very short line to see these fair maidens:

As you can see, Lauryn is back to hating the characters.

Farrah was getting anxious to get on Soarin, so we headed straight there!

 

[Sneezie]

Farrah and I caught a ride on Soarin while Donnie Jr took his kids on Living with the Land, then we all headed for Nemo

We then spent a lot of time walking around the The Living Seas! This is a new must-see for us. We spent about an hour in there for sure.

Next, we walked over to Test Track. Bubby had fallen asleep so Donnie Jr. and Farrah rode it while I waited with the kids. Just as they walked into the building, Lauryn announced that she had to use it! Someone out there probably has a video of me push/pulling two strollers up the ramp to this little hidden gem of a bathroom just to the right of Test Track. I tried to walk the two umbrella strollers side by side but they kept bumping into each other or going in opposite directions so I finally set it up where I was pushing one stroller in front of me and pulling the other behind me. I got a lot of stares and points, but I was making things happen!

We finally made it to the bathroom (thanks to the wonderful people who held the door open for me). Lauryn used it and we headed back. Now that I knew how to position the strollers, the trip back wasn't that bad. Farrah and Donnie Jr. were waiting for me when I returned and they laughed at me (as family is known to do). I jumped into the Single Rider line to get my ride in and we moved on.

We headed to World Showcase to see The Voices of Liberty and The American Adventure (another must-do). We ran into some pals and got some pictures:

and finally the Big Cheese himself!

When we finally got to the American Pavillion we found out that the Voices of Liberty weren't singing that day and there was still about twenty minutes until the next showing of The American Adventure so we played around for a while. Watched the fife and drum band then went inside to get in line for the show.

Wonderful show! I highly recommend it. The first time I saw it (Sept 2009), Lauryn and I were chosen as The First Family, probably because she ran into the middle of the room (where the Voices of Liberty sing) and started singing 'Doe, A Deer, A Female Deer' at the top of her lungs, to my great embarrassment.

After walking through the rest of World Showcase, we headed back to the entrance of Epcot, but first we had to get a ride on the big, golf ball and send our videos back home. (Another must do)

We had enjoyed our day at Epcot, but now it was time for dinner...

We decided to try and get a table at 'Ohana, so we hopped on the monorail.

I don't normally ride the monorail, because I have a great fear of being stuck in enclosed spaces, but I suffered through it!

We got to 'Ohana and I went to check for a table while Donnie Jr. and Farrah took the kiddies to the restroom. I was told that the wait time was one hour and 40 minutes. We really want to eat at 'Ohana, so I took a table buzzer thingy and met up with the family waiting in the little wait area right outside of the restaurant. Just as I was opening my mouth to tell them how long we had to wait, the buzzer went off. I just knew it was some kind of mistake, so I went back to the podium to tell them about it, but they were actually ready for us They said someone was a no-show, so we lucked out!!!

We enjoyed our 'Ohana meal. We try not to eat too much so that we have room for the dessert, but we never do. By the end of the meal we were all stuffed.

Now it's time to head back to the room, Farrah and Donnie Jr. wanted to take the monorail to The Magic Kingdom and get a bus from there, but I was definitely not taking a monorail at night, so I let them go and I headed to the Polynesian bus stop to catch a bus somewhere to get back to POR. They told me how silly I was, but I didn't care.

When I got to the bus stop, there was a bus there headed to Downtown Disney, so I hopped on and transferred to a POR bus that happened to be waiting at Downtown Disney (how lucky was that)! I made it back to the room a good 10 minutes before they did!!

We'd had a good day but we were ready for some sleep. Tomorrow was Animal Kingdom Day!

 

[GAN]

Looks like everyone had a ball -great shots!

 

[Sneezie]

Looks like everyone had a ball -great shots!

Wow! I have a reader!!! Welcome. Thanks for reading!

 

[Sneezie]

Today, we were headed to Animal Kingdom. We woke up early and the kids enjoyed Lucky Charms (the marshmallows only) in the room. The older kids ate Rice Krispies treats and fruit cups and we headed out the door. Yep, it was still cold!

The bus came quickly and soon enough we were walking toward this:

When we got through the gate we headed straight to The Festival of the Lion King. We were able to walk right into a show. The kids were enthralled!

Can't you tell?

We all love, love, love The Festival of the Lion King! I love doing the hand jive! I love doing the Aweemah Ways (or however you spell it) I do the Aweemah Ways no matter what section I'm in

Next, we got in line for The Nemo Show. I love this show, as well. It's not as interactive as The Lion King show, but Finding Nemo is my favorite Disney movie and I think the show tells the story pretty well. I also like the songs! Sorry, no pictures here. The kids loved catching the bubbles at the end of the show.

Next stop was the Dinoland/Expedition Everest switch off. While two of us stayed with the kiddies to ride Triceratop Spin the other one jumped into the EE Single Rider line. So, the kiddies got to get their fill of the Round and Round and we all got our EE ride on.

I was the first to go on EE and while I was waiting with the kiddies, Bubby fell asleep followed closely by Lauryn. I sat on a bench next to a DVC kiosk.

The DVC cast member came over and struck up a conversation. She started telling me about the different types of DVC resorts we could buy into and the prices. I'll admit that I'd done a little research on renting points for our last night (remember we still didn't have a hotel to stay in for the night before we drove home), but it was very hard to find an available room for one night so I'd just decided to Priceline a room the night before we needed it.

Farrah came up to us and started listening to the girl too (I've forgotten her name) and she told us that we could go and see a presentation and they would give us a gift certificate just for going. Well, that's all we needed to hear! We knew we weren't going to buy into it, but the kids were sleeping and we had nothing else to do, so we might as well go and get us a free gift certificate. DVC lady told us to come back at 4pm and they would have a van ready to take us to the DVC office.

So, while Bubby slept (Lauryn had only taken a cat nap) Farrah and Donnie Jr. rode EE. Lauryn and I watched the people come down the big hill on EE and she cheered. Every. Time. She wanted to ride EE so badly!!! She even made Farrah take her to the measuring stick to prove that she was not tall enough and when she saw that she wasn't, she whined because she wanted the stick to be looowweer!!!

Once Brandon woke up, we headed to the safari.

Then we went through the Pangani trail. Soon, it was time to head back to Dinoland for our shuttle to the DVC presentation.