Lucky '13 (OCT/MNSSHP/F&W/TOT10M/OMG/LOL/BBQ PTR) Updated 09/25

[holleypie]

My favorite little companion and I ran the Doctor Who Virtual Half Marathon this morning.

I feel the need to explain three weird things about this picture.

1. He has a huge knot/bruise between his eyes. That happened at his grandmother's house, NOT on my watch.
2. Some kids drag around a stuffed animal or favorite blanket. My son carries cutlery. Today it was a tablespoon and an ice cream scoop.
3. Yes, he's in his pajamas. I knew he would fall asleep so I wanted him to be comfortable. Okay, actually I was just too lazy to get him dressed.

I've never done a virtual race before, but the Doctor Who medal was AWESOME, and the $20 entry fee benefited the Boston Marathon Victims Fund. The run could be completed anytime from June to November, but I picked this week because I had a 12 mile long run scheduled anyway.

Our 13.1 mile adventure began with a visit to the library so I could pick up some movies for tonight. I rarely watch them, but I won $5 worth of free movie rentals in a contest at work. So, you know, can't let that go to waste.

We did a loop back to the house and then we started off on the long out and back. We did the same basic route through the neighborhood that I usually run. Luke slept through most of the first half. When he woke up, he was happy as long as I kept supplying him with goldfish crackers. We made a stop at 7-Eleven for some Gatorade (I had to buy two bottles because they were either $2.50 for one, or $3.00 for two ). I had a GU (aka a shot of cake frosting) at about mile 4 and mile 9. Normally I'd only have one on a run of that length, but pushing the stroller requires waaaaay more effort than running alone, so I figured I could use the extra energy.

We finished in about three hours and fifteen minutes. I wore my Nike+ JUST so I could have an exact time, but then I didn't stop it when I thought I had, so I had to estimate anyway.


So, running this "race" this morning made me think about my strategy for the 10 Miler. My original intention was to run it "for fun" and stop for all the character photos.

Characters on the course last year, according to Unofficial Disney Character Hunting Guide

-Big Bad Wolf
-Haunted Mansion Grave Diggers
-Hyenas from The Lion King
-Stitch
-Dr. Facilier

The only one I have no interest in stopping for is Stitch. If he was in a special outfit I would stop for sure since he's the race mascot (for some inane reason), but you can meet regular Stitch any time. The others, I just don't know. There aren't Photopass photographers on the course, and I'm not sure if my camera can take good pictures at night. Plus I'll be alone and would have to do the awkward "can you take my picture?" thing.

I want to maximize my time at the party, so I don't want to spend TOO long on the race course. But I can also see my competitive side kicking in and running it fast as I can. So...I JUST DON'T KNOW. I guess I'll wait and see how I'm feeling. After a week of vacationing and eating crap, it's very possible I'll want to mosey my way along the course and take as many photos as possible.

Despite my earlier lies, Brian IS going to meet me at the Villains Bash. There was some miscommunication between us (shocking!) and he thought I was going to order his ticket. So, I ordered it and it came today. I had to laugh when I opened it. One of the things I love about Disney is their immersive theming and intense attention to detail. Here's his spooky ticket:

Aunt Tabby will be watching Luke so we'll have a rare opportunity to RIDE THINGS TOGETHER. If I remember correctly the rides that are open will be Tower of Terror, Rock 'N Roller Coaster, Star Tours, Toy Story Midway Mania, and The Great Movie Ride. I'd like to try to get on everything, except GMR because we can easily do that with Luke.

Also, these villains were out last year:

-Captain Hook
-Cruella DeVil
-Darth Vader
-Evil Queen from Snow White
-Gaston
-Jafar
-Maleficient

I'd like to meet at least one or two of the rarer ones. We've already met Hook and Jafar, and Gaston's not hard to find. Vader would be a good one to meet...but I'm kind of terrified of him.

 

[PrincessInOz]

That's a nice range of characters that will be out for the run. Have fun chasing them.

 

[1000HappyWishes]

Mind if a sub in a little late?

Just want to say, I'm a HUGE Whovian and also own quite a collection of Green Lantern shirts. I'm really looking forward to your trip!

 

[Alysa]

Oooo - a virtual Doctor Who race!? Tell me more! Where can I find out about this?

 

[holleypie]

That's a nice range of characters that will be out for the run. Have fun chasing them.

Or running from them...

Mind if a sub in a little late?

Just want to say, I'm a HUGE Whovian and also own quite a collection of Green Lantern shirts. I'm really looking forward to your trip!

Welcome!

Brian said he's going to try NOT wearing any Lantern shirts on vacation this year. I'm not sure if it can be done.

Oooo - a virtual Doctor Who race!? Tell me more! Where can I find out about this?

The facebook group is here. The "about" page has links to the paypal registration pages. You can do a half marathon, 5K, or one mile fun run. The registration deadline is September 30th but you have until November 30th to finish the run. I actually got my medal in the mail the day after we did our run, so that was great timing.

 

[glaserjm]

Great update! I think that virtual race idea is awesome...I wonder if they do others besides the Doctor Who one...I think I'll have to investigate.

I hear ya about the race strategy. I'm doing my first runDisney (Jingle Jungle 5k) on our upcoming trip and although it's a really easy distance and I'm really only doing it for run, I have trouble not running a whole race and don't know how I'll feel about stopping. I'm guessing it will be a gametime decision.

I LOVE that he carries around kitchen utensils!

 

[holleypie]

Great update! I think that virtual race idea is awesome...I wonder if they do others besides the Doctor Who one...I think I'll have to investigate.

I hear ya about the race strategy. I'm doing my first runDisney (Jingle Jungle 5k) on our upcoming trip and although it's a really easy distance and I'm really only doing it for run, I have trouble not running a whole race and don't know how I'll feel about stopping. I'm guessing it will be a gametime decision.

I LOVE that he carries around kitchen utensils!

I know there are others out there. I thought about doing a Star Wars themed one before I found the Doctor Who race.

I don't know why I'm so nervous about running "just for fun." I am NOT fast, so it's not like I haven't had super slow finish times before!

He is pretty adorable with his utensils, especially when he's trying to play with other toys but refuses to put down the five spoons in his hand.

 

[PrincessInOz]

Holleypie - I fly out in a couple of days. I will be disconnecting as much as possible from the internet whilst on vacay. So I wish you a happy countdown and I'll catch up when I return.

Hope to see your round the BCV. We're checking in late on the 29th. I'll keep an eye out for the stroller.

 

[holleypie]

Holleypie - I fly out in a couple of days. I will be disconnecting as much as possible from the internet whilst on vacay. So I wish you a happy countdown and I'll catch up when I return.

Hope to see your round the BCV. We're checking in late on the 29th. I'll keep an eye out for the stroller.

I can't believe it's here already! I hope you have a great flight and wonderful trip. I'll keep an eye out for you too. I cannot wait to read all about your adventures!

 

[blklotus]

I just stumbled across your PTR today and read the whole thing! Looks like you're in for a fun trip (though I wouldn't be able to pull off the running part -- you're a braver woman than I)! Hopefully the drive will be uneventful and you'll be able to make it down in one piece in the shortest amount of time possible. I live in Northern VA and haven't yet attempted to brave the "Disney drive" and instead generally opt to fly (though trying to get to National on a weekday morning is about equivalent to the time it would take to just drive to Orlando). Have fun!!

 

[Dis_Yoda]

So what corral did you get?

You should be able to get away someone helping you take pictures I think, at least looking at the pictures from last year's race.

 

[holleypie]

I just stumbled across your PTR today and read the whole thing! Looks like you're in for a fun trip (though I wouldn't be able to pull off the running part -- you're a braver woman than I)! Hopefully the drive will be uneventful and you'll be able to make it down in one piece in the shortest amount of time possible. I live in Northern VA and haven't yet attempted to brave the "Disney drive" and instead generally opt to fly (though trying to get to National on a weekday morning is about equivalent to the time it would take to just drive to Orlando). Have fun!!

Thanks! I think the reason I loved driving last time is because I'm a bit of a pack rat and I could haul so much more junk with me when we drove. I think it should be a fun time, though.

So what corral did you get?

You should be able to get away someone helping you take pictures I think, at least looking at the pictures from last year's race.

I'm in C! The first three corrals are the smallest, so I should be okay time-wise if I decide to stop for pictures. But now I'm starting to worry that I'm out of my league and all the fast people will run me over....

 

[holleypie]

Since I haven't been to SeaWorld in the past decade, I've been spending a lot of time researching what they have and coming up with a general plan for our day there.

The other day I asked Brian if he wanted to do any shows at SeaWorld and he said, "THAT'S THE POINT OF GOING TO SEAWORLD." Okay then, I guess we're doing some shows!

If all goes according to plan, we should be able to hit all the shows that are running that day. They are...

-A'Lure, The Call of the Ocean: "It's a mariners story that comes to life with flying athletic performers, gravity-defying aerial tumblers and amazing acrobatics."

-Blue Horizons: "This unique, theatrical spectacular features dolphins, tropical birds and acrobats." It seems kind of weird that there are two acrobat shows. I wouldn't have guessed marine life and acrobats would go together.

-Clyde and Seamore Take Pirate Island: "This sensational tale of lost loot, pirate plunder and misadventure is full of hilarious hijinks." My only memory of visiting Seaworld 15 years ago is watching a funny show with sea lions, and I think this might have been it. My parents, who went more recently, also concur that this show is hilarious.

-One Ocean: "Majestic killer whales join you on a journey into a world that drenches your senses in vivid colors, vitality, and the global rhythms of the ocean in our all-new Shamu show, One Ocean®." What a poetic description.

-Pets Ahoy: "Dogs and cats, ducks and doves, potbellied pigs and a few surprise animal guest stars will show you just what SeaWorld Orlandos encouragement-based training techniques can accomplish."

Our hotel is a SeaWorld partner hotel so we'll get a "Quick Queue" pass that lets you skip to the front of the line for certain rides. I have to say...ethically I have a HUGE problem with front-of-the-line passes. Everyone knows that cutting in line is wrong and against the rules. But...if you're willing to pay more money, it's okay??? I just don't get it. It feels dirty and elitist and wrong. The FastPass system at Disney is completely different because you're still waiting your turn (and it's free!). But the thing is, for some reason I don't have a problem with them being given out as a perk for staying at a certain resort. I just object to the whole marketing of them, and the idea of outright PAYING to cut in line. So I probably sound like a hypocrite when I say that we're going to gleefully use our Quick Queue passes.

Here are the attractions we can use it for:

-Manta: A roller coaster with a "head-first, face-down-inverted nosedive." Yeah...I don't know about this one.

-Kraken: Another scary-looking coaster, but looks more manageable than Manta.

-Antarctica: Empire of the Penguin: This "trackless, motion-based simulator experience" has "mild" and "wild" versions, so Luke can ride it.

-Journey to Atlantis: A water ride. I'm not a fan of water rides, and Luke's too small, so I'll probably sit this one out.

-TurtleTrek: I basically have no idea what this is. I think it might be a show, or exhibit, or something.

-Sky Tower: Sounds like the same thing as the Hershey Kiss Tower at Hershey Park, so we can all do this one.

-Wild Arctic: Another simulator ride, with a non-motion theater option.


I think the Quick Queue covers most of the "big rides." And then there's Shamu's Happy Harbor (AKA Rides for Luke!)

-Jazzy Jellies: Tea cups.

-Net Climb: It's...a net climb.

-Ocean Commotion: Looks like a smaller tamer version of the pirate ship?

-Sea Carousel: Your basic carousel, with sea creatures.

-Swishy Fishies: More tea cups?

-Shamu Express: Kiddie coaster, too big for Luke and probably too small for us.


There are also aquariums and animal exhibits throughout the park. It actually looks like a ton of stuff to do. I hope we have time for everything. I'm not sure where we'll be having lunch, but The Spice Mill looks like it had a few vegetarian options.

Anyone out there been to SeaWorld lately? Any tips or advice?

 

[holleypie]

Only 11 more days! That's just crazy.

I didn't do this in my last PTR, but I thought that writing about our daily plans would make a fun countdown. So here we go.

Day 0 and Day 1 (Friday and Saturday)

Originally we were going to drive straight through on Friday night so Luke could sleep on the drive there. This plan had us arriving in Orlando dead tired at around 7am with the possibility that our room at the Residence Inn wouldn't be ready until 4pm. So...we decided it might be prudent to change our plans a little.

Now we're going to drive through Maryland, Virginia and North Carolina on Friday night, sleep at a Days Inn for a few hours, then get up early on Saturday and drive the rest of the way through South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida. That'll be a little over six hours for Friday, and a little under seven for Saturday. Now we should arrive in the early afternoon with only a few hours to kill if our room isn't ready.

With this change of plans, we decided to hit a park on Saturday instead of lounging at the hotel. So after we check in and throw our stuff down, we're going straight to the Magic Kingdom!

I already decided that our first ride of the trip should be...

I'd also like to do:

Tis the season.

Dumbo was Luke's first ride ever, but he didn't get to play in the circus area last year because he was asleep. Also, he couldn't walk yet. I think he will love it.

I think he would also enjoy the splash area. We'll just have to remember to bring his bathing suit and/or a change of clothes.

We only did Goofy/Donald last year, so it would be nice to meet the ladies.

Magic Kingdom closes at midnight tonight but I seriously doubt we'll be hanging around that long. According to Josh at easywdw.com, this day will be the busiest day of the month of September at Magic Kingdom. But I've totally fallen in love with the idea of starting and ending each trip at MK if at all possible, so we'll deal with the crowds and just go in with low expectations.

If Magic Kingdom is too crowded, maybe we'll head over to Pepper Market or Art of Animation for some dinner. Pepper Market was our favorite meal from last trip, and Art of Animation has my favorite dessert. We'll see!

 

[holleypie]

Our Magic Bands arrived this morning! Brian was following the tracking online and saw that they'd been delivered. When he went outside to look for them on the front step, the UPS guy was walking up to the door.

This is one of TWO boxes we received, sent overnight priority mail, which Brian says costs an insane amount of money. Because we couldn't get a one bedroom that first night at the Beach Club, we have two reservations so they sent us TWO sets of Magic Bands.

Okay, on with the plans...

Day 2 (Sunday)

This was originally our Magic Kingdom day, but now we're switching things around. Apparently my sister intended to go to the parks on THREE different days, but she bought a FOUR day ticket because she thought she needed the extra day to get into the water parks. They didn't have anything planned for Sunday, and the only park they were skipping was DHS, so we decided to go there today.

Actually, Tabby and Brian decided this while I protested that DHS has EMH that night so I'm worried it's going to be packed.

I'm hoping we'll get there super early so we can ride Toy Story Midway Mania and/or get FastPasses for it.

Next order of business? We have to get an updated photo here:

Brian, Luke, and I have Star Wars shirts to wear today, so it should be super cute.

Then we have to do my FAVORITE ride:

Tommy is NOT a fan of the Tower of Terror, so I'm sure he'd be willing to watch Luke while Brian and Tabby and I ride it together.

I'd also like to take Luke back to visit this ridiculous place:

We went to the show on our last trip but he was only a year old and didn't watch TV so he had NO idea who any of those characters were. But this year he's been watching Jake and the Neverland Pirates, so he'll have some context. I ranted quite a bit about this show in my last trip report. The show has changed since then and now includes Doc McStuffins and Sofia the First. I'm SURE it's even worse. I can't wait.

As far as meals go, we'll be having breakfast for free at the hotel. I figure we'll probably have lunch at the park but I'm not looking forward to it. I have yet to find edible counter service at DHS. Maybe I should pack a sandwich. I would definitely like to leave the park for dinner, but who knows where we'll end up.

 

[SAT887]

Yaaaay for magic bands!!! I had serious MB envy and almost changed our resort for the trip we were on... I'm glad I didn't though... It was funny my daughter suffered from it as well, at all the rides she put her bare wrist up to the Mickey heads and told the CMs it worked... Hehe

Also how has training been going? Excited for the 10 miler??

 

[holleypie]

Yaaaay for magic bands!!! I had serious MB envy and almost changed our resort for the trip we were on... I'm glad I didn't though... It was funny my daughter suffered from it as well, at all the rides she put her bare wrist up to the Mickey heads and told the CMs it worked... Hehe

Also how has training been going? Excited for the 10 miler??

Haha, that's adorable. I'd been pretty neutral about the Magic Bands until I realized they would eliminate the need for me to fumble for cards and keys and passes. Now I'm sold.

Training has actually been going GREAT. I'm getting my mileage in and haven't had any injuries or pains. But, I don't have access to a gym or treadmill and I'm NOT running the streets after dark, so I haven't managed to do any late-night runs. I'm a little nervous about that, but not too much. If I feel like crap I'll just walk and stop for lots of pictures.

 

[holleypie]

I took Luke to the track this morning to practice running. He did great--about 1/4 of a mile in 20 minutes.

Today our countdown has reached the single-digits--nine days!

Last night when we were out running errands Brian said to me, "You know how people on the Disboards say they're doing the double-digit dance? Well, tomorrow, we can do the single-digit shuffle."

I said, "I don't know that. You'll have to teach it to me."

He said, "There isn't really a single-digit shuffle. I can't teach it to you."

So I invented a single-digit shuffle dance in the parking lot at Target. Brian walked away and pretended he didn't know me.

On with the plans...

Day 3 (Monday)

Today we're going to SeaWorld.

Our hotel has a shuttle that we can take, so we'll likely do that. I already wrote about most of our SeaWorld plans, but to recap: We're optimistically planning on doing everything. We'll see how that goes.

After we leave SeaWorld, we're checking into...the Beach Club!

I don't know about Tabby and Tommy, but Brian, Luke, and I will probably do SOMETHING Disney-related in the evening. Magic Kingdom is open until midnight, so I told Brian he could head over there alone if he wanted (we both had a lot of fun last year when we did our solo "night out.") Going over to Epcot to watch Illuminations is also a possibility.

Not sure what we'll do about dinner--maybe something quick at the resort, or something simple in the room?

 

[holleypie]

8 more days!

Day 4 (Tuesday)

Today we're going to Animal Kingdom!

And we're going to be using FastPass+ for the first time. Ooooh.

You've probably seen tons of threads about FastPass+ by now. Predictably, we had issues with it. Brian was able to enter his annual pass AND my sister's four-day pass, but the website wouldn't recognize my annual pass or Tommy's four-day pass. Brian called and talked to someone (which took FOREVER) and somehow this ended up with my and Brian's passes now entered, but Tabby and Tommy's tickets showing up on some other part of the website due to some kind of computer glitch, so we weren't able to select any FastPasses for them. After another series of phone calls and emails, Brian was told to just make the FastPass selections for himself and me, and that we could get them to add Tabby and Tommy on when we check in to the Beach Club. But, a few days ago Tabby and Tommy's tickets finally popped up in the proper place. So, FP+ testing has been loads of fun already.

I have a hard enough time making advance dining reservations, so trying to make advance ride reservations was really tough. I didn't want to make them too early because I have no idea how fast the five of us will be able to get ready and make it to the park. Also, I don't know when Luke will nap. It's very possible that during the times I scheduled us to ride something as a group, my sweet little boy will be fast asleep in the stroller.

Anyway. Our FastPass+ selections for today are:

-Kilimanjaro Safari, so I can take some more of my award-winning wildlife photography.

-Expedition Everest. Practically obligatory.

-Dinosaur. Sure, why not?

The system is set up so that you pick the three attractions you want, and then it comes up with four possible scenarios (and it takes your dining reservations into account, so that's nice). Then you can go in and change each individual time if you want. During testing it sounds like we'll probably be able to change our times on the fly if we need to, but who knows what will happen after it's fully implemented.

Other than those rides, I'd like to let Luke play at the Boneyard. He had fun cruising and crawling around there in December.

I'd also like to meet some characters. We've never met Pocahontas, Rafiki, or Dug & Russell.

Today we're checking out of our studio at the Beach Club and moving to a one-bedroom. Changing rooms is a pain, but it's so much easier if you're staying at the same resort! After we leave Animal Kingdom, we'll probably go grocery shopping if we haven't already. Then we're heading to Downtown Disney for dinner and possibly some Disney Quest.

 

[holleypie]

Day 5 (Wednesday)

Brian, Tabby, and Tommy are going to the water park in the morning. Luke and I...are not. I don't swim and I might possibly be a little terrified of water. We'll likely head over to Epcot instead.

We might visit our old friend Duffy.

Can you see the love?

He has so much fun with that bear.

We can do the Gran Fiesta Tour. He actually does like Donald Duck.

We're also planning on spending the afternoon/evening at Epcot when everyone else is done at the water parks. We selected FastPass+ for:

Test Track

Soarin'

and Maelstrom. Not exactly our top priority rides, but we don't really HAVE any top priority rides at Epcot, and Brian wouldn't let me pick Captain EO.

Speaking of Captain EO...I really want to make Tabby and Tommy see it, and I'd also like to get our free Visa picture at Innoventions.

Day 6 (Thursday)


Tabby and Tommy are spending all day at Magic Kingdom, while Brian, Luke, and I head back to Epcot in the morning. We picked the same FastPass+ selections as yesterday. That seems kind of boring, doesn't it?

In the afternoon, we're going over to Magic Kingdom for Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween party!

We need to eat before the party starts, and Columbia Harbor House closes at 5pm, so maybe we'll have a super early dinner around 4:30 and then get on some rides until the party starts.

There's a party-exclusive Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom card, so I'm SURE we will need to stop by the fire station ASAP to pick that up.

As much as I'd love to meet the Seven Dwarfs or Jack and Sally, I'm just not willing to make the time commitment to standing in their lines. I haven't met Donald or Daisy in their Halloween costumes, so I'd like to get a photo with them.

and Lotso (mostly so I can sniff him).

We've met Aladdin and Abu but not Genie and Jasmine, plus Tarzan but not Jane, so we might give one of those lines a try.

We have to do the trick-or-treat trails because Luke is old enough to Trick or Treat this year! I also want to hit one of the dance parties (both if he seems to enjoy them). We've done Woody/Jessie/Bullseye before, so we'll try the Monsters Inc one first.

We'll likely watch Celebrate the Magic and HalloWishes from Main Street. Last year Luke did NOT like the fireworks, so I don't know how this year will go. We're planning to watch the second parade. This year, I demand a decent spot on the curb.

How late we stay will depend on Luke. If he's asleep in the stroller or still raring to go, we'll stay until midnight and ride some more rides. If he's Mr. Crank Pants like last year, we'll probably head out with the masses soon after the parade.