MagicBands + Margaritas + Muggles + Minions = TRP. New TR link is up! 10/31

[eandesmom]

Evan looks great! I hope they won't be too hot.

Me too. The whole thing is the real deal...which means wool.

However they won't be in them all day and I think until relatively close to parade time, will be in their band tees that go under the jacket. The parade itself (well their parade) is 14 minutes I am told. I want to melt when I see what the drum major wears!

Mickey Mail!!!!!!!

Your son looks awesome in his kilt! They both have grown so much - amazing.

I know, young men. Crazy isn't it!

Sorry for not posting much lately, but I have been so busy. I did read, but never got around to posting much.

No worries at all Karin! I am behind everywhere and am much in the same boat.

Yay Got it today. I knew it had to be coming because I got the return ME a couple days ago and Denny opened it. He asked if you were coming from Alaska? Denny. Sheesh.

that's funny. Our first set of bands will probably ship soon

Looks like Jeff is going to have to be out of town right before our trip, and then again after, so this could get interesting, ugh.

That uniform is very elaborate and very cool. I take it they don't normally wear that? I love it! I just want to know this - Are the shoes comfortable because they sure don't look it! Oh you are going to have so much fun watching them march.

Oh it's the normal marching band uniform, he's just never been issued one. You get it spring of your freshman year and unless you outgrow it or change instruments (pipers and drum line have different ones) then you keep it all 4 years. It's not what pep band wears, or what any of the concert bands would wear for a performance.

As for the shoes, it's "any" black shoe. The white spats attach over the top of the foot so it's just for show, it's not part of the shoe. For Evan, as it's just this one parade now (though there may be a few over the summer) he's just wearing his band black dress shoes (YAY goodwill, $12!) and with how fast his feet have been going I was thrilled that he was fine with that (his suggestion) versus buying him a more comfortable option.

That kilt is great and he looks awesome and secretly happy.

He's not secretly happy, he's most definitely happy just tolerating a picture. Which for him these days shows how happy he was as he can't stand me taking pics at all. Unless he's thrilled with himself.

Yay for fun Mickey mail, you ladies are going to have a blast.

 

[teekathepony]

Love the uniform! One dress rehearsal? Wow, good luck to them!
YAYY Mickey Mail! And DISmeets planned too!

Sent from my iPad using DISBoards

 

[MAGICFOR2]

Evan looks great in his Kilt! What is the significance of the kilt for his school?

Where are you on your work trip? Maybe you can at least get a run in outside. It is 85 every day here now, but when we go outside our allergies are acting up. Once the allergies are gone, it will be 100. I'm planning to go join the Y because they are the only ones who have water aerobics here, but not until May because it's still too cold.

 

[MEK]

Looks like Jeff is going to have to be out of town right before our trip, and then again after, so this could get interesting, ugh.

Oh brother. Let the stressful mom planning begin.

Oh it's the normal marching band uniform, he's just never been issued one. You get it spring of your freshman year and unless you outgrow it or change instruments (pipers and drum line have different ones) then you keep it all 4 years. It's not what pep band wears, or what any of the concert bands would wear for a performance.

Well that is one COOL uniform. All the high schools around here seem to have very traditional uniforms. I love his. Do the girls wear the same thing?

As for the shoes, it's "any" black shoe. The white spats attach over the top of the foot so it's just for show, it's not part of the shoe. For Evan, as it's just this one parade now (though there may be a few over the summer) he's just wearing his band black dress shoes (YAY goodwill, $12!) and with how fast his feet have been going I was thrilled that he was fine with that (his suggestion) versus buying him a more comfortable option.

That makes total sense. - the spat things. My marching band shoes are actually not leather, but they are super comfortable and were so much cheaper. Nothing worse than painful shoes while marching. $12 is a great bargain!

Once again - you must take tons of pictures of the band.

 

[Chilly]

Evan looks fab, bet he is real excited, can't believe it's next week.

 

[franandaj]

I can't believe it's coming up so quick! I just put you in my phone. What time is your B2B reservation?

Even's uniform looks cute on him. Unfortunately he wil most likely be overheated and sweating. Make sure he has a handkerchief or bandana in his pocket to wipe the sweat out of his eyes. Trust me I know a thing or two about marching in Southern California.

The weather here has been hot! Yesterday we were playing in the garden. I had put on a T-shirt and had to go change into a tank top. Even then I was still hot. I'm happy we're supposed to be hit with a marine layer in the morning. The high today will be around 68 and that's cool for what it has been.

Good luck on your run tomorrow.

 

[15isto2]

So is Evan fed up being asked what's worn under his kilt yet?

My persona favourate response to that is "nothing its all in working order"

 

[natebenma]

Reading while at the beach or in the room????

Both boys, but mostly Nate (my non-reader), would spend a lot of the day in a lounger near the pool reading. He would take a dip for a minute or two if he got hot, then back to reading. Last year it was The Hobbit, this year Nate was into Jurassic Park and Game of Thrones.

 

[Poolrat]

I'm planning to go join the Y because they are the only ones who have water aerobics here, but not until May because it's still too cold.

Evan looks great even if he is tolerating pictures.


Oh How I want some Mickey Mail.....

 

[eandesmom]

Love the uniform! One dress rehearsal? Wow, good luck to them!

I know, a little scary huh! Not that many rehearsals really but the vast majority of the kids have done this before, it's just getting the freshman "trained"

YAYY Mickey Mail! And DISmeets planned too!

Sent from my iPad using DISBoards

Nothing better than Mickey Mail and DISmeets!

Well except for the actual TRIP!

Evan looks great in his Kilt! What is the significance of the kilt for his school?

the Highlanders are their mascot. Apparently when the school was founded, mascot and colors chosen etc they basically found a clan plaid that matched the colors, and then were able to get permission from the head of the clan to use that plaid as thier official tartan. we have 4 different versions (much as my family's tartan does) and you'll see the different ones specifically on the band, pipers and lassies.

Where are you on your work trip? Maybe you can at least get a run in outside. It is 85 every day here now, but when we go outside our allergies are acting up. Once the allergies are gone, it will be 100. I'm planning to go join the Y because they are the only ones who have water aerobics here, but not until May because it's still too cold.

I was in Phoenix. Mornings and early evenings would have been lovely but there just wasn't time with the schedule I had. I think it was good that I took the time off, this morning likely went a bit better as a result and my knee still isn't 100%

Oh brother. Let the stressful mom planning begin.

Yeah, we will see what happens, major drama on that side! UGH.

Well that is one COOL uniform. All the high schools around here seem to have very traditional uniforms. I love his. Do the girls wear the same thing?

Yes, girls wear exactly what the guys do. Only changes are by group, the drum line has a different uniform as do the pipers and lassies.

That makes total sense. - the spat things. My marching band shoes are actually not leather, but they are super comfortable and were so much cheaper. Nothing worse than painful shoes while marching. $12 is a great bargain!

Well I am not sure how comfy they are but they will do for this trip and we will likely have to get something a bit more comfy for fall season. I don't know yet what kind of summer parade schedule they will have but I think they have 1 or 2.

Once again - you must take tons of pictures of the band.

Yes, it will be the one day the good camera comes out. My mom will take amazing ones...but it could be a year before I see them.

Evan looks fab, bet he is real excited, can't believe it's next week.

He is VERY excited! Got his suitcase out today. He has to turn in his luggage on Wednesday as they are driving all the instruments, uniforms and luggage down.

I can't believe it's coming up so quick! I just put you in my phone. What time is your B2B reservation?

12:50

Even's uniform looks cute on him. Unfortunately he wil most likely be overheated and sweating. Make sure he has a handkerchief or bandana in his pocket to wipe the sweat out of his eyes. Trust me I know a thing or two about marching in Southern California.

They will melt. They will have a full hour and a half in 60-68 degrees tomorrow night so that will help a little but it's not the same. Pretty positive they can't carry anything with them but I will mention it. The chaperones have hydration check ins during the day before the parade so hopefully that will help.

The weather here has been hot! Yesterday we were playing in the garden. I had put on a T-shirt and had to go change into a tank top. Even then I was still hot. I'm happy we're supposed to be hit with a marine layer in the morning. The high today will be around 68 and that's cool for what it has been.

Yes, it looks quite warm so far, as far as I can see out. We will see if that holds. I want the sun and heat but don't want the kids to melt. And of course the parade time is right at the peak of the day heat wise.

Good luck on your run tomorrow.

Thanks! It went pretty well, overall I am pleased. A bit stressful at the start. It was crazy crowded and while we thought we'd planned for it...we should have left a bit earlier than we did. But it worked out and I had a ton of fun with Ann. Jeff too lol.

 

[eandesmom]

So is Evan fed up being asked what's worn under his kilt yet?

I don't think he's been asked yet but it's a matter of time I'm sure.

My persona favourate response to that is "nothing its all in working order"

Both boys, but mostly Nate (my non-reader), would spend a lot of the day in a lounger near the pool reading. He would take a dip for a minute or two if he got hot, then back to reading. Last year it was The Hobbit, this year Nate was into Jurassic Park and Game of Thrones.

hey if that gets your non reader to read, that's awesome! It's sad to watch them grow up though, Evan is definitely moving into a "too cool to play in the pool" phase. At least with his brother. Friends...that's another story.

Evan looks great even if he is tolerating pictures.

Yes, hopefully I will catch him when he is not looking on the trip and we will see a real smile.

Oh How I want some Mickey Mail.....

Hopefully you can rectify that before too long.

 

[IheartDDuck]

Our Toy Story FP might overlap! But, that depends on our flight. I have been eyeballing getting an earlier flight, but the price on Southwest just hasn't dropped! For the moment, we land at 4:35pm, so if we get no delays and luggage comes through nice and easy, we may be able to make our window of 6:20 to 7:20pm. But we'll see.

Worst comes to worst, we can do any ride together and then watch the fireworks.

I totally tried to update one of my TR's recently and realized that I was missing a bunch of pictures. Apparently, I never uploaded them to photo bucket.

 

[eandesmom]

Our Toy Story FP might overlap! But, that depends on our flight. I have been eyeballing getting an earlier flight, but the price on Southwest just hasn't dropped! For the moment, we land at 4:35pm, so if we get no delays and luggage comes through nice and easy, we may be able to make our window of 6:20 to 7:20pm. But we'll see.

I know how that goes, we can exchange texts and play it by ear. It's possible you just never know with that kind of timeframe

Worst comes to worst, we can do any ride together and then watch the fireworks.

Sounds good!!!

I totally tried to update one of my TR's recently and realized that I was missing a bunch of pictures. Apparently, I never uploaded them to photo bucket.

UGH, I hate that.

 

[KatMark]

I have the NYE update ALMOST done. I realized, while on the road, that I may not have uploaded all my pics. So I need to check that out before I update. Which means it might not be until the weekend. WAH! In the meantime I have a couple of fun things!

On Monday, Evan was "fitted" for his Marching Band Uniform! It was fun helping to hand out the pieces, my goodness is it complicated and my vocabulary has grown as a result!







For as bored as the kid looks in the picture, he could not WAIT to get home and try it all on. And did tolerate the pictures.

Evan may look bored, but I can tell he's looking forward to this. I can't believe it is coming up so fast.

We have the first (and only lol) dress rehearsal on Monday of next week, very excited to hear and see the full group!

That should be fun.

I also got some fun mail



Mary Ellen, watch your mailbox!

How fun!

I've also firmed up 2 more DISmeets I think, one for California with Brenda (emmysmommy) and then one for WDW with LadyLallie

YAY!

If you've not met emmysmommy yet, you are in for a treat! She is a true sweetheart.

 

[eandesmom]

If you've not met emmysmommy yet, you are in for a treat! She is a true sweetheart.

I have not and am very excited!

 

[englishrose47]

Hey Cynthia , we have firm plans to meet up with Mary Ellen on May 11th , but have just assumed we will be doing F & G together on the 12th , maybe we should make firmer plans .?? I just learnt That H &V is having Character dinners with Mickey etc dressed up like Star Wars characters , just thought I'd let you know and it is also a Fantasmic package . Also more rumors about FP+ extensions , what I am hearing is that you can get more after using you first 3, just 1 at a time though , guess you have to go to a kiosk and check the availability !!!

 

[eandesmom]

Hey Cynthia , we have firm plans to meet up with Mary Ellen on May 11th , but have just assumed we will be doing F & G together on the 12th , maybe we should make firmer plans .?? I just learnt That H &V is having Character dinners with Mickey etc dressed up like Star Wars characters , just thought I'd let you know and it is also a Fantasmic package . Also more rumors about FP+ extensions , what I am hearing is that you can get more after using you first 3, just 1 at a time though , guess you have to go to a kiosk and check the availability !!!

We do not have firm plans for Monday, had planned on Epcot and the F&G Kiosks, hopefully with you! Where are you doing your FP's? Maybe we can do some together? I can PM or FB mail you our FP bookings for Monday

Did you and Carol decide to do H&V that night?

I heard the same thing on the FP's.

 

[eandesmom]

Sorry for the delay in the update, I did work on it this week but in between work trips, kid events, race packet pickup, a funeral and the actual race, it was a crazy weekend! I was once again, on the road for work. This time in Phoenix. And stole a little time between sessions to hopefully get this update written.

Ok truthfully, when I started this update, sessions were going for another 45 minutes and then there was a 30 min break before the evening reception and dinner. It seemed a FAR better use of my time to come and sit on my villa verandah and work on my update with a cool glass of…

Water.



It was Phoenix after all! And man, as pretty as it is the dry heat is not friendly to my eyes. At check in one my experts, who had not booked his room when I told him to and then was unable to get one, tried to get a room. No dice. So I offered to get he, and the other late addition expert I’d brought, a key to my room so at least everyone had an onsite home base. As I mentioned that I got a "hey" we can upgrade yours (meaning me) to a villa suite.

With a balcony overlooking the pool. As close as I got to a pool at this event but still, a stolen 45 minutes is rather heavenly. Plus....it is April. As some of you may recall…I tend to destroy my feet every April once we move into Sandal/Open Toe shoe season I have to “acclimate” my feet each year and somehow it always seems to kick off at a work event in a dry heat site like..Vegas or...Phoenix. 45 minutes of no shoes sounded almost even better than the balcony! Of course, over the course of 2 afternoon breaks like that I realized I was missing a couple of pictures that were home and not yet uploaded. Oh well, at least I tried, right?

And hey, I did have coffee on the balcony, once!



And I saw the pool!



LOL.

No, I did not run. I'd have had to run in the dark to fit it in before morning stuff started and the 45 min in the afternoon? 95 degrees. No thanks plus really not enough time to hose down after something like that. I would have loved to have run right abound 7am, it was just lovely lovely out. Except my eyes hated the dryness. Oh well.

Instead, I ran yesterday! As most of you know, Ann and I (and Jeff lol) ran a local 12K. It was a crazy race, they said it capped out at 10,000 people and it did sell out. There were 2 races, a 5K and a 12K. The "official" results show about 4,000 people in each one. I've no idea if close to 2,000 people dropped out or they included the kids race in the "cap" or what. I can certainly believe there were 10-12,000 people there! It started out a wee bit stressful. We knew it would be crowded and traffic could be an issue and thought we’d given ourselves plenty of time. We did not allow for 45 minutes on the off-ramp of the highway! Jeff had to take off his shoe while we were sitting there so I could put the timing chip on it! Jeff and I literally got to the starting gate area with 7 minutes to spare. Minutes we used to hit the porta potties and for me to find Ann. And sadly, no starting line pictures. Bummer.

I sent Jeff on ahead. They planned to release people in waves of 1500 and faster people needed to get up front. Ann and I met up, barely had time to hug and say hi and it was time to go!

The first mile was incredibly congested, almost walking pace but it got better after that although we were dodging folks probably till mile 3. This was only my third race ever so it was pretty trippy to go from groups of 300-500 to…4,000. It was really fun to actually run with someone for once. As we were going along all of a sudden I see Jeff pass us. I freaked out a little, assuming that meant his hip had acted up. He had been freaking out since Birch Bay about it. He'd rather not do it than have to quit mid race or GASP, walk. The reality is that the man had been getting by without replacing shoes more than 1x a year. Now that he was running with me, he's putting on more miles as I train for the half and that means new shoes sooner rather than later, and the worn out ones had done his hip in.

Thankfully it was not his hip. Turned out he'd tried to get ahead to go out in the first wave, went too far, got barricaded out and had to go back around and had started after we did, in wave 3! Since it was chip timed it didn't matter but it was a trip to see him come from behind like that. He still can't figure out how we got in the 2nd wave and he couldn't figure it out. Men. (sorry guys). It wasn't rocket science! Ann asked if I wanted to go catch up to him and I laughed. The man is a LOT faster than I, 00:50-2:00 per mile faster depending on the day and our paces. No way was I catching him! He didn't see us, but he did hear me. LOL! Especially given that when he passed (ok, went flying by) I think we were at the top of one of the "rolling" hills. It was not a flat course. Not horrible, but certainly not flat and more than one "roll" It was a gorgeous day, could not have been better weather wise and it was so nice not to run in the rain. Fun to see the Seahawks training facility even though well, it just looked like a field and a big building. LOL! Some CRAZY outfits, people really got dressed up (like fully jersey pads ect kind of dressed up, I really should have gotten pictures! I turned it on a little too early at the end and miscalculated how many hills were left when I did so (and my IT band let me know lol) but overall was pretty pleased with my finish. It was much better than the Birch Bay race a couple of weeks prior (especially since it wasn't raining with 35 mph wind bursts) and more along the lines of where I think I should be. With the hills and the fact that I actually came to a full stop at the 4 mile water break (less because I needed the water and more because given our 7 minute close cut to the start, I'd not had a sip of water before the race and had the worst coffee dry mouth. BLEH! Needed to rinse out. ) I was pleased with the end result.

More importantly, it felt better and was fun! Amazing what the sun can do, it’s the first race I've ever had in nice weather. What a difference that made! Sun, lake, mountains....just beautiful! And a sea of navy and green. I kind of like my overall place number. 999. LOL! What are the odds of that? Out of 4044 I’m pretty happy with that given that I've been running less than 1 year. I did better in my division and in my gender groups than the previous race as well so I was pleased. Jeff did really well, 9th in his division and 229th overall. Brat. Ann and I both have some questions about the results. When you get your results it will show you your total time, your overall place, place in your division and place in your gender. It also shows your average pace for the race. The pace in this instance does NOT match up with the distance. It was a 12K. Which should be 7.456 miles. However the pace we all got in our results, combined with our total time, when you do the math does not add up to a 7.456 mile race. It adds up to a 7.65 mile race which jived with my watch and the app Ann uses. This was true for all 3 of us! Not really a big deal except well, it is. It's like a 12-13 second per mile difference and if you were using this race as a "proof of time" for a Disney it would kind of bite as the pace the official race results show, aren't what you'd get credit for if you submit it as a 12K. And that's enough to put you in a different corral!

Good thing neither Ann or I needed it, or are going to use it!

We got to hang out with Ann for a little bit after the race and also meet up with another friend from a DVC running FB group we all participate in



Yeah, my running knickers are totally obnoxious. I love them.

That may well be the only picture I get of me at the race. I just realized the official photos are looking for them by bib number and with mine on the leg, they may or may not find me! We will see. I suppose if they find one, facial recognition will do the rest. It has to be better than the last one. 2 significantly older guys in front of me and none of me by myself at the finish. It's super depressing.

Our poor friend hadn't done a chip timed one like this before (which was funny to me as I've only done ones that use this exact chip, 3 of them now) and had put it in the pocket of her skirt as she too was late. She was supposed to do the 5K with her son but he'd fallen ill the night before and it was an 11th hour call as to whether she was going to do it solo. I did feel bad. but..the instructions I think were pretty clear that it had to go on your shoe. Or at least I thought it was, it had a picture of where to put it. It didn't say, in all fairness, that it's a proximity sensor (to the mat) and will not work if you don't put it on your shoe. I know it's happened to others. In fact, I wonder if that explains the 2K of folks who didn't have times???

I was a dork and didn't think to get a picture of Jeff and I!

I did get a picture of our post race breakfast









Oh my word was it good! I'd researched where to go nearby and we had 2 optiosn that sounded good. First place had an hour wait. This one a 15 or sit at the bar. We hit the bar and while our food took forever to arrive, at least we could have a drink while we waited. Or in my case 2 since the manager bought my second “Sunday, Bloody Sunday” Bloody Mary. Gotta love an Irish Breakfast! My omelet had Irish Rashers (Irish Bacon), Dubliner Cheese (Kerrygold Irish Cheese...amazing stuff) and tomatoes. The scone was just ok but Jeff's soda bread was to die for. SOOOOOO good!

Ok, the update you ALL have been waiting for I know!


New Years Eve!!!

We'd had a lovely morning at AK, a restful pool break, ok most of us rested, or swam...or did homework or pretended we did homework, or napped. Then there was Jeff. LOL. Still, by the time he and I were ready to walk out the door, he was pretty rested and happy himself.

Which may or may not have had anything to do with his "appropriately" sized mug.

We set out for the IG.

And, at 4:30 on New Years Eve we saw this



No joke!

Once inside, it was a bit of a different story. The WS itself was crowded but not unmanageable. They were however, directing FW traffic backstage

So that's where we went











Recognize anything yet?



We spit out by Living with the Land. And, although it was a long way around in some ways, it was not crowded so that helped a bit I think. We were headed here





Ok seriously, I did try to take a picture of the wait times and clearly failed. I want to say Single rider was 120 min (or closed) and standby was closer to 180. The lines were INSANE. Who would wait three hours for ANY ride?

Not me.

I was very excited for this ride, I’d not been on it in a long time. My last trip we hadn't made it to Epcot at all and the one before that was during the refurbishment. It has always been one of my favorites.
Unfortunately in the Chaos of trying to find everyone…part of the group surged on and we were quickly separated. My Dad, Jeff and I were together. Melissa, Big Eric and all the kids were together. I forget what they did. I was VERY crabby about this. Very probably unreasonably so but it didn't seem to me that it would have been that hard to wait for all of us to be together. But whatever.

Our FP was for 3:55-4;55 and the kids had been waiting "forever" for Jeff and I and were impatient. I get that. And we were close to the end of our window, I get that too. The FP line....wow. Not fast. Although compared to the standby, it was lightening. Still quite the herd to get you through there and well, until you reach the design part…UGH. At some point in that winding queue my sister tried to get us to move up in line to be with them.

I refused. I do NOT do that. That then made her crabby. She had "checked" with everyone in between our two groups and they were "ok" with it. Honestly I didn't care if they were ok (and they probably were not but told her they were, she is persuasive like that), I was not ok with it. But between my sister and all the saps she conned, we were urged forward with me being mortified and apologizing to each soul as we walked by. If anyone reading this was there, I am sorry. It kind of got to the point of pick which will make the lesser of scenes in a sea million people squished into a very small space.

Soon enough, we were here



Continued in next post

 

[eandesmom]

Continued from previous

And then here!

















My favorite part!



Jeff looks like he is napping





Our car did NOT win



It had a handicap.

Jeff.

The engineer who only wanted things that could REALLY be done on the car. Oh he likes to think he let Eric and Kolby pick whatever they wanted but they did listen to his input and rather strong reactions at some parts that were too unrealistic for his liking.



Afterwards all the boys checked out the cars





And then Jeff checked the dump shop for the Caramels he didn't buy at Mission Space the night before. Of course they didn't have them.

Which was kind of silly since that's where we were headed next!

Our take on the new version?

The E's and all the kids LOVED it. Definitely target demographic

I was neutral. It was very "tron" like and I could see why the boys liked it. I didn't love the changes but didn't hate them either. All I cared about was the end part and that hadn't changed.

Jeff hated it. He got VERY hung up in the design piece and couldn't get past it. Enginerd. LOL!.

Big Eric and Dad seemed to like it just fine.

And then, it was off to Space!

Some of us went Orange, others (like my Dad) went Green



Not much time in the dump shop, Jeff went to buy his caramels and...they were out.

After Mission Space we headed towards Soarin’. As we passed by the Festival Center we found they were passing out hats and noisemakers. Mel and I (who were over our spat) decided to get them for the crew. OMG, the line! Seriously, for a moment I thought we were going to be trampled. Despite it all, hats, and noisemakers (as for whatever reason we thought it would be our ONLY CHANCE to get them), were procured. As we walked, we noticed folks lying down on the lawn…EVERYWHERE. No joke. Sitting, sleeping, camping out. As we passed by MouseGears, we hit a kiosk and I bought the boys a 4 parks BandIt decoration thing or whatever they are called. Basically kids with the same colors had already mixed up their bands (despite them having their names on the back) so each boy got a park. Evan = AK, Eric = DHS, Q = Epcot and K got MK. I think. Finally we made it to Soarin’.

I don't recall if my mom went on Soarin’ but Kerri couldn’t. Thank heavens for FP+. The Standby wait for Soaring was 4 hours!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!



I

Kid

You

Not.

No way Jose!!!!

FP+ worked like a charm and we were running relatively on time though needed to get to dinner on time. Which meant another backroad trek!
Evan was being…Evan. I don't even remember what it was but Jeff picked him up and did a fireman's carry through the back area. It was pretty funny.



Just before the exit into the WS there was a drink Kiosk. Talk about smart! Still no one could decide and so we forged on. As we left this relatively calm corridor we hit CROWDS. Holy moly crowds.



As we walked by we scoped out the various drink kiosks and the multitude of light up options in the form of adult beverages but wanted to get checked in, we were cutting it close.

Slowly Slowly and making sure not to lose anyone we finally made it to our dinner destination and checked in.

Only to be told they were running up to an HOUR behind.

With that, I decided to go back and get an adult beverage for myself and my mom. The Big Boys set off to get a beer while Mel and Kerri hung with the kids.

My agenda?

This



I had seen folks carrying them and lit up, it looked like a poisoned apple. All I could tell was it was from France. What I hoped was it was somehow related to a slushie but I was dying to know. So I fought my way back through the bottle neck at Morocco (and the same drunk guy who had been hanging there harassing folks my first pass through)

The Parisian Cosmo Cocktail

Grand Marnier, Grey Goose vodka and cranberry juice with a glow cube. I think it is possibly the same stuff in the Cosmo Slush they have during Food and Wine, just not slushified?

Ahhh…heaven!



Back at the Biergarten, this is how I found my family



A wait on our ADR was both a good and a bad thing. The good....NYE itself was still hours away, this made the "event" closer and we were sitting (albeit on the floor) but out of the crowds. The bad.... kids, adults and pregnant mama's started to flag. The better? The hour really wasn't an hour! It was probably a solid 40 minutes.

As I think most know, the lighting at the Biergarten is rather horrendous. So the food porn is lacking!

By now I'd finished my drink and had decided to add my glow cube to my water (which also rinsed it off lol!) And, while I'd loved the drink it was on the sweet side for me, I could not have done more than one and did elect to have a beer to cleanse my palate.

My first plate.



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[eandesmom]

Continued from previous

Bad show pictures





What is not captured was the very "entertaining" couple dancing. I'm not really sure how else to put it other than they were quite memorable. Especially the to the waist length unnatural blond ponytail on an approximately 60+ year old woman. I have no issues with age, long hair at any age, ponytails or bleaching ones hair. But when something is so glaringly fake on so many levels, it just gets noticed is all. It was likely a wig. Or just a bad dye job, not sure. I am quite sure I am too old for my hair to be as long as it is, or in a ponytail either. It is probably obvious I color mine. But it’s almost better when it's an obvious color than one trying not to be…but is so not natural that it sticks out. Anyway, it's not about her hair but the two dancing as a couple…they were VERY memorable and I can't even really explain why. Just something. Like an "we think we are so fabulous look at us" kind of something. And there is a difference between pure enjoyment of the moment, being a decent dancer and being very um, cosmetically or surgically enhanced, in your looks on many levels and then blatantly showing off. Or trying to. Yes. I sound catty and mean.

They would continue to be memorable but I didn't know that then.

We kept watching, complete with one New Years Eve Hat (which of course they were handing out EVERYWHERE in the WS and we needn't’ have waited in line…



It was not nearly as decorated for the holidays as I’d hoped but still had a bit



Some enjoying the show, not and um, I don’t know



It's a funny thing. I’d been to Biergarten once before, back in 2008 on our first full "family" trip that had all 4 of our kids after Jeff and I had gotten married. I liked it, but didn't love it. Jeff LOVED it, as did the E's and I think the big kids, K&T were ambivalent. I don't know if the menu really changed, food quality just improved, a new chef or if I was just absolutely starving but it was one of those nights where everything tasted amazing. Ok not everything but darn close. It was really really good and I had seconds. Thirds! Like Ohana, it is a great large group spot and truly I think, everyone loved it

We finished up around 10:15 or so.

Which did mean we had some time to kill.

Let's go wander

Big stages set up in certain countries (Italy, China and likely one other if memory serves)



Dance party music, etc.



Lets walk this way!



And do a never done!



I have to admit, I think we all liked the movie at the end better than the ride. We didn't quite get it.



The poor poor troll!









And then my child. Who is confusing a troll picture with GQ





Capturing the Viking spirit





And modeling a "I really love this $500 sweater!" look how good I look mom!









After Malestorm and more time in the dump shop than anyone needs we found ourselves at a bit of a standstill.

Literally

It was crowded.

Duh.



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