Please excuse my internet stupidity but I could not get the hyperlink to work (yes I attempted to follow directions but I am doing something wrong)
Cast of Characters:
Me - 36 yr old Disneyholic in need of a fix (last trip 2 yrs ago)
Maw-Maw Emma- wheelchairing granny with last wdw trip 23 yrs ago
Paw-Paw Curt- wheelchair pusher/tagger #1 with last trip 23 years ago
Pre-trip report: (hyperlink probably not going to work)
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1291071
Essential history is that in the past year my family has lost everything in Hurricane Katrina (we lived 8 miles from downtown New Orleans), then we all had major health issues, surgeries, mysteries, recovery in all forms and in true need of a GREAT vacation. Emma can walk but generally not more than about 400 feet so she is just beginning to become adapted to a wheelchair and has only had it for the past 2 months so Curt and I are getting adjusted to it as well (tagging peoples heals as we go along; please note, we weren't doing this on purpose but unfortunately people just dead stop in front of you and the inevitable happens).
Day 1 - 12/6 - Dad's pre b-day celebration
I had packed and had loaded things in grandparents van 2 days before. This day was for last minute cleaning of my home and having those extremely guilty feelings of having to leave my dogs and cat at the kennel or else they starve and die. Honestly I cry after leaving them at the kennel as I know that they will be housed (caged) there for the next 12 days and I know my animals are spoiled (this is what happens when you don't have children).
My dad's bday is tomorrow and due to the crappy bday he had last year (he lost everything in Katrina as well) he was having his birthday celebration in a suite at the Beau Rivage Casino in Biloxi, Mississippi. My grandparents (from my mother's side) decided to stay in Biloxi at a casino down the street instead of having to drive back to pick me up the next afternoon so everyone's vacation began today.
Day 2 - 12/7 Dad's birthday and leaving for FL:
I had a wonderful night at the casino with family and only got about 4 hours of sleep as we were having so much fun and laughing along. After treating my dad out to lunch and giving gifts the next afternoon it was time for me to leave and begin the drive to Orlando.
The grandparents (GPs) picked me up about 1:30 and off we go
. I love to fly but Emma isn't a big flying fan and only does it when she has to. We stopped in Tallahassee around 8 pm to eat at Cracker Barrell and then continued our reststop tour to Orlando.
We arrived at Radisson Resort Parkway on 12/8 around 1 am. I had wanted to stay on disney property but all rooms were booked for this day so I bid on Priceline (see review: http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1301525). There was no check-in line and we were dead tired so off to room 5103 we went and crashed.
Day 3 - 12/8 Shopping and more shopping
Goal for the day was to either hit Typhoon Lagoon (I have a ton of extras left on old tickets) or shopping. Needless to say the next cold front followed us into FL and it was barely 60 during the day so TL was out.
We walked to the deli in the resort to get a few small breakfast items (croissant, muffin and milk). We then headed to a few of the junky Kissimmee souvenir shops to pick up cheap stuff aplenty. I was ready to clock one of the timeshare guys as he just would not get off the soapbox with the offers even though we said nicely 3 times that we were not interested. He even went as far as to continue to follow us out the door towards our van when we were leaving. He gave me the creeps.
It was about 11:00 and I stated it was time for lunch so I took the GPs to Beaches and Creams for lunch. I love B&C. I especially love the No Way Jose
. The GPs loved the place and just couldn't believe how large the dessert was (we all split it). As our dining plan hadn't started yet I used my rewards card to pay the $43 bill. We then headed for DTD to begin our shopping there. We had our first true experience with the wheelchair at the World of Disney as it was packed and we learned how hard it could be to get around using it. More money gone and one phone call to my friend Stacie who is flying in to wdw tomorrow but I just had to egg her on that I was already there.
It was going on 4 pm by the time we got back to the van in the parking lot at DTD. I had made an adr for Kona Cafe at 5 pm so we headed straight there and arrived about 30 minutes early. This was my first time eating at Kona and we were seated at about 5:10 and the rest. was completely filled by 5:40 with line outside waiting to get in. The food was good here and the plate was plentiful but the veggies weren't fully cooked (I'll be doing a seperate thread about the rest. and the dining plan later in the week). We passed on dessert and headed out. As we were leaving we could watch Wishes from the lobby. We then took the monorail over to GF to look at the xmas decorations, orchestra and there was also a school bell group playing in the lobby. GPs had that complete wow factor when we walked into the lobby. We sat around for about an hour listening to music and checking out the decorations.
We were back in our room at Radisson around 9ish. I took a walk to the deli to get some milk for the next morning and there was a singer playing a guitar for a small crowd in the lobby. I had 3 days of clothes to wash and Emma had dropped some of her drink on her top so I went to do the wash which went well until the dryer took my money but didn't dry the clothes. This just makes me made but I have no other choice but to get over it. Time to get some sleep and dream of beginning disney tour tomorrow.
Recap:
Driving to Orlando -
Beaches & Creams -
Shopping -
Kona Cafe -
Cast of Characters:
Me - 36 yr old Disneyholic in need of a fix (last trip 2 yrs ago)
Maw-Maw Emma- wheelchairing granny with last wdw trip 23 yrs ago
Paw-Paw Curt- wheelchair pusher/tagger #1 with last trip 23 years ago
Pre-trip report: (hyperlink probably not going to work)
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1291071
Essential history is that in the past year my family has lost everything in Hurricane Katrina (we lived 8 miles from downtown New Orleans), then we all had major health issues, surgeries, mysteries, recovery in all forms and in true need of a GREAT vacation. Emma can walk but generally not more than about 400 feet so she is just beginning to become adapted to a wheelchair and has only had it for the past 2 months so Curt and I are getting adjusted to it as well (tagging peoples heals as we go along; please note, we weren't doing this on purpose but unfortunately people just dead stop in front of you and the inevitable happens).
Day 1 - 12/6 - Dad's pre b-day celebration
I had packed and had loaded things in grandparents van 2 days before. This day was for last minute cleaning of my home and having those extremely guilty feelings of having to leave my dogs and cat at the kennel or else they starve and die. Honestly I cry after leaving them at the kennel as I know that they will be housed (caged) there for the next 12 days and I know my animals are spoiled (this is what happens when you don't have children).
My dad's bday is tomorrow and due to the crappy bday he had last year (he lost everything in Katrina as well) he was having his birthday celebration in a suite at the Beau Rivage Casino in Biloxi, Mississippi. My grandparents (from my mother's side) decided to stay in Biloxi at a casino down the street instead of having to drive back to pick me up the next afternoon so everyone's vacation began today.
Day 2 - 12/7 Dad's birthday and leaving for FL:
I had a wonderful night at the casino with family and only got about 4 hours of sleep as we were having so much fun and laughing along. After treating my dad out to lunch and giving gifts the next afternoon it was time for me to leave and begin the drive to Orlando.
The grandparents (GPs) picked me up about 1:30 and off we go
. I love to fly but Emma isn't a big flying fan and only does it when she has to. We stopped in Tallahassee around 8 pm to eat at Cracker Barrell and then continued our reststop tour to Orlando. We arrived at Radisson Resort Parkway on 12/8 around 1 am. I had wanted to stay on disney property but all rooms were booked for this day so I bid on Priceline (see review: http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1301525). There was no check-in line and we were dead tired so off to room 5103 we went and crashed.
Day 3 - 12/8 Shopping and more shopping
Goal for the day was to either hit Typhoon Lagoon (I have a ton of extras left on old tickets) or shopping. Needless to say the next cold front followed us into FL and it was barely 60 during the day so TL was out.
We walked to the deli in the resort to get a few small breakfast items (croissant, muffin and milk). We then headed to a few of the junky Kissimmee souvenir shops to pick up cheap stuff aplenty. I was ready to clock one of the timeshare guys as he just would not get off the soapbox with the offers even though we said nicely 3 times that we were not interested. He even went as far as to continue to follow us out the door towards our van when we were leaving. He gave me the creeps.
It was about 11:00 and I stated it was time for lunch so I took the GPs to Beaches and Creams for lunch. I love B&C. I especially love the No Way Jose
. The GPs loved the place and just couldn't believe how large the dessert was (we all split it). As our dining plan hadn't started yet I used my rewards card to pay the $43 bill. We then headed for DTD to begin our shopping there. We had our first true experience with the wheelchair at the World of Disney as it was packed and we learned how hard it could be to get around using it. More money gone and one phone call to my friend Stacie who is flying in to wdw tomorrow but I just had to egg her on that I was already there.It was going on 4 pm by the time we got back to the van in the parking lot at DTD. I had made an adr for Kona Cafe at 5 pm so we headed straight there and arrived about 30 minutes early. This was my first time eating at Kona and we were seated at about 5:10 and the rest. was completely filled by 5:40 with line outside waiting to get in. The food was good here and the plate was plentiful but the veggies weren't fully cooked (I'll be doing a seperate thread about the rest. and the dining plan later in the week). We passed on dessert and headed out. As we were leaving we could watch Wishes from the lobby. We then took the monorail over to GF to look at the xmas decorations, orchestra and there was also a school bell group playing in the lobby. GPs had that complete wow factor when we walked into the lobby. We sat around for about an hour listening to music and checking out the decorations.
We were back in our room at Radisson around 9ish. I took a walk to the deli to get some milk for the next morning and there was a singer playing a guitar for a small crowd in the lobby. I had 3 days of clothes to wash and Emma had dropped some of her drink on her top so I went to do the wash which went well until the dryer took my money but didn't dry the clothes. This just makes me made but I have no other choice but to get over it. Time to get some sleep and dream of beginning disney tour tomorrow.
Recap:
Driving to Orlando -
Beaches & Creams -
Shopping -
Kona Cafe -
