Mom, Can You Quit Hanging on to Me and Just Hang on to Yourself? Update 11/2/16

[DopeyDonald]

I just love how you guys did the reveal!!! What an amazing surprise you pulled off! I promise to catch up with the rest soon. You asked for pic's if I didn't trip report so I'm finally going to try to insert some. One day I'll write a report, one day.View attachment 128796 This is our Cassidy who has grown so much this year! Below is Lily and me being silly outside LTT. She is now almost up to my nose and she's only 9....View attachment 128797

Love the pics! Your Cassidy is a cutie and so is your Lily! You have to really be careful though, once they start to get that tall, there is no going back! And it happens quick!!! Feel free to share more pics - I love seeing others trips!

 

[DaisyDuck001]

That swimming pool picture is amazing, with the waves and the lighting. Glad it was a special time for all of you "CAKE" girls.

Thanks for finally sharing about the reveal of the Feb. trip. It was a long wait, but good to read it at last. Looking forward to more of your Feb. updates as well as your Sept. reports.

Oh, and I wasn't thrilled with the BOG food at lunch or dinner, either.

Glad you and your updates are back.

 

[DopeyDonald]

I need to start off this update with a photopass pic from Splash. It belongs in the last update as this was before we got the new outfit for Cassidy. We are all very tired...lol

OK back to where we were. We had just gotten Cassidy a new warmer outfit and we were going to sit down to enjoy a snack. My mom and Wyatt headed over to get Dole Whips and Annie, Cassie and I wanted Citrus Swirls. My mom had misunderstood and thought I wanted a Dole Whip, so we ended up with an extra Dole Whip - oh darn! lol.

Wyatt had no trouble helping us out with the extra Dole Whip....

It was about this time that we asked my husband the all important question...what time IS the 3 o'clock parade??

After our refreshing snack we rode Pirates and I have to say I am so glad they just got done refurbing that one. That ride was ROUGH, something with the boats was definitely off. After our visit to the Pirates decided to head over to the Storybook Circus area for some Dumbo and Barnstormer. But first was our FP for 7DMT. We had ridden it before, but my mom never had, this was going to be her first time. She loved it!

When we got over to Storybook Circus we thought Cassidy was old enough to ride with Wyatt on Dumbo so we put those 2 in one and Annie was able to ride with Larry - she usually gets stuck with her brother since I can't ride Dumbo and Cassidy has always had to go with Daddy. However....

All excited to ride with Big Brother

CM stopping Wyatt to ask how old he is....

No go

So bummed. Annie even more so. In fact there were some tears. But she rallied and rode with her brother. Here is DH and Cassidy in their new assigned seats.

Enjoying Dumbo

REALLY enjoying Dumbo....

Consoling his girl after the ride

However we could still tell that it was bugging her that she didn't get to ride with Daddy, so off they went back to Dumbo while Cassidy and Wyatt and I headed over to Barnstormer. Which we rode way too many times in a row. lol

Here is Annie and DH on Dumbo - actually since I wasn't there to take pics they staged this after the ride

Here is Cassidy being a rebel in the line for Barnstormer - she is clearly dancing when it is telling her not to.

Waiting with Big Brother because we found out she COULD ride with him on this one - she was so happy, him not so much apparently. lol

After our fun on Dumbo and the Barnstormer we decided to make our way to the front of the park and catch the monorail to Epcot. Though we did have to stop and ride Buzz on the way out. Have I mentioned how much I love visiting in September when you can do things like that?!

Up next - our gorgeous ride to Epcot via the Monorail

 

[DopeyDonald]

That swimming pool picture is amazing, with the waves and the lighting. Glad it was a special time for all of you "CAKE" girls.

Thanks for finally sharing about the reveal of the Feb. trip. It was a long wait, but good to read it at last. Looking forward to more of your Feb. updates as well as your Sept. reports.

Oh, and I wasn't thrilled with the BOG food at lunch or dinner, either.

Glad you and your updates are back.

Thanks so much. I am glad to be back. I am very motivated to make it through this trip so I can write about our one that we just returned home from. These vacations just keep getting better and better. Though my kids keep growing and growing! You are not going to recognize my son. He TOWERS over me now and has gotten that grown up look to him now *sigh. Oh well he still loves it as much as he ever did. He loves it differently, but still loves it.

 

[BellaBaby]

Love, love, love the reveal!! Your DD looks SO happy!! What a special gift. I have a middle DD too, so I know how that goes.

Great updates and I love the "C.A.K.E" girls idea too! I love how you made up a synchronized swimming routine…such wonderful memories!!

Looking forward to hearing more!!

 

[DopeyDonald]

Love, love, love the reveal!! Your DD looks SO happy!! What a special gift. I have a middle DD too, so I know how that goes.

Great updates and I love the "C.A.K.E" girls idea too! I love how you made up a synchronized swimming routine…such wonderful memories!!

Looking forward to hearing more!!

Yeah, She loves to play up the role as much as she can too - She really does get stuck in the middle sometimes though and I do realize that she probably doesn't get the attention the other 2 do, so she always appreciates it so much when she gets something special. She has the best reactions too - lol.

Yeah, we are still talking about the C.A.K.E girls. Here's a little spoiler...there are many more practices and some design a t's involved later - We ended up having so much fun with that and it was perfect because the quiet pool was empty each night so we were able to be as goofy as we wanted. We put on quite a show the last night for Wy and DH.

 

[DopeyDonald]

So after our wet, wonderful action packed afternoon at MK, we were ready to head to Epcot for the evening. We took the monorail, since, if you remember, the van was already parked at Epcot. I was loving my decision that morning to do that. This ride to Epcot stands out in my mind as one of the best moments of the trip believe it or not. We were all in a good mood (though tired), we had a monorail car to ourselves so it was nice and quiet, we'd had a great day at MK, we had an evening in Epcot to look forward to, and the sky/weather was gorgeous. I think it was the prettiest ride I've ever taken. I took lots of pics and you will see what I mean. I love that at Disney, little things like this can become wonderful parts of your vacation

Here is one reason the ride was nice and quiet....lol

I could be wrong, but he may be faking here...and I guess we didn't have the entire car to ourselves, just our section. Still we could spread out.

Here are some scenery pics, so you can see what I mean about how gorgeous it was outside - just beautiful.

This was taken backwards - it looks like we are headed through the MK gates but we are leaving them

Look at those clouds!

At this point, this was Annie for real.

As we got closer to Epcot, it just kept getting prettier - these are my favorite pics of Epcot scenery that I've taken. It was just the perfect time of night too. I keep repeating myself, but it just stands out as one of my favorite times of the trip. That ride was just so relaxing and we had so much fun to look forward to still.

I love this pic of the Epcot Ball. It's so fun to see if from different perspectives, since we usually see it from the front or back. I love how the trees frame it from this one.

After our relaxing ride it was time to get down to business at Epcot! Our plans for the evening included supper at various cs around the World Showcase and lots of shopping! We love the World Showcase - the kids too. They will take walking around to the different countries any day, it never gets old.

Up next - eating and shopping our way around the world

 

[DopeyDonald]

I think I will finish this day up - it shouldn't take as long as I thought because for some reason I don't have too many pictures of this evening. It could be because at this point I was tired of taking pics or it could be that I was just so busy enjoying the moments

We started off by splitting up. We were all pretty hungry and we all wanted very different things. DH, Wyatt, Cassidy and I headed towards France for ham and cheese with a planned stop at the UK to get fish and chips for DH. Nana and Annie headed to Sunshine Seasons.

On the way to the UK and France we discovered that they have hot dogs at the stand right after you cross the bridge into the countries. So yay! We thought the only place to get them was at the outpost area. So we stopped for a hot dog for Cassidy. Then we meandered over to Canada where DH was watching Off Kilter - he had walked ahead while we stopped for the hot dog.

We then dropped DH off in the UK to enjoy his fish and chips and kept heading towards our goal in France. We did have to stop for some pics along the way though

Here is a pic of Cassidy eating her hot dog in her chariot - we realize she is getting big for a stroller but too bad - lol. She doesn't have a lot of stamina and she's slow, so stroller it is. We don't know what we are going to do when she is really too big!

When we got to France we went and got sandwiches for Wyatt and I. I've posted about these before but they are SO SO yummy. We each got one and then we got an Apple Tart for DH. We gave it to him when he walked over after eating his fish and chips.

Annie and Nana decided just to hang out over in Future World and I'm not sure what they did. It was starting to get close to park closing and we wanted to avoid the Illuminations crowd so we just decided to walk over to Germany and grab some caramel and then head out.

Not sure at what point we took this pic, but it's a genuine smile so I'm including it!

Boys posing by the American Adventure- we didn't stop to watch it this night but did another.

I have in my notes that the line for caramel in Germany was long, the longest we'd even seen it, but that didn't stop us for waiting for yummy treats. I'm not sure what we got, but I know there was caramel popcorn involved for the boys and a milk chocolate sea salt caramel for me. The rest is up to your imagination!

We headed out of the World Showcase via the shortcut to Mouse Gears where we met Annie and Nana for some shopping. We looked around for a bit but Wyatt and I headed out of the store early in search of a frozen lemonade for him. As soon as we left the store, I knew we had shopped too long - we hit the Illuminations crowd. Oops. We ended up going out of the gates to get frozen lemonade and frozen cappuccino at the Joeffry's stand. We got a few to share with Annie and Cassidy who had joined us at this point with DH and Nana.

We made the long walk to the van and ended up sitting for quite awhile to get out of the parking lot - it was CRAZY. We were able to see DHS fireworks (not sure what they were about but I know it was from DHS) while we waited so that was something.

We got back to WL shortly after that and decided that the C.A.K.E girls needed some more practice so to the pool it was. Wyatt was along this time and decided to be our coach. Again, we had a LOT of fun.

 

[MissMaryQC]

Oh my gosh!! Welcome back!

Admittedly I'm so glad to hear that you were MIA cause of a misunderstanding with DH. I mean I'm sure it was awful and uncomfortable, but I totally thought the worst, especially with little Cassidy's health.

Any who! I'm so glad your back and decided to finish the report!! I'm all caught up and can't wait to see more!!

 

[DopeyDonald]

Oh my gosh!! Welcome back!

Admittedly I'm so glad to hear that you were MIA cause of a misunderstanding with DH. I mean I'm sure it was awful and uncomfortable, but I totally thought the worst, especially with little Cassidy's health.

Any who! I'm so glad your back and decided to finish the report!! I'm all caught up and can't wait to see more!!

Yeah, that was my bad - I should have thought that people might have thought there was something wrong with Cassidy - I should have posted something, but I didn't know what to say. It was a really icky fight and I just wanted it to be over. I feel so bad for the DISer that they ran into because I ran into them later in the trip and I'm sure they thought I was being rude, but I didn't want to bring up another fight! lol I just kind of said hi and kept on walking. Oh well, I'm awkward anyway - lol.

I'm so glad to be back - I am loving writing again!

 

[DopeyDonald]

Saturday Morning had arrived - I had been looking forward to this morning with mixed feelings. We were going to get our family picture taken at the Grand Floridian. I had wanted to get a family picture for so long, it was going to be our first real one actually. I just about cancelled a few times though - too much money, I hadn't lost the weight I'd wanted to etc. However, I decided to keep it and I'm so glad I did. We chose the Grand Floridian for one reason only - I knew you could get a shot of the Castle from the grounds. My DH does NOT like the Grand Floridian normally. The girls and I LOVE to visit there, but it is not really our family style. We would much have preferred the Wilderness Lodge, but they do not do photo shoots there anymore. Our other choice was the Poly and the Beach Club area I believe, but we really had no preference and the opening they had at the GF worked the best date wise.

We had to get up fairly early for us for the pics, I think we had to be there by 9. Got everyone up and dressed and had a snack in the room and then headed for the GF. We arrived and found our photographer, Daniel, right away. Daniel was AMAZING. He really listened to what we wanted done and got some great shots. He was so patient with the kids and even though our session was supposed to be 30 mins, he worked with us for at least an hour. (he didn't have an appointment after us so I think we lucked out. - my mom tipped him VERY well - lol) We started off taking pics inside and then moved out onto the patio area. After getting a few family shots, we moved on to individuals and then finished up with a family shot over in front of the Castle. The Castle idea was great, the pic not so much. First of all, there was the crane in the background and second, the Castle was not as in focus as I thought it would be. All in all though I was THRILLED with the pics and so glad we had them done. So without further adieu here are our family pics!

Our favorite pic - of course I like it, they are all looking at me! lol

He could NOT get Annie's glasses to cooperate so he had her take them off. I kind of wish we would have taken the lenses out and had her leave the frames on, which we have done in the past when she would get her pics taken. She looks so pretty without them on (and with them on ) But she NEVER is without her glasses, so this pic is a little odd to look at. She's going to be getting contacts soon though so then it won't seem out of place - lol.

Here is the pic I dreamed of, but didn't turn out the way I had imagined. I still love it, but wish the castle would be looking all glorious - lol. It just looks kind of sad.

Whew, once the pics were over, Nana took the girls shopping and the boys walked around the grounds a bit, while I sat with Daniel while he edited them. It took him about 15-20 mins and then he gave me the flash drive. I was so happy with this session and Daniel. He was wonderful and I though the pics were VERY reasonable. I can't remember for sure but I think the entire session with flash drive was $125. I would do this again in a second. I would *maybe* even pay for the more expensive one - it gives you more of a choice where you want the pics taken. If we could do it at the lodge for sure, I would pay the $300.

Pics taken and edited, we were ready for our next adventure! What was it? Our first visit to Animal Kingdom Lodge. The boys were going to have lunch with an Animal Specialist. The girls, Nana and I were just going to look around and check things out. Will post all about it in the next update!

 

[BellaBaby]

Beautiful photos at GF!!

I went to the beginning to refresh my memory a little. We also used to buy the AAA Diamond parking passes off ebay. Didn't feel bad either as we are AAA members. Anyway, I was afraid to tell DH in June that they no longer offered them. When I did he was not happy, I think he's still getting over it. I'm just glad they did offer it when we had a stroller because the tram would not have been fun back then!!

 

[DopeyDonald]

That swimming pool picture is amazing, with the waves and the lighting. Glad it was a special time for all of you "CAKE" girls.

Thanks for finally sharing about the reveal of the Feb. trip. It was a long wait, but good to read it at last. Looking forward to more of your Feb. updates as well as your Sept. reports.

Oh, and I wasn't thrilled with the BOG food at lunch or dinner, either.

Glad you and your updates are back.

Oops, I thought I replied to this but I can't find it! Yeah, the Villas quiet pool is amazing - it's honestly one of the reasons we love the lodge so much. And now it's gone and our hearts are broken.

Yeah, we want to try BOG and have a dinner reservation in Jan, but lunch was not good. Ours wasn't anyway - they boys were happy with theirs.

 

[DopeyDonald]

Beautiful photos at GF!!

I went to the beginning to refresh my memory a little. We also used to buy the AAA Diamond parking passes off ebay. Didn't feel bad either as we are AAA members. Anyway, I was afraid to tell DH in June that they no longer offered them. When I did he was not happy, I think he's still getting over it. I'm just glad they did offer it when we had a stroller because the tram would not have been fun back then!!

Thanks - I'm so glad we took them. We are going to do BIG family pics in Jan with my parents and brother and we are going to pay for the big package and hopefully will get in at the lodge, but with all the construction, I don't know.

Yeah, I had only discovered it for 2 trips and when I found out it was gone I was so sad. This past trip Sept 2015 was so hard pulling into the lot and having to park 2 miles out - lol.

 

[BellaBaby]

I have a quick question….did you go in early Feb. and if so, how was the weather/crowds then? (I know this references a different trip!)

 

[DopeyDonald]

I have a quick question….did you go in early Feb. and if so, how was the weather/crowds then? (I know this references a different trip!)

For Annie's surprise trip we went the last few days in January into February. I don't have the exact dates - lol The trip was a surprise right up till the end so I didn't write it on any calendars - ha! The weather was wonderful - it was a bit cool for swimming, in fact we maybe only went once or twice compared to the every day that we go swimming in Sept. There were days that we wore sweatshirts and jeans and there were days that we wore shorts and t's. I personally prefer the weather in Jan/Feb to Sept. We find ourselves staying in the parks all day and getting so much more done. We are from MN though so it's hard to make us cold. That being said, my best friend was down there the week before and they were COLD.

Crowds were great. It was only slightly busier than Sept. I have zero complaints about the crowds at that time. I would go again in a second.

In case it matters, we've also been at the end of Feb into the first few days of March and found it to be about the same as I've described above. We are going this year over marathon weekend in Jan and I'm interested to see how that goes.

 

[pbarager]

Where would I look to get a photo for our family done? I can't seem to find the service listed.

Thank you!

 

[DopeyDonald]

Where would I look to get a photo for our family done? I can't seem to find the service listed.

Thank you!

The website I visited to book was disneyfineartphotography.com/portraits I can't link it right now, but you should be able to copy and paste it. Let me know if it works for you....

 

[DopeyDonald]

So when I left off, we were just leaving the Grand Floridian and headed for Animal Kingdom Lodge. I was able to get DH and Wyatt a reservation for Dining with an Animal Specialist for this day and the boys were pretty excited. And nervous. About the food. LOL They are NOT adventurous eaters AT all and so they were pretty anxious to see what the meal would consist of. We decided that we would all drive over to AK lodge and then the girls and my mom and I would just eat at The Mara.

We got to Kidani pretty early for the reservation so we decided that instead of dropping the boys off we would come in and check it out with them. We parked in the ramp area and walked in. It took us awhile to get the feel of things but pretty soon we found Sanaa. We were even to early to check the boys in so we headed up to check out the gift shop and outdoor viewing area.

We thought it was beautiful, but it unfortunately was just not our style or taste and we decided that we would not really ever need to stay at AK. I really like the idea of it and you REALLY feel like you are in Africa, but we just weren't feeling it. My mom kept saying everything looks so brown and dirty, like you are really in Africa - and I was like - Well they did their job then, didn't they! lol.

As you can see from the squinty pics I've posted so far - it was a bright sunny day - AND HOT. I think it was one of the most hot days of the entire trip. We didn't last very long outside and headed back in to wait.

Once we were back inside we were able to check the boys in and then we parked ourselves along some benches near Sanaa and waited for the boys to be called. As you can see the kids were entertaining each other...

There, that's better

Finally the boys were called and headed back to be seated with their group. The girls and Nana and I had planned on heading over to Jambo to eat some lunch, but we decided that we had had enough of the heat and that since we weren't all that in love with AK anyway, we would go ahead and drive over to our park for the day. Where were we headed??? Where else on a sweltering hot day - Blizzard Beach!

We had been able to score free passes since the WL pool was under construction - they were giving them away to anyone who asked for them (which annoyed me...how are people supposed to know to ask for them??) but no matter, we asked and we received.

It was going to be my first time to a Disney Water Park. The big kids and Nana had gone to Typhoon Lagoon on another one of our trips, but DH, Cassidy and I had never been.

Up next, what did we think?

 

[BellaBaby]

Glad you were able to get those free passes to Blizzard Beach! Interested to hear how you liked it as we have never been to a Disney water park either!