Mom/Son Very Special Birthday Trip 3/9 3/12
Day 1 Getting There
Cast: Me Mom :35 , DS Johnny: turning 9, Pal Mickey joins us later
I wake up at 3:00 am before the alarm even goes off. Too darn excited to stay in bed! I get dressed, get some coffee and wake up DS. Unlike every other morning since he was born, he wakes up HAPPY with a big smile on his face and jumps right out of bed. DH warms up the van and we are off to the airport at 4:31 am. DH helps us get our bags out gives hugs and kisses and DS and I head into the Raleigh/Durham airport. No problems checking in the delta employee was very helpful guiding me through the self check-in at the kiosk. The line for security is pretty long and I begin to get nervous as it is moving slower than molasses in the winter. I keep checking my watch. Im not sure why, I think not having my DH with me causes me to think I have to do this. Finally, we make our way to the xray machine .I begin disrobing like Im being processed for jail time off come the shoes, the watch, the fanny pack, the jacket I reach for my belt when the security officer says, Maam .thats fine walk on through. I look around and notice that nobody else has taken their shoes or belts off .when did we stop doing that, I wonder. More strange looks from people. Oh well .we walk through with no beeps and I redress. We arrive at the gate and grab a skim latte for me and a hot chocolate and a huge chocolate chip muffin for DS from a little bakery across from our gate. We sit down and hear that the flight is overbooked and that they are soliciting volunteers for an alternate flight leaving at the same time but changing planes in Atlanta . For this minor inconvenience the booted passenger will receive a $200 voucher .too bad we cant do it .no time to spare for us!
At about 5:45 am, we board the very small plane (or is it a crop duster?) having to walk outside and up the steps. It is COLD outside and we are in our shorts and sandals. We sit down and get settled and DS says where is my gameboy? (it is actually his brothers he borrowed it for the trip having signed a waiver in BLOOD that he would not lose it) My last memory of him with it was at the gate. Oh boy. I ask the flight attendant (Ill refer to her as FA and that is a dually applicable acronym if you catch my drift) if she could please call up to the gate and ask them to check. She acts thoroughly annoyed with me and says I should go check myself. So, I go down the stairs of the very small plane, back through the cold air up the ramp back to the gate .no gameboy but they take my information in case it turned up - all the while offering appropriate sympathetic looks and sounds(much nicer than FA) . .back down the ramp through the cold ..I decide to ask the man loading the carry on /under the plane bags if I could check my bag .he is very accommodating. What do you know, there it is. Grab it run up plane steps back to my seat holding it up in the air like it is the Holy Grail. Everyone is staring. DS is happy and relieved, I am panting. This is a good theme for the trip: anything to make you happy, kid. So what if people are staring.
We are ready to go! Our plane is supposed to take off at 6:05. At 6:10 DS begins asking When are we going to take off? I begin to be curious as well and do the male-like check-the watch routine again, At 6:15 FA comes on the speaker asking us to please look under our seats just in case What the heck is she talking about? Just in case what? There is a bomb there? A small stowaway? I decide she must have mentioned something about this while I was on my quest for the Holy Grail. Everyone is frantically looking under their seats, under their neighbors seats, in their seat pockets. What are we looking for? Is this deltas idea of security checks on a budget? The man across the aisle senses my confusion and informs me that one of the crew members has lost their badge and that FAA security dictates that we cannot take off without him/her having it. Oh great. I WILL make it my mission to personally torture and kill this crew member if this causes my flight to be cancelled. It looks like Ill have to conduct this said torture/murder with my ballpoint pen as I was allowed no weapons in my carry-on.
6:20 am: The now crazed FA is frantically searching through every nook and cranny in the forward compartment and amazingly there are many in this very small plane. She is bending down rifling through drawers (we are all treated to some very non-lady like views of FAs FA) , standing up , calling people on the phone, gesturing wildly with her hands, making loud frustrated sounds. There are endless minutes filled with more phone calls,,,,,more searching . The passengers are getting restless .cellphones are whipped out and calls are being made. I have no one to call as everyone at my house is asleep, but I briefly consider pretending to call someone as it seems to be the thing to do. My DS is beginning to get mad (and you wont like him when hes mad) WHY arent we taking off? What time is it NOW? Why are all of the OTHER planes going but not us? What is she LOOKING for? All the while I am mentally reviewing my carefully planned (to the minute) itinerary and trying to figure out what we are going to do. Luckily I had taken my special calming pill this morning so I wouldnt accidentally jump an innocent person of middle eastern descent who attempted to use the facilities during the flight, so I remained relatively calm. For some reason, Dorys mantra Just keep swimming keeps running through my head.
Finally at 6:35 am, FA sits down in her seat and buckles her seatbelt with absolutely no explanation to us as to what the final conclusion of this drama is What happened to the freakin badge? Did we find it? Whose fault is it? Will someone be fired? I cannot confirm my suspicion but it appears to me that it was FAs fault because she is decidedly NOT in a good mood for the duration of the flight in fact beverage service is not a fun-filled event. Miniature pretzel bags are flung at us like pumpkin bombs from the Green Goblin. .After a TERSE and laconic announcement from our very clearly annoyed pilot .Ready for take off, we begin our taxi down the runway. Finally we are in the air, only a 1/2 hour behind schedule. Not too bad.
Great flight we both give the landing 2 thumbs up (we always rate the landings)! The pilot comes on and says it is currently 58 degrees in Orlando. Oh, goodie, that will be so great WHAT????? Did we fly to Massachusetts or Florida? I could have stayed home and had 58 degrees we are a little bummed and feeling kinda funny in our shorts and sandals..but oh well, it is sunny and its FLORIDA and we get to get off of the very small plane. We bid adieu to FA who scowls menacingly at us as we exit and rush to baggage claim. This is the first of many times during this trip that I find myself running ahead and yelling Hurry! over my shoulder to poor DS . *note to self this is not a good memory maker for him
Im certain our Tiffany Town Car driver must have given up on us by now. But no, Renata is faithfully holding up the sign with our name on it and smiling sweetly. I run to the restroom (the 32 ounces of coffee had finally caused bladder overload) while she and my son get the baggage which she insists on carrying even though she is a tiny little thing. We get in the car and we are off! I remind her of our scheduled grocery stop but she doesnt seem to be aware of it even though I had called to confirm it with TTC a few days ago. She is very kind about it though, and radios in to headquarters to get clearance for a grocery stop. I wait with baited breath to hear whether or not we will be given permission and finally receive the word : we are go for grocery stop! Hooray! We stop at Publix and bought lots of stuff we never ended up using! What we did use: the case of bottled water (though we only used 1/2 of it) a few sodas, bagels and cream cheese, cream for my in-room coffee, a small styromfoam cooler, ice. What we didnt use: an entire bottle of wine, most of the rest of the soda, string cheese, yogurt, chips. (I ended up giving all of the unopened leftovers to the bellman at the end of the trip who was so grateful, saying his roommates would be thrilled) Renata loads our groceries into the trunk and we are off. Next stop: Coronado Springs Resort. The ride is pleasant and we have fun talking with Renata who is Brazilian. She is very enthusiastic about Disney and is great about getting us excited about certain rides. She has some Disney trivia for us too. She asks us: What kind of animal is Goofy? DS and I look at each other and say in unison, A dog! Nope, says Renata knowingly, Hes a cow. Ever wonder why he dates cows? Who knew? DS says, I always thought there was something strange about Goofy. Oh hes a perceptive one alright.
With my online coupon the ride was $75 and I am thinking I give her a $10 tip. At CSR the bellman quickly unloads our embarrassingly large amount of stuff and whisks it away. I check in with only a 2 minute wait. I get our 2 room keys with mine being connected to my visa gift card for charging to the room. The CM says, I have your room ready! This is too good to be true! And it is in Cabanas 8A as I had requested. We are a few mere steps to the dig site pool (main one) and a few more to bus stop 4! This is a perfect locale for us as we dont have any need to go to El Centro at all After check in we are driven to our room in a golf cart type vehicle. We tip the driver/bellman, shut the door and jump up and down in the room for a few minutes. WE ARE HERE!!!!! Then I remember the itinerary! OMG, we are off schedule I most definitely did NOT schedule in jumping for joy! Its time for ANIMAL KINGDOM!!!! HURRY!
Day 1 Getting There
Cast: Me Mom :35 , DS Johnny: turning 9, Pal Mickey joins us later
I wake up at 3:00 am before the alarm even goes off. Too darn excited to stay in bed! I get dressed, get some coffee and wake up DS. Unlike every other morning since he was born, he wakes up HAPPY with a big smile on his face and jumps right out of bed. DH warms up the van and we are off to the airport at 4:31 am. DH helps us get our bags out gives hugs and kisses and DS and I head into the Raleigh/Durham airport. No problems checking in the delta employee was very helpful guiding me through the self check-in at the kiosk. The line for security is pretty long and I begin to get nervous as it is moving slower than molasses in the winter. I keep checking my watch. Im not sure why, I think not having my DH with me causes me to think I have to do this. Finally, we make our way to the xray machine .I begin disrobing like Im being processed for jail time off come the shoes, the watch, the fanny pack, the jacket I reach for my belt when the security officer says, Maam .thats fine walk on through. I look around and notice that nobody else has taken their shoes or belts off .when did we stop doing that, I wonder. More strange looks from people. Oh well .we walk through with no beeps and I redress. We arrive at the gate and grab a skim latte for me and a hot chocolate and a huge chocolate chip muffin for DS from a little bakery across from our gate. We sit down and hear that the flight is overbooked and that they are soliciting volunteers for an alternate flight leaving at the same time but changing planes in Atlanta . For this minor inconvenience the booted passenger will receive a $200 voucher .too bad we cant do it .no time to spare for us!
At about 5:45 am, we board the very small plane (or is it a crop duster?) having to walk outside and up the steps. It is COLD outside and we are in our shorts and sandals. We sit down and get settled and DS says where is my gameboy? (it is actually his brothers he borrowed it for the trip having signed a waiver in BLOOD that he would not lose it) My last memory of him with it was at the gate. Oh boy. I ask the flight attendant (Ill refer to her as FA and that is a dually applicable acronym if you catch my drift) if she could please call up to the gate and ask them to check. She acts thoroughly annoyed with me and says I should go check myself. So, I go down the stairs of the very small plane, back through the cold air up the ramp back to the gate .no gameboy but they take my information in case it turned up - all the while offering appropriate sympathetic looks and sounds(much nicer than FA) . .back down the ramp through the cold ..I decide to ask the man loading the carry on /under the plane bags if I could check my bag .he is very accommodating. What do you know, there it is. Grab it run up plane steps back to my seat holding it up in the air like it is the Holy Grail. Everyone is staring. DS is happy and relieved, I am panting. This is a good theme for the trip: anything to make you happy, kid. So what if people are staring.
We are ready to go! Our plane is supposed to take off at 6:05. At 6:10 DS begins asking When are we going to take off? I begin to be curious as well and do the male-like check-the watch routine again, At 6:15 FA comes on the speaker asking us to please look under our seats just in case What the heck is she talking about? Just in case what? There is a bomb there? A small stowaway? I decide she must have mentioned something about this while I was on my quest for the Holy Grail. Everyone is frantically looking under their seats, under their neighbors seats, in their seat pockets. What are we looking for? Is this deltas idea of security checks on a budget? The man across the aisle senses my confusion and informs me that one of the crew members has lost their badge and that FAA security dictates that we cannot take off without him/her having it. Oh great. I WILL make it my mission to personally torture and kill this crew member if this causes my flight to be cancelled. It looks like Ill have to conduct this said torture/murder with my ballpoint pen as I was allowed no weapons in my carry-on.
6:20 am: The now crazed FA is frantically searching through every nook and cranny in the forward compartment and amazingly there are many in this very small plane. She is bending down rifling through drawers (we are all treated to some very non-lady like views of FAs FA) , standing up , calling people on the phone, gesturing wildly with her hands, making loud frustrated sounds. There are endless minutes filled with more phone calls,,,,,more searching . The passengers are getting restless .cellphones are whipped out and calls are being made. I have no one to call as everyone at my house is asleep, but I briefly consider pretending to call someone as it seems to be the thing to do. My DS is beginning to get mad (and you wont like him when hes mad) WHY arent we taking off? What time is it NOW? Why are all of the OTHER planes going but not us? What is she LOOKING for? All the while I am mentally reviewing my carefully planned (to the minute) itinerary and trying to figure out what we are going to do. Luckily I had taken my special calming pill this morning so I wouldnt accidentally jump an innocent person of middle eastern descent who attempted to use the facilities during the flight, so I remained relatively calm. For some reason, Dorys mantra Just keep swimming keeps running through my head.
Finally at 6:35 am, FA sits down in her seat and buckles her seatbelt with absolutely no explanation to us as to what the final conclusion of this drama is What happened to the freakin badge? Did we find it? Whose fault is it? Will someone be fired? I cannot confirm my suspicion but it appears to me that it was FAs fault because she is decidedly NOT in a good mood for the duration of the flight in fact beverage service is not a fun-filled event. Miniature pretzel bags are flung at us like pumpkin bombs from the Green Goblin. .After a TERSE and laconic announcement from our very clearly annoyed pilot .Ready for take off, we begin our taxi down the runway. Finally we are in the air, only a 1/2 hour behind schedule. Not too bad.
Great flight we both give the landing 2 thumbs up (we always rate the landings)! The pilot comes on and says it is currently 58 degrees in Orlando. Oh, goodie, that will be so great WHAT????? Did we fly to Massachusetts or Florida? I could have stayed home and had 58 degrees we are a little bummed and feeling kinda funny in our shorts and sandals..but oh well, it is sunny and its FLORIDA and we get to get off of the very small plane. We bid adieu to FA who scowls menacingly at us as we exit and rush to baggage claim. This is the first of many times during this trip that I find myself running ahead and yelling Hurry! over my shoulder to poor DS . *note to self this is not a good memory maker for him
Im certain our Tiffany Town Car driver must have given up on us by now. But no, Renata is faithfully holding up the sign with our name on it and smiling sweetly. I run to the restroom (the 32 ounces of coffee had finally caused bladder overload) while she and my son get the baggage which she insists on carrying even though she is a tiny little thing. We get in the car and we are off! I remind her of our scheduled grocery stop but she doesnt seem to be aware of it even though I had called to confirm it with TTC a few days ago. She is very kind about it though, and radios in to headquarters to get clearance for a grocery stop. I wait with baited breath to hear whether or not we will be given permission and finally receive the word : we are go for grocery stop! Hooray! We stop at Publix and bought lots of stuff we never ended up using! What we did use: the case of bottled water (though we only used 1/2 of it) a few sodas, bagels and cream cheese, cream for my in-room coffee, a small styromfoam cooler, ice. What we didnt use: an entire bottle of wine, most of the rest of the soda, string cheese, yogurt, chips. (I ended up giving all of the unopened leftovers to the bellman at the end of the trip who was so grateful, saying his roommates would be thrilled) Renata loads our groceries into the trunk and we are off. Next stop: Coronado Springs Resort. The ride is pleasant and we have fun talking with Renata who is Brazilian. She is very enthusiastic about Disney and is great about getting us excited about certain rides. She has some Disney trivia for us too. She asks us: What kind of animal is Goofy? DS and I look at each other and say in unison, A dog! Nope, says Renata knowingly, Hes a cow. Ever wonder why he dates cows? Who knew? DS says, I always thought there was something strange about Goofy. Oh hes a perceptive one alright.
With my online coupon the ride was $75 and I am thinking I give her a $10 tip. At CSR the bellman quickly unloads our embarrassingly large amount of stuff and whisks it away. I check in with only a 2 minute wait. I get our 2 room keys with mine being connected to my visa gift card for charging to the room. The CM says, I have your room ready! This is too good to be true! And it is in Cabanas 8A as I had requested. We are a few mere steps to the dig site pool (main one) and a few more to bus stop 4! This is a perfect locale for us as we dont have any need to go to El Centro at all After check in we are driven to our room in a golf cart type vehicle. We tip the driver/bellman, shut the door and jump up and down in the room for a few minutes. WE ARE HERE!!!!! Then I remember the itinerary! OMG, we are off schedule I most definitely did NOT schedule in jumping for joy! Its time for ANIMAL KINGDOM!!!! HURRY!
You sound a lot like me
