More Fun Than Rock, Paper, Scissors, Lizard, Spock-Adventures of the Sweet 16!New8-15

[Lady Lallie]

I'm so glad I was able to snag a Le Cellier ADR for September after reading your post. I had been trying for awhile and had no luck but finally last week I got one. I adore the food there, everything I have tried as been awesome!

In a group that size there are bound to be meltdowns. It's hard to do what you want to do and keep everyone else happy. I'm so happy you were able to get back to see Illuminations.

 

[mickeystoontown]

I have been bad at Dising lately and was behind.....again. Heck, I haven't even caught up on my own report.

I love the Splash Mountain picture even though you can't see the kids. It's makes for a fun memory.

We've never eaten lunch at Liberty Tree Tavern but from the way you've described it, it sounds really good. Will's face with the sauce on it is too cute.

It's too bad that you didn't get time to laze around in a hammock at the CBR. We didn't get to do it this year either because it rained almost every darned afternoon. Oh, and what was up with the crazy laundry lady? Sounds like she needed to take some anxiety meds or something.

You really do need to go see Cirque some time. We've seen it twice and it is THE best thing we have ever done outside of the parks. The tickets are expensive but worth every single penny.

Glad to hear that you enjoyed your meal at LeCellier. It was the best meal we had during this last trip. If it changes to a two table service restaurant, we may have to rethink going there too.

Twin pearls! You lucky girl! I've read here on the Dis that lots of people buy pearl cages on ebay. You may want to look into that.

 

[FairyGodmotherJen]

I'm so glad I was able to snag a Le Cellier ADR for September after reading your post. I had been trying for awhile and had no luck but finally last week I got one. I adore the food there, everything I have tried as been awesome!

In a group that size there are bound to be meltdowns. It's hard to do what you want to do and keep everyone else happy. I'm so happy you were able to get back to see Illuminations.

We were really happy with our meal there. I know there's a lot of talk on the DIS about how the restaurant is over-hyped, and how some people feel that their vacation is ruined if they can't get an ADR. It wouldn't make or break my vacation if I didn't get an ADR there (I can't imagine that about any restaurant, actually), but if it stays a one-credit restaurant I'll definintely be trying to get back there!

I have been bad at Dising lately and was behind.....again. Heck, I haven't even caught up on my own report.

I love the Splash Mountain picture even though you can't see the kids. It's makes for a fun memory.

We've never eaten lunch at Liberty Tree Tavern but from the way you've described it, it sounds really good. Will's face with the sauce on it is too cute.

It's too bad that you didn't get time to laze around in a hammock at the CBR. We didn't get to do it this year either because it rained almost every darned afternoon. Oh, and what was up with the crazy laundry lady? Sounds like she needed to take some anxiety meds or something.

You really do need to go see Cirque some time. We've seen it twice and it is THE best thing we have ever done outside of the parks. The tickets are expensive but worth every single penny.

Glad to hear that you enjoyed your meal at LeCellier. It was the best meal we had during this last trip. If it changes to a two table service restaurant, we may have to rethink going there too.

Twin pearls! You lucky girl! I've read here on the Dis that lots of people buy pearl cages on ebay. You may want to look into that.

I can't wait to see how the twin pearls end up looking when they're mounted as earings. I was pretty excited by it!

You'd enjoy LTT, I think. I really think we can recommend any of the places we went to. Yeah, the Crazy Laundry Lady was...well...crazy. We were calling her the laundry Nazi for a little while - a little scary!

Don't worry about being behind on the Dis...the only reason I'm able to keep up is because I'm not at school! I'm always terribly behind during the school year...I pretty much get as caught up as possible on weekends! (The Dis is blocked at school...which is honestly probably a good thing!) That's why I need to get this TR done before I go back...a month from tomorrow.

 

[jenjolt]

I'm here!! Late as usual!! Going to have a lot of fun going back and catching up, but I'm here WOOT!!!!

LOVE THE TITLE...HUGE BIG BANG THEORY FAN HERE....TOTALLY A SHELDON LOVER!!!

 

[goofy's_gurl]

the crazy laundry lady. Oh my word. I cant believe that. I can see if you guys just left your stuff in the machines for hours and didnt come back but for her to be standing over you an what not. I'd be a little mad.
I dont blame you for having a meltdown for leaving Epcot. I know I would have. But at least you guys had a little rest then went back.

(The Dis is blocked at school...which is honestly probably a good thing!) That's why I need to get this TR done before I go back...a month from tomorrow.

I know what you mean!! I would be in one of my classes at school doing nothing lol I would try and go on the Dis but hey it was blocked. But there are ways around the blockade.

 

[FairyGodmotherJen]

I'm here!! Late as usual!! Going to have a lot of fun going back and catching up, but I'm here WOOT!!!!

LOVE THE TITLE...HUGE BIG BANG THEORY FAN HERE....TOTALLY A SHELDON LOVER!!!

Glad you're here! I missed Big Bang this week because I was watching the Pixar Story on CNBC I knew it was a rerun, though.

the crazy laundry lady. Oh my word. I cant believe that. I can see if you guys just left your stuff in the machines for hours and didnt come back but for her to be standing over you an what not. I'd be a little mad.
I dont blame you for having a meltdown for leaving Epcot. I know I would have. But at least you guys had a little rest then went back.


I know what you mean!! I would be in one of my classes at school doing nothing lol I would try and go on the Dis but hey it was blocked. But there are ways around the blockade.

She was a little much. We warned anyone who went back to the laundry area to watch out for her. She was good for several laughs during the trip, I admit!

We did get to go back, which was really nice. (Thanks again, Shelley!) I love wandering through the countries at Epcot - always have. There just wasn't much time for that this trip. I keep telling myself we'll do it the next trip. Now all I need is a ticker.... Pictures coming up soon!

I think I'd better not figure out the ways around the blockade at school...I'll never get my papers graded!

 

[glennbo123]

Wow, big update. I remember that ending to the Norway Kimpossible mission. I was so surprised by that poster turning into a part of the mission that I didn't think to take a picture of it until it turned back into a poster!

Sorry to hear about your mini-meltdown. I guess that's the negative side to park touring with such a large group. It's nice to be with family, but you don't always get to do and see all that you want to.

 

[Lady Lallie]

We were really happy with our meal there. I know there's a lot of talk on the DIS about how the restaurant is over-hyped, and how some people feel that their vacation is ruined if they can't get an ADR. It wouldn't make or break my vacation if I didn't get an ADR there (I can't imagine that about any restaurant, actually), but if it stays a one-credit restaurant I'll definintely be trying to get back there!

I feel the same way. I think why I wanted to go there so badly on our upcoming trip is because when I went in 2008, I was having a meltdown during our meal and didn't get to enjoy it really. The crowds had gotten to me and our ADR was right before Illuminations and I just wanted to eat and leave before the crowds got to the buses. I've been since with Jen but I feel I owe it to my husband to have re-do at Le Cellier for the two of us. I made the poor guy take his dessert to go.

 

[marvali]

We were really happy with our meal there. I know there's a lot of talk on the DIS about how the restaurant is over-hyped, and how some people feel that their vacation is ruined if they can't get an ADR. It wouldn't make or break my vacation if I didn't get an ADR there (I can't imagine that about any restaurant, actually), but if it stays a one-credit restaurant I'll definintely be trying to get back there!

I'm real excited I was able to get my Le Cellier ADR for our trip in December, but I totally agree with you! NO one particular restaurant will make or break my trip, for sure! Hopefully the "signature" rumor is just that, only a rumor. As much as I'm looking forward to trying it for the first time, I'm not two dining credits excited!

Yeah, the Crazy Laundry Lady was...well...crazy. We were calling her the laundry Nazi for a little while - a little scary!

the crazy laundry lady. Oh my word. I cant believe that. I can see if you guys just left your stuff in the machines for hours and didnt come back but for her to be standing over you an what not. I'd be a little mad.

Unfortunately I've seen "her" before. It is crazy. I don't really have a problem with someone moving my finished clothes to the table so they can get started if I miss on the finish time, but you don't have to be a jerk about it!

 

[dismagiclover]

Too bad we have to do laundry on vacation, isn't it. Last year I actually packed clothes for 9 days because I didn't want to mess with laundry. Sorry about missing the storytime. It sounds like that would have been lots of fun. Yay for Le Cellier. I love the soup. Sorry you didn't get more of a chance to explore World Showcase. It just gets so brutally hot there in the afternoons during the summer. Hopefully you got a chance to explore a little morein the evening.

 

[FairyGodmotherJen]

Wow, big update. I remember that ending to the Norway Kimpossible mission. I was so surprised by that poster turning into a part of the mission that I didn't think to take a picture of it until it turned back into a poster!

Sorry to hear about your mini-meltdown. I guess that's the negative side to park touring with such a large group. It's nice to be with family, but you don't always get to do and see all that you want to.

I wish I could blame it all on my family. It was pretty much me. I really enjoyed seeing what we did with everyone, though. The Kim Possible thing was pretty cool. I had to explain a little of the fashion world idea to the kids, which made me very glad that Haley hadn't gotten to that point yet! The only problem the kids had was their directionally challenged mother trying to tell them they needed to go the other way. They thought the whole poster thing was cool - they were telling Ruby all about it during lunch.

I feel the same way. I think why I wanted to go there so badly on our upcoming trip is because when I went in 2008, I was having a meltdown during our meal and didn't get to enjoy it really. The crowds had gotten to me and our ADR was right before Illuminations and I just wanted to eat and leave before the crowds got to the buses. I've been since with Jen but I feel I owe it to my husband to have re-do at Le Cellier for the two of us. I made the poor guy take his dessert to go.

Sounds like you'll have a nice dinner! I've taken dessert to go before...sometimes it makes for a good breakfast!

I'm real excited I was able to get my Le Cellier ADR for our trip in December, but I totally agree with you! NO one particular restaurant will make or break my trip, for sure! Hopefully the "signature" rumor is just that, only a rumor. As much as I'm looking forward to trying it for the first time, I'm not two dining credits excited!



Unfortunately I've seen "her" before. It is crazy. I don't really have a problem with someone moving my finished clothes to the table so they can get started if I miss on the finish time, but you don't have to be a jerk about it!

Yeah, she was pretty intense. Hopefully, Le Cellier will still be a one-credit meal in December!

Too bad we have to do laundry on vacation, isn't it. Last year I actually packed clothes for 9 days because I didn't want to mess with laundry. Sorry about missing the storytime. It sounds like that would have been lots of fun. Yay for Le Cellier. I love the soup. Sorry you didn't get more of a chance to explore World Showcase. It just gets so brutally hot there in the afternoons during the summer. Hopefully you got a chance to explore a little morein the evening.

That's it - if I hadn't had to do laundry on vacation, it would have been alright! Blame it on the chores! The storytime sounded great when Norah told us about it, but we actually ended up getting some surprise one-on-one with a character on our last day, so that kind of made up for not making it. I suppose we could have run to catch some of it once we got to the park, but we just weren't up for it!

 

[Dug-says-HI-THERE!]

After the Crazy Laundry Lady, no wonder you had a mini-melt-down!

 

[FairyGodmotherJen]

After the Crazy Laundry Lady, no wonder you had a mini-melt-down!

She's one of those stories from Disney that we'll laugh about for a good long while! The next time we go, when we go to do laundry, I'm sure we'll talk about the Crazy Laundry Lady!

 

[FairyGodmotherJen]

It is Disney-related, though!

Haley turned 9 recently, and for her birthday my parents gave us tickets to see High School Musical – Live on Stage at our local Dinner Theatre.

Honestly, I wasn’t all that excited about the show, just excited about spending an evening with just me, DH, and Haley. We were pleasantly surprised by the fact that, as cheesy as it can sometimes be, the message in HSM is really positive (I haven’t seen anything but the last scene before, and DH hasn’t seen any of them)! We got a kick, in particular, out of the adults. The actors who played the adults – the coach and the teacher – were part of the final dance scene, which we felt sorry for them for. We got such a kick out of watching the coach do all those dance moves. He was having a pretty good time and not taking himself too seriously!

They did a little pre-show where they announced celebrations, and Haley was so excited when they announced her birthday (it was two of the characters from the show – the coach and a radio announcer from the high school – which was a nice touch, I thought).

We’d been there a little while when the two tables directly above us were filled by a family with five little girls between the ages of 5 and 7, I’d guess. The theatre is set up in tiers, and our table was up against a divider wall between us and the tier above us. We immediately realized we could be in for it, as the girls were hanging over the railing of the dividing wall and exclaiming at the tops of their lungs. We had a group of four twenty-something ladies next to us (they looked like sisters or cousins) who weren’t thrilled by the arrival of the little ones, either. They were season ticket holders who, I’m guessing, wouldn’t have been there otherwise. The little girls sitting at the first table, which was closer to the ladies next to us, kept loosing the flip flops they were wearing, which would end up on our neighbors (there was a space between the wall and the floor). This happened at least 3 times. At one point, DH joked to one of the ladies that she should just keep it, as the child obviously didn’t want it. We exchanged lots of rolled eyes and exasperated glances with those ladies before the show started! They even made a point of telling DH that Haley was behaving wonderfully, and that we should be proud. They also turned and congratulated her for her birthday. We were kind of glad to have them around to commiserate with!

At intermission, the lights came up and those who’d ordered dessert got it. We were relieved when a grandmother took the little girls out to explore the lobby - though not before they thought it’d be fun to reach over the rail and touch the glasses of the table of ladies next to us while they were in the restroom! Don’t get me wrong – these kids weren’t being purposefully obnoxious. They were simply kids who had never been taught how to act in a place like this. I run into it at school all the time during convocations – even some of the people I work with are of the mind that, “They’re just kids, so we can’t expect much more out of them.” I happen to be of the opinion that they won’t ever learn how to act if we don’t teach them!!! Anyway, our relief was short-lived…they came back after about ten minutes, and they’d been at the gift shop. They’d all been bought stuffed animals – mostly dogs, which they were voicing in little yippy barking noises. I couldn’t believe it – and neither could our newfound friends at the next table. We all just groaned and laughed (gotta laugh instead of getting mad, right??). That’s when our neighbors really surprised us. One of them got up and left…and returned with a stuffed bear in a Wildcat cheerleader outfit for Haley! She crouched down to Haley’s height and told her happy birthday, and thanked her for her good behavior. I wish I had a picture of Haley’s face…it was priceless! She ended up going over to the other table and hugging her newfound friend, and the bear was in her lap the entire rest of the show. It was just a neat experience! The girls above us got worse, unfortunately, as the show went on. They started singing as they hung over the railing, almost hitting DH many times. When he shot the dad a look, the dad did at least say something to the mom, who picked the little girl up and put her in her lap. But the conversations they were carrying on in full voice during the last couple of scenes really bothered us. When the lights came up, the family with the little girls bolted, and we said goodbye to our newfound friends at the next table. Haley had been fairly oblivious to the issues with the little girls, especially once the show started – she just drank in the entire show. But we made sure she understood why she’d gotten the bear, she was pretty amazed and thankful. Haley had an amazing time, and DH and I really enjoyed the experience more than we’d thought. It was one we’ll remember, for sure!

Ok – back to the trip next, I promise. I just had to share!

 

[goofy's_gurl]

Aww, I wish people would teach their children when to be goofy and all funny and when to be quiet and good. But it takes all people to make our world go round. At least you guys had a great time though. It was very nice of the lady to give Haley a stuff bear!!!

 

[FairyGodmotherJen]

Aww, I wish people would teach their children when to be goofy and all funny and when to be quiet and good. But it takes all people to make our world go round. At least you guys had a great time though. It was very nice of the lady to give Haley a stuff bear!!!

We couldn't believe it - it was well over and above! We were flattered that they thought Haley was well-behaved and took the time to tell her so! To give the other people a tiny bit of slack, I know it would have been harder for Haley to behave had there been other kids with her. But we still wouldn't have let her do anything like those kids did!

 

[FairyGodmotherJen]

So, thanks to Tim, Shelley, and my in-laws, we were soon on a bus back to Epcot with my mom and aunt. We had fun joking around on the way there. It had rained a bit, and we took ponchos with us just in case it rained again. We were lucky, though – we stayed dry!

Bryan and Aunt Dee had gotten Fastpasses for Test Track (Jack’s one request while we were in Epcot…which we didn’t get to, unfortunately) that afternoon, and since we still had them we thought we’d head there before scoping out a spot for the fireworks. However, since it had just rained, Test Track wasn’t up yet. Instead, DH and my aunt convinced Mom and I to try this for the first time…

Yep! I’d never done it, instead hanging out with the kids while Bryan had ridden it. But since we didn’t have that situation today, and since the posted wait time was about 10 minutes for the green side, we decided to do it. Mom was a bit unsure (and Bryan seriously tried to get us to go to the red side), but we all ended up getting in the green line together. I ended up enjoying it! We had a good laugh when Mom was named navigator for our mission (she’s even worse with directions than I am), and settled in to our space vehicle. I’m glad I was able to do this – it really is a good example of Disney Imagineering at its best! I was impressed by how immersive it was, the storyline that went with it, everything! Aunt Dee had been telling us this during our very short (less than the 10 minutes that had been posted) wait, and I ended up completely agreeing with her!

After Mission Space, Test Track was still down, so we tried to go to Club Cool. Unfortunately, we’d ended up back in the park at just a little after 7, so most things were closed. It was now only about 55 minutes before Illuminations, so we took some pictures and then wandered over to World Showcase.

We ended up finding an almost-partially obstructed view (we didn’t really have a view of the entire WS area) across from the China pavilion. At this point, we wanted snacks! Our Le Cellier lunch – and the heat – had kept us from being hungry up until then, but we all agreed we could use some food. Aunt Dee and I went in search of a tasty snack, and Bryan and Mom stayed behind to “guard” the spot.

We wandered for a little while, looking at menus and snapping pictures.

We also saw a Bee Gees (sp?) tribute band at the American pavilion. It was kind of fun!

We ended up getting a whiff of the funnel cake stand not too far from there, and that was it! We each got one to bring back and share, and stopped at China for soft drinks on the way back. Mom and Bryan decided to just share with us, so we all settled in to watch one of my favorite shows on property.

I didn’t get to see this until our last trip in 2008 for various reasons (an overpacked scheduled in 2000, tired-out kids in 2005, rain in 2007). Even though the globe was being refurbished at the time, I loved it. I was glad to see the show now with the globe – it was really amazing!

After the fireworks ended, we leisurely meandered back to Futureworld. Bryan and I had discovered on our last trip that the trick was to take our time, maybe do a little shopping, and then head for the buses. We’d gotten on the next bus that had arrived last time because the majority of the crowd had already left. So that’s what we did this time. We took a few pictures,

And then headed to Mouse Gear for some actual browsing, since the kids weren’t pulling us in different directions! DH is a serious shopper – he comes by it honestly. His mom has clothed my children for much of their lives with the bargains she finds! She’d already found some Disney sweatshirts for 50% off at the gift show at CBR. So now, DH knew what to look for!

I picked up some of the shaped pens that I collect (they’re fun to use when conferencing with my students) and a pair of earrings and paid for them. I found Mom and Aunt Dee and we went in search of Bryan to prod him on (as I said, he’s a serious shopper). That’s when we found yet another rack of 50% off sweatshirts. I ended up with a really cute Mickey one (I’ll take pictures and post them later), and Bryan actually ended up finding a 2010 sweatshirt that was half off! Mom, Aunt Dee and I waited for Bryan to decide and make his purchases. I took this picture while we waited.

Mom checked in with Dad on her cell (he was visiting my brother in CA, and they’d made a trip to the Grand Canyon), and Aunt Dee checked in with my uncle and grandpa (who she lives next door to back home). Once Bryan was done, we headed out. As we’d expected, the line for the bus to CBR wasn’t bad at all, and we were back to our rooms very quickly. The kids were asleep, and we let our wonderful sitters head to that direction themselves. It ended up being a very nice evening after a day that hadn’t gone so well!

 

[Queenofallthings]

Great update!

That picture you took across the lagoon at sunset looking at Canada is spectacular....absolutely beautiful!

We always seem to watch Illuminations from Italy....it's my DD17 favorite viewing spot...

 

[FairyGodmotherJen]

Great update!

That picture you took across the lagoon at sunset looking at Canada is spectacular....absolutely beautiful!

We always seem to watch Illuminations from Italy....it's my DD17 favorite viewing spot...

Italy, huh? We might have to try that one next time!

I was pleased with the way the sunset picture turned out...I'm still learning this camera, so it was pure dumb luck! Bryan has experimented much more with it, and most of the other ones are his!

 

[Dug-says-HI-THERE!]

Love to read about guys who like SHOPPING!!