My better late than never TR

[MeMom]

Those two pictures Dawn put up are the exact ones I was going to comment on. I like the Soarin' one, since Soarin' is my bestest ride! The one of the boys with their balloons is very sweet. They look genuinely pleased - not just putting on a smile for the camera!

Great update! Can you give me a couple hundred more of World Showcase, since I can't go down there for a walk right now???

 

[sunny_stace]

Yay! I'm so glad I got home today for an update!! I love all of the pictures! Your family always looks so nice in the photos!
And I'm glad to hear you had a nice Christmas! Even if perhaps you would have preferred the money to have been spent on something else...I bet the boys were happy and you got to spend time with your family.

And I'm glad you enjoyed Le Cellier - if you hadn't I'd have to be ashamed of my country! Even though I've never eaten there!

 

[kschafer]

i wish we could've gotten this! but it was pouring when we were outside of soarin and i didn't see any photopass photographers out there. i'm assuming that's where you get that done. oh, and the missing tink seems to be a problem lately. that happened to a person on our photopass share too!

this is so cool! they did this for ray and i too for our anniversary in 2007 and 2008. i think we got aladdin the first year and cinderella the second. so sweet! did pluto misspell patrick's name?

It was taken near the edge of FW as you are heading toward WS, before reaching the gift shop there. Actually it was taken in the same spot as the previous picture just turned a bit to the side.

Yes, Pluto forgot the "k". Patrick laments it all the time and I just remind him that Pluto is a dog and not a good speller.

Thise two pictures Dawn put up are the exact ones I was going to comment on. I like the Soarin' one, since Soarin' is my bestest ride! The one of the boys with their balloons is very sweet. They look genuinely pleased - not just putting on a smile for the camera!

Great update! Can you give me a couple hundred more of World Showcase, since I can't go down there for a walk right now???

Patrick was amazed that Pluto knew it was his birthday.

Sorry MeMom, not a couple hundred but here's a few more to tide you over...

Yay! I'm so glad I got home today for an update!! I love all of the pictures! Your family always looks so nice in the photos!
And I'm glad to hear you had a nice Christmas! Even if perhaps you would have preferred the money to have been spent on something else...I bet the boys were happy and you got to spend time with your family.

And I'm glad you enjoyed Le Cellier - if you hadn't I'd have to be ashamed of my country! Even though I've never eaten there!

Aww, thanks Stace! Good to have to drop by if only for a little while.

You should try LeCellier sometime, it is really good


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My sitter had a party the week before christmas for all the families. I thought I would share this because it is pretty cute

 

[2xcited2sleep]

Great update. Glad you enjoyed Le Cellier. I substitute cream cheese mashed potatoes for the risotto... but I'm all about the potato!

I've never seen the Soarin photopass insert. Very cool!

That poor Pluto... not a good speller.

 

[kschafer]

Great update. Glad you enjoyed Le Cellier. I substitute cream cheese mashed potatoes for the risotto... but I'm all about the potato!

Now I wish I had subbed the potatoes. I normally like risotto but wasn't impressed with them in WDW

 

[CanadianWDWfan]

I think it was so thoughtful of your DH to get you the earings you mentioned. Maybe he took it as a hint. I'm sure they are beautiful.

You still could get a Disney trip, if you are a good girl...

I thought the pics of your boys at DTD were cute.

What a neat idea to get the passports to entertain them around WS. I wish they made something for a 14yr old, he was not very thrilled to go around there. It was hot and DD had to stop at each character. I never even saw Canada, I got tired of his complaining and we went for some food.

I hope I can get that pic with "soarin Mickey & Minnie". Very special!

I like your sparkle Mickey tee.

Oh Pluto, he tried, what a nice surprise anyways.

 

[kschafer]

I think it was so thoughtful of your DH to get you the earings you mentioned. Maybe he took it as a hint. I'm sure they are beautiful.

You still could get a Disney trip, if you are a good girl...

I thought the pics of your boys at DTD were cute.

What a neat idea to get the passports to entertain them around WS. I wish they made something for a 14yr old, he was not very thrilled to go around there. It was hot and DD had to stop at each character. I never even saw Canada, I got tired of his complaining and we went for some food.

I hope I can get that pic with "soarin Mickey & Minnie". Very special!

I like your sparkle Mickey tee.

Oh Pluto, he tried, what a nice surprise anyways.

The earrings are beautiful and I should be grateful for them. I am working on the next trip!

the passport were a lot of fun, Patrick was just about the perfect age for them. Hopefully you don't feel too diappointed about now seeing Canada since it's right outside your window! (we purposely skipped America except for the kidspot)

the sparkle Mickey Tee was another Wal-Mart find. I actually got it in Iowa before we left. $5 baby!

Yep, Pluto gotta love him


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Happy 2009 everyone!!

 

[CanadianWDWfan]

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

I guess I can just look outside but it's not as nice.

Hope your year is exactly what you wish for and you get a trip to WDW!!! Just mention that you have that great van and you need to get more use of it...

 

[jenjolt]

Katie what a great update!!! I loved your pictures in China, I have never seen that before so I'm going to have explore and find the place with the statues. (I'm beginning to realize the many times I've been there, how little I have really seen of WS).

Happy New Year to you and your family my friend!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I hope you have a blessed year full of many great memories!!

Cant' wait to read about your last day!

 

[kschafer]

Day 13 – Saturday, June 21

We woke up this morning to find the dreaded envelope hanging on our door. That ugly little thing that says “your Disney vacation is over” BOO HOO

It was a gray and cloudy day and the weather matched my mood. I was sad about leaving and disappointed about not having done EVERYTHING I had planned. Of course in hindsight, I see that would have either been impossible or left us so frazzled and exhausted, we would not have enjoyed any of it. Live and learn! To top it off, Patrick was in a bit of a snarly mood and I had a touch of a sinus cold coming on. I should warn you, these were the makings of a not so magical day.

We packed up the van and headed to our last day at the best park of all, MK. We got there near rope drop and the boys choose the ferry again.

In retrospect, the park was not very crowded on this day and we should have enjoyed that a lot more than we did.

We made our way up main street and stopped for some photopass pics. We had decided to wear our customized ears for these but Daniel was not in a cooperative mood (he’s pretty shy around strangers so it is usually hit and miss with him)

Then took some pics of a few friends

I’m not really sure what all we did but we headed to fantasyland and probably rode pooh and peter pan. We hopped on IASW - walked right on and had a boat to ourselves, that was pretty cool!

We also saw Mickeys Philharmagic

Then headed to toontown fair where we rode barnstormer a couple times then went to check out Minnies House. This was so cute and the boys had a blast!

I love cheese! Minnies shopping list cracked me up

"Palm" tree

We wandered through Mickeys house (not nearly as fun but still cute)

The boys were not interested in meeting any characters so we went to the little kids play area to try to cool down (despite the clouds, it was HOT) We finally decided it was close enough to our lunch ADR that we hopped the train to frontierland and made our way to Liberty Tree Tavern.

I was iffy on this choice but this was our substitute TS for skipping Whispering Canyon Café. With the last minute decision, the availability of ADR’s was slim so we took this one. I had noted that we were celebrating Patrick’s birthday and they had mickey confetti sprinkled on the table and the lady who seated us circled the note about it for our server but he completely overlooked it. I had the cheeseburger and fries which was just so-so. Patrick ordered the mac and cheese but didn’t like it so they brought him the turkey which he picked at. I had the toffee dessert which I THINK I normally would have liked but I was just in a funk and only picked at it some. Somehow, despite mine and Patrick’s moods, DH said this was his favorite meal all week (pot roast and apple dessert I think)

When we left lunch, we debated a bit about what to do next. I suggested Haunted Mansion, Pirates of the Carribean and Jungle Cruise which were all rejected by the boys. We finally decided to ride the LibertyBelle. We thought this would be a fun relaxing trip but as soon as we got on, the clouds opened up. It turned out to be a slow trip and would be an OK way to kill time on future trips but I was still feeling like I was missing out on things (sorry, like I said, I was in a funk)

As close as I got to HM

When we got off, it was raining even harder so my thought of exploring Tom Sawyer Island was out. My hopes for today was to stay through the afternoon parade but the rain was annoying DH (he does NOT like wet shoes!) and it showed no signs of letting up soon so we decided that with none of us having much fun, there was no point to sticking around so we headed out.

One last wish of mine was to ride up front on the monorail. As we made our way up the ramp, a monorail was getting ready to leave and we were first in line for the next one. DH kept pushing me forward in line and I kept trying to tell him we needed to ask about sitting up front but he just kept pushing forward thinking we would get it by being first. Sure enough, about a minute or two later, I saw a happy family being led to the waiting place for the front. DH asked if I wanted to wait for the next one and I said yes so we stepped back a bit. He then saw the family ahead of us folding up their stroller and he started moaning about having to do that and I said FINE and we just got on.

Yes, I was in tears as I left Disneyworld. I was sad, disappointed and generally in a pissy mood which was not how I wanted to end my time there. But, like I said, live and learn. I WILL be back, I don’t know for sure when yet but I WILL be back. We learned a lot about what we wanted and how much we could do and next time I will be better prepared and more realistic in my expectations.

We got in the van and headed down the road to my parents place. It was another RAINY drive in Florida, I am actually glad we didn’t try to stay in WDW. It absolutely POURED the entire way there.

Now, if you remember from way back when I started this TR, our trip is not over. As a matter of fact, we still have 4 full days before heading home. The plan looks something like this:

Sunday: relax and hang out with parents
Monday: more of the same
Tuesday: drive back to Orlando, check into our hotel and visit SeaWorld
Wednesday: another SeaWorld day
Thursday: depart for home

If you will indulge me, I will continue with my TR. There are still some fun things ahead including Daniel coming out of his shell a bit!! (Imagine, magic outside of WDW) I don’t want to leave you with this as my last day, what a bummer that would be!

 

[kschafer]

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

I guess I can just look outside but it's not as nice.

Hope your year is exactly what you wish for and you get a trip to WDW!!! Just mention that you have that great van and you need to get more use of it...

Probably not as nice this time of year!!

Yeah, I tried that line but when we got the last van, we got hit by a rock 6 days later and cracked the windshield. You bet DH brought that up!

Katie what a great update!!! I loved your pictures in China, I have never seen that before so I'm going to have explore and find the place with the statues. (I'm beginning to realize the many times I've been there, how little I have really seen of WS).

Happy New Year to you and your family my friend!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I hope you have a blessed year full of many great memories!!

Cant' wait to read about your last day!

Definitely take the time to explore the pavillions. There are so many hidden treasures and a solo trip is the perfect time to follow your own whims (plus there are lots of booths with alcohol to enjoy too )

Happy new year to you too. ONLY 14 days JEN !!!!!!!!!

 

[MeMom]

Definitely don't want to end with everyone in a bad mood, so I'm hanging on for the rest of the trip.

Do the parents have enough room for all of us to hang with them?
I'm looking forward to the Sea World part, because we are thinking about venturing off Disney property to take Brooklynn there one day during our summer trip. I took my kids when they were young, and I think she would really enjoy it, so it's on our loose agenda, at least for now. We probably won't mention it until we are actually on our way there, just in case we change our minds.

Minnie's house is fun because her kitchen is so interactive. If Mickey would ever get his contractors to finish his place, he might have some cool stuff going on over there, too!

 

[2xcited2sleep]

Oh, happy day! An update!!

Stupid last day envelope.

You got some great photos. Love the photopass of you and DH and the whole family in their Mickey ears.

I tried Toon Town in Oct and it was too crowded so I gave up. I have to try it again. The "palm" tree...

Awww... sorry you left in tears. But you're right... you WILL be back!!!

I'll definitely stick around to hear about the rest of your trip. I haven't been to Sea World in ages! Can't wait!

 

[julezdisney]

Great update, Katie! Bummer about the monorail, it was indeed a dream of mine as well. NEXt tRIP!!!

And OF COURSE I'll read on into your trip- can't end it sad!

 

[Happy Elf]

Sorry it was a bummer of a day. I'm hanging out for more. I would love to hear about SeaWorld.

 

[kschafer]

Do the parents have enough room for all of us to hang with them?
I'm looking forward to the Sea World part, because we are thinking about venturing off Disney property to take Brooklynn there one day during our summer trip. I took my kids when they were young, and I think she would really enjoy it, so it's on our loose agenda, at least for now. We probably won't mention it until we are actually on our way there, just in case we change our minds.

Minnie's house is fun because her kitchen is so interactive. If Mickey would ever get his contractors to finish his place, he might have some cool stuff going on over there, too!

Well, you will see a picture of where we slept at my parents place, it's pretty tiny! There is a reason my brothers and I took turns visiting them!

I remembered going to SeaWorld as a kid but have very few memories beyond the Shamu show. It was interesting to go back but I am sure it has changed a lot. Not Disney for sure but also no Disney crowds which was nice. Loose plans are good!

Yeah, we should have visited Mickeys house first, it was a little downer after visiting Minnies. His kitchen reminds me of our house, it has been in various stages of remodelling for the last 8 years!

You got some great photos. Love the photopass of you and DH and the whole family in their Mickey ears.

I tried Toon Town in Oct and it was too crowded so I gave up. I have to try it again. The "palm" tree...

Awww... sorry you left in tears. But you're right... you WILL be back!!!

Thanks Christine, the Mickey ears were one of my dreams for this trip!

Toon town is cute but if I were going solo I would NOT fight the crowds to see it.

Gnomefest baby!! Seems like a long way away but at least gives me the feel of going back "soon" under 2 years between trips is better than the last break, 20 years

Great update, Katie! Bummer about the monorail, it was indeed a dream of mine as well. NEXt tRIP!!!

And OF COURSE I'll read on into your trip- can't end it sad!

Next trip, next trip. WDW isn't going anywhere! In the meantime I have the Dis.

Sorry it was a bummer of a day. I'm hanging out for more. I would love to hear about SeaWorld.

I'm glad so many of you are going to stick with me! We have some fun pictures from the next few days.

 

[jenjolt]

I am sorry for the bummer of the last day, but like you said there will be A NEXT TIME!!!!

You and I can ride upfront on the monorail in 2010 if you want??? I haven't done it yet either LOL Hopefully by then you'll have done it with the boys!!!!!!!!!!!!

Glad you're TR isn't over yet...can't wait to hear about Sea World...as a zoology fiend...I can't wait to hear about animals LOL

HAPPY NEW YEAR KATIE!!!!!!!!!!

 

[punkin413]

i'm sticking around! ray and i are thinking of doing sea world one day next trip (in 1 year and 11 months!) and i'd love to hear about it. i've been before but it was 17 years ago so i'm sure it's changed a lot!

i'm sorry your vacation ended badly. i won't go into details but our last day this past trip wasn't all that great either. it actually ended really good, but the day leading up to it wasn't so great. i hate being at disney world and not being completely happy!!! but we're all human.

i've never noticed the "palm" tree.....too funny!

oh, and ray and i felt the same way about the liberty belle: enormous waste of time. it just takes too long!

 

[MEK]

Katie -

Sorry your last day at MK was a bummer and you didn't get to ride in the front of the monorail. When the Martcettes go in April '10 it would be fun to drink around the monorail. That will give you three chances to get the front car. I have always wanted to do that!

Your pictures turned out great. Looking forward to the rest of your report!

 

[kschafer]

You and I can ride upfront on the monorail in 2010 if you want??? I haven't done it yet either LOL Hopefully by then you'll have done it with the boys!!!!!!!!!!!!

Glad you're TR isn't over yet...can't wait to hear about Sea World...as a zoology fiend...I can't wait to hear about animals LOL

HAPPY NEW YEAR KATIE!!!!!!!!!!

It's a date Jen, I'm sure I won't be there before then so it's you and I!

SeaWorld was a nice different from WDW, a little more relaxed and slow paced.

Happy 2009 to you too!

i'm sorry your vacation ended badly. i won't go into details but our last day this past trip wasn't all that great either. it actually ended really good, but the day leading up to it wasn't so great. i hate being at disney world and not being completely happy!!! but we're all human.

i've never noticed the "palm" tree.....too funny!

I'm not upset looking back on it now. I think my expectations were just too high, I set myself up for it a little bit. I WILL BE BACK!!! That is my new mantra.

I must say, I'm pretty pleased with myself that I found something on my 1 trip this year that Dawn missed in her 3 trips!!

Sorry your last day at MK was a bummer and you didn't get to ride in the front of the monorail. When the Martcettes go in April '10 it would be fun to drink around the monorail. That we give you three chances to get the front car. I have always wanted to do that!

Oooooh, drink around the monorail!!!!! I hadn't considered that one! Can you still get a monorail drivers licence if you have been drinking? And can you get busted for OWI?