Oh, where to start??? How about how I was still packing at 1:30AM the day of our departure? Or how when I finished packing, a thunderstorm rolled in and ruined any plans of sleeping that night? Or how about how you should never invite your Mother AND Mother-in-law on the same trip? Or, how about how you just can't make everyone happy all the time and at 38 years old I SHOULD KNOW THAT????
Well, let's backtrack here so you can see that I am normally a reasonably sane person...
Who went (Pop Century 5/16 - 5/20):
Me - previously mentioned 38 yr old ignorant Mom. Been to WDW about 30 times.
My Mom - used to love Disney...in all kinds of pain/bad health - bad knees, asthma acting up, had pink eye for a day...also had a big fight with my m-in-law years ago and can't let it go
M-in-law - smoker, occasionally goes into lonnnng, boring, self-absorbed stories about herself. Doesn't have anyone to travel with, but loves to get away.
Ryan - my 2.5 yr old son. Cute as can be, this was his 4th trip to WDW.
My husband had a business trip so instead of staying home, doing house stuff and playing it safe, I got the brilliant idea to take Mom and m-in-law to Disney to see the Flower & Garden Festival. Figured they'd both enjoy the flowers and we'd do girly things that my husband wouldn't enjoy. Found a code at Pop, cheap airfare, cheap rental car and we were off...
Last Nov. my husband and I treated them both to a trip and it worked out OK (that trip report was titled "The Battling Grandmas Do Disney", or something like that). So I thought once again my son would provide enough diversion to make them forget they hate each other...didn't exactly go as planned...
Sat. 5/15 I had a wedding shower in PA, got home around 6PM then had last minute work to do. Tried getting my son to sleep and then I'd pack. Well, he was almost asleep when the first thunderstorm rolled in. Took a half hr to get him back in...then my brother called...woke him up again...then my Mom arrived to sleep over before our early departure...he awoke again. Finally he was asleep, Mom went to bed and I started packing around 11PM. Was almost finished when the second thunderstorm rolled in and parked itself over our house. My son didn't wake up, but it kept me up most of the night. Oh well...I'll sleep at Disney (yeah, right!).
We left the house at 6:45AM, picked up my m-in-law and made it to LaGuardia. The long term parking lot was full so I had to park in the regular lot (and take out a second mortgage on our house to pay for parking when we returned). Got on the plane at sat on the runway for ONE HOUR while they fixed a mechanical problem and filed some paperwork (this was NOT what I wanted to hear!).
Finally arrived in MCO, got the rental car (a nice Impala from National - BIG trunk!) and headed for the Belz Outlets. I wanted to check out the Character Warehouse there...it was OK, but I didn't even buy anything. I was probably tired and not in a shopping mood. My son rode the carousel and we had a milkshake before we went off to find Pop Century.
Found the hotel and it took 45 Min. to check in...no big line, just a problem cuz I used my credit card to reserve 2 rooms and we wanted to put my m-in-law's room on her own card. This was the second time this happened - it was like we were the first people to ever ask for this...if I EVER reserve more than 2 rooms at a time, I'll make sure I have a credit card for each up front.
The one (and only?) good thing was that we got rooms near each other (even though my m-in-law needed a smoking room) and near the main building. We were in the 50's, A building. Our room was right by the ice machine and elevator. A little smaller than I'm used to (this was my first Value resort), but pretty nice anyway. Not any noisier than other hotel rooms I've stayed in. You heard the occasional toilet flushing, running feet, etc., but it was fine.
Around 4PM on Sun. we took a boat over to Fort Wilderness - beautiful evening for a boat ride. We walked around the petting zoo for a bit - saw some sheep, goats, calves, etc. then we had dinner at Trail's End buffet. This was a pretty good deal for the $$. Stopped off at the store there and I bought my son a Frontier Goofy (or whatever you call him). We took the boat to the Contemporary and went to the top floor to view the fireworks at MK. Beautiful view...
Oh, did I mention that the NyQuil I packed in a ziploc bag opened up in my suitcase and turned 3 of the 5 shirts I'd brought with me pink? Or that the reason why I brought the NyQuil was for my Mom, who had a loud, hacking cough that I knew would keep my son and I up at night? Well...all part of the Trip of Doom...
So we finally made it back to the hotel around 11PM, got in to bed and listened to my Mom cough for about 2 hr.s. Luckily my son slept through it. After I finally fell asleep, he woke me up with a good, swift kick to my shoulder blades. This kid has a future in soccer, I'm sure...
Mon. morning we went to EPCOT around 10:00. The flowers were beautiful...we went to the butterfly release at 11:00 - it was nice, but I wouldn't go out of my way to see it again.
We then went to Figment, Living Seas, and the Doggy Maze, where I had to drag my son out of the sand pit area. We had an OK lunch at the Electric Umbrella and then went to the Ice Cream Social at the Land. Somehow our PS was screwed up - it was down for May 7th instead of the 17th...and we were told they couldn't fit us in because the ice cream was made up ahead of time and they had no extras. Well, I thought this was kind of a lame excuse and I tried talking diplomatically to the hostess, telling her my son was really looking forward to seeing Mickey, and we'd eat anything else they had...then my Mom started going ballistic and I turned into the peacekeeper. Finally, after a call to the chef, they said they could fit us in. The ice cream was cute and it was a nice chance to see the characters...my son had a ball and hugged each one who came by.
So now I've learned not to trust ziploc bags and to confirm your PS's before your trip...
We spent the afternoon in the World Showcase - saw the drummers in Japan, had my first Kaki-gori (tasty!), my Mom and m-in-law saw the Turtles concert while Ryan and I played with the trains in Germany. They added little buttons so you can control some of the noises/things there: play the Alpine horn, sawmill, turn the Maypole and Ferris wheel. Then we saw the acrobats in China (OMG, those kids are flexible!) and had take-out Chinese for dinner. My son fell asleep in the stroller so I went on Malestrom with my m-in-law. Mom and I bought a creepy book on Scandinavian ghost stories (we're of Norwegian descent, so its interesting to see just how twisted our forefathers were!). We caught Illuminations (and my son slept through all the noise!) and made it back to the hotel around 10PM.
Tues. we went to MK at around 11:00 - we all needed the sleep because of the late nights and lots of coughing. We took the train around the park, meandered down Main St. and made it to our 11:40 PS's for the Crystal Palace. The food was great and my son got a kick out of the characters. Mom and my m-in-law had a little tiff...I went to get up and my son wanted to come with me. Apparently my m-in-law thought he should stay at the table and must have said something to my mom. When I returned, my mom was saying "Well, Marilyn, I've learned not to say anything because it'll come right back at you and its none of my business" (VERY prophetic words, as you'll see...).
We then went to the POC, where we decided my Mom would wait in line with Ryan for a pic with Capt. Hook (who he said he wanted to see) while my m-in-law and I went on the ride. Well, turns out he freaked out when he noticed I had gone and he didn't want to see Hook...when he gets upset sometimes, he throws up, so...well, you guessed it...when we returned, there he was in the stroller, with throw up all over him, his clothes, the stroller, etc. The crowds parted like the Red Sea as I sprinted to the closest bathroom with him. We stripped him down, washed him and the stroller off the best we could. There was a very nice CM at the Trading Post shop who gave us a wet and a dry towel that helped. Luckily I had extra clothes for him. This whole clean up took almost 45 min.
Then we watched the parade from the steps of the Liberty Tree Tavern (a good spot) and went over to Fantasyland. My son loves the Carousel and Dumbo, so we hit them. Then it was time to take the monorail over to the GF for our 4:30 PS for the Afternoon Tea. We got to ride in the front of the monorail (my first time) with two unfriendly pilots (the first was a lady, who switched with a guy at the Contemporary). We got the feeling they didn't like it when the passengers came up front. Oh well...
The Garden View Lounge was closed due to refurbishment for the new Princess Tea, so our tea was moved up to Circo's. We were the only ones there! Tea was delicious - the little sandwiches and pastries made for a great dinner. My son enjoyed his Mrs. Potts tea (chocolate milk & pb&j sandwiches) and even reminded the waiter to use the tea strainer when he poured his chocolate milk.
This is getting long, so I'll spare you the boring details...we went back to the MK, saw Spectromagic and then Wishes. I love seeing Tinkerbell fly overhead...Fought with the crowds to get out of the park and made it back to our room.
Wed. we were going to hit Typhoon Lagoon - but my m-in-law decided to hang around the hotel pool even though she already bought her Typhoon Lagoon tkt. So Mom, Ryan and I went and had a good time. Ryan loves the kiddie area (although he was getting too good at blasting kids in the face with the fire hoses). Mom made about 20 laps around the lazy river.
That evening we hit DTD - had dinner at the Wolfgang Puck Express...very tasty. I thought my m-in-law was mad about something and that's why she bowed out of Typhoon Lagoon, but she was fine...it was my Mom who had the puss on her face...bad omen of things to come....
We went back to the hotel around 10PM, and Ryan and I took the clothes out of the dryer (had to wash all of the stuff he got sick on the day before). As we returned to the room, I heard my Mom whispering on her cell phone to her friend back home...it was like "She did that...and she did this...". Well, I knew something was up...so later I asked what the problem was...well, I thought she was fed up with my m-in-law...turns out it was ME! She went on and on about how spoiled my son is, how its not natural how attached to me he is, how he's mean to her...I'll spare you the details. I tried to end it with "We're all entitled to our opinions, and we're all entitled to raise our kids the way we want". Well, that wasn't the end. We didn't talk much after that, and the plane ride home was quiet. I tried apologizing in the car ride home, but that backfired...we also had a tiff in the airport when my m-in-law wanted to stop for a rest and my Mom grabbed the suitcase out of her hand cuz she didn't want to stop. Now I know she'll tell all her friends how my son was mean to her and she had to carry my m-in-law's suitcase.
So now we've been home almost a day and I haven't heard from my Mom...I left her a msg last night and got no reply.
Well, sorry to end on such a downer...I'm sure we'll make up, and I think she was cranky because she wasn't feeling well...the sad thing was before our tiff she said she thought this would be her last trip to WDW, said she was getting old and couldn't last as long as she used to. I hope when she feels better she'll change her mind. I know I won't invite any more relatives on our trips...its too much of a hassle. Or at least I won't mix relatives and in-laws. Or I won't pack NyQuil in ziplocs, and I'll confirm all Ps's...
Here are the good things I'll remember: our room locations at Pop C, the nice CM who gave us free cookies and ice cream at Typhoon Lagoon when our food at Leaning Palms took a long time to come out, Tinkerbell flying overhead, the nice CM who gave us towels, and the joy when my son saw all of the characters. That's what I'll remember...
Thanks for listening...sorry this became so long!
~Linda
Well, let's backtrack here so you can see that I am normally a reasonably sane person...
Who went (Pop Century 5/16 - 5/20):
Me - previously mentioned 38 yr old ignorant Mom. Been to WDW about 30 times.
My Mom - used to love Disney...in all kinds of pain/bad health - bad knees, asthma acting up, had pink eye for a day...also had a big fight with my m-in-law years ago and can't let it go
M-in-law - smoker, occasionally goes into lonnnng, boring, self-absorbed stories about herself. Doesn't have anyone to travel with, but loves to get away.
Ryan - my 2.5 yr old son. Cute as can be, this was his 4th trip to WDW.
My husband had a business trip so instead of staying home, doing house stuff and playing it safe, I got the brilliant idea to take Mom and m-in-law to Disney to see the Flower & Garden Festival. Figured they'd both enjoy the flowers and we'd do girly things that my husband wouldn't enjoy. Found a code at Pop, cheap airfare, cheap rental car and we were off...
Last Nov. my husband and I treated them both to a trip and it worked out OK (that trip report was titled "The Battling Grandmas Do Disney", or something like that). So I thought once again my son would provide enough diversion to make them forget they hate each other...didn't exactly go as planned...
Sat. 5/15 I had a wedding shower in PA, got home around 6PM then had last minute work to do. Tried getting my son to sleep and then I'd pack. Well, he was almost asleep when the first thunderstorm rolled in. Took a half hr to get him back in...then my brother called...woke him up again...then my Mom arrived to sleep over before our early departure...he awoke again. Finally he was asleep, Mom went to bed and I started packing around 11PM. Was almost finished when the second thunderstorm rolled in and parked itself over our house. My son didn't wake up, but it kept me up most of the night. Oh well...I'll sleep at Disney (yeah, right!).
We left the house at 6:45AM, picked up my m-in-law and made it to LaGuardia. The long term parking lot was full so I had to park in the regular lot (and take out a second mortgage on our house to pay for parking when we returned). Got on the plane at sat on the runway for ONE HOUR while they fixed a mechanical problem and filed some paperwork (this was NOT what I wanted to hear!).
Finally arrived in MCO, got the rental car (a nice Impala from National - BIG trunk!) and headed for the Belz Outlets. I wanted to check out the Character Warehouse there...it was OK, but I didn't even buy anything. I was probably tired and not in a shopping mood. My son rode the carousel and we had a milkshake before we went off to find Pop Century.
Found the hotel and it took 45 Min. to check in...no big line, just a problem cuz I used my credit card to reserve 2 rooms and we wanted to put my m-in-law's room on her own card. This was the second time this happened - it was like we were the first people to ever ask for this...if I EVER reserve more than 2 rooms at a time, I'll make sure I have a credit card for each up front.
The one (and only?) good thing was that we got rooms near each other (even though my m-in-law needed a smoking room) and near the main building. We were in the 50's, A building. Our room was right by the ice machine and elevator. A little smaller than I'm used to (this was my first Value resort), but pretty nice anyway. Not any noisier than other hotel rooms I've stayed in. You heard the occasional toilet flushing, running feet, etc., but it was fine.
Around 4PM on Sun. we took a boat over to Fort Wilderness - beautiful evening for a boat ride. We walked around the petting zoo for a bit - saw some sheep, goats, calves, etc. then we had dinner at Trail's End buffet. This was a pretty good deal for the $$. Stopped off at the store there and I bought my son a Frontier Goofy (or whatever you call him). We took the boat to the Contemporary and went to the top floor to view the fireworks at MK. Beautiful view...
Oh, did I mention that the NyQuil I packed in a ziploc bag opened up in my suitcase and turned 3 of the 5 shirts I'd brought with me pink? Or that the reason why I brought the NyQuil was for my Mom, who had a loud, hacking cough that I knew would keep my son and I up at night? Well...all part of the Trip of Doom...
So we finally made it back to the hotel around 11PM, got in to bed and listened to my Mom cough for about 2 hr.s. Luckily my son slept through it. After I finally fell asleep, he woke me up with a good, swift kick to my shoulder blades. This kid has a future in soccer, I'm sure...
Mon. morning we went to EPCOT around 10:00. The flowers were beautiful...we went to the butterfly release at 11:00 - it was nice, but I wouldn't go out of my way to see it again.
We then went to Figment, Living Seas, and the Doggy Maze, where I had to drag my son out of the sand pit area. We had an OK lunch at the Electric Umbrella and then went to the Ice Cream Social at the Land. Somehow our PS was screwed up - it was down for May 7th instead of the 17th...and we were told they couldn't fit us in because the ice cream was made up ahead of time and they had no extras. Well, I thought this was kind of a lame excuse and I tried talking diplomatically to the hostess, telling her my son was really looking forward to seeing Mickey, and we'd eat anything else they had...then my Mom started going ballistic and I turned into the peacekeeper. Finally, after a call to the chef, they said they could fit us in. The ice cream was cute and it was a nice chance to see the characters...my son had a ball and hugged each one who came by.
So now I've learned not to trust ziploc bags and to confirm your PS's before your trip...
We spent the afternoon in the World Showcase - saw the drummers in Japan, had my first Kaki-gori (tasty!), my Mom and m-in-law saw the Turtles concert while Ryan and I played with the trains in Germany. They added little buttons so you can control some of the noises/things there: play the Alpine horn, sawmill, turn the Maypole and Ferris wheel. Then we saw the acrobats in China (OMG, those kids are flexible!) and had take-out Chinese for dinner. My son fell asleep in the stroller so I went on Malestrom with my m-in-law. Mom and I bought a creepy book on Scandinavian ghost stories (we're of Norwegian descent, so its interesting to see just how twisted our forefathers were!). We caught Illuminations (and my son slept through all the noise!) and made it back to the hotel around 10PM.
Tues. we went to MK at around 11:00 - we all needed the sleep because of the late nights and lots of coughing. We took the train around the park, meandered down Main St. and made it to our 11:40 PS's for the Crystal Palace. The food was great and my son got a kick out of the characters. Mom and my m-in-law had a little tiff...I went to get up and my son wanted to come with me. Apparently my m-in-law thought he should stay at the table and must have said something to my mom. When I returned, my mom was saying "Well, Marilyn, I've learned not to say anything because it'll come right back at you and its none of my business" (VERY prophetic words, as you'll see...).
We then went to the POC, where we decided my Mom would wait in line with Ryan for a pic with Capt. Hook (who he said he wanted to see) while my m-in-law and I went on the ride. Well, turns out he freaked out when he noticed I had gone and he didn't want to see Hook...when he gets upset sometimes, he throws up, so...well, you guessed it...when we returned, there he was in the stroller, with throw up all over him, his clothes, the stroller, etc. The crowds parted like the Red Sea as I sprinted to the closest bathroom with him. We stripped him down, washed him and the stroller off the best we could. There was a very nice CM at the Trading Post shop who gave us a wet and a dry towel that helped. Luckily I had extra clothes for him. This whole clean up took almost 45 min.
Then we watched the parade from the steps of the Liberty Tree Tavern (a good spot) and went over to Fantasyland. My son loves the Carousel and Dumbo, so we hit them. Then it was time to take the monorail over to the GF for our 4:30 PS for the Afternoon Tea. We got to ride in the front of the monorail (my first time) with two unfriendly pilots (the first was a lady, who switched with a guy at the Contemporary). We got the feeling they didn't like it when the passengers came up front. Oh well...
The Garden View Lounge was closed due to refurbishment for the new Princess Tea, so our tea was moved up to Circo's. We were the only ones there! Tea was delicious - the little sandwiches and pastries made for a great dinner. My son enjoyed his Mrs. Potts tea (chocolate milk & pb&j sandwiches) and even reminded the waiter to use the tea strainer when he poured his chocolate milk.
This is getting long, so I'll spare you the boring details...we went back to the MK, saw Spectromagic and then Wishes. I love seeing Tinkerbell fly overhead...Fought with the crowds to get out of the park and made it back to our room.
Wed. we were going to hit Typhoon Lagoon - but my m-in-law decided to hang around the hotel pool even though she already bought her Typhoon Lagoon tkt. So Mom, Ryan and I went and had a good time. Ryan loves the kiddie area (although he was getting too good at blasting kids in the face with the fire hoses). Mom made about 20 laps around the lazy river.
That evening we hit DTD - had dinner at the Wolfgang Puck Express...very tasty. I thought my m-in-law was mad about something and that's why she bowed out of Typhoon Lagoon, but she was fine...it was my Mom who had the puss on her face...bad omen of things to come....
We went back to the hotel around 10PM, and Ryan and I took the clothes out of the dryer (had to wash all of the stuff he got sick on the day before). As we returned to the room, I heard my Mom whispering on her cell phone to her friend back home...it was like "She did that...and she did this...". Well, I knew something was up...so later I asked what the problem was...well, I thought she was fed up with my m-in-law...turns out it was ME! She went on and on about how spoiled my son is, how its not natural how attached to me he is, how he's mean to her...I'll spare you the details. I tried to end it with "We're all entitled to our opinions, and we're all entitled to raise our kids the way we want". Well, that wasn't the end. We didn't talk much after that, and the plane ride home was quiet. I tried apologizing in the car ride home, but that backfired...we also had a tiff in the airport when my m-in-law wanted to stop for a rest and my Mom grabbed the suitcase out of her hand cuz she didn't want to stop. Now I know she'll tell all her friends how my son was mean to her and she had to carry my m-in-law's suitcase.
So now we've been home almost a day and I haven't heard from my Mom...I left her a msg last night and got no reply.
Well, sorry to end on such a downer...I'm sure we'll make up, and I think she was cranky because she wasn't feeling well...the sad thing was before our tiff she said she thought this would be her last trip to WDW, said she was getting old and couldn't last as long as she used to. I hope when she feels better she'll change her mind. I know I won't invite any more relatives on our trips...its too much of a hassle. Or at least I won't mix relatives and in-laws. Or I won't pack NyQuil in ziplocs, and I'll confirm all Ps's...
Here are the good things I'll remember: our room locations at Pop C, the nice CM who gave us free cookies and ice cream at Typhoon Lagoon when our food at Leaning Palms took a long time to come out, Tinkerbell flying overhead, the nice CM who gave us towels, and the joy when my son saw all of the characters. That's what I'll remember...
Thanks for listening...sorry this became so long!
~Linda
