When we got out of the Movie Ride, we looked at the schedule and decided we could make it to the performance of Beauty and the Beast that was starting at 4. It wouldnt matter if we were a little late, and it might be nice to be under cover from the looks of the sky.
We would get out just in time to make it to Mama Malones for our dinner ADR at 4:40. (When I made our ADRs, the times left for several dinners were either early or late. Late doesnt work well for our kiddos they are used to eating at 5:30-6:30, and meals that end at 8 or later leave everyone cranky, grown-ups included! So we decided to take early times and then eat an early lunch.) So off we went to B and B and arrived shortly after it began. There were lots of seats left so we settled in and enjoyed it. When the show ended (about ten minutes before our ADR) and we began to file out, it started to rain lightly. We reached into our handy-dandy park packs and pulled out our el-cheapo ponchos and began to don them. Then it started to rain harder. Well, no problem, we were suited up and ready for the elements.
THEN . . . . we heard the thunder. Loud thunder.
Suddenly the trip across the park took on new anxieties. Even an ADR wasnt worth getting hit by lightning. The rest of the audience felt the same way, so most of us hung around the exit waiting for the storm to blow over. (Most of them werent prepared with ponchos, either.) The wind was pretty brisk by this time so we were hoping for it to move on quickly. After about ten minutes, the thunder and lightning seemed farther away so we decided to strike out.
As soon as we got out to the street, the rain got heavier and more importantly, the lightning got closer. At this point safety beckoned and we ducked into a handy gift shop, along with roughly half the people in the park. We stayed there for another 15-20 minutes, but at least there were things to look at for the kids. Finally we gathered our courage, seized the ponchos to keep them from blowing off, and made a run for it. Now, I had not looked at the map very carefully, so I had gotten the location of Mama Malones confused with the 50s Prime Time Café and I didnt think we had very far to go.
NOT SO! When DD looked carefully at the map we realized we were almost exactly on the other side of the park from MM. Oh well, the lightning is bound to be drawn to all those taller structures around us, right?
No, we did a little broken field running and forded a few swollen rivers that used to be streets, but we did NOT endanger our lives.
Finally arriving at MMs, we apologetically gave our name, stripped off the ponchos and stuffed them into one of my handy plastic bags, and sat down in a nice dry foyer.
We were a little late, but managed to get seated within 10-15 minutes. (Within 5 minutes of our arrival at MM the rain had stopped completely!) Having perused the food porn site beforehand, I knew that they had excellent calamari here, so DD, DSIL, and I had that for our appetizer while DH had Caesar salad. Dreamboy and Wild Child had soup for their appetizer but mostly helped us eat our calamari. For the entrée, DH, DSIL and I had the charred butcher tender steak, and DD had the pork tenderloin. Desserts included cheesecake, gelato, and I had the wonderful chocolate truffle cake. The food and service were nice, and we all enjoyed our meal. It was a very relaxed pace which was nice after all the stress of getting there!
We received our Fantasmic pass without having any idea if we were going to be able to use it. Have you ever noticed that most of the table service restaurants at WDW are windowless caves? (With the exception of CG, of course!) We emerged to find almost clear skies, so we began to feel encouraged about the possibility of seeing Fantasmic.
At this point, DH declared his intention of returning to PC. Again, Dreamboy opted to go back to the resort with Pop, and DSILs back was bothering him so he went along. That left the Fearless Femmes with a little time on our hands and the show to look forward to. Now Wild Child had earlier declared her desire to ride Tower of Terror, but DD and I werent really sure how she would like it. Now she again insisted she wanted to ride, and since DD and I just happen to love that experience we headed off to the Hotel of fear.
After the storm, the park had cleared out quite a bit, so it was a wonderful time to ride. We basically just walked straight in and rode, and this at 7 pm. Wild Child thoroughly enjoyed it, although she tends to grab her mom and hide her face against DDs arm at the climax of any ride. Afterwards WC was insistent that she wanted to ride RnRC, and cried when we said she was too small so we had to walk her over and show her the measurement board.
After drying her tears, we decided to do the Backlot Tour next to fill the time. Wild Child did enjoy Catastrophe Canyon but I think the ride was better before the Extreme Motor Show took over their space.
Now you may be wondering why we skipped the big shows at DS. We had seen all of them last trip, and they just werent high on the kids priority list. We will definitely see them again next time. I think Dreamboy would have enjoyed the car stunts again, but we mostly preferred to do other things.
After this it was time to go get in our reserved spot for Fantasmic. (Of course with the low crowds it was totally unnecessary as there were LOTS of seats right up until the show started.) We picked out a nice spot and spread out our ponchos to protect our nice dry clothes and DD went off to get popcorn to entertain Wild Child. Meanwhile I pulled out the glow necklace and wand I had brought along and we put them together. There was a very nice family sitting in front of us and the brother and sister were playing a hand clap game. WC was fascinated and tried to play with us, so the kids took her down with them and taught her the game.
Here is Wild Child waiting for the show.
Fantasmic was wonderful, as always, but the wind was blowing rather hard and kept blowing the spray on the audience. We were sitting up fairly high, but at times it felt like we were back in the rain! I finally pulled out one of the damp ponchos and used it for partial cover for WC and me, and that was more comfortable. Afterwards we hopped, skipped, and jumped back to catch the bus to Pop. Dreamboy had a great time playing in the pool and the guys had a good time watching him and relaxing.
So here is the big revelation from this trip. YOU DONT HAVE TO SPEND EVERY MINUTE TOGETHER TO HAVE A GOOD TIME!! As a matter of fact, everyone has a better time if they get to do what they like best! Dreamboy can swim and play imaginary games, Wild Child can ride thrill rides and sleep late, DH can come and go, eating main meals with us and spending some time in the parks but also relaxing at Pop. DD can hit it hard with me, and DSIL can carve out a little more relaxation. And I can unleash my commando heart and go early with Dreamboy and late with Wild Child, run across the parks for the fast passes, and nurture the plan. What fun!! (Of course, it helped that we had a ratio of 4 adults to 2 children, but that was just lagniappe. ) Our last trip would have gone better if we had split up more. We had an 18 year old in the mix then, so there was even more variation in likes and dislikes. Our problem then was that we thought it might be a long time before we got to return, and we couldnt bear to miss anything, including the kids reactions to things. We have already made the decision that we will be back within a couple of years, so the urgency was not as great.
So, our plan for Monday is Epcot. But one more thing happened before this night was over, and it was kind of painful. Next up OUCH!