Oh Great Ball of Epcot, will I still love these people when this trip is over?

[Lizzie-in-Texas]

Day 3 – Magic Kingdom

Oh Great Ball of Epcot, will I someday see a family member on an episode of Cops?
The ball says…signs point to yes.

Beginning a trip at the Magic Kingdom has been a long-standing tradition of ours. So this trip was no different; however, some people (person) just could not understand the importance of being at rope drop. Now, for a short recap, we are all morning people except for Ms. Pouts A-lot but she assured us that she would be ready to go when we were.

The plan was to meet at Everything Pop for breakfast at 7:00. Grumpy had the adult platter and I had the pancake platter. He filled his mug with coffee and I filled mine with Coke (which is something that I normally do not do but I knew I would need it later). Bubba arrived as soon as we sat down stating that Pete and Repeat were on their way. Oh Lord, grant me patience. Everyone was seated and enjoying their breakfasts, I was especially enjoying my bacon, and voiced my pleasure several times to the dismay of my SIL and niece. At 7:30 Geek shows up and says that they will have to meet us at the Magic Kingdom because Patricia was not ready. I asked if she really was not ready or was she still in bed. The look on his face said it all – just call us when you get there.

I love walking down Main Street, there is absolutely nothing better. We made our way over to Splash Mountain for fast passes and then rode Thunder Mountain, Haunted Manson; It’s a Small World and Peter Pan’s Flight before heading back to Splash Mountain. When we finished, Geek called and said that they were in the park and would meet us at the hub. Patricia never said a word about being late, but honestly we all kinda ignored her.

We headed towards Tomorrowland and got fast passes for Buzz and then decided to ride the sentimental favorite the Carousel of Progress. Many years ago, in a galaxy far, far away, I went through a divorce and the family timed our annual reunion right after it was final so that I would have something happy to focus on. The trip was just what I needed. Well, we were all enjoying the Carousel when Geek says to his sister rather loudly, ok, loud enough for people on It’s a Small World to hear, “Look, it’s auntie’s refrigerator”. That’s right, the refrigerator in the scene from the 40’s was just like the one that I had in my garage apartment. Everyone in the theater thought it was funny. I told him not to make a repeat performance on this trip.

As we exited, we all noticed that Patricia was well, pouting, she was upset because she wanted to ride Splash Mountain and she had said so several times and no one was paying any attention to her – you would think she was three. We took a snack break and waited until our fast pass window was open and Geek trekked across the park to get the passes for Splash Mountain while the rest of us waited for him outside of Buzz. We all enjoyed the ride and when our scores were displayed, Grumpy was trying to figure out how I scored more points than he did since he is much better at video games than I am. This is our little secret, he does not know about the high scoring target – ssshhh.

We had lunch reservations at the Plaza and thankfully there was a vegetarian sandwich on the menu. Grumpy had the Cheese Steak Sandwich and I had the Angus Chuck Cheeseburger. We split the Brownie Sundae for dessert. During the meal, the discussion turned towards family ancestry, which is never a good thing to discuss with my SIL or NIL because as far as they are concerned, our family was about as “hillbilly” as you can get.

Now my brother and I are proud of our country heritage but sometimes, they rub me the wrong way and this was one of those times. Pete was explaining to Repeat that you just never knew what was going to be on the table at Thanksgiving at my mom’s house and of course, the echo of Repeat just made it worst. She recalled the first dinner that she was invited to and my mom had served something that she thought was probably road-kill. So I chimed in with the biggest smile on my face and stated that it probably was, after all, mom made some of the best posrabbitrrel anyone could ever ask for. Repeat said the best what? Well, you have heard of turducken (chicken wrapped in a duck wrapped in a turkey), haven’t you? Your grandmother, made the best squirrel, wrapped in a rabbit, wrapped in a possum that I ever had. Put a little cream gravy on it and that was some goooood eatin. I was told to stop messing with them. I just said I thought you knew that was what you were eating. They looked at Bubba for confirmation and without blinking an eye he said that he didn’t want to ruin her enjoyment by telling her what it was. Oh, by the way, Repeat, remember those little drumsticks that you enjoyed so much – did you notice a decrease in the neighborhood pigeon population? Yea, bet you wish you were a vegetarian then. Oh look, fast pass time.

We rode Splash Mountain, The Pirates of the Caribbean, Country Bears Jamboree (I feel like I’m home) and the Tiki Birds before heading back to the resort for an afternoon break. But I must say that while riding on Splash, I have to admit that Grumpy and I were the ones that acted like kids.

We were assigned the front row; Geek and the Mrs. were in the second row, and so on. When the boat was making the ascent for the big drop, I told Grumpy to duck at the bottom, so when the log hit the water, we ducked and a huge wave went over us and drenched Geek and Patricia. She was not happy and she accused us of doing it on purpose. I said whom are you kidding, with my bad back there is no way that I could have bent over like that. Geek just laughed, and whispered in my ear – revenge is best served cold. You learn quickly grasshopper.

After some much needed time apart from each other, I said my prayer for patience and we all met at the vans to head over to the transportation center since we had decided to return to the Magic Kingdom after our dinner at the 1900 Park Fare.

I love going to character meals, but poor Grumpy, I think I might embarrass him somewhat because I get all excited and have conversations with the characters. Drizella asked me if Grumpy was my prince and I told her yes, she then asked me if I had met Cinderella’s prince and I said yes I had and that he was charming. She just laughed and yelled across the restaurant to her mother that this lady thought the prince was charming, get it, charming – poor Grumpy.

I realized at this dinner that at some point in my life, I was going to see my relatives on an episode of Cops. Bad boy, bad boy, what you going to do, what you going to do when they come for you? Geek became bored and for some reason decided to cut the heads off of some gummy bears. I told Bubba and Pete this is how it all gets started, first he is cutting of the heads of innocent gummy bears and the next thing you know, he is being carted off in a squad car while his significant other is hanging out of the trailer window wearing a bright pink tub top, beer in one hand, cig in the other, yelling at the top of her lungs not to take him cause I love him. About that time, I looked over at Ms. Pouts- A lot and sure enough, she was wearing a bright pink tank top – close enough.

After dinner, Pete wanted to get a family picture and we all went looking for the perfect spot and there it was – the boat dock behind the Grand Flordian. I’m not sure what happened, I only turned my head for a split second, but that was all it took, she was yelling at them about ruining the family moment and something about never wanting to have a family picture taken. Grumpy and I just started to wander off and acted like we were not part of “that” family. At one point a little girl stopped to see what all of the commotion was about and her mother pulled her along and told her not to stare. That’s right, move along people, there is nothing to see, pride and dignity have left the building.

With ourselves disassociated from the family, Grumpy and I moved along towards the monorail knowing that once we returned to the Magic Kingdom all would be right with the world. As we were entering, a very nice family handed us their fast passes for Space Mountain apparently one of their family members was having a melt down and they needed to leave. Far be it for us to understand such a thing but we graciously accept the passes and made our way to Tomorrowland. The rest of the evening was uneventful which was good because I’m not sure how much more family love Grumpy could have taken.

 

[TillyDe]

All I can Say is I love it.

 

[Lizzie-in-Texas]

All I can Say is I love it.

Thank you for reading - I was a little worried that people might not get my warped sense of humor.

 

[stayhomemom77]

Oh yeah!! I was wiping the tears from my eyes when I read the top of the latest update. Why is it that some boys can't seem to be idle for more than a minute before turning to dismantling the objects around them? I LOVE that he was beheading gummy bears.

Keep it coming!!

 

[All7OfUs]

I love the dry sense you write with. Very funny!

 

[hucifer]

Oh Great Ball of Epcot, will I someday see a family member on an episode of Cops?
The ball says…signs point to yes.

I love this. Very creative!

Oh, by the way, Repeat, remember those little drumsticks that you enjoyed so much – did you notice a decrease in the neighborhood pigeon population? Yea, bet you wish you were a vegetarian then. Oh look, fast pass time.

 

[hucifer]

Thank you for reading - I was a little worried that people might not get my warped sense of humor.

Nothing to worry about around here...we all have warped senses of humor too.

 

[Dizfan4life]

I'm IN!!!! I this report... probably because I picture myself in your shoes with my brother and sister-in-law. Maybe I should be grateful that they haven't been able to do a family trip with us yet ! Can't wait to read more... doing an excellent job!!!!

 

[Lizzie-in-Texas]

Oh yeah!! I was wiping the tears from my eyes when I read the top of the latest update. Why is it that some boys can't seem to be idle for more than a minute before turning to dismantling the objects around them? I LOVE that he was beheading gummy bears.

Keep it coming!!

I know, when we were kids, he was always taking things apart and now, karma is getting him back, when his oldest was young, he took Geek’s computer printer apart.

Thanks for reading.

 

[Lizzie-in-Texas]

I love the dry sense you write with. Very funny!

Thank you very much. I hope you continue to enjoy my little saga.

 

[Lizzie-in-Texas]

I love this. Very creative!

Thank you again. I have been reading your report and you too are very funny. And thank you for helping out a fellow countrymen; my dad was part Welsh.

 

[Lizzie-in-Texas]

I'm IN!!!! I this report... probably because I picture myself in your shoes with my brother and sister-in-law. Maybe I should be grateful that they haven't been able to do a family trip with us yet ! Can't wait to read more... doing an excellent job!!!!

Welcome to my report and thank you so much for reading.

 

[Lizzie-in-Texas]

Day 4 – Epcot

Oh Great Ball of Epcot, is there always a lifeguard at the gene pool?
The ball says…don’t count on it.

I had to grab Grumpy by the arm as we went in search of a table at Everything Pop for our morning routine, did my eyes deceive me, was that really Geek and Ms. Pouts A-lot already there? Did I miss something, were the planets in some sort of weird alignment? But being the eternal optimist, I was not going to ruin the moment, so I keep my thoughts to myself.

The destination for the day was Epcot, Grumpy’s favorite park. At least he could numb himself with a little alcohol if necessary. We followed the hordes to the Land Pavilion and on to the fast pass machines for Soarin’. With fast passes secure, we switched sides of the park and went to Mission:SPACE. The women rode the green side and the men took a spin (no pun intended) on the orange side. Houston, we need a clean up, someone did not heed the warnings and did not make it to the restroom in time.

We still had some time to kill before we could get fast passes for Test Track so we went back to the Land and got in line for Living With the Land. Now this is advertised as a 14-minute ride, when we were exiting, Grumpy and I had to wait for the rest of the group and we were stopped by a very charming couple who asked if we were traveling with the rest of the people that were seated in our boat, when I replied that we were, the women simply said, I’m sorry. Yes, I know, me too.

Patricia wanted a pastry, so we grabbed a table at Sunshine Seasons and Geek went for fast passes for Test Track. When he returned we strolled past a very long stand-by line and was boarding Soarin’ within 5 minutes.

It was not time for our fast passes for Test Track and the line for the Character Connection was not too bad so we joined in. Moving the characters into an air-conditioned building was genius on someone’s part.

Now, I’m the kind of person that will strike up a conversation with anyone around me. So when the adorable little girl in front me smiled, I had to compliment her parents on her dimples. Now I know the dad was speaking English, but I could not for the life of me understand a word he said. He thought it was very funny, all I could do was nod my head and smile. Grumpy poked me and asked if I understood a word that he said. My response was nope, not a word. At that point, he is staring at us obviously waiting for a response, again Grumpy poked me in the back and I nodded and said ok. He leaned in and asked me what I had agreed to, I told him it was either to take a family photo of them at the next character or something about he and I joining them later for a little fun. Thank goodness he turned around and gave me their camera. Note to self, always check the vicinity of the lifeguard at the gene pool prior to talking to strangers.

We used our fast passes for Test Track prior to returning to the Land Pavilion for lunch at the Sunshine Seasons. Grumpy had the Rotisserie Pork Chop and I had the Grilled Salmon. We shared our desserts with each other which were the Soarin’ Brulee and the Key Lime Pie. Everyone enjoyed their meals and we had a relaxing time reminiscing about some of our favorite Epcot memories of past trips.

My favorite memory occurred at Honey, I Shrunk the Audience. We were there for our annual family reunion trip and several of us had decided to see the show. When we entered the theatre, we moved into a row and were seated next to a gentleman that was traveling with his teen-aged sons, my aunt was next to him, I was next to her and then two other aunts were seated on the other side of me. I do not want to ruin the show for anyone so I will just say that when the scene with a rodent appeared, my aunt went crazy and she started screaming, “Oh shoot”; however, she has a very heavy Cajun accent and the people around us thought she was saying something else and then she jumped up and landed in the gentleman’s lap. Now keep in mind that this all happened in just a matter of seconds, but she was so embarrassed when the lights came on that she just sat there in her seat and waited until the theatre was empty before we left because she just could not face that man. Well he and his sons were waiting outside for us to emerge and he said that he wanted to thank her for making that a “Kodak moment”.

So after lunch we strolled out of the park for our afternoon break before someone could spoil our touching family fun.

We returned to Epcot in plenty of time for our dinner reservations at Le Cellier. While we were waiting for our table, so many people were being turned away because they did not have an ADR, Bubba was wondering how long it would be before people start selling their reservations. I can see it now, someone will be standing off in the corner and when a dejected person walks out of the restaurant they will say, “Pssst, I have what you are looking for right here and they will open up a trench coat with small sheets of paper attached to the inside of the coat with ADR confirmation numbers.

I knew that there would be a vegetarian choice on the menu so I was not too concerned that Pete and Repeat might make a scene. What I was not prepared for was the fact that they grabbed all of the pretzel bread before our server even had a chance to put the container on the table. He said he was afraid that he was going to pull back just a nub where his hands use to be. He then brought me out my own pretzel bread, which I refused to share. Grumpy had the Mushroom Filet and I had the Prime Rib and we shared the Chocolate Cake for dessert.

With our tummy’s full, we embarked on our quest to visit several countries’ pavilions before calling it a night. Now on past visits, Pete and Repeat have been known to single handedly test a countries diplomatic diplomacies. And I am sure that more than once they have been called some very interesting names in the cast member’s own language. So when we stopped at the perfume shop in France, I sent Grumpy across the lane to the kiosk for a Grand Mariner Orange Slush. Sure enough, it did not take long before they had managed to offend the cast member by stating that they wondered if this was the perfume that Pepé le Pew was always spraying. All I could say was, “Je suis désolée”. By the way, I also know I’m sorry in Chinese, Japanese, German and Spanish. Mon cher, I need a Grey Goose slush.

 

[bopper]

. All I could say was, “Je suis désolée”. By the way, I also know I’m sorry in Chinese, Japanese, German and Spanish. Mon cher, I need a Grey Goose slush.

Did you need to learn it in Moroccan and Norwegian too?

 

[Lizzie-in-Texas]

Did you need to learn it in Moroccan and Norwegian too?

Thank you for reading. They did not receive a “rude tourist” stamp in their Epcot passport from every country; however, there is a cheese incident at the Moroccan restaurant later in the trip.

 

[All7OfUs]

The "Oh shoot" memories had me busting a gut!! So funny!

I'd say you needed more than 1 gray goosie!

 

[tink1957]

This is so good...I can't wait to read what happens next.

 

[janloz]

Oh my, i thought i was on my dec 08 trip again with my inlaws, sil and my mom. And the title fit is so perfectly and my answer was "no, not as much." And they are NOT going on our trip this Sept. We are going for my bday and when my DH asked what I wanted, I said "A family trip to WDW for just the 4 of us."

Cant wait to hear more...

 

[Lizzie-in-Texas]

The "Oh shoot" memories had me busting a gut!! So funny!

I'd say you needed more than 1 gray goosie!

I always enjoyed traveling with my mom's sisters, they were so funny and you never knew what that particular aunt would come up with.

Grumpy limits me to one goosie, otherwise, he would be apologizing for me.

 

[Lizzie-in-Texas]

This is so good...I can't wait to read what happens next.

You are so nice, thank you for the compliment.