One crappie year, a quick Disney trip and we're still married!!(All done, 09/24)

[aGoofyMom]

waiting....

 

[connorsmom911]

Thanks to all who are still waiting for another installment, and I apologize for not having one sooner, but I haven't written it yet.

Work has been a little brain draining...we got a new software program so the learning curve is steep and my noggin is just totally sore trying to wrap my head around that. Trying to write is just not happening, so please bear with me and hopefully I'll be back at it soon.

Thanks again for all your kind words and encouragement.

 

[connorsmom911]

As promised...and hopefully I'll get another installment up this shift too!

After lunch we head back through Fantasyland, passing the mile-long line-ups for each ride. (See, honey, see…nudge, nudge!). I really wanted to do It’s a Small World, but alas, the line-up here was much to long to justify, so I wiped a stray tear from my eye while dh snickered lovingly and we headed over to the Haunted Mansion, where much to our dismay, there was little-to-no line-up and we happily joined the 999 happy haunts in our doom buggy. I chatted happily with Connor to try to judge if he was actually scared or not, but it seemed that all was ok. Last time we were here, Connor slept through this ride…precursor to the fever and throwing up that we’d go through that fateful night…it was nice to replace those memories with happier ones, for now at least!

Then we were off to Frontierland. I talked dh into being the fastpass volunteer for BTMRR while Connor and I headed through the breezeway to Adventureland to see if we could score a ride on a magic carpet…knew that ride would be a sure hit after Dumbo and Triceratops…but alas, the line-up was too long and the sun was getting a wee bit hot.
We turned around to head back to meet up with dh and ran right into the line to meet Jasmine and Aladdin! Well, that line wasn’t quite as long, albeit still in the scorching sun, but the problem was dh had the camera in his pocket. So, I’m madly whispering into the two-way radio while trying to keep Connor corralled in the line. Dh was just out of range, so the conversation was choppy and I had to keep repeating myself in order for him to A) understand why I needed him to pick up the pace and B) where exactly we were. He finally made it back, just in time to snap some great pictures.

Then both dh and ds look at me. Now what? Here is where I had to think…I had the plan, but this is the point in the day where the plan gets a little flexible depending on the heat, the time and the crowds. I check the return time for our BTMRR passes and decide that we have enough time, plus the Tiki room is right here, so we head in that direction and, luck of the draw, we are just in time to catch the show about to start. How perfect is that?!?! It was a nice air conditioned break, plus we sat around to the right so as not to get a full view of the angry tiki goddess…good thing too, cause I sensed Connor stiffen and start to shrink away at the sight of her…a little scary. It was a cute show, but a better break from the heat.

Our fastpass window was now open, so we moseyed on over to Frontierland and checked out the railroad. I wasn’t too sure about Connor and this ride, but dh pointed out that he did love Goofy’s Barnstormer and he was tall enough (yes, our 3 yr old munchkin hit 40” 3 weeks before the trip…he recently measured 42.5” already…NBA, you are welcome to call me anytime!) so I agreed and Connor was very pleased.

Gotta love those fastpasses as we bypassed quite a line-up of people and were on the train in no time. Connor sat between us and at first squealed and laughed but then got really quiet. I think because this ride is a tad longer and quite a bit bumpier, he didn’t like it quite so much. He seemed relieved when we finally pulled in to a stop. I asked him as we exited, “Was that ride too scary?” He held up his thumb and index finger and answered, “Little bit.” “Do you want to go again?” An emphatic “NO”. Dh and I both laughed. Well, now at least we know his limits, and that meant Splash Mountain was definitely out. I decided it was probably a good time for a break, so we ditched our stroller and took the railroad back to the Main Street station. We debated taking the bus back now and leaving the car here for later, but dh reminded me that the plan was better to take the car back now and bus it back to the park in order to get the bus back later instead of joining the large stream of people heading to the parking lots tonight. See? Aren’t I training him well? By next trip he’ll have it down pat and I will have successfully turned him into a bonifide member of the OCDPD! We then, lets try another mode of transportation and take the ferry boat back to the TTC. This allowed me to show dh the great beach at the Poly…gee honey, wouldn’t it be nice to stay there next time?!?! Mmmwwwhhhhaaaaahhhhaaa!! My plan is taking shape quite nicely!!

Dh was quite thrilled on the way back to the resort when we spotted the Disney Canine Unit.

He squealed with delight and of course forced me yet again to take pictures, and then wanted to check to make sure that I got good shots while he was driving…my apologies to anyone that may have been behind us while he was swerving all over the road. Sheesh! Back at the resort, we got a great surprise from mousekeeping.

All of Connor’s friends were waiting patiently in the window for him to return from his day at the parks. Both of my boys crashed as soon as their heads hit the pillow (I’m just going to lay here for a minute and close my eyes. I’m not tired! Honest!) but both of them obviously needed the sleep.

We didn’t end up having time for a swim because they slept so long, so quick showers and we headed out to the bus stop and got a great family pic on the way.

Back in the MK we were a bit early for our ADR at Crystal Palace, so I sent the boys back to ride Buzz Lightyear again with the fastpasses from this morning while I did the requisite shopping for our house/cat-sitters back home and snuck over to Adventureland to get fastpasses for Jungle Cruise later. We met back up in front of the Crystal Palace where Connor announced that he and daddy had gone on the Stitch ride. I glared at dh. This was not on the plan, and had purposely not been included in the plan because of the scare factor for preschoolers. I then turned to Connor. “Was Stitch scary?” Again, he holds up the thumb and finger. “A little bit.” Good thing for dh that our pager happened to go a few minutes later…saved by the blinking, vibrating square! And the squealing preschooler holding said pager.

Dinner was good, but not near as good as the breakfast with Pooh and friends. I made the mistake of having the peel and eat shrimp. It’s always a no-no in my books to have shrimp at buffets but I thought I’d try with Disney. Wrong. The shrimp made an appearance later that night. Either that or it was the cream sauce on the pasta. I love gravol almost as much as I love fastpasses and Southwest. Fell fast asleep and tummy was all better by morning. But back to the dinner…we had a great waitress who was very attentive. She even stopped by on a few occasions to make sure that Connor was eating, and pretended to scold him if he wasn’t. We tipped her in addition to the dining plan. We waited for all the characters to come around, which seemed to take a long time, but we had to get all the pictures of course.

After dinner, we headed back to Adventureland to enjoy our time before the parade. We climbed the Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse…didn’t impress Connor. We traded some pins and then did the Jungle Cruise. People have commented that this ride is really good in the dark, but I found that with Connor, he didn’t know where to look, and because he couldn’t appreciate the atmosphere, I don’t think he got that much out of it. I certainly like the ride more in the daytime. Again I tried to get on the Magic Carpets, but again the line was a little too long, and it was approaching parade time, so we headed over to the front porches in Frontierland and found a perfect spot to park the stroller where Connor could sit and watch the parade. I left the boys and hiked back to Fantasyland to get fastpasses for Winnie the Poooh just in case (we didn’t end up using them), looked longingly at It’s a Small World and momentarily debated riding it by myself, but decided not to, as the parade was due to start and I didn’t want to get stuck on the wrong side of the street.

Got this good shot of Connor playing with his light-up Buzz while waiting for the parade, but my pictures of the parade itself sucked. Ditto for the pictures of Wishes. Next purchase must be a tripod. At the end of the parade, Connor started crying, asking when the butterflies were coming back. Guess he’s a little tired! But we have fireworks to see, so that cheered him up. He loves fireworks…which I am so happy about, because he normally does not like loud noises since he had tubes put in his ears. And I love fireworks. Wishes is the ultimate in fireworks, in my opinion. I cried my eyes out the first time I saw it, our last trip, before our marriage started getting really bad. We had the perfect spot last time too, right in front of Casey’s. I know this, because even though my pictures were pretty crappy last time, the fireworks were right behind the castle…perfect. This time, not so much. We ended up on the rose path, the walkway down on the tomorrowland side, so the fireworks went off quite a bit to the right of the castle…and my pictures pretty much sucked. But we enjoyed it none-the-less and yeah, I still teared up, particularly when dh put his arm around me for a brief time. Remember…before this trip we were close to divorce, so this was a major step and it was not lost on either one of us. We shared a moment…the kind of moment that admittedly we had not shared in a really long time. Both of us looked at Connor, then back at eachother. The magic and wonder on our son’s face and the little whispered “wow”s that we occasionally heard from the stroller was precious. I reached for dh’s hand and squeezed it tight. I wanted to remember this moment. I wanted dh to remember this moment. I tried to telepathically send that to him while I squeezed his hand. Hopefully we could take this moment back home with us and remember it when we started nit-picking and yelling at eachother. I made a wish while watching Wishes for this very thing. That we would be ok, that our marriage would survive, that we’d be able to stay together as a family and most of all, that we’d be happy.

I stayed in that happy kind of fog I sometimes get in, all the way down Main Street with the crowds, all the time waiting in line for the bus back to the resort, the whole bus ride back when all the little ones fell asleep in their respective parents arms. Dh had that dreamy little smile too, carrying Connor back to the room. It was great…until the shrimp episode. At least it held off until we got back to the room and everyone was settled so I could barf in peace. Nothing like a bad shimp to wreck my happy little fog. Thanks goodness for the gravol!

Up next…will my family ever get here???

 

[IWISHFORDISNEY]

Another great istallment *wipes tears from eyes* You have me all teary. I love your writing style. I hope things are working out for the best.

Do you always get sick from shrimp or was it actually bad shrimp on the buffet at CP? That is getting me a little nervous about eating there.

Worth the wait!!! keep up the good work. The picture of Connor with Aladdin is sooooo cute.

 

[javamom]

Awww I'm so glad that you both got that little moment

 

[connorsmom911]

Ok, only because you asked...I normally don't go into gory detail with those I don't know (with friends and family it's perfectly acceptable )

It was definitely the shrimp or the cream sauce on the pasta. I know because I ate a lot after the shrimp, and it was only the shrimp that came back to haunt me.

I love shrimp and normally don't have a problem with it. I should have been more wary since we ate a little later and the shrimp bowl had been there for some time by the looks of it, and the shrimp was warm, not cold. Should have known better, my fault.

 

[mikamah]

"" But I feel for the kids. I never travelled to Disney until I was an adult, but I know how disappointed I am that some of my memories of the “world” are tainted with tears, I can’t imagine how that must be for a child. Hopefully time and age and selective memory erase those less-than-desirable memories and leave only the “pixie dust” moments. ""

I hear what you are saying, but I hope most kids will remember all the great and magical memories and the tears will soon be forgotten. When my darling son was 2, we had one heck of a day, not listening, hitting, both of us crying throughout the day, and I was at my wits end. When bed time finally came and I laid down with him to read books, I figured I'd recap the day and give a little lecture on how to behave better. I said to him, "so Michael, how do you think today was?" He answers, "It was a great day, mommy" A nice ending to a not so nice day.

Great trip report. Thanks for sharing with all of us. Your son is adorable. Hope things are going well for you and your husband since the trip.

 

[aGoofyMom]

Yay I did manage to keep up.

I love the update & the photos. I am getting so much more from this than the talks at work...hate to post & run..but I gotta go!

keep up the great writing!

 

[TomB'sWidow]

Thank goodness Tracey your back I have been waiting patiently.
What a wonderful and tender moment with your Dh I'm still luvin it Ready for more

 

[connorsmom911]

Well faithful readers, here is another installment to tide you over. I'm on vacation for the next 12 days and I can't guarantee another before I get back to work. I'm not going anywhere, but we have a lot to do around the house and gotta spend some time with Connor. Dh and I have been working lots of overtime in the last few months, so he is getting a little harried not having enough mommy and daddy time. I'll give his daycare teachers a break and keep him home a few days next week for some "mommy and me" time.

So, until then...here you go. And once again, thanks for all you kind words of encouragement!!

Day 4, our leaving day…boo hoo!!

Up early because we have to finish packing and I want to get to Epcot as early as possible. This is an EMH day at Epcot. Yes, I know I am to avoid EMH days at all costs because of the crowds, but this is the only day that the family is joining us, and they picked Epcot (well, one of them did…the youngest sister…the one who hasn’t been with the rest of the family to WDW for some time…so we thought we’d let her pick…then she says after that she really wanted to go to MK…can you see me steaming yet!?!?! ) My family is in Daytona Beach, well actually Ormond Beach, just north of Daytona Beach…it’s the same beach. They are driving over to meet us at Epcot for the day, then we are all heading back to Daytona/Ormond/Beach.

Now, I know my family. I’ve known them my whole life. Family vacations where you are supposed to get up at the crack of dawn to get going…well, in my family “crack of dawn” meant “crack of noon or so”. So I started prepping them weeks before this trip. It’s EMH, it’s going to be busy. You need to be leaving to get here early. EARLY!!! I confirmed this with my mom the night before on the phone…before the shrimp incident…which in retrospect may have been sympathy pains for my mom who was also not feeling good, when I was on the phone with her…when I had to promptly hang up and go barf. But the plan was there…get up early, earlier than early. Get dad up before sunrise, cause it’s going to take a while. That was the plan.

The plan also included calling us in the morning when they were leaving, so we’d have a rough idea of when they were leaving, thus we’d have a rough idea when they would be landing in Epcot. They had our cell numbers to call us when they got there. We’d meet up and start touring future world before our ADR’s at Japan for 12:00.

So we are up and dressed, suitcases packed and the phone rings at 8am. They are almost ready, just finishing up and they will be heading out…Mom, Dad, Amy and Jen. Good, so that should put them in Epcot around 9:30 or so depending on traffic. I’m stoked! My family has come through on the plan!

Gathering up all our stuff I take the “express check-out” envelope off the door and right away put it in my backpack. I don’t even look at it. Now that would be depressing, and I don’t want to be overly depressed before we even leave the World. Leaving is bad enough! I’ll face the music on the plane. Why ruin a perfectly good trip crying over how much money you’ve spent!?!? We pack up the car and take a last walk through “Andy’s Room” taking pictures before heading out to Epcot. On the way Connor is already asking when we will be coming back to the Buzz hotel…hopefully sooner rather than later buddy, but we’ll see.

We got a parking spot fairly close for it being EMH, but then I realize that it’s all resort guests who likely took the bus or monorail here. We could have been here earlier. See we are resort guests but the family aren’t. They are breaking the bank and buying one day passes…4 of them. I know, the horror! What a waste! Oh well, I’m just glad they could all come. Once inside, I head over to get Connor a stroller. I thought the boys were right behind me, but after securing the stroller I find they have disappeared. Not a good start to the day. I retrace my steps to no avail. I have lost them and he has both radios. And he isn’t answering his cell phone. I start fuming. I spend 20 minutes wandering around the entrance to Epcot looking for them when I finally spot him on the other side at the Leave a Legacy booth. I beeline it over with the evil eyes targeted right on him. He’s all smiles chatting it up with the cm, oblivious to the fact that I have been hunting for him for the last 20 minutes! Apparently he said he was heading over here and wonders where I have been. Thus starts the bickering. I dump the stroller with him, grab a radio and try to calm down while venturing off to the Land pavilion to secure at least 3 fastpasses for Soarin’. After all that I have read on the DIS, I’m sure this will be a favourite and I’m going to at least get a couple rides in. I’m sure by the time I get my exercise and get back to the entrance that the family will be there and we can all come back and do one ride together before the line-ups get terribly long. On the way back, Connor is yelling into the radio, prompted by daddy, saying there is no sign of grandma and grandpa yet.

I meet back up with them. Is it just me or is the front area of Epcot scorching hot with no air circulation?!?! I steer us to a shady spot and start slathering Connor with sunscreen. It’s 9:30am. Already the temperature is rising and it’s going to be a hot one. Yes, us northerners sometimes have issues with the heat, even in Florida in April! Where is my family? I start trying cell phone numbers, but I know they don’t turn them on unless they are calling out. Connor is getting bored and impatient, so dh takes him for a walk around the “big ball” as he calls it. I stay in my shady spot and try to preoccupy myself with filling out postcards I signed up to do on the “fairy godmailers” threads at home. At least this cheers me up a bit, but I’m getting ticked at the family. It’s nearing 10am already before my cell phone finally rings and it’s them. They are just getting in line to buy their tickets. “What took you guys so long?!?!” I asked. “Your father, as usual”. He takes forever getting ready in the morning. So by the time they all arrive and dh gets back from his hike with Connor it is past 10 and we then have to stop and find everyone’s Leave a Legacy and take the requisite pictures. At least dh got the “addresses” of each one already, so we go look up my folks, ours from our honeymoon, and Connor’s from last trip. Mom tries to talk Amy and Jen into getting one done but they’re not interested. A bathroom break and we’re finally off into Future World. At 10:30am. I am not impressed. Neither is dh, but he perks up when I suggest he head over to Test Track and get fastpasses for later. The rest of the family (well, except dad) gets hung up at the pin station. They are not traders, they are buyers, and this being their only day here, they need to buy. I’m trying to be patient. After all, it is their only day here, but people, come on, you can shop later!!!! They promise to hurry. It seems to take no time at all to drop a couple hundred dollars on pins between the 3 of them and finally we are off again. We try Living Seas, but the line-up for Turtle Talk is a mile long, as expected. The aquarium gets some attention and then we head over to the Land. Already my sisters are bored and want to split up. They are not interested in riding Soarin’. What? Amy says she’ll get carsick and Jen is worried about her back (admittedly, because of a car accident last fall, she has developed a herniated disk before this trip and now has a whole drug store worth of narcotics with her, but I didn’t think Soarin’ would be too strenuous, but what do I know?) So the two of them take off with promises to meet us in Japan for lunch. So much for spending the day together as a family! I know my mom is not going on this ride. She is deathly afraid of heights. I have tried to persuade her, but again, to no avail. In retrospect, she was right…Soarin’ would have been too much for her. But we only have 3 fastpasses and my dad wants to join us. Would mom mind watching Connor while dh, dad and I go? Sure. I am skeptical. Connor is already bored and testy, but we leave them at the kidcot station and head down the escalator and join the masses for Soarin’. The fastpasses get is in and down past the long line, but we still have a bit of a wait. We take the time to get caught up on all the happenings with the family and their adventurous ride to Florida. Apparently my father is about ready to kill Jennifer and they are all pretty much bickering like crazy. My mother is livid too. I feel bad for them. This is supposed to be my parents annual getaway to Florida, the only real holiday they get together each year and my dad works hard for it. They missed their trip last year because my mom was in chemo for breast cancer, and that was hard on them both. We all knew that Jennifer in her current state of back problems was going to be even worse that normal, and that has proven the case. Finally it is our turn to ride and all worries are immediately gone. This ride is AWESOME!!! You simulate riding in a hang-glider over Florida and it is so realistic…the wind in your hair, the feel of the ocean spray on your feet as you practically dive into the ocean, the faint smell of oranges as you fly over the orange groves…WOW is about all I can say!! Definitely our favourite ride now! But it was over too soon. Back to find my mom and Connor and I see that my mom already looks frazzled, but she politely hides it and we head off again towards World Showcase. It is nearing noon and we’ll have to book it to get across the lagoon in time for our lunch.

Up next…Teppanyaki and the day starts unravelling.

 

[aGoofyMom]

Yep - sounds like a typical family vacation already! After all what's the point of involving the parents & siblings without a little bickering?

Can't wait to see if the sisters are late for lunch. Really - I don't remember.

 

[MARY-IN-OH]

Thanks for sharing, I'm looking forward to hearing the rest too!!!! Very interesting report, hope your family is doing well.

 

[TomB'sWidow]

Families you gotta love em, they are always good for causing all kinds of stress. Thanks for the update, have a good vacation and I'll be here ready for more

 

[offwegotoneverland]

Great report...sorry about all the headaches!!

 

[PrincessV]

By the time we get to the end of this short, like minute and a half ride, his face is as white as a sheet and he looks like he’s going to puke. As we pull in to a stop, I am wracked with guilt thinking I am the worst mom in the world for even attempting this kind of thrill ride with a 3 yr old. And then he starts crying and I’m totally wrecked. “We go again…we go again!!!!” he is sobbing as dh is trying to peel him off the ride. Well, apparently this is my son when he totally loves something. Who knew!?!?!

I just started reading your trippie yesterday and it's great! I'm on my way to The World in 1+ hour, but HAD to respond to this one. My DS4 is funny like that, too. When he's really, really into something, he gets all quiet and serious-looking and his eyes get huge. It took a long time for me to figure out this indicates copious amounts of joy, not paralyzing terror!

 

[connorsmom911]

Thanks again for your patience, I'm almost done, and just in time too, as we leave for the next vacation in a month!! This week off wasn't a great vacation as I was sick for most of it, but any days off work are better than nothing!

So, back to Epcot and lunch. The heat has definitely picked up today and there seems to be no breeze as we cross over into World Showcase. The idea of a brisk walk around the lagoon isn’t all that appealing, so we opt to take the boat. Unfortunately we have just missed one leaving and we have to wait. Now I’m worried that we’re going to be late for our ADR and I, like many of my fellow DISers, hate being late. That mixed with the heat, humidity and an increasingly testy toddler is making for one grumpy mommy. And dh is irritating me. For no particular reason, or at least I don’t remember, but now we’re starting to bicker. Finally the boat arrives and we sit on separate sides for the ride. Having never taken the boat across, I’m sure this would have been a pleasant journey on most occasions, but things were just not shaping up the way I had planned. I was hoping lunch would make up for it.

We arrived at the Japan pavilion, found my sisters already upstairs waiting impatiently for us. We are a few minutes late checking in, and we still have a few minutes to wait. Bathroom breaks all around and we are finally seated. Because there are 7 of us, we get our own table and our waitress arrives almost immediately, quickly taking our drink orders and pointing out what items on the menu are available to dh and I on the dining plan. We ordered salads and shared Connor’s helping around the table. I ordered hot sake to drink as usual. Why I don’t enjoy this more often at home, I don’t know, because I really love it. Our chef arrived and greeted us, then started preparing the meal. It was a lacklustre presentation, not terrible, but just not the “magic” that we have had at this location before. It seemed as if our chef was new and just learning the ropes. The food was delicious though, and we all enjoyed our meals. We did order the 3 desserts included with our dining plan and shared them around the table, but by then Connor was eager to get going to new scenery , so we finished up and headed downstairs.

Now Japan is always a traditional shopping spot for us. Dh really enjoys all the jap-animation figures, particularly Robotech, so he always has to look at the selection, and I have a tradition of buying an oyster every time since my first trip back in ’92. I’ve always gotten decent size pearls, last time I even got lucky with silver/blue twins! But this time, both my sisters had also bought oysters and their pearls were the same size, so they had picked out matching necklaces. When I picked out my oyster, lo and behold wasn’t my pearl the same size and colour as theirs. So I had it mounted in the same necklace charm. I thought this was really special…three sisters sharing matching necklaces. I put mine on right away, as did Amy, but Jennifer just kept hers in the box and kept on shopping. One of those ruined moments. Now truth be told, I’ve never been terribly close to my sisters…there’s a five year gap between Amy and I, and another two years with Jennifer. My mom claims we really were raised as only children to a certain extent, but after a year like we’d been through, it sort of puts things into perspective, and family becomes all that much more important, so deep down I felt like I wanted that connection with my sisters and the matching pearls really symbolized something to me. Guess the sentiment was lost on the other two. My mom saw the hurt expression on my face and smiled that she understood. Sometimes things are just lost on my sisters. There is some kind of a generation gap between them and me. Things have always been that way, and they aren’t likely to change unfortunately.

So after shopping I wanted to get back to touring, but again my sisters wanted to split up. Dh wanted to head back to ride Test Track. So my mom decided to head out with my sisters and my dad came with us back to Future World. We rode the other boat back across the lagoon and dh decided to sprint across to get us fastpasses for Soarin while my dad and I headed to Test Track, with a diaper change pit stop on the way. We did try to get into the VIP lounge at Test Track because my dad work at a GM dealership, but after walking through the side door and down the long hallway, we talked into the camera and my dad flashed his business card. Apparently being a Truck Sales and Leasing Supervisor doesn’t meet the criteria of Manager, so we were not allowed into the super secret elevator. So it was back to join the masses in line. Even with our fastpasses, it was still quite a wait as there seemed to be a lot of mini breakdowns. Finally when we did get into our car, the whole ride was painfully stop and go, jolting us forward and then screeching to a halt. We did get the full speed swing around the outside track, but overall we were disappointed. This was my dads first ride on Test Track, and he said he wouldn’t do it again.

Now we come to the point where the fighting really started. Dh wanted to ride Mission Space. He wanted to ride it last time we were here but he never made it as he got really sick with heat stroke and had to head back to the hotel, so this time he was determined. But I was scared with the recent deaths on this ride. See dh is a healthy guy, but every once in a while if he stands up too fast he gets light headed. And occasionally when I lie with my head on his chest, I hear his heart skip a beat, and not because he’s excited to see me. Yes, I’m probably paranoid, and yes, dh is heavily life insured, but this was not the time nor the place that I wanted to discover that he has an undiagnosed heart condition. So when he started heading in that direction saying he was going to ride it, I said as much and put my foot down. We had a little argument, quietly of course, or as quiet as we could and then dh gave up and gave me the cold shoulder for the rest of the afternoon. I was just glad he was still alive.

We stopped and used the last of our snack credits for a drink, a pretzel and a Mickey ice cream bar. Dad needed the break. I think the walking and the heat was a bit much for him, so when we met back up with my mom and my sisters, he was done. And apparently my mom was done with my sisters. And dh and I were done with eachother. What a great day at Epcot!!

So we left my mom and dad on a bench in the shade (incidently, they like doing that sort of thing, just sitting and people watching ) and my sisters headed off again on their own and dh, Connor and I wandered aimlessly towards Innoventions, not speaking to eachother. Finally I just had it, stopped and sat down. Dh took Connor and they headed off to the washrooms. For a while I just sat pondering how this day had sucked. I was hot, tired and depressed sitting there by myself in front of the fountain. After a while when dh and Connor had not returned, I realized that I didn’t have a plan to meet up with them so I went looking for them. I headed over to Living Seas, the last direction they were walking and tried his cell phone a few times with no answer. I ditched the stroller and headed inside, tried looking for them in the Nemo playground and all around the pavilion, spent a little time drowning my doldrums staring in the dark at the aquarium tanks and then headed back outside. Just as I was getting to the doors, my cell phone rang. It was dh frantically wondering where I was. Who knew there was no cell phone signal inside the Living Seas? Truth be told, the quiet break in the a/c probably did me good and I stayed put…where dh told me to stay until he could make his way over from the Land where he was looking for me. Still silent to eachother when we finally met back up, but we decided to stand in the somewhat short line for Turtle Talk. Dh sat near the front with Connor and I took a seat near the back. Now even in my subdued and melancholy state, this was a funny show and I caught myself laughing a few times. Hope they pay the guy who does the voice a lot, because he was really good at the voice and even better at answering some pretty tough questions from the kids on the fly. I have to recommend this to everyone…you must see it at least once and probably twice.

After we exited, we found the rest of the family in the lobby and let Connor have another go at the Nemo playground, and another picture of being eaten by Bruce the shark.

This was by far his favourite part of the day and we all perked up a bit at the break in the a/c. Now, to plan for dinner and the fireworks. But my family had other plans, or at least they weren’t up for my plans. The sisters were not interested in hanging out until the fireworks, dad was worn out and not eager to wait to drive back to the coast after dark, so they wanted to leave. Already? They’d been here 6 hours and paid for one day park passes times 4…do the math! You’re only here one day and you’re not interested in seeing Illuminations???? This is the point when I start to think I must have been adopted. I can’t really be a part of this family. Where is the obsessive, compulsive Disney planners? Where is the love of all things Disney? My dream of having my family completely together in the happiest place on earth for one day was completely shattered now. I guess I had made the well-worn, time honoured mistake of setting my expectations high and then having them wildly dashed against the rocky shores of reality (oooooh, wasn’t that one of the corniest, sappiest phrases of all time…)

I looked at dh and I could see that he was just as disappointed and he simply stated that we were staying so Connor could see Illuminations. So my family headed out to get a steak dinner outside the World (gasp of horror!) and drive back to Daytona. Dh and I just stood and stared as they said their good-byes to Connor, said they’d see him in the morning and walked away. And again, both dh and Connor turn to me with a look of “now what?”. Well, we still have fastpasses for Soarin that will open up shortly and we could probably use some dinner ourselves. Having used all our dining credits, this one will have to be out of pocket. I had planned that the family would just snack our way around the world showcase, but alas, we didn’t even get to see world showcase today, well dh and I didn’t anyways. Well, we’re in front of the Land Pavilion anyways, so I suggest the food court style Sunshine Seasons food fair and we agree. Down on the first floor, we split up and peruse the selection. I got Connor some chicken strips and the “worms and dirt” dessert, a salad for myself and meet dh back at the cashier. Almost $25 dollars later (see why we liked the dining plan?!?) we found ourselves a table and sat down to enjoy dinner. The food court was starting to clear out now that the time was approaching 6pm and the break from the crowds was nice. After dh was done eating he sat back and looked at me. “Having fun yet?” I asked jokingly. I can’t remember exactly what he said but it was something along the lines of this. Yes, he was having fun believe it or not. He was here with me and Connor. This was our family. We’d been married five and a half years, known eachother for nine. Sure we bicker and argue and fight, sometimes a lot. But that is who we are and that is who we will always be. We’re always going to fight, we’re always going to have ups and downs, but this is our family and he was happy. I couldn’t believe my ears and I just stared at him for a moment letting what he said sink in.

He was right. If we just accepted the fact that we would always have arguments and bickering and put it behind us, we could focus on the happy times. He took my hand and gave me a kiss and said “Now, lets take Connor soarin”. And we did.

Up next…wind in our hair, the smell of oranges, and we head for the beach.

 

[TomB'sWidow]

Hi Tracey So glad you have posted, I have been waiting patiently I totally understand about the family moment. Most people in my family and friends for that matter don't understand my disney addiction.
The only one who does is my sister who is 20yrs older than me She is actually helping me make a promise that I made to my hubby come true on my upcoming trid in Dec. Isn't it great that Dh had such a wonderful light bulb
moment about your relationship in one of the greatest places on earth
Ready and waiting for more

 

[connorsmom911]

Thanks for the reply...you must, must, must pm me when you start your trip report (cause I have been known to get behind and not notice new reports for days...now that aGoofymom and I aren't on the same shift together, she's not here to point out the new ones to me all the time...I miss her...but we're working together tonight on overtime!!! Yippee!!!)

Everytime I see your replies and read your signature line I just want to reach through the computer and hug you. I want you to know that I although I don't know you, I have thought of you a lot, particularly when I start to gripe about my marriage. I get a little more thankful for what I do have, instead of focusing on what I don't. Thank you for that.

Can't wait to read about your adventures in December!!

 

[Mouse511]

Great trip report, can't wait to hear the rest.

 

[aGoofyMom]

Fabulous installment. I love the family dinner & realization.

Now then, I am guessing it will be a late installment at best since we are too busy talking tonight for posting...!
Nice to have you back - at least for one night.

d