off to neverland
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Aug 21, 2004
- Messages
- 703
Cast:
Me, Rae, 34, Disney lover
Dix, 43, Great guy
Boo, 4.95 year-old picky eater
Sis, 1.95 year-old
Goldi Locks, Nice DVC member who traded her points with us
Laser-accuser guy: Nice man helping out with world safety
Mr. Customs Man: Grumpy, serious guy in uniform with no patience for drugs or childbirth
Mr. And Mrs. No Manners: Rude people who pop up with different faces throughout our trip
Inventory of important trip items:
Fancy Laser Camera
We were spending our first night at Port Orleans French Quarter, simply because we were able to get an annual pass discount for the night. For $77 a night we were able to stay in a moderate for less than one of the value hotels that were going for around $85 a night. I thought that was a great deal.
I had some unfortunate business to take care of when we arrived. A week before our trip, I had ordered the Disney Dining Experience card, which would allow us 20% off meals in most of our favorite restaurants. DDE had been very professional and had emailed me confirmation of my Disney Dining Experience purchase, which I had promptly printed out and put on the kitchen table. Now that we were in Disney World and ready to use the DDE card, it was. you guessed it .. still sitting on my kitchen table.
I was bummed. I hoped to have another confirmation copy faxed to me at the hotel so after we checked in, I went to Guest Services for help contacting Disney Dining Experience. They were a great help and even went so far as to dial the phone for me, but unfortunately it was Sunday, and DDE is closed on Sundays! Further, the next day, Monday, was Martin Luther King Day and it would be closed as well. I wouldnt be able to get the DDE confirmation until Tuesday. That meant two days of no DDE discounts.
We decided that since we wouldn't have the 20% discount until Wednesday, wed just eat on the fly at the Port Orleans food court for today since it was pretty cheap. It was salt in my wound that I knew even this restaurant would accept the DDE card and would give us 20% off if we had it.
We snarfed a couple of hot dogs at the food court and headed to our room. I thought the renovations that had been done to our room were beautiful and I thought of my mother the moment I walked through the door. There was a shade of steel grey blue incorporated throughout the material that reminded me of her. She loves blues and yellows and the last time she came to visit me we saw a steel grey/blue bedding duvet that was exactly the same shade as the Port Orleans colors. I hoped someday she would be able to come here with me.
Dix and I discussed what to do next. It was getting late in the afternoon, and I thought it would be best to explore the hotel and let the kids unwind while one of the adults went either to Downtown Disney or a theme park to activate our annual passes. We could go to the Magic Kingdom tomorrow, bright and early.
Dix disagreed. He was hot to go to Magic Kingdom with the kids. Boo had been talking about Splash Mountain for the past hour. I caved in, and we decided to go ahead and hit Magic Kingdom late in the afternoon.
I was hesitant about our decision. I am a huge fan of the Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World, and you all know how much going to the Magic Kingdom in the middle of the day with two young kids and no plan goes against the Unofficial Guides advice!!!
We drove over to MK in the car. This was our first experience ever parking at a theme park. I didnt realize how long the process is of parking, waiting-and-loading the tram, and then waiting-and-loading the monorail. The kids loved it but I wondered if we had made a mistake by just not taking the bus from Port Orleans to Magic Kingdom.
Once we arrived at Magic Kingdom, we had a fairly long wait at the ticket counter to activate our annual pass vouchers. I felt quite happy when we were finished in that line, though! For a little over $300, we were able to buy our son a premium annual pass and upgrade our two annual passes to premium annual passes! That Disney Vacation Club discount rocks!!!
We entered the park, and it was crowded. I usually love that feeling I have when I first enter the Magic Kingdom, but this time, I wasnt feeling the magic so much because I was trying not to dwell on the fact we were having our first Magic Kingdom experience in the middle of the day with no plan and lots of crowds.
We rounded the corner and approached the castle just in time to see Peter Pan and Captain Hook dueling it out on the castle eaves.
It took my breath away!
That castle is just fantastic. No matter how many times I see it, it is beautiful. And to see my sons face staring up at it in fascination as he watched two of his most beloved characters battle it out was beyond words for me. Sis was mesmerized, too. She didnt really know much about these guys, but she had seen her brother manipulating fights between his inch-high Pan and Hook figurines since she was born. Here they were in person.
All of the sudden, my eyes welled with tears. What a life we had, enjoying our children like this! How special was this moment for them! How tired and excited I felt at the same time! I looked over at my husband. He had a big smile on his face. I swallowed, held back the tears, hugged Sis tight, and enjoyed the moment.
We can still enjoy magical moments at Walt Disney World even when we arent following the Unofficial Guide. Lighten up, Rae.
When the fight ended, we walked over to Splash Mountain. Boo had been watching this ride over and over on the internet and was itching to go on it. I tried to persuade him to go on something a little more tame first, but he was set on going on Splash Mountain with me.
As we stood in line, he kept reassuring me about the ride.
Dont worry, mommy, it wont be dark for long.
The hill is steep but short, mommy. You wont be too scared.
We were finally seated in the last seat of one of the logs. Sitting in front us was a cute little girl around 12 sitting by herself. She told Boo she had ridden Splash Mountain four times.
He told her he had watched it on the internet over a hundred.
The ride had barely started, and Boo got scared. He was worried about the hills. He was worried about the dark. He was terrified when he realized there were hills in the dark.
I tried to console him and held him close. Cute little girl in front wasnt any help when she turned around to say, This isnt even the scary part. It gets WAY more scary in a minute.
Boo begged me to make them stop the ride. I told him they wouldnt. He tried to stand up in an attempt to jump out of the log. I grabbed him.
Cute little girl in front turned around. You better sit down. The really big, scary hill is coming up.
Boo tried to jump up again.
Cute little girl turned around again and this time I asked her to please be quiet.
Boo survived the ride, and attempted to smile as we got off. My arm hurt from holding him down to keep him from jumping out. Dix asked him how it was and Boo looked down at the ground and said, Good.
We left it at that.
We rode Buzz a few times in Tomorrowland and then realized we were hungry. No, not hungry . Starving! We had pretty much been going since 4:15 in the morning and had basically been eating junk the whole day. Dix and I doubted we would be able to get a seat at Crystal Palace without a priority seating but we thought wed try it anyway.
We were seated immediately! We loaded our plates with healthy items and started diving into our food.
Our server heard me tell Dix that I was so hungry I didnt even care that we werent going to get our Disney Dining Experience discount. She wanted to hear my whole story, which I told her. Later, when we received our bill from her, she had given me the 20% DDE credit. What a nice woman!
I had left my fancy new laser camera at the hotel because I didnt think we would be accomplishing much in such a short time at Magic Kingdom. I saw some of the Pooh characters coming toward us and remembered I didnt have my laser camera. Oh well, I knew wed eat here again.
The kids enjoyed having the characters come by, but they were also very interested in their food. Hi Pooh, Piglet and Tigger. HELLO, dinner!
Then Eeyore came to our table and the world stopped for Boo.
Eeyore LOVED Boo. The two of them held hands, and Boo couldnt stop smiling. Dix and I looked at each other and shrugged. Who knew Boo liked Eeyore so much?
I wished I had my camera, but oh well.
Eeyore eventually tore himself away from our table and we went back to our dinners. The fireworks had started outside and we could see them from our window.
Suddenly, the characters came out again, and before we knew it, Eeyore was at our table grabbing Boo to lead the parade around the restaurant. Dix picked Sis up and put her in the parade with the rest of the children. She ran past them all and grabbed her brothers hand.
Now the absence of the camera was bothering me so much I had to make a conscious effort to shove it out of my mind to enjoy this beautiful moment.
Boo was puffed up as big as he could be. His eyes were shining, laughing, and all the confidence he had lost on Splash Mountain was pouring back into his face. Here he was, leading the marching parade around the restaurant with his new favorite character, Eeyore, and his adoring sister.
Eeyore swayed around the restaurant, while Boo gazed up at him and Sis gazed up at Boo.
WHY DIDNT I HAVE MY *!@#@ FANCY LASER CAMERA???????
I leaned up against Dix and whispered, If I leave that camera behind again, leave me for dead on the side of the road.
He agreed to my request.
Next Installment:
Part 5... Where is Dix?
Me, Rae, 34, Disney lover
Dix, 43, Great guy
Boo, 4.95 year-old picky eater
Sis, 1.95 year-old
Goldi Locks, Nice DVC member who traded her points with us
Laser-accuser guy: Nice man helping out with world safety
Mr. Customs Man: Grumpy, serious guy in uniform with no patience for drugs or childbirth
Mr. And Mrs. No Manners: Rude people who pop up with different faces throughout our trip
Inventory of important trip items:
Fancy Laser Camera
We were spending our first night at Port Orleans French Quarter, simply because we were able to get an annual pass discount for the night. For $77 a night we were able to stay in a moderate for less than one of the value hotels that were going for around $85 a night. I thought that was a great deal.
I had some unfortunate business to take care of when we arrived. A week before our trip, I had ordered the Disney Dining Experience card, which would allow us 20% off meals in most of our favorite restaurants. DDE had been very professional and had emailed me confirmation of my Disney Dining Experience purchase, which I had promptly printed out and put on the kitchen table. Now that we were in Disney World and ready to use the DDE card, it was. you guessed it .. still sitting on my kitchen table.
I was bummed. I hoped to have another confirmation copy faxed to me at the hotel so after we checked in, I went to Guest Services for help contacting Disney Dining Experience. They were a great help and even went so far as to dial the phone for me, but unfortunately it was Sunday, and DDE is closed on Sundays! Further, the next day, Monday, was Martin Luther King Day and it would be closed as well. I wouldnt be able to get the DDE confirmation until Tuesday. That meant two days of no DDE discounts.
We decided that since we wouldn't have the 20% discount until Wednesday, wed just eat on the fly at the Port Orleans food court for today since it was pretty cheap. It was salt in my wound that I knew even this restaurant would accept the DDE card and would give us 20% off if we had it.
We snarfed a couple of hot dogs at the food court and headed to our room. I thought the renovations that had been done to our room were beautiful and I thought of my mother the moment I walked through the door. There was a shade of steel grey blue incorporated throughout the material that reminded me of her. She loves blues and yellows and the last time she came to visit me we saw a steel grey/blue bedding duvet that was exactly the same shade as the Port Orleans colors. I hoped someday she would be able to come here with me.
Dix and I discussed what to do next. It was getting late in the afternoon, and I thought it would be best to explore the hotel and let the kids unwind while one of the adults went either to Downtown Disney or a theme park to activate our annual passes. We could go to the Magic Kingdom tomorrow, bright and early.
Dix disagreed. He was hot to go to Magic Kingdom with the kids. Boo had been talking about Splash Mountain for the past hour. I caved in, and we decided to go ahead and hit Magic Kingdom late in the afternoon.
I was hesitant about our decision. I am a huge fan of the Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World, and you all know how much going to the Magic Kingdom in the middle of the day with two young kids and no plan goes against the Unofficial Guides advice!!!
We drove over to MK in the car. This was our first experience ever parking at a theme park. I didnt realize how long the process is of parking, waiting-and-loading the tram, and then waiting-and-loading the monorail. The kids loved it but I wondered if we had made a mistake by just not taking the bus from Port Orleans to Magic Kingdom.
Once we arrived at Magic Kingdom, we had a fairly long wait at the ticket counter to activate our annual pass vouchers. I felt quite happy when we were finished in that line, though! For a little over $300, we were able to buy our son a premium annual pass and upgrade our two annual passes to premium annual passes! That Disney Vacation Club discount rocks!!!
We entered the park, and it was crowded. I usually love that feeling I have when I first enter the Magic Kingdom, but this time, I wasnt feeling the magic so much because I was trying not to dwell on the fact we were having our first Magic Kingdom experience in the middle of the day with no plan and lots of crowds.
We rounded the corner and approached the castle just in time to see Peter Pan and Captain Hook dueling it out on the castle eaves.
It took my breath away!
That castle is just fantastic. No matter how many times I see it, it is beautiful. And to see my sons face staring up at it in fascination as he watched two of his most beloved characters battle it out was beyond words for me. Sis was mesmerized, too. She didnt really know much about these guys, but she had seen her brother manipulating fights between his inch-high Pan and Hook figurines since she was born. Here they were in person.
All of the sudden, my eyes welled with tears. What a life we had, enjoying our children like this! How special was this moment for them! How tired and excited I felt at the same time! I looked over at my husband. He had a big smile on his face. I swallowed, held back the tears, hugged Sis tight, and enjoyed the moment.
We can still enjoy magical moments at Walt Disney World even when we arent following the Unofficial Guide. Lighten up, Rae.
When the fight ended, we walked over to Splash Mountain. Boo had been watching this ride over and over on the internet and was itching to go on it. I tried to persuade him to go on something a little more tame first, but he was set on going on Splash Mountain with me.
As we stood in line, he kept reassuring me about the ride.
Dont worry, mommy, it wont be dark for long.
The hill is steep but short, mommy. You wont be too scared.
We were finally seated in the last seat of one of the logs. Sitting in front us was a cute little girl around 12 sitting by herself. She told Boo she had ridden Splash Mountain four times.
He told her he had watched it on the internet over a hundred.
The ride had barely started, and Boo got scared. He was worried about the hills. He was worried about the dark. He was terrified when he realized there were hills in the dark.
I tried to console him and held him close. Cute little girl in front wasnt any help when she turned around to say, This isnt even the scary part. It gets WAY more scary in a minute.
Boo begged me to make them stop the ride. I told him they wouldnt. He tried to stand up in an attempt to jump out of the log. I grabbed him.
Cute little girl in front turned around. You better sit down. The really big, scary hill is coming up.
Boo tried to jump up again.
Cute little girl turned around again and this time I asked her to please be quiet.
Boo survived the ride, and attempted to smile as we got off. My arm hurt from holding him down to keep him from jumping out. Dix asked him how it was and Boo looked down at the ground and said, Good.
We left it at that.
We rode Buzz a few times in Tomorrowland and then realized we were hungry. No, not hungry . Starving! We had pretty much been going since 4:15 in the morning and had basically been eating junk the whole day. Dix and I doubted we would be able to get a seat at Crystal Palace without a priority seating but we thought wed try it anyway.
We were seated immediately! We loaded our plates with healthy items and started diving into our food.
Our server heard me tell Dix that I was so hungry I didnt even care that we werent going to get our Disney Dining Experience discount. She wanted to hear my whole story, which I told her. Later, when we received our bill from her, she had given me the 20% DDE credit. What a nice woman!
I had left my fancy new laser camera at the hotel because I didnt think we would be accomplishing much in such a short time at Magic Kingdom. I saw some of the Pooh characters coming toward us and remembered I didnt have my laser camera. Oh well, I knew wed eat here again.
The kids enjoyed having the characters come by, but they were also very interested in their food. Hi Pooh, Piglet and Tigger. HELLO, dinner!
Then Eeyore came to our table and the world stopped for Boo.
Eeyore LOVED Boo. The two of them held hands, and Boo couldnt stop smiling. Dix and I looked at each other and shrugged. Who knew Boo liked Eeyore so much?
I wished I had my camera, but oh well.
Eeyore eventually tore himself away from our table and we went back to our dinners. The fireworks had started outside and we could see them from our window.
Suddenly, the characters came out again, and before we knew it, Eeyore was at our table grabbing Boo to lead the parade around the restaurant. Dix picked Sis up and put her in the parade with the rest of the children. She ran past them all and grabbed her brothers hand.
Now the absence of the camera was bothering me so much I had to make a conscious effort to shove it out of my mind to enjoy this beautiful moment.
Boo was puffed up as big as he could be. His eyes were shining, laughing, and all the confidence he had lost on Splash Mountain was pouring back into his face. Here he was, leading the marching parade around the restaurant with his new favorite character, Eeyore, and his adoring sister.
Eeyore swayed around the restaurant, while Boo gazed up at him and Sis gazed up at Boo.
WHY DIDNT I HAVE MY *!@#@ FANCY LASER CAMERA???????
I leaned up against Dix and whispered, If I leave that camera behind again, leave me for dead on the side of the road.
He agreed to my request.
Next Installment:
Part 5... Where is Dix?
