We got back last night from our surprise trip to the World with our 8 yo son (his birthday was on Sunday). Neither he or his brother (we call him Muriel even though his name is Kyle; 3.5) knew we were going until we were in the car on Friday driving to the airport. Birthday boy didn't even notice dad walking out of the house with luggage (can you say oblivious!?).
We were originally booked at POFQ using BRP, but I upgraded us to WL shortly before the trip. I'm glad I did. Since the weather our first day or 2 was not the best, we had plenty of space to hang out and let the boys run off some energy. Plus the queen sized beds were more comfortable to share. Our courtyard view was the last possible room on the 5th floor, overlooking Bay Lake. We had a great view of the Electric Water Parade each night. What a treat.
We rented a car from National and after seeing some posts about rate changes, I plugged in some codes and got an intermediate for under $60 for the long weekend. And as DVC members, we get free valet parking, which was a plus with the rain. We didn't use the car after Friday night, but instead took advantage of the boat to the Kingdom (so easy) and the bus to EPCOT on Sunday.
We did MK on Friday evening after dinner at the Concourse Steakhouse. DH and I split the wings appetizer, he had steak and I had prime rib. Birthday boy had the mac & cheese, which he enjoyed very much. Muriel was in a snit, and didn't order any dinner, which for him is not unusual. We had notified Disney Dining that it was Birthday Boy's big day and we got a special birthday dessert for him. Used our DDE card and saved 20%. Headed over to MK for an hour or so and watched Wishes before heading back to the car and our resort for bed.
Saturday dawned really rainy and we didn't know if we'd get much park time in, since Muriel refused to wear his poncho and claimed he couldn't see if I put the rain cover on the stroller. So we decided to see if we could get ressies for breakfast at WCC to buy some time. Got in at 7:50 and were lucky enough to get Billy the Kid as our server. What a great guy and so much fun. Had Muriel up on a chair in front of the restaurant so that everyone could see that I had put him in a SpiderMan shirt and made the entire restaurant point at me and tell me to buy a Disney shirt. Bad Mom! Birthday Boy had the kid's skillet, and dad and I had omelets. Muriel, par for the course, didn't order but ate bits of mine. Again used the 20% discount and left Billy a nice tip. Asked if he was working on Sunday night for our birthday dinner, but he wasn't. However, he did tell us that Bobby the Kid was working and we requested his station before we left. Headed over to MK and the rain was on and off. Park was relatively quiet and we enjoyed plenty of ride time. Had dinner at Kona Cafe that night. Split the wing appie, dh had chicken, I had the Pan Asian Noodle and Birthday Boy had a cheeseburger. Again, Muriel didn't order anything but picked at ours. You'd think the kid would starve but somehow he manages. We ordered the Mickey cone and they brought Birthday Boy another birthday surprise dessert too. Used my 20% discount there too.
On Sunday, the weather improved dramatically, and although a bit cool, we headed to EPCOT. Got quick FP for Soarin' and did Turtle Talk w/ Crush. Never ceases to amaze dh and me. Kids loved it. Did Soarin' and loved it too. Now Muriel's favorite ride. We split up and sent dh and BB to Mission Space, while Muriel and I did Ellen's Energy. He loves that ride and loves Ellen too. We did the character greeting and were headed back to Soarin for our second FP's but BB was really hungry so we ate lunch at Seasons and did the Circle of Life and Living with the Land ride. I know, how do you not use FPs. Well, by the time we got back to Soarin' we had missed our time. I was going to ask the CM if we could still ride, but the kids were ready to move on so we figured we'd do it again in April when we come down. Decided to head back to MK for a short time before our dinner at WCC.
MK was definitely more crowded than the day before, but we managed to do a bit. Muriel fell asleep in the stroller as I was on line to get him a popcorn, so I walked around a bit and headed over to BTTR to wait for the boys. We walked some more, they did a few more rides and we headed out to WCC for our dinner.
Now, if you have ever eaten at WCC and you know Bobby the Kid, there really is nothing to say here. Delswife, I believe, in her wonderful trip reports, has spoken of him and I believe might have a picture of him somewhere (or is that Zurg's reports? Who remembers). Anyway, if you've had him before, you know just how great he is. And if you haven't, then you just have to go and try to sit at his station. We had asked for him and were told that he wouldn't have any tables our size for at least an hour, but the CM in charge ended up asking the other server to switch tables with him so he could serve us. Thanks WCC! What a great experience. From the dozen ketchup bottles, to bringing Muriel, who drinks OJ, the entire 1/2 gallon carton of Minute Maid w/ the giant straw stuck in it, to the singing of My Little Buttercup. What a night. Then he brought each of the boys a special birthday dessert (so Muriel wouldn't be left out). Used my 20% discount and more than paid it back to him as a tip. He's our new favorite. Get him if you can. You won't be disappointed.
Monday had great weather. Grabbed a quick bite and headed out to MK for a few hours before our flight home. Checked 2 of our bags at the hotel (so great) and packed the stroller and other stuff in the car. Got to MK at around 9:15 and split up. Muriel and I did walk ons at Peter Pan, Winnie the Pooh and teacups, and waited only 20 minutes at Dumbo. We then did a walk on at Buzz and the entire family did TTA, which is also one of Muriel's favorite rides (who knows why?). By the time we headed back into Frontierland (we met up with dh and BB, who had ridden all the big rides twice) the park was filling up. Got FP for Jungle Cruise and got a bite of lunch. Did JC and headed back to get the car and go to the airport. After long security waits and our plane being delayed for 1.5 hours, we landed at Newark, reclaimed our car and headed home.
All in all, a wonderful, whirlwind trip for a great reason. Kids loved it, we loved it, could have lived without the rain and some of the typical kid antics but wouldn't have missed it for the world.
Now I have only 2 weeks before I have to pay off the trip down in April for our Spring Break.
Any questions or comments, please let me know.
We were originally booked at POFQ using BRP, but I upgraded us to WL shortly before the trip. I'm glad I did. Since the weather our first day or 2 was not the best, we had plenty of space to hang out and let the boys run off some energy. Plus the queen sized beds were more comfortable to share. Our courtyard view was the last possible room on the 5th floor, overlooking Bay Lake. We had a great view of the Electric Water Parade each night. What a treat.
We rented a car from National and after seeing some posts about rate changes, I plugged in some codes and got an intermediate for under $60 for the long weekend. And as DVC members, we get free valet parking, which was a plus with the rain. We didn't use the car after Friday night, but instead took advantage of the boat to the Kingdom (so easy) and the bus to EPCOT on Sunday.
We did MK on Friday evening after dinner at the Concourse Steakhouse. DH and I split the wings appetizer, he had steak and I had prime rib. Birthday boy had the mac & cheese, which he enjoyed very much. Muriel was in a snit, and didn't order any dinner, which for him is not unusual. We had notified Disney Dining that it was Birthday Boy's big day and we got a special birthday dessert for him. Used our DDE card and saved 20%. Headed over to MK for an hour or so and watched Wishes before heading back to the car and our resort for bed.
Saturday dawned really rainy and we didn't know if we'd get much park time in, since Muriel refused to wear his poncho and claimed he couldn't see if I put the rain cover on the stroller. So we decided to see if we could get ressies for breakfast at WCC to buy some time. Got in at 7:50 and were lucky enough to get Billy the Kid as our server. What a great guy and so much fun. Had Muriel up on a chair in front of the restaurant so that everyone could see that I had put him in a SpiderMan shirt and made the entire restaurant point at me and tell me to buy a Disney shirt. Bad Mom! Birthday Boy had the kid's skillet, and dad and I had omelets. Muriel, par for the course, didn't order but ate bits of mine. Again used the 20% discount and left Billy a nice tip. Asked if he was working on Sunday night for our birthday dinner, but he wasn't. However, he did tell us that Bobby the Kid was working and we requested his station before we left. Headed over to MK and the rain was on and off. Park was relatively quiet and we enjoyed plenty of ride time. Had dinner at Kona Cafe that night. Split the wing appie, dh had chicken, I had the Pan Asian Noodle and Birthday Boy had a cheeseburger. Again, Muriel didn't order anything but picked at ours. You'd think the kid would starve but somehow he manages. We ordered the Mickey cone and they brought Birthday Boy another birthday surprise dessert too. Used my 20% discount there too.
On Sunday, the weather improved dramatically, and although a bit cool, we headed to EPCOT. Got quick FP for Soarin' and did Turtle Talk w/ Crush. Never ceases to amaze dh and me. Kids loved it. Did Soarin' and loved it too. Now Muriel's favorite ride. We split up and sent dh and BB to Mission Space, while Muriel and I did Ellen's Energy. He loves that ride and loves Ellen too. We did the character greeting and were headed back to Soarin for our second FP's but BB was really hungry so we ate lunch at Seasons and did the Circle of Life and Living with the Land ride. I know, how do you not use FPs. Well, by the time we got back to Soarin' we had missed our time. I was going to ask the CM if we could still ride, but the kids were ready to move on so we figured we'd do it again in April when we come down. Decided to head back to MK for a short time before our dinner at WCC.
MK was definitely more crowded than the day before, but we managed to do a bit. Muriel fell asleep in the stroller as I was on line to get him a popcorn, so I walked around a bit and headed over to BTTR to wait for the boys. We walked some more, they did a few more rides and we headed out to WCC for our dinner.
Now, if you have ever eaten at WCC and you know Bobby the Kid, there really is nothing to say here. Delswife, I believe, in her wonderful trip reports, has spoken of him and I believe might have a picture of him somewhere (or is that Zurg's reports? Who remembers). Anyway, if you've had him before, you know just how great he is. And if you haven't, then you just have to go and try to sit at his station. We had asked for him and were told that he wouldn't have any tables our size for at least an hour, but the CM in charge ended up asking the other server to switch tables with him so he could serve us. Thanks WCC! What a great experience. From the dozen ketchup bottles, to bringing Muriel, who drinks OJ, the entire 1/2 gallon carton of Minute Maid w/ the giant straw stuck in it, to the singing of My Little Buttercup. What a night. Then he brought each of the boys a special birthday dessert (so Muriel wouldn't be left out). Used my 20% discount and more than paid it back to him as a tip. He's our new favorite. Get him if you can. You won't be disappointed.
Monday had great weather. Grabbed a quick bite and headed out to MK for a few hours before our flight home. Checked 2 of our bags at the hotel (so great) and packed the stroller and other stuff in the car. Got to MK at around 9:15 and split up. Muriel and I did walk ons at Peter Pan, Winnie the Pooh and teacups, and waited only 20 minutes at Dumbo. We then did a walk on at Buzz and the entire family did TTA, which is also one of Muriel's favorite rides (who knows why?). By the time we headed back into Frontierland (we met up with dh and BB, who had ridden all the big rides twice) the park was filling up. Got FP for Jungle Cruise and got a bite of lunch. Did JC and headed back to get the car and go to the airport. After long security waits and our plane being delayed for 1.5 hours, we landed at Newark, reclaimed our car and headed home.
All in all, a wonderful, whirlwind trip for a great reason. Kids loved it, we loved it, could have lived without the rain and some of the typical kid antics but wouldn't have missed it for the world.
Now I have only 2 weeks before I have to pay off the trip down in April for our Spring Break.
Any questions or comments, please let me know.
