Overdue and Overpacked: POR 9/23-10/1 THE EPILOGUE IS NOW UP ON PAGE 25

[J and R's mom]

Still picturing that drunk lady.

Great report. I'm sad you're already on your last day.

 

[zachnlucy]

Messed up lemme try again

 

[HaleyB]

LOL.

Wait, I have pictures with the same Belle.

I will have to dig them up (outta my hard drive with 12000 pictures it is sometimes hard to locate just the one you want).

 

[BlueBayou]

Okay... I can't believe a mom did that with Jasmine!

I might understand a group of adults traveling together without kids - not that it would be right - but I could understand it. You know, getting carried away and just not thinking. But IN FRONT of your own kids? Yikes.

I hope your kids were okay with it. My DD5 might have been a little concerned.

Sher

 

[LaLa]

It does kinda look like the same Belle...10 years ago she looks younger, and now she looks older...older than most princesses I've seen...I think she has the same smile. Anyone else?

BTW, great report. When are you going back??

She does kinda look like the same one, I have to admit. Hmmmm...

As for when we are going back, we'll be heading back the last week of September! DH just couldn't resist the free dining!

At least you weren't DQ'd for illegal use of a mug.

Yeah, at least there's that.

And when did Alice become a princess? Seriously, they're promoting people to royalty at Disney like no one's business. I reckon next time we're there Mrs. Potts will be a princess too.

You have a very good point. Next thing you know Wendy will be at a Princess meal. Or you know, somebody way off the wall like Mary Poppins.



kpk89: Glad to see you're still hangin' with me!

Haley: Dig up those pics, Woman. Well come on, we're waitin'.

BlueBayou: Yeah, we couldn't believe it either. After things calmed down, we kept hearing people whisper "Did you see that?" Drunk Chick was there with another Mom and their two girls. Well, at least that's what I gleaned with my People Watchin' skillz. Honestly, our kids didn't say anything about it. DD's back was to the Spectacle and DS had his head buried in his spaghetti so he saw nothing. Well, you know, except a couple a' meatballs.

 

[ntink]

In our two princess breakfasts at the Castle, Mary Poppins was there the first time & Wendy was there the second. My daughters loved them but I thought another "princess" would have been more appropriate.

 

[LaLa]

Yeah, that gravity thing is a real pain isn't it? Good thing it's just a theory -- I think I may ignore it next time I'm faced with a similar situation (or is that, sitcheashun?) Terrific installment as usual. Your description of the slightly inebriated dinner guest was priceless -- where did she think she was -- Six Flags? Looking forward to the rest. Seize the fish.

Chapter 11, you're a funny man. You should write a trip report. I'd read it. But only if you throw in a few Mr. Miyagi quotes. You know like... If do right, no can defense and all that jazz.

I'm working on the next installment ...should be pretty long, got a lot to cover. In the meantime, I'm gonna pull a ZZUB and tell yall that if you haven't checked out kpk89's trip report, get your tail there now and read it. It's really funny. Calls herself the Meanest Mother in the World. But she's not foolin' anybody with that one. So go read it and then come right on back for some more Overdue and Overpacked. Seriously, please come back. Your posts really do spur us trip report writers on.

And have a Happy Easter everybody!

 

[MOMOFMNM]

dangit all....

lala....I wasn't THAT drunk....geesh...can't a girl have any fun with the melons???

love it!!

dd's hair looks soooooooooo cute!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


I think we were in EPCOT on Friday though but seriously NO I was not falshing anyone...not my tummy anyway....


good no great installment we are doing bb or tl this summer, can't decide


thanks for the great TR!!!!

LYMI

 

[mercydisney]

NO that wasn't me w/Jasmine. Did get pretty nervous their for awhile. DD9 was jasmine and DD5 was belle.

I was no where near Epicot, Just went to MNSSHHP.

The story goes like this: I'm a kid at heart, (aren't we all, or we wouldn't go to Disney) so I decided to dress as Minnie, the costume was ichy, so I decided to wear a tshirt and shorts underneath the costume. But boy was it hot and muggy that day. After about an hr I couldn't take it anymore and realized I'm to old to be wearing this costume in 100 degree heat. I ran into the ladies rm (near jasmine ride) my 2 girls behind me. I took off that dress so quickly I didn't even go in a stall. These 2 ladies were staring at me as if I stripped naked ( I did have shorts and a t shirt underneath) I left their thinking "They must think I'm pretty smart for wearing my costume over my tshirt and shorts." not " Who the HECK wears a costume on top of ts hirts and shorts in this kind of heat."

And that is my MNSSHHP story.

Belle does look like she has aged. They might have a good pension plan, being princesses and all. Must be hard to take away the crown.

I love your Trip Reports. I can't wait for your next installment.

 

[labdogs42]

The only gripe I have with this place, well okay, other than the food, is that I wish Belle would wear her ball gown to this dinner. She just looks very village-y and not so much princess-y in the blue getup. Anyway, DD had stars in her eyes yet again and it was priceless.

Maybe Cinderella, Aurora, and Snow White complained about Belle looking better than them in their ballgowns and she got demoted to village-wear girl. Maybe they are the "Mean Girls" of Disney!!

BTW, loving the trip report, as usual, and I'm stoked that you pointed us to another one! This should be an ongoing tradition. Zzub sent me here and I followed like a lemming, I will now follow Lala's recommendation on to another TR!! Must read all trip reports...must read all trip reports....Need a lemming smiley here. Maybe this is close enough (he looks like he might drive off a cliff!)

 

[GeorgiaAristocat]

Can't believe I missed the new installment on Friday - another great one.

Question - you talked about e-bay and the fabric, but also about crafting, so did you make the ballgown or buy it pre-made? Just curious as I finished a snow white ensemble last week, and the princess is also requesting Cindy, Aurora, Belle and Tink. Sigh. It is going to cost me a fortune in fabric!

 

[LaLa]

dangit all....

lala....I wasn't THAT drunk....geesh...can't a girl have any fun with the melons???

love it!!

dd's hair looks soooooooooo cute!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


I think we were in EPCOT on Friday though but seriously NO I was not falshing anyone...not my tummy anyway....


good no great installment we are doing bb or tl this summer, can't decide


thanks for the great TR!!!!

LYMI

Yeah right. Come to think of it, she kinda looked like you.....NOT.



And she didn't look like mercydisney either. I know she's breathing a big sigh of relief now. I do the same thing, mercy. If I'm reading someone's t/r and I know they were there the same time as me, the second they mention rednecks or the Clampetts, I'm sweatin' it.

labdogs: Mean Girls. I love it. You know there have got to be catfights behind the scenes. Just once I'd love to hear Belle tell Cinderella to step off and stop walkin' around like she owns the joint.

GeorgiaA: No, I didn't make the dress. Made the shoes, bought the dress. I actually found a lady on ebay that goes into the parks, buys stuff there and then sells it on ebay. It was the Belle gown that they actually sell at Disneyworld. Could've waited and bought it when we got there I suppose, but you know me. It had to be planned out. I couldn't run the risk of getting there and not being able to find her size or something. The only thing I've ever made myself was an apron in Home Ec. My mom sews though. I can mend things, and hem and do little craft projects, but I don't trust myself enough to make a whole outfit. I wish I could though. Sounds like you're going to be a busy bee what with all the wardrobe requests. You go Girl. I wanna see a picture of that Snow White gown. Maybe on the Maelstrom thread?

Okay, I have been working my poor little fingers to the bone myself on this trip report. I thought there would only be two more, the last installment and the obligatory epilogue, but I had to split the last installment up some. I had no idea I was so long winded!

Anyway, I'm workin' on a lil' sump'm sump'm that might be kinda cool if it works. It better work considering all the time I put into my little pet project.

So look for it coming soon to a computer near you.

I'm out. DD has her Gymnastics class tonight, then we have to run back over in time to catch DS's baseball game.

I'll be doing this for the rest of the night....

 

[ellindea]

I am loving your trip report!! 'Can't wait for the next installments. 'Love your sense of humor. I was cracking up so much my mom came in to see what was up. Thanks for all of the effort you've put into writing this. It makes for a very enjoyable read!

 

[LaLa]

Check, check.....

 

[mjkaferle5]

At least you weren't DQ'd for illegal use of a mug.

As usual, LaLa, another great installment. Although our meal at Akershus was, how to say this, less eventful, we also found the food to be just average. And when did Alice become a princess? Seriously, they're promoting people to royalty at Disney like no one's business. I reckon next time we're there Mrs. Potts will be a princess too.

I don't know what this means, but I think your trip report deserved it.

Heck look over at Great Britain where everybody and their brother is entering knighthood. You now have Sir Paul McCartney, Sir Elton John, Sir Tom Jones......................Tom Jones?...............come on!!!!!!

But you are right, next trip you will see Princess Potts and Jr. Prince Chip!!

 

[vettechick99]

Hey LaLa! I only had time to read the first two installments, but so far I'm loving it! You have a great way with words. I can just imagine myself there right along with you. Which is why I should hurt you...I wish I was there!

Can't wait to read the rest!

 

[LaLa]

Vettechick!

Hey, glad you found your way over here. I love your reports, Girl. Glad you decided to finish yours out!

I'm working on getting the next installment posted so look out for it and get to readin', Woman! Hop to it.

 

[LaLa]

Warning: You might wanna go grab a tub of popcorn or a bagel if you're into that sort of thing. It's a puke free zone from now on, folks. I swear. Then sit back in your chair, relax and get to readin'. It's a long one.....Carpe Diem.



Okay, here's the thing.

I'll be the first to admit I'm no trip report writing expert.

I don’t have Overdue and Overpacked Volumes 1-50 linked in my signature line. I don’t have a website committed solely to hosting and praising my trip reports. Although I must admit lala.net does have a nice ring to it. And I certainly would never put myself in the same category as those that do. Heck, I don’t even have one complete trip report under my belt yet. I guess you could say I’m a Newbie when it comes to trip report writing. And even though I don’t have a lot of experience in this department, I have to admit that I have caught the bug. I love it. I do. I love sitting at my computer and going through all the pictures from our trip and remembering all the little details that made our vacation truly one of a kind and oh so magical.

Or not so magical. Extra or not.

I love telling our stories to you and in that, being able to experience the magic all over again. I love bringing you along for the ride and hopefully allowing you to relive a little of your magical vacations through ours. For instance, when I say we ate at Cosmic Ray’s and there were too many choices, that we were all getting chicken and that’s final, I know that you are there with me. You pull your memories out of the vault and you can see the different menu billboards at Cosmic Rays just as I am describing them. You may remember your own family having to do the very same Burger vs. Chicken flip of the coin. Hopefully you are back there in your mind when you read my trip report. I know I am there as I type it. And that’s awesome to me. That’s the really fun part of writing a trip report. And, I might also add, incorporating details into them. Because of all the little details, you’re not just reading it anymore. You are hopefully feeling it and seeing it as well as reading it.

That part is always fun for me and that's what keeps me writing. But there is also a part to the trip report that I have to admit is always pretty difficult for me to write.

It’s the opening. Yep, this part.

I always sit here and just stare at the screen for a little bit, collecting my thoughts and trying to figure out which direction I want to take you. Some seasoned veterans tend to have really great openers. Vettechick’s I’m no Ned Franklin thing was classic. Very well thought out and very funny. And then there was ZZUB’s thing with the calling out of the people who would be offended with his post. That was great. You remember it. You know you do. Something about people who actually like Epcot and women named Tina. As in Tina, you big fat lard, come get your dinner. Yeah, that one. Good stuff. Mel’s “Respect the power of the parka” thing was hilarious. It really drew you in. Once you read it, you just had to find out what the heck the deal was with that darn parka. And let’s not even try to pick one of Delswife’s. That woman knows how to write.

But not me. I’m just a Newbie. I have no franchise. And the part that always kills me is the opening. I tend to dread it actually. I never really quite know where to start. But then once I’ve got it down, I’m good. Once I make it past the first few paragraphs, the details just seem to come right to me and my fingers sometimes have a hard time keeping up.

But that opening, it's always a killer. So I guess maybe if it’s all the same to you, we’ll just call this my opening and then we'll get on with the show. Everybody cool with that?

Okay, that's settled. Now, where were we?

Oh yeah, Epicot, Drunk Chick and The Case of the Missing Bag. Got it.

When we discover that DS’s bag with this clothes is missing, we (I) freak. Okay, well not full blown freak, but just a little. I was a little freaked. After all, it’s not like it was a backpack with a couple of autograph books and a change of clothes apparently lined with gold in it or something. Just a plastic bag with a picture of some kid sportin’ an Anakin Skywalker costume with a change of clothes that really were lined with gold considering they were purchased at Disneyworld and not Wal Mart.


Me: (looking around) Son, where’s the bag?
DS: What bag?
Me: What do you mean what bag? The one with your clothes in it that I just gave you. The one with Anakin on the front. The one that I just physically put into your hands. That bag.
DS: I don’t know.
Me: What do you mean you don’t know? Didn’t I tell you to give it to your father when you came out of the bathroom? What did you do with it?
DS: I don’t know.
Me: What do you mean you don’t…. oh just forget it. What’s your name? Where are we? Who am I?
DS: I don’t know. I don’t know. I don’t know.

This is the standard answer around my house to any form of parental inquisition. Funny how that works. The boy can recite almost every Jim Carrey movie by heart or tell me what color lightsaber each and every character in Star Wars wields from Episode I on up to Return of the Jedi. He also knows how to get to Level 5 on his brand new Ice Age 2 Gameboy game. But when it comes to who smeared poop on the bathroom floor, he instantly knows absolutely jack squat.

We look around the restaurant for a while and find no trace of the bag. I grab one of the CMs and she helps us look for it. Come out, come out wherever you are….Nope. No sign of it. I give her my name and cell phone number and she tells me that if they find it, they will call me. We leave Akershus empty handed and head over to the monorail station.

As we walk, I flip out my cell phone and try to call Disney Lost and Found just to give them a heads up. I call one of the only two Disney numbers I know.

1-407-WDISNEY.

Yeah, that’s all ya need to know. One stop shopping. That number can get you anywhere you need to be in Disney, can’t it? Need to book dining and ignorant of the 407-WDWDINE thing? Just call 407-WDISNEY and they’ll be happy to transfer you. Need to talk to someone at POR Front Desk, perhaps? Maybe to check to see if you've checked out yet? No problem. They can transfer you, or at least give you the number. Son lost a bag with Anakin Skywalker on it? No problem. They’ll get ya to Lost and Found in a jiffy.

The pleasant girl on the other end transfers me to Disney’s Central Lost and Found. I explain what happened and they take down my name, number and address. They tell me that everything found in the parks is sent there so if someone comes across it, it will wind up there. Can you imagine working there? Can you imagine the things they must see come through there? I am quite sure they have everything from the mundane to the freakiest of freaky labeled and stocked away in that place. Anyway, the guy assures me he will mail it to us if and when they find my bag. I thank him and hang up. I make peace with the fact that I will probably never see that bag again.

I’m a little disappointed, but that’s okay. We’ve got a party to make. On with the show.

We hop on the monorail.

Did I mention that I really love the monorail? I did, didn’t I? Well, I’ll say it twice cause it's just that nice. I love the monorail. We all love the monorail. I don’t know which we like more, the super smooth ride or the spiel. You know, the Por Favor one. And the one about fine dining at Disney’s Contemporary Resort. It never fails to make me want to partake of fine dining at Disney’s Contemporary Resort. In fact, we like the monorail spiel almost as much as we like the spiel at the movie in China. You know the one. It goes something like this...

No eatan, drinkan, smokan, or frasha photography.

I know they say that on other rides too, but nowhere else does it sound quite the same as it does at the movie in China.

We pull up to the gates of the Magic Kingdom and look out the windows of the monorail to behold the park decked out in Halloween decorations. And guess what, it’s really not so scary.

We just love MNSSHP.

We love the short wait times for the rides, we love to see the castle lit up in Halloween colors. The whole place is decorated to the nines for fall with pumpkins and haystacks galore, don’t even get me started on Hallowishes, the Boo To You parade with the Headless Horseman is awesome, they have trick or treat stations set up everywhere….it’s just lots of fun. Plus you get to dress up. Okay, well not all of us cause DH is not about to be dressin’ up and I ain’t flyin’ solo. But the kids, now that’s fun. Dressing them up. At least I can do that.

This is our second year to go and it’s always a highlight of the trip. They only sell a certain number of tickets for each party so that means there are less crowds. Well, that’s the initial thinking anyway. Actually, it still seemed pretty darn crowded to us. But the thing with this party is that even though it may seem crowded, all the rides are literal walk ons. It’s true. I swear. We’ve never waited more than five minutes for a ride on MNSSHP nights. All of the characters are in costumes and they are out in full force. Lots of people spend their time waiting in the character lines for siggies and pics of the characters looking very cute and very different than at any other time of the year.

Suckers.

We always throw 'em all the L sign as we walk past and hop right on into our ride vehicles.


As we make our way down Main Street, we see the coolest costumes ever. There is a group of people and they are all dressed up as Fastpasses. Splash Mountain fastpasses.

Splash Mountain? Not Maelstom you say? What’s up with that?

Could it be that they are all in an cyber club in which some of them question the fastpass worthiness of Splash Mountain?

Could be I guess. The more probable answer though, is that they are just a bunch of creative people. They really were cool costumes. They looked just exactly like a fastpass. It looked like they had just taken posterboard and copied an actual Fastpass from Splash Mountain and then hung them over their shoulders. Everyone notices and stops to ask them about the fastpasses and how they made them and why they made them, yada yada yada.

Everyone except us.

We have a plan and it will not be messed around with. We leave the Fastpass Family in the dust.

We will start at Tomorrowland first where we hop in line to get our picture taken for free. They mail you a few 4X6s of your picture a couple of weeks after the party. I think it’s really cool and always look forward to actually having a picture made at Disney where we don’t have to tag each other out. I have lots of pictures of DH and the kids. There are even some of me and the kids together, but we have very few pictures at Disney where all four members of our family are accounted for.

I tell DH we need to go ahead and hop in line for the picture before the line gets too long. And you know, we just got there and the humidity hasn't taken its toll on the locks yet. Gotta strike while the iron is hot. Remember that, Melons.

DH is not a happy camper. Why do men hate to have their picture taken? Even the boy grumbles. Taking pictures and standing in line are two of DH’s least favorite things to do. The combination almost threw him over the edge and ruined our night before it began.

Him: Why are we standing in this line again? I told you last year we weren’t doing this again.

Me: But it’s free. It’s a family picture. The only other time you have to take a family picture is at Christmas so I don’t wanna hear it.

Him: Oh you’re fixin’ to hear it allright. Look how long that line is. We’re not really going to stand in this line are we? We could be done with Space Mountain twice before we get up there.

Me: It’s not that long, not nearly as long as last year.

Him: Oh this is RIDICULOUS. I can’t believe I let you talk me into doing this again.

Me: Shhhhh. People are starting to stare.


And that’s pretty much how we worked our way up to the photo place. Matter of fact, that’s pretty much the same conversation we have any time we go take family pictures. We have that conversation sitting in the Sears Portrait Studio once a year at Christmastime. Word for word. Well, except for the free part. And the thing about Space Mountain.

We stood in line about fifteen to twenty minutes and once we got up there, it was over within seconds. And yes, DH managed to smile. Although it was a forced smile and he had his arm wrapped around my shoulder in a death grip. But a smile nonetheless.

Yep, good family times.

From there, we head on over to Stitch. We are pleased to announce that Shorty was allowed to “ride” Stitch. Her mom finally heeded my advice and put her in a pair of chunky shoes for the night. She passed muster and you seriously would have thought she really did find the last Golden Ticket. She couldn’t believe she was getting to ride with the big kids. We all high five her and shuffle on in. We are ushered into the preshow and the doors close behind us.

Remember the no eatan drinkan smokan or frasha photography thing? Yeah, well they have it on Stitch too. Pay particular attention to the frasha part. Notice they don’t say no photography at all. They just say no flash photography. Unless you're in China. So that would lead a normal thinking person to believe that photography without the flash would be legit, right? You with me?

As we are standing there in one great big unanimous good mood, I notice the really cool looking robot in the preshow.

It’s the last night so I’m scramblin’ for photo ops. What they hey, let’s get the robot. Looks cool enough. I take out my digital and carefully turn the flash off. Then I shoot. Ahhhhh, that turned out really good. Didn’t even need the flash. Perfect.

I check my view window and Mama like. Looks good. Okay, now lemme see, what else can I take a picture of in here? I look around with camera in hand, still with the flash turned off and then I hear it.


“MAAM! YOU THERE WITH THE CAMERA. I’M GOING TO HAVE TO ASK YOU TO PUT DOWN THE CAMERA. YES, YOU, WITH THE RED MICKEY MOUSE SHIRT ON. JUST PUT IT DOWN AND STEP AWAY, MAAM. CAMERAS ARE NOT ALLOWED IN STITCH. WHAT’S THE MATTER WITH YOU, DIDN’T YOU HEAR THE SPIEL?”


I couldn’t believe it. You would have thought I was drunk and flirting with Jasmine at a character meal. I swear, the flash is off, I want to scream. Just to vindicate myself to all the nosy people staring down their noses at me.

I do tell him the flash was off. And it really is not so much for his benefit, but for all the patronizing peeps around me. Yeah, like you’ve never taken a picture in a ride before people. Don’t judge me.

I sheepishly turn off my camera and look to DH.

Wait a minute. He was here just a second ago. Where’d he go? Oh, there he is. Doin’ the sideways shuffle away from me as fast as he can. DHF and the rest of the crew are following suit. I’m a leper. They tucked tail and ran. They didn’t want to be struck by lightning. They shrug off guilt by association.

Whatever. Yall all stink.

We do eventually get to ride Stitch. I couldn't really tell you much about the ride that particular night because I was too busy giving the rude CM angry eyes the whole time. Don’t mess with me and tell me to turn off my perfectly legit non flashing camera cause I’ll give you a mean look in a heartbeat.

Yeah, I’m bad like that.

From Stitch, we head over to Buzz. I love Buzz. Mainly because there are no Camera Police on Buzz. I can take pictures in there with no fear of public humiliation.

See?

From there we head to Fantasyland. We do Philharmagic again. I just love this show. Disney really outdid themselves with this one.

Matter of fact, I feel like riding it now. Care to join me?

Oh yeah, forgot to mention one little thing. I have OHficially kicked it up a notch.

BAM!

Not only do I have photos posted on this, my nearly last installment of the trip report, but I also have a little video clip or two to boot.

Yep. You heard me. I said video clip. As in home movie. As in you can watch it. As in the ultimate trip report. As in what I taped too much of that night according to DH.

Yeah, I just saw that Photobucket supports video now so I dove right on into that head first. I hope it works. Here goes nothin’.

Just click it and follow the link. But first let me warn ya: there’s no eighty foot circular screen and the 3D effects have gone caput but you can make out some of it. And hear the music. Which is worth it just in and of itself.





After Philharmagic, we head over to Adventureland.

In all the excitement of the video thing, I forgot to mention the fact that DHFDD1 rode Splash Mountain on their split up day. Yeah. Big news. Sorry, but I forgot momentarily.

If you will remember, both DS and his friend had sworn that no one would ever get them on Splash. They had a pact. Strength in numbers and all that jazz. Only DHFDD1 rode it. On split up day. Without him. Before him.

The boy is in shock. The girl rode it. She really did it. And even more shocking is the fact that she actually survived the drop. She did. She made it. She’s okay. He begins to process the data.

All of a sudden it was as if someone flipped a switch.

As I watch my firstborn child, I see something in him suddenly change. He seems to age ten years in that moment. His face seems instantly harder. He throws his shoulders back as if preparing for battle. His walk has purpose.

And he is walking straight over to Splash Mountain.

Now, the child may only be seven years old and he may not know his multiplication tables or even who smeared poop on the bathroom floor, but he is still a male. And as such, he has testosterone coursing through his little veins. He may not know a lot, but if he knows only one thing, it’s that he ain’t about to be punked out by a six year old girl.

DH and I can’t keep up. DHFW had taken the younger girls with her back to Fantasyland so it’s just the six of us. This time as we enter the queue, things are different. There will be no running in place nor turning of the body into a brick.

DS is ready to face his demons.

We all hop in a log. Our two families get separated. DHF and his DD wound up in the log just behind us. As we float along, I hear DHDD1 telling our son what to look for next and asking him if he’s scared. From the boat behind us. He never even hears her.

The boy is in the zone.

We float around and watch a couple of animals torturing another animal. You know, as many times as I have ridden Splash Moutain, I have never actually paid full attention to the story of Brer Rabbit and Brer Fox. It’s a shame really, because it is a really cute ride. The animals are cute. The scenery is cute. I mean, I know the story of Brer Rabbit and Brer Fox and during the ride, I see the figures and I hear their cute little voices and all, but my mind just isn’t there. It’s always somewhere just up ahead.

Where all the action is.

We make it to the Laughing Place. I don’t know about you, but I never really find anything particularly funny at the Laughing Place. I just mostly sit and try to calm my nerves in anticipation of the big drop.

Call it Anticipatory Dropaphobia.

The music builds, the anticipation builds, OMG, here we are at the very top. No matter how many times I ride it, my heart always beats like crazy at the top right before the big Splashdown.

DH is beside his dad and he is actually laughing. Yes, laughing. I chalk it up to nerves because when we look down, we can see how far up we are. I guess we could see the whole park if we took our eyes off what lay before us but we don’t. We just focus on the drop and the water shooting around and then here it is. It’s Go Time. We brace ourselves as we go over the crest and then down, down, down. Down as fast as lightning. We hear the sound of the wheels beneath us trying to keep up with our log o’ lightning. Our stomachs feel funny as we drop and we hold on to that bar for dear life. We finally level out and our log starts bobbing along the bend. We are in the back of the log so we just got a little splash or two, nothing major like on Kali River Rapids or anything.

The best part of the ride is always right after the drop as you’re floating around the bend and you hear…

Zippity doo da…Zippity ay. My oh my, what a wonderful day…

Just makes ya smile, doesn’t it? And it was. A wonderful day, that is. Because that was the day my son conquered one of his biggest fears.

One down, 999 to go.

He laughs the rest of the way through the inside of the mountain. DH laughs with him. I join in. We were all laughing for no particular reason other than pure unadulterated joy. We had all found our Laughing Place after all. DS was very proud of himself, as were we. It was a really great moment.

The ride ends and we hop out. The two kids run up to each other. We hear a lot of WHOAs and MAN THAT WAS COOLs and DIDJA SEE THATs. Then we hear DS turn to his friend and say “And guess what? I didn’t even close my eyes. Not once!"

After Splash, it’s time for the fireworks. And this is not just any fireworks show, boys and girls. It’s Hallowishes. As opposed to just plain ole Wishes. Hallowishes. Doesn’t it just sound cool?

We find a spot on the bridge in Frontierland and send the boys for popcorn and drinks. They get back just in time.

Oooooh. Ahhhhhhh. Mama like.

I love this fireworks show. It’s so cool. The castle glows orange and purple and green and at the end of the show, for the grand finale, they have perimeter fireworks.

Perimeter fireworks. With a name like that, how can it not be cool beyond belief? Basically, what this means is that from anywhere in the park, you have the best seat in the house. All you have to do is lean your head back and look up. The fireworks are going off literally everywhere you look.

You entire field of vision is drenched with multi colored magic.

There are no words to describe just how cool this was. I have never heard the crowd at Magic Kingdom quite so loud as I did that night. Everyone was oohing and aaahing and saying OMG, WOW, look at that all at the same time. It was a really neat experience. Love it. I think that is the only thing that beats Illuminations in my mind. Perimeter fireworks. Nuthin’ like it.

From there, we head right down the street and set up shop for the Boo To You Parade. We score a front row seat. Well, front row stroller anyway. Those things make awesome parade viewing vehicles, don’t they? Just roll the chill’uns on up and they’ve got a front row seat. We pull up to the rope and cop a squat.

DS had to use the bathroom so DH and DHF took the older kids while I waited with DD and DHFW and Shorty.

All week long, I had seen kids with those cool flashing necklaces. I kept meaning to get the kids some but the opportunity kept escaping me. Much the same way as something else in Magic Kingdom.

Speaking of which, hey, I’m here. I need a Dole Whip. I glance around at the madness spilled out before me and determine that there is no way I’m going to be able to get over there to the pineapple place without exerting some serious energy. I’m too pooped to pop at this point. Oh well, I’ll just use is as an excuse to come back next year. Maybe if they offer free dining again, I can use the one two punch of Epicot and free dining on DH. I secretly craft my plan and keep my cards close to my chest until the time is right.

As I am examining the crowd, I spot the Flashing Necklace Lady hawking her wares.

She makes her way around to us. Every child that she passes instantly turns to their parents and begs and whines for a flashing necklace. It was like a wave of whiners. Some parents give in, some hold their ground. Me, on the other hand, I rush out to meet the flashing necklace lady. Yeah, I’m an oak too. I tell her to give me four of ‘em and make it snappy. She hands me the incandescent orbs and takes off. As she is heading away from us, she mumbles something over her shoulder about an on/off switch to conserve battery life. But by this point, the wave of whiners had completely overtaken her and we can’t hear a word of what she is saying.

Remember that. There’ll be a pop quiz later.

We turn our attention back to the parade. We hear something in the distance. Could it be….yes, yes, I think it is. It’s the Headless Horseman.

This guy rides around on a horse with no head. Literally no head. Kinda freaky but still cool. Anyway, he rides the parade route just ahead of the Boo To You parade at MNSSHP. He looks tall and mean and scary and it’s really cool to hear the sound of the horses’s hooves on the brick walkways of the Magic Kingdom.

Last year we went to Fort Wilderness on the day that we were going to MNSSHP. We got to see the horse that would be in the parade that night carrying the Headless Horseman. He was a beauty. He was jet black and he was just one big huge muscle. A stud, if you will. He was a fantastic specimen of a horse. We were excited that we would be seeing him ride around in front of the parade that night. But the parade got delayed because of rain and we ended up not getting to see him at all. DH was really disappointed and was looking forward to watching the HH come around even more this year since he missed him last year.

Well, wouldn’t ya know it, DH is takin’ a potty break when the HH makes his trek by us. He walks up literally seconds after it’s over and goes “What, what’d I miss? Not the Headless Horseman? Tell me he hasn’t already come by.”

Sorry, babe. But guess what, I got it all on video for your viewing pleasure. You can thank me later by bringing me back next year during that free dining promotion that I’m sure they will be offering. Again.

The parade starts. Mama Like.

We are movin and groovin in our awesome front row seat up by the rope when all of a sudden, the kids shout, “Look! OMGosh, it’s Ed!”

No, it’s not Ed of that rather annoying threesome called Ed, Edd and Eddy from that other kids channel. Although calling it a kids channel is highly debatable judging from some of their programs. And no, it’s not the Ed that likes his coffee hot. It’s Ed. You know Ed. The hyena. From Lion King. Yeah, the dumb one. Well, here he is right in front of us in living color standing all of seven feet tall and dancin’ all up on my kids.

Wanna see? I have physical evidence.

Ed was bumpin’ and grindin’ with that tongue flappin’ all over the place. The kids didn’t know whether to laugh or run. They finally decide that it’s pretty funny and bust out laughing. Mission accomplished. With that, the Hyena Ho moves on to his next victim.

What was that? Did you ask me something? Oh, what was Ed dancing to? Thought you’d never ask.

You know how there are certain songs that you cannot get out of your head? They just seem to burrow their way into your brain and no matter what you do, you just can’t seem to shake ‘em?

Ladies and Gentlemen, I present to you ‘Boo To You.’

Boo To You and
Boo To You and
Boo To You…………….

Happy Halloween.

I know it sounds harmless but here, try it on for size. Yep, it’s another lil’ video. This is the start of the parade.

Disclaimer: Again, forgive me. I am no Dan and Jackie. You can actually see the characters on my video at home but when I upload them, the whole thing darkens about two or three shades. Sorry for any inconvenience.





Okay, now for the really good part that you will be singing in your sleep tonight.

It’s good to be bad
It’s good to be bad
And laugh at all the really scary fun that we had…

Or something like that. Here, judge for yourself.

If you look right after the cool skeleton band goes by, you might be able to catch a glimpse of Ed dancin’ all up on my kids.






Okay, yeah, I know my videography skills have something to be desired, so just because yall have been so great, I am going to put in an actual decent link to the entire Boo To You parade. If you watch it, you have to wait for the Haunted Mansion section. The guys with the shovels were just too awesome. They dance around with shovels and drag them around in circles on the concrete to make showers of sparks. Very cool. It’s right after the POC float, which is pretty cool too considering the way they integrated the POC music into Boo to You.

But don’t say I didn’t warn ya about the song. Catchy little thing.

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After the parade, we still want to do a few more things and our friends are ready to hit the hay so we split up.

They head to POR and we head to POC.

We run smack dab into Captain Hook and Smee standing right outside POC. DD won’t go anywhere near them but DS jumps up and gets a pic with them.

I really wanted to see Philharmagic one more time but DH convinces me that we need to head to the busses or we may never get home. And he's not talkin' home to the hotel, he means home the next day.

Remembering the bus debacle that was Epcot EMH, I reluctantly agree.

We head out towards Main Street and pass the castle. That beautiful glowing castle. I longingly look back over my shoulder and try to keep it in my field of vision as long as I possibly can, knowing it may be years before it's in my sights again. We pass the Main Street buildings all lit up in orange and green and purple. I do the same with them. I never knew what to call those emotions until I read ZZUB's trip report and found out I wasn't the only one who felt this way near the end of a trip. Now I know I am not alone. It was Anticipatory Disneyfreude at work, my dear friends.

We get out to the bus stop and Good Googly Moogly, look at the people.

I close my eyes and hope that when I open them, it’ll all be just a bad dream. 1,2,3. Open. Nope. Still there. Dangit. We really need to splurge for the Poly next time, I tell myself. Maybe Melons is onto something.

We get in line and inch our way forward with each additional bus. We finally think we are going to get on. Come on, come on, come on, move it people. There’s plenty of room for more. Squeeze on in there. You can do it. Get your back into it. I start getting a little nervous because I notice the line inside the bus (yeah it’s standing room only, Melons) has started to inch its way closer and closer to the front. Crap. We may not make it on this one after all.

Then we hear the bus driver say, “Okay, you four and then that’s it. We’re full after you”.

Did you hear that? We made it boys and girls! We got a ticket to ride and we don’t care. Love the bus. Love the A/C. Love the free ride home. Who cares if we have to stand up on the ride back to POR. It’s really not that far. I’ll take standing on a moving bus over standing still at a bus depot waitin’ for the next one any day.

Because we were the last ones on the bus, we are in the very front. We are gettin’ really tight with the bus driver, if ya know what I mean. We can smell his scent. Sorry to all you bagel eaters out there. We can count the hairs on his head. We can see the whites of his eyes.

And then we see the whites of his eyes staring straight at us.

We hear him mumble something and then roll the whites of his eyes. What was that he said? He folds his arms over his chest and looks at us again. I’m no body language expert, but I can safely assume his hands are not in the proper driving position if they’re shoved under his smelly armpits. Maybe he just does that when he gets really nervous.

SupaSTAR!

He then mumbles something about lights.

What, lights in the water? Did he see them too?

Then our fellow busmates help us out.

Them in unison: It’s the necklaces. Your flashing necklaces. Turn them off. He can’t see to drive with them in his face. He can’t move the bus until you turn them off.

Us in unison: What, you can turn ‘em off?



So just to break it down for ya…..

It’s close to midnight, we’re stuck on a bus with roughly two hundred very tired, very grumpy tourists aching to get back to their hotel and go to sleep and the only thing standing in between them and their clean white Disney linens is us.

And two very bright flashing necklaces that we never even knew had an off button.

Yep, this is gonna get ugly.

Up Next: How Many Tired Disney Tourists Does it Take To Turn Off a Flashing Necklace and Other Probing Questions Answered

 

[javamom]

Lala, lovin' it. THe necklace thing sounds like something that would happen to my mother.

 

[horsegirl]

You've outdone youself, woman. And my Dh will rue the day I got on these boards, as now I will make sure we get to MNSSHP. Bravo, Touche, Stupenda! Your entry is as good as a TR installment can get. You just get better and better.

Horsegirl like.......