Ellester
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Nov 5, 2003
- Messages
- 1,671
Cast of Characters:
Ellen (34) Disney Veteran, 20+trips since 1973, also 7 months pregnant
John (37) Devoted husband, father, and son-in-law. 6th time to WDW
Anabelle (5 ½ ) Our daughter, Princess, first class. 4th time to WDW
Rebecca (2) Our daughter, Princess-in-Training, 2nd time to WDW
Dad (62) My dad, Disney Veteran, has lived in Florida 30 years
Mom (60) My stepmother, Disney Veteran, the rare Florida native
Laura (33) My stepsister, Disney Veteran, mom to Cassie and Marcus
Ted (47) Lauras husband, Disney Veteran, dad to Cassie and Marcus
Cassie (5) niece, 4th time to WDW
Marcus (3) nephew, 1st time to WDW
Lee (30) My stepbrother, Disney Veteran, another rare Florida native
Thursday, January 1st
The day is finally here! All is well in family land and all 11 of us are ready to go. Some questions are better not asked, we are just thankfull Laura and Ted are speaking for the time being. We pile into three vehicles and hit the Turnpike at 9:03am. Two rest stops later, we arrive at the Contemporary at 12:00. My Stepbrother was in the lead on the Turnpike. All I can say is that Im certainly glad his top of the line radar detector was in working order. I dont think our minivan has ever gone that fast! We got off on 192 while the other two cars went up to I-4, Im really not sure why. We arrived at the Contemporary, no sign of the two other cars. We park in the check-in area and wait. I go in and go to the bathroom. And we wait. Now, we are the only part of the group that don't actually live in Florida. I finally try to call Lee's cell phone. No answer. Anabelle decides a potty break is needed, so back in we go. Finally, the rest of the crew arrives 30 minutes after we get there! The other cars ended up in the MK parking lot before finding their way. Our SoG rooms are in the North Garden Wing. One of the three rooms was ready so we dropped our stuff in 7265 (with a nice view of the parking lot and the Grand Floridian), ran up to buy our Stars & Stripes passes at the Shades of Green ticket suite and grabbed a quick lunch at the Food & Fun center. Welcome to Disney prices! Lunch for 11 wasnt cheap. Thanks again Dad!
We jumped on the monorail for the long ride to MK. After stops at the TTC, Poly, & GF we finally arrived at the gates at 2:45. We got to see the last three floats in the Share a Dream Come True Parade from the steps of City Hall and then headed to Adventureland. I grabbed everyone Fastpasses for the Jungle Cruise (gee, Fastpass time in 45 minutes or a 50 minute stand by line. Thats a tough decision!) and we had a short wait for Aladdins Magic Carpets. On to POTC. Anabelle wasnt real sure about this one. She wasnt crazy about it last May, but she decided if she could sit next to her Uncle Lee she would be alright. We had a 20 minute or so wait, both sides of the queue were open. I dont know the last time Id seen the left side open. Anabelle seemed to cautiously enjoy it. She has a very active imagination and the dark rides tend to spook her. We then went to the Tiki Room at Anabelles request. I actually kind of like the "Under New Management" thing, but I'm funny that way. Now time for the Jungle Cruise. One of the downsides of going with 11 is that we invariably had to wait for the next boat, train, car, whatever. We had to wait for an extra boat, but were then able to sit in the front. Anabelle wasnt interested in piloting, so Cassie drove the boat the whole trip! Adam was a great captain. One of the better ones I remember having. It was getting close to 5pm by then and we had 5:45pm PSs at Chef Mickeys. We hopped on the train by Splash Mountain (SM had a 120 minute standby, there were people everywhere in the queue!). Actually, we got on the second train so we could all ride together. In line, I called and got the other two room numbers. My Dad, stepmom and Lee were in 7269 and we were in 7255. We had a nice bay view. Very quiet. We could also see the tennis courts.
We rode the monorail back to the Contemporary (thankfully, the short trip this time!) and checked in at Chef Mickeys right on time. They said it might be 20 minutes as the tables werent moving very fast and we had such a large party. It ended up being closer to 50 minutes. At least we had plenty of time for bathroom breaks, drinks from the bar, getting our picture, and getting autograph books & pens from the gift shop. Lee even had time to run back to the room and get our camcorder for us. Dinner was yummy and the characters were great. *Brief Rant* We were seated in the area close to the lobby and the Concorse Steakhouse. We had to listen to several kids from the waiting area three feet away screaming "Minnie, Minnie, Minnie! (insert your favorite character name)" while we were visiting with the characters or trying to eat. Now the characters totally ignored anyone not in the dining room, so these kids just kept yelling. When we were waiting I made my kids be quiet so the people eating didn't have to listen to them. Apparently not all parents are so considerate. *Rant Off* Minnie just missed our table before she left for the napkin waving (this was right after we were seated) and we ended up having to tell our server that we were still waiting to see her when we were done with dessert 45 minutes later. Minnie did make it back over so all the kids were happy. We made a quick stop in the room to put our stuff in and change the kids into pants. Lee stayed at the hotel to watch his beloved Seminoles succumb to Miami (sorry, Lee!). We decided to walk to MK. I thought the walk was fine. I dont think it was that much longer from the North Wing than it was to walk all the way to the monorail and then from the monorail station to the gate. I think it was faster considering the three monorail stops on the way.
We got back to MK around 8:30 and headed through the crowds and crowds of people waiting for Wishes to go to Tomorrowland. We took a quick spin on the TTA (I love that thing!) and the kids announced they wanted to go on Goofys rollercoaster!. I think this is the ride my two were most excited about. They spotted the Teacups first and were about to get in line when Wishes started. We watched it from right between Pooh and the old 20,000 Leagues queue. We had some fireworks on the left and some on the right. We didnt get the effect of seeing the castle, but it was still awesome. The kids and their dads hopped right on the Teacups and had a great ride. On to Toontown, which at 9:30 at night was deserted. Everyone but me rode the Barnstormer. Ted and Laura took Marcus over to the Indy Racers. The girls and the rest of the adults explored Minnies house, Mickeys house, Donalds boat (no water, too chilly), and the playground virtually by ourselves. John and the girls also rode the Barnstormer again. Once we met back up, we headed over to get a spot for Spectro. We had a front row spot right by Sleepy Hollow snacks. I actually witnessed a CM ask a man to put out a cigarette! He was standing there monitoring the crosswalk area and said "OK, who's smoking?". I thanked him, as that is one of my big pet peeves. Smoke normally bothers me because I have asthma. But being pregnant really makes it intolerable to me. Rebecca and Marcus had conked out by then but Cassie and Anabelle really loved the parade. Despite our many combined trips, no one had ever seen Spectro! It was great! By the time it was over, we were all exhausted. John and I walked back with our girls while the rest of the crew took the monorail back. We collapsed in bed by 11:30. We had an early morning coming up, breakfast with Pooh!
Ellen (34) Disney Veteran, 20+trips since 1973, also 7 months pregnant
John (37) Devoted husband, father, and son-in-law. 6th time to WDW
Anabelle (5 ½ ) Our daughter, Princess, first class. 4th time to WDW
Rebecca (2) Our daughter, Princess-in-Training, 2nd time to WDW
Dad (62) My dad, Disney Veteran, has lived in Florida 30 years
Mom (60) My stepmother, Disney Veteran, the rare Florida native
Laura (33) My stepsister, Disney Veteran, mom to Cassie and Marcus
Ted (47) Lauras husband, Disney Veteran, dad to Cassie and Marcus
Cassie (5) niece, 4th time to WDW
Marcus (3) nephew, 1st time to WDW
Lee (30) My stepbrother, Disney Veteran, another rare Florida native
Thursday, January 1st
The day is finally here! All is well in family land and all 11 of us are ready to go. Some questions are better not asked, we are just thankfull Laura and Ted are speaking for the time being. We pile into three vehicles and hit the Turnpike at 9:03am. Two rest stops later, we arrive at the Contemporary at 12:00. My Stepbrother was in the lead on the Turnpike. All I can say is that Im certainly glad his top of the line radar detector was in working order. I dont think our minivan has ever gone that fast! We got off on 192 while the other two cars went up to I-4, Im really not sure why. We arrived at the Contemporary, no sign of the two other cars. We park in the check-in area and wait. I go in and go to the bathroom. And we wait. Now, we are the only part of the group that don't actually live in Florida. I finally try to call Lee's cell phone. No answer. Anabelle decides a potty break is needed, so back in we go. Finally, the rest of the crew arrives 30 minutes after we get there! The other cars ended up in the MK parking lot before finding their way. Our SoG rooms are in the North Garden Wing. One of the three rooms was ready so we dropped our stuff in 7265 (with a nice view of the parking lot and the Grand Floridian), ran up to buy our Stars & Stripes passes at the Shades of Green ticket suite and grabbed a quick lunch at the Food & Fun center. Welcome to Disney prices! Lunch for 11 wasnt cheap. Thanks again Dad!
We jumped on the monorail for the long ride to MK. After stops at the TTC, Poly, & GF we finally arrived at the gates at 2:45. We got to see the last three floats in the Share a Dream Come True Parade from the steps of City Hall and then headed to Adventureland. I grabbed everyone Fastpasses for the Jungle Cruise (gee, Fastpass time in 45 minutes or a 50 minute stand by line. Thats a tough decision!) and we had a short wait for Aladdins Magic Carpets. On to POTC. Anabelle wasnt real sure about this one. She wasnt crazy about it last May, but she decided if she could sit next to her Uncle Lee she would be alright. We had a 20 minute or so wait, both sides of the queue were open. I dont know the last time Id seen the left side open. Anabelle seemed to cautiously enjoy it. She has a very active imagination and the dark rides tend to spook her. We then went to the Tiki Room at Anabelles request. I actually kind of like the "Under New Management" thing, but I'm funny that way. Now time for the Jungle Cruise. One of the downsides of going with 11 is that we invariably had to wait for the next boat, train, car, whatever. We had to wait for an extra boat, but were then able to sit in the front. Anabelle wasnt interested in piloting, so Cassie drove the boat the whole trip! Adam was a great captain. One of the better ones I remember having. It was getting close to 5pm by then and we had 5:45pm PSs at Chef Mickeys. We hopped on the train by Splash Mountain (SM had a 120 minute standby, there were people everywhere in the queue!). Actually, we got on the second train so we could all ride together. In line, I called and got the other two room numbers. My Dad, stepmom and Lee were in 7269 and we were in 7255. We had a nice bay view. Very quiet. We could also see the tennis courts.
We rode the monorail back to the Contemporary (thankfully, the short trip this time!) and checked in at Chef Mickeys right on time. They said it might be 20 minutes as the tables werent moving very fast and we had such a large party. It ended up being closer to 50 minutes. At least we had plenty of time for bathroom breaks, drinks from the bar, getting our picture, and getting autograph books & pens from the gift shop. Lee even had time to run back to the room and get our camcorder for us. Dinner was yummy and the characters were great. *Brief Rant* We were seated in the area close to the lobby and the Concorse Steakhouse. We had to listen to several kids from the waiting area three feet away screaming "Minnie, Minnie, Minnie! (insert your favorite character name)" while we were visiting with the characters or trying to eat. Now the characters totally ignored anyone not in the dining room, so these kids just kept yelling. When we were waiting I made my kids be quiet so the people eating didn't have to listen to them. Apparently not all parents are so considerate. *Rant Off* Minnie just missed our table before she left for the napkin waving (this was right after we were seated) and we ended up having to tell our server that we were still waiting to see her when we were done with dessert 45 minutes later. Minnie did make it back over so all the kids were happy. We made a quick stop in the room to put our stuff in and change the kids into pants. Lee stayed at the hotel to watch his beloved Seminoles succumb to Miami (sorry, Lee!). We decided to walk to MK. I thought the walk was fine. I dont think it was that much longer from the North Wing than it was to walk all the way to the monorail and then from the monorail station to the gate. I think it was faster considering the three monorail stops on the way.
We got back to MK around 8:30 and headed through the crowds and crowds of people waiting for Wishes to go to Tomorrowland. We took a quick spin on the TTA (I love that thing!) and the kids announced they wanted to go on Goofys rollercoaster!. I think this is the ride my two were most excited about. They spotted the Teacups first and were about to get in line when Wishes started. We watched it from right between Pooh and the old 20,000 Leagues queue. We had some fireworks on the left and some on the right. We didnt get the effect of seeing the castle, but it was still awesome. The kids and their dads hopped right on the Teacups and had a great ride. On to Toontown, which at 9:30 at night was deserted. Everyone but me rode the Barnstormer. Ted and Laura took Marcus over to the Indy Racers. The girls and the rest of the adults explored Minnies house, Mickeys house, Donalds boat (no water, too chilly), and the playground virtually by ourselves. John and the girls also rode the Barnstormer again. Once we met back up, we headed over to get a spot for Spectro. We had a front row spot right by Sleepy Hollow snacks. I actually witnessed a CM ask a man to put out a cigarette! He was standing there monitoring the crosswalk area and said "OK, who's smoking?". I thanked him, as that is one of my big pet peeves. Smoke normally bothers me because I have asthma. But being pregnant really makes it intolerable to me. Rebecca and Marcus had conked out by then but Cassie and Anabelle really loved the parade. Despite our many combined trips, no one had ever seen Spectro! It was great! By the time it was over, we were all exhausted. John and I walked back with our girls while the rest of the crew took the monorail back. We collapsed in bed by 11:30. We had an early morning coming up, breakfast with Pooh!
