Ellester
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Nov 5, 2003
- Messages
- 1,671
Cast of Characters:
Ellen (34) Me!, 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
Friday, January 2nd.
Up and at em at 6:30. Boy, thats early! We let the girls sleep as long as possible. Our room had double sinks in the vanity with the shower, which was a real time saver. The toilet was in its own little room with a counter that looked like it could have held a sink, but didnt. It was quite the convenient place to store reading materials! There was also a mirror over the counter, I guess so you could have conversations with yourself while on the throne! Anyway, my dad, stepmom, and Lee weenied out on breakfast and slept in. That left eight of us. We walked over to the MK and got to the Crystal Palace right at our PS time of 8:15. On both our last visit in May and this visit, I was able to get early PSs in the MK (last time at Cindys) hoping to stroll an empty Main Street. No such luck either time. In May, it was an EE day (we were only there one day, so I had no other choice). This time, MK was open at 8am to the general public each day we were there due to the holiday weekend. Oh well! Something to shoot for next time. We had a wonderful breakfast with Pooh and friends. I hadnt been in CP for many years. It used to be a cafeteria back in the day. My dad and stepmom would often make us eat there because it was about the only place to get a salad or some vegetable back then (Im talking in the 70s, early 80s). I never liked it then, it took too long and I was forced to get something unfried. But, I really enjoyed it this time! Our kids have such different eating habits. Anabelle, who is 5, eats so little I wonder how she survives sometimes. She has been long and lean since she was born (takes after my dh's side, definitely not my side!), she's typically above the 95% for height and around the 25% for weight. Rebecca, 2, is more like my side. Not fat, but more solid than Anabelle. We had to pay $9.99 for Anabelle's breakfast, she ate one bowl of Frosted Flakes, dry and drank one cup of chocolate milk. Rebecca, who was free, ate a hard boiled egg, her weight in bacon, waffles, melon, berries, you get the picture. It happens every buffet we go to. Anyway, back on topic...
We headed into the park shortly after 9 and jumped on the carousel. One of Anabelles only requests was to see Ariel in her grotto. Last May it was our longest wait, an hour plus. I saw the line was fairly short, so we hopped in. After about 25 minutes we had our audience with Ariel and all was happy in kidville. We then met the rest of our group (who had slept in till 9!). Fantasyland was starting to really fill up. We grabbed Fastpasses for PeterPan and got on Small World after a short wait (and another wait for the next boat). By the time we got off Small World, the wait was up to 30 minutes! YIKES! John and I really wanted to see Philharmagic, so we went that way while Laura and Ted took their kids on Dumbo. The rest of the adults headed in search of coffee and breakfast. We had about a 40 minute wait for Philharmagic, but it was worth it! Anabelle was constantly grabbing for things in the air and was really into it. Rebecca enjoyed it, but John had to hold her glasses on her head for her. A two year olds skull is too small for those glasses! Once we got out and met the rest of the crew, there was barely room to move in Fantasyland. I dont ever remember seeing so many people there. Lee bugged out, being a single guy he can only handle so much family togetherness and the crowds were getting to him. We agreed to meet up with him at Epcot later. We went ahead and rode PeterPan with the fastpasses (no way Id wait the hour posted, even if it is one of my favorites!) and then decided Lee had the right idea.
We had a very relaxing ferry ride over to the TTC. I think there were 4 other people on the boat with us. Rebecca promptly fell asleep in her stroller. We rode the monorail over to Epcot. I had thought I had packed Anabelles hat in my backpack but it turned out to be Johns hat instead. Anabelle is VERY fair and it was turning into another hot day. We stopped to get her a new Tinkerbell hat at the gift shop under Spaceship Earth. John ran off to get Mission Space Fastpasses (he got the last ones of the day, 8:24-9) while Laura and I got in an amazingly long line at the Electric Umbrella to get the kids some lunch. The adults held out for Mexico, which is where we were meeting Lee. After a nice relaxing lunch (with a few Margaritas for the non-preggo adults) we began a stroll along the World Showcase. We rode El Rio Del Tiempo, cheesy as ever but the kids really liked it. We got Fastpasses for the Norway ride. By then Rebecca had woken up. John and I headed to China to get her some lunch (the girl loves rice) while the rest of the group strolled around the shops in Norway and China. Anabelle fell asleep on my dad while they were waiting for us. Lee offered to be her pillow while the rest of us rode around the fjords of Norway. Of course, she woke up shortly after we left and wanted to go on the ride. So, John took her back on with the remaining two Fastpassses once we got off. She didnt like it, too scary. I think the polar bear is what put her over the edge. The girl will ride any rollercoaster she can fit on (and shes been on plenty of big ones, for five she is very tall) but cant handle much scary theming. Oh well, shell get there I know!
We walked around the rest of WS. The kids saw the Genie in Morocco and had a Popsicle near Italy. I would have had a Mickey Bar but the cart was out of everything but OJ bars and Itsakadoozies. Oh well. Anabelle proclaimed World Showcase to be boring (she is only 5, so I wasnt surprised). We all decided to head back to the hotel at our own pace. Right past Canada, Anabelle said she needed a bathroom immediately. We asked a CM and were directed to the bathrooms just past the McDs fry stand. How is it possible to have a womens restroom in Epcot with only TWO stalls?! The line was out the door, but I figured we had better wait. We were next when a CM walked in and asked if she could go in the stall (the handicapped one) and mop the floor before we went in. I said, well, my daughter is about to wet her pants. Apparently she took that as a yes, please go right ahead!. Thankfully she was quick and waited until after we were done to go back in and change out the toilet paper and such and we avoided an accident. We rode Spaceship Earth with no wait, Anabelle really liked it. John decided to go back to the hotel with us in hopes of meeting up with Ted and racing back to use the MS Fastpasses.
After our double monorail ride back to the Contemporary, we tried tracking down the rest of our group. After several attempts dialing their rooms John made two trips out to the car. One for Lees cell phone number and another for our cell phone. Well, they were all in the bar getting ready to head down and eat dinner at the Food & Fun center. Gee, you know a message on our room phone would have been nice. I guess when you travel with so many, communication lapses will happen from time to time. By this time, John had given up on MS. I was disappointed for him, I know he REALLY wanted to ride it. But, Ill get to go with him next time! Lee wanted to get the girls something for Christmas while we were at Disney and he was not going to go with us to the parks tomorrow (he was meeting a frat brother who lives in Orlando for the day) so we headed up to the 4th floor for some shopping. After much deliberation, Anabelle picked a Sleeping Beauty Barbie and some princess make up and Rebecca chose a stuffed Daisy Duck and Sleeping Beauty necklace. It was almost 9pm, so we went out on the 4th floor observation deck and watched Wishes from a different perspective. We had a fairly good view, although right after it started the couple in front of us put their girls up on their shoulders. The man was at least 63 and his daughter had to be 7 or 8. The woman wasnt as tall, but the daughter on her shoulders had to be 9 or 10! We managed to see around them as best we could. We let the girls watch some TV and it was off to slumberland. Tomorrow, AK!
Ellen (34) Me!, 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
Friday, January 2nd.
Up and at em at 6:30. Boy, thats early! We let the girls sleep as long as possible. Our room had double sinks in the vanity with the shower, which was a real time saver. The toilet was in its own little room with a counter that looked like it could have held a sink, but didnt. It was quite the convenient place to store reading materials! There was also a mirror over the counter, I guess so you could have conversations with yourself while on the throne! Anyway, my dad, stepmom, and Lee weenied out on breakfast and slept in. That left eight of us. We walked over to the MK and got to the Crystal Palace right at our PS time of 8:15. On both our last visit in May and this visit, I was able to get early PSs in the MK (last time at Cindys) hoping to stroll an empty Main Street. No such luck either time. In May, it was an EE day (we were only there one day, so I had no other choice). This time, MK was open at 8am to the general public each day we were there due to the holiday weekend. Oh well! Something to shoot for next time. We had a wonderful breakfast with Pooh and friends. I hadnt been in CP for many years. It used to be a cafeteria back in the day. My dad and stepmom would often make us eat there because it was about the only place to get a salad or some vegetable back then (Im talking in the 70s, early 80s). I never liked it then, it took too long and I was forced to get something unfried. But, I really enjoyed it this time! Our kids have such different eating habits. Anabelle, who is 5, eats so little I wonder how she survives sometimes. She has been long and lean since she was born (takes after my dh's side, definitely not my side!), she's typically above the 95% for height and around the 25% for weight. Rebecca, 2, is more like my side. Not fat, but more solid than Anabelle. We had to pay $9.99 for Anabelle's breakfast, she ate one bowl of Frosted Flakes, dry and drank one cup of chocolate milk. Rebecca, who was free, ate a hard boiled egg, her weight in bacon, waffles, melon, berries, you get the picture. It happens every buffet we go to. Anyway, back on topic...
We headed into the park shortly after 9 and jumped on the carousel. One of Anabelles only requests was to see Ariel in her grotto. Last May it was our longest wait, an hour plus. I saw the line was fairly short, so we hopped in. After about 25 minutes we had our audience with Ariel and all was happy in kidville. We then met the rest of our group (who had slept in till 9!). Fantasyland was starting to really fill up. We grabbed Fastpasses for PeterPan and got on Small World after a short wait (and another wait for the next boat). By the time we got off Small World, the wait was up to 30 minutes! YIKES! John and I really wanted to see Philharmagic, so we went that way while Laura and Ted took their kids on Dumbo. The rest of the adults headed in search of coffee and breakfast. We had about a 40 minute wait for Philharmagic, but it was worth it! Anabelle was constantly grabbing for things in the air and was really into it. Rebecca enjoyed it, but John had to hold her glasses on her head for her. A two year olds skull is too small for those glasses! Once we got out and met the rest of the crew, there was barely room to move in Fantasyland. I dont ever remember seeing so many people there. Lee bugged out, being a single guy he can only handle so much family togetherness and the crowds were getting to him. We agreed to meet up with him at Epcot later. We went ahead and rode PeterPan with the fastpasses (no way Id wait the hour posted, even if it is one of my favorites!) and then decided Lee had the right idea.
We had a very relaxing ferry ride over to the TTC. I think there were 4 other people on the boat with us. Rebecca promptly fell asleep in her stroller. We rode the monorail over to Epcot. I had thought I had packed Anabelles hat in my backpack but it turned out to be Johns hat instead. Anabelle is VERY fair and it was turning into another hot day. We stopped to get her a new Tinkerbell hat at the gift shop under Spaceship Earth. John ran off to get Mission Space Fastpasses (he got the last ones of the day, 8:24-9) while Laura and I got in an amazingly long line at the Electric Umbrella to get the kids some lunch. The adults held out for Mexico, which is where we were meeting Lee. After a nice relaxing lunch (with a few Margaritas for the non-preggo adults) we began a stroll along the World Showcase. We rode El Rio Del Tiempo, cheesy as ever but the kids really liked it. We got Fastpasses for the Norway ride. By then Rebecca had woken up. John and I headed to China to get her some lunch (the girl loves rice) while the rest of the group strolled around the shops in Norway and China. Anabelle fell asleep on my dad while they were waiting for us. Lee offered to be her pillow while the rest of us rode around the fjords of Norway. Of course, she woke up shortly after we left and wanted to go on the ride. So, John took her back on with the remaining two Fastpassses once we got off. She didnt like it, too scary. I think the polar bear is what put her over the edge. The girl will ride any rollercoaster she can fit on (and shes been on plenty of big ones, for five she is very tall) but cant handle much scary theming. Oh well, shell get there I know!
We walked around the rest of WS. The kids saw the Genie in Morocco and had a Popsicle near Italy. I would have had a Mickey Bar but the cart was out of everything but OJ bars and Itsakadoozies. Oh well. Anabelle proclaimed World Showcase to be boring (she is only 5, so I wasnt surprised). We all decided to head back to the hotel at our own pace. Right past Canada, Anabelle said she needed a bathroom immediately. We asked a CM and were directed to the bathrooms just past the McDs fry stand. How is it possible to have a womens restroom in Epcot with only TWO stalls?! The line was out the door, but I figured we had better wait. We were next when a CM walked in and asked if she could go in the stall (the handicapped one) and mop the floor before we went in. I said, well, my daughter is about to wet her pants. Apparently she took that as a yes, please go right ahead!. Thankfully she was quick and waited until after we were done to go back in and change out the toilet paper and such and we avoided an accident. We rode Spaceship Earth with no wait, Anabelle really liked it. John decided to go back to the hotel with us in hopes of meeting up with Ted and racing back to use the MS Fastpasses.
After our double monorail ride back to the Contemporary, we tried tracking down the rest of our group. After several attempts dialing their rooms John made two trips out to the car. One for Lees cell phone number and another for our cell phone. Well, they were all in the bar getting ready to head down and eat dinner at the Food & Fun center. Gee, you know a message on our room phone would have been nice. I guess when you travel with so many, communication lapses will happen from time to time. By this time, John had given up on MS. I was disappointed for him, I know he REALLY wanted to ride it. But, Ill get to go with him next time! Lee wanted to get the girls something for Christmas while we were at Disney and he was not going to go with us to the parks tomorrow (he was meeting a frat brother who lives in Orlando for the day) so we headed up to the 4th floor for some shopping. After much deliberation, Anabelle picked a Sleeping Beauty Barbie and some princess make up and Rebecca chose a stuffed Daisy Duck and Sleeping Beauty necklace. It was almost 9pm, so we went out on the 4th floor observation deck and watched Wishes from a different perspective. We had a fairly good view, although right after it started the couple in front of us put their girls up on their shoulders. The man was at least 63 and his daughter had to be 7 or 8. The woman wasnt as tall, but the daughter on her shoulders had to be 9 or 10! We managed to see around them as best we could. We let the girls watch some TV and it was off to slumberland. Tomorrow, AK!
