"Pirate, Your Reputation Precedes You!" The Stitchs Do WDW & The Dream! New 9/7!

[StitchIsOurHero]

Your room at the DoubleTree looks quite nice.

DS looks fine, but I am sensing that there is trouble ahead. Poor little guy! I hope he doesn't get sick. Either way I know there is an un-magical meltdown involved so I will stay tuned!

The room was definitely nice!! Yep, stay tuned for the next update coming in few minutes!!

I sense some foreshadowing. Hoping your little one wasn't sick during the trip. Looking forward to reading more about the trip!!

Definitely some foreshadowing! Coming up soon!

Love seeing the 'gate' of Wilderness Lodge. I'll never get over how wonderfully Disney does their themeing.

Oh no! I sure hope little man wasn't getting sick!

I know--all of Disney's themeing is so terrific and immersing!! I love it!! Oh yes. . .you can see it coming, can't you??


Another update coming right up! Thanks again for reading along!!

 

[StitchIsOurHero]

We arrived at Wilderness Lodge about 8:15-8:30. It was such a pretty day, and I was so excited, because I knew there were some non-pretty ones in the forecast!

Now, I am a little “detail-oriented”. . .that’s the nice word! I had already put our cash for the bellhop/luggage-helper and for the valet back before the trip. So on that morning, I handed Brian some money and reminded him that it was to give to that person when we arrived.

When we pulled in, a nice guy named Joe came up to help us with our luggage. The first thing he said was, “I will not be the person who brings your luggage to your room, but I will help you with it now.” No problem. Brian and I have a system. . .he handles the luggage, and I get D out of the car and get ready to go in and check us in. Brian and Joe were doing just that, and D and I got out of the car.

Up walked a nice lady in a lovely “costume” (I didn’t realize that it was a Club Level person at that time). She wasn’t smiley, but that’s ok. . .I was smiley enough for both of us.

Only, remember draggy D? Well, draggy D became shy D. She started talking to him, and he decided to hide his face. I said, “I’m sorry, I guess he’s feeling shy today”. Well, about that point, Joe walked up with the actual luggage cart. That was the only time D would react to anything. He looked at me and said, “Momma, I could ride on that!”, but he said it quietly. I said, “No, they won’t let you ride on that, buddy!” For some reason, that became the lady’s target. She got down on his level and said, “That’s a NO-NO. Do you understand me? That’s a NO-NO. That’s a RULE, and we don’t like people who don’t follow the RULES.” I said, “Ma’am, I would never let him do that, he understands.” By that point, D was having NOTHING to do with this woman. He had completely buried his head in my knee. I couldn’t say I blamed him—I was wondering if I could get by with the same thing.

At this point, Brian is still unloading the car, and while I am trying to keep D going and talk to this lady, Brian is trying to figure out what comes out of the car and what stays in, and it’s a three-ring circus. Brian hands me the stroller, and D immediately pulls his face up and says, “Can I get in my stroller, PLEASE?” That never happens. He would rather stay out of it than anything! At the same time, Brian handed him his George. (Curious George). I put D and George in the stroller, while still trying to make small talk because the lady was NOT taking us in until Brian could come too (her decision). She leaned down again, into D’s stroller, and said, “Who is that? Who is that monkey?” D just closed his eyes. I know he shouldn’t have, but he did. She popped back up and said, “WHAT is WRONG with him? He is just REFUSING to talk to me.” I said, “I’m sorry. We drove down yesterday, and I think he’s tired.” She just rolled her eyes and hmphed, with the “you may be the worst parent in the world” face.

By that time, I turned around to check on Brian because I was ready to get the heck out of Dodge. He was putting the last bag out. Well, as soon as he did, Joe disappeared. I mean, just disappeared. Brian was on one side of the car, and Joe wasn’t there anymore and neither was our luggage or our cart. Brian gave me this funny look like, “How can I give him the tip money, he’s gone?” I just sort of shrugged because he didn’t know what was going on with the lady. I thought we’d just come back and tip the guy when this was all worked out. Brian finally just walked over to us and said, “Well, I guess we’re ready to go up?” The lady turned to me, made this face, and said, “You know, I guess you don’t know this, but you really SHOULD have given him a tip.” I thought, “where did he go?” I guess I was supposed to tip him BEFORE he helped, but I didn’t. We’ve always tipped when they were finished. I was, however, floored that she stopped and said that and in a tone like I was from Stupid School and she needed to educate me, and after the way the whole D interaction had gone, I was just ready to get upstairs. I just said, “Could we just go up please?” I just was hoping for a more magical greeting than that, and I was muchly stressed. My long-planned trip was not kicking off like I thought!!

But ANYWAY. . .we finally got upstairs, and the lady left us at the OFC Check-In and took off. I was still a little shaken up because of all of that, and poor D was already asleep in the stroller.

Fran was our check-in guy, and he was great! He said our room was ready (YAY!!), and then said, “You wanted bunk beds, right?” Well, I hadn’t, and he must have noticed the look on my face, so he said, “No worries! I’ll switch it!” We got switched, and off we went! We even got our little “welcome chocolate” since I guess the other room was already ready and we weren’t going there. The good thing, though, was that there was a family who wanted bunk beds and hadn’t been able to get them (arriving that afternoon), so now they did! Love when the Disney Magic works out like that!

A little Disney “Welcome”:

Fran walked us down the hall, showing us the lounge and everything. D slept through most all of it.

A view of the lobby on our walk:

Woohoooo!! We were in our room by 9 am! When Fran had switched our room, he told us that we had a “pretty good view”. Now, just a little reminder. . .D thinks the most fabulous, BEST part of a Disney vacation are the buses and monorails. Seriously, we could do only that and he would be just as happy! So, imagine our excitement when we opened the curtain, stepped on the balcony and could see the monorail from our room!! Yes, we could also see the Contemporary (or as D calls it, “Disney’s ContempoTown Resort”) and Cinderella’s Castle (off to the left), but being able to see the monorail was easily the best part!

We were so excited to have finally arrived and to be ready to go get some breakfast!

 

[BridgetR3]

Wow! I definitely would have said something about the lady that helped you get to CL at the Wilderness Lodge. Well I probably would have said something to her as well as to a manager but that's just me. No one should say something like that to a child, especially one who is under control and listening. Geez....... And how rude of her to tell you about tipping. You were a very patient person not to say anything back.

I'm glad it seems that your experience is beginning to get a little better.

 

[mommy2mrb]

I here ....finally...

happy your trip down went well, the hotel looks nice!
OMG I would of been biting my tongue with that woman Brooke, how can anyone be that rude, especially to a child hope you said something about her to the manager!

great the next CM was so much nicer! and woo-hoo for getting to see the monorail, know D must of been one happy little guy! the chocolates look yummy!

btw - will be starting my TR on Wed...mailing the cars photos I told you about to D today!

 

[StitchIsOurHero]

Wow! I definitely would have said something about the lady that helped you get to CL at the Wilderness Lodge. Well I probably would have said something to her as well as to a manager but that's just me. No one should say something like that to a child, especially one who is under control and listening. Geez....... And how rude of her to tell you about tipping. You were a very patient person not to say anything back.

I'm glad it seems that your experience is beginning to get a little better.

She totally stressed me out!! I was stressed just writing that update, and I thought, "I hope people don't think I was being a total crapweasel!" Glad I wasn't totally overreacting. I was just so glad to see her disappear when we got upstairs!!

I here ....finally...

happy your trip down went well, the hotel looks nice!
OMG I would of been biting my tongue with that woman Brooke, how can anyone be that rude, especially to a child hope you said something about her to the manager!

great the next CM was so much nicer! and woo-hoo for getting to see the monorail, know D must of been one happy little guy! the chocolates look yummy!

btw - will be starting my TR on Wed...mailing the cars photos I told you about to D today!

SO glad you're here!!! Yep, I was biting my tongue. . .pretty much bit it in two! You know D was THRILLED that "his" monorail was outside!!

Can't wait to read your TR! Hope you are feeling better and that Megan had a rockin' birthday!!

Thanks so much for the photos!! He will LOVE it!!

Another update in next post!

 

[StitchIsOurHero]

After we got into our WL room, I called Bell Services for our luggage, while Brian took pics in the room. Here are a few:

Our Towel Mickey:

The really cute coat rack—I wish I had one of these at my house!!

And the tile in the bathroom that I LOVED!!

We really loved our room! I felt like it had a lot of space, and everything was so clean and nice! The only little thing was the vent in the bathroom was motion-activated so if you stepped in, it would come on, but then it would go off when you went to the potty. It freaked D out because it was sort of loud, and we really couldn’t predict what would make it come on!

I unpacked, and by that time, they were ready to go eat! So, off to Roaring Forks for breakfast we went!!

 

[TinkerbellLuvr7]

I'm here!!! Sorry I'm late! I also started mine as well I think I saw you when we were boarding on day one but I didn't want to say anything in case it wasn't you haha. We were in boarding group 6!

 

[shan23877]

WOW. That lady sounds like a real (word not allowed by the DIS). I was horrified for you reading that! She should not be in the position of 'greeter' or any other in which she deals with real, live people. GRRRRR. I don't like her.


So glad that you room was ready! I hope that the rest of the morning helped you to destress and start to enjoy the vacation.

 

[Disney9.9.10]

I'm not sure if you remember me, but I did follow your PTR, so I have to follow your TR now!

- How awesome that your DH is a transpondster! I would use that Friends reference every chance that I got lol

- Double Tree resorts seem to have such amazing beds. Every one that I've stayed at is the same. Good to know that the one there is the same

- I cannot believe how rude that lady at WL was! That is unacceptable. There are many kids who get shy and want to hide their faces, and you would think that she would know that considering where she works.

- Great view at WL! We are hoping to stay there on our next trip, so I love seeing your pictures.

Looking forward to reading the rest

 

[mommy2mrb]

thanks Brooke, getting better each day! hope D like the photos and note!

love the details of the room!

 

[Riles_and_Gabe]

Wow...what a horrible lady. I wonder why they would give her such customer oriented job. I hope you didn't run into her again! I hate when someone catches you so off-guard like that and after I leave there a million things I wish I had said to them (If I was ever brave enough to say them ).

 

[TinkerbellLuvr7]

I'm all caught up too!! I can't believe that CM. I would have reported her or something. I know we all have not so great days working at WDW but NEVER should you say words like that..you never know who you are greeting and who works for who or is a relative of someone! You can also be audited all the time and not even know it! I would possibly write a letter or something to the GM of WL and see if you get any sort of response. A few years ago, I found bed bugs in a bed at a value and when speaking with the manager, he rose his voice to me and said his resort was clean and bug free and demanded I show him the bugs. I was appalled and wrote a letter to Disney about it and got a response!

I love the new changes of WL rooms One of my next stays will have to be CL there. I've stayed at all the resorts except AOA so now I'm going to tackle that and all the CL's eventually!

Can't wait till you get to your cruise portion too!

 

[StitchIsOurHero]

WOW. That lady sounds like a real (word not allowed by the DIS). I was horrified for you reading that! She should not be in the position of 'greeter' or any other in which she deals with real, live people. GRRRRR. I don't like her.


So glad that you room was ready! I hope that the rest of the morning helped you to destress and start to enjoy the vacation.

Yep, she was not very magical at all!!! I was pretty stressed, but was SO glad that she just left us at the CL desk and disappeared!!

I'm not sure if you remember me, but I did follow your PTR, so I have to follow your TR now!

- How awesome that your DH is a transpondster! I would use that Friends reference every chance that I got lol

- Double Tree resorts seem to have such amazing beds. Every one that I've stayed at is the same. Good to know that the one there is the same

- I cannot believe how rude that lady at WL was! That is unacceptable. There are many kids who get shy and want to hide their faces, and you would think that she would know that considering where she works.

- Great view at WL! We are hoping to stay there on our next trip, so I love seeing your pictures.

Looking forward to reading the rest

Hi!! I definitely remember you! I am following your PTR as well! Thanks for reading along!! I will have some more WL pics coming up soon!!

thanks Brooke, getting better each day! hope D like the photos and note!

love the details of the room!

So glad you are getting better!! Thanks again!!

Wow...what a horrible lady. I wonder why they would give her such customer oriented job. I hope you didn't run into her again! I hate when someone catches you so off-guard like that and after I leave there a million things I wish I had said to them (If I was ever brave enough to say them ).

That's how I was! I was in a state of "I wish I had said. . ." for about 2 hours after she left!!

I'm all caught up too!! I can't believe that CM. I would have reported her or something. I know we all have not so great days working at WDW but NEVER should you say words like that..you never know who you are greeting and who works for who or is a relative of someone! You can also be audited all the time and not even know it! I would possibly write a letter or something to the GM of WL and see if you get any sort of response. A few years ago, I found bed bugs in a bed at a value and when speaking with the manager, he rose his voice to me and said his resort was clean and bug free and demanded I show him the bugs. I was appalled and wrote a letter to Disney about it and got a response!

I love the new changes of WL rooms One of my next stays will have to be CL there. I've stayed at all the resorts except AOA so now I'm going to tackle that and all the CL's eventually!

Can't wait till you get to your cruise portion too!

I probably should have complained, but I just couldn't get up the nerve to go do it! If it happens again, though, I may not be as shocked, and I will probably complain!! The new WL rooms are terrific! Loved them!!

 

[teekathepony]

Hi! I'm a newbie to your reports. All caught up and ready for the rest!

 

[lsenquiz]

So bummed about your check-in experience. Check-in is one of my favorite parts and it definitely should not have gone the way it did. I think you must have tons of patience. I would have lasted about 1 minute with that lady. You may want to consider sending an email especially if it still bothers you even now that you are home. It's important that management gets the feedback so they can make what sounds like are some much needed changes.

Congrats on the view and the awesome room. Can't wait to read more!

 

[DaveinFallsChurch]

I'm not sure how, but I missed the update for the check-in.

That CM may need to be reassigned to say the least. Didn't really demonstrate the proper way to interact with young children. Not to mention her rudeness. Sometimes, you just have to give a young child some space and not try to push your own agenda on to them. It never works.

I'm glad to hear that the rest of the check-in went well though.

 

[mommy2mrb]

I probably should have complained, but I just couldn't get up the nerve to go do it! If it happens again, though, I may not be as shocked, and I will probably complain!! The new WL rooms are terrific! Loved them!!

you really should let them know about her lack of customer service and total rudeness! even if you don't remember her name, how many other CM's were working the CL that day, she should be written up!

 

[StitchIsOurHero]

Hi! I'm a newbie to your reports. All caught up and ready for the rest!

Hi!! Welcome aboard!!

So bummed about your check-in experience. Check-in is one of my favorite parts and it definitely should not have gone the way it did. I think you must have tons of patience. I would have lasted about 1 minute with that lady. You may want to consider sending an email especially if it still bothers you even now that you are home. It's important that management gets the feedback so they can make what sounds like are some much needed changes.

Congrats on the view and the awesome room. Can't wait to read more!

Oh, sadly, I don't have tons of patience!! I think I was just shocked and trying to get out of there. I may send an email soon. . .everyone else we encountered was wonderful, so I want to brag on them as well!

I'm not sure how, but I missed the update for the check-in.

That CM may need to be reassigned to say the least. Didn't really demonstrate the proper way to interact with young children. Not to mention her rudeness. Sometimes, you just have to give a young child some space and not try to push your own agenda on to them. It never works.

I'm glad to hear that the rest of the check-in went well though.

Yikes!! Missing updates? Can't have that!! That's what I thought about the kids too--I even said to Brian, "If I talked to my high schoolers like that, they'd make me go somewhere else!" She just could've had an off day, but I would definitely ask for someone else if I showed up to check in again and she was my person!

you really should let them know about her lack of customer service and total rudeness! even if you don't remember her name, how many other CM's were working the CL that day, she should be written up!

You all have made me feel better about all of this! I do remember her name, and I feel less crazy for being bothered by it!!

Ok, another update coming below, and then I'll update again tomorrow!!

 

[StitchIsOurHero]

I have to start this by saying I LOVE Roaring Forks!! It really is one of my favorite resort counter services!! We headed down to get our breakfast (and of course, pick up our mugs!). Even though we had the DxDP, this was an OOP breakfast for us—we had actually intended to be eating somewhere while traveling. As we walked through the lobby, I went outside, found Joe, and gave him his well-deserved tip! Too bad I couldn’t find that original woman so she could rest easy that I’d done it!

Here are my guys on their way:

Waiting on Brian to get the food:

You can see that D was still dragging, even then.

I got Mickey waffles, D got pancakes, and Brian got the bounty platter. It was only about $20-25 for all 3 of us, so I was pleased with that!

Some Disney yummy food goodness:

As you can see, D didn’t even perk up at that point. We finished our breakfast and headed back to the room for a little bit to see if we could wake up poor D. Of course, we had to make a stop at The Mercantile to buy. . .wait for it. . .a new set of Disney Buses! That purchase made, it was back up the elevator to the 7th floor!

We asked D what he wanted to do, and his answer was “get in the bed”. That was the point that I realized something really was wrong (yes, it took a while to get there!). He put himself in the bed with his buses, and he was asleep within just a few minutes (never, ever, ever does he take a nap in the morning!).

Brian and I answered emails and phone calls from our work for about 1 ½ hours. Not too bad to do work while you can look at the monorail!!

D finally woke back up about 11:30, and he seemed ready to go! My “Momma Worry” was down a little at this point.

 

[Grumpy's Wife]

Hi I've read another trip report of yours so I was happy to see this one. It sounds like your family was off to a rocky start with that rude lady at the WL. I sure hope that was the last of the ugliness and the rest was pure magical.