Day 2
Thursday April 1st- I was up at 5 am to begin the ironing/shower/breakfast routine. I always forget how long it takes to iron 5 sets of clothes! I guess thats why I keep volunteering to be the designated ironer. After a quick shower I ran to the food court for coffee and beignets. The beignets were one of the things I do remember from our 2001 trip and they are still to good to be true. I bought six for my wife and I to share, but for some reason there were none left for her when she got out of the shower ;-). Today was our Disney Studios day, for about the last three years the Studios has been our first park to visit. DSs favorite attraction in all of WDW is Star Tours and DD1s is the Indie Stunt show. DD2 loves anything that does not involve being strapped into a car seat or stroller. We have decided to skip breakfast and grab some pastries at Starring Rolls once we get into the park. We arrived at the park right at opening, only to discover that Starring Rolls is closed for refurb. We decided to hit GMR first since this is the only attraction that is a must do for us that does not have FP. GMR is a walk on , and a very nice CM uses her flashlight to help me find the hidden Minnie in the Hollywood mural. Now DD1 has ridden GMR at least a dozen times and has always enjoyed it (well, except for the Alien scene). She has never been scared. Always enjoyed it. Usually wants to ride twice. Anyone see where this is going? As soon as the gunfire starts in the gangster scene, she panics. First crying, then ducking her head in her lap. Finally crawling onto the floor and hiding under her Mothers feet. I think she might still be there today if she did not love the Wizard of Oz scene so much. I swear she was sitting there tapping her heels together and saying theres no place like off of this ride, over and over again. Isnt it funny how kids change trip to trip? After ruining my daughter at GMR we hit Star Tours to keep DS happy. The last two trips DD1 has been so close to the 40 heighth requirement necessary for Star Tours (and most other WDW rides for that matter) and she has just been crushed that she could not ride with brother. Well DW fixed that. She found a pair of Barbie sandals at Wal Mart that must have 1 ½ heels on them. These put DD over the top and she was thrilled. Side note: it was great that she was able to ride so many attractions that she was previously to short for, but 3 YO girls do not have much luck walking in heels! Once she was measured for each attraction, DD had to carry her through the entire queue of every one. DD was only a little scared of Star Tours and was proud that she rode a big girl ride. Next we all saw Muppetvision 3D were DD2 preceded to break her 3D glasses and try to eat the pieces. The time was now fast approaching for the 10:45 Indie Stunt Show, so we high tailed it over there only to find it full to capacity. DD1 is not happy, but recovers quickly when DD offers to buy her something at the Indie gift shop to tide her over to the 12:00 show. I grab FPs for Indie now, so there is no way we will miss the 12:00. Everyone is starved by now, so we sneak into the 50s Prime Time for a light lunch. We have a Fantasmic dinner scheduled for 3:40 so we dont want to get to eat too much. While we were waiting to be seated, DW runs to get FPs for ToT and RnR. The food and atmosphere at 50s was great as usual. After lunch DW, DS, and DD2 head off to see Playhouse Disney while DD1 and I go to see Indie. I love it when people in the audience finally realize that the volunteer that is being pummeled is actually a stunt man. After Indie DD1 and I meet the rest of the crew in the animation courtyard. We decide to head over to use our ToT and RnR FPs. DW and DS do not care for ToT, so I was planning to ride alone, but DD1 insists she is not scared and wants to go to. I really have my doubts after the GMR debacle, but DD1 insists. So after a quick change into her big girl shoes we head off into the tower. As we are walking into our elevator I realize Hey no one even measured her! I cant believe I worried for weeks about her being tall enough and no one even measured her for ToT. Actually the only CMs that really scrutinized her heighth all week were at Test Track. DD1 did very well and only cried for DW once during the elevator falls. Afterwards she said she was a little scared and would wait until the next trip before riding again. I took charge of the kiddos whilst DW headed for her date with Aerosmith. As soon as DW is out of sight DD1 says I have to go potty- right now. Now I know for you Moms out there, taking three children into a public restroom is no probably big deal, but for me but for me nothing strikes fear into my heart faster than those six words. DS and DD1 have no concept of cleaning a mens room potty before touching and/or . Gasp ..actually sitting on one. And DD2 thinks playing in the toilet water is second best only to drinking from the dogs bowl. Thank God for companion restrooms. I can lock them all in and only have to sanitize one commode. After my bathroom adventure DW meets back up with us from her RR ride, and it is time for our Fantasmic dinner PS. The HWBD is our absolute favorite restaurant at WDW. Nothing is better than fine dining in your sweaty shorts and t-shirts, while your kids throw mac and cheese at each other. Our server (I cannot believe I forgot her name) was fantastic, even getting a blanket for DD1 after she fell asleep on DWs lap. After a wonderful, relaxing dinner, we still have some time before Fantasmic, so DW takes DD2 and DS to HISTP to burn off some steam, while DD1 and I go to see Indie just one more time Daddy. After meeting back up with DW to get in the secret entrance to Fantasmic, DW decides it is entirely to cold and buys everyone, but me of course, sweatshirts. After everyone dons their cold weather gear we head into the Hollywood Hills Ampitheater for my favorite nighttime spectacular. I dont what I enjoy watching more, the show or the people around me seeing it for the first time. There was the cutest little girl seated behind us, probably 6 or 7 YO and she just sat with her hands clasped tightly together and her eyes wide, grinning from ear to ear. It just made my day. After the show, a bathroom break, and a short wait for the bus, we were back home at POFQ. I have to say I really love the compact size of this resort. The pool, buses, food court, or boat transportation are never more than a 5 minute walk from any room on property.
Next Day 3 AK and DD
Thursday April 1st- I was up at 5 am to begin the ironing/shower/breakfast routine. I always forget how long it takes to iron 5 sets of clothes! I guess thats why I keep volunteering to be the designated ironer. After a quick shower I ran to the food court for coffee and beignets. The beignets were one of the things I do remember from our 2001 trip and they are still to good to be true. I bought six for my wife and I to share, but for some reason there were none left for her when she got out of the shower ;-). Today was our Disney Studios day, for about the last three years the Studios has been our first park to visit. DSs favorite attraction in all of WDW is Star Tours and DD1s is the Indie Stunt show. DD2 loves anything that does not involve being strapped into a car seat or stroller. We have decided to skip breakfast and grab some pastries at Starring Rolls once we get into the park. We arrived at the park right at opening, only to discover that Starring Rolls is closed for refurb. We decided to hit GMR first since this is the only attraction that is a must do for us that does not have FP. GMR is a walk on , and a very nice CM uses her flashlight to help me find the hidden Minnie in the Hollywood mural. Now DD1 has ridden GMR at least a dozen times and has always enjoyed it (well, except for the Alien scene). She has never been scared. Always enjoyed it. Usually wants to ride twice. Anyone see where this is going? As soon as the gunfire starts in the gangster scene, she panics. First crying, then ducking her head in her lap. Finally crawling onto the floor and hiding under her Mothers feet. I think she might still be there today if she did not love the Wizard of Oz scene so much. I swear she was sitting there tapping her heels together and saying theres no place like off of this ride, over and over again. Isnt it funny how kids change trip to trip? After ruining my daughter at GMR we hit Star Tours to keep DS happy. The last two trips DD1 has been so close to the 40 heighth requirement necessary for Star Tours (and most other WDW rides for that matter) and she has just been crushed that she could not ride with brother. Well DW fixed that. She found a pair of Barbie sandals at Wal Mart that must have 1 ½ heels on them. These put DD over the top and she was thrilled. Side note: it was great that she was able to ride so many attractions that she was previously to short for, but 3 YO girls do not have much luck walking in heels! Once she was measured for each attraction, DD had to carry her through the entire queue of every one. DD was only a little scared of Star Tours and was proud that she rode a big girl ride. Next we all saw Muppetvision 3D were DD2 preceded to break her 3D glasses and try to eat the pieces. The time was now fast approaching for the 10:45 Indie Stunt Show, so we high tailed it over there only to find it full to capacity. DD1 is not happy, but recovers quickly when DD offers to buy her something at the Indie gift shop to tide her over to the 12:00 show. I grab FPs for Indie now, so there is no way we will miss the 12:00. Everyone is starved by now, so we sneak into the 50s Prime Time for a light lunch. We have a Fantasmic dinner scheduled for 3:40 so we dont want to get to eat too much. While we were waiting to be seated, DW runs to get FPs for ToT and RnR. The food and atmosphere at 50s was great as usual. After lunch DW, DS, and DD2 head off to see Playhouse Disney while DD1 and I go to see Indie. I love it when people in the audience finally realize that the volunteer that is being pummeled is actually a stunt man. After Indie DD1 and I meet the rest of the crew in the animation courtyard. We decide to head over to use our ToT and RnR FPs. DW and DS do not care for ToT, so I was planning to ride alone, but DD1 insists she is not scared and wants to go to. I really have my doubts after the GMR debacle, but DD1 insists. So after a quick change into her big girl shoes we head off into the tower. As we are walking into our elevator I realize Hey no one even measured her! I cant believe I worried for weeks about her being tall enough and no one even measured her for ToT. Actually the only CMs that really scrutinized her heighth all week were at Test Track. DD1 did very well and only cried for DW once during the elevator falls. Afterwards she said she was a little scared and would wait until the next trip before riding again. I took charge of the kiddos whilst DW headed for her date with Aerosmith. As soon as DW is out of sight DD1 says I have to go potty- right now. Now I know for you Moms out there, taking three children into a public restroom is no probably big deal, but for me but for me nothing strikes fear into my heart faster than those six words. DS and DD1 have no concept of cleaning a mens room potty before touching and/or . Gasp ..actually sitting on one. And DD2 thinks playing in the toilet water is second best only to drinking from the dogs bowl. Thank God for companion restrooms. I can lock them all in and only have to sanitize one commode. After my bathroom adventure DW meets back up with us from her RR ride, and it is time for our Fantasmic dinner PS. The HWBD is our absolute favorite restaurant at WDW. Nothing is better than fine dining in your sweaty shorts and t-shirts, while your kids throw mac and cheese at each other. Our server (I cannot believe I forgot her name) was fantastic, even getting a blanket for DD1 after she fell asleep on DWs lap. After a wonderful, relaxing dinner, we still have some time before Fantasmic, so DW takes DD2 and DS to HISTP to burn off some steam, while DD1 and I go to see Indie just one more time Daddy. After meeting back up with DW to get in the secret entrance to Fantasmic, DW decides it is entirely to cold and buys everyone, but me of course, sweatshirts. After everyone dons their cold weather gear we head into the Hollywood Hills Ampitheater for my favorite nighttime spectacular. I dont what I enjoy watching more, the show or the people around me seeing it for the first time. There was the cutest little girl seated behind us, probably 6 or 7 YO and she just sat with her hands clasped tightly together and her eyes wide, grinning from ear to ear. It just made my day. After the show, a bathroom break, and a short wait for the bus, we were back home at POFQ. I have to say I really love the compact size of this resort. The pool, buses, food court, or boat transportation are never more than a 5 minute walk from any room on property.
Next Day 3 AK and DD
Fellow SW geeks here. I'm looking foward to more of your trip....
