GrammieMame
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- Joined
- Jan 6, 2000
- Messages
- 640
We Are: Myself, Mother of Lynn and proud Grammie of Wade (just turned 8) and Tyler (just turned 5).
Tuesday, 26: Blizzard Beach day. A strange experience for me, going to a Disney park that Im not familiar with. The theme of Blizzard Beach is that a freak winter storm dropped a mountain of snow on Florida, creating a ski resort that is now melting because of the heat. All thats left of the snow are water slides. We drove over, getting there at exactly the 9:00 opening time. I would say we wasted about 45 minutes trying to decide where to camp, Tikes Peak or the Ski Patrol area for pre-teens. We finally decided to put half our stuff in each place to leave our options open and have at least one chair in each area. There were lots of chairs available, both in the shade and in the sun. We talked to a woman who recommended that we go to the top before things got too crowded up there and do the downhill activities first (no Summit/Plummet for me or mine, thanks). The chairlift line, even that early, was pretty long and it took us about 20 minutes to get to the chair. Then about half way up, the chair stopped and we dangled and swayed for about 20 minutes before they got it started. Not being a big fan of chair lifts to begin with, I was really tense by the time it started and we got to the top. Although we did have a great view of the suicidal maniacs plummeting down Summit Plummet. I wont be getting on the lift again, nor will Lynn. Although they are all used to ski lifts of all shapes and sizes, for some reason a lift that wasnt over snow made her very uncomfortable as well. We went right to Teamboat Springs, where everyone piled into a raft and, hanging on for dear life, went hurling down the slide (with lots and lots of water running constantly, to the bottom. This was really fun. Wade & Tyler both loved it, and we decided to do it again before the lines got any longer. This time (no way was I getting back on that chair lift) we climbed the stairs to the top (no workout room today) and came down again. Really fun!
At that point, Lynn & Wade went back up to the top and Tyler and I stayed down. They did the Toboggan Slide, the water slide where you can go in two connected rafts just about everything but Summit Plummet and one other one whose name I cant recall. Lynn said they climbed back up about 10 times Disneyworld isnt for wimps. In the meantime, Tyler and I hung out at the pre-teen area where he could do quite a lot. We went on the smaller individual raft water slide several times, and then he went on the side-by-side water slide where you can race the person next to you. Tyler was very successful at the smaller version of the Iceberg Obstacle Course where there are a bunch of free-floating styrofoam icebergs in the water and an overhead rope bridge so that the kids hold on to the ropes over their heads while jumping from iceberg to iceberg. He went all the way across, just one step from the other side, then slipped and fell into the pool. Pretty darn good for a 4 year old. He was smaller than the other kids trying to do it. After that, we went over to the Tikess Peak area, which he seemed to enjoy just as much. We had a slight mishap here when he didnt hold on at the bottom of the smaller version of the individual raft slide and tumbled over and hit his head on the bottom. There was a lifeguard right there, and after crying a few minutes, he was OK. He loved the squirting arcs of water and stayed in there and played a long time. By that time, Lynn and Wade had gone back to the pre-teen area and Lynn took Ty so they could do some things together. I stayed with Wade while he finally did the T-bar where you hold on to an overhead bar that slides down a cable and you jump off into the water when it hits the end. I think this was his very favorite thing. He went on it at least 6 or 7 times.
We had bought drinks and snacks so we took a break and had a mini-lunch. After which we got into the Lazy River where everyone goes floating down a mild creek that encircles the whole park in an inner tube. This is really relaxing, until you hit the ice caves where you have to go under several waterfalls of ice-cold water. It was pretty crowded by that time. We went to the wave pool for a few minutes just to see what its like. by the time we left, it was about 2:30 and we had had a really fun day. This was our first water park experience, but will certainly not be our last.
We had planned to go to the Ft. Wilderness campfire that night, but rain was being predicted so we changed plans and ate in, then took the bus to Downtown Disney. Went into the big Disney store and did our shopping. I got t-shirts for the boys, coffee cups for me, spare antenna Mickey/flag balls for me and Shirley. We went in the Lego store and Wade bought a really cool Lego pen. Before our trip, we decided that I would match whatever the boys were able to save for this trip, which turned out to be about $25 each (Lynn supplemented Ty, since he doesnt get as much allowance as Wade). So they both have $50 to spend, plus I told them I would get them a special present for no more than $30. So far, they are making real good choices with their money and not buying the first thing they see for their special gift. This beats last time, when they wanted everything they saw and we had to listen to whining about not getting it. Stopped for a world famous hot fudge sundae at Ghiradellis. Tyler had a milkshake and Wade a double scoop of cookies & cream in a waffle cone. Huge! I thought there wasnt a chance that he would finish it, but he did, down to the last bite. Lynn had a scoop of coffee ice cream coated with chocolate and dipped in nuts. Now, having experienced Ghiradellis, I will say that although its good, I really like Beaches & Cream way better, and will get my ice cream treat there in the future
Tuesday, 26: Blizzard Beach day. A strange experience for me, going to a Disney park that Im not familiar with. The theme of Blizzard Beach is that a freak winter storm dropped a mountain of snow on Florida, creating a ski resort that is now melting because of the heat. All thats left of the snow are water slides. We drove over, getting there at exactly the 9:00 opening time. I would say we wasted about 45 minutes trying to decide where to camp, Tikes Peak or the Ski Patrol area for pre-teens. We finally decided to put half our stuff in each place to leave our options open and have at least one chair in each area. There were lots of chairs available, both in the shade and in the sun. We talked to a woman who recommended that we go to the top before things got too crowded up there and do the downhill activities first (no Summit/Plummet for me or mine, thanks). The chairlift line, even that early, was pretty long and it took us about 20 minutes to get to the chair. Then about half way up, the chair stopped and we dangled and swayed for about 20 minutes before they got it started. Not being a big fan of chair lifts to begin with, I was really tense by the time it started and we got to the top. Although we did have a great view of the suicidal maniacs plummeting down Summit Plummet. I wont be getting on the lift again, nor will Lynn. Although they are all used to ski lifts of all shapes and sizes, for some reason a lift that wasnt over snow made her very uncomfortable as well. We went right to Teamboat Springs, where everyone piled into a raft and, hanging on for dear life, went hurling down the slide (with lots and lots of water running constantly, to the bottom. This was really fun. Wade & Tyler both loved it, and we decided to do it again before the lines got any longer. This time (no way was I getting back on that chair lift) we climbed the stairs to the top (no workout room today) and came down again. Really fun!
At that point, Lynn & Wade went back up to the top and Tyler and I stayed down. They did the Toboggan Slide, the water slide where you can go in two connected rafts just about everything but Summit Plummet and one other one whose name I cant recall. Lynn said they climbed back up about 10 times Disneyworld isnt for wimps. In the meantime, Tyler and I hung out at the pre-teen area where he could do quite a lot. We went on the smaller individual raft water slide several times, and then he went on the side-by-side water slide where you can race the person next to you. Tyler was very successful at the smaller version of the Iceberg Obstacle Course where there are a bunch of free-floating styrofoam icebergs in the water and an overhead rope bridge so that the kids hold on to the ropes over their heads while jumping from iceberg to iceberg. He went all the way across, just one step from the other side, then slipped and fell into the pool. Pretty darn good for a 4 year old. He was smaller than the other kids trying to do it. After that, we went over to the Tikess Peak area, which he seemed to enjoy just as much. We had a slight mishap here when he didnt hold on at the bottom of the smaller version of the individual raft slide and tumbled over and hit his head on the bottom. There was a lifeguard right there, and after crying a few minutes, he was OK. He loved the squirting arcs of water and stayed in there and played a long time. By that time, Lynn and Wade had gone back to the pre-teen area and Lynn took Ty so they could do some things together. I stayed with Wade while he finally did the T-bar where you hold on to an overhead bar that slides down a cable and you jump off into the water when it hits the end. I think this was his very favorite thing. He went on it at least 6 or 7 times.
We had bought drinks and snacks so we took a break and had a mini-lunch. After which we got into the Lazy River where everyone goes floating down a mild creek that encircles the whole park in an inner tube. This is really relaxing, until you hit the ice caves where you have to go under several waterfalls of ice-cold water. It was pretty crowded by that time. We went to the wave pool for a few minutes just to see what its like. by the time we left, it was about 2:30 and we had had a really fun day. This was our first water park experience, but will certainly not be our last.
We had planned to go to the Ft. Wilderness campfire that night, but rain was being predicted so we changed plans and ate in, then took the bus to Downtown Disney. Went into the big Disney store and did our shopping. I got t-shirts for the boys, coffee cups for me, spare antenna Mickey/flag balls for me and Shirley. We went in the Lego store and Wade bought a really cool Lego pen. Before our trip, we decided that I would match whatever the boys were able to save for this trip, which turned out to be about $25 each (Lynn supplemented Ty, since he doesnt get as much allowance as Wade). So they both have $50 to spend, plus I told them I would get them a special present for no more than $30. So far, they are making real good choices with their money and not buying the first thing they see for their special gift. This beats last time, when they wanted everything they saw and we had to listen to whining about not getting it. Stopped for a world famous hot fudge sundae at Ghiradellis. Tyler had a milkshake and Wade a double scoop of cookies & cream in a waffle cone. Huge! I thought there wasnt a chance that he would finish it, but he did, down to the last bite. Lynn had a scoop of coffee ice cream coated with chocolate and dipped in nuts. Now, having experienced Ghiradellis, I will say that although its good, I really like Beaches & Cream way better, and will get my ice cream treat there in the future
