I'm soooo far behind on... well... everything.
So I'll keep my comments short.
Well, shorter then usual...
Haha! I'd forgotten she's even in that one! We could do Courage under Fire after that. It's kind of a guy movie!
"Kind of" a guy movie?
Okay, I'll watch it, but it'll be your fault if that man card never...
Ah, who am I kidding.
It's gone for good.
Does this mean it gets better as they get older? The teen years scare me.
No.
Be afraid.
Be very afraid...
I hate to make excuses, but honestly the Etsy at Halloween business took me by surprise. I was literally at my sewing machine every minute that I wasn't at work or sleeping for 3 weeks. Toward the end I never wanted to see another Lilo dress again. Of course someone ordered 3 for a June trip to WDW last week. 
In business, it's good to be busy.
So, good for you!
I finished up Bryan's Halloween costume late last night (the cobbler's children have no shoes and all that...) so I thought I'd try to make it up to you by sharing some pics from tonight.
Great costumes!
Maddie made a few half-hearted attempts at telling us that the ride is too scary, but we reminded her that shed enjoyed it last year and hopped in a boat for our pirate cruise.
Did she settle down when the ride started?
Or during?
Even princesses can't resist playing with the swords in the dump shop
I swear, putting those there has got to be the reason Disney is able to spend millions on projects.
You see, I went in to this trip very confident in my understanding of Florida-in-the-summer weather. A little cocky even. When I was growing up, my grandparents and I visited my great aunt and uncle in Florida nearly every summer. Id warned my family that it would rain for 20-30 minutes every afternoon, but it wouldnt last and that the showers might actually make the weather bearable for a little while once theyd gone.
Yup. That's the way it works.
Right?
Right?
Hello?
we strolled over to Magic Carpets of Aladdin and queued up to take a spin. Maddie and I were the only takers for this ride, I know that Bryan sat it out, but have no idea what he did while we rode.
Hah! I can relate.
When the DDs were about Maddie's age, I think I rode it 7 times in a row.
Ruby got the free pass and sat it/them out.
I don't know what she did either, but I bet it was more relaxing and less mind numbing then what I was doing!
I wont go as far as to say that the loading area for BTMRR is the hottest place on the face of the planet-thats Animal Kingdom-but it might be the most humid. Ive never visited WDW in the winter, but I imagine that even then it would be unbearable.
That's odd. I've never noticed that about BTMRR.
Maybe 'cause last time we FP'd it too and didn't spend enough time there?
The park bag packer-who will remain nameless- had apparently not laid Bryans poncho out to be packed.
But you and Maddie were dry, so it's all good, right?
Right?
Is this thing on?
(Incidentally, the park bag packer was demoted shortly after this and was relieved of all park bag packing duties)
So....
Were you relieved?
1. The amateur meteorologist and resident Florida weather expert was wrong (she was relieved of those duties for the duration of the trip as well)
Don't worry, even professional meteorologists are seldom right.
Almost never, actually.
we pressed on. We ended up in the cross-through between lands and found ourselves becoming intimately acquainted with the entire population of Rhode Island.
Well, isn't that nice.
Now you have friends for life!
You know those out-of-nowhere storms that are so bad that you have to pull over on the highway? It was one of those, except we were not going 65 MPH, we were moving at the speed of a slug and still couldnt see a thing.
Wowza!
If you guessed that our snack credits werent available, then youre smarter than I. Having successfully used dining credits for our lunch I was lulled into believing that the sourpuss at the MK had taken care of the problem.
When in HM they refer to "foolish mortals"
they mean you and your belief that it would be all worked out.
Though I tried to clean it up, I certainly left my mark on the lobby of POR that afternoon.
That's okay. It's punishment for not getting your credits right.
An hour and half after I first approached the desk, the CM returned victorious.
An hour...
and a half........
Shouldn't they be paying for your room or something at this point?
Bryan had fallen asleep while we were primping and still needed a shower so Maddie and I suggested that we go ahead of him and check out the gift shop while he readied himself.
"How to get a man to get ready as quickly as possible."
Step 1. Tell the man to take all the time he needs.
Step 2. Then tell him you'll wait for him in a gift shop.
Step 3. For extra speed, remind him that you have the credit card, so he needn't rush.
We browsed the gift shop for a few minutes before we got a text from Bryan that he was on his way to meet us.
You could've said, "we got a
panicked text from Bryan..."
As Bryan approached I immediately noticed that he wasnt wearing the bright red PP+ card around his neck.
Of course not.
You were in the gift shop.
It seems that in the aftermath of the DxDP/KTTW disaster of 2013 Bryan had been revoked of his room entering privileges.
D'oh!
This is just getting ridiculous now!
As we approached the desk a CM beckoned us to her line, but I pointed at the young lady standing next to her and said she knows us. The poor CM whod been helping me all afternoon looked up, and though her mouth said how can I help you? her eyes said oh no, not you again.
In hind sight this was probably not the right way to go about greeting her.
True, but you really shouldn't swear in front of Maddie.
Picking up on the non-verbal cues, Bryan stepped up to do the talking.
non-verbal cues....
Smoke coming out of your ears?
(honestly though, if a 6 year old dressed in a princess gown gave me a thank you note Id be pretty cheered up too)
Not me!
Nope!
No way!
I'm too macho for that sort of thing to... ummm....
Oh, forget it.
while Bryan stayed in the vicinity of Ohana Maddie and I couldnt resist checking out the gift shop,
Wanted him to rush over, huh?
I may have started tickling
Cute pic!
When we arrived at the table, Maddie realized that she would not be getting her lei and was incredibly disappointed. She was so sad that Bryan said hed go see what he could do about it.
What parent won't move heaven and earth to make a sad child happy?
Glad it worked out.
It appeared that a nearby table of 8 was keeping him occupied for large chunks of time, and just as he would peel off from them a 4 top next to them would grab him. Having been there myself I adjusted my attitude about him. He was clearly overwhelmed and just flat out busy.
Okay, not the server's fault.
But then it's management's, isn't it?
With all the ADRs they have these days, it couldn't have been a surprise at how busy they'd be.
So staffing is the issue, IMO.
She didnt seem to like children all that much. She was getting visibly upset when the little darlings werent following instructions. Honestly it was all pretty funny.
She really looks like someone who's got a fake smile pasted on while in reality trying not to panic.
Im not great at Buzz on a good day, but on this night I was scoring almost no points. Eventually I decided to switch guns to see if that made any difference, and within 60 seconds Id maxed out the score. This is the 2nd time Ive managed to do that, and I have no idea how I did it.
Uh, huh.
Not great at Buzz.
Only maxed out, not once, but twice!
I wish I could be as "not great" as you!
Bryan noticed my score and was accusing me of cheating, so I began to explain the defective/hyperaffective gun situation-at the exact time the photo was taken apparently.
Perfect timing!
I was in need of the ladies room, so we headed toward the ones near Space Mountain. On the way we stumbled upon the Greatest Dance Party EVER! I left Maddie and Bryan to boogie while I took care of business.
You had to dispose of the flash drive with the codes to overwrite the actual Buzz score, right?
Stitch just came out and she screamed as though it were Mick Jagger.
Of course, if Mick Jagger really did come out on stage,
she'd be like, "Who's the old guy?"
Maddie practiced her roar the whole way there, and while we waited in line.
Get any strange looks from anybody?
Soon we found ourselves packed in like sardines. It wouldnt have been too bad, but the gentleman who chose to share my personal space was having deodorant issues. Like he hadnt put any on. Ever.
Ugh.
I suggested going to Castle Couture instead. Bryan wasnt really feeling that, but it didnt take long for us to wear him down.
Careful, Bryan!
That's a slippery slope to losing your man card!
Maddie fell asleep on the bus, and once back in the room was alsleep before Stacey could even get warmed up. Bryan and I watched a little TV, but werent far behind.
Awww.... everyone's tuckered out.
Thanks for the chapters Shanaleesh.
although I think I'd like to have more dress up clothes then stuffed animals. I feel like the stuffed toys are taking over our house--is it possible they multiply overnight?
This makes me want to cry! 
CUTE!
The comment about Stitch being like Mic Jagger is hilarious!! Mom was really excited about Stitch in that dance party too! Baha.
At least you got the ride in!
The was a really cute bit on SNL recently, where there was the host Paul somebody, who talked about how excited he was when he walked into the studios as all these girls were outside screaming Paul, Paul... and how everyone was so excited to see him.... and then PAUL walks out! Too funny (probably more funny than I just told! 
