Snow to 80 in 8 days–A spoonful of Holiday Cheer (2/5 update Ch 36 - Final Thoughts)

[mom3sonstt]

sweet rooftop pics only section i have not watched a game from yet.

have you done the wrigley field tour?

Danny used to work with a gal whose family are part owners of one of the rooftops, so him and mark were able to go for the one playoff game. I wasn't included.

I've never done the tour, but Danny and mark (again) got dream day passes a couple times...they got to go out on the field before the game and into the dugout. Mark was excited because derrek lee was in the dugout....it was when his arm was broken. He thought he'd be able to get a picture with him or an autograph or something. Unfortunately D Lee came in, sat on the bench and talked on his cell phone for awhile then left. So he never got a chance to ask. They haven't done the tour though. Both of them have been able to throw out a first pitch at the peoria chiefs games.

 

[marvali]

So sorry about your continued computer troubles!!

I hope you will get something in the mail soon that should cheer you up!

Marv I hope when your computor is fixed it only allows you to say NICE things to Rosie !!!

I told them if they can fix it to install that new "Be Kind to Rosie!" chip, but they must not have any in stock since they just looked at me funny.....

Maybe it went kaput because he picks on the girls.

Nah, it would have broke a loooooong time ago if that was it!!!

Oh, you didn't believe me! I really was waiting all day for your update. Honest.

And I loved it! The animal pictures never get old.

Hmmm... I"ll have to go back and find my answer.... not sure what I said now.

I'm so sorry about your computer, Marv. That really stinks! I hope it can be fixed soon and all your data is completely recoverable!

Oh, I know you would never lie to me Liesa!!! Glad the animal pictures were worth the wait.

Dropped the computer by the local shop yesterday. I'm hoping it is as simple as the power supply and we will have it back soon! As for the date, the good thing about the virus on my flash drive is I got my antivirus working again and one thing it requires you to do is back up your files, so they should all be safely on an external drive I have since I had just saved them all. (including ALL my Disney pics....... )

Landon would agree with you about the chocolate frosting. I put it on his birthday cake and he ate all his frosting first.

Great job! That is exactly how I do it!

Great update! Man, you got some really nice animal pics - where were you viewing them from? I've never been over to Kidani, so I'm not actually sure how it's set up there.

They have a viewing area that extends out into the edge of the savanna from the ground floor, just opposite the entrance to Sanaa. Also on the second floor (level the lobby is on) there are balconies on each side that have rocking chairs you can sit in and view the animals. That is where I was when I took those pics! I spend quite a bit of time there in the early mornings having coffee when the family isn't up yet.

Cubbies at the top of the flagpole!

Better hang on to this one!

 

[3prettyprincesses]

How'd I miss an actual update Marv?? Maybe it's because I'm used to not seeing one?

Love all the animal pics, you sure got some good ones!

Ugh, I think I said that you, Ali and Drew hit the park together. I guess I'll be holding out hope for those bonus points!

Man, what a bummer about your computer!! I hate having computer issues. Just recently I somehow downloaded a virus but my nifty DH was able to remove it, he's so smart! I was terrified because I hadn't backed up my pics in a little while too!

Hope things work out computer wise for you.

 

[FauntleroyFAN07]

Danny used to work with a gal whose family are part owners of one of the rooftops, so him and mark were able to go for the one playoff game. I wasn't included.

I've never done the tour, but Danny and mark (again) got dream day passes a couple times...they got to go out on the field before the game and into the dugout. Mark was excited because derrek lee was in the dugout....it was when his arm was broken. He thought he'd be able to get a picture with him or an autograph or something. Unfortunately D Lee came in, sat on the bench and talked on his cell phone for awhile then left. So he never got a chance to ask. They haven't done the tour though. Both of them have been able to throw out a first pitch at the peoria chiefs games.

thats pretty cool, i hope to watch one from there sometimes, but dont see it in the near future.

the tour is really good it was at least 2 hours, and you went everywhere in the stadium...and it is a tax write off as the amount you pay goes to the cubs charity...very cool tour and worth it, maybe a birthday present idea for them...it is only 25 bucks.

 

[mom3sonstt]

thats pretty cool, i hope to watch one from there sometimes, but dont see it in the near future.

the tour is really good it was at least 2 hours, and you went everywhere in the stadium...and it is a tax write off as the amount you pay goes to the cubs charity...very cool tour and worth it, maybe a birthday present idea for them...it is only 25 bucks.

I'll have to remember that. Mark loves anything and everything Cubs. We joke that if he found a dog turd with a cubs logo on it he would want us to buy it for him. Have you seen the new cubs license plates? Mark got those too

 

[FauntleroyFAN07]

no they dont have many cubs plates in indiana, at least none that i have seen.

 

[mom3sonstt]

no they dont have many cubs plates in indiana, at least none that i have seen.

oh yeah....you aren't in Illinois are you. His new plates are solid blue, on the left side is the Cub logo, his plate number is "mark" and on the right side is CC.....one C on top of the other. He finally got them put on his car...and I'm sure somewhere he has pics of it.

 

[KatMark]

Better hang on to this one!

Hey, don't mess with us sensitive Cubbie fans.

 

[chloe770]

A "NY Yankees", "NY Mets", & "Red Sox" fan are climbing a mountain, & arguing about who loves his team more. The Mets fan insists he is the most loyal. ''This is for the Mets'' he yells, & jumps off the mountain. Not to be outdone, the Yankees fan is next to profess his love for his team. He yells "This is for the Yankees!!!" & pushes... the Red Sox fan off the mountain.

just kidding. They are all great teams.

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

Hey Marv, nice pictures! Love seeing the animals bright and early in the morning. Hope you're doing well.

 

[englishrose47]

Evening Marv !!They sold me a secondhand BE NICE TO MARV chip !!!Wonder how long it will work

 

[englishrose47]

I said I was being NICE !!So why are you hiding !!!

 

[onescgirl]

Great pics!
It's been so long since your contest, I have no idea what my answers were!

 

[marvali]

How'd I miss an actual update Marv?? Maybe it's because I'm used to not seeing one?

Love all the animal pics, you sure got some good ones!

Ugh, I think I said that you, Ali and Drew hit the park together. I guess I'll be holding out hope for those bonus points!

Man, what a bummer about your computer!! I hate having computer issues. Just recently I somehow downloaded a virus but my nifty DH was able to remove it, he's so smart! I was terrified because I hadn't backed up my pics in a little while too!

Hope things work out computer wise for you.

Found out the computer is dead! Motherboard is completely gone so looking for a new computer now, when I get enough time to shop around for it.

thats pretty cool, i hope to watch one from there sometimes, but dont see it in the near future.

the tour is really good it was at least 2 hours, and you went everywhere in the stadium...and it is a tax write off as the amount you pay goes to the cubs charity...very cool tour and worth it, maybe a birthday present idea for them...it is only 25 bucks.

We took a trip to the Grand Canyon a few years ago and stopped in Arlington, Texas on the way back and took in a couple of baseball games while we were there. We did a tour like this while we were there and it was really good too!

A "NY Yankees", "NY Mets", & "Red Sox" fan are climbing a mountain, & arguing about who loves his team more. The Mets fan insists he is the most loyal. ''This is for the Mets'' he yells, & jumps off the mountain. Not to be outdone, the Yankees fan is next to profess his love for his team. He yells "This is for the Yankees!!!" & pushes... the Red Sox fan off the mountain.

just kidding. They are all great teams.

Nice one Chloe! We always enjoy humor around here! Even if is is a Yankees' joke.......

Hey Marv, nice pictures! Love seeing the animals bright and early in the morning. Hope you're doing well.

Doing okay, just really busy at work.....and now on the hunt for a new computer for home.....

Evening Marv !!They sold me a secondhand BE NICE TO MARV chip !!!Wonder how long it will work

Not sure where a secondhand chip would come from Rosie. It's not like there has been one that was used enough to be considered secondhand........

I said I was being NICE !!So why are you hiding !!!

Not hiding my Dear! Just really, really busy....which I know you can relate to! I just finished up my On Call week of Duty at work. Pager went off Saturday morning at 3:00am (which I was expecting) and then again Sunday night/Monday morning at 2:00am which I wasn't. Made for a really looooong day at work yesterday.

Great pics!
It's been so long since your contest, I have no idea what my answers were!

You mean you actually submitted answers for the last installment of my contest??? I thought one of your last posts said to delete my previously submitted answers for the contest........

 

[englishrose47]

Morning Marv !!I can sooo relate to those middle of the night calls !!I am on call 5 days a week and when I get a middle of the nighter I am soooooo dozy I barely remember what either of us said

 

[PirateKate]

My condolences on the loss of your computer.

 

[marvali]

We arrived at the Magic Kingdom and quickly exited our full bus to get ahead of the crowd since we knew the gates had been open for about 20 minutes to everyone. We knew between the MEMH crowd and those who were there for regular rope drop there were already a lot of people ahead of us. It was time to adjust our plans accordingly. With it only being me and the boys it would be a lot easier to make up time speed walking past all the people who were strolling down Main Street and stopping for the character greets at the entrance. We also figured there were quite a few who would be heading to Fantasyland first so we wouldn’t have to worry about those for a while. As we entered the turnstiles I handed my AP to the boys who headed off quickly to snag fastpasses for Space Mountain before too much more time passed on the return times.

I had a little more time to make the trip and meet the boys so I stopped to take a few pictures along the way. The train was in the station.

A couple of pictures of the Christmas tree

City Hall

Main St USA decorations

I knew the boys would be waiting for me at Space Mountain so I headed off to meet them. We had agreed that when we met we would decide based on the Standby wait time if we would ride then, or wait until our FP return time. As I walked along I could tell the crowds were already building. And then I was greeted by this site as I arrived.

I finally located the boys and we decided the line was just too long to ride standby, and if we wanted to get ahead of the crowd to avoid long lines for every ride, we better skip ahead to the other side of the park while everyone was still in Fantasyland and Tomorrowland.

Here are the FPs the boys got for Space Mountain.

We still hadn’t had anything to eat, so we were watching for something we would all be happy with as we headed towards Frontierland. As we entered Liberty Square we noticed Sleepy Hollow to our right. Strawberry waffles sounded better than just a danish or sweet roll, so we jumped in the short line. Grabbing our waffles and some milk to drink we headed into Frontierland eating as we walked so get ahead of as much of the crowd as we could. Might not be great for digestion, but at least our food settled some as we walked. Finishing and disposing of the trash as we continued to walk we finally arrived at our destination - BTMRR. The Standby time was 30 minutes already, but we weren’t seeing any people waiting ahead of us, so we figured it had to be shorter. Sure enough we entered the line and continued to walk most of the way to the ride before we came to a stop. It took about 15 minutes and we found ourselves here

Surviving our runaway journey through the mountains near Tumbleweed we needed to relax and calm our nerves. It was a cool morning and we thought slowing things down a little would be wise. What better way to do that than a slow and relaxing boat ride, so off we headed to Splash Mountain, totally oblivious to the fact “splash” might be a clue of what was to come. There couldn’t be much to this ride since the line was really short and we found ourselves loading quickly into our log boat.

As we rode along I tried to remember where the HMs were on this ride. I knew one of them was here, but I didn’t quite get the perfect shot.

I always think this is an interesting sight. Does anyone else see the head of a monster in this rock outcrop?

We spotted a couple of the HMs on the rest of the ride, but didn’t get the photo in time. When we got back to the loading area they told anyone who wanted to ride again to stay in their boat. We had a little time before we could get any more FPs so figured why not. As we went back through we looked for the HMs we had spotted the first time through. I did manage to locate this HM in time to get the photo op on my second try!

My buddy Glennbo is always talking about getting the redneck ride photo, so here is ours from Splash.

I promise I wasn’t scared, I was just trying to keep my glasses from getting wet. No really, it was the glasses……

By the time we were done and headed out to see what else we could accomplish the crowds were really starting to build. Here is a shot of the crowds as we were leaving Frontierland.

We headed towards Fantasyland and decided to stop at one of our favorites since Standby was about 10 minutes. As we walked through the queue for Mickey’s Philharmagic I got a picture of this HM. There are a number of them along this wall.

We have seen this show a number of times, but we still enjoy it. It is probably our favorite 3D show in Disney, probably because of the special effects with all the smells and things. After Mickey saved the concert and avoided the disaster that Donald had stirred up, we headed out to explore some more. We knew we would be able to use our FPs at Space Mountain soon, and we also planned to grab some lunch at Cosmic Ray’s before the lines got too long. Along the way I stopped to get a picture of some of the characters who were out greeting the guests.

You would think this guy would grow up at some point, but all he could seem to do was dance around play while the poor guests looked like they wanted to get a picture and get on with their day!

Next I saw a lady who I had seldom seen, at least in this outfit! Even so, she still seemed perfect in every way!!!

Next I spotted some really intriguing ladies who really seemed to have a bad attitude. I found it hard to believe there were so many people waiting in line to greet them and have their pictures taken…….

Nearby I saw this really nice spot.

I’ve wanted to get this picture ever since I learned if you get the proper angle you can make it look like Cinderella is wearing the crown on the wall behind her.

From here we headed off to conquer our final mountain in Tomorrowland. It was time for our FP return time and I was anxious to ride through Space for the first time since they had done the refurb.

Coming Up – Chapter 17 Magic Kingdom Continued

 

[englishrose47]

Marv I love the Cinderella with the Crown !!!Can't believe I am first !!!By the way 0 Ali's

 

[marvali]

Morning Marv !!I can sooo relate to those middle of the night calls !!I am on call 5 days a week and when I get a middle of the nighter I am soooooo dozy I barely remember what either of us said

And you're blaming it on the late night calls, huh?

My condolences on the loss of your computer.

Thanks! Not totally back in service yet, but at least a little bit of DIS time where I can be productive!!!

Marv I love the Cinderella with the Crown !!!Can't believe I am first !!!By the way 0 Ali's

We are obviously both up waaaayyy too late Rosie!!!

 

[All7OfUs]

Oh man, you're up late! I'll have to re-visit this tomorrow,as I'm headed off to sheetier places now. Looking forward to reading it all tomorrow, Marv! G'nite.