Soarin' from Scotland to Mickey - our June 09 adventure! *updated 12/20 - the end!

[shebaxric]

I am seriously on the late side in finding your TR, but I have read all the updates in the past couple of days! What a lovely family you have!! I think that my favorite thing that you've posted so far has got to be the video of you asking K if she wants a carrot and she promptly tells you that she isn't a bunny foo foo! That is just about the most precious thing I've seen on these boards! What a little character K is. I also love the fact that E is fearless! Considering your fear of thrill rides, she gets that from her dad, right?

I'm sorry that the report is winding down, because I've really enjoyed reading it.

 

[marsa1969]

Great update! I wish I would have thought about getting a dole whip when we were at the world. I have been off the dis and just got caught back up. We can't be on the internet at work anymore, so I have to "work" for 40 hours a week now - ha-ha. I hope that school is going well for you!

 

[ScotsMinnie]

Can't believe I haven't been on here for so long. I have really missed reading all the reports on here! University has completely taken over my life. I am in 9-5 5 days a week and the same on placement. I am in a local school just now teaching 7-8 year olds and I am loving it. I have been working every night and have not been to bed before midnight for ages. I am having a night off tonight so thought I would try to finish or at least make some roads into finishing this TR!

I left off packing our suitcases Now at this point I should probably share the fact that DH wanted to go to Walmart and get a new suitcase as he feels we have too much stuff. "Rubbish!!!!" I say it will all go in no problem!

We are off tonight to the Magic Kingdom for the last time. as we have a date with Pooh and Tigger at the Crystal Palace. As we leave the villa it starts to rain which is typical and by the time we get to the car park it is bucketing down. We sit for a while as we were early and when it eases off we make a dash for the tram. I put the spare stroller raincover over my shoulders. Made a great poncho! Didn’t look so fabulous though!

Mum and the girls

Grandad

Made it to the monorail and got on. By the time we get to the Magic Kingdom it has all but stopped! Yay! We stop at a few shops on the way up Main Street on our way to the Crystal Palace.

We check in and after a short wait we are called in.
I love the Crystal Palace. Its so beautiful inside. We get seated round a table near to the centre of the room and are server is a really nice girl from the UK. We start on the buffet while we wait to see Pooh and friends. The food was lovely as usual. There is always plenty for the girls to have here from the adult selection as well as the childs. We did quite a few trips up and the girls had a great time joining in with the characters marching round the room.

The characters came round and we all enjoyed having our pictures taken. DK enjoyed meeting piglet this year. Last year he terrified her by ruffling her hair but she was happy to give him a little hug this time. Everyone was in a great mood even though it was the last night.

The girls!!!

Daddy and DK.

DE showing Pooh the Pooh charm on her bracelet.

DK posing.

Back out into the park and we head through the castle into Fantasy Land. DE was determined that Granny and Grandad would go on the Haunted Mansion so off they went. Given the choice DK voted for – you guessed it – It’s a Small World so DH and I took her on. We came off and the rest were not back yet so we gave into the cries of “again, again!!!!” and went back on. Well it was the last time we would be there for a while.

DE had a try at pulling the sword from the stone.

After that we had a go on the Carousel and the we used our fast passes for Peter Pans Flight. Such a short ride but so lovely. DE managed to spot quite a few Hidden Mickeys which she loved. DH and Grandad then took De to use the fast passes for Splash Mountain and Granny and I took the little one to the teacups and then for a wander down by Main Street. When they had finished DE was disappointed not to be too wet but she really enjoyed it in the dark. The time for Wishes was fast approaching so we made a sad farewell to the Magic Kingdom. Sounds daft but I always stop at the bottom, look back up and say “see you soon”. Its for luck – if I don’t say it I might not ever be back! Lol
I try to imprint the image on my mind till next time. Main Street with the castle at the end is Disney to me. I love that view.
At the TTC we move down towards the fence near the ferry jetty. We get a place at the barrier and wait. It’s a lovely view over to Wishes and the theme music is piped to here too so you can hear the story. DK was in her buggy and managed to fall asleep! She had had a long and tiring day. Can’t think of a better place to drop off! After the last bang we got back to the car and headed back to the villa.
I did the last of the packing and then to bed for all of us. Found it hard to get to sleep. We had had the most amazing holiday. We did some fabulous things that I would never forget. But the next day we had a long and tiring journey ahead of us. I was dreading it.

 

[figment41]

Sounds like a wonderful finale to your hoiday. I am glad you finally came back and I look forward to hearing the rest. Good Luck at work

 

[disneydusted]

What a surprise to see your update! It was so good to hear about your last adventure to MK! I love that you say "see you soon" when you leave.... it never hurts to keep the magic going!

 

[jmskinner]

Just saw you had posted another update. I love that you say "see you soon".

Glad you are enjoying school and teaching. Hopefully you make it back soon.

 

[shebaxric]

Sounds daft but I always stop at the bottom, look back up and say “see you soon”. Its for luck – if I don’t say it I might not ever be back! Lol
I try to imprint the image on my mind till next time. Main Street with the castle at the end is Disney to me. I love that view.

I think you are in a place where no one would think you stupid or "daft". We all would probably do the same thing!

Sorry to hear that your schooling has been keeping you away, but congratulations on sticking it out and getting it done! It'll be over before you know it, then, when you are finished, you can tell DH that you want a trip to WDW to celebrate finishing!!

 

[ScotsMinnie]

Sounds like a wonderful finale to your hoiday. I am glad you finally came back and I look forward to hearing the rest. Good Luck at work

It was a great night. Will finish the rest this week. Feel bad for neglecting it for so long!

What a surprise to see your update! It was so good to hear about your last adventure to MK! I love that you say "see you soon" when you leave.... it never hurts to keep the magic going!

lol at least we can say "but I promised the castle that i would come back!" any excuse eh?

Just saw you had posted another update. I love that you say "see you soon".

Glad you are enjoying school and teaching. Hopefully you make it back soon.

Will be making a better effort to come on again. Missed it so much. If you don't have a trip of your own to look forward to - its great living it through other peoples!

I think you are in a place where no one would think you stupid or "daft". We all would probably do the same thing!

Sorry to hear that your schooling has been keeping you away, but congratulations on sticking it out and getting it done! It'll be over before you know it, then, when you are finished, you can tell DH that you want a trip to WDW to celebrate finishing!!

Thats what I love about the dis! None of my friends are Disney mad like me so it is great to be a part of the dis.

Although University has been intense it is the best decision I have ever made. Even when I am shattered and stressed I am still thoroughly enjoying it. I really hated my old job and its a breath of fresh air. The kids in my class are lovely and I will really miss them when my placement is over. I really have found what i think I was meant to do!

A celebratory trip is definitely on the cards for when I bag the elusive full time position.

Katie keeps telling DH that she "is fed up waiting to go to Florida again as it is taking for ages"! With pressure like that only 4 months after coming home it won't be long before he caves in and books up again!
heres hoping!

 

[ScotsMinnie]

Ok so I really need to get this finished before Christmas!!! I left off packing and settling down for our last sleep in Florida. After a restless sleep we all get up quite early. Noone is in a good mood this morning. Its awful leaving for home isn't it? We do a final sweep sorting out all the remaining food, putting the towels in the washing machine and sneakily putting stuff in Dads bag that won't fit in ours!

Before we know it we are off.

Not even the Epcot sign can cheer us up completely but it does its best and we enter with smiles at last. Only problem is that it is pouring with rain. Typical last day! Mum had the poncho from last night and the rest of us got wet!!!! Here is Katie getting some shelter with Granny.

We had a few things that we wanted to do this morning before we had to drag ourselves to the airport.

First thing we went to Soarin and got fast passes. First stop is Innoventions. DK and DE wanted to make paper again so we spent some time there. DE wanted to do the Piggy Bank Adventure again so did that with her Grandad. You can see how wet we got on the way in!

After we had finished here Dad, DH and DE went off to Mission Space and DK, Mum and I went off to the Living Seas again.

Here is Grandad and DE trying on hats.

DH and DE having a go!

DK enjoyed the Living Seas ride more this time and so did we. I could ride that all day long. The effects are incredible.
We spent a long time looking at all the exhibits and DK enjoyed the KidStop. Here she is with her lanyard.

We met everyone else at Soarin and had our last ride. No idea what DH and DK are looking at instead of at the camera!!!

We had a fabulous time on Soarin (really one of my favourite rides!) and thought that lunch at the counter service there would be a plan. Again was not impressed with the food but it served its purpose.

With seriously heavy hearts and lots of backwards glnaces we took our last group photo and headed out.

Next up: The lllllllllllooooooooonnnnnnnnnnngggggggg trip home.

 

[disneydusted]

awwww, it is always so hard to say goodbye to a wonderful vacation! I'm glad you got in some more time at Epcot, Soarin is one of my favorites too!

 

[marsa1969]

Such a nice final picture of the family at Epcot. Are you out school for winter break? Sounds like it is snowing in your area according to BBC1?? If so have fun playing!

 

[ScotsMinnie]

awwww, it is always so hard to say goodbye to a wonderful vacation! I'm glad you got in some more time at Epcot, Soarin is one of my favorites too!

It is awful isn't it!!! Especially when you dont know when you will be back!

Such a nice final picture of the family at Epcot. Are you out school for winter break? Sounds like it is snowing in your area according to BBC1?? If so have fun playing!

Yes I am done for Christmas - supposed to be doing assignments but finding much more interesting things to do with my time!

No snow here - just London so far. Well actually, they have a slight tiny thin layer of white-ish stuff but in London they call that snow and it causes havoc. They are so soft! That would be called frost up here!!! Drama queens that they are!!!

 

[ScotsMinnie]

So I left off leaving Epcot and Disney and heading for the airport. What I forgot to mention so far is that the day before, after getting home from the MK we picked up a hire car from Downtown Disney area to help us get to the airport! If you remember we had too much luggage to fit into the car we had so we had to rent another little car to get from the airport for 1 day and back to the airport for 1 day. Disgraceful i know but it was the only way to transport us all and our luggage!!! Anyway, DH and Dad drove the little car and I took Mum and the girls in the big one. The journey was really fast (sadly) and before we knew it we were unpacking the luggage and our car seat and heading towards the check in desks.

When we got there it was quiet so we walked straight up to the desks. Good so far. Now at this point cast your mind back to me packing the cases and DH suggesting going to Walmart to get an extra holdall for all our stuff and me insisting that we didn't need it as it was all fitting in fine. So they get weighed and are so overweight wer had to reorganise the bags! This involved cutting the cable ties on all the cases and moving things from one to another to balance the weight. As you can imagine a line was building and DH was not happy and definetely had his "I told you so" face on. Eventually I got it right and she took the bags and although they were all over the weight limit it was within the acceptable range so was not charged. Phew!

Security was a breeze thanks to the family lines (we don't have those in the Uk - we need to though!) and we found a few seats near the gate to park ourselves. Its always a sad time to take off the shorts and t shirts and change into trousers. We spent all of our remaining dollars and cents in the shops and got onto the plane on time. We had good seats and we settled in for the long flight home. It was pretty uneventful. We left about 6pm and landed at about 2.30am which was 7.30 local time. I did not close my eyes the whole flight so it is always hard going home as you miss a whole night. Waiting for the connecting flight to edinburgh is painful as the tiredness starts to kick in. The flight up was bumpy and the smell of the "breakfasts" was turing my stomach. Our taxi was waiting and we made it home by about 10.30am. Back to reality! And that was our holiday over.


So that is that - the final chapter. Looking back at our trip it was just the most fantastic trip so far. There was so much to enjoy and the girls had an amazing time. I have so many things that I won't forget and lots of favourites. Some highlights for me include:
Riding on the 4 seater bike.
The first day at the magic kingdom (of course)!!!
Seeing Katie running up to Mary Poppins and the look on her face while she was talking to her.
Riding Test Track with emma.
Surprising my family with dinner at the California Grill.
Watching the 4th July fireworks!
Watching the girls choosing their pearls in Japan.
Turtle Talk with Crush when he picked out Emma for a chat.
Watching Emma feed the dolphins
Meeting Elmo with Katie
Emma dancing the Hoedown Showdown with the girls who worked in the Grand Floridian
Katie naming the mermaid shop Shelley and pointing it out at least once a day.
Taking my girls to see Tinkerbell.
Our time at the beach in Clearwater.
Everytime I see my girls face light up at a little piece of Disney magic
Watching One Mans Dream

I could go on and on and on.........


Thanks for reading and sorry for taking so long. Thanks to everyone who helped me plan and I will be keeping up with everyone elses trips. Hopefully it won't be too long before we can start to plan our next trip!

 

[marsa1969]

Great final thoughts!! I hope you get to go back soon! My daughter, Callie, keeps asking to go back to WDW. I was thinking about maybe Disneyland in California?? We would like to go to San Deigo and suprise our old church pastor. Noticed that they have a California package w/3 or 4 day Disney pass, Seaworld, & the San Deigo Zoo.
HAVE A GREAT CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR!

 

[ScotsMinnie]

Great final thoughts!! I hope you get to go back soon! My daughter, Callie, keeps asking to go back to WDW. I was thinking about maybe Disneyland in California?? We would like to go to San Deigo and suprise our old church pastor. Noticed that they have a California package w/3 or 4 day Disney pass, Seaworld, & the San Deigo Zoo.
HAVE A GREAT CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Hope you get a trip sorted out. It is so nice to have a plan to concentrate on!

Hope you have a lovely Christmas too!

 

[disneydusted]

Wonderful ending to a wonderful trip! Thank you for taking us along... it was fun to see Dinsey again through your pictures and also be included in your adventures. I hope a trip is in the near future for you all! Merry Christmas to you over there across the sea!