Test Track, Big Thunder, and Everest, Oh My! A First Time Trip with Lots of Thrills!

[natebenma]

I loved your trip report, Karen! You really captured the boys first time experience so beautifully, in both words and pictures!

I am so sorry to hear about your scary moments at the airport. But as everyone has said, you can't beat yourself up about it. We all know how quickly something like that can happen.

Your last morning at POP sounds like fun, even though you were leaving. A couple of good meals, exploring the resort and FREE ARCADE GAMES!!!

Your sovenirs are great- really nice clothes and some fun toys. Looks like some really practical stuff to remind you of your wonderful trip.

Have a great weekend and a Happy Halloween- what are the boys doing? Any parties? Trick or Treat? What are their costumes?

 

[MommyMcQueen]

I loved your trip report, Karen! You really captured the boys first time experience so beautifully, in both words and pictures!

I am so sorry to hear about your scary moments at the airport. But as everyone has said, you can't beat yourself up about it. We all know how quickly something like that can happen.

Your last morning at POP sounds like fun, even though you were leaving. A couple of good meals, exploring the resort and FREE ARCADE GAMES!!!

Your sovenirs are great- really nice clothes and some fun toys. Looks like some really practical stuff to remind you of your wonderful trip.

Have a great weekend and a Happy Halloween- what are the boys doing? Any parties? Trick or Treat? What are their costumes?

Thanks!!! I'm glad you enjoyed it! I'm usually not much of a writer - I scrapbook a lot but I hardly ever write any journaling or anything in there - I know it's wierd - but I like to let the pictures do the talking!

Kids have trick or treating today (Sunday) so that will be fun. Mater wanted to be a train conductor and McQueen is a fighter pilot. No Disney themed costumes this year! Last year they were Buzz and Woody and it was adorable!!

 

[MommyMcQueen]

Well, it looks like its about time to wrap this baby up!!! The end has come and I have so many great memories from our trip! So here it is, my final thoughts:

The Good

There is so much here to say I don’t know where to start!

I’ll start by saying we had an AMAZING trip. It was better than I ever expected it would be in all aspects. I felt like from start to finish things just went smoothly and really, really well. (Please pause while I pat myself on the back for all of my detailed and obsessive planning… haha…okay I’m done). While all the planning certainly helped and made things easier for us, there were a lot of things that went well I had no control over:

1. Transportation. Magical Express and the busses were all great. Yes there were times the busses were full and we had to stand, but 90% of the time we got a seat and 90% of the time we waited less an 10 minutes for a bus. Transportation was easy, fast, and reliable. I have zero complaints about the busses and would definitely use them again. Way easier than driving for us.

2. Wait times for rides and shows. Each day I continued to be amazed at how little we had to stand in line to wait for anything. I think good use of FPs and hitting the rides without FPs early in the morning really helped. But some things, like 11am walk-on BTMRR and 3pm walk-on EE were just lucky or it was a low crowd day. We would have done those rides with FP, but not even needing the FPs was great – you’re right there and can just go on, didn’t have to waste any time anywhere or backtrack to the ride. We also had great timing on many shows and walked right in with little to no wait.

3. POP Century – we really loved this resort and all of the services. It was amazingly clean and well kept, and the only thing I encountered that didn’t work was the change machine in one of the laundry buildings (and I had read that these were fussy machines so I was prepared for it not to work!) There were rarely lines in the food court, only at breakfast, and they went pretty fast. We never had a problem finding a seat, always lots of room available. The staff was great and very helpful. I don’t know if we’d stay here again, I think if we go back again we’d like to try someplace new, but I’d definitely recommend it to anyone going. Great resort.

4. Dining Plan – I really liked the dining plan, although I’m not sure if I’d do it again. Yes we used up all our credits, we had only 7 snack credits to burn at the end, and it was easy and pretty convenient to use. The only downfall was that we used A LOT of snack credits on bottles of water, and didn’t really buy a ton of snacks, so we maybe didn’t get out moneys worth? I don’t know if it was worth it cost-wise for us, but it certainly was convenient and easy to use once you knew the guidelines of what you could get. And the fact that it was Free Dining obviously made it worth it for us, since it was still a huge savings versus a room discount on a Value. The CS food itself – ehhh – some of it was good, some was not particularly great, but we always found something to eat.

5. Weather. Yes I complained a bit about the heat early on, and we had the one really rainy day mid-way through the trip. But….there were no hurricanes. We had several days with very little rain. The heat was tolerable. Can I say this again – there were no hurricanes!!!!! Like 2 out in the ocean but none by us. I was actually quite worried about a hurricane striking so this was a huge positive point for me!

This trip was more fun and more wonderful that I ever imagined it would be. Sometimes traveling with the kids has been difficult, but we really found ourselves just enjoying the time, not worrying about little things, everyone was happy and stress-free. Even with Mater catching a little cold early on, he had one bad night and one sort-of bad day, and after that he was fine - still a little sick but you really couldn’t tell. We were so fortunate that McQueen didn’t get sick on the trip – we got a very lucky break with that and he didn’t get sick until after we got home.

The Bad:

So what didn’t love? What did we cringe at? What did we dread? Here’s the bad:

1. Humidity. I, for one, hate humidity. Heat I can handle, humidity not so much. I have very thick naturally wavy hair and I fought my hair the entire trip! I didn’t make a big deal about it, obviously no one was there to look at me, but there were times where I was almost a little embarrassed by how my hair looked, I felt like I looked so bad! I figured out right away that a headband or a hat was my only option, so I wore a headband I think every day. It worked out fine but darn that humidity was horrible!

2. Crowds AT PARADE TIMES. The crowds were really decent and even at times it was busy the crowds didn’t bother me. Obviously we’re in WDW it’s going to be crowded. What did bother me was getting completely squished and trampled by people try to get a spot for the parades. At the first parade in AK, we were right on a corner of a roped off area, we got there early and were right in front. Once the parade started the rows behind us completely pushed forward to the point where we literally could not move and McQueen was being crushed into a metal pole! I had to cover the pole with my hand and arm so it wasn’t cutting in and digging into his side. MSEP was even worse. Kids were sitting on the curb (on about a 2 foot section, just enough for their little bottoms to squeeze) and Dan and I were standing behind them. People just piled in behind us and pushed! I guess I just don’t understand…I don’t think the 6 inches that you just shoved into me is going to really make your view all that much better.

3. Kids Meals – I thought the kids meals were pretty low quality and not much variety at all. Yes, my kids are picky eaters and that certainly doesn’t help. For 5 days it would have been fine, but by our 9th and 10th day they were really sick of the same old choices. I was also discouraged to see the nice quality of some of the meals when compared to the adult meals - like the nicer quality chicken in the adult chicken tenders as compared to the poor quality of the kids chicken nuggets! (Same with the hot dogs). I don’t understand the mentality of giving kids the worse quality foods – I mean, I get that it’s cheaper for Disney, but was hard to accept especially since I purchase better quality food specifically for my kids here at home, even thought I cringe at the price sometimes. I wanted to order them an adult nuggets meal so they would get some decent chicken, but I didn’t since it’s against the rules and I’m a rule-follower!!

And that was really all - we didn't have many negative experiences at all. We just loved our trip SO much - it was really one of our best experiences as a family and we all cherished it. We all still talk about Disney almost daily and the kids still play with their toys almost daily.

Up Next: Plans for Future Trips!!

 

[mickeystoontown]

What a great "good and bad" installment. Relative to the "bad", I agree with you on the parade crowds. I know that everybody wants to get a good view of the parade but there's no need to push and shove each other. I always hate that!

Looking forward to your next post since it mentioned something about plans for a future trip.

 

[wdwgirl03]

Aww, it's over. So glad to hear you had a great time though. I agree about both the humidity (must be our Wisconsin blood!) and parade crowds. Future trip plans?? Can't wait to hear that!

And I love the boys' Halloween costumes! I think those were both pretty popular this year.

ETA: OK, just saw your Animal Kingdom t-shirt. I absolutely LOVE that!!!! Where did you get it?!?!? AK is my second favorite park and I love how that shirt is not too overwhelming. Very cute.

 

[MommyMcQueen]

What a great "good and bad" installment. Relative to the "bad", I agree with you on the parade crowds. I know that everybody wants to get a good view of the parade but there's no need to push and shove each other. I always hate that!

Looking forward to your next post since it mentioned something about plans for a future trip.

Yeah, the parades were a bit of crowd nightmare! But at least we still got to see them and had a good spot!

Aww, it's over. So glad to hear you had a great time though. I agree about both the humidity (must be our Wisconsin blood!) and parade crowds. Future trip plans?? Can't wait to hear that!

And I love the boys' Halloween costumes! I think those were both pretty popular this year.

ETA: OK, just saw your Animal Kingdom t-shirt. I absolutely LOVE that!!!! Where did you get it?!?!? AK is my second favorite park and I love how that shirt is not too overwhelming. Very cute.

Hi Sarah!

I got that shirt at Island Mercantile on Discovery Island. We stopped there before leaving and I found it right in front on a display - I loved it too! There was one other shirt back at the EE shop that I LOVED and really wanted, but I don't know if they were kids sizes or what because they were TINY! So I did't get one but I STILL think about that shirt! It was red with a darker red Tree of Life on it and said Disneys Animal Kingdom across the bottom - it was a very simple shirt but I loved it. Hope you can pick one up on your next trip!

Karen

 

[Angies1274]

Hi Karen!

Aww...finally back to catch up...only to find that your report is over. I've really enjoyed reading about your trip. It's actually reminded me a lot of our first trip.

Sounds like you had a great last day at Epcot! Yay! for riding Soarin'! Love that ride!! Sorry about Illuminations. But, it gives you something to look forward to next time. We actually just saw it for the first time ourselves in April and it was our 4th trip. Definitely worth the wait!

Love all your pictures around Pop! The arcade is one of the first places the boys ask to go when we arrive.

You got some great souvenirs!! Oh and don't beat yourself up about the incident at the airport. Those things can happen and soooo quickly. My oldest wandered away once while we were at the store and I was so scared.

Again...so sad your report is over. But..thanks for sharing it with us!! I'm so happy you had such an amazing trip!

 

[LoveMyTwoPrincesses]

I like how you wrapped things up! I totally agree with you about the parade crowds. On our recent trip the only time I found myself shaking my head in amazement at adult behaviors was at MSEP and Wishes.

 

[MommyMcQueen]

Hi Karen!

Aww...finally back to catch up...only to find that your report is over. I've really enjoyed reading about your trip. It's actually reminded me a lot of our first trip.

Sounds like you had a great last day at Epcot! Yay! for riding Soarin'! Love that ride!! Sorry about Illuminations. But, it gives you something to look forward to next time. We actually just saw it for the first time ourselves in April and it was our 4th trip. Definitely worth the wait!

Love all your pictures around Pop! The arcade is one of the first places the boys ask to go when we arrive.

You got some great souvenirs!! Oh and don't beat yourself up about the incident at the airport. Those things can happen and soooo quickly. My oldest wandered away once while we were at the store and I was so scared.

Again...so sad your report is over. But..thanks for sharing it with us!! I'm so happy you had such an amazing trip!

HI Angie!

I know, it's over!!! It went so fast!!! We did have a great couple days at Epcot and really enjoyed it, since we missed Illuminations it's definitely a must-do for our next trip!

The arcade was great, I'm glad we got to spend a little time in there and play, it was fun....and FREE!!!

Thanks so much for reading along!!!
Karen

I like how you wrapped things up! I totally agree with you about the parade crowds. On our recent trip the only time I found myself shaking my head in amazement at adult behaviors was at MSEP and Wishes.

Yeah, the crowdes were a bit of a mess - I know its a lot of people in a small space but was amazed at what people would do to get a few inches closer! Oh well, now we know for next time to stand our ground!

 

[MommyMcQueen]

I'm so excited!!! I started scrapbooking some of my Disney pictures!!! I decided to start with Animal Kingdom, since I had a bunch of good supplies and papers to start with, so I ordered all of the pictures for that park and they came last week! I had 195 pictures from AK that I ended up ordering, although I had 295 pictures from that park, there were about 100 pix that I didn't order since they were either duplicates of the same things or just not one "worthy" of making it in the book!!!

So here are my first few layouts!!! I have to go back yet and add some journaling in the blank boxes but other than that they are done:

I've been completely inspired by the MouseScrappers site and have been looking at layouts that others have done there for inspiration and ideas! I also have a cover page done but I have to print out a AK logo yet and my printer is out of ink, so that page is not officially done yet! It's a start!! SO much more to go!

Karen

 

[mickeystoontown]

Karen, I love your scrapbook so far! I have all the supplies and all of the pictures to do many many years of Disney scrapbooks but somehow can't stop long enough to do them. You've started so soon and I can officially call you my hero.

 

[mikera329]

Great trip report, Karen Thanks bunches for sharing your time and memories with us all. Can't get over your great tee shirts too...love them I too am a scrapper and LOVE that you shared some of your work...we share a similar taste. Last but not least, I get no greater pleasure in my kitchen when using my Disney items...the memories all come running back and it creates smiles and laughs that the whole family can share Thanks again...

 

[MommyMcQueen]

Karen, I love your scrapbook so far! I have all the supplies and all of the pictures to do many many years of Disney scrapbooks but somehow can't stop long enough to do them. You've started so soon and I can officially call you my hero.

Thanks! I got a few more done yesterday that I just LOVE, but I have to take pictures of them yet! I'm so excited to get this scrapbook started - I'm surprised I've waited this long!! It is a bit overwhelming ot think about how much there is to scrap though -but I'll get it done little bits at a time!

Great trip report, Karen Thanks bunches for sharing your time and memories with us all. Can't get over your great tee shirts too...love them I too am a scrapper and LOVE that you shared some of your work...we share a similar taste. Last but not least, I get no greater pleasure in my kitchen when using my Disney items...the memories all come running back and it creates smiles and laughs that the whole family can share Thanks again...

Hi! Thanks for reading along, I'm glad you enjoyed it! I know what you mean about using stuff in the kitchen - last week I made popsicles and used the molds I got there, and as the kids ate them all they did was talk about Disney! Sure does bring back the memories!

 

[MommyMcQueen]

Plan for Future Trips

So...what does the future hold?? We know we will be back to WDW. We all still talk about Disney and our trip on almost a daily basis! Almost every day Mater and McQueen say "we miss Disney World!". Yesterday Mater asked me if we could go and live there. He is so sweet - he really misses his "Magic Castle".

But, realistically, we wo't be back for a couple of years. We don't have any plans for a big trip in 2011, since we are going to be working on finishing our basement to make a family room this next year...something we've wanted to do since moving here 5 years ago! We really need to make it happen this next year since we are running out of room with our growing boys!

So, then there is 2012. And, as of right now, 2012 will be the year we go to California. Unless WDW can really lure us back ! California would include a few days at Disneyland and California Adventure, so that would be our Disney trip for that year.

We'd then be looking at a trip back to WDW after that, so we're probably looking at 3 years from now. It's a long time from now and the kids will be a lot older, by that time everyone will meet all of the height requirements and be able to do longer days and nights at the parks, so there would be a lot of new experiences for us going back when they boys are little older. But, who really knows - maybe am amazing discount will come up and we'll be able to do another trip before then! ...I can wish anyway...

I wanted to say a big THANK YOU to everyone who read along these last couple of months! It's been great sharing our trip and getting to know some of you!

Karen