That Mickey sure is one smart cookie!! May 2011 CBR TR (update 08/13)

[lbuzz52]

I love the photopass pictures! I've never ordered the CD, but I'm sure I would try to do as much editing as I could think of.

I thought Maya's Rapunzel cake turned out really cool. And her hair looked great, too.

Breakfast at the Tusker House looks like fun. I've never been there, but I do think the characters look good in safari clothes.

If we were goign more frequently, i'm not sure i would order the PP cd either. But with our recent trips being 1 1/2 years apart, i loved having them. They really showcase how much the kids have changed, and sometimes they capture things that i miss.

Mays loved her cake, and she must have loved her hair, because she actually sat still to let me do it!

Tusker House was fun! you should try it some time. they are really cute all decked out for the safari

I am finally caught up. I am loving your report.
I know what you mean about the smoking areas. They are removing some and I get confused. I try to go to the same ones each time, every year and this past trip my favorite one was gone.

Jen!

Glad to have you reading along! and i can't wait to read about your new adventure next week!

The smoking areas crack me up, because they are either so well hidden you can't find them, or so out in the open you can't escape from them. I loved the Courtyards at CBR because they are almost an inviting area for smokers.

 

[Villainess]

Catching up ... your Photopass pics look great; we didn't have much luck with them last time - way too many blurry ones and as you mentioned uncentered, etc. There was an instance at AK, meeting Pooh or Tigger ( I can't remember which) where the PP photographer didn't even bother to take a photo until DS was walking away.

 

[lbuzz52]

sorry, i dont know what happened to my response for these!!

Love the photopass pics!

thank you so much

That one is my favorite as well! melted my heart a bit!

it's so sweet! almost worth the price of the PP alone.

No, we are not in a share. We are pre-ordering and splitting the cost with my mom. We have gotten the CD the past 3 trips and find that it is soooo worth it. Most of the pics turn out great and then to be able to add in the magic shots as well as all the things you can add in when editing.

That is funny about James! Colby is still a little leary around the characters, so that is why we have held him in the past. We will see how it goes this time!

i swear James thinks he is 5. It is so funny to hear him repeat her and try to do what she is doing. I love how close they are.

Catching up ... your Photopass pics look great; we didn't have much luck with them last time - way too many blurry ones and as you mentioned uncentered, etc. There was an instance at AK, meeting Pooh or Tigger ( I can't remember which) where the PP photographer didn't even bother to take a photo until DS was walking away.

I agree that they could put a little more effort in at times, but i've also gotten some shots that i would have never though to take. thanks for the compliments!!

 

[lbuzz52]

Friday, May 13th cont.

When we last left off, we had just finished a late breakfast at Tusker House.



It was time to board the train to Rafiki's planet watch. We made it on the first train. Maya made a new friend on the way over and told him her whole life.
(poor dude!)

i though these little roll down shades were neat.

We had to make a stop as soon as we got off at the "station". Maya saw a statue of her favorite animal and had to do a little posing.

And of course James wanted a turn too.

Not far into our walk we saw a Discovery Club spot. We stopped and did a little scavenger hunt.

A short walk later, we were at the Planet Watch building. It's really pretty on the outside. It took two pictures to get the whole decor in.

The vets were performing surgery on a turtle. He was a "wildlife" call. He had been found on property and had been hit by a car. The turtle had already been in surgery to repair a hole in his shell. This second surgery was to repair the post they had put in the shell.

I found it quite interesting and didn't notice that my family had moved on to Jiminy Crickets line. I walked over just as James was walking up to him.

I snapped a picture and put my camera up to go see what Maya was doing. You can guess what happened next. James turned back for a kiss. Again. Jiminy made the hearts aflutter sign with his hands.

Maya was standing in the corner pouting. Apparently it "broke her heart" that she would not be able to have a picture with Jiminy if I was not there. Don't you love the drama you get from little girls Why she didn't just come get me, i'll never know. She couldn't get his autograph because we left the books in the stroller for the third time in as many days. I told her if she sucked it up and behaved the rest of the time then we could see him in a minute.



We had not seem Pochahantas on our last trip. So there was no way we were skipping her line. Luckily it was really short. While we were waiting, we started tallying our princess count so far.Cinderella, Belle, Aurora, Ariel, Mulan, Pochahantas. 6 out of 10 and many days left!

There was another Disney friend there whom we had never met- Rafiki. We lined up for him next. James went up to him and gave him a hug.

About that time Maya decided he was a bad guy and she was scared. Can you believe my kids have never seen The Lion King! I dont know how that happened! Anyway, James heard this and started to back away. Rafiki bent down to try to make him more comfortable and gave me one of my favorite pictures from the trip.

Love this! its's so sweet and Lion King-esque​

Maya had apologized for her grumpy moment earlier, so she went through Jiminy's line while James ran in circles in the corner.

The animals at the petting zoo were feeling the heat too. They were laying around under the shade of a tarp. One goat was feeling frisky though, and kept coming out of the pen. Maya and I went in, but she was feeling a bit nervous. After one stroke of the brush, she was done.

We were soon on our way back to the train. This time, Maya's seatmate learned all about her favorite chewing gum flavors and the recent changes to her teeball schedule LOL.

 

[basketkat]

I love going over to RWP!!! I know a lot of people think it is "boring", but not us! Where else can you see a turtle having surgery? We didn't see any "action" while we were there, but I still think it is neat.

I love the characters there too...we had no lines for them either!

Bummer about the autograph books though.

 

[MaryAz]

Joining in, I read ur 2009 TR last night-so fun, you are a great storyteller. I also have a DD bound for Kindy next week. I was very excited to see the pic of Maya in her seat with the 5pt harness-we have the same seat and Cayley is also still harnessed in We stayed at CBR on our first trip and really liked it. I am only on page 1-off to read more.

 

[LeeLee'sMom]

How awesome you were able to catch Jiminey Cricket and a surgery. We have been to RP a few times and never caught either...

 

[lbuzz52]

Joining in, I read ur 2009 TR last night-so fun, you are a great storyteller. I also have a DD bound for Kindy next week. I was very excited to see the pic of Maya in her seat with the 5pt harness-we have the same seat and Cayley is also still harnessed in We stayed at CBR on our first trip and really liked it. I am only on page 1-off to read more.

thank you for the compliments! i love to relive my trips!

i have a couple picture to share from Maya's first day of kindy.

Maya is still harnessed in both her primary cars, and she booster trains in her grandmother's car. James is still rearfacing, but not for long as he won't quit growing. People around here are pretty lax about it; in fact, she went on a couple field trips with her summer church program and she was the only one to bring a car seat. i was surprised at that.

thanks for joining in!

How awesome you were able to catch Jiminey Cricket and a surgery. We have been to RP a few times and never caught either...

I really liked Rafiki's. it was a nice cool break, and a way to extend the day there.

I love going over to RWP!!! I know a lot of people think it is "boring", but not us! Where else can you see a turtle having surgery? We didn't see any "action" while we were there, but I still think it is neat.

I love the characters there too...we had no lines for them either!

Bummer about the autograph books though.

I actually saw a big turtle on the road here recently, and couldn't help but think that the outcome may have been different for him if he only lived in Orlando

i loved that RP was air conditioned!

I was pretty good about leaving my autograph books this time!

 

[DisneyMomma09]

Wow! I love reading TRs because you always learn something new! I knew about Rafiki's Planet Watch, but we have never been there! With Colby's current obsession with trains, I think it will be a must do this time! How neat that you were able to see the doctors working on the turtle! The pictures of the kids with the characters are too cute! I love Maya talking to the people next to her on the train!! How nice of her to entertain her new friend with her life story!

 

[lbuzz52]

Wow! I love reading TRs because you always learn something new! I knew about Rafiki's Planet Watch, but we have never been there! With Colby's current obsession with trains, I think it will be a must do this time! How neat that you were able to see the doctors working on the turtle! The pictures of the kids with the characters are too cute! I love Maya talking to the people next to her on the train!! How nice of her to entertain her new friend with her life story!

Yeah,the train is pretty cool because you are sitting facing out and seeing everything you pass. you see things like the buildings the animals stay in at night.

maya loves to talk, i've been having to really get into stranger danger because her latest is i know my address, its....

 

[lbuzz52]

Friday, May 13 cont.


The standby line for Kilamanjaro Safaris was 45 minutes, so we were happy to have our fastpasses.

I'm sure a few animals were hiding in the heat of the day- but we still saw a ton!

We saw Maya's favorite from very close up.

There are actually two giraffes here.

The lion wasn't moving.

Rhinos cooling off in the mud

Next, our path took us towards the Tree of Life. I could have sworn that you could go right up to the tree to examine the different markings. I really thought I had seen it in photopass pictures and on the travel channel specials. But if there is a way, we completely missed it.

I suggested the Nemo show, but was vetoed. Maya later told me she didn't realize it was the only chance we'd have that afternoon, but she wasn't upset about it.

A minute later, James fell asleep in his stroller. We grabbed a fastpass for Kali River and headed towards the ride Maya had most been anticipating- "snow mountain"! (or Everest as the rest of the world knows it.).

We got our babyswap and hopped in the fastpass line. We made it on the first train. Maya was starting to feel the nerves.

"You can do this Maya, you can do this Maya. Tell me what is next momma. Tell me where the monster is".

She clung hard as we climbed the first hill, but relaxed a bit once she realized it wasn't an outragous drop. She even opened her eyes a bit to peek at the Yeti.

She bounced through the dump shop, proud of her achievement but unsure if she was going to ride again with daddy. By the time we got to the boys shaded waiting spot, she decided she wanted to ride again as long as Chris held her tight.

random crowd shot​

I paced the tiny dump shop pushing James stroller. Although today was technically a couple degrees cooler, it sure didn't feel like it. It was hot enough that I wasn't sure I was going to make it through the day. I wasn't sure I wanted to. I was seriously contemplating making the suggestion to go back to the room. And I definitely would have if the park didn't close in a couple hours.

When they returned, Maya said she did not want to ride it again. I asked Chris of he wanted to and he said he was fine without it. I jumped in the single riders line, saving the fastpass just in case Chris changed his mind. I made it on the first train. This time I rode with my hands up, not worrying about what was coming next. Well, sort of- I rode with my hands up chicken style, you know, where you are close enough to grab the bar at any second.

in the back row​

I just love this ride. It's fast but not crazy, and it doesn't shake you all over and leave you with a headache.

Maya and I stopped for a photopass with Everest in the background. She wanted a snapshot to highlite the memory.

Our Kali fastpasses were not open yet. We decided we were getting hungry and needed to find a snack.

 

[Lifelong_Dreamer]

Tree of Life - There is a trail that goes behind the tree and gets you pretty close. It is hidden pretty well, one end starts near the bridge heading into Africa and the other side of the path is blended in with the exit to It's Tough to Be A Bug. That is another way you can see the tree a bit closer, the entrance queue to ITTBAB gets you fairly close although I think the "secret" path that goes behind the tree is better.

 

[lbuzz52]

Tree of Life - There is a trail that goes behind the tree and gets you pretty close. It is hidden pretty well, one end starts near the bridge heading into Africa and the other side of the path is blended in with the exit to It's Tough to Be A Bug. That is another way you can see the tree a bit closer, the entrance queue to ITTBAB gets you fairly close although I think the "secret" path that goes behind the tree is better.

Thanks Leesa! i've put that in my notes for next trip. We'll go looking for it earlier in the day, before we are way too hot and worn down!

 

[basketkat]

Your safari looked fun! I love the close up shot of the elephant!

Maya was so brave to go on EE!!! My oldest daughter is such a chicken, but maybe one day she will branch out!!!

Ak is always SO hot! I think it is all of the trees and bushes and things.

 

[Moira222]

I am just catching up on your trip report. I always want to comment but will just make you guess as to what post I am commenting on! LOL

Thanks for posting menu info about dinner at Akershus. We have only done breakfast there, and love it, so i have wondered about the other meals. Nice to know that you order off a menu for the entre, breakfast is family style and very yummy.

Isn't it great to have some mommy daughter time at disney, even when its just hanging out at the resort!

--

We missed the scavenger hunt at Rafiki's but my family was not as into that visit as I was

Isn't the art and theming on the roof and in the entry way just fantabulous?

LOL that you kids had not seen the Lion King. Katie didn't see it till she was about 5 or so .... it was too sad when Simba's dad died. she also only JUSt saw Aladdin because the early scene in the treasure cave was too scary for her. ;-)

aaawww James and Rafiki is SO CUTE!!!

You got some great photo pass shots, and I like your feedback for future trips. some good points there. I too often find myself forcing my family to be considerate of other people but don't get that in return. taking our time at the photo pass opps is a good point!


OMG the baby pictures of Maya are so cute!! Hope she had a great birthday!

 

[PirateKate]

How cool to see a turtle having surgery. I hope he made a good recovery.

I'm glad Maya conquered Everest. That's an intimidating ride, but it's so much fun.

 

[lbuzz52]

How cool to see a turtle having surgery. I hope he made a good recovery.

I'm glad Maya conquered Everest. That's an intimidating ride, but it's so much fun.

She saw it on a travel channel show, and was determined to ride it. So brave! There is one, however, that i can not get her on- even though her cousin declared it her favorite ride at 4.

it was really neat to watch a turtle surgery. i'd love to go there many times a trip just to see what sort of interesting things they had going on there.

I am just catching up on your trip report. I always want to comment but will just make you guess as to what post I am commenting on! LOL

no problem!

Thanks for posting menu info about dinner at Akershus. We have only done breakfast there, and love it, so i have wondered about the other meals. Nice to know that you order off a menu for the entre, breakfast is family style and very yummy.


it was a bit more Americanized than i was expecting, adn i was greatful for that. I do think we will try breakfast there next trip though.

Isn't it great to have some mommy daughter time at disney, even when its just hanging out at the resort!

I'll take any and all Mommy/ daughter time- no matter where!


--

We missed the scavenger hunt at Rafiki's but my family was not as into that visit as I was


It was fun, but not a must-do. gotta pick your battles

Isn't the art and theming on the roof and in the entry way just fantabulous?


It's spectacular!


LOL that you kids had not seen the Lion King. Katie didn't see it till she was about 5 or so .... it was too sad when Simba's dad died. she also only JUSt saw Aladdin because the early scene in the treasure cave was too scary for her. ;-)


They still have not. i tried to keep them from Bambi too, but I neglected to tell my mom my plans. whoops. Maya went through a phase where she was really scared about death/ heaven/ leaving others behind/ being left behind. she was really young at the time and in my infinite mom speaking to first child wisdom, I told her people usually dont die until they are really old, like 100 years old. a bit of a stretch. I was just sure that those particular movies would even confuse her even more. She has asked to see it when it comes out in the theater though, and we likely will.


aaawww James and Rafiki is SO CUTE!!!


Thanks! i truly cherish that picture!

You got some great photo pass shots, and I like your feedback for future trips. some good points there. I too often find myself forcing my family to be considerate of other people but don't get that in return. taking our time at the photo pass opps is a good point!

I think my goal is to find that happy medium between being too unselfish and obnoxious. I just need to say its okay to take the pictures separately every once in a while.


OMG the baby pictures of Maya are so cute!! Hope she had a great birthday!

Thanks! she had a wonderful birthday!

more comments in pink above!

Your safari looked fun! I love the close up shot of the elephant!

Maya was so brave to go on EE!!! My oldest daughter is such a chicken, but maybe one day she will branch out!!!

Ak is always SO hot! I think it is all of the trees and bushes and things.

I think i posted the wrong one, but in one of my elephant shots i swear he looked like he was smiling at us.

She was so brave with that ride! We decided before we left that we weren't going to push her; we'd let her decided what she wanted to ride or didn't want to ride. She is much more mature when she's allowed to make her own decisions (usually). I'm curious to see what sort of rider James will become.

It had been about 96 up until that day, and it was only about 92 that day- but it didn't feel any cooler for sure.

 

[DisneyMomma09]

It looks like you had a great safari! You got some really great photos of the animals!

I am sooo looking forward to when Colby gets big enough and brave enough to start riding some of the big rides. How fun to be able to experience EE with Maya for the first time! EE is one of my favorite rides in Disney!

 

[lbuzz52]

It looks like you had a great safari! You got some really great photos of the animals!

I am sooo looking forward to when Colby gets big enough and brave enough to start riding some of the big rides. How fun to be able to experience EE with Maya for the first time! EE is one of my favorite rides in Disney!

I was very happy with the safari results, considering it was early afternoon- a very hot part of the day.

I'm very lucky with first rides- Chris tends to let me have them, even though i offer them to him. He's sweet like that!

 

[lbuzz52]

Maya had her first day of kindergarten last week. They only go one day the first week, with a few students going each day of the week. This week is the first full week for them, and yesterday was the first day for the whole class to be there together.

an extrememly chipper for 6:30 James wanted in on Maya's signature pose.

waiting at the crosswalk

some lady complimented her on her headband, so she's decided she must wear it every day now.

can you tell she lost tooth #2?​

She says she likes it so far, although she is already noticing a stark difference in the amount of playtime between preschool and KK.

On her staggared day, there was only one other girl in the class. Of course, it was the child with a 15 letter name, which even the teacher had trouble with. Maya came home and told us she made a new friend, and has renamed her Amiga because her name is too long


Yesterday, Maya came home and said she had a good time, but didn't make any new friends. I asked her who she played with at recess, and she told me she chased her boyfriend.

I have to back up a bit now... There is a little boy that was in Maya's preschool class (aka, mother's day out with a bit of KK training) for the past two years. One day, right around her 5th birthday, she came home and told me she got married at preschool today to that boy. I got a kick out of that and thought it was a cute story.

Not long after that, she told me she had to get ready to go. I asked her where she was going, and she told me Q was waiting outside to take her on a date to McDonald's Chris told her to go sit down, and she got upset. She actually said she knows where he lives and she can just go after we fall asleep! I then responded with the fact that maybe the tv shows she's allowed to watch are too old for her if she's going to get such horrible ideas from them. (have you ever noticed that the kids seem to go everywhere by themselves on all the Disney and Nick shows?)

And another time, we were sitting at Sunday dinner at my parents house, when she announced to the group that she and Q were no longer married. Apparently, he had told her that he was going to Disney World. When he showed up at school the next day, she declared him a liar, and told him that they had to break up!

since then, she says that they are boyfriend and girlfriend again, but she will never get married again

anyway, i was chatting with his mom and telling her some of these stories at Maya's birthday party. She had not known about this. I couldn't help but smile when Maya got around to opening his present. He had made her a card, and this was the envelope.

You can see the I love you, but you can't tell from this picture that the sucker says True Love all over the wrapper. And under the ribbon it says Maya and has a bunch of hearts. I think its all so cute. Chris, on the other hand, takes it way to seriously and is already dreaming of ways to lock her away as she gets older


She told me this weekend that she thinks she will give Q another chance at marriage someday. Apparently, they are going to get married this time at WDW. But she doesn't want to get married at the wedding pavillion- she wants to get married at Carribean Beach. She is going to invite Chris and I, her grandparents, Mickey, Minnie, Rapunzel, and Flynn.

____________________


and one other story I heard yesterday-

Maya said i was taking a break at the Magic Kingdom near the "baby test track" (i think she was talking about the Speedway). She said,

"I saw a talking trashcan. I don't know how it was talking. I opened it up and there was no one inside of it.-- They use pixie dust for strange things sometimes."