The Better Late than Never Trip Report Extra long update! 10/30

[ohboyx3]

Finally! A second to sit down and resume my TR. We had a great day yesterday. Jeremiah finally felt like doing something after being sick. We had a great family day touring parts of Chattanooga we hadn’t seen. We had lunch at TGI Friday’s, toured Ruby Falls, got some homemade Italian ice from Rita,’s, saw the new Tornado Alley at the Imax, dinner at Mellow Mushroom, and finished the day off by taking a Ghost tour. It was really great. To make it even better I had planned ahead and managed to save us $65.00 by using coupons. WOOOO HOOOO! It’s amazing how much that adds up. Here are some recent pics from our little day trip!

If you are around Chattanooga you should definitely visit. We have a beautiful city.

Okay…. On with the original trip! One thing I should note here is that although we enjoyed the resort and really liked our suite, it was no moderate or deluxe. The first clue was when dh came back from swimming and was irritated that there wasn’t a hot tub. Lol. Of course I knew there wasn’t one from doing my research, but didn’t think it would be too big of a deal. My husband definitely missed it this trip. He has back problems from being a contractor and on both our previous trips he would take the boys to the pool and unwind in the hot tub. That was one of the main things he would look forward to after a long day in the parks. I could take it or leave it. Sure, I enjoyed it, but it definitely wasn’t a deal breaker in my book. My husband seemed to think that if he was paying THIS much for a vacation the least they could do was have a hot tub at the resort! He also missed the workout room, as he goes to the gym here every morning. Overall he was okay with everything though. He just mentioned that he wished there was one…. It wasn’t like he was angry about it or anything. I would definitely keep this in mind for future trip planning though, now that I knew it was so important! I will say that as the trip progressed he told me that the resort was growing on him and he had really come to like it… “I just wish there was a hot tub!” He said.

On this morning we woke up early. I wanted to be at Epcot before rope drop, so we could hit Soarin’ first thing. This would be another first for us to be able to ride together. In the past we would always have to do a swap. I was excited to see how Cole would do with this one as well. This would also be the last day spent with our friends Angela and Caroline. I texted Angela and she said she needed a few more minutes, but that Caroline was on her way to our room. She would just catch up with us at the park later. I had brought those little boxes of cereal from home and the suite provided plenty of paper goods. Cups, bowls, spoons, plates, etc. So we ate a quick breakfast in the room (we did this every morning) and were on our way to the bus stop.

One thing I will say about Disney is how immaculate they keep their grounds. We were out early this morning and they were cleaning the pool area and making it look pristine. It’s just amazing to me to think about how many people it takes to make just one resort look amazing, let alone a whole park.

It was a pretty quiet morning (we were out early) and we didn’t have to wait but maybe 10 minutes for a bus. Good thing, because even at that time in the morning we could tell it was going to be HOT. This was definitely going to be a different situation from our January trips. After a short ride we were there in plenty of time before the park officially opened.

Epcot is probably my favorite park. There is something special about it for me. When I was 17 my parents took me for two days to Disney. We didn’t stay on site and were only there for two days, touring Magic Kingdom and Epcot only way back in ’96. We were chosen to be the Epcot guest park openers. It wasn’t like it was now where they let the family ride in a Test Track car. Heck! Test Track didn’t even exist back then. Nope… What they did do is let us into the park for free (we got to keep our tickets for another day) and they gave us a certificate certifying that magical moment. What I remember most is us being let into the park before anyone else and them saying “The ***** Family welcomes you to Disney World” and us waving everyone in and being the first to ride Spaceship Earth. It was a memory I will never forget. My Dad was recently diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease and I see him progressing rapidly and it is so nice to be able to think back to that trip and remember them riding everything with me and just enjoying everything together. It was only a couple years later that I was married, so this is the last trip I remember taking with them by myself. Anyways… just a little tidbit I thought y’all might enjoy. I actually have another park opener experience to tell you about…. But I’ll wait till later in the report to do that.

So here we are waiting for rope drop and we are right up in front. Here is the lucky TT family.

Out come all the carachters and lucky for us they paid us lots of attention!

At one point Minnie wanted Jeremiah to kiss her nose!

As soon as the rope dropped we followed the masses to The Land. Our first stop was Soarin’! We hopped right in line. How did Cole like it? He LOVED it and wanted to ride again! Phew! So it’s just roller coasters that freak him out. I can deal with that! My phone did not get service while waiting for service and when it finally did there was a msg from Angela wondering where we were. She met up with us outside the land after we stopped to get some fastpasses so we could all ride later in the day.


Now I will let you know right here that this was probably the worst park touring day the whole trip. We did so much walking back and forth across this park it wasn’t even funny. I’m not even sure why. Made no sense, but oh well… live and learn, I guess. We headed from Soarin’ right over to TT. The standby line had posted 20 minutes. I actually think it took a little longer, but it wasn’t too bad. Do you think they look ready?

We had a great time, even Cole and then spent some time after gawking at the cars. What can I say…. I’m outnumbered. Especially with a husband and a tween.

My husband told me if we stopped going to Disney so much he could have this:

Next up was Mission Space. Now I knew better than to even try the Orange side. The plan was that Angela, Caroline, Cole, dh and myself would ride the green side. Jonas and Jeremiah were determined to go orange. Have at it… just don’t come complaining to me if you feel sick. Well my husband at the VERY last minute decided to switch and ride with the boys. Now here is a little background on dh. He gets terrible motion sickness. Roller coasters are fine… he just can’t do any type of simulaters or anything that spins. I have yet to get him on the Teacups or Dumbo for crying out loud!!!!!!!!! Why on EARTH he decided to ride the orange version is beyond me!!!! Of course I am sending him really nice text messages while I am waiting in line that go something like this, “Are you a moron?” “What the heck are you thinking?” or “You better not ruin this day for everyone, because you know how you are with these types of rides and you’ll feel sick the whole rest of the day..” and “I will NOT feel sorry for you!!!!!!” Oy….

The four of us rode our green name version and were just fine. In fact Cole absolutely loved that ride. Their line must have moved faster than ours (perhaps because other people’s husbands listen to their wives????) so they were waiting for us when we got thru. I quickly found the boys playing on all the interactive stuff… my husband? He was out on a bench looking just a little green. He said he was very close to having to use his barf bag. In fact… He said that he was really getting worried that they were going to take off again after they got to Mars. He thought… “Oh dear goodness.. I will not make it for the return trip to Earth!” He was never so relieved to find out that their mission ended there! The other boys? They did great and of course wanted to ride again. However… I thought this would be a good time to go visit Club Cool and get dh some free Ginger Ale……


Up next: More Epcot! Crush and I share a moment, Secret Agents, Innoventions, and Dinner at Garden Grill

 

[kokotg]

We love Chattanooga! We used to go there all the time in our pre-Disney days, when the kids were really little. We realized our youngest hadn't been there since he was a baby, so we finally did a weekend trip last December, right before Christmas. The kids LOVED Ruby Falls.

Great update... about your DH and Mission Space. Mine isn't good with spinning things, either, so I was shocked when he volunteered to take the kids on the Orange side this year. Better him than me!

 

[ohboyx3]

Hey! Yeah... There is actually quite a bit to do in Chatt. It was a good little day thing. I must say though... I've been slightly jealous reading my friends status updates on Facebook. Disney is a popular destination right now due to the fall break we get here. In hindsight I'm glad we didn't plan our trip for fall though since Jeremiah ended up being so sick.

I couldn't believe he did the orange either. Hehad talked about it, but thought he would try it at the very end of the day. Oh well. You're right... Beter him than me!!!!

We love Chattanooga! We used to go there all the time in our pre-Disney days, when the kids were really little. We realized our youngest hadn't been there since he was a baby, so we finally did a weekend trip last December, right before Christmas. The kids LOVED Ruby Falls.

Great update... about your DH and Mission Space. Mine isn't good with spinning things, either, so I was shocked when he volunteered to take the kids on the Orange side this year. Better him than me!

 

[Lidian]

I'm here!

Now to get all caught up!

 

[Lidian]

Comments galore! Taking notes in a separate window ... because I can relate a little too much to Dory.

Your DS Jeremiah: I love your comment

Jeremiah literally thinks he is a Jedi. No… I mean… I think he may need therapy in the coming years.

Just to let you know, Jeremiah will turn out all right. I married my own Jeremiah (well, at least his name does start with a J). I usually find the "This is not the husband you're looking for..." comment funny ... unless he's already in pretty big trouble. Then, not so much. And, hey, those conventions are pretty fun! (Not WDW fun, but fun nonetheless.) Sorry, the nerd in me is all cheering him on and encouraging it. I can't help it.

You have a beautiful family!

@ surprise video
"I knew it!" One DS was in shock and the other was like "Duh, let's just go already!" I thought your DS was going to go into shock -- it sounded like he stopped breathing from excitement for a few minutes! Totally love your surprise video!!

I can't wait to hear about the SWW surprise!!! I bet they were beyond excited!

Funny that you mention the GPS on the iPhone. Did you read how many times my DH used it and got us lost??? Of course, each time it was my fault.

I totally agree with the: Try everything once scenario. This is our rule, too. And I said the same thing to my DS... that it was a "fun, little train ride". He hated it, too. (As well as Splash.) But in my case ... DS won't even get on a real train. I'm a horrible mom.

Poor Jonas @ IASW. OH MY @ "huge drop" comment he made to Cole. That sounds like something my DD would do. Bless his little heart! I'm anxious to hear if you was able to ever get him on anything else afterwards.

We love Columbia Harbor House! Glad you guys enjoyed it. Do you recall where the boys went for their burgers?

Pocket-bacs are awesome! I'm a fanatic about that, too. DH is all "you'll be fine, don't worry about it", but I still make him take a squirt. The kids have learned, and they have their hands ready before I can even get it out of my purse.

We rode the Liberty boat a couple of years ago. It was a nice little ride. They had a narrative ("Mark Twain" I think) and it was scenic. The best part? Not walking. We sat down on the deck (gross, I know), and looked through the railing at all the sights WDW assembled. Plus, it was shaded, so it was cool. Was it anything to write home about? Not really. But again, it was nice to relax and take some cute pictures. Will we ride it in March? Sure, if its not being refurbed (but I think it is).

Oh wow @ makeout people! I think at that point I'd be like.. "Uhm... there are children around. Perhaps you should take this back to your room?" I mean, I get being affectionate ... but some things should not be viewed by young eyes!

That's awesome that your DH gets picked at Laugh Floor! I wish mine would get picked, too. Maybe its because my DH talks Turtle?

I love the castle pic with the kids!

Wow! Waiting an hour and a half for an ADR?? That's awful! Did they ever say why the wait was so long? Especially since you commented that it didn't look crowded ... I'm all asking if we've been forgotten at the 20 minute mark (nicely, of course -- catch more flies with honey).

Sorry to hear of your room issues. Glad everyone got their business taken care of!

Glad to hear that Jermiah is feeling better now! Also glad to hear you enjoyed a lovely Chattanooga excursion!

My husband told me if we stopped going to Disney so much he could have this:

Glad to hear most of you had a great Mission Space experience!

Okay, all caught up. Can't wait to read more!

 

[ohboyx3]

Comments galore! Taking notes in a separate window ... because I can relate a little too much to Dory.

Your DS Jeremiah: I love your comment


Just to let you know, Jeremiah will turn out all right I married my own Jeremiah (well, at least his name does start with a J). I usually find the "This is not the husband you're looking for..." comment funny ... unless he's already in pretty big trouble. Then, not so much. And, hey, those conventions are pretty fun! (Not WDW fun, but fun nonetheless.) Sorry, the nerd in me is all cheering him on and encouraging it. I can't help it.

You have a beautiful family!

@ surprise video
"I knew it!" One DS was in shock and the other was like "Duh, let's just go already!" I thought your DS was going to go into shock -- it sounded like he stopped breathing from excitement for a few minutes! Totally love your surprise video!!

I can't wait to hear about the SWW surprise!!! I bet they were beyond excited!

Funny that you mention the GPS on the iPhone. Did you read how many times my DH used it and got us lost??? Of course, each time it was my fault.

I totally agree with the: Try everything once scenario. This is our rule, too. And I said the same thing to my DS... that it was a "fun, little train ride". He hated it, too. (As well as Splash.) But in my case ... DS won't even get on a real train. I'm a horrible mom.

Poor Jonas @ IASW. OH MY @ "huge drop" comment he made to Cole. That sounds like something my DD would do. Bless his little heart! I'm anxious to hear if you was able to ever get him on anything else afterwards.

We love Columbia Harbor House! Glad you guys enjoyed it. Do you recall where the boys went for their burgers?

Pocket-bacs are awesome! I'm a fanatic about that, too. DH is all "you'll be fine, don't worry about it", but I still make him take a squirt. The kids have learned, and they have their hands ready before I can even get it out of my purse.

We rode the Liberty boat a couple of years ago. It was a nice little ride. They had a narrative ("Mark Twain" I think) and it was scenic. The best part? Not walking. We sat down on the deck (gross, I know), and looked through the railing at all the sights WDW assembled. Plus, it was shaded, so it was cool. Was it anything to write home about? Not really. But again, it was nice to relax and take some cute pictures. Will we ride it in March? Sure, if its not being refurbed (but I think it is).

Oh wow @ makeout people! I think at that point I'd be like.. "Uhm... there are children around. Perhaps you should take this back to your room?" I mean, I get being affectionate ... but some things should not be viewed by young eyes!

That's awesome that your DH gets picked at Laugh Floor! I wish mine would get picked, too. Maybe its because my DH talks Turtle?

I love the castle pic with the kids!

Wow! Waiting an hour and a half for an ADR?? That's awful! Did they ever say why the wait was so long? Especially since you commented that it didn't look crowded ... I'm all asking if we've been forgotten at the 20 minute mark (nicely, of course -- catch more flies with honey).

Sorry to hear of your room issues. Glad everyone got their business taken care of!

Glad to hear that Jermiah is feeling better now! Also glad to hear you enjoyed a lovely Chattanooga excursion!





Glad to hear most of you had a great Mission Space experience!

Okay, all caught up. Can't wait to read more!

Thank you!!!! I feel blessed with my family. Glad you're enjoying!!! I think we could bff's if you lived close!! Jeremiah is funny... Just wait til he does Jedi training later in the trip... His DREAM COME TRUE!

I think they ended up going to Pecos Bills for their burgers. It was a favorite of ours last trip and once dh finds a favorite he could eat their every meal! Thanks so much for reading!!!!!
Another update coming up!

 

[ohboyx3]

Back with an update. I’ve had a migraine all day. It has finally eased off. Trying to get as much updating in as possible. Fall Break is over and the boys resume school tomorrow. Ugh. Back to the grind, which also means I’ll be subbing and returning to my classes. It has been so much fun reliving this vacation though that I promise to finish the report in full… and not drag it out at that! So here we go with the rest of our Epcot day as I remember it…

With dh feeling more than a little queasy after riding ORANGE MS we decided to stop by Club Cool to get some free soft drinks. I have no pics of this, but I know we went! They still had the Watermelon flavor from China in May and that’s my favorite! The only person we could trick with the Beverly was Caroline… My kids had already tried it last trip and remembered! They steered clear this time! She, of course, made an awful face, but sadly I didn’t get a picture. DH had a few glasses of ginger ale and though not feeling perfect, was determined not to ruin our day! We headed back over to The Land and rode Living with the Land. This is one of my favorites, though I really miss the “real” tour guides we used to have on this ride. The audio just isn’t the same. I wanted the boys to ride this since we would be eating at Garden Grill tonight and I made sure to tell them that the salad we would be eating was GROWN right here in THE LAND! Oh who am I kidding…. Like they were even going to eat salad.

When we exited the ride Sunshine Seasons was pretty empty it was about 11 and I knew from our last trip that that place fills up fast, especially with all these school groups I had been seeing (but luckily not encountering…. Yet) so we decided to go ahead and eat. We were all pretty hungry anyways. Plus, I should mention that is was getting HOT out…. Pretty uncomfortable, so the more time spent in the air conditioning the better. Angela decided that she wanted to hit the World Showcase and eat lunch over there (I had actually planned a whole day in the WS) so she left Caroline with us and went off to do some shopping in another country.

Dh and Jonas held a table while I went to see what offerings they had. I remember exactly what I got. That’s how good it was! I got the sweet and sour chicken with rice and vegetables. Jeremiah and Cole got the kids drumstick with mashed potatoes and Jonas and dh had the rotisserie chicken with rice. We all really enjoyed my meals and it was such a nice change from the burgers and fries that we usually got for lunch and would continue to get for much of the trip! I had never eaten here, but we will definitely be doing some again. Here is a picture of my dessert:

I posted this on FB and was the envy of many. IT. WAS. GOOD. By far the best cheesecake I had on the trip much better than the fake stuff they give you in those little black containers at most CS places. I did make one mistake here. I ended up getting two chocolate chip cookies that I thought would be considered a dessert for the kids meals. Actually the kids meal snacks were in a different spot. I didn’t really care at this point and she ran them through as snack credits. We usually end up with some left over, so whatever. They wanted them and they enjoyed them, so that’s all that matters! Right?
Here is Jeremiah showing me his pins at lunch:

After enjoying our meal (the place was REALLY starting to fill up at this point) we decided to venture over to the World Showcase. This is where my park touring gets kind of screwed up. In my planning I had designated one full day to Future World and One full day (after a morning of sleeping in) to the World Showcase. I wanted a full day to explore the countries and planned on the boys doing all the Kim Possible missions. Future World was really crowded at this point. (There were a bunch of school kids on field trips since this was mid-May) I thought it would be a good idea to divert from the original plan and head over to WS and do the KP missions. In hindsight I wish I had stuck with the original plan. I feel like we spent a lot of time criss crossing the park (which is not an easy park to criss cross) and missing out on some of the attractions I wanted to see. Oh well!

We headed over to the WS stopping for our KIMmunicator along the way. I was really excited for this. I thought my boys would really like it. Our first mission was in Norway which would work out perfect. We were given a time to report there and it was about 20 minutes away which was just enough time for us to ride Maelstrom. We did, but skipped the movie after! Hee Hee!
After riding we got our first clue and were well on our way to saving the world. Here are a few pics of the boys and Caroline on their missions.

Dh took this time to find a shady spot under a pavilion and relax and make some phone calls. Truly I think he was still reeling from his mission to Mars earlier, but of course he wouldn’t tell me that!

We ended up doing 2 missions. One in Norway and one in Mexico. Though they were fun, I don’t think we could get the full effect because it was just so DARN HOT!!! It was scorching out at this point and we were all getting a bit crabby. One stinky thing that happened during the KP mission was we were on our last clue and there was someone right in front of us that solved it… so we saw the whole thing. Kind of spoiled the surprise. I don’t think that happens all the time. I think we just were unlucky. We would definitely do them again, but it would have been a much better activity to do later in the evening when it wasn’t so hot.

At this point I decided to go back to the original plan and head back to finish up what we had missed in Future World, but not before taking a quick trip on The Mexican Boat ride (Does anyone call it by it’s real name?) since it was a walk on! I don’t necessarily enjoy this ride… but I don’t think you can go to Epcot without doing it! It’s like an unspoken rule! Well…. Remember those school groups I told you about? We had managed to dodge them up until this point… There was a rowdy bunch that got in the bat behind us and they kept standing up in the boat!!!! Every time they would, we would stop and an announcement would come on to remain seated at all times. It was seriously annoying… They were being completely obnoxious. During the last part of the ride it stopped completely and were were stuck for several minutes. Joy. Lucky for us we managed to eventually make it out of Mexico and headed back towards Future World.

Have I mentioned how HOT it was??? It was a SCORCHER!

This was very different from our trips in January and took some getting used to.

I thought we would go into innoventions. We had never been in there before and I thought it would be a nice place to stay cool! So we headed that way, but not before stopping to use some snack credits. I can’t remember what we got…. But no one really felt like eating. TOO HOT! So I’m pretty sure they were used on frozen drinks of some sort. These became our friend throughout much of the trip!!!!
Oh and we stopped for some photo Ops. Loved the Cars topiaries!

Innoventions was a good diversion.

There was hardly anyone in there on a day when the park seemed really crowded in general. The boys and Caroline tinkered around in there. Even dh and I joined in the fun by making our own video game. Pretty cool stuff!!!!
Dh even tried the seguey.

I heard these aren’t there anymore, so I’m glad he got the chance to try. Jonas and Caroline were bummed that you had to be at least 16 to try.

One thing I remembered about Innoventions was a particular CM in a wheelchair that was trading pins. I wish I remembered his name or had taken a picture. He had special backs on his pins and they were turned around so the kids couldn’t see what they were. If they wanted to trade him they were certain to get a surprise! They all traded with him the maximum allowed (2 each) and he was so sweet to all of them. We spent a long time just chatting with him. I thought it was funny that they all ended up with pins that belonged to each other since they didn’t know what they were trading! Ha!!!!!
We left there and headed over to the Imagination pavilion where we rode Figment with no wait and then caught the next showing of Captain EO. Oh my…. 15 minutes of my life I can’t get back… Seriously. Umm… I can appreciate the fact that it was a pretty big deal back in the 80’s… but… yeah… time for a new show. I like Michael Jackson even… but that was just nuts!!!!! My boys were super disappointed. HISTA was one of their faves in Epcot. I keep hoping that by the time we go back they’ll have a new show. Wishful thinking???

Next we headed to THE SEAS and rode the Nemo ride and THEN is my all time favorite thing and that’s Turtle Talk. If you haven’t seen this then you are missing out. I just LOVE this little show!!!! The kids sat up in front and Cole was one of the first that was called on to ask Crush a question. For the life of me I can’t remember what his question was, but I do remember him asking if his parents were out in the audience and if we’d raise our hands….. Well I think I turned pretty red. Luckily it was dark in there. Dh was “the Big Kahuna!” He spent quite a bit of time talking to us… He asked if I thought it was a big responsibility to have kids and raise them, etc… to which I replied…. “TOTALLY.” And then he said…. “Jonas dude…. Your wife and I just shared a moment dude…..” LOL rotfl2: It was so funny and definitely a memory I will keep. LOVE. THIS. SHOW. Can’t say it enough!

We hung around The Seas and checked out the Manatees and then decided to backtrack and ride Spaceship Earth since we hadn’t managed to do that yet!

When we were there in January of ’08 they were just doing the soft opening and were able to ride right after the refurb. There were a few things added to the interactive parts at the end though that I didn’t remember. I always like this ride and it was nice and long… and air conditioned…

Have I mentioned that it’s hot out?

It’s getting pretty close to time for our ADR’s at GG. Angela called and said she is headed back toward The Land. We decide to meet up with her there and use our FP that we had gotten that morning for Soarin’.
We were lucky enough to get in the first row this time! Funny thing… After the CM had walked by our row and checked to see we were all good… the man sitting next to me took a beer bottle out of his shorts and set it on the ground in front of him. LOL He was doing it all sneaky like… What a goober. I don’t know why…. Just struck me funny.

We exited the ride and had to say our goodbyes to Angela and Caroline. We had our reservations at GG and they need to get back on the road. Caroline still had school. It was sad to see them go. It had been years since we had seen them and we really enjoyed spending time with them both. We both said we wanted to do this again soon. It made me very thankful after saying goodbye to know that we still had SIX more days!

Hoping that we would not experience the long wait we had at Ohana’s the previous night I checked us in at GG and within minutes we were seated!

Can I hear a WOO HOO?

I had been highly anticipating this dinner. I had wanted to eat here two previous trips, but always ended up booking something else in it’s place. It did not disappoint!!! This may have ended up being my favorite. It was our first character interaction of the whole trip. My boys never wanted to stand in lines to meet them, so this was great for us. The interaction was awesome.

They all came around several times during our meal. Of course… I managed to tick off Dale by saying….

“Oh LOOK! The SQUIRRELS ARE HERE!!!!” Bahahahahaha! My family didn’t know I was going to say that. He got MAD and threw the autograph book down and stormed off. LOL!!!

Never fear….. he came back and we made up.

I also asked Mickey when he was going to give Minnie a ring to which he tried to pull mine off my finger…

Here is Pluto trying eat me….

All in all it was fantastic. We had fun playing with them and in return they gave us lots off attention. It’s important not to take yourself too seriously at Disney. I realized that this trip and it was much more enjoyable…
Characters aside the food was good too. I think we got second and third helpings of just about everything…. That’s in part because they bring you like one piece of everything per person to begin with….. that part was sort of annoying. TWELVE year olds can EAT ok…. Trust me there isn’t going to be any waste at our table. Ha Ha!

My favorite part was probably the rolls and delicious honey butter. To. Die. For. Oh… and the salad… I think it just tastes better since it’s grown right there… Don’t you?
My husband really enjoyed the fish.

Oh about ¾ of the way through the meal my husband says… “I just realized we’re moving… “ LOL He’s a keeper I tell you!

With full bellies we left The Land and Epcot. Knowing we’d be back later in the week we chose to skip illuminations. We put in a full day and the heat had just zapped us. It was back to the resort for more swimming and bed.
All in all it was a FANTASTIC day!

Up next….. A change in the plan, We get our surf on and KETCHUP!!!!!!

 

[Lidian]

Thank you!!!! I feel blessed with my family. Glad you're enjoying!!! I think we could bff's if you lived close!! Jeremiah is funny... Just wait til he does Jedi training later in the trip... His DREAM COME TRUE!

I think they ended up going to Pecos Bills for their burgers. It was a favorite of ours last trip and once dh finds a favorite he could eat their every meal! Thanks so much for reading!!!!!
Another update coming up!

Well, we aren't too far off! I'm just outside of Knoxville.

I can't wait to hear about your JTA experience! We wanted to sign up the kids, but the line was INSANE! Maybe in March we can get the kids signed up (and arrive at RD like I want).

I've not tried Pecos before. It just didn't sound appealing to me.

Back with an update. I’ve had a migraine all day. It has finally eased off. Trying to get as much updating in as possible. Fall Break is over and the boys resume school tomorrow. Ugh. Back to the grind, which also means I’ll be subbing and returning to my classes. It has been so much fun reliving this vacation though that I promise to finish the report in full… and not drag it out at that! So here we go with the rest of our Epcot day as I remember it…

Ouch! Sorry to hear about the migraine! I've had several this month, and that's just not normal for me. Hope it stays away!

I posted this on FB and was the envy of many. IT. WAS. GOOD. By far the best cheesecake I had on the trip much better than the fake stuff they give you in those little black containers at most CS places.

I think this is the best thing to do ... snap pics of yummy food and post it to Facebook! Make EVERYONE jealous. I'm a huge cheesecake lover ... and I haven't found any bad cheesecake at WDW. Glad to hear you enjoyed it so much!!!

Dh took this time to find a shady spot under a pavilion and relax and make some phone calls. Truly I think he was still reeling from his mission to Mars earlier, but of course he wouldn’t tell me that!

I've learned that men won't admit to making less than ideal choices. I do hope he perked up later!

At this point I decided to go back to the original plan and head back to finish up what we had missed in Future World, but not before taking a quick trip on The Mexican Boat ride (Does anyone call it by it’s real name?) since it was a walk on! I don’t necessarily enjoy this ride… but I don’t think you can go to Epcot without doing it! It’s like an unspoken rule!

Wait... it's not named The Mexican Boat ride? What IS it called? It's what we've always called it to. It's what our WoW friends even called it -- "Hey we wanna ride that Mexican boat ride with Donald and them."

Well…. Remember those school groups I told you about? We had managed to dodge them up until this point… There was a rowdy bunch that got in the bat behind us and they kept standing up in the boat!!!! Every time they would, we would stop and an announcement would come on to remain seated at all times. It was seriously annoying… They were being completely obnoxious. During the last part of the ride it stopped completely and were were stuck for several minutes. Joy. Lucky for us we managed to eventually make it out of Mexico and headed back towards Future World.

WOW! That's just awful that they tried to ruin everyone's experience.

Oh and we stopped for some photo Ops. Loved the Cars topiaries!

Those topiaries were awesome! Since we missed the F&G festival, I didn't expect to see ANY topiaries ... DS is a huge Cars fan, so he was tickled pink! They were stunning!

Next we headed to THE SEAS and rode the Nemo ride and THEN is my all time favorite thing and that’s Turtle Talk. If you haven’t seen this then you are missing out. I just LOVE this little show!!!! The kids sat up in front and Cole was one of the first that was called on to ask Crush a question. For the life of me I can’t remember what his question was, but I do remember him asking if his parents were out in the audience and if we’d raise our hands….. Well I think I turned pretty red. Luckily it was dark in there. Dh was “the Big Kahuna!” He spent quite a bit of time talking to us… He asked if I thought it was a big responsibility to have kids and raise them, etc… to which I replied…. “TOTALLY.” And then he said…. “Jonas dude…. Your wife and I just shared a moment dude…..” LOL rotfl2: It was so funny and definitely a memory I will keep. LOVE. THIS. SHOW. Can’t say it enough!

OMG! You speak Turtle, too!!! Crush talked to DH (DD was picked and said that dad drove us). He said "totally" and Crush was all... 'blank stare' and then said "they shared a moment". I'd totally see Turtle Talk on a Kid-free visit.

Hoping that we would not experience the long wait we had at Ohana’s the previous night I checked us in at GG and within minutes we were seated!

I had been highly anticipating this dinner. I had wanted to eat here two previous trips, but always ended up booking something else in it’s place. It did not disappoint!!! This may have ended up being my favorite. It was our first character interaction of the whole trip. My boys never wanted to stand in lines to meet them, so this was great for us. The interaction was awesome.

They all came around several times during our meal. Of course… I managed to tick off Dale by saying….

“Oh LOOK! The SQUIRRELS ARE HERE!!!!” Bahahahahaha! My family didn’t know I was going to say that. He got MAD and threw the autograph book down and stormed off. LOL!!!

Never fear….. he came back and we made up.

I also asked Mickey when he was going to give Minnie a ring to which he tried to pull mine off my finger…

Here is Pluto trying eat me….

All in all it was fantastic. We had fun playing with them and in return they gave us lots off attention. It’s important not to take yourself too seriously at Disney. I realized that this trip and it was much more enjoyable…
Characters aside the food was good too. I think we got second and third helpings of just about everything…. That’s in part because they bring you like one piece of everything per person to begin with….. that part was sort of annoying. TWELVE year olds can EAT ok…. Trust me there isn’t going to be any waste at our table. Ha Ha!

My favorite part was probably the rolls and delicious honey butter. To. Die. For. Oh… and the salad… I think it just tastes better since it’s grown right there… Don’t you?
My husband really enjoyed the fish.

Oh about ¾ of the way through the meal my husband says… “I just realized we’re moving… “ LOL He’s a keeper I tell you!

I'm so glad to hear your review of GG! Question: Can you "feel" it moving? I know it moves slowly ... and that it takes like an hour to make a full rotation, but I don't know how big it is -- or anything.


Great update! Can't wait for more!

 

[okw19]

Great update! Cheesecakes looks delicious!
Sounds like Crush liked you a lot.
Garden Grill sounds yummy!

 

[Lifelong_Dreamer]

I know it is mean to laugh at your DH feeling sick after Mission Space but it always boggles my mind why our families never listen to us when we give advise about something in the parks. We didn't do all the research for nothing! Trust us, we know what we are talking about!

 

[ohboyx3]

Time for another update! Crazy week back at school after Fall break. My husband and I also celebrated our 14th Wedding anniversary. Crazy huh? GOOD NEWS! My husband and I decided…… drum roll…. To go on a DISNEY CRUISE for our 15th wedding anniversary next year! Yep Yep! Next Fall Break the boys and us will be cruising for 7 nights on the Disney Fantasy. I’m so excited. It seems so far away, but hey… the anticipation is half the fun. We’ve never cruised before, so this will be an experience! K. Enough of that! On with the update!

When I last left we had left Epcot after a fantastic dinner at Garden Grill. A full day in the parks when it was roasting hot outside had done us in. The original plan for Friday was to go to Animal Kingdom with a late dinner at Whispering Canyon. After two park commando days I was out voted and we opted to visit a water park. Typhoon Lagoon it was. Now I am going to be honest. I just don’t like water parks. Can’t stand them actually… BUT it is pretty much the highlight of the trip for everyone else. So…. Every time I suck it up and we go. This trip we had planned two water park days to visit both TL and BB. In January usually only one or the other is open. Even I after the busy and scorching days was ready for a break, and sitting on a beach chair next to the wave pool sounded pretty darn good indeed. SO….. GASP! We diverted from my carefully organized and scrutinized plan!!!!! I was determined this trip to sort of go with the flow and enjoy and that’s exactly what I did… With 9 days I didn’t feel the need to cram everything in like in previous trips.

So….. the next morning we headed out to Typhoon Lagoon. It didn’t really hurt our ADR’s for this day because I had made it a late night seating to begin with. I figured we could put a good, full day in at the water park and then come back, relax and clean up for our dinner at WCC.
We got there at park opening and scored a couple of great spots near the wave pool since this would be where they would be spending most of their time. It was beautiful day! This was my view:

I made everyone jealous again on FB when I posted this!


I think the boys rode everything at least once. Here are a few pics of the boys and the slides:

I took some video, but can't for the life of me find it... When I do I'll be sure to post it.

I got in on the fun and went on some slides! I even tried the “Crush N Gusher.” It wasn’t nearly as scary as they make it sound in all the travel books. If you are in doubt… DO IT! Honestly… I hate any type of water ride and I actually thought this was a blast! TIP: Don’t drag your butt!!! It hurts! LOL

I don't know why there wasn't a photo pass person at the exit to CandG... I always thought there was in the past. Honestly I don't think I saw a PP person there the whole day. That part was a little disappointing.


They even tried the shark reef. I have one gripe about this….. I think the age limit is too low… They make it sound like it is for anyone, but I saw more than one kid chicken out once they got in the water. It’s seriously geared for older kids and adults.

Here is a pic of Cole posing. He wanted me to make it look “dramatic.”

Ha Ha
We stopped somewhere around noon and got some lunch. Basic burgers and fries. So good. You work up an appetite when you’re there that’s for sure.

I just love this pic of my men.

All in all it was a great day at TL and a much needed break from the parks.

The guys said they could have stayed in the wave pool all day. That is not for wimps people! I didn’t even go very far out and it was a little scary! I’m telling you those are some intense waves. I’m sort of a wimp when it comes to stuff like that… also it can beat you up. We all had scrapes from the rough bottom.

Oh one note…. The life guards at the Disney waterparks are phenomenal. I have never felt so safe. There is one every time you turn around and I always felt like they paid very good attention. I never felt the need to worry about my boys at all.

COntinued in next post...

 

[ohboyx3]

We stayed there all day almost until close. I was ready to go about 2 hours prior, but I sucked it up for everyone elses benefit.

After waiting and waiting and waiting entirely too long for a bus back to the All Star resorts we made it back to our temporary home. Bus service to and from the water parks to the All Star resorts stink. Bottom line. I can deal with it though…..

We relaxed for a bit… Can you believe Cole asked to go swimming after a FULL day in the water park??? I swear he’s part fish… Anyways the answer was NO. I felt like I had gotten a good start on my tan. A little sun… but not too much… I applied sunscreen on the boys liberally as I was not about to let a sunburn ruin our fun.

We changed into the nicer clothes we had brought for the boys. Of course I was met with “Why do I have to wear this button up shirt?” But Guess what? I sucked up the water park… so they get to suck up being in Khakis…

Don’t they look so gosh darn cute?

We headed out to dinner with plenty of time to spare… The plan was to catch whatever bus (either MK or EP) came first, because we were going to have to get to WCC from one of those places. Epic fail. This was a complete disaster. Mainly because I had a major brain fart. I mean a serious one. It kind of makes me laugh now, but it really wasn’t funny right then. Next time I will just drive. It would have been way easier. Anyways… I can’t even remember now which bus we caught. I want to say it was the Epcot bus… but it doesn’t matter because here is where I made my first blooper. We caught the Monorail from there. Yes.. You heard right… The MONORAIL. LOL. What the crap was I thinking? I blame it on being waterlogged. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it. About the time we reached the POLY I turned to myhusband and told him… “Um.. Yeah… so I just thought we would take a scenic little jaunt by monorail to see what all the other resorts looked like..” He wasn’t buying it and everyone was getting more than a little cranky because we were hungry. After a day at the water parks. We all were famished! So…. We cycled back through until it let us off at the MK and from there we got the boat. I honestly don’t know what I was thinking! I knew good and well there was no monorail stop at Wilderness Lodge. I just got caught up in everything and away we went!

Luckily for us we caught the boat right before it launched and enjoyed a really nice ride over to the WL.

It was an absolutely gorgeous night.

In walking up to the lobby where we could check in for our ADR’s you walk right by the pool area. Well Let me tell you… we were feeling pretty crummy about our dinky little all star pool right then. Dh was like ..”How come we can’t stay somewhere like this? Look at that hot tub?” To which I replied, “Oh… I don’t know…. Maybe because it’s about three times as much?!?!?!” Well he let it be known that “next time” we would stay here. Even if it meant us saving up for awhile.  I was just happy I heard the words “next time” utter from his lips. Also note to self: I never realized how big the pool/ hot tub area was to my family. I guess because I’m just not much of a water person. Well I definitely know now. It would definitely be worth it for us to book a resort with a better pool. I do think we were spoiled from our previous trips where both resorts had amazing water areas. So…. I’m kind of looking at the Beach Club for next time. Although I don’t know if I’d ever get my crew to leave and go to the parks. I digress….

So We were just about 15 minutes late for our ADR, but it didn’t seem to matter. We were able to get seated right away. I absolutely loved the lobby of the WL. It’s worth eating here just to experience it. I can see now why it’s the favorite resort of so many.

This meal was excellent. Most of my boys would say this place was a highlight. Our server was great! But… a little scary! HA!!!!! She reminded me of Rosie in Bye Bye Birdie… Ever seen it? Ha! At one point my husband leaned over to me and said, “She’s scaring me!” LOL. He was a bit intimidated. It was great fun though… and we love this sort of stuff. If you are wanting a quiet dinner and not to be bothered, this is not the place for you!
I believe we all got the skillets and Cole got a cheeseburger and fries. He was the only one at our table that needed ketchup. Well.. this is what happened when he asked for it. I just love the expression on his face here.

And my husband asked for a large Coke. Hahahahahaha! Awesome.

She was throwing straws at us and playing with us all evening. I don’t think my boys knew what to make of her.

She especially liked to pick on Cole. She had him come with her and introduced him to a little girl at another table. He was super shy!!!!!

The food was excellent, but I’d ear here again just for the entertainment factor. Definitely a must do from us from now on.
We paid our bill and left a good tip for our server (by far the best we had thus far) We had folded it into a ring and had Cole give it to her. She LOVED it and showed it off to everyone around.
Eat here if you get a chance. You won’t regret it!


The boat had just left and we were told we would have to wait awhile for the next one….. because of THIS

Now I had always wanted to see it, but never planned for it. Imagine my surprise and excitement that we just sort of fell into it like we did. I couldn’t believe our perfect timing. I believe we got a little bit of pixie dust.
The weather was beautiful with just the perfect amount of breeze. We were able to enjoy the parade with just one other family waiting for the boat on the dock.

I can now cross this off my list of things to do at Disney. It was really sweet and the boys enjoyed it, as did my husband.

We boarded the boat once it was over and enjoyed a very peaceful ride back.

Caught the bus this time and all crashed pretty easily. What a day!


Final thoughts on this day: It was just what we needed to kind of rejuvenate us. Although we kept busy at TL it is different than park touring. Even though it isn’t my cup of tea I’m definitely glad we did it.


Next up: A surprise opening, Our SWW experience, and “Idol” time[/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]

 

[Lifelong_Dreamer]

You are going to love your Disney Cruise! Have you decided yet if you are going to do Eastern or Western? Mom and I did the Eastern a few years ago and loved it!

Sounds like you had a good day even though you don't like water parks (crazy woman! ).

Don't worry about the monorail thing, we all have our "duh" moments.

Glad you liked the Wilderness Lodge, that was our first resort and it is still my favourite.

 

[kokotg]

Sounds like a great day! I hate water parks, too....so far we've managed to keep ours from being too interested in them by suggesting we wait until the two younger ones are stronger swimmers. But I'm sure a trip is in our future somewhere!

We stayed at Wilderness Lodge our first trip, and it was lovely...but then once Gus hit 3 we couldn't fit in one room anymore, so it was pretty much out for us. I hate that the two most affordable deluxes are the only ones that only sleep 4! Someday I'm going to have to force myself to skip a year so that we can save up and stay in a deluxe.

 

[ohboyx3]

You are going to love your Disney Cruise! Have you decided yet if. you are going to do Eastern or Western? Mom and I did the Eastern a few years ago and loved it!

Sounds like you had a good day even though you don't like water parks (crazy woman! ).

Don't worry about the monorail thing, we all have our "duh" moments.

Glad you liked the Wilderness Lodge, that was our first resort and it is still my favourite.

It really depends on when the boys fall break will be this coming year, but I think we are doing the Eastern. I am SOOO excited.... but it's so expensive! Everyone says it is worth it. I have a year to save!

 

[ohboyx3]

Sounds like a great day! I hate water parks, too....so far we've managed to keep ours from being too interested in them by suggesting we wait until the two younger ones are stronger swimmers. But I'm sure a trip is in our future somewhere!

We stayed at Wilderness Lodge our first trip, and it was lovely...but then once Gus hit 3 we couldn't fit in one room anymore, so it was pretty much out for us. I hate that the two most affordable deluxes are the only ones that only sleep 4! Someday I'm going to have to force myself to skip a year so that we can save up and stay in a deluxe.

I so agree.... I think next time we will try the cabins at FW.

 

[Busymom85]

I'm enjoying your report so far. A cruise how fun! Thanks for posting.

 

[Busymom85]

I'm enjoying your report so far. A cruise how fun! Thanks for posting.

 

[shan23877]

Great updates!

I'm not sure we're water park people, but they do look fun! Maybe once DD is older we'll do it...

I want to try WCC one of these days, but DH doesn't seem to keen on it. Probably because he'd be the one asking for ketchup!

Anniversary cruise!!! How great! DH wants us to do one for our 10th spring 2013. Sounds perfect!!

 

[okw19]

I'm not a water park person either so I felt your pain as I read. Glad you tried out some things and had fun though!
Dinner at WCC is always fun, and the boys look so cute in their button ups!