The Great Pink Mickey Croc Tour..last pics 08/09, last words 08/15

[MAGICFOR2]

June 6th Part 2:

So as we head over to MGM on the bus - I don't remember much about the ride, must have been okay - we notice it is clouding up - we are in the Sunshine state besides, I left the ponchos in my suitcase!

We arrive, get a stroller, take a bathroom break - okay what can we do? It is about 3pm, we have ADRs at Sci-Fi for 6:10. I really want to do the backlot tour, am hoping for Indiana Jones and The Great Movie Ride, maybe the Muppet movie. So, we can't seem to find our way toward the Backlot, but stop at The Great Movie ride - about a 20 minute wait - we all enjoyed the drama - Jedi was a little worried about our tour guide We head over toward Star Tours - almost no line, so all but Grumpy jump in line - Jedi is stoked! Princess laughs all through this ride, and Jedi is thoroughly entertained! We jump out just in time to see Jedi training!!!! We manage to get up to the front with Jedi, who is entranced! (Please be assured, we were very polite and waited for an opening - no cutting here!)

...he practices his Jedi moves for the rest of the day!

Just as we are walking out - looking for the road to Backlot - the sky opens up! We make a run for the "big hat" We take shelter with many others, waiting for the rain to let up - which we are sure it will. Actually, it does let up, a little after about 10 minutes. So, where to now? I think we did a little shopping, it rained again, the kids are really tired, so we decide that Fantasmic probably is out - it is 5:45, we are cold and wet - could we maybe get a table early???? We check in and are told we may have to wait, but at least we are out of the rain! We only waited about 10 min, and we are led to our car! Our waiter asked who would be driving, Jedi or Princess? They both want to drive, so he tells them they are both driving! I love this place! We had some delicious spinach artichoke dip, onion rings and grumpy had Chili for appetizers. Alice and I had pasta with shrimp, which was delicious, although a little dry. We picked out all of the shrimp and left most of the pasta. We had hot fudge sundaes for dessert! I had a blue "glowtini" or two - the kids enjoyed the ice cubes. Alice had something else that was glowing! Our waiter was funny and took pics for us - gave us a "parking violation" for our ticket! The adults enjoyed the theme - the kids were a little confused

So, with it pouring down rain, we head for the bus and huddle under the sort-of cover waiting for a bus - about 40 minutes! We get a seat, and there is standing room only - everyone with ponchos is dripping on us and the air conditioner on the bus is We head back to the resort and get dried out - watch a little Star Wars on the TV - early to bed early to

TYPHOON LAGOON!

 

[MAGICFOR2]

Thursday, June 7th

Today is our Typhoon Lagoon day! Now if you remember, Jedi really wanted to snorkel! He was hoping we could go to the ocean so he could snorkel, but it seemed the ocean was a little rough for an 8 year old, so we settled for the shark tank at Typhoon Lagoon. We decided today would be a good day to sleep in! We took our time getting ready, and arrived at the "beach" at about 10:30am! After getting everyone "sunscreened up" it was time to head out for the snorkel!

We got our equipment, got in line - and we started dropping like flies! First, Princess thinks she would rather not swim with sharks.... Grumpy decides he will stay out with her. Now Alice tells me she has never snorkeled before and I, being pretty inexperienced and not so comfortable myself with breathing through a tube, feel suddenly overwhelmed with responsibility for both of them I frantically call Grumpy back - he is a certified diver - he should take them - No, we'll be fine - really.

So, we get up to the front, practice putting on our masks, put on our masks, kneel in the water - all the while the lifeguard is yelling at us - I am feeling really pressured, but for Jedi I can do this! Somehow, I thought she yelled to GO! I start forward, and "WAIT! Wait- just kneel here, maam"
Okay, not we are told to start moving forward and don't stop!

So, I start forward, get salt water in my mouth, tread water while I try to clear the snorkel - I look around for Jedi and Alice - they are still sitting on the platform! I swim back, while the lifeguard is yelling at me to keep going. Jedi and Alice have decided that this is not the moment for them, so we all climb out and head back down the path to turn our equipment back in.

So, we decide we can have fun today, and Grumpy says he will take Jedi if he changes his mind. We headed up to Gangplank Falls - we had fun in two rafts - Princess giggled - we came out laughing and pleasantly cooled off!
Then we jumped into Castaway Creek! There was quite a traffic jam, but it was relaxing and fun anyway! A photopass guy took Princess's pic and threw her a bracelet with a photopass card on it. She lost it in the hext hour I am working on tracking it down now.

We played in the wave pool, and then Grumpy and Jedi headed off to try the snorkel again. Jedi got in with Grumpy and tried his hardest - he got the priviledge of riding on the lifeguard float, while a couple of lifeguards helped him through the pool Jedi was really disappointed with himself, but we told him he was very brave for trying something new and scarey!

The girls ordered lunch and got a table while the boys finished their swim. We had a fun lunch - there's something about eating outside barefoot near the water under tropical trees that just makes whatever you're eating taste great! I think that's what we ate - WHATEVER! No, really I can't remember, but I think it was a BBQ chicken sandwich and a fruit cup. We bought the refillable mugs here, so had lots to drink out in the sun!

After lunch, a good nap in the was in order! Everyone else set out to try the slides, and I settled into my chair with my book for a nap! I got a little rested, and then they crew came back to take me with them for another "float around." We were thinking about leaving soon, but it started raining, so we gathered up our belongings and headed out for the bus. We wanted to get cleaned up early for our HOOP-DE-DOO!!!! We had 7:15 ADRsw and weren't really sure how we were getting there.

I don't have pics of TL - I brought a disposable underwater camera, but ended up only taking a couple of pics, so I gave it to Jedi, who had a blast with it in the pool. We got back at about 3:30, giving ourselves time for another "pool drink" and a quick nap before we had to get ready to leave!

Next: HOOP-DE-DOO!

 

[zweihund]

The snorkelling sounds great, Tammie - that would have TOTALLY been me.

 

[Debbie6221]

Lovin listening! Thanks for sharing! Talk to you next week!

 

[pamouselover]

Thanks for the report. It got me even more exicted about going to disney.
Thanks for the finding Nemo picture, this aug willbe our first time seeing it, as it was closed in 2005 when we were there.
Check out my pre trip report!

 

[MAGICFOR2]

Hiya, its Tessa - another Worry Warter....

I love the trippie so far - must take heed and not plan too much - (that was my DH response ) but I reckon I will also be guilty of the overplan....
Love the pics, must learn how to post them too.. I want to be there NOW - just 10 months to go aaarrrggghhhhh... hope there's more to come... love reading trippies..
Tessa

Hi Tessa! Somehow I missed your post - maybe I was cross-eyed from posting so much! My DH says he is glad I plan, but he doesn't want all of our moments to revolve around 'THE PLAN' da-da-da-da! So, I guess I will try not to plan so much next time. Our next trip is our cruise - maybe I'll let the cruise director plan that one!

The snorkelling sounds great, Tammie - that would have TOTALLY been me.

I know - I SO wanted to look like I knew what I was doing! I think I'll just wait for CC next time!

Lovin listening! Thanks for sharing! Talk to you next week!

Thanks Debbie, hope you had a great weekend!

Thanks for the report. It got me even more exicted about going to disney.
Thanks for the finding Nemo picture, this aug willbe our first time seeing it, as it was closed in 2005 when we were there.
Check out my pre trip report!

Glad you are liking it, Pam! I love to read TRs when I am getting ready to go - no matter how far away it is! I will be on your pre-trippie!

 

[Lovin Life]

Great so far, Tammie! How many days did you stay on this trip?

Good for you and DN/Jedi to try the snorkeling! You did more than I would have done! So, you loved the water park? We haven't tried that yet, but hope to some day if we go during the summer instead of fall.

Did you say you got a stroller? I wish that there was one big enough for my DD9. That sounds ridiculous, but she is not excited about doing all of the walking that we do there. In between having fun, she will fuss and complain about the walking and being tired (in WDW -- can you believe it??!) , and I would rather just push her than hear her do that!

OK - KEEP IT COMING!!

Hugs,
Pam2, fellow Control Freak and Worry Wart!!

 

[MAGICFOR2]

Hey Pam! We were there for 9 days! Typhoon Lagoon was okay, but we really like Blizzard Beach much better! We did that one during one of our last days. It is warm enough for a water park in the early Fall. Do you go in November?

Funny about the stroller - Jedi is a big 8 yr old. - more like a 10 yr old. Princess is pretty average for a 7 yr old girl. They both fit pretty snuggly in a double - one day we got a single and jedi didn't fit. I saw someone pushing a girl who must have been 10 or 11 in a double. I really felt that kids that age should have lots of energy to walk - but it helped keep down the complaints and stall-outs, so I guess it was a good thing, after all!

Thanks for reading!

 

[MAGICFOR2]

Thurs, June 7th

I left off with us drying off from our TL day, getting some laundry done and enjoying a Mai Tai by the pool! Time to get ready for the famous Hoop-De-Doo Review!

Our ADRs, which were made 180 days in advance, were for the 7:15 show. So we dutifully got out to the bus stop at 5:00 - took the MK bus, then to the boat dock. We waited about 15 minutes for the boat, and then made a stop at Wilderness Lodge, and then on to Fort Wilderness! We really enjoyed the boat ride! It was a beautiful night and we were all looking forward to our "Hoe Down!"

We arrived 1/2 hour early!! It felt so good to be somewhere without stressing! I really enjoyed the atmosphere, even if it is a little like home. So, we checked in and got in line for pictures and just as we got to the front of the line, Princess and Alice had to do a bathroom break! So we stood at the front of the line, and kept letting people pass us for about 15 minutes until they came out. The photographer's assistant was very patient with us! We got our photo and bought some pins and another poncho in the little gift stand while waiting. I actually like this pic, so I scanned it in:[/QUOTE]

We were by this time way back at the end, but we already had a table assignment, so it didn't matter. We got a table on the first floor back near the door, but it was a tall table with tall chairs so they were great seats! We were served our beverages, delicious bread with honey butter and salad almost right away. We were just settling in, when a huge comotion took place, and the performers dressed in period "Fort Wildnerness" clothing came in through the door - since we were near the door, they stopped to say "howdy" to us on their way by! Now, the jokes were almost beyond corny, and the musical talent was questionable at best, but we had a great foot-stoppin' time! Jedi laughed so hard at one point that he fell off his Tall Chair!!!! Great memories for all of us! When they served the fried chicken, all of the waiters came around and without a word started simultaneously SLAMMING the cast iron pots of chicken on the tables as loudly as possible! The tables had red checked tablecloths, which matched the napkins, and the whole place was a huge log cabin! The Strawberry shortcake was delicious, and everything was served family style and all you care to eat! Here are some pics of the goin's on - some images are quite dark - sorry? Oh, and the grand finale? The most horrendous noise you ever heard, as each table was handed a washboard, and all of the kids were encourgaed to "play" them with a spoon Between this show and what I have heard about "whispering canyon," I would say that you would really love the Wildnerness resort area if you are from the "LOUD FAMILY" (for you Saturday Night Live fans).

Part 2: Wishes!

 

[MAGICFOR2]

As we finished our dinner, Alice was Wishing to see Wishes! Previously Jedi and Princess were too tired to make it to that, but tonight, everyone was in a good mood, and freshly wired up from the washboard concert!

So we after quite a long bathroom break, we caught one of the last buses to MK - guess what, no wait! Now Grumpy is pretty sure that he doesn't want to do this - "if we get in this crowd, we'll be TRAPPED I tell you, TRAPPED!!!! We didn't tell Alice and the kids about that - we just faced the danger head on!!!!

We came in on the right side of Main Street, turned right at the ice cream parlor - we looked up at the tomorrowland noodle station and noticed all of the tables were filled. We were standing on some steps leading down to outside seating for the ice cream parlor - it was roped off, and I saw people with ressies being let in - not sure what that was about - but I must make note of it for next time. Anyway the steps leading down there were an official smoking area - but only two people were smoking, and we were standing front row at a fence facing the castle with a perfect view!!! I looked up and saw that Tink's flight path was directly above us! We had awesome seats, and since we were outside, the occasional smoker was not too bad for an hour. Once Wishes started, no one smoked as it got a little crowded - but we had an awesome viewing area, and Tink flew right over us! Grumpy went to the candy store and came back with some novelty items that kept the kids entertained - the hour wait didn't seem too long!

Okay, here's why we made this trip: About half-way through Wishes, Jedi looked up at me and said, "I have a tear in my eye!" "Why?" "I just want to keep this memory in my heart forever. I want to bring my children back here, and their children, and even their children! I want to make it a family tradition!"

I had a tear in MY eye!

We left right after - we weren't trapped - kept moving all the way to the bus! I think WDW does a much better of traffic control than DL - they should go out there and take lessons!

Next Time: RETURN OF THE JEDI!

 

[Lovin Life]

Hey Pam! We were there for 9 days! Typhoon Lagoon was okay, but we really like Blizzard Beach much better! We did that one during one of our last days. It is warm enough for a water park in the early Fall. Do you go in November?

We have gone in November for the past 3 trips, and like that time of year, and we don't have to take the kids out of school. We put our feet in the POP pool in Nov '05, and we thought it was FREEZING! I guess we're wimpy!

Good reading! Jedi and Princess are so cute, and their smiles are just incredible. It looks like they are having the times of their lives. This just gets me so excited about our trip!!

Hoop-de-Doo sounds and looks like a blast!!

Pam2

 

[Beana9802]

Okay, here's why we made this trip: About half-way through Wishes, Jedi looked up at me and said, "I have a tear in my eye!" "Why?" "I just want to keep this memory in my heart forever. I want to bring my children back here, and their children, and even their children! I want to make it a family tradition!"

I had a tear in MY eye!

Oh MY! I have a tear in my eye!

 

[Debbie6221]

Great TR Tammie!

 

[MAGICFOR2]

We have gone in November for the past 3 trips, and like that time of year, and we don't have to take the kids out of school. We put our feet in the POP pool in Nov '05, and we thought it was FREEZING! I guess we're wimpy!

Good reading! Jedi and Princess are so cute, and their smiles are just incredible. It looks like they are having the times of their lives. This just gets me so excited about our trip!!

Hoop-de-Doo sounds and looks like a blast!!

Pam2

I guess you were POPscicles I just couldn't resist that one. You know, when we come in the fall, we already have frost at night and our daytimes are 60s - so it feels like Summer to us. We were at WDW in the middle of Oct and it was still 82 or so - we thought it was perfect!

Oh MY! I have a tear in my eye!

That is why we brought them on this trip - it was so special to hear that from an 8 yr old boy

Great TR Tammie!

Thanks for reading Debbie!

 

[MAGICFOR2]

Friday, June 8th

Today is our MGM/Epcot day! The plan is to get to MGM before opening so we can see the Storm Troopers open the park, and then to Epcot and see the Lands at the end of the day. This was a day we excercised flexibility and it turned out great

We somehow managed to get to our bus stop just at the right time to get on the MGM bus quickly! We are off to a great start! We got to MGM with about 10 min. to wait for the gates to open! Just as I had seen on the DIS, the storm troopers were harassing us from the top! One of them pointed out that you can tell who the tourists are because they are dressed funny. One of them wanted to go inside the park and ride the rides, but he couldn't because he had to try to stay up there and keep us out!!!

We headed directly for the stroller rental and the restrooms, as usual. We headed over to TOT for a FP. Alice and Grumpy plan to ride first and see if Jedi and Princess can ride. Princess is too small, and Jedi has decided that he doesn't want to anyway, so somehow we get 3 FP for RRC and 2 for TOT. I don't know for sure what the reasoning was, but it will cause a little stress later on.

Now we decided to go to the Jedi training and hopefully Jedi will get trained! We got right up to the front and there was a stand up comedy act from another planet:

When the head Jedi finally came out, it must have been about 100 degrees out there! Jedi dutifully jumped up and down and raised his hand - he really really wanted to get picked! But, somehow only the kids on either side of him got picked. Now I was really proud of him! He didn't get upset - there were adults who got upset that their kids didn't get picked. He just accepted and decided that he had already seen the training, so we didn't need to stay. There was some kind of special sale on Star Wars goodies, so we headed in to shop. Jedi really wanted a Darth Maul light saber. We found one, and they were going for $250 He is going to have to save his allowance and check out Ebay!

We found a couple of long character lines, but Jedi didn't want to wait in line - there were a couple of very short lines Oops! They were already closed, that's why they were short

Apparently, these two were guests. They agreed to pose for pics, but said they weren't allowed to give autographs. There were alot of people in costumes - I was surprised since Disney has a "no adult costume" policy.

So, we headed over to TOT and RRC. Now, I was going to ride with Jedi and Princess - but Jedi decided that he didn't want to ride anything if he couldn't ride TOT. That meant that either we would miss our FP time while I stayed with the kids, and then Princess wouldn't get to ride RRC either, or Mom had to let him come on TOT with her.

Anyway, he was really feeling brave, so Alice decided that she would take him with her, and Grumpy and I took Princess to RRC! Now, I heard that Jedi couldn't feel the force once he got in the car, ready to head off into the Twilight zone - But he quickly got over his fear and enjoyed the ride!

Princess, on the other hand, as soon as we boarded our car at RRC, said, "now THAT'S what I'm talkin' about!" We laughed and screamed our way to the concert and had a great time! Of course, at the end of the ride, she jumped up and down, "can we do it again?" But the FP was already past the time we intended to be at the park, so we had to say no.

Now we were really hot, so we headed over to the Magic of Disney Animation to cool off. Grumpy really loves this tour! We enjoyed the program, and then the tour. Along the way, we met Mr. Incredible!

We decided we were ready for lunch, so it was off to ABC Commissary for Cuban sandwiches, black beans, fruit, chocolate cake, plantain chips.
The kids had chicken strips and carrot sticks and fruit - they had our cake for dessert. We waited for a long time for our order, and it seemed like it was so chaotic in there - Grumpy and Jedi held a table while Alice and I ordered. When I got my tray, I had Princess hold onto my bag and follow me to the table. That was our routine when it was crowded - worked well.

After our tummies were full, we headed over to the backlot tour -it was really fun to watch their excitement when we got caught in the earthquake and rain storm!

Now everyone was getting really tired. So we decided that it would be a good idea to get some rest and cool off before our ADRs at Ohana! We will try to catch Epcot Lands on Sunday. So off to the bus we went. It was about 1:30pm. We got back to the room, took a short nap, went out to the pool for drinks and laundry. It was a really nice break!

Next: coconut races and space shuttle launch!

 

[disneyohana]

Love your TR so far. The pics are great.

 

[Lovin Life]

Next: coconut races and space shuttle launch!

Great job so far!

 

[MAGICFOR2]

Sorry I have been gone - I couldn't get in to the DIS I'm not sure what happened - I posted another installment late on Thurs night, and then was kicked out when I hit submit. I couldn't get back in on Friday either. I tried again on Monday when I came in from the lake and on Tuesday, but no luck. I contacted the DIS gods and I seem to be here now. I will post more very soon, I promise! Thanks for waiting

 

[MAGICFOR2]

Hi All! Hopefully I'm back! So...Friday, June 8th - Dinner at Ohana!

We had 7pm ADRs for Ohana for dinner. Now, I had heard great things about this place, and I love anything tropical, so I was pretty excited for this dinner. We got right on the MK bus, made it to the resort monorail - we asked if Jedi and Princess could "drive" the monorail. The CM had us wait for the next one, which was only about 10 minutes! Alice, Jedi and Princess went up front for their "monorail driver's license."

We got to the Poly a little early, and we really enjoyed looking around and taking pics. We went outside to the stream and floated a little boat that Princess had made out of leaves and a twig.

We went up to the bar and ordered some fruity drinks! Grumpy got something delicious in a pineapple, I don't remember the name. I got a lavacolada? I don't know what Alice got. We were seated before we were served - I had to go out and find our waitress and bring her to our table and "settle up." They don't run a tab for your table - Faux Pa!!

We loved this meal the best of all of our dinners! This dinner is served "family style" because "Ohana means family" We were reminded several times throughout the night, to which Jedi always responded, "and nobody gets left behind!" We had great service - two servers for the 5 of us. For appetizers, we had shrimp, egg rolls, delicious salad and won ton with dips. We had delicious banana bread!

A "hawaiian" lady came out playing her ukelele and called all of the children up to do a coconut race. The kids ran up and got their brooms and coconuts, and they had a great time! Jedi was the winner of the race, so he was pretty happy with himself! They were both awarded leis, and came back to join our table.

We were served our beef, chicken and pork from the fire pit - Yum! We also had some cheesy potatoes and delicious veggies. Just as we settled in to eat our meal - and while "the lady" was still singing, there erupted just behind us a loud cheer and clapping! We turned around, and they yelled, "the shuttle!" We ran to the window just in time to see the Space Shuttle climb up through the air and disappear into space! What a great surprise!

Of course the Hawaii lady had to come over and see what was upstagin her! Between our main course and dessert, she called the kids up to play music with her! I think Jedi was hooked:

We had a wonderful banana bread pudding with vanilla sauce for dessert, with some really good coffee, which was kind of hard to come by in the world.

After our tummies were full, we shopped in the gift shop - I bought a bunch of scrapbook items and some Mickey dish towels for my kitchen, which is black and white with red accents, and lots of Disney!

We left the Poly by boat, and headed back to MK - we decided to turn in early, as we had 8am ressies with "the boys" at Breakfastsaurus!

Next Time: We won a "Million Dreams Prize!"

 

[zweihund]

Looks fun, Tammie!