The Monsters Couldn't Keep Up With Mom 8/16-8/22

[MickeyMonstersMom]

Cast: Myself, 36; DD almost 12; DS 8

I took the Monsters for their first trip to celebrate DD’s 8th birthday in 2002, and promised a return for DS’s 8th. We could not go near his real birthday in January but I also could not pass up the Free Dining promotion as I would be flying to Florida anyway to escort the kids back from a visitation with their dad. Not only would we be celebrating DS’s birthday; for me I’d be seeing my children after 6 weeks away. I couldn’t wait! I’d considered surprising the kids, but ended up telling them in May, so we had already chosen our must-do attractions and restaurants. I made up some matching tank tops and bought other t-shirts as I’ve done on every big family trip. It did not turn out quite as I’d expected. Over the summer DD became a “tween” and her new (but decidedly not improved) personality just did not accept the magic of Disney. Where’s Peter Pan when you need him?

I’m going to do the entire trip report in one thread because it’s definitely more of a rant than a description of a magical family vacation. I debated even putting it out there, but readers may be able to glean some useful information in the midst of my angst (not to mention it feels good to get it off my chest)!

Day 1: Wednesday 8/16/06 - Homecoming
In order to get to the airport in plenty of time for the new security measures, I got up at 2:00 and arrived with lots of time to spare, so I settled in for the 2-hour wait before my flight took off. It was weird to be flying alone, the first time in over 20 years. There were several families there with men in camouflage, including several babies and toddlers. I noticed one young family in particular who kept trying to convince their little guy to stay put near their seats and considered suggesting they let him run while he had the chance, but kept my big mouth shut. Instead I chatted with a grandfather who was heading back home to Alabama, the state of my birth.

As we boarded, I noticed the men in camouflage getting on without their families, and as we taxied to the runway the pilot noted that those men were returning to Iraq after a leave. I fought tears as I joined the other passengers in an ovation for these men. The young man in the aisle seat in my row (our center seat was empty) snorted and tucked himself down into his seat to promptly fall asleep. He slept for the entire 3-hour flight, mouth open, sometimes drooling. At one point he moved and opened his eyes, so I took advantage of that moment to ask him to let me out to use the lavatory. He wasn’t happy about it, and I ended up slithering around his knees to get out. Upon returning I found him out cold again: he didn’t move when I tapped his shoulder twice and spoke loudly, so I took a deep breath and sort of vaulted over him into my seat! As we waited to disembark a lady behind us asked him if he’d taken something to sleep so soundly, but he said he’d simply gone without sleep the night before.

Luckily, the flight arrived in Atlanta 15 minutes ahead of schedule, giving me more breathing room in my otherwise tight connection window. Phew! Actually, I’m pretty impressed with that airport - those trains go pretty fast! I had time to eat a muffin I’d brought with me and get a drink at the water fountain - the coffee bar was just opening as my flight was due to board, with a large haggard-looking crowd gathered around the slowly rising gate. Ahhh, the joys of losing that caffeine dependency...

I was seated next to a lady who also loves Disney, although she had never heard of the DIS (can you believe it?!). An elderly couple boarded and raised a bit of a ruckus as they had been issued boarding passes for our seats. After a few tense minutes as the couple insisted that we move, an attendant pointed out that those boarding passes had been for their previous flight, and that their seats for this leg were further back in the plane. The man then said, “but we want these seats.“ What?! Thankfully, the attendant just shooed them along with no further incident. My neighbor and I talked the entire flight. It turns out she had just retired from Middle School teaching (I teach 7th grade Social Studies), so we talked shop for a bit before moving on to our Disney trips - she’s been to every park except the one in Tokyo, lucky her. Before I knew it, we’d landed at MCO at 11:30.

My ex met me at the airport (I hugged my kids!!!) and drove us to the Pop Century - nice of him. We were back in the World! Yay! There were about 20 families ahead of me at check-in, but the line just crawled. We waited an agonizing hour in that line, and then the CM said they had no preferred rooms left - yikes! Trying very hard to not appear to be giving the guy a hard time, I asked what happens then if I’ve paid for a preferred room. He decided to check again and found us #5301, right between the Hippy Dippy Pool and the smaller children’s area behind it. The room was not ready yet, so we left our luggage and headed for DS’s first priority, MGM, at 1:50.

By that time, TOT had a 50-minute wait so we grabbed FP’s (4:55 return time) and headed to RNRC which surprisingly posted a 30-minute wait. A mother and daughter were in line behind us: mom had been on before and loved it, but the college-age daughter was afraid of going upside down. DS assured her he went on when he was 5 (it was his first roller coaster, in fact) and had no problem. All three of us told her how smooth and fast it was - she wouldn’t be able to tell she’s upside down. I hope it worked out well for her: it was rougher than I remembered, and I was easily able to tell when the inversions came up. We left 25 minutes after getting in line and decided to see if we could get into the Sci-Fi early for our 3:00 ADR. We checked in at 2:30 and were seated at 2:55. Well, it earned us at least 5 minutes, right? (Dining report “sold” separately - watch for upcoming thread in that forum.)

After eating we lost steam, but wanted to stay in the park until our FP time for TOT. We stopped at Star Tours and DS was thrilled because he was seated at the end of the first row right next to our “pilot.” Then DD noticed the sign for Sounds Dangerous, which was on her “try it” list for this trip. DS sulked and whined that he didn’t want to do it, but ended up liking the show so much we went back later in the trip. We got to TOT right at the first minute of our FP window and zipped right on. We LOVED the random sequencing, especially the particular one we had that time! We even came to a stop and it felt as though the ride was over, but up we flew again for a few more rounds! Whee! However, it did not give the Dkids a second wind; they wanted to go to our room, so back on the bus we went.

After checking out the gift shop, we arrived back at the room at about 6:00 and were surprised to find no luggage waiting for us. A call to Bell Services informed me that we would not receive it for 2-3 hours yet, so DS and I went down and picked it up ourselves. DD announced that she was too tired to help and needed to rest, the first in a very long and infuriating string of similar announcements throughout our trip. I unpacked while DS told me about his summer and DD watched TV. After a take-out dinner from the food court eaten in our room, we settled in to watch “Angels in the Outfield” and went to bed. The room was quite cold to this Northerner who rarely uses A/C; I added a note to request extra blankets on our Mousekeeping tip envelope.

Day 2 coming soon...

 

[tiggerbell]

LOL! I feel your pain! My DDs (and I use that term VERY loosely sometimes!) were 16 & 13 when I took them to WDW alone for the 1st - and only - time.

Can't wait to hear the rest of the story!

 

[MickeyMonstersMom]

Day 2: Thursday 8/17/06 - So Much For the Itinerary
DD, usually a freakishly early riser, got up at 3:00 and cracked the bathroom door open to read magazines on the floor by the sink. I’d set the alarm for 6:00 and got DS up in time for all of us to be at the bus stop at 7:00 for EMH at MK, munching granola bars along the way. Our plan was to get to Tomorrowland as soon as possible for DS to try SM for the first time. We waited for the official opening ceremony - which I have somehow never seen in all my trips - and then hustled up Main Street USA and to the right. I kept telling the kids to expect a rope at any minute, but to my amazement, the CM’s just stood back and let us run! I had a bit of a flashback for a minute there! DS couldn’t keep up with the stampeding herd, so we just trotted through the park and the queue to find a 5-minute wait. I warned DS that SM would seem tame after RNRC, but reminded him that this was a classic and needed to be appreciated in context of the time it was created. I could have saved my breath - DS loved it! We intended to get a FP for later, but there was such a mob at the machines we left well enough alone. Second on the list we’d developed months ago was Stitch’s Great Escape - DS had talked of little else for weeks - but suddenly DS decided he wanted nothing to do with it. OK, then skipping that, on to DD’s choice of the Tomorrowland Indy Speedway.

Now, from the moment she emerged from the resort room this morning, DD had been a major wet blanket, disparaging everything Disney as “cheesy” and embarrassing. I had made matching tank tops with a photo of DS’s beloved Play-Doh animals and a banner reading “Birthday Bash at the Pop” - DD practically cried when I handed her shirt to her, and spent the day with her arms crossed over her chest because she said it was embarrassing to be identified as part of our family. She clarified that if her friends were with her she’d happily wear matching outfits and be zany, but it was not going to happen with people as uncool as her brother and me. Gee, thanks. She also sneered through the opening ceremony, at which point I honestly wondered how to dump her somewhere for the rest of the trip. DS was so sweet: he gave me a hug and said it was too bad that his sister didn’t understand the magic. Awww. However, she made conversation in line throughout the 30-minute wait for the Speedway and actually acted human for a bit. She enjoyed being able to “drive” and I almost saw a smile after the ride!

It was 8:40 and I did not expect the other Mountains to be open yet, but the kids wanted to head that way and we got to Splash just as the CM’s opened it up. We walked right on - DD griped about having to walk through the queue, and ignored me when I commented that walking through is better than standing in it - and the cool interior and splash were just what we needed after the heat of the Speedway. Both kids rejected my offer to get FP’s, though, and went over to BTMRR where we again had a very short wait. We then had enough time left for one more attraction before going to our Chef Mickey’s breakfast (“Breakfast at 10:30 is just stupid,” said DD; “Call it brunch then,” said I), and the itinerary had POTC next, but I offered HM as an alternate - with encouragement to try POTC early because the changes had made it very popular. Both kids completely vetoed HM, but DD said she “would not” ride the “boring” POTC. She alternately sulked and griped throughout the 30-minute wait (do you think anyone would notice if I knocked her out of the boat??), but DS and I enjoyed the ride immensely. The historian/purist in me mourns the changes, but they were done well and do update the ride to reflect the Pirates that more children today can identify with.

DS noticed a large display of pirate skulls in the gift shop and ran over to check them out while DD continued her silent treatment. As DS picked up a skull, something fell out: to my joy, it was a small rubber brain! OK, this probably needs explanation: in one of my lessons on the Social Sciences, each group of students is given a symbol of a particular area of study and must use their knowledge of the Social Sciences to figure out which one they have. I’ve been borrowing a plastic brain to symbolize psychology, but it came apart last year and I’ve been hunting for a replacement all summer. It turns out that the display is like the Mr. Potato Head ones: for $18 you grab a skull and fill it with “treasure” from the display. To DS’s joy now, I tell him to start filling the brain! He was in heaven as he grabbed pirate figures and rubber snakes. I also picked up some gold coins for a lesson on conquistadors. DD actually participated and chose 2 huge rings for herself. Then we all realized we’d lost track of time and hustled to the monorail for our ADR!

We ran onto the monorail and listened excitedly as the voice said, “If you are traveling to the Contemporary, Polynesian, or Grand Floridian...” we gave each other the thumbs-up sign, “... exit the monorail now and -” What??! Yikes! I spring-propelled myself off the seat, yelling for the kids to follow me. DS lurched after me, but DD lost her flip-flop and had to do an Indiana Jones move to swipe it back as the monorail doors began to close. Feeling very foolish yet laughing uproariously all the same, we got help from a monorail CM and arrived at Chef Mickey’s just ten minutes ahead of our ADR time. We loved the buffet and the character interaction was fantastic (even though DD announced that she would NOT pose with any of them). Everyone was in perfect character and were great with the kids. The only less-than-perfect part was the family two tables before ours, a very large group of 2-3 moms and several children. The mothers wanted individual character photos with each child, then group shots of each family, then signing the autograph books. I could understand their desire to make as many memories as possible, but they were holding the characters up terribly. Finally a CM came to stand near their table and reminded each character to move along. It was interesting how the CM’s made it a reminder to the character rather than a statement to the family - well done.

On the monorail and during the meal, both Dkids asked several times what was next on the itinerary. Once we’d finished eating I got out the itinerary to refresh all our memories. Suddenly DD started making snide comments about the itinerary, asking why we have to be so anal on our vacation. I responded that: 1. we’d done this before and we all liked how it worked, keeping us from bottlenecks and maximizing our park time; and 2. they had -enthusiastically - helped me make this itinerary. She whined that she didn’t want “all” her time regimented, and I reminded her that I’d scheduled every afternoon free for spontaneous fun of their choice. She promptly announced that she wanted to spend her afternoon at the resort. DS said he wouldn’t mind a rest either, so we skipped HM, Buzz Lightyear, Philharmagic, and Swiss Family Treehouse, all things the kids had identified as must-do attractions. Oh well, maybe we’d catch them later in the week.

We stopped at the Pop gift shop again, and despite my warnings to wait and see more stores before buying anything, both kids chose souvenirs. On a roll with the grab-something-and-stuff-it idea, DS got a Mr. Potato Head with a wide variety of attachments (read: they seemed to have nothing in common with each other, but he was happy, anyway) as well as a big Stitch-head hat. DD selected a bracelet, a stuffed Tigger, and a Tigger antenna topper. As long as they were at it, I picked out a Mickey mug for my tea (I’d discovered English Breakfast at Chef Mickey’s - so much for going caffeine free) and got a bonus photo frame for $5 because we were such big spenders.

DS rested by playing with his pirates and potato while DD watched Full House reruns and I tried to read but really stewed in my own energy and desire to be out *doing* something. After an hour I said we’d go for a swim and then back to a park. We rarely swim together and we had a ball, laughing like we haven’t in a long time. Suddenly DS took in a little too much water, choked, and (horrors) vomited into the pool! He lost a couple of tablespoons worth of his brunch before I could haul him out. In utter shame, we slunk up to a lifeguard to confess, but he just shrugged and said not to worry, the chlorine would take care of it. Eeeww! OK, given the small amount, if it were my own pool I’d probably say the same, but eeeww nonetheless. DD refused to go back to the pool for the rest of our stay. Obviously, we went back to the room to rest - again. Within an hour, though, DS was running and playing fine, DD was back in front of the TV, and I suggested we go to a park around dinnertime when the crowds would lessen. DD said she was too tired and DS said he’d rather just stay in the room. WUWT? We’d seen 5 attractions all day! I tried to explain that toys and TV will be at home and that we should take advantage of WDW’s unique attractions while we could. You’d think I was trying to torture them for the response I got! Upset, I said I wished I could get in-room babysitting so that we all could have what we want. Insulted, the kids grudgingly conceded and we prepared to leave. Unfortunately for our Mousekeeper, she came in to deliver our extra blankets and walked right into the middle of our argument. She obviously expected the room to be empty and was shocked and apologetic. Poor lady! I gave her an extra tip the next morning - for the blankets and for her dismay.

The word for the day became “compromise.“ The Dkids said any park was acceptable to them; MGM had the shortest bus line (and was closest), so back we went. DD told us on the way that she did not want to mess up her ‘do, so RNRC was out. (Deep breath... think compromise). We grabbed FP for TOT and wandered aimlessly. Star Tours had only a 10-minute wait, and DS was in the same seat as before, so he was happy. He asked to do Sounds Dangerous again (I refrained from commenting that he had pitched a fit about it yesterday). Upon exiting, we saw that the parade had blocked traffic along the main street, so we took the long way around to get to the other side of the park. The kids felt that the 40-minute wait for Muppets was too long so we wandered some more. Then I got the bright idea of riding TOT standby during the parade: by the time we got off, it would be time for our FP. The board said it was only a 20 minute wait, but the line seemed really long - we were only 30 feet from the gates - and people were muttering angrily about having waited a long time. Sure enough, TOT had broken down. We decided to wait and see if it was back up by our FP time and shared popcorn and sodas in the meantime, watching the elevators on each side and noting whether they were empty or not. Not long after our FP window began, the cars were consistently occupied, so we zipped past the still-long standby line (DD recognized several groups as people who had been waiting when we came up the first time over an hour before) and walked right on. The drops were longer in this sequence but we liked the other one better: the entire ride seemed longer the first time, with less predictability.

As soon as we left TOT the Dkids asked to return to POP. I was content with their attempt to compromise and agreed, thanking them for their willingness to come back out and *do* things. Once again the kids wanted to bring our dinner back to the room rather than eat at the food court, so we took our burgers and hot dogs back with us on the way. DD got in another hour of TV, DS played some more, and I caught up on my trip notes. Hopefully a relaxing evening and early bedtime would give the kids more energy - and DD a better attitude.

 

[jugglinfish]

Sounds like the beginning of your trip was not super magical - but at least you were all together. I'll be looking for the rest of your vacation posts. Thanks for sharing.

 

[MickeyMonstersMom]

Day 3: Friday 8/18/06 - EE Would Be Kinder
Once again I was up at 6:00, this time to get us ready for a substantial breakfast at the food court before heading out. DD went through the near-crying routine again over the matching school t-shirts, asking to wear a same-color tank top instead. I told her I didn’t want her to feel left out in a different shirt, but she assured me that she most certainly would not, so I let it go. With full tummies, we arrived at AK about 15 minutes before opening. DD started in with complaints about waiting almost immediately, but I walked away from her and did not listen. Unlike Tomorrowland, we were not allowed to run but instead were briskly walked to EE where the wait was 5 minutes. Typical of the Monsters, DD loved EE and DS was completely disappointed. I had assumed we’d get a FP for later, but he absolutely refused to consider it. The backwards portion had thrown me a bit (thank you to the DISer who suggested Sea-Bands; without them the entire day would have been ruined), so I told DD we’d come back after lunch when I’d be ready to tackle it again. KRR was next on the itinerary: no snarky comments from DD as she loves the ride. In fact, both kids wanted to get a FP for Kali later. We almost stopped for Primeval Whirl on our way to Dinosaur, but DD decided that the 20 minute wait was too long. I don’t ride because I can’t tolerate centrifugal motion, so DS said he didn’t mind coming back to it. Dinosaur also had a 20-minute wait, but for some reason DD was fine with that. Whatever. We boarded our time-travelers in about ten minutes, to have DD suddenly start moaning that she hates the ride! What??!! The moans became shrieks and DS and I were both irritated with her by the time we got off. Back to PW we go, to find that the wait is still 20 minutes, and DD still feels that it’s too long. She and DS proceed to engage in a vicious argument (as only siblings can) over who is getting the most out of the trip, with both alluding to favoritism on my part, dredging up every moment of the past two days when one may have felt slighted, and hitting below the belt on personal traits: “Well, why didn’t you say something back then?” “I was afraid you’d cryyyy...” etc. etc. I just closed my ears and kept on walking. I was not going to fight this battle any more, and I was certainly not going to feed their argument and waste my energy on trying to defuse it! Once they noticed my silence, the Monsters (aptly named, eh?) followed suit, and I stopped at a snack cart to get some cool drinks. We sat on a stone bench/wall thing while they continued to cool off in more ways than one. It was time to go back to KRR, but as we stood up DS noticed that a bird had pooped on his leg. He was completely horrified, and DD and I were completely useless as we staggered around laughing. Finally I managed to get it off with a napkin, and DS ran over to the spray fountain area near KRR to finish “washing” up. He got utterly drenched on KRR, and I had a strange left-wet/right-dry sensation afterward.

At this point the Dkids announced that they were cold and tired of AK - could we come back another day? Sheesh! Whatever... no more fighting today! I did insist on stopping at Flame Tree Barbeque for lunch on the way out - I MUST have the beef sandwich! DS liked the sound of the kids’ baked chicken wing, and DD wanted to go to Pizzafari, so we took our trays along the paths and grabbed a table at Pizzafari. In front of me in line was a man who was trying to make the most of his DDP, but at best succeeded only in annoying the CM at the register with his requests for additional side dishes. The CM told him he could use snack credits for them, but the man wanted them included as part of his CS meal credit. Arrgh. We all enjoyed trying each others’ food and left AK cool and full. Even though we didn’t experience many attractions, I knew we’d be going back out that night, as we had a dinner ADR at Whispering Canyon (Evil Grin).

We rested for 3.5 hours before our ADR, but the kids were still quiet and subdued on the way there. DS finally wore his birthday pin (read: I finally remembered to pin it on). We took the bus to MK, then the boat to WL (DD: “Do we *have* to take a boat? I hate boats.” Me: dead silence) where we came across a little bunny near the path. DD sneered again as I took out the camera, so I took pictures of some nearby ducks for good measure. I misjudged the necessary commuting time, so we arrived at 5:05 for a 5:50 ADR, but the CM at the podium laughed at my explanation and seated us immediately. DS was having tummy issues, but our server, Tami, was fantastic at reading how much of the antics he could handle and he had a great time for his “birthday” dinner. He participated in the pony express and Tami had the entire restaurant sing to him. We shared a moment with another bunny and a crane on the way back to the boat. The tummy thing hit DD on the way home, but she perked up once we got back to the room. Another quiet evening in front of the TV. Sigh.

 

[MickeyMonstersMom]

Day 4: Saturday 8/19/06 - The Appeal of the Solo Trip...
Back in 2002 we toured Epcot on our fourth day, which turned out to be a mistake: we were tired and cranky by then and the heat had really gotten to us. I remembered this tidbit as I awoke and cringed. Epcot is my favorite park, but DS had taken to diplomatically calling it “the least popular park” and DD had already asked several times why we *had* to go there. The day began very inauspiciously indeed, as both kids resisted getting up. Although DD put on her Mickey Mouse t-shirt without complaint, she changed her shorts to deliberately not match mine or DS’s, and gave me the silent treatment all the way to the food court. I stood there in line, considering not paying for her food and honestly despairing about ever having a fun family vacation again. Already feeling insulted at her lack of consideration for the time, money, and effort I’d put into this trip, I flared up when she haughtily demanded her chapstick and gum. I slung them in her general direction and told her that I was showing her the same degree of respect that she’d showed me. While she didn’t apologize, her silence became more thoughtful and I could tell that she was thinking about her behavior. Too bad it didn’t last long!

We waited about 5 minutes for the Epcot gates to open 15 minutes ahead of the official time. DS couldn’t remember what SE was like, and DD interrupted my description of the attraction to say, “and we never need to go on it again.” Welcome to Epcot, Monsters. The Dkids missed TT in 2002, so it was first on our list for today, followed by Soarin’. Both kids seemed to like TT while we were experiencing it, and DS thought it was cool in a mild way, but afterward all we heard from DD was how lame it was. Once again, whatever. DS just patted my arm and whispered, “We have the magic, mom.” Both were shocked at the 60-minute standby wait for Soarin’ and I had an “I told you so” moment as we grabbed FP and headed to JIYI and HISTA. We’d experienced JIYI last time and DS became a fan of Figment all over again this time. As a group we weren’t thrilled with HISTA. At least 4-5 parents left during the show, one mother carrying her preschool daughter and leaving her toddler son trying to keep up behind her, wailing. Yikes! I considered helping him to the door, but figured a stranger talking to him in those circumstances would not be the best thing for him. We’re glad we saw it, but none of us feels any need to return. Hmmm, wonder what that says about Stitch’s Great Escape for us?

Even with the FP, we waited about 15 minutes for Soarin.’ Afterward, DS said it was a nice part of the Disney magic and DD said it was “OK.” Omigosh, a somewhat positive comment! I almost teared up! Of course, ten minutes later she got over her moment of geekdom and returned to her cool tween persona with a proclamation that Soarin’ actually was “stupid” (Take a deep breath... just keep walking, mom). It was 11:30 and I ignored her comments about the “lame boat thing - not even a ride” as I hustled us over to Maelstrom for DS’s inaugural ride. He was a little underwhelmed but didn’t want to be negative about it because of his sister’s attitude. I had to have my rice cream, and the kids decided to have a snack as well. We lingered over that for a while, until two hours remained before our ADR at Le Cellier. Both kids felt that was too much time to spend in the World Showcase, but I paced our visits to each pavilion to get us to Canada about half an hour before our ADR. Hah! DS and I talked to a few of the CM’s in Morocco and England and he enjoyed himself, but DD stalked the entire way muttering about Epcot being fit for none but the most embarrassing kinds of geeks who have no sense of what is really fun - and having to endure it with one’s own family only made it worse! At the precise moment she said the last, I was rounding a corner in Italy and truly considered trying to lose her in the crowd. I was so sick of being crapped on for bringing my kids to a place most children would give a limb to visit even once! I did manage to fight the urge to leave her, but only by deciding not to take another family trip until DD leaves adolescence and this horrible attitude behind. I also decided to take at least one solo WDW trip within the next year to replenish my own sense of magic. Poor DS had been trying to keep the peace and show me he felt the magic, so I really felt for him. Maybe I could take DS and offer to let DD stay with her dad? It really made me sad to be thinking this way, but knowing I would reward myself with a solo trip really got me through the rest of this one.

We checked in at 1:40 for our 2:10 ADR at Le Cellier and were warned that they were 20 minutes behind in seating people and we probably would not get a table until 2:30. They did not hand out pagers as they had previously, though, so we were stuck with staying just outside the restaurant. A wasp nest in the porch roof kept phobic DS occupied, at any rate. We ended up being seated at 2:15 after all. DD said she wasn’t hungry (noooo!) but ate well anyway. DS was the one who hardly touched a bite. Oh well, it’s Free Dining, right? We would have lingered a little longer over the meal, but DS started looking decidedly queasy and DD and I decided we’d better get him out of there before we had a repeat of the pool incident.

Ironically, although Epcot is the Monsters’ least favorite park, it was the one in which we actually spent the most time and experienced the most attractions. Go figure. We spent the evening in the room doing the usual. I was ready to lie down and dream about coming back solo, anyway.

 

[MickeyMonstersMom]

Day 5: Sunday 8/20/06 - Mom‘s Had Enough!
Now that we’d been to every park at least once, I had relaxed the itinerary to do whatever we decided we wanted to revisit or check out. We did have a breakfast ADR at the Crystal Palace first, though, so I got up at 6:00 as usual. Thank God for the massaging shower head!!! Whoever suggested putting those in the WDW resort showers should receive a medal, at least! Anyway... both Monsters were up and ready to go in plenty of time, and we walked into MK at 7:50 for our 8:15 ADR. For some reason CP opened late, but they still had us seated right at our time. We were able to see all the characters except Tigger, which was a shame because he is DD’s favorite and I had made up matching tank tops that said “Tigger Fanatic,” “Tigger Fanatic’s Brother,” and “Tigger Fanatic’s Mom” on them with a bouncy Tigger - and DD actually wore hers! The kids did not want to wait for Tigger but instead wanted to get right to Space Mountain as soon as possible, so we walked right on at 9:05. The other day we were in the right queue and this morning the left side seemed like it was a different track - DS and I discussed whether it was true or our imagination as we exited the ride.

DD actually suggested Astro Orbiter and DS actually agreed! Still not up with the circular motion thing, I waited in line for a Coke during the very short time it took for the Dkids to ride. Splash Mountain was experiencing technical difficulties so we steered well clear: we’d been stuck on SM for 40 minutes in 2002, watching Brer Fox try to shove Brer Bear’s behind through the briar patch over and over. Never again! Well, OK, we did get FP in the hopes that everything would be straightened out by the time we came back. BTMRR posted a 30-minute wait and DD started in; in a flash of insight I handed her my cell phone and told her she could talk to a friend of her choice for 30 minutes while DS and I rode. She happily took off with the phone to a bench and DS and I happily entered the queue. To our surprise, DD joined us only a few minutes later, explaining that she did not want to bother her friends as it was “only” 10:00 and some might still be asleep. Whatever. The wait ended up being half the posted time, anyway, though SM was still shut down.

To my amazement, DD suggested returning to the resort - and it wasn’t even 10:30 am! I held her off with the FP (11:15 return) and dragged everyone over to HM. After that, though, both kids started whining about heat, thirst, and fatigue, so I just gave up. We waited at the Pop bus stop over half an hour, probably because no one would be expected to be going back to their resort so soon! DS and I enjoyed watching a pair of ducks relaxing next to the pavilion, at any rate. From 11:00 to 12:30 I stewed and steamed while DD watched Full House reruns. Aiigh! I couldn’t take it any longer! I told the kids I could not waste my vacation watching old TV shows - I wanted to return to MK and try to use the FP. I gave them the choice of going with me or staying in the room; I would even go just to DTD if DD wanted to shop - just get me out of this room! DD said go ahead, she wasn’t leaving. I suspect she did not expect me to follow through, but DS and I gave her her room key and headed out. She caught up to us at the elevator and said she’d come. OK. In the Pop lobby she changed her mind. OK. Did she want something to eat at the food court before we left? Yes, so we went back in and stood with her while she stared at the menu boards. Then she decided no, she’d come with us instead. At this point DS got a little steamed and informed her that he was not going to dance to her tune, and we’d be going to parks and attractions that he and I wanted to see. This angered DD and she spun around at the bus stop; she did not reappear before the MK bus arrived, so DS and I went on our way, though I had a huge knot in my stomach at the thought of leaving her.

Before the outcry begins, DD has taken the state babysitting certification course and has babysat as well as spent time alone at our house, so I was not very worried on that count. I also knew that she would not leave the room as the TV seemed to be such a draw for her. I was upset because our family was not together, enjoying our vacation the way I had so eagerly anticipated. However, it was her unwillingness to participate in family activities that had gotten us to this point, so I made myself go on. I called DD when we got to MK and she assured us she didn’t care, so DS and I headed for SM. We waited only ten minutes for the ride and enjoyed it greatly, but both of us felt weird and decided to go back to Pop right afterward. We called her again from the bus stop and she said she was in the middle of a movie - completely unconcerned. We brought snacks and dinner back from the food court and I said it was good that the movie ended in time for us to rest some more before going back out for MK EMH and Wishes, two things none of us has experienced. DD told us to go ahead; she wasn’t budging. Jeez! Fine then - I’ll call every half hour, but I’m going!

DS and I felt much less guilt this time. We waited a while in the line for the wristbands, then rejected Space Mountain as the line had an hour wait. DS suggested the TTA (always the beloved WedWay People Mover to me), and he liked it so much we rode it twice! We enjoyed watching the castle change colors and going through Space Mountain. DS said it was a great way to savor the “quiet magic” of the MK. What a boy! I’ve never been in a WDW park after dark, and it has an entirely different feel to it. I told DS it reminded me of July 4th fireworks in my hometown growing up, as the sun set and the small community gathered on the hill to watch - the sense of anticipation and togetherness. Ahhh...

I thought Wishes was at 9:00 so we headed for the castle to find ourselves completely caught up in the frightening gridlock of the SpectroMagic Parade. We aren’t parade people ourselves, and I had totally underestimated the draw these things have! Wow! I was feeling claustrophobic almost to the point of hyperventilating, and I was just about to jump a fence to get out of there when a trickle of people started moving to my left. We somehow emerged in Fantasyland, and I took off for anywhere other than the parade route! We ended up on the boardwalk by Tom Sawyer Island and decided to try riding Splash and BTMRR as long as all these other people were lined up for the parade. SM’s posted wait time was 30 minutes, but it took us only 15 to get through the ride. The greatest thing was that the parade had started and we got to see glimpses of the floats from points on the ride - quite magical! Much better than in that horrible crowd!

BTMRR had only a 15-minute posted wait, but the parade had just ended and I swear a thousand people stampeded past us so we figured we’d head for the front of the park to catch Wishes and get back to the Pop as quickly as possible. I had been calling DD regularly, but she was miffed because Wishes was at 10:00 and she was getting sleepy and wanted us to come right back. I told her it was very unlikely we’d get through that crowd before Wishes ended, and I was right: I was hoping we could sneak through Tomorrowland and cut around the crowds, but we were stopped by a rope just past Stitch. Well, we had a view of the castle, anyway. The fireworks were lopsided (due to our vantage point) and people were talking around us, but DS still hugged me and thanked me for sharing such a magical moment with him. I sniffed and hugged him back. I wished DD could have been there, but in her present mood it probably would have been far from magical, so I enjoyed the moment anyway.

Our most magical moment was yet to come, however. We exited the park quite smoothly after Wishes, and DS yelped, “Mom, look at the lagoon!” To our surprise and delight, the sea monster from the Electrical Water Pageant was passing by! We’d discovered it by accident on an earlier trip with my mother, and she and DD had chosen to stay in the resort room while DS and I went back to watch the entire thing from the Poly beach. It had been a wonderful mother-son moment, and we got to relive it and the memories that went with it as we walked to the bus. DD was indeed asleep when we came in the room. She later told me that there was (how to put this delicately?) an internal reason for her fatigue and moodiness. Too bad we didn’t figure it all out until now - or that it couldn’t have been delayed long enough for us all to have had a better time.

 

[MickeyMonstersMom]

Day 6: Monday 8/21/06 - If you can't beat 'em
I didn’t like that 6:00 alarm today! It took longer than usual to get us all moving, but DD floored us by saying she wanted to come with us to AK. Wow! DS offered to ride EE for her, but she said she’d rather not do any rough rides today. Our goals were to find the “pretty bird” I’d befriended on a solo trip and see if we could purchase a CD of AK music. We spoke to a CM about the bird who told us where he used to live, but said she hadn’t seen him in a long time. Shucks. We were near the entrance to ITTBAB and DD suggested we go in - wow again! OK! The CM said this was a perfect time to go, the first show of the day when most other guests were still battling over EE and KS. The show seemed a lot shorter than last year but that was good as DD was completely terrified (even though she’s seen it before). Both Dkids asked to return to Pop at that point, but we took a few pictures of the animals as we left the Oasis (I forgot the music -drat!). I enticed them to leave the room with an offer of Ghirardelli’s half an hour later. Ice cream for lunch should probably be a part of a WDW trip, right? We blew another chunk of change on souvenirs and gifts in record time at World of Disney, then returned to the room for another rest before heading to AKL and a 5:20 ADR at Boma.

I wanted to have time to check out the animal viewing trails before our ADR, so we left Pop at 4:00. I’ve always driven directly to AKL for Boma meals in the past, but as I did not have a car this time I figured our best bet would be to take the bus to the AK and hop a quick transfer to the AKL. The Monsters thought I was insane for leaving at 4:00 but I reminded them of the animals and they gave mom a break. Well, it’s a good thing I left so early! We waited 20 minutes at Pop, which I’d anticipated, stopped at Blizzard Beach, which I had not counted on, and then walked up to a full bus queue for the AKL at AK. Forty-five minutes later we were still waiting for a bus, and the line was horrendous! The AKL queue is the second one in the pavilion, but the line for the bus snaked through the queue and through the pavilion into the open area behind the building! I couldn’t believe the wait! I’ve always wanted to stay at AKL, but if this is indicative of their bus service, I’ll save my money and keep staying at Pop!

We finally arrived at AKL at 5:25, but the CM at the podium was great and we were seated within 5 minutes - in fact, we’d had just enough time to go outside and be turned back because there had been reports of lightning and the pool deck/trails were closed. We’d just turned around to try the observation deck inside the AKL when our pager buzzed. Boma is DD’s favorite WDW restaurant, so she was quite happy and more like the daughter I know - very nice to have her back!

The plan was to take the MGM bus from AKL and get wristbands for EMH. Luckily, that bus was already at the stop when we walked up. DD once again said she really did not want to go back to the park, so we worked out that I would run into the park and grab FP’s for TOT or RNRC while the Dkids waited just outside the park; and then DS and I would accompany DD back to Pop before returning to “cash in” the FP - we‘d get wristbands then if we decided to stay. However, TOT was not running again and RNRC had run out of FP. Further, the line for the wristbands was scary! I decided if you can’t beat ’em, join ’em, and ran back to the Dkids to tell them we’d spend our last evening in the resort room. Sigh.

I used the time to start packing and realized that my credit and debit cards were missing - yikes! I had put them in my ID lanyard (see other threads on that odyssey!) and knew I had not touched them since checking in, using my room key for everything. But they weren’t in the lanyard, not in the carry-on, not anywhere I could think of! In a panic, I took each dirty laundry item out of the carefully sorted-and-packed suitcase and shook it to make sure the cards weren’t somehow in a pocket. No luck. I’m on the verge of tears when DD asks where the WDTC folder is - and pulls my cards right out! Phew! So even if she was a snot most of the trip, DD managed to save the day! I gave her a huge hug (and she didn’t pull away - yay!) and took a very deep breath!

DS and I took a walk down to the Concierge desk to check in for our flight the next morning. We were going to use a snack credit to try the Twinkie Tiramisu, but alas they were sold out. We returned to the room and munched on granola bars instead as we all watched That’s So Raven for the 157th time. Hey, if you can’t beat ‘em...

 

[MickeyMonstersMom]

Day 7: Tuesday 8/22/06 - Bittersweet Ending
Our last day at WDW saw me back up at 6:00 to finish packing (now that I’d destroyed my neat laundry suitcase!) and beat the masses to the food court for our last CS credits. DD was still too tired to handle the walk, so DS and I chose a breakfast for her and brought everything back to the room. DS used the walk to say goodbye to the various stuffed animals in the windows along our path. We also shared a giggle as we realized that our corner room was right under Baloo’s armpit! No worries, though - he must shower every morning while the pool staff takes care of that area. The room was in a great location - we only heard people go past the room twice, and neither time were they particularly loud. The pool was noisy until midnight every night, but I learned how to tune them out after 2 nights and hardly noticed the swimmers after that.

Since the Dkids had their clothes from the entire summer’s visitation with their dad, we had too much to fit everything back into our suitcases. Rather than throw things away, we left them on the armoire with a note to Mousekeeping to take them if they were allowed to do so. Among the things we left were two mister fans (we were never as hot as we’d been back in 2002, and doubt we’d bother with the mister fans in the future), two packages of hair ties (new in package) that DD didn’t want, and a large unopened bottle of ginger pills that I never had the chance or need to try. I hope that they did not get thrown away, that Mousekeeping can do something useful with them. I’d called to confirm our 9:30 FL Tours pickup the night before, and headed out at 8:15 to use up the last of our snack credits and wrestle our luggage to the front. Our driver (whose name I did not write down) was already there at 9:15, so we were on our way with a bagful of Goofy Sour Gummy Worms and five Mickey head rice krispy treats. Our driver was very quiet, letting DD talk to me on our short ride to MCO. She was very impressed with the car - told me she felt rich - and wanted to know why I’d paid “so much” for such a fancy mode of transportation. Hurray! It took me until the last day - and leaving WDW property - to do it, but I managed to do something that DD thought was cool!

We breezed through curbside check-in. I’ve never noticed this before (I must have used a different entrance when returning rental cars?), and I had no idea if we were allowed to use it, if we could or should tip, etc. The guy who took our bags was very sweet and told me that he greatly appreciated my tip - oh, now did I tip way too much? Oh, who cares?! We also blazed through a security checkpoint that looked completely different from any other time I’ve used MCO - now I’m really wondering if I’ve always used a different entrance or if the airport has been changed in the past year or so. At any rate, I was very happy about the speed with which we got to the gate. Our nonstop flight was delayed in takeoff over half an hour, but the pilot made up for it in the air and we landed exactly on time.

The Dkids were excited to be back home after 6 weeks away, which made me see our trip in a completely different light: I’d been here all summer, anticipating getting away to Florida and seeing my favorite vacation spot, while the kids had been down there all summer and were anticipating coming home. I still won’t plan a big family vacation for a while - DD still has to get her hormones and attitude under control before I’ll risk going through this again - but I will also keep in mind the timing of the trip when making those plans. In the end, we did come home with memories of laughs and silliness, with a sprinkling of magic here and there.

And I can now get my Disney fix by planning my next solo trip!

General observations or conclusions coming later...

 

[stinkerbelle's mom]

Great TR! OMG I totally feel for you, I have one of those *almost 12 hormonally challenge pre teen dds*!!!!! She was the "highlight" of our trip too! Should you ever do a trip like this again, maybe you should do it before they go to their dad's so they won't be as homesick. You did a great job of keeping your patience and all the little comments you made about your dd (thinking about knocking her off the boat) gave me a sense of deja vu. Glad things worked out!

 

[Backstage_Gal]

I feel your pain with DD! Mine was impossible for years, hating me practically, and adoring her dad (and we are still married), but at age 21 she finally turned into a nice human being again, saying things like "I love you MOM" out of nowhere. Still feels like a miracle to me sometimes.

Anyway, teen monsters grow out of it eventually, dont give up hope.

OH, and great report, thanks

 

[Mouse's Shadow]

I enjoyed the report. My heart goes out to you. My DD is begining her 2nd year of college. So I understand completely. We have just spent the summer together. There were days when I would have liked to shove her off a boat.

 

[BeautyNBeast]

I loved your TR! I am sorry your DD was a Pain a lot of times. Hopefully, she will not keep that attitude. Your DS sounds like he will be a great peacekeeper in the years to come. Cannot wait to hear your tips

 

[MickeyMonstersMom]

Thank you all for the empathy! I keep reminding myself that it's a phase, though DS says he is going to skip it! Also, kudos for reading through that entire thing! I appreciate your effort! On to my general observations:

Weather: it was nowhere near as hot as we'd expected, based on our previous trips in August and July. While we had moments of "whoof!" stepping off the bus or out of an attraction, the temperature was quite bearable. Some days we even felt somewhat cool, especially if we had just ridden KRR or SM. As said before, we never used our mister fans. It also rained only twice that we noticed, and both times we were either in the room or headed back to it. So no complaints on that front!

Attendance: this was the most crowded I've ever seen WDW. I've been during Spring Break/Easter Week more than once, and at the beginning of July, both times that historically have seen large crowds. They were nothing compared to the sea of humanity at WDW for Free Dining! Morning EMH worked only for that one hour; by 10:00 the queues were full. Usually we'd walk on to SM, TT, and similar headliners right at opening, but find 60-90 minute wait times when we exited the attraction. OTOH, avoiding headliners in general would probably have been useful - ITTBAB first thing, for example, or Sounds Dangerous. We definitely saved money on Free Dining and enjoyed it, but I would rather pay for the food and trade that for smaller crowds.

Free Dining and ADR seating/CS waits: We made our ADR's about 100 days out and were glad we did so. People were indeed being told that there was no availability at every TS place we went to. We were consistently seated very close to our ADR times, even better than other trips we've taken to WDW. We tended to hit CS places at off-peak times and had small waits there as well. Our longest waits for CS occurred at Pop from dinner time until closing. It seemed as though the Free Dining affected our touring more than our dining (though the Dkids affected touring more than the dining did!).

Well, that's it for the Monsters' second big bash! Thanks again to those who got through the entire thread.