MickeyMonstersMom
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Apr 26, 2002
- Messages
- 1,427
The Monsters are:
Myself (Lori), 32: Single mom and anal planner; previous trips to WDW in 1972 and 1993
Grandma, 68: Just had back and heart surgery, determined to share kids first trip; also went in 1972
Bryn, 8: Loves all rides; first trip is also celebration of 8th birthday
Ethan, 4: Tall enough for almost everything, but not as daring as his sister; well have to see...
<u>The Monsters World Tour, Part II: Bryns Birthday</u>
Ahhh, the long-awaited 8th birthday! On my mothers birthday 2 months before, Id snagged an 8:05 PS for CRT, so I set the alarm for 5:30 to make sure I had time to get us all ready (sheesh - learned my lesson rather quickly!). Unfortunately, Ethan had slept too heavily and had an accident, so I stripped the bed and left a hefty tip for Mousekeeping. I also confessed to the CM at the front desk, who told me that it happens quite often, and not to worry about it in any way. Still, I asked for an extra sheet and used that along with some towels for extra before-it-hits-the-mattress absorbency, which helped out a lot on the other two nights that they were needed. I also started getting him up twice during the night and propped him up while he used the toilet. Poor kid! At any rate, for you parents who are worried about this: it was certainly rather humiliating, but Mousekeeping really did take it in stride. My mother chatted with our Mousekeeper near the end of our stay, who repeated that it was no problem at all.
Bryn is always up before dawn, so she and I took a walk down to the Country Fair end of ASMu before the others got up. The grounds were very well-kept, and we enjoyed watching a young rabbit - and even spied an armadillo. Quite a morning already! We waited at the MK gate for about 20 minutes before being let in right on the dot of 8:00. I wanted to take a photo of the train, but a gardener was working on the flower bed in front of it and had his rear in the air the entire time. I finally gave up and took the picture anyway - and it now serves as a funny reminiscing topic for the family! Bryn wanted a birthday pin, so we ran over to City Hall first, where the CM told Bryn she had a message from Goofy. Both kids were impressed with this!
We then hurried to the castle and were seated immediately. I had told them of Bryns birthday when I made the PS (thank you all here for that tip!), and our table was decorated beautifully, including a card from Mickey. Our server was Sir David, who was really into his role. He called Grandma the Queen Mother and made the meal very special for everyone. The food arrived promptly and was both hot and delicious. The Princesses came through in rapid succession, each one stopping to sign both autograph books and have photos taken. A few asked Bryn if it was her real birthday, and she was thrilled to tell them yes. Mary Poppins asked Brynna to visit her at Epcot, and Belle invited us to join her story time (unfortunately, timing did not work out for either, but Brynna did see Mary later and excitedly pointed out that theyd already met.). Everyone at the castle treated us like royalty, and this was easily the most magical moment the children experienced. This is another meal wed do every time - but Ive already told them that we were extremely lucky to get it this time - well always try, though!
Because of my mothers back surgery, Id decided to split MK into two halves and tour each on separate days to minimize walking for her. She did not want to use a wheelchair unless she really had to. Todays goal was the left side of MK, with a break midday and a reconnaissance mission to AK. We left the castle a little later than wed anticipated, and hurried to Splash Mountain. When we got there at 9:10, a CM informed us that SM was experiencing technical difficulties and suggested that we try BTMRR and come back afterwards. Grandma was afraid to try SM, and I told her BTMRR would be too rough, so she sat in the shade and did a round of her famous people-watching. To our delight, there were no lines at BTMRR, so we rode twice in a row. Ethan really hated the dark - and painfully loud - mine part at the beginning of the ride, but enjoyed the rest of it so much that he said hed deal with the scary part. SM was up when we returned, but then as we entered the last part of the ride (with the steamboat and celebration) the ride broke down. We sat there next to Brer Fox pushing Brer Bear into (out of??) the briar patch for almost 20 minutes. Thankfully, someone turned the music off after 5 minutes or so. It was a little eerie hearing the animatronic movements, but the kids held up really well; however, the both also declared SM a dud, a bit upsetting as I love the ride. We did go back and they think its cool now.
Grandma met us at the exit snickering: a CM had announced the breakdown. At least she didnt worry! We moved on to Adventureland so that Grandma could ride something. First up was Pirates of the Caribbean. She was worried about the drop in the dark, but ended up really enjoying the ride. After SM and BTMRR, the kids thought POC was fine, but nothing stellar (whoops - I wish we could have done slower rides first, but I wanted to hit the super-headliners before they gridlocked). We went on to Jungle Cruise, the only ride I remember from our 1972 trip, but my mother did not remember it at all - OK, it WAS 30 years ago - Ill give her a break! Our guide Caty was very entertaining and kept us chuckling throughout.
We had a nice conversation with a Italian couple while waiting in line for Aladdins carpets - and the conversation was a much better use of time as well. Im glad I can say Ive done it, but I dont intend to go back. Even the kids saw through the obvious carnival nature of the ride - and it just seemed out of place there. Wed flown through the rides so far, and having to wait for Aladdin in exponentially rising temperatures had made us a little testy, so we took a break at the Tiki Birds. At first I couldnt figure out why people would want to see the show, but it became much better in the second half. We all especially enjoyed the Stand up! at the end.
Id read somewhere about having all members of the party wear matching outfits, so Id made us t-shirts for each day. Todays had Mickey-shaped balloons and messages about Bryns birthday celebration. We did not see any other groups with matching outfits at all, and many people stopped us to ask about ours. Interesting.
At this point we were actually ready for lunch, and came out through a little rest room area right next to the Diamond Horseshoe Saloon revue where Bryn had asked to have lunch. We split two sandwiches and snagged a front table, where Bryns shirt and pin earned her a lot of attention throughout the show. She loved it, whereas the rest of us thought it was OK. The food was good, but the show was longer than Id anticipated and it threw my plans off for the rest of the day.
Our last planned stop at MK for the day was the Haunted Mansion. Again, there was no line at all. Ethan was not sure he was going to like this, so wed gone online and took a virtual tour of it beforehand. Grandma and Bryn went first, and Ethan crouched under my arm in the next Doom Buggy. He was quite nervous at parts, especially the spiders, but wanted to go on it again as soon as we got off. However, the line had grown considerably while we were in there and the kids did not want to wait (but by vacation's end, we probably went on this more times than any other ride). Besides, Id wanted to catch a late safari at AK and lunch had slowed us down, so we headed out. We took a wrong turn and ended up in Fantasyland, which made me realize why there were no lines elsewhere: everyone seemed to be there! It was absolute gridlock - just walking through there was a chore. I made a mental note to get into Fantasyland VERY early on its scheduled day!
We hopped a bus to ASMu and then transferred to AK, arriving at about 2:30. Bryn ran in to get a birthday pin here as well. We walked slowly to Africa, as my mothers back was getting stiff. She later declared that she could not imagine a better ride at WDW, but still was not sure it was worth the walk. We waited only 10-15 minutes here as well. I spoke to a CM about my mothers back, and she put us in the front seat for a smoother ride. BTW, my mothers doctor did clear her for this trip and any rides involved! We saw animals at every leg of the safari (but they did not appear in the photos - arrgh).
After KS, the kids begged to cool off in Kali River Rapids. The heat was oppressive by this point. Grandma said she could not manage another step, so we bought her a cold drink and ensconced her on a bench near an air-conditioned souvenir shop. KRR has the most incredible queuing area! I almost wanted to wait longer in line so that I could check it out more thoroughly! However, with the kids pulling on me, we ran along the path and had less than a ten-minute wait at the end. Ethan got thoroughly drenched at the geyser-type thing at the very beginning: the kids spent the rest of our vacation giggling over the sign, "You will get wet. You may get soaked." We rode with another family who was a lot of fun, screaming and laughing. Since the lines were so short, we ran right back and encountered no wait at all. This time, though, we were seated with a rather grim family who wore ponchos and did not seem to enjoy the ride at all. Go figure. The sky grew quite dark at that point, so we hurried back to Grandma - why have her get wet too? On our way out of the park we encountered an impromptu character appearance by Turk, Jane, Baloo, and King Louie. No other people were around, so we were able to get autographs and photos - plus a little conversation - with each of them.
The rain never hit us, but we drove through some wet patches on our way back to ASMu. We stopped at the food court for supper and the kids persuaded me to drag them through the pool before bedtime. We were really run down, but I hoped that the day of shows at MGM would allow us to recharge a little. So off to bed, and MGM tomorrow!
Myself (Lori), 32: Single mom and anal planner; previous trips to WDW in 1972 and 1993
Grandma, 68: Just had back and heart surgery, determined to share kids first trip; also went in 1972
Bryn, 8: Loves all rides; first trip is also celebration of 8th birthday
Ethan, 4: Tall enough for almost everything, but not as daring as his sister; well have to see...
<u>The Monsters World Tour, Part II: Bryns Birthday</u>
Ahhh, the long-awaited 8th birthday! On my mothers birthday 2 months before, Id snagged an 8:05 PS for CRT, so I set the alarm for 5:30 to make sure I had time to get us all ready (sheesh - learned my lesson rather quickly!). Unfortunately, Ethan had slept too heavily and had an accident, so I stripped the bed and left a hefty tip for Mousekeeping. I also confessed to the CM at the front desk, who told me that it happens quite often, and not to worry about it in any way. Still, I asked for an extra sheet and used that along with some towels for extra before-it-hits-the-mattress absorbency, which helped out a lot on the other two nights that they were needed. I also started getting him up twice during the night and propped him up while he used the toilet. Poor kid! At any rate, for you parents who are worried about this: it was certainly rather humiliating, but Mousekeeping really did take it in stride. My mother chatted with our Mousekeeper near the end of our stay, who repeated that it was no problem at all.
Bryn is always up before dawn, so she and I took a walk down to the Country Fair end of ASMu before the others got up. The grounds were very well-kept, and we enjoyed watching a young rabbit - and even spied an armadillo. Quite a morning already! We waited at the MK gate for about 20 minutes before being let in right on the dot of 8:00. I wanted to take a photo of the train, but a gardener was working on the flower bed in front of it and had his rear in the air the entire time. I finally gave up and took the picture anyway - and it now serves as a funny reminiscing topic for the family! Bryn wanted a birthday pin, so we ran over to City Hall first, where the CM told Bryn she had a message from Goofy. Both kids were impressed with this!
We then hurried to the castle and were seated immediately. I had told them of Bryns birthday when I made the PS (thank you all here for that tip!), and our table was decorated beautifully, including a card from Mickey. Our server was Sir David, who was really into his role. He called Grandma the Queen Mother and made the meal very special for everyone. The food arrived promptly and was both hot and delicious. The Princesses came through in rapid succession, each one stopping to sign both autograph books and have photos taken. A few asked Bryn if it was her real birthday, and she was thrilled to tell them yes. Mary Poppins asked Brynna to visit her at Epcot, and Belle invited us to join her story time (unfortunately, timing did not work out for either, but Brynna did see Mary later and excitedly pointed out that theyd already met.). Everyone at the castle treated us like royalty, and this was easily the most magical moment the children experienced. This is another meal wed do every time - but Ive already told them that we were extremely lucky to get it this time - well always try, though!
Because of my mothers back surgery, Id decided to split MK into two halves and tour each on separate days to minimize walking for her. She did not want to use a wheelchair unless she really had to. Todays goal was the left side of MK, with a break midday and a reconnaissance mission to AK. We left the castle a little later than wed anticipated, and hurried to Splash Mountain. When we got there at 9:10, a CM informed us that SM was experiencing technical difficulties and suggested that we try BTMRR and come back afterwards. Grandma was afraid to try SM, and I told her BTMRR would be too rough, so she sat in the shade and did a round of her famous people-watching. To our delight, there were no lines at BTMRR, so we rode twice in a row. Ethan really hated the dark - and painfully loud - mine part at the beginning of the ride, but enjoyed the rest of it so much that he said hed deal with the scary part. SM was up when we returned, but then as we entered the last part of the ride (with the steamboat and celebration) the ride broke down. We sat there next to Brer Fox pushing Brer Bear into (out of??) the briar patch for almost 20 minutes. Thankfully, someone turned the music off after 5 minutes or so. It was a little eerie hearing the animatronic movements, but the kids held up really well; however, the both also declared SM a dud, a bit upsetting as I love the ride. We did go back and they think its cool now.
Grandma met us at the exit snickering: a CM had announced the breakdown. At least she didnt worry! We moved on to Adventureland so that Grandma could ride something. First up was Pirates of the Caribbean. She was worried about the drop in the dark, but ended up really enjoying the ride. After SM and BTMRR, the kids thought POC was fine, but nothing stellar (whoops - I wish we could have done slower rides first, but I wanted to hit the super-headliners before they gridlocked). We went on to Jungle Cruise, the only ride I remember from our 1972 trip, but my mother did not remember it at all - OK, it WAS 30 years ago - Ill give her a break! Our guide Caty was very entertaining and kept us chuckling throughout.
We had a nice conversation with a Italian couple while waiting in line for Aladdins carpets - and the conversation was a much better use of time as well. Im glad I can say Ive done it, but I dont intend to go back. Even the kids saw through the obvious carnival nature of the ride - and it just seemed out of place there. Wed flown through the rides so far, and having to wait for Aladdin in exponentially rising temperatures had made us a little testy, so we took a break at the Tiki Birds. At first I couldnt figure out why people would want to see the show, but it became much better in the second half. We all especially enjoyed the Stand up! at the end.
Id read somewhere about having all members of the party wear matching outfits, so Id made us t-shirts for each day. Todays had Mickey-shaped balloons and messages about Bryns birthday celebration. We did not see any other groups with matching outfits at all, and many people stopped us to ask about ours. Interesting.
At this point we were actually ready for lunch, and came out through a little rest room area right next to the Diamond Horseshoe Saloon revue where Bryn had asked to have lunch. We split two sandwiches and snagged a front table, where Bryns shirt and pin earned her a lot of attention throughout the show. She loved it, whereas the rest of us thought it was OK. The food was good, but the show was longer than Id anticipated and it threw my plans off for the rest of the day.
Our last planned stop at MK for the day was the Haunted Mansion. Again, there was no line at all. Ethan was not sure he was going to like this, so wed gone online and took a virtual tour of it beforehand. Grandma and Bryn went first, and Ethan crouched under my arm in the next Doom Buggy. He was quite nervous at parts, especially the spiders, but wanted to go on it again as soon as we got off. However, the line had grown considerably while we were in there and the kids did not want to wait (but by vacation's end, we probably went on this more times than any other ride). Besides, Id wanted to catch a late safari at AK and lunch had slowed us down, so we headed out. We took a wrong turn and ended up in Fantasyland, which made me realize why there were no lines elsewhere: everyone seemed to be there! It was absolute gridlock - just walking through there was a chore. I made a mental note to get into Fantasyland VERY early on its scheduled day!
We hopped a bus to ASMu and then transferred to AK, arriving at about 2:30. Bryn ran in to get a birthday pin here as well. We walked slowly to Africa, as my mothers back was getting stiff. She later declared that she could not imagine a better ride at WDW, but still was not sure it was worth the walk. We waited only 10-15 minutes here as well. I spoke to a CM about my mothers back, and she put us in the front seat for a smoother ride. BTW, my mothers doctor did clear her for this trip and any rides involved! We saw animals at every leg of the safari (but they did not appear in the photos - arrgh).
After KS, the kids begged to cool off in Kali River Rapids. The heat was oppressive by this point. Grandma said she could not manage another step, so we bought her a cold drink and ensconced her on a bench near an air-conditioned souvenir shop. KRR has the most incredible queuing area! I almost wanted to wait longer in line so that I could check it out more thoroughly! However, with the kids pulling on me, we ran along the path and had less than a ten-minute wait at the end. Ethan got thoroughly drenched at the geyser-type thing at the very beginning: the kids spent the rest of our vacation giggling over the sign, "You will get wet. You may get soaked." We rode with another family who was a lot of fun, screaming and laughing. Since the lines were so short, we ran right back and encountered no wait at all. This time, though, we were seated with a rather grim family who wore ponchos and did not seem to enjoy the ride at all. Go figure. The sky grew quite dark at that point, so we hurried back to Grandma - why have her get wet too? On our way out of the park we encountered an impromptu character appearance by Turk, Jane, Baloo, and King Louie. No other people were around, so we were able to get autographs and photos - plus a little conversation - with each of them.
The rain never hit us, but we drove through some wet patches on our way back to ASMu. We stopped at the food court for supper and the kids persuaded me to drag them through the pool before bedtime. We were really run down, but I hoped that the day of shows at MGM would allow us to recharge a little. So off to bed, and MGM tomorrow!
Sounds like a great vacation so far! CRT sounds so wonderful. It must have been a perfect birthday for your dd. Can't wait to hear about the rest of your trip!
