The one with the dusty, wrinkly, moldy-oldy 4 day park hopper ticket from 1992! August 2025 Trip Report

[MamaMouse0920]

Friday, August 15th (Day 3)

For some reason I had woken up at 3:30am and couldn't seem to fall back to sleep so I was not feeling at all rested when the alarm went off. I eventually pulled myself out of bed and we all got ready for the day. We got to the bus stop at 6:06 (the plan/goal being to leave the room by 5:45am, so slightly behind schedule but still about 1.5 hours before EE, which was 7:30am). If I'm being perfectly honest I was slightly leery of how rope drop was going to go with my mom - On one hand I feel bad for her (obviously don't want her to be in pain) and want to accommodate that but on the other I don't want to set my family up for failure because we're all slowing way down to match her pace. Additionally, she doesn't qualify for Early Entry because she's not technically an onsite hotel guest (yes the front desk CM added her as a guest but she's not on the reservation - so does not qualify for EE) so no matter what she couldn't be with us for the first 30 minutes of the day, which made me feel guilty for leaving her behind. We didn't have LLs or anything for this day so I wasn't worried about not being able to ride anything together, it was really just those first 30 mins of EE that I wasn't sure how to tackle. Our plan for the day really only included the kids haircuts at 9:20am and then our Capture Your Moment photo session immediately after at 10am... so other than the hustle & bustle of EE, it should be relatively smooth sailing the rest of the day... so I tried to brush off that guilty feeling and focus on how much fun we were all going to have.

Anyway, when we got to the bus stop at 6:06, we were the first family in line until a 2nd family joined us shortly after and our two families were the only two to ever show up. I think this probably made my mom think "remind me again why the heck we needed to get here so early?!" but she never complained



Since we had gotten there so early and I felt confident a bus wasn't right around the corner, I snuck back inside the lobby to ask a CM for a couple of celebration pins - one for grandma & then I figured I'd also grab one for DD6 since she was a tad salty that DS5 got one and she didn't (she seems to have forgotten that LAST years trip was all about her, and that this year's focus was on DS5.....). I spoke with an older CM who was extreeeeeemely chatty (sir my family is waiting outside and if a bus comes and goes and I'm not on it... Matt will not be happy, LOL) and insisted on writing on the pins himself, despite me offering to do it myself. He wrote "Grandma" on my moms which was fine except he spelled grandma wrong and then for DD6's he just wrote her name, haha! He did also ask about the celebrations of the trip and showed me the process of adding some special messages to our TV screen (I did one day for DS5 going to kindergarten, and then a separate day/celebration message for Matt & my anniversary). It was cute & I didn't know they could do that so FREE TIP - if you want some extra special touches added to your celebrations, stop by the front desk and see what magic they can work with your TV but I was in a hurry and really only intended on taking the pins and going about my business haha!

Eventually I was able to tear away just in time for the bus to show up, so I was able to help Matt with carrying the bags etc. while he collapsed the double stroller and we boarded the bus. The family behind us was upset at the bus driver for not waiting for their other family members (... this always perplexes me - do you think the bus can/should wait for everyone???) but oh well, off we went to the Magic Kingdom!



I think it was this point, as we neared MK that the magic really started creeping in for my mom. MK was the park we frequented the most when the 4 of us (my siblings and I) were little, so I'm sure it was super nostalgic for her, here with her baby's babies.

When we arrived at MK (time stamp says 6:29am), I had Matt and the stroller + kids take off for security, me walking (slower) with my mom.



I think she felt guilty and kept saying "just go, Bethany!" but I wasn't having it so we walked together. We had a good place in line for security (Matt in the separate stroller line), and were through in no time. The 5 of us also got a good spot in line for the tapstiles, only 2nd in line.



As we waited, I pointed out the area that my mom would eventually be heading when they let us scan in (to the right, to rent her ECV) while Matt and the kids and I went into the park. I explained to her that for the first 30 minutes she wouldn't be allowed past a certain point on Main Street, but that she could walk (ride) through the different shops and grab a coffee at Main Street Bakery while she waited for us. We also used the time to confirm with a nearby CM how my mom's ticket should/would be scanned in, since it was her first time here (in the last 2 decades, anyway) and my first time using anything other than a magic band. Apparently the CM at Disney Springs had already added my moms ticket to her Wallet so all she needed to do was place the front of her phone to the tapstile and go, and it apparently was that easy. We were let in a little after 7am, this picture below taken at 7:06-











Castle pic timestamp 7:10, so 20 minutes before park opening for EE. We had a great spot in line for 7DMT, and I honestly have no complaints about the new Rope Drop process where they don't hold you at Cheshire Cafe anymore. People still ran, and Matt and I still laughed at them, but at least none of us got tackled or elbowed or stepped on, so I'd call it an improvement from the previous process.

 

[MamaMouse0920]

We were parked along the stone retaining wall type thing, and had maybe 30-40 people ahead of us?



DD6 offering to take this picture of me, Matt, and DS5



And then DS5's turn:



We spent our time waiting playing thumb wars and just generally soaking in the magic that is Magic Kingdom in the early morning.



It was around 7:20am that the CM announced that 7DMT was down and would NOT be open at 7:30, and that they didn't have any ideas as to when it would open. About half of the crowd (us included) abandoned our spots, but some die-hards stayed put. We ended up power walking to Peter Pan (as I'm sure did a lot of the others, though we saw a handful join the Winnie the Pooh queue), the kids pretty bummed to miss out on 7DMT. As we parked the stroller near Prince Charming's Regal Carousel, the kids of course wanted to ride (I seriously don't understand the infatuation with that one, ha!) but we convinced them to do Peter Pan first.



I LOVE the new queue for this one!! So stinking cute. We obviously didn't get to enjoy it too much since at this point in the morning it was a walk on. I was paired with DD6 and Matt with DS5, and I have video of the ride itself at 7:28 so they obviously were open a little bit earlier than the posted 7:30am park open- woohoo! We were off by 7:31, and as we exited the ride discovered a TON of characters walking around Fantasy Land!!! I think this may be part of Cool Kid Summer?? but I really hope it stays- it was so magical.






All in all we saw: Tiana, Rapunzel, Flynn Rider, Captain Hook, Smee, Chip & Dale, Pluto, Princess Elena, ANNNNNDDDDDD....

THE BIG CHEESE HIMSELF WAS ON THE CAROUSEL WITH US. We didn't sit by him because he (Mickey) was already really focused on one little boy and we obviously weren't going to be "those" people but it still felt super special to be riding the carousel with Mickey Mouse.



The best use of Early Entry time? No, not so much. But super special for the kids? Abso-freaking-lutely.

 

[MamaMouse0920]

While we didn't get to sit near him, we did still get to give him high-fives after we all got off the ride - so that was nice!









After Mickey, we decided to take a whack at the Sword in the Stone -









But try as they might (those facial expressions!), no luck.

We moved on to Captain Hook & Smee, who were nearby. I think it's hard for a lot of people to handle these types of informal meet & greets, so I wouldn't be surprised if they don't stick around. Kids obviously don't understand it, and it doesn't seem parents put in the work to explain to their kids a few points:

1. This is not a formal character encounter. You didn't wait in a line, you don't get undivided 1:1 time with them. Say hi & move on. Snap a picture, sure, maaaaybe they will sign an autograph if you're lucky, but these characters are really just moseying around. That's it.

2. You can't just run full speed up to the characters and tackle them into a hug. If they're interacting with another guest, wait your turn (and prepare yourself that your 'turn' may not come at all because again- this is not a line, they're just moseying) and be respectful.

I was sure to explain points 1 & 2 to the kids multiple times throughout the trip but it seemed we were the minority in that regard.

 

[MamaMouse0920]

Time stamp on the photo above is 7:47, so we had already eaten up more than half of early entry- but I think the kids would argue that character time is well worth it. My mom was texting around this time as well, asking where she should meet us. I said that I thought Jungle Cruise would be a good idea, since Adventureland isn't open during EE anyway so it should be a low wait time.

We initially got in line for Winnie the Pooh shortly after, however when we found our place in line discovered it was going to be a longer wait than 10 minutes so ended up bailing and just heading over to Adventureland.







Can anyone remind me what happened to the Adventureland sign? Is it coming back?

Grandma was already parking the ECV down near the Jungle Cruise entrance, the kids were desperate to see her again (you'd think it had been 30 years since they'd seen her, not 30 minutes ha!).



Reunited, we walked through the queue for Jungle Cruise, which was a walk on at 7:58.



After our trek, I mobile ordered our beloved Nutella waffle from Sleepy Hollow while Matt took one for the team and got in line for a coffee at Main Street Bakery. They gave him a cute little Mickey spider in honor of the first Halloween party that evening!



I didn't get any pictures of our breakfast and I'm pretty sure the kids devoured it- DS5 being sure to get some Nutella on his cream colored outfit since we had pictures coming up in a few hours and that's just what 5 year old boys do, right?? We didn't really have anywhere to be and our haircuts were in 45 minutes so I mobile ordered 2nd breakfast (we are hobbits) in Tomorrowland since I am a huge fan of the Breakfast Bowl at The Lunching Pad and I knew my mom would enjoy it too. Matt is insanely picky and wouldn't touch that with a 10-ft pole, so he took the kids on Astro Orbiter since we'd never ridden it before. Meanwhile I sat with my mom and enjoyed our shared breakfast.







After they rode & got off, I spotted Chip & Dale in some sort of spacey/alien type outfit nearby so the kids of course had to go say hello!

We then figured we had time for a relaxing (/digestive, ha!) ride on People Mover so that is where we headed next. The CM at the top of the escalator/moving angled walkway thing was an older gentleman and he was so sweet- he spotted my mom and had me & DD6 stop and get out of the way so that grandma could go first. We did, she did, and we all were seated on a ride my mom remembered well- likely because I'm sure she used it as a napping tool for at least one of her 4 young kids back in the day!



After our relaxing ride around Tomorrowland, we made our way back to the front of the park for the kids' haircuts. A tradition, at this point!

 

[HomeSweetDisney]

I love those free roaming character moments! But you're definitely correct that that don't seem to work very well in WDW. We went to Disneyland last year and that is super common there, much more so than WDW. I feel like since that is more of a "locals" park people seem to get it. But we are so used to queuing up for character meets in WDW, I think many still don't get how that works.

What a fun morning though! That is what makes rope drop so worth it, IMO. Getting photos and sometimes special character moments before the masses of people descend

 

[MamaMouse0920]

DS5 opted to go first:











Followed by his sister:



Who I apparently didn't get any 'after' pictures of, but she only had an inch or so trimmed off the ends so not a drastic change

After the kids' haircuts we left the barber shop (the kids LOVING getting to tip the lady) and discovered the horse-led trolley was out! My god are Clydesdales big hahaha I think you forget just how big they are until you're next to one!!!



We did a quick potty break where my mom had her first run in with needing to kick that ECV in reverse when you realize the path you're on leads you to a set of stairs and not a ramp, but she is a pro at navigating that thing - the only 'embarrassment' is the ridiculously loud beeps to let everyone in the tri-county area know that you're backing up.

We then backtracked again to Liberty Square to check in for our CYM session!



We checked in and tried to make ourselves small - the place was packed! We found our place next to a larger family nearby and eventually a photographer CM came and greeted us. She asked a question or two (I can't for the life of me think of what they were, but I remember when she asked them I was like ?? huh?? and later found out that she went to the wrong group- she was supposed to be assigned to the larger family next to us! But since she already met with us and we had talked about the game plan, they switched gears and she ended up being our photographer). We told her we were celebrating DS5 entering kindergarten in a few weeks, and the poor 2nd photographer (the 'helper' one) struggled big time with spelling kindergarten and it took about 10 minutes to get the sign squared away The 3 of us (photographer 1, me, and photographer 2) were all feeling like we belonged in kindergarten since we couldn't get the spelling figured out, I had spelled it/said it out loud so many times that I was starting to second guess myself haha!! Kind of where you say a word so many times that it stops sounding like a word, you know?

Anyway, once the sign was accurately spelled we asked the CM where SHE wanted to go. We told her we'd done the castle thing, done The Confectionary/Main Street and wanted something semi-neutral. She suggested the teacups/Storybook Circus area and I was like YES. PERFECT!!! So that's where we went! Prepare yourself folks for a photo overload -- there are SO MANY cute ones!!

 

[MamaMouse0920]

^that is one of my favorites!

 

[MamaMouse0920]

Pretty quickly in the beginning of the tea cups portion, I kept having to block off traffic from passerby walking between photographer & kid - something in our previous experience was what the 2nd photographer was supposed to be doing. We also had people lining up thinking this was a posted CM taking pictures in a designated spot, so I would gently let them know that this is a private session, hoping to save them some time/disappointment... also what, in our experience, the 2nd photographer would typically do. About halfway through the teacup portion though, the 2nd photographer left abruptly (Matt and I joked later (privately) that perhaps he had to go to the bathroom LOL) and never returned. Oh well!

After we had gotten plenty of good ones at the Tea Cups, we moved over to Storybook Circus - where she first had us all cram into the Dumbo which was a tiiiiight squeeze!





Which again had people lining up to get their pictures taken. I think maybe Disney should consider having these photographers wear different uniforms than the regular PhotoPass CM??? Once I was done being in the pictures, I described to another mom who had lined up how good of a deal this is ($99!) plus the $20 haircut and you could tell the mom's mind was absolutely blown (mine too, tbh). I'm not sure how it is where you guys live, but here in the Twin Cities area you can't get a 20 minute photo session for less than $250/$350!






^another one of my favorites! And this next one too:



Shortly after this photo was when a circus performer on giant stilts walked over and asked to be in the picture!



Our PhotoPass CM laughed and said "well that's a new one for me!"

The next set of pictures I think had the potential to be some of my favorites but the angles were weirdddd and I couldn't sit right so they didn't turn out as cute as I would have hoped- but still cute nonetheless!

 

[MamaMouse0920]

After Dumbo we made our way to Barnstormer (I didn't watch the clock too closely but I seriously doubt she stuck to the 20 minute rule, I think we went WAY over! We had over 100 pictures all said and done!) for another set of family photos.




















After wrapping up with the Barnstormer area (again, another line forming behind the CM) we went to a spot I'd never even seen before, back by the railroad tracks!

 

[MamaMouse0920]

 

[MamaMouse0920]

Last one!!!!

 

[princesserin1350]

These photos are absolutely precious! I've never even considered Capture Your Magic but definitely will after seeing your photos. Loving your trip report so far!

 

[MamaMouse0920]

These photos are absolutely precious! I've never even considered Capture Your Magic but definitely will after seeing your photos. Loving your trip report so far!

We've technically done 4 sessions now (1 was a repeat after 3/4 of our photos were blurry) and that one 'dud' was literally the only one where I haven't been obsessed with the pictures - it is SO worth it IMO!! I think the only way it would not be worth it is if you don't have memory maker - otherwise you'd have to pay individually for each picture, and as I said this session came with over 100 to choose from so that obviously could get spendy real quick.

The photographers (at least the ones we've had) have been pros at posing/angles etc. and for the most part do a really good job of making it look like you're the only ones in the park - no small feat especially when the session is on Main Street or near the castle!! Overall I highly highly highly recommend - best $100 you'll ever spend, in my opinion!!

 

[MamaMouse0920]

Our photographer's name was Kate from St. Louis, MO and she was AMAZING. When we thanked her profusely at the end of the session, she thanked us right back - she commented on how much of a difference it makes capturing people who actually like each other (LOL) and want to have their pictures taken. I first laughed as if she was joking but she shook her head and said that she was serious- she couldn't tell me how many people in a day she gets that are miserable and almost refuse to get their pictures taken. Yikes! I feel fairly confident in assuming a lot of times it's the moms/wives who book the sessions and the husbands & maybe tween/teen/young adult children grumble about it??? Either way, it's sad and I had to pause for a moment and 1) thank my lucky stars that I'm married to Matt and 2) hope against all hope that someday that isn't what life is like for me or any of my kids with their future families. Oof.

Anyway, throughout all of this my mom was a trooper, rolling around behind us as we changed locations and probably sweating profusely in the blazing sun- it was a hot one, folks!! So hot that immediately after Kate left (we were still tucked away in the empty railroad area- since half of the railroad was closed due to the Frontierland refurbs) Matt unbuttoned his Mickey jersey and peeled off the sweaty undershirt he was wearing to then re-don the jersey. I joked (well, I was really only half joking) that he was going to get a lifetime ban from Disney for stripping down but thankfully he was super duper quick and no Disney security jumped on him from the trees and he lived to see another day. Probably best to not do what he did though, to be safe

Matt feeling at least slightly cooled down, we needed to get out of the sun since the rest of us were melting. I quick glanced at the app and noticed Little Mermaid was a 5 minute wait and since we were nearby, we all agreed that's where we would go. We had never entered the area from this direction before, and had never done this looong and winding/dark queue with an ECV before so I quickly stopped the CM at the entrance and asked if they can accommodate an ECV in the queue. They said yep, just ride right in. Sweet! So we entered the queue.





As we got to the indoor portion, I said out loud "well this looks different. I wonder why/how/when they changed this queue?!? Furthermore, the line was NOT moving. Like not at all. Barely a couple steps forward every 5ish minutes. Huh?!? This ride is non-stop loading tons of people.. how on earth can it take this long? Is it down? I checked the app- still 5 minutes. What on earth?!?!!


...if you haven't guessed it yet, folks, I had led my family into the wrong line. We were in line to MEET Ariel.

I didn't figure that out until we literally were the next family in line to meet her. My jaw just about hit the floor I felt so stupid. I had spent the entire 25 minutes (which was accurate, by the way. That was the posted standby wait time for meeting Ariel in her grotto) grumbling about how on earth can this be and was wondering to myself why no one else in this entire queue was bothered by this fact. When I finally figured it all out, I was more surprised that not one of the other people who DID IN FACT KNOW WHAT LINE THEY WERE IN bothered to point that fact out to me since I was verbalizing these thoughts/concerns out loud to Matt/my mom the whole time

The good news, the definite silver lining in the whole debacle is that the kids were absolutely star struck when they saw her. Taken totally by surprise and so in love!! Especially DS5, ha!











After saying goodbye to Ariel, we got in the RIGHT line immediately afterward the line had crept up to 10 minutes but still obviously a short wait (during which I mobile ordered us lunch at Casey's Corner). Same rules applied for the ECV, we were able to bring it in the queue (as directed by the new CM I asked before getting in the correct queue, LOL) but when we got to the "how many?" CM she removed the rope and had my mom park the scooter near where we would exit, and then get in her respective clamshell (of course flanked on either side by the 2 grandkids) while Matt and I got our own shell. Works for me!

This is another one I think my mom really enjoyed, while this wasn't one of the OGs that she would have been familiar with taking her kids on, it's definitely one of the movies from my childhood so I'm sure it hit her right in the feels to be grooving along with all the fish under the sea with both grandkids.

After getting off the ride my mom hopped back in her scooter and we made our way toward Haunted Mansion since the wait was only 20 minutes. Couldn't bring the ECV in this queue unless we wanted to skip the stretching room (per the CM at the entrance) so my mom said she was totally fine for the 20 minutes and we parked both the scooter & the stroller and made our way through the queue.



Timestamp above is 11:54. DS5 was paired with grandma while Matt and I made a "DD6 sandwich" in our doom buggy. We opted for scared faces, but poor Matt missed the cue, womp womp.

 

[MamaMouse0920]

DS5 had also opted for a scared face, but obviously grandma had forgotten in those 20 years where the camera was (or maybe this one didn't have a ride pic back in those days?) cause she texted me this photo at the same time that the ride photo was being taken, ha!! We got a good chuckle out of that!

\



Too funny!

As we got off the ride and went back into the sunlight, we saw EMS with a stretcher and an older lady on it, poor thing. That gave us the mental reminder (sorry that it was at her expense!) to drink more water, so we quickly chugged some as a group.

Oh and I forgot to mention that while we were in line for Haunted Mansion my mom and I worked out the game plan for her remaining days/tickets. She was "booked" (remember, standby) on the flight home on Tuesday AM but was thinking she'd only use 2 of her 4 tickets on this trip and then save the remaining 2 days for another trip. So that took some problem solving/calculating... It was Friday, so that left Sat/Sun/Mon for her to cash in her remaining 1 day ticket for this trip. Where would we spend it? Which day would behoove us best? I felt right then and there that if we only have one park day left with grandma, she needs to buy the LL so we can ride as many rides as we can together. And if she were going to do that, buying the LL for the furthest day out would give her the best chance at any sort of decent pre-selection, so Monday it is! Monday we had planned for DHS in the morning and a rest afternoon.. which now felt like a waste, but my mom was A-OK with that. I think she had several arguments to make, 1 being "I'm not here to ride as many rides as I can.. I'm here to see my grandchildren experience the magic". Fair point. 2 being "the tickets were free so I could just walk in the front doors and I'd get my "moneys" worth". Definitely true. And 3rd being "I'm old and fat (her words, not mine) and I don't have a shot in hell at going from rope drop to park close like you wackos".

So that was the game plan!

Anyway, after Haunted Mansion we collected the stroller & ECV (chugged a bunch of water) and made our way to Casey's- we were ready for lunch!! When I tell you my kids (..and Matt and I too, I won't lie) dreammmmmm about these 'corn dog nuggies' is what we call them... with a cup o plastic cheese.... and a frozen mint julep!?!?!??! The 4 of us are in heaven.

We made it to Casey's and I took DD6 to go wash her hands (the restroom by the Baby Care center was under construction so we had to hoof it all the way to the Tomorrowland Terrace bathrooms!) while my mom & Matt + DS5 scanned for an open table. Someone eventually left so my mom was able to grab it while Matt took DS5 to wash his hands as well. Soon enough our mobile order was ready & our hands were washed so we tucked in! Must have been too hungry, because I have zero pictures of the meal The only one I grabbed was how ridiculous I felt as I asked the CM for so many little cups of ice water. The CM didn't make me feel bad at all, they were super happy to be giving it away and said that tons of people pass out due to heat exhaustion/dehydration (i said I know, I just saw it happen at Haunted Mansion!) so were happy I was taking some for my family.



I poured them into our reusable/insulated water bottles and soon enough were on our way. For whatever reason (probably because it had a low wait time, ha!) we did the Tiki Room next, where we used the wait to apply sunscreen - for obvious reasons we had held off until after the photo session, and that 12:30pm sun was intense! I can't remember the reason, but DD6 had a huge crying meltdown at this point (I'm only remembering it now as I see her red eyes in the picture below), I think something to do with grandma (wanting to sit by her etc.) but realistically because she is tired and it's hot out. I include this only because I think it's important to include the not-so-good, and not only the sunshine & rainbow parts of Disney World vacations.



Eventually we were seated and had a great show, the kids and my mom all singing along.



After Tiki Room, we noticed Tiana's only had a 25 minute wait, so made our way that direction. We entered the queue at 1:25, after switching our shoes and making sure to grab hats & cooling towels since we remember how blazing hot the outdoor portion of this queue is.



We had one instance in the queue where the kids got scolded by a CM (which was extremely embarrassing and humbling) because they kept wanting to sit on grandmas lap on the ECV. My mom said that the CM when she rented it was EXTREMELY vehement that she was not to let anyone sit on it with her while it was being driven, and this CM was not afraid to reiterate that fact loudly. We used it as a good learning opportunity for the kids ("how did it make you feel when that CM scolded you? Not good? No, so let's remember to not do that again so we don't get scolded again. You know the rules and it's our job to stick to them" etc.).

This ride was an instance where having the ECV was of benefit, since we were pulled from the line before the stairs portion and brought directly to the ride exit- where we would climb into our boat from the other side. My mom was slightly fearful of getting in to the boat but we reminded her "up with the good, down with the bad" and Matt offered to act as hand rail for her and she ended up being totally fine. Off we went!



We had a great ride down the bayou!



After Tiana's we walked right into the 2pm parade, where unfortunately we were directly in the sun. The kids were asking for ice cream and we didn't have anything else to do so I went to the nearby cart and got them each a Mickey Bar - with the dire warning that they'd better eat it fast because in this 97 degree heat it was sure to melt in record time!

Pretty quickly after I gave them their bars the parade had ended and we made our way to Pirates since by some miracle it was only a 5 minute wait (perhaps had just gone down and re-opened?). The kids had to eat their melting bars right outside the entrance before we could go in.



We opted for pirate faces for our ride photo!

 

[MamaMouse0920]

It was about 2:20pm by this point, and the kids had been asking alllllllll morning to go do the Swiss Family Robinson tree house, so after Pirate's that's where we headed next- my mom opting to stay on solid ground



Immediately at the exit, guess who we saw?!







It's kind of funny because leading up to this trip Matt and I swore up and down that we would take this trip slow, and that we would try to do things that we don't usually do (which I would argue we had been at least somewhat successful in that regard, we'd already done several 'firsts') and agreed that one way we could do that is to focus more on characters this go around... what we didn't realize is how easy Disney would make that be! We hadn't really stood in a designated line to meet a character yet (I'm not going to count Ariel because I didn't MEAN to be in that line ) but more often what happened is we sort of just bumped into them!!

After Raya, we decided to go to the opposite end of the park since Space Mountain was only a 15 minute wait and DS5 was finally tall enough!!





This one I suggested Grandma not partake in - not because I didn't want her to join but because I, a fully able bodied person STRUGGGLE to get in or out of these rockets and I just knew she would not enjoy that. Plus your knees are all cramped up and I didn't want her to be in any more pain than she already is. She agreed and stayed behind with the stroller while Matt and I and the two joined the queue at 3pm.

For your guys' sake I'll leave out the picture of me and DS5 because it is extremely unflattering (but go ahead and use your imaginations, picture me looking magazine cover worthy please ) but here's Matt & DD6!



The woman behind Matt lost her sunglasses on the ride (I feel you, my Mickey patch from last year is somewhere in the bowels of the ball-pit) but Matt swears the CM had told her to take them off (they were dangling on the front of her shirt when she sat down) and she responded by saying "it will be fine" which makes me feel less bad for her if that's true... and as you can see they're not there for the ride photo so she must have lost them pretty quickly after 'take off' OR Matt was wrong and she did listen to the CM and remove them and still ended up somehow losing them on the ride.

After Space Mountain the 4 of us (grandma again opting out- for the same reason as Space Mountain) did the Tomorrowland Speedway, because why not when it's 98 degrees, real feel 107 with like 95% humidity?!?!?!







Looking absolutely ridiculous but giving zero Fs because it's a trillion degrees and I could feel my scalp burning.

 

[MamaMouse0920]

After 'the cars' as our family calls it, we made the short trek over to Carousel of Progress, another familiar favorite from my mom (I didn't ever remember it from my childhood, and I'm thinking that's probably for a reason LOL my mom probably brought us in there for 20 minute power naps all the time - hence not remembering it!). I had refilled our popcorn bucket right before so we all had some fresh popcorn to munch on while we waited for the doors to open. When we entered the theater, a dad & his family elbowed their way in front of the 2nd half of our group, effectively splitting us up. Why, sir?? What sense does that make? So then the 2nd half of us had to squeeze between their knees and the seats in front to re-join our group. Odd choice, but you do you pal!

As if that weirdness wasn't enough, that same man spent the entire show SNORING loudly right next to us. My mom and I both commented to each other that if that were our significant others ain't NO WAY we would allow that sort of shenanigan in the middle of a busy theater. I elbow Matt (lovingly I assure you...............) when he's snoring and only disturbing me- let alone 50 other strangers who paid thousands of dollars to be here.

After the show was over and we went back into the middle of Tomorrowland we really noticed how much the crowds had increased now that party guests were allowed in. Tons of super cute costumes!! We were all pretty tired and since we'd done a ton, we decided we'd say goodbye to Magic Kingdom and make our way to the buses to return to the hotel. Before that though, I split off from the group because I realized I had forgotten to tip Kate, our photographer!! I quick darted into Liberty Square into the PhotoPass HQ and asked the CM working if she could give this to her since I had forgotten. The CM said "oh that is SO sweet of you, but unfortunately we can't accept tips". Say WHAAT? Why? BBB CM can, the Harmony Barber Shop workers can. Why can't the photographers?!?! I replied "oh darn, I guess I'll just do the Cast Compliment for her then" and they were emphatic "yes, please do! She would love that!" which made me feel slightly better but still bummed for her. Eventually I re-joined my family and told them the news as we walked to the buses.

DD6 was zonkkkkkkkkkkked out on that bus ride home!



As you can see the 3 of them (plus a dad and his son, also zonked out) were seated in the very last row, the ones facing the front of the bus. My mom said the seat was BURNING HOT. I wonder why? I don't think the engines are in the back of those buses, are they? Regardless, my moms biscuits were burning so she was super ready to get off this bus when we finally pulled in to AoA, haha! Also on this bus ride is when I purchased the LL for Monday for my mom & pre-selected whatever I could get for DHS. I can't remember what all I (she) got, Frozen I know was the first one for 9:05, then maybe Tower of Terror & MFSR for some ungodly time. I didn't know what I was going to do or how I was going to make it work, but I was going to do my best to fiddle faddler her way into getting at least SOME of the same LLs that I had pre-selected over a week prior.

When we entered our room we discovered that Mousekeeping had come and did this fun design on our bed -



And since it looked like rain in the distance (plus it was so late - already 6:15pm by this time) we convinced the kids to skip the pool and instead opted to get dinner at Primo Piatto next door at Riviera. Yum! So we left and made our way to the Skyliner station, sans stroller which was SUPER nice navigating the Skyliner without it.

Inside the QS restaurant was a zoo, so we found a table outside and were seated while we waited for our food to be ready. My mom insisted on paying for her own meal (did not want to use up our meal credits) so ours was mobile order vs hers was paid at the register with cash. It was actually funny, I ordered for her while her & Matt grabbed our table and when I pulled out the $20 the cashier was like "CASH?!" and had to ask a fellow CM for help since it had clearly been a minute since he'd had to open the cash register, ha!! I suppose not a lot of people use cash at theme parks these days?

My mom had ordered the croque monsieur (classic French ham and swiss served with fries), I got the grilled chicken sandwich (tomato spread, spinach and artichoke spread, mozzarella on toasted focaccia), Matt ordered the brisket & bacon burger, and the kids split a cheese pizza kids meal and a chicken strips kids meal. It was all delish!!! We really enjoy this restaurant- super yummy!

As we waited for our food, the kids made fast friends with a set of boys around their age, from somewhere in the UK. Their dad had a lot more patience than our kids parents because he sat with the 4 of them and taught them how to play boccia properly (vs how they were playing it initially, just throwing those heavy balls all willy-nilly!).



It was really sweet and we praised him, to which he responded "oh you wouldn't be saying that if you'd been nearby 3 hours ago over at Hollywood Studios" which the 3 adults (me + my mom + Matt) all laughed because, same. We get you. LOL

Eventually (it was a really long wait, actually, maybe 30 minutes? which for QS is kind of wild but we didn't mind at all) our food was ready and we all enjoyed our meals - my mom and I going "halfsies" which is what we do basically any time the two of us go out to eat together. We both have our eye on 2 things on the menu, she orders one and I order the other and we split.



We had a super nice, relaxing evening sitting outside enjoying our time at Riviera. The adults talked & laughed while the kids played- we were there for almost 3 hours! It was a really nice evening and I'd give almost anything to be there right now, ha!

Around 9 we made our way back to AoA and were showered/jammied/teeth brushed and in bed by 9:30. Call me crazy, but I love those early nights at WDW!! We first had to stop of course and say goodnight to Mater--



& the sheriff



All in all it was a great day with only minor hiccups and we couldn't wait to be back at Animal Kingdom the following morning! Sans grandma of course since she wasn't using her tickets, which the kids were bummed about but oh well. Since DAK opens earlier than the other parks, our alarm was the same for the next morning (5am) as it was today on a MNSSHP party day. Off to bed we went!

TOTAL STEPS: 20,672 (9.4 miles)

Up next: Saturday, August 16th (Day 4)

 

[ThreeBoyMama]

Your pictures came out great!