The Tale of the Grow Walk .Hunh?

[jenseib]

After the Nemo show we hung back a bit before exiting with the crowds. Once we did we started to make our way towards Everest, which was our next FP.









We decided we should make a potty stop before going on the ride.



The line was crazy long and Claire was doing the pee pee dance. We noticed the family bathroom off to the side and only 1 person was waiting there so we headed over to wait for that one.



We got in there MUCH faster and Claire was all smiles again.

We then headed back over towards Everest.











The FP line moved fairly fast, though it was pretty full too.





This has become one of Claire’s favorite rides.

 

[jenseib]

The ride was fun and we had a surprise….The Yeti Moved! I have never seen him move EVER. Claire and I both noticed it as did others on our train. I posted it to a facebook group where someone argued till they were blue in the face that it didn’t move. I guess with in the first year of Everest being built the Yeti was too big and broke some major support beam. Supposedly since then he has never actually moved but they put strobe lights on him occasionally to give him the appearance of moving. I suspect some part of this story is correct, but I am pretty sure he has moved off and on over the years too, though the last few I have not heard any reports of it. This was NOT strobe lights. His arm actually reached down at us. However not a full reach like I have seen on tv specials. I will swear this till I am blue as well. LOL. There were other reports of him moving the same week I was there as well.
There were a lot of stars in the parks the week we were there (and they were filming the Disney episode of the Middle while we were there as well), so I am not sure if he was moving for that reason or not. But he definitely had some movement and we were super excited to see it.

Our photopass picture. Love the people in front of us!



After that fun ride I tried to talk Claire into going back on using the single rider line. Of course she was much too young to go by herself…at least in her mind. I tried to explain that we would be in line together and I would go first and wait at the end for her, but she wouldn’t do it.

We decided to head over to Dinoland then and ride the Triceratops. That too had quite the line, but I think we got on in about 20 minutes or so.



I took lots of pictures from the sky as Claire steered us.





















After that ride we needed to get a drink.





It was getting close to the parade time and we were NOT going to miss this for anything. The parade was ending in the summer, much to our disappointment. We had to see it one last time. This is our favorite current running parade and I was so sad they were going to take it away. I had hoped they would bring the Christmas version back for the Holidays, but sadly it was not.

We made our way to find a spot for the parade.





We ran into a few characters leaving their meet and greet.





We found a spot and Claire drank her slushie.



And I had a Mickey Bar.



We still had a bit of time to wait, so we talked to the people around us.



There was a lady who arrived a little late but sat behind the line of people. She had a little one with her, and I told her to bring her right up next to me as there was enough room for just her if she didn’t mind. I told her I would be taking pictures, but a little one next to me wouldn’t be in the way. The little girl loved it and I was happy to help.

It was still crazy busy.

 

[dolphingirl47]

That is so neat that you saw the Yeti move. I am glad that you got to see the parade one last time. The lines for the bathrooms can be crazy. On my recent trip to Disneyland, it sometimes felt that I was waiting longer for the bathroom than for the rides.

Corinna

 

[canyoncam]

So cool you saw the Yeti move

I have never seen the Nemo show (actually never even contemplated it) but enjoyed your pictures.

It is so sad they ended the parade. That was the only parade I really could watch start to finish and enjoy it all. I only got to see it twice though. I still have pictures of it, along with the opening show they used to have with Mickey & Minnie and all the gang in their safari outfits. Looking forward to your pictures of the parade so I can relive it one more time.

 

[MEK]

I used to love the AK parade too, so I was totally sad when it ended. It was so festive and so much fun!

Wowsa - that is one LONG line for a bio break. I have never seen the line that long.

Give Claire another year or so and she will be all over that single rider line. Those people in front of you are a hoot.

 

[jenseib]

I know I am slacking and I am so sorry. It's just a crazy time of year and of course I have to keep up with work too. Yesterday was Claire's 10th b-day and that kept me busy as well. I will try to get another update in today and hopefully get this day finished up by the weekend so I can start talking about the cruise.

That is so neat that you saw the Yeti move. I am glad that you got to see the parade one last time. The lines for the bathrooms can be crazy. On my recent trip to Disneyland, it sometimes felt that I was waiting longer for the bathroom than for the rides.

Corinna

I was excited about see him move. Even if it was just a little move it was something totally different for us.
I hate long bathroom lines and usually at WDW we don't have that problem too often.

So cool you saw the Yeti move

I have never seen the Nemo show (actually never even contemplated it) but enjoyed your pictures.

It is so sad they ended the parade. That was the only parade I really could watch start to finish and enjoy it all. I only got to see it twice though. I still have pictures of it, along with the opening show they used to have with Mickey & Minnie and all the gang in their safari outfits. Looking forward to your pictures of the parade so I can relive it one more time.

Nemo was never really one that was a must do for me for some reason but I am so glad we finally saw it.
I love that parade so much. I am so sad it's gone.

I used to love the AK parade too, so I was totally sad when it ended. It was so festive and so much fun!

Wowsa - that is one LONG line for a bio break. I have never seen the line that long.

Give Claire another year or so and she will be all over that single rider line. Those people in front of you are a hoot.

That parade and Spectro were my 2 all time favorites...and Spectro will never come back now, which makes me sad. Maybe this one will eventually.....one can hope.
The bathroom line was crazy.
I hope so. We will be able to tackle a few more things if she gets braver.
Those people were so funny.

 

[jenseib]

While we waited they brought some birds by for us to look at.









And this bird did not want to be left out of the fun.







Soon it was time for the parade to come!

 

[jenseib]

Minnie!



















I just can’t express enough how much I love this parade! The music is awesome and the floats are great. I will really miss it!

 

[jenseib]

I have to admit…I may have teared up a few times.



































MICKEY!!!!!







And with that the parade was over. We were so happy to have seen it one last time. We really are very sad it’s gone. I sometimes watch it on youtube. If you get a chance look up the last performance on May 31st. You can see the CM’s are really putting their all in it and some are tearing up. I will admit that I watch it from time to time and have a good cry. Yep I am a total geek!

 

[JKSWonder]

It is a very good parade, though sometimes we've missed it since we were there during months when it was just too hot in AK to stand there (Hello, yes, I'm looking at you August 2013!).

Is cutting it just some cost saving measure? Or are they contemplating doing something else?

 

[dolphingirl47]

I enjoyed the parade photos. I am not really a parade person so I usually give them a miss, but I have seen the Christmas version of that parade.

Corinna

 

[dizneeat]

It's a shame they did away with that parade. It was really nice. Thanks for catching so many great pics and sharing them with us.

 

[KatMark]

That was nice of you to let the young girl sit there with you.

Great parade pictures. I am really sorry we missed it in May as I really liked that parade, but glad we caught it last December for the Christmas version.

Happy Belated Birthday to Claire.

 

[jenseib]

It is a very good parade, though sometimes we've missed it since we were there during months when it was just too hot in AK to stand there (Hello, yes, I'm looking at you August 2013!).

Is cutting it just some cost saving measure? Or are they contemplating doing something else?

It's because of all the new additions they are making to AK. At this point I am not sure how this parade took up space....unless it had to do with where they store the floats backstage. I am not a fan of the avatarland coming, so that just makes me dislike it a little more. There are also other things planned to come, which at this moment I am blanking out on.

I enjoyed the parade photos. I am not really a parade person so I usually give them a miss, but I have seen the Christmas version of that parade.

Corinna

We got to see the Christmas version as well in 2012. I was hoping they would at least bring that back for the holidays, but nope, they didn't.

It's a shame they did away with that parade. It was really nice. Thanks for catching so many great pics and sharing them with us.

It really is a shame. Thanks

That was nice of you to let the young girl sit there with you.

Great parade pictures. I am really sorry we missed it in May as I really liked that parade, but glad we caught it last December for the Christmas version.

Happy Belated Birthday to Claire.

We are having Claire's friend party today....wanna come help me?

 

[jenseib]

With the parade over and all of our FP+’s of the day used we were going to head out and try to get over to MK for a short while before we had to go and pick up Skip from the airport. We started our walk to the front.



We found another photopass photographer and decided to stop.





Claire wasn’t feeling the roaring emotions that I was.



You can just see it in her face…..My mother is so embarrassing.



Goodbye Animal Kingdom





I believe we took the bus over to MK so that we wouldn’t have to worry about getting there in our car and then of course we would have to take the monorail over as well. I figured it would not be any faster for us to drive.

This bus is a VIP bus. We wondered if it was for the cast of the Middle that had been filming there all week. I don’t think I mentioned it much…but they were there and my parents actually saw them filming the part where they entered the park. I had a hometown friend at Disney as well and she also watched them film that segment and she took a few pictures and posted them on facebook. When the episode aired you can see her in the background walking.



How sad…our last moments in the MK.





We stopped off for some more pictures.











Claire wanted to look and see if the store in Tomorrowland had the new version of the Disney infinity disc that someone had told us about. We were told to look through the rows of them and they were hidden in the back. So we made our way back there.




I also want to mention that we had been in contact with Skip off and on today. He did end up going to get a new birth certificate, which I was relieved about. He also bought 2 new pairs of dress pants to bring along. I had to forbid him to take anything out of his suitcase and I even talked to Paige, who at the time was living with us, and told her to make sure he had all his papers out and ready for when he went to the airport.
My last contact with him was when he was at the airport and all seemed to be going well.



Holy cow it’s open! I have NEVER seen it open before in my life! Ok maybe many years ago I did, but not in the last 10. I guess it means it’s extra busy if they opened it.





There was a dance party going on as we walked towards the store.





We headed into the store and sadly the new discs were not out, so my guess is they sold out or they weren’t supposed to be out and were pulled. Claire did buy a couple of infinity characters for her game though.

 

[jenseib]

After the shopping we sat for a few minutes and watched the dance party from the side and then we decided we should eat before leaving since it could be very late before we found decent food again later.
And since the terrace was open that is where we decided to go.











We went with the pasta Alfredo with chicken.



And chocolate cake.



And we enjoyed it very much.





Our view of the construction….and the Move it Shake parade off in the distance.







Time to move on.



We went off to the side and just kind of people watched and observed things. I think this is when I had my last call from Skip.











We still had a little bit of time before rushing out so we made one more stop.



We got in line for Daisy and Minnie and if the posted time was right and the line kept moving we would have just enough time to see them before heading out. While in line we saw some families playing the same type of head bands game we had seen earlier in the trip. I couldn’t think of the name and I asked one family what it was called and they told me to just search hedbanz in the app store and we would find some free kid versions. So we did and I downloaded the app and we started playing. Why did it take the last line of the trip to realize we could’ve been playing this the whole time? It really made the time pass much faster and before we knew it we were ready to visit Daisy.

 

[dizneeat]

Last day, soooooooo sad!

But nothing better than a nice time at the MK. I had to when you said you had never seen the Tomorrowland Terrace open. It used to be one of our prefered lunch spots until they decided to close it for most of the time. Oh, to remember those yummy chicken tenders!

Sorry, Claire didn't get what she was looking for.

I for one got what I love in your TRs, the photopass pics - awesome shots, Jen!

 

[dizneeat]

Yeah, and just when I am writing my response you sneak another update in.
Food looks pretty good. And wow there IS a lot of construction going on.
Love the railroad and Daisy pics - but I cannot believe how tall Claire has grown. It seems just like yesterday that she was that cute little girlie and now you have a young lady on your hands.

 

[jenseib]

And Minnie.





















We finished with time to spare and Claire felt the need to make one of those do it yourself pixie sticks so we stopped off at the candy store to do that.





With that we exited the park. We could’ve spent a little more time in there but I didn’t want to jinx myself and then have to wait for a long time for another bus to come and run late. Skip is not a patient person at all and he would call me over and over asking me where I was if I was late. I always try to allow for time to pick up bags and such when I pick someone up from the airport, but I think Skip has a magic power that makes them come out faster for him. LOL.









Another VIP bus.



And back to the AK to get our car.



We then programmed Siri to get us to Sanford and headed that way. It was now turning dark as we drove along and I recognized most of the route but as we got closer she took us a different way than usual. I think this road might be newer. It was pretty deserted….and dark and just looked newer. We came in from a side entrance rather than the main entrance we usually go in and out of. I noticed several cars parked in a lot across the street so I headed over and parked as well. It was kind of like a field with some areas stoned and there were at least 30 cars waiting there. We were a little early, so I got out and stretched for a little bit.
The time that he was to land came and went and I called his phone and it was still off. Ok, they must be a little late. I was messaging with my friend Deb and she went online to look and see if there was a delay. I don’t think she found one. We saw a plane coming in for landing and we wondered if it was his plane. Sure enough about a minute later my phone rang. He was about 15-25 minutes late if I remember right and he said they were a little late loading the plane.

I told him to call me when the bags were coming off and I would then make my way to pick him up.
Right then a police man came into the lot and whirled a siren and told us we were in a bus lot and we were all parked illegally and if we didn’t want to be arrested we would leave immediately. I thought that was a little harsh. ….So I took off driving and made the circle around the airport but Skip wasn’t out yet. I decided I would just keep circling since there did not seem to be a cell lot anywhere that I could find. This airport is typically easy to get in and out of but tonight it was crazy busy with traffic. As I circled around the 2nd time he called and asked where I was. I pulled up and he hopped in and asked for cigarettes because he didn’t pack any. UGH. This guy smokes like a chimney but relies on me to pack his cigarettes when we travel. He jumped back out and took Claire with him as his bags had not come through yet.
I had no spot to actually park legally so I went ahead and parked at the end of the curb. Sure enough a few minutes later the police came around and sirened me and announced over his loud speaker that I was parked illegally and had to move. Of course I couldn’t because he was in the way, his lights were in my mirror so I couldn’t see what was coming around the other side of him….and what I could see was a ton of cars. He kept telling me to move and I waved that I understood. But seriously, was he blind? I know I was by his light! LOL. But I just had to slowly creep out the best I could. I have never seen them so strict there patrolling the area. Of course we have never arrived at night there either. It just left a bad taste in my mouth.
I circled again and Skip then calls and asked where I went. I told him I had to move and I was on my way back around.
Skip then takes Claire and his suitcase across the road…for no reason at all…to wait for me. This is not the area to stop and be picked up. This lane is for through traffic. UGH. So I stopped and he throws his case in the trunk and they jump in the car and I can mentally hear the cars behind us cussing us out.

Ok, let’s get the heck out of here.
We exit and he makes some comment about me going the wrong way and that we need to go by the gas station, which I pass. So I turn around and he asks why. I said because you wanted the gas station and I park there thinking he is going to buy cigarettes and a drink for the road. He often likes to stop and pick up a coke or something. Nope he wanted the road next to the gas station because he says we have taken that road before.
So we take the road against Siri’s recommendation and it’s a toll road that seems to have a both every mile. Ok, I might be exaggerating but it had a lot of tolls.
The whole trip back he talked all about his flight, his week without us etc….and if we didn’t answer within a half of second he would say Hunh? We just started laughing because every sentence ended in Hunh? Now he does this a lot but it was even worse than normal and I told him if he said Hunh one more time I was going to throw him overboard once we got on the ship….It never stopped….and still continues at home. Claire said we should get him a shirt for Christmas that says “Hunh?” on it so he doesn’t need to bother saying it. I told her it wouldn’t make a difference.
The lovely thing about driving with my husband is that 98% of the time I drive. He almost never drives when we go places together. Well at least behind the wheel. He certainly knows how to tell me how to drive from the passenger seat. And he did just that the whole way back. I was going too fast, too slow, I wasn’t going the right way, I missed the exit….which I have no clue how he would know since he has never been to this Marriott before. Yes, I was pretty sure I might murder him before the end of the trip.
Now I know he was excited to be finally down there with us and his vacation was just starting, so I did try to cut him a little slack. And Claire was just over the moon that he was now here and she was going to be able to show him all about Disney cruising. I just knew heads would clash at some point. He had ideas of how he wanted to spend time….with some relaxing. Claire had lots of ideas of activities she wanted to do with him…and I had the real plans….the ones people were supposed to follow!

We did tell Skip about the car and its lack of power and he noticed it too and we all just laughed. This car was such a piece of crap that it was just funny.

We made it back to the Marriott….and we were still all alive. No murders committed yet. Skip said hi to my parents who were settling in for the night. We made up the couch bed for Claire and we too all settled down since tomorrow was the big day. Claire was quite wound up. I know it was because she was so excited that her dad was now here, but we had to tell her to get to sleep more than once. Finally we all drifted off and got a decent night sleep!

 

[jenseib]

Last day, soooooooo sad!

But nothing better than a nice time at the MK. I had to when you said you had never seen the Tomorrowland Terrace open. It used to be one of our prefered lunch spots until they decided to close it for most of the time. Oh, to remember those yummy chicken tenders!

Sorry, Claire didn't get what she was looking for.

I for one got what I love in your TRs, the photopass pics - awesome shots, Jen!

I love to spend our last moments at MK, so we felt we just had to go there, even if it was for a short time.
I have always heard the food was good there too. I am not sure why they don't open it more often. I had heard at one time it may be taken out completely so I was really surprised to find it open then.

Yeah, and just when I am writing my response you sneak another update in.
Food looks pretty good. And wow there IS a lot of construction going on.
Love the railroad and Daisy pics - but I cannot believe how tall Claire has grown. It seems just like yesterday that she was that cute little girlie and now you have a young lady on your hands.

And I just snuck another one in as well. I was proof reading my stuff so it took me a bit to get them all posted in a row...but I wanted to get this day finished so I can get on with the cruise.

I like my railroad pictures too. I must've been feeling artsy.
Claire is so tall. She is like a little adult now. I was just thinking yesterday about how cute she was as a kid and all the little things she did that were so adorable and she just rolls her eyes at me now.