The Worst Vacation Ever according to an ungrateful 8 year old

[Kcat1971]

Really it was a great trip, but our moody, often ungrateful 8 year old used the phrase "This is the worst vacation ever!" a couple times when things weren't going exactly his way. We quickly put a stop to that expression under the threat of dire consequences but still got the phrase "I'm about to say what I'm not allowed to say" a couple times after that. Here's my trip report- you tell me if it was the worst vacation ever.

The vacationers:
Me- 38 year old, professional in desperate need of a break
Dh- 40 year old, stay at home Dad and homeschooling parent also in desperate need of a break
13 year old Daughter- still willing to vacation with us but only barely, but generally cooperative and willing to get into the Disney Spirit
almost 8 year old son- birthday 5 days after we return, happy not to have school work to do and thinks the world should revolve around him.
Birthday Boy- son who turned 3 during the trip and loved almost every minute.
Grandpa- my 65 year old father, who is a seasonal cast member and enjoyed sharing his discounts with us.
Grandma- my 65 year old mother,

Thursday Nov. 5 Travel Day- We arrived at the airport 2 hours early but luckily the airport monorail entertained the boys. The flight itself wasn't too bad. Our only incident was during beverage service when I poured milk into Birthday Boy's sippy cup. Turns out he wanted to do it himself. After a 5 minute screaming fit he passed out and we enjoyed the rest of the flight. We arrived just after 6pm. Grandpa picked us up at the airport, then we picked up pizza on the way to their place. We spent the night with them so we'd be ready to go early the next morning.

Friday Nov. 6- Magic Kingdom- We boarded monorail from the parking lot at about 8:45am. Birthday Boy was disappointed we didn't get a blue monorail train. We told him that we don't get to pick colors. The little girl next to us was also crying. Her mother explained that she thought she'd see Snow White immediately upon arriving. Just the monorail came to a stop to wait to pull into the station. I looked over and the train was right there waiting for the opening ceremony. There was Snow White waving at us. Said "Look everyone!" and the two crying kids stopped. Disney magic came through for us!

The opening ceremony was lots of fun. Dh, 13 year old Daughter & almost 8 year old son went straight to Big Thunder Mountain Railroad at the rope drop. (They walked the rope back to Frontierland) They rode BTMR 4 times with no wait and got fast passes for later. They also rode Splash Mt. Grandpa, Grandma, Me & Birthday Boy got a stroller then went to Adventureland and rode Aladdin's Magic Carpet twice with no wait. We all met back up and rode Pirates of Caribbean, Enchanted Tiki House, Tom Sawyer Island, & Swiss Family Treehouse before lunch. There were very short lines for everything. Nothing longer than a 10 min wait.

We ate lunch at Liberty Tree Tavern. We could see Tiana's Showboat Jubliee Parade from the window. Almost 8 year old & Birthday Boy split a kids meal. The waiter brought an extra milk & dessert for no extra charge.

After lunch we went to Tomorrowland. Birthday Boy's first time on Buzz Lightyear he scored 311,700! After that his scores were typically under 1500. The wait for Buzz Lightyear was about 20 minutes. We rode it twice using standby and twice using it fast passes. About 4pm we headed out to check into our condo.

Saturday Nov. 7- We spent the day at Melbourne Beach.

Sunday Nov. 8- we attended church, then had a picnic at Lake Toehoe. Then we went to Downtown Disney. Grandparents treated the kids to souveniers, we all enjoyed a free Ghirdelli White Chocolate Peppermint Bark Square and the boys played at the Lego store race track. At the Toy Store, almost 8 year old son received a "magical moment". He was invited to be an honorary cast member. He was brought behind the counter to check himself out. He received a certificate. We all enjoyed a round trip boat ride to Port Orleans & back.

Next post- back to the Magic Kingdom

 

[Kcat1971]

Monday Nov. 9- Back to the Magic Kingdom.

We arrived just after 9am. We missed the opening ceremony. We all went to Tomorrowland. Almost 8 year old wanted to ride Astro Orbitor, the line was about 10 minutes. Then we all rode Buzlight year twice with very little wait. On our way to the tomorrowland speedway we met the talking trash can. He called us the "Matching Shirt Family" & told Birthday Boy not to eat his fingers because he might need them later to pick his nose. After that, we rode the tomorrowland speedway twice- about a 15-20 minute wait each time. Then met Alice & the White Rabbit and rode the Tea Cups. We got FastPasses for Winnie the Pooh because it had a 40 minute wait and got bonus fastpasses for Mickey's Philharmagic. On our way we saw that Snow White's Scary Adventure only had a 10 minute wait so we rode that. Philharmagic didn't have any wait, even without the FastPasses, so we did that. After that we rode Its a Small World. It had a 10 min. wait.

Dh ran out to the car to get our lunch cooler. While he did that, Birthday Boy, Grandpa & I rode Dumbo. It had a 30 min wait. Grandma & Almost 8 year old went to Pooh's playfull spot. He quickly bored of it and joined his sister in the Dumbo line. I was trying to do the "Chuck Bubba Relay" described in the offical guide, planning on having Birthday Boy ride with 13 year old but I must have miss counted because 13 yearold & almost 8 year old ended up qued with their flight ticket before we got off the ride and there was no way to pass Birthday Boy to them. This made all 3 children unhappy. 2 riding Dumbo that didn't want to and 1 not riding that wanted to be. OH WELL. Lunch time.

After lunch, Grandma, DH, 13 year old, almost 8 year old went to Frontierland. They rode Big Thunder Mountain Railroad & Splash Mountain several times. Grandpa, Me & Birthday Boy, rode Barnstormer, played at Donald's Boat, then took the Train to Frontierland. Birthday Boy fell asleep on the Train so we made an extra loop so he could have a little nap. When Grandpa, Birthday Boy & I arrived in Frontierland. I rode Splash Mountain & Big Thunder Mountain with Dh & the older kids with the fast passes they had got earlier. Then we all went to Tomorrowland and had dinner at Cosmic Ray's.

After Dinner, we rode the Tea Cups, Tomorrowland Speedway, (Grandpa & Grandma rode the people mover) and Buzz Lightyear. At 8pm we watched Wishes from the Tomorrowland Bridge. (It was too windy for Tinkerbell).

Next post- Hollywood Studios

 

[Kcat1971]

Tuesday Nov. 10- Hollywood Studios

Grandma decided not to join us today. We arrived just after 9am. Toy Story Mania already had a 70 min standby line, so we got Fast Passes for 12:50. (We later heard that the line was not 70 minutes so we wished we'd done it then).

Dh & the older kids went to Tower of Terror and Rock N Rollercoaster (twice). While Grandpa, Birthday Boy & I met Pluto, Goofy, Donald, TIgger & Eeyore. Then I rode Rock N Rollercoaster with the older kids. We had about a 30 minute wait. After that we all watched Voyage of the Little Mermaid. At 12:50 we used our Toy Story Mania FastPasses and loved it. We also got additional FastPasses for 7:20pm. Grandpa, 13 year old, Birthday Boy & I went to see Playhouse Disney Live. Dh & almost 8 year old rode TSMM again. The stand-by line said 40 minutes but it really only took about 25. After Playhouse Disney we met back at TSM. They wait said 40 min so we got in line. It turned out to be 70 min! we missed our 2:45 ADR at Mama Melrose but they seated us with no wait at 3:30pm. However, this caused us to miss the Extreme Stunt Show, disappointing the 2 boys.

After dinner Birthday Boy met Lightening McQueen & Mater. It was a 5 minute line and he just kept getting back into it. Dh & almost 8 year old went to Honey I Strunk the Kids playground. After it closed it was close to 5:30. We decided just to wait for the Osborne Lights. The kids were very restless but it was worth the wait the lights were amazing! I enjoyed watching them all come on & being part of the ceremony but if you don't want to wait or like the crowd its probably better to view them after the 8pm fantasmic show.

Around 6:30 Birthday Boy & I got in line to meet Buzz & Woody. It turned out to be a 30 min. wait. Dh, Grandpa & the older kids did Journey through Narnia. At 7pm we asked if we could use our 7:20 FP for TSM. The castmember let us use them and we were sent through the handicap line. Absolutely no wait and we were able to make sure Birthday Boy got the blue gun. Fantasic!

After TSM, almost 8 year old wanted to ride Rock N Rollercoaster again. We were heading in that direction and discussing whether we wanted to see the 8pm Fantasmic Show. (I did, but Grandpa, Dh & Birthday Boy were fading faast) Then it started to rain. So we headed out of the park instead, causing almost 8 year old to declare "This is the worst vacation ever!"

Next Post-More Magic Kingdom

 

[Kcat1971]

Wednesday Nov. 11- More Magic Kingdom

We arrived at MK just before 10am. Dh & almost 8 year old got the first raft over to Tom Sawyer Island. They found 3 paintbrushes (re-hid 2 of them). They got 7 Fastpass to Big Thunder Mountain as a reward. They rode Big ThunderMountain & Splash Mountain twice with no wait. Then watched Mickey's Philharmagic.

Grandpa, Grandma, 13 year old, Birthday Boy & I went to ToonTown to Meet Mickey. We only had a 5 minute wait and were able to meet both Mickey & Minnie together. Grandpa & Grandma decided to ride the Train, while Birthday Boy, 13 year old & I rode Barnstormer 5 times in a row with no waiting. We met Grandpa & Grandma at Buzz Lightyear and rode after a 5 min. standby wait. Then we rode the People Mover and saw the Monsters Inc. show.

We all met up at the Carousel, which we rode. We headed out of the park seeing a little of the Shake it Move it show on our way.

We took a long lunch break/nap/swim at the Condo.

Everyone except Grandma went back to Magic Kingdom around 5:30. We went straight to Frontierland. 13 year old, 8 year old & I rode Big Thunder Mountain twice using the Fastpasses from Tom Sawyer Island. (there was about a 20 minute standby wait). Grandpa, Dh & Birthday Boy went on Aladdin's Magic Carpet. We all watched the Spectro Magic Parade at 7pm.
Then we went to ride Buzz Lightyear. We rode 5 times in a row with no wait. We exited the park during Wishes.

Next post- Animal Kingdom

 

[Kcat1971]

Thursday Nov. 12- Animal Kingdom

We arrived at the gate just after 9am. Dh, 13 year old & 8 year old went to Kilimanjaro Safaris and picked up 10:05 Fast Passes. Then went to Expedition Everest. 5 minute wait time so they rode 3 times in a row.

Grandpa, Grandma, Birthday Boy & I met Tigger, Pooh, & Eeyore with no wait then rode Triceratops Spin 5 times in a row. They didn't even make us get off the ride. Then we met the others at Expedition Everest, which I rode twice in a row with the older two.

At 10:05 we all went to the Kilimanjaro Safari. We used our Fast Passes but there was virtually no wait there. We saw Rhinos & Giraffes along with other animals.

After KS we all went to the 12;30 Festival of the Lion King. 8 year old was not thrilled while going that direction but did end up enjoying the show. 13 year old is a dancer and absolutely loved the show, declaring that someday she wants to be a Disney performer.

After the show, Dh ran to the car for our lunch cooler, the boys played in Dinoland. 8 year old rode Primeval Whirl on his own, while Birthday Boy played in the Boneyard.

After lunch, Dh, 13 year old & 8 year old rode Dinosaur, while the rest watched the Nemo Musical. Birthday Boy fell asleep during Nemo and got a 30 minute nap. After Nemo, we all met up again. We got fast passes to EE, then went to the Tiger Trail. After seeing the Tigers, 8 year old rode Kali River Rapids on his own. No wait- it was a chilly day. Then Grandpa took 8 year old to EE. He rode it 6 times in a row using the fast passes we had got earlier. While he rode EE the rest of us watched the parade.

At 4:30 we all met up at Kilmanjaro Safaris. We didn't really need the fast passses at all. We saw lots of new animals. We saw Cheetahs hunting and the Lion was very active.

At 5:15 we had ADR for Rainforest Cafe and celebrated 8 year old birthday with a Volcano dessert. It was his favorite park (until Saturday).

Next post- Guess where? Yes More Magic Kingdom

 

[Kcat1971]

Friday Nov. 13- Yes, More Magic Kingdom,

The Birthday Boy's actual birthday! We let him open presents (lots of Disney Cars) at the condo until 10am. Then we checked out of the condo. We decided to let the birthday boy pick which park to go to and he said he wanted to ride Buzz Lightyear, so we headed to Magic Kingdom. The monorail was down so we had to wait for 3 ferryboats. When we arrived we picked up a birthday button, but the Birthday Boy didn't want to wear it. Grandpa & Dh took turns wearing it and got lots of birthday wishes. We also got family pictures taken by the Christmas trees at town square. I didn't like how they turned out though so they won't be our Christmas card picture.

Around 11:30 we headed over to Buzz Lightyear. There was only a 10 minute wait so we rode twice. Then we rode the people mover twice. Dh & 13 year old went to Adventureland to get her hair braided. Grandma, Birthday Boy & I rode Tomorrowland Speedway twice. Grandpa bought the boys Sugar in a Tube (gee, thanks) and then we watched a Dream Come True Show while eating lunch from our cooler.

After lunch, the boys drove the boats near the jungle cruise and we all took the jungle cruise. Dh, 13 year old & 8 year old ride Splash Mountain. Birthday Boy tried to ride because he declared "It's my birthday I'm bigger now!" But he still wasn't tall enough. Instead he went with me to get Big Thunder Mountain Fast passes and buy Taffy.

Then we all watched the 3pm parade. After the Parade we went to the Hall of Presidents. Birthday Boy fell asleep so we stayed for a second show so he could get a longer nap. During the 2nd show, Dh & 8 year old went to Big Thunder Mountain and rode twice using the fast passes we had got earlier. After that we all headed to Fantasyland. PeterPan was a 30 minute wait so we skipped it. We all rode the Carousel then, Dh & Birthday Boy rode Dumbo- only a 20 minute wait. 13 year old went to Ariel's Grotto with Birthday BOy's autograph book and got signatures from Ariel & Prince Eric for him. 8 year old got completely soaked in the Grotto so Grandpa bought him new clothes.

After that we headed back to Tomorrowland for a last Buzz Lightyear ride. we rode twice with fast passes even though it was only a 10 minute wait. Then we went to the Tomorrowland Speedway Merchandise Stand to buy Birthday Boy more Cars for his birthday. He had been looking at the Big Mack Truck full of Cars all week.

The park closed at 7pm for a Very Merry Mickey Christmas Party. We had 7:15 ADR for 1900 Park Fare. We took the Monorail and arrived right at 7:15. We were seated around 7:35. Birthday Boy was completely uninterested in the food or characters. He spent most of the dinner under the table looking at the cars he had just got. 13 year old did enjoy the characters. The food was so-so. But I loved the Bread Pudding! They boys did get cupcakes for their birthdays and they did not charge us for the just turned 3 year old.

We checked into All Star Music around 10pm for a 2 night stay.

Next Post- Blizzard Beach

 

[Kcat1971]

Saturday Nov. 14- Blizzard Beach

We arrived around 11:30. We gave the 13 year old & 8 year old free reign as long as they stayed together. The lines were very short. The weather was mid-80's it was perfect.

Birthday Boy played for 2 hours in Tike's Peak, then took a 2 hour nap on a lounge chair next to Grandpa.

Dh & I found the older kids and joined them on lots of rides.

We rode everything many times in about 4 hours.

8 year old loved Summit Plummit and declared this his favorite park.

Next post- Epcot

 

[Kcat1971]

Sunday Nov. 15- Epcot

All week we had debated whether to go to Epcot. The kids really weren't that interested. But we did have 1 day ticket left. Dh also really wanted more Beach time. So we decided to do about 3 hours of Epcot Sunday Morning then go to the Beach.

We arrived at 9am. We immediately did Spaceship Earth & played in the Project Tomorrow area. After that we went to Club Cool and tried all the free Coke samples and bought Slushees in special cups. Then Dh, Grandma, 13 year old & 8 year old rode Soarin' it was about a 35 min wait on Standby. Grandpa, Birthday Boy & I rode Nemo, saw Turtle Talk and played in the Seas.

We met back up and headed toward Test Track. Grandma Birthday Boy & I stopped to visit the Characters we waited about 35 min and met Mickey, Minnie, Pluto, Donald & Goofy. While we did that the others went to Test Track. Grandpa is a GM retiree so they get special entry without fast passes. So no wait.

After that we met back up and headed to Cocoa Beach. We spent the rest of the day at the Beach adn had a great time.

On Monday Morning we arrived at teh airport at 6:30am. We were home by noon. It was a great trip. Even the 8 year old agrees.

 

[cantwaitvaca09]

sounds like a great trip
I took my turned 5 while there year old girl and 2 year old girl the end of september. We meet all the princesses, mickey and all his friends, 5year old dance with teh prince on her bday.

What does she say... I love you mom, but we did not meet Jasmin.


UGG KIDS!