TheNeverEndingPTR! Sept2010...no, November...WAIT! January?Ugh. maybe September 2011!

[-Hope-]

Yes! I want crowd pics!! And food porn!

 

[Twoboysnmygirl]

Yes! I want crowd pics!! And food porn!

I'll do my best, but remember, I wasn't a pro back then and didn't have half the knowledge you have on your first trip!

 

[Victoriasmom98]

BRING ON THE FOOD PORN, BABY!!!

 

[crazyforgoofy]

Tapping my fingers waiting to hear all about this trip you took. Get busy, girl. Surely you haven't anything else to do with your time.

 

[crazyforgoofy]

I'm buying lottery tickets to help with a potential return trip.

 

[-Hope-]

Tapping my fingers waiting to hear all about this trip you took. Get busy, girl. Surely you haven't anything else to do with your time.

I heard she went with the ring leader of the Disney pushers.

 

[Twoboysnmygirl]

But you are supposed to wait until FRIDAY when it's been exactly two years! That's when I'm supposed to start it, but I guess I could break the rules just this once.

Can't do it now though b/c I have to run out and petsit so I can get back here in time to get a certain someone's pup for the day!

 

[3princesses+aprince]

Hi Karen, I haven't been on in a while. I started my christmas shopping, that's why

I'd love to see your old pics too. I love looking back on mine!

 

[Twoboysnmygirl]

Well, Friday is exactly 2 years, but I can start my intro right now!

Our first trip ever to WDW was 2 years ago. I had never been as a child, knew basically NOTHING about WDW and had only had a couple friends who had gone (repeatedly) but I really didn't understand what all the hype was about.

My parents didn't like crowds and so they poo-poohed it and made it seem like a crowded place that was like Six flags. In fact, I did go to Disneyland for an afternoon when I was 13, but I don't remember much and was unimpressed by that point, I remember thinking Six Flags was bigger.

Introduce M.A. She was the brains behind this whole operation, a real Disney-pusher. I don't even remember how it came about, but about 3 months before september, she dropped a bomb on me and told me they have special homeschooling tickets that were dirt cheap and these "value" resorts and that her and Ella would like to take Savannah & I to WDW for a week during homeschool days. WHAT?!?!? Well, that was the end of my unimpressed attitude! (I guess when you think something is an impossibility, you don't think much about it!)

Then the planning started! I'm a planner by nature and looking back, I realize what a SAINT M.A. was. She had over 20 trips under her belt and basically told me that she liked morning EMH and going to DTD on arrival night, gave me a link to the DIS, and set me off to plan the trip!

I don't know if she was just nuts, being nice, or had lots of faith in me, but I was a total noob, so off to the DIS I went and began planning our days around AM EMH's and the Halloween party! September 10th-16th, 2008 it would be! Savannah was 7, just a month away from being 8, and we researched together and it was so exciting!

I made a picture itinerary for the girls

passports for Epcot

and a countdown chain!

but the real fun was making tie dye! We found a mickey head design (on the DIS, of course!) and tried our hand at it. They came out amazing, thanks to M.A. baste stitching, and we've made them again since then. Time consuming, but worth it!

I guess this is where all the Disney-planning-obsession started for me, before my first trip even! Most people think I'm nuts now over Disney, even M.A. who started it all!

Next up...Savannah's first time on a plane, Pop Century and Downtown Disney!

 

[-Hope-]

Love the picture itinerary- so cute! And I didn't realize they had skirts to go with their shirts- adorable!

 

[Twoboysnmygirl]

I'm going to do our first day today since it was a Wednesday and only makes sense to start today!

We started our trip Wednesday morning, Sept. 10th, 2008! We were up and ready to go early! I don't think I slept barely at all, we had to leave super early to get to St. Louis for our flight, but since I'm an early-bird, it didn't matter much to me! Savannah had never been on a plane and was excited.

My mom came out to stay with the boys and the animals. M.A. picked us up and we headed for the airport. You'll notice the farther into the pics we get, the more exhausted we all look! The first day we were bright and bushy-tailed, ready for Walt Disney World! We got to the airport, parked the car, and took the shuttle with no problems. Through security and early, as usual!
While waiting in the airport, the girls met a nice man who was a clown! Well, he wasn't dressed as a clown, but that was his profession. He made them little poodles out of a string of beads...like a balloon animal but tiny! Savannah STILL has this tiny little bead poodle, it's really special to her.

Now, please remember I had a crappy p&s camera. In fact, it was a reoccurring theme during the trip, my camera issues and when I got home I started looking into better cameras, which is what lead to my DSLR!

The boys got their first pic with us...(I brought along a couple pictures on sticks so the boys & Rey could be in some of the pictures. It was fun and I thought they would see them when I got home and know I was thinking of them.)

The airplane was uneventful, not much turbulence. The girls took lots of pics out the window. Savannah really enjoyed it. So much so that when I have been talking about our 2011 trip, she got really upset and said she HATES to drive and wants to fly!

We arrived at the airport and rode the "first and last ride at WDW"... meaning the tram from the plane to the airport. It was RAINING! Ack! I didn't realize that in Orlando it rains all the time for 15 minutes and then is gone and the sun comes right back out! See...knowledge is the key here. This is why I'm a planner and like to know everything about where I'm going!

I was even snapping pics like mad, I think I took about 1500 on the trip, M.A. Thought I was certifiable, but that's nothin'! I took over 3000 on the 2009 trip!

We headed to the ME and we were on the bus in no time. I hadn't researched lines/buses/etc. And so looking back I think I was pretty unprepared for them. I hadn't given it much thought and the bus ride from the airport seemed long but the girls were excited and enjoyed watching the tv's! I was adjusting to all the people...and a couple screaming kids.

We arrived at Pop and Savannah & I were in awe. We walked into the lobby to check in and they had a DJ and hoola hoops! Savannah was beside herself!

I'll need to make another post, I think!

 

[Twoboysnmygirl]

We were in the 80s building! WOOT! (I took a ton of pics, but I'm not going to post them all here, there are too many! LOL)

It was early evening when we got to the room and cleaned up. We didn't want to use park tickets for this day, so we headed to Downtown Disney to shop a bit and have dinner at Rainforest Cafe! Waiting for a bus...

Savannah's first ride on a WDW bus!

This was my first trip on the regular buses. They were really convenient and I liked not having to worry about transport. There were a couple times over the trip where we had to wait in long lines and quite a few times we had to stand on the bus late at night and the girls were falling asleep standing up. I would rather have a car and drive where I need to go. (this is what I wrote back then) I still prefer having a car, but there is something special about the buses too. On our last trip we purposefully left our car and took a bus just for the fun of it! Savannah LOVES the buses!

LOVED the decor and feel of DTD. All the decorations and music were so cool. I finally felt like I was in Disney World.

I had been to RFC before, but Savannah never had and even though she knows now that they have them in other parts of the US, she wants to go to RFC every time we are at Disney and it's a special place for her. DTD that first night is where I think we both really realized the MAGIC that WDW holds.

They made me a veggie stirfry with Olive oil instead of butter. I promised a little food porn!

I had a couple margarita's too! M.A. Had one, I believe...what can I say, I'm a lush.

The girls had the VOLCANO!!!!!!!!! (they yell VOLCANO everytime they bring one out to someone). I think this is really what she likes RFC for so much.

Savannah made friends with a fish and wanted me to take pics of it. (she looked for the same fish...and swore she found it again on our 2009 trip)

Finally we were finished with our meal and headed outside...and it was POURING. It's Florida, after all!

We made a run for Goofy's Candy Shop! I have never seen so much candy in my life! The girls had a grand time in the funky-mirror and M.A. decided it was worth it to purchase some poncho's.

All ready for some rain, we headed out to the Christmas store. WOW! We searched for the perfect ornament and Savannah found it! Sigh...I love the Christmas store at DTD!

When we came out, the rain had stopped (naturally!) and M.A. And I decided to be dorks...

We made our way over to the Once Upon A Toy! What a cool place, there are toys out all over the place to play with, you don't even have to purchase anything if you don't want.

kindof a crowd pic for you Hope...

Savannah only had two things she really wanted to purchase while in WDW. One was a Minnie Mouse and one was a Pluto. Well, she didn't realize there would be SO MANY different kinds! She sat on the floor and tried to decide by hugging each one!

She ended up picking the *Dreams* Minnie with the light blue dress, but over the course of the next couple days, I bought her two others b/c I'm just a nice mommy that way. Really nice, considering I only brought $100 in spending money. I think I spent it all on her and came home with just a mug for me (which I use almost every morning for my coffee still)

When we came out of the store, the sun had gone down and WOW! All the trees were lit up with twinkle lights and with the music in the background I almost choked up! There must really be magic here. I tried to take a pic, which came out cool b/c of the pink light shining on the girls, but this was my first inkling that I was going to need a new camera for our next trip. My camera just doesn't function at night. AT ALL.

Off to World of Disney where Stitch will spit on you if you stand in front of the sign too long!!! Fun store, we decided to try on hats! What can I say, I like cheap fun.

Finally, it was back to the bus and our room for some sleep before our big first day at Magic Kingdom!

Can you believe that all that I've posted so far was just the first afternoon after arriving?

Until tomorrow!...

 

[Twoboysnmygirl]

Thursday, September 11, 2008
MK-EMH

First full day! We woke up early with our wake-up call from Stitch and headed to Magic Kingdom for EMH. We were all decked out in our tie dye mickey shirts that we made and there were smiles all around!

We arrived at 8am, rope drop! Everything was decorated for Halloween. We just caught the opening and headed in, I remember thinking about how M.A. Had told me it wasn't crowded and thinking...”THIS isn't crowded???” I told you I was a noob. Hope, here are some crowd pics for ya...

Even though it was crowded when everyone first started into the park, once everyone spread out, the place was pretty empty! We walked straight up and THROUGH the castle. I caught my breath when I saw Savannah looking up in awe at the castle!

Once we were through the castle, the place was virtually empty! We walked on every ride for the next hour or two!

Savannah met her first CM and this was the beginning of new things for my girl! She ended up being chatty kathy with strangers on the buses a couple times! It was good for her. It's that Disney magic!

First ride on the list was DUMBO! Savannah's first official ride...ever! She had never been on any type of amusement ride, so I was a little nervous about how she would react (Dylan was terrified for years and still really has no interest in rides...unlike Dallas who loves any kind of ride).

We had really no wait and get on the ride, 5 minutes, tops. She picked the purple Dumbo and we got in (after I took yet another annoying pic, they got used to it eventually! LOL)

We sat down and got buckled in, and I explained to her that it spins around but SHE could control how it went up and down with the lever in front of her. She could do it however slow she needed to and keep us high or low.

Off we went...and damn if the girl wasn't yanking that lever up and down as fast and as hard as she could!!!! We were dropping and flying back up so much I thought I might drop my camera! She laughed and laughed...

My little daredevil. So that began her quest to find a ride that was faster and better...b/c Dumbo was just too slow, she said. She went on every single ride at WDW, even one's that had my stomach dropping into my shoes and loved them all. Never scared a single moment! Dumbo will always be special to her though b/c it was her first ride, even if it doesn't go high enough or fast enough! It's a MUST do for her first thing now, she says she won't go on anything until she goes on Dumbo first. LOL.

After Dumbo, it was a frenzy of rides, none with lines! WOOT!

Peterpan and Pooh were first. I had never gone on rides like these, they kind of tell a story, I must have been deprived as a child to have never experienced something like this.

The place was empty, M.A. said this was unusual.
(crowd pics for you Hope!) This was an EMH morning, but I can tell you it's exactly what it looked at on our 2009 trip the first hour or so after opening.

Next we were off to the speedway. Savannah was going to get to drive her first car! These cars are on a rail, where you can't run off it, basically. What you CAN do, however, is bump it. OVER. and OVER. and OVER. She attempted to drive, and we bumped all over the place while laughing hysterically the whole time. Loads of fun and I'm recovering from the whiplash pretty nicely now!

We grabbed fast passes for Buzz Lightyear, and headed to the Astro Orbiter.
Here's M.A. And Ella

Savannah liked it, of course, b/c it went fast.

I was feeling a little woosey from the spinning, so we went right below the ride and sat down for a snack. While we were eating, a CM came over and found out that Savannah & I were on our first trip and made buttons for us!

Savannah was DYING to go on the tea cups (which we had passed by earlier b/c we wanted to get to speedway before there was a line) and so we headed back in that direction and Savannah got her wish. She loved the tea cups, I was glad that M.A. warned me and we sat in one and did NOT spin it while the girls went together and went wild!

Right after they got off, they saw The Mad Hatter and Alice get on, so they watched them go around a bit, that was cute. We headed back towards fantasyland and went on snow white, the carousel, and small world. I took some pics with Dylan and Dallas in front of Snow White and Pooh and also I wanted one with Rey kissing my by the castle. heehee

The crowds weren't as bad as they look in this pic, this was just a large group coming in, I think. The shot just a little bit after that walking towards Small World has less people in it.

Off to Tunetown we went! It was time for Goofy's Barnstormer, Savannah's first rollercoaster. It's small, quick, and over in a flash. I figured she would love it, and I was right! They even sat in the front seat!

As soon as we were off, they were begging to go again, so we stood there and watched them go by themselves. Next we were off to Minnie's house. Minnie wasn't there, to Savannah's disappointment, but she enjoyed looking around the house.

Next we popped by Mickey's house! After Mickey's house (who has a VERY messy kitchen, btw, and an amazing garden!), we headed back to Buzz Lightyear with our fastpasses. We had fun, but I was just shooting blindly like a fool most of the time! At this point I started getting tired (damn, it was barely lunchtime! I was shocked that I was already worn out, more on this later.) and Savannah was too, I could tell. My notes say that the girls were both a little whiney, so we decided on lunch and a rest a bit.

We went to Cosmic Ray's and found a nice seat with a view of the back of the castle. I had the only vegan/veggie thing on the menu (except a veggie burger) that they offered, a veggie wrap. It was pretty good! I had it again on our 2009 trip as well.

When we came out of lunch, we saw some CM's with lanyards. Savannah hadn't had a chance to trade any pins yet, so I suggested she do that. She was nervous b/c of how shy she is, but she did it and was happy b/c they had a couple pins she really liked.

Off we walked around the castle, past libery square (and TREE!) through frontierland and towards SPLASH MOUNTAIN...

 

[Twoboysnmygirl]

Day 1 continuted:

Splash was (and still is) Savannah's favorite ride. It's hard to pick one, but this is top of her list. As we got closer to Splash Mountain, I could hear the screams, so I knew there was a drop, like the log flume at Six Flags, I figured.

There was a line, but it didn't take us more than 10 minutes to get through it. We get in the boats,*no seat belts, so it can't be THAT bad, right? People would fall out? The ride is pretty long. There are a couple little hills that are fun. THEN...THEN...you see the top of the castle in the distance...and the DROP. OMG, I swear it goes straight down and have no idea how they get away with no seatbelts! I thought for sure that Savannah would be scared this time. (ahem...I was. LOL) I SCREAMED and held on for dear life. SPLASHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH Amazingly, we didn't get as wet as I expected, but my stomach was still in my shoes (you know that feeling with a big drop...I have drop-issues) and I was still recovering when she started BEGGING TO GO AGAIN!

We promised to go again that evening, we had to leave soon if we wanted to rest a bit at the hotel and go to dinner before coming back for the fireworks and parade.

They were pumped up though and wanted to go on Thunder Mountain. Of course, I was weary after THAT ride and M.A. said she couldn't go on TM b/c it was too bumpy and jerky. (oh, that made me feel MUCH better about it!)

So, I took the girls and got in line. It was getting busier now, but I could tell by how fast we went through the line that it gets much busier. It took us about 10-15 minutes to get through and then we were off! It was the bumpiest rollercoaster I've ever been on, but no drops and it really didn't go high, so it was a piece of cake for me. I loved it! We all did. I especially love it at night, Dallas, Savannah, & I went during MNSSHP on our 2009 trip and it was a blast!

It was time to head back to Pop. It was around 1:30, I believe, and I was whipped. I had blisters on my feet and I was shocked that this much walking bothered me. I thought I would be able to go much longer without feeling worn out! I had been RUNNING for the weeks heading up to the trip, was in good shape...I guess it might have been just that I hadn't expected it. I expected other things, so when they came up, it wasn't a big deal, but I hadn't thought about the physical aspect of it? Maybe I just wasn't in the shape I thought I was? M.A. didn't even look winded?!

The girls did, however. Mark my word people, if you want pics in front of the castle with your kids, take them at the beginning of the day! I attempted with the girls and it's almost comical how tired they looked!

At the bus stop waiting to go back to Pop...

I think some of it MUST have been in my perspective of things b/c on our 2009 trip I didn't feel like that at all. My legs were a little sore each night, but not exhausted. I think part of it was sleep deprivation as well, I was so excited that I didn't sleep much each night, waiting for the next day. Oh, and it was HOT! I hadn't mentioned it yet in the TR, it's funny the things you forget, but maybe the heat was part of why we were so tired too? Nothing the pool and a margarita couldn't fix!!!

The ride back on the cool bus helped me get some of my energy back. When we arrived to our room, Savannah's stuffed animals had been arranged together and there was a towel animal. It was cute, I had expected this but hadn't told her about it.

Off to the pool to cool off, have a drink and relax! We went to the main hippy dippy pool b/c they have the bar. It was nice and relaxing. I still couldn't believe this was our first day and how much we had already done!

We headed back to the room and cleaned up for dinner!
http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i161/twoboysnmygirl/WDW2008/WDW2008528.jpg

We were headed to Boma and I had read a lot about vegan options, so I was excited! If I had the money, this is the place I would stay! We were going to have to hop on a bus to AK and once at AK take another bus to the resort, but when we got on the bus there were only us and another family and when the driver reminded us that AK closed soon and we told him where we were going and he just drove us straight there. We had the bus to ourselves, the girls thought that was fun!

AKL is gorgeous. It was hard to get a pic as my camera sucks (I told you this would be a reoccurring theme!) but I tried. We were a little early, so we explored the resort before heading to BOMA.

We walked through the main Lobby and it was just amazing. The details in the architecture were gorgeous! We headed straight back to a wall of windows and down some stairs that took us outside behind the resort.

Right outside the door there was a firepit where M.A. said they had storytelling every night. Then we walked out to look over the back of the resort to see the animals. There were some CM's there that were from Africa, we talked with them about how long they had been here, they took a pic for us and told us a little about the savanna animals.

Time to eat! I had made this reservation b/c I was told they had lots of vegan options, which was somewhat of a challenge most of the time at WDW. I told the waiter I was vegan and he promptly sent the chef out and she walked me through the whole buffet and showed me everything that was vegan! She even had them bring me out a small salad with no cheese in it b/c the prepared salad had cheese. The food was OUTSTANDING. So unique, and tasty!

While we were eating (in front of a beautiful window looking outside) we saw the rain start. We were due to head back to MK for Spectro and Wishes. After a trip to the gift shop, we dawned our poncho's and headed out to the bus stop!

MK in the rain! We arrived and the girls were complaining about their poncho's, Savannah didn't want to wear it, but I insisted. She didn't realize how cold she would have gotten if she had been wet.

We headed down mainstreet and took a few pics by the castle and then toward Splash Mountain (of course!) It was closed b/c of the rain, they were working on getting it back up and running. So, we headed over to Pirates of the Caribbean. When we left the shop, the rain had stopped! Yay! We were excited b/c Spectro would have been canceled if the rain had continued.

When we found out that the parade was still on, we headed to Liberty Square to find a spot. Found a nice one and sat down to wait for the parade. The girls hoola-hooped while we waited for the parade.
I didn't get a ton of pics b/c my camera (ahem) was running out of batteries AND it took crappy pics in the dark. The pics I did got didn't do the parade justice.

So, after Spectromagic ended, we headed right over to mainstreet to watch Wishes. M.A. and Isabella went to get ice cream for us all and it got more and more crowded. Savannah & I stood there as the crowds covered the area.* Then the fireworks started! I figured she just couldn't find us, so Savannah & I enjoyed them together. Wow! Magical! We loved it.

I didn't get any good pics on my camera (cough, cough) but I used M.A.'s camera the following night to get some of the boo-to-you fireworks which is also over the castle. The pics here are from my camera, that's why they are so blurry...(I'm just posting this so you can see that I wasn't exaggerating about the camera! LOL)

After they were over, the stampede began for the gate. Oh. My. Gawd. Crazy and amazing how many people can fit in MK! People probably thought I was nuts taking pictures of the crowd, I don't remember seeing that many people together at once!

M.A. caught me on the phone and we found each other. She told a story of how in order to get tofutti for me, they wanted to fill out a form and it took 15 minutes and 3 people to get a tiny little scoop??? They missed Wishes (I'm glad they've seen it before!). So, we sat down to have ice cream and watched the masses head towards the gate.

We finally headed towards the gate about 45 minutes later and there was still quite a line. I think it was 11:30pm by the time we fell into bed. What an amazing first day!

Tomorrow...DHS!

 

[-Hope-]

Wow! You really did get so much accomplished on that first day! I feel so much better about my MK day now. The crowds look great- Robbie will be pleased with that. And did you say Savannah was chatty with STRANGERS?!? Now that is some Disney magic!

 

[Victoriasmom98]

I absolutely LOVE to read your reports......even if it's 2 years old!!!! Keep it coming!!!!

 

[Twoboysnmygirl]

Wow! You really did get so much accomplished on that first day! I feel so much better about my MK day now. The crowds look great- Robbie will be pleased with that. And did you say Savannah was chatty with STRANGERS?!? Now that is some Disney magic!

Yep, it was pretty amazing, although I think part of it was Disney magic, part of it was Ella. When we went in 2009, it was Savannah's bday and without Ella there and undivided CM attention b/c of her bday, it was too much and she was not so open and chatty, in fact, she begged not to be sung to and didn't want to wear her bday button, just too much attention???

I absolutely LOVE to read your reports......even if it's 2 years old!!!! Keep it coming!!!!

Thanks Ann! It's been fun reliving it and reading over it again. I can't WAIT to see your TR when you get back...you'll be doing one, right???

 

[Victoriasmom98]

I probably will do one. I haven't kept up really well with the ptr, though.....

 

[crazyforgoofy]

I wanna go back to Disney World with Karen and Savannah for two reasons.

One - we have great fun together and even though I'm older than dirt I never get tired there.

Two - Karen is a fantastic 'reporter' so we have so many great photo and story memories.


<sigh>


and holy cow how those two girls have changed in 24 months! It's shocking how they've grown.

M.A.

 

[Twoboysnmygirl]

I wanna go back to Disney World with Karen and Savannah for two reasons.

One - we have great fun together and even though I'm older than dirt I never get tired there.

Two - Karen is a fantastic 'reporter' so we have so many great photo and story memories.


<sigh>


and holy cow how those two girls have changed in 24 months! It's shocking how they've grown.

M.A.

SHOCKING! Something tells me that no matter how much they have changed, if we went to WDW today, they would still hold hands, giggle, and grin from ear to ear!