After a surprisingly good night's sleep, considering we'd done little but sit on our heinies all day, we got up, had breakfast in the hotel and were on the road by 8:00. Today the travel fatigue set in. I'm so glad we decided to drive as far as we could on Day #1! Ian began asking at every pit stop, "Is this Disney World?", and the girls asked how many more hours so often I started to dream about pulling over for the Benadryl.
We stopped at the Florida Visitors Center for the obligatory cup of o.j., got a tiny bit turned around because somebody was a little preoccupied with an episode of The Office
, but soon were seeing Orlando signs.
I tortured the kids by stopping at Walmart for water, fruit, yogurt and milk which had to go in the back seat so all three kids were sitting together for the last little bit and they were loud and crazy! Heres a picture of the kids when we saw the 6 miles to WDW sign:
Finally, we drove under the holy grail of signs:
Directions to the resorts were very easy to follow and by 1:30 we had pulled up in front of the Beach Club! Ahhh..
A gentleman walked up to the car and asked if we were checking in. He said, "There's no guarantee that your room will be ready but happy thoughts help." He began helping George unload the car while I went to check in. I walked up to the front doors and another gentleman asked if I was checking in and my name. I told him and he escorted me to the front desk and presented me to the CM, saying, This is Mrs. E and she is checking in with her family. With all of the attention I felt a little like a princess, which is the perfect way to start out a vacation in a place with a castle.
The happy thoughts must have worked because our room was ready! I went out to tell the clan and found our car already unloaded, so George went to park and then met the kids and I in the lobby. Everyone was sufficiently impressed. It smelled wonderful, and managed to feel both relaxed and beachy and magnificent at the same time. I could tell we were going to love it here.
We walked to our room, 2532 and let me tell you, it was a haul! I dont think it would be possible to be any further from the lobby. George and I disagree on whether the location was good for our family. I think closer to the lobby, Marketplace and SAB would have been preferable, but he loved the quiet, our view and the proximity to Epcot. We could walk out the back door and be in Epcot in literally 5 minutes. It would be a perfect F&W Festival location! I can't complain though, since I was the one to request a full balcony and I did enjoy the view. I snapped these pictures of our room before the family descended upon it.
This is the daybed that Ian slept on.
Our full balcony, handy for drying swim suits, but not inviting in the heat of Florida summer.
Our view of the woods next to the International Gateway.
These pictures are a little cockeyed. I think I was in a hurry to get photos before my clan made themselves too thoroughly at home.
After Bell Services brought up our luggage, we had a decision to make. Should we swim or head to Epcot before we had to get ready for our dinner ADR at Chef Mickey's?
Next post: Day #1 Decision time
We stopped at the Florida Visitors Center for the obligatory cup of o.j., got a tiny bit turned around because somebody was a little preoccupied with an episode of The Office
, but soon were seeing Orlando signs.I tortured the kids by stopping at Walmart for water, fruit, yogurt and milk which had to go in the back seat so all three kids were sitting together for the last little bit and they were loud and crazy! Heres a picture of the kids when we saw the 6 miles to WDW sign:
Finally, we drove under the holy grail of signs:
Directions to the resorts were very easy to follow and by 1:30 we had pulled up in front of the Beach Club! Ahhh..
A gentleman walked up to the car and asked if we were checking in. He said, "There's no guarantee that your room will be ready but happy thoughts help." He began helping George unload the car while I went to check in. I walked up to the front doors and another gentleman asked if I was checking in and my name. I told him and he escorted me to the front desk and presented me to the CM, saying, This is Mrs. E and she is checking in with her family. With all of the attention I felt a little like a princess, which is the perfect way to start out a vacation in a place with a castle.The happy thoughts must have worked because our room was ready! I went out to tell the clan and found our car already unloaded, so George went to park and then met the kids and I in the lobby. Everyone was sufficiently impressed. It smelled wonderful, and managed to feel both relaxed and beachy and magnificent at the same time. I could tell we were going to love it here.
We walked to our room, 2532 and let me tell you, it was a haul! I dont think it would be possible to be any further from the lobby. George and I disagree on whether the location was good for our family. I think closer to the lobby, Marketplace and SAB would have been preferable, but he loved the quiet, our view and the proximity to Epcot. We could walk out the back door and be in Epcot in literally 5 minutes. It would be a perfect F&W Festival location! I can't complain though, since I was the one to request a full balcony and I did enjoy the view. I snapped these pictures of our room before the family descended upon it.
This is the daybed that Ian slept on.
Our full balcony, handy for drying swim suits, but not inviting in the heat of Florida summer.
Our view of the woods next to the International Gateway.
These pictures are a little cockeyed. I think I was in a hurry to get photos before my clan made themselves too thoroughly at home.
After Bell Services brought up our luggage, we had a decision to make. Should we swim or head to Epcot before we had to get ready for our dinner ADR at Chef Mickey's?
Next post: Day #1 Decision time
Waffle House!
