There's an App for That! iDisney, July-Aug 2009. New 12/3: DONE!

[sharkB8HooHaHa]

NO WAY!!!!!! I didn't know he made it on Mission:Space. That is awesome!

 

[Disneyland_Mama]

[SIZE="3] Not only was I able to open the attached spreadsheet system, I could view each tab on my iPhone screen! Not a single piece of paper was used to keep track of my Plan. No binder. No index cards. Just me and my iPhone. It’s enough to make this tree-hugger shed a tear or two.[/size][/quote]
That was enough to make a planning nut crazy! Must have an iPhone. Must curse Verizon for not jumping on that when they had the chance. Idiots.

[quote="PrincessV, post: 33317560"][SIZE="3]

Firstly, they’re our friends and we don’t mind waiting for friends. [/quote]
Me neither. It's waiting for family that kills me!

[quote="PrincessV, post: 33317560"][SIZE="3]
[IMG]http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2488/3798994011_c167ccdafe.jpg[/IMG]
[SIZE=1]Wait… is this “Yay for Leo!” or “Power to the People!”???[/SIZE]
[/size][/quote]
Whoo Hoo!!

[quote="PrincessV, post: 33317560"][SIZE="3]
Which meant that it was time for a temporary “goodbye” while Leo and I went to our lunch ADR and LL and Michael did their thing. That’s [B]one wonderful thing about traveling with DISers; we all understand and respect that we’ll each have some different wants and needs for our WDW vacation and have no problems separating groups as needed. [/B] Try THAT with non-DIS family and friends. [/size][/quote]



[quote="PrincessV, post: 33318633"]With lunch complete, we headed on back to CBR. For…

POOL-THIRTY!!!

That's my favorite time of day!

[SIZE="3]She looked dry and feverish. She laid her head down on her mother’s lap and fell asleep.

LL leaned over and whispered in my ear: “Swine Flu.”[/size][/quote]
OMG, that's funny!

[quote="PrincessV, post: 33317560"][SIZE="3]
With full bellies and mostly dissipated rain outside, it was time for another meeting… the Waldo family was in the house! I don’t think I mentioned this is the introductions, but The Waldos were traveling with the WHOLE family this year – Tracy, her husband Andy, their kids Maddie and Evan, T’s dad Waldo, mom TE, plus T’s brother Rick, his wife Debbie and their boys Michael and Max. I was so excited to see all of those Waldos again![/size][/quote]


[quote="PrincessV, post: 33317560"][SIZE="3]
Sure enough, the male Waldos [I]were[/I] on Maelstrom! But where were the girls? As I looked around, I got a text message from T:

“I’m watching you Focker.” [/size][/quote]
I wasn't sure that text went through!


[quote="PrincessV, post: 33317560"]
Mostly. Mostly all was well in our World. Save for the fact that we were missing a family – the HooHaHas. Okay, we were missing a lot of DIS friends, but the absence of SharkB8HooHaHa – or Kate for short – was particularly poignant.

[SIZE="3]
And us girls went here:

[IMG]http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2481/3800980551_e020b477e8.jpg[/IMG]
SAKE!!![/size][/quote]
Dude, that saki was FAB-U-LOUS!!!

[quote="PrincessV, post: 33317560"][SIZE="3]
Which may or may not have contributed to this:
[IMG]http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3512/3800978645_1dec770a36.jpg[/IMG]
[/size][/quote]
We all look constipated. Oh, wait...I was.

But joking aside... WE MISSED YOU, MAN!

[quote="PrincessV, post: 33317560"][SIZE="3]
Next: Somebody's got a BIRTHDAY!!![/SIZE]

 

[sharkB8HooHaHa]

Mostly. Mostly all was well in our World. Save for the fact that we were missing a family – the HooHaHas. Okay, we were missing a lot of DIS friends, but the absence of SharkB8HooHaHa – or Kate for short – was particularly poignant. Over the preceding months, there’d been many changes in travel dates and many ins and outs of our parties. At one point, I think only T was going. We’d all four spent a LOT of time talking and planning for this trip. Ultimately the HooHaHas made the grown-up decision that it just wasn’t a good time for them to take a Disney trip. It was a hard, hard pill for me to swallow; I can only imagine what it was like for Kate and family. They were missed terribly throughout the trip, as you’ll see, but I have nothing but respect and extreme admiration for their decision. You guys did the right thing and we WILL all make it happen in the future!

I can't even begin to tell you just how much I hated being a responsible grown up. My inner-child was throwing one heck of a hissy fit...

Which may or may not have contributed to this:

And this picture didn't help I very nearly put DH and the boys into the car right then and there.

I’m thinking she took one look and said to Mr. HooHaHa, “Yep, we made the right decision alright.”

Actually I think it was more along the lines of "I'm glad you have good friends in those ladies."

Next: Somebody's got a BIRTHDAY!!![/SIZE]

 

[Lauralee131]

App of The Day: Email​

Email? That's the best you got??? ​

I was expecting bells. I was expecting whistles.​

I was expecting bells AND whistles...​

I wasn't expecting email...​

Yeah, I know – how lame is “email” as an app?! But trust V – the iPhone took email to a whole new level! See, I’d made all my Plans in Excel, with multiple pages for Ridemax plans, ADRs, daily plans, etc. I emailed The Plan to myself from work so I could print it at home. On my way home, stopped at a never-ending red light, I decided to open that email and its attachment on my iPhone and see how much could be seen.

HOLY APPS BATMAN – LOOKYTHAT!!!​

​

Not only was I able to open the attached spreadsheet system, I could view each tab on my iPhone screen! Not a single piece of paper was used to keep track of my Plan. No binder. No index cards. Just me and my iPhone. It’s enough to make this tree-hugger shed a tear or two.​

Phone envy just plain sucks.​

Must...continue...to....stay....strong....​

Day Two – Epcot!

Back in Jamaica, Leo and I got ourselves out of bed, fed and into the parking lot to meet LL and Michael for an Epcot morning. I begged to drive, knowing we’d be parked pretty close, and LL agreed. Sure enough, we scored a super close-to-the-entrance spot and walked on in!

Wait, no we didn’t. Walk on in.​

Ok, ok...you win. YES...driving was better. Buses are habit for me...don't forget - up until a few years ago, I flew all the time...no car... ​

LL and Michael needed to get their new Annual Passes first. And Leo and I didn’t mind waiting on them one bit.

​

The boys had about as much fun waiting as they did all day. Those 2 could enjoy themselves in a burlap sack with only a twist tie to play with, I swear. THAT is a sign of good friends...

Firstly, they’re our friends and we don’t mind waiting for friends.

​

Awwww...love you too!!

Also, LL was using one of my Pass-Along Savings cards, which netted her a 10% discount and ME a $25 gift card per AP purchased!

​

Those discount cards ROCKED. 10% discount PLUS DVC Member discount!! If only I'd have gotten the extra 3 months it'd have been the perfect trifecta. But still...saved a butt load of money on passes.

But mostly because we just plain enjoy their company, even while buying tickets.

​

​

There they are...the dreaded lollypop fans... The very thing that put Leo over the sugar-edge the night before. Gotta say though...it's THE ONLY toy that M has ever gotten that has been played with every day and dragged to just about every park and STILL made it home in one piece.​

Minus the sucker part anyway...​

MISSION: SPACE!!!

​

Neither Leo nor I had ever been on that one; Leo was only just tall enough to ride recently, and was too intimated to try on previous trips.

Not so this time. He not only rode it – he LOVED it!​

True, he didn’t play his role of Pilot very well. He never touched a single control. But we didn’t hold it against him and the auto-pilot handled things fine, so we took celebratory photos and conducted many high-fives in his honor.​

Wait… is this “Yay for Leo!” or “Power to the People!”???​

Cute. Leo was THE MAN that day!! PHEW!! I was so glad he loved it...I was afraid he'd be freaked out and hate me for the rest of his life for being a part of the "let's drag Leo on this" plan... He did great. We did the same as you - waited until M was tall enough to ride before any of us tried it. Well actually, Tony still hasn't gone on it yet...​

Awww...me and my boys!! I love it!​

Umm...could do without the hockey player smile, though...​

took a spin on the Veggable Ride (that’s Living With the Land for those who don’t speak Leo), and found ourselves a couple of Clamobiles (that still sounds dirty).

​

I was actually thinking it sounded like one of those WWE moves...don't know why I've got wrestling on the brain... Oh yeah...Mickey Rourke...

The boys were itching for some unsupervised ride time, and now that they’re both over 7, they get that privilege from time to time. The Seas was one of those times, and we let them share a Clamobile (it’s not improving with additional use) all to themselves. Were they excited about that?

​

Just a little. ​

OMG...I swear I came home with about 250 of those psychotic looking smiles on my camera...The face is the same..only the background changes...​

Have you tried to drag a sea life-loving boy out of there immediately following a Clamobile ride?! (ewww… “Clamobile ride”) It ain’t easy. But there’s power in pairs, and between LL and I, we wrangled the boys out without too much trouble.

​

Just a hair easier than, say...herding cats...

Why?

​

Because Ridemax said to.

According to The Plan, we had a date with Spaceship Earth, a much-loved favorite of us four. ​

​

OMG...look at Leo..where's the poor boy's chin?? But hey - this is the first year (I think - correct me if I'm wrong) that the camera actually picked them up - Remember the first time we rode this? During a soft opening...our babies' very first solo WDW ride...sniff...sniff...they were so short they didn't even make it into the pictures... Ahh...the memories...​

​

I have quite the collection of these pictures of us too!

We all soared over California, and then our morning was complete. Thanks to a couple restroom stops along the way, we were a little behind schedule, but we were very, very close to Ridemax’s prescribed end time of 11:27am. Like within minutes.

​

Ridemax got mad props that day, that's for sure...

Which meant that it was time for a temporary “goodbye” while Leo and I went to our lunch ADR and LL and Michael did their thing. That’s one wonderful thing about traveling with DISers; we all understand and respect that we’ll each have some different wants and needs for our WDW vacation and have no problems separating groups as needed.

​

[/quote]

Try THAT with non-DIS family and friends.

​

Ummmm...been there, done that...bought the t-shirt...

DO NOT care to do it again!! I can't have a chink in my chain...​

​

 

[Lauralee131]

With lunch complete, we headed on back to CBR. For…

POOL-THIRTY!!!

Woo Hoo! I love POOL-THIRTY!!!

In what was to become a daily occurrence, the plan was to meet up with our friends for an afternoon swim before dinner. At some point I called LL and found out that Leo and I had somehow managed to have an entire table service meal and get back to our hotel before LL and Michael had eaten their counter service meal and gotten a bus back to CBR! Power of the car, baybee.

Yep - we were just leaving Epcot when you called...Hey - what can I say...I got sidetracked. There were things to shop for...Mickey Bars to eat...

They weren’t too far behind, though, and we were soon all together in the great big, pirate-y CBR pool. The boys went down slides and swam and LL and I kept them from drowning. And took silly underwater pictures.

Awesome! I forgot about the camera!!

When the boys were all swimmed-out, we stopped for a “snack.”

Pool-Thirty frequently intersects Beer-Thirty.

For those of you familiar with Atlanta, our Pool-Thirty/Beer-Thirty intersections are more like...Spaghetti Junction...Not familiar with Atlanta? Look at it on a map...no further explanation needed...

As well as Slushy-Thirty.

Yep - M knows it's officially vacation when he has his first Orange "milkshake" of the trip!

Meanwhile, LL’s husband Tony had arrived, so we went our separate ways to clean up before our Epcot evening.

Please allow me to give myself a little pat on the back here: while Leo took a shower and rested some, I… worked out! Yep, I threw in a quick upper-body workout before my shower and it felt soooo good!

But – would I stick with it the rest of the trip? Stay tuned.

With everyone neat and pretty, we met the Mominators (LL and family, remember?) at the bus stop.

Yes, the bus stop.

I’m pretty sure someone used a Vulcan mind meld on me, because I’d sworn off the WDW bus system after endless waits on previous trips.

Yet, there I was, umbrella in hand as the thunder crashed (it was, after all, dinner time), waiting for a bus to Epcot.

Hey - at least you had an umbrella! I'd given in to Mother Nature. I wasn't about to sweat my tushie off in a poncho - not to mention they smell funny and it was too hot for a raincoat...The beauty of naturally curly hair...just let it go... Not!

How long did we wait LL? 30 minutes? An hour? Eternity? Every stinking other place had bus representation but Epcot.

OMG - it was PAINFULLY long...that's all I know...WHY you insisted on taking the bus, I'll never know...

When one finally arrived, it contained a sick-looking teenager sitting across from us.

She looked dry and feverish. She laid her head down on her mother’s lap and fell asleep.

LL leaned over and whispered in my ear: “Swine Flu.”

ROTFLMAO!!!! She knew that ALL I’d been dealing with at work before this trip was freaking Swine Flu! It was all over our news and the only topic of conversation for weeks around here. I’d pulled Leo out of a Swine Flu-infested camp several days before we went to Disney. I’d HAD it with Swine Flu.

And there it possibly was, coughing across the aisle from me.

Oh, the irony.

OMG...too funny. She did look friggin' sick too....Ewwwww...I believe that was the day I finally started wearing the hand sanitizer around my neck instead of just keeping it clipped to my bag...

By the time we finally got to Epcot, the rain was down to a drizzle and we were starving. Remember my earlier comment about rain making us want table service? Well, it happened again.

That night was planned as a counter service dinner. Until, on the bus, LL expressed an interest in table service. A notion I promptly seconded. Within a few minutes, LL put her mad skillz to work, called Dining and scored us an ADR at Nine Dragons. Woo hoo!!!

Leo, Gramma and I had our Thanksgiving dinner at Nine Dragons last year and it was wonderful! I talked it up big time with the Mominators and hoped it would live up to expectations.

I was so ready to blame you should the evening go horribly wrong...

It did!!!

I can’t remember what the Mominators had, but they seemed pleased, so I felt validated. As for me, following the ever-delicious Dragon Pearl cocktail, I enjoyed my Vegetarian Stir-Fry once again;

the tofu was cooked perfectly!

Really? Is there a WRONG way to stir fry rubber??

Leo really enjoys Nine Dragons, too. He’s a master of chopsticks and is very, very big on dragons.

OMG - we all look drenched...

Ummm...except for the lady that had the UMBRELLA!!!

With full bellies and mostly dissipated rain outside, it was time for another meeting… the Waldo family was in the house! I don’t think I mentioned this is the introductions, but The Waldos were traveling with the WHOLE family this year – Tracy, her husband Andy, their kids Maddie and Evan, T’s dad Waldo, mom TE, plus T’s brother Rick, his wife Debbie and their boys Michael and Max. I was so excited to see all of those Waldos again!

Supposedly, they were in Norway, so that’s where we went. No Waldos in sight. I believe LL and I joked that maybe they were on Maelstrom – you know it’s a Fast Pass?! – but quickly laughed and said “No way!”

Guess you all had to be there. It WAS funny to us...

Sure enough, the male Waldos were on Maelstrom! But where were the girls? As I looked around, I got a text message from T:

“I’m watching you Focker.”


I still don’t know where she’d been, but we were quickly reunited and all was well in our World once more!

Hey look – we’re all looking at the same camera! Imagine that.

Awwww...my girls.... Well, most of them....

Mostly. Mostly all was well in our World. Save for the fact that we were missing a family – the HooHaHas. Okay, we were missing a lot of DIS friends, but the absence of SharkB8HooHaHa – or Kate for short – was particularly poignant. Over the preceding months, there’d been many changes in travel dates and many ins and outs of our parties. At one point, I think only T was going. We’d all four spent a LOT of time talking and planning for this trip.

Yep - that's right! All the bumps and gliches over the past year, I do remember a time when it was just T that was going. OMG - I nearly forgot about that!

Ultimately the HooHaHas

Ok, now THAT sounds dirty...

made the grown-up decision that it just wasn’t a good time for them to take a Disney trip. It was a hard, hard pill for me to swallow; I can only imagine what it was like for Kate and family.

They were missed terribly throughout the trip, as you’ll see, but I have nothing but respect and extreme admiration for their decision. You guys did the right thing and we WILL all make it happen in the future!

And hopefully Kate's grown-up driveway will be big enough to hold my SUV whilst my completely irresponsible decision making will probably result in our being homeless and living in said SUV... Maybe I could stay on your couch? Cook for you??

After our partial family reunion, we all headed to Japan. Why? I have no idea. But it was a good call; the kids went shopping with the guys:

L to R: Evan, Michael, Andy, Maddie, Leo, Tony

And that was funny in and of itself...sending those guys completely outnumbered into the only place the boys want to go...why? Transformers. And Power Rangers...and Bakugan...They got the raw end of the deal, for sure.

I love it!!

And us girls went here:

SAKE!!!

Which may or may not have contributed to this:

With a little help from the iPhone, we drunk-emailed this shot to Kate, to show her how sad we were without her.

I’m thinking she took one look and said to Mr. HooHaHa, “Yep, we made the right decision alright.”

Wooo...that picture looks scary on anything bigger than a cell phone...

I don’t remember if we made any other stops at Epcot. We were all tired – the Waldos especially, since they’d just arrived that morning – and ready to go back to our hotels.

No drawn-out goodbyes that night, though. That evening at Epcot was the aperitif; the full meal would come the following day, and it was gonna be GOOD!

Next: Somebody's got a BIRTHDAY!!!

 

[englishrose47]

Hi V I found you!!! Loving your unique style !! Where was Waldo though I didn't see pix of him Was he lost again!!!

 

[lazydoxy66]

Fabulous update, V!

I like the idea of pool-thirty and drink/beer-thirty!!!

Give Leo another high-five from me for MS!!! He looks so thrilled in all these pictures!

All of you look great!

 

[sharkB8HooHaHa]

And hopefully Kate's grown-up driveway will be big enough to hold my SUV whilst my completely irresponsible decision making will probably result in our being homeless and living in said SUV... Maybe I could stay on your couch? Cook for you??

Me casa es su casa Y me canape es su canape.

And if you can make a canape, all the better

 

[Lauralee131]

Me casa es su casa

Gracias mi amiga!

Y me canape es su canape.

And if you can make a canape, all the better

Ummmm....sadly I don't know what a canape is.

I can, however, make...reservations... My other talent is playing...the radio...

 

[PrincessV]

NO WAY!!!!!! I didn't know he made it on Mission:Space. That is awesome!

He's still quite proud of himself!

That's my favorite time of day!

Mine too! We enjoyed pool-thirty today in fact. It's lowercase, though, because it's really only half as fun without our friends.

Dude, that saki was FAB-U-LOUS!!!

Stick with me, t - I won't steer you wrong!

We all look constipated. Oh, wait...I was.

CHEESE!

I can't even begin to tell you just how much I hated being a responsible grown up. My inner-child was throwing one heck of a hissy fit...

I was expecting bells. I was expecting whistles.

Oh, I'll give you bells and whistles, just you wait!

Ok, ok...you win. YES...driving was better. Buses are habit for me...don't forget - up until a few years ago, I flew all the time...no car...

Fair enough. A few years ago, you'd also have had an aneurysm over the prospect of a pool day!

Those 2 could enjoy themselves in a burlap sack with only a twist tie to play with, I swear.

Okay, that made me laugh so hard I snorted!

There they are...the dreaded lollypop fans... The very thing that put Leo over the sugar-edge the night before. Gotta say though...it's THE ONLY toy that M has ever gotten that has been played with every day and dragged to just about every park and STILL made it home in one piece.

He did well... I have NO idea what happened to Leo's!

OMG...look at Leo..where's the poor boy's chin?? But hey - this is the first year (I think - correct me if I'm wrong) that the camera actually picked them up - Remember the first time we rode this? During a soft opening...our babies' very first solo WDW ride...sniff...sniff...they were so short they didn't even make it into the pictures... Ahh...the memories...

So true!

OMG...too funny. She did look friggin' sick too....Ewwwww...I believe that was the day I finally started wearing the hand sanitizer around my neck instead of just keeping it clipped to my bag...

It was - you fished it out right there on the Bus o' Germs!

Really? Is there a WRONG way to stir fry rubber??

BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!

OMG - we all look drenched...
Ummm...except for the lady that had the UMBRELLA!!!

And hopefully Kate's grown-up driveway will be big enough to hold my SUV whilst my completely irresponsible decision making will probably result in our being homeless and living in said SUV... Maybe I could stay on your couch? Cook for you??

Dude... you know.

Hi V I found you!!! Loving your unique style !! Where was Waldo though I didn't see pix of him Was he lost again!!!

Hi Rosie! I hadn't seen Waldo yet either... I think they'd gone back to the hotel already, right T?

I like the idea of pool-thirty and drink/beer-thirty!!!

I highly recommend both, preferably together!

Me casa es su casa Y me canape es su canape.

And if you can make a canape, all the better

Ummmm....sadly I don't know what a canape is.

Me neither. but it makes me think of canasta. Does it taste like a deck of my grandmother's cards???

 

[PrincessAlways]

Wow!!! I had a little catching up to do!! That's what happens when you're late.

Leo on Mission Space!!
You had never been to the Coral Reef?? I thought you'd been everywhere! I agree that it can get a little loud. However, I do enjoy it there.
Swimming in the hot afternoon....

 

[kmartin555]

WOHOO!!! So glad you are back and posting updates!

 

[sharkB8HooHaHa]

Ummmm....sadly I don't know what a canape is.

I can, however, make...reservations... My other talent is playing...the radio...

According to my Spanish/English dictionary, a canape is a couch. According to Webster, a canape is an appetizer consisting of a piece of bread, toast or cracker topped with a savory spread.

 

[englishrose47]

Hi V !! In 2weeks I will be in Disney!!Do I need to look for Waldo????

 

[rachel3]

all caught up. looks like a great time so far! can't wait for more.

 

[PrincessV]

You had never been to the Coral Reef?? I thought you'd been everywhere!

Nope, there are still lots of places for us to try!

WOHOO!!! So glad you are back and posting updates!

Thanks!

Hi V !! In 2weeks I will be in Disney!!Do I need to look for Waldo????

LOL, probably!

all caught up. looks like a great time so far! can't wait for more.

Hey there Rachel! Thanks!

 

[PrincessV]

App of the Day: Notes!

I never take notes for my TR while at WDW. Why? Because I just can’t be bothered to pull out a notepad and pen every time something strikes me as interesting. And I’m too tired to do an end-of-day recap at the hotel.

But not so anymore! With this ludicrously simple Notes app, I had no problem jotting down a few lines whilst waiting in a line or finishing a meal to bring back larger memories later. ​

__________________________________________________________


So the big day had arrived… Evan’s 5th birthday! I can’t tell you how tickled I was to celebrate the big day with the birthday boy and his family. It meant a lot to us that we got to be a part of the celebration, so thanks again T!

The Plan called for a meeting of families at the MK for rope drop. Remember, the Mominators and V’s were still at CBR, while the Waldos were at SSR. But we’ve never had a problem finding each other at rope drop, so that wasn’t an obstacle to our fun at all.

Leo and I met up with the Mominators after a healthy breakfast en suite, and I lobbied once again to take a car instead of the bus. After the endless wait the previous night, it wasn’t a tough sell, and we all loaded into the Mominator Express – aka LL’s awesome mini-van-that’s-not-a-mini-van.

SCORE again – we nabbed a spot within walking distance of the TTC gates, hopped the monorail and got through the turnstiles in plenty of time!


The Waldos… didn’t.


Poor T – there we were, texting excitedly that rope drop was happening, and T was still trying to get to the MK. But all was not lost – The Plan called for a ride with Winnie the Pooh, so we told T we’d meet her there and headed in.

If you tilt your head to the right, we look upright.

Ah, much less tilt-y!

Who doesn’t love a bubble-dispensing trash can???


So, we’d been in the park, what, 5 minutes? And POOF! The Plan was abandoned! Mere seconds after I snapped this picture…

…the Mominators ditched me and got on the flipping trolley… heading BACK UP MAIN STREET!

LOL, apparently it was something they’d always wanted to do and they decided to seize the moment. I hope they enjoyed the ride.


Meanwhile, Leo and I waited at Pooh.

”Pleeeeease stop taking pictures Mom!”

The Waldos arrived, T saved me from a purse-eating bumblebee, and we headed into the 100-Acre Wood…

After that, it’s all a blur. We pretty much abandoned The Plan and toured by the seats of our pants. I know we rode Buzz, and we may have ridden Peter Pan. Here’s what I know for sure: T, Maddie, Leo and I opted out of the Haunted Mansion to grab Fast Passes for all on Big Thunder Mountain Railroad (BTMRR) and wound up having a completely unplanned, fantastic time… hanging out under the railroad tracks.

HUH?!

Did you know that there's a little play area under the train station, near Splash Mountain? Well, I didn’t! That’s where we wound up, while waiting for the group, and Leo and Mads had a great time playing in there. T and I enjoyed catching up in the shade. It was a perfect little break!

And when the rest of our group caught up with us, it was time for the “Wildest Ride in the WILderness!”

Have I mentioned yet that Leo is an incredible mimic? Really, he can replicate nearly any sound or voice, human or animal. I have heard “The wildest ride in the WILderness!” more times over the past month than I care to count.


Let’s review Leo’s history with BTMRR.

He first rode it in Sept. 2006, when he’d just reached the height minimum. He loved it.

He rode it again in Dec. 2006 without incident.

May, 2007 – he rode, but hid his face the whole time.

As of Dec. 2007, Leo had crossed BTMRR off his list completely – “too scary.”

A month later, Jan. 2008, he rode, but cried the whole time; the bats terrified him.


Since then, we’ve been on it a few times, and each time Leo’s vowed never to do it again.

So I was pretty darned surprised – AGAIN – when he decided to ride BTMRR on this trip. But he was feeling a lot braver with his DIS friends around and thought this might be the time to conquer those fears once and for all. We all got into line and headed out. I tried to take plenty of pictures to document the day…

Note that there are no pictures of Leo on BTMRR.

~ sigh ~

It scared him badly. Again. When we got off, he was shaking like a leaf and trying desperately not to cry in front of his friends. I asked if he needed to be held, and he nodded “yes,” so I told the group we’d catch up and pulled him over to the side for some comforting.

Many hugs, lots of encouraging and calming words, and a carton of popcorn later, we were ready to reconvene with everyone. We found them in front of the Hall of Presidents.

Okay, the kids were not thrilled with this choice. At least mine wasn’t. But I think they wound up enjoying it as much as the adults did… and us adults really, really enjoyed it!

I was pretty entertained by our complete refusal to follow the rules of the Hall. It clearly states “No food or beverages” in the theater. And yet, from my right came the soft crunching sounds of Leo eating popcorn. From my left? The fizz of LL opening a soda.

I’d like to think we were merely honoring our founding fathers through a little civil disobedience.


Still in the company of friends, we completed our MK morning with lunch at Columbia Harbor House, home of the Magical Tuna Sandwich, and a spin on Pirates of the Caribbean.

Maddie’s pretending to have a hook. I haven’t the faintest idea what Leo’s doing.

Two of the least threatening pirates on the high seas.


And then we parted ways. The Vs and Mominators headed for the park exit, with a quick stop at the Main St. Bakery.

You know where this is headed, right?

Oh yes, I just had to have a cinnamon roll before we left! That thing, I swear, was as big as my head. Mmmmmmmmmm.

After intoxicating ourselves with sugar, we piled back into the Mominator Express and made the short trip back to CBR. We had a date for Pool-Thirty that afternoon.

Next up: Party of 12. No, 15. Wait… 18?!


P.S.: Tracy made me do it.

Look! Barbie goes to Disney!

 

[Disneyland_Mama]

Dude, you got all kinds of fun pics!

I'm just smiling here looking at the fun we had and so missing my friends today.

at Barbie. You forgot to mention she rode in on a camel. Ahem.

 

[sharkB8HooHaHa]

SCORE again – we nabbed a spot within walking distance of the TTC gates, hopped the monorail and got through the turnstiles in plenty of time!


The Waldos… didn’t.


Poor T – there we were, texting excitedly that rope drop was happening, and T was still trying to get to the MK. But all was not lost – The Plan called for a ride with Winnie the Pooh, so we told T we’d meet her there and headed in.

Someone didn't follow the AIS rules.

Ah, much less tilt-y!

Very nice

…the Mominators ditched me and got on the flipping trolley… heading BACK UP MAIN STREET!

LOL, apparently it was something they’d always wanted to do and they decided to seize the moment. I hope they enjoyed the ride.

I've never been on it either. Was it worth it?

Did you know that ther’es a little play are under the rain station, near Splash Mountain? Well, I didn’t! That’s where we wound up, while waiting for the group, and Leo and Mads had a great time playing in there. T and I enjoyed catching up in the shade. It was a perfect little beak!

That is the very spot I received last year's "pssst" text from you.

It scared him badly. Again. When we got off, he was shaking like a leaf and trying desperately not to cry in front of his friends. I asked if he needed to be held, and he nodded “yes,” so I told the group we’d catch up and pulled him over to the side for some comforting.

Awww... Poor kiddo.

Okay, the kids were not thrilled with this choice. At least mine wasn’t. But I think they wound up enjoying it as much as the adults did… and us adults really, really enjoyed it!

This one I can't wait for!

I was pretty entertained by our complete refusal to follow the rules of the Hall. It clearly states “No food or beverages” in the theater. And yet, from my right came the soft crunching sounds of Leo eating popcorn. From my left? The fizz of LL opening a soda.

Rule breakers.

You know where this is headed, right?

Need I remind you of the sugar induced coma of May, 2009???

Look! Barbie goes to Disney!

Oh boy.

 

[momeejenjen]

I think I just went into sugar shock looking at that cinnamon bun!!!! Love this report!!