These Kids Make Me Wish You Could Curse on the DISBoards (May '11 Trip) - DONE 9/14

[2xcited2sleep]

Between Emily's strong effort with the sword and Dylan's first kiss I am grinning ear to ear this morning. . How I love Disney World!!

So sad we are already on your last day. I totally agree with Kristin's sentiment not to be sad it is over but that is awfully hard to put into practice with the return to reality looming.

By the way, I think you may have a t-shirt idea: "I took you to blanking Disney world will you just_____???". There's a new "kids" book out called Go The F___ To Sleep that seems to be getting quite a buzz. You could totally cash in.

 

[KatMark]

Great updates, Jon.

I love the pic of Dylan kissing Tiana and Emily trying to pull out the sword. And you are so right...Peter Pan does look like a young Robin Williams.

And I trust you on the dancing on this one.

 

[Dizneydaz]

Oh so sad that it's your last day but at least you were there for 11. Oh, wait, we're going to be there for 11 as well in, wait for it...

37 days!

 

[llouda30]

Great trip report Nilla, I will summarize why I came out of lurker status to post on your report...

1. It is really funny

2. You seem pretty honest and most of us with kids like to know that we are not the only ones who want to curse at the kids

3. Finally, your photo to commentary style is perfect!! Your random pictures bring me back and make me feel like I am right there...well sort of

Great job, now save your money for your next trip

 

[nilla]

By the way, I think you may have a t-shirt idea: "I took you to blanking Disney world will you just_____???". There's a new "kids" book out called Go The F___ To Sleep that seems to be getting quite a buzz. You could totally cash in.

Australian comedian/musician Tim Minchin has a song called "Lullabye" that really captures the feeling, too. If you haven't noticed, I'm pretty much a realist when it comes to kids

I love the pic of Dylan kissing Tiana...

It was a great moment! Even better than him getting a lipstick kiss from Aurora when he was much younger.

Oh so sad that it's your last day but at least you were there for 11. Oh, wait, we're going to be there for 11 as well in, wait for it...

37 days!

Woo hoo! I'd be mostly packed by now

Great trip report Nilla, I will summarize why I came out of lurker status to post on your report...

1. It is really funny

2. You seem pretty honest and most of us with kids like to know that we are not the only ones who want to curse at the kids

3. Finally, your photo to commentary style is perfect!! Your random pictures bring me back and make me feel like I am right there...well sort of

Great job, now save your money for your next trip

Thank you! It's nice to see yet another "under 10 posts" DISer coming out of the woodwork, too

Updates coming tonight, then a lull until Labor Day at the earliest. I'm hoping to have this all wrapped up by the end of next week. Not looking forward to that, but it has to end sometime...

 

[nilla]

Well, Alice still isn't out yet, but she should be soon, so we may as well hang around Fantasyland until she is. Hey, look - it's the castle! And the actual castle; not just a tarp printed to look like the castle.

Nice we got to see the real deal in its entirety during our trip. While the refurbs bother Kristin more than they do me (but not more than I bother her), I'd still like to see the actual scenery. Unless it's something that's not done, in which case, the barrier walls serve to remind me how something new and awesome will be added soon. Something like this:

Anyone know an ETA on this? I'm hoping it'll be open when we are in WDW next May, but I'm not too optimistic about that. Oh well...it's not like we won't see it eventually. But I want to see it now! Not as much as I want a goose that lays golden eggs for Easter, but still.

Speaking of refurbs and the like, I really wish I could've witnessed first-hand the birthday cake castle do-up that was done back in whatever year that was. I understand a lot of people were not happy about it, but it looked pretty darned cool to me. And delicious!

And speaking of delicious, how about we go see Mickey's Philharmagic now? You see...um...(quick connecting of dots)...well, there's that Beauty and the Beast dinner scene. And the champagne. Yeah, THERE's the connection! I knew I could make something up when I started typing that!

I love Philharmagic, though I don't buy into the whole 3-D craze that's going on in normal theaters (again) lately. But that's sort of the point. 3D is good for some things. Like theme park attractions. And View Masters. And Insane Clown Posse videos. And maybe a feature film now and then, but not EVERY BIG MOVIE that comes out. I saw a preview the other night for some movie with invisible aliens that can only be detected by the electricity they emit. In 3-D.

Think about that for a second. Invisible aliens. In 3-D. So, they would pop out of the screen at you...were they not invisible. Really, guys.

Ok, ok, rant over. But I do love Philharmagic This is what 3-D is meant for. Kristin, unfortunately, cannot see 3-D stuff as well since having the kids (thanks a lot, guys!), but she enjoys it nonetheless.

Of course, we've seen this attraction a thousand times (give or take), so the real story comes from when the masses were allowed into the theater. Those of you who have seen MP (probably almost everyone) know the drill - everyone rushes and jockeys to secure a position closest to the door so they can get in first. Then, once inside and they realize that the people who enter first are expected to move all the way to the end of the row, everyone sort of stands around in an effort to let others get in first. Unless you're like the family in the row we're in.

As they entered the row, the CM on the microphone instructed everyone to, "please continue to the end of the row." Well, apparently, "everyone" really means "everyone but them", because they plopped right down in the middle of the theater, even though the directing CM was standing right at the end of THIS VERY ROW. So she continued:

"Please continue to the end of the row. Please continue to the end of the row. PLEASE continue to the end of the row." You could tell she was getting annoyed, and she wasn't the only one.

You see, I have a very high tolerance for inconsiderate people. The way I figure, you lead by the example of following the rules (that are really there to help EVERYONE, people), and it's usually not worth a confrontation. To be honest, I really don't care where we sit. It's not like there's a bad seat in the house. With that considered, I will admit that it took all I had to squeeze past this seated family (who didn't lift their knees as we passed, either) and NOT accidentally bump someone. But it's Disney, and the last thing we need is a problem. It's just not worth it.

I will say, however, that my elbow was probably resting 1/3 of the way into the seat to the left of me during the movie, whereas I usually would allow the person next to me to use the arm rest. I know, I know...I can be considerate, almost to a fault, and I'm reminded of it often. But I don't think I'll ever change. I just can't imagine how some people can act with complete disregard to everyone else, but it happens.

So everyone's finally seated, and it's hard to stay angry, because soon enough there will be flying champagne corks and giant brooms carrying buckets and lion cubs who promise to be mighty kings and princesses discovering whole new worlds and all of that Disney stuff that we all love. Oh, and Donald. But not coming out of the gift shop wall anymore, sadly. Oh well. He is HERE:

...and I'll take what I can get. I'm a BIG Duck fan, so anything with this guy is usually fine by me!

 

[nilla]

So what's the plan now? Well, we didn't use up all of our remaining DDP snack credits in Epcot yesterday, so maybe we can find some candy in here. But first, Dylan needs to hit the bathroom. As do I, primarily to refill my water bottle with some more of that delicious, sulphur-infused Orlando goodness. I drank a TON of water this week, and this is a good thing, because (did I mention?) it's HOT. Like, unseasonably hot. Not humid, which is nice, but we're still cooking.

As we exit the rest rooms, I see a Character CM standing by this place:

Hmmmm, who could be coming? Horace Horsecollar? The chimp from "Monkey's Uncle"? Malificent, maybe?



T A N G E N T !!!!!



Sorry, but I forgot to mention (unless I did mention, but I forgot that I mentioned) in any of our Epcot posts that Kristin had this idea that we COULD end up meeting Malificent. Why? Well, Lady Gaga apparently tweeted a picture of herself with the villain, so Kristin thinks we have a shot, too. I'm a bit less optimistic. In fact, a CM we asked said that you'll probably only ever get to meet her (outside of the Halloween party) if one of the regularly scheduled characters gets held up for some reason. So, bascially, "no".

So the long and short of it was that it wasn't Malificent, but rather the obvious choice...Pinocchio! Did I spell that right? Hold on...cross-referencing with the pic I just posted...yep, got it! And I only had to correct myself once!

We don't get to meet this guy often, so this is a big opportunity. I grab my phone and call Kristin, which is usually an exercise in futility since her phone is NEVER on. Or, if it's on, it's on vibrate and in the bag, which is completely pointless. And that's when it actually has juice, which isn't often. And she wants a better cell plan...how about the "actually answer your phone once in a while" plan? How are you using up minutes when your battery is dead?

Anyway, I DO manage to get in touch with her, and she comes over quickly. We're right at the front of the line, which works out perfectly, since it will still be a minute or two until Pinoccio actually shows up.

So, we wait, Dylan and Emily holding their autograph books, Sharpies, and Duffys.


And the crying starts. And the hitting. Apparently, Dylan inadvertantly marked Em's Duffy's paw with his Sharpie, prompting him to pull out his overused catchphrase, "it was an accident!" To which we always reply, "everything is an accident with you!" It doesn't do much to console Emily, who is convinced he did it on purpose, and wants to mark his Duffy in revenge.

Nope, no go. I don't do that revenge stuff, especially with the kids. I just don't think any good can come of it. Fortunately, this drama is soon interrupted by this guy:

As you can see, a good ol' Disney character meet 'n greet heals all wounds. Plus, we won't tell Em this, but the whole incident may be a good thing, because we can now actually tell the two Duffys appart. The kids claim to be able to tell them apart by the stitching on the noses, but that's not as obvious to me. Hey, did I mention that Pinocchio really liked his page in the autograph book?

We got that reaction a lot. Even before the trip, Kristin said that she had read that this is the case, and we can vouch for that claim now. It was a lot of work for her to put together (and a lot of work for the nice people who actually created and shared their clip art ), but it was well worth it. Ok, guys...now pose together.

He was a fun character (as most of them are), but we still have to go get some of that candy. But wait! Aren't we forgetting someone?

That's right! We've been waiting for her forever!

 

[nilla]

I love when the kids get to meet Mary Poppins, not only because Emily adores her...

...but because Mary always grills Dylan on his manners. "Do you hold the door for your sister?" Dylan shakes his head, "yes".

LIAR!! Oh well, we won't call him out in front of Mary. She gave him crap last year about standing on the curb in Epcot. It's funny, because he actually listens to her the first time, without arguing. What are we doing wrong?

Afterwards, we went into Castle Couture (where I said we went the other day), and the girls got books (which I said they got the other day). Now it's back to the shop by Philharmagic, where the kids can FINALLY cash in some of those snack vouchers!

Emily, of course, wants a giant lollipop, which makes no sense whatsoever to get at this point. So she gets a box of something else. And it's hers. Care to dispute that? Well, just look at it:

Yeah, no question who that belongs to!

As the kids eat their candy outside the shop, we decide to grab some Fast Passes for Winnie the Pooh. As I walk over to the machince, a CM approaches us and has four in her hand. I guess someone left them on the machine...we'll take 'em! We were going to get some anyway, but this frees us up to get FPs for something else. Awesome!

We're thinking Space Mountain might be some good ones to get, so it's over to Tomorrowland, but not before a quick castle pic...

(Look, Ma - no refurb!)

...and a funny hat pic that Dylan, for whatever reason, declined to appear in:

So let's head over to Tomorrowland! It's a beautiful day, and we're having so much fun, that I almost forget it's our last day. To further prolong it, I then decide to go to bed and save the rest of this update for another night. No, wait - that just happened now, not on our Magic Kingdom day. Sorry...I'm starting to confuse myself now, which is all the more reason to hit the hay and close up shop for tonight. See you soon!


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[2xcited2sleep]

Ugh. i hate the people who won't move down to the end of the row. I am a rule follower too and agree it is best to just ignore those folks and get along with the magic.

Sorry about the Duffy Sharpie incident. Em recovered pretty quickly.

More fastpass mojo!!!

Have a great holiday weekend!

 

[Disneymom77]

Another fantastic update! I'm sad it's almost over Your wife and my sister have the SAME cell phone plan!!

 

[KatMark]

One of my pet peeves at Disney is when people don't listen to the CM and don't move to the end of the row. I can understand if there are NOT a trillion people there, but come on people...you aren't the only ones here.

Love the photos with Pinocchio--very cute. And I can see why you often want to curse, but can't on the DIS, with the mischief between Dylan and Emily. But I think your reasoning that the marker on the foot was a good one. Personally, I would have just made them switch Duffys!

for the free fastpasses!

And Mary Poppins is one character we have NEVER met. I'll have to try to rectify that when we are there later this month.

 

[nilla]

More fastpass mojo!!!

It's funny, since we're probably the people who need it least. But we're also probably the people who will make the best use of them, too

Another fantastic update! I'm sad it's almost over Your wife and my sister have the SAME cell phone plan!!

Thanks! I'm sad, too, since it's like the trip is ending all over again

I'm actually surprised when I call her and the phone IS on!

One of my pet peeves at Disney is when people don't listen to the CM and don't move to the end of the row. I can understand if there are NOT a trillion people there, but come on people...you aren't the only ones here.

Yeah, really. Now don't get me wrong - I'll do things I may not be sure I *should* be doing, but once a CM tells me not to, I stop immediately. Order is for everyone's benefit!

Personally, I would have just made them switch Duffys!

We suggested that, but the kids weren't going for it

 

[Victoriasmom98]

All I can say is WOW!!!! What a creative, funny and informative trip report!! I have spent the last 3 days reading it (in between work, housework etc.) and I've loved it! I even shared some really funny stuff with the hubby last night. I think he was just humoring me by looking at it so late at night, but oh well. I have now subscribed to your thread and look forward to the rest of your MK day!!!

 

[MEK]

Wow - I missed a bunch of updates when I was away.

11 days????? You were there 11 days???? Dude - that's an awesome trip. So jealous! Enjoy it while you can because soon enough school will rule everything and the only 11 days you'll get will be in the heat of summer.

OK - rant over!

More wonderful pix of the kids and Dylan does look quite happy in all of them.

I also can't stand people who won't move down. I try to give them the benefit of the doubt by thinking they don't speak English, but it's rarely the case.

Does this mean your TR is almost over for another year????

 

[PirateKate]

You're joking about that movie with the invisible aliens in 3D, right? I hope that's just a joke. I dislike the 3D movies, too. Theme park attractions in 3D are great, but not every single movie that comes out.

Last days are the worst. Your last day seems to be going well, though, in spite of the Marked Duffy Incident. We had a great time meeting Tiana and Naveen, too. Those two are a lot of fun.

 

[POLY1985]

Jumping on to say hi neighbor! We live in Easton and are also Brew Works fans although we haven't been there in awhile. Really enjoying your TR and have been reading it over the last couple days. Your kids are adorable!

 

[nilla]

All I can say is WOW!!!! What a creative, funny and informative trip report!! I have spent the last 3 days reading it (in between work, housework etc.) and I've loved it! I even shared some really funny stuff with the hubby last night. I think he was just humoring me by looking at it so late at night, but oh well. I have now subscribed to your thread and look forward to the rest of your MK day!!!

Thank you! I always welcome positive feedback. And negative feedback, if it's constructive. Or humorous. But thanks! I hope you enjoy the rest.

11 days????? You were there 11 days???? Dude - that's an awesome trip. So jealous! Enjoy it while you can because soon enough school will rule everything and the only 11 days you'll get will be in the heat of summer./QUOTE]

12 days, including the two travel days. I'm reporting on them, so I'm counting on them. It was really 10 "quality" days, though.

And yes, we know about (and are not looking forward to) how we'll need to switch to summer or holidays once Dylan hits middle school. One more year to enjoy the May trips...at least until Emily graduates!

Does this mean your TR is almost over for another year????

Yes, it does. However, look on the bright side - once it's done, I can FINALLY get caught up on reading yours! I've fallen SO far behind, it's embarrassing. I have two other TRs I want to read that I've barely even started.

You're joking about that movie with the invisible aliens in 3D, right? I hope that's just a joke. I dislike the 3D movies, too. Theme park attractions in 3D are great, but not every single movie that comes out.

No, I'm not kidding. I guess they shoot bolts of electricity out, so THAT will be in 3-D, but still - invisible aliens! C'mon!

Jumping on to say hi neighbor! We live in Easton and are also Brew Works fans although we haven't been there in awhile. Really enjoying your TR and have been reading it over the last couple days. Your kids are adorable!

Thanks! We frequented the Easton bars in our youth, primarily Short's (now Drinky's, I believe).

And now...more updates!

 

[nilla]

Alight, the plan is set - it's over to Tomorrowland, but first, we're curious to see how long the line for Rapunzel is. But first, we can't pass on a photo op:

Well, the official size of the line is "huge", so I once again thank Kristin for her Usain Bolt-like effort on our second MK day to secure us a place near the front of the line. We're really in no hurry to get to Tomorrowland, so we figure we can grab some more photos on the way:

I like that shot, and it's not really that noticeable unless you're looking for it, so I decide to get a closer look, and some more pics:

There's a little pavilion down here, for I don't know what reason, but it's here. I guess people who bring their own food eat here or whatever, but one thing's for sure - these guys have the inside tip on guests accidentally dropping food over the railing:

We head back to the main walk over to Tomorrowland - hey, look - a Photopass Photographer! Whether Dylan wants to our not, we're not missing this one!

Em posing with (and nearly getting carried away by) balloons:

Em posing with her own attitude:

Dyl with the balloons:

...and with the crossed arms:

You never know how the Photopass shots will turn out, especially the "Magic Shots". We were pleased with these. Afterwards, the photographer asks us if we want to opt out of possibly having our pictures in "Magic, Memories, and You", to which we ask, "why?" The only reason I can think of is if you're in the witness protection program. If anyone else can educate me, please do, because I'm curious!

Alright, we've fooled around long enough. Let's hit this place:

 

[nilla]

But wait! One more pic before we enter:

And a few more after we enter:

The Tomorrowland attractions are pretty much crammed together, aren't they? I think I would've loved to ride the Alien Encounter back when it was even more horrifying to kids than it is with its current Stitch theme, but that ship has sailed. Oh well, I would've been riding it myself anyway. Here's a shot of a ride I think I've been on twice, and not for at least two years:

I think the Orbiter would be fun at night, with the park all lit up. It usually has a long line, however, and by the time night rolls around, we're riding other things, so that never happens. The Trasit Auth- um, I mean, the People Mover (what we've been calling it all these years anyway) is one we almost never have to wait for, and one we make sure to ride at least once on each of our MK days. I love the little gimmicks around it, like the fake phone booth. And this guy:

Emily pauses for a pose with him...

...then assumes a pose that I've seen multiple times per day during this trip. And before this trip, for that matter. And after:

For those of you who do not know American Sign Language, that's the motion for "hold me!" And I see it a lot. Because she CONSTANTLY wants to be held. And cuddled. And carried on my shoulders. Her favorite game until recently was, "let's pretend I'm a baby". Kristin has said that if Emily could crawl back up into the womb, she would. And she may be right!

So let's ride the People Mover, shall we? Well, it looks like we shall not, because it's down at the moment. Oh well. Let's grab some Fast Passes (Which we can do, thanks to the kindness of that CM from our last update) for Space Mountain, and then decide what we want to do from there.

 

[nilla]

We grab the FPs, then make a quick stop in the SM gift shop. I'm really digging the black Space Mountain shirt with the astronauts riding it, but Kristin's got a thing against black shirts in general, so I'm probably better off just getting something with some actual color to keep things civil.

Back into the afternoon Florida sun we go, and- wait...who turned down the lights? It's starting to get really dark out...

Well, we managed to avoid the rain for the most part this week, with only two small showers, and one of those happening while we were at dinner the previous night. This time, I don't think we're going to be so lucky. It's starting to look a little nasty out, so let's see if we can jump on the People Mover before it starts.....we can! It's back up, which is great, because we can just keep riding this thing until the rain lets up.

And just in time, two, because the clouds have officially opened, and Tomorrowland is now getting wet. Not these guys, though:

Officially the worst wild animals EVER. It's only rain! You'd never survive in the real world, guys!

Some more shots along the way:

We ride at least once more, which is perfect, because it allows us to grab a shot of a path we will NOT be taking this year:

The rain makes some contact with us as we approach Space Mountain, but it beats being directly into it. Space Mountain, by the way, is spelled like this:

Another fun fact about this attraction is that it's down A LOT. Like right now. But that's great, because when it's running, you can't see a thing from the People Mover. When it's offline, however, you can grab all of these neat shots:

I love the look of it when the lights are on - it's like a twisting, steel monster, with no paint, theming, fake chicken pens, dinosaur skulls, giant doughnuts, Yetis, Steven Tyler, or paintings of cartoon meteors. Just a ride. Not sure I'd want to actually ride it that way, since it would kill the mystique to some extent, but I do like to see it like this.