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

[KatMark]

Jon, what an awesome update!!!

Your pictures of Wishes are spectacular (I've stolen one and am using it as my desk top to get me even more excited for our trip in ten days). And your parade pictures are great too; we missed the parade last year and I want to be sure to catch it this year.

I'm so sorry Em missed it, but glad you recorded it for her.

875 pictures of CSR to still come? I may not look at them...I may get too sad that I'm not staying there in two weeks.

 

[Moira222]

Your parade pics are great. I need a do over for the parade - we had awful seats, and I didn't know there was a repeat so I did not get any photos or didn't see anything close up. I know how Em feels.

V. cool to meet "almost Alice"!

 

[Moira222]

I was wondering why your comments disappeared. I thought that maybe you got "poster's remorse" and retracted them

LOL I always stand by my snarkiness

 

[dalmatian7]

Just wantedntonpost to let younknow that you do have lurkers reading along. I actually found this on Sat afternoon and just got caught up. Great report

 

[nilla]

I'm excited to see the parade - I'm not a huge parade fan, but something about nighttime and cute lit-up snails on wheels makes me enjoy it more.

The snails were hilarious! It was a fun time, and I'm glad we got to see it. We don't always go out of our way to see the parades, but we enjoy them when we do.

I hate that "hit the road" envelope. Disney should really come up with a more gentle way to tell us it is time to go!!

Yeah, like "here's two free days"!

I am intrigued with your home wine/beer operations. Too bad you can't offer samples thru the DIS.

I'm still really an amateur (5 years into it), but I've been happy with the results. The Vanilla Porter is my favorite, but it's almost Pumpkin Ale time, which also usually turns out great. The kids don't like that I use the pumpkins they picked (we're too lazy to make actual jack-o-lanterns), but at least we put them to good use!

Your trip report has been so fantastic - can't believe it's almost over! In fact, is there any way you can drag it out for say, 17 more days?? Otherwise, I'm going to have to go back and re-read....actually not such a bad plan!

I'll drag it out for at least a few more days.

YMy kids always point out those envelopes on other people's doors - like "hey, they have to leave today and we have __ more days!". Then it's always heartbreaking to finally see it on YOUR door

We always feel bad when we see those, and it stinks even more when it's on our door

About re-reading...
GOOD IDEA!

Thanks! I may even do that when I'm done, so I can ask myself, "why on Earth would you tell them that??"

Jon, what an awesome update!!!

Your pictures of Wishes are spectacular (I've stolen one and am using it as my desk top to get me even more excited for our trip in ten days).

Thanks! With how sketchy that camera can be at night, it seems to be pretty good with fireworks. And...ten days? How are you even able to type? I'd be shaking with excitement

875 pictures of CSR to still come?

Give or take.

Your parade pics are great. I need a do over for the parade - we had awful seats, and I didn't know there was a repeat so I did not get any photos or didn't see anything close up. I know how Em feels.

It was enjoyable, but it's obviously trumped by the newer Spectromagic. Kristin pointed out that Belle, Ariel, etc. were missing, and I told her that's because they didn't exist (at least in the Disney sense) at that time. Hence the inclusion of the now obscure "Pete's Dragon".

LOL I always stand by my snarkiness

And I can take it, too. Come at me with both barrels!

Just wantedntonpost to let younknow that you do have lurkers reading along. I actually found this on Sat afternoon and just got caught up. Great report

Wow, that's quite an effort! I applaud and appreciate it


Up next: we kick off our final day...

 

[nilla]

 

[nilla]

So, it's here. Does anyone remember that scene in Donnie Brasco, where Al Pacino gets called in by whoever the mob boss is, and he KNOWS that it's because he vouched for Capt. Jack Sparrow, who was really a cop the whole time? That's how I feel right now. Well, sort of. Instead of going off to meet my fate at the hands of a betrayed crime boss, I'm leaving my fantasy world here in Disney World and returning to the daily grind of work, after-school activities, paying bills, and yardwork. You decide which is worse.

But hey, we're not home yet, so let's make the best of it! Our flight is somewhere between half past too late to head to the airport now and quarter of too early to actually go do anything, so we still have some time to linger at Coronado Springs. Kristin, the planner that she is, had us mostly packed a few days ago, so we don't have much to do there. We finish up, then grab a few photos of our view before calling Bell Services to come pick up our bags:

Well, that's the side view (corner room). Here's the same view, "plussed":

And here's the better view:

Not exactly great from the room, but walk 15 feet out the door, and it was beautiful. I think we'll request this building again next year. I also think they'll give us a different building, and Kristin will be upset. Then, she'll see the new building and like it even more than this one. Yeah, that's the routine!

Bell Services arrives in their little mini-tram thing, and since we've been to Wildwood, NJ many times, we know to watch it (please). We ride over to that horrible, awful thing that is Mickey's Magical Express (known 11 days earlier as the amazing, wonderful thing that is Mickey's Magical Express), drop our bags off, then head over to El Centro.

While Kristin does whatever it was she did at this point, I grabbed some pics:

If you're a big fan of fountains and have been waiting this entire Trip Report for some fountain porn, well, today's your lucky day:

More inside shots, including the runner-up in the "which picture should I use in the Day 12 title post" sweepstakes:

We hit up Panchito's for some last-minute purchases, and then we head outside. We have time for a lap around the grounds, so why not?

 

[nilla]

And here's where I try to usurp KatMark's reign over the Coronado Springs thread:

Did you recognize that last building? If not, you must not have read last year's trip report. What's wrong with you??

While you come up with a lame attempt at explaining yourself, I will bombard you with more CSR pics.

This resort just screams, "set as my desktop background". I just love it. Here's more:

Do you see that heart in the sand? I don't know if you can make it out here, but it reads, "Jon loves CSR (and I bet you're getting sick of him saying it, aren'tcha?" Ok, not really. I don't know what it says, but love is apparently in the air here. In the air, but not in the lake:

 

[nilla]

We're just about halfway around the lake, and I haven't even broken a sweat! Ok, that's another lie, because it's hot (as usual). But I still have a lot of pic-taking left in me, so let's continue as we creep up on the Dig Site:

We took a ton of pics there on our pool day, so we'll skip that and head over to the Ranchos instead. If you didn't already know, this area has a "rock theme":

Given the landscaping, Dylan is certain that if he just looks hard enough, he'll be sure to find the droids he's looking for:

Oh, wait - now there's a cactus theme:

...and just as I'm about to succumb to thirst, we reach water:

Not sure about the Ranchos. I guess I could learn to like them if I had to, but they just don't appeal to me like the other two. Then again, you never know until you try them, eh?

Well, Dylan didn't find those droids, but I'm determined to find that stinkin' gator:

He's in there somewhere, I know. One year, we'll spot him. And a celebrity in the park. I think all of our friends have seen at least one (the most recent being Bruce Willis on Dinosaur), but we've come up empty every time. The closest we got was when Paris Hilton was in MK a few years back on a day we were in Epcot, which was a shame since Kristin is a pretty big PH fan. She even owns her CD. And has made me listen to it. To purge that memory from my mind, I will quickly post another kid shot:

 

[nilla]

We're on the home stretch now, but we still have a lot of memory card left. Keep shootin', Jon - keep shootin'!

Hey, is that-?

YES! Another fountain! Behold!

We move back to the main walk, where Dylan decides he's just too tired to go on:

As does Emily:

Ok, we need to keep moving, guys. Let's go. Dylan.

Dylan?

DYLAN!!!

He's STILL in that hammock, even though we're a good 100 feet down the path. I swear he would've stayed there all day if we didn't threaten "no Nintendo DS on the plane if you don't get over here right now".

Well, that's all the pics we have for now.

 

[nilla]

APRIL FOOLS!

Here's more. You see, April Fools was a big joke with the kids right around that time, and it got REALLY annoying. They would do it at the worst possible times, too ("Dad, I just joined the Crips today. April Fools!"). We finally had to bring the hammer down and outlaw April Fools' jokes (especially in mid-May), a fate which soon after met "jinxing" someone who says the same thing as you at the exact same time. These kids just don't get it - you can't set someone up for a jinx; it has to happen by accident. Asking, "what is your name?", then nailing someone with a jinx is NOT how it works. Sorry. BANNED.

But I digress. Back to the pictures:

Here's one of the quiet pools in the Casitas:

And look, another fountain!

And another:

And another:

Actually, I think that was the same one. But anyway. This is a tree:

And now back to fountains:

That last one was really close to our building, which was not building 1, not building 2, but this:

That's our room there on the corner. And he's the lake view nearby:

And the tunnel view, also nearby:

Whew...ok, are we done yet?

Almost, but not quite! Here's more:

...and we arrive back at El Centro:

Ok, who's ready to leave Walt Disney World? Show of hands.

 

[nilla]

If you raised your hand, please close your browser right now and go to bed. I appreciate you reading, but would appreciate if you left us now.

...


...


What's that?

Everyone's still here?

Nice! I'm proud of ya

I don't want to leave either, so how about we stretch it out a few more days, eh? Sound good?

Great. When we return, we'll officially close out Coronado Springs with a visit to this guy:

See you soon!


[POST=42624799](skip to next update)[/POST]

 

[shan23877]

FINALLY!! FOUNTAIN PORN!! That's just what this TR was missing. No, seriously, could your family take more Disney trips so that I could enjoy more TRs? I don't want it to end. May have to go back and read the first one now.

 

[MEK]

Awwww.....I feel so sad that your TR is done. I hate those last mornings but I learned something - either leave first thing in the morning (which I never do) or take the late flight home so you have a good chunk of the day left.

I love your CSR pictures. Kathy will have a hard time competing with you because she's not staying there this year. I do think CSR is one of the most beautiful resorts in terms of grounds. Its so photogenic. I would love to get back there with my new camera!

I swear your family also wins the award for park commandos! I know I couldn't keep up with you. I am far too lazy!

I enjoyed all your commentary and all the pictures of the kids.

Hope you post your final thoughts and next years plans. Will you keep going in May? Is it getting hard to take Dylan out of school?

 

[mimiecp]

I could look at pictures of the Coronado all day - in fact, I may just return to your trip report many times today just to look at the pictures again. What's work when faced with the fact that I'll be at the Coronado in....12 DAYS!!!! Yes, I have to endure a night at Pop first (which isn't too bad...as long as we get our request in the 70's and 80's area, I can get all nostalgic about my youth looking at the big icons of the era), but then it's back to the peaceful, easy feeling of the Coronado for the rest of the time.

Your ban on April Fool's jokes made me laugh. My kids like to continually do it too, but instead of saying April Fool's, they just say whatever month we're in...."Mom, I just gave the dog haircut...September Fools!"

Look forward to the Pepper Market update.

 

[2xcited2sleep]

Awww, I think Em's face on ME in one of the first pictures says it all. i hate that last day feeling. Thank goodness for usually having the next trip to look forward to or else I'm not sure I could get on the bus.

The resort really looks beautiful...but very big. Sounds like your room was in a great location. As you said, bet next year you'll be in the "desert" section so Dylan can find the droids (love the reference ) and you guys can fall in love with another part of the resort.

 

[POLY1985]

Enjoyed your TR! CBR is a beautiful resort - glad you had so many pics of it so I could get a feel for it. May have to stay there sometime.

 

[mmeb144]

Thanks for the tour. I could feel the heat, not the sweat rolling down my back. Nice! AND Fountain Porn, that just makes my day.

 

[KatMark]

Okay, Jon; now you have gone and done it. I am sitting here with tears in my eyes because I'm not going to be at the CSR in nine days.
I know that I will love AKL and OKW, but it just isn't home.

Your pictures are absolutely wonderful. You captured the beauty of the CSR with all of your pictures.

Now I have a HUGE favor to ask you. When I get back from our trip, I am going to have to update the CSR "unofficial" thread and would like to use some new pictures. Do I have permission to borrow some of yours for this purpose?

Looking forward to the Pepper Market update (that place people LOVE to hate).

 

[PIRATEGIRL007]

Ok I just started reading but I love your title, I think just about any parent can say that at times! Looking forward to reading all the report, I am 10 days away and am desperately looking for complete TR's to pass the time.