Trains, Floods and Gigantic Cicadas...Nothing Will Keep Us From WDW!!!

[Singledad]

Your SUV looks great. I bet the extra money was worth having all that extra room. I admite that I didn't even think about driving to WDW. There is no way that I could have driven for cheaper with gas prices, eating on the road (though we could have had a cooler), and having to pay for a hotel at least on night. Plus just being me able to drive I don't know how well I would have done with the 20 hour drive.

sorry for small thread jack, but maybe in 2012 when we go, we could take a rental down and share the driving. I have no problem driving all night, if you are willing to drive during the day! I just like the convienice of flying. but it would be kinda fun to road trip it too. maybe plan a few hours in another town to check out some sites. (Last time I road tripped i stopped at a cave. I love caves though, so you, your little one, and my little one may not love stopping to see a cave as much as I do.)

 

[TinksThree]

It is much cheaper for us to drive but I wish I could fly. It would have been over $2000 just to fly!! Couldn't fathom doing that!!

Glad you got a better vehicle though! I am sure the larger size was definitely worth the extra cash!

I love the pictures of the kids...excitement even pre-daybreak!!!

 

[MARsMama]

Love the 'wake up' photos of the kids!! We have ones like that of our kids on Christmas mornings!
Hearing about your drive is making me wish we were driving again. I really enjoyed our 4-5day trip down, but with the good deals we got on our flights it was definitely cheaper for us to fly this time.
Can't wait to hear more. We don't have cicadas here, so I'm not even sure what they are. We have june bugs though and Dh is terrified of them.....even though he knows they can't hurt you!!

 

[Lidian]

June bugs. Now I must curl into the fetal position and rock until I get the picture of them out of my head.

 

[Corrine 1973]

June bugs. Now I must curl into the fetal position and rock until I get the picture of them out of my head.

I have to agree with you there. Just go to your happy place, everything will be alright.

 

[MARsMama]

Really? June bugs bother you?! I thought Dh was the odd man out, but it's looking like I am as they don't bother me at all. Used to go out in the evening when we were kids specifically to catch the june bugs!

 

[mtgirl29]

Well, these cicadas, with their bulging red eyes, make Junebugs look like sweet, newborn kittens. I will sending some to MARsMama's hubby and Lidian.....bwwwwaaaaahhhhhaaaa!

 

[Corrine 1973]

Well, these cicadas, with their bulging red eyes, make Junebugs look like sweet, newborn kittens. I will sending some to MARsMama's hubby and Lidian.....bwwwwaaaaahhhhhaaaa!

 

[Lidian]

Well, these cicadas, with their bulging red eyes, make Junebugs look like sweet, newborn kittens. I will sending some to MARsMama's hubby and Lidian.....bwwwwaaaaahhhhhaaaa!

See if I share my ECV with you.

And I'm taking all my popcorn back now, Corrine!




Okay, sidetracked, but semi-related .... we all went to visit Granny today. There was a dead bug in the window sill in the bathroom. I made DH get it out before I'd go in there. Yup. That's how much bugs bother me. And I can't look at ANYTHING in the Conservation Station at AK - except the turtles. I can handle them. Now to go to my happy place since I'm thinking bugs.

 

[teacher1717]

Can't wait to read about your adventures! We are headed down (from Jersey) in an equinox (although ours has the aux. plug) and it seems HUGE compared to my little tracker from last year.

 

[mtgirl29]

Can't wait to read about your adventures! We are headed down (from Jersey) in an equinox (although ours has the aux. plug) and it seems HUGE compared to my little tracker from last year.

So glad you are following along. I thought the Equinox was so cute sans the hail damage and loose license plate. We would have definitely taken it if it had an aux. plug, though. We would have just used our roof top carrier because I don't know how to pack light.

 

[mtgirl29]

See if I share my ECV with you.

And I'm taking all my popcorn back now, Corrine!




Okay, sidetracked, but semi-related .... we all went to visit Granny today. There was a dead bug in the window sill in the bathroom. I made DH get it out before I'd go in there. Yup. That's how much bugs bother me. And I can't look at ANYTHING in the Conservation Station at AK - except the turtles. I can handle them. Now to go to my happy place since I'm thinking bugs.

HAAAA! Corrine! I like your sense of humor!!!

Lidian - I hate bugs, too! I have a major horsefly phobia. Anything that makes that buzzing sound FREAKS ME OUT!!! and Junebugs would be on that list.

Just between my DISfriends and myself, (DH would kill me if he knew I was spilling the beans on here) when the 13 yr. cicadas where here (the same brood as this year) in '98, DH and I were married for just under 1 yr. so we were newlyweds. AAAHHHH! What memories.... He was cutting grass and one got trapped in his shirt. As soon as he came in it started screaming or doing whatever sound they make and he started flipping out and running around shaking his shirt and threw out his neck. So I know someone else who really doesn't like them...... Boy, that really creates a funny picture. I wish I would of had my video camera. Now sssshhhh! He reads my thread from time to time. I hope he doesn't see this.

 

[MARsMama]

Well, these cicadas, with their bulging red eyes, make Junebugs look like sweet, newborn kittens. I will sending some to MARsMama's hubby and Lidian.....bwwwwaaaaahhhhhaaaa!

Although I have never seen cicadas, and may very well be frightened of them myself, I would love to see Dh's expression on coming in contact with them!!

 

[Lidian]

HAAAA! Corrine! I like your sense of humor!!!

Lidian - I hate bugs, too! I have a major horsefly phobia. Anything that makes that buzzing sound FREAKS ME OUT!!! and Junebugs would be on that list.

Just between my DISfriends and myself, (DH would kill me if he knew I was spilling the beans on here) when the 13 yr. cicadas where here (the same brood as this year) in '98, DH and I were married for just under 1 yr. so we were newlyweds. AAAHHHH! What memories.... He was cutting grass and one got trapped in his shirt. As soon as he came in it started screaming or doing whatever sound they make and he started flipping out and running around shaking his shirt and threw out his neck. So I know someone else who really doesn't like them...... Boy, that really creates a funny picture. I wish I would of had my video camera. Now sssshhhh! He reads my thread from time to time. I hope he doesn't see this.

Poor Mike! I would have done the same thing, though. But I would have gotten so stressed over it, it probably would have made me ill, too!

I have thick, curly hair ... I remember one year a June bug flew into my hair and got stuck! I was bawling while one of my sisters was trying to dig it out.

P.S. HAPPY FATHER'S DAY, MIKE!

 

[mtgirl29]

Poor Mike! I would have done the same thing, though. But I would have gotten so stressed over it, it probably would have made me ill, too!

I have thick, curly hair ... I remember one year a June bug flew into my hair and got stuck! I was bawling while one of my sisters was trying to dig it out.

P.S. HAPPY FATHER'S DAY, MIKE!

June bugs stuck in the hair is the worst.....

 

[mtgirl29]

When I last left off I was telling about how we finally got on the road and stopped for BK for breakfast....after that we drove and then we drove some more. Then finally we crossed over into Illinois via this lovely bridge.

Two separate times we came up to a railroad crossing and 2xs we had to stop because of a train. REALLY??? This has never happened before. I have rarely been stopped because of a train and then to have it happen twice. WEIRD! I guess if I lived near a train station or an actual RR crossing it would probably be more probable, though.

Here's some pics of the trains:

Then we drive through this small little Illinois town called Cairo. (thanks to Tom Tom - we took some back roads) It looks like a ghost town. From the looks of this place it was once was a thriving, hustling bustling community but something has happened to it and as we continue to drive we discover that there is some major flooding going on. DH pulled out his phone and I researched the town and found out that it used to be a pretty big deal in its hay day of the early 1900 and am very sad to see all this devastation. Apparently, with all the recent raining the Mississippi River had started to flood and the town had be evacuated.

It seemed like a lot of the farming communities had been flooded with water.
We lucked out and were able to pass on many recently impassible roads. (from the signage that had been pulled to the sides of the roads the flood had covered many of the main thorough fares)

Well, we passed through Kentucky without any problems and then crossed over into Tennessee. We drove for quite awhile and all of sudden our window on our SUV seemed very dirty. I notice the bugs were really buzzing around the interstate. At first DH thought it might be migrating butterflies and then we got a better look when one of these got jammed under the windshield wiper.

Here is a better picture of what was on our windshield.

(just for Lidian - isn't he cute!!! lol!!! He only has "red" eyes for you! )

The funny thing is that they forecasting these scary cicadas for us in St. Louis and I was so happy that we were getting out of town just in time and then we run into these bugs and they are the same kind of cicadas but seem so much bigger.

We stopped at a McDonald's for lunch a while after the discovery of the cicadas. They were buzzing around like crazy and my DD almost had an absolute freak out when she got out of the car. We both had to use the rest room, so her and I went together only to discover one of those giant cicadas in the bathroom stall. Thank goodness it was dead, though. DD was still freaked out and stated that it was staring at her with its beaty red eyes while she was using the facilities.

We drove and drove some more and then had a snack at Krystal's. Hubby wanted to stop there since we don't have any of them back home. (I think they are very similar to White Castles) And then we drove, drove and drove and finally arrived at our hotel at around 8 pm. We drove for approx. 13 hours and we were bushed! We stayed at a Days Inn in Valdosta GA. It wasn't the nicest place. It had a very strong musty smell in the room, but we were so tired we didn't care. We unloaded our bags then went to Chick-Fil-A for dinner and then back to the room to get to bed so we could get up early and continue our journey to WDW.

What time would we make it to the World? Would our room be ready? Stay tuned......

 

[mrssmith06]

Ewwww @ the bugs!!!!!

Can't wait to read about your arrival at Disney!

 

[mtgirl29]

Ewwww @ the bugs!!!!!

Can't wait to read about your arrival at Disney!

I know aren't they GROSS!
Cannot wait to relive the arrival day at Disney!!!
The TR keeps it alive!

 

[Lidian]

TK, I am totally unfriending you now for that post.









No, I'm totally joking. Those are some SCARY bugs. And I'm with Kay, I can't go if there's a bug staring me down ... dead or alive!

What voice did you use for your GPS? Tell me you went Darth Vader.

Can't wait for more!

 

[mtgirl29]

TK, I am totally unfriending you now for that post.









No, I'm totally joking. Those are some SCARY bugs. And I'm with Kay, I can't go if there's a bug staring me down ... dead or alive!

What voice did you use for your GPS? Tell me you went Darth Vader.

Can't wait for more!

Lidian, I knew you would appreciate these bugs more than anyone else.....lol!!!! I told you they were scary! Anyway you move it looks like it is peering at you with those big bulging red eyes. ICK!

Actually, we didn't use any special voices, we just used the regular annoying woman's voice that it is defaulted to. We actually had it turned down for most of the trip so we didn't have to hear her nagging us to turn here or there. Mike had his beloved Zune, so we just listened to "his choice" of music the whole way down.

Cannot wait to start the next portion. I want to continue, but don't want to get done too soon. It is bitter sweet, because it is like I have another chance to relive it before it is all over.