Twirling Through the World: Magic, Memories, & Maladies-Sept. 2011 TR- NEW PTR 6/18!

[Stringbean&Wingnut]

I'm sorry to hear that your meal at Coral Reef wasn't great! But it does sound like it went better than the previous one!!

Ugh, what an upsetting thing for Mamie to say to you! (And Julia!)

How nice that Julia was given a front row spot for Illuminations!! I'm glad you all enjoyed the show!

Uh oh...I don't like the sound of that foreshadowing with the tickets...

 

[dara00]

yay for nice people from Kansas! loved the update, as usual. has Mamie said anything else about Brandon's sister's special baby since you've been home?

 

[alliesue]

I just found your trip report and am LOVING it!! The look of joy on your kids faces makes me so excited for my DD to get older so she'll "get" the Disney Magic too!! Thank you so much for sharing your story and your wonderful pictures!! Can't wait to hear and see more!

How old were your girls when they started getting into princesses?? My DD is 19 months and could care less about them

 

[Fantasyland Mom]

Yeah, we do have it pretty good here in terms of pregnancy. I'm not allowed to go outside because of the risk of getting a ball in the stomach, or falling on the ice (especially if children start running around me).

Too bad you had just an okay meal at Coral Reef. I think I would get along well with Mamie meal wise, as I don't eat fruits and barely any vegetables. I'm trying hard to change, especially for the baby, but it's hard to break a life-long habit.

The sunset over Mission Space was really pretty!

Ugh, what a sucky thing for Mamie to say, especially in front of one of her grandchild! That is really mean.

I'm glad Julia enjoyed Illuminations. It's a beautiful show!

Oh oh! What will happen to the tickets?

It is hard to break a lifelong habit! Being raised by someone who had no interest in fruits and veggies, Brandon barely ate them growing up. And when he did, it was opening a can and cooking it til it was mushy and tasteless. When we got married, Brandon said he hated vegetables, but as I've cooked them for him the right way (and forced him to try some), he actually really likes them! In fact, he's now on a big health kick and nearly a vegetarian!
I will eat any veggie or fruit if it's presented in front of me...but if I'm grabbing something, I tend to choose pasta and cheese....mmmmm...cheese...
Oh, the tickets! I shudder just thinking about it to this day.

I'm sorry to hear that your meal at Coral Reef wasn't great! But it does sound like it went better than the previous one!!

Ugh, what an upsetting thing for Mamie to say to you! (And Julia!)

How nice that Julia was given a front row spot for Illuminations!! I'm glad you all enjoyed the show!

Uh oh...I don't like the sound of that foreshadowing with the tickets...

I considered the meal a success! I still ate all my food, even if it wasn't spectacular, and everyone was pleasant, clean, and enjoyed our surroundings. WIN!
Tickets. Ugh.

yay for nice people from Kansas! loved the update, as usual. has Mamie said anything else about Brandon's sister's special baby since you've been home?

They were so nice! Yay, Kansas!
Oh, yes. It's pretty much all she can talk about. And it's not just my kids who are getting this treatment--that same sister has a son already, but sadly I think that because he's a little developmentally slow, they're hoping this baby will "make up for that," so to speak, and be their dream child. I say "their" because Mamie probably has her son at her house as much as he's home. Sad.

I just found your trip report and am LOVING it!! The look of joy on your kids faces makes me so excited for my DD to get older so she'll "get" the Disney Magic too!! Thank you so much for sharing your story and your wonderful pictures!! Can't wait to hear and see more!

How old were your girls when they started getting into princesses?? My DD is 19 months and could care less about them

Thank you for joining us and for your sweet comments! We have LOTS more to go on this TR...we haven't even gotten into the dramatic bits yet!
I think both my girls started liking the Princesses around age 2. Brynn knew their names earlier because of her big sister (and even Sawyer knows several of them now), but she didn't like them until she was at least two. I think for both of them that 3 years old was the OBSESSED age!

 

[danimaroo]

I'M HERE! I obviously have like, a LOT of catching up to do, which will probably happen tonight when I'm home from work (though maybe I'll get to do some here if it's slow )... BUT I'm glad I saw this because #1, I love your comments on my TR and I feel like we'd get along in RL and #2, I skimmed over the first intro part and was like, yup, this is my kind of TR.

That being said, I need to go back and catch up on everything, intros included! But I just wanted to let you know that I made it over here!

 

[Fantasyland Mom]

I'M HERE! I obviously have like, a LOT of catching up to do, which will probably happen tonight when I'm home from work (though maybe I'll get to do some here if it's slow )... BUT I'm glad I saw this because #1, I love your comments on my TR and I feel like we'd get along in RL and #2, I skimmed over the first intro part and was like, yup, this is my kind of TR.

That being said, I need to go back and catch up on everything, intros included! But I just wanted to let you know that I made it over here!

Okay, I'm so glad you said that. I was totally thinking, "We could SO be IRL friends!" And then I thought that I was a little creepy for thinking that. But if you're creepy like that, too, then I was right all along!!

 

[denvergirl]

LOVE, LOVE, LOVING your TR!!! The photos are fantastic and the stories are so entertaining. . .I can't wait to find out what happens with those tickets! We have 9 months until we go. . .this is certainly filling a void! Thanks!!!

 

[Fantasyland Mom]

LOVE, LOVE, LOVING your TR!!! The photos are fantastic and the stories are so entertaining. . .I can't wait to find out what happens with those tickets! We have 9 months until we go. . .this is certainly filling a void! Thanks!!!

And thanks!
I love TRs for filling that void! We've got seven more months until we (hopefully) go back, and I read them just about every day for a little magic!

 

[Queenofallthings]

The last time we were at Coral Reef was in 2010 and it proved to be our best meal of the trip! We had a horrid experience in 2008 when we there but I didn't want to write it off completely!

I'm so nervous about those darn tickets now...don't keep up waiting too long

 

[danimaroo]

Just popping in to let you know I've started catching up, and I have to leave work in 10 minutes, but I'm probably going to be completely caught up tonight... BUT I just had to say even thuogh I'm not even that far in, I can, indeed confirm (and it might be creepy) that yes, we would be RL friends.

Also loved that you almost said that in my TR but got worried it was creepy. We've already broken that barrier here. Can't wait to read more, you have already sucked me in!

 

[danimaroo]

OKAY! I'm back. After writing my Day 4 of my TR, I spent the next hour or so catching up on your TR, FINALLY. I am literally caught up now, completely, and I'm pumped!

I'm obviously not going to go over every detail of what I just read, but I just need to note a few things:

#1. Are we the same person? Upon re-reading your intro, I realized that WE HAVE THE SAME EXACT PHOTO WITH BETTY WHITE! I started laughing so hard when I realized we have that photo for both of our intros!! Great minds think alike... and love Betty White!

#2. I think my heart melted when Brynn and Julia did BBB. I love how you kept it a secret, had the invitations, the dresses were ready, etc. You could tell they just felt like SUCH princesses. I actually started telling Matt about it and how seeing that experience actually made me EXCITED if we have a little girl in the future and she wants to do that. I'm not a princess-type myself, but THIS just totally seems worth it!

#3. I'm so impressed with the chefs in dealing with the food allergy stuff! Seriously amazing and that is awesome that they had that butter for Brynn. I love Disney so much.

#4. THE PHOTOS! They are beautiful. And I fell in love with Sawyer's (BTW I love this name) interaction with Mickey Mouse. And yours and the girls' reactions to Wishes. I could go on. Brandon caught some really magical moments on camera.

Okay, I could seriously go on for a year but I'll stop. I am LOVING your TR like crazy, and your trip has been pretty amazing so far! (Outside of the Peco Bill incident, ugh)... I cannot wait to read more and I'm so glad you commented in mine because now I've caught up with yours.

 

[Fantasyland Mom]

OKAY! I'm back. After writing my Day 4 of my TR, I spent the next hour or so catching up on your TR, FINALLY. I am literally caught up now, completely, and I'm pumped!

I'm obviously not going to go over every detail of what I just read, but I just need to note a few things:

#1. Are we the same person? Upon re-reading your intro, I realized that WE HAVE THE SAME EXACT PHOTO WITH BETTY WHITE! I started laughing so hard when I realized we have that photo for both of our intros!! Great minds think alike... and love Betty White!

#2. I think my heart melted when Brynn and Julia did BBB. I love how you kept it a secret, had the invitations, the dresses were ready, etc. You could tell they just felt like SUCH princesses. I actually started telling Matt about it and how seeing that experience actually made me EXCITED if we have a little girl in the future and she wants to do that. I'm not a princess-type myself, but THIS just totally seems worth it!

#3. I'm so impressed with the chefs in dealing with the food allergy stuff! Seriously amazing and that is awesome that they had that butter for Brynn. I love Disney so much.

#4. THE PHOTOS! They are beautiful. And I fell in love with Sawyer's (BTW I love this name) interaction with Mickey Mouse. And yours and the girls' reactions to Wishes. I could go on. Brandon caught some really magical moments on camera.

Okay, I could seriously go on for a year but I'll stop. I am LOVING your TR like crazy, and your trip has been pretty amazing so far! (Outside of the Peco Bill incident, ugh)... I cannot wait to read more and I'm so glad you commented in mine because now I've caught up with yours.

#1. WE ARE AWESOME!! Great minds DO think alike, and great minds love them some BETTY! I am pretty sure we could all be great friends together...maybe somewhere in Miami...in a sprawling house whose layout makes no sense.

#2. I am not a princess type. Not by a long shot. But my girls? BEST PRINCESSES EVER. I'm thinking we won't do BBB on the next trip (honestly, I've seen enough of the weird hairstyle to last me a while), but it was totally worth it. They loved every second of it.

#3. Disney chefs are the best! That kid never eats that well! But, shhhhh, it's cause I'm a horrible cook.

#4. Oh, I love the pictures this trip. And honestly, I think he got better as the trip went on, despite the (foreshadowing) situations we were in! Do you know that I've never taken Sawyer to Tom Sawyer's Island?? He's named for the guy, but there's no picture of him by the sign or anything!! Loser mom.

I'm so glad you're enjoying the TR. I am absolutely loving yours. What's not to love?! I mean, like I said before, we're like the same (awesome) person.

 

[katt789]

I keep falling so behind on my TR's!! Love the updates! Yay for more princess meals! I definitely know what you mean about that Ariel...kinda creepy haha That's so nice that that family let you infront to get a great view of the first Illuminations! Yay! An awesome shot of the fireworks too!

 

[KTgE]

I'm a little late but I'm here and subscribing. I've gone back and read your PTR. We have a trip in two weeks and it'll be our first time with two kids. Should be nothing less than interesting...we are going with my husband's family and my SIL has two kids the same ages as mine! Ha. So, we'll have two 3 years olds and two right under the age of 1! Again, it'll be interesting! I enjoy reading TR of other families with younger kids. I'm loving all your pictures!

 

[Fantasyland Mom]

I keep falling so behind on my TR's!! Love the updates! Yay for more princess meals! I definitely know what you mean about that Ariel...kinda creepy haha That's so nice that that family let you infront to get a great view of the first Illuminations! Yay! An awesome shot of the fireworks too!

No worries! I am always behind on my TRs, or I'll read them and think I commented even though I didn't.
All in all, it was just about a perfect Epcot day!

I'm a little late but I'm here and subscribing. I've gone back and read your PTR. We have a trip in two weeks and it'll be our first time with two kids. Should be nothing less than interesting...we are going with my husband's family and my SIL has two kids the same ages as mine! Ha. So, we'll have two 3 years olds and two right under the age of 1! Again, it'll be interesting! I enjoy reading TR of other families with younger kids. I'm loving all your pictures!

You're not late at all! Things are just getting started! Welcome, and I hope you enjoy it. Sounds like you'll have your hands full on your upcoming trip, but they are going to be so much fun at those ages!

 

[smalltowngirl504]

I just strated reading.. I love your TR.... The ones with small kids are always my favorite because I can relate!! Sorry about what you MIL said, my MIL is the same exact way, so I get it!!!! Can't wait to hear about the rest of your trip!!!

 

[Fantasyland Mom]

I just strated reading.. I love your TR.... The ones with small kids are always my favorite because I can relate!! Sorry about what you MIL said, my MIL is the same exact way, so I get it!!!! Can't wait to hear about the rest of your trip!!!

That was definitely a bummer about my MIL, but that wouldn't be the end of problems. Those are starting on the day I'm about to begin...

 

[Fantasyland Mom]

We popped out of bed a bit slower this morning. We’d had a rather late night (for us, at least) at Epcot, and we were traveling to a park we’d not been too impressed with up to this point—Animal Kingdom.

In my PTR, I discussed this, adding that I promised to go in this time with an open mind and try lots of new things. And we did! In fact, I can go ahead and let you know that this morning was nearly perfect, with only one bummer moment…but things started to go downhill around lunchtime, through no fault of AK, and they’d just get worse from there. So now you know what to expect.

On other trips, we had always taken the bus to AK. Now that we were driving in, I remembered reading that there was really no good way to get from the parking lot to the front gates. I remembered this too late.

Remember how we were refusing to use trams this trip because of having to fold up the strollers and get children in and out and it causing chaos?? Well, Brandon was still refusing, except that you HAVE to use trams at AK. There is no path. There are lots of barriers and cones. But Brandon insisted, so we trekked illegally through empty lots and cast member parking, over what seemed like miles and miles of hot, black asphalt. I was not happy about that. Plus, I needed a potty break for my teeny bladder, and that running through the “DO NOT ENTER” areas was not helping. Finally, we made it to an area with a sidewalk.

The park was not yet open, but they were letting people through the turnstiles and into the area where they show the different animals each morning. I ran ahead of the rest (literally), swiped my ticket, and went to find the restroom at the entrance on the left. When I was done, I waited. And waited. I waited some more. Finally, the slowpokes made their way inside the gates just as they started letting people enter the rest of the park.

We had a plan for this part of the day, one that killed two birds with one stone…maybe I shouldn’t use that analogy while we were in the Animal Kingdom.

Our plan would accomplish quite a bit. It would allow the kids to ride Triceratops Spin, while allowing Brandon to skip it. It would secure our Safari fastpasses and let Brandon take some pictures in the early morning. In short, it was brilliant, and I knew it. This girl is awesome.

Brandon took the good camera and headed to the left towards Africa and the Fastpass machine. Then he walked over to Asia to eventually meet us at Expedition Everest. Along the way, he took some great shots.

Meanwhile, Mamie, Julia, Brynn, Sawyer, and I took the little waterproof camera and veered right. We entered DinoLand U.S.A., though you wouldn’t know it from this dark picture.

Some people don’t like the theming here, but I really do!

I’m pretty cheesy like that.

My kids were still dragging, but they perked up a bit when they saw this:

We parked our strollers and jumped in the non-existent line.

See the theming!? Even the stroller parking sign is made from a license plate! You can’t get any tackier than that!

Julia and Mamie sat in the front of a dinosaur, while Brynn, Sawyer, and I sat behind them. I’d had plans to use this camera to capture the magic on their faces as they soared through the air. Unfortunately, Sawyer couldn’t keep his hands off the camera, so I gave up. Just trust me when I say that they were happy, I was dizzy, and we were more than ready to meet up with Brandon at EE.

Oh, wow, was it hot. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: AK and World Showcase are the hottest places on the planet! It was about 9:20 and we were burning up! Julia ditched her Minnie ears she’d insisted on wearing that morning, and I offered to wear them for a moment. Don’t I look like I’m so hot that I’m on fire? And not in a good way!

The girls took some time to play with bubbles in the shadow of a souvenir cart, and Mamie gave in and bought a mister fan. Thank goodness it was already filled with iced water! It felt great, even this early in the morning!

I thought Julia might be stalling because she knew what was next, so I reminded her that when she was done riding EE, she got to choose a prize to commemorate the event! She’d been insisting on riding it for months, and she really wanted to go on, even if she was acting a bit nervous.

We sent Mamie and the little kids into the air-conditioned gift shop, and Brandon, Julia, and I walked through another non-existent line. Soon, we were quickly moving through the Himalayas!

“There doesn’t seem to be any track.”

The verdict? SHE LOVED IT! I knew she would! She ran to the gift shop to pick out a little Yeti.

As soon as I stepped out of my ride car and onto the platform, I realized my sunglasses were still in the little net thing. Let me point out that at NO TIME did I attempt to get back in the car—I’m not stupid. I walked over to the person pushing the buttons to let her know they were in there. Before I could take two steps in her direction, out of nowhere two other CMs appeared and literally pushed me to the gift shop, scolding me. I was speechless. It was taking all I had not to start crying at that moment. They made me feel like such a little kid. Finally, I turned to their terribly mean faces and said I was doing what I knew to do—letting a CM know I’d left something so she could grab it. “Oh,” they said, and turned around and walked away. No apology. No, “Sorry, we were sure you were about to fling yourself on the tracks and wanted to save you.” No, “Okay, we’ll grab those for you.” Nothing. Just, “Oh,” and then the cold shoulder. I was crushed. It was the first time I’d ever had a bad experience with a CM. Should I have told the gift shop attendant instead of a ride attendant? Maybe, but it seemed more logical to tell someone who had something to do with the ride. I know they have to keep people safe, but I was not being unsafe, and they most definitely didn’t need to make me feel like a horrible person, which they did. With me trying to “walk it off,” Brandon, Julia, and Mamie went back on the ride. I think I bought Brynn a snack at that point, maybe. Just as I was about to leave the gift shop, tears still in my eyes, one of those attendants came and handed me my sunglasses. “Here,” he said, and turned around and walked away. Gosh, thanks for your kindness.

Even typing that story now has me feeling sad. It was the only bad spot of the morning, though, and I was determined to not let it ruin my day. I pushed the little kids outside to wait on everyone else. Sawyer was still playing with the camera he stole at Triceratops Spin, and Brynn was spraying everyone. Julia loved the ride again, and we were moving on to more fun!

Continued right below this!

 

[Fantasyland Mom]

The Maharajah Jungle Trek was practically next door, and we’d actually never been through it. We decided to give it a shot, grabbing FPs for Kali River Rapids before we went through.

Should I be scared??

Well, not of the tigers…but the bats?? Yikes!

Time to see some Tigers!

The live ones moved about as much as the painted ones in this heat! We kept on moving, though.

Family shot in the middle of this AMAZING theming!!

The bird area was beautiful and so very peaceful! Julia was excited that birds were just walking around among us.

Time to move on.

 

[Stringbean&Wingnut]

Ugh, I'm sorry to hear about those CM's being so mean for no reason! I'm sure you were doing the right thing! They probably have a lot of people trying to jump back in the car for items and get frustrated or something like that. But still, not right to be rude to you!

I love all of Brandon's and your AK pictures! They're gorgeous!