jennymouse
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Mar 9, 2001
- Messages
- 4,175
Amen to getting the panty hose off and the Arbor Mist! Time to party!
Two sisters and a baby do Disney! Update 4/6/05 with Pics and more to come!
- Thread starter daisylou
- Start date
I am loving your trip report! I found out I was pregnant a week before my last Disney trip with my older sister and her son. I hated not riding ToT and RnR! I also was sick as a dog the entire time and owe my sister a consolation trip for putting up with me for those five days.
I have a bottle of Arbor Mist chilling in my frige, and my mom drinks Boone's on a regular basis. It's cheap, we like it, and it gets the job done.
I have a bottle of Arbor Mist chilling in my frige, and my mom drinks Boone's on a regular basis. It's cheap, we like it, and it gets the job done.
CadandMouse
CadandMouse
- Joined
- Feb 21, 2005
- Messages
- 32
This is just the most hilarious trip report I have read to date 
...yet mildly disconcerting as I have a 9-hour plane trip with an 11 month old baby, two older kids (11 & 9), hubby, 2 grandparents, brother & sister in law and their 2 yr old toddler to come. in just 8 weeks too!!!!
I have already 'over-packed' and I haven't even packed yet! My saved 'packing list' on Microsoft Word is growing by the minute - so much so that I don't bother closing the document any more!
I have planned on taking everything you did, and more - being a 9-hour flight though, we have purchased our little sweetness a seat of his own...only trouble is, at just 9 months old he is already cruising the furniture at lightening speed and although an expert crawler, is already refusing to crawl - opting for finger-walking with mom instead! I can see the whole 9-hour flight consisting of mom walking him up and down the aisles and apologising at every opportunity to those unsuspecting passengers who's shoe laces he has just untied (he loves laces!).
Thankfully (I love Virgin Atlantic..please don't let me down!) I have managed to pre-book our seats and we have a back row seat about half way down. Behind us is a large space where the emergency doors are and the kitchen galley in the middle....so I'm hoping baby will be kidnapped by cabin crew for a few hours! (No amount of finger crossing is going to get me that one!)
Oh well...maybe I will start my own thread on this at a later date...
...yet mildly disconcerting as I have a 9-hour plane trip with an 11 month old baby, two older kids (11 & 9), hubby, 2 grandparents, brother & sister in law and their 2 yr old toddler to come. in just 8 weeks too!!!!I have already 'over-packed' and I haven't even packed yet! My saved 'packing list' on Microsoft Word is growing by the minute - so much so that I don't bother closing the document any more!
I have planned on taking everything you did, and more - being a 9-hour flight though, we have purchased our little sweetness a seat of his own...only trouble is, at just 9 months old he is already cruising the furniture at lightening speed and although an expert crawler, is already refusing to crawl - opting for finger-walking with mom instead! I can see the whole 9-hour flight consisting of mom walking him up and down the aisles and apologising at every opportunity to those unsuspecting passengers who's shoe laces he has just untied (he loves laces!).
Thankfully (I love Virgin Atlantic..please don't let me down!) I have managed to pre-book our seats and we have a back row seat about half way down. Behind us is a large space where the emergency doors are and the kitchen galley in the middle....so I'm hoping baby will be kidnapped by cabin crew for a few hours! (No amount of finger crossing is going to get me that one!)
Oh well...maybe I will start my own thread on this at a later date...
Sunday morning we actually awoke to the sound of the alarm. Any parent of a small child can tell you what a surprise that is, usually I awake to the sound of Jack jabbering away in his crib. I usually ignore the early chattering and wait until he reaches a uningnorable volume level before I haul my tush out of bed. But, still on a good morning I'm only delaying the inevitable to 7:30-8am at best. But that morning he was still asleep at 9:30 am which is pretty much unheard of for him. Still, a 9:30 wakeup call felt downright refreshing. Me, I'm used to Jack's early bird ways, but Sis is single and childfree. She probably goes to bed some nights just as we're waking up.
Still nothing motivates us to get moving like knowing that a trip to the Magic Kingdom is ahead. But wait, we would be a little delayed. It looked like one of those decadent, hotel-trashing hair bands from the '80s had stayed in our room. See when you overpack with three suitcases you inevitably forget which suitcase contains what. Therefore I had spread the contents of all three suitcases onto every surface of the hotel room. I had a bit of help from Jack too. He's recently added the skill of emptying drawers to his repertoire. As my Mom sincerely said one day "it's so nice to have a child that wants to help."
Somehow we shoved everything back into my suitcases and managed to get ourselves on the road to Orlando. The weather was fabulous, sunny with a clear blue sky. I would try unsuccessfully from rubbing this in that night when I called DH and heard about the torrential rain and sleet storms at home (serves the silly man right for refusing to come). We continued to be impressed with the efficiency of the Florida highway system (but grateful for the ones in my wallet for all those tolls) and pulled into Disney property right at 11:30am. Does everyone else squeal like a kid as they pass under the big sign? We even woke the napping baby, which is something I'm usually deeply opposed to doing. Boy the Disney roads are also pretty easy to navigate too. We easily found our way to our hotel at the Boardwalk.
I must confess I absolutely love hearing "welcome home," every time I pull into a DVC property. But, I'm not even an owner (blame DH for that one too). See I have a mixed marriage. I married a non-Disney lover. Sure he liked our last trip well enough, he even said after we got home "sure, I 'd like to come back. Maybe in five years or so."
So I rent points. It still ends up being a good deal, you get a fabulous room and save a few bucks by having the kitchenette. Plus you get to experience a brief moment of vicarious ownership everytime you hear "welcome home." Or if you are like me and your powers of self-delusion are excellent you spend all week convinced you are a DVC owner and referring to the BWV's as "home."
Boy the Boardwalk does not dissappoint. What a beautiful place it is. But we didn't figure on it being quite so chaotic. All the departing and arriving guests seemed to all be parked in the entrance area, blocking each other in and honking angrily. By some miracle we managed to squeeze into the little space we were indicated by the parking attendant and tried to figure out the routine here. First of all I have to say the parking attendants were some of the nicest groups of people I've run across, particularly if you consider the uniforms Disney has them wearing. I know I would have trouble being consistently cheerfull while dressed in knickers and argyle knee socks. It is here that we learned about one of the services offered to us DVC owners (or DVC wannabe imposters), free valet parking. I could have kissed the parking attendant when she told me that. You mean I won't have to unload my excessive luggage, multiple bags of Super Walmart plunder and haul it all in from the parking lot? Of course not, it is my due as part owner in Disney World
We left all our bags in the car and the keys in the ignition as instructed by the parking lot staff, collected the boy and made it into the lobby. Here we ran into our bonafide first bit of magic. It was explained very clearly to us when we rented the points for our stay that we would not be getting a room with a boardwalk view. Apparently these rooms are all booked very early or require more points or something. We had been promised a water view room which suited us well enough. Well Sis got to chatting with our check-in clerk and soon had him cracking up. See Sis has this talent for charming people in the service industry. Years of waitressing and retail work in college has made both of us sympathetic to those who work with the public. Everyone says it is good to have friends in high places, but I think it is better to have more humble friends. Like Garth Williams, we have friends (and a sibling) in low places. Like bartenders, waiters and hotel clerks. Who doesn't like a free drink, dessert or room upgrade? Anyway after noticing his nametag said our clerk was originally from Maryland (right across the border from us in Delaware) we were soon sharing stories.
Well this humble clerk had some power to wield and soon announced that he had managed to get us into a Boardwalk view room! Thank you, Thank you Charles from Maryland. Our room 4053 was fabulous. We had a sort of oblique view of the Boardwalk and were right across the courtyard from the Flying Fish. The studios at the BWV are very lovely and spacious. I was glad to find the pack and play in the closet and get that set up right away. Sometimes it's good to have a safe little cage for my monkey. Especially since he had been thrilled to discover all the drawers and cupboards right at his level. I had visions of little fingers getting slammed in all those drawers.
Still nothing motivates us to get moving like knowing that a trip to the Magic Kingdom is ahead. But wait, we would be a little delayed. It looked like one of those decadent, hotel-trashing hair bands from the '80s had stayed in our room. See when you overpack with three suitcases you inevitably forget which suitcase contains what. Therefore I had spread the contents of all three suitcases onto every surface of the hotel room. I had a bit of help from Jack too. He's recently added the skill of emptying drawers to his repertoire. As my Mom sincerely said one day "it's so nice to have a child that wants to help."
Somehow we shoved everything back into my suitcases and managed to get ourselves on the road to Orlando. The weather was fabulous, sunny with a clear blue sky. I would try unsuccessfully from rubbing this in that night when I called DH and heard about the torrential rain and sleet storms at home (serves the silly man right for refusing to come). We continued to be impressed with the efficiency of the Florida highway system (but grateful for the ones in my wallet for all those tolls) and pulled into Disney property right at 11:30am. Does everyone else squeal like a kid as they pass under the big sign? We even woke the napping baby, which is something I'm usually deeply opposed to doing. Boy the Disney roads are also pretty easy to navigate too. We easily found our way to our hotel at the Boardwalk.
I must confess I absolutely love hearing "welcome home," every time I pull into a DVC property. But, I'm not even an owner (blame DH for that one too). See I have a mixed marriage. I married a non-Disney lover. Sure he liked our last trip well enough, he even said after we got home "sure, I 'd like to come back. Maybe in five years or so."
So I rent points. It still ends up being a good deal, you get a fabulous room and save a few bucks by having the kitchenette. Plus you get to experience a brief moment of vicarious ownership everytime you hear "welcome home." Or if you are like me and your powers of self-delusion are excellent you spend all week convinced you are a DVC owner and referring to the BWV's as "home." Boy the Boardwalk does not dissappoint. What a beautiful place it is. But we didn't figure on it being quite so chaotic. All the departing and arriving guests seemed to all be parked in the entrance area, blocking each other in and honking angrily. By some miracle we managed to squeeze into the little space we were indicated by the parking attendant and tried to figure out the routine here. First of all I have to say the parking attendants were some of the nicest groups of people I've run across, particularly if you consider the uniforms Disney has them wearing. I know I would have trouble being consistently cheerfull while dressed in knickers and argyle knee socks. It is here that we learned about one of the services offered to us DVC owners (or DVC wannabe imposters), free valet parking. I could have kissed the parking attendant when she told me that. You mean I won't have to unload my excessive luggage, multiple bags of Super Walmart plunder and haul it all in from the parking lot? Of course not, it is my due as part owner in Disney World
We left all our bags in the car and the keys in the ignition as instructed by the parking lot staff, collected the boy and made it into the lobby. Here we ran into our bonafide first bit of magic. It was explained very clearly to us when we rented the points for our stay that we would not be getting a room with a boardwalk view. Apparently these rooms are all booked very early or require more points or something. We had been promised a water view room which suited us well enough. Well Sis got to chatting with our check-in clerk and soon had him cracking up. See Sis has this talent for charming people in the service industry. Years of waitressing and retail work in college has made both of us sympathetic to those who work with the public. Everyone says it is good to have friends in high places, but I think it is better to have more humble friends. Like Garth Williams, we have friends (and a sibling) in low places. Like bartenders, waiters and hotel clerks. Who doesn't like a free drink, dessert or room upgrade? Anyway after noticing his nametag said our clerk was originally from Maryland (right across the border from us in Delaware) we were soon sharing stories.
Well this humble clerk had some power to wield and soon announced that he had managed to get us into a Boardwalk view room! Thank you, Thank you Charles from Maryland. Our room 4053 was fabulous. We had a sort of oblique view of the Boardwalk and were right across the courtyard from the Flying Fish. The studios at the BWV are very lovely and spacious. I was glad to find the pack and play in the closet and get that set up right away. Sometimes it's good to have a safe little cage for my monkey. Especially since he had been thrilled to discover all the drawers and cupboards right at his level. I had visions of little fingers getting slammed in all those drawers.
After gratefully dumping all our belongings in our room at the BWV we were ready to hit the road for Sunday's destination, the MK. I always feel a bit embarassed when I read threads where DISers are teasing people who call the MK "Disney World." Because for me that is where the real Disney World is located. I was born in 1977 before Epcot, MGM or AK were built. On the few trips my parents took us on, we only ever went to the MK, even after Epcot was opened in the early 80's. In fact I remember asking why we never went there and being told by my Dad that "you wouldn't like it, it is educational." 
So all the my childhood memories are of MK. I remember being four years old and hating the stroller my Mom had rented for me. I was horrified that Mickey would see me in a stroller and think I was a baby. I remember sitting in whatever restuarant the Crystal Palace was in a previous incarnation and ordering a peanut butter and jelly sandwich off the menu. And I thought that Disney was the best place in the world simply because they had restuarants with PB&J on the menu. I remember gripping my Mom's hand tightly on Peter Pan and oohing with wonder at the sight of the moving cars under us on the streeets of London. Oh, I love MGM, Epcot and AK now as an adult. But they will never have that same element of wonder for me that the MK holds. Because I never viewed them through the eyes of a child.
The MK continues to delight me. There is really nothing to match that thrill of adrenaline and excitement that rushes over you when you look down Main Street to the castle. Yes, the walls were up surrounding the castle, but you still had a full view. The new turret design is fabulous. I love the way it makes the castle seem lighter and even more fairytaleish (that's not really a word huh?). I hope that the new designs stay up for a while so I have time to plan another trip and see it when it's all completed.
Crowds were a bit higher on Sunday than we had hoped for. Especially since we had broken every tenent of the Unofficial Guide and arrived at 1pm on a weekend and then went directly to Fantasyland. Conditions were gridlocked there, particularly at Pooh and Dumbo. We abandoned the stroller, grabbed the baby and jumped on the first ride we came to with a short line, Snow White. This was Jack's first ever ride so I was a bit worried, but he was a champ. He loved sitting in my lap and leaning forward and tightly gripping the safety bar with both hands. I had read the ride description of Snow White in the UG, and while obviously Sis and I were not spooked I could see how a child could be. There are some creepy elements to the ride, dark forests and the ever present witch. But Jack was oblivious to this and only pointed and cooed happily whenever the dwarfs were around.
After Snow White we rushed over to Mickey's Philharmagic. The lines for this attraction were light and both Sis and I were itching to experience this new movie. It was weeks away from opening on my last trip and just missing it has been irking me since. I have a small confession to make, while I admire the technology at work in the other 3D movies like ITTBAB and HISTA I don't really enjoy them. Actually they give me the creeepy crawlies. Bugs, rats and snakes? No thanks! I knew from reading reviews on this ride the most I would experience was the aroma of apple pie. And frankly, that's more my speed.
It was in line for Mickey's Philharmagic that we experienced our first BRB (baby related breakdown). Jack has recently developed a fascination with eyeglasses. Actually he has a fascination with ripping eyeglasses off of peoples heads. In fact, while we were gone that week my husband made an eye appointment to inquire about contact lenses because Jack has gotten so bad. Once he gets his sticky little hands on them he only wants to put them on his own face. And while this is cute, his poor hand to eye coordination usually results in him poking himself right in the cornea. So as we filed into the theater I was careful to only grab two pairs of glasses and tried to keep Jack from seeing what I was doing. But my MacGuyver-like manuevers were in vain, JAck saw me and realized I was in fact keeping away from his heart's most precious desire and promptly went into tantrum mode.
Now, if someone had told me last April when I was holding my amazingly perfect newborn son, that in a few short months this little creature would be capable of not only bringing me great joy but of also rapidly increasing the ratio of gray hair on my head I would have scoffed in disbelief. But these past 10 months have educated me. And while I was able to keep a hold of him despite his back arching, howls of anger I was quite relieved when the double doors opened and we were allowed to file into the theater. Jack calmed down as soon as we took our seats and he spotted the giant screen. See Jack loves tv. In fact right around 4-5 months we noticed that he would focus and stare at the screen very attentively. While this was viewed as further proof of his intelligence by my parents and grandparents, "Look he's watching tv, isn't that amazing?" I'm a bit scared and have enforced a strict no tv rule for when he's awake.
The amazingly large tv screen kept Jack's rapt attention and he did very well throughout most of the film. He handled the volume level, sudden bursts of noise and generally took it all in stride. Until, the audience was sprayed with water. That was too much for him and he promptly burst into tears.
So all the my childhood memories are of MK. I remember being four years old and hating the stroller my Mom had rented for me. I was horrified that Mickey would see me in a stroller and think I was a baby. I remember sitting in whatever restuarant the Crystal Palace was in a previous incarnation and ordering a peanut butter and jelly sandwich off the menu. And I thought that Disney was the best place in the world simply because they had restuarants with PB&J on the menu. I remember gripping my Mom's hand tightly on Peter Pan and oohing with wonder at the sight of the moving cars under us on the streeets of London. Oh, I love MGM, Epcot and AK now as an adult. But they will never have that same element of wonder for me that the MK holds. Because I never viewed them through the eyes of a child.
The MK continues to delight me. There is really nothing to match that thrill of adrenaline and excitement that rushes over you when you look down Main Street to the castle. Yes, the walls were up surrounding the castle, but you still had a full view. The new turret design is fabulous. I love the way it makes the castle seem lighter and even more fairytaleish (that's not really a word huh?). I hope that the new designs stay up for a while so I have time to plan another trip and see it when it's all completed.
Crowds were a bit higher on Sunday than we had hoped for. Especially since we had broken every tenent of the Unofficial Guide and arrived at 1pm on a weekend and then went directly to Fantasyland. Conditions were gridlocked there, particularly at Pooh and Dumbo. We abandoned the stroller, grabbed the baby and jumped on the first ride we came to with a short line, Snow White. This was Jack's first ever ride so I was a bit worried, but he was a champ. He loved sitting in my lap and leaning forward and tightly gripping the safety bar with both hands. I had read the ride description of Snow White in the UG, and while obviously Sis and I were not spooked I could see how a child could be. There are some creepy elements to the ride, dark forests and the ever present witch. But Jack was oblivious to this and only pointed and cooed happily whenever the dwarfs were around.
After Snow White we rushed over to Mickey's Philharmagic. The lines for this attraction were light and both Sis and I were itching to experience this new movie. It was weeks away from opening on my last trip and just missing it has been irking me since. I have a small confession to make, while I admire the technology at work in the other 3D movies like ITTBAB and HISTA I don't really enjoy them. Actually they give me the creeepy crawlies. Bugs, rats and snakes? No thanks! I knew from reading reviews on this ride the most I would experience was the aroma of apple pie. And frankly, that's more my speed.
It was in line for Mickey's Philharmagic that we experienced our first BRB (baby related breakdown). Jack has recently developed a fascination with eyeglasses. Actually he has a fascination with ripping eyeglasses off of peoples heads. In fact, while we were gone that week my husband made an eye appointment to inquire about contact lenses because Jack has gotten so bad. Once he gets his sticky little hands on them he only wants to put them on his own face. And while this is cute, his poor hand to eye coordination usually results in him poking himself right in the cornea. So as we filed into the theater I was careful to only grab two pairs of glasses and tried to keep Jack from seeing what I was doing. But my MacGuyver-like manuevers were in vain, JAck saw me and realized I was in fact keeping away from his heart's most precious desire and promptly went into tantrum mode.
Now, if someone had told me last April when I was holding my amazingly perfect newborn son, that in a few short months this little creature would be capable of not only bringing me great joy but of also rapidly increasing the ratio of gray hair on my head I would have scoffed in disbelief. But these past 10 months have educated me. And while I was able to keep a hold of him despite his back arching, howls of anger I was quite relieved when the double doors opened and we were allowed to file into the theater. Jack calmed down as soon as we took our seats and he spotted the giant screen. See Jack loves tv. In fact right around 4-5 months we noticed that he would focus and stare at the screen very attentively. While this was viewed as further proof of his intelligence by my parents and grandparents, "Look he's watching tv, isn't that amazing?" I'm a bit scared and have enforced a strict no tv rule for when he's awake.
The amazingly large tv screen kept Jack's rapt attention and he did very well throughout most of the film. He handled the volume level, sudden bursts of noise and generally took it all in stride. Until, the audience was sprayed with water. That was too much for him and he promptly burst into tears.
Alysa
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Apr 28, 2001
- Messages
- 2,093
Poor little bean. DD is the same way - we call her the TV junkie - when she comes down in the morning she asks for TV right after her bottle. We have Friday evening movie night with "Puppies" (101 Dalmations) and I feel nervous about that. But then I wonder if not letting her watch at all, will make her even more atracted to it? Isn't parenting crazy?!
eeyore45
<font color=darkorchid>Do-it-yourself pixie dust =
- Joined
- Jun 18, 2004
- Messages
- 7,371
Thank you, Thank you, Thank YOU!!
I love this report! I love that it is all contained in one thread, and I love your insights, your humor, and your honesty!!
Its so time for me to go to WDW!! (and I lol at the memory of why you didnt go to Epcot in the 70's... same thing my dad said to me!! )
I love this report! I love that it is all contained in one thread, and I love your insights, your humor, and your honesty!!
Its so time for me to go to WDW!! (and I lol at the memory of why you didnt go to Epcot in the 70's... same thing my dad said to me!! )
/
ibouncetoo
<font color=009999>I get excited by the little thi
- Joined
- Aug 31, 2003
- Messages
- 17,486
More please...............
jezaduck24
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Mar 22, 2005
- Messages
- 177
More! More!
I am pregnant with my first and am seeing my future in your report!
I am pregnant with my first and am seeing my future in your report!
I cant wait to hear the rest - I am a new Mommy too. To a 4 month old boy. I am DYING to take him to WDW. DH couldnt care less about WDW. But my Mom and I are tentatively planning to take him next March for my bday. He'll be 15 months then and probably a little wild man.
Yikes! It has really been over two months since we got back from our trip and I'm still writing about day 3. I'm so sorry, I've been planning the big J's first birthday plus renovating my house. So sorry. I promise to be more timely with this trip report. Believe it or not I have the nerve to be irked when trip reports I enjoy reading here take too long.
Second thanks to all the folks who've been kind enough to respond to my trip report. I love that there is this group of overpacking, sweatpant wearing, Arbor Mist drinking Disney mommas out there with me. We rock my fellow elastic wastband wearing sisters!
When we last left off Jack was howling away at Mickey's philharmagic. Luckily the noise level of this movie is fairly high, because you could barely hear him over the music. He calmed fairly quickly, and thanks to the desperate jiggling of my knee, I was able to keep him calm till the end. Plus add some valuable aerobic excercise to my day.
After Mickey we made it towards one of both Sis' and my favorite rides Peter Pan. But crowd levels seemed to have increased startingly in Fantasyland. The wait times for PP and Winnie the Pooh were over 45 minutes each. Energy levels were lagging. So we kept on trucking into Liberty Square hoping to flee some of the stroller gridlock. And we were in luck, HM was posting 10 minute wait times. We hopped in line and before we even had time to witness Madame Leota's gravestone come to life, we were hopping into our doom buggy.
Jack was an angel on HM, perhaps he felt at home surrounded by other demons and screaming banshees. This ride is a great favorite not just for the amazing effects and scenery but also for the chilly air conditioning. And we all left refreshed. An agreeement was reached to enjoy a break and refreshment. So we got our first Mickey bars and bottles of water of the trip. Jack loved the chocolate coating on my bar. And we also discovered that he did very well with the sports top Dasani water bottles. I was relieved to discover this, Jack may be a genius baby and very advanced in all things, but he is sadly deficient in the sippy cup department. It seems all the other babies at playgroup and the park are afficianados, effortlessly sipping away. But Jack wants nothing to do with a cup. I was worried about keeping him hydrated in Disney, but the water bottles worked fabulously. And he guzzled away.
We claimed shady benches in FrontierLand right on the parade route. We passed a pleasant hour people watching. We even observed some huge, fearless, white birds (egrets? ) landing on the sidewalk, begging for food. As we waited for the parade to begin.
The afternoon parade was as great as I remembered from my August 2003 visit. But afterwards we were all lagging in energy. Sis and I agreed to return to our hotel for a brief rest and debate that evenings plans of Spectro and Wishes.
Second thanks to all the folks who've been kind enough to respond to my trip report. I love that there is this group of overpacking, sweatpant wearing, Arbor Mist drinking Disney mommas out there with me. We rock my fellow elastic wastband wearing sisters!
When we last left off Jack was howling away at Mickey's philharmagic. Luckily the noise level of this movie is fairly high, because you could barely hear him over the music. He calmed fairly quickly, and thanks to the desperate jiggling of my knee, I was able to keep him calm till the end. Plus add some valuable aerobic excercise to my day.
After Mickey we made it towards one of both Sis' and my favorite rides Peter Pan. But crowd levels seemed to have increased startingly in Fantasyland. The wait times for PP and Winnie the Pooh were over 45 minutes each. Energy levels were lagging. So we kept on trucking into Liberty Square hoping to flee some of the stroller gridlock. And we were in luck, HM was posting 10 minute wait times. We hopped in line and before we even had time to witness Madame Leota's gravestone come to life, we were hopping into our doom buggy.
Jack was an angel on HM, perhaps he felt at home surrounded by other demons and screaming banshees. This ride is a great favorite not just for the amazing effects and scenery but also for the chilly air conditioning. And we all left refreshed. An agreeement was reached to enjoy a break and refreshment. So we got our first Mickey bars and bottles of water of the trip. Jack loved the chocolate coating on my bar. And we also discovered that he did very well with the sports top Dasani water bottles. I was relieved to discover this, Jack may be a genius baby and very advanced in all things, but he is sadly deficient in the sippy cup department. It seems all the other babies at playgroup and the park are afficianados, effortlessly sipping away. But Jack wants nothing to do with a cup. I was worried about keeping him hydrated in Disney, but the water bottles worked fabulously. And he guzzled away.
We claimed shady benches in FrontierLand right on the parade route. We passed a pleasant hour people watching. We even observed some huge, fearless, white birds (egrets? ) landing on the sidewalk, begging for food. As we waited for the parade to begin.
The afternoon parade was as great as I remembered from my August 2003 visit. But afterwards we were all lagging in energy. Sis and I agreed to return to our hotel for a brief rest and debate that evenings plans of Spectro and Wishes.
kellyb2000
<font color=green>I admit it...my username is bori
- Joined
- Mar 1, 2002
- Messages
- 1,101
daisylou said:
daisylou said:
Another SISTER here! My son is 2 and I feel you on everything but the sippy cup - mine went to the cup like a pro. Now I just wonder when he will give up his blanket and thumb
Loving the reports!
PolyHereWeCome
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Oct 23, 2004
- Messages
- 1,918
I just found this post and you are such a great writer that I had to read the entire thread without stopping!!! You've got me shouting for more!!
FYI, I'm the Mom of twins (DD7, DS7) and I can both appreciate what you're going through, and also tell you that it goes by so fast and does get easier.
FYI, I'm the Mom of twins (DD7, DS7) and I can both appreciate what you're going through, and also tell you that it goes by so fast and does get easier.
Music Mole
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Aug 7, 2002
- Messages
- 180
OMG - SO Funny! As a first time mom who is about to take her daughter on her first trip to WDW, I can't wait for the next witty installment.
As a first time mom who is about to take her daughter on her first trip to WDW, I can't wait for the next witty installment.We dodged the parade route out of Liberty Square and out of the Magic Kingdom. Jack giggled madly the whole time, obviously enjoying my high speed, dodging manuevers. We were bound and determined to beat the post-parade exodus out of the MK and make it back to our home base at BWV.
At about this point I realized why the UOG advises against driving to the MK. It is really a pain to trudge up the monorail ramp, transfer at the TTC, hop on a tram then walk back to your parking spot. Add a 25lb baby that repeatedly needs to be transfered in and out of his stroller and you're left feeling a little less magical. Eventually we made it to our super-cool rental car and were headed back to our home away from home. Once again I was amazed at the quality of the Disney road signs and easily made it back to the Boardwalk.
After a brief rest in our room (and cracking into our Super Walmart snack plunder) Sis was revived and itching to try out the amazing pool we had been looking at online for months. I was a little less enthusiastic, usually I don't like to swim in the middle of the day and mess up whatever efforts I've mustered up in the hair and makeup department. But after the monorail/tram/stroller transfer triathalon of earlier it was a moot point. So I drug on my suit and got Jack into his swim diaper and adorable little-man swim trunks. We plopped him back into the stroller and made our way out to Luna Park. Wow, this place is as amazing as it looks online. I truly wished DH and my two step-daughters were there to experience it. The water was a perfect bath tub temp (inviting as the air temp was getting chilly) and the themeing is so great. The pool bar looks like a fabulous carousel. The Keister Coaster slide is great, who wouldn't want to be regurgitated out of the mouth of a clown?
Jack loved the pool right away. He laughed and splashed and flailed his little arms like a wild man. I really wished his dad could see him at that moment. We resolved to bring the camera and come back for pics (as long as we could manage a way to rig a shot of him without any of my ample bathing suited flesh in the frame). And after a few minutes of arguing who would take the plunge, somehow Sis convinced me to try the Keister Coaster. Now I generally have a few rules I live by when in a bathing suit. Coverup is a neccesity when walking to the pool, a giant towel, t-shirt or sarong will suffice. As soon as I loose the coverup, it's right into the water (preferably at least waist deep for maximum coverage). It must have been the glass of Arbor Mist that gave me the nerve to walk all around the pool and start the climb up to the top of the slide.
A few things became obvious as I made my way to the top of the pool slide. One I was the only person over the age of 8 riding the Keister Coaster. Two it is darn chilly once you haul your wet body to the summit and that breeze hits you. And three, at 27 years old it is a little demeaning to be sitting at the top of a clown shaped slide waiting for a 17 year old lifeguard to grant you permission to make a fool out of yourself! But I comforted myself by thinking about how much more money an hour I make then she does and got through it. And all the humiliation was worth it. That is a darn good time, if a little undignified and bumpy on the nether regions.
After a little more pool time Sis and I pulled a protesting but blue lipped baby out of the pool and headed back to our room. We all got bathed and redressed as we decided on the evening's plan. A consensus was reached. We just weren't up to all the transfering involved to get us back to the MK that night. We decided to take advantage of the proximity of Epcot and hike into the world showcase for some dinner, shopping and illuminations. This night was the coolest temps of the trip and ended up being my one chance to flaunt my fabulous fleece wardrobe. I'm glad I decided to wear the nice sweat that day, it was my last chance of the trip. I got Jack bundled up, we used Sis' blowdryer to dry his stroller seat out (note to fellow travelers, it's not a great idea to put a baby fresh out of the pool into his stroller) and we were on our way.
It really is a pleasant walk from the Boardwalk to the international gateway. Though we would get increasingly more slothful as the trip wore on and rely on the Friendship in the future. Jack settled into a much needed snooze as Sis and I decided on the Tangerine Cafe for dinner. I ordered and greatly enjoyed the chicken sandwich. It was tender, grilled, served on a fresh roll with fresh cucumbers and tomato. Very good. Sis got the meatballs and rice which she liked. We did a little light shopping before staking out an empty bench for Illuminations.
We ended up switching benches twice as we waited for the show to begin. A couple upwind from us lighted up as soon as we sat down, and after waiting through several cigarettes we finally gave up and moved to an open bench in Japan.
Jack enjoying Illuminations
At about this point I realized why the UOG advises against driving to the MK. It is really a pain to trudge up the monorail ramp, transfer at the TTC, hop on a tram then walk back to your parking spot. Add a 25lb baby that repeatedly needs to be transfered in and out of his stroller and you're left feeling a little less magical. Eventually we made it to our super-cool rental car and were headed back to our home away from home. Once again I was amazed at the quality of the Disney road signs and easily made it back to the Boardwalk.
After a brief rest in our room (and cracking into our Super Walmart snack plunder) Sis was revived and itching to try out the amazing pool we had been looking at online for months. I was a little less enthusiastic, usually I don't like to swim in the middle of the day and mess up whatever efforts I've mustered up in the hair and makeup department. But after the monorail/tram/stroller transfer triathalon of earlier it was a moot point. So I drug on my suit and got Jack into his swim diaper and adorable little-man swim trunks. We plopped him back into the stroller and made our way out to Luna Park. Wow, this place is as amazing as it looks online. I truly wished DH and my two step-daughters were there to experience it. The water was a perfect bath tub temp (inviting as the air temp was getting chilly) and the themeing is so great. The pool bar looks like a fabulous carousel. The Keister Coaster slide is great, who wouldn't want to be regurgitated out of the mouth of a clown?
Jack loved the pool right away. He laughed and splashed and flailed his little arms like a wild man. I really wished his dad could see him at that moment. We resolved to bring the camera and come back for pics (as long as we could manage a way to rig a shot of him without any of my ample bathing suited flesh in the frame). And after a few minutes of arguing who would take the plunge, somehow Sis convinced me to try the Keister Coaster. Now I generally have a few rules I live by when in a bathing suit. Coverup is a neccesity when walking to the pool, a giant towel, t-shirt or sarong will suffice. As soon as I loose the coverup, it's right into the water (preferably at least waist deep for maximum coverage). It must have been the glass of Arbor Mist that gave me the nerve to walk all around the pool and start the climb up to the top of the slide.
A few things became obvious as I made my way to the top of the pool slide. One I was the only person over the age of 8 riding the Keister Coaster. Two it is darn chilly once you haul your wet body to the summit and that breeze hits you. And three, at 27 years old it is a little demeaning to be sitting at the top of a clown shaped slide waiting for a 17 year old lifeguard to grant you permission to make a fool out of yourself! But I comforted myself by thinking about how much more money an hour I make then she does and got through it. And all the humiliation was worth it. That is a darn good time, if a little undignified and bumpy on the nether regions.
After a little more pool time Sis and I pulled a protesting but blue lipped baby out of the pool and headed back to our room. We all got bathed and redressed as we decided on the evening's plan. A consensus was reached. We just weren't up to all the transfering involved to get us back to the MK that night. We decided to take advantage of the proximity of Epcot and hike into the world showcase for some dinner, shopping and illuminations. This night was the coolest temps of the trip and ended up being my one chance to flaunt my fabulous fleece wardrobe. I'm glad I decided to wear the nice sweat that day, it was my last chance of the trip. I got Jack bundled up, we used Sis' blowdryer to dry his stroller seat out (note to fellow travelers, it's not a great idea to put a baby fresh out of the pool into his stroller) and we were on our way.
It really is a pleasant walk from the Boardwalk to the international gateway. Though we would get increasingly more slothful as the trip wore on and rely on the Friendship in the future. Jack settled into a much needed snooze as Sis and I decided on the Tangerine Cafe for dinner. I ordered and greatly enjoyed the chicken sandwich. It was tender, grilled, served on a fresh roll with fresh cucumbers and tomato. Very good. Sis got the meatballs and rice which she liked. We did a little light shopping before staking out an empty bench for Illuminations.
We ended up switching benches twice as we waited for the show to begin. A couple upwind from us lighted up as soon as we sat down, and after waiting through several cigarettes we finally gave up and moved to an open bench in Japan.
Jack enjoying Illuminations
-
What It's Like Staying in a Studio at the New DVC Tower at Disneyland Hotel
-
Disney Characters at EPCOT in Walt Disney World: Locations & Tips
-
The Disney Resort Room Trap to Watch Out For
-
Which Disney World Rides are CLOSED in August 2025?
-
Tsunami Warning in Effect for Disney's Aulani in Ko'Olina, Hawai'i
-
Jon M. Chu's Universal TV Appearance Sparks More Wicked Speculation
-
Do You Tip Mousekeeping at Disney? If So, How Much?
Receive up to $1,000 in Onboard Credit and a Gift Basket!
That’s right — when you book your Disney Cruise with Dreams Unlimited Travel, you’ll receive incredible shipboard credits to spend during your vacation!
CLICK HERE
That’s right — when you book your Disney Cruise with Dreams Unlimited Travel, you’ll receive incredible shipboard credits to spend during your vacation!
CLICK HERE
