We "shipped" off our parents and we stayed in Disney! updated 7/18! The final chapter

[FauntleroyFAN07]

very neat to see a different side of things in universal, some year when we go down to disney to camp, we will head over and check it out

 

[k_reile]

is mama dellas the same italian place you ate at last time you were at universal. It makes me want to go back but I don;t think we will have time this next trip since I want to take it as slow as possible at Disney with my going to be 16 mos old son on the trip and my 3.5 yr old newphew! Maybe when the boys are older and then they can enjoy it too! I'm with memom though...we;ll probably do seaworld first and thats ok because I have never been there even though there used to be one in Cleveland.

 

[Nicole786]

LOVE the pics of your parents- they are sooo cute!!!

They can be really cute when they are nice to eachother

I guess your dad and David can pretty much recite the Simpsons film now! Yikes!

Love the two pics of your parents -- they are too cute having such a good time!

Yeah and they aren't fans of the simpsons either! Yeah wait until you see the cruise pics (i've only seen half of them) their smiles are so wide!

I know it's blasphemy, but I actually have been to Universal a couple of times, but it's been a while. I know our crew has talked about going over to check out Islands of Adventure for a day. I think they would really enjoy that. If I go anywhere off Disney property, it'll most likely be to take Brooklynn to Sea World. The trouble is, once we have the Disney tickets paid for, it's hard to think about another $70+ to go somewhere else for a day.

There's no doubt that there are awesome rides and attractions and beautiful hotels over that way, though. I'm sure there will be a day we will go there again, probably when the girls are a bit older.

Sorry to hear about the camera accident.

I'm ready to hear about the arrival at Wilderness Lodge!

It was the camera mom and dad were gonna take but it was no big deal david just gave them his and we used the small canon for filming. I think Universal feels more like just another one of those theme parks like Cedar Point or Six Flags unless you make a thing out of it like stay in the hotels. I used to like it as a park but got a whole new appreciation when I treated it like a resort. Still no where near disney though!

Several times a day. I am trying to really clean and organize the house so I do that between feedings and then when she is ready to eat I must sit down so I usually Dis then. I have become pretty efficient at one handed typing even left handed!

Haha! So she's there dising with you? Way to start her young!

very neat to see a different side of things in universal, some year when we go down to disney to camp, we will head over and check it out

Yeah universal is very fun as long as you go in with the right expectations!

is mama dellas the same italian place you ate at last time you were at universal. It makes me want to go back but I don;t think we will have time this next trip since I want to take it as slow as possible at Disney with my going to be 16 mos old son on the trip and my 3.5 yr old newphew! Maybe when the boys are older and then they can enjoy it too! I'm with memom though...we;ll probably do seaworld first and thats ok because I have never been there even though there used to be one in Cleveland.

Yeah we always eat at Mama Dellas the place rocks!! I think universal is geared more towards older kids, so when they are about 7+ they'll probably LOVE it! Never been to seaworld but I really want to try out that new Manta coaster!!

 

[timandlesley]

Nicole, I am loving this so far. Love the Universal TR, can't wait until the kids are a little bit older, we will definitely go to Universal then. Stinks about the Simpsons ride, that is Tim's favorite show so he would have been disappointed too! I love ET as well, GREAT ride, Tim and I honeymooned both there and at Disney, it was such fun!I LOVE the pictures of your parents, such a cute couple!
Lesley

 

[pooksma]

First I must apologise for my tardy arrival to the festivities~ so much going on its hard to keep track.

I agree that your parents are too cute. The pics of their hand holding maked me hope DH and I are still doing that when Declan sends us on the Disney Cruise.

Thanks for showing us Universal. Another year or two and it will be added to our travel plans.

 

[CanadianWDWfan]

Your parents are an adorable couple.

 

[karajeboo]

Well ya suckered me in with talk of this "upgrade!"

I had no idea you went to the dark side!!! But I must admit, Jeff and I do love Universal, too. It is not Disney, it is a totally different experience, and in my opinion, it's not really competition - say apples and oranges..... But Jeff has a relative with a very high powerful position at Univ, so we get a super pass every time we go..... Makes i kinda nice to be able to ride every ride at both parks in one day. We feel like VIPs. Even though I feel like I'm cheating on the mouse... kwim?

So looking forward to reading more!!!!

 

[MeMom]

First I must apologise for my tardy arrival to the festivities~ so much going on its hard to keep track.

I agree that your parents are too cute. The pics of their hand holding maked me hope DH and I are still doing that when Declan sends us on the Disney Cruise.
Thanks for showing us Universal. Another year or two and it will be added to our travel plans.

Or maybe he'll just leave you at home to hold hands while he goes on a cruise that he doesn't tell you about!

 

[Nicole786]

Nicole, I am loving this so far. Love the Universal TR, can't wait until the kids are a little bit older, we will definitely go to Universal then. Stinks about the Simpsons ride, that is Tim's favorite show so he would have been disappointed too! I love ET as well, GREAT ride, Tim and I honeymooned both there and at Disney, it was such fun!I LOVE the pictures of your parents, such a cute couple!
Lesley

I still say you should go for islands of adventure, its new for all! If simpsons is tims favorite ride than maybe he wouldn't have minded! Both the pre show and the ride are pretty funny even if you aren't a fan of the hsow. For example, as the ride starts sideshow bob says "Now, mr simpson, you are going to die!" and homer says "You sound just like my doctor!"

First I must apologise for my tardy arrival to the festivities~ so much going on its hard to keep track.

I agree that your parents are too cute. The pics of their hand holding maked me hope DH and I are still doing that when Declan sends us on the Disney Cruise.

Thanks for showing us Universal. Another year or two and it will be added to our travel plans.

No problem, welcome to the party!! My parents can be kind of cute I hope one day Declan does send you on the cruise!

Your parents are an adorable couple.

THanks!

Well ya suckered me in with talk of this "upgrade!"

I had no idea you went to the dark side!!! But I must admit, Jeff and I do love Universal, too. It is not Disney, it is a totally different experience, and in my opinion, it's not really competition - say apples and oranges..... But Jeff has a relative with a very high powerful position at Univ, so we get a super pass every time we go..... Makes i kinda nice to be able to ride every ride at both parks in one day. We feel like VIPs. Even though I feel like I'm cheating on the mouse... kwim?

So looking forward to reading more!!!!

I agree that it is totally seperate, thats really cool you guys get that pass! Have you ever stayed at any of the universal hotels? I don't really feel like i'm cheating the mouse but thats probably because we always start our vacation there and than move to disney. That way it feels like 2 trips in 1!

Or maybe he'll just leave you at home to hold hands while he goes on a cruise that he doesn't tell you about!

 

[scottny]

great start to your tr.

Love the pics.

Next time we go we said we are going there. I want to ride E.T. again.

 

[Nicole786]

Wake up everybody the rest of the vacation starts today!!! If you haven't seen the 'reveal' video from last year where we gave mom and dad the cruise, heres another oppurtunity!

video, video, video, video, video, video!

Mom wakes up like this knowing in just a few short hours she'll be on a boat!

Dad sets up the luggage tags!

and we head to the lobby for some breakfast. Here are some nice shots of the lobby area, it was a really pretty hotel!

We get the car and I drive over to MCO, the drive takes about 20 minutes. Mom and dad are elated! We dropped them off as close as possible to ground transportation (where ME and DCL buses are) they had to go one flight down and they were there. Everyone say goodbye to Mom & Dad! We'll hear more from them later!

David and I head back to the RPR, it still isn't quite check out time, so we make sure everything is packed, check our bags with bell services, and than head out to Islands of adventure via RPR's 10 minute walking path (like Swan/Dolphin to epcot maybe in terms of distance)

We had this feeling of anticipation for Disney, it was as if we didn't really 'feel' like being in Universal anymore. So our original plans to re-do rides we like and even walk over to universal to go to the mummy were out the window. Now, we just wanted to go on the Hulk and Dr Doom and hit the road, we were excited! Goodbye Universal!

Hello disney!

and hello house!!

When we turned into the WL, it was MOBBED with bikers, it was craziness! Even the security guard seemed frazzled, she was like out of the security booth and seemed out of breath when she said "Hello and welcome home" and seemed geniunely surprised we were checking in rather than utilizing the park lot! Anyway, we finally made it through but pulling the car to the lodge proved difficult as well. We were greeted by valet, but he too semed so out of it he just kind of asked us to wait if we needed luggage assistance. We had to move up and we waited but finally I just asked David to sit with the luggage while I parked the car, it was no biggie. It wasn't like the man had an attitude, he just seemed so busy it wasn't a big deal. C'mon, we were on cloud 9! Look where we were!

Before we walked in I turned to David and asked him to remember this moment because it was the first and only time we were going to be checking into the WL for the first time. That feeling where its all brand new is going to be over soon so cherish it!!

Oh yeah baby, no line at check in!! Ben checked us in, and he was everything in a CM you could hope for! I asked him if the room we had was overlooking service area (Those horrible pics I had seen on the DIS of CMs on break and trucks backing up with the beep beep beep haunted me) sure enough this is exactly where our room was. Or as Ben affectionately calls it, the "pit" he said if we didn't like it we could come down and switch it. And than mid sentence he went "you know what, that makes no sense let me see what I can do"

he came back not 30 seconds later and had our room switched. He said the view was mostly of a roof, but it was quiet and I would probably like the location! Whopee! Yay for ben! He gave us our magical packet of awesome and we sat in the lobby organizing and just soaking it all in, we were here!! No flag family available Our room wasn't ready yet, so after a quick stop in the gift shop we were on our way to the boat dock. David was upset because he wanted a WL hat like MeMom and BrooklynnsMommy got him from the AKL, but they are doing a logo change at the WL so no more hats

Well, except this one:

It was a scorcher outside!!

The boat had just left so we had enough time to talk to Mom and Dad who were as excited as excited to be! It was around 12:30pm at this point, they were eating lunch on the ship.

We hopped on, loved the boat ride, and were walking in this happy place in no time!

I got a flower when we walked in for Mother's Day even though I said I wasn't a mother. "Someday you will be" she said. And than we saw it, main street!!

Continued in next post...

 

[Nicole786]

Surprisingly, it wasn't that crowded so we were excited for the week to come (boy were we wrong!)

We FP Big thunder, and than used our first CS at Pecos Bills. David really enjoyed Pecos Bills because he could put shredded cheese on his burger (they have taco salads there) After a great lunch we headed to Haunted Mansion and walked right on!

I tried to get some no flash pictures

Time for the wildest ride in the wilderness!

Oh boy was it wild! So wild in fact, that I got off the ride and realized I had left something behind!! The bottom peice of my lanyard broke off! The thing that held the important stuff! My room key, tickets, and my disney gift card!! I managed to calm myself down and prepare for the worst, but we headed back there and waited for a few cars to pass by before YES! The cm had my broken lanyard and my stuff!! From then on we always took everything off on rides.

We grabbed a FP for splash before we walked over to pirates, and david called the WL but our room wasn't ready. We had intended to escape the heat for a nap but it wasn't to be. So we escaped the heat and joined some pirates!

And we couldn't walk past this place without David getting his favorite treat! Go ahead david you stand in line i'll stand in the shade, haha!

Almost there!

We took our treat to the new parade! I hadn't seen it, OMG I love it!! 5 minutes left and we walked right to the castle hub with nobody around. Okay that didn't last once the parade started. Eventually we had kids shoving and pushing there way to the front by their parents. I don't mind putting a small child in front of me because obviously I can see over them, but I don't agree with parents who encourage their kids to shove and push me to get what they want. I would have gladly made way for them, but out of spite (something I can't help) I ignored them. The kids stood next to me instead of front so they saw fine. But back to this colorful, AWESOME parade! THis isn't the first time i'll get to see it this trip. But the music is lively, and imagine feeling like you are IN a disney commercial cuz thats what its like!! By the way, we were MELTING at this point. I felt the sun burning my feet through my socks & Asics!

We snuck through the gift shops, an idea I posed to david and than he went "looks like i'm gonna need the gift shop leash again this trip!"

But than it was time to head back home to the Wilderness Lodge! And finally our room was ready!

 

[topdog]

That's a bummer you didn't get to do the flag raise thing. I always get a rush when I first check in at WL.

Can't wait to hear more.

 

[k_reile]

now that you have stayed at both wl and BC...which one do you like the best. I am torn btwn the two for our feb trip...i am thinking we will like BC..its nice...its close to EPCOT and world showcase and the boys will love stormalong bay....but the WL is sooo cool looking and the boys will love that...its a boat ride to MK...and its cheaper than BC...

That is why we will be going to WDW next in Feb...the weather should be just right and definitely better than the Ohio winter we will be coming from. I've been to WDW in late April before its HOT! My husband does not do heat and crowds well and with a small toddler it will be the best time for us! I soo can't wait!

 

[KatGarcia]

great start. I can't wait to see your room! And i think its the NYer in you that makes you not let those kids through on spite- I am the same way. I can be nice but when you push me and force your way its all over. lol.

 

[Charleston Princess]

Yeay for being at Disney!!! Ben was super sweet to change your room! Can't wait to see where it is located! I wonder what the new Wilderness Lodge logo is going to look like -- I like the one they have right now. Magic Kingdom is a great sight to see -- even if it is just in pictures!!! Two weeks from today we will be there, and I am so looking forward to a Dole Whip and riding POTC.

 

[MeMom]

Our room wasn't ready yet, so after a quick stop in the gift shop we were on our way to the boat dock. David was upset because he wanted a WL hat like MeMom and BrooklynnsMommy got him from the AKL, but they are doing a logo change at the WL so no more hats

Well, except this one:

We hopped on, loved the boat ride, and were walking in this happy place in no time!

I got a flower when we walked in for Mother's Day even though I said I wasn't a mother. "Someday you will be" she said. And than we saw it, main street!!



Continued in next post...

If I had only known, I could have gotten him a hat from there, too. Maybe you should get a hat from every resort now before they do away with them! I know that Pop doesn't have any resort specific merchandise any more, and I wish I would have stocked up on a few more Pop t-shirts before they became extinct!

David is stylin' in the sheriff's hat, though!

I can imagine the great feeling you had on that first boat ride over to Magic Kingdom!

I'm glad you got a special flower. In our family, we just go ahead and celebrate all the girls on Mother's Day and all the guys on Father's Day instead of just singling out the moms and dads only.

Looking forward to more pictures of Wilderness Lodge.

 

[timandlesley]

Nicole,
I'm just loving this!!! I got goosebumps when you were talking about checking into WL for the first time,ahhhhhhhhhh what a magical place!!! Just LOVE it there (as you aleady know : ) Looks like you had an awesome MK morning despite the heat, so glad you found your lanyard. Great luck about the room, can't wait to see your view pics from the balcony, we've always had good luck with room requests at WL, they always are willing to work with you. Sorry about Flag Family, that is so hard to get. Can't WAIT for more!!!
Lesley

 

[wdwgirl03]

Yay, you're in Disney!! I can't wait until we check into the Wilderness Lodge. So glad you were able to find your lanyard!

 

[pooksma]

The marshall hat made me think of WC and our server Marshall Law. Then that made me think of running in to you and David.

Good times!

Looks like more good times were had.