Well, this trip was....different. UPDATE - 9/1!

[amandaw]

I'm playing catch up....again.

I know the feeling. That's how I've been with the DIS the last month or so.

I understand why you moved your December trip to March, but I'm selfishly sorry that you did because now we won't meet.

I know! I thought about that, too. Hopefully, one of our future trips will coincide!

Now the fun begins...sports. It becomes very time consuming, but enjoy it because it just all goes too fast.

Time consuming, indeed! If it's like this for TBall, I can only imagine how it will be as we get into higher levels. But, I do love watching Reid!

I'm sorry you still weren't feeling all that great. Your photos in Epcot are so clear and bright...beautiful.

Thank you!!

 

[eandesmom]

We had finally made our way to the World Showcase to sample some of the offerings of the Food & Wine Festival. This was our first time experiencing this event at EPCOT. We decided to go left and make our way around. As soon as you turned that way (close to the gift shop), there was the first booth: Terra. That was the new Vegan booth. Yeah, we skipped it.

I have to tell you, you missed out! Seriously, if you didn't know it was vegetarian, you would never have guessed. SO good and I know a number of folks that were totally fooled.

The sun was absolutely beating down us so I decided we should go in and ride the Grand Fiesta Tour for a little reprieve. At this point, I didn’t want to say anything, but I was beginning to feel really run down and just not well.

Reid told me he was sad because he wanted to eat lunch and gave me his best “I-have-no-food-so-I-am-sad” face.

Love it!

Reid & I went with: Apple Strudel with Karamel and Vanilla Sauce

I so meant to get one of those and never did!

As some of you may or may not know, Reid was born with a hearing loss in his right ear. We’ve been doing some testing over the last couple of weeks to see what’s going on with it. While the results were not what I hoped for, they showed the loss to be the same. However, we’ll be going back to the doctor again soon and I have a feeling his ENT is going to want to do either an MRI or a CT Scan to look at his inner ear structure since some of the test results were conflicting. I know we need to do such a test but it just has me nervous.

Oh that's stressful and self insured on top of it, we've had some very bad tax years so I feel your pain. Fingers crossed this years will be ok, I'm a bit scared to find out but need to soon. I will be praying that Reid's tests are minimal and you can figure out what is going on.

A Bday mardi gras trip sounds absolutely lovely!

Inside the Festival Center, they also had stuff you could buy as well as places for the different seminars. We made our way to the lounge and it was packed!! It didn’t help that the lounge was very small. But, it was air conditioned and it had free soda! Ed got drinks for us while Reid & I found a spot on the floor out of the way. We sat in there for quite some time enjoying our free beverages. It was also here that we realized that there are free “passports” for the F&W festival. It lists all the different kiosks and their offerings. There are even boxes for you to check off what you’ve tried. And you can get stamps in your passport from the kiosks.

After our break, Ed was wanting to find some Mickey crocs for himself so we headed to Mouse Gears. We stayed in there quite a while. Ed found him some Crocs and I got cute Mickey notepads for Reid’s teachers. We also just did a lot of looking. While trying on some hats, we noticed a strange interaction. There was a woman crying hysterically to a manager. Evidently, she had had a bad encounter with another guest in line. I guess the other person accused her of being rude to a child or something. The woman was wanting the manager to find the other guest and explain that she wasn’t being mean to the child. I don’t know what came of it because I just had us walk away.

I loved those passports!

Oh, the poor woman, I feel bad for her.

I'm glad you were able to get into your ADR early, get out of the nasty storm and get to bed. Hoping you felt tons better in the morning!

 

[MEK]

First of all - what is it like to live somewhere where you can play T-ball comfortably in February? So jealous!

Second, I think that's a great plan to move your trip to a birthday trip. Definitely a win-win situation!

Last - love your pics and your meal at Via sounds really yummy!

Good luck to Reid with all his testing!

 

[pas130]

Amanda DS4 is also having hearing issues. Our next ENT follow up in March...me thoughts are with you and Ed

Sports...soon kindergarten...WOW

 

[PracPerfPatricia]

Sometimes at Disney... you do reach a "wall"... glad they were able to move up your ressies at Via Napoli... it really is a great addition to World Showcase...

I've been in one frightening storm at Disney... It just gets so black and such hard rain...... the good thing is that it doesn't seem to rain for super long periods of time there...

Good luck with Reid's tests... I have to say that I hate when my kids have to have medical testing... Emily just went through a battery of tests for migraines... MRI, CT Scan... everything was ok ... but it's all just really stressful waiting for results... I'm glad that Reid's hearing hasn't caused any speech problems... that's great... I'm sure it will all be fine... and if he can accommodate with the other ear... that's awesome... (I think that when you have issues with one sense ... the other one's often get even better)

Awww.... He's like a real little person with his own schedule playing Tball...

 

[amandaw]

I have to tell you, you missed out! Seriously, if you didn't know it was vegetarian, you would never have guessed. SO good and I know a number of folks that were totally fooled.

Maybe if I didn't know it was vegetarian....but I'm gonna just have to take your word on it.

I so meant to get one of those and never did!

They were soooo delicious!!

Oh that's stressful and self insured on top of it, we've had some very bad tax years so I feel your pain. Fingers crossed this years will be ok, I'm a bit scared to find out but need to soon. I will be praying that Reid's tests are minimal and you can figure out what is going on.

Thank you very much!!

A Bday mardi gras trip sounds absolutely lovely!

I'm excited about our new plans! My friend & I have been doing planning this weekend.

I loved those passports!

They are so neat! I wish I had found them earlier.

Oh, the poor woman, I feel bad for her.

It was just kind of bizarre.

I'm glad you were able to get into your ADR early, get out of the nasty storm and get to bed. Hoping you felt tons better in the morning!

I was really thankful that they sat us early. I really did not want to miss that ADR!

First of all - what is it like to live somewhere where you can play T-ball comfortably in February? So jealous!

The downside to it though is that by the beginning of May we're usually complaining about how unbearably hot it is outside.

Second, I think that's a great plan to move your trip to a birthday trip. Definitely a win-win situation!

I'm really happy that we moved the trip! We're gonna have a trip with my best friend's family and I think it'll be really fun!

Last - love your pics and your meal at Via sounds really yummy!

So glad we were able to make that ADR! Via Napoli is really yummy!!

Good luck to Reid with all his testing!

Thank you so much!!

Amanda DS4 is also having hearing issues. Our next ENT follow up in March...me thoughts are with you and Ed

Sports...soon kindergarten...WOW

Thanks....I'll be thinking of your DS as well. Hope it's nothing too serious.

I can't believe he's growing up so quickly!

Sometimes at Disney... you do reach a "wall"... glad they were able to move up your ressies at Via Napoli... it really is a great addition to World Showcase...

I was so thankful to the hostess at Via Napoli for seating us early. I didn't want to miss out but I couldn't hang around much longer.

I've been in one frightening storm at Disney... It just gets so black and such hard rain...... the good thing is that it doesn't seem to rain for super long periods of time there...

That was the worst storm we've ever been in at Disney and probably the longest. I think it lasted at least a couple of hours.

Good luck with Reid's tests... I have to say that I hate when my kids have to have medical testing... Emily just went through a battery of tests for migraines... MRI, CT Scan... everything was ok ... but it's all just really stressful waiting for results... I'm glad that Reid's hearing hasn't caused any speech problems... that's great... I'm sure it will all be fine... and if he can accommodate with the other ear... that's awesome... (I think that when you have issues with one sense ... the other one's often get even better)

Thank you! I'm glad to hear everything was ok with Emily's test. It is so stressful waiting to figure out what is going on with your child.

Awww.... He's like a real little person with his own schedule playing Tball...

Indeed! Not even 5 years old and he has a busier schedule than me.

 

[pas130]

Thanks....I'll be thinking of your DS as well. Hope it's nothing too serious.

I can't believe he's growing up so quickly!



I was so thankful to the hostess at Via Napoli for seating us early. I didn't want to miss out but I couldn't hang around much longer.

DS4 has kindergarten registration next month We go back to our ENT 3/11 It'll all be good. I am very thankful to the nurse at his preschool..she caught the issue on a routine hearing screening. His pediatrician's office just chalked it off that he's too young to comply with the test

We had excellent luck at Via Napoli seating us early too Did I say that already

 

[amandaw]

DS4 has kindergarten registration next month We go back to our ENT 3/11 It'll all be good. I am very thankful to the nurse at his preschool..she caught the issue on a routine hearing screening. His pediatrician's office just chalked it off that he's too young to comply with the test

We had excellent luck at Via Napoli seating us early too Did I say that already

UGH - we have kindergarten registration on March 22nd. I'm just not ready for him to go to big kid school.

I hope the ENT visit goes well for y'all. I know our pediatrician & ENT told me that the school tests can be quite unreliable. So maybe your DS had a false negative result and maybe all really is well.

 

[amandaw]

I woke up at 6:15 am this day & started to get ready. However, I was moving very slowly because I simply felt awful! I felt even worse than I had the day before in EPCOT. Today was our last Magic Kingdom day though so I knew I had to try not to let it keep me down.

The guys were up for 6:45. They had breakfast in the room & got ready for the day. We were in the car & driving to the TTC by 8 am. We were told the monorail was about 20 minutes away, so we decided to wait for the ferry which didn’t take long to arrive. And we were soon on our way. This sight did help to make me feel a tad better:



At least 1 of us was very chipper:



And finally, by 8:50 am, we were at the Magic Kingdom:





We stopped for a Photopass Picture:



And then we started making our way down Main Street, just taking in the sights:







Then we stopped for a couple more Photopass pics. These were not the best. I didn’t really care for the photographer they had at this spot. He didn’t seem to care much about the pictures he was taking.





From there, we headed into Tomorrowland, straight to Buzz Lightyear. We grabbed some FPs and then did standby since there was no wait. After that, the guys decided to do the Astro Orbiters. I found a nice shaded seat underneath the Astro Orbiters and just took pictures from there.











Then, it was on to the Speedway:



I went into the grand stand to rest and this little fellow kept me company:



Can you spot my guys in the line?



See how sunny it is this day? Yeah, it was like already 1 million degrees outside. I kid you not.

And they’re off!



After that, we headed back to Buzz Lightyear to use up our FPs.



Then we headed to Storybook Circus. Our first order of business here was Barnstormer. And we were able to ride it 2 times in a row since it was a walk-on! I really love the theming they’ve done with this queue!









And here we goooooo!!!




At my picture limit.....continuing in next post.

 

[amandaw]

After we had our fill of Barnstormer, Ed grabbed FPs for Dumbo and then we decided to head somewhere we hadn’t gone yet: Pete’s Silly Sideshow!



Now for anyone who hasn’t been here yet, this is a greet & meet area. You have 2 lines. One is to meet Goofy & Donald. The other is for Daisy & Minnie. We went to Goofy & Donald first.



And just what is Reid whispering to Goofy in that picture? “Underpants” of course. Reid & Goofy both had a good laugh over that one.



Looks like Reid is now tall enough for character pictures with inappropriate hand placement. It’s like a Disney milestone in his childhood.

I have to say that the theming in here is really well done!







Once we met the guys, we went out and got in the line for Daisy & Minnie. Of course, their line was a little longer.



While we were in line, Reid asked me what Daisy was dressed as. I explained that she was dressed like a fortune teller. Naturally I had to explain that a fortune teller is someone who tells people what will happen in their future.





Reid was about to walk away from Daisy when he remembered that she had not told him his future. So he asked her. She pointed to him and then did the sign for money with her fingers. I had to explain to him afterwards that she was trying to tell him that he would make lots of money. This made him very happy.









And then we were done with our meet & greets. Of course, upon exiting, you get dumped into a gift shop:





We did a little bit of shopping and then grabbed a couple of snacks:



Then, the guys went and used the FPs for Dumbo:









Still waiting.....





Now, believe it or not, this was the first time Ed ever rode Dumbo!



Well, he doesn’t seem too impressed.



Oh well...at least Dumbo’s having fun!



I don’t know what happened on that Dumbo ride, but my child came off of it acting horribly ugly to me. So, he got to have a timeout right there against a wall at Dumbo. I wish Disney magic could make bad attitudes disappear!

Once his timeout was over, we decided that we were all hungry and we headed over to our usual: Cosmic Ray’s.

Reid had his normal nuggets, fries & a cookie. It seemed to make him happy. And Ed & I both went with the bacon cheeseburger with fries. It was good & hit the spot.

With lunch over, we had to decide what was up next!

 

[shan23877]

Oh my gosh Amanda. I was already laughing out loud at Reid whispering 'underpants' to Goofy, but then I saw where he was 'hugging' him too. What a milestone! Thanks for the smiles this afternoon.

Great PP pics. Sorry you didn't care for the photog.

I'm with Ed. Dumbo is kind of unexciting. It's a classic though-has to be done.

Oh no, a Disney time out. You know I've been there.

I hope that you weren't feeling badly all day. That stinks.

 

[eandesmom]

oh rats. I was hoping there wasn't going to be a Reid attitude session, he was clearly having a blast all morning. Oh that age, I don't miss it! Then again, there is something at every age I swear.

I am sorry you were still feeling horrible, you got some gorgeous photos out of it though! Busy morning, the boys in particular got a lot done and hopefully the rest was helping a little despite the heat.

 

[catherines_mama]

LOL at inappropriate hand placement. Oh Reid. It is a milestone

Sounds like a good day so far and I'm so sorry you weren't feeling well. I hope Reid's timeout and some food in his belly helped.

 

[KatMark]

Oh dear, a Disney timeout? That is not good. I'm sorry Reid was giving you problems.

It looks as if you got a lot done that morning, and you took some great pictures while waiting for the guys. Dumbo is boring but, as Shannon said, a classic and a must-do (and my husband would divorce me if we didn't!).

 

[marDgreen88]

Oh no. So sorry you didn't feel better!

HAHAHA. I think you're right... hitting the right height for inappropriate hand placement IS a milestone!

The new meet and greet looks completely adorable! All the pictures are precious!

 

[TinksThree]

I am trying to get all caught up! Thankfully it appears you have been like me and I wasn't too far behind!! Sorry you were still feeling ill! I adore the character meet and greet! That is adorable and I amy need to check that out! I love the new Storybook Land area! Christmas at WDW is so nice but I think March is my favorite time to visit so the change shouldn't be too bad! I hope all goes well with the testing!

 

[afwdwfan]

Really sorry that you weren't feeling well. That always puts a damper on things. It looks like you were able to at least make the most of the morning and let Reid have a little fun though.

I have to say I really like the character meeting tent, but I don't like the fact that you have to wait in line twice. Why can't they just make it one line and you meet all 4 of them???

I can kind of see why Ed is so thrilled with Dumbo. It's a classic, so you kind of have to ride it, but it isn't exactly thrilling like Space Mountain.

 

[wiigirl]

Great TR....sorry you werent feeling well.

 

[pas130]

Sorry you weren't feeling any better Amanda sick on vacation You are such a trooper though!!!

Uh-oh a Disney Timeout...we have been there....usually my DH gets one

DS4 had his hearing rechecked by the ENT and it was consistent with the nurse's. But he has fluid and pressure so we have to have that rechecked too. Sounds like worst case scenario may be tubes which I can live with....I do feel bad because he has always said "What?" a lot, and we assumed it was "selective hearing"


And the inappropriate hand placement made me giggle

 

[PracPerfPatricia]

right height for inappropriate hand placement... I think that might be destined to be a classic

I'm a big fan of the theming of the Circus Land and I think those character's in Pete's Sideshow are pretty great... I love their costuming... nice fresh take on the characters...

Dumbo is well... Dumbo... it's really cute to look at, it's a Disney Classic... but well... that's about it... Ahhh... too sorry about Reid's attitude but he's a little kid and a pretty spirited one at that... the most important part is that you're letting him know that you aren't ok with it and that there are repercussions...

Hope you start feeling better...