We're back from surprising our kids– a grateful family -with pics and video.

I’ve been on jury duty the past 2 weeks and finally had to go to the court house Wednesday. I got selected for a jury, of course. That’s the kind of luck I have – it’s the third time I’ve been on a jury. It was a complete waste of a day and waste of my taxpaying money. The case should have never have gone to court. :sad2:

I last left you during our break of our Epcot day. The boys had a great time in the quiet pool. We headed back to Epcot on the bus.

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We took our time walking back to WS for our 6:25 ADR at Biergarten.
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We signed in for our ADR and were given our pagers. DH was looking forward to eating here. I reminded everyone that we would be sitting with other people at our table and it would be a good prep for our cruise next year. DS8 got tired of standing around and found a quiet place to sit down to wait.

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My pictures from inside didn’t come out as good as I would have liked as I was using the old camera since the battery on the new camera was charging in the new charger DH had bought. The inside of the restaurant is large and makes you feel like you are at Oktoberfest. We sat down with 2 different couples and no other children. I whispered to the boys to make me proud and have good table manners. You never know with my boys.:love:

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The food at Biergarten was good. Better than I expected. DH was very happy. Dinner there is a buffet and some of the things we ate were schnitzel, sauerkraut, sausage, hot potato salad. Desserts were fresh fruit, slices of black forest cake (which was a little dry) and some other cakes and pudding. I had a German beer which was great. The entertainment was fun and I was surprised when the boys didn’t ask to go down in front with the other children. I guess they were hungry. I would go back to Biergarten again and I would make sure to time our ADR with show-time as we lucked out with this one. Our ADR was at 6:25 which was perfect – we could be seated, order our drinks, and start eating prior to the show.

After dinner, we just took our time walking around WS and taking in the evening atmosphere. I love it back in that part of Epcot and always enjoy being there. After walking around, we figured out it was time to start looking for a place to park for Illuminations. Every place we went to was not convenient with the ECV. Finally, I asked a CM if there was a viewing spot for disabled people and was directed to nearby Rose & Crown. According to the CM, only the ECV user and 2 other people could come in – I asked nicely that we had 2 kids and he let us in. It was a nice spot for viewing Illuminations but it had some trees that blocked the higher fireworks. Next time, I would find a spot earlier in the evening. WS was more crowded due to F&W which did make it a little more difficult to navigate. The kids asked for some snacks so I gave them a KTTW. DS8 got popcorn. DS13 got his new favorite WDW snack – a fozen strawberry bar.

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I found my first Mickey ice cream bar of the trip – YUM and I can’t remember what DH had.

I gave the boys their glow stix which didn’t work very well. I had gotten them at the Dollar store and I must’ve bought them a long time ago.

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Finally, Illuminations started and I teared up like I usually do when it starts. I love Illuminations and would never want to miss it on a trip to WDW. The pics I took did not come out at all. I really need to learn how to play with the new camera.

The reason I like this pic is because the fire shows the intensity and how much heat and light that it gives off.
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After Illuminations, we took our time walking with the crowds back to the front of Epcot to get back on the bus. The boys needed to find the restroom and DH and I hung out under the ball near the entrance to SE and I took this pic with the new camera. I thought it was kind of neat.

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The boys were taking way too long at this point and I sent DH into the bathroom to find them and they weren’t there. We called DS13 on his cell phone and he didn’t answer. How many times can we lose our kids in one day? We’re really not bad parents. The phone rang right away and it was DS13 who told us he couldn’t get the phone out of the holder quick enough. He told us they were past the turnstiles so eventually we found them and got to the bus. There was a line waiting which I expected and DH rode the ECV to the front like he was supposed to. The bus came right after that and DH and I discussed that we would wait for the next bus because those people had been waiting. A lot of people heard us and thanked us. It was the right thing to do. It didn’t take too long for another bus. Back to CSR and again I was thankful for the location of our room because we were there in no time. Time for bed. Another RD tomorrow morning and I was looking forward to TSM!
 
Thanks for your imput on Biergarten as we have an ADR for there.
Sorry you had a little trouble finding a decent spot for the firworks but it was nice the CM let all 4 of you to use the special area.
I loved the picture it did show the intensity of the fireworks.
BTW..your sons look as if they would always be well behaved:angel:
 
Great update Sherri!!

Sorry about jury duty! I've been called twice and had to go to the court house for a day, but I wasn't selected for a jury either time! The first time I got called, when I was 8 months pregnant with DD (probably one of the reasons I didn't get picked) DH got called the same day!!

Sounds like you had a good night at Epcot! We ate a Beirgarten in 06. It's one of my FIL's favs. My kiddos had a blast dancing to the music! The only problem I had was that I was 8 weeks pregnant with DS and some of the smells of the food made me a little :sick:

I'm sure you and DH aren't bad parents!! Boys will be boys, kids will be kids!! WDW leaves a lot of openings for getting lost, getting seperated etc!! I can't let DS 6 walk because he way to dreamy eyed. We get seperated before the front gate! Something would catch his eye and he'd be gone! :confused:
 

Wow I just found your PTR/TR and the surprise video made me tear up how special that was! Your having such a great trip and I can't wait to read more about it!
 
Thanks for your imput on Biergarten as we have an ADR for there.
Sorry you had a little trouble finding a decent spot for the firworks but it was nice the CM let all 4 of you to use the special area.
I loved the picture it did show the intensity of the fireworks.
BTW..your sons look as if they would always be well behaved:angel:

Thank you. Most of the time they are - but, then again, boys will be boys....



Great update Sherri!!

Sorry about jury duty! I've been called twice and had to go to the court house for a day, but I wasn't selected for a jury either time! The first time I got called, when I was 8 months pregnant with DD (probably one of the reasons I didn't get picked) DH got called the same day!!

Sounds like you had a good night at Epcot! We ate a Beirgarten in 06. It's one of my FIL's favs. My kiddos had a blast dancing to the music! The only problem I had was that I was 8 weeks pregnant with DS and some of the smells of the food made me a little :sick:

I'm sure you and DH aren't bad parents!! Boys will be boys, kids will be kids!! WDW leaves a lot of openings for getting lost, getting seperated etc!! I can't let DS 6 walk because he way to dreamy eyed. We get seperated before the front gate! Something would catch his eye and he'd be gone! :confused:

Melissa - give Biergarten another try some day. I can only imagine going in there when pregnant. YUK. I get bad morning sickness when I am preggo so I would never have been able to tolerate it. Thanks for the comments about kids being kids. Luckily, we didn't lose them again the whole week. :thumbsup2


Thanks for reading. Pass the coffee!

Wow I just found your PTR/TR and the surprise video made me tear up how special that was! Your having such a great trip and I can't wait to read more about it!

Welcome and thanks for reading.
 
Friday, October 17, 2008 – It’s our day for DHS.

The alarm was set for 6:50 AM but didn’t go off. DH woke up on his own at 7 AM so no big deal. Woke up the boys as I got into the shower. They chose poptarts again for breakfast. Everyone got dressed quickly this morning and we were out the door early. Got to the bus stop and we were the only ones getting on the bus for DHS. I explained to DH and the boys that the goal of the morning was TSM. I promised DH it was the only time I would rush him the whole day and that he needed to stay up with the crowds. We arrived at the turnstiles and DS8 decided to sit down and make himself into a Mickey head.

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We were standing next to a very nice couple from California and talking with them made the time pass quickly. Some people arrived at the turnstiles next to us and they had TGM pins on. There was an October meet from TGM and it was nice associating some faces with names from the TGM boards. Finally, the turnstiles opened and we were allowed further in. Nothing like Disney to move you along in a line. Nice part of arriving early was being up close to see the opening show. Since part of the trip was to celebrate my birthday, I had a Happy Birthday pin on my Baggalini and one of the Photopass photographers noticed the pin and pulled me up front of all the people for them to sing Happy Birthday to me.

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The opening show was cute. I don’t remember seeing it before.
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Then it was time to get to TSM. The CMs walk briskly and keep everyone behind them. The goal was to get to the FP machines first and then get in line. Somehow, DS13 and DS got separated from me and DS8, so while I was waiting to get our FPs, I call DH and told him to get in line. It never fails – whether I’m in the grocery store or in a FP line I always pick the wrong line. There were only 3 people ahead of me but I think that all 3 of them were getting FPs for everyone in lived in Orlando that day. Took forever. The TSM line was the longest of the trip. I think it took about 25-30 minutes, but the queue is wonderful.

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Something about those 3-D glasses. Isn’t he adorable?

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The ride is wonderful. DS8 outscored me of course.
Next, it was time for one of today’s surprises for DS8. Who would he meet?
 
Melissa - give Biergarten another try some day. I can only imagine going in there when pregnant. YUK. I get bad morning sickness when I am preggo so I would never have been able to tolerate it. Thanks for the comments about kids being kids. Luckily, we didn't lose them again the whole week. :thumbsup2

We'll definitely try Biergarten again. We were going to do it on our last trip in March but FIL wanted to do Hoop De Doo Musical Revue instead. Good thing we did, he was part of the show!!

I'm glad the boys stayed close by the rest of the week! I lost DD once a few years ago in Best Buy, it just happened to be the day their new alarm system was being tested. between being seperated from Mommy and the alarm going off she was completely scared out of her wit!! She never goes more then a foot or 2 away from my side now!

Now I have to go read your update!
 
Sherri! You have the same luck I do with lines! It's inevitable!! I was actually online in the store over the summer and a friend of mine got online behind me. After we stood there for awhile chatting she mentioned the line taking forever. I told her I should have warned her, I never pick the good line so she proably should have gotten on another line! She laughed but its so true!

We can't wait to do TSM in January!! I always stink at Buzz but I don't care, it's fun!!

I wanna know who DS met!! Was it Sorcerer Mickey?!?! I know he's at Art of Animation and he's my FAVORITE!!! That's my goal for January for me, met Sorcerer Mickey!!
 
I'm glad I found this, great trip report!! The look on both your sons faces when they realized they were going to WDW was priceless.
 
melissa - you win the prize. Sorcerer Mickey was the first autograph of the day!

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We went in the back way – through the gallery, right before Sorcerer Mickey arrived. DS8 was the first one of the day and got a little extra time until other kids arrived. DS8 really enjoyed it and he got extra attention because of the splint on his thumb. All the characters wanted to know how he hurt his thumb.

Thanks everyone for reading. Tomorrow, I'll have some video to add. I had to learn how to rotate the video in Photoshop elements and it took me awhile.
 
whew...all caught upnow! I took a 'break' from the Dis for a bit, but couldn't stay away!!!!
 
:cool1: I love him soooo much!!! How cool DS was the first one of the day and got some special Mickey time!
 
Enjoying your TR. Love the Socerer Mickey...we've never met him but I'm hoping too this time. Love the surprise as well!:goodvibes
 
whew...all caught upnow! I took a 'break' from the Dis for a bit, but couldn't stay away!!!!

Welcome back Star. One of the things I've learned is that it is quite hard to stay away from the DIS. I've given up on trying. I hope you're going to get back to your TR as well....


:cool1: I love him soooo much!!! How cool DS was the first one of the day and got some special Mickey time!

I couldn't agree more. Seeing Sorcerer Mickey I felt like a kid again. I was just as excited as DS8.


Enjoying your TR. Love the Socerer Mickey...we've never met him but I'm hoping too this time. Love the surprise as well!:goodvibes

Thanks for reading! You have a trip coming up VERY soon. How exciting.
 
After Sorcerer Mickey, it was off to Star Tours. I don’t know why I was afraid of it on our last trip – I ended up really liking it. Then, it was time for surprise #2 of the day. Jedi Training was not at DSH (then MGM) on our last trip. Both of the boys are big Star Wars fans which I find so interesting since the first movie came out right after I graduated high school and I knew they would love to see this. :darth: :yoda: But, first we went on Star Tours with no wait in standby – an attraction I was afraid of on our last trip but did it. This time no problem. There were a lot of people starting to get in place for Jedi Training and we were able to get a place in front as well. The boys had no idea what the show was about. The music started, the Jedi master came out and started selecting children to participate. At first it looked like he was picking younger children. DS8 was jumping up and down and waving his hand. YES! Luckily, the Jedi Master didn’t want to ruin our day. :rotfl:

DS8 is the one in the back with the green t-shirt and the sunglasses.



Unfortunately, the man in front of me would not move so I could film DS8 fighting Darth Vader – here’s what I was able to salvage.



DS8 was beaming after this was over. We decided we’d eat lunch soon so we went over to Backlot Express since we were right there. We had to wait about 10-15 minutes until they opened for lunch so DS8 opened up his Jedi certificate.

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Lunch was good, especially, since there is not very many good CS places at DHS. We had decided the day before that DS8 would get the adult lunch and DS13 would get the kids meal since DS13 doesn’t eat much at lunch time. DH and DS8 had grilled vegetable sandwiches which both of them really liked. I had a grilled turkey and cheese sandwich was pretty good. DS13 had the kids meal with sloppy joes, grapes and applesauce. He didn’t care for it too much and he usually likes sloppy joes. He wasn’t feeling too well. I think he was starting to get tired.

After lunch, we went to watch the Indiana Jones show. I knew the boys would love this. Just like Star Wars I always love sharing the movies that I watched when I was MUCH younger. This was the first time we saw this show and the boys LOVED it. DS13 said it was one of the best parts of his day. Anytime you give boys Indy, guns, fire and explosions, they’re quite happy.

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DH slept through most of the show:confused3 . "Wake up dear - show's over - it's time to go!":thumbsup2
 
How neat to have son picked...my boys would have been on :cloud9:
Loved the videos.
How could your DH fall asleep with all the noise from the Indiana Jones show:confused: I do remember it was loud.

I want to try ST also so hearing you say you liked it gives me hope.
 












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