Wet, Sweat, Fun & Sun But You Have HOW Many Snack Credits Left?

[DizNee Luver]

Yea I am not sure WHAT to do about FP. I think when April rolls around and it is getting close I am going to have to ask people what the best strategy is. Problem is there is so much new stuff opening I need to know what the "hot" new thing is so I make sure and use that FP. I am thinking for Epcot we are going to want to do the new Frozen ride and of course Soarin cuz want to check out the new movie. Honestly I have done the one in CA so many times that I would have skipped it in lieu of Test Track but I want to see the new film. Since they are tiered probably will have to do one one day and one the next. As for the other parks I know I am going to train for the mine train but since I can't do our FP till 30 days out I doubt I will get it so we will prob just beeline to it at opening. Trying to figure out the best thing to do and then work it around dinning ressies is stressful to me but hopefully we will get it all worked out. I have never had this issue since we always went at downtimes and we haven't been since FP+ Back when we went we could still collect them and then use them past their expiration. I miss that!

Also YAY for another report! Gives me something to do and get excited reading while I am waiting for our trip!!

I don't like the tiered FP's but I understand why they do that. Keep in mind if you can pile up your 3 choices early in the day, once you use all three, you can go and add another one. So it is possible to do 2 of the highest tiered attractions in one day. Times might not be the best, but it is possible. Otherwise, to be safe, set them up on two different days.

As for picking which ones, I picked the ones we REALLY wanted. We were told not to use them on meet-n-greets (except the Anna & Elsa one) but at Epcot.....that was an important one for us (and Michayla's BEST ONE!). Obviously the new Frozen ride, the Mine Train, Rock-n-Roller Coaster, ToT, any of the mountains, etc are going to be hot items......so get as many of those as you can.

One piece of advice.....I know you're working around dining. If you get the 3 FP's attractions you want....even if the times aren't right......take them. Then go back in & you can edit each attraction separately. Right now you will get the 3 in a bundle but make the time edits after you secure the 3 you want. I did this and was able to switch them around on times to fit our schedule.

Fantastic update! I love the picture of King Louis hugging the girls and you see their fun coloured hair! So cute! Your animal pictures are seriously outstanding! The animals seem so close and their colours and features are very vivid!

Yay indeed! I'd love to go on the Divas trip some day, but will have to live through your reports till then!

Thanks! The girls loved those colorful accents.....we still have them and occasionally pull them out for fun!! Mike has a very nice camera......it should be for $2000!!

You should try to plan for one of the trips. It's always over the last weekend in February......so plan ahead!!! Would love to meet you in person!

 

[kelmac284]

Thanks that is good to know. I don't know if you saw my post on fb either but we had Fultons in DTD booked for our first night. Flying from the West coast as I am sure you know is tricky as it is and then we have to deal with getting a rental car and checking into our timeshare BEFORE we can head to dinner. Luckily barring any flight delays I think we get in at 3:30 or 4 so hopefully will have enough time but NO ONE told me that Fulton's is going down for rehab. I was able to make my ressie at 180 days but in the meantime they didn't say anything and luckily I saw an article and so I wanted to switch to Ohana but they have NOTHING. So then I thought about Cape May. I was able to get one but then I looked at the prices. 40 bucks per person. NO! So I settled on Capt's Grill which is also at Yacht Club. I hope it is good. It is not a bargain but has things around 20 pp which is better. The only good part is we can got to Beaches and Cream for dessert. We are flying in on my actual birthday so that will be fun but even still I couldn't get a ressie for THAT till 10. We will have been up since 4 a.m. but since there is the time difference I am hoping it won't be a big deal and luckily our next day is a down day. But that is so crazy they didn't notify me. If I had waited and we got there and it was closed I don't know what we would have done and I would have been bummed since it is my birthday.

 

[schwaa]

I'm in love with your family. I've been on the Disboards forever, and this is my first time reading a trip report (i know, totally crazy). I can't wait for more. Your girls are adorable. I love seeings their reactions to everything. The Crystal Palace pictures are awesome. I love that character meal.

Sidenote: I live up in Seattle Area and I'm from NY. I'm loving reading about the East Coast/West Coast "clashing" The TSA agent when you arrived in Orlando is classic! For future reference: "excuse me" in various tones is almost always the proper response to 'rudeness' on the East Coast. And YES, learn to use Michayla's wheelchair as a battering-ram, or really any inanimate object you can find!

 

[2Pirates2Princesses]

I am late joining in but I came across your TR and I feel so inspired by your beautiful family. I have 14 year old boy/girl twins and DS14 has severe autistic disorder so I understand both the beauty and challenges of life as a special needs mommy. DH and I have also discussed fostering/adopting in the future once our bio children are older. It looks like you all had such a memorable and magical trip. I really love the BBB photos. My 14 year old twins did the Pirates League on our last trip and my DS14 also didn't show much of a reaction to the reveal and I could tell he was trying his best to process the situation and take it all in. But for me I felt so overjoyed for him to be able to have that experience with his twin sister and I think he really did like it because he kept his makeup, sash and Jake wig on for the rest of the day - and he typically doesn't like having anything on his face or head ! Our family's first WDW trip was in August and I understand how intense the heat and humidity can be. It definitely takes a few days to get used to. It looks like the crowds were rather manageable during your trip though and I love the longer days and longer park hours in the summer .

 

[DizNee Luver]

Thanks that is good to know. I don't know if you saw my post on fb either but we had Fultons in DTD booked for our first night. Flying from the West coast as I am sure you know is tricky as it is and then we have to deal with getting a rental car and checking into our timeshare BEFORE we can head to dinner. Luckily barring any flight delays I think we get in at 3:30 or 4 so hopefully will have enough time but NO ONE told me that Fulton's is going down for rehab. I was able to make my ressie at 180 days but in the meantime they didn't say anything and luckily I saw an article and so I wanted to switch to Ohana but they have NOTHING. So then I thought about Cape May. I was able to get one but then I looked at the prices. 40 bucks per person. NO! So I settled on Capt's Grill which is also at Yacht Club. I hope it is good. It is not a bargain but has things around 20 pp which is better. The only good part is we can got to Beaches and Cream for dessert. We are flying in on my actual birthday so that will be fun but even still I couldn't get a ressie for THAT till 10. We will have been up since 4 a.m. but since there is the time difference I am hoping it won't be a big deal and luckily our next day is a down day. But that is so crazy they didn't notify me. If I had waited and we got there and it was closed I don't know what we would have done and I would have been bummed since it is my birthday.

Cape May is a spending buffet, but we enjoyed it and ate our fair share of the crab!!

I'm in love with your family. I've been on the Disboards forever, and this is my first time reading a trip report (i know, totally crazy). I can't wait for more. Your girls are adorable. I love seeings their reactions to everything. The Crystal Palace pictures are awesome. I love that character meal.

Sidenote: I live up in Seattle Area and I'm from NY. I'm loving reading about the East Coast/West Coast "clashing" The TSA agent when you arrived in Orlando is classic! For future reference: "excuse me" in various tones is almost always the proper response to 'rudeness' on the East Coast. And YES, learn to use Michayla's wheelchair as a battering-ram, or really any inanimate object you can find!

Welcome and thanks for reading along!!!

lol......I will remember that......well "excuse me"!!

I am late joining in but I came across your TR and I feel so inspired by your beautiful family. I have 14 year old boy/girl twins and DS14 has severe autistic disorder so I understand both the beauty and challenges of life as a special needs mommy. DH and I have also discussed fostering/adopting in the future once our bio children are older. It looks like you all had such a memorable and magical trip. I really love the BBB photos. My 14 year old twins did the Pirates League on our last trip and my DS14 also didn't show much of a reaction to the reveal and I could tell he was trying his best to process the situation and take it all in. But for me I felt so overjoyed for him to be able to have that experience with his twin sister and I think he really did like it because he kept his makeup, sash and Jake wig on for the rest of the day - and he typically doesn't like having anything on his face or head ! Our family's first WDW trip was in August and I understand how intense the heat and humidity can be. It definitely takes a few days to get used to. It looks like the crowds were rather manageable during your trip though and I love the longer days and longer park hours in the summer .

Welcome!! That's awesome that your son stayed in "costume" after the Pirate's League. I know my girls ended up loving the BBB.....even if there weren't big reactions at the reveal.

The summer heat was miserable but we didn't have a lot of choice in the timing of the trip.......so we tolerated as best we could. Unfortunately it was just too much for poor Shyann.

 

[DizNee Luver]

We headed towards the Lion King show, hoping to see the entire show this time. These were taken as we wandered towards the theater.











We were seated in basically the same place as last time. We had one bench in front of us that would hold 4 people. It stayed empty until the show started and then they sat 4 college age kids right in front of the kids.......a lot of shifting back & forth so they could see between them (PS: they all were tall.....I'm 5'9" and they were taller than me). Derek informed us that we had the entire "A" squad, so it would be a good show!!

 

[Steppesister]

Great photos from the Lion King show! The music and costumes are so utterly amazing! Happy you could get to see it. Isn't the scenery on the way there perfect?

 

[DizNee Luver]

Festival of the Lion King continues.........the Monkey's.....my favorite part!

 

[DizNee Luver]

Great photos from the Lion King show! The music and costumes are so utterly amazing! Happy you could get to see it. Isn't the scenery on the way there perfect?

We love this show!!!

 

[DizNee Luver]

Finishing up the Lion King.

The married couple.........







































We made it through the whole show this time!!! YAY!! It was awesome!!

 

[DizNee Luver]

After the show, we decided to get everyone a snack and drink. We found a place to sit and relax and Derek & I got in line to get things. When we got back to Mike & the kids.....Shyann had thrown up. Heavy sigh.......... The kids split 2 of the Kid Packs (yogurt, carrots, apple slices, Goldfish crackers, cinnamon snack bar & drink).









Derek decided to go back to the resort with Shyann to get her out of the heat. I'm just heartbroken at this point that again, we had to break up the family to stay at the park. We wanted to see more of Animal Kingdom since our first day was cut short due to the downpour & lightening. So we headed towards the Harambe Wildlife Express Train to go to Rafiki's Planet Watch.











On the train, seeing some of the back stage areas.





We made it to Rafiki's Conservation Station.













One of the exam rooms.....check out the hidden Mickey!

 

[Steppesister]

I'm glad I checked back in! So many pictures!! You did a great job, and they're all so fun to see!

 

[DizNee Luver]

An X-ray of a turtle.



Frog



Black Tree Monitor





Greater Siren





Blue Tongued Skink





Puerto Rican Boa





Desert Rosy Boa





Chinese Box Turtle



Assorted Creatures:

 

[DizNee Luver]

I'm glad I checked back in! So many pictures!! You did a great job, and they're all so fun to see!

Thanks!!

 

[DizNee Luver]

After looking at the creepy crawlies.......the kids found the petting station. They had a ferret and a rabbit.













Rafiki had a short line for a meet-n-greet, so the girls got in line to meet him. Anthony passed. These are the Photopass pictures.







Look, it's the Pocahontus tree.



Next we went outside to the Affection Section Petting Zoo.





















It started to sprinkle, so we decided to head back to the train. We also heard the CM's mention that the area & train would be shutting down due to lightening.

 

[DizNee Luver]

Since the area was now on "101" (lightening) and closed, we got on the train to head back to the main park area.








We got off the train and the rain had really picked up. Our last look at Expedition Everest as we ran by.



The rain was really coming down by the time we hit one of the gift shops, so we ducked in and decided to pick up a few shirts & souvenirs.







Well there didn't look like there was going to be a break in the weather, so we did the mad dash to the exit and then the bus stop. We were going to be going for a late lunch at the Animal Kingdom Lodge. By the time we got to the covered area, we were all dripping wet.....SOAKED!!

Once again......we didn't get to do & see everything we had planned for the day because of the rain.

The bus finally (we saw so many buses come & go before our bus showed up) came and we loaded. We are all wet & the darned air conditioning on the buses are killer when you're as wet as we were. BRRRRRRRRRRR We headed towards Jambo House (where the main check-in/lobby is) so we could do a quick service lunch at Mara. I had looked at their menu and wanted to try it. Here are our pictures as we arrived at the lodge.











Notice the blue skies.....and NO RAIN??? Figures..........

 

[DizNee Luver]

The lobby of the Animal Kingdom Lodge......absolutely amazing to see. The attention to details is always such a wonderful sight to see.



















We found our way to Mara.





Here's the menu.



I wish all the quick services would do it they way Mara did (I'm sure others do it this way but not the food courts at the values). You go in, give your order to the CM, who writes it down. You are given a copy of the order. You pick up your drinks, desserts, sides, etc and take all of it up to the cashier. You pay for your order & they take the copy of our your order & keep it. You sit down with a pager & you pick up everyone's food at the same time.....hot! So nice!!

Cupcakes....yummo!



Our lunches......they were very tasty!!







We headed back outside to head back to our resort and guess what.......the skies had opened up again!!











We took a bus back to the Animal Kingdom Park, so we could catch a bus to Pop Century. We got back to our rooms & I took Derek & Shy over to the food court to get them some food. Shy was feeling better and was hungry. We took the rest of the day off to rest. It stormed the rest of the day. Our pool closed between 3 & 4 and didn't reopen until 9pm. Guess what.......the lifeguards have to hang out the entire time. They found a dry area to sit and wait the storm out. Poor kids! We did a late dinner at the food court and called it a day.

 

[schwaa]

I keep getting worried that Shyann is throwing up for a reason more than the heat, but I'm sure we have heard about that by now. Summers in Florida are harsh for NWers.

 

[DizNee Luver]

I keep getting worried that Shyann is throwing up for a reason more than the heat, but I'm sure we have heard about that by now. Summers in Florida are harsh for NWers.

The only thing that we've figured out is that the twins have trouble regulating temperatures. When they're hot.....they're very hot but they don't sweat. When they're cold, you can't put on enough layers. I guess this is an issue with children with autism.....not all, but a small percentage of them. So we have to be super vigilant when in those situations. Thank you for your concern.

 

[DizNee Luver]

August 16~~EPCOT, 2nd day here.

We had a late start to our day but eventually did arrive at EPCOT. Derek & Shyann stayed behind since she had a rough night and threw up this morning.



Our first stop was with the Photopass Photographers.





Everyone was hungry, so we headed towards the World Showcase and Mexico to have some yummy Mexican food at La Cantina de San Angel. These were taken as we headed that way.













We got there and the outside seating was all taken, but if you go past the ordering area, there is a door that will take you into a large indoor seating area. There was plenty of room in there & it was air conditioned!! We found a table by the window looking out unto the water. Addy took these pictures in the dining room area, as Anthony & I went to order our lunches.







Our lunch......lots of food, hot & so delicious!!!











Mike got these pictures of the dining area.