Trip Back in Time, Part VI
The Married with Kids Years-our last trip Dec 2005
The consenses is to finish my prior trip report and finish up the series. So here it goes.
The last trip we took was Dec 2005. I took my oldest daughter out of school for a week (2nd grade). I even had to sign a truancy letter stating that I understand how many days they are allowed to miss. Blah, blah, blah. I mean, is this really necessary. The child is never even sick or late.
This was our most successful trip to date. I was deep into planning mode on this one. I scoured the net and the unofficial guide for planning tips. I decided that on this trip we would visit as many EMH as possible using our hoppers, taking an afternoon break. This worked out great since the parks would get busy in the afternoon. Well, for December, anyway.
Highlights of this trip include:
- First stay at DVC-rented OKW for 5 night stay
- Trip to Grand Floridian to see the Gingerbread house
- Getting our Pal Mickey
- Princess Lunch at Norway
- Meeting Power Rangers
- Dinner at Chef Mickeys
- Lots of ride "firsts": Soarin, Mission: Space, Turtle Talk, Voyage of Little Mermaid
This trip started when Rachel,my oldest, saw that the Power Rangers were at MGM. Well, obviously we had to see that! I was all for any reason to go back.

I rented DVC through eBay and everything was great. We loved OKW so much that we are going back again, but this time in a 2-bedroom suite.
Sun, Dec 4--Travel Day
We didnt plan to do much on this day except travel and a trip to Grand Floridian. When we got to OKW the kids had to swim. I kept my printout of the weather report for that weekand it was 77 and sunny. Good thing the pools are heated.

After hearing so much about all the decorations at the different hotels, I had planned to go to Grand Floridian that evening to see the Gingerbread house. We had fun but it was a pain getting there. They had closed the parking lot to guests.
Me in lime green, again. Its a good thing I didnt get the lime look on this trip. I would have thought that person was psycho.
And the gorgeous tree at Grand Floridian. Someone was getting wedding portraits here so I didnt want to get in the way. I bet those were beautiful photos.
Mon, Dec 5--Epcot & MGM
We started this day with the hopes of visiting all three thrillers: Mission Space, Soarin, and TestTrack. Plus the much hyped Turtle Talk.
Everything went smooth in the am. We rode Soarin using rider switch while we took turns holding Calvin, so the girls got to ride twice in a row. It was Beckys absolute favorite next to Dumbo. We did the same thing for Mission Space. This is where I wiped out! I dont know if was the allergy pills I took or my body just doesnt like spinning, but I was out for the next couple of hours. I was fine during the ride but almost immediately after stepping off, I felt so dizzy. It didnt stop. I laid down in the play area while the kids ran around. This really doesnt help when you are already nauseous.

Bleck. Finally, Pete returned from his ride. He comes be-boppin' off, shrugging his shoulders, eh, it was just okay, I don't see what the big deal is. I could have punched him in the nose.
I wasnt in the mood for Test Track yet, even though we had FP. No way! We did the milder Turtle Talk. Much better. Crush picked out Rachel, who was wearing my hat. Then he spoke with us and picked on us being in the cheap seats. How do they make it seem totally normal to be talking to a cartoon turtle? It was very cool and Rachel talked about it all trip.
Rachel tried her best to smile, but no one else would dare look up into the sun for this pic.
We grabbed some more Soarin FP and went on to Norway for our Princess Lunch. We got there in time to ride the ride, skipping the movie. We were seating next to where the Princess come out which was cool, but it was a narrow aisle and not much room to move around. The kids were super hungry so we went to the Cold buffet. We almost missed the first princess. We saw Belle, in her casual dress, Sleeping Beauty, Snow White and Cinderella. Plus Ariel was in waiting in an aqua gown. Becky became suddenly shy and wouldnt speak to any of them, nor have her picture taken. This is one kid who preferred the masked characters. I had no clue. Snow white was so sweet and tried to get her to talk, but no dice. Rachel, was a trooper, however, even though princesses arent her thang. Food-wise, it was just okay, service was excellent, however.
Also, the way the tables were, you had to step away from the table to get a picture. The princesses always stood with their backs to the light, so I knew I wasnt getting good shots.

We hit Soarin one last time before we left for our afternoon break
The evening plans were for MGM so we could see the lights. The girls and I were ready to go but Pete and Cal wouldnt budge. I nudged him enough to let him know I was heading out and to meet me there. He grunted in a yeah, go ahead, Im not ready to get up yet kinda way. It was nice to head into the parks with just the girls. They could walk on their own and everything!
MGM is not a really good park, however, in the evening when you arent into thrill rides. Youve already missed most of the shows. The girls were quickly bored and antsy to go on a ride. I didnt want to see the lights or Muppets until the boys arrived. I decided to brave Star Tours with them. 5 min wait! Lets go.
I was so worried about taking Becky on this ride. She was barely 5 and must have been right at 40 with shoes as they had to carefully measure her each time. I told how the ride was and what she would see. It ended up being her second favorite ride and the one she most remembers. Im so glad we went! We ended up riding 4 times in a row and just walked on each time. Gotta love those Dec. crowds.
The boys finally arrived and Calvin looked like he would rather still be sleeping. We saw the Spectacle of Lights and saw the Muppets. Along the way Becky wanted a pretzel and for the life of me we never found that pretzel again. She still remembers it, and we are on the hunt for a pretzel this trip.
I took this photo
Then Pete suggested I take one where you can actually read Peace on Earth
We went back to the hotel with our new friend, Pal Mickey. (who is very hard to get into by the way---lots of glue and wire on this guy)
