Mom's buying so we're flying TR About This Page:

[phoebec]

I'm excited to read about your trip!!!!

[chezp]

Great start!

[tinker_me_happy]

Great start! Glad you were able to catch some zzzzzz on the ride down!

[Nyreak]

I'm looking forward to hearing all about the trip!

[CinderAbby]

Originally Posted by Bee

great start can't wait to read more...

Thanks, I think I'm going to post more today

Originally Posted by WeRDisneyFanatics

Glad you started your tr! Sounds like it went smoothly getting there - and how nice to arrive early!

Thanks - I'm glad you're reading it. Everything at the airport and on the plane really did go smoothly - much more so than I had anticipated. And I was thrilled to arrive early. There's not much that's better than getting to Disney early.

Originally Posted by B.M.

Great start!

Thanks

Originally Posted by truenancy

Yay! You started! I'm so glad the travel went so smoothly - it sounds like it really couldn't have gone better. One thing checked off your list - whew! Now you're in a car in familiar territory...

I agree - I don't think there was anything that could have made it any smoother - other than having less stuff to carry but I seem to have problems with packing light

Originally Posted by disneymom57

Yea! You started your TR! So glad I have today off and was able to read your first installment immediately. Looking forward to reading more.

That's great you have today off. I'm thinking of posting more today so you'll have to stay tuned.

Originally Posted by unewillow

Yay! I'm very excited to read your TR! More so because I can actually see your pictures here at work. I know you said Abby didn't look all that excited but did she have anything to say about her first plane ride? Glad security ended up being easy for you guys to navigate through

Thanks - I'm glad you like my TR's. About the only thing Abby said about her first plane ride was she liked it and she'd like to fly again. She also at one point in time asked me why planes don't go to California. I have no idea why she thought that and I made the "mistake" of telling her they do so I have a feeling she's going to ask to go to Disneyland one of these days.

Originally Posted by jimmymac

Great start. Looking forward to the next installment

Thanks Jimmy. Glad you enjoyed it and want to read more

Originally Posted by buzzspal2

I'm looking forward to more.

Hopefully today

[saibot0001]

YAY! I have been waiting to read your TR! Great start, can't wait for more!

[CinderAbby]

Originally Posted by alexsmommy0412

Great Start, I am looking forward to reading more about your trip

You have to watch what you wish for. You may read more than you want to when it comes to my TR's

Originally Posted by Jenny Pot Pie

Great start! I'm so glad your plane ride went so smoothly!

Thanks. I'm glad it went smoothly for more than one reason - the main one being if it didn't go smoothly, I probably wouldn't have been willing to fly again.

Originally Posted by Colexis Mom

Sounds like a great start!

Thanks Marnie

Originally Posted by phoebec

I'm excited to read about your trip!!!!

I'm glad you're excited for it. I'm going to try and post some more today.

Originally Posted by chezp

Great start!

Thanks Cheryl.

Originally Posted by tinker_me_happy

Great start! Glad you were able to catch some zzzzzz on the ride down!

Thanks so much. And thanks again for your advice before we left - it really did help not only to give me a laugh but to put things in perspective.

Originally Posted by Nyreak

I'm looking forward to hearing all about the trip!

You're hear ALL about it alright, just ask anyone who's read my previous TR's. I think I include more than I should but it's the way I have to write it.

[CinderAbby]

Originally Posted by saibot0001

YAY! I have been waiting to read your TR! Great start, can't wait for more!

Your wait is over for it starting, now you just have to wait for the installments (some more of which I think I'm going to post today).

[CinderAbby]

Wednesday July 20th continued - in the last section we had just left the airport

Here is where Lenny started getting cranky for the first time our trip . The car wasn’t the correct type - he wanted a DTS. I pointed out that all rental cars always say "or similar" but he kept insisting it wasn’t similar and therefore shouldn’t be rented out for the same price. We got a great price on it so I was fine but it was a story I would hear all week "We paid for a Cadillac DTS, not an STS. The cars aren’t similar" blah, blah, blah . The car also didn’t have an owners manual so we were both in the dark as far as some of the bells and whistles this particular car had. Lenny also wasn’t happy that I didn’t have my directions out as soon as we got in the car. For someone who had a job once delivering parts and could easily find his way around anywhere, he needs me to tell him where to go now. It makes me wonder how he can function getting anywhere without me now because apparently it’s entirely up to me to read all the maps plus all the road signs plus help him keep his eyes on the road because he can’t do all of that . I understand not reading the map bit while driving, but he could have looked at them before we left the parking garage so he had an idea of where to go. But anyway, we finally got to where we were headed - one of the local Walgreens for some things we needed - by 11:30. I had no sooner walked in the door and mom was calling me wondering where we were.

She was surprised that we had landed early and gotten everything as soon as we had but because she was on her lunch break, we didn’t talk long. We finally got all the stuff we wanted and headed out again and Lenny was again cranky. I was thinking that we were going to hit McDonalds for lunch so I sent Lenny towards that instead of back to 417 and he did nothing but complain about the route . We did end up going the wrong direction at one point in time because according to my map, we should have driven something like 3 miles before we made a turn but it ended up being something like 1/3 of a mile. We turned around and got on track but the whole time Lenny did nothing but complain saying we would have been a lot further on had we gone back to the highway instead of stuck on a route 9 (for those who don’t know, route 9 here in MA is nothing but businesses and traffic lights - you spend more time stopped than going). In actuality, we were on Osceola Parkway and we weren’t on there long.

We were at Walgreens at 11:30 but we were at AS Sports, checked in, had Lenny’s scooter, had all our bags in the room and were done with lunch by 2 pm . Pretty good timing if you ask me.

After lunch, Lenny and Abby went swimming while I unpacked our bags. When I opened my bag, I didn’t notice anything unusual but after a while, I noticed a piece of paper in it. I thought it was one of those papers Disney leaves in the room telling about DME and I wondered why Lenny would have put it in there (I knew I hadn’t done it). When I stopped and took a closer look at it, it wasn’t telling me about DME but rather that TSA had opened my bag. It was still locked when we got it to the room and I didn’t notice anything amiss so had that paper not been in there, I would never had known differently. It didn’t bother me that it had been opened - I knew full well that it was a possibility - and even if it had bothered me, too bad. It’s the way of the world now and either you accept it or not. I have more things to worry about than that - and at that time it was getting to concierge to get our tickets and getting to FW on time for our HDD ADR.

I forget what time we left the hotel but we went straight to Fort Wilderness - and only because we didn’t have the parking paper in the windshield. In the past, the CM that has checked me in has asked if I had a car and would hand it right to me so it was always on top of my paperwork when I got back to the car. This time, she briefly showed it to me then shoved it into the middle of the welcome packet so I forgot all about it (and Lenny didn’t ask for it either when I got in the car - but it was all my fault). So we didn’t have the paper and there was no way I was going to pay to park at the TTC because of it . Besides, I was hoping that Abby would change her mind and decide to head back to the room after dinner. It had been a long, hard day by that point in time and I really didn’t want to go to the park.

We got to the FW parking lot (which has been changed somewhat since the last time we were there) and we told the guard that we were there for dinner at the HDD. She actually asked to see some sort of ID, which we provided her with, and then we went to park. Lenny got the scooter out of the car and all reassembled and we headed over to get a bus. Just before we reached the bus stop, one arrived and it was going to Pioneer Hall.. We got on and we arrived right about 4:30 to check in for dinner. While we waited, we got the four new pressed pennies that are in the machine right across from Pioneer Hall and then we waited by the wheelchair entrance to be called in for dinner. When I booked this meal (only a few days before our arrival) there were category 3 seats available up on the balcony so I took them. Having eaten there before, I knew how the tables were situated so I knew no matter what seats we got, we’d have a good view of the show . And when we walked in there that night, I was expecting to be taken upstairs to the balcony. Instead, we were taken to a table right on the floor and in front of the balcony

.

I just sat there stunned. It wasn’t what I had paid for at all and I was kind of paranoid that someone was going to come and say that a mistake had been made and make us move. That never happened - and it was apparently a dose of Disney magic on our first day. Our server (Rob, but his name tag said Bor) got us our drinks, and told us to enjoy the show

.

The food was good but Lenny commented he would have preferred to have the selection of Trails End Buffet instead. This is the same guy that just days earlier had told me to try for HDD and when I said there was availability, he told me to book it . The show was fine but I do have to say here I prefer the balcony view. Sitting on the floor, it just seemed like every time I turned to watch a portion of the show, a server (whether it be our own or someone elses) was in my way. That doesn’t happen on the balcony - you don’t get any kind of obstructions.

Abby had a really good time so in the end that’s all the matters. Despite that, I still have to say having an ADR on arrival day just is too much. I didn’t want one to begin with and I was overruled in that decision. I think next time I am going to put my foot down and tell anyone who suggests making an ADR for our first day to take a very long walk off a very short pier .

[CinderAbby]

After dinner, Abby still wanted to go to the MK and unless I’m mistaken, Lenny was game for it too because it meant getting on a boat and taking a ride. We made it down to the boat launch and we were the last ones allowed on the boat that was already there

.

We got to the MK, headed to Town Hall and had our new GAC in hand by 7:30. Our very first ride was??? You guessed it, IASW. It’s interesting how they switched the queue around for the ride but it was fun as usual. From there, we headed over to the Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh. The CM that let us in the FP line neglected to tell us Lenny wasn’t suppose to have his scooter so when we got to the second CM, he said Lenny was going to have to turn around, go park the scooter somewhere and then either walk back or wait for a wheelchair. I was like "you’ve got to be kidding me" and either I had a look on my face or I was shaking my head because the CM then came out with "I’ll tell you what you can do. There’s a gate with a latch over there - have him go through it and park his scooter then he can come back through that gate to get back in line." I thanked him for that and we continued on our way. When we got to the gate, I let Lenny out and when he came back, we got back in line. Meanwhile, Abby couldn’t get enough of watching all the new interactive stuff in the line. Lenny asked if we could go through that line so she could play and I said "yeah, we can if you want to spend 60 plus minutes waiting in line." Neither he nor Abby wanted to so I said on our next day at the MK, we’d make a point to get there nice and early so we could get in the standby line for Abby. We were all fine with that decision and soon after it was our turn to ride. We had fun as usual on it and I tried using my camera to take shots without the flash but it didn’t work - the pictures didn’t come out well.

After we were done, I asked Abby if she wanted to do anything else and because the majority of the Pooh Play area didn’t have a line, she said she wanted to get in line and do that. I saw no harm in it so the two of us went in. She really seemed to enjoy it and we even stayed in line up until the walls of honey art.

Once she played with those, she suddenly decided she was done and wanted to leave the park. I was quite happy with that decision so we tried to make our way out of the park. Because it was around 9, Main Street was packed with people so it took a little while to get out of the park - and Abby was fine the whole time. She was actually fine up until we got to the boat dock. There was another guest there and I talked to her a little bit about the boat and she told me we had literally just missed it and it would be 15 minutes or so before it would come back. Oh well, what can you do? Abby on the other hand went from being fine to meltdown mode, she started to cry saying she wanted to be back at the hotel. Then she said she didn’t want to go to AS Sports, she wanted to stay at a different hotel for the night, she didn’t want to take the boat or get back to the car. It was rough. I did manage to get her to calm down some and I told her lets sit on the ground while we wait and she did

,

but then the crying started again . The she laid down to cry. That boat couldn’t get back soon enough for me. It did finally come back and Abby was upset because we couldn’t get on right away - people were getting off it. We finally made it on and I took Abby up to the very front of the boat hoping the fresh air would help her a little bit. It did and we made it back to the bus stop without further tears.

Once we got there however, the bus driver was another story. He wasn’t exactly rude, but he certainly wasn’t Disney in his manner. We pulled up and he told us that we’d have to wait, that he couldn’t get on the bus and ask people to move for the scooter. I was surprised by that because I kind of thought that was his job - to ask people if they’d be willing to make room for a scooter. I just kind of shook my head wondering what the heck we could do and then the bus driver got on the bus and did exactly what he just told us he couldn’t do. He asked people to move - and they did. While he was getting the ramp down for Lenny, Abby and I proceeded to get on at the front of the bus. Abby was so exhausted by this point in time she kept trying to sit down but the bus driver at this point in time was actually rude . Instead of seeing an exhausted child and having some sympathy, he just kept saying "I told you not to get close, move back, she can’t sit there" and a few other comments. I did manage to get Abby’s attention long enough to point out another seat that she could sit in but because it was next to someone she didn’t know, she wanted no part of it. The lady helped me and encouraged Abby to sit down next to her , which she finally did but the minute Lenny was on the bus and sitting in a regular seat, Abby popped up to go sit next to her father. It turns out the lady was a Trails End Buffet server on her way home for the night with kids of her own with Special Needs so she recognized Abby as having them as well. Abby managed to get through the bus ride with no more tears and I chatted with the lady the entire time it took to get to the outpost. She was very pleasant and I enjoyed talking with her.

When we made it to the outpost, we wished each other a good night and we headed back to the car. It didn’t take long for Lenny to disassemble the scooter and in just a few minutes we were headed back to the hotel. Abby was a little cranky telling us we were going the wrong direction but I told her that no, we weren’t, we knew which way to go (after 4 years in a row, I would hope we knew that much). We finally got back to the hotel and Abby told me that she didn’t know if she wanted to do Sea World or not the next day. She said she wanted to sleep in and then she’d decide what she wanted to do. I wasn’t thrilled with the thoughts of everyone sleeping in but I accepted it. Abby needed sleep and with having breakfast ADR’s 3 mornings in a row, sleeping in on our SW day was not a battle I was willing to pick . I put her to bed, told her she could sleep as late as she wanted and we would decide what to do on Thursday morning. It didn’t take her long to fall asleep and Lenny and I joined her not too much later.

[KMB733]

Great Start!!! Glad you arrived safely and looking forward to more!

[shnewell]

Yay, you started your TR! I'm glad everything went smoothly with the flight and that you got in early to boot!

Sorry that Lenny was being a pain about the directions and the driving. It can be so frustrating when you've spent so much time and effort planning a Disney trip and then someone complains about something relatively minor like that!

Love the photo of Abby and Lenny at HDDR! Glad that Abby had a great time and that you were able to get that ADR (even if it was on arrival day). Also glad you got your pressed pennies!

Sorry that Abby had a bit of a meltdown, but hooray for the sweet woman on the bus! Sounds like a very exhausting first day.

Can't wait to hear what happens on your Sea World day!

[omd]

I'm so glad that you started your TR I have been watching for it.
I thought of you on the day you left and hoped that your flight was ok and that you did not have any problem with your ears. Glad it went well.
You had a very busy first day and I'm sorry that you had some issues. It sounds I would think that the bus drivers had lots of experience with tired kids and could tell if they had to spread some magic but apparently the one you had was having a bad day.
I hope that after a good nights sleep everyone was in a better mood.

[scrappyjae]

Great start!

[lauriep]

Great start! I'm so glad that airport security and the flight itself went so well. Can't believe you even slept a bit! Abby looks like she loved HDDR. Incredible that you also made it to MK that night even after basically no sleep the night before. I'm not surprised Abby said she wanted to sleep in the next morning.