The PARTEE Report About This Page:

[Wondcat]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The PARTEE Report
or
Pat and Richard's Twenty-seventh anniversay Excursion Extrordinaire
Date:
Friday 11/30/01 to Thursday 12/6/01

Adventurers:

Pat (Wondcat) First trip in 1980-sidetrip after DH won a trip to The Pine Isle Resort in Georgia for selling life insurance, stayed offproperty. Second trip 1992, also stayed offsite. Third trip, 2000, All Star Music-all trips with kids.

Richard (Golfguy) Also on aforementioned trips.

Resort/Hotel: Wilderness Lodge (originally PO French Quarter, then CB, but I whined and got WL for only $108.00 more!

Celebration: Our 25th, 26th & 27th wedding anniversaries rolled into one-first trip without kids (the "kids" are 22 and 25 now)On our 25th anniversary Mandy was getting married and we didn't plan anything and on our 26th Alissa was getting ready to graduate from college and we didn't plan anything, we felt that we were due for a treat.

How could I forget Walt's Birthday?

(Hey, Mandy-B-tch,b-tch,b-tch! it is MY vacation!)Just kidding, you know I love you lots!

I have to mention at this point that my poor daughters missed me. I missed them too! I have never been away from them before. I work with Alissa and she called me a few times on her cell phone to my room. It seems that the liquor license at work was put into my name while I was away and she needed info. Then she called a few times just to talk. Then Mandy called a few times and I called both of them. I also called to check on the dogs. I'm afraid to see my next phone bill. They said that they were suffering from Mommy withdrawal. How sweet, not Daddy withdrawal, Mommy withdrawal, I think that Daddy was a little upset, but I explained to him that I talk to them more than he knows!

OK, I neglected to mention that when we got back to the WL last night it was about 2:00am. The Lobby was completely deserted, so we went up and got the camcorder and took videos of the lobby and took snapshots too. THEN, we went upstairs where DH fell asleep and I wrote in my Passporter and ordered breakfast.
Now, I ordered it for 10:30am because they stop doing breakfast at 11:00am. We had been up pretty early all week and I didn't think that it would be a problem. I also made a wakeup call for 10:00am, so we would be awake. Ha! the room service delivery woke us up! I guess all of the early mornings and late nights finally caught up with us! (Although my feet didn't hurt nearly as much this time as they have the trips before. The only problem that I had was the day that I went to Epcot alone, I wore my Berkinstock clogs without socks, by the time that I was halfway around the world showcase, I had to stop and buy a pair of socks because I was starting was starting to feel sore spots. The socks took care of it though and they were cute little shortie socks with Minnie on them. I'm also realizing that next time I need to take more thorough notes, because I seem to have forgotten alot and had to add it later. I hate the term 'senior moment', don't you?)
When I ordered it, it said coffee included. I don't drink coffee so I ordered a pot of tea too! Before they brought it up, they called to ask if we wanted both and DH answered the phone and didn't know what they were talking about so I quickly had to tell him about the surprise, and that is what woke us up! Do you notice a pattern with my surprises? I'm going to stop! It's a good thing or we would have met him at the door looking pretty 'morning' awful. At least we had a few minutes to pull overselves together. Actually, while I was waiting, I started to pack so that night I wouldn't have to do it all. Our express check out sheet was on the floor where they had slipped it under the door earlier that morning. At least we didn't have to physically check out and then check back in for our one more night.
After we had picked ourselves back up off of the floor after seeing our room charges, the cm came with our breakfast. Thinking continental breakfast was probably toast, maybe some danish and coffee, boy, were we surprised! We had two types of toast, rye and white, a bagel & cream cheese, four little danish, a few pieces of fruit, butter, jelly, orange juice and the tea and coffee! And all for only $12.00! We were going to take it out onto our balcony, but the sun was so very bright that we just ate inside with the doors open. We couldn't even eat all of this food. So after we ate and got dressed it was after 12:00pm. We were going to go to MGM for Walt's birthday since it closed last night while we were there and we didn't get to see much, but since they had told us then that it was closing at 4:00 and by the time we got there it would be 1:00 so we decided that we would do something else. Before we left the room the mercantile called to tell us we had packages and we stopped to pick them up and a to pick up a few other things before we left.
We started out for the Animal kingdom, but somehow we got turned around and missed the turn. We were going to turn around and go back when I saw the sign for 'Celebration', Disney's city. I said to Richard, aw, I really wanted to see Celebration, and he said well, let's go there! I was telling him that when Walt designed Epcot, he had planned to have a place there for people to live, work and shop inside of it, but that it didn't work out that way. Instead they built Celebration which was celebrating it's fifth year while we were there. We headed on that way, on the way I realized that today was Walt's birthday and that we were missing the scavenger hunt,(sorry guys) which we had already paid for but, we decided that since we had already missed it and also the meeting at 12:30 at the commissary, what better way to celebrate then to visit one more of Walt's dreams, especially since MGM was closing so early. I mean it's nice to close early for the celebrities to be there, but I really felt cheated. Anyway, we saw a sign that said Celebration medical something and pulled in there and Richard said if this is it there is nothing here! I said there has to be more than this, go down the road a little. We saw a water tower that said Celebration and a big sign with a snowman on it that said 'now snowing nightly' So we drove down the street. I fell in love immediately! There were twin gingerbread houses along the side of a lake. The lake had steps that you could walk down onto the edge of it, although swimming was prohibited, gators, you know. There was a small park with benches and a flat 'fountain' that had jumping water shooting up out of it in different directions. Benches all around the fountain and of course christmas decorations everywhere. There was a family with three children sitting on one of the benches and we sat there for about half an hour just watching the children play in the fountain and laughing and talking with their family. The Celebration hotel was across the street from the Gingerbread houses. One was a shop, the other was a house for Santa, and they sat on a litle walkway that went around the lake. We went into the hotel, which was just old world charming, sort of like the Boardwalk Inn and smelled of Jasmine. The lady there said that they had a scent machine and that was why it smelled so wonderful there. We went through the lobby and out onto the main street, Market street which was lined with cute little shops, the mercantile, the Christmas shop, a small grocery store with a very imaginative selection of food, cheeses, fruit and all kinds of exotic goodies, a gift shop, a travel agency and a number of other small shops and businesses.
We noticed that the main choice of transporation there were electric cars, cute,cute,cute, in fact I kept saying this over and over! They are called NEV's and are sold at a place called NEVrland. We bought a number of things in the stores and we were told that if we spent 100.00 in any of the stores and took our receipts to the gift shop that we would receive a free Snowman statue which is now among my collection of snowmen, my favorite things! There are apartments to rent starting at 595.00 and 70 homes for sale starting at 100,000.00. It 'snows' on Market Street three times nightly at 6:00, 8:00 and 10:00 during the Christmas season, too darn cute! The people who work in the shops were just so nice and not one flambouyant young man! Richard has been talking about retiring to Florida or S.C. for years, now here is a place where I could live! About 4:00 they starting blocking off Market Street with gingerbread men 'fences' for the 'snowing', but we didn't want to wait around another 2 hours for the snow, so we left. But, we definately fell under the Celebration spell! They have their own golf course, a plus for DH, so we drove past it and drove up and down the streets to look at the houses. All of them were decorated to the 9's! Although there were cars there, none of them are visable from the streets. The houses all have driveways that are connected to alleys in the back so that you can never see a car parked on a street. There were all types of houses from very modern to roman columns to aztec-south western types. I WANT to live there!
We left there and we went to downtown Disney and the West side and went into all of the stores. What is it with the car horn car alarms here, everywhere we went we heard beep, beep, beep. I don't know if theft is rampant or if these people are just pushing the remote button to find the car. Nevertheless, it is very annoying! A few of the stores had 'snow scenes' in the windows complete with snowmen and snow and cute outside themes. We took photos of all of them, me being the snow and snowman freak that I am. Since we still had wishes left, we went to Planet Hollywood for dinner. We were there for so long that our waitresses changed shifts. We had two lovely waitresses or I should say servers which is PC, and each one was nicer than the other. We ordered drinks, I got my 'signature' Margarita in a take home glass. We each had the house salad, then Richard had shrimp stew and I had the absolutely best spinach dip with pita petals. R had ribs with BBQ beans and slaw I had crabcakes, which were really awful, but the garlic mashed potatoes and green beans were great. Since we were so stuffed we elected to take our dessert with us. Since it was included in our 'wish' dinner, R had cheesecake and I got the chocolate layer cake, which was sooo huge that it could have served four people and we actually took it home with us in a cooler on the plane and ate it when we got home the next night. We left there and walked around a little more and went into the Disney store to buy flashing Mickey ears for our cell phones, which are very hard to find and if anybody is going and wants to pick some up for me pppllleeeaaasee let me know. Richard's one ear doesn't flash and my sister lost hers already! We went into the reading and riting store to buy some future birthday presents and stopped at Joe's Margarita bar for what I though would be one last Margarita. I have to say here that I am not a drinker. In fact at home I rarely drink at all and it took me over 20 years to find out that the Margarita is my drink, so last night we went out to dinner at Applebees and I had a Perfect Margarita, which was a little stronger than usual. But I was ok and so as we sat there awhile I had another. Lord, I could hardly walk, so my Margarita consumption is probably at it's end, because this morning I felt like the devil! Then we got back to the WL in time for fireworks! As we were parking the car and got out to walk across the front of the lodge to the lobby Richard held my hand and told me that this was the best time he has had with me in a long time and that next we should go on a cruise in 2003, Two years to lose enough weight to look decent in a swimsuit, ugh! Anyway, we got to see the fireworks from both the front and the back of the Lodge, which was cool. I'm not sure where they were from, I think Epcot and Fort Wilderness. So, we got ready for bed and I packed the rest of our stuff. We realized that we had a problem, because we had more stuff than luggage and we would have to ship some more. I wrote stuff in my passporter and went to bed.

Next,

Sob, leaving the Lodge

[ 12-30-2001: Message edited by: wondcat ]

[minnievoice]

Just trying to bump this up so she'll finish it. Come on Mom, only one installment left!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[tinksmom]

I've had a wonderful time reading your reports. I can't wait for the last one! I have one question, what are "wishes"?

tinksmom

[DreaminDisney]

Oh, this report is so good! The re-hitching sounds hysterical and I just have one question....
Next time will you take me with? [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

Only 108 more days and Contemporary, here we come...

[img]images/icons/cool.gif[/img] [img]images/icons/cool.gif[/img] [img]images/icons/cool.gif[/img] [img]images/icons/cool.gif[/img]
Debbie

[Saundo]

tinksmom - wishes are a part of the Discovery Magic Package. For every night of the vacation, you receive two wishes per person that may be used for meals, mini-golf, dinner shows, etc.

andrea [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

[Wondcat]

The PARTEE Report
or
Pat and Richard's Twenty-seventh anniversay Excursion Extrordinaire
Date:
Friday 11/30/01 to Thursday 12/6/01
Adventurers:

Pat (Wondcat) First trip in 1980-sidetrip after DH won a trip to The Pine Isle Resort in Georgia for selling life insurance, stayed offproperty. Second trip 1992, also stayed offsite. Third trip, 2000, All Star Music-all trips with kids.

Richard (Golfguy) Also on aforementioned trips.

Resort/Hotel: Wilderness Lodge (originally PO French Quarter, then CB, but I whined and got WL for only $108.00 more!

Celebration: Our 25th, 26th & 27th wedding anniversaries rolled into one-first trip without kids (the "kids" are 22 and 25 now)On our 25th anniversary Mandy was getting married and we didn't plan anything and on our 26th Alissa was getting ready to graduate from college and we didn't plan anything, we felt that we were due for a treat.

Leaving the lodge, sob....

We woke up about 9:00am and finished packing, thank goodness I had started the day before! How in the heck did I get all of this stuff in these suitcases? Every time we go away I swear I am not going to pack so much and then I forget something like my favorite shirt and so the next time I pack it all again. I had even gotten the packing bags to pack in, but had lent them to DD and forgot to get them back, so I didn't even use them. I just rolled and stuffed everything in! After taking our last walk around the lodge and having a final breakfast at Whispering canyon and a last quick shop at the Mercantile. I bought me and the girls the cutest, softest gray hooded sweatshirt type shirt with Winnie the pooh on them! I got mine first and then bought the girls the last day because I liked them so much! We had our luggage taken to the front and packed up the rental car and off we went! Since we still had basically a whole day to kill before our flight we didn't exactly know what to do. Our passes were expired, so we couldn't go to the parks, we toyed with the idea of going back to Celebration because we loved it so much, but we decided to go back to the boardwalk to see it in the daytime. It was a little warm this day and being on the bw it seemed even hotter. When we got there this time they let us park right in front. We didn't have to park really far away like we did the last time. I gues it depends on the guard on duty. The Boardwalk Inn and the beach club are really cool and we liked both of them alot. I would like to stay at one or both some time if I can tear myself away from the WL. We walked all the way around the Boardwalk and went in most of the stores too. It was getting close to lunchtime by now and we decided to go to the Big River grill and brewing works for lunch. This was on our must do list at the start of our trip, but we never got to go. we had planned to take the bus there and drink all of the sampler beers and talk the bus back so that we didn't have to drive, but we just didn't have enough time. So, off we went. It wasn't very crowded and it had started to rain so there were very few people walking the boards. We had a beautiful view while we were eating. The only other table occupied was by a large family with a child in a wheelchair who just didn't seem to be having a great time. All I heard them do was complain. Anyway, Richard had the stew and I had a cheeseburger and onion rings which was pretty good and he had the dark ale and I had the honey apple cinnamon ale, which was also pretty good. We left there and took a couple of rolls of film, it is so beautiful there. We drove back out to the main drag and stopped at a few discount outlets and bought some more stuff, keychains for everybody at work, a lighter shaped like a dolphin for me. Richard decided that he had to use the bathroom and went into the Goodings there, these ar amazing grocery stores. I went across the street to the Drug store, whose name I just can't bring to mind, but I had gone into one here at home and bought some Christmas ornaments and the one I gave Mandy had a flaw, so I wanted to see if they had any here. They didn't, but they did have a Hamster that sang Happy Birhtday and moved and held a piece of cake in his paw that I just had to buy for my niece whose birthday was coming up! I finished up in there and went into the grocery to find Richard, he was looking at watches. I got an Eeyore watch, also for my niece and a silver watch with three faces for me for only $19.00 each and they were marked $120.00!! I just wish that they had more that I liked, the rest of them were just ordinary. So, on we contined to the airport. We got there at about 4:00pm, turned in the car, lugged our luggage to the counter and wisked through the check points with time to spare. We thought that we would be there forever like on the way to Florida, but before we knew it we were in our terminal with mucho time to spare since our flight didn't leave until 7:50 pm!!! Now, we were about shopped out, plus we didn't want to have to carry a ton of stuff with us. We already had the huge piece of cake from dessert the night before and the stuff that we had purchased along the way that we couldn't pack anywhere. Now, for those of you who smoke, you know that once you are in the airport you are stuck there. If you go outside you take the chance of being searched again and detained longer. So, we go through nicotine cravings unless you find a bar, which we did! Or I did, I have to mention at this juncture that the whole time that our children were growing up we didn't drink. Richard drank alot when he got home from Vietnam and after we got married he just had no interest in drinking anymore. I never was much of a drinker, I could never find anything that I liked to drink. Plus, once we went to a wedding and I got so drunk on B&B that I don't even remember the reception, I am embarrassed to even admit. So, once the girls grew up and moved up we began to go out to dinner occasionally and have a drink. He drinks Coors lite and I drink margarita's (I finally found a drink that I like, it only took me 20 years), straight up on the rocks, not frozen and on this trip I had more than a few. So, when we got to Stinger Ray's bar and we had a number of hours to wait, well, you knew the rest of the story. As it happened, it was happy hour and you could get a double shot for the price of one, so I said why not? After September 11th, I was a little afraid to fly anyway and figured a couple of drinks would calm me down. After four, yes, 4! Double shot Margaritas I could hardly walk and Richard was laughing at me and we had even had a sampler tray of appetizers as a buffer! We got on the plane and sat down next to a really nice young woman who was also going to MD. She had just moved there and was meeting her husband who had gotten there first. I was reading the first Harry Potter book and she commented that she wanted to read them. After I finished reading my Harry Potter book I gave it to her. I had started reading it on the plane there and then thought that I had left it on the plane, so while we were in WDW I bought another one. While I was packing I found the first one tucked into a pocket, so I had two. By the time that we got to our layover in NC at 10:00, I had sobered up and we sat down to wait for half an hour. We finally got on the plane for the last leg of our trip and got into BWI at 11:30pm. Alissa and her boyfriend Don, met us at the airport and Alissa brought me pink and white varegated roses called 'Vogue". What a sweetie, I guess she really missed me and off we started for home sweet home!

next: To sum it all up

[minnievoice]

FINALLY!!!!!!!! It took you long enough!! [img]images/icons/wink.gif[/img]

[arielsmom]

OK Pat...I'm going to start calling you Nate Jr. [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img] [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img] Let's get this report to its end. I've been with you from the beginning and it has been a great read.

[Wondcat]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The PARTEE Report
or
Pat and Richard's Twenty-seventh anniversay Excursion Extrordinaire
Date:
Friday 11/30/01 to Thursday 12/6/01

Adventurers:

Pat (Wondcat) First trip in 1980-sidetrip after DH won a trip to The Pine Isle Resort in Georgia for selling life insurance, stayed offproperty. Second trip 1992, also stayed offsite. Third trip, 2000, All Star Music-all trips with kids.

Richard (Golfguy) Also on aforementioned trips.

Resort/Hotel: Wilderness Lodge (originally PO French Quarter, then CB, but I whined and got WL for only $108.00 more!

Celebration: Our 25th, 26th & 27th wedding anniversaries rolled into one-first trip without kids (the "kids" are 22 and 25 now)On our 25th anniversary Mandy was getting married and we didn't plan anything and on our 26th Alissa was getting ready to graduate from college and we didn't plan anything, we felt that we were due for a treat.

To sum it all up...

OK, not only is returning from WDW depressing, but so is finishing your trip report. While you are writing it and everyone is saying how great and funny it is, you are reliving your trip. Then crash, down you come and it is all over. Unless, you have another trip to plan immediately, there is a huge letdown.
When we went with our girls and our son in law last year, we stayed at All Star Music. It was the first time that we had stayed on property. We were not impressed and had many,many problems there. So many in fact, that I wrote a steamy letter to CRO. They wrote back and offered me a discount if I stayed there again in the next three years. They also told me they were enclosing $15.00 for phone calls that we were charged for, but there was nothing more in the envelope. I knew that I would not be staying there again, BUT, as soon as I walked into the Magic Kingdom I knew that I would be back again to stay somewhere. That trip was a sort of commando style trip. We tried to cram everything that we could into the days that we had. I decided at that point that there would come a day when I would spend time alone in the MK and in Epcot. So, that when we got home I started planning this years trip for just me and Richard. My girls were planning to go again in September, but even though it is cooler then, I wanted to go when it was coolest. Plus, I am a total Christmas FREAK and wanted to go for Christmas to see the decorations. I waited until after Christmas 2000 and pored over every guide that I could get my hands on. I called bright and early one January morning to make my reservations for a long weekend in the beginning of December 2001 at Port Orleans, French Quarter. We had enjoyed the Jazz section of the All Star Music resorts ambiance and New Orleansy flavor in the outside gardens and streetlights. I thought that PO would have even more of this and be a romantic and smaller resort for just the two of us. As time passed our long weekend stretched into five, then six days and finally into a whole week. Where last year we had planned everything ourselves and planned to do the same this time. I called and talked to the CM's and switched to the Discovery Magic package, this way we would have two magical wishes each day to spend on our meals or many other gift items that we wanted to buy.
We were in heaven, I started to send payments each month so that I would be all paid up before we left. I already knew about passporter, so I ordered a Deluxe one for this trip. I faithfully entered info in it. I bought new clothes and luggage and packed it all away for the trip. Then I heard that my resort was being closed, we were devastated! All my planning down the tubes! I called and called, they told me that someone would cal me, they didn't. I called some more and finally got in touch with Cinderella who changed our reservations to the Carribeane Beach resort for the same price or to the Contemporary for $500.00 more. I settled for CB, but I was not happy. After stewing about it for quite some time, I finally called and talked to Coral Ann, who got me the Wilderness Lodge for only $108.00 more for the entire week. I had heard much about the WL and was really getting excited now. In the meantime, my flights had been changed twice and I was getting antsy. My Passporter was covered with whiteout. My daughters' trip was coming up and I was excited for them and hearing about their trip made me long for mine. Lo and behold, they went the week of September 11th. That day they were in the park when it closed, we were terrified that something would happen to them. But, they just made a longer trip of it and had a wonderful time.
My Disney box came and I knew that it was really getting close. Then Choulie got sick and we had to have her put to sleep, it was one of the worst weeks of my life and I hated having to make that decision. But, I did and got on with my life.
Sooner than soon it was time to fly! I had planned and planned. I had surprises that wound up surprising me instead of Richard. We were lunching in the castle, we were getting rehitched, we were eating with Pooh and Tigger, Richard's personal favorite, and we were off.
We got to Florida and got our rental car, we drove up to the Lodge. What a first impression that place makes! It is just fabulous on the outside and on the inside it was my Christmas fantasy come to life! White twinkling lights everywhere. Rockers by the cosy fire, charming little romantic nooks everywhere, the stream bubbling up inside the lobby and flowing outside into the swimming pool. The swimming pool itself, a little slice of natural heaven. Two, count 'em, two hot tubs, which we enjoyed thoroughly one night after a long day at the parks. AND the Christmas trees! One over 50 feet high! I got to do my dream, I went to the MK and to Epcot alone and shopped my way around the world. I bought so much that we couldn't carry it home and had to have 3 boxes shipped home. I bought gifts for everybody and then more for me. And all of it decorated for Christmas! I even brought with me a small tree, snowmen to hang in my windows and candles to scent our room. Our room was very nice, cozy and decorated in a very rustic fashion. I was only slightly dispointed in it size, but the amenities were great. Soaps, shampoos, conditioners, body lotions, and a hair dryer that really worked wonderfully. We took advantage of the poolside bar, the private dock, the boats to the MK and surrounding areas. We walked the private beachs and the grounds and found it all absolutely beautiful. We walked through the villas and the bridges and just everywhere. I am only sorry that I missed the lobby of the villas, I understand it is very spectacular.
Wherever we went there were flambouyant young and old men, crying children, alarm horns honking and hard to find smoking areas. Yes, I know that I should quit. The weather, for the most part, was perfect. Our photos turned out well, even the one from MVMCP, I guess I look good in green, it is my favorite color!
We walked on the boardwalk, saw couples getting married, and after a slight delay, did the "thing" and got rehitched ourselves at the Garden Grill.
Richard got to the Golf Hall of Fame, his favorite thing. We went to DD, but missed the Adventurers club. I did enjoy all of the window dressing there, so many cute, cute,cute windows of winter scenes with snowmen. We took photos at the Winnie the Pooh photo op there, I guess if they take Winnie out of the parks, that will disapear too. What a shame. We were in the MK with fireworks bursting all around us in every direction while we watched a child on a stretcher enjoy Disney for what may have been his first and last time.
We ate in wonderful restaurants and I saw my favorite group, Aerosmith 'cutting a record' before being wisked away in a stretch
limo. We solved a murder mystery personally, we planned this after doing a murder mystery train ride a few years ago, watched the parades, I LOVED the Dreamcatcher in the Tapestry of Dreams Parade and even had him bow to me, and I even made my own snowglobes for Christmas with the photos we took.
I got sick from the water, dressed in cute outfits and hats for the first few days and then just got comfy in my 'day off' clothes. I wore my Reeboks and did not have sore feet for the first time of all of my trips. I missed my kids and talked to them often and I missed my Figment.
I love Ice station cool and seeing bottles of ketchup being rushed by the dozens to a table in Whispering Canyon Cafe. We even enjoyed getting lost driving from the WL to PL and then finding our way back days later.
We loved going to the town of Celebration, it is our dream now to live there. I can just see myself working and shopping and living there and driving a NEV from 'Nevrland'. It was Walt's dream and now it is mine. I felt like a celebrity having lunch at the exclusive Columbia Harbour House restaurant and going on the Keys to the Kingdom tour. I got a special Key pin and learned some of the secrets of Walt Disney World, the names on the Main street storefronts, the 'fade away green' buildings, forced perception and sensory tickles, that the MK is the second story, but then you have to take the tour to find out about all of these things!
I am touched by the kindness of people and the friendliness and cleanliness of it all, the grandness of the deluxe resorts and the hominess of the moderates, the gift shops and shops on Main street, the angel
3-D glasses for the Osbourne light show and the twinkling lights from my room at night through the forest, which made it look like fairyland outside my windows.
I am blessed by my husband and my daughters and their men and my furry kids, and our new furry kid, Harley, who although he is five years old is just like a little Choulie, reincarnated.
I am amazed by the size of WDW and of the fact that it was all once a swamp, and the fact that it would probably take a month to see it all, the genius of Walt Disney and his imagination. I am astonished by the vastness of his dreams and they aren't even all finished yet! The idea of Epcot and the size of the prototype that used to be in his office. His office must have been huge!
I hated the parks closing early, the bag checks, my last phone bill, the water, and no hot tea, (next time I'm taking an electric teapot!)and coming home. But, I also loved coming home and sleeping in my own bed and seeing my girls and my 'kids' and looking forward to my next trip. Richard and I are planning a cruise next year and the girls and I are going to go for a long weekend this Christmas. So, with tears in my eyes, my trip report is at it's conclusion. Now, I have to go, I have a lot of planning to do! Special thanks to all who stuck with me while I was writing this report, Chantal, your English is wonderful! A very special thanks to Jennifer and Dave (I'm just sorry I missed meeting them)for creating the Passporter. I couldn't have done it without one!
Pat

[ 06-02-2002, 03:26 AM: Message edited by: wondcat ]

[tikibird]

Pat,

What an awesome wrap-up!

I agree on the let down of finishing the report - same reason I have been stalling on mine. But, happy to hear you have a new trip planned. [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

Thanks again for sharing your trip with us - it was thoroughly enjoyable to read.

[Ursunique2001]

A great conclusion to an awesome trip.

[Wondcat]

Woo hoo, my Trip report topic is two pages long, just call me Nate Jr.!

[minnievoice]

Yaaaaaay!! Good job Mom!!!!!!! I hate leaving WDW. [img]images/icons/frown.gif[/img]

[tinksmom]

Thanks so much for sharing. It sounds like you had a truly magical time!

Thanks for explaining what wishes are.

tinksom

[Saundo]

Kudos on a great trip report - I have so much fun reading these things! It's the next best thing to actually being there.

Thanks Nate Jr. !! [img]images/icons/wink.gif[/img]

andrea