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[stardust190]

Originally Posted by lexiemom

I just love watching Devine. We saw her on our last trip and I almost passed by her until I noticed her "handler" randomly standing by a tree and I realized what was going on. You got some great animal photos.

I was going to make a point of looking at Devine's schedule and make sure to catch her, but in our other park days I realized that it was easiest to just go with the flow and not pay too much attention to the show times. I was very happy when we happened to stumble upon her.

Originally Posted by MayraLR

I love these two photos! I think they're hilarious. I love how the gorilla is just there chilling.

Total relaxation - gorilla style. I chuckle at these pictures too. Cameron saw the gorilla and said "shhhh, sleeping". That gave us all a laugh.

Originally Posted by shnewell

How fun that Breanna was thrilled by EE! We just love that ride (well, "we" means DH and me -- the kids were a little freaked out!)

So cool that you saw Devine! I've never seen her, though I admit I haven't given myself a lot of opportunity since we usually don't even spend a full day at AK.

Great safari photos...the 2-headed cheetah cracked me up. And I'm envious of that gorilla -- I'd sure love to be chillin' like that right about now!

I think Breanna wants to go back to WDW just to ride EE again. It is one of the best coasters I've ever been on. I still feel like there's things we've missed at AK. This trip was the first trip that we went from open-close. Before we've only gone for an afternoon. With the shortened hours in January we still didn't fit everything in. With Cameron loving animals so much we might have to spend even more time at this park in the future.

Originally Posted by Tabitha34

Love all your pictures! The two headed cheetah is pretty funny. Not looking like we were in the same park on any of our days. At least not so far! Great start to your day at AK!

The cheetah is pretty amusing. From the picture it really does look like 2 heads. I guess WDW just has too many places to be. Our paths maybe never crossed. Of course we could have been in the same park and the same day and still never crossed paths.

Originally Posted by Colexis Mom

Great pics from AK! Glad you were able to see DeVine!

Thanks. Nate was impressed with the pictures he was able to get. I think he really likes our new camera.

Originally Posted by honeybee723

Same thing happened to us while we waited in line for EE, but we ended up saying something. If you all can't wait together at that moment, then you should wait until you're group can. BTW, why are you a bat free girl? The bats are one of my favorite exhibits to check out.

I didn't say anything when in line for EE, but later in the day the tour groups cut us off on the walkway and started kind of shoving us. I said something then, but I'm not sure they understood English. Nate did say it is possible that in their home country the streets are maybe always crowded so you have to kind of push and shove to get through and stay with your group so to them it might be common and not rude. As far as the bats go I can't really explain it. I just find them a little on the creepy side.

Originally Posted by KMB733

Great time at AK so far!! I agree with you about the bats. They freak me out!

Thanks! Bats are just something I can't handle. It doesn't make any sense. Too many vampire bat movies maybe?

Originally Posted by Cam22

Great time so far at AK! All your pictures are super, too!

Thanks. This is the first time we actually got good pictures on the safari. Our new camera rocks!

[stardust190]

January 31st, 2012

After lunch Nate and I both grabbed Yack Attacks. We had gotten these on our honeymoon and it turned out to be a big mistake. We ended up feeling so sick afterwards, but I was pretty sure it was because it was so hot in August. So I wanted to try it again. And I’m glad I did. It was really yummy. Cameron was once again upset that I didn’t share my smoothie, but what can you do.

We knew we wanted to catch the Nemo show as Cameron loves that movie so we started to head in that direction. On our way we stopped to use our Expedition Everest FastPasses. We tried to convince Jim to ride, but once again he declined. He picked up a FastPass earlier in the day in case he changed his mind, but he hadn’t and the FastPass went unused.

Jim, Nate and Breanna all wanted to ride Dinosaur at some point so Jim ran off to get FastPasses. I am scared of that ride and declined to ride. We continued on to the Nemo theater and arrived about 1/2 hour before the show was due to start. We got seats close to the front and Jim joined us shortly thereafter:




Cameron was really tired at this point and I thought he might fall asleep during the show, but he didn’t. It was too exciting for him. I really enjoy this show and think it’s one of the best in Disney World. But then I really like fish and sea life so that’s probably why. Cameron especially loved when they filled the room with bubbles. What toddler wouldn’t?

After Nemo we headed to Dinoland so the Dinosaur FastPasses could be put to use. Jean and I stayed behind with Cameron and rode Triceratop Spin. He really seemed to like that ride. I wish that Dumbo had been open during our trip because I think Cam would have loved that one too. Since we didn’t have a wait for the Triceratop Spin we finished long before the rest of our party did. So Jean and I took Cameron over to the bone yard to blow off some steam. He LOVED it there. I think we were always so busy going from attraction to attraction we forgot that toddlers love to just run around.
His favorite part was the “ruck”:




Followed by the slides:



We played in there for quite some time before the Dinosaur riders returned. And then we stayed there even longer. Cameron was having so much fun and we were all getting to rest a little bit. I remembered that there was an area where kids could dig in the sand so I went searching for that. If I had not asked someone about it I don’t know if I would have ever found it. But we did and Cameron liked taking off his shoes and playing in the sand. He thought it was hilarious when we buried his feet and he kicked them loose.




We noticed it was getting close to being time for The Festival of the Lion King and Jean really wanted to see it. I wanted to see it too, but Cameron was having so much fun in the sand and he had just recently sat through Nemo. We didn’t think he would want to sit for another show. He doesn’t know The Lion King as well as Nemo so he doesn’t really know the characters. We had seen this show in 2009 and loved it, but we decided to send Jean, Breanna and Jim on their way while we stayed with Cameron.


Not long after Jim, Jean and Breanna left Nate and I thought it might be fun to take Cameron over to the petting zoo. So we left the bone yard and headed over to catch the train. Well the parade was going on and it was kind of tricky to make it over to that side of the park. It was kind of fun though as we were walking along with the parade. Cameron kept on pointing at the characters and smiling so I’m pretty sure he enjoyed walking along with the parade.

We figured by this point Cameron needed a snack or he would melt down. So we stopped and got two Mickey Bars figuring we could each share with Cam. It worked for a while and then Cameron STOLE MY MICKEY BAR!




The kid would not give the thing back!




I have a great video of his first Mickey Bar, but I can't figure out how to add it to my post.

We made it to the petting zoo and at first I think Cam was a little scared, but soon he was petting and hugging the goats.




There weren’t many animals out just goats and sheep, but it was getting close to park closing so maybe there is usually some more interesting animals here. I don’t know. We’ll have to check back some other time. We boarded the train where Cameron decided to make faces for the camera:







By the time we got off the train the park was closing. We met Jean, Jim and Breanna near the front of the park and hopped on a bus for Pop. I think we were back at the resort around 5:30 and headed for dinner. We still weren’t impressed by the Pop food court, but it was good enough. The rest of the evening we just spent relaxing in the room. I think Cameron had a bath and was in bed by 8 PM, which was good because Cameron never did take a nap this day.

Favorites

Cameron – The truck and slides in the bone yard
Missy – Finding Nemo the Musical
Nate – Expedition Everest and the pictures he was able to get on the safari with our new camera.

Worst part about today – The tour groups were everywhere and made it hard to navigate the park at times. They would show up out of nowhere and clog the streets. And I’m sorry, but they were a little rude with shoving and cutting in front of us at various points during the day.


Most interesting thing about today: We learned that Cameron can survive without a nap and is fairly well behaved. Although we don’t want him to give up his nap anytime soon!

Weather in Orlando: 75 and sunny. We weren’t really outside much after the sun set so we never did get cold this day.

Steps: 16464 (about 8.2 miles)

[Tabitha34]

Great update! I love all the pics! Cam is so cute! I love the bib he had on when he was eating the Mickey bar. I have never seen one like that. That is plastic, right??

[stardust190]

Originally Posted by Tabitha34

Great update! I love all the pics! Cam is so cute! I love the bib he had on when he was eating the Mickey bar. I have never seen one like that. That is plastic, right??

Thanks! The bib is kind of a rubber actually. It's flexible. I got it at Babies R Us. It's a Tommee Tippee brand. I love it. We can put it in the dishwasher or just run it under some water if the mess isn't too terrible. The only thing is I wish I could find some that are longer. I think these are actually designed for babies around 6 months. At 1 1/2 it's a little short on Cam, but I still use them as they are so easy to clean.

[shnewell]

Sounds like a great finish to your AK day! We have never seen the Nemo show, and I know that I really must remedy this! The Boneyard is an absolute lifesaver when traveling with kids. Even my big boys still love to go in there and play.

I'm LOL that Cameron stole your Mickey bar! Stinker!

[MayraLR]

Ah, a Mickey bar, wish I had one right now. Oh well I'll have to wait till' June. It looks like Cameron really enjoyed his.

Finding Nemo is one of my favorite shows, I have to see it every time I go. Not only toddlers love the bubbles, my kids were 6 & 7 last time we went and they loved them too. Sadly I've never been able to see Festival of the Lion King. I'm hoping I can finally see it in the summer.

[Cam22]

Great afternoon at AK! Finding Nemo: The Musical is very ! Looks like Cameron had a blast this afternoon, too!

[Linnynad]

Great day at AK,seems as if you did just abo everything there. With all our trips we have never made it to Dinoland at all something major always happens to us where we always have to skip out of the park early.........Must remedy that this fall
Where was the petting zoo? Another thing I never knew about AK.
Glad Cameron did OK with no nap, oh how I wish my DD would still take one

[Colexis Mom]

What a great time at AK! Love the pictures! Glad you enjoyed the Yak Attack this time around!

[Tabitha34]

Originally Posted by stardust190

Thanks! The bib is kind of a rubber actually. It's flexible. I got it at Babies R Us. It's a Tommee Tippee brand. I love it. We can put it in the dishwasher or just run it under some water if the mess isn't too terrible. The only thing is I wish I could find some that are longer. I think these are actually designed for babies around 6 months. At 1 1/2 it's a little short on Cam, but I still use them as they are so easy to clean.

That's a great bib! I wish they would have had those when my kids were little.

[stardust190]

Originally Posted by shnewell

Sounds like a great finish to your AK day! We have never seen the Nemo show, and I know that I really must remedy this! The Boneyard is an absolute lifesaver when traveling with kids. Even my big boys still love to go in there and play.

I'm LOL that Cameron stole your Mickey bar! Stinker!

You should definitely try to check out the Nemo show. I it, but then I the movie too. I'm sure we'll visit the Boneyard many times in future trips. It was just so fun for kids. I will say I'm still a little bitter about that Mickey bar! We got two figuring Nate and I would both share. And that worked for the first few bites. Until Cam took MINE!

Originally Posted by MayraLR

Ah, a Mickey bar, wish I had one right now. Oh well I'll have to wait till' June. It looks like Cameron really enjoyed his.

Finding Nemo is one of my favorite shows, I have to see it every time I go. Not only toddlers love the bubbles, my kids were 6 & 7 last time we went and they loved them too. Sadly I've never been able to see Festival of the Lion King. I'm hoping I can finally see it in the summer.

At least you only have to wait until June for a Mickey bar. I have to wait until 2014! The Lion King is another really great show. I was sad that I missed it this trip, but I didn't want to make Cam sit through another show. He's not much of a sitter. I hope you're able to catch it on your next trip!

Originally Posted by Cam22

Great afternoon at AK! Finding Nemo: The Musical is very ! Looks like Cameron had a blast this afternoon, too!

Thanks. It was a wonderful afternoon. And it was nice to have an early night after a day at Epcot and MK.

Originally Posted by Linnynad

Great day at AK,seems as if you did just abo everything there. With all our trips we have never made it to Dinoland at all something major always happens to us where we always have to skip out of the park early.........Must remedy that this fall
Where was the petting zoo? Another thing I never knew about AK.
Glad Cameron did OK with no nap, oh how I wish my DD would still take one

Your kids will love the play area in Dinoland. Hopefully you will be able to avoid anything major and make it there - or hit Dinoland first maybe. The petting zoo is out by Rafiki's Planet Watch and the Conservation Station. You have to take the train out to it. We got there so late that all we checked out was the petting area, but I think that there's a few other things to do out there as well. I'm not looking forward to the day that Cam stops taking a nap. Although with another kid on the way I'm probably running out of kid free nap time. With my luck even if Cam still takes a nap by then it probably won't be at the same time as the other one.

Originally Posted by Colexis Mom

What a great time at AK! Love the pictures! Glad you enjoyed the Yak Attack this time around!

Thanks. I'm glad I decided to try the Yak Attack. It really made me sick last time and I wasn't going to try it again, but I'm pretty sure it was the August heat mixed with the alcohol that made me so sick.

Originally Posted by Tabitha34

That's a great bib! I wish they would have had those when my kids were little.

I hear that a lot from people. "I wish we had those when my kids were little." Wonder what kind of new gadgets I'll be wishing I had when my kids are older.

[stardust190]

February 1st, 2012

Today was the day we all needed. A day out of the parks just to rest and recoup from our fun filled park days. We had very little planned for this day except for our character breakfast at Chef Mickey’s! Of course that breakfast was at 9:30 AM which meant we had to leave the resort at 8 AM. This started our rest day off with not being able to sleep in, but we managed to get up and going.


I explained to Cameron that we were going to have breakfast with Mickey Mouse, but I’m not sure if he understood what was going to happen. Regardless he squealed in delight the second the elevator doors opened on our way to the bus stop. Actually the elevator door squeal happened every single time we were in the elevator. He was just so excited about going somewhere in Disney World!

We hopped on a bus to the Magic Kingdom and were soon on the monorail to the Contemporary Resort. I think we got there about 9 AM and wandered around a bit. Then we stopped in the gift shop and Cameron insisted on getting a Mater and McQueen Hot Wheels type car. So we got him those and then checked in for our breakfast. I think we waited quite a while for our table. Cameron wanted to run and was probably hungry so he was a little on the cranky side. We were finally seated and took no time heading to the buffet. Cam got his breakfast first:




Jean and Jim also got some special place mats as they wore their birthday buttons. The food here was really yummy. I loved the Mickey waffles. I hadn’t had them in Disney World and they lived up to what people have said. Everything else was pretty tasty too. I just wish I had had more room for the food. Cameron sat and ate for a while, but we were seated close to the kitchen door and Minnie walked by and Cam decided he needed to go get her. He kept saying door, door and pointing to where Minnie went. He saw a few other characters enter and exit through that door and to him that was the magic door and he NEEDED to get in there. It got to the point where we had to take him out of the high chair as he was whining so loudly when seated.

Once out of the confines of the high chair Cameron decided it was up to him to find all the characters so he kept trying to get in the door to the kitchen. Or run around to other tables to find the characters. We kept him in the general area of our table and didn’t let him interrupt anyone elses character experiences, but it was hard work! Finally Goofy made his way over to us:










It was a nice encounter until Goofy moved on to the next table. Cameron wanted to follow Goofy to the next table, but we managed to distract him until Mickey made his way over:




Notice the fingers in his mouth. This boy had his fingers in his mouth the WHOLE trip. He must be getting his molars or something. For some reason Cameron wasn’t as excited about Mickey as I thought he would be. Maybe it was because Donald Duck was up next:







Breanna also finally got her picture with Donald:






She had still been bitter about her last trip and missing Donald so this was special for her!

It was at Chef Mickey’s that I learned that Donald is in fact Cameron’s favorite. I knew he liked Donald, but I kind of thought Mickey was his favorite. How wrong I was. Donald left and Cameron insisted on following him. He would escape us and run up to Donald, we would go retrieve him and he would scream. He pretty much STALKED Donald. It was crazy. I will admit I got a little mad at Nate during this time as he was sitting having a nice conversation with his parents while I went to chase Cameron when he took off after Donald. I said something to Nate about how it would be nice if he took his turn and he said something like “Sorry. It looked like you had it under control.” That kind of made me mad because I wanted him to offer to take a turn, but he hadn’t.

Anyways, eventually they did their little song that they do and we were pretty much done eating. But Minnie and Pluto still hadn’t come to visit. Cameron saw them in the next area and kept trying to get back to them. Finally Minnie showed up:




The birthday peeps were awarded cupcakes:


I was thankful for the cupcakes as the sprinkles distracted Cameron while we waited for Pluto:




I giggle every time Pluto signs something. The book on the nose.




“Pluto’s great, but I want more sprinkles!”

We left soon after being visited by Pluto. We talked and decided to go back to the resort for Cameron to take a nap. My in-laws decided they wanted to tour the monorail resorts so they did that while Nate, Cam and I continued on to Pop. We made it back around noon and Cameron was asleep by 12:30 PM. I ended up writing some postcards and then taking a nap myself. Cameron got up at about 2:30 PM and knocked on A-Ma and A-Pa’s door. They had taken a nap too once they returned from their little tour.

It was nice to have that little rest, but it was warm out and the pool was calling our names! We headed over to the little kiddie pool area they had at Pop. Cameron did not want to be bothered by putting on sun screen. He just wanted IN the water. I’ll have to remember to put the sunscreen on before we leave for the pool in the future. Cameron had an absolute blast in the pool. He kept trying to hug the water of the little fountains that they had. It was pretty adorable.







Cam is definitely my boy. I love the water! Nate on the other hand isn’t a big fan. After a while us adults decided we wanted to take a dip so we all headed over to the big pool. This triggered a meltdown from Cameron, but it was short lived. As soon as we got into the other pool he was all smiles. Except he doesn’t understand that he can’t touch the bottom. He has no fear of water. If he gets splashed in the face he just continues on. Needless to say he didn’t understand why he couldn’t just run around. He wasn’t all that interested in being held by us. We managed to keep the kid from drowning and after a while everyone decided they had had enough time in the pool/sun. Everyone except Cam. He wasn’t that happy when we left the pool, but perked up when we got to ride the elevator.

We all got cleaned up and dressed to head out to Downtown Disney. I love Downtown Disney! Shopping is one of my favorite things to do on vacation especially in Disney World. Cameron on the other hand doesn’t really like shopping. We had hardly stepped foot in a gift shop this trip because Cam would get bored or worse he would pull everything off the shelves. Even so we decided to head to Downtown Disney for at least a little while.

We ended up getting to Downtown Disney around 5:30 and went straight to Earl of Sandwich. So good. Cameron was cranky through the whole meal and something got messed up with Breanna’s order so it had to be remade and took forever. So it wasn’t the best meal we had on the trip, but it was still really yummy!

After dinner our first stop was the Christmas Shoppe. We always get ornaments for our tree. We ended up finding a Disney World one that we had the year and “Cameron’s First Visit” added to. We also found another ornament that we thought would be a good remembrance of our trip so we got that too. Then the group split up a bit. I know Breanna, Cam and I went into the pin store. We collect pins on vacations no matter where we go. We aren’t pin traders, but we always get pins. I found a first visit pin, one with the characters on a train and a Walt one. Then I needed to get something for my niece and nephew. Their grandparents go to Disney all the time and buy them all kinds of stuff from the world so I figured a little pin for each of them would do just fine as a gift. I let Cameron decide which pins he wanted to get his cousins.

Nate met us at the pin store and approved of my selections so I made the purchase. Cameron was fairly cranky at this point so we decided we would take him into Once Upon a Toy. That store didn’t end up improving his mood at all. He just does not like to shop. That trait he certainly doesn’t get from me.

By this point I was getting tired of listening to a crabby toddler. I still needed to get some gifts for my parents though so I decided we should go through World of Disney and then maybe call it a night. I had 6 things I wanted to get in this store: a t-shirt for me, a first visit shirt for Cam, a plush of some kind for Cam, a shirt for my dad, a hoodie for my mom and a picture frame for us. Shouldn’t be that complicated right?

I found a shirt for myself and then a hoodie for my mom. Nate, Cam and I ended up in the men’s section of the store looking at shirts for my dad. Nate and I had a disagreement about what size shirt to get my dad and Cameron continued whining. Everyone was just getting crabby. We finally settled on a shirt for my dad and then went in search of a shirt for Cameron. I think we ended up stopping for a Donald Duck plush for Cam and then made our way to the infants section. I found a first visit shirt, but the smallest size they had was 3T. Cam is just now starting to wear 2T so I knew it was too big. I was trying to get Nate to give me his opinion on what we should do about the shirt. Should we get another style that doesn’t say first visit? Should we get the 3T first visit? What about this other shirt? It’s cute should we get it in 18 months or 2T? He wasn’t committing to anything and barley giving an opinion. With Cameron being cranky and me just wanting to get out of the store I wasn’t too happy with Nate’s lack of help in making this decision. Then Nate got a call from his sister. He said he was having trouble hearing her and needed to go someplace else to call her back. I told him he could call her back later and that we had to make a decision on the shirt first.

We finally made a decision on the shirt and then Nate went off to call Breanna back. He took FOREVER! I was getting really angry at this point because it shouldn’t take that long to call Bree back especially since I was pretty sure that she just wanted to meet back up with us and needed to know where we were. But Nate was gone way too long. And Cameron was quickly deteriorating. When Nate finally returned to us I was beyond angry.

We quickly picked out a picture frame and I bought everything. We left the store and Nate and I kind of got in a fight right outside of World of Disney. I yelled at him about not helping me pick stuff out and just leaving me with a cranky toddler. He yelled at me because he never knows what I want him to do. I yelled at him for not helping me chase Cameron around at breakfast. You get the picture. We weren’t really yelling and being embarrassing, but we were both clearly cranky and not happy with each other.

I told Nate I was just going to take Cameron back to the resort and he should stay at Downtown Disney. He argued that I couldn’t handle the stroller and Cam on the bus, which was probably true the stroller is huge. So I started to storm off and headed to the Lego store. Nate came too and we had pretty much worked out our issues by the time we got to the Lego’s. We let Cameron play with the Duplo’s for a while and that put him in a slightly better mood. We looked around the Lego store hoping to find some Duplo’s for Cameron, but either we missed them or they didn’t really sell what we were looking for.

At some point Jean, Jim and Breanna joined us and we all decided that it was just time to call it a night. But not without a stop at Goofy’s Candy Co. to use our snack credits. I picked out a chocolate dipped rice crispy Mickey treat and then Cameron insisted that it have M-na-M’s so I got that one. Nate got chocolate dipped pretzels also with M-na-M’s. Everyone else picked up a treat and we headed out. We were back at Pop and in bed by 9 PM.




Favorites

Cameron – Breakfast with Donald Duck and Swimming!

Missy – The way Cameron chased around Donald. It was a difficult meal as Cam was so excited and chased the characters and I didn’t want him to interfere with anyone else's enjoyment so I had my work cut out for me. The experience was wonderful though and the food was super yummy!

Nate – Breakfast at Chef Mickey’s and taking pictures at the pool.



Worst part about today – Definitely our fight at Downtown Disney. I think we just hit the point in the trip where although you love who you’re with spending 24/7 with them leads to bickering.


Most interesting thing about today: Cameron character stalking and learning how much Cam really hates shopping. We also learned that a day of rest is nice. We should maybe schedule more of these into our future trips.

Weather in Orlando: 79 and sunny. Perfect swimming weather!

Steps: 6474 (about 3.3 miles – see it was a restful day)

[Colexis Mom]

What a nice relaxing day! Great pics from the pool and breakfast! Sorry about the bickering. It happens to all of us!

[Tabitha34]

Great pics at Chef Mickey's! We went there too but not that day. I totally understand having to do it all yourself when DH is sitting right there totally oblivious to what is going on but I learned a long time ago to just let him know I need help. I think they all have a little bit of an attention to details problem. Sorry guys. Love the pictures at the pool. When I saw the first picture of Cameron hugging the water I could not figure out what it was. It totally looked like ice that was stuck together and that just made no sense at all. We love DTD too but Selah does not like to shop either so we always have to be prepared with LOTS of stuff to keep her occupied in the stroller. You would have thought we were going to be shopping for a week when just going to DTD for a few hours.

[MayraLR]

Great breakfast at Chef Mickey's! Can't wait to eat there again.

Sorry for your little fight with Nate. But don't worry it happens to all of us. Especially when you're on vacation and you're tired, hot and frustrated.