Festing with Far-flung Friends - Mousefest 2005 - COMPLETE
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DawnDenise · 03-10-2006, 12:16 PM

I am in tears due to laughing so hard (but not out loud...I am at work. [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img] ) The glowing ice cubes...yeah..I lost it. I have to get one of those shirts. I will be on the look out for that one in June.

lindawdw · 03-10-2006, 02:08 PM

You sound like you are having such a great time together! I love that shirt! Glad Calder got to exchange his PDA for something useful!!! Can't wait for more. [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

WishIwasinDisney · 03-10-2006, 02:17 PM

Your report is great! I just LOVE that shirt. I've never seen it there before (and I shop alot at Disney). I think I may just have to call mail order this afternoon.... [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]

**Caldercup** · 03-10-2006, 05:13 PM

<font color="blue"> We got back to the room and hopped into our swimsuits – it seemed warm enough that I wanted to swim too. Our room was a quick walk to the pool and Calder went straight in without hesitation. I stepped in. WOWWEEEEE – that’s cold! I stepped in farther. Yooooowhhheeeeeeeww – not getting warmer! I stood there a second watching Calder climb up the serpent’s back and come out down his tongue. <shiver> Iiiiiiii tthhh-thhh-iiiii-nnnn-kkkk iiiii-ttttssss tooooooooo coooo-old… I hopped out and grabbed my towel. I had barely gotten my suit wet, but now the air was freezing off my assets. I watched Calder come down Scales’ tongue again and I got his attention. I told him that I was going back to the room, but that I’d return as soon as I was dressed. He seemed fine with that and climbed the stairs. (As I stood there, I watched a little pink-suited confection go tearing up the stairs and completely wipe out. She lay sprawled across the steps, not breathing. Then she got up and was clutching her ribs. I asked her if she was okay and she was in that “I’m-not-gonna-cry” stage, so she just nodded. I looked around and saw that her mom was coming over tout de suite, so I walked away knowing the little girl would be okay.)

I ran to the room and got back into warm clothes. I didn’t need a shower since I hadn’t even gone up to my armpits! I grabbed some sweat pants and a pullover for CJ and then took our mugs to the food court. I guzzled some coffee before filling them both up with hot chocolate and headed over to Calder.

His lips were turning blue, but he wasn’t ready to get out yet. I let him go down Scales’ tongue a few hundred more times before I told him to hop into the spa. (I know, I know. Kids under 16 aren’t supposed to go in these things, but his “ice cubes” were gonna freeze and I want grandchildren.) A few minutes in the warm water, drinking hot chocolate, and he was ready to pull his sweats on and head back to the room. I made him shower and dress for the evening.

Then it was back on the bus and we were at Epcot in no time! I realized that we only had about 5 minutes left on our FPs for Soarin’ and would never make it over there and back to Japan for our ADR, so I passed them over to someone who was heading that way.

My boy looked wiped after his swim time, so I suggested we take a Friendship to the other side. He readily agreed and we sat on a bench. The boat was at the other dock, so I figured we had about 5 minutes before it would arrive at our side. I grabbed my woefully underused camera and started taking some pictures – the sky was a beautiful shade of “evening slipping into night” and I tried to capture it as best as I could.

I looked at my watch. I looked over at the other side. The boat was still there. Hmmmm… what’s taking them so long? Calder snuggled against me and we chatted a bit about life and dogs and Disney – our favorite topics.

I looked at my watch again. I looked over at the other side again. The boat was STILL there. Oh, no. If it didn’t leave the dock almost immediately, we’d be late. But, if we tried to walk all the way to Japan from here, we’d still be late. My boy’s sagging eyelids made the decision for me – we’d wait for the boat. He was too tuckered to make the walk at top speed.

I started doing countdowns. “The boat will leave in 5…4…3…2…1 seconds! Nope. Okay, 10…9…8…" FINALLY it started moving and got over to us quickly. Since many people had given up and walked away, we had the boat almost to ourselves. As we motored over, I called Karen and apologized ONCE AGAIN for being late.

We ran past the loooong line of people waiting to get into the Candlelight Processional.

As we turned in to the Japan pavilion, the drummers were out, being loud and surprisingly bouncy! Calder planted himself and I couldn’t get him to move. Finally, I just hauled on his hoodie and he followed me up the stairs, where we practically ran smack into Karen. She introduced us to our dinner companions – Carol (ripkensnana) and her husband, Bob. Along with them were Malcolm and “Mom” (but my brain has fried and I can’t remember their relationship to Carol now.) Carol was sweet enough to have brought gifts – a Cinderella cel for me and a Herbie “hotwheel” for Calder. He loved it and forced me to free it from its packaging right there.

The joint was hopping – so many people were waiting to get in. But… our names were called and we were ushered to our table quickly. The boys sat on the end and Karen and I tucked in beside them, where we could keep an eye on them and the action.

I got another Momo – yum! So smooth and creamy. Calder wanted the Donald meal again –he loves this and has even started eating my version of this meal at home! I got the Kamome again and really loved it.

Our chef was named Mishiko (although I’m probably not spelling it correctly.) She was adorable and very pert and pretty. She had a silly sense of humor and really played it up for us – I loved her imitation of Pinocchio with the pepper grinder!. She was a wizard with the whole presentation and was a blast to watch. Afterwards, she posed with the boys and we all had a terrific time watching their antics.

Zack looks like he's gonna break into an Elvis song!

Our hostess offered us a chance to taste a new variety of Green Tea they were serving. Zack surprised me and really seemed to like it. I waved it off, but he insisted I try. It tasted exactly like a steeped concoction of an old sneaker that had just been worn to mow the lawn. Yecchhhh!

I think Teppanyaki is a really fun place to dine, but the seating and the “show” make it hard to have a conversation – I don’t think I was able to say more than 10 words to Carol and her group. Sorry!

We said our goodbyes and the four of us started strolling past the CP. Karen told me that they had two FPs for TestTrack. We headed over to Future World and cut across near the Odyssey. I looked back at the Epcot tree and there was a lovely view of the tree and the archways being reflected in the water.

[Up next: A drive, a rocket, a show and the waterworks!]
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**LizardCop** · 03-10-2006, 05:22 PM

[b]Great Update and IMPRESSIVE photos!!!

DawnDenise · 03-10-2006, 05:33 PM

[ QUOTE ]
(I know, I know. Kids under 16 aren’t supposed to go in these things, but his “ice cubes” were gonna freeze and I want grandchildren.)

[/ QUOTE ]

OK...you got me in trouble for that one!!! [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/roflmao.gif[/img][img]/ubb/images/graemlins/roflmao.gif[/img]

I am trying Teppanyaki on my trip in October for the first time. Looks like I'll enjoy it.

**Colexis Mom** · 03-10-2006, 06:00 PM

Great update Eileen [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/zwavin.gif[/img] Fantastic pictures! And great comment about the ice cubes [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/rofl2.gif[/img] [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/rofl2.gif[/img] [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/rofl2.gif[/img]

lauren-roxy · 03-11-2006, 09:31 AM

Another fantastic update Eileen!! I love the pictures!! Sounds like a wonderful dinner! Can't wait to read more of your enjoyable report!!

**Caldercup** · 03-11-2006, 03:01 PM

<font color="blue"> As we walked over to Test Track, Karen offered her FP to Calder, who instantly started saying, “NO WAY!” [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/noway.gif[/img] (Incidentally, Bob and I made the mistake in ’02 by taking a [then] 6 year old Calder on TT as his very first ride at WDW -- in fact, it was his very first ride ever!! He freaked out and hated it [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/mad.gif[/img] He swore up and down that he’d never go on it again. [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/082502no_prv.gif[/img] )

He asked me if we could take a rest room stop while K&Z went on the ride. We walked over to the bathrooms behind MouseGears and Calder came out quickly. He announced that he’d like to ride TT now. Totally psyched that he’d found the determination, I hustled him over to the entrance to find K&Z “in conference.” Calder screams “I’m ready to go” and Zack’s face lit up! They ran into the ride together and Karen and I worked our way back through the exit area to await their victorious return. (I was a little apprehensive that Calder would freak out and then be embarrassed to have freaked while in the presence of Zack… so I was holding my breath.) After a short wait in the ride photo area, the boys came back to us, exhilarated by their super-fast spin around the track. Calder proclaimed the ride “awesome” and wanted to go on it again. Since it was quickly approaching 9PM, we ran over to Mission:Space to get in one last ride. There was almost no line and we were packed into our module pretty quickly. What a relief that we didn’t have to listen to “computer override” this trip – Karen and Zack performed their space duties like troopers! [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

Zack wasn’t interested in seeing Illuminations, so he stayed back in the gift shop a bit and would meet us in MouseGears afterwards. The rest of us ran full out to get up close to the water. We managed to find a decent, but obstructed, view right between the two shops – behind the area where the Grand Gathering dessert reception was going on. (Oh, to be on the other side of those potted trees! [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/facelick.gif[/img] )

Calder found a spot right by the rail in front of two little old ladies who welcomed him into their spot. I had a pretty good view behind the little trees – that is until a gentleman who was standing in front of me shifted his weight and put his massive head right in front of my view. (I swear to you that this man had no neck and the widest head I’ve ever seen.) So, I shifted. A moment later, Mr. Fat Head shifted back. I shifted again. We did this little dance about ten times before Mr. Fat Head was joined by his wife. So, suddenly, my “decent” view was completely obstructed by The Fat Heads (although, to be fair, Mrs. FH was more of a “long neck” than a “fat head.” Still – she blocked my view [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/mad.gif[/img] and she hadn’t been there for the first 7-8 minutes of the show.) Almost without thinking, I reached forward and tapped her on the shoulder – “I’m sorry, but I can’t see now.” She gave me a dirty look, but she moved over a few feet and motioned Mr. Fat Head to move too. I gave her a big smile and then gave myself over to the emotions this show elicits from me.

As soon as the regular fireworks were over, the herd moved out (Mr. and Mrs. FH left too!) and there was almost no one standing around us when the holiday ending started. Wow… were these things brilliant, beautiful, awe-inspiring, and truly amazing. With the music and the noise, and the sheer power of the fireworks – I started crying. No, let me re-phrase that. I started weeping. And I don’t mean a few tears – I mean big, gulping sobs that made me jam my fist into my mouth to stifle them. I could barely see for how hard I was crying. I looked over at Karen and she was a complete mess too. She was wiping away tears with one hand while using the other to capture the event on video. God bless her, I could barely keep my feet under me and there she was valiantly holding up her camera. We gave each other a watery smile and went back to the splendor of the show. When it was over, we sort of struggled over to each other and embraced. (Thinking back on this, it was very silly, but – at the time – it was a blessing to have had a friend there!)

Calder came back over to me and I could tell that he had been crying a little too. (He loves to tease me, but he’s moved by these things too.)

A little sniveling and wiping our cheeks and we were ready to head out again. I loved seeing the messages projected on the silver ball… very festive and magical.

We walked into MouseGears to find Zack and he was right there, shopping away to his heart’s content. I needed a rest room break and so did Karen. We walked to the door that leads to the bathrooms behind MouseGears and found it locked. Then Karen mentioned that there are very good bathrooms at the Electric Umbrella. So we ran that way and made it all the way into the bathrooms before a CM told us they were closed. She must’ve seen the stricken looks on our faces because she waved us in anyway! Thank God, because I would’ve peed my pants if I’d had to wait any longer!

We said our goodbyes to K&Z and promised to see them at Chef Mickeys in the morning.

There was a fair line of people waiting to get on the bus and there were two buses currently loading. Just as they took off, a third bus came and managed to stuff just about everyone onboard. Calder and I had to stand towards the back, but it was one of those buses with a “wall” that we could lean against.

Once in the room, Calder got into jammies while I went into packing mode. We hadn’t brought much with us, but we had done some serious shopping and we’d bought those character cups and had the tub from the popcorn to pack. After trying to cram everything in, I finally had to unpack it all again and repack our resort mugs, the cups and the popcorn tub with dirty socks and undies just to make enough room for everything. (Yuck!) Finally, I was done and everything was ready for us to go the next day.

Calder was practically nodding off (it WAS around 11PM and he’s no night owl…) I managed to fall asleep by midnight and I slept deeply, dreaming of some good ol’ napkin waving at my favorite breakfast venue!

The weather was mid-60s and sunny – starting to warm up.
The best thing today was spending the evening with Karen and Zack.
The worst thing today was waiting for transportation… I just wasn’t in sync with things this trip.
The funniest thing today was our Teppanyaki chef and Zack’s reaction to my reaction to the Green Tea! :yuck:
Today we tried the Illuminations “holiday” ending
And the result was that it turned me into a bowlful of jelly - [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/zcry.gif[/img]
The most magical moment today was having Karen to turn to and hug, knowing that she was moved by it all too!

<Up next: the monorail and Chef Mickeys>

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lauren-roxy · 03-11-2006, 03:11 PM

Another great update Eileen!! I got a chuckle over Mr and Mrs Fat Head!!!! I hate that this trip is ending, I have really enjoyed your report!! I do know that I will have another one to enjoy again soon!! Can't wait to hear all about breakfast!!

mestitch · 03-11-2006, 03:55 PM

Eileen I love reading your report! And there's nothing worse than a couple fatheads getting in your way!! (especially if you're a little vertically challenged like me!)

ripkensnana · 03-11-2006, 04:40 PM

Eileen, it was great having dinner with you, Calder, Karen and Zack at Teppanyaki. I, too, wish that we'd had more time to chat! BTW, Malcolm's mother's name is Kathy, and Malcolm is my Disney Buddy, and also a member of our LASFA group...no relationship other than very good friends [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]...see my TR

**Caldercup** · 03-11-2006, 04:55 PM

Thanks for clearing that up, Carol. I felt bad not getting to chat, but I hope we can meet up again another day.

Maybe Bob will get his wish and Mousefest will be held when you can escort people into the GM lounge at TestTrack. [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/luck.gif[/img]
Eileen

ripkensnana · 03-11-2006, 05:09 PM

[ QUOTE ]
Maybe Bob will get his wish and Mousefest will be held when you can escort people into the GM lounge at TestTrack

[/ QUOTE ]

We're thinking about asking Jennifer and Dave if we can make that a meet of some sort - we'd have to limit the number of people, though...maybe the first X number of people who email/PM me....

PrincessSharon · 03-11-2006, 06:04 PM

Just catching up, Eileen! LOVE your TR! And your story about Mr. & Mrs. FH had me howling! I think I sat behind Mr. FH at Philharmagic once! [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img] Sorry this excellent TR is coming to an end, but can't wait for more!