A Very Merry Surprise ~ The TR (11/4/11 - 11/12/11) - Page 2 - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
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What a great reveal. You're raising very responsible girls if they are worried about missing school over disney.
Can't wait for more.
More coming up shortly!
I couldn't believe it when they said that. At that age, I would never have said that I couldn't go to Disney because I had school
Quote:
Originally Posted by jovigirlnj
I love this!!
Me too! It made me laugh so hard
Quote:
Originally Posted by lauriep
Sometimes a surprise is so exciting it takes a while to sink in! I love the delayed reaction. You're off! It'll be fun reading your report and thinking-- that's the day I did ...
I thought the same thing when reading your report. It was interesting to see what experienced while we were off exploring a different part of the World
Quote:
Originally Posted by shena_03
Great start, can't wait to read more!
I'm working on it
Quote:
Originally Posted by lexiemom
I can picture the girls confused at first and then excited. Can't wait for more!
Thanks for following along, I hope to have another update later today!
Quote:
Originally Posted by truenancy
That's awesome! I love the kids who are so clued in to their regular schedule that they're like the ants in Bug's Life. My friend surprised her DD7, saying that she was going to pick her up early from school for a check-up. The balloons, the family, the luggage, everything was in the parking lot, but she was totally confused. Precious little thing - days later she was still asking about rescheduling the doctor's appointment.
Sounds like it didn't take too long for your girls to adjust!
I could totally see my Abby worrying about that missed doctor's appointment too! Luckily it didn't take to long for them to get over missing school
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dlandmom2
Great start! You did a fantastic job keeping the surprise from the girls for so long!
Thanks! It was SO hard to keep the secret, but so very worth it to see their reaction!
Quote:
Originally Posted by brandy_mel
Great reveal! It will be a story I'm sure the girls will tell over and over again. I can't wait to hear more.
I do hope that it is a memory that will stay with them for a long time. Thanks for reading along, I hope to have another update soon
Quote:
Originally Posted by bsblady01
more please
I'm working on it
Quote:
Originally Posted by Colexis Mom
Great start Jenn! Glad the girls are excited to go!
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Oooh, you're good! The farthest I've gotten is to put the pictures on my computer. (and Craig did that ) I haven't uploaded them or even looked at the photopass pics. I'll just live vicariously through you for a little while.
Love the reveal!! How cute that they were worried about school. I don't think that thought would ever cross my boys minds. Looking forward to more.
Day 1, Part 2 - Friday 11/4/11 Driving Off into the Sunset, er, Sunrise ...
It was just before 7 AM when we pulled out of our driveway , it was still completely dark out with no signs of daylight to be seen. We made a quick stop at the bagel shop for Chris and I, the girls chose to eat some dry cereal and fruit in the car for breakfast. We hit the NJ Turnpike at about a quarter after 7 and it was smooth sailing all the way down through Jersey. The sun began to rise and it was a beautiful sight. Kaeli was excited to see it, I'm not sure that Abby cared one bit about it .
We made record time all the way to DC, I think we passed the city just after 10 AM even after stopping near Baltimore for a potty break. I was amazed at how fast we made it there, and I assure you that Chris was not driving like a crazy person. He was most of the time just keeping up with the flow of traffic but many times we were being passed by some speed demons .
As we made our way into Virginia there was some road construction going on, but there were never any severe traffic back ups. At some points we were a little slow moving, but those were few and far between. So, still, we are making excellent time. Chris and I found a great 80s radio station to keep ourselves entertained this morning, with lots of monster ballads from Journey and the like , while the girls watched movies on the portable DVD. I think by this point they had watched both Rio and Shrek 2, and Monsters Inc. had just started. Other than that, a pretty uneventful trip so far .
At about 11:30 AM we decided we were hungry, and so we stopped at a Subway to grab some lunch . After eating I took the girls to the restroom while Chris went outside to fill up the gas tank. I offered to take over driving duties, but Chris said that he was fine to continue on. We were back on the road around noon and we were passing through Richmond about 40 minutes later. Our next stop would be around 2 PM at the North Carolina Welcome Center for a bathroom break. We let the girls run off some steam on a little grassy area in front of the building before getting back in the car, but did not stay long. All in all, I think we were there for about 10 minutes, but the girls were refreshed and ready to get back on the road.
I took over driving at this point since Chris wanted to rest for a little bit. It had been overcast and cloudy for most of our drive today, but of course it waited until I started driving to start raining . It started out as a light mist, but slowly gets heavier the further south we travel (never really reaching downpour status though). At this point the girls had stopped watching movies and had moved on to reading and using the coloring books I had packed for them. They were also having fun singing along to the music on the radio, much to the chagrin of Daddy who was trying to take a nap . I kept them as quiet as I could, but that is a difficult task when you have two small children cooped up in a car all day! Unfortunately for Chris, his nap was short lived, but he was able to get some rest while I drove.
I got us all the way through North Carolina and we stopped to fill up our tank at South of the Border as we enterd South Carolina around 4 PM. I took the girls into the gas station convenience store for the restrooms, only to find out they were outside, all the way around the back of the building. (I should add that this was a rather large building, as it also housed a car wash in addition to the convenience store). I didn't tell Chris about the location of the bathrooms, I just walked around with Kaeli and Abby. We made the trek there and back in the cold wind and rain, only to return back to the gas pumps to find Chris gone. OK, where did he go??? I looked around the side of the building to see if he had parked, nope, not there . I peeked inside of the store to see if he was in there, not one customer was inside . I was cold , wet and starting to worry, but walked again to the rear of the building to find Chris parked outside of the bathrooms. He must have drove around one side of the building while the girls and I walked around the other. He most definitely was not parked outside when we left the restroom, I would have noticed as he was practically in front of the door. I quickly got in the car and gave Chris a miffed look , and he did not understand why I was upset since he was doing something "nice". Well, while I appreciate him trying to save me the cold walk, I told him that next time he needed to stay put where I knew he was, or he should call my cell to let me know that he was moving. I quickly got over it, and we back on I 95 around 4:30 PM.
We had a rather uneventful drive for the rest of the evening. We stopped quickly for dinner at Wendy's around 6 and then continued on to our destination, a Fairfield Inn in Kingsland, GA (just a few miles north of the Florida border). Our GPS got us a little turned around as we made it off of our exit in Kingsland, but we eventually found the hotel and checked in at about 9:30 PM. We were originally assigned a room right on the first floor near the lobby, but the man at the front desk changed that and moved us up to the second floor since sometimes guests in the lobby can get loud and he didn't want them to disturb us. I was very thankful for that, as we were all tired and needed sleep .
Chris grabbed our overnight bag after checking in, and we made our way up to our room. It was rather large and very clean, and, even though we didn't use them, it was nice to see that there was a microwave, fridge and coffee maker available in every room. The hotel itself looked like it was fairly new, and it was well taken care of. It was in a very populated exit, there were lots of other hotels, gas stations and restaurants in this little area off of 95. A good thing to keep in mind, as some (but definitely not all) of the exits are rather desolate and we don't feel safe stopping in areas like that. We got an excellent rate through AAA for this hotel, and I would definitely recommend it to others .
The girls got themselves ready for bed and were quickly asleep , while Chris and I watched a little tv to unwind. It had been a long day, and I think we were all fast asleep by 10:30 PM, with the alarm set for 7 AM.
Oooh, you're good! The farthest I've gotten is to put the pictures on my computer. (and Craig did that ) I haven't uploaded them or even looked at the photopass pics. I'll just live vicariously through you for a little while.
Love the reveal!! How cute that they were worried about school. I don't think that thought would ever cross my boys minds. Looking forward to more.
Live vicariously all you want I am surprised I was able to get this done though, it has been crazy over here since we've gotten home!
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I could imagine you walking around the one side as Chris drives around the other - too funny...Well now its funny I am sure at that moment it wasnt...
Sounds like a good trip down with no traffic!! Nice!!!
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It was a long day, but so worth it to know we were only a few hours from WDW that night!
Quote:
Originally Posted by lauriep
Sounds like the drive down was as painless as it could have been. That's a lot of driving in one day, though!
It really was a painless ride down. But, then again, the ride there is always the easiest. It's leaving Disney and driving all that way that's the hardest
Quote:
Originally Posted by Wendyismyname
I love the girls' reaction to the reveal! They are such troopers with that long car ride you're almost there!!
They really were such troopers! They did a good job keeping themselves entertained and there was hardly any whining or "are we there yet"s that day.
Quote:
Originally Posted by bsblady01
more please
Working on it
Quote:
Originally Posted by chezp
Sounds like a good drive down so far!
Thanks
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bee
Sounds good More please
Coming up soon!
Quote:
Originally Posted by jovigirlnj
I could imagine you walking around the one side as Chris drives around the other - too funny...Well now its funny I am sure at that moment it wasnt...
Sounds like a good trip down with no traffic!! Nice!!!
Haha, definitely NOT funny at the time, but now I can look back and laugh at it And, we really did luck out on traffic and I was thankful for that.
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Glad the girls are excited to go! 
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) I haven't uploaded them or even looked at the photopass pics. 
I'll just live vicariously through you for a little while. 
. 
He was most of the time just keeping up with the flow of traffic but many times we were being passed by some speed demons 
. 
, while the girls watched movies on the portable DVD. I think by this point they had watched both Rio and Shrek 2, and Monsters Inc. had just started. Other than that, a pretty uneventful trip so far 
. After eating I took the girls to the restroom while Chris went outside to fill up the gas tank. I offered to take over driving duties, but Chris said that he was fine to continue on. We were back on the road around noon and we were passing through Richmond about 40 minutes later. Our next stop would be around 2 PM at the North Carolina Welcome Center for a bathroom break. We let the girls run off some steam on a little grassy area in front of the building before getting back in the car, but did not stay long. All in all, I think we were there for about 10 minutes, but the girls were refreshed and ready to get back on the road. 
. It started out as a light mist, but slowly gets heavier the further south we travel (never really reaching downpour status though). At this point the girls had stopped watching movies and had moved on to reading 
and using the coloring books I had packed for them. They were also having fun singing along to the music on the radio, much to the chagrin of Daddy who was trying to take a nap 
. I kept them as quiet as I could, but that is a difficult task when you have two small children cooped up in a car all day! Unfortunately for Chris, his nap was short lived, but he was able to get some rest while I drove. 
. I peeked inside of the store to see if he was in there, not one customer was inside 
, wet and starting to worry, but walked again to the rear of the building to find Chris parked outside of the bathrooms. He must have drove around one side of the building while the girls and I walked around the other. He most definitely was not parked outside when we left the restroom, I would have noticed as he was practically in front of the door. I quickly got in the car and gave Chris a miffed look 
, and he did not understand why I was upset since he was doing something "nice". Well, while I appreciate him trying to save me the cold walk, I told him that next time he needed to stay put where I knew he was, or he should call my cell to let me know that he was moving. I quickly got over it, and we back on I 95 around 4:30 PM. 
. 
, while Chris and I watched a little tv to unwind. It had been a long day, and I think we were all fast asleep by 10:30 PM, with the alarm set for 7 AM.
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