FIRSTS, BIRTHS, and GIRTHS - A September 2013 TR - Page 3 - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
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Great start!!
I'm not really sure how I would have handled the "nervous" guy on the shuttle, but it sounds like the driver and the older gentleman had things under control!!
Can't wait to read some more about your trip!!
I loved that video!
Kind of crazy on the shuttle to the airport - glad you had to get off on the other stop!
You've arrived! Yay!
Thanks! I'm glad we have it as part of the mementos of the trip. We made it safe and sound without any problems...
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Originally Posted by scdisneyfan
Just joining in late but wow that's a lot of peeps going kudos to you! Love the wake up your going to disney how cool is that???!!! So that guy would've offically freaked me out a lot! But glad you made it to Orlando! Cant wait to read more!
Welcome to the journey! It was a crazy amount of people but thankfully we all agreed to just go at our own paces and not worry about who is following along with who...we just went with it... We made it safe and sound! More to come!
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Originally Posted by stardust190
Ok I'm finally getting the time to start this. Life has been too crazy around my house. Glad you were able to get everything you needed done while DD was in preschool. I'm not sure how you did it. Is she in all day preschool or something? Cam only goes for 2 1/2 hours at a time so I have no idea how I'll get my pre-trip stuff accomplished.
Sounds like a nice start to the trip. I love the video of the reveal. I'm so glad you were able to keep your secret. As you know I didn't succeed with mine, but I'm glad it's out and I'm able to talk to DH about it. I love the sleeping picture on the plane. That wake up time was way too early for such a young lady.
Also, rereading your cast intros and such we have way too much in common. Not only do we plan the same (ie. crazy nutcase planner people (according to my DH)), but we're both 31 with husbands who are only 30. Do people question you about that? I often get the "oh he's younger than you". It's only 8 months difference people. We're both government employees (I'm with the state, but same difference). The shutdown effect you? And we both weigh ourselves before the trip! And my goal is to hit 150 before we go. Seriously I was reading and kept thinking "she's my Disney twin!"
DD is in daycare in the morning, then she has her preschool class in the afternoon every day. Fortunatley, Cam already knows you're going so maybe he can help you collect the things you need into a tote? Like a scavenger hunt? The reveal was fun, but I'm not sure we would do it that way again. I love the way you surprised your DH...it was cute to follow along on Facebook! Wow! We do have a lot in common! DH just turned 31 but I'll be 32 in 4 more months. Typically, people seem to think that DH is older than me...which is weird for me. When we dated, I was always carded for alcohol and he never was...it was most frustrating. The government shutdown has affected us BIG time. Both DH and I work for Social Security Administration; so we are both furloughed right now and $0 income coming in...it's stressful, but I think we will be okay. No debt so that helps! I think you might be right! Disney Twins!!
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Originally Posted by TuffyCO
Not sure how I missed seeing this start! I've also been a bit crazy since returning home. I still am in awe of your cast of characters, I can't imagine so many people on a trip. But it's great that so many wanted to share in the fun. I love the reveal and can't believe she was up so early for it. I also love her sleeping on the plane, that is a good thing with such an early start. Can't wait to hear more!
We loved the fact that so many people wanted to go along with us; even if it was brief visits and check ins...it was still pretty cool. I can't believe Hannah was up that early either! I honestly thought she was going to give me a harder time that what she did.
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Originally Posted by travismom
Great start!!
I'm not really sure how I would have handled the "nervous" guy on the shuttle, but it sounds like the driver and the older gentleman had things under control!!
Can't wait to read some more about your trip!!
Thank goodness for the older guy and the driver...I never felt "unsafe" but rather "unsure" of this nutty character. More to come...hang in there!
A very friendly CM checked us in at the DME kiosk and knew right away that we had Magic Bands. She asked us to go ahead and get those out and put them on so we could use them immediately at the next counter. We received our lane number (two) and moved along to wait in line. DMiL and DSFiL lodged at All Star Music for the week so they were ushered to a different line. We said quick goodbyes and see you laters and went our separate directions. We were at the end of the line, so once the CMs began boarding travelers, we had only waited about 15 minutes.
Of course we ended up at the back of the bus, but that was fine because there are three seats together. I tried to get photos as we passed under the magical sign; however, it was a complete fail. Eh…maybe next time. I was able to catch the Magic Kingdom sign...
Stop one was Wilderness Lodge and Villas, stop two was Contemporary and Bay Lake Towers, and stop three was the Polynesian! I texted DM to let her know where we were after each stop. My parents wanted to surprise Hannah in the lobby when we arrived. Hannah was still unaware that my parents were also in Disney World. I received a very interesting text message from DM saying, “You are going to s#*t!” Apparently, I had not received her emails with pictures of the room, so I thought my parents were pretty impressed with the resort itself. I had no idea what was about to happen. In hindsight, I’m thankful I did not receive the pictures because I really wanted to be surprised.
When we arrived at the Polynesian, we collected our bags and headed toward the lobby. We immediately noticed the theming and I could not get over how incredible it was! I knew from looking at Tommy that he loved this resort already! Score one for Kristin! My parents were right inside and Hannah ran to them as soon as she saw them. We said our hellos and shared hugs. My parents seemed VERY happy and loved the resort; I still had no idea what was going on. They did share with us that we had rooms right next door to each other, so I was pleased with this information. Looking around the lobby, it was amazing! The sounds, the waterfall, the smell…I was in heaven! We checked in without any problems. The CM was very nice and explained everything to us. We originally requested a standard balcony room in Tokelau during online check in. They assigned us to a patio in Aotearoa. I decided not to argue that none of our requests were met for several reasons: 1) They warn you that requests are not guaranteed, 2) My parents were already settled into the room next to us, and 3) I already knew that the Polynesian was planning to prep for construction/renovation on that side of the resort. I figured they were trying to keep reservations to the other side to limit any inconveniences. After checking in, I moved over into the Concierge line to print our list of ADRs and dinner show tickets. While I did this and since our room was ready, Tommy and DF took all of our luggage to our room. We had a slight delay at Concierge because they had a difficult time finding all of our reservations. Since travel agents typically use their own email addresses to make ADRs for clients, they had to transfer them over to my email address so that I could view them on My Disney Experience. As I stood in the lobby waiting for Concierge to transfer all of my ADRs, I just loved the way the lobby smelled! I watched the waterfall for a while too…it was a very relaxing and surreal feeling to be there at that moment.
After resolving the ADR issues at Concierge, DM led Hannah and me to our rooms. Just a quick five minute walk around the marina and we were at Aotearoa.
Great building location! The air conditioning hit our faces as soon as those sliding doors opened and it was fantastic! We walked the long hallway all the way to the other end of the building and our rooms were on the right. Hannah used her Magic Band to open the door (which she loved to do during the whole week) and we walked in. The first thing I noticed was the smell…AAAHHH-MAAA-ZING! Everyone teased me all week long that it was just the smell of the cleaner mousekeeping used in the rooms, but I refused to believe it was just cleaner. The smell was this tropical, beach, refreshing air smell. They really need to bottle this stuff and sell it. I will never forget that smell! As I walked further into the room, Tommy came over from my parents’ room and just said keep walking. The windows at the other end of the room drew me closer and I realized…we had a LAGOON VIEW! As I stood there enjoying the incredible view and the beautiful grounds just beyond our patio, I looked a little closer and noticed something more amazing! WE COULD SEE THE CASTLE FROM OUR ROOMS! I could feel tears well up in my eyes and I silently thanked myself for keeping my mouth shut at check in and not requesting a different room. The real reason behind my DM’s interesting text while we were on DME finally sunk in! It wasn’t just a beautiful resort, we had a castle view! Essentially, we received a double upgrade! I was in complete awe and this view proved beneficial in other ways later in the week.
I did not want to leave this view; however, we were starving! We dropped everything and headed to Captain Cooks to pick up our refillable mugs and order lunch. Tommy picked an orange mug, Hannah a purple mug, and I selected the green mug. I love that you can use these at other resorts now, not just your own. We quickly learned how to order based on our dining plan and proceeded to the kiosk to place our order. Tommy ordered a bacon cheeseburger and fries, Hannah ordered the chicken nuggets with applesauce and grapes (she used Tommy’s dessert and picked up a Mickey rice krispie treat), and I ordered the Aloha Pork Sandwich and fries and a Mickey cupcake for dessert. We selected bottle drinks to stick in the fridge in our room and filled our mugs. We then went to the register, paid for our order with the Magic Bands/Dining Plan, and received our pager. My parents found a table and we unloaded all of the drinks and desserts. The food was DELICIOUS! Oh my goodness! Once we finished eating, we rolled back to our rooms.
Tommy and Hannah got dressed to go to the pool while I stayed back to unpack the room.
Once I had the room the way I wanted, Tommy and Hannah returned from the pool. Tommy stayed back to rest and shower while Hannah, DM, DF, and I went to explore the resort and take pictures. I also needed to trade my PhotoPass+ voucher for a card on the second floor of the lobby near Samoa Snacks. DM and Hannah ended up hanging out on the beach while DF and walked around to take pictures and scope out the location for the Spirit of Aloha Show since we had ADRs there this night at 8pm.
After pictures, DM and Hannah met up with us on the paths and we also found Tommy and headed into the lobby so I could get my PhotoPass+ card. One the way back to the room, we stopped at Tambu Lounge and the men ordered a couple of beers and I ordered the Lapu Lapu. WOW! That bad boy was potent! ….and AWESOME! …and sticky…. We headed back to the room for showers and rest before Spirit of Aloha. I had to get help to finish the Lapu Lapu!
About 25 minutes before show time, DMiL and DSFiL arrived at the Polynesian so we could show them around and check in for our ADR. After checking in, we had to go back to the lobby for our group photo (due to the iffy weather) and then back to the Luau. When we got back to the Luau, we waited about five minutes and they began to seat people. The food here was so delicious. Hannah had about three servings of the salad and a big helping of the mango coleslaw. These are two foods she does not typically care for at home, but she thoroughly enjoyed them here. Ahh…the magic of Disney! The show started and I thought it was really cute…then the dancing started and well…let’s just say there was a little something for the guys, and a little something for the ladies! Whew! I needed extra water! Hannah was getting so tired but refused to give up until the very end when the fire dancer came out. She was amazed and loved every moment of it!! If we ever come back to the Spirit of Aloha show, we will definitely do the earlier show. It’s easily a two hour show and was pretty late for Hannah, especially considering she was awake since 4:30am.
We returned to our room and got dressed for bed. Once Hannah’s head hit the pillow she was out! Tommy and I watched some resort TV and then lights were out on our first day at 10:50pm.
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I had tears in my eyes as I watched your reveal video. LOL I'm such a big sap, but it just hit me all the more because of our upcoming surprise as well!!!
So far it seems to be a great start to the trip, can't wait to read more!!!!
That was a very full day! That is an awesome upgrade on the room and I'm sure made the trip even more special. We did Spirit of Aloha later in the week and I completely agree on the little bit for the ladies. I thoroughly enjoyed the show.
Wonderful first day. How exciting about the room!!!! Your descriptions are so well done I feel like I'm there (and I've never actually been to the Poly)
Wow!!! Congratulations on the room!! I can almost smell the room from your description. We are planning a trip next November and we are leaning heavily toward the Polynesian. Your report may just help me decide!!!
What a great first day!!
Can't wait for more!
DD is in daycare in the morning, then she has her preschool class in the afternoon every day. Fortunatley, Cam already knows you're going so maybe he can help you collect the things you need into a tote? Like a scavenger hunt? The reveal was fun, but I'm not sure we would do it that way again. I love the way you surprised your DH...it was cute to follow along on Facebook! Wow! We do have a lot in common! DH just turned 31 but I'll be 32 in 4 more months. Typically, people seem to think that DH is older than me...which is weird for me. When we dated, I was always carded for alcohol and he never was...it was most frustrating. The government shutdown has affected us BIG time. Both DH and I work for Social Security Administration; so we are both furloughed right now and $0 income coming in...it's stressful, but I think we will be okay. No debt so that helps! I think you might be right! Disney Twins!!
Well... Cam would help with a scavenger hunt and think it was fun even. Until we we are almost done and then decides that he needs the bag to carry his rescue bots. Then he'd just dump it. I think I will just send the children to my moms that day. Although with her going with us she might want the day to get ready too! Maybe I'll beg my in-laws. And never mind about the us being Disney Twins thing. You and your DH are OLD. Not young like us over here. Nate doesn't turn 31 until March and I've got until July until I turn 32. I've always gotten carded more than Nate, but he's been unlucky in the hair department and started shaving his head when he was about 23 so I think that's mostly why. So sorry to hear about the shutdown and how it's affecting you. It can't last forever though! The State of MN shutdown for 5 weeks last year (I think it was last year), but because I work for the legislature I'm deemed an essential employee and was working and being paid. Although, there were many people who wanted to come after me with sharp object knowing that I worked for the legislature during that time.
As for your trip (I vaguely recall that this is actually a TR) how great about your room! I'm considering the Poly for a trip in the future. Although our next trip will be a cruise so maybe just a night or two at the Poly along with that. We went to the Luau in 2009 and I loved that resort. And you're right about the smells. It just smells lovely there. And I didn't even get to go in a room.
Looking forward to hearing about the rest of your adventures!
I had tears in my eyes as I watched your reveal video. LOL I'm such a big sap, but it just hit me all the more because of our upcoming surprise as well!!!
So far it seems to be a great start to the trip, can't wait to read more!!!!
I was the same way when I scoured YouTube for videos to get ideas. I was such a mess by the time I had watched a few videos!
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Originally Posted by iwonathomas
Loved all of the photos and everything seemed to be just perfect on your first day. Can't wait to hear more about your trip
It really was a perfect first day! I miss it so much!
Quote:
Originally Posted by TuffyCO
That was a very full day! That is an awesome upgrade on the room and I'm sure made the trip even more special. We did Spirit of Aloha later in the week and I completely agree on the little bit for the ladies. I thoroughly enjoyed the show.
Whew! I know it! The upgrade was truly magical. Hubba hubba, right?!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Colexis Mom
What a great day at the Poly! Love the pictures!
It really was the best day! Thanks!
Quote:
Originally Posted by elisa1006
Wonderful first day. How exciting about the room!!!! Your descriptions are so well done I feel like I'm there (and I've never actually been to the Poly)
Wow, thank you! I think I'm so descriptive because it was so memorable for me...I can still smell that scent!!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by travismom
Wow!!! Congratulations on the room!! I can almost smell the room from your description. We are planning a trip next November and we are leaning heavily toward the Polynesian. Your report may just help me decide!!!
What a great first day!!
Can't wait for more!
Thanks! I recommed really watching the boards and Tikiman's advice about the construction. They are working on DVC and renovations that will continue through 2015. If it were not for those concerns, I would fully support a trip to the Poly!
Quote:
Originally Posted by stardust190
Well... Cam would help with a scavenger hunt and think it was fun even. Until we we are almost done and then decides that he needs the bag to carry his rescue bots. Then he'd just dump it. I think I will just send the children to my moms that day. Although with her going with us she might want the day to get ready too! Maybe I'll beg my in-laws. And never mind about the us being Disney Twins thing. You and your DH are OLD. Not young like us over here. Nate doesn't turn 31 until March and I've got until July until I turn 32. I've always gotten carded more than Nate, but he's been unlucky in the hair department and started shaving his head when he was about 23 so I think that's mostly why. So sorry to hear about the shutdown and how it's affecting you. It can't last forever though! The State of MN shutdown for 5 weeks last year (I think it was last year), but because I work for the legislature I'm deemed an essential employee and was working and being paid. Although, there were many people who wanted to come after me with sharp object knowing that I worked for the legislature during that time.
As for your trip (I vaguely recall that this is actually a TR) how great about your room! I'm considering the Poly for a trip in the future. Although our next trip will be a cruise so maybe just a night or two at the Poly along with that. We went to the Luau in 2009 and I loved that resort. And you're right about the smells. It just smells lovely there. And I didn't even get to go in a room.
Looking forward to hearing about the rest of your adventures!
Oh Lord help me...I mis-typed...DH just turned 30 during the trip...so we actually have a year and nine months between us. We just keep watching the news right now...just looking for signs of actual communication would be progress. So far, no such luck. I keep praying though! I would definitely stay at the Poly again...I highly recommend this resort!!!
At 8:00am, we received a wake up call from Mike Wazowski! I obeyed his orders to get my butt out of bed and headed to the bathroom to take a shower while the others got dressed/ready for the day. Just as we finished, DMiL and DSFiL arrived at the Polynesian Resort to meet us for breakfast. We headed down to Concierge first to fix an issue with our dining credits. Since the reservation for the Spirit of Aloha Dinner Show the previous night was under my name, all of the dining credits were charged to our account. Concierge was able to return my credits to me and charge my parents and DMiL/DSFiL the appropriate credits. We also had Concierge do the same thing for the Hoop Dee Doo Revue that we had reservations for later in the week. Once we resolved the dining issue, we headed to check in to ‘Ohana for our 10:00am reservation!
Our server’s name was Katie, and she was awesome!!!! She explained how the meal would be served and how the dining plan charges would work while filling our glasses with the most amazing juice that ever touched my lips! YUM! I felt like a queen dining on delicious eggs, Mickey waffles, bacon, fruit, and oh…oh my goodness…the pink sauce…THE PINK SAUCE! I’m pretty sure I did not share the pink sauce. I had a platter of fruit and pink sauce right in front of me, and even though I encouraged everyone at the table to try it, I was secretly trying to horde it for myself. I miss the pink sauce…
I was a little nervous about how Hannah would interact with the characters since this was the first opportunity, but I would like to take this moment to give a shout out to the Stitch cast member who worked on Sunday, September 8, 2013 at 10:00am for breakfast at ‘Ohana. Stitch noticed Hannah was nervous and moved slowly and let her touch his hand and pet him until finally she just fell in love with him. I am very upset that I do not have a clear photo of the two of them because Stitch broke the ice for Hannah and set the scene for some very memorable character encounters for the rest of the trip. Gammy-If you have a photo, can you please upload it here? All Hail Stitch!!!
After our delicious breakfast, we headed back to our rooms for potty breaks and to grab our bags and head to Disney’s Boardwalk. Now, in all of my research on Disney transportation, I never came across the one tidbit of information that really could have helped us at this point…You cannot catch a bus from Epcot to Disney’s Boardwalk Inn and Villas. Alas, we had to learn the hard way. We caught the monorail to the TTC and transferred to the Epcot line. Once at Epcot, we learned of our error and had to catch a bus to Hollywood Studios. Once at Hollywood Studios, we grabbed a boat to the Boardwalk. In the end, we made light of the situation by congratulating ourselves for using all of Disney’s transportation in one day! Yeah us! Once there, we quickly learned that the Boardwalk is best at night…ah well. We were able to meet up with DA1, DC1, DC2, Dawn, and Ariana before they headed over to Epcot. DA1 gave me a card thanking me for all of my help in planning the trip and surprised me with a Disney gift card! It was so sweet and brought tears to my eyes. We did some shopping in the General Store; I bought a cookbook and Tommy bought a beer while Hannah used a snack credit on one of those giant lollipops. We figured out that the refillable mug station was located in Main Street Bakery (I am so glad we brought the mugs this day because it was HOT and we were so thankful that the rules had changed and you could now refill your mugs at all of the resorts!). We filled our mugs, took a potty break, and watched a young girl in a beautiful gown on the balcony at the Boardwalk Inn and Villas having a Quincenera photo shoot. You could see that she felt like a princess! Hannah admired her and thought her gown was very pretty. After watching for a bit, my parents, DA1, DC1, DC2, Dawn, and Ariana split off and headed into Epcot. Tommy was quickly getting bored so he, Hannah, DMiL, DSFiL, and I decided to rent surrey bikes.
When we got started, we were all, “This will be fun and relaxing; just peddling around the Boardwalk.” That was until we hit the first hill near the Epcot rear entrance. UUGGHH! What a workout! We took a break at the top of the hill and then took delight in speeding down the other side as fast as we could so we could whip up a good breeze after sweating half to death! It was at that point that I realized that I left my refillable mug on the bike rental counter…*sigh* Hopefully it would still be there when we returned. Of course, we had to battle another hill before that…I had to work for it! Before getting to the point that we were going to slide down the hill backwards, we finally made it to the top. Once again, we blasted down and around, catching a nice breeze. In the distance, I caught a glimpse of the green cap on my mug sitting on the bike rental counter. THANK YOU GOD! After feeling triumphant and slightly delusional, we decided to go around again. This time; however, DMiL and DSFiL lost their backpack somewhere along the path. So DSFiL walked one direction while the rest of us peddled the other direction. We barely made it over the first hill, but kept peddling and searching for the backpack. When we finally made it to the second hill, we had not worked up enough umph to get up the hill and Tommy had to get out and push us the rest of the way. We met up with DSFiL and returned to the bike rental desk to let them know what happened. DMiL was able to get a replacement shirt from the General Store that she had purchased and put in the backpack. Later that night, she was also able to replace the refillable mug that was also in there.
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kudos to you! Love the wake up your going to disney how cool is that???!!! So that guy would've offically freaked me out a lot! But glad you made it to Orlando! Cant wait to read more!
But it's great that so many wanted to share in the fun. I love the reveal and can't believe she was up so early for it. I also love her sleeping on the plane, that is a good thing with such an early start. Can't wait to hear more!
Kristin
I've always gotten carded more than Nate, but he's been unlucky in the hair department and started shaving his head when he was about 23 so I think that's mostly why. So sorry to hear about the shutdown and how it's affecting you. It can't last forever though! The State of MN shutdown for 5 weeks last year (I think it was last year), but because I work for the legislature I'm deemed an essential employee and was working and being paid. Although, there were many people who wanted to come after me with sharp object knowing that I worked for the legislature during that time. 
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