Trip Report for "Our Summer Surprise Trip", August 15-22, 2011 - COMPLETED!! 12/4 - Page 34 - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
PassPorter.com
Award-winning travel guidebooks

   guidebooks   |   news   |   podcasts   |   boards   |   blog   |   worksheets   |   photos   |   articles   |   updates   |   register   |   follow us on


Forums Closed
As of January 1, 2019, we have closed our forums. This is a decision we did not come to lightly, but it is necessary. The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk. The server software itself must be updated, and it cannot be without removing the forums.

So it is with a heavy heart that we say goodbye to our long-running forums. They came online in 2000 and brought together so many wonderful Disney fans. We had friendships form, careers launch, couples marry, children born ... all because of this amazing community.

Thank you to each of you who were a part of this community. You made it possible.

And a very special thank you to our Guides (moderators), past and present, who kept our forums a happy place to be. You are the glue that held everything together, and we are forever grateful to you. Thank you aliceinwdw, Caldercup, MrsM, WillCAD, Fortissimo, GingerJ, HiddenMickey, CRCrazy, Eeyoresmom, disneyknut, disneydani, Cam22, chezp, WDWfan, Luvsun, KMB733, rescuesk, OhToodles!, Colexis Mom, lfredsbo, HiddenMickey, DrDolphin, DopeyGirl, duck addict, Disneybine, PixieMichele, Sandra Bostwick, Eeyore Tattoo, DyanKJ130, Suzy Q'Disney, LilMarcieMouse, AllisonG, Belle*, Chrissi, Brant, DawnDenise, Crystalloubear, Disneymom9092, FanOfMickey, Goofy4Goofy, GoofyMom, Home4us123, iamgrumpy, ilovedisney247, Jennifer2003, Jenny Pooh, KrisLuvsDisney, Ladyt, Laughaholic88, LauraBelle Hime, Lilianna, LizardCop, Loobyoxlip, lukeandbrooksmom, marisag, michnash, MickeyMAC, OffKilter_Lynn, PamelaK, Poor_Eeyore, ripkensnana, RobDVC, SHEANA1226, Shell of the South, snoozin, Statelady01, Tara O'Hara, tigger22, Tink and Co., Tinkerbelz, WDWJAMBA, wdwlovers, Wendyismyname, whoSEZ, WildforWD, and WvuGrrrl. You made the magic.

We want to personally thank Sara Varney, who coordinated our community for many years (among so many other things she did for us), and Cheryl Pendry, our Message Board Manager who helped train our Guides, and Ginger Jabour, who helped us with the PassPorter-specific forums and Live! Guides. Thank you for your time, energy, and enthusiasm​. You made it all happen.

There are other changes as well.

Why? Well, the world has changed. And change with it, we must. The lyrics to "We Go On" for IllumiNations say it best:

We go on to the joy and through the tears
We go on to discover new frontiers
Moving on with the current of the years.
We go on
Moving forward now as one
Moving on with a spirit born to run
Ever on with each rising sun.
To a new day, we go on.

It's time to move on and move forward.

PassPorter is a small business, and for many years it supported our family. But the world changed, print books took a backseat to the Internet, and for a long time now it has been unable to make ends meet. We've had to find new ways to support our family, which means new careers and less and less time available to devote to our first baby, PassPorter.

But eventually, we must move on and move forward. It is the right thing to do.

So we are retiring this newsletter, as we simply cannot keep up with it. Many thanks to Mouse Fan Travel who supported it all these years, to All Ears and MousePlanet who helped us with news, to our many article contributors, and -- most importantly -- to Sara Varney who edited our newsletter so wonderfully for years and years.

And we are no longer charging for the Live Guides. If you have a subscription, it's yours to keep for the lifetime of the Live Guides at no additional cost. The Live Guides will stay online, barring server issues and technical problems, for all of 2019.

That said, PassPorter is not going away. Most of the resources will remain online for as long as we can support them, and after that we will find ways to make whatever we can available. PassPorter means a great deal to us, and to many of you, and we will do our best to keep it alive in whatever way we can. Our server costs are high, and they'll need to come out of our pockets, so in the future you can expect some changes so we can bring those costs down.

Thank you, thank you, thank you for your amazing support over the years. Without you, there's no way us little guys could have made something like this happen and given the "big guys" a run for their money. PassPorter was consistently the #3 guidebook after the Unofficial and Official guides, which was really unheard of for such a small company to do. We ROCKED it thanks to you and your support and love!

If you miss us, you can still find some of us online. Sara started a new blog at DisneyParkPrincess.com -- I strongly urge you to visit and get on her mailing list. She IS the Disney park princess and knows Disney backward and forward. And I am blogging as well at JenniferMaker.com, which is a little craft blog I started a couple of years ago to make ends meet. You can see and hear me in my craft show at https://www.youtube.com/c/jennifermaker . Many PassPorter readers and fans are on Facebook, in groups they formed like the PassPorter Trip Reports and PassPorter Crafting Challenge (if you join, just let them know you read about it in the newsletter). And some of our most devoted community members started a forum of their own at Pixie Dust Lane and all are invited over.

So we encourage you to stay in touch with us and your fellow community members wherever works best for you!

Best wishes for a wonderful and magical new year!

Go Back   PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums > PassPorter's Walt Disney World Resort (Florida) > Sharing the Adventure: Disney World Trip Reports
Register


Welcome! We're happy you've found the PassPorter Community -- the friendliest place to plan your vacation to Walt Disney World, Disney Cruise Line, Disneyland, and the world in general! You are now viewing the PassPorter Message Board Community as a guest, which gives you limited access. As our guest, feel free to browse our messages by selecting the forum you want to visit from the list below.

To post messages and ask questions, join our FREE community today and you'll get access to tools and resources not available to guests, such as our vacation countown timers, "living" avatars, private messaging system, database searches, downloads, and a special PassPorter discount code. Registration is fast, simple, and completely free. Just click the Join Our Community link.

If you think you've already joined, log in below now. If you don't remember your member name or password, please visit our Member Name and Password Recovery page. You are also welcome to contact us.

Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 10-21-2011, 09:22 PM   #496
Cam22
Batman's Gal/Mickey's Pal
PassPorter's Club Passholder


What's this?

PassPorter Guide

Community Rank:
Legend VIP
 
Cam22's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Owensboro, KY USA
Concierge Level: 6
Posts: 95,254

Post Thanks / Like
Great breakfast at Ohana's!
__________________
My PassPorter Bookshelf
My Previous TripsAKL Jambo April/May 2017--SSR/OKW Sept/Oct 2016 --AKL Kidani May 2016 -- Polynesian Village Resort May 2015 -- OKW/Magic December 2014 -- AKL Jambo House October 2014 -- VWL May 2014--SSR October 2013--AKL/Kidani June 2013--CBR October 2012--BWI June 2012--AKV Jambo House/Kidani Village June 2011 -- November 2010 Beach Club -- June 2010 Beach Club -- October 2009 CBR and Gaylord Palms -- June 2009 AKV/Kidani Village -- June 2008 VWL --June 2007 OKW--June 2006 Disney Wonder/SSR -- June 2005 SSR -- June 2004 VWL -- June 2003 AKL -- August 1997 Off Property -- March 1980 Cocoa Beach
Cam22 is offline  
 
Reply With Quote
Old 10-22-2011, 07:05 PM   #497
MosyBliss
Community Rank: Traveler
 
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: Overland Park, KS
Posts: 266

Post Thanks / Like
Oh I just got caught up! I love all of your pictures, your boys are adorable. I love the story about you giving that pin to the little girl. That is so sweet! I love Disney magic stories like that!
So I have to chime in on the kids acting crazy and parents doing nothing ...so the last time we were there we were having a lovely dinner at Liberty Tree Tavern. About half way through the dinner a sweet looking family was seated a few tables away. Within a few minutes of them arriving all three of their children started crawling around on the floor. On their hands and knees. Under peoples tables and then under our table! The wait staff was literally stepping over them. You know the mickey confetti that seems to always be on the ground in random places? They were on the ground collecting that!!! While their parents sat and chatted. We were all glancing back and forth, diner to fellow diner, with looks of "What do we do?" and "Should we say something? This is weird." ...eventually their food came and they got up and sat down to eat...
We still get a good chuckle out of when we are reminded now and then. I guess every parent has their own style!
__________________
Mosy and Meander and our three princesses
My Countdown Counting down to: Mosy and Meander take the train in Fantasyland
Skipping down Main Street USA
My Previous TripsWDW Contemporary July 1989 - DL July 1994 - WDW September 2006 Wilderness Lodge - WDW September 2008 Caribbean Beach - WDW September 2008 Coronado Springs - WDW September 2009 First Family trip All Star Music - WDW September 2010 2nd Honeymoon All Star Music - WDW December 2011 3rd Honeymoon Coronado Springs Resort -WDW September 2012 Super sneaky short trip cause we couldn't pass up the offer Port Orleans French Quarter - WDW December 2012 Family Christmas with Mickey and Minnie Art of Animation Resort (Lion King suite) - WDW February 2014 Escape to home at New Orleans French Quarter - WDW September 2014 Food and Wine Fest? We say YES! - WDW July 2015 Grand Floridian - DL December 2015 - WDW June 2016 Saratoga Springs
MosyBliss is offline  
 
Reply With Quote
Old 10-22-2011, 08:17 PM   #498
mimidodaplgo
mimidodaplgo
 
mimidodaplgo's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2008
Location: Carrollton, GA
Concierge Level: 6
Posts: 1,311

Post Thanks / Like
Just started reading your TR and thoroughly enjoying it!

Last edited by mimidodaplgo; 10-23-2011 at 09:47 AM..
mimidodaplgo is offline  
 
Reply With Quote
Old 10-23-2011, 09:11 PM   #499
goofyboysmama
Community Rank: Trekker
 
goofyboysmama's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: Maryland
Concierge Level: 7
Posts: 1,846

Post Thanks / Like
Quote:
Originally Posted by PrincessSharon View Post
Looks like a great breakfast at 'Ohana!
so good!

Quote:
Originally Posted by Cam22 View Post
Great breakfast at Ohana's!
Yum!

Quote:
Originally Posted by MosyBliss View Post
Oh I just got caught up! I love all of your pictures, your boys are adorable. I love the story about you giving that pin to the little girl. That is so sweet! I love Disney magic stories like that!
So I have to chime in on the kids acting crazy and parents doing nothing...
Yes! I can sit here and say I would have said this or that, but like in situations like these, I think we're so blown away we're speechless!

Quote:
Originally Posted by mimidodaplgo View Post
Just started reading your TR and thoroughly enjoying it!
__________________
My PassPorter Bookshelf
My Previous TripsWDW - CBR 7/97, AKL - Jambo House 6/09, AKL - Kidani Village 8/11, Kidani Village Thanksgiving 2012, BCV 9/13, The Dream 9/13, CSR 6/2014, Kidani 9/14, The Dream 9/14, BWV 9/14, The Wonder 9/15, Aulani 9/15
goofyboysmama is offline  
 
Reply With Quote
Old 10-23-2011, 09:24 PM   #500
goofyboysmama
Community Rank: Trekker
 
goofyboysmama's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: Maryland
Concierge Level: 7
Posts: 1,846

Post Thanks / Like
Magic Kingdom, con't

After entering MK, we got caught up in the Move It Shake It parade. This is my favorite parade!







The two older boys didn’t have a clue about what to do, but me and Titus got our grooves on! We were shakin’ tail feathers and wavin’ our arms and all kinds of whatnot. I was sweating rivers by the time it was over, but dancing with my baby was worth it!





continues...
__________________
My PassPorter Bookshelf
My Previous TripsWDW - CBR 7/97, AKL - Jambo House 6/09, AKL - Kidani Village 8/11, Kidani Village Thanksgiving 2012, BCV 9/13, The Dream 9/13, CSR 6/2014, Kidani 9/14, The Dream 9/14, BWV 9/14, The Wonder 9/15, Aulani 9/15
goofyboysmama is offline  
 
Reply With Quote
Old 10-23-2011, 09:37 PM   #501
goofyboysmama
Community Rank: Trekker
 
goofyboysmama's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: Maryland
Concierge Level: 7
Posts: 1,846

Post Thanks / Like
Magic Kingdom, con't

We headed over to Frontierland next by way of Adventureland.







First ride of the day: Splash Mountain! I love this ride for its tradition and for the story, but I don’t like the drop at the end. You really feel like you are at “Disney” on this ride.
Dh spotted Woody and Jessie, but we had to stand in line. They took at least 2 breaks (don’t blame them) before we got a chance to meet them, but pin trading and chatting in line helped to pass the time.


Jessie is showing Woody how much she liked our clickable big fat Sharpies (win!)




At one point, a dad asked me about them – how to trade and which ones to look for. Me, being a novice, did my best to answer his questions. Basically, I told him that it all depends on what you are looking for. The “value” for us is the fun in trading them and completing sets, using starter sets from ebay. I felt pretty cool “teaching” someone something about Disney!
continues...
__________________
My PassPorter Bookshelf
My Previous TripsWDW - CBR 7/97, AKL - Jambo House 6/09, AKL - Kidani Village 8/11, Kidani Village Thanksgiving 2012, BCV 9/13, The Dream 9/13, CSR 6/2014, Kidani 9/14, The Dream 9/14, BWV 9/14, The Wonder 9/15, Aulani 9/15
goofyboysmama is offline  
 
Reply With Quote
Old 10-23-2011, 09:43 PM   #502
goofyboysmama
Community Rank: Trekker
 
goofyboysmama's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: Maryland
Concierge Level: 7
Posts: 1,846

Post Thanks / Like
Magic Kingdom, con't

We headed over to my favorite MK ride, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. It’s not scary or speedy, but I just it! (Probably the only ride I can keep my hands up the whole time, lol ) Dh didn’t get why I was so geeky over it, oh well. This is from the guy who can do Mickey’s Philharmagic over and over .







continues...
__________________
My PassPorter Bookshelf
My Previous TripsWDW - CBR 7/97, AKL - Jambo House 6/09, AKL - Kidani Village 8/11, Kidani Village Thanksgiving 2012, BCV 9/13, The Dream 9/13, CSR 6/2014, Kidani 9/14, The Dream 9/14, BWV 9/14, The Wonder 9/15, Aulani 9/15
goofyboysmama is offline  
 
Reply With Quote
Old 10-23-2011, 09:54 PM   #503
goofyboysmama
Community Rank: Trekker
 
goofyboysmama's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: Maryland
Concierge Level: 7
Posts: 1,846

Post Thanks / Like
Magic Kingdom, con't

(Have I mentioned that it was hot? )
We grabbed some popcorn and frozen cokes for the walk over to Tomorrowland . We had to get in some more Space Mountain. Dh wanted to see Philharmagic again (see?), but the kids wanted to ride the tea cups (blech!). They got in line and we sat in the shade to wait for them. Then a CM waved me over – apparently you can’t just glom your minor aged kids onto a ride unsupervised while you rest your weary bones in the shade . These happy looking pictures don’t show the dizzy stomach churn-fest that was really happening.








continues...
__________________
My PassPorter Bookshelf
My Previous TripsWDW - CBR 7/97, AKL - Jambo House 6/09, AKL - Kidani Village 8/11, Kidani Village Thanksgiving 2012, BCV 9/13, The Dream 9/13, CSR 6/2014, Kidani 9/14, The Dream 9/14, BWV 9/14, The Wonder 9/15, Aulani 9/15
goofyboysmama is offline  
 
Reply With Quote
Old 10-23-2011, 10:06 PM   #504
goofyboysmama
Community Rank: Trekker
 
goofyboysmama's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: Maryland
Concierge Level: 7
Posts: 1,846

Post Thanks / Like
Magic Kingdom, con't

We HAD to do It’s a Small World next. It was practically mandatory . We remembered it as being the most corny thing ever, but this time we were in for a surprise. Someone had not read any sort guide or manual or even heat advisory for visiting Walt Disney World . While we were standing in line, my family and all the families around us were subjected to the most F Bomb, cuss-infested tirade I have ever heard from a woman waiting at the disabled entrance. She and this other lady got into it with each other so loud, I got kind of nervous. “Security?!” I announced only half-jokingly. A CM that looked like she was still in college tried to smooth feathers, but luckily the burliest, tallest CM I’d ever seen showed up . The line had curved so that we couldn’t gleefully eavesdrop , but I get the sense that two families, each with a person in a wheelchair showed up at the same time, both claiming that they had gotten there first. The line was pretty long, but we had time to get plenty of pictures and had good fodder for conversation. Stuff like, “Wow, isn’t this supposed to be the happiest place on earth? Etc, etc… Wakka wakka wakka











I liked IASM better the second time, although from listening to podcast after podcast, I found myself taking a closer look. The ride is REALLY suffering from lack of TLC . I took a picture of a giant cobweb, but I just don’t want to post it. I’d hate for someone to post a pic of my house’s smudges! (I’ll will though if you want me to… )

continues...
__________________
My PassPorter Bookshelf
My Previous TripsWDW - CBR 7/97, AKL - Jambo House 6/09, AKL - Kidani Village 8/11, Kidani Village Thanksgiving 2012, BCV 9/13, The Dream 9/13, CSR 6/2014, Kidani 9/14, The Dream 9/14, BWV 9/14, The Wonder 9/15, Aulani 9/15
goofyboysmama is offline  
 
Reply With Quote
Old 10-23-2011, 10:55 PM   #505
goofyboysmama
Community Rank: Trekker
 
goofyboysmama's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: Maryland
Concierge Level: 7
Posts: 1,846

Post Thanks / Like
Magic Kingdom, con't

We walked over to Philharmagic next and enjoyed that. I know they spent goo-gobs of money on this ride, but I hope down in the Imagineer's Blue Sky department, they are working on an updated 4D with a new plot, new music and some of the other Disney characters and princesses ...
The sun was starting to go down in the sky and we started to get hungry – it was about 5:30. I had already planned for us to go to Cosmic Ray’s because of the variety. We sort of separated in order to get into the different lines, and I ended up with the chicken and rib combo – Titus ate the ribs, so happy he was getting some real food, lol. We couldn’t find a table large enough for all of us, so I have no idea what everyone else had, probably burgers. We chilled and listened to the jazzy sounds of Sonny Eclipse and the Space Angels while we ate. (no pics, too hungry and tired!)
Everyone was ready to go back to the resort and chill. We caught the tail-end of my parade as we headed out of the park...







cool perspective shot from the iPhone:




I think by the time we made it back, we all slept for about 30 minutes or so. I think we would have been happy to stay in the room, but Wishes was calling…

Next time: nighttime at MK
__________________
My PassPorter Bookshelf
My Previous TripsWDW - CBR 7/97, AKL - Jambo House 6/09, AKL - Kidani Village 8/11, Kidani Village Thanksgiving 2012, BCV 9/13, The Dream 9/13, CSR 6/2014, Kidani 9/14, The Dream 9/14, BWV 9/14, The Wonder 9/15, Aulani 9/15
goofyboysmama is offline  
 
Reply With Quote
Old 10-23-2011, 11:25 PM   #506
lauriep
Community Rank: Legend
 
lauriep's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: Boston, MA
Posts: 15,377

Post Thanks / Like
Great MK day! I really don't know how you all kept going in the heat, much less dance in the parade. I really like those pics of you and Titus, though. You're a trooper for spinning in the teacups, too. No way could I ride those without being sick for days-- a friend once asked me to take her pic on the ride and I couldn't even watch!
__________________
lauriep is offline  
 
Reply With Quote
Old 10-24-2011, 03:02 AM   #507
chezp
PassPorter Message Board Manager
PassPorter Guide Author

Community Rank:
Legend VIP
 
chezp's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: Maidstone, Kent, UK
Concierge Level: 3
Posts: 190,285

Post Thanks / Like
Wow, that was quite the set-to at It's A Small World. Like you say, I guess that was the heat talking.
__________________

Relaxing on board the Magic. The trip report for our back-to-back cruises on the Disney Magic has started!
My Countdown Counting down to: 2019
Happy New Year!
My PassPorter Bookshelf
My Previous Trips21 trips to WDW, 6 to Disneyland in California, 9 to Disneyland Paris, 1 to Hong Kong Disneyland, 1 to Tokyo Disney, 1 to Aulani, 1 to Hilton Head, 2 to Vero Beach and 13 Disney cruises on the Magic, Wonder, Dream and Fantasy
chezp is offline  
 
Reply With Quote
Old 10-24-2011, 03:13 AM   #508
ilovedisney247
 
ilovedisney247's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: 15 Minutes from the House of Mouse!
Concierge Level: 1
Posts: 13,838

Post Thanks / Like
Wow busy day!
__________________
My Previous TripsWDW 1985 off property, WDW 1987 Contemporary, WDW 1989 Poly, WDW Sept. 2006 Pop, WDW Sept. 2007 CBR WDW Aug 2008 ASMu Dec 2008 SSR, May 2009 SSR, June 2009 SSR/VWL, Oct 2009 AKVC, Dec 2009 AKV, June 2010 SSR, Oct 2010 BWV, Nov 2010 CR, Dec 2010 ASp, April 2011 AKVC, June 2011 SSR/ASM, July 2011, ASp, Oct 2011 AKVC, Dec 2011 VGC
ilovedisney247 is offline  
 
Reply With Quote
Old 10-24-2011, 08:22 AM   #509
Colexis Mom
RED SOX NATION!!
PassPorter's Club Passholder


What's this?

PassPorter Guide

Community Rank:
Legend VIP
 
Colexis Mom's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: Connecticut
Concierge Level: 9
Posts: 136,854

Post Thanks / Like
What a great time at MK! Love the pictures! Sorry it was so hot!
__________________
My PassPorter Bookshelf
My Previous TripsAUG '16 - POFQ, APR '12 - POFQ, JUL '10 - DL, AUG '09 - DCL Western, AUG '08 - POFQ/BC, AUG '06 - AKL/BC/DisneyWonder/Poly, DEC '05 - AKL, APR '05 - AKL/BC, DEC '04 - AKL, MAY '04 - AKL/BC, MAY '03 - WL/BC, MAY '98 -offsite, MAY '94 - BC, AUG '85 - Poly, AUG '83 - Poly, AUG '81 - Poly, JUL '79 - World Inn, JUL '76 - World Inn
Colexis Mom is offline  
 
Reply With Quote
Old 10-24-2011, 08:42 AM   #510
MayraLR
Community Rank: Explorer
 
MayraLR's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Puerto Rico.
Concierge Level: 10
Posts: 12,253

Post Thanks / Like
What a great afternoon at MK!
__________________

My 2017 trip - Home is Where the Mouse Is COMPLETE
My Countdown Counting down to: Sailing through the Caribbean on the Freedom
Relaxing on my cruise
My PassPorter Bookshelf
My Previous TripsMay 2006 - WDW / offsite; May 2008 - WDW, SW, US, IOA / offsite; May 2011 - WDW / off-site; June 2012 - WDW / POR; June 2014 - WDW / AKL ~ Kidani Village; June 2017 - WDW / POR
MayraLR is offline  
 
Reply With Quote
Reply




Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump














Please login or register to hide these ads -- it's free and easy!

All times are GMT -5. The time now is 05:53 PM.

-->

Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.9
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
Feedback Buttons provided by Advanced Post Thanks / Like v3.4.0 Patch Level 1 (Pro) - vBulletin Mods & Addons Copyright © 2024 DragonByte Technologies Ltd.
(c) 1998-2017 PassPorter Travel Press/MediaMarx, Inc.
Celebrating 19 Years of Making Dreams Come True
Ad Management plugin by RedTyger