A Little Family Magic (VWL): 5/24-30 '05 Completed! About This Page:

[Cinderbrella]

Have a great trip and I'll be watching for your update when you return!

[Goofy'sGal]

Thanks, everyone! We've been back and I'm finally finding my way out from underneath piles of laundry and beach toys. Hopefully I can finish this report soon!

When last I left off, we were in AK:

DH & I have not had breakfast so we stop at one of the produce areas – he gets a banana and I opt for veggies and dip (yes, for breakfast! LOL). At some point, Dh gets DD7 to pose by the Tree of Life.



"Tree of Life"

The girls each have a map and are plotting our course. We head towards Asia (or “Anastasia” as DD4 calls it! LOL) We see the signs for Kali River Rapid – which I promised DH that we could ride in May after I figured it was too cool for it in Nov. I know we’re going to get wet and I haven’t prepared for this at all, I realize, as the family in front of me takes off tee shirts to reveal bathing suits. Many people are sporting rain ponchos and there are plastic bags holding everything – oh, no! What are we in for?? LOL I explain to DD4 that we’re going to get really wet but it’s so hot it will feel good and we’ll dry in no time – she’s a little particular about stuff like this. We pack away our cameras and Pal Mickey reminds us not to forget him too! My backpack weighs a ton! DD4 is measured and she passes – she gets a “Kali” stamped on her hand and to fend off any sibling rivalry, the CM stamps DD7 too! She has been wanting to get “really wet” for a long time but now she’s a bit anxious about any drops this ride might have. I have no clue!

We enjoy all the sights of the queue and in no time, we’re on our raft. The couple opposite us gets drenched – absolutely soaked!!! Don’t get me wrong – we get wet too – but there’s a difference between “getting wet” and “getting soaked” – they could have been wringed out! DD7 has a blast and DD4 is not happy at all that she’s so wet!! The ride is over much too soon and DD7 would love to ride it again but onward we go. I laugh when I see the shopping carts outside of this ride selling towels, tees, socks and yes, even underwear!!

We walk some more although why we didn’t hit the Maharajah Jungle Trek, I don’t know. I snap a few pics of Expedition Everest - looks very cool but DD7 says she doesn't think we'll be riding that one!

"Expedition Everest"

At some point we see a boat carrying Mickey, Minnie, Goofy and I think Donald to Camp Minnie-Mickey, I figure? They’re far off, but you can hear music playing and they’re waving and dancing. We’re right near Tarzan Rocks and see that a show is about to start. DH wanted to see this in Nov but we didn’t b/c DD7 threw a fit. I inform them that this may be our last chance so we go inside. DD doesn’t throw a fit but she’s clearly not happy. Now, she’s recently started to get into roller skating so I thought once she realizes what the show’s about, she’d perk up but she never really does. *shrugs* DD4 however, really enjoys the music and bops along.


"Tarzan Rocks"

Checking the Times Guide, it appears that we’ll miss Lucky unless we do stick around later in the day DD7 wants to ride Dinosaur and I suggest that DH take her and I will take DD4 on Triceratop Spin. But DH thinks that DD4 will be fine! I explain to her and tell her that Mickey Magic will make it a bit scary but we’ll be fine and she says she’s not afraid! On our way through Dinoland, we bump into Lucky!! Now that’s lucky! LOL He has the hiccups and his handler is asking for all the kids in the crowd to come over to scare them away. DD4 only needs my asking her once if she’d like to help; DD7 hangs back with us. DD4 is so excited that she got to yell “Boo!” LOL

Lucky moves along and we get a FP for Dinosaur. We spy the really long line for Triceratops and opt for an ice cream break instead. DD7 can’t make up her mind as to what treat she should get, so she lines up with DH. While DD4 and I wait for them, Lucky ambles by again!!! He didn’t stop by us, but I think he nodded at DD or it sure felt that way. Lucky was hesitant about walking on the paved road – he was fearful that it was a tar pit that might mark his doom but his handler convinced him that he’d be safe LOL They walk right by DH and DD7 and Lucky spies someone in the crowd that he thinks he knows from the movies He wants to take a picture with them! LOL


"Lucky"

We eat our melting ice cream and DD4 tries to pose inside the handle of our stroller looking very much like Lucky pulling his cart and of course, gets hurt! *sigh* We finish our treats and head over to look at Sue, the giant dinosaur.

"Trying to be Lucky" "Mickey Bars"

"Dinosaur Sue" "Aladdar"

And then it’s time to travel in our Time Rovers – I again prepare DD4 for what’s inside but she insists that she wasn’t scared. I was prepared for myself to be scared witless but perhaps since I was anticipating something so scary, it didn’t seem so bad. What I found to be more scary was the bumpiness of this ride!! Yikes! I hold my arms wrapped around DD4, afraid that all the jerks and jolts will bump her right out of the car or her head will get bumped. This is a crazy ride and DD7 is way happy that it’s over – she was scared!

It doesn’t seem that we’ll be able to stick it out for the AK parade – it’s hot and we’re tired. We decide to even bypass lunch here. I suggest Camp Minnie Mickey as a final treat but no, they’re not interested. I keep an eye out for Lilo & Stitch near the Island Mercantile and sure enough, there is Stitch. DD4 is all excited and hops on line, with DD7 following her. As soon as one other family steps behind us, the CM closes the line – we’re lucky again! I remind DD4 that Stitch has been waking us up and of course, she repeats this to him – he “giggles”. He gives them a big hug and we leave there happy.

"Stitch"

DD7 has decided that she’d like to buy the golden ears and although we’d seen them everywhere, now that we’re looking to buy them, they seem to have gone into hiding. I had found them in the WL shop but they only had adult sizes. I had noticed them in one of the shops on our way into AK but we hadn’t stopped so now I’m on a mission to find that store. DH, on the other hand, is enjoying the Oasis – he’s listening to Pal Mickey’s tips and is finding all kinds of animals tucked here and there – he’s snap happy! He says he could spend days here! We find the shop, the Outpost, and it seems that there are only adult sized golden ears to be found, but that’s okay b/c the girls have both fallen in love with pink Minnie ears, so that’s what we buy. They are very excited and look adorable! The bus arrives pretty quickly although it’s a bit crowded but it stops at Blizzard Beach where many get off. It’s neat to see what we can of BB; it looks “cool” LOL (sorry!) The bus also stops at Winter/Summerland which looks cute. We take a few pics by the DVC welcome sign then head upstairs for a quick swim.

"AK bench with the original AK artwork including a Dragon!" "Minnie Ears"

"Welcome Home"

Our dinner PS is not until 7:40pm and we didn’t stay late at AK so we should have lots of time to relax and swim before heading to Epcot for some attractions before dinner, right? Ha! By the time we actually leave AK, arrive back at our rooms, and change, we have about an hour of pool time so that we’ll have enough time for showers. We never did have lunch so DH picks up some salads and small snacks for the room. We finally head down to the busstop and we get to Epcot close to 6pm – yikes! DD4 has fallen asleep on the bus and stays that way in the stroller into Future World. DD7 really, really wants to go on Soarin’ again but we just know that it’s going to be a long wait. Still, DH, being the good daddy that he is, goes inside the Land to check on the sitch. Standby time is a 2 hour wait (but Future World is closing at 7pm?) and obviously, the FPs are all gone. DD7 is very upset and is close to tears but I ask her if it wouldn’t be fun to go to World Showcase and make a new mask? She agrees, thankfully! LOL On to World Showcase!

"World Showcase - Here We Come!"

DD4 stays asleep for the ride and as we approach Mexico, DD7 decides that we should ride El Rio which she said earlier she didn’t want to (for no particular reason that I could figure out LOL). DD4 finally wakes up as we make our way into our boats and she’s happily surprised to find us doing something fun! We find the Kidcot stop and both girls are excited to start a mask. DD7 decides she’s going to do a theme – draw an animal from each country. Problem is we can’t always think of a corresponding animal; she won’t talk to the CM and she won’t let me ask either but she does pretty well on her own and takes liberties with the whole animal thing LOL

"Mexico's KidCot Stop"

We know that we’re pressed for time, so I tell them to color just a little here, that we’ll color more as we go along. These words will come back to haunt me! 9 countries is a lot to do in the short amount of time we have before dinner and we don’t always instantly remember where the Kidcot stops are either! Anyone watching us would think we were running a race – we’d zoom to the next pavilion, scope out the Kidcot stop (sometimes remembering, sometimes spying a child with a mask exiting a store and then yell, “AHA!! There it is!!” LOL), politely wait our turn, and each coloring session is getting shorter and shorter with DD4 asking, “can we color we now?” At some point, I suggest we only get our mask stamped and pick up the new little tag thingie; that perhaps we’ll have enough time to color in Canada our last stop. Along the way, we see the African drummers out, and take in the sights and sounds of World Showcase but it is a blur! LOL

We finally arrive at Canada – we can’t remember where the Kidcot stop is and I’m thinking that it wouldn’t be (or shouldn’t be! LOL) up all those steps but we go up anyway, leaving the stroller behind, only to find out that it is in the shop down below (trust your instincts, I tell ya!) We see that we are very near to Le Cellier, so DH goes ahead to check in while I take them to finish the mask. It is 7:30pm and dinner is at 7:40pm so we’re not sitting here to color either. DD4: “I thought we could color now!” Uh, that was before Mommy realized how long it would take us to travel around the World!! LOL

We meet up with DH in Le Cellier and get to cool off inside as we wait for our table. It is cool and dark in here and looks very much like it’s name suggests – a wine cellar. We’re seated without much wait and our server is wonderful. I think her name was Charlene? My notes say Caroline but our receipt only lists part of her name as “Char” so I’m really not sure; I do know she is from British Columbia and is fantastic! She wishes us a happy anniversary and is very friendly with us and the girls. Speaking of them, how happy were they (and Mommy too!) when they are given crayons!!! Yeah! Now they can color their masks all they want and they do! As I look at the kids’ menu, I see that there is a drink that comes with light-up ice cubes so I ask if they can have the cubes in their regular drinks. Of course! This was a big hit!! And they served as our lanterns on the way home through Epcot! LOL

"All aglow in Canada"

The bread is here is delicious! I just read someone else’s report where they thought the bread holder was a candle holder b/c it was so beautiful (but empty). Then our server brought out the three different types of bread sticks, each representing a different region in Canada and having its own story (which unfortunately I can’t recall LOL). They were all delicious but being a pretzel lover, the pretzel bread was my fave! I had heard so much about the cheese soup and I had talked about it so much to DH that we both got a bowl. It was very good (and very hot! LOL). I got the NY strip steak and DH got the mushroom filet mignon, although had I agreed to get the surf and turf, he would have gone for it too! It was our 10th anniversary dinner after all (well, our true annv is April 1st – hey, no April Fool’s Day jokes, mister! LOL But due to a certain NASCAR race, we spent the actual day apart – I know, I know. It’s what you do for love! LOL). We love wine and with such a wonderful dinner, we had to get a bottle – DH picked out a Canadian Merlot that was excellent.

We’re actually contemplating dessert but can’t decide when our server tells us that something is coming our way – I’m so excited!! It’s a chocolate cup filled with chocolate mousse and a spun sugar creation, with “Happy Anniversary” drizzled in chocolate around the plate rim!

[/b]"Happy Anniversary!"[/b]

This is the type of Disney magic that you hope for (and what I had hoped for with both of my girls’ bdys celebrated here on our last two trips; happy as I was that we got this wonderful treat, I would have been happier had something as simple as a bdy cupcake had been delivered for the girls’ bdys; oldest did have Mickey confetti sprinkled on her at CRT but we had DD4’s bdy dinner at Chef M and nothing special at all was done there, despite the podium CM reading from our PS that it was her bdy – I was too tired to remind her and was so pleased that she knew - and marking it on our receipt too

I eat most of the mousse and the girls scrape off the chocolate letters LOL What is DH doing? Well, he is being amused by the family next to us – a family of 4 with 2 girls. The little one is loud (not crying) and just being, well, very much like our DD4! LOL Let’s just say that DD4 makes her presence known, happy or sad. Early in the dinner, DH is giggling over something our neighbor has done and finally speaks to them – we have a wonderful dinner conversation with them. They are from Texas and their oldest girl has my youngest’s name; they’re both 4 so they hit it off really well! But we can’t get over the similarities between our kids: our oldest kids are both shy, picky eaters, quiet, well behaved; our youngest kids are both loud, will eat anything and everything but like to have a little (or a lot) of fun and disruption in the process. At some point, I look at the time and just know that Illuminations will have to wait (again!) for our next trip. We’re having too nice a time here in this lovely restaurant with delicious food, wonderful company and in a relaxed atmosphere – our terrific server checks up on us frequently but we are in no way rushed to finish up and clear out.

We finally say our good-byes and realize that the park is closed! Illuminations is over and the park is sooo empty! It is beautiful!! We have to walk back to Future World and I’m happy that we get to see the lit-up sidewalk (is it near Innoventions?). Despite the late hour, we take our time, reveling in the beauty of it all. You know how I feel about my Castle but I tell you, Spaceship Earth at night is a sight to behold! It just looked so lovely and it was so peaceful – I felt as if we owned the park and were taking a nighttime stroll. The heat of the day was gone, there was a slight breeze – what a wonderful way to end the day after our mad dash around the World!

"Sigh!"

NEXT: Sleeping In, A Crazy Breakfast, Spend Those Disney Dollars and Do We Finally Get To Visit Our Laughin’ Place?

[Happymommy]

Great Report!!! I'm sad its almost over!!

[Colexis Mom]

What a great update Val Love all the pictures too

More please

[Cinderbrella]

I your latest update-awesome pictures, too.
My DD5 would get along well with your DD4.
Your meal at Le Cellier sounded so

[Grammy Grumpy]

Great report!! Just got caught up. More please!

[Joy J]

Wonderful update - and your photos are fabulous!

Joy

[Mitzi&Kevin]

Great update.......can't wait to hear more. I know what you mean about searching for the kidcot stops, they really should put little signs up saying "masks this way"....

Mitzi

[Goofy'sGal]

NEXT: Sleeping In, A Crazy Breakfast, Spend Those Disney Dollars and Do We Finally Get To Visit Our Laughin’ Place?

Sunday, May 29, 2005

Yes, it’s unbelievable but we have no real plans for this morning!! No early morning wake-up call to answer, to park or early morning PS to rush to! We do have a dinner PS at LTT in MK at 5:40pm. But that’s it – no other set plans! As weird as this feels to me (and I have to fight the urge to convince them that we should go to Epcot or MK anyway LOL), I’m proud of myself. I find it very difficult to let go of the idea that if you’re at Disney, you should be at a Disney park, especially when you have APs burning a hole in your fanny pack. However, we’re taking it easy today. I had inquired about being a Flag Family at WL during check-in and we were put on the waiting list but we never got a call. That’s okay – we can sleep later today. I definitely want to go to DTD since we missed shopping there in Nov and the girls each have some Disney Dollars to spend (and they’ve patiently waited til the end of our trip to go shopping), but I had toyed with the idea of squeezing in some mini-golf too. It’s been way too hot to even consider that one without breaking a sweat before you even hit the greens. And we really do sleep in today (after 8am!) and take our time getting ready which pushes everything a little later anyway.

DH had mentioned last night that it might be nice to go to the WCC for breakfast so we head there. This is another lesson in the pitfalls of not making PSs. We are told that the wait is 10-20 minutes. We actually wait closer to 40 minutes and DH is getting a bit annoyed as he sees people who have come after us, get seated before us – thinking that the squeaky wheel is getting the grease or whatever that saying is. I then remind him that those people may have PSs so they will get seated earlier when a table fitting their party size is available. He “aha’s!” and we continue to wait. I take the elevator upstairs to the 5th floor (you need a room card for the 6th floor) so that I can take pics and video of the lobby below. From my bird’s eye perch, I can spy DH and the girls as they play with the WL Lincoln logs. That's DH on the barrel and the girls are playing nearby.


"Waiting for breakfast" "WL chandeliers"

I mail my postcards and return. The CMs invite all the children (including those waiting) to participate in the Pony Express; DD7 declines but DD4 grabs a horse! Not many participate this morning and I’m totally bummed that I miss taping the following. Instead of all the kids repeating the Oath, the CM holds the microphone to each one for the different statements. DD4’s comes over loud and clear as she is the lucky one to say: “I promise not to pick my nose!” LOL The CM walks her back to me and says DD4 is going to be a movie star some day! DD4 just loves hearing that and giggles!

We’re finally seated and Darlin’ Deb is our server. She says that the girls are soooo cute and tickles DD7 under the chin LOL She is lots of fun – she drops a bunch of straws and napkins all over the table. The girls, especially DD7, spend a lot of time giggling during this meal! There is a large party nearby and that server is hysterical, torturing them in any way he can think of! We get to see most of the infamous acts of mischief that this restaurant is known for. Drop your fork (or knife) to get a replacement; ask for another straw or a toothpick and see what they’ll bring out; and don’t forget the ketchup! Deb brings over some “hats” fashioned from napkins – DD4 refuses to wear hers (go figure!)and so Deb plops it on my head. DD7 poses with all of them but doesn’t wear them for the rest of the meal – I do! Our food is excellent – DH and I each get a ham and cheese omelet and a side of bacon (I think it came with hashbrowns and a biscuit too?); the girls get pancakes and french toast (DD7 is so happy!).

"Silly Napkin Hats!"

The server of that large party is wearing a construction helmet and as he is just as loud as can be, DH tells me that he’s going to ask him if he’s trying out for the Village People’s “YMCA”. I know this can only lead to trouble and I warn him but as Deb and the other server come by our table, DH asks them. Deb says she’s been telling him all morning that they should perform the “YMCA” song. They drag another poor unsuspecting dad who has been sitting at his table wearing an Indian headdress-napkin (most likely against his will! LOL) and DH gets the honor of wearing the construction hat; Deb and the other server plus another CM stand up there in cowboy hats and napkin-wear and do, I have to say, probably the worst rendition of the YMCA song of all time. No one knows (or admits to knowing!) any words to the song other than, “YMCA – it’s fun to stay at the YMCA”, so there’s a lot of humming, um’ing and la-la-la’s. Still, we all have a good laugh! We love this place! I video the fun but unfortunately for you (and I guess fortunately for DH), no still shots! LOL Oh, and DD7 listed this incident as the funniest vacation moment in her Birnbaum's Kids book!

We head back to the room to get our laundry out of the dryer and pick up our Disney Dollars and souven-ear list; the girls and DH tackle each other with the clean laundry LOL We finally head downstairs to wait for a bus to DTD (not so bad) but the bus is crowded! Most of them get off at Ft Wilderness, but the bus also stops at the GF. It’s about noon by the time we enter the Marketplace. DH wants to walk around first before shopping but I spy the World of Memories (scrapbooking store) and have to check it out! The girls and I could go crazy in here and we pick out several things and then I remember hearing that most of the basic stuff here can be found at the WOD store (where I can get an AP discount!). So they each buy a sheet of scrapping stickers ($4) and I pick up a few things too: two sticker sheets ($4 each), Mickey ears shears ($7), a Happiest Celebration magnet ($6.50), and two graduation Mickey frame magnets ($6.50 each) for DD7’s teachers.

DD is thirsty and tired – no stroller here. We head into WOD and DH stays outside in the shade. This place is sooo huge and it’s, of course, crowded! I would love to spend hours here looking at everything (well, and buying it all too! LOL) but I steer the girls to displays of smaller things so that they can purchase several things rather than one big tix item (plus small things fit on the plane more easily! LOL). We find Mickey head lollipops in bunches of 5 for DD4’s PreK class (at $3.50 a bundle). I’m looking at WDW coloring books but DD7 finds a “how to draw characters” book and a set of markers/crayons and DD4 picks out a “how to draw the princesses” book that also comes with a pad of paper and crayons (those little artists – they take after their mama, I tell ya!). They also pick out cool Mickey and Minnie pens. Since we’ve been going so often, my family has been telling us not to get them anything but you still have to get something! So I look for little inexpensive things and they are there if you look for them! I pick up a Sorcerer’s hat antennae topper ($4) for my sis (to replace the Mickey Snowman that her van has been sporting since Nov – it is May, after all! LOL), a Pooh Magic Towel ($3) for her son, a Mickey soda bottle cap magnet ($2.50) for my dad, Tinkerbell magnetic notepad ($3 each) for my other sis and DD4’s two teachers, and a Castle punch ($6) for me!

We have all of our purchases in our basket and we’re waiting on line to pay when DD4 trips and starts crying – ok, looks like we’ll have to find Daddy. We trek through the store back to the entrance where we left him and I have DD7 look near the door if she can spot him. She does! So then I ask her to walk DD4 over to him – it’s so nice that DD7 is getting to that nice helpful, responsible age! How long can it last? LOL We head for another line. I ask the CM if DD7 will also get the 10% AP discount as she’s paying separately for their stuff with their Disney Dollars. She has her AP and I have mine too so no problem! We find DH and DD4, who is a lot happier now that she’s sharing DH’s yummy frozen lemonade (what? None for the rest of us?). It’s hot, we’re tired, the girls are not interested in checking out the Lego store or anywhere else. I’m not even hungry enough to suggest stopping in the Earl of Sandwich But I must pick up a new ornament in the Days of Christmas store. DD7 comes with me. I know there must be a Happiest Celebration ornament somewhere so I ask a very nice CM; we pick it out one of the flat ornaments. I expect to find DH and DD4 anxious to leave but I’m told that they’ve been keeping busy taking pics LOL


"Trying on Ears!" "Outside of World of Disney!"


"Tweedle Dum, Tweedle DD4, Tweedle Dee" "Feeling Better"

We find the busstop and there are a lot of busses, all heading somewhere else Our bus finally shows up and it’s packed with people heading to Typhoon Lagoon so at least it empties out some. We check the time and it’s after 3pm! We have a 5:40pm at LTT! So much for a relaxing dip in the pool. The heat is having an effect on DH so he decides to hang in the room (and uh, try to find the NASCAR race on TV which he can’t – no Fox channels here!). We have about 30 mins of splash time, speaking of which. There are two things that we really wanted to do that we haven’t yet (well, there’s hundreds of things but two important things): see Cinderellabration and ride Splash Mtn. Will we be able to do both tonight? The last Cinderellabration is at 6:35 – can we finish dinner in an hour? As for Splash, with it being later in the day, will all the FPs be gone? Will the line be interminable?

But forget those things right now; I’m just worried that we’re not going to get to our PS on time! We swim and clean up extra speedy and head down to the boat launch. We’ve yet to see Fire Rock Geyser do its thing and it’s just shy of 5pm – we’re right on time but YIKES! 5 o’clock!!!! Can we get to the MK and LTT in 40 mins?! We could swear there is a boat near the dock but as it’s around a corner, it’s hard to tell. Fire Rock is not cooperating so we convince the girls to pass it by and go for the boat only to find out, there is no boat right there. LOL AND we suddenly hear this loud noise – luckily, from where we are standing, we can see the top of the gush of water and steam as it erupts from the mighty geyser – and keeps erupting for more than 5 minutes! Impressive! And hooray! Here comes our boat! It’s super sunny but we sit outside b/c DD7 likes it there. We’ve been freezing our water bottles and bringing them to the parks but I forgot to do this when we went to DTD (bad Mommy! Poor DD4!) but I bring one bottle with us now – only one; I have two kids who are suddenly thirsty again (please don’t think I don’t offer my kids drinks – they drank big glasses of choc milk at breakfast and we had more milk back at the room). It’s hot but that bottle hasn’t been out for long. So we spend the whole ride shaking the bottle, trying to help melt the ice AND making sure the girls take turns with the little bitty sips of water that we’re able to produce. *sigh* We stop at Ft Wilderness, of course, but it’s 5:20pm!!!! We land at the MK, bag check, turnstiles, DH gets a stroller through Stroller Express (our last one and they don’t take his receipt for this – can we use this on another trip??), and boogie up Main Street. Cinderellabration is just beginning and the girls, knowing that we are meeting Minnie for dinner, also think we’re stopping for the show – no time!

We check in at LTT with a minute to spare (I still can’t believe that!) and the CM asks us what state we’re from. We’ve just sat down and are cooling off as we look around us when a CM comes over and asks us if we’re the Tennants from NJ b/c no one answered when she called our name minutes before – now that’s quick! What a pretty restaurant this is – lots of details from the colonial period. We see Minnie, Goofy and Dale walking among the tables. I’m not sure who else will be here but I’m pretty sure Mickey is not here, but the girls keep hoping. Our server, Ernst, is kind and attentive – he brings us yummy rolls, butter and a delicious salad. Everything is served family-style and we enjoy roast beef, ham, turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, gravy and green beans AND a huge bowl of macaroni and cheese LOL Everything is delicious. There is a table nearby that is getting ready to leave and it appears that they have celebrated a bdy. They talk to their server and soon Minnie and Goofy are back at their table – the woman whose bdy it is, tells Minnie that they would like to leave the remainder of the cake for the characters to enjoy b/c they really had a wonderful meal thanks to them. Minnie looks grateful and Goofy looks hungry! LOL

Soon Minnie comes our way. The girls are wearing their Minnie ears and DD7 says that she notices Minnie points to their hats before she comes to the table Hugs and pictures and Goofy is right behind. He tries on DD4’s Minnie ears and poses for pics too. Next Dale comes by – and before he signs his name, he feels for his nose to see which chipmunk he is To our surprise, Pluto and Chip also stop by! Our dessert arrives – a yummy cherry cobbler with ice cream – I don’t usually like berry desserts but this was fantastic!! While we finish up, Minnie and Goofy come by again. On her own, Minnie poses with each girl this time and we’re happy to see Goofy again as we remember that DD7 has drawn a pic of him. He claps his hands and makes each girl kiss his cheek At some point during these festivities, I check the time and sure enough, Cinderellabration is underway. Oh, well. But I must say that I was impressed with this character meal – the food was plentiful and very good, the service was commendable and with 5 characters and some repeat visits, definitely a worthwhile experience!




We decide that Splash Mtn is the priority so we head to Frontierland to get a FP – the return time is 9pm! Although we hadn’t discussed how late we’d stay tonight, I assumed we’d stay late enough to possibly catch Wishes again. However, DH is not sure if he wants to stay as late as 9pm to use our FP We’re going to play it by ear – Disney’s the perfect place for that! LOL I figure that you can’t go wrong visiting Fantasyland again – plenty of favorites to ride again, but the girls start chanting, “Toontown! Toontown!” I explain about the playground (again!) and this time DD7 informs me that they have to ride the Barnstormer! Well, that’s a different story! We walk through Fantasyland and as we pass Ariel’s Grotto, I realize that it’s still open; it’s got to be close to 7pm and I just didn’t bother to check to see if she’d still be here this late but she is! There is no line that we can see and as I tell DH that we should stop in here, the CM reduces the Standby time to 5 minutes. Amazingly the girls are excited about meeting Ariel (even though I’ve left the pic that DD7 drew of her in our room!). We hop on the very short line. I remind DD4 that she might want to tell Ariel her life’s ambition. If you ask her what she wants to be when she grows up, she will always answer, “A mommy and a mermaid, like Ariel!” LOL

Sure enough, DD4 tells Ariel what she wants to be and Ariel says, “But I want to be human like you – but I guess I get to be both!” There’s lots of chattering going on between the two of them and DD7 is just happy that Ariel says that she likes her shirt which has Nemo and a bunch of other fish on it Before they leave, DD4 asks where Prince Eric is and Ariel says that he’s home watching Melody and then asks if they know who Melody is. DD7 knows but is too shy to answer and I guess we haven’t watched the LM2 since DD4 was a baby so she’s clueless that Melody is Ariel’s DD. We use our Photopass card here too.

"Chatting away with Ariel in her Grotto"

Continued in next post!

[Goofy'sGal]

Last Day Continued

We continue onward to Toontown and DH decides that he wants to sit out the Barnstormer as he’s still not feeling well. I’m afraid that he wants to call it quits for the evening but no, he’s happy to sit and people-watch (and make friends as I watch him have a lengthy conversation with a stranger LOL). There is a 20 minute wait but we enjoy looking at all the stuff in Goofy’s farm and watching the coaster go right beside and over us! Although DH is sitting this one out, I’m confident that the three of us will be able to sit in one bench – we’ve done Dumbo like that. Well, we get to the turnstile and the CM directs us to 2 entrances to our airplane, meaning that someone will have to ride alone. Now I’m not comfortable with letting DD7 ride alone, I certainly don’t think I’d feel okay letting the two of the ride in front of me either, so I ask DD7 if she’ll be okay riding alone in front of us. She looks hesitant but wants to do it. The CM on the other side where you exit asks if she wants him to ride with her and I’m so relieved UNTIL I realize he was joking – darn! DD4 tells DD7 that she should be brave and just listen to her heart the way she did herself when we were riding Dinosaur!! LOL The things that come out of that girl’s mouth! I say a prayer and then while holding onto DD4, I talk DD7 through the whole ride (which is really short and really fast!!) She did great but I totally hated watching her ride it “alone”. She loves BTMRR and while Goofy’s is the very, very tame version of it, when you turn, you feel like you’re on your side. That’s why I like to hold onto them b/c I have a fear they’re going to fall out! SO watching DD7 while we’re all “on our side” was the scariest thing. We all congratulated her for being so brave, including DD4

We meet up with DH who just wants to hang out in front of Minnie’s house. I like people watching too but I like it when you have a little spot to yourself – here he was sharing a bench with 4 other adults LOL Oh, well. He’s fine to sit there while we explore Minnie’s house. We take our time in here really looking and touching everything as it’s not as crowded as it has been in past visits. The kitchen is probably the most popular room in the house and although they’ve opened the fridge to spy on all of Minnie’s cheeses, they usually miss all the other things. So both girls were happy to pop corn in her microwave and see the cake rise in her oven.

"Making Themselves at Home at Minnie's"

"Minnie's Garden"

We check in with DH again before heading to Mickey’s house. I’m afraid they want to meet him - “afraid” b/c we’ve never done the Judge’s Tent or the other character meetings here. We’ve been lucky to see many of their favorites at meals which we prefer to standing in line at Toontown; however, even though it may mean DH will be hanging out for a while, I’m prepared to wait to meet Mickey if they really want to as we haven’t seen him at all this trip (bad Mommy for not making sure we had one character meal with him! Tsk! Tsk!) But the girls don’t want to meet him, just explore his house.

Embarassing Mommy Moment coming up! Once again, it’s not so crowded here so we take our time really looking at everything. At some point, I hear this beeping noise and I wonder what the heck it could be as it sounds like a car alarm. It stops as quickly as it started so we continue on with our tour. The girls think the kitchen remodeling project is especially funny and so I lift them up so they can see through the window. On the table is the floor plans and there is something funny written there that I want to point out to them. Unfortunately, I’m an Italian-American and when I say I want to “point something out”, I usually literally “point”. The reason I can’t remember what was so funny in the floor plans is b/c as soon as my finger crossed the invisible barrier in that window, that car alarm sound went off again!!! MORTIFIED!!! I set off Mickey’s House Alarm!! Who knows if I had set it off earlier?? I am waiting for a CM to show up to 1. turn off the alarm and 2. escort me and my poor innocent off-spring not only out of Mickey’s House but out of his park as well. But once my finger is back where it belongs, the alarm stops. I am grateful that no one is close by and we continue on through the garden as if nothing is wrong, although I’m now sporting a sunburned look on my face due to the violent blushing that I can’t seem to control. *sigh* Something for my kids to remember some day as they’re sitting on the analyst’s couch, I suppose! LOL

"Mickey's Tomatoes and Mailbox"

Now back in Nov I promised the girls that they’d get to go on Donald’s Boat and get wet. The year before it was bone dry but in Nov it was just too cool and we were going to dinner right afterwards – not a wise promise on Mom’s part. So when they start to beg to visit the Boat again, I’m happy that DH is still fine with just hanging out (I’m thinking exhaustion finally snuck up on him!). He’ll give us a headstart and when he meets us there, we’ll leave and head towards Splash. As we approach the Boat, I notice a little girl about 5 or 6 coming from the Boat with her mom, crying, holding out her finger that is bleeding, probably not bad enough for stitches, but it’s not a little scrape either. The mom seems to have it all under control so we continue on.

Well, Donald’s is wet and the girls are squealing with surprise and joy every time they get squirted and I’m taping it all. I think the funniest thing was when they first timidly approached it and as they were carefully stepping around, hoping to get wet but knowing they were going to be surprised too, the WDWRR train blew its whistle!!! They jumped and let out a squeal I was sure DH must have heard! ROFL I direct them inside of the boat to where I remember you can ring the bell on the ship. They beat me inside and I see the two of them holding onto the ropes for dear life, trying with all their might to make that bell ring. Before I can figure anything out, the mom of that little girl comes back and wants to inspect the ropes. She said that was where her DD got hurt and she couldn’t understand how it happened since she couldn’t see any sharp edges. We suspect that she too was probably holding onto that rope really tight, pulling on it and probably got the equivalent of a nasty “paper” cut b/c it sliced her finger! So WARNING to all those trying to ring Donald’s bell – you can get hurt here. I’ll definitely be adding that to my usual email to WDW Guest Services with all the good and bad of my trip.

DH has caught up with us and we (me included!) have to walk back through where all those little spouts of water are going off to get out of here. So with wet legs, it just seems quite appropriate that we are headed to Splash Mtn. DH doesn’t have any concerns about the time so we’re off to use our 9pm FPs. As we pass the Castle, the crowds are all settled in for the 9pm showing of Spectro.

"What a Sight"

DH makes a stop in the restroom and while we wait for him, it’s getting darker and the mosquitoes are out (again!). The girls are thirsty but we’ve finally finished that water bottle that took so long to melt. Earlier when we got the FPs here, I overheard some of the CMs that work the carts talking about what time they’ll close up for the night – it was either 8 or 8:30pm, so there’s not a drink stand in sight DH finally comes back and now I’m worried that he’s been sick but nope! He got a little lost! Very unlike him! There was a sign right near us pointing towards the restrooms and I kept looking for him in that direction but he came from a whole different direction b/c he hadn’t seen the sign – I have no idea where he ended up! LOL

Ok, onto Splash where we know we’ll find water but not of the drinking variety! LOL The FP is wonderful as we walk on with a minimal wait and in minutes we’ve climbed into our log, with DD4 and I in the last row! The girls love this ride and especially the music, so I decide to try to videotape as much as I can before we approach the big drop but I forgot all about those little drops! LOL Pal Mickey has told us to cover his eyes and everything else too! I finally put away the camera as I’m getting nervous that I won’t be holding DD4 tightly on the little medium-sized drop. That drop surprised DD4 and I know she’s not really prepared for the big drop so I hold onto her as tightly as I can. Normally I keep my eyes open and just crouch down some (I’m a wuss) but this time I close my eyes and I kick myself for not telling DD4 to do the same. She’s been on this before but it still kind of surprised her. As soon as the drop/splash is over, DD4 tells us that she was a bit afraid and didn’t like that drop at all but she was very brave. She says it so matter-of-factly! LOL We look at the ride photo and I can see DH, myself and DD4 clearly – no sign of DD7 b/c she’s hunkered practically underneath DH! Someday when you can see all of 4 of us, we’ll get that photo!

Well, we’ve done Splash and it’s getting late so we decide to exit the park but aha! Spectro is making its way through Frontierland. Funny that we caught the parade twice during this trip from the same land. There’s a crowd, of course, but we hang back since we had such a great viewing spot last time. The girls can still see with us picking them up and they wave as if they were right in front – that kind of breaks my heart since I know they’re far away but they don’t realize that. :/ More and more people are coming off of Splash and, I guess, BTMRR and ending up where we are. A group of ladies is enjoying the parade and suddenly I hear one of them say loudly and nastily, “Thanks, Mr. Big Man for blocking my view!!!” She’s talking about a very large gentleman that was standing in front of us and had been standing there all along. I think he shifted over slightly – as there was lots of room to move around and re-position yourself where we were. I thought she was super rude and I was glad that either he didn’t hear her or chose not to.

I’m wondering how the heck we’re going to get out of here and I’m also wondering where the parade floats go after the parade is done. They sort of disappear. DH says there’s an area that has large doors or gates that we passed and sure enough if you watch, the lights of the parade just zip! Disappear from view as if by magic! We crossover and pass through Adventureland – DH is very proud of himself. He’s beginning to really know all the ins and outs of this park (well, except for that restroom snafu! LOL) and he gets us back towards Main Street near the Crystal Palace in no time. Wishes is going to start soon and he actually suggests us finding a good spot to watch it since we’re here. So now we’re on a hunt for the perfect spot this late in the game. We walk and turn around and walk and turn around some more, never quite satisfied with the view. I’m not sure if it was by CP or Casey’s but there seemed to be a great, not too crowded area, but DH kept moving onward Now we’re on Main and the middle of the road looks good but no one’s standing in the middle, only on the sides. I haven’t watched MK fireworks from here in awhile and I wasn’t too sure of the protocol. Back in ’91, we watched from the middle of the street – can you do this anymore or must you stay on the sidelines? It was odd that everyone seemed to remain in their parade spots instead of moving to the center of the street. So we keep walking, probably passing up several good viewing spots.

"Another Blurry Castle Shot! You can tell which pics DH took LOL"

We hit Town Square and we’re just too polite to step in front of people who obviously have been waiting there for some time so we keep moving around – the Castle’s nowhere in sight so we decide to just skip Wishes and hopefully catch some of the fireworks as we wait by the Boat Dock and we do. DH stays on line and crouches down so he can see the fireworks. I take the girls to a little bench right there so we can watch and I try to video Wishes again, hoping that it’s a better view than last time. Well, the last time we could see the Castle and parts of the fireworks that weren’t hidden by the trees. This time, no Castle or music, but we can see lots of the special fireworks. Unfortunately, the girls aren’t as impressed as I am – I’m sure they’re just tired. A boat appears and there is a lucky crowd seated in DD7’s favorite seats, outside in the front – and they are enjoying the view of Wishes! After the fireworks, we’re able to board and that crowd stays on – so I’m thinking they were very smart and purposely rode the boat at the right time or they got lucky and decided to just head back to their resort. Makes me wish I was a little smarter! Great for them but now the boat is that much more crowded. We amazingly get a seat and double up with each of them on our laps so a woman can sit next to us. DD4 falls asleep instantly, followed by DD7. I’m pooped and thirsty and I practically fall asleep myself when I realize that we’re going backwards – it seems the EWP is making its way through (not lit up, I guess, going back for the night) and we have to get out of its way. You don’t realize how long that thing is – it seemed like we would be out there all night. Another boat that was behind us, sneaks in front of us and for the first time on this trip, I feel like I’m on the NYC subway or NJ Transit – annoyed that we aren’t moving faster, that we’re not “there” yet. LOL

We take the l-o-n-g walk back to the villas carrying our “loads” and I laugh when I remember that DD7 was hoping that we would be able to get their pics drawn in the WL lobby tonight. I had wanted to get either a caricature or their silhouettes done. I told the girls this and I noted the WL artist’s hours. I think he’s only there til 6pm? So we missed our chance but DD7 refused to understand that and had been hoping we could still have them done tonight. Even if the guy was there, it would have been a picture of two Sleeping Beauties! LOL I remember, too late back in the room, that I never did pick up those Mickey straws for DD7’s class but I have lots of packing to do tonight. I don’t know how I did it, but everything was packed away with only one more carry-on bag than we had when we flew down *patting self on back*

We’re up at 7am and after getting the girls ready, I video our room and the view (something I’d forgotten earlier LOL). By 8am, DH calls for a bell attd to pick up our luggage and they arrive in minutes. DH takes the girls to the lobby as I head to Roaring “Snorks” for those Mickey straws. There’s a line to get in (of course, it’s breakfast time!) but the straws are near the cash register and there’s no line there so I smartly move there and get my souven-ears. I should have picked up extras but I just keep repeating the amount we need for DD7’s class (26) and I was already afraid someone would yell at me for taking too many (no one did!) I wonder if anyone else buys these for a nice cheap gift? I meet up with my family and as we step outside, our same QS driver arrives 15 minutes earlier than expected which is great.

{b}"Before checking out" "Saying goodbye to the WL"[/b]

"Villas Pool"

"A butterfly sends us on our way and says goodbye for now!"

We sadly say goodbye to the WL, really “so long” as we’ll back some day. It’s sad passing through the WDW gates too. DD4 decides that she’s going to count for a while and she does up to #300! Thankfully, she stops then b/c that didn’t take us too far in our trip to the airport! We check in at the curb and as the attendant checks our photo IDs, he informs me that the little “S” on my tix indicates that the airline has selected me to be searched! Yippee. I say goodbye to my family and bring all the bags I’ve been carrying – my fannypack, my backpack, the girls’ backpack stuffed with all their souven-ears and the Disney shopping bag holding the Epcot masks and Minnie ears. All of these bags I had to pack three different times last night to make sure they all fit and in some kind of order so that I could find stuff on the plane if we needed it. Now one of the security guys is rummaging through them and I’m hoping that he’ll be able to get them all zippered and if I’ll be able to find anything again! LOL I get wanded and something in my right pocket beeps – I empty a few tissues and *gasp* a safety pin!!!! I don’t remember putting one in my pocket recently but I must have! I’m totally convinced that I’m going to airport jail and I’ll never see my family again! But to my surprise, the female security guard doesn’t even confiscate my pin! LOL

I go to collect my bags as the Security guy is finishing up with the girls’ backpack – he is surprised when one of the Epcot light-up ice cubes lights up on its own – he doesn’t even smile. I nervously explain that they’re souven-ear ice cubes and wait for someone to cuff me and throw me in Airport Jail yet again. But nope. I’m free! I meet up with my family and we have Cinnabons for breakfast (yum!) We head to the gate and I lose track of time. I don’t do the mandated bathroom break before boarding and they’re getting ready to board! DD7 says she has to go so we run – I don’t take DD4 since she seems to be okay and she’s usually pretty good on trips. We have a pleasant flight and right before we start to descend, of course, DD4 decides she “has” to go. After escorting them to the bathroom is various park restrooms for the last couple of days, I ask DH to take her. I don’t do airplane bathrooms! LOL

We land a little later than expected and my sister and my dad are waiting to take us home. The girls are so excited to see them and they talk non-stop about their adventures (like their mom!) I’m too tired to talk or even think. My sis invites us over for dinner but I just want to stay home – I’m really too tired, so I end up cooking dinner. I unpack and start laundry, dragging my feet and I’m in bed by 9:30pm – way early for me! Our trip is over – back to reality.

The following night DH mentions to me that we should discuss what we should do with our remaining DVC points for this year. I love it when he brings up this topic, especially before I do!! We decide to bank our remaining points for this year. Right now we don't have the dates for our next trip - but it's out there, waiting for us to book it, plan it and then savor it until we're back at the place where dreams come true!! Thanks for reading!!

[Colexis Mom]

What a great last day Val

You guys had such a great time Thanks for sharing it with us

[Grammy Grumpy]

Wow, great ending to your vacation! Sorry about being selected to be searched, but glad it all worked out and you arrived home safe and sound.

[Cinderbrella]

I really enoyed your TR and pictures, Val! Your meal at LTT sounded like so much fun, with lots of character interaction. It sounds like the girls really enjoyed their time with Ariel, too.They look so cute at Minnie and Mickey's. Thanks for sharing your magical trip!!

[Joy J]

Val, I thoroughly enjoyed every word of your trip report from start to finish. I can hardly wait for you to visit WDW again so that I can read another one of your reports.

Joy

[Goofy'sGal]

Thanks, guys! And hey, Joy, it looks like you'll have some trip reporting of your own to do soon!! Have a magical time!!