November 2015….......Back after a long break!
Ft Myers and Disney
Nov. 11 - Nov. 21
The trip plans. We hadn’t been to Disney in a few years and during that time I had my heart surgery and we all went through a horrible time then, especially me! Truly wondered if we’d ever be able to go back and if I could actually ever handle it. Things were finally back to “normal” or the new normal and one day I woke up and realized my baby was about to be a sophomore in high school! How did that happen? He had been in 7th grade during my surgery and he was still just a kid then but wow has he aged and changed in the years since then.
I thought about how it’s been so long since we’ve had a vacation, I mean the kid was in the 7th grade! And how I want to make some memories with him before he’s too old to want to do it because boys aren’t like girls and I’m sure he won’t want to still be joining us in his mid 20’s. I didn’t think about Disney at 1st I just thought of a summer trip maybe to Branson because it’s not too far away and I was worried about driving clear to Florida due to both leg swelling, water pills and blood clots and we’ve never been. I started looking into that but with the hotel, meals and entertainment for this 4 night 5-day trip it was going to cost almost $1,000! For BRANSON? Plus, there was the fact that no one really seemed interested in it AT ALL. Alan and Owen were not excited and I spoke to Olivia about it and she had said she’d go with us but it wasn’t exactly somewhere we were all dying to go to.
Then I saw that Disney had released free dining for November! I thought to myself if I can come up with a $1,000 for Branson in the summer then I can come up with enough by November and we could just do that instead. Alan and Owen were much happier about that idea. As a matter of fact, Owen was the happiest and most excited as I’d seen him in a long time. The problem with Olivia was in the summer she’s available to go but during the school year she may have a teaching job by then which means she wouldn’t be able to go with us. I felt bad about this mostly for Owen because since she’d moved out which was about one year ago from when I was doing all this thinking he’s really been missing her. Plus, it’s got to be weird to take a family vacation without your sibling and be the only child.
I explained to Owen that it will just be the three of us and he said that it won’t be nearly as much fun without her but it would still be fun and he still wanted to go.
I booked the free dining and all you have to do is put down a $200 deposit and can cancel up to 30 days before with no penalty and after that 30 mark all you forfeit is the $200. I was nervous about cancelation policies because of all the heart stuff I still had going on. Then Alan and I talked about how much we did NOT want to drive 18 hours! I also worried about how I would handle that with swelling and worry of blood clot issues. So, then we decided to get the Southwest card that gives you 50,000 frequent flier miles and this would cover our flights! All it costs is a $69.00 fee to join it. And $69.00 for free flights seemed like a good idea. We were excited about that.
So as summer kept ticking along and it looked more and more like Olivia wasn’t going to have a teaching job for the fall so her and I discussed her coming with us. And by late August we were positive enough that we booked her flights too. We had enough points left over to cover one way of her flight and she paid for the other one-way ticket. We had been keeping it to ourselves about Olivia possibly going until now we didn’t want Owen to get excited and then have it fall through. She did end up getting a long term sub job that started at the beginning of the year for 4 weeks which then got switched to another classroom and it was unknown how long that 2nd one would last. They just kept extending it week by week. It turned out to last 8 weeks and the teacher was coming back that week we were going to be leaving.
Ok so that’s how the trip came to be.
Also, we had some Sheraton hotel points we needed to use or loose. They emailed us we would be losing by the end of the year if we didn’t use them up. It had a been a long time since Alan had traveled and stayed at a Sheraton. So, I thought well if we’re using all those points to fly all the way to Florida we may as well make the most of it and add a couple days at the beach. Plus, Alan had been dying to go back to the beach also.
Veterans Day was on the Wednesday before we started our week at Disney so there would be no school. (There turned out to be a surprise no school day on that Friday too because our volleyball team went to state and they called off school!)
So those would be the days we could travel to the beach, Wed, Thur, Fri. and ONE of the things I LOVE about Southwest is you can make changes on your FF tickets with no fees! (or cancel if you need to) So we changed the days we were leaving. Finding the hotel was difficult because we wanted to go to the Clearwater area but there was nowhere that would take the amount of points we had. Instead, I found a hotel in Ft Myers that we could stay at with our points. This also added the drama of do we fly into Orlando, Tampa or Ft Myers! Jeez! Well, it turned out that the rental cars in Ft Myers were a lot more expensive and even when I figured in the gas, we’d save driving down from one of the other airports it was still too much for the rental car. We ended up choosing to fly into Tampa because it took the least amount of points and had the cheapest rental car deal.
Plans were set!
But I’m still not done and ready to start the actual trip yet. First of all, I had to learn all about this new thing called Fast Pass Plus. Yes, we’d used the old fast pass system for years and years but this was a whole different thing! Who knew that adding a little + sign would screw everything up so much! But with this new system you have to pick which 3 rides you want to ride on each of your days 60 (SIXTY!) days before your trip. And not just which rides but the actual time you will be riding those 3 rides!
This new system had been around for maybe a year or so now but I had not read anything good about it. I also didn’t actually know too much about it either because every time I would see someone post something negative about it, I would think to myself surely Disney will come to their senses and switch back to the old way before I ever get to go back again. So, I wasn’t wasting my time learning the ins and outs of it because it will never last! Well then, I saw that they had literally removed the old fast pass machines from the park so I gave up that hope and had to figure out the new system!
At midnight exactly 60 days before our Disney arrival I had to log on to their website and book these rides starting at 12:01am! And this is what everyone else does too so I’m not just a crazy person! Well, I was so nervous about this I had my plans all laid out and my backup plans too in case the stuff I want won’t work. And after I booked the 1st day (you have to do each day individually) the website went down! Seriously can’t make this crap up. I freaked out and started to cry (again seriously!) because I thought it was just happening to me but then I looked on one of my message boards and found out that it wasn’t just ME that couldn’t book no one else could either. Well, this was a huge relief because if it was working for everyone else, they would have gotten all the good ride times. But while this was still irritating at least I wasn’t missing out. So, I waited and so did everyone else and then an hour and a half later at 1:30am it came up and started working!! The excitement of it finally working woke me up a bit and then around 2:15am or so I was done! And so far, I am not liking this new FP+ stuff at all!!
There was so much drama involved in planning these ride times and I stressed over it so much that at one point I was complaining to Alan and he said screw it just don’t book any and we’ll just wing it! OMG he’s lost his mind! I said that will NOT be a good idea because then we won’t get to ride on anything. So, I stopped talking to him about it. Maybe that was his plan all along. Lol.
The other thing that drove me crazy during the planning was booking the meals. Some of these reservations were very hard to get and there was a new one in the Magic Kingdom at the Beasts castle called Be Our Guest and Olivia REALLY wanted to eat there. It’s the only place at Disney where you can meet the Beast and he’s been her favorite since she was 3. Oh, and he’s only there for dinner. Well, I managed to get a lunch booked there and eventually even got a breakfast for early in the morning before the park even opens booked too. Which means we get to go in early, eat and then before the park opens, we get to ride the new 7 dwarf’s coaster which we’ve never been on before. So that was a pretty big deal. As a matter of fact, Owen helped me get that reservation because I had to sit at the webpage and just keep refreshing it until something for 8am opened up but after an hour of doing it I had to go start dinner so I put him in charge of just hitting refresh over and over and we eventually got it.
But that was breakfast and lunch however and the illusive dinner with the Beast was still not happening. I finally gave in and paid $5.99 to some stupid website that basically sits and refreshes and tries to find a reservation for you within an hour of your preferred day/time. Once they see your time open, they send you a text alert and you have to log in and grab it before someone else does. They do not book it for you. Well after about a week I hadn’t gotten any text alerts and started to think I hadn’t signed up correctly. But eventually one night we were at the dinner table and eating hamburgers when my text alert went off and I literally threw my burger in the air, jumped up logged in faster than lightening and it was already GONE!! There was no way I could have been any faster! I’m not sure how much longer it took maybe days maybe another week but eventually it happened again and I GOT IT!!! And the best part is it’s on our last night!! PERFECT!! There are no words to express how excited I was! SO EXCITED! I called lib and told her and I screamed and jumped up and down. At this point it had just become a mission that I must accomplish and I thought I sure hope this dinner is worth all this! (we’ll see!)
Ok I think that’s it for the pre-trip stuff that took forever but it was a lot of new stuff. Flights, flight changes, where to fly into, finding hotel with points, will Olivia go or won’t she, learn about FP+, booking FP+, fight to make dining reservations. Lots of drama!
This was a regular school and work day. Owen got home at 3pm with his makeup work for the trip which ended up just being math only! He went to the other room and got started on it so he doesn’t have to do it all on the trip. Olivia finished her last day of subbing for Mrs. Sims and is not coming to our house until 5pm because she has last minute stuff to do.
About 4:45 mom and dad walked over to visit and say goodbye then at 5 Olivia called and was dropping her car off to get worked on while we’re gone so I met her there and brought her to our house. Alan got home at his regular time of 5:30 and started questioning why I am still packing stuff. Well Olivia had brought some stuff that we squeezed into other bags and I was still packing camera stuff etc. He got changed and then started throwing things in the car like the house was on fire. It was starting to tick me off and everyone could see that except him. Mom and dad left because they could sense it might get ugly in a minute.
Anyway, we piled in the van and pulled out at 5:55 which is five whole minutes ahead of schedule so I don’t know what his hurry was! LOL. Then we had to stop at McDonalds to get him a coke for his headache and Olivia had to have one too. Owen paid!!! HA! That is hilarious and I have no idea why he paid but it’s in my notes.
We were heading out of town at 6 and headed to Indy. I think in all my planning talk I forgot to write that we are flying out of Indianapolis for the 1st time ever!! It’s a 3-hour drive instead of 2 but the FF points required were much lower so an hour is no big deal! HA!
About 30 minutes after we got on the interstate someone had to pee so bad, they were “going to die” any guesses of who that was? Yes, Olivia of course. We were literally in the middle of nowhere with no exits so she had to hold it for a bit and again “going to die”. Had to have that diet coke didn’t she. We finally pulled off at an exit that had a gas station and a McDonalds and……………. that’s it nothing else there at all!
Back on the road and on to Terre Haute Ind. Where we were planning to stop for dinner. It was 8:30 but it was only 7:30 Shelbyville time. We went to what would be the first of many chick fil a stops. We ate inside and Alan ordered the chicken sandwich meal, the kids each had an 8pc nugget meal and I just ordered the 12pc nugget and a water $25 oh and I was thinking that with three orders of fries someone would share with me since I didn’t get any but I was wrong. After we ate, we were all still hungry and so Alan went up and ordered another 12pc nugget and large fries and we all shared that. don’t know what I was thinking when I didn’t order the fries because those waffle fries are so good! And we tried their lemonade for the 1st time and wow that is some good stuff too. So, after spending just over $30 on fast food we were back on the road to Indy.
It was only about another hour away but good grief it felt like another 3 hours. Also it really felt weird all evening leaving home AFTER dark!
We got to Indy at around 10 (Ind. time) and we could not find the hotel at all. We drove around lost in some warehouse type area near the airport and eventually turned around in a Tyson chicken factory parking lot. We were all grossed out by that. (and yes I know we just ate chicken) plus the area was deserted where we were lost at so it was scary but it wouldn’t be a trip if Alan didn’t get us lost in a bad area.
Twenty minutes later we found the hotel and checked in. We used the last of our Hyatt points to get this night for free and then they just charge you $30 for your parking during your trip. I thought it was great deal.
Our room was nice and had a king bed with a sofa sleeper and a mini kitchen I wish we had all this space at Pop Century. It’s now 11:20 Indiana time and we had to make Owen go shower because when he took off his shoes, we about all died it stunk so bad.
This was when we also found out that with all my awesome packing stills and organization, I had packed Olivia’s travel outfit in one of the other bags that’s in the car. Oops.
I had taken my pills and was waiting for them to kick in and I can’t sleep because for some reason I am SO nervous about one of us getting sick on this trip plus I am also nervous about the flight. Will I set off the metal detector with my mechanical valve? They say no but would be my luck. Lol.
Alarm was set for 7 but I was awake before that because sleep sucked! I went to shower 1st and this is when we discovered that last night when Owen showered, he dried off with the bath mat! HA! He didn’t see the towels because they were inside the shower up high on a shelf and so he just dried with the tiny little bath mat that is kind of like a towel I guess but it was VERY funny. Especially when we told him and he said “no wonder it wouldn’t wrap around me” and he also said that he thought it was a hand towel. I can’t imagine that he got very dry with it. We laughed so hard it woke us all up!
So down for free breakfast which also sucked. I had some OJ and I think a little bit of a bagel but the hot food they had was just these generic looking egg McMuffins that were very dry and I didn’t want all that sodium before flying anyway.
We took the shuttle to the airport at 8:30 and it seemed like a long ride that took forever because they have redone this airport I guess and basically switched the area where guests get dropped off at now and it’s the farthest from where the hotels are at. So, you have to be driven not just to the airport but all the way around to the farthest side of the airport all going on the interstate at 100mph maybe? That’s probably not accurate but it felt like it.
We checked in with no trouble and then had a lot of time to kill so before going through security we just put all of our stuff down at a table outside of a bunch of shops and I sat and watched everything while they all wondered around the stores. I took a couple pics of the kids and we also looked above us at a glass ceiling and saw these men up there washing the windows/ceiling! Looked like a terrible job!
We then went through security with no real trouble just a pain in the butt traveling with the CPAP machines! Alan thinks he could live without his for the week but it keeps him from snoring in the hotel room! Anyway, it’s just hard to go through and take each of those out of the bags, deal with other carry on’s, purses, camera stuff and also take off your shoes! And try to keep an eye on everything while it’s going through the scanners without you! There was the regular scanner that you walk through or the 3D creepy see you “naked” scanner which I don’t think they use all the time and I didn’t want to go through but some mean woman yelled for some people to come through that line since it was empty so I said screw it and went. I got through before the rest of the family and was able to start tracking down our stuff.
We had to go sit on a bench to get shoes back on and repack the CPAPS. The whole thing sounds much worse than it was because it only took a few minutes it’s just you feel the pressure to hurry up and get through it.
We boarded on time and arrived in Tampa on time also. I don’t remember what Olivia and I did on the flight but I think she got a couple magazines and we took turns reading those as usual.
Anyway, when we landed and as I was coming off the plane, I felt VERY lightheaded. VERY! It didn’t hit me when I stood up but once we started walking off the plane and then down the ? whatever that things called it was really hitting me bad. As soon as we got into the airport we had to stop and give it a few minutes to go away. Then a quick bathroom break where I still felt a little funny for a few more minutes. It was probably low blood pressure from one of my stupid pills.
Once that was over, I was feeling better and we took off to get the luggage and then go get the rental car. I had booked us a mid-sized SUV and as always, I had worried about the size of the rental! They let us have our pick of which one we wanted in that isle and we took the one that looked the biggest of course. Not that any of them looked that big. We shoved the luggage in the back and also in the backseat. And complained about it being too small. We would spend the next three days saying “mid-size SUV” very sarcastically!
And we were off on our way!
Right when you leave the airport in Tampa you go right over the huge bay so you immediately feel like you’re in Florida. We had a 3-hour drive to Ft. Myers but I had done some research and found a beach about at the halfway point that is near Venice Beach called Caspersen beach and it is very known for shark teeth. So that is where we were headed but after 45 minutes on the road, we want lunch so we stopped at Chick-fil-A! Today is Veterans Day and I had also researched places we could eat where Alan would get a free meal because a lot of places do that but we didn’t want a sit-down meal since we only had so much daylight time left. So, we stopped and he was able to get a free chicken sandwich, also with our dinner there the night before they gave us a survey with our receipt that we made Olivia do and she got a code for a free sandwich which is what I ate and then the kids got 12pc meals with fries and drinks. Again, we had their lemonade and WOW that is some strong stuff. Alan also ordered an 8pc nugget to go with his sandwich too.
After lunch we were back in the car and drove on to find this beach. I had written out directions and had a map printed and I REALLY wrote these directions out very carefully because this is a very small beach that’s hard to find at the end of a dead-end road!
So obviously we got lost! OF COURSE! We were doing ok for a while but then we were in a somewhat residential area and there was one of those weird circle roads like you see in London where there is not a 4 way stop sign it’s just a circle and the cars just have to merge their way in and out of the circle. Scary as crap I think. Well later we figured out that this is where we got screwed up because the road, we were on we were supposed to just keep going straight but it’s hard to go straight if there is a circle in front of you. We basically found out that we had went around the circle but gotten out of the circle on the wrong road.
After driving on the wrong road for a good while and I’m not recognizing anything from my maps etc. We turned around and went back and figured it out. But it took us forever and what should have been 20 minutes took us one whole hour!
I wish I knew what time we got here but my notes don’t say. I do know that we were concerned that it would be dark at 5. My guess is that it was 3:00 or maybe even 3:30 at this point. But I’m not sure.
The boys got out and quickly went to the bathrooms to change and I had carefully packed a bag for us to just grab for this. Olivia and I didn’t change because who has time for that! We just put on our flip flops.
We all walked down to the beach and it’s a very rocky beach. The boys spend about 35 seconds looking for shells and then go jump in the ocean. Owen just flung himself right in! Well as I said it’s a rocky beach so of course they both got a little cut and scratched up on the rocks. They kept getting out and looking for shells and shark’s teeth. Unfortunately, they didn’t find any but I will say they just didn’t seem to be looking that hard. It was HOT and Olivia and I just sat on the sand and watched them and complained about how it’s awfully hot for Florida in November! (foreshadowing….)
It didn’t take that long for the boys to give up and go back to change out of their suits. We rinsed off and got back in the “mid-sized SUV”. Lol
We timed (ok maybe just me) how long it took to get back to the interstate and it was 17 minutes. Yep, I had said it was supposed to take about 20 minutes. But it took us 3 times that to find it. And it ended up being a bust!
Back on the interstate and bummed we didn’t find any shark teeth we drove on. It’s only another hour and a half but good grief apparently, we hate to travel by car because we were all whinny and tired and just wanted to be there already. Again, longest hour and a half drive that felt like 6 hours. It got dark on us before we made it to Ft Myers. But we managed to find our exit and we weren’t far off the interstate. (this was no beach hotel) We arrived at the Sheraton Four Points to stay for two nights free with points. We unloaded the car I think we unloaded ALL OF IT because it’s so hot we didn’t want to leave stuff in the car.
The kids and I went to the room and changed into suits while Alan went down the road to the grocery store with a short list of a few things we needed. Our hotel doesn’t have a free breakfast so we needed that plus soda and water. We also told him to find and bring us back a pizza and we didn’t care from where. I took the ice bucket and the plastic cups from the room down to the pool where he was planning on meeting us. The kids were already down there swimming when I got there.
There was some kind of fitness conference or something going on that some ladies were in town for and so these 3 or 4 judgy bitches were sitting at a table talking and staring at me getting into the pool. But it was so hot I didn’t care! Well maybe I cared a little. It was DARK and it was still HOT!! The humidity would melt your face right off!! This is so weird because normally November is so nice and never this HOT. We are never able to swim in the evenings.
After a bit the ladies left and then Alan showed up with the pizza! Haaha! He had gotten a large from Papa Johns and some garlic bread and a 2 liter of soda. ($16.00) So we sat at a table and ate and then after that Olivia went up to shower while Alan got in and swam with Owen. I just sat out in the chair with my feet up. They got in the hot tub too. After a while we all went up to the room and the kids got WILD in the room and it was really irritating Alan. I think he had forgotten what they can be like when they are together like this because it’s been a long time! But Olivia is SOOO LOUD!
Alan can be annoying at times in hotel rooms because when he’s ready for bed that’s it! He’s ready! Well, I wasn’t and I kept having to get up to get or do something and it was cracking the kids up for some reason. I think they were just slap happy!
We slept boys in one bed and girls in the other so I got to sleep with ……Olivia!! We did have two queens though however one of them was so close to the wall/air conditioner unit that you couldn’t get out of bed on that side if you wanted to. Finally, to sleep it had been a long day.
We slept till 8am and then ate mini muffins in the room with milk and got ready. We left the hotel at 9:30 we were headed to Sanibel Island today. The plan was to stop somewhere cheap and get a chair and umbrella for me to use at the beach. But 1st we passed a TJ Maxx and Alan had to stop and check for Jaguars stuff. We all went in and I looked around to see if they had any beach stuff but they didn’t. So next we stopped at Dollar General and they said they didn’t have any because they are out of season. We did buy some suntan lotion though. Then on to a Kmart which had a Tuesday Morning store next door we looked in there and nothing but we were again told that they are out of season! Seriously! We were very close to the beach! Finally, in Kmart where we found an umbrella but no chair however back in sporting goods they had the folding camping chairs which is what we wanted anyway. The chair was on sale and all total I think it came to about $22.00. Alan did not want to pay this I could tell. I could sense that he thought we should keep looking elsewhere! I have psychic powers.
We bought it and finally headed to the beach! We paid the $6 to get onto Sanibel and then it’s just a very looonnnnggggg drive with a lot of traffic to the end of the island to Blind Pass which is where you cross the bridge to Captivia. Bumper to bumper cars and why is there so much beach traffic if it’s “off season”? LOL. It felt again like we were driving forever on what was supposed to be a fairly small island and we almost missed our turn because it was just a tiny sign buried by trees and you couldn’t see the parking area till you were almost past it. But we pulled in and they have what looks like vending machines where you put your credit card in to pay for your parking. No other way to pay which seems odd. It cost $4 an hour so we spent $8 for two hours.
We then unload our stuff which really wasn’t that much just the chair, umbrella and beach bag I had brought and as we made our way toward the beach we see a big sign that says “ WARNING dangerous current---- no swimming!”
Well Owen was PISSED! We ignored the sign and marched on after all when you plan a trip to the beach in November you never know if it will even be warm enough to swim so it’s not guaranteed. But at least we can look for shells.
Olivia and I planted ourselves. I was in the chair and she was laying on a towel. She was exhausted from a bunch of stuff she had to do before the trip at school and she had said that she was going to spend these first few days at the beach doing nothing. And she meant it. She just laid there and read her book. I got up after a while and looked for shells. Oh yes and I should mention that we hauled 4 pairs of water shoes with us on the plane to Florida because of all the shells on Sanibel we would need them to walk around. But as we arrived at the beach guess where the water shoes were? Yep, back at the hotel!! I was not happy about that.
So, I’m walking and looking for shells but its Sanibel there are millions of shells just not any that are worth “finding” and we didn’t have a shell net like we needed. The boys decided to take their chances and get in the water but were very very shallow and just using a mask (we remembered that!) to look for shells underwater. Owen was also playing with his gopro camera. He got some good video.
They were finding stuff but it was all alive still. Plus, they are very impatient I bet it had only been 20 minutes and they have declared there’s nothing here. HA! I said too bad we paid for two hours of parking so keep looking. Meanwhile it’s HOT! And by the time we had finally gotten to the beach it was 11am so we ‘re going to be getting hungry before long too. The swift current kept carrying the boy’s way down past us and then they would get out and walk back to where we were at so I told them to take off and walk down the beach in the other direction looking for shells on the beach and then get in the water and let the current carry them back to where we are sitting. Jeez I have to think of everything! Haha!
After our 2 hours was almost up, we packed up and made our way to the car where we made someone VERY happy by letting them have our parking space because this was the only parking area and it was tiny. We left here at 1:10 and we had gotten here at 11:20 so we had stayed close to the two hours. We are now off looking for lunch.
Well, I had looked at all the menus online of the island and had narrowed it down to only two places that were cheap. Everyone wanted seafood of course but we had a food budget for our beach days of $50 a day and I knew that if we ate seafood for lunch, it would be $50 and we would have no money for dinner! So, I told them they could get their seafood at the seafood buffet place in Disney later. For Free!
Alan ignores my suggested lunch places, one of which was Dairy Queen haha! (I later found out that it’s outside seating only so no air conditioning and I would have died so good thing we didn’t go there). Have I mentioned it’s HOT as July here?
He pulls into a place called the Great White Grill and I am figuring this means we won’t be eating dinner with our food budget but once we went inside and ordered our ice waters (which we chugged!) Alan looked at the menu and quickly did the math that if sandwiches are $12 each then this is gonna cost $50! DUH! That’s what I said!
But then we notice you can get pizza for either $2.50 a slice or $16.95 for a whole pizza which would be two slices each! We didn’t need to be stuffed before heading to the next beach so this would work out well and we ordered sausage and mushrooms. (after all these years the kids finally like mushrooms! Jeez)
The pizza was actually good and we only spent $20 total.
Next door in this strip mall was a Goodwill store! We thought this was hilarious that they have a Goodwill on Sanibel Island and of course Alan wanted to go in. Since it had air conditioning I agreed.
Well, this is apparently where people donate their old condo décor because there were so many things that looked like it came from condos in the 80’s here. As a matter of fact, I think one of those huge pictures may have hung above a sofa in the condo mom and dad rented here when I was a kid. It was very funny but absolutely all of it reminded me of the condo furniture from childhood vacations.
Owen was thrilled to find himself a boogie board for $3.00 and the kids (probably lib) needed some gummy worms because they also sold candy. I said I hope it’s not old donated candy! But they got in the car and tore right into those gummy worms as we drove to the other side of the island to the lighthouse beach area.
We got here and paid to park again, before going to the beach Olivia and I went to use the bathroom and while we were in there I looked down and noticed that I was wearing two entirely different flip flops! Her and I about died laughing! You would have thought it was the funniest thing to ever happen because I said I wonder how long I’ve had them on like this? I had two pairs of flip flops in the front seat on the floor because one pair was my good pair for actually walking in when we had stopped to shop etc and the other was an old pair of Olivia’s for getting wet and sandy at the beach. (you don’t want to know how many shoe options I packed for Disney!)
So anyway, we come out of the bathroom to tell the boys what had happened and they just looked at us like we were stupid and embarrassing and said YES! WE HEARD YOU! It turns out the bathroom is an open-air bathroom because there is no air conditioning and so they are pretty sure the entire island of Sanibel heard us in there laughing at my mismatched flip flops.
Oh well we sent them on the beach to get us a spot and I said I’m going to get wet under the nice outdoor shower area. Have I mentioned that it’s as hot as Florida in July? Well, it was.
So over to the shower and Olivia came with me and when the amazing cool water hit us there was all kinds of Ohhing and Ahhing and laughing going on because we said THIS is amazing! I told her I wasn’t leaving the shower area! The boys could probably hear us all the way down at the beach we were loving it. This may have been my favorite part of the day. Yes, I think it was.
Once we were good and wet and cooled off, we went on down to the beach and stayed for an hour and a half. Olivia laid down beside my chair and fell asleep for probably 45-60 minutes. The boys were allowed to get in the water here no strong current in this area so they were in playing with the Go Pro camera. They found tons of sand dollars but they were all alive.
I attempted to read Olivia’s book while she slept but mostly, I just watched the boys. They make me nervous in that ocean. Don’t they know there are sharks in there?
At around 4 something we decided we’d had enough and packed up.
We drove over to the DQ and all got ice cream cones to eat on the drive back off the island and back to the room. ($10.00) It turned out to be the worst time of day to try to drive all the way across Ft Myers because it was between 4:30-5:30 and there was a ton of traffic. It was just stop and go and we hit every red light.
We made it to the room at 5:30 and we all had plans to hit the pool after sweating at the beach and especially since Olivia and I never did even get in. But once we got to the room Alan and I changed our minds. The kids went swimming for an hour and we laid in the air conditioning and rested. (so hot!)
After an hour Alan went down for happy hour at the bar and got a $2 drink then the kids came up and got changed and ready to go out to dinner.
We left and drove just down the road to the Gulf Coast Mall area to find food. I had spent a lot of time at home looking at this area on the map so I should have known exactly what they had but for some reason I didn’t. After driving around, the huge area of this mall we finally decided on Pinchers which was basically Joes Crab Shack but with a different name.
We were planning on using the $50 gift card that mom and dad gave us before our trip for dinner here. Owen and I had shrimp platters with garlic bread and mine had mashed potatoes and he had fries. Alan had a bowl of corn crab soup (why?) and crab pasta for his meal and Olivia ordered the Calamari platter. We had 3 waters and 1 coke and it was $76.00! Holy Cow! The food was DELICIOUS and we ate like we were starved to death! So good but expensive. Olivia had said after we ordered that she was going to pay for whatever the gift card didn’t cover as a thank you for bringing her with us and because we were paying for all her other meals. So, we gave them the gift card to take off but they could only get it to remove $41.00 (we eventually were able to use it elsewhere for the remaining $9.00) they kept saying that’s all that is on it. It was taking forever so we finally said ok (how were we going to prove otherwise?) and lib got the thrill of paying the difference which was about $35 bucks. We paid the tip cause we’re not that mean! Oh, and she mostly did this nice gesture because I had said we weren’t eating any sit down meals just fast food for our beach days but she was dying to eat at a seafood place. So, we thanked her for paying for part of it and piled back into the mid sized SUV ha!
There was a store in this mall area that Alan wanted to run into so he could check for Jaguars stuff I think it was a Marshalls so we waited in the car while he went in and of course they didn’t have anything.
Then it was off to find the mini golf place! I had found a coupon deal online before we left home for buy one get one free prepaid deal.
It took a while to find it and it wasn’t really in a vacation or tourist area at all we just were zipping down this road, went around a curve and there it was. It was a very nice course though and only cost us $20 instead of the $40 it would have cost.
Ok I know I keep saying it’s hot but I am not kidding about this it was dark outside and late maybe close to 9pm at this point and we were all sweating to death just getting our clubs and giving them our pre-paid voucher. I had gone to the bathroom really quickly before we got started but there was no air in the bathroom, and not just air conditioning but no air movement just like being locked in a small closet. Ugh! Ok so I came out of that bathroom grabbed my club and thought let’s get this family fun time over with! HAHA! I think the humidity was 100%.
Olivia was wild as usual. I don’t know what it is about her and mini golf but look out! Owen had set up his go pro at the end of the hole we were about to hit on (the 1st hole) and she took her 1st shot and hit it knocking it right over! It was funny because seriously it’s not like she was aiming for it. What are the chances and it made for a funny video.
This mini golf place was actually pretty nice it had a cute jungle theme. Oh, and the other thing that happened with Olivia is she had a small purse draped across her and so it was hanging down on the one side of her body and every time this bag would ever so gently touch or rub up against her leg she would FLIP out thinking it was a bug or a creature of some kind that was on her!
There is no way to describe it better than that but Oh MY GOD it was hilarious I can’t say when I’ve ever seen Alan laugh that hard. He laughed till he cried. And it was funny the 1st time but this kept happening OVER and OVER all through the entire 18 holes and she would genuinely freak out every time like she didn’t know what that was! Which only made it get funnier.
I’m not gonna lie I played this 18 hole round of mini golf with some serious speed. I was so freaking hot! And I was not the only one sweating to death but there is only so fast you can play.
Once the game is over we tallied up the scores ( I can’t remember but hopefully while sitting in the car with the air on! Haha!) and with absolutely no skill or care whatsoever I WON! How was that even possible. Owen was 2nd, Alan was 3rd and Olivia? Well, she of course came in last.
We got back to the room at 10pm and Owen and I went down to the pool to swim. The thought of that was the only thing that got me through the mini golf. We only stayed about a half an hour but we enjoyed ourselves. It’s so rare that we can swim at night in November on our trips but there was no issue with that this time.
When we got back up to the room, we watched Owens Go Pro videos and they were all really good we really liked the underwater ones that he got of the crab walking along under water and them digging up the sand dollars and then watching them disappear again. Also, the crabs running out from inside their shells.
Then we had lights out at 11:30.
We slept in until 9 except for Owen he didn’t wake up till 9:30!
We got up and repacked all our stuff because we are checking out today. We also had to get dressed and packed up for the beach. The plan is to drive over and spend most of the day at the beaches and then instead of coming back here tonight we are going to drive up towards Orlando. We were out of Sheraton points for staying here and we could stay for free with points at a Holiday Inn up there plus then we will not have far to go in the morning to get to Disney. Also, with it getting dark so early we thought we may as well be driving during that time instead of the daytime when we could be doing other things.
So, we loaded the car and headed to Lover Key State Park. We had two options for getting there which were to either take the regular roads across Ft Myers to the Ft Myers beach and then cross over the bridge to Lovers Key or we could get on the interstate but we would have to go farther south than we need to before exiting and head back up north once we got to the beach area. There was no exit around the area from the interstate because it’s a state park area and you have to go south around all that and then back up north. Well, we thought that seemed stupid so we just took the regular roads over to Ft Myers Beach! BIG MISTAKE!! BIG! HUGE! We sat for an hour in NON moving traffic as we got “close” to Ft Myers beach and it wasn’t really even that close but it was basically the main road to the beach so that’s where everyone was headed. Interesting because we were just told yesterday while trying to buy a chair and umbrella that beach season is over! HA!
It ended up taking forever to get there and most of that was spent either not moving or rolling very slowly. We were also hungry because it was about lunch time but we couldn’t exit out of this mess and get back into it so we just kept going thinking that whatever it is that is holding this all up will surely come to an end and we can get something to eat then.
Turns out that it was just beach front road construction and there was no end to it! It basically ended just as you finally arrived at Lovers Key. We had left our hotel at 10:45 and we got here at 1pm. That is 2 hours and 15 minutes of four angry whinny people in the car. So, like I said once the traffic parted, we had arrived which basically means we never did pull over for food. Great now what?
Well, we used Dad’s Florida State Park pass to save on parking which is good because we paid $16 total yesterday plus the $6 to get onto the island. We quickly found the one and only parking place they had left and took off to go find the tram to the beach. I’m sure it’s no surprise that it’s hot as hell again today, right? Seriously I thought this was November!
We rode the tram to the beach and immediately went to get food. We spent about $20 on some microwaved hamburgers and hot dogs. Not good of course.
The boys were done 1st so off they went determined to find shells! Keep in mind they were in the shell capital of world or something like that yesterday at Sanibel and didn’t manage to find anything.
Olivia and I took a few extra minutes at the picnic table in the shade and then made our way down closer to the water. We or I tried to set up my umbrella but it wouldn’t work because it turns out that someone who shall remain nameless (Alan) left the pointy end in the sand on yesterday’s beach! So, this sucker would not work at all! It didn’t help that it was windy out also and Alan got out of the water and tried to make it work but it just kept trying to either blow away or kill me. I had to just give up and sit there on my chair in the open sun melting. I could literally feel the sun burning my skin even though I had on lotion.
Olivia had actually gotten hot enough that she got in the water for the 1st time to swim with the boys! So now I sit here alone looking dumb and hot. After an hour I walked up to the bathrooms and told them I was going use the bathroom and then sit up there at the pavilion in the shade! It is a large area and you have to go up steps to get to it so once you’re up there you have a good view of the beach. I told them there was NO hurry to take their time and have fun etc.
I trudged through the sand and up the stairs to the bathroom and I was so happy to have finally made it all that way and up those stairs that I didn’t even read the sign on the door and I just went into the 1st door I came to THE MENS! Yeah, not my day today. There wasn’t actually a closed door because it was propped open but there were the urinals and I stopped turned and got out of there quickly! At least it was empty.
So now in the woman’s room where I belong and I have to get my suit down to go pee while sweating to death and I thought WHY the hell am I even wearing a suit I knew I wasn’t getting in that water! The only thing would have been if they had a shower to rinse off because that I would have done. However, as I had walked up toward the bathrooms, I didn’t see a shower ANYWHERE and I looked everywhere.
Once that fun was over, I went and climbed more stairs to this really big covered pavilion area. I sat down at a picnic table and this was GREAT! It was so high up that there was actually a breeze since it was windy today and I was in the shade with a breeze. Score! I had my (Olivia’s) book and I was actually happy as a clam and then the next thing I know here comes Alan to check on me. I told him I was fine up there and happier than I’d been all day! Haha but he said they weren’t finding any shells. Well, God forbid they just give up on stupid shells and just swim and have fun. I mean there is more to life than sea shells. Not that I said any of that to him though.
He walked back down to stay with the kids because I had freaked out that he left them ALONE in the ocean! Then a few minutes later here comes Olivia up to see me and Owen and Alan weren’t far behind. Again, I tried to convince them that I was fine where I was at in the shade with the breeze and a book but they were done.
So, they went back and got all our stuff and we went to wait for the tram and took some pictures while we waited. Oh yeah and it was NOW that I was complaining to Alan about them not having an outdoor shower here to rinse off and he points over to the side of the building area and there it was! Jeez I was so mad; I didn’t want one now it’s too late to get wet now. But I really would have loved to use it earlier.
We rode the tram back and I’m not sure if I’ve mentioned that it’s hot? Lol but good grief this is ridiculous. I think it may actually be hotter than July. It’s in the freaking 90’s!
We split up and went to the bathrooms to change clothes which was not easy since Olivia and I were in the big stall with nowhere to sit our bag of stuff and we were wet with sweat trying to peel suits off and get clothes on without dying of heat stroke which I thought might actually happen to me. I needed to sit down and I needed some air conditioning.
Once we got done the boys were waiting on us and I had told Alan to just abandon our broken umbrella, my chair and Owen’s boogie board but he just didn’t want to do that. He had paid good money for those items and he didn’t want to leave them behind. Well, we can’t fly home with them and there is NO room in the mid-sized SUV for all that extra stuff because we have everything, we brought with us in there.
There was no arguing with him and I was too hot to care that much so we got in and as we left the state park, they have an area where you can pull over and try to see the manatees. They all got out and looked and I said go right ahead I’m staying in the air conditioning! Also, when we got in the car it was 3pm so we were barely even at that beach when you count tram travel time, eating lunch and changing clothes etc.
I don’t think they saw any manatees but we left and drove south to avoid the way we came and to jump on the interstate down that direction. It wasn’t very far and just before the interstate there was a McDonalds and everyone wanted a snack after those microwaved sandwiches we had on the island.
We pulled in to order at the drive up and Owen got a burger and fries (hey that’s more than a snack!) Alan and I just got fries to share and Olivia got a chicken wrap and we made her share fries with Owen! You would have thought we’d said that neither of them could get anything when we said you can share fries! Also, Olivia didn’t want the ranch dressing they put on the wrap she wanted mayo instead and she was so afraid that Alan was going to get her order wrong that she rolled down her window in the back seat and yelled MAYOOOO!!!!!!! While he was trying to order! I thought Alan was going to kill her but it was so damn funny you just had to laugh.
So, onto the interstate to take that route back past our hotel area and on north towards Orlando. We passed our hotel at 3:45 and it was only about 18 minutes from when we had got on the interstate which was frustrating to know that we should have gone this direction to the beach and we would have been there MUCH quicker this morning. That morning stuck in all that traffic had really sucked the joy from us today.
We drove on till 7:15! Making only one bathroom stop along the way and wow was that a LONG drive we were not on the interstate for the majority of it because of the place we were headed and it was just annoying to slow down for every small little town. It looked a lot like what I would think driving through Mexico would look like! Small Mexican looking towns and all Mexican’s everywhere which was odd.
Anyway, once we finally drove through the center of Florida small town life and made it up to the interstate and to civilization, we stopped at a Walmart to get some breakfast supplies for our mornings at Disney. We also thought about grabbing some cold sandwiches or something from the deli area for dinner but couldn’t seem to decide on anything.
Oh, and when Olivia and I 1st walked into this Walmart there was a BIG cardboard cutout display of the Pioneer Woman. It was life sized and they had a bunch of her new cookware displayed. I told Olivia to take my picture with it and as I turned to pose, I saw my reflection in the shiny cookware and said OH MY GOD!! And she came closer and saw her reflection too and we put. the. camera. down!! We both looked like we had been lost at sea and just been rescued! Which we also kind of felt like too! It was quite shocking and we couldn’t quit laughing about it because even though there is no one here that knows us just to think that I was in any public place looking like this or even that my own family was seeing me look like this! WOW. HAHA!!! Also, we could not get over how long this stupid drive was so we did some private complaining about that.
After Walmart it was on to the hotel just down the road at the next exit. And it was a Holiday inn Express that we used points for but I have to say it was GROSS!! Yuck I was not impressed no one else seems to notice they are all just so happy to get out of the car and basically so was I and it was free so I kept quiet but vowed to sleep with one eye open!
Alan got us to the room and then left to go get us some Subway for dinner because we just wanted something quick and “light” (no pizza!) he came back with a 6 inch for me and Lib and a foot long for Owen and a salad for himself, and a bad attitude because it cost him $25.00!! Well, he’s the one who ordered the $8 salad! Also, I tried to get food at Walmart but he didn’t want that. I wasn’t pleased with the $25 on sandwiches but we were still on “budget” food wise for today so I just let it go.
After eating I spent time repacking the damn luggage AGAIN! Owen and Olivia took turns showering and there was no fan in the bathroom so it was very hot and steamy. Alan went down somewhere and dried our soaking wet beach towels and I packed them away and its almost 10pm now and they are watching CRAP on TV while I’m writing my notes.
It was a long and miserable day and I would not want to do it again! I think we must be total wimps when it comes to driving but I say if we’re going somewhere then put us on an interstate and let’s GO! Also, the nightmare of sitting in traffic to get to the beach this morning didn’t help the day either. At least we had one good beach day yesterday at Sanibel. Even if the boys acted like they couldn’t find any shells. HA! but if I had it to do over again I would have just stayed in Tampa/Clearwater area. (of course no free hotels points there though)
Ok so we got up and went down for crappy breakfast at the gross Holiday inn express and all I ate was one cinnamon roll. Then we got on the road sometime between 9:30-10:00 (it’s only about 15 miles I think to the Disney area) and Alan made us stop at a TJMaxx to check for Jaguar’s stuff. (we NEVER find any!) and then we went into a Ross store because Owen who never leaves home without a hat on his head 364 days out of the year had chosen to leave home without a hat on the day we left for the trip! So, we bought him a hat for $10.00.
Then we went into the Dollar General for some rain ponchos but they had none so then to Target for them and finally found some! Also grabbed milk and juice.
Then with the shopping done (finally!) we arrived at Pop Century! Ahhhhh……….finally! I will admit that Disney is the least relaxing vacation a person can take (though our days at the beach weren’t very relaxing either) but for some reason it relaxed me so much knowing we were here! And also knowing I didn’t have to get back into that “mid sized SUV” again! Oh and no paying for food from now on!
It was about 11am and we pulled the car up to unload everything onto a luggage cart and the poor stupid guy who attempted to help us had no clue what he was doing and had no idea what he had just gotten himself into! They take a count of how many items you are storing till your room is ready and they give you the luggage tag with the number of items on it. This includes EVERYTHING from large luggage to every small Walmart sack we had! It was 18 items!!! Which was kind of embarrassing! It was all piled sky high on this ONE luggage cart! The guys face as we just kept removing item after item from that car was funny because I know he was thinking HOW did all of that fit in there AND 4 people?
Then as soon as the car was emptied Alan left to go fill it up and return it at the Dolphin hotel.
The kids and I looked around the gift shop, took a bathroom break and then got in line for check in. Our room wasn’t ready yet which we didn’t expect it to be but they said they could give us a different room in another area. When you book, you are allowed to make two room requests and mine were 60’s building 4th floor but they had me down for a ground floor and then said they could do 2nd floor and I said no thanks I would wait for my preferred room location which was 60’s 4th floor! I couldn’t just throw caution to the wind and accept a different room location! HA! I’m apparently very high maintenance!
Our next step was out to get my scooter rental! I was so nervous about this I had stressed over driving this beast for months! And was also embarrassed about having them teach me how to use it. Well, I guess when you worry something TO DEATH it turns out to be no big deal! Because this guy couldn’t have been nicer and he showed me a few things and then said drive it around to the front of the building (they were parked just around the corner on the side) and he would have me sign it out. This couldn’t have been easier! Also, when you rent these things from an offsite place (Disney only rents them inside the park for $70 a day!) some of the offsite companies are Disney approved and that means they can schedule the drop off and pick up time of the scooter without you being there to meet the company. If they are not one of the 3 approved companies, you can still rent from them but you just have to meet the company at a set time to get it from them and also same thing for returning it. But going through an approved place it was just waiting there for me!
It was very convenient to rent it like this. It was scheduled to arrive by 9am and be there waiting for me and it was.
The kids and I took off for a spin around the hotel area so I could practice driving it before I had to do it in the parks. Of course, they both wanted to try driving it but you have to be 18 so I didn’t let Owen try it………yet.
It didn’t take me long to be zipping around on it and so we headed for the busses to go meet Alan over at MGM. It was easier for him to just meet us there then to come all the way back to Pop and then go over there with us. BUT this meant that we had to load the scooter onto the bus without Alans’s help! I made Olivia drive it on and she attempted to! She was wild and kept missing the ramp and about tipped it over! The poor bus driver had to really help her and we finally got on.
We met Alan just inside MGM and here I came wheeling up on the scooter looking like a fool, I’m sure. We took off to go try and get some SDFP (same day fast passes) and while the kids and I were trying to figure out how to make that work Alan went next door to get a Starbucks because he needed some caffeine. (used a snack credit). I think he was impressed he could use a snack credit for an expensive Starbucks drink. (they just recently opened up inside the parks)
Then they walked down to use our 1st regular FP for Tower and then rode Rock N roller coaster with the single rider line and we had also gotten a SDFP for tower too.
I was still learning how to drive this scooter so I drove down there toward the rides, I also got off and walked around a few shops and then just zipped around for a bit by myself getting used to it and they were gone forever. It was well past lunch and I was hungry so I went to Starring Rolls to eat lunch without them! (I read TONS of trip reports of all these people who take trips to Disney alone! They ride the rides and eat the meals etc so I figured I’d just entertain myself!)
They only had two lunch choices turkey or ham and they were out of turkey! I was not happy because I usually always avoid ham but I was starving having barely eaten anything this morning and I had no clue how much longer they would be. So, I got the ham, chips, cupcake and drink meal. (quick service credit)
They finally texted me and I told them where I was so they showed up when I was just finishing my sandwich. They didn’t want to eat there though so after I was done, we went over to the food place by Star Tours and they had burgers and hot dogs. This place was packed!
After lunch they went and rode Star Tours with our 2nd fast pass and then after that we all went over to ride Toy Story! This was my 1st ride of the day and their 5th!
After that we split up so they could go try and ride RnR coaster again with the single rider line and I took the LONG way around the park to avoid the congestion at the Pixar area and also because it’s actually fun to drive this thing in the wide-open spaces! So, I basically gave myself a backlot tour of the park.
I met up with them at our meeting spot and they were bummed that the single rider was closed down so they didn’t get to ride. We left the park and headed back to Pop.
I don’t think I’ve mentioned my typed, printed and laminated daily schedules. I’ve always had a plan for each day like which park for which day and of course our meal reservations. BUT this new fast pass + thing has changed everything as I’ve mentioned and of course I had to book those FP’s that we had just used this afternoon two whole months ago! And I had to choose that we wanted to ride Tower, between 12-1 and Star Tours 1-2 and then toy story 2-3! So, I had to have this all printed out and ready to go. I had also made some slight plans for our SDFP those are the ones that you can’t book until you are already inside the park and you scan your magic band and see if there is anything left to choose from! And for some days and some parks I had a rough idea of which attractions to use those SDFP’s for and time frame to aim for also.
So anyway, according to my very well planned out schedule after they tried to ride single rider at RnR we would head back to Pop and if that’s what it says to do then that’s what we did! HA!
We had a pretty long wait for the bus and when it arrived, I made Alan load the scooter. He did better than Olivia but he was no pro at it either. We still hadn’t received our text that our room was ready! (don’t you love technology?!) and it was already 4pm! We went to the lobby and while we were in line we got our text. Alan and the kids helped me find the room with the scooter and then the plan was for me to stay here and unpack for one hour and relax with my feet up for another hour while they headed to AK for a few rides on Everest before the park closes at 6pm. And then I would meet up with them at the Rainforest Café outside the park.
I usually just sit by myself while they ride Everest so I figured I didn’t need to go and this way I could get everything unpacked and put away. Well, I sat in the room and waited for the luggage to arrive! I waited and waited. I wrote my notes from today and waited some more.
The luggage never showed up and it was now 5:45 so I had to leave the room to go meet them for dinner. I was leaving the scooter in the room since I wasn’t going into the park tonight. I just took the bus to AK all by myself, I mean totally by myself I was the only person on it! I mean who goes to a park at closing time!
The bus stop is a long way away so I did have a long walk to get to the Rainforest even though it’s just outside the park entrance and I was so out of breath huffing and puffing along! I had to stop and sit on a bench for a couple minutes. I HATE this damn A-Fib!! This did manage to reassure me that there was NO WAY I could have done this trip without the scooter so I stopped judging myself so much with it.
They were there waiting for me outside the restaurant and were all excited about all the fun they had on the ride over and over. They showed me some totally crazy pictures from the ride of the faces they made etc. and clearly, they had been having a great time. Our reservation was for 6:30 and we were seated quickly. We had never eaten here on the dining plan before. We all had steak with mashed potatoes and veggies and I think Olivia may have had the steak and shrimp but maybe that was Alan not sure. Then we had the volcano for dessert which is shared between 3 people so the kids and I ordered that as our one dessert and Alan ordered something else as his dessert. But we all shared the volcano. The whole meal was very good! And Owen says he wants to go back and eat there again! We took some funny pictures of all of us wearing animal sunglasses in the gift shop either before or after the meal! They were on clearance and we almost bought them but then realized we just needed cute pics instead.
We left about 8pm and took the bus back to the room and there is still no luggage! It finally arrived about 9:00pm and we finally start unpacking! YUCK! And this is when we realized that the pump for the aero bed is NOT charged so we can’t blow it up! Are you freaking kidding me? This is NOT the 1st time and probably not even the 2nd time that this has happened! Alan plugged it in to charge and it would manage to put just a little air in it and he would charge and repeat. Finally, we wanted to go to bed and it was only half way filled so Owen chose to sleep on it only half full. Alan and Lib are sharing a full sized bed. I’m not sure how that ended up because that left me with the other bed to myself. I do know I told Owen repeatedly that he could sleep in the regular bed and not on the floor but he wouldn’t do it and he’s SO stubborn! Lights out at 10:45 and alarm set for 6:00am!!
Here is my printed plan for the day that I made ahead of time. I think I will add these to each day to compare what we thought we would do and what we actually did. Also, for my future planning etc. some days are almost exact and some are not.
Ck in at pop
Return rental car
Get scooter and practice
Bus to MGM
Try getting SDFP for:
star tours 1:30-2:30 and also RnR or tower between 12-2 or 3-4.
Reg. FP Tower 12:10-1:10
RnR stand by
Eat lunch not late having big dinner
FP star tours 1:25-2:25
Reg FP Toy story 2:35-3:35
Back to room for me and AK for them
Meet for dinner at rainforest 6:30pm
Today was a big day! We were going to breakfast at the Be Our Guest restaurant in Magic Kingdom. It’s new and we haven’t been here before. Also, the breakfast is scheduled for before the park opens so we get to enter before the crowds and we are excited.
The alarm went off at 6am and Alan showered 1st, while he was doing that I brushed my teeth and I did NOT feel well. I felt very woozy and my stomach felt BAD! I kept having to go sit down on the edge of the bed. Eventually I showered and got ready very slowly and Alan went down and bought me some Tums for my stomach but it didn’t really help.
We were down at the bus stop a few minutes after 7am! The bus showed up with no wait and we were on it and heading out by 7:20
We got to MK and went to get into the line with others who had a pre-park opening breakfast also. They do this early breakfast thing starting at 8am and the park opens at 9am so it gives you a chance to eat and then possibly beat the crowds to the front of a line or two. We’ve never done it before because it’s only been offered for Crystal Palace which is a character buffet breakfast and can take some extra time to do it plus it’s also considered a Table Service credit meal. And we don’t want to rush through our only sit down meal of the day.
But, this Be Our Guest breakfast at the Beasts castle is considered a quick service meal credit so it makes it a really good deal! It’s just a “fast” meal and the restaurant is right beside the new 7 Dwarfs Mine Train ride that we have never ridden yet! So, they let us into the park at 7:50 and while there are a lot of people in this line heading to their breakfasts its nothing like the crowd outside the park at 9am!
We stopped for pictures on a somewhat empty Main Street in front of the castle. Then on to the restaurant. We checked in and when you are eating breakfast or lunch here you can pre-order your meal anywhere from the day before to 30 days before online! This means you have to wait in one less line so that is what we had done. We just waited in a quick line to check in and they saw we had pre-ordered so we got to skip the line where people were standing around looking at the menu board and trying to decide what they wanted. Instead, we just went on in and found a table. We sat in the West Wing! The place has three different rooms with three different themes from the movie and by the end of the week we will have eaten in all three! HAHA!
You can just go help yourself to the drink station and so we did and a few minutes later they come around with a big rolling cart that has a big glass cover over it that looks very fancy like you see in movies where the bring out the dessert cart and they deliver your meals to the table on the cart. The menu here even though it’s considered a quick service place for breakfast and lunch was very fancy!
They bring you a small platter of breakfast pastries like muffins, croissant etc to share. I had ordered Owen the cro-nut which is a combination croissant and donut but it was the only thing I thought he would eat. Alan had the eggs Florentine which was a puff pastry filled with fancy scrambled eggs and spinach. And Olivia and I both had the open faced bacon and poached egg sandwich with brie cheese and arugula! I’ve never had a poached egg or brie cheese and maybe not even arugula before! It all had very over the top descriptions and sounded like nothing we would eat. Also, the servings are VERY small. But we weren’t really in it for the food we wanted to enter the park early! However, if you were not on the dining plan and were paying cash for this its $22 each for of our breakfasts including the pastries and drinks. But WOW! It’s only a good deal if you can use a QS dining plan credit for it.
Once we ate there is no bill to pay you can just get up and leave. We went to the front and I used the bathroom and I had felt AWFUL through the whole meal. It was a weird feeling not a stomach ache but yet my stomach was still bothering me and I felt like I had goosebumps/chills and just felt off.
Then we walked outside and saw a small area of people waiting for the CM’s to let them onto the 7 dwarf coaster so we went and got in the line but as I stood there I felt like I might throw up! I walked away and went and sat down on my scooter which was parked out of the way. I was SO MAD I had planned this morning out just perfect and it was working like a charm except for me feeling awful! Then the line started to move and I got up and went with them on the ride! I can’t believe I did it and that I didn’t throw up! It is basically a “kiddie” type coaster totally my thrill level so I wasn’t worried about the actual ride just how I felt. Anyway, when we got off, we thought maybe we would have time to go back around and get on again but I told them to go on without me and I would wait for them at the scooter. They made it around the corner in time to see the line had formed from the 9am opening crowds because now the park was officially open! The sign outside already said 30-minute wait now!
They didn’t want to wait in the line. They came back and found me and we went over to the kiosk to get some SDFP’s for later. And then we headed all the way back to Big Thunder and we all rode it. I was feeling much better by the time we got back there. Not 100% yet but much better. After one ride Alan and I sat out and let the kids ride it once alone and then after that I went again with the kids and Alan sat out. He’s not a fan for some reason. But it’s my favorite. But the kids got in 3 rides on it and I got 2.
Then we went over and all rode Splash mountain and got soaked! By now it’s already 10:45 and I’m embarrassed to say this but we had reservations for another breakfast!! It was the latest breakfast reservation that we could get at Crystal Palace and they start putting out the lunch items on half of the buffet and breakfast on the other half if you get this reservation time. Also, by now I felt 100% better like nothing was ever wrong with me for a couple hours this morning! Thank God!
So that we don’t sound awful that Be Our Guest breakfast was eaten at 8am and it was VERY small. Owen’s was a donut, Alans was about 5 bites of egg and two bites of ham. Olivia and I had one poached egg and two strips of bacon on a hard grilled piece of toast. Basically, the meal was like an appetizer! It had served its purpose to get us in an hour early, get pictures on an almost empty main street and get us on the new ride with no wait.
Now on to our next breakfast at 10:45 and we weren’t seated till 11. Breakfast here was good as always and we saw the characters which Owen just loves now! HAHAA!! We left there at a few minutes before 12 which was literally right on my schedule. I had us leaving there between 11:45-12:00! WOW and I made a joke to them about that.
We went to use our 1st FP of the day at Peter Pan and then watched Philarmagic. And the kids wanted to ride the carousel after that. I took pictures of them while Alan took some tylonol! Then we had a SDFP for Dumbo from 1:10-2:10 which we all rode and a regular Space Mountain FP for 1:10-2:10 also. The kids got to go twice on Space though because Alan had a headache so he sat out with me.
After that we all went and rode Buzz twice one with pre-booked FP and once with SDFP that I had scheduled around the same time so we could go two times in a row. (she says patting herself on the back!)
Once we were done it was almost 3pm and we had planned to leave the park for a few hours of rest before our evening since we had such an early morning. But the kids wanted to stay at MK by themselves. So, Alan and I headed to the front of the park and luckily just beat the 3pm parade starting! People were already lined up on Main Street waiting for the parade so we kind of had the middle of the street to ourselves and we made a very fast trip to the exit. We got back to the hotel and in the room by 4pm and set the alarm for 5. Not sure one hour is even worth it! When we woke up Alan called (texted) UBER to take us to the Beach Club where we are meeting the kids and the Uber said they would be here in 5 minutes! Meanwhile I am still in my jammies from my nap! (I didn’t want to nap in sweaty park clothes) so I had to HURRY and get ready and hustle quickly down to the front of the hotel without my scooter because we weren’t taking it with us tonight that’s how we were able to use Uber. We got our 1st Uber ride ever! I could tell Alan was shocked that I had suggested this as an idea but a lot of people have been saying how great and easy it is for getting from hotel to hotel when the busses don’t go direct. You have to go from Pop to MGM and then to Beach Club which they say to allow an hour for! This way we hopped in the car with a total stranger and arrived 10 minutes later and were dropped right at the door.
We couldn’t find the kids at first but they were out at the back of the hotel area looking around. We went out and sat on a bench out there for a few minutes and heard about their fun after we had left MK. It wasn’t like they had that much time but they rode Haunted Mansion with our FP and then the Tea cups with our SDFP and then Splash only had a 15 minute wait during the parade so they rode that too. I think they loved being off on their own in the park that has never happened before. And most exciting of all they saw a baby alligator in the lake water inside the park. They showed us the pictures of that and he was very tiny.
Our dinner reservation was for 6pm and it was a seafood dinner buffet. They have it every night but certain nights feature certain seafood items. And this night was the crab legs and the shrimp so that’s why I picked it for tonight. Shrimp for me and Owen and crab legs for Alan. Plus, Olivia planned to try the crab legs too for the first time which should be hilarious because they are not easy to master.
They also have regular food items on the buffet if you don’t want seafood so there was plenty to eat. Alan ate a ton of crab legs and Olivia tackled it. At some point the employees were singing happy birthday to a kid and everyone in the area joined in including me but as I was really getting into it and belting it out, they all stopped singing so it was just me and my loud mouth finishing it off! HA! We got a good laugh over that. All the food was good and we took a nice long time at dinner laughing and having fun since we had no other plans for tonight. Owen had been taking a movie on his gopro during the trip and when we got home he had edited a little movie with a clip of Olivia from this dinner saying “I love cheese” it doesn’t sound funny now but she just said it so happily that it was funny and also just sounded so out of place in his movie. Also, Alan said we are coming back here he really liked it!
So far, our dinner last night and tonight were a big hits!
Once we were finally done, we went to the lobby of the hotel and Alan ordered an Uber for our ride back to Pop! This was going to be Owen’s 1st Uber (well Olivia’s too) and I think he was excited about it because the vlog guy he follows on youtube uses Uber all the time so this felt cool and he was also shocked I was cool enough to try Uber! Haha! He of course didn’t show any excitement or interest but under his stone cold expression I could tell all of that cause I know him so well!
The ride back was even quicker than the ride here seriously 10 minutes is all it takes which is just unheard of with all the waiting for busses and switching busses etc. And it was $6.00 well worth it!
Back at Pop Olivia and I sat at a table out near the pool for a bit while the boys were in the lobby doing? And then we went up to the room and she took her phone out to the stairwell area to call Tim. When she was done and coming back to the room, she accidently knocked on the wrong room door and then realized her mistake and panicked and ran to the little area by the room doors that cuts in so they couldn’t see her and knocked on our door and then came flying into the room out of breath and freaking out. (this is not the 1st time that this will happen with her!)
The kids are trying to sleep now and it’s 10:10 lights out soon. People are getting bitchy! (that was in my notes and now I’m wondering if that was referring to Olivia or Alan? Cause I know it wasn’t me or Owen!) seriously.
Oh also unrelated to the bitchy comment above at some point during the day one of us said the word hassle referring to something being a hassle and the others thought they said asshole. So, from then on hassle=asshole. LOL which became the code word for jerky people.
Arrive MK by @ 7:30
Pic on main street
BOG 8:00-8:40
7dwarfs ride 1 or 2X
Get SDFP for :
h. mansion 12-1
Dumbo 1-2
Buzz 2-3
Crystal Palace 10:30
11:45 pics on main street with photo pass
If ahead of schedule ride Aladdin ?
Use SDFP h. mansion 12-1
Reg FP peter pan 12-1
Use SDFP dumbo 1-2
Reg FP space mtn 1:10-2:10
Use SDFP buzz 2-3
Reg FP buzz 2:20-3:20
Leave park for break
3pm parade starts avoid it or watch it?
Dinner cape may 6pm
Take uber to dinner?
After dinner maybe MGM it’s open till 9 and has EMH
Well Owen slept with me and he was barely even on the bed. I gave him plenty of room because I just laid down on my side and passed out hugging the side like I always do. But I woke up and he’s literally hanging onto the side of the mattress! Ha!
Olivia was on the air mattress and she claimed she was freezing where she was at so she made us turn the air down and I got HOT! (perhaps this is what the bitchy comment from last night was about in my notes?)
Alarm at 7 and up and out of the room about 8 we are headed to Epcot but we noticed that the MK line was HUGE and had a large tour group in it. Idiots they should have known never go to MK on a Monday! Amateurs! Haha.
The Epcot line was not bad but a non Disney bus came and they can’t do scooters or wheelchairs on it. Then before it was even full it pulled away and left which was odd. But a regular Disney bus was pulling up behind it so we got on that one. They loaded us and someone with a folding wheelchair and they had room to take another scooter but they didn’t. Again odd.
Once we got to Epcot and the kids went on ahead to the bag check line and then met us at the entrance. When we got into the park, we went towards test track to wait for the official open. I was a few people back from the family in the crowd of people waiting but only because I couldn’t scoot up however it was no big deal because I’ll catch up once we start moving. But I was in line with this family that had the cutest little boy and it was his birthday that day and his name was Owen! Not sure how old he was maybe 5 or 6. They were very friendly and were chatting with me about how they came up with the name Owen.
Once the line started moving, I caught up to them and then went to park the scooter and jumped into line where they were at. There were a ton of people but it was basically just a slow walk on. Personally, that’s my favorite because you don’t feel like you have to rush or speed walk through the line it was just slow and steadily moving.
We have not been on test track for I think 5 years or maybe longer because it was being redone last time we were here and so it was closed.
The car/track portion is the same but they changed other stuff and I have to say I liked the old way better. Why do they mess with stuff? It’s not that I didn’t like the ride because the fast loop outside is really all everyone loves and that was the same. But if it’s not broke don’t mess with it!
When we got off we thought we could go right through the single rider line or at least they could if they wanted to go again (I don’t like sitting by strangers! Haha!) but by the time we were off and back to the front the single rider line said 30 minutes so we didn’t get to go again.
They walked on over to do Sum of all Thrills and I jumped on the scooter to go to the bathroom and then meet up with them. There was a wait there also and it was probably about 30 min. but the kids ride was awesome and Alans sucked! You build your own coaster with the computer and then get in the simulator and ride it and Alans just didn’t do much not many spins or turns or whatever? So, he got in line to go again once the kids explained what he needed to do to make it better. The line had been up to 50 minutes a little bit ago but had dropped back to 30.
Since the kids were done and it was after 10:00 they went on to mission space with the FP and Alan doesn’t care for that ride. Meanwhile I just WAITED and then waited some more. I went pee AGAIN and then got an ice water. So exciting.
Once everyone was done it was 11 so we went over to Soarin and I got to ride the scooter in but I chose to just ride it right inside the building and then leave it there at the entrance. I kind of regretted that later because it was a very LONG walk through the building and then through all the ride line area. I wouldn’t have taken it through the ride area but I wish I would have at least taken it through more of the building. By the time I got to the ride line I was already out of breath (stupid afib!) and I still had to do the ride line which has a definite incline!
Luckily even with FP we had a few times the line stopped here and there so I could catch my breath. We noticed when we got on the ride the line for no FP was 95 min and when we got off it was up to 105! (I blame the new FP+, and so do other people as well)
We got the 3rd row on the ride and were off at 11:40 and were then headed to world showcase to use our snack credits at the food and wine festival. We started in Canada and sent Alan into the line to get us the filet mignon while we went and found a tiny little table to stand at.
Oh, and it was HOTTTTT and SUNNNYYYY!!! It was also very busy already even though it doesn’t’ open until 11 and I think I may have mentioned very hot and very sunny.
I am not sure of where all we stopped and what all we tried I didn’t take very good notes of all of it. I know that at the Scotland booth Alan got the seared sea scallop with fancy cheddar gratin and crispy bacon. Also, in Germany Alan and Olivia got the small beer sampler. (it was her 1st food and wine since turning 21) and I MADE her get a Grey Goose slushy in France because EVERYONE on my Disney site talks about these things all.the.time. She seemed to like it and I took the slightest of sips basically touching my lip to it. So pathetic, no alcohol allowed. We ended our tour with sharing meals in Norway, China (mostly Owen I think) and Mexico. We sat inside the new building in Mexico because we couldn’t find an outside table but more importantly the inside had AIR!
It was now 2pm and time for our FP with the characters but we were hot, sweaty and tired and Olivia may have been a little bit tipsy from her slushy! (apparently, they are strong) and was claiming that she “might die” so we skipped it and just headed out.
We had to make the long walk to the bus stop all the way at the end of the bus row good grief it’s way too far and Thank God for the scooter. There were a few people in line for the bus and I could sense them judging me about having the scooter. We got on the bus at 2:40 and back to the hotel at 2:55. Funny enough my itinerary had said to leave Epcot at 2-3 and back to the hotel by 3 so we were right on time!
The kids jumped straight off the bus and took off to the room while we were waiting for the scooter to be unloaded and then we headed to the room however Alan and I are idiots and we got off the elevator on the wrong floor! Haha! Once we got to the room Olivia was already passed out on the bed. No actually not on it but in it under the covers and everything.
Alan and Owen put on their swim trunks and some lotion to head down to the pool. Meanwhile I didn’t sleep I just chilled out propped my feet up and also tried to video tape Olivia snoring! HAHA she didn’t move an inch for over an hour. I also took her phone and texted Tim a picture of her sleeping! He replied back saying it didn’t surprise him. The boys had swam for an hour and said it was refreshing and then came back to change and go get drinks in their refillable mugs. They also said they had gone to the 50’s pool instead of the main one.
At this point in my notes, it says “two words……………THESE KIDS!”
I am not sure what that is referring to but who knows.
We got ready and left the room at 5:00-5:30 and the MK bus pulled up right when we arrived. We got to MK at 5:50 and the kids hurried ahead so Owen could take a time lapse video. He had taken a short one earlier too. That might have also been when they were using some weird feature on the phone to make a slow motion video of Owen moving his mouth and it was hilarious but that happened back outside the hotel room.
Anyway, Alan checked us in at Tonys Restaurant right in Town Square and requested an outside table so we could watch the light parade during dinner. Well, we did get one but we had to stand around and wait from 6:00 till 6:40 to get it. But we were very excited about the outside table. The waiter came over right away and said that he wanted to take our orders fairly quickly because once the parade starts it will get too dark to read the menu and he will be blocking our view. So, Alan and Olivia got the chicken parmigiana and Owen and I got the New York strip. Olivia and Alan really liked theirs and Owen seemed fine with his but I was a little bummed that the steak only came with just carrots and then a little slice of tomato with crouton things on it. Owen and I were not eating the tomato obviously and so we just had steak and 3 bites of carrot. It just seemed weird. Also, the steak wasn’t very good.
Then we ordered the desserts and nothing really sounded good to me. Alan got the crème brulee of course and the rest of us got the pumpkin cheesecake I took one bite and left it! YUCK! I left that place kind of hungry.
Also WISHES was VERY close to starting so I was afraid we would miss it while messing with the desserts. We quickly hustled to the middle of main street and I had left the scooter back at the restaurant and just as we squeezed into the crowd Owen says he has to go to the bathroom and that he was going back to the one by the restaurant. And just like that he turned and left!! WHO does this kid think he is? A 16 year old? I didn’t like it one bit and it made me especially nervous because it was on the news all day today that there were some bad terrorist attacks overseas and I had already made a comment to Alan that I feel like I am racial profiling everyone in the crowds!
So, Owen disappeared but I will say he was somehow back VERY quickly. Must be the difference between the girls bathroom and the boys! We watched Wishes and loved it as always. Then we made our way back to the scooter and took a little time trying to decide what to do? Do we stay or do we go? The plan had been to leave after the fireworks but the park was supposed to close at 9 and they have now changed it to 10. Also, when you’re near the front of the park and your seeing tons of people exiting you can’t help but think that the park is clearing out! HA!
We decided to stay and we took the new backway behind main street farther into the park. We went to the kiosk and got a FP for Buzz for all of us and for the speedway which I didn’t go on. Then we watched the dance party with the characters and they played Alan’s favorite the cupid shuffle but Owen the dancing machine refused to dance along he was being stubborn and no fun. After that we went over and rode Dumbo and the kids rode Barnstormer.
By now it was 9:45 or 9:50 so we headed out and we had hoped to take that secret back way out too but it was now closed. We went out to the bus stops and found the longest line we have ever seen for a bus! They were using two pick up areas for Pop and the lines for both were snaked all the way through the line area. This took ONE hour!! Lucky for me I had my scooter to sit on! But they had to stand for all of that I felt bad. We were back at the hotel at 11pm!
Into the room and winding down now at 11:35 going to bed very soon because we’re getting up early! My feet are VERY SWOLLEN! I’ve been avoiding my “pee pill” plus sitting on the scooter makes the feet swell more than if I were walking and they never get elevated during the day much.
Owen is sleeping with me again tonight. (he was already in the shower by the time Alan and I got to the room this evening)
Rope drop test track
FP Sum of all thrills 10-11
FP Soarin 11-12
Food and wine QS lunch
FP character spot 1:30-2:30
Leave park for break around 3 (2-3)
They MAY go to AK while I go back to pop
To take meds and put feet up not sure though
Evening:
MK wishes 8pm
Dinner? Tonys at 6:10 (easiest)
Unless they are in AK then they won’t make
It in time for dinner and wishes.
Could eat QS in MK but will be packed!
*****Also I found my notes on what we ate and drank at the Food and Wine festival today so I’ll just list it here:
Drinks:
grey goose slushie – Olivia
beer flight sampler in Germany – Alan and Lib
Mango Margarita in Mexico - Olivia
Some kind of wine thing in Italy- Olivia (jeez no wonder she passed out later!)
Food:
Lettuce Wrap in Korea
2 filet mignon Canada
Brat on pretzel bun at Oktoberfest booth
Black pepper shrimp in China
Scallops in Scotland
Then for meals we had the orange chicken in China (owen)
Club sandwich, salad, drink and carrot cake meal in Norway (3 of us shared)
Nacho meal with drink and churro and a chicken taco meal too in Mexico. (3 of us shared)
Wow that sounds like a lot! Except for the meals we used snack credits for each of the food items and of course had to pay for alcohol.
Bed last night at 11:50! Alarm this morning at 6am! Holy crap! Who planned that? lol in my defense we were supposed to leave MK after the fireworks an hour earlier plus who knew it would take over an hour to get a bus back last night.
Alan showered 1st then me and when it was libs turn she was done shockingly quick but turns out she didn’t bother to wash her hair (how can she do that?) but we were out of the room by 7am and on the bus to MGM at 7:20. The park is opening early today at 8am since they are closing early at 4pm for a private employee party.
We entered the main park area and were held at the internal rope drop area. They went toward Rock n Roller coaster and I went straight to Toy story by myself. I figured I was so close to the front I may as well. There I sat waiting in the huge crowd on my scooter alone for the official opening and off I went with all the crowds and I did my best to not run into anyone. However, what I hadn’t considered is that even though I was toward the front of this crowd I had to get OUT of the pack of people to park my scooter which meant that then I had to get back into line but with no one with me there was no one holding my spot! So, if I had gone to the end of the line that would have basically been back at the front of the park because people are still pouring in around the corner so I just randomly jumped into (cut) in line. But I was pissed I was SO FAR back from where I should have been.
It took a total of 45 minutes to get on and off with the amount of line I managed to get stuck in. I texted them afterwards and they had ridden RnR and were headed to Tower now.
I had all of our gray bands and went to get some SDFP and managed to get RnR for this afternoon and another star tours for 10-11 too so I was pretty pleased with that.
I met up with them and Lib had injured her neck on RnR. I guess they mean it when they say 0 to 60 in 2.8 seconds but she’s ridden it hundreds of times and never had this issue before. Maybe she’s getting old although Alan had no problems.
So anyway, she went with me for a while and the boys went on it again. Then they went for a starbucks coffee for Alan and a coffee cake for Owen and they went and used a FP at star tours. After riding they were going to the Indiana jones show.
Olivia and I went to starring rolls and split a cream cheese Danish and then rode the Great Movie ride with a stand by wait of 20-25 minutes! Ridiculous! After a bathroom break, we went over to see Walts one man dream which was really just a promo for the new Disney movie the Good Dinosaur! We knew this was going to be the case but it still really ticks us off that they replace the movie about Walt and how he started the parks etc with a long commercial for a new cartoon movie. Stupid and they don’t do it all the time just if you happen to be there when a new big Disney movie is coming out.
Once we were done, we only had about 3-4 minutes to get to the Beauty and the Beast show! I got to ride the scooter on in which was good because it just faster up the concrete hills and we parked right in the back area. As we are sitting there and the show is just starting some rude guy came up behind lib and scared her and told her to move down. For a minute we thought he worked there but nope just a jerk (or “hassle” lol) bossing us around for no reason there was plenty of room back in the last row where we were.
After the show we met the boys at Pizza Planet, ordered our lunch and ate and Alan announced he is DONE for the day! He says his stomach is churning and he’s tired and wants to go back to the room to rest. But I have to say that’s his own fault for ordering that thing from Starbucks! Because then he went to the bathroom for a while! Lol. When he came back, he had a message on his phone from Dr. Kelly’s office for me. (my new cardiologist) and he INSISTED I call them back right now! So, I called them back in the noisy park and all they wanted was to schedule my yearly echo but I had to leave a message for the nurse to call me back!
The kids had gone to ride Star Tours while this was going on and we took our cups from lunch and went and refilled them in the Backlot express QS place because we’re bad people. After that Alan decided he’d stay in the park BUT he was not going to be happy about it! So, we split up (haha) and the boys went to go see Lights Motors Action stunt show because Owen really likes it and it’s a good thing they went because it got shut down a few months later and torn down so they can re-do the park. Olivia and I went to see the Little Mermaid show and we were NOT impressed with Ariel. She basically whispered the all the songs.
The boys were still at their show so we went and sat on a bench over to the side of Toy Story in the SHADE and took some selfies and we noticed people kept going in and out of a side door area. It took a while but eventually we investigated what it was and it was a Mickey Mouse meet and greet. There was a very small line so we went and got pics with him. We thought it was really funny that we had sat there all that time not even knowing what was going on.
After that we went around the corner to check the FP line for Toy Story and it was really long but we got in line and the boys met up with us. We ended up waiting 35 minutes to ride WITH fast passes! And it was so hot even inside the building. But I don’t think I’ve complained lately about how HOT it was out and some places didn’t seem to have their air cranked like usual. We melted during the Little Mermaid show earlier!
After our ride on Toy Story Alan was well past ready to leave and I had decided to go with him so the kids stayed behind to use their SDFP for RnR.
We got out to the bus and one was loading but we missed it because we had the scooter and it has to be loaded 1st so we waited about 15 minutes for the next one. We got to the hotel at 3pm and Alan was asleep FAST and I am writing notes. The park will be closing early at 4pm and the kids are just going to meet us over at the Poly for our Ohanas dinner at 5pm taking the bus from the park to the Poly.
Alan got woke up by my Dr’s office calling back (playing phone tag I HATE cell phones) and all these calls just to schedule one routine yearly test that could have been dealt with when I got back next week. Also, this Dr’s office has my home phone number and didn’t get an answer so they called the cell phone listed. That’s why they were getting a hold of Alan. And they make you list a cell phone number.
We got ready and called Uber for a ride but then for some reason that guy cancelled on us so another one said they were on the way. It gave a time of 8 minutes then switched to 11 minutes! We were getting worried because the kids were already over at the Poly and they took a trip around on the monorail so Owen could film it.
Our ride finally showed up and we were on our way at 5pm (our dinner reservation time) so the kids kept texting wanting to know where we were at. They said they were in the bar area and had checked us in and they sent a selfie of them drinking fancy drinks with umbrellas! I asked how they paid for that and Olivia replied Magic Bands!!! They were able to just charge it to the room Haha!! Luckily, they were both virgin drinks so they were not expensive.
We arrived about 5:15 and were seated quickly. The steak skewers weren’t very good but the chicken was delicious and was mine and Owen’s favorite. I think I wasn’t liking the steak because it wasn’t cooked done enough for me. We also loved the shrimp, noodles and veggies like usual. And we ended up getting 2nds on dessert! SO GOOD I almost wish they served it 1st! I took some pictures of them all sitting back in their chairs stuffed. Mostly of Owen! lol. But we were so stuffed we did think we might die!
We called uber with lib’s phone using her code (all new people get their 1st ride for free!) so we got a free ride back to Pop and got back about 7:15. My scooter was outside down by the lobby/luggage area where people charge theirs at so I rode it back to the room. Alan had stopped at the bathroom near the pool and Olivia and gotten out of the uber and TOOK OFF for the bathroom! So, when Owen and I got to the room the bathroom door was closed and we both had to go too so we waited and waited and she wasn’t coming out so finally I yelled at her and went to knock on the bathroom door! Well imagine our shock to find out she wasn’t even in there!!! Owen and I had been waiting all that time for nothing! As I’m standing there trying to figure out what the heck is going on Owen slipped in right past me and went in ahead of me and said “don’t worry I only need 2 seconds”!!! WOW. Then Olivia showed up and said she had been at the bathroom in the lobby no way could she have made it to the room! About this time Owen opens the bathroom door and walks out and says “I know what Ohana stands for……longest turd”!! again OMG! This kid he’s so gross!!
As if that wasn’t funny enough it’s even more funny because of how much Owen hates the Hawaiian singer that walks around the restaurant singing about Ohana means family! And now Owen’s going on about the real meaning of Ohana!
Then we all three laid in the room dying and eventually Alan came and joined us!
Later on, Alan went down to sit by the pool because his back hurt and there are no chairs in the room only beds. Well, there are two small chairs with the table but to make room for the scooter we had to push them up so close to the table that you can’t sit on them. And then Owen and I left to go for a walk/ride. He really wanted to take my scooter for a spin so we went down near the bridge area that leads across to Art of Animation and since no one was around I let him ride it. He was all over the place with it. After a while Alan joined us while we sat out there but Olivia was still laying in the room. We also called home while we were sitting out here. Alan even took a turn trying out the scooter because so far all he’s done is load it onto the bus but Owen burned rubber on it!
Back to the room and watched a little TV then lights out at 10:30! Long day!
Typed plans for today:
MGM opens at 8am
Rope drop RnR and repeat
FP tower 9-10
I’ll ck for SDFP while they are busy
Shows are at 11:00 B&B, Frozen, Indy
Probably split up for a show
After show 11:45 for lunch
FP star tours 12:05-1:05
Maybe a SDFP for star tours
Lights Motors Action show 1pm
May split again while girls go to walts
FP toy story 1:30-2:30
Ck wait times at RnR & tower
Also use any SDFP
Park closes at 4pm
Take scooter to pop and take
Uber to poly for dinner at 5:00
Take uber back to pop
IF we take scooter to poly then have to go to
MK to get bus back to Pop.
Alarm set for 6:45! Me, Alan and Lib showered and on bus to epcot at 8:2? There were a lot of scooters at the busses this morning. We went straight to Test Track once the rope dropped, we all moved forward and then I parked the scooter and met up with them in line. After our ride I took the gray bands and got us some SDFP for SOARIN at 10:30! I was so happy and surprised they had them available! It was for the same time frame as our already booked FP so this would work out good and we could go on twice in a row. While I did this and used the bathroom, they went to go ride Sum of all Thrills. I went over and parked and watched them. They love this ride so much but it does take forever because you first have to build your own virtual roller coaster before you ride it.
Once they were done the kids went to go ride Mission Space while Alan and I shopped around in Mouse Gears mostly to get out of the heat and into some air conditioning.
When they were done, we headed over to ride Soarin and the stand by wait time was one hour. After the 1st ride, we got off and went again the only problem is this is a LONG walk and a lot of it is up hill. It just about kills me to keep up with them.
After we were done, we went to go use our next FP at the Character Spot to see Mickey, Minnie and Goofy. The characters were fun Goofy tried to wrap his leg around Olivia while giving her a huge hug which totally caught her off guard and he pushed Owen away because he didn’t see any Goofy pins on his lanyard.
And then when we got to Minnie, she tried to kiss Owen! it was funny we were all cracking up even Owen who was trying to act cool was laughing and blushing! I would love to take him to see the wicked step sisters from Cinderella in the park sometime because I hear they make a fuss over teenage boys but their lines are always so long and they aren’t out often. But I did get a cute picture of Owen blushing today with Minnie.
After we left the characters, they went to Club Cool to taste the sodas which I just do not enjoy so I stayed in the other building where the characters were in a seating area because the air conditioning was AMAZING in here! Oh, and to go in to see the characters I of course left the scooter parked outside but the door you enter is on the opposite side of the building as the exit so I made Olivia go around the building and get it for me while the rest of us sat in the air conditioning. We all looked up and had a good laugh at her driving that thing around and toward us. She couldn’t have looked any dorkier if she tried.
It was now a few minutes after 12 and we were really hungry but our lunch reservation at Coral Reef wasn’t until 1pm. We went over to check and see if they could seat us early and they said yes.
We waited for a short amount of time and then we were seated and what can only be described as the stupidest idea I’ve ever seen in a Disney restaurant! (and that includes the Hawaiian singing lady!) They have the huge full wall aquarium in the restaurant and so they want all the tables to face it as much as possible so we had a curved booth like a half circle which would have been fine except a little bit later they sat another family with us in our booth!
There are technically two tables but they are about 2 inches apart if that! (seriously) and you are just sitting with strangers that are close enough for their kids to kick you! Which they did because Alan was sitting right beside them. These people were so rude! The parents seemed like they thought they were better than everyone else or at least us! Haha! and the kids were TOTAL BRATS!!! TOTAL!! The dad knew it and just ignored them and let the mom try to deal with them but he had a constant look of embarrassment on his face. However, she was busy with her glass of wine. And obviously they were NOT happy with the seating arrangement either. They never spoke and it was very uncomfortable for us to even speak with each other because when you’re sharing at table with screaming kids all you want to talk about is those annoying kids! Just a super awkward meal! I mean come on people control your kids! And come on Disney give us our own table!
Owen ordered the Mahi Mahi, Olivia and I had the steak and Alan had the shrimp and grits. We all had either chocolate wave or cheese cake for dessert the food was all good just very bad tablemates.
As we were leaving, I really wanted to give them a piece of my mind on the way out at the podium but it was so packed with people I just walked out. Oh, and by the way this probably would not have happened if we would have just waited until our regular reservation time of 1pm we may have gotten a better table or at least one not with these morons.
We left and went to Turtle talk, to look at the fish tanks and have a bathroom break and the kids went to watch the dolphins. Alan and I were tired and done so we left them there and headed out of the park because it was time for us to leave but they wanted to finish up with the fish. Once we were on the bus, they texted us to say they were leaving too and we were at Pop at 3pm. Just as we got there Ellen was on TV and had One Direction on her show so I was watching that and then the kids showed up. They basically left the park as soon as they finished with all the fish tanks and then they stopped to get a picture with Pluto on their way out since he had no line.
The boys changed and went to the 90’s pool and Olivia and I watched the One Direction interview on Ellen. Once it was over, we put on our suits and got ready to go join them and as we opened the door to go out it was raining!! HARD! Who knew? LOL while we were in the room, we’d had the curtains closed so we didn’t realize this was going on. We were not happy because we had spent all that time getting suits on and loading up for the pool. We took a spin around the 4th floor under the awning looking for the boys somewhere down below and then we took the scooter back to the room because it can’t get too wet.
Olivia wanted to go fill up our mugs so we grabbed them and headed out. Once we got off the elevator we ran into the boys! Alan and I decided to just go back to the room because I didn’t really need my mug filled anyway and so the kids went and got their drinks and hung out in the arcade or lobby until the rain stopped and then they swam for about an hour from about 4-5 or so.
When we were getting ready Alan went on down to the lobby to check how many credits we had left of everything and they had rang up one of our food and wine snacks as a charge so they gave us two extra snack credits as an apology.
Then we all got ready for the evening at the MK we are just going for Wishes fireworks tonight not for rides. We are also going to try to order food at Casey’s on Main Street and get a table to sit at for dinner and the parade. We knew this would not be easy with the number of crowds for tonight. It’s a quick service place so it’s not like you can just request a table with a view you have to fight for one!
We went down to catch the bus to the MK and there was a line of 5-6 scooters trying to head out to MK and each bus can only take 2 each!! So, I said forget the scooter I don’t need it tonight anyway and we parked it over under the covered area on the side of the building with the others. We got in line and got seats on the bus and turns out we probably could have gotten on with the scooter because a bunch of MK busses showed up around the time, we were pulling out but that’s ok it was probably for the best tonight with those crowds!
We were running late for the parade and fireworks and right when we got off the bus at the MK there was an old style push wheelchair sitting there (they give them to you at the park exit to assist people who need it to and from the bus stops) so Alan just grabbed it and told me to get in and I said I was fine to walk but basically we were running really close on time and now that they have gotten used to NOT having to wait on my slow butt they wanted to hurry to the entrance. So, I hopped in and we hustled to the entrance where we abandoned the wheelchair and then waited in line to get in. The kids had already taken off toward bag check and WOW was this place packed!!
Once we got inside the park, we were very close on time for the lights to go off for the parade and we still needed to order food and find a table. We sent the kids on ahead to try and find a table which Alan and I said will NEVER happen as we made our way slowly in that direction. Once we got down to Casey’s the line to order was out the door but we got in line anyway and I texted the kids to see where they were and they said they got us a table in front of the ice cream plaza! I could not believe it! Alan stayed in line and I grabbed napkins and straws and headed over to find the table and I sat with Olivia but we sent Owen over to wait in line so he could help him carry our food.
Alan texted us that he only had 10 minutes until the parade started at which time, they will CLOSE Main Street and he won’t be able to get across to us with the food! CRAP! So not knowing what we could do to help I sent Olivia over to help too although I’m not sure why. If they get cut off, then they will get dinner standing up and I get to watch the parade alone sitting at a table! haha!
Finally, here they came with the trays. The kids each got a hot dog meal with fries and drink and Alan and I shared a foot long hot dog meal also with fries and drink. For the dessert items we got two brownies and one bag of cotton candy. You wouldn’t think cotton candy sounds like a good dessert choice but it was kind of a fun thing that we would have never ordered on its own.
The parade had started just as we got the food so we had a somewhat good view of that but Alan and I were still hungry from having just split a hot dog (not sure why we did that?) and he doesn’t care about parades so he got up and went into the Plaza and ordered two ice cream sundaes in waffle bowls. (used those extra bonus snack credits from earlier) It sounds like a ton of food but we hadn’t eaten the brownies because they were pre-packaged things and we had only had a bite or two of the cotton candy since it was also in a bag and could be eaten later. Plus, we were sitting in front of the ice cream shop so everyone around us was eating something from there. Peer pressure.
After the parade was over but while we were still waiting for the fireworks Alan went back across the street and got himself an order of corn dog nuggets because I had told him that I read online they are considered a snack credit and we had a ton left. But he was gone FOREVER!! We joked that he may have gotten in a fight or maybe he walked all the way to the funnel cake stand since at this point, we have tried just about every snack item! Lol. Well JUST as the lights went out for Wishes he showed up carrying a funnel cake! He said the corn dog nuggets weren’t a snack credit so he went all the way over to get this. We shared that as well and made a mess with it while we watched the fireworks.
I don’t think I’ve already said this but our table was in the 1st row against the fence so we have REALLY good seats and we’ve never seen Wishes from SITTING DOWN! haha. While we were sitting there with our funnel cake and a really good view of the fireworks Olivia said “we are kicking this vacations ass”!! It was really funny and even though we didn’t ride any rides and had waited in line for food and fought the crowds it was one of the best evenings we had.
Once the show was over Olivia and I had to pee really really bad but the lines were LONG! so we made our way to the front of the park and used the bathrooms just outside the exit. When we came out Alan had again found an abandoned chair to push me out to the bus stop so we could try to get ahead of all these people! As embarrassing as that scooter can be it really does save a ton of time because they ALL three walk FAST and I don’t. I’ve always spent the trips walking at least 5-10 steps behind them by myself. I remember when mom, dad and Blake went with us she was in the chair and so they all would all take off walking fast and leave me and dad behind! I had commented to him that at least now I have someone to walk with!
Once we got to the bus stop and saw the line we about died! I suggested going over to the Contemporary hotel and calling an Uber. However, the only way this would work is if we could take this MK curtesy chair with us because it’s a very long walk and we weren’t sure we could. But it was dark out and it was really crowded with people so we just walked/pushed quickly to get out of the way and on the sidewalk to the Contemporary Hotel. When we arrived Alan called an Uber and we used a FREE one again which was a referral from Olivia being our referral. The driver was there in about 2-3 minutes in a Prius which is pretty darn small! Also, his name was Mohammad!! And I’m still racially profiling! We were worried but we hopped in! LOL
And this guy took the back way over by Fort Wilderness and clear over toward Old Key West I was sitting in the back with the kids and Owen and I were giving each other the “weird eye” while he drives us over to the wooded campground area and what looks like the middle of nowhere! Meanwhile Olivia is just riding along totally clueless! HA!! Also, this guy drove really fast and was changing lanes like nobody’s business. We did however arrive safely back at Pop around 9pm and got the scooter to take it back to the room. We had an eventful evening as usual with Owen taking an evening shower, Alan visiting the pool bathroom, Olivia claiming she may puke and my foot swollen the size of a watermelon but I haven’t been taking my water pill either because who has time for all that peeing! Good grief.
We had lights out at 10:30 also there are these super tiny annoying gnats that fly around the light right outside our door so every time we open it several fly in the room and it’s so annoying!
The plan for today is for me to stay in the room this morning and take my water pill and let it do its thing while they go to AK. However, as of last night Alan says he’s not sure he’s going and he said NO alarm! But Olivia piped up and said that’s stupid and she sets her alarm for 7:30 for her and Owen and Alan will join them IF he’s awake. (we know he will because he can never sleep late in at a hotel)
I got up at 7:20 and took my pill and they all three left the room at 8am I laid in bed trying to go back to sleep because it takes the pill almost 2 hours to kick in anyway. However, that wasn’t happening because I just couldn’t sleep so I got up and showered and watched Regis (or whatever it’s called now). I did my hair and packed up all the dirty clothes and then Olivia texted me that she is dying of a heat stroke because it is SO humid and muggy out. (I have kind of shut up about the heat issue but make no mistake it is still HOT!!!!) One of the texts she sent said “sweat down her back and crack” LOL. Meanwhile I am watching the weather on TV and it’s snowing in Chicago and having record lows!
They texted again later and said they are all coming back to Pop at noon and they showed up soaking WET! They had ridden Kali River Rapids and apparently Olivia almost “drowned”
They told me about their morning and said they were there for rope drop and stopped for SDFP then went straight to the Safari (which I found odd) and it was the best Safari ever they saw a lion climbing and stretching on a tree and also saw a mama and baby rhino.
After that they went over to ride Everest and walked right on then rode again with their SDFP they got and after that they rode 3 more times using the single rider line! Then walked over and used a SDFP to ride Primeveil Whirl and then to Kali where they had gotten soaked and since they were already so wet, they went again. I don’t’ know what exactly it was that happened to Olivia on Kali that brought on the near drowning story but I think it involved a poncho getting full of water or something but I’m not sure. She also said it was so hot and muggy that she was sweating from her ELBOWS! She’s not dramatic at all.
They all got changed into dry clothes and we left for MK and arrived around 1pm. We went to Columbia Harbor House 1st for lunch and Olivia and I had the fried shrimp, Owen got the fish and Alan got the fish and chicken. Which he regretted because it wasn’t the kind of chicken, he thought it was going to be it was just nuggets.
After we ate, we went to the fast pass kiosk to look for SDFP but there was a long line for the kiosk which totally ticked Alan off so we skipped it for now and went on over to Big Thunder. We rode it with our regular FP which was for 1:30-2:30 and then a bathroom break for me and we had about 5 minutes to kill before we could use our splash mountain FP which was from 2:40-3:40. When we got off the parade was going on so there was no line now so we went on splash a second time.
We went to Aladdin and rode with a 5-7-minute wait and then got a dole whip to cool down. It is really looking like rain (it did rain while we were on splash). We made our way to Fantasyland and still had about a 10-minute wait before we could use our FP for 7 dwarfs so Olivia and I had a bathroom break and then her and I went to get SDFP because Alan had done it earlier but messed them up. We don’t think he knows what he’s doing. Lol!
Next, over to ride the 7 dwarf coaster with the FP and once again I pull that safety bar down SO far that I can barely breathe while riding it. I think I’m afraid of falling out but jeez it’s just a kiddy coaster and once the safety bar is latched at all your locked in no need to cut off circulation. I’m not much of a fan of this ride because it takes a video of you while you ride it and then your party can view it on the app but I look like such an idiot in the video.
We stopped back by the kiosk and got a FP for Pirates and we have one already for Haunted Mansion and actually we have two because we have one on each band for some reason. But when we got to HM it was a walk on anyway. After that we went and rode Aladdin again and had planned to ride Jungle Cruise next but it was closed while they were switching it over to a Xmas theme. So, we just went over and used the FP for Pirates with only a minute to spare on our FP time. We didn’t get wet which you don’t normally get wet but since our last trip I had read online that they changed the type of boats they use and some people are getting really wet especially if sitting in the front. But we were all dry on our boat. After this last ride we headed out of the park a little after 6pm to avoid the rush since they close at 7 tonight.
We got back to the hotel at 7 and Alan hopped on the scooter and rode it to the room to pick up the mugs while the rest of us used the lobby bathroom and then ordered our pizza for dinner. We chose chocolate milk and some cran-apple stuff for them to have for breakfast for our drinks since we had our mugs and we got our receipt stamped for ice cream as our dessert so we could pick it up later and not have to get it while we are eating our meal. The pizza was really good and we each had two slices and then Olivia and I shared an ice cream cookie sandwich (chocolate chip cookie with vanilla ice cream) and the boys shared an ice cream sundae in a waffle bowl but it sucked because the waffle was doughy crap. The dining plan for the large pizza only charges you 2 quick service credits and you get the pizza, two drinks and two desserts which is enough to feed all four of us so it is always a good deal.
Also, Alan ended up having to wait in the ice cream line for 20-25 minutes!! OMG it was awful and there’s a chance it was actually 30 minutes it was a LONG time!
When we were done Alan went down to the pool bar to watch the Jaguars play, Olivia went to the room to call Tim and Owen and I went over by the bridge again so he could drive the scooter around. It started sprinkling on us so we ended up only being gone for about 10 minutes then we headed back to the room. When we got there Olivia was very pissy with us because we were back so quickly and interrupting her phone call time.
After her phone call the three of us messed around in the room for a bit and then she went to the bathroom for 15-20 minutes and just before she had gone in Owen said let’s go outside and watch the fireworks. Well, the bathroom came 1st and so he waited and waited and then just before she came out of the bathroom he opened and shut the hotel room door to trick her into thinking that he had gone out without her so that he could scare her. I was just relaxing on the bed writing my notes etc. It didn’t go as he had planned because when she came out of the bathroom I told her that he was outside waiting for her (he told me to) and so she very quickly started whipping her clothes off and said “well this is a good time to get naked and put on my jammies then”. OMG Owen was hiding on the floor between the bed and the door to leave the room. I knew he could hear her and he was smart enough to shield himself from any view! And technically she didn’t get totally naked to put on her jammies (yoga pants and a t-shirt) but anyway he stayed hidden for a looonnnngggg time and I made a comment that the fireworks were going to be over before she got out there! But then when she was finally done, she walked right past that bed to go out the door and he jumped out and scared her and OH. MY. GOD!!! She SCREAMED!!! And it was LOUD and LONG!! I bolted up off that bed because even though I knew it was coming it was so loud it scared the crap out of me! So now I am standing beside her telling her to CALM down and she reached around and SLAPPED my back (because she knew I was in on it!) and she left a big red hand print on my back! It hurt and I was freaking out that someone was going to come to the room and ask what the heck is going on or worse yet ask us to LEAVE! I almost wouldn’t have blamed them it was THAT loud. I said your dads at the pool bar and I bet he heard you!! (you can’t even see the pool bar from our room but still that voice carries!)
Eventually we all calmed down a little bit and then Alan came back to the room and we asked him if he’d heard anything and he said WHAT DID YOU DO? LOL! So, I told him and he just shook his head. I don’t think he had any idea how loud it had been.
Meanwhile I am still mad about her slapping the crap out of me, red mark on my back and everything and I told her that we are not friends anymore after she’s hit me 3 times!! And I am playing it up pretty good that I am done with her!
We settled in and were watching an episode of Modern Family at Disney World and the old man from the show made a comment about how there is so much walking at Disney and that’s why so many fat people get scooters! WOW!
I was finishing my notes for the day and I was acting like I was reading what I had wrote and I said “it’s a sad day, Olivia and I have shared our last meal as friends today” I said it out loud in a very serious tone and she about died laughing!
Lights out around 10:30.
Typed plans for the day:
Possible crystal palace breakfast at 8am
OR sleep in today.
Go to MK late morning
Pics on main st.
Try to get SDFP for :
BTMR 1-2
Splash 2-3
Jungle cruise or pirates 3-4
OR space 4:30-5:30
Go to fantasyland for philarmagic,
Little mermaid, dumbo, barnstormer, tea cups etc
Whatever has a short wait.
BOG lunch 12:35
Use SDFP big thuner 1-2
Use Reg. FP 1:35-2:35
Use SDFP splash 2-3
Maybe watch 3pm parade?
Use Reg. FP splash 2:40-3:40
Use possible SDFP for Jungle Cr. Or pirates
Use Reg. FP 7 dwards 4:05-5:05
Try for a 4th FP at speedway, space or buzz?
Dinner at a QS in the park or back at the hotel.
Have WCC reservation at 6:40 but probably wont’ keep it.
Alarm at 7am, showers and leave the room about 8:15-8:20 and took the bus to MGM. We arrived inside the park just as the internal rope drops were dropping.
We went to Toy story and it was mostly a very long slow walk through to get to the ride. After the ride I had wanted to get Owens picture with Buzz and Woody but the line was already 35 minutes! So, we didn’t do it so they left to go ride Rock N Roller coaster. I went to Walt’s show and the new Dino preview again and then I took a long ride through the back of the park over by Pizza Planet to see if they still had the giant Buzz spaceship out there so that maybe I could get a picture later of Owen in front of it but unfortunately, it’s no longer there.
I went through the Xmas lights section of the park and then had a bathroom break and I ALMOST went to the 10am show of Frozen because I’ve heard how funny it is but I thought I’d look weird in there with no one else. Instead, I went into some gift shops looking for a Tshirt that Owen had seen on someone else and wanted, it said “straight out of Disney” (like the song/movie straight out of Compton) he thought it was cool and wanted to wear it back at home. However, the nice manager lady who waited on me said it’s not an actual Disney shirt it’s one that had been printed/ordered elsewhere.
After that I went back by Tower of Terror and texted Olivia who said they had rode RnR twice one with FP and one in the single rider line and they were now using their FP at Tower. I just waited for them in the shade. It is nice in the shade with a breeze but in the sun, it is HOT!
When they got done with their last ride, I took some cute pics of them in front of the two rides. Then the kids took off to go use their FP for Star Tours while Alan and I sat on a bench so he could relax a bit. We texted Olivia to tell her we were heading out of the park without them instead of waiting on them but we didn’t realize her phone was in our bag! Haha! but they managed to get done with their ride and meet up with us out at the bus. And the reason we are leaving the park so early (it’s not even noon!) is because of a Be Our Guest lunch reservation we have at 12:10 in MK that we forgot to cancel last night and they charge a $10 per person fee for no shows! So, we are in a hurry to get to MK.
We only have 3 QS meals left and Alan for some crazy reason doesn’t want to eat at BOG so him and Owen are going to go eat at Cosmic Rays instead. You don’t get charged a no show fee as long as someone from your party shows up to eat so that wouldn’t be an issue. Olivia and I were both going to use a QS meal credit here since it’s a more expensive place and we told them to use the last QS meal credit and then pay for one meal. We separated and her and I sat in a new room at the restaurant the music box room with the spinning Belle. And we both had the braised pork, mashed potatoes, green beans and strawberry cupcake for dessert and it was all delicious. They have self-serve beverages so we could get refills before leaving too. Olivia REALLY loved her meal! She still talks about it. We also took our time eating because the air conditioning was great and the seats were comfy.
When we left the boys were sitting out by the scooter waiting on us. Turns out that Alan made them split a meal for lunch so he didn’t have to pay for one of them! Wow!
We went over to the FP kiosk to see if we could get some SDFP and we got 3 of them plus got a 4th FP on our regular bands and while Olivia and I were doing this there was a lady and her husband behind us who was a TOTAL bitch! She was complaining that it was taking too long and shouldn’t we only be able to book one FP and why is it taking this long etc. She just went on and on very loudly. Well, there are multiple kiosks she just happened to get in line behind us! Haha! Anyway, it was not all our fault the machine was being a pain in the butt too and the two girls working at the machines could not believe how rude this woman was being and they kept telling her that we are allowed to book 3 FP etc but she would NOT shut up so when we were done the girls working gave us a special paper fast pass good for any ride in the park at any time today because of our “trouble”.
(We had managed to get jungle cruise, tea cups, speedway and Aladdin for our FP’s and we used the special one at 7 dwarfs.)
We were HOT so off we went to the Tiki room for an inside show and some air conditioning! But there was little to no air in that room and the show was so bad we all wanted to get up and leave but it’s pitch dark so I wouldn’t let them. After that we rode Aladdin and jungle cruise and then stopped for a dole whip float. I prefer the dole whip ice cream but we tried the float and sat around a teeny tiny table sharing it and sweating. We had missed our time for the tea cups FP and Owen wanted to go to Tom Sawyer Island but it was hot and Olivia wanted no part of that so we let the boys go by themselves. Not sure Alan was happy about that? I doubt it. Well or Owen for that matter because him and Olivia usually run around together on the island while Alan and I hang out in the rocking chairs. We were right in front of the Country bear jamboree so the two of us decided to go in there in search of air and we finally FOUND IT!! HA! it was the best air conditioning of any place we’ve been all week. We almost got a chill lol! Almost! When we were done, we went into Pecos Bills restaurant and ordered ice waters and then sat outside in the shade with a breeze and we both joked that we were in our happy place we felt at least 15 degrees cooler. After we sat for a bit Olivia went and bought herself a popcorn and charged it to the room with her magic band and then told me to put it on her tab! HA! She thinks she’s funny.
The boys showed up and I forced them to go inside and order their free ice waters too so they did and we made our way over to ride the TTA and when we came off, we saw Buzz out doing pics so we got in line for that. We don’t like his new costume it just doesn’t look like the classic one we are used to and of course I cried a little when Owen went up and posed with him. He did it like we were making him, which we were but oh my gosh I can remember me and him being in the park years ago just the two of us when he used to hang with me while they rode scary rides and he spotted Buzz for the 1st time EVER! I thought he was going to pee his pants he was so excited! Ugh. My gosh I miss that little boy.
Next, we went to ride the speedway but I had a headache so Alan and I sat out while they rode it and Owen drove her.
While they were doing that Alan called the scooter place and booked an extra day for me because we had decided that we would need it again tomorrow after all. I had thought I could just go without it that last day but my ability to walk let alone keep up with them with this Afib is worse than I thought it would be plus we will be short on time tomorrow and no time to waste waiting around on me.
We were now killing some time before our dinner reservation and so we wondered around the circus store area which is when I ran over the 1st and only person on that scooter all week and it was ……………….Owen! OMG I felt awful! And I know it really hurt because he complained a lot and he never complains about anything which means it really hurt a lot and how could it not! All week and only one incident with the thing and it was poor Owen.
After that we went and rode the Little Mermaid because Olivia didn’t remember having rode it and we got off right when it was time for our dinner reservation.
Ok so this is it our long awaited dinner at Be Our Guest the one that I struggled so hard to get forever! Olivia was VERY excited and Owen was just there for the food! Haha! When we checked in at the podium outside, they said it would be just a minute and it was then a lady came to take us to our table and she was holding a light up Lumiere (character from the movie) candlestick and she had Olivia hold it to guide us to our table. Again, she was so excited but also a little confused what the light up thing was about. Haha. Our table was literally the FIRST table that you get to when walking in the door and at first for a minute I was ticked but then……… I turned my head and, in the room, right beside us and just off to the side of the door was THE BEAST! He doesn’t come around to the tables like some character meals because he’s way too big so when you are done eating you go in that room and get to meet him and remember this is the only place in all four parks that you can find him!
One of us swapped seats with Olivia so she could see him from her seat during the meal. We ordered our food and three of us had the steak and Alan had the shrimp and scallops the meals were delicious best steaks ever! The waiter kind of sucked though we wanted more bread and ketchup for the ones who got the steak fries but he never came back! For dessert they bring around a fancy dessert cart with a glass case and you can pick what you want. Olivia and I had the strawberry cupcake because we had that when we ate lunch here (lunch is just considered a quick service meal and not a sit down with a waiter type meal that dinner is) Alan had the lemon cupcake and Owen got the “grey stuff”. (like the song from the Beauty and the Beast movie “try the grey stuff it’s delicious don’t believe us ask the dishes”) and he liked this too. It was some kind of chocolate thing covered in this grey icing.
At some point during the meal and I don’t know if it’s at a set time or if it’s just when there is no line to see him but the Beast walks a path through the restaurant the lights flicker and you hear thunder and he stomps around all the rooms then makes his way back to his spot at the front. So of course, when this happened Olivia LOVED that and she was SO EXCITED!!
We were finally done eating so we went to meet him and I knew they would do a group picture of all of us but I also wanted a picture of just him and Olivia posed and one of them hugging like we have of her when she was 3!
But what happened next was literally the stuff that they only use for the Disney commercials! 1st of all as we entered the room her cheeks were so flushed and she was just beyond freaking out and when she went up to hug him, she said to him very excitedly “oh I just LOVE you” and he took her by the hands and danced with her. They held hands and danced and swayed back and forth and then he twirled her. You could tell from the faces of the employees around that this is not something that ever happens because they all seemed so shocked and excited too. When he was done dancing which had gone on for several minutes, he bowed to her and then “kissed” her hand and her cheek. All the while I am trying to take pictures in this very dark room and worrying that they aren’t going to turn out good but yet also trying to watch her excitement and really trying not to cry. Oh, what I wouldn’t have given to have video of this but we didn’t have it with us! Who knew it would be anything more than a quick picture and leave.
As we walked out, she just glowing and smiling from ear to ear her face was so red you would have thought it was going to catch fire. Alan said to me as we were walking out that she looked happier and was glowing more than she was on her wedding day! HAHA!
We got outside and all just took a moment to catch our breath from the excitement and then it happened I started crying I had held it in so well when we were inside but I cried like a baby. Maybe it was just relief that all the work to book this dinner did pay off. Ironically this was the best steak any of us had all week but no one even remembered the food anymore. Best. Last. Night. Of. A. Trip. EVER!
I did feel a little bad that it was all about Olivia and Owen was kind of left out.
The park was now only open to the people who had tickets to the Mickey’s Very Merry Xmas Party so Olivia and I pulled ourselves together and we were all literally escorted part of the way out. Mostly just past the rides and around the castle and then told to make our way to the exit.
It was not an easy exit because Main Street was already filled with people waiting for the Xmas parade to start in a little while. But it is easier to take the sidewalk with the scooter even though it’s less space than the main road but on the street, everyone is always stopping for pictures of the castle so you just keep getting stuck behind that.
We made it to the bus stop and ended up on one of the new double busses! This thing was HUGE where a normal bus would end it had a weird area where the bus could “bend” to make a corner but then past that area there was almost the length of another whole bus! It was odd and we were seated right across from a woman who was coughing up a lung! She really sounded bad!
It was around 8:30 when we were on the bus back to the hotel and we told the kids to go to the arcade while we went up to pack up the room. From 9-10pm we did some hard core packing! I literally worked up a sweat and at some point, Alan took a bathroom break down at the pool bar area and I kept on packing until I finally stopped and had to fan myself. Jeez too much work.
Once he came back, we were done and I left the room I’m not really sure now why because it was 10pm and I had to be tired but it was our last night. The kids had taken the scooter and went to ride at the bridge area before going to the arcade.
I walked down to go to the arcade to see what they were up to but could only make it as far as the pool area without being out of breath. (God I hate Afib!!) and then I made my way to the arcade but before going into the building I just sat at a table right outside the doors and as I looked over I noticed my scooter sitting there! lol. A few minutes later they both came out of the building and she grabbed the mugs from the basket to go get refills and Owen was going to the room for more arcade money! She didn’t even see me but Owen did.
Once he got back, we all three went to the arcade and I watched them play a few things and I did a couple too. By then it was 10:30 so I went back to the room to get ready for bed and the kids came up a few minutes later. I think we got to bed around 11pm but probably a little after.
Typed plans for the day:
MGM in the morning for them
Me in the room with a pill and some packing
Ride RnR at rope drop and maybe single rider
FP RnR 9-10
FP Tower 10-11
FP star tours 11:25-12:25
Back to pop to meet me them to MK but no FP for rides
Have BOG lunch 12:10 prob cancel
Get SDFP at kiosk 3 each and a 4th reg FP
Dinner at BOG 6:15
Park closes at 7pm for xmas party.
Alarm set for 6:45! We got up and showered and packed the rest of the room and Alan went down and got us a luggage cart so we got all loaded up and the boys went on ahead of us because we couldn’t all fit on the elevator with the scooter and the luggage cart. When Olivia and I got down there we didn’t see them at the airline check in so we went around to the front of the building and they had unloaded all the bags and were just being told they were in the wrong area and that airline check in had been moved to the back of the building since our last visit.
I knew this because I had seen the big sign, we had walked past all week so I just assumed Alan knew it too but I guess not. He was not happy especially because he had just walked past that area to get to where he was plus, he had unloaded all those bags. He reloaded them and we went to the correct area. You have to get out your ID for the airline check in and so we did all of that and they weighed our bags like at the airport and surprisingly we were fine!
Then back around to the front where we had just come from because THAT is where you store your items you don’t want sent to the airport your carryon items. So, we did that too.
I must say we did all of this morning stuff in RECORD time and Owen showered too this morning! (not lib lol) We got to the bus stop for MK at 8:30-8:35 and got right on a bus luckily and we made it into the park entrance just as the MK opening show was starting. We could NOT believe we got here this early! I never imagined that would happen. I had made our first FP of the day to start at 9:30 because I didn’t think there was any possible way we would be there before that.
Since we had a little free time instead of heading off for the rides for some reason (hunger perhaps?) we went to Gaston’s and got 2 large cinnamon rolls to share. They were big but not warm like it said they would be so that was a bummer.
As we sat at the tiny table watching people hurry and scramble to the rides, we laughed that we are the only people to arrive at rope drop and just go sit down and eat a cinnamon roll! HAHA! The inner park fanatic inside me was starting to freak out a bit at how stupid this was!
We headed over to Big thunder and it was still a walk on so we rode and I guess since I had been pushing the bars down so tight all week and cutting of my breathing on this one I didn’t push it down as far as I should because my ass shot up out of that seat a little too much on a hill/drop and they all freaked out saying we almost lost mom! Oh, and then just before the ride was over and we were about to pull back into the unloading area I looked down and realized my shirt was UP! when I had come up out of my seat it had raised my shirt up and I didn’t know it. It wasn’t exposing my chest but my white stomach was defiantly exposed! SO GLAD I noticed it before pulling into the busy unloading area! The family thought it was hilarious when I told them!
We took a short rest after the ride mostly because it’s a long uphill climb to get to the ride and also because I was traumatized by the coming out of the seat and also exposing myself so we were laughing so hard!
Once things calmed down, we went on again with our FP even though we didn’t really need it since it was still a walk on.
Next, we headed over to Splash mountain and Alan and Olivia got the front row and put on ponchos. Owen and I were in the 2nd row with just ponchos laying over our laps so that we (mostly me) can just pull it up over my head for the drop because I didn’t want to fly home after having soaked my hair and make it look flat and awful. We got pretty wet and the entire front of my shirt was soaked! And it was thick wet material that took forever to dry! I used the bathroom after to see how bad I looked. Not good. And then we went on again because after all I was already soaked! We didn’t need the FP for this time either because it was still a walk on.
We all got the same seats again but this time when Alan and Olivia put on their poncho hoods during the ride to prepare for the drop, they did it fast and pulled hard on the hoods but they were sitting on the bottom part of the ponchos so at the same time it ripped the back of both of their ponchos! It was hilarious and with Owen and I sitting right behind them so we had the perfect view of it when it happened.
Once again when we got off, I went into the bathroom to evaluate how wet I was (pretty darn wet!) and when I came out Owen and Alan were in line to meet Woody and Jessie from Toy Story! Awwww ! Owen was wearing his Buzz pins but he didn’t have any Woody ones on (even though he does have some) so Woody was playing around with him and giving him a hard time about only having Buzz pins. It was cute and he spent a lot of time with Owen. Especially since he’s not a little kid anymore.
We were now done with that side of the park so we walked over to use our ONE last snack credit on a funnel cake that we could all share but unfortunately it was cold! The one we had the other night during the parade was too but I assumed that was because Alan had walked half way around the park to bring it back to us. Alan said they have people making them and then sitting on the ledge waiting for people to order them and it’s just a funnel cake stand so everyone in line is ordering them but he said they are so SLOW at taking orders and getting it to you that it gets cold sitting there waiting. Oh well last snack credit is gone!
We sat at a small tiny table to eat it and there was a duck walking around the area which at 1st we thought was cute till we realized he was pooping everywhere!
Also me eating the powdered funnel cake in dark brown wet shirt made me look even better! Thank God I put a clean shirt in my carry on so I can change before we head to the airport.
We made our way over to Fantasyland which was just CRAZY packed but we had 45 minutes until our 7 dwarf fast pass so we looked in some shops but there was nothing left to do! No rides to ride, no shows to see we had done it all! It was really crowded (it’s a Saturday) and as my notes say it was F-ing HOT! HA!
We noticed the train that goes around the park was finally opened and working (it had been closed all week) so we got on for a ride around the park thinking it would be a nice breeze on the moving train but it was not a good idea! It was loud and slow and there was no breeze, no air movement.
Once that fun was over and a bathroom break we went to use our FP for 7 dwarfs and it was so packed in this area that it was hard to find parking for the scooter. The FP line was longer than usual and we were starting to worry about our time because we had a flight to catch and it was noon before we got on the ride. I have to say I think they only like this ride because it takes a video of you while on it and they love to make fun of how stupid I look.
We got off the ride, managed to get the scooter out of the crowded area and hauled ass out of that park! I didn’t even get a chance to say goodbye to the Magic Kingdom like I always do because Alan was on a mission! I took a quick look over my shoulder and thought to myself that I WILL be back if I could survive all the crap I have in the last few years and make it back here then I will be back again some time. I do always get sad that it may not be in the same way because technically we aren’t a family of 4 anymore and if Olivia EVER gets a classroom of her own, she won’t have time off during the “slow” time of year to come with us. And if we’ve learned one thing on this trip it is that we all HATE the HEAT!! So, no stupid summer trip for us! HAHA!
As we hurried to the bus stop and got almost there Owen saw an empty wheelchair so he put Olivia in it so he could push her and hurry her along and as they got to the bus stop Alan looked down and said there is a baby lizard (those little tiny ones) in the chair with her!! OMG!! She jumped out of the chair and started freaking out!! Then the stupid thing was on my scooter wheel so when I moved, I accidently ran over him! OOPS! They all freaked out and thankfully no one else was leaving the park at this time of day to see or hear all of our drama!
We got back to the hotel and off the bus. The kids and I headed straight inside to the bathroom and when I came out of the bathroom Owen said dad was looking for me and was kind of frantic! I asked Owen why he was looking for me. I mean the plan was everyone go pee and meet back out front to get our carryon bags and wait for our bus to the airport. But Owen said dad wanted me because I need to turn in the scooter. Well, I knew that but the place where you do it is the exact same place where we get our carryon bags so I had it under control. He was really getting on my nerves with the excessive HURRY UP! HURRY UP! HURRY UP! jeez we weren’t late it was only a concern when we were still inside the park because you never know how long a line for a ride will take and once you exit the park how long will you wait for a bus to arrive to take you back to your hotel but now that we are back at our hotel, we have a few minutes to kill. Enough time for everyone to pee, get bags, turn in scooter etc. Returning the scooter was the easiest thing EVER! I just said Hey I’m returning and they asked my name and had me sign a piece of paper it took about 4 seconds.
Meanwhile Alan had gotten the carryon bags and was marching out to the area where we wait for the bus, I kept trying to stop him so I could get my shirt to go change but off he went. Finally I just gave up on the shirt because I knew he would freak out if I said I was going back INTO the building for something! Well, the next thing I know I look around and said where’s your dad? And the kids said he went inside to change his shirt!! OMG! So much anger! Lol
We are on time and waiting on our bus but where is it at? It was supposed to be a 1:25 pick up time but at 1:40 they said there was a problem with our bus so they were sending a different one. All this time there is another Magical Express bus sitting right there over to the side?! What’s wrong with that one? That’s all everyone was saying. We waited more time and finally a full one pulled in and we had to wait for it to unload and by this time there were TONS of people waiting with us but some were from the scheduled pick up time of 1:25 like us and some were for later pick up times like 1:45 etc and so the people in charge were trying to tell people that those of us with the earliest flights have to go 1st. Meanwhile us and a family that had been waiting as long as we had just shoved right to the front and onto the bus.
It was now after 2pm and we were starving all we’d had all day was sharing two cinnamon rolls and sharing one funnel cake. We were concerned about how much time we would have to eat lunch at the airport. Well, it turned out to not be a problem that’s why Disney picks you up 3 hours before your flight so that if there are problems like today you still don’t miss your flight and blame them.
Once at the airport we hauled our butts to the food court and we split up Olivia and I went to chick fil a to get meals and she paid since we had paid her $20 room charges! Haha! and the boys went off in another direction looking for something else. We all met back up at a table to eat and they had ordered ONE Chinese meal to split! ONE! No real food all day and it’s 2:30 we are going to get on a plane but they got one meal to share. Alan is cheap and we had no dining credits to use here so I’m sure he asked Owen if he wanted to share and we all no Owen will go along with whatever he thinks we want. He doesn’t want to be a bother. Owen said he was fine but I gave him some of my waffle fries and two nuggets and he ate them right up! jeez. It really made me mad that Alan had done that.
Then Olivia following with her airport tradition went to get a Cinabon and ended up with a 4 pack! She said it was a better deal because it was only $13.00 for four vs ? for one! Now that I think about it, she was probably going to buy one for her and Owen so it was a better deal to get the 4 pack then two maybe but who knows. They were huge plus the lady warmed them up for her and gave her extra icing for free. We shared two of them and kept the other two for later. And now it was time to go through security! God help us this is a BUSY airport!
Owen had to take his shoes off at security even though his pre-boarding thing stated his age and said he didn’t have to but oh well we weren’t about to argue that. The lines were huge, the crowds were huge but we were through and done in about 10 minutes which I never would have guessed from looking at it. Then we made our LONG walk to the gate all the way at the end. There were people everywhere, they were sitting on the floors and laying on the floors I’ve never seen an airport this busy I was starting to worry! But it turns out that four flights to Chicago were being cancelled due to snow and so many people were in lines to find out the info they needed. There was a family sitting by us with a toddler from Chicago and they couldn’t get out until Monday (it is Saturday!) so they were leaving and driving to go somewhere fun for the next couple days. She was talking about the beach or Legoland etc.
Our flight ended up being delayed about 20 minutes but no one could complain about that after seeing all those other people standing in lines and having cancelled flights! We took off into a dark stormy looking sky and it scared the crap out of me. I was really freaked out by it so I read Olivia’s book to get my mind off of it.
The rows on the planes are only 3 across so we always have to split up two and two so the boys were sitting behind us and Owen and Olivia kept passing notes back and forth to each other during the flight about what their favorite parts of the trip were etc and some lady that was sitting beside Owen was sleeping and she was leaned over on him it was hilarious! His face!
Once we landed, I had to PEE!! Then it was the longest walk ever to get from the plane area to the hotel shuttle pick up area. OMG! It was like the distance from one side of Shelbyville to the other! We got our bags and our little black one had the front pocket ripped off of it and I had a couple pairs of my undies in there!! Gone now! (dirty or clean? Not sure) Alan asked if we wanted to go fill out a form about the broken luggage but it was a small crappy bag and I didn’t care at that point. Plus, it sounded like it would take forever!
So, we hauled all of our luggage to where we THOUGHT we were supposed to wait for the shuttle but this airport has recently been completely changed as I said on our way down and I don’t think they had very good signs up about where to go so we waited for a while before realizing we were in the wrong area.
We figured out we had to go outside and across the street area to a separate pick up/drop off building. Well as per usual Alan hauled ass and he took off with his bags that he had and just went 100mph and we all struggled to keep up with him. There was no traffic at all but as me and the kids are crossing the street Alan is already across and inside the other building but once we reached the middle of the street the bag Owen was pulling fell over in the middle of the road and we had to get him situated which means we were now even farther behind Alan. Then the 3 of us enter this building and there is NO ONE let alone Alan. We just stood there not knowing what to do and wondering why he hadn’t noticed we were not still with him and also wondering what the heck his hurry is it’s not like we are catching a flight? We are just getting a shuttle to our car so SLOW DOWN!!
Alan had gotten to the shuttle and realized we were nowhere to be found so he came looking for us and we were all ticked. We just left him with the luggage to load and we got on the shuttle because guess what? IT WAS FREEZING COLD!! It was below 20 degrees! When we had stepped out of that 1st building we were hit with temperatures that felt like zero! And we were still dressed for a hot Florida theme park! And I’m still wearing funnel cake powder on my shirt!
The same driver drove us back to the hotel for our car and again OMG how can someone drive like this! Plus, I probably said it before but with the new configuration of the airport the airport hotels that have always been there are now on the far side of the airport and with the interstate the way it is it feels like a long way. I bet we drove for 20 full minutes of drive time.
We got to the very cold van and got in but we needed to scrape the windows and had no ice scraper which made Alan mad and I told him this is not the 1st trip that this has happened and as I told him before ice scrapers in cars are his job.
He took a CD case and used that to scrape the windshield! And broke it of course. We left the hotel at 7:38 (which I think was Indiana time) for the long 3-hour drive home! We stopped in Terra Haute at a Steak n Shake for food ($22.00, we all got our own meal no sharing! Haha!) and Alan wanted to go to the walmart and we said NO! we got home at 10:15 Shelbyville time and Tim picked Olivia up, Owen RAN to his computer and I walked over and told Dad hi since I saw that he was up. Owen went to bed at 11 and Alan and I stayed up till 12!
Typed plans for the day:
Pack. Store luggage, ck in for flight
Leave hotel by about 9 to arrive at MK by 9:30
Take train to back of park because no scooter
FP BTMR 9:25-10:25
FP splash 10:25-11:25
Train to fantasyland
Maybe get SDFP for dumbo 11-12
FP 7 dward 11:40-12:40
Maybe get SDFP for buzz 11:30-12:30 but prob not time.
Leave MK by noon
Back to Pop, get luggage and on magical express
Eat lunch at airport
It was a really GREAT trip we had so much fun and all my insane planning worked out we kept up with all of our plans for the most part. Ate at some great places, spent a lot of quality time together! (good and bad!) I would say the only things that stick out as not great was #1 the Afib! I knew it would be bad because at home I can barely make it from the Walmart parking lot inside the store without being out of breath and needing a rest so that scooter saved me. #2 the crazy rushing around on the last day was a bit of a buzz kill. It was GO GO GO from 6:45am till home at 10:15 if I could go back in time, I would have scheduled that differently and made Alan take it down a notch (or three) and #3 some of our beach drama, it was a long drive to and from the hotel and especially on the last day with the road construction it really sucked the fun out of it. and #4 last but NOT least THE HEAT!
But the kids had so much fun at Disney riding the rides. Owen’s all grown up and riding everything they ride (though he’s still afraid of Tower of Terror and he will admit it!) so I really miss having him to hang out with like the old days. They also liked having a little bit of freedom from us too. Olivia loved her time with the Beast and it turned out it was worth all the trouble to get the reservation. But if we ever go back there it will be a letdown after all the attention, she got that night.
Lots of memories and fun and very little sleep!