I know. I know.
We went to Disney World (again) and I just left ya'll hangin'.
You just can't wait to hear about our trip in excruciating detail.
You're clinging to the edge of your seat in anticipation, aren't you?
I knew it.
Well, I would be.
Off we go!
The Trip There:
We were up at 3:30am. It had snowed the day before and, of course, it had frozen solid on our road. The airport shuttle van was able to ease it's way up the hill to our house and we were off. Even in some nasty sleet, we made it to the airport with time to spare. The plane was scheduled to take off on time, and we ended up with only a slight delay because of de-icing. We made it to Minneapolis and changed planes to Orlando.
It was perfect timing. It couldn't have been better. The next day here in Seattle, it snowed again. The next day, it snowed again. For that entire week we were gone, it snowed. A lot. Some measurements came in at about 15 inches! School was cancelled every day that week. Tee-hee-heee-heeeee.
We arrived at the Beach Club right around dinner time. We got into our hotel room and then went back out to find something to eat. We ended up at Beaches and Cream. While we were waiting for a seat, we hit the arcade next door. Huzbend was playing a game and Mikey was climbing onto another machine. I turned my back and WHAM! Down Mikey went with a crash, slamming his head against the machine next to him. He cried. A lot. Also got a damn big lump on the back of his head.
We finally got to dinner and everyone was cranky. I sat there thinking, "Great. Mikey has fractured his skull. Our vacation is ruined." But, there was a great mood turnaround after eating. The super-fatty food (hotdogs, burgers and fries) and Mickey Mouse Sundaes really hit the spot. We left the restaurant with a renewed excitement for the next day and a few less tears.
Day One - EPCOT:
It was a late start. That was expected. Our kids are not early risers, even when we are at home.
Right before we left for the park, Mikey decided to do some sprinting. Well, it didn't work out so well for him. He tripped and fell scraping his knee in the process. Oh man, it was drama. There were lots of tears and lots of screaming. I finally convinced him to let me put a band-aid on him (he hates band-aids) and then we were off.
EPCOT was great. After a stop in Canada to purchase a hat for Huzbend, Katie rode Soarin' with me and LOVED it. At one point, I thought she was going to try to jump off of her seat to land in the orange trees in the movie. It was a looooong wait for the ride - 60 minutes. Katie did fabulous. Just a little bit of whining. In the meantime, Mikey and Huzbend visited Living With The Land and the Circle of Life Movie. All Mikey could talk about for the rest of the day (and the vacation, actually) was the "storm" that was on the boat ride. There was rain and thunder and lightning. I guess it freaked him out.
Next, we headed to Innoventions for a bit. We did Spaceship Earth or as my kids call it, "Epcot". Mikey didn't like the really dark parts. Electric Umbrella for lunch and then Huzbend took Katie on Test Track. It was not as enjoyed as Soarin'. Katie was tall enough to go on the ride, but not large enough to fill up her seat. She was thrown all over the place. It was a rough ride. She didn't like it.
It was time for a break. A pool break. We trekked back to the Beach Club and hit the pool. Well, Huzbend and Katie did. Mikey didn't want to swim with his knee injury. So, we chilled on the beach together.
About the knee injury. Mikey had decided that because of his oweee knee he could'nt walk. All day we had to either carry him or push him in the stroller. It was only when we were on the beach that his leg miraculously healed itself and he was able to get up and move. Who knew that the sands of Disney World beaches had healing powers?
After enjoying the warm Florida sun, we packed back up and headed to the Mexico pavilion for dinner. We ate at the San Angel Inn. Mikey kept thinking that the volcano in the background next to the temple was going to explode on us. He was on edge the whole meal.
We enjoyed the Gran Fiesta Tour with the Three Caballeros after dinner and stopped to purchase some Totoro's for the kids at the Japan pavilion.
Then, I forced (yep, forced) the kids to stay and watch IllumiNations. I have kids that don't enjoy fireworks. "They're too loud. Are they over? Can we go now?" Sigh. Oh well. At least I got to watch them.
When we got back to the resort, Katie and Mikey got to say hi to Cousin Matty, Auntie Sheila and Uncle Chris. There was lots of hugging and giggling. A pattern to be repeated for the rest of the vacation.
Day Two - Animal Kingdom and Dinner with the Fam:
We were up late again. We finally got to the Animal Kingdom and visited with some characters. After Katie told Pocahontas her life story, we headed over to the Kilimanjaro Safari and there was virtually no wait. The ride was awesome. Tons of animals were out and Katie and Mikey had a great time bouncing around in the back of the safari truck.
Katie also made a new friend; A boy who was sitting in front of us on the safari. She decided to adopt their family and proceeded to ride the train to Rafiki's Planet Watch with them. Finally, we were able to re-adopt her. I think if we gave her permission she would have went home with them.
We spent some time at the Planet Watch learning about endangered birds and brushing grumpy pigs. Then it was time for a quick lunch before heading back over to Camp Minnie-Mickey for The Festival of the Lion King. I can't tell you for sure if the kids actually enjoyed the show. They watched with their mouths agape for most of it, not making a peep. Katie's favorite part was the big audio-animatronic elephant. Mikey liked Pumba. No mention about the Tumble Monkeys flying around on the trampoline or the guy that ate fire. Hmph. Guess they are easy to please.
It was time to head back to the resort. We met up with the family: Granma and Granpa C., Sheila, Chris and Matty. We hopped on a bus and had some dinner at Portobello's in Downtown Disney. It was a good start to the trip. It gave us some time to catch up and relax before jumping into park touring craziness.
The meal took FOREVER. Really. FOREVER. But, the kids did amazingly well. Instead of hanging out to do some shopping afterwards, we chose to head back to get to bed early (and hit the hot tub). It was a big day the next day. Magic Kingdom time.
Day Three - Magic Kingdom:
This was going to be an interesting day. We had learned a day prior that President Obama was planning to visit the Magic Kingdom to give a speech about tourism - THAT SAME DAY. Everyone, even Disney, was unsure as to what the impact would be on the park that day. Advice from consierge was to arrive early and be prepared for long waits. Sigh. Couldn't he have picked another day????
Security to get into the park was the same as it always is - a cursory bag check. All normal. What was not normal were the amount of journalists hanging about and multitudes of serious dudes with lapel pins wearing dark sunglasses.
Main Street USA was closed. There was a big wall erected at the end of it and we were diverted to a back stage entrance to the left. This took us behind Main Street and through backstage to Tomorrowland. Disney had set up balloons, flags and all sorts of Main Street Vehicles and parade floats along the way. They also had a DJ blastin' out some tunes and cast members greeting everyone as they came in. It was great. Everyone was all smiles.
We entered Tomorrowland and immediately hopped into line for the Space Ranger Spin. There was only a 10 minute wait!! Mikey was in heaven. He got to see his hero, Buzz Lightyear, and help him fight and capture the evil Zurg.
That was the beginning of a whirlwind ride marathon. The Speedway, Mad Tea Party, Prince Charming's Carousel, Winnie-the-Pooh, It's A Small World - stop for lunch - Tiki Room, Pirates - stop for parade - Splash Mountain. Whew.
We had lunch at the Crystal Palace, just as Mr. Obama was making his speech. The Hub was closed to all traffic, just like Main Street. Secret service and cast members manned the gates. They had erected large black curtains so that you could not see what was going on. Although the black curtains obscured the usually lovely view from the window-encased Crystal Palace, lunch was super-fun. Winnie-the-Pooh and friends had a lot of love to give to everyone - even Granpa! The restaurant even made special allergy-friendly brownies for Katie and Mikey. Mikey wasn't too into it, but Katie was in dessert heaven.
The kids enjoyed the Celebrate A Dream Come True parade, even though we couldn't find a shady spot to sit. After this, Mikey was ready for a nap. He was uber-cranky, crying the entire time I was on Splash Mountain with Katie. We had forgotten his blanket back at the hotel. Ugh. Eventually, I got him to fall asleep in the Ergo carrier. Everyone decided to head off a seperate way and meet at the flagpole on Main Street. Katie went to ride the WDW Railroad with Matty (and Chris and Sheila). Granma and Granpa took the strollers and said they would walk over. Huzbend, myself and sleeping Mikey went in search of a blanket for Mikey to cuddle with when he woke up. We ended up with a Dumbo baby blanket.
Mikey had a good sleep. Katie was able to visit some princesses and have some quality time with Mickey and Minnie.
After a mix-up with our reservation, we were seated in Tony's Town Square restaurant right next to the windows of the porch so that we could see the Electrical Parade. The seats were nice, but not great enough for the kids to see. So, Sheila and I snuck out of the restaurant so the kids could watch the parade. I learned that it's hard to hold up two kids that don't want to touch each other and video record at the same time.
Dinner was over and we trucked it on out to the base of Main Street (oh, Main Street had opened at about 2 that afternoon after Obama was gone) to watch the Magic, Memories and You show on the castle and then Wishes. It was the perfect place to watch. The view was pretty stunning. Main Street framed the castle and the fireworks. But, the best part about this location was that when the fireworks were over, we were some of the first people out the gates and into the bus line! Yay, us!
Day Four, Five and Six - Hollywood Studios, The Warrior Dash and Saying Goodbye:
We were up early (8am!) for our breakfast with Goofy, Minnie and Donald at the Cape May Cafe. It was a great way to start the day. The characters made their rounds quick and we got to see each of them two times. The adults enjoyed the multitude of yummy breakfast items and the kids enjoyed horsing around with their Disney pals.
After breakfast, we hopped onto a boat for a quick (and relaxing) ride to Hollywood Studios.
The first thing we did was head on over to Toy Story Midway Mania. The second longest wait time we experienced during our trip - 50 minutes. It was SO worth it. First, we were able to have a quick conversation with Mr. Potato Head. He called Mikey a Space Ranger to which Mikey replied, "To Infinity and Beyond!". That cracked Mr. Potato Head up. The actual ride was awesome. So much fun. Mikey even got to work his own gun! Did I mention that I got 171,500 points? Tee-hee. I rock.
Lunch was grab and go so that we could head over to Lights, Motors, Action! Mikey was amazed. He loved the cars, Lightning McQueen, motorcycles and explosions. His favorite part was when one of the motorcycle guys got lit on fire. He talked about it all day. Katie, on the other hand, hated it. We used ear plugs to help with the noise, but that still wasn't enough. She hid the entire time.
After the show, we decided to find a primo seat for the parade so that we could relax and enjoy some Mickey Ice Cream bars. The parade was great. Upbeat and exciting for the kids. Next up, it was Star Tours 3D time! Katie was able to go on it and she loved it. Mikey was not able to go on it, and was pretty disappointed. So, to make him feel better Huzbend bought him a Darth Vader light saber. Just what every 2.5 year old needs.
Over to the Disney Jr. show we went. Mikey almost crashed out on the floor he was so tired. But the sound of the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse song woke him up. Sheila, Chris and Granma wanted to ride the Tower of Terror and convinced me that I wanted to do the same. It was pretty freaky. A lot more drops then I remembered.
We had a great dinner at the Brown Derby. I would say, and Huzbend would agree, that it was the best food we had eaten on property so far.
We shut the park down. We left dinner so late that the buses and boats were no longer operating. We had to walk back to our hotel - maybe a half a mile or so. Guess it was good to work off all that food. Huzbend and Katie RAN back to the hotel and were able to get in a quick dip in the hot tub.
The next day we packed up into our HUGE rental van and headed to Middle-of-Nowhere, Florida for The Warrior Dash. With only a few wrong turns, we finally made it an hour after our start time. It didn't matter to the race people - they let us go anyways.
Sheila and Granma volunteered to watch the kids. I think they had the hardest job of the day. Chris, Huzbend, Granpa and me went off to run three miles through: sand (horrible), black gooey mud (super sticky - Chris's shoes came off), water over your head swimming obstacles (kinda cold), wall climbing (surprisingly easy), more sand running (excruciating), balance beams (gymtastic!), fire jumping (we looked so hawt), scrambling on our bellies through cold, brown water and while ducking under razor wire (aww-haww-some), and then the finish line (yay).
The race was super fun. It was even more fun because we all stuck together. After finishing, we scrubbed down as best we could (there was a community shower - 40 half naked muddy people standing under hoses) and then it was back in the van. On the way home we stopped at Wendy's for lunch. Katie fell in love with french fries. We don't eat fast food much.
It's funny, when you look at the photos of everyone covered in mud, it kinda looks natural on me. I wear mud well, it seems. Maybe I should jump in a mud puddle every day.
We had dinner that night at Boma at the Animal Kingdom Lodge. It was a great buffet with all different types of what some might call "exotic" foods. I loved it. Fantastic. After dinner, we were able to snap a few family pics with the help of a cast member. Back to the hotel for sleepy time.
Our last day came and we decided that we would hit the pool before the Magical Express came to whisk us away. Chris, Sheila and Matty were headed over to the Magic Kingdom for one last hurrah. We said sad goodbyes to them. There were some tears (me) and lots of hugs and "see ya soons!".
Granma and Granpa accompanied us to the pool to watch the kids swim. The pool at the Beach Club is called Storamalong Bay. It's pretty much a mini-water park. The kiddie pool has gorgeous, white sand on the bottom. It was hard to pull Mikey and Katie away. But, we had to get lunch before we left.
We stopped at Beaches & Cream once more for a quick bite. The kids just had Mickey Sundaes. I had a hotdog and a rootbeer float. Loved it.
We said more sad goodbyes to Granma and Granpa and then we were off to Orlando airport. Unfortunately, our departure was not as smooth as our arrival. We were stuck on the tarmac at Orlando for about 40 minutes due to low visibility and storms in Atlanta. On our approach to Atlanta to land, another airplane cut us off in the air causing our plane to pull up extremely fast (who needs Tower of Terror?). We had to circle back around to get in line to land again. All this delay caused us to miss our connecting flight.
We had to wait on standby for a later flight to Seattle. If we didn't get on that one, we would have to wait until the next morning to board a flight home. Luckily, we made it on. The kids fell asleep almost immediately when we sat down on the plane. It was a good thing too. It was the bumpiest plane ride I have ever been on. After what felt like an eternity (especially when you have at least one sleeping body part of two kids on you at all times), we landed in Seattle. We didn't end up getting home and into our beds until 3:30 in the morning.
And so now, in case you didn't get enough videos above, I have TWO more for you. The first video is a photo slideshow of our trip. The second is video clips of all the characters we met. And, boy, did we meet a bunch!
We were so lucky to be able to enjoy Disney World twice in the past 15 months. The first time with my family and the second time with Huzbend's.
Disney World is such a happy place for me, but at the same time it's also leaves me a bit melancholy. I have so many memories of these trips that bring me smiles and happy sighs and yet when I realize that these moments will only happen one time and never again, I get very sad.
Not only are we sisters, brothers, wives, husbands, Granmas and Granpas getting older, but so are our kids. They will never see Disney World the way they saw it that one time that we were there. The excitement, the happiness, the wonder - it only happens one time.
Never again will Mikey run up to Buzz Lightyear to give him a giant "Mikey hug" and only come up to his waist. Never again will Katie hold my hand and giggle hysterically while riding Soarin' for the first time or tell me fireworks look like pixie dust. All these moments, these firsts - they come and then they go only to be captured in our videos, our photos and our minds.
I don't ever want to let them go. Not ever.
As we stood watching the fireworks in the Magic Kingdom, I took a moment to look away from the show. There was Chris, holding Matty and pointing up at the exploding colors in the sky. There was Sheila snapping photos of the show and, of course, her boys. To my right was Huzbend with Katie sitting on his shoulders. Katie was cuddling her Simba doll. Next to Huzbend was Granpa, enjoying the spectacle. Behind me was Granma, a big smile on her face and laughing at me as I turned to record her with my camera. And lastly, there was Mikey on my hip watching quietly.
A quiet moment that I will never forget.
As we briskly walked away at the end of the fireworks show that night, the tears came. Happy and sad. Happy that I could, once again, share the fun of Disney with my kids and the memories with our extended family. But sad, again, that the special moments had to end. Sad, that I had to leave my "laughin' place".
Sigh. Oh well. There WILL be a "next" time. Although, I promised Huzbend that it wouldn't be for another four or so years. I can be patient.
See ya NOT so real soon, Mickey!
