THis is mine and Pauls favorite park. We arrived early to watch the characters "open" the park. We rode every ride, saw every show...very light crowds! A castmember at the water park told us the lines we were waiting in that were minutes long were 2 hours long the week before!!
TOnight we went to 'Ohana for dinner, a polynesion all you can eat dinner with coconut races, limbo, etc for the kids!
Gotta sleep...check in as soon as I can!
Saturday, September 8, 2007
Day 6 -Blizzard Beach/Epcot
Paul was so tickled to get to a water park...which is much more up his alley! WE had a great time! There are many family rides and even the pre-teen section is set up so that Annie can ride and the baby section allows mommies and daddies to slide!!The entire park is set up with teh idea that a blizzard hit Florida and then it began to melt. The entire park is covered in "snow", icicles melting from the buildings even a ski lift that takes you to the top of the hill. We stayed until close!
From there we headed to EPCOT for the fireworks and a few rides.
From there we headed to EPCOT for the fireworks and a few rides.
Day 5 Annie Turns 2!!!!!
Happy Birthday to Annie!!!
The big thing this week has been for daddy to say "Who wants to ride rides?", "Who wants to go swimming?" "Who wants to see Mickey Mouse?" etc. etc. When the older two raise their hands and say "MEEEEE!!!" then little mimic Annie does it. So then daddy has begun saying ( in a happy sing-song voice)"Who wants a spanking?" or "Who wants go live with another family?".. and Annie would say "MEEEE!", but as smart as she is..she ahs quickly realized it is a trick and is careful to what she says "meeee"! for!!
That being said this morning daddy says" Who's birthday is it?" and she KNEW!! SHe was waving both hands and saying "MEEE"..."MEEEE!"
We started off at Hollywood and Vine with a character breakfast. We met, sang and danced with JoJO, Goliath, Jude (who by the way Paul still swears was Dora!!hehe) and Leo! Paul was ecstatic when half way through brekafast they changed the buffet to lunch! We spent the rest of the afternnoon at MGM...met Kim Possible and Ron Stoppable, Lightening McQueen and TowMater, Evil Queen,Frozone, Ratatouille and many more!
We left MGM and went to Mickey's Backyard BBQ. This was by far my favorite event yet. All you can eat buffet...ribs, burgers, mac n cheese, beans, salad, corn on the cob, cornbread, watermelon and of course Mickey ice creams, popsicles, strawberry bars etc for dessert!
The show is set up with a western theme, country line dancing instruction, trick ropes, country band singing, chicken dance etc all with DISNEY CHARACTERS!!! We offically declared Annastyn as a character HOG!! She worked her way to the front of each group...and they DID hold her hand...she was in her element! Dancing with Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Chip and Dale on her BIRTHDAY...how cool!
The big thing this week has been for daddy to say "Who wants to ride rides?", "Who wants to go swimming?" "Who wants to see Mickey Mouse?" etc. etc. When the older two raise their hands and say "MEEEEE!!!" then little mimic Annie does it. So then daddy has begun saying ( in a happy sing-song voice)"Who wants a spanking?" or "Who wants go live with another family?".. and Annie would say "MEEEE!", but as smart as she is..she ahs quickly realized it is a trick and is careful to what she says "meeee"! for!!
That being said this morning daddy says" Who's birthday is it?" and she KNEW!! SHe was waving both hands and saying "MEEE"..."MEEEE!"
We started off at Hollywood and Vine with a character breakfast. We met, sang and danced with JoJO, Goliath, Jude (who by the way Paul still swears was Dora!!hehe) and Leo! Paul was ecstatic when half way through brekafast they changed the buffet to lunch! We spent the rest of the afternnoon at MGM...met Kim Possible and Ron Stoppable, Lightening McQueen and TowMater, Evil Queen,Frozone, Ratatouille and many more!
We left MGM and went to Mickey's Backyard BBQ. This was by far my favorite event yet. All you can eat buffet...ribs, burgers, mac n cheese, beans, salad, corn on the cob, cornbread, watermelon and of course Mickey ice creams, popsicles, strawberry bars etc for dessert!
The show is set up with a western theme, country line dancing instruction, trick ropes, country band singing, chicken dance etc all with DISNEY CHARACTERS!!! We offically declared Annastyn as a character HOG!! She worked her way to the front of each group...and they DID hold her hand...she was in her element! Dancing with Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Chip and Dale on her BIRTHDAY...how cool!
Wednesday, September 5, 2007
Year of a Million Dreams
For those of you familiar with Disney you know about this. If don't...well read on!! Disney has decided to grant 1 million dreams in a year. There are dream squad members walking aorund and they will grant you "dreams". Many guests are given Dream Fastpasses which means no waiting in lines for any rides, some are Grand Marshalls of the parade..etc. One lucky family every day at Magic Kingdom is invited to stay in Cinderellas castle suite for the night!!
I was happy with our upgrade and expected no more than that!! Although we have been surprised here and there with a few "dreams".
1.) While the boys rode Tower of Terror, Madelyn was asked by a castmember if she wanted to dress up in a uniform and "work". Madelyn however could hear the screams from inside and said NO WAY!!! (This wasn't really a dream maker)
2.) We ordered a Mickey ice cream in EPCOT and the lady said it was FREE!! Then as soon as Annastyn saw what Madelyn had she turned to the lady and put her hand out...when we told her no..she dropped to the ground. The worker pulled out another one for her!!! Again not a dream maker!
3.)While walking in MK a woman walked up to the children and asked if they would like to be cotton candy tasters. They quickly obliged and "tasted" they were each given a Dream Certificate and the rest of the cotton candy!! (not sure if she was a dream maker or not)
4.)A worker handed Annie a two trading pins. One to keep and one to give.
Nothing huge but little bits of pixie dust here and there!!!!
I was happy with our upgrade and expected no more than that!! Although we have been surprised here and there with a few "dreams".
1.) While the boys rode Tower of Terror, Madelyn was asked by a castmember if she wanted to dress up in a uniform and "work". Madelyn however could hear the screams from inside and said NO WAY!!! (This wasn't really a dream maker)
2.) We ordered a Mickey ice cream in EPCOT and the lady said it was FREE!! Then as soon as Annastyn saw what Madelyn had she turned to the lady and put her hand out...when we told her no..she dropped to the ground. The worker pulled out another one for her!!! Again not a dream maker!
3.)While walking in MK a woman walked up to the children and asked if they would like to be cotton candy tasters. They quickly obliged and "tasted" they were each given a Dream Certificate and the rest of the cotton candy!! (not sure if she was a dream maker or not)
4.)A worker handed Annie a two trading pins. One to keep and one to give.
Nothing huge but little bits of pixie dust here and there!!!!
Day 4 Magic Kingdom
Today we slept in and ate doughnuts in the room. Upon entering MK we head to adventureland and frontierland...we hang out here most of the day. Splash Mountain has a 5 minute wait for hours...AWESOME!!! We eat lunch at Pecos Bill Tale Tell Inn at parade time accidently which works out wonderfully...we have front row seats to the parade. The kids hung on the fence and nearly every character came right to them...they were ecstatic!!
Madelyn had her face painted like a Mermaid!! She was so excited! Carson had his face painted last year and she has never forgotten it!! She was walking on air..she was so delighted!!!
WE had dinner at Tony's (the restaurant from LAdy and the Tramp) and the food was delicious, but fellow travelers beware if you are seated in the glass porch area TAKE A SWEATER!! We were shaking we were so cold...then all of the sudden a waiter comes over and wraps me in a tablecloth (head and all!) and said the security cameras saw that I was cold. I felt silly but warmer so I kept in on....within a few minutes every other lady around us had a tablecloth around her too!! The children could not even eat their meals it was so cold!
After dinner we headed to Futureland and ran in to our sons Cub Master! What a small world..no pun intended!! We headed home and they are sleeping and I am typing!!!
Annastyn is now officially 2 years old!!!! We have some special things planned for her tomorrow...I will post again. Pictures may come.........or may not!!!
Madelyn had her face painted like a Mermaid!! She was so excited! Carson had his face painted last year and she has never forgotten it!! She was walking on air..she was so delighted!!!
WE had dinner at Tony's (the restaurant from LAdy and the Tramp) and the food was delicious, but fellow travelers beware if you are seated in the glass porch area TAKE A SWEATER!! We were shaking we were so cold...then all of the sudden a waiter comes over and wraps me in a tablecloth (head and all!) and said the security cameras saw that I was cold. I felt silly but warmer so I kept in on....within a few minutes every other lady around us had a tablecloth around her too!! The children could not even eat their meals it was so cold!
After dinner we headed to Futureland and ran in to our sons Cub Master! What a small world..no pun intended!! We headed home and they are sleeping and I am typing!!!
Annastyn is now officially 2 years old!!!! We have some special things planned for her tomorrow...I will post again. Pictures may come.........or may not!!!
DAY 3 EPCOT
Today is an early day. We have breakfast reservations in Norway for the princess breakfast. Madelyn dresses in her Aurora gown (yes it is long sleeves and ever so itchy)therefore little Annastyn wants to be Tinker Bell for th day and yes...she can now say "Tinker Bell"!!! AHHH!
While waiting to be seated we spot Mary Poppins posing for pictures. I ask Madelyn if she wants to go meet Mary Poppins and she says yes (very excitedly!) halfway there she asks.."Where is Very Gobblins?"...it took me a minute to realize what she meant!!
At breakfast we meet Belle, Mulan, Jasmine (yes Paul wanted a pic with her!!, Snow White and Auroura! Carson hides under the table EVERY time a princess comes by! The food here is tricky. The buffet consists of fruits and pastries. You are brought a platter of all you can eat scrambled eggs, potato casserole, bacon and sausage to the table. Well Carson is bummed that they do not have french toast,waffles or pancakes. So he eats about 6 servings of eggs. The girls and I of course eat most all of it....and then there is daddy, with no hot sauce all he musters down is about 5 spoons of eggs and some bacon (keep in mind this is a $30 per person meal). Thank goodness for the dining plan!!! AGAIN!
We continue touring EPCOT all day, again Madelyn riders some big girl rides. Annie is pretty bored all day. This is not the toddler friendliest park!
We have reservations for THe Neverland Club. This is a kids only dinner club (aka babysitting). The check-in station is designed to look like Wendys bedroom from Peter Pan...the children "fly through" the window to enter the playroom. (I should begin this with the information that my son is not an easy sell...he still clings to my leg at church until 3 or 4 of us pry him off! He hates VBS and things of this nature.)Well we had previewed it the day before and the entire day at EPCOT he was asking when we could leave and take him to the babysitter!!! Inside there are about 8 arcade games (no quarters needed!), playstations,princess dress-up stations, dolls, tv, kitchen, ect. They also do arts and crafts and are served dinner. We drop the older two off and decide to try the Kona Cafe which is at the same resort at the Neveralnd Club. The meal begins with a huge loaf of Hawaiian bread, then we get appetizers...chicken wings for me, ceaser salad for Paul..we both choose Filet Mignon for our entree. For dessert I get a Kona Kone...a huge waffle cone, dipped in chocolate that is "stuck" to the plate in chocolate, filled with ice cream, sprinkled with Mickey confetti and surrounded on the plate by cotton candy...Paul gets a scoop of vanilla ice cream (have you noticed he is kinda pickY!??!)
We pick up the older two and come back the hotel to swim!!
While waiting to be seated we spot Mary Poppins posing for pictures. I ask Madelyn if she wants to go meet Mary Poppins and she says yes (very excitedly!) halfway there she asks.."Where is Very Gobblins?"...it took me a minute to realize what she meant!!
At breakfast we meet Belle, Mulan, Jasmine (yes Paul wanted a pic with her!!, Snow White and Auroura! Carson hides under the table EVERY time a princess comes by! The food here is tricky. The buffet consists of fruits and pastries. You are brought a platter of all you can eat scrambled eggs, potato casserole, bacon and sausage to the table. Well Carson is bummed that they do not have french toast,waffles or pancakes. So he eats about 6 servings of eggs. The girls and I of course eat most all of it....and then there is daddy, with no hot sauce all he musters down is about 5 spoons of eggs and some bacon (keep in mind this is a $30 per person meal). Thank goodness for the dining plan!!! AGAIN!
We continue touring EPCOT all day, again Madelyn riders some big girl rides. Annie is pretty bored all day. This is not the toddler friendliest park!
We have reservations for THe Neverland Club. This is a kids only dinner club (aka babysitting). The check-in station is designed to look like Wendys bedroom from Peter Pan...the children "fly through" the window to enter the playroom. (I should begin this with the information that my son is not an easy sell...he still clings to my leg at church until 3 or 4 of us pry him off! He hates VBS and things of this nature.)Well we had previewed it the day before and the entire day at EPCOT he was asking when we could leave and take him to the babysitter!!! Inside there are about 8 arcade games (no quarters needed!), playstations,princess dress-up stations, dolls, tv, kitchen, ect. They also do arts and crafts and are served dinner. We drop the older two off and decide to try the Kona Cafe which is at the same resort at the Neveralnd Club. The meal begins with a huge loaf of Hawaiian bread, then we get appetizers...chicken wings for me, ceaser salad for Paul..we both choose Filet Mignon for our entree. For dessert I get a Kona Kone...a huge waffle cone, dipped in chocolate that is "stuck" to the plate in chocolate, filled with ice cream, sprinkled with Mickey confetti and surrounded on the plate by cotton candy...Paul gets a scoop of vanilla ice cream (have you noticed he is kinda pickY!??!)
We pick up the older two and come back the hotel to swim!!
Day 2 Pirate and Princess Party
...and Wal-mart!! Yeap along with the camera battery I forgot Madelyn's panties!!!...oh and Spray and Wash....so while we are there we decide, well okay Paul decides that the kids should spend their $20 souvenier $$ at Wal-mart rather than at the parks (so they can get more for their money). Madelyn chooses a beautiful Princess Aurora gown, Annie chooses a Little Tykes MP3 player and Carson chooses $3 goggles...he wants the "real Disney stuff!"
We stop by Walgreens to get Carsons meds..oops forgot to mention Carson has POISON IVY...BAD!!! This is his first case of it and his legs are covered. Poor thing has a thing for picking and itching anyway..so I feel so bad for him.
We get back to the hotel and take a nap. We are awoken by a castmember delivering Annastyn a birthday card signed by Cinderella!!! We get ready and head out for dinner. Our reservations at at BOMA this is a restaurant that is kinda $$$$ and has great reviews. The only reason we book it is because, again we have the Disney dining plan. I am so excited for Paul because this was the MAN MEAL of the trip....lots of meats with African flavors etc. Well my man ends up eating off the kids bar!!!! Yeap chicken tenders, mac n cheese and spaghetti!!! The rotissori style chicken was good but the other several meats were "out there" for us! I had no idea what any of the salads, veggies or sides were...so I stuck to the fruits and..umm kida buffet too!! They bring Annie a huge birthday dessert. It is a wooden board with three cupcakes, Happy Birthday written on the board in chocolate, gummie bears sprinkled all around...it was too cute!!
***Mental note-we don't "DO" fantshy smanshty" food!!!!
We head to the Pirate and Princess Party. This is a specially ticketed event. The park is closed to the public. We planned on wearing our Incredibles costumes but it was just too hot. Most everyone in the park was dressed as either a pirate or a princess....well I did not bring those costumes with us...so we were bummed that the kids were not dressed up :( Throughout the park were treasure stations..the children were given chocolate or necklaces. There were characters out dressed in pirate/princess costumes. The ride lines were supposed to be shorter, although I can truly tell you that they were the longest that we have expierenced (it was Labor Day...so I guess that is what did it!?!).
There were several little dance stations located throughout the park...which is SO up my kids alley!!! They were dancing and hula hooping! Carson did some breakdancing and head stands, he then captured an audience when he did the High School Musical songs and dance. And boy can that kid HULA HOOP!!!! Annie loved this as well...often ending up dead center with the characters!!!
There was a special firework show for this event. We accidently ended up on the bridge to futureland and the view was great and Tinkerbell flys right over your head! Again we leave the park and head to swim!
We stop by Walgreens to get Carsons meds..oops forgot to mention Carson has POISON IVY...BAD!!! This is his first case of it and his legs are covered. Poor thing has a thing for picking and itching anyway..so I feel so bad for him.
We get back to the hotel and take a nap. We are awoken by a castmember delivering Annastyn a birthday card signed by Cinderella!!! We get ready and head out for dinner. Our reservations at at BOMA this is a restaurant that is kinda $$$$ and has great reviews. The only reason we book it is because, again we have the Disney dining plan. I am so excited for Paul because this was the MAN MEAL of the trip....lots of meats with African flavors etc. Well my man ends up eating off the kids bar!!!! Yeap chicken tenders, mac n cheese and spaghetti!!! The rotissori style chicken was good but the other several meats were "out there" for us! I had no idea what any of the salads, veggies or sides were...so I stuck to the fruits and..umm kida buffet too!! They bring Annie a huge birthday dessert. It is a wooden board with three cupcakes, Happy Birthday written on the board in chocolate, gummie bears sprinkled all around...it was too cute!!
***Mental note-we don't "DO" fantshy smanshty" food!!!!
We head to the Pirate and Princess Party. This is a specially ticketed event. The park is closed to the public. We planned on wearing our Incredibles costumes but it was just too hot. Most everyone in the park was dressed as either a pirate or a princess....well I did not bring those costumes with us...so we were bummed that the kids were not dressed up :( Throughout the park were treasure stations..the children were given chocolate or necklaces. There were characters out dressed in pirate/princess costumes. The ride lines were supposed to be shorter, although I can truly tell you that they were the longest that we have expierenced (it was Labor Day...so I guess that is what did it!?!).
There were several little dance stations located throughout the park...which is SO up my kids alley!!! They were dancing and hula hooping! Carson did some breakdancing and head stands, he then captured an audience when he did the High School Musical songs and dance. And boy can that kid HULA HOOP!!!! Annie loved this as well...often ending up dead center with the characters!!!
There was a special firework show for this event. We accidently ended up on the bridge to futureland and the view was great and Tinkerbell flys right over your head! Again we leave the park and head to swim!
MGM
Excuse this from being too much of a boring trip report but I know some other Disney goers are looking for all the info!! Upon entering MGM we head to Little Mermaid and Playhouse Disney..both are great! Oh then the High School Musical Pep Rally..yes I am the dorky mom who is singing her heart out..I LOVE that movie!! We have dinner reservations for Sci-Fi Drive Thru...you are seated by hostesses on roller skates to a huge dark "parking lot" of old cars watching the huge drive-in movie screen with old reels. The kids are quiet...yes quiet...oh they are watching tv!!! Well whatever works!! We are the Disney dining plan so we eat like pigs..I get ribs, Paul gets steak...the food is excellent although it is VERY dark...so dark we all at about 1/3 of our meals. Try eating ribs in the dark with a toddler in your lap!!! Dessert is great I get a Cookies and Cream shake, Paul gets cheesecake and the girls get sundaes! When we leave it is getting dark so we hit Star Tours...this is when we realize that Madelyn had a growth spurt and is now over 40" , therefore can ride SO MANY more rides than last year!!! YEAH!! She is on cloud nine!!!!
We come back to the hotel check out the pools. My kids have wanted to go to the "piano pool" for over a year now (darn Disney website!!) but we decide to try the "guitar pool" yes there is a guitar shaped pool. We swim for a bit and I keep smelling...ummm....ughh...POOP!!! Not sure who...not sure where....but POOP and quite a bit of it..I am sure! I notice that the water looks a bit murky...we clear the pool as quickly as possible all the while trying to get the kids to quit swallowing, gurgling and spitting the water...ICKKK!!! So we head over to the "piano pool"...Carson is swimming like crazy. He can stay underwater for an eternity!!! Carson swims, Madleyn and Annastyn jump!!
BEDTIME!!!! YEAH!!!!
We come back to the hotel check out the pools. My kids have wanted to go to the "piano pool" for over a year now (darn Disney website!!) but we decide to try the "guitar pool" yes there is a guitar shaped pool. We swim for a bit and I keep smelling...ummm....ughh...POOP!!! Not sure who...not sure where....but POOP and quite a bit of it..I am sure! I notice that the water looks a bit murky...we clear the pool as quickly as possible all the while trying to get the kids to quit swallowing, gurgling and spitting the water...ICKKK!!! So we head over to the "piano pool"...Carson is swimming like crazy. He can stay underwater for an eternity!!! Carson swims, Madleyn and Annastyn jump!!
BEDTIME!!!! YEAH!!!!
Checking in from Disney!!!!
Hello..I know it took me a bit to post from WDW but if you know my hubby it took ALOT to get him to pay $10 a day for internet!!! Sooo Day 1 we leave from Louisville we get about 45 minutes down the road and get stuck at a dead stop for a bit over an hour....fun! From there we hit road construction and downpours of rain.....finally at 11 pm we decide to stop for a hotel room (since we have traveled for about 11 hours and have made it about 8 hours worth!!)Well surprise , surprise we begin looking for a hotel room in Valdosta and 4 exits and 1 hour later...we find one! Who knew that a Clint Black concert, VSU game, VSU open house and Labor Day weekend wiped out every hotel room in the city!
We get to Orlando and are within in moments of our hotel!!! YEah!!! We look up into the sky and see an airplane writing messages in the sky...JESUS LOVES U..I need to take a picture!!! I get out the camera and guess what??? The battery and the battery charger are in "My Old Kentucky Home"...yeap plugged into the wall!!! hehe...so thank goodness for Betty (our GPS) she gets us to the nearest Circuit City! So $100 later I have this 10lb battery that actually screws into the camera...which by the way will now not fit into the camera case...to take a picture of the next words in the sky....GOD + YOU = (we miss the last word as we are now pulling into the hotel!!) We are here at the All-Star Music Resort!!! YEAH!!!
Upon check in there is a slight glitch..the preferred room that we paid extra for is not avaliable...she says with a smile!! I ask what this means considering we paid a nominal fee per night to have a preferred room. It means that we are about 1/2 mile further back in the resort than we should have been...well it doesn't seem too bad but guess what...we played that game last year and at the end of the night...with 4 whiny, tired kids (yes DH counts too!)you want as close as you can get! So I explain that I booked this months ago and blah, blah , blah ... about 15 minutes later we are building 1 and get this UPGRADED which is great for more than 1 reason. First things first...I am planning on scrapbooking this trip in an ABC style....well hello!!! I have a U!!!! Secondly, as a family of five...we need the space!! A suite has a bedroom, living room with pullout, table and chairs, two baths, two tvs and a KITCHENETTE!!!! So we are so blessed and of course too spolied to probably ever deal with a standard 2 double bed hotel room!! So we are off to MGM!!
We get to Orlando and are within in moments of our hotel!!! YEah!!! We look up into the sky and see an airplane writing messages in the sky...JESUS LOVES U..I need to take a picture!!! I get out the camera and guess what??? The battery and the battery charger are in "My Old Kentucky Home"...yeap plugged into the wall!!! hehe
Upon check in there is a slight glitch..the preferred room that we paid extra for is not avaliable...she says with a smile!! I ask what this means considering we paid a nominal fee per night to have a preferred room. It means that we are about 1/2 mile further back in the resort than we should have been...well it doesn't seem too bad but guess what...we played that game last year and at the end of the night...with 4 whiny, tired kids (yes DH counts too!)you want as close as you can get! So I explain that I booked this months ago and blah, blah , blah ... about 15 minutes later we are building 1 and get this UPGRADED which is great for more than 1 reason. First things first...I am planning on scrapbooking this trip in an ABC style....well hello!!! I have a U!!!! Secondly, as a family of five...we need the space!! A suite has a bedroom, living room with pullout, table and chairs, two baths, two tvs and a KITCHENETTE!!!! So we are so blessed and of course too spolied to probably ever deal with a standard 2 double bed hotel room!! So we are off to MGM!!
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