My Famly MADNESS, 5/27-6/3 - COMPLETED - UPDATED 8/8 About This Page:

[disney_duke]

I’ll try to keep up with updates on this TR as much as I can. It will likely be when Wyatt is sleeping and the girls are cooperating (which doesn’t happen often!!)


CAST OF CHARACTERS:
Myself (32), DH (32) - Pete, DD5 – Jaden, DD3 – Camille, DS7mos – Wyatt, Pete's parents first trip ever - Carol and John (59 and 61)

DATES OF FANTASY:
Sunday May 27-Sunday June 3. So we can catch the end of Epcot's Flower and Garden Festival (Carol's interest) and Jaden will be done with pre-school.

LOCATION OF DREAMING:
Due to the large party size and Pete's penny pinching worries, we're staying off site at an All-Star Vacation homes 3 bedroom condo. This is all new to me. I hope it's not too inconvenient, we'll see soon. Jennifer and Dave reported to like their place, so I'm guessing ours should be nice too. It will be rough staying offsite with 3 little kids though.

REASON FOR THE INSANITY:
Like I need a reason to go to WDW….. Although, it is crazy to do all this with 3 little kids. I'm totally aware of this. But I don't think Pete's parents will ever come back, so I wanna pack everything in that I can. I know we'll be back next year, but I wanna make sure Carol and John can experience everything. Oh, the main reason for this trip was unbelievable airfare - $138 round trip on Midwest airlines. Holy cow!!

[disney_duke]

Sunday and Monday (travel day, Epcot)

I’ll just preface this by saying – I just should not try to compare my in-laws to my parents. My parents are always offering to help me in every situation, and I guess I’ve grown accustomed to this. They always put others needs first, and then themselves, which now I notice that I do this too. Not that there’s anything wrong with my in-laws. They are wonderful people and incredibly sweet when it comes to their grandchildren. Let’s just say they don’t get out much and leave it at that.

TRAVEL DAY
So after making (and losing) multiple lists of stuff not to forget to pack, I just give up and pack the diapers along with everything else. Hey, after the diapers are used, I’ll have extra space in the luggage for souvenirs. Actually, everything went much smoother than anticipated on our travel day. Our airport adventure went fairly smooth. The girls were well behaved on the plane, Wyatt only slept for 30 minutes, but he was well behaved also. Carol (prone to motion sickness) had on her motion sickness patch and took her Dramamine, so the flight was good for her too. We had to separate our party upon car rentals, which turned out to be a good thing. I specifically rented 2 cars - a minivan and a little compact for Pete’s parents. I figured after long days at the parks, the in-laws would want to stay for the fireworks, etc, and the kids would go back to the condo to sleep. As it turned out, we needed 2 cars for all our luggage!!!
After a quick lunch at McD’s and browsing Downtown Disney, we headed to the All Star office to pick up the keys. Very easy to follow directions and very simple check in procedure. Then we hit the grocery store and headed to the condo. I was so glad I picked out the one condo that I could find that was totally decked out in all Disney decorations. Even though we were far away from the magic, I felt closer with the condo decorations. Plus, imagine my surprise when walking into the condo and right there on the foyer table is a copy of the 2007 Passporter!!! Do these guys rock or what?? The condo was just like the pictures and it worked out great in every aspect (except, of course for being slightly far away). We had a quick dip in the pool, John watched some baseball and took a nap, we had spaghetti for dinner , and then best get to bed early for our first big day tomorrow! We’re all off to bed by 9pm, and Carol stays up watching TV till midnight – just like at home.

EPCOT
So I told everyone we’re leaving the condo by 8:30, no later than 8:45. By 8:55, we’re finally out the door. Uggh. We took both cars so the in-laws can stay to watch Illuminations. While waiting in line for the security bag check, Pete told me later about a little conversation he had with his Dad.
John-have you ever been to the Olive Garden?
Pete – not in like over a year, we don’t get to eat out much with the kids. Why?
John- we’ve tried a few times to eat there and they’re always so busy we can’t get in.
Pete – what time are you there? Like 7pm?
John-no, like 5.
Pete – What kind of a wait is there at 5 pm?
John-15 minutes.
Pete just busts out laughing…. “Well, get used to waiting. Cuz if you see a 15 minute wait anywhere within Disneyworld, that’s nothing and we’re waiting!!!!!”
After getting our length of stay stroller rental, I rush off to Soarin’ for some fastpasses – 1pm return time. I get 3 for me, Pete, and John. I told them to go over to Nemo and I met up with them shortly. We walked on the ride, 2 minute wait. After Nemo (very cute!) we hung around the Living seas for a bit. We skipped Turtle talk cuz the line was long already. Upon exiting Living Seas, the line for Nemo is now outside and John says, “good thing we’re here with an expert!” I think because of this, they now follow me around like a lost puppy and can’t make any decisions to save their life. Anyway, we stop in Innoventions for an A/C and snack break. I ask again and again what they want to do next and get answers like “well, what’s that over there?” and “whatever you want.” (this is a repeated problem….) Uggh. So I have to decide what to do and realize that it’s now 10:30 and Wyatt is getting crabby since he’s hungry. So as we’re walking over to Test Track, I stop at the restaurant (name escapes me – Umbrella?) and grab a table to feed Wyatt some cereal. I tell Pete I’ll run over to TT and see what the wait is and then he decides that his parents wouldn’t want to go on it anyway. So I ask them and they agree, yep skip that one. Uggh. Fine. How about we just wander around and see some of the F&G displays. Beautiful, by the way. Minnie’s butterfly garden was cool. I thought Carol was so excited for this and she would spend lots of time gazing and reading the signs, etc. Apparently, she was getting hot and didn’t care much at this point. Uggh. Fine, so off to Mexico to see Donald Duck!!! I like the improvements to the movie/ride, love that Duck!!!! The girls buy some piñatas with their hard-earned money and once again….. what’s next? I decide, how about Norway? Jaden goes on Maelstrom with me, Pete and John. Afterwards, we have lunch/snack at Norway’s counter service. But John doesn’t like it, so we stop at Mexico too. Uggh. ( I should have gotten a margarita at this point. ) Time to head back to Soarin now, Pete reads the warning sign and remembers he’s scared of heights. So now I have to wait in line and ride with my father in-law. Thanks Pete, you wait with the kids and your mom. I told him there’s an A/C building they can go in. ( but did they? No.) Waiting with John was OK, even though with FP we still had to wait 30 minutes. Cool ride, but honestly, I would not wait more than 30 minutes for it. Maybe cuz we were in the bottom row, far left, I don’t know. Maybe cuz of my company…. So upon exiting, there they are, outside in the shade. Duh. So we go next door for Jaden to play at the Imagination Center. We wander to the worlds now via the garden walkway by Tinkerbells garden. Carol and John have to rest and take a break now, so Jaden plays at the playground.

This is what I really thought Carol and John would enjoy, the worlds. But they just aren’t terribly impressed. We breeze by Canada, after Pete gets a beer. (would you like to walk up and see the waterfalls, movie? Nope.) We stop in UK long enough to take pic’s of the Pooh and gang topiaries. (would you like to walk through the shops? Fish-n-chips? Nope.) We cross the bridge to France. Well, I’m getting something from the patisserie, so poo on you. Yummy Strawberry tart!! Pete takes a peek through the archway and comes back and says “what princess do you love with a long pink dress and long blonde hair?” It takes me a second before I realize he’s talking to Camille, not me!!! Camille was just beside herself with excitement! Imagine, we were the first people to see her, no line, nobody!!! We just walked right up to her and had a good 4-5 minutes before people realized she was there!! Camille was in princess heaven. We wander on to Morocco. I’m sick of the Nope’s, so I tell Carol we’re walking through it. She doesn’t stop for anything, just literally walks through it. After the girls have a quick pic with Jasmine, I ask Carol if she wants to stop at Japan and look in their store, koi pond, anything… Nope. She’d rather see China. Uggh. OK!! On to America where they finally decide to eat an early dinner. I eat last, as usual, since I feed Wyatt and make sure the kids are eating well first. When Pete finishes, he takes over Wyatt so I can eat. (I guess this is where I miss my Mom more – she would at least offer to feed Wyatt so I can eat). This takes like an hour and a half as I hit the bathroom 4 times. Once for myself and then once more for each child. I love that bathroom. We breeze past Italy after a quick snack of Gelato. Finally, Carol shows a little interest in Germany and flies through the shops while Pete gets another beer. She litereally flew through the shops. I was only in the candy store and she walked through ALL of them. So we luck out again with Snow White, she just appeared and we were right there, so we got to be first in line with her and Dopey. Awesome!! The kids play for a little bit at the playground and then we stop for ice cream at the outpost. China’s next and guess what Carol says. Nope. Uggh. At this point, it is now 6:30 and yes, we have had a very long day. But we brought 2 cars and I basically told them to stay for Illuminations. Well, they said no. They’re tired and hot and don’t care to see fireworks (we can see them at home on July 4). But there’s lasers and music and it’s a whole production (no thanks.) If you sit down now and rest for 2 hours you’ll feel better and then can enjoy the show! (Nope.) Uggh. Fine, let’s all just go home. There was still time for a quick dip in the pool, more baseball watching, and then we’re all off to bed for our next day at MGM. Carol still stays up, but only till about 11pm tonight. Next time, MGM and Carol and John’s park of choice, Sea World.

[DyanKJ130]

Great start Tanya! the analogy to the Olive Garden. I hope Carol becomes more agreeable as time moves forward! More please

[TheThomasFam]

You are writing my story!! I SO can relate. My In-Laws would be the exact same way as yours. And my parents are the same way. That's way they get to go with us to WDW next May and not the In-Laws!! Can't wait to read your next report.

[disney_duke]

Tuesday and Wednesday (MGM, Sea World)

OK, so I can start to see now that whatever I had envisioned as our family clan touring the parks is clearly not going to happen. So rather than trying to get the inlaws to budge, I’d better become the flexible one. But I still had to be the decision maker too. A fine balancing act. Well, here goes… (I'm still getting the hang of resizing and inserting pictures, so please bear with me!!!)

MGM
I wanted to have an off day here, but Grandma insisted she wanted to go to MGM. So we slept in a little, watched SportsCenter, swam in the pool (kids love those pools, don’t they?) and didn’t arrive at the park until about noon or so. We all piled into the minivan today since we’re all staying late. First, we had to check the time boards and see what’s happening. The in-laws wanted to see Indiana Jones, but I didn’t think the kids would dig that too much. So while they went to their show, we went to Voyage of the little mermaid. (this is Pete waiting in line with the girls) I think it’s a great show, but the girls were slightly scared. And Wyatt was eating his bottle, so he didn’t really care what was going on. We shopped and strolled around a bit and saw some Little Einsteins. Camille was thrilled to meet June, I had no idea she liked that show that much! Mental note – next trip we’re doing the breakfast. We met up with the inlaws and then proceeded to the Beauty and the Beast show. We stopped to watch the parade along the way. Camille was excited to see Belle, another princess. (the girls and Grandma) Unfortunately she fell asleep before the show started and woke up just as it ended. She said “when do we get to see Belle?” Good thing I got the end of the show on video! By this time, we were about 30 minutes early for ADR at H&V for the Fantasmic package, but we checked in anyway. The girls were pooped and were happy to just sit and wait. I enjoyed the restaurant well enough, nothing spectacular but it wasn’t terrible either. The desserts were soooo good! As with every Disney restaurant, I don’t think it’s worth all the money, but having that pass for Fantasmic was totally worth it!! And once again, everyone else finishes eating (seconds, and desserts) before I get to start. Maybe this is why I don’t feel that I get my money’s worth!! Oh well, I’m being the flexible one now, right? We wandered back to the Honey I shrunk the kids playground and the girls had tons of fun! Pete was getting annoyed with his parents by this point (we still have 5 days to go!) and was trying really hard to behave. (where’s the beer?) The line for the Backlot Tour was nonexistent, so we did that and Grandma loved it. She thought it was so real and loved the costume area you walk through at the end. Now she’s into the “movie magic” and wants to go on the Great Movie Ride. Well, that line is too long and we’ll miss the start of Fantasmic, so we just head over to the theatre. Good thing I’ve seen this before since I had to walk around the back with Wyatt the whole time. The girls held out as long as they could watching it and then were too scared and came by me. Well, Grandma thought it was just the coolest show ever and was so glad she stayed for it (maybe you should have stayed for Illuminations too…..). She said it was Fantastic!! This was such a late night that we all hit the sack upon the return to our condo.

SEA WORLD
I suggested taking two cars because this was the inlaw's choice of parks and thought they should stay later to see everything. Nope, just the minivan again. We arrive about 9:30 or so and it is so worth it to pay the extra cash for a better parking spot!! I feel lost here since I’ve never been before. But apparently, I still have to make all the decisions (what the heck?). So I suggest to first go see the Sea Lion show, it starts in 15 minutes. Uhhhh, well, we can watch a sea lion show at the zoo in Milwaukee. (what??) Uggh! Then let’s head over to Shamu, that show starts in 45 minutes. Along our walk, we pass the stage for the seasonal Sesame street show and some characters are out! Cookie Monster and Telly were just finishing up and then Elmo and Abby Cadabby came out. So we met the latter and kept walking to Shamu. We pick our seats (well out of splash zone!) and I start to feed Wyatt some cereal. Well, Pete has to take over Wyatt because now the girls want snacks and Grandma can’t seem to find them in the bag I brought. (I sometimes wonder how she manages to babysit my kids on the rare occasion that we ask her to) So Wyatt doesn’t want his cereal, he’s getting crabby, the girls have ants in their pants, and I’m getting no help here….. But I digress (I’m the flexible one, right?) Thank god the show started and now there’s a little distraction. Pete makes a bottle for Wyatt, the girls watch the show, and I actually got to take some pictures. It’s a very cool show, definitely a must see. Very moving with the storyline and music and salute to the US troops. Makes you very proud to drink Budweiser beer (although, we’re from Miller country). Grandma said she thinks the show alone is worth the price of the ticket. We decide to head over to Shamu’s Happy Harbor so the girls can blow some steam (no pun intended!) and Wyatt can eat in the baby care center. Very nice baby center, by the way. Grandma actually offered to feed Wyatt so I could play with the girls (what? Who is this lady? Just kidding, I told you they’re nice people. Just strange). I took them on their spinning (teacup?) ride and then took Jaden on the little baby Shamu coaster. Jaden loved it! She looked terrified in the picture, but she was totally stoked for the ride to start and then when it ended, she wanted to do it again!! (look at that face!!) Wyatt was finished now, so we all headed over to the Arctic zone (whatever it’s called.) I went by myself on the simulator ride (no daredevils in this group) and told them I’d meet up with them on the other side. Well, turns out Camille had to go potty so Grandma took her and they didn’t walk through. Instead Grandma stopped in the gift shop to buy those super large lollipops and some cotton candy for the girls. Pete, John and Jaden walked through, but didn’t wait for me. So we all met up back by the strollers and nobody really got to even see any animals there. Waste of time – I mean it was a learning experience... yea, that’s it. Now it’s time for lunch and again, wishy washy Charlie Brown family can’t decide. Just give me the map already!! I pick the pizza place, and what a nice surprise the inlaws actually pay for this meal.
** side note – forgot to mention that we paid for everyone’s airfare, condo rental, admission tickets, table service meals. This was Pete’s idea as a thanks to his parents for (what, I don’t know) paying for him to go to private high school just so he could play on a state championship hockey team, and whatever else he felt the need to thank them for. (WHATEVER!!) Hey, he agreed to go to Disney, who am I to question it? ** venting over.
This pizza was good cold too, as you guessed, I didn’t get to eat right away again. Ahhh, the joys of being a mother. The next show to see is the Dolphin show. We arrive with 10 minutes to spare so I had to ask people to move so we could sit behind each other. So I start feeding Wyatt his bottle and Grandma pulls out the lollipops. (thanks for asking me if they can have them…) and then the cotton candy (just what they need.) I take them away after 5 minutes and we enjoy the show. Another very good show but the girls are really getting restless now. We make two more stops to see the turtles and penguins. It’s about 6:30 now and I said it’s time to get the kids home, but we can come back and pick up the inlaws if they want to stay. Nope, let’s just go, there’s a baseball game somewhere and I’ll bet it’s on TV for John to watch…. After some pool time and dinner, we’re off to bed. Grandma went to bed about 10pm this night.
Up next, Animal Kingdom and Magic Kingdom.

[Colexis Mom]

More great updates! Sounds like you had a good time at MGM and Sea World! More please

[DyanKJ130]

Sounds like you got a lot in! Can't wait to hear about AK & MK!!

[JaimeandChad]

I am reminded of the line from A Christmas Story. My mother had not had a warm meal in over six years. I feel that way too. More please.

[bsblady01]

more please

[disneydani]

I am glad your kids are enjoying this trip....sorry it is a ~little frustrating~ for you.

Keep it coming,

danielle

[lablady]

Wow. I'm getting a little stressed just reading your TR! It's making me nervous because in October we are paying for my DBIL, DSIL, nephew and niece to go with us to WDW. My DMIL is coming too. First trip for all of them. I'm hoping I get a little help from my DMIL. Not holding my breath though. Hope you get to enjoy a little down time during this trip!

[mattnkatsmum]

Great start. Sounds a bit stressful with the in-laws, though. I do take my hat off to you for attempting such a trip. It takes me all my time to have tea with mine once a month!

Thanks for sharing your thoughts on the All Star Vacation Homes. I've heard great reports about them in the past and ot's alaways worth having a WDW alternative lined up.

[PrincessSharon]

Great start. I know exactly how frustrated you are - I went on an extended family trip in October '05 and faced many of your issues. Glad DMIL is at least agreeing to see some stuff. And now that I know Elmo is at SW, I'll have to schedule a trip - DN is an Elmo nut! Looking forward to more.

[Holland]

Do we have the same in-laws???

Bravo to you for "trying" to be the flexible one.

I am very much enjoying your trip report and can't wait for more.

You WILL be able to eat a hot meal someday - and then you will miss having your babies because they are growing up!!! Enjoy...

[disney_duke]

Time to pause for reflection….

So it’s at this point in our vacation, and in this trip report, that I stop and think about everything. (I had been thinking every night at 2am when Wyatt woke up for his midnight snack .) But it was after our day at Sea World that I began to realize that Pete was right. (Don’t you hate that? ) Before we left for this trip, he warned me that his parents were not going to be moved by Disneyworld. He specifically said, “I hope you don’t think that they are going to magically fall in love with Disney, like you are.” Did he nail it on the head or what? I guess I thought that once they got there and felt the magic and especially saw their grandkids having fun; they would really get into it.

But it didn’t happen. And I noticed this while were at Sea World, because it’s not a Disney park. To me, Sea World is just a theme park. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a wonderful theme park with a good heart and lots of excellent attractions. I’d like to go back some day. But I think you guys can agree with me that Disney’s parks are so much more than just another theme park. While spending our day at Sea World, I noticed the same lack of enthusiasm, the same wishy washy attitude, and the same “I’m tired and don’t care anymore” faces. When we returned to the condo that night, Carol did join us in the pool. (Jaden)(Which I was so grateful for since it’s hard to handle 3 kids in the pool with only 2 adults, especially with Wyatt being only 7 mos!) (baby Wyatt with Daddy!) This is one of the few moments I saw her truly enjoying herself -- playing in the water with the kids. (troublemaker, Camille) That’s when I realized it didn’t really matter where we went for vacation. We could have stayed at a hotel in northern Wisconsin and she wouldn’t have cared. She just wanted to enjoy some vacation time with the kids – wherever. And John is happy with just a baseball game on TV and a bowl of ice cream. I guess I thought that a little pixie dust would have made her and John fall in love with Disney too, but that just wasn’t going to happen. I had these grand plans in my head for touring the parks to get the most out of them with the least amount of time. Not totally commando, but really seeing most of the trademark attractions with the knowledge that they will not be coming back. So here I was, sitting in the dark at 2 am, realizing that I’ve been pushing the family and stressing myself over nothing. It wasn’t going to be a miraculous, hit them like a ton of bricks, wow – Disneyworld is the happiest place on earth, kind of vacation for them. Plus, I had to remind myself that this was, after all, a vacation. And by that definition, I should be enjoying myself too, everybody should!!

My in-laws just like to keep their same sense of security and comfort level wherever they are, no matter what. That’s why Sportscenter is on TV every morning, and every afternoon and evening baseball is on TV. That’s why Carol stayed up late (in the beginning) to watch TV before bedtime. Apparently, they’re big TV watchers. That’s also why they bought frozen pizza, ice cream, Fiber one cereal, and frozen blueberries at the grocery store. That’s also why Carol lugged around her big “grandma” purse absolutely everywhere she went. (It didn’t touch the floor anywhere, not even the airplane!) Because this is what they do at home and this is what they’re comfortable doing wherever they are. No sense in changing it. Hasn’t changed in “however many” years, it isn’t going to change in 4 days. So I put Wyatt back to sleep in his crib (which was a full sized, regular wooden crib. You have to pay $10/day for it, but it sure is nice!) and went to bed much more relaxed and ready for the next day at Animal Kingdom – whatever it may bring. Ahhhh......