Thanks, Nana! Our 2008 WDW trip report - updated 6/8 with AK PP photos About This Page:

[BlueCinderellaEyes]

Great Up-Date! Glad you had a wonderful day in the MK!

[mom to 3 princesses and 1 prince]

We took the monorail back to the Poly and went right to Capt Cook’s. The plan was to take the food back to the room, rest for a bit and then take the girls swimming in the Volcano pool before heading back to the MK for the evening. When we got back to the room, we had a lovely surprise: an anniversary card for us, a birthday card for Christian, and a bouquet of balloons!






After our lunch (adult grilled cheese for me, chicken Caesar salad for Rick, chicken nuggets for the girls), we all had a little quiet time. I didn’t think the big girls would sleep, so I let them read or draw while the boys rested. I did hope Kate would sleep, but after an hour or so, I gave up on that dream and took all the girls down to the Volcano pool. We took a different path than we usually do, so we could see more of the beautiful landscaping at this gorgeous resort. Unfortunately, I didn’t have my camera, so I didn’t get any pictures. The girls really loved the pool, including the cool water slide that goes right through the volcano! Here’s how Grace described it: it starts off with red lights and then BAM! You’re in the dark!” I went on it once, and that’s pretty much it. The interesting thing about this slide is that there is no lifeguard up there. There’s a green light above the slide which tells you when it’s safe to go.

After our swim and a little snack, we walked back to the room so the girls could shower before we left. I remembered to take some pictures of the view from our balcony (something I never did from our balcony at the Beach Club!)









We didn't have any real plans at the MK tonight, except to see Wishes. Originally I had an ADR at Crystal Palace, but since we'd seen everyone but Piglet the day before, I canceled it earlier in the day. I really wanted to get to Columbia Harbor House this trip, so I hoped we would be eating there for dinner instead.

We walked to the GCH to catch the monorail. As soon as we got on the monorail, Kate fell asleep.

[tammyd_rn]

Doesn't it always happen that way....they always fall asleep when you don't have that figured in the equation. Sounds like a magical morning at MK. Looking forward to more.

[mcc0313]

What a nice relaxing (no nap) afternoon. Glad the girls enjoyed the pool...guess the water tuckered her out...Kate looks adorable all curled up in her stroller...

[Nimros]

Originally Posted by tammyd_rn

Doesn't it always happen that way....they always fall asleep when you don't have that figured in the equation. Sounds like a magical morning at MK. Looking forward to more.

I am really impressed with the CM thank-you cards you all have given out - what a neat idea!

[B.M.]

Great updates! Kate looks so cute sleeping in her stroller! Can't wait to hear more.

[mom to 3 princesses and 1 prince]

Originally Posted by Nimros

I am really impressed with the CM thank-you cards you all have given out - what a neat idea!

Something I just mentioned to mcc0313 is that one of my favorite parts of a board like this is the great ideas we get from each other. I read about those CM cards somewhere, and just knew they would be a great fit for my family. They really blessed our trip, probably even more than they blessed the ones we gave them to!

[chezp]

What a lovely surprise waiting for you in the room - isn't Disney magic great?

[BlueCinderellaEyes]

The balloons and cards were wonderful! I love that Kate feel asleep right at the monorail! So typical of little ones! that is something Dude would do to me!

[Jillybean]

Bless little Kate's heart - - they just don't want to miss out on any of the big girl fun at that age, do they?

What a great afternoon!

Jill

[Colexis Mom]

Another great update!! Sounds like a great time back at the Poly

[mom to 3 princesses and 1 prince]

Just wanted to share the link to the Cast Member Appreciation cards I found online. Nconover mentioned to me that thanking those in the service industry is like paying it forward, and will only benefit everyone in the long run!

NEW Cast Member Appreciation Cards Index

Back with more later!

[PrincessSharon]

What a busy morning at the MK! And how awesome that you encountered so many great CMs. Love the cards and balloons! I think it's cute that Kate fell asleep at the monorail!

[disney_duke]

You've had such an eventful morning! It never fails that the little ones fall asleep on the monorail, or in the car, or anywhere EXCEPT the hotel room!! Oh well, at least she got a nice refreshing break in the pool!

[mom to 3 princesses and 1 prince]

First thing we did when arriving at MK was to check in at Guest Relations for my missing camera bag. I had stopped by earlier, on our way out, and was told that when the park closes, every lost thing leaves MK and goes to central Lost and Found, which is over at the TTC. While we were there this time, the girls had made another pin trade and given another CM card away. They did not have my case, so we left, anticipating a stop at TTC later in the week. I wasn’t too worried about the case; I was running out of space on my current memory card, though, so I would be needing the extra one in my case very soon.

We mentioned to the CM there that we were hoping to finish the last of the mountains tonight, having done Splash and BTMRR already, but when I ran ahead to Tomorrowland, leaving the family loitering by Monster’s Inc., I saw that Space Mountain was all out of FPs and the standby time was too long! Oh well, we would be back to the Magic Kingdom several times before the end of our trip, we were bound to catch it another day!

Our next stop would be Adventureland, since I had been looking forward to an evening cruise around the jungle. I was going to try to pick up another FP for it, since I had discovered somewhere along the line that I had lost one of the FPs I had picked up before we left the park. Imagine my surprise when the Jungle Cruise was all out of FPs for the evening! So far, we were 0 for 2! I don’t know what I expected, since it was 7:30 by this time, but I had really hoped we’d get at least one of those out of the way tonight!

Christian hadn’t ridden anything since It’s a Small World that morning, so it was definitely time for an accessible attraction! The Magic Carpets of Aladdin have an accessible vehicle, so off we went.



As we made our way over there, I noticed that Adventureland seemed particularly busy tonight; there were a lot of people standing around! Apparently there is no special treatment for wheelchairs here, so Rick took Christian and the big girls to wait in a surprisingly long line, while I wheeled Kate over to get a couple more FPs for BTMRR. I was surprised again to find that not only were there FPs available for BTMRR, but the standby time was only 10 minutes! I think they were just about to shut the FP machines down, because as I approached the machines to put in my ticket, the CM there asked me if I wanted to go right now. I told him I couldn’t at the moment, but thanked him anyway. I only needed 2 FPs since I had 2 leftover from our first stop here, so I was quickly on my way back to the Magic Carpets.




The girls seemed to enjoy their trip over Agrabah, and I was glad that they had gotten another opportunity to ride with their Dad. I don’t think Christian enjoyed it all that much, but at least he didn’t have to sit and watch everyone else enjoy the attractions instead of taking part in the fun himself!

Next up was our second ride of the day on BTMRR! I took Grace with me, and I absolutely loved dashing by all of those people standing in the “slow” lane. It may have only said 10 minute standby, but that line sure made it look longer! While we waited, we chatted with the boy in front of us. He was probably about 14, and told us he lived locally but didn’t get here very often since he lived “across town.” Hey, if I lived in the state of Florida, I’d be getting the Disney World as often as I could! Anyway, he told us all kinds of things I already knew about the ride and Disney World in general. Grace is my friendly girl, and she asked the fellow if he wanted to ride with us. He politely turned her down without hurting her feelings, and went off to ride in the very first car, about which he was very excited! That put us in car #2, which Grace wasn’t so sure about. It was just after dusk, and I found this ride a little bit scarier than it is in the daytime, and not as enjoyable. Grace pointed out the place where we had seen a little lizard as we flew by earlier, and she wondered if he were still there! In fact, every time she saw a lizard for the rest of the trip, she asked if it were the same one from BTMRR!

After our adventure, we found the gang right where we’d left them and sent Rose with her dad for his first ride up Big Thunder Mountain. We were going to wait right where we’d found them, but then Grace asked if we could look in the store that’s right nearby. I had seen the line in BTMRR, and thought we should have time to look around a bit before they came back. Of course, we should have stayed where we were, but I was tired and there were rocking chairs inside! We made our way inside the store and probably were there for 15 minutes or so. When we came out to the spot where we were to have met, a man asked me if I was looking for my husband. He could tell by our shirts that we were supposed to be together. Apparently, Rick and Rose had gone around the area three times looking for us, since their ride had taken almost no time at all! They had even commented on the way down the exit ramp how surprised I would be that they were back already! I tried his cell phone, but he had left it in Christian’s backpack, which was with me, so that didn’t help. Eventually, he came back to the meeting spot and we were all on our way to find a spot for Wishes. Unfortunately, all the confusion had taken up a lot of time, so there wasn’t much of a chance we’d find a good spot for the fireworks. Moral of the story: when you agree to meet someone somewhere, stay there! We didn’t make that mistake again!

Up next: someone else gets lost…