SleepingB's(with fam. and friends) Supercalifragilistic Summer Sojourn-Day 3 part 1 About This Page:

[tikibird]

You have convinced me that I must finally get myself to Chef Mickey's!

Enjoyed hearing about your arrival and time at the MK, as well - looking forward to more... [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

[AKLRULZ]

Originally posted by SleepingB:
Does anyone else tear up as they walk down Main Street??? Everytime I go down this street I have to wipe a tear from my eye. The music, the sights, the smells. It is so magical and is tied up in many wonderful memories.

<font size="2" face="Comic Sans MS, Arial">Okay that pretty much made me tear up - YES!! I hear you on this one.

Thanks for sharing this - can't wait for additional segments.

[Mel & Richard]

Originally posted by SleepingB:
Now for the best part-Dessert!You had to try a little of everything- cheesecake with raspberries and blueberries, key lime pie, little cakes of various flavors, carrot cake(are you drooling yet?!?)

<font size="2" face="Comic Sans MS, Arial">Um yes.... I am so glad this is on our itinerary for Sept. [img]graemlins/yuma.gif[/img]

Really enjoying this! [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

Mel

[Carrousel Lover]

I'm being selfish but I was glad you were behind with your TR because I haven't really been able to really read the board since the 2nd and I was able to find your report quickly as I wanted to continue following your journey. I really want to hear how you all did the rides. Wow. We stayed in the Aotearoa longhouse at one of our first stays at the Polynesian. We had a great view but I know what you mean about the foot traffic - the drums at night took a little getting used to also but we really enjoyed it.

[Tom's Widow80802]

Wow what a wonderful start can't wait to read more [img]graemlins/wavin.gif[/img] I totally agree with the statement about crying on main street I also cry when I haave to leave [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

[MrsM]

Great report so far! I've figured out what I want to do for a living - have people pay me to plan their Disney vacations, then go with them! I'll be like their own personal concierge! I'm looking forward to the rest of your report.

[luvnwdwgal]

Thanks for the update! I'm really enjoying your trip report! [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

[SleepingB]

Thank You to all who have been reading. I'm really going to try to do better at writing daily installments. Life just gets in the way sometimes.

I see that some of you have commented on the big group. Well we have only gone to WDW once with less people. We had 11 the first time we went because we didn't have two of our children yet! The 13 of us have been on 5 trips together and we have it down pretty well. The F5 have usually joined us for at least one day on three of our trips. We try to start the day together or meet for a meal. Everyone can go together or their own way. It was hard the first time to not feel like we had to be together all the time, but we are way over that by now. It is fun to hear what everyone did while we were apart. Sometimes someone will have a great suggestion and everyone will decide to do that.
It is not always perfect, but we enjoy sharing the magic and memories together.

I tried to get DH to write a report about his music days experience in March with 130 of his favorite tennagers, but no luck so far.
DAY 2- WL and MK

After defending the universe, we worked our way through Fantasyland. We all sighed and moaned that Winnie the Pooh was still closed. That really adds to the traffic at the other rides. Peter Pan is a big family favorite about a 10min. wait and no wait for Small World.
I noticed something new in Small World this time. In the white unity scene at the end, the little french girls dancing the can-can where saying "Ohh la La". Actually DH noticed it first-trust him!!!! You have to do Small World at least once a trip-just for Walt.Of course I do enjoy it-It's sentimental and sappy!

Dumbo had a pretty good wait, so we headed over to Splash mountain after having FP BTMRR. We had a 15 min time posted, but it was only 10. At least this year we didn't have to coax G-ma on the ride. She still HATES the drop! Nothing is going to change that, but she does like the story inside enough to outride the fear. This is probably the family favorite ride at MK. Alyssa and Kyleen are absolutely crazy about this ride! Everybody's got a laughing place,zippity dee doo dah....How can that not make you happy???!! Especially when a four year old is singing it. [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

Not time yet for our FPs, so we take a cruise with Dead Men who tell no tales! After our politcally incorrect 10 minute tour( And you know you wouldn't change a hairy leg of it!), we got some pics with ol'Capitain Hook and Mr. Smee.

Of course by this time our usual weather pattern had begun from last year- It was raining! Again! THis was going to be the pattern today -rain interspersed with downpours. I think it did clear up by evening.

Next came the Tiki Tiki Tiki Tiki Tiki room. Another show we love and one you have to do just for Walt and for nostalgia. I really think these older attractions capture thr true spirit of Walt Disney and what he was trying to and did achieve. I know that progress has been made in technology and they could be updated, but it brings back my childhood and my kids still enjoy them.

Time for our FP to BTMRR. Ky, my four year old didn't enjoy this ride as much this year. Neither did G-ma. She felt like it whipped her around more. As for Ky, I think where as she was fearless last year, this year she knows a little more about what's going to happen. She stops and thinks "Hey, wait a minute this may not be such a good idea after all." She does enjoy the ride when she's on it.

We all met up at the dock for the WL launch. The F5 had called and got priority seating and the E5 were going to try to get in. We didn't know they were going when I had made PSs for the other eight of us.

What a pleasant journey over to the WL. I know as I walk up to the Lodge that this is a place I could seriously fall in love with. My only regret is that it was raining and I didn't get to enjoy the grounds as much. I LOVE the mountains (we all do) and this is just like being in the lodge up at Yellowstone. We saw the geyser go off as we were pulling into the dock.

We followed the signs and walked up the ramp and WOW! I know everyone here had said that you can't be prepared to see the lobby of the lodge and they are right. You just can't. We all stood around ohhing and ahhing and checked in to Wilderness Canyon Cafe.

I can't say enough good things about this cafe. They sat all of as close together as possible. A table of eight and two tables of 5. Actually if yoiu stood in the right place, we made a great Mickey icon. [img]images/icons/wink.gif[/img]
The service was good-a little slow on refills, but the food was always right there and hot. DH, G-dad, G-ma, DSis, Cam, and I had the ayce BBQ dinner. Kaitlin had the Quesadillas and Ky wanted the mickey mac and cheese like she saw on Unwrapped.

Our food was absolutely delicious! [img]graemlins/yuma.gif[/img] I am not a rib eater normally but these ribs were superb. The corn and potatoes were not over cooked. The guys really enjoyed the sausage and they brought me a chicken breast when I asked as there was only legs and wings in our skillet.

Kaitlin loved her Quesadillas and they were not too spicy. She doesn't like things very hot. Ky ate all the mac and cheese and sampled some of everything else. She is our sampler. SHe has to know what everyone else's food tastes like. I guess that way she doesn't miss out on anything!!

At the other tables I believe they had Meatloaf, chicken stips, burgers and Pulled Pork sandwich. Everyone thought the food was great.

There were some pretty good shennanigans going on. No horse races for the kids. But for some of the adults! [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img] We didn't attract any attention, because my Dad really hates that kind of thing. But he said he would go back in a minute and risk it because the food was sooo good.

We warmed up by the fire(which felt great today!), took some pictures, did some shopping( I just had to have one of those cute totem pole picture holders!) and headed back to MK. What a great break for the middle of the day!

The F5 and the E5 decided to go back to the Poly and nap or swim. The rest of us decided to try and see if the parade was going to happen. It was just a few sprinkles and it had stopped by 2:45. Everyone was lined up. We took the train over to Frontierland and got a spot in front of the Country Bears. Well you know the story,

"Ladies and Gentlemen for the safety of our performers the Share a Dream come True Parade has been delayed due to the weather"

Can't tell you how many times I've heard that announcement over our last two trips.
Well the rain is picking up, so we head into the Country Bears.

"There's Bloooood on the Saddle. And Bllloooood all around. With a great big puddle of Blooood on the ground"

Yah, Yah we love this one too. My kids liked it more since seeing the movie. Even though it is not the same. Go Figure!

We head over to HM and Kyleen says she is NOT riding this ride. "It's tooo haunted for me!!" Mark stays with her and we get undercover just as the storm breaks. What could be better! HM AND a Thunderstorm. We don't wait at all here. It must be hard to work here and not be able to smile all day long. [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

Everyone has a scary good time and we go to Fantasy land. I finally get to ride Snow White. I've always been out with kids. Mark sits out with Ky(they ride the Carousel)and I get to see the witch. This ride scared us when we were kids. I just can't believe that now. Of course it was scarier then! G-ma and G-dad ask us if we need to hold their hands THIS time. We made it just fine, thank you very much!

The kids had a great time on the Carousel and the Tea cups. We got great pictures of G-ma and G-dad on the Carousel. If I knew how to post them, I would.

We moved to Tomorrowland and rode the TTA and Space Mountain for all but G-ma and Kyleen. Rick radioed us just before we got on the ride. He was in the park, we told him where to find the others. We only had about a 20 min wait. It's a great ride, but once is enough for us on each trip.

We were headed back, but Rick and Alyssa had come over to ride Splash Mountain and we decided to take one more plunge before heading back. There was no parade tonight.

We had dinner at POR that evening.Mark and I split a burger, fries, and a salad. Katie had Mac and Cheese and Cam found his favorite food court item- Foot long chili cheese dog. Katie and Cam split food with Kyleen and some fruit too. We spent about $20. Then came dessert Mickey bars for the kids and carrot cake to split for DH and I. (SHHH Don't tell the Pixies!) Another $10.

The WCC cost our Family of five $60. So we spent about $90 on food that day. Not too bad.


The kids swam for awhile and I got everything ready for tomorrow. I soaked my feet in some really great foot soak with green tea, wild mint, and lemon grass. It really helped to do that every evening while I wrote up my notes for that day.

The kids also like listening to the bedtime stories on TV while going to sleep.

Coming tomorrow DAY 3- Where are the Princesses
and THE EPCOT MONSOON

[ProChristo]

Sounds like a teriffic day, even if it was a little wet. When we make it back to WDW, I'm adding dining at resort restaurants to my list of must-do items. What a reprive from the parks you had at WCC! Probably just what the Dr. ordered.

Here is a link that explains how to add pictures to a post. There is a limit of 8 images (including emoticons) per post. These links should help.
Adding photos to posts

Image size guidelines

Hope these help. I would love to see your pictures!

[PS - I LUV WDW]

Sounded like a fun day even with the rain. I'm a bit concerned about your lead in for the next day [img]images/icons/shocked.gif[/img]

Pam

[tikibird]

Any day that includes the Tiki Room AND the WL is a VERY good day! [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

Great installment - next, please! [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

[Mel & Richard]

Great report! [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img] I'd love to see some pictures too when you get back to this.

Mel

[SleepingB]

Thanks for the tip on posting pictures. I will try to post some after my trip next week.

DAY THREE PSB/EPCOT

Well we had been looking forward to this day and this breakfast. We were wearing our 40 years of Magic Tshirts I made for my parents anniversary.

Kyleen was all ready wearing her Sleeping Beauty costume that Aunt Kelly made her. Alyssa and Emily also had the same costume that Kelly had made them for Halloween last year.

I had checked with Guest Services to make sure we could get to EPCOT By 8:30 for our PS. "No Problem" I was told the buses start running at about 7:15.

Well we waited and waited and finally a bus to EPCOT came at 7:55. We figured we would be late. We hurried to the gate and found out that we just had to wait in the breakfast line and couldn't get in yet.

What we didn't know is that they don't let you in to EPCOT until about 8:15 or so when the guy comes out with the list. He will then check off your name and then you go through security and walk through the park. We didn't need to rush after all.***This is item #1 I wanted you all to know if you haven't done this breakfast.

***Lesson #2 is to make sure that you bring your confirmation number with you.
I always do this-they're in my trusty Passporter-, but I've never needed them before. We were through the gates, but the E 5 were not there yet. I went to check all of us in(we had two ressies one of 8 and one of 5)and all they could find was the PS for 8. They took me in to the computer and we went over the names and they couldn't find it and the head CM told them that they had to help the other people. I tried to tell him what names and he was not listening.He said we must not have a PS and Finally I said I had the confirmation numbers. When we checked the numbers, we found that they had spelled my name wrong on the second PS. AARRRGGHH!!What a mess!! Meanwhile, The E5 were having a tough time convincing the list people to let them in. They couldn't find the PS either, but since the girls were in their princess costumes, they let them in.

Finally we got seated and a CM came over and said she was sorry for the mix up, but I should really check to make sure that they spell my last name correctly. A little hard to do over the phone. I mean I said "V" as in Victor. The gal repeated it to me and yet she still typed in a "B". Go figure.

Okay now we get a chance to sit down look around and absorb some atmosphere and Disney spirit. OUr fruit and muffins are at the table and Fred is our server today. He gets the drinks and the coffee and brings out the main dishes. This is where things start to unravel a bit. The eggs and potatoes are allright, but the sausage is gray and just barely done and the waffles are just warm. We don't have enough waffles for everyone to get one at the kids table(the 8 PS)and now comes the task of getting Fred to stop. We get the condiments we need and a couple of things at the beginning, but the challenge is coming.

The adults at the other table are having the same problem. We all need refills and more waffles. He is attentive to the other tables but whenever we ask him something he looks "surprised". It is the only word I can use to describe the look. Maybe he didn't understand English very well. I don't know. Finally Sharrie and I back our chairs up into his paths and cut him off. We give him a long list of things. I still don't think Mom and Dad ever got anymore coffee.
Well Fred brings out a big pan of waffles with a heat pad and tells us the pan is hot and sets it down. I pick up a waffle and drop it. When I catch it, I say " Hey Sharrie, these things are stone cold"!! Of course Good Luck getting anymore!

While the food scenerio was playing out we had characters. Mary Poppins, Belle, Minnie,and Mulan. Now I only really think of Belle as a real Princess. I think that they could of had at least one more "real" princess. At least more then 4 characters. The only character with any real interaction or personality was Mulan.
Mulan was absolutely great! She made the morning worthwhile. If it hadn't been for her the whole thing would have been a total bust! She loved that we had her picture in our autograph books and wanted to know how we did it. She made a big deal out of our T-shirts and Mom and Dad's Anniversary. When she saw that my son had a different picture of her in his book (one of her as Ping), she made sure she signed "Ping" in his book under Mulan. [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img] You just love a character like that!!!

Final PSB impression: We did not feel it was worth the money we paid. The kids did enjoy the experience and surprisingly the meal. They are not picky. The potatoes and the cheese danish were good and the fruit. We figured out thsat they just do two different seatings and that the food was probably just waiting back there to be brought out all at once. Maybe if you go to the later seating you get fresher and hotter food.
The service is the worst we've ever had at WDW. What we really hate is the automatic 15% gratuity. It is unfair when you have bad service. I suppose we could have raised a big stink about it, but I think we just wanted to forget about it and not let it spoil the reat of the day. Even Rick and Sharrie, who had been there in Nov. and had a good time said they would not go back for a while. I know that sometimes you get a bad meal and that might not ever happen again. But when you are paying that much money, it is hard to risk it. I liked the Castle better.

All day long I had great comments on my tshirts. I'd never done anything like this before and was proud of the way they turned out. I had several people ask me if I did it professionally! [img]graemlins/blush.gif[/img]

It was a great way to celebrate. We didn't get anything special for their anniversary, even though we told everyone about it. But we didn't expect anything so that was okay. Just being at WDW together was enough.

After PSB, we headed to Test Track to get our FPs.
We then did Cranium Command and Ellen's Universe of Energy. My kids love both of these shows. Especially Cam who likes to know about everything. Cranium is alot of fun and kids can relate to it. Even though the characters are a little dated,i.e. Frans and Hans, it is still hilarious. They really like Bill Nye, so Ellen's is fun too.
We still have time before our FPs, so we head over to Journey and take a ride with Figment. BTW we've had no waits this morning. We bounce along to the Imagination song and then look at the neat stuff at the end.
The lady with the BIG camera asks my kids what 40yrs of Magic means. My Dad says " We're back here!!" So ensues a conversation about all the grandkids and the shirts and then She takes a picture of us all. She was a lot of fun and very good at her job.

When we pry ourselves away from the activities, it is looking like rain. We head on over to TT before the rain hits. We get all the way to just before you head into the room, and yes you guessed it the ride has been shut down due to lightening in the area. We get a FP back and decide to go to Spaceship Earth. The E5 decide to go on to WS.

The Monsoon-

We were standing on the ramp into Spaceship Earth when the storm broke. It had been raining a little and then The wind was ripping off people's hats, ponchos were flying and people were screaming. Rain was blowing horizontally and lightening was cracking across the sky. We were almost in SE when they announce that the ride has been shut down due to a power surge. They thought it would be up and running soon, but then changed their minds and made everyone leave. We took shelter under the legs and waited out the storm. We could see that the poncho had blown off of our stroller and some stollers had been blown over.
Then the phone rings. It was the F5. They did make it to EPCOT that day. They were over at the Land. We said we'd head over when the rain lessened. We had tried to call the E5,but couldn't reach them. Turns out they were at Innoventions to ride out the storm.
We made it over to the Land. Usually this is a nice cool quiet place to get a bite to eat, because most people head over to WS when it opens. With the rain it was a madhouse! However, we did find a table and get something to eat. We like the Baked Potatoe combo. We spent $35 for lunch. Dh, Dd#1 and I had the combo. Dh got Cam Chicken from another line and Ky had the mickeyroni and cheese.
Cam actually fell asleep at the table while we were getting the food! Poor guy I guess he was worn out!
We never did find the F5. I couldn't get a cell in there and I guess we just missed each other. Too many people. We thought about heading over to AK, but it was still raining pretty hard. So we did Food Rocks. I know they probably do need to update this, but I love the parodies that they have. It is my generation! This was the first time we have seen it when the audience was almost full. Usually there is no one there. [img]images/icons/frown.gif[/img]
The rain was slowing so we decided to see if SE was up. It was still down. TT had a 55 min FP line so We went to Mousegear.
The kids were dying to spend some of their Disney Dollars. Cam started his WDW Baseball collection. I added to my tin collection with a Mickey 75 years(a theme in my shopping) tin shaped like an old film can. And I must tell you that the Character Chocolates inside are TOO DIE FOR. If I had known, I would have bought more. These are premiere chocolates plus cute Mickey characters. What more could a chocoholic ask for????
I think Kaitlin bought a ring and Ky bought a Dory from Nemo, a Nemo magic towel, and some candy.

Now we thought we'd try TT again. There was a thiry-five minute wait for Fp and 180 min standby. We decided to go while we had the chance. We got right up to the gate when-yes, they temporarily shut down. However this didn't last longer than 10 min.
We were almost in the car when Ky had to go to the bathroom. I told her she'd just have to wait. She said she could and away we went. This was her first TT ride. SO when we were done, she told everyone that she loved the ride and she made it throught the whole ride and didn't even wet her pants!!! She was really proud of that. LOL!

Next up - Wet and tired in EPCOT
and
Finally after two years-a PARADE!

[tikibird]

Sorry you had such a frustrating and wet morning - hoping the afternoon picks up!

I think I'll have to check out those character chocolates - thanks for the tip!

Ready for more... [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

[ProChristo]

Sorry the princess breakfast wasn't all you hoped for. At least you didn't let it spoil your day. That rain sounds just awful. Really enjoying your trip report! Keep it up!