Lions, and Tigers and MIL - Oh My! Day 3, Part 2 About This Page:

[Singermom]

Day 1 – 11/3 – Arrival

Cast Members:

Me – age 38, WDW planner – 6th trip to WDW
MIL – age 62 – many trips to WDW
DS7 – older ds, age 7 and ¾, 3rd trip to WDW
DS4 – younger ds, age 4, 3rd trip to WDW

How this trip came about:

I wasn’t actually planning a WDW trip for this year since we just went last year and was not planning on returning until 2006. Thanks to dh turning 40, we got in a bonus trip. DH? You ask. He doesn’t appear on the list of cast members. That’s right. Since dh was being whisked away by his brother and best friend on a surprise deep sea fishing trip, I thought why sit at home when we could be at WDW? Also, MIL had been upset with me for not allowing her to take older ds with her on her Alaska cruise so she promised the kids she would take them to WDW since I was such a meanie (okay, okay, not her exact words but I know that’s what she meant!). I haven’t been able to tactfully tell her that I would never let my kids go alone with her and FIL on any trip so I decided to plan a WDW trip to include her. Hmmm…..how did this end up being my treat – didn’t she offer to take the kids? Need another reason to go? The kids had the 4th and 5th off so they would only miss about two hours of school on the 3rd to catch our flight. I’m quite a stickler for not missing school for vacations if it’s within my power. And final reason to plan the trip (not that we really need reasons to visit WDW) was getting a coveted postcard in the mail for a great rate ($129 AKL pool view – no other deluxes available when I called in August) and also getting a good deal on airfare ($151 roundtrip from Chicago plus I applied some refund vouchers to bring it down to $138 – that’s including tax).

Since we had to be all hush-hush due to DH’s surprise birthday trip, I decided to keep the Disney trip a secret from kids as well. Originally, I had planned to tell them that they had doctor’s appointments that day for our travel shots (we’re going to India in December) and then I would surprise them with Disney shirts and the news that we were going to WDW. Then I decided that it would be less hectic for me to break the news to them the night before and this way, dh would be on hand to get it all on video. After their baths that night, I sat them down on the bed to explain to them about getting the shots the next day – their faces immediately became long and concerned. I then said that to make them feel better about it, I had bought them some new Disney shirts and I had them put their new shirts on. Then I shook my head saying that the shirts were not enough for the pain they were about to go through so I would add ‘these’ (now I hand ds7 the park hopper tickets) to the shirts. He read the cover of the tickets over several times before he realized what they were. At this point he started jumping up and down on the bed so ds4 joined him before complaining ‘ but it’s too far!’ as predicted.

The next day I picked them up two hours early from school for a 3:45 p.m. departure on United’s new discount airline TED. Notice that TED is made up of the last half of United’s name – you got it – half the name, half the service! Oh well, guess I shouldn’t complain for the price. Thankfully, everything was smooth – flights on time, relatively quick pick-up of mini van from Alamo (though there was a bit of a back-up getting out of the garage) and upgraded to deluxe pool-view room from a standard room. At first I was excited about getting a larger room until we got there and I realized that their ‘deluxe’ rooms were still smaller than the Poly standard rooms (I know, I know, I’m spoiled!). We were all quite famished after our journey so we thought we would check out The Mara – actually, that was our only option since the other restaurants had closed. Although our room seemed quite a hike from the lobby, it was located close to an elevator and convenient to Mara and the pool area. I was actually pretty impressed with the counter-service place as my only comparison on Disney property is Captain Cook’s. There was a lot more seating here and much better variety of foods. There were several interesting options with African/Asian accents e.g. African Stew (I had this and it was yummy – especially spiked with a little hot sauce!) in a bread bowl, tandoori chicken pizza, soups from Boma, roast chicken over couscous and a zesty African House Salad (greens, chicken, sweet potato, bell peppers, lentils, and an ‘African’ dressing – also yummy!). Of course, there were the usual American standbys available for the faint of stomach. In addition, there was a bakery area offering baked goods, smoothies and specialty coffees, a ‘dry goods’ area for packaged coffees, cereals, cookies etc, baskets containing goodies like Mickey rice krispie treats, and a cooler area with cold sandwiches, drinks, jello, puddings, desserts from Boma (zebra domes – yum!), beer, yogurt, hard-boiled eggs and the like. After paying, you could help yourself to a general condiment bar which in the evenings had a ‘mini’ salad bar or tomatoes, lettuce, onions, pickles, hot peppers, dressings, etc. and in the morning there was cream cheese, jams, syrups. The kids were kept entertained by a t.v. playing old Disney cartoons while they ate.

We hit the sack right after dinner since we wanted an early start the next morning for EE at Magic Kingdom. Oh, and the weather was quite warm and muggy when we arrived – also the forecast for the next day.
<font color="blue"> </font>

[Stephanie P.]

Good start so far!!! Can't wait to read more!

[Colexis Mom]

What a great start! And how nice of you to take your MIL along Can't wait for more

[reiner]

Great start

keep it coming

[LizardCop]

Great Start!!! Patiently waiting for more.... [img]http://smileys.*************.com/cat/4/4_6_109v.gif[/img]

[luvnwdwgal]

Great start! Looking forward to more!!

[Joy J]

Wonderful start to your trip report. More please!

Joy

[Big Baloo]

Great start for your trip to AKL!! Did you see any animals that first night? More, please!

[mousestruck]

Great first chapter! Hope you'll add more soon!

[Singermom]

[ QUOTE ]
Great start for your trip to AKL!! Did you see any animals that first night? More, please!

[/ QUOTE ]

Actually we did see some animals on the way to our room - a zebra and two giraffes!

[sarah_belle]

Great start! Can't wait for more!

Sarah

[Princess Suz]

This is really getting me jazzed for going in 6 days! Thanks for the detailed start to the report!

[angelalar]

[ QUOTE ]
Since we had to be all hush-hush due to DH’s surprise birthday trip, I decided to keep the Disney trip a secret from kids as well.

[/ QUOTE ]

I am very impressed! I have thought about this as well however I don't think I could actually pull it off.

It sounds wonderful, can't wait for more!!

[debsta922]

can't wait to read more!

[Singermom]

Day 2, Part 1 – EE at MK, Chef Mickey’s

Cast Members:

Me – age 38, WDW planner – 6th trip to WDW
MIL – age 62 – many trips to WDW
DS7 – older ds, age 7 and ¾, 3rd trip to WDW
DS4 – younger ds, age 4, 3rd trip to WDW


Mickey woke us up at 6:30 a.m. to begin a very full day starting with EE at Magic Kingdom. Usually we have a tough time getting up due to the one hour time difference but thanks to the recent Daylight Savings time change, it felt like getting up in ‘our’ time zone. I had packed half one suitcase with quick breakfast foods such as granola bars and mini muffins and now most of the deluxes have been outfitted with complimentary refrigerators so we had purchased milk at the Mara the night before and stored it in there. We also requested a complimentary coffee maker – the first package of coffee was free but then we had to purchase our coffee from the Mara – sorry can’t recall the price but it was cheaper than getting two cups of coffee and it would stay warm for an hour. I was the first one up and took advantage of the few quiet moments to sit on the balcony and watch the sun tinge the sky with warm pink. A variety of bird species swooped in and out of the trees sounding their mating calls. Looking out from the resort, it truly looks like we are in Africa – I am always impressed by how well Disney immerses us in the experience.

I was finally able to get the rest up but we started off later than I would have liked. I decided to give the bus a shot today thinking that for MK that would be the best option. On the way to the bus stop we stopped briefly to spot the zebras, giraffes and wildbeestes that were starting their morning grazing. The astounding lobby of AKL interrupted our journey once again as we paused to admire the morning light on the beautiful domed architecture and African artwork. When we finally made it to the bus stop, and MK bus was just pulling out. It was about a 10 minute wait for the next bus – each of them getting packed with guests. Also, since a wheelchair was being loaded into our bus, it quite a while before we could get going. We arrived at MK around 8:30 – missing half of EE.

Prior to the trip, I had expressed my concern to MIL about her ability to walk in the parks and had suggested renting an ECV (electric scooter). At that time she had refused saying she felt nervous to operate the ECV. However, after painfully making the walk from the room to the bus stop, she realized that it would be impossible for her to get around on her own. Had she given me the okay prior to the trip, I would have booked an ECV for delivery to our hotel and not rented a car – now we had to scramble to get to the parks early every day in order to secure one of limited number of ECVs available for rent. The cost per day was $40 with $10 of that amount being a deposit which was returned when you returned the key. I was anxious to head to Fantasyland and avoid some of the long line-ups so we arranged a meeting place for after she got her ECV.

I headed off with the kids in tow, enjoying the relative uncrowdedness of Main Street early in the day. After taking the mandatory first day shots in front of the castle we raced off to Winnie the Pooh to grab fastpasses and then do the rest of Fantasyland. When we got there, the fastpasses were already for 10:30 and standby was 15 minutes so we got into the slow-moving line. This was a good first ride for ds4 – not too dark or scary. His last visit was at age two and a half so he didn’t recall too many of the rides except for Buzz Lightyear. Since the Pooh ride took longer than planned MIL was already waiting for us at Peter Pan – thanks to cell phones, we were always able to hook up easily (btw, she has T-Mobil and I have Verizon). Despite her many trips to WDW, I was amazed to learn that she had never ridden on Peter Pan – in fact, I soon found out that she had ridden very few attractions, seeing mostly shows and doing some shopping. DS4 was tickled pink that ‘tamma’ (as my kids call MIL) would be going on a ride with us and insisted on being her riding partner on each ride. Although the posted standby time stated 20 minutes we actually got through the line in about 10. Next we tried Mickey’s Philharmagic – a new attraction for us. We all loved this movie – the 3-D effects were amazing and the kids giggled and laughed in delight through the whole show! It’s such fun to see all the kids (and some adults too!) trying the grab at the 3-D effects!

After exiting the movie, ds4 could no longer wait for the Buzz Lightyear ride we vamoosed over there to try to squeeze it in before our 10:30 ps at Chef Mickey’s. The standby line was about 10 minutes so I figured we would have just enough time. This was another first for MIL yet she scored higher than the rest of us by quite a bit! Now we had to high tail if out the park to make our ps. One quick monorail stop later we were in the Contemporary and following the sounds of merriment to Chef Mickey’s. It was a good thing I had made ps’ because the parks were quite crowded and there was huge line at Chef Mickey’s. During our last trip we had dinner and our prior to trip to that was also a breakfast. While both meals are good, I prefer dinner mainly because breakfast food don’t appeal to me as much. That being said, there was a very tasty vegetable egg lasagna/torte thing and pancakes were being made fresh on a griddle. The characters came by just as we sat down which was good timing since I prefer to do the characters first and then relax and eat. While at MK, I had asked DS7 if he would prefer to continue doing rides at MK or go to Chef Mickey’s and he obviously chose the latter option. I am savoring these moments of childhood as he grows up and hope they will continue for a while longer. I’m also thankful about keeping my Chef Mickey’s ps because it turned out to be the highlight of the trip for ds4. I think the character meals are a wonderful way to have convenient one on one time with the characters and all the meals I have had have been very good so I feel the character meals are an excellent value.

After our meal we decided to visit MK again before taking a break back at our resort. DS4 was starting to tire so I thought it would be a good idea to rent a stroller for him. However, when I suggested the idea to him, he balked at riding in a stroller (he always has to be such a big boy!). While I was fretting over the decision to rent one anyways for when he was sure to get pooped, a family approached us and asked if we would like their double stroller since they were leaving the parks. As luck would have it their kids were the same ages as my kids so I was able to convince them that older kids do ride in strollers at Disney. I profusely thanked the family and after re-procuring the ECV we strode off at a relatively faster pace. Our mission was Pirates of the Caribbean – another first for MIL. Unfortunately, the standby was already at 30 minutes but we decided to tough it out. I selected the ‘left’ side of the line as recommended by all Disney experts. Of course, the right side seemed to be continuously moving while we were at a near stand still. However, we only spent about 15 minutes in line – the queue for the left side is shorter which is why it doesn’t move as quickly but you will actually get to the ride faster. Just prior to loading we encountered our first and, thankfully, only truly rude CM. While we were waiting to board, one boat was let go completely empty. Out of curiousity, MIL asked the CM why that happened. His reply: ‘there are other people in the parks other than you.’ I was shocked by his rudeness and it put my mood off for most of the ride. This is such a great ride - though I wish it went at a slower pace through the pillaged village so we could appreciate the details. We somehow navigated our way out of the pirate gift shop without any booty and headed to Frontierland to see if it was feasible to get on Splash or Big Thunder. The wait for Splash was long so we grabbed fastpasses for later but Big Thunder supposedly only had a 15 minute wait. MIL waited in the shade while I took the two kids – ds4 had loved the rollercoaster and flume ride at Kiddieland (small amusement park in Chicago) so I thought he would like Big Thunder. Well, this time, the wait time was longer than posted and after witnessing a few trainloads of screaming passengers, ds4 decided he didn’t want to ride it anymore. Now I had a dilemma – we had waited so long and ds7 was all hyped to go yet I wouldn’t force ds4 on it – also it would be very difficult to back our way out of the queue. I asked ds7 if he felt comfortable going on his own and since he had ridden it before, he said yes. When it was our turn, I explained the situation to a CM who was very nice about it – she even interrupted the queue so she could personally show me how to wait on the other side where ds7 would be getting off! He was thrilled to get his ride and everyone was happy. We met up with MIL and we were all ready to head back to the resort for a rest and a swim. Except, I just had to get a pineapple float at Aloha Isle first – so the kids got drenched in the squirting Tiki’s while I got everyone drinks. After making a sticky mess of ourselves (it was a hot day and the drinks melted quickly!) we finally headed back.