Sharing is Caring - Christmas Trip to the World: Link to Photos Added 4/8/05 About This Page:

[Tara O'Hara]

Awww! I'm just as sad as you and Zack that your trip is coming to an end!! You are a terrific writer!!

[Caldercup]

You've got one heck of a great son there! He sounds like a peach!!

And you're one heck of a writer. I'm totally enjoying your trip report and I'm sad that it's almost over.
Eileen

[jude411]

That is the part of the trip I am not looking forward to. I feel so bad for Zack, but it did sound like he had a pretty magical day. Thanks to his mom getting a great haircut for him. I am sure he will remember that forever and even someday take his kids to do the same thing. Plus there is always planning the next trip

[zacksmom_1993]

We Find Our Happy Place - Day Eight Part Three

I wasn’t quite sure about the easiest way to get to Downtown Disney. I asked about a direct bus at the transportation information window outside the Studios. I must have interrupted a conversation because the man just answered with a “Nope” and immediately started talking again with his co-worker. I figured we’d wait for a resort bus that was headed in the right direction, and then just use the resort as a transfer station. Luck was on our side as we saw a Caribbean Beach bus pull up at a nearby stop. That’ll work!

We got on with an enormous crowd of people and then got some surprised looks from a lot of them when we got off at the first stop and sat right down on the benches to wait for our Pleasure Island bus. We sat alone in the cool night air, and I tried to ask Zack what was really the matter.

I think that 6th graders are still so young, but in Northern California they’re put into middle school with kids who seem so grown-up. I think it’s really hard on the younger ones. At Disney World, Zack felt like he could just be a no-worries kid again. Well, I certainly understood that, I feel the exact same way. The good news is that with all the stressors in kids’ (and adults’) lives these days, there will always be a reason to come to Disney World! Talking about it seemed to help because Zack was in much better spirits by the time our bus rolled around.

We were going to be at Pleasure Island with a crowd it seemed, as the bus from Caribbean Beach was really jammed. We got off at the second stop at Pleasure Island and walked straight to the Comedy Warehouse. I was a little confused about how to use our flex options on our park tickets, but the Cast Members helped us out with stamps for our hands and a wristband for me. We were one of the last ones let in line for the 8:15 show.

Standing outside the club was a really bizarre experience for me. Dance music was pumping from the stage. Young adults were preening to be seen by members of the opposite sex. Cocktails were flowing. Permanent ink hand stamps were prominently displayed. You know, it was a typical club scene. And, I was standing next to a young hottie… my 11-year-old-son. Huh? How’d that happen? It really was not that long ago that I was hitting the clubs sans child. Can I get a little “Sunrise, Sunset” (“Is this the little boy I carried”) in a techno beat?

The awkward moment passed quickly and we were seated at the very top of the club. I was really surprised at the size of the Comedy Warehouse. I was expecting a much smaller club, but with the stadium seating I felt like we were a couple of stories up from the stage. Regardless, Zack said he could see well. And he seemed pretty proud of himself up on the barstool ordering from the cocktail waitress. (There’s a sentence I didn’t imagine writing for a very long time.)

I had warned Zack before we left on vacation that there might be some joking around about him at Pleasure Island if we went. I figured it would be something along the lines of, “Nice job lady bringing your kid to a BAR!” But, Zack thought that would be funny, and he really wanted to go to Comedy Warehouse after watching re-runs of “Whose Line Is It Anyway?” Besides, although there were some teenagers closer to the stage, it seemed that the families were seated higher up. We got our drinks, pina colada for me and a Shirley Temple for Zack, and the show began.

The show was really funny. I felt like the entertainers were amazing, able to pull things together into the funniest songs and skits in an instant. They opened traditionally, according to what I’ve read, with calling someone in the audience. The guy was a little pompous, answering every question with long, wordy answers. Sorry pal, we didn’t pay money to get in here to listen to you! But, the comedians, to their credit, turned it into something funny.

The other two skits that were particularly memorable were also audience participation. In the first, they pulled two people up on stage. One of the cast members would start talking and then when they put their hand on the audience members’ shoulder, they would complete the sentence. The audience members were told that it didn’t have to, and probably shouldn’t, make sense. Then the other cast member would have to reply in a way that connected the story. The context was a manager chastising an employee at Walmart.

The funny part was that one of the audience members was great at coming up with these great, nonsensical phrases. The other just kept answering in very logical ways. (Must be a finance person!) So, the one cast member had a much more difficult time of it than the other. His body language, as he kept getting served these wicked fastballs versus his partner’s softballs, was hilarious. They also put together a song about a teacher who didn’t like to touch wood, based on a weird pet peeve suggested by the audience. They mentioned all different connotations of the word wood, and one of them was pretty darn suggestive. Enough said!

I thought the entertainers were great. I laughed until my cheeks and belly were sore. But, the best part was watching and hearing Zack. He would start with that innocent kid’s giggle. Eventually he was bending over laughing uncontrollably, with the biggest smile on his face. He looked so happy, and, after the emotions from earlier, it brought me such great joy. As we exited the Comedy Warehouse, several of the entertainers commented on how much they liked Zack’s hair, and the grin on his face just spread.

We immediately went around again to the front to see if we could get into the 9:30 show, but the line was already much too long. I offered up the Adventurer’s Club, not really knowing that much about it. What I did know was that it was one of Jennifer Marx’s 10 out of 10 scored attractions. Considering how much I adore my Passporter, this endorsement was more than good enough for me! We wandered around the top a little bit, and then went downstairs to where a large crowd was gathered in the first bar area.

We managed to find two chairs right next to a little stage area. The stage was empty but a French maid and another man in a period costume were making a bit of noise. They were shouting random things at each other from opposite sides of the statue of David in the middle of the room. Actually, as they explained to the Club President when she came in, they had to shout between his legs their favorite holiday items. But, it was really strange holiday items, like your favorite Christmas nail polish color. Zack was on the edge of his seat, not wanting to miss a thing.

When the club president came out she went to the stage with the French maid, right next to where we were sitting. We were properly initiated as Adventurers, learning the club salute and then we were ushered into the library. I was a little nervous about Zack being here, but he was having a great time and there were several kids there who were younger than he. Zack and I sat off to the side, and I went to the bar to get myself an Irish coffee.

The show that we saw was about the Balderdash Cup. Now, I’ve already read much better summaries of this presentation than I could ever write, so I’ll spare you the details. Needless to say, our time in the library was outrageously funny. The Adventurers were great, keeping everyone in the audience engaged and laughing. The funniest part about our visit, however, was a result of a young boy in the audience versus one of the cast members.

The Professor, who was nefariously trying to cheat his way to the Balderdash cup, kept asking people in the audience if they were going to vote for him. He went up to a table in the front of the library and a boy of about 8 or 9 called out that he was nothing but a cheater. The Professor replied menacingly, “I’ve got my eye on you, boy.” He then proceeded to point his middle finger and his index finger at his eyes and then pointed his index finger at the boy. You know, the universal hand signal for “I’ve got my eye on you.” The boy wasn’t missing a beat and mimicked the same hand signal right back at the Professor. The audience roared with laughter at this, so the Professor picked up the boy’s chair and turned it so his back was to the stage. The boy then again pointed his fingers towards his eye and pointed his index finger over his shoulder at the Professor standing behind him. This kid was hilarious!

At the end, several people at the bar in back shouted that the kid in front should get to take home the Balderdash cup. Sadly, it went to the Boy Scout on stage, but we all left the library happily entertained. By the time we left the Adventurer’s Club, it was about 10:15 and the crowds at Pleasure Island were really picking up. Zack could sense that it was turning into more of an adult crowd, and he was really anxious to get out of there. Drunken adults make him really nervous.

Do you want my take on bringing a kid to Pleasure Island? It was interesting being there with an 11-year-old. Some of the jokes at both Adventurer’s Club and Comedy Warehouse were a little risqué. Unfortunately, Zack is a very intelligent kid, so he picked up on the innuendo, which made me a little uncomfortable. In his case, it almost would have been more comfortable bringing him when he was a little younger. However, I know I’ve got a great kid who has been raised with some strong moral values at home and at church, so he’s not going to be unduly influenced by one “adultish” evening, especially a Disney one. In the future, we’ll probably go a little earlier (around 7:00) and just make sure to leave by 10:00. Zack had a great time, and the experience completely turned his mood around. I never heard another complaint about vacation ending, so Pleasure Island will now be our last night tradition.

The next day was Christmas Eve and Zack still had to get a present for my sister, Kirsten. The last few years he had gotten her the most recently released season of Xena (talk about risqué,) and there was a new release for this Christmas. We found it at the Virgin Megastore, saving us a trip to Target when we got home. We stopped at Candy Cauldron to get some snacks for the plane ride home, and then we closed down the Lego store at 11:00 with Zack spending the last of his souvenir money.

We got back to the Animal Kingdom Lodge at around 11:30, and Zack wasn’t ready for his night to end. I figured that we could just sleep on the plane the next day, so we went down to the arcade together. Zack very proudly showed me his skills at the arcade. There was something about how amazing it was that he could beat the Star Wars game on one credit. It didn’t seem like that big of a deal to me, but he ended up talking to my brother about if for like an hour and a half on Christmas Day. So apparently you need a Y chromosome to really appreciate it.

We spent some time looking around the sleepy lobby of the hotel, and finally made our way back to our room and into bed by 1:00. There had been some rough spots, but all in all it was a truly magical day.

Next Up… One Last Magical Memory

[Colexis Mom]

More great updates Karen I'm sorry it's ending, and that your experience getting your last autograph at MGM was soured. At least you ended the day on a high note at PI!

[Never Enough Mickeys]

Oh, I've been waiting for each and every installment of your trip report and I will be sad when your last report is posted.

The realization that your long-awaited vacation is soon over can sure dampen your spirit so I totally understand what Zack felt. I know I'll be really bummed when I read your next post.

Thank you for sharing the wonderful time you and your son had during Christmas!

Mahalo!

[Tara O'Hara]

Great update, Karen!! You are so fortunate to be able to spend this special time with Zack!!

[jude411]

I am sorry to see your vacations and your TR come to an end. It sounds like you and Zack made memmories to last a lifetime.

[DawnDenise]

Karen: Your TR is awesome! I've gone through a range of emotions!!! What wonderful memories of your trip with Zack.

[Jillybean]

Karen, you are such a great mom! You knew exactly what Zack needed to make your last night memorable!

Jill

[zacksmom_1993]

One Last Magical Memory – Day Nine Part One

I was up before the sun, finishing up the last of the packing and then enjoying one last sunrise over the savannah. I woke up Zack and he actually seemed excited about going home. Something about the promise of presents from family that evening, followed by presents from Santa the next morning. I knew I’d picked Christmas Eve as my return date for a reason. We’d put a towel on his pillow, and minus a bit of missing pixie dust, his new hairdo seemed intact.

We got everything packed up but our toothbrushes, as we knew we’d have little time after breakfast to get ready to go to the airport. We were out the door and in the car about 7:45. On the drive over to the Beach Club, we saw fog like we’d never seen at Walt Disney World. Sometimes in the summer, we’d seen a haze in the early morning as the humidity in the air started to evaporate as the earth warmed. But, this fog was a cold, damp, heavy fog, rivaling our hometown, San Francisco variety. Now in San Francisco, nothing would be taking off at SFO in this stuff.

I began to wonder out loud if we’d be stuck here for the day. Zack took this possibility really hard. What? Weren’t you the kid who was near tears last night about having to leave? Now you’re near tears about having to stay? Zack told me that he was just upset about the possibility of spending Christmas Eve in the airport. If we could just hang out at Disney World, he’d be just fine. Ok, well now THAT makes sense.

Because we were running a bit late for our Priority Seating, and because I wanted to get out of the cold fog as quickly as possible, we pulled into valet parking at the Beach Club. It was a strangely quiet morning, and the valets were all very friendly and helpful. We spent a bit of time looking again at the Christmas display in the lobby, and then checked in right on time for our 8:00 seating at Cape May Café.

While we were waiting in the lobby to be seated, one of the servers came over to us and started complementing Zack on his hair. She was so sweet, really making Zack feel special and calling over other people to check him out. Zack was beaming by the time we were called and seated.

A few minutes later, the same server came up to our table and told us that she would be taking care of us. She was so sweet telling Zack that this was her lucky day because she got to take care of the kid with the coolest hair at Walt Disney World. At that moment, the $14 haircut from the day before seemed like the biggest bargain on Disney property!

We enjoyed our breakfast (any buffet that serves grits for me, and Krispy Kremes for Zack gets an A+ in our book. ) The characters were all very attentive, particularly because the restaurant seemed only about 50% full. I was guessing that everyone was in the parks already for the day, but I was surprised at how quiet it was.

Throughout our meal, our server, Cindy, was wonderful. She kept making sure my coffee cup was full, that Zack had enough milk for his cereal, and that the characters all took special notice of Zack’s hair. It was a really magical meal, and a wonderful end to our Disney vacation. Cindy and I talked a little bit about being working moms, and we felt so bad for her when we found out that she had to work on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. I know I would have been nowhere near as cheerful if our situations had been reversed.

We left Cindy an especially large tip, wrote a Merry Christmas message on the napkin for her, and we were on our way. We were just waiting for valet to get our car when Cindy came running out the lobby doors to thank us for our tip. She told us that she had five children to support and that when she had seen our tip she had almost started to cry. Now before anyone gets the wrong idea and starts writing me to ask for loans, the tip was a little bit more than 100% of our breakfast bill. She probably gets equal sized tips from larger parties every day. But, she seemed so touched and she was so sweet, it was all I could do to keep from handing over my whole wallet.

I was a waitress in college, and I’ll never forget when an older man, who was a regular, came into the Carrows where I was working on Christmas Eve and handed out $20 to everyone working in the restaurant that day. Because of that experience, Zack and I always try to leave a large tip for someone (even if it’s just the barrista at Starbucks) on Christmas Eve, as well. I always end up feeling so warm inside that I think I get more out of it than the recipient.

Full and happy, we made our way back to the Animal Kingdom Lodge. When we got back to the room, there were more animals than ever before in front of our balcony. Zack said, “Look Mom, all the animals have come to say goodbye to us.” We took one last, longing look and closed the door to room 3311, our magical home for the past seven days.

We were still running a bit ahead of schedule, so we stopped in the Zawadi Marketplace to pick up the all-important stocking stuffers for our cat, Hercules. How can you tell that we are a Disney family? We had been thinking about getting a cat when Zack was 3, and Zack was sure that Quasimodo would make a wonderful name, the Disney movie for the summer of ’96 being Hunchback of Notre Dame. Luckily for our cat, we waited until the summer of ’97 to find our new pet, when Hercules was playing in theaters for the summer. Guaranteed, if we would have waited one more summer, the cat would have been named Tarzan.

We took some last pictures of the lodge, and began the sad trip back to the airport. We turned in the rental car with no problem and got in line to check in for the return flight home. Our plane was delayed about a half hour, but it did appear that most flights were taking off just fine in the pea-soup-fog. The delay gave us just enough time to spend some more money in the “Earport” store. We had smooth flights to Chicago and San Francisco, and were back home in time for Christmas Eve services that evening.

So there you have it... How the Weiss family spent the week before Christmas with Mickey and friends at the World. Thank you everyone for reading my report, and making such kind comments along the way. I hope you’ve gotten just a fraction of the enjoyment in reading this report that I’ve gotten in writing it. I’ll try to post a link to my Yahoo! Photo album soon, if people are interested in seeing photos of the amazing Zack. Next up, a West Coast Cruise on the Disney Magic. Shouldn’t be too much longer until I start my pre-trip report for that one! As Mickey says, “See y’all real soon!”

[Colexis Mom]

What a great finish Karen, and what a magical ending to your fantastic report! Thanks for sharing it with us, and I'm so glad you made the effort to introduce yourself to me while we were waiting for the bus

Job well done

[disneymom9092]

fantastic job Karen! So sorry it's over!

[Caldercup]

Great trip report, Karen!! I really enjoyed hearing about all your adventures with Zach and The House of Mouse!!
Can't wait for your next report...
EIleen

[DawnDenise]

What a great trip report Karen!!!