So it's a sad day. We are going home today, but unlike last year, we have time to go to a park before going to the airport. Hooray! We slept in again and then got up to pack our stuff . We left our Mousekeeping envelope & tip just like we've been doing every day since we got here (forgot to mention it before this!). We were packed and checked out by 10 A.M. Since we were heading to MK for the day, we put all of our luggage in the car, then just left it in the Wilderness Lodge parking lot until we got back from the park.
We took the boat to the MK and got there around 11 A.M. It was a glorious, sunny day and we were just glad to be back, even though Andrew wanted to know why we had to go back to the MK since it's always so packed every day. Seeing the crowds from the boat made me instantly agree with him. Another lesson learned. The boys wanted to be able to try out Space Mountain so we headed up Main Street, hung a right and went to Tomorrowland. We grabbed fast passes for Space Mtn. and then had some time to kill. We went on the Buzz Lightyear right *again* and then the Tomorrowland Transit Authority ride again. We definitely enjoy both of those rides. We still needed to waste some time and since we had skipped breakfast, we went into Cosmic Rays for a bite to eat. It was about 11:45 at this point. We enjoyed our casual lunch and then headed back out to the rides.
Time to use our fastpasses, so we headed up the fastpass lane for SM. Unfortunately, we were about 8 people away from the the castmember who takes our fast passes when the ride broke down and they said it would be 30-40 minutes before it was back up again. I was a *little* panicked since we had to catch a plane. Ack. We went back out of the ride (since we still had our fastpasses) and decided to kill more time, then try it again later. We walked towards the Indy Speedway and I saw a woman castmember near a small racetrack that was painted on the ground. I scooted the boys over to her quickly and they were able to get in on a "CARS" car race that she was going to officiate. It was very fun and both of the boys had Mater trucks. After the "races" they both got official Driver's Licenses from the Indy Speedway. So we were able to go from a huge disappointment from a ride breaking down to another magical moment. You have to love Disney. Even though the line was long, the boys opted to go on the Indy Speedway next since we hadn't ridden on it yet. It took about a half hour, but we were able to get on. Andrew & I drove in a blue car and Jim drove with Matthew in a red car. The boys wanted to try to push the pedals this year, but they are still just a little too short. I took pictures from the car as we were going around the track since Andrew was doing the steering. I always go camera crazy on the last day!
We'd successfully killed enough time and walked back over towards Space Mountain. The boys were thrilled to find that it was back up and running again. Jim waited for us outside since he tried this ride out on our honeymoon ('96) and did not like it. Can't convince him to go back on, so just mom takes the boys on. Well that might have been my last time, too. It's a great ride on many levels, but the T bar kept slamming into my stomach, which hurts my scar. Oh well. The boys thought it was a fantastic ride and that was all that mattered. Seeing their faces and hearing their excitement has been a huge highlight of this trip. Next, we strolled through Fantasyland, but couldn't find a ride with a short enough time to go on it, so we kept on going until we got back to the Haunted Mansion. The boys wanted to go on it again, so we got in line. It took about 20 minutes to get into the Mansion and we all enjoyed it. After HM, we walked through Frontierland bypassing Big Thunder Mtn. RR and Splash Mtn due to huge wait times and not having enough time to grab fastpasses. We only had about an hour to go before we had to leave the park.
We walked over towards Pirates of the Caribbean and we were let down to see the huge line yet again. MK on a Sunday isn't a great idea or it was just packed, I don't know. Matthew still needed to get another souvenier and so we went into the gift shop that's next to the Pirate Ride. Matthew picked out a skull (later named Fred - story to come) that had a hatch in the bottom, so he could stuff it with all sorts of little toys. He was thrilled with this! Andrew picked out a Pirates of the Caribbean toy set that included a light up sword, an eye patch and even a parrot that attaches to your arm. Jim bought himself a Pirates T-shirt and he bought me a Mickey throw (blanket). Near this store, I noticed a Photopass Photographer, but I couldn't figure out exactly what he was taking pictures of, so I asked him. He said they pose your child with a sword and then they "stick in" Captain Hook when you get your pics. Very cool! I got the boys and they both had their pictures taken. They had fun sword fighting with another cast member who helped "set them up" for the picture. Meanwhile, the photographer sees the toy skull, puts it on his shoulder and names it Fred. I, of course, have to take the photographer's picture with Fred to add him to the many memories we'll have of this trip! It was all very fun and a great way to spend the time without being able to go on the Pirates ride!
After that, we sat on a bench and all had a Disney ice cream or pop. Andrew loves the Mickey head vanilla ice cream with the chocolate coating and Matthew loves the Strawberry Minnie bars. They each had the same thing numerous times during the week and it was funny that they never strayed from their favorites. We started to walk out of Adventureland and the boys stopped to get wet by the totem poles. We were not leaving quickly, even though we had to go. We got to main street where they were setting up for the parade and the boys were able to hula hoop in the street. Another fun way to end the trip, that's for sure. Near the end of Main Street, I had the boys look over their shoulder and wave goodbye to the Magic Kingdom. Awww, the trip is almost over! Sniff! We then got on the boat back to the Lodge and I snapped quite a few pictures of the MK and the surrounding hotels from the boat. I was prolonging the agony, that's for sure. We got to the Lodge, walked back thru the lobby and out the front doors. We were all very sad, but I think I take it the hardest. I even took a picture of an exit sign and one of the rental car. Too funny! It was not easy to drive away and go to the airport.
Thankfully, our plane ride home was uneventful, even ahead of time. We were home, in our house, by 9:30 P.M. and the boys needed to get some shut eye since they had to go to school the next day. I had even volunteered to chaperone Andrew's field trip the next day, so I had to get some sleep myself. Amazing to wake up in Disney, but go to sleep in your own bed. I always say it seems so surreal.
Until next time, which seems like it will be in December of 2008. Can't wait! See you real soon Mickey!
Sunday, April 29, 2007
Thursday, April 26, 2007
Saturday 4/21 - 6th Day - AK & EPCOT
After two mornings of getting up early, we decided to just sleep in this day. The boys had been sleeping until 8:30 AM, at least, if we didn't wake them up. We got breakfast from Roaring Fork Snacks and ate in our hotel room.
We went back to Animal Kingdom this day. We headed right to Camp Minnie-Mickey since we didn't go there on Thursday. While the boys and I got in line to get character autographs & pictures, Jim headed up to Africa to grab Safari fast passes. We met Mickey, Goofy and Pluto in this area. Andrew noticed that Goofy was missing his hat from last year. hmm. We really wanted to see the Festival of the Lion King next and timed it perfectly where we only waited in line for about 3 minutes. We sat in the "lion section" this time. After the show got out, we followed the mob scene and got out of this land (it's a tight area when the show lets out). We headed up to Africa to use our Safari Fast Passes. We had a really great, lively driver this time named Alexis. Andrew was the one who noted her name. We got to see a female lion - first time for that! After the safari, it was time for a break. Jim & the boys sat down in the Dawa Bar area while I went up to Kali River Rapids to get fast passes. I went back to the Dawa Bar and we caught the acrobat show again (in an open area right next to the Dawa Bar). We all had an ice cream and enjoyed the time off our feet. When it was time to use the Kali River fastpasses, we headed on over to Asia. Just Jim and the boys went on - I really had no desire to get wet. Ironically, they barely got wet and I kept saying that if I had gone on, we'd all have gotten soaked. I was able to wait for them on an overhead bridge and take their picture as their big, round boat went by. Once they got off the ride, we headed back towards Discovery Island and then out of the park. Bye Animal Kingdom for this trip! That's all she wrote.
We went back to the hotel for a small break. We wanted to get our car so that we could drive it to the Yacht Club and use the Disney transportation from that hotel location. We also wanted to show the boys the hotel and ask them what they thought about it. When we got there, we showed them the Stormalong Bay pool area and they were very impressed. They also loved seeing the whole Boardwalk area across the lake. We got on the boat from there to Epcot (it takes you to the back part of World Showcase near France). We wanted to visit all the countries this night and the boys wanted to do the Kidcot thing again. They made masks in France and off we went. Wow, it was really crowded - much more so than we thought it would be - but we enjoyed seeing all of the countries again. We worked our way all the way around to Mexico, all the while picking up all the charms for the masks. We stopped in Morocco to take pictures with "The Genie" from Aladdin and in Germany to pick up some candy. The girl at the Kidcot area in China told Andrew that the Chinese Character on his shirt meant "love". Aww! She also told them that Andrew was born in the year of the dragon and Matthew was born in the year of the tiger. We couldn't find a place to sit down and eat in the World Showcase, so we checked out test track but it was out of fast passes. Bummer. We saw free tables at the Electric Umbrella Restaurant so we stopped in there to grab a bite to eat. Afterwards, the boys asked to go on Spaceship Earth one more time, which was great since it had no line! When we were off that ride, we headed out of Epcot, stopping at the last two countries the boys needed charms from (Canada & UK). Jim bought himself an "Off Kilter" CD in UK (they're a Scottish group that plays in Epcot all the time). We got back on the resort boat and headed over to the Boardwalk Hotel. We watched the Epcot fireworks from the boardwalk area. We really think we'll stay in one of the Epcot Resort area hotels next trip to try something new.
We were back at the hotel around 9:30 PM. Andrew asked to get his caricature done and we signed up, but it turned into a huge fiasco. Big waste of time and at 11 PM, we headed up to our room empty handed. Another lesson learned and not the best way to spend our last evening in WDW. We were all so tired from such an exhausting week and were already talking about what we'd do differently when we come back. Not that it's anything new that we'd already be talking about going back or anything. :-)
We went back to Animal Kingdom this day. We headed right to Camp Minnie-Mickey since we didn't go there on Thursday. While the boys and I got in line to get character autographs & pictures, Jim headed up to Africa to grab Safari fast passes. We met Mickey, Goofy and Pluto in this area. Andrew noticed that Goofy was missing his hat from last year. hmm. We really wanted to see the Festival of the Lion King next and timed it perfectly where we only waited in line for about 3 minutes. We sat in the "lion section" this time. After the show got out, we followed the mob scene and got out of this land (it's a tight area when the show lets out). We headed up to Africa to use our Safari Fast Passes. We had a really great, lively driver this time named Alexis. Andrew was the one who noted her name. We got to see a female lion - first time for that! After the safari, it was time for a break. Jim & the boys sat down in the Dawa Bar area while I went up to Kali River Rapids to get fast passes. I went back to the Dawa Bar and we caught the acrobat show again (in an open area right next to the Dawa Bar). We all had an ice cream and enjoyed the time off our feet. When it was time to use the Kali River fastpasses, we headed on over to Asia. Just Jim and the boys went on - I really had no desire to get wet. Ironically, they barely got wet and I kept saying that if I had gone on, we'd all have gotten soaked. I was able to wait for them on an overhead bridge and take their picture as their big, round boat went by. Once they got off the ride, we headed back towards Discovery Island and then out of the park. Bye Animal Kingdom for this trip! That's all she wrote.
We went back to the hotel for a small break. We wanted to get our car so that we could drive it to the Yacht Club and use the Disney transportation from that hotel location. We also wanted to show the boys the hotel and ask them what they thought about it. When we got there, we showed them the Stormalong Bay pool area and they were very impressed. They also loved seeing the whole Boardwalk area across the lake. We got on the boat from there to Epcot (it takes you to the back part of World Showcase near France). We wanted to visit all the countries this night and the boys wanted to do the Kidcot thing again. They made masks in France and off we went. Wow, it was really crowded - much more so than we thought it would be - but we enjoyed seeing all of the countries again. We worked our way all the way around to Mexico, all the while picking up all the charms for the masks. We stopped in Morocco to take pictures with "The Genie" from Aladdin and in Germany to pick up some candy. The girl at the Kidcot area in China told Andrew that the Chinese Character on his shirt meant "love". Aww! She also told them that Andrew was born in the year of the dragon and Matthew was born in the year of the tiger. We couldn't find a place to sit down and eat in the World Showcase, so we checked out test track but it was out of fast passes. Bummer. We saw free tables at the Electric Umbrella Restaurant so we stopped in there to grab a bite to eat. Afterwards, the boys asked to go on Spaceship Earth one more time, which was great since it had no line! When we were off that ride, we headed out of Epcot, stopping at the last two countries the boys needed charms from (Canada & UK). Jim bought himself an "Off Kilter" CD in UK (they're a Scottish group that plays in Epcot all the time). We got back on the resort boat and headed over to the Boardwalk Hotel. We watched the Epcot fireworks from the boardwalk area. We really think we'll stay in one of the Epcot Resort area hotels next trip to try something new.
We were back at the hotel around 9:30 PM. Andrew asked to get his caricature done and we signed up, but it turned into a huge fiasco. Big waste of time and at 11 PM, we headed up to our room empty handed. Another lesson learned and not the best way to spend our last evening in WDW. We were all so tired from such an exhausting week and were already talking about what we'd do differently when we come back. Not that it's anything new that we'd already be talking about going back or anything. :-)
Friday 4/20 - Day #5 - Magic Kingdom & MGM
Today was our earliest morning because we had 9am reservations for the character breakfast at Ohana (Poly Hotel). We left our hotel by 8am and took the resort launch over to the Contemporary where we then caught the monorail to go to the Polynesian Hotel. We had our first magical moment of the day at this point.... I asked and we were able to sit in the very front of the monorail with the driver. We all got honorary co-pilot licenses and I took the boys' picture with the driver. We got to the Poly and went to Ohana. We love this character breakfast because it's served family style. Ohana means family and everyone is a cousin. We love the pineapple bread they give you right away. We got there when a parade around the restaurant was just starting, so the boys were able to do this twice before we left. Our waiter wasn't the best, but we still enjoyed the experience. Matthew & Andrew's favorite part is the Mickey Head Waffles. After b'fast, we found quite a few Hidden Mickeys at the Poly, my favorite being the one in the tiles at the Kona Cafe counter.
We got back on the monorail and went over the Magic Kingdom. We were trying to "slow down" this day and take it "low and slow". We meandered at the beginning of Main Street and came across the Barbershop. Jim needed a hair cut, there was no line, so he went for it. I took pictures of him and he commented that it had been a long time since someone photographed him while getting his hair cut. ha ha! The other hairdresser finished with a customer and so Andrew decided to get gel in his hair. Well, it turned out to be *blue* gel. She made a Mickey head on the back of his head with the blue gel, combed it through the top of his hair to spike it and then sprinkled in Mickey Head confetti. Next came Matthew who chose red and ended up looking like Heat Miser. Very cute! We headed to Adventureland and found Captain Hook & Mr. Smee. They were funny guys and we were glad we waited to get their autographs. Jim went to get us Fast Passes for Big Thunder Mountain RR. The boys were getting tons of attention because of the colored hair.
Next we went back on the Pirates of the Caribbean ride. Unfortunately, it kept stopping and breaking down while we were on it. I think we were on the actual ride for about 30 minutes. Oh well. We backtracked to the Jungle Cruise since we had fast passes for that ride and wanted to be sure to go on it this year. We had a very funny, charismatic boat driver. Afterwards, while walking towards Frontierland, we saw the "Jack Sparrow show" going on outside of the Pirate Ride. The boys were able to get up close to the rope that's on the ground to hold back the crowd. It was amazing how much the guy looked and sounded just like Johnny Depp. During the show, he choses 4 children to become pirates and Matthew got chosen because of his red hair! It was very exciting! Matt got to sword fight with the other pirate in the show. He would hit swords, then say "Look! There's the Governor's Daughter" and he'd run away. Andrew got to join in, at the end, when he was chosen for the crew. They both got certificates from Jack saying they were now pirates. Wonderful, Magical Moment.
Next, we were able to walk right over to Big Thunder Mtn. RR and use our fast passes. We all love that ride and found the big hidden Mickey near the end of the ride. Woo Hoo. Since we were in the right area, we hopped the Train and went over to ToonTown. Very busy area, so we walked to Tomorrowland and went on the Buzz Lightyear ride two times in a row (low wait). I had the high score once, then Jim had the high score. We then walked back to Frontierland and had lunch in our favorite counter service place, Columbia Harbour House. After lunch, we got back on Splash Mountain (hardly got wet this time - hooray!), then took the RR back to Main Street. We stopped at Guest Services to get the info on our wedding brick and could then walk towards the Grand Floridian and find it. It was fun to see it again and it was great to show it to the boys. We were all tired, so it was time to go back to the Lodge and rest for awhile.
We went to MGM this night - got there around 6:30, which wasn't great because we couldn't get any character signatures/pictures this late. Another lesson learned. We headed towards the Rock N Rollercoaster to get a fast pass and there weren't any left. The stand by wait was 80 minutes. Another lesson learned. We decided to turn the frowns upside down, so we salvaged the evening.... We went into the Animation Studio area where we saw the movie and played around with some of the things in there. The boys humored me and next we saw the Voyage of the Little Mermaid (I love that show). We walked down a bit and saw the "One Man's Dream" exhibit. We went in, for the first time, and walked around. We read and saw a lot of stuff about how Walt Disney brought his vision to life. We all decided to go see the movie and it was amazing for Jim & I to see the boys watching the show very attentively. I think they learned a lot and really enjoyed it.
We walked around the back end of MGM (near the back lot tour) and came out near Star Tours. The boys were thrilled to find out that they could go on it again. Afterwards, we stopped in the Star Wars store (Tatooine Traders) to pick up a pen sized light saber for Matthew (Andrew already got one) and a pin for Andrew. While checking out, the one clerk quizzed the boys on a few Star Wars movies and then gave them "Dream certficates" making them Jedi Padawan. They thought that was so cool. We had to pass by the entrance to Star Tours as we were walking out and the castmembers were using light sabers in the dark. They started to faux fight with the boys and their small light sabers. Then they gave the boys bigger light sabers to use and it was hysterical to watch our boys "fighting" with grown men in the walkway of the park. Another magical moment, especially since Star Wars is *so* popular with both of the boys right now. Unfortunately, we had one bad moment - Matthew fell and skinned his knee as we were leaving the park. He was a serious trooper, though, and smiled for the camera as we got night pictures taken on our way out. The bus ride home was packed and we were so happy when we finally got back to the Lodge. Since we hadn't eaten dinner yet, we got food from Roaring Fork snacks and ate in our room. What an exhausting, yet magical day!
We got back on the monorail and went over the Magic Kingdom. We were trying to "slow down" this day and take it "low and slow". We meandered at the beginning of Main Street and came across the Barbershop. Jim needed a hair cut, there was no line, so he went for it. I took pictures of him and he commented that it had been a long time since someone photographed him while getting his hair cut. ha ha! The other hairdresser finished with a customer and so Andrew decided to get gel in his hair. Well, it turned out to be *blue* gel. She made a Mickey head on the back of his head with the blue gel, combed it through the top of his hair to spike it and then sprinkled in Mickey Head confetti. Next came Matthew who chose red and ended up looking like Heat Miser. Very cute! We headed to Adventureland and found Captain Hook & Mr. Smee. They were funny guys and we were glad we waited to get their autographs. Jim went to get us Fast Passes for Big Thunder Mountain RR. The boys were getting tons of attention because of the colored hair.
Next we went back on the Pirates of the Caribbean ride. Unfortunately, it kept stopping and breaking down while we were on it. I think we were on the actual ride for about 30 minutes. Oh well. We backtracked to the Jungle Cruise since we had fast passes for that ride and wanted to be sure to go on it this year. We had a very funny, charismatic boat driver. Afterwards, while walking towards Frontierland, we saw the "Jack Sparrow show" going on outside of the Pirate Ride. The boys were able to get up close to the rope that's on the ground to hold back the crowd. It was amazing how much the guy looked and sounded just like Johnny Depp. During the show, he choses 4 children to become pirates and Matthew got chosen because of his red hair! It was very exciting! Matt got to sword fight with the other pirate in the show. He would hit swords, then say "Look! There's the Governor's Daughter" and he'd run away. Andrew got to join in, at the end, when he was chosen for the crew. They both got certificates from Jack saying they were now pirates. Wonderful, Magical Moment.
Next, we were able to walk right over to Big Thunder Mtn. RR and use our fast passes. We all love that ride and found the big hidden Mickey near the end of the ride. Woo Hoo. Since we were in the right area, we hopped the Train and went over to ToonTown. Very busy area, so we walked to Tomorrowland and went on the Buzz Lightyear ride two times in a row (low wait). I had the high score once, then Jim had the high score. We then walked back to Frontierland and had lunch in our favorite counter service place, Columbia Harbour House. After lunch, we got back on Splash Mountain (hardly got wet this time - hooray!), then took the RR back to Main Street. We stopped at Guest Services to get the info on our wedding brick and could then walk towards the Grand Floridian and find it. It was fun to see it again and it was great to show it to the boys. We were all tired, so it was time to go back to the Lodge and rest for awhile.
We went to MGM this night - got there around 6:30, which wasn't great because we couldn't get any character signatures/pictures this late. Another lesson learned. We headed towards the Rock N Rollercoaster to get a fast pass and there weren't any left. The stand by wait was 80 minutes. Another lesson learned. We decided to turn the frowns upside down, so we salvaged the evening.... We went into the Animation Studio area where we saw the movie and played around with some of the things in there. The boys humored me and next we saw the Voyage of the Little Mermaid (I love that show). We walked down a bit and saw the "One Man's Dream" exhibit. We went in, for the first time, and walked around. We read and saw a lot of stuff about how Walt Disney brought his vision to life. We all decided to go see the movie and it was amazing for Jim & I to see the boys watching the show very attentively. I think they learned a lot and really enjoyed it.
We walked around the back end of MGM (near the back lot tour) and came out near Star Tours. The boys were thrilled to find out that they could go on it again. Afterwards, we stopped in the Star Wars store (Tatooine Traders) to pick up a pen sized light saber for Matthew (Andrew already got one) and a pin for Andrew. While checking out, the one clerk quizzed the boys on a few Star Wars movies and then gave them "Dream certficates" making them Jedi Padawan. They thought that was so cool. We had to pass by the entrance to Star Tours as we were walking out and the castmembers were using light sabers in the dark. They started to faux fight with the boys and their small light sabers. Then they gave the boys bigger light sabers to use and it was hysterical to watch our boys "fighting" with grown men in the walkway of the park. Another magical moment, especially since Star Wars is *so* popular with both of the boys right now. Unfortunately, we had one bad moment - Matthew fell and skinned his knee as we were leaving the park. He was a serious trooper, though, and smiled for the camera as we got night pictures taken on our way out. The bus ride home was packed and we were so happy when we finally got back to the Lodge. Since we hadn't eaten dinner yet, we got food from Roaring Fork snacks and ate in our room. What an exhausting, yet magical day!
Thursday 4/19 - Day #4 - Animal Kingdom
Today was the first day we set the alarm. AK closes earlier than the other parks, so I wanted to get there earlier than we'd been getting to the parks. We had breakfast at the hotel, the boys made washcloth animals inthe lobby with castmembers and then we took the bus to AK. We met Brer Bear and Meeko right outside the entrance. Brer Bear was very funny and had great interaction with the boys. We walked right up to Africa and while Jim went for Safari FastPasses, the boys stood in line to meet Baloo and King Louie from The Jungle Book. They were new characters to meet this time for us and we took some funny pictures with them (arms in the air!). While standing in that line, I finally saw D-vine walking around. I was freaked out to realize it was a human totally covered in vines when I first saw her, even though I had read about her. The boys already wanted ice cream, so we got them each one and then got Pina Coladas for ourselves since the Dawa Bar was *right* there. Couldn't resist! Pops & Pina Coladas - a Scrapbook page in the making.
We had to kill some time before going on the Safari, so we walked on the Pangani Forest Exploration Trail - another first for our family. While on the trail, we were stopped by a castmember and told that it was a little crowded, so we needed to wait a bit. The boys were getting anxious, but finally the castmember let us go. We walked up a very short bit, turned a corner and there were other cast members standing there handing out DREAM FAST PASSES! Score! What a great, magical moment and our whole plan for the day was changed now that we had instant fast passes for The Kilimanjaro Safari, It's Tough to Be a Bug, Expedition Everest, Kali River Rapids, Dinosaur, & Primeval Whirl. We got off the trail and went right on the Safaris since we now had the Dream FastPasses and didn't have to wait for the time on our original fast passes. We saw the baby giraffe who was born in AK last year and saw other giraffes very close to the vehicle. Last year, the giraffes were always further away and harder to see. I really love the Safari Attraction!
It was time to walk over towards Asia. We saw the Hidden Mickey on the Tree of Life while walking over - it's over the Hippo's eye on the back side of the tree. We decided to split up - Jim took Andrew on Kali River Rapids (I did *not* want to get wet) and I took Matthew on Expedition Everest (Jim had no plans on riding that attraction). Then, we switched FastPass badges and Jim took Matthew on Kali River Rapids and I took Andrew on EE. I was *so* glad that Andrew changed his mind and decided to ride EE and the Dream Fast Passes really made this happen. He ended up loving it, of course! Matthew and Jim got really wet on Kali River, which was kind of funny.
We left Asia and walked towards DinoLand. The boys went on Primeval Whirl by themselves and then we all went on Dinosaur. Matt doesn't love this ride (it scares the begeezus out of him), but he was a trooper and got through it. He said it helped knowing the dinos would jump out and it would be dark/loud. It was time to grab a bite to eat and we tried out the Flame Tree Barbeque. We sat all the way down by the landing/lake and were lucky enough to see the boat carrying Goofy & Mickey. We even saw an alligator right by the landing (in the water, of course).
After lunch, we walked right into "It's Tough to be a Bug" (3D movie) and then trekked on over to see the new Nemo Musical. We thought it was a good show, but we all agreed that we love the Lion King show better. It was almost parade time, so we walked back towards Discovery Island and staked a claim at a spot near the rope. We hadn't seen the Jammin' Jungle Parade yet, so we wanted to be sure to catch it this year (it ended up being our only parade experience for this trip). We thought it was very fun & festive - loved the "floats" and the animals. After the parade was over, we headed out of the park and we were able to get Terk's autograph near the entrance. I gave the original Safari Fast Passes to a family of 4 who was just going into the park (the man thought I was looney at first, then he was very grateful). Took the bus back to WL.
We took the boys to the Cub's Den at 6pm and then headed off to the Yacht Club for a "couple's night out". We ate at the Yachtsman Steakhouse and both got Rib Eye steaks. Extremely yummy & expensive dinner. I had a "Raz Tini" this night, which had raspberry vodka in it. After dinner, we walked over to the Boardwalk Hotel and strolled around. We checked out the inside of the Boardwalk hotel and all of the stuff/shops out on the Boardwalk area. We got coffee (Baileys in mine) and headed back to the YachtsClub to get our car. We were really impressed with the "Epcot Resort Area" and would like to stay there on our next trip (maybe Dec. 2008). We picked up the boys by 9:45pm and had enough time to grab ice cream and head down to the beach to see Wishes (the fireworks) from the Magic Kingdom through the trees.
From Andrew's Journal - Favorite AK ride was Expedition Everest. Favorite Land is DinoLand. Favorite animal was the Yeti and his favorite show is The Festival of the Lion King.
From Matthew's Journal - Favorite ride in AK was Kali River Rapids and his favorite Land is Asia. His favorite animal is the Siamangs and he learned they don't have tails, which makes them apes, not monkeys. His favorite show is also Festival of the Lion King.
We had to kill some time before going on the Safari, so we walked on the Pangani Forest Exploration Trail - another first for our family. While on the trail, we were stopped by a castmember and told that it was a little crowded, so we needed to wait a bit. The boys were getting anxious, but finally the castmember let us go. We walked up a very short bit, turned a corner and there were other cast members standing there handing out DREAM FAST PASSES! Score! What a great, magical moment and our whole plan for the day was changed now that we had instant fast passes for The Kilimanjaro Safari, It's Tough to Be a Bug, Expedition Everest, Kali River Rapids, Dinosaur, & Primeval Whirl. We got off the trail and went right on the Safaris since we now had the Dream FastPasses and didn't have to wait for the time on our original fast passes. We saw the baby giraffe who was born in AK last year and saw other giraffes very close to the vehicle. Last year, the giraffes were always further away and harder to see. I really love the Safari Attraction!
It was time to walk over towards Asia. We saw the Hidden Mickey on the Tree of Life while walking over - it's over the Hippo's eye on the back side of the tree. We decided to split up - Jim took Andrew on Kali River Rapids (I did *not* want to get wet) and I took Matthew on Expedition Everest (Jim had no plans on riding that attraction). Then, we switched FastPass badges and Jim took Matthew on Kali River Rapids and I took Andrew on EE. I was *so* glad that Andrew changed his mind and decided to ride EE and the Dream Fast Passes really made this happen. He ended up loving it, of course! Matthew and Jim got really wet on Kali River, which was kind of funny.
We left Asia and walked towards DinoLand. The boys went on Primeval Whirl by themselves and then we all went on Dinosaur. Matt doesn't love this ride (it scares the begeezus out of him), but he was a trooper and got through it. He said it helped knowing the dinos would jump out and it would be dark/loud. It was time to grab a bite to eat and we tried out the Flame Tree Barbeque. We sat all the way down by the landing/lake and were lucky enough to see the boat carrying Goofy & Mickey. We even saw an alligator right by the landing (in the water, of course).
After lunch, we walked right into "It's Tough to be a Bug" (3D movie) and then trekked on over to see the new Nemo Musical. We thought it was a good show, but we all agreed that we love the Lion King show better. It was almost parade time, so we walked back towards Discovery Island and staked a claim at a spot near the rope. We hadn't seen the Jammin' Jungle Parade yet, so we wanted to be sure to catch it this year (it ended up being our only parade experience for this trip). We thought it was very fun & festive - loved the "floats" and the animals. After the parade was over, we headed out of the park and we were able to get Terk's autograph near the entrance. I gave the original Safari Fast Passes to a family of 4 who was just going into the park (the man thought I was looney at first, then he was very grateful). Took the bus back to WL.
We took the boys to the Cub's Den at 6pm and then headed off to the Yacht Club for a "couple's night out". We ate at the Yachtsman Steakhouse and both got Rib Eye steaks. Extremely yummy & expensive dinner. I had a "Raz Tini" this night, which had raspberry vodka in it. After dinner, we walked over to the Boardwalk Hotel and strolled around. We checked out the inside of the Boardwalk hotel and all of the stuff/shops out on the Boardwalk area. We got coffee (Baileys in mine) and headed back to the YachtsClub to get our car. We were really impressed with the "Epcot Resort Area" and would like to stay there on our next trip (maybe Dec. 2008). We picked up the boys by 9:45pm and had enough time to grab ice cream and head down to the beach to see Wishes (the fireworks) from the Magic Kingdom through the trees.
From Andrew's Journal - Favorite AK ride was Expedition Everest. Favorite Land is DinoLand. Favorite animal was the Yeti and his favorite show is The Festival of the Lion King.
From Matthew's Journal - Favorite ride in AK was Kali River Rapids and his favorite Land is Asia. His favorite animal is the Siamangs and he learned they don't have tails, which makes them apes, not monkeys. His favorite show is also Festival of the Lion King.
Wednesday, April 25, 2007
Webpage with Pictures!
I set up a webpage with a bunch of pictures off my own camera. Check them out here... http://www.angelfire.com/pa5/loopner/Disney07.html
Wednesday 4/18 - Day #3 - DTD and MGM
Today, we started the day at DownTown Disney. We had never been there before and it was fun to check it out. We had breakfast at a big McDonalds that is right next to the Lego store (and also wasn't busy at all!). We took pictures by huge LEGO statues outside the store and the boys had an awesome time in the store. Their favorite part was getting tubs and filling them with all different Lego pieces from bins. Like kids in a candy store! We did a little shopping in "The World of Disney" (that store has everything!) and then had to go to "Once Upon a Toy" to make Light Sabers. Jim got the honor of helping the boys make their light sabers, with a whole lot of help from a castmember. I had to go to the Scrapbook store (which is really a photography, frames, etc... store) and bought a 2007 Disney Scrapbook (my big treat!).
Next we drove to MGM (we took our rental car this day) and parked in the "FILM/Goofy" section, row 30 (the boys wanted that to be noted in the journal since they had to help us remember where to go back to). We walked right to the Streets of America area and met the Power Rangers. Best tactic was to have Jim wait in other lines for the boys so they could see more rangers. The highlight was meeting the new Yellow Ranger from Operation Overdrive, but they never got the chance to meet the pink, Mystic Force ranger. Next time! Next it was time to go on the Backlot Tour and then the boys used FastPasses to go on Star Tours. I walked them up and while we were trekking thru the fast pass lane, a storm trooper walked right past us! Cool! The boys said the ride totally rocked, which didn't surprise us. We then were able to walk right into the Muppets 3D show, which we all think is hysterical and never get sick of it. We were able to meet Buzz near Al's Toy Barn and then went to Mama Melrose's for dinner. We thought the restaurant was well themed and enjoyed our meal . Jim & I loved the carafe of Sangria! Slurp. The boys and I found 4 Hidden Mickeys in the waiting area of this restaurant, too!
After dinner, we saw the Lights, Motors, Action show. Jim & Andrew love this show. I think it's pretty cool and Matthew is a trooper and tolerates it (the loud noises and fire aren't exactly his speed). To expend some energy, I took the boys into the Honey I Shrunk the Kids Play Area while Jim fielded some phone calls. We lucked out and got onto the Great Movie ride with only a minimal wait and then needed to get to "Oscars" near the entrance to go into the Fantasmic Auditorium. The wait wasn't exactly fun with two antsy boys, but they got a kick out of doing the wave with the whole audience. The show started at 8:30pm and it was really wonderful. It was hard to take pictures in the dark, but I think I got some good shots. The show was also a first for our family and we really enjoyed the chance to get to see it. Afterwards, it was back to the Lodge, writing in our journals and in bed by 11pm. See a pattern? :)
From Andrew's Journal....Favorite MGM ride is Star Tours. Favorite Show in MGm is Fantasmic. Favorite characters to meet are the Power Rangers. Favorite character is Darth Vadar. Special thing that happened today was making his own light saber. He and Matthew also got a Darth Goofy plush doll and a Jedi Mickey one. They're so cute!
From Matthew's Journal - Favorite MGM ride is The Great Movie Ride. Favorite shows are Lights, Motors, Action & Fantasmic. Favorite characters are the Storm Troopers. Special things that happened this day was getting Legos and making his own Light Saber.
Next we drove to MGM (we took our rental car this day) and parked in the "FILM/Goofy" section, row 30 (the boys wanted that to be noted in the journal since they had to help us remember where to go back to). We walked right to the Streets of America area and met the Power Rangers. Best tactic was to have Jim wait in other lines for the boys so they could see more rangers. The highlight was meeting the new Yellow Ranger from Operation Overdrive, but they never got the chance to meet the pink, Mystic Force ranger. Next time! Next it was time to go on the Backlot Tour and then the boys used FastPasses to go on Star Tours. I walked them up and while we were trekking thru the fast pass lane, a storm trooper walked right past us! Cool! The boys said the ride totally rocked, which didn't surprise us. We then were able to walk right into the Muppets 3D show, which we all think is hysterical and never get sick of it. We were able to meet Buzz near Al's Toy Barn and then went to Mama Melrose's for dinner. We thought the restaurant was well themed and enjoyed our meal . Jim & I loved the carafe of Sangria! Slurp. The boys and I found 4 Hidden Mickeys in the waiting area of this restaurant, too!
After dinner, we saw the Lights, Motors, Action show. Jim & Andrew love this show. I think it's pretty cool and Matthew is a trooper and tolerates it (the loud noises and fire aren't exactly his speed). To expend some energy, I took the boys into the Honey I Shrunk the Kids Play Area while Jim fielded some phone calls. We lucked out and got onto the Great Movie ride with only a minimal wait and then needed to get to "Oscars" near the entrance to go into the Fantasmic Auditorium. The wait wasn't exactly fun with two antsy boys, but they got a kick out of doing the wave with the whole audience. The show started at 8:30pm and it was really wonderful. It was hard to take pictures in the dark, but I think I got some good shots. The show was also a first for our family and we really enjoyed the chance to get to see it. Afterwards, it was back to the Lodge, writing in our journals and in bed by 11pm. See a pattern? :)
From Andrew's Journal....Favorite MGM ride is Star Tours. Favorite Show in MGm is Fantasmic. Favorite characters to meet are the Power Rangers. Favorite character is Darth Vadar. Special thing that happened today was making his own light saber. He and Matthew also got a Darth Goofy plush doll and a Jedi Mickey one. They're so cute!
From Matthew's Journal - Favorite MGM ride is The Great Movie Ride. Favorite shows are Lights, Motors, Action & Fantasmic. Favorite characters are the Storm Troopers. Special things that happened this day was getting Legos and making his own Light Saber.
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
Tuesday 4/17 - Day #2 - Magic Kingdom
We slept in until about 8:30am since we all needed a good night's sleep. Jim went down and got us breakfast from the Roarin Fork snack area and we ate in our room while we continued to get ready.
We hopped the boat from the Wilderness Lodge over to the Magic Kingdom. It was so magical to go around the bend from the Contemporary and finally see Space Mountain and Cinderella's Castle. The boys decided we needed to go to Tomorrowland first, so we headed up Main Street and hung a right. We got right on the Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin ride and then tried out the Tomorrowland Transit Authority ride, which we surprisingly enjoyed. The boys loved that it went right into and past the Space Mountain ride and the Buzz ride. We then saw the Monsters Inc Comedy Club Show for the first time and thought it was pretty funny stuff. It's very similar to Turtle Talk in how the characters on the screen can interact with audience members. We also were able to get right on the Stitch Ride, which is a highlight for the boys.
We headed off to ToonTown and went right on Goofy's Barnstormer. It's such a short ride, but we all think it's such a hoot. We walked thru Mickey's House, but bypassed meeting him due to an extremely long line. BUT after we went out the exit, we found Stitch down a side area and the boys got to meet him. We hopped the train over to Frontierland and grabbed some fastpasses for Splash Mountain. We were walking thru frontierland and saw "Woody's Cowboy Camp" for the first time. It was a fun show and the boys enjoyed doing the Hokey Pokey in the street. You can't meet and greet with them (Woody, Jessie, Bullseye) any more, though.
We cut through to Adventureland (my favorite land) and saw the Tiki Bird Show. We loved being able to sit and be out of the sun. Next came a biggie for us.... going on the Pirates ride after the refurbishment (it was closed last March when we were there). It was really cool to see Captain Jack added to the ride (in 3 places!). Captain Barbosa and Davey Jones were also added. Really cool! We then climbed the Swiss Family Robinson Tree House and the boys got ice cream bars.
We cut back into Frontierland and saw the Country Bear Jamboree Show with a minimum wait. I have always liked that attraction, but found it hard to hear it this time for some reason (am I getting old? lol). After that show, we were able to use our FastPasses on Splash Mountain. Matthew & I sat in the front and got decently wet, but not soaked. I think the water that splashes in the front from the small dips is worse than the big splash after the big drop. We had to walk back through Frontierland to go to dinner and ran into Brer Fox. He noticed the Lamisil Pen the boys had for autographs and pointed to his foot. Too funny! I said their dad worked for the company that made that product. Brer Fox kept pointing to his foot and the castmember who accompanies him said "You don't have foot fungus, you have fleas". Hee Hee! In the pictures I took, he was still pointing to his toes.
It was time for our character meal at the Liberty Tree Tavern. We really enjoy this dinner and had fun meeting Minnie, Chip, Dale, Pluto and Goofy. Goofy was very entertaining and it's always great to have the characters come right up to your table. Jim had to get his picture taken with Pluto since he's his favorite character. I think the best part of the meal was the apple cobbler for dessert. Super yummy!
After dinner we were able to get right on the Haunted Mansion, It's a Small World and then right into Mickey's Philharmagic 3D show. Woo Hoo! Jim then decided he was done and wanted to leave the park. He went back to the hotel and I stayed with the boys. They got right on the Carousel after saying goodbye to their dad. We then walked back to Toon Town to try and meet Mickey. The line was much shorter and we got in within 15 minutes, but the PhotoPass guy's PDA wsn't working and they couldn't get our pictures on our photopass. Bummer, but I was able to take pictures with my camera. We didn't do any other Character Meetings, though, because the lines were 60 minutes, plus. The boys had fun playing with the Mr. Potato Head stuff in the Toontown Hall of Fame instead. We also walked through Minnie's House and found more Hidden Mickeys. On our way out of the park (my goal was to be out before the mob scene for the fireworks & parade), we went on the Buzz Lightyear ride again and I got 458,400 points! I have no clue how I racked up such a great score, though. lol. The boys & I also had our pictures taken at night, near the castle.
Back to the hotel by 9:30pm, the boys & I did our journaling again and we were all sound asleep again by 11pm. It was entertaining to see the boys lie down and practically pass out within minutes. Andrew would whack into the sides of the top bunk a lot, though! Noisy boy.
From Andrew's Journal - Favorite rides are the Tomorrowland Transit Authority and Splash Mountain. Favorite Land is Adventureland. Favorite Show is Mickey's Philharmagic. Characters he met this day = Stitch, Goofy, Chip & Dale, Minnie Mouse, Pluto, Woody's Gang and Brer Fox.
From Matthew's Journal - Favorite ride is Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. Favorite Land is Tomorrowland. Favorite Character is Stitch. Favorite show is Mickey's Philharmagic. He met the same characters as Andrew.
We hopped the boat from the Wilderness Lodge over to the Magic Kingdom. It was so magical to go around the bend from the Contemporary and finally see Space Mountain and Cinderella's Castle. The boys decided we needed to go to Tomorrowland first, so we headed up Main Street and hung a right. We got right on the Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin ride and then tried out the Tomorrowland Transit Authority ride, which we surprisingly enjoyed. The boys loved that it went right into and past the Space Mountain ride and the Buzz ride. We then saw the Monsters Inc Comedy Club Show for the first time and thought it was pretty funny stuff. It's very similar to Turtle Talk in how the characters on the screen can interact with audience members. We also were able to get right on the Stitch Ride, which is a highlight for the boys.
We headed off to ToonTown and went right on Goofy's Barnstormer. It's such a short ride, but we all think it's such a hoot. We walked thru Mickey's House, but bypassed meeting him due to an extremely long line. BUT after we went out the exit, we found Stitch down a side area and the boys got to meet him. We hopped the train over to Frontierland and grabbed some fastpasses for Splash Mountain. We were walking thru frontierland and saw "Woody's Cowboy Camp" for the first time. It was a fun show and the boys enjoyed doing the Hokey Pokey in the street. You can't meet and greet with them (Woody, Jessie, Bullseye) any more, though.
We cut through to Adventureland (my favorite land) and saw the Tiki Bird Show. We loved being able to sit and be out of the sun. Next came a biggie for us.... going on the Pirates ride after the refurbishment (it was closed last March when we were there). It was really cool to see Captain Jack added to the ride (in 3 places!). Captain Barbosa and Davey Jones were also added. Really cool! We then climbed the Swiss Family Robinson Tree House and the boys got ice cream bars.
We cut back into Frontierland and saw the Country Bear Jamboree Show with a minimum wait. I have always liked that attraction, but found it hard to hear it this time for some reason (am I getting old? lol). After that show, we were able to use our FastPasses on Splash Mountain. Matthew & I sat in the front and got decently wet, but not soaked. I think the water that splashes in the front from the small dips is worse than the big splash after the big drop. We had to walk back through Frontierland to go to dinner and ran into Brer Fox. He noticed the Lamisil Pen the boys had for autographs and pointed to his foot. Too funny! I said their dad worked for the company that made that product. Brer Fox kept pointing to his foot and the castmember who accompanies him said "You don't have foot fungus, you have fleas". Hee Hee! In the pictures I took, he was still pointing to his toes.
It was time for our character meal at the Liberty Tree Tavern. We really enjoy this dinner and had fun meeting Minnie, Chip, Dale, Pluto and Goofy. Goofy was very entertaining and it's always great to have the characters come right up to your table. Jim had to get his picture taken with Pluto since he's his favorite character. I think the best part of the meal was the apple cobbler for dessert. Super yummy!
After dinner we were able to get right on the Haunted Mansion, It's a Small World and then right into Mickey's Philharmagic 3D show. Woo Hoo! Jim then decided he was done and wanted to leave the park. He went back to the hotel and I stayed with the boys. They got right on the Carousel after saying goodbye to their dad. We then walked back to Toon Town to try and meet Mickey. The line was much shorter and we got in within 15 minutes, but the PhotoPass guy's PDA wsn't working and they couldn't get our pictures on our photopass. Bummer, but I was able to take pictures with my camera. We didn't do any other Character Meetings, though, because the lines were 60 minutes, plus. The boys had fun playing with the Mr. Potato Head stuff in the Toontown Hall of Fame instead. We also walked through Minnie's House and found more Hidden Mickeys. On our way out of the park (my goal was to be out before the mob scene for the fireworks & parade), we went on the Buzz Lightyear ride again and I got 458,400 points! I have no clue how I racked up such a great score, though. lol. The boys & I also had our pictures taken at night, near the castle.
Back to the hotel by 9:30pm, the boys & I did our journaling again and we were all sound asleep again by 11pm. It was entertaining to see the boys lie down and practically pass out within minutes. Andrew would whack into the sides of the top bunk a lot, though! Noisy boy.
From Andrew's Journal - Favorite rides are the Tomorrowland Transit Authority and Splash Mountain. Favorite Land is Adventureland. Favorite Show is Mickey's Philharmagic. Characters he met this day = Stitch, Goofy, Chip & Dale, Minnie Mouse, Pluto, Woody's Gang and Brer Fox.
From Matthew's Journal - Favorite ride is Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. Favorite Land is Tomorrowland. Favorite Character is Stitch. Favorite show is Mickey's Philharmagic. He met the same characters as Andrew.
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