1 crazy family+2 resorts+5 parks+1 snake+1 surprise=A Mickeystoontown report 4/3x2

[Katmat75]

Great pics! Glad Mama got to see the whales! I have never been to SeaWorld. Never seen a whale in real life either! Maybe one of these trips I will give up a day at WDW and go. But probably not likely to do that!

 

[KatMark]

What an awesome update, Lisa. You got some absolutely OUTSTANDING pictures of the show at Sea World with the whales. I'm so glad momma got to see real live whales and it is now off her bucket list.

 

[tink65]

Your pictures are gorgeous. Looks like you got a lot of "in action" shots! Keep the installments coming! Can't wait to read more!

 

[GrammyJudy]

I love all the whale pictures and I'm glad mama got to see a whale. Last time we went to Sea World my kids were teens and they sat in the wet zone. Andy &I sat up higher. They got drenched and it was Feb.so we laughed at them...no sympathy for stupid!

 

[MEK]

Your neck looks fine to me, but the photobomb picture was pretty funny!

That looked like such a cool show! Wow - I bet its pretty spectacular in person. Those whales are pretty amazing. Love the pictures. And, BTW - there is no such thing as picture overload.

 

[Mommy Poppins]

Great update! They are truly such beautiful creatures!

 

[ronnmel]

The water/tank is such a beautiful blue! It makes me want to be somewhere tropical right about now. It's grey and rainy over here.

 

[mickeystoontown]

Just caught up! I went down the Cape (cape cod) and tried to find some sharks for you, alas there were none.....well none that i could see. I DID however go to the "Jaws Bridge" on Saturday on Martha's Vineyard, I didn't jump off this year though. Your Shark tank photo made me think of that. I am completely STUNNED that Hunter would suggest pizza lol. Sounds like you all had a great visit with Lovethattink. JJ sounds like a very fun kid! Kinda excited about the Whale show photos!

Sounds like ya'll had a great time at the Cape! I've been wanting to plan a weekend trip to the beach even though we aren't big beach people.

We had a wonderful visit with lovethattink and her family!

Hey Lisa- Thanks so much for the chapter links. I was behind WAY too many pages, but I caught up in a jiffy!

Congrats on your ranking in the June pod-cast Top Ten!!!


Thank you! I was shocked!

Loving your Sea World posts. We had quite a gap in our SW trips as well. We went in 2004 when the boys were 6 and 3 and we returned a couple of years ago when the boys were 13 and 10.

I am happy that we chose to go back to SW. It had been a long time.

Your flamingo picture reminds me of my first visit to SW as a high school senior. I have photos of frisky flamingos!



Love your pictures from the turtle exhibit. We haven't seen the show. Sea Turtles are one of our favorite marine animals.

The turtle exhibit was really neat and they did an excellent job with the show.

When you titled your chapter "No way we can go up there" I thought you were talking about the observation tower.

You are the first to have thought of that but it's what I thought when I was typing it.

I am so glad you got to see the sea lion show. It is too funny!

It was quite fun and we enjoyed it.

Hooray on your DIS meet. Sounds like you had a pleasant visit. And how lucky to have your own junior marine biologist to help you in the shark exhibit.

JJ did a fine job telling us all about the fish that we saw.

Great jaws photos.

The lion fish picture is really cool. I love the look of them. We actually saw one when we were snorkeling in Mexico in February, but that is not a good thing. Not just because they are poisonous, but because they are a really invasive fish and very dangerous to the native fish in a reef.

I love your knowledge of fish!

Lisa....just got caught up on your report......yay! Loved your Sea World post. We live about 6 hours from San Antonio and have not visited "our sea world" in several years. Your post made me think about that and we might have to venture over there with the fam and make a "mini trip to get my mind off of Disney for at least one second" vacation . This year is the first time in two years that we have not taken a May Disney vacation (we were there at the same time last year and saw you guys on a bus ) and your report is making me miss not going in May this year . Anywho sorry for the ramble....oh and congrats on being #8! I have to say that I am surprised that this is not a more common thing with you as I have always enjoyed reading your TR's and think you are a great storyteller. Looking forward to the next installment!

We have thought about driving down to San Antonio over Thanksgiving but if we are going anywhere, it will probably be to Tennessee to see Lacey & Jesse.

I so wish that you would have shouted out to us! It would have been nice to meet you.

Pizza! Say it isn't so!

I love Dismeets! I've only had one, but I love them anyway!

I know! Can you believe he wanted pizza? I was shocked! NOT!

Lisa we need another installment

Posted one yesterday....just for you!

I'm sorry to say that I laughed at how you injured your hand. Because that is so totally something that I would do.

I'm sorry that you still have the cuts from your Mickey bracelet. Ouch!

It's okay that you laughed at my silly antics. We all did!

I'm not surprised to hear you made the top ten. Congrates!! I know I really enjoy your TR.I also keep coming back to your reports due to the amazing pics you and Hunter take. If I knew how I would use them on my ptr.
I came over from your last one. Think it has taking me two days to get caught up on this one. I will do better this time.
Don't want to go back to far, but that cm at FQ was awful. It does go to show that you are a better person then me. I work with customers all day. I don't put up with much when I'm the customer. I would have told her that how I choose to spend my money and vacation time is none of her concern.
I'm also doing two weeks in 2014. Staying the first time at CBR. That Monkey Cupcake is on the list of must haves.
Thanks again for sharing.

Thank you! I was totally surprised that we made it to the Top Ten!

I've been posting handy dandy trip report installment links so it will be easier to stay caught up.

I have no idea what was wrong with the FQ CM but she had a bad attitude.

Be sure to have a monkey cupcake! They are delicious!

It sounds like you had a fabulous meet and great with Michelle and family. And a nice lunch too.

It was a lovely meet and great meal!

Thank you all for your kind words about JJ. He is something else. He loves to bring joy to other's. And the DISmeet with Lisa and family was great!

He could use some prayers and pixie dust if you are so inclined. He's been having some health issues lately.

Lisa, I heard the microwave open yesterday. So I shouted out that he had to wait til I was there with him. I thought he was wanting to make soap. Boy was I surprised to open the microwave and see a ring from a gumball machine inside a little plastic box. Whoa! Think of what could have happened if I didn't hear that microwave door. He decided he was going to be a super hero. He saw something on tv where they put a ring in the microwave and it gave the people super powers. I cannot even go to the bathroom and leave him alone for a second!

Oh my! Good thing you stopped JJ before he zapped the microwave!

JJ sounds like a delight. So glad you enjoyed your visit. Love the picture of him, and of course Hunter, in the Shark's mouth.

I really enjoyed looking at all those beautiful fish this morning. Keep it up with the Seaworld pictures. I am definitely leaning towards a visit this fall.

Fun update!

JJ was such a funny little guy! We loved him!

Glad your Dismeet worked out, looks like you had fun! The sharks are neat to see, It's cool when you go through that tunnel and they swim above you.

Can't wait to see the Whale Show! We went in 2004 and it was fun but Tim and my friend Denise decided they wanted to sit in the splash zone! I really didn't want to but they did and OH did we get SOAKED!! Our shoes were squishy the rest of the day! And they were the only shoes I had with me that trip so I went and washed all 3 of our shoes in the washer at the pool that night when we got home but didn't notice until after they were out that there were signs saying NO Shoes In the Dryers! So now they were more wet than they were, but at least they were clean. But I am a rule follower for the most part so I was good and didn't put them in. They were still wet the next day...

Lacey sat in the splash zone all by herself one visit. I'm not that stup...I mean gullible.

Oh gosh! I hope that you packed another pair of shoes to wear!

Great Dis meet!

It was!

Watched your Video - Awesome!!!!

Wasn't the video great!

Just stopped by to say hey...hey

Hey! Good to see you popping in!

Well no that isn't a shock that Hunter wanted pizza. I think that's what River and I would want too. We're both picky too so we eat a lot of pizza at WDW.

It sounds like you had a very nice Dis meet. It's so nice you got to do that!

Hunter's not the only picky eater in our group either so the pizza was a good choice.

It was a nice Dis Meet!

 

[mickeystoontown]

The water/tank is such a beautiful blue! It makes me want to be somewhere tropical right about now. It's grey and rainy over here.

The whole thing was beautiful! It's sunny here but hot as heck!

Great update! They are truly such beautiful creatures!

Aren't they!

Your neck looks fine to me, but the photobomb picture was pretty funny!

That looked like such a cool show! Wow - I bet its pretty spectacular in person. Those whales are pretty amazing. Love the pictures. And, BTW - there is no such thing as picture overload.

I knew that I had to post both pictures after seeing the Photobomber behind us.

The shop is absolutely wonderful in person! I personally don't think that there's anything such as picture overload either but some might.

I love all the whale pictures and I'm glad mama got to see a whale. Last time we went to Sea World my kids were teens and they sat in the wet zone. Andy &I sat up higher. They got drenched and it was Feb.so we laughed at them...no sympathy for stupid!

Amen! The people down in the splash zone for soaked!

Your pictures are gorgeous. Looks like you got a lot of "in action" shots! Keep the installments coming! Can't wait to read more!

I was surprised how well the pictures turned out considering the fact that I wasn't even looking at the camera screen.

What an awesome update, Lisa. You got some absolutely OUTSTANDING pictures of the show at Sea World with the whales. I'm so glad momma got to see real live whales and it is now off her bucket list.

Mama absolutely loved the show! I'm so happy that we went!

Great pics! Glad Mama got to see the whales! I have never been to SeaWorld. Never seen a whale in real life either! Maybe one of these trips I will give up a day at WDW and go. But probably not likely to do that!

Oh girl, you gotta go see a whale in real life. They are amazing creatures!

Great update! Looks like a wonderful show - and you got some nice pictures!

Thank you! The show was stunning!

What a show, orcas are just the most amazing animals to watch! So glad your mom got to mark that off her bucket list, that's a pretty awesome one to check off!

Sent from my iPad using DISBoards

That's what I said. If you're going to make something off the bucket list, make it a great something.

I'm in and all caught up. I've read some of your past reports and always enjoy following along. We will be in "The World" next May. When is your trip? I'd love to meet a celebrity for a quick photo shoot.

Welcome! Welcome! We are going to be in Disney May 24th to June 7th? Celebrity? Let me know if our dates overlap. I love Dis Meets!

A-W-E-S-O-M-E pictures!

Thank you!

Whales are beautiful, I would love to see one "in the wild". I'm glad your mom enjoyed it.

Me too! I've been pondering a cruise to Alaska but the cost of airfare is the same as the cost of the cruise.

 

[mickeystoontown]

2 weeks?! Wow, good luck!

Yeah, I needed it! I have the paperwork done and it's in the hands of the clients to fill in the blanks. If it doesn't get done in time, it's his fault.

 

[mickeystoontown]

Oh, that just melted my heart that your mom was finally able to see a whale! Did she enjoy it?

Your pictures bring back good memories for me! We used to have a Sea World here, and we were so sad when they closed it. DH and I were just saying the other day how sad we were that it wasn't so close anymore while our kids are growing up!

It melted mine too! I am so happy that I was able to be with my Mama when she saw the whales. I'll never forget it.

Oh that's sad! Maybe you can work in a trip to SW when you get back to WDW.

Those are great pictures!!!! I haven't watched the whale show since I was a teenager. The last time I went, in 2010, I wasn't feeling good and left early without watching it.

Thank you! I hate that you didn't get to see the whale show because you weren't feeling well.

Yay for the whales! You guys got some great shots! I hope mamaw was happy with it!

We are hoping to see some in the wild in just a few weeks in Alaska! I can't wait and now I'm even MORE excited!!!

I hope that you get to see the whales in Alaska! I've wanted to go to Alaska for the longest time.

I could only see the first ten or fifteen of the photos in the last update. But apparently that's just me. Oh well.

That's weird! Did the rest ever show up?

Amazing pictures loved seeing them. You and Hunter look great in your pictures and you dont have a massive waddle under your chin

Oh there's a waddle there! The whale show was amazing!

 

[disneylvr4vr]

Great update! So many beautiful pictures! I feel like i was there watching the show with you guys! Hmm, the last time i saw a whale was when we went to san diego sea world after visiting disneyland and watched the whale show. That was an okay show, but the funny thing was, out of the four shows we watched, the best one was the one with the dogs and cats! Looks like they have a similar show in orlando! Did you happen to see it?

ETA: here is a link to the show i watched

http://seaworldparks.com/en/seaworld-sandiego/Attractions/Shows/Pets-Rule

 

[HiHoOffWeGo]

With the new season of DD coming do you have plans?

 

[thornton0511]

We have thought about driving down to San Antonio over Thanksgiving but if we are going anywhere, it will probably be to Tennessee to see Lacey & Jesse.

I so wish that you would have shouted out to us! It would have been nice to meet you.

You guys should definitely make a trip to San Antonio sometime! Being from East Texas this seems to be our go to spot for "mini in between Disney" vacations. I will say though that the Sea World here seems to be a lot smaller than the ones in Florida and California. But the Riverwalk area is just wonderful and hill country is beautiful.

I was too shy and star struck to give a shout out to you on the bus lol!

 

[melnbil]

Loved the whale photos, they were great. I remember going my senior year of hs. I have a really cute pic of my mom sitting on one of the seal strollers. She was being silly. (RIP mommy) I miss her bunches, but have lots of great memories. I am glad you got to experience the whales with your mom.

Our dates for our trip will overlap. Hopefully our trip will be May 27-June 7. Maybe we will see you down there!

I need to get directions from you coming in from 75. When we went a couple years ago, we went all the way around property, and didn't get to see the Welcome to Disney arch till we were on the way out.

Looking forward to the rest of the report!

 

[TinksThree]

I am all read up!!! Well, I had been reading along on my phone app but it is so hard to see the pictures so now I have seen/read it all!! No way I can comment on everything but loving Sea World!! We went in San Antonio about 10 years ago and keep saying we hope to return...just haven't made it yet! Also, I need to try House of Blues....that food looks yummy!!! Hopefully i can keep up now!

 

[mickeystoontown]

Great update! So many beautiful pictures! I feel like i was there watching the show with you guys! Hmm, the last time i saw a whale was when we went to san diego sea world after visiting disneyland and watched the whale show. That was an okay show, but the funny thing was, out of the four shows we watched, the best one was the one with the dogs and cats! Looks like they have a similar show in orlando! Did you happen to see it?

ETA: here is a link to the show i watched

http://seaworldparks.com/en/seaworld-sandiego/Attractions/Shows/Pets-Rule

Thanks for the link! So cool! I didn't notice whether or not they had the dog/cat show at Sea World. I think they used to have one at Universal though.

With the new season of DD coming do you have plans?

We don't have any "real" plans other than watching it on premiere night. The last time, I was chosen by A&E to host the party. I can hardly wait to see what hijinks they are up to this time. I saw them filming a month or so ago and it looked like there was some horsing around going on.

You guys should definitely make a trip to San Antonio sometime! Being from East Texas this seems to be our go to spot for "mini in between Disney" vacations. I will say though that the Sea World here seems to be a lot smaller than the ones in Florida and California. But the Riverwalk area is just wonderful and hill country is beautiful.

I was too shy and star struck to give a shout out to you on the bus lol!

We haven't been to San Antonio in umpteen years. Back before Hunter was born. We went to Sea World and to the Riverwalk and the Alamo and that was about it. That was one of the hardest cities to navigate.

Loved the whale photos, they were great. I remember going my senior year of hs. I have a really cute pic of my mom sitting on one of the seal strollers. She was being silly. (RIP mommy) I miss her bunches, but have lots of great memories. I am glad you got to experience the whales with your mom.

Our dates for our trip will overlap. Hopefully our trip will be May 27-June 7. Maybe we will see you down there!

I need to get directions from you coming in from 75. When we went a couple years ago, we went all the way around property, and didn't get to see the Welcome to Disney arch till we were on the way out.

Looking forward to the rest of the report!

I love that you have wonderful memories of your Mom. It's nice to have them.

Woo hoo for our dates overlapping! I bet that you took the toll road and came in the backside of WDW. MapQuest suggests that route but we don't take it. The route that we take puts us on Hwy. 27 and it takes a little longer but we get to see more on the way in. You want me to post our specific directions? I don't mind.

I am all read up!!! Well, I had been reading along on my phone app but it is so hard to see the pictures so now I have seen/read it all!! No way I can comment on everything but loving Sea World!! We went in San Antonio about 10 years ago and keep saying we hope to return...just haven't made it yet! Also, I need to try House of Blues....that food looks yummy!!! Hopefully i can keep up now!

Good to see you're caught up again. I have no idea why in the world you can't keep up. Probably 'cause you've got two busy teenagers and work full time.

Try House of Blues....delicious!

 

[mickeystoontown]

Hi ya Dis Friends! I had thought that I would get an installment posted yesterday afternoon but it didn't happen and it doesn't look like it will happen this afternoon either. Yesterday was....was.....was....what would be the best word to describe yesterday afternoon? Hum? I can't think of one.

John called at lunch and I was telling him about my phone conversation with my mother. My niece has to have semi-emergency gallbladder surgery but insurance won't pay for the tests that have to be performed before they do the surgery. Mama was stressing out about that because, well, that's what she does best...stress about things.

Then, when I am done with my story, I ask how work is going and John said "Me and D don't work there any more." Whaaaaaaat? I thought that he was just kidding and asked if he were. He wasn't. I asked what was going on and, John being the man of little words, just said "I quit." To say that I was shocked is an understatement. The tears started flowing and I, again, asked what happened and told him to tell me more than "I quit".

For the last year, the company that he works for has been having problems in the cabinet shop. The bossman's friend was hired to take over for the soon to retire shop supervisor who has been there forever and a day. The new supervisor (if that's what you want to call him) wants to be everyone's friend, likes to chit chat, changed up the hours, let's things get past inspection, etc.

I've been practically begging John to go talk to his boss who he has known for over 20 years and tell him what is going on. But, given John's upbringing, he doesn't have a lot of self-confidence when it comes to these kind of situations. I won't go into all of his history here but I will say that John was raised being told that he was worthless, he would never amount to anything, made to quit school at 15, go to work full time and told to support himself. Building high self-esteem wasn't something his parents practiced.

Anyway, they had a shop meeting yesterday and the boss talked about how production was down, he was losing money because of employee mistakes, some employees were acting as if they didn't give a s***, etc. John took personal offense to that (as did his friend D) and, after the meeting, calmly walked over to both supervisors, told them that he didn't have to work under those circumstances, that he gives his all and that he was packing up his tools and was gone. He went into the office, shook his boss's hand and told him that he quit. He left the boss standing there slackjawed.

Now, ya'll don't get me wrong, I back my husband in his decisions but we have a bit of different circumstances than some. John's epilepsy requires that he go into work late some mornings, that he take off for neurology appointments, etc. Many employers are not going to hire someone knowing this. The company that he was working for is where he received the head injury so they know not to say anything about him taking off, leaving, etc.

We do have our cabinet shop that produces income but it's not a steady like a regular paycheck. If John can't work, then we have only my income to fall back on. While I am not complaining, it is super stressful for a caregiver to know that they are the only one that can be depended on. I know that some of my readers are caregivers as well so I know that you understand how I feel and do not judge me for it.

Annnnnnyway, John calmed down a bit and called his boss yesterday afternoon. He let everything off his chest including the fact that his boss's friend was doing a crappy job, that he had no idea what he was doing, that there were little peons in the shop that were acting like spies and tattling like little girls, etc. The end result: The boss asked him to come back and said that things were about to change. Big time. We shall see if that comes to fruition. But, at least John's got a job still and he feels better for speaking his mind.

That, my friends, is why I didn't get anything posted yesterday afternoon. I cried on and off from Noon until 3:00 when John talked to his boss. Then, I cried because I was so relieved. Thank goodness, I could blame a heavy smoker client's fumes on why my eyes were watering.

This afternoon, Hunter and I are going to the DMV so he can take his driving test. He already has his learner's permit so he only has to take the driving portion now. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that there's not a long line but I'm pretty sure there will be since there's only one DMV on our side of the river.

I appreciate ya'll listening to my whining!

 

[PhoenixStrength]

Holy moly, that was one bad afternoon. I'm so glad John finally talked to his boss and was able to work things out so he has his job still and things will, hopefully, change for the better. I can absolutely understand the tears you had falling. I hope this afternoon and evening are much better for you!!

Good luck to Hunter on his driving test, and I hope the lines aren't too long for you.

 

[KatMark]

Oh, Lisa, I would have been crying too. That is just wrong as we can all tell from your posts what a faithful and good worker John is. I'm glad he finally called his boss and told him exactly what was happening and that he is back on the job.

Good luck to Hunter.