Coffee on the Verandah - Two by two - 5/21

[dizneeat]

[eandesmom]

Originally Posted by PrincePluto

Happy New Year! Good wishes and prayers for your family's medical issues.

Thanks! Happy New Year to you too!

Originally Posted by Captain_Oblivious

New vacation plans are always exciting! Great to have something to look forward to. Your plan is pretty ambitious...hope you can pull it off!

Well the good news is that my side of the family is a certified bunch of park commandos, Disney and Harry Potter freaks. A few of them might be flakes on when they commit but overall, they will be good. It will be different, some the kids are horrible eaters so I think the dining portion may be the biggest challenge. It will also be different as it's a bunch of teen boys that together, make the decibel level of any house shake. Putting them all in one room is a bit frightening and I see a trip filled with Sorcerers of the magic Kingdom, Perry and Disney Quest but hey, it will be different.

I think the biggest challenge may be figuring out how to do a couple of dinners in the villa. At the treehouse we will have the deck so doing a dinner there should work since we can kick kids outside (even if it's 50 degrees). At Boardwalk I'm not sure. Those tables only seat 4 and even factoring in couches and veranda's and even the counter, I'm not sure how well it will work but it would save quite a bit of $$.

Originally Posted by Captain_Oblivious

I have to confess that whenever I start reading about deals on DVC contracts I start losing track of the words and hearing Charlie Brown's teacher in my head. Don't worry, as long as it makes sense to you, that's what's important.

totally, I get it.

Originally Posted by dizneeat

I love this Karin! Thank you and Happy New Year back to you!

[eandesmom]

Back to our regularly scheduled programming!

But first a couple of updates. On my nephew he did see his new doc who has started him on heart meds and wants to see him every 6 months So other than the meds, no real change for him right now. Question we all really have is why his previous doc didn't sent him to this kind of specialist before and why he wasn't on meds before as they may improve some function. Though the whole thing was a big scare, we are grateful in a way that he ended up seeing a different doctor who waived the red flag as ultimately he's under more appropriate care now. My dad is scheduled for an angiogram this afternoon. He's been freaking us out over the last month or so and finally went in. As before we will see where the blockage is and they will decide what to do. Could be nothing, could be more stents, we will see. His doc is pretty adamant that he is still not at the candidate for a bypass level as his heart does a decent job of rebuilding alternate routes on it's own, it just takes a while. If the blockage is where they can’t get at it, right now they are saying he will just have to wait it out and it could be a good 6-8 months before he's built enough new bypass on his own to really feel better. Ugh. Getting my dad to slow down is impossible. Sigh. I will update later tonight when I know.

We left off with our successful ditching of all 3 kids within hours of boarding. The E's were off playing mini golf, Kendall off in the teen club having made new friends already. Actually she wasn't in the club, her new "friend" had grabbed her and they'd taken off to somewhere but Kendall had assured Jeff she knew how to get to the stateroom and what time dinner was. It made me nervous but it was her birthday after all!

We had 2nd seating for dinner, which we vastly prefer as it lines up with our normal eating time. That meant if we wanted to see any of the shows offered, it would need to be done before dinner, at 6. The boys arrived back on time and we headed to watch The Golden Mickey's. I believe this is offered the first night on all Disney Cruises. I know it was on the Wonder.
If you've not seen it, think of it as a Disney version of the Oscars



Red carpet photography



I won't go over the whole story line but it's cute. They do celebrate Disney movies throughout.

Some pretty Snow white scenes behind the curtain





As you can see we were in an upper side balcony, sorry for the heads!


Ah, the Hunchback. I've still never seen this movie.



Tarzan!



A visit under the Sea



Complete with bubbles



Huh, he wasn't in the movie!







Uh oh



Guess you have to celebrate the best villains too!







And a little bit of roundup for good measure







This is the "star" of the show, the backstage coordinator turned last minute replacement host (of course) so she can have her own princess moment.



Imagine our surprise when we found that Rapunzel was actually in the balcony next to ours!





Some flying carpets





And lions




Continued in next post

[KatMark]

Cynthia, I just wanted to stop by and wish you and your beautiful family a very Happy New Year.

[eandesmom]

My favorite princess



Our princess and her hero





Last but not least







Sorry the pics are rather lousy, I really need to work on my low light shots and figure out how to use my own darn camera as I know it can do better.
While I liked the Golden Mickey’s on the Wonder, I did like it better on the Dream. I’m not sure if it was just bigger brighter sets, the addition or Rapunzel or what else was different but I enjoyed it more. They really do an amazing job on the shows, I can’t say enough about it.

After the show we headed back to the stateroom to change. And catch the sunset from our verandah!



I stayed out of the way taking pics while the rest got ready. Apparently Jeff and Kendall were doing some de-wrinkling. Or the mirror was too short to stand in front of. Or both.



He looks like he's running late!



Yeah, about those low light shots?





Nice new hat huh. LOL! Between the hat and his silver lanyard, that little boy was in heaven! Even if it doesn't appear so in the picture.

Nighty night sun



And with that, we went to dinner. Our first evening was in the Enchanted Garden. I'd requested this rotation as I'd wanted to be at Royal Palace for our "dress up" night and then have Animators twice. Since we’d be ditching them one of the 2 nights for Palo I wanted them to get their favorite twice in return. I am sorry to say I have no pictures of dinner. As it was our first night with new table mates, I’m always a bit leery of being too weird at the table. Don’t worry, it’s only this meal. We were seated with a single mom and her lovely daughters who were 15 and 20. Perfect! I'd asked to be seated with a family that had girls K's age! They were just lovely lovely lovely folks, from CA. Which is funny since on our last cruise we were with another family of all girls, 2 mom's in that case, also from CA. As Jeff is from there, lots to talk about immediately and the girls were just charming.
Our servers, Allan and Merrick were very nice. Sadly, as with the Wonder, for some reason the assistant server who handles the drink orders took forever. Jeff apparently thought he was living like a rockstar and ordered a wine package which surprised the heck out of me considering we had plenty of wine in the room and we knew we'd order something nicer than the package offerings at Palo. I wasn't convinced him getting a glass with dinner wasn't the cheaper route. But ok, no biggie, we are now committed to 3 bottles of wine during the cruise which meant I probably wouldn't be bringing a glass to dinner anymore! I had brought a large glass of white with me from the room as at the time I was really avoiding red wine which is what he wanted and I knew is what we'd be having at Palo. I can at least tell you what I ordered, only because I actually took notes (which I did NOT do during food and wine so sorry in advance for those reading that TR lol).

Appetizer: Ahi Tuna and Avocado Tower - with crisp noodles and wasabi dressing

Entrée: Pan-seared Sea Bass - with Saffron and fennel risotto with a sweet chili glaze

And for Dessert I had a fruit tart, which I don’t see listed anywhere.

I want to say that Jeff's wine didn't show up until after the appetizers. Our server opened it and proceeded to pour Jeff a taste which he okayed. The server then poured the other mom a glass! Not me, our table mate.
"I am so sorry, I thought she was with you". Oh my goodness. The poor woman hadn't ordered anything to drink so we didn't even know if she did and she was mortified, as was the server. We all laughed it off and told her to enjoy it, which she did. Talk about an ice breaker!

Dinner was lovely, I really did enjoy the food. It is my least favorite décor wise, which doesn't mean I don’t like it, I just like the other 2 restaurants better. During dinner we did notice she ship swaying a little but it wasn't bad, actually a little pleasant if you ask me. I had make everyone take Bonine that morning, and planned to do so each day as a preventative measure so I wasn't worried. It was really more for me to see if taking it proactively would avoid the vertigo I'd had after my last 2 cruises. After dinner we split up again. The plan was for K to hook back up with her friends (2 of which were actually girls that she’d have met at the FE meet, had we made it) and the boys would check out the tween club and then hit the pool and Aquaduck. The adults would head to the adult comedy show.
We went back to the stateroom first.

I thought folks might like to see what the family suite looks like with all 3 beds set up





K's giant bag is on the table. It drove me NUTS in the stateroom. The boys and both of us unpacked and then put our bags away. K preferred to live out of her bag with stuff spilling everywhere. In fact this becomes an issue later on but I’ll hold on that now. That thing was huge and in the way. But as you can see, without the bag there, the room is pretty navigable and doesn't feel claustrophobic. You can make it out to the verandah while someone is in the Murphy. That is if their bag isn't in the way like a landmine. LOL!

A few more pics. I know I could find hardly any with all 3 beds set up when I looked so I’m sure I went overboard.





Our bed was a little fancier



And had a friend



We headed off to the comedy show which we loved! It was absolutely hysterical and we were excited that they'd have a family show later in the cruise we could all go to. The only unfortunate thing is that while sitting there my feet, covered in all the no see um bites, really began to bother me, feeling again like they were on fire. I’m sure the straps of the sandals I’d worn to dinner weren't helping either. Feet on fire and tired after a very long day we decided to call it a night after the show. The boys were due to be back at the room by the shows end and true to their word, they were. The 4 of us went to bed. I am honestly not sure what time K came in as I was out cold but come in she did. Me, I'd probably have given her a curfew but it was her birthday and it was Jeff's call, not mine. She is responsible and we had no reason to be concerned about anything otherwise but still it made me nervous.

It's funny, the first night on the ship always seems to have something. On the Wonder, it creaked. It wasn't unpleasant but it was noticeable. I actually found it kind of soothing in an odd way. On the Dream, our verandah door whistled. I don't recall it doing it any other night and maybe I just got used to it, I'm not sure. Either way it didn't keep me or my burning feet up, I passed out cold and had a peaceful sleep. Tomorrow would be our first port, Nassau.

A walk on the promenade

[KatMark]

I was posting a "Happy New Year" post to you and you were posting your update.

The show looks really cute and how neat that Raphunzel was in the balcony next to you.

The room looks plenty big for the three kids...well, except for that bag (I have a child who lives out of a suitcase and drives me nuts in the process ).

Glad you had a good dinner and that you enjoyed the adult comedy show.

[rentayenta]

Happy New Year Cynthia.

Jeff was right, thank you for the shot of the bed layout in the family suite. I have been under the impression my family would have to get 2 cabins when pricing out cruises. I know with two cabins we'd have an extra bathroom but the family suite has got to be less expensive than one interior and one with a balcony, right? Maybe I'm up in the night.

Belle is one of my favorites too.

[Mndisneygirl]

Nice update! I liked the Golden Mickeys too - not my all time fave, but it was a fun show - cool that Rapunzel was up by you!

I know what you mean about the camera settings. I really wish I could find time to learn mine better. I know it has the capability - it's just user "issues"!

I hope on our next cruise our kids enjoy some time on their own too.
Funny about the wine at dinner! I guess if she's a wine drinker, she appreciates it. At least she helped work on those three bottles!

So the set up of the beds - was that curtain next to the murphy bed the verandah door?

I hope your feet get better soon!!

[Disney9.9.10]

The Golden Mickey's looks like such a cute show. What an adventure at dinner - pouring wine for the wrong guest I'm glad that you had such good table mates though.

Also, Happy New Year to you and your family!!

[MEK]

I'm so glad your nephew found a new cardiologist and has been started on appropriate meds. All I can think is the old doctor was waiting for his ejection fraction to change before referring him to a specialist. But I agree that he should have been under the correct specialist care all along. I hope that his next echocardiogram brings good news!

I hope your dad is making out OK with his cath today. Fingers crossed.

Great update. Thanks for the picture of how the family suite looks. I was curious about that.

The sunset from the verandah looks beautiful!

Wow - that show looks great. I didn't know you could take pictures of the show. It looks pretty cool.

Too funny about the wine. What a way to get an unexpected glass of wine.

Dinner sounds yummy. I guess I'll excuse you for not posting food pics.

[MAGICFOR2]

Happy New Year! We are just laying low after our kids have left. I am glad to hear your nephew has a new doc and a treatment plan. I hope the new meds help. And I hope your Dad did okay with the angio? Interesting that his heart "makes new bypass" I didn't know it would do that. Amazing. Glad to hear he is okay for now.
Well, you've made it through your first night. Sounds like you are settling in nicely. I am wondering what your impression of Enchanted Garden is - did you think it was as impressive as the ads look? Too funny about the waiter serving your wine to your tablemate! They usually have everyone all figured out in advance. Someone didn't do their homework. Looking forward to your Nassau day!

[mickeystoontown]

Although I'm sure that ya'll hoped that it would have happened sooner, it sounds like the new doctor is just what your nephew needed.

I had to laugh when I saw the "dewrinkling" picture. You'll probably remember my iron "incident" on the cruise. I should have used their dewrinkling methods.

What a great way to end the evening, good shows and a nice dinner.

[mickeystoontown]

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

[MeMom]

The shows would be a big draw for me cruising.

Originally Posted by eandesmom

But as you can see, without the bag there, the room is pretty navigable and doesn't feel claustrophobic.

This is how I know I am a real claustrophobe, because I am gasping for breath as I look at this! If they would let me sleep out on a deck chair in the open air, I could cruise.

[eandesmom]

He went in to the cath lab around 3. Typically this takes about 45 minutes. At an hour 10 we started to check and basically got no info. At 2 hours we were finally told they'd be out in a few. What typically happens is his cardiologist comes out after the angio, tells us the plan and then if they are doing anything, the heart surgeon (who is a different doc) does his thing and then chats with us when it is over.

This time the cardiologist just simply didn't come out and update us.

He is blocked in his right coronary artery, again. Left side still looks good, lower part not any worse. They can't do any more stents in there so they went in with the biggest balloons they have to try and open things up and it is "a lot better, but not perfect". Because the issue is still only on the one side, they don't want to do a bypass but save that for when it really is needed. Which to us means we will probably be going through this every 6 months or so. My mom did decide to cancel their Sonoma trip but hopefully they are just pushing it back a week. This will sound odd but it was in it's own way, a fun afternoon. All my siblings, except the ones who live out of state were there, and it was fun to have it be just us.

Oh and we decided on a design for a group T shirt for next New Years trip. Which we are keeping as a New Years trip. And I wasn't even the one who brought it up!

In the spirit of that, since everyone seems to focus on the MK NYE fireworks, how about some Epcot Illuminations NYE (Carolyn, maybe you can share pics if you take any tonight?).

Happy New Year everyone!