My Butt Feels Weird-September 2016 TR *Completed 1/19*

[ashw100]

Hello and welcome to the most spirited season of them all. I’ll be your host, Ashley (I bet you thought I was gonna say ghost host ) on this trip report. This is my 5th TR here on the DISboards, and it’s about our Labor Day Trip from this year, September 1-5th. We stayed at the Contemporary one night and the other three at the Polynesian. We visited just MK and Epcot, as well as MNSSHP and managed to squeeze in 5 ADRs in our weekend.


I wasn’t sure if I was going to do a TR for this because it was a super quick trip and to be honest not a great one. And when I say not a great trip, I mean probably my worst trip ever. Which is kind of funny, because if you read my previous TR from May here, you’d know that was my best trip ever. While this trip was very challenging in many ways, we also came away with a ton of great memories. So I will focus more on the good stuff, than the bad. Our May 2015 trip (TR here) was also very difficult. Doing a TR actually allowed me to view the trip with a different perspective and have a much better outlook on it, so I am hoping that will happen this time too.


So if you are ready, this TR is full of spooky Halloween fun, tears, laughs, and a TON of characters. So strap in and keep your hands and feet inside the vehicle.

Introductions

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On this trip we had me. Ashley, 28 years old, stay at home mom, lover of all things Disney, brand new travel agent, and maker of this TR.

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My mom, she won’t be in the TR too much picture wise, and I know she prefers it that way. She is a teacher and I was so thankful, because I wouldn’t have been able to do this trip without her.

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Connor, from here on out known as DS6. He is in 1st grade, lover of all things Star Wars, and was my main buddy this trip.

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James, aka DS4. He just started preschool and is also a lover of Star Wars and princesses. He is my sensitive child and had a hard time this trip.

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Nicholas, aka DS2 is our little spitfire child. He is fully into the terrible twos and you can imagine how that played out during the trip. He is OBSESSED with Star Wars, it’s kind of crazy how obsessed and Mickey Mouse.

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I hope you will join me in reliving this crazy trip.

 

[ashw100]

September 1
Travel Day

September 2
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5
Part 6

September 3
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3

September 4
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3

September 5
Part 1

Wrap Up

 

[cindianne320]

Following along!

 

[missangelalexis]

Joining in!

 

[vicki's mom]

Following along.

 

[unwritten01]

Look forward to it!

 

[Grumpy's Wife]

I enjoyed reading along on your last trip. Looking forward to this one too.

 

[ashw100]

Following along!

Thanks for following along again.

Joining in!

Yay, thanks for joining.

Following along.

Glad to have you

Look forward to it!

Hope you enjoy it.

I enjoyed reading along on your last trip. Looking forward to this one too.

So happy to have you along for this one too.

 

[Dugette]

I'm here! Sorry you had a rough trip, but I still look forward to following along!

 

[gracer9977]

Joining

 

[frostymojo]

Following along.

 

[Imagineer5]

following

 

[ashw100]

I'm here! Sorry you had a rough trip, but I still look forward to following along!

Yay, so glad you're here. I'm mostly over the horrors of the trip

Joining

Thanks for following.

Following along.

So glad to have you here.

following

Hope you enjoy.

 

[Shrfleen]

Following along.

 

[afwdwfan]

I hope that looking back on this trip will indeed allow the good memories to shine.

Sadly that's part of it. There's good and there's bad. They can't all be the best trip ever, but there will be highlights to cherish and possibly things to learn from!

 

[ashw100]

Following along.

Hope you enjoy

I hope that looking back on this trip will indeed allow the good memories to shine.

Sadly that's part of it. There's good and there's bad. They can't all be the best trip ever, but there will be highlights to cherish and possibly things to learn from!

You know it's funny because right after my May 2015 trip, I had bad feelings but notw I only look back fondly. Maybe the same thing will happen this time, at least one can hope

 

[ashw100]

Day 1: September 1 Travel Day

Everyone’s favorite TR day, travel day. Actually I have a confession, I love travel days in TRs. I think I just like seeing how other people prepare for their trips. Anyway, the week leading up to this trip was particularly stressful for me. My car started having break problems, DS6 started school, and DS4 had a stomach bug and was throwing up everywhere. Finally Disney day had arrived with the other problems fixed and I was ready to go. DH got DS6 off to school, while I cleaned up and packed for the trip. It seemed to be smooth sailing until DH was bathing the boys and DS2 pooped in the tub. Which of course meant re-cleaning both the boys, cleaning the tub and soaking all the bath toys in bleach and this was an hour before we were supposed to leave. Nothing like a little last minute craziness. At 11:00, I went to pick up DS6 from school while DH got the little boys ready and in the car. We were in the road at 11:30, for our four hour drive to the airport. We live in central Michigan and can fly our of Grand Rapids, which is an hour away, but since I booked this trip 3 months out, flights were insane from there. The only reasonable prices were from Chicago, which is actually where we’re from, so we like to fly out of there too. DH was driving in his car and also going to Chicago. The reason he wasn’t coming on this trip was because he has an annual guys weekend thing with his friends, so he was headed there. He had to drive his car, because he had to go back home Sunday, but it was nice that he would be able to help me to get to Florida.

We drove all the way to Grandville, which is just southwest of Grand Rapids, and got Chipotle for lunch. The boys watched Beauty and the Beast, since I think we haven’t seen it since before DS4 was born.

We didn’t stop again until Indiana for a potty break.

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Beauty and the Beast was over, so I turned on Nightmare Before Christmas. James’ reaction to this, the beginning in particular was hilarious. Obviously, I couldn’t get a good picture since I was driving, but when stopped in traffic I got this.

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Only an hour away from our destination and we hit major traffic that delayed us about an hour in total. Once we got into Illinois, I glanced back to see how the boys were doing and James had blood streaming down his face. James has bloody noses a lot, but it never gets less shocking seeing your child’s face covered in blood, especially when driving. Unfortunately, there was nowhere to really stop, so I had to coach him through it. It stopped after a little while, and since we were so close I decided to just keep going. We got the Ohare oasis, which is a rest stop on the Illinois toll road, to get everyone cleaned up and changed before we got to the airport. I wasn’t sure how long Joe would be with me, so I wanted to get everything out of the way there. Also at this time, I was checking on mine and my mom’s flight, because the hurricane was reaching Florida, and we weren’t sure how it was going to affect travel. So far everything was good for both our flights. Also, I saw a text from Disney letting me know our room was ready.

We drove to the airport and parked our cars in long term parking. It was just around 4 central time, so about 3 hours before our flight. Normally, I would never get to the airport that early, but given the possibility of trying to navigate one of the country’s busiest airports with three kids and myself, I wanted to give us plenty of time. We had to take a train over to the main terminal and at first the ride was pleasant. Then we stopped at the international terminal and the car was flooded with people and then some lady fell on top of DS2. Needless to say, I was happy to get off at the next stop, terminal 3. I had to stand in line for the counter, so I could talk to a ticketing agent. The line wasn’t that long but it took forever.

When it was finally our turn, I asked if I could get a gate pass for DH. Now for those of you that don’t know, a gate pass can be given to a non-ticketed person per the discretion of a ticketing agent, if a ticketed passenger needs help beyond security. I found out about this, because American gave my parents these passes when my brother was being deployed to Japan. I felt that one person, traveling with three kids of their ages, would qualify. The lady however, barely let me get my explanation out, before she said no. I think she could kind of tell I was surprised because of how fast she denied me, but her excuse was that she had no authority to do that and her hands were tied. Okay then, it sucked, but I was prepared for that. DH immediately started to talk to DS6 & 4 to tell them to behave and so forth. Meanwhile I was trying to stop Nicholas from taking off his shoes and socks. The lady was getting our tickets and bags sorted and I think she could see how much of a handful my kids were, and suddenly her hands were no longer tied, because she says you know I can give you a gate pass. I mean really? I was too grateful to be annoyed though.

Once we were all checked in, we walked down to the very last security check point, which had nobody there and easily got through. After all that, we only had about two hours until our flight left and it was 6 our time, so we went in search of dinner. My stomach was in knots from all the stress, so I opted not to eat, but I got the boys Subway.

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It was during dinner that I noticed DS6 was starting to cough and sniffle. I swear this kid has the worst immune system. Every year he gets sick right off the bat and battles illnesses every month at least for the entire school year. So of course, just days after starting school he was already sick.

With tummies full, we walked over to terminal 2, where I knew they had a play area. We let the boys play for about 30 minutes, which was a nice way to let them expend their energy before the flight.

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We made our way over to our gate, which was VERY far away and got there a few minutes before boarding. DH took DS6 for a potty break and then I took DS4 to the bathroom and tried to buy a snack for the flight. Unfortunately, the shop’s computers were down and I knew I was running out of time. So we had to run down to Nuts on Clark, which sells the famous Chicago popcorn. I grabbed that and some drinks and had to run back to the gate. After all that, it was time to board. We always like to be the last ones on the plane, because I don’t want to be stuck on there with antsy kids any longer than is necessarily, so when I was sure everyone was on, I grabbed all the bags from DH gave him a kiss and headed down the jetway, just me and the boys.

Once we were all settled, I started texting my mom, because her flight was leaving within minutes of mine, only from Dallas. Only, her pilot said that due to rain, they would be stuck on the runway for a little bit. There was no rain in Orlando, but I think she had to fly over the hurricane and we didn’t. So we took off on time and lucky our plane had the seat back, tablets which kept the kids entertained the whole flight.

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I even got to watch most of Tomorrowland, which I have been meaning to see. I didn’t think the movie was great, but there is nothing like taking off for Disney World and the opening credit music to your movie being There’s a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow.

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As soon as we landed, I was on American’s website, trying to get info for my mom’s flight. We ended up landing a few minutes early but then taxied for 15 minutes, and my mom’s flight landed a few minutes late, but got right to her gate. So we basically got to the airport at the same time, the only problem was we were in different terminals. I was in A and I assumed my bags would be in A too, they weren’t. I was getting lost and very frustrated and my mom was being confusing to where she was. I was not in a great mood and ended up snapping at her on the phone. So when we did finally find each and my bags, it was not a joyous reunion. Since my bags were actually in terminal B, we just had a short walk over to the Magical Express.

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While we were waiting to get on the bus, it was more of my mom and I not getting along I’ll say. I think we were both very tired and stressed. To top it off, my mom, who is a teacher, had a student knock her over and then try to run away that day and she was sick.

We got on the bus and got settled. The boys were happily looking at books my mom had brought them and I had a chance to relax a little bit and I apologized to my mom for snapping ate her.

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All seemed to be good, when suddenly my mom says I don’t feel well I have to get off this bus and she takes off. Besides the obvious, of worrying about my mom, I didn’t know what to do. I didn’t think I would be able to collect all the kids and then my luggage from under the bus and try to find her. At the same time, DS4 starts crying because he thinks she left us. And when he cries, it not normal crying, it's more like a loud wailing. It was so bad, and we were just stuck there and I couldn’t do anything, and we were still waiting for the bus to go. After a few minutes I see my mom coming back to the bus. She apparently got sick and then felt much better, no more problems the whole trip, which was good. And one she was on, we left to finally get to WDW.

I watch See Ya Reel Soon (a Youtube channel) with DS6 and he’s seen magical express on that and he was so excited to finally get to ride it. This was my first time too, we’ve always rented a car, even when I went with my family as a teen.

The ride was nice, although disappointing that we didn’t get to go under the sign, we did drive past Epcot and saw SE all lit up. Contemporary was the last stop and we got there about 12:15. DS2 fell asleep on the ride.

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Having only been here for breakfast at Chef Mickey’s I had no idea how to get to my room. I tried to ask the bell hop outside and he had no clue. The one guy working the desk was taking forever with the other guest and since I knew which room we were, we just wandered a bit and finally found the outer building. Luckily, we got our room request which was just to be ground floor close to the lobby, so it was close.

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We were really only here for a few hours, but I did really like it. I would definitely stay here again, since it is the cheapest option for staying on the monorail loop. DS2 stayed asleep so I got him right into bed. The older two got ready and we all hit the hay pretty quickly. We had a very long day ahead of us, so we wanted to get as much sleep as possible.

Next Post​

 

[HomeSweetDisney]

Joining in!

My goodness, it sounds like your travel day was definitely not dull! To say the least! But I am glad you all made it ok and that your mom felt better after being sick. Sometimes getting it out is what it takes, but I know I hate that feeling too

That seems bizarre that the bell hop had no idea what direction to even point you in...not very helpful! Glad you finally found it though and got all settled in.

Looking forward to reading along and hearing more about your trip

P.S. Your boys are soooooo cute!!

 

[missangelalexis]

Wow, sounds like quite an eventful arrival day! I'm sorry things were hectic for you

Your room looks really nice!

 

[Imagineer5]

So far everything was good for both our flights. Also, I saw a text from Disney letting me know our room was ready.

That's a great way to start out!! Room already ready, and flight on tim!

because she says you know I can give you a gate pass. I mean really? I was too grateful to be annoyed though.

Wow, I had never considered asking for that! When I have DD3, this will come in handy (although I only just now convinced DH to take us to the airport on my next trip lol, let alone park and help us through!). So nice he was able to help out.

We made our way over to our gate, which was VERY far away and got there a few minutes before boarding. DH took DS6 for a potty break and then I took DS4 to the bathroom and tried to buy a snack for the flight. Unfortunately, the shop’s computers were down and I knew I was running out of time. So we had to run down to Nuts on Clark, which sells the famous Chicago popcorn. I grabbed that and some drinks and had to run back to the gate. After all that, it was time to board. We always like to be the last ones on the plane, because I don’t want to be stuck on there with antsy kids any longer than is necessarily, so when I was sure everyone was on, I grabbed all the bags from DH gave him a kiss and headed down the jetway, just me and the boys.

I miss getting to do this, as I always fly SW now and need to be first to board to get a good row of seats together!

I was in A and I assumed my bags would be in A too, they weren’t. I was getting lost and very frustrated and my mom was being confusing to where she was. I was not in a great mood and ended up snapping at her on the phone. So when we did finally find each and my bags, it was not a joyous reunion. Since my bags were actually in terminal B, we just had a short walk over to the Magical Express.

How weird! About the A & B discrepancy, but at least you had to be in B anyway for the ME. At this point in anyone's travels, I would be impressed if you were in an amazing mood (although good job for the boys being so good on the plane!!).

All seemed to be good, when suddenly my mom says I don’t feel well I have to get off this bus and she takes off. Besides the obvious, of worrying about my mom, I didn’t know what to do. I didn’t think I would be able to collect all the kids and then my luggage from under the bus and try to find her. At the same time, DS4 starts crying because he thinks she left us. And when he cries, it not normal crying, it's more like a loud wailing. It was so bad, and we were just stuck there and I couldn’t do anything, and we were still waiting for the bus to go. After a few minutes I see my mom coming back to the bus. She apparently got sick and then felt much better, no more problems the whole trip, which was good. And one she was on, we left to finally get to WDW.

Oh my goodness!! How sad for her and worrisome for you and DS4, eek! So sweet he was so upset over it, but still!

Having only been here for breakfast at Chef Mickey’s I had no idea how to get to my room. I tried to ask the bell hop outside and he had no clue. The one guy working the desk was taking forever with the other guest and since I knew which room we were, we just wandered a bit and finally found the outer building. Luckily, we got our room request which was just to be ground floor close to the lobby, so it was close.

Ugh! So nice it was close by, but strange no one could help out. Did you just bring all your luggage onto ME with you so you'd have it? What a long night! lol. I've never stayed at the Contemporary itself but absolutely LOVE BLT!