Wait, do we have a Fast Pass for that? Final Update, Final Thoughts and Favs 1/26

[PrncessA]

At that moment I realized we hadn’t explored behind the 7DMT, so we headed that way instead. We came upon a CM at the entrance of Ariel’s Grotto and she said Ariel was still there, so we headed in, with no line! We literally walked all the way up to Ariel! Our timestamp says it was 1:31am.





After a quick visit with Ariel we decided to take a journey “under the sea”. I was so looking forward to this ride, since The Little Mermaid is one of my favorite Disney movies, but I thought it was just OK. I loved the music, but it just was over too quickly.

We finally started making our way over to Tomorrowland, where our first stop to help Buzz defeat the Evil Emperor Zurg! (with no wait of course!!) Our time stamp says 1:57am, and the kids were still pumping with excitement!











I am not even going to embarrass myself by revealing my score...

After Buzz we decided to take a quick break and get some drinks and popcorn (which Lorelai had been asking for). We stopped outside Space Mountain and ate some of our popcorn and took bio breaks, but time was a ticking down and we still had a few rides we just had to get in!

So we headed in for all of our very first rides on Space Mountain! (2:27am)





The verdict, Erik hated it (too jerky for his back) but the kids and I loved it! We thought about riding again, but I could not end the night without my favorite ride and Erik’s favorite, so we headed out!

We stopped to take some photos on our way at 2:34am! We all still look awake!





Erik is a huge Peter Pan’s Flight fan, he just loves it, but it always has such a long line!! Well apparently not at close to 3 in the morning! We walked on and soon we were soaring over London and Neverland!

It was now getting very close to 3am, but we had one more ride that we just had to ride… it’s a small world!! I just love this ride. I love the history of it, I love the dolls, I love the feel, and I even love the song! No one else in my family feels this way, but they humor me. Lorelai likes it, but not like me! We were completely alone on our boat and in the ride!

When we unloaded and were walking up the ramp the clock chimed 3! It was so much fun, joking around with the CM’s about closing time and we had made it all the way to 3:00am, surprisingly with no meltdowns or tears the entire night!!



We started making our way toward the exit and while we did they were doing what I think was the kiss goodnight on the castle. I wanted to watch, but the adrenaline that had been moving us forward when there were rides to ride, had suddenly left most of the family!

We hiked our way to the YC bus stop and loaded onto the waiting bus, which had a few other families. The kids were out in moments and it was a challenge to wake them up when we arrived at the YC! As we were walking up to the doors, we had a visit from a tiny little snake! That woke us up!

We drug ourselves upstairs and into bed, I set our alarm for 9:00am, and we ended our night/morning happy and dreaming of a MK where lines didn’t exist! I couldn't believe that we had made it to 3am, to be honest, but what a fun way to kick off our park days. It did however lure the kids into the understanding that we could ride rides without waiting in a line...

Next up: A weird encounter in the CL lounge and heading to DHS!!

 

[ZehnJahren]

Wow what a night you guys had!

First, how cute is your daughter and her interaction with Rapunzel?? That is a very good Rapunzel; I've seen some questionable ones.

I cannot believe you guys made it until 3 a.m.! And it looks like a ride blitz - one after another after another. I don't think I've ever been to the park myself at 3 a.m., but now I want to. Any time PP is a walk on... that's excellent!

I go back and forth with SM. One trip, I rode it like 5 times and was hooting and hollering with the kids. Another trip, I rode it once and was holding my back and neck in pain. And on a third trip, my trip in May, I skipped it altogether! I'm not sure if I'm going to ride it this trip yet entirely - we're doing a tour where you ride it, but I just don't know if it's a good idea. I had a car accident in March and I'm not 100% yet. But that's amazing that it was your first time riding it, and at such a late hour. Your kids are troopers!

How could you set your alarm for 9 a.m.!? You'd have to be exhausted the next day!

 

[martinmont]

So the characters will meet during night EMH? It's only DH and me, and I really want to meet some characters but I'm sure he won't appreciate too much time in lines for something that's not a ride lol

 

[ashleymrush]

Need to catch up but I'm joining in! I'm excited to read about your trip!

 

[MarbleBob]

Wow, I've been away from my computer for a few days and had a lot to catch up on!

It's so cool that you got the room upgrade!!! We've had a lot of magical experiences at WDW in the past, but nothing like an upgrade to club level.

Too bad about Test Track! I would have been super bummed out too.

Also too bad about your Coral Reef and O'hana experiences.

We ate at Coral Reef once years ago and felt about the same. It was good, but not great. Never felt the need to go back.

We love O'hana on the other hand, and had a great experience when we went in June. But we were seated in the center of the room, next to the grills, we had a great server, and they did indeed have the coconut races and we chatted with Lipoa (the Ukelele lady) for a while. It's a bummer that you didn't get a similar treatment. I agree about the potstickers, those things are too darn good. I LOVE the shrimp too

Lots of great photos in these posts! The Rapunzel ones really stand out!

 

[PrncessA]

I am all caught up with your TR and am subbing in!

Wow what a night you guys had!

First, how cute is your daughter and her interaction with Rapunzel?? That is a very good Rapunzel; I've seen some questionable ones.

I cannot believe you guys made it until 3 a.m.! And it looks like a ride blitz - one after another after another. I don't think I've ever been to the park myself at 3 a.m., but now I want to. Any time PP is a walk on... that's excellent!

I go back and forth with SM. One trip, I rode it like 5 times and was hooting and hollering with the kids. Another trip, I rode it once and was holding my back and neck in pain. And on a third trip, my trip in May, I skipped it altogether! I'm not sure if I'm going to ride it this trip yet entirely - we're doing a tour where you ride it, but I just don't know if it's a good idea. I had a car accident in March and I'm not 100% yet. But that's amazing that it was your first time riding it, and at such a late hour. Your kids are troopers!

How could you set your alarm for 9 a.m.!? You'd have to be exhausted the next day!

The Rapunzel was very good! Sometimes I don't think the casting directors do a good job at picking actresses that look like the characters, but Rapunzel was spot on. Our Ariel was a little off though. She was a pretty girl, just didn't remind me of Ariel in the least. Lorelai didn't seem to mind, she was more concerned with asking me why she still had a tail.

It was definitely a wonderful night to be in the parks!

I don't think DH will ever do SM again, in his words "since it is in the dark, I can't brace for what is coming next".

Surprisingly it was easy to get up the next morning, the next morning was when it was harder!

So the characters will meet during night EMH? It's only DH and me, and I really want to meet some characters but I'm sure he won't appreciate too much time in lines for something that's not a ride lol

I think that quite a few of them still meet during EMH!

Need to catch up but I'm joining in! I'm excited to read about your trip!

Wow, I've been away from my computer for a few days and had a lot to catch up on!

It's so cool that you got the room upgrade!!! We've had a lot of magical experiences at WDW in the past, but nothing like an upgrade to club level.

Too bad about Test Track! I would have been super bummed out too.

Also too bad about your Coral Reef and O'hana experiences.

We ate at Coral Reef once years ago and felt about the same. It was good, but not great. Never felt the need to go back.

We love O'hana on the other hand, and had a great experience when we went in June. But we were seated in the center of the room, next to the grills, we had a great server, and they did indeed have the coconut races and we chatted with Lipoa (the Ukelele lady) for a while. It's a bummer that you didn't get a similar treatment. I agree about the potstickers, those things are too darn good. I LOVE the shrimp too

Lots of great photos in these posts! The Rapunzel ones really stand out!

I know what you mean, I have a lot of TR to catch up on, including yours!

I almost couldn't believe it, I thought for a moment maybe I never downgraded us from CL, it was that extreme.

I really think that we would have enjoyed 'Ohana more if we had been closer to the action. I think we will try a breakfast next time!

 

[PrncessA]

Surprisingly even after pouring ourselves into bed at close to 4:00am after a full night at the Magic Kingdom, I was up before my alarm went off at 9:00am and the rest of the family followed pretty quickly. To get around E’s usual morning talking blitz I woke him up, gave him his medicine and his tablet to watch cartoons on with headphones. We all got dressed and then as Erik and Lorelai headed down to the lounge I got E away from the cartoons and dressed and we headed down after them.

The kids sat at the kid’s table in front of the TV playing Disney cartoons and Erik and I sat at the table closest to them and enjoyed our breakfast. Erik finished before me and had to run back to the room for some reason, I can’t remember why. So I was just enjoying my breakfast, checking facebook when I heard Ethan say in a stern voice, “I did not say a bad word!”, then the boy across the table said something, and Lorelai piped up “That is not a bad word!!” Well, I didn’t think that Ethan would have used a bad word and if he had, Lorelai would have been the first person running to tell me, so I didn’t think anything about it. I did keep a close eye on the table from that point on, and none of the kids said a word to each other, at all.

A good 10 minutes later the other kid (probably 7 years old or so) gets up and walks over to his parents who were a table away from me and announces very loudly. “That boy said a bad word.” The parents were very loudly making remarks about how they were sorry that he had to deal with that, and they didn’t want him sitting next to kids like that, etc. I was getting pretty offended, but if Ethan had said a bad word, he was in trouble. So I called Ethan over to me and ask him what he had said. He had said that “That was stupid.” after one of Goofy’s cartoons. So I called Lorelai up with him and ask her and she confirmed what he had said, adding “stupid isn’t a bad word, you just can’t call people stupid, that is bad.”

Well she had a point. And there are sure a lot of bad words out there that I would have been upset at (and I am sure they have heard a lot of them at school or on TV), but calling a Goofy cartoon stupid wasn’t one of them. So I sent them back to finish breakfast. The family next to me continued discussing “bad parenting”, until I got fed up and left. We never saw the family again, but it really upset me how judgmental people could be. Am I wrong on this? Should I have been more upset at Ethan?

All “bad parenting” aside, we headed down to catch the boat for DHS! This was one of the few days that we did a full park day, with no rest in the middle. This makes my memory of the order of rides and details a bit fuzzy, I would put it together through pictures, but between Photopass, my camera and my phone they are all jumbled up! I will put together the day depending on whether E is wearing his new hat or not! LOL The kids were really excited to get to DHS and to ride ToT and RRC! It was a beautiful morning and we all were in good moods.







According to photopass we arrived at 10:28am. We of course had to stop for some quick pics!





I wanted to stop for more, but there was a theme occurring in our photos, Lorelai squinting. Lorelai did not have sunglasses and she was mad! I of course had left her’s in the room, bad mom! I realized that we needed to get her some sunglasses or she would refuse to be in photos for the rest of the day!

That made our first stop the gift kiosk right before Mickey’s hat, and we found glasses!



Ethan also found “The Hat”. He really really loved this hat, but it was so hot I thought there was no way he would wear it, so I put off buying it, but it was inevitable.



We headed toward our first FP+





And in no time we were rocking our 3-D glasses!





On our must do list was finally seeing the Indiana Jones Stunt Show, so that is where we headed next. This is the only photo I took the entire time!



It was a fun show, and Erik really liked it. I can see why people say it needs updating, and it is a “see it once” show, but we liked it. We took the kids to see Indiana Jones and Raiders of the Lost Ark at the theater a week or so after we got back, and I had forgotten how violent it is. Ethan wasn’t a fan of the movie, but loved the WDW show. After the show Ethan announced that when he grows up he is going to be a stuntman at Disney World!
After IJ, we headed over to our next FP, which I was super excited for! Star Tours!





Now here is where it is a bit fuzzy, I believe at this point we were getting a bit hungry, I am pretty sure that after Star Tours we headed into the Backlot Express for a quick bite to eat. It was so hot outside and no one was crazy hungry (in fact Ethan didn’t want anything), so we picked up a buffalo chicken meal for Erik and I , and a kid’s power pack. I also ordered a side of fries and an extra chocolate milk as snack credits. The power pack was huge and actually quite perfect to split between the kids, seeing as Ethan doesn’t eat grapes and Lorelai doesn’t eat carrots.







The chicken was actually pretty good, I had heard bad things about the Backlot Express, but the fries were hot and fresh and the chicken was good. And yes, I eat my fries with a mixture of mustard and ketchup, weird I know. The kids’ meal was prepackaged and there was no way to mess that up really. The Darth Vader cupcake was AMAZING! Seriously, just thinking about it right now makes me want another one!! It was honestly the best cupcake of the trip!

After eating and taking a bio break, we were ready to head off again, and our destination was clear… to buy the Donald Duck hat!!!!

First we stopped and rode the Great Movie Ride since it was a walk on! And we got the cowboy scene which we had never experienced.



But our real goal was the Donald Hat! E was so excited to get this hat I can’t even tell you. It was honestly the best money we spent on this trip. He wore it everywhere and has it in the place of honor in his bedroom next to all of his stuffed Donald Ducks on his dresser. You can just see how happy he is! It was even showing in his walk, or that could be the $17 socks, causing that!





Our next stop was our last FP+ of the day, Tower of Terror! We of course had to stop and get a few photopass pictures as we headed over! Looks like it was 1:47pm.




Everyone loves a magic shot!!



Although I am not sure if this the correct expression for seeing Olaf…



Our next stop was Tower of Terror and not only do we get scared out of our wits but we were in for a surprise Dis meetup!!!

 

[KatMark]

I'm behind...again.

You guys did awesome for EMH's. You got on so many attractions...I am amazed. I think Cayley and I would have made it until 3 if it had not been for our little incident (which I've not gotten to yet on my TR).

Thank you for NOT posting a lot of pictures of It's a Small World.

And what a great start to the next day...on not a whole lot of sleep.

I remember your daughter having those nifty sunglasses on. And so happy that DS found a hat that he loved and would wear all the time.

Indiana Jones...we've not done that since 2008 and rumor has it that it will close for good at the end of the year.

Hmmmm....I wonder who you have a DIS meet with?

 

[ZehnJahren]

Interesting about the kid at breakfast. I never saw "stupid" as a bad word, though some kids use it that way. I've never heard it referred to as bad, though I've reprimanded nieces and nephews that used it to refer to other people. I don't get it. I might have just asked DS what he meant by 'stupid'; sometimes kids get the weirdest definitions in their heads, or they're looking for another word and they can't find it. Maybe that would have stopped other parents from making comments if your child thought "stupid" meant "not funny".

Your DHS day looks amazing! All the good rides. How cool that your DS found something he loved so much! That Donald hat looks cute on him.

Your kids seem to be fairly fearless, riding everything; do they do that at amusement parks at home? Do you go to parks like Six Flags?

 

[martinmont]

Living thru you until our trip in dec! Loving all your photos! Any tips on how to get as many pictures as possible on memory maker? Do u ask for a few different shots or what? I'm such a newbie but I'm really trying to get the best trip possible since it's our honeymoon and first time!

 

[JPFamilyMom]

LOVE PM EMH now that my kids are getting older, they really helped our quick two day trip this past May. You all got a lot done, like full MK day done during EMH.

Sorry for a stressful/frustrating morning. That Mom really handled that wrong. My kids aren't allowed to say stupid, but they know other kids might use it and that it isn't a "bad word" but that they just aren't allowed to use it. That Mom was totally out of line.

Love the DD hat. E looks so happy

Love the kids power pack too, my 6yo loves to get that for a "meal."

We just saw Indiana Jones for the first time in May too, my kids thought it was the greatest show ever. They can't wait to go back and see it in December.

Sounds like you are having a GREAT day in the parks so far.

Great PP pictures btw

 

[ashleymrush]

I did it! I finally caught up! I've really enjoyed reading your TR so far. Your DS reminds me of my little brother. He also has ADHD, it's pretty severe. At that age he was all over the place. He's now 12 and while he's still hyperactive, he finally has a medication that is working well for him. We're hoping that puberty helps him out too. My mom struggled with the medication for a long time. Once she realized that she was treating a disorder and not just sedating her child she did a lot better. The odd thing is that his ADHD is great at Disney. You would think all the stimulation could send him over the edge but he does so well with it.

I'm glad y'all got to see Indiana Jones while you were there. Rumor is that it and American Idol are both closing in January/February to make room for the new Star Wars Land. This is all rumor though.

I'm jealous of your Star Wars cupcake. We wanted one and it never happened for us. I'm not a big chocolate cake person but DH loves his sweets and was dying for one.

 

[PrncessA]

I know I have responses to get to, but work was surprisingly busy today. We are hosting a youth fest at a local college this weekend and today my office ended up being preparation central! Then I had class tonight and work on my online class as well... geez summer is flying by!

I just had to share the video that was part of my class this week. I love it when a professor loves Disney as much as I do! I have watched many Walt Disney history movies, but I don't think I had watched this one before. If I had, I don't remember. I just love any clip that is narrated by Walt himself!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dtV2Ilr3Fk4

 

[XiolaBluX]

Your kids are adorable! Enjoying the report so far!

 

[XiolaBluX]

And looks like I live in your neck of the woods!

 

[disneywlf]

Greetings from disneywlf aka Wolf (like Wolf Blitzer) from Westbury, NY, about 45 minutes from NYC. I must say that your trip report is fantastic, with a lot of detail and excellent pictures that make this travel nerd happy! You seem like a wonderful family and I lol forward to reading more!

 

[PrncessA]

I had all of my responses except one or two finished last night and my husband searched for a TV at Costco.com and then closed the window! So here I go again..

I'm behind...again.

You guys did awesome for EMH's. You got on so many attractions...I am amazed. I think Cayley and I would have made it until 3 if it had not been for our little incident (which I've not gotten to yet on my TR).

Thank you for NOT posting a lot of pictures of It's a Small World.

And what a great start to the next day...on not a whole lot of sleep.

I remember your daughter having those nifty sunglasses on. And so happy that DS found a hat that he loved and would wear all the time.

Indiana Jones...we've not done that since 2008 and rumor has it that it will close for good at the end of the year.

Hmmmm....I wonder who you have a DIS meet with?

I would be behind as well if I was getting ready for a trip to Vegas! I am so jealous! We love Vegas, I might hide in your suitcase! I am a bit obsessed with craps. I have the worst luck with slot machines, I mean really bad luck, but I have pretty good luck at craps, even if I don't know what is going on most of the time.

I don't think we would have made it to 3am if we had hit any snafus. Our ride adrenaline kept us going. Ironically the only ride that I put off when Erik ask to ride it was POTC!

I was a bit surprised at how awake everyone was to be honest!

That hat ended up in so many photos that it should be considered one of the family!

I wonder who we meet...

Interesting about the kid at breakfast. I never saw "stupid" as a bad word, though some kids use it that way. I've never heard it referred to as bad, though I've reprimanded nieces and nephews that used it to refer to other people. I don't get it. I might have just asked DS what he meant by 'stupid'; sometimes kids get the weirdest definitions in their heads, or they're looking for another word and they can't find it. Maybe that would have stopped other parents from making comments if your child thought "stupid" meant "not funny".

Your DHS day looks amazing! All the good rides. How cool that your DS found something he loved so much! That Donald hat looks cute on him.

Your kids seem to be fairly fearless, riding everything; do they do that at amusement parks at home? Do you go to parks like Six Flags?

I guess I was so relieved that it wasn't a curse word that stupid just didn't sound all that bad. Not compared to some of the other words he learned in public school this year.

We really love DHS, although it doesn't feel like more than a 1-2 day park at the most.

Ethan is the complete opposite at Six Flags, in fact he has hated Six Flags the last few times we went there and doesn't want to go again. I think it is something about Disney, it just feels safer to him, like Disney wouldn't do anything to hurt him. When we went to the waterpark here a couple of weeks ago, they both flat out refused to ride any water slides.

Living thru you until our trip in dec! Loving all your photos! Any tips on how to get as many pictures as possible on memory maker? Do u ask for a few different shots or what? I'm such a newbie but I'm really trying to get the best trip possible since it's our honeymoon and first time!

I am right there with you! I love living vicariously through other peoples trip reports!!

We loved Memory Maker! We didn't even stop at the majority of the photographers, but we got a lot of great shots. If there is a long line at one photographer on the main entrance way of any park, walk a little further there are tons of them! I ask for nearly every one of our magic shots except for the ones in front of the ToT, they weren't offered, so don't be afraid to ask! They also take a lot of great shots at character meet and greets.

In fact (for those with kids) I tried not to take photos at meet and greets because your flash can affect the photopass photographers flash and photo and you actually end up with less photos. I instead decided to video a few of them while the photographer was taking photos, but make sure you tell them you are videoing or they will wait for you to finish "taking your picture".

LOVE PM EMH now that my kids are getting older, they really helped our quick two day trip this past May. You all got a lot done, like full MK day done during EMH.

Sorry for a stressful/frustrating morning. That Mom really handled that wrong. My kids aren't allowed to say stupid, but they know other kids might use it and that it isn't a "bad word" but that they just aren't allowed to use it. That Mom was totally out of line.

Love the DD hat. E looks so happy

Love the kids power pack too, my 6yo loves to get that for a "meal."

We just saw Indiana Jones for the first time in May too, my kids thought it was the greatest show ever. They can't wait to go back and see it in December.

Sounds like you are having a GREAT day in the parks so far.

Great PP pictures btw

PM EMH now! I was bummed that the only other MK PM EMH was on our departure day!

That ended up being the only time we got a power pack they are such a good idea!

I think my kids will be sad if IJ leaves like the rumors say it will!

Thanks! I have TON more PP pictures coming!!

I did it! I finally caught up! I've really enjoyed reading your TR so far. Your DS reminds me of my little brother. He also has ADHD, it's pretty severe. At that age he was all over the place. He's now 12 and while he's still hyperactive, he finally has a medication that is working well for him. We're hoping that puberty helps him out too. My mom struggled with the medication for a long time. Once she realized that she was treating a disorder and not just sedating her child she did a lot better. The odd thing is that his ADHD is great at Disney. You would think all the stimulation could send him over the edge but he does so well with it.

I'm glad y'all got to see Indiana Jones while you were there. Rumor is that it and American Idol are both closing in January/February to make room for the new Star Wars Land. This is all rumor though.

I'm jealous of your Star Wars cupcake. We wanted one and it never happened for us. I'm not a big chocolate cake person but DH loves his sweets and was dying for one.

It was a hard thing for DH and I to face that ADHD can not be punished out, and it is very hard at times to keep your calm when it seems like his hyperactivity is on purpose. We resisted medicine for a long time (I was diagnosed ADD when I was his age, and never medicated) until his grades started slipping and he was falling way behind on his reading ability. We have been lucky and both medications that we have tried have worked very well for him, with little to no side effects, so far. The more he grows, the harder it is.

I want one of those cupcakes right now! The Darth Vader one was a chocolate and peanut butter mouse I believe. YUMM!!!

Your kids are adorable! Enjoying the report so far!

Thank you!

And looks like I live in your neck of the woods!

We are very close. We spend a great deal of our time in the Wheaton/Warrenville area, that is actually where we are looking for a house, we love the school district!

Greetings from disneywlf aka Wolf (like Wolf Blitzer) from Westbury, NY, about 45 minutes from NYC. I must say that your trip report is fantastic, with a lot of detail and excellent pictures that make this travel nerd happy! You seem like a wonderful family and I lol forward to reading more!

Hopefully an update will follow today!!

 

[FancyNancy]

OH my gosh first of all that was way out of line for those other parents to treat you that way in the lounge. What do they think happens at school? Does the boy run up to the teachers and tattle on his friends every time he hears a child say "stupid"? Granted calling another human being stupid is not ok but saying it about a Goofy cartoon is another story. You did a very good job keeping your cool. Probably a better job than I would have

That pic of Ethan with the Donald Duck hat is so cute and what a night you had at MK with no lines!

 

[petals]

luvin the magic shot pics. I don't think that calling a cartoon stupid is bad

 

[wdwloverz]

Well.. I just read your whole report so far in one sitting!!
Love your report and I am in love with your darling children!! They remind me sooooo much of my kids at that age
Will be sticking around to read the rest, GREAT job so far!