lenshanem
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jul 9, 2002
OKW spring break (4/3/05 - 4/10/05)
VacationEars - me, DH, DD7 (sugar) and DD4 (spice)
OK, so it has been a month. I always do a trip report and this time I flaked. I almost felt odd not doing one so here I go (Warning, this has turned into a very long epic!)
First let me say, this was a great trip! The weather was BEAUTIFUL and it seemed despite somewhat busy crowds everyone was in great spirits! DH and I agreed - spring break again next year! (Too bad this was our last trip on this AP! BOO-HOO!) The trip was magical enough, I easily talked DH into an add on at our true love - VWL! Just sent in the paperwork. I can now call both BCV and VWL my home! (Hard to believe I thought we had burnout!) We met so many nice people and my not so shy daughters made it a point to talk to EVERYONE they came across. Girls wore their Disney name badges and they were a HUGE hit. They loved all the attention. I highly suggest getting some for anyone with kids! As always, I was on a hunt for a couple pins. Once again, I struck out! I really need to give up that hobby I think???
Sunday and OKW -
We left at 5 in the morning. It was daylight savings time and it about killed me. We were determined to have a better experience this time at OKW! We had already learned our lesson about slim pickings when you arrive at midnight Car was packed the night before, girls still in their PJs we cruised Got to OKW shortly after lunch.
Hey! We got a nonsmoking studio with a tub! PERFECT! So we didnt get near the new slide, but were right behind the bus stop on Old Turtle Pond Road. We soon discovered that was a blessing! (Transportation was excellent! Only once all week did we wait a long time for a bus.) Room was 3326 and in good condition. A couple minor things like a dead remote control and no plates were quickly fixed. They even brought me a full size ironing board in no time flat. The room overlooked a lake, but a palm tree had taken over the view - thus the balcony got little usage. Twice our building got pressure washed. The resort looked lovely. We had a very loud bed, though. I thought for sure it would fall apart. I called maintenance when we left to give them the heads up!
We drove up to the Hospitality House ALOT. DD7 put in a new slide record, finally the last day we were able to talk her into walking to the Old Turtle Pond pool. It is such a darn cute little area! And I discovered I stink at shuffleboard! I was sad we hadnt tried it earlier in the week.
No welcome homes, but everyone was nice. A CM in the General Store gave my DD7 a Pal Mickey lanyard for her old Pal Mickey and that thrilled her! (Why dont they sell OKW T-shirts for kids???) DH took the girls to Community Hall one morning for crafts and the day we arrived a DJ was playing at the pool giving out goodies to the kids. Nice! And trash and towel day went off without a hitch.
OK - so we were settled in, girls got their hair wrapped by the pool (FYI - Those didnt last! Every time a teenage boy does them they fall out within a week!) and we took off to DTD to use our AP discount to get the girls princess costumes for CRT the next morning and to eat (Oh, and to spend too much money before our trip had even really begun!)
Monday and CRT -
Off to the MK for our princess character breakfast, girls dressed up as Aurora and Snow White WOW! Look! We are the ONLY ones out here! PhotoPass guy comes over to take some pics of the family in front of the castle. I was so excited I could barely control myself! Not a soul to be seen and the bluest sky imaginable, castle is sparkling in all its new gold. PhotoPass guy tells the girls to close their eyes and on the count of three open them. OK Darn if I dont get back home to discover their eyes are sealed shut in each pic but one where they looked drugged. I ordered it anyway using the PhotoPass card we were given at OKW with the DVC discount, simply cause they had superimposed Tinkerbell in their hands. (I wondered why that guy had them hold their hands out together ) It could have been a FAB pic. Lesson learned. At least I got one pic with my own camera. (I put the link on the bottom.) On a similar note, we used the PhotoPass ALOT. My eyes were closed in almost all of them, including an awesome family pic with The Incredibles that I ordered anyway. DH asked me to please wear my sunglasses in EVERY pic for all future trips, even inside. OPPS!
Now about Belle OK, were eating breakfast and Belle comes over all in a super duper rush - a blur really. All the princesses prior had been quite nice, even despite some delay that morning due to some problems with transportation and people arriving late for the earlier seatings. They all stood facing the window, but Belle stood with her back against it. My camera totally froze up cause of the light. I asked her to please face a different way and that is when it happened - SHE ROLLED HER EYES AT ME! Sure enough, we get home and watch our video. YEP, she totally rolled her eyes at me and even huffed! And the look on my face in that video is PRICELESS, actually we got a big laugh out of it! Now we have had plenty of good and even bad character meals over the years and I understand about how they have a certain amount of time, but... GEEZ! Anyway, we used our DDE card we got with our AP last trip and cruised. I think this will be a last for us. I was pushing it having my DD7 wear the Aurora dress, but I wanted sooo bad to hold onto those princess moments. She couldnt wait to get that dress off, I think she might have been even embarrassed! Wow, they grow up too fast! (Insert a few tears here ) On a side note, as soon as we sat down I asked my DD4 to please be careful with her drink and then I promptly as if on cue leaned over and knocked it right into her lap, all over her new Snow White dress. And who comes walking up as Im cleaning? Snow White. Im a total nerd. Yep.
DH took off to put the girls costumes in a locker and was gone for an ETERNITY. Where is he?!? I cant believe we didnt bring our walkie talkies. (Actually, I didnt see many people using them this trip???) Turns out he had bought me crystal champagne flutes in the castle with Cinderella and the Prince engraved on them. Absolutely beautiful. He had them sent to OKW to surprise me later. Turns out he has felt guilty all these years for misplacing his champagne flute at our wedding reception after I told him to please not lose it. So maybe he does have his good moments!
IllumiNations. DH doesnt understand my fascination with it, but I insisted on taking the girls after we had a break earlier in the day to swim. It was crowded and we had a hard time finding a spot. Now a first happened to us - the smoke blew right into our faces. HUGE amounts of smoke. My poor DD7 immediately began wheezing and heavily. She used her inhaler and we left. Now talk about the guilt I felt. I cant even explain it. It seemed to take forever to get back up to the buses, too. UGH.
Tuesday and Sci-Fi -
We hit Sci-Fi at MGM for lunch. It is one of our favs - not really for the food, but for the atmosphere. We all think it is pretty darn cool! While waiting for our car we watched some MGM actors portraying a gawdy tourist couple. They were wandering all around the store connected to Sci-Fi and we were DYING laughing! It was so funny to watch the expressions on peoples faces. They all had this look like - are they for real? They came over and started talking to my girls who didnt get it either, but I swear it was HYSTERICAL. DD7 had this look on her face like - wow, this woman is weird!
That night we went to AK for EMH. Ill start off to say we ran into a problem right off the bat. While waiting in line for our wristbands a CM asked us to get our room cards out and ready for each of us. Sure enough, we only had DH and mine. The girls had their cards back in the room. (They had been playing with them.) I never even thought to keep them on us for EMH. They are 7 and 4! I explained we only had ours and the CM said that was OK as long as we showed ours. Then another CM came out and started giving out wristbands... I told him we didnt have the girls cards and mentioned the other CM but he said - sorry, no wristbands! I FLIPPED. He told me we would have to go back down to guest services to prove they were staying with us. REALLY? Like they arent staying with us on property, I have my little ones staying at the Holiday Inn by themselves or something I think I looked like my head was about to start turning like in the Exorcist and he finally said he would let it slide this one time. How funny - this one time. We walked away and I told DH I was not about to budge and he said - Nah, REALLY?!? Sooo, theres a heads up to have room keys with you even for your little ones Oh, and dont make me mad! (Insert wink here!)
Got in the parade and the Safaris before EMH started. It was a little crowded, but we did get in some shows and DD7 got picked to go down on the floor at the end of the Festival of the Lion King. She got a big kick out of that! (We missed the girl that flies around like a bird. We always seem to miss her! Bugger! She must only do certain shows?) DH ran into a client. That was odd! We always run into someone we know. I walked out of the bathroom and saw him chatting away with some woman. How weird I thought! Turns out she is a good client of his and they were staying at AKL based on his recommendation. (They liked it by the way!) I then took DD4 to ride Dinosaur while my not so adventurous DD7 waited with DH. Funny, I made a really goofy face when it took our picture. To my surprise the other family on the ride vehicle bought the picture! It amuses me to know somebody somewhere out there has a stupid picture of me sitting in their den.
Wednesday and Ohana -
We woke up and decided to pool hop over to the Poly. I called their front desk and was put on hold. They kinda acted like they didnt know what I was talking about, but then came back and gave the OK. Got to the Poly gate, they totally understood and gave us a four hour parking pass. First, we headed to the marina to rent some of those little boats. THEY WOULDNT LET ME DRIVE ONE. I guess Im too darn short, by an INCH! I almost started crying, the girls had been so excited. DH decided to go twice and give each girl a chance to ride. At least they gave us a DVC discount. Anyway, after DH took the second one out some new lifeguards came out. They asked why I wasnt out there. When I told them they couldnt believe it. It is not like Im a kid they said. (I really am, but they didnt know that!) They told me I could go, but by that time the thrill was gone and an hour had almost passed by. DARN!
We then headed over to the pool. Wow, this place is sooo AWESOME! If only I was rich We ate lunch outside and then let the girls swim for a long time. DD7 immediately made some friends and DD4 was content playing by herself while DH and I sat on the edge of the pool soaking up the beautiful weather. Now this is the life! As we left, DD7 cried - can we PLEASE stay here next time?!? Ya, if DVC builds here!
That night we went back to Ohana for dinner. Had I known they served peanut dipping sauce I would have NEVER eaten there with my DD7 who is HIGHLY allergic to the stuff. I didnt realize this until the chef came out to talk to us. She ended up eating tons of meat and was OK, but DD4 turned her nose up at all of it. I wonder when I called before about her allergy why they never mentioned the peanut sauce?!? Probably wont be back there, dont quite get the popularity of it.
Off to MK for EMH. Seems they dont have a problem with wristbands here like at AK. CM looked at DHs room key only and then gave us wristbands for all four of us. Go figure. Caught Wishes, but much to DD7s dismay Tink didnt fly down. We met the cutest young couple while waiting. I could tell right off the bat they were Disney fanatics, too and they chatted away with my girls for a long time. They also were BCV members like us. Very nice couple!
EMH at MK was more crowded than we ever saw it during the day. What a nightmare! We got almost nothing done and while waiting for Dumbo I saw a guy video taping and talking to his camera - Look at this crowd! This is supposed to be a perk! I got a laugh out of that. We probably wont bother with EMH evenings at MK again in the future. It was actually a waste of time. Just a heads up! (I like to give lots of heads up I guess?!?)
Thursday and 50s Prime Time -
Slept in and then went to MGM. Got to see a soft opening of the new stunt show. I was not impressed, actually I was bored. I felt bad about that, too cause I couldnt help looking around and thinking how much money must have gone into this attraction! The whole area back there, though looks great and as we were walking out the Power Rangers drove up in this cool car and hopped out. My DD7 about had a heart attack! She loves that stupid show! She got her picture with the pink Power Ranger and was just BEAMING. Weird, Power Rangers at Disney, but if it makes the kids happy Then we saw the Disney Tattoo Guy! You know the one? He has that house FULL of Disney stuff. Just Google him and youll find lots of pictures. DH and I ALMOST turned back around to go say hello, but we chickened out. He probably would have liked DHs new Jiminy Cricket tattoo, though! (It turned out really cool!) Had lunch at the pizza planet place. OMG! That line took FOREVER.
Went over to the Animation attraction. Hadnt done this in years and it was all different. DH was all irritated and calling me a show off cause my Stitch drawing turned out really good, while his looked something more like Yoda. OK, so maybe I was an Art major and maybe my dream as a kid was always to be a Disney animator, but really I havent drawn in years He is just jealous! He had a good Yoda, though.
So off to see the parade and the bottom falls out. Beautiful weather all week so I cant complain. This was the ONLY time it rained on us. We decided to run over to 50s Prime Time to see if they could take us early. I really think we have some curse. We always eat here and EVERY SINGLE TIME we are soaked! It is so weird! I have never eaten here when I wasnt drenched. Nothing like being wet and sticking to those vinyl seats! DD7 loves the place, though as the smores are safe for her to eat! YUM! Afterward we start walking over to Fantasmic. Once again, another curse. We always seem to get rained out of this. The sky looked very scary and as always the CMs give you that standard response of it might be cancelled, it might not So we opted to go back to the room. We BARELY made it to the bus before the storm really hit with full force. Later come to find out there were hail and tornados in Orlando that night. I think our power went off once at OKW while we were sleeping, too. It was nice to go to sleep early, but that is one thing I dont like about OKW. We felt trapped in our room and really would have liked to walk around a lobby or something.
Friday and Never Land Club and Kona -
Today was Epcot. I tried in vain twice to get into Soarin, but the soft opening was only for CMs. I think they thought I was mental. LOVED the Turtle Crush show. He called on DD7. She asked him how many eggs he laid and everyone got a big laugh. Boy turtles dont lay eggs he told her. Got to see Figment, wow no line for him at all! He danced with my girls for a long time, but DD4 wasnt too sure about him. He tried his best, though! We decided to do that passport thing and the girls really enjoyed that. The lines were really long for the kid stations, though. Very long. Well have to finish it up on our next trip.
On our way out we decided to let the girls do the Leave a Legacy. We got two tiles for the price of one with our AP - $25. They must have took fifty photos trying to get the girls to look at the camera. We finally just said - just take it and keep it! They also had to wrap them up in a blanket cause they had on white shirts and they were worried editing wouldnt be able to make the tile cause they also have light skin and very blond hair. Got copies of the tiles in the mail and they look like aliens, but they got their names on the second tile and I think theyll get a kick out of that next time. I was thrilled they sent duplicates so each of them could have a copy of both their pic and their name tiles. They always love seeing DH and my brick at the MK. (By the way, our brick looks terrible! Im so sad. I worry it wont be there next trip. BOO-HOO! It looked like the brick next to ours had been replaced recently with a newer brick cause the date didnt match any of the bricks near it.)
That night we drove over to the Poly for the Never Land Club and Kona Cafe. The girls wanted so badly to do the pirate cruise, but given they serve PB&J I talked them into this place instead. I must have called them a hundred times before our trip, asking over and over - no PB&J, right?!? Yep, they have a peanut free buffet. They got settled in (By the way, they had a blast!) and DH and I went to eat dinner at Kona. It was good and we had time to walk around before picking up the girls. We decided to watch Wishes from the lake with them before heading out. DD4 put on quite a show for everyone out there! She rolled in the sand, then walked over to a light and starting spitting sand out for all to see. Then she starts screaming she has sand in her butt and grabbing her shorts. OH MY, there is a reason were not rich enough to stay at the Poly I think. I could just hear the country fiddle playing in the background. As we left DH and I started laughing so hard I could barely walk. (A tip - Wishes was played through a small speaker near the pool. You have to sit right beside it to hear the music, though.)
Saturday and Crystal Palace -
Off to MK to finish it up. Cinderellabration was lame, I cant believe theyre pumping this show up like it is some great new attraction. OK Small World looks great, though! Love the new entrance. That night we ate at Crystal Place. Can you believe Ive never eaten there?!? It was OK, but I had a hard time communicating with the chef and our server acted put out when I asked him for some fresh rice since it was next to a dish on the buffet that was cooked in peanut oil or something. I prefer Liberty Tree by leaps and bounds.
We then went to our family spot for Spectro. We always sit at the SAME spot. I showed up a little over an hour before to find another family there! OH, NO! I sat down beside them and we immediately hit it off. They were so nice and what an incredibly good looking family! (Were they movie stars?!?) They also had a daughter who was 4 and the girls played the entire time. As it got busier, a CM representative for Hong Kong came over and took the girls all around, letting them walk with her light stick. Someone finally told her to go back to work I think and she came over and quickly wrote the girls name in Chinese for them and left. Now about this time DH comes walking over wearing a new Mickey hat with the ears in gold. He looks like such a DORK! Im sure that family was like - nice hat! Gotta love DH. At least he surprised DD7 with some new Tink earrings. (She had just gotten her ears pierced before the trip.) Spectro awesome, stayed again for Wishes and this time Tink did fly down, but her lights went out right as she flew over us. Bugger!
Sunday and 1900 Park Fare -
Our LAST DAY! Wow, this week flew! Packed up we head to the GF for our character breakfast. I finally discovered a girl I always see in the parks works at the GF front desk. I was starting to think I was insane cause it seems like every trip I see this one particular girl. The chefs at 1900 Park Fare are always amazing. The chef INSISTED on making my daughter a fresh plate from the back and started her off with a fruit plate while he cooked. He didnt want her to eat from the buffet. I am always so impressed here! Unfortunately, the Mad Hatter wasnt here. Im a big ole Alice fan so I was a tad bummed. Seems he is never there on the weekends? That is what they told me. Now Alice She was so put out that I wanted a picture with her. She must be good friends with Belle, cause she had a very similar attitude. DH and I agreed - Id make a much better Alice anyway! I mean I did dress up as her at MNSSHP last year. That qualifies me, right? Darn if I dont become a Disney character one day, I am 411!
So we drive back home. Traffic is a nightmare and I felt sooo bad for DD7 when she had to wake up and go to school the next morning. It was a fun week, though!
girls in front of castle
DD7 with Aurora
DD4 with Cinderella
me and DD7 with Stitch
DH with Stitch
VacationEars - me, DH, DD7 (sugar) and DD4 (spice)
OK, so it has been a month. I always do a trip report and this time I flaked. I almost felt odd not doing one so here I go (Warning, this has turned into a very long epic!)
First let me say, this was a great trip! The weather was BEAUTIFUL and it seemed despite somewhat busy crowds everyone was in great spirits! DH and I agreed - spring break again next year! (Too bad this was our last trip on this AP! BOO-HOO!) The trip was magical enough, I easily talked DH into an add on at our true love - VWL! Just sent in the paperwork. I can now call both BCV and VWL my home! (Hard to believe I thought we had burnout!) We met so many nice people and my not so shy daughters made it a point to talk to EVERYONE they came across. Girls wore their Disney name badges and they were a HUGE hit. They loved all the attention. I highly suggest getting some for anyone with kids! As always, I was on a hunt for a couple pins. Once again, I struck out! I really need to give up that hobby I think???
Sunday and OKW -
We left at 5 in the morning. It was daylight savings time and it about killed me. We were determined to have a better experience this time at OKW! We had already learned our lesson about slim pickings when you arrive at midnight Car was packed the night before, girls still in their PJs we cruised Got to OKW shortly after lunch.
Hey! We got a nonsmoking studio with a tub! PERFECT! So we didnt get near the new slide, but were right behind the bus stop on Old Turtle Pond Road. We soon discovered that was a blessing! (Transportation was excellent! Only once all week did we wait a long time for a bus.) Room was 3326 and in good condition. A couple minor things like a dead remote control and no plates were quickly fixed. They even brought me a full size ironing board in no time flat. The room overlooked a lake, but a palm tree had taken over the view - thus the balcony got little usage. Twice our building got pressure washed. The resort looked lovely. We had a very loud bed, though. I thought for sure it would fall apart. I called maintenance when we left to give them the heads up!
We drove up to the Hospitality House ALOT. DD7 put in a new slide record, finally the last day we were able to talk her into walking to the Old Turtle Pond pool. It is such a darn cute little area! And I discovered I stink at shuffleboard! I was sad we hadnt tried it earlier in the week.
No welcome homes, but everyone was nice. A CM in the General Store gave my DD7 a Pal Mickey lanyard for her old Pal Mickey and that thrilled her! (Why dont they sell OKW T-shirts for kids???) DH took the girls to Community Hall one morning for crafts and the day we arrived a DJ was playing at the pool giving out goodies to the kids. Nice! And trash and towel day went off without a hitch.
OK - so we were settled in, girls got their hair wrapped by the pool (FYI - Those didnt last! Every time a teenage boy does them they fall out within a week!) and we took off to DTD to use our AP discount to get the girls princess costumes for CRT the next morning and to eat (Oh, and to spend too much money before our trip had even really begun!)
Monday and CRT -
Off to the MK for our princess character breakfast, girls dressed up as Aurora and Snow White WOW! Look! We are the ONLY ones out here! PhotoPass guy comes over to take some pics of the family in front of the castle. I was so excited I could barely control myself! Not a soul to be seen and the bluest sky imaginable, castle is sparkling in all its new gold. PhotoPass guy tells the girls to close their eyes and on the count of three open them. OK Darn if I dont get back home to discover their eyes are sealed shut in each pic but one where they looked drugged. I ordered it anyway using the PhotoPass card we were given at OKW with the DVC discount, simply cause they had superimposed Tinkerbell in their hands. (I wondered why that guy had them hold their hands out together ) It could have been a FAB pic. Lesson learned. At least I got one pic with my own camera. (I put the link on the bottom.) On a similar note, we used the PhotoPass ALOT. My eyes were closed in almost all of them, including an awesome family pic with The Incredibles that I ordered anyway. DH asked me to please wear my sunglasses in EVERY pic for all future trips, even inside. OPPS!
Now about Belle OK, were eating breakfast and Belle comes over all in a super duper rush - a blur really. All the princesses prior had been quite nice, even despite some delay that morning due to some problems with transportation and people arriving late for the earlier seatings. They all stood facing the window, but Belle stood with her back against it. My camera totally froze up cause of the light. I asked her to please face a different way and that is when it happened - SHE ROLLED HER EYES AT ME! Sure enough, we get home and watch our video. YEP, she totally rolled her eyes at me and even huffed! And the look on my face in that video is PRICELESS, actually we got a big laugh out of it! Now we have had plenty of good and even bad character meals over the years and I understand about how they have a certain amount of time, but... GEEZ! Anyway, we used our DDE card we got with our AP last trip and cruised. I think this will be a last for us. I was pushing it having my DD7 wear the Aurora dress, but I wanted sooo bad to hold onto those princess moments. She couldnt wait to get that dress off, I think she might have been even embarrassed! Wow, they grow up too fast! (Insert a few tears here ) On a side note, as soon as we sat down I asked my DD4 to please be careful with her drink and then I promptly as if on cue leaned over and knocked it right into her lap, all over her new Snow White dress. And who comes walking up as Im cleaning? Snow White. Im a total nerd. Yep.
DH took off to put the girls costumes in a locker and was gone for an ETERNITY. Where is he?!? I cant believe we didnt bring our walkie talkies. (Actually, I didnt see many people using them this trip???) Turns out he had bought me crystal champagne flutes in the castle with Cinderella and the Prince engraved on them. Absolutely beautiful. He had them sent to OKW to surprise me later. Turns out he has felt guilty all these years for misplacing his champagne flute at our wedding reception after I told him to please not lose it. So maybe he does have his good moments!
IllumiNations. DH doesnt understand my fascination with it, but I insisted on taking the girls after we had a break earlier in the day to swim. It was crowded and we had a hard time finding a spot. Now a first happened to us - the smoke blew right into our faces. HUGE amounts of smoke. My poor DD7 immediately began wheezing and heavily. She used her inhaler and we left. Now talk about the guilt I felt. I cant even explain it. It seemed to take forever to get back up to the buses, too. UGH.
Tuesday and Sci-Fi -
We hit Sci-Fi at MGM for lunch. It is one of our favs - not really for the food, but for the atmosphere. We all think it is pretty darn cool! While waiting for our car we watched some MGM actors portraying a gawdy tourist couple. They were wandering all around the store connected to Sci-Fi and we were DYING laughing! It was so funny to watch the expressions on peoples faces. They all had this look like - are they for real? They came over and started talking to my girls who didnt get it either, but I swear it was HYSTERICAL. DD7 had this look on her face like - wow, this woman is weird!
That night we went to AK for EMH. Ill start off to say we ran into a problem right off the bat. While waiting in line for our wristbands a CM asked us to get our room cards out and ready for each of us. Sure enough, we only had DH and mine. The girls had their cards back in the room. (They had been playing with them.) I never even thought to keep them on us for EMH. They are 7 and 4! I explained we only had ours and the CM said that was OK as long as we showed ours. Then another CM came out and started giving out wristbands... I told him we didnt have the girls cards and mentioned the other CM but he said - sorry, no wristbands! I FLIPPED. He told me we would have to go back down to guest services to prove they were staying with us. REALLY? Like they arent staying with us on property, I have my little ones staying at the Holiday Inn by themselves or something I think I looked like my head was about to start turning like in the Exorcist and he finally said he would let it slide this one time. How funny - this one time. We walked away and I told DH I was not about to budge and he said - Nah, REALLY?!? Sooo, theres a heads up to have room keys with you even for your little ones Oh, and dont make me mad! (Insert wink here!)
Got in the parade and the Safaris before EMH started. It was a little crowded, but we did get in some shows and DD7 got picked to go down on the floor at the end of the Festival of the Lion King. She got a big kick out of that! (We missed the girl that flies around like a bird. We always seem to miss her! Bugger! She must only do certain shows?) DH ran into a client. That was odd! We always run into someone we know. I walked out of the bathroom and saw him chatting away with some woman. How weird I thought! Turns out she is a good client of his and they were staying at AKL based on his recommendation. (They liked it by the way!) I then took DD4 to ride Dinosaur while my not so adventurous DD7 waited with DH. Funny, I made a really goofy face when it took our picture. To my surprise the other family on the ride vehicle bought the picture! It amuses me to know somebody somewhere out there has a stupid picture of me sitting in their den.
Wednesday and Ohana -
We woke up and decided to pool hop over to the Poly. I called their front desk and was put on hold. They kinda acted like they didnt know what I was talking about, but then came back and gave the OK. Got to the Poly gate, they totally understood and gave us a four hour parking pass. First, we headed to the marina to rent some of those little boats. THEY WOULDNT LET ME DRIVE ONE. I guess Im too darn short, by an INCH! I almost started crying, the girls had been so excited. DH decided to go twice and give each girl a chance to ride. At least they gave us a DVC discount. Anyway, after DH took the second one out some new lifeguards came out. They asked why I wasnt out there. When I told them they couldnt believe it. It is not like Im a kid they said. (I really am, but they didnt know that!) They told me I could go, but by that time the thrill was gone and an hour had almost passed by. DARN!
We then headed over to the pool. Wow, this place is sooo AWESOME! If only I was rich We ate lunch outside and then let the girls swim for a long time. DD7 immediately made some friends and DD4 was content playing by herself while DH and I sat on the edge of the pool soaking up the beautiful weather. Now this is the life! As we left, DD7 cried - can we PLEASE stay here next time?!? Ya, if DVC builds here!
That night we went back to Ohana for dinner. Had I known they served peanut dipping sauce I would have NEVER eaten there with my DD7 who is HIGHLY allergic to the stuff. I didnt realize this until the chef came out to talk to us. She ended up eating tons of meat and was OK, but DD4 turned her nose up at all of it. I wonder when I called before about her allergy why they never mentioned the peanut sauce?!? Probably wont be back there, dont quite get the popularity of it.
Off to MK for EMH. Seems they dont have a problem with wristbands here like at AK. CM looked at DHs room key only and then gave us wristbands for all four of us. Go figure. Caught Wishes, but much to DD7s dismay Tink didnt fly down. We met the cutest young couple while waiting. I could tell right off the bat they were Disney fanatics, too and they chatted away with my girls for a long time. They also were BCV members like us. Very nice couple!
EMH at MK was more crowded than we ever saw it during the day. What a nightmare! We got almost nothing done and while waiting for Dumbo I saw a guy video taping and talking to his camera - Look at this crowd! This is supposed to be a perk! I got a laugh out of that. We probably wont bother with EMH evenings at MK again in the future. It was actually a waste of time. Just a heads up! (I like to give lots of heads up I guess?!?)
Thursday and 50s Prime Time -
Slept in and then went to MGM. Got to see a soft opening of the new stunt show. I was not impressed, actually I was bored. I felt bad about that, too cause I couldnt help looking around and thinking how much money must have gone into this attraction! The whole area back there, though looks great and as we were walking out the Power Rangers drove up in this cool car and hopped out. My DD7 about had a heart attack! She loves that stupid show! She got her picture with the pink Power Ranger and was just BEAMING. Weird, Power Rangers at Disney, but if it makes the kids happy Then we saw the Disney Tattoo Guy! You know the one? He has that house FULL of Disney stuff. Just Google him and youll find lots of pictures. DH and I ALMOST turned back around to go say hello, but we chickened out. He probably would have liked DHs new Jiminy Cricket tattoo, though! (It turned out really cool!) Had lunch at the pizza planet place. OMG! That line took FOREVER.
Went over to the Animation attraction. Hadnt done this in years and it was all different. DH was all irritated and calling me a show off cause my Stitch drawing turned out really good, while his looked something more like Yoda. OK, so maybe I was an Art major and maybe my dream as a kid was always to be a Disney animator, but really I havent drawn in years He is just jealous! He had a good Yoda, though.
So off to see the parade and the bottom falls out. Beautiful weather all week so I cant complain. This was the ONLY time it rained on us. We decided to run over to 50s Prime Time to see if they could take us early. I really think we have some curse. We always eat here and EVERY SINGLE TIME we are soaked! It is so weird! I have never eaten here when I wasnt drenched. Nothing like being wet and sticking to those vinyl seats! DD7 loves the place, though as the smores are safe for her to eat! YUM! Afterward we start walking over to Fantasmic. Once again, another curse. We always seem to get rained out of this. The sky looked very scary and as always the CMs give you that standard response of it might be cancelled, it might not So we opted to go back to the room. We BARELY made it to the bus before the storm really hit with full force. Later come to find out there were hail and tornados in Orlando that night. I think our power went off once at OKW while we were sleeping, too. It was nice to go to sleep early, but that is one thing I dont like about OKW. We felt trapped in our room and really would have liked to walk around a lobby or something.
Friday and Never Land Club and Kona -
Today was Epcot. I tried in vain twice to get into Soarin, but the soft opening was only for CMs. I think they thought I was mental. LOVED the Turtle Crush show. He called on DD7. She asked him how many eggs he laid and everyone got a big laugh. Boy turtles dont lay eggs he told her. Got to see Figment, wow no line for him at all! He danced with my girls for a long time, but DD4 wasnt too sure about him. He tried his best, though! We decided to do that passport thing and the girls really enjoyed that. The lines were really long for the kid stations, though. Very long. Well have to finish it up on our next trip.
On our way out we decided to let the girls do the Leave a Legacy. We got two tiles for the price of one with our AP - $25. They must have took fifty photos trying to get the girls to look at the camera. We finally just said - just take it and keep it! They also had to wrap them up in a blanket cause they had on white shirts and they were worried editing wouldnt be able to make the tile cause they also have light skin and very blond hair. Got copies of the tiles in the mail and they look like aliens, but they got their names on the second tile and I think theyll get a kick out of that next time. I was thrilled they sent duplicates so each of them could have a copy of both their pic and their name tiles. They always love seeing DH and my brick at the MK. (By the way, our brick looks terrible! Im so sad. I worry it wont be there next trip. BOO-HOO! It looked like the brick next to ours had been replaced recently with a newer brick cause the date didnt match any of the bricks near it.)
That night we drove over to the Poly for the Never Land Club and Kona Cafe. The girls wanted so badly to do the pirate cruise, but given they serve PB&J I talked them into this place instead. I must have called them a hundred times before our trip, asking over and over - no PB&J, right?!? Yep, they have a peanut free buffet. They got settled in (By the way, they had a blast!) and DH and I went to eat dinner at Kona. It was good and we had time to walk around before picking up the girls. We decided to watch Wishes from the lake with them before heading out. DD4 put on quite a show for everyone out there! She rolled in the sand, then walked over to a light and starting spitting sand out for all to see. Then she starts screaming she has sand in her butt and grabbing her shorts. OH MY, there is a reason were not rich enough to stay at the Poly I think. I could just hear the country fiddle playing in the background. As we left DH and I started laughing so hard I could barely walk. (A tip - Wishes was played through a small speaker near the pool. You have to sit right beside it to hear the music, though.)
Saturday and Crystal Palace -
Off to MK to finish it up. Cinderellabration was lame, I cant believe theyre pumping this show up like it is some great new attraction. OK Small World looks great, though! Love the new entrance. That night we ate at Crystal Place. Can you believe Ive never eaten there?!? It was OK, but I had a hard time communicating with the chef and our server acted put out when I asked him for some fresh rice since it was next to a dish on the buffet that was cooked in peanut oil or something. I prefer Liberty Tree by leaps and bounds.
We then went to our family spot for Spectro. We always sit at the SAME spot. I showed up a little over an hour before to find another family there! OH, NO! I sat down beside them and we immediately hit it off. They were so nice and what an incredibly good looking family! (Were they movie stars?!?) They also had a daughter who was 4 and the girls played the entire time. As it got busier, a CM representative for Hong Kong came over and took the girls all around, letting them walk with her light stick. Someone finally told her to go back to work I think and she came over and quickly wrote the girls name in Chinese for them and left. Now about this time DH comes walking over wearing a new Mickey hat with the ears in gold. He looks like such a DORK! Im sure that family was like - nice hat! Gotta love DH. At least he surprised DD7 with some new Tink earrings. (She had just gotten her ears pierced before the trip.) Spectro awesome, stayed again for Wishes and this time Tink did fly down, but her lights went out right as she flew over us. Bugger!
Sunday and 1900 Park Fare -
Our LAST DAY! Wow, this week flew! Packed up we head to the GF for our character breakfast. I finally discovered a girl I always see in the parks works at the GF front desk. I was starting to think I was insane cause it seems like every trip I see this one particular girl. The chefs at 1900 Park Fare are always amazing. The chef INSISTED on making my daughter a fresh plate from the back and started her off with a fruit plate while he cooked. He didnt want her to eat from the buffet. I am always so impressed here! Unfortunately, the Mad Hatter wasnt here. Im a big ole Alice fan so I was a tad bummed. Seems he is never there on the weekends? That is what they told me. Now Alice She was so put out that I wanted a picture with her. She must be good friends with Belle, cause she had a very similar attitude. DH and I agreed - Id make a much better Alice anyway! I mean I did dress up as her at MNSSHP last year. That qualifies me, right? Darn if I dont become a Disney character one day, I am 411!
So we drive back home. Traffic is a nightmare and I felt sooo bad for DD7 when she had to wake up and go to school the next morning. It was a fun week, though!
girls in front of castle
DD7 with Aurora
DD4 with Cinderella
me and DD7 with Stitch
DH with Stitch
That is too bad she was like that 
, but hey we were not her evil step sisters 
and we shouldnt have been treated like them 
