First off, I know that I am starting this trip report a month late but since returning from the World but work has been crazy up until this past weekend and I am finally finding the time to start re-living our trip and sharing the experience with you all!
Our trip took place September 12-21 and included stays at Port Orleans French Quarter and, for the most part, the Villas at Wilderness Lodge. The cast of characters included me, my wife Kelly, daughters Ella and Lennon, my mom Allyson, mother in law Deb and our in-laws Mindy, Jason (Guber) and their two daughters Hayden and Kendall. oh, and I should mention at the time of this trip all four kids were under the age of 4! Get the Advil ready!
For those who want a refresher, our pre-tip report can be read here!
http://forums.wdwmagic.com/threads/the-wait-is-over-were-finally-coming-back.887278/
Ok...here we go!
Travel Day
After nearly 9 months of waiting, counting down the days on this site and reading all about all the new and exciting things happening at WDW, the day finally arrived. Traveling from Edmonton to Orlando is no easy task which usually involves a very early wake up call and an extremely long travel day just to check into your hotel for a decent night's rest.
That exactly what we had planned on September 12. Up and at 'em at 3 am to get the car packed, the girls up and off to the airport in time for our 7 am flight. Nothing direct from here to Orlando so our first flight was into Dallas, then after a brief layover, over to Orlando. Plan was to arrive at MCO around 5 pm or so.
The SUV was packed as tight as can be with three big suitcases, our double stroller, diaper bag and a carry on full of diabetes supplies for Ella, food for the kids, and a number of devices, books and toys to occupy them throughout this crazy day.
We made it to the airport by about 430 or 5 am. Everything went beyond smoothly once we arrived at the airport which lead me to believe we were in for a very good day! Usually security with kids, especially with a diabetic and all the stuff we had to bring onto the plane, can be a tedious task. Not today, this was the perfect start to the vacation!
Quick bite to eat and we hunkered in to wait for the plane. The girls were surprisingly upbeat for being up so early!
Me and Ella
and Lennon ready to roll!
We boarded, took off on time and everything was as it was supposed to be! The kids didn't fall asleep but were pretty well behaved for the first hour and a bit. That's when things started to get interesting! The captain came across the address system..."Folks, nothing to panic over, but we have a bit of a situation that is going to require us to land at the nearest airport as quickly as possible. Again, no need to panic".
So, now that everyone is panicking, this announcement had become a major concern for everyone. No specifics were provided but you could sense the urgency that was portrayed in his voice. Main concern of my wife "Great, now we miss our connecting flight!"
We end up descending very shortly after the announcement and find out that we are headed to Billings, Montana. As we are about to land the captain returns "Ok folks we will be on the ground shortly. You will see some fire trucks on the runway but again, no need to panic, this is standard procedure." Now we realize this is something pretty serious if first responders are lined up just in case! We touch down, zip by the fire engines and taxi to a gate. The captain finally informs us the we were leaking fuel and were nearly bone dry by the time we landed. Fun stuff!
Before we debaord we are told that mechanics are on their way to look at the plane but it is possible another plane would have to be sent to pick us up. Since Billings is not a hub for anyone, let alone American Airlines, we were told we just had to tough it out in the terminal. Everyone immediately got their phones out to call family, travel agents, whomever, to let them know the news. No different for us. I called the family, Kelly called the travel agent to get us on a new flight in Dallas as it was obvious we wouldn't make the connecting flight.
Three hours passed and we were informed the plane was fixed and we could finally get going. Everyone loaded back up, on the same plane mind you, and after a few minutes to get the flight plan/manifest, we were back in the air. By this time the kids were getting very antsy and iPads were no longer doing the trick to keep them occupied. We finally land in Dallas about three hours late but are informed when we land that we are booked on the next flight out. After a brief layover, we board our next plane and take off.
By the time we take off on this flight, we should have been in Orlando at that point. The kids are an absolute wreck, and I'm sure our neighbouring passengers were not too pleased to be seated around us! Oh well, for a couple of toddlers who have been up well over 12 hours at that point, they did pretty well. Lennon was on the brink of losing it all flight and finally did for the final 20 minutes. Longest 20 minutes of my life but again, can't really blame her!
By the time we finally arrive in Orlando and pick up our bags, it's about 930pm. We did have DME booked to take us to the resort but we opted for a cab instead. Having run out of food/drink we needed to get to Port Orleans as fast as possible to we could get Ella something to raised her blood sugar levels. Thankfully the girls seemed to catch a second wind once they knew we were in Disney World so the cab ride was awesome! They sang together and laughed which made the drive go by pretty quickly.
We arrived close to 1030, checked in and piked up our Magic Bands. We hustled to our room, dropped of the bags and ran quickly to the food court for some chocolate milk. At this point I didnt get any pics of the magic bands or the room...we were so exhausted we just went to sleep. After all this hassle we almost regretted flying down a day earlier than the rest of the group.
So much for having time for dinner and roaming around the grounds of the hotel for a bit. It was get to sleep as soon as possible! At least I did get some good news before falling asleep, my home town Edmonton Eskimos beat the Montreal Alouettes (CFL) so I was able to good to bed in a better frame of mind!
Hopefully you are still with me through that very long winded travel experience! I'll detail day one next but now I am off to the hospital to learn how to use the brand new insulin pump Ella has just received. Much more pictures to come...I promise!
Our trip took place September 12-21 and included stays at Port Orleans French Quarter and, for the most part, the Villas at Wilderness Lodge. The cast of characters included me, my wife Kelly, daughters Ella and Lennon, my mom Allyson, mother in law Deb and our in-laws Mindy, Jason (Guber) and their two daughters Hayden and Kendall. oh, and I should mention at the time of this trip all four kids were under the age of 4! Get the Advil ready!
For those who want a refresher, our pre-tip report can be read here!
http://forums.wdwmagic.com/threads/the-wait-is-over-were-finally-coming-back.887278/
Ok...here we go!
Travel Day
After nearly 9 months of waiting, counting down the days on this site and reading all about all the new and exciting things happening at WDW, the day finally arrived. Traveling from Edmonton to Orlando is no easy task which usually involves a very early wake up call and an extremely long travel day just to check into your hotel for a decent night's rest.
That exactly what we had planned on September 12. Up and at 'em at 3 am to get the car packed, the girls up and off to the airport in time for our 7 am flight. Nothing direct from here to Orlando so our first flight was into Dallas, then after a brief layover, over to Orlando. Plan was to arrive at MCO around 5 pm or so.
The SUV was packed as tight as can be with three big suitcases, our double stroller, diaper bag and a carry on full of diabetes supplies for Ella, food for the kids, and a number of devices, books and toys to occupy them throughout this crazy day.
We made it to the airport by about 430 or 5 am. Everything went beyond smoothly once we arrived at the airport which lead me to believe we were in for a very good day! Usually security with kids, especially with a diabetic and all the stuff we had to bring onto the plane, can be a tedious task. Not today, this was the perfect start to the vacation!
Quick bite to eat and we hunkered in to wait for the plane. The girls were surprisingly upbeat for being up so early!
Me and Ella
and Lennon ready to roll!
We boarded, took off on time and everything was as it was supposed to be! The kids didn't fall asleep but were pretty well behaved for the first hour and a bit. That's when things started to get interesting! The captain came across the address system..."Folks, nothing to panic over, but we have a bit of a situation that is going to require us to land at the nearest airport as quickly as possible. Again, no need to panic".
So, now that everyone is panicking, this announcement had become a major concern for everyone. No specifics were provided but you could sense the urgency that was portrayed in his voice. Main concern of my wife "Great, now we miss our connecting flight!"
We end up descending very shortly after the announcement and find out that we are headed to Billings, Montana. As we are about to land the captain returns "Ok folks we will be on the ground shortly. You will see some fire trucks on the runway but again, no need to panic, this is standard procedure." Now we realize this is something pretty serious if first responders are lined up just in case! We touch down, zip by the fire engines and taxi to a gate. The captain finally informs us the we were leaking fuel and were nearly bone dry by the time we landed. Fun stuff!
Before we debaord we are told that mechanics are on their way to look at the plane but it is possible another plane would have to be sent to pick us up. Since Billings is not a hub for anyone, let alone American Airlines, we were told we just had to tough it out in the terminal. Everyone immediately got their phones out to call family, travel agents, whomever, to let them know the news. No different for us. I called the family, Kelly called the travel agent to get us on a new flight in Dallas as it was obvious we wouldn't make the connecting flight.
Three hours passed and we were informed the plane was fixed and we could finally get going. Everyone loaded back up, on the same plane mind you, and after a few minutes to get the flight plan/manifest, we were back in the air. By this time the kids were getting very antsy and iPads were no longer doing the trick to keep them occupied. We finally land in Dallas about three hours late but are informed when we land that we are booked on the next flight out. After a brief layover, we board our next plane and take off.
By the time we take off on this flight, we should have been in Orlando at that point. The kids are an absolute wreck, and I'm sure our neighbouring passengers were not too pleased to be seated around us! Oh well, for a couple of toddlers who have been up well over 12 hours at that point, they did pretty well. Lennon was on the brink of losing it all flight and finally did for the final 20 minutes. Longest 20 minutes of my life but again, can't really blame her!
By the time we finally arrive in Orlando and pick up our bags, it's about 930pm. We did have DME booked to take us to the resort but we opted for a cab instead. Having run out of food/drink we needed to get to Port Orleans as fast as possible to we could get Ella something to raised her blood sugar levels. Thankfully the girls seemed to catch a second wind once they knew we were in Disney World so the cab ride was awesome! They sang together and laughed which made the drive go by pretty quickly.
We arrived close to 1030, checked in and piked up our Magic Bands. We hustled to our room, dropped of the bags and ran quickly to the food court for some chocolate milk. At this point I didnt get any pics of the magic bands or the room...we were so exhausted we just went to sleep. After all this hassle we almost regretted flying down a day earlier than the rest of the group.
So much for having time for dinner and roaming around the grounds of the hotel for a bit. It was get to sleep as soon as possible! At least I did get some good news before falling asleep, my home town Edmonton Eskimos beat the Montreal Alouettes (CFL) so I was able to good to bed in a better frame of mind!
Hopefully you are still with me through that very long winded travel experience! I'll detail day one next but now I am off to the hospital to learn how to use the brand new insulin pump Ella has just received. Much more pictures to come...I promise!
