Trip Report The Adventures of Sass and Frass

Hi everyone! I figure it’s finally time to get to work on this trip report!

Who: Myself, husband Nick, daughters Sage and Aria, ages 12 and 7 (they are the Sass and Frass )
When: March 5-11th 2023
Where: Polynesian

The trip is the first time back for my husband and kids post-Covid. Our last family trip was in January 2020, right before the world went crazy. That trip was unsuccessful to say the least. The kids whined about everything and fought constantly. We’ve taken many family trips over the years and during Covid, I got the idea to plan a solo trip for myself. My love for Disney started long before I had kids and I was always disappointed after our family trips. I felt like we spent so much money, dealt with constant bickering and behavior issues and I didn’t even get to do all the things I wanted to do. So as a reward for making it through all the quarantines and remote learning, I did my first solo trip in January 2022. It was AMAZING. I had the best time and I’d love to do it again someday.

This family trip was actually Nick’s idea. He stayed at the Polynesian once when he was young and really wanted to stay there again. I was hesitant only because it’s so expensive and I would rather spend that money elsewhere. We rented DVC for this trip and even with the savings compared to the rack rate, still paid over $600/night. Because of that, the trip was a bit shorter than usual and we only had 5 park days. Maybe it’s just me, but I would have preferred to stay somewhere cheaper and stay for a longer amount of time. But the DVC rental was successful and we were off!

Sunday 3/5

Our flight was at 6:30am. Aria couldn’t sleep the night before (typical for her) so we ended up leaving for the airport much earlier than planned. We actually arrived before security was even open. We had plenty of time to grab a quick bite and just hang out.

And we were finally on our way! Fly us to Disney!

 

[DisneyDreamer08]

It was about 12:15 by then, MK was very crowded and LLs were booking pretty far out. I booked Space Mountain and told the kids we were just going to have to do something in standby while we were waiting. We all agreed on Enchanted Tales with Belle.
This is the third trip we’ve seen this show (2016, 2020 and now 2023) and Sage has never participated. I think it makes her too nervous.
Aria was chosen to be Maurice back in 2020 but this time around, she wasn’t chosen for a special part. But they gave her a plate when handing out the extra stuff. She was still excited.

I’ve always wished they would ask at the end if anyone besides the kids participating wants a picture with Belle. At first, they only took Aria’s picture and Sage really wanted to meet her too. I went up to ask the CM and thankfully they were ok with it.

We then went over to Space Mountain. I was able to fiddle faddle and knocked about an hour off our return time.
Sage decided to give it a try. Her and Nick went first while Aria and I looked in the nearby store and then cooled off in the misters. Surprisingly, Sage said she liked it! So she took Aria’s band and came again to ride with me.

I booked Buzz next but we had to kill some time so we decided to do the Peoplemover. This was one we tried to do on Monday but the wait was always 20 or 30 minutes and the queue is in the direct sun so we skipped it. It was 20 minutes today as well but I basically told them it’s now or never so we got in line. And after seeing the load process, I can totally understand why it’s consistently in the 30 minute range. Everyone is basically kept in the queue outside while only a small amount of people are let up the escalator at a time. When we got to the top of the escalator, the queue up there was completely empty. The trains have like 5 or 6 cars and our party of 4 took up one car. The other cars in the train were completely empty. We noticed the train in front of us was the same. 1 car of people and 5 empty cars. And then on top of that, the ride stopped at least 4 times we were on it. Each time for 3 or 4 minutes. This ride is nice, it has such nice views but I can’t justify making it a priority anymore.

We then went over to Buzz. I’m not a fan (can you even tell which red dot is yours because I sure can’t!) but the kids like it.

It had been an iffy morning with the kids up to this point. Definitely more whining and bickering than the other days. This happens a lot at home too when they are home together. We often have to divide and conquer as we call it. They just get annoyed with each other so quickly.
When we were exiting Buzz, they got into a big argument because Aria thought her gun was wasn’t working properly. Sage of course insisted that it was and told Aria she was just bad at the game. We were able to break up the fight but just barely. And unfortunately, they never really recovered. It was all downhill from here.

 

[DisneyDreamer08]

I booked the Pooh ride next and we were all getting hungry so we mobile ordered at Pinnochio’s Village Haus. The pizza was surprisingly good! It reminded us of Papa Gino’s. I would definitely get it again.
While we were eating, Sage brought up the parade. We missed it Monday and at the time, I had mentioned we could see it today. But while we were talking about ride priorities that morning, neither of them mentioned the parade. So I didn’t prioritize it and unfortunately, it was over by this point. Sage didn’t let me live it down for the rest of the trip.
After eating it was time for Winnie the Pooh

I booked our next LL for Princess Fairytale Hall but it was about an hour away.
Sage really wanted to ride Astro Orbiter and like Peoplemover, we just hadn’t been able to catch it at a low wait time. It was currently 30 minutes and she decided she wanted to wait. I have actually never done this ride and would have liked to try it but Aria didn’t want to go on it. So I took her over to Philharmagic again and Nick and Sage went over to Astro Orbiter.
After we finished, we met up in the hub for the Adventure Friends cavalcade. I had hoped this would soften the blow for missing the parade but it somehow made Sage more mad. I’m such a bad mom you guys.

 

[DisneyDreamer08]

A few more cavalcade pictures. I love that Raya is in this. I wish she had more of a presence in the parks. Of all the movies released in the past few years, this was by far my favorite.

We then went over to PFH, on the Tiana & Rapunzel side, for our LL.

It was about 5:45 by this point and everything was booking for 8pm or later. So I told the kids to choose one thing to do after the fireworks. They decided on Haunted Mansion. I think I booked it for 8:30. They really wanted to ride the Teacups so we opted for the standby line. I think it was 20 minutes. Brutal wait considering the “payoff”

And this is when everything came crashing down…

We decided to try and squeeze in one more ride standby before the fireworks. The kids decided on Pirates. The wait was 30 minutes but I was hoping it wouldn’t be too bad since most of it is inside. We barely waited 5 minutes, we were still in the outdoor portion of the queue, and the kids started fighting again. Despite our best efforts, we couldn’t get them to chill. Nick couldn’t take it anymore and he told us he was leaving. Like back to the hotel leaving. And he exits the line and walks away. Sage decides that dad leaving is all Aria’s fault, because nothing is ever HER fault, and pushes Aria so hard, she falls to the ground and starts crying. Of course there is no way I’m going to remain in the line at this point. The poor people around us do not need to listen to my children fight. So I pick Aria up, all 45 pounds of her, while wearing a backpack, and attempt to exit the line. I try to step over a chain and I fall to the ground. Not at all embarrassing

I pull them off to the side and do my best to get them to chill out. Now, I know a lot of parents in this situation would just call it a night and make everyone leave. And believe me, I did consider it. But this was our last night and they hadn’t seen the fireworks yet from inside the park. It’s not like we are frequent visitors and could just catch them next time. The mom guilt is real you guys. So I explained they would have no more chances. Best behavior moving forward or we would leave. I know some people will disagree with my decision to stay but, it’s the decision I made.

 

[DisneyDreamer08]

We still had maybe an hour and a half til the fireworks. There was something I wanted to buy myself on Main Street that I had seen earlier so I took them into a few shops and then we decided to just find a spot and sit and relax. I wanted to be close enough to the castle to see the projections but also a bit down Main Street so we could see the projections there as well. So we ended up just a little past Casey’s Corner. We sat down on the curb about an hour before showtime. There was another family next to us with several small children and a double stroller. I was hoping when everyone stood up for the show, we could position ourselves behind their stroller so we could have a somewhat decent view without people directly in front of us.
About 5 minutes before show time, we stood up in our spots. Sage and I were on Main Street and Aria was next to us on the curb so she was up a little higher. The show starts and suddenly, people come rushing out and stand directly in front of us. Like we are so squished together and Aria can’t see anything except the butts of adults all around us. I pick Aria up and this man comes and stands right in front of us. This is my actual view

Yeah see the guy up ahead with the iPad? AN ACTUAL IPAD. For the entire show.

I couldn’t even attempt to take any more pictures because I had to hold Aria the whole time. After sitting in our spots for a full hour, we could barely see. I was so upset. It totally ruined the show. Now I understand why people splurge for the dessert parties. I would seriously consider it after this experience.

I will say, the night ended on a good note. I was really nervous about swimming upstream after the fireworks to make it to HM. But the CMs have it down to an exact science. We got over there so quickly, enjoyed our last ride, then called it a night.

And by the way, I had no clue that the HM photo is taken in the beginning when you go through the hall with the portraits. I was expecting it at the end when they say “a ghost will follow you home”. We all look so unimpressed

 

[DisneyDreamer08]

Saturday 3/11

Our final day. Our flight was at 5pm. I assumed Sunshine Flyer would pick us up around 2pm. So back at our 60 day mark, I made a brunch ADR for 11am at Homecomin’. I thought we could pack up and then spend a few hours down at Disney Springs. I’ve been wanting to try Homecomin’ for so long! But, I got a text from Sunshine Flyer saying our pick up was at 1:25 and to be at the bus stop by 1:15. I felt like that was just too close to call so I canceled our ADR. Boo.

We decided we definitely needed to split the kids up that day. Nick and Sage took the monorail to MK then took a bus to French Quarter to try some beignets. Thankfully they got some to go for me and Aria to try

I packed up the room and called bell services to come get our bags. Then Aria and I did a monorail loop to get a few things I saw back on our first day.

First at the Basin store in the Grand Floridian- look how cute these Mickey soaps are!! I bought two for us and two for a giveaway on my business page.

Then over to the Contemporary. I saw a shirt I liked on our first day and it is definitely perfect for me

(photo taken at home)
It’s actually a kids shirt but when I compared the kids XL to an adult medium, there wasn’t a whole lot of difference. I actually haven’t even tried it on yet, hopefully it fits!

 

[DisneyDreamer08]

Nick and Sage met us at the Contemporary where Aria and I enjoyed our beignets. Then we all went back over to the Poly to meet the bus.

We were the first pick up so the bus ride was long. We still had plenty of time at the airport and no issues with our flight. We were home by about 9pm and our boy Simba was so happy to see us.

Overall, I would give the kids a C+ for this trip. Which is actually a big improvement from our 2020 trip. The first three park days were great. The last two, not so much. Our kids fight all the time. A lot of it has to do with their 5 year age difference, a lot just has to do with the fact that Sage has zero big sister skills. She has never been able to play down or even talk down to Aria’s level. We always say Sage either should have been an only child or Aria should have been born first. But you get what you get!

I told the kids that another big elaborate family trip is not likely in our future any time soon. I am actually considering taking them separately in the future. Their interests are just so different. I told Sage maybe I would take her next summer and Aria sometime in 2025. I will also likely do a shorter solo trip at some point as well.

But that’s it for now! Thanks so much for following along
Until next time Disney friends!

 

[joshsprincess921]

I love your Dumbo shirt!
Sorry that you are going through a hard season of life right now with the kiddos.
Motherhood is a hard job, but you did great despite the chaos.
Thanks for sharing and keeping it real.
I enjoyed following along.

 

[DisneyDreamer08]

I love your Dumbo shirt!
Sorry that you are going through a hard season of life right now with the kiddos.
Motherhood is a hard job, but you did great despite the chaos.
Thanks for sharing and keeping it real.
I enjoyed following along.

Thank you! I actually bought that Dumbo shirt before my solo trip in January 2022 but the day I wore it, it was legit 35 degrees and I wore a coat all day So I was so excited to wear it again.
Thanks for the words of encouragement! Disney can be so over stimulating for kids. It’s loud, it’s crowded, it’s hot. I get it. And I try to be as patient as possible. I will say, this was by far the easiest trip in terms of taking care of them. It was so nice to go into a bathroom and say, ok you go in that stall, I’ll go in this one and I’ll meet you at the sinks. Or to sit them at a table with a tray of food and say, you wait here while I go get the drinks. And Sage is finally old enough to apply her own sunscreen So there were a lot of things that were just easier all around.

 

[amjt660]

I can totally understand why it’s consistently in the 30 minute range. Everyone is basically kept in the queue outside while only a small amount of people are let up the escalator at a time. When we got to the top of the escalator, the queue up there was completely empty. The trains have like 5 or 6 cars and our party of 4 took up one car. The other cars in the train were completely empty. We noticed the train in front of us was the same. 1 car of people and 5 empty cars.

Calling on @Tuvalu for help on this one - as I know she is a People Mover expert

It sounds like a CM training issue (not managing the queue properly) or a potential safety issue if they send up too many people and some are stuck at the top of the moving ramp and cannot get off.

Either way I love this ride - it is a nice break from the hustle/bustle of MK and as you noted the views are great.

it somehow made Sage more mad. I’m such a bad mom you guys.

I love that Raya is in this.

maybe its me but I could not see Raya in your photos....

Great TR - and I feel your pain

My DDs are very different so it can be a challenge to appeal to both all the time.

Kudos for sticking it out and not leaving the park

The fireworks viewing is sad - this is an area that I think Disney needs to improve

Shanghai designed the area in front of the castle to be slightly tiered and divided into rows
I did not watch a FW show from here but I did take some pictures of it
This would help with spacing and viewing during FW and maybe help with the feeling of being crushed (@Spash007 )

Max

 

[DisneyDreamer08]

Calling on @Tuvalu for help on this one - as I know she is a People Mover expert

It sounds like a CM training issue (not managing the queue properly) or a potential safety issue if they send up too many people and some are stuck at the top of the moving ramp and cannot get off.

Either way I love this ride - it is a nice break from the hustle/bustle of MK and as you noted the views are great.

maybe its me but I could not see Raya in your photos....

Great TR - and I feel your pain

My DDs are very different so it can be a challenge to appeal to both all the time.

Kudos for sticking it out and not leaving the park

The fireworks viewing is sad - this is an area that I think Disney needs to improve


Max

I only got one with Raya in it. She’s way up top, hard to see. A lot of times, they would turn and face and wave the other way when they were in front of us.

 

[MickeyCB]

Thank you for sharing your trip, it was very fun to follow along.
And I think you show great patience with your kids. If that was me we would have been on the evening news!

 

[DisneyDreamer08]

Thank you for sharing your trip, it was very fun to follow along.
And I think you show great patience with your kids. If that was me we would have been on the evening news!

It’s not easy, believe me They are a lot of work

 

[Tiki Traveler]

Thank you for the trip report and the great pictures!

 

[fractal]

Thanks for sharing @DisneyDreamer08 ! Tough last night at MK. Bravo for hanging in there.

Holding up a giant IPAD is a big no-no. That dude deserved a kick in the knees. Very rude and selfish.

My two oldest fought constantly at that age. Now both adults, the fighting has stopped (mostly). Something to look forward to!

 

[DisneyDreamer08]

Thanks for sharing @DisneyDreamer08 ! Tough last night at MK. Bravo for hanging in there.

Holding up a giant IPAD is a big no-no. That dude deserved a kick in the knees. Very rude and selfish.

My two oldest fought constantly at that age. Now both adults, the fighting has stopped (mostly). Something to look forward to!

Thanks so much! If I was closer to iPad guy, I definitely would have asked him to lower it. So rude

I hope you’re right about my daughters. I grew up with two brothers so when I found out my second was also a girl, I was so excited to see what life with sisters would be like. So far, not what I was expecting

 

[cassidy]

Thank you for your wonderful trip report. I am happy to know that other peoples kids argue on vacation as much as mine do. My sister and I did the same to my mom, lol. I really did love your trip report!!

 

[MinnieM123]

Really enjoyed your TR, and I also loved all your photos. (I've never been to WDW with kids, but my guess is that they sometimes get overwhelmed with all the activities going on, which might result in some unexpected disagreements.)

Overall, it looks like your entire family had a wonderful time, and thank you for sharing your vacation with us!

 

[DisneyDreamer08]

Thank you for your wonderful trip report. I am happy to know that other peoples kids argue on vacation as much as mine do. My sister and I did the same to my mom, lol. I really did love your trip report!!

Thanks so much!
I only speak the truth, I never sugarcoat anything. My kids fight constantly. You would think that wouldn’t be the case in Disney but, same fights just in a different location

 

[DisneyDreamer08]

Really enjoyed your TR, and I also loved all your photos. (I've never been to WDW with kids, but my guess is that they sometimes get overwhelmed with all the activities going on, which might result in some unexpected disagreements.)

Overall, it looks like your entire family had a wonderful time, and thank you for sharing your vacation with us!

Thank you! You are right, the crowds, the heat, the chaos, it definitely can effect kids and their behavior. Some adults too

 

[LeighM]

Enjoyed your trip report! Do you ever watch Jared and Lindsay's YouTube channel? If not, you can probably find them by Googling the Broadway Bradshaws. I enjoy watching them and Molly's new channel, Mammoth Club. I still watch Allears on occassion but not as often because I feel like I'm aging out of their targeted demographic