Trip Report THE ONE FOR MY BIRTHDAY IN MARCH; 3/15-3/20, 2019 *COMPLETE*

It is official. I am old.

Suddenly my back hurts, my eyesight is failing and I cant remember too good. Or is it too well? I cant remember.

A few months ago when my husband Ant asked me what I wanted to do for this milestone birthday (my Grandma told me a lady never reveals her age, but it has a zero at the end) I said, “NO PARTY!” Instead I wanted to be with my family and go to Disney. And that is what I did.

If you have read my previous TR’s you may recognize some of the cast, if not, dont worry. Here is a cheat sheet.

Husband-Ant
Sons: X- 19, AJ-15, Dre-13

Of course what would a trip be without pretrip drama. Ours was brought to us courtesy of AJ’s high school lacrosse coach.
Briefly, AJ decided last year, about the time he broke his foot, that school and homework weren't cool. He lost his way a little bit and is academically ineligible at the moment for sports. However, he has been working hard and his english and math grades are still a bit dismal, but he is above 80 in everything else. His lax coach has been a complete jerk. He is a total and he bullies and picks on the kids relentlessly. (My oldest, X was a saint compared to most boys and he got the full brunt of this tyrant!) The sad thing is, up until a year ago when he retired, he was a dean at the school. His job was to stop the very behavior that he IS.
AJ was a returning varsity player but the coach gave his jersey number to an incoming freshman. But, we were required to buy a “gear package” that was personalized with his number. Luckily we only got the jacket and have not paid for it yet. We will not pay for it if AJ does not get his number. (The freshman? Doesnt even want the number!)
We made our flight for Friday March 15 at 6:00 pm so the kids could go to school and any practice they would have that day. Turns out there was a lax scrimmage that night. But AJ cant play remember. There was also practice the next morning. Ant emails the coach explaining its my birthday, Disney, going to X’s game etc. Coach emails back, “Saturday practice 10-12.” Ugggh
We rebook AJ on a Saturday flight. Get my FIL to help out and line up a ride and place for AJ to sleep etc. Then on Wed before we are set to leave (2 days before) Ant has a chat with the coach about withholding AJ’s number and the trip. Coach says, “take him. I was going to email you right back but I felt stupid.”
So now we had to change AJ’s flight once again. I was happy we were all flying together but what a jerk! Oh and AJ’s number? He didnt want to “reward” him for his behavior. I really hate that man. (BTW: that number had also been X’s number and it had been forced on AJ the year before by the players and the coach. It worked out because all of X’s old sweats and shirts have that number. Hand me downs!)

But on to the good!!

Day 1/ March 15

I opened birthday presents at home
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Then we were off to the airport. The HS where the lax scrimmage was being held was on our way so we stopped and watched from the car for a few minutes.

Then we were on our way to Florida!
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Fire Island looks so pretty from up here!

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I wore my ears on the plane and all the way to the resort. It was my birthday and I was going to celebrate it. Nobody even looked twice.

Funny story. At one point during the flight I was putting on some hand lotion (my old skin dries out so fast😉). It was, of course, some leftover H2O lotion from our February trip. A little girl behind me said to her mom, “Mom! It smells like Disney!” I love it!!!

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It took awhile to get the rental car but we were here at last!!!
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Darstarr

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
In the Parks
No
Day 3/March 17 cont

Dinner was at ‘Ohana. I love all things Hawaii (except the price of gas!) and we had never eaten here. I thought there would be something for everyone to enjoy at ‘Ohana. We hopped on the monorail and off we went.

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We were seated pretty quickly, no time to lolligag in the lobby👎
The bread. Which I love! I am pretty sure this is the bread they serve at the Luau. If not it is it’s half sibling.

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Ant made a comment to the woman seating us how I love this bread and will probably take the leftovers home in my purse. She offered to wrap one to go for me. I declined but that was very nice. (Remember this)

I have heard how great the food was but lets be honest...I came for this!!!
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Dre had sprite. Ant had this.
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And AJ had this.
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That color! Yikes!!!

I really enjoyed the salad. Maybe too much.
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It was all delicious. AJ loves wings and pot stickers so he was good.
Dre loves noodles and broccoli. He was good.
Ant and I love it all.
Then they came with the skewers. The boys were confused because they didn't realize there was more food coming. AJ was too full to continue. I had a little chicken (delicious) before waving the white flag. (I needed to save room for my Lapu Lapu. Priorities!!!) Dre had chicken, steak and shrimp. Then a second helping of shrimp. Ant? Lets just say he made up for AJ and I!! He was in his glory!
For Ant ‘Ohana means no shrimp gets left behind or uneaten.

AJ had barely touched his drink and I asked him if he liked it. He said he did but he was so full. I told him to ask for a to go cup. Our server overheard and said they dont really do to go. I asked if he could take the glass out of the restaraunt then. She said she misunderstood me (yes because she was eavesdropping) and brought him a cup. At the exact same moment, the server at the table next to us, which was about 6 inches away, was bringing them bona fide to go containers to pack up all their leftovers. What gives??

Then dessert
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Andreas loved this and ate all of it except the one bite I managed to get.
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Our server. I want to say her name was Lorraine or Bernadette. Dont remember. She was working hard though! Not a very good eavesdropper, however.
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Darstarr

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
In the Parks
No
Day 3/March 17 cont

I had to walk. I was so full! AJ and I got up to check out the gift shop while Ant and Dre paid the bill.

AJ loved this
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We headed back to MK. We had a 7DMT FP.

This is suppose to be a group line selfie but it looks like a pix of my new ears. I do love those ears so I will allow it!
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Can you tell I love this ride? I LOVE THIS RIDE!! LOVE IT LOVEIT LOVE IT!!!

We then headed to BTMRR. We had a bonus FP but can not remember why.
AJ asked for the back. We were waiting and AJ was kind of smushed in the corner. “What is that?”
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You can not see the but there was a huge spider! He was the same color as the wall.

More webs. Ummm, this queue is a little too authentic for us! We were itchy after that. But our wild ride from the last row fixed us.
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We got off and I noticed our bonus FP was still there. Quick! Lets ride again. No spiders, no last row. We didn't want to push our luck.

Ant and I headed back to BLT to watch the fireworks from TotWL. The boys went to check the line for SM.

The view from the observation deck of TotWL.
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Panoramic.
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Blurry
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Better
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Darstarr

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
In the Parks
No
Day 4/March 18

We woke at 3:45. The boys had a 6:00am flight then Ant was taking them straight to school, after stopping at subway to get them sandwiches for lunch. Why did I drive them instead of the Magical Express? They would have been picked up about 3:00am! Yikes. We left about 4:00 and I was back at 5:00 and went back to sleep until 7:30.
I awoke to quiet. It was a little bittersweet. I was getting some bonus time alone but I missed my monsters. No time to wallow, however, because I had plans. Big big plans!!!

Showered and went to catch a bus to HWS. A bus pulled up just as I arrived. Yay me!!!

I walked in and there was Daisy!!! No line. I told her about the poor ducks stranded in the drained moat at the MK. She made a tear drop gesture then pointed to a patch of flowers and grass behind us. “Should I tell them to come here?” She nodded.
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There was an early morning magic event this morning so when I arrived about 8:45 I walked right in. No line up. No mad dash to whatever you deem dashable. Just a relaxed stroll into the park. I will say, the CM’s this morning were grumpy! Not rude, but you could tell they were tired and over it. I had to chuckle, just wait until August 29th!!!
Another thought, I would have been mad if I had paid extra to get in early as they were letting us riff raff in as we showed up. I am telling you, 8:45 and no line. None.

I headed to Alien Seirling Saucers. There are two sides. I was on the first ride of the second side. The first side had been going for the early morning event.
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I like this ride but it is not as much fun alone. No one to smush.

Then I headed to Toy Story Mania.

Disneyland!
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I was noticing most of the cards had the number 9 on it. My oldest son’s jersey number is 9 so I took a pix to send to him. Then another. Then another. What is up???
Speaking with my son later we decided it was because Toy Story 2 was released in 1999 and the ride is TS2 based. Does that sound correct? Anyone have the real story?

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Then I met a CM who was not grumpy. He was loading the guests and noticed my bday button (why is he looking at my chest?!? JK)
He was very nice and told me he just turned 64.
“No way!” I said.
“Yep”, he said. “And we both look darn good for our age!” (But I didnt tell you my age)
At that point the vehicle started to move and he yelled, “wait I have to say one more thing before you go! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!”

I was meeting Ant’s cousin and her husband. We had aligned our FP’s for the day. Her birthday is the day before mine so we were going to spend the day celebrating together.
More on her later.

I had time.

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There was Edna Mode. The fashion icon herself!
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I said, “my son has one of your shirts”. That made her happy. “But”, I confessed, “it’s a knockoff.”
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Darstarr

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
In the Parks
No
Day 4/March 18 cont


As I left Edna I saw this on the ground.
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Cookie crumbs! Looks like Jack Jack has been here. They looked so real I was now hungry.

After my brush with designer greatness I thought what do I want to do? I wanted to see Walt and his Dreams.
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This struck me as odd. They were right inside the door of Walt Disney Presents. What are they for? And isn't Disney trying to cut down on plastic bags?

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Words to live by.

The motherland!!!
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Guess which Mousketeer is my fave.
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Practically perfect
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Trunk up!!! There was also a dumbo sneak peek. It got me really pumped for the movie and I so want to see it. (I know in real time it opened over the weekend but I was in Fla for my Dad’s bday and son’s lax game.)

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I walked out and ran into these citizens harassing a father/son about their hair and choice of products. It was pretty funny!
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More about Cousin M (henceforth known as M) and her husband, J. M’s bday is the day before mine. We had both been down during Feb break and met up for a bit. In the planning of that we discovered our bday trips would overlap. She heard I would be solo on Monday and asked if I wanted company. Yes please!!!
M’s mom and Ant’s mom are/were sisters. I always liked M very much but there was some family drama (not with me) and we stopped seeing them as often. Then when my MIL passed visits pretty muched ceased. However, M was at my MIL’s bedside assisting my FIL during her final days at home. (M is a nurse)
The drama broke my heart, I really love my MIL’s side of the family. M and J live 5 minutes from us. Her youngest hired AJ last summer to clean pools with him. I decided, I like M and J and I am going to hang out with them!!! We made our FP and other plans together.

They go often and are dvc. They do a more relaxed type of touring so I was ready to follow their lead. However, our first FP was for 10:30 and I hadn't yet heard from them. I texted them, told them where to meet me and then got this.
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Then I waited. And waited. They are a lot more chill than I am.
 

Darstarr

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
In the Parks
No
Day 3/March 18 cont

They arrived and J and I used our RnR FP. M passed on the FP. Ha ha. RnR gives her a headache. We do not want that!!!
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After RnR we had a FP for ToT. This does not give M a headache! Yay!
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We had time before our next FP so we did Star Tours. Sorry, no other details available at this time.
It was freezing outside and we had both been bundled up so before we headed outside again we took off our outer wear and took a pix. We wanted to show off the tshirts I had my friend make us for our birthdays.
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Then we went to baseline tap house. We got beer. It was good. 🍻

Then it was time for slinky.
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Neither of them had been on before. How? Why?
We had the best time not acting our ages!!!
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Then we headed out. We had an ADR to get to and decided to walk.
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As we walked I was looking for FP’s. Once I got what I wanted at the time I wanted I grabbed J’s phone and went to work. He had no idea this could be done so I taught him the tricks of getting a good FP at your desired time. It turns out they do Disney very chill. Yes, I said this already but....for example, J had a 10 ride over under bet with a friend of his at work. “10 per day” I asked innocently. “No for the whole trip”. Today was their day 5 and they were still under, even with the 4 rides we just did.
 

LisaBelle

Well-Known Member
Love your Birthday Girl shirts! My husband thinks Edna is a hoot. Wish there was a meet and greet with her when we were there last summer. Can't believe M and J hadn't hit 10 rides in 5 days! That's really chill touring!
 

Darstarr

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
In the Parks
No
Love your Birthday Girl shirts! My husband thinks Edna is a hoot. Wish there was a meet and greet with her when we were there last summer. Can't believe M and J hadn't hit 10 rides in 5 days! That's really chill touring!
I asked my friend for raspberry shirts. This is the color her husband ordered us. Men. At least he printed the correct side.
Yes, it is chill touring but they make up for it with the restaraunts. Their over under for that is high!!!
 

Darstarr

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
In the Parks
No
Day 4/March 18 cont

The three of us continued on to our destination, Soarin fastpasses now secured. M and J may be chill with rides and attractions but they have eaten at just about every restaraunt. I was happy they had never eaten here:
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I am also happy I had the foresight to book for 3 people. When I made the reservation I thought I would be alone. I actually booked 3 different times about 2.5 hours apart. This was the only one I booked for three people though and it was the time that worked perfectly into our plans.
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It was cold and rainy and blah. A perfect day for soup and grilled cheese.
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This next part bums me out.
Fast forward to the next morning. I wake up and check the weather then the today and news sections on WDWM. But I see a message. I am not going to call this member out because he knows who he is. The message asks if I am enjoying beaches and cream. We PM a bit and I asked why he didnt say hi (this is a well known member to me from the “how many days” thread). He replied that he did not want to interrupt my lunch.
NOW HEAR THIS! I eat every day. Several times a day. How many opportunities to I have to meet one of you good people?? If any of you ever see me please interrupt whatever it is I am doing and say hi.

We all enjoyed our lunch. They were happy to have tried it but it was a one and done for them.
 

WDW74

Well-Known Member
Day 4/March 18 cont

The three of us continued on to our destination, Soarin fastpasses now secured. M and J may be chill with rides and attractions but they have eaten at just about every restaraunt. I was happy they had never eaten here:
View attachment 360651

I am also happy I had the foresight to book for 3 people. When I made the reservation I thought I would be alone. I actually booked 3 different times about 2.5 hours apart. This was the only one I booked for three people though and it was the time that worked perfectly into our plans.
View attachment 360652

It was cold and rainy and blah. A perfect day for soup and grilled cheese.
View attachment 360653

This next part bums me out.
Fast forward to the next morning. I wake up and check the weather then the today and news sections on WDWM. But I see a message. I am not going to call this member out because he knows who he is. The message asks if I am enjoying beaches and cream. We PM a bit and I asked why he didnt say hi (this is a well known member to me from the “how many days” thread). He replied that he did not want to interrupt my lunch.
NOW HEAR THIS! I eat every day. Several times a day. How many opportunities to I have to meet one of you good people?? If any of you ever see me please interrupt whatever it is I am doing and say hi.

We all enjoyed our lunch. They were happy to have tried it but it was a one and done for them.

Ouch...guilty as charged !😳
 

Darstarr

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
In the Parks
No
Day 4/March 18 cont


After lunch we headed into Epcot. We had some time before our next activity so we did what any beer drinking red blooded American would do. We went to England.
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Beers in hand we headed toward the land, stopping to get our figment magnets.
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We were doing the Behind the Seeds tour but had some time before check in. Ok, lets get another beer. J is a bad influence, but so much fun! M got a hard cider or something similar. She was nursing it (ha ha, get it? She is a RN!) so we put it in my refillable mug and she put it in her bag (no it did not leak and no she never finished it).

Excited!
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This was our tour guide. I can not remember her name to save my life. However, she was an intern who had just graduated from somewhere with an M and she and J were from the same home town on Long Island. She was a FLID just like us. (FLID is an acronym my oldest son’s Canadian team mates use to describe Long Islanders. Although I think it should be FLIDB and technically I am not a Long Islander, I just live there. )

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We began.
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These were wasps that they use in the green houses to eat some insect or other. (Not that kind of wasp- no stinging took place).
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They sell these out front.
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