a Fantastical Wooden Coaster-Ride-of-a-trip

HouCuseChickie · Jun 21, 2013

I'm sorry I helped lead to the cupcake indulgence.

I'm suddenly quite painfully aware of the lack of cake in this house.

What a nightmare with the parasols!!!! I've thought about those, but those thoughts will never enter my mind again. I guess at least you got some entertainment with the angry DVC people. Still, like you noted...do you really want to be so upset while on vacay?

The food from Via Napoli looks great. What struck me as funny was where you've had your best pizza. We spent a couple of days in Lucerne back in 2000 and I don't think we even thought to look for pizza there.

Can't wait to read more

journ116 · Jun 21, 2013

HouCuseChickie said:
I'm sorry I helped lead to the cupcake indulgence. I'm suddenly quite painfully aware of the lack of cake in this house.

What a nightmare with the parasols!!!! I've thought about those, but those thoughts will never enter my mind again. I guess at least you got some entertainment with the angry DVC people. Still, like you noted...do you really want to be so upset while on vacay?

The food from Via Napoli looks great. What struck me as funny was where you've had your best pizza. We spent a couple of days in Lucerne back in 2000 and I don't think we even thought to look for pizza there.

Can't wait to read more

Oh, my comment of, "I would hate to be that irate while on vacation," would come back to bite me in the behind...
And about the pizza, whenever I tell someone the best pizza location is in Lucerne, they turn their heads to the side, scrunch up their noses, and breathe out, "Really?" Seriously, it was the thinest crust, tastiest sauce pizza I ever had! I cannot remember the name of the establishment as I didn't really ask questions: my sister and her then DH, were living there for a year before I got over, so they mastered many "where to's." It's on my bucket list to take my DH there...Adventures by Disney, here we come!

Pooh'sBuddy · Jun 21, 2013

Congrats on the pearls! What's the Shakespeare quote? All that glitters isn't gold?

Your girls are so cute in your Italy pics. I agree on the expensive dinners. It would have been less expensive for us if we had sent the boys to the kids' clubs while we ate at Ohana and Boma.

Pooh'sBuddy · Jun 21, 2013

I now think I understand your cupcake reference. LOL!!

Zipadeelady · Jun 21, 2013

[quote="journ116, post: 5560037, member: 75425

*Unimpressed and gift cards spent: Enthusiastically, I showed my DH what I had gotten..."Are you done with pearls now?"....uuuuh, no! If anything, this find had gotten me pumped to search more oysters! The girls had found some souvenirs: Eliza picked up a very expensive monkey baby thing (I'm sure someone here knows what it is), and Chloe got yet another Hello Kitty! bag.

DSC_1120 by journ116, on Flickr

[/quote]

OMG Is that a mun chi chi!! I haven't seen on of those since the 80"s!!!

journ116 · Jun 21, 2013

[/quote]

OMG Is that a mun chi chi!! I haven't seen on of those since the 80"s!!![/quote]

The CM behind the registered squealed with delight and said something when I was paying for it, but I had no idea what the deal was. Needless to say, this monkey, baby thing will be very, very well taken care of! Thanks for a name!

TheMouseFan · Jun 22, 2013

OMG Is that a mun chi chi!! I haven't seen on of those since the 80"s!!![/quote]

The CM behind the registered squealed with delight and said something when I was paying for it, but I had no idea what the deal was. Needless to say, this monkey, baby thing will be very, very well taken care of! Thanks for a name![/quote]
It certainly looks like a monchichi. I'm dating myself by admitting I had one of those in the 80's!! They actually sold those at Target a few years ago. Until then, I didn't even know they were still around!

Really enjoying reading about your trip! Can't wait to read more!

foreverbelle · Jun 23, 2013

Mun Chi Chi...omg. I will add into the excitement, my big sister was so in love with them. I don't remember them to much myself but I know she had them all over the place!!

And that pearl is gorgeous I have always wanted to stop and do it but never have.....does it cost $40? I think you just said this but making sure.

journ116 · Jun 24, 2013

TheMouseFan said:
It certainly looks like a monchichi. I'm dating myself by admitting I had one of those in the 80's!! They actually sold those at Target a few years ago. Until then, I didn't even know they were still around!

Really enjoying reading about your trip! Can't wait to read more!

I have since looked up this, "Monchichi," and found YouTube commercials for them in the '80's! Hilarious! I honestly don't remember these, but my older sister might (just dated ourselves)!
I had a very busy weekend (my oldest DD had back-to-back doctors appointments on Friday...she needs surgery in July

). Soooo, I'm gonna pound out 1 or 2 days of my TR by this evening! Thank you so much for reading!

foreverbelle said:
Mun Chi Chi...omg. I will add into the excitement, my big sister was so in love with them. I don't remember them to much myself but I know she had them all over the place!!

And that pearl is gorgeous I have always wanted to stop and do it but never have.....does it cost $40? I think you just said this but making sure.

It seems like a lot of things from the '80's are coming back into style...including this Monchichi! Or, as Eliza likes to call it, "My monkey baby!"
As for the pearls, the oysters are $17 a piece, with tax (their sign reads, "$15.96 + tax). I must forewarn you: oyster picking can be addicting!!

EmmabaRose · Jun 24, 2013

Your daughters are adorable, I'm totally jealous of that Rapunzel nightgown! If I could, at the age of 21, still get away with running around all day dressed as a Disney Princess, I would!

Great TR, can't wait to read more!

journ116 · Jun 26, 2013

EmmabaRose said:
Your daughters are adorable, I'm totally jealous of that Rapunzel nightgown! If I could, at the age of 21, still get away with running around all day dressed as a Disney Princess, I would!

Great TR, can't wait to read more!

Thanks! But don't let those faces fool you for one second

And although I am not personally a Disney princess-gown enthusiast (like my youngest), I did decide to class it up this trip and packed nothing but dresses and skirts (close enough I suppose)!

journ116 · Jun 26, 2013

O.K. folks...my TR plans have been de-railed for a bit and I apologize for the delay

! I promise, that by tomorrow afternoon, I will have 2 days worth of posting up and ready to view! Until then, keep on enjoying all those other great TR's out there (which has been part of my de-railment, getting caught up in reading 'em all!)!!

Pooh'sBuddy · Jun 26, 2013

journ116 said:
O.K. folks...my TR plans have been de-railed for a bit and I apologize for the delay ! I promise, that by tomorrow afternoon, I will have 2 days worth of posting up and ready to view! Until then, keep on enjoying all those other great TR's out there (which has been part of my de-railment, getting caught up in reading 'em all!)!!

No worries!

journ116 · Jun 26, 2013

Fri., 6/7:

AM
*It's gonna be a rough day...for me: I barely slept, waking every hour to contain a nasty, massive head cold that had reared its ugly head...or, my cold symptoms never fully disappeared from earlier in the week. Either way, I was feeling terrible. By 7:30 a.m., I was showered, but not exactly ready to "start" the day. After waking my DH, I headed down to Sundry's (small gift shop right off the lobby), to peruse their selection of cold medicines: I settled on Benadryl and CONTAC Cold & Flu. I already had my allergy medicine in my system, so I kept the Benadryl in the room, but took a dose of CONTAC, hoping it would be working within the hour.

*Time check: 8:20 a.m.: We were out the door to MK (via bus) to finish up rides we hadn't done yesterday (mainly, the "mountain" rides). A solid 20 min. passed and 2 busses for AK and 1 for DTD went by before one showed up with "MAGIC KINGDOM" in its destination box. To my delight, our stop had first dibs and my oldest DD selected the very, very back seats. Another stop at Swan AND then Dolphin, and we were finally on our way. Between the 2 extra stops, a very crowded bus, a traffic jam by CT, and my cold, I began to feel very anxious and claustrophobic. I tried very hard to stay calm, but my DH could tell something was wrong, as my face was turning bright red, I was having trouble breathing, and was sweating. As soon as that bus stopped, I bolted off with my DD's following right behind.

DH to me: "I didn't think you were gonna make it. Are you O.K.?"

Me: "I almost didn't. This cold medicine is doing absolutely nothing for me. Do you mind if we stop in at the First Aid Station for some ibuprofen, because all I have is Tylenol and I can't have any for at least 4 hours. These aches are getting worse and my nose won't stop running."

*MK was already open and full of guests, and the weather was heating up: We slowly walked up Main Street, which gave my DH time to check his app for wait times: there was already a 30 min. wait for PP. I popped into the infirmary, signed in, and talked to the on-call nurse. I informed him that I already had an Alegra and one dose of CONTAC, but was wondering if I could have an ibuprofen because the CONTAC meds weren't doing a thing for me. He must've misunderstood me and gave me 2 doses of extra-strength Tylenol and 2 doses of nasal congestion. "Welp, in 4 hours I'll hopefully find relief with this stuff..."

*First up, the ever popular Circus area: Parked the stroller by Dumbo and headed toward Barnstormer which had a 10 min. wait...not too bad, but that sun was brutal. As we were making our way thru the line, a little girl, about 10 y.o., was trying to get by us to catch up with her family, when she lightly elbowed Chloe in the head...well, that was it for her as she went into full drama mode. And, since I was not feeling so hot, my patience level was at a "0"...so, I immediately took Chloe out of line, while my DH and Eliza rode the mini-coaster. Chloe calmed down a couple of minutes later, and I saw that there was only a 5 min. wait for Dumbo...HOW? because the CM's opened both dueling Dumbos to all guests, not designating one or the other as a FP line. We were off the ride before DH and Eliza had even boarded Goofy's coaster!

*Two rides down, 3 bottled waters & 1 Vitamin Water drunk, and a slowly fading momma: We picked up the stroller and took the newly opened path from Circus-land to the newer FL. Ariel's Grotto only had a 30 min. wait time, but the girls had met her at the end of April and were satisfied with that greet. Ariel's ride however, only had a 20 min. wait, but no one really wanted to ride (a shocker I thought)! DH wanted to head over to Gaston's Tavern and get a LeFou's Brew (his favorite drink in WDW). While waiting for him to get his drink on, the girls and I staked out a bench in the shade when we saw Gaston out for a M&G. The girls were happy just to watch him from afar, as was I

He was full of Gaston-ian behavior and entertained all the guests around him!

*Time check: 10:15 a.m.: As my DH made his way out with his brew, I noticed a long line forming to my left...was there another M&G going on? I couldn't see any characters and came to the conclusion that that crazy long line was for lunch at BoG!! If I hadn't been feeling so crummy, I would've hopped right next to those hard-core QS junkies, but alas, my muscles were aching just looking all those guests standing

We slowly moved on thru FL and didn't ride a single, bloomin' ride

! Wait times were just too long for us (including IASW)!

*Yet another stop: Everyone had "that feeling," so we stopped at the awesomely-themed Rapunzel restrooms. Chloe had fun pointing out all the objects painted or fastened to the bathroom walls: "Look, there's her guitar! Look, there's one of her books! I love this bathroom!"

rapunzel tower by journ116, on Flickr

creek by journ116, on Flickr

As we muddled around the provided seating nearby, my DH checked the wait times...every ride was too long of a wait for us, especially me, the sniffle monster. Ah, we've got nothing better to do, so lets go toward some of the attractions to see what the real lines were doing...buuuut, we first stopped at the Liberty Square Market for another Vitamin water for me, Cheetos and grapes for Chloe, Goldfish and a banana for Eliza, and water for Joel. Snacks in hand, we headed toward Splash. However, as we approached the ride, Chloe started to chicken out, so we by-passed it again (and for good ).

*"I'm hungry...Pecos?": My DH's bottomless-pit-of-a-stomach was growling and the closest food establishment was Pecos Bills, which was fine by me given my state of health and the fact that there was an air-conditioned seating area calling my name. While my DH hopped in line, I scooted the girls, double-stroller and all, to a somewhat empty room. I then grabbed a stack of napkins, as I had run out of my beloved tissues. Here's the kiddos while we waited for Joel:

(I am impressed that my 7-year-old loves playing Scrabble!)

DSC_1125 by journ116, on Flickr

(playing a game on the iPod)

DSC_1126 by journ116, on Flickr

DH arrived back with a tray full of goodies as the place started to fill up with more hungry guests seeking relief from the heat. No pictures, but he did enjoy a BBQ pork sandwich, corn on the cob, fries, carrot cake, and Coke. Once consumed, we continued thru Adventureland.

*"Guess we're done with this park for the day?!": After passing PotC and finding a queue hanging out the front entrance already, we knew the hordes of people had officially made their way to the park, so we officially decided to leave it. Oh wait! I promised one of my sisters that the next time I was in MK that we would Facetime...I love free wifi! We caught the castle stage show:

DSC_1127 by journ116, on Flickr

DSC_1130 by journ116, on Flickr

DSC_1134 by journ116, on Flickr

My sister and her little one thoroughly enjoyed the show, and I could tell she was itching to plan a trip down!

With the masses out in the streets, rides and attractions, there was no time like the present to peruse the gift shops. I briefly checked out the D-Tech wall, had entertained picking up a Minnie Mouse handset for my younger sister's iPhone, then found my DH and DD's eyeing the Monster University stuff. However, we managed to walk out empty handed!

*Oops, one more stop: Guest Relations. First, only my DH was having trouble using his AP to get FP's, then mine didn't work, and then the girls. Not sure what happened, especially because we had no trouble using said AP's to get into the parks, so we stopped at GR to get new ones. It was at this point that my DH was having his first meltdown over the girls...he has a short fuse to begin with. The CM who helped me was not overly-friendly, but not outright rude either...she fell somewhere in between. She non-chalantly made an accusation that my DH must've kept his AP near a credit card or phone (which we know NOT to do) and gave us a new holder to keep the passes in. With the 4 new passes in hand, 2 cranky kids, 1 sick momma and 1 impatient dad, we were off to the monorail!

*Monorail time: While waiting for our ride to take us from the TTC to EP, I began to feel hot, like really hot. I grabbed one of my DD's fans and attached it to the stroller handle, pointing it directly at my face. Once on the monorail, a jammed packed one at that, I could literally feel my cheeks getting hot. Oh no! Was I breaking a fever in front of all these guests?! I felt like I did on the bus to MK this morning, and I could see all eyes in our car were on me as I began to fan myself in addition to having the portable fan running. Then the sweat came...this is it...I must be breaking a fever!

DH to me: "Are you gonna be sick? Your cheeks are bright red and your sweating pretty bad!"

Me, to reassure the guests around me: "I'm not going to puke, if that's what you mean. I am just really, really, really hot."

We finally pulled into the station, I backed the stroller out, headed toward the ramp and stopped to chug a water. Once outside, breathing some fresh air, my cheeks toned down to a faded pink, and all that sweat was now partly due to the heat...I hoped.

*Arrived at EP and had two hungry children.

epcot 2 by journ116, on Flickr

epcot by journ116, on Flickr

*Another time check: 2 p.m.! Yes! I could finally take the medicines the nurse at MK had given me!!

A look around some WS pavilions:

fish n chips place by journ116, on Flickr

UK by journ116, on Flickr
UK by journ116, on Flickr

EP panorama by journ116, on Flickr

*Before heading out of EP via IG and onto our resort, I managed to place an order at the patisserie for some delectable pastries: 2 strawberry tarts, a berry parfait, a chocolate mousse, a Napoleon, and a croque monsieur. I was quite the sight!

France by journ116, on Flickr
France by journ116, on Flickr

DSC_1137 by journ116, on Flickr

*As we walked back to our room, our DD's reminded us of the promise of renting a surrey bike. Let's eat first, see how I feel, and then ride. Welp, the medicine kicked in (but I was only operating at 60%), the girls had a healthy lunch back in the room (thank goodness for groceries), re-applied the sunscreen, and replenished my tissue/napkin supply.

*Back down to the boardwalk for a surrey ride! I found an attendant (who was also manning a kiosk nearby), handed over $30 for a 30 min. surrey bike rental. He gave us a quick tutorial and reminded us twice to apply the brake going downhill. We were assigned a bike with two seats with pedals and a two-seat "basket" in front. My DH took the "drivers seat" on the left, while I had the "dummy wheel." Let's go?!

Pedal....pedal..."Ring the bell, Chloe!"...DING, DING...pedal...pedal...oh goodness, our first hill (DH did most of the leg work up this one)...phew, made it!...first downhill...DING, DING....oh crap, what's going on here (an entertainment company had blocked 3/4's of the path by BC to set up a massive event on the beach)...after carefully manuevering the obstacles of trucks, personnel, and guests, we finally made it to a clearing by the boat dock...pedal...pedal...another uphill drive (this time I helped a lot, but was coughing horribly afterward)..."Yay!" yelled the girls!....oops, turn here!...more pedaling and we found ourselves back on the boardwalk...time check: 10 min.! What?!

(not my smartest decision to wear a skirt)

surrey bike by journ116, on Flickr
surrey bike by journ116, on Flickr

After a joint decision, we slooooowwwwly headed back toward the Swan resort, because we didn't want to deal with the BC ordeal...nor the hills. We slooooowwwwly circled back around and found we were only gone for another 10 min.. Ahhh, we give up! We forfeited the last 10 min. of our rental and headed back to the room.

journ116 · Jun 26, 2013

*****No pictures from here on out, because we stayed in at the resort like hermits and I kinda forgot to *****

*Dinner in the contained quarters of our room: There's a lot to be said about room service, especially when you have little ones. A most welcomed splurge. After the troops arrived, used the restroom, and changed out of their swimsuits, I unveiled the meals:
-bacon cheeseburger with fries for DH
-turkey BLT with fries for me
-2 grilled cheeses with fresh fruit, chips, and tiny bottles of water for the kids

Ugh...why can't my kids eat like other kids ?! Chloe ate 1/2 of her sandwich and all her fruit. Eliza nibbled her sandwich, ate a kids-sized handful of my DH fries, and drank her water. Ah well! I covered their plates and told them that if they're hungry later, their food would be here waiting for them.
My DH finished his meal, but I could only get thru half of my sandwich and polished off Eliza's fruit cup.

*Since I was still not feeling the best, and we had originally planned for this evening to be a "resort stay," we hunkered in for the night. However, around 7 p.m., I decided to collect our laundry and walk down to the first floor to do a load. I threw in our clothes in the LG washer (there were 3), set it to something-rather and waited for the time: 50 min.!!! For 1 load of laundry?!

Back in the room, the girls were playing with all their new-found, and home-brought toys. I wrangled them up for a quick shower and then organized my sling for tomorrow's adventure.

*Quick check of the time: 7:45 p.m., I headed back out to the laundry room...sure enough, my clothes were there waiting for me. I noticed that the clothes felt almost dry...wow! that's a good washer! I then tossed them into an open dryer (only 2 of them) and set the machine to "COTTON," hoping the clothes would be dried in 20 min.. I set back to the room.

Once again, I found the girls playing, but somehow they had managed to serve themselves pop tarts! Figures...my DH had passed out

, so they took advantage of that small span of time I was out as well. At least they're resourceful! By this point, my "2-hour rule" for having food sit out had come and gone, so I sadly

tossed their food from dinner. I then woke my DH to let him know I was going to collect our clothes and that he needed to stay awake until I got back.

Darn dryer ! My clothes felt wetter than when I had taken them out of the washer! I set the timer for another 10 min. and called the room from the phone in the laundry room, to let Joel know that I was gonna be a bit longer and to fight falling asleep (hmmm...sounds like a plot line from 'Kingdom Keepers'....). All right, time is up dryer! Welp, the clothes felt a bit dryer and I was ready to call it quits. Grabbed my clothes, threw 'em in a garbage bag, and drug it up to the room.

The clothes could wait until the morning...I got the girls completely ready for bed, followed by my nightly routine and a dose of Benadryl...lights were out by 10 p.m., and the girls actually fell sound asleep by 10:30 p.m. (swimming will do that every time)!

***Up next: breakfast with the princesses!***

Pooh'sBuddy · Jun 27, 2013

Oh, no!!! That's awful you were so under the weather. Moms should be exempt from illness! Seriously great pics and love your surrey bike narration. I felt like I was along for the ride.

Kids and vacation meals! I don't understand them either. That's cool that your daughter loves scrabble. Good brain exercise.

journ116 · Jul 1, 2013

Apologies abound for the delay in the continuation of my TR...seriously, I am getting so engrossed in everyone else's stories that I kinda forget about mine...

***I need to preface something first: pics of my DD's. Bright lights, like flashes, hurt their eyes, hence the squinting in a lot of indoor pictures...especially Chloe. Soooo, when you see my kids in a photo and their eyes are half-way closed, it's just their natural reaction, and cause for a lot of deleted photos ***

Sat., 6/8:

AM
*Another early morning: Thank goodness for Benadryl and Tylenol! Although I wasn't feeling 100% and grateful that I wouldn't need 10 packs of tissues just to get thru the morning, my immune system was at least putting up a good fight. Now all I had to contend with was a cough and a "slow-motion" body. With that last statement in mind, I made sure that I gave myself an extra 30 min. in the morning to get ready, because we had an 8:05 a.m. ressie at Akershus. Somehow though, my family and I were still running behind. After some arguing with my DD's about not wanting to wear their Princess Sofia dresses that I just had to bring down (which was a big discussion at home two days before we left), they settled on necklaces, and I resigned myself from the situation and opened the door to indicate that it was "time to go."

*I had hoped to get to Norway by 8 a.m., stopping along some WS pavilions to get some uninterrupted pictures...but, we didn't even get to the IG entry until 8:05 a.m.! After entering the park, I wondered if we could go right across the bridge (to France) and get to Norway that way (although I was fairly certain we couldn't, but hey, it was worth a try)? As we get to the bridge, I asked the CM "guarding it" if we could pass:

CM: "No, I'm sorry, you have to go around the other way."

Me: "No worries, thank you! Oh, wait! Is it possible to have breakfast at the French bakery over there?"

CM: "Yes. However, the bakery doesn't open until 9 a.m., when FW opens."

Me: "Good to know!" (and I can officially confirm that the Patisserie IS OPEN for business at 9 a.m.!)

*Since we were already running late, my energy levels were low, and I was also nursing some gnarly blisters, I asked my DH if he could take the stroller with the girls and go on ahead to check us in. He obliged...the guy is 6'1" and takes 1 step to my 2! It was 8:15 a.m. by the time he got to the podium (I wanted to get us in before the 15 min. grace period ended), and we were surrounded by at least 5 other families waiting to be "invited in." This gave us time to take a few photos:

Norway buildings by journ116, on Flickr

Maelstrom by journ116, on Flickr

DSC_1145 by journ116, on Flickr

DSC_1146 by journ116, on Flickr

*At 8:25 a.m. we were "Welcomed" in: I felt so bad that our family was 20 min. late for the reservation, which consequently put us 20 min. behind on our EP "to-do list." But, I was happy to be here, and the CM's were very pleasant to be around:

DSC_1148 by journ116, on Flickr

DSC_1147 by journ116, on Flickr

DSC_1149 by journ116, on Flickr

DSC_1150 by journ116, on Flickr

*M&G with Belle under our belts, we were then escorted to our table in a circular alcove of the restaurant. No sooner had we sat down and placed our drink orders, the princesses were making their very first rounds of the day, and our area was first on their list!

(Sleeping Beauty, aka Aurora, aka Briar Rose)

DSC_1153 by journ116, on Flickr

(Eliza was super excited to see her! and this would be the last 'happy' Eliza for the rest of our meal...)

DSC_1157 by journ116, on Flickr

(BTW, her new dress is gorgeous!)

DSC_1155 by journ116, on Flickr

(Cinderella followed, but our Cinderella pen was giving her a hard time, so she borrowed a marker from the family sitting next to us...you'd think by now, I would know better to check our writing utensil before a M&G...oops!)

DSC_1160 by journ116, on Flickr

DSC_1159 by journ116, on Flickr

*With a small lull in the M&G's, a hot plate of staple breakfast items (scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, and potatoes) arrived, and then I sent my DH off to the buffet bar to get the girls some breads, fruit, and yogurt. I forgot that this place did not have pancakes or waffles, which is our go-to meal for Eliza in the morning...needless to say, the kid had a 1/2 spoonful of strawberry yogurt and nothing else.

*More M&G's: Ariel was by far the most energenic, in-character, look-alike princess we've met to date...she was so enthusiastic that I was looking for caffeine patches on her arms...found none.

(making a fuss over Eliza's necklace that when pressed, Ariel starts singing)

DSC_1161 by journ116, on Flickr

DSC_1163 by journ116, on Flickr

(although this particular Snow White could give Ariel a run for her money)

DSC_1166 by journ116, on Flickr

*After this final M&G, music came on and the princesses invited all the children to parade around the restaurant. Chloe got up right away and took off, leaving her little sister searching for her. Well, Eliza did not like that one bit and came running back to our table in tears...her big sister had left her, and she didn't like the feeling! My DH was very upset over the whole thing, but I asked him not to go ballistic when Chloe came back to the table, because then we'd have two crying kids (oh the drama never ends). Chloe sat down and saw her sister upset:

Chloe: "What's wrong with Eliza?"

Me, in a very gentle and loving tone: "She's sad because she wanted to march in the parade with you, but you were too quick and she couldn't find you. Next time, please wait for her, because you're her big sister and she loves you."

DH to Chloe: "You owe your sister an apology."

Aaaand, here comes the water works. My DH was never born with a sensitive gene and frequently suffers from word-vomit.

Me to Chloe, in order to diffuse the situation: "It's OK Chloe. You're not hurt and you're not in trouble, so please do not cry. All we're saying is you're bigger and you're sister is small, so please just wait for her next time?"

End of story.

*The picture of our girls with Belle and our check arrived at the same time. Was this meal worth it? Not this time around...guess we'll wait another couple of years before trying it again. The result of the meal had nothing to do with the service, food, ambiance or characters...it had everything to do with our family dynamic at that moment.

journ116 · Jul 1, 2013

*Time check: 9:15 a.m.. My DH checked the wait time for TT and found it was only 20 min.. So, off he went, taking Chloe, while I took all of our park passes, Eliza, and the stroller over to the Land. With the stroller parked, Eliza, myself, and a hundred of our closest "friends," made our way down to Soarin'. To keep Eliza busy, I let her "get the FP's," which she thought was the coolest thing! We were able to nab a FP return of 10:50-11:50 a.m....now, I know full well that Eliza was too small for the ride, but we got 4 FP's anyways, so Chloe could ride it with each parent. Here's Eliza waiting for DH and Chloe to meet up with us:

DSC_1167 by journ116, on Flickr

*I texted DH and found out that they were still in the queue, so I decided to take Eliza over to Living with the Land...we literally walked onto the boat. The CM's hadn't even opened the queue because there was absolutely no crowd to line up! The ride was a success, as usual, and here's what DH and Chloe were doing:

(Chloe and one of her dream cars...note the squinty eyes)

Chloe at TT 2 by journ116, on Flickr

Chloe at TT 1 by journ116, on Flickr

(Chevy prototype...can you imagine passing a car like this on your way to the grocery store? Reminds me of an updated version of Steve Urkel's car...)

Prototype by journ116, on Flickr

*Eliza was hungry, so after the ride, we stopped over at Sunshine Seasons for another Danimals yogurt, banana, muffin, and drink (which took another QS meal off of us). By the time my DH and Chloe found us, our FP's were good to go..."yes," they spent that much time in TT playing! Chloe and I waited for about 10 min. before we were escorted to a loading station. Now, I had contemplated on requesting what we consider to be the best seats in the house, "B station, row 1," but I figured Chloe and her dad could do that. We were seated next to a set of grandparents and two grandkids who were riding Soarin' for the very first time! I love that...hearing a first timers reaction! The grandfather kept turning to Chloe and saying, "Hold on! Whoa! That was cool!" He was like a kid in a candy store! However, I must say that the Soarin' screen needs a reno...and tout de suite!

*We exited the ride and found that DH had taken Eliza outside. Chloe didn't feel like riding again, so we hung out by the entrance to find a couple to give our remaining FP's to. We spent 15 min. just people watching: there was either a family of 3, 4 or 5, OR they already had FP's. In hindsight, I should've just stood by a FP machine and gave our tickets to the next couple. Finally, I found an elderly couple who were examining the ride and asking each other, "What is this?" Sweet!

I approached the couple and said: "Excuse me folks, would you like 2 FP's for this ride?"

the elderly man: "What's a Fast Pass?"

Me: "A Fast Pass allows you to skip the 'Stand By' line and get onto the ride a bit sooner. At most, you might only wait 15 minutes to get onto the ride instead of waiting 2 hours in that other line."

the elderly man: "What is this ride?"

I briefly explained the ride, and then he turns to his wife and said: "This young lady wants to give us fast passes to ride this."

the elderly lady: "What's a Fast Pass?"

I couldn't help but chuckle and then tried to explain everything that I had told him to his wife. Chloe meanwhile was tugging on my dress to "get going." The couple thanked me, but still didn't look like they had absorbed all that I had told them. While Chloe and I were going up the stairs to leave, I saw the couple walk over to two empty ECV's, which were parked next to another elderly couple on ECV's, and heard the older gentleman say to his friends, "Some girl just gave us these passes to ride Soarin'," which was immediately followed by one of their friends asking, "What's Soarin'?"

I'm still laughing over what had just transpired when my DH calls me to let me know that Nemo had a 20 min. wait, and this pic:

Eliza & Monchichi by journ116, on Flickr
Yup, Monchichi had snuck into the stroller...

*"I don't want to ride Nemo," Chloe exclaimed. Fine, we'll do it another time. Besides, the weather was getting to be a bit much and the girls were hungry, again. An executive decision was made to head back to the resort and eat lunch there...good-bye EP, we'll see ya again in a couple of hours (I love staying at a resort within walking distance)!

EP in day by journ116, on Flickr

journ116 · Jul 1, 2013

PM
*Oops, lapse in the order in which things occurred: We did not go back to the resort, but instead sought out meals at the American pavilion. Man, it was hot out! There were no open tables to be found inside, so my DH, DD's and stroller found a spot to the side and parked there until a seat could be had. I placed 3 orders:
-8 piece chicken nuggets with fries, cookie and Coke
-bacon cheeseburger with fries, apple pie, and Coke
-kid's mac n' cheese, yogurt, grapes, carrot sticks, and chocolate milk

The nuggets were for the girls to share...Chloe ate 3 of 'em, along with the grapes, carrot sticks, 1/2 the cookie, and chocolate milk; Eliza ate some french fries, yogurt, a carrot stick, the other 1/2 of the cookie and water; DH had the cheeseburger meal, and I had the other Coke and rest of the nuggets.

*Since we entered WS via Canada, we decided to make a full circle, so we carried on past Germany, Italy, the Outpost, China, Norway, and Mexico. We briefly stopped in at each country, and debated on souvenirs.

*We basically wandered EP for a couple of hours more, in and out of shops, but no other rides. The girls did stop in at TT with their dad, where Chloe walked out with a remote controlled toy car. Okey, dokey.

*Now it was time to go!

*Resort break: DH took the girls back up to the room, while I stopped at the Bakery. I picked up 3 meals: fresh mozzarella sandwich (not as good as Earl's), a gigantic Mickey oreo-esque cupcake (just eh IMO...the Oreo ears were very soggy), smoked turkey sandwich (minus the tomatoes for DH), a Napolean pastry (the one the Patisserie used to serve), a kids PB&J meal, chocolate chip cookie and 3 bottles of water. I cannot remember if I reported on this tid-bit of info before: when putting together a lunch or dinner QS meal at the Boardwalk Bakery, you can pick ANY dessert from the bakery (mini cakes excluded of course)!! Back in the room, I fixed Eliza a meal (bagel, yogurt, applesauce, and 1 little carrot) and then we all ate our respective sustenance.

*As we were deciding on whether or not to see Illuminations that night or go over to MK for their nighttime festivities, ominous storm clouds rolled in. Yes! Storms seem to clear out the parks, or at least force guests into the shops! We decided to go back to MK, where could possibly get in more rides!

*We waited for a small break in the storm (i.e. no lightning or thunder), and made our way back to EP. As we made our way to the monorail, I had a gut feeling that the monorail was probably down...we got all the way to the front entrance and saw the sign, "Closed." Bullocks! Alrighty, let's head back to WS...AGAIN!

We decided to move in a counter-clock-wise motion. However, my two non-favorite friends (lightning and thunder) made their way back into our lives (man, that was a short break). Right as we got to the Japan pavilion, the skies really let us have it: we're talking torrential down pours, too-close-to-home lightning strikes, and ground-shaking thunder!

Somewhere between entering the park and seeking cover in Japan, the girls decided to take a nap (I love our moveable beds

). I clipped on their fans, reclined the seats a bit for some fresh air, and kept the rain cover secured.

*Exploring Japan: DH prides himself on getting and trying candy unique to this pavilion, so he ducked into the shop and perused the candy selection for about 20 min.. He came out and showed me his loot, one of which was a soda with an unusual way of opening the bottle and another was soda gum:

DSC_1425 by journ116, on Flickr

(check out this video pertaining to the soda: Ramune)

Then it was my turn to go in...before I left though, my DH predicted that I'd buy another oyster. Nah! I can restrain myself, plus there was no way of duplicating my good fortune from Thursday's pearl picking!

Turns out, DH was right! There might've been 5 people "just looking" at the oysters, and 2 people actually waiting in line to pick. I was tempted, and I gave in. Up to the cash register I went:

Me: "One oyster please."

I handed over $20, got $3 in change, a receipt, and a #3 token. This time, I headed to the left oyster tank and debated between two somewhat hairy oysters. I decided on the oyster that was laying completely flat on the rock bed vs. the one that was kind of standing up.

CM: "We're looking for lucky #3!" (boy, every number seems to be "lucky" here

)

We performed the ceremonious bow, picking of the oyster, the explanation of the opening process, and the countdown. By this point, more guests had crowded into the shop, but nothing too unbearable. I did find myself being photographed by strangers yet again.

Onto the countdown...san (3)...ni (2)...ichi (1)! The CM pauses..."How did you know to pick such a lucky oyster?!"

Ooooh, what did I get this time? Could it be a blue or silver pearl? Could it be a really big one?

DSC_1424 by journ116, on Flickr

DSC_1423 by journ116, on Flickr

After the ceremony and "oohs" and "aahs" from the crowd, I was presented my second set of twins! A lady who had been watching the action behind me, stopped me to ask, "What kind of oyster did you pick?" I explained to her a somewhat hairy, unattractive one was the winner, to which she replied, "My daughter said the same thing. Guess I'll have to try my hand at it!" And, another one bites the dust!

*I found my DH playing on his iPhone and our DD's still sound asleep (even thru the vicious cracks of thunder), and displayed my fortune in the palm of my hand.

DH: "Now are you done?"

Me: "For this trip I am!"

*A quick look at the radar on the iPad and we saw that the "red parts" of the storm was passing, and that lighter rain would be hanging around. Let's get moving! We didn't get far and we hopped into Germany and sought refuge in their candy/mug room. I found the most hilarious sweatshirt here, but forgot to take a quick pic, so I'll describe it to y'all: it was a typical grey pullover, but in addition to the open-ended pocket in the front, there was a pocket right above it to place a cold beverage!

*Alright, we had enough of the rain for now, so we left the park for the 2nd time today! Have I said how much I love staying at a resort within walking distance to the parks?! I think we just hung around the resort...DH took the girls down to the Community Center and rented some movies (thinking that we'd be in for the night). They played down there a bit while I sorted thru the days purchases, hung up our soaking wet DVC coats, and repacked the park bag. Back they came with two movies and coloring pages. I then took the time to iron our clothes for tomorrow's photo shoot, bathe the girls, and finished their nighttime routine. As I was getting ready for bed, my DH and I made a last minute decision to see Illuminations tonight, even if it was raining. So, we put the stroller cover back on and my DH and I threw on our $1 ponchos....

*Time check: 8:15 p.m.. We entered EP for the 3rd time today, and I had no problem staking out a spot for the fireworks in the rain. We saw that there were no dessert parties being held at the viewing location between the two bridges in WS...in fact, no one was around. My DH wondered if the show would even go on and I pointed out that everything seemed to be in place. For a good 20 min., we were the only guests around. The girls were a little hungry, so my DH went over to Frances' gelato shop and picked up two cups of chocolaty goodness. By the time he got back, word must've spread about our viewing location and the crowds filed in. We went from open space to knocking elbows with the people around us...and then someone thought that that time was proper to light up a cigarette, even though it was a non-smoking area! This guest was clearly from South America and a chain smoker. My family and I cannot physically tolerate the smoke: our noses get stuffy, our stomaches become queasy, and I develop borderline migraines (guess I would not fare well in a discotheque). As I was about to address said guest, because I absolutely detest the whole aspect of smoking, she miraculously stopped...maybe it was due to the fact that Illuminations would be starting shortly or she had run out of her cancer sticks...either way, I would not be having a confrontation tonight. (I apologize to any forum members I might have just 'turned off,' but cigarettes have taken an insurmountable toll on several members of my family...you'd think with all the provable research out there that they'd know better.)

*ILLUMINATIONS: Reflections of Earth! Show time! There were plenty of first-timers around us, and their reactions were priceless! And although I've seen the show a few times, the message, music, and fireworks get me every time! On the other hand, our DD's were not tolerating the fireworks...sensitive ears. After telling them to plug their ears, I noticed that the sphere was not fully lit...that's not right...only North and South America were illuminated. I felt bad for anyone visiting from Africa, Europe, Asia and Australia, as their continents were not working. Despite the glitch, the show ended 15 minutes later to a roaring applause!

EP at night 2 by journ116, on Flickr

EP at night 1 by journ116, on Flickr

EP at night 3 by journ116, on Flickr

Joel and kids at EP at night by journ116, on Flickr

*AAAND, now we're done for the night: A quick re-brushing of the teeth, we were all off to la-la-land by 10 p.m...we had to be bright-eyed and bushy tailed for our family photo shoot at EP by 9 a.m.!

bethymouse · Jul 1, 2013

Cool TR.