A Private Dance with Cinderella... Our Surprise Trip Jan 2011

A Private Dance with Cinderella... Our Surprise Trip Jan 2011 (Completed 7/18!)

Exhibit A: Your Letter Confirming Your Reservation At The Nuthouse

Dear Sir/Madam:

This letter confirms your willingness to enter the strange, yet enticing world of the ramblings of the amateur writer known in the Disney community as BigTex71. Please sign the guest log (by replying in this thread) and let it be known that you waive all your rights to a normal trip report. By acknowledging your willingness to continue down this dangerous path, I cannot be held responsible for any sudden outbursts of laughter or rashes on your scalp due to the head-scratching some of my keyboard-induced quirkiness may induce.

Consider yourself warned.

Possibly Sincerely,
BigTex71

 

[BigTex71]

It's super awesome, you are awesome. Can't wait to read more.

My new best friend. :ROFLOL:

Can't wait for more!

Me either! Welcome!

Well, I had hoped to get another chapter posted today, but we got busy with other stuff today - including running numbers for various summer vacation destinations. After looking into a cruise out of Galveston, a beach vacation in Destin or Pensacola, Canada destinations, Yellowstone National Park, Disneyland and/or Legoland, Seaworld, San Diego, etc - we decided we may go back to WDW at the end of July! Woo Hoo!

I learned something interesting today doing all that research - from the Dallas/Ft Worth area, you get a lot more bang from your buck going to Walt Disney World than Disneyland. For some reason I thought it would be cheaper for Disneyland.

So now I get to start planning a possible return trip for July! And start a PTR (once I finish this trip report!)

I did put a self-imposed deadline of tomorrow for the next chapter, if that helps at all.

 

[sweetpee_1993]

My new best friend. :ROFLOL:



Me either! Welcome!

Well, I had hoped to get another chapter posted today, but we got busy with other stuff today - including running numbers for various summer vacation destinations. After looking into a cruise out of Galveston, a beach vacation in Destin or Pensacola, Canada destinations, Yellowstone National Park, Disneyland and/or Legoland, Seaworld, San Diego, etc - we decided to go back to WDW at the end of July! Woo Hoo!

I learned something interesting today doing all that research - from the Dallas/Ft Worth area, you get a lot more bang from your buck going to Walt Disney World than Disneyland. For some reason I thought it would be cheaper for Disneyland.

So now I get to start planning a return trip for July! And start a PTR (once I finish this trip report!)

I did put a self-imposed deadline of tomorrow for the next chapter, if that helps at all.

Tex, you are so right! You'd think it would be cheaper, huh? We've run the numbers from all directions and for what we'd spend going to DL for 5 days we could do WDW for 10. The biggest difference is we can realistically drive to WDW whereas it eats so much time driving to/from California that we'd need to fly. And flights to California are nuts! Big $$$!

Yer killin' me! I wanna see your little princess dance with Cindy already!

:wave::wave:

 

[HollyBelle]

I'm in. And looking forward to the rest of it. I LOVE that you surprised the kiddos with a trip that very same day. How fun.

 

[diddy_mouse]

:wave: Count me in.

Love the cookie surprise! And "We're going to the castle today?!" so adorable!

 

[oommggitskait]

I'm in! :wave:

Loved the video!!

 

[etpinge]

In conclusion to the whole off site condo thing: the condo was great, but the logistics didn’t fit our family situation well. When you only spend time away from the parks to sleep, shower, and get ready to go back to the parks – all the space the condo affords goes to waste. It did come in handy when we left early one night and used the pool, but the Disney resorts have pools, too. We would have been just fine with a value or moderate resort instead with less overall hassle for us. That is why we are already looking into a return trip with an on-site stay this summer. Overall it was a great vacation with the condo and rental car, but we really got spoiled by the on-site resorts the last few times we have been.

Amen to that! We just returned from a power weekend and stayed off-site for the first time. We had a rental car, but the drive in the morning when you are groggy and back when exhausted was too much. Never really able to relax. Let our white chariots with purple letters drive us around to our happiness!

 

[BigTex71]

Yer killin' me! I wanna see your little princess dance with Cindy already!

:wave::wave:

Your wish is my command! (see next post)

I'm in. And looking forward to the rest of it. I LOVE that you surprised the kiddos with a trip that very same day. How fun.

Thanks for stopping by and welcome! :wave:

:wave: Count me in.

Love the cookie surprise! And "We're going to the castle today?!" so adorable!

Come on in and make yourself at home. But no walking around in your skivvies.

I'm in! :wave:

Loved the video!!

Thanks! There are two more in the next chapter!

Amen to that! We just returned from a power weekend and stayed off-site for the first time. We had a rental car, but the drive in the morning when you are groggy and back when exhausted was too much. Never really able to relax. Let our white chariots with purple letters drive us around to our happiness!

Glad I am not the only one who feels that way! :animwink:

 

[BigTex71]

Chapter 3: We dance, we kiss, we schmooze, we carry on, we go home happy. What do you say? Come on.

January 29, 2011 – Day 2 (MK Day)

I saw the winning numbers for the Mega Millions jackpot were sold in Texas. Wait… I spent $2 on a Mega Millions ticket the night before we left Texas to start our family vacation to The World. What the heck, let’s check to see what city sold the winning ticket. After a few keystrokes I saw the winning ticket was sold in Watauga, Texas. Hmmm. The RaceTrac I stopped at to fuel up the van before we left (and purchased the lotto ticket) was in Watauga. My heart starts pounding and my hands start to tremble a little. Where did I put that ticket? It’s in my wallet. I quickly reach for my wallet like Han drawing down on Greedo. I fumble around and finally pull out the ticket to check the numbers. The first thing I always look at is the Mega Ball. “8”. I look at the luminescent screen that is currently lighting up the otherwise darkened room with an eerie bluish-white tinge. The Mega Ball numbers match, according to the trusty Lotto results web page I had surfed to. Cool, I won at least my $2 back. I glance at the winning numbers, as told by said website… “4, 15, 16, 23, 42.” I look at my ticket, squinting to make out the numbers through the glow of the artificial lighting source. “4, 15, 16, 23, 42.” OH MY GAWD! I start trembling uncontrollably. I look again, check the dates. Is this really happening?! Yes, after checking 5 times I have verified - I just won over 100 MILLION DOLLARS! The first thought I have is like I just won the Super Bowl… “you just won 100 million dollars, what are you going to do now?” DUH! “I am going to Disney World!” I immediately start hearing a ringing in my ears. My vision starts getting blurry. Is this the end? Am I having some type of deathly heart attack at my ultimate moment? What irony. Wait, that is not ironic… just a really morbid coincidence. The ringing grows louder and LOUDER! “beep!…Beep!!…BEEP!!!”

Suddenly I realize I am not dying. The loud ringing is my alarm clock barking at me to wake up from my ultimate dream. Oh, man… what a letdown. Don’t you hate it when that happens? Well, I soon realize that I shouldn’t be too downtrodden… I am about to get ready to go to the Magic Kingdom with my family on the first full day of our 2011 Vacation Spectacular (or Spectacle…whatever!)

I make sure DW is awake and we start getting ready. By this time DD and DS are awake and excited to get to Magic Kingdom and start the Disney part of this vacation. We end up running a little later than I planned and (after the whole drive to TTC, get on Monorail to MK) we arrive at the gates around 9:15am. Luckily, this is the end of January and the parks won’t be nearly as crowded as the times we have been here in the summer. I would like to go commando-style and hit Fantasyland with a vengeance. I figured we could still stick to the plan and maybe just skip Dumbo to be on-track. But the kids had other plans. OK, I decide today will be a play-it-by-ear(s) day (pun intended.) We will do the touring plan commando style on the second MK day later in the week. Note: I did not take good notes of what we did in what order, so I will be winging it. I will be sure to take good notes for the next trip.

We end up starting out in Tomorrowland – Astro Orbiter.

After that, we go to get our funny on at the Monsters, Inc. Laugh Floor.

I was ‘That Guy’ (those of you who have done this attraction should know what I am talking about.) I don’t know how I do it or why they pick on poor little ol’ me. Actually, I have been ‘That Guy’ in each of the 3 trips we have done. I don’t get picked every time we do this, but I have been picked at least once during each trip (we usually end up doing this 3 or more times per trip.) I don’t know if this would actually be considered a ‘good thing’ to brag about; but it is fun, and the kids love it so I play along.

Then it was time to save the universe from the evil Emperor Zurg on Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin.

Next, we do one of the kids’ favorites – the Tomorrowland Transit Authority PeopleMover. Here is a little video of the fun:
Kids Having Fun on TTAPM

We caught most of the show in front of the castle, the new Celebrate a Dream Come True.

It was nearing lunch time, so we decided to go to Pinocchio’s Village Haus for a counter service lunch. On the way, DD stopped to see Peter Pan.

We ate our lunch and then rode Snow White’s Scary Adventure. The kids were having so much fun and being so nice to each other.

We decided to head over towards Adventureland. Pirates of the Caribbean was next.

They rode the Magic Carpets of Aladdin and we took a little rest break – we sat down and had a drink and some popcorn, and I picked up one of my favorite snacks at Walt Disney World: the Pineapple Dole Whip Float. Mmmm… heaven in a cup!

I don’t recall what we did from this point until we went over to the castle for DD’s 5:00pm Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique appointment.
Before:

The big reveal:

They finished up earlier than I expected, so we walked over to the check-in desk for Cinderella’s Royal Table. I wanted to see if they could seat us early. We had an ADR for 6:45, but it was 5:45 at this point. The great thing about going to the parks in the non-peak season: we were able to get put in the queue for a table early. They let us go in and have our picture with Cinderella, then we would wait for them to call us to our table.

After we got our photo, they called a few other families for their tables. Then there was only our family and one other waiting. No one else had checked in and I guess Cinderella was getting bored. So she walked over and asked my little princess to dance. A true Disney Magical Moment! (click the link below for the video)

DD and Cinderella

As you could hear near the end of that video (if you were able to watch it), we were ready to be seated at this time. I started out with the Cheese Plate appetizer, and had the Roasted Beef Tenderloin entrée. It was good, but DW and I both preferred the Fried Chicken entrée DS ordered. Also, the last time we did this, they had one of my favorite desserts in all of WDW: a Caramel Crème Brulee . It was no longer on the menu. I ordered what I thought it may have been: Crème Caramel. But no, that was nasty.

DD got to meet the Princesses (pictures removed due to more than 10 pictures in post)

After dinner, they were getting ready to start the new “Magic, Memories, and You” show where they project images on the castle before the Wishes fireworks show, but DD was tired. So we made our way out of the park to the monorail, TTC, walked to the van, then loaded up and drove back to the condo. I figured we would watch that show and the fireworks at one of the other MK days.

It turned out to be a great day, highlighted by the Magical Moment DD had with Cinderella. I thought it was so neat that Cinderella took some time to talk with her and make her feel so special. Cinderella even remembered DD’s name when we were leaving from dinner – and that was almost two hours from when we went in. This is why we love Disney so much!

Up next: From Magical Moment to possible head trauma? Excitement around every corner!

 

[Raven66]

Ok, the video brought tears to my eyes. And your daughter looked so cute dressed up and dancing with Cinderella.

I'm looking forward to reading the rest of your report.

 

[oommggitskait]

Again, loved the video. What a wonderful memory for your family and your daughter!

 

[TakeMeThere81]

Wow, that video totally got me all choked up!! I have all boys, so we don't do much with princesses. I just realized watching your daughter that I miss that part!! Being a girl myself, you know

 

[Fashionista007]

I love your nod to LOST in your dream about the lottery Someone did win the lottery with numbers resembling our favorite 4, 8, 15, 16, 23, 42 recently and my heart sank when I read it was just a dream

Man I'm telling you they should let adults have a makeover at the Bibbidi Boppidi Boutique. I would be there in a flash. But I might feel stupid not having a child with me - maybe they could let you rent one for the day!

I can't wait to read more!

 

[lisak09]

Loving the TR and all your photos! Keep them coming.:wave:

 

[Cosmic Commando]

I'm batting about .900 with all of the geekdom references so far! Woot!

 

[sweetpee_1993]

Awwww...Tex! That was adorable!!! I loved the video of your DD's dance with Cindy!

I love how you captured a moment when your kiddies were holding hands and noted them being nice to each other. Ugh! I live for moments when my boys are nice to each other which is totally few and far between which totally toasts my buns some kinda bad. :fork: Very sweet. I miss that stuff.

Uh, picture limit in a single post doesn't mean you can't post a 2nd window with lots of pictures! We need to see the princesses!!! :lol:

Lovin' the report. Thanks for all your work sharin' the fun with us! :wave:

Wow, that video totally got me all choked up!! I have all boys, so we don't do much with princesses. I just realized watching your daughter that I miss that part!! Being a girl myself, you know

Um...yeah...I totally agree! I definitely can see little things I miss in not have a girl either. I think my chances of seeing Cindy dance with my little furry girl are pretty much zip not that Riley would find any special magic in it being Cinderella vs. any other new human playing with her. LOL! However, the "fix" to the lack of litle girl fun would be to...ahem...have another baby and possibly get a girl of my own. I'm roughly 10 years post-diapers and the like. I'm sooooo not going there again! Shoot! I feel like I'm on the home stretch with these boys. I'm more than half way to being like DONE. Okay. Not feeling so sad anymore. Thanks! :wave:

 

[BigTex71]

Chapter 4: It’s all fun and games until someone gets a concussion.

January 30, 2011 – Day 3 (Epcot Day)

After our great day at the Magic Kingdom, we were all ready for some rest – especially me. DD fell asleep in the van on the drive back to the condo, as did DS. DW was nodding off a few times, too. After only getting about five hours of sleep for two nights in a row, I was due for a decent night’s sleep, too. I was in bed by 10pm and a nice, blissful night was ours. I woke up refreshed and renewed after a long eight hour sleep. I was ready for Epcot!

The alarm clock woke me, but not as rudely as the previous morning. I knew Epcot wouldn’t be overly crowded today, so I figured we could sleep in a bit and not worry about making rope drop today. I woke up the crew and we all got ready for our Epcot Extravaganza. If you did not read my Pre-Trip Report, I will give a little explanation of the matching shirts. I customize (or modify) different designs using Photo Shop, print them out on excellent iron-on transfer paper (from amymickey.com) and iron on to cheap colored blank t-shirts (I get mine from jiffyshirts.com.) Today, as you will see in the photos, is the lime green shirts with the Toy Story Alien Mickey heads. I was sold on the idea of matching shirts after reading a trip report a few years ago that talked about how it is easy not to get split up if everyone is wearing the same color shirt. It also, in my opinion, makes the PhotoPass photos of all of us together look better than us wearing all different stuff.
We ate bagels and cream cheese in the condo for breakfast before we left for the day(DD had her Crispix cereal she loves.) We were out the door around 9:00am. We arrived at Epcot at 9:15am. Here are the kids ready to start touring Epcot.

Even though the park was already open, we didn’t have to park too far back. Here is the distance from our parking row to the gates:

We got in the park and DW took DD to the Character Spot for the meet and greets, while DS and I got FastPasses for Soarin’ and then went to Innoventions.

DS and I did the “Don’t Waste It” recycling edutainment (fun and educational!) and DW and DD met us in Innoventions. We did some of the other fun stuff in there, and we picked up our Kim Possible Mission tickets for Norway. We then made our way to the World Showcase since DD was getting hungry, but not before stopping to buy the Epcot passports for the kids. It turns out she didn’t eat her cereal this morning after all, so she was getting very cranky. We went to China and DD had Sweet and Sour Chicken from the Lotus Blossom Café. DS got egg rolls and they both enjoyed their food. I tasted some of each and they were both pretty tasty. Here is a picture of DD eating actual food (besides popcorn or candy) at the parks:

The kids did the KidCot area in China and we looked around. Here is inside the dome in China, looking straight up (I forget the name of the building):

DW and DD decided to go try to see some of the princesses in their respective countries while DS and I did some Kim Possible missions. It turns out the girls were able to get a few princess meets:

DS and I went undercover and covertly completed KP missions in China and Germany before we met up with the girls to head over to our late lunch. We hopped on the friendship boats from Germany and rode to the World Showcase entrance towards the country where we would eat. For those of you who read my Pre-Trip Report, I can now reveal that I was able to get my most coveted ADR! It was at 2:30pm for lunch. Here are some pics:

Yes, that was Le Cellier! I was able to get my favorite 3-course meal: Cheddar Cheese Soup (with Pretzel Breadsticks), Mushroom Filet with Risotto, and the Maple Crème Brulee. Man, I love that meal. I would plan a trip to WDW just to go to Le Cellier for that meal. Maybe I need to start looking for a job in the Orlando area so we can move closer to Le Cellier!

OK, back to the report. After lunch we watched the Oh Canada 360 degree film. This was our first time to see this – pretty neat. The kids did the KidCot there and then we decided to see Nemo and Crush back in the Future World section at the Seas Pavilion. After that, we went to the Land pavilion and rode Living with the Land – our first time on that one. It has some neat information and I recommend this ride. It not exciting, but an overall good experience. We then went to Sunshine Seasons for a drink and snack. This is where it all happened.

DW and I sat in chairs at a table that shares one side with the padded bench. The kids sat on the ‘booth’ side. We were having a good time after our snacks and the kids were playing around and tickling each other in the booth. We thought they were doing fine since they weren’t being loud and they were having a ball. Then, as the kids each leaned back and were squirming around on the bench, DD fell off the bench and landed on the back of her head… then tumbled onto the floor. A parent knows the difference when their child is crying because they are frightened by a fall, embarrassed by a fall, or really hurt from a fall. This was the really hurt cry. Actually, it was the dreaded REALLY hurt cry – the one most people don’t hear all that often. It is the one where your heart skips a beat, then races – as if to catch up for skipping that beat. Everything seems to be in slow motion for a split second while you immediately jump to their aid. We helped her up and tried to calm her down while we both frantically tried to assess the situation.

Are you OK? Where does it hurt? She pointed at the back of her head. I felt lightly and could feel a bump back there. Immediately a cast member was there checking to see if she was OK. I wish I could remember his name… we will call him David (because I think that may be his name.) He offered to call an EMT over, since they are stationed in the park. I agreed – I was worried she may have suffered a concussion. David used his radio and called for EMT response. While we were waiting for them, he went and got a plastic bag with ice in it. We held the ice on the swelling and she said that made it feel better.

Another CM showed up in a few minutes – apparently a manager of some type. He was very empathetic and chatted with us while we waited for the EMT. David talked with DS and kept him occupied and in good spirits. He also offered any food or drink we may want while we were waiting - a nice offer, but we politely declined. We knew it was absolutely no fault of Disney that DD got hurt. The kids were playing and had an accident. It could happen anywhere. We expressed our love of Disney and how this would not change that – it was just an accident. The EMT showed up and was informed of the incident. They spoke with DW and got our information. The other EMT checked out DD. There were no immediate signs of a concussion, but offered to take us to the local hospital for any tests or x-rays (at their expense.) We declined, because we felt confident in his initial diagnosis. He told us what to watch for (other signs of a concussion) and said we needed to keep her awake for another 4 hours and to keep a close eye on her for any other signs. Otherwise, she should be fine. He gave us an instant coldpak for her head. She was already feeling better by now.

In addition, DS was talking with David during all of this. Looking back, this was a great thing while we were busy attending to DD. (I wonder if they are trained to do that in a similar situation?) They talked about pin collecting. DS likes the Stitch, Star Wars, Tron, and other pins like that. He also had been trying to trade a Happy Birthday pin we got him for his Birthday trip last year. We said he couldn’t trade that one, but to pick another to trade for a Stitch pin he liked of David’s. Well, David ended up giving him the pin without trading for it. It was just something little, but DS thought that was so cool. Kudos to Disney for the way they handled everything. I was actually kind of embarrassed in a way – because it was my kids’ fault for playing around on the bench in the first place.

So now we have the nearly impossible task of keeping DD awake until 9pm – and she did not take a nap today. We decide to go get a few souvenirs from Mouse Gear and then walk around World Showcase. I figured we would watch Illuminations at 9pm and then go home. Within a few hours of touring the World Showcase, DD was getting really tired. We ended up having a counter service meal at Tangerine Café in Morocco. I had the shwarma combo platter (lamb and chicken.)

It was pretty good stuff, but not quite as good as the shwarmas I had in Saudi Arabia back when I was in the Air Force. Now those were some good food! But I digress.

By the time we finished dinner, DD just could not stay awake. She made it over 3 hours with no signs of a concussion and she was exhausted, so we let her sleep in her stroller. We left for the day and made it to the van when the fireworks started. I hope we would get a chance to watch Illuminations (for the first time) when we come back to Epcot in a few days.

Up next: The Wizarding World and Seussland – can Universal compare to Disney?

 

[foreverbelle]

Great trip report thus far. I am in love with your kids, your daughter and her Princess moment was absolutely adorable and brought tears to my eyes. And ok, for a minute it made me really want a little girl. LOL.

Sounds like you guys had a great time, its good to know about the condo thing, I had always wondered about it. I agree, I don't know how I would feel about staying off site, I know several do it, but for us, the convience of the transportation and all is worth it.

Keep it coming I can't wait to read more...and your leaving us in suspence.

 

[s.ollie]

Ohhhhh Sarah and Cinderella....... dreams definitely do come true.

She has to be one of the cutest little princess's ever. Love the Green tee's from epcot day.

 

[BigTex71]

Thanks!

I am pretty busy at work and am not sure if I will get the next chapter finished before the weekend. But I will try.

 

[TakeMeThere81]

I'm so glad to hear DD was ok. And kudos to Disney for their sensitivity in handling the situation. I am really impressed. Technically they didn't have to do much, but they went above and beyond. This is why we love Disney!