A Series of Unfortunate Events...that led to a great trip!

We are back! We got back home late (LATE!) Sunday night and crashed into bed. The next day it was "rise and shine" and back to work and real life.

We had a whole bunch of random and weird stuff happen on the trip, but both came home saying it was a great time. I'll work through day-by-day with lots of pictures (I think we had more than 2k total pics).

 

[Allygator]

Day 4, Part 1: DH loves DH!

Whew! After that bag check line yesterday we learned our lesson. Got up early and did some scanning before entering a bag check line. Luckily none were as long as AK's yesterday so we were able to head in quickly!

First up was Toy Story Mania! We basically ran/walked there. Thanks so much for the suggestions to do this first! The wait said 50 minutes, but we ended up only waiting about 15. We got pushed to the FP line because we were a group of two, which helped speed things up!

We both really enjoyed this ride! So much so, we were tempted to pick up FP for later, but the FP was already at like...2p by the time we came out (crazy!) so we passed. We were planning to be back at DHS so we figured we'd catch it again that time.

We jetted to my favorite ride (from memory...and from Disney Paris) Tower of Terror!!! It said 10 mins, but really wasn't even that long. Unfortunately we got a bit of a dud for the ride. It was just a bunch of tiny drops, no real big ones...bummer. Not to worry though...we shall ride again. )

DH suggested Rock 'n' Roller Coaster so we went there next. Again, short line... He loved this! I liked the ride, but I have started having issues with some rides lately. I first noticed when we were in Disney Paris and my head slammed against the shoulder harness and gave me a terrible headache. Then, at HersheyPark (close to our home) I got a very intense headache from some of the roller coasters. So apparently I need to be very cautious about rides that go upside-down and are jerky at all. I also need to essentially press my head back against the ride so it doesn't bounce around a ton...makes for some funny ride photos!

Star Tours! DH was super excited to ride this. I was actually on the fence before hand -- not a big Star Wars fan. The darn ride beat us up! DH got quite nauseous from it and as we were leaving the room I ran into one of the arm rests and got a major bruise on my leg (visible in some later photos!). Poor DH was a little disappointed. I actually quite liked the ride and wanted to do it again, but DH didn't think he could stomach it.
Oh well.

Next was Indiana Jones. DH said some woman was breastfeeding a few rows down from us, but I didn't see. Not that either of us really care, but seems you'd want one of those "hooter hider" things for such a public place? By the time it was over our stomachs were growling...

I'm the same way too with R&RC.... I request the front seat which is a much smoother ride.

 

[Hannah1284]

Day 4, Part 4: Re-do!

Time for some excitement again!

Back down to ToT! A much better ride this time! Woot Woot! I love this ride..

DH argued for RnR again, so I obliged. Unfortunately, I wasn't feeling super hot by this point so it probably wasn't a good idea. I came out with a raging headache. I was out of excedrin (I hadn't refilled my travel bottle before we left and DH had taken all that was in there) so we had to find somewhere to buy something. I hate when headaches get to the point that I feel week and my vision starts to get buggy...

Our ADR at Prime Time was about a half hour away, but we decided to head there anyway since I wasn't feeling well. We requested a TV table and didn't have to wait too long. Luckily I got a chair while we waited so I was able to just sit back and shut my eyes for a little.

Dinner pics!
We both had the special. It was mahi mahi with asparagus and roasted potatoes:

The darn pills finally kicked in about halfway through!

And because I forgot to post this up above...
A Welcome to DHS photo!

At this point I was exhausted (headaches wipe me out), but it was the only night we'd be able to see Fantasmic and some man had told DH the day before not to miss, so we wandered down that-a-way. Just got a seat and waited the hour until the show started. I have some decent video of this, but haven't loaded any video yet!

Here's some crappy pics!

..crashed into bed and slept so well!

 

[Hannah1284]

I'm the same way too with R&RC.... I request the front seat which is a much smoother ride.

Good tip! I'll make a note! DH didn't want to wait for the front seat so we were near the back pretty much every time...

 

[Uncle Lupe]

For RnR keep your head back for the launch but after that take it off the head rest. Your head does not get jarred as much.

 

[Todd L]

Great report so far, I'm trying Tony's on my trip in January I hope its good!

We eat there pretty often and Ive never had anything short of a Great Meal there.

Great T.R. !!

 

[Hannah1284]

For RnR keep your head back for the launch but after that take it off the head rest. Your head does not get jarred as much.

Thanks! I'll try that the next time. I think it also probably is a good idea not to ride when I can feel a headache coming on already...

 

[Hannah1284]

Intermission:...

Sorry for the large spans between updates! Work and my personal life have been crazy lately...

I'm giong to try to get the rest of the trip done tonight, but if not I'll get a good chunk done and then get the rest at some point in the future...oiy.

Just to update: The cat is doing alright in terms of mood and whatnot. While we were on our trip she started peeing on the carpet outside of the bathroom where her litter box is. We did everything that anyone said would even possibly get her to stop and none of it worked. My husband ended up taking her in for a urinalysis and we waited FOREVER for the results. Unfortunately, they called on friday and she has a tumor in her bladder that is cancerous. At 17 years old there is not really much we can do treatment-wise, so we will be managing pain and inflammation and making her as comfortable and happy as possible.

We are happy to announce the birth of our first niece! Angela was born on 10/14 at 1130am. After my sister-in-law was a week late, they finally admitted her to the hospital. She wanted to try to delay inducing as much as possible so they gave her something to help try to speed things up. 24 hour later she was finally in actual labor and 3 hours after that our beautiful niece was born! It's so weird to be someone's aunt for real!

The other big personal thing going on is preparation for my brother's wedding next Saturday! They are having a bit of a "homemade" wedding and have been very laissez faire about everything which means a whole lot more to do!

Then there's the whole work thing...wow. I work for a small (VERY SMALL) law firm. There is only me and the boss as attorneys and then some staff that work remotely. Our business has more than tripled for Sept/Oct so we have both been stretched to our limits. Unfortunately...its really taking a toll on me.

Ahh...so enough complaining! I'll try to get as much trip reporting done as I can tonight!

Thanks for all the encouragement and for being interested in what I have to say!!
~H

 

[Hannah1284]

Day 5, Part 1: Back to MK!!

I made DH wake up bright and early so I could see the MK opening ceremony. I am proud to say we made it there with PLENTY of time (about 45 mins...woops!).

Luckily this guy was dancing around and kept us entertained for a few minutes.

We headed straight to Big Thunder Mountain and Splash Mountain since we missed them on Day 2.

Based on wait times, we did BTM first and then Splash Mountain. We walked right on Splash Mountain and could've had a front seat, but I specifically asked to sit in the back after the AK wet-ride debacle...
Success!! I was just a little wet on my butt and one arm, but otherwise was pretty dry!

We had a lot of freedom because we were able to do so much on our first day at MK so we kept things pretty relaxed.

Headed up and did Mad Tea Party and then Winnie the Pooh. DH does not like the teacups, but was a good sport and spun me like crazy right away...but could not handle much more than that!
Luckily Pooh was a little better on this stomach. We felt a little foolish as two almost thirty year olds waiting in line for what is quite the kiddie ride, but we liked the ride in the end. And seriously...that play stuff along the way is pretty cool!

Next up was the Carousel...because you kind of have to, right?


Don't worry this is a fake annoyed face:

Mickey's Philharmagic was starting in 5 mins so after a quick bathroom run, we walked right in! I LOVED this. DH got a little sick because we were close to the screen, but enjoyed it (Aladdin's carpet ride was what did him in).

More coming...

 

[Hannah1284]

Day 5, Part 2: Where's the camera??

DH wanted to ride the "cars" (something I planned to avoid completely since we have them at Hersheypark). But to appease the guy, I said okay. Ugh...wish we hadn't.

Here's where I look happy driving...DH insisted I drive and then made fun of me for not being able to handle the incredibly loose steering wheel...

So we get backed up at the end. There was a group of people with special needs kids in MK that day and they happened to be in front of us in line and I think the delay was in getting them in/out of their cars. No big deal at all. Except for the fact that the lady behind us rammed our car so hard while we were waiting for our turn to unload! We're lucky we didn't get whiplash!

We headed over to Space Mountain to ride again (woohoo!) We were gunning it to get there quick and pushed to ride the other side (just because...). Anyway...there was about a 15 min wait and we were all the way to the front when I realized...where's the camera?

So if you notice in that picture on the carousel, I have a camera bag on my arm for my point and shoot. Most of the day I kept it there, except when I was riding the Tomorrowland Speedyway cars...when I set it on the seat. In all the rush of the lady ramming us and then to get out of the car quick because of the delay from the group in front of us...the car got left on the seat.

Needless to say I spent the whole Space Mountain ride in a tizzy wondering if I was ever going to get my camera back...

We literally ran back to Tomorrowland Speedway and asked the guy if any cameras were found... DH starts to talk about how we're in the pictures and can show them... and I break into a creepily detailed descriptive of not only my camera itself, but the camera back and most of the pictures on the camera...the guy stops me mid-sentence and walks over and gets it out of a box. His response was "when you said orange lining, I believed it was your's."

Woohoo! There's the camera!

Wow was I exhausted at this point, plus it was just about time for lunch. So we headed to Liberty Tree Tavern for our lunch ADR. Yum!

Here's some pics...

Guess who got the better dessert this time...me!

Can you buy these anywhere??

After lunch it was off to the Hall of Presidents while our stomachs settled...

 

[Hannah1284]

Day 5, Part 3: What should we do now?

After Hall of Presidents we wandered down towards frontierland. DH wanted to check out Tom Sawyer Island so we did that. We probably could have explored a little more, but I was disinterested. We also went through the cave area and I had some serious vision issues so I was just over it after that. I have problems with glare and adjusting to the dark and could not see anything!

On the boat back to the mainland there were two other Pennsylvania groups! How weird!

After the whole puking thing on Saturday I really wanted to do Pirates again and DH obliged. Woohoo! A good ride this time!

We did some wandering and walked through Swiss Family Treehouse. I feel like this should be more interactive or something?

We did our last MK ride of the day (13th if you're counting...and very appropriate!) The Haunted Mansion! Because I just can't get enough!

We wandered down Main Street and did some shopping/browsing through the stores, but managed to get one of this (too bad the crane was up!).

 

[Hannah1284]

Day 5, Part 4: We interrupt this Trip Report for some very important missed photos!

These were on Page 2 of my photobucket album! I almost missed including them!!

Breakfast at Main Street Bakery:

People at the table next to us were staring at my cinnamon bun and DH turns to them and says "that's all her..." Seriously though, he had a cheese danish, that croissant sandwhich and orange juice. I had a cinnamon bun and water...who had the bigger meal? I loved the Cinnamon Bun!! I was pleasantly surprised by how light it was to eat -- nice and fluffly!


Also on the way to Big Thunder Mountain we caught Donald with a very short line!

Donald getting rid DH and giving me a kiss...

DH and Donald making up...

A nice, typical, boring photo, haha!

 

[Hannah1284]

Day 5, Part 5:

I wanted to go to Downtown Disney and it was pretty early so we decided to side-track at Art of Animation (well I decided so we did it).

I love these guys!!
Just curious...while we were down there we saw a bunch of stuff with them on that I loved, but I cheaped out and didn't buy. Anyone know if/where I can buy the white hooded zipper sweatshirt with the "Mine!" seagulls?

After a short tour, we headed to DTD and did some browsing.
I want a bulldog!!

DH:

At this point we were tired and neither of us were feeling the Wolfgang Puck Menu so we hopped on the bus and headed back to our resort for dinner and sleep!

 

[Uncle Lupe]

Day 5, Part 2: Where's the camera??



Guess who got the better dessert this time...me!

What is the name of that? My jaw dropped when I saw that.

 

[Hannah1284]

What is the name of that? My jaw dropped when I saw that.

Sticky Toffee Pudding

 

[ctosh]

loving your TR... looks like so much fun

 

[Hannah1284]

loving your TR... looks like so much fun

Thanks!

 

[Hannah1284]

Day 6, Part 1: What we've been waiting for!

This was our FIRST epcot day...can you believe we were able to hold out this long?!

I took some WDW Forum advice and we scurried right over to Soarin'

Wow...that's all I have to say. We both LOVED this!!!

DH was DYING to check out Mission: Space. Our friend visits WDW fairly often (has been in awhile, but has been there a lot b/c his dad -- age 72 -- loves it!!). Anyway, our friend recommended this ride to DH and so he just couldn't wait to ride. Since it was still really early in the day (915a, if I remember correctly), both sides had about the same wait (5 or 10 mins). We decided to do Orange, with the thought that we could do Green later if the line for orange was long (as I've seen on WDW forums...).
While DH loved this ride (no motion sickness!). I'm just curious...If orange is supposed to be the wilder side, how tame is green? I felt like this really wasn't all this wild and crazy? DH kept talking about G forces and whatnot, but it didn't bother me in the least. RnR in DHS was a lot worse for me. I just came out thinking...really? What's all the fuss?
...maybe I should be an astronaut??

In the spirit of criss-crossing as much as humanly possible we headed back across future world to Journey Into Imagination with Figment. Seriously... I remember Figment so fondly from when I was an itty bitty! I was sorely disappointed by how insignificant he has become in Epcot. The rumors of some new Figment growth in place of Captain EO make me very happy!

Sorry no picture until this point...but after Figment we headed to lunch at Le Cellier (our ADR!).
I was so excited when I was able to snag this ADR about a week or so before our trip!

DH loved this meal soooo much. He said it was his favorite all week!

Here's some pics!

Had I used my "big" (aka DSLR) I could've gotten some better pics, but I didn't want to be rude to other diners so P&S it was...

 

[BrerPete]

Sticky Toffee Pudding

If I may be so bold, as it is my favorite Disney dessert and haunts my waking hours, it is official named the Ooey Gooey Toffee Cake.

 

[Hannah1284]

Be Bold! I was running off memory...which fails often. Thanks for correcting me!

 

[Hannah1284]

Day 6, Part 2: Around the world in...80 minutes??

Well, okay, not quite 80 mins...a lot longer actually - but def not 80 days!

Anyway, I don't have a ton to say about walking around the world showcase. We browsed through almost every shop along the way (could have done with out the perfume ones...). I enjoyed checking out food and looking for niche items. DH would've gladly spent the day in Japan only...

Anyways, here's some pics! I'll prob have to split them into two posts..

Jasmine entertaining baby while parents get pic!

Dead Bird in Japan??