Trip Report Family Fun in the Hot, Hot Florida Sun!!

Hello All!! I'm back(unfortunately) from yet another wonderful trip to Walt Disney World. Lot's of fun & sweat(not trying to be gross but wow, was it ever nasty) was had by all!! Speaking of all--let me introduce you to our party of 10!! Most of these faces will be familiar to you but there are a few new ones in the mix!! I'll try to do this as simply as possible--

From left to right(somewhat): My sister C, my niece E(C & D's daughter), R(not sure why he's looking so miserable) & myself, in front of me(white shirt) is my niece B, in the green is E's niece L, my niece A(C & D's youngest) is wearing the blue glasses(when she remembers to put them on--her last trip to Disney prior to this one she actually left them at home), then we have "the same old crew" E & J, and last but certainly not least is my BIL D.
Whew--I'm glad you've met most of these people in the past--otherwise this could get very confusing!!

C's family was there June 13th-27th. They stayed the first week at their timeshare right outside of Disney. They spent their second week at our favorite home away from home. The rest of us were there June 18th-25th.

I'm looking forward to reliving the trip with you all--everything but the heat that is!! A big welcome to everyone reading out there!!

 

[riverside]

FRIDAY, JUNE 21ST

After dinner we were parting ways. E & J were headed back to POR. R, B, L & I were going to stay at Epcot to see Illuminations. R had never seen it & I told him that would be his last chance. After Illuminations the 4 of us were going to HS b/c we had tickets to the After Hours Event.

Group photo before E & J left.

E & J got one on their way out.

We didn't have a ton of time & we had a few things we wanted to do so we breezed by Italy.

I always find time to watch the trains for a few minutes!!

We stopped in Karamell Kuche--as if I really needed a snack at that point...

I got the caramel s'more. It was so good!! I had to eat it quick though b/c it was a melty mess in short order. I highly recommend this treat. The weird thing is I love s'mores but I'm not a fan of marshmallows in the least. The only time I eat them is in a s'more. I was a Girl Scout for many moons so maybe liking s'mores just comes with the territory!!

 

[riverside]

FRIDAY, JUNE 21ST

A quick walk by of China. I feel like I never spend as much time in WS as I would like.

We had managed to get another FP for FEA.

They put all 4 of us in the same row again, not that you can tell b/c you can barely see us in the ride photo.

My favorite pavilion!!(Although some might think it's the UK with as much time as we spent in Rose & Crown!!)

 

[riverside]

FRIDAY, JUNE 21ST

R decided he would rather see the Star Wars fireworks than Illuminations so we headed towards the International Gateway.

I love this!!

Even though it was hot I was up for walking over to HS. Everyone else wanted to take the boat. Big mistake, let me tell you!! It probably took us as long to get there by boat than it would have been to walk. Also, it was ridiculously hot on the boat. We got on the boat at 8:30 and didn't get to HS until 9. Yes--it would have been quicker to walk. In the past though R has accused me of trying to kill him by doing that walk so I figured we should take the boat to keep the peace.

At least the views were nice!!

We've arrived!!

 

[Captain Barbossa]

R decided he would rather see the Star Wars fireworks than Illuminations

R has no idea what he's missing.

 

[PineapplePrincess]

Still loving your report! So far, no overlap on our days. I just gotta say, I love E's hat! It really suits her!

 

[riverside]

R has no idea what he's missing.

I guess he never will either!! That was probably my last chance to see it also so I was a bit disappointed but who knows, maybe I'll book a last minute trip to see it one last time!!

Still loving your report! So far, no overlap on our days. I just gotta say, I love E's hat! It really suits her!

Thank you!! There's 4 days left so there's still a chance!! I will let her know you said that. I believe she bought it somewhere down there but I can't remember where.

 

[riverside]

FRIDAY, JUNE 21ST

There was pretty much no one in line when we got there. I wasn't surprised considering how late it was.

The Wonderful World of Animation show was just getting started so we watched that.

Afterwards we went into one of the stores(for the life of me I can't remember which store although it shouldn't be too hard since there's only a handful open right now!!) B had seen a Bo Peep bag the other day that she wanted to get. I asked her if she wanted it right then or did she want it shipped back to the resort. She wanted it sent back but the CM informed me that it wasn't possible to do that b/c it was after 7:00 & the service is not offered after that time. I think I looked at her like she had 10 heads. I had never heard of this. Does anyone know this to be correct?

R had decided to sit on a bench on Sunset Blvd. while we went in the store. When we came out we headed over to Hollywood Blvd. to watch the Star Wars fireworks. I assumed that he would be watching them. Apparently I walked right by him on Sunset Blvd. & didn't realize it. L noticed him & stopped with him. The next thing I knew B & I were watching the Star Wars fireworks by ourselves. I called R & asked where he was at. He got a little snippy & told me I walked right by him. I told him where we were & said for them to come over. His response: "No. I'm going to stay here. I already saw them last year." Whatever......I couldn't figure out what the attitude was about & I wasn't going to spend my time thinking about it. Maybe it was the heat?? Anyhow, @Captain Barbossa he skips Illuminations to see the Star Wars fireworks then he doesn't watch them either

After the show B & I walked over to Sunset Blvd. & found R & L sitting on a bench.

With the After Hours event officially starting we headed back to TSL. I hadn't seen it at night yet so I couldn't wait for that!!

 

[riverside]

FRIDAY, JUNE 21ST

TSL looked so neat at night. I just loved all the lights!!

I love that Fisher Price camper!!

We headed to SDD first which was probably a mistake b/c I'm sure park guests were still in line so the wait was around 20 minutes.
I thought the track looked so neat!!

 

[riverside]

FRIDAY, JUNE 21ST

The longer we waited in line the more convinced I was that we should have held off an hour or so to ride it.

But soon enough we were on!!

We went to TSM next & pretty much walked right on.

I'm not sure who I rode with but I'm sure I wasn't the winner. At that point it was getting late(for me) & I was getting very tired.

 

[riverside]

FRIDAY, JUNE 21ST

B & L wanted to ride ToT a few times so R & I sat on a bench on Sunset Blvd. to wait for them. We both felt that the first hour or so of After Hours wasn't worth it b/c it was still pretty crowded. The time was 9:30-12:30. I had said that I didn't want to stay until 12:30(b/c I'm old) & R agreed with me. We got a box of popcorn to share while we were sitting there. I was amazed at how many people were taking box upon box of popcorn--stuffing them in bags etc. I get it--the tickets for this aren't cheap but if you're willing to spend that kind of money on tickets why are you being so cheap & grabbing all the free stuff you can? Besides, that popcorn doesn't stay fresh that long....

The girls had fun on both check-ins to the hotel!!

B & I rode RNRC next.

How cool is this--no one in the pre-show room but us!!

No clue why I always look so miserable on ride photos. I swear I wasn't. When we went to board they told us we could pick any row we wanted. There was hardly anyone on it!!

 

[riverside]

FRIDAY, JUNE 21ST

We headed over to Launch Bay to pay the Star Wars trifecta a visit.

Chewbacca was cute as always!!

Kylo Ren on the other hand.....
I actually look scared, to say L was scared is an understatement & B(I love her in this picture) looks like she was trying to pretend he wasn't there!!

L was legitimately scared. I thought she was going to start crying. She had never met him before & she says she won't again.

Yes B--I feel the same way about this meet & greet!!

It may not be an intimidating one like Kylo Ren but it's just plain awkward to me!!

 

[riverside]

FRIDAY, JUNE 21ST(PROBABLY THE 22ND AT THIS POINT)

Remember what I said about not wanting to stay until 12:30?? It was about 12:10 at this point.
We went to ride SDD one more time.

Jessie was out & B wanted to meet her.

Then the CM asked "mom"(me) if I wanted to get in the picture also. I'm very used to CM's calling me mom when I'm with my nieces/nephews. I just go with the flow--no sense in correcting them.

Notice I'm still wearing the watch that doesn't work!!

Then we headed out. It was now 12:30!!

Overall, it was nice. Like I said, the first hour or so was a disappointment. Even the character lines in TSL were still pretty long early on. As it got later I did enjoy it more. I don't know that I would be in a hurry to do this again at HS. Maybe MK?

We got back to POR about 1:00. I couldn't remember the last time I was up that late!!

 

[Captain Barbossa]

She wanted it sent back but the CM informed me that it wasn't possible to do that b/c it was after 7:00 & the service is not offered after that time. I think I looked at her like she had 10 heads. I had never heard of this. Does anyone know this to be correct?

I would’ve looked at her like she had 10 heads too. Can’t tell you how many times I’ve sent something back to the resort after 7pm. The only exclusion that I know of is that you can’t have anything sent to your resort if it’s the day before you checkout. Maybe she was new?

Anyhow, @Captain Barbossa he skips Illuminations to see the Star Wars fireworks then he doesn't watch them either

 

[Loco_driver]

Haha, the Kylo Ren greeting can be intimidating for sure! My last time meeting him I had quite a few adult beverages before going in there. I wish it was being filmed because we had quite a bit of fun banter with him! Probably the only way I’ll do that greet now!

 

[senor_jorge]

Afterwards we went into one of the stores(for the life of me I can't remember which store although it shouldn't be too hard since there's only a handful open right now!!) B had seen a Bo Peep bag the other day that she wanted to get. I asked her if she wanted it right then or did she want it shipped back to the resort. She wanted it sent back but the CM informed me that it wasn't possible to do that b/c it was after 7:00 & the service is not offered after that time. I think I looked at her like she had 10 heads. I had never heard of this. Does anyone know this to be correct?

It may have something to do with parties and after hours events. A few years ago we went to MK for a Halloween party and sent some Pandora stuff back to the resort. They next evening I went to pick it up and it wasn't there. It was an issue because we were leaving early the next morning. There was a runner available that was able to get it to us so crisis averted. The explanation I was given was that purchases made during the various parties don't arrive the following day. Maybe they were confused, or didn't explain clearly? Or, maybe I was given a line to cover for our package not being delivered.

 

[Songbird76]

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 19TH

I went with B, E & A to ride Star Tours while the rest of the crew went to Baseline.
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A CM yelled at me for taking this picture. She said that I couldn't stop to take pictures b/c the line needed to keep moving--there was no one behind me
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It had been awhile since I had been on Star Tours so I was excited to be going on!!
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After returning from another galaxy we met back up with the rest of the family. They were content with hanging out in Baseline for a bit longer. It was pretty warm out & they were enjoying the a/c with a cold beer.
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The look on J's face is interesting....
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A few of us went to the bathroom. A was dumbfounded & asked me what these were all about!! She's 7 so I guess she wouldn't know what a payphone is!! Boy, that made me feel old!!
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I am not quite sure where B fits in....whose kid is she? And there are 2 Es, correct? Your sister, and is the other one C's daughter? And is she A's older sister? Because they look so much alike!!

 

[Songbird76]

I was standing on the MK boat dock to get to ft wilderness when the tornado warning happened. Probably the most terrifying experience we’ve had at Disney. There really was nowhere for us to go! We ended up on one of the large boats that pulled up, they advised us it was our best option. We were stuck on the boat for about 45 minutes, luckily we did make it to HDDR on time, but soaked!

Oh how scary! Could you see the funnel? I'm surprised they ran the boats with a tornado warning! When there was a thunderstorm on our last trip, everything in AK that was outdoors was shut down. I would have expected boats to be included in that!

 

[Songbird76]

THURSDAY, JUNE 20TH

Since E & I decided to meet at 6 instead of 6:30 to walk it was still dark when I headed out.
The quiet pool outside of our room.
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We veered off the walking path a bit & walked through the parking lots at FQ.
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Then we cut through the lobby. It was so quiet--not a soul(other than CM's)was in there.
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I just love Riverside!!
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I came back & showered. Then I woke R & B up. I told them the plan was to leave in about an hour. R was irritated & said that didn't give him enough time to get ready. Ummm--I didn't know I was his personal alarm clock.

I went to The Riverside Mill while they were getting ready. I got R his apples & juice. B wanted chocolate chip pancakes with bacon. I didn't think they had them with chocolate chips to which she said she would have plain ones. But, regardless of whether they were chocolate chip or plain she stressed that she needed butter & syrup.
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When I saw how much food was in B's meal I decided not to get anything for myself. I knew she would never eat all that. They did have chocolate chip pancakes!! She only ate 1 of the 3 pancakes & one piece of bacon. As for the syrup & butter--she never opened any of them. I ended up having a couple strips of bacon & one of the pancakes.

E & her crew got on an earlier bus than us. I was really pushing for us to get there b/c we had a 9:25 FP for EE. We needed to use our FP's right away b/c we were meeting a friend of mine for the 10:00 FotLK show. It was 8:40 when we got on the bus. On the way there I had to listen to R still complaining about how I should have woke him up earlier We were almost at AK & it hit me like a ton of bricks--I didn't take my meds before I left. I told R what I just realized. He disagreed with me & said that he saw me taking the meds out of the refrigerator so I must have taken it. I had to clarify that I did take the refrigerated meds(I have MS & I give myself a shot once a week) but I didn't take my regular 8 pills/vitamins that I take every morning. Thinking about that make me realize that I didn't take a pill the evening before that I was supposed to take. R asked if I wanted to go back so I could take them. I told him no. I thought about the meds--everything could wait until later that day. I told him there were only 2 that I was somewhat concerned about--my high blood pressure & my heart rate pills. I told him that without those a ride on Everest might do me in for sure!!
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We arrived at AK. R said he really didn't want to go on EE b/c he doesn't like when it goes backwards. Since we were in a hurry I asked him to take my bag so B & I could go through the line for guests without bags. He did & off we went.
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On the way in we saw Divine. I told B to stand by her so I could get a picture. I think she was a bit creeped out & told me that she didn't want to!
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Maybe B only needs the butter and syrup if they are plain pancakes, but not if they are chocolate chip? I have that with certain foods, where I only like a certain food in a particular way.
And I feel for you as the personal alarm clock. My husband doesn't necessarily do that, but I'm the "default parent" if you know what I mean? Like...I'm always the one to wake the kids up for school, even if I don't have to be up and DH already is, or he gets up at the same time they need to be up. Or like, DD had camp this past week and I went out and bought an inflatable sleeping mat and a pump, and a sleeping bag and....well, everything she needed. We are getting her stuff set up and we can't get the sleeping mat to inflate. Afterwards, I was cleaning up the packaging and saw there were instructions, and DH says "It would have been handy if you'd read those before!" What, I'm the only person who can read instructions so it's MY fault they didn't get read? Did you tell R to set an alarm clock the next day?

 

[Loco_driver]

Oh how scary! Could you see the funnel? I'm surprised they ran the boats with a tornado warning! When there was a thunderstorm on our last trip, everything in AK that was outdoors was shut down. I would have expected boats to be included in that!

No we did not see a funnel, apparently it did touch down near sea world. The boats were not running, the boat we waited on was docked. What a ride that would have been!

 

[Songbird76]

I debated even sharing that bit of info b/c I figured it might throw everyone for a loop!!

I must be weird, because it actually makes more sense to me now, rather than confusing me. But then, I have friends who are sisters from Mexico, married to brothers from the Netherlands. And my friend from Sri Lanka is married to a Dutchman, and her MIL passed away about a decade ago, and then her mom came to visit and ended up now being married to the FIL. So her mom married her husband's dad. So I guess I'm used to complicated relationships!