Trip Report Parenting... Just in a different location.

As TRUE as this was.. I am back from an amazing FIRST family vacation with just us 3 and ready to report out all the fun (and drama lol)

When: Feb 3-11, 2023
Where: Polynesian!
Who: Me, my husband Ian and 13 month old daughter Nora

I have SO much work to catch up on.. but I will try to be as speedy as humanly possible on this TR.

Here we go!!

 

[annienevells]

You all now know what time it was for me - solo pool time!

Another nice afternoon sunbathing, swimming and reading. Really one of the best parts of this vacation was having the time to do this during naps. A real lifesaver lol

Once Nora got up from her nap the vibes were.... off

Offered her a bottle - hard no.
Offered her multiple snacks - no way.

Okay.. well we have a dinner reservation so maybe she just wants some real food.

We headed out on the first leg of our journey - monorail to MK. Immediately on the way there Nora starts coughing so hard that there are tears in her eyes. We give her water but it's pretty rough.

We make it to the boat portion of our trek to WL.

I tried to enjoy the ride but Nora would cough hard and then make herself cry over it. I couldn't figure out what was going on because she had no fever, no runny nose, no sneezing. Just the most painful sounding cough.

We made it to WL and Ian was really impressed. He thought the resort was beautiful, but that he would never choose it over the Poly. We live in Maine, so this is kind of the vibe around here so it doesn't feel like escapism to him I think.

We were the first seated for dinner at Whispering Canyon and immediately placed an order for the nachos. Our waitress attempted antics for maybe 3 minutes before realizing the atmosphere of the table was not conducive We appreciated her laying off.

At this point I was able to give Nora bits and pieces of dinner but between every bite she would cough and cry and my anxiety and guilt was skyrocketing.

Our skillets came out quickly and I tried my best to eat some, but I just mentally couldn't do it. Nora couldn't either apparently because she went into full meltdown mode.

I ended up taking her and leaving Ian, finding our stroller and attempting to just walk around the lobby long enough for Ian to get his fill of supper.

While we were walking around I called my MIL (a NP) to get her thoughts. She has long thought that Nora has bad allergies but with our climate in Maine it just hasn't been a big issue yet. She suggested ordering children's Zytrec and gave me a dosage to give her. I immediately ordered Instacart so that it would be at the desk of the Poly when we returned.

I basically have no pictures of this time period because Nora and I were just taking turns crying.

Ian made it back out to us feeling bad that I didn't get to enjoy my dinner, but we made it back quickly to the Poly and grabbed the medicine delivery from bell services.

Nora went to sleep pretty quickly and I soothed myself with a treat.

I went to bed very worried about what the next day would bring. Stay tuned...

 

[Swissmiss]

Nora is so photogenic!

 

[mpaulam]

Oh no! Hope the medicine works for that poor baby.

 

[joshsprincess921]

Poor thing! I hope the medicine worked. My son has horrible allergies, takes Zyrtec and a prescription and nasal spray! If he misses one day he's coughing so much and it's a dry cough exactly like you describe so that very well could be it.

 

[fractal]

Yes, hope the medicine worked for Nora.

 

[sheriffwoody]

I saw something yesterday about the 10 worst cities for allergies and Orlando was like 6 or 7 I have bad tree and grass allergies, but for whatever reason mine are definitely worse here in TN than in Florida. Probably because we have my worst grass and tree allergens right in my yard. Ugh. Hope that's all it was for Nora and she felt better!!

 

[annienevells]

Thank you everyone for your worries about Nora! So hard when your baby is sick!

Let's see what the next morning brought us...

Snuggly but feeling SO much better. The children's Zyrtec was doing its job. Thank goodness.

I had snagged our LL for Frozen bright and early AND got us a BG for Guardians - number 68! We were curious to see how things would play out with naps and such.

After breakfast and deciding that our little trooper could handle more fun, we headed out for our Epcot day! Our expectations were naturally on the ground from the day before.

We walked over the to the TTC from the Poly.

My girl was so much happier today, much to my relief.

Which made mom and dad much happier too!

The day was beautiful and warm. We were in the park just after opening.

We went right for spaceship earth and got a great photo of Nora's future

We then made our way over to Nemo - no wait, just the winding and twisting through the line to get there.

Nora loved this and loved looking at the fish and manatees after even more!

After this we headed to Figment, but first Nora got to visit with her favorite again. Hi Pooh!

Nora was neither amused or upset by Figment, so we called it a win.

We stopped and gave Nora a snack and had some water after this. We were feeling great. Nora was happy, enjoying everything Epcot had to offer. A solid start to the day.

We then headed to our LL (after a quick diaper change).

 

[annienevells]

Can't see her big smile here but... she LOVED IT! Nora had a blast and was laughing the whole time.

Had to get a troll photo on our way out.

Our BG number was getting close, but so was Nora's naptime. We decided to get some lunch first at La Cantina de San Angel. We got bowls and shared with Nora - she was a big fan of the chicken.

Once we finished they were on BG 65 so we decided to head that way to set up Rider Switch. We decided Ian would go first and I would take Nora to the playground, and then when it was time to switch he would take her back to the Poly to get her down for a nap while I rode.

The process was easy and Ian was on his way.

Off for some Nora and mama fun.

Nora had a BLAST here. It was also so nice for her to be able to stretch her legs and get some freedom.

She found a little boy on the playground that she kept following around.

I sent this picture to Ian while he was in line

Me: Looks like Nora found herself a little boyfriend
Ian: Don't make me leave this line

Lots of fun and flirting complete, we decided to make our way to Guardians to wait for Dad. He emerged from the ride in about 3 minutes (great timing) and told me he had SO MUCH FUN but didn't give any spoilers.

We parted ways and I took my turn.

Y'all. I loved this SO MUCH. It is so fun to experience something new every time I come to WDW. I felt like a little kid. I was so grateful that we were both able to experience this.

Filled with adrenaline I headed out of the part to take the monorail back to my family.

 

[heatherhy01]

Me: Looks like Nora found herself a little boyfriend
Ian: Don't make me leave this line

 

[sheriffwoody]

I've been wondering how we were going to make Guardians work! We've never done rider switch, so I didn't even think about it, I was afraid we wouldn't both be able to get in the time frame. So you just tell the cast member outside the attraction? Do they give you a piece or paper or something? (I know I sound like a newb )

 

[k8einwdw]

I've been wondering how we were going to make Guardians work! We've never done rider switch, so I didn't even think about it, I was afraid we wouldn't both be able to get in the time frame. So you just tell the cast member outside the attraction? Do they give you a piece or paper or something? (I know I sound like a newb )

The whole group goes up to the CMs in the front of the attraction to let them know you want to utilize rider swap. They scan the band(s) of whoever is riding second, and the second rider/group goes through the Lightning Lane entrance.

 

[cgersic]

I've been wondering how we were going to make Guardians work! We've never done rider switch, so I didn't even think about it, I was afraid we wouldn't both be able to get in the time frame. So you just tell the cast member outside the attraction? Do they give you a piece or paper or something? (I know I sound like a newb )

It's an absolute gift at a lot of rides, just ask at the umbrella at the attraction as sometimes they have different answers of where to go and when.

 

[annienevells]

I've been wondering how we were going to make Guardians work! We've never done rider switch, so I didn't even think about it, I was afraid we wouldn't both be able to get in the time frame. So you just tell the cast member outside the attraction? Do they give you a piece or paper or something? (I know I sound like a newb )

The whole group goes up to the CMs in the front of the attraction to let them know you want to utilize rider swap. They scan the band(s) of whoever is riding second, and the second rider/group goes through the Lightning Lane entrance.

It was my first time too but exactly this! Ian's turn in line was a little longer as he went through the normal line, but my turn in the LL entrance was very fast!

 

[DisneyDreamer08]

Love the opening quote! Someone once said to me, it’s not vacation, it’s relocation

I’m super impressed with how well your daughter has slept on your trip. We were very strict with routine with our older daughter and she has always been an excellent sleeper. Our younger daughter had ideas of her own however and she’s our little insomniac We did a Disney trip years back, our oldest was 5 1/2 and our youngest was 13 months. She decided that trip was the perfect time to sprout her top two front teeth and she didn’t sleep the entire trip. She’d wake up crying every night. I’d take her outside (the fresh air always calmed her down) and just walked around the resort with her. Once she was calm, I’d go back in, give her a bottle and put her back down. She did this like 2/3 times a night. It was just exhausting
So great job mama, you guys are doing awesome!

I’m loving all your pictures

 

[annienevells]

Love the opening quote! Someone once said to me, it’s not vacation, it’s relocation

I’m super impressed with how well your daughter has slept on your trip. We were very strict with routine with our older daughter and she has always been an excellent sleeper. Our younger daughter had ideas of her own however and she’s our little insomniac We did a Disney trip years back, our oldest was 5 1/2 and our youngest was 13 months. She decided that trip was the perfect time to sprout her top two front teeth and she didn’t sleep the entire trip. She’d wake up crying every night. I’d take her outside (the fresh air always calmed her down) and just walked around the resort with her. Once she was calm, I’d go back in, give her a bottle and put her back down. She did this like 2/3 times a night. It was just exhausting
So great job mama, you guys are doing awesome!

I’m loving all your pictures

Oh but I SO feel you on the struggle. She is almost always a perfect sleeper (we are super strict with routine too!) but when she was 11 months we went to my brother's wedding in Arizona (a 3 hour time difference for us) and she popped two teeth and woke up every day at 3 AM I was SO grateful that wasn't the case this time!

 

[annienevells]

Once I returned to the Poly I found Ian and Nora already fast asleep napping so I headed out to do the usual.

After a couple hours of relaxation my family was ready for the next adventure. We had a dinner reservation for Via Napoli at 530 and a LL for Test Track at 7.

We had a nice monorail ride and then made our way alllllllllll the way back to Italy. We were SO hot and hungry. get us to the pizza!

We weren't the only ones checking in for an early supper.

We were seated fairly quickly despite the line and were VERY excited to be brought to the quiet section. It was so nice and calm back there, much better for Nora.

Our server was great, as was the pizza. Nora enjoy a whole slice all to herself!

We always enjoy Via Napoli. It filled us up and we were energized to head to the front of the park.

Some art along the way

We did Rider Switch again for TT, with me going first.

Because I designed my car it took a bit longer, but not too bad.

After exiting and swapping with Ian I headed for the monorail with Nora.

Of course we had to stop and watch when those notes of Rainbow Connection started.

Nora was mesmerized, so cute!

As we waited for the monorail I noticed our photos came through

As we waited I felt a tap on my shoulder - it was Ian! He had done single rider and made it back to us already.

We all hit the hay hard this night. Tomorrow would be our last full day after all!

I know I mentioned that our expectations were basically on the floor for our Epcot day, especially with Nora's sickness the day before, but we had an AMAZING day. Honestly, one of the best of the whole trip. It was just fun and relaxed and pretty perfect through and through. This day was a special one for sure!

 

[mpaulam]

So glad she was feeling better

 

[cgersic]

This is me when I'm watching it too!! Such a sweet photo!

 

[BwlrBry212]

We were seated fairly quickly despite the line and were VERY excited to be brought to the quiet section. It was so nice and calm back there, much better for Nora.

We were seated at the same table our last time at Via Napoli!

 

[annienevells]

Last Full Day

Our last full day and we had one destination in mind - MK

We all got up around 7 and made our quick trek from the monorail to the park just as they were opening. I had secured my LL bright and early for Haunted Mansion since Nora had yet to ride.

Ian REALLY wanted matching family shirts for one day of this trip. It's not my thing, but I will do anything for my little family.

Had to document the occasion

We headed directly for the PeopleMover ... only to find it closed. We looked around at the sea of people and LONG lines for everything in Tomorrowland and made a beeline out of there.

Let's have some breakfast first instead.

My nutella waffle sandwich hit the spot and was perfect to share.

After our quick breakfast we headed to our LL for HM.

Nora was unphased but interested lol

Again.. just chilling. No fear

We decided it was a must to do the teacups again because she liked it so much!

After teacups it was just so unbearable busy and miserable. I know it was a Friday and the start of a cheerleading weekend but still.. brutal.

It was the perfect time for our first ride on the Moving Park Bench (TM @Tuvalu) since it had reopened.

We had a great journey around the park and landed back on Main street.

Once we got ourselves settled and Nora in her stroller we looked at each other and basically came to a silent agreement. It was time to say goodbye to MK for this trip. It was just too much with the crowds and we would enjoy the time at the Poly to end the trip much more than this.

I said a little tearful goodbye and we were off!

But the fun continued for us.

I brought Nora for a pre-lunch/nap swim.

I picked up some food for both of us and we sat outside on the benches at Tokelau while Nora grazed.

Once I got her changed up and down for a nap with Ian, it was time to head out for my final solo pool time.

Stir fry noodles and veggies for my lunch - YUM.