The birthday, we're posers, I wanna go home trip report: July 1-16, 2011

I'm back and ready to start another trip report if only so that I can remember it while making my scrapbooking pages. Now, just a foreword, this may get a little wordy as there are lots of things that I want to remember. This shouldn't be a problem, as you can just scroll through all the words, or block the report all together! :lookaroun:lol:

So, here goes! This is another road trip from Minnesota from July 1- July 16, 2011. We had been tentatively planning this for awhile, but I wasn't sure that it would actually happen until pretty close to the time we were leaving.

Before I go further, here's who is on the trip.

Me: turning 38 while there, certified Disney lover

Sam: DH 37, had his first trip at the age of 18 with his two sisters and mom, was the only one on the trip that had any fun, and (I believe) is now an even bigger Disney lover that me- he may debate that, but he has a friend at work who is another DVC owner, and they spend all day talking about Disney and sending texts to each other while on vacation.

Lexy: DD 16, not a certified Disney lover! She was actually really excited about this trip until three months ago when she got a boyfriend. Now she wants nothing to do with this trip at all!!! She has been whining that she DOES NOT want to go. She wants to stay home with her Nana and Papa. Not happening!

Lainey: DD 10, my teenager in training. She is getting those eyerolls and sighs down pat from her older sister.

Roddy: DS 9, our easy going one. He will do anything and have a smile on his face while doing it. He is the reason I'm not totally insane now! :ROFLOL:

Bella: DD 7, our thrill seeker. She is here for the rides and little else. She is the one known to complain when she's not feeling things are going her way.

Oh, boy, I have a feeling this is going to be a fun one! So let's get started!!

Thursday June 30th. Sam worked a full day and I was scheduled to work at the dance studio that the girls dance at. I work there a few days a month to help with my dance bill. I was working to 9 pm, which Sam was not happy about at all! He wanted everything packed and ready to go, which it was not. Now Sam is a doer, I'm the resident procrastinator. I always think that I have plenty of time to get things done. We were originally going to leave on Saturday, but then Sam said we should leave on Friday night so that we could get there earlier and go to the parks on Sunday too. We wanted to see the Fourth fireworks on Sunday at Magic Kingdom then go to Epcot on the actual Fourth. We decided to get a room at a cheap hotel we found a deal on at allears for $69 a night on Sunday night. I wasn't sure if they would let me fit all my kids in there for that price, so I said I only had two kids. Flame away! :drevil: So I was under the impression that we were leaving on Friday night. Plenty of time for me to get stuff done.

I got home from working at the studio to find Sam in a complete panic. He does not like things hanging over his head. We decided to hit Cub Foods up to get some things to bring in the car with us to eat. We were at the check out when Sam wanted me to grab something else. I knew that time was of the essence to Sam so I was really hurrying. I guess on my way back, you could hear my flip flops crazily coming. Sam said that the check out person was looking like what is that? There was a stock boy ahead of me that I was coming up behind closely. He kept looking back over his shoulder with a scared expression on his face. I think he thought I was going to run him over. Sam was laughing so hard in the car on the way home. He said that I was giving "stocking" a new meaning. He thought the guy figured I was stalking him. I think that lightened things up for Sam a little, or at least I thought so. It was now getting late so Sam went to bed to get ready for our day of leaving.

Friday July 1, 2011. Leaving day. Again, I thought I had plenty of time to get ready. So I woke up and went on the computer for a bit. I was not scrapbooking, but I was doing things related to it. Sam was furious that I was scrapbooking while he was trying to get things ready to leave. I thought that we were taking naps and such, so I figured I would just skip my nap. Nope, suddenly Sam decided that we were leaving ASAP. Why was I not giving the memo on this? He wanted to leave by like 1 pm. Yeah, that was going to happen. I still had to run to Target to pick up some things, and I really wanted Roddy to get a hair cut. The Justin Beiber look alike thing that he was trying to get started was just not working for me! So after some grumbling, we managed to get out of the house and packed up around 3 or so.
Are we one big happy family or what?

 

[mouselvrmom]

We had a moment of panic when Piglet came. Lexy had JUST gotten up to the buffet for some food. So I tried to stall by having Bella and Roddy get pictures by themselves.

Whew, Lexy came running up right as Piglet was leaving.

I'm not sure what was up with Roddy and Bella, but they decided that they wanted to participate in the little parade that they do. I thought for sure they would think that was for babies, but no, they wanted to do it. Lexy snickered, I kicked her quick under the table. I didn't want her to make them feel bad.

I think Roddy was mainly doing it because Bella wanted to. He is such a good brother. He is the most laid back, accomodating kid. He really has to be, he has three sisters.

We were now done eating. The kids had all had dessert. We were ready to go, but we hadn't seen Eeyore yet. This always seems to happen to us. We end up waiting for one last character forever. We saw another parade. We waited some more. Finally, Eeyore came out for a picture. He was just in time because Bella decided she had to go to the bathroom if you know what I mean.

Lainey is our resident Eeyore. Always woe is me. So she had to take a picture alone with him.

Sam grabbed the camera. I told him to take pictures of the flowers on his way out. I took Bella to the bathroom. It turns out that I was very glad I had given the camera to Sam.

The Move it, Shake it, Celebrate it parade was going on as they walked out. The kids did NOT want to wait for any parades, but since they were stuck waiting for me and Bella, they were stuck. Sam got in as close as he could and took some pictures for me.

 

[mouselvrmom]

Here are Bella and I finally making it out of the bathroom.

We had to stop to watch the birds.

Bella was really into the baby ducks.

We walked back through Adventureland to try a ride on Splash.

 

[mouselvrmom]

Splash was closed for some reason or other, so we headed into the Briar Patch.

Lainey found a necklace she wanted.

We ended up buying Lainey her necklace and buying Roddy and Bella a Puffle. I'm not sure why since they already have one that they really don't play with much, but they desperately needed another one. After shopping, we were hot so we decided to get something to drink.

Lainey with her necklace on.

Sam had eagle eyes for the theme park mugs we wanted. He found the Magic Kingdom one and we stopped to get it.

Gosh, my kids sure love to shop!

They did stop shopping long enough to pose for me.

 

[mouselvrmom]

They all agreed that a ride on the Jungle Cruise was in order. They know that it's a favorite of mine.

They always have to ask if this spider is real or not.

Too bad this was closed during our trip. I so would have made the kids sit through it.

We wandered around, and the kids ended up going on the tea cups. I didn't care to ride at that time, and Sam and Lexy didn't either. So just the littles went on it. They got a pink tea cup.

Now it just so happens that some entertainment was provided for us as we were waiting for the kids to ride. There was a family- well a mom and her two bratty kids- being videotaped while riding at the same time as my kids. Well, I guess I shouldn't say that her kids were bratty. But judging from the way she was yelling at them, I can only guess that they must have been really pushing her buttons. I'm not sure what she was being taped for. I'm guessing maybe the yard one on HGTV? I know they usually bring the families to disney for that one. But it was super hilarious to Sam and I as the ones sitting watching them. She was yelling at those kids with this horrible look on her face. Then, the camera guy who was in another cup next to her told her that they were rolling. Her face changed so quickly. Suddenly she was smiling and having a great time. She yelled at her kids one more time to tell them to smile and look like they were having fun. I guess those moments happen to us all.

Lexy was not happy about it, this was a bad night for her. I did not know it at the time, but apparantly her and her boyfriend were fighting for some reason. She claimed that she did not feel well, but I'm sure she was upset about that. Anyway, we decided that we were going to stay to watch the Main Street Electrical Parade. We were about an hour out and we knew that we would need to start looking for a spot if we wanted a good one. Sam was surprised at how the sidewalks were all filled, but I wasn't. We did end up finding a spot right across from the train station. Not the best spot, but certainly not the worst either.

Lainey and I went to go get drinks for everyone. Then, we just sat there and people watched. I spent some time watching this CM selling her toys.

 

[mouselvrmom]

One of the kids near me bought one of these before the parade. Remember I was wondering who bought them. I was annoyed because he kept letting it fly in my face blocking my view of the parade.

Here they are, waiting for the parade to start. Notice the look on Lexy's face. This was on her face for the rest of the night.

Before we knew it, Tinkerbell was coming.

 

[mouselvrmom]

The parade was over, and we were headed back to Old Key West. We hightailed it to the bus in hopes of getting on and out of there.

We got back home and got the kids to bed.

I was up late doing a scrapbook page, and I heard Lexy sobbing in the next room. She wouldn't tell me what was going on, but I knew it couldn't be good. I just wanted her to be quiet so she wouldn't keep the others awake. She settled down after that and we all went to bed. We'd need our energy for tomorrow, my birthday and lunch at Le Cellier.

 

[silver1113]

I'm so sorry your daughter had such a hard time. Reminds me of our last Fl trip, 4 yrs ago. My dd was 16 and in a new relationship, it was a difficult trip.

 

[WishIWasAtWDW]

loving the trip report jenn!! your family is so cute!! i love the picture of sam and the kids posing on the bench in adventureland. their poses with the different bollywood type hand gestures is so cute!!

Now, Sam had told me before we came about how bad the Magic Kingdom water was. We always freeze water bottles and take them with us, so I had never noticed. He couldn't believe that I had never tasted the water. So he made me go to the drinking fountain and try it for myself. Yeah, not so good. Sam made sure he got that on video, now who's killing who?

is it weird that i really like the water in florida?! :lol: something about the sulfur-y, sandy water really tastes good to me. i love water out of the faucet at the beach too. all my friends tell me i'm crazy but i like it.

oh being a teenager and all the dramatics of a relationship. i do not miss those days. i felt so bad for lexy reading about her being upset with the boyfriend. i wish i could tell her that boys get smarter but they don't :lol: just kidding. they get a little better!

 

[PolynesianPrincess]

Oooohhhhh do I remember those trips of Disney past when I would fight with my boyfriend back home.... Definitely don't miss those times..... Back in 2006, this guy and I broke up the day before we left to go to the world. I cried the whole way to the airport and thought my trip would be ruined. But honestly, it wasn't. I hardly thought about him all week. After that, I'm fully convinced WDW cures all heartbeak Well, maybe not all heartbreak but it keeps it on the back burner for the time you're there, that's for sure!!!! lol

Whenever we go to CP for breakfast we ALWAYS end up waiting forever for the last character. We didn't want to wait any longer last time we were there for Eeyore so we ended up leaving

 

[disneygirl1]

Great update! AHHH poor Lexy! I remember those days! Hope things are all better w/her and the BF now.

 

[Disneyfalcon]

Sam got some great pictures!

The pain of young love. I am so glad you didn't take him either! :lol:

 

[plaz10]

Loving your adorable fam. I love what a good big brother Roddy was to Bella! So cute to see all the siblings getting along (at least at one point!) Oh that Roddy is going to be such a heartbreaker!

Good thing you didn't bring the BF. At least w/o the computer and stuff at the parks she is pre occupied with the magic. And what kind of guy makes a girl cry....let alone a girl on vacation! Hope things worked out for the best, whatever the "best" may be!

Looking forward to more! :sohappy:

 

[eagles]

oh man, i feel so bad for her. nothing anyone can say will help either. i hope she is getting over it by now. poor thing.

loving all your pics, but its still too hot for me! hehehe

 

[sweetpee_1993]

Here is Sam showing me how to show off the door properly.

I guess I'm just not as good at it as Sam is.

Sam really thought this looked yummy.

I looooove these 2 pics of y'all with the door! I think you both did very respectable room # presentations! LOL

I agree with Sam on the crispy treat. Mmmmmm...:slurp:


Blood in the CBJ???? I love this! I think I might have to tell the boys that we really need to go sit thru the show again because I heard they added blood. If I say there's guns involved they'd be running for entrance! I've always totally loved 'working' the boys with tall tales. It's so fun for me! When they were little everywhere we went they were watching their behavior and their backs because no matter where we were, the fill in the blank police would come & get them. I won't even tell you about having Santa on my cell phone speed dial. :ROFLOL:

Totally awesome that Lexy took 2 of her sibs for a bit. I bet it's at least a little refreshing to change-up the group size even for a short spurt like that. Now to just convince the boys to go away for a little while in a park when we're there... LOL!

We seem to land in that same cluster of tables quite a bit, too. I agree, not the very best location. Heck, in all the times we've eaten at CP we've never been seated in that section on the other side. I may just have to request it just for a different perspective.

Oh yes! I recognize it, now. That is the 'I want to go home now' face, isn't it? :lol:


I need your kids! I love to shop, too, but I don't get to half as much as I want to. It's not that my guys say no. It's the feeling of their eyeballs on my back...it just pressures me to hurry up and I can't enjoy myself. Ugh!

Awwwww...poor Lexy. Sometimes I'm almost glad I was the little wallflower teenager that was the equivalent of cryptonite to all the boys. You should get her that Happy Bunny tshirt that says "Boys are mean. Throw rocks at them." I'd wear that shirt myself if I didn't have 2 sons who would take it personal. :lol:

Loved the MSEP pics! I know a lot of folks here are more of Spectro fans but I remember MSEP from when I was really little. Whenever I watch it I feel that sense of utter amazement that I did then.

Yaaaayyyy.... It's your birthday!!!! :sohappy:

 

[spectrodanny]

One of the kids near me bought one of these before the parade. Remember I was wondering who bought them. I was annoyed because he kept letting it fly in my face blocking my view of the parade.

Here they are, waiting for the parade to start. Notice the look on Lexy's face. This was on her face for the rest of the night.

Before we knew it, Tinkerbell was coming.

GREAT photos of the parade. despite my user name THIS is my Favorite parade. I alszo loved your Country Bear Jamboree photos. I'm surprised the "Under New Management" sign hadn't been removed from the Tiki Room (i'm glad the OLD Management is coming back.

 

[mouselvrmom]

I'm so sorry your daughter had such a hard time. Reminds me of our last Fl trip, 4 yrs ago. My dd was 16 and in a new relationship, it was a difficult trip.

Thanks! I know it's so hard at that age when you're in 'love'.

loving the trip report jenn!! your family is so cute!! i love the picture of sam and the kids posing on the bench in adventureland. their poses with the different bollywood type hand gestures is so cute!!



is it weird that i really like the water in florida?! something about the sulfur-y, sandy water really tastes good to me. i love water out of the faucet at the beach too. all my friends tell me i'm crazy but i like it.

oh being a teenager and all the dramatics of a relationship. i do not miss those days. i felt so bad for lexy reading about her being upset with the boyfriend. i wish i could tell her that boys get smarter but they don't just kidding. they get a little better!

Thanks!!

I'm so telling Sam that I finally found someone that loves the drinking water in the World!! :lol: He's never going to believe it!

I know, I feel bad for Lexy right now. She's so sad. I guess it's just a phase we all go through!

Oooohhhhh do I remember those trips of Disney past when I would fight with my boyfriend back home.... Definitely don't miss those times..... Back in 2006, this guy and I broke up the day before we left to go to the world. I cried the whole way to the airport and thought my trip would be ruined. But honestly, it wasn't. I hardly thought about him all week. After that, I'm fully convinced WDW cures all heartbeak Well, maybe not all heartbreak but it keeps it on the back burner for the time you're there, that's for sure!!!! lol

Whenever we go to CP for breakfast we ALWAYS end up waiting forever for the last character. We didn't want to wait any longer last time we were there for Eeyore so we ended up leaving

Oh, no! I"m glad your whole trip wasn't ruined!!

I don't know why Eeyore always has to be the last one at CP!

Great update! AHHH poor Lexy! I remember those days! Hope things are all better w/her and the BF now.

Thanks! Lexy is trying to get over him right now. Not a fun time!

Sam got some great pictures!

The pain of young love. I am so glad you didn't take him either!

I'm not sure if I should tell Sam that or not... LOL

I guess mom actually does know a thing or two! :lol:

Loving your adorable fam. I love what a good big brother Roddy was to Bella! So cute to see all the siblings getting along (at least at one point!) Oh that Roddy is going to be such a heartbreaker!

Good thing you didn't bring the BF. At least w/o the computer and stuff at the parks she is pre occupied with the magic. And what kind of guy makes a girl cry....let alone a girl on vacation! Hope things worked out for the best, whatever the "best" may be!

Looking forward to more!

Thanks for reading and the kind comments! I agree, Roddy is a cutie pie!!

oh man, i feel so bad for her. nothing anyone can say will help either. i hope she is getting over it by now. poor thing.

loving all your pics, but its still too hot for me! hehehe

If you just look at the pictures, you can almost forget how hot it was! :lol:

I looooove these 2 pics of y'all with the door! I think you both did very respectable room # presentations!

I agree with Sam on the crispy treat. Mmmmmm...


Blood in the CBJ???? I love this! I think I might have to tell the boys that we really need to go sit thru the show again because I heard they added blood. If I say there's guns involved they'd be running for entrance! I've always totally loved 'working' the boys with tall tales. It's so fun for me! When they were little everywhere we went they were watching their behavior and their backs because no matter where we were, the fill in the blank police would come & get them. I won't even tell you about having Santa on my cell phone speed dial.

Totally awesome that Lexy took 2 of her sibs for a bit. I bet it's at least a little refreshing to change-up the group size even for a short spurt like that. Now to just convince the boys to go away for a little while in a park when we're there... LOL!




We seem to land in that same cluster of tables quite a bit, too. I agree, not the very best location. Heck, in all the times we've eaten at CP we've never been seated in that section on the other side. I may just have to request it just for a different perspective.

Oh yes! I recognize it, now. That is the 'I want to go home now' face, isn't it?


I need your kids! I love to shop, too, but I don't get to half as much as I want to. It's not that my guys say no. It's the feeling of their eyeballs on my back...it just pressures me to hurry up and I can't enjoy myself. Ugh!

Awwwww...poor Lexy. Sometimes I'm almost glad I was the little wallflower teenager that was the equivalent of cryptonite to all the boys. You should get her that Happy Bunny tshirt that says "Boys are mean. Throw rocks at them." I'd wear that shirt myself if I didn't have 2 sons who would take it personal.

Loved the MSEP pics! I know a lot of folks here are more of Spectro fans but I remember MSEP from when I was really little. Whenever I watch it I feel that sense of utter amazement that I did then.

Yaaaayyyy.... It's your birthday!!!!

I know, right? Bella was so focused the whole CBJ show about finding the blood. Ha ha!! When I finally told her it was just the song lyrics she was like, WT*?! Well, not really, but that was the look she gave me! I love the Santa on speed dial! My kids would never believe that at this point!

Feel free to borrow the girls anytime you want to get some shopping done! They are always happy to oblige!

I get that nostalgic feeling while watching MSEP too! The kids were like eh, we like Spectro better though.

GREAT photos of the parade. despite my user name THIS is my Favorite parade. I alszo loved your Country Bear Jamboree photos. I'm surprised the "Under New Management" sign hadn't been removed from the Tiki Room (i'm glad the OLD Management is coming back.

That is so funny that your username is Spectro, but you really love MSEP!

I was surprised by the Tiki Room sign too. I would have thought that they would have put a different sign up, but I guess they are waiting until they finish?

 

[mouselvrmom]

Thursday July 7, 2011. Otherwise know as...gulp....my birthday. Eek! I usually don't appreciate being reminded about that, but I guess when you're at the World, anything is okay. I wasn't nearly as cranky about getting another year older as I usually am. I was up and raring to go. Lunch at Le Cellier and I was so ready! I even put on my birthday button that the kids really wanted me to wear. They had all given me some cards that they had made me, but really my biggest gift was getting to celebrate at my favorite place.

While I waited for everyone to get ready, I took some pictures out on our deck.

We headed to Epcot. When we got there, we saw Daisy and Stitch out. Sam decided that since it was my birthday, we could wait for some characters. Gee, honey, you're too sweet!

The kids were no fun with Stitch. They wouldn't make any faces or anything. I had to show them how it's done.

Now, Sam thinks Spaceship Earth is about the most boring ride ever, but the kids so love it. They really just love the little movies at the end. They get the bigggest kick out of seeing themselves on the screen. Yep, they're complete hams. So they want to ride over, and over, and over again. We had to stop right away today.

I must have been feeling slightly crazy because for the first time ever I actually made a face during the picture instead of just smiling.

Bella made a face with Roddy too.

When we got out, Sam had to take my picture by some flowers.

I have to say that I wore that button all day. But I absolutely didn't like it at all. Maybe some people like it, but not me. I found it so strange that people were wishing me happy birthday all day long. I mean it was a nice conversation starter on the bus or when you were in line or sitting near a person, but I found it unnerving when I would just be walking along and someone would shout out a Happy Birthday. Sometimes I never even knew where it was coming from. So I felt a bit like I was rude all day because I always had a delayed reaction and didn't always resond with a thank you. I guess my reflexes are just not quick enough! I did enjoy wishing others happy birthday though. And the kids even got into it and were wishing others a happy day too. I don't think they had ever noticed it before. It made me feel so proud of my caring kids. But I'm never wearing one of those things again. LOL

 

[mouselvrmom]

We made our way to the Living Seas.

The littles love the seas. They could spend hours in there just looking at all the fish.

We spent quite a lot of time looking around. Sam wanted to do Turtle Talk, but I said that it was almost time for lunch. I was so not going to be late for my Le Cellier. Besides, Lexy was so ready to go, and Delainey was cold inside the Seas. We warmed up rather quickly on the walk to Canada.

I so love the gardens. They are beautiful!

We had checked in, and I went off to take some pictures of the waterfall, but Sam came running out to say that our table was ready. It was not busy at all for lunch. At least when we first got there. It did fill up more by the time we left, but again, not full in the least.

 

[mouselvrmom]

It was hard to take pictures inside because it is so dark in there, but I had to remember this yummy lunch. MMMMM. Pretzel bread. It was so warm and delicious! This was one of those meals where I was just going to have to stuff myself until I absolutely could not put one more ounce in me!

I had never had the cheese soup before, so I decided it would be a good treat for me. It was actually quite delicious. But so filling. I couldn't finish it all. Sam is allergic to cheese, but he tried a bit of it too. I knew he would like it because you could so taste the beer. He said it was good, but only had a taste.

I got the filet without the mushrooms and with the cream cheese mashed potatoes. Sam and Lexy ended up getting the same thing. It was so delicious!! I mean, I almost didn't even have to chew my steak, it was so tender! I'm getting hungry just thinking about it!

Lexy got the moose again.

I had to get the Maple Creme Brulee. It is truly the best!!

Sam always complains that the filet is too small, but honestly I felt that I couldn't even walk out of there after I finished my meal. Sam ended up finishing Lexy's filet for her. She took like one bite and decided she wasn't hungry. I guess she was still upset over Mitch. I can't believe she didn't eat more.

I somehow managed to roll myself out of the restaurant and back outside. I wanted to take a few pictures that I didn't get before I went in.

 

[HollyBelle]

I'm still here, enjoying every post!!! Your Canada shots are gorgeous. And I absolutely love the picture of everyone waiting for MSEP, with all the different faces they are making!

And, character love on your birthday... that's certainly worth putting up with a button for. :lol: