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?

 

[sweetpee_1993]

Happy Birthday!!!!!! :sohappy: :wave:

Ooooh, character love on your birthday! Fun! And LeCellier...:slurp:

Love that the kiddos made your cards. I love those best, too, even now.

I didn't realize Laney's name is Delainey! That's what Chandler's name was gonna be if he had been a girl. Too cool!

Don't get sore on your birthdays. They're inevitable. I like to laugh as much as I can so I can honestly say I earned my wrinkles with smiles & giggles.

Can't wait to hear about the rest of your day!

 

[eagles]

loving your character pics, you look so happy!
but, poor lexy looks so pitiful with her moose.

i think its wonderful you being in disney world on your birthday. my favorite place to go for mine. of course i only did that once and on easter sunday. but it was the best of the best!

can't wait for more.

 

[Ariel484]

Great character pics! Glad you liked the cheddar cheese soup...mmm, with pretzel bread...yum. :slurp: *drools*

Poor Lexy! Aren't boys just the worst?? :fork:

Count me in as another ham that loves the SSE videos! We discovered those on our last trip and couldn't get enough!

I love your OKW pictures...it's a resort that I've never really considered staying at, but it looks so pretty and relaxing. Maybe it'll be in the cards someday!

 

[Turcicus]

July 7th is my birthday too!! So happy belated birthday!!

Your report is great so far, I'm really enjoying reading it. Looking forward to more!

 

[disneygirl1]

Ahh poor Lex, I'm glad she is working through her emotions... Sad thing is, it doesn't get any easier dealing with boy troubles even as you get older! :shrug:

Great update. Happy belated birthday! We were in Disney on my birthday in December. We were in Zawadi Marketplace at AKL and I had my birthday button on and all a sudden a CM had the entire place sing happy birthday to me!!! Talk about embarassed I wanted to run out of the place! :lol:

 

[mouselvrmom]

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.

Thanks, Holly! That means a lot coming from you!

I guess it was worth putting up with a button for character love! :lol:

Happy Birthday!!!!!!

Ooooh, character love on your birthday! Fun! And LeCellier...

Love that the kiddos made your cards. I love those best, too, even now.

I didn't realize Laney's name is Delainey! That's what Chandler's name was gonna be if he had been a girl. Too cool!

Don't get sore on your birthdays. They're inevitable. I like to laugh as much as I can so I can honestly say I earned my wrinkles with smiles & giggles.

Can't wait to hear about the rest of your day!

Thanks! I love the cards the best too! They come from the heart!

I can't believe Chandler's name was going to be Delainey. That is crazy! It's not a super popular name.

and I have totally earned my wrinkles as well! I guess better that than a blank slate!

loving your character pics, you look so happy!
but, poor lexy looks so pitiful with her moose.

i think its wonderful you being in disney world on your birthday. my favorite place to go for mine. of course i only did that once and on easter sunday. but it was the best of the best!

can't wait for more.

Yes, Lexy was cranky that day! Well, everyday! :lol:

I should go to Disney every birthday!

Great character pics! Glad you liked the cheddar cheese soup...mmm, with pretzel bread...yum.

Poor Lexy! Aren't boys just the worst??

Count me in as another ham that loves the SSE videos! We discovered those on our last trip and couldn't get enough!

I love your OKW pictures...it's a resort that I've never really considered staying at, but it looks so pretty and relaxing. Maybe it'll be in the cards someday!

I know, right? I'm getting hungry just thinking about that soup!

OKW is very relaxing! You should definitely try it!

July 7th is my birthday too!! So happy belated birthday!!

Your report is great so far, I'm really enjoying reading it. Looking forward to more!

Well, happy belated birthday to you too!!

Thanks for reading!

Ahh poor Lex, I'm glad she is working through her emotions... Sad thing is, it doesn't get any easier dealing with boy troubles even as you get older!

Great update. Happy belated birthday! We were in Disney on my birthday in December. We were in Zawadi Marketplace at AKL and I had my birthday button on and all a sudden a CM had the entire place sing happy birthday to me!!! Talk about embarassed I wanted to run out of the place!

I keep telling her that it never really changes! But that someday she'll meet someone who is right for her.

Oh, my! That was the kind of birthday behavior that I was trying to avoid. I couldn't wait to get that button off! :lol:

 

[mouselvrmom]

After my humongous lunch, I didn't really care what we did. The kids had been dying to go to Animal Kingdom since Sunday. I figured it was really cruel to keep them waiting like this, so we headed out of Epcot.

The real reason that they were dying to go to Animal Kingdom was of course Expedition Everest. They absolutely love that ride. Especially since Bella is able to go on it. She was tall enough last year and is a total ride freak!

I wansn't ready to ride on such a full stomach. So I made them wait it out a little.

Roddy loves seeing the animals.

And we made them do It's Tough to be a Bug. Sam thought that would allow me enough time for my food to digest.

Bella and I got separated from the rest of the family when we walked in. We ended up in a different row. I don't know why people have to push and shove so much to get in a row. I mean if there are people in front of you, you could just let them all stay together and move into the row. Ah, well. Bella was a little concerned about losing them though. I told her we'd meet up with them after.

Yeah, even after that wait, I still was not getting on Everest. I just didn't feel it at that time. I told them that they could all ride, and I would wait while taking pictures or looking around. I really don't mind that at all. So we headed in that direction.

 

[mouselvrmom]

Umm, I was so happy that I did not get in that line with them! Although I had my own trials and tribulations as you will learn. The line was like almost an hour, but they had to wait. So I settled in for the duration. I was having the best time just hanging out and taking pictures.

When all of a sudden it got VERY dark.

I thought I was being incredibly smart by d__________g into the gift shop to wait out the rain. It hadn't started to pour yet. I found a little corner inside the doorway that had a nook in it. I put my body inside the nook so that I wasnt' in the way of the shoppers that were still milling around. I was feeling clever and pleased with myself for staying dry out of the rain. It started raining harder and people started coming into the shop. The CMs were telling people that they had to stay out of the doorways so that people could still get out. I was still feeling that I had found a great spot. Then, more people came in, and the shop started to fill up. Soon I found myself wedged into my little nook with people almost on top of me. I was starting to feel clausterphobic now. A couple were in front of me almost on top of me. I'm not sure they even realized that I was there at first. They seemed a little startled when they almost backed into me and realized I was there. I guess it's kind of funny, but I was so feeling that the room was closing in on me. At least I wasn't outside.

Sam tried to text me a few times. The reception wasn't good. He said that they were right at the front of the line, but of course the ride was shut down. I told him that he might as well stay put and tough it out.

It rained for quite a bit, but thankfully people started buying ponchos and leaving. I moved to a location nearer the door where I woudn't get boxed in again.

I was still hanging out taking my pictures.

The kids love these little guys for some reason.

 

[mouselvrmom]

I was starting to enjoy myself now that I didn't have people on top of me. Then the ride started up again. At first there was no one on it. But then I started hearing screams as it was running. Here is where I was so glad that I was not in line with them. It was still raining out. Not as hard as it was, but certainly not dry out. Sam had the backpack with him, so he had the ponchos. I guess he had the kids get them on before the rode, but they ended up getting pelted with rain as they went. Yeah, so glad I wasn't on it! Here they are after the ride.

It was really just not willing to let up completely. We figured we might as well make the best of it. We hit the safari which actually turned out good. We saw more animals than usual. I guess they didn't mind the rain.

The lion was even out in the rain, which seemed kind of odd. Roddy was thrilled though. He loved the safari. Afterward, we were sufficiently hungry again to try to eat. We decided to try Flametree since we had never tried it before. I had heard such good things about it. I don't mind barbecue, but I didn't realize tha the title should be taken so literally. Maybe some people like their food burned, but I so do not. I had the chicken. It was horrible.

Bella ended up accidentally dropping her chicken leg on the ground and the birds were fighting over it. I had to chase them away so that we could throw it in the garbage.

Sam thought it would be a good time to do camp mickey minnie since most normal people would not be waiting in line. I've got to go upload my photopass pictures since I left the camera in the backpack for this. It was pretty funny though. Be right back.

 

[mouselvrmom]

It was still raining, and Lexy absolutely refused to take off her poncho and put it back on again, so these are some of the best character pictures ever! No lines though, or not much of a line. We were in line for Mickey when the kids started singing Happy Birthday to me. I believe I actually hissed at them to shut up. Then, the people behind us said they had a birthday today too. So we started talking with them.

Minnie had no line.

Goofy and Donald were cut ups as usual.

Goofy was very upset with Lexy for not bothering to take off that poncho. He kept shaking his head at her, picking up the poncho, shaking his hand at her. And then he just stood as far from her as he could. Here he is looking at her disdainfully.

She didn't care though.

We figured it was about time to go home now. The rain was still not letting up, and we were done for the time being. We managed to get a bus to ourselves again. We were super lucky with that this trip.

Up next, studios and some 50s Prime Time. And more rain, boo!

 

[Disneyfalcon]

I love all your pictures during Everest! That's how I like to spend my time sometimes during the family's ride on Everest.

I also love Goofy's disdain. Hilarious!

 

[eagles]

:ROFLOL: ditto the goofy's disdain. so funny. but what a great pic!

 

[mamamouse]

I figured rain was on the way judging by the sky in ur leaving Epcot pic,n I woulda went nuts if I was in that nook in the store I have issues with my personal space lol:goodnevil

 

[lisak09]

Loving your TR, especially all your photos. Keep them coming, your kids are beautiful

 

[diddy_mouse]

I really liked the group shot in the Everest gift shop, everyone's all smiles!

Ha! Those Camp Minnie-Mickey shots are great! *note to self* check out the character meet and greets next time at Animal Kingdom

 

[sweetpee_1993]

Yaaaayyy!!! :sohappy:

Fantastic updates! I love that the rain had y'all finding other stuff to do. Looooved the Camp Minnie Mickey pics. I'll definitely remember that as the thing to do if we're in AK and it starts to rain. I am actually a little concerned how this next trip will go if we get rained on. We're not used to a lot of rain in the winter months. And the heat. Your TR totally gives me hope that we'll survive....especially since we're prob'ly better acclimated to that kind of weather than y'all.

Tracey happened to look over my shoulder at the pictures when y'all were on the bus back to the resort. I had to point out who everyone is. He commented that he really liked Sam's shirt with the Big Bad Wolf.

Can't wait to see what's next! :wave:

 

[minnielaw]

Happy Birthday!! :sohappy: My birthday is also July 7!! I thought I was lucky spending my birthday at the beach this year, but I would have much preferred to be at WDW!!

Love the trip report and reading about all the teenage boy drama has me being very thankful that I have boys Of course I will never let them be so mean as to break up with a girl while she is vacationing at the Happiest Place On Earth!!

Can't wait to read more.

 

[PolynesianPrincess]

OK, first off... I LOVE Lexi's flowered dress!! Super cute!!

Second, I am with you on the people who push and shove their way into rides, shops, etc and split families up... Such a peeve of mine!! That and people who go halfway down a row and plop right down in the middle, completely ignoring the CM who is saying quite clearly "Please move all the way down and make room for everyone" Ahhhhhhh!!!! OK... end rant. lol

Camp MM is one of the BEST places to meet the characters. We hit it perfectly in May and had zero waiting. Also, the place where Pooh and friends meet @ AK is never busy either. Its located so far down the beaten path it sometimes seems like people don't know it's there.

 

[sweetpee_1993]

OK, first off... I LOVE Lexi's flowered dress!! Super cute!!

Second, I am with you on the people who push and shove their way into rides, shops, etc and split families up... Such a peeve of mine!! That and people who go halfway down a row and plop right down in the middle, completely ignoring the CM who is saying quite clearly "Please move all the way down and make room for everyone" Ahhhhhhh!!!! OK... end rant. lol

Camp MM is one of the BEST places to meet the characters. We hit it perfectly in May and had zero waiting. Also, the place where Pooh and friends meet @ AK is never busy either. Its located so far down the beaten path it sometimes seems like people don't know it's there.

These are the people who as I inch past them I make sure to "accidentally" step on their feet. :goodnevil

 

[ashley_marie]

Don't you just love Florida weather? :ROFLOL:
We have more than our fair share of family poncho photos! haha