Trip Report The "My iCloud Takes Me Back to 2016" TR's

Hello All!!

So, here I am again with another TR. This is going to be a bit different from my past ones. Let me briefly explain:

As most of you probably know E, J, & I were supposed to be in Disney in March/April. Our mom had been battling cancer for the last 3 years & was not doing well when we were to be in Disney so we cancelled our trip. I was looking back in my iCloud and was surprised at how much I remembered from past trips so I've decided to do some mini TR's as far back as my iClould takes me. I also have quite a few PP pictures from the trips(back when they actually showed up in my account-I'm sure you remember me complaining about them not showing up recently). These will not be as detailed as my recent ones since no notes were taken. There are 8 trips over a span of 2 years. I'm looking forward to doing these as a distraction from the recent sad times in my life plus my mom was on a few of these trips so it will be nice remembering happy times with her. It's also neat looking back on things that aren't in the world anymore.

Primarily based on my pictures I was able to go back & piece together the who, what, when & where's for the most part. Lot's of different things happened during these trips:1st trips for some of my family, a runDisney race, room debacles, a 1st haircut, & leaving propertyo_O for the first time just to name a few. I hope everyone enjoys & welcome aboard!!


Side note: Not sure if you remember(or care for that matter:hilarious:) but I had mentioned in my last TR that there was a specific purpose for the March/April trip. Even though we didn't go I figured I would share it with you. We were planning on a spring trip but we picked our dates based on who was performing at the Epcot Flower & Garden Concert. We were to going to see none other than Rick Springfield!! Now, I am an 80's child but was never a fan of his music. I did kind of like him on General Hospital though. Anyhow, believe it or not R & one of my BIL's really like his music😲 I know, it's not too often you hear of many guys who know the words to "Jessie's Girl". Over the years I have been forced to attend a few of his shows & I must say I developed a liking for his music. Basically, the purpose of scheduling the trip when we did was to rub it in R & my BIL's face!! So there you have it!!
 

riverside

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
TRIP #1

WHEN:
February 2nd-9th, 2016

WHERE: Art of Animation--shocker I know!! Had I been with the "same old" crew you know where we would have stayed.

WHO: My brother, F
My SIL, B
My nephew C(he was 4)
My nephew Z(he was 2)

WHY: It was a combination of them wanting me to go & me somewhat inviting myself. My brother was the only one in my immediate family who had never been to WDW(I'm not sure he actually belongs with us :hilarious:). His wife had never been there either. They wanted me to go to be their guide for the week & I was more than happy to oblige!!

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For the record my brother wasn't totally sold on going. I think he felt pressure b/c they were the only ones in our family that had never been there. To him this was something that every parent is forced to do at least once in their life. Would he end up changing his tune???
 

riverside

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
My brother may not have been super excited but I was!! I was thrilled to be accompanying a group of first-timers to Disney World!!

I made this countdown calendar for my nephews. Every day when they would pull the Mickey off there was a picture of something that we were going to be doing there. On the last day there was a picture of Mickey & the caption said "See Ya Real Soon"!! I must say I was quite happy with the way it turned out. I am not artistic or creative in the least.
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TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 2ND 2016

Our flight left late morning. We arrived at AoA mid afternoon. I know you're asking yourself--why not POR? Of course, that was my recommendation. We actually were going to stay there & it would have been cheaper to get 2 rooms there. But, my nephew C was really into Cars at the time so my brother asked if I would mind staying in the Cars suite instead. I didn't mind & I was glad I got to experience it. He felt bad b/c it actually ended up costing more than 2 rooms at POR would have. I didn't really care esp. b/c I knew my nephew would be so excited.
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While we were checking in the boys did some drawings.
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Z's holding his buddy "Brown Bear".

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We headed over to the Cars section. We couldn't wait to see C's reaction to the suite!!
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riverside

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 2ND 2016

We arrived excited to check out the suite. I remember being on the second floor.
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I'm guessing my brother was thinking about what life was going to be like for the next week??

This was the table/pull down bed. I slept there. It was surprisingly very comfortable.
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There was a little kitchen area and a second bathroom that I guess I didn't take pictures of. We were quite happy with the size of it and it worked out well b/c there was room for the boys to play when we would get back in the evenings. So, imagine our surprise when we asked C what he thought of it & wasn't he excited. His response: "I don't like Cars anymore":banghead:

We shrugged off that moment of defeat & headed to Landscape of Flavors to get dinner. Afterwards, we decided to explore the resort.

There was a play area in the Nemo section so the kids ran around there for awhile.
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I asked the boys to go by the dinglehopper so I could get their picture. C looked at me like I was goofy & said, "Don't you know that's a fork?" I guess he hadn't seen The Little Mermaid yet.
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riverside

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 2ND

We continued exploring some more.
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Sebastian is my favorite!!
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We made our way to The Lion King section.
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And back to the Cars section.
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I had ordered my nephews "First Visit" baskets. They had ears, autograph books,blankets & some other items in them. They were really excited with them.
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Then this happened......they spelled Z's name wrong!! I called them to get it corrected & the woman I spoke with was very un-Disneylike. She kept repeating what their paperwork said as to how it was to be spelled. I finally told her he's my nephew & I'm pretty sure I know how to spell his name. She told me they would make me new ears & a blanket but they wouldn't give me the new ones until I returned the ones I had & the new ones wouldn't be ready until the next afternoon. I told her that wouldn't work b/c the next day was our first park day & we wanted him to wear his ears. She told me to let him wear the incorrect ears the next day but after we got back from the park I was to bring them & the blanket to the front desk to switch them out for the new ones. The treatment I received was ridiculous. Trust me, I didn't want to keep the misspelled ears & blanket. This woman acted like I was trying to get something for nothing &(especially after what I paid for those gifts) I really didn't appreciate that.
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riverside

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 3RD, 2016

The next morning we started a routine that we stuck with the rest of the week & it worked out quite well. One of us would go to get breakfast at the food court & bring it back to the room. This way the boys could play instead of being stuck sitting at a table longer. We really enjoyed the suite for that reason.
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The Cars section was so amazing. I felt like I was in the movie!! Funny thing is I had never seen it so I made a date with my nephews to watch it before we went on the trip. I'm glad I did!!
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Waiting for a bus for their first trip to MK!! But how long would the excitement last.....(a little foreshadowing there:arghh:)
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riverside

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 3RD 2016

As we got off the bus at MK B decided to put sunscreen on the boys. I'm not quite sure what transpired to cause WWIII but all I know is that while she was putting it on C his poptart that he had just started eating broke & he went into full melt-down mode. He cried the whole way through security & heading into the park. So much for the magical, WOW type moment I was expecting on their very first trip to MK. We stopped to take PP pics. I made it a point to always let them get pics with just the 4 of them in it before I would join them. While we were taking the pics my brother kept mumbling about how he was ready to go home b/c he was so aggravated with his son at that point. It was very stressful, let me tell you.

And, as you'll see we had the absolute worst PP photographer. You can barely see the boys in the pics(although given C's mood that might have been a good thing).
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Look at that face!! The CM actually told him he's about the most miserable kid she's ever seen!! It was actually quite embarassing to hear her say that. Now, we look back on it & laugh but at the time it was an absolute nightmare.
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After she said that he did smile ever so slightly.
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riverside

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 3RD 2016

This is literally the only picture I took on Main Street when we first arrived. As we headed up Main Street I remember my brother asking me where the nearest place was to get a beer. I told him he couldn't b/c MK was a dry park. I felt bad for him--he really could have used one at that point. Actually, I think all three of us could have.
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Off to Adventureland for the boys first ever character meet & greet!!
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Both were a little unsure but Z seemed to be more nervous than C.
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Z just wasn't having it....
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C was definitely in a better mood by then!!
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I have tons of PP pics for this interaction but since they're quite similar to mine I'm not going to post them.

After that they wanted to go through the tree house. I sat that one out. I tried it once years ago & had to escape by going down
backwards b/c the height was way too much for me.
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They enjoyed it though!!
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riverside

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 3RD 2016

Maybe Z just doesn't like Rafiki b/c he sure warmed up to Woody quick!!
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Here are some of the PP pics:
Oh no-C has that look again....
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So cute!!
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It only took 2 character meets for B & I to realize that F would disappear from us when we would get in line. I guess he's not one for the characters.....
 

riverside

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 3RD 2016

We visited some pirates next.
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I remember the boys really liked The Jungle Cruise. We went to the Enchanted Tiki Room also. I don't have any pictures of the Tiki Room but I distinctly remember C not liking that attraction in the least. "This is stupid. Birds & flowers don't talk". To this day if I sing the song to him he gets so agitated.
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Lunch was at Columbia Harbour House!!
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This was C's favorite ride of the trip!! For days you would hear him singing this song out of the clear blue. He really enjoyed it!!
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They wanted to ride the carousel. I was excited b/c I had never been on it!! F wouldn't go on b/c he can't go on anything that spins.
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I remember the crowds being low & us being able to get a lot accomplished!
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riverside

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 3RD 2016

Next up was the tea cups--another first for me!! F skipped this one also.
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Then it was time for Dumbo!!
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There's B & Z!!
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We decided to head out.
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It didn't start out well but overall it was a good day at MK!!
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When we got back the boys wanted to swim. My brother took them while B & I got pizza for us for dinner. It's a good thing they went swimming that evening b/c after that day the weather took a change for the worse. We ate our pizza near the pool. The boys were exhausted & went to bed early.
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My brother & I caught a cab & headed to my home away from home--POR!! I was so happy to be there!! My brother didn't want to get his picture taken but I have video of him running around the room during one of Bob's songs(he'd choke me if I posted it).
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