Trip Report The Rain Never Bothered Us Anyway - June 2024

Hi! We're back and I'm sort of settled back into our routine, so I thought I would try to get started on this report. There were lots of ups and downs, but we had a good trip! And as my title suggests, the torrential rain and flooding they were calling for did not happen and we were not bothered by the rain that did happen! I'm going to start with some general thoughts in this first post before jumping into the actual trip, so please bear with me.

I really struggled this trip, and not just the way you would think I would and definitely not just the way I thought I would. It was definitely hard going back without Lily, but I really struggled physically this time too. I've always been blessed with a good metabolism and have stayed pretty much the same weight I was in high school (things just shifted a little after having kids), but I'm going to be honest here and tell you all that I've been pretty lazy and sedentary since Lily's accident and we haven't had the best eating habits. Combine that with the hormone changes that happened almost like a light switch went off when I turned 50, and I'm carrying 15 more pounds than I am used to. My legs and feet hurt like they never have before on a Disney trip! By the end of our 5th day, my left ankle and foot were swollen and the top of my foot looked like I was getting the "Disney crud" on it. I wore the same shoes on our first day that I have always worn on Disney trips and that I wore all weekend in Des Moines and have never had any issues with, but I had pretty bad blisters on my left foot by the end of our first day. Luckily, I had plenty of blister band aids and such and was able to treat them and not have them give me much issue. I was just not able to tolerate the heat like I used to be able too either! All of this was very frustrating to me.

My heart was literally breaking the first day watching Owen struggle. He and Lily were so close, and he thought he would be ok, but he really wasn't. He was almost crying in the lobby of CBR first thing when we got there. Then later that day, as we talked about the schedule for the week, he commented that he wasn't planning on swimming when we were at Typhoon Lagoon. He and Lily always hung out together in the wave pool and lazy river at the water parks. I asked before scheduling the After Hours at TL and he was excited about it. Just not when it came right down to it. He did end up enjoying his time there with Logan, but, man, it was hard watching him work through it.

But you know what was the hardest part? I never would have thought of this ahead of time, but the first time they asked how many in our party and I had to stop myself from saying 5 and say 4. It hurt every single time I had to say that.

Not gonna lie, I did cry a little on the plane on the way down, but once I got myself under control again, there was a rainbow outside the window. It was hard to catch with the camera, but it was definitely there! It made me stop and smile.
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I promise, the rest of the posts will be more upbeat!
 

TheMouseFan

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
We had a few minutes to sit and cool down, but soon enough our driver was texting saying he was at CBR and to meet him outside. The drive was short and uneventful, but Brian still managed to catch a quick nap.
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We were way early to the airport because I wasn't sure what the traffic was going to be like. The boys were somewhat complaining, but my response was I would rather be 2 hours early and sitting here waiting than 5 minutes late and struggling to find a way home! They kind of quieted down after that. Quick trip into the Disney shop before TSA.
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The boys grabbed some McDonald's and we all settled in to wait for our boarding time. Once again, Brian caught a quick nap.
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It sure would be nice to be able to fall asleep quickly whenever and wherever!!

We eventually made it onto the plane where, you guessed it, Brian slept most of the time!
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Not gonna lie, there were a few more tears shed on the way home. Luckily, I had a window seat and could hide them easily enough.

It was nice landing while it was still light outside and made for a pleasant ride home to Dayton.

Thanks for hanging in here with me on this emotional journey and all of your encouraging remarks and responses. It really means a lot to me. I will be back on with some final thoughts once I get them all together!
 

TheMouseFan

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
So enjoyed following this amazing trip report. Your photos made me feel like I was there again. Congratulations to Owen on becoming Captain. Looking forward to your December trip although I am sure it will be an emotional one. Always love to see photos of your kitties. 😻
Thanks! I actually think the December trip will be easier emotionally (other than the fact that we lost Lily in December) because Brian and I have been for our anniversary before without the kids, so it will hopefully seem more like those trips!
 

TheMouseFan

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Throughly enjoyed your report with your detailed pictures! Thank you for sharing.

Also, the falling asleep wherever, whenever?! Always makes me so jealous. 😂
Thanks, and you're welcome! I am definitely jealous that Brian can do that! I sometimes nudge him awake just because it angers me so much that I can't do it!
I loved your trip report. I'm glad that you were able to have fun in WDW as a family and still cherish the memories of your precious daughter. I look forward to seeing more reports from you.
Awww, thanks!
 

LeighM

Well-Known Member
Thanks! I actually think the December trip will be easier emotionally (other than the fact that we lost Lily in December) because Brian and I have been for our anniversary before without the kids, so it will hopefully seem more like those trips!

I'm finally caught up. I, too, am jealous of the men in my life who are able to go to sleep so easily no matter what is going on around them lol. When will you be there in December? My husband and I are going to be in WDW the first week in December.
 

TheMouseFan

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
I have a few final thoughts to share now that I've had time to reflect back on the trip and take in all of my feelings/emotions. I'm really glad that I nudged Brian and the boys out of their comfort zones and got them to return to WDW for me. We've tried to let the boys take the lead and let us know when they were ready for things. You all know how much I love taking pics, but I let them not have pictures taken together last year because they didn't want them without Lily in them and we've let them decide when to resume full family gatherings for certain holidays, etc. So when we started discussing this year's vacation, I offered several options. I told them we could go back to Dollywood, we could return to WDW, we looked into Hershey Park, we could go back to WDW, or we could go somewhere else. Owen was actually the first to say he would be willing to go back to WDW. Logan was the hold out for awhile, but finally agreed that maybe it was time. I think 18 months was a good middle ground. We, of course, missed having her with us, but could easily talk about the good times we'd had with her on past trips and remember the things she liked so much about Disney. I'm afraid that if we'd waited much longer, they wouldn't have wanted to go back. I was most worried about Owen, but on the last day of the trip he mentioned his graduation trip (we promised each of them a trip of their choice for high school graduation) and said that if we couldn't make a World Cup game happen, then he would like to have a Disney/Universal/SeaWorld trip. Hearing that made my heart so happy!!

Now on to some general things about the parks. My biggest complaint about the parks this trip (aside from the extreme heat that we had to deal with) is the sheer number of huge strollers! I don't understand why anyone wants to deal with them. We always brought lightweight umbrella strollers that had a shade and a small basket to hold items that could be folded and unfolded with one hand. I hate the amount of space that is dedicated to stroller parking and how people use them as battering rams to get where they want to go in the parks. And if you are going to have one, for the love of god, have it emptied and folded when you get to the front of the bus line! Common courtesy is just not a thing anymore! Along those lines, please do not walk 4 or 5 people across!!

I wasn't sure what to expect with Genie+, but it worked well for us and I had no complaints. I am already awake and getting ready by 7am when I am in WDW, so that part didn't bother me. I didn't have any issues getting the rides I wanted, so that was a positive. I know that if my heart had been fully in it, I could have used it much more efficiently than I did and procured many more rides, but it did exactly what I needed it to do for me on this particular trip.

I know we did not get the value out of Memory Maker that we typically would, but I got family pictures in each park, so I consider it money well spent. I didn't spend any time after the trip editing them or adding stickers, etc to them which I normally would have, but I just didn't have the emotional energy to do it.

It bothers me that there is so much talk about attendance being down (which I feel was accurate during our visit), but wait times are still so high. Now, we didn't wait in very many stand by lines, so I don't know how accurate those times were, but there were so many rides that had hour + waits while we were there. It's just frustrating to me!

Thanks again for following along! And if you didn't see it in my pretrip report, I'll have another report to work on before too long!
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TheMouseFan

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
I'm finally caught up. I, too, am jealous of the men in my life who are able to go to sleep so easily no matter what is going on around them lol. When will you be there in December? My husband and I are going to be in WDW the first week in December.
We will arrive late on Dec. 6, spend the next 4 days in the park, and leave early afternoon on the 11th.
 

fractal

Well-Known Member
I have a few final thoughts to share now that I've had time to reflect back on the trip and take in all of my feelings/emotions. I'm really glad that I nudged Brian and the boys out of their comfort zones and got them to return to WDW for me. We've tried to let the boys take the lead and let us know when they were ready for things. You all know how much I love taking pics, but I let them not have pictures taken together last year because they didn't want them without Lily in them and we've let them decide when to resume full family gatherings for certain holidays, etc. So when we started discussing this year's vacation, I offered several options. I told them we could go back to Dollywood, we could return to WDW, we looked into Hershey Park, we could go back to WDW, or we could go somewhere else. Owen was actually the first to say he would be willing to go back to WDW. Logan was the hold out for awhile, but finally agreed that maybe it was time. I think 18 months was a good middle ground. We, of course, missed having her with us, but could easily talk about the good times we'd had with her on past trips and remember the things she liked so much about Disney. I'm afraid that if we'd waited much longer, they wouldn't have wanted to go back. I was most worried about Owen, but on the last day of the trip he mentioned his graduation trip (we promised each of them a trip of their choice for high school graduation) and said that if we couldn't make a World Cup game happen, then he would like to have a Disney/Universal/SeaWorld trip. Hearing that made my heart so happy!!

Now on to some general things about the parks. My biggest complaint about the parks this trip (aside from the extreme heat that we had to deal with) is the sheer number of huge strollers! I don't understand why anyone wants to deal with them. We always brought lightweight umbrella strollers that had a shade and a small basket to hold items that could be folded and unfolded with one hand. I hate the amount of space that is dedicated to stroller parking and how people use them as battering rams to get where they want to go in the parks. And if you are going to have one, for the love of god, have it emptied and folded when you get to the front of the bus line! Common courtesy is just not a thing anymore! Along those lines, please do not walk 4 or 5 people across!!

I wasn't sure what to expect with Genie+, but it worked well for us and I had no complaints. I am already awake and getting ready by 7am when I am in WDW, so that part didn't bother me. I didn't have any issues getting the rides I wanted, so that was a positive. I know that if my heart had been fully in it, I could have used it much more efficiently than I did and procured many more rides, but it did exactly what I needed it to do for me on this particular trip.

I know we did not get the value out of Memory Maker that we typically would, but I got family pictures in each park, so I consider it money well spent. I didn't spend any time after the trip editing them or adding stickers, etc to them which I normally would have, but I just didn't have the emotional energy to do it.

It bothers me that there is so much talk about attendance being down (which I feel was accurate during our visit), but wait times are still so high. Now, we didn't wait in very many stand by lines, so I don't know how accurate those times were, but there were so many rides that had hour + waits while we were there. It's just frustrating to me!

Thanks again for following along! And if you didn't see it in my pretrip report, I'll have another report to work on before too long!
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Thanks for sharing this report and your thoughts with us.
 

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