Trip Report The Texas Ranger, The Beast, and We "started the fireworks": A trip of firsts!

Wow, this was a trip of many first for our happy little family. We have been to WDW numerous times, but this one was different, very different, in very many ways, and all good.

Let's start with the WHO:
myself, Debbie, known as Cee Gee to the grandsons.

CeeGee=Crazy Grandmom. According to my loving daughter, the boys have a normal grandmother (the other one apparently) and a crazy one......

which I would deeply resent if it weren't true, but that's another story.

Then there are the boys, Hunter (7) Logan (5) and Nicholas (3)

Always noisy and crazy when they are together.

And then their parents: my daughter Nicole

and her husband Steven.

And they call ME the crazy one!!!

The when- April 8-16, 2016

And the where- our first new first- Wyndham Bonnet Creek Resort.

We have never stayed off property before. It was a big risk for us, we know disney properties and love them, but this place seemed so cool, we wanted to try. And for the 6 of us Disney properties require either 2 rooms or a suite, that gets expensive. So we bit the bullet, chewed our nails, and booked an off-property resort. When the real report starts I'll tell you if we were happy or not.

so more tomorrow......................

 

[Tiggerish]

So after an afternoon in the pool, it was time to clean up and hop over to Magic Kingdom for a very short trip.
Since we had Hoop de doo reservations, it just made sense to park at Fort Wilderness, and take the boat over. The excitement as we cruised into sight of the castle was incredible. The boys (and we) were beside themselves. Amazing how that energy level creeps down each morning as the trip goes on.... but tonight.....excitement over the top.


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As soon as we entered, we went on the railroad as we knew it was closing in 2 days. The boys saw the timetable and then it magically changed into cartoons for a few minutes and then back. They were sold on Disney Magic after that.

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I only got to ride as far as frontierland because it was the job of Steve and myself to take Logan on his first grown up roller coaster- Big Thunder Mountain. I must admit, I had a little anxiety about frightening him off of roller coasters forever, he's only 5, but he was certain he wanted to do it. He'd watched it many times on youtube, so we agreed to let him try it.

So while Nicole took Hunter and Nicholas the rest of the way and then on Winnie the Pooh, I got to ride Big Thunder Mtn.

He looked a little concerned as we were about to take off, but he LOVED it. So proud of himself.

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Actually so proud that as we exited and there was Photopass photographer there, he asked for a picture of just him and Big Thunder. The pride shows!

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What a change in facial expression, huh?
Then we used our FP for Peter Pan and it was time to leave for Hoop de doo.

This is where two more of our firsts happened. We checked in and got our picture taken. I must say, I am not quite sure why or when they stopped taking the pre-show pictures in the prop area set up just for this, and started taking them just in front of the sign, but that's what they were doing.

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And then for the first time, poor Steven became THAT GUY. You know, the one that gets flirted with by Dolly and kissed by Dolly and picked on the rest of the show? Yup, that was our Steve.View attachment 139808


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For a week, all his wife heard about was "I got kissed by a redhead". Yeah, he ate it up! Almost as much as he ate up that Strawberry shortcake.

Another minor first for us, we have found out that Hunter is allergic to red dye in food. Really makes it difficult to feed the poor guy. We didn't think about it here until they started singing about the strawberry shortcake, so we asked the waiter if he knew if there was red dye in the strawberry filling. Next thing we knew, the chef was there, (didn't want to cause a fuss, just weren't going to let him eat any) confirming that there is dye in it, but don't worry, he'll find something for dessert for our poor little guy.

Yup, he found something alright, his own private massive strawberry shortcake with fresh strawberries. Thanks chef, you made him very happy.View attachment 139810

And while I would say "you made his night", that wouldn't be true, Miss Flora made his night shortly after you personally delivered this treat to a kid who is just used to being told, "sorry you can't have that"............
up next. Miss Flora makes his night

So much awwww in this post!!! Love it!

 

[Tiggerish]

So while he was tearing into his treasure, Miss Flora came over and bent down and asked if he would like to be in the show. An enthusiastic yes came from him. Now the tricky part, she looked at the grown ups and asked "can he do it?".

Well let's see....... he is both autistic and hyperactive.........sounds like a perfect set up to be on stage, but the look in his eyes said he wanted to try. And we want him to try things so we said yes, and instantly lost our appetites and started saying prayers hoping this worked out for him. It was a risky but exciting move on his part.

Well, he loved being THE TEXAS RANGER. Did great. At least when he was shooting up that bear. He was so cute, we could hardly "bear it". His joy was so "unbearable", he "bearly" made it through the show. (you will only appreciate this if you know the show),

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He did love playing with Davey Crockett, but apparently, not so much being kissed by Miss Flora, and she picked him too! Guess he's not ready for dating girls yet, huh?

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Highlight of the trip for all of us....he did GREAT and more importantly had a ball.
So two major "firsts" for our trip, and on our first day too!

And EVEN MORE awww...

What a great night for you all!!

 

[docdebbi]

And EVEN MORE awww...

What a great night for you all!!

thanks for following.
yeah, it was indeed an "awww" night for all of us. one we won't forget

 

[fractal]

Great report; enjoying it Beary much!

Love the extra love your got at HDDR! Awesome.

 

[ScarletBegonias]

Awwww! the pictures of him in the show! he looks so happy!!

 

[docdebbi]

Magic Kingdom Day 1
We considered last night's little foray to MK as a bonus, so Sunday was really our first day at MK.

Logan, the middle boy, is the gentle tender one, and wanted to have a Prince Charming outfit to meet the princesses. So of course I made him one before we left home. He was in love with it.
Since we had Cinderella's royal table reservations for this morning, it was the obvious time to wear it.

So we got up super early, and out in time to make a 8:10 CRT. He wanted to just keep posing in his outfit everywhere we went.
In the hotel, practicing his bow....

Waiting for his carriage (car) outside the hotel

at the castle

And finally.............his love...........Cinderella

he generously let his brothers butt into one picture, but Cinderella is HIS! (boy are they lousy dressers!)

Nicholas was the first one to notice Gus and Jacques hiding in the rafters,

Breakfast was a great success, all the boys loved the princesses.

 

[docdebbi]

Now, even though they liked the princesses, they ARE boys. so swordplay was the theme of the day.

No, I mean it, they never let up. Maybe I shouldn't have taken them to Medieval Times the week before we came, hmmmm?

Anyway, once outside it just gave them more room to fight,

Once order was restored in the kingdom, off we went to Peter Pan and then Small World. Now, we brought a change of clothes for Logan, but couldn't get him out of the formal wear. Really, we tried, I made it, I know it wasn't made for rough stuff and that white would never come clean. But he was so happy, that we conceded and figured he would never have anywhere else to wear it anyway, so a day full of Prince Charming it would be.

We were in line for Peter Pan by 9:15 and the line was already 40 minutes. We had considered using a FP for this but I really wanted the kids to get to play in the new queue, and it was a lot of fun, so glad we did it.

Now Nicole for some reason is really not a Small World fan.
The enthusiasm is overwhelming.

And she LOVES it when you get stuck in the last room every time.

Next ride, Winnie the Pooh

 

[LisaBelle]

Love the special surprises at Hoop de Doo. The photos are priceless! The Prince Charming costume is fabulous! He looked so handsome! I would have done just what you did and let him wear it all day. He'll never forget it.

 

[MinnieM123]

You made me smile about your laminated cards!!! I don't think I've ever heard of anyone doing that before!

The kids are so cute. And the picture of Logan in his (Prince Charming) costume with Cinderella is adorable!! (I love how he "practiced" his role ahead of time. How sweet!!)

 

[ScarletBegonias]

That Prince Charming suit is adorable! So sweet that he wanted to wear it all day!

 

[Tiggerish]

Prince Charming is causing me to swoon! He's so cute!!

 

[cgersic]

Oh my gosh your boys are just adorable!! I love trip reports like this that really focus on the kids and their reactions. Great job!

 

[Lyear]

Wow, only on day 2 and already there is so much magic happening for you guys. Love the experience you had at HDDR. And that Prince Charming costume is a winner!!! I'm sure all the princesses loved it.

 

[Doug Means]

So the trip started on Friday night, April 8, right after work. Over time we've come to realize that waking the kids early enough to make an early Saturday morning flight, left all of us too tired out. So we started going Friday evening and taking sleeping kids right off the plane and over to the Hyatt in the airport, still asleep in their strollers.

So after a long day of work, we all packed up the cars, yes two cars, (moving 6 folks and our luggage is no small feat), and off we went to Philadelphia Airport. Had a blissfully uneventful flight and landed in Orlando 20 minutes ahead of schedule. Hunter is now old enough that he stayed up the whole flight and actually helped us with the little guys. Got a good nights sleep and were all ready for a busy day on Saturday.

My job was to get up before everyone else and go pick up the rental car and drop our luggage off at Bonnet Creek. Yes, you got it, six people and our luggage do not fit in one car any more in Orlando than they do in Philly. So all went smoothly and I came back to a breakfast picnic waiting in the room for me.

We were lucky enough to get rooms overlooking the runway so we could watch the monorail come and go
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and the planes taxi-ing and taking off and landing. Sort of fun.

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and got to see the cool rooftop pool.

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But we didn't take the time to go in, because we were on our way to our own hotel to swim.

We arrived at the Wyndham Bonnet Creek, both excited and nervous. We had read about it a lot and knew it was a great place, but that you get the hard sell when checking in to go their timeshare presentation. We had no time or inclination to do so, but reading the reviews made it sound like it was either give them a kidney or go to the presentation. We chose the kidney......

We politely but firmly showed them my proudest achievement. THE LAMINATED POCKET CARDS-

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the entire week's schedule on portable waterproof cards......immune to splash mountain, kali river rapids and Florida thunderstorms. I defied them to find an empty spot for their presentation and we'd go.
Nope no time that day........
or these days.........View attachment 139687

or even all week.....View attachment 139686

I won. No sales pitch for us.

See it pays to have OCD....and my family mocks me!
So off to our room to check it out and see if we were happy or sad about being off property

ok, i always have a laminated spread sheet schedule (my family loves and hates - i have to have it). now i think i must have these cards! mysids are old enough to go on their own but maybe not focus enough to make the ADR's - so the cards are great!

 

[dupac]

I literally squealed at the picture of little Prince Charming. How precious! I'm enjoying the report.

 

[docdebbi]

Love the special surprises at Hoop de Doo. The photos are priceless! The Prince Charming costume is fabulous! He looked so handsome! I would have done just what you did and let him wear it all day. He'll never forget it.

thanks for following along. we were indeed lucky with the things we got to do this trip.
And he FELT handsome, which is what matters, the littlest things can mean so much to little guys. so glad I could do it for him.

 

[docdebbi]

You made me smile about your laminated cards!!! I don't think I've ever heard of anyone doing that before!

The kids are so cute. And the picture of Logan in his (Prince Charming) costume with Cinderella is adorable!! (I love how he "practiced" his role ahead of time. How sweet!!)

Been using those cards for years, you know how we all laugh about Disney making us schedule potty breaks? Well, they may not, but I do! Ok, maybe I have a touch of OCD, but it helps at Disney, and Nicole makes me stay a little flexible....

and Logan was hysterical that day, almost nervous to meet Cinderella. It was a good time for us.
thanks for following

 

[docdebbi]

That Prince Charming suit is adorable! So sweet that he wanted to wear it all day!

Prince Charming is causing me to swoon! He's so cute!!

Oh my gosh your boys are just adorable!! I love trip reports like this that really focus on the kids and their reactions. Great job!

thanks guys, appreciate you following along.

 

[docdebbi]

Wow, only on day 2 and already there is so much magic happening for you guys. Love the experience you had at HDDR. And that Prince Charming costume is a winner!!! I'm sure all the princesses loved it.

they did indeed, thanks for the compliment, we thought he made an adorable Prince Charming too, but we know we're prejudiced!

 

[docdebbi]

ok, i always have a laminated spread sheet schedule (my family loves and hates - i have to have it). now i think i must have these cards! mysids are old enough to go on their own but maybe not focus enough to make the ADR's - so the cards are great!

Glad one OCDer could help another, we need to stick together you know.