Trip Report There's Something About Mary...and it's called DRAMA!

I think it's time to get this thing started...hoping it will help my mood and sanity levels. For those that missed the PTR (http://forums.wdwmagic.com/threads/lawdy-lawdy-look-whos-turning-40-ptr.867181/) - the early pages should help you catch up on the bulk of the big details, and for those that missed our problems from day 1 of our trip (http://forums.wdwmagic.com/threads/how-not-to-start-your-wdw-vacay.873853/ )...well, it kind of speaks for itself. I am going to try and keep this as upbeat as possible, but we have a very long road ahead to fix things...so, please bear with me as I vent in between some of the magic.

September 18th

I left work early on the 18th so I could pick up the girls at school and have them with us when we took our dog to get boarded. This is our Daisy Doggy...

What's really funny, the pic above was taken with Sammie's Fisher Price plastic kiddie camera!

After getting the dog situated at boarding, we went home, had some dinner, and the heavy duty packing started. I'd actually started packing my things on the 17th, but now it was time to really focus on the girls. I let them sleep in the guest bedroom that night so I could pack all of their stuff without keeping them up...i.e. so I could pack all of the surprise outfits without spoiling anything. It was A TON of packing, but I finished up around 1am. I had thought about setting up the outfits and bags in the guest room for the reveal, but Sammie got up to use the bathroom right around that time- soooooo, I decided to wait until just before the big reveal.

September 19

I guess I got close to 4.5 hours of sleep (good for the night before a travel day)...and at 6am, it was finally time to set up and reveal the big secret. I got everything set up and then DH came in to help me. The video I took is pretty awful and sleepy girls don't make for really good surprises, but this is the vid I took and I swear...they were REALLY happy.



You can all now probably appreciate what it's like getting these two up for school each morning.

Actually, the girls were super quick to get dressed once it really sunk in what was going on. They were even good with posing for pictures before hitting the road...

We loaded up my SUV and hit the road...sadly, we wouldn't get far. The accident took place about 2.5 miles from our house. I really don't want to rehash all of the scary details, but when we realized we'd all be able to walk away from this horror - we had to decide if we'd continue with this WDW trip. While the girls' initial screams and cries were from the accident itself, they morphed into cries that they wouldn't get to see their grandma and grandpa. We usually try and visit every 3 months, but we pushed it a bit longer b/c of this trip. It was for this reason DH and I decided to push forward with the trip even if the odds weren't in our favor. I guess I just figured getting everyone to "the most magical place on earth" could be therapeutic. Don't get me wrong...I love that the EMTs and lead sheriff on the scene were super lovey with the girls - they really needed something super positive...so, Disney it was!

So, after I took care of the most important initial phone calls, I got Southwest on the line (at the scene of the wreck) and started working with them to rebook the outbound flight. We were yelling over ambulance sirens and traffic, but after about 20 min, we were rebooked from our 9:15am departure to a 3:55pm departure. They also said DH could ask for a blue card for pre-board (we were now in group C after paying to be in group A on the original flight)...while it's gotten better, he had some leg pain that day and was limping from the aches. The timing also worked well since it gave me time to go to the collision center, talk to the various insurance companies, etc. My wonderful MIL was also kind enough to pick up DH and the girls from the scene. This enabled him to get his car and she was able to love on the girls for a while until we were ready to regroup and get travel plans rolling again.

While our flight out of Houston was delayed close to 3 hours due to weather and mechanical issues (not helping Kendall, who was now terrified that the plane would crash), but we got off the ground a little after 6pm and we were on our way...

Sammie sat with DH on the way to FL-- with Pooh, of course...

I had Kendall...

...and we spent the entire flight doing this big word search on her tablet.

We flew into terminal A and DME is in terminal B. It was after the girls' bed time, so we opted to just get our baggage. Soooooo, we went down to terminal A baggage and then lugged it over to DME in terminal B. Thankfully, Kendall has overcome her fear of escalators, so minus losing her shoe for a while on one of them we were in good shape.

I think the CMs manning the DME entrance could read all of the stress and worry on my face, because they promised me pixie dust and magic from that point on. We had our Magic Bands on at this point, but I had my vouchers out so in the interest of time and sanity, they just used those. They directed us to the line for AKL and while we were let on the bus right away...we were so late that the bus was accommodating a number of resorts from various lines. Still...Kendall and I wound up with this prime spot!

I swear, I got choked up when I looked up and saw the screen...like that "we're really on our way" moment.

It took a while for them to load up the bus since they were waiting on people to come in from all of these late or delayed flights, but it wasn't long before we were off.

 

[jw24]

Sounds like you guys had a great time at Ohana. The food looks so good! That's on my bucket list but I sincerely doubt I'll be able to enjoy that dining experience if I'm traveling solo. I had no idea about the boat that goes to Poly! That's interesting to know.

 

[Jessica Meier]

Loving this! I wanted to try Ohana really bad this trip. My mom had no interest as she has been to Hawaii and wasn't a fan of the food. Looks so awesome!

Coasters. I love coasters. I've road all the mountains at MK, RRC at HS and now Everest. I am a chicken type that let's the unknown spook me but thankfully my hubby doesn't let me talk myself out of it. I wind up always thinking it was awesome and feening for more. He and his brother forced me to ride my first coaster in 2002 a month before we got married. We went to Busch Gardens in Tampa. The coaster went upside down several times. It was sooooooo awesome and I was hooked. Sandy, you and I have got to do a Disney trip.

You are a Project Runway fan too? I am obsessed. I wanted to be a fashion designer and even applied to school. I could draw but not sew. Now I sew but still not well enough to be a designer. I've now passed the love onto Cadence.

Kendall made me smile so big today. Loved her hula look. If you do a hula party , I see a good excuse to incorporate Donald in his hula skirt on the cake!

 

[Brwneyedgirl72]

Your girls are absolutely precious. I am so enjoying your trip report - thank you for sharing!

 

[Tiggerish]

I handled my one-and-only ride on Dinosaur the same way Sammie did. With my eyes closed. I don't like scary.

Loved the hula girl photo. Priceless!

Good call on the boat vs. monorail to get to dinner. Last month, I was late for my Cali Grill dinner because my companion insisted on taking the monorail, and I'm pretty sure the check-in desk staff took it out on us by making us wait over 40 minutes to be seated.

 

[disneygirl1]

I really really want to try Ohana for dinner. We have been to the breakfast before and loved it each time. As of right now its a toss up between Ohana and Grand Floridian Cafe. Decisions, Decisions!!! About how long would you say the whole Ohana dinner experience takes? Our plan is to do dinner then head over to MK which is open till 10p? What time do you think I should have ressies for if I wanted to spend some time at MK after dinner?

 

[ThatBrunette]

The banana bread pudding thingy looks fabulous.

The Tooth Fairy had to visit us at DL a few years ago. Yes, she does know the way and when Grandma is involved, the TF gets generous.

 

[Tink0102]

Pooh also asked me to get up. Pooh saw my birthday button and wanted to give me a hug. I could also hear a kiss through the costume. I do like it when the characters understand that the adults are fans too.

I love it when they kiss back! I got kisses from Donald and Stitch! I looked at Stitch and said "Are you kissing me?" and he nodded his precious blue alien head! It melted my heart....lol

 

[HouCuseChickie]

Loving all of your pictures!!!! So glad that you were able to make the best of things and enjoy your trip despite the accident. Your pics of dinner at Ohana's has me very excited that I made an ADR there for our trip! And I think we are going to try to do BOG for lunch on one of our MK days. My daughter is currently obsessed with Beauty and the Beast. (And my son likes it too!)
Kendall as a hula girl is adorable! And I do the same thing- I always keep my favorite pic of my kids as my screensaver on my phone so I can look at their beautiful faces whenever I need a pick me up. Can't wait to read more!

I'm still so thankful we were able to go on the trip. 'Ohana was definitely a food highlight of the trip. I know it can wind up on the overhyped lists, but this visit definitely represented all that is wonderful with 'Ohana. Both girls are very fond of BatB...Belle is Kendall's favorite and I think Sammie is starting to turn that way as well. I'm going to need to get Sammie some hula gear b/c I need it to be a pic with both of them if I'm going to make it my background...otherwise, they have major fits of jealousy. Oh yeah- bring on the sibling rivalry! I may post more tonight if I don't fall asleep first.

Sounds like you guys had a great time at Ohana. The food looks so good! That's on my bucket list but I sincerely doubt I'll be able to enjoy that dining experience if I'm traveling solo. I had no idea about the boat that goes to Poly! That's interesting to know.

I know I did see a single diner at a table not too far from us. While the meal certainly lends itself well to a large group, I think the food could be enjoyed regardless of party size and it would certainly be a good people watching meal for a solo trip. I learned about the boat after a monorail nightmare in 2010. While I like Wishes from the Poly beach, I've always thought it would be nice to be on one of those boats during fireworks or even just Electrical Water Pageant.

Loving this! I wanted to try Ohana really bad this trip. My mom had no interest as she has been to Hawaii and wasn't a fan of the food. Looks so awesome!

Coasters. I love coasters. I've road all the mountains at MK, RRC at HS and now Everest. I am a chicken type that let's the unknown spook me but thankfully my hubby doesn't let me talk myself out of it. I wind up always thinking it was awesome and feening for more. He and his brother forced me to ride my first coaster in 2002 a month before we got married. We went to Busch Gardens in Tampa. The coaster went upside down several times. It was sooooooo awesome and I was hooked. Sandy, you and I have got to do a Disney trip.

You are a Project Runway fan too? I am obsessed. I wanted to be a fashion designer and even applied to school. I could draw but not sew. Now I sew but still not well enough to be a designer. I've now passed the love onto Cadence.

Kendall made me smile so big today. Loved her hula look. If you do a hula party , I see a good excuse to incorporate Donald in his hula skirt on the cake!

What's funny...I think 'Ohana is closer to Brazilian steakhouse than Hawaiian food. DH has been to Hawaii twice and my brother and SIL have also had two trips - and they really only felt the atmosphere was Hawaiian-ish. DH is just thankful they don't serve poi.

I have loved coasters since I was a little kid...the bigger the better. DH is fine with inverted coasters and things with loops, but he lets me go solo if it's really high and involves huge drops. We have so many funny coaster stories where he's bailed and I've ridden solo...even one where one of his best friends decided to be my wingman. I remember a trip to Vegas before we got married, his best friend rode the Manhattan Express with me b/c he felt bad that I was going to ride alone (which I was perfectly fine with doing). The entire ride, all I hear is, "why am I doing this? I'm not even dating you!??!?!?" On our honeymoon, DH even agreed to spend one night here so I could ride this roller coaster several times. Hey- he was happy - he played a whole lotta blackjack while I got to play on Desperado. I believe that first drop is 225'



We should go to Cedar Point!!! Sorry- it's a coaster girl's dream.

I've loved Project Runway since the first season. I even have a piñata at my desk named after the whole Andre/Santino Red Lobster bit many seasons ago. Kendall is pretty into it too. I have no creativity for fashion design, so it's just so much fun for me to watch and marvel at their abilities and creativity.

I pitched some future party ideas to Kendall b/c of the pic. She's receptive to the idea, but time will tell. Gotta get through Sammie's bday and the holidays before I can fully look into it. Ahhhhhh...so much to do with all of that...feeling overwhelmed!

Your girls are absolutely precious. I am so enjoying your trip report - thank you for sharing!

Thank you!!! The girls definitely make it a fun experience.

I handled my one-and-only ride on Dinosaur the same way Sammie did. With my eyes closed. I don't like scary.

Loved the hula girl photo. Priceless!

Good call on the boat vs. monorail to get to dinner. Last month, I was late for my Cali Grill dinner because my companion insisted on taking the monorail, and I'm pretty sure the check-in desk staff took it out on us by making us wait over 40 minutes to be seated.

I warned DH that it might be too much for her. I'm pretty thankful that she had the sense to close her eyes ... since I'm the one who'd be dealing with the nightmares. Scary is only fun if you're a person that likes that fear factor. I am great with enormous roller coasters, but I will never set foot in a real haunted house. DH is the total opposite- he soooooo wants to take me to one of those places where ghouls and zombies reach out and grab you. Yeah- that's a big fat no.

Thanks- I'm pretty fond of this whole hula girl thing.

I was shocked that the boat was the faster mode of transportation. The Cali Grill waits can be crazy. Sometimes it works in your favor...i.e. you wanted to watch Wishes during dinner, but your ADR time was too early...but in most cases it's just a pain. 40 minutes is just ridiculous when you have an ADR. I was really hoping we'd make it there this trip, but there's always next time.

I really really want to try Ohana for dinner. We have been to the breakfast before and loved it each time. As of right now its a toss up between Ohana and Grand Floridian Cafe. Decisions, Decisions!!! About how long would you say the whole Ohana dinner experience takes? Our plan is to do dinner then head over to MK which is open till 10p? What time do you think I should have ressies for if I wanted to spend some time at MK after dinner?

While experiences vary, I'd say it's worth giving 'Ohana dinner a try. I would go for an earlier ADR time if you want any MK time that evening. The wait to be seated, even with an ADR, tends to get longer and longer as the night progresses. Some of it is people camping out for fireworks, but some is just people having 2nds, 3rds, 4ths... of meat. It also takes a while just to get through the basics. I think we average around 1.5hrs for 'Ohana once seated. We've waited as little as under 5 min to be seated and over 40 min. We had a 5:20p adr this time, and while it takes longer for a party of 9 to do pretty much anything, I want to say we were back in MK around 7pm. That kind of schedule would give you a solid 3hrs of MK time.

The banana bread pudding thingy looks fabulous.

The Tooth Fairy had to visit us at DL a few years ago. Yes, she does know the way and when Grandma is involved, the TF gets generous.

The bread pudding was YUM!

Sadly, the Tooth Fairy wasn't overly generous...but I'll get to that and a funny follow up Tooth Fairy story from that same week. The kid needs to give me a break with these teeth!

I love it when they kiss back! I got kisses from Donald and Stitch! I looked at Stitch and said "Are you kissing me?" and he nodded his precious blue alien head! It melted my heart....lol

I've heard them do it for the girls, but this was the first time for me. That's so sweet with Stitch...he's DH's favorite...although, they tend to compare notes on how bad they've each been that day.

 

[HouCuseChickie]

Ugh- I wanted to post an update tonight, but I'm just so tired. I have all of the wording and pics ready, but it's late and it's been a long day. Yeah- watching American Horror Story and closing up the computer for it didn't really help either. I have a bunch of random drama updates as well, but I'm also too tired to post on that as well. I do promise to have more tomorrow- both trip and drama

 

[stevehousse]

Loving your report, I love reading trip reports before we go to really get in the mood..17 days for us...I also love AHS! This new season is quite interesting. Kathy bates is awesome! Anyways, hope everything goes well with your car issue...

 

[FlaggNL]

Hej there! A marvelous report with sad news (sorry for that) and a lot of good good pictures So jealous.... probably WDW for me in 2016 or so...... in mean time we stick to DLP

 

[popcenturylover]

Kendall the hula girl It just crossed my mind that your trip and my supervisor's trip should overlap. Not that you have any clue who he is or vice versa, but he's staying at the Poly and has at least one or two meals at 'Ohana.



Mind you, I've never been to that specific Six Flags park, but Six Flags type parks can be good if you're in it for the thrill portion of the rides. Admission is cheaper, it's not themed like a Disney park, it's not as clean and can attract more questionable crowds, but from a thrill ride enthusiast type standpoint- it can be a lot of fun. We started going to WDW annually around the same time we also started getting annual season passes for our local Six Flags park. I like both...but for different reasons.

I was of the impression that much of RnRC is in the dark (I've never ridden it b/c it just never works out for me on our DHS day...i.e. something always comes up)...so hopefully the dark aspect will help. If it makes you feel any better, these two bad boys below are on my "to do" list. While I will be totally psyched if/when said opportunities present- I too will be doing some self talk since I think 250ft is the highest I've been dropped on a coaster So, in all of that "I think I can" self talk for you...you can also think "at least I'm not doing that."

If you're a coaster girl I definitely recommend Cedar Point! We live a bit over 2 hours away & make it there every few years. We had a reunion there this past summer with my husband's family & had an awesome time! I would recommend waiting until your girls are tall enough to ride the coasters although, they do have a swap program. The new coaster the Gatekeeper is so cool! We got to ride it 3 times which is unusual for a brand new coaster because the waits could be in excess of a few hours! Anyway, I hope that you can make it there sometime because it's a lot of fun not "Disney" fun but, fun nonetheless! Loving your TR by the way!!!

 

[Tink0102]

It was at this time that I spotted the monorail we would have been on. It was just arriving at the TTC and we were pulling up to the Poly.

Again....ALOOOOOOOOHAAAAAA!!!

Our ADR time was 5:20p and my phone was saying 5:18, so we're technically not late - yet. Regardless, we picked up our pace as soon as we got off the boat (which was probably a tad faster than the monorail).

Bye Bye Boat

We were a couple of minutes late by the time we got upstairs, but all was good. As usual, Tambu Lounge and the areas around were quite crowded with people waiting to get into 'Ohana...although, at this early hour, I'm guessing most were walk ups. In light of this, I thought we'd still have ample time to take the kids to the restroom before having our buzzer go off. yeah- I was wrong. So, we booked to the table, I took a quick shot of one of our views from our table, and ran to the bathroom with both girls.

I guess at least all you have to worry about at 'Ohana is drinks.

I took another pic of the glorious fire and meat (which wound up being at my back) once I arrived back at the table.

We were a party of 9 for this meal, so it's always a challenge with who gets to sit where and with whom and if we can last that way the whole meal. As you can see below, Kendall chose to sit near my parents and sit across from Jake so she could help entertain him.

Something else you should notice in that pic...BREAD!

The bread is significant as we haven't been allowed to have it before. It does have a cross contamination risk, but it's not like putting the peanut sauce on the table (like they accidentally did last visit). They warned us of the risk this time, said they've yet to hear of any issues but it's all a matter of our comfort level with such things. Thank you- I wanted bread!

I know lots of people want window seats at 'Ohana, even at non-fireworks times, but for me...I was just happy we weren't put in that side area again...hated sitting there.

Jake looks a bit sleepy...

And Kendall is clearly making it her mission to try and get him to perk up.

I think I'm going to call it a night. Coming up...more 'Ohana dinner and then back to MK.

Looks like you had the same table we did on our trip back in June. We were a party of 10. That was a great table and we loved Ohanas. It will be a must on our upcoming trip! Did they still have the Passion Fruit vinegarette dressing on the salad? I love that and could have eaten the entire bowl!

 

[HouCuseChickie]

Loving your report, I love reading trip reports before we go to really get in the mood..17 days for us...I also love AHS! This new season is quite interesting. Kathy bates is awesome! Anyways, hope everything goes well with your car issue...

Thanks! Reading TRs is definitely one of my fave ways to psych up for a trip! 17 days! Wow! Almost here! We went mid-November last year...really great time to be there. LOOOOOOVE AHS! Last season wasn't quite my thing, but season 1 was great and I'm pretty into this season...especially since we love New Orleans. We were there over the summer while they were filming (didn't see anything)...although, we were only about 5 blocks away from Madame Lalaurie's actual house. Fingers crossed...the vehicle issue may be mainly done next week.

Hej there! A marvelous report with sad news (sorry for that) and a lot of good good pictures So jealous.... probably WDW for me in 2016 or so...... in mean time we stick to DLP

Thank you! Yeah- lots of drama, but still so thankful we're OK. As for WDW- having family in FL makes it easier to justify more frequent visits. Still, DLP sounds like a pretty nice option as far as alternatives go. I recall really liking the video I saw of one of their evening projection/fireworks shows.

If you're a coaster girl I definitely recommend Cedar Point! We live a bit over 2 hours away & make it there every few years. We had a reunion there this past summer with my husband's family & had an awesome time! I would recommend waiting until your girls are tall enough to ride the coasters although, they do have a swap program. The new coaster the Gatekeeper is so cool! We got to ride it 3 times which is unusual for a brand new coaster because the waits could be in excess of a few hours! Anyway, I hope that you can make it there sometime because it's a lot of fun not "Disney" fun but, fun nonetheless! Loving your TR by the way!!!

Thanks! I soooooooooooooooooo want to go to Cedar Point. I've wanted to for years, but I think I'm going to have to wait until the girls get just a little bit taller since DH would likely leave me riding solo on a lot of this stuff. I saw something over the summer regarding Gatekeeper...love the concept of the wing style coaster. Ultimately, while parks like Cedar Point aren't Disney, they do provide a really great "type of thrill" that Disney doesn't deliver...one that IMO would also be out of place in a Disney park. One day WE WILL get to Sandusky, OH!

Looks like you had the same table we did on our trip back in June. We were a party of 10. That was a great table and we loved Ohanas. It will be a must on our upcoming trip! Did they still have the Passion Fruit vinegarette dressing on the salad? I love that and could have eaten the entire bowl!

Definitely a nice location in the room. I'm pretty sure that was the dressing on the salad. I couldn't hear what our server said, but it did have fruity notes to it. Tasty stuff!

 

[HouCuseChickie]

Hello people

OK- before I get into TR stuff, we're going to discuss drama...and we're going to call it: The Good, The Bad, and The Stupid.

The Good- My insurance company is moving at lightning speed. This morning, my total loss adjustor contacted me to get the final part of this process rolling. She emailed me my docs to complete, gave me my settlement amount, walked me through setting up EFT so I could get my car seat reimbursement and my settlement $, and got me through the paperwork. I was able to send it right back to her via Fed Ex today, so they should be able to process it tomorrow. She said it's 1-2 business days for the vehicle settlement $ once the processing is done. What's really good- their settlement offer was $4,000 more than the projected settlement offer from the at fault driver's company...that is, if there weren't policy limit issues. So, I may be new vehicle shopping by the middle of next week!!!!

The Bad (but sort of funny)- As I'd previously stated, I switched into rental #3 on Monday just in case I wind up having to cover this portion. It's a car, and I'm not used to a car, but it's not a bad car either...well, until the ridiculous happened Wednesday morning. So, I'm driving in to work- still dark out- I hear a whistling sound- and I see this shadow of something flying from the roof. I'm going about 60mph and there are a lot of vehicles around- so not a lot I can do. As I drive a little farther (although, I've reduced my speed at this point) - this shadowy thing flying gets longer and starts smacking against the back window and the trunk. As the sun comes up- I see it's some kind of black plastic strip- but I'm not sure if it's from the roof or the back window. I manage to drive slow enough without creating any traffic issues (although, I'm late to work) and the strip stays on the vehicle. When I get into the parking garage, I see it's one of the plastic strips from the roof. I got it all worked out, but just my luck to get a brand new rental that has a big piece of black plastic that decides to come undone and just flop around in the wind.

The Stupid- the insurance co for the at fault driver has agreed to send me a check for my deductible since the rest of this mess will get sorted out between them and my insurer in subrogation. My agent faxed them my policy info on Monday so that she had all of the info she'd need to cut my check. I decided to call her on Wednesday since it didn't seem like anything had been done on their end- imagine that. When I told her my agent faxed the info to her Monday...she paused and then said OOOPS!!! No- no ooooops! You've been dropping the ball for weeks and you're telling me you can't check your fax queue for 2 days! No ooops...just stupid! She promised to get the check cut on Wednesday, but I'm probably going to have to call to check up on all of this...again.

Beyond that...my SUV was finally taken from the collision center lot for salvage today. I pass the collision center at least twice a day, and my vehicle was fully visible from the highway...so, it was a sad/painful reminder each time I drove by. I've got a bit of closure now that the vehicle has been removed. I also got to meet the damage assessor for my company who has been working with me - literally since day 1. Just nice to have some of this finally coming full circle.

END VENT

Back to Sept 22nd...

So, back to the monorail and a happy – I mean hammy – child.

I can also see we’ve ditched the pettiskirt in favor of shorts. She’s definitely the girly girl of the two, but she has that point as well where regular shorts or pants just have to come into the mix.
I can tell from these next two that we’ve already stopped at the GF and are just about at MK.

Now, I took this next pic so I could see exactly what time we were arriving back at MK…I didn’t plan on the clock being blurry lighting mess.

Oh well, got this lovely monorail shot after we got off and were making our way to the entrance.

Definitely a lot of people heading into MK for EMH.

I believe MSEP started at 8pm that night, so I’m thinking we got to MK some time around 7pm…maybe a bit later. I was hoping to find a spot farther up MSUSA, but the curbs were already jam packed. Soooooooo, we pretty much sprinted back to the one area of curb we’d passed on the way that had some openings…and thankfully, those openings were still there. My brother and SIL didn’t care to stay and watch, so they went off on their own. We just pretty much parked it and sat tight until parade time. Well, I took lots of pics…

Looks like mom is getting tired…

Then again, she’ll nap in the middle of dinner if you let her. LOL

The girls were at least entertained with all of the glow bands I’d bought for the trip. The glow in the dark leis didn’t really glow very much, but at least with the bands you could see them better. They made us all sorts of glow stuff, but at one point Kendall cracked one open and started freaking out. Yes, they stain, but geez...not a big deal if your shirt is glowing a little.


This pic also kind of creeps me out. Last trip, I had all kinds of lighting pics with these green blobs. They weren’t as common in my pics this time around, but this one certainly made up for all of that.

I understand it’s just something that happens when photographing certain kinds of lights, but that pic above almost looks like it’s a face.

I didn’t see it, but the kids and DH also swear they saw someone dressed up as Sully briefly pop out up there. Hmmm….


Now, you may recall that my parents rarely hit up evening festivities because my dad hates the crowds. He made it clear to me around this point that they’d be cutting out after the parade as he didn’t care about Wishes (the horror) and wanted to avoid the crowds leaving after the fireworks. They’ve done EMH before, and I tried to explain again how it works, but they were set on leaving after MSEP. So, we waited.

 

[HouCuseChickie]

And before long…LADIES AND GENTLEMAN, BOYS AND GIRLS…yes, some of you know I’m an MSEP fan. Of course, I prefer the version from when I was a kid, but I was one of those Disney fans that was happy back in 2010 when they announced the return of this to MK. OK- on to the parade. Bring on the fairies! Someone near me must have been using a flash because I guess they illuminated the one really bright pic of this portion.

Hellooooooo Tink!

I was waiting for Kendall to start yelling that she’d lost her tooth and to drop a line to her friend. Thankfully, they were just content to watch.

Oh, and to warn you…I kept the camera on continuous throughout the parade. If I flip through the 300 or so pics, I have another little animated flip book type show. Ok, so next up- lots of train pics.

So, Minnie won’t turn around…grrrr.

Oh well.

But hey, Mickey’s waving our way!

 

[HouCuseChickie]

I love the turtles, snails and bees in this parade. The big stuff gets lots of attention, but these guys can be pretty cool if you call out to them. Now, we didn’t get any interaction from this turtle this time, but back in 2010, we called out “Hi Mr. Turtle” as he was approaching. He drove up to us, did a really fast dizzy spin, and then did a shake and nod at the end with sound effects as sort of a hi. Now, I know they do some of this stuff regardless…but just a little tip in case you’ve ever wanted them to do anything like this right in front of you. No guarantees, but fun if they happen to respond to you.

Looks like the whole Alice section is up next…

Now here’s where my previous tip with the turtle example comes in. We called to the bee…something like “Hi Mr. Bee!!!” He zoomed up to us, did some zig zags and spins, and when we all waved and thanked him…he nodded his head up and down about 10x in response to us. Kendall said something like "are you talking to me?" and he started nodding again. Just love cool things like this.

Now, I know lots of you know I love Donald…but I also adore the Cheshire Cat. Yes, we’re all mad here.

Oh, and there’s Alice…but back to the Cheshire Cat…

Actually, all of the Cheshire Cat pics are pretty much like what I've already posted. Still- he's so awesome. Ok...one more...for me...

Caught this turtle doing some spins for people...or maybe they were zig zags...I think he moves a bit differently. Sad- already fading from memory.

Snail time…

Caterpillar! (although, it does remind me that I kind of miss the caterpillar centipede thing that used to come through with the other creatures)

Actually, I think we prefer the froggy...

I think we all enjoy watching him catch the fly.

Coming up...more MSEP.

 

[Jessica Meier]

I love MSEP. Was a little sad we missed it this go around. Your pics are helping.

 

[Tink0102]

Love reading your TR! It is full of great tips for newbies like me and the pictures are beautiful!
I tried to catch up last night when I went to bed but before I could read two sentences DH came in and started talking. Normally he is not a real talkative guy, but wouldn't you know it just when I am trying to read your wonderful TR and feed my addiction he wants to have a full out conversation! Grrr.
Anyway...I'm all caught up now and waiting for more!

 

[DisneyDebNJ]

Awwww!!!! Kendall lost a tooth!!! Now you DO know your Mom was right, Tink is good friends with the Tooth Fairy!! Even has her on speed dial!! Sigh, I LOVE Ohana!!! The back scratcher!! Yummm!! Ron and I had sword fights (well back scratcher fights actually) at Tambu Lounge last Fall LOL MSEP!! You have me all excited to see this!! This time next Friday, I will be home!! Loving your report!!