Wake me up when September Ends: Oct. TR - Friends, Fun, and Disney at Forty!

It's us! Again! September marks the first month that we haven't visited WDW since getting our AP's in April, so we are itching to get back 'home!' Now, someone once posted a whole thread about how people who live far away from WDW manage to get there so often, so I feel I should clarify some things. Not all of those trips were 'once a month.' The reason we were there in June & July was our July 1-5 cruise on the Dream. So in one continuous visit we knocked out 2 months.

When we purchased our AP's we knew for sure that we would be taking 3 trips to WDW in the next 12 months. This October Trip is one of them. This is how my son chose to celebrate his birthday for the last 2 years, and honestly, it's one of those 'twist my arm' type things - we couldn't be more excited to take him to WDW!

I guess I should introduce the cast: Myself, my husband, daughter and son two weekends ago after cheering on our Auburn Tigers to victory:

Now, honestly I probably wouldn't be doing another trip report, but I need some advice from my WDWmagic friends, so I just decided to wrap this all up in one nice package. The thing is, it's Fall Break in our hometown, so TONS of people we know will be at WDW while we are there. We are soooooo excited to spend time with our friends at WDW. I know it's not for everyone, but for us, friends & family make WDW that much better! :sohappy:

More.....

 

[erstwo]

Once we arrived at MK, we realized it was a virtual ghost town. With the constant rain, even EMH couldn't persuade most folks to head out into the parks. But we were there! As we got to the hub some music started playing and lights started dancing on the Castle. I asked a CM if they were about to do the Magic, Memories, and You show but she said she thought they were just trying to do something nice for guests since it was raining. So sweet!

We were headed for Tomorrowland and Buzz, but as we passed MILF, my son said he wanted to see the show again before we left. Judging by the only 5 or so people entering the queue, I told him we may want to do it first thing, since it was likely they would close the show early if there were not enough people.

It was a great show and with only about 50 people in there, we were on camera a few times, which my son thought was great.

After MILF, it was on to Buzz. Which we got to ride 3 times in a row without stopping! I think it was on the 2nd ride that we got our first 'only ones on this ride' experience. There was NO ONE on the ride as far as we could see - even in that first big room where you take the curve around toward the alien Spaceship. Kind of spooky! Finally, I told my son we had only 1 hour left, if we wanted to do any other rides, we needed to exit.

So we ponchoed up and headed toward Fantasyland.


That night in Fantasyland was unlike anything I've ever experienced. We proceeded to ride: Teacups, Pooh, Snow White, and Dumbo and we were the ONLY ones on the ride!

Of course it was pouring down rain when we rode Dumbo, and we were the only crazy fools who wanted to ride. :lol: But my son asked and I figured - when else will we EVER be able to ride Dumbo all by ourselves??? I wasn't even sure it was open. I kept seeing it go up and down, but no one was on it. We went over and asked and sure enough, it was open! Word to the wise though - Dumbo doesn't drain well.

I even took out my phone and took a video despite the pouring rain - you only get to do something like that once!

Next we rode the Carousel and Peter Pan, but there were a few people on those with us. We skipped IASW, because I told my son if we got stuck on that one all by ourselves, I didn't think I could handle it. :lookaroun:lol:

By the time we finished Peter Pan, it was midnight and time to head back to the hotel. We didn't get to ride everything, but most of Fantasyland in 50 to 60 minutes is a new record for me!

Up next: Sunday - rain or shine - Epcot here we come!

 

[erstwo]

All day Saturday, I had texted with our friends who would be arriving that evening. I told them it was pouring down rain and that if it continued this way, I wouldn't recommend them joining us the next day because I wasn't sure their 1 year old would enjoy being in a poncho wrapped stroller all day. She's at that age/ the personality type of wanting to get down and walk, not sit in a stroller. But my friend insisted they were still good to go no matter the weather.

I think they just couldn't picture what the rain was like. Once they touched down in Orlando, got in their rental and experienced trying to get into their condo and go out for dinner, I got a few more texts. The wife (the Disney fan) was still good to go - I could tell she wanted to come even if she had to leave her family behind. :lol: Which I totally understand that feeling! :lookaroun But overall, the vibe I got from the 'family' was that they were going to see how things looked in the morning.

The only problem with that was - we were planning to meet at Epcot before park opening. After my son and I returned from our late night EMH at the MK, I whispered to my husband that I would get up and meet our friends. I wanted to let the kids sleep as long as possible the next morning and they could catch up with me and the friends later.

Sunday, October 9

I woke up to rain. The steady downpour was still coming. I got in the shower and got dressed - didn't even bother with my hair this day. Right as I was about to leave the room, I got a call from my friend. They weren't coming. Which was sort of a bummer, but at the same time I was relieved. I really didn't think they were going to have much fun in the rain and the purpose was to convert the husband to a Disney fan not to deter him from ever wanting to return!

I know that Disney can be so much fun in the rain - trust me, I had experienced it just the day before - but for some people it just makes them mad. The day before at the MK, I had seen on mom hovered under a Main Street awning, crying on her phone to someone back home saying, "He's all mad and we've spent all this money and it won't stop raining, and I don't know what to do." while her angrily husband leaned with the kids in a poncho covered stroller and his arms folded a few feet away. So I wanted no 'this rain is driving me crazy!' for my friends!

After her call, I went back to bed until the kiddos got up around 8:30. I had to convince my husband that it was worth it to go out in the rain. He kicked around the idea of heading to Sarasota for the day to check on my inlaws snowbird condo and go to the Aquarium or the museum or something, but I really wasn't up for a 4 hour driving field trip and DISNEY WORLD was waiting just a bus ride away!

I finally dragged them into the car and we were off to Animal Kingdom.

 

[erstwo]

It was still raining when we got to AK, but......... could it be???....... possibly lighter rain than the last 24 hours???........hmmmm....


We decided to head for FotLK just in case. We were seated front row

and my daughter got to teach us all how to be giraffes! Fun!

Love this show!

 

[erstwo]

After the show we decided we wanted some Yak and Yeti for lunch, so we took the long way to Asia. Along the way, we passed the usual M&G spot for Baloo and King Louie, which was empty due to the rain. Which made me sad.

But low and behold as we walked down a random path, I looked up and thought I saw Meeko peeking through the trees.

Sure enough, it was him! He was doing a meet and greet at a random pavilion tucked in the trees:

We were the only ones there!

Then it was on to Yak and Yeti for lunch - yummy as always. And (usually) the best part? Frozen lemonade as an option for dessert!

My husband has this funny saying - I have no idea where he picked it up - but it cracks me up. "If you can see enough blue sky to make a pair of cat's britches, you're going to be all right." Meaning - if you see enough blue sky to put pants on a cat (hysterical!!!) the weather will turn out okay. Well, as we made our way out from under the awning for Yak and Yeti, I saw blue sky for the first time.

Could it be? Was it going to stop raining?

 

[erstwo]

The entrance for Kali River Rapids was right next to our lunch spot. They boys decided they wanted to ride. None of us had ever been on the ride before. I warned them they might get wet. They weren't too concerned. I also told them that it was a short ride. They decided the 20 minute wait was worth it anyway.

My daughter and I decided to head for Camp Minnie Mickey. We were on a mission to meet Miss Bunny.

When we got there Miss Bunny was out with Thumper! Score! Only my daughter didn't want to meet Miss Bunny anymore. She wanted to meet Daisy now. :hammer:

Lucky for us, Daisy was out! And wonder of wonders, the rain had stopped almost completely and we could take off our ponchos!

It was a 2fer

The boys called and said they were waiting at the front of the park, so we headed that way. We had put off some Epcot things until Sunday thinking we would be there all day with our friends. It was time to go do those things!

As we walked to the car, I had 'that' feeling in the back of my head. 'That' feeling that all migraine/ headache people dread. The only thing left to do at this point was hydrate and hope it wouldn't be a bad one.

When we arrived at Epcot, the sun was shining! :sohappy: Woot, woot! Happy Dance! Our friends called to say they were at Shades of Green buying park tickets! :sohappy: Double woot woot!

Sadly, they decided about an hour later not to come to the parks because there was supposed to be another storm headed our way later.

But right then, all was well with the world. We breezed through bag check - no poncho removal, yay! - and the boys were on a 'mission' - Mission Space that is!

My daughter spotted - guess who? - Daisy, again!

 

[erstwo]

We made our way over toward Club Cool -

The fountain sprayed us as we walked by. Um. Hellooooo Fountain??? We JUST dried out!

I'll have what she's having:

We called the boys and they were headed into UofE. We ran to try to get into the same show as them, but it was a no go.

After sitting for a few minutes I asked my daughter if she wanted to visit the Seas and off we went!

After exiting our clamshell we saw a Disney first for us - a diver in the 'tube!'

It was really interesting and they were taking questions from the crowd. Super cool. This was during all the tank 'problems' they were having at the Seas. The whole area had been closed the day before, but I guess the water quality was good enough for the diver so it must not have been too bad? :shrug:

My daughter didn't want to do TTwC, so we headed to Innoventions to kill some time. We got a Kim Possible Mission. I had really hoped to do Sum of All Thrills, but it just wasn't happening. Probably wouldn't have been good for my headache anyway.

 

[erstwo]

Finally, we all met up and headed for the WS.

Food and Wine!!!

I must apologize. I have no food pictures from Food & Wine. With the beginnings of the headache, I just didn't care at this point.

I do know I started with the Cheddar Cheese soup in Canada. I've read so much about it, I wanted to try for myself. It was great!

I think we also stopped in France for my husband to get something. Then it was on to the goal of this WS trip - seeing Belle:

Best capture ever right? I think I'll submit it to a photo contest, it's so great. LOL

After France and at least one more food stop our goal was to make it to America and another Disney first: The American Adventure!

 

[erstwo]

After the show we headed for more food. We wound up in Germany with 2 CS and 1 TS credit to use.

I have to be honest, I'm not a big fan of WDW's German food, especially the counter service. I love the Biergarten and would eat there again, but I think I'll skip the counter service from here on out.

I wanted something from the caramel shop, but was getting full by this point and no one wanted to share, so I skipped it. But next time I am taking the caramel shop by storm!

 

[erstwo]

And now I hate to end this TR with a less than stellar ending, but I must confess the pictures took I turn for the worse (I know, how is that possible? :lol at this point and my memory is not so great. My head was killing me and everyone was ........how do I put this politely....... they were missing the fact that we hadn't gone back to the hotel to nap...... yes. That's it.

I do know we wound up in China where my husband and son used up the last of our dining credits, while my daughter and I had sweet pretzels in Norway. I also remember that the Japanese F&W stand took first prize in our book for entrees. Loved everything!

Now, as we rolled ourselves out of the World Showcase, we decided to use the fastpasses I had acquired for Soarin (meant to mention that earlier! Did that on our way to the Seas.) It was another great ride made even better by the fact that we got to ride with 4 ladies who had never been on before - so cool to hear their opinions before and after the ride!

My husband had promised my son that he would take him to the MK that night for EMH. But now he was all worn out and thinking about not going. Despite my headache, I told my son that I would take him to the MK if he really wanted to go. Which prompted my husband to say he would still go - so we were off to the MK!

It was much more crowded this night and I was so tired and my head was hurting so much, I literally remember willing myself to put one foot in front of the other. Of course the kids were having no such troubles! :lol: The boys were off riding roller coasters and I took little miss to see the mice:

We were the only people in line. Is it just me or does it seem like the line is 100000% shorter since they moved it out of Toontown?

 

[erstwo]

I took my daughter by the Bakery for some Crasins and we walked slowly toward Fantasyland. We rode Peter Pan which had a moderate wait (25 minutes? :shrug and then she wanted to ride the Carousel. As soon as the Carousel started moving, I knew it had been a terrible mistake. I was standing beside my daughter's horse like always and I literally had to will myself to not throw up, praying the whole time that the ride would be short!

That was it for me. Willing yourself to walk is one thing, being near :hurl: stage is something else entirely. I called my husband and we met up at the front of the park.

One final departing photo:

Back at the resort, I did the bare minimum to get ready for departure day and then collapsed into bed. Sleep at WDW had never been so welcome.

And that folks is the end of this TR! Hope you managed to stay dry and hope you enjoyed! :wave:

 

[PolynesianPrincess]

I completely feel your pain on the headache thing. I get chronic migraines and at one point I was getting 2-3 a week. Now I'm on a daily med for it but I still get maybe 1-2 a month. NOT FUN AT ALL!!! I'm sorry you got one while at Disney

 

[fractal]

I really enjoyed your report and pictures! Sorry to hear about your last day headache. I was feeling "ill" for a day on our last trip and it takes some of the magic away.

The picture of your daughter pulling the sword is great!

 

[Disneyfalcon]

I'm sorry about your headache too!! No Fun!

I'm also sorry about the rain, but how cool that everything was THAT empty!!

I loved reading, thanks for sharing!

 

[erstwo]

I completely feel your pain on the headache thing. I get chronic migraines and at one point I was getting 2-3 a week. Now I'm on a daily med for it but I still get maybe 1-2 a month. NOT FUN AT ALL!!! I'm sorry you got one while at Disney

Wow - that is a LOT! I am so sorry. Mine are so infrequent that I haven't even gone in to see if they are migraines. I felt/ feel very lucky.

It really wasn't all that bad until the very end of the day. That night, I missed the little things like being able to stop and enjoy the view of Main Street lit up at night, and laughing with my kids about something silly they said, or just enjoying sounds and smells of the park. But I was so glad I could be there with my kids and my husband. It wasn't until I was standing there on that carousel closing my eyes and telling myself 'you can survive this without hurling' that I wasn't glad to be there anymore. BUT I still took a moment to say 'goodbye' to the MK before we exited next to the train station. Some things you just have to do right?

I really enjoyed your report and pictures! Sorry to hear about your last day headache. I was feeling "ill" for a day on our last trip and it takes some of the magic away.

The picture of your daughter pulling the sword is great!

Thank you!

And thank you! She's determined to get that thing out of there - something about being the rightful ruler of England? :lol: Guess she might really be a princess after all. Ha!

I'm sorry about your headache too!! No Fun!

I'm also sorry about the rain, but how cool that everything was THAT empty!!

I loved reading, thanks for sharing!

Thanks!

Yes - the rain giveth and the rain taketh away. :lol: But the BEST news about the rain is that once you have survived it, you don't really remember the cold or the wet, you just remember how cool it was to ride all those rides by yourself or with no wait. Great memories for sure!
Thanks again for reading!

 

[HollyBelle]

Erin!!! I somehow totally missed your report when you first started posting. As I was reading it I should've been taking notes, because there was so much I wanted to say, and now, all I can come up with is... fabulous! It was made of win with all the hairbows, princess dresses, fun in the rain, plush goodness, Ohana love, and a Fantasyland all to yourselves. Loved it!

 

[tink65]

Just spotted your TR today and read all the way through! Great pics! Sorry about the last day headache! I hope that your friends have received good news regarding their son. Please know that I will be praying for them!

 

[lbrad]

Just found & read your TR!!! AWESOME!!!

Your children are adorable!!!

How neat to have Fantasyland to yourselves. A memorable birthday you & your son will never forget

Praying for your friend & her family... Children are so precious ... hope they get good news.

 

[PolynesianPrincess]

Wow - that is a LOT! I am so sorry. Mine are so infrequent that I haven't even gone in to see if they are migraines. I felt/ feel very lucky.

It really wasn't all that bad until the very end of the day. That night, I missed the little things like being able to stop and enjoy the view of Main Street lit up at night, and laughing with my kids about something silly they said, or just enjoying sounds and smells of the park. But I was so glad I could be there with my kids and my husband. It wasn't until I was standing there on that carousel closing my eyes and telling myself 'you can survive this without hurling' that I wasn't glad to be there anymore. BUT I still took a moment to say 'goodbye' to the MK before we exited next to the train station. Some things you just have to do right?

Absolutely. Some things (like Disney) you just gotta suck it up and keep going. I'd so hate to have to throw away precious park time because of a headache. On our last trip in the spring, lucikly, I didn't get a single migraine. I also took 2 ibruprofen every AM to help prevent it. Hopefully they will decide to stay away next week when I'm there *crosses fingers*

 

[erstwo]

Erin!!! I somehow totally missed your report when you first started posting. As I was reading it I should've been taking notes, because there was so much I wanted to say, and now, all I can come up with is... fabulous! It was made of win with all the hairbows, princess dresses, fun in the rain, plush goodness, Ohana love, and a Fantasyland all to yourselves. Loved it!

Thanks girl! Did you see the rained out Poly wedding on Saturday morning? I felt so bad for them, even though - as I said - I bet they didn't really care as long as they got married. But I just figured it added a bit of pressure to an already rushed morning (plus an early one - their wedding was at 9 am!)

Did you post the Pixar Weekend report yet? I may have missed it?

Just spotted your TR today and read all the way through! Great pics! Sorry about the last day headache! I hope that your friends have received good news regarding their son. Please know that I will be praying for them!

Thank you so much! The good news about that headache is that it is just a distant memory now and I will pass along the info to my friend Sarah - she says she will take all the prayers she can get for Carter. Carter just had his port (for chemo) put in this week and now we are really praying the St. Jude's will call them back ASAP. Thanks again!

Just found & read your TR!!! AWESOME!!!

Your children are adorable!!!

How neat to have Fantasyland to yourselves. A memorable birthday you & your son will never forget



Praying for your friend & her family... Children are so precious ... hope they get good news.

Thank you so much! It really was magic. Thank you so much for reading!

Absolutely. Some things (like Disney) you just gotta suck it up and keep going. I'd so hate to have to throw away precious park time because of a headache. On our last trip in the spring, lucikly, I didn't get a single migraine. I also took 2 ibruprofen every AM to help prevent it. Hopefully they will decide to stay away next week when I'm there *crosses fingers*

That's a great tip about the medicine. I hope that your next trip is headache free too!!! :wave:

 

[HollyBelle]

Thanks girl! Did you see the rained out Poly wedding on Saturday morning? I felt so bad for them, even though - as I said - I bet they didn't really care as long as they got married. But I just figured it added a bit of pressure to an already rushed morning (plus an early one - their wedding was at 9 am!)

Did you post the Pixar Weekend report yet? I may have missed it?

Ack! I did want to comment on that. While it would've sucked to have our Sunset Pointe wedding get rained out... I showed the pictures to Brett and excitedly said, "how much cooler is the Poly lobby as a rain back up than the oversized and barren ballrooms at the Contemporary?" So, even though it would've been heartbreaking to have Sunset Pointe taken away due to rain, I would've been ecstatic to know that the Polynesian was still in the cards and not an ugly ballroom.

I just started it! It's here: To Infinity and Beyond!