Our first real, big, family vacation! Day Three

[BrerGnat]

Day 3, Sunday March 28, 2010
"This is NOT Disneyland!"

Cast:
Me
DH
DS Max-5
DS Lucas-4

MIL: Hilda
BIL: Victor

Today, DH and I awoke to the sounds of a silly, nonsensical conversation between Max and Lucas. I grabbed my cell phone to check the time and was shocked to see it said 9:30! I had SLEPT! Woo hooo!!!! I felt so good.

It was overcast, so I checked the forecast, which called for rain LATER this afternoon/evening. It was supposed to arrive around 7pm. I knew we'd come back well before then, so I left the rain jackets and umbrellas in the room. (insert ominous music here)

We had two ADRs today, but I can't tell you what they were, because we didn't make either of them. In fact, I had made 14 ADRs for the week. We made exactly ONE of them, last night at Bluezoo. I had made the ressies for our "normal" at home mealtimes, but since the boys did not adjust, we were "off" by three hours, and eating lunch at 3-4 and dinner at 8-9pm. So, we ended up cancelling every single ADR for the week and decided to just wing it. It actually worked out well for us!

We all got dressed quickly and headed to the lounge for breakfast. We met up with Hilda and Victor in there. They had slept in too. We ate and discussed what to do. Hilda and Victor wanted to go to Magic Kingdom, so we agreed, for their sake. We had planned to leave that for later in the week, but they were leaving early the next morning, so we let them decide.

We headed out to the bus stop and I was surprised to see a CM there, entertaining the kids in line with hula hoops and a beanbag toss game. Wow! No shortage of staff this week, we'd come to notice. On that note, I have to say the resort looked AMAZING. There were people cleaning, polishing, emptying trashcans, wiping down surfaces, etc. all week long! There were several maintenance carts going around the lake path and picking up any litter, sweeping the sand back onto the beach, grooming the beaches, etc. The place was in tip top shape, and there were an abundance of CM's around at all times. Our mousekeeper was one of the best I've ever had. Our room was serviced promptly upon us leaving it (one time, we came back to our room 45 min after leaving it, and it had been done already, and done WELL!). Kudos to ALL the staff at the Beach Club. They all really seemed genuinely glad to be there, and doing their jobs exceptionally well.

Anyway, back on track. The MK bus pulled up immediately, and although we had to stand, it was a quick ride to the MK. The bus, for those keeping track, showed up EMPTY and did not make any other stops on the way to the MK. It was not a "shared" bus, at least that day. I was a bit worried about the boys standing, but they actually liked it! They made a game out of trying to keep their balance.

We arrived to the MK, and our FIRST stop (after yesterday's issues) was Guest Relations for a GAC. There was no line at GR, and a very kind CM wrote us up a GAC for the week, for our entire party of six (although we'd only be four by the following day). GAC in hand, we headed down Main Street USA. Up until this point, Max had not really been paying attention, and was watching his feet as he walked. DH wanted to do a Photopass with us all on Main St with the castle in the background. When we stopped, and Max saw the castle, he froze. He started looking around in a panic, and said "I want to ride the teacups first". This is what our first stop always is at Disneyland. I think, when we first entered and he saw the train station, he must have just assumed we were at Disneyland! That castle was NOT Sleeping Beauty's though. He sort of panicked all the way to the teacups. In WDW, they are located in a different spot than at DL, and he kept INSISTING that we had to go through the castle to get to them. I patiently explained that they were "this way at this park", while pointing towards the path next to Tomorrowland. Max flew into a rage, screaming, arms flapping, the whole deal. He took three giant steps back from us and cried "We NEED to go to the castle." Only problem was, they were in the middle of the Cinderella stage show...there would be NO going "through" the castle right then. I knelt down, explained that we could not go through the castle right now, and that I PROMISED him that this path we were on would lead us straight to the teacups. I took his hand and continued to reassure him, showing him the teacups as they came into view. Crisis averted, for now!

The teacups had a 45 min wait! Yikes! I had been all set to have the boys wait in line, and DH gently reminded me to "show the card to the CM and find out where we need to go." Oh yeah...duh! So, I did, and she directed us to wait at the exit. I told the boys we would have to wait a few minutes and then we would be able to get on. However, the CM let us ride on the next cycle! Wow. Nice. I was not trying to bypass waiting at ALL, and simply expected to have to wait at least a couple ride cycles. All week, though, we were immediately let on the rides, which was really a huge help with our boys.

After teacups, Lucas caught a glimpse of the Tomorrowland Speedway, which had a MONSTROUS line. I told DH he should take Lucas on, because he loves the racecars at DL, and has successfully waited with me in that line for 50 min once. DH was skeptical, but he and Victor took Lucas over there. Max was approaching meltdown mode again (he was asking to go home, poor kid). I knew there was a playground in Toontown, so I asked him if he wanted to go there. He said "I want to ride the slow train." Okay, easy enough! So, after a quick bathroom break and water purchase in Toontown, Max, Hilda, and I began walking towards the train station. This was the location of meltdown #2 for Max. He saw Goofy's Barnstormer (he HATES coasters, and calls them "fast trains") and flipped out! I am going to assume he thought I was taking him to ride THAT, and he yanked his hand away from mine, turned around and yelled "We need to go back to the castle to get on the slow train!" I told him there was a train station here for the "slow train." He clearly did not believe me, since he couldn't see it yet. He plopped down on the curb, put his hands over his head, and started crying. This was so not like him; he is usually such a happy kid, and he had been SO excited about this vacation, and it was just so hard on him so far. When I asked him why he was crying, he said "This park is NOT the same as Disneyland." So, I told him he was right, it wasn't the same, but that *I* had been here lots of times, and I knew where EVERYTHING was. I promised him, again, that I would not make him ride anything fast or big or scary and that I was taking him to ride the SLOW train now. He said to me "only small rides", so I agreed. He was still very upset, though, so I picked him up and carried him to the train station. Once he saw it, he was better. We had a nice, sort of somber, ride around the park.

We rode once around and when we got off, Max was back to normal, and had a great time at the playground and Donald's boat. He is a huge fan of squirting water, so he was totally into the boat, especially. At this point, DH, Lucas and Victor came back. Lucas had, according to DH, waited very nicely, and really enjoyed driving his blue racecar! We decided to do the TTA next (another "slow train", I assured Max). Everyone enjoyed this. Then, the boys did Toy Story pressed pennies, and we decided it was a good time for lunch. The skies were darkening now. I knew that Max NEEDED some macaroni and cheese, and that we would find it at Columbia Harbor House.

[BrerGnat]

Once we arrived at the restaurant, we snagged a great large table with bench seats right across from the ordering counters. Score! Victor and I got in line to get food for everyone. We enjoyed a very leisurely lunch here. The food was great, and the atmosphere was nice and relaxing. It was, surprisingly, empty. Or, maybe not. It WAS close to 2:30 when we arrived...

So, around 3:30, we headed back into Fantasyland with one minor hitch...it was now POURING! Not raining, mind you...POURING sheets of water. We took cover and discussed what to do. Ironically, I had spotted signs advertising ponchos for sale inside CHH, at $7.50 a pop...and Victor and I joked about it. Joke was on us, though. After discussing it for about 5 seconds, Hilda and I were back inside, in line to buy ponchos for all of us. $45 later, we were outfitted for monsoon season. I was kicking myself all the way to the buses for not bringing the rain gear. DOH! Needless to say, we decided that would be a great time to leave and go back to the hotel. One great thing about the rain was that it turned Max's day COMPLETELY around. This kid LOVES rain, and especially loves the feeling of rain on his head. He was in heaven! He's never been outside in rain like this before!

After getting back to the hotel (where lifeguards were posted up at the doors, handing towels to guests coming in, due to SAB being closed), we made our way soggily back to the room. DH and Victor wanted to go to DHS, and try to ride the big stuff, and hoping the rain had driven out the crowds. They planned to stay there for dinner and then head over to Jellyrolls tonight! After changing into more weather appropriate clothing and shoes, they were off, ponchos in hand! The boys and Hilda and I hung out in the room. I hooked up the internet for Max so he could play some online games, and Lucas watched Cars. I went down to the gym, while Hilda stayed with the boys. The four of us then had dinner in the lounge. The boys made PB&J sandwiches out of some rolls and cups of PB&J there. After eating, DH called me. They were on the way back to the resort. DH wasn't feeling well. Uh oh. This is odd, I thought. DH is NEVER sick, and when he is, he doesn't complain about it.

When DH got back to the room, he looked like death. It had stopped raining by now, so Victor, Hilda, Lucas and I went over to Epcot for the evening. I left Max in the room with DH. Max was very happy on the computer, and did not want to go back to Epcot, so I figured he'd be fine in the room. At Epcot, Hilda and Victor rode Test Track together (Lucas was into it at first, but chickened out in line, so I took him to get a snack). We met back up and decided to ride Spaceship Earth. Lucas was totally into it! He loved it! When we were done there, Illuminations had started, so I told Victor and Hilda to go ahead and watch it by the lagoon, while I went to get the stroller with Lucas. Lucas did NOT like the fireworks. He hid in his stroller under the canopy and cried "all done!" as I RAN back to the International Gateway. The night was super humid, and I did not appreciate having to run like that. I felt like I needed another shower. Yuk!

Back in the room, DH was miserable in bed. He was burning up and I took his temperature (I had brought the thermometer in case the boys got sick) and he had a fever of 102.4! Holy smokes! I ran over to the lounge and grabbed a few Ginger Ales and a cup full of cranberry juice. I gave DH some tylenol and forced him to drink some water and juice. He had spent most of the night in the bathroom so far, poor guy! He spent a horrible night riddled with stomach pains and body aches. I knew whatever he had wasn't food related, since we had shared all our meals up to that point. No one else was sick. I chalked it up to a virus, and hoped for the best. I got the boys into bed by 10:30pm, and they slept well that night. DH, not so much.

[SBETigg]

Oh goodness, poor DH! I hope he recovered fast. Ah, the confusion of the MK vs your DL. The GAC was a good thing, though. Glad you went for it.

[buzznwoodysmom]

Oh boy, I hope your DH felt better in the morning. It seemed like a pretty good day up until that point. I hope the rest of your reports are illness free.

[retiredfigment]

what is a GAC?

[faline]

what is a GAC?

Guest Assistance card. It is issued to folks who have a medical reason that prevents them from waiting in lines at Disney World.

I can certainly understand Max's confusion about the Magic Kingdom - it's so the same and so very different. Clearly the differences raised his anxiety. Poor kid!

Sorry about your husband's illness! It's good you had slept well the night before - the challenges of this day required you were well rested!

[Disney4us2]

Hope your DH got better quickly. It is no fun being sick in general, let alone on vacation.

My DD did the same thing on her first trip (she was 5 at the time) to WDW. She has a few processing disorders and couldn't understand that MK was not Disneyland. She kept asking for the ride with the red eyes (Matterhorn). It took a few visits on two trips for it to sink in that this was the MK at WDW.

[DizNee143]

for the most part sounds like you all had a pretty good day!!
sorry your hubby isnt feeling well..i hope he was better in no time to enjoy the rest of the vacation!

[KylesMom]

Thank goodness you were able to get a good nights' sleep! You sure had some ups and downs today - it certainly must be strange for the boys to be in a familiar, yet so different environment.

I had to laugh - I can't possibly tell you how many times we've left our rain gear in the hotel, only to get caught in the torrential downpours Florida is so well-known for. Yep, we also end up biting the bullet and purchase three rain ponchos every year. What a wonderful way to turn Max's day around - singin' in the rain!

Ugh, I hope DH just has a 24-hour bug - and that no one else in the family succumbs!

Another great report - I'm looking forward to the next one!

[elorac]

Thanks for the report. Sorry to hear DH was so sick! I had a similar experience in Vegas once...not fun

[pdrlkr]

Thanks for the Report!

[DisneyorBust]

Glad to read that you had a great nights sleep for a change. With what the day held in store you were going to need it. I was happy to read about your experience with the GAC, it seems to be a real life saver at times, glad that you and your boys were able to utilize it.
Here's hoping that your husband returned to full health by morning and that no one else gets sick!

[offwego]

How awful to get sick like that! The rain storm is not fun when it comes down like that is it?

good that you did get some sleep in, sorry that the differences are causing some issues but it seems your all making the best of it regardless.

[princessgirls]

Natalie,

You know your boys well and react AWESOME to all the curve balls thrown your way.

Sorry about your husband getting sick. I know all too well about that while in Disney. NOT FUN!!

Your boys seemed to have a GREAT day!
Thanks for sharing.
Julie

[vizsla]

Thanks for the report.