IloveJack
06-11-2014, 04:16 PM
*We've taken each of our kids to the World for their first birthday. This trip was for our DS' first, but we celebrated 4 birthdays during the week; June 1-8.*
Cast of Characters
Me, Susan, 33, 9th trip
DH, David, turning 29, 7th trip
ODD, Sammie, 5, 5th trip
YDD, Lily, turning 3, 3rd trip
DS, Joey, turning 1, 2nd trip
My Mom, Connie, turning 63, 3rd trip
My Dad, Sam, 66, 3rd trip
Day 3: DHS
The alarm went off at 7, and this time everyone was a little more ready to get up and going. We actually left the campsite at 8am. However, it took quite a while for the bus to arrive at the Outpost, so it was still 9:05 by the time we got to the park. We got mom a scooter, and I picked up a times guide, since my parents are show watchers. We also bought a pack of pacifiers, as we had continually forgotten ours at the campsite, and we knew we wouldn't be returning for a nap today.
We'd purchased the Memory Maker, so I wanted some PP pics. We got a family shot, and then headed to Starring Rolls for breakfast. I really like the pastries here, but they just don't compare to the Main St Bakery cinnamon rolls. Oh well, maybe next trip.
After breakfast, we attempted to take my parents and the kids to see BatB, so that we could use our ToT FPs. I say attempted, because I read the times guide wrong, and was going by the Sunday schedule, not the Tuesday one. It wasn't a total loss though, as the DDs got a couple of magical PP pics with Olaf while we waited. Once we realized what I'd done, we headed over to Disney Junior, but were 5 minutes late, so they got in line for the Little Mermaid.
DH and I hurried over to ToT, since we were already into our FP hour. We hadn't been able to ride this one together in 5 years, so we really enjoyed our ride. We stopped to ask them to put our pic on the MM, but were told that they now have the tech to know that my band was on that ride, and our pic would be waiting for us. It wasn't what the website said, so we recorded the number just in case (but it turns out they were right).
We met back up with the group at Art of Animation, and went to see some characters. We saw Minnie Mouse, who DS walked to. He's only been walking for a couple of weeks, so it was rather cute, and the PP CM got some cute pictures of it. He's our first kid to walk before their first birthday, hence our first to walk to a character on their birthday trip.
We also saw Ralph and Vanelope. I really don't understand Ralph. He might as well be a statue. We've seen him 3 times now, and we get absolutely no interaction out of him. I know it's a very cumbersome, er... outfit, but still. We tried to get a pic of him and DS, but the PP CM was only interested in taking pics of the DDs. Sometimes PP is great, and sometimes it's not so great.
Lastly, we saw Sorcerer Mickey. He is iconic Disney to me, and we try to get a family shot with him every trip. DS walked to him as well, and again the PP CM was on his toes. Then we got a whole family pic, great for my title page of the scrapbook.
After all those, it was time for our TSM FPs. This was one the whole family would ride. It was a first for us to go through the handicap line. It's a much shorter line, but still just as long of a wait, as there's only 2 handicap accessible cars. My parents seemed to really like it, and Dad and DH enjoyed comparing scores and percentages. Dad had the higher percentage, but DH had the higher score (by far). I wish Buzz wouldn't have been broken down last night, as Dad would've really enjoyed it, too.
We were hungry for lunch. I mentioned the choices, and Pizza Planet won out, to DH's chagrin. He eats pizza a lot at his work, but he got over it quickly when he realized he could get a meatball sub.
The line control CM at the order stations was great fun to talk to, teasing DH the entire time we waited, yet when I asked her how long she'd been there and how long she planned to stay, she made no secret of the fact that she didn't plan to stay, not liking her job much. She could've fooled us.
I really like that they offer the "lunch box" option for kids here. Our kids are such little eaters, and this gives the option of snacking throughout the afternoon. They ate their yogurt and cereal bars, saving the apples and goldfish for later in the afternoon. We rarely buy them their own meals, even away from WDW, since they eat so little, but I don't mind this at all.
We decided to split up after that, so that DH and I could use our Star Tours FPs. Everyone else went to see Muppets. We gave ODD the option of riding with us, but she didn't want to. We got the Pod Racing scene, which I seem to get every other ride. On our way back, we stopped at the FP+ kiosk and got FPs for RnRC for later in the day.
We met up with the rest of our group by Phineas and Ferb. The DDs wanted to meet them, but they weren't out, so I took them to see Lightning and Mater while everyone else waited.
ODD really wanted to see Mike and Sulley, too, so we grabbed a PP pic on the streets of NY, and then headed that way. The mosters weren't out either, so I took the DDs to play at HISTK while the rest of the group waited there. DH went ahead and got in line, which I was glad for, because by the time we got back, the queue was completely full. DS was scared of Sulley, but only if he touched him. He was the only character that DS showed any fear of, so I was a little surprised. Sulley had fun making YDD disappear into his fur. It was cute.
It was there that Dad realized he'd lost his Magic Band. He was fearful that someone would try to use it, but I knew that there were no tickets left on it, and they wouldn't know our pin number, so I wasn't too worried. We did decide to go to guest services, though, to have it deactivated.
On the way, we stopped for ice cream, and then had to clean up the kids. Something about 90 degrees and popsicles doesn't mix. Hehe.
Then we also got PP pics on the way. One of the PP CMs had a frame that he was using as a prop, so we took a pic of the DDs holding the frame with "Oh my" expressions, while DH and I kissed inside the frame. Then we did the same thing with my parents in the frame. It made for quite a cute picture, and I think it's my favorite from the trip. We also got a couple of magic pics here: Stitch, balloons, and Olaf again.
We finally made it to guest services, where they deactivated the band, and told us how to find out if it'd been turned in to lost and found. I wasn't very concerned, as we wouldn't need it the rest of the trip, but I pocketed the card anyhow.
At this point, we'd done almost everything we wanted to, so I asked my parents what they wanted to ride. They said they really enjoyed the Backlot tour 12 years ago, so we headed there. It wasn't as boring as I remembered, and they enjoyed it, although ODD was quite leary of the water cannons and the canyon scene. It was nice to do something altogether, and due to Mom being in the scooter, we got to sit right up front in the tram.
When we got off, it was time for our RnRC FPs, so we, yet again, split up. Dad took ODD to HISTK, and Mom sat with the other two outside, while they napped. In less than an hour, DH and I rode RnRC and ToT. We were loving getting some "couple" time!
We headed back to meet up with everyone else, noticing that they were closing many of the back areas; the playground, Backlot Tour, etc. The park didn't close until 10, so I'm not sure why.
Our ADRs were at 7:55 and it was 7:15, so I asked my parents if they'd like to ride something else. They didn't know what else they could, so we went to the Great Movie Ride. The line was ridiculously long! It stopped us in the little room before the theater. I've never been stopped that far out, so I was quite happy when we were ushered right up front again due to the scooter. I overheard a guy in line say, "They get to skip this whole line just because they rented a scooter?!?" I thought, "Yeah, and you have no clue how much less we've gotten to do because of how much it's slowed us down, so it all balances out in the end."
It amazes me how much my parents love the slow, cheesy (IMHO) rides like these, but then again, I can't leave the MK without riding Pirates, so I guess I shouldn't talk. I did enjoy the break from walking, and the chance to feed DS without having to actually stop touring. It's not a bad ride, either, just nowhere near "thrill."
We were right on time (a first!) for our ADRs at 50's Prime Time, one of our favorites. However, it took a good 30-45 minutes for us to be seated. Our waiter, Tim, was boring, and pitiful. He wouldn't joke around, only threw out one "elbows off the table," and was scarce. When he handed me the bill and made a joke about the tip, I didn't bother. Of course, there's 18% already added, since we're a party of 7, but I really didn't think he deserved that. However, the food, as always, was wonderful, so I can't really complain. DH and I had the fried chicken, the DDs had the penne pasta, Mom had the sampler, and Dad had the meatloaf. Their only complaint was that Dad said there wasn't enough food.
(continued below)
Cast of Characters
Me, Susan, 33, 9th trip
DH, David, turning 29, 7th trip
ODD, Sammie, 5, 5th trip
YDD, Lily, turning 3, 3rd trip
DS, Joey, turning 1, 2nd trip
My Mom, Connie, turning 63, 3rd trip
My Dad, Sam, 66, 3rd trip
Day 3: DHS
The alarm went off at 7, and this time everyone was a little more ready to get up and going. We actually left the campsite at 8am. However, it took quite a while for the bus to arrive at the Outpost, so it was still 9:05 by the time we got to the park. We got mom a scooter, and I picked up a times guide, since my parents are show watchers. We also bought a pack of pacifiers, as we had continually forgotten ours at the campsite, and we knew we wouldn't be returning for a nap today.
We'd purchased the Memory Maker, so I wanted some PP pics. We got a family shot, and then headed to Starring Rolls for breakfast. I really like the pastries here, but they just don't compare to the Main St Bakery cinnamon rolls. Oh well, maybe next trip.
After breakfast, we attempted to take my parents and the kids to see BatB, so that we could use our ToT FPs. I say attempted, because I read the times guide wrong, and was going by the Sunday schedule, not the Tuesday one. It wasn't a total loss though, as the DDs got a couple of magical PP pics with Olaf while we waited. Once we realized what I'd done, we headed over to Disney Junior, but were 5 minutes late, so they got in line for the Little Mermaid.
DH and I hurried over to ToT, since we were already into our FP hour. We hadn't been able to ride this one together in 5 years, so we really enjoyed our ride. We stopped to ask them to put our pic on the MM, but were told that they now have the tech to know that my band was on that ride, and our pic would be waiting for us. It wasn't what the website said, so we recorded the number just in case (but it turns out they were right).
We met back up with the group at Art of Animation, and went to see some characters. We saw Minnie Mouse, who DS walked to. He's only been walking for a couple of weeks, so it was rather cute, and the PP CM got some cute pictures of it. He's our first kid to walk before their first birthday, hence our first to walk to a character on their birthday trip.
We also saw Ralph and Vanelope. I really don't understand Ralph. He might as well be a statue. We've seen him 3 times now, and we get absolutely no interaction out of him. I know it's a very cumbersome, er... outfit, but still. We tried to get a pic of him and DS, but the PP CM was only interested in taking pics of the DDs. Sometimes PP is great, and sometimes it's not so great.
Lastly, we saw Sorcerer Mickey. He is iconic Disney to me, and we try to get a family shot with him every trip. DS walked to him as well, and again the PP CM was on his toes. Then we got a whole family pic, great for my title page of the scrapbook.
After all those, it was time for our TSM FPs. This was one the whole family would ride. It was a first for us to go through the handicap line. It's a much shorter line, but still just as long of a wait, as there's only 2 handicap accessible cars. My parents seemed to really like it, and Dad and DH enjoyed comparing scores and percentages. Dad had the higher percentage, but DH had the higher score (by far). I wish Buzz wouldn't have been broken down last night, as Dad would've really enjoyed it, too.
We were hungry for lunch. I mentioned the choices, and Pizza Planet won out, to DH's chagrin. He eats pizza a lot at his work, but he got over it quickly when he realized he could get a meatball sub.
The line control CM at the order stations was great fun to talk to, teasing DH the entire time we waited, yet when I asked her how long she'd been there and how long she planned to stay, she made no secret of the fact that she didn't plan to stay, not liking her job much. She could've fooled us.
I really like that they offer the "lunch box" option for kids here. Our kids are such little eaters, and this gives the option of snacking throughout the afternoon. They ate their yogurt and cereal bars, saving the apples and goldfish for later in the afternoon. We rarely buy them their own meals, even away from WDW, since they eat so little, but I don't mind this at all.
We decided to split up after that, so that DH and I could use our Star Tours FPs. Everyone else went to see Muppets. We gave ODD the option of riding with us, but she didn't want to. We got the Pod Racing scene, which I seem to get every other ride. On our way back, we stopped at the FP+ kiosk and got FPs for RnRC for later in the day.
We met up with the rest of our group by Phineas and Ferb. The DDs wanted to meet them, but they weren't out, so I took them to see Lightning and Mater while everyone else waited.
ODD really wanted to see Mike and Sulley, too, so we grabbed a PP pic on the streets of NY, and then headed that way. The mosters weren't out either, so I took the DDs to play at HISTK while the rest of the group waited there. DH went ahead and got in line, which I was glad for, because by the time we got back, the queue was completely full. DS was scared of Sulley, but only if he touched him. He was the only character that DS showed any fear of, so I was a little surprised. Sulley had fun making YDD disappear into his fur. It was cute.
It was there that Dad realized he'd lost his Magic Band. He was fearful that someone would try to use it, but I knew that there were no tickets left on it, and they wouldn't know our pin number, so I wasn't too worried. We did decide to go to guest services, though, to have it deactivated.
On the way, we stopped for ice cream, and then had to clean up the kids. Something about 90 degrees and popsicles doesn't mix. Hehe.
Then we also got PP pics on the way. One of the PP CMs had a frame that he was using as a prop, so we took a pic of the DDs holding the frame with "Oh my" expressions, while DH and I kissed inside the frame. Then we did the same thing with my parents in the frame. It made for quite a cute picture, and I think it's my favorite from the trip. We also got a couple of magic pics here: Stitch, balloons, and Olaf again.
We finally made it to guest services, where they deactivated the band, and told us how to find out if it'd been turned in to lost and found. I wasn't very concerned, as we wouldn't need it the rest of the trip, but I pocketed the card anyhow.
At this point, we'd done almost everything we wanted to, so I asked my parents what they wanted to ride. They said they really enjoyed the Backlot tour 12 years ago, so we headed there. It wasn't as boring as I remembered, and they enjoyed it, although ODD was quite leary of the water cannons and the canyon scene. It was nice to do something altogether, and due to Mom being in the scooter, we got to sit right up front in the tram.
When we got off, it was time for our RnRC FPs, so we, yet again, split up. Dad took ODD to HISTK, and Mom sat with the other two outside, while they napped. In less than an hour, DH and I rode RnRC and ToT. We were loving getting some "couple" time!
We headed back to meet up with everyone else, noticing that they were closing many of the back areas; the playground, Backlot Tour, etc. The park didn't close until 10, so I'm not sure why.
Our ADRs were at 7:55 and it was 7:15, so I asked my parents if they'd like to ride something else. They didn't know what else they could, so we went to the Great Movie Ride. The line was ridiculously long! It stopped us in the little room before the theater. I've never been stopped that far out, so I was quite happy when we were ushered right up front again due to the scooter. I overheard a guy in line say, "They get to skip this whole line just because they rented a scooter?!?" I thought, "Yeah, and you have no clue how much less we've gotten to do because of how much it's slowed us down, so it all balances out in the end."
It amazes me how much my parents love the slow, cheesy (IMHO) rides like these, but then again, I can't leave the MK without riding Pirates, so I guess I shouldn't talk. I did enjoy the break from walking, and the chance to feed DS without having to actually stop touring. It's not a bad ride, either, just nowhere near "thrill."
We were right on time (a first!) for our ADRs at 50's Prime Time, one of our favorites. However, it took a good 30-45 minutes for us to be seated. Our waiter, Tim, was boring, and pitiful. He wouldn't joke around, only threw out one "elbows off the table," and was scarce. When he handed me the bill and made a joke about the tip, I didn't bother. Of course, there's 18% already added, since we're a party of 7, but I really didn't think he deserved that. However, the food, as always, was wonderful, so I can't really complain. DH and I had the fried chicken, the DDs had the penne pasta, Mom had the sampler, and Dad had the meatloaf. Their only complaint was that Dad said there wasn't enough food.
(continued below)