mouseketeer mom
02-09-2015, 12:03 PM
Good Morning Poly. DH left at 4 a.m. to go to work. This is why we are actually here. His job. We are just hitchhiking ghosts on his business trip!
Ok, see ya later DH! I didn't even hear him leave, so that was good. The kids and I get up, go to breakfast in the lounge. I'm still feeling slightly polluted from Ohanas and all of this overload of food that happens in Disney, so I stick to a Greek yogurt and call it a breakfast.
AK morning! It's overcast today, the sun peeking thru here and there. We take our time walking thru the paths, talking to the pretty birds, taking pictures. We then head over to the safari. It was lovely as always, got to see the big cats which I love. Afterwards we did the Planet watch walky thing. Khloe loves this, I was slightly resistant, but in I go for the walk. I also really dislike gorillas so I had no desire to do this. Boy was I the one who ended up loving it. We get to the Gorillas and there is a family of gorillas right next to the glass. The Mom was nursing a baby, and there was a kid gorilla and the Dad. I was immediately drawn to this gorilla family and the family dynamics. I loved it. The guide picked up on my enthusiasm and we chatted forever about the dynamics of this gorilla family. I asked so many questions, incredibly entertained by this gorilla family. The Mom was nursing and looked exhausted to say the least. The kid gorilla kept trying to get her attention., and the father gorilla blissfully rolled around on his back snoring and holding his feet. That's pretty much it in a nutshell. The guide at first told me she couldn't tell me the babies name, only the trainers could use the name, but then I guess she liked me a lot, because then she told me the babies name was Flynn and he was five months old. This was the Moms second child, the attention seeking kid gorilla was a girl. Ok, I will stop my gorilla gushing, but it really was a sight to see. My kids pulled me away because they had a fastpass for Expedition Everest to make. We made it by the skin of our teeth.
Back story: there is a wicked snow ice storm raging simultaneously back in NJ while we are here in WDW. It wouldn't be an issue, but my oldest stayed home alone, and this was a big deal for her to handle on her own. This was some backround stress for us, I was worried she would lose power. I was also worried she would drive in it. She didn't. A few offered to come help her shovel out, and she refused all help, deciding it would be fun to bundle up and handle the snow on her own. Long story short., bad idea. She was exhausted, mad, sad to be in NJ, and overwhelmed by this task. So while my two youngest rode Everest, I was on the phone with our plowing company in NJ, trying to figure out why they never showed up!
From there we were onto our Dinosaur fastpass. We usually never do this, but it was fun!!! This ride is exactly like Indiana Jones in Disneyland, except with Dinosaurs. When we walked out of our journey back in time, big slow raindrops were starting to fall. The kind that are building up for a huge downpour. We had to make it to Yak and Yeti for our reservation, we started to move fast, but the rain moved even faster. We ran to a kiosk and $27.00 later we were in ponchos. I didn't pack them this trip. We still ran to Yak and Yeti in our ponchos and could barely make it thru the door. Everyone and their mother decided they would try to get a table to wait out the storm. Thankfully, with our reservation, we were seated and dry within 5 minutes. We had a window seat so we could watch the storm unfold, and then pass. I still was feeling polluted from Ohana's the night before, so I attempted to keep it light by ordering grilled ginger salmon. Khloe had the Tikki Masala and Kai the Honey chicken. We shared green beans to start. Mine was delicious, but the Udon noodles were too much for me to eat, so Khloe took care of that. When lunch was done, so was the storm. How fantastic for us. We strolled thru the park, walking off lunch, taking pictures, and made our way out.
Once back at the Poly we all changed into swimsuits to relax outside. We went to the quieter beach by Luau Cove. We listened to the castle show across the lagoon from our lounge chairs, we had some quality girl talk time while Kai caught lizard after lizard and brought them to us. Basically, we had an afternoon of relaxing, laughing and chatting with the great views around us. We were really torn at this point. DH would not be back for dinner, he had a business dinner to attend. Khloe Kai and I had reservations at Biergarton, but we just weren't feeling a sit down buffet dinner. Should we eat the cancellation fees or just go? Sigh. We decided to cancel, we preferred a night outside in Epcot rather than a sit down. We ended up loving our choice.
It was going to be a chillier night, so we bundled up, headed up to the lounge for some apps, then headed to the TTC since DH had the car. Onto Epcot! Without having an ADR to make, we stopped at Starbucks for hot drinks, then proceeded on our walk! First stop, the Seas, we dolphin and manatee watched for a bit, then we headed over to World Showcase. The music from England beckoned, so we joined the fun by singing and dancing along until the set ended. Then onto France. We headed to the quick service place, and Khloe ordered us 2 bacon and cheese rolls, and one tartine provencale and one Croque Monsiuer. The bacon and cheese roll was actually called LARD and frommage, and yuck, that totally turned me off, but while in France....right?...so we shared our treats and were on our way.
We took our time, enjoying it all, and we decided to hit up Germany for dessert. Khloe and I split a caramel bar and Kai got a big cookie with caramel. Yummmmm....then we were off to China and this was incredibly funny. They have these juggling sticks in a container outside, they are for guests to try, and of course, they sell them as well. My kids have owned these juggling sticks for about 15 years. They are pros with them, they can toss, spin, use one, two, my point is, they have it down. The Chinese woman in the pavilion was demonstrating them, and not very well. Khloe approached her all timid and the woman asked her if she'd like to try them. Khloe sheepishly said sure, and took them with hesitation. All an act., she's got the sticks in the bag. Khloe whipped into a wild routine and the woman almost fell over. She actually screamed. She said "you never did this before?" and Khloe shyly said "no". It was hysterical. The woman said it took her 6 weeks to not drop them each time. Khloe kept up the act the whole time, and the woman told her she should join the acrobat show. Ha-ha! Pranks at Disney. We're still laughing about it.
On to Norway, Khloe wants Rice Cream. This is funny as she recently started dating a Norwegian back home, so to honor him, we head to Norway. After her second dessert, we ride the Grand fiesta ride in Mexico to kill some time before illuminations. It was chilly and we wanted to minimize our standing outside time. We got a great spot close to the pathway that leads to the ball so exiting will be easier. Illuminations gets me every time. My favorite fireworks in WDW. I even love the beginning when the storyteller blows out the torches. It chokes me up. We take a nice walk out, ahead of most of the crowd and hop the monorail back to the TTC and then to the Poly. We got seats both time which was nice cause at this point we are tired.
We arrive back and DH arrives 10 mins after us! We catch up on our day apart, and to bed we go. Night night Poly
Ok, see ya later DH! I didn't even hear him leave, so that was good. The kids and I get up, go to breakfast in the lounge. I'm still feeling slightly polluted from Ohanas and all of this overload of food that happens in Disney, so I stick to a Greek yogurt and call it a breakfast.
AK morning! It's overcast today, the sun peeking thru here and there. We take our time walking thru the paths, talking to the pretty birds, taking pictures. We then head over to the safari. It was lovely as always, got to see the big cats which I love. Afterwards we did the Planet watch walky thing. Khloe loves this, I was slightly resistant, but in I go for the walk. I also really dislike gorillas so I had no desire to do this. Boy was I the one who ended up loving it. We get to the Gorillas and there is a family of gorillas right next to the glass. The Mom was nursing a baby, and there was a kid gorilla and the Dad. I was immediately drawn to this gorilla family and the family dynamics. I loved it. The guide picked up on my enthusiasm and we chatted forever about the dynamics of this gorilla family. I asked so many questions, incredibly entertained by this gorilla family. The Mom was nursing and looked exhausted to say the least. The kid gorilla kept trying to get her attention., and the father gorilla blissfully rolled around on his back snoring and holding his feet. That's pretty much it in a nutshell. The guide at first told me she couldn't tell me the babies name, only the trainers could use the name, but then I guess she liked me a lot, because then she told me the babies name was Flynn and he was five months old. This was the Moms second child, the attention seeking kid gorilla was a girl. Ok, I will stop my gorilla gushing, but it really was a sight to see. My kids pulled me away because they had a fastpass for Expedition Everest to make. We made it by the skin of our teeth.
Back story: there is a wicked snow ice storm raging simultaneously back in NJ while we are here in WDW. It wouldn't be an issue, but my oldest stayed home alone, and this was a big deal for her to handle on her own. This was some backround stress for us, I was worried she would lose power. I was also worried she would drive in it. She didn't. A few offered to come help her shovel out, and she refused all help, deciding it would be fun to bundle up and handle the snow on her own. Long story short., bad idea. She was exhausted, mad, sad to be in NJ, and overwhelmed by this task. So while my two youngest rode Everest, I was on the phone with our plowing company in NJ, trying to figure out why they never showed up!
From there we were onto our Dinosaur fastpass. We usually never do this, but it was fun!!! This ride is exactly like Indiana Jones in Disneyland, except with Dinosaurs. When we walked out of our journey back in time, big slow raindrops were starting to fall. The kind that are building up for a huge downpour. We had to make it to Yak and Yeti for our reservation, we started to move fast, but the rain moved even faster. We ran to a kiosk and $27.00 later we were in ponchos. I didn't pack them this trip. We still ran to Yak and Yeti in our ponchos and could barely make it thru the door. Everyone and their mother decided they would try to get a table to wait out the storm. Thankfully, with our reservation, we were seated and dry within 5 minutes. We had a window seat so we could watch the storm unfold, and then pass. I still was feeling polluted from Ohana's the night before, so I attempted to keep it light by ordering grilled ginger salmon. Khloe had the Tikki Masala and Kai the Honey chicken. We shared green beans to start. Mine was delicious, but the Udon noodles were too much for me to eat, so Khloe took care of that. When lunch was done, so was the storm. How fantastic for us. We strolled thru the park, walking off lunch, taking pictures, and made our way out.
Once back at the Poly we all changed into swimsuits to relax outside. We went to the quieter beach by Luau Cove. We listened to the castle show across the lagoon from our lounge chairs, we had some quality girl talk time while Kai caught lizard after lizard and brought them to us. Basically, we had an afternoon of relaxing, laughing and chatting with the great views around us. We were really torn at this point. DH would not be back for dinner, he had a business dinner to attend. Khloe Kai and I had reservations at Biergarton, but we just weren't feeling a sit down buffet dinner. Should we eat the cancellation fees or just go? Sigh. We decided to cancel, we preferred a night outside in Epcot rather than a sit down. We ended up loving our choice.
It was going to be a chillier night, so we bundled up, headed up to the lounge for some apps, then headed to the TTC since DH had the car. Onto Epcot! Without having an ADR to make, we stopped at Starbucks for hot drinks, then proceeded on our walk! First stop, the Seas, we dolphin and manatee watched for a bit, then we headed over to World Showcase. The music from England beckoned, so we joined the fun by singing and dancing along until the set ended. Then onto France. We headed to the quick service place, and Khloe ordered us 2 bacon and cheese rolls, and one tartine provencale and one Croque Monsiuer. The bacon and cheese roll was actually called LARD and frommage, and yuck, that totally turned me off, but while in France....right?...so we shared our treats and were on our way.
We took our time, enjoying it all, and we decided to hit up Germany for dessert. Khloe and I split a caramel bar and Kai got a big cookie with caramel. Yummmmm....then we were off to China and this was incredibly funny. They have these juggling sticks in a container outside, they are for guests to try, and of course, they sell them as well. My kids have owned these juggling sticks for about 15 years. They are pros with them, they can toss, spin, use one, two, my point is, they have it down. The Chinese woman in the pavilion was demonstrating them, and not very well. Khloe approached her all timid and the woman asked her if she'd like to try them. Khloe sheepishly said sure, and took them with hesitation. All an act., she's got the sticks in the bag. Khloe whipped into a wild routine and the woman almost fell over. She actually screamed. She said "you never did this before?" and Khloe shyly said "no". It was hysterical. The woman said it took her 6 weeks to not drop them each time. Khloe kept up the act the whole time, and the woman told her she should join the acrobat show. Ha-ha! Pranks at Disney. We're still laughing about it.
On to Norway, Khloe wants Rice Cream. This is funny as she recently started dating a Norwegian back home, so to honor him, we head to Norway. After her second dessert, we ride the Grand fiesta ride in Mexico to kill some time before illuminations. It was chilly and we wanted to minimize our standing outside time. We got a great spot close to the pathway that leads to the ball so exiting will be easier. Illuminations gets me every time. My favorite fireworks in WDW. I even love the beginning when the storyteller blows out the torches. It chokes me up. We take a nice walk out, ahead of most of the crowd and hop the monorail back to the TTC and then to the Poly. We got seats both time which was nice cause at this point we are tired.
We arrive back and DH arrives 10 mins after us! We catch up on our day apart, and to bed we go. Night night Poly