Our first real, big, family vacation! Day One-Travel and Arrival.
Cast:
Me-31
DH-31
DS Max-5
DS Lucas-4
Special appearances by:
MIL: Hilda
BIL: Victor-22
They would be coming in on Friday night, and leaving Monday morning. Hilda is a teacher so couldn't take more time off. Victor hadn't been to WDW since our wedding! They also had a BC CL room booked using the military discount (MIL has a dependent ID).
So, we had to fly from CA to FL. We waffled on the best way to accomplish this with one child who has a hard time sitting still for more than 5 minutes (Max) and another who is DEATHLY afraid of airplanes (Lucas). We considered ALL the options, and finally settled on Jet Blue out of Long Beach Airport. It was a combination of the t.v.'s and the 2x2 seating on the aircraft type flying the route (an Embraer A90?). I knew we would ALL be more comfortably not having to share rows with strangers. Our kids can be (to the outsider), annoying and very touchy feely with other people...it's part of their issues. I was all confident about this arrangement, UNTIL DH's aunt (who lives in Long Beach) told me that at that airport, you have to board/deboard the plane the old fashioned way...on the tarmac! Oh no... I knew this would send Lucas into a major panic attack, and worried about it for weeks! This kid would tremble, scream, and cry uncontrollably as well as yell "bye bye" whenever I even SPOKE about our vacation and the airplane trip. I was really worried. He was NOT into this vacation at all. He has developed some really major fears recently, and his speech problems make it very hard for him to both understand and communicate effectively. :(
The night before the flight, DH had a work thing (of course) and would not be home until close to 6am the morning of our flight. So, I had to handle all the packing and last minute stuff, which I did pretty well, I think. However, I got all of 4 hours of sleep that night. I was so nervous about the next day, and just kept praying that Lucas would be okay, and we would not get kicked off the plane. I had a rolling backpack packed FULL for each child with everything imaginable to keep them occupied during the 6 hours in the air.
Our flight was to depart at 10am, and we were on the road to the airport by 7:45 for the 20 min ride. I had heard that LGB was a small airport, but I was not expecting it to be THAT small. Wow, is all I can say. It was about the size of half a Target store. The WHOLE airport...
Lucas cried and hid in his stroller while we waited for our flight to board. I mentioned my concerns to the gate attendant who passed along word to the crew that there might be a "difficult" child on board, and to give me time to calm him before intervening. When it came time to board, I took a deep breath (my heart was pounding in my chest, and I felt like I was going to throw up, so I can only imagine how Lucas was feeling...), marched outside with the stroller, and....nothing! Lucas was totally fine. He got out of his stroller and marched up the ramp holding my hand. He had a minor meltdown when he couldn't sit in the first seat he saw (we were in row 20), but he got over it quickly, buckled in next to me, and was a DREAM the whole ride! We had a brief stopover in Autsin, where we ate lunch I had packed (Lucas didn't eat...I think he was so nervous about the flight that he just sat quietly and watched t.v. or colored, but lost his appetite completely)!
We landed at MCO around 6:30pm (3:30pm to us) and since we had used the DME bag tags, proceeded to the food court for some food for us all. Lucas, especially, needed to eat, and he LOVES Chick Fil A, so that was a savior for us (and something comforting for him after such a rough day). We shared some food, while the boys enjoyed being able to walk around and look at the fish in the tank for awhile. We took our time. We were in no hurry. We were on VACATION. Ahhhh....it felt really good. :cloud9:
We made our way down to the DME buses, and were on our way to the BC within about 15 min. The boys LOVED the bus ride! They were captivated by that movie and sat next to each other. It was very cute. :mickey::mickey: DH and I enjoyed the ride, for the first time all day NOT having to find a way to entertain them, and actually being able to sit next to each other.
We arrived at BC close to 8:30pm. We were taken up to the fifth floor by a very nice CM named Erik. When we got upstairs, our packet and keys were all ready to go. I had emailed IPO back and forth for a few special needs prior to the trip, and they had been SO helpful and friendly. One of our requests was for a room with a daybed for Max, because he will NOT sleep in a shared bed. Since we were only a party of 4, this could not be guaranteed, but the IPO CM assured me she would "have a hand" in the room assignment, so I felt pretty confident we'd get that daybed. After putting our credit card down on the KTTW card, we were directed to our room, #5687. We made our way there, and the boys were VERY excited to see the room (they love hotels). Since it was night, and I had never been to BC, I was quite disoriented at this point. We had been down two long hallways, and turned a corner, and I had NO idea where in the resort we were. :blush:.
We opened the door and I sighed with relief to see the daybed. The boys began exploring, and since turn down service had happened, the beds were covered with chocolates, which the boys made a beeline to. We let them indulge. We didn't care at that point. They were happy. We were happy. It was all good. I began to unpack the "bath and bedtime" stuff from the carryon. Our plan was to go get some dinner, and then come back and unpack (hoping our bags had arrived via DME) and get the boys in bed by 10:30 or so (7:30 their time...normal bedtime for them). We figured that they'd not adjust to the time change, and we sort of didn't want them to. Would mean later nights out and morning sleeping in. :thumbsup: So, DH and I agreed to keep them on CA time, if possible.
While I was organizing things, DH said "let's see what kind of view we have." We had booked a Standard View CL room, so I replied, "either a bunch of treetops, a rooftop, or a parking lot." It was dark by now, and the shades were pulled from the turn down service. DH pulled aside the curtains, opened the door to the patio, and replied "Or we have this AWESOME VIEW!!!" I dropped what I was holding and ran over there. When I stepped outside, all I could say was "Whoa..." Looking back at me was the Boardwalk in all it's nighttime glory straight ahead, Stormalong Bay all lit up and bustling with music playing and people swimming directly below, and the Yacht Club, Swan and Dolphin hotel to the right. It was spectacular! DH got the boys and as soon as they came out, they both yelled "swimming pool" and started jumping up and down, and asking if we could go swimming NOW!!! It was a great moment. They spent a good 15 min out there, just staring down at the "blue pool", as Lucas called it.
I reluctantly pulled them away from the balcony and insisted on going to find some dinner. Max requested macaroni and cheese (which is his "comfort" food, and which he eats approximately once per day at home). I knew they had that at Picabu at the Dolphin, as well as a pretty good selection of other things, so we headed over there. We all walked, which felt great after sitting all day. We sort of went the wrong way to the Dolphin, since it was sort of dark and we were sort of unsure where we were going. We all enjoyed our dinner at Picabu, although Max was in full on overstimulation mode by this point, and we had to hand feed him his dinner. He was LITERALLY bouncing in his seat, talking nonstop, and stimming with his hands pretty badly. I cut him a break, though. It had been a long day. I just sort of let him get it out. The restaurant was practically empty, so he wasn't disturbing anyone.
We made our way back to the room, did baths for the boys, and ourselves and unpacked the suitcases while the boys were in bed. Hilda and Victor arrived around 11pm. We said a quick hello (the boys were both still awake), and I handed her the tickets we had purchased for her on base. I told her and Victor to NOT wait around for us the next morning, as I anticipated a late start, so she said they'd head to Epcot in the morning after breakfast in the lounge. They are both early risers, and flew in from NC, so they were on their normal time.
The boys fell asleep pretty quickly (shockingly), and DH and I followed soon after. Max decided to wake up at 5:30 am (2:30 to us) and was chatting to himself for a good hour before he fell back asleep. I had a hard time falling asleep after that, so it was not a great night, sleep wise, for me (that made TWO in a row...ugh).
Next up, day two: Epcot. A playground. A terrifying ride in a Clamshell, and some more playgound. Plus, some pool time and date night for DH and I!
