Can it be done? Staying at WDW but not planning to do the parks!

[betsyrina]

I was skeptical about whether you'd be able to do it or not... I'm waiting to hear the rest, but I'm actually surprised that you didn't break down and go to the parks yet... Good job! It sounds like a fun trip. Sorry your DH was sick! That's a bummer.

[mickeymom5]

I was skeptical about whether you'd be able to do it or not... I'm waiting to hear the rest, but I'm actually surprised that you didn't break down and go to the parks yet... Good job! It sounds like a fun trip. Sorry your DH was sick! That's a bummer.

While we were at AKL without the kids, DH did ask if I wanted to go to a park and I said I would rather wait for when the kids were with us. Little does he know...one day he and I are going on a Food and Wine Festival adventure...

It was bummer he got sick. It was a trip filled with relaxation and stress. We were definitely glad to get back home. Hang on for Days 8-11...it ain't over until it's over!

[betsyrina]

Looking forward to reading days 8-11...

[scoobydooby]

Can't wait to hear the rest of the days. Sounds like you had a super time apart from the illness. That's rubbish. I spent two of the most poorly days of my life in a hotel room in Orlando in 1998. Your DH has my sympathies.

[mickeymom5]

Can't wait to hear the rest of the days. Sounds like you had a super time apart from the illness. That's rubbish. I spent two of the most poorly days of my life in a hotel room in Orlando in 1998. Your DH has my sympathies.

Thanks, Scooby! I will keep my fingers crossed that you and yours stay healthy during your holiday!

[mickeymom5]

Looking forward to reading days 8-11...

Thanks, Betsyrina! I am going to try to work on the rest tonight!

[tappenfeat]

DH has gotten sick going to WDW several times. Even on our Honeymoon!!! We went to WDW and he was sick the entire Honeymoon.

Last year he was sick in WDW and another time on top of that. He gets summer colds. Seeing someone wear a sweatshirt in Florida in August is so odd...and he tells me he's still freezing. He even stayed behind in the hotel while DD's and I went out...what a mess, right? Sorry your DH wasn't feeling well.

Can't wait to read more!

[scoobydooby]

DH has gotten sick going to WDW several times. Even on our Honeymoon!!! We went to WDW and he was sick the entire Honeymoon.

It was my honeymoon too when I got poorly in Orlando. Was a major bummer.

[tinkaparis]

Great Report MickeyMom! I always thought I could just do a resort trip and this has definitely proven to me that I could!

Keeping my fingers crossed that I don't get my usual summer cold this time...hate those!

[mickeymom5]

Great Report MickeyMom! I always thought I could just do a resort trip and this has definitely proven to me that I could!

Keeping my fingers crossed that I don't get my usual summer cold this time...hate those!

I really enjoyed our stay at AKL. I really didn't miss the parks. It was great just taking in the details. I don't think I could stay on-site with the kids and stay out of the parks though. I will keep my fingers crossed that you don't get sick on your trip. I can't wait to hear all about it!

[mickeymom5]

Day 8 (Part One): August 1st So Close Yet So Far!

Since I had it in my head that we might be going to WDW, I had a very restless night in anticipation. I had set the alarm for seven, but I was up at 6:45. I tried to wake up DH, but he would open one eye and fall back to sleep. This went on until around 7:30 am. I told DH if we were going to WDW, we better get it going or we would be sorry. I felt like the Apollo 13 crew. You know where Lovell says, "Men we just lost the moon." I knew that we had just lost "rope drop." DH got up and got in the shower, and I went downstairs to buy our tickets. There were two different people at the "desk." When the time-share guy found out I was going to buy WDW tickets, he immediately asked me if someone hadn't offered me a "deal" when I checked in. I said they did, but that my husband had been ill. He tried to get me to sign up for a presentation, but I told him I wasn't interested as it was our last day of vacation and we didn't want to take up 2 hours to listen to the presentation. He gave me a sheet with a number to call to schedule another stay at one of their resorts (including Bonnet Creek) for 3 nights for $149. He said we would also get a $100 gift card. I took the paper, but to be truthful, I just wanted my tickets so I could be on my way. Finally, the "other" guy, printed out my tickets. I was glad they were the plastic credit card kind and not the paper ones.

By the time I got back to the room, DH had the kids up and dressed and ready to go. We had some croissants left over from dinner and I had packed us some granola bars...just like that...breakfast! On the way to the car we talked to the two older kids on which park they wanted to go. They wanted Epcot, but when I explained Test Track was down, they weren't as interested. We decided on Magic Kingdom because DD2 was finally tall enough to do everything, but Space Mountain.

Next came our biggest snafu of the trip! We put Magic Kingdom into the GPS and proceeded to listen to its directions. Guess where it took us? Right to Magic Kingdom! We were taken to a parking lot right across from the Contemporary. We never got on the road where the tollbooths are. We could see the MK turnstiles! We were so close, but so far away! It took me a minute, but then I remembered if you drive a car to MK, you have to park at the TTC and then take a boat or the monorail to the turnstiles. I explained this to DH, and he drove over to the gate at the Contemporary. The CM there let us in to turn around, and we threw the GPS out the window...no, not really, but we did ignore its directions. We thought the signage should have been better. There were signs that said Magic Kingdom, but they failed to say "you really can't get there from here!" Strike One for staying off-site!

We finally made it through the "toll" gates where you pay your $14 to park. There were a lot of cars! I was trying to de-stress myself before we got out of the car, but I wasn't too happy when I saw how many people were waiting for a tram to take you to the TTC. There really was not a "form" to the line. I was worried it would turn into a free-for-all when the next tram came. I really wasn't feeling the "magic." We had to wait for the 2nd tram because the 1st one filled up. As we were waiting there, jockeying for position between the folded up strollers and super-dads trying to be first…I realized this was Strike Two against staying off-site. There is no pixie dust in stressing over getting on the tram to get to the TTC to get on something else to get to MK. I was missing how when you stay on-site, there is more order to getting on the bus. Once you are on the bus, there is air-conditioning. You usually have some interaction with the bus driver or at least the pre-recorded voice to build your anticipation about getting to the park. The tram pales in comparison for me.

We made it on the 2nd tram and we had a row all to ourselves because there are five of us. After arriving at the TTC, we decide to follow the hoards of people going on the monorail. We had to wait for the 2nd monorail and off we went. The monorail was very fast and efficient we were finally there!

It was almost 10:00 am. The park opened at 9:00 am. There were tons of people in security. We only had a small backpack for the five of us. It was easier just to stay all together through security. Note to self: one day I am going to make myself carry absolutely nothing buy my KTTW so I can walk right on in!

Once we went through security, I stopped myself and looked at the kids’ faces. DS and DD1 were smiling and making plans for getting fast passes for Space Mountain. DD2 was skipping. I could hear the park music and the train pulling up to the station. I took a deep breath, and took in all in. We had made it! I just knew we would have a great day!

[betsyrina]

I knew it! :-) I can't wait to hear more!

[mickeymom5]

Day 8 (Part One): August 1st So Close Yet So Far!

Note to self: one day I am going to make myself carry absolutely nothing "but" my KTTW so I can walk right on in!

I took a deep breath, and took "it" all in. We had made it! I just knew we would have a great day!

I am sorry I have to correct my mistakes!

[mickeymom5]

I knew it! :-) I can't wait to hear more!

[mickeymom5]

Day Eight: August 1st (Part Two)

We have a tradition of guessing which character we will see first when we enter a park. Whoever has the correct guess gets to pick what we ride first. Since we were only doing one day in the parks, I was hesitant this time about doing our guessing game for two reasons: 1) I was afraid to draw attention to the characters. I didn’t want DD2 to beg to stand in line to meet them. I was afraid we would lose valuable time. 2) What if someone picked something with a long wait time and we didn’t get the “biggies” in. So we decided on the monorail ride in whoever had the correct guess would just have braggin’ rights for the day. As we came out from the train station, we saw Pluto, Daisy, and Snow White. DD1 won the braggin’ rights. She said we would see Pluto. DD2 really wanted to get in line, but then she reasoned for herself that we hadn’t brought our autograph books so it wouldn’t make sense to stand in line. I liked her reasoning, and applauded her thought process. However, while we were making our way towards Main Street USA, I noticed a 10 minute wait time to meet Mickey. I was tempted, but I made myself just keep walking.

I am not going to bore you with what lines we waited in and for how long, but I will tell you we made use of fast passes. To give you an idea of how crowded the park was, we saw wait times of 60-80 minutes for Space Mountain, Big Thunder Mountain, Peter Pan, and Splash Mountain. These were the attractions we rode (not in the order we rode them): Buzz Lightyear, Space Mountain (twice), Laugh Floor, Tea Cups, Cinderella’s Carousel, Philharmagic, Peter Pan, It’s a Small World, Hall of Presidents, Haunted Mansion, Splash Mountain (twice), Big Thunder Mountain, Dumbo, WDW Railroad, Pirates, Aladdin’s Flying Carpets, Goofy’s Barnstormer, and Winnie-the-Pooh.

Fun Ride Moments: We took DD2 on Goofy’s Barnstormer to see if she was ready to ride the bigger roller coasters. At the end of Goofy’s coaster, she looked at me and asked it that was it. I laughed and said let’s head over to Big Thunder Mountain. She absolutely loved it. She squealed with delight the whole time we rode that runaway train! We showed her the big drop on Splash Mountain and she didn’t want anything to do with it. I think it was not so much the drop as it was she didn’t want to get splashed. So DS, DD1 and I rode Splash Mountain (twice) and had fun making crazy faces for the camera. This was DD2’s first time to hang out with the 99 happy haunts in the Haunted Mansion. She loved when the ghost appeared in our doom buggy and played with us. DH got put on the screen during the Laugh Floor show. He was the guy that was going to buy everyone a churro after the show. When the kids rode the carousel, the older ones were thrilled that they found Cinderella’s horse and they let the youngest one ride it. DD2 also loved controlling Dumbo and Aladdin’s Carpets and squealed the entire time she rode them. She wanted to keep it as high as it would go! Thanks, Walt!

Fun Food Moments: It is tradition for us to eat at Columbia Harbour House so that is where we ate lunch. It was tasty as usual, but DH felt they have significantly reduced their portion size on the fish. I got my usual tuna fish sandwich and it was great! We got to sit at our “usual” table and we had a bonus view of the Fantasyland expansion construction. I can’t wait for that to open! It looks like it is going to be
A-W-E-S-O-M-E! We also got to try a new CS for dinner. On our usual trips, we schedule a TS for dinner. No TS this time, so Pecos Bill’s it is. It was super yummy! What a great fixin’ bar! DH and DS ordered burgers and loaded them up with things off that fixin’ bar. I shared a Caesar salad with DD1 and I even added some stuff from the fixin’ bar. The theming is great in there. This might have to be a new tradition…

We ended the night with flying with Peter Pan, and we left during the light parade. DD1 and I wanted to stay for the fireworks, but DH was concerned we would never get out of there. We decided to ride a ferry boat back to the TTC so we could watch the Electrical Water Pageant. There was a boat waiting for us and we loaded up. We got to see a few of the fireworks as we pushed off. We got on a waiting tram. The CM giving us instructions on the tram ride was hilarious. She had a great dry wit. We stopped at the Hess gas station for snacks and water. We made it back to the resort a lot easier than we had made it to MK that morning. We were at MK for almost twelve hours so we just crashed when we got back to the room.

Thoughts for today: I am so glad we got to “sneak” into a park for the day! It was great to experience the rides with DD2. This was the first time she really got into riding them. We also didn’t have anybody in a stroller! That fact added to the magic! I love Pecos Bill’s restaurant! Great food! Great atmosphere! The sneak peaks we got of the Fantasyland expansion looks promising. I missed not getting to ride the People Mover. I love to hear the page for Mr. Tom Morrow. I loved that DH got picked to be on the screen during the Laugh Floor show. Too cute! I even rode the Tea Cups this time, and I didn’t get motion sickness!

[betsyrina]

Yay! I'm glad you went in...

[tappenfeat]

Ohh! I love your report! I'm glad you got to sneak in a day! And I agree, I was so happy the first year we were stroller-less and diaper bag-less! Makes it so much easier!

[mickeymom5]

Yay! I'm glad you went in...

[mickeymom5]

Ohh! I love your report! I'm glad you got to sneak in a day! And I agree, I was so happy the first year we were stroller-less and diaper bag-less! Makes it so much easier!

Thanks, tappenfeat! We had to walk a little slower because of DD2's short little legs, but wow, how freeing to be without a stroller! This one day, just got me all the more excited to plan a week-long trip! We have a Disney Dream cruise planned for next year. I think my DH might have me committed, if I don't stop with the WDW obsessing!

[tappenfeat]

LOL! My DH knows he just can't help my obsession. We just can't help ourselves loving Disney!

[betsyrina]

We can all be committed together... My DH doesn't get it either... He didn't come on our last trip, which actually worked out great... :-)

[tappenfeat]

One year the DD's and I went without DH and boy oh boy! We had a girly blast!!! Shhhh!

[mickeymom5]

Day Nine: Thursday August 2nd This trip ain't over until it is over!

This was supposed to be our day to go home, but that didn't happen! DS woke up at 3:00 am with a really bad earache. I had one ibuprofen so I gave him that. We searched the internet for advice on flying with an earache. Basically, all the sites said if your earache is severe, don't fly. We found a CVS minute clinic and we got there before it opened. We were first in line with no one behind us. She diagnosed him with an ear infection and prescribed him oral antibiotics and an antibiotic ear drop. She told me it was up to me whether he should fly or not. We sat in CVS parking lot and called Southwest and changed our flight to Saturday. We also had to call and extend our car rental. We also called SIL and asked if we could come back and crash at her house for two more nights. She was thrilled and went way out of her way to make us feel welcome...again! We said good-bye to the Orlando area and made it back to SIL's house with no problem.

Thoughts for the day: This vacation has had its ups and downs. I am really ready to be home. I felt bad for DS. His ear really hurt! Once again, it stinks to be sick on vacation!

[mickeymom5]

Day Ten: Friday August 3rd Doctor, Doctor Give Me the News!

DS really wasn't feeling any better on this day so we took him to a walk-in clinic that had a "real" doctor. He told us that DS didn't have a middle ear infection, just an outer ear infection. He told us if you can hold you nose and make your ears pop, you can fly. DS was able to do this so the doctor gave his okay for him to fly the next day. He also told DS to stop taking the oral antibiotics. The nurse flushed his ear out and the doctor placed an ear wick in his ear to hold the ear drops in place. We were so relieved to find out it wasn't a middle ear infection. For the rest of the day, we hit a strip mall and looked around at Target and Marshalls and hung out at SIL's house. We packed suitcases and weighed them. Ready to get home!

Day Eleven: Saturday August 4th Home Again, Home Again...

We set off for Orlando one last time. This would be our third time driving over there. The third time is a charm, right? We made it to the airport just fine. Everything went smoothly...returning the car, getting through security and eating lunch. The "actual" leaving part didn't go too smoothly. We took off 30 minutes late and once we arrived home we had to sit on the runway for 30 minutes until a gate opened up for us. Shew! We all were so ready to be home!

Thank you all for hanging in and reading my trip report! I will have some closing thoughts real soon (hopefully tomorrow)!

[tappenfeat]

So sorry to read about DS's ear problems. Poor little guy. Was he ok on the plane? I just went to CVS and picked up "earplanes" for my ears. They are earplugs because my ears hurt on the plane. I've read some great things about them on the reviews.

Anyway, great report!!! I really enjoyed reading it!