Anthony's 1st trip and can I survive a new teenage

[tazdev3225]

DAY 6 and Beth's last full day

This was one day I had been looking forward to since I started planning the trip. It did not start well. Jim decided he was skipping the parks and staying at the room. We had 8:15 breakfast ADR's. I was really upset at this point. Beth came in and took her father's side, something she has done since she was little. I understood the worry about his toe but I was also tired of hearing about it. I threw the ECV key at him and told him to ride but we were leaving. I had planned this ADR based on other TR's and really wanted to get going. I was also upset that when I originally planned the day the hours were normal operating hours. Disney changed to AM EMH so I was worried about crowds.

Finally we were at the bus stop and thankfully for once the bus came quickly and there were no issues with the ECV. We were headed off to


Because of the turmoil before we left we were 30 minutes late but some pixie dust was at work because we were seated within minutes. Anthony loved it here and the food was good but that juice was really good. It lived up to all of the recommendations. I'm just going to put up pics












I have pics of the food but it was standard bacon, eggs, sausage and potatoes. i think I was the most adventurous and tried a few of the other items.

Beth was in a major hurry for some reason so I never got a chance to see the pic with Donald when we first arrived. She was not waiting. We headed over to Kilimanjaro Safaris. I think the wait time was posted at 10 minutes. We walked right on. There were 2 other families on the safari with us. Jim was wearing a Phillies shirt and the people behind us were Yankee fans. There was some good-natured heckling between them. The other family was from NJ but somewhere in the middle so they remained neutral. Our driver was Austin from Missouri. He was a really great CM, very talkative. Again just some pics that I will try and put in order but I used 2 cameras
Baby elephant nursing


The lioness was actually awake















At this point Jim declared that he was done and was leaving. It was a little drizzly and he didn't want his foot wet. Beth wanted to leave too, I refused so they stayed. We headed over to Panganini Exploration Trail. I basically saw the gorillas. I was really surprised at how big the baby had gotten






This guy was amazing to watch. He carves walking sticks


Headed over to Rafiki's Planet Watch


Hidden Mickeys in the owls eyes


The baby elephant was born on Jay's birthday


The boys had a lot of fun here as did Beth and Bill. I was in a miserable mood and just parked somewhere and waited. It was starting to rain a little heavier so Beth wanted to leave but she wanted to see the tigers first so we headed over to the Maharajah Jungle Trek. Along the way we saw




Jay waiting




We made it to the trek and the tigers were hiding. At this point I was tired, wet and upset. Beth, Bill, Jay and Anthony left and I stayed. I needed some time to myself and I needed my mommy. I know it seems funny but as much as my mom and I disagree she is the one person that can get me to step back and think. I found a quiet spot and called my mom. We talked for a good 20 minutes and she helped me put some things in perspective. She also invited me down next year with her when she joins my brothers family at Universal and Harry Potter.

To be continued in the next post.

[tazdev3225]

After I talked with my mom I felt a little better. I had looked forward to Flame Tree BBQ for lunch but with the others gone I didn't want to mess up our CS credits.I had been taking some pics for the DIS's Summer Photo Scavenger hunt and needed pics here. As I was taking my pics a CM started talking to me. Basically the food tastes better than the pics. I was still a little teary and told her I love the food there but since my family deserted me I had to pass this trip. She told me to wait a minute and came back with a tray of food. She actually got me the pulled pork sandwich with cole slaw which I love. Then she took me down to a nice spot overlooking the water and EE. I belive her name was Adele.
Her treat


the view


I can't even begin to say how much that meant to me. I was feeling so low and alone and she really picked my spirits up. That is the reason I love going to Disney. Just a little sprinkle of Pixie Dust and the world seems so much brighter. After eating I went back and thanked her again. I feel really bad that I never stopped at Guest Services to tell them how wonderful she was but I was also a little afraid she could get in trouble.

Feeling so much better I headed over to see the Festival of the Lion KIng. I was a little bewildered here. The show was getting ready to start and the CM's had me park the ECV and walk in. I wound up with not so great seats but yet other ECV's and wheelchairs came in after me. Oh well. The seats could have been better I had somebody's head in my way but I did enjoy the show and got a few nice pics








I was kind of glad I went in there because it RAINED while I watched the show. It was about 3 PM by now and the time alone had done a lot for me. I was in much better spirits. I headed towards the exit. I did stop in and buy the picture from the breakfast at Tusker House. I headed back to the resort to check on everyone feeling rather good.

When I got back to ASMo's I checked on how many credits we had left on the DP and then headed to the room. I think the breaks was good for all of us. Jim was feeling better having rested the toe. Beth's family took a nap and Jay went to the arcade for awhile. It was much needed time alone for everyone.

[TinkyKat]

Similar situation happened to me but it was a group of 8 or so friends. I just got fed up and left for the room and they did what they wanted, i was in tears the whole time. I did not get the awesome CM u got tho! How cool is thaT! I love flame tree So glad things got better tho!

[tazdev3225]

Oct 15, 2011 22:27:51 GMT -5 TinkyKat said:

Similar situation happened to me but it was a group of 8 or so friends. I just got fed up and left for the room and they did what they wanted, i was in tears the whole time. I did not get the awesome CM u got tho! How cool is thaT! I love flame tree So glad things got better tho!

It was so much easier when the kids were little. It was hard at times because I felt like they were missing so much. Crying is not me so my mom really knew I was upset. The time alone was good for all of us and the CM, she was the fantastic and I love Flame Tree so it really gave my spirits a huge boost. Things really did get better and Beth and I were able to talk and clear some things up.

[tazdev3225]

After getting to the room, and in a better mood, I decided to watch Disney TV. That did not last long. I was bored. I tried using my tablet to do a few things and it kept freezing. By 4:30 I was antsy. We were heading to DTD for the eveing so I decided to leave then. Beth wasn't ready and Jay wanted to come with them. I was fine with it. Jim decided to join me so we had a little time together. Perfect! When I left the ECV behind he looked at me funny. I told him I was not taking it. DTD gets very crowded. I wanted to browse the shops and people cut me off or act like I am invisible. I was planning on walking very slowly. He was fine with it and off we went. The bus came almost immediately and I didn't have to deal with the looks from other people who were already in line. I have been fighting using the ECV the last few trips. I am so tired of the looks and the snide comments from other people. I am not deaf and dumb! I have been reading a thread on the DIS where comments are not very nice towards ECV users. Believe me, I would love to have to knees that didn't need to be replaced and a back that was not injured from a car accident. My reality is that I do need it to handle the long days at Disney. For once I wanted to be the way it used to be when I could walk all day.

OK I'm off my soap box and done feeling sorry for myself.
Jim and I had a very pleasant stroll around DTD. We went in some shops and browsed. I took pics from higher than feet off of the ground.


Jim being Donald Duck I think?


I believe this was in TrenD. I just loved the light fixtures on the ceiling




I stopped and got a Rewards Card for my Visa points and then never used it. We headed along and I have to admit I love the Lego displays. My brothers had Legos when we were kids and I could build walls. These creations amaze me.








We continued along, found a bench and sat down to wait for the rest of the crew to join us and people watch.
Our view of the sunset


We got a call from beth that they were almost there so Jim and I checked in for our ADR's at


I had been looking forward to trying this place more for the atmosphere than the food. Beth was really excited because she thought Anthony would like it. They ordered nachos as an appetizer


They were really good and a lot so we shared. Beth had the chicken


She said it was the best chicken she's ever eaten and she works for a chicken place that makes really GOOD chicken. Jim and I split a burger. Jay had a full rack of ribs. I told him not to get it but would he listen to me? No! Jim ordered a half rack also. Guess how many ribs were left. Yep! A half rack. Anthony had pepperoni. It did come on a pizza but he only wanted the pepperoni. Bill had steak. It was so tender you ould cut it with a fork. We al raved about the food. And the waiter said there was a rumor going around that they would be on the DP next year. Of course while in here I took a ton of pics.





the ceiling


the wall along where we were seated


Anthony eating a lemon








Even the bathrooms carried on the theme




After dinner we browsed the gift shop and Anthony went on a dig while Jay watched


I will go back there again but will insist on a different area to sit. We were in a corner under an AC vent and it was cold! I really want the ice room next time. The food is expensive but VERY GOOD! Hopefully the rumors are true about the DP.

Beth and the gang went back to the resort and Jim and I took our time again.




We got to the bus stop and waited, and waited and waited. I was really glad that I didn't bring the scooter with me. I think we waited 45 minutes for the bus while other resorts had 2 and 3 come and go. That is the one thing about DTD that I don't like. I was fortunate that I had a seat. There was a woman who got on with 4 kids and a bunch of bags so I offered to hold the baby. She was so cute and about 7 months old. The mother was amazed the baby snuggled on my shoulder and went right to sleep. We talked for a bit and I found out that they had been stuck at Disney for an extra week because of the hurricane. They were supposed to fly home to NYC the day it hit. She couldn't say enough about how nice Disney had been to them. The did have to downgrade from the Grand Floridian to ASMusic but she said they actually liked the suites there better. She couldn't wait to go home.

The day ended great. We had a rocky start but we all had a chance to rtalk at dinner and were in much better moods. Part of the problem is that Beth is very much like me and it can create some head bumping. We also are quick to get over things with each other.

So our last day together came to an end.

[scott]

Glad the day ended on a good note.

Love the pics.

[TinkyKat]

Def glad it ended on a good note.

I have a weird obsession with those light fixtures in TrenD....I think they were the same ones that used to hang in the NYC World of Disney Store, i'll have to look for pics i have of them.

[lesprivate]

I hate my day doesn't go as planned, glad it ended well. We are planning to try TRex next year because Emily loves Dinosaurs and I think Andrew will enjoy it.

[geminiangel]

T-rex food looks really good! 45 min wait for the bus, holy cow!
Very nice of you to hold the baby. Babies give me the warm fuzzies. ;D

[Phibbles]

I would be too freaked out to hold a stranger's kid on the bus. Good for you!

[tazdev3225]

Oct 23, 2011 12:44:40 GMT -5 scott said:

Glad the day ended on a good note.

Love the pics.

It was a nice ending. Thanks about the pics, I tend to take a LOT!

Oct 24, 2011 19:03:12 GMT -5 TinkyKat said:

Def glad it ended on a good note.

I have a weird obsession with those light fixtures in TrenD....I think they were the same ones that used to hang in the NYC World of Disney Store, i'll have to look for pics i have of them.

I like to take pics of odd things. I really liked those fixtures though. My DGD's dance teacher has one at her studio. They just sit over a plain socket and the bulb holds them in place.

Oct 24, 2011 19:13:59 GMT -5 lesprivate said:

I hate my day doesn't go as planned, glad it ended well. We are planning to try TRex next year because Emily loves Dinosaurs and I think Andrew will enjoy it.

I highly recommend T-Rex. It was a great place just don't sit in a corner inside the entrance by the fish tank. It was really cold there. I think Andrew will love it just with the changing scenery. The Ice Room looks like fun.

Oct 25, 2011 8:09:00 GMT -5 geminiangel said:

T-rex food looks really good! 45 min wait for the bus, holy cow!
Very nice of you to hold the baby. Babies give me the warm fuzzies.

I do love babies especially when I give them back.

Oct 25, 2011 15:49:32 GMT -5 Phibbles said:

I would be too freaked out to hold a stranger's kid on the bus. Good for you!

I think it's the grandmom in me. I felt bad for that mom though. She really had her hands full and I love babies.

[tazdev3225]

I'm hoping to finish this up now that I'm back from Disney again.

Day 7

It was a sad day. Beth, Anthony and Bill were leaving today to go home to Philly. As much as we had our ups and downs I was going to miss them. They had packed up the night before and decided to trust their luggage in my car. So while the men folk took it down Beth brought the few things she didn't want in the car over to my room. Ballons tend to deflate if left in a car. She then went down to the desk to check-out and make sure there were no additional charges. We took a few pics of the boys at the resort




Views from the room




Anthony wasn't very happy. He decided he wanted to drive home with us and stay with Jay. We convinced him that we could go to one more park so off we headed to MK. Beth had a later flight so they had some time. We got to MK around 9:30 or so. I was amazed that they already had Halloween decorations up.






Beth and the gang wanted to do Space Mountain. Anthony is too small so I told them to go, Jim included, I would have some fun with Anthony. Jim loves Space Mountain but decided to stay with me. He was very glad that he did. Beth had gotten one of the bubble guns for Anthony and let him have it to play with. I will just let the pics speak for themselves.














Watching him was better than any ride. He is a very entertaing little guy and really enjoys himself. About the time Anthony ran out of bubbles the others joined us. We did Buzz Lightyear's Ranger Spin 2 more times and thankfully no problems. There was almost no wait.

[tazdev3225]

After Space Mountain we headed to the Haunted Mansion. It was down for some reason. Beth didn't want to wait so next stop was Adventureland and one last ride on Pirates. Saw some of Move It, Shake IT







Some of the pics came out really good for once







This one was really good because we stopped right in front of this scene. No movement gives a really nice pic


Stopped here too


We were hungry so we decided to eat at Pecos Bill. I do love the toppings bar.
Jim had Taco salad


Beth, Jay and Bill had burgers and Anthony had a kids PB&J. If I had to pay I would have gotten something else. It's a Smuckers uncrustable. I had mushrooms and onions with a burger. I do LOVE that toppings bar


We then headed over to Fantasyland for 1 or 2 more rides. We tried to do Haunted mansion on the way but it was down


We hadn't done Pooh so we got in line. The interactive queue is nice but does not make up for an hour wait. The boys had fun




Beth wasn't happy


This was weird. We have decided it must be honey. It changes direction or something when you touch it


The only decent pic from the ride


We saw some of the construction over the fence


I found out at this point that the one character Anthony had wanted to see was Beast. This was as close as he got




The pics were a little blown out because I had been playing with camera settings and they were still for a dark ride. Beth and I still disagree over this controversy. She blames me for not telling her that Beast is only in EPCOT. I keep telling her that had she told me I would have insisted on visiting WS instead of looking at fish for HOURS! I did tell her there was no guarantee we would have seen him anyway. This gives her an excuse to go back in a couple of years with Bill's family.

We tried Haunted Mansion one more time




At this point they had to leave as ME was picking them up at 5 and they wanted to give themselves enough time. We hugged and I got a little misty. I really was going to miss them.

Jim, Jay and I decided go on HM again and got back in line. It wasn't running but we did get to see them trying to fix it. We headed over towards Fantasyland. I wanted to ride IASW. Jay HATES this ride. I bribed him. One ride and then we could do what he wanted. He went on, not happy, but he did it.








They are some of the better pics. I took some really weird ones this trip looking for something different. It was time for Jay to pick. He wanted BTMRR. Not a problem, I like the ride. Jim decided to find a bench and sit. He was actually quite happy there. One of his lieutenants was at Disney and they ran across each other and chatted for a bit.

BTMRR will start the next post.

[Phibbles]

So cute with the bubbles!!

[tazdev3225]

Jay and I headed over to BTMRR. He really wanted to do Splash Mountain but we had ADR's at Liberty Tree Tavern and I was not going to eat there wet again. I have been soaked, all but one time, when we eat there. BTMRR was our compromise. We headed up the wheelchair entrance and waited. Jay was trying to catch a lizard and I was just relaxing. After about 10 minutes I realized no one had been exiting the ride. A little strange. Jay poked his head in and I guess a CM spotted him. The ride was down. They expected it back up shortly. OK, we can wait. I did joke with the CM that it seemed to be a trend and mentioned HM being down. He was really nice and gave us 3 FP's to any ride in the park good for that day and the next. Cool, I'll wait.

Around this time a father and son came up to ride. We talked for a minute and I told him what was going on. He was a little upset because his son had a meltdown over the news. I could tell the dad was embarrassed. I also knew from observation that the son was autistic. I told the dad that it was OK. Jay's brother is on the spectrum and I know what it's like when they have a meltdown. What I didn't realize was how thankful the dad would be. Evidently he had been having problems with comments all day. I just told him that we all have our moments, ignore the ignorance of others and have a good time with his son. I don't get why people have to be so judgemental. I guess because of the ECV I get overly sensitive because of comments made towards me. OK off my pity box. The dad and son didn't wait.

After about 25 or 30 minutes the ride was ready to go. Jay and I were the guinea pigs to see if it was running. We got to pick any seat. Jay likes the rear. OK, not my choice but I did make him suffer through IASW. Then the CM told us we got to have a round trip. Two rides without getting off. Super cool. Off we went.


We were all alone




We pulled into the station and the CM told us we had to get off. What? I explained that we were supposed to ride again. Nope, not happening. OK we got off. It was still cool being the only ones on the train.

The lines had built up


As I headed over to get the ECV the CM who said we had a round trip spotted us. She was surprised we rode 2X so fast. I explained what happened. We got on again in the back. She told us we were promised a round trip and we were getting one. We pulled into the other station and the CM waved and said sorry for the mix-up. We got to ride again.

Then we stopped




Not good. I looked at Jay and he thought it was great. Me not so much. We were half way up the climb. Um this isn't good. OK I did take pics as evidenced above. I worried about how we would get down. Thankfully after a couple of minutes we were on our way. I think Jay liked that ride the best. I have to admit it really was fun.