Disney Has the Best Chicken Nuggets Ever! - Update Dump - Finally Completed!

Yeah, it certainly wasn't how it worked for us. I would say AKL was the worst bus service, overall, that I've ever experienced at Disney World. Not just a long drive time, but long wait times.
I was really hoping you'd have a different experience that we did in February. AKL is pretty and the animals are cool, but the buses are horrible.

True... when it's hot, I just want something cold. I can tolerate the water just fine.

Well said. If you're hot and thirsty, it will do. Sometimes I'll forget and leave my water bottle in the car and when I'm thirsty enough, even warm water works. I don't think the FL water is horrible, but it definitely has a distinct smell/taste.
 
I forgot to mention that I love your TR title. On one of my boys early trips, I think 2008, so Ben was 7, he kept saying "These are the best chicken nuggets" every time he ordered them.
Sounds very familiar...

If you don't get a decent photo, did it still considered finding one?
Sure! Cool! I'm glad you got to see it even if you didn't have a memory card.

Or don't view it. Unless you want to get nauseous.
Good point.

I love those times when you can hit up a CM and just slow down enough to talk some.
::yes::

Story of my bus-life. :sad2:
I know. It just gets so frustrating. I mean, we wanted to take more breaks, but how do people do that when it takes 5 hours to get anywhere?

Uhhh, YEAH!!! Not okay!
It just didn't seem like it was very well thought out. And haven't they been implementing the metal detectors for over a year now?

It happens. As long as there's a sincere apology to follow. :)

And it sounds like there was.
::yes::

OUCH! But that's like what... #1 Disney touring Rule?
What? Not stopping in middle of a walkway or not hitting someone with a stroller?

Because I'll be honest, if I'm leaving adequate space between the front of the stroller and the person in front to avoid hitting them and you decide to step into that gap and cut me off... your ankle is fair game.

I hate throwing out the whole plan, but glad you know enough that you can re-make one on the fly.
::yes:: We did most of what we'd have done anyway. Just had to go about it differently

She didn't like it? Heck, even *I* like Barnstormer!
She's weird.

So quite mild for an Orlando July 9th!
::yes:: Actually it was. I exaggerated considerably. It was hot, as is Orlando in July, but it wasn't THAT bad. We were prepared and honestly it didn't end up being as bad as we expected.

Oh the humanity! Such a deep loss!
She really took one for the team. :rolleyes1

Always a good time to re-think the velocity.
::yes::

I need to get my Disney-loving, never wavering hiney over to US someday.
Yes! I like it. They do some things very well, although they also do some things that annoy me. But the quality of the attractions is great if you can get past all the screen based technology.

3 Cheers for free Disney ice water!!!!

:cheer2::cheer2::cheer2:
Definitely! We made great use of it!

:sad2:

I was underwhelmed with the service there myself. Seemed a bit chaotic; and we waited a LONG time for our food. SAme thing. Servers not sure where food was supposed to go.
Hmmm... so it is the norm?

Really? I know it's her castle and all, but Tia and Blondie are superior princess, in our house at least.
I think DD would have liked them, but she wasn't the one that made the call, it was Sis.

Awe man! Looks like DD liked her princess time any how. And I see the little fella is already a ladies man!
::yes::

Yeesh! What is her thing?
Riding a donkey.

Seriously. Sis has horses and she has a donkey that she has taken in. Niece loves riding Donkey. For some reason they're best friends and he's gentle as can be with her but that stupid donkey once bit my foot so hard he put a hole in my shoe.

Yeah, swamp land summer is brutal. It's the humidity, it's oppressive, physically. I'm gonna miss it so much when winter comes...
:rotfl2::rotfl: Get ready! It will be here soon!

What a wonderful woman. I too would have made that sacrifice; that rides the worst! It's like the roller coaster at Coney Island, only a child is driving it. Nope!
:rotfl2::rotfl::lmao:

That's great! I'm glad she came outta her bubble a bit.
::yes:: We really needed that time with her.

Wait, there's another theme park in Orlando?!?
Some would call it that.

To be fair, this was our first time using rider swap and they really don't explain it to you at all. We still had the lanyard when we boarded Space cause no one said anything about exchanging it for a ticket.
True, if you don't research it beforehand, you really don't know what you're doing. They've always been good with us anyway, about explaining that the card needs to be handed in before boarding on the attractions that use it.

These pictures are awesome! I can't quote them on the tablet, but the best! You gotta frame that second one, at least a 5x7, too cute!
Thanks!

Lol! In that heat they could probably serve you the water from Pirates of the Caribbean and as long as it was cold, it'd be enjoyable.
That might be a stretch. :rotfl2:

I don't blame her. People in the service industry have a bad habit of not taking those requests seriously. Since a lot of people make dietary choices but don't have medical reasons to, sometimes I think chefs and servers don't pay such close attention.
I'm sure that does happen, especially now with gluten free being essentially a fad diet.

It-oh, that's a recipe for disaster.
::yes::

Sounds like the last three years of my life.
Some kids are more needy than others.
 
I was really hoping you'd have a different experience that we did in February. AKL is pretty and the animals are cool, but the buses are horrible.
::yes::

Well said. If you're hot and thirsty, it will do. Sometimes I'll forget and leave my water bottle in the car and when I'm thirsty enough, even warm water works. I don't think the FL water is horrible, but it definitely has a distinct smell/taste.
Yeah, I've never thought it was horrible. I know we see all kinds of complaints about it, but it has never really bothered me.
 
Where's Mom?

After our lunch, it was time for us to use our third FP of the day. It was for Enchanted Tales with Belle.

It was around 1:30 at this point and I got on MDE while we waited to grab our next FP. We had some other plans in the afternoon, so I grabbed one for Jungle Cruise at 5:20.

DD and DS both wanted to try to get a part. For the second time ever, DD was picked to be Chip and DS was picked to be Phillipe.

It was a great show and we all enjoyed it! The kids had a blast playing their parts and LG and Niece each got to go get in line after the show to see Belle.

On the way out they handed us the PP card. We were busy corralling kids and kind of on the opposite side of the exit from the PP person handing them out. Sis2 had grabbed one so we decided one for the group was enough and nobody else took a card.

Fast forward a week later, we’re driving to the beach and DW is looking through our PP pictures. None of the Belle pictures were there. I distinctly remembered Sis2 taking the card so we called her to ask if she had it. Her response, “Why would I be the one to get it? I don’t have any kids.”

DW and I both thought about it… we were 100% sure she got the PP card. But we pretty much accepted that it was a lost cause at this point because she didn’t remember it and had no idea where she put it.

A few weeks later we were at the zoo with the kids. DD was going through a small pocket in the stroller and found the PP card…. Literally days before the pictures were to be deleted so we actually have them for you to see!


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After seeing Belle, we went to ride IASW. I should have got the FP here and then grabbed JC later, but when I checked MDE it showed a shorter wait for IASW and I wanted to make sure we got the time that we did for JC. So we ended up waiting 20 minutes to ride IASW. While we were in line, I formulated a plan. Sis and Mom’s rooms had those free FP’s from the check in difficulties. After riding IASW, we were going to go over to Splash Mountain. They could ride with the FP’s and we’d get a couple of Rider Swap passes so DW and I could take DS and DD after they ride.


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The kids, as always, loved the ride. LG seemed to enjoy looking around at everything, but he was starting to get restless by the end of the ride.


We visited Rapunzel’s world famous throne rooms after our cruise. This is when I first uttered 2 words that were in the running for the TR title.

Where’s Mom?

While we were taking turns using the facilities she had wandered off. And nobody knew where. After texts and phone calls we finally located her.

Only to realize that Dad had wandered off while we were looking for Mom.


This folks, was my life for the week. I won’t get into every case where this happened, but it felt like I was herding squirrels.


We finally rounded everyone up and started walking through Liberty Square. It was crowded because the Festival of Fantasy parade was going to start soon. We considered trying to watch it, but we did have other plans that afternoon with a reservation to get to so we decided we should get over to Splash Mountain and try FoF another time.

This time, my explanation of how Rider Swap works didn’t fall on deaf ears and we were able to get 2 Rider Swap passes. DW and I took all 4 kids over to one of the air conditioned shops to wait.

DD and DS didn’t really seem to understand why they couldn’t just go tap their bands and ride with everyone else so they were getting a little bit restless while we waited. But soon enough it was our turn to take the Rider Swap passes and ride.

DD wasn’t sure if she wanted to ride or not. She wanted to ride, but at the same time she hates having water in her face. I promised that she could ride with me and I’d cover her face so that she could stay dry. Every time we’d start going up a lift hill, she’d bury her face in my lap. Every time we went down a small hill she’d bury her face in my lap. It might be hard to tell from the picture, but she actually was riding right next to me.


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After it was all said and done, she loved it and wanted to ride again!

By now it was time for us to get going. We had a reservation we needed to get to.

Mom wanted to do something special for LG and offered to pay for a first haircut at the Harmony Barber Shop. We had a 4:30 appointment for him and DS to get their hair cut. It was just before 4 so we decided to head that way and get checked in. Sis, Sis2, BiL and Niece broke off around Adventureland to see the Tiki Birds and ride some flying carpets, I believe.

We got to the barber shop and checked in. There was nobody in there so they got us in right away. LG tolerated the haircut just fine. Frankly, it didn’t take long. He basically had 1 little long section on the back of his head that could be cut. They were great about talking to him and playing with him. DS got his hair cut and they topped it off with some “pirate dust” and even got some pixie dust out for DD. That must have been some industrial strength pixie dust because that stuff was still sticking around in her hair a week later.


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Because we got done a lot faster than expected, we had some time to kill before we could use our Jungle Cruise FPs. We took some time wandering through the Emporium and picked up some new R2D2 Crocs for DS and Minnie Crocs for DD. We made our way over to Adventureland and met up with the rest of the group out in front of Jungle Cruise. We parked the strollers and found a place to just sit for a while and the kids made some pressed pennies. I think we had about 15 minutes before we could go use our FP.

We discussed what we wanted to do after our ride. DS and DD said they were hungry. Sis2 kind of complained that she was still full from lunch, but our kids can be picky eaters. If they don’t want to eat they won’t so when they say they want to eat, we’re going to eat. The kids wanted chicken nuggets and fries, and we wanted to try to use the other set of freebie Fast Passes to ride Space Mountain so we decided we’d head over to Cosmic Rays after our ride.

When it was time, we entered the queue to use our JC FP. As we were waiting in the FP line, I got on the app to grab another FP for later. As I looked I noticed that we had 1 JC FP that didn’t get used. Before I could even click in to see who it was, I just asked who didn’t tap their band? Next thing I know, Mom is turned around going back out the line to go tap her band. So we had to move aside and let people past while we waited for her to catch back up. While all that was going on, I was able to get another FP for a little while later at Buzz Lightyear.

I quickly realized I should have just kept my mouth shut and changed her FP, I was just being a smart@$$ and going to give whoever forgot to tap their band crap about it. I honestly didn’t expect her to go back through the line so she could tap her band after she was already past.

We got on our boat and had a nice cruise! Our skipper was fantastic, but I was a bit disappointed to find out that the Rhino was gone and replaced by a pack of hyenas.

The poachers were no longer getting the point in the end.

But our skipper made sure to ask us all to say hi to her new friend.

Hyena!

We ended our ride and made our way over toward Cosmic Rays. We parked the stroller and went in to order. We found out here that on the dining plan, you can order the frozen lemonade drinks with either an adult or a kids meal. So DW, the kids and I each got a frozen lemonade with an extra cup of ice water for the road.

DW went to find a table while DD and I got our food. We made it to the front of the line and the CM behind the counter started chatting us up. He was a super nice guy, but I kind of started feeling a little sad by the time we got our food. He was from Brazil and was telling DD that she reminds him of his granddaughter. He then starts giving her all kinds of stickers and told us that he’s never seen his granddaughter in person before, just through facetime, but he’s saving up to bring her to Disney World later this year. I felt bad for the guy not having a chance to see his granddaughter yet, but I really hope that he’s able to make that trip happen for her!

We found DW and the rest of the family in the room with Sonny Eclipse. It looked like it was getting ready to rain and I expected the place to be packed, but It really wasn’t very crowded in there. I think Niece, Sis and BiL got food too. The others in our group who didn’t want to eat sat in there with us, not eating, while we had dinner. They could have done whatever they wanted, but that’s perfectly fine. I think they went to the Mara to get some food after we got back to AKL that night.

We finished eating and it hadn’t started raining yet, but we parked the strollers in the parking area under cover at Stitch’s Great Escape, just in case.

It was time for our FP so we headed in to join the Space Rangers in the fight against Zurg.


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When we came out the sky had really cleared up. It didn’t look like rain anymore and it was a little late for the usual Florida afternoon showers so we hoped we might have dodged it on our first park day.

We headed over to Space Mountain to use FPs. Mom and Dad chose to sit this one out. We thought about sending DS and DD ahead with their bands to get an extra ride, but neither one had ridden before and we felt it might be best if they go with DW and me in case they got scared. We found a bench to wait where we could feed LG and give him his medicine.

Just before our trip, LG, DS and I all three were prescribed antibiotics for various ailments. I had been fighting a sinus infection for about 2 weeks, DS had strep and LG had something in between. We packed his antibiotic in a cooler bag in case we didn’t get back to the room during the day. He hated taking that stuff and ended up spitting it all over the place. We had to get some water and try to clean him and us up while he was screaming and crying in the middle of Tomorrowland.

Good times.

Everybody else got back and BiL started trying to talk DD out of riding. He told her she’d be too scared because it is so dark. Honestly, we were afraid she’d freak out. I wasn’t crazy about taking her on it, but she wanted to go and I wasn’t going to tell her no. The CM measured her and she was just barely tall enough. We were walking in and I explained that she had to sit by herself. She said she wanted me to sit behind her and hold on to her. She never hesitated to hop in and ride. She screamed the whole time. I thought the ride was turning out to be a disaster, but apparently it was happy screams because as soon as we got off she said she wanted to do it again!


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We came back out and found Dad sitting with LG. We asked the famous question, where’s mom?

She had taken Niece over to the Tomorrowland dance party so we headed off to find her.

We made the call to take a spin on the Peoplemover, then it would be time to find a spot for HEA.


Peoplemover was a fun, relaxing ride, as always.

We wanted to get some ice cream before the fireworks, but when we got out to Main Street and saw the line at Plaza, we weren’t sure we’d have time to get ice cream and get a good spot. And it was just under an hour before the show!

DW took this picture. I have no idea if it was taken when we got there or if it was earlier in the day, but I’ll put it here.


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We chose to pass on ice cream for now, but Mom and DS had already taken off to Adventureland for Dole Whips.

20 minutes passed and we called mom… no answer.

Another 15 minutes of multiple failed attempts to call her… the fireworks are going to start soon and we still haven’t seen or heard from her.

I finally got through. They got their Dole Whips, but the CM’s had started making the walkways one way. So she somehow ended up walking all the way over by Tomorrowland Speedway. DS had developed a blister on his heel since they took off from us and he couldn’t walk more than a few feet without sitting down to rest. She said they’d be fine and they’d just watch it there.

I asked her about 3 times where she was just to be sure I heard right and then said a few four letter words.

We had our evenings pretty well mapped out without a lot of flexibility just because there’s so many shows and things to see at the different parks at night now. We didn’t know if we’d have a chance to see HEA again and we had taken an hour of park time to make sure to get a great view front and center of the castle. But I didn’t want DS or mom to miss out by just sitting in Tomorrowland to watch the fireworks.

So after I stewed on it for a little bit, I took off through the crowd. I walked across the hub and out to Tomorrowland. When I found them, I put DS up on my shoulders and told Mom to try to keep up. She tends to be a little too courteous in a crowded environment. It’s not like I was pushing anyone out of the way or anything, but if there was a gap, I was going. I’d look over my shoulder from time to time to make sure she was keeping up, because I was going just about as fast as I could. We ended up having to take the long way around and had to walk back by the plaza before I could head back up Main Street to the rest of our group, but we made it just before HEA began.

I was holding DD most of the time. DW had LG. So not many pictures were taken.


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As for the show.

Well...

Sorry.

I liked Wishes.

To me, HEA was just their way to make us forget about the fact that there’s no parade. So in my eyes, it is the replacement for MSEP and Wishes all in one. It’s a good show, the projections and fireworks are great.

But it just didn’t do much for me.

Maybe over time we’ll be able to develop that connection that we had with Wishes, but it just hasn’t happened yet. I think it is definitely impressive seeing the projections on the castle. They’ve upped their game big time. I’m not saying it is a bad show, they do a lot of great things. But as a whole package, it just didn’t connect with us the way Wishes did. If I’m being honest, I think we all enjoyed the Star Wars fireworks/projection show more. I think part of that is likely that we had lower expectations for that one, but HEA just didn’t stand out as one of our highlights of the trip. I’m sure the stress of finding mom and DS probably didn’t help either, but it is what it is.

We filed out of the park with the crowds. We arrived at the AKL Bus Stop just as a bus pulled up, but there was no way we were getting on. We had a short 15 minute wait for the next bus, but it was long enough for DD and LG to both fall asleep. Sis2 helped us out and held DD on the bus. They were lucky enough to get seats while Dad and I stood with the stroller.

We got back to our room and made DS and DD take a quick shower. It didn’t take long at all before we were all asleep after a long day at MK!
 


Glad you were able to get the ETWB photos- and just in the nick of time!

I am sure it was difficult keeping everyone together. Sorry that people wanderd off on more than one occasion!

Dads must protect their daughters from everything- including water rides! So cute :goodvibes

Nice that the boys could get their haircuts on Main Street!

Kudos to DD for braving space Mountain...and liking it!!

Oh I can't imagine how annoyed you were with your mom for veering off and not being able to get back to your fireworks spot. You're a good man for going after them and bringing them over!

I'm sorry to hear HEA didn't do much for you. Wishes will just always be too special!!

Long day for you all but it sounds like it was pretty successful!
 
A few weeks later we were at the zoo with the kids. DD was going through a small pocket in the stroller and found the PP card…. Literally days before the pictures were to be deleted so we actually have them for you to see!

So cool it was found. Way to go DD!!!



The other pictures are cool, but this one with dad grandpa is priceless!! LG's smile is just too cool!


Where’s Mom?
Hey Andy, where's mom?

While we were taking turns using the facilities she had wandered off. And nobody knew where. After texts and phone calls we finally located her.


Only to realize that Dad had wandered off while we were looking for Mom.
Hey Andy, where's dad? :rotfl2:


This folks, was my life for the week. I won’t get into every case where this happened, but it felt like I was herding squirrels.
All joking aside...truly sorry!


This time, my explanation of how Rider Swap works didn’t fall on deaf ears and we were able to get 2 Rider Swap passes. DW and I took all 4 kids over to one of the air conditioned shops to wait.
They listened! Be thankful for small victories!!

DD and DS didn’t really seem to understand why they couldn’t just go tap their bands and ride with everyone else so they were getting a little bit restless while we waited. But soon enough it was our turn to take the Rider Swap passes and ride.

DD wasn’t sure if she wanted to ride or not. She wanted to ride, but at the same time she hates having water in her face. I promised that she could ride with me and I’d cover her face so that she could stay dry. Every time we’d start going up a lift hill, she’d bury her face in my lap. Every time we went down a small hill she’d bury her face in my lap. It might be hard to tell from the picture, but she actually was riding right next to me.


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Great picture. Everyone's faces (well those that aren't buried) look thrilled!



We got to the barber shop and checked in. There was nobody in there so they got us in right away. LG tolerated the haircut just fine. Frankly, it didn’t take long. He basically had 1 little long section on the back of his head that could be cut. They were great about talking to him and playing with him. DS got his hair cut and they topped it off with some “pirate dust” and even got some pixie dust out for DD. That must have been some industrial strength pixie dust because that stuff was still sticking around in her hair a week later.
At least it wasn't glitter in your truck and no complaints about not having her princess dress. :lmao:


I'm really too tired for this people!


Fantastic picture!



And another


DW went to find a table while DD and I got our food. We made it to the front of the line and the CM behind the counter started chatting us up. He was a super nice guy, but I kind of started feeling a little sad by the time we got our food. He was from Brazil and was telling DD that she reminds him of his granddaughter. He then starts giving her all kinds of stickers and told us that he’s never seen his granddaughter in person before, just through facetime, but he’s saving up to bring her to Disney World later this year. I felt bad for the guy not having a chance to see his granddaughter yet, but I really hope that he’s able to make that trip happen for her!
That stinks...hoping he's able to make it happen too (for both of them).


Just before our trip, LG, DS and I all three were prescribed antibiotics for various ailments. I had been fighting a sinus infection for about 2 weeks, DS had strep and LG had something in between. We packed his antibiotic in a cooler bag in case we didn’t get back to the room during the day. He hated taking that stuff and ended up spitting it all over the place. We had to get some water and try to clean him and us up while he was screaming and crying in the middle of Tomorrowland.

Good times.
Getting little ones to take medication is always a special pain...err blessing. ;)

Everybody else got back and BiL started trying to talk DD out of riding. He told her she’d be too scared because it is so dark. Honestly, we were afraid she’d freak out. I wasn’t crazy about taking her on it, but she wanted to go and I wasn’t going to tell her no. The CM measured her and she was just barely tall enough. We were walking in and I explained that she had to sit by herself. She said she wanted me to sit behind her and hold on to her. She never hesitated to hop in and ride. She screamed the whole time. I thought the ride was turning out to be a disaster, but apparently it was happy screams because as soon as we got off she said she wanted to do it again!


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We came back out and found Dad sitting with LG. We asked the famous question, where’s mom?
Looks like everyone enjoyed this one.
Hey Andy, where's mom?




We chose to pass on ice cream for now, but Mom and DS had already taken off to Adventureland for Dole Whips.

20 minutes passed and we called mom… no answer.
Hey Andy, where's mom?


So after I stewed on it for a little bit, I took off through the crowd. I walked across the hub and out to Tomorrowland. When I found them, I put DS up on my shoulders and told Mom to try to keep up. She tends to be a little too courteous in a crowded environment. It’s not like I was pushing anyone out of the way or anything, but if there was a gap, I was going. I’d look over my shoulder from time to time to make sure she was keeping up, because I was going just about as fast as I could. We ended up having to take the long way around and had to walk back by the plaza before I could head back up Main Street to the rest of our group, but we made it just before HEA began.
The things a good dad won't do for his kids!

I was holding DD most of the time. DW had LG. So not many pictures were taken.
Slacker

As for the show.

Well...

Sorry.

I liked Wishes.

To me, HEA was just their way to make us forget about the fact that there’s no parade. So in my eyes, it is the replacement for MSEP and Wishes all in one. It’s a good show, the projections and fireworks are great.

But it just didn’t do much for me.
I've looked at the video online and wasn't impressed. I realize a video online isn't the same, so hopefully I'll like it better in person, but understand.



We got back to our room and made DS and DD take a quick shower. It didn’t take long at all before we were all asleep after a long day at MK!
A very full day...I'm sure everyone slept very well.
 
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but it felt like I was herding squirrels.

Hahaha I have this visual in my head and it's cracking me up!



That pic is so precious! So adorable!

Everybody else got back and BiL started trying to talk DD out of riding. He told her she’d be too scared because it is so dark. Honestly, we were afraid she’d freak out. I wasn’t crazy about taking her on it, but she wanted to go and I wasn’t going to tell her no. The CM measured her and she was just barely tall enough. We were walking in and I explained that she had to sit by herself. She said she wanted me to sit behind her and hold on to her. She never hesitated to hop in and ride. She screamed the whole time. I thought the ride was turning out to be a disaster, but apparently it was happy screams because as soon as we got off she said she wanted to do it again!

My dd5 is right on the cusp of being able to ride Space but I'm not sure she would like it. My ds doesn't like it. I think because it's dark and you can't really see.

Your dd on splash reminds me of mine. She was hesitant to go on but it wound up being her favorite ride. She was crying during it but turns out she was worried about the rabbit. Once she found out he was okay at the end, she wanted to go right back on. She likes getting wet though. She's the kid on the rapids ride that gets upset when she doesn't get soaked.
 



I love this ride, but I can't get the #$@% song out of my head!!!


Where’s Mom?

While we were taking turns using the facilities she had wandered off. And nobody knew where. After texts and phone calls we finally located her.

Only to realize that Dad had wandered off while we were looking for Mom.


Code Silver!!!

Times 2

:sad2:


Good thing he's cute!!!

So is LG!

BTW- looking at this photo quickly I thought that your dad had been chained so he wouldn't wander off again.


The hair cut pictures are too stinking cute! SERIOUSLY!!! Like the Harmony Barber Shop should use that shot of LG in advertisements.

::yes::
 
You're a better man than I am. I would've complained, not just for my sake, but in the hopes the poor behavior/service would be remedied and save others from that fate in the future. I'm the opposite when it comes to a server. I realize they have no control over whether my food is good or prepared right (especially in a buffet), but if your only job is to take away plates and bring drinks, then you should be able to do that well.
What I don't agree with (and won't do) is leaving a bad tip because the food was bad.
Even if the food wasn't great, if the service was, a very good tip is in their future. Exceptional service not only gets a great tip, but I also find the manager and tell them how outstanding i the service was. Managers are VERY happy to get that because most of the times, it's only the bad stuff they hear.

I wish everyone could understand the difference between the kitchen and the servers. My daughter is a server and does pretty well most days. But there always seems to be that one customer you bend over backwards for and they leave you the worst tips.
 
Loving your TR! I can feel your pain trying to keep your group together. On a trip to DL I was "in charge" of our group of 8 and one time was enough for me. Being the group leader (for me anyway) took away from my enjoyment of the trip. That being said, it looks like you had lots of good moments. Love the picture of LG in the barber shop with his reflection in the mirror - so special!
 
DD and DS both wanted to try to get a part. For the second time ever, DD was picked to be Chip and DS was picked to be Phillipe.

Yay! That's awesome! You must have some charismatic kids :)

A few weeks later we were at the zoo with the kids. DD was going through a small pocket in the stroller and found the PP card…. Literally days before the pictures were to be deleted so we actually have them for you to see!

No way! What are the chances!? That's great :)

Where’s Mom?

While we were taking turns using the facilities she had wandered off. And nobody knew where. After texts and phone calls we finally located her.

Only to realize that Dad had wandered off while we were looking for Mom.


This folks, was my life for the week. I won’t get into every case where this happened, but it felt like I was herding squirrels.

Oh gawd. Why is it soo difficult for families (esp. who aren't familiar with Disney) to stay together!? I only spent a few hours at Epcot with Nathan's family and it drove me nuts trying not to lose people in the crowd.

Every time we’d start going up a lift hill, she’d bury her face in my lap. Every time we went down a small hill she’d bury her face in my lap. It might be hard to tell from the picture, but she actually was riding right next to me.


36389552924_77ed2d19fd_k.jpg

Yay! So cute! You've got a brave little one!

That must have been some industrial strength pixie dust because that stuff was still sticking around in her hair a week later.

I've heard that pixie dust is impossible to remove!


Ok, so this is adorable.

But our skipper made sure to ask us all to say hi to her new friend.

Hyena!

Bahaha excellent. Almost as good as the rhino.

She said she wanted me to sit behind her and hold on to her. She never hesitated to hop in and ride. She screamed the whole time. I thought the ride was turning out to be a disaster, but apparently it was happy screams because as soon as we got off she said she wanted to do it again!


36798828221_33841daae3_k.jpg

Woah! Who knew! Well good for her.

I asked her about 3 times where she was just to be sure I heard right and then said a few four letter words.

We had our evenings pretty well mapped out without a lot of flexibility just because there’s so many shows and things to see at the different parks at night now. We didn’t know if we’d have a chance to see HEA again and we had taken an hour of park time to make sure to get a great view front and center of the castle. But I didn’t want DS or mom to miss out by just sitting in Tomorrowland to watch the fireworks.

So after I stewed on it for a little bit, I took off through the crowd. I walked across the hub and out to Tomorrowland. When I found them, I put DS up on my shoulders and told Mom to try to keep up. She tends to be a little too courteous in a crowded environment. It’s not like I was pushing anyone out of the way or anything, but if there was a gap, I was going. I’d look over my shoulder from time to time to make sure she was keeping up, because I was going just about as fast as I could. We ended up having to take the long way around and had to walk back by the plaza before I could head back up Main Street to the rest of our group, but we made it just before HEA began.

Oh. My. Lanta.

Way to go though—super-frustrated superdad to the rescue!

Nathan's mom was also a little too courteous for the tough neighbourhood that is Disney. When we booked FP at 60 days she was upset because she didn't know which rides she'd want to ride yet, so I just booked the ones I told her would be best, and she was worried because she didn't want to take a FP she didn't end up feeling like using from someone else who might want it. ...very kind, Linda, but it's a dog-eat-dog world at Disney! If you don't want to ride Soarin', we'll change it! Or I'll go twice!

As for the show.

Well...

Sorry.

I liked Wishes.

To me, HEA was just their way to make us forget about the fact that there’s no parade. So in my eyes, it is the replacement for MSEP and Wishes all in one. It’s a good show, the projections and fireworks are great.

But it just didn’t do much for me.

Thank you! Spoiler alert: I have to agree.

They’ve upped their game big time. I’m not saying it is a bad show, they do a lot of great things. But as a whole package, it just didn’t connect with us the way Wishes did.

I liked HEA. I thought it was nice, and the projections were very impressive. Soundtrack was quite good. But I couldn't fall in love with it. At least not the first time I saw it. I think part of it comes from my lingering nostalgia for Wishes, and a lot of it was that I felt like it had less plot/story for me to latch on to and follow.

I’m sure the stress of finding mom and DS probably didn’t help either, but it is what it is.

Probably didn't help. When we watched HEA, we had a lady and her kid who tried to muscle in front of us in order to fit within the taped off section. We'd been waiting 15-20 minutes in our decent spot. She came in as the show was starting and, quite literally, elbowed her way through. We told her no, and she went off on us and did it anyway. Which put a damper on things. Hard not to let human emotion cloud these things a little.
 
DD and DS both wanted to try to get a part. For the second time ever, DD was picked to be Chip and DS was picked to be Phillipe.

Cool! Always a nice bonus when they can be part of the show.

Fast forward a week later, we’re driving to the beach and DW is looking through our PP pictures. None of the Belle pictures were there. I distinctly remembered Sis2 taking the card so we called her to ask if she had it. Her response, “Why would I be the one to get it? I don’t have any kids.”

:sad2:

A few weeks later we were at the zoo with the kids. DD was going through a small pocket in the stroller and found the PP card…. Literally days before the pictures were to be deleted so we actually have them for you to see!

Hey, nice save there!

After seeing Belle, we went to ride IASW.

Why?:confused3

So we ended up waiting 20 minutes to ride IASW.

:sad2: If it was more than 30 seconds, it was too much.


Awww....look at that little guy.

The kids, as always, loved the ride. LG seemed to enjoy looking around at everything, but he was starting to get restless by the end of the ride.

I can totally get where he's coming from.

Where’s Mom?

While we were taking turns using the facilities she had wandered off. And nobody knew where. After texts and phone calls we finally located her.

Only to realize that Dad had wandered off while we were looking for Mom.

Well, it's not like it's crowded or anything.

This folks, was my life for the week. I won’t get into every case where this happened, but it felt like I was herding squirrels.

Just shoot me now!

This time, my explanation of how Rider Swap works didn’t fall on deaf ears and we were able to get 2 Rider Swap passes.

Hey, they can be taught!

She wanted to ride, but at the same time she hates having water in her face.

Bath time must be challenging.

DS got his hair cut and they topped it off with some “pirate dust” and even got some pixie dust out for DD. That must have been some industrial strength pixie dust because that stuff was still sticking around in her hair a week later.

Ah, glitter. The STD of the craft world. Once you have it, you can never get rid of it.


That is such a great shot!

As I looked I noticed that we had 1 JC FP that didn’t get used. Before I could even click in to see who it was, I just asked who didn’t tap their band? Next thing I know, Mom is turned around going back out the line to go tap her band.

C'mon, Mom! Get with the program here!

Our skipper was fantastic, but I was a bit disappointed to find out that the Rhino was gone and replaced by a pack of hyenas.

The poachers were no longer getting the point in the end.

Really? I wonder why they made that change.:confused3

We found out here that on the dining plan, you can order the frozen lemonade drinks with either an adult or a kids meal.

Sweet. Load 'em up!

I felt bad for the guy not having a chance to see his granddaughter yet, but I really hope that he’s able to make that trip happen for her!

Yeah, seriously. That sounds like a sad backstory there.

The others in our group who didn’t want to eat sat in there with us, not eating, while we had dinner.

I'm sure that wasn't awkward or anything.


:rotfl2: Now that is some hardcore Zurg-blasting!

He hated taking that stuff and ended up spitting it all over the place. We had to get some water and try to clean him and us up while he was screaming and crying in the middle of Tomorrowland.

Good times.

Nothing like wrestling a toddler while you try and give them medicine they're just going to spit out. Parenthood FTW!

Everybody else got back and BiL started trying to talk DD out of riding. He told her she’d be too scared because it is so dark.

Gee, thanks for the help, BiL.

I thought the ride was turning out to be a disaster, but apparently it was happy screams because as soon as we got off she said she wanted to do it again!

Whew. Nice work conquering the mountain, DD!

20 minutes passed and we called mom… no answer.

Another 15 minutes of multiple failed attempts to call her… the fireworks are going to start soon and we still haven’t seen or heard from her.

Can't talk. Dole Whips.

She tends to be a little too courteous in a crowded environment.

No time for niceties! Get those elbows up!

As for the show.

Well...

Sorry.

I liked Wishes.

Wishes was fine, but I didn't have a lot of emotional attachment to it. That being said, HEA is (like most of these night shows) definitely a Disney clip show.
 
I felt the same way about HEA after seeing it for the first time a few weeks ago. Wasn't bad by an means, but I had zero emotional connection to it, which is what Disney shows has always done for me. With Wishes I had to see it multiple times a trip... going forward, I can do trips without seeing HEA.
 
It was for Enchanted Tales with Belle.

Worth it. I went solo and felt... weird a bit. A grown man? Seeing a kid's show?
But I was impressed with the technology behind it all.

so I grabbed one for Jungle Cruise at 5:20.

Good idea. Looooong waits.

On the way out they handed us the PP card. We were busy corralling kids and kind of on the opposite side of the exit from the PP person handing them out. Sis2 had grabbed one so we decided one for the group was enough and nobody else took a card.

Fast forward a week later, we’re driving to the beach and DW is looking through our PP pictures. None of the Belle pictures were there. I distinctly remembered Sis2 taking the card so we called her to ask if she had it. Her response, “Why would I be the one to get it? I don’t have any kids.”

DW and I both thought about it… we were 100% sure she got the PP card. But we pretty much accepted that it was a lost cause at this point because she didn’t remember it and had no idea where she put it.

It's all her fault!!

A few weeks later we were at the zoo with the kids. DD was going through a small pocket in the stroller and found the PP card…. Literally days before the pictures were to be deleted so we actually have them for you to see!

Oh. Nevermind Sis2!

I wonder if she took it and immediately put it in the stroller and forgot about it.


Like I said. Technology. Lumiere is really impressive.


Belle looks like she's been into Beast's wine cellar a few times.

After seeing Belle, we went to ride IASW.

I'm sorry. My condolences.

So we ended up waiting 20 minutes to ride IASW.

While I wouldn't wait... well, at all for that ride... 20 minutes for anything in Disney isn't bad at all.

After riding IASW, we were going to go over to Splash Mountain. They could ride with the FP’s and we’d get a couple of Rider Swap passes so DW and I could take DS and DD after they ride.

Good plan.


:laughing: Love that shot!!


Awwww!!!! Best shot ever.

LG seemed to enjoy looking around at everything, but he was starting to get restless by the end of the ride.

They grow up so fast. :sad1:

This is when I first uttered 2 words that were in the running for the TR title.

Where’s Mom?

uh oh

Only to realize that Dad had wandered off while we were looking for Mom.

:lmao: Of course!

This folks, was my life for the week. I won’t get into every case where this happened, but it felt like I was herding squirrels.

You can put leashes on squirrels.

Hmmm.....

DD and DS didn’t really seem to understand why they couldn’t just go tap their bands and ride with everyone else so they were getting a little bit restless while we waited. But soon enough it was our turn to take the Rider Swap passes and ride.

Actually, neither do I. Having older kids, I've never bothered to look into the logistics of rider swap.
I just know the term and (vaguely) a little of its mysteries.

I promised that she could ride with me and I’d cover her face so that she could stay dry. Every time we’d start going up a lift hill, she’d bury her face in my lap.

:laughing:


:laughing: Nice shot!

Mom wanted to do something special for LG and offered to pay for a first haircut at the Harmony Barber Shop.

Nice!

ride some flying carpets, I believe.

ride.... some... carpets....


7 times in a row..... I'm still traumatized.


"So..... why am I here exactly?"


That CM is working hard to make it fun for LG.

picked up some new R2D2 Crocs for DS and Minnie Crocs for DD.

Crocs... no. Themed Crocs? Yes.

Sis2 kind of complained that she was still full from lunch, but our kids can be picky eaters. If they don’t want to eat they won’t so when they say they want to eat, we’re going to eat

I totally get this. My Sis was the same.

I quickly realized I should have just kept my mouth shut and changed her FP, I was just being a smart@$$ and going to give whoever forgot to tap their band crap about it. I honestly didn’t expect her to go back through the line so she could tap her band after she was already past.

I'm wondering why she needed to?
If she got that far, she was okay. There was another tapstile farther up anyway, no?

We got on our boat and had a nice cruise! Our skipper was fantastic, but I was a bit disappointed to find out that the Rhino was gone and replaced by a pack of hyenas.

Sad.

The poachers were no longer getting the point in the end.

But our skipper made sure to ask us all to say hi to her new friend.

Hyena!

Horrible... so... good!

He then starts giving her all kinds of stickers and told us that he’s never seen his granddaughter in person before, just through facetime,

Awww.. Tough one.


"So what am I supposed to be doing?"

Just before our trip, LG, DS and I all three were prescribed antibiotics for various ailments. I had been fighting a sinus infection for about 2 weeks, DS had strep and LG had something in between. We packed his antibiotic in a cooler bag in case we didn’t get back to the room during the day. He hated taking that stuff and ended up spitting it all over the place. We had to get some water and try to clean him and us up while he was screaming and crying in the middle of Tomorrowland.

Good times.

:hug:

She never hesitated to hop in and ride. She screamed the whole time. I thought the ride was turning out to be a disaster, but apparently it was happy screams because as soon as we got off she said she wanted to do it again!

Good for her! And the expression on her face speaks volumes.

We came back out and found Dad sitting with LG. We asked the famous question, where’s mom?

Not again!


Look at all those happy faces!!!!

Mom and DS had already taken off to Adventureland for Dole Whips.

Well... I can't blame her there.

I asked her about 3 times where she was just to be sure I heard right and then said a few four letter words.


BEST?
CAKE?
CALM?
CUTE?
FINE?
FREE?
GLAD?
GOOD?
HOPE?
KIND?
LIKE?
LOVE?
LUCK?
NICE?
REST?
WISE?

Are any of these close?


we made it just before HEA began.

Close one. Impressive.

As for the show.

Well...

Sorry.

I liked Wishes.

To me, HEA was just their way to make us forget about the fact that there’s no parade. So in my eyes, it is the replacement for MSEP and Wishes all in one. It’s a good show, the projections and fireworks are great.

But it just didn’t do much for me.

Hmmm... Guess I'll see for myself in November.
Does not bode well.
 
While we were taking turns using the facilities she had wandered off. And nobody knew where. After texts and phone calls we finally located her.

:rotfl2::lmao: This is my mom....all....the....time. My dad, hubs and I once sat on a restaurant patio and watched her wander down a street of shops - she was oblivious that we ha been waiting on her.

Only to realize that Dad had wandered off while we were looking for Mom.

This is priceless - I've not had to worry about this....yet.


That pic is so stinking cute. Definitely a keeper.

Code Silver!!!

:rotfl2::lmao::lmao::lmao: This is going in the shared code vocabulary for hubs and I.
 
The pictures of LG's first haircut are adorable!

Glad to hear DD braved two of the mountains with no issues. Honestly, Space Mountain can be intense for adults, so it's great that she didn't freak out.

Your poor mother...always wandering off or getting stuck in some part of the park.

I'm guessing the Dole Whips were gone by the time you made it back to everyone with the rest of your party?

I completely agree with you on Happily Ever After. It does not measure up to Wishes, at all.
 
Great TR. I totally know what you mean...it's hard being "in charge" and have to make others follow the plan lol...I am always that person too! Sounds like in the end it all worked out ok but not without stress on your part!! I didn't mind HEA but then, I'm usually the type to try to get on rides during the show lol
 
I've never traveled with a stroller (at least, not since shortly after I was the one in the stroller), so I can't be sure about this, but I have some friends who have kids, and I always thought there was some rule that whenever you can't find something, it's always hidden in the stroller somewhere. That's just how the stroller works ... it collects assorted odds and ends.

I'm kinda amused that you kept losing your mom. Wandering kids you kind of expect ... wandering parents, not as much.

I love the first haircut pictures! That really is such a cute idea to do for a kid.

I haven't seen HEA yet, but ... I don't know that I'm excited to see it. I'm trying to be excited, but I love Wishes so much, and I keep hearing meh reviews of HEA. I'm trying to lower my expectations so that I'm not disappointed when I do eventually see, but ... I still want Wishes and MSEP back.
 
Glad you were able to get the ETWB photos- and just in the nick of time!
::yes::

I am sure it was difficult keeping everyone together. Sorry that people wanderd off on more than one occasion!
I think this factor of trying to keep people together and moving when we had to be somewhere is what really took some of the shine off of this trip for me.

Dads must protect their daughters from everything- including water rides! So cute :goodvibes
::yes::

Nice that the boys could get their haircuts on Main Street!
It was nice. I never thought it was anything worth taking the time to do, but they were great with the kids.

Kudos to DD for braving space Mountain...and liking it!!
She was being very adventurous on this trip!

Oh I can't imagine how annoyed you were with your mom for veering off and not being able to get back to your fireworks spot. You're a good man for going after them and bringing them over!
She said they were closing walkways and wouldn't let her walk that way and they sent her the long way around. I can't imagine that... I don't think I've ever seen them not have at least one pathway coming from Adventureland to the Main Street area before without having to circumnavigate the entire park.

I'm sorry to hear HEA didn't do much for you. Wishes will just always be too special!!
Yeah, I miss Wishes. I mean, I liked HEA. But it was ok. Wishes, I'd see it 2 or 3 times on a trip if I could. HEA was nice to see, but once is good.

Long day for you all but it sounds like it was pretty successful!
::yes:: It was a rough start, but ended up being a good day.

So cool it was found. Way to go DD!!!
::Yes::

The other pictures are cool, but this one with dad grandpa is priceless!! LG's smile is just too cool!
He definitely gets the cute thing down well.

Hey Andy, where's mom?
:sad2:

Hey Andy, where's dad? :rotfl2:
:sad2:

All joking aside...truly sorry!
Thanks.

They listened! Be thankful for small victories!!
I know, right?

Great picture. Everyone's faces (well those that aren't buried) look thrilled!
::yes:: This ride was a hit. Especially in July.

At least it wasn't glitter in your truck and no complaints about not having her princess dress. :lmao:
Just glitter on everything else that can be carried on to other things. It's the circle of glitter. It never ends.

I'm really too tired for this people!
He perked up just fine though!

Fantastic picture!

And another
Thanks

That stinks...hoping he's able to make it happen too (for both of them).
::yes:: I know! He was a nice guy, but it was kind of a downer after talking to him. I didn't even know what to say to him. Hard to imagine being in that situation.

Getting little ones to take medication is always a special pain...err blessing. ;)
Something like that...

Looks like everyone enjoyed this one.
Hey Andy, where's mom?
:sad2:

Hey Andy, where's mom?
:sad2:

The things a good dad won't do for his kids!
I'll be honest. I don't think he'd have cared too much. It was more from my sanity and not having to re-arrange more plans later.

::yes::

I've looked at the video online and wasn't impressed. I realize a video online isn't the same, so hopefully I'll like it better in person, but understand.
It's hard to convey my feelings about it. Don't get me wrong, I liked it. The projections were great and they had some nice fireworks that exploded into certain shapes that were really cool. But it just didn't connect with me on a level that you tend to expect from a Disney show.

A very full day...I'm sure everyone slept very well.
::yes::

Hahaha I have this visual in my head and it's cracking me up!
It's funny until you do it! :rotfl2:

That pic is so precious! So adorable!
Thanks

My dd5 is right on the cusp of being able to ride Space but I'm not sure she would like it. My ds doesn't like it. I think because it's dark and you can't really see.
This is what I was afraid of. She doesn't like the dark, but it didn't seem to phase her one bit. We actually only found 2 rides that scared her and you might be a little bit surprised by them...

Your dd on splash reminds me of mine. She was hesitant to go on but it wound up being her favorite ride. She was crying during it but turns out she was worried about the rabbit. Once she found out he was okay at the end, she wanted to go right back on. She likes getting wet though. She's the kid on the rapids ride that gets upset when she doesn't get soaked.
DD loves to swim, which is what gets me. She just doesn't like water splashed in her face. She loved this ride though!

I love this ride, but I can't get the #$@% song out of my head!!!
I know...

Code Silver!!!

Times 2
:rotfl2:

Good thing he's cute!!!

So is LG!

BTW- looking at this photo quickly I thought that your dad had been chained so he wouldn't wander off again.
Actually, he didn't really wander off very far. When we couldn't find him we basically just had to think about where the closest place was to sit down. I think he'd just come to a conclusion that we weren't going anywhere anytime soon so he found a place to sit while he waited.

The hair cut pictures are too stinking cute! SERIOUSLY!!! Like the Harmony Barber Shop should use that shot of LG in advertisements.
Thanks!

LOVE LOVE LOVE these pics
Thanks!

I wish everyone could understand the difference between the kitchen and the servers. My daughter is a server and does pretty well most days. But there always seems to be that one customer you bend over backwards for and they leave you the worst tips.
That doesn't make much sense. I always try to tip well. 20% is typically my standard tip and I adjust up or down from there based on service, but I've always understood that the server doesn't make the food!

Loving your TR! I can feel your pain trying to keep your group together. On a trip to DL I was "in charge" of our group of 8 and one time was enough for me. Being the group leader (for me anyway) took away from my enjoyment of the trip.
This is exactly why I think I felt like this trip just lacked a little bit of the usual magic.

That being said, it looks like you had lots of good moments. Love the picture of LG in the barber shop with his reflection in the mirror - so special!
We certainly did. Thanks!
 

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