A Sept 2018 TR...or that trip where nothing went as planned Completed 11/9

I know it's not Disney, but Gatlinburg is one of my favorite places. I've been about 35 times. Mom said I took my first steps and said my first words there. Dollywood can be fun, too! Lots of fun stuff to do for families.

Wow! 35 is a bunch, for sure! We've been a few times, and I do enjoy it. We're renting a cabin with Micheals whole family. I think it'll be nice :).
 
Wednesday morning, day 5! How have we already been at Disney for 5 days?! Slow down, clock! Slow down!
*Exactly* how I felt! It goes so quick!

But then came the construction. Oh my gosh, y'all, the construction turns that pleasant walk into major UG really quickly.
Also exactly how we felt--we did the walk only once cause of that construction. Blech. Once it's done it'll be a pleasant walk.

When that passed, we continued. Oh, we also got a refill on our popcorn bucket. I forgot to mention in my AK update that at some point we bought the refillable bucket. My sister said I made her feel like a bad mom because she refused to buy one for her kids. :hyper:
LOL are you even at Disney if you don't buy a popcorn bucket?

Once they finished, we decided it was time to eat. We all wanted to try Woody's Lunch Box, and we also used mobile ordering for the first time. Very convenient!
Mobile Ordering at Woody's Lunchbox (and everywhere really) is fantastic. I almost felt bad and wanted to yell to all the people in line "MOBILE ORDERING! DO IT!" but that would have been weird. So worth it to jump that huge line!

Finding a table was less convenient. It was like a survival of the fittest, seriously. We did finally end up SHARING a table with another family. My sister and her husband never did find a table and ended up eating at a bench. Disney loses a few points on Toy Story Land for their lack of shade of way too few tables for Woody's Lunch Box.
Agree 100%. We got there about 20 minutes before they switched from breakfast to lunch and there were these two adult women camping out at one of the best shady tables, waiting for it to switch over to lunch before one of them would get in line. I wanted to tell them to get up and let someone actually use that table, as people stood around waiting for tables.

We decided she could have one, if that's what she wanted for her "big" souvenir (we'd had this talk previously about "we're not buying every toy you see and want"). So, after much deliberation she chose a blue one. I think it's Rae's? Anyway, now she's going to be Rae for Halloween, and Miles is going to be Yoda.
SO CUTE! serious, adorable :)

We decided to leave, and my sister and her family stayed behind to either calm the poor child or give in and wait in stand by for SDD. We stopped for more PP pictures, then made our way to the boat. Guys, the boat is so much better than that horrible long walk. :rotfl2:
So much better!! :)

Y'all, this was one of the best decisions we made this trip! First of all, Magic Kingdom was as "empty" as it ever gets at this point. It was glorious!
Yay! I'm so glad you had a good night--well deserved :)

Ashlyn is now the keeper of Emma's pins. :hug: We plan to add to the lanyard each time we go.
Oh gosh, what a sweet idea! That's a wonderful thing to do. Love it. :)

They were a few dumbos ahead of us, and Micheal had Miles wave at us. I asked him if he was excited and he used his whole body to nod. :earboy2:
The kids are so cute in their own little Dumbo! :)

Our turn came, and the pictures went well. Today, as I write this, I am SO GLAD we stood in line and had these pictures taken. I would still like to see HEA someday, but these pictures are a treasure to us.
Yay! The pictures turned out awesome, too. :) And it just means you'll have to go back to see HEA

While I was gone, Micheal had taken some castle pics with Miles. :love:
Adorable!
 
But then came the construction. Oh my gosh, y'all, the construction turns that pleasant walk into major UG really quickly. Just as we kept thinking we were almost there we would come to another turn, and more walking. It ended up taking at least 20 minutes to walk, if not more (I'm pretty sure it was more, but I can't say it definitively). Two big thumbs down from this family.

That's too bad. We stayed at the BC once and I loved that walk. Hopefully it'll be even better than before once all the construction is done.

Mostly I wanted to introduce you to Emma, because she was fabulous.

And also, another picture with Buzz.

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What a beautiful little girl :love:

I'm having major Disney withdraws, guys. I want to book another trip so bad, and I almost did it for me and Ashlyn for her birthday in January. But, then we decided to go to Gatlinburg, TN, for Christmas. A January trip is out, but maybe we can do a mother/daughter trip sometime next year. I want to go back so badly! :dumbo:

The best cure for those withdrawals is planning another trip…even if it's only in your head for now!

We were looking for a souvenir for Emma's grave. We wanted something Tinkerbell or Brave, and we ended up buying pins--one of each. And actually, we later decided we didn't want to put those on her grave so we ended up getting something else another day. Ashlyn is now the keeper of Emma's pins. :hug: We plan to add to the lanyard each time we go.

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What a sweet idea :lovestruc

But, as we'd passed the Tangled bathrooms Micheal had seen the floating lantern photopass setup. So, here's the story. Emma was a patient at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. While she was in the hospital (extensively, for 7 months before she passed away), she watched Disney movies almost nonstop. Her two favorites were Tangled and Brave. Since she's been gone, we've released floating lanterns for her on her birthdays and Christmases.

When Micheal saw that photo op, he desparately wanted to do it. I did not. It made me feel sad, and I really wanted to see HEA.

But remember all that stuff about me wanting to do what Micheal asked to do, because he asked for so little? Yeah, that. We ended up in line for the photo op. The fireworks started while we were in line. I could see some of them well enough from the line, but I was still pretty sad to be missing the whole show. This would be our only chance to see HEA.

Our turn came, and the pictures went well. Today, as I write this, I am SO GLAD we stood in line and had these pictures taken. I would still like to see HEA someday, but these pictures are a treasure to us.

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Those pictures came out beautiful :love:
 
I've been following along, loving the report! I just need to say that those pictures with the floating lantern are absolutely stunning, and the story behind them.... beautiful.
 


I've also been reading but don't think I've commented yet. Despite some things not going quite as planned it looks like a really fun trip so far and how nice to get to do it with your sister and her family! Thank you for introducing us to Emma. She was beautiful -- as are her brother and sister. I love the many ways you are remembering her with the doll, the pins, lantern photo etc. Just beautiful. Trip withdrawal is definitely a real thing. I hope you're able to plan a return trip soon!
 
But then came the construction. Oh my gosh, y'all, the construction turns that pleasant walk into major UG really quickly. Just as we kept thinking we were almost there we would come to another turn, and more walking. It ended up taking at least 20 minutes to walk, if not more (I'm pretty sure it was more, but I can't say it definitively). Two big thumbs down from this family.
That walk was brutal. I did it a few times, and all but one was in the heat of midday.

we also used mobile ordering for the first time.
I never did use this. I wasn't sure how much of a time saver or added convenience it would be, but it seems like it does work. I've read positive things.

(before our trip, we watched all of the Star Wars movies, which we'd never done before. Ashlyn is a big fan.)
Cool! I have been trying to get anyone else in my family to watch and like (even just a little) Star Wars but they just won't do it.

Today, as I write this, I am SO GLAD we stood in line and had these pictures taken. I would still like to see HEA someday, but these pictures are a treasure to us.
The pictures are wonderful. It's good that you are happy that you got them done. I actually watched HEA from behind the castle one night and it's an interesting perspective.
 


Today, Ashlyn's school went to the pumpkin patch and Miles and I tagged along. Miles loved the animals, and I thought I'd share this cutie pie picture of him.

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Early Extra Magic Hours at Epcot
and Finish the Day Off at the Studios
(Slinky Dog Dash At Last)
So, I'm a morning person. I wake up early almost every day, without an alarm clock. When I wake up I'm ready to jump out of bed and get moving! I do drink coffee, though that's only started in the last year (raising a 1 year old at 35 will do that to you! haha). All that to say, I was super excited to be doing Epcot EMH on Thursday, our 6th day.

It came about like this. *Katie is planning her family's mega Disney vacation. Katie is scheduling most stuff for later in the morning, or into the afternoon, to accommodate hubby's supposed preferences. Dear daughter, Ashlyn who is 8, says one day, "I want to get up every morning really early and go right into the park!" Katie perks up. Really? Ashlyn (who is not a morning person) wants to go into the park early? Katie quickly checked which parks had early EMH on any given day. She saw Thursday morning was Epcot's day, and staying at the Boardwalk she knew this would be ideal.*

Seriously, I was practically giddy with excitement. This was to be our mother/daughter time. We got up and out the door around 7:30am for an 8am opening. We were there and through the turnstiles at 7:45. There were like maybe 20 people there with us? That was it. We waited at the bridge into WS until 8am on the dot, and then they let us through. A few people trickled over toward France, but must of us walked briskly toward Future World.

The morning air wasn't quite sweltering yet, so that was nice. :crazy:

We were headed toward Soarin', which has also consistently been one of Ashlyn's favorites. We arrived by 8:15, and there was a 15 minute wait. Not bad.

We waited our turn then made our way onto our flight. We soared :butterfly. When we got out I asked Ashlyn how she liked it this time around. She said she missed the other one. I asked what she meant, and she said the one with the oranges. I kind of looked at her in shock. The one with the oranges?! The last time she rode it that way, she was 4! I still can't believe she remembers that.

After Soarin', we took a potty break then checked the wait times. Mission Space had no wait, so we made our way across the park. We did Mission Space Green, because I do have a tendency to get motion sickness. It hit me a little, but not terribly bad. Still, that ride isn't very...exciting. Ashlyn seemed to like it though.

It was nearing 9AM, so I wanted to get in line for the M&G with Sadness and Joy, or Baymax. But Ashlyn was NOT interested in meeting characters.

OK, OK, this was "her" morning (so I'd told her). What did she want to do? Spaceship Earth. No problem. We headed that way. Crowds were lined up right there at the front of SE, roped off like cattle. I admit, it was a little intimidating. I don't know that I'd ever like to do real rope drop (doing it at the International Gateway was fine, but it was nothing like this!).

We walked on to SE, and were literally the only people there. :rotfl2: I almost fell getting into our little buggy. I don't know how it even happened, but I'm glad there was no one to witness my blunder. :faint: I always enjoy this ride, and this time was no different. Ashlyn likes it too. Our pictures never showed up on the screen, though.

Once we got off, we did the "Power the City" game thingie in the little Project Tomorrow museum area. Ashlyn also did another activity, some type of video game but I can't remember its name.

By now it was well after 9AM. The wait time for the character m&g's were 45 minutes. I was hot, and getting a little tired already (it was getting real hot, real fast!). Ashlyn still didn't want to meet characters, so I let her choose what to do next. I suggested FEA, but she was still bitter about the wet butt thing from earlier in the trip. :happytv:

Instead, she picked Test Track. Extra FP's to the rescue! We used those and took a race with Chevy. We have the terrible ride photo to prove it. That's us, in the back, not remotely in view.


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At this point, Ashlyn says she doesn't mind meeting the characters. But now it is almost 10. We'd eaten a light breakfast in the room, but we were thirsty and hungry now. I made the decision to forget about the character M&G's. Instead, we headed back toward WS. Again, we passed the poutine booth. If that sucker would have been open I would have totally stopped. But, only 10am. Not open.

We did stop for a picture at the phone booths at the UK pavillion. Right before our trip Ashlyn had watched Paddington 2, and she had seen the red phone booths. So, when she saw these she thought they were super neato. Please excuse this ATROCIOUS picture. There were two others, but they were even worse.

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As we came back from Epcot, a couple was having a wedding at the little pavillion on the Boardwalk. Very cool! But I'm betting those men were steaming in their tuxedos.

We returned to our room and freshened up, and spent a little while relaxing. Then around noon we headed down for lunch on the BW with Micheal and Miles. We did the To-Go cart again. Micheal got the chicken wings, Ashlyn had a grilled cheese, and I had a chili dog. It was fine.

After that, we headed into Ample Hills Creamery for ice cream, and into the Boardwalk Bakery so I could get a yummy cupcake. I ate half of it, and put the rest in our room fridge for the next day.

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Now, it was time to head into Hollywood Studios! We went to the boat dock because we had vowed we would NOT be making the walk to HS again. The boat went to Y&B Club, and then Swan and Dolphin. Then the captain announced there was lightning in the area and we couldn't ride the ferry. We all had to get off at S&D. :eek::faint:

Now, instead of walking from the pool area at BWV, we had to walk all the way from S&D. It wasn't even raining. Sigh.

So, we made the even longer walk to HS. We did laugh about the whole situation, but it didn't make the walk any better. Guess who passed us as we walked? The boat. It docked before we got there. We should have just waited at S&D! GRRRR! (it really wasn't that bad, and we were with a ferry full of others in the same situation, which made it feel not quite so bad)

Our first stop at HS was the Frozen Sing Along. We'd meant to do this in 2014 and 2016 and never actually made it. This was a good time because as you'd have it, the skies opened up just as we got under the pavillion thingy to wait for the next show. It POURED for about 10 minutes, then stopped pretty as you please.

We really loved the sing along! What fun! I'm so glad we did it. Miles loved all the music, and he and Ashlyn loved the "snow" at the end. The history guides were super funny.

After the show, we met up with my sister and her family. They wanted to go shopping, and we wanted to do the Muppets show which we'd also never done. We ended up taking my neice with us to that. Miles wasn't very well behaved during this show, but he did alright I guess. It was almost empty in there, so at least he couldn't disturb too many people.

It was a cute show, and I'd do it again.

Our next FP was for Star Wars. This time, my sister rode with the whole group while I kept the little ones out. At this point it was time for our ADR at Sci-Fi Dine In. We checked in and were seated almost immediately. This meal was at Ashlyn's request, and it was good.

But, Miles had reached his limit of sitting still. He was being super bad, I'm just going to say it. Micheal ended up eating as fast as he could so he could take Miles out. Overall, though, it's a yummy restaurant that we enjoy, and the kids love the show snippets. popcorn::

At last, it was time to head into Toy Story Land for SDD! I was pretty excited about this. I rode with Ashlyn first, and we did rider swap so she could ride a second time with Micheal.

OK, I'm going to show what a silly baby I am here, but I was actually
a little afraid on this ride. I'm not the biggest fan of roller coasters, and it was almost pushing my limits. Ashlyn, though, loved it. She couldn't wait to ride agian with Micheal! The ride photo on this one really stinks.

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Once we all finished SDD (my sis and fam included) we hopped into line for Aliens. The line was almost nonexistent, but we had to wait for two sets before we got on. Someone had...um...lost their cookies?...in the que area. It was not a nice experience. Ahem.

Micheal kept Miles out while we rode. Miles cried almost the whole time, but he did calm down enough to meet an army man. It was almost 8PM at this point, but it was still pretty light.

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We liked Aliens, more than we expected to like it. I wish Miles could have ridden. He was about two inches too short.

My sister and her family decided to hop onto TSMM, but we were pretty tired (we're wimps). On the way out, we stopped in one of the shops and bought Miles a big Mickey and Donald. He was really excited about this, and he still carries those things around and hugs them. :love:

Once we finished that, I asked a PP photographer if she could take our picture facing the exit, with the Crossroads sign thingy in the background. I had seen someone else's photo on here that way, and loved it all lit up. She said...no.

So, we attempted a selfie. I was 2 for 2 of bad selfies for the day (remember the red phone booth). Sigh. :rotfl2:


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That was it for the evening. We did catch a boat back to the BW, and we had a relaxing evening for the next couple hours before going to sleep. Next up, Happy Birthday to Me!
 
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Seriously, I was practically giddy with excitement. This was to be our mother/daughter time. We got up and out the door around 7:30am for an 8am opening. We were there and through the turnstiles at 7:45. There were like maybe 20 people there with us? That was it. We waited at the bridge into WS until 8am on the dot, and then they let us through. A few people trickled over toward France, but must of us walked briskly toward Future World.
Yay! Mother/daughter date! :)

I was hot, and getting a little tired already (it was getting real hot, real fast!).
The heat man, ain't that the truth. Makes you tired almost immediately.

I suggested FEA, but she was still bitter about the wet butt thing from earlier in the trip
:rotfl2:

After that, we headed into Ample Hills Creamery for ice cream, and into the Boardwalk Bakery so I could get a yummy cupcake. I ate half of it, and put the rest in our room fridge for the next day.
YUM!!!

We really loved the sing along! What fun! I'm so glad we did it. Miles loved all the music, and he and Ashlyn loved the "snow" at the end. The history guides were super funny.
This is so underrated. It's super funny for adults (the historians cracked me up!), and of course the kids love it too. It's one of the things I like best about Disney--things the whole family can enjoy together.

Micheal kept Miles out while we rode. Miles cried almost the whole time, but he did calm down enough to meet an army man. It was almost 8PM at this point, but it was still pretty light.
Aw, poor guy. That army man picture is cute though :)

On the way out, we stopped in one of the shops and bought Miles a big Mickey and Donald. He was really excited about this, and he still carries those things around and hugs them. :love:
Adorable!!
 
I've been following along, loving the report! I just need to say that those pictures with the floating lantern are absolutely stunning, and the story behind them.... beautiful.

Thank you so much!

I've also been reading but don't think I've commented yet. Despite some things not going quite as planned it looks like a really fun trip so far and how nice to get to do it with your sister and her family! Thank you for introducing us to Emma. She was beautiful -- as are her brother and sister. I love the many ways you are remembering her with the doll, the pins, lantern photo etc. Just beautiful. Trip withdrawal is definitely a real thing. I hope you're able to plan a return trip soon!

:lovestruc

Love your lantern photos.

Thank you!:flower1:
 
Yay! Mother/daughter date! :)


The heat man, ain't that the truth. Makes you tired almost immediately.


:rotfl2:


YUM!!!


This is so underrated. It's super funny for adults (the historians cracked me up!), and of course the kids love it too. It's one of the things I like best about Disney--things the whole family can enjoy together.


Aw, poor guy. That army man picture is cute though :)


Adorable!!

The bakery cupcake really was delicious. It almost makes me feel a little better about not getting F&W foods. Almost ;)
 
That walk was brutal. I did it a few times, and all but one was in the heat of midday.


I never did use this. I wasn't sure how much of a time saver or added convenience it would be, but it seems like it does work. I've read positive things.


Cool! I have been trying to get anyone else in my family to watch and like (even just a little) Star Wars but they just won't do it.


The pictures are wonderful. It's good that you are happy that you got them done. I actually watched HEA from behind the castle one night and it's an interesting perspective.

The mobile ordering is definitely a big plus, especially in busier spots. We loved it.
 
Then I kept thinking about how every day so far we had ridden almost nothing. Literally, we'd do our FP's and then the day was over.
I fear that this is becoming the norm. The slow times seem to be drifting away.

I asked him if he was excited and he used his whole body to nod. :earboy2:
That is always the best!

Our turn came, and the pictures went well. Today, as I write this, I am SO GLAD we stood in line and had these pictures taken. I would still like to see HEA someday, but these pictures are a treasure to us.

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I am glad that in the end you were glad with the decision. The fireworks will be there next time. That is def something special for your family.
 
Why would they refuse to do a photopass photo with the exit in the background. I would have thought they'd be happy to do whatever photo as long as it was nearby their location
 
So, I'm a morning person. I wake up early almost every day, without an alarm clock. When I wake up I'm ready to jump out of bed and get moving! I
Um, I am so NOT a morning person (except in Disney)! And I hate having to get up and get right in the shower and get dressed :headache: I want to get up, have my cappuccino, relax. Oh and eat. Because regardless of how early or late I get up I'm always immediately ready to eat :laughing:

We really loved the sing along! What fun! I'm so glad we did it. Miles loved all the music, and he and Ashlyn loved the "snow" at the end. The history guides were super funny.
I'm not a Frozen fan but I do enjoy the sing a long! Like you said the historians are fun.
Sounds like another good day :goodvibes I have no idea why the CM refused your picture, that stinks. She was not very Disney- like that day lol
 
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME!
Day 7
Friday, and it was my birthday!!! Ashlyn and I had been waffling on whether we wanted to do Magic Kingdom morning EMH on this day. Our brains said, "Yes!" but our bodies said, "Nooooooooo!" I woke up, shook her awake, and asked if she wanted to get up and go. She groggily said no, and I agreed. So I made coffee and ate the rest of my Boardwalk Bakery cupcake from the day before (cake for breakfast is acceptable on your birthday, as well as on vacation) on our balcony instead. :coffee:::yes::

Today would be a big day. We had Magic Kingdom, Miles's first haircut at Harmony Barber Shop, then Mickey's Backyard BBQ that night.

Knowing all that, we made a lazy morning out of it. Well, lazy in the sense that the family lounged around the room for the first few hours and I did laundry in the BWV laundry room. I prefer to get all my clothes washed before I go home, so I don't have a mountain upon arrival. Is this weird? I don't think so, especially since the laundry room was busy, busy, busy.

I LOVED not paying to use the washers or dryers, guys. Such a nice touch.

We headed into the Magic Kingdom sometime around 10, I think. A MK bus had just pulled up as we made it to the bus stop, so we hopped right on (yay!). For what it's worth, the "bus times" app thing was never accurate for us. We only had one long wait, and I think it was the day we went to Animal Kingdom. I think.

We arrived at MK quickly, and got the morning started off with a castle picture.

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This was a party day, and I'll go ahead and tell you, the crowds were nonexistent. It was fabulous. (And honestly, I bet the EMH was amazing.)

My sister texted and said they were waiting for a bus to the MK, so we decided to hang around the hub for a bit. There were some shady spots, and Miles could get down and play in the fake grass.

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After a while, though, my sister texted and said no bus yes. So, we headed into Adventureland. (I forgot to mention, I think, that we ended up getting my neice a "Baby's 1st Christmas" ornament the day before, at Hollywood Studios, after we did the Muppets show. We also got Emma a Sleeping Beauty shoe ornament, for her grave. Sorry, I don't have pictures of these things!)

We let Ashlyn choose the first ride, and she picked Pirates. It was a short line, maybe 5-10 minutes? Our ride photo came out black, but here's one of Ashlyn in line.

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Next, we took a spin on the magic carpets. Miles is so cute on all these rides (do I sound like a broken record?).

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It was really super hot, so we decided to mark something off Ashlyn's bucket list by visitnig the Enchanted Tiki Room. It was air conditioned, and honestly, we really liked it, and were able to appreciate it for what it was. :daisy::flower1::flower:

Miles fell asleep during the show. When it was over, my sister texted and said they had arrived and were at Jungle Cruise. It was time for our first FP there, so we headed over to meet them. There was no line for JC, even without a FP. We boarded right away. Our skipper was unenthusiastic, and the humor fell completely flat. That was a disappointment, but at least Miles slept through it all so he wouldn't be so cranky for his haircut later. :P

When we got off the boat, Ashlyn got a bunch of JC and Adventureland pressed pennies.

Does anyone else think of JC Penny's when they see "JC"? Just me? OK.

We were all getting hangry for lunch at this point, so we decided on Columbia Harbour House. We did mobile ordering, easy peasy. Found a seat upstairs.

Miles woke up as we got our food and sat down. Micheal and Ashlyn both had chicken fingers. I had the lobster roll, and it was good. And, OK, maybe I'm just stupid but I didn't realize you could get refills on your drinks at QS locations. All you have to do is ask. We found that out when we ate here on this day, because it was so hot, and Micheal said he HAD to have more, so he went and asked.

So, if any of you are like us and did not know this, well, now you do.

It had started to rain when we finished eating, but it was barely more than a light drizzle. We considered going into Hall of Presidents, which we'd never done, but it was 23 minutes until the next show. So, we decided to use our next FP instead.

Time for Splash Mountain! Ashlyn was really nervous, having never ridden it. But, we talked her into it. My sister and her family kept Miles so me, Ashlyn, and Micheal could ride together. This was very special to me because Splash was Emma's favorite ride. (throwback picture to Emma in line before riding back in 2014, a picture she took on the ride, then our ride this trip)

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Ashlyn loved it! Also, the ride stopped for about 5 minutes right in the middle of it. I don't know why, but it wasn't unpleasant. I think it's funny that we're the only people without ponchos. Also, we did NOT get wet, barely sprinkled.

We found the rest of the fam at the Splash Mountain playground. We kept my sister's little boy so she, her hubby, and their older daughter could right together. We stayed at the play area for a while, then went in search of pressed penny machines for more coinage.

When they finished their ride, the dads took the girls on BTMRR. This ride gave me a headache the one time I rode it, and my sister doesn't love it. Instead, we took the little boys back toward main street for snacks. popcorn:::mickeybar

My sister wanted Starbucks, so we headed inside. This was the only place that DID have a long line. :rotfl2:

We texted our husbands and told them to meet us at the baby care station, because I had to change Miles's diaper. We waited, and waited, and waited. No husbands or daughters.

Eventually, we found out this was what they were doing...

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Where were the children? :confused3 We had a good laugh, then decided to get a group picture in front of the castle.

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CONTINUED IN NEXT POST BECAUSE PICTURE LIMIT!



 
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HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME
Continued...

...At this point, it was almost time for us to head to Miles's hair appointment at Harmony Barber Shop. Everyone decided to split up for different things. Ashlyn did not want to go with us to the hair appointment, so she went with sis's hubby and daughter to ride Space Mountain. This time it did not shut down (yay!) and this was Ashlyn's first ride on it. She loved it.

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My sister took her little boy to the Winnie the Pooh ride. And Micheal and I headed to Harmony Barber Shop with Miles. I'm going to do a different post on that, because, well, pictures!

After the haircut, we decided to do some shopping on Main Street. We got tons of souveniers for the family. I didn't take pictures :faint:. We bought:
*Minnie Mouse Notepads for Ashlyn's school teachers
*An Executive Mickey Mouse Ink Pen for my dad
*An Alice In Wonderland Tea Set for my mom
*A Disney Picture Frame for Micheal's mom and stepdad (which we put our family picture in, standing at the castle)
*Disney character ink pens for Ashlyn's cousins

While we were shopping, Micheal came across an Alex and Ani (is that what they're called?) bracelet with a Brave charm. Since it was my birthday, he wanted to get that for me. But, I have this weird OCD thing where I can't stand to start something new without finishing what I've already started. I have a Pandora bracelet with Disney charms, and I have a charm for Emma, and one for Ashlyn. I didn't have any Disney charms representing Miles. So, I insisted I would rather have a new Pandora charm.

Across the street we went to the Pandora store. I got a Winnie the Pooh charm to represent Miles. We always call him our Pooh Bear, and he loves the "I'm Just A Little Black Rain Cloud" song.

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At this point, it was time to meet up with everyone and head out to the boat docks to make our way to Fort Wilderness for a bbq dance party with a certain mouse. :earseek:I plan to do a post later for Harmony Barber Shop, and one for Mickey's Backyard BBQ.
 
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I fear that this is becoming the norm. The slow times seem to be drifting away.


That is always the best!


I am glad that in the end you were glad with the decision. The fireworks will be there next time. That is def something special for your family.

Yes, exactly. And trust me, I can't wait until next time! haha!


Why would they refuse to do a photopass photo with the exit in the background. I would have thought they'd be happy to do whatever photo as long as it was nearby their location

I was honestly a little surprised. And there was no one waiting in line. :confused3


Um, I am so NOT a morning person (except in Disney)! And I hate having to get up and get right in the shower and get dressed :headache: I want to get up, have my cappuccino, relax. Oh and eat. Because regardless of how early or late I get up I'm always immediately ready to eat :laughing:


I'm not a Frozen fan but I do enjoy the sing a long! Like you said the historians are fun.
Sounds like another good day :goodvibes I have no idea why the CM refused your picture, that stinks. She was not very Disney- like that day lol

I am also always ready to eat! :laughing:
 
Friday, and it was my birthday!!! Ashlyn and I had been waffling on whether we wanted to do Magic Kingdom morning EMH on this day. Our brains said, "Yes!" but our bodies said, "Nooooooooo!" I woke up, shook her awake, and asked if she wanted to get up and go. She groggily said no, and I agreed. So I made coffee and ate the rest of my Boardwalk Bakery cupcake from the day before (cake for breakfast is acceptable on your birthday, as well as on vacation) on our balcony instead. :coffee:::yes::

Birthday vacation day!!! :) cake for breakfast? :thumbsup2

A MK bus had just pulled up as we made it to the bus stop, so we hopped right on (yay!).
Nice! You guys had way better MK bus luck than we did. I don't think we ever took a bus to the MK cause the wait was so bad.

Next, we took a spin on the magic carpets. Miles is so cute on all these rides (do I sound like a broken record?).

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This is a great picture! :) And Miles is super cute on all the rides

It was really super hot, so we decided to mark something off Ashlyn's bucket list by visitnig the Enchanted Tiki Room. It was air conditioned, and honestly, we really liked it, and were able to appreciate it for what it was. :daisy::flower1::flower:
Dude, I'm convinced the air conditioning is the only reason anyone does that ride. It's why we did it! :)

Our skipper was unenthusiastic, and the humor fell completely flat. That was a disappointment,
Aw, bummer! When you don't have a good skipper the ride isn't nearly as fun. We got really lucky in that after a string of disappointing skippers on the last few trips, we got amazing skippers this time. it's always a toss up.

But, we talked her into it. My sister and her family kept Miles so me, Ashlyn, and Micheal could ride together. This was very special to me because Splash was Emma's favorite ride. (throwback picture to Emma in line before riding back in 2014, a picture she took on the ride, then our ride this trip)

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Ashlyn loved it!

Yay! I'm so glad Ashlyn ended up loving it, especially since it was Emma's favorite ride and you can all experience it together. It's a great picture of all of you in the one row :)
 

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