Hi Neighbor... I'm in Chester County!
Don't be scared of a split stay..it's sooooo easy to do!!!
We're from Delaware County! My sis lives in Chester County!
Loving the TR so far
A trip report? Ok! 3 resorts..were we nuts?! Day 9 added on 3/8/13 Update! - Complete
- Thread starter supersuperwendy
- Start date
We're from Delaware County! My sis lives in Chester County!
Loving the TR so far
Chellymouse
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Oct 30, 2007
Love your TR! Can't wait for the next installment. 
We were there the same time as your family. We arrived June 14 and checked out the 24th however, we lived at SSR for the whole trip! Kudos for the mega-split stay. Our group consisted of me, DH, DMIL, DSIL and DBIL and their DD and DS. Many firsts this trip. I totally feel for your DH. While I was there the whole 11 days, the last 5 days I had to leave everyday for a conference. Waiting on my photopass cd and then will be starting my TR.
We were there the same time as your family. We arrived June 14 and checked out the 24th however, we lived at SSR for the whole trip! Kudos for the mega-split stay. Our group consisted of me, DH, DMIL, DSIL and DBIL and their DD and DS. Many firsts this trip. I totally feel for your DH. While I was there the whole 11 days, the last 5 days I had to leave everyday for a conference. Waiting on my photopass cd and then will be starting my TR.
Thanks for your report! A Lehigh Valley native here!! Nice seeing the photo's of the VWL since we will be staying there in September. Tell your Dad that the green leather chairs are the most comfortable! When staying there, Dh and I enjoy spending time sitting in the lobby in "our" green chairs people watching! Can't wait to see the next installment!!
Cyndi
Cyndi
supersuperwendy
any happy little thought?
- Joined
- Aug 6, 2006
We're from Delaware County! My sis lives in Chester County!
Loving the TR so far
Hi neighbor!!! Thanks for reading along!! Where in Delaware County are you? Where in Chester County is your sister? I'm in Malvern!!!Love your TR! Can't wait for the next installment.
The weather was amazing wasn't it? We left the 22nd so got out of there right before the rain! I could have stayed at SSR the whole time..I abosolutely love it there..but we wanted to let my parents experience a variety of resorts! I'm looking forward to your TR!
Really enjoying your report. You have a beautiful family.
Looking forward to more!
Thank you so much!!!
I will tell him! My mom told me tonight that VWL was by far his favorite resort. She said he liked SSR too..but hated the couch there!!
I would love to stay at VWL again in the future, but the points are so high for a two bedroom for the dates we want!!!
debbieandroo
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jun 16, 2008
I enjoyed reading a recent TR of yours and am enjoying this one, too. I love that your entire family loves being there and being together.
One thing I don't understand -- your children look older [and are growing up to be so beautiful and handsome] but you keep looking younger?
How does THAT work?!?!!?
One thing I don't understand -- your children look older [and are growing up to be so beautiful and handsome] but you keep looking younger?
How does THAT work?!?!!?
supersuperwendy
any happy little thought?
- Joined
- Aug 6, 2006
I enjoyed reading a recent TR of yours and am enjoying this one, too. I love that your entire family loves being there and being together.
One thing I don't understand -- your children look older [and are growing up to be so beautiful and handsome] but you keep looking younger?
Thanks for reading both!!! I guess good genetics are to blame! If you watch my tour of BLT at the end my mom walks in... I don't think she looks mid 60s!!! Plus...in 2010 I was still carrying baby weight from having Leah in Nov. 2009!
Chellymouse
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Oct 30, 2007
Th rain from Debby started to fall as we were leaving MK on Saturday night. It was quite soggy getting 7 people and a sea of luggage of carry on bags up to bell services. It was quite a mess! Take off and the first 35 minutes of the flight were interesting, but after that is was smooth sailing. I have to agree that the weather was perfect. I was pleasantly surprised at how humane the heat and humidity were!
supersuperwendy
any happy little thought?
- Joined
- Aug 6, 2006
Day 4...Leah's first haircut! June 17, 2012
Day 4 started with a very nice morning! My dad made breakfast yet again!!! My older three got to sleep in a bit which they enjoyed. Leah had an appointment to get her first haircut!!! A wonderful DISigner made this for her...
I knew from the moment she was born I wanted her first haircut at the magic kingdom! We had a few trips planned prior to this one that we cancelled so this was supposed to take place in 2011! The three of us left a bit early so I could get him checked in for his flight later that day. His airline didn't particpate with the resort airline check in desk so I stopped at the concierge desk to see if they could help me. The wonderful CM was able to check him in, select his seat and print his boarding pass! While I did that Phil walked to the boat dock with Leah.
He snapped some pics along the way!
She LOVES waterfalls (see my bushkill falls videos on youtube!)
Boat dock at Wilderness Lodge!<------click here!
We enjoyed the nice boat ride to MK..we love the music they play on the boats! There was a pretty big crowd waiting to see the good morning welcome. We zig zagged through the crowd and got to the gate. The CM admitted us to the park because her appointment was right at 9am and the barber shop asked us to arrive 15min early. It was so cool to be in there before opening. The barber shop was still closed so we waited on the corner and watched the nearby CMs prep for opening. Leah played doggy while she waited....lol
Then the doors opened and the horse carriage started to come out!
I heard the music start to play for the good morning show so I got out my video camera! It was so cool to see it from the inside with the crowds rushing in!
MK good morning from the inside...please ignore my singing!
Magic Kingdom Good Morning from the inside!!<---click here!!!
Leah was assigned the sweetest hairdresser named Marylou!!!
Leah's First Haircut at The Magic Kingdom!!!
Leah's First Haircut part 1 <------CLICK HERE!!!
Leah's First Haircut part 2 <-----CLICK HERE!!!
Leah's First Haircut part 3...she didn't want the ears!!! <-----CLICK HERE!!!
She started off pretty good and didn't get upset until the very end! They wrote her out a nice cerificate celebrating her first haircut, they gave her a super cute ear hat that said "My 1st haircut" on the back and a little bag containing the first snip of her hair!!! It was such a sweet and special moment for us that was a long time coming! I was so thrilled that Phil was there to share it with me and it was Father's Day too!!!
After her haircut we decided to take her on Goofy's Barnstormer before leaving the park. On the way we stopped for a few pictures!
We got to Storybook Circus and couldn't believe our eyes! The Casey Jr. water play area was open! The CM said she was surprised too and wasn't expecting a soft opening! It wasn't supposed to be open at all during our trip! There was no line for the Great Goofini/Barnstormer and we got right on! She was so tiny in the seat and couldn't really see over the front. She seemed to enjoy it though and asked to ride again! She loves trains so much so we took her over to the Magic Kingdom Railroad to ride back to main street. The train station is so nice looking..I can't wait for the rest of new fantasyland to open!
Here's a video of the train arriving in storybook circus!
Magic Kingdom Railroad arriving! <----click here
We took the train to main street and left the park! It was so soon after park opening that there was nowhere to exit!!! They said..leaving already?! We said yes...water park time!!! We got on the resort launch and had the funniest young captain. He called Leah a princess and she replied with her pirate growl - arrgh! So on the journey she kept pretending to be a pirate so he handed her a pirate bandana, a sword and an eye patch! Now this girl wouldn't wear an ear hat all week, but she LOVED this pirate stuff!!!
We got back to WL and the kids were already in their bathing suits! We were headed to a water park...but which one? We decided to board the first bus that pulled up!! My parents stayed at WL and spent the day with Bill and Angela at the pool. They fell in love with the wilderness lodge! She said that afternoon was a highlight of their trip!
We got out to the bus stop and waited....BLIZZARD BEACH! YAYYY!!
I had never been to Blizzard Beach so I was very excited!!! Phil and Lauren went in 2007 while I took the little ones to MK. Everyone was pretty hungry by this time so I suggested we eat lunch first. They were like NOWAY! So after getting a locker we split up. Phil and the older three went off to slide and I took Leah to get lunch. We found a nice table at LottaWatta Lodge and had some goodies! After lunch I took her to Tike's Peak which she really loved. After about a half hour Phil showed up at tike's peak! He said the other kids were off sliding so we should do something together. We went over the the lazy river..Cross Country Creek. They had nice little tubes with flat bottoms for kids so Leah sat criss cross (indian style) and I got on a big tube. Phil stayed in the water and held onto both of us! After a bit he got on a tube too and three of us floated down the river!!! I really wanted to take her to Melt Away Bay since she liked the wave pool so much at hersheypark. It was surprisingly hard to walk through there while holding her! The little bobbing waves kept knocking me down a bit!!!
She LOVED it at the wave pool.
Earlier in the day the other kids stopped at the wave pool too!
After the wave pool we took her over to Teamboat Springs. The line was pretty long, but seemed to move quickly. We were seated with a dad and his two boys and we were off! OH MY GOODNESS...that thing moved FAST!!! I held onto Leah for dear life! But she was laughing...she loved it!!
We walked right by this photo op..but the kids noticed it!!
After a while back at Tike's Peak the other kids showed up and informed us that they were STARVING!!! So back to Lottawotta Lodge we went!
We decided to all go and ride teamboat springs together since a raft fits 6..perfect!!! It was so fun to ride it as a family!!! The day at blizzard beach was pure perfection!! The weather was so beautiful and everyone had a great time. It was such a nice way to spend our last day with Phil. We stopped for one more photo on our way out...
If we had planned ahead and brought clothes with us we could have hopped to a park!! But nope...we headed back to the hotel. Phil still wanted to ride the new Star Tours so we did a quick change and ran back out to the bus stop! It was probably around 3 pm and his DME was coming at 6. We needed to hurry!! Luckily..a DHS bus came right away!!! We got to the park and I told them to run ahead. Leah wasn't big enough to ride and I needed to visit bag check. So she and I took our time making our way to star tours. We walked through animation courtyard and past toy story mania. We made our past the muppets and up to star tours. We got a few pics along the way!
Though he tried so hard the photographer couldn't make her giggle!
I had to tickle her to get her to smile in the next one!!
I thought we had lots of time because moblie magic listed standby as 40 min. Well we got to Star Tours and they were waiting for me and go ..oh there you are! They said there was NO line at all and got right on! The big kids took leah into Tatooine Traders and Phil and I got in standby to ride together!! The line moved so fast and we were on a jif..! We got a totally different scene than he saw the first time so that was cool! Leah had found a spining light up R2D2 toy that we just had to buy her upon exiting! One look at the time and we knew we needed to bolt. We got the bus stop and luckily didn't wait long!
The sadness was starting to hit everyone. We got back to the resort and met up with my parents, bill and angela. Here is where we cheated the system..no flames please
My mom mentioned how fun it would be to take them to the magic kingdom. My brother thought it sounded fun because he hadn't been there in years and not with us since 1986! I said..omg! Use phils ticket! The YES passes have no finger scan and it was still good for that night, plus it had two water park entries left on it. My mom offered to buy angela a ticket and off to the lobby we went to wait for DME and to get angela's ticket. This is when it really hit Lauren that Phil was leaving and her tears started flowing. She cried so hard..I felt terrible. Next thing we knew his bus was there and it was time to say goodbye. The kids crowded around him hugging and crying. I knew we'd see him in a few days but to the kids it was heartbreak. I gave him a huge hug and kiss and he was off. 
Lauren was still crying for the next 10 minutes. She went into the ladies room to try to calm down and I followed her in. After a nice long hug and a promise of a new pin to cheer her up she came out!
Day 4 part 2 to continue..late night at MK!!!
.
Day 4 started with a very nice morning! My dad made breakfast yet again!!! My older three got to sleep in a bit which they enjoyed. Leah had an appointment to get her first haircut!!! A wonderful DISigner made this for her...
I knew from the moment she was born I wanted her first haircut at the magic kingdom! We had a few trips planned prior to this one that we cancelled so this was supposed to take place in 2011! The three of us left a bit early so I could get him checked in for his flight later that day. His airline didn't particpate with the resort airline check in desk so I stopped at the concierge desk to see if they could help me. The wonderful CM was able to check him in, select his seat and print his boarding pass! While I did that Phil walked to the boat dock with Leah.
He snapped some pics along the way!
She LOVES waterfalls (see my bushkill falls videos on youtube!)
Boat dock at Wilderness Lodge!<------click here!
We enjoyed the nice boat ride to MK..we love the music they play on the boats! There was a pretty big crowd waiting to see the good morning welcome. We zig zagged through the crowd and got to the gate. The CM admitted us to the park because her appointment was right at 9am and the barber shop asked us to arrive 15min early. It was so cool to be in there before opening. The barber shop was still closed so we waited on the corner and watched the nearby CMs prep for opening. Leah played doggy while she waited....lol
Then the doors opened and the horse carriage started to come out!
I heard the music start to play for the good morning show so I got out my video camera! It was so cool to see it from the inside with the crowds rushing in!
MK good morning from the inside...please ignore my singing!
Magic Kingdom Good Morning from the inside!!<---click here!!!
Leah was assigned the sweetest hairdresser named Marylou!!!
Leah's First Haircut at The Magic Kingdom!!!
Leah's First Haircut part 1 <------CLICK HERE!!!
Leah's First Haircut part 2 <-----CLICK HERE!!!
Leah's First Haircut part 3...she didn't want the ears!!! <-----CLICK HERE!!!
She started off pretty good and didn't get upset until the very end! They wrote her out a nice cerificate celebrating her first haircut, they gave her a super cute ear hat that said "My 1st haircut" on the back and a little bag containing the first snip of her hair!!! It was such a sweet and special moment for us that was a long time coming! I was so thrilled that Phil was there to share it with me and it was Father's Day too!!!
After her haircut we decided to take her on Goofy's Barnstormer before leaving the park. On the way we stopped for a few pictures!
We got to Storybook Circus and couldn't believe our eyes! The Casey Jr. water play area was open! The CM said she was surprised too and wasn't expecting a soft opening! It wasn't supposed to be open at all during our trip! There was no line for the Great Goofini/Barnstormer and we got right on! She was so tiny in the seat and couldn't really see over the front. She seemed to enjoy it though and asked to ride again! She loves trains so much so we took her over to the Magic Kingdom Railroad to ride back to main street. The train station is so nice looking..I can't wait for the rest of new fantasyland to open!
Here's a video of the train arriving in storybook circus!
Magic Kingdom Railroad arriving! <----click here
We took the train to main street and left the park! It was so soon after park opening that there was nowhere to exit!!! They said..leaving already?! We said yes...water park time!!! We got on the resort launch and had the funniest young captain. He called Leah a princess and she replied with her pirate growl - arrgh! So on the journey she kept pretending to be a pirate so he handed her a pirate bandana, a sword and an eye patch! Now this girl wouldn't wear an ear hat all week, but she LOVED this pirate stuff!!!
We got back to WL and the kids were already in their bathing suits! We were headed to a water park...but which one? We decided to board the first bus that pulled up!! My parents stayed at WL and spent the day with Bill and Angela at the pool. They fell in love with the wilderness lodge! She said that afternoon was a highlight of their trip!
We got out to the bus stop and waited....BLIZZARD BEACH! YAYYY!!
I had never been to Blizzard Beach so I was very excited!!! Phil and Lauren went in 2007 while I took the little ones to MK. Everyone was pretty hungry by this time so I suggested we eat lunch first. They were like NOWAY! So after getting a locker we split up. Phil and the older three went off to slide and I took Leah to get lunch. We found a nice table at LottaWatta Lodge and had some goodies! After lunch I took her to Tike's Peak which she really loved. After about a half hour Phil showed up at tike's peak! He said the other kids were off sliding so we should do something together. We went over the the lazy river..Cross Country Creek. They had nice little tubes with flat bottoms for kids so Leah sat criss cross (indian style) and I got on a big tube. Phil stayed in the water and held onto both of us! After a bit he got on a tube too and three of us floated down the river!!! I really wanted to take her to Melt Away Bay since she liked the wave pool so much at hersheypark. It was surprisingly hard to walk through there while holding her! The little bobbing waves kept knocking me down a bit!!!
She LOVED it at the wave pool.
Earlier in the day the other kids stopped at the wave pool too!
After the wave pool we took her over to Teamboat Springs. The line was pretty long, but seemed to move quickly. We were seated with a dad and his two boys and we were off! OH MY GOODNESS...that thing moved FAST!!! I held onto Leah for dear life! But she was laughing...she loved it!!
We walked right by this photo op..but the kids noticed it!!
After a while back at Tike's Peak the other kids showed up and informed us that they were STARVING!!! So back to Lottawotta Lodge we went!
We decided to all go and ride teamboat springs together since a raft fits 6..perfect!!! It was so fun to ride it as a family!!! The day at blizzard beach was pure perfection!! The weather was so beautiful and everyone had a great time. It was such a nice way to spend our last day with Phil. We stopped for one more photo on our way out...
If we had planned ahead and brought clothes with us we could have hopped to a park!! But nope...we headed back to the hotel. Phil still wanted to ride the new Star Tours so we did a quick change and ran back out to the bus stop! It was probably around 3 pm and his DME was coming at 6. We needed to hurry!! Luckily..a DHS bus came right away!!! We got to the park and I told them to run ahead. Leah wasn't big enough to ride and I needed to visit bag check. So she and I took our time making our way to star tours. We walked through animation courtyard and past toy story mania. We made our past the muppets and up to star tours. We got a few pics along the way!
Though he tried so hard the photographer couldn't make her giggle!
I had to tickle her to get her to smile in the next one!!
I thought we had lots of time because moblie magic listed standby as 40 min. Well we got to Star Tours and they were waiting for me and go ..oh there you are! They said there was NO line at all and got right on! The big kids took leah into Tatooine Traders and Phil and I got in standby to ride together!! The line moved so fast and we were on a jif..! We got a totally different scene than he saw the first time so that was cool! Leah had found a spining light up R2D2 toy that we just had to buy her upon exiting! One look at the time and we knew we needed to bolt. We got the bus stop and luckily didn't wait long!
The sadness was starting to hit everyone. We got back to the resort and met up with my parents, bill and angela. Here is where we cheated the system..no flames please
My mom mentioned how fun it would be to take them to the magic kingdom. My brother thought it sounded fun because he hadn't been there in years and not with us since 1986! I said..omg! Use phils ticket! The YES passes have no finger scan and it was still good for that night, plus it had two water park entries left on it. My mom offered to buy angela a ticket and off to the lobby we went to wait for DME and to get angela's ticket. This is when it really hit Lauren that Phil was leaving and her tears started flowing. She cried so hard..I felt terrible. Next thing we knew his bus was there and it was time to say goodbye. The kids crowded around him hugging and crying. I knew we'd see him in a few days but to the kids it was heartbreak. I gave him a huge hug and kiss and he was off. Lauren was still crying for the next 10 minutes. She went into the ladies room to try to calm down and I followed her in. After a nice long hug and a promise of a new pin to cheer her up she came out!
Day 4 part 2 to continue..late night at MK!!!
.
supersuperwendy
any happy little thought?
- Joined
- Aug 6, 2006
That was the biggest surprise..the humidity was so low and it was hotter here in Philly during those days!!! I was also surprised at how low the crowds were!
wdrl
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- May 15, 2009
Leah was a good little trooper while getting her haircut! The MK Barbershop might be just the thing for our family gathering next year. We'll have two great nephews who will just under 13 months of age, so it might be time for a first haircut. And if they aren't ready, we'll have a set of twin great nephews that will be almost age 2.5, and they probably will need a haircut.
Thanks for posting your photos and videos!
Thanks for posting your photos and videos!
supersuperwendy
any happy little thought?
- Joined
- Aug 6, 2006
The baby's first haircut books up well in advance just like dining!! Call at your 180 mark to make an appointment!!! Their prices are pretty good too. If I had gotten my sons haircut it would have only been $15..that's decent. They had some regulars waiting at the door right after we walked in. Then the chairs filled up and they were on a wait...very popluar place!
Everyone in there was so sweet and I'm so happy we waited!!!!
supersuperwendy
any happy little thought?
- Joined
- Aug 6, 2006
Day 4 part 2 - only in two parts because my son was begging for the computer the other day!!!
After Phils depature we made our way to the boat dock. It was a beautiful evening and my mom was so excited to have my brother along! He was a little nervous about using Phil's ticket but I told him not to worry. While I was in bag check he made his way though the turnstile perfectly. We got to Main Street and Angela stopped us to take a picture. She wanted to update the one my dad took in 1986! I'm waiting for her to email it to me.
Here's the original...
Whatever happened to the trees in front of the castle?
updated version!
We had a quick chat to decide which way to go. Everyone opted for BTMRR. Lauren ran ahead to get fastpasses. As the rest of us walked we stopped for a pic...poor Lauren is missing from so many pictures.
She followed instructions perfectly and met us at Pirates of the Caribbean. There was no line and we got right into a boat!! After pirates we could use our fastpasses at BTMRR. My dad took Leah and went to Fantasyland to take her on the merry go round. He was going to meet us at It's a Small World.
We got in the fastpass line which moved so fast!!! I really think enforcing the return times has made fastpass so much more efficient.
It was so fun!!! I think it feels faster at night!! My mom came off and said NO MORE! She said that was the last roller coaster for her for the rest of her life. She felt a little whip lashed.
After BTMRR Lauren ran over to get Jungle Cruise fp and met us at IASW. My dad arrived with Leah at just about the same time Lauren came with the fastpasses! There was a bit of a line for It's a Small World but we didn't mind. These were the kinds of things Bill and Angela wanted to do..the classics! After IASW the kids got Dibbs from an ice cream cart and started to make our way back to adventureland. This became tricky! The hub was PACKED since it was nearly time for the magic memories and you and MSEP. We should have gone back through Liberty Square...duh!!! Oh well... we made it to Jungle Cruise and got Phils favorite skipper!!! If possible try to get Jeremiah! He's sooo funny! After Jungle my parents found a table near the sunshine tree terrace and got some drinks. The kids and I cut through the walkway to Frontierland because the Main Street Electrical Parade was coming! We had a pretty good view and watched the whole thing! Mid way through Bill and Angela joined us and they really liked it!
After the parade everyone was hungry so we went to Pecos Bill. The kids ordered a bunch of different items like chili, corn on the cob, onion rings etc. By the time we finished eating Leah was a mess. She was soooo tired and this was by far her latest night out. I needed to get her to bed. MK had evening EMH and I wanted to spend it with the kids and with Bill and Angela it would have awesome. But I had to get leah in bed. Lauren and Darren still wanted to do stuff so they left to ride Splash Mountain. My parents and Bill and Angela still weren't quite ready to leave so I'm not sure what they did next. Ashley came with me and we left the park. Since WISHES had just ended and there was a mass exodus from the park I figured the line for the boat would have been long. I was totally suprised to be the second people in line and hardly anyone behind us! Leah was sound asleep in her stroller when the boat arrived. Ashley was a huge help and held her for me while I managed the stroller. I talked to my mom and they had planned to come back and babysit and ashley and I would return to MK. Instead once I got to the room I was so tired too! I needed to pack up again since we were moving to SSR. Plus...the kids had their YES class in the morning. I called Lauren and told her and Darren to catch the boat back as well. My parents got back and Bill was already gone. We got our bags packed up and went to bed!
We were so sad that Phil was gone. Oh and poor Phil...his flight was delayed!
He had to work in the morning so after his late flight and two hour drive home from Atlantic City he was exhausted for work on Monday.
Next up Day 5....Exploring Careers in Marine Science!
.
After Phils depature we made our way to the boat dock. It was a beautiful evening and my mom was so excited to have my brother along! He was a little nervous about using Phil's ticket but I told him not to worry. While I was in bag check he made his way though the turnstile perfectly. We got to Main Street and Angela stopped us to take a picture. She wanted to update the one my dad took in 1986! I'm waiting for her to email it to me.
Here's the original...
Whatever happened to the trees in front of the castle?
updated version!
We had a quick chat to decide which way to go. Everyone opted for BTMRR. Lauren ran ahead to get fastpasses. As the rest of us walked we stopped for a pic...poor Lauren is missing from so many pictures.
She followed instructions perfectly and met us at Pirates of the Caribbean. There was no line and we got right into a boat!! After pirates we could use our fastpasses at BTMRR. My dad took Leah and went to Fantasyland to take her on the merry go round. He was going to meet us at It's a Small World.
We got in the fastpass line which moved so fast!!! I really think enforcing the return times has made fastpass so much more efficient.
It was so fun!!! I think it feels faster at night!! My mom came off and said NO MORE! She said that was the last roller coaster for her for the rest of her life. She felt a little whip lashed.
After BTMRR Lauren ran over to get Jungle Cruise fp and met us at IASW. My dad arrived with Leah at just about the same time Lauren came with the fastpasses! There was a bit of a line for It's a Small World but we didn't mind. These were the kinds of things Bill and Angela wanted to do..the classics! After IASW the kids got Dibbs from an ice cream cart and started to make our way back to adventureland. This became tricky! The hub was PACKED since it was nearly time for the magic memories and you and MSEP. We should have gone back through Liberty Square...duh!!! Oh well... we made it to Jungle Cruise and got Phils favorite skipper!!! If possible try to get Jeremiah! He's sooo funny! After Jungle my parents found a table near the sunshine tree terrace and got some drinks. The kids and I cut through the walkway to Frontierland because the Main Street Electrical Parade was coming! We had a pretty good view and watched the whole thing! Mid way through Bill and Angela joined us and they really liked it!
After the parade everyone was hungry so we went to Pecos Bill. The kids ordered a bunch of different items like chili, corn on the cob, onion rings etc. By the time we finished eating Leah was a mess. She was soooo tired and this was by far her latest night out. I needed to get her to bed. MK had evening EMH and I wanted to spend it with the kids and with Bill and Angela it would have awesome. But I had to get leah in bed. Lauren and Darren still wanted to do stuff so they left to ride Splash Mountain. My parents and Bill and Angela still weren't quite ready to leave so I'm not sure what they did next. Ashley came with me and we left the park. Since WISHES had just ended and there was a mass exodus from the park I figured the line for the boat would have been long. I was totally suprised to be the second people in line and hardly anyone behind us! Leah was sound asleep in her stroller when the boat arrived. Ashley was a huge help and held her for me while I managed the stroller. I talked to my mom and they had planned to come back and babysit and ashley and I would return to MK. Instead once I got to the room I was so tired too! I needed to pack up again since we were moving to SSR. Plus...the kids had their YES class in the morning. I called Lauren and told her and Darren to catch the boat back as well. My parents got back and Bill was already gone. We got our bags packed up and went to bed!
We were so sad that Phil was gone. Oh and poor Phil...his flight was delayed!
He had to work in the morning so after his late flight and two hour drive home from Atlantic City he was exhausted for work on Monday. Next up Day 5....Exploring Careers in Marine Science!
.
supersuperwendy
any happy little thought?
- Joined
- Aug 6, 2006
June 18, 2012
I set an early alarm for the 18th. The girls were having their Disney Youth Education Series class that morning at Epcot. I woke them up and they got dressed nice and quickly. Darren and Leah got to sleep in! We were already packed up for our move to SSR so I left our bags by the door. My parents were going to call Bell Services to get everything before they headed out. The girls and I left to catch an early bus to Epcot. The bus stop was packed! I thought oh man I hope they aren't going to Epcot too lol. They were all going to early EMH at AK. We were the only people on the Epcot bus!
We had to report to the flagpole outside of the main gate by 8:30am. We got there with plenty of time to spare so we grabbed some goodies from the coffee stand near the monorail entrance. I had to the most delicious apple turnover...omg it was GREAT!!! Sadly though the coffee was AWFUL. I threw it away after a few sips. Before we knew it there was a lot of other kids and parents waiting too. This was the "Making Waves with a Marine Career" class. It was for ages 12-17 and since Ashley was only 12 I needed to be her chaperone! I'm soooo happy I got to join them! A nice girl came out with a clip board and started checking everyone in and dividing us into groups. We were given the nicest man and I wish I could remember his name right now! I do know he's a musician by trade and actor too he said. We were all given headsets to wear to hear him better. The kids were to stay at the front of the group with us parents to the rear. The other parents were awesome. There was a dad who works about 1/2 from my house and another mom who's a school bus driver like me. There were a few more moms and they were so cool too. The tour started and we walked to the Seas with Nemo and Friends pavilion. I still like to call it The Living Seas! We started in the usual areas that all guests see and he discussed what kind of jobs went into creating the aquarium. After a bit we moved to backstage areas!!! It was AMAZING! First stop was a locking box. We all had to put in every accessory on our body from cell phones to cameras, earrings, purses, sunglasses etc. Then we went to the top of the tanks! It's so cool up there! We could look down and watch the fish and dolphins. We then went to another backstage area....if you ever look into the dolphin tank you can see a net to the far side with other dolphins behind it..we were back there! There's a separate tank for dolphin research. They had tons of pvc pipe in various shapes on the wall. They use them to test the dolphins sonar abilities. It was amazing! Next we got to see some manatees they were treating for injuries. They are a manatee rehabilitation center and had two that were injured by boat propellers. What gentle creatures they were! The poor things had injured fins.
All the while our guide was posing great questions to the kids. Then we went outside. Behind the pavilion is a HUGE wooden tank. They use it for sharks who need special attention and other things too. We saw the huge water filters used to keep the water clean. Did you know that 80% of the water in the aquarium right now is the original water from 1986???? It's true!! We got to visit the control room. We met the man in charge of everything to do with the water purity. They also control the fish pond in Japan at Epcot and Shark Reef at Typhoon Lagoon. He said AK also has a control center of their own. If you've ever watched LOST...this control room felt very Dharma like!! haha It had a nice new computer but the rest was straight out of the early 80s!! We went back inside to the public areas. They were put into little groups and did a project involving a paper, pen and a timer. What exactly they did I'm not sure lol. Next time you are walking around the pavilion look for some randomly placed gray benches. We all sat down there and met a marine professional. I wish I could remember his position. Everything he said was very interesting. After that a potty break! Next we went backstage again then into the most beautiful VIP lounge. This was a gorgous room used for private events and meetings. It has an AMAZING view into the aquarium!!! It was better than any other view point...hands down. The kids were grouped again and sat down at a large conference table. The other parents and I just stared at the amazing view!!! Each group was given a sheet telling about an ill marine animal. They had to diagnose and come up with a treatment plan for the animal. Once they were done they each did their presentation. I was very impressed! They all did so well!!! We were supposed to watch Turtle Talk with Crush at then end of the tour but it was packed. We all said it was no biggie to skip it and the tour was over (around 11am). We returned our headsets and said our goodbyes. It was absolutely one of the best things I've ever experienced in all my years of visiting WDW. My girls really enjoyed it too and would like to try another YES class in the future!
Lauren took some nice photos that morning!
We headed toward the exit and I gave my mom a call. They were just parking and would be meeting us by spaceship earth in a little while. We took a walk over to club cool before making our way to spaceship earth. There was a huge line at bag check so I knew there was extra time so the girls went to try Sum of all Thrills but came back pretty quickly..they said the line was LONG. After a little while my parents came with Leah and Darren! Leah was very excited to see us! We were STARVING and decided to try Katsura for lunch. My dad was still hurting from when he fell at BLT. I found out he didn't just twist his ankle he actually tripped over Leah's folded up stroller and hit the ground hard. Since he was walking so slow my parents headed towards Japan right away. Ashley and Darren saw Stitch and went over for some autographs!
Leah was crying BIG TIME because she wanted me to carry her. I kept her in the stroller so we could cover more ground faster. I know how much she loves Figment so we took a pit stop at the imagination pavilion. One ride on Figment and she was cured of her crying! There was no getting her back in the stroller though so we let her walk.
We stopped for a picture on the way to Japan!
My parents got us a table and already orderd by the time we got there. I ordered our lunch and had sticker shock! It was over $60 for me and the kids!!! Ashley knew Myuki was going to start her demo any minute so she and Darren chowed down quickly and ran downstairs. She did a great demonstration and said she no longer hands the candy out but takes it to a local hospital. We thought that was very nice. My mom suggested they go inside to do Ashley's Pick a Pearl. My mom had given her a certifcate on her Bday at BLT!
Ashley had been wanting to do this for years so she was very excited!
I took some video with my phone!
Pick a Pearl at Epcot! <--------Click Here!
After we were done at Japan we went back over to France to see if the movie was working....it was! Lauren decided she didn't want to watch it and would rather work on her duffy and get it stamped at each country. So she headed off for her own world showcase adventure. There was still about 10 minutes till the next showing so Ashley had time to meet Marie!!
Marie was excited to see she had her own page in Ashley's book!
It was time for the movie! We got great seats in the middle of the theater. As soon as it started Leah was enthralled! She thought she was on a ride! It is an amazing film and I can't wait to see it again. After the movie my mom got a table in the gift shop and my dad went into the bakery for coffee. Lauren met up with us and I suggested the kids hop over to Animal Kingdom. They had yet to see it this trip and with my dad in slow motion there was no need to hang around with us. They said goodbye and headed off for some fun! I told them I would text them our location and room number at SSR. My dad was really hurting so we decided it was a good idea to go check in at SSR. On the way out Leah and I stopped for a picture in front of her favorite things to say...
SPACESHIP EARF !
I took the keys to the van and started walking across the blazing hot parking lot. My parents waited for the tram. Leah and I got started up the air conditioner in the van and waited for my parents. They arrived at the van within a few moments and we were off! We were on our way to Saratoga Springs! I was very excited about staying at SSR again. It was Ashley's resort of choice since it was her birthday visit!
We got to SSR around 3 and were hoping our room would be ready. Lucky for us it was!!! The reservation was back in my name so no problems with check in. I had requested Congress Park and that's what we got. I knew my parents would like the theming of the resort since they are into horse racing. We were on the 4th floor and would have had a DTD view if not for the huge tree blocking the view! My parents LOVED how convenient the parking was at Saratoga as compared to the other two resorts. We entered the room and I was stunned!!! We were given a newly refurbished room! From the earliest released info about the refurb I didn't think I was gonna like it...but I did!
I did a room tour of the new room!
Refurbished Two Bedroom Villa at Saratoga Springs!<----click here!
We called Bell Services and our bags arrived in no time by a super friendly CM! My mom was dying for an iced cold drink so I inquired where the ice machine was located. Instead of just telling me he took the bucket and fetched the ice for us!!! He was soooo nice! The kids were still having fun at AK so I told them to take their time and where the room was. My mom said they were going to take a trip to the grocery store so we made a list of stuff to get. She planned on making chili for dinner!!! yummy!
The kids came back and while my parents were out we went to check out the paddock pool. It was a nice early evening walk to the paddock...except for the tons and tons of gnats along the walkway! The pool wasn't too crowded and felt great. Leah and I played along the zero entry portion and the big kids went directly to the water slide. I met a nice mom and chatted for a while. It was a great relaxing end to our amazing day! I took Leah back with Darren and the girls stayed a little longer. The chili was ready and smelled wonderful!!! We all ate a nice dinner and it was bubbly bubbly bath time for Leah. She LOVES whirlpool tubs! I got her in bed and I took the older kids to DTD. My first stop..the christmas shop to browse!!! My friend had asked me to find her a cute antenna topper..I texted her this pick but she said no...
She wanted something more traditional. We next went to Once Upon a Toy and I got a new box of potato head parts...some for me and some for leah! I have a Mr. and Mrs. Potato Head couple on my entertainment center! I like to change their outfits!! Leah has a nice bucket of parts that she likes to play with. Darren had money burning a hole in his pocket but he couldn't decide what he wanted. We went over to The World of Disney and walked around. My other best friend wanted matching Mickey and Minnie mugs for her and her new husband! I bought these!
It was nearly closing time in the Marketplace and Darren was still empty handed. I told him he still had plenty of days to find something he liked. We took the bus back to Congress Park. My parents were already sleeping it was late. I set up the sofa bed in the living room. I asked Lauren if she wanted to sleep with me since I had a huge king bed all to myself. So we snuck quietly into the room and went to sleep!!!
It was an wonderful day!!!!
Next up... Hollywood Studios!
.
.
I set an early alarm for the 18th. The girls were having their Disney Youth Education Series class that morning at Epcot. I woke them up and they got dressed nice and quickly. Darren and Leah got to sleep in! We were already packed up for our move to SSR so I left our bags by the door. My parents were going to call Bell Services to get everything before they headed out. The girls and I left to catch an early bus to Epcot. The bus stop was packed! I thought oh man I hope they aren't going to Epcot too lol. They were all going to early EMH at AK. We were the only people on the Epcot bus!
We had to report to the flagpole outside of the main gate by 8:30am. We got there with plenty of time to spare so we grabbed some goodies from the coffee stand near the monorail entrance. I had to the most delicious apple turnover...omg it was GREAT!!! Sadly though the coffee was AWFUL. I threw it away after a few sips. Before we knew it there was a lot of other kids and parents waiting too. This was the "Making Waves with a Marine Career" class. It was for ages 12-17 and since Ashley was only 12 I needed to be her chaperone! I'm soooo happy I got to join them! A nice girl came out with a clip board and started checking everyone in and dividing us into groups. We were given the nicest man and I wish I could remember his name right now! I do know he's a musician by trade and actor too he said. We were all given headsets to wear to hear him better. The kids were to stay at the front of the group with us parents to the rear. The other parents were awesome. There was a dad who works about 1/2 from my house and another mom who's a school bus driver like me. There were a few more moms and they were so cool too. The tour started and we walked to the Seas with Nemo and Friends pavilion. I still like to call it The Living Seas! We started in the usual areas that all guests see and he discussed what kind of jobs went into creating the aquarium. After a bit we moved to backstage areas!!! It was AMAZING! First stop was a locking box. We all had to put in every accessory on our body from cell phones to cameras, earrings, purses, sunglasses etc. Then we went to the top of the tanks! It's so cool up there! We could look down and watch the fish and dolphins. We then went to another backstage area....if you ever look into the dolphin tank you can see a net to the far side with other dolphins behind it..we were back there! There's a separate tank for dolphin research. They had tons of pvc pipe in various shapes on the wall. They use them to test the dolphins sonar abilities. It was amazing! Next we got to see some manatees they were treating for injuries. They are a manatee rehabilitation center and had two that were injured by boat propellers. What gentle creatures they were! The poor things had injured fins.
All the while our guide was posing great questions to the kids. Then we went outside. Behind the pavilion is a HUGE wooden tank. They use it for sharks who need special attention and other things too. We saw the huge water filters used to keep the water clean. Did you know that 80% of the water in the aquarium right now is the original water from 1986???? It's true!! We got to visit the control room. We met the man in charge of everything to do with the water purity. They also control the fish pond in Japan at Epcot and Shark Reef at Typhoon Lagoon. He said AK also has a control center of their own. If you've ever watched LOST...this control room felt very Dharma like!! haha It had a nice new computer but the rest was straight out of the early 80s!! We went back inside to the public areas. They were put into little groups and did a project involving a paper, pen and a timer. What exactly they did I'm not sure lol. Next time you are walking around the pavilion look for some randomly placed gray benches. We all sat down there and met a marine professional. I wish I could remember his position. Everything he said was very interesting. After that a potty break! Next we went backstage again then into the most beautiful VIP lounge. This was a gorgous room used for private events and meetings. It has an AMAZING view into the aquarium!!! It was better than any other view point...hands down. The kids were grouped again and sat down at a large conference table. The other parents and I just stared at the amazing view!!! Each group was given a sheet telling about an ill marine animal. They had to diagnose and come up with a treatment plan for the animal. Once they were done they each did their presentation. I was very impressed! They all did so well!!! We were supposed to watch Turtle Talk with Crush at then end of the tour but it was packed. We all said it was no biggie to skip it and the tour was over (around 11am). We returned our headsets and said our goodbyes. It was absolutely one of the best things I've ever experienced in all my years of visiting WDW. My girls really enjoyed it too and would like to try another YES class in the future!
Lauren took some nice photos that morning!
We headed toward the exit and I gave my mom a call. They were just parking and would be meeting us by spaceship earth in a little while. We took a walk over to club cool before making our way to spaceship earth. There was a huge line at bag check so I knew there was extra time so the girls went to try Sum of all Thrills but came back pretty quickly..they said the line was LONG. After a little while my parents came with Leah and Darren! Leah was very excited to see us! We were STARVING and decided to try Katsura for lunch. My dad was still hurting from when he fell at BLT. I found out he didn't just twist his ankle he actually tripped over Leah's folded up stroller and hit the ground hard. Since he was walking so slow my parents headed towards Japan right away. Ashley and Darren saw Stitch and went over for some autographs!
Leah was crying BIG TIME because she wanted me to carry her. I kept her in the stroller so we could cover more ground faster. I know how much she loves Figment so we took a pit stop at the imagination pavilion. One ride on Figment and she was cured of her crying! There was no getting her back in the stroller though so we let her walk.
We stopped for a picture on the way to Japan!
My parents got us a table and already orderd by the time we got there. I ordered our lunch and had sticker shock! It was over $60 for me and the kids!!!
Ashley knew Myuki was going to start her demo any minute so she and Darren chowed down quickly and ran downstairs. She did a great demonstration and said she no longer hands the candy out but takes it to a local hospital. We thought that was very nice. My mom suggested they go inside to do Ashley's Pick a Pearl. My mom had given her a certifcate on her Bday at BLT! 
Ashley had been wanting to do this for years so she was very excited!
I took some video with my phone!
Pick a Pearl at Epcot! <--------Click Here!
After we were done at Japan we went back over to France to see if the movie was working....it was! Lauren decided she didn't want to watch it and would rather work on her duffy and get it stamped at each country. So she headed off for her own world showcase adventure. There was still about 10 minutes till the next showing so Ashley had time to meet Marie!!
Marie was excited to see she had her own page in Ashley's book!
It was time for the movie! We got great seats in the middle of the theater. As soon as it started Leah was enthralled! She thought she was on a ride! It is an amazing film and I can't wait to see it again. After the movie my mom got a table in the gift shop and my dad went into the bakery for coffee. Lauren met up with us and I suggested the kids hop over to Animal Kingdom. They had yet to see it this trip and with my dad in slow motion there was no need to hang around with us. They said goodbye and headed off for some fun! I told them I would text them our location and room number at SSR. My dad was really hurting so we decided it was a good idea to go check in at SSR. On the way out Leah and I stopped for a picture in front of her favorite things to say...
SPACESHIP EARF !
I took the keys to the van and started walking across the blazing hot parking lot. My parents waited for the tram. Leah and I got started up the air conditioner in the van and waited for my parents. They arrived at the van within a few moments and we were off! We were on our way to Saratoga Springs! I was very excited about staying at SSR again. It was Ashley's resort of choice since it was her birthday visit!
We got to SSR around 3 and were hoping our room would be ready. Lucky for us it was!!! The reservation was back in my name so no problems with check in. I had requested Congress Park and that's what we got. I knew my parents would like the theming of the resort since they are into horse racing. We were on the 4th floor and would have had a DTD view if not for the huge tree blocking the view! My parents LOVED how convenient the parking was at Saratoga as compared to the other two resorts. We entered the room and I was stunned!!! We were given a newly refurbished room! From the earliest released info about the refurb I didn't think I was gonna like it...but I did!
I did a room tour of the new room!
Refurbished Two Bedroom Villa at Saratoga Springs!<----click here!
We called Bell Services and our bags arrived in no time by a super friendly CM! My mom was dying for an iced cold drink so I inquired where the ice machine was located. Instead of just telling me he took the bucket and fetched the ice for us!!! He was soooo nice! The kids were still having fun at AK so I told them to take their time and where the room was. My mom said they were going to take a trip to the grocery store so we made a list of stuff to get. She planned on making chili for dinner!!! yummy!
The kids came back and while my parents were out we went to check out the paddock pool. It was a nice early evening walk to the paddock...except for the tons and tons of gnats along the walkway! The pool wasn't too crowded and felt great. Leah and I played along the zero entry portion and the big kids went directly to the water slide. I met a nice mom and chatted for a while. It was a great relaxing end to our amazing day! I took Leah back with Darren and the girls stayed a little longer. The chili was ready and smelled wonderful!!! We all ate a nice dinner and it was bubbly bubbly bath time for Leah. She LOVES whirlpool tubs! I got her in bed and I took the older kids to DTD. My first stop..the christmas shop to browse!!! My friend had asked me to find her a cute antenna topper..I texted her this pick but she said no...
She wanted something more traditional. We next went to Once Upon a Toy and I got a new box of potato head parts...some for me and some for leah! I have a Mr. and Mrs. Potato Head couple on my entertainment center! I like to change their outfits!! Leah has a nice bucket of parts that she likes to play with. Darren had money burning a hole in his pocket but he couldn't decide what he wanted. We went over to The World of Disney and walked around. My other best friend wanted matching Mickey and Minnie mugs for her and her new husband! I bought these!
It was nearly closing time in the Marketplace and Darren was still empty handed. I told him he still had plenty of days to find something he liked. We took the bus back to Congress Park. My parents were already sleeping it was late. I set up the sofa bed in the living room. I asked Lauren if she wanted to sleep with me since I had a huge king bed all to myself. So we snuck quietly into the room and went to sleep!!!
It was an wonderful day!!!!
Next up... Hollywood Studios!
.
.
Chellymouse
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Oct 30, 2007
we had to have been at SSR the same time. We were in CP also. We won't stay anywhere else....our saying is a bad view in CP is better than no CP at all. We were also in a recently refurbed room and while this is very petty...we noticed the carpet hadn't been tacked down properly amongst a few other minor things....so much for a refurb. We did like the new decor though.
supersuperwendy
any happy little thought?
- Joined
- Aug 6, 2006
I noticed that too...the rug seemed loose. My dad HATED the sofa. I did think it was nice and bright though. We love CP. The location really is so great. It's such a short walk over the bridge to carriage house or straight ahead down a path to the paddock or a walk to DTD. Can't be beat!!!!
We're in Brookhaven. My husband used to work in Malvern. My sister lives in Oxford! Our computer was down for a while, so I'm glad to be able to return to reading Trip Reports!! Our first DVC stay is 109 days away!!!
supersuperwendy
any happy little thought?
- Joined
- Aug 6, 2006
We're in Brookhaven. My husband used to work in Malvern. My sister lives in Oxford! Our computer was down for a while, so I'm glad to be able to return to reading Trip Reports!! Our first DVC stay is 109 days away!!!
It is a small world afterall...! We used to shop at save a lot in brookhaven lol and my parents used to live in Oxford!!!
Your first dvc is coming up....yayyyy
supersuperwendy
any happy little thought?
- Joined
- Aug 6, 2006
It's been weeks since I posted an update!!! I will work on it tonight while watching the Olympics!!!
Still to come....
Hollywood Studios - first time seeing Beauty and the Beast!!!
Still to come....
Hollywood Studios - first time seeing Beauty and the Beast!!!
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Let us help you with your next Disney Vacation!
