swimmarz

ill be there... and if i have my pickup truck by then, ill bring the smoker and its on like donkey kong!
 
any requests?  
I make a mean smoked turkey

 
or maybe ribs and mac&cheese

Good job.
 
The idiot reporter from the Orlando Sentinel should write an article about you.
 
I wonder if the Disney PR department spoon-fed that article to the Orlando Sentinel (and/of slipped the reporter some money) as a way to promote the "free" dining scam?
 
TCD

Just so you don't make the same mistake again- the Express Monorail only stops at the TTC and the MK.  It doesn't go to Epcot.
 
The Epcot monorail runs between the TTC and Epcot.  It doesn't go on the MK track.  It's a separate system.
 
TCD

So you remembered the power tools, but you forgot the beer?
 
Rookie.
 
Get your priorities straight, young man.
 
TCD

and there is no casino/ massage parlor 

I guess i am the brains behind the vita-mix...

You are new to the ways of the Fort.
 
Keep that phrase handy.
 
You'll be using it a lot.
 
TCD

i saw a FB post about Fort management no longer allowing group reservations starting in 2017.
it applies to all groups.
 
Thoughts?
 
 

Animal.
 
TCD

Clear bags do make it easier. I have one for Nascar races that I bought and we used that this year, it helped and we only had to open our cooler.
 
Best Regards,
Norm

How about a fishing type vest with big insulated pockets and lots of loops to hang things from?
 
Then you could stroll right thru the no bag line.... supposedly.

I am 19 days out so ill confirm then!

The CM that we got our modem kit from must have been new, or at least not around long enough to know that when they're told "seriously, it's coming in November" you're supposed to just roll your eyes and say "riiiiiiiiiiight."
 
But hey - it's still November!  I'm still hoping some Fiend on the Scene is going to pop on here sometime in the next 8 days and say 'WE HAVE WIFI!!!"
 
#optimism

so this one is for the beer drinkers... Black Friday is coming, and while my wife will be out getting gifts and deals, Ill be getting beers.
 
What some of you may not know is black Friday is a big beer release day.
one of my favorites comes out and there are some others you should go after
Bourbon County happens to be one of my favorite beers, its a dark  imperial stout,  at about 13.8% ABV
Expect to pay $6+ per bottle but when you factor in the ABV is like drinking 3 normal beers I can justify the cost.
 
here is some info on other beers released this coming Friday
http://www.pastemagazine.com/blogs/lists/2014/11/10-black-friday-beer-releases.html 

The ones that i have seen from next door are white not green

they also have the resort name on the front

 
furthermore Golf courses want to have the version that can hold bags not 4 people...

I was looping around this morning and saw a new pole that went up in the 500 loop.

They just finished installing a new utility pole in the back corner of the 1300/1200 loops. The company specializes in laying communications cables and fiber. One of the workers told me it is for the WiFi network.

That's some first rate Fiend on the Scene reporting, guys!
 
Keep up the good work!
 
TCD

There was a building permit filed yesterday for Electrical work at the CS in the 500 loop, so if we have friends on site go check that out, they are running power from the CS to an area in the 500 loop
http://or.occompt.com/recorder/eagleweb/downloads/20150595755.pdf?parent=DOC1805S382

That's one of my favorite stand up routines.

isnt this Social media?!?!?

Since I had the short delay I will do a double posting today.
 
Wednesday October 7th
 
Today we had loads of business to take care of. First up, we needed to head over to Lost and Found at the T&T. We needed to see if anyone had turned in my husbands magic band and also check to see if anyone found my daughters umbrella and son's lost camera. Off to the boat dock we headed. Nice to see people on the lake today.
 

 
I failed to mention that on our first day at the MK my daughter had brought along her Vera Bradley umbrella. It had been a gift to her and she couldn’t wait to use it at Disney. Sadly she lost it on one of the rides that they went on that evening. She came back to the camper very upset. I also failed to mention that my son had left his camera on the bus to Disney Springs. He was very upset at his loss. That camera had very special pictures on it and the thought of losing them was very upsetting.
 
We arrived at the Lost and Found. If you ever need to contact them here is their info.
 

 
We found dad's magic band but had no luck in finding the camera or umbrella. Both children were heavyhearted.
 
Since we were here we decided to give another try at finding our brick. This time we had a bit more information
 

 
When we went to City Hall yesterday, in search of my husbands magic band, we inquired about the location of our brick. Apparently City Hall is the only place in all of WDW where you can gather information on these bricks. Unfortunately they had remolded the T&T area and just put the bricks back somewhat randomly. It would be difficult to locate it but we at least had a general idea. We searched and searched. CM's helped look, the children helped look. We were just about to give up when I spotted it.
 

 

 
16 years ago this brick had been laid. It was a gift from my mom and marked the very beginning of our marriage. Here we were now, 16 years and a few months later standing around it with our crew remembering the journey that we had been on. What started out as just the two of us had multiplied to a dozen. Memories flood our minds, it was a very special moment. And a moment was all that we had, the little man was not feeling the love vibes. He was hot and hungry and getting a bit cranky. Hey we are right by the Poly. That means Dole Whip!
 

 

 
Everyone enjoyed this blessed gift from heaven. Refreshed and cooled down we wandered around a bit. The children traded pins at the boat dock and I snapped a picture of Trader Sam's.
 

 
While we were inside we had a look around the gift shop where my husband bought me this beautiful watch.
 

 
While he was in shopping the children camped out in the lounge area.
 

 
Anyone know anything about these ladies?
 

 
Time to head back to the Fort, we had a theory to test out.
 
Oh the things you see. Yellow paint guy matches his yellow paint, and I am not talking about his vest.
 

 

 
Okay so maybe it's just a lighting effect, maybe, it still made me chuckle.
 
Anyway, If you remember, the last time we spoke of BEV we had determined that the transmission was not broken just really hot. She was pulling 4000 lbs over the recommended tow weight. We were in a fix. Do we try and pull Birdie back? Do we store the camper? Is our theory about the transmission even correct. Well it was time to face the looming elephant that had been following us the entire trip.
 
When my husband had the Uber people take him to Wal-Mart the previous week he bought a ton of transmission fluid. I mean a ton, kind of over kill really, in my opinion. Anyway with trusty funnel in hand out he went with his mound of fluid. A few minutes later I hear BEV roar to life. Now to test her out. I needed him to go to the grocery store and also relieve me of a few little people. With helpers in tow off he went. I wasn't too concerned about him making it back as we have AAA so if he broke down it would not be a big deal. 20 minutes later I get a text saying he had made it.
 
A few hours later he is back with needed supplies and a van that was not leaking. We were so relieved that all was working in proper order.
 
With only a few days left to our trip we really needed to make a decision as to how we were getting back. I had no desire to try and pull the camper home. It was a terrifying trip down and the thought of going through that again brought tears to my eyes. I also didn't want to spend a bunch of money to store it. If we did store it when would we be able to come down and get it? Looking around I also realized that I would have to determine what needed to come home and what could stay with the camper in storage. Finally my husband suggested that we call and see if we could find a camping spot at the Fort in January/ February. I was extremely doubtful but called anyway. To my surprise they had a week available in a Full Hook-up site. We'll take it.
 
As my husband grilled out hamburgers we devised a plan. Leave Birdie down in Orlando at a storage facility and drive back home. Once we got home we would begin fixing up a red 15 passenger diesel van we had access to. The diesel would have no problem pulling Birdie back. In February we would leave the gray dreary days of winter here in the north and head to the sunny south to retrieve the camper and stay a week at the Fort. We told the children and all agreed it was an excellent plan. I still had one question. Would we still have the terrible sway problem?
 
Up next, Disney's Student Seminars

Tuesday October 6th.
 
The color of the day? Harmful to your eyes yellow.
 
Today we decided to head back to the MK. Once again we gobbled up pancakes for breakfast. Ever wonder how many pancakes a large family of boys can eat? 72 pancakes later and the world may never know, they were still asking for more. With bellies sort of content we were out the door.
 
This morning was very cool. Many folks were wearing jackets. As we reached the dock this boat was there to greet us.
 

 
Wait isn't that the MK boat? Apparently they were training this morning and we were to be the privileged crew. We were all loaded and ready to go when a lady pulls up in her scooter. She says she has reservations for breakfast at the Contemporary. One of the crew members informs her that boats do not transport scooters and that she needs to go to the bus stop. She whines a bit and the captain sympathizes, welcome aboard scooter lady. Off to the Contemporary to drop off scooter lady and then we head for the MK. It took a few tries to get us docked up and secured but soon we were on our way. Being a card carrying member of the stroller club I like the big boats, no folding necessary. Babies can continue to nap and mom and dad can relax for a moment.
 
As we excited the dock area the buses were dropping floods of people off to the right and the monorail was releasing the hoards from the left. That was enough motivation to quicken our step to the front gate. Beating the masses, we were almost right up by the rope. While waiting for the opening show to begin my son was picked to be an Honorary Citizen of the Day. Anyone know what that means?
 

 
He wore his button all day but no one seemed to notice. Fail on the CM's I thought they were supposed to acknowledge those types of things.
 
The children enjoyed the opening show and then the ropes were dropped. First up was the Mine Train. When we changed our plans to visit the MK from Friday to today we lost our FP reservations. I checked MDE everyday to see about snagging SDMT FP's.but to no avail. This meant we would be joining with the masses rushing towards New Fantasyland. Joy!
 
With ropes dropped we were off. I was leading our crew as we headed down main street. I wonder how many twisted ankles occur each year on the trolly car tracks? Crossing the tracks we were in good position and moving quickly. As we rounded the tight bend into NFW a large woman had fallen. People were standing around observing the scene, others were hoping over her. As we passed she began to get up and seemed fine although a bit shaken. We made it to the mine train and were quickly handed our child switch pass. My husband took the older crew along with Bethanie as I waited nearby. Wow that was a bit crazy but we had made it. After only a few minutes there was a 30 minutes wait. By the time I got on the ride the wait time was 60 minute. When we had all gathered back together after all had ridden, I aked my husband if he thought Bethanie enjoyed the ride. I think the picture gives me his answer.
 

 
Notice the number on the front of the cart? How many are there? Does anyone know?
 
I must say that I really liked the mine train. My daughter and I were seated in the back which must make a difference in ride experience. We were whipped all over the place and felt the cars rocking back and forth. My husband was up front and didn't have the same experience. My only grip was that the ride is too short.
 
Winne the Pooh was a walkon so we headed there next. What a cute queue. The idea of making line waiting for little guys and adults a little less boring was brilliant.
 
New Fantasyland looks great. I can't wait to come back and look around a bit more and really take it all in.
 
The Tinkle Tower
 

 
We headed to Enchanted Tales with Belle next. What a fantastic experience. My husband said this was by far his favorite event of the day. The portal that leads you into the story is amazing. All of us were commenting on how cool that was. Two of my little boys and my two girls were picked to be part of the story. I was sad Bethanie did not get picked to be the beast. That girl can roar better than any kid I know but today she must have had a frog in her throat. When Belle entered the room I thought for sure Bethanie was going to tackle her. Thankfully big sister grabbed her hand and sat her down. Bethanie was in awe the entire time. At the end she was beyond tickled to get her picture taken with Belle. Dad was having major regrets on the meet and greet decision.
 

 

 
After Belle we walked over to see what Gaston was up to. This character cracks me up. YouTube him sometime. There are some great videos of him interacting with guests.
 

 

 
Ariel was next. then Dumbo and the Barnstormer. Again I think they did a great job designing this area. I didn't see anyone using the queue at Dumbo so not sure how that worked but it looked like a neat play area.
 

 
Calm vs worried.
 

 

 

 

 
Race cars were being requested by the little guys so we headed over in that direction. For months they had been talking about driving the race cars and we super excited to finally be here.
 

 

 
We had a little bit of a wait until our next FP was ready so we visited the People Mover and the Carousel of Progress. I enjoy both of these classic rides and hope they never leave.
 
My older boys went on Space Mountain. They said they liked it, but once was enough.
 
I love my son's face in this one.
 

 
We then headed to the Laugh Floor but it shut down while we were waiting. Not sure why but we got FP's for our trouble. Then it happened, My husband lost his magic band. He back tracked and asked numerous CM's but nothing turned up. He was told to head to City Hall for a new one. The line was not long at City Hall and we were in and out pretty quickly. They couldn't give him a new band so they gave him a card instead. 
 
On our way back to Tomorrowland
 

 
We then had a FP for Buzz. So back we hauled into Tomorrowland.
 

 
This is the kind of score you get when riding with the little guys. Fail.
 

 

 


Hungry we decided to try out Pecos Bills new offerings. The kids meals here are terrible. This is what $6.99 will get you.
 

 
$6.99 Rice Bowl? Really Disney?.
 

 
Originally the plan was to pack lunches and bring them into the parks. After our first day we nixed that idea but wanted to eat on the cheap, hence the kids meals. Since this was a last minute change of plans I didn't have time to look into restaurants or look at what was the best values. Fail to plan, plan to fail. Up until now the cheeseburger kids meals seemed to work for us. They are not the greatest but they worked. At the MK there are no cheeseburger kids meals. This brings me back to Pecos Bills. We ordered cheese quesadillas and as you can see from the picture there is not much here. Had I known about the fixens bar that may have changed things a bit. Still we were very hungry upon leaving.
 
It was now about 3:00pm and I knew the parade would be starting soon. We decided to make our way towards the Haunted Mansion. As we entered Liberty Square the parade began so we stood and watched for a bit.
 

 

 



 
Best Disney Float IMO
 

 
By for the parade ended we moved on to the Haunted Mansion and then back tracked to Pirates one last time for our final FP. Tonight was a MNSSHP and the park was filling up fast. A quick visit to the tree house and a final picture on Main Street and we called it a day.
  

 

 
Coming up next, Search for the brick and yellow paint guy.

Please stand by.....