CCIntrigue...aka Gwen

Great trip report! What part of NC do you live in? I have a daughter in Sanford who escaped damage from the tornadoes. Son in Raleigh wasn't as fortunate.

Great trip report. You have a beautiful family!

In Lakeland we took Kassie to Dr. Patricia Mattson at Veterinary Emergency Care. This was early on a Sunday morning, and this was the only place we could find that was open. We were very pleased with her thoroughness and caring, but it was very expensive. When she had her seizures we took her to Sand Lake. We were also pleased with her treatment there with one exception -- we didn't appreciate that a big, burly guy stood behind her and held her down the entire time. It was totally unnecessary and really scared her.

If we can't be at the fort, no better place to be than Ocean Lakes! Have a great time and please give our respects to Nelson for us. He was a great man.

A little background info first ... last year we went to the Fort in November to celebrate my birthday. Before we arrived Kassie, our Mini Schnauzer, suffered a serious case of pancreatitis and we had to see an emergency vet in Lakeland ... then on the second day of our WDW stay I fell in the MK and was in a wheelchair for the remainder of the trip ... We left home on Thursday, December 9. 17 degrees with snow on the ground, unusual for this time of year. Drove to St. Augustine and overnighted at the Flying J. The weirdest thing happened – I opened the refrigerator door, and it fell off.

Hey, Mikmouse! So glad you're here! Thanks for the compliments, although I don't think I deserve such praise. I use a Nikon P7000. Bought it just before the trip and am still learning to use it.

Loving your photos!

Enjoying your trip report. You have a beautiful family!

Great trip report!

If I had that can, it wouldn't be in my garage. It would be in a place of honor! :banana:

Wow! So many compliments from TCD, the king of trip reports! I am humbled. TY, TY!

I love this building and sure hope they don't tear it down!!!

Gosh, you all really know how to make me feel welcome here! Thanks for all the great comments! Kampfirekim, sounds like you need a massive sprinkling of pixie dust before your next trip!

I'm a scrapbooker too, but I went totally digital a few years ago. There's so much free stuff out there to take advantage of. Plus you can design your own papers and embellishments. Not my greatest work, but here's a layout I did for my birthday a few years ago: Digital scrapbooking is quicker, faster, and a lot less expensive ... you only have to pay for your photo books. I get mine from Artscow, and they are nearly always running specials.

I posted. It's here: http://www.loop3000....t-a-great-trip/ Thank you all for the warm welcome! Momoffive, I have a W-S address but actually live in the Lewisville area. I grew up at Union Cross, so I've spent a lot of time in K'ville!

Loving your trip report! It's making me homesick, and we've only been back a week.

Wow, I can't believe the responses I've already received! Thank you, thank you! My new camera is a Nikon P7000. I wanted the D7000, but it cost (with lens) about $2,000 more than what I got. The P7000 has all the functionality of a DSLR, just without interchangeable lenses. It has an 18-200mm zoom lens that pretty much covers everything I need, and it weighs a lot less than the D7000. Overall I'm very pleased with it.

Thank you all for your comments! Haven't actually made ressies yet, but thinking about arriving on 11/12 and leaving 11/21. Would really like to spend my birthday there again ... otherwise we'd go the first of the month. BTW, did you all know that Hilda is a travel agent now?

As always, loving your TR!

Thanks for the warning. I'll probably halfway keep up with the other board for awhile because I have some good friends there who haven't migrated over here yet. But this is my new home. I'll be careful.

Thank you, Carol! Just glad I found out where all the fun people moved.

Thank you all! Stefa, Kassie had a rough winter but is better now. Never did figure out what caused the seizures. In January she was diagnosed with Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever. Vet said that could have caused the seizures in November, but it could also have been something she came in contact with at the fort. We will never know but are very grateful that the seizures have stopped!

Last installment - A few last fort photos I haven't posted earlier ... And of course I have to post a picture of Kassie on high alert. She has to protect us from those armadillos! Leaving on Friday morning ... Almost empty loops (there were several loops with only one or two residents): This is always such a sad sight: Officially off Disney property: Smooth sailing until Saturday about noon when we got to the I77-85 interchange. Turns out there was a concert at the Metrolina Expo in Charlotte. It started at noon and ended at midnight ... almost 20 bands were performing.

Thursday, continued - Went back to the MK in the evening to walk one last tour around and take some photos. Carried my tripod to hopefully get some great shots. Saw this baby bunny on the way to the boat dock: Scoped out a great place to take pictures ... Tomorrowland Terrace ... but when I got back there to set up I was surprised to see a crowd there. Turns out Disney thought it was a great place too ... had a Fireworks and Dessert party there. So I had to move along to a less desireable location at the Tomorrowland bridge. The Magic, The Memories, and You! Some funky shots ...

Part 3 - Wednesday – Remember that small pond between us and the neighbors that I mentioned on Friday? We wondered what it was caused by since it hasn’t rained recently. Well, it grew every day despite sunny skies. By this morning the area under our trailer was completely flooded, and we had power lines lying in it. A gentleman from Disney’s engineering department stopped by to check on it. Turns out that the irrigation guy wasn’t turning off the system like he’s supposed to. By the afternoon the irrigation was turned off and everything began drying out. After breakfast went to Hollywoo