lklasing 16 Posted December 15, 2013 Author Report Share Posted December 15, 2013 WEDNESDAY Of course, I’m always the first to wake up even when I’m the last to go to sleep, so I headed to the Carriage House (thankfully a very short walk), got my refillable mug for the trip and just relaxed, read, explored and people watched for a while. Our building: Our picnic area – there had been an awfully fun looking gathering the night before here. Ray and I keep saying that one day we’ll cook out while on vacation at WDW, but that day hasn’t come yet. The quiet pool closest to us: This makes me yearn for another cruise: Ray eventually called, so I grabbed and brought back to our unit some breakfast for us. We were so much later leaving for the parks than in years past but that just seems to be the new norm for us. The older the girls get, the less we care about hitting every headliner, the more they stay out late at night and sleep late in the morning, and the easier it is to just have fun being in Disney World, rather than doing everything in Disney World. Anyway, Ray and I arrived at the MK around 10:30, grabbed some “Jingle” Cruise FPs and hooked up with Kevin and Hope. They have some friends from home who are here who helped them get their passes using their military discount – I think their tickets were $200 less each than the regular price. So glad that Disney chooses to treat our military families so well. :) The line at the Starbucks on Thanksgiving Eve. I was glad I had already gotten my caffeine for the morning: Quote Link to post Share on other sites
lklasing 16 Posted December 15, 2013 Author Report Share Posted December 15, 2013 We had fun just bumping around that morning – did Jingle Cruise (it was cute with the holiday script), Pirates and Laugh Floor. Got to see the cute street dance party at the hub. Finally, around 11:15, I heard back from the room of the Sleeping Beauties! Lynn was awake but was the only one so far, so I told her to get the rest of those girls up. They all eventually arrived after a stop at the Contemporary for breakfast. I had made some FP+ reservations for them on their bands and they were also able to use their room keys for more regular FPs, so I think they were able to do most anything they wanted to. Here’s your random assortment of pictures from our time in the MK: As you can see, in addition to their fanny packs, Danielle and Amy had eyes on getting as many autographs and as may pictures taken with characters as they could. They did pretty good! In looking at these, it's clear that Danielle and Amy hopped over to Epcot at some point to get more autographs. They were on a cute mission. More soon! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
mouseketab.....Carol 1,261 Posted December 15, 2013 Report Share Posted December 15, 2013 Awesome pictures!!! LOVE the Auburn hat, WAR EAGLE!! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
GaDawgFan.....Kelly 799 Posted December 16, 2013 Report Share Posted December 16, 2013 The fanny packs crack me up! That's the longest line at Starbucks I've ever heard of. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
DaveInTN 3,247 Posted December 16, 2013 Report Share Posted December 16, 2013 It's nice to see your girls go off on their own and have fun. My oldest 2, even though we've encouraged it, don't want to leave our side at Disney. Everything has to be family fun, family fun, and more family fun. INC's about ready to tell them to get the heck out of dodge. :rofl3: Quote Link to post Share on other sites
dvccamper 32 Posted December 16, 2013 Report Share Posted December 16, 2013 Great report, everyone looks like they are having such a great time! Nice to see Saratoga Springs, we have never stayed there. We have thought about booking one of the tree houses, but not sure if they are too isolated. Did you see them while staying there?It's nice to see your girls go off on their own and have fun. My oldest 2, even though we've encouraged it, don't want to leave our side at Disney. Everything has to be family fun, family fun, and more family fun. INC's about ready to tell them to get the heck out of dodge. :rofl3:Sounds like my kids. When we went on our cruise a couple of years ago they refused to go to the kids/teen clubs. They wanted to stay with us the whole time. I'm not complaining, though, have to enjoy it while it lasts! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
alexwyattmommy 181 Posted December 16, 2013 Report Share Posted December 16, 2013 I love looking at your photos and thinking, hey I know someone famous. Well, she looks like someone famous, so she must be famous. :D The girls do look like they having a great time and the adults don't so sad to be sans children. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
AC in A2......Aaron 693 Posted December 16, 2013 Report Share Posted December 16, 2013 Very late to the party but caught up! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
LONE-STAR 370 Posted December 17, 2013 Report Share Posted December 17, 2013 It's nice to see your girls go off on their own and have fun. My oldest 2, even though we've encouraged it, don't want to leave our side at Disney. Everything has to be family fun, family fun, and more family fun. INC's about ready to tell them to get the heck out of dodge. :rofl3:Dave that's awesome enjoy it while it last. Disney is a family place. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
BigTom 76 Posted December 17, 2013 Report Share Posted December 17, 2013 As long as the kids hang around, Daddy gets to pays for everything. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
h2odivers...Ray 952 Posted December 17, 2013 Report Share Posted December 17, 2013 As long as the kids hang around, Daddy gets to pays for everything.Heck it's cheaper when they go off by themselves. I give DS(24) $20 in the morning and tell him to meet us for dinner. Yes I'm cheap. But when he's gone off by himself I don't have to pay for a soda or water ever hour or so. No bugging me for a snack every time he sees a popcorn/pretzel cart. And no "hey dad that's a cool shirt/hat, I really need it". Lol Quote Link to post Share on other sites
lklasing 16 Posted December 17, 2013 Author Report Share Posted December 17, 2013 Awesome pictures!!! LOVE the Auburn hat, WAR EAGLE!! There were some very happy Auburn fans this trip, as you can imagine! The fanny packs crack me up! That's the longest line at Starbucks I've ever heard of. That line was actually even longer than the picture shows - I couldn't get it all in the shot! :dropjaw: It's nice to see your girls go off on their own and have fun. My oldest 2, even though we've encouraged it, don't want to leave our side at Disney. Everything has to be family fun, family fun, and more family fun. INC's about ready to tell them to get the heck out of dodge. :rofl3: Enjoy it while you got them! Mine are so busy now - I feel like I barely see them sometimes, both at Disney and at home. It's got to be part of the deal in getting us used to them leaving for college and the rest of their lives, but I miss them already sometimes! Great report, everyone looks like they are having such a great time! Nice to see Saratoga Springs, we have never stayed there. We have thought about booking one of the tree houses, but not sure if they are too isolated. Did you see them while staying there?Sounds like my kids. When we went on our cruise a couple of years ago they refused to go to the kids/teen clubs. They wanted to stay with us the whole time. I'm not complaining, though, have to enjoy it while it lasts! We didn't see the tree houses up close, but I've read a bunch about them. They seem like they would be so much fun with the right family to share with! The only big negative I see is the requirement of taking an extra bus, or else a pretty good walk to the bus stop. But I'd still like to try it sometime! I love looking at your photos and thinking, hey I know someone famous. Well, she looks like someone famous, so she must be famous. :D The girls do look like they having a great time and the adults don't so sad to be sans children. We did have fun without the girls, but then we'd get to have fun with them when they were around - a win-win! Curious as to which famous person you're seeing! People think I look like "someone" a bunch! Very late to the party but caught up! Glad you're here! Dave that's awesome enjoy it while it last. Disney is a family place. True dat. As long as the kids hang around, Daddy gets to pays for everything. Somehow, mine have mastered the art of me paying even when they're not with me! :banghead: Quote Link to post Share on other sites
lklasing 16 Posted December 17, 2013 Author Report Share Posted December 17, 2013 (edited) Technical error. Ugh. Edited December 17, 2013 by lklasing Quote Link to post Share on other sites
lklasing 16 Posted December 17, 2013 Author Report Share Posted December 17, 2013 While it was a pretty day and I felt great in my shorts for much of the day, as soon as it got past 2:00, it was clear that there was no way the clothes we were wearing were going to be adequate for the night. So, the adults all split to change and regroup for a while, and then met back up in Epcot. After getting to see Danielle and Amy with Belle, we all relaxed at the pub in England before dinner at Kouzzinna at the Boardwalk. Dinner there was fabulous. We had the appetizer of spreads and then Kevin and I ordered best by getting the trio of small tastes of the Greek burger, lasagna and a cinnamon chicken. Ray and Hope just got the lasagna, which was good, but came in a size big enough to feed an army. British pub fun: After dinner, Ray and I were wiped out and headed back. Kevin and Hope, however, said they were going back to the MK (via what I consider to be the very long route from the BW – walk back to Epcot, walk through Epcot, and then take 2 monorails to MK) to ride Space Mountain. Crazy people. In reality, they made it to the exit of Epcot and called it a day. Danielle and Amy wisely made it an early night, but Jodi and Lynn stayed in the MK till about 11:00 again. They apparently rode Splash Mountain continuously that night – cold weather = no lines. If they don’t get pneumonia from that, I’ll be stunned, but they had a great time! During that whole day Wednesday, we only laid eyes on the girls one time, while we were all at the MK. I really don’t mind as I know they love getting to be on their own and it is an environment that I am 100% comfortable with, but I did miss getting to be with them! So, I tweaked my room reservation a little to where we had two extra guests, added Kevin and Hope’s tickets to those two extra people, and made FP+ reservations for all 8 of us for the next day at Animal Kingdom. Up next – Thanksgiving! So much to be thankful for! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
GaDawgFan.....Kelly 799 Posted December 17, 2013 Report Share Posted December 17, 2013 Excellent photos and update! I'm going to have to take off 5 points for the lack of pood forn though. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
lklasing 16 Posted December 17, 2013 Author Report Share Posted December 17, 2013 Heck it's cheaper when they go off by themselves. I give DS(24) $20 in the morning and tell him to meet us for dinner. Yes I'm cheap. But when he's gone off by himself I don't have to pay for a soda or water ever hour or so. No bugging me for a snack every time he sees a popcorn/pretzel cart. And no "hey dad that's a cool shirt/hat, I really need it". Lol That sounds like a good plan on the $20 a day thing. Sounds like that TV show the Food Network had for a while - Disney (or wherever) on $40 a day, except you're keeping him to half that amount! The best thing Disney has done for me in recent years was to itemize the bill by person charging - Danielle loves to shop and until they did that, I had a hard time tracking what all she bought that I can make her pay me back for. Excellent photos and update! I'm going to have to take off 5 points for the lack of pood forn though. I know - sorry! I always say I'm going to take food pics but I never do. On another note, I just found these pics from Jodi and Lynn on their repeated trips on Splash. Here’s what you can do on Splash on a cold night in November: Looks like they got ponchos at some point: Apparently there were more rides than there are pictures, as several times they were allowed to just stay in the log and keep going as no one else was in line. Gotta be crazy to want to do that, but they had a great time. Hopefully I’ll get the next installment in tonight. Happy Tuesday, everyone! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
CCIntrigue...aka Gwen 547 Posted December 17, 2013 Report Share Posted December 17, 2013 Really enjoying your report! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Tri-Circle-D 2,059 Posted December 17, 2013 Report Share Posted December 17, 2013 Sorry, I got behind on my TR reading. I don't know if you've been reading much on here in the past few months, but my oldest daughter graduated from FSU in May, and is now working on her Master's degree at Auburn. So, I've been up to your neck of the woods a few times this year. I love those Splash Mountain photos! Not my idea of fun at all, but good for them! TCD Quote Link to post Share on other sites
GaDawgFan.....Kelly 799 Posted December 17, 2013 Report Share Posted December 17, 2013 Those Splash pictures are AWESOME! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Seals 111 Posted December 17, 2013 Report Share Posted December 17, 2013 Love, love, love the Splash photos. Love all the different configurations of seating and enjoyment. They must have had a blast. Even though Splash is one of our favorite rides we didn't ride over Thanksgiving because it was too cold, especially at night. Now I wish we had braved it. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
lklasing 16 Posted December 18, 2013 Author Report Share Posted December 18, 2013 Happy Thanksgiving! Today was Animal Kingdom day! Kevin and Hope had told us last night that they would meet us there at 10:00, plus Danielle and Amy had plans to go to the character buffet at Tusker House at 10:25, so I woke all the girls up around 8:45 and we all caught the bus together. While on our way, my phone rang and I was informed that the power was out at the Tusker House and that they had moved breakfast to Pizzafari. They moved the characters there also, but Danielle said they didn’t get to see any as the lines were too long. Oh well, better luck next time. Fun messing with teenagers who are in various states of awakening: Danielle and Amy made good friends somehow with this bus driver. This is for Dave. Sorry the pic isn’t any better! Once at AK, Ray, Jodi, Lynn and I rode Everest while the other two were at breakfast, and then hooked up with Kevin and Hope in time to make the FPs I had made for all of us – Safari, Everest and Dinosaur. We took the opportunity to get family pics made. Our group: Kevin, Hope and Lynn: And Amy! And here's your pile of AK pics: Quote Link to post Share on other sites
lklasing 16 Posted December 18, 2013 Author Report Share Posted December 18, 2013 A throw back to the old days in my TRs (note that Amy apparently isn’t capable of doing a rhino face): Spotting a rhino: I love how Lynn isn’t naturally as affectionate as we are, but yet puts up with being subjected to it anyway: Love this: After all that, everyone was hungry, so we hit Restaurantourus (sp?). That spot was marginal at best and it was a madhouse trying to get a table. They had had a water line bust in the dining area and water was everywhere. Not the best dining experience ever, but at least we got to eat! After lunch, everyone was pretty beat. Jodi and Lynn stayed for a while longer at AK but everyone else headed back to SSR. Danielle and Amy took a big old nap while Ray and I got some pool time. It was a high of 65 that day and it was nice. But of course as soon as the sun moved around and we lost the rays, it got chilly. Ray hopped in the hot tub for a minute and then we hoofed it back to our room. I woke up Danielle and Amy around 5:30, and they were so bleary it was funny – Amy asked what day it was and thought it was a rainy morning rather than sunset time on the day she had started earlier. Kevin and Hope even joined up with us and we all hopped on the bus to the MK and then took the boat to the Fort! It was beautiful with all the Christmas decorations everywhere. I loved the golf carts that were even decorated. Being there made me really miss the Fort even more. It has to be the right trip, since we generally travel using the DVC points now, but I know that I’ll be back to the Fort before too long and can’t wait. I have even thought a lot about a camping trip sometime after our fun trip to Oak Mountain this fall. The boat to the Fort was completely full, but thankfully we made it on! We made it to the Fort! My pictures don’t do it justice, but it was so pretty! Ray told some sort of odd story about Walt Disney being the first to celebrate Thanksgiving with the pilgrims. He waxed eloquently for a bit, and then we all ate a bunch of food. Anyway, we had a really great Thanksgiving dinner together at Trail’s End. It seemed to be a lot better than it had been when we did Thanksgiving there back in 2008. We even all went around the table and said one thing we were thankful for, though most of the thanksgivings were along the lines of Kevin’s rather than anything serious: “I’m glad Leslie made me this weird old shirt to wear at Disney”. After dinner, the girls hit the MK and the four of us went to the Top of the World Lounge for a drink. It was a lot more crowded than any other time we have been there. I think that was a result of it being Thanksgiving and also the fact that they let any DVC owner in now rather than just ones staying at Bay Lake Tower. Anyway, we did enjoy ourselves for a while, but then bailed out of sheer exhaustion part of the way through the fireworks. We grabbed a cab (our go-to move when it’s late at night, we’re tired, and we’re going from resort to resort) and took it to SSR, where we dropped off Ray, Hope and Kevin and then I continued on to DTD. My friend Claire (whom some of y’all may remember from prior TRs) and her husband had come to WDW that day and were staying at SSR also and were having fun at Ragland Road, so I joined them for a little bit. It was a fun place, complete with Irish live music and dancing. No dancing for me though. It would be ugly when I’m not exhausted, so we won’t even talk about how it would be when I am. I finally got back to the resort, and the girls also got back around 12:30. I got some text from them around 1:00 a.m. that “Caroline’s cotton candy exploded – go outside and see!”. At that point, I decided that the day was officially over and that the exploded cotton candy would have to exist without my involvement or even further awareness. Some things are better not seen or understood. Up next – Back to Hollywood Studios and Victoria and Albert’s! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
h2odivers...Ray 952 Posted December 18, 2013 Report Share Posted December 18, 2013 Great pix and it looks like everyone is having a blast. Thanksgiving at the Fort! I'm jealous. This is probably a dumb question but why are the shirts blacked out? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
momof3kids-Yvonne 594 Posted December 18, 2013 Report Share Posted December 18, 2013 Loving this report!Have you checked out the Chattanooga spring or summer GG thread? It has been decided that a GG will be happening at Desoto state park in Fort Payne. Dave and Carol have already booked their sites. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
alexwyattmommy 181 Posted December 18, 2013 Report Share Posted December 18, 2013 Oh yeah. I forgot to tell you who you look like. If Holly Hunter and Laura Linney had a sister, you would be her. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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