Ggibwoodsondoll’s Beach Club June 1-June 8, 2014

Ggibwoodsondolls Beach Club June 1-June 8, 2014

Cast of Characters
Gg (Greggs) Marc 44 & Jenny 38, Phil & Connies youngest daughter and husband (married June 13), expecting first baby in December

gib (Gibbons) Phil 70 & Connie 67, our parents or grandparents

wood (Wood) Tatia 45 & Kim 41, middle daughter and partner

son (Thompson) Cory 43 & Michelle 43, me and my husband, Im the oldest daughter. Hallee 16 & Jay 13, our kiddos

doll (Kirkendoll) Zach 23-my oldest son, Clare 23, Zachs girlfriend & Aidan 3, Clares son

Intro
Our last trip to the World was a quick one. In May 2011, my 4 spent 2 nights at Pop Century while we to MK before our AP expired. Cory and I had APs and the kids used leftover 1 day passes from before MYW tickets began. Then we moved to Hard Rock Hotel to spend 3 days exploring the dark side. We enjoyed HRH immensely but hated only one day on WDW property. It took a little bit to get a date set but 1/1/12 we set a date that was 897 days out, by far our longest countdown ever. We were able to convince the whole fandamily to come along again.

The first year and a half was spent doing a lot of research especially once FP+ went into the early testing phase. Our original plan had us booked at Dolphin so we could stay in the Epcot resort area affordably. After Cory & Is anniversary trip renting points at BCV I wanted the family to experience an Epcot resort. At the time we booked Dolphin I never would have imagined we would be actually be staying at Beach Club. Our original plan also had my 5 driving to Orlando and meeting the rest of the party there.

About 7 months ago Tatia found out she was being transferred to Dallas in the spring. Once that was confirmed we decided to fly out with the whole group from Dallas. About that same time I was feeling guilty about taking Zach to Disney without his girlfriend and 3 year old son. With the financial help of the rest of the family we invited them. Zach was thrilled they were being included and Clare was ecstatic to leave Wichita for only the second time in her life and their first time flying. Not to mention the trill of taking her son to the most magical place on earth.

We all met at Kim & Tatias in Denver for Thanksgiving. Jenny asked what was going on with the new FP+ system and magic bands. At that point it was only for those staying on-site. I was also able to remind them of the other advantages to staying on-site. Since we were at Dolphin, the only thing applicable to us was the use of extra magic hours. My dad and Cory are huge proponents of Magical Express so not having that was a major drawback to them. After a family meeting we agreed if we could get Beach Club for $100 more a night than Dolphin, we would shorten our trip by a day and make the switch. Note-Most of our trips have been at a moderate but my mom and Jenny requested a long time ago to stay in a hotel. They didnt want to walk in the rain anymore to get coffee.

On January 2, I received an e-mail from Chase with the new Disney Visa discount offer. We changed our dates again to help Zachs work and mostly because the week we had booked at Dolphin was not our desired week. We wanted to go early June but Dolphin was already booked 10 months out. I was actually at the doctor when the e-mail came through so Cory called reservations. He was able to confirm the price was in our budget so after a group text message and an hour on the phone with reservations we were booked 6/1-6/8 at BC. OMG, our familys first deluxe stay! A week later I called reservations back and switched to a package. We were able to get the extra day free package. I was going to get tickets from Undercover Tourist but decided with the size of our party it would be much simpler to let Disney handle it. It turned out to be a good decision with the FP+ window opening at 60 days to those with linked passes.

In February, Tatia booked our flights at a group rate of $309, flying with American Airlines nonstop from DFW to MCO. Our flight left at 7:30 and we would be in Orlando before 11 am.

We didnt have any ADRs booked at 180 days but once we switched to BC we booked breakfast at Cape May. A couple weeks out we added an early dinner at 50s Prime-time Caf. We also booked a fastpass for Be Our Guest at lunch. I had to make each rooms separately so it took a little bit of tweaking to get each of our windows to overlap. We tend to not book very many ADRs because we prefer to be flexible with dining. This was especially true this trip as we would have Epcot counter service restaurants readily available.

I had the Sons tentative schedule planned. I made a list of the fastpasses I would like. Im the only Disney planner of our group so my spreadsheet is kind of a joke with the family. On April 2, 60 days out, Cory came to eat lunch with me at work while we made our FP+ reservations. We thought the process was very easy and we had no trouble at all getting the time slots we wanted after we selected a grouping then modified the time slot. We went with the strategy of rope drop in the mornings and FP+ in the evenings. We booked FP+ for the entire group knowing some will not ride but it was much simpler that way. If they wanted something different they could change it. When Disney adjusted FP+ to add more, I redid most of them to mornings so we could get additional later in the day if we wanted. I kept evening FP+s at Epcot for our arrival day and our sleep in/relax day, and an evening at HS after a morning at AK. Once SDMT window opened I was able to change them again to get a fastpass for 2 of our 3 mornings at MK.

The planning was DONE, all that was left was the final countdown! I drove everyone crazy the last 10 days. I sent them audio clips of tunes, some it probably annoyed the others embraced my insanity. I sent clips of The Final Countdown (dont remember the real name), Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious, Heigh-Ho, Its A Small World, Zippidy-Do-Dah, Tomorrow and Roll On when we left for our road trip to Dallas.

Side note-
This was a much needed family vacation. The whole fandamily went to Kim & Tatias in Denver for spring break for the last time as they moved two weeks later. While caravanning through downtown enroute to a museum, I received a phone call from one of Cory and Is oldest and closest friends since elementary. I immediately felt a lump in my throat because we never speak on the phone, just text frequently. Her youngest son has been fighting his second battle with leukemia. They had not been able to get his count down low enough this time to do a second bone marrow transplant. He was given an option of to quit trying or give a very potent form of chemo a chance. The cocktail was so potent it can only be given 3 times in a lifetime and he had already had it once. Cole chose to fight. That round of chemo had him very sick and was in PICU for about 3 weeks, although he was just starting to show signs of improvement enough to move back to Peds very soon. Angie called to tell me Cole had a sudden massive stroke the day before. An MRI showed no brain function remaining. They made the hardest decision a parent can ever make and asked all the family to come say goodbye. They were turning life support off the next day. Cory pulled the car over so we could tell everyone and hold my kids. Angies oldest is 2 years younger than Zach, her middle and Hallee are 4 months apart and Cole and my Jaybird were 7 months apart. They are family, my kids think of them as their cousins. When I woke the next morning I had a text from her that Cole passed peacefully in her arms at 4 am. They never had to disconnect the tubes.

That was on Tuesday, the funeral was arranged for Friday. My parents are second generation owners of a very small ice machine rental/sales/service dealership, my gramps founded it in 1938. I have worked for them since shortly after Zach was born. Our service manager, Paul has worked for them for 32 years and his wife answers the phone for us when we are all off. She was going to work for us that day while we all went to the funeral. Early that morning my dads phone rang, caller id was Paul. She was on the other end and broke the news that Paul had a heart attack in the early morning hours and didnt make it. Our world turned upside down immediately. Not only did we unexpectedly lose another person that was like family but we lost an integral employee. We only have 7 employees and each job has a definitive role. The next few weeks were spent trying to find a new normal at work and redefine roles while getting someone else hired.

Five weeks after Paul died, my dad got another phone call. My dads brother had a massive heart attack and did not survive either. My uncle was the owner to the wholesaler of our business. We were just adjusting to our new normal and another whammy hit. We lost another family member and another crucial part of our business. Its been 3 months since that one and we are still adjusting.

We toyed very briefly after my uncles passing to cancel our vacation. We did not purchase trip insurance but it was far enough out that we would only be out our flights and $50 a person for our vacation package. We pushed through because we just had three reminders that life is way too short.

Two weeks before vacation Cory started having abdominal pains he had never experienced before. On Sunday night he debated with going to the emergency room but he fought through until Monday morning when he went to the doctor. I went into work because we were not sure what time his appointment would be yet. When I was two minutes away from the office my mom called and said my dad was in severe pain and his doctor said to go to the emergency room. At that moment the two strongest and important men in my life were in pain. Neither of them are complainers or have ever experienced pain like that. Cory found out he has diverticulitus and was given antibiotics. He was much better by the end of the week. Daddy found out he was passing his first kidney stone. I dont think anyone has ever been so excited to find out that is all that was wrong! We all clapped when the doctor came in with that news.

For the first time in 2 years I was pessimistic our trip was happening. I was not excited to be getting ready to go. I was waiting for the next whammy to come a long. Fortunately nothing did and everyone was healthy and eager to go. I wanted to kiss the ground when we arrived in Florida.

T Minus 2-Friday, May 30
Cory took Friday off but I had to work. My dad arranged for Pat, the widow of our service manager, to relieve us at the office so we were able to leave at 1:30. We were at my folks waiting on the dog sitter at 3 but he didnt show up until 3:30. After writing on the rear window goin to Disney and a stop at McDonalds for a McSnack attack, we were on the road at 4. We ran into traffic in OKC and it didnt let up until we hit Hwy 121 north of Dallas. It made for a very stressful start to our vacation! We ate at Chic-Fil-A in Moore, OK thinking a dinner break would put us behind the traffic but all it did was delay us 45 minutes. We finally made it to Kim & Tatias around 10:30. We got a tour of their new home then headed to bed where we did not sleep at all.

T Minus 1-Saturday, May 31
My folks stayed at Jenny & Marcs in OKC the night before to split their road trip up into two parts. They carpooled and made it to Dallas about 11 Saturday morning. We went baby shopping for a couple of hours then an early dinner at Cheesecake Factory. When we got back the guys watched Star Wars while the girls helped Kim and Tatia pack. After dessert my wonderful family gave me a thank you card with $150 in Disney gift cards to get something special as a thank you for all the research and planning I did. We planned for an early bedtime but that never happens. Zach had to work til 5 so we were up waiting for them. They made it around 11 then it was lights out immediately with a 3:30 alarm.

Disney Day-Sunday, June 1
Our alarm went off at 3:30 and 13 people scrambled to get ready. Tatia made arrangements to have a shuttle pick us up at 4:45 so we would not have to worry about dropping 13 people and 20 pieces of luggage off or parking three cars in a shuttle lot. She surprised us with an extended Hummer limo. The company assured Tatia all of our luggage would fit but it was tight and we had to put some suitcases in the aisle. Our chauffeur took us to QT for coffee but only half of us could climb out. We were at the airport and through security about 6:00. We stopped at Dunkin Donuts for a bag of munchkins for the plane ride then we waited to board. Clare and Aidan were so excited for their first flight.

We departed on time at 7:30. Clare and Aidan did not mind the flight at all. I especially liked the nonstop flight and did not have to help them change planes and get situated again. We arrived shortly after 11 and hit the restrooms before catching our first ride of the trip. Aidan loved his first monorail ride! We easily made it to Magical Express where I got to lead the pack by using my magic band for the first time at the Beach Club queue. It was something so silly but yet I found it so magical and teared up for the first but not last time of the day. We headed straight onto a pretty full bus and left just a few minutes after boarding. Complete opposite experience from my last magical express ride. We arrived at MCO at 11, pit-stop, straight onto a bus which stopped at YC before it dropped us off, then it was going on to BW. We were at BC check-in desk at 12:30. Hallelujah, holy sheet we made it!

I think it was love at first sight for everyone and how could it not when you walk in and smell the lobby! We booked garden view and our only request for all 5 rooms was to be near each other. 4 of our 5 were in a row with someone else in the middle (4614-4622) and the 5th room (4682) was on the same floor. We were all on 4th floor, the 4 together were above the covered patio outside of the Marketplace and the 5th room got a view of the main courtyard to the entrance to the lagoon, from the side they had a lagoon view. The four together had 2 queen beds and 4622 had a day bed and they all had full size balconies. 4682 had 2 queen beds and a Juliet balcony. My son and girlfriend and her 3 yr old had the lagoon view and I was excited for our newbies to have received that room! Everyone loved their rooms dcor and layout. My four had the most in a room and were never cramped. The huge vanity helped a lot. Only two rooms were ready when we arrived but the rest of us received text messages between 15 and 30 minutes later. Cory and Jay dropped our bags off in Zachs room while I took Hallee out to the courtyard. We heard someone yell my name and that is how I learned which room the dolls had. They were beaming and waving at me.

A good friend of Hallees was at Epcot and leaving for ME at 3. Her family met us at the IG so Hallee could hang out with them for awhile. We all 3 walked her into Epcot just so we could try out our magic bands. They worked perfectly and I thought it was the coolest thing ever. We had planned all along to go to Big River for lunch and enjoy the view of the Boardwalk. Mother nature thought differently. Some of our group beat the rain but those that waited for us got caught. We walked as far through Yacht Club as we could while checking out the other food options. The downpour let up to a light rain so we walked over to join the others. The patio was obviously out and unfortunately our dining experience inside was less than stellar. The restaurant was packed so it was very loud and they had people seated practically on top of each other. Our server was not very pleasant and was not happy to have to ring our table up on different groups even though he kept his mandatory 18% tip. He especially seemed put out with our magic bands. The food was good though. The first group that headed over didnt realize we were only suggesting it for the patio and never would have waited 45 minutes to eat in that madhouse! Fortunately it was our only bad dining experience the whole week and it was the last rain we saw too.

We walked back to our rooms and I showed them the BC shortcut. We called up our large garden grocer order and our luggage came with it. We divided up the groceries, unpacked and rested for an hour. Hallee came back to the room while we were there also. It took her an extra trip around World Showcase before she remembered where the IG was. She did fine though and wasnt stressed, just enjoyed her walk. I love that she felt safe all by herself. Once she was back we considered going swimming but the rain cooled it off a lot, the temperature was in the 70s the rest of the day.

Everyone left at 5 for Epcot. We did this because I wanted to be with them when they walked through Epcots back door, otherwise we were ready to hit the world an hour earlier. No,
walking to Epcot does not get old! We had 3 consecutive fastpasses starting at 4:30 for Soarin, Nemo & Turtle Talk. We stayed together while we were in Future World. Soarin was great but we had 1 too many people to stay together so we were split in two groups. I got to sit next to Aidan and he loved it. We had no idea how he was going to respond because hes never even been to an amusement park. I was worried he was too young for it but he wasnt bothered by it at all until the fireworks scene when he jumped and covered his ears for a second. When it was over, he wanted to ride it again!

Afterwards we went next door to use our Nemo fastpass even though it was not needed. We were early for our Turtle Talk fp but we were happy to spend some time looking at the manatees and the aquarium. So far our trip was off to a great start!

We split up after that. My four wanted to dine in UK and Japan, the rest of the group was ready to go back to the hotel. I took Hallee to Japan and Cory and Jay met us there with fish and chips. Both meals were so good. We sat outside by the pond and it was a gorgeous evening. We were stuffed but just because we could, we stopped in France for dessert. We picked up crme brulee, macaroons and a chocolate tarte to go. We found the Ggibwooddolls at the Marketplace where they ate dinner but didnt love it. They should have stayed with us! I had hoped to watch the Star Wars fireworks from the beach but we were exhausted. We bought our refillable mugs and retreated to our room to enjoy our dessert while we watched Stacy. We were already snoring when we heard fireworks in the distance at 9:45.

Monday, June 2
We met at the bus stop at 8 and the bus came by about 8:20. Kim and Tatia and Jenny and Marc ran back up to the room and just missed the bus. After going through the bag check and magic band entrance we lined up just in time for the opening ceremony. Jenny was really looking forward to Marc seeing it but their bus dropped them off at 8:50, 10 minutes after the ceremony. Seeing it our first morning has become a tradition, it helps me set the stage for a magical week. Once again, the happy tears streamed down my face. By the time we made it to Main Street the others were working their way into the park. We took some photopass pics and were ready to roll.

Todays plan was to conquer New Fantasyland and get a ride on Space with a fastpass. I like to hit the rides as soon as we are let in the park but my group wanted to enjoy Main Street first. We slowly made our way down Main Street and through the castle. I immediately missed seeing Dumbo as we entered Fantasyland but did think seeing Beasts castle was cool. It was 9:20 before we were ready for our first ride. We went to Peter Pan which said a 20 minute wait already but we were on in 10. The family wanted to ride IASW while we were there as it had no wait. I told them they were welcome to but I was going to ride the others while there was little wait and come back to IASW because it moves fast even if there is a line. I seriously felt like a tour guide, all I needed was a green t-shirt and banner to guide the way. They have been many times now also but must be oblivious still about when and what to do. They decided to follow their tour guide to the tea cups, we skipped Winnie the Pooh because it was already at a 30 minute wait. I was quietly thinking people arent kidding, what happened to rope drop walk ons? Tea Cups was a walk on, Daddy, Jenny and Marc sat out. Clare, Aidan, Mamma and I did the wimpy way and did not spin, the other two cups made sure to spin as fast as they could.

Some were ready for a snack already so stopped at the kiosk outside the exit. We got in line for Alice so Aidan could get his first autograph. Alice was ready for a break one person in front of us and would not be back for 20 minutes. We did not wait and Aidan did not whine at all, as opposed to the dad in front of us that gave the castmember an earful. I felt bad for the poor girl. We had until 10:20 to do Dumbo and get to Belle before our fp window expired. Dumbo had a 15 minute wait. There were a few kids playing in the big top but we walked right through. Having a second ride, fresh paint, indoor queue and playland was great, but it was a huge disappointment to me to not be able to see much anymore when your Dumbo is up as high as he will go. I missed being able to see the castle and the lands.

We entered New Fantasyland by Ariel but we walked past. If our window for ETWB wasnt about to expire we might have stopped. We never made it back there again. We were the only ones in the fastpass queue, they let a standby group go then it was our turn. (standby was 50 min) This was a very cute show and I recommend going whether you have a child with you or not. Watching Lumiere is worth the visit alone, the technology used for him was amazing. Hallee was picked to be something, mostly because we were all standing behind her pointing at her. Belle is her favorite princess and this and Be Our Guest was the two things she was most looking forward to. A little girl backed out and we were still in the pre-show room so her job of Pepper was passed on to Aidan. Hallee helped him during the show since he didnt get to rehearse with the others. When it was their turn for a picture the castmember wasnt very friendly to her and made a comment to her about her son. She was flustered and didnt think quickly enough to say hes my nephew. It really bothered her and she didnt get a moment to take a picture by herself with Belle. I didnt know any of that happened and felt bad for her after. It was an easy misunderstanding and to me it wasnt a big deal but to a 16 year old girl it was.

And then it was 11:00, guess what time that is? Snack Time at Caseys!!! We get cravings for corn dog nuggets all the time so that was as important as riding Dumbo our first day. Hallee wanted a funnel cake instead so I took her to Sleepy Hollow then met the family at Caseys. It was nice to actually be able to sit at a table. The extended indoor/outdoor seating was great. There was a show going on in front of the castle but because of the hub construction we could not see it. Side note-I thought the walls that were hiding the construction made it feel more crowded on the walkways, a little claustrophobic. It also took away from the beauty of the hub. Wish they would have put a job like that on hold until the off season. I was bummed our newbies didnt get to see how beautiful that area truly is.

When snack time was over we went back to Fantasyland to ride IASM. Cory never rides this but he didnt have an excuse to go pull some fastpasses this time. He decided to ride since we were all together. I told him I wouldnt ask him to ride again for another 13 years. I was kind of in trouble for a minute because the wait said 15 minutes. I knew from the queue it wasnt and we never stopped til we got to the bottom. Unfortunately the castmember decided all 13 of us could fit in 3 rows, 1 of those was even the smaller back row. Cory and I were the last to load. He hopped in the back row and tried to help me in but I was not going to fit unless I sat on the side of the rim. The gate closed behind me and I jumped in the row ahead but they were crowded too so Tatia and I sat sideways on the ends. Another castmember scolded me but apologized when we said yes we are all together. She glared at the one that put us in that position. It was not a comfortable, relaxing ride.

We split up afterwards. Daddy, Mama, Jenny and Aidan went to see Philharmagic while the rest of us used our fastpass at Space Mountain. Space had a 45 minute wait but with a fastpass we breezed right through. Clare was nervous to ride because she has never ridden a big coaster. We told her it was fine, no big drops just fast and jerky. She actually loved it and rode everything! She rode in between Zach and I and said she was laughing at me because I laughed hysterically the whole way through.

We met the group at the entrance to Be Our Guest. Each room had a different 30 minute window but 1:05 was when we overlapped. At 1:00 we were admitted in. We split up into small groups where we were sent to a register. We selected what we wanted to eat then grabbed a large table in the main dining room. The servers deliver the food and it didnt take long for everyone to have their meals. Hallee and I split the Croque Mosieur which was delicious. Cory got the fish off the kids meal. He wasnt very hungry after eating too many corn dog nuggets so he was very happy with his meal. Jay is extremely picky and did not like the menu so got something off the kids meal also. We toured the dining rooms and wished I had looked at them before we settled down. I would have picked the rose room and they had lots of available tables. I thought this was a fun treat to do once but am glad we did it for lunch. Lunch was a little pricey but not as bad as dinner.

Our last fastpass was at 1:45 for SDMT! Jenny had been debating whether to ride it or not. She was only 12 weeks and didnt have a very big bump yet. She decided to stick with the warning and skip it. Glad she did because it was faster than than it looked. Its very colorful inside, a ride you cant help but smile and whistle along with. Heigh-HOOOOO! The cottage looks very real, I was so busy looking at the outside I didnt get a good look inside before the train was hauling again. I rode with Aidan and he loved the inside part but the train was too fast for his young mind. He kept asking me is it over? He did better on Big Thunder because he rode with his mom. It was fun and will definitely do again next trip but I would not have waited 110 minutes for it. Thank you fastpass! We all enjoyed it but found it to be a one and done and modified our fastpass for our next day at MK to something else.

It was 2:00 and everyone but my kids were ready for a nap. We told Hallee & Jay they could stay and I would try to help them get a fastpass since we could now get another at a kiosk. We tried the kiosk by Philharmagic but couldnt believe the line to get one. It had to be at least 50 people deep. Cory found another one on the app so we went to the one in Liberty Square/Frontierland. It was shorter so we got in line but it wasnt moving. A castmember announced that there was another kiosk in Fantasyland if anyone wanted to go there. Ugh, we just came from there and it was a longer line. The kids are spoiled and didnt want to wait in line for a ride and waiting in line to get a fastpass was ridiculous so we left. Hopefully they are working on the technology to get a fp via the app once the three are used.

We picked up a Mickey premium bar and sandwich for the walk out to the bus. My bar fell off the stick right after we exited the park. I didnt have anything to clean it up with so sorry for that mess Disney. We waited and waited for a bus. It was over an hour from the time we walked out of the park until we were back at Beach Club. We were tired and cranky, so a nice nap felt great.

It was still a little cool for an evening at the pool so we decided to do some window shopping at Downtown Disney. We went to Wolfgang Puck Express for dinner. We split the rotisserie chicken, pesto pizza and macaroni & cheese 4 ways. That is one of my favorite counter service locations on property. We had a delicious meal with plenty of food for $42. We spent the next couple of hours window shopping at Days of Christmas, Art of Disney, kitchen store, Trend-D and World of Disney where I bought a sundress then so I could wear it that week. We stopped at Ghiradelli for our free sample (caramel) and got milkshakes to go. We had a very short wait for the bus but it still takes awhile to get back because of all the stops.

We found out the rest of the family went to ESPN for dinner and some of the family was going to Illuminations, so we got off at Dolphin and met them on the bridge. We walked into the IG and set up camp on the bridge from UK to France. We knew it wouldnt be a great view but we didnt mind. Mama and Jenny went to get pastries at France. We enjoyed Illuminations and especially enjoyed walking out of the park instead of joining the masses with a trek to the buses. We were in our rooms in 10 minutes.

Tuesday June 3
We all met at Boardwalk Bakery about 8:15 that morning. I was hoping to get a vanilla latte since Im only a foufou coffee drinker. I wanted to sip on it during the peaceful walk to Studios. Unfortunately they do not have any flavors which I thought was a little odd. A few got coffee and pastries. We took in the beautiful morning setting before we split up. My folks and Jenny and Marc waited for the ferry, some of us strolled and Kim and Tatia power walked because Tatia was in trouble for turning the alarm off when Kim wanted to work out.

It took about 15 minutes from Boardwalk Bakery to bag check. We were there and joined the long lines. They didnt open the gates until just before 9. The ferry group arrived while we were waiting in line so they joined us inside shortly after we made it in. The ferry group took Aidan to wander and get breakfast. After a quick pit stop we headed to RnR to ride standby. We planned to hop on it and TOT before we went to the other side of the park. By the time we got to RnR at 9:10 the wait time said 20 minutes but when we got to the queue the castmember told us the wait was 45. We were determined to ride it though because we picked TSM both times as our Tier 1 fp. The line did not look like 45 minutes anyways. By the time we caught up to the line about 20 people before it goes inside, the queue had grown to the castmember outside the ride. Thats a 45 minute queue! We had a great ride and our nervous Clare loved it. Because of the wait at TOT already and we had a fp for later, we met up with the others.

Our fp window opened at 9:30 for Toy Story so we all went there next. Jenny was trying to be good to her small baby bump but loves this ride and didnt think anything of it. I got to ride this with her and we both agreed after that it was a little jerky for a pregnant mom. I love this ride though even if I am not any good at it. This was my parents first time to ride it too. For some reason they have never been with us when we have ridden it. Lots of laughs and sore arms by all!

We had plenty of time to kill before our next fp window closed so we went to Muppetvision 3D. This movie is timeless! Aidan really likes the 3D movies and is just as cute to watch during the films as the actual movie. I wish someday I would actually remember to check under the mat.

We slowly and I mean slowly ventured our way to Star Tours. We happened upon Lightning & Mater without a line so we had to stop. Lightning is Aidans favorite character and seeing him made he and his mama very happy. What a magical thing to see for a 3 year old! Our slow venture continued, some of us were looking for a restroom, some were looking for food and some made phone calls. Then the ones that were looking for food and make phone calls needed a pit stop too. Ugh, I loathe waiting on people. This is really the only negative to touring with a big group. In the past we have done our own thing but with having the same fp this time we have tried to ride those rides together.

We finally made it to Star Tours. This was our first trip since its refurb. I was just ok with the previous version, could take it or leave it but this version was so much fun. I couldnt help but smile through the entire ride. Sorry I cant correctly tell you what version we got but Aidan was the rebel spy and we visited someplace under water and got licked by a giant sea monster. Jenny and mama were the only 2 to sit it out. Afterwards we walked around a little so Marc, our huge Star Wars fan could see the whole section.

Our window was open for TOT finally. We wound our way through the crowd to get there, we had the unfortunate luck of walking by Indiana right after a show let out. Cory and I were in the back so our group lost their tour guide and made a right towards the exit instead of going straight towards TOT. We caught Zach, Clare and Aidan and Cory ran to catch the others. When they met up to us by the TOT restrooms the non-riders had stayed near the entrance. Normally that would be a good idea but we needed to pass Aidan on to them. Zach took Aidan to them and then we finally got to take Marc and Clare on their first ride in the haunted hotel. This is our favorite ride on property and bummed we cant get multiple fastpasses for it anymore. Id get 2 for it and 1 for TSM if I could. In 2010 Cory and I rode it 4 times in a row at rope drop. Where did those standby lines go? Our newbies loved it too!

The lunch debate had started between everyone. Cory and I knew we were going to Epcot to find something in the countries. They all decided they would try that too. Kim and Tatia walked back while the rest of us rested our feet on the ferry. Once again it was a glorious day and the ferry felt so nice. Aidan told his mom he had to pee but I was on another side and didnt hear. She was trying to have him hold it until we got to Epcot but I guess it got so bad they asked me what to do just as we docked at Swan. I told Clare lets go and ran with a 3 yr old that was in agony into the Swan. This is all fairly new to Zach so he didnt respond as quickly as he should have. I think hell know better next time. Cory had Zach follow him with the stroller. Cory waited for us outside Garden Grove and Il Mulano? where he had a rude encounter with some traveling business men. Zach waited for us outside. I felt so sorry for Aidan but he made it. We walked around the boardwalk and arrived at Epcot at the same time the ferry did. Kim and Tatia beat all of us.

Cory and I were leaning towards lunch at Japan or Norway but were open to anything but Morocco. My kids had no idea what they wanted, they were leaning towards Mexico or China. My mom wanted Mexico and Jenny wanted Chinese. My kids decided to explore with them and we took advantage of the opportunity for some quiet time. That was one of the times I was very grateful for the magic bands and I didnt have to worry about the kids not having money. Cory told them if you are going to Mexico you should go towards UK and then follow the lagoon to the right. Have I mentioned everyone was tired, hungry and cranky? They did not follow his advice and we said goodbye and let them go on their way. We were deciding what we wanted when I said we could see if Le Cellier had any walk ups. He laughed knowing that wasnt going to happen but what the heck. We changed directions and walked up to the exterior podium as some guy coming the other direction asked the poor CM which countries are the best to see. The CM looked dumbfounded and said all of them. Cory told him we like France and UK so he said ok and left. The CM started laughing. We asked him about availability and said Im not sure but its 1:30 and the lunch rush is over, go check inside. Two very happy faces went inside and asked if there was any chance of a walk up. They asked if we wanted to see the menu but we said no we have been here before. They were so friendly and said its our lucky day because they can seat us immediately.

We were seated by a noisy baby but we didnt care. It felt so good to sit down and have a delicious meal, not to mention a few minutes alone. We both ordered a glass of wine, split the cheese soup and filet. It was a very pricey lunch but we were both beaming and savoring every mouth watering bite. We got a text during lunch that Kim & Tatia went to Restaurant Marakesh and got in as a walk in. There was availability if anyone else wanted to join them. Zach, Clare and Aidan did. I texted the kids and my dad to give them a heads up that it wasnt a counter service place so be prepared. They all passed. Our lunch took a little over an hour at a table service restaurant and when we were finished the others were not done yet. I guess they had a little melt down. My mom reached Mexico and realized what she was craving was San Angel not the counter service. Jenny, Marc and my kids went to China and my parents finally decided on a sandwich in France. They were not happy campers, meanwhile Cory and I were smiling ear to ear and did not tell them what we just ate. We said we ate in Canada and none of them would know any differently. Sometimes it is good to be the only ones in the know!

We headed back to our room and met the kids there for a nap. By the time we were done resting it was about 5. We headed to Storm-Along-Bay for the first time. Hallee found a chair to plop in with a book. The pool was so quiet, we didnt have any issues finding a few chairs together. It was still a little cooler than I like to swim in so we went to the slide first. I knew I wouldnt have any choice but to get used to the water that way. The slide is partially and briefly enclosed, it passes under a couple water falls and goes quite a ways. It does not have any big dips. It is a very fun hotel slide. It enters into a 4 deep zone and you can continue into part of the pool or exit at the steps. We strolled and swam towards Hallee. It is so heavenly to stick your feet in that sand bottom. It is like getting a mini-pedi. We discovered Hallee in an innertube in the lazy river. We joined her free floating for a brief time then we all got out.

Jenny asked if we would hang out with Mama and Daddy while they went out with Kim & Tatia. She also mentioned finding them a meal because all they had had for a few days was sandwiches. (If they would have stuck with us more they would have had a variety ) We had decided on a quiet night so that was fine with us. Zach, Clare and Aidan wanted to hang out with us too. We went up to rinse and clean up a little bit. We tentatively decided on dinner on-site and maybe mini-golf at Fantasia Gardens. We looked online at menus for Captains Grill, Crews Cup and Ale & Compass. We decided on Captains Grill. We walked right in with maybe 6 other occupied tables. Leann was our server. She was great with our family, explained the specials and answered any of our questions. I dont remember what Zach and Clare ordered but I know they were very happy with it. Jay is too picky and ordered a chicken nugget kids meal and so did Aidan. I laughed when his four nuggets and fries were delivered. Hallee ordered the appetizer crab cake. She said it was delicious but needed an entre sized one, the one served as an appetizer didnt come close to filling her up. My parents finally got a meal, they split the pork tenderloin. It was so tender and juicy, better than the pork I ordered from California Grill previously. Cory and I were still a little full from our lunch but we kept that quiet. We split the Chefs pasta creation. It was a fancy beef and noodle concoction. Oh my goodness it was scrumptious. We had plenty between us to split and Hallee ate what we didnt. She loved it too. We ate a little too well today. We skipped dessert but Jay and Aidan got something with their kids meals. Aidan got a popsicle that he dropped. Leann brought him another one. Jay had the bite size samplers with chocolate sauce, cant remember what it was called but he enjoyed it.

During dinner I pulled out our mini-golf vouchers and discovered it was before 4 pm. None of us felt like paying full price to play so we bowed out. Really I think if we werent so tired and sore already we might have payed the money but it was a easy way out. It was only the end of day 3 and our feet hurt. We toyed with going back to Epcot to walk the countries or watching the movie under the stars. We were enjoying the lack of people around so Epcot was scratched by us but the Dolls went. We remembered the movie under the stars was Frozen. We found a lot of people camping out so decided not our thing tonight. We didnt want to concede and go to bed at 8:15 so decided to stuff our tummies with even more food. We went to Beaches and Cream to get sundaes to go. I wish we could have eaten there but they did not have any walk up availability. We took our ice cream out to the path and sat at a table. We enjoyed the beauty of our view and all the sounds with it. We were lucky to have gotten there when we did because people kept coming to get chairs for Frozen. Our sundaes were delicious too. We did accept defeat after our dessert and disappeared to our rooms. Lights were out very early again.

Wednesday June 4
We finally got to sleep in until 7:30, sad right? We had an ADR at Cape May at 9:30. It was so nice to book a breakfast at our hotel rather than Chef Mickeys and have to leave at least an hour early to bus to MK and walk or monorail it to Contemporary. We checked in right at 9:30 and were seated 5 minutes later at tables across from each other. We werent able to visit with the other tables but it made picture taking easier. The buffet had a great variety of food options. Their breakfast buffet was delicious, far better food quality than we have experienced at Chef Mickey's but if doing a character buffet again I would rather go back to Chef. It might be too picky, but Mickey is always the highlight for us and we missed seeing him. It took a little over an hour to dine and see Minnie, Donald and Pluto.

Kim and Tatia headed to the pool while the rest of us went back to Downtown Disney. We all got our ornaments picked out and monograms ordered. We shipped them back to the resort so we wouldnt have to wait. We stopped in Art of Disney so I could get my niece/nephew and Aidan their first set of ears. On baby to bes ears we had a big G monogrammed, partly because we dont know what baby is and partly because G is their representation in Ggibwoodsondolls. While in there I decided a print or canvas was going to be my nice keepsake souvenir from the family. I had it narrowed down to a couple but wanted to check some other stores first.

We split up then, my four bought what we still wanted at Tren-D and World of Disney. Then the Dolls met us so we could get something for Aidan. Clare and I spotted a Cars fire truck that squirts water but we couldnt convince Aidan. He went immediately to the Cars mac truck. Zach made his way over and tried to sway him but it wasnt happening. We stopped at Goofys Candy Co where we got a few souvenirs for neighbors and friends but we didnt make anything special this time. We arrived at the bus stop to find everyone else was already there waiting for the bus.

We went to the pool when we got back. I stopped to make a payment towards our room but they went ahead. I had a nice collection of Disney gift cards and a couple visa cards. I didnt have any cash on me and wound up with an $8 balance still on our room. They saw Kim and Tatia and everyone else came down there by the time I made it. Cory waited for me to hop in then we grabbed Jay to go to the slide. We talked Daddy into trying it. Hes afraid of heights and a little claustrophobic but he was a trooper. He actually enjoyed it and rode it a few more times through the week with us. We stayed about an hour and then went to the room to rest briefly and clean up.

Kim and Tatia got too much sun so they said they were skipping our evening at Epcot. My four decided to go to MK to see Wishes. The others liked that idea and said they wanted to come too. My four had only snacked at lunch time because we were so full from breakfast. We left for Epcot earlier than the others and went to Sunshine Seasons for dinner. The only other time we ate there we were impressed with the choices. I debated between a Caesar salad and sweet and sour chicken with jasmine rice. I went with the Chinese and wished I hadnt after. It was soggy and didnt taste good at all. Cory got the pork tenderloin which was okay but not great. The kids picked out boxed kids meals so they were happy. Zach and crew met us while we were in there but werent hungry.

We were going to try the Disney Visa meet and greet but wasnt sure where it was. I asked a CM at the Character Connection and he pointed the way but told us they had no wait there if we wanted to come in. He didnt know what characters were at the Visa meet since they switched regularly and Mickey was right here hoping to see us. He didnt have to tell us twice, we went straight to Mickey! We got to see Mickey, Minnie & Goofy without a wait. We had some cute interaction and Aidan got some autographs. He was never afraid of the characters either. We had no idea what to expect heading into the trip but Aidan was adorable riding the rides and meeting characters.

The Gs and gibs met us at Test Track to use our first fastpass. Mama and Jenny waited for us outside Electric Umbrella. We all enjoyed the look of the new queue and especially designing a car. Those that had done it before all voted for this version. Marcs design finished first and ours second, not sure about Zachs. We sat in a few cars at the exit and did a little dreaming. Afterwards I took Aidan to get a snack at Electric Umbrella with Jenny while my parents went to Seasons for dinner. The others used our second fp at Mission Space. Cory, Hallee, Zach & Clare rode orange side and Marc and Jay went green. I made Jay go with Marc because Marc was unsure about the ride and Jay didnt like the ride the only time he has ridden it, but he was 8. Afterwards they both wanted to ride orange, said theres nothing to green.

Our last fastpass for the evening was Spaceship Earth or the Mother Ship depending on whom in our family is speaking. I think it was the first evening I have ever seen a line for it. I cant imagine the wait was long but it was different to see a line at 7 pm. The CMs wouldnt let Zach ride with Clare and Aidan so that messed us all up getting into buggys since they were leading the pack. I know I have ridden it before with 2 adults and a small child. The CMs were a little cranky about it too. It was a relaxing ride after that and a much needed break for the feet.

Now is when the evening took a wrong turn and I so wish I could do it over. I need to start by saying Wishes is a top 5 thing for me to do on our Disney vacations. When we made our touring schedule I did not put it in, we knew we would just pick a night and go.

After we departed it was time to head to Magic, it was about 7:30. I was hoping to be there about 8 to find a place for Wishes, I wasnt too worried about staking a spot for the parade but if we found a spot for it that would be even better.

Zach has had an issue with hives the last few times he has traveled anywhere. When we got off Spaceship Earth he mentioned they are coming on and wanted to get some Benadryl ASAP. I told him we could find first aid, it had to be close by since we were at the front of the park or I could take him at MK because I know where it is. Jenny said Marc wants to see Contemporary, he wants to ride the monorail through the cool hotel. I knew it wasnt going to be a quick trip but I didnt feel right ditching them. Zach decided he wanted to get Benadryl at Contemporary even though that wasnt the location I knew where to look.

Before we left we took a group shot in front of the mother ship. I wanted to take advantage of being at the front of the park for the first and last time. We got some good shots, Zach was the only cranky person at that point.

We headed for the monorail and got annoyed with the family for going right where everyone else went when the guide was waving them left where nobody was. So of course we wind up in a very hot crowded train. We depart at the TTC and I am in the middle of the pack, Cory is up front and guides them to the express monorail. I have to be the bad guy and tell him no we want the resort monorail to go to the Contemporary. I hated having to tell Cory he was wrong and he was annoyed with me for doing so. He thought the express still stopped. Nope, thats why its the express. If we had taken the express like we planned, we would have been at MK way before 8. Instead they join me and those at the back of the pack caught up. We finally make it to the Contemporary at 8. Cory goes on a hunt for Benadryl and finds it in the Market. Jenny and Marc walk around very briefly, mostly he wanted to see the art. Some hit the Market, restrooms and the gift shop. We all gathered by the restrooms until we were all back together. Im getting annoyed at this point and keep looking at Corys time. We head back to the monorail at 8:15 where we all get separated. Mamma was worried but we were all headed to the same place so it was really okay. Both trips the monorail stopped multiple times. Each time I cringed.

We finally made it to Magic Kingdom at 8:45. We did not have a wait at the turnstiles or gate to get in. Cory and I stopped to get Aidan a green balloon because we didnt on our first day there. Now the group was hungry for fish and chips so they kept walking towards Columbia Harbor House. They were afraid it would close at 9 but I said it shouldnt, the park is open until 12. We caught up to them and I took the lead to navigate them through the mass of humanity waiting for the parade. I was hauling *** because all I wanted to do was get to Main Street for the castle show and Wishes. My poor parents were dragging and Jenny cant go fast because of baby. They yelled at me to please slow down, I told them I was trying to get them where they wanted to go. They told me just to go find a spot. I said Im too late now, at this point we have to wait for the parade crowd to clear. We take off walking again this time much slower. We get to Harbor House and out they walk because it closed two minutes ago at 9. Everyones tempers are raised now.

At this point they say forget the food. Zach suggested Haunted Mansion since we were right there. I agreed with hopes it would lift some spirits and I think it did for a bit. When we exited I planned to get us back towards Main Street but the rope is up now because of the parade so we go back towards Fantasyland. The old shortcut we used to take around the castle is now blocked off. Only option now is to go the long way around Fantasyland. I took us to the path to the right of Cosmic Rays and near the Tea Cup restrooms. The bridge is filling up and all I can see ahead is crowds. I stopped there because we could see the side of the castle and hoped we could at least see Wishes. Cory said he was going to go ahead and see if there was space for us to set up camp. He leaves and my dad tells me they are tired and are going back to the hotel. I cant believe my ears, they wasted so many steps. They could have skipped that entire debacle and went to the hotel after Spaceship Earth. I tried to tell Daddy how to get out by going through Tomorrowland but he was frustrated and didnt want to get lost so they headed out through the hub. Zach asked me to watch Aidan in the stroller while EVERYONE else but Jay went into Cosmic Rays for food. Now Jay and I are trying to hold space for 8 people. Cory calls me to say he has a great spot if we come quick. I told him my predicament and he couldnt believe what had just happened. He knew I couldnt get the stroller and our stuff and let everyone know where we moved so he came back to me. The castle show starts and at least we can see it from that vantage point. Hallee ran out to join us. Zach and crew came out once they had food so they got to see part of the show. Jenny and Marc stayed inside and watched out the windows. After that Jiminy Cricket was speaking and if I hadnt known it was him I wouldnt have known at all because where we were standing there was no speaker or music piping in. I didnt get to hear Starlight, Starbrightand felt the lump in my throat. Wishes began and we couldnt see anything at all. Jenny and Marc came out to only to find out we cant see Wishes from there. They were going to leave since they couldnt watch it from there. Zach, Clare and Aidan left. I was crying like a baby.

Cory took us to the ledge by the teacups to hug me. Hallee was angry and she doesnt get angry at the family much. She said we should have left all of them earlier so we wouldnt have missed it. Jay was oblivious! Cory was furious. Normally he is so laid back, does not have a temper at all. I have never seen him so furious. It took him a while to get his blood pressure back to normal. He was about to send a nasty group text and let me read it. I pleaded with him not to send it, it would just make it worse so he deleted it. We sat there for several minutes to regain our composer. We made plans for the evening and they wanted to come with us. Lesson learned for next time, split up.

Hallee suggested we do one our favorites to make the most of the evening. We went to Splash Mountain and we were riding regardless of the wait. Luckily for us it was only 20 minutes. We laughed and sang and remembered why we are here and thanked our lucky stars for it. It was a memorable moment for all 4 of us.

I asked Cory for our camera. I had been carrying it but I gave it to him at the hub because he was going to take pictures during Wishes. He felt his pockets and realized he didnt have it. I searched my purse but we knew it was gone. He remembered exactly where he laid it. He placed it on the other side of him on the ledge when he was hugging me. We briskly walked back to the spot but it wasnt there. We knew it was gone but there wasnt any blame or anger happening. It was just a bad night. We headed to City Hall to check only to find a huge line. It was around 11 when we got in line and the second parade had just begun. We waited in line for 20 minutes but talked to a very nice CM. We described it and she went to the back room. She came out and asked with a smile is this it? It WAS it!!! She said it was just turned in. We thanked her profusely and left smiling again. We headed to the bus with another long wait but luckily we got to sit. It was around 12:30 when we made it to our room. While on the bus we sent a group text that we are sleeping in the next morning and not going to AK.

Thursday June 5
At last these weary bodies slept in til about 9 and it felt so wonderful. We walked to Epcot for a yummy breakfast at Les Halles. We each got a different sandwich and they were very good. It was so nice to be in the area with so few people. We left France and it was almost time for rope drop for World Showcase. I actually did not know rope drop even existed back there but there was a lot of people waiting behind it. Hallee remembered Belle so she checked to see what time she started. We had no idea half the people at rope drop were running to see her. Once the rope was moved all these ladies with strollers were running. Hallee took off running when she figured out what was happening and wound up 4th in line. She had a single woman sneak around her and so did a family that didnt speak English otherwise she wouldve been second. She told them she was in line also but they ignored her. Once I caught up to her and she told me what happened I told her to let it go. We werent in as big of hurry as they were I guess. Belle was out shortly and the line was not very long so there was no need for anyone to have run to begin with. Im glad I didnt have to do that for Anna & Elsa at MK! Hallee was happy to get her picture with storybook Belle so it was worth it to her.

The first showing of American Adventure was at 11:20 so we ran over there and just made it. If Voices of Liberty performed we missed them. Im glad we took the time to see it again, this show moves me more than Hall of Presidents.

We headed back to Beach Club after that. We put our suits on and went to SAB. It was much warmer today so the pool felt its best yet. All of the family was there but they were leaving to get some rest before our afternoon ADR. Clare stayed for a bit and we went to the kiddie slide with her and Aidan. He used one of their vests and went up and down the slide. He had a questionable look going down the slide but he would want to go again. The kiddie was good enough for him, he likes to swim but definitely wasnt ready for the big one. Some small kids were though, we saw plenty going down it with vests on. We spent an hour going down the slide and soothing our feet in the sand then it was back up for a little rest.

We all met at 3 for Hollywood Studios. Wood and dolls walked while the rest of us rode the ferry which had just docked when we were walking up. We beat the walkers by a couple minutes only. They were at the bus stop for off property shuttles when we docked. Only a few of us knew what to expect at 50s Prime Time. Ive read about it in many trip reports so my kids have been wanting to try it. We checked in 10 minutes early, I also requested a playful server. We were seated right about our ADR time at 3:45. We were placed in an L shape with 3 different tables. It actually worked very well for talking other than being loud in general in the restaurant. Mom (Mary Ann) was our server and was a hoot from the start. She particularly liked to harass my parents. Dad started it by saying something and she said Whiney boy and had us all chant it with her. Later my mom told Mom something dad did and she got in trouble for being a tattle tale. There were too many things we were laughing at to remember. We ordered onion rings for an appetizer and yes they are fantastic. I didnt note what everyone ordered but several of us did split the sampler or got fried chicken. Cory and I split the sampler, I ate the fried chicken and Cory ate the pot roast and meat loaf. It was okay, nothing great but it certainly was fine. Jay got a Peanut Butter & Jelly shake and is still craving another one today. Hallee got the red velvet shake but liked Jays better. I got the lemonade with fruit foam on top. I saw it at Sleepy Hollow and thought it sounded good so couldnt pass the opportunity up. It was delicious! I think the rest of the group ordered something leaded. We asked Mary Ann if we could have someone take her picture with us so she took us back out to the living room and we got a great group shot in there. Our dinner was a highlight to the trip for all of us. It was wonderful to come back together with laughter again. Thanks Mom for the laughs!

Kim and Tatia went to ride RnRC and the Dolls walked back to the room to do laundry. Zachs hives did flare up which made him self-conscious to be in public. Fortunately they were better the next day. That left Jen and Marc, folks and us to explore. We had a lot of time before our TSM fp was closed so we took Marc on The Great Movie Ride rather than hitting it later. We were seated in the first two rows and got the western version. I thought I had grown tired of this ride but riding it in the front was almost as fun as riding it for the first time.

We went to TSM afterwards and Jenny sat it out. I cant score well on this or Buzz but who cares. I rode by myself which isnt quite as fun since theres nobody to compete with. We all went in to One Mans Dream next. I have been telling the rest of the family for several trips they need to see this and I finally got them in. They loved it, especially Marc, the creative one of the family. We could have spent more time in there but the film was starting and we had a fp window already open. We watched the movie in a full theatre. Thank you Walt!

We left Mama and Jenny resting up the stairs from TSM while we used our second fp at Star Tours. It was just as much fun as the first time but I have no idea where we visited. We met back up with the ladies and my folks decided to head back to the hotel. We went to the Animation building. The line to draw a character was too long for us so we went to see what characters the newbies were then we separated again. Marc is Jiminy Cricket and Jenny got Lady Tremaine. We got a big laugh out of that. Hallee did it too and got Belle, she was quite pleased. Our last fp window was open for Test Track so the Sons headed that way while the Gs finished up Animation and went back to finish browsing in One Mans Dream. While in the Animation building they ordered a print of Its A Small World for baby to bes nursery.

While walking to TOT we noticed there wasnt a line for Fantasmic as they were already letting people in for the 9:00 show. We bypassed the 45 minute wait and went straight into the preshow. This is my favorite ride on property and can not get enough rides on it.
Hallee and I needed a pit stop so Cory and Jay headed on into F! Jenny and Marc were headed there also. We spotted them right ahead of us. Cory and Jay got seats at the top on the far right side. I like being at the top because it makes it faster to exit. We enjoyed the pre-show competition while singing Disney songs and answering trivia. Cory and Jenny went to get us snacks. They brought back the worst nachos ever. The cheese was in a container, we tipped it over and nothing came out. It was like the cheese in the crackers and cheese we ate as kids. We ate the chips and forgot about the cheese. It was so hot sitting there, there was no breeze at all. It was the first time during the trip we were miserably hot, we were very fortunate. As soon as F! started we had a great view of Illuminations also. The show was great as ever and it was standing room only. BTW-we did not fp this but they saved over half the theatre for fp seating or dining package seats.

We told the Gs goodbye before we left our seats because they were headed back and we were on a mission to ride RnRC one more time. It took forever to walk through the exit and came out next to the park entrance. Ugh! We thought we would exit by TOT as we have in the past. We ran to RnRC and walked straight through until we entered the building at 8:50. We were off the ride at 8:55 and bolted for TOT where we got in line at 8:58. That was also a walk on, we didnt stop until the boiler room. There was a lady in front of us that pulled the switch. Ive read about that but never remember when Im there. We were the next to last ride of the night. Jay picked up a key chain on the way out. Cory went in search of a shirt he was having a hard time finding in his size. While looking, Hallee found a stuffed animal Beast we hadnt seen anywhere and found a shirt she had been looking for her size in. No luck on Corys. Jay grabbed a Goofy hat at the front of the park too. A ferry had just left when we got outside so we walked back. It was an enjoyable walk but our feet were so sore.

Friday, June 6
We were all together again and headed to the bus stop at 8:00 for Magic Kingdom. My mom and dad and another family were the only ones at the bus stop. It was 8:20 when the next bus came so there was a lot of people there by then. The bus came and a line somewhat formed. We didnt rush to be at the front so we were bypassed by many. Zach, Clare, Aidan and my mom boarded and then the driver said that was all. They didnt want to leave without us so they got off to wait. Luckily a new and empty bus pulled right in and we were the first to board. If that hadnt happened I dont think I could have kept my cool. The Me first mentality is way out of hand at the bus stops. This is the only thing I prefer from the value resorts, the corral keeps it fair. The first bus was packed but our bus left with everyone having a seat.

We made it through bag check and turnstile at 8:35. We went towards the left this time to try a different vantage point of walking into the park. I think I like the other side better, no idea why. We went with Zach, Clare & Aidan to Tomorrowland while the others stayed and relaxed and shopped on Main Street.

Zach, Clare, Hallee and Jay went to Space Mountain while Cory and I squeezed into a car at Indy Speedway with Aidan. It was a tight fit but Im happy we did. We had so much fun with him. He loves race cars and we did our best to go as fast as we could. He was especially happy we were directed to a green car, his favorite color.

We went into Monsters and only a couple people were in there. After waiting 10 minutes we were told we needed 15 more people before they could have a show. They said its usually pretty quiet in there early mornings and best to try later so we left.

The fandamily from Main Street was heading our way for our first fp on Buzz. Buzz didnt have a wait so we went ahead and rode before they got there. In those short 5 minutes of entering the queue and exiting the ride Buzz had grown to a 20 minute wait. We used our fp and got our second ride in, in no time at all. I wish I could figure out why I am an utter failure at shooting games. I can see the laser but my score goes nowhere. I seriously had 0 a minute into the ride.

We made our way to Adventureland where we waited 10 minutes for Jungle Cruise. We had our best captain yet, Joe. His timing for the punch lines was spot on. We went next door to Pirates and waited less than five minutes before we were on our boat. This boat ride we were seated in four rows so there wasnt anyone sitting on the sides. I miss Davy Jones in the mist, I thought he was a cooler scene.

Next was our fp for Big Thunder FINALLY! We only had one day left and had yet to ride it, very sad. Everyone but Mama and Jenny rode. Zach and Clare squeezed Aidan in between them. He wasnt nearly as scared with his mom beside him. When we got off our last fp window was open for Splash Mountain. Clare was nervous about the drop for Aidan. We let her decide what Aidan was up to doing but we did tell her the drop is not as bad as it looks and BTM is much scarier. I also told her Hallee rode for the first time when she just turned 4 but was tiny and much smaller than Aidan is now and she did okay. Clare let him ride. We had two extra people so Cory and I rode in the next boat. They said Aidan loved the ride and did fine on the big drop.

We split up for lunch, Cory and I went with Kim, Tatia and Mama to Tortuga Tavern. We got taco salads and fixed them the way we like at the fixins bar. Hallee and Jay went with everyone else to Columbia Harbor House. After lunch Cory, Jay & I took Aidan to Country Bear Jamboree while everyone else went to Hall of Presidents. We like the Bears so I knew Aidan would too. He started slapping his leg during the show, too cute. I think he liked the animals on the wall the best. We were out before the others so we let Jay and Aidan do the shooting gallery.

It was close to 2 when they let out and they were ready to head back. I wanted to do Philharmargic or Monsters before we quit for the day. We sent Aidan with them and the three of us picked Monsters because we will be back the next day to go back to Splash and BTM and we wouldnt have to go back to Tomorrowland. We were some of the last people to enter Monsters and had to sit in the front row which was different. Hello humans, aaaaahhhhh! This is one of my favorite things to do at Disney!

We headed back after that but had our longest wait yet for the bus. We were the third family in line and by the time the bus got there Beach Club went through the queue several rows. The bus was standing room only. I was done with the bus to MK. We were supposed to go back Saturday night to finish up what we hadnt done which wasnt much but mostly we wanted to watch Wishes to make up for the other night. I said something to Cory about not wanting to go back and he said he was tired of the bus too but it was up to me. I said Im done, Id rather walk to Epcot. I realized that was it for MK and I didnt wave goodbye. I said my own goodbye to my happy place and had to dry some tears. It was 3:30 before we were back at Beach Club. We were tired and supposed to babysit at 4. I checked in to see if we could back it up to 4:30 so we could rest for an hour which was fine with them.

At 4:30 Aidan was delivered to our room. He had just awoke from a nap too so it worked out well. Kim and Tatia took them to Wolfgang Pucks and the Gs and gib went to Downtown to shop. We thought a low key evening sounded delightful.

Cory ordered delivery from our favorite pizzaria, Giordanos. We discovered that gem when we went in 2011 by Universal. Its based in Chicago and has a few locations in Orlando. When we went to Chicago in 2012 we went back twice. Giordanos delivered a deep dish meatball pizza to the lobby. We grabbed plates and forks from the Marketplace and ate in the courtyard. It was lovely out there. Aidan said he wanted cheese pizza so I was picking out the meatballs until he saw what they were then he wanted them. We ordered way too much but stuffed the leftovers in the refrigerator only to be thrown away the morning we left.

We all went swimming after even with stuffed bellies. We camped out by the Yacht Club side so Aidan could roam in the shallow water. He raced Hallee and Jay back and forth. We were so relieved they were there to entertain him. We were exhausted just watching them. Hallee and Jay had just as much fun as Aidan did though. We stayed for an hour then went up to dry off. We came down to find out what the surprise movie under the stars was going to be. We voted for Monsters Inc in case we made it back. We watched families roast marshmallows but we wanted ice cream instead so we moved on. We went back to Epcot to get Gelato in France. We sat outside on a bench and enjoyed our dessert but Aidan made a mess out of his shirt. Illuminations was getting ready to start but I needed to get a three year old cleaned up so we headed back to the room. We were too tired for the movie or to watch the special Star Wars fireworks. I scrubbed Aidans shirt and soaked it overnight but it didnt come all the way out. Clare may not want us to watch him again. They picked him up at 10 and we crashed immediately.

Saturday June 7
Today was our last day and I wished we hadnt shortened the trip by a night. If we hadnt we would still have another opportunity to see Wishes. Instead we changed our plans to visit Animal Kingdom. I changed our fastpasses from MK to AK. I wasnt able to get Kali River Rapids before noon but we were able to get Everest, Safari and Dinosaur the morning of. AK was early entry but we didnt bother since we had fp and were not staying for the shows. If Hallee hadnt wanted to ride Everest so bad we would have skipped the park altogether. I like this park but our trip went by entirely too fast. Jenny and Marc went to Studios to see Star Wars Weekend. Their favorite part was the parade.

We got to the bus stop at 8:30, got picked up 15 minutes later, stopped at Blizzard Beach and arrived at 9:05. Kim and Tatia grabbed a vegan (yuck) snack then we left my parents and Aidan on a bench near the Tree of Life. They arent vegan but the closest snack kiosk had nothing but healthy foods which was fine but the snack bar they bought looked and tasted like bird food. Ick.

The rest of us went to Everest to use our fastpass. It was a walk on but we still used our fastpass. Clare was thinking the ride wasnt too bad and Aidan wouldve been ok until it stopped and switched to backwards. Then she understood why we said no Aidan this time! Kim and Tatia kept our kids and walked on to single rider twice while we headed back to get Aidan and my folks. They had taken Aidan for a stroll.

We went into Its Tough to be a Bug and waited for the single riders near the entrance to the show. It didnt take long for them to catch up. I was able to get an obligatory pic by the chimps face at the entrance. This pic has Aidan in it so now that my kids are getting big I have a new face to watch grow. Tatia and Kim hadnt seen it before and I guess Tatia was mad because someone poked her during the show. I got a big laugh, Kims must not have worked because she didnt get poked but I let Tatia know the person behind her wasnt messing with her. We heard many crying children but Aidan enjoyed it.

Next up was our second fp for Kilimanjaro Safaris. Standby wait was 45 minutes and the fp line was backed up a ways in Africa. Mickey turned blue for the last person of the family in front of us getting in. The CM was talking and made me stop since I was the first person in our group going through. I told him it was the family in front so he let us go. We saw the family get waved through at the next light so not sure what happened. After waiting a few minutes outside in the fp line we walked straight through to a truck. The safari was okay, not one of my favorite guides. We saw the lioness sleeping but the lion wasnt in view and my favorite, the hippos, were not playing. The highlight was a giraffe wandered right next to the path as we were approaching.

We finished the park at Dinosaur with our last fast pass. We left mama and daddy resting outside. Both lines were backed up a ways outside but we went ahead and joined it only because we had a fastpass. This isnt one of my favorites, I dont mind riding it but could also pass. I havent been able to figure out what all they hype is about regarding it being scary. Its just a fun, extremely jerky ride to me. It took us about 30 minutes to get through the fastpass line and the ride. Tatia and Jay bought dinosaur shirts at the exit. Tatias says if your happy and you know it, clap youroh with the dinosaur looking at his arms and Jays says Im Unstoppable with the dinosaur holding a mini dinosaur claw toy. Very clever tees!

We went with everyone to Rainforest for lunch. We didnt want to spend the extra money to eat there because we arent big fans but we also didnt want to be the party poopers and leave. We had a brief wait to be seated but the service took a long time. Cory and I split a chicken sandwich that was pretty blah but everyone else enjoyed their meal. Tatia ordered a volcano for us to split, mostly so she could see Aidans reaction. He took the whole restaurant in but wasnt wowed by it like I thought he might be.

We made it back to the hotel in time for a swim. We went to storm-along bay only to find it mobbed for the first time of the trip. We found one empty chair to place our things on then went to the slide. The line was to the bottom of the staircase but since it was our last day we waited. When we departed we swam our way back towards the Yacht Club side but had to maneuver around people everywhere. We decided it was time to check out the quiet pool for the first time. We saw Daddy looking for us and he was thrilled we were bailing to a different pool. At the quiet pool there was a couple and 2 kids playing while their parents sat by the pool. It was so much more our speed. We played ball with Jay for a bit and then got out to dry off. Right after we got out, Mama, Marc and Jenny showed up. Jay stayed with them and Cory and I headed back to the room. Hallee was already there resting.

Our plan was to spend our last evening wandering through World Showcase and finishing up our souvenir shopping at MouseGears then meeting everyone for Illuminations for our vacation finale. What happened was my four left to eat Yorkshire and Japan one last time. Cory and Jay met us at Japan again but this time we sat inside in the air-conditioning. I wanted to try the shrimp with udon noodles because the picture looked so good. The tempura shrimp is served in a bowl of noodle soup so it isnt crunchy. None of us cared for it so we ate the fish and chips and ordered some Sushi for Cory and Hallee.

Norway was the only country we went in that direction. We toyed with getting some school bread but we were too full from dinner. We just took in the ambience and walked slowly to MouseGears, mostly because we all had aching feet. We found all the last minute items we couldnt resist there. I never did find a print I liked better so we went to Art of Disney to look one last place. The Magic Kingdom railroad print I liked was right out front and I knew instantly that was it. We also picked up a large frame with subtle hidden mickeys for it. We shipped it home and arrived about 10 days later. I took it to Michaels to get it matted and framed. It looks beautiful in our dining room.

It was getting a little dark and radar showed a blob just north of us. By this time we had heard from everyone that they were skipping Illuminations and heading back to the resort. We weighed our options but our aching feet were the deciding factor. Hallee picked up a Mickey premium bar then we started the sad trek back to Beach Club. We said our goodbye at the bridge, this time without a big smooch from my husband. The kids would have run away otherwise I think he would have.

Back at the hotel we went up to do the sad job of packing. It didnt take long and we had plenty of space for our souvenirs. We brought one extra suitcase luckily or it would not have fit. We thought Tatia was getting 16 of our 20 combined suitcases covered under her flight status and the group package she bought our tickets with. She said she triple checked with the agent when booking but when we checked in they did not honor that. So that extra suitcase for souvenirs and space cost us an extra $60 on top of the four we didnt expect to pay for. Next time we will save the extra suitcase and ship everything that doesnt fit home for half that cost.

After that dutiful task we went down to Beaches and Cream to join a long take out line. Jay played in the arcade and Marc and Jenny joined him. Zach saw us in line and asked us to order some ice cream for them too. They wanted some but didnt want to wait 30 minutes. Our long wait was worth it as it was a great way to finish up the evening. We had a table outside with a perfect view of the high Star Wars fireworks. It wasn't as beautiful as seeing it from Studios but it was perfect in that moment. We finished our ice cream then settled in for our last sleep at Disney.

Sunday June 8
We woke at 5:30 to be ready to take our suitcases to airline check in at 6:50. Everyone but us took everything down then to wait for Magical Express at 7:30. We left all our carryons including my purse, in the room since we had 30 minutes. My dad checked he and my mom in and she wasnt asked for i.d. Corys turn to check in and they want my i.d. which I should have been prepared for but because of the awesomeness of magic bands my wallet was in my purse in the room. I ran upstairs to get it and ran back down. The 7:00 magical express was there but nobody was loading. The CM asked if we wanted to go early. They told him everyone was ready but us. He said he could wait a few minutes. We finished checking in and ran upstairs for the rest of our belongings. We loaded onto an empty Magical Express and that was it. Bye bye Beach Club.

We made stops at Boardwalk, Caribbean Beach and Pop Century before we were on our way. We made it to an empty MCO in 30 minutes. Flying Sunday morning was nice. Security only took a few minutes instead of a lot of minutes! Zach was delayed because they had to get a supervisor to approve his drivers license. He had a new paper copy and a cut up old license because he just got a motorcycle license before we left. The supervisor sent him through, said most places punch the old one, not cut it. Rainforest Caf was the only other place he had a problem with it. They would not accept the paper copy as proper i.d. to purchase alcohol. Our flight was on time but hit storms near Dallas and had to detour which added 30 minutes. Our hummer limo was there to pick us up. We went to Kim and Tatias to get all the cars and say our goodbyes. We stopped at Fuddruckers for a favorite burger of ours since we dont have one. Road construction and traffic slowed our trip home down so it was 8:00 before we were in Wichita, picked up our old pup Phoebe and home finally about 9:00. It was a long day but happy to be home sweet home.

Final thoughts
I was able to talk my family into staying deluxe this time because of the proximity to two parks. We were all tired of the buses. At one time they did not bother me but I am now officially done with them. Next trip we will either drive so we can have our car or maybe rent once we are onsite so we can still use ME. I can not stress enough to someone who has not stayed at an Epcot resort there is nothing better than walking to your room from Epcot after Illuminations over walking with the masses to the bus stops. A peaceful walk to the Studios in the morning isn't too shabby either. We did not have good luck getting from the parks to the resort quickly. Every trip was an hour or more from the time we walked out of the park until we were dropped off at BC stop. We knew better about Downtown but yet we still waited, I was highly disappointed with the service from MK. At MK I think it was the AKL stop next to ours, we watched 3 buses pull up before we got a BC/YC. Done with the buses! I must be getting too impatient in my old age of 43!!!

My husband and I knew what our food options were by staying at BC. We like going to Epcot for a variety of counter service restaurants. My family was used to food courts at the moderates. I told them what to expect before we went but they were disappointed in the food options. My 4 was not! We ate at Cape May, Captain's Grill, Beaches & Cream for ice cream, Big River, Boardwalk Bakery, at the parks and Downtown Disney. Captains Grill was my favorite meal of the trip and that was with a lunch at Le Cellier. I think my family would have been happier at meal times if they would have followed us rather than splitting up. They almost always came back to the hotel and then searched for something and wound up disappointed. My only disappointment was Beaches & Cream. I hate that they switched to ADR's. We tried at 9:00 pm one night during the week and were still turned away. I told the guy we are staying here if that matters. But no it didn't. My 2 cents only-If they are going to make the place ADR, they should still allow walk ups as long as you are willing to wait, for those staying at the hotel. We did get ice cream to go twice and got to see a few people sharing a kitchen sink multiple times while waiting.

Storm-Along-Bay was fantastic, we loved spending time there. The fist two days of our trip we were going commando and temperatures were cool for June. By the time we got back to the room, we were exhausted and chilled. We experienced and believe me we were not complaining, highs of 84! By day 3 we spent a lot of time there. Up until the day before we left we could get an inner tube whenever we wanted and there were only a few people if any in line for the slide. The slide was so fun, I was really surprised by the quality of a hotel pool slide and the sand bottom is heavenly just to walk around on. On Sat 6/7 SAB was packed. The line for the slide was to the walk path but we waited in it because it was our last day.

The staff at BC was great. Scott checked us in and was very accommodating by cheerfully making sure all of our rooms were close. I did not have any other magical experiences but yet very happy with the friendliness of everyone we encountered. Mousekeeping was great until our next to last day. We had a fun Mickey Mouse towel animal (very different from the ones we have received before) upon arrival and we kept him put together on our refrigerator table. We were going to pack him up and bring him home. We discovered Mickey was gone!!! We were so disappointed!!!

We LOVED the magic bands. Ours worked almost perfectly. Hallee had a couple incidents getting into the park where it wouldnt let her in but there was always a CM there to check her in. It was nice to not have to search my purse for a room key and I didn't have to worry about the kids forgetting theirs either. Which has happened :) All of our FP+ showed up, even our BOG lunch fp. I especially liked using it for room charging, just tap and type in the security code, easy peasy.

I'm in the minority for this but I loved FP+. It was so smooth for a party of 13. Everyone knew where and when to ride our family favorite rides. It worked because we did not need fp all day and night. We kinda did the either morning or evening park touring. The only day it did not work was when we used all of our fp at MK by 2, everyone was ready to leave except my kids. We tried to get them another fp but we checked 3 kiosk lines and they were at least 30-50 people deep. We gave up and left. Hopefully they will be able to make it available via the app soon. My favorite part of the new concept was we knew ahead of time that a couple daytimes we wanted to be free then spend the evenings in the parks. I was able to have fastpasses for Toy Story, Test Track and Soarin already booked. Whereas in the past, more than likely those fp were long gone. I'm not sure if I would have loved FP+ if it was just my family. We tour a lot faster than with the group and would've been very annoyed to have to wait in line constantly to get another fp.
We had good luck with crowds at every park but MK. We went to MK Mon 6/2, Wed 6/4 and Fri 6/6. Mon and Fri we were there at rope drop and Wednesday was for the evening. It was packed each visit and rope drop was not as easy as it used to be. We did plenty because we knew when to do what and we had our fp for our favorites. We rode 7DMT once and changed our next fp because it was a one and done for this trip for us. It was cute and fun but not worth choosing between SM, BTM or SpM over. Studios was the quietest I have ever seen it in the evening. We had a group ADR at Primetime at 3:45 which was so fun and our server Mary Ann was awesome. Afterwards we rode GMR and used our fp at TSM, ST and TOT. We went to F! without a fp and without waiting in line. We went to Epcot too many times to count, sometimes to ride, sometimes to explore WS and other times just to eat. It is so cool to be able walk there. Have I mentioned that? :goodvibes

Traveling with 13 different personalities was a struggle at times and a lot of fun at others. I think the biggest drawback for our group and staying at Beach Club was not having a food court. All of our prior trips we spent many meals there. Everyone could get what sounded good to them and we could always sit together and goof off.

We missed some things we really enjoy, Wishes in particular. I also missed visiting a water park. We really needed at least one more day but two would have been even better. I tried to please too many people and should have spoke up earlier in the trip. I'm not sure how soon we will all be going back together. I'm not even sure how soon my 4 are going back either, simply because of the financial aspect of it. This last trip was an 897 day countdown! We are going to visit Disneyland for the first time in March if we can save the extra funds. My daughter found out her choir gets to sing there. She knew right away her parents would be there watching if they have their way!

Last side note-Really wish we would have postponed this trip. A week after we got back my dad had a stress test done. It was supposed to be the Tuesday before we left but because of his kidney stone it was postponed to after the trip. Needless to say he failed it. They scheduled a heart catheter with plans to put stints in. Five minutes into the procedure they shut it down because he had more damage than they anticipated. He was sent directly to the hospital and waited in CICU for two days before he had quadruple bypass. He is doing very well now but my summer has been running our office. Summer is our busy season so it has been non-stop here. Its heartbreaking my uncle and Paul had to have heart attacks and pass away but without that happening my Daddy would not be here today. God is not done with him!