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Mary Dewey -- August 2000 -- Walt Disney World (ASMoR)

August 19 - September 2nd (actual arrival in Florida August 21st - departure August 31st)

Prelude

Cast:

• Mary (34 year old mom - biggest kid of them all!)
• Gary (34 year other half - very adult!)
• Krystal (12 year old daughter - thrill ride addict)
• Jessica (11 year old daughter- thrill ride addict NOT!)

Well, after over a year of planning, we FINALLY did it! Planning went from vacation on the beach with a couple of days in Orlando, to 5 days beach & 5 days Orlando, to 10 day Orlando vacation off-site, to finally a 10 day on-site Disney vacation. Whew! Then came the day-by-day planning. What fun I've had!

Now, the time has come to test all my plans out. Will everything work out? Will my obsession with Disney web sites, and RADP pay off? I sure hoped so (for my sake!)

As the time drew closer, I found that my feelings of excitement slowly changed to anxiety. By the time we left for our trip, I was almost a nervous wreck! You see, I had spent SO much time planning this vacation to be as perfect as possible. I wanted it to be the most magical vacation my girls would ever have. I wanted my hubby to actually enjoy this vacation (he wasn't looking forward to "Disney") And I wanted WDW to meet and exceed all my expectations too. So, I planned, and I planned, and then I planned some more.

I had our trip planned down to almost the last minute! Well, maybe not quite, but pretty close. I had which parks we would do which day, which parades we would see which day, our priority seatings all made, when our breaks in the day would be.(you get the point.) All of this was, of course, very flexible though.

So now that all my planning was about to be tested, I was starting to panic. I was so afraid I would end up disappointing Gary and the girls, and most of all myself. (I know - selfish!)

I'm happy to report that our trip went off beautifully! The girls had a wonderful time, my expectations were met and exceeded, and Gary. well, Gary is Gary. I don't think he was mesmerized with the Disney magic, but he had a pretty good time. (I don't think he'll ever feel Disney is worth the money).

My plans worked beautifully, and for the most part, they were followed. We had a few iffy moments, but that's to be expected in a 10-day vacation.

I want to thank you all for the tips and help in planning this trip. It paid off, and made all my hours and hours on line extremely worthwhile. THANK YOU!!!

Anyways, on to my trip report.

Day 1 August 21st

We arrived at ASMov about 4:00 in the afternoon. What a coincidence, check in time! (I swear I didn't plan that!) We checked in without too much trouble, and off to our room we went.

Boy, was I ever pleasantly surprised! We don't travel much, and when we do, we usually go cheap (standard double room), since our logic is that we don't spend much time in the room on vacation, other than to sleep. After hearing about how tiny the AS rooms were, I was setting myself (and my family) up for a REALLY tiny room. On the drive to Orlando, we made 2 stops, and each motel I would say "Remember, our Disney motel room will be even smaller than this!" Well, it wasn't! It was just as big, in fact even bigger than one of them! So we didn't mind at all. It was a wonderful start.

What beautiful rooms they have! We were in the Toy Story building #10 ground floor, and the room was so clean, so bright, so cheery, so Disney! I absolutely loved it! And the grounds, well I can't praise enough! Beautiful, beautiful theming! The only complaint I would have is that the walk to Cinema Hall (just between World Premiere and the Fantasia pool) there was an awful sour smell in the air. Not sure what caused it (hopefully not the food!)

The girls, of course, had to immediately go swimming, while Gary and I walked and admired the grounds. We took lots of pictures, and even Gary had to admit the motel was beautifully themed.

After a couple of hours, we rounded up the girls, and decided to go to World Premier for dinner. I don't remember what we all had, but I know Gary was most definitely NOT impressed with the food. I know he had chicken strips. Actually, I don't think any of us really had our fancy tickled by the food there. The meal came to 39.42 including tax. (This included 2 unlimited refill mugs).

We then went to check out Donald's Double Feature (the ASMov gift store). I bought a few postcards, and stamps (4.62 including tax).

We then went back to our room for an early night, because tomorrow would be an early one!

Day 2 August 22nd

Today was going to be an IOA day. Mickey woke us (me!) up at 5:30 am. I got ready, and then woke up the girls. Gary was already awake and in the shower. I had to laugh when I showered. I remembered someone's trip report (can't remember who's) where he said he started the day off with a shower which left him smelling like fruit loops. I had forgot all about that till I used the Disney body wash. It DOES leave you smelling like fruit loops! I loved it!

While Gary showered, I prepared the kids breakfasts (we brought a toaster with us), and then Gary's and my coffee (we also brought a coffee maker). Gary and I HAVE to have our morning coffee if we are to make it through a day. Yes, sadly we are addicts. But Gary is a very picky addict. He's sort of addicted to MY coffee, and refuses to drink anyone else's coffee. Then we had breakfast, and off we went.

USF is much further than I had thought. Actually, everything was much further than I had thought. On the map, it looked like BB was just across the street from us, the Animal Kingdom just around the corner, and MGM not much further. I figured we could just walk to these places. NOT!!! (I know, a lot of you are probably laughing your heads off right about now at me). I was quite overwhelmed by the size of the Disney property.

Anyway, USF was a good 15-20 minute drive away. We got there about 8:00 am, and got in immediately (we had 2 day passes, so had early entry privileges). Parking cost us 7.00 including tax. Upon entry, we were each handed an Express Pass, which entitled us to go to the front of the line of all rides up until 10:00 am. Express passes are good, great, we loved them!

We first went to Marvel Superhero Island and walked on to Spider-Man (awesome!), the Hulk Coaster (also awesome!), & Dr. Doom's Fearfall. Neither Jess, nor I wanted to do the Fearfall, so we waited for Gary & Krystal (about 10 minutes). I have to give Jessica credit for doing the Hulk Coaster (she is definitely NOT a coaster fan), and she even said she enjoyed it.

We then came back through Port of Entry, over to Seuss Landing. Here we walked on to The Cat In The Hat, Caro-Seuss-El, and finally 1 Fish 2 Fish Red Fish Blue Fish. This was our last Express Pass ride, because it was now 10:00. :o(

Next, we headed over to The Lost Continent, where we got a Fast Track (equivalent of Disney's Fast Pass) for Poseidon's Fury, then went over to Dueling Dragons. Jessica was NOT going to go on this ride, so I stayed with her while Gary & Krystal went. We waited about 15 - 20 minutes for them. We did some window shopping until our time came up for Poseidon's Fury. Even with Fast Track, it seemed we waited over 1/2 an hour to get in. And none of us thought it was really worth the wait.

Our next stop was Jurassic Park. We grabbed FT's for the River Adventure, and did the Triceratops Encounter. By the time we were done, it was time for our River Adventure. Jessica chickened out at the last minute, so she waited in the Baby Swap area for us. It was so cool, that Krystal & I did it 2 more times (with FT's). We tried to talk Jess into trying it, but she absolutely would not. (She has a "thing" with wet rides - I have no idea why since she loves swimming).

We were all getting hungry at this point, and besides, it just started pouring rain, so we ducked into Burger Digs for lunch. It was pretty crowded, but we managed to find a table. Lunch ended up costing us 37.30 including tax - what a rip off! This was a counter service restaurant. Prices were actually more extreme than Disney's, and the food - edible at most.

When we finished eating, we went downstairs where the Discovery Center was, and checked that out. By the time we were all done, and came out, the sun was shining again.

We headed over to Toon Lagoon, where Krystal and I did Dudley Do-Right's Ripsaw Falls, and Popeye & Bluto's Bilge-Rat Barges. Lines were about 10-15 minutes each (I guess the rain scared off a lot of people), and we loved both of these rides.

That was about all we really wanted to see at IOA. I bought a T-shirt (16.96 including tax) before we left, and on the way out, we bought our souvenir photo they took in the morning (11.61 including tax).

It was about 6:00, and we stopped at McDonald's for dinner (20.32 including tax), then went back to our motel.

The kids went swimming, while I caught up on my notes, and Gary and I reflected on our day, and went over tomorrow's plans.

I then got the kids and introduced them (big mistake!) to Reel Arcade. We spent some time in there, then went to bed (about 9:00ish), ready for another early morning.

Day 3 August 23rd

Phone rang at 5:30 am, with Mickey announcing that there's big doings today, so we gotta get up and get at 'em! Same morning routine - shower, breakfast, coffee, go!

We got to USF about 8:30ish, paid our 7.00 parking, and as we went through the turnstiles we were once again handed those magical things called Express Pass (watch out Disney!)

We walked on to Twister, Kongfrontation, and Earthquake. We then walked on to Jaws. Jaws is the only ride at USF that Jessica had announced months before the trip that she would absolutely not even consider doing. Once there, I somehow talked her into it, and she came off the ride simply thrilled with herself. She said that it wasn't nearly as bad as the ads she 'd seen for it (where Jaws literally attacks the boat), and I told her that most rides were advertised to be more scarey than they actually were.

Oh no, it was just past 10:00, and we hadn't done Men In Black Alien Attack yet, which was next on the list. Well, we took a deep breath, and went to wait in line. It was a good 45 minute to an hour wait, but what a cool ride! I absolutely loved the queue area, and the end of the ride is mind boggling! We all agreed it was definitely worth the wait!

We then got FT's for Back to the Future, and went to do E.T. while waiting for our FT time. E.T. actually ended up being a good 25-30 minute wait, but again, the queue area was beautifully done, and the ride ended up being worth the wait.

It was time for Back to the Future. We walked on with our FT's, and it was ok, but I was a bit disappointed. I guess I expected more from this ride.

We were all hungry at this point, so stopped for lunch at the International Food Bazaar (17.85 including tax). Much more reasonably priced! And the food seemed to taste better. (Wonder if it's psychological?)

After lunch, we wandered over to Hollywood, with the intention of seeing Terminator 2, but just then, it started to pour. We got on our ponchos (just before it started to pour), and found a building to duck into. It just happened to be The Gory, Gruesome & Grotesque Horror Make-Up Show. This was on my list as a "time allowing" thing, and since we were ahead of time anyway, and it was, after all, pouring outside, we waited for the next show. I sure am glad we didn't miss this show. We all agreed it was a very humorous show, and the girls said to me, quite indignantly, "Mom, you were gonna let us miss this?" It's a show definitely worth checking out.

By the time it was over, the sun had taken over the sky again, and off we headed to Terminator 2. We waited maybe 20 minutes, and again, I was somewhat disappointed. I expected more.

We bought 2 lemon slushes (5.00) which we shared to cool off with. They were deliciously refreshing.

We then did The Funtastic World of Hanna-Barbera, which was fun. It was about a 15-20 minute wait. Then we backtracked to catch the last (5:30) showing of Animal Actors. I sure am glad I didn't miss this! It was a lot of fun.

We finished up with Nickelodeon Studios, or tried to anyway. The building seemed to be closed. But the big green glob machine was working. Krystal tried to get slimed, but it missed her (thank God, since we were leaving and I don't know how Gary would have reacted to green slime all over his truck!)

We left the park around 6:30ish, and went to Wendy's for dinner (14.95).

We came back to our room to find a maid's surprise. Jessica had bought a plush Mickey our first day there, and the maid had Mickey in the middle of our bed, with 2 yellow face clothes made into circles (ears), and a white hand towel made into a larger circle (head), laid out in front of him. It was adorable!

We finished the day with swimming, and arcade.

Day 4 August 24th

Day started at 5:30 am again with Mickey. Today was the start of our actual Disney vacation. From here on in, we were not leaving Disney property until we leave (except for once when we went to the Belz Outlet Mall).

We didn't have our usual in-room breakfast today, because we had priority seating for Cinderella's Royal Table for breakfast! The girls & I were excited!

We arrived at the Magic Kingdom at 7:30 for early entry. We walked on to Peter Pan (twice), It's a Small World, Snow White's Adventure, Winnie the Pooh, Dumbo, and Cinderella's Carousel. I wanted to also do the Mad Tea Party and Legend of the Lion King, but we simply ran out of time.

We headed to Cinderella's Castle for our 9:50 am priority seating. I was sooo glad I made the seatings. There were so many people being turned away because they were completely booked.

The Fairy Godmother, and Princess Aurora were greeting people until our names were called. We only waited about 5 - 10 minutes before we were called in.

The breakfast was magical. There's no other word for it! Everything was absolutely delicious! (65.97 including tax & tip for 3 adult and 1 child breakfast). And to have all the characters wandering about, it was really neat. (My first character meal, can you tell?) The kids eyes were just wide with anticipation of who would visit with us first! We were visited by Aladdin, Snow White, Belle, Cinderella, Princess Aurora, and finally The Fairy Godmother. Each one signed Jessica's autograph book, and posed with the girls for pictures and videos. I don't think Jessica stopped talking about breakfast the whole day!

After breakfast, we went back to ASMov for a rest. The girls went swimming, while Gary & I napped (boy do I feel old!) When I woke up, I went to Cinema Hall to buy E-Ride Tickets (42.40 for 4 adult tickets) for tomorrow night. Since I was there, I also popped into Donald's Double Feature and bought myself a souvenir mug (10.70) I had my eye on since the first day.

We then headed to the Animal Kingdom around 3:00 pm. What an absolutely beautiful park! Quite breathtaking. The first thing we did (after gawking at all the scenery, animals, and Tree of Life!) was It's Tough To Be a Bug. It was about a 10-15 minute wait. It was a delightful show, that we all thoroughly enjoyed. We all (except Gary) sat forward for the bee sting, as us 3 girls are not fond (actually, quite terrified) of bees.

We then got FP's for Kilimanjaro Safaris, and while waiting for our time, we did the Pangani Forest Trail. There was one gorilla that was sitting right up front by the glass, and he looked so sad. I felt so sorry for him. :o(

After the Forest Trail, we went on the Safari, and it was fun! We didn't see any rhinos though, but I knew we'd be back one morning to do it again, so I wasn't too concerned. We saw lots of other animals!

We finished up at AK by taking the Wildlife Express to Conservation Station. By the time we got back, it was almost 6:00 pm, and that was when AK closed.

We headed over to MGM to see Fantasmic! We ended up with pretty good seats. We bought 2 slush lemonades with souvenir cups (8.50) while we were waiting. The show was as awesome as everyone says it is! Definitely worth seeing!

We stopped in at McDonald's on the way back to our room (10.87), and went straight to bed. It was a long day, with an early morning tomorrow PLUS E-Ride night!

Day 5 August 25th

GROAN! These 5:30 am mornings have got to stop! I'll have a word with Mickey tonight! We did the usual morning thing, and arrived at Epcot around 7:30 for early entry.

EVERYONE headed straight for Test Track. I tried to get my guys to run, but Gary is Gary. So, we eventually got to Test Track, but it was only a 5-10 minute wait. We all enjoyed TT very much. We all wished it was a bit longer (especially the fast part!)

We did HISTA, which was ok I guess. I expected better here too. (I guess maybe I set myself up too much for some of the attractions, that they left me a bit disappointed).

We did SE, and I hope I don't offend anyone by saying this. It's MY PERSONAL OPINION (and that of my family) but this was the MOST boring ride we've ever been on in our lives! We didn't like it at all.

We then did JIYI. I never got to see the original, but with all the grumbling about this one on RADP, and after just coming off the most boring ride, I was all ready for a snooze! But, although it wasn't fireworks in the sky, it was definitely better than SE!

By now, it was probably 8:30/9:00ish, and as we wandered, we heard someone say the standby line at TT was 60 minutes already! The park wasn't even open to the public yet! (You guys come through for me again!)

Next, we headed for Ellen's Universe of Energy. The best part was going through "Dino-land", but another boring ride overall. We finished up at Innovations. I had, on my to do list, still The Land, and The Living Seas, and Wonders of Life to check out, but we just sort of lost interest in Future World. I know lots (if not most) of you love Epcot, and say you need 2 days at least to really enjoy it, but it just wasn't my family's cup of tea. (Please don't flame me for stating an honest opinion).

We went back to the resort for our rest around 10:30ish. Rather than having a snooze, or going swimming, we decided to check out the Belz Outlet Mall. It was pretty cool! I got a Disney T-shirt with all the main characters on it for about 14.00 (including tax). It was a bit of a deal. But then, I found a Dopey t-shirt for 5.99 (plus tax)! Now THAT's a deal! Krystal found a beautiful green t-shirt with Tigger on it (her favorite character) for 4.99 (plus tax)! Even better deal! My other "best" deal was an AK magnet originally 5.99, marked down to 1.99 (plus tax). We bought other souvenirs here, and really enjoyed this mall.

On the way back to the resort, we stopped at McDonalds for lunch (14.00 including tax). Gary didn't eat with us. He'd had enough "McPuke's" (as he calls it) for probably the rest of his life!

By the time we got back to the resort, it was almost 6:30! We quickly dumped our stuff, and headed over to the MK, to catch MSEP and Fantasy in the Sky.

The first thing we did was got our wristbands for tonight at City Hall. Then we bought the girls each one of those fibre-optic light up things(12.00 including tax). Krystal chose a Mickey head, and Jess chose Sorcerer Mickey. We weren't gonna buy the girls anything really this trip (as they had saved up almost $200 each U.S. to spend on stuff), but I had bought them each a glow-in-the-dark necklace back in Canada with the intention of using it tonight. Well, I (DUH!) forgot them at the resort. So I felt a bit guilty, and got them these thing-a-ma-bobs instead. Which is fine. They are beautiful souvenirs. (I almost bought one for me!)

We then found an awesome spot to sit for the parade. It was in Frontierland, pretty much right across from the steam boat. The streets were roped off, and we sat on a curb right behind the rope, so no one was able to jump in front of us! We had an excellent viewing of the parade.

Now that we had staked out our spot, Gary wanted to go see if he could find anything to eat. So off he went. He came back with a burger (5.78 including tax) he found at some restaurant. He thought it was pretty good, but couldn't remember the name of the restaurant. It turned out it was Pecos Bill's he found.

What a great parade MSEP is! The funniest part was when the dwarves came by, Grumpy went to shake Jessica's hand, and then wouldn't let go! He seemed to be trying to yank her into the parade. Jessica kept trying to pull her hand back, and telling him to let go (but she was laughing), and he finally did. I told her she should have let him yank her into the parade and see what happened. Oh well, it's just amazing all the afterthoughts that come to mind when it's too late!

After the parade was over, we headed toward the Adventurland bridge to watch FitS. Now, because I'm not that familiar with the MK, and it was night, we ended up on the Frontierland Liberty Square bridge. Which would have given us a wonderful view if the trees weren't in the way! I kept my camcorder trained on the wire coming from the castle (figuring that would be where Tinkerbell would come from), but all my patience did not pay off. Tink did not fly that night. :o(

The fireworks were great (what we could see of them). A lot of them were high enough that they were over the trees.

When the fireworks were over, we headed to the Haunted Mansion. I have to say, I felt pretty important heading INTO the park, while most people were heading OUT of the park. We had to wait at the Haunted Mansion for maybe 5 minutes or so. I don't know if they were waiting for the park to clear a little or what.

Jessica was a little leery about the HM, so I told her about the stories I' ve heard on RADP, where some of you have tried to make the CM's crack a smile. Well, this intrigued her, so she started to try and make them smile. None of them did (sourpuss she called one particular guy), but she had fun trying, and it seemed to ease her a lot. At the end of the ride, she said "I was afraid of that?!?" She really enjoyed it. Lots of firsts for Jessica on this vacation!

We then made our way to Main Street to find lockers. We didn't want to lug ANYTHING around with us tonight! Then we went toBTMR. It was a very charming ride. From there we went to Splash Mountain. This one Jess dreaded (remember her "thing" with wet rides), but she had been so brave, and discovered so many things she enjoyed that she thought she would hate, that she agreed to give it a try. SHE HATED IT! They were having problems, so the boat kept being stopped and we were told to stand by. Meanwhile, Jess was moaning and groaning about wanting to get off. I told her it was a bit late for that, and she should just try to enjoy the ride, and not think about the drop. When the drop came, I put my arm across Jessica's chest to try and keep her feeling as secure as possible, but the drop was as bad as she thought it would be. She was sorry she went on SM, and announced she was never going on it again. The rest of us enjoyed it, but once was enough. We didn't have a burning desire to do it again.

After SM, we headed over to Tomorrowland. The first thing we came across was AE. Well, Jess definitely didn't want to do this one, and even if she had wanted to, I don't think I'd have allowed her to. So, Gary opted to wait with her.

Krystal and I went, and although I don't like to be scared, I had to see it after hearing so much about it on RADP. So, I went on, but sat as forward in my seat as I possibly could to avoid most of the "effects". It worked. (Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know I'm a wimp!) Krystal on the other hand loved it. I prepared her well for it, but she is no scaredy cat, that's for sure!

We then did Buzz Lightyear, which was really cool (but Men in Black is MUCH better in my opinion). I, of course, got creamed (as I did on MIB). I suck at aiming and shooting, what can I say? As we headed over towards Space Mountain, we happened to come across the Astro Orbitor. What the heck. There's no line, so why not? What a cool ride! It's so high up in the air, you could see everything! I'm glad we made time for it (originally, it wasn 't on my list of "must-do's"). We then headed to Space Mountain. I cautiously glanced at Jessica, who wasn't making any sort of fuss. So, I asked her. "Are you sure you want to go on?" She did, and she really enjoyed it! I think she's discovered rollercoasters on this trip. I have NEVER seen Jess as adventurous as she's been on this vacation.

That was pretty much it for tonight. We covered everything (and then some) of what I wanted to cover. And it was about 12:30ish anyway. So we headed back for the lockers. On the way, we passed a bunch of characters on Main Street. Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Pluto, Chip & Dale, and even Donald were there!!! Jessica was SOOOO disappointed that she'd left her autograph book back at the resort. I was too, kinda. What an opportunity she'd have had! Oh well, you can bet she never left her autograph book behind after that!

Tomorrow is Saturday, and in my plans, the weekend was to be no parks. Sleep-in and relaxation, and fun of course! So, I made a point of calling Mickey when we got back to the resort (not really-my finger kept the phone hung up), and explained to him that we did NOT want to hear from him for the next 2 days, and if he dared call, I would personally come find him and wring his neck! The girls got a chuckle out of this. Then we went to bed. I think we all fell asleep BEFORE our heads even touched the pillows.

Day 6 August 26th

Ahhhhh, today we were able to sleep in as late as we liked! We I was up around 7:30ish, and Gary followed. By the time we were showered, dressed, and had our breakfasts, the girls were getting up, so I had to make their breakfasts.

I got the laundry sorted, because today was the one and only day I was doing any laundry on this vacation. The girls wanted to go to the arcade, and Gary wanted to go downtown Orlando to check out some electronic stores (he is an electronics freak!)

I had 4 loads of laundry it turned out for the washers (2 whites & 2 darks), but was able to get both whites and both darks into 1 dryer each. I specifically brought a box of Tide from home, not wanting to pay the ridiculous prices at pay Laundromats, but guess what? The Tide was left in the truck, and Gary was long gone! So I ended up paying $4.00 US for 4 single use boxes of Tide! The washers were $1.00 per load, and the dryers were $1.00 per load. I did have my Bounce in the motel room, thank God, because they didn't even sell sheets of Bounce.

By the time the laundry was done, it was just about lunchtime and everyone was back from their whereabouts. We decided to make toast with peanut butter and jam to hold us over till dinner, and we were going to head to Typhoon Lagoon for the afternoon. We were going to have dinner at Planet Hollywood in Downtown Disney, and try to make the campfire tonight at Fort Wilderness.

It seemed the minute we made this decision, the thunder started to roar! We went to TL anyway, hoping it would just be a quick storm. When we got there, it had stopped pouring, but the thunder & lightning were still going strong. TL was, of course, closed. With no guarantees of when they would re-open. So, we headed over to Downtown Disney instead. We were going to end up there anyway for dinner. Gary, for some reason, really wanted to eat at Planet Hollywood, and since he was the one probably least enjoying this holiday, I was eager to do anything to make him happy. (Although I'd have personally preferred to check out The Rainforest Café).

Wow, I wish every downtown in every city was like DD! It was beautiful. We went to find out what kind of waits we would be looking at to be seated at Planet Hollywood. We were told there was no wait, but it was only around 5:00. I explained that we were thinking more along the lines of in a couple of hours. She said it could be up to an hour wait at that point. It looked like the skies were about to open again anyway, so Gary said we may as well eat now. So we did.

We had this nacho thing for appetizer. I don't remember what it was called, but it's 4 jumbo nacho chips with chicken, cheese, and other stuff on them. Gary tried one, and thought they were disgusting. But I loved them! I ate both mine, and told her to leave the last one, in case I could finish it later. Gary had the beef fajitas (he wasn't that impressed), and I had a sandwich of some sort (don't remember what). Because I went with a lower priced item on the menu, Gary let me order a frozen strawberry daiquiri. Mmmmm! Jessica had a hot dog, and Krystal had the chicken fingers. The whole meal came to 62.00 including tip & tax.

When we came out, the storm had passed. So we started to check out stores. It still looked like it might rain though (sky was still pretty cloudy), so Gary thought we should skip the campfire. I was disappointed, but since we hadn't said anything to the girls about it, at least they weren't disappointed.

As it turned out, it took us the whole night just to check out DD! Bet you' d never guess which store was my favorite? WORLD OF DISNEY!!! What an absolutely wonderfully HUGE store! We must have spent a good hour (if not more) in this store alone!

I bought 3 plushes (Mickey, Minnie, and Pooh) for my 2 nieces and nephew, a beach towel for me, one of those little "magic towels" (it's a facecloth), and 3 postcards (57.46 including tax). I could have bought soooo much more, however.

By the time we checked out all the stores, and headed back to the resort, it was almost 11:00! Time flies when you're having fun!!!

Day 7 August 27th

Today, I set the alarm clock to get us up at 8:30. I knew I'd be up by then, but just in case. Gary & Krystal had reservations to go parasailing (121.90 including tax) at 10:00 a.m. and then we had a priority seating for Chef Mickey's at 10:30 a.m. I asked Gary if the girls could do the water mice, since we didn't do the campfire last night. He said we would see how the day progressed. This afternoon, we planned to go to River Country.

We got to the Contemporary around 9:30ish. What a beautiful resort! I absolutely fell in love with it! We immediately went looking for Sammy Duvall's Watersports, which we found easily enough out back.

There was our party, and another party going out in the boat. Krystal, Gary, and 1 other person in our party was allowed to go on the boat. It was either Jess or I. We pondered our predicament for a moment, then decided it would be me on the boat for 2 reasons. One, I would be the one filming them up in the air, and two, Jess would feel uncomfortable on the boat with people she didn't know (when Gary & Krystal were up in the air). So, poor Jess got left behind.

Gary & Krystal really enjoyed their flight. It was probably about 10-15 minutes. They were the first ones to go. Krystal told me later that Gary kept telling her that there were sharks in the water, and that they were going to fall in, and also that the water was from the sewers. See, Gary has fun too, in his own warped way! But seriously, they both really enjoyed it, and were glad they did it. (Just as glad as Jess & I were that we didn't do it!)

We were about 10 minutes late for Chef Mickey's, because we had to wait for the other party to finish their parasailing, but were seated pretty much immediately. Remember when I told you guys how magical CRT was? How we were all (except Gary of course!) entranced by it all? Well, Chef Mickey's managed to surpass CRT for us! It was absolutely, fabulously, THE most magical meal we had our whole trip!

Pluto was the first to come see us. I decided to be a little mischievous (I am, after all, protector of mischievous innocent fun!), and said out loud "Oh look girls, here comes Goofy!" Well, Pluto stopped in his tracks, crossed his arms, and shook his whole body in a no. "Oh, I'm sorry, I actually meant Max!" Well, Pluto looked at me, then turned his back to our table! The girls told him that they knew he was Pluto, so he came over to them and hugged them. It was really cute. We also had Mickey, Minnie, Chip, Dale, and Goofy come over. I even somehow managed to talk Gary into having his picture taken with Minnie!

The food was delicious, even yummier than CRT. We were so impressed with this restaurant that we paid the 25.00 for the picture package. Altogether, the meal came to 90.47 including the picture package, tip, and taxes.

After breakfast, I hinted to Gary about the water mice again. So, we headed out to the back again to check into prices. It's 20.00 for a 1/2 hour. So, Gary rented 2 water mice! I wasn't really expecting that. So, Gary and Krystal took one boat (she got to drive), and me & Jess took another boat (I drove). WHAT FUN!!! The boat raced around the lagoon, and the wind in our faces, and the spray of the water hitting us, and the bumps when we would hit turbulence that another boat had made. I think this was my most favorite day of our whole vacation! I'll say it again, I fell in love with the Contemporary!

Gary & Krystal's boat was a LOT slower than ours, and they weren't impressed one bit. Their faces were just priceless, as they watched us race around. I told them to go complain and get another boat, but they were being stubborn, and didn't want to. So, I didn't particularily fell sorry for them. Besides, they had gone parasailing, so they had no sympathy from me. Jess felt sorry for them though.

After the water mice, the girls just had to check out the arcade in the Contemporary. Again, awesome. It was gonna be hard to drag them out of here! They headed straight for the air hockey table (their favorite current game). We watched them play, but then I heard Gary calling me. He was at another air hockey table, ready to play me! I haven't played air hockey since I was a kid, but it sure was fun! He killed me of course, and the girls almost enjoyed watching us play as much as they liked playing themselves!

We went back to the resort for a rest. Gary had a nap, while the girls went swimming. I watched them for a while, then went browsing at Donald's Double Feature again. I was on the hunt for the perfect souvenir for my mom and dad. I ended up only buying 3 stamps though.

We had a quick meal of toast, peanut butter, and jam, and headed over to River Country for the afternoon. What a quaint little park. I tried the waterslide in the pool, but I didn't like it. The freefall part was too much, so the force when I hit the water knocked my hand from my nose (which I was plugging), and the water rushed up through my nose, and down my throat it felt like. I came up sputtering. Guess I wouldn't do too well on the Summit Plummit, eh?

Of course, Gary had to try the slide, but he didn't like it much better than I did. The girls wouldn't even try it. We all enjoyed the waterhole part of the park though. It was a very pleasant afternoon.

We bypassed the petting zoo going into RC, because I figured we could do that on our way out. The park closed at 5:00, and all of a sudden, at like quarter to 5, we hear an announcement that the last bus leaves at 5:15! Well, we had to round up the girls quickly, get them (and us) showered and changed, and then hightail it out of there to our bus. So, we didn't get to do the petting zoo after all. :o( I think that was silly, to have the last bus leave so early. Oh well.

We stopped for dinner at McPuke's (oops, I mean McDonald's) (22.81 including tax) on the way back to our room. Gary ate with us this time. I guess we all worked up an appetite.

We went to bed early, because tomorrow would be a 5:30 "up and at em!" day.

Day 8 August 28th

Today we were going to hit early entry at the MK to catch any rides we've so far missed, then go to MGM for the rest of the day (we had 3:55 priority seating at Sci-Fi Drive-In).

We did the Mad Tea Party (didn't bother with the Legend of the Lion King, since it's not open for early entry), TTA, the Speedway, the Timekeeper, and then we stuck around and waited in line for Ariel at Ariel's grotto. I stood in line with Jess (she was the only reason we were doing this!) while Gary stood around waiting, and Krystal played in the grotto sprinklers. It was worth it though, to get that picture of Jess with Ariel. Ariel is her most favorite character.

We were originally going to go to MGM for the rest of the day, but decided to fit AK in today as well. So, we headed off to AK.

We were able to fit in Dinosaur, The Festival of the Lion King, and we did the Character Greeting Trails. Although, it was only Pearla and Suzie that we ended up waiting in line for. By the time we got through all this, it was almost 3:00 and we had to leave for our PS at Sci-Fi.

As we headed towards the car, I noticed that Krystal seemed unusually quiet. When I asked her what was wrong she said nothing, but appeared even more upset. I pursued the issue, especially when I saw tears falling down her face. She finally broke down and told me she had a tummy ache. I guess she didn't want to ruin our fun, sweet girl. So, we went back to the resort, where I had her take a tums, and lie down to rest.

I called to cancel our 3:55 seating, and made a new PS for 7:00 instead, hoping Krystal would feel better by then. But, by 6:30, although feeling somewhat better, she didn't feel up to getting up and moving around. She was ok with us going for dinner, and she would stay behind and watch tv. She didn't want us to bring anything back for her. So, we left her my cell, and we had Gary's cell, and told her to call us if she needed anything.

We drove over to MGM, and walked on to the GMR. We were also able to walk on to Star Tours before going to Sci-Fi. We got there just in time, and were told there would be about a 15 minute wait, and that we could wait in the bookstore. So, we did. Mulan was playing on the tv, which is one of Jessica's favorite movies, so she settled down to watch that while I browsed.

I found the perfect gift for my dad. It was a mug which matched the souvenir Jess had bought for him (a coaster). I also found an adorable plush Tigger bookmark that I was going to buy for Krystal. Gary fell in love with a Binford Tools mug (Home Improvement is one of his favorite shows - Tim Allen, his favorite character). This mug was probably 3 times the size of a normal mug, and I guess it didn't hurt that the other side of the mug said "Real men don't read instructions". It definitely suited my hubby!

As we were browsing, our names got called, so in we went. Even though I expected a drive-in atmosphere, I still found it breathtaking. It was awesome! Dark, but awesome! Gary had the steak & a shake, I had a pork sandwich, and Jess had a hotdog (41.81 including tip, taxes and non-alcoholic drinks). Gary said that so far at Disney, this has been the best tasting food he's had. I had to agree. It was delicious, and the theming was (everyone say it with me) awesome! I was sooooo sorry that Krystal was missing this!

During our meal, Gary went to use the bathroom, and when he came back, he said he'd called Krystal to see how she was doing. She was feeling better, but still wanted nothing to be brought back for her. We finished up our meal, but by the time we got out of there, the bookstore was closed. I couldn't get that plush tigger bookmark for Krystal. :o( Oh well, I guess we'll have to remember to come back here for the other stuff.

On our way out the park, we stopped at a gift cart, and they had these neat pens with a Tigger head that lights up and blinks (4.24 including tax). Jess said Krystal would like that better than a bookmark, so I bought it.

When we got back to the room, Krystal was feeling MUCH better. She had a bath while we were gone, and was just back to her old self. She loved the Tigger pen. I think she'll be ok for tomorrow.

Day 9 August 29th

Today, we wanted to go to AK to do the Kilimanjaro Safaris in the morning, hoping the animals would be more active. Unfortunately, it was a very overcast morning. We got to AK at 8:00 am, and headed straight for the safari. Unfortunately, so did everyone else. So by the time we made it to there (at Gary's pace) there was a 30 minute wait already! So we got fastpasses instead, which weren't till 9:00.

So, we headed to Asia to get 2 FP's for Kali Rapids (yes, we did cheat here a little), which was 9:50 or something like that (going from memory here). We then headed back to Africa for our FP time. It had started to drizzle by now. It was a very dark day. The safari was a bit better this time around. There seemed to be more animals moving around, definitely closer to our vehicle. And we saw 4 rhinos this time (we didn't see any last time).

When the ride ended, we headed back to Asia. We were done with Africa. (This would be the last time we would be at the AK this vacation). Krystal & Gary went on the Kali River Rapids, while Jess & I waited. When they were done, we decided to find shelter, because it really looked like it was going to pour. We each got a Mickey bar, and found an empty gazebo for shelter. It was our own quiet, private moment at the AK, as we each enjoyed our Mickey bar. It was very tranquil.

The rain didn't come, so we decided to risk it and go do the Maharajah Jungle Trek. 2 tigers were right up against the window, but were just sleeping. The rain still held off, although it did drizzle a bit here and there. Boy it was dark though. This was the darkest morning of our whole vacation. So, for our last AK attraction, we headed to see Flights of Wonder. What a great show that was! Jessica got picked as a volunteer. She had to throw a grape up to one of the birds. (I think it was a hawk, but not sure. I'll know better once we get our videos working!)

That was it. We were saying goodbye to AK, and headed over to the MGM. We did Star Tours again (with Krystal this time), and got to buy our mugs (19.61 including taxes) at the bookstore. We took advantage of the delivery service to our room.

Krystal agreed that she preferred the pen I got her when she saw the bookmark. I asked one of the hostesses of the Sci-Fi if they would mind if Krystal took a peek inside the restaurant. I explained that she missed dinner there last night due to a tummy ache. I wanted her to at least see it! So, she got to have a look, and she was happy that she was able to actually see it with her own eyes.

We did the Indiana Jones show, but none of us really liked it much. We also saw Muppet Vision 3D which was cute. We were getting hungary, and Jess REALLY wanted to eat at Pizza Planet badly, so Gary consented, and off we went. We got 3 pizza's, 1 pizza meal, & 2 milks (27.58 including tax). I expected humdrum tasting pizzas, but we all agreed that these were actually delicious pizzas! We really enjoyed them and were glad we stopped here to eat.

We wrapped up at MGM with the last show of HoND. It was an awesome show. On the way out, we were browsing at Keystone Clothiers, where Gary bought me a beautiful leather coat (408.10 including tax)! It has the Disney 2000 emblem on the back, and 2 patches on each arm representing the 4 theme parks. Talk about a souvinir!!! It's absolutely gorgeous. We asked for it to be delivered to our room. I still, 1 week after being home, am stunned that Gary did that for me. I guess he does love me! :o)

We then headed to Epcot for our PS at Le Cellier at 7:30 (and then finish off with Illuminations 2000). We had a bit of a wait for Le Cellier. They gave us a pager though, and told us we could wander Canada & U.K. However, it looked like it was gonna pour again, so we opted to stay close to the restaurant so we could duck in if need be. Which we did end up having to do.

We were seated in the Saskatchewan area, and our hostess happened to live very close to where we live. We live in Brampton, and she was from Etobicoke. She got a bit choked up and homesick I think. Her first words when she heard where we were from were "Ohhh, the Bramalea City Centre", which is a mall just around the corner from us. I told her it was still there. She kept coming over to our table to chitchat.

I was determined I was going to try the famous cheese soup, until I got there that is. I just wasn't very hungry, and wanted to make sure I would be able to finish my filet mignon. So, I opted to order just my steak. Which was delicious!!! Gary got the New York Strip Steak, and the kids ordered a hotdog, and a cheeseburger from the kids menu. I also got a virgin strawberry daiquiri (since they didn't offer the "real" kind), but it was good. Dinner came to 75.70 including tip and tax.

After dinner, we staked out a spot for Illuminations 2000, which was truly breathtaking. Then we said goodbye to Epcot (probably for good).

Day 10 August 30th

This is our last day of major parks, and our last full day at Disney. :o( We'll be doing a lot of MGM today, since there's so much there we haven 't yet done or seen, and finishing up with MK's Adventureland, which we've not done.

We were at MGM at 7:30 for early entry. We headed straight for the RRC, which we've all been dying to do. It was as good as everyone said it was! Even better! We were all so impressed, including Jessica. We got the Sweet Emotion track, and we all rocked!

When we got off, we were so impressed with the ride, and our picture, that Gary bought a picture in a plastic frame, as well as a poster of us laminated (51.89 including tax). The poster will look awesome in our theatre room when we get it done! They also gave us a coupon to purchase a TOT picture for 6.00 (cool). They said the poster would take about 20 minutes, and could we come back? No problem!

Jess seemed very quiet, so I asked her what was wrong. Her lip started to quiver, and a tear fell. "What's wrong??? I thought you liked the ride?" Turns out she forgot her hat on the ride. I guess she was sitting on it, and forgot to pick it up when she left. I guess she thought I was going to murder her or something the way she was going on. I reassured her that I didn't care that much about her hat that I would ruin her day. And anyway, we could ask about it later when we came back. Maybe someone would find it and turn it in.

We headed over to TOT, and again, better than what I expected. We were all blown away by it. Including Jessica! Jess said that TOT made her feel like she was actually flying. We ended up getting the back row, so when we came out to look at our picture, Jessica was completely hidden by the people in front of her. No problem, Gary says. We'll just have to go back on, and tr y again for a good picture! Well, none of us minded that! So, on we went again. Unfortunately, we got the back row again. What a bummer. But, we knew what to expect this time, so we all looked at the camera when it flashed.

When we came out, and looked at our picture, it would have been great, except that Krystal had thrown her arms up into the air to enhance the "flying" feeling, and her arm completely hid Jessica's face! Gary was so mad. He just said, "Thanks a lot Krystal!" and stormed out of the store. I sighed, and figured we'd just try again a little later.

Then we went back to RRC, and rode it again. This time we got a mixed track. It had Dude Looks Like a Lady, then another one that I forget, then Love In An Elevator. Jess enjoyed this time even more because Love In An Elevator is her favorite Aerosmith song. (We are all huge fans of Aerosmith in this family.) We asked about Jessica's hat as we left the coaster, but no one had turned one in. Oh well, it was a cheap hat, and she could use mine for the last day and 1/2 we had left.

We went to check out our poster. It looked great! We also bought a RRC mug, & a RRC glass (16.96 tax included). I bought a RRC harmonica for my brother (10.60 tax included). He's a musician, and I figured he'd appreciate a harmonica more than a mug.

We then headed for our 11:00 PS at 50's Prime Time Café. We got a little private mini-livingroom to wait in, complete with old-style TV. We waited for about 10 minutes before we were called in. My girls were really looking forward to this restaurant! I had told them all about it.

They were a bit disappointed that they weren't asked what colour the soap was, cause they were gonna say purple liquid, just to get in trouble. But, every chance they got, they would call our "sister" over to rat on me. "Oh look, mom's elbow is on the table", "Mom doesn't have her napkin on her knee", "Mom doesn't like her green beans" (and I didn't either! They were disgusting! Blech!) "Mom this & mom that".

When we finished our meal, I put a napkin over my green beans. "Mom's hiding her green beans! Look!" So, everyone made the aeroplane noise with arms out like a plane while "sis" fed me 3 more beans on a fork. The girls loved it!

Gary wasn't impressed with his steak though. It was very fatty, and he left most of it on his plate. "Sis" immediately said to him "you did NOT enjoy that!" and took the plate away. She came back, and said she'd had a word with "Dad" in the kitchen, who wanted Gary to have a dessert on the house. He didn't want one, but I made him take the strawberry cheesecake. He really didn't want it, so I ate it. It was good! I also had the fried chicken, and it was delicious. It really did taste like my mom's chicken! And lots of it! (4 pieces of chicken!) I told Gary we probably could have just split my plate. The whole meal here cost us 62.84 including tip and tax.

The girls tried to rat on me one more time about something or another, but "Sis" turned the table on them this time. She explained to them that it is not very nice to tattle, and then got the attention of all the other patrons in the room. She explained to everyone in our room that their "cousins" were giving their mom a hard time by tattling on her every chance they got, and that everyone in the room had to do the "tsk tsk" and say "It's not nice to tattle!" And everyone did! HAH! Serves them right. But I think they really enjoyed the attention.

After our meal, the only things left on my must-do list was Voyage of the Little Mermaid, and Beauty and the Beast. Gary had no interest in these shows. He wanted to check out Drew Carey's Sounds Dangerous, and the Backstage Pass (because of the Home Improvement set). So, we separated. We agreed to meet in front of the BatB building between 2:30-2:45, because I figured that's when the show would be over.

We got FP's for VotLM, and then did some browsing in the stores. I still hadn't got anything for my mom, and my mother-in-law. And there was still nothing that really stood out. Well, except in Animation Gallery. What breathtaking art. Boy, I wish I was rich!

Our FP time was quickly approaching, so off we went to see VotLM. Hmmm. That was it? I wasn't impressed at all by it. Neither were the girls, and this was the one thing Jess wanted to see more than anything (remember, Ariel is her favorite character). I'm not sure what we expected exactly, but it sure wasn't what was presented!

So, feeling a little disappointed, we headed toward BatB to line up for the 2:00 show. We were all feeling hot and thirsty, so we stopped to get 2 lemon slushes (for Jess & me), and 1 bottled water (for Krystal) (7.30 including tax).

BatB was fabulous. It made up for our disappointment. It was a really fun show that we all enjoyed.

After the show, Gary was already there waiting for us. He didn't really care for Sounds Dangerous, nor for the Backstage Pass. As a matter of fact, I believe his wording was "they both sucked". Sorry, I didn't see either one, so I am just passing along HIS opinion. Who knows, I might have enjoyed it. Well, that was it for MGM. My BIGGEST regret about this whole 2 week vacation is that we didn't buy the TOT picture for 6.00. So what if Krystal's arm covered Jessica's face? You got the idea, and the picture was cheap. And it was one of our favorite rides. (All of us!) I should have put my foot down and said "We ARE buying it!" But I figured we would go back on at the time. I still fume about it. I guess if that's my BIGGEST regret though, I had a pretty good time, eh?

Now that it was edging towards 3:00, we decided to go back to our room for a rest. Gary and I napped while the girls went swimming/arcade. Oh, I love these mid-day rests! I am soooo glad we decided to stay on-site.

We left around 6:00ish to finish up at MK. All I had left to do there was PofC, and the Tiki Birds. But once we got through the gates, Gary asked if I'd mind if we took the steam train tour of the park. Mind? Me? Of course I wouldn't mind! For Gary to show interest in anything at all, I'm gonna jump at it! He has a "thing" for steam trains. Or anything run by steam, actually. And I'm glad we went on the tour. At least we got to see Mickey' s Toontown Fair in passing, which we wouldn't have seen at all, otherwise. Then we headed for Adventureland.

They've ruined the Tiki Birds! Sorry Iago & Zazu, but you guys just don't fit in nicely at all. You've disenchanted a perfectly enchanting show. I'm exaggerating a bit I guess, but I really did prefer the old one.

We said good-bye to MK, and headed back to the resort around 8 or 8:30ish. We decided to give World Premiere one more try before we left. We all got pizzas (21.05 including tax), because they looked exactly the same as the ones we were so impressed with at Pizza Planet. So we were hoping. Not. :o( These ones just tasted so tasteless. Oh well. Jess got character cookies for dessert, and Krystal got some ice cream (2.41 including tax).

We then went into Donald's Double Feature for one last-ditch effort to get something for my mom & MIL. I (actually Gary) finally decided to get the Celebration Mug for my MIL (the exact same one I picked out for myself). And for my mom, I got a Mickey shot glass (she collects shot glasses). I also picked up a small tin of candy for our dog-sitter, and a box of Nutter Butter Cookies for Gary, because he wanted them. We spent 22.47 including tax here.

Well, tomorrow is check out day, but it's also Typhoon Lagoon day!

Day 11 August 31st

This is our last day of Disney, period. :o( Our little statement was hanging on our door this morning, and I'm feeling kinda sad. We packed up all our stuff, and headed over to TL.

When we got there, Gary realized he had packed all his shorts away, so didn' t have an extra pair to get into. DOH! So our first stop was to buy a pair of Nike swim shorts for him (23.32 including tax - ouch!) But they were the cheapest ones there. Oh well, they are very nice.

I think everyone enjoyed the wave pool the most. It was a lot of fun. The theming was beautiful throughout the park. Shark reef looked cool, although we just watched from the viewing area.

We left TL around 2:00 pm for our journey home.

I was sad to be leaving, there was sooo much more I wanted to see and do. But, we did hit all the "must-dos" on my list, which was a great achievement, and I did miss home too. So, I guess we left at the perfect time, leaving us (except Gary maybe) wanting more.

I think next time though, I would do less (if any) major parks, and concentrate on the other stuff Disney has to offer. I think my most favorite day of all was the Saturday we went to the Contemporary, and then River Country, but especially the Contemporary. That was my favorite time.

I think my yearlong planning really paid off, and I'm so glad I did it. I feel we did everything right to maximize our stay without killing ourselves. I know me & the girls really did have a magical time (and I really think a little bit of that pixie dust did fall on Gary too!)

Mary Dewey

rottnthunder@home.com

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