Gophers: So we're not in the book - we're in Florida! (REPORT IS COMPLETE!)

[gopherit]

UPDATED TO ADD: Yes, I FINALLY completed this report! So for easier reading - I've added post numbers (at the end of each of my "installments") to let you know where to go to read the next chapter... hope that makes easier reading, if you're just now joining in!


Fair warning - I always promise at the beginning of every post that I will be brief. But I never am. And this trip was hardly brief, either. Our 3 kids (Evan age 13, Ryan age 11, and Caroline age 8) finished school May 29 and by the next day, we were in our van making the first 11 hrs of our roughly 15 hr trek from West Virginia. I had secured a room at a SPringhill Suites by Marriott in Jacksonville FL for that night. As a party of 5, we have 3 main criteria for a hotel:

* Safe
* Clean
* A bed for all and for all, a bed

The kids would further say a pool is a requisite, and DH would add that free breakfast is necessary as well. The Springhill met these needs and in fact - the price (whether you use cash or Marriott points) was excellent (only 10000 Marriott points, which is what I used, but could have likely gotten room for about $80). So there we crashed, with dreams of Disney.

Next day, all fed and rested, we polished off the last 3 hrs on the road and arrived at Wilderness Lodge around noon. I had made NO room requests, other than "Not Handicap Accesible (HA)". I decided a few trips ago that really, we are fairly easy to please, and why obsess over a particular room. As luck would have it, our room was ready - I noticed it was ground floor and admit - I wasn't wholly happy about that. But what the hey, let's go put on our swimsuits, so we headed to our room. When I arrived and realized instantly it was HA, however, I returned to desk and requested a move. I don't like having my kids in a HA room for various reasons: (1) it should be used by someone needing HA; (2) my kids are curious and will play with all that HA stuff like the shower chair, etc.; (3) wet wet floors in the bathroom due to the roll-in shower. They gave us a new assignment, but it wouldn't be ready right away. SO we elected to head to Roaring forks and have lunch.

THis brings me to some factors that readers of this report should know:

(1) My DH fights a courageous battle against his own thriftiness. He is valet-impaired, for example, and will schlep his own bags across an acre of steaming asphalt just to avoid a $5 tip. Don't mistake him for cheap - he is actually a very giving gopher. But in the inflationary world of places like The Mouse, DH becomes increasingly "one" with his wallet. It's a very sad, tragic disorder and one day, we hope we can get him into some sort of 12-step program or something, but until then, our family has learned to cope with it as best we can through patience, humor... and sneaking a few treats on the sly, if necessary. Expect to see this throughout the report.

(2) You don't have to be fiscally-frugal to realize that Disney dining does no favors to families with preteens. Our two mancubs are both "adults" by Disney standards, yet still relatively juvenile in their dining habits and volume. Neither of our boys have entered that teenage "human food disposal" stage. Like many kids their age, the excitement of being at Disney also plays tricks with their appetites (they may totally reject their lunch yet become instantly famished when spying a Mickey Bar.) Their tastebuds (and egos) are developing, however, so they may feel drawn towards ordering from the adult menu - even if most of the time it's way too much food for them. Disney will then charge these poor camel-kids the same as a grown adult. So DH (in his thriftyness) and I (in my common sense-ness) decided to skip most off the buffet offerings that would force us to pay the adult fare for these adult-by-theme-park-standards-only people we call our children. Typically these are the very meals we always choose (like Ohana, Chef M's, Crystal Palace, etc.) In contrast, for this trip, we opted instead towards menu-driven places. The child choices at these restaurants were quite good, actually - dd was always very happy with her meals. The boys, however, had some great (and not so great) experiences moving back and forth between the child and adult dining world.

(3) DH is culinarily challenged. (I know - so much tragedy, all in one person. Sad, ain't it.) Simple menus work best for him. Same goes for our boys. So that ruled out some of the more, as THEY say, "froo-froo" or "exotic" dining choices and left us in a world made mostly of burgers, steaks, and sandwiches. Sigh.... :sosad:

And so it was that we ended up dining in Roaring forks as we waited for our room, and dd8 got her cute little mickey-eared plate of chicken nuggets, and the boys split a pizza and DH and I nibbled some yogurt and muffins. We didn't want to stuff ourselves since dinner at Chef Mickey's that night was the one character meal we planned to "gift" ourselves with this trip. As the kids were finishing up, a CM came through and whisked them away to deocrate cookies at a table nearby as another CM whisked our trays away. This would prove to be the most expensive "free" cookies ever, according to DH. (see post #4 to understand why....)

Our room was ready after lunch - can't recall the number but it was about 1/4 down the hallway that looks at the woods (the same one with the infamous "dumpster view" at the end). We were not near the dumpster at all - in fact, we were in a great spot. Close to the lobby and the door that leads to the Villas pool, and with a nice view of a neatly landscaped shady forest with split-rail fence. And lest I forget - Max and Erma, the door-to-door ducks that came with it. Every day, they visited, tapping their beaks on the glass door like they were knocking. I have NO doubt in my mind they would have waddled right in, had we let them. The kids were thrilled with our feathered peeping toms peeking in on us every day and evening, though the occasional duck poo on the patio was more "nature" than we cared to see, thanks very much. :yuck:

So once we settled in, we went swimming, then took a boat over to Chef M's. Dinner was ok and the kids took Disney hats and colored Sharpies so that the characters could sign them. Made very nice souvenirs. In the end, however, we all felt we had pretty much tapped this place out (especially given the price we now pay as 4 adults and 1 child). Everyone enjoyed it, but everyone also agreed we were at last ready to sub it out next trip with another dining option. We hung out @ Contemporary and watched a bit of the movie on the beach and duck-watched before heading back to the lodge, pausing to watch teh MK fireworks on the beach and then turning in to our villa for a good snooze.

Go to Post #3!

[glypnirsgirl]

What a great way to make the start of the trip. I am curious about those "expensive" free cookies. Is that the hook for the next installment?

Elaine

[gopherit]

Day 2 in Disney....

I had taken some time the day before to slip over to Wally World (Wal-Mart) so we had lots of tasty breakfast foods in the villa that morning. We were on our way to Blizzard Beach that day, and the weather looked good - clear and sunny. We caught the bus over with no problem, and were delighted to find no lines at the park, which we attributed to our early start. It was even a quick walk-on for the chair lift, which often can get backed-up. However, as the day progressed and lines remained very low, we realized it was more than our early start that caused our good fortune. Perhaps it was the gas prices keeping folks away, perhaps it was the phase of the moon, perhaps it was the sight of me in a bathing suit... but it was a trend that would persist throughout the whole trip. The only "bad" luck we had was perhaps my unfortunate event in the "snow stormers" sled ride. Zipping through the tunnel, my head hit really hard on the left temple against the tunnel wall, so hard that it ricocheted to the right side and hit even harder there. I nearly blacked out and felt instantly ill, so I retreated to our shady spot under the palms and popped a few pain relievers. After a little while, I recovered enough to rejoin the gang in the water and fun, but I didn't dare venture onto the snow stormers again. Which reminded me... Prior to the trip,. my boss told me that I should try to "relax" while on vacation. But as any who know me would agree, a "relaxed gopher" is as much an oxymoron as a "jumbo shrimp". Knowing this about me, my boss added, "Somebody needs to just hit you over the head or give you a pill or something." Mission accomplished - let the vacation relaxation begin!!

So we headed back to the villas at about 5, and readied ourselves for dinner at Whispering Canyon. We love dining here, but we always seem to get the more reserved, "tamer" waiters. Maybe we look like too much of a challenge, haha. In any case, DH and dd each ordered the skillet, while DS13 ordered prime rib from adult menu and ds11 ordered the ribs from the adult menu, as did I. The waitress was very accommodating to their preferences (substituting mashed potatoes for mac-n-c for example) , but nonetheless it was an adult-sized portion (and then some) so we left there with quite a doggie box filled with ribs and steak. While we were there, they brought ds13 the biiiiiiiig wooden fork (for reasons I still don't understand - I think he may have admired it from afar.) I think there is an old proverb somewhere written that says, "When one child is given token big wooden fork, other child will whine." If not... well, there is now. They weren't whining so much as simply coveting it from not-so-afar. (It was, after all, a big black wooden fork. What's not to love?) Anyway - apparently sensing the potential friction that can arise from gifting one child and not another, ds 11 was then given the spoon. And so the vicious cycle was born. The waitress looked everywhere for the knife - but to no avail. Now thinking that dd would feel left out with no utensil of her own, the waitress brought out a hat shaped like an ear of corn and plopped it ceremoniously on her head. But heyyyyy - a hat is WAY cooler than a utensil - you can WEAR it, after all, so corn hat trumps fork and spoon. That prompted them to then slap a cheesehead hat on ds11. Very nice... but this now meant ds13 felt woefully underdressed with just a mere fork (cool, black, huge and wooden tho it may be), so they brought out this bear head/skin thing for him to wear. He looked like the King of the Bears, flanked by his 2 food-headed minions. I'm not sure if it's because we were among the last diners of the night, but our waitress was very kind to our kids, and fun was had by all. We took all our leftovers back to the villa and slept like the fat little bear-wearing, cheezy-corn headed, fork and spoon toting vacationers that we were.


*Edited to add - I want to note the the gopher pups weren't REALLY whining about not being turned into fat little bear-wearing, cheezy-corn headed, fork and spoon toting vacationers. For starters - momma goph don't take dat whiny stuff. They were actually doing decent enough jobs of just enjoying the fun, which I suspect might be why the staff did dote on them. I wanted to clarify that before a herd of over-expectant families show up at Whispering Canyon saying, "Where's my fork-n-bear suit, dang it?" You scoff - but I'd bet your wooden spoon it would happen. Watching folks in that restaurant who asked for ketchup - and only about 20% then actually using it - tells me it's true. Not amongst us savvy Mouseowners of course.... but you get the idea. ;) Our son once got tied to his chair at Whispering Canyon by a server who thought he "squirmed around too much". Now, every time he returns, he always asks them, "Hey - do you want to tie me up?" Sounds like a call to Child Protective Services in the making, I know, but we had to explain to him you can't "force" magic moments, or stage them, or make them happen - just like the bear necessities of life, they'll "come to you". Anyway - sorry for the interruption. I'll now return you to your regularly scheduled trip report.

Proceed to Post #4!

[gopherit]

What a great way to make the start of the trip. I am curious about those "expensive" free cookies. Is that the hook for the next installment?

Elaine

Ah yes - in my hasty discussion of Chef Mickeys, I did leave that out, didn't I?

As the CM whisked our kids away to Cookie Land, and another CM did us the honor of clearing away our trays... she took with her that same Mickey-eared plate where, lying in the right ear where the carrots used to be, lay dd's orthodontic wafer retainer. We recognized the event when we got to Chef Mickey's and I handed dd her retainer case (which we didn't have at lunch because it had been stowed away in a bag currently in storage while waiting for our new room). She had no retainer to put in the case - said I still had it, then I said, noooo, I gave it back to you... at lunch... you were still chewing so I gave it to your dad... who put it in the ear of your plate... whereupon I remarked, THAT is a recipe for disaster, it will get thrown away... and dd said, "No, soon as I finish chewing, I'll put it in...." cue the Disney CM duo... and bye-bye wafer. :sosad:

Dd was bereft as she had JUST lost the wafer at school a few weeks ago and Dad had reprimanded her over it. :crymeariv So I told her, chin up, no tears, hey, this time it was as much any of our faults - we ALL saw it there, and none of us knew or would have ever guessed what was going to happen next. So look at it this way - it's one less thing to worry about for the rest of the trip.

Wafer replacements cost around $60, so we figure that makes each "free" cookie worth about $20 each. Eat your heart out, Mrs. Fields!

And while you're eating... head over to Post #9!

[administrator]

OMG, I really haven't laughed that much from a TR in a loooong time! I actually read it aloud to DH.

Excellent: Party on!

:ROTFL:

[bavaria]

oh good, a Gopher tale!!! I love these...

Thank you for reminding me why I avoid Whispering Canyon :scary:

[glypnirsgirl]

Poor Gopher daughter!!! My heart goes out to her. And what a good mom you are to not let this even ruin the evening.

Elaine

[acourtwdw]

I thought things like that only happened in our family. Keep the TR coming :)

[gopherit]

Day 3 was to be our trip to MGM. Yes I know it's called Hollywood something or other now. But it's my vacation, I'll call it what I like, and I like MGM. DHS just doesn't sound right... sounds more like a media format (beta, VHS, or DHS?) or an acronym for a high school.

We arrived at MGM right around 9 am. DH was wearing his DVC member shirt and I had on a DVC hat, so we both received lots of "Welcome Home" greetings from CMs that day. We cruised onto ToT and RnR with relatively no wait (RnR had tech difficulties for a few minutes, but the line wasn't long - it just wasn't moving.) We grabbed fast passes for TSM and in the interim did many of the other attractions. For some reason, my kids adore eating in Pizza PLanet, so that's what we did. I had the veggie pizza and I gotta say, maybe I was just really hungry, but it was very good - veggies weren't all soggy, they seemed to be fresh, as opposed to prior-frozen-then-cooked sort one might expect from a fast-foodie pizza joint). We got into the Muppet store and lo and behold - they had the Beaker stuffed toy I had been wanting for my office for years. :lovestruc The CM there pointed out a very cute Beaker bobblehead about 50% off, so got that too. :D As a science geek, I relate all too well to the poor guy who "does what he's told" and ends up getting fried for it, LOL! Plus - I am a HUGE muppet fan. So after the store visit, we went to Muppet 3D and were the first ones in, which means you get to really look at the props and see the whole pre-show, which I simply adore. My eldest son shares my sense of humor, so he enjoyed this immensely as well.

We moved from there over to TSM and WOW, what a blast! We loved the "tennisball" pong-type action. Reminds me of the canon ball shooters on the Pirates ride at Disney Quest, but now I'm getting a few days ahead of myself. After TSM, we went to Lights, engines, headaches and heatstroke, or whatever it's actually called. I have decided this is an event we could likely skip next time. The stadium was EXCEEDINGLY HOT and once you've seen cars zippin' around for 5 minutes, you pretty much have seen it all. We went down to watch Indiana Jones since we had skipped over him last trip and thought it might be appropriate (given the latest movie release) to visit our old friend. After that, we took a vote - stay in MGM or head to another park? The "ayes" have it - off to Magic Kingdom we went. While on the bus, I made a quick call to WDW Dine to cancel our dinner at Mama Mels and see what was available at MK, and while there were actually several options open, we elected to try the Plaza (a first for us, and kids were in the mood for sandwiches and burgers and such, of course. Like THAT'S a surprise... When are they NOT?)

I expected to face at least moderate lines at MK. The park would be open until midnight that evening, and closing early the next night for the final pirate / princess party ticket-only event. Lines had been minimal at MGM, but how long could we stay that lucky?

Apparently, a little longer. We only "fast-passed" for Space Mountain. Everything else was pretty much an instant walk-up. It was unreal. We did the laugh floor twice - my kids loved this show. Did Buzz about 3 times (another fave) but no one wanted to ride Stitch. That burp is just too gross. Kids wanted to ride the Indy cars and I said - "no - no- NO!" Line is always too dang long, and for what - to go putt-putt-putt around a fixed train track. I still believed that the Mongolian hordes were due any second to descend upon us, forcing us to use the fast pass and limit ourselves to one ride per 2 hours. Well, wouldn't you know - there was basically NO LINE at the little cars. I have NEVER seen the line that low, ever. So I let DH take the kids while I watched and took some pics. We managed to do Philharmagic and a few other rides before ambling in for our dinner. Oddly enough - the park dining became packed all of the sudden. They were turning walk-up parties away at the Plaza, for example, and one CM made phone calls for a party and could not come up with anything for their party of 4. so they headed off to the noodle station. It took us a while to be seated, thanks to the weather - no one wanted to leave the restaurant so long as it was raining! Once seated, we enjoyed our meal immensely, and our company even more. The kids were hilarious at this meal for some reason - I think we were all drunk on summer heat and a full day at the parks by this time. Ds13 had a Philly cheesesteak, as did DS11. Dd had chicken, and I had a reuben while DH had a chicken sandwich. Or at least, I think that's what we had! After dinner, we watched fireworks and rode Splash and BTMRR a few times. We then headed for the bus back to the Villas. Wednesday we would be moving over to Beach CLub, and the kids wanted one last swim in the wilderness villas pool. So we bussed ourselves back home, had our swim(along with the ducks, including the little babies), took showers, said good-night to our resident ducks Max and Erma, then off to our respective beds.

[glypnirsgirl]

What a great day! I wonder what was up with the crowds?

Elaine

[kiapgh23e]

Most TR are boring, I find myself drawn to yours. Your a good writer and your reports flow. You write for a living? Cant wait for your next post, while I watch all my sleeping patients.

:dancingba

[DVC_for_me!]

Gopher, I LOVE reading your reports. They make me laugh out loud. Can't wait for the rest!

[Tink22]

Gopher - your trip reports are great! I can't wait to read more! It makes me want to go to DW sooooo badly!

[nono]

gopherit,

Thanks for sharing the first part! Can't wait for more! Loved your description of Whispering Canyon. :laughing:

[cheyenne]

Great trip report! :laughing: :clappingh I want more! Can't wait to hear about your adventures at BCV.

[Ransom]

Great trip report. I'm looking forward to the next installment!

[BJFOSS]

great trip report. almost like being there.

[harmrose22]

Love your trip reports! Keep 'em coming! :thumbsup:

[DVCerLee]

You write such a good report!
Now, be thankful for Mr.Gopher's "thriftiness illness" Its guys like him that keep us out of debt, bless his heart!

[parrisk]

Super report! Looking forward to more.

[bababear]

Hey Gopher Hon
Great reporting ,,,,,and I'm anxiously awaiting more:magnify::magnify::magnify:

HUGS Mel

[TinkLover]

Love your trip report..... I can't wait to be back in WDW

[B'rer Karen]

I'm really enjoying your TR. Thanks for sharing.

[gopherit]

Day 4 – Movin’ on over to BCV today. We all bid a fond farewell to Max and Erma that morning and packed up our stuff. DH then morphed into the dreaded Anti-Valet, turning our kids in to members of his pitiful baggage-toting chain gang. It’s quite frustrating for me, because rather than just calling a bellman and loading all the bags at once, allowing me to then leisurely secure the area and make sure we have all our stuff, I go to pack something only to find the bag already gone, with no idea of what’s already in it or the car at any given time. Very unsettling to a control-freak of a packing-rat like me. So while the kids and DH made their pilgrimages out to the car and back, I tried my best to finish the packing and do a final “sweep” of the area. Let no child (or child’s toy) be left behind! Or frankly, my stuff either. I have left my jewelry not once, but twice in a Disney villa before. One time I got it all back – another time, not so lucky. I blame the anti-valet and his chaotic room-departure- sans-a-bellman routine for the losses incurred, though he of course shrugs off all blame. Probably for the best – because otherwise he would be forced to see the irony in saving a $5 tip in exchange for $50 earrings and a $100 ring. :sosad: meanwhile – I don’t bring much jewelry on vacation anymore, and if I do – you can bet it’s the cheap stuff.

I also had phone calls to make – dinner reservations to firm up, and tickets to check on. A few nights earlier, I had the front desk check all of our old park hopper passes only to learn that we didn’t have QUITE as many days left on them as we thought. Not good. I had planned to get tix for Disney Quest from Maple Leaf anyway and pick them up at their store. Since the new ticket “plusses” already include Disney Quest (unlike our ancient hoppers), we elected to simply by some new 10-day park passes (with the no expiry and 10 plus-options) and use those for our day at DQ as well. It wasn’t exactly news to warm the cockles of my DH’s heart (or wallet) since we didn’t really plan to plunk out all that moolah on tickets, but like I said- my DH isn’t so much stingy - just thrifty - and when you show him the cost per day of a 4 day ticket versus a 10-day ticket, he’s always willing to take the big plunge, knowing ticket prices will only go up and we will always find a way to use up those days! So I confirm our ticket order for pick-up, and we close out our room. I force everyone to go to the main lodge for a last round of pictures. While dd and I are cruising around in the gift shop, the clerk decides to ask dd a trivia question. “Name your favorite move!” I immediately cringe. Trivia is not dd’s forte - she has great difficulty pulling single facts or faces from memory. Great at making them up, though… so if she were a writer, she’d make a better fiction novelist than historian. So the clerk asks again, “name your favorite movie!” and dd pauses…. Pauses… pauses… check for pulse….she finally answers, “Enchanted.” Huh? Don’t get me wrong, she did enjoy the movie, but I knew where this was going. She had maybe seen the movie about 3 times total, and not very recently, either, so being trivia-challenged, I had serious doubts she could answer the question. The clerk must have sensed my fear, as she said, “what about Cinderella? Sleeping Beauty? Little Mermaid? High School Musical?” So my little DD all dressed in pink suddenly changes her mind and says, “No, no no, Not Enchanted. Pirates of the Caribbean. Yes, that’s my favorite.” The clerk’s face was priceless – like, “Okayyyyyyy – didn’t see THAT coming….” She decides to take it easy on dd and says, “So here’s your question…. WHAT… was the NAME… of the pirate with the squiggly beard that wiggled and moved all around?” Uh oh. Dd’s memory bank was as empty as Jack Sparrow’s bottle of rum. The clerk elected to change the question, “Umm, ok, WHO… was the PIRATE…. Who…..was the star of the movie?” Fortunately she answered correctly, and a big broad smile came across her face (and the relieved CM, who apparently was determined to reward her!) She pulled out a bunch of pins and let Caroline choose one. Then for reasons I don’t wholly understand, she recorded what state we were from. So what, is there a quota they have to reach for giving out magic to each state? If anyone knows the reason on this other than just as a measure to prove the clerk gave out her share of the million dreams or whatever – fill me in.

Anyway – dd immediately races out to lobby to show off pin to her brother and tell them how she was part of "a million dreams" now, though she didn't know "which number she was". Not sure if that's teh case, or if it's simply a matter of a nice clerk handing out excess pins, but let the girl think she's a dream, what's the harm? Well, her brother (who must have some of that "thrifty-DNA" coursing through his veins because he LOVES a "freebie." Boy would take a carrot if it were free, even though he loathes veggies, just because he could.) Anyway, he of course gets an immediate case of pin-envy. He races into the store and paces back and forth in front of the counter, hoping to be asked to play a game of trivia as well – but the question never came. Which reminds me of yet another fundamental truth… “Giving one child a dream may cause another’s nightmare.” He was acting so shiftily, pacing back and forth in front of the counter, we decided best action was to get him the zipideedoodah out of there, before they either arrested him as a potential shoplifter or escorted him to a bathroom. So we headed to the car and waved good-bye to VWL and hello to BCV.

[kiapgh23e]

thank god for a new post, I was jones'in. more, more more!!!!

:bunny:

[melk]

Oh my gosh, I can't believe I stumbled across this! You replied to a post I had on the resorts board and I thought your username was familiar, and I was pretty sure I remembered a trip report of yours from a couple of years ago. I mentioned it in a reply to you on that thread. Then I find this! Thank you for sharing, you're a great writer, I really get a chuckle from your expressions (your kids are "members of his pitiful baggage-toting chain gang"--my kids are unfortunate members of that club as well b/c of their fathers insistence on doing it ourselves, lol!)

[pollymn]

Gopher, I've told you before what a fan I am of your writing style. You do not disappoint.:worship:

[Colorado Belle]

Keep em coming gopher!!!!!

[Laxmom]

:corn: More please...

[disneyfreak89]

Well, her brother (who must have some of that "thrifty-DNA" coursing through his veins because he LOVES a "freebie." Boy would take a carrot if it were free, even though he loathes veggies, just because he could.)

:hahahaha: He sounds like ME! haha

He was acting so shiftily, pacing back and forth in front of the counter, we decided best action was to get him the zipideedoodah out of there, before they either arrested him as a potential shoplifter or escorted him to a bathroom.

:hahahaha: I thoroughly enjoyed this paragraph! LOL

You have such a way with words.

Looking forward to your next installment! :hyper:

[7swans]

I have dug through the lunchroom garbage at school in a fruitless search for a lost $600.00 orthodontic appliance, thank goodness your DD's wasn't that pricey!

Great report, can't wait to hear how it went at Beach Club.

[irishdancer]

Day 4 – Movin’ on over to BCV today. We all bid a fond farewell to Max and Erma that morning and packed up our stuff. DH then morphed into the dreaded Anti-Valet, turning our kids in to members of his pitiful baggage-toting chain gang. It’s quite frustrating for me, because rather than just calling a bellman and loading all the bags at once, allowing me to then leisurely secure the area and make sure we have all our stuff, I go to pack something only to find the bag already gone, with no idea of what’s already in it or the car at any given time. Very unsettling to a control-freak of a packing-rat like me. So while the kids and DH made their pilgrimages out to the car and back, I tried my best to finish the packing and do a final “sweep” of the area. Let no child (or child’s toy) be left behind! Or frankly, my stuff either. I have left my jewelry not once, but twice in a Disney villa before. One time I got it all back – another time, not so lucky. I blame the anti-valet and his chaotic room-departure- sans-a-bellman routine for the losses incurred, though he of course shrugs off all blame. Probably for the best – because otherwise he would be forced to see the irony in saving a $5 tip in exchange for $50 earrings and a $100 ring. :sosad: meanwhile – I don’t bring much jewelry on vacation anymore, and if I do – you can bet it’s the cheap stuff.

I love reading your report, it makes me chuckle. This part especially because it is exactly how I felt on our Spring Break trip to HHI. Since our car wasn't far from our bldg DH started having everyone carry things out. Only problem is I am an obsessive packer, everything has "it's" place and I triple check everything to make sure we haven't left anything :innocent:. I felt so rushed and completely disorganized! I much prefer having the time to have everything packed and waiting by the door for the bellman.

[gopherit]

First of all, you guys, as always, are such an exceedingly NICE bunch of folks, so very complimentary, that you make it easy and enjoyable to be a writer! Which reminds me, no, I am not a writer by profession (though I have stayed in several Holiday Inn Expresses in my time....). Oddly enough, this is a source of great contention with my mother, however, who insists I should have been. Mind you, she didn't want me to abandon being the geeky research chemist that I am today - just wanted me to also be a writer in addition. Well folks - when we figure out how to get 40 hours into a 24 hour day, I suppose I can make my mom proud, LOL. I did at least get a degree in English along w/ my chemistry degrees, but kids and work and the usual "stuff" of life fills most of my days. I love writing trip reports because they let me "re-live" the vacation, and besides, I love reading other folks' reports too, so I'm paying it forward for future reports from all of you, haha! So for now, I write sheerly for fun for all, and this bugs Mom to no end. See - she doesn't want me to be a good writer - she wants me to be a WELL-PAID FAMOUS writer (which in turn, makes her the MOTHER of a famous, well-paid author. I am wise to her ambitions!) Anyway - so I have pointed out to her once that writing for fun was enough for me, and if people enjoyed reading it, that was more than enough payment. She said, "Well, but if it's something you are really good at doing, you shouldn't give it away! You should get PAID for it!" To which I replied in frustration, "Yes, well, [my DH] thinks I'm pretty good upstairs, but I don't think I'll become a prostitute, okay?" She hasn't brought the subject up since then....and I'm still writing and lovin' it. ;)


ANYWAY - I will do my best to keep installments coming! A forewarning for those who don't know - the trip lasted about 2 weeks. So if I'm still only half-way through Day 4 - there's a heap o' fun left for me, and a LOT of reading left for you. Feel free to skim through as necessary, and if I lose anyone along the way, my sincere apologies! I do realize that your days only have 24 hours, too! :o

[7swans]

ANYWAY - I will do my best to keep installments coming! A forewarning for those who don't know - the trip lasted about 2 weeks. So if I'm still only half-way through Day 4 - there's a heap o' fun left for me, and a LOT of reading left for you.

:jumpingbe :bigear::jumpingbe

[tinkerbella's mom]

:hahahaha: lol Gopher you are hysterical. I'm laughing out loud. More please!!

[JimP]

So when do you start writing about "upstairs"?

/Jim

[gopherit]

Art the Greeter was waiting at the threshold for us at the Beach Club Lobby, and check-in was simple with no waiting, except for the fact that our room wasn’t ready. The valets whisked our bags away as I slipped them a generous tip for their services before DH could so much as whimper. We decided to grab lunch over at The Fountain at the Dolphin hotel. This turned out to be a pretty good idea – whereas Beaches and Cream was quite crowded with over an hour-long wait, we were immediately seated at the Fountain. The kids liked the view-master menus, and we all enjoyed our food. Most of us had hot dogs, although DS13 did have a burger. DH of course savored every penny of the 20% savings we DVC members receive there, especially since he was still in mourning over the whole valet experience. :boohoohoo When we returned to Beach Club, the kids donned their suits and took a swim with DH at SAB while I headed out to the store and to pick up the tickets from Maple Leaf and a few provisions at Target. We decided that we would attend the Members Meeting over at Atlantic Dance at 4 pm, so by the time I got back to the resort at 3:20, our room was ready, and I had just enough time to throw a few things in it and meet the gang by the pool for the walk over to the meeting. DH and the kids balked at first about leaving the pool. The kids dried themselves off, still yearning to hop back into the “whirling waters” while DH kept asking if this would be nothing more than an “up-sell meeting” to get us to buy more points. I assured him to fear not – no upsell, and hey, they serve free refreshments and give you nice hats – well, why didn’t I say so before? Free food and ballcaps? Count Mr. Thrifty and Sons decidedly “in”. :thumbsup:

We enjoyed the meeting and the quirky game show (though I’m not sure I could stand it much more than once every year or so – a bit schmaltzy, IYKWIM). At the very end of the show, I was lucky enough to have my name drawn for a door prize! Woohoo for me! But as I approached the stage, I was already fretting, trying to figure out in my mind how the heck to equitably divide TWO ballcaps, or TWO cups, or two ANYTHING between THREE children. I guess I would just have to say, “Mom and Dad pay the points, Mom and Dad get the goodies!!” Well, it was not a speech I was ever going to make, because as luck would have it, we won a Photopass “personal family photo shoot session” over at Saratoga Springs for our whole gopher gang! Pretty cool and valued at $125, which naturally brought a smile to DH’s face. (The kids, however, were like, "Bummer, Mom! You could have had a HAT or a MUG!") I didn’t waste any time setting up our appointment for that Saturday (although in retrospect – I should not have picked the 11:00 time slot – simply way too bright and hot in the day!) But all the earliest slots were taken, so oh well. It was FREE, after all!

One brief digression here, though - the mugs and hats did look nice, and they also had nice towels and such, too. So why the $&%^#^@#% don't they SELL THESE anywhere? Why are we limited to a paltry few items with the DVC logo that don't seem to change from year to year? Why are there not more DVC- home resort specific items to buy, too? I thought the Mouse was "the Master" at getting people to part with their moolah but man - they are SOOOO missing the boat on this one. At least, with this crew, anyway. Anyway - that's my peeve, now back to your regularly scheduled trip report.
So after the meeting, we sashayed on back over to BCV and checked out our room. Again – my only request was please, not HA. And once again – we were not disappointed. We had a 2BR lock-off on the 2nd floor (I think it was 260 and 258 – but I will need to check that, so don't hold me to it!) We had a LOVELY view of the pool, and a VERY GENEROUS balcony, and VERY VERY close to an elevator – like Mary Poppins herself, it was positively perfect in every way. Well, at least in location and view. The villas themselves were more like Julie Andrews – still nice, but a bit tired and showing their age. I think the “light” décor of Beach Club makes it harder to stay “fresh” looking. The carpets showed the stains of their age, the walls showed their bumps and dings from prior occupants, just little things that all added up. Mind you – in NO way did any of this affect our vacation - these are just things that I noted that were in contrast, for example, to our rooms over at VWL. I don’t have any doubt that VWL rooms get the same “abuse” as any other DVC resort, and I will say that while we were there, the BCV mousekeeping and staff were always moving and doing and fixing and working on renovations. And we did let mgmt know at the end of our stay what things we noticed (otherwise, how would they ever have a chance to fix them?) We gophers try to leave places in a better state than we originally find them…it’s the scout law, after all. :yes:

The kids and DH were positively thrilled with our room. DH was especially thrilled with the location of the elevator and walkway to the parking lot. You could just see his little valet-challenged gears turning in his head, already planning our departure before our stay had even begun. I made a call to bell services to have our bags delivered, and voila’ – there they were. The bellman was very courteous, and I tipped him handily, noting to DH that they had even chilled our 2 Gatorade 12’packs, despite us never requesting it. Gotta point out the silver lining in the clouds to DH when you can, sez I. We immediately made ourselves at home, unpacked our bags, and decided that we were all still a bit full from lunch, so tonight would be an “ice cream dinner”. We headed back down to SAB and knowing there would be a formidable line at Beaches, I put in our name while the kiddos got in a bit more swim-time. We waited about 1 hour or so before they told us we would be "soon". THis was excellent, since it gave the kids not only time to swim, but time to change into dry clothes so they wouldn’t freeze their patookusses off in there. Because some of our crew has an aversion to fruit toppings and fruit in ice cream (picky little separatist diners, ain't they?), we made a few changes to the Kitchen Sink and the staff at Beaches and Cream were very accommodating to that (they put our fruit in a separate bowl so fruit lovers could have it, but fruit-haters need not fear about biting into it by accident, LOL). Thanks to these concessions in the order, all were happy, and we polished off the whoooooole thing in no time flat. :yummy: After that, we waddled back to the room and relaxed in our lovely villa. Tomorrow we would be hitting the shores of Typhoon Lagoon, which is DS11’s favorite place, but not a fave of DS13’s, so there was a bit of debate over that, but it was agreed we were an all-for-one one-for-all gopher herd this vacation. (DS13 has never recovered from being tossed by a wave onto the lovely abrasive concrete as a 5 yr old. Some grudges never die, I guess. (He is, after all, the Cliff Clavin of trivia and factoids in our family, so why should his personal memories be any different?) Ah the mysteries of the 13-year old mind. If anyone has the key book to it, let me know!

[gopherit]

So when do you start writing about "upstairs"?

/Jim

The day DH decides someone else is as good or better.

[JimP]

The day DH decides someone else is as good or better.

LOL I deserved that response :)

/Jim

[AFMom]

More More I want More!!!!

:D

[disneyfreak89]

:bouncingg Keep'm comin!

[gopherit]

Day 5: Typhoon Lagoon

We got our gear together and after a brief wait at the bus stop, we managed to arrive at Typhoon Lagoon shortly after opening. We managed to get our "usual" spot facing the wave pool under a palm tree just to the left of the side of the big clock tower. The sound of the wave machine is like the mother ship calling my DS11 home. When it makes its booming unmistakable "WHOOOOOOOMPHHH" sound, he MUST BE IN THE POOL. So after pinning him in a half-nelson to get the sunblock applied, off he ran with dd right with him. DS13 was of course non-plussed, though he was at least willing to give things a try, and that's about as much as the parent of a teen can hope for. We decided to head over to the rides that would soon build up lines, such as Crush-n-Gusher. There was NO line at this attraction, so we rode at least 3 or 4 times in rapid succession. Photopass was in full effect at this ride, taking pictures and slapping bracelets on you as you exited. We ran into Stitch as we were leaving the ride and had a quick picture taken with him as well. From here we went to some of the body slides, which were fun. We also did Shark Reef - where we all ended up with a moderate reactions to something in the masks. Our faces began to itch and turn very red where the masks had been on our skin - it wasn't until about 3 pm that day that we had mostly recovered. Not sure if it was the rubber in the mask or something they cleaned them with, combined with the effects of salt water - but whatever it was, it itched and stung terribly, and while normally I go back and do this attraction 3 or 4 times in a visit, none of us felt inclined to return after that. Especially dd, who had some difficulty with her mask this time. SHe ended up getting a "lift" from the lifeguard over to the other side, poor gal.

DS11 and DH wanted to ride Humunga Cowabunga, so DS13 and dd (who had decided that bathing suit wedgies weren't her cup of tea anyway) and I decided to take a lap on the lazy river while waiting on DH and DS11. We grab our tubes and start our trip around, noting which port we entered so we would know where to get back out and meet DH and DS11. DS13 enjoys his lazy river time - he's a bit of an Eeyore sometimes, and has always liked his own company. Well, within a few seconds our trio encounters a fellow (seemed to be perhaps a bit younger than DS13) who is swimming upstream like a salmon. He comes up to DS13 and says, "Hey - come with me to the slides, 'kay?" and starts yanking on DS13's inner tube, draggin him backwards. DS13, not wanting to be rude, replies, "No, I'm here with my family, I'm staying with them." "Okay", says Salmon Boy, "I'll just get in your tube with you - you don't mind, do you." It wasn't so much a question as a statement, and the look on DS13's face was pure shock as this kid then starts to climb inside the tube with him. DS13 handled this all with great grace, but I figured he needed a bit of rescuing so I asked the young man where his family might be, and did he need to check in with them? He had no idea - nor seemingly did he care. He then began doing some things that were troubling (like walking up to older folks in tubes and deliberately diving under them - like a game. ) And of course, in going under the water and then popping back up, they were getting splashed and, based on their expressions, he apparently was bumping their bottoms about quite a bit. I told the young man that he should stop, since people didn't really enjoy that, but he didn't seem to care. I could not find anyone in the river who seemed to be responsible for this lad, and frankly, this surprised me, because he didn't seem so much to be rude or selfish as he was wholly lacking the ability to pick up on social cues - almost like that of a mentally challenged level, though I may be way off base on that. But this behavior is what further amazed me as to why he was traveling solo. The lifeguards were frequently making comments to him regarding lazy river rules, and he in turn would just get chatty with them, as if what they told him didn't register anything other than hey, let's have a conversation. They too would ask about his parents - but none to be seen. And he was still bopping in and out of DS13's tube, trying to drag him into his actions, which was increasingly alarming to my soft-spoken DS whose polite "No thanks" weren't registering. So while it bothered me that he didn't seem to have any family about, it also bothered me that my own child's "fun" was being compromised, so at that point, I told DS13, "Oh look, here's our exit, let's go find Dad and Ryan...." *winkwink* And thankfully DS13 caught on and dd8 didn't say, "Huh? This isn't where we got in....." and blow our cover. We walked back over to the original entry point and met up with DH and DS11, and from there, re-entered the river and rode it over to the other tube rides on the other side of the park. After getting our fill of those, we went back to our chairs by the beach for some lunch. Lines never became a big problem - even at peak hours the longest wait was at the family raft ride - probably 20-25 minutes. I really hate the way they make you haul your rafts at this park. BB does a much metter job of transporting these for you. You don't have to do anything with the family rafts (thank goodness!) and only the tubes rides on the far left of that park require you to carry them. The mats for Snow Stormers and the toboggan racers make their way back up on their own, too. (sorry - Typhoon Lagoon rant over!)

After more time spent in the wave pool chanting "we want WAVES!" and reaping the benefits, DS13 was ready to go, and honestly, so was I. It was about 3 pm. So I bought ice cream for the kids and a frozen coffee for myself for a quick "recharge". After that (and a few more waves), DS13 and I headed out of the park. We had excellent timing, because (a) the bus came within seconds and (b) thunderstorms were brewing. We decided to get out at the Yacht Club stop and cruise through it over to our BC villa. We decided this was a more pleasant walk than the one from the BC bus stop because you could do most of it either inside, under shade, or beside water as opposed to out on the less picturesque blistering sidewalks.

DH and the Typhoon-Lovers came back about an hour after us, and together we all got ready for dinner. We decided to try ESPN, which is a favorite place for all the guys. We were seated right away and had an enjoyable meal. There were quite a few Boardwalk performers when we emerged from ESPN, which was a real treat. SOmehow, we have NEVER been able to see these before, and this trip, we saw so many, and really enjoyed them! When we got back to the Beach CLub, the movie was playing and the ping-pong tables were calling DS11. Dd had complained earlier about her ears hurting a bit, and not wanting a repeat of our trip a few years ago wherein our ds developed a massive middle ear infection, I elected to run to the store to get some ear drops. Amazingly, however, walMart did NOT have any! So I bought a small bottle of isopropyl alcohol (which is the main component in those drops anyway) and some sunburn lotion, along with a few boxes of Tasty-Cakes and a bit more soda for "snacking". I got back to the villa and found out the gang had gone swimming, so I joined DH down by the pool. The baby ducks were swimming here, too. In fact, the lifeguards had placed towels strategically in some areas so that the ducklings could get in/out more easily. I overheard the lifeguard tell one woman that her beverage was not allowed near the pool. She asked why, and he said, well, if it falls in, they would be forced to remove everyone. She replied, "So let me get this straight, my drink - which is alcohol and ice - is grounds for clearing the pool, but a bunch of pooping ducks are allowed to come and go as they please?" She wasn't very nice about it - but it did cause one to pause at the fuzzy logic of it all. :idontgeti

Finally, we forced our own ducklings (oops - I mean gophers) out of the pool and back to the villa. Tomorrow was going to be a full day at EPCOT, definitely my fave park. I told everyone straight-up that Mom will NOT be denied her ONE WISH this trip - I want to go see the World Showcase Players in UK. Every trip, I request... and somehow, I never get my wish. We are always at some other place, the timing isn't right, a thunderstorms pours in, or we finally end up in UK but the last show has already played. But this year - I WILL NOT BE DENIED. The Mom has spoken - consider yourselves duly warned.

So off to bed we went to rest up for the next day. :catchingz

[disneyfreak89]

Well, within a few seconds our trio encounters a fellow (seemed to be perhaps a bit younger than DS13) who is swimming upstream like a salmon. He comes up to DS13 and says, "Hey - come with me to the slides, 'kay?" and starts yanking on DS13's inner tube, draggin him backwards. DS13, not wanting to be rude, replies, "No, I'm here with my family, I'm staying with them." "Okay", says Salmon Boy, "I'll just get in your tube with you - you don't mind, do you." It wasn't so much a question as a statement, and the look on DS13's face was pure shock as this kid then starts to climb inside the tube with him. DS13 handled this all with great grace, but I figured he needed a bit of rescuing so I asked the young man where his family might be, and did he need to check in with them? He had no idea - nor seemingly did he care. He then began doing some things that were troubling (like walking up to older folks in tubes and deliberately diving under them - like a game. ) And of course, in going under the water and then popping back up, they were getting splashed and, based on their expressions, he apparently was bumping their bottoms about quite a bit. I told the young man that he should stop, since people didn't really enjoy that, but he didn't seem to care. I could not find anyone in the river who seemed to be responsible for this lad, and frankly, this surprised me, because he didn't seem so much to be rude or selfish as he was wholly lacking the ability to pick up on social cues - almost like that of a mentally challenged level, though I may be way off base on that. But this behavior is what further amazed me as to why he was traveling solo. The lifeguards were frequently making comments to him regarding lazy river rules, and he in turn would just get chatty with them, as if what they told him didn't register anything other than hey, let's have a conversation. They too would ask about his parents - but none to be seen. And he was still bopping in and out of DS13's tube, trying to drag him into his actions, which was increasingly alarming to my soft-spoken DS whose polite "No thanks" weren't registering.

You and your son handled this situation well. I'm not sure how I would have reacted to "Salmon Boy". :headache:

He clearly lacked any social skills. Its unfortunate that not even the lifeguards had any control over him. Its sad really,

I'm sure the parents couldn't be bothered with his little annoyances either and sent him off to fend for himself maybe? :sosad:

[TinkLover]

Your trip report is just great....

[withdisneyspirit]

Hmmm, Gopher, can I blame you that I did not get more work done on this Sunday afternoon?? :Pokepoke: Thanks for the usual fab TR :jumpingbe

[kiapgh23e]

Very funny, very funny. Sometimes I laugh for minutes because something you say makes me have a flashback or 2.

:dancingba

[Tink22]

Your trip report is great! I haven't made it to the World this year yet and reading your report makes me so miss it! I had my own little "Cliff Claven" who is now a college graduate (as of mother's day) and your report brings back so many memories. Please keep them coming! BTW, you and your son did handle the little "salmon boy" very well. He sounded very starved for attention. It's a shame he wasn't as fortunate as your children and spending time with his own family.

[jbekf]

:worship:Ok, I just found your TR today, this is hands down the best, most entertaining TR I have ever read!!! Please keep it coming, I have to get back into lab now (I'm a geeky chemist too) but I'm up to post #37 and will start there next lunch break!

As other have so aptly put it, :bigear::drool::ROTFL:

[Macky3207]

:laughing:
Love your trip report. It is so entertaining. I noticed you are from MidOhio Valley area. Where exactly? We live in KY close to Louisville. Thought we might be "neighbors" by states as well as DVC members.

Looking forward to the rest of your trip.

Fonda

[7swans]

I do hope you got your wish! I love the World Showcase Players! :blueflowe

[gopherit]

I thank all of you friendly folks for your kind words, and apologize for the delay in the next “installment”. :oYou see, something I haven’t mentioned yet in this trip report is that it was to be a trip to be forever etched in our children’s minds. Oh I realize that to some degree, every traveler always tries to make each trip as memorable as possible, and we all envision the things that happen to provide that extra insurance that the memory will last. But this trip was going to be memorable for a reason that had very little to do with Disney. It would be remembered not because Minnie made kissy-kissy faces with our mortified young mancubs at Chef M's, or because our dd was jumping for joy at FINALLY being tall enough for RnR. In fact, it would not be because of anything we ate, saw, rode, watched, purchased (or in the case of dd’s retainer, even thrown away!) during our visit. "The Trip That Would Live in Infamy" would be such not because of something that was done - rather, because of something that was yet to be said. The day before I trip, it had finally become official at work that our family would be moving over the summer from our oh-so-familiar-for-15-years-the-only-place-our-pups-have-ever-known home in West-By-Golly-Virginia to about an hour or 2 east of Houston, Texas. The move had been rather on-off-on-off for a few months, so we hadn’t told the kids yet. My boss proposed that my DH and I could tell them right before the trip – an idea I instantly nixed, noting “How would you feel if you were 11 and your folks said, “Pack your bags… but when we come back – don’t bother unpacking!” How good of a trip would it then be? We had been planning this big Disney / Universal combo vacation for quite a while, and I didn’t relish the idea of dour-faced kids in all the pictures. Besides – telling them before the trip wasn’t going to get us any further along in the moving process (and frankly – DH and I needed a break from what had been nothing but 2-3 stressful months of thinking about nothing BUT the move!) So DH and I decided that we would tell them AFTER the trip – but BEFORE we arrived back home. We had an overnight stay planned in Charlotte, NC on our return trip and we figured that was as good a place as any. After all – we knew they would be saddened at the prospect of leaving their home and friends behind. It's only natural. But likewise, we didn’t want that memory to transfer like an indelible mark onto our beloved WDW. That’s supposed to be the HAPPIEST place on earth, LOL. Charlotte, however – ehh, let it take one for the team.

I won’t skip ahead and get into how the news went over – all things in good time – but I just wanted to explain that my delays in posting have been due to a lot of renewed, high-intensity stressing over our impending move! I have spent the last 4 days down in the Houston area and in fact write this as I wait for my delayed-for-the-3rd-time flight. When I'm not at work trying to learn the new job, I'm out casing neighborhoods, looking for a nice home in a neighborhood full of kids. I am afraid the police are now searching for me as a cited Amber-alert stalker, so if you see my photo on the post office wall, please put in a good word for me – truly I mean no harm. Just a simple gopher mom trying to find a new burrow for her Disneyphilic brood!

But for you folks, I do hereby promise - new posts coming just as soon as I can type them – after all, trip reports are cathartic for me! Bear with me, gang!! :flowerfor

[7swans]

Will your prospective new neighborhood be closer to your home away from home? :coolcar:

[Ransom]

Take your time. Just so long as you don't take as long as DisUnc on that other board. ;)

[pollymn]

You know what 'they' say, Good things come to those that wait. :corn:

[withdisneyspirit]

So, will you be living in Texas or Louisiana, Gopher?? DH mentioned Lake Charles, LA or Beaumont, TX. He flies a Cessna over the pipeline for a living and he used to spend a lot of time and weekly overnights in Jennings, LA.

I hope the pups took it okay - they are probably still in shock though. I hope you find a fabulous neighborhood for your family too! I hope the stress is alleviated soon!

[vwl mom]

Loving your report - thank you for sharing! I hope your visit here in Charlotte went well, and as Charlotte's unofficial rep here on the boards, I am happy to "take one for the team" for you! :thumbsup:

[TinkLover]

Can't wait to read more about your trip.... Good luck with your move and finding a new home

[gopherit]

Will your prospective new neighborhood be closer to your home away from home? :coolcar:

LOL, that's one of the first questions my DH asked me when I told him about the possibility of moving a few months ago! The answer: It's roughly the same, just form a different direction (coming from west, along the gulf, versus from north). However, we will be closer to a large airport which opens up some flight options we never really had before.

So, will you be living in Texas or Louisiana, Gopher?? DH mentioned Lake Charles, LA or Beaumont, TX.

Wow - you're geographically right on target. Living in Beaumont, working in Orange (which is about 20 miles or so from Lake Charles). So we will be "totally Texas" in our home and jobs, but very close to Louisiana. In fact - cajun food is very prevalent through the area, definitely a feature for my gumbo-loving dd and DH!

Hoping to post next installment this evening... spent all day weeding through a house full of STUFF. I need some Disney therapy!

[7swans]

[QUOTE=gopherit;160878]LOL, that's one of the first questions my DH asked me when I told him about the possibility of moving a few months ago! The answer: It's roughly the same, just form a different direction (coming from west, along the gulf, versus from north). However, we will be closer to a large airport which opens up some flight options we never really had before.

I am pretty sure not dealing with any snow will be a travel plus!
I feel for you, what a pain it is to move, especially after living for a long time in the same place.
I hope everything goes smoothly for the Gophers!

[gopherit]

(NOTE: Yes, we are skipping Friday - not by choice. Post somehow didn't register and I didn't catch it until it was pointed out to me on Page 7... Update is located there....)

Ok – so where were we – oh yeah, I think we were still sleeping after all that EPCOT fun. It was, after all, Saturday – what more appropriate time to snooze in for a bit? S-L-E-E-P, that spells vacation to me. We enjoyed a leisurely breakfast and got ourselves all “clean and neat” for our freebie photo shoot over at Saratoga Springs. DH was getting a bit fretful – likely because he was worried that it wasn’t REALLY free. I handed him his new white shirt to wear, and the look on his face said it all as he eyed the new white shirts I gave the boys as well. Never mind the fact that I got them at the nearby GAP outlet, his mental gears were churning out 401K-sized fears - good grief, this FREE shoot was ALREADY costing him moolah… What if we get there and they tried to SELL us stuff? Like prints or frames or keyrings or coffee mugs, or a pre-reserved copy of “High School Musical IX – From Senior Year to Senior Citizens”? Oh perish the thought!! Despite his nerves he somehow collected himself and our crew and we made our way to our car. We elected to drive over to Saratoga rather than bus-it, despite the cost of fuel. We had told the kids to bring their suits with them in case they decided they wanted to exercise that DVC pool-hopping privy. Having the car with us meant not having to schlep a big duffle with all those swimming supplies. We found the photo studio fairly easily (located just past the gift shop over near Artist’s Palette) and were instantly met by our photographer (whose name escapes me, which is ironic, as you will learn). DH was under the impression that the shoot would be stationary – we would gather as a group and they would just whip down various backgrounds behind us. While I agreed with him that the note was ambiguous, it didn’t seem very logical to come to Disney World and a specific resort for a photo shoot, only to have generic, artificial backdrops used. Why bother? You could plop us in front of a green screen and just switch the backgrounds digitally and get the same effect. Fortunately, neither of these concepts were the plan. Our photographer immediately took us outside to various pre-planned points around the resort. Instantly, our one regret was the time of day we had chosen. It was hot - Florida-hot – with very few clouds and a touch of lovely humidity from the evaporating morning dew. Ugh. Not exactly photo-friendly. The kids did very well, and my DS11 (ever the photogenic charmer) smiled and struck such an easy, comfy-with-the–camera pose that made the photographer gush and say, “WOW! He’s modeled before, right?” What a ham. She had us pose as a family, then just kids, then just parents, just guys, just gals, just blondes, just people whose names start with R – basically any permutation you could possibly derive. Through it all, she wanted to call our daughter “Lauren”, which didn’t so much bother Caroline as it did our son, Ryan. He insisted on correcting her, and I insisted on pointing out that it was ok, we had experienced other aliases all week and somehow survived, so Caroline could likely handle one more (at VWL, her room key was labeled “Carol Anne”; at BCV our son Evan was keyed as “Even” and in all cases our last name was misspelled). Besides – I thought he was being a bit cheeky about it (though I did think it was cute that he cared that the photo person was not calling his sister by the right name, especially since he claims he would trade her for a cold slice of pizza on most days). After the last photo was taken, the photographer thanked us, including our dd “Lauren,” at which point Ryan interjected, “Her name is CAROLINE!!!” So I challenged him. I covered up the photographer’s Disney name tag and said, “Ok, Ryan – she’s met new folks all morning long and for our family, she got one name out of 5 wrong. So tell me – what’s her name?” He grinned that Cheshire cat smile of his and said,, “Ummm…. I don’t know….. But HEY - at least I’m not calling her over and over by the WRONG name!!!” Ok kiddo, you got me there, and I’m not trying to squash your wonderful smile or your thirst for “justice” for your sister, I’m just a parent – it’s my job to reign in your sassiness for the sake of creating a kinder, gentler world… even on vacation. The photographer understood that and we all parted on fine terms – especially DH, who was beaming when she handed him the CD containing all the photos, along with the license that would allow us to make whatever prints we wanted, on our own time ( and DIME… hence, the happy DH). After our photo shoot, we elected to eat at AP, which turned out to be a bit disappointing for DH. I was trying to hustle everyone through the ordering process, and DH, looking cluelessly around, choked under pressure and ordered what I ordered – the chicken and mushroom soup and a roast beef sandwich. Had he inspected more closely, he would have seen that the sandwich was accompanied by onions and horseradish-mustard and all those “scary” condiments that make him cold and clammy at the mere mention of their names. So while DH spent his lunchtime scraping and picking, the boys critiqued their flatbread pizzas and decided that the one they had over at Roaring Forks was better. Dd per usual had what appeared to be the best meal of all. I had to chuckle at her decision for her 2 “sides” – never the cookie, always the fresh fruits and veggies. I was proud of her healthy choices but had to ponder if she really did carry any of my DNA (‘cuz that cookie looked GOOD). As for me – my meal would have been fine had I not tainted it by being woefully out of touch with the current member perks. I was under the impression we received a 10% discount at Artists’ Palette, but was quickly told at checkout that the DVC perk no longer existed. Bummer. I’m not as thrifty as DH but I’m not so cash-casual as to not appreciate a few discounts here and there. Besides – the “perks” always made me feel like I was getting that much “more” from our DVC membership. We didn’t buy our membership as an “investment” in anything but time spent as a family together, so it’s not like we count on the perks to pay us back… but I gotta say – the perks sure seem to be fewer and fewer.

[gopherit]

Ok, so enough of that – no whining on vacation!! Oddly enough, the kids did NOT want to suit-up and swim at Saratoga Springs pool. Rather, they were itching to get to DTD (or the “5th park” as they call it). Legos and pins were calling their names! While the gang puttered around the pin stations, I did my usual shopping routes, and we met up over at the Lego land area where the kids were building and racing their car creations. As the afternoon drew closer to its end, and the skies began to look ominous, we headed back to BCV and got ourselves ready for dinner. Tonight we had reservations at Big River, which we had never tried before. When we arrived, I made it very clear that since the evening had turned pleasant, we would gladly dine outside – there were in fact several open tables outside. Instead, we were seated inside. I have to say – this place is rather noisy inside, so to some degree, it was a detraction in our dining experience. Our server was very swift, and the food was reasonably good, however, so I think if we come back, we will simply “hold out” for outside seating. Now I should note that I am a gopher of moderation. I don’t smoke, though I do enjoy the occasional “rush” I get from a Lindt dark chocolate truffle, and yes, I enjoy the occasional libation – perhaps averaging a beer or two per week at home. When on vacation, I enjoy having one with my meal, or in the evening on the balcony. So I ordered a beer at Big River, too. But for reasons which even they cannot explain, my kids always seem to notice when Mom does this, and make commentary such that anyone else would think I’m a loyal lush. “Hey Mom, “ they will say quite audibly as we pass a restaurant, “that looks like YOUR kind of place – they have BEER!!!!” A few years ago, my kids attended one of those “say no to drugs” events in their school. That night, I happened to open up a beer while cooking dinner. They told me how BAD it was, and we had a little discussion about it. Well, a few days later, we’re in a restaurant, and I order a beer, to which my 5 and 7 yr old sons both cry out loud with genuine tears in their eyes, “NO! Don’t do it, Mommy! NOT AGAIN!!!” Kind of hard to explain to your waiter and fellow patrons…. ANYWAY – with the commentary of Mom’s foolhardy drinking still echoing, we elected to get dessert out on the Boardwalk that night. We strolled outside and watched the performers until the kids built up enough of an appetite, but lo and behold – the surry bikes caught their eye. We have been promising our kids for quite awhile now that we would “try” the bikes one day. But there was always a reason that we couldn’t – not enough folks big enough to peddle being among the strongest. At last we had reached critical altitude, however – so I plunked down the money and we all climbed aboard. Dd, who was miffed that she STILL wasn’t tall enough for a peddling-spot, was placed in the basket up front as the designated bell-ringer. Finally a place of honor that only she could have! After one lap around, we were all envious of her position, LOL. Of course, with our crew, just peddling wasn’t enough. My guys were treating this endeavor like the Daytona 500, with the boys hollering in the back, “Get up under his bumper and put ‘im into the wall, Dad!” We truly are not violent rodents…. Something in the gear grease got the better of us. I was the voice of reason (and panic) as I envisioned us careening through the resorts like a bicycle version of “Crazy Taxi”. I had to keep reminding the crew that unlike video games, these people are REAL, with real blood, real bones, and real lawyers. They don’t just “”pop up again” after you mow them down. But we weren’t the only ones out on the streets. At one point we found ourselves in a neck-and-neck duel with a 7 or 8 folks who were managing their bike like a crew team: “Go! Go! Go! GO!” was their rowing , ummm, I mean, peddling chant as they tried to maneuver past us. We thought perhaps we had an advantage on teh hill over by the Swan, as they clearly had more mass… but in the end, they had more muscle too, as they then passed us back at the Atlantic Dance turn. Oh well. We are "clean drivers" and good sports and elected not to rub fenders at the finish line. When we parked our bike back at its station on the Boardwalk, our legs felt like lead but our hearts were light. :goodvibes Ryan and Caroline elected to have ice cream cones, while DS13 held out for a decadent piece of cake at the bakery. We ambled (waddled) back to the room, put on some swimsuits, and promptly sank in the pool. Tomorrow would be our Disney Quest day – 11 am to 11 pm of digitized Disnified fun. I was looking forward to that about like one might look forward to a root canal. Don’t get me wrong – I love spending time with my family, and technology is a cool thing, especially for science geeky gophers. But “virtual” stuff makes me queasy and I didn’t relish the idea of a whole day of nuthin’ but that and all the bleepin noises and blinking lights. I was also starting to feel anxious about work – it had been a week since I had checked in, and I had some projects that needed closure. And lest we forget - try tho' we might - there was the "big impending move" ahead. I went back to the room to check my email, and tidy up the joint. DH and the kids soon followed, and we all went to sleep, with visions of winning the SurreyBike 600 dancing in our heads.

[AFMom]

:clappingh

[pollymn]

Great update Gopher. Btw will we get to see a pic? I'm dieing to see a pic of "Lauren ummm I mean Caroline:hahahaha:

[Ball Four]

OK.....You'll have a whole looooonnnng weekend, so we expect multiple updates. :)

[7swans]

:( Nary a mention of The World Showcase Players? :listen:

[disneyfreak89]

Well, a few days later, we’re in a restaurant, and I order a beer, to which my 5 and 7 yr old sons both cry out loud with genuine tears in their eyes, “NO! Don’t do it, Mommy! NOT AGAIN!!!” Kind of hard to explain to your waiter and fellow patrons….

:hahahaha: Too funny!

[TinkLover]

You crack me up, loved reading your tr..... My youngest son does the same thing to me, my dh can have 10 beers and nothing is said, my first drink and I hear, Oh mom are you drinking again.... Kids, gotta love em

[gopherit]

:( Nary a mention of The World Showcase Players? :listen:

Well don't YOU get the "Observant Reader Award" ! Impressive! :yes:

But the sad thing is - I DID mention the World Showcase players, and THEN some. After reading your post - I couldn't figure out why you asked, why you felt there wasn't any mention of the players, because I distinctly recalled what I had written (and it most definitely included the players) Anyway - so I have scanned this thread, however, and it appear that my ENTIRE "Friday" (aka EPCOT day) saga somehow did NOT post. Bummer! So now I'm all out of sequence!! I am therefore reposting Friday's events below - and also, for the sake of any new readers - I will put a footnote at the end of Thursday / top of Saturday posts.

Sorry about the confusion, folks! :hammer:

[gopherit]

FRIDAY – EPCOT DAY -THE FORGOTTEN CHAPTER!!!

It’s Friday morning of our 2 week trip and what’s that I hear – could it be – yes, it is! EPCOT is calling me! Okay, it’s calling the rest of my crew too – but I’m pretty sure it’s addressing me personally by name!! :yes:

We get out of bed and assemble ourselves fairly quickly, though we still argue a bit amongst ourselves as to which path is the fastest route from our villa over to the EPCOT gate. Once we arrived at the gate, we realized it mattered not which path we chose – we were quite early, and the rope had not yet begun to drop. Gotta love that easy access to EPCOT from BCV! While we waited, a kindly CM was making his way through the eager crowd, dispensing his well-intended “wisdom”. I suppose, for the complete novice, his experience would be appreciated, but for most his advice was almost amusing. “Have you ever heard of Fast Pass?” or “Don’t forget to ride Mission Space” were his frequent mantras, both of which he used on us. (And we were clearly labeled as seasoned vets, LOL, since DH and I somehow got dressed in matchy-matchy his-n-her DVC Member shirts that morning and didn’t notice it until we got out the door of the villa and began a heated “who got dressed first” and “who should have chosen a different shirt so we didn’t look like a Disney-meets-Lawrence Welk couple” debate). Anyway – the CM asked us what would be the first thing we would head towards, to which we replied, “Soarin”. We love this attraction – and we were determined to ride it as we never had before. Every single time we have ridden “Soarin”, we have been placed in the back row. No matter what we tried – always the back row. Normally, I’m pretty good to just grow where I am planted, but we longed – just once – to soar as high as possible, to have a top-row view from the highest height (and undisturbed by dangling flip-flops.) The CM heard about this quest, and said, “Here’s a tip – why don’t you just ASK?” Ok, I suppose we could do that – but somehow that seems so… tainted. Like you’re manufacturing the magic. I wanted, just once, to get there and by sheer fates of pixie dust, and end up in the front row. Silly, I know – but I think, the more structured and demanding my “normal” life has become, the less I feel like doing that on vacation. Weird, huh. And so it was, with the drop of a rope, that we made our way immediately to the Land pavilion. We debated over the CM’s advice and I finally nixed it, saying we would arrive at the front row spontaneously or not at all. After all – if everyone asked for front row – think how slowed-down the Soarin’ ride-boardin’ process would be. We didn’t want to be responsible for THAT! And so, with that decision, we were finally escorted to the little room and led to our places…

… in the FRONT ROW. (And we never had to ask! )

It was lovely, just lovely – we all felt like we couldn’t possibly ride again that day – it would taint the “specialness” of the experience, LOL. So we proceeded on our way, dispatching DH to get fast passes for Test Track while we ambled over to The Living Seas. We did the Nemo ride (for which my children all gave me grief as it was “too young for them”, old souls that they are…). We happened to arrive at just the right time to watch a fish feeding, and as were were about to leave, I proposed that we go watch Turtle Talk. With my credibility still low thanks to the Clamshell kiddie ride still fresh in their minds, it took some prodding on my part but finally they relented. As I had suspected (based on their feelings about the Monsters Inc Laugh Stage over at MK) they all enjoyed it – Mom’s reputation was redeemed. From there we went over to Test Track and Mission Space. I have taken the space ride once – and that was enough for me. I have no urge to ride the watered-down version – I rather prefer playing the racing-rocket game out in the “post-ride area” anyway. Besides, this way my remaining family of 4 can all man one spaceship together. After their ride, we all played the rocket game and drove Team Triton to the winner’s circle together. We then headed over to Ellen and the dinos, then made our usual pit-stop in the Coke station to gag on some Beverly before trekking over to Kodak to get shrunk.

(Astute readers know, of course, that Beverly is not only nastola, but it also has the effect of making those who drink it incredibly verbose... so much so that they often have to split their posts into 2 segments, for the SAME DAY of a trip report.)

Moral of story: Don't Drink The Beverly! (and keep reading for the rest of this day's events!)

[gopherit]

And now for the rest of the story... (well, at least Friday's story, anyway)

Through it all, I was keeping track of the time. After all – lest anyone forget – the World Showcase players were on my “must do” list and I was not to be denied. It was closing in on lunch time now, and therefore time for a family EPCOT ritual – funnel cakes in America, washed down with lemon granitas from Italy. We took the boat across the waters and got the funnel cake, no problem, but the granitas were another matter. What happened to these? They were not as they used to be – they were much darker in color (hellllooo FD&C Number 5) more artificially flavored, and frankly, not nearly frozen enough. While we noted our unhappiness over the granitas and polished off the funnel cake, we debated on our next move. Our kids had never seen the American Adventure, which I thought would be a good idea, but the rest of the family kept prodding with questions like, “Is it like, a ride?” and “Are there special effects?” (all of which should have told me this would likely damage my wavering ratings on the Mom-o-meter). I informed them that no, there were no speciall effects - this wasn't "Independence Day - The Ride". Ben Franklin wasn't going to get struck with lightning, Neil Armstrong wasn't going to personally fly them to the moon, nor would Henry Ford zip them around a test track, and while it was good to “have fun”, they owed it to not me – but themselves – to learn about and appreciate the history of their own homeland. I probably was a bit heavy handed on this, because by now, I was getting a bit testy, realizing YET AGAIN we might not fit the World Showcase players into the lineup. So while I would like to think it was their sense of patriotism that sent them through the doors towards the American Adventure, it was more likely that "Mom's On Edge" tone in my voice. So we took our seats for this all-important history lesson, and while I would like to say that at the end of the show I was vindicated yet again, I honestly can’t.

Because I was asleep. :catchingz

Oh the shame! :bagovermy I came to a jolt just as it was ending, and thankfully, must not have snored because my family seemed none the wiser that Mom had totally checked out of the building, mentally. Or again, maybe it was that edginess I had that made them simply “look the other way”. Or maybe - just maybe - they had all slept through it, too? Perish the thought! :scary: In any case, we proceeded from there over to France in hopes of catching the “crazy waiter performance”. For some reason – even though it was the right day and time – we found ourselves waiting for the waiter. We browsed around a bit, until finally DH looked at my watch and said, “Let’s just head to UK or you are going to miss the Players.” Off to UK we headed, but this too seemed to be running a tad late. I was inside the little shop admiring pewter jewelry when suddenly Caroline came in, “Mom – Dad said to tell you c’mon – the show is on!” I raced outside and took my spot on the curb between Ryan and Evan. As great luck would have it, this episode would be The Quest for the Holy Grail. My kids have some knowledge of King Arthur (both the history book version and the Python version) so the story wasn’t wholly unfamiliar, and per usual – it was VERY funny. DS13 has a lovely dry sense of humor, so while many of the wit-bits and sarcasm were perhaps over the head of my dd (and thankfully so, in some cases!), DS13 had great appreciation for them. The finest moment, however, came when they ceremoniously plopped the Sir Gallahad vest on none other than DH! We especially enjoyed his little “dance of joy” which I think he had to perform at least 4 times in the play – why, 18 yrs of marriage and who knew the guy could still move like that, LOL! After the show they gave him a pin that proudly proclaims him as having been part of the cast that day. So I guess now I have my very OWN World Showcase player at home! By this time, it was nearing 5 pm, and our ressies for Le Cellier were at 7 pm. Perhaps still feeling the effects of his royal grace or perhaps just being the nice guy I married, DH then springs forth with a positively princely idea – “Honey, why don’t you go shop and browse and do what you enjoy, and I’ll take the kids into Future World for a few rides? We can meet back at Canada at 7 pm.”

Is it any wonder I LOVE this man?!?!? :lovestruc

And so we bid each other farewell at the juncture where the 2 worlds “collide” and DH headed our gang “back to the future” while I headed off to Mexico. Oh what a lovely time I had – I sipped a margarita, strolled through the stores, did some shopping, admired carvings in the Outpost, struck up a conversation with the Vacation Club CMs (who of course saw my shirt and “Welcomed” me home). I sniffed perfumes in Italy, looked at glass, chocolate, and bears in Germany, just basically worked my way around the world! Back at Canada, I easily spotted my gang as they were excitedly looking for the Hidden Mickeys. We were seated immediately at Le Cellier and our dinner there was wonderful. They had changed the menu somewhat since our last visit, but they were very accommodating about making changes (such as leaving mushroom sauce off the filet and subbing mashed potatoes for the risotto for DS13) . Everyone had steak EXCEPT me. I dared to be different by getting the blackened pork with noodles and peanut sauce. To me it seemed more “Thai” than “Canuck” but no matter the origin, it was VERY tasty and I swear I would have licked the bowl had either the margarita been stronger or the restaurant less crowded. I also had the cheese soup, which is a must for me. One strange thing happened there, however, that still doesn’t seem right to us. On the kids’ menu, dd chose to order the kids’ steak (which per usual imparts an extra fee on the meal) We were ok with the extra fee – but when dd ordered her meal, they told her that she wasn’t allowed to order the soup or salad – this didn’t seem right to us. It wasn’t written anywhere on the menu that with the steak meal, you don’t get the precursor. We were not on the dining plan, either – she was just ordering the kids’ meal. Had she ordered any other entrée, she would have received the appetizer. The sad part of this is that given the choice, she would have rather had carrot sticks or salad or soup (whatever) than dessert, since we had already made plans to hit the French pastry shop on our way out. We didn’t dwell on this matter too long or let it dampen our meal, and DH gave her some of his salad, so it worked out, but it still struck us as odd, even now.:headscrat

Dinner took longer than we expected, and by the time we got out, the fireworks were beginning and the pastry shop was – gasp – already closed. This brought forth a sigh of disgust from DS13, who proclaimed, “Had I only known – I could have had the Chocolate Moose!!” You just don’t mess with a teen and his dessert. We paused to watch the sky show and then headed back to the villa. Again – gotta love that easy access back to the room after a long day going “around the worlds” and back! It was nice knowing we would have an easy, fairly unscheduled “tomorrow” so we decided to enjoy a bit more of today with a late night swim. We donned our suits and took a dip over at SAB. I really longed for a soak in a hot tub, but SAB’s tubs seemed to be constantly filled with large groups that night. On our way back to our room, I thought – aha – I can use the one at the Villas! But surprisingly – it too was quite busy! Dd and I sort of “waited around” the villas pool until finally we could seize an opportunity. Afterwards, we made the short walk to the room, cleaned up for a nice snooze, and hit the hay. Turn off the alarm, people – let’s sleep in. And so, with visions of a rather familiar Sir Gallahad doing his now-famous "Dance of Joy" in our heads, our quest for rest was met.

[newjerseynick]

Originally posted by goperit:
in all cases our last name was misspelled

Geez, how hard is it to spell Gopher?!
Great trip reports, keep them coming!

Nick

[withdisneyspirit]

Wow - you're geographically right on target. Living in Beaumont, working in Orange (which is about 20 miles or so from Lake Charles). So we will be "totally Texas" in our home and jobs, but very close to Louisiana. In fact - cajun food is very prevalent through the area, definitely a feature for my gumbo-loving dd and DH!



My DH will be jealous of the cajun food for sure; he loves it all! :drool:

Ok, I am off to read the missing day now! :sunny:

Now, I read it and I love that pixie dust for Soarin'!!!!!!!!

[disneyfreak89]

:clappingh LOVED your Epcot day!

[Eric]

FRIDAY – EPCOT DAY -THE FORGOTTEN CHAPTER!!!

Astute readers know, of course, that Beverly is not only nastola

Understatement of the year.

However, Kim and I have discovered a new Disney attraction.... you can stand around and watch the next group after you drink the Beverly. It's better than any stand-up act anywhere else in the parks.

[AFMom]

Wonderful!
Glad to get to read Friday - and so glad you got your Players!

As for Soarin' - we - to - like a specific spot - but ours is middle row, middle column. SO we now ask the loading CM - and tell him we'll wait for the next ride so that we won't slow anyone down! Works great!

[7swans]

What a fantastic Epcot day you had! Soarin, Shopping, & Sir Galahad! :sunny:

The last time we watched the World Showcase Players I was so hoping the players would seize my DH (And not me BTW!), but it was not to be. He had been made to worship Babylonia at the Adventurers Club the trip before, I will have to content myself with those memories for now!

Too funny about your American Adventure nap! Good thing they didn't have to wake you up!

[Tink22]

Maybe this should be on the confessions page, but I napped in the American Adventure too! I think it is because it is dark and cool in there and it is condusive to sleep. Did you see the singers before the show? (I think they are called the Voices of America.) They were excellent!

[gopherit]

Here's a couple of photos to pass the time until I manage to post again...

The Surry Bike Gang (it's like "Crazy Taxi" meets "Tour de France"...)
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v218/ck26181/P1020211.jpg


Here's our trio of Gopher pups, bidding all you mouseowners a warm greeting!
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v218/ck26181/P1020199.jpg

[gopherit]

And a few more images to share...

Behold, Native Americans beseech you to come dine with them at Whispering Canyon Cafe. Pictured here are the smiling faces of "Running CheeseHead", "Bear-Back Brave", and "Dances with Maize" (though you may call it "corn"....)
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v218/ck26181/P1020025-1.jpg


And here's something you won't see too often (because I'm usually BEHIND the camera, not in front...) It's The Whole Gopher Gang!
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v218/ck26181/P1020016-1-1.jpg

[newjerseynick]

You have a beautiful family, gopherit.

Nick

[cheyenne]

Loving your trip report & you have a beautiful family. Had to laugh at the caption on your last photo. I'm never in any pics either for the same reason. Glad I'm not the only one.

[withdisneyspirit]

You have a beautiful family, gopherit.

Nick

I agree! :goodvibes:blueflowe

[7swans]

Wonderful pictures!
What a lovely family you have.

I feel compelled after reading your children's Indian names to share my BIL's Indian name for my sister, he calls her "Squawking Beaver".:laughing:

[B'rer Karen]

Ooh, thanks for the pics. It's great to see all of you. I think you need to update your siggy because your kids look so different now. Great looking family!

[glypnirsgirl]

Great Trip Report!!! I think that your writing is quite compelling.

I cannot go into any of the quiet, dark places without falling asleep! I have slept through American Adventure, Hall of Presidents, even Co8ntry Bear Jamboree!

What a bunch of beautiful people errr rodents!

Elaine

[Kizzes424]

I've throughly enjoyed reading your trip reports each day. Thanks for the pics too. What a nice family! I think your story regarding the surrey bike ride was the best. My mom mentioned doing something like that for our family trip in May, and I shared your story about the "bike race" around BC. We had a good laugh.:goodvibes Thanks again!!!!

[disneyfreak89]

:clappingh Thanks for posting those pics! They were AWESOME!!

I think you need to update your siggy because your kids look so different now. Great looking family!

I have to admit when I saw the first picture I too was like BOY your kids have sure GROWN! haha :D

[gopherit]

Thanks, folks... and since you're so nice...Here's Sunday, Day 8 of our trip!

DISNEY QUEST

As I have mentioned before, this was not exactly an event I relished. My boys, on the other hand, were besides themselves with pure glee, the kind that can only be induced in boys their age via some sort of video game-based interface. Our dd was excited too - though she wasn't wholly sure WHY, other than the static charge off of her brothers' electronic enthusiasm. It would be the 3rd pilgrimage for the guys in our family, whereas dd and I were total DQ "newbies". Normally we take a day to do the "girly stuff" - visit the princesses, have tea, and basically do all those things that make a young lad gag. :yuck: But alas - my dd elected this year to forego such plans and wanted instead to see what she was missing over on the Y-chromosome side of the World. And since I'm an all-for-one sort of Gopher (who had already been given such a lovely shopping reprieve during the EPCOT day), I tagged along for the ride.

So we arrived at the big DQ establishment a few minutes early, and once they let us in the doors, my seasoned veteran sons led us swiftly to Aladdin's carpets. The young CM takes a head gear and crams it on my possibly-one-size-bigger-than-he-realized noggin' while my kids holler hasty instructions at me. According to my DQ tour guides, I was supposed to "find coins, and the beetle, and keep up, don't fall behind, make sure you get to the Genie, and MOM - please DON'T fall behind!" Or fall on my behind, either.. Whatever. :veryconfu Umm, yeah, sure kids. You get the beetle and save Agrabar - I'm going to work on getting this virtual headtorture device to stop crushing the bridge of my glasses into my sinus passages. And hey, tell me, what's the point of collecting the coins when everyone we meet steals them back? Seems like a rip off to me, but what do I know - I'm still trying to extract the nosepads of my glasses from my cerebral cortex. Oye vey... it's gonna be a long day! :scary:

From this point forward, the day was a blur. Being in DQ is like being in Vegas - no windows, no clocks, it was like being stuck in a video arcade during a time warp. A few of the highlights, however - Pirates of the Carribean gets my vote of approval. Very entertaining, the headgear wasn't QUITE as obnoxious as the carpet ride, and all 5 of us could participate together. I also rather enjoyed the skeeball games (as did dd, who must have played 200+ times, and would still be there right now if the genie in the carpet ride really COULD grant wishes). I would have enjoyed the river raft ride... but I am convinced that the sensors don't work too well, which frustrated me. I rowed my old-lady-arms off, thank you very much. I think perhaps that was one of my problems in this place - I deal with computers all the time at work, all that science geeky equipment - so it's not always my idea of a good time on vacation, LOL, to submerge myself in Technoville. And then expect all the "techno" to WORK the way I think it should. Kind of like asking the mailman to watch your dog for you... and tying a steak to the mailman's neck, too. Not my idea of relaxation, and I realized this about the time I was ready to shout expletives at Ms. PacMan for not moving her little yellow butt FASTER. :rant:

So after several hours of everything from Daytona 500 to 50 frustrating rounds of DigDug, from being the celebrated comic book hero to a "honey I blew up the tank and we just got eaten by a 50 foot spider" zero ; from air hockey and flying pucks to hockey where you waddle frantically to and fro like a psycho duck... through it all, I persevered! Around 6 pm I made the gang come up for air and pizza in the dining area. After graciously gulping down their food, they were instantly recharged and ready to go... well, all but me, I guess. My team spirit was waning. I took dd for another 20 rounds of skee ball, then watched as ds11 did the Buzz ride again and ds13 did the NASCAR racing over...and over...and over again. One of the things I found vexing about the place was the ease with which you could lose someone here. This happened more than once. Now, this never really gets to DH (or if it does - it never shows), but someone as obsessive about such things as me - well, it definitely takes me to a place where I am several tacos short of a combo platter. I got my excercise, that was for sure, hustling upstairs, downstairs, upstairs, downstairs - keeping tabs on kids. We had radios and cellphones - but funny thing about those - you have to ANSWER THEM (heck, turn them on, even!) for any chance of success. This was a detail that continued to elude them (and hence, frustrate teh crap outta me). They had a valid point, however - off or on, it mattered not - because they couldn't hear them over the beep beep whirr whirr and people-chatter noises.

In Disney Quest... no one can hear you scream. :holymoly:

I admit that I even tried to bribe my kids outta there with Haagen-Daz ice cream, but they were adamant - they wanted to stay as long as humanly (or gopherly) possible. They were made of stronger stuff than I. Finally, at around 9:45 pm, I told DH I had reached my virtual saturation point, and since the kids still seemed like they had energy to spare, would it be ok if I just headed back via bus? He gave me the reprive and so off I went. I took a VERY long route - frankly, I just neededto get outside, breathe fresh air, live life outside Caesar's Palace-meets-Circuit City! I strolled through the area and headed towards DTD Marketplace. I stopped to buy an ice cream cone, and then again at Basin to buy some cool soaps as gifts to take home. I convinced myself these were all very good purchases because, after all, I used my DVC member discount. What is it about that - is it because such discounts are increasingly fewer and less "perky" than they used to be? Sometimes I think they could convince us DVCers to buy duck poo if we could use our cards and get it "cheaper" than the average John Q. Touron. "Look honey! Only $255! That's a good 5% less than REGULARLY priced duck poo!"

By the time I caught the BCV bus, I wondered if the gang would actually beat me to the villa. However, since I could still see our van in the parking lot as we drove past DQ, I knew I had somewhat of a headstart on them, provided our pitstops at the other resorts didn't take too long. There was a long pause at the Swan where a bunch of people boarded and then cajoled and pleaded with the bus driver to wait for "just ONNNNNE more person." But the bus driver would have none of that nonsense. The person was walking up and WHISKKKKK - our doors shut and we were on our way. I gotta say, normally, I'm all for keeping herds together, but in this case, the crowd was rude, and so was the dude. Ditch 'em, sez I, and somebody buy the bus driver a cup of joe - you can use my DVC card for the token discount. :yes:

So I got back to the villa and stopped by the BCV store to pick up my packages form my EPCOT shopping excursions. I also picked up a BCV print and some other small items, though frankly, there is less and less stuff that I seem to want at Disney, which is sad, because on vacation, a gopher and her money are known to part fairly readily. Even a discount wouldn't have prompted me to spend much in there, however - just the same ol', same ol'. Sighhhhh.... how I long for the days when Disney had unique, quality merchandise. :sosad:

I got back to the villa and had time to quickly put some things into order, get some laundry going, and pack up a bit before the herd arrived. They were all still quite revved up from their DQ experience, which made me feel better just by listening to them. If the pups are happy - that makes this Mom's suffering worthwhile! Once I got them all suitably "downloaded", and they parked their hard drive heads on a pillow, that's when I got techno and pulled out the ol' computer. Ugh - wsn't looking forward to it, but I knew I needed to check in with the office. I had been a very good Mom in keeping the promise I made to my kids - no working at night, family FIRST! But I needed this one catch-up run, and had warned the family - Sunday night, I gotta check in.

It wasn't pretty.

To make matters worse, the BCV network kept booting me offline every 10 minutes or so, which was a regal pain. I FINALLY finished my most urgent catch-up work at the lovely hour of 4:30 am, whereupon I crawled into bed next to a snoozing DH. Tomorrow we would be checking out of our lovely BCV villa and heading over to Portofino Bay Hotel (yes, that's over in Universal Studios territory... aka the Dark Side!) Even knowing we still had 5 more nights of vacation ahead, I had that achy gnawing feeling that I always get the night before I leave "home". That, "Do I hafta?" feeling. Disney had been nice, and I'm sure US would be nice too, in its own way. I think the weight of our upcoming "bombshell" news for our family was also starting to weigh on me as well. How would they react? So as tired as I was, and as late as the hour had become, I can't say I slept deeply... if even at all. I hoped that tomorrow, in a new hotel, with a new agenda and sights to see, I could regain my viva la vacation attitude. But for now... I just wanted to wallow a bit in my remorse for the days that had already passed, and far too quickly at that.:tearsaref

[nono]

Excellent cliffhanger! :slyasafox

[withdisneyspirit]

Oh my goodness! I would have run screaming from the place after 4 or 5 hours at least :hammer: maybe 2 or 3 even...

[BJFOSS]

please ...please... keep the trip reports coming...even if it is from the dark side.....i have always thought that the people that work at universal are disney rejects. ha ha....they just aren't as happy as our own cm's.

[pollymn]

Thanks for the update Gopher. Keep them coming:corn:

[cheyenne]

UGHHH Disney Quest!!! :blech: :headbange We went there for the 1st time in March. I hated it!!! You're right about no one can hear you scream in there. It's too loud & too dark. I couldn't get out of there fast enough. Of course it didn't help that we were starving & there was not a single thing my poor Celiac DS could eat. Very disappointing that all of DW has gluten-free offerings but not a one at DQ. :sosad:

Can't wait for the next installment. We've never been to the dark side! :laughing:

[disneyfreak89]

Glad to hear you survived DQ! :scary: We've never gone, have no interest to.

Looking forward to your 'dark side' report. We've never gone there either....and likely never will. :tilt:

[gopherit]

It was a dark and stormy night... I mean, "side"... as in the "Dark Side"...better known as Universal Studios.

Fear not, all ye Disnophiles - this is not a place to be feared, but embraced. My kids will attest that putting Universal in a Disney trip is like putting icing on a cake. We think the two are too different to be considered competition for each other ...more like complimentary. Like chocolate in your peanut butter. Or peanut butter in your chocolate. You get the idea. :goodvibes:

And so it was that morning that we were both sad to leave BCV and Disney, but also excited for our next destination. We packed up the villa, bid it farewell, and DH took the kids down to SAB for a final "swirl" in the whirling waters of SAB. I went none too quickly to the check-out desk. I was moving pretty slow this morning thanks to the night before. I had an unfortunate "need" to get on my computer and connect with my workplace. I had been a good girl and kept my promise thus far to the kids - no work on vacation! No work, that is, except for sometime around Sunday, when I needed to send out a few messages and check my inbox for anything urgent. Well, after a week on the road (and recalling that I'm now technically assigned to 2 jobs - the "old" and the "new") - well, it was NOT pretty. :scary: Furthermore, the BCV server kept booting me out, which was VERY maddening, to say the least. :mad: In short, my sleep that night was, well, short. I think I powered down both the computer and myself at 5 am, only to be awakened at 7 am. Ughh. Definitely movin' slow at the junction today. Nonetheless, I needed to go to the desk because I had about $100 on a Disney rewards card that we wanted to apply to our bill. The front desk staff were very swift and kind, and upon inquiring as to our next destination, actually said some lovely things about their "cross town rivals (but again, I reiterate - not rivals - complementaries.... Everybody say it with me... complementaries. See how easy that is? :yes: )

So after I get our bill squared away, I find DH at the pool. While the kids were swimming and I was chatting with DH, right in front of us come 4 baby ducks, followed by the mother duck. Well, the mother duck stops right in front of me, and starts quacking, quacking, quacking. I look at her and say, "Hey, I've got no bread. Your quacking up the wrong chair here, sister." But she still stands, no more than 6" from my foot, looking at me, quacking at the top of her lungs. Finally, we see why - tumbling out from the shrubbery from whence they came comes Duckling #5, racing to catch up. DH and I laughed about this, musing, "There's always that ONE kid that makes you fret and holler..." Even in Duckworld. Well, the ducks started making their way across the pavement, with Mother Duck bringing up the rear, still fussing, and they were just about out of my range of sight and sound when suddenly - kerplunk - out tumbles one last duckling, peep-peep-peeping in a panic for all he's worth. The mother can't hear him - he's too far away. The duckling can't see her - she's too far away. Lifeguards had already told us - we aren't allowed to pick up the ducks, so an airlift rescue was out of the question. Seeing what had happened, my empathetic dd came over to help me "herd" the "Lost Boy" towards his mother, but that wasn't working. (FYI: In case you're wondering how we knew it was a male - that was easy. He was lost yet never asked for directions.) ANYWAY - Ds12 finally decided, if you can't bring the duckling to Mamma, bring Mamma to the duckling. With team effort, DS, dd and I ever-so gently used a three-point canvassing of the area to guide the two groups back together. DS12 and I managed to get Mom and the gang into the pool, such that when dd also got the duckling to the pool's edge, you should have SEEN the gusto with which that little duck leapt into the water and swam for a joyous reunion. You could almost hear "Chariots of Fire" playing ..... sniff sniff... so touching and satisfying to see the family back together! Just call us the Duck Whisperers...


ANYWAY... it was now after noon. Fingers were pruny and bellies were rumbling, so the kids put on some dry duds and we headed out of Disney, pit-stopping at Uno's Pizzaria for lunch. No particular reason to dine here except for the fact I had a $25 gift card that had been gathering dust in my wallet ever since our nearest Uno's closed last year. It was quite good, though - so you are ever inclined, keep it in mind (it's right over there in Cross Roads, near Goodings). After lunch, we headed to our new home for the next 4 nights: Portofino Bay Hotel, on-site Loews hotel at Universal Studios. :drive:

[Colorado Belle]

Awwwww...baby duckie finds mama and sibs due to heroic effort of rodent family!

[gopherit]

While still much better versed in all that is Disney, we are at least no longer Universal "newbies". We owe that to our first on-site stay and visit to Universal Studios nearly 2 years ago. We waited until we felt our kids would be big enough to ride most of the rides and AND they were old enough to read the billboards and magazine ads and and say, "HEY! What's this Universal Orlando place and how come we have NEVER been there?!?" As we tend to summarize it, Universal is more intensity than WDW, but less theming. For the thrill-seeker, my DS12 would tell you - "Universal ROCKS." It sho' ain't EPCOT... but then, what else ever could be? We come to Universal for a different sort of experience. And... let's face it... because the tix are CHEAP. I still had a few months left on my AP, and the rest of the gang cashed in on the 7 days-for-$80 deal. As for hotels... we have only ever stayed at Hard Rock Hotel, and while we love their generously-sized Deluxe rooms and fantastic location, we are NOT fans of their decor. Gophers just aren't "Rock On, DUDE!" mod-sorts of rodents. My eldest son in fact was greatly disturbed to wake up to the pensive stares of the sweaty, drugged-out rock legends in the photos that graced the walls there. He was so bothered by it, in fact, that he hung his boxer shorts over all the picture frames. (Not used ones, mind you - just the clean undies. Otherwise, that would be tacky.) On our last visit, we had pool-hopped over to Portofino Bay one day and decided the Italian theme was a little more in our style and likely less conducive to another Boxer Rebellion, so that was our obvious choice for this trip.

DESTINATION: Portofino Bay Hotel
We pulled into the resort drive and DH's Anti-Valet kicked into overdrive. Sigh... :rolleyes: When DH parked behind some shrubbery, I leapt out of the van. "Good,", thought DH, "You go check in and bring us back a cart!" Ummm, Reality Check, Honey: I am jumping out because I don't want anyone to realize I KNOW YOU...

Check-in went fairly quick except for the fact that for the 3rd time I had to remind them that we were a party of 5 and needed a room with a sleeper sofa. (These are standard in a Deluxe at Hard Rock... maybe waking up to Jimi and Van wasn't SO bad after all, even with Fruits of the Loom on their faces...:headscrat.) Our room was ready, so I called DH from his shrubbery lair and forced him to proceed to the main entry. He did so (begrudgingly) while I explained to him that our room would be quite a distance away, and no we would NOT be schlepping them ourselves. DH gave me some cash for a tip (which I then secretly subsidized to a reasonable amount, per usual ;) ) DH then took the car to the parking garage which further made him wince in pain (why they have to charge $14 bucks per night beats me - THAT fee is ri