Way Out Here, Eh? - A June 2019 TR *PTR Link Posted

So lucky, AKL is the best!

There's nothing else quite like AKL! And it'll probably be the closest I ever get to sleeping next to a savannah. :rotfl:


I laughed when your mum was asking you all the questions as she sounds just like me :rotfl: She knew you needed some time away and if anything was worrying her about Evie I'm sure she'd have said so. Granny's worry just as much as mums when it comes to grandkids :)
Great photo of the welcome arch especially since you needed Alex's prompt:thumbsup2
Love the bumper sticker-did you buy it?
I've never stayed at AKL but I'm looking forward to seeing around through your eyes. Hoping your room had a great view of the savannah :)
Love George Ezra's music btw :goodvibes

I really enjoy George Ezra's music! Alex had to look up what "mountaintop" Shotgun was referring to, just to see if it was someplace he wanted to check out for himself. :laughing:

My mom is always trying to remind me that she loves my kids and cares about their well-being as much as I do. And if anything, Evie was going to get more pampering with my mom than with me. "You need five more minutes of screen time? Sure....You want me to open that wrapper for you? No problem." :rolleyes2:laughing:



Nathan and I purchased "Childless Millenials" t-shirts for our upcoming trip. It's nice that some Etsy shops/small businesses have been reaping the profits of that lady's crazy meltdown!

Haha, I can't wait to see the pictures of you guys sporting them in the parks!
I tell people all the time, I'd rather go to Disney without the kids! So much more fun and less stressful. :rotfl: And they wouldn't know about WDW if it hadn't been for Alex and I taking many, many childless trips before they came around.


What a start! I could feel your pain leaving your daughter but I'm glad you were able to tear yourself away. With all your life craziness, how great you could spend 2 days with your DH at your happy place. We've visited AKL but never stayed there. Looking forward to hearing about your time there!

Getting a few days with Alex was necessary but definitely hard knowing Evie was sick. I think had it been Landon who was sick things would have been a bit harder. He doesn't handle colds well; very whiny and mopey. But Evie just troops on.
 
Oh, I love Animal Kingdom Lodge, too! I stayed there in 2012 and LOVED the resort. I loved the lobby, I loved the animals, I loved the restaurants, I loved the pool... I hope to stay there again sometime!

Everything about AKL is so nice. It really feels like a seperate experience from the Walt Disney World parks! And it's probably the only time in my life where I can stay that close to a savannah (and still have the comforts of A/C, food courts, and hot showers.)


Poor Evie! Too funny though that she was like Mom I'm fine, let me play! lol Definitely a good call on getting her all situated with medicine before heading out though, I'm sure that alleviated a lot of the stress and worry for you guys!

If Landon were the one that was sick, he would have been hanging off me, moping incessantly. He's the shining example of a "man cold." But Evie never lets it get her down! I'm still so used to Landon needing blankets and cuddles and a sympathetic ear, that I always forget Evie just rolls with the inconveniences.



How stressful for Evie to wake up sick when you're supposed to be leaving! I'm glad you went (even if your mom had to push you out of the house) because us moms need breaks!

I felt bad leaving my mom to deal with a sick Evie, but I definitely played the whole thing up in my head. My mom didn't mind, Evie didn't mind....I was overreacting. :rotfl:



Ugh, so sorry that Evie got sick right at the beginning of your trip. A few years ago, we had plans whereby each of the sets of grandparents would take one of the girls (my parents are separated, thus 3 sets of grands) and Hubby and I would have 48 kid free hours. The day they were going to come get them, C started vomiting. I sat there crying on the playroom floor because I desperately needed the weekend off but didn't want to be the bad mom who sent her sick kid to the grandparents. Eventually, everyone talked me into keeping things as scheduled (It's not like we haven't taken care of sick kids before. We're only a few minutes away if it gets any worse. She'll appreciate the one-on-one attention) but it was a really tough choice. I hope you were able to put it out of your mind once you were properly in the Disney bubble.

Oh no!!!! You must have been devastated. Of course, a kid starts getting sick the same day you had some solo time planned. It's like Murphy's Law. And I can't imagine how hard it must have been to coordinate three sets of grandparents to be able to take the girls the same weekend.
I'm glad they still took C and you were able to get the break! You feel guilty at the time but afterwards you're so rejuvenated from the break you realize a little mom guilt is worth the recharge that comes from time away!




Plus, Shotgun isn't particularly popular in the states, but I love George Ezra. Fun life story: the crowd portions of this video were filmed at a concert I attended in Philly, so theoretically Hubby and I are two of the blurred people to the right when he's singing on stage.

That's so awesome!
And I can't believe George Ezra isn't super popular in the states; his music is played on the radios all the time over here!
 
Oh boy your travel adventures did not sound fun! I'm so sorry Alex got sick on the flight :( But after a long day- you made it!

That is way too cool that you spotted Kristy at CFA of all places!

Oh no I'm sorry Evie got sick before your left :(

But yay you made it on property!

Running into Kristy was such a cool moment! I couldn't believe the random luck that went into that happening!



Ha! I love. I am glad you went! I know you were saying the last couple times you tried to get away, something happened.

You're right, our previous plans kept get thwarted! And now that I've actually left them once, I'm already ready to do it again. :rotfl:
"You want to come visit? Sure, I'll leave the kids with Alex and we'll go spend the weekend in London......You want to tag along with me for this race, I'm sure my mom will watch the kids while we go run it." :rotfl2:



The barking cough, I remember well! Both my kids would always get this with colds and had to be on steroids. It is hard to leave, I’m glad your mom convinced you to go!

AKL is such a beautiful resort, I also feel calm and at peace there! The balcony is my favorite spot at this resort, especially with a savanna view!

Isn't that barking cough terrible? Evie got it for the first time when she was about 1.5 and Alex was deployed. I took her in and got her set up with a steroid shot. And then the first weekend Alex returned from his deployment, she got it again.
I was actually out of the house, enjoying some kid-free time for the first time in ages, when he called me on the phone in a panic because the sound was terrifying him. I couldn't blame him; if you don't know what it is, that big scary noise coming out of a little body can be quite the shock.

A lot of the Disney resorts balcony views are amazing, but nothing compares to AKL's view. :goodvibes


I hard to see your kids growing up and not always needing you. She was telling you to go too in her own way.

That is very true. Before I had kids, I used to roll my eyes when my mom would remind to bring a jacket somewhere or stay alert in a city. Now I totally get it and let her say what she needs to. I can't see myself ever stopping "mothering" my kiddos.
 
Evie was going to get more pampering with my mom than with me. "You need five more minutes of screen time? Sure....You want me to open that wrapper for you? No problem." :rolleyes2
I look after my wee grandson while his parents are at work and even though he’s only started talking I’m always telling him “ what happens at Granny’s stays at Granny’s”:rotfl:
 


I think had it been Landon who was sick things would have been a bit harder. He doesn't handle colds well; very whiny and mopey. But Evie just troops on.

This is the perfect example of the difference between males and females when they get sick.

That is very true. Before I had kids, I used to roll my eyes when my mom would remind to bring a jacket somewhere or stay alert in a city. Now I totally get it and let her say what she needs to. I can't see myself ever stopping "mothering" my kiddos.

:thumbsup2
 
Yes, indeed. Alex and I were headed down to Orlando to bask in our childless millennial inner selves.

Bring on the pretzels…
I love it! :rotfl2:
When I got back inside, my mom was awake and told me she overheard Evie coughing. At some point earlier in the week, she had gotten my cold.

Evie with a cold is never a good thing.

She only catches one about once a year, but whenever she does it always turns into croup.


I listened by her bedroom door for a few minutes and sure enough, I heard the telltale barking cough.
Oh no... the timing couldn't be worse.
She’s going to hate me!

I’m a selfish mother!

What kind of evil person picks Disney over their child?!
I definitely feel your struggle. But I'm glad that Evie was feeling pretty independent after her treatment and your mom was so willing to step up and encourage you to just go.
After watching the two kids play for almost half an hour, my mom turned to Alex and said, “Get her out of here before she makes me go crazy.”

Love you too, Mom.
:rotfl2::rotfl::lmao:
Places stay the same, it’s the people that change…
I feel you on the nostalgia trip. I get that every time I'm back on or near campus. But as for the places staying the same... hard to recognize some of it anymore!
It had been so long since I was at Disney that I was out of practice!

Photos, Alicia.

Photos of everything!
Photos are overrated. Memories. It's about the memories.

At least that's my excuse. :rolleyes1
“I want that sticker, Alex!”

“Sure. Now how about you take a picture of our hotel before I drive past and you get mad that you missed it?”

“You know me so well.”

“Seven years of marriage will do that.”
7 years of marriage, AND a move to a different continent. If you don't know what the other's thinking by now, you'll never get it!
 


Photos are overrated. Memories. It's about the memories.

At least that's my excuse.

I do find that as I get older I'm more reluctant to remember to pull the phone out and take a picture. So I think you have the right idea there...


7 years of marriage, AND a move to a different continent. If you don't know what the other's thinking by now, you'll never get it!

:rotfl2: A couple moves and some kids will do that to ya.
 
Well you guys. Evie’s frown face got such a reaction on my introductory post that I thought I should share this with you all:
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Her glare isn’t reserved just for Disney; she breaks it out in front of the British Museum in London, as well. So much for a fun Saturday outing.



Besides Evie enduring her brother’s enjoyment through the museum, all of us were able to meet up with another DISer, @cindianne320 , for lunch at Shake Shack! I am really starting to love having these DISmeets outside the parks. If any of you guys ever make a trip over to London and want to say hello, please let me know!


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All right, on to a quick update this weekend!




June 1st, 2019 Part 2:

When we entered the lobby of Animal Kingdom Lodge, I was swept away by the grandeur and intimate beauty of the lobby. It was a stunning sight.

I soaked it up.

Me and about a thousand of my closest Walt Disney World friends.

:rolleyes2

The woodwork, rugs, glass displays might have been stunning, but it was hard to stop and soak up the magic when there were people, suitcases, and strollers everywhere you looked. Dinnertime at Jambo house is a hopping place, apparently!


I didn’t bother taking any pictures, probably because I was trying to mentally photoshoot the people out of my view, and instead Alex and I went and checked in at the front desk. The process was quick and painless, and we were gifted a savannah view room.

It was on the right hand side of the resort, which was a new location for me.

426784



I’m always antsy to get to my room when I stay at AKL, because I want to see what animal is waiting for me outside, so I urged Alex away from the desk and towards the hallways.

We walked.

And walked.

And walked.

Every minute or so Alex would call out: “Way out here, eh?”

And thus began the theme (and title) of this trip. It was the first of many, many times we would joke about how far away everything seemed to be at Disney. The distance was fine for us, but had we been there with our kids for a week or more, it would have gotten real old, real quick.

Eventually, we reached our room and checked out our space.

Sink and counter spot bathed in a lovely orange/brown light:

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The room :

426787


Alex found a coffee pod in the machine while I was taking these photos and that definitely knocked the resort down a peg in his book. Mousekeeping really missed the spot on that one, which led to us doing an extra thorough clean down of the room. If the cleaners were rushing to turn the room over and missed the coffeepot, goodness knows what else they missed. :rolleyes1:sad2:



Reluctantly, I waited for the wipe down and unpacking to be done before I checked out my favorite part of the room.

The balcony:

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All right, the actual balcony is nothing special, but the view from that spot certainly is!

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Hello, beautiful…bongos???
:confused3

I’m not sure what they were, but they were out there hanging out in front of my room and for that I loved them.



Here’s a wider shot of my view:

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Off to the left, there was a fence with some more adorable critters staring forlornly at the – bongos (??) – from the other side:
426792


“Why are those guys in time out?”

“I don’t know, they must want them separated.”

“I wonder which set of animals got in trouble.”

“Why do you assume they’re in trouble?”

“I’m a mom, I’m always going to think someone couldn’t play nicely with the group.”

Alex gave me a hug. “Well, good news. For a few days you don’t have to be in Mom mode. You get to just be Alicia. On vacation with her husband.”


*A moment of silence.*


Oh my gosh.


You’re right.


I’m at Disney.


Without the kids!

:cheer2:

I’m back to my roots, baby!

Kid-free, the way our adventures started.



What were we waiting for?! Let’s leave the room and go have some fun, stay out past bedtime!

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Up Next…We’re Allowed to Sit at the Bar
 
I'm glad to see Evie doesn't reserve her pout for Disney. :-)

What a great view! How nice to be upgraded.

It really is a culture shock when you suddenly get to drop the "Mom" for a few days. I hope you guys made the most if every bit of it.
 
It was so great to see you and Alex again, and meet Evie and Landon- without my kiddos! (We are even for Mom of the Year- though this time, all my kids stayed healthy! One time when Zach was gone and I had conferences, my mom had my kiddos and Acacia was up with the stomach flu all night- I tell you- Mom of the Year! LOL)

I'm sorry your room was so far away and not cleaned thoroughly, but you can't beat that view!
Can't wait to hear what you did your first night without Kiddos!
 
Well good to see Evie doesn’t keep her pout for Disney and shares it with London’s museums. At least she lost it when you met @cindianne320 ,emm or maybe not :rotfl: :rotfl::rotfl:
Your room looks great. Glad you caught on to the less than stellar housekeeping at the start so you were able to do a thorough check before you unpacked. It shouldn’t have happened but I’m glad everything else seems in order. Great view, I laughed when you assumed one group of animals wasn’t playing nice as that’s exactly the thought that I’d had. Must be a mum thing for sure:rotfl2:
Nice to know how you came about your trip report title. I’m betting you were very happy not to be doing that walk with the kids. Worth the walk for the view of animals :goodvibes
 
Her glare isn’t reserved just for Disney; she breaks it out in front of the British Museum in London, as well. So much for a fun Saturday outing.
:rotfl2: :lmao: :rotfl:
When we entered the lobby of Animal Kingdom Lodge, I was swept away by the grandeur and intimate beauty of the lobby. It was a stunning sight.

I soaked it up.

Me and about a thousand of my closest Walt Disney World friends.
Isn't that the truth? As lovely, and big, as the AKL Lobby is, it seems like it has always been just packed every time I've walked through it... and that includes the whole week we stayed there!
We walked.

And walked.

And walked.

Every minute or so Alex would call out: “Way out here, eh?”
When I saw the circle on the map my first thought was, "that's gonna be a long walk..." I'm glad you didn't have the kids in tow for that part of it!
Alex found a coffee pod in the machine while I was taking these photos and that definitely knocked the resort down a peg in his book. Mousekeeping really missed the spot on that one, which led to us doing an extra thorough clean down of the room. If the cleaners were rushing to turn the room over and missed the coffeepot, goodness knows what else they missed. :rolleyes1:sad2:
Oh no... definitely not a good sign.
What were we waiting for?! Let’s leave the room and go have some fun, stay out past bedtime!
But on the other side of the coin, "Hey, no kids! I can sleep without worrying about somebody waking me up! I'm going to bed!"
 
It's so magical to stand in the AKL lobby! It is often packed with people (although the middle of the afternoon sometimes allows some good mostly people-free shots), but it's so nice, anyway.

The AKL is much bigger than it appears! Despite the Mousekeeping oversight it looked like a lovely room.

It's so delightful to have kid-free time! I'm sure you made the best of it!
 
Hi Alicia! I've read so many of your reports and have loved watching your kids grow up. They are adorable! Joining into this one rather late...
 
There is so much to quote, and well, since I took most of the weekend doing other stuff and NOT catching up, I'm having to simply read and enjoy. BUT, it sounds like you had an uneventful travel day. And sometimes those are the BEST kinda of travel days.
 
AKL looks fabulous! Though, yuck about the coffee pod. I would love to do an adults only trip. Sigh.
 
Disney really needs to install ways to get out to those rooms without walking the long halls! lol Did you book Savanna view or were you upgraded??
 
Nice to see you're out and about in England! So much to see and explore! We're planning a trip to England when my DH retires in about a year. One area I want to see is the Cotswolds. That might not be your style and too slow for a family with kids. But, it looks so quaint.

Spending a couple days at AKL kid-less - what a treat for you! Looking forward to reading about your adventures!
 
I'm glad to see Evie doesn't reserve her pout for Disney. :-)

What a great view! How nice to be upgraded.

It really is a culture shock when you suddenly get to drop the "Mom" for a few days. I hope you guys made the most if every bit of it.

This was the first time I had ever taken a trip without the kids, and I really had to remember how to be me. :rotfl2: By the end, it was quite refreshing getting to remember that I was more than just a mom.


It was so great to see you and Alex again, and meet Evie and Landon- without my kiddos! (We are even for Mom of the Year- though this time, all my kids stayed healthy! One time when Zach was gone and I had conferences, my mom had my kiddos and Acacia was up with the stomach flu all night- I tell you- Mom of the Year! LOL)

I'm sorry your room was so far away and not cleaned thoroughly, but you can't beat that view!
Can't wait to hear what you did your first night without Kiddos!


Welcome back from your trip!
What did you think of DLP? I'd love to hear how your vacation went!

Oh no, don't you feel terrible when the grandparents have to deal with puking grandkids. When Alex was deployed and we were at my mom's house for Thanksgiving, he was kind enough to give it to both me and my poor mother. Kind of put a damper on the holiday. :laughing: You feel terrible suffering through it, but you feel even worse when your kid gives it to someone else.
 

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