We are back!!! And I am already thinking of next year. We were only going to plan for every 2-3 years but the kids had so much fun and we did not get to do everything so DH said he wants to go every year for the next few years while they are little.
We will have to get a bigger room or 2 adjoining next time though so we are going to look into DVC in the next 2-3 years after we pay off some debts.
SAM_0437 by
rideswithchrist, on Flickr
HIGHS:
*Turtle Talk! We did it twice, making sure we went back during a EMH so our kids could talk with him. DH was laughing harder than they were and my kids were saying "Tallahassee-e" all day.
*Also during EMH night- sneaking in the last 10 minutes for a Character meet, we got to hang out with each character and had WAY more interaction with them. We caught them goofing off with the handlers and such and it was so relaxed.
SAM_1315 by
rideswithchrist, on Flickr
SAM_1321 by
rideswithchrist, on Flickr
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rideswithchrist, on Flickr
*We found the place where we took a "couples selfie" (before that was a thing) and recreated the picture. Then we had the kids take a pic too so it would be our annual (or whatever) photo spot to watch them grow.
(which of course I can't find on my flickr feed because it was on a phone! )
*And we got to see A&E thanks to this board!!!
SAM_1111 by
rideswithchrist, on Flickr
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rideswithchrist, on Flickr
*We got to ride 7DMT on a FP which they all LOVED.
*My 4 year old rode TT 3 times because she liked it that much. My hubby was not impressed with it, after waiting 11 years to finally ride it.
*Dole Whip. - meh, it was OK but I am a real-food person so it was not amazing. Maybe if it was 100 degrees and sunny, but at 68 and drizzle, not so much.
*School Bread was amazing however, as was EVERYTHING sweet we ate in Norway. I was bummed there was no Krumkake though, which is about as traditional as it gets- I wanted to test it against my homemade version.
LOWS:
*The 4 YO hated Barnstormer LOL
SAM_0526 by
rideswithchrist, on Flickr
* We did have to do some solo riding because of being an odd numbered family
*I had to ride Space Mountain alone because DD7 HATED it and would not ride twice
*DS threw up on me as we boarded the bus to Epcot after lunch
*DD7 got sick with fever the last MK day so we missed some stuff
*I lost my ipad somewhere
* I missed Gaston
* you can no longer ride in the front of the monorail (DH was bummed for 3 days over this)
Things to prep for next time:
I needed more clothing for myself, or a washer/dryer break.
We needed more yogurt because the kids ate it for breakfast and again for dinner snack
A Costco pack of hummus cups is too much
Thank you Jesus for ponchos and umbrellas! It rained on us all day at AK Saturday, but I got to see an old friend that I have not seen since my wedding.
SAM_1347 by
rideswithchrist, on Flickr
ALL IN ALL- we are ready to return again and since we stayed under budget (somehow)- I have the deposit ready to go!
We stayed on budget pretty well, we figured out FP+ after the 3rd day (I didn't realize it was a 1 hour WINDOW, so we rushed around during our times and missed a parade.