NO CAPES! A Nov. 2014 TR ~ 12/31: Departure Day - TR Complete

[ursalita]

Hi Sarah! Nice updates. I love your pictures of your resort, so many fun details! Aww! I laughed at your observations about the tamarinds. Poor guys! I think they're cute but I can see where you're coming from.

I need to show your post to my boys so they can see all the cute things they have for sale at Disney. They want to spend all their Christmas money but I'd like to see them put some of it away towards Disney GCs to spend at the parks.

 

[SarahDisney]

Hi Sarah!!! I love the title, The Incredibles is one of my favorites

Hi Courtney!! Thanks for stopping by. I'm so happy so see a fellow Incredibles lover here!

Belle looks fabulous in her cape even though we know it's not very practical!

Agreed. If she has to violate the "no capes" rule, it's not a bad cape.

I'm not a big Boyz II Men fan but I like their voices so the concert sounds like it would be really fun!! I missed the Sing Off special this year and I'm so disappointed because Patrick Stump of Fall Out Boy was one of the judges this year and I LOVE him. I'll have to try and find it online or something!!

The concert was nice, but crowded.
I hope you can find the Sing Off online or something ... Patrick Stump was okay, but he's no Ben Folds. Although I think that because it was only one 2-hour episode the audience didn't really get a chance to get to know him.

I really like the charm you picked! I definitely want to check them out next time I'm at WDW.

Thanks! There were some really nice charms. I heard they're impossible to find, though ... apparently they're selling out a lot.

I'm cracking up at you guys getting the 1% milk because it has Mickey on it. TOTALLY something I would do.

Nice to know we're not the only ones who would do that! It really does make breakfast special, especially because we can't have the Mickey waffles, so we need some Mickey with our morning meal.

I'm so glad your meal at BOG was good! People hype up the West Wing but I think the ballroom is the best.

Agreed. The West Wing was nice, but I wouldn't want to eat there. I really loved the ballroom.

I'm sorry to hear about the real-life troubles I hope 2015 is much better for you!! "Dreams do come true, and maybe something wonderful will happen!" - Enchanted

Thanks. (And now I have to watch Enchanted again. I love that movie).

Yesssss so glad you got to see the Frozen Sing-A-Long! I love it. Especially Kristoff.

I really liked the Sing-A-Long. We have FP+ for it in February. And I love Kristoff, he's one of my favorite parts of the movie. I wish he was a M&G character (I hope he is at the Frozen/Princess weekend races).

Rock 'n' Roller Coaster is one of my favorites so I'm glad you got to ride it without a long wait! Such a great ride photo hahaha

I really enjoyed it (I figured I would), so I'm glad we got to do it with minimal wait. And that really is one of my favorite ride pictures.

I am a huge HIMYM fan so I LOVE that you came up with the fun facts!!! Picture me going "ooooooo" after you said 4 1/2 stories per week.

I really can't imagine what random people were thinking if they heard me say "four and a half stories per week" almost completely out of context.

I LOVE that AoA purse!!!

Thanks! It really is cute and I'm glad I got it.

Read through your updates this morning, no way I can comment on all of it, so I'll stick to a few things that stood out.

Hi Andy! Thanks for stopping by and reading through everything.

If your goal is to see princesses, you're sure got things off to a strong start!

We were very fortunate and got to see lots of princesses. I'm hoping we get to see even more on our next trip.

Your observations about your service at Mama Melrose... well, I was disappointed by our service there as well. And we didn't have any specific dietary needs.

Good to know that I'm not the only one who had disappointing service there. Oh well, it happens.

The lap bars on EE. I totally understand where you're coming from. But I hate lap bars for a different reason. I'm on the bigger side and they are knee bangers. I think that is the problem that Disney has to cater to everyone from the 42" kids to someone who is well over 6'.

See, that one makes more sense than mine. I get that they're uncomfortable when they bang or dig into you. I don't know why I only have problems on certain rides (and kids who are smaller than me don't have problems). I get that Disney has to make the lap bars work for all sizes (although I've heard that for some people certain rides don't work), but I wish they could do it in a way that didn't terrify or hurt anyone.

I may have had some difficulty trying to open the gate to the Cars pool too...

Glad to know I'm not the only one. That gate is complicated!

Hi Sarah! Nice updates. I love your pictures of your resort, so many fun details! Aww! I laughed at your observations about the tamarinds. Poor guys! I think they're cute but I can see where you're coming from.

Thanks! I love all the details at AoA. And I guess the tamarins are a little cute, they just weren't as cute as I expected.

I need to show your post to my boys so they can see all the cute things they have for sale at Disney. They want to spend all their Christmas money but I'd like to see them put some of it away towards Disney GCs to spend at the parks.

I'm sure they're going to find tons of stuff to buy at the parks - so make sure they save some of that money! I was trying to budget my spending on this trip, but if I wasn't budgeting, there would have been a lot more spending - there really is so much awesome stuff to buy!

 

[ursalita]

I'm sure they're going to find tons of stuff to buy at the parks - so make sure they save some of that money! I was trying to budget my spending on this trip, but if I wasn't budgeting, there would have been a lot more spending - there really is so much awesome stuff to buy!

I don't want to hijack your thread but I just had to say that I did show them your message (they love pins and stuff like magnets) and they agreed to put half of the $$ they got from their aunt toward a Disney GC. Big win for me!

 

[SarahDisney]

I don't want to hijack your thread but I just had to say that I did show them your message (they love pins and stuff like magnets) and they agreed to put half of the $$ they got from their aunt toward a Disney GC. Big win for me!

Yay! When they get to Disney they'll be very happy they put that money towards Disney. So exciting!

 

[KatMark]

Sarah, I'm sorry I got behind again. We had a busy day here on Christmas of me cooking, helping Andy and Des get ready for their drive the next day and then we left for Dubuque on Friday and were there until we got home at 5:00 on Sunday (and yesterday at work was insane and I was off today running around with hubby for my birthday).

I LOVE all the pool pictures. We walked the entire AOA two years ago but never went into the pools (but then we weren't staying there so we wouldn't have been able to get in anyway). Although I can't do values, I do love that resort and love the Little Mermaid section probably the best.

Yay for more stickers by winning the trivia contest.

Boo on having to go home the next day.

 

[SarahDisney]

Sarah, I'm sorry I got behind again. We had a busy day here on Christmas of me cooking, helping Andy and Des get ready for their drive the next day and then we left for Dubuque on Friday and were there until we got home at 5:00 on Sunday (and yesterday at work was insane and I was off today running around with hubby for my birthday).

No worries, I completely understand life getting in the way of DIS time. I hope you had a great Christmas, a wonderful time with your kids in Dubuque, and a fantastic birthday!

I LOVE all the pool pictures. We walked the entire AOA two years ago but never went into the pools (but then we weren't staying there so we wouldn't have been able to get in anyway). Although I can't do values, I do love that resort and love the Little Mermaid section probably the best.

Thanks! Last year we didn't go into the pools (just took pictures from outside the gates), so we really wanted to do it this year. I also love Little Mermaid section best! We really like the values because of the over the top themes, but I'd love to stay moderate or deluxe at some point in time (when I can)

Yay for more stickers by winning the trivia contest.

We got a lot of stickers on this trip! Once I finally get around to making memory boxes for these trips, I'll be using those stickers to decorate!

Boo on having to go home the next day.

Yeah, that was the sad part of the day. Especially because at the time I was fairly sure I wouldn't be going back in February. Now that I know I am going back, it's a little easier to think about leaving.

----
Mini-Update:
The last installment () is almost completely finished, and I'm hoping to get it up later today. I just am not having the best of days. I got some news earlier which, while not unexpected, was not at all good. I've been pretty out of sorts since getting that news.

If I don't get it up today, expect to see it Friday or Saturday night (I'm taking tomorrow off from everything except TV/movie watching ... giving myself a day to totally relax ... or at least try)

 

[KatMark]

Sorry about the bad news.

A nice relaxing day sounds perfect.

Happy New Year!!!!

 

[SarahDisney]

Sorry about the bad news.

Thanks, Kathy. I really appreciate the support.

A nice relaxing day sounds perfect.

Definitely sounds perfect ... I hope it is!

Happy New Year!!!!

Thanks, happy new year to you as well!

 

[SarahDisney]

I have other things I could be doing right now, but I really want to put 2014 behind me, and since this trip is a part of 2014, I figured I might as well just get the final post over with.

Day 5: Friday, November 7th
Worst FP+ Ever
Wake Up Time: 3:34 AM (Both)
Outfits:
Whatever we threw on that morning

(Sorry guys, not so many pictures in this one … we’re really not morning people)

Day 5 was departure day, and since we had a 7:15 AM flight, we were getting picked up by DME at 4:15 AM. So Beth set an alarm on her phone for 3:30 AM.

I was woken up by Beth (not Beth’s alarm) at 3:34 AM. Why? Beth accidentally set the alarm for 3:30 PM. Thankfully, she woke up anyway.
But because of that incident, on 5K day in February, I’m setting 2 alarms, and having my calendar remind me 3 hours before the 5K (which is fairly useless because my phone doesn’t make any noise between 11:30 PM and 6:30 AM other than the alarm, but it might make me feel better).

So anyway, now that we were up, we got dressed and finished our last-minute packing. We had gotten a voicemail saying that we could do express checkout, meaning we didn’t have to stop at a checkout desk (which was great because there was nobody in the lobby when we got there other than the people cleaning the floors).

We got out to the DME bus stop, and there was another family there. They had missed their earlier pickup. That would make me super nervous, but once they discovered that we had a 4:15 pickup, they seemed okay. Anyway … 4:15 came and went, and no bus. I, being the nervous person that I am, started looking for the phone number to call DME to find out what was going on. Couldn’t find it online, it wasn’t on the paper they gave us … finally, the bus came around 4:20, and we got on.

But for the future … I now have the number stored in my phone (something I forgot when I went to call them last week, but whatever):

Anyway, the trip to the airport was uneventful. Beth napped a bit, and I went on my phone and caught up with the DIS. I’m sure there was some sort of video on the bus, but I don’t remember it.

We got to the airport and checked our bags, and then went to security. There was a TSA agent using something called a “TSA Randomizer” to randomly assign people to pre-check. We were among the people randomly assigned to get pre-check, which was great with me, because I don’t like taking off my shoes. So we went to the pre-check line … and were waiting there forever. Apparently one of the machines was broken, and it took TSA a little bit of time to get their act together and get the lines merged (and better managed).

Beth’s response: “Worst FP+ ever.”
I had to agree.

Eventually we made it through security, and this time Beth got pulled over to go through the scanner. Nothing happened, no big deal, and we were able to go to our gate. We sat down … and then they changed our gate. So we had to go to a different gate. But we settled in, and I went in search of some Starbucks.

As some of you my know, there’s a Starbucks in the A terminal, right near the gates. I’ve been to that Starbucks several times. But when you’re at the airport before 6 AM, the line there is very long. As in, if I’m waiting that long, I want to go on Seven Dwarfs Mine Train at the end (can you tell how much we loved that ride? We’ve got 2 FP+ for February, plus we want to ride standby at least once). So I gave up on that one and decided to find a store that sells the bottled Frappuccinos. And possibly some sort of cookie (the good-looking ones I had seen at Disney were actually not Kosher certified, which surprised me, because many of their pre-packaged goods are).

So I went into a store and came out with…

That’s it. No cookies. Or at least not ones that I was interested in (one of them had the word “flax” in the name … no thank you). So I drank the whole Frappuccino bottle, which is about 3x what I normally drink (I usually just have about a third of the bottle at a time … I’m primarily a water drink, so I rarely drink a full serving of any sort of sugary beverage). And then I got cookies on the plane, which were not very good. So overall, not my best breakfast (although the Frappuccino was delicious, as always).

I also looked in the duty free liquor store to see if they had a particular scotch (my brother’s boss bought him a scotch that is only available duty-free, so I wanted to see if they had it). They did not. But that browsing took up a few minutes of my time.
Eventually Beth went to go look for food … and she got a cookie. I believe it was turkey-shaped (I had seen the cookie but wasn’t interested in it – it was a harder cookie and I wanted soft).

Once it was boarding time, the craziness to get to the plane started … and we eventually got on (with our actual boarding group) and found our seats. It was an uneventful flight, other than the fact that I kept accidentally using the wrong remote. I was a little out of it. Mostly I read, started writing up TR notes, and marked our maps (we had written our order of attractions on agendas I had made, so I had to transfer that information to the maps). I was half-listening to/watching SportsCenter, but I wasn’t really paying much attention because none of the stories really grabbed by attention. (Not like this week, where I should have been watching to see what’s going on with football coaching changes, but just haven’t been in the mood)

We landed in NY and deplaned. We had to wait FOREVER for our baggage, but it came, we grabbed it, and we took a cab home. Once we got home, Beth made the coffee (and I think also some food for dinner, I don’t remember), and I did my regular Friday cleaning.

We transferred all of the pictures to my computer (all 750) and I printed out all my notes so that we could tell the story to the family after dinner (and my brother actually stuck around for some of it, which was really nice because he hates all things Disney, so he was probably in agony).

And that was the end. Our Disney vacation was officially over, with no idea if and when we would return.

Of course, that has since changed and we’re now going in February. If you’ve enjoyed reading my ramblings, feel free to check out the PTR here, where you will see the thrill of booking a trip, the agony of planning, and because of my running journals, the sheer pointlessness of my random trains of thought.
(By the way, that last thing was totally Disney-related, I promise … it’s a take-off of a quote from one of my favorite shows, Sports Night, which aired on ABC, a network owned by Disney. Plus, part of the original quote (“the thrill of victory, the agony of defeat”) comes from ABC’s Wide World of Sports … aka even more Disney. It’s all Disney-related!)

If you don't like reading through random planning ramblings but do enjoy trip reports, check back here at the end of February and hopefully I'll have a TR link for you.


And lastly, to all my readers, commenters, lurkers, DISfriends, etc, and to all of your friends and families ...

(yeah, I ninjaed something from the internet instead of making it myself. I was lazy. I know I could do better with a castle fireworks picture or something, but ... again, lazy. Maybe next year.)

 

[stacy~**]

Sorry about your bad news today. Hopefully it's something that you can shake off next year!

I was glad to see your update since I am home alone with a sick Lucy while Aaron and Olivia are at a hockey game tonight.

Wow that early departure is rough. Really rough. I would set about 5 alarms if I had that early of a wake up. I would be so nervous we would sleep through it. Although lucky for me (I think?) Aaron would be even more nervous about it and never oversleep.

Sorry for the TSA line. MCO's TSA line is always so crazy.

Bummer that you had to get a pre-made frap instead of the real thing. And no good cookies....like it's not bad enough that you are up so early to leave Disney...but no good cookies that is really bad.

So glad you have a trip to look forward to in February I will definitely try and stay up to date on things on your PTR and I look forward to your TR.

 

[ursalita]

I'm sorry to hear that you got some bad news today. Hope the new year brings good things.

Oh, man! Going home is the worst but it's great to see family and relive the trip. And you're going back so soon! Can't wait for that TR.

I hope you have a HAPPY NEW YEAR!

 

[SarahDisney]

Sorry about your bad news today. Hopefully it's something that you can shake off next year!

Thanks. I'm really hoping that 2015 starts with some good news, which will make this news hurt a little less.
As I posted on facebook earlier today - I leave for Disney in 50 days, and I want to have some good news to celebrate when I'm there.

I was glad to see your update since I am home alone with a sick Lucy while Aaron and Olivia are at a hockey game tonight.

Aw, poor Lucy! I hope she feels better soon.
And next time Aaron and Olivia go to a hockey game, they can feel free to invite me (although how I'd get there is a different issue). I'm a big hockey fan, but I rarely get to go to games, and I've actually never been to a Rangers game (I'm a Rangers fan ... although I also like the Blue Jackets because one of my favorite players, Brandon Dubinsky, was traded there a few years ago).

Wow that early departure is rough. Really rough. I would set about 5 alarms if I had that early of a wake up. I would be so nervous we would sleep through it. Although lucky for me (I think?) Aaron would be even more nervous about it and never oversleep.

I really hate flying out that early, but we need to be home by sundown on Fridays, so we prefer to get in to NY before noon (especially during the winter when the days are so short). I'm so glad that in February our flights are at more sensible times. After this, I don't think I will ever be able to sleep when I have an early flight.

Sorry for the TSA line. MCO's TSA line is always so crazy.

Maybe that's why Magical Express picks you up so early ...

Bummer that you had to get a pre-made frap instead of the real thing. And no good cookies....like it's not bad enough that you are up so early to leave Disney...but no good cookies that is really bad.

I know! I got cookies on the plane, but they were terrible. I'm wondering if in February I should just bake cookies and bring them with me for the flight (although they'd probably get smooshed by the trip home)

So glad you have a trip to look forward to in February I will definitely try and stay up to date on things on your PTR and I look forward to your TR.

Thanks! I'm looking forward to continuing to see you over on the PTR (and eventual TR)! I hope you end up doing a PTR or TR for one (or both) of your upcoming trips ... but I'm sure you want to finish your current TR first.

I'm sorry to hear that you got some bad news today. Hope the new year brings good things.

Thanks.

Oh, man! Going home is the worst but it's great to see family and relive the trip. And you're going back so soon! Can't wait for that TR.

One of my favorite parts of being home (besides sleeping in my own bed) is telling the story. I'm excited for the February trip and looking forward to seeing you on the TR in a few months!

I hope you have a HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Thank you! Happy New Year to you and your family - I hope you have a year full of fun and Disney!

 

[stacy~**]

I love that you like our CBJ. We go to many games during the year so you are welcome anytime! And Dubinsky is one of my favorites too!

 

[afwdwfan]

I'm sorry for your bad news. Hopefully turning the page on the calendar will bring good things your way.

Departure days are always kind of out of sync. It's nice to get home, but you always hate to leave. And you don't even have that excitement during the travel that you have when you're on your way there. Oh well, an uneventful trip home is always the best kind. I'm glad it didn't take you too terribly long to get another trip on the schedule.

 

[SarahDisney]

I love that you like our CBJ. We go to many games during the year so you are welcome anytime! And Dubinsky is one of my favorites too!

Maybe one day I'll just show up on your doorstep ready to go to a hockey game (not that I know where your doorstop is...) . I was super bummed when the Rangers traded Dubinsky, but I'm glad that he's getting some love in Columbus.

I'm sorry for your bad news. Hopefully turning the page on the calendar will bring good things your way.

Thanks.

Departure days are always kind of out of sync. It's nice to get home, but you always hate to leave. And you don't even have that excitement during the travel that you have when you're on your way there. Oh well, an uneventful trip home is always the best kind. I'm glad it didn't take you too terribly long to get another trip on the schedule.

Exactly ... I like being back home, but hate leaving Disney.
Thanks - when we got home I wasn't sure if I'd be going back before the 50th anniversary in 2021, so I was glad to be able to book this February trip. Always nice to not have to wait too long between trip!

 

[Victoriasmom98]

Hi Sarah!! I'm back to catching up on TR's ---- yeah, just in time to read yours has ended.....boo hoo!!!! I really enjoyed reading it and getting to know you and Beth better. It did seem like a really good trip overall!!!! Please, please, please make sure to write a tr for your marathon weekend!!! Now I can go stalk you over at your ptr!!1

 

[courtneybelle]

Ughhh we had to take a 4:30 a.m. Magical Express last year and I was NOT a fan.

Happy New Year to you as well and thanks for a great TR!!! Can't wait to hear all about your February trip!

 

[SarahDisney]

Hi Sarah!! I'm back to catching up on TR's ---- yeah, just in time to read yours has ended.....boo hoo!!!! I really enjoyed reading it and getting to know you and Beth better. It did seem like a really good trip overall!!!! Please, please, please make sure to write a tr for your marathon weekend!!! Now I can go stalk you over at your ptr!!1

Thanks! I really enjoyed writing this TR, so I'm definitely planning on doing one for the February trip. I hope to see you over at the PTR and on the February TR once I start it!

Ughhh we had to take a 4:30 a.m. Magical Express last year and I was NOT a fan.

Happy New Year to you as well and thanks for a great TR!!! Can't wait to hear all about your February trip!

Yeah, every year we have to decide between leaving Thursday night and having a normal pickup time or having a full day in the parks Thursday and a super early DME pickup on Friday ... we go for the early pickup. It's the lesser of two evils, but it's definitely not fun.

February trip is in 47 days, add on 6 days for the trip and two days or so to recover ... so expect to see that TR in about 55 days! I'll post the link here, and until then you'll see me posting comments on your TR!

 

[dreamseeker9]

I'm way late, but I finally returned and caught up. Great TR! I'm glad you had a wonderful trip, despite the ups and downs of dining. You're motivating me to write my TR now!

I feel like an idiot, I never realized those huge character drawings at AOA were on enormous sketchpads! Too funny.

I hope 2015 is going well for you, and have a wonderful time on your February trip - I'll check out your PTR!

 

[SarahDisney]

I'm way late, but I finally returned and caught up. Great TR! I'm glad you had a wonderful trip, despite the ups and downs of dining. You're motivating me to write my TR now!

Thanks. And write your TR - I'm interested to read about your trip!

I feel like an idiot, I never realized those huge character drawings at AOA were on enormous sketchpads! Too funny.

It took us a little bit to figure it out. I think you have to look at it from a particular angle to really get it

I hope 2015 is going well for you, and have a wonderful time on your February trip - I'll check out your PTR!

Thanks! So far 2015 is a little better than 2014, but there's still room for improvement. I'm just happy that I have a trip coming up so soon - planning for Disney is a great way to start the year!