WDW 2006-Day 8

OK, back to the business of an unfinished trip report.

The alarm went off at it's usual time, but I could barely respond to it. I had been battling allergies for several days and it was really beginning to wear on me. Dave said he would take the first shower and I began to rouse the kids. Their clothes were already laid out for the day and I pointed that out to them as I poured their cereal. When I emerged from the shower, most of them were dressed. I was glad they were excited. Between my raging allergies and the friction between Dave and I, I was feeling almost numb to the magic of Disney. I knew how out of character that was for me, and that made me sad too. We began to load the car when we noticed some very brave ducks outside. They actually walked right up to us and began to quack in a manner that clearly said "Feed me!" So, we grabbed some older bread and we did. Sometimes it's the simple things that make kids happy, isn't it?

We arrived just after the park opened. I heard that they skipped the park opening ceremony that day, so I wasn't to sad to be running a little bit behind. When we got to Dumbo and its 30 minute wait, I changed my mind. I'm usually pretty quick to get there, but we were pushing two strollers AND they changed the route a little. We couldn't walk through the castle and going around it via Sleepy Hollow took a bit longer. But, we did find the Cinderella fountain going that way and I had never seen it before so it's all good. The hot, long Dumbo wait was worth it in the end. Elisa squealed adorably and the other three kids loved it too even though they all remembered it. We hit the Pooh ride next. It wasn't as hot as it was last year, nor did it get stuck this time. I guess they fixed it. I wanted to get Elisa a little baseball cap, but didn't like any of the ones in the Pooh gift shop. While Dave got some drinks for the kids, I went and got Fast Passes for Peter Pan. That ride is slow-loading, gets long lines quickly, but is much adored by me and the kids. I was taking no chances on missing it. I came back to find everyone gone from the designated meeting place. Apparently, the drink stand they stopped at was closed and they went elsewhere. I sure wish they had told me first. In the 10 minutes I waited for them (because what else could I do?) I imagined all kinds of worst-case scenarios. Fortunately, I was wrong.

After some cooling off, we rode Snow White's Scary Adventure. Tristan threw a huge fit about having to sit with me, but overall the kids love this ride. Next up was Philarmagic-another cute show. The kids wanted to sit in the front row, so sit we did. I still felt pretty loopy and out of it, but I think that only enhanced my 3-D show experience. From there we found It's a Small World and made some friends while we waited in line. Again, the most exciting thing to me is that now, after its rehab, you can see through the water clear down to the bottom of the ride. I pointed that out to Dave. He was unimpressed. Elisa, however, loved the dancing dolls. Welcome to at least four more years of Small World torture. Oh well...It still wasn't time for our Peter Pan fast passes, but there wasn't really time to go elsewhere. So Dave and the kids made a potty stop while I checked the Tinker Bell store for a hat. They had a little Cinderella one in Elisa's size and a "So Not a Princess" visor for Natalie. That would turn out to be very fitting the following morning. By the time I paid for my purchases, it was time for Peter Pan. I got to ride with Natalie and Caroline this time-always fun and magical, even with the allergy meds. (Or is that because of them?)

It was almost time for our reservations at Tony's Town Square, an Italian restaurant made to look just like Tony's from Lady and the Tramp. I've always wanted to eat there, but I'm usually too thrifty. Since we were eating both breakfast and dinner in the trailer, I thought 'why not?' As a treat and a 'thank you' for all they do, we were meeting my parents there to buy them lunch too. After a quick cell phone call coordinating our locations, we got some fast passes for Splash Mountain and headed back to Main Street USA. It took Mom and Dad a little while to get there, but we didn't mind. The waiting area at Tony's was super air-conditioned. I checked in when they called to say they were at the park turnstiles and we were called up about a minute or two after they arrived at the restaurant. The kids had found me a pressed penny machine, watched a few minutes of Lady and the Tramp in the lobby, and for a moment all was well. With four kids the ages of mine, you can't ask much more than that.

Tony's has always received mixed reviews on the DIS boards, so I was a little nervous to try it-but also very curious. Since I once lived in Italy, I'm picky about my Italian (I'm not a big fan of Olive Garden at all, but I will eat there. I'm such a sell-out.) Fortunately for Tony's, the heat and my sore throat pretty much eradicated any desire I had for pasta. I went with a grilled vegetable panini, it was VERY good. Dave got the meatball sub (as I expected he would) and the kids all wanted pizza. Mom and Dad each tried some pasta. A taste of my mom's sauce and my dad's baked ziti almost made me regret my menu choice. Both were surprisingly good. But, as is always my mantra, "there's always another Disney trip." So maybe we'll eat there again someday. Seriously. Not only was the food good, but the service was excellent. I was very impressed-especially with all the squabbling the kids were doing throughout the meal. Good grief. It cost them each a child's dish of gelato even though it was offered at a very good price. Dave talked me into ordering the smoothie sold in the souvenir Lady and the Tramp glass. The glass was a lot nicer than I thought it would be (it's a glass mug-I was expecting a plastic cup) and the smoothie felt great on my poor throat. So, I give Tony's Town Square a "two thumbs-up."

After Tony's, Caroline got her first ride on Splash Mountain. It was a big hit, though she didn't like sitting on the wet seats. At least she didn't duck at the big drop and leave me with a face full of water like her brother did on his first ride. Thank goodness. I asked her just now if she liked the ride and she said "yay!" I'm guessing that's high praise. Sadly, my kids are mostly too short to ever show up in those ride pictures they take, so I never have good documentation of their facial expressions. Then again, I do save money that was I guess. After splashing down, we met back up with MeMe, PaPa, and Elisa (who was too little to ride) and went back to the park so Mommy could get some rest. We went back to MGM later on so that Tristan could try to get picked for a Jedi Academy show and Dave and I could see Warrick Davis live and in person. Unfortunately, most of that was rained out. Luckily, it cleared up before Fantasmic, and we saw that front and center by showing up the hour early I had been recommending all along. I thought waiting the hour in our seats with Elisa would be a nightmare, but we made friends with a grandmotherly lady from Delaware who was sitting behind me. (I just love those folks either from Delaware or living there now-what can I say?) The show was another big hit with the kids and I was glad. Since my week-long allergies seemed to be progressing into a full-blown sinus infection, I wasn't sure I would make it to any other late night fireworks during our trip. This one was worth all the rest of them though, and the kids never knew the difference. I taught Natalie to say "moo" as we walked with the rest of the crowd from the Fantasmic stadium exit to the park exit. Amusingly, that was concurrent with this post by my friend Anne. Excellent timing! We all collapsed into our beds in the trailer, each one of us excited about tomorrow's events for different reasons. For me and the girls, it was finally time to eat in the castle. For Tristan, it was time to see Buzz and Stitch, and for Dave (and me again) it was time to ride Space Mountain.