After getting back to the lodge at midnight, and then unpacking and settling in, the last thing I imagined we would be doing was getting up at 7am to hit the Magic Kingdom at opening, but that is exactly what we did. I knew from reading on Touring Plans (http://touringplans.com) and the Dis Boards (http://www.disboards.com/) that getting there early was the way to go, but neither the Pea nor I are early birds, so I wasn't betting on us. We ended up missing "Rope Drop" by a few minutes, but were still one of the first to arrive and the park was nearly empty. We managed a quick meet with Daisy and then strolled down Main Street.
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| Good Morning Daisy! |
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| Thank you Photopass for taking pictures of the Pea AND me. |
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| He made that out of water in the street, with a broom! |
We caught a CM (cast member aka Disney Employee) getting creative and managed a shot of the castle without any other people in it. It was also the only time (while we were there) that the Castle was open to walk through...I wish we had spent more time inside and taken some pictures, but I just assumed we would have another opportunity.
Our plan was to hit Space Mountain for a quick ride and a fast pass, but about halfway there we aborted the mission and decided instead to hit the Regal Carousel and just ride.
I think we were able to ride four times without getting off (because there were so few people in line) and when she finally had her fill we grabbed a fastpass for Peter Pan and rode It's a Small World twice.
The Pea's favorite ride is It's a Small World...followed closely by Living with the Land, then the Gran Fiesta Tour. If you aren't familiar, these are all rides that you sit in a flat bottom boat and float through changing scenery.
We were able to use our fastpasses for Peter Pan right after IASW and then we headed over to Tomorrowland.
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| No Standby line for us...no way. |
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| spinning, spinning, round, and round |
On our way we stopped for a quick ride on the Teacups and then walked on Buzz Lightyear. After Buzz the Pea was acting cranky and saying she wanted to go back to the room so I figured it was time to rest...I decided we should do the Laugh Floor, thinking the sitting down and laughing would do us some good.
It didn't seem to help so we headed to Cosmic Ray's for a snack. She ate a few grapes, but said she wasn't really hungry.
Again, didn't seem to help. At that point I called the Pirates League to see if we could change her reservation (she was scheduled for a Pirate Make-over/experience after lunch and had been really looking forward to it). We had no luck changing and the Pea was adamant that she was done for the day. I honestly didn't know what to do because I knew how badly she wanted that Pirate make-over, but here she was saying she just wanted to leave. At that point I was convinced the combination of an early flight, long day, not much food, and even less sleep was to blame and she just needed to rest. The walk to the bus stop, the ride back to the hotel, and the walk to the room would be silly and would only give us about 30 minutes before we would have to turn around and do the reverse to get back to the park so we just found a bench and she curled up on my lap and fell asleep.
She woke up to the sounds of the Block Party Bash and wanted to go see it.
We headed for the Hub, grabbed a prime spot, and watched it go by. When she wanted no part of getting up and dancing I knew it wasn't going to be as easy as just waiting for her second wind. She spotted another little girl in a stroller and told me if she had a stroller she would be fine. I didn't think she would need a stroller on this trip and so didn't bring the $25 umbrella stroller that I bought for the last trip (big mistake, HUGE) BUT, we walked a TON the first day and I got to thinking maybe she just hit a wall. We headed for the front of the park to rent a stroller. $40 lighter, with me pissed off as hell and her happy, we headed to Adventureland and the start of our Pirate Adventure. First, Magic Carpet ride, then the Pirate Experience and the Pirate Tutorial, maybe a dole whip or dole whip float, then ride Pirates of the Caribbean, and Jungle Cruise, and then who knows...maybe it would be time for the parade...maybe we could use one of our fastpasses (we had grabbed Space Mountain while in Tomorowland and both Mickey and Princesses while at the front of the park getting the stroller)...whatever we did, we were gonna have fun and make the most of a nearly empty park and then we were going to take the boat to the Grand Floridian for our dinner with Cinderella and the Step Sisters!
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| She got her pirate name... |
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| ...and took the pirate oath. |
bwaahahahahahaaaaaa...best laid plans.
The Pea puked at the Pirates League...
Her sash and her sword were hastily thrown in a bag...she didn't do her photo session, cuz let's face it, no one wants to see, be in, or take pictures of a puking kid, no matter how cute she is...and I ran for the bus, throwing my fastpasses at a lady who looked like she was struggling with a baby, a hyper kid, and a half asleep husband.
Without thinking about the fact that I could be stuck there for DAYS, I headed straight for the room to get the Pea to bed, thinking that after a few hours of sleep she would be ok, and we would be having dinner with the Step Sisters. She has talked about how funny the step sisters were and how she couldn't wait to see them again, all year long. When it became clear that she was sick, not just tired, and I had to cancel our dinner (and there were no openings the rest of our stay) we cried. I know it sounds silly, but I knew how badly she wanted to go and I wanted her to be able to go. She has NEVER been as sick as she was that night (which I consider lucky, but still...)
I spent the next 24 hours: pacing, sitting on the balcony, sitting on the couch, sitting in the bed, feeling her forehead, holding her hair, wiping tears (hers and mine), cleaning vomit, pacing more, checking facebook and lines (http://m.touringplans.com/wdw/chats) on my phone, and drinking wine. The only thing I had in my room to eat or drink was wine, coffee, and a half of a bottle of Gatorade. This wasn't a problem initially, but proved to be, when 30 hours later, we were still in the room.
I couldn't leave her because she was either sleeping or barfing and I didn't have anyone I could send for food or drinks. At first it was just a bummer, then I got a little panicked. I finally called the front desk and explained my plight and they were kind enough to send up bottled water (after much hemming and hawing, and a call back an hour later, and a $14 room service charge) but given what it took to get that, I wasn't about to order food for myself. I blew our budget renting the stroller as it was and I didn't want to worry about money the whole rest of the week.
On the evening of day 3, after cancelling another dinner, it became obvious I was gonna have to do something. I was stir crazy and starving, and even though the Pea wasn't up for doing anything, she was at least coherent enough that I was comfortable leaving her for a few minutes. I bit the bullet, called XDH, and asked him to talk to her while I ran downstairs...literally ran. It wasn't until after I got back to the room and happened to walk by a mirror that I realized I was in PJs and looked like death. The CMs must have thought I was out of my mind, or hopped up on drugs, the way I came tearing into the restaurant. I think I shouted my order for a flat bread pizza and a kids macaroni and grabbed a few drinks and a coffee cake while it was cooking. Everyone else in the place was standing there patiently waiting for their food and milling over their choices at the coolers and I was a whirling dervish grabbing whatever was in reach. I threw it all in a bag and ran back upstairs. Those of you familiar with Animal Kingdom Lodge can appreciate that I probably logged a good mile on that little jaunt...those that are not, take my word, the place is huge, and our room was on the opposite end of the resort from the restaurant.
When I got back to the room and saw that the Pea was still there, in one piece, and still on the phone, I breathed a sigh of relief and plopped myself down on the couch. The Pea was able to eat some of her mac and cheese, jello, and applesauce (and more importantly, keep it down) and I was able to scarf my flatbread. Sorry I don't have a picture, but I wasn't thinking pictures in that moment, I was thinking "oh my God this is so good and I'm so hungry can't stop must eat num num num num num num nummmmy." I had the chicken, it was good, spicy, and crunchy, and definitely a recommend if you happen to be at Mara.
We watched the Disney Channel and cuddled that night, and went to bed hoping that the next day would be better. It was.
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