It's Called Leap Day-Not Sleep Day-OMDD with the TCD Gang!

[stefa70 205]

I'm quite impressed how much you guys did. I feel the twins' pain having to endure Stitch. I went once when it first opened and haven't been back. I haven't done the Presidents in about 10.

I won't even comment on your wet underwear.

LOL at Claire. :heart: I like how she thinks.

[PureTcrazy...rita 380]

I like the country bears in a sweet nostalgic way! Stitch, worst attraction ever along with the Narnia crap at DHS. Love the girls pic with Cinderella!

[alexwyattmommy 181]

It has been amazingly fun to share this trip with you all. I would love to try to get a dole whip at 4am. Too bad the boats don't run that late.

We did Stitch once. The first year we were there. My then 5 year old cried when Stitch hurt his shoulders. He won't watch Lilo and Stitch to this day.

[Heidi-meetsTCD@TSM 5]

We too, love to watch Modern Family. We even tape the shows and watch them when my oldest is home from college. Its the only show on TV that we make a point to watch as a family.

Love the pictures of the twins with the princesses!

Sounds like a fun night!

Heidi

[Starbuc71 162]

Andrew,

No pic of Melvin the moose in the country bears? Dave will either be upset or be glad. I thought the real melvin was living with Dave now

[DaveInTN 3,247]

We are also SOTers....Stitch One Timers. One time on that ride is enough for a lifetime.

And no, Melvin is not living with me. He was given his own place when he entered the witness protection program. Last I heard he had an apartment in the Atlanta area. I'm hoping he stops by the Stone Mtn GG.

[we3peas 12]

The large ferry boats were used to transport Grad Night students from FW dock to MK back when they were doing that. They used to bus them in and make them wait at the BYBBQ area and call them up by schools and load them on the large ferries to go across the lake. I never understood why it was necessary though.

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

I'm in!!

OK- then it's a deal. I forgot to mention that part of the plan is that I want to drive over there by golf cart. I have scoped out a route which I think will work. We just have to evade those old geezer security guards who work the night shift. Shouldn't be a problem, right?

And by drive over in the golf cart, I mean right up to the back door of Captain Cooks.

I have to confess. I drag my kids to the country bear jamboree every trip. I have a soft spot for it.

That used to be me. But even I have to admit that this attraction is way out of date. I really don't want them to do anything to it, because I like how lame it is. But it's something we will only do very infrequently now.

I'm quite impressed how much you guys did. I feel the twins' pain having to endure Stitch. I went once when it first opened and haven't been back. I haven't done the Presidents in about 10.

I won't even comment on your wet underwear.

LOL at Claire. :heart: I like how she thinks.

Yes, we did it all.

The only negative to that is that it made the time fly.

Before we knew it, it was 5 am.

And, who said anything about me having wet underwear?

I like the country bears in a sweet nostalgic way! Stitch, worst attraction ever along with the Narnia crap at DHS. Love the girls pic with Cinderella!

I agree with you on the Country Bears. I also happen to like the movie that they made not too long ago. Nobody else seems to.

Yes, those princess photos came out cute. Even though the girls pretended that this was lame, I could tell that they secretly enjoyed it.

No argument out of me about Stitch or Narnia. But at least the Narnia attraction doesn't smell bad.

It has been amazingly fun to share this trip with you all. I would love to try to get a dole whip at 4am. Too bad the boats don't run that late.

We did Stitch once. The first year we were there. My then 5 year old cried when Stitch hurt his shoulders. He won't watch Lilo and Stitch to this day.

I agree with your 5 year old. I hate the part where they press down on your shoulders. In fact, on this visit, I intentionally sat up very straight at the beginning so there would be space between my shoulders and those stupid things that press down on them. But, when Stitch escaped and started bouncing around, I still got slammed. I would think that those things are enough to injur some people. Stupid.

We too, love to watch Modern Family. We even tape the shows and watch them when my oldest is home from college. Its the only show on TV that we make a point to watch as a family.

Love the pictures of the twins with the princesses!

Sounds like a fun night!

Heidi

I agree with you about Modern Family. There are very few shows that my daughters like to watch that I also like to watch. This is one of them. It is consistently funny. They have a great cast on that show.

Andrew,

No pic of Melvin the moose in the country bears? Dave will either be upset or be glad. I thought the real melvin was living with Dave now

Good point. I should have taken a photo of Melvin for Dave. In my defense, I wasn't thinking clearly at this hour of the morning, and we were seated on the far side of the theater away from Melvin and Co.

We are also SOTers....Stitch One Timers. One time on that ride is enough for a lifetime.

And no, Melvin is not living with me. He was given his own place when he entered the witness protection program. Last I heard he had an apartment in the Atlanta area. I'm hoping he stops by the Stone Mtn GG.

It probably will take another Leap Day before we step foot back in Stitch's Great Escape. By then, it probably won't be around. A man can hope.

Good to know about Melvin living in Hotlanta. I'm sure he is happy that you finally set him free.

The large ferry boats were used to transport Grad Night students from FW dock to MK back when they were doing that. They used to bus them in and make them wait at the BYBBQ area and call them up by schools and load them on the large ferries to go across the lake. I never understood why it was necessary though.

Wow, I agree with you- why did they do that? It sounds like a lot of unecessary work to me.

This must have been a while back, as we have been there for recent Grad Nights and they had the bus staging area over by the old Stolport. Of course, they no longer have to worry about where to put the buses, as there are no more Grad Nights.

TCD

[BradyBzLyn...Mo 2,023]

OK- then it's a deal. I forgot to mention that part of the plan is that I want to drive over there by golf cart. I have scoped out a route which I think will work. We just have to evade those old geezer security guards who work the night shift. Shouldn't be a problem, right?

And by drive over in the golf cart, I mean right up to the back door of Captain Cooks.

Oh now I'm REALLY in!!

I've got visions of us all dressed in black, complete with mouse ears.

Maybe Lou can snag us some CM nametags in case we get stopped...

:rofl2:

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

Maybe Lou can snag us some CM nametags in case we get stopped...

We are not going to be stopped.

We just need to make sure that we have a fast golf cart.

TCD

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

We were all surprised by how fast the time flew after midnight.

We were busy checking rides off of our list, and before we knew it, is was near 5 am as we finished with the Haunted Mansion.

We wanted to watch the special showing of the Magic, the Memories and You at 5:30, and I wasn't sure how crowded it would be there in front of the castle, so that is where we headed next.

The DJ was still there, and there was still a good crowd of people there dancing the night away. The girls joined in for a while. I just watched. I think that I was beginning to hit the wall.

But, we had less than an hour to go.

The DJ finished up just in time to introduce the show.

Here is the Castle at about 5:29 am:

And, then the show began:

You can see that it wasn't completely dark. The sky was beginning to lighten.

This diminished the effects of the show just a bit, but it was still fine:

Photos do not do this show justice. In this scene, images of flames are projected on the castle, and you can see the silhouettes of pirates having a sword fight on the castle:

They also project photos taken by the Photopass photographers during the day. We had taken a few, but they flash up there so quick, it's hard to see if we made it on the castle or not:

They added a new part to the show around Valentine's Day this year. We hadn't seen the new part yet. It included this scene, which replicates the floating lanterns from the movie Tangled. Again, photos do not do this justice. It actually looked like these lanterns were floating gently up into the sky:

My favorite part of the show is this part, where they create a big mosiac of photos all over the castle. In that mosiac, a video image of Walt Disney appears, and they have audio with his actual voice welcoming guests to the park:

My second favorite part of the show is the end, where animated images of fireworks are shot off in front of the castle, and then travel up the castle, where the effect is completed by real fireworks:

Talk about your multi-media productions!

Twin #1 wins the award for the best photo from our Leap Day trip- the finale fireworks- at about 5:40 am. It will be a long time, and probably never, that anyone will ever get to see this at that time of the morning again! :

And that was that.

It was now 5:40 am.

24 hours before this we were standing outside the MK gates getting ready to watch the opening show.

Now we had just watched the last show of the evening.

Our plan was to ride every ride.

Which we had done.

With one small exception.

We had not done the AstroOrbiter.

We had about 15 minutes to head over there and check the final ride off of our list.

But no one wanted to do it.

So we didn't.

We could have done everything.

But we left one thing undone.

I was fine with that.

I still am.

That means we will have to try to do everything in one day another time. I really don't think it would be too hard to do even on a regular day.

We weren't sure how strict they were going to be about kicking people out at 6, or how crowded it might get around that clock on Main Street, so we decided to head there for the required photo.

Here it is:

We kind of hung around there for a bit to people watch.

There was still quite a crowd in the park.

We slowly made our way out of the park.

This is the last shot I have from inside the Magic Kingdom.

This is the crowd making its way down Main Street at a little before 6:

And with that, we left the park.

We had done it!

Leap Day was now history.

And we had been there at the beginning and the end.

The plan was to take the monorail back to the Contemporary.

But there was a good sized crowd heading that way.

I didn't relish the idea of being packed into a monorail car with a bunch of sleep deprived people.

So we walked.

It was interesting to see the buses for the resorts.

There were plenty of buses.

But very few passengers.

I think the majority of folks who stayed through the night were locals or castmembers, not resort guests.

The empty buses confirmed that.

We walked like zombies straight to our room.

It was about 6:30 when we got there.

The sky was getting light, but the sun had not risen.

I shut the curtains, and we got in those very expensive and comfortable beds.

The next thing I know, it was 10 am and the alarm on my watch was going off.

I don't think I had moved since my head hit the pillow.

I got up and peeked through the curtains. It was a bright, sunny day. But our room was totally dark. And quiet.

I got a quick shower, and then waked the girls.

They wanted to go to the Contempo Cafe for breakfast, which is why I had set my alarm.

Before we headed down, I called the front desk and asked if we could have a late check-out. Luckily, it wasn't busy at the hotel and it was a Thursday, and they said no problem, just be out by 1 pm.

We headed down for breakfast, and then packed up and we were out of the room by noon.

The girls had school the next day, and we were all still tired, so we decided to head home.

And we did.

And that's all there is to this story.

I plan to make another post with my final thoughts about the Leap Day event.

But, for now,

TCD is out.

[stefa70 205]

None of us are wet underwear fans. But I was a man about it. They got to laugh at my wet butt.

TCD

And, who said anything about me having wet underwear?

TCD

I'm starting to worry about you a bit.

TCD's memory not what it once was? :hah:

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

I'm starting to worry about you a bit.

TCD's memory not what it once was? :hah:

Nope, the mind is still a steel trap.

I said wet butt, not wet underwear.

Do I need to draw you a picture?

TCD

[stefa70 205]

Definitely a trip to remember!

Bravo to Twin #1 on the castle fireworks picture.

I won't hold it against you that you skipped the Astro Orbiters. It's not one of my favorites either and you guys did SO much.

[stefa70 205]

Nope, the mind is still a steel trap.

I said wet butt, not wet underwear.

Do I need to draw you a picture?

TCD

Hmmm, wet butt, but not wet underwear?!? YOU WENT COMMANDO?!?!

Yes, drawings please!!! :rofl2:

[DaveInTN 3,247]

I'm exhausted just reading your report.

I'm thinking you purposely skipped the Astro Orbiter to leave the quest unfulfilled, so that you can attempt this again someday. Once you check it off your list there would be no point at making another run at it.

The only thing I would have done differently is to grab some cinnamon rolls on my way out of the park. But I've never had breakfast at the Contempo Cafe so maybe that wouldn't have been necessary.

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

Definitely a trip to remember!

Bravo to Twin #1 on the castle fireworks picture.

I won't hold it against you that you skipped the Astro Orbiters. It's not one of my favorites either and you guys did SO much.

Yes, it is something we will always remember.

I agree with you about the AstroOrbiter. The guy who thought that one up is a genius. It's basically Dumbo on the roof. Swap the elephants for rockets, and what's the difference?

Hmmm, wet butt, but not wet underwear?!? YOU WENT COMMANDO?!?!

Yes, drawings please!!! :rofl2:

There you go!

Only I'm kidding about this.

It was just a joke.

So, no more discussion.

What does KFK say?

MPR!

Yes, MPR!

I'm exhausted just reading your report.

I'm thinking you purposely skipped the Astro Orbiter to leave the quest unfulfilled, so that you can attempt this again someday. Once you check it off your list there would be no point at making another run at it.

The only thing I would have done differently is to grab some cinnamon rolls on my way out of the park. But I've never had breakfast at the Contempo Cafe so maybe that wouldn't have been necessary.

You are exactly right about my thoughts. I like it better that we didn't get it all done. Plus, Thunder Mountain, Dumbo and the Goofy Rollercoaster were not open, so it technically was not possible to do everything in the MK anyway.

I should have given a review about what I had for breakfast. The girls had the Bounty Platter- which I have seen on the menus at all the resorts. Good, but nothing different. I had a scrambled egg sandwich. It was pretty much the same as the bagel sandwich at the Fort, but this was on something like French or Italian bread, and was pressed in a pannini maker. That thing was very good. I will go back for one of those, and I'll get a photo the next time.

TCD

[BradyBzLyn...Mo 2,023]

Love Twin #1's fireworks pic!

I wasn't sure to expect from the MMaY show when I first heard about it. To be honest it sounded pretty lame to me.

But having seen it in person it is one VERY impressive show indeed!

Well done on you're doing all-but-one-thing in 24 hours!!

We did Astro Orbiter during a PM EMH for the first time last year. For some reason we thought it would be fun for both of us to ride together.

Holy Sardines Batman!! Didnt' help that we were laughing too hard to breathe and I'm pretty sure we needed a giant shoehorn to get out... but at least we can say we finally did it.

Thanks for another great TR!

[thegooftroopfla 18]

Awesome report. Only u could make such a great trip report out of a 1 night trip

[shoreline99 137]

Great job, as usual!

[Hotmamac aka Misty 11]

Superb report as usual. Thanks!

[dvccamper 32]

Well done. And I think it's perfect that you left one ride undone. Every trip there is something we don't get to do and every time we tell the girls, "Just leaving it for next time."

Awesome fireworks picture by Twin #1, also!!

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

Love Twin #1's fireworks pic!

I wasn't sure to expect from the MMaY show when I first heard about it. To be honest it sounded pretty lame to me.

But having seen it in person it is one VERY impressive show indeed!

Well done on you're doing all-but-one-thing in 24 hours!!

We did Astro Orbiter during a PM EMH for the first time last year. For some reason we thought it would be fun for both of us to ride together.

Holy Sardines Batman!! Didnt' help that we were laughing too hard to breathe and I'm pretty sure we needed a giant shoehorn to get out... but at least we can say we finally did it.

Thanks for another great TR!

Yes, the Magic, the Memories and You has grown on me too. The first time we saw it, it was so crowded that we really did not enjoy it. Since then, if we are there when they show it twice, we go to the second show (which is after the fireworks crowd splits), and it is much more enjoyable. For this 5:30 am edition, it was crowded. but nowhere near as bad as it would be for the first show on a normal night.

We used to go two in a rocket on AstroOrbiter when the girls were smaller. Now, no way.

Awesome report. Only u could make such a great trip report out of a 1 night trip

Thanks. And if you haven't done so already, you ought to check out Total Joker's Leap Day report. He is doing a very good job with his report, and saw many things I did not.

Great job, as usual!

Thanks!

Superb report as usual. Thanks!

And thank you, too.

Well done. And I think it's perfect that you left one ride undone. Every trip there is something we don't get to do and every time we tell the girls, "Just leaving it for next time."

Awesome fireworks picture by Twin #1, also!!

Yes, I thought leaving one ride undone was the right thing to do too.

And thanks for the compliment on Twin #1's photo. She actually took a lot of the photos in this report, but I had them all in one file on my computer, so I didn't want to take the time to identify each one. It should be obvious which ones she took- if it's blurry or framed badly, that's me. The good ones are hers. She has had her nice camera just over a year now. She got a couple of new lenses for Christmas. There is a good chance that she is going to be the Photography Editor for her High School Year Book next year.

TCD

[stefa70 205]

There is a good chance that she is going to be the Photography Editor for her High School Year Book next year.

TCD

Really? Good for her!! I know we talked cameras at the parade and she seemed really into the photography thing. That was also when she ratted you out for using her pics. :)

You and the Mrs. did a great job with those two. :heart:

[Momof6....aka Marty 769]

Well, you have finished this report. Doesn't that mean it is time for another trip? maybe for St. Paddy's Day

Seriously, thank you for bringing us along. It has been a great Leap Day!