Disney World. October 2021. Day 4. Magic Kingdom Day.
Magic Kingdom day!! Woo woo!
I was up bright and early to book lightning lanes. I booked jungle cruise for 11am, but I wasn’t able to booked the paid lightening lanes until 9am.
Today we had room service breakfast again, and while we ordered it for a little earlier than Monday, we still didn’t make it out of the hotel until around 9:30. We arrived at the Transportation and Ticket Center and got on the monorail! This was the first time in like 3 years that the monorail was actually working! We’ve taken the boat so many times, which is much longer and painful. The wait wasn’t bad, but they “socially distance” the monorail cars, which just means they are packed to normal capacity, not NYC subway capacity. We got off and headed into the Magic Kingdom!
The castle is decorated for the 50th anniversary and looks great. We went straight to Jungle Cruise. The problem was we couldn’t actually hear the guide, so it was just fine, though they did add a new tunnel section, which was cool. After that we went on Magic Carpets of Aladdin and Tzvi broke the ride. Well, we don’t know for sure, but Tzvi was holding Madeleine on the ride and she was getting upset and tried turning around so she could see me and Hallie in the carpet behind them, and then suddenly the ride stopped and they brought everyone down, and when Tzvi asked what happened they said something about children facing forward. Anyway, then we got a Dole Whip.
From there we walked over to Fantasy Land and hit Small World and then Seven Dwarves Mine Train.
Then we had pizza for lunch at Pinnochio Village Hause, then did the Little Mermaid, Dumbo, Barnstormer, Buzz Lightyear and finally got milkshakes. It was a whirlwind. After that my mom took Hallie on Carousel of Progress while Robyn and I did Space Mountain. Tzvi and I rode Haunted Mansion, and then everyone but Madeleine did Splash Mountain. I was so impressed that Hallie did Splash Mountain. She was scared at first, but she seemed to really enjoy the big drop; she was mostly just worried about getting wet. From there we did Pirates of the Carribean and Winnie the Pooh, and then it was time for dinner.
Dinner was at Tony’s Town Square, which is supposed to be the Italian restaurant from Lady and the Tramp. Most of us got Spaghetti with Impossible Meatballs, which was actually delicious, and Tzvi had some creamy ravioli. After that we walked a little around Main Street. They re-did the confectionary and added a make your own popcorn station, so I got popcorn with white chocolate, M and Ms, and Twix. It was delicious.
We stayed for the fireworks, which were great, but as we were walking out people were complaining it wasn’t classic enough. I agree.
The line for the regular monorail was super long, so instead we got on the resort monorail and went to the contemporary, and took an Uber from there, which definitely saved us time.
Once we got the girls to bed we decided we still needed dessert (we hadn’t had anything at Magic Kingdom), so we ordered room service. We knew it was probably our only room service and couldn’t decide what to get, so we got the chocolate, the apple crumble and the crème brule. We also got a latte. All were good. Nice way to end the night.
Good day.
Disney World. October 2021. Day 3. Thank God for the Elsa Tutu.
Today was supposed to be one of our “relaxing” days.
We figured it would be smart to build in a day between parks. We got up and went downstairs for breakfast at Ravello, one of the main restaurants. It used to always be buffet, but apparently now they only have a buffet when the hotel is more crowded, so we had to deal with “a la carte.” As we walked in, I got a call from our allergist Dr. Sicklick; I totally forgot that I had scheduled a 9am virtual appointment. Well, Hallie’s bloodwork was back and she has an “impressive” allergy to grass and weeds, or something. Anyway, he saw I obviously wasn’t home and asked where we were. When I told him we were in Disney, he was surprisingly excited. This was much better than when he found out we were going to Mexico back in May and told us we have “the right to make our own stupid decisions.”
Anyway, breakfast was good, but our waitress was maybe the most unfriendly staff member at Disney. She wasn’t mean or anything, and she was a very good server, but she was just so unfriendly. Anyway, we got a lot of food. Then the check came, and it turned out they hadn’t charged us for half of it. We waited a few minutes for someone to come back so we could say something, but they never did, so we left.
After breakfast we went upstairs to change and then headed to the pool. There are a bunch of pools on property, but the our favorite is a zero-entry pool, which was great for Madeleine. We swam for a while, ordered drinks, lunch, snacks, etc. For lunch I ordered the turkey wrap, except I got tofu instead of turkey and didn’t get the wrap, so basically it was tofu on a bed of wrap fillings. Tzvi had a southwestern salad with grilled salmon, which he said was super salty but delicious.
My parents met us at the pool at some point and ordered more food. Madeleine napped in the room, while Hallie hung out with Robyn and watched TV. We had a few minutes of alone time at the pool, went in the lazy river and the hot tub at the adult pool. Then around 4 PM we headed back to the room to shower and get ready for the evening.
Tonight was Hallie’s big princess makeover. The Bippity Boppity Boutique at Disney Springs is closed (Covid casualty). Thankfully, the hotel has its own princess makeover program. Hallie and I went down to the spa. The first thing they do is take you to a wardrobe with princess dresses. Well, of course Hallie didn’t like any of them. We must have spent 15 minutes going back and forth about the dresses. She eventually tried on the Belle dress, but said it was itchy (it was, I don’t blame her). In the end, she just did hair, makeup and nails. She looked great and we decided we’d find a dress at Disney Springs.
Around 6 PM we all left the hotel and headed to Disney Springs for the second time this trip. Our first stop had to be World of Disney to find Hallie a dress. She took forever but finally decided she would get Tinkerbelle and all of the accessories, which came out to be quite expensive. Then, just before we walked out she saw an Elsa tutu and decided to swtich to that, which made Tzvi very happy since it was a quarter of the price of the Tinkerbelle stuff. Anyway, she looked great.
Our dinner tonight was at The Edison, which is a Disneyfied remake of the original Edison, a bar/nightclub in Downtown LA. We had a table that wasn’t near the live music (last time we were next to the stage and couldn’t hear each other all night), but Madeleine made sure to find someone to take her to see the singer every time the music started again. The meal is a bit of a blur. I think I had a version of a whiskey sour that had pear liqueur, and Tzvi had a drink with peach-pecan whiskey. I had salmon with mashed potatoes, Tzvi had blackened mahi, Madeleine had a few sips of tomato soup and a bite of a grilled cheese sandwich, and Hallie ate French fries before moving to an empty table where she laid down on a booth and watched Peppa Pig on the iPad.
After dinner we walked around and I got on line at Gideons Bakeshop. I’ve been following this bakery on Instagram for like 3 years now, and a year ago they opened at Disney Springs. There is always a line (it’s often a 2 hour + wait), but tonight for some reason the wait was only 20 minutes. We got three cookies and a side of peanut butter frosting. I have to say the flavors were great, but the cookies were too doughy for my taste. While I waited, Tzvi walked around with the girls; first they watched the man singing Irish music at Raglan Road, then they watched an all-male band singing Dua Lipa songs. Both girls were in a great mood and Hallie was dancing all over the place.
We walked around some more and found out the devastating news that Goofy’s Candy Co no longer has a “make your own caramel apple.” Another Covid Casualty. This is devastating, considering I’ve been waiting for one of those for two years. (My loyal followers may remember that two years ago I got a caramel apple on my last night at the Four Seasons and then left it in the fridge, and then came home and cried about it for an entire week, just ask Tzvi.). Tzvi bought chocolate covered shortbread cookies.
Sad and disappointed, we headed home to the hotel, where we put the girls to bed and then ate cookies.
Good day.
Disney World. October 2021. Day 2. Two Dinners and a Lot of Snacks.
Disney Day!! Woo woo!!! Today is Epcot day.
Hallie got up around 7:30 but Madeleine didn’t wake up until 8ish. I was up bright and early at 6:45. I didn’t even plan that, but my body woke up because clearly it knew I had to book my first lightning lane (read: old fastpass). With the new system, you have to pay $15 per person, per day, to be able to book rides on your phone, and if you’re staying in a Disney hotel you can start booking at 7:00am. I got a Test Track reservation for 11:00 am. Oh, and there are two rides in each park that aren’t included, but you can pay an upcharge ($7-15 per ride, per person) to book those. In EPCOT that’s Ratatouille and Frozen, but you can’t book those until 10am.
Breakfast came at 8:30. Tzvi and Robyn had avocado toast, except because we said Tzvi has a nut allergy they gave him gluten free bread. He was not happy. The bread was thin and sad looking and the multigrain bread was huge. Hallie had a waffle, my mom and I shared a frittata and toast and avocado, and Madeleine had oatmeal. We kept making the guy leave and come back. First he brought Tzvi better bread, then he brought milk for Madeleine, and then I think he came back a third time with spoons. Are we high maintenance?
Anyway, we were out the door at 9:30, which usually is considered “afternoon” by Disney standards. I was ok with it because Epcot didn’t open until 10 anyway (yes, we could have gotten in at 9:30 for extra magic hours but whatever). I should add that grandpa isn’t joining us until later because he is at lecture. We took an Uber to the park and finally made it inside by 10:30. Our first ride was Spaceship Earth. The wait was probably 15 minutes. Hallie was scared of the dark and Madeleine just kind of laid on me. Unfortunately our picture thing didn’t work on the ride, but it worked for my mom and Robyn.
We then headed to Test Track for our lightning lane pass. There is so much construction that you have to walk in such roundabout ways to get anywhere. We did a rider switch, so my mom stayed back with Madeleine, and then one person was able to go back with my mom, so I volunteered as tribute. Literally as we were about to get into the car for the ride, they shut it down for weather. They shut it down while it was still sunny, but eventually it started to pour and they sent us away and gave us a pass to return to any ride in the park (aside from Ratatouille and Frozen). We bought ponchos on the way out. Anyway, this was Hallie’s first time on the ride and she really enjoyed it.
While we were waiting on line for Test Track, Tzvi had taken the girls to the Land to get them kosher food. [Tzvi: That was a whole to-do. First we had to wait for them to bring a chef from another restaurant. He had a book with pictures of all of the different kosher dishes. Usually they show you photos of beautiful food that look nothing like the actual food you’re served. Well, these photos were pretty accurate. After waiting about 20 minutes, we got two trays of chicken nuggets with potato latkes. They were supposed to come with corn, but for some reason they just had double latkes, so they gave us some fresh sides of corn. Madeleine ate a little bit. Hallie did not like them.]
We met them and sat for a bit, and then Tzvi, Hallie and I went on Soarin’ using our lightning lane passes. Hallie was scared. I think she really thought we were in the sky and Tzvi had to keep explaining that we hadn’t left the room. Then Hallie and I did The Land and Tzvi walked to get Madeleine to sleep.
[Tzvi: As soon as I started walking it started to rain. It was getting harder so I took Madeleine under an umbrella and as soon as we got coverage it started to pour. It rained for a few minutes and then stopped, so we kept walking until we go to the Noodle stand (part of EPCOT Food and Wine Festival), where I got tofu pho, which was good but crazy spicy and by the end I couldn’t feel my lips.]
After that we started our walk around the countries. I can’t believe we didn’t do Figment or Nemo. Oh well.
The whole afternoon is a blur. First we stopped at Brazil and Tzvi got a frozen Caipirinha and cheese bread. We had to go into some stores because Tzvi was looking for specific merchandise. Someone in a scooter started backing up and it makes that loud beeping noise. Well, that woke Madeleine up. Then we went to Mexico and rode the Three Caballeros, which I think the girls enjoyed. Then it was time for our Frozen lightining lane pass. Hallie liked it, but she was afraid of the giant snowman and hid her face in my lap for half of the ride. After the ride we got Mickey Ice Cream Bars. As soon as we got them it started pouring again, so we hid in the entrance to the women’s bathroom (Tzvi included). From there we walked all the way around to France for the new Ratatouille ride. They basically built a whole new part of France behind the old France. The ride was great. It’s a 3D ride but totally new ride mechanism. It was unlike anything I’ve been on in Disney, or anywhere really. 45 dollars to skip the line was money well spent.
Then we walked to England and Canada. At Canada we got apple cider and crumble, as a pre dinner snack, which we ate on top of garbage cans, which are basically tables in EPCOT. Then we walked to meet my dad who arrived for his 5pm park entry. My mom decided she wanted to take the boat across the world showcase. That boat cost us 45 minutes and a Tzvi tantrum. He was upset because he was planning on leaving early with the girls after dinner, and we wasted 45 minutes waiting for a boat, which by the way, took us like 4 countries away from our final destination of Italy and we still had to walk 5 minutes. Anyway, we were only a few minutes late for our Italy reservation. Dinner was fine, I had gnocchi. The girls were nuts, but they’re always nuts.
After dinner we had fun looking at (and purchasing) perfume in Italy. We walked around some more and got ready for our 8:15 Mexico reservation. This was our dessert reservation, except once we were there we couldn’t not get chips and guac and a margarita. I had made the reservation because I knew they had a special 50th anniversary dessert and it did not disappoint. Also, we rode the Mexico ride again, which the kids loved. After that, my parents went to Test Track using the passes we had gotten earlier. The rest of us went to shop at the Creations store which use to be called Mouse Gear. They had all of the Ratatouille stuff and we bought a bunch of it. The fireworks tonight were at 9:45, which was too late for the girls, but there was no way I was missing it, so Tzvi, the girls and Robyn went back to the hotel and I walked back to the countries.
The fireworks show was great, except my parents said it was too “liberal.” There was no mention of Walt Disney or the classic Disney princesses. I thought the show was great though. Then we headed out, obviously stopping for shopping (yes, I bought more Ratatouille stuff). We had to wait a while for our Uber because the entire park was getting Ubers, but we eventually made it back. Good day.
Disney World. October 2021. Day 1. Here we go!
Today was interesting.
I feel like usually there are just ridiculous things that happen on day 1, but today seemed just to move. We went from place to place, and it was stressful, but there was nothing overtly bad that happened. It could be because we were 5 adults handling two children, so we should be able to handle ourselves, right?
Anyway, we got up this morning and our car showed up at 9. The guy showed up in a Honda Odyssey and I got all nervous that he wasn’t able to fit everything, so we told my parents to stop by our house first. We ended up fitting everything with room to spare. We did leave 20 minutes late though. Anyway, we headed to the airport and checked in curbside. The guy didn’t even weigh our luggage. We knew we were underweight, but it was still interesting. Maybe we should always do curbside. Check in was easy, as was security. We got coffee and bagels and headed to the gate when it was time to board. Smooth boarding, and we only left about 20 minutes late.
The flight was relatively okay, it’s just that Madeleine is at an age where she won’t sit. Thankfully this time we had 5 adults to pass her between. Hallie watched Peppa Pig the entire time, so that was good. We landed and got off the plane, and then left Tzvi at the exit of the plane to wait for the stroller to be brought up. He had to wait a ridiculously long time and almost got into a fight with a woman, but everything ended up ok.
Walking through the airport felt like we never left. We headed to the train to baggage claim and saw the 50th anniversary décor. Very exciting! At baggage claim a man was waiting for us with a sign that said Sheldon Feit. We had to wait a while for the luggage, and then it was pouring rain when we got outside. The driver had been prearranged with the hotel and he brought a Mercedes Sprinter Van. Thankfully Madeleine fell right asleep, and the ride was about 40 minutes.
Pulling up to the hotel was magical. Check in was easy. I tried to talk to the Disney desk and figure out Genie plus (more on that and the new ride booking process tomorrow), but everyone has different things to say. It’s all confusing and made more complicated by the fact that the Four Seasons is a Disney hotel but not actually owned by Disney completely.
We have three rooms, all next to each other. We connect with Hallie, Madeleine and Robyn. Robyn bathed the girls and we all rushed to get ready. We had a 6:15 reservation at the Boathouse at Disney Springs, which I thought was 6:30. Thankfully we made it on time. It was pouring rain again as we drove to Disney Springs, but once we got there it stopped raining.
Dinner was fine but too long. The restaurant itself was huge and very nice, but the food just took so long. I had a Caesar Salad with Salmon. Tzvi had a half of a head of iceberg lettuce with blue cheese dressing and some tomatoes, and a mahi sandwich with fries. He also had a beer. Madeleine was a little nuts, but who isn’t.
After that we walked around Disney Springs. We stopped by Gideons Bakehouse and got on the virtual queue, which was 2 hours and 40 minutes long (that’s right, 2 hours and 40 minutes to go inside and buy a cookie). The guy I gave my name to was from Valley Stream and he said he would cut the wait to 2 hours because I was from Long Island. Problem was there was no way we were waiting that long. We’ll go back another day. We did, however, go to Ghirardelli for ice cream! Tzvi and I shared a Brownie Sundae. It was delicious. Hallie had cookies and cream in a cone. It was so late, but everyone was in a good mood.
It started raining again, but thankfully we were eating our ice cream under an awning. From there we walked to the soap store, but only bought Hallie some bath bombs. Then we Ubered home, which isn’t so easy now that there are only 2 Uber drop offs at Disney Springs and you have to walk really far to get to either one. Madeleine was so happy on the way home and was singing and dancing. It was hilarious. We got home and the girls went right to sleep, but it was so late.
Good day. Glad to be back.
The Breakers. Day 4. The Last Half Day.
The final day. Of a three and a half day trip.
We woke up this morning and got ready quickly to enjoy our last few hours at the hotel. Last night when the kids were sleeping we tried to pack up what we could, knowing full well that we’d have a lot to do in the morning.
Today we decided to change things up and eat breakfast at The Beach Club restaurant (where we had lunch yesterday). It was basically the same buffet, except you had to order eggs (there was no egg station). Everything was delicious as usual. We ate outside which was nice, but we probably would have preferred inside because the sun was strong (even though we were in the shade). Today I took some yogurts for later and a banana and an apple, and I think Hallie took several boxes of fruit loops.
After breakfast we got the same chairs at the pool and hung around there for about two hours. We also went to the beach but the water had a jellyfish warning and it was very sea-weedy, which it hadn’t been the previous two days. It was also a bit rougher than the last couple of days.
Lunch was a bit of a mess between timing, naps, and food. I think we were also full from breakfast. We got seats at the Ocean House, next to the pool, and tried to order the minimum we could to still get Madeleine free food, so we ordered chips and guac and a humus and crudites, except the waiter was very confused by the whole thing for some reason and we just ended up with a side of veggies and no humus. The guac was good again though, as were the plantain chips. We tried to feed Madeleine mac and cheese, but she wouldn’t eat it; I think we just finally have to accept that the only Mac and Cheese she eats is Toddys.
After lunch Madeleine fell asleep in the stroller, we each took one last dip in the pool, and then we went back to the room to finish packing up. We were out of the room by 130 (our late check out time). The lobby was packed with people scrambling to leave. Right before we left we realized we forgot to leave money for housekeeping so I scrambled to find some cash and quickly handed a mess of bills to a man who said he would put it to our room. Hopefully he did.
The ride to the airport was fine, as was check-in. The airport is pretty small so everything was very fast. Thankfully our flight was only delayed 30 minutes this time. Because we booked so late we were only able to get a row of 3 and then one in front of us, so of course it was me and the children in one row, and Tzvi on the aisle in the row in front of us. When we got on the plane there were two people sitting in the row across from us – a woman on the aisle and a woman in the window. Tzvi asked the aisle woman if she would swap with him (aisle for aisle) but she said she couldn’t because she was with the woman in the window. Then someone came and set between them, and the aisle woman and the window woman never said a word to each other the entire flight. Tzvi was pretty pissed.
Anyway, Madeleine didn’t chill out the entire flight, which was fun. The TVs weren’t working for the first half, and once they started working she didn’t really want to sit and watch. It was long. At one point Madeleine sat feeding Tzvi Cheeze-Its.
Anyway, we made it back and got our luggage and went home!
Good trip?
The Breakers. Day 3. Dinner Was Good; Our Kids Were Not.
We woke up Saturday morning around the same time, got dressed and went to breakfast.
Same breakfast – same beautiful room and same great food – but today we looked out the window at pouring rain. They did say September is the rainiest month. Thankfully though the rain stopped by the time we finished eating, so we changed and headed out to the pool for the day.
We pretty much did the same thing until lunch time – same pool, almost the same seats, played in the sand and the ocean was great. For lunch we tried The Beach Club, other poolside restaurant. I should mention that the package we booked gives you free kids meals at any restaurant with a kids menu. For lunch, we ordered a tuna sandwich and a mahi mahi with veggies from the kids menu, but the tuna sandwich was really for me, and I ordered a margarita pizza, which was really for Hallie (except Hallie didn’t eat it because it turned out to be a thick focaccia pizza and she didn’t like it). Tzvi had fish tacos. Everything tasted great, but both kids were kind of losing it during the meal.
After lunch, Madeleine fell asleep in the stroller and I went for my massage. The spa was really nice. I came in, showered just to get sand off me, went in the steam room for about 3 minutes, and then waited in the ‘relaxation area.’ After a few minutes I asked someone what was happening because it was already 5 minutes late. Apparently they hadn’t checked me in when I arrived, and they had me under Harry Kaplan. Anyway, the massage was great. Before I left I took a seltzer, a Voss water, and a snack. Making sure I get my moneys worth obviously.
Tzvi: While Steph was being massaged, I took Hallie back to the pool, but we couldn’t go in because there had been lightning nearby. They said they have to close the pool for 30 minutes for every lightning strike within 6 miles. The lightning had been 4 miles away. So we sat by the pool reading Highlights and ordered some drinks. I got a Paloma and Hallie had a mixed berry smoothie. Eventually the pool reopened and Hallie swam for a while. Madeleine then woke up but took a while to acclimate and then when she was willing to go in the pool I realized I had left the swim diapers in the room and had to wait for Steph to come back from her massage, which was right about the time that Madeleine spilled Hallie’s smoothie, while Hallie was swimming in the pool and found a young mother who she started talking to and asking questions until we told Hallie she needed to leave her alone.
After my massage, there was only a little time until Tzvi had to go for his. We spent the next hour or so swimming and then playing in the sand. We survived.
Tzvi: At 4:00 I went to the Spa for my massage. It was very good, and like all massages went by too quickly. She spent a long time working on my left shoulder, which apparently is in bad shape from carrying Madeleine. The spa was very nice and had glass bottles of Pellegrino. I left just as Steph was walking by, which worked out nicely.
We went back to the room, showered and got dressed for dinner. Dinner tonight was at the Seafood Bar at the hotel. Yet another mess, and a reminder as to why we will never travel alone with our children again. As soon as we walked in, Hallie started complaining that her eyes were bothering her (probably because she put too much makeup on around her eyes), so Tzvi had to take her back to the room to get Benadryl.
Tzvi: She wouldn’t stop whining about her eyes, and I could tell she wasn’t that bothered by it because she would pause her whining to talk about things. After I gave her the Benadryl I asked if she was capable of stopping the whining and she said no, so I just laid down on the bed and told her we were skipping dinner. She didn’t like that idea too much and agreed to be good, so we went back to dinner. By the time we got there, Madeleine was almost done eating.
I ordered a dish of Parker House Rolls and zucchini chips, which came with a fantastic basil aioli and marinara sauce. For Madeleine we got shell pasta with tomato sauce, which she didn’t really eat, and a side of corn. By the time Tzvi got back we had pretty much had it, and couldn’t imagine doing another massive fish dinner, so I ordered a salad and Tzvi ordered raw tuna tostadas. Both were actually very good. We also shared a strawberry ginger mojito. The girls were pretty nuts and kept walking around. At the next table over was the same young mother from the pool that Hallie was talking to. Well, if we were worried that Hallie would annoy her again, we were worrying about the wrong thing. Her son was walking around and kept getting in Madeleine’s face, which Madeleine may have found funny, until the boy screamed and started spitting, which wasn’t so funny. Let’s hope he wasn’t sick.
We got out of dinner as quick as possible and went walking around the hotel. We walked through the shops and got Hallie some hard boiled eggs. Then we sat waiting for Shabbos to end. The girls ran around and Madeleine kept sticking her hands into a fountain.
We got back to the room just as Shabbos ended, packed a little, Hallie and Madeleine watched a little Peppa Pig (because it had been a whole 25 hours and they couldn’t wait until tomorrow), and then they went to bed, except they didn’t go to sleep.
After a few minutes I tried to sneak out, but they were both still up. Oh well. I walked down to the lobby and back to the shops. I bought Madeleine swim diapers because we ran out. At the ice cream store I bought a lot of nut free candy and a massive ice cream sundae with three flavors (caramel macchiato, birthday cake and key lime pie) and three toppings (cookie dough, brownie, oreos) and whipped cream. Then I made a stop at the bar where I got Tzvi a negroni. The hotel was really hopping and the bar was really nice. I guess this is where everyone goes to party in West Palm on a Saturday night. I was definitely out of place standing at the bar waiting for Tzvi’s drink, holding my ice cream sundae.
When I got back to the room, thankfully, both girls were sleeping. We sat on the bathroom floor and ate the ice cream, and Tzvi drank his drink. A negroni is a super bitter drink, which I find disgusting, but it’s Tzvi’s favorite cocktail. This one actually wasn’t the worst I’ve tried, and they had a really cool spherical ice cube with a whole flower frozen inside. Tzvi said it was a really good negroni.
We sat there for a while, then went to bed.
Better day?
The Breakers. Day 2. We're Not Broken, Just Bent.
We started the day nice and early. Hallie was up first, then Madeleine shortly after. Tzvi and I are sharing a double bed. I can’t wait to sleep again.
and so it begins…
We managed to make it out to breakfast by 8:30, but not before Hallie spent some time watching Peppa Pig on the TV inside the bathroom mirror.
Breakfast is included in our stay (yay!) and is in the Circle ballroom, which is a massive, round, gorgeous room. We ate our way through the entire buffet and all was delicious.
After breakfast we changed and went to the pool, where we stayed for most of the day. There are four pools - one adult pool and three family pools. We chose the zero entry pool so Madeleine could walk in and out. We also ended up purchasing a shovel and pail thing for the kids to play with. 24 dollars for a bucket, two shovels, and a watering can. Not awful. The kids had the best time in the pool and playing in the sand. The girls wouldn’t go in the ocean, but Tzvi and I took turns. The ocean was incredible - the water is about 86 degrees (which is where we keep our pool) and calm and clear. One of the best oceans I’ve ever swam in for sure. Also, there was a lifeguard, which was a plus. Even Tzvi loved the ocean, and he’s been afraid to go into the ocean since he “almost drowned” in Bermuda seven years ago.
Lunch was at the Ocean House, a poolside restaurant. It was a mess from the start. Madeleine was tired and didn’t eat her pasta. Hallie ordered grilled cheese “to try it,” but she never actually tried it. I think she had French Fries for lunch. Tzvi walked Madeleine around until she fell asleep. We ordered veggies with hummus, chips and guac, and shared a salad with salmon. All delicious.
Madeleine only slept for like 45 minutes, if that. Oy. We spent the afternoon by the pool and Hallie made some friends. It was a family with members coming from Florida and Rhode Island. Nice people.
I should mention that there’s so much for kids here. In the morning there were crafts by the pool, and Hallie made a message in a bottle and a bracelet with a seashell charm. In the afternoon I walked her to the Family Entertainment Center where they had a cool coloring thing where you could color a picture of a fish and then scan it, and then it would pop up on a big screen with a fish tank.
We headed back to the room around 4:15ish so I could go to the gym. We got back and Tzvi started bathing the girls. By the time I actually got to the gym it was almost time to turn around. I did a 10 minute run (fine, jog) because I saw the Woodway treadmills and had to try it. Then a little weights. They had like 5 peloton bikes, but hey, I could do that at home. The gym was gorgeous and they had nice water bottles and disposable headphones.
When I got back to the room I opened the door to complete chaos. Tzvi had a massive work emergency and Madeleine was being cranky. Thankfully, Peppa Pig was there to entertain Hallie. I just walked out with Madeleine and the stroller. She fell asleep eventually, but then we had to shower and get ready for dinner. Somehow we were only 15 minute late for our dinner reservation.
Tzvi: Things had been going great. I had about 20 minutes of work I needed to get done before shabbos, and after bathing both girls I managed to get both of them to sit watching Peppa Pig long enough for me to finish my work. Then, at 5:30, just as I was starting to play with Madeleine, I got an email. A junior associate had made a catastrophic mistake, which I then needed to spend the next 90 minutes dealing with, right up to the start of shabbos. It really put a damper on the evening.
Dinner was big Italian mess tonight. We ate at The Italian Restaurant (that’s the name of it), which was located inside the family entertainment center. The girls were nuts from the start. The food was decent -Hallie got pizza (again), Madeleine got rigatoni a’la vodka (which she wouldn’t touch, but Tzvi ate almost all of), I got pasta with marina and veggies and Tzvi got cheese torteloni with a mushroom cream sauce. They also gave us a garlic bread and some tomato bread. I think we also had Brussel Sprouts. Who can remember. The night ended with us sitting outside at movie night watching Toy Story 2. They had free movie snacks which was really cute. They had s’mores, but the marshmallows were a no go, so that was sad.
Eventually we walked back to the room and the girls went to bed. Then we sat on the bathroom floor eating the leftover chocolate cake from Thursday’s dinner and trying to remember why we had children.
Good day?
The Breakers. Day 1. They Said It Would Be Easy.
It’ll be easy, they said. It’s only two and a half hours, they said. There’s nothing to worry about, they said.
They were wrong.
And to be clear, “they” refers only to my husband.
We left the house around 10am, made it to the airport quick, found no line at check-in, no line at bag drop, no line at security (with pre-check) and no line at the bagel place. It was smooth sailing. The flight was scheduled to depart at 12pm, and by 12pm we were on the plane with the doors closed.
Then it began. First the pilot came on to say that due to weather we were being re-routed and it was going to take some time to reprogram the flight path and load extra fuel. Then they came on to say we were being rerouted again, and while we had enough fuel, it would be a little while longer before they reprogrammed the flight path (again).
By the time we took off it was 1:30pm, a full 90 minutes late. By then, Madeleine was pretty much done.
Let’s just say the flight was long. Hallie did great, watching Peppa Pig the entire time. She did keep asking for food every ten seconds, and Tzvi just kept feeding her. Madeleine fell asleep during take off, which gave us ho. e, but then she woke up about ten minutes later. She didn’t really cry, which was good, but she was pretty restless and wouldn’t sit in her seat. She also wouldn’t go to Tzvi, because apparently she’s entered a total mommy phase. It was pretty rough. Had we taken off on time i think the flight would’ve been okay, but the delay really killed us.
It took a while to get off the plane. We were seated in the second to last row, because that was all that was left when we booked this trip six days ago. I think this was the most last minute trip we’ve ever booked. Very unlike us. Anyway, by the time we got to baggage claim all of the bags had come out and ours were just sitting there. Oh, and it was pouring rain outside.
The Uber was about fifteen minutes and then we arrived at the Breakers. The approach is really beautiful, and then you enter the hotel. Luxury cars lined up as you pull in, the bellman swiftly take your luggage (that ends up in the room before you even get there), and you head to check in, not to mention that this place is basically a palace - the halls are massive and the ceilings are all so ornate and beautiful. We got our room, the girls got coloring books, and we headed upstairs, but not before an Israeli family asked some questions nearby. Our room is beautiful and spacious.
Once we were in the room it was basically a race to the finish, the finish being our dinner reservation. We had to get everyone showered and dressed in about 1.5 hours. We bathed Madeleine, then Tzvi showered, then Hallie bathed, and then Tzvi took Madeleine for a walk in the stroller to try and get her to finally nap. She did, and Hallie watched more Peppa Pig while I rushed to get ready.
Dinner tonight was at Flaggler Steakhouse on the second floor of the golf course club house. While the experience of being with my family was rated one star, the actual dinner was five stars. Hallie and I showed up to find Tzvi sitting alone sipping a cocktail while Madeleine was asleep in the stroller. Nice that he gets to enjoy himself. I ordered a delicious drink with gin and lavender (which thankfully did not taste like soap). To start I had a Kale Salad and Tzvi had an iceberg salad with blue cheese dressing. There was also fantastic warm bread. For the main I had blackened Tuna that came with mashed potatoes and asparagus. It was amazing, the tuna actually had that “steak” feel. It was this really thick piece, but they cooked it for me because I don’t like raw fish. Tzvi had chilean sea bass with a corn and chile sauce, which he loved. The girls had pizza and corn and fries. Madeleine woke up about 20 minutes after we sat down and was a mess. She calmed down eventually and kept walking around the restaurant, dragging bags from the stroller and my purse, unpacking and packing blankets. Meanwhile, Hallie watched more Peppa Pig. For dessert, the girls got brownie ice cream sundaes with M and Ms and chocolate sauce. Tzvi and I shared a massive chocolate cake and a key lime pie. Both were so good. The whole meal was so good. It was such a nice place and had a real “American steakhouse” feel. Tzvi kept telling me that no matter how crazy the girls were, this was still better than being home. I’m going to need to adjust to that notion.
After dinner we took the shuttle back to the hotel (its a few blocks, but still hotel property) and headed upstairs, but not before asking an Israeli couple in the lobby (they’re everywhere!) to take our photo.
We got the girls in bed - Madeleine went straight into the crib but Hallie hid under the covers - you guessed it - watching more Peppa Pig. The whole process took too long, but eventually Hallie went to sleep and now we’re sitting on the bathroom floor.
I love traveling with kids.