Disney World. October 2021. Day 5. Well the trip is basically over now.
Well, here it is, the last park day.
It feels like this is it for the trip, though Tzvi keeps saying we have a whole weekend left. Anyway, today is Hollywood Studios day! We woke up to some gloomy weather, but that certainly wasn’t going to stop us!
I was up early again to get a lightning lane, so I booked us all for Toy Story around 11:30am. At 9am sharp I booked Rise of the Resistance and even then the earliest time I could get was 3:45pm. Crazy. After another room service breakfast we headed out. The uber drop off is pretty far away, so it was a walk to get into the main entrance. As we walked in we passed the skyliner, which is a fairly new transportation system that takes you between Hollywood studios and Epcot and a few of the resorts. We’ve never ridden them and they don’t have air conditioning.
Well, we made it through security just in time for it to start raining! We scanned our tickets and made a dash for the stores. It was a little chaotic and Hallie kept whining that she needed to buy her Elsa doll right this minute. We said no, and headed over to the Frozen singalong. We had to wait for the first show, but at least you’re in a covered area. The show was good, a few updates from last time including multiple reminders to keep your “face coverings” on when singing.
Our next ride was the new Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway, which is in the Chinese Theater where the Great Movie Ride used to be. The ride is totally redone and really great, I wasn’t expecting it at all. Madeleine was pretty scared, which took away some of the enjoyment, but we all survived. Like the new Ratatouille ride, this one is a “trackless ride” – it uses automated guided vehicles without any guide rails and are guided by wifi and GPS. It’s pretty different from the classic Disney rides that just roll along on a track. The ride also had portions where you enter a room and are in front of a massive screen that basically makes you feel like you’re in the scene you’re watching. It’s kind of hard to explain, but it’s sort of like Soaring (the Ratatouille ride had the same thing too).
From there we were off to Toy Story Land, which is always great. I knew Madeleine wouldn’t enjoy Midway Mania so I sent everyone else on while she and I walked around, except it started raining again. We were also kind of late for our lunch reservation, so I started walking there with her, except the woman who directed me gave me horrible directions so I had to walk totally out of the way. The rest of the family met me at the restaurant only a few minutes behind.
For lunch we ate at the 50s Prime Time Cafe. I think it’s supposed to be like you’re sitting in an old 1950s house and there are TVs everywhere showing 50s shows and the waiters are very in character, by which I mean they’re kind of rude to you. Anyway, I think we were all so hungry and cranky that we couldn’t really appreciate it. We all had Caesar Salad with salmon and we also shared an appetizer of onion rings (there wasn’t much on the menu for us). Madeliene didn’t eat her mac and cheese and Hallie just had French Fries. Balanced meals.
Because we were late we ended up missing our lightning lane for the Slinky Dog Dash. Tzvi was pretty depressed about this so after lunch he and I decided to run over and see if they would let us in. We started walking in one direction and my mom stared pushing the stroller in the other direction, but as soon as Hallie realized we were leaving her she jumped out of the stroller and fell down and hit her head on a railing (she was fine but a cast member who saw her went and got her some ice). Then she had a temper tantrum and I just walked away. Tzvi stayed to try and calm her down but that didn’t work, so eventually he left too. When we got to Slinky Dog I told them our lunch took a long time and they actually let us on the ride. Great ride.
From there we walked to Tower of Terror. Tzvi, Robyn and I rode first. Then we came back and my parents rode. We left them and of course it started to rain. Hallie was also still in a mood. We were just sitting under an umbrella when Hallie came to me and said she needed some “mommy time” without anyone else. She was right. Pretty self-aware. So she and I left everyone else and went to ride Toy Story and then the Alien Saucers in Toy Story Land.
Just before we separated it started to pour. Tzvi sat with sleeping Madeleine under a stroller until eventually my parents came to meet him. They were upset because I hadn’t booked them lightening lanes for Rock n Roller Coaster, except they weren’t eligible for it, and Tzvi was upset because he was sitting and waiting for them to come meet him and they were trying to get on a ride they couldn’t actually ride. Let’s just say tensions were high. Glad I missed that.
Tzvi and my parents and Madeleine went out to Galaxy’s Edge (Star Wars land). They were 45 minutes late for our reservation at Oga’s Cantina, the new bar that’s supposed to be like the bar in the Star Wars movies. They said they would need to wait a little because they were late, but the wait ended up being 45 minutes and by the time the table was ready Hallie and I were there to meet them. Well, the wait was not worth it. The bar is cool, but not 45 minutes wait cool. We had thought it would be really big and there would be multiple rooms to explore, but it was just one big room and we got a high-top without any stools, so we just had to stand there. The drinks were okay. Hallie had a good juice.
After that we went on Rise of the Resistance, the new Star Wars ride. I think that was probably the best ride of the whole trip. [Spoiler alert: If you don’t want the ride ruined for you and want to be surprised by it, skip the rest of this paragraph]. First, you go through an indoor part then are led back outside, where you’re loaded into a transport ship that’s supposed to be taking you to the rebel base (or something like that), except of course you get captured and stuck in a tractor beam. At first we were confused, because the ship is actually moving, but you’re not strapped in or anything – you’re just standing there. When the doors to the ship open, you find that you’re inside the hangar of an enemy First Order ship filled with stormtroopers (I guess the transport ship is an elevator?). From there you’re led into the next room, where you line up for the next part of the ride, but the cast members are totally in character and do a really great job. One came up to me and asked what was on my head (my Minnie Mouse ears). I said “ears.” She said “what kind of species has two sets of ears?” I said, “a Stephanie species.” She walked away and said “there is no such speices.” From there you’re led to a prison cell where the wall is then cut open and cast members who are rebel troops free you. Then the ride actually starts and you go through a whole trackless dark ride. I’d say it was the most immersive ride I’ve ever been on and was awesome.
After that Tzvi took the girls, and Robyn and I rode Rockin Roller coaster. It was great, but shakey. The guitar is covered up so I wonder if the rumors of a rebranding are true. Guess we’ll see. When we met Tzvi, Hallie had purchased her Elsa doll and Madeleine had a Chewbacca doll (and not a particularly cute one). Interesting choice. Apparently she latched onto it. Hallie also bough a snuggie. We don’t know why – she’s seen it in a few stores over the last few days and keeps asking for it, so Tzvi got it for her. It’s cute – a black blanket with Mickey heads – but we don’t know why she loves it so much.
We left the park and headed back to the hotel. Hallie asked why we were leaving so early (it was 5:30). Guess she’s gotten used to the late nights.
Anyway, today was date night. We got back to the hotel, showered, and got ready to head out to… Disney Springs once again!
Tonight’s dinner was at Morimoto. When we got to Disney Springs we had some time to spare so we walked around and shopped a little. Then we made it for our reservation. When we got in I requested a table upstairs and they said they were full. I asked if that was something I could have requested earlier and they didn’t really give me an answer. Then they brought us to a table that Tzvi didn’t like (it wasn’t a great table) and we asked if we could have a booth instead. Thankfully they said yes and that was actually very nice. It was weird – we had this reservation for months and they were almost acting like we were walk ins.
For dinner we shared edamame, a miso soup, a stir fried tofu medley and a kung pao cauliflower. Tzvi also had the Morimoto “buri-bop” (Korean-style yellowtail rice bowl served in a hot clay pot, finished with egg yolk) and a spicy tuna roll. So yeah, we had way too much food as usual.
I was so nauseous after dinner. Maybe it was all the salt? There was nothing we wanted on the dessert menu, so we decided to leave. We had originally planned to go the tiki bar at the Polynesia hotel, but when we called the Polynesian to try to find out about the wait, we were told that the only way into the Polynesian is with a dining reservation and the bar doesn’t take reservations, so basically the only way we could get there would be to take an Uber to the transportation and ticket center and then take a monorail over, and then there was no way to know if there was a two hour long wait for the bar or not. So we decided to forgo that and instead went to Paddlefish, another Disney Springs restaurant which is on a huge boat. We’ve never been there so it was cool to see. They seemed to be closing up, but still sat us for dessert. Our waiter seemed like a freshman in college and didn’t know much about the menu, but he was nice. We got a key lime pie and a cookie Sundae. Both were pretty good. Things were closing up after that so we went back to the hotel and went to bed.
Good day.
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?