We got up this morning around 6:30 a.m. to start getting ready to leave. We had to throw the last few items into our luggage and get out that door! We stalled out a little bit when Vavu’s keys went missing. We never did find them....hope they turn up! We planned to go out to breakfast with Uncle Howie at IHOP before continuing on to the airport, but it was SOOO crowded with those crazy Black Friday shoppers, we couldn’t afford to wait! So we went to the Atlanta Bread Company next door. They made a pretty darn good breakfast sandwich!
Atlanta Bread Company
We got to the airport on time. It was a really small airport. Something we didn’t notice when we arrived to Arkansas for the first time, because it was late and dark and we were tired. But there were like seriously only like 3 gates.
There was a little play area next to our gate (again, with only a handful of gates to choose from, it had to be close) that the kids really enjoyed. It was a little plastic castle that the kids walked into and had fun opening and closing the doors and windows. Andrew went inside with them and they pretended he was a dragon. He’d pop in through the window and they’d try to chase him out. It was really cute.
Castle at the Airport
Maria bought a Razorback sticker for her scrapbook in the “Best of Arkansas” store, along with a couple Sprite Zeros for the wait. Aiden dropped his cup full of Sprite Zero and it fell open and spilled all over the floor at the waiting area for our gate. He felt so bad. He had been watching the planes out the window and got distracted.
The flight from Arkansas to Dallas was short and sweet. Maria sat with Aiden and they played with his sticker book. Andrew sat with Jeremy and they colored with the crayons. It was all good. Vavo and Vavu had seats in the row right behind us. It was a small plane, so the seats were only 4 total across.
We had to deplane and transfer in Dallas. This was very exciting for Aiden, as it meant he got to ride on the little monorail between terminals again, and use the escalator. The kids did a really good job keeping up as we made our way between terminals. They are such little travelers now!
We grabbed a quick snack and then boarded our final flight, headed to Orlando. The flight was pretty uneventful right up until the end. Aiden watched a movie, Maria and Jeremy both fell asleep. It was all pretty smooth. Then we landed. The pilot came over the speaker and said that there was a medical emergency on board and that any medical professionals on board should identify themselves with the call button. He then stated that once we pulled into the gate, we would be boarded by paramedics and should remain in our seats. We pulled up to the gate pretty fast. There were ambulances driving up to the plane as we got there, and 6 or 7 paramedics started approaching the plane. The flight attendant opened the emergency exit door, and the paramedics came on board. A man in first class needed assistance. They went up to him and were up there for a bit. They removed him from the plane, then we were all allowed to deplane. Maria saw the man later as she left the gate. He was in a wheelchair and hooked up to oxygen, so at least he didn’t need to be rushed out in the ambulance. We hope he’s okay!
Once we got to the baggage claim, we met up with Jake and Laura. The kids were really excited to see them (so were we)! They ran right up to them and gave hugs. Jake and Laura helped us gather our 12 bags off the luggage carousel, and we all headed outside – our 12 checked bags, our carryons, and the Masons luggage. It was quite a massive amount! Then Jake, Andrew and Vavo took the Enterprise shuttle to go pick up the rental cars. Vavu, Laura, Maria, Aiden and Jeremy waited at the passenger pickup area with the luggage. Once in our vehicles, we headed for the rental home. By now it was already 8 p.m.
Luggage Pile: This picture doesn't even do our hugemungo pile of luggage justice.
We arrived at the rental house around 8:30. The area wasn’t quite as upscale as our expectations were. But the house really suits our needs, and is definitely better than living in a hotel room for a month! We have plenty of bedrooms and bathrooms, and even a game room. So there’s enough space for everyone.
After dropping of our massive amount of luggage, we left to find dinner. We were all pretty hungry. We originally planned to go to Downtown Disney to Bongo’s Cuban Cafe for our first night. But at Jake’s suggestion, Maria called ahead and discovered that the wait was an hour – and we just couldn’t wait that long. Especially not with the children practically begging for food and drink at this point. So we used Vavo and Vavu’s GPS to locate nearby restaurants. We tried calling ahead to the Outback, but it also had a really long wait. So we decided that we needed a buffet so we could be seated and eat immediately. We finally ended up at the Golden Corral.
Finally eating dinner at the Golden Corral
We got back home and it was already almost 11 p.m. We have a character breakfast scheduled tomorrow for the Animal Kingdom, so it’s time to get off to bed. The clothes are unpacked, the kids are asleep, and it’s time to shut down the computer!
Looking forward to talking to you all tomorrow night, after our first day inside the parks – at the Animal Kingdom!
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The best part of day 12 was seeing DisneyWorld from the freeway as we drove to our house, finally getting to Orlando, and knowing that in less than 10 hours, we will be in the parks at Walt Disney World!
The worst part of day 12 was hauling luggage, waiting a long time to eat dinner, waiting in general.
What we learned on day 12 was if you are resolved, you can find an abandoned luggage cart at the airport and aviod having to pay for one. There are bugs in Florida. It’s crowded in restaurants on the Friday after Thanksgiving in a resort town.
The weather on day 12 was HECKA cold in Arkansas (20s), cold in Texas (40s), and nice and normal in Florida (low 70s).
2 comments:
Wow, that sucks about not having any place to eat. Good thinking with the buffet!
Wow I'm tired just from reading about your day :) lol you guys sure had a long and eventful day! YEAH vacation home :) glad you all arrived safe and sound.
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