[gcbdad]

We had a little storm come through the Tampa Bay area this past Friday afternoon and when it passed the weather changed considerably. The temperatures dropped and the humidity was mostly gone. We actually got to turn off our air conditioning on Friday and didn't turn it back on until yesterday. Anyway I digress.
I went to get the oil changed on Saturday morning. While I was waiting DW called me on the Cell and said "why don't we go to WDW for the day." Of course you never have to say that twice to me. The temperatures were supposed to be in the 70's and clear so why not take advantage of the beautiful weather. We quickly packed up the kids and we were off. Now we were just at the MK a few weeks ago so we decided to go to MGM. DS loves Star Wars and he really wanted to see the Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular which we missed over the summer. By the time we were all situated it was 10:20 so we headed out. Traffic wasn't that bad and we made it to the gates of MGM and were walking though the turnstiles at 11:45. We grabbed our maps and made a quick stop to change the baby and were off. There was a 12:00 show time but we didn't want to rush to it so we grabbed Fast Passes for the 1:15 show and decided to grab a bite to eat a the Backlot Counter Service. DW loves the Grilled Vegetable sandwich and I love the Turkey sandwich. The kids got the usual Kids chicken nuggets. We had a casual lunch and then headed next door to see Indiana Jones. This was out first time to see this show so I wasn't sure what to expect. We got seats down low and DW and I flanked the kids with DS siting next to me. We all loved the show. DS was at awe with all of the stunts. When the show was over we headed to Star Tours. DW, DD8 and DS decided to ride while DS6, the baby and myself hung out in the store that you go through when the ride is over. We checked out all of the Star Wars stuff and before you knew it the family was off the ride and telling me how cool it was. It was now around 2:30 so we headed over towards Beauty and the Beast.

[Now would be a good time to tell everyone that our wonderful idea of going to WDW on such a beautiful day was shared by many. The park was packed.]

As we arrived at Beauty and the Beast the line to get in was ridiculous. The family went into the store nearby and I went to chek on FastPass times for RNRC and TOT. Both had times that would meant a 3 hour wait. We talked it over and really didn't want to see anything else and DW really wanted to go to EPCOT so we hopped on the tram to our van and headed to EPCOT. As we walked in we noticed the crowd situation was the same as at MGM but we were just taking our time so it was not big deal. The 3 older kids and I walked right onto Spaceship Earth, but as soon as we got on and started upwards the ride broke down for 5 to 10 minutes. Once it started we enjoyed the rest of the ride then met up with DW and the baby at the Pin Trading Station. We were going to go right to the World Showcase but we stopped at Ice Station Cool. I was a little disappointed because at least half of the drink dispensers were out of order. As we headed out DW said that she needed to go feed the baby at the baby station. I took DD8 and DS and we headed towards the Wonders of Life but as we arrived we noticed that it was closed down. Since we were right there we decided instead to go on the Universe of Energy. Last year we tried to go on this attraction and it broke down while we were in the beginning viewing area. We got on the ride and about 2/3 through the ride broke down. We sat for 20 minutes with a cast member asking us trivia questions. I answered several of the questions and was the only one to get this question.
Question: How many bricks did it take to make Cinderella's Castle?
Answer: None.
There are no bricks involved. Who says that the shows on the Travel Channel wouldn't come in handy someday.
Anyway, after 20 minutes they finally came and opened up the doors to the cars and we all walked off. Funny thing as we waled off we ran into soem of our neighbors who were enjoying the weather as well. We got on our walkie talkie and hooked up with DW at the United Kingdom in the World Showcase.
We went inside the stores and DS6 had to make her 100th mask. Actually probably only 5th but it seems like more. We then went through France, Morocco and Japan, stopping to get the Masks stammped and ended up in the American Adventure. There was a concert of Taylor Dayne going on and it was pretty good. We then continued to Italy for a stamp then decided we were hungry. DW and DD8 walked back to Japan to get Sushi and I took the other kids to the American Adventure for the usual. We all met up and ate while listening to Taylor Dayne.
After Dinner we walked on and stopped in Italy and gave DW and chance to say hello to the friends I had run into earlier in the day. They were trying to get into Alfredo's without a PS but it wasn't going to work so they headed towards Morocco and we walked towards Norway to let the kids play on the big boat. DS8 and I rode the little ride in Norway and then met up with the rest at the play area. I had promised the kids that we coudl have ice cream earlier so we walked around to a cart at the entrance to the World Showcase and the kids got to enjoy one last treat. It was not 8:10 and the kids were tired so we decided to forgo the fireworks and try and get a little headstart on the traffic coming back to Tampa on I-4. As I expected it was a parking lot for the first 5 miles then it thinned out and we made it home around 9:45. All in all it was a great day. The weather was beautiful and although it was crowded it wasn't too bad.
I love living so close to WDW and I know we wil be back soon.

[Dana]

I alwasy look forward to your day trip reports. Thanks for sharing your day with us.

[llama]

Thank you for the report. You certainly are fortunate to live so close to the Magic!

[DisneyFreak78]

Everyone loves a day trip to Disney. I unfortunately don't live close enough to make a day trip out of it but I did have a pre-planned trip to Disney this past weekend. I think the Disney Gods knew that I was coming and made the weather a perfect temperature for me. The weather was beautiful and it was crowded, but a lovely day non the less. I am new to the site and love seeing everyone as passionate about Disney as myself.

[roxie]

How nice for you! Glad you had a good trip.
(Is it just me, or does SE always break down for 5 or 10 minutes? )

[Jen]

Originally Posted by DisneyFreak78

Everyone loves a day trip to Disney. I unfortunately don't live close enough to make a day trip out of it but I did have a pre-planned trip to Disney this past weekend. I think the Disney Gods knew that I was coming and made the weather a perfect temperature for me. The weather was beautiful and it was crowded, but a lovely day non the less. I am new to the site and love seeing everyone as passionate about Disney as myself.

Welcome! Glad to have you here!

Jen

[fearless1123]

Originally Posted by aecox

How nice for you! Glad you had a good trip.
(Is it just me, or does SE always break down for 5 or 10 minutes? )

It's not you!

[llama]

Originally Posted by aecox

How nice for you! Glad you had a good trip.
(Is it just me, or does SE always break down for 5 or 10 minutes? )

Gosh, you know of all the rides we've been on that have broken down, I don't think I've ever been on SE when it has. Test Track is the one that we always seem to have bad luck on.

[tinkerbell]

Originally Posted by llama

Gosh, you know of all the rides we've been on that have broken down, I don't think I've ever been on SE when it has. Test Track is the one that we always seem to have bad luck on.

yep thats us ..always Test Track :(

and gcbdad, in June of this year Ellen's Universe of Energy Broke down on us twice.. the first time it had ever happened on that ride.

but it sounds like your day was still magic :)