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Old 3 Mar 21, 05:50 PM  
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Another Birthday Trip, Oct 2019 - Day 15, Disney Springs, Longhorns, Florida Mall and Home Time

The previous day is HERE.

Thursday 17 October 2019

It was travel home day, the day no one wants to come when you are on holiday.

I woke at 6.25am and got up soon after. We all had showers, got dressed and put suncream on. I did the girls hair so it was out of the way for travelling.

I packed up the last bits that couldn't be done until now and we got all of our luggage together. Unsurprisingly, we were going back with more than we had come with!

(As Mum and Dad were taking one of our cases again (they wouldn't all fit in our car back home), we were going to pay for them to add on our extra case but as they had upgraded to premium, they were just able to take it for us as part of their allowance.)

Between us, we all tidied up the house, made sure we hadn't left anything and put back some of the bits we had moved around. We emptied the fridge of the last few bits that were in there and did a rubbish run.

We had all four cars outside and all the cases and bags had been loaded into the relevant cars.

When we were almost done, Phil went round and took photos of everywhere inside

Hall and part of the kitchen and dining area

View from the front door

Kitchen and separate dining area


The living area

The pool and decking area



Games room

The washer and dryer was also in here, to the left of the picture. As a side note, the washing machine was brilliant. It knew how long the cycle needed to be partly based on the weight of the load.

One of the double bedrooms downstairs, its en suite and closet



The other double bedroom downstairs and en suite (this also had the large closet)


The family bedroom and en suite


You could also access this bathroom from the hallway.


CONTINUED IN NEXT POST
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Edited at 06:48 PM.
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Old 3 Mar 21, 06:07 PM  
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CONTINUED FROM PREVIOUS POST

Upstairs in the princess bedroom


This also had an en suite but I don't have a good photo. It's the same as the next bathroom, but princess themed.

Mickey Mouse themed bedroom and en suite


House number

This had been a great house. Yes, Phil and I had the Mickey Mouse room which isn't ideal but for four nights, it was fine. There was plenty of space for us all and having 5 full bathrooms made it so easy. The location was perfect. We were really close to a Walmart and the 192, and Sherberth Road was minutes away, making access to Disney property really easy. I would definitely stay here again.

We were all done by now so went outside for a couple of quick photos


We had to be out by 10am for the cleaners and it was 9.50am when we were all in our cars and leaving.

We went to Walmart to fill the car again. I went in and paid $30 but the pump wouldn’t work. I went back in and told them and they re-set it for us and said to try again. It still didn't work so the guy came out and told us to move to the pump behind and that did work. The $30 just about filled the tank.

At 10.05 we were on our way to Disney Springs, to go and do the Virgin check in down near Cirque du Soleil. We drove to the Watermelon car park and parked just before 10.30am.

We unloaded everything from the car and managed to get it all over to the check in desk between the four of us. At this time, there was no one in line so we were seen immediately. It cost $10 for each of us to do this. Thankfully all of the cases were underweight, so no moving stuff around. We had the same seats we had already chosen and were all checked in and the luggage gone in less than 10 minutes.

This is definitely worth the money for me.

We were back at the car by 10.45am. We put the back seats back up and drove to the Lime garage, parking on level 2, row 8, opposite Dan and Dave's car.

Madison and I look rather confused here!

I didn't realise how close an entrance to World of Disney was to here

If I remember correctly, there were a few occasions we definitely took the long walk here, not realising!

Kaley was in the mood for photos




Madison wanted to get herself a chocolate chip with peppermint frappucino, $6.13, from Starbucks so I took her to get one whilst Phil took a photo of him and Kaley

Madison's drink

Kaley then decided she was hungry and would like a blueberry muffin, $3.15, so we joined the line again and got one, along with an iced water
We went to Arribas Brothers to pick up the personalised frame we had ordered the last time we were here

We next went to Marketplace Co Op where Phil bought some more of the postcards and Madison ordered herself a personalised phone case. They said to come back in about 30 minutes for this.

We quickly nipped into Ghirardelli's for a free chocolate square

And then on to World of Disney

Phil bought himself two parks t-shirts for $22 each plus tax, on offer if buying two or more, otherwise they were $24.99 individually.

Kaley had also decided she wanted to get herself a Loungefly bag and chose this one, $75 plus tax, along with a Marie key ring, $9.99 plus tax, which you can just about see in the pic

Madison then had the same pic taken


CONTINUED IN NEXT POST
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Old 3 Mar 21, 06:14 PM  
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CONTINUED FROM PREVIOUS POST

I also bought the girls some ear rings to put away for Christmas presents, $19.99 each plus tax

Finished with our last-minute spending spree, we left the shop and went back to Marketplace Co Op to pick up Madison's phone case

Phil had some money left on his gift card so got a dole whip float to share

We saw Dan, Dave and Cole when we had this so went and talked to them for a bit. While we were talking, Mum and Dad came over too, as did Ryan, Bethany, Piper and Cody.

My Dad had struggled with his back for most of the holiday so my Mum had swapped their flights. They were now on the earlier BA flight and were flying Premium instead. Dan and co and Ryan and co were still on the later flight and had received notifications that their flight was delayed by 2 hours and 10 minutes. Not what any of them needed with having young kids.

We were finished with our shopping here now so said our goodbyes. We first went to the Welcome Centre to pick up some more maps (I always make sure I have loads to bring home), then went to Characters in Flight (is it still called that?).

Kaley and Phil wanted to go on. Phil went and paid, $20 for him and $10 for Kaley.

Ready to go



Views of DS


Saratoga Springs

Happy girl

More views




All finished

They really enjoyed this and Kaley was happy that she had gone on it.

I think this part of DS is so pretty

We had done everything we wanted to at DS so headed back to the car


We were driving out of the car park just after 1.10pm.


CONTINUED IN NEXT POST
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Old 3 Mar 21, 06:21 PM  
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At just after 1.20pm, we pulled up at the Longhorn Steakhouse on Vineland

It was lovely and quiet and we were seated immediately. Our server was Chris and he was very good. We ordered four Coke Zero's, $2.99 each for Phil and I, included for the girls with their meals, while we looked at the menu


Looking through the appetiser menu, I saw this Cowboy Queso, all the flavours of your favourite cheeseburger but in a queso. Grilled ground beef with tomatoes, pickles, onion and mustard in a creamy four-cheese sauce. Served with flatbread, $8.99. It sounded good so we ordered it

Our drinks had already been brought to us and they were quickly followed with bread, which was really good

And the Cowboy Queso

This was amazing! It was so tasty and flavourful and delicious; we all loved it. I would have to say that this was the best thing I ate all holiday.

For our mains, Kaley had Chicken Tenders and fries, $6.49

This was really good, the chicken tenders were very tasty, the batter on them was really good. It was a really big portion but she managed to eat a fair bit of it.

Madison had Sirloin with Fries, $8.49

She really enjoyed this and ate all of the steak and most of the chips.

Phil had the 12oz New York Strip, $20.49. He chose fries as his side

He really enjoyed this too, the steak was very tasty.

I had the 8oz Flo's Filet, $23.99. I had mashed potatoes as my side

This was delicious, the steak was so tender and flavourful and the mash was really good. The one downside to the QS dining plan was the lack of steak dinners we had. This had ended up being a fantastic last meal of the holiday.

The total for our meals was $79.27, with the tip being $14.27. I think this was very reasonable for what we had ordered and the food was all really good. This was another place we hadn't been to before and we were really glad we had came. We will definitely come again on another trip.

We were in and out of here in just under an hour but we hadn't felt rushed in any way. It must have been about 2.15 - 2.20pm by now. One of our ideas for today had been to go to the Boardwalk to hire a boat but we had left the house a lot later, and been at DS a lot longer than we thought we would, so we decided not to.

Phil wanted to have a look at the big wheel (I'm sure it has a proper name but I don't know what it is! ) at Icon Park so we went there, it wasn't far and we got there about 2.40pm.

It is so tall!

Phil took a few photos here then we went inside


And walked through to the other side. I don't have pictures but it was a lovely area outside, there were places to eat and a few shops I think. They also had the Star Flyer here

After watching for a while, Kaley said she would go on this. There was no way I was going on it and rides like this are the only thing Phil won't go on. He doesn't like that the seats are attached by chains.

We wandered around for another 20 minutes or so. It was another really hot and bright day. Finished looking around, we went back to the car

With still a bit of time before we needed to get to the airport, we went back to Florida Mall, getting there at 3.20pm. We parked near Dillards again, nothing to do with it being so close to Bath and Body Works! We had a look around Macy's and Yankee Candle, before making our way back to BaBW

I bought a soap holder, a car vent clip and some car fragrance refills, spending $45.80 including tax

I'm really glad I got these as the smell in the car from them is lovely and strong and they last for ages.

We left and stopped at the RaceTrac just after the mall, on Sand Lake Road, to top up the petrol. I went in and pre-paid $7 and it only took $4.15 to fill the tank


CONTINUED IN NEXT POST
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MY TRIP AND DINING REPORTS - July 2023 Ten (Not So) Little Ones Take the Adults ~~ Onsite/Offsite Dining Report - July 2023 - 4 people - £168 budget per day plus tips ~~ Another Birthday Trip, October 2019 ~~ The Land, Sea and Wedding Trip Report, October 2015 ~~. Sept / Oct 2013 Five Little Ones Take the Adults
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Old 3 Mar 21, 06:35 PM  
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It was 4.35pm now. I had wanted to be at the airport for around 5pm (I'm weird, I like being at the airport) so we started the drive there. Almost immediately, we were in standstill traffic. Thankfully it didn't take long to start moving and the drive there was quick and uneventful. We drove to the garage and had unloaded the car of the hand luggage, handed over the keys and got our $0 receipt by 5pm.

We went and found some seats in our normal waiting area, near to where the moving walkways used to be. Madison, Kaley and I went for a wander round the shops then came back to get our stuff to go and get changed for the flight.

Playing on Madison's phone while we were waiting


I had heard lots of good things about the honey sesame chicken and orange chicken at Panda Express so went over there

They didn't have either so I couldn't get one to try. In fairness, I wasn't hungry, I had just wanted to see what it was like.

I went back to where Phil and the girls were and had one final check through that the hand luggage was packed how we wanted it, one of the cases with the stuff we wouldn't need at all and the other with the stuff we would use during the flight. We had the small bag with liquids out already.

Madison and Kaley didn't want to be leaving

At 6.15pm, we made our way to security. It took about 20 minutes to get through this. We used the time in line to get out all the electronics, taking our shoes off, etc. so that we were ready when it was our turn.

On the monorail to gate 81

We walked to the gate and got ourselves some seats.

Our plane was Barbarella


I went to Starbucks to get us some drinks but the line was too long, so I left it. I wish it hadn't been so long as I had decided that I wanted the Orlando and Florida mugs so was going to get them. Oh well, I’ll get them next time.

Instead I went to Stellar News and got some water, Sprite Zero, Coke Zero and a couple of tubs of Pringles, total cost $15.95.

I walked back to the gate and they were announcing that we didn't yet have a boarding time. Our boarding time should have been 7.05pm. We waited and listened for an update and it turned out that we couldn't board as there was a technical problem with the jetway door.

They updated us again at 7.20pm to say that it was fixed and boarding would begin shortly, which it did between 5 and 10 minutes later.

They started with special assistance, then upper class, premium, the bubble (I think), then economy from the back of the plane. We were on row 32 so it was about 7.45pm when those from row 30 and up could board.

We were on board and had got out what we needed and settled in our seats by 7.55pm. (We should have taken off at 7.50pm.) It didn't take long and we pushed back at 8.04pm. There were 437 passengers on board with 14 crew.

We were in the air at 8.18pm and the crew came round with the menus at 8.30pm



Kaley watched the Secret Life of Pets, Madison Beauty and the Beast, Phil Captain Marvel and I watched Aladdin.

They came round with drinks so we each got a Diet Coke and a lemonade.

The kids meals came round at 9.20pm

They had cheese pasta, cucumber and carrot sticks, cheese, hummus, a roll and butter and a cake love key lime pie. Neither of the girls liked the food. I think they just had the cucumber! I tried the pasta and it was ok.

Phil didn't want any food and I had the gnocchi


This came with a roll and butter, cheese and crackers, apple juice and the same key lime pie. I didn't like the gnocchi at all so left it. The cake was just ok. Overall, very disappointing.

We were finished with the food at 9.40pm. The girls and I were still watching our films and Phil was already trying to sleep, with needing to drive home.

There was a little bit of turbulence early in the flight, but nothing too bad.

At 10.30pm, I told Madison and Kaley to turn their TV's off and try and get some sleep. Kaley managed to fall asleep around 11pm, Madison was still trying. My film had finished so I tried to get some sleep too.

This was a waste of time for me. Every time I got comfortable and close to being asleep, one of the girls wanted something, like needing the toilet, wanting a drink, being uncomfortable, not being able to get to sleep, etc. I don't think Madison or I had any sleep at all and Kaley only had a couple of dozes. It didn't help that there was a crying toddler in front of us and the people right in front of us had their TV's on the whole time so the light from them was very bright. The guy in front of me was also very heavy in his seat all through the flight, constantly moving around and leaning back.

Phil had borrowed an old pair of my Dad's noise-cancelling headphones and had thankfully been able to get some sleep during the night.

At 7.30am, they brought breakfast around, which was a hot pain au chocolat, melon and a blueberry yoghurt


The pastry was actually really nice.

Before starting our descent, the crew brought some sweets around.

The captain had said at the start of the flight that the flight time would be 7 hours and 20 minutes, and that is what it turned out to be, as we touched down at 8.38am.

It was a long taxi to the gate. Once the plane has landed, I just want to be off, especially on the return journey. We were off the plane and in the line for passport control at 9.10am. This didn't take too long and we went to baggage claim 2. It took a while for all the cases to come round.

Once we had them all, we walked back through the hotel and out to the car, which was there and waiting for us. The girls got in the car while we loaded everything, and we were driving out at 10am.

The journey was ok to start with, then we stopped at Cobham services for a Starbucks. We went to the toilet and I got a chai tea and Phil an Americano, £6.65. We took them back to the car and the journey went wrong from here!

It took us so long to get out of the car park. You obviously have the different rows of parking all going to one lane to filter out of the car park and it was just at a standstill. We were on a row close to the services so had no chance of moving as the cars from rows further back weren't letting cars out of ours or the rows around us.

There was no way to turn around, cars couldn't pull out of their spaces as no one was moving, it was a nightmare. In the end, we were able to drive through to the row behind us as the cars were moving on that row. Finally out and there was very heavy traffic on the M25, which is what the problem had been. We found out there was an accident on the M1 so took a different route home.

With another stop at Beaconsfield services to use the toilets, it took us 5 hours in total to get home, on a journey that had taken us 3 hours on the way down!

The girls had managed to sleep most of the way home, which they both really needed.

Finally home at 3pm, we unloaded the car and I went to Asda to pick up our click and collect shopping order. We unpacked everything, put everything away apart from the few bits that needed washing and tidied everything away.

****************

And that was it, another fantastic Disney holiday finished! We had done almost everything we wanted, seen lots of characters, taken thousands of photos, had some great family time together and made so many memories that we can always look back on. Having another Orlando family Wedding was amazing and getting to celebrate Madison, Kaley and Ryan's birthdays again in the most magical place on earth, was just that, magical!

****************

Thank you to everyone who has read along and commented, especially as it has taken me far too long to get this finished!

****************

Up next, we're not certain yet. We are hoping some time next year maybe (Christmas is the dream), with all of us going again……though there won't be 18 of us next time, there will be 19, as we now have another little girl in the family, Aria, who is Michelle and Jamie's fourth little one

She needs her first trip and hopefully it will be one we are all on.



My steps for today (prior to getting on the plane) - 20,147
Phil's steps for today - I did well all holiday and then on the last day, I didn't make a note of his steps!
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MY TRIP AND DINING REPORTS - July 2023 Ten (Not So) Little Ones Take the Adults ~~ Onsite/Offsite Dining Report - July 2023 - 4 people - £168 budget per day plus tips ~~ Another Birthday Trip, October 2019 ~~ The Land, Sea and Wedding Trip Report, October 2015 ~~. Sept / Oct 2013 Five Little Ones Take the Adults
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Old 3 Mar 21, 08:41 PM  
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I really enjoyed reading along sounds like you had a brilliant time

Hope it won’t be long before you get back


Thanks for taking the time to do your trippie


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Old 3 Mar 21, 11:21 PM  
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Thank you for sharing your trip, I love all the detail you put in. I hope you get your Christmas trip!

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Old 4 Mar 21, 09:28 AM  
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An amazing holiday and report, thanks for sharing!

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Old 8 Mar 21, 08:31 AM  
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Really detailed trip reporting, love it! Thanks for sharing. Hope you manage to get back again around Christmas time!
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Old 19 Mar 21, 11:56 PM  
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I’ve read your full report over the last week or so and really enjoyed it. So many happy memories for all your family.

Let’s hope we all got back to our happy place some day soon x
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