Monday, October 18, 2004
Parker's Birthday Trip
Parker started getting sick on Thursday with a cold after we'd made non-refundable reservations in Orlando. So, Friday, after Jeff's dental appointment (which was later than we thought, he had to wait 30 minutes for a 15-minute cleaning -- aren't cleanings supposed to be longer than that??), and after making sure we had everything packed, we headed out. Jeff told me we had to be there by 2:30 for something that was a surprise that had also been pre-paid -- we were running quite late and I was very stressed about us making it there in time. We ended up stopping to grab lunch and I asked him to call to see about pushing whatever it was back even a little, so that we'd have some extra breathing room. They couldn't, so we were stuck. I started to get really, really stressed about that and having to constantly reach back and wipe Parker's runny nose. So -- Jeff told me what it was. He booked me an hour-long maternity massage at the Grand Floridian Spa!! Oh, it was awesome!! After the massage I showered (I had oil all over), and then we went to the Grand Floridian for High Tea. Unfortunately, Parker didn't nap, and wasn't in the mood for being "proper" and polite there, so Parker and Jeff left several times to explore the Grand Floridian resort hotel while I leisurely enjoyed my tea. I really felt honored, and that this anniversary of Parker's birth, though I had always considered it to be solely about him, was also about me becoming a mom. It was very, very special, and Jeff made it that way.
The late afternoon/evening was ALL about Parker, as we entered the Magic Kingdom. First we stopped to hear the end of a Surprise celebration for Cinderella or Sleeping Beauty or some other Princess , and Parker was entralled!! It was at the castle, so he had a blast. The park was SO INCREDIBLY CROWDED!! I couldn't believe it, since it wasn't a holiday weekend and there was no special event that night. We then went around and looked at things, and ended up only doing a few of the attractions, including Grand Prix racing (Parker ADORED this), Winnie the Pooh's ride, and the Phantasmic Music thingie (I'm really bad about remembering it all). Parker stayed awake for fireworks (which were at 10 pm!! with NO NAP!!), and promptly conked out. We left the park then, and rode the boat back to the Grand Floridian (he loved the boat ride to Magic Kingdom, too). By the time we got to the van, that was still parked at the Spa , it was 11 pm.
And here's where the day soured. We head towards the condo/resort we booked through Expedia that was in a neighboring town/county. We got a "little" lost, but only lost about 10 minutes or so. We get there, and there is a LINE OF CARS at the front gate for check in. We waited at least 30 minutes, probably closer to 45 to even talk to the attendant. Then, they have no record of our reservation, and have to take all our information a second time (they had better not charge us twice!!!). We get to our room, I lay a sleeping Parker in the bed, take his pants off, change his diaper, wipe his face with a warm washcloth, brush his teeth .... and then Jeff tells me he's brought everything in from the van.
..."Where's the suitcase?"
..."Hunh?"
..."The suitcase? Our clothes? It mus be still out in the van, will you go check?"
..."Uh, ok."
He comes back a few minutes later
...."It isn't there."
..."What? You mean we have no clothes except for what we're wearing?"
Needless to say, I'm not pleased. So, I go to pull back the sheets on our bed to climb in just in my underwear, and there are ANTS on the bed!!! So ... Jeff has to go get another room. Once he's back, the van is repacked, and I'm redressed, we shuffle into the van and drive to the other condo suite with a sleeping Parker, who is coughing and runny, and wakes up a bit more. We get there, no ants, but only a queen size bed. We all get in bed, and with Parker being sick, and me not having extra pillows to get myself comfortable (hey -- I'm pregnant, dang it!!), I just get angry. Parker is just pushing up against me and I finally ask Jeff to pull him into the middle at least. Well, this is enough to really upset Parker who rolls around some more and cries and screams. I resign my self to discomfort as both men fall back asleep. I finally, at 3 am, move to the couch, and find some semblance of comfort. Parker wakes us up at 8:30 am, sounding even worse, with much more snot pouring out (really, it was soooo gross!!).
I want to go home. After FINALLY going, two hours later, to have breakfast at IHOP (which in and of itself was less than fun -- the place was packed, traffic was horrible to get there, and Parker wasn't too keen on keeping at all quiet or still), I work on convincing Jeff that we should just go home. Parker's breathing to me seemed worse (though we counted and it was 40/minute, which is fine), and he was miserable, I was miserable -- oh, and the condo? The walls are SO PAPER THIN, that you could hear people's conversations!! We'd planned to go to MGM for shows (in theatres with lots of other people and kids -- I didn't want to do that to Parker or the other kids!!) and then to Epcot for the Food and Wine Festival (which still would require pushing around a coughy, irritable Parker), but when Parker said HE wanted to go home and "play cars", Jeff finally realized that we'd be happier doing that. We all napped in the room before heading out at 2 pm. So, Friday was great, and Saturday convinced us to leave. All in all, I definitely think it was a great birthday celebration for both me and Parker. I just wish we'd remembered our clothes, not been sick, and not chosen such a dysfunctional, ill-prepared place to stay.
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