Saturday SundayMonday Tuesday WednesdayThursday FridayWe had been planning the trip for eight months, and the adventure began on Saturday with a 7AM flight to Orlando. We arrived at the airport in plenty of time. Kerri and Bill arrived shortly thereafter. Missing, however, were Shari and Russ with their three children! We took off without them, and we were sick with worry - either something terrible had happened, or Russ and Shari were now wandering the airport, three small children in tow, trying to figure out how to get to Disney World. So much for planning.
We had booked two cars to meet us at the Orlando Airport to take us to the hotel. When we landed, we were met by one driver who told us that the rest of our party had missed the plane and would be arriving later that afternoon. I could have kissed that driver (Norman) for relaying such good news!
On to the Wilderness Lodge. It's huge, a little tacky, but fun. The lobby is about six stories tall, totem poles all over the place, sculptures of wild animals everywhere. There's a "stream" that runs from the lobby down into the pool and a geyser that goes off every hour. There's a beach and boats to rent. Victoria has wanted to try a boat since the last time we were here.
We checked in, and rather than sit around waiting for Russ and Shari, we took a bus over to The Marketplace. Victoria had saved quite a bit of money to shop at Disney World, but couldn't find the clothes, and sneakers, she wanted. She did, however, find a big Tigger. She came running up to us clutching him. He was really cute, not too big, but we convinced her not to buy him -- today at least. I have a feeling he'll be coming home with us.
When we got back to the hotel, Russ and Shari had arrived. It seems they overslept! They were incredibly lucky to get another flight. One of the reasons they managed that was that the flight information on the tickets wasn't accurate. The flights had changed since I bought the tickets in July. I had made sure that everybody knew that, but the fact that the tickets reflected the old times helped them out.
We all had dinner at the Whispering Canyon at the hotel. One of those all you can eat barbecues. It was fun. Heather and Kaitlyn got invited into the kitchen and came back with chef's hats. They were most impressed. Stephen hung out in his new umbrella stroller, happy to be along for the ride.
Breakfast with Pooh. We had a reservation at Olivia's at Old Key West which is on the other side of 
Epcot. Bill had to make a phone call, so the rest of us took the bus, and Kerri waited for him. When we got to the restaurant, Pooh and Tigger and Eyore were in the dining room. The girls were so excited, we couldn't keep them from running into the room. There was a table for six available, so rather than waiting twenty minutes, we decided to crowd around the smaller table.That turned out to be a
bad decision.
The characters were wonderful. Heather and Kaitlyn couldn't stay away from them. Tigger was dancing all over the room. Stephen wasn't scared at all. In fact, when Eyore came over, Stephen pet his nose! 
I made Victoria get Eyore's autograph.
When Kerri and Bill arrived, it turned out there wasn't a place for them to sit, and they would have to wait for another table. We should have waited for them. Since they could not be with the group, they decided to leave. We felt very badly that they missed the breakfast.We made plans to meet them later at MGM.
At MGM, the first thing we did was the Muppet 3D show. It was a lot of fun. Victoria was especially thrilled to see the bunny Bean. We walked the "Streets of New York" and took the Backlot tour. The tour is interesting, although Kaitlyn wasn't too happy with the Catastrophe Canyon special effects. We met Kerri and Bill and Bill's mother and niece. Then we split up: some went to the Tower of Terror, some to The Little Mermaid, and Shari and I went shopping with Stephen. We saw the 101 Dalmatian exhibit (which wasn't so great) and then we all met up at the Honey I Shrunk the Kids playground. By this time, feet were really hurting, and we headed back to the hotel.
That evening, we took the boat from the hotel to the Magic Kingdom and got there just in time to see the parade. It was fabulous.
That was also the night that Stephen fell in love with Mickey. Victoria was holding him, and he kept looking back at a souvenir stand that had a big Mickey. Stephen wouldn't take his eyes off it. Victoria took him closer, and he just kept looking and smiling at Mickey. It was really sweet - he just couldn't stop smiling at Mickey.
Cinderella's Castle has been turned into a rather silly looking "birthday cake" to celebrate WDW's 25th anniversary. Still, it is the Castle, and we headed in that direction, found some french fries for dinner
and watched the fireworks. A nice ending to our first, very full, day.
We took the boat to the Magic Kingdom, then the train to ToonTown. It was very crowded. Went through Mic
key's house, but they said it would be a 90 minute wait to see Mickey, so we went on to Minnie's house. Minnie was away for the day, but we did see her house. When we got to Fantasy Land, we all took a Teacup ride, except for Douglas. We sent Douglas on a scouting mission to find out what the waits were for the other rides. We went on the Small World ride (Stephen loved it), then on the Peter Pan ride, which I thought was very nice. One thing that no one really liked was the Bear Jamboree show. Victoria thought that Leonardo DiCaprio had been at the Swiss Family Robinson Tree House in one scene of Marvin's Room, so we tried to find the place where he was. Couldn't find it. Took some group pictures by the Castle, walked down Main Street, I stopped at The 
Emporium and got a tote bag and shirt. To the boat and back to the hotel.
After much discussion of where to have dinner, we finally decided to take the boat to the Contemporary Hotel and eat at the steak house restaurant there. While waiting for our table, Bill and Russ took Heather and Kaitlyn for a ride around the Kingdom on the monorail. The monorail goes right through the hotel. One of the attractions of the restaurant was listed as the view of the trains coming in. The hotel is really ugly! I would never stay there.
The dinner was good, had some good wine, and by 10:30 or so, we were all happy and tired. We asked the waiter if the boats were still running, and he said he would check. When he came back, he said there were only two ways we could get back to the hotel - we could take the monorail and a bus, or he could drive us back in a hotel van. We chose the second option, so after desert and coffee, we paid the bill, and Todd, our waiter, took us downstairs where we piled into a mini van, and he drove us back to the hotel!
Stephen and Kaitlyn were both running fevers this morning, So Shari and Russ and I took Heather to the Magic Kingdom. Got there around 9:30, and it wasn't crowded at all. We saw Aladdin and the Genie, went on the Pirates of the Caribbean ride and Splash Mountain. Russ and Shari and Heather stood in line for the Mount Thunder roller coaster ride, but it broke down before they could get on. We took the raft over to Tom Sawyer's Island and explored a little.
When we got back to the hotel Stephen and Kaitlyn seemed ready to go. Victoria had gone to Epcot with Kerri and Bill. We had made plans to meet in Mexico. At Epcot we visited Innoventions, Heather got to try a virtual reality game where you try to grab a treasure chest and not get eaten by sharks
We all met for lunch in Mexico, and then it was time to call the Disney Institute where Russell senior and Ruth would be arriving. Doug went off to make arrangements for the evening. Some of us headed for the little playground where the waterfall flows upward, and water spouts leap around the garden. Russ and Shari and I took the littlest Nelsons on the Journey of the Imagination. Right next door is the theater with "Honey, I Shrunk the Audience". Most of us went to that show, but not at the same time. It's a good show, some funny things, namely the mice and the "dog spit".
Doug and Russ went off to get Russell and Ruth at the gate. They rented scooter chairs, and met us in Norway for dinner. Again, our group was too big to get one table, so we didn't sit together. At least it was buffet service, so everyone could get up and walk around and visit. After dinner, we watched the Illuminations light show on the Lagoon. Then we headed out of the park (along with thousands of others). Russell and Ruth took a bus back to the Disney Institute, and we waited forever for a bus back to the Lodge.
Young Russ was up early this morning, so he took Kaitlyn and Heather over to MK. Victoria and Kerri and Bill went over to do Space Mountain. Russell and Ruth drove over, and Doug and I hung out with them, and Stephen, for a while on the 4th floor patio. Eventually, everyone ended up at the pool. We took a lot of pictures including one of the four generations of Nelson men.
Kerri and Bill were having dinner with his mother to celebrate Bill's birthday. We got a couple of wheelchairs from the hotel, knowing we'd have a lot of walking to do. Then off we went to the Magic Kingdom for the parade and fireworks.
We did some shopping at the Emporium before the parade. Victoria got her big Tigger and some nice souvenirs for friends. Ruth seemed to have bought a lot of hats. Strollers, wheelchairs, bags and balloons - it wasn't easy, but we managed to get a great spot on the balcony outside the railroad to see the parade. Young Russ taped the whole thing. When the parade was over, and we were getting ready to leave, there were Suzanne and Jimmy Hedge! They were coming for the 9:30 parade. It was weird seeing someone from home.
We walked over to Tomorrow Land to eat and find a place to watch the fireworks. We sat down as the fireworks were about to begin. As we looked around, Tinkerbell came flying from the top of the Castle! 
She was wonderful - we hadn't seen her on Sunday night.
Then, as we boarded the boat to go back to the hotel, the light barge was out on the lagoon - a dragon, a crocodile, flying fish and snapping turtles, a dinosaur, all of which turn into a string of American flags. The light barge was then on the lake in front of our hotel when we got back there.
It was great to see "Grandpa George". I think he and Ruth enjoyed their time with us, and it was fun having a four generation reunion.
Doug drove Russell and Ruth back to their hotel, then took a bus back. The kids have all been coughing and sometimes feverish. Now Victoria is feeling pretty awful. Since we've done so much over the past few days, it may be time to take it easy tomorrow.
Shari and Russ were off to the Magic Kingdom with the girls early this morning. Victoria didn't sleep well last night and is not feeling well. So we stayed at the hotel with Stephen. We agreed to meet Kerri and Bill in Italy this afternoon. When Russ and Shari weren't back by noon, we decided to pack Stephen up and take him over to Epcot. They were back just as we were about to leave. Kaitlyn was a little worn out, but Heather was ready to keep going, so Victoria and Doug and I took her with us to Epcot.
Just to be safe, we rented a stroller for Heather and headed for Italy to meet Kerri and Bill. We explored the shops in Italy, where I bought a lovely Little Drummer Boy for our Christmas creche. We had a little bratwurst in Germany. Heather was reluctant to try it, but she did, and she liked it. Victoria, by this time, was really feeling sick, so I went back with her to the hotel. She slept while I sat on the balcony, writing in my diary.
When everybody got back to the hotel, it was time for more decisions about dinner. We thought we might try the Artist's Point in the hotel. Victoria was too sick to care about eating, the kids really wouldn't have appreciated the restaurant, so Doug and I had a lovely dinner, and then Russ and Shari went down later and had dinner together. It worked out well except for Victoria not being able to enjoy it with us. I even brought her back some garlic mashed potatoes, but she wasn't up for it.
Our flight home today is at 2:30, our
cars are picking us up at 12:15. For our "last meal", it's breakfast with Pocohantas. Victoria was still sick, Kerri and Bill slept in, so the rest of us went for breakfast. Pocohantas was sweet, and Miko was wonderful, but John Smith was really playing out the role of the arrogant Englishman.
We checked out and had an hour or so to spend hanging out in the lobby. We took more pictures and had
a hotel worker take a group picture of all of us around the totem pole.
This time we all got to the airport on time. The plane was a little late taking off, but the pilot assured us we would be arriving home on time, if not a little early. Stephen did not seem very happy with the flight, although he calmed down when he got passed on to Kerri. Victoria was still not feeling well, and the pressure changes caused her a lot of pain for most of the flight.
On the ground, it was hard to say goodbye to everyone, hard to believe the vacation was over. There's always something to be said for getting home and sleeping in one's own bed, but waking up on Saturday morning, I couldn't help wondering which park we would be going to today, would we take the bus or the boat, and where was everybody?
Victoria, especially, is missing the girls and Stephen toddling around the room. We are missing everybody, and in answer to Victoria's question, "When are we going back?", I say, "Very soon, I hope".
