Last fall, an Animal Kingdom employee by the name of Karen Price was hit by a coaster car on Primeval Whirl, and died as a result of her injuries. Four months later, Disney is taking steps to ensure this won’t happen again, but installing sensor mats in the area where you enter and exit the coaster cars. I’ve been on the ride several times, and have noticed more than once that you need to move pretty swiftly around the cars to make it in and out without injuring yourself.

The sensor mats won’t change anything for riders, who will still need to move pretty quickly to enter and exit the cars, but the rides will shut down if anyone steps in a designated area beyond the loading area.

I think I missed my calling in life! I saw this article in the paper today, about a local mom chosen by Disney to be one of 12 Disney park experts nationwide. After reading the article, I think I’m more of a Disney expert than she is! Beatrice Rose didn’t even start going to the parks until 1991. I started in 1979. She didn’t know the original name Walt Disney had picked out for Mickey! And she thought that Cinderella’s castle was made of stone.

I demand a recount!

It’s been confirmed that the man who died this week on Expedition Everest at Animal Kingdom (part of Walt Disney World) had a heart condition. An autopsy showed that Jeffery Reeb had an enlarged and weakened heart. Since visitors with high blood pressure, heart, back and neck problems are asked not to ride, I don’t think Disney will be getting sued over this one.

I just heard on the news that a man died yesterday after riding on Expedition Everest at Disney’s Animal Kingdom park. This is without a doubt, one of our favorite rides at any theme park. Even my son, who is normally scared of larger coasters, goes on Expedition Everest. It’s not a wild ride, but it’s unique in that it goes backwards inside of the fake mountain at one point, with the track shifting behind you so that you go forward in another direction. At the end, you go down an 80 foot hill.

The name, Jeffery Reed, was 44 and I’m assuming in good health, as visitors with high blood pressure, heart, back and neck problems are asked not to ride. When the ride ended, he was no longer conscious, but he was alert during the photograph portion of the ride, which is done just before the 80 foot drop.

Disney officials verified that the ride is working properly, but it will remain closed. This is the most recent death at Disney since a small child died after riding Mission: Space at Epcot.

Props to the Walt Disney World company for making a huge $10 million contribution to the Florida Children’s Hospital! Because of the large donation, an official name change is in store for hte hospital, and it will be adopting the Disney name in some form. (The name has not been announced yet.) Considering that it’s corporate identity has always revolved around children, this is the perfect recipient of Disney’s cash. It seems fitting that they give back to the community and state who has supported their company for so long, and that children end up being the real winners in this deal.

We’re off to Orlando for the weekend in a matter of hours, and according to Weather.com, we should have plenty of high temps, and rain. Wow, isn’t that a recipe for success? Just enough rain that you need to wear a poncho while walking around the theme parks, and just enough heat so that you get all sticky, stinky, and sweaty underneath the poncho you have to wear! That’s win / win!

The weather report actually says “scattered showers”, so hopefully it’ll stay dry enough for us to hit our favorite rides, the pool, and shopping.

Currently at Disney, the temp is 91, but it “feels like” 100. (If it feels like 100, why don’t we just call it 100 degrees and be done with it?)

I don’t remember the first time I visited the Disney-MGM Studios theme park in Orlando, but I’m sure it was shortly after the park opened on May 1, 1989. It’s not my favorite of the Disney theme parks (although it does have one of my favorite rides - Rockin’ Roller Coaster), probably because it’s more “show” orientated than “ride” orientated. I do love visiting during Star War Weekends, though!

The park announced recently that effiect January 2008, the park will now be know as Disney’s Hollywood Studios. (Is that the sound of 100,000 items of Disney-MGM merchandising going on eBay?)

Meg Crofton, president of Walt Disney World® Resort, said:

“The new name reflects how the park has grown from representing the golden age of movies to a celebration of the new entertainment that today’s Hollywood has to offer – in music, television, movies and theater.”

New attractions will be opening this fall and next spring as well, including Toy Story Mania!, Block Party Bash, Playhouse Disney-Live on Stage!, Disney High School Musical 2: School’s Out!, and Meet and Greet Adds Handy Manny.

I’m not sure what any of those attractions will be like, but I’d sure love to see more entertainment themed rides!

As I just mentioned, we’re going to Orlando in a month. We’ve booked 2 rooms at the resort because we’re a family of 5, and my mom will be joining us. My only options at Disney are to book 2 rooms or to book a suite, and that’s a bit out of my budget. Of course, should we not wish to stay on property at Disney, Orlando vacation homes are another great option. In fact, since we’re planning a trip to Universal soon, a rental home may be just the thing we need for that trip, since we don’t have a “preferred hotel” in the Universal area.

On Saturday, while I was cruising down I-4, I noticed signs for something called the Reunion Resort. They’re definitely going to give Disney some competition, with the Arnold Palmer, Tom Watson, and Jack Nicklause designed golf courses, the pools, and the equestrian trails! The resort isn’t entirely completed yet, but when it’s done, it will offer a Kids Camp and entertainment complex as well. Check out the Disney news on the site as well - I never heard about the fight that was started in the line for the teacups ride.

The kids don’t know it yet, but we’re going back to Disney in a month!

I’ve booked us over at the Caribbean Beach Resort on property for a few nights, which is exciting in and of itself because we’ve never stayed there before. We’ve got a reservation for Ohana on Friday night (I can’t WAIT to get that bread pudding dessert in my hot little hands) and plans to hit all of our favorite rides. We’ll be celebrating Gracie’s 10th birthday a few days early during our trip, so I need to remember to call Ohana and see if they do anything special for birthdays. We can get special birthday pins at each of the parks that Gracie can wear to be recognized by cast members as the birthday girl.

We went to Disney for Star Wars Weekend on June 1st, and it was our last visit for a while. We have the Florida Seasonal Annual Passes, which are a huge savings over the regular annual passes, but they have blackout dates. We can’t use them again until August. That’s fine with me, because it is HOT at Disney in the summer, and we’ve got enough to keep us busy. But come August, we’ll be heading back, to celebrate my daughter’s birthday! The passes go off blackout right before her big day, so we typically make it a birthday / back to Disney weekend. Hotel rates will probably be sky high then, so instead of booking and paying through the nose, we may look into renting an Orlando vacation home.

Having been to that area plenty, I can see that most of their rental homes are really close to the action. Trust me - nothing is more upsetting than getting to your rental home or hotel and realizing that you are FAR from all of the action and attractions you came to see! I love how each of the listings on this site tell you how far, in minutes, you are from Disney, or Sea World, or Universal. That’s extremely helpful for an out of towner who doesn’t know the names of the towns or the roads.

Plus, with a house, you get your own private pool, more room to spread out, and all of the comforts of home. The last time I was in a hot tub at the resort, I was joined by 8 other guests, including 3 kids under the age of 10. FUN! Not. I’d much rather have a private pool and hot tub where we could relax in peace and quiet!

This is a sponsored review.

One of the things we did this weekend while we were at Disney was to just enjoy our surroundings. We spent almost a whole day hanging out at the resort. We stayed at Port Orleans, and there were a ton of activities to keep us busy. After a quick trip to Animal Kingdom in the morning, and some shopping at Downtown Disney, we returned back to our hotel and spent the afternoon swimming, riding a 4 person bike, and taking a carriage ride around the resort. Nothing fancy, nothing high tech - just lots of family time outside having fun!

First it was gay weddings, now Walt Disney World will be hosting quinceañera parties! After all, if there’s money to be made, Disney wants to make it. The party packages start at $1,800 for a dessert and fireworks party at Epcot (I think there’s something similar for wedding parties) and go up to $20,000 for a fantasy ball which you can invite 100 friends to. Lordy, lordy. If a parent is paying $15,000 for a 15th birthday, what can they expect when their little princess gets married?

Man, lots of Disney news today, huh? This is big news though, and I’m thrilled! Disney will now be banning smoking in guest rooms and vacation club rooms. Yay! No more getting stuck with a stinky smoky room because all they had left was a “smoking” room. The ban starts June 1, and applies to patios and balconies also.

Kudos to Disney for realizing that non-smoking is the way to go! I’d love to see all the other hotel chains make this switch.

When I went to Grad Night at Disney, back in 1983, we were bused to the event, and we left our cars in the school parking lot, and drove ourselves home in the morning when we returned. Seniors from Ocoee High School weren’t so lucky this weekend, because when they returned to the school after a night of fun and frolic, they found their cars vandalized. What a bummer! And what a shame that someone chose to ruin a great night for these kids by having them come home to broken windows and items stolen from their vehicles.

A man was arrested this weekend after molesting a girl at a hotel pool at Walt Disney World. The man (William Bishop, a 61 year old Florida resident) not only molested the child, but he videotaped it as well. The act occurred in some bushes located poolside at the Walt Disney World Swan hotel.

This should serve as a reminder to parents that just because you’re in the “happiest place on Earth”, you shouldn’t let your guard down. Being at Disney doesn’t guarantee your safety, or your child’s safety. I can’t even tell you how many times we’ve seen small children unattended at the pools and on the grounds of hotels in Orlando, and this act proves that it only takes a minute to turn a happy kid into a victim of a crime.

Our next trip to Orlando is in just a few weeks, and excitement is already building around our house. The kids are eagerly planning which parks we’ll visit, and which rides they hope to go on. I’ve been visiting my favorite websites for the latest Disney news - you can find all sorts of things online, from new rides coming soon, to sneak previews on new attractions, to what special events are coming up at the parks. And while we’re staying at a Disney resort for our next visit, I’m completely open to staying in one of the numerous Orlando vacation homes in the areas around Disney, Universal, and Sea World. We’ve visited friends who have rented a vacation home for the week while they visited Orlando and the homes were not only stunning, but you have your own private pool and hot tub in some homes too. Sweet! Definitely beats sharing a pool with 500 other resort guests!

Staying on a budget at Disney and other theme parks CAN be done. I know, because we’ve done it. When you go to Disney as often as we do, you try to save some money each time. One of the last times we went, we splurged on our hotel and stayed at the Animal Kingdom Lodge. I did get a great Florida resident rate so we didn’t pay the normal price, and we got a free room upgrade. The big money pit at Disney however isn’t your room - it’s the food. Snacks, meals, drinks - they all add up quickly at theme park prices. We typically bring some food to keep in the room, like doughnuts and cereal for breakfast each morning, soda, milk, (deluxe hotels have an in room fridge, at the value resorts you can add one for $10 a day) bread, PB&J fixins, lunch meat, mayo, and snacks. We also bring water bottles, and I carry a backpack in the park with snacks and water bottles.

My dining choice at Epcot is usually Sunshine Seasons in The Land, and it’s one of the best places for value - food wise. We can usually feed our family of 5 plus my mom for $60, which includes drinks for everyone and 2 beers for my husband. The kids meals are a steal - $4 each and the kids get a main dish (mac n cheese, chicken, or a mini sub) plus a side of fruit or veggies, and a bread and a drink. For $4! In addition to the hot stations with stir fry, chicken, fish, and soups, there are coolers filled with salads and sides.

The next day, we went to Disney/MGM Studios and the only food we bought in the park were some french fries as a snack. We went back to our hotel in the early afternoon and had a late lunch there with the things we brought from home. For dinner we went to Pizzeria Uno which is a chain, and there’s a location close to Downtown Disney. They have huge pizzas that are very filling - one pie was enough for the family.

Sunday was the day we went to Magic Kingdom - again, we left the park early and had lunch in our room, but we did spend some cash on dinner that night. Since we were celebrating a birthday, we decided to eat at Liberty Tree Tavern, which is a character meal. The kids were $13 each and the adults were $28 each. Disney says anyone over the age of 9 is an adult, so we had my oldest be a year younger for the purpose of paying half price for her. The food was fantastic - salad, pork, beef, turkey, veggies, mashed taters, stuffing…and apple cobbler with ice cream for dessert. Not to mention we got to meet tons of characters right at our table.

Monday was our last day of vacation, and we went to Animal Kingdom. We didn’t eat anything here but the snacks we brought on our own.

Food costs can quickly add up, but if you plan in advance, you can save a bit, which means more money to buy mouse ears and Disney t-shirts!

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