Faith, Trust and Pixie Dust; searching for the magic [Archive] - The DIS Discussion Forums

mousehouselover

02-06-2007, 10:51 PM

I think this is a bit overdue and may turn out to be a lot of rambling but I hope you bear with me and in the end it's a worth while read. I've started with some background, the pre-trip report is coming up in a day or so and I'll try to keep the installments coming on a regular basis. Enjoy!

Hi all........Thanks for taking the time to read my humble trippie. I've never done one before so I might not be very good at this.

Let me start off by saying I'm a planner, probably a type A personality planner. That planning paid off though as I found the DIS thanks to my insistance that we not miss anything. It also generally means more stress on me, and generally DH as he isn't a planner and I am verbally repetitive (read nag) when he disregards my plans and things don't go well.

Please allow me to set the scene for you: DH and I have been married for 7 yrs, I brought 3 children to our marriage. We have lived in Indiana for almost 5 yrs after being stranded when a job opportunity went sour. We don't really like living here and wish we were back in the south. Our house was built in 1865 was totally remodeled in the early 1980's and had very minor upkeep for several years before we bought it in 2003. We were in a bind, bought the house on a shoestring and have been trying to keep it from falling down around our ears. Everything in the house was at least 20 yrs old and we had faith to keep everything together. One of my sisters lives in town, and the rest of our family is more than 700 miles away. You could say that life hasn't been very good to us but that is about to change.

Cast:
Me :)
DH :love:
T; sister who lives in town, middle child in my family
A; my 3rd sister, looks a lot like me
M; A's DH

I know, this part doesn't have much to do with our trip, but some of it is importand to the next part of the report. Y'all might want to get popcorn:: and settle in. This has been 4 mos in the making and I want to do it right.

Bee

02-06-2007, 11:18 PM

Okay dokie.. I have my popcorn:: (of course it is a 100 calorie popcorn pack though :rotfl2: )

Write on, sweetie write on!!!:thumbsup2

lexmelinda

02-07-2007, 06:28 AM

MHL........Nice start! Can't wait to hear more about your trip! :)

S.Poppins

02-07-2007, 07:29 AM

Yeah, I finally found a trip report that I am not immediately 10 pages behind on! Looking forward to the rest. Maybe it will inspire me to start mine. I did finish the dining report though.

eeyore45

02-07-2007, 09:22 AM

I"m here!!! :surfweb:

I have a hard time with trip reports - they make me want to go again!!! :rolleyes1

DisneyJo

02-07-2007, 12:45 PM

You could say that life hasn't been very good to us but that is about to change. Oooh the suspense, can't wait for the next installment!

mousehouselover

02-07-2007, 03:13 PM

Second installment.........it's a good thing I typed a bunch on word last night and saved it.

*SURPRISE!*

I cam home from work one day during a really tough week and DH informed me he had to confess something. He can't keep things from me very well and his 'confessions' could be anything, usually something small that doesn't get me too upset. Well, this time it was HUGE! He showed me a couple sheets of paper that had been folded in an odd way. I tried taking them from him but he would only let me read them. He held AAA travel printouts for 2 adults to WDW! I was shocked and surprised and excited and blown over. DH hasn't worked much in the past few years and we lived paycheck to paycheck trying to make ends meet and take care of our family. He confessed to squirreling away $5 and $10 as often as he could to pay for the trip. He said he wanted me to have a decent honeymoon since our first one was hijacked. (see my siggie) His plan was to wait until my birthday; about 3 weeks away, to tell me but he didn't know if he'd be able to hide it and I was so stressed from work that he thought I needed a bright spot in my week.

My surprise trip was 6 days in POFQ, with the premium dining plan in Jan. He called T to make sure she she'd be able to stay with the youngin's and called my supervisor to make sure I could get the time off before he scheduled the trip. All I had to do was give into my obsession and plan. I had carte blanche to everything included in the prem DDP and he was game for what ever I wanted. The only thing he told me was that I couldn't tell anyone that I knew about the trip. Since this was supposed to be my birthday and anniversary presents, he didn't want every one to know he let the cat out of the bag.

I've got a sweet one on my hands. He has menareputz from time to time but for the most part, he's all about trying to love me and make me happy.

Bee

02-07-2007, 03:20 PM

Loving it!!! So, Loving it!!!

Keep writing!!!

S.Poppins

02-08-2007, 09:21 AM

What a great surprise! And the premium plan?! That is so cool - it's like twice the food right!?

PrincessV

02-08-2007, 09:54 AM

You've got me - I'm in! popcorn::

dismom9761

02-08-2007, 03:11 PM

That must have been so exciting!I have to find some way to let my DH know about this.:rolleyes: Can't wait to read more...:hourglass

Gregory

02-08-2007, 08:13 PM

Well you have me joining. Thanks for the trip report.

Angelrose

02-08-2007, 09:00 PM

What a sweet surprise! Can't wait to read more.

riopooh

02-08-2007, 11:05 PM

Aawww... How thot'ful. popcorn:: I'm in.

mousehouselover

02-09-2007, 09:25 PM

My dear Peeps know I've had pressing issues this week and haven't been around much.

Thanks Bee, Stacey, Jo, Lex, DisAmy, Sandy and Princess; your love and support me a lot to me, especially right now.

Hi gregory, angelrose and riopooh! Hope you enjoy the ride. I'm actually psyched to have 10 readers!!! I haven't even gotten to the meat of it yet.

I'm going to post my next installment tomorrow. It's a bit of a detour but I think it's worth it. I found myself writing my reoprt in my head last night as I was trying to go to sleep; now all I have to do is get it into the computer.

I hope everyone is having a great friday!

mousehouselover

02-10-2007, 06:54 AM

As promised, a bit more about us and our pre-trip adventure. In the end, this may turn out to be filler but I think it has bearing on the whole story so you get an idea of why this trip turned out to be very inportant to us.

Just before he booked our trip, we learned that due to DH's medical issues, he was considered 100% disabled through the VA and he was going to be getting compensation that was adequate to take care of the whole family. It came in the nick of time, I wasn't sure how we were going to make it through the winter on just my pay and the small amount of compensation he had been getting until that point. Our savings were depleted and it was almost panic time for me. I was so thankful and relieved that we were finally able to take care of everything that we'd been putting off. Our house was in serious need of repairs and our appliances were on their last legs. The dryer gave up on us during the summer and we were using a clothes line since we couldn't replace it. Many prayers were answered when we got the news. We were tempted to go crazy but knew we had to prioritize. Since our dishwasher and dryer bit the dust and the fridge and clothes washer were almost ready to follow, I got new appliances, with warrantees, not rebuilt from a second hand store!! WOO HOO, I had never in my married life been able to walk into a store and say 'I would like this and this and this' and have it at my house the next day.

Even though I was beside myself that I was going to WDW, I had other things I had to take care of and I couldn't go crazy telling people so I put it on the back burner for a few weeks. We were a little over a week away from the reniassance faire and he and I were both on the planning commitee. We had a huge weekend coming up that needed lots of time and energy. I had a display board I needed to do for the education tent and I was sewing a red velvet banner for the queen's coat of arms to be displayed on. My team leader wasn't going to be there the day of set up and VIP banquet so she was turning things over to me to run while she was gone. Oh my, the details I had to get right!

I have more in the works, stay tuned this weekend for more updates.
Noni

dismom9761

02-10-2007, 07:14 AM

YAY!!:cool1: More to the story,I am soo glad things started looking better.I understand completely how hard financial stress can be.I will be looking forward to reading more.:surfweb:

lexmelinda

02-10-2007, 07:30 AM

God always takes care of us.....what a wonderful testiment! So happy you got all the things you needed. And...You are a busy woman, my friend! Can't wait to hear more about your trip. Take your time.

Prayers for you and DH. :grouphug:

mousehouselover

02-11-2007, 02:57 PM

It look like everyone else dropped out. I was afraid of this...

I have to get ready for dinner but I have more to post when I get home.

DisneyJo

02-11-2007, 03:52 PM

It look like everyone else dropped out. I was afraid of this...

I have to get ready for dinner but I have more to post when I get home.
We haven't gone anywhere, just reading and enjoying. :goodvibes

Disneyland_Mama

02-11-2007, 06:26 PM

Can I be your 11th reader?

Sounds like a great beginning... can't wait to read more! :thumbsup2

PrincessV

02-11-2007, 07:02 PM

I'm still here! :yay:

Angelrose

02-11-2007, 08:13 PM

Still patiently waiting for the next installment. :)

Goldeelox9

02-11-2007, 10:26 PM

Great Trip Report

S.Poppins

02-11-2007, 11:08 PM

mousehouselover

02-11-2007, 11:11 PM

Wow, I've picked up a few more readers and haven't lost any! This is so cool!

:wave: Hi DLMama! Welcome aboard Goldeelox! Glad y'all are taking a chance on me.

Here's my next installment. It's a bit late since A called when we were on our way home from dinner. She and I can talk for hours, especially if we haven't had te chance to catch up for a week or so. She had good news tonight, she got a promotion at work! I'm so happy for and proud of her. She took a few minutes to read what I had posted and she gave it a :thumbsup2. I hope she finally bites the bullet and joins DIS instead of lurking all the time. She's got a good reason, but that'll go in my TR so keep your eyes pealed.

A side trip, out of the blue....

After the faire we were both exhausted and work was still making me crazy. It was bad enough I went to my supervisor and told her I needed a few days or I was in danger of suffering from burnout. I've had mixed feelings about my job for a while and the way thing are dealt with really drives me crazy somedays. So we decided that if I just needed a few days I could be spared the following week and I called DH to tell him to look into going to Chicago. He's wanted to go to Medieval Times near there for a while and I was intrigued by the huge aquarium that some of the girls at work talked about. A told me about a Brazillian grill that was there. She and M have one near their apartment and eat there once a week. They took me when I visited with them over the summer. I enjoyed it and wanted to take DH. So, with a few ideas, a week to make things happen and now the financial ability to do it, we started planning a mini get away. T works for a hotel chain and we can get family discounts if we stay in one of that brand hotels (nice hotels, usually named one of the top brands internationally.) DH called her to find out about using the discount and looked for a hotel. By the time I got home that day, he had reserved the hotel, bought tickets to Medieval Times and planned our travel route. This man works fast when he has a reason to.

dismom9761

02-12-2007, 08:59 PM

Another great installment.Mini trips can really keep a person going.:thumbsup2

Disneyland_Mama

02-12-2007, 11:20 PM

Shout out to Disneyland Mama! - Haven't "seen" ya in a while!

Mousehouse - congrats on good news! (a little late, I know) So you guys do the Renaissance fair thing. Every year in a town close to us they do a huge Medieval faire. Hundreds come and stay in tents and joust and have battles and feasts. Looks like so much fun!! We enjoyed going as observers last year.

Hi Stacey!!! I'm still around, I've been lurking!!:cool2:

BTW, loved your dining report.... I changed some of my ADR's because of it!

Sorry for the hijack, MHL! Lovin' your trippie!:goodvibes

dopeyfanatic

02-12-2007, 11:52 PM

What a blessing to get that money! I hope your dh is ok! Sounds like everything is taking a turn for the better for you guys!! Can't wait to read more!

mousehouselover

02-14-2007, 02:50 PM

Many thanks for the well wishes and encouragement. I've never consdered myself to be much of a writer and bow :worship: before the TR writting gods and goddesses here on DIS. I haven't read alot of TRs but I know there are some pretty popular and amazing ones out there. I'm actually humbled that y'all are still with me.

We rented a car so we weren't putting more wear and tear on my 12yr old Chevy or even older Mazda. It was such a treat to be in a new car. We had a CD player, power everything and outlets for our brand new laptop. (DH's splurge on himself with his new found wealth.) We drove up after I got off work on a Wed afternoon. It was a nice day and we had a pleseant trip. Thursday morning we went over to Shedd's Aquarium. The weather had turned a bit chilly and I was really cold by the time we got there from the parking garage. Dh went into the gift shop and bought me a bright red long sleeved shirt; which is now one of me favorite shirts to wear. The displays were fantastic. I love ocean life and the displays were really fun informative. There wasn't a ton of people there and we got to wander at our own pace. The baby beluga whale was so cute and we loved reef tanks. We took in a trainer's show and learned about the training for thier new seal pup. I got selected to interact with him and got kissed on the cheek. I smelled 'fishy' for the rest of the afternoon but it was one of the coolest things I've done. We found a few goodies for the youngins before heading back to the hotel. Dinner at Medieval times was good. I say that because the food wasn't as yummy as we remembered from our MT expereince in Orlando. DH and I both enjoy jousting and sword play. We picked up on the choreography and staging during the show so that took some of the fun out of it for me. We saw the thrown lances, jumping from a horse instead of being knocked off, pulled sword blows, ect. I'd go back but a reenactment event is more my taste these days. Friday morning we didn't have any plans so we took our time getting up and packing. We ran to Dunkin Donuts for doughnuts and returned to the hotel to check out. We had lunch at a Brazillian grill; Sal and Carveo. We stuffed ourselves silly. It was really good. I loved the cone of fries and the salads were wonderful. We started back and got stuck in horrible Chicago traffic. I don't know if it was just construction or if there was an accident but it was bad. I fell asleep and slept for almost an hour. DH drove 2 miles the entire time. We got off the interstate and got a map so we could travel state highways to get around the problem. After getting home, we had planned a night out with my co-workers and took in a couple of really cool (and scary) haunted houses.

The snow day has helped buy me some extra time so I've been writing more.

DisneyJo

02-14-2007, 03:33 PM

A told me about a Brazillian grill that was there. She and M have one near their apartment and eat there once a week. They took me when I visited with them over the summer. I read that as Brazillian GIRL and wondered why M had one near her apartment! :rotfl2:

.We rented a car so we weren't putting more wear and tear on my 12yr old Chevy or even older Mazda. We had an 11 year old Mazda 323 and it was a great car never broke down and went on forever well until it got hit by a Dutch truck on the motorway(freeway) 2 months ago :rotfl2:

We took in a trainer's show and learned about the training for their new seal pup. I got selected to interact with him and got kissed on the cheek. I smelled 'fishy' for the rest of the afternoon but it was one of the coolest things I've done. Aww that must have been lovely to do!

Great report so far, keep writing. :thumbsup2

mousehouselover

02-14-2007, 04:33 PM

I read that as Brazillian GIRL and wondered why M had one near her apartment! :rotfl2:

I'm not sure M & A would eat at a girl once a week....... but that just conjures all kinds of mental images... eewww:scared1:

We had an 11 year old Mazda 323 and it was a great car never broke down and went on forever well until it got hit by a Dutch truck on the motorway(freeway) 2 months ago :rotfl2:

Our Mazda is an '88, yep almost 20 yrs old. We give it normal maintence and have had a few things done to it but for the most part it's a really good car. It's just a knock around second car that DH uses when he has to go to the Dr or to the store.

Aww that must have been lovely to do!

I love animals and aspire to work with wildlife in some capacity. If I can, I'm going to start volunteering at our local zoo to get my name/face out there and to get a bit of expereince. My ultimate dream would be to woek as an animal care technician at WDW.

Great report so far, keep writing. :thumbsup2

Thanks so much! I'm glad I'm able to entertain! :) :dance3:

DisneyJo

02-14-2007, 04:35 PM

I love animals and aspire to work with wildlife in some capacity. If I can, I'm going to start volunteering at our local zoo to get my name/face out there and to get a bit of expereince. My ultimate dream would be to woek as an animal care technician at WDW.
Wow what a great ambition, you can do it. :thumbsup2

Bee

02-14-2007, 08:20 PM

Checking in!

TiggerandTink

02-15-2007, 12:33 AM

Just checking in to let you know I am reading. I can't wait for the next installment. That husband of yours definitely sounds like a keeper. What a darling.

mousehouselover

02-18-2007, 11:36 AM

Thanks for hanging in with me! I've been catching up after being snowed in and I'm a bit behind posting more updates. Here's the next little bit.

*Can a girl catch a break?*

It seems fate has a way of pulling a fast one when you least expect it. I was at work on my birthday, about a week after our Chicago trip; when one of my favorite pets came in to see the Dr. She had been sick on and off for several weeks and the Dr recommended she have a few tests and stay with us for the day. While she was there, her medication was given incorrectly and she was suddenly in a critical condition. We had to have some one available every 3-4 hrs for vital sign monitoring. Every one took a time and I wound up at work at 4am for almost a week. By the time our patient was considered stable, I was so exhausted. I felt really responsible for what happened. It was harder on me because I pet sat for this dog and I knew the family. Of course, the Dr was highly angry and we heard about it when it happened and since the practice owner was out of town we had to hear about it again when he returned two weeks later. I spent almost 3 weeks on eggshells, worried if I was going to lose my job over the whole thing. (I wasn't the only person caring for the pet and all of us were worried about our jobs.) I was coming home tired and upset every day and even started looking for a new job, just in case.

mousehouselover

02-19-2007, 08:47 PM

Maybe if I keep posting I'll keep everyone's interest....

As things were calming down, fate had more in store for us. I stated in my opening the we have a really old house and one of the problems we've dealt with is a really leaky basement. DH had the foundation people come out and they installed a drainage system and a new sump pump. Well, right after Nov 1st, we had several days of rain and everything was saturated. T came over to do laundry and hang out the first Fri and asked about the repairs and how things were going with all the rain. Dh told her things were really good and it was dry down there. She opened the basement door, turned on the light and went down a few steps. She turned around and looked at him and said" I think we have different opinions of 'fine.'" The basement had more than 4 inches of water in it. The water was almost up to teh pilot lights on our water heater and furnace. It was cold that weekend and the wind was blowing somethng fierce. It would've been a really bad time to be with out heat or hot water. By the time I got home the company had sent some one out to ***** the situation and learned that their crew had installed the sump pump too close to the wall and the float was stuck so it couldn't go up any more and the sensor though there wasn't anymore water to drain. On top of that, our siding which had been damaged in a hail storm earlier in the year was loose and several pieces had been torn off in all the wind. I had a naked patch above the second story window a the back of my house. DH was beside himself and ready to cry. I dealt with things like I usually do; buckle down and take care of the problem, collapse from exhaustion later.

That's still 2 mos out from our trip......... Y'all can see why DH adopted to motto "I need a vacation." Off to work on more of the TR, I'm almost to take off....

tiggirl

02-20-2007, 01:23 AM

OK OK so you finally got me to sign on happy? -A

mousehouselover

02-20-2007, 10:14 PM

Tiggirl, I'm honored that you chose my TR for your first post. Have you been lurking a while? I think it took me about 2 hrs to sign up and start posting. I was in a thread where the OP lurked for 3 yrs! before registering.

Ok, more for y'all to read:

*A glimmer in the murkiness*

Through all of this, I never lost sight of the fact that I had a vacation to plan. I started looking online and bought Birnbaum's guide so I could see what was available to us with the premium plan and all the cool things I could plan to do while we wre on vacation. Our TA was less than helpful and provided next to no prem plan details when DH asked for them. I felt like I was on my own trying to plan our trip. I was really especially nervous about ADRs. We had never scheduled one before and I was reading that a lot of things book up really fast. I wanted to try lots of different things and try to spend as much time in the parks as I could. After agonizing for several days, I took the plunge and called for our ADRs. It was early Nov, about 70ish days out from our first day and first thing on a Sun morning. We had a few 'must haves' on our list: DH wanted Mitsukoshi, Teppanyaki Dining room and I wanted to do charater meals. The CM who took my call was great. He was patient, offered a few suggestions and laughed at some of the silliness going on in our house at the time. He actually sounded like someone I'd be friends with if we ever met. I started our meals with CR, the Teppanyaki room was supposed to be closed so LC was recommended, we got Maya Grill, Spoodles, CP, I read about the F! dinner package and requested H&V but the CM suggested we try HBD, we also had WCC, Biergarten, CMC clambake, CM, TTS, Spirit of Aloha show, and I was going to finish our trip with Trail's End. The CM said that after a fantastic week, we should try something a bit more exciting and suggested CRT. I told him I figured CRT would be sold out since we were so close to our trip and asked him to check but didn't have my heart set on it. Well, knock me over with a feather......IT WAS AVAILABLE!!!! Two seats reamined for breakfast service. We were able to have a very nice meal with the princesses to cap off our Disneymoon!

tiggirl

02-20-2007, 11:18 PM

By the way you never did send me Birnbaums!

DisneyJo

02-21-2007, 07:35 AM

Those ADR's sound great you were so lucky getting CRT, can't wait for your reviews of all the food!

mousehouselover

02-21-2007, 06:30 PM

OK OK so you finally got me to sign on happy? -A

By the way you never did send me Birnbaums!

Hey all~ Tiggirl is my sister; A, from my TR!!!! Yay she finally joined the insanity we call DIS. She has good reason to, but that's part of the TR so I won't spoil it. :yay: (I'd use the dancing banana but it has a second meaning to the peeps and they will think I've lost my mind...:rolleyes1 ) :dance3:

I'll let A introduce herself if she wants. I didn't ask her about putting her name and our trip details on the boards before I started so I figured I'd better just use her initial but I hope that she decides to tell y'all all about herself since she's out of lurkdom.

A~ :p to your e-mail..... I knew it was you by then......

tiggirl

02-21-2007, 11:26 PM

No I don't mind if you use my name.

KangaFan

02-21-2007, 11:34 PM

Noni,

just catching up on your TR. So glad things are looking up for you and DH. I'm drooling over your restaurant selections. Can't wait to read the rest popcorn::

mousehouselover

02-22-2007, 08:42 PM

Here's where Adrea comes into my story:

What a co-incidence!

T and DH were both in the military so we celebrate Veteren's Day by taking advantage of Golden Coral's Veteren's Appreciation dinner. While we were at T's apartment after dinner, she said she thought Adrea mentioned they were also going to WDW some time in Jan. "WHAT!" I shouted "WHEN?" I love Adrea and don't get to spend nearly enough time with her. It would be so sad to miss her on vacation. T replied "I think the 3rd week in Jan, maybe right after you're there. I don't know though, it might be the same week." Well holy toledo! We might be going the same week. I needed details so I started burning up the air waves. It seems that M's parents had an airfare thing that they could fly 4 round trip fares if they stayed at a select hotel paying rack rates. Since Orlando was on the list, they were going there. It was going to be M's mom and dad, M & Adrea, M's brother and brother's GF. Well glory be, I was going to be on vacation with my sis! We independently picked the same exact week to be in the world! Needless to say, I had lots more planning to do. I promptly e-mailed M & Adrea my itinerary and anxiously awaited to hear if they were able to join us for a day or two.

Anxious wsn't exactly the word for it. I called a lot. I still have the emails with all our details. (Maybe they'll be good for the scrapbook??)

tiggirl

02-23-2007, 02:10 PM

Well of course I didn't have any say in when we were going. Since it was my in-laws that had the trip my mil was the one to choose the dates. We didn't have anything actually planned till about Christmas. They were looking at the info and realized that it would be horribly expensive to stay the way we had orriginally planned. Since they belong to DVC they decided to pick up airfare and we would all stay on prop @ OKW their 'home'.

tiggirl

03-01-2007, 02:43 PM

So my sister suggested that we do a joint TR since we were there together and I think it's a great idea. What do all y'all think?

DisneyJo

03-01-2007, 02:49 PM

Oh definately, I love all TR's so this will be double the fun :yay:

dwaddict

03-01-2007, 04:08 PM

signing up!! Can't wait to hear more!!:thumbsup2

mousehouselover

03-03-2007, 04:34 PM

Sorry I've left everyone hanging. My week didn't go very well and I needed a very large dose of sanity and lots of :hug: BIG thanks to all the peeps that made sure I was doing ok and sent their love! I love all of you and can't imagine getting through this without y'all.

*Another setback......*

On my way to work one morning shortly after Veteren's Day, I heard a loud clunk like I ran over something with my car. I didn't remember any debris in the road and my car acted fine so I continued on to work. I didn't think much about it until I went to start my car after work. It wouldn't catch and turn over, it just grumbled at me. I checked the hoses and battery connects, which were fine, I had radio and lights and everything so I knew it wasn't the alternator or drained battery. I checked the oil and there was NONE! I leave most of the maintence to DH and try to make sure the oil gets checked every few weeks. I called DH, who re-assured me he checked the oil the week before and it was fine........ We called the tow truck and our mechanic. DH picked me up from work and the car was towed. DH was upset at me because I hadn't left the car with the mechanic the week before for a diagnostic check up.

dwaddict

03-03-2007, 06:27 PM

Hope everything is OK now!! Wishing you a great weekend!!:grouphug:

tiggirl

03-05-2007, 08:02 AM

Noni and I have been talking and writing and these next few posts are going to be very long. I hope they will be ready this afternoon.

tiggirl

03-11-2007, 12:52 PM

So unfortunately we haven't posted another segment yet. My appologies she went on a family trip and I have been doing training at work.

Applemomma

03-11-2007, 02:07 PM

subscribing!!

mousehouselover

03-13-2007, 06:10 PM

Good grief, I sure am good at leaving everyone hanging. I wanted to post before we left for a long weekend but we had a power outage that ate my DIS post and turned off the 'puter. It took so long for the power to come back on and to re-boot that I couldn't post before I left and I don't have my TR on the laptop we took with us. (Thanks for letting everyone know, Adrea :hug: )

So after all that; here's another installment.

*Another setback......*

On my way to work one morning shortly after Veteren's Day, I heard a loud clunk like I ran over something with my car. I didn't remember any debris in the road and my car acted fine so I continued on to work. I didn't think much about it until I went to start my car after work. It wouldn't catch and turn over, it just grumbled at me. I checked the hoses and battery connects, which were fine, I had radio and lights and everything so I knew it wasn't the alternator or drained battery. I checked the oil and there was NONE! I leave most of the maintence to DH and try to make sure the oil gets checked every few weeks. I called DH, who re-assured me he checked the oil the week before and it was fine........ We called the tow truck and our mechanic. DH picked me up from work and the car was towed. DH was upset at me because I hadn't left the car with the mechanic the week before for a diagnostic check up.

mousehouselover

04-03-2007, 08:48 PM

Can ya'll tell I didn't read my last installment before I posted again?

It's been so long since I posted anything......... Argh, life has gotten in the way and I haven't felt much like writing lately. I worked on my TR for about an hour tonight so I have a lot to post. Here goes:

It took two days to get the verdict; my car was dead. The timing chain snapped and took out a portion of the engine. We had two choices, spend about $3000 to have the engine rebuilt or buy a new car. I knew there was only once option; my car was 12 yrs old, had over 200,000 miles and I only paid $3500 for it when I bought it. Iknowing in my head that we had to get a new car didn't translate to my heart. I bought that car all by myself when I left my ex, I made all the payments and it was the only thing I ever had in my name only. I was attached to the car. It was with a heavy heart and lots of resentment and tears that we went out searching for a new car. I was convinced that we weren't going to find anything that would work for us. I don't like minivans but my growing family was on the verge of no longer fitting in a sedan. I looked at the car ads and found very few vans in my price range. I was sure we wre going to wind up with a lemon and we'd be very unhappy with anything we chose. The first dealership we went to steered us towards a very nice sedan with lots of room. I was very happy with it but they wouldn't work with us on price. They took some off but it was still more than I was comfortable with. DH had a higher figure in mind than I did and he was more optimistic than I was but it was still more than either of us was looking at. After some wrangling and high pressure sales tactics we told them we weren't going to pursue the purchase and left. We went to lunch and tried another dealership afterwards.

I knew an employee at the second lot so we thought 'what the heck, it can't be any worse. We pulled up, walked over to the line of sedans and started browsing. A salesman approached and we found a car we were interested in. It was a 2003 Taurus, champaigne exterior, tan leather interior, milage wasn't bad and it had a sun roof. We worked on a price, still a bit more than we were looking at but for this car, it was worth it. The financing went through and we went to sign papers. DH and I talked while they were printing everything out and even though I was kind of upset about walking away from the other nicer car I was ok with the one we were buying. We went into the office to sign everything. We found out the financing and our payments, nicely with in our budget. After the first set of papers, DH asked if we could have a few minutes. He took me to the conference room next door and told me he'd walk away from this car and take me back for the first one if I wanted. The $2000 difference wasn't going to break our budget and he knew I really liked the other car better. My sweet DH had tears in his eyes when he told me my happiness meant more to him than an extra $30-40/month in car payments. Of course, I started crying too and told him I was happy with the car we chose. I also had a few goals I wanted to accomplish and they require a financial commitment from us and those are more important to me than digital gizmos and the seat warmers in the other car. Since one of those goals is something that DH and I have been dreaming about since we got married, he knew my commitment to that was stronger than my want of any material possesion. We signed the paperwork and drove away in our new car.

Anyone notice my new bling? We're going again in Dec!!!!!!

tiggirl

04-08-2007, 11:08 AM

About this time my DH & I were making phone calls to T to see if she could get us any deals on rooms in the area. My MIL was trying to plan everything from Minneapolis and I was trying to help from Sioux Falls while trying to Christmas shop and spend time with the sister that was home from Hawaii. Needless to say I think I got on my MIL's nerves and make my DH dread his trip. Oh can't forget the almost nightly calls to Noni to figure out what they had planned & if it would fit anywhere with our very loose plan.

jamal

04-08-2007, 12:39 PM

You girls have GOT to have some pixie dust!! I just read it all and am hoping it all comes showering upon you! Here's a start:

pixiedust: pixiedust: pixiedust: pixiedust: pixiedust: pixiedust:

I have had a bit in my day. Good luck! I'm in!

Jamal

mousehouselover

04-08-2007, 08:15 PM

Hi Jamal~ Welcome to our little adventure! Thanks for the dust, we definately needed some at times during our planning and trip. Adrea pointed out you're planning a trip for 16. We seem to be experts on large group travel.......kinda comes with the terratory when you're from a large family. Have a great time and feel free to ask any questions you may have.

I have more to post!!! We haven't even left for our trip in my TR, so there's still a lot to share.

*Choices, choices*

M & A were kind of commited to some time with M's parents and his family who lives in Orlando. M's uncle also works for WDW, in Epcot as a Pluto. The deal they got that prompted the trip was free airfare fron a travel company if they stayed at selected Orlando area hotels. M's parents are DVC members and were staying onsite and the kids were going to stay in the hotel selected by the travel company. When they started researching, it was going to cost them quite a bit to stay at these properties and they would have to rent a car and not be able to do DDP or take advantage of the EMH. They were torn, M's parents offered to pay for the hotel rooms for the kids to help them out. More planning and research on both ends to find the best options and deals pursued.

A bit of research showed that the best option for them was going to be to pay for their flights and stay in a 2 br at OKW, M's parents home resort. We were all going to be on site!! We decided on having at least one meal together everyday as they liked at least one thing I picked. Of course we were going to do some touring together but neither one of us wanted to intrude on the other's vacation too much.

It was about this time I was doing a bit of research that led me to the most wonderful place on the internet. I found a community of people who were as obsessed with Disney as I am and they gathered together to share information, offer advice, and support each other. Of course, I'm talking about DIS. I was instantly hooked! There are thousands of Disney crazed people like me and they have a place to help them make the most out of their trips and stay involved in the magic between trips. I think it took me about 2 hours of surfing before I created an account.

Happy Easter everyone, I hope you've had a blessed day!

jamal

04-08-2007, 09:08 PM

Honey I am BACK!!

see tr link below;)

mousehouselover

04-09-2007, 06:38 PM

Hey Jamal~ Sorry I overlooked the link to your TR, even after Dh ponted it out last night..........:sad2: I just started reading and have to read some of it to DH. I love what you said about your family and that they're at their best while there. (Ok I have all the homophones used correctly......:rotfl: )

Hey Peeps, I'm missing y'all over here!!! Did the trail of breadcrumbs get gobbled up while I was otherwise occupied and not posting? I would've left something tastier but I figured our hips and backsides would be better off with out coconut bonbons or fudge pebbles leading us onward.

There comes a time in every story when things have to start looking better for the heroine otherwise, it would seem the efforts were futile and the adventure was doomed. Here's mine:

*It's Christmas all month long*

December looked like a promising month, work was going ok, the new car was wonderful and I was able to mostly relax. DIS was giving me all kinds of info on our resort, our dining options and itinerary ideas. The day after Thanksgiving, I got up early and went shopping so I had presents for the young'ins stashed away. We made Christmas candy that weekend. DH and I decided mid-Nov we weren't going to let our new financial situation go to our heads and have an outrageous Christmas. We got a new tree and chose our theme for the year; Carolina Panthers and everything was black, blue and silver. With everything that had happened in the previous six weeks, DH was almost as emotionally exhausted as I was and he adopted the mantra "I need a vacation." Every time something remotly stressful or unsettling would come up, he'd say this mantra.

DH called me at work one day and we chatted about a few things going on at home and about an appointment he had. Just before he hung up, he said he had something to tell me. He said he wanted to keep it a secret but he's so bad at keeping things from me, he had to tell. He got all four of us admission to the Backstage Magic tour. We were going on the seven hour long behind the scenes look at WDW, where things happen, how and where it happens. We were going to see and learn some of the tricks they use to make Disney the magical plate it is!!!! I was so excited. I read about the tour and thought it would be a lot of fun. I'm also a behind the secnes theatre person so I love to see how things go together to make a finished product.

I'm totally excited about our newest trip feature and getting antsy about getting to go. Since I had CP scheduled for breakfast that morning and we weren't doing The Keys to the Kingdom tour in MK, I had to re-schedule our breakfast. Adrea and I talked about what sounded good, consulted our guys and we decided to change a few things around. We canceled Maya Grill and put CP on Wed right at opening, Olivia'a was scheduled for Thurs am since it was at their resort and we could all meet up, eat and go to the meeting spot for the tour.

We were about a month out from our trip and I had read that we should have gotten our travel documents and ME info by that point so I was getting very nervous. DH wasn't too happy when I started pestering him with questions about when it was going to arrive and asking if he had been in contact with our TA. He was even saying some rather unkind things about DIS and the info I was reading. This is the type A part of me, but I wanted to make sure we had all our ducks in a row so there wouldn't be any surprises in the days before our trip and certianly when we got there. I wanted everything to be planned and to go as smoothly as possible.

AnnNan

04-11-2007, 11:18 PM

Enjoying your report! Thanks for the low-cal breadcrumbs!

pigget74

04-15-2007, 02:40 AM

WOW!! You really did need a trip. Can't wait to hear about the rest :thumbsup2

mousehouselover

04-15-2007, 07:04 AM

It was about this time that the Travel Channel started airing the Christmas specials about various places and wouldn't you know it, they had at least 2 on WDW. We had to watch them, I heard that Christmas with the Mouse was a really special time but I had no idea how much work went into making everything as festive and over the top as it is. I told DH that I'd love to go sometime in Dec so we could see the decorations in person and try to take in MVMCP. He said to look into it so I started looking at dates and tried estimating costs for a trip on 2008. I was surprised to find a DIS thread for people who were trying to plan a 12/08 trip. We hadn't even left for our trip and here I was, looking at a trip in 2 yrs.

A week before Christmas, new packages started appearing under the tree. They were being wrapped and tagged while I was at work. There were things for me and for the kids so I knew DH had been busy shopping. There were new things almost every day! Our calm quiet Christmas was getting bigger by the day. There was a big (2 ft square) box in the back that was quite heavy and had my name on it. There were other boxes of varying sizes and weights that were tagged 'To: Mom.'

I came home from work on Dec 22nd and DH wasn't home. I was a bit surprised but he'd been acting funny since all the presents startted going under the tree so I figured he was up to something. I was in my room when he came home and he called me into the kitchen. On the table sat a big Mickey red and black suitcase! I opened it up and there was another one in it and a shoulder bag inside that one. He told me to check the pockets and I found our travel documents! It was going to be a very merry holiday!

Christmas morning was busy, we had dogs to walk and kitties who needed clean litterboxes. Breakfast was some really yummy baked ham sandwiches. Then came present time. The youngin's started handing out presents and every other present landed in my lap. I got as many as all the kids combined! I let teh kids open their gifts first. They got CDs, movies, DS got a few Bionicles, the girls got handbags. DH bought them CD players, a diskman, and a DS Lite with a few games. They were so excited. They'd been hoping for some electronic goodies this year and DH came through.

I was rather apprehensive about having so many presents. I'm not used to getting so many things showered on me. There were numbers on some of the gifts and I had to open them in order. I got Pampered Chef goodies; measuring cups, a garlic press, the cheese grater, a pizza cutter, and DH replaced my rectangular baker and 15" round stone that had been broken yearlier in the year!!!! There were still presents to open. :eek: The next batch held a brand new knife block from JA Henckels and knives to fill it. The final box was the big one! I started to open it and there sat one of the things I've been wanting for about 3 yrs; a MIckey Mouse TV!!!!!

I love to spend time in the kitchen and a lot of the kitchen ware we had was old or used and needed to be replaced. DH wanted me to be able to enjoy the time I have available so he made sure I had the equipment I needed to have a good time. I've been planning on turning our loft into a Mickey themed entertainment area for the kids and the TV was one of the things I've been wanting to put in there. Wh have all balck bookcases and a fish tank with an iron stand as well as the Mickey DVD player and black TV stand. I still have to paint but the Mickey goodies have gone a long way toward making my dream become reality.

Hi Heather! Welcome aboard. I was about ready to throw in the towel at times, I just had to remember how much I love going to WDW and all the fun I was going to have.

Since it's official, we're going in Sept, I guess I'd better get a move on and post the rest of this TR. I'm already working on the pre-report for the next one. Maybe that one'll get done in a decent amount of time. I just wish I could be more like some of the other writers out there that seem to hold people captive and keep them waiting in breathless anticpation. But them's some pretty big shoe to fill.......