A Safari Christmas Goes Pop! (w/pics)

[njdisneyfreak]

Last December my DH and I went on the most magical WDW trip, yet! We celebrated our :hug: anniversary, :santa: Christmas and New Year's all at one of our favorite places, Walt Disney World. It was absolutely amazing, and before we left, we had already begun talking about when we'd be back.

Well, for those of you who joined me on that journey, you know that we had planned to go this summer, but that didn't work so well into our plans. For months, my DH and I kept talking about Disney as a trip we wouldn't be able to do again for quite some time. Not anymore! :woohoo:

We decided to go back, and not only go back, but go back for our anniversary (which is during the week of Christmas), Christmas and New Year's again!!!! I know. We still can't believe it ourselves.

Alright, well on with the story. . .

CAST OF CHARACTERS: My DH and me, and we're both in our early-thirties. We absolutely love WDW and are really looking forward to returning for our favorite time of the year and a cooler time of the year.

This is us, at Sci-Fi, this past December:
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Dec%202007/PC190114.jpg

TRIP DATES:
December 23, 2008 - January 3, 2009

PLANNING IT ALL:
Now, if you read either of my last two reports, you know that organizer/planner is my middle name. Yes, learning to spell that in kindergarten was rough! :lmao: My DH is Mr. Organizer/Planner. Is it any wonder that we're married? So, we already have our trip planned quite a bit.

Tonight, my DH booked our dream resort, AKL!!! Now, can you see why I'm dreaming of a safari Christmas? :cool1: On our last trip, we went to just about every resort, checking out the holiday decor and enjoying what they had to offer. One step into AKL (now imagine the intro music to the Lion King here. . .well, at least in our heads) and we fell in love with the place. We walked all over and ended our time there by eating zebra domes for the first time at Mara. Oh, man! If you have never had one, you have to go to AKL and try it. AMAZING :cloud9:

While we were eating, my DH promised me that we'd come back to stay on our next vacation. Now, I know this sounds sappy, but I actually began tearing. I grew up going to WDW several times throughout my childhood. To make it affordable, my family always went to a no-frills campground in Kissimmee. I grew up dreaming of staying on property, especially whenever that monorail rode threw the Contemporary.

Well, I'm all grown up now and married, and we've been blessed to have stayed on property each time. Each of our trips, we've tried to step it up a notch. Now, we are actually going to get to stay in a savannah room at AKL! I know it's going to be amazing.

So far, this is our itinerary (we can't book till late June, so this may change):

December 23, 2008 (Tuesday)
- Arrive at AKL in the evening.

December 24, 2008 (Wednesday) - - CHRISTMAS EVE!!!
- Head over to Epcot
- Breakfast at Akershus
- Lunch at Seasons
- At some point head over to the Studios (we may take a break back to the resort for a bit in between)
- Dinner at Mama Melrose
- Enjoy Osbourne Lights (if you've never gone, it's breathtaking)

December 25, 2008 (Thursday) -- CHRISTMAS :santa:
- Christmas morning breakfast at Cinderella's Royal Banquet Hall
- Lunch at Liberty Tree Tavern
- High tail it out of there (we left last year on Christmas day after lunch; crazy crowded by this time of day)!
- Go back to relax at the resort
- In the late afternoon, head to Downtown Disney
- Go to Cirque de Soleil (our first time ever!!!)
- A late dinner at our resort, at Jiko's

December 26, 2008 (Friday)
- Breakfast at Boma's
- At some point head over to Epcot
- Lunch at Garden Grill
- Dinner at Chef Mickey's
- Go to the Studios

December 27, 2008 (Saturday)
- Go to AK
- Breakfast at Donald's Safari Breakfast at Tusker House
- Head to the Studios via our resort (not sure about this part yet)
- Lunch at Sci-Fi
- Head over to Epcot in the evening
- Dinner at Teppan Edo and go see the Candlelight Processional (this may change depending on who the guest speakers are during our stay)

December 28, 2008 (Sunday)
- Breakfast at 1900 Park Fare
- Go to MK
- Lunch at Tony's Townsquare Restaurant
- Head back to resort
- Dinner at Boma's

December 29, 2008 (Monday)
- Breakfast at Boma's
- Go to Epcot
- Lunch at Coral Reef
- Not sure if we'll stay all day or take a break at our resort
- Dinner at Narcoosee's

December 30, 2008 (Tuesday)
- Go to MK
- Get breakfast the Main St. Bakery (great cinnamon rolls!!!)
- Lunch at Whispering Canyon Cafe (Wilderness Lodge is the only resort we've never seen)
- Back to MK
- Dinner at 1900 Park Fare

December 31, 2008 (Wednesday) -- NEW YEAR'S EVE!!! :dance3:
- Breakfast at Boma's
- Lunch at The Wave (pending their reviews)
- Dinner at Boma's
- Ring in the New Year at the Studios

January 1, 2009 (Thursday) -- NEW YEAR'S
- Chef Mickey's for breakfast
- Go to Epcot
- Lunch at Nine Dragons
- Back to our resort later in the day
- Dinner at Jiko's

January 2, 2009 (Friday)
- Go to MK
- Breakfast at Crystal Palace
- Lunch at Liberty Tree Tavern
- Head over to Epcot (might take a break at resort in between parks)
- Dinner at LeCellier (one of our favorite restaurants after last trip -- yummy!)

January 3, 2009 (Saturday)
- Head home. :sad1:

So, that's our plans, for the moment. We know things will get tweaked as we get closer. Also, we plan to do the Seguey Tour (the one that goes through the countries) on this trip one of the mornings we go to Epcot. On our last trip, we tried them out at Innoventions and knew we had to book this tour on our next trip. So much fun. :thumbsup2

Right now my life can be a bit hectic, since I'm a teacher. :teacher: I teach eighth grade language arts. So, I'm up to my eyebrows working on research papers with the kids, while my team finalizes plans for the eighth grade trip and graduation, all while trying to keep the kids interested, as high school calls their name and the sunshine that is often shining outside calls all our names! :laughing:

I'd love any feedback on our itinerary, the resort we're staying (since it's our first time there) and anything else that comes to mind. I welcome questions, too. :goodvibes If you've read my past reports, you know that I truly am a Disney Freak and love talking all things Disney.

In the meanwhile, I'll continue dreaming of a safari Christmas! Is it me or do you hear Christmas music mixed in with drums and African beats? :rotfl2: This is going to be a long seven months.

HERE ARE SOME LINKS TO THE OTHER PARTS OF THIS THREAD, IN CASE YOU WANT TO SKIP THE INTRO PAGES. . .

:santa: MAKING MY ADRs (original choices) (http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1820414&page=3)

:santa: WHY WE'RE GOING BACK FOR CHRISTMAS & ANNIVERSARY w/pics (http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1820414&page=4)

:santa: CHANGES (http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1820414&page=6)

:santa: CROCS, A SURPRISE & WE'RE GOING TO BE GUEST BLOGGERS!!! (http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1820414&page=7)

:santa: CUSTOMIZED MAPS (http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1820414&page=8)

:santa: LAST YEAR HOLIDAY PICS FROM PHOTOPASS, AKL ACTIVITIES & AN UPDATED ITINERARY (http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1820414&page=9)

:santa: OUR SAFARI CHRISTMAS WENT POP. . .Check out why (http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?p=27150994#post27150994)

:santa: ITINERARY CHANGES (http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?p=27722367#post27722367)

:santa: DECKING THE HALLS!!! (posts 388-390) (http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?p=28738255&posted=1#post28738255)

:santa: FINAL PREPARATIONS (http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?p=29241389#post29241389)

[DISNEY4XMAS]

I'M HERE I'M HERE THE FIRST ONE!!!!!:cool1:

[DisneyDaughter5589]

You are very brave and LUCKY! Disney for Christmas and NewYears WOW! We went in Early December one time and thought it was beautifully decorated (of course you already know this). You are brave indeed the closest thing to being busy in Disney was when we went may 2005 and where there when they celebrated the 50th anniversery me and my family were clueless. Had no idea what was going on but instead of going to MK on MAY 5th (my birthday) we visted MGM. We were our own TGM without knowing it!
Your reservations look great and I can honestly say I've only ever eaten at CP. That will change in September!

[njdisneyfreak]

I'M HERE I'M HERE THE FIRST ONE!!!!!:cool1:

Hi, Steph! I'm not surprised you're the first. :goodvibes Welcome!!!

You are very brave and LUCKY! Disney for Christmas and NewYears WOW! We went in Early December one time and thought it was beautifully decorated (of course you already know this). You are brave indeed the closest thing to being busy in Disney was when we went may 2005 and where there when they celebrated the 50th anniversery me and my family were clueless. Had no idea what was going on but instead of going to MK on MAY 5th (my birthday) we visted MGM. We were our own TGM without knowing it!
Your reservations look great and I can honestly say I've only ever eaten at CP. That will change in September!

:wave2: Nice to meet you.

:confused3 I've always gone during peak seasons. Growing up, we always went 4th of July week. Then, as an adult, I'm a teacher. So, peak season is all we have to work with. :goodvibes But, we also enjoy the festive atmosphere of holiday times. I guess that's why my DH and I have only gone during the 4th of July and Christmas. Brave? Maybe. A glutton for punishment? :confused3 Who can say? :rotfl:

CP is good. Are you going for breakfast, lunch or dinner? We've gone for both breakfast and lunch, and we've enjoyed it. September is right around the corner. You must be so excited. :woohoo:

It will be fun to exchange trip info. :thumbsup2

[wdwgirl03]

I remember reading your last trip report so I thought I'd check in. :) How exciting you get to stay at AKL...we leave in 4 days and we're staying there for the first time! I can't wait!!

We have also always gone during busy times and since I'm going to be a teacher too I can't really see that changing at all! Oh well, after a while you just sort of get used to the crowds...they're really not all that bad!

[njdisneyfreak]

I remember reading your last trip report so I thought I'd check in. :) How exciting you get to stay at AKL...we leave in 4 days and we're staying there for the first time! I can't wait!!

We have also always gone during busy times and since I'm going to be a teacher too I can't really see that changing at all! Oh well, after a while you just sort of get used to the crowds...they're really not all that bad!

Welcome back!!! :goodvibes That's so cool that you're going to be at AKL in a few days, and for the first time, too. :woohoo: How cool! :woohoo: I can imagine your excitement, since I'm excited and still have 7 months to go.

You will have to do a TR when you get back. I can't wait to find out how it is for you. Take lots of pics. :thumbsup2

You're going to be a teacher? That's great. When will you be done with getting your degree/certification? What grade/subject? I agree that you get used to the crowds. It's all I really know, and if you remember from my last TR, if you utlize the EMH well, you can get nearly empty parks to ride on all the rides you want a number of times, as well as great some great pic ops.

I wish you all the best on your trip. Have fun!!! Let us know when you get back. :goodvibes

[DISNEY4XMAS]

So when you go to Whispering Canyon Cafe just DON"T EAT the buffalo burger, unless you really really want to eat bison. I hope that you get a really good waiter/waitress because ours wasn't into the theme as much as others till DD asked about them doing CRAZY things there. Then he did a little but not much. I heard that there is one guy who is great I think his name is jeff? I will have to check into it.

[njdisneyfreak]

So when you go to Whispering Canyon Cafe just DON"T EAT the buffalo burger, unless you really really want to eat bison. I hope that you get a really good waiter/waitress because ours wasn't into the theme as much as others till DD asked about them doing CRAZY things there. Then he did a little but not much. I heard that there is one guy who is great I think his name is jeff? I will have to check into it.

What do you mean about the burger? Are you saying it's huge?

I wouldn't mind if our waiter/waitress wasn't overly into the theme, but we could watch in amusement at all the other tables. If you find out the name of the waiter, though, definitely let me know.

[njdisneyfreak]

I haven't forgotten to post, but have been having major allergy issues this week. Needless to say, I've gotten a bit behind. I have more info to update, but I want to wait till maybe this weekend to post it.

Let's just say that we have totally redone our itinerary, which if you know us and our past trip planning experiences, isn't so unusual. Also, my DH got me a wonderful Disney present earlier this week. :woohoo: I'll share more soon. Isn't suspense wonderful? ;)

[DISNEY4XMAS]

What do you mean about the burger? Are you saying it's huge?

I wouldn't mind if our waiter/waitress wasn't overly into the theme, but we could watch in amusement at all the other tables. If you find out the name of the waiter, though, definitely let me know.

Well when I ordered the burger it said buffalo burger with chipotle mayo or cheese, so I though hot spicey like BUFFALO WINGS, not that the meat was actually bison. And yes it was HUGE! I ate only a portion because the whole mind over matter thing kicked in and I just couldn't eat it! I was gaging!
Oh for the waiter I have copied the link to the BADSHOE.com web site were they talk about their experience with him. His name is Bobby Jo
http://badshoe.com/bobby_joe.htm

I haven't forgotten to post, but have been having major allergy issues this week. Needless to say, I've gotten a bit behind. I have more info to update, but I want to wait till maybe this weekend to post it.

DS Tyler has been in the DR already for his, he has asthma and it is really affecting it! I give him a treatment and he is still wheezing about an hour later. The have now added Zyrtec to his list of medicines and I can add in the benedryl as needed.


Let's just say that we have totally redone our itinerary, which if you know us and our past trip planning experiences, isn't so unusual. Also, my DH got me a wonderful Disney present earlier this week. :woohoo: I'll share more soon. Isn't suspense wonderful? ;)

This is NOT uncommon:rotfl2: I am sure that it will change atleast four more times just don't change hotels this time!!!:lmao:

[njdisneyfreak]

Well when I ordered the burger it said buffalo burger with chipotle mayo or cheese, so I though hot spicey like BUFFALO WINGS, not that the meat was actually bison. And yes it was HUGE! I ate only a portion because the whole mind over matter thing kicked in and I just couldn't eat it! I was gaging!
Oh for the waiter I have copied the link to the BADSHOE.com web site were they talk about their experience with him. His name is Bobby Jo
http://badshoe.com/bobby_joe.htm

I will definitely stay away from the burger. We're thinking of going for the skillet. Any feedback on what that's like? Thanks for the link. :thumbsup2 I'll have to check it out.

DS Tyler has been in the DR already for his, he has asthma and it is really affecting it! I give him a treatment and he is still wheezing about an hour later. The have now added Zyrtec to his list of medicines and I can add in the benedryl as needed.
I have the worse ticklish throat that has made me cough like crazy, and of course phlegm gets involved. I've been wearing my glasses for a few days now, instead of contacts, because my eyes keep drying out and getting itchy. But, the absolute worse has been the sinuses! :sad2: I used to have bad asthma, so I understand what your son is going through.


This is NOT uncommon:rotfl2: I am sure that it will change atleast four more times just don't change hotels this time!!!:lmao:
Today we made some more dining changes! :rotfl: Hey, why not, right? But, I got my DH to agree that once we book the dining in June that we are staying with what we have at that point. :rolleyes1 Let's hope that happens.

As for the hotel, we are not changing this time. . .don't you worry. :thumbsup2 We want to stay there so bad and don't want to put that off again, especially since we may not be able to go there again for a little while. So, no worries. . .this will be a safari Christmas! :santa:

[wdwgirl03]

Welcome back!!! :goodvibes That's so cool that you're going to be at AKL in a few days, and for the first time, too. :woohoo: How cool! :woohoo: I can imagine your excitement, since I'm excited and still have 7 months to go.

You will have to do a TR when you get back. I can't wait to find out how it is for you. Take lots of pics. :thumbsup2

You're going to be a teacher? That's great. When will you be done with getting your degree/certification? What grade/subject? I agree that you get used to the crowds. It's all I really know, and if you remember from my last TR, if you utlize the EMH well, you can get nearly empty parks to ride on all the rides you want a number of times, as well as great some great pic ops.

I wish you all the best on your trip. Have fun!!! Let us know when you get back. :goodvibes

Well, we are back...the AKL is awesome!!! You will love it. I had a PTR going and just started my TR in the same thread (it's in my signature), so feel free to check it out. :)

I actually finished my student teaching in January. I got my teaching license shortly after that (didn't take as long as they made it sound!) for 1st-8th grade. I'm doing a lot of subbing right now and had an interview last week for a couple full-time jobs for next year. I'm crossing my fingers!

I definitely agree about EMH...we never have a problem doing the attractions we want to! Looking forward to hearing more about your plans!

[njdisneyfreak]

Well, we are back...the AKL is awesome!!! You will love it. I had a PTR going and just started my TR in the same thread (it's in my signature), so feel free to check it out. :)

I actually finished my student teaching in January. I got my teaching license shortly after that (didn't take as long as they made it sound!) for 1st-8th grade. I'm doing a lot of subbing right now and had an interview last week for a couple full-time jobs for next year. I'm crossing my fingers!

I definitely agree about EMH...we never have a problem doing the attractions we want to! Looking forward to hearing more about your plans!

I can't wait to check out your PTR!!! Keep me posted on the job situation. I remember what that was like.

I'll be posting an update soon. :goodvibes

[njdisneyfreak]

I haven't forgotten about my beloved pre-trippie, but between finishing out the teaching year and waiting for Disney to finally get around to posting the hours for the parks:headache:, I've been holding out. Our plans right now are tentative and could definitely change once the hours come out. I may post our updated schedule anyway.

Seriously, what can be taking Disney so long with posting their hours? It's so out of character. Poor November people have already had their 180 day marks come and go, and still no hours for them either. I still have a few weeks. Keep your fingers crossed for us.

We are trying to figure out when to do a seguey tour? We're leaning towards doing it on one of our last days. Give us something to look forward to.

I'll be back. I promise. Then, the fun can really begin!!! :woohoo:

[roxannensteve]

Hi, saw another December Pre Trippie & couldn't help but come check it out. I know you like the rest of us is wanting those park hours out ASAP, especially since you are going for Christmas/New Years.

We go for our Anniversary as well. Its earlier in December but still close enough to Christmas for us.

Well, I'll stick around as you plan, plan, plan away. :goodvibes

[njdisneyfreak]

Hi, saw another December Pre Trippie & couldn't help but come check it out. I know you like the rest of us is wanting those park hours out ASAP, especially since you are going for Christmas/New Years.

We go for our Anniversary as well. Its earlier in December but still close enough to Christmas for us.

Well, I'll stick around as you plan, plan, plan away. :goodvibes

Good to see you again, Roxanne! I remember comparing notes during last year's trip planning.

Well, the WDW website has the hours available today!!! Now, you and I can continue planning our trip.

In case, you want the links, or anyone else who is planning for the holidays, I'm including them.

Here are the daily hours for the MK, and you just need to scroll to the other parks:
http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/wdw/calendar/parkhours/calendarHome?id=MKCalendarParkHoursMonthlyViewPage&date=20081201

Here are the EMH:
http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/wdw/calendar/extraMagicHour?id=CalendarExtraMagicHoursPage

Now, my DH and I will need to check out our itinerary and compare it to the hours. Soon, we can actually book everything!!! I'm so excited. I absolutely love going to WDW and planning for the trip is so much fun. :cool1:

[roxannensteve]

Yes!! :dance3: So glad the hours are out. I will have to take a look this weekend to see how our plans stand compare to the hours. I think I will be okay, I was going with last years hours when planning & they look similar.

[DISNEY4XMAS]

Hey I just saw a lot of the topiaries from the tour you took this past december on another thread from may. Amazing that they last for so long!

[njdisneyfreak]

My mother-in-law was battling cancer and just passed away today. For obvious reasons, Disney was not on the forefront of our minds during all this time.

However, we'll be booking our ADRs on Thursday, so I'll be able to post our itinerary. Once we return late next week, I'll begin keeping up with my thread again.

Thanks everyone for understanding.

[njdisneyfreak]

Yes!! :dance3: So glad the hours are out. I will have to take a look this weekend to see how our plans stand compare to the hours. I think I will be okay, I was going with last years hours when planning & they look similar.

We'll have to compare notes later next week. Did you book your ADRs already or are you booking this week, like me?

Hey I just saw a lot of the topiaries from the tour you took this past december on another thread from may. Amazing that they last for so long!

Yeah, I heard they last for quite some time. You figure that they were making them when I saw them last December, with the intent of using them for the spring. So, they have to be well made. During the tour, they shared that they will often reuse topiaries as much as they can, just changing what is needed. It's always good to recycle!

[NYPDwife]

I just found your PTR, how awesome for you guys! My family and I are going for our 1st Christmas trip to Disney and we'll be staying at the Caribbean Beach Resort! The AKL must be so beautiful during the holidays so we'll definitely go by on our resort-hop day.

You must be excited, your ADR day is coming up!:cool1: Good luck getting all the ADR's you want! Maybe we'll see you at CRT on Christmas Day! I'll wear my lime green Crocs!

[NYPDwife]

Just read your last post; so sorry about your MIL. My condolences:worried:

[njdisneyfreak]

I just found your PTR, how awesome for you guys! My family and I are going for our 1st Christmas trip to Disney and we'll be staying at the Caribbean Beach Resort! The AKL must be so beautiful during the holidays so we'll definitely go by on our resort-hop day.

You must be excited, your ADR day is coming up!:cool1: Good luck getting all the ADR's you want! Maybe we'll see you at CRT on Christmas Day! I'll wear my lime green Crocs!

Oh, you have to check out my last TR, from our Christmas trip last December. I posted a lot of pics, and you can see what they have and what it looks like. Feel free to ask any questions. You will LOVE it during that time of year!!! The CBR looks pretty, though I've never been there.

I get to book my ADRs on Thursday. I can't wait! Make sure you are starting to dial right at 7 a.m. for your ADRs. You may have to keep pushing redial for a while, but don't give up. Book the ADRs you absolutely want to have first, and then book the others, rather than going day by day. Otherwise, your musts may be taken by the time you get to asking for them in your line-up of ressies. Are you guys celebrating any special occasion, like birthday, anniversary or first time to Disney? They have buttons you can wear for so many occasions, which can add some extra magic to your trip.

I hope you get all the ADRs you want, too. I'll have to check out your PTR and compare notes. Isn't planning exciting?

[NYPDwife]

How do you get that pre-paid PhotoPass CD? I just started your TR and saw it and figured I'd ask.

[njdisneyfreak]

Just read your last post; so sorry about your MIL. My condolences:worried:

Thank you.

How do you get that pre-paid PhotoPass CD? I just started your TR and saw it and figured I'd ask.

There are two ways to get it. Have you ever gone to WDW before? If not, whenever you are in the parks, always go up to the photographers who are all over the place. The first time you do, tell them you need a photopass card. Then, every time you see a photographer, no matter which park, give him/her the card. They'll take your picture and add it to the card. Be sure to ask for the suprise or magic picture in each park. You'll love it. For example, in the MK, they'll have you pose certain ways and when you see the pictures later, you'll see you're holding Tinkerbell. These pics are neat. At the end of your trip, go to any photo station to view the pics on your card. We did that periodically, to see how they looked. We also had them do tons of pics. Why not? You only buy what you want later, and you can do pics as often as you want. The other option, for getting the CD is to wait till you get home. Ask the photographers or photo station people for more info, but it's also on the photopass card. You go online to the website they show you and punch in the code from the back of your card. Then, you can view all your pics, add borders and other neat features if you'd like, you can download your own personal camera photos and so much more and then have them mail you the CD. Online, you can also do other things like have them put your pics into a custom made album or video tape.

We like the going online way, because it gives you more options.

Tip: copy down the card number from the back or take a picture of it with your regular camera. A photographer told of this. This way, if you lose the card, you still can access the pictures from it online. If you do lose the card, just get a new one from a photographer. You can do all your pics on one card or multiple, should you choose. Your pics are online for 30 days from when you start getting pictures done. It's so worth it!

I don't think I ever got around to posting pics from the CD on my TR, but they were amazing. :goodvibes

[njdisneyfreak]

I just found your PTR, how awesome for you guys! My family and I are going for our 1st Christmas trip to Disney and we'll be staying at the Caribbean Beach Resort! The AKL must be so beautiful during the holidays so we'll definitely go by on our resort-hop day.

You must be excited, your ADR day is coming up!:cool1: Good luck getting all the ADR's you want! Maybe we'll see you at CRT on Christmas Day! I'll wear my lime green Crocs!

BTW, we're from NJ. I was born in NY, and I noticed your username.

[NYPDwife]

Is the CD a set price or do they charge you per pic? We were just in Disney, August 2006 and I got my PP pics from the site, but I never saw anything about a CD!

[njdisneyfreak]

Is the CD a set price or do they charge you per pic? We were just in Disney, August 2006 and I got my PP pics from the site, but I never saw anything about a CD!

It's a set price. Check out their site to check it all out: http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/wdw/special/landingPage?id=PhotoPassLandingPage

[DISNEY4XMAS]

Thank you.



There are two ways to get it. Have you ever gone to WDW before? If not, whenever you are in the parks, always go up to the photographers who are all over the place. The first time you do, tell them you need a photopass card. Then, every time you see a photographer, no matter which park, give him/her the card. They'll take your picture and add it to the card. Be sure to ask for the suprise or magic picture in each park. You'll love it. For example, in the MK, they'll have you pose certain ways and when you see the pictures later, you'll see you're holding Tinkerbell. These pics are neat. At the end of your trip, go to any photo station to view the pics on your card. We did that periodically, to see how they looked. We also had them do tons of pics. Why not? You only buy what you want later, and you can do pics as often as you want. The other option, for getting the CD is to wait till you get home. Ask the photographers or photo station people for more info, but it's also on the photopass card. You go online to the website they show you and punch in the code from the back of your card. Then, you can view all your pics, add borders and other neat features if you'd like, you can download your own personal camera photos and so much more and then have them mail you the CD. Online, you can also do other things like have them put your pics into a custom made album or video tape.

We like the going online way, because it gives you more options.

Tip: copy down the card number from the back or take a picture of it with your regular camera. A photographer told of this. This way, if you lose the card, you still can access the pictures from it online. If you do lose the card, just get a new one from a photographer. You can do all your pics on one card or multiple, should you choose. Your pics are online for 30 days from when you start getting pictures done. It's so worth it!

I don't think I ever got around to posting pics from the CD on my TR, but they were amazing. :goodvibes

I have to agree that the cd is the way to go if you have a lot of pictures. I do wish that more of the rides would move their photo's to photopass. It would be a lot cheaper for the average Joe. Plus there would be no bulky pictures to carry around. the borders are great there are different ones for each park and holiday. When our kids did a day at the BBB they had special ones for there. If you have a picture taken with a character you can add in their signature. Which is great!

[njdisneyfreak]

I have to agree that the cd is the way to go if you have a lot of pictures. I do wish that more of the rides would move their photo's to photopass. It would be a lot cheaper for the average Joe. Plus there would be no bulky pictures to carry around. the borders are great there are different ones for each park and holiday. When our kids did a day at the BBB they had special ones for there. If you have a picture taken with a character you can add in their signature. Which is great!

I totally agree with you. I wish they included those extra pics on the photopass, too. But, I guess they figured if people are willing to pay for the pictures (and we've bought quite a few of them ourselves), they'll keep selling them separately. I do love how you can add things like the character signatures or the year. Also, they have holiday add on's when you go during the holidays, which I thought was really cool.

[njdisneyfreak]

Aw, man! :hyper: I know I can't make my ADRs till 7 a.m., but I've been awake since 5:30, and I had absolutely no reason to be awake, except that I'm sooooooooooo excited about making my ressies. :hyper: I tried to go back to sleep, but it just wasn't going to happen. :dance3: So, now I still have half an hour to go, and I just hope we can get all the ones that we want.

Last year, we made our ressies and then made so many changes afterwards, between the 180 day mark and our departure date that I actually got CMs who remembered me talking to them earlier! :lmao: I don't think that will be the issue this time. I really think we like the arrangement we have.

So, hopefully I'll be back on soon with our itinerary. If you're reading this before 7 a.m., send some pixie dust our way. :goodvibes

[njdisneyfreak]

I just called the dining line just so I'll have the number ready to redial. Soon, the madness will stop. :rotfl: :confused3 :rotfl:

[DISNEY4XMAS]

OK I am WAITING!!!!!! It is now 823 and there is nothing posted!!

[njdisneyfreak]

:cool1: Well, I made my dining ressies and it went beautifully! I don't know if it was my plan to have the number in redial already and I just pushed the button at just the right moment, but I got everything we wanted. Most of the ressies were within ten minutes of the times we wanted, with just a couple within twenty minutes. Not bad at all! :woohoo:

The only date and time we didn't reserve anything for was for January 1st dinner. We wanted to spend that night at the MK and eat at the Plaza Restaurant. The latest dinner they had was something like 4:30, since they have the park closing earlier that day right now (hours for January aren't posted yet), so we left it open.

We have two ideas for that night. Either, we'll eat at Boma's (they said I couldn't reserve for that day until the 180 day mark, according to individual restaurant policy) or do the Hawaiian Luau at the Polynesian, which we'll book before the summer is out, if it's available.

So, here's the itinerary. :surfweb: Please feel free to offer feedback. :surfweb:

Tuesday, December 23rd
- We're arriving during the morning
- Lunch will be at Mara's
- We'll probably be exploring the resort and go to Downtown for a while
- Dinner at Narcoossee's (This is our first time here, and we'll get to see the MK fireworks from there!!!)

Wednesday, December 24th
- Breakfast at Mara's
- Head over to Epcot
- Segway Tour (We haven't booked yet, but plan to.)
- Lunch at the Garden Grill
- Dinner at Boma's
- Hollywood Studios to see the Osbourne Lights

:santa: Thursday, December 25th :santa:
- Head over to the MK
- Breakfast at Cinderella's Royal Table
- Enjoy as much of the park as possible before it gets too crazy
- Lunch at Crystal Palace
- Head over to the Animal Kingdom
- Dinner at Jiko's

Friday, December 26th
- Breakfast at Boma's
- Go to HS
- Lunch at Mama Melrose's
- Go to Epcot
- Dinner at Chef Mickey's (We couldn't get this at all on last trip, so we're looking forward to it. We've only eaten here for breakfast.)

Saturday, December 27th
- Head over to the AK
- Breakfast at Donald’s Safari Breakfast at Tusker House (First time doing this.)
- Lunch at Kona Cafe
- Go to HS
- Dinner at Boma's

Sunday, December 28th
- Breakfast at 1900 Park Fare (one of the best ever!!!)
- Go to the MK
- Lunch at Tony's Townsquare Restaurant
- Dinner at Ohana

Monday, December 29th
- Breakfast at Boma's
- Go to HS
- Lunch at Sci-Fi (We love the cheesy movies & the Drive-In atmosphere.)
- Go to Epcot
- Dinner at the Coral Reef

Tuesday, December 30th
- Breakfast at Ohana
- Go to MK
- Go to Downtown
- Lunch at Wolfgang Puck Express
- Dinner at 1900 Park Fare (Love the interaction between Cinderella's stepsisters and stepmother!!!)

Wednesday, December 31st
- Breakfast at Boma's
- Lunch at Mara's
- Go to HS
- Dinner at Hollywood Brown Derby
- Enjoy the NYE festivities

Thursday, January 1st
- Breakfast at Chef Mickey's
- Go to MK
- Lunch at Teppan Edo
- Dinner is up in the air (read above)

Friday, January 2nd
- Go to MK
- Breakfast at Crystal Palace
- Lunch at Liberty Tree Tavern
- Go to Epcot
- Dinner at Le Cellier (amazing food)

Saturday, January 3rd
- Return Home

So that's everything! :yay: I'm so excited. This trip is going to be amazing. If anyone has ideas of where we should eat on January 1st let me know. We're open. Whew! It feels good to have the dining all taken care of. We'll be using the Deluxe Dining Plan, and we hope it was a good choice. Just based on all our dining choices though, I'm liking it already.

Oh, and in case you were wondering, we will be spending quite a bit of time at the resort. I mean we're staying at the AKL for the first time, in a savannah view, so we plan to enjoy every moment of it. :goodvibes

[njdisneyfreak]

OK I am WAITING!!!!!! It is now 823 and there is nothing posted!!

I'm sorry. My DH has been home, and he needed help with stuff while I was in the middle of posting. :eek: Can you believe it?! :laughing:

I think it was worth the wait though. Let me know what you think. :woohoo:

[NYPDwife]

:cool1: Well, I made my dining ressies and it went beautifully! I don't know if it was my plan to have the number in redial already and I just pushed the button at just the right moment, but I got everything we wanted. Most of the ressies were within ten minutes of the times we wanted, with just a couple within twenty minutes. Not bad at all! :woohoo:

The only date and time we didn't reserve anything for was for January 1st dinner. We wanted to spend that night at the MK and eat at the Plaza Restaurant. The latest dinner they had was something like 4:30, since they have the park closing earlier that day right now (hours for January aren't posted yet), so we left it open.

We have two ideas for that night. Either, we'll eat at Boma's (they said I couldn't reserve for that day until the 180 day mark, according to individual restaurant policy) or do the Hawaiian Luau at the Polynesian, which we'll book before the summer is out, if it's available.

So, here's the itinerary. :surfweb: Please feel free to offer feedback. :surfweb:

Tuesday, December 23rd
- We're arriving during the morning
- Lunch will be at Mara's
- We'll probably be exploring the resort and go to Downtown for a while
- Dinner at Narcoossee's (This is our first time here, and we'll get to see the MK fireworks from there!!!)

Wednesday, December 24th
- Breakfast at Mara's
- Head over to Epcot
- Segway Tour (We haven't booked yet, but plan to.)
- Lunch at the Garden Grill
- Dinner at Boma's
- Hollywood Studios to see the Osbourne Lights

:santa: Thursday, December 25th :santa:
- Head over to the MK
- Breakfast at Cinderella's Royal Table
- Enjoy as much of the park as possible before it gets too crazy
- Lunch at Crystal Palace
- Head over to the Animal Kingdom
- Dinner at Jiko's

Friday, December 26th
- Breakfast at Boma's
- Go to HS
- Lunch at Mama Melrose's
- Go to Epcot
- Dinner at Chef Mickey's (We couldn't get this at all on last trip, so we're looking forward to it. We've only eaten here for breakfast.)

Saturday, December 27th
- Head over to the AK
- Breakfast at Donald’s Safari Breakfast at Tusker House (First time doing this.)
- Lunch at Kona Cafe
- Go to HS
- Dinner at Boma's

Sunday, December 28th
- Breakfast at 1900 Park Fare (one of the best ever!!!)
- Go to the MK
- Lunch at Tony's Townsquare Restaurant
- Dinner at Ohana

Monday, December 29th
- Breakfast at Boma's
- Go to HS
- Lunch at Sci-Fi (We love the cheesy movies & the Drive-In atmosphere.)
- Go to Epcot
- Dinner at the Coral Reef

Tuesday, December 30th
- Breakfast at Ohana
- Go to MK
- Go to Downtown
- Lunch at Wolfgang Puck Express
- Dinner at 1900 Park Fare (Love the interaction between Cinderella's stepsisters and stepmother!!!)

Wednesday, December 31st
- Breakfast at Boma's
- Lunch at Mara's
- Go to HS
- Dinner at Hollywood Brown Derby
- Enjoy the NYE festivities

Thursday, January 1st
- Breakfast at Chef Mickey's
- Go to MK
- Lunch at Teppan Edo
- Dinner is up in the air (read above)

Friday, January 2nd
- Go to MK
- Breakfast at Crystal Palace
- Lunch at Liberty Tree Tavern
- Go to Epcot
- Dinner at Le Cellier (amazing food)

Saturday, January 3rd
- Return Home

So that's everything! :yay: I'm so excited. This trip is going to be amazing. If anyone has ideas of where we should eat on January 1st let me know. We're open. Whew! It feels good to have the dining all taken care of. We'll be using the Deluxe Dining Plan, and we hope it was a good choice. Just based on all our dining choices though, I'm liking it already.

Oh, and in case you were wondering, we will be spending quite a bit of time at the resort. I mean we're staying at the AKL for the first time, in a savannah view, so we plan to enjoy every moment of it. :goodvibes

Oh, I SO want the Deluxe DP. Your ADR's sound awesome! What time did you get for CRT?

[njdisneyfreak]

Oh, I SO want the Deluxe DP. Your ADR's sound awesome! What time did you get for CRT?

We went with the regular dining package on our last trip, which was good, but we figured since we're staying at the AKL, it made sense to go with Deluxe.

We'll actually see you at the restaurant!!! The only breakfast ressie they had left was at 8:30. You guys will have to come over to us. Maybe we'll see each other while we wait to get seated. How cool is that?!

[DISNEY4XMAS]

I have given you my thoughts in the bold navy font!!!

:cool1: Well, I made my dining ressies and it went beautifully! I don't know if it was my plan to have the number in redial already and I just pushed the button at just the right moment, but I got everything we wanted. Most of the ressies were within ten minutes of the times we wanted, with just a couple within twenty minutes. Not bad at all! :woohoo:

The only date and time we didn't reserve anything for was for January 1st dinner. We wanted to spend that night at the MK and eat at the Plaza Restaurant. The latest dinner they had was something like 4:30, since they have the park closing earlier that day right now (hours for January aren't posted yet), so we left it open.

We have two ideas for that night. Either, we'll eat at Boma's (they said I couldn't reserve for that day until the 180 day mark, according to individual restaurant policy) or do the Hawaiian Luau at the Polynesian, which we'll book before the summer is out, if it's available.

So, here's the itinerary. :surfweb: Please feel free to offer feedback. :surfweb:

Tuesday, December 23rd
- We're arriving during the morning
- Lunch will be at Mara's I haven't eaten here let me know how it is!
- We'll probably be exploring the resort and go to Downtown for a while
- Dinner at Narcoossee's (This is our first time here, and we'll get to see the MK fireworks from there!!!) I haven't eaten here let me know how it is!

Wednesday, December 24th
- Breakfast at Mara's
- Head over to Epcot
- Segway Tour (We haven't booked yet, but plan to.)
- Lunch at the Garden Grill I haven't eaten here let me know how it is!
- Dinner at Boma's I haven't eaten here let me know how it is!
- Hollywood Studios to see the Osbourne Lights I missed these! :( :mad:

:santa: Thursday, December 25th :santa:
- Head over to the MK
- Breakfast at Cinderella's Royal Table I haven't eaten here let me know how it is!
- Enjoy as much of the park as possible before it gets too crazy
- Lunch at Crystal Palace I have done breakfast and lunch there is is great
- Head over to the Animal Kingdom
- Dinner at Jiko's I haven't eaten here let me know how it is!

Friday, December 26th
- Breakfast at Boma's I haven't eaten here let me know how it is!
- Go to HS
- Lunch at Mama Melrose's I haven't eaten here let me know how it is!
- Go to Epcot
- Dinner at Chef Mickey's (We couldn't get this at all on last trip, so we're looking forward to it. We've only eaten here for breakfast.) MMM we did dinner there our first night MMM it was so good! If you like Prime Rib it is sooooo good!

Saturday, December 27th
- Head over to the AK
- Breakfast at Donald’s Safari Breakfast at Tusker House (First time doing this.) I haven't had the breakfast here, I did have at the other place and the food was good!
- Lunch at Kona Cafe I haven't eaten here let me know how it is!
- Go to HS
- Dinner at Boma's

Sunday, December 28th
- Breakfast at 1900 Park Fare (one of the best ever!!!) I thnk we will try this for our next trip I loved your pics of the mad hatter and Alice
- Go to the MK
- Lunch at Tony's Townsquare Restaurant I haven't eaten here let me know how it is! I have heard MIXED reviews about it
- Dinner at Ohana This is on the list to try for the next trip that was a back up for last year incase we didn't get something.

Monday, December 29th
- Breakfast at Boma's
- Go to HS
- Lunch at Sci-Fi (We love the cheesy movies & the Drive-In atmosphere.) I haven't eaten here let me know how it is!
- Go to Epcot
- Dinner at the Coral ReefLunch here was great! I do hope that if you guys are doing your celebration for your annivesary that they don't screw it up again!

Tuesday, December 30th
- Breakfast at Ohana
- Go to MK
- Go to Downtown
- Lunch at Wolfgang Puck Express I haven't eaten here let me know how it is!
- Dinner at 1900 Park Fare (Love the interaction between Cinderella's stepsisters and stepmother!!!) OH MY GAWD I LOVED IT THERE! The Step sister were great!!

Wednesday, December 31st
- Breakfast at Boma's
- Lunch at Mara's
- Go to HS
- Dinner at Hollywood Brown Derby I haven't eaten here let me know how it is!
- Enjoy the NYE festivities

Thursday, January 1st
- Breakfast at Chef Mickey's
- Go to MK
- Lunch at Teppan Edo I haven't eaten here let me know how it is!
- Dinner is up in the air (read above) HAve you tried the HOOP DEE DOO review? Dh loved it! We also did the Luau out. We like them both.

Friday, January 2nd
- Go to MK
- Breakfast at Crystal Palace
- Lunch at Liberty Tree Tavern We did christmas dinner here the last time and I don't know I wasn't really thrilled with it! I did love the character interaction though.
- Go to Epcot
- Dinner at Le Cellier (amazing food) I could not get ressies for here that was my most sort after ressie. I called atleast once a week from june till the time we left

Saturday, January 3rd
- Return Home

So that's everything! :yay: I'm so excited. This trip is going to be amazing. If anyone has ideas of where we should eat on January 1st let me know. We're open. Whew! It feels good to have the dining all taken care of. We'll be using the Deluxe Dining Plan, and we hope it was a good choice. Just based on all our dining choices though, I'm liking it already.

Oh, and in case you were wondering, we will be spending quite a bit of time at the resort. I mean we're staying at the AKL for the first time, in a savannah view, so we plan to enjoy every moment of it. :goodvibes

So it looks like you are eating every place I haven't. So I will look forward to your reviews!!! OH you are so lucky to be going again !! I loved christmas just didn't like the long lines. I do plan on doing TGM for our next trip!

[njdisneyfreak]

I have given you my thoughts in the bold navy font!!!

So it looks like you are eating every place I haven't. So I will look forward to your reviews!!! OH you are so lucky to be going again !! I loved christmas just didn't like the long lines. I do plan on doing TGM for our next trip!

Oh, you know I'll be sharing my reviews! :laughing: That's part of the fun, and don't worry. There will be tons of pics, like last time. I'll let you know how all those restaurants are, though I have been to some of them already.

It's going to be great. I loved Christmas :santa: too, but the lines weren't too bad for us. We utilized TGM's plans and didn't wait very long for much the entire time. We didn't get TGM this time, but we think we can do this trip, based on how we did it last time. A key is really using the EMHs to your advantage and taking mid-day breaks. That really helps cut down on a lot of aggravation. Also, eating at off times, when you can, helps too. Oh, I'm so glad to have my ADRs done!!! :woohoo:

[NYPDwife]

We went with the regular dining package on our last trip, which was good, but we figured since we're staying at the AKL, it made sense to go with Deluxe.

We'll actually see you at the restaurant!!! The only breakfast ressie they had left was at 8:30. You guys will have to come over to us. Maybe we'll see each other while we wait to get seated. How cool is that?!

Very cool! I already have my mom looking into patterns to make DD the pink, winter dress and red, velvet cloak that Belle had on in the winter scene of B & the B. I know it's Cinderella's Royal Table, but DD's not blond and the winter outfit is soooo pretty.

In my excitement, I bought a pair of lime-green Frocs (fake Crocs, :rotfl2: ), and Mickey Jibbits, so you'll definitely see us.

[njdisneyfreak]

Very cool! I already have my mom looking into patterns to make DD the pink, winter dress and red, velvet cloak that Belle had on in the winter scene of B & the B. I know it's Cinderella's Royal Table, but DD's not blond and the winter outfit is soooo pretty.

In my excitement, I bought a pair of lime-green Frocs (fake Crocs, :rotfl2: ), and Mickey Jibbits, so you'll definitely see us.

I love that outfit, and though I like Cinderella, I'm more of a Belle fan myself, so I understand. Maybe I just relate more to darker haired princesses, since I really like Snow White, too. :goodvibes That's great that you're mom is so talented that she can possibly make an outfit like that.

That's cool that you got lime-green Frocs. I shared what you called fake Crocs with my DH, and today when he saw some, he said, "Look, honey! Frocs!" :rotfl2: You may have started a trend here.

[DisneyFan06]

We will be there from Dec 21 - 27. You picked some good resturants! :) Cant wait to read more! :)

[njdisneyfreak]

We will be there from Dec 21 - 27. You picked some good resturants! :) Cant wait to read more! :)

That's great! :goodvibes We'll have to compare notes. I'm off to check out your PTR.

[njdisneyfreak]

As I believe I mentioned in a prior post, my mother-in-law passed away. Now, I'm back home. It was tough, but my DH and I have been happy to go back to discussing our WDW trip.

A couple of dining changes have occurred since I last posted our itinerary. The biggest one involved getting rid of the Garden Grill since we saw online that it will stop serving lunch starting in November and we had a lunch ressie. Ah, well. The other changes are minor. I figure I can post a final list later, after I'm absolutely certain that it's set.

I'm trying to learn from my last PTR to not post and re-post and re-post again with each itinerary change. :dance3: That just got way too confusing! :laughing:

:santa: My DH mentioned to me that he wishes we were there when they have MVMCP since we enjoyed last year's so much, but with the date that they are ending it and my teaching restrictions for vacation dates, we just can't do it this year. It is a bummer, but at least they do all the same stuff throughout the dates we'll be there. :santa:

We've been talking about doing tours. We know we want to do the Segway Tour on our first full day. Though we haven't booked it yet, that one is fairly set. But, we also want to do the Behind the Seeds Tour. Okay, I want to do the Behind the Seeds Tour. On our last trip, I wanted to go, and we always had stuff to do and never got around to it. This time, my DH assures me that we will do that. Have any of you gone on that one? I always love going on The Land Ride. The stuff they have learned to do with growing various vegetation and seafood is so cool, and who doesn't love the Mickey shaped pumpkins! :thumbsup2

We are thinking of doing another tour, while we're there. What do you guys think about the Keys to the Kingdom Tour at the MK? On our last trip, we did the Behind the Scenes Tour that takes you to all the parks, but the AK. On this tour, we would go more in depth into the MK. Seems cool, especially for a Disney Freak like me. :goodvibes We also toyed with the idea of doing the dolphins tour in Epcot, but we think we might hold off for a future trip when we can make it over to that park, Discovery Cove, in Orlando where you can spend the day with dolphins.

Have any of you been on other tours at WDW that you'd recommend? We think we want to do at least one besides the Segway one.

Waiting is going to be hard. I know it's just over five months away and that time will go fast, but with all the time looming ahead of us, it seems like forever.

Today we went over our packing list. Yup! You heard right. Our packing list. :lmao: Weird? Maybe. But we still had last year's list on my laptop and it took no time to update it for this year's trip. The hard part will be clothing. Last year, we brought clothes for both colder temps and warmer temps, and we leaned more towards the cooler clothing items. Then, we arrived and it was incredibly warm the whole time! Not that I'm complaining. We're hoping for great weather again, so this time, we're leaning more towards the warmer weather. Send pixie dust our way that this will be the case! :cool1:

Okay, so now I'm off to continue reading DisneyFan06's thread. I began it before I left and wasn't able to return to it till now.

I'll be back soon with more of the latest. :goodvibes Coming Up: How to Croc:goodvibes

[wdwgirl03]

Wow, your dining plans look great! I love the Sci-Fi. And we ate at Mama Melrose's for the first time on our May trip and really enjoyed it.

[njdisneyfreak]

Wow, your dining plans look great! I love the Sci-Fi. And we ate at Mama Melrose's for the first time on our May trip and really enjoyed it.

We love Sci-Fi too. The concept of a drive-in is great and the movie clips are entertaining. I noticed on our last trip that the wait staff no longer wears roller skates though. I guess one too many accidents, huh? :laughing:

:confused3 What do you recommend at Mama Melrose? :confused3

[njdisneyfreak]

For those of you who have Crocs, do you recommend the normal design or the Mary Jane version? I am torn. I am also torn on which color to choose.

We've made more dining changes and we booked the Segway Tour!!! :woohoo: I'm so excited. We've ridden them in one of the Innoventions buildings, and they were so much fun! For the tour, they'll do an hour indoors where we ride them through the building, learning. Then, we do an hour touring the World on them. I can't wait! We're doing it on our first morning at 7:45. Yeah, it's early, but it's a two hour tour and we'll still have a lot of our day left. We also changed our dinner plans to Chefs de France. I can't wait to try that place out, too. I hope it was a good choice. :goodvibes

[njdisneyfreak]

Okay, so we went and ordered a pair of Crocs apiece. I ordered a pair of flip flops for now. See?

http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Dec%202008/CrocsCanvasCapriSandalWomens.jpg

If I like them, I'll get a pair of the shoes, though I still don't know if I'll go more traditional or Mary Janes.

My DH ordered these:

http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Dec%202008/CrocsCaymanAdults.jpg

He wants a pair of flip flops too, but opted to get the shoe version for now. Yeah! Our first purchase for the trip!!!! :cool1: :woohoo: :banana: :woohoo: :yay:

Oh, I'd love to update my itinerary, but I just posted yesterday that I was going to wait. :eek: Oh, what to do? What to do?

[DisneyFan06]

Good choices. :goodvibes

We each own special Disney crocs. Recently, Stephanie left her pair outside and someone stole them!!!! :scared1: Would you believe - someone stole a pair of Mickey Disney Crocs. So, I guess we have to purchase another pair for her before this trip.

Okay, so we went and ordered a pair of Crocs apiece. I ordered a pair of flip flops for now. See?

http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Dec%202008/CrocsCanvasCapriSandalWomens.jpg

If I like them, I'll get a pair of the shoes, though I still don't know if I'll go more traditional or Mary Janes.

My DH ordered these:

http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Dec%202008/CrocsCaymanAdults.jpg

He wants a pair of flip flops too, but opted to get the shoe version for now. Yeah! Our first purchase for the trip!!!! :cool1: :woohoo: :banana: :woohoo: :yay:

Oh, I'd love to update my itinerary, but I just posted yesterday that I was going to wait. :eek: Oh, what to do? What to do?

[njdisneyfreak]

Good choices. :goodvibes We each own special Disney crocs. Recently, Stephanie left her pair outside and someone stole them!!!! :scared1: Would you believe - someone stole a pair of Mickey Disney Crocs. So, I guess we have to purchase another pair for her before this trip.

What's funny, is that on our WDW trip in 2002 we saw some people wearing Crocs and were like, "Ew! Look at those shoes." We said it to each other, not to them. ;) Within a year, we saw people wearing them all over the place. On our trip last year, we noticed that a huge portion of the WDW guests had them on and on a recent visit to the hospital almost every staff member has them on. So, I guess those plastic shoes have become quite the hot commodity! Stephanie won't be able to put her new pair outside anymore, unfortunately. Who would have ever guessed they'd become so popular that people would want to steal them?! :rotfl2:

[njdisneyfreak]

We tried to book the Keys to the Kingdom tour and they didn't have any availability during our entire stay. :headache: Ah well. . .next time. At least we got the Segway Tour and we'll do the Behind the Seeds Tour. I'm so looking forward to this trip! :banana:

[njdisneyfreak]

This is a mistake post. Sorry about that. I did a post with all the pics, but it was all screwed up. So, on to the second try.

[njdisneyfreak]

They say a picture says a 1000 words, and I don't think I gave a full picture of why we loved last year's trip so much, and why we're crazy enough to go back during the busiest time all year in WDW! :laughing: So, hang on, keep your arms inside the vehicle and enjoy the ride!!!

There's the castle full of white lights:
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Dec%202007%20Part%203/PC230431.jpg
Simply magical!

The Christmas parade in the MK:
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Dec%202007/WDW%20Dec%202007%20Part%202/PC200242.jpg
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Dec%202007/WDW%20Dec%202007%20Part%202/PC200222.jpg

The great picture opportunities you can only get this time of year:
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Dec%202007%20Part%203/PC250550.jpg
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Dec%202007%20Part%203/PC250539.jpg
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Dec%202007%20Part%203/WDW%20Dec%202007%20Part%204/PC250556.jpg

Holidays Around the World:
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Dec%202007%20Part%203/WDW%20Dec%202007%20Part%204/PC290682.jpg

The Hollywood Holly Day Parade at the Studios:
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Dec%202007%20Part%203/WDW%20Dec%202007%20Part%204/PC270649.jpg
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Dec%202007%20Part%203/WDW%20Dec%202007%20Part%204/PC270615.jpg

The park decorations:
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Dec%202007%20Part%203/WDW%20Dec%202007%20Part%204/WDW%20Dec%202007%20Part%205/PC300707.jpg
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Dec%202007%20Part%203/WDW%20Dec%202007%20Part%204/WDW%20Dec%202007%20Part%205/WDW%20Dec%202007%20Part%206/PC310026.jpg
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Dec%202007%20Part%203/WDW%20Dec%202007%20Part%204/PC270650.jpg

Hopefully, I didn't show too much for those of you who are planning your own trips for the holidays. Clearly, WDW during the holiday season is completely unique and so amazingly magical. Seeing all those pictures again makes me want to leave now! :yay: :yay: :yay: Ah, well. All in good time. :santa:

[DISNEY4XMAS]

For those of you who have Crocs, do you recommend the normal design or the Mary Jane version? I am torn. I am also torn on which color to choose.

i would have said the normal design but I have mary janes now and I love them!! I have brown maryjanes and hot pink crocs and black mickey crocs

[njdisneyfreak]

i would have said the normal design but I have mary janes now and I love them!! I have brown maryjanes and hot pink crocs and black mickey crocs

What do you like about the Mary Janes? I think they appeal to me more since they are sleeker looking, but are there any other reasons you like them?

[DISNEY4XMAS]

What do you like about the Mary Janes? I think they appeal to me more since they are sleeker looking, but are there any other reasons you like them?

Well The whole reason I bought them was because me feet were sweating in the mickey crocs one night at work and they didn't match my outfit. So I went to the gift shop and they had my size and color I wanted right on the floor, it was a sign. I really like them because they are open and my feet can breath. I also like the look they so stylish:lmao: . No, I do like them, though very comfortable. The only thing with the crocs I don't like is that they chew up my socks. I always end up with holes in my heels when the crocs are new!

[njdisneyfreak]

Alright, I thought I would only post my initial itinerary and my final one towards the end. But, in all fairness, I think all planning should be included and this has been part of the planning. . .Convincing enough? :lmao: Okay, well, full speed ahead captain! Sorry, Pirates of the Caribbean on the brain.

Here's my updated itinerary:

Tuesday, December 23rd
- We're arriving during the morning
- Lunch will be at Mara's
- We'll probably be exploring the resort and go to Downtown for a while
- Dinner at Narcoossee's (We'll get to see the MK fireworks from there!!!)

Wednesday, December 24th
- Quick yogurt or some like food from Mara's
- Head over to Epcot- Segway Tour from 7:45 to 9:45
- Late breakfast at Akershus
- Snack around the World as we enjoy Christmas festivities
- Dinner at Chef's de France
- Hollywood Studios to see the Osbourne Lights:santa:

Thursday, December 25th :santa:
- Head over to the MK- Breakfast at Cinderella's Royal Table
- Enjoy as much of the park as possible before it gets too crazy
- Lunch at Crystal Palace
- Head over to the Animal Kingdom
- Dinner at Jiko's

Friday, December 26th
- Breakfast at Boma's
- Go to HS
- Lunch at Mama Melrose's
- Go to Epcot
- Dinner at Chef Mickey's
- Go to the Mk for EMH

Saturday, December 27th
- Head over to the AK
- Breakfast at Donald’s Safari Breakfast at Tusker House
- Lunch at either Flametree BBQ if still in AK or Toy Store Pizza Planet if we're at HS
- Go to HS
- Dinner at Boma's

Sunday, December 28th
- Breakfast at 1900 Park Fare
- Go to the MK
- Lunch at Tony's Townsquare Restaurant
- Dinner at Ohana

Monday, December 29th
- Breakfast at Boma's
- Go to HS
- Lunch at Sci-Fi
- Go to Epcot
- Dinner at the Coral Reef

Tuesday, December 30th
- Breakfast at Ohana
- Go to Downtown
- Lunch at Wolfgang Puck Express
- Dinner at 1900 Park Fare
- Go to MK

Wednesday, December 31st
- Breakfast at Boma's
- Go to AK
- Lunch at Tusker House
- Back to resort to relax
- Go to HS
- Dinner at Hollywood Brown Derby
- Enjoy the NYE festivities

Thursday, January 1st
- Breakfast at Chef Mickey's
- Go to MK
- Head over to Epcot
- Lunch at Teppan Edo
- Dinner at Boma's, though this may change to the Polynesian Luau

Friday, January 2nd
- Go to MK
- Breakfast at Crystal Palace
- Lunch at Liberty Tree Tavern
- Go to Epcot
- Dinner at Le Cellier

Saturday, January 3rd
- Return Home

We don't have hours yet for January, so we may shift some things on our last two days a bit. So, there you have it. . .my itinerary changes. I was so glad to add Akershus for our first morning, because we tried it for the first time on our last trip and really enjoyed their breakfast. I had also expected to get a picture with the yellow gowned Belle, a rare photo opportunity, and she unexpectedly got sick. In fact, she wasn't even at her other photo sessions in Epcot later that day, when we waited to get pics with Belle and the Beast. Hopefully, I'll get that picture on this trip.

Of course, we'll be spending time at our resort quite a bit throughout our trip. I mean we're staying at the AKL!!! I still can't get over that. I can't even imagine staying somewhere where we'll see animals outside our room, let alone wherever we go on property. Too cool. We're looking forward to going in the pool and hot tubs. Then, we also want to do some of the cool activities, like animal viewing with night vision and African story telling time at the outside fire pit. :woohoo:

[njdisneyfreak]

Well The whole reason I bought them was because me feet were sweating in the mickey crocs one night at work and they didn't match my outfit. So I went to the gift shop and they had my size and color I wanted right on the floor, it was a sign. I really like them because they are open and my feet can breath. I also like the look they so stylish:lmao: . No, I do like them, though very comfortable. The only thing with the crocs I don't like is that they chew up my socks. I always end up with holes in my heels when the crocs are new!

Well that's one way to discover a new shoe style! :rotfl: I just went on the Crocs website, and I definitely think I'll end up getting a pair of Mary Janes before the trip. But, I absolutely loved the new santa cruz canvas shoe that comes in different colors and designs. I was thinking that if I really like Crocs, I may get some of those for work. It may make standing on my feet for much of my teaching days easier. :thumbsup2

[wdwgirl03]

We love Sci-Fi too. The concept of a drive-in is great and the movie clips are entertaining. I noticed on our last trip that the wait staff no longer wears roller skates though. I guess one too many accidents, huh? :laughing:

:confused3 What do you recommend at Mama Melrose? :confused3

I didn't notice that about the wait staff...though I do think I saw one of the hostesses before you go in wearing roller skates.

As for Mama Melrose's...I'm a pretty picky eater so I just ordered spaghetti and meatballs. My dad and sister both had the chicken parmesan and they both enjoyed it. Like most places in WDW, the portions are big! I do recommend the chocolate truffle cake for dessert...we loved that!

[njdisneyfreak]

I didn't notice that about the wait staff...though I do think I saw one of the hostesses before you go in wearing roller skates.

As for Mama Melrose's...I'm a pretty picky eater so I just ordered spaghetti and meatballs. My dad and sister both had the chicken parmesan and they both enjoyed it. Like most places in WDW, the portions are big! I do recommend the chocolate truffle cake for dessert...we loved that!

Yummy! Thanks for the tips. Honestly, it's hard to go wrong with anything Italian. That dessert sounds awesome. I love chocolate and I'm trying to picture what that dessert would look like. Who cares? IT'S CHOCOLATE!!! :rotfl2: (That's what chocolate does to me.)

[Raecheal]

Okay, so we went and ordered a pair of Crocs apiece. I ordered a pair of flip flops for now. See?

http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Dec%202008/CrocsCanvasCapriSandalWomens.jpg

If I like them, I'll get a pair of the shoes, though I still don't know if I'll go more traditional or Mary Janes.

My DH ordered these:

http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Dec%202008/CrocsCaymanAdults.jpg

He wants a pair of flip flops too, but opted to get the shoe version for now. Yeah! Our first purchase for the trip!!!! :cool1: :woohoo: :banana: :woohoo: :yay:

Oh, I'd love to update my itinerary, but I just posted yesterday that I was going to wait. :eek: Oh, what to do? What to do?

I LOVE THESE FLIP FLOPS... :woohoo: I"m def. going to try to pick up a pair.

[njdisneyfreak]

I LOVE THESE FLIP FLOPS... :woohoo: I"m def. going to try to pick up a pair.

They come in other colors, too! I love the way they look, because they don't look all Croc-like, and you still get the comfort of them. :thumbsup2

[bellasmommy0]

Sounds like great plans so far.

I LOVE CROCS!! I work 12 hour shifts in a hospital, and have worn only crocs for over 2 years. When I work nikes, my feet were always sore after a busy day. Not so with my crocs. I am a firm believer. I also wore them the whole trip when we were in Disney last Sept. and no problems there either.
I am the proud owner of about 5 pairs, and now I am wanting the chocolate brown and pink Minnie Janes!! I will have these before Disney!

[Raecheal]

They come in other colors, too! I love the way they look, because they don't look all Croc-like, and you still get the comfort of them. :thumbsup2

i'll have to figure out where they sell them in Canada. They are adorable..

[Raecheal]

Sounds like great plans so far.

I LOVE CROCS!! I work 12 hour shifts in a hospital, and have worn only crocs for over 2 years. When I work nikes, my feet were always sore after a busy day. Not so with my crocs. I am a firm believer. I also wore them the whole trip when we were in Disney last Sept. and no problems there either.
I am the proud owner of about 5 pairs, and now I am wanting the chocolate brown and pink Minnie Janes!! I will have these before Disney!


This is totally off topic, but i love your countdown.. how do you get one?

[joelp]

Subbing - we'll be at AKL Dec 6-13!!!:woohoo:

BTW - my DW may disagree that you're the "njdisneyfreak" ... :lmao:

[DISNEY4XMAS]

This is totally off topic, but i love your countdown.. how do you get one?

There are a lot of different ticker count downs if you search for them. I have found a few geared towards Disney!

http://tickerfactory.com/ezticker/ticker_designer.php
http://www.********************/timers/
http://www.mickeypath.com/

You design them and then copy the code and paste into your signature!
They have a ton to choose from. Have fun picking them out and designing.

[DISNEY4XMAS]

I LOVE CROCS!! I work 12 hour shifts in a hospital, and have worn only crocs for over 2 years. When I work nikes, my feet were always sore after a busy day. Not so with my crocs. I am a firm believer. I also wore them the whole trip when we were in Disney last Sept. and no problems there either.
I am the proud owner of about 5 pairs, and now I am wanting the chocolate brown and pink Minnie Janes!! I will have these before Disney!

Oh those sound great thanks for telling us that they now have Disney Mary Jane I will have to get a pair!!!
I know how you feel about standing in sneakers I did that for years and had clogs the hard ones and I will never change back unless they tell us we can't wear them. I work in a hospital too! I'm a lab rat!:lmao: Well lab rat/ phlebotomist. So I am either standing or running!

Well that's one way to discover a new shoe style! :rotfl: I just went on the Crocs website, and I definitely think I'll end up getting a pair of Mary Janes before the trip. But, I absolutely loved the new santa cruz canvas shoe that comes in different colors and designs. I was thinking that if I really like Crocs, I may get some of those for work. It may make standing on my feet for much of my teaching days easier. :thumbsup2
Those look cool. I haven't been on the crocs site since we bought our Disney Crocs last year! Everyone got a pair last year but my DH and by the time we left Disney he had a pair. Which he said he would NEVER wear out of the park... I find him all the time putting them on to run to the store!!:rotfl2:

[bellasmommy0]

[QUOTE=DISNEY4XMAS;26141382]Oh those sound great thanks for telling us that they now have Disney Mary Jane I will have to get a pair!!!
I know how you feel about standing in sneakers I did that for years and had clogs the hard ones and I will never change back unless they tell us we can't wear them. I work in a hospital too! I'm a lab rat!:lmao: Well lab rat/ phlebotomist. So I am either standing or running!


Well I am a respiratory therapist, so as you know we both spend most of out day traveling all over the WHOLE hospital!!

[njdisneyfreak]

Sounds like great plans so far.I LOVE CROCS!!* I work 12 hour shifts in a hospital, and have worn only crocs for over 2 years.* When I work nikes, my feet were always sore after a busy day.* Not so with my crocs.* I am a firm believer.* I also wore them the whole trip when we were in Disney last Sept. and no problems there either.I am the proud owner of about 5 pairs, and now I am wanting the chocolate brown and pink Minnie Janes!!* I will have these before Disney!It's so good to know, from someone who is on their feet so much.* I'm excited about getting mine.* They should be arriving soon, since they where shipped last night.* I'll have to check out the Minnie Janes!* Are they on the Crocs site?
i'll have to figure out where they sell them in Canada. They are adorable..
Will the Crocs site not mail to Canada?* I went onto their website to check, and there's a section that has a phone number to call if you are in Canada and want to buy.* Here's the link: http://www.crocs.com/contact_us/customer_service/
Let me know if you get a pair.* :goodvibes
This is totally off topic, but i love your countdown.. how do you get one?
See Disney4xmas' suggestions.* The one I used was the one in the middle, magicalkingdom and I found it super easy to do.* If you need help though, just let me know.
Subbing - we'll be at AKL Dec 6-13!!!:woohoo:*BTW - my DW may disagree that you're the "njdisneyfreak" ... :lmao:
How cool! We'll have to compare notes. :santa: As for your DW, I called the name first, kind of like calling shotgun.* You can't reverse it.* So, maybe I'll allow her to be njdisneyfreak#2.* :laughing:
There are a lot of different ticker count downs if you search for them. I have found a few geared towards Disney!

http://tickerfactory.com/ezticker/ticker_designer.phphttp://www.********************/timers/http://www.mickeypath.com/
You design them and then copy the code and paste into your signature!They have a ton to choose from. Have fun picking them out and designing.
Thanks Disney4xmas for chiming in. I used the one in the middle, but there are a lot out there.

Oh those sound great thanks for telling us that they now have Disney Mary Jane I will have to get a pair!!!

I know how you feel about standing in sneakers I did that for years and had clogs the hard ones and I will never change back unless they tell us we can't wear them. I work in a hospital too! I'm a lab rat!:lmao: Well lab rat/ phlebotomist. So I am either standing or running!
Those look cool. I haven't been on the crocs site since we bought our Disney Crocs last year! Everyone got a pair last year but my DH and by the time we left Disney he had a pair. Which he said he would NEVER wear out of the park... I find him all the time putting them on to run to the store!!:rotfl2:
My DH was the same way, until we went last December to WDW. Then, he saw practically everyone with them. So, in that big store in the Studios, we both tried on a pair, to see how we liked them. Aw! :cloud9: So comfy. He vowed to not only got one pair by our next trip, but maybe two or three. :cool1: Right now, we plan to each get a pair of shoes and a pair of flip flops. I may get a third pair. Who knows? This can become a Crocs craze! :banana:

[njdisneyfreak]

The Internet was down all day, till now, and so I couldn't check the boards. Oh, the horror! :eek: I wanted to check my PTR and some of the other PTRs I've been on, but alas, I had to wait.

Now, I have other stuff to do. Can you believe my life is trying to infringe on my updates? :rotfl2: So, I'll be back.

[bellasmommy0]

Yes the Minnie Jane Crocs are on the crocs website. And just a warning, sometimes it takes a few days to get used to the crocs because they fit so differently.

[Raecheal]

They come in other colors, too! I love the way they look, because they don't look all Croc-like, and you still get the comfort of them. :thumbsup2

That is exactly why i loved them :) I am going to go this evening to the local mall and check out if any stores sell them.

[Raecheal]

There are a lot of different ticker count downs if you search for them. I have found a few geared towards Disney!

http://tickerfactory.com/ezticker/ticker_designer.php
http://www.********************/timers/
http://www.mickeypath.com/

You design them and then copy the code and paste into your signature!
They have a ton to choose from. Have fun picking them out and designing.

THANKS. I got one!! :yay: I am so happy..

I think i may get a weight loss one next. So far i've lost close to 30 pounds (that was the hardest thing i had to do in my life).. but realistically i'd like to lose another 20 before all those pictures in WDW : )

[njdisneyfreak]

THANKS. I got one!! :yay: I am so happy..

I think i may get a weight loss one next. So far i've lost close to 30 pounds (that was the hardest thing i had to do in my life).. but realistically i'd like to lose another 20 before all those pictures in WDW : )

Your ticker countdown looks good. Way to go on the weight loss! I lost 40 pounds last year, so I understand how hard that is. I am working on losing more before this upcoming trip. It's the only reason I'm glad that the trip isn't literally around the corner. :laughing: Definitely continue on with your goal. Then, you can really celebrate when you go to WDW!!! :woohoo:

[njdisneyfreak]

That is exactly why i loved them :) I am going to go this evening to the local mall and check out if any stores sell them.

Let me know if you find any. :goodvibes

[Raecheal]

Let me know if you find any. :goodvibes

i'll def. let you know. If not i'll have to call that number from the website. : ) They are so adorable, i'm not too sure what colour i'll get, i really love the black and white, and brown but that coral (or peach) color is nice as well. Black and brown is more practical

[disneyaddicted]

Hey there old dis friend. It's been forever. I can see you are in planning mode now, I had to giggle at you not being able to sleep on the day you got to make your ADR's, can't really blame you though.

We almost ended up at Disney the same time this coming year, but I ended up canceling for this year and postponing it until Dec 2009, taking both kids this time. Yay Jim wants to go, can you believe it? Kent still the Disney Ogre is not going.

I am so excited for your plans, they all sound great. The ADR's yummy! i think Coral Reef is one of my favorites.

Have you heard anything about the new dinosour themed restaraunt in DTD due to open this fall? I wonder if it will be on the DDP?

[njdisneyfreak]

i'll def. let you know. If not i'll have to call that number from the website. : ) They are so adorable, i'm not too sure what colour i'll get, i really love the black and white, and brown but that coral (or peach) color is nice as well. Black and brown is more practical

I felt the same way when I was checking them out online. I gravitated towards the coral ones, because I just loved the color, but I went more practical, as you can see. Who knows? Maybe I'll get more of them down the road. I hope you are fortunate enough to find them tonight.

Hey there old dis friend. It's been forever. I can see you are in planning mode now, I had to giggle at you not being able to sleep on the day you got to make your ADR's, can't really blame you though.

We almost ended up at Disney the same time this coming year, but I ended up canceling for this year and postponing it until Dec 2009, taking both kids this time. Yay Jim wants to go, can you believe it? Kent still the Disney Ogre is not going.

I am so excited for your plans, they all sound great. The ADR's yummy! i think Coral Reef is one of my favorites.

Have you heard anything about the new dinosour themed restaraunt in DTD due to open this fall? I wonder if it will be on the DDP?

Hey, buddy!!! :goodvibes Great to see you again. You shouldn't have been surprised about my sleeplessness on the night before making my ADRs. :laughing: It's a bummer that you won't be there in December of this year, but at least you'll have more time to plan for your trip. Also, you can live vicariously through me, and I'll do the same through you next year. :thumbsup2 That's cool that Jim wants to go, too! How did that happen?

I haven't heard anything new about the dinosaur themed restaurant, but my DH and I would both like to try it. I wonder if it will be on the dining plan. I hope so. If it is, then we'll have to rearrange our ADRs a bit to accomodate the new place. I love the concept of it. :woohoo: We'll have to wait and see. I have come across these two links about it, but not much is known except that it will be open by November and quite a bit of progress has been made:

http://www.trexcafe.com/ (This is the original restaurant, in Kansas, as far as I have discovered.)

http://www.wdwmagic.com/trex.htm (This is a website about WDW and this link keeps providing updates of the construction. Pretty cool.)

If you hear more news about it, let me know.

[njdisneyfreak]

I began looking into the new attractions at the parks, since we were there last December. Of course, that included Toy Story Mania. When I exclaimed to my DH, "Do you know how long people are waiting to get in?!" :eek: Okay, in hindsight, I should have tempered my level of shock, because my DH immediately wanted to see how we could rearrange our itinerary to accomodate going to the Studios early enough at least once. :sad2:

After looking through our itinerary, he seemed assured that we would get to experience the attraction more than once. Meanwhile, I'm still thinking :scared: Okay, just kidding! :lmao: I stopped worrying quite awhile ago about ride length times. You do what you can and don't sweat the rest. Heck, it's WDW!!! :cool1: Frowns and scrunched up foreheads just shouldn't be visible there.

[njdisneyfreak]

No, I'm not kidding. I was sharing some reviews about the Tusker House breakfast, and how great people thought it was, and my DH began wondering if we should maybe try to work it in more than once. :sad2: Well, of course that meant looking at the itinerary again, and once again me reassuring him that once will probably be fine and we can always try to change one of our breakfasts once we're there. Whew! Avoided another potential itinerary change. :thumbsup2

If you read my last PTR, you would understand. We changed our ADRs so often, that I began getting repeats of a number of CMs who actually remembered prior times that I had called! :laughing: Now, that's bad. So, I'm really trying to minimize the changes this time.

I don't know whether to stop looking at posts or just stop sharing about them. Hah! Who am I kidding? I'm loving all of this. :love:

[njdisneyfreak]

We are beginning to read some of the reviews, and it's making us want to shift some of our itinerary. . .MAYBE. :confused3 We are thinking about whether or not they are going to have the T-Rex place open in time for us to go, and when they'll make an annoucement about that.

If they do open it in time for us to go, we're considering giving up Narcoossee's to go there on our first night, since we'll be in DTD shopping anyway, and possibly going to Cirque de Soleil, which we've never gone to. On top of that, we've been reading so many great reviews of Chefs de France, a restaurant we've never been to, that we are wondering whether we should switch one of our other dinner ressies to a second dinner at Chefs de France. We're considering giving up Ohana for that.

On our last trip, we weren't overly thrilled with Ohana's food quality, but we chalked it up to a possible bad night in the kitchen, and we were in the last seating for the night. Now, we're seeing Ohana reviews, and it sounds like it might be iffy. They changed the sausage to shrimp, which might be a good thing. I never really cared for the sausage. The potatoes, which I enjoyed, have been changed to noodles. That might not be so bad. They also now have pork fried dumplings among their appetizers. I can't remember what they replaced, but if they're anything like dumplings I've eaten fron Chinese restaurants around me, I'll love them.

We haven't decided anything yet. So, stay tuned. My DH is playing golf today, so I'm sure we'll talk more about this later and try to make some more decisions.

On another note, I began looking at last year's pics from our trip to WDW. I didn't go to sleep till midnight, because it was so nice remembering. It got me even more psyched, :woohoo: as if that's even possible, about going in just over five month. You may have noticed that I added a second ticker for my trip below. I saw the second one on another person's post and really liked it, so I added one. My DH laughed and said I was crazy, but he admitted that he liked it, too. :goodvibes

[njdisneyfreak]

On someone else's thread, they explained to me how the Segways Tour will work. She shared that "the Segways have a small storage compartment on them so you can stow your stuff there. If you have more items than can be stowed, they might be able to help you at Guest Relations, but it wouldn't hurt to call ahead and check! And they stop a few times for pictures -- the one that DH posted above was taken at the longest designated picture stop in Italy. The CMs were very happy to take pix for everyone, and you get Spaceship Earth right there in the background. I think you'll love the tour!"

I had wondered where we would keep our belongings since our tour in the park is over an hour from when the park opens. So she explained that the Segways have bags on the front. I was thrilled to learn about the picture taking opportunities!!! I think booking this tour was the right choice. :thumbsup2

[bellasmommy0]

Not that I am rushing my DD to grow up, but I look forward to someday doing all of these tours.

[Raecheal]

On someone else's thread, they explained to me how the Segways Tour will work. She shared that "the Segways have a small storage compartment on them so you can stow your stuff there. If you have more items than can be stowed, they might be able to help you at Guest Relations, but it wouldn't hurt to call ahead and check! And they stop a few times for pictures -- the one that DH posted above was taken at the longest designated picture stop in Italy. The CMs were very happy to take pix for everyone, and you get Spaceship Earth right there in the background. I think you'll love the tour!"

I had wondered where we would keep our belongings since our tour in the park is over an hour from when the park opens. So she explained that the Segways have bags on the front. I was thrilled to learn about the picture taking opportunities!!! I think booking this tour was the right choice. :thumbsup2

Great Tip. Thanks... I have aready booked this tour for our up coming trip. We had seen the segways while we were at Epcot (looked so much fun) but just had no clue... Thanks for this tib bit of information. I hadn't even thought about where our small backpack woud go.. etc. etc,...

[njdisneyfreak]

Not that I am rushing my DD to grow up, but I look forward to someday doing all of these tours.

There are a lot of tours she'll love, as will the two of you, as she gets older. But, have you considered the Disney's Family Magic Tour? It's meant for families, particularly young kids. Here is the description of it from the wdwinfo website:

Family Magic Tour: A fun filled scavenger hunt at the Magic Kingdom that the entire family can enjoy. You’ll follow clues in pursuit of a Disney villain to thwart his evil plan. Lots of fun surprises and character interaction are in store as your detective skills save the park from dastardly deeds.

It's a 2 hour tour and there's no age restrictions. Maybe this is something you can do on your upcoming trip or something to try for next time. They say it's done at 10 a.m. daily.

Great Tip. Thanks... I have aready booked this tour for our up coming trip. We had seen the segways while we were at Epcot (looked so much fun) but just had no clue... Thanks for this tib bit of information. I hadn't even thought about where our small backpack woud go.. etc. etc,...

Cool! You'll have to tell me how the experience is when you get back. I loved the short intro I got of it in Innoventions, though I know that some people have a hard time handling it. I have a good sense of balance, so I enjoyed it immensely and can't wait to ride it around for a longer period of time. :yay:

Did you find the Crocs flip flops or are you going to order online?

[bellasmommy0]

[QUOTE=njdisneyfreak;26193425]There are a lot of tours she'll love, as will the two of you, as she gets older. But, have you considered the Disney's Family Magic Tour? It's meant for families, particularly young kids. Here is the description of it from the wdwinfo website:

Family Magic Tour: A fun filled scavenger hunt at the Magic Kingdom that the entire family can enjoy. You’ll follow clues in pursuit of a Disney villain to thwart his evil plan. Lots of fun surprises and character interaction are in store as your detective skills save the park from dastardly deeds.

It's a 2 hour tour and there's no age restrictions. Maybe this is something you can do on your upcoming trip or something to try for next time. They say it's done at 10 a.m. daily.

I will have to check into that, it sounds like fun

[Raecheal]

Did you find the Crocs flip flops or are you going to order online?

Hmm... still looking. I have been so busy.. my inlaws are coming to visit tomorrow for a couple of days. In cleaning mode..:upsidedow I'm hoping to sneak out tomorrow for an hour and check. I am so excited. :rotfl: I didn't even noticed, but looking back at our trip in 'o6 i wore my black crocs the entire time.. clearly this purchase will be a good one.

[njdisneyfreak]

I will have to check into that, it sounds like fun

If you are able to book it, you'll have something else to share in your TR! :goodvibes

Hmm... still looking. I have been so busy.. my inlaws are coming to visit tomorrow for a couple of days. In cleaning mode..:upsidedow I'm hoping to sneak out tomorrow for an hour and check. I am so excited. :rotfl: I didn't even noticed, but looking back at our trip in 'o6 i wore my black crocs the entire time.. clearly this purchase will be a good one.

Understandable that you haven't been able to go look. I go nuts cleaning whenever company is coming over, even rooms you know they will never go into. . .you know, just in case. Oh, so you have already worn Crocs before. At least you'll know that you like them. I can't wait until my pair arrives so I can see what I think.

[njdisneyfreak]

Like I said in one of my last posts, we were rethinking some of our dining. After looking over menus, reviews and our itinerary we made the following changes:

Tues. 12/23 - Narcoossee's was changed to Planet Hollywood (Don't think we've lost our minds. We moved Narcoossee's.)

Sat. 12/27 - Flame Tree or Toy Story Pizza (We were going to do one or the other.) was changed to Nine Dragons

Sun. 12/28 - Ohana was changed to Narcoossee's (We weren't sure if we wanted to go back to Ohana after our not so great experience last time and so many bad reviews from others.)

Tues. 12/30 - Wolfgang Puck Express was changed to Bongo's Cafe Express Window, though while we are DTD we may choose to eat anywhere, since we're paying for this meal.

Also, right now we plan to eat lunch at Mara when we arrive at the AKL, and when we head over to DTD get a nice ice cream treat at :yay: Ghiradelli's. That has to be one of the best ice cream places ever! YUMMY!!! :cool1:

If we make any more changes to the itinerary, I think I'll do the changes in this format, with a final overview of the itinerary before the trip. What do you all think of the changes?

[njdisneyfreak]

Last night, I began reading reviews about Planet Hollywood. We hadn't been to PH since 2002, so we wanted to see if anything had changed. Wasn't happy with what was in the reviews. They were overwhelmingly negative. The food was mentioned as subpar, the service okay, the food portions if on the dining plan smaller than if you pay OOP, and on the dining plan, you have to share a dessert. Something told us that this was not what we remember from 2002 and that we might not be happy with our experience, especially with it being our first dinner.

So, we booked Boma's for that night instead. It made sense, since we don't usually spend more than a few hours in DTD. Besides, it would be nice to see what our resort is like in the evening and what they have to offer, also we will get to sleep at a reasonable hour for our first full day at WDW!!!

[Raecheal]

Your ticker countdown looks good. Way to go on the weight loss! I lost 40 pounds last year, so I understand how hard that is. I am working on losing more before this upcoming trip. It's the only reason I'm glad that the trip isn't literally around the corner. :laughing: Definitely continue on with your goal. Then, you can really celebrate when you go to WDW!!! :woohoo:

Congrats on the 40pounds. :woohoo: Keep at it. It's def worth it, especialy when 2/3 of my clothes no longer fit.

I haven't started.. but i really should get my butt in gear. I get up at 430-530 am every morning and I just find by the time i get home from work (a 1 hour commute) I"m exhausted. Then to have to go back out to the gymm.. it always feels like so much work.

[Raecheal]

Understandable that you haven't been able to go look. I go nuts cleaning whenever company is coming over, even rooms you know they will never go into. . .you know, just in case. Oh, so you have already worn Crocs before. At least you'll know that you like them. I can't wait until my pair arrives so I can see what I think.

I am the exact same way.. no matter who is coming over to stay... i go nuts cleaning. :confused3 You never know when a person might end up in your home.
Yah, I got a pair a crocs years and years ago before they became known everywhere.. it was just by chance. My dbf and i were walking through the mall and came across them they were ugly, but when i tried them on they were sooo comfortable. So i bought them.. like a couple of months after that they were EVERYWHERE. THey def. are comfy. How long is does shipping take?

[Raecheal]

Like I said in one of my last posts, we were rethinking some of our dining. After looking over menus, reviews and our itinerary we made the following changes:

Tues. 12/23 - Narcoossee's was changed to Planet Hollywood (Don't think we've lost our minds. We moved Narcoossee's.)

Sat. 12/27 - Flame Tree or Toy Story Pizza (We were going to do one or the other.) was changed to Nine Dragons

Sun. 12/28 - Ohana was changed to Narcoossee's (We weren't sure if we wanted to go back to Ohana after our not so great experience last time and so many bad reviews from others.)

Tues. 12/30 - Wolfgang Puck Express was changed to Bongo's Cafe Express Window, though while we are DTD we may choose to eat anywhere, since we're paying for this meal.

Also, right now we plan to eat lunch at Mara when we arrive at the AKL, and when we head over to DTD get a nice ice cream treat at :yay: Ghiradelli's. That has to be one of the best ice cream places ever! YUMMY!!! :cool1:

If we make any more changes to the itinerary, I think I'll do the changes in this format, with a final overview of the itinerary before the trip. What do you all think of the changes?

Those look like good plans. :woohoo:

[njdisneyfreak]

Congrats on the 40pounds. :woohoo: Keep at it. It's def worth it, especialy when 2/3 of my clothes no longer fit.

I haven't started.. but i really should get my butt in gear. I get up at 430-530 am every morning and I just find by the time i get home from work (a 1 hour commute) I"m exhausted. Then to have to go back out to the gymm.. it always feels like so much work.

I was like that with each gym I joined. Depending on how my day went or sometimes even the weather, I wouldn't always want to go to the gym. Finally, I decided that if I'm going to stick with exercising, I might as well put the money towards exercise equipment and videos. It's worked. :thumbsup2

We got an exercise bike, an ab lounger, weights and various videos. My favorites are the dance/exericse videos and the Billy Blanks boot camps videos. They're fun and make you sweat a lot. Having this stuff here gives me no excuses and has worked for me. I also never did well at gyms where I too often found too many catty women who seemed to be compare other women with themselves and too many guys who think they are amazing specimens and have a right to check out every female who passes their way. Just too much hassle for me.

It helps that my DH participates with exercise and eating well with me. The support is key. :goodvibes

I am the exact same way.. no matter who is coming over to stay... i go nuts cleaning. :confused3 You never know when a person might end up in your home.
Yah, I got a pair a crocs years and years ago before they became known everywhere.. it was just by chance. My dbf and i were walking through the mall and came across them they were ugly, but when i tried them on they were sooo comfortable. So i bought them.. like a couple of months after that they were EVERYWHERE. THey def. are comfy. How long is does shipping take?

Those look like good plans. :woohoo:

I ordered mine from a sporting goods store, http://www.dickssportinggoods.com/home/index.jsp since it was a little cheaper than buying from Crocs. But I found that the Crocs website has a Canada website. Since you're in Canada, I thought you might be interested. Here it is: http://www.crocs.ca/. Happy Shopping!!!

Oh, I wasn't sure if you realized you could respond to various posts all at once. I noticed that you responded to three of my posts separately, which is cool with me, so I thought I would mention how to do it. All you do is click on the second button on people's posts. It has the quotes and plus sign on it. When you have done that on each person's post, click the Quote button on the final post you're responding to. Just be sure you also clicked the second button on that one, too. Does that make sense? Then, you'll see all the postings come up, with space for you to respond in between. I hope this helps. :goodvibes

Did you see that I changed my itinerary yet again? :rotfl:

[njdisneyfreak]

That is one of my favorite attractions at the MK. I've gone to see it since I was a young kid. My only complaint is that it has remained the same, as far as memory serves me, through my entire life. I just read that it's being refurbished from 9/28-10/31. I wonder if this means a change is in store. :scratchin That would be kind of neat. I know that I liked the improvements that were made to the Tiki Room attraction. I guess I'll just have to wait and see.

[njdisneyfreak]

You may have noticed that I haven't mentioned airline tickets in my planning. That's because we haven't booked them yet. Fortunately, we are going to get at least one of our tickets for free, through our points from whenever we make purchases with our card. We have enough points for one ticket already, but are hoping that the prices go down just a bit. If they do, we may be able to get both tickets for free! :hyper: :jumping1: :hyper: We almost have enough points for two tickets (when we make our final payment for the trip, we'll have more than enough points), but the prices have to go below $1,000 total to use them on the selected airlines that are part of the program. So, send some :tink: pixie dust our way, and we'll see what happens. The one airline we'd like to use has a 6:50 a.m. departure that would be perfect for us. We'll just keep monitoring the prices. With gas prices they way they've been, I'm not overly :rolleyes: hopeful to get more than the one free ticket, but hey, Disney is all about the magic, so I haven't lost all hope. :santa:

[njdisneyfreak]

::yes:: Yup! We changed some of our dining once again. This time, we were looking at our New Year's plans. We looked at the Brown Derby restaurant for our dinner choice that we had, and after looking at the menu, we couldn't remember why we chose it. The menu didn't look that great to us, though I'm sure it's a nice place.

So, we looked at our other Studios choices, and decided to go with Mama Melrose. I know we had it earlier in the trip as a lunch, so we switched that meal to 50s Primetime, which has good food and is always entertaining! :thumbsup2 Then, for our first day, we scheduled Wolfgang Puck Cafe for lunch. We figure that if we make it in time for the lunch that's great, and if not, no biggie. :cool: We'll eat at Mara's as originally planned.

So, are you all sufficiently confused now? :upsidedow Should I just go ahead and post all of my itinerary all over again?

Also, we contacted one of the Disney sites to see if we could be one of their guest bloggers on our trip. How cool would that be? It was actually my DH's idea. I hope they agree. It would definitely be something new. I'll let you all know if they contact us with a response.

[njdisneyfreak]

The Crocs arrived today! :woohoo: I'm so psyched. The flip flops fit perfectly and feel real cool. It's a strange sensation against your feet, but good strange. I am going to wear them as much as possible, to see how I like it. I still haven't decided which shoe style I want though. I still have time for that. My DH will get to try his shoes on tonight. I hope he likes his.

Also, we've been accepted as guest bloggers for our trip!!!! :yay: :cool1: :woohoo: :dance3: :woohoo: We got a response this morning. Is that too cool or what? We'll be doing a blog on WDW for the holidays, including pics, each day of our trip. My DH and I are so excited about this. I am so glad my DH suggested that we look into this. Hopefully, doing these PTRs and TRs will have prepared me for doing this.

This is going to be the best trip ever! :thumbsup2

[Raecheal]

The Crocs arrived today! :woohoo: I'm so psyched. The flip flops fit perfectly and feel real cool. It's a strange sensation against your feet, but good strange. I am going to wear them as much as possible, to see how I like it. I still haven't decided which shoe style I want though. I still have time for that. My DH will get to try his shoes on tonight. I hope he likes his.

Also, we've been accepted as guest bloggers for our trip!!!! :yay: :cool1: :woohoo: :dance3: :woohoo: We got a response this morning. Is that too cool or what? We'll be doing a blog on WDW for the holidays, including pics, each day of our trip. My DH and I are so excited about this. I am so glad my DH suggested that we look into this. Hopefully, doing these PTRs and TRs will have prepared me for doing this.

This is going to be the best trip ever! :thumbsup2

Thanks for the tip about the quotes.:laughing: Your sweet!! WOW You got your flip flops. Congrats. Did you DH like his?

I made my way to the mall with the Dbf tonight, i found every style of crocs EXCEPT the flip flops... i may have to call around the city and/or order online. I still have two months.
what is a guest blogger?

[njdisneyfreak]

Thanks for the tip about the quotes.:laughing: Your sweet!! WOW You got your flip flops. Congrats. Did you DH like his?

I made my way to the mall with the Dbf tonight, i found every style of crocs EXCEPT the flip flops... i may have to call around the city and/or order online. I still have two months.
what is a guest blogger?

Still loving my Crocs flip flops. :love: They are like walking on cushy gel insoles. My DH does like his. At first, he looked at them and wondered if he could get used to the look. However, he wore them for the rest of the evening and thought he could get used to them. He thinks he may want to get a second pair without the holes on top, the more solid look. But, he says he'll definitely use these, because he can tell them will be so comfortable to wear all day.

I wish you well with finding your flip flops. If all else fails, purchase online.

What is a gueset blogger? Well, a blog is like an online log or journal of someone's experience and thoughts on something, with some pictures. On this particular Disney website, they have bloggers (people who blog) who are part of the creation and upkeep of the website. Then, they allow guests to blog on their site about their various Disney experiences. It's similar to doing a TR, but shorter, focusing on something specific. We'll be focusing specifically on WDW for the holidays. Make sense? :goodvibes

[njdisneyfreak]

Not much to update on. We were going to order our second pair of Crocs tonight, but decided to wait a little while. I've been lurking and posting quite a bit on the board today, taking breaks from writing curriculum for the board of ed.

My DH and I agreed that we are happy with our dining choices, and I think we're done looking at dining reviews for the places where we're going. The only reason I can foresee a change is if the T-Rex restaurant opens in time for us to go, in which case we'll go one of the two times we're planning to eat in DTD.

[njdisneyfreak]

:scratchin :scratchin :scratchin :scratchin
My DH and I are planning to have gift baskets delivered to our rooms for one another for our anniversary/holiday trip, on our first full day. I want to surprise my DH with some great items and would love some help. I am going to have the Disney Florist put something together for him and have it delivered to our room, but I am open to having an outside company that delivers baskets do it, too. I'm just trying to come up with ideas for what should go in it.

To help you help me, here are some things my DH is into to help with ideas:
- He works in business/finance
- He LOVES, LOVES, LOVES golf (playing and watching)
- He loves Disney
- He really enjoys sports in general, pretty much all of them

I'm anxious to see what ideas some of you may come up with. I won't post what I'm ultimately going to use out of your ideas until after the trip though, just in case my DH reads this. :ssst:

[bellasmommy0]

:scratchin :scratchin :scratchin :scratchin
My DH and I are planning to have gift baskets delivered to our rooms for one another for our anniversary/holiday trip, on our first full day. I want to surprise my DH with some great items and would love some help. I am going to have the Disney Florist put something together for him and have it delivered to our room, but I am open to having an outside company that delivers baskets do it, too. I'm just trying to come up with ideas for what should go in it.

To help you help me, here are some things my DH is into to help with ideas:
- He works in business/finance
- He LOVES, LOVES, LOVES golf (playing and watching)
- He loves Disney
- He really enjoys sports in general, pretty much all of them

I'm anxious to see what ideas some of you may come up with. I won't post what I'm ultimately going to use out of your ideas until after the trip though, just in case my DH reads this. :ssst:


I will have to think about this one for a while, I am curious as to what you will come up with??:confused:

[njdisneyfreak]

I will have to think about this one for a while, I am curious as to what you will come up with??:confused:

Any help would be appreciated. I have a couple of ideas, but I can't post them here, just in case my DH sees it. If you think of anything, let me know.

[njdisneyfreak]

My DH and I talked today about doing the WL sleigh ride. I wonder if it's worth doing. It was my idea, because it sounds neat. We're just trying to figure out if we could work it into our schedule as it is, or if we should book a meal at the WL and do the sleigh ride then. :surfweb: Stay tuned.

[joelp]

If they do open it in time for us to go, we're considering giving up Narcoossee's to go there on our first night, since we'll be in DTD shopping anyway, and possibly going to Cirque de Soleil, which we've never gone to.


Catching up here ...:surfweb:

If you're serious about Cirque du Soleil - go for it!! :cheer2:

We haven't seen La Nouba (waiting for the DD to get a little older - maybe next September ....), but the DW and I have seen Varekai, Quidam, and the newest - Kooza (which was a lot of fun!!) ... and a special performance on the streets of Montreal at the 1995 Jazz Festival ... and we have a bunch of Cirque videos ... [OK - we're big Cirque fans ... :love: ]

It will be an experience you will never forget ... :thumbsup2 :thumbsup2 Try to get seats in the center about half-way up ... :3dglasses

[NYPDwife]

My DH and I talked today about doing the WL sleigh ride. I wonder if it's worth doing. It was my idea, because it sounds neat. We're just trying to figure out if we could work it into our schedule as it is, or if we should book a meal at the WL and do the sleigh ride then. :surfweb: Stay tuned.

I say do it, even if you don't have an ADR at WL. I want to try to get it b/c it's such a "Christmas-ey" thing to do. I especially think it would be nice for you b/c you can have a romantic ride:woohoo: with DH. Although I know it's going to be fun to do it with the kids, having the romantic sleigh ride is awesome!:lovestruc

[joelp]

So, we booked Boma's for that night instead. It made sense, since we don't usually spend more than a few hours in DTD. Besides, it would be nice to see what our resort is like in the evening and what they have to offer, also we will get to sleep at a reasonable hour for our first full day at WDW!!!

Boma!! Boma!! Boma!! ... :lmao:

[joelp]

That is one of my favorite attractions at the MK. I've gone to see it since I was a young kid. My only complaint is that it has remained the same, as far as memory serves me, through my entire life. I just read that it's being refurbished from 9/28-10/31. I wonder if this means a change is in store. :scratchin That would be kind of neat. I know that I liked the improvements that were made to the Tiki Room attraction. I guess I'll just have to wait and see.

I understand the show is different during the Holiday Season ... :santa:

[njdisneyfreak]

Catching up here ...:surfweb:

If you're serious about Cirque du Soleil - go for it!! :cheer2:

We haven't seen La Nouba (waiting for the DD to get a little older - maybe next September ....), but the DW and I have seen Varekai, Quidam, and the newest - Kooza (which was a lot of fun!!) ... and a special performance on the streets of Montreal at the 1995 Jazz Festival ... and we have a bunch of Cirque videos ... [OK - we're big Cirque fans ... :love: ]

It will be an experience you will never forget ... :thumbsup2 :thumbsup2 Try to get seats in the center about half-way up ... :3dglasses

Welcome to my PTR! We'd like to do it, but think it would be too much to add on right now, and we don't want to over pack our itinerary. The nights we would possibly be able to go, we'd like to do the EMH at parks. So, maybe next time.

I see you're also from NJ. Which part? We're in Monmouth County. Like you, we're here physically, but mentally, we're in FL. We can't stand the colder temps that we get here later in the year and the cost of living is getting crazy. At some point, we'll probably move down there.


I say do it, even if you don't have an ADR at WL. I want to try to get it b/c it's such a "Christmas-ey" thing to do. I especially think it would be nice for you b/c you can have a romantic ride:woohoo: with DH. Although I know it's going to be fun to do it with the kids, having the romantic sleigh ride is awesome!:lovestruc

I agree it's romantic sounding, but we don't want to book it without knowing more about it. At night, we wonder what we'd actually see. So, this one is still up in the air. We may just do this spur of the moment, if the moment hits us, and hope they have availability. We'll see.

Boma!! Boma!! Boma!! ... :lmao:

:laughing: Saying Boma three times like that is kind of funny. Do you like Boma a lot or just like the sound of the word? :laughing:

I understand the show is different during the Holiday Season ... :santa:

It used to be. Last year, our first time at WDW for the holidays, they decided to keep it the same as all year round for the first time to minimize costs. I haven't heard if they're going back to the holiday theme for this year or keeping it the same year round. I would love to see the show done differently for the holidays, since we were looking forward to seeing that last year. Either way, we'll go see it. It's a must on my list of things to see every trip, but it would be wonderful to see any sort of updates done to it. They could definitely use some sprucing up.

[njdisneyfreak]

As I've mentioned before, I'm a teacher, so I'm on summer break. I have been working on rewriting four curricula for one of our departments and yippe, I have just finished and have sent them off!!! :cool1: Can you tell I'm excited? :rotfl: I'm hoping I won't have to make any further adjustments to any of them.

It's all more Disney money! Next month, I'll be working on creating individualized student improvement plans for some of our basic skills students. Between these two summer jobs, I'll have paid quite a chunk of our Disney trip. It feels so good. :goodvibes

[njdisneyfreak]

I ordered these beautiful maps last year and they are so beautiful, that I hope to frame them at some point. They're lovely and glossy. I can't see taking them to the parks with you and potentially ruining them. They are more of a keepsake, though you do have the option to print maps when you set up your customized maps.
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Dec%202008/DisneyCustomizedMaps.jpg
Since WDW offers them for free, I ordered a new set this year, so I could have one with the new Studios name. Hint: If you purchase them with the intent of hanging them up in any way, then after yours arrive, order a second set. The maps are front and back. If you want to check this out, here's the link:

http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/wdw/myVacation/customizedMaps/index?id=CustomizedMapsSampleMapsPage

You can customize what you want highlighted on the map. It has your family's name on it. Very cool! :thumbsup2

:yay: OH, AND WE'RE 159 DAYS AWAY!!!:yay:

[Mom2Kate-Anna]

Hi, just found your report. I am trying to get a link going (I am new to this message board thing :) ) Yes it looks like our stays are going to overlap and we are also staying at the AKL. I am going to go back and read your full report now but it looks as though we have some of the same ADR plans as well!!

[njdisneyfreak]

Hi, just found your report. I am trying to get a link going (I am new to this message board thing :) ) Yes it looks like our stays are going to overlap and we are also staying at the AKL. I am going to go back and read your full report now but it looks as though we have some of the same ADR plans as well!!

I just went to your board. Good start. :thumbsup2 Don't forget to say, in your PTR, when and where you're staying. That's normally mentioned towards the beginning of the report, along with why you're going and/or how you started the planning of the trip.

That's cool that our trips overlap and that we're going to be at the same resort! Maybe we'll bump into one another somewhere along the way. :goodvibes

[njdisneyfreak]

The Disney Travel Company called me today. When I saw them on my caller ID, I admit that my curiousity was piqued. They were calling about our lunch ressie at the Garden Grill, and the fact that they will no longer have character dining.

They are calling everyone who has made a ressie, prior to the change announcement, to offer a dinner ressie since they're going to have characters at dinner, or the opportunity to change to another location. We had already booked a late breakfast and early dinner, with the intent of snacking in the lovely places in the World. So, I told her to just cancel the ressie, which I had forgotten to cancel.

I just thought it was nice that they were calling everyone to do that. :goodvibes Imagine having that job?

[bellasmommy0]

The Disney Travel Company called me today. When I saw them on my caller ID, I admit that my curiousity was piqued. They were calling about our lunch ressie at the Garden Grill, and the fact that they will no longer have character dining.

They are calling everyone who has made a ressie, prior to the change announcement, to offer a dinner ressie since they're going to have characters at dinner, or the opportunity to change to another location. We had already booked a late breakfast and early dinner, with the intent of snacking in the lovely places in the World. So, I told her to just cancel the ressie, which I had forgotten to cancel.

I just thought it was nice that they were calling everyone to do that. :goodvibes Imagine having that job?

Somebody on the ADR thread had pointed out the change to me, and when I called to change it last week, they told me they were going to start calling everyone to change them, but yes it is very nice....too bad they are canceling the lunchs though.

[njdisneyfreak]

Somebody on the ADR thread had pointed out the change to me, and when I called to change it last week, they told me they were going to start calling everyone to change them, but yes it is very nice....too bad they are canceling the lunchs though.

Yeah, it's a shame they're changing it. I used to enjoy lunch at the Garden Grill with the characters. :sad2:

[njdisneyfreak]

Well, last night and again this morning, we did what we do every time we plan to go to WDW. We went online and began checking how much it would cost to stay at another resort. :sad2: Now, let me start by saying that when we started doing this last nigt, I keep saying we and I mean me. I wanted to see the comparisons again. :sad2: :sad2: :sad2:

At first, I did it for fun, to see things like how much it would cost to stay at GF, the ultimate of deluxe resorts. Then, as usual, I got tempted to see how much it costs to stay in places like POP, which we liked on one our past trips and it costs so much less. This, as usual, is always a mistake to look into. It makes us second guess our first choice, because then I start discussing it with my DH.

Ultimately, we decided to stick with where we originally planned, AKL. I mean is there really a comparison? :confused3 We get so much with AKL. Besides, that would have meant a lot of ADR changes and changing the name of this PTR. Too much work! :laughing: I know I can't be the only one who does this. This is what happens when there is all this time left before the trip and not much left to plan.

On another note, we think we may earn enough points on our card to get both our airline tickets for free, but we may have to wait till we pay off our WDW trip, which is the first week of November. Part of me wonders if it's crazy to wait that long to book a flight with the prices of flights nowadays, but then again, we may get two free flights out of the deal by waiting. They just have to stay within a certain dollar amount to use the points for the flights. Ah, well. I guess we'll just have to wait and see. I suppose if we see the prices sky rocket further, we'll have to make a decision.

:hourglass Five more months to go? This is not easy. I can't wait till I go back to work in September :teacher:, so I have other stuff to occupy my mind and time, and the months will feel like they're going by that much quicker.

Speaking of work, I believe I'm finally finished with the curriculum writing. :yay: I had to make some revisions on Thursday and again yesterday. Hopefully, I'll hear good news on Monday that they are good to go.

Okay, enough of my ramblings. Till my next update. . . :goodvibes

[Mom2Kate-Anna]

Well, last night and again this morning, we did what we do every time we plan to go to WDW. We went online and began checking how much it would cost to stay at another resort. Now, let me start by saying that when we started doing this last nigt, I keep saying we and I mean me. I wanted to see the comparisons again.

I did this at first too. But the AKL continually beat out all of the others. Since we will spend quite a bit of time at the resort with the girls it just made since. There is so much to do just there at the lodge and plus the girls love animals soooooo much :cool1: I can't wait to see it all decorated for Christmas.

[njdisneyfreak]

I did this at first too. But the AKL continually beat out all of the others. Since we will spend quite a bit of time at the resort with the girls it just made since. There is so much to do just there at the lodge and plus the girls love animals soooooo much :cool1: I can't wait to see it all decorated for Christmas.

I agree. That's one of the main reasons why we think the AKL is the best for that amount of money. We purposely set up our itinerary so we could spend a good amount of time at the resort, because it does have so much to experience and do right there. I can't wait to see it all decorated, too. Last year, when we toured the resorts, we saw the AKL decorated, but I know we didn't spend a lot of time there. We didn't have a lot of time to be there, so I am looking forward to checking out all the details. I know I'm going to take tons of pics.

[njdisneyfreak]

Believe it or not, we still haven't gotten any of last year's pictures printed. We tend to take forever doing that, since we take so many and can see them on the computer any time we want. At some point, we want to get one or more of those digital frames to display them.

Anyway, we are going to go through the ones from the Disney Photopass CD we purchased, and decide which ones to print. We're not printing them all now. There are A LOT on that CD, but we are going to get some of them done. I'm so excited.

[njdisneyfreak]

One of my favorite things WDW offers is the Photopass. :thumbsup2 Any time we saw a photographer, in any of the parks, we stopped for a photo op. Why not, right? In fact, sometimes, we took the same shots more than once on different days. I realized today that I never shared any of these in my TR from last December's trip.

I thought you might want to see them. Don't worry! :laughing: I won't post them all, but I just love sharing.

HERE WE ARE WITH A GOOD FRIEND OF OURS:
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Photopass%20Pics%202008/image241.jpg

SOME FRIENDS WE MET FROM HAWAII:
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Photopass%20Pics%202008/image235.jpg

ONE OF MY FAVORITE EPCOT SHOTS:
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Photopass%20Pics%202008/image209.jpg

SMEE THOUGHT HE WAS LOOKING AT A TWIN (notice our hats):
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Photopass%20Pics%202008/image190.jpg

EVERYONE NEEDS A PICTURE IN FRONT OF THE CASTLE:
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Photopass%20Pics%202008/image121.jpg

A PICTURE WITH ONE OF MY BEST GIRLFRIENDS:
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Photopass%20Pics%202008/image133.jpg

HERE'S A TERRIFIC LOCATION IN THE GRAND FLORIDIAN:
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Photopass%20Pics%202008/image104.jpg

YOU NEVER KNEW WHERE THIS LITTLE GUY WOULD POP UP:
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Photopass%20Pics%202008/image101.jpg

YOU'LL NEVER GUESS WHAT WE CAUGHT!
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Photopass%20Pics%202008/image116.jpg

THIS IS THE FURRIEST BABY I'VE EVER SEEN:
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Photopass%20Pics%202008/image092.jpg

WE ALMOST GOT ATTACKED!
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Photopass%20Pics%202008/image059.jpg

A LITTLE TRIP TO PARIS:
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Photopass%20Pics%202008/image055.jpg

OUR FRIENDS DRESSED UP FOR US:
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Photopass%20Pics%202008/image027.jpg

SANTA!!!
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Photopass%20Pics%202008/image031.jpg

THAT'S ALL FOLKS:
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Photopass%20Pics%202008/image018.jpg

[bellasmommy0]

Great pics, I cant wait!!

[njdisneyfreak]

Great pics, I cant wait!!

I can't either! It's going to be great. :santa:

[Raecheal]

Those are beautiful pictures!! :goodvibes

[njdisneyfreak]

Those are beautiful pictures!! :goodvibes

Thank you. It truly pays to get all the Photopass pics you can get. :thumbsup2

[njdisneyfreak]

One of the reasons we booked AKL is all that it has to offer. :thumbsup2 It's not just a place to sleep and maybe jump in the pool. We are looking forward to the activities they offer, too. That's one of the reasons we plan to spend quite a bit of time at our resort. In fact, on our first day, we probably will end up staying at the resort the whole day to enjoy the resort as much as possible, especially since we are not going to start using our park hopper till our first full day.

I found The All-New "unofficial" AKL/AKV's FAQ thread http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1633854 and am having so much fun reading all the information about this fabulous place where we get to stay!

There's a list of the activities on the first page. Here it is:
Updated AKL Activities as of Septmeber 9, 2006

-Horticulture Activity 9:00am Every Wednesday Arusha Rock
-Flamingo Activity Everyday 9:30am Flamingo Pond *Bead Activity
-Animal Tracking 11:00-1:30pm Everyday Arusha Rock * Bead Activity
-Arts and Crafts with Lifeguards 12:00pm Every Day Uzima Pool Deck
-Medallion Rubbing 12:30pm Everyday Lobby
-Cooking Decorating 1:00pm Everyday BOMA
-Garden Safari 2:00pm-4:30pm Everyday Flamingo Pond *Bead Activity
-Spirit of Africa Art Tour 2:30pm Everyday Ogun's Firepit
-African Games or Crafts 3:00pm Everyday Uzima Pool Deck
-Culinary Tour of Africa 4:00pm Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday. 3:45pm Friday, Saturday, and Sunday Jiko Podium.
-Family Fun and Games 4:00pm and 6:00pm Everyday Contact Lifeguard for location
-Music of the Savannah 5:00pm Everyday Sunset Lounge *Bead Activity
-Wildlife Games 6:30pm Everydat Sunset Lounge *Bead Activity
-African Folktales 7:30pm Everyday Arusha Rock Firepit
-Primal Parade 7:50pm Everyday Zawadi Marketplace
-Cultural Safari 8:30pm Everyday Sunset Lounge
-Animal Viewing with Nightvision 9:00pm-11:00pm Uzima Savannah Overlook

However, if I remember correctly, the start times of some activities vary with sunset (especially the story telling). They put the specific time on the events list and the bulletin board, but it changes with the season.

The activities are free, I think for some you have to pay for the materials that are used, like the craft sessions.

We'll get to enjoy a bunch of those things on our first day. What we are most hoping to do are the Spirit of Africa Art Tour, the Jiko Culinary Tour of Africa, African Folktales by the firepit, Cultural Safari and the Nightvision Animal Viewing. We don't necessarily have to do all of these things the first day, but oh, man, there is so much to do!!! :woohoo:

The more I learn, the more excited I keep getting! :cool1:

[njdisneyfreak]

Yesterday, I noticed that they had posted the January hours. So, we re-evaluated our ADRs. We had already made some other minor changes here and there. Based on what we think, at this point, this is our current itinerary:

Here's my updated itinerary:

Tuesday, December 23rd
- We're arriving during the morning
- Lunch will be at Mara's, though we have a ressie for Wolfgang Puck Cafe, in case we want to go to DTD right away
- We'll probably explore the resort and possibly go swimming, but we may also go to Downtown for a while
- Dinner is at Boma. With so much to do at the resort, and wanting to get a decent night's sleep, we're staying local.

Wednesday, December 24th
- Quick yogurt or some like food from Mara's
- Head over to Epcot- Segway Tour from 7:45 to 9:45
- Late breakfast at Akershus
- Snack around the World as we enjoy Christmas festivities
- Dinner at Chef's de France
- Hollywood Studios to see the Osbourne Lights:santa:

Thursday, December 25th :santa:
- Head over to the MK for EMH and do a couple of rides, hopefully
- Breakfast at Cinderella's Royal Table
- Enjoy as much of the park as possible before it gets too crazy
- Lunch at Crystal Palace
- Head over to the Animal Kingdom
- Dinner at Jiko's

Friday, December 26th
- Breakfast at Boma's
- Go to Epcot
- Lunch at Marrakesh (We've never been, but I'm looking forward to this experience.)
- We may go back to resort for a little bit.
- Go to Disney's Hollywood Studios
- Dinner at Chef Mickey's
- Go to the Mk for EMH

Saturday, December 27th
- Head over to the AK
- Breakfast at Donald’s Safari Breakfast at Tusker House
- Lunch at either Flametree BBQ or Seasons, depending on if we're still in AK or if we've gone on to Epcot by lunch.
- We may make our way over to DHS at some point, or we may go back to the resort.
- Dinner at Boma

Sunday, December 28th
- Breakfast at 1900 Park Fare
- Go to the MK
- Lunch at Tony's Townsquare Restaurant
- Back to resort for a while
- Dinner at Narcoosee's (we'll also get to see and hear the MK fireworks)
- We may go back to MK for the EMH


Monday, December 29th
- Breakfast at Boma's
- Go to DHS
- Lunch at Sci-Fi
- Not sure if we'll break in between for resort time or not.
- Go to Epcot
- Dinner at the Coral Reef

Tuesday, December 30th
- Breakfast at Ohana
- Go to Downtown
- Lunch at maybe Earl of Sandwich, something light
- Resort time
- Dinner at 1900 Park Fare
- Go to MK for EMH

Wednesday, December 31st
- Breakfast at Boma
- Go to AK
- Lunch at Tusker House
- Back to resort to relax
- Go to DHS
- Dinner at Mama Melrose
- Enjoy the NYE festivities

Thursday, January 1st
- Breakfast at Boma
- Go to MK
- Lunch at Liberty Tree Tavern
- We may break for resort time
- Head over to Epcot (EMH night)
- Dinner at Teppan Edo

Friday, January 2nd
- Go to MK
- Breakfast at Crystal Palace
- Lunch at either Liberty Tree Tavern which we have an ADR for or we may just decide to eat at the Plaza Restaurant, which has never been hard for us to get into
- Go to Epcot
- Dinner at Le Cellier
- If there's time and we're not exhausted, we may end our night at the MK

Saturday, January 3rd
- Return Home

So, that's our new itinerary. I think it's going to work. I can't wait to enjoy all that will be available to do, between the parks and our resort. :woohoo:

[Raecheal]

So, that's our new itinerary. I think it's going to work. I can't wait to enjoy all that will be available to do, between the parks and our resort. :woohoo:

Your itinerary looks great!!! : ) I wish i could tag along with yous..:rotfl:

[njdisneyfreak]

Your itinerary looks great!!! : ) I wish i could tag online with yous..:rotfl:

Thanks! You're going to have a pretty amazing trip yourself, and you have less time than me to wait, too! :cool1: I can't wait to hear all about your trip.

[Mom2Kate-Anna]

The photopass pictures look great. I think I am going to give in and buy the cd before we go this time. I want to be able to finally get a family pictures after all these years of not having any from Disney. It sounds like a great deal!

[njdisneyfreak]

The photopass pictures look great. I think I am going to give in and buy the cd before we go this time. I want to be able to finally get a family pictures after all these years of not having any from Disney. It sounds like a great deal!

Thanks! They do a good job with the Photopass photos. You'll get a lot of great family photos using the Photopass. Don't be afraid to have them take as many pics as possible. You can do a lot with the Photopass, too. They give you options to put frames and signatures on a lot of them, such as you saw in some of my pics. You can order cool looking professionally done albums with the photos already put in for you. You can get them to put the pics into a video, on things like mugs, all sorts of things. Pretty neat. :thumbsup2

[joelp]

Just checking out your revised itinerary - looks good! (more revisions to come ...? :) )

I would suspect the parks will be seriously crowded over the Christmas weekend, so you may want to check with a CM before you "hop" to another park to make sure it isn't "closed" (or on the verge of "closing" ... :sad2: )

Restaurant Marrakesh is one of our favorites - good food and a great atmosphere.

I think they've also cancelled the Character lunches at LTT - so you may want to look into that ...

[DISNEY4XMAS]

Just checking out your revised itinerary - looks good! (more revisions to come ...? :) )

I would suspect the parks will be seriously crowded over the Christmas weekend, so you may want to check with a CM before you "hop" to another park to make sure it isn't "closed" (or on the verge of "closing" ... :sad2: )

Restaurant Marrakesh is one of our favorites - good food and a great atmosphere.

I think they've also cancelled the Character lunches at LTT - so you may want to look into that ...

NJDISNEYFREAK and I were both there last year for christmas and we found the only park to close was MK. On several days they closed it after the holiday. I know (and I think she did this to) we did our visits to MK before the holiday and then spent the other days after the holiday in the other parks. I did spend Christmas day in MK but for most of the day we spent it in Adventureland and liberty square. Our dinner reservations where even at LTT. As for the characters for LTT at lunch I think your right they don't do them just for dinner.

[njdisneyfreak]

Just checking out your revised itinerary - looks good! (more revisions to come ...? :) )

I would suspect the parks will be seriously crowded over the Christmas weekend, so you may want to check with a CM before you "hop" to another park to make sure it isn't "closed" (or on the verge of "closing" ... :sad2: )

Restaurant Marrakesh is one of our favorites - good food and a great atmosphere.

I think they've also cancelled the Character lunches at LTT - so you may want to look into that ...

We are really looking forward to trying Marrakesh. I don't think they ever had characters at lunch. We aren't going for the characters. As for the parks Christmas weekend, see below. Thanks for the tips. :goodvibes

NJDISNEYFREAK and I were both there last year for christmas and we found the only park to close was MK. On several days they closed it after the holiday. I know (and I think she did this to) we did our visits to MK before the holiday and then spent the other days after the holiday in the other parks. I did spend Christmas day in MK but for most of the day we spent it in Adventureland and liberty square. Our dinner reservations where even at LTT. As for the characters for LTT at lunch I think your right they don't do them just for dinner.

You are right Disney4Xmas. Based on what we've learned from our last year trips, we discovered that as long as you begin at the MK on Christmas day, you're fine to park hop elsewhere. The MK is the only park to close people out, on Christmas Day, and it really only gets crowded in the afternoon. That's why, like last year, we're going to another park later in the day. But, like Disney4Xmas said, if you say in Adventureland and Liberty Square, it's not too bad. Yes, they only have characters at LTT for dinner. I believe that's always been the case.

The other days we're going to the MK, we'll be there early for breakfasts (or right after a Boma breakfast) or later on for late nights, so crowd levels should be good. Last year, learning what I did from TGM, the boards and our own experience, I think we've got a good itinerary. :thumbsup2

[njdisneyfreak]

Okay, I need your help here. I'm going to be ordering at least one pair and possibly two pairs of Crocs in about a week. I have decided that the Mary Jane shoes would work best for me. I will only have denim capris and regular length jeans. I will probably have a pair of khaki colored capris or pants, too. Based on that, which of these gets your vote?


I thought this pair might work, because they resemble sneaker color:
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Dec%202008/CrocsMaryJane-pearlwhite.jpg

This pair is a possibility, because they're navy, and I wondered if that would be good with denim:
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Dec%202008/CrocsMaryJane-navy.jpg

Then again, maybe I should get one pair of either brown or black Crocs, you know, neutral but darker than the white/pearl pair:
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Dec%202008/CrocsMaryJane-chocolate.jpg
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Dec%202008/CrocsMaryJane-black.jpg

Any thoughts?

[DISNEY4XMAS]

MY VOTE is for the brown and the navy!!

[NYPDwife]

Definitely brown and black. They go with anything!

I'm waiting for the "Froc" stand in my mall to get the Mary Jane's since I can't afford the real ones from Croc!! Besides, I like to spend the difference between Frocs and Crocs on jibbitz!:lmao:

[Mom2Kate-Anna]

I think my vote is also for navy and brown.. but I do like the black as well. I definately think that I would stick to the darker colors.

[Raecheal]

Black

[njdisneyfreak]

Anyone else? Thanks DISNEY4XMAS, NYPDwife, Mom2Kate-Anna and Raecheal for your input. There's nothing like getting ideas from fellow Disers. :thumbsup2

So far, I think I'm agreeing with the navy and brown. I like the idea more and more, the more I think about it. I definitely don't think the white pair is the way to go.

[njdisneyfreak]

Yup! You read correctly. I know that booking the castle for one meal is amazing. At least for me. On our last trip, we couldn't get a ressie there, and we'd always eaten their on each of our previous trips.

As you can see on my itinerary, we are going to eat there Christmas morning, for breakfast. Well, my DH suggested that we see if we could eat there for lunch, one day, as well. We've never done that. After looking over our schedule, I saw that January 1st would be best, and not only did they have it available, but they had it available for the time we wanted!!! :yay: I'm so happy. :yay: The menu didn't look bad.

This morning, I was watching some of those Disney Travel Channel shows. I believe I have every one of them recorded, at this point. :laughing: Seeing them really made me want to leave for WDW now. So, what did I do? No, I didn't book an earlier trip. :lmao: I sent away for the free WDW trip planning DVD. Now, we'll have something else about WDW to watch in 2-3 weeks! :thumbsup2

Oh, I just had to add this. . .I was having one of my regular ladies' days with a group of my girlfriends the other day, and it was close to the time when we'd all be leaving. After I asked if anyone was blocking my car in, the husband of the one hosting this month's get together said, "Oh, that's your car! When I saw it in the driveway, with all the Disney stuff on it and the stuffed animals in the back window, I was trying to think which lady with kids might have that car. I forgot that you're such a Disney freak!" I laughed, and agreed with the Disney freak part, while my friends said, "Oh, you don't know her well enough if you didn't know that!" Then, we all cracked up.

[bellasmommy0]

All of us on here are PROUD to be Disney Freaks!!! or else we wouldnt spend so much time on here.....:lmao:

I think I like the navy and brown also. Although I know I want the brown Minnie Janes with the pink strap. But I had to get DD her Tink ones 1st. They came into today and are so cute!!! She wont take them off.

[njdisneyfreak]

All of us on here are PROUD to be Disney Freaks!!! or else we wouldnt spend so much time on here.....:lmao:

I think I like the navy and brown also. Although I know I want the brown Minnie Janes with the pink strap. But I had to get DD her Tink ones 1st. They came into today and are so cute!!! She wont take them off.

I KNOW! :rotfl2: Isn't it great?

I really do think I'm going with navy and brown. They seem to make the most sense. The brown and pink Minnie Janes are cute. I did think about those. Did you take a pic of your DD in them? They were such cute Crocs!!!

[bellasmommy0]

I KNOW! :rotfl2: Isn't it great?

I really do think I'm going with navy and brown. They seem to make the most sense. The brown and pink Minnie Janes are cute. I did think about those. Did you take a pic of your DD in them? They were such cute Crocs!!!

Not yet, she hasnt stayed still long enough, she is dancing all over the house, she thinks she is COOL!!!:woohoo:

[joelp]

I know better than to give my DW any "clothes" advice, so your on your own from my end about the crocs ...:rotfl2:

Besides - if you're like my DW - if I'd suggest "A", you'd go with "B" anyway ... :lmao:

[They don't happen to have any crocs that come with jingle bells, do they? Just a thought ... :rotfl:]

[njdisneyfreak]

Not yet, she hasnt stayed still long enough, she is dancing all over the house, she thinks she is COOL!!!:woohoo:

Well, she is COOL, so why not act like it? :goodvibes It's good that she's so happy about them.

I know better than to give my DW any "clothes" advice, so your on your own from my end about the crocs ...:rotfl2:

Besides - if you're like my DW - if I'd suggest "A", you'd go with "B" anyway ... :lmao:

[They don't happen to have any crocs that come with jingle bells, do they? Just a thought ... :rotfl:]

Ah, a man of wisdom! :rotfl2: Jingle bells. . .hmmmm. . .it looks like somebody should contact the Crocs corporation with a new idea. Never know. :laughing:

[bellasmommy0]

Well, she is COOL, so why not act like it? :goodvibes It's good that she's so happy about them.



Ah, a man of wisdom! :rotfl2: Jingle bells. . .hmmmm. . .it looks like somebody should contact the Crocs corporation with a new idea. Never know. :laughing:


I want jingle bell crocs!!!:santa:

[bellasmommy0]

I know better than to give my DW any "clothes" advice, so your on your own from my end about the crocs ...:rotfl2:

Besides - if you're like my DW - if I'd suggest "A", you'd go with "B" anyway ... :lmao:

[They don't happen to have any crocs that come with jingle bells, do they? Just a thought ... :rotfl:]


smart man!!!:worship:

[Raecheal]

Yup! You read correctly. I know that booking the castle for one meal is amazing. At least for me. On our last trip, we couldn't get a ressie there, and we'd always eaten their on each of our previous trips.

As you can see on my itinerary, we are going to eat there Christmas morning, for breakfast. Well, my DH suggested that we see if we could eat there for lunch, one day, as well. We've never done that. After looking over our schedule, I saw that January 1st would be best, and not only did they have it available, but they had it available for the time we wanted!!! :yay: I'm so happy. :yay: The menu didn't look bad.

This morning, I was watching some of those Disney Travel Channel shows. I believe I have every one of them recorded, at this point. :laughing: Seeing them really made me want to leave for WDW now. So, what did I do? No, I didn't book an earlier trip. :lmao: I sent away for the free WDW trip planning DVD. Now, we'll have something else about WDW to watch in 2-3 weeks! :thumbsup2

Oh, I just had to add this. . .I was having one of my regular ladies' days with a group of my girlfriends the other day, and it was close to the time when we'd all be leaving. After I asked if anyone was blocking my car in, the husband of the one hosting this month's get together said, "Oh, that's your car! When I saw it in the driveway, with all the Disney stuff on it and the stuffed animals in the back window, I was trying to think which lady with kids might have that car. I forgot that you're such a Disney freak!" I laughed, and agreed with the Disney freak part, while my friends said, "Oh, you don't know her well enough if you didn't know that!" Then, we all cracked up.

Just wanted to say hi...I love those crocs. I'm a black fan (my current crocs on black it just goes with everything, and they dont get hot) but i think your choices are great!!! i still haven't gotten mine yet.. still looking:sad2: :confused3

It's okay to be a Disney freak, i've been reading some peoples PJ for getting married at WDW now i'm in love.... :lovestruc They all have had such beautiful ceremonies.

I re-read your itenerary it looks wonderful, your going to have an amazing trip.

[Whipperwhirl]

I just read your whole PTR and everything is looking wonderful. I love how much thought you put into everything - even croc colors! I desperately wanted to stay AKL for out rip but the resort surfing (i.e. a lower price) sucked me in - we will ge there when the kids are older. Im hopping you will take lots of wonderful SVH room pictures! Subbing. Whip

[njdisneyfreak]

I want jingle bell crocs!!!:santa:

Doesn't that sound too cool? :santa:


Just wanted to say hi...I love those crocs. I'm a black fan (my current crocs on black it just goes with everything, and they dont get hot) but i think your choices are great!!! i still haven't gotten mine yet.. still looking:sad2: :confused3

It's okay to be a Disney freak, i've been reading some peoples PJ for getting married at WDW now i'm in love.... :lovestruc They all have had such beautiful ceremonies.

I re-read your itenerary it looks wonderful, your going to have an amazing trip.

I definitely plan to get the navy ones. I tried on a pair this past weekend and really liked them. I can't wait to go!!! :woohoo:

I just read your whole PTR and everything is looking wonderful. I love how much thought you put into everything - even croc colors! I desperately wanted to stay AKL for out rip but the resort surfing (i.e. a lower price) sucked me in - we will ge there when the kids are older. Im hopping you will take lots of wonderful SVH room pictures! Subbing. Whip

:wave: Welcome aboard! I'm glad you're liking my PTR. It's fun putting it together. I will definitely take tons of pics. I'm the picture taking queen! :thumbsup2

[bellasmommy0]

Where are you, I usually see comments from you on a daily basis somewhere, and I havent seen you in a few days???

[Raecheal]

Where are you, I usually see comments from you on a daily basis somewhere, and I havent seen you in a few days???

I agree.. i hope everything is alright!!

[njdisneyfreak]

I'm sorry that I went M.I.A. :guilty: It all began last weekend, when my DH suggested that I get a puzzle, since I had extra time during the summer and it had been so long since I had last done one. So, what did I pick? You guessed it. . .a Disney puzzle. :yay: This one to be exact:
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Dec%202008/MickeyPuzzle.jpg
I just love it!!!! :cloud9:

If you know nothing about these puzzles, it's 1000 pieces :eek: and while the whole picture is of Mickey Mouse, it's made of thousands of miniature pictures of Disney related movies. It is absolutely awesome, though difficult at times, to put together. So, whenever I have had any spare time, I've found myself working on this puzzle, determined to finish it quickly. I'm coming along pretty well, too.

I've also been doing a lot of getting together with friends and family this past week, so I haven't been home as much.

Back to the Disney trip, we have been daily monitoring the airline prices and have been happy to see that they've been slowly dropping. :woohoo: My DH says, as well as many others, that the price of oil is expected to go down further after Labor Day. :banana: So, most likely, we won't be getting out airline tickets till then. But, we keep tracking flights to see what's the absolute earliest we may possibly be able to get to WDW. We're even entertaining the thought of arriving the night before, just so we have a full day at WDW on our first day. We just haven't decided if it's worth it yet. :confused3 What do you all think? :confused3

Then, today, I made my first trip purchase!!! :cool1: I got my Crocs shoes. Here they are:
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Dec%202008/NavyBlueCrocs.jpg

As you can see, they are not Mary Janes. They are the typical style, but after trying both pairs on, I liked the roominess of these better. I decided to only get one pair, since I just live in denim, and they would go with whatever I plan to wear. If I need a lighter color, I will have my Crocs flip flops with me.

So, it was nice to be missed. :goodvibes I'm back. I kept trying to remind myself to come post, but that darn puzzle just kept pulling me away. :rolleyes: On top of that, my DH and I just purchased a Wii system today. :sad2: Needless to say, it's addicting. I finally broke away for a while, so I can get some computer time, but my DH is still playing! At least we know that we like it. Well, I'm off to check out all of your threads. I promise to be back soon. :thumbsup2

[njdisneyfreak]

Well, I have checked in with a bunch of PTR, and now I'm off to play some more Wii and do more of my puzzle. :goodvibes

[hollybearsmom]

Just caught up again. I really hope we "run" into each ohter while we are there...I need a zebra dome eating partner!

I love your daily plans. I am so far behind! And I haven't repeated a person yet for ADR changes, but my day is coming I'm sure. I wonder what kind of notes they put on the computers about us??? I am sure we provide their lunchtime entertainment!

[njdisneyfreak]

Just caught up again. I really hope we "run" into each ohter while we are there...I need a zebra dome eating partner!

I love your daily plans. I am so far behind! And I haven't repeated a person yet for ADR changes, but my day is coming I'm sure. I wonder what kind of notes they put on the computers about us??? I am sure we provide their lunchtime entertainment!

Hi! :wave: I'm glad you stuck in there and were able to get caught up. I'm going to have to hop on over to your board to see what you've been up to. It looks like we're only going to be a day apart. Don't worry about being further behind than some people. We all plan differently, and as a teacher, I have breaks like the one I have right now, where I can do more. As for the entertainment we must provide, you definitely have to wonder! :laughing:

As for not repeating with the ADRs, at least there's :santa: Christmas morning. Are you joining all of us that morning at the MK, before it opens? I've never done something like that. Should be pretty cool. I just have to convince my DH to walk over with me, to where everyone is going to be. :sad2:

[njdisneyfreak]

How much longer do I have to wait!!!! :hourglass Some days are just harder than others. I would just love to skip right over the next few months, so we can head off for WDW already. Ah well. . .the time will go by quickly. Right? :eek:

[bellasmommy0]

How much longer do I have to wait!!!! :hourglass Some days are just harder than others. I would just love to skip right over the next few months, so we can head off for WDW already. Ah well. . .the time will go by quickly. Right? :eek:


Not TOO much longer... like you have said once you start back to school it will go by much faster. And well it is already August and you will be back to work very soon.:teacher:

[njdisneyfreak]

Not TOO much longer... like you have said once you start back to school it will go by much faster. And well it is already August and you will be back to work very soon.:teacher:

True. Next week, I'll begin returning to the school to begin getting things ready for the school year. During the last week, I'll be helping conduct workshops for the new teachers and helping them settle in. Then, it's full steam ahead! It's still hard to wait, though.

[njdisneyfreak]

I really hope we "run" into each ohter while we are there...I need a zebra dome eating partner!

I forgot to comment on this. Have you had zebra domes before? Oh, my goodness! They are soooooooooo good. We tried them last year when we went to AKL to check out the place. My DH has already said that most of our snack credits will probably go towards those terrific zebra domes! :thumbsup2 :laughing: Another partner to help enjoy the fun is even better. :cool1:

[njdisneyfreak]

Over the last few days, my DH and I have been scanning through :surfweb: the amazing pics of food from the various eateries at WDW that are on this thread: http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1712222 It is very worth checking out. :thumbsup2 You get a better picture of what you might eat in various places and what might not be for you.

I remembered that for our last trip we went on the part one thread of this topic and it helped us with our food choices, so much. I couldn't find that thread, and finally came across this part 2 thread. Apparently, part one still exists, but had to be locked due to size. Anyway, we're only part way through going through all this thread has on it. Warning: You'll either start feeling very hungry or extremely full from all the food pics overload, but definitely check it out. :laughing:

[NYPDwife]

Over the last few days, my DH and I have been scanning through :surfweb: the amazing pics of food from the various eateries at WDW that are on this thread: http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1712222 It is very worth checking out. :thumbsup2 You get a better picture of what you might eat in various places and what might not be for you.

I remembered that for our last trip we went on the part one thread of this topic and it helped us with our food choices, so much. I couldn't find that thread, and finally came across this part 2 thread. Apparently, part one still exists, but had to be locked due to size. Anyway, we're only part way through going through all this thread has on it. Warning: You'll either start feeling very hungry or extremely full from all the food pics overload, but definitely check it out. :laughing:


You know what's so funny? On our last trip in 2006, we ate at Earl of Sandwich in DTD, but I didn't remember it. When I was planning our trip for this year, I read a review on it, then went to wdwinfo.com and looked at the menu. When I saw the pictures on that food thread, I said "WE'VE BEEN THERE!!". What's even more funny is how badly I wanted to taste a sandwich that I HAD ALREADY EATEN!!! That board brought it all back for me!!

[njdisneyfreak]

You know what's so funny? On our last trip in 2006, we ate at Earl of Sandwich in DTD, but I didn't remember it. When I was planning our trip for this year, I read a review on it, then went to wdwinfo.com and looked at the menu. When I saw the pictures on that food thread, I said "WE'VE BEEN THERE!!". What's even more funny is how badly I wanted to taste a sandwich that I HAD ALREADY EATEN!!! That board brought it all back for me!!

It's amazing how pictures can trigger memories! I know what you mean about how badly you wanted to taste a sandwich you'd already eaten. :laughing: Every time we see a picture of the zebra domes from the AKL restaurants, we so want to get some of those wonderful treats NOW! :banana: I mean look at them:
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Dec%202008/zebradomes.jpg
YUMMY!!! :cloud9:

[wdwgirl03]

OK, yeah, I definitely want a zebra dome now!!! We got to try those on our trip and WOW they are sooooooooo good. :thumbsup2

[NYPDwife]

What's in them?

[njdisneyfreak]

OK, yeah, I definitely want a zebra dome now!!! We got to try those on our trip and WOW they are sooooooooo good. :thumbsup2

Aren't they? AMAZING! :woohoo: :yay: :woohoo:

What's in them?

According to the recipes on allears, these are the ingredients:
Ingredients:

1 pound milk chocolate
¼ cup espresso coffee
5 egg yolks
¼ cup + 1 tablespoon sugar
6 sheets gelatin
½ cup Kahlua Liqueur
4 cups heavy cream
¾ cup white chocolate ganache
¼ cup dark chocolate ganache
sponge cake (store-bought or your favorite recipe)

They taste so good! I never tasted the espresso or Kahlua Liqueur, but it helps explain why they're so addictive, huh? Everyone who tries these seem to have the same reaction: WHEN AM I GOING TO GET MORE??!!

[DISNEY4XMAS]

mm I think I need one now! and I have never had one!!! I wonder if they are anything like the ones over at chef mickeys... But I don't remember any sponge cake and I think it was an oreo with that ganache on it.

[njdisneyfreak]

mm I think I need one now! and I have never had one!!! I wonder if they are anything like the ones over at chef mickeys... But I don't remember any sponge cake and I think it was an oreo with that ganache on it.

I hear you! They are even better than they look, believe it or not. I have never been at Chef Mickey's for dinner, though we will be going this year. I believe they are exclusive to the AKL. You'll have to try them on your next trip. :thumbsup2

[DISNEY4XMAS]

Funny I have never been to the AKL.. I know when we went back in 2001 it was either just about to open or had just opened but I have never been..:confused3
It will have to be on my next trip.. I told DH that I won't be satisfied with Disney until I have stayed at EVERY RESORT!

[njdisneyfreak]

Funny I have never been to the AKL.. I know when we went back in 2001 it was either just about to open or had just opened but I have never been..:confused3
It will have to be on my next trip.. I told DH that I won't be satisfied with Disney until I have stayed at EVERY RESORT!

The AKL is an amazing place. I hear you about trying all the resorts! We still want to try: GF, WL, Poly, Contemporary, BC. . .not necessarily in that order. As a kid, I thought it was the ultimate thing to get to stay at the Contemporary, every time we rode through it on the monorail. As an adult, I think that's still the reason I want to stay there, but part of me thinks it's too hotel looking to me. The GF and the WL are so beautiful. I hope we get to try each of those some day. I hope we get to stay at the BC if we go during the summer or spring. I just love the way their pool system is with the lazy river and all. It's also so pretty looking. Oh, and since we love to go on cruises, we just have to try a Disney cruise. Okay, that's enough of my ranting on Disney resorts. :goodvibes

[DISNEY4XMAS]

The AKL is an amazing place. I hear you about trying all the resorts! We still want to try: GF, WL, Poly, Contemporary, BC. . .not necessarily in that order. As a kid, I thought it was the ultimate thing to get to stay at the Contemporary, every time we rode through it on the monorail. As an adult, I think that's still the reason I want to stay there, but part of me thinks it's too hotel looking to me. The GF and the WL are so beautiful. I hope we get to try each of those some day. I hope we get to stay at the BC if we go during the summer or spring. I just love the way their pool system is with the lazy river and all. It's also so pretty looking. Oh, and since we love to go on cruises, we just have to try a Disney cruise. Okay, that's enough of my ranting on Disney resorts. :goodvibes

I wanted to Stay at every hotel once! Maybe TWICE! Oh yes and the CRUISE Oh yeah we really want to do that to!!!!

[njdisneyfreak]

I wanted to Stay at every hotel once! Maybe TWICE! Oh yes and the CRUISE Oh yeah we really want to do that to!!!!

Maybe we should race towards meeting that goal! :lmao: RACE YOU! :goodvibes

[wdwgirl03]

The AKL is an amazing place. I hear you about trying all the resorts! We still want to try: GF, WL, Poly, Contemporary, BC. . .not necessarily in that order.

Out of those we've only ever stayed at the Poly (well, and now AKL!), and it is awesome! Actually, now that I think about it we've visited all of those resorts and one point But I would love to try to stay at all those resorts, especially the WL and BC. One of those wishes may become a reality if I don't get a job for the fall...we have reservations at the Beach Club Villas in the middle of December!! :cool1: :cool1:

Are you excited about the new school year or are you not ready for it? It's depressing me that I don't have a position yet when many of my classmates do and I know they're probably all getting ready for the year. :sad2: :sad2:

[njdisneyfreak]

Out of those we've only ever stayed at the Poly (well, and now AKL!), and it is awesome! Actually, now that I think about it we've visited all of those resorts and one point But I would love to try to stay at all those resorts, especially the WL and BC. One of those wishes may become a reality if I don't get a job for the fall...we have reservations at the Beach Club Villas in the middle of December!! :cool1: :cool1:

Are you excited about the new school year or are you not ready for it? It's depressing me that I don't have a position yet when many of my classmates do and I know they're probably all getting ready for the year. :sad2: :sad2:

:confused3 What did you enjoy about the Poly the most? We think it's beautiful there whenever we've eaten at Ohana. What did you like best about the AKL? I am still working my way through your TR. What shouldn't we miss about the resort? :confused3

Oh, wow! The BC in December. Cool! :thumbsup2 Well, if you do get a job, you'll just have to stay at the BC some other time. Are you doing a PTR for that trip? :woohoo:

:teacher: I'm always excited about a new school year, though I do love summer break. :cool1: I'm somewhat ready for it. I've read the new novels we'll be teaching this year, revamped some lesson plans and created some new things. I always do that, partly so I don't get bored teaching exactly the same thing all the time, and partly to keep things fresh. I have a few more things to prepare, and next week I'll probably begin going in to start doing stuff in my classroom and begin photocopying for the first week. I don't return until September 2nd, and the kids return on the 5th.

I know it's depressing not having a teaching job. When I faced that same situation after graduating, with all my friends getting positions, I decided to sub and tutor. I learned a lot that way, even though it wasn't the same. Try to hang in there. If you don't get a teaching job for the fall, what do you plan to do?

[sharonW]

Wow!! Guess I'm not paying attention, I just saw
your pre trippie and had to jump on board to hear
all about the anticipation and magic!! Christmas is
so so special at disney, definitely the best time to
visit:santa: Loved your TR from last yr, so neeedless
to say I've hopped on your upcoming magical journey!!:santa:

[wdwgirl03]

:confused3 What did you enjoy about the Poly the most? We think it's beautiful there whenever we've eaten at Ohana. What did you like best about the AKL? I am still working my way through your TR. What shouldn't we miss about the resort? :confused3

Oh, wow! The BC in December. Cool! :thumbsup2 Well, if you do get a job, you'll just have to stay at the BC some other time. Are you doing a PTR for that trip? :woohoo:

:teacher: I'm always excited about a new school year, though I do love summer break. :cool1: I'm somewhat ready for it. I've read the new novels we'll be teaching this year, revamped some lesson plans and created some new things. I always do that, partly so I don't get bored teaching exactly the same thing all the time, and partly to keep things fresh. I have a few more things to prepare, and next week I'll probably begin going in to start doing stuff in my classroom and begin photocopying for the first week. I don't return until September 2nd, and the kids return on the 5th.

I know it's depressing not having a teaching job. When I faced that same situation after graduating, with all my friends getting positions, I decided to sub and tutor. I learned a lot that way, even though it wasn't the same. Try to hang in there. If you don't get a teaching job for the fall, what do you plan to do?

I agree, the Polynesian is a beautiful resort. We definitely loved being on the monorail loop too. :thumbsup2 It was also so cool because even though you're right in the "heart" of Disney World (so close to the MK and then the GF and Contemporary right there) it doesn't feel like it...it felt like you were miles away. :goodvibes We always enjoyed going out to the little beach too.

As for the AKL, I'm an animal lover so having those savannas there was definitely my favorite part of the resort. We didn't eat at any of the restaurants there, so I can't comment on that. I loved the pool area too. Again, just the whole theming is amazing. I know, that probably doesn't help much!

haha, you're right, if I can't go I'll just go some other time. As much as I love Disney I'd rather have a job. I may decide to do a PTR once I get a better idea about what I'll be doing.

As for what I'll do if I don't have a job, I'll just be subbing...I did for the second half of last school year. I subbed in a couple districts and between them, I was pretty lucky because I was able to get assignments almost every day (the district I did my student teaching in has 12 elementary schools alone).

[njdisneyfreak]

Wow!! Guess I'm not paying attention, I just saw
your pre trippie and had to jump on board to hear
all about the anticipation and magic!! Christmas is
so so special at disney, definitely the best time to
visit:santa: Loved your TR from last yr, so neeedless
to say I've hopped on your upcoming magical journey!!:santa:

:wave: Hi! Great to see you again. I'm so glad that you decided to join me again for another trip report. I hope you've enjoyed it so far. Just a few more months to go. :woohoo:

I agree, the Polynesian is a beautiful resort. We definitely loved being on the monorail loop too. :thumbsup2 It was also so cool because even though you're right in the "heart" of Disney World (so close to the MK and then the GF and Contemporary right there) it doesn't feel like it...it felt like you were miles away. :goodvibes We always enjoyed going out to the little beach too.

As for the AKL, I'm an animal lover so having those savannas there was definitely my favorite part of the resort. We didn't eat at any of the restaurants there, so I can't comment on that. I loved the pool area too. Again, just the whole theming is amazing. I know, that probably doesn't help much!

haha, you're right, if I can't go I'll just go some other time. As much as I love Disney I'd rather have a job. I may decide to do a PTR once I get a better idea about what I'll be doing.

As for what I'll do if I don't have a job, I'll just be subbing...I did for the second half of last school year. I subbed in a couple districts and between them, I was pretty lucky because I was able to get assignments almost every day (the district I did my student teaching in has 12 elementary schools alone).

Your insight is helpful. We wondered if staying on a monorail resort is difficult with getting back at the end of a day, with getting on the monorail. Was that a problem at all? Was it ever super crowded trying to get back to the resort on the monorail?

Keep subbing until that job comes along. You may want to look into tutoring, too. Doing both really helped me with my skills and training me for the teaching experience. I hope you get a teaching position soon, though. :goodvibes

[njdisneyfreak]

We've been thinking, yes once again, whether or not we would stay with the AKL or shift down to either POR or POP. You may be thinking, "Are you kidding me?!" :eek: But, since this is the most we've ever paid for a resort, of course, we keep second guessing the decision. Then, we think about how we liked POP the one time we went and how we wanted to go to POR on our last trip, before switching that a million times.

So, what's the final verdict? For now, we think we'll stick with the plan. I truly think having all this extra time allows for way too much second guessing. Know what I mean?

Stay tuned. . .you never know what might happen. If you read my last PTR, you know we changed quite a bit. We'll see. . .:rolleyes:

[wdwgirl03]

Your insight is helpful. We wondered if staying on a monorail resort is difficult with getting back at the end of a day, with getting on the monorail. Was that a problem at all? Was it ever super crowded trying to get back to the resort on the monorail?

No, we never had a problem getting back on the monorail but then again we usually don't tend to stay out too late at night. It always seemed though that the Express monorail was much more crowded than the resort monorail. But that's just our personal experience.


As for you guys second-guessing which resort to stay at, I think you should stick with AKL. ;) But I'm sure wherever you stay you'll have an amazing time!

[katiebug86]

You are never going to believe what I did.. I forgot to subscribe to your PTR. :lmao: I just found it again and subscribed to it. :cool1:

I know what you mean about the mind changing thing. :rotfl: I am thinking about adding a couple more days to ours. Five just doesn't sound as good as 7 or 8. :lmao: Wish me luck on convincing Ryan.

We need to get together and figure out how to invent a time machine to take us to December. I have been itching to go since we booked.

[joelp]

We've been thinking, yes once again, whether or not we would stay with the AKL or shift down to either POR or POP. You may be thinking, "Are you kidding me?!" :eek: But, since this is the most we've ever paid for a resort, of course, we keep second guessing the decision. Then, we think about how we liked POP the one time we went and how we wanted to go to POR on our last trip, before switching that a million times.

So, what's the final verdict? For now, we think we'll stick with the plan. I truly think having all this extra time allows for way too much second guessing. Know what I mean?

Stay tuned. . .you never know what might happen. If you read my last PTR, you know we changed quite a bit. We'll see. . .:rolleyes:

What is it with you Jersey Girls!! ??!

It's bad enough I have to deal with my DW and DD - Jersey Girls born and bred - when we go shopping and THEY keep changing their minds ... but now I have to deal with YOU, too!! :headache:

If you don't go to AKL, you'll just get depressed looking at all the pictures I'm gonna take and put in our TR ... sooooo ... :rotfl:

pirate:

[njdisneyfreak]

No, we never had a problem getting back on the monorail but then again we usually don't tend to stay out too late at night. It always seemed though that the Express monorail was much more crowded than the resort monorail. But that's just our personal experience.


As for you guys second-guessing which resort to stay at, I think you should stick with AKL. ;) But I'm sure wherever you stay you'll have an amazing time!

That makes sense, about the monorail. After your recent trip to the AKL, I figured you'd say that. :goodvibes

You are never going to believe what I did.. I forgot to subscribe to your PTR. :lmao: I just found it again and subscribed to it. :cool1:

I know what you mean about the mind changing thing. :rotfl: I am thinking about adding a couple more days to ours. Five just doesn't sound as good as 7 or 8. :lmao: Wish me luck on convincing Ryan.

We need to get together and figure out how to invent a time machine to take us to December. I have been itching to go since we booked.

Good to see you here! I've been enjoying your PTR. Thanks for joining me. The more, the merrier! :santa: :santa: :santa:

That would be great if you could convince Ryan. Maybe the best way to convince him is to create an itinerary for a longer trip and work out all the necessary details on paper for him. Then, you can show him how easy it would be and why it's a great idea. Maybe if he sees it all in front of him, it will help convince him. Let us know what happens.

Hey, if you figure out that whole time machine thing, let us in on it. I'm sure that many of us would love to hitch a ride with you. :laughing:

What is it with you Jersey Girls!! ??!

It's bad enough I have to deal with my DW and DD - Jersey Girls born and bred - when we go shopping and THEY keep changing their minds ... but now I have to deal with YOU, too!! :headache:

If you don't go to AKL, you'll just get depressed looking at all the pictures I'm gonna take and put in our TR ... sooooo ... :rotfl:

pirate:

Hey, NJ or not, all women reserve the right to change their minds any time we want. Didn't your DW and DD ever show you the handbook? :rotfl2: Oops! I don't think I was supposed to share that information. Privileged information and all. :lmao:

Ah, the old pictures trick. I see how you're going to be. ;) Read my next post, and just keep in mind, that what I'm going to post had absolutely nothing to do with your threat to post pics of AKL on your TR! :rotfl: :rotfl:

[njdisneyfreak]

Alright, alright! We figured out a way for us to keep our AKL package. One of our main reasons for second guessing came down to money. We had that unexpected family emergency happen earlier in the summer, some of you may recall, that required us to take two unexpected trips by airplane. So, our resources got depleted somewhat. :sad2:

At any rate, my dear, sweet, smart DH figured out a way for us to swing it. He had me call WDW and find out the cost of taking our dining package off (now, don't panic just yet people :laughing: ) and seeing if we could add it on later. I was told that we can add it back on up to 3-4 days prior to our trip arrival! Yahoo!!! :yay: Answer to our prayers. That gives us enough wiggle room that we can pay for our trip by deadline and not feel overly pinched. We know having all the money wouldn't be an issue. It was just timing.

:teacher: In the summer, as a teacher, I don't get paid. So, it can make life interesting. Speaking of teaching, I'm going to go a bit OT for a moment. Yesterday, I went in to work and did my main bulletin board. It looks so, so, so good. I'm really proud of it.

Here it is:
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/School/FallBulletinBoard.jpg

This shows you the leaves up close, that are around the tree:
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/School/FallBulletinBoard2.jpg

Tomorrow, I plan to go in to begin making photocopying and do some more classroom decorating. At the moment, my desk and all the student's desks, as well as file cabinets, etc. are out in the hallway. They do that, as they work on the rebuffing the floors. However, that means I have to wait on fully putting my room back to normal. Not a big deal, unless they don't get that done by sometime early next week.

Next week, I am in charge of the arts and crafts portion of our church's VBS week, so I'll be busy during the morning. But, as soon as they get done with my classroom, I have to get over there to finish setting up, since the week after VBS, I am conducting workshops for our district's new teachers are their orientation. Busy! Busy! On top of it all, we are still waiting on the state to release standardized test scores to the schools. Only then can I get to work on creating the language arts basic skills individualized plans for each student who qualifies for it. In the past, this would have all been done by early August at the latest. This year, the state is so behind on this. My vice principal actually said that it might be another week or two! :eek: I go back to work September 2nd, with students arriving on the 5th, and schedules needing to be finalized. . .so stressed may be how the school year begins.

Ah, well! I'll just look at each week, no matter what happens, as a week closer to WDW!!! Now that put a smile back on my face. :goodvibes

[wdwgirl03]

The bulletin board looks great!! That is one of the things I am most looking forward to when I get my own classroom. :goodvibes

[njdisneyfreak]

The bulletin board looks great!! That is one of the things I am most looking forward to when I get my own classroom. :goodvibes

I'm glad you like the bulletin board. Typically, I make boards to correspond with units. This year, I'm doing a different approach. I am doing seasonal boards, with inspirational messages. I already have acronyms for the other three seasons, like I did for fall, and ideas of what to get for each board's decorations. I love being creative like that, and the kids appreciate a nice looking room that has obviously had a lot of thought involved in it.

It's never too early to start gathering ideas. During the year before I got hired, I began making files of teacher websites, subscribing to teacher e-newsletters, gathering bulletin board ideas, since I knew I'd be teaching language arts, I was also collecting resources that might come in handy. You're time will come. :thumbsup2

If you want some websites and e-newsletters, PM me anytime. You can never have too much information. :goodvibes

[bellasmommy0]

You are back to work and getting busier, so that means time is going to start flying by!!!!!

[Raecheal]

Your board looks looks. : ) :surfweb: Keep up with the posts, i love reading your pre-tr.

[njdisneyfreak]

You are back to work and getting busier, so that means time is going to start flying by!!!!!

Not back, officially till September 2nd, but the ball is rolling already! Tick! Tick! Tick! :cool1:

Your board looks looks. : ) :surfweb: Keep up with the posts, i love reading your pre-tr.

Aw! Thanks. I really appreciate that. :goodvibes

:surfweb: I can't wait till you get to enjoy your trip and share all about it. I've been loving your PTR, too. I'm glad we came across each other's threads.

[Raecheal]

Aw! Thanks. I really appreciate that. :goodvibes

:surfweb: I can't wait till you get to enjoy your trip and share all about it. I've been loving your PTR, too. I'm glad we came across each other's threads.

Me too, i really do appreciate you taking the time to post on my ptr. :)

[njdisneyfreak]

:teacher: Today I went back to the school where I work, and got my room all set up. It's crazy how much I enjoy doing that. All my Disney stuff is up, of course, except I forgot the Mickey puzzle poster. I also got quite a bit of copying done. Yippee!!! I should only have to make two or three more trips to be ready for the first day officially back. I just can't wait to begin working and start counting down the days even faster to WDW!!! :yay: :woohoo: :yay:

[NYPDwife]

Hey, I just saved $357.72 by applying the new discount code to my existing reservation. Every dollar helps!!! You should try to see if it'll work for you!

[wdwgirl03]

:teacher: Today I went back to the school where I work, and got my room all set up. It's crazy how much I enjoy doing that. All my Disney stuff is up, of course, except I forgot the Mickey puzzle poster. I also got quite a bit of copying done. Yippee!!! I should only have to make two or three more trips to be ready for the first day officially back. I just can't wait to begin working and start counting down the days even faster to WDW!!! :yay: :woohoo: :yay:

Ooooohh, I want to see your Disney stuff! hehe

[askelton]

If they do open it in time for us to go, we're considering giving up Narcoossee's

No, you'll love Narcoosee's. :eek:


Tues. 12/23 - Narcoossee's was changed to Planet Hollywood (Don't think we've lost our minds. We moved Narcoossee's.)

Oh, good.:thumbsup2



http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Dec%202008/CrocsCanvasCapriSandalWomens.jpg

I have these in brown and in melon. Love them! :cool1:



We looked at the Brown Derby restaurant for our dinner choice that we had, and after looking at the menu, we couldn't remember why we chose it. The menu didn't look that great to us, though I'm sure it's a nice place. You should definitely try BD some time. The food is very good but the atmosphere is lovely! It's one of our favorites for a date night. :goodvibes


- Late breakfast at Akershus I'm going there next month with my godchildren, b & G age 3. I'll let you know. We don't have kids so we don't do character meals.

- Breakfast at Cinderella's Royal Table I'm doing that in October, for some reason DH didn't want to go! I'll let you know about that too.

- Lunch at Marrakesh (We've never been, but I'm looking forward to this experience.) We ate here once, and again the atmosphere is very cool. It's not really my choice of food but DH loved it.

- Dinner at Narcoosee's (we'll also get to see and hear the MK fireworks) We were here for our anniversary and it was wonderful. They knew it was our anniversary so all the CM's were extra nice. One of our favorite places to eat along with BD. :cloud9:

[njdisneyfreak]

Hey, I just saved $357.72 by applying the new discount code to my existing reservation. Every dollar helps!!! You should try to see if it'll work for you!

I didn't know if that would still apply to us, since it goes till the 23rd and that's when we arrive. How did it work for you? I'd love to see if we can get some sort of discount, too! :woohoo:

Ooooohh, I want to see your Disney stuff! hehe

I'll be at the school off and on over these next two weeks, so as I remember, I'll take more pics and post them. You'd probably get even more of a kick out of my office area at home. Talk about completely Disney! :laughing: If you want, I can post some pics of that, too.

No, you'll love Narcoosee's. :eek:



Oh, good.:thumbsup2



I have these in brown and in melon. Love them! :cool1:



You should definitely try BD some time. The food is very good but the atmosphere is lovely! It's one of our favorites for a date night. :goodvibes





Thanks for joining me on my journey and for all the tips. I can't wait to hear about your trip when you get back. By that point, I'll be dying for our trip to start. :yay: :yay: :yay:

[katiebug86]

I didn't know if that would still apply to us, since it goes till the 23rd and that's when we arrive. How did it work for you? I'd love to see if we can get some sort of discount, too! :woohoo:

Oooh. I'm going to be there the 15-20 does the discount apply to me? How do I get it? Details details.. I might be able to talk Ryan into a couple more days if we will be saving money. :lmao:

[joelp]

Oooh. I'm going to be there the 15-20 does the discount apply to me? How do I get it? Details details.. I might be able to talk Ryan into a couple more days if we will be saving money. :lmao:

Check out my PTR - NYPDWife posted the link to the info there a day or so ago ...

[njdisneyfreak]

Well, as I mentioned earlier, this past week has been VERY busy! :scared1: We've also made some major changes, as well. You may have noticed that I changed the name of the PTR. You guessed it. . .we're now going to POP! :cool1:

:eek: What?! :eek: You may be thinking to yourselves. We've debated on making this change for some time now, and after much thought, we realized it was the best for us. We will get to enjoy all that we really want to experience, and save a ton of money, which is always nice. We just didn't feel comfortable spending that much money for a place we may not get to use enough to make it worthwhile. Besides, even though POP is a value resort, we really loved it when we were last there. :thumbsup2

Also, this weekend, we experienced going under 4 months :woohoo: and we received the WDW planning DVD we requested and began watching it. I couldn't help, but start feeling all giddy, as we watched it. :yay:

:banana: So, stay tuned. . .dining changes are up next. :banana: We are still keeping our deluxe plan, and we're going to get to go to some places we didn't originally have before. This may sound weird, but I'm actually excited.

[Raecheal]

:woohoo: for POP.

[katiebug86]

WooHoo! If you were coming 2 days earlier we might be neighbors. :upsidedow I think you made the right decision.. I'm sure it saved QUITE a bit of money. That's one of the reasons we chose a value .. we are young without kids so we spend majority of our time out of the room. The only time we REALLY spend in there is to sleep so while it might be a cooler environment it's not really wise to spend 1000 extra dollars on a nice view. More money for stuff in the park seems better to me. :yay: (Though I would LOVE to do AKL one day.)

[njdisneyfreak]

:woohoo: for POP.

I thought you'd like that! :laughing: Take lots of pics while you're there. We were there once before and took no pics, since we figured we'd be back soon, and I guess we were right!

WooHoo! If you were coming 2 days earlier we might be neighbors. :upsidedow I think you made the right decision.. I'm sure it saved QUITE a bit of money. That's one of the reasons we chose a value .. we are young without kids so we spend majority of our time out of the room. The only time we REALLY spend in there is to sleep so while it might be a cooler environment it's not really wise to spend 1000 extra dollars on a nice view. More money for stuff in the park seems better to me. :yay: (Though I would LOVE to do AKL one day.)

I agree. With just the two of us, we don't typically spend a ton of time at the resort and though we have a schedule, we like to wing things to some extent. We are saving SO much money this way and are feeling quite proud of ourselves for being responsible. We'll either have more spending money or more money in the bank. Either way we can't go wrong. :goodvibes

[njdisneyfreak]

Tues. 12/23
- lunch at Everything POP
- dinner at T-Rex

Wed. 12/24 :santa:
- Segway Tour at Epcot (early)
- late breakfast at Akershus
- Use snack credits for lunch
- dinner at Chefs de France

Thurs. 12/25 :santa:
- breakfast at Cinderella's Royal Banquet Hall
- lunch at Crystal Palace
- dinner at either Wolfgang Puck Cafe or Foodquest (We are thinking of going to DisneyQuest that night.)

Fri. 12/26
- breakfast at Crystal Palace
- lunch at Marrakesh
- dinner at Chef Mickey's

Sat. 12/27
- breakfast at Tusker House
- lunch at Nine Dragons
- 50s Primetime Cafe

Sun. 12/28
- breakfast at 1900 Park Fare
- lunch at Tony's Townsquare Restaurant
- dinner at Narcoosee's

Mon. 12/29
- breakfast at Everything POP
- lunch at Sci-Fi
- dinner at Coral Reef

Tues. 12/30
- breakfast at Ohana
- lunch at Sunshine Seasons (we're flexible)
- dinner at 1900 Park Fare

Wed. 12/31 :cool1: :woohoo: :dance3: :woohoo: :yay:
- breakfast at Kona Cafe
- lunch at Tusker House
- dinner at Mama Melrose

Thur. 1/1
- breakfast at Everything POP
- lunch at Cinderella's Royal Banquet Hall
- dinner at Teppan Edo

Fri. 1/2
- breakfast at Crystal Palace
- lunch at Liberty Tree Tavern
- dinner at LeCellier

Sat. 1/3 :sad1:
- Head back home


So, there it is. I would hope there will be no more changes to the itinerary, since we have changed resorts and now changed a number of our dining, as a result. But, stay tuned. There's still several months to go! :cool1:

[wdwgirl03]

OK, I am an idiot, when I first read the title I thought you meant "pop" as in you're not going anymore. :rolleyes: :blush: WHOOPS. We stopped at Pop Century on the Magical Express in May...it looks fun!

[askelton]

:eek: What?! :eek:

Yes, this is exactly what I did. :lmao: But if it works for you, then it's the right thing to do. :thumbsup2

[DISNEY4XMAS]

Well, as I mentioned earlier, this past week has been VERY busy! :scared1: We've also made some major changes, as well. You may have noticed that I changed the name of the PTR. You guessed it. . .we're now going to POP! :cool1:

:eek: What?! :eek: You may be thinking to yourselves. We've debated on making this change for some time now, and after much thought, we realized it was the best for us. We will get to enjoy all that we really want to experience, and save a ton of money, which is always nice. We just didn't feel comfortable spending that much money for a place we may not get to use enough to make it worthwhile. Besides, even though POP is a value resort, we really loved it when we were last there. :thumbsup2

Also, this weekend, we experienced going under 4 months :woohoo: and we received the WDW planning DVD we requested and began watching it. I couldn't help, but start feeling all giddy, as we watched it. :yay:

:banana: So, stay tuned. . .dining changes are up next. :banana: We are still keeping our deluxe plan, and we're going to get to go to some places we didn't originally have before. This may sound weird, but I'm actually excited.
I KNEW IT I KNEW IT YOU WOULD CHANGE YOUR PLANS!!!!!!
:lmao:
I GOT WORD that there will be free dining Next year they are offering it right now to the UK. I saw it on a thread and then saw it on Mousesavers.com. How cool is that I can save about 2000.00 by getting free dining!!!! Still not sure of where we are going to stay! Of course my mother still wants to stay in the cabins and I said not enough room! We are staying SOMEWHERE ELSE. I also am getting info on buying a DVC sometime in the mail and hoping to talk mommy into buy one!!! I can't because I am in the middle of buying a house.
Hope you like your changes... Where did you stay last year???

[bellasmommy0]

That is quite a change. But a good one I think. We have always stayed at Value because there are so many more things to spend the money on, besides somewhere to sleep.. And trust me DD finds plenty of things!!!!!!!!!!:lmao:

[njdisneyfreak]

OK, I am an idiot, when I first read the title I thought you meant "pop" as in you're not going anymore. :rolleyes: :blush: WHOOPS. We stopped at Pop Century on the Magical Express in May...it looks fun!

Well. . .I did change my title to give it a double meaning. :laughing: I figured that it was exactly what happened and it would make people think it was being cancelled and make them want to see why. I was having a goofy moment. But, at least you know that I worded it purposely for effect, so don't feel bad.

We've stayed at POP before and liked it; it was fun! :thumbsup2

Yes, this is exactly what I did. :lmao: But if it works for you, then it's the right thing to do. :thumbsup2

It definitely works for us. Hard to pay so much for a room when you can use that money to enjoy so much more.

I KNEW IT I KNEW IT YOU WOULD CHANGE YOUR PLANS!!!!!!
:lmao:
I GOT WORD that there will be free dining Next year they are offering it right now to the UK. I saw it on a thread and then saw it on Mousesavers.com. How cool is that I can save about 2000.00 by getting free dining!!!! Still not sure of where we are going to stay! Of course my mother still wants to stay in the cabins and I said not enough room! We are staying SOMEWHERE ELSE. I also am getting info on buying a DVC sometime in the mail and hoping to talk mommy into buy one!!! I can't because I am in the middle of buying a house.
Hope you like your changes... Where did you stay last year???

Ah, you know me. :rotfl2: We honestly tried to keep to our original plan, but the responsible sides of us got the upper hand.

Free dining during which time of the year? Are they going to offer it to U.S. residents? Details, details!

We went to the DVC offices on our last trip, seriously considering to go that route, but ultimately decided that it wasn't the right time for us.

We know we'll like our changes, because we've stayed at the POP before. As for the food changes, we have a good mix of places we've tried and new ones. I think we'll enjoy it all.

Last year, we stayed at CSR. We weren't overly thrilled with it. We did enjoy POP, where we stayed two trips back. It's so Disney, the food court food is really good and we thought the bus service was good. The only part we didn't like was how far the bus stop was when you head back from the MK, but it was a small price to pay.

That is quite a change. But a good one I think. We have always stayed at Value because there are so many more things to spend the money on, besides somewhere to sleep.. And trust me DD finds plenty of things!!!!!!!!!!:lmao:

[DISNEY4XMAS]

Free dining during which time of the year? Are they going to offer it to U.S. residents? Details, details!



It shows for the Uk august 20 - Oct 1. They always (well for the last few years) have free dining the last part of august and first part of sept

[njdisneyfreak]

It shows for the Uk august 20 - Oct 1. They always (well for the last few years) have free dining the last part of august and first part of sept
Typically, we can't take advantage of those free dining times, since by the end of August, I'm typically so busy with stuff for work, like I've been doing lately. :teacher: Then, of course, I am teaching in September. I wish we could take advantage of the free dining, even once. It would be so cool if they ever did free dining in early November, because we always get off for the first full week of November. Ah, well. . .I'll keep dreaming. :goodvibes

[Raecheal]

I love your title to your ptr..:rotfl:

[NYPDwife]

Are you excited yet? I'm so excited! Yay, summer's over and the holidays will be here before you know it!

[katiebug86]

I'm excited .. I'm excited .. I'm excited. :yay: :yay: :yay: :yay:


Oh you weren't talking to me?:confused3

[NYPDwife]

I'm excited .. I'm excited .. I'm excited. :yay: :yay: :yay: :yay:


Oh you weren't talking to me?:confused3

You too!!! We're all excited, we're all excited!!! :dance3:

[njdisneyfreak]

I love your title to your ptr..:rotfl:

Thank you! I was having a creative moment, verging on silliness, and this title was the result. :rotfl:

Are you excited yet? I'm so excited! Yay, summer's over and the holidays will be here before you know it!

Most definitely! :woohoo: :yay: :woohoo: Once I begin teaching again, next week, I'll be even more excited. Being at work always moves things along for me much faster. It can't get here fast enough.

I'm excited .. I'm excited .. I'm excited. :yay: :yay: :yay:


Oh you weren't talking to me?:confused3

:rotfl2: :rotfl2: :rotfl2:

You too!!! We're all excited, we're all excited!!! :dance3:

We should all do the happy dance, :dancer: party: :jumping1: :dancer: since we're all so excited! Just wait till it's a month away. . .we'll be like this: :mickeyjum :goofy: :figment: :tigger: :stitch: :ccat: :simba:

I least I know that I'll be bouncing off the walls! What's hard is not telling my students why I'm so psyched, especially days before. Since I have to call out for the day before break, it's best to keep that info to myself till I return.

[njdisneyfreak]

My DH and I were discussing our first day at WDW. Originally, we were going to be at the AKL, so we had planned to go to DTD and then spend the rest of the time at the resort. Well, now that we're going to POP, we are rethinking our first day. We will probably arrive at the Orlando Airport a little after 9 a.m. That leaves us most of the day. So, we are thinking of either getting an individual park ticket for the day or a park hopper ticket for the day.

We just don't know which would be best for us to use that day. We are thinking of going to the MK and getting lunch at Casey's. Then, we may stay all day and eat dinner at the Plaza Restaurant, Columbia House or Pecos Bill. If we get the hopper, Epcot is open late, and we may just head over their for the evening. We can eat at Seasons and enjoy rides like Soarin', Test Track and whatever else suites our fancy.

Honestly, we may just make this decision once we arrive since we already have a 10 day park hopper and would just need to purchase a one day ticket at the resort.

:confused3 Any thoughts on how we should best utilize our first day? :confused3

[NYPDwife]

My DH and I were discussing our first day at WDW. Originally, we were going to be at the AKL, so we had planned to go to DTD and then spend the rest of the time at the resort. Well, now that we're going to POP, we are rethinking our first day. We will probably arrive at the Orlando Airport a little after 9 a.m. That leaves us most of the day. So, we are thinking of either getting an individual park ticket for the day or a park hopper ticket for the day.

We just don't know which would be best for us to use that day. We are thinking of going to the MK and getting lunch at Casey's. Then, we may stay all day and eat dinner at the Plaza Restaurant, Columbia House or Pecos Bill. If we get the hopper, Epcot is open late, and we may just head over their for the evening. We can eat at Seasons and enjoy rides like Soarin', Test Track and whatever else suites our fancy.

Honestly, we may just make this decision once we arrive since we already have a 10 day park hopper and would just need to purchase a one day ticket at the resort.

:confused3 Any thoughts on how we should best utilize our first day? :confused3

I was thinking about making Tuesday night a Future World night! Come join us!!

[njdisneyfreak]

I was thinking about making Tuesday night a Future World night! Come join us!!

Oh, cool! I might see you there, if that's what we decide to do. I really think we'll make our decision that day, once we arrive, but it's cool to think about what we're going to do. So, since Epcot is open late, do you know when it will close?

Part of us thinks we'll just stay at the MK and go back sometime in the evening, because we have our Segway Tour at 7:45 at Epcot the next morning.

[bellasmommy0]

I am joining all of you in being SUPER excited!! On saturday we will be in double digits!!! I cant wait!!

[njdisneyfreak]

I am joining all of you in being SUPER excited!! On saturday we will be in double digits!!! I cant wait!!

That's awesome! We still have eighteen more days before we reach double digits, but it's not like I'm counting or anything. :rotfl:

[NYPDwife]

Oh, cool! I might see you there, if that's what we decide to do. I really think we'll make our decision that day, once we arrive, but it's cool to think about what we're going to do. So, since Epcot is open late, do you know when it will close?

Part of us thinks we'll just stay at the MK and go back sometime in the evening, because we have our Segway Tour at 7:45 at Epcot the next morning.

I'll be in FutureWorld on the 23rd at night, then in World Showcase on the 24th. Two days in a row, but that's why I'm splitting up both halves of the park.

[njdisneyfreak]

I'll be in FutureWorld on the 23rd at night, then in World Showcase on the 24th. Two days in a row, but that's why I'm splitting up both halves of the park.

We'll definitely be in the WS on the night of the 24th. Keep on eye out for us! :thumbsup2

[NYPDwife]

We'll definitely be in the WS on the night of the 24th. Keep on eye out for us! :thumbsup2

Are you doing CP that night?

[njdisneyfreak]

Are you doing CP that night?

No, we did it last year. We loved it, but will just enjoy listening to it, as we walk around the world, this time around.

Are you going? It's really beautiful.

[NYPDwife]

No, we did it last year. We loved it, but will just enjoy listening to it, as we walk around the world, this time around.

Are you going? It's really beautiful.

Yes, this will be our first time. I cry everytime I think about it (happy tears) b/c I feel like it will be such a spiritual experience. I think I'm going to need a whole box of Kleenex b/c that night, Steven Curis Chapman is the narrarator and I know he lost his daughter this year.:angel:

[njdisneyfreak]

Yes, this will be our first time. I cry everytime I think about it (happy tears) b/c I feel like it will be such a spiritual experience. I think I'm going to need a whole box of Kleenex b/c that night, Steven Curis Chapman is the narrarator and I know he lost his daughter this year.:angel:


Oh, man! I had so wanted to hear either Steven Curtis Chapman or Kirk Cameron last year, but the dates didn't work out for us. We heard Edward James Olmos, and as a Hispanic, I really enjoyed getting to hear him, especially because it seemed like what he was saying meant something to him.

If you are looking for a spiritual experience, it won't disappoint. I felt like I was in church, and I definitely cried at different points, so definitely be ready with the tissues. It was great getting to hear the Bible read about the true meaning of Christmas and to get to sing along with the choir. You are going to absolutely love it!!!

Are you eating before or after the CP? Definitely, line up as soon as you can. It was crazy how early people were on line. My DH and I took turns to give each other a break in line, as we saw many other people doing. Though getting CP tickets guarantees you entrance, if you want a good seat, be prepared to stand in line for quite a while. I know we stood at least an hour, but it was worth it when we got to amazing seats!

We may be lingering in the walkway area during one of the CP. We have dinner ressies at Chefs de France that night and it will be so nice to finish a great meal and come out to the sounds of the CP. :goodvibes

[NYPDwife]

We have an ADR for Rose & Crown at 4:10 PM with the show at 6:45 PM. Do you think we have enough time or should I schedule dinner a little earlier or go to the 8:00 PM show?

[njdisneyfreak]

We have an ADR for Rose & Crown at 4:10 PM with the show at 6:45 PM. Do you think we have enough time or should I schedule dinner a little earlier or go to the 8:00 PM show?

That should be plenty of time. I can't imagine it taking you more than an hour to eat and that still gives you an hour and a half before the CP begins. :santa:

[njdisneyfreak]

:mickeyjum :jumping1: After about a month or month and a half, I have finally finished working on the 1000 piece Mickey puzzle!!! Wahoo! Yippee! :jumping1: :mickeyjum

Here it is. Isn't it cool? I was determined to get it done before I went back to teaching. I may have been cutting it close, but it's done with a couple of days to spare.

http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/WDW%20Dec%202008/MickeyPuzzle3.jpg

[njdisneyfreak]

Ooooohh, I want to see your Disney stuff! hehe

I haven't forgotten your request. I put it on my schedule to take pictures of the Disney stuff in my classroom, when I go back to work this week. So, be ready for the pics. :surfweb:

[njdisneyfreak]

We think we know what we want to do on our first day, but it could change, of course. Right now, we're thinking of heading to DTD for the day. We'd go to DisneyQuest first and shop after. We'd eat wherever it suits our fancy, and enjoy the day. This way, too, we could get back to the resort early enough to start off the next day bright and early since we have the Segway Tour at 7:45.

[njdisneyfreak]

My DH looked through the Farmer's Almanac, which is typically pretty accurate, for the weather forecast for our trip. Not too bad the first few days, but then cold enough for potential frost for much of it! I can't even imagine. I've never been to Florida when it's that cold. I wonder what it might be like. At least, as far as swimming goes, I won't be overly bummed over missing the pools at POP. They're nice, but I've done them before. Also, with the cooler temps, it may be nicer to experience everything. I just hope it doesn't end up being too cold.

I have already noticed parts of some trees in my area changing color! I have never seen that. Trees normally change in October, and already, I'm starting to see shades of orange. Makes me really think that we're in for a worse than normal winter. I suppose we'll just have to wait and see.

[bellasmommy0]

I hope that it is wrong. Being from South Texas we arent used to cold weather, and when we get it we just want to stay in. So I pray for it to not be too cold.... cool but not cold!!

Love the puzzle!!

[njdisneyfreak]

I hope that it is wrong. Being from South Texas we arent used to cold weather, and when we get it we just want to stay in. So I pray for it to not be too cold.... cool but not cold!!

Love the puzzle!!

I hope it's wrong, too. When I leave a cold climate, living in NJ, I'd prefer to go to a warmer one. Let's definitely pray for a good temps. I know that last year, during the time we were there in December, they had freak weather. It was freakishly warm, practically summer weather, for our whole trip. The day after we left it dropped into the 30s and there were actual flurries in Orlando! They had never seen weather like it was when we were there, and I'd love for that to happen again. :goodvibes

Thanks, on the puzzle. At times I never thought I'd finish. My motivator, though, was I didn't want to leave it undone with me going back to work. Now, I just need to use puzzle glue on it and get it framed!

[njdisneyfreak]

I know this doesn't relate directly to our trip, but I go back to work tomorrow!!! :teacher: I'm excited about returning. We'll have three days of workshops and meetings, and then the students will arrive on Friday. I love what I do, but it will also make time move a lot faster towards the trip, for me. :cool1:

[wdwgirl03]

I haven't forgotten your request. I put it on my schedule to take pictures of the Disney stuff in my classroom, when I go back to work this week. So, be ready for the pics. :surfweb:

Yay!! I can't wait to see them. :)

Love the puzzle. I think my sister might have that one too...but not too long ago she finished one of the Disney fine art puzzles of the seven dwarfs. She actually framed it and took it to school to hang in her apartment.

http://www.buffalogames.com/products/1000_piece_puzzles/disney_fine_art/?tx_ttproducts_pi1%5BbackPID%5D=71&tx_ttproducts_pi1%5Bproduct%5D=19&tx_ttproducts_pi1%5Bcat%5D=7&cHash=e49ce6e00a

We were lucky enough to be there last year when they had those really cold temperatures :rolleyes: ...all I can say is that it better not be like that again when we are there! There's a reason for leaving WI in the winter. :laughing:

[njdisneyfreak]

Yay!! I can't wait to see them. :)

Love the puzzle. I think my sister might have that one too...but not too long ago she finished one of the Disney fine art puzzles of the seven dwarfs. She actually framed it and took it to school to hang in her apartment.

http://www.buffalogames.com/products/1000_piece_puzzles/disney_fine_art/?tx_ttproducts_pi1%5BbackPID%5D=71&tx_ttproducts_pi1%5Bproduct%5D=19&tx_ttproducts_pi1%5Bcat%5D=7&cHash=e49ce6e00a

We were lucky enough to be there last year when they had those really cold temperatures :rolleyes: ...all I can say is that it better not be like that again when we are there! There's a reason for leaving WI in the winter. :laughing:

I should have my classroom pics available sometime this week. Your sister's puzzle looks lovely.

What was WDW like when it was cold?

I see that you started your own PTR. I'll go check it out now.

[wdwgirl03]

I should have my classroom pics available sometime this week. Your sister's puzzle looks lovely.

What was WDW like when it was cold?

I see that you started your own PTR. I'll go check it out now.

I hope the start of the school year is going well...though I think you said you don't have kids until Friday...

Ohhhh Disney when it's cold, what can I say. LOL. I don't know if I'd rather be freezing cold or dying of heat. :confused3 We did find that the parks seemed to be more crowded than usual because nobody wanted to use the resort pools/go to the water parks (in fact I think they might have closed the water parks). So we just tried to do more indoor things, which is obviously easier to do in some parks than others. Just make sure to bring warm clothes! There were days when we were wearing gloves and mittens and had our hoods up. :cold: Oh yes, and try to find sunny spots!

[njdisneyfreak]

I hope the start of the school year is going well...though I think you said you don't have kids until Friday...

It is going well, but yes, the kids don't come till Friday. I am pretty much all set up. Tomorrow, I have two workshops to attend, followed by a meeting. Then, I'll set up for my first period group. There is a ton of paperwork that they have to get to go home and get signed, filled out, paid for, whatever. Then, of course, we always have the first day of school assembly. Somewhere in there, I hope to get an ice breaker done, too. I'm looking forward to meeting all of my new students. I have 76 of them, as of right now. That can change, though. I may end up with more. Schedules can change quite a bit during the first week or two, for various reasons. I also took pics of the Disney parts of my room, so you could see. Stay tuned. :surfweb:

Ohhhh Disney when it's cold, what can I say. LOL. I don't know if I'd rather be freezing cold or dying of heat. :confused3 We did find that the parks seemed to be more crowded than usual because nobody wanted to use the resort pools/go to the water parks (in fact I think they might have closed the water parks). So we just tried to do more indoor things, which is obviously easier to do in some parks than others. Just make sure to bring warm clothes! There were days when we were wearing gloves and mittens and had our hoods up. :cold: Oh yes, and try to find sunny spots!

Thanks for the tips! :thumbsup2 Hopefully, it won't be too cold. I mean, it's Florida. :goodvibes

[njdisneyfreak]

I was asked what Disney stuff I have in my classroom. I'll be honest. I wish I could bring a lot more to work, but I love my Disney stuff and keep most of it at home. So, here it is:

This is the area directly behind my desk, on the counter. You'll notice the Mickey ears. On the back side is my teacher name (last name), which is normally facing the students, but I turned it around for this pic.
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/School/classroomcounter.jpg

Here is my Winnie the Pooh pen/pencil holder. Look closely at his ears. Within the first week of it being on my desk, where it originally was, it was accidentally knocked to the floor. While I was upset to see it broken, Pooh now has that worn, loved teddy look. :goodvibes
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/School/poohpencilholder.jpg

Okay, let me explain this next one. I had gotten a gift one year of a school house bulletin board. For a while, I didn't know what to do with it. Then, I had a great idea. . .put WDW post cards on it! When in doubt, make it Disney. :thumbsup2
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/School/disneyboard.jpg

This next pic will show you one of my first Disney pieces in my classroom. What can be better than a patriotic Mickey with him saluting the flag?
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/School/PatrioticMickey.jpg

My latest addition to my classroom Disney collection is the poster that came with the Mickey puzzle I just completed. You know that had to go up on my classroom wall!
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s6/njdisneyfreak/School/MickeyPoster.jpg

So, that's it for now. When I go in December, I'm hoping to add to my classroom Disney stuff. If any of you have any ideas of things that would be great to use in my classroom, let me know. I'm open to ideas. :goodvibes

[askelton]

How fun for the children... and you! :thumbsup2 My godchildren, who are three, just went to a new classroom and their teacher has a Disney room too. They will be here next week so school is getting them ready!

[katiebug86]

Your classroom is so so so cute! The only thing missing is a few hiddlen Mickeys. :lmao:

[njdisneyfreak]

How fun for the children... and you! :thumbsup2 My godchildren, who are three, just went to a new classroom and their teacher has a Disney room too. They will be here next week so school is getting them ready!

That's great! Us Disney teachers always try to do our part by instilling a love for all things Disney, right in the classroom. It's the least we can do. :goodvibes

Your classroom is so so so cute! The only thing missing is a few hiddlen Mickeys. :lmao:

Thanks! How do you know the hidden Mickeys aren't there? They could be hiding. :rotfl2:

[wdwgirl03]

Thanks for sharing your Disney-fied classroom!! :thumbsup2

[bellasmommy0]

Love your room!! Last year my DD was in pre-k and her teacher loved turtles so she had us looking everywhere for something with crush for her teacher. Her teacher this year said she likes Nemo, so I can feel it coming!!!

[Raecheal]

I love the pictures of your classroom!

[njdisneyfreak]

Thanks for sharing your Disney-fied classroom!! :thumbsup2

You're very welcome! :goodvibes

Love your room!! Last year my DD was in pre-k and her teacher loved turtles so she had us looking everywhere for something with crush for her teacher. Her teacher this year said she likes Nemo, so I can feel it coming!!!

Oh, I love Crush and Nemo!!! No matter what your DD wants you to go around looking for, for her teacher, just remember one thing, "Just keep swimming!" :laughing:

I love the pictures of your classroom!

Aw, thanks! I do what I can to Disney up my classroom, but my favorite is still my Disney home office. I really want to add to both my classroom and my home office area Disney stuff when we go on the trip. :woohoo:

[SunnieRN]

I just found your pre trip report and was so excited reading it as my family will be going to disney world for the first time this Christmas! We were going to do a split stay at pop and contemporary, but then reality hit, since we only started planning three weeks ago, and we thought we needed to scale down.
This will be our only chance to take a family vacation, myself, daughter, son in law and my two grandsons, before my son in law re-deploys to Iraq Jan. 10th or so.
We will be staying at Pop century and my daughter got a code in an email that gave us free dining. Unbelieveable! Made the trip so affordable!
We were considering upgrading to deluxe dining, but with a two year old and a baby who will be 10 months old, we figure one table service meal a day will be enough to get through! We do have some great things planned though and I am very excited.
I learned a lot reading your report, thanks!

[njdisneyfreak]

I just found your pre trip report and was so excited reading it as my family will be going to disney world for the first time this Christmas! We were going to do a split stay at pop and contemporary, but then reality hit, since we only started planning three weeks ago, and we thought we needed to scale down.
This will be our only chance to take a family vacation, myself, daughter, son in law and my two grandsons, before my son in law re-deploys to Iraq Jan. 10th or so.
We will be staying at Pop century and my daughter got a code in an email that gave us free dining. Unbelieveable! Made the trip so affordable!
We were considering upgrading to deluxe dining, but with a two year old and a baby who will be 10 months old, we figure one table service meal a day will be enough to get through! We do have some great things planned though and I am very excited.
I learned a lot reading your report, thanks!

How exciting! :woohoo: Going for the first time during Christmas will be amazing. You were probably wise to scale down. Besides, like we began to realize, it's better to put more money towards spending. There's a lot of great stuff to buy at WDW. :thumbsup2

When will you and your family be there? Do you have any questions I may be able to help you with? What great things do you have planned? I can't wait to hear more. I'm glad my PTR was able to help you. :goodvibes