jillyb
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Mar 30, 2008
Its hard to believe that this time last year we had just gotten back from our first trip to WDW. The post-WDW depression hit me hard! I was definitely hooked and was thinking of ways to get back this year. Initially, I wanted to do a Mother/Daughter trip with my oldest DD, Katie (30). When I brought it up with Clay, he mentioned hed like to have a trip with just the two of us. So then I started thinking/planning an anniversary trip for our 7th wedding anniversary in November.
We went on the WDW website and looked at/priced various resorts. Wed stayed at Pop Century for our June 2008 trip with the girls and really liked the themeing. But, this was going to be an adults trip so, naturally, we wanted something a bit more upscale. LOL I was in love with Animal Kingdom Lodge and desperately wanted a savannah room. I could just picture the two of us sitting on our balcony early in the morning, sipping our coffee and watching the animals. Ahhhhhhhh bliss! Well fiddle-dee-dee too expensive. Clay really liked the look of the Wilderness Lodge. Hmmmm I could live with that! That may be doable. Then he saw Port Orleans-Riverside and declared thats the place. Clay grew up in Slidell, LA so I guess this looked like home to him. He wasnt interested in Port Orleans-French Quarter. He said hed been there done that with the real thing. LOL I joined the November Vacation Club and then the loooonnggggggg wait began. I think when I plugged in the dates (November 13-18) it was something like a year away.
Time was crawling by. I printed out TGMs November Least Crowded Charts s from 2008 and thought about dining choices. I read posts in the November Vacation Club of those who were planning their November trip to see what the crowds were like in comparison to TGMs LCCs and to get ideas of things to do. I was looking forward to seeing the Christmas decorations and going at a slower pace. Clay and I talked about which parks we really wanted to spend time in. I wanted to spend more time in AK than we were able to do in June and we both wanted to spend more time in Epcot. When we had decided on POR, I wanted to go ahead and book it but Clay wanted me to hold off. I pouted a little about it but held off. Meanwhile, time was going even slower.
As the weeks turned into months, I was starting to have doubts about whether Clay and I would be able to make this trip; the finances had me worried. And, with the economy going the way it was I was even more nervous. As time progressed and we talked finances it became pretty clear we just werent going to be able to have our adults only trip. I knew it was the right decision but I was heartbroken. Then, on April 6th, I was advised that the position Id had for eight years was being eliminated and my job responsibilities would be handled in the corporate offices in New Haven, CT. It wasnt too much of a shock as Id seen this coming for at least a year. I was given a very reasonable severance package and I had 14 vacation days left (out of 15) for which I was paid. The one thing that came to mind was I was glad we didnt have a WDW trip booked.
We went on the WDW website and looked at/priced various resorts. Wed stayed at Pop Century for our June 2008 trip with the girls and really liked the themeing. But, this was going to be an adults trip so, naturally, we wanted something a bit more upscale. LOL I was in love with Animal Kingdom Lodge and desperately wanted a savannah room. I could just picture the two of us sitting on our balcony early in the morning, sipping our coffee and watching the animals. Ahhhhhhhh bliss! Well fiddle-dee-dee too expensive. Clay really liked the look of the Wilderness Lodge. Hmmmm I could live with that! That may be doable. Then he saw Port Orleans-Riverside and declared thats the place. Clay grew up in Slidell, LA so I guess this looked like home to him. He wasnt interested in Port Orleans-French Quarter. He said hed been there done that with the real thing. LOL I joined the November Vacation Club and then the loooonnggggggg wait began. I think when I plugged in the dates (November 13-18) it was something like a year away.
Time was crawling by. I printed out TGMs November Least Crowded Charts s from 2008 and thought about dining choices. I read posts in the November Vacation Club of those who were planning their November trip to see what the crowds were like in comparison to TGMs LCCs and to get ideas of things to do. I was looking forward to seeing the Christmas decorations and going at a slower pace. Clay and I talked about which parks we really wanted to spend time in. I wanted to spend more time in AK than we were able to do in June and we both wanted to spend more time in Epcot. When we had decided on POR, I wanted to go ahead and book it but Clay wanted me to hold off. I pouted a little about it but held off. Meanwhile, time was going even slower.
As the weeks turned into months, I was starting to have doubts about whether Clay and I would be able to make this trip; the finances had me worried. And, with the economy going the way it was I was even more nervous. As time progressed and we talked finances it became pretty clear we just werent going to be able to have our adults only trip. I knew it was the right decision but I was heartbroken. Then, on April 6th, I was advised that the position Id had for eight years was being eliminated and my job responsibilities would be handled in the corporate offices in New Haven, CT. It wasnt too much of a shock as Id seen this coming for at least a year. I was given a very reasonable severance package and I had 14 vacation days left (out of 15) for which I was paid. The one thing that came to mind was I was glad we didnt have a WDW trip booked.
Thanks for joining in Widgd!
. The ES is a good sized hotel here too. It looks fairly new as well.
I highlighted all the tips and notes of interest in both.
I was beginning to think this trip was going to be cancelled before it got started! A trip to the beach or a long weekend at Great Wolf Lodge was looking more doable. Then, one day, I grabbed the calendar and started looking at dates. I was going to go ahead and plan this vacation dang it! I knew June and July were out, so that left August. Alison had told us that she was going to the beach to see her Grandmother but she didnt know when she was going or how long shed be there. Well, hopefully it wont be in August! 
This was beginning to feel like mission impossible! I finally came across an Embassy Suites in Vienna, VA. Hmmmm
free parking, shuttle to the Metro station, complimentary cooked to order breakfast (bonus!!), evening reception, indoor pool; this looks promising. I plugged in our dates and BAM! They have a special going that if you stay three nights you get 25% off each night of your stay. 
arty: I booked a two room suite faster than you can say Book him Dano! So, we have a five night stay in a two room suite with one king bed, a sofabed, microwave, refrigerator, free breakfast, evening reception (aka free drinks!!) for $405.00. 
Now, the only question was: would we be able to keep this fantastic deal or would the Ex throw a kink in our plans?
