OK here I go....My first ever TR! DAY 5 ON PAGE 21

[goofycathy]

OK so this is going to be my first ever PTR but definately not my first DL trip! So please bear with me while I learn and possibly make mistakes! Thank you in advanced for being patient with me!!!

Ok so I guess I should start with our "cast"
There is me, Cathy...Im 35, my DH, Monte (also 35) and 3 kids, Luke (15) Jake(12) and DD Katelyn (8 but thinks she is 25 LOL dont all girls?!?)
I guess I should stick a pic in here (or at least try )so you can get a better visual (note...we didnt take Luke on our last trip,he couldnt go, had other obligations with school so I dont have a pic of all 5 of us at DL)

So from left to right we have Katelyn (with a silly face) Jake, me and DH.
I should also note that I am the worst picture taker in the WORLD! All of my pictures end up fuzzy or off center but I dont care and am just happy I can have pictures to put in my albums!

Here is a picture of Luke and Katelyn on the first day of school...Luke is 6'2" now, definately a tall tall boy!

OK back to our plans!! We are leaving on March7th, at 4 a.m. from Grants Pass Oregon. We had planned on driving down in our 1997 Chrysler Town & Country but after realizing that the only thing causing me stress about this trip was worrying that we would break down in this car, it had almost 150,000 miles! so my DH suprised me last week and bought me a 2008 Chrysler Town & Country that is in beautiful condition with VERY low miles, it is so beautiful inside and its the newest car ive ever owned...it may not be new in age, but definately knew to me...love that guy!
OMG I just realized im a rambler! lol sorry! So we are leaving at 4 a.m. and based on our previous trip we know it takes 12 hours to get to the hotel, so we plan on arriving around 4p.m. which basically gets us there in time to unpack, freshen up and get a nice meal in before we hit the parks for the next 5 days!

I'm going to post a few pics from our last trip....some of my favorites to break this PTR up a little because I am known to bore people when I go on and on and on, so here are a few of my favorites!

This is one of my favorites, my kids after the first day of DL...TIRED BABIES!

Katelyn and I on Dumbo...

Jake proving that you are NEVER too old to get a hug from Minnie Mouse and love it...

My daughters first time on California Screaming...I REALLY thought she was going to freak out and scream the whole time! I was even too scared at first to ride it, so I waited by the TV monitors to see how she did, yeah, I guess you can say I dont really have to worry about her on this ride anymore!!! LOL

This isnt at DL, its at Universal but I love how Katelyn & Jake really got into character for this picture....What a bunch of hams!

OK I think thats enough for now....Im not sure if I did this right or if any of this will come out but I hope im on the right track...I can post a few more pics if anyone is interested!??! would love to hear some feedback...

Thanks!
~Cathy~

 

[DizNee Luver]

Way to go Cathy!!!!! Great start & great pictures!!! See not to bad doing one of these.....you'll find you have a lot of fun with it!!

So what color is your new van??? We have the exact same one as you & year....my stepdad bought ours thru Hertz Car Sales & is silver......not a lot of extras......we got very spoiled with our Eddie Bauer version of our expedition......heavy sigh....miss that vehicle!!!

So are you going on school spring break?? That seems early this year??

Where ya gonna stay??

 

[kaoden39]

I'm here!!

 

[goofycathy]

Oh my goodness! yay! my first two followers!
Our van is Maroon...very pretty! I heart her! I went from an expedition to a minivan so I know what your talking about but this van is pretty dang nice so im not complaining! AND ours was a previous rental too!
I'll post a pic!

Soooo....we are staying at Motel6...we stayed there last year and thought the rooms were clean and pretty basic and since we spend so little time there and we get a great deal and were familiar with it we just figured we would stay again! With what we save there versus the other hotels we have enough to have a character breakfast every morning were there!

I think I will post a few more pics...A few Disney related and maybe one of just the hubby and I on our "first date" lol this was May 2006

This one is my mom and my sister on Buzz Lightyear on Sept 12th 2009. This was her last trip and final wish to take my sister and I to Disneyland as adults. We had put this trip off for so long but when she was diagnosed with a rare form of adrenal cancer on Sept 4th we booked this trip immediately. She passed away on Oct 26th 2009. Sooooo glad we were able to spend this time with her because shortly after we returned home she went downhill

Katelyn, Jack Sparrow and Jake representing Oregon! (go ducks!)

Oh and last but not least I cant forget my baby! This is Bella...sitting with her dad while he is trying to read the paper, she will be staying with my Dad while we travel, mainly because she is a pain in the rear while were in the car, leaps back and forth between my lap and DH and whines the whole time! She'll have fun playing with his dog, her best chihuahua friend in the world...Vinny

OK enough for that installment...will try to add a little more in later...If I can think of anything else! TTFN!

 

[goofycathy]

I'm here!!

YAY!

 

[kaoden39]

I have the 2007 Dodge Grand Caravan, I love it. Mine is dark blue, I got mine used too. You're off to a great start. Thanks for the warm welcome.

 

[goofycathy]

So are you going on school spring break?? That seems early this year??

I forgot to answer this...
Our spring break starts March 18th so were going almost two weeks early. I really dont like going to DL when it seems like all im doing is fighting crowds. I will always choose a time I dont think it is that crowded. I did just recently hear there will be some sort of D23 party on the 10th so I think we'll break up our trip and head to Huntington beach or Long Beach or something so we can get a break and hopefully try to soak up some sun (since were so deficient in Vitamin D here in this great state! LOL)

We have 5 day park hopppers and our original plan was to use them monday-friday but I think we'll do DL on Mon and Tues, Beach on Weds and then Thurs Fri and Sat back at DL...I always like to end the trip with our last day being at DL and then head back to Oregon on the 14th.

 

[parrotheadmom]

Can't wait to read your TR, makes the time pass faster until my next trip. We will be driving from Utah in Aug. so it's always fun to read of others (with teenagers) doing a road trip. I will be taking my then 14 yo dd and her friend along with my 11 yo dd!! What was I thinking! So you are making me consider writing a TR, I'm usually a lurker but think that your road trip to DL will be an adventure....

 

[kaoden39]

Can't wait to read your TR, makes the time pass faster until my next trip. We will be driving from Utah in Aug. so it's always fun to read of others (with teenagers) doing a road trip. I will be taking my then 14 yo dd and her friend along with my 11 yo dd!! What was I thinking! So you are making me consider writing a TR, I'm usually a lurker but think that your road trip to DL will be an adventure....

Oh write one. It can be great fun, my teenagers are kind of even joining in on ours.

 

[goofycathy]

Can't wait to read your TR, makes the time pass faster until my next trip. We will be driving from Utah in Aug. so it's always fun to read of others (with teenagers) doing a road trip. I will be taking my then 14 yo dd and her friend along with my 11 yo dd!! What was I thinking! So you are making me consider writing a TR, I'm usually a lurker but think that your road trip to DL will be an adventure....

I just wish I had dont one for my previous trip...guess its too late to do that but im kinda excited about sharing this time.
I really dont ever go anywhere with all my kids at the same time. The boys are at ages where testosterone is really playing a part in deciding everything, like who sits where to who watches/listens to what in the car. I really am going to try and be patient with them both for this "adventure" but to be honest its scares me to know that Im going to be stressed out no matter what I do!
But here are my thoughts....They all have ipods and are bringing them, we have dual dvd screens so they can watch movies and im bringing lots of snacks and drinks so hopefully the can just be occupied and not be goofballs! If things do get tense I will just have one of the boys sit up front with the step-dad and hang out with him for a chance of scenery and different person to talk to, I dont mind hanging out in the back for awile with Katelyn and im sure she will enjoy my company!

Thanks to everyone who is on-board with me!

 

[Belle Ella]

First of all, sign me up! I love me some TR's

Can't wait to read your TR, makes the time pass faster until my next trip. We will be driving from Utah in Aug. so it's always fun to read of others (with teenagers) doing a road trip. I will be taking my then 14 yo dd and her friend along with my 11 yo dd!! What was I thinking! So you are making me consider writing a TR, I'm usually a lurker but think that your road trip to DL will be an adventure....

Oh write one. It can be great fun, my teenagers are kind of even joining in on ours.

I'm with Michelle - PTR's and TR's are a fun thing to do. And there is no such thing as a bad TR, only an unwritten one

 

[goofycathy]

Yay another on board! which is really funny because I just pretty much spent the ENTIRE morning reading YOUR TR, which by the way was awesome! I wish I had a knach for phoography like you do! Im lucky if someone lets me borrow a camera for this trip, hoping and crossing my fingers my sister will let me borrow hers or else its all cell phone and photopass pics for me!

 

[DizNee Luver]

You're doing great Cathy......see I told you people would read it!!!

 

[Belle Ella]

Yay another on board! which is really funny because I just pretty much spent the ENTIRE morning reading YOUR TR, which by the way was awesome! I wish I had a knach for phoography like you do! Im lucky if someone lets me borrow a camera for this trip, hoping and crossing my fingers my sister will let me borrow hers or else its all cell phone and photopass pics for me!

Photos are photos - I've been lucky enough to take a few classes so I can actually pretend to know what I'm doing on occasion But thank you, thank you very much (I feel like I'll be quoting The Little Mermaid and Beauty & the BEast all night since I just finished watching them both, lol).

I just love me some Disney documentation!!

 

[goofycathy]

So as far as the trip goes im not extremely organized! We know alot about DL and I dont think the crowds will be so outragous that we need to have an exact plans. But with that being said there are things that I want to do/see that we've never gotten around to.

Here goes...
1. Billy Hill & the Hillbillys, we've never seen it and this is definitely on the top of our "to-do list"
2. Whitewater Nachos, yeah, I've seen the food porn....YUM
3. Aladdin, When I read about it I get mixed reviews, but I want to go and be the judge for myself, im excited about it
4.Ralpj Brennans Jazz Kitchen, We took the kids the last time we were there in November and have nothing but good things to say about it, we had GREAT service and DELICIOUS food, so good that we are definitely going back

Other than those things, were going to do each day as it comes! last time we went we did Universal Studios on our last day and we thought it was a disappointment, not sure if it was because we had become used to the Disney magic or just not what we expected in general. This time we will be taking a break in the middle of the trip but I think we will head to one of the beaches and let the kids and ourselves soak up some of that California sunshine that we've been missing since we moved up to Oregon....

So thats about it when it comes to a "touring plan" I guess the plan is that we dont have a plan! LOL

Please, if anyone has any suggestions on when we can do on the day we dont go to DL please let me know!
Thanks again for reading !


~Cathy

 

[DizNee Luver]

Here goes...
1. Billy Hill & the Hillbillys, we've never seen it and this is definitely on the top of our "to-do list"
2. Whitewater Nachos, yeah, I've seen the food porn....YUM
3. Aladdin, When I read about it I get mixed reviews, but I want to go and be the judge for myself, im excited about it
4.Ralpj Brennans Jazz Kitchen, We took the kids the last time we were there in November and have nothing but good things to say about it, we had GREAT service and DELICIOUS food, so good that we are definitely going back



Cathy

Billy Hill......very funny!! Get there early to get a table.....go & get your family the funnel cakes to share during the show......delicious!!

Whitewater Snacks food is amazing & HUGE!! We actually didn't get the nachos....and I LOVE NACHOS.....the sandwiches were huge, the salads were huge, etc etc.....easily could be shared by 2 people.

The Aladdin show is broadway calibur. Very well done, great cast & the Genie is current on news for his jokes.......he steals the show!! If you can get lower seating, take it!! We've sat on a couple different levels & were disappointed sitting way up because you could see the cut-outs in the floors, etc......kinda took away from the "magic". It's good for the entire family......we had our 3 yr old all the way up to the grandmother who all loved it.

We've never made it to the Jazz Kitchen, but will plan it for one of these trips.

 

[deejdigsdis]

Hi! I'm enjoying your report so far.

My vote for your non-Disneyland day is Newport Beach. When we went last Nov. we did what you are thinking about....Disneyland on Mon. and Tues., Newport Beach on Wednesday for our "rest day" -- that way we were all rested for our Magic Morning (well my son and I, since we were the only ones of the 5 of us that wanted to go...) -- then back to Disneyland on Thursday and Friday. (How's that for a long sentence? ) It's a bit of a different experience when you are used to the Oregon Coast. My family grew up camping 1 or 2 weeks every summer there -- usually Newport and Brookings. Anyway, the scenery is so much better there in Oregon, IMO. But you've also got the crazy wind and rain. I have to say it was really nice to go to Newport Beach (I'm talking California now) in Nov. during the off-season and have the whole place to ourselves. The locals would occasionally stroll by, bundled up in hats and coats and scarves....while my kids were out playing in the ocean. There are bikes you can rent right there. It looked fun. And since you're going down from Grants Pass...you brought up a fun memory from when I was younger. We had just finished our yearly camping expedition on the coast and were headed to Stewart State Park (or is it Stuart State Park?) for our last stop. We were in Medford and my dad said, "We're so close to I-5...we could just head down to Disneyland instead." And we did. Totally unplanned by my parents and so fun.

Good grief! Enough about me! Looking forward to your next installment...

 

[Belle Ella]

1. Billy Hill & the Hillbillys, we've never seen it and this is definitely on the top of our "to-do list"
2. Whitewater Nachos, yeah, I've seen the food porn....YUM
3. Aladdin, When I read about it I get mixed reviews, but I want to go and be the judge for myself, im excited about it
4.Ralpj Brennans Jazz Kitchen, We took the kids the last time we were there in November and have nothing but good things to say about it, we had GREAT service and DELICIOUS food, so good that we are definitely going back

I finally got to see Billy Hill & the Hillbillies for the first time back in September and I was really wishing I hadn't waited so long. And it's perfect to get a bite to eat and sit down for a bit but tables can be sparse the closer you get to show time. We managed to find one up on the balcony and my friend got stuck in the line for food it was so long. I second the vote to get there early.

I just realized I've never had the whitewater nachos ... looks like I need to start listing my new experience goals for this trip, lol.

Personally, I loved Aladdin when we saw it back in March. It was definitely Broadway caliber. Heck I think I enjoyed it more than Wicked, which I just saw at the Orpheum in San Francisco last month (then again I was nursing a head cold for that one and I was miserable). We sat in the first row of Mezzanine and really enjoyed our seats, but yes, you could see the floor cutouts and whatnot but I think I would prefer those seats to Orchestra-level. Since it's closing in August and I'll have one last chance to see it (and maybe the first time for my friend, I'm not sure) we'll probably be making plans for it. I can't believe they'll have Toy Story in there next. Well, never mind, I can believe it.

I've never made it to the Jazz Kitchen either. I tend to not make it to DTD too much while we're there!

 

[DizNee Luver]

Personally, I loved Aladdin when we saw it back in March. It was definitely Broadway caliber. Heck I think I enjoyed it more than Wicked, which I just saw at the Orpheum in San Francisco last month (then again I was nursing a head cold for that one and I was miserable). We sat in the first row of Mezzanine and really enjoyed our seats, but yes, you could see the floor cutouts and whatnot but I think I would prefer those seats to Orchestra-level. Since it's closing in August and I'll have one last chance to see it (and maybe the first time for my friend, I'm not sure) we'll probably be making plans for it. I can't believe they'll have Toy Story in there next. Well, never mind, I can believe it.

I hadn't heard that Aladdin was closing!!! We definately will plan on seeing it one last time on our trip..........that's really sad!!

 

[Belle Ella]

I hadn't heard that Aladdin was closing!!! We definately will plan on seeing it one last time on our trip..........that's really sad!!

It is really sad, it's had a great run. Here's a small article on it. The closing date is about August 15 (so we all have just enough time to see it one last time).