A Hop, NO Skip, and Many Mishaps to a Disney Dream!

[Kathy Jetson]

I'm here! Looking forward to all the pictures! I went to the Triple AAA office here on Thursday to see what they had for Universal tickets. They had Disney cruise pictures all over their windows facing the parking lot and when River saw them he started jumping up and down saying "we're going on a cruise?" I had to break it to him we were just checking prices but it made me think of you!

 

[jenseib]

Accent? I have the southern twang goin' on here. Everytime we visit the in laws, dh's family keep saying to me "talk somemore Shannon". I never thought I had an accent. Even the southern people here don't think I have an accent.

Thats funny.

I'm in!!!!

Welcome

3 pages and I'm FINALLY here.Ugh! Work gets in the way of everything Better late than never! Now to go read it

Carey

I know how that is. Sometimes life just gets in the way. How dare it!

I am late again to the party!

Sorry, but I had a heck of the week and am here now, going back to catch up!

I hope your weekend is much better!

I'm here! Looking forward to all the pictures! I went to the Triple AAA office here on Thursday to see what they had for Universal tickets. They had Disney cruise pictures all over their windows facing the parking lot and when River saw them he started jumping up and down saying "we're going on a cruise?" I had to break it to him we were just checking prices but it made me think of you!

Aww. I feel so special being thought of!

 

[jenseib]

Day 1. Wednesday, March 30th

This is THE day!

I have so much energy when going on vacation. I can’t sleep much. There is so much to do, and I don’t want to miss a single bit of it. The adrenaline had hit me early in on the week and I wasn’t sleeping much days prior to leaving.

This day I woke up at 6 AM. No reason too, but I couldn’t sleep any more. I got up and gathered last minute things, showered, checked the internet a couple of last times and drove myself crazy a bit.
Finally it was time to get Claire up. Claire ran to put the last sticker on the countdown calendar. Minnie Mouse had left a note and bag of goodies for Claire.

Claire was excited and sat right on the kitchen floor to look in the bag.

I took that on my camera phone and texted it to family and friends.

Skip was taking us to the airport. Mom and Dad were driving there car and leaving it there. We live very close to Toledo airport.
We left at exactly 10:30, as I had planned. How’s that for timing! I made the comment to Skip that we couldn’t be more on time if we tried. We got to the airport about 10:45, even with a stop at the bank on the way.
Skip dropped us off, helped us get the bags in and we gave him hugs and kisses.
Claire and I got in line for Allegiant Air and called Mom. They were close.
The Allegiant desk hadn’t opened yet for the flight. Since the flight left at 1:05, I assume they would probably open around 11.
Mom made it in, while Dad parked the car and we waited a few minutes to hear an announcement….one of THOSE announcement you HATE to hear.
Mishap number 1 is about to happen…..
Now of course people are talking and the sound system is awful, so we really weren’t clear what they said, but the gist of it was that the flight was delayed at 1 ½ hours due to a maintenance problem. GREAT!
Dad joined us and we got checked in fairly fast. They told us that we could send carry ons through as well, but I declined. If I had known they would take them for free I would’ve packed differently, but I had camera equipment in both bags and I didn’t want to chance anything getting broken.
Next stop, security! We threw our bags on the conveyer and all loose things. They even had me take my belt off. I never had that before. They directed Claire and I to a different spot than Mom and Dad. I realized then that they didn’t have children go through the full body scanners, and since I was her parent I had to stay with her. We breezed through and started gathering our gear and getting dressed.
Dad was carrying one of my carry ons and it got flagged. It was all the camera gear. So I stood and waited while the agent went through it all.
Once it was Ok’d we heading up to our gate.

Of course we were hungry and we had a lot of time to kill now. We got some food at the little food station. A Marcos personal pan pizza for Claire, which was comparable to cardboard, and subway sandwiches for the rest of us.

I called Skip and told him about the delay. Of course he laughed at us. Nice husband!

Then I started taking pictures, some on my phone and texted them to family…what else was there to do.

Dad is NOT mad here. It’s one of his silly faces.

When I sent this picture, my Uncle texted back and wanted to know why mom didn’t have Mickey ears on, so we then took the next picture and sent it to him.

And then we wandered over to the window to see if we saw anything interesting.

Nope, nothing we can’t miss.

We goofed around, went to the bathroom a few times and then mom walked Claire over to the very small kids area. Mom talked to a few people over there, and all were also heading to Disney. I walked over, snapped a few pictures, and talked to some of them as well. Everyone was excited and wanted the plane to get there soon.

Here’s where my pictures end for awhile. All after this point were taken with my point and shoot on the lost SD card.

We finally saw the plane arrive and people of course line right up. Why do this? You have to wait for the other passengers to get off and then get called on. Allegiant has many options, all you have to pay for. You can have priority boarding, pick your seats prior, and the closer to the front the more they cost, and of course baggage charges. So if you know where you are going to sit, why do you need to line up 10 minutes prior to boarding? And if you did not pick your seats, it’s not going to matter if you line up now, as you have to wait for the whole plane to board before they let you on to find a free seat.
We found most of the people lined up were those who had NOT paid for seating.
One smart thing they did was load the plane from the back after Priority Boarding. In the past they never did that. But it makes it a little easier for everyone.
Dad was several rows behind us since we had booked his ticket at a different time and he boarded just before us.
We all got seated and settled in. Claire always has the window seat, and I sat next to her. Mom took a VERY nice picture of Claire and I on the plane, but of course it’s lost in Wonderland.
As we taxied out to the runway I snapped a few pictures out the window….again lost.

We took off at 2:45. That is 1 hour and 40 minutes late at this point. At least we were on the way. We brought some snacks and ate those, Used the potty once. I did crosswords, while Claire played with different things. I snapped some pictures of the clouds. Soon I could see the Florida Coast outside and pointed it out to mom.
The pilot came on around 4:40 and said we would be at the gate in 20 minutes…..YAY!!!!! I looked out the window and saw Cocoa Beach area. It looked just like the map. Of course I had snapped a picture of that too. Dad told us when we got off that he saw it too and he could see the Kennedy launch pad, clear as day.
It was now 5 and we had not even descended any. I told mom I think we were circling. Soon the pilot came on again and said there were bad storms in the Sanford area and we were flying over them till it cleared, and then going to go in from another angle and it would be bumpy.
And then we circled and circled and circled. The kid across the aisle said “There’s EPCOT!” And I asked the dad if he really could see it and he said yes. Dad also commented when we got off that he could see some Amusement parks, which I assume were Disney.
Finally it was time to land. Our delayed flight was getting even more delayed in air. We had a very bumpy ride then. Mom worried how Dad was doing. He’s not a roller coaster kind of guy and this basically felt like one. To our pilots credit we had the smoothest landing EVER. I mean you could not EVEN tell when we touched down, it was that smooth. Everything was wet, but no rain now at least.
We went to our gate and waited…and waited…and waited. After a bit the pilot got on again and said the jetway had been damaged in the storm, so they were going to tow us to another gate and hope that one worked. Of course we had to put all our carry ons back and secured, and sit down with our seatbelts on.
It was about 6 or so before we ever got off the plane. Our original arriving time was supposed to be 3:25, so we were a few hours late now. But for us it wasn’t a big deal, as we were just going to the Port area for the night.
We made our way to baggage claim and rounded up everything and then headed over to Alamo. I have never rented from Alamo before. Usually I do it with Hertz, since my SIL works for them and can get us a deal, but we booked Alamo through the Allegiant website and it was a real good deal…..Don’t do this. Or at least we won’t again.
The Alamo building is actually quite a walk from the baggage claim area. We plopped our bags down and I went in line to check in. Originally we had just rented a full size car. That would be enough for 3, but now that we had an extra person and extra luggage, we knew it would be very tight.
I asked about upgrading and they gave me numbers like, it will cost 500 and some odd dollars for this, or 700 and some odd dollars for that. I said, “I just want to know how much to upgrade, we have already paid.” Finally he said he would give me a deal (though I didn’t think it was), and for $150 more he would let us have a van. Mom said just go for it, so we did. He printed out paperwork and told me to go out and pick one. I brought it up and we loaded it. I am so glad we got the van. I don’t think we would’ve ever fit everything in a car.
I noticed the paperwork said I was paying $244 though. So when we went through the check out gate I asked about it. Here’s what I did not know. When booking through Allegiant, you are not paying any taxes, so when you actually pick up your car, all the taxes are added on. I wasn’t too happy about that “MISHAP”, but what am I to do at that point.
We are now off to Residence Inn!!!

 

[SoonerGirl]

Hi I'm new to your TRs, but we subscribe to a lot of the same ones, hope you don't mind me jumping on board! I'm going on my first Disney cruise in about 6 weeks and I'm insanely excited. Can't wait to hear all about your trip!!

Your DD is adorable!

 

[jenseib]

Hi I'm new to your TRs, but we subscribe to a lot of the same ones, hope you don't mind me jumping on board! I'm going on my first Disney cruise in about 6 weeks and I'm insanely excited. Can't wait to hear all about your trip!!

Your DD is adorable!

Welcome! I see you all around too! You are going to have a lot of fun!

 

[IBelieveInTheMagic]

Awesome start Jen!! I know you had a bumpy start and I know you were so excited. I have the same issue you do - can't sleep before a trip and just get myself so anxious and excited!

Can't wait for more...

Heather

 

[Tinkermom76]

wow that's a lot of mishaps. I hope you were still happy through it because you were going on a Disney cruise!!!!!

 

[Normangirls]

And then we wandered over to the window to see if we saw anything interesting.

At the Toledo airport? You know better than that.

I'm lovin' your report, Jen! We stayed at the Residence Inn, too, back in November. I'm anxious to see what you thought about it.

(P.S. Love your Dad's FSI hat!)

Anyway, keep the updates coming!

 

[jenseib]

Awesome start Jen!! I know you had a bumpy start and I know you were so excited. I have the same issue you do - can't sleep before a trip and just get myself so anxious and excited!

Can't wait for more...

Heather

It's so hard to sleep. Now that I ma home, I could sleep about 15 hours a day!

wow that's a lot of mishaps. I hope you were still happy through it because you were going on a Disney cruise!!!!!

And thats just the start. I know trips have mishaps, but I think the cards were stacked against me at times.

At the Toledo airport? You know better than that.

I'm lovin' your report, Jen! We stayed at the Residence Inn, too, back in November. I'm anxious to see what you thought about it.

(P.S. Love your Dad's FSI hat!)

Anyway, keep the updates coming!

I hope to get to the Residence update soon. I'm working on dining report again now.
My mom is the Human Resource Director for FSI. She has some long title with vice president or something liek that in it. Basically she's high up. Her office used to be in Archbold at the plant, but now they moved the offices (a few years back) to Holland. Sometimes she has to go back and forth a few times each day though. My dad said that hat was too hot, so they bought a new one in Sea World. Claire kept telling dad if he was good at Sea World she would let him buy another souvenir there , with his own money.

 

[3prettyprincesses]

I found you Jen! Actually, I followed the link from your PTR. I'm never over here on the cruise line boards!

Can't wait to see how your trip went, I'm already loving all the cute pics! Now, what you need to do is have Skip read your TR so he can see how much it will be when HE goes. Then he'll be ready to book a trip (or cruise!)

 

[Native NYer]

Joining in!
Can't wait to read about your experiences on the Dream.

 

[Caretames1]

I'm all caught up! I remember when I heard mechanical problems for our flight, I was like

I also hate suprise fee & taxes. Why can't everything just be up front? Thats how they get you, cuz what are you going do?? Go home?

I can't wait to see more photos

 

[jecskc]

Subbing .....

 

[joy13]

Great start! Those car rental companies can be such scam artists - uggh! The van sounds like it worked great for you though!

 

[joy13]

LOL - I just saw you said you'd be posting bird pictures for me!

 

[Daisy Duke]

Man, 24 hours late and I'm already on page 4! I've been reading your dining report and I'm even more excited now to see all the other cruise details! at the trip report title!

 

[jenseib]

I found you Jen! Actually, I followed the link from your PTR. I'm never over here on the cruise line boards!

Can't wait to see how your trip went, I'm already loving all the cute pics! Now, what you need to do is have Skip read your TR so he can see how much it will be when HE goes. Then he'll be ready to book a trip (or cruise!)

What happened to your TR. Did you just close it? I noticed it said the pagfe was no longer there.
I doubt Skip will ever read it, but shpwing him pictures are always good too!

Joining in!
Can't wait to read about your experiences on the Dream.

I can't wait to relive them!

I'm all caught up! I remember when I heard mechanical problems for our flight, I was like

I also hate suprise fee & taxes. Why can't everything just be up front? Thats how they get you, cuz what are you going do?? Go home?

I can't wait to see more photos

Yah, there was nothing I could do at that point. I think it would've cost me $50 to cancel it with them, so I just went forward. I wasn't too keen on the mechnical problems either.

Subbing .....

Great start! Those car rental companies can be such scam artists - uggh! The van sounds like it worked great for you though!

LOL - I just saw you said you'd be posting bird pictures for me!

I know now just to stick with Hertz. SIL can hook us up pretty well. I thought that this was such a deal, but it wasn't. Yes, I do have a few bird pictures, but I don't think they will be till later in the report!

Man, 24 hours late and I'm already on page 4! I've been reading your dining report and I'm even more excited now to see all the other cruise details! at the trip report title!

I am so behind on everything myself. Don't feel bad

 

[dizneeat]

Great start, Jen!

I knew about the mishaps from your dining review, but reading it all in all that detail really made me realize how looooooooong that day had been for you!

Can't wait for more, especially since I am finally officially on Easter break and now have time to catch up and stay on top of all my subscribed threads and my own threads!

 

[seobaina]

Great start, looking forward to the rest. I'm with your dad...I hate bumpy flights with a passion!

 

[Mickey_Mom]

Ahoy there! Permission to come aboard? Going back to read!