It'll Be All Right -A May 2012 TR Closing Thought and PTR Link 8/12*

[fairy8i8]

Good, I'm not too late for a front row seat!

I totally empathize with the stressing over your planning! My poor hubbie had a lot of patience with me on our first trip with just the 2 of us to Disneyland. I had a meltdown in line for the Alice in Wonderland ride because we were supposed to be able to walk right on, and instead, there was a half hour wait 5 minutes after the park opened! He just gave me a hug (I'm sure he thought I was crazy) and suggested we jump out of line and move on. It took me a couple seconds to let go of my plan I had spent hours creating in Ridemax and just look for rides with short lines. Though, I have to say, planning dining is half the fun. I can't wait to see your food pics! That gives 3 times the pleasure: planning, eating, and then savoring the memory!

 

[amazingact21]

Joining in! I'm looking forward to hearing about the EE 5K!

Thanks for joining in! The EE 5K was a lot of fun, definitely something I would suggest everyone try.

subscribing

Awesome! Thank you for following along!

I'm here to read along!

And a heck yeah about the heat of a thousand suns that week! I was cursing the Florida sunshine more than once!

Yay! Glad you followed me over from the PTR thread. Ugh, that heat....it was terrible!

I'm heeeerreee!! I tried to start my own tr today but every time I think of starting it I sit at the computer to realize that DH STILL hasn't finished downloading all the trip pics yet from the laptop to the work computer. I want them all in one place before I begin so instead... I had time to pop over to your tr


Can't wait to hear about what all went on!!!

Hi Kim! So happy to see you here.

Oooh, I cannot wait to read all about your trip. I'll try and be patient.
I know what you mean about the pictures, though. I swore I wouldn't begin this TR until all my photos are edited, but I caved.

 

[amazingact21]

I'm in. Can't wait for the pictures!

Thanks for joining! Pictures are coming soon!

Joining in! Can't wait to hear all about your trip.

Welcome and thanks for reading! I love sharing the memories for my trip, so I appreciate being able to write this report.

I am here, you can start now....

Whoo, thanks for joining. Have you done any kind of recap for the race or are you planning to? I'd love to hear what you thought about it.

I'm here, waitin' for the report!! It's gonna be a good one.

Thanks for following! This trip had some memorable moments, and I can't wait to post about them.

I'm in! Can't wait! And so glad we actually got to meet this time!

Agreed! I wish I'd remembered to grab a picture for this TR, but oh well. Can't wait to read your update about the race!

Good, I'm not too late for a front row seat!

I totally empathize with the stressing over your planning! My poor hubbie had a lot of patience with me on our first trip with just the 2 of us to Disneyland. I had a meltdown in line for the Alice in Wonderland ride because we were supposed to be able to walk right on, and instead, there was a half hour wait 5 minutes after the park opened! He just gave me a hug (I'm sure he thought I was crazy) and suggested we jump out of line and move on. It took me a couple seconds to let go of my plan I had spent hours creating in Ridemax and just look for rides with short lines. Though, I have to say, planning dining is half the fun. I can't wait to see your food pics! That gives 3 times the pleasure: planning, eating, and then savoring the memory!

Hi, and thanks for joining!

A half hour wait right after opening?! Yikes, I probably would've had a meltdown as well. But it's good that you were able to go with the flow, bet it saved you and your husband from more excess stress.
Food planning can be half the fun, especially when you walk into a restaurant knowing you've been waiting for that meal for 6 months.

 

[GraceMonica]

I'm joining! Looking forward to the pictures and reading about the EE 5K!

 

[Tickanee]

Hi Alicia! Can't wait to hear about your trip!

I have to say that I agree it was hotter this year than our trip last year at the same time, but I didn't think it was too bad. I have read quite a few posts about people feeling like they were melting, LOL! We always head back to the pool for the afternoons though. That way we aren't in the parks during the hottest part of the day. We love our pool time!

 

[GaRain]

Whoo, thanks for joining. Have you done any kind of recap for the race or are you planning to? I'd love to hear what you thought about it.

I was thinking of doing a trip report and took notes the first 2 days. I should do a race write up. I still need to send an email to runDisney!

 

[amazingact21]

I'm joining! Looking forward to the pictures and reading about the EE 5K!

Welcome! Thanks for joining! I can't wait to talk about the EE 5K; I was afraid I wouldn't have anything new to say about it since I ran it in 2011, but there were a ton of different things.

Joining in.....

Hi and welcome! Thanks for following!

Hi Alicia! Can't wait to hear about your trip!

I have to say that I agree it was hotter this year than our trip last year at the same time, but I didn't think it was too bad. I have read quite a few posts about people feeling like they were melting, LOL! We always head back to the pool for the afternoons though. That way we aren't in the parks during the hottest part of the day. We love our pool time!

Hi! Thanks for following me over here. I can't wait to write about how my mom rode next to you on RNRC and we were oblivious.
We took breaks in the afternoon all but one day, and oh man, we regretted that decision.

I was thinking of doing a trip report and took notes the first 2 days. I should do a race write up. I still need to send an email to runDisney!

You should definitely do either a TR or a race recap! I love hearing what other people thought of the event, because the opinion of it varied drastically this year.

 

[CandleontheWater]

I'm here! I'm glad I haven't missed any of the good parts yet!

I'm so sorry that it was "surface of the sun" hot! May is so unpredictable in Florida, it can be nice and it can be brutal, I'm sorry you got the latter.

Poor All Stars, I agree, they definitely get second billing after Pop (and probably 3rd now that AoA is opening), but I love Sports most of all the All Stars!

 

[Elleshoodat]

Thanks! Reading your TR and other May visiters made me want to start mine, even though I told myself I'd wait awhile.

Oh, I totally know how that goes. I told myself I'd wait awhile, too, but I just couldn't do it!

 

[amazingact21]

I'm here! I'm glad I haven't missed any of the good parts yet!

I'm so sorry that it was "surface of the sun" hot! May is so unpredictable in Florida, it can be nice and it can be brutal, I'm sorry you got the latter.

Poor All Stars, I agree, they definitely get second billing after Pop (and probably 3rd now that AoA is opening), but I love Sports most of all the All Stars!

Hi and thanks for joining!

May really is unpredictable as far as weather goes. Last May, it was perfect, but we had a very warm winter, so I knew it was going to be a warm trip.

I've only ever been to Pop and ASSP, and while Pop is nicer, I like that Sports is smaller. It's such a short distance to the food court, bus stop, and parking lot.
Although, I do want to try AoA when it opens.

Oh, I totally know how that goes. I told myself I'd wait awhile, too, but I just couldn't do it!

Haha, at least this way it's all written down while it's still fresh in our minds. Even with a travel journal, things can be forgotten.

 

[amazingact21]

On the Road Again

This will probably be the shortest update of the whole report, because, frankly-traveling is BORING. I was going to skip over this part, but something Disney-related happened pre-Orlando and I couldn't just fail to mention a Disney moment, now could I?


Alex and I woke up at a decent hour on May 2nd. We had all our bags by the front door, and all we needed to do was eat some breakfast and get the dog ready to go.

Easy.

Alex began dragging our suitcases to the car while I washed the breakfast dishes.

Also easy.

As I was putting the last bowl on the drying rack, I heard Alex come back inside and go, "We have to make a quick pit stop."

Not so easy.

Clearly, I was curious as to what we'd failed to do before departure day.

So, I asked: "What'd we fail to do before our departure day?"


Okay, maybe I didn't say those exact words. Maybe there was a tad bit more frustration in my question. And maybe I looked a teensy bit irritated, but that's not important.

It turned out that Alex needed to turn something into an office on base before we skipped town.

Not that big a deal in the end.

We drove onto the base-speeding along at a whopping 35 miles per hour.

Whoo hoo!

Making great time...

We passed brown building after brown building until we came to the brown building Alex needed.
He went inside, dropped off his gear, and then we were headed to one last stop before we hit the interstate.

A Starbucks!

Hallelujah!




Before you start calling me some coffee-addicted nut (hmm, maybe I should say a Starbucks-addicted nut, because I can't exactly claim not to be a coffee-nut) let me preface this with a short explanation.
Starbucks is a special treat for me. I used to go to the shop 2-3 times a week when I was in college, but now that I've gotten married and have begun exercising, I have drastically cut back my Frapp intake.

The last time I bought one of their drinks was in February, so I figured the perfect way to begin a long carride through Florida was to treat myself.


Why, hello, Grande Peppermint Mocha Frapp with 2%....how I've missed you so!

It felt like I was cheating on my plain, safe, predictable at-home coffee with this delicious, sweet, unhealthy dessert. But I'd feel guilty later. For now, I was basking in the glory of giving myself a little gift.

I think it tasted even better because of that.
Or it might have been just because I hadn't had any coffee up to that point all morning, and it was nearing 9:30-well past the point of "put coffee in Alicia."



That just doesn't sound as nice, though, so I'm going with the former.



With the drinks in their holders and the dog curled in my lap, Alex and I set out on I-10 towards I-75 and eventually the Florida Turnpike.





This was the best Alex could get of me and the dog.

Then again, he was driving 70 miles an hour in 3 lanes of traffic, so I guess I can cut him a little slack...


We made it to his parent's house around 6 o'clock. Ate dinner with his family, slept in a little bit, went to lunch in a shopping village and enjoyed the day.

Around 2 o'clock that Thursday, there was a launch scheduled, so we all drove about 30 minutes to Port Canaveral to stand near the water and watch the satellite's departure.
Unfortunately, the launch was scrubbed. That's nothing unusual. Having lived in that area for 4 years, I witnessed more reschedules than actual initiations.


The whole thing was totally worth the drive over, because as we were pulling into the port a certain ship was docked.




"Which one is it?"

"The Magic?"

"No, no, look it has the Aquaduck!" The Aquaduck was beautiful, with its water rushing through the tube and its pathway across the deck and over the side of the ship.

As we got closer, Alex could make out the back of the ship much better and discovered that we were looking at the Disney Dream.

"It's gorgeous."


I stared at the red smokestacks with their signature Disney Cruise Line emblem, watched a lucky family take turn on the slide, and suddenly I became very nostalgic.

"Alex, I miss our honeymoon."

"Huh?"

I was picturing myself back on the Magic, with the wind tangling my hair, the sound of the free ice cream machine whirring behind me, the smell of salt all around me.

"I wish we were back on the cruise."

"I thought you hated our cruise."

"I did...but now I don't. Now I really wanna be back on a Disney cruise and back on Castaway Cay and back in Lumiere's eating Mango Soup."

I really confused my husband.


For months after we returned from our 7 Day Western Caribbean Cruise, I told people how much I didn't care for cruising. The seas were rough, it was insanely crowded, I felt rushed throughout the trip.

But here I was, looking at one of the sister ships, gazing at the porthole windows, knowing exactly what was behind each and every one of them, and I really, really missed being on the ship.

"We should hop on board. I don't even care where it's going."

Alex was still looking at me like I was nuts.


However, he knew I was a tad bit crazy when he married me, so he just went with my new-found love of cruises and let me have my moment.

"We should text Rush and Shannon and tell them we're here and missing our cruise."


Rush and Shannon are two people we met while on our cruise. Shannon's a DISboard member, and we spoke together on the Cruise Thread under our trip's thread. We were both honeymooning at the time, and we all met up on the first day. As it turns out, Alex and Rush hit it off and now they text each other occasionally.

Alex sent a text to them and we reminisced some more about all the fun we had last October. I posted a status on facebook asking if we could go on a quick cruise, to which my mother adamantly said, "NO!"

Man, I forgot that little detail.

Can't leave my mom alone at Disney, unaware of FP policies and the Dining Plan system.



Guess we'll have to save the cruise for another time.


This was a good moment for Alex, though, because he thought he'd have to fight me tooth and nail to get me on another cruise, but really, all he had to do was jot my memory and make me remember all the fun I had on the Magic.



While we drove back to his parent's house (after hearing the launch was cancelled) Alex and I talked about how we need to save up for another cruise and this time go on one of the newer ships.

His sister, who was driving, offhandedly mentioned, "You'll have to try out another company next time."

Alex, deadpan, replied with, "Why?"

"Well, other ships won't be as expensive."

Alex, still serious, answered, "I've been on other ships. I'll stick with Disney."



That right there removed any doubt I had over who was the bigger Disney fan in the family.
I mentally gave myself a gold star for officially converting Alex to Disney fanatic status.


Mission accomplished!


Feeling very good about myself and my Disney-loving abilities, the two of us finished off our stay with a midnight showing of The Avengers.

Which I fell asleep in! Ugh.

I truly felt like I was getting older at that moment.

What happened to the days were I could stay up 24 hours and survive off of soda and chocolate and still fit into my jeans and take an exam on that sugar high?

I'm still in my 20's, how could I lose that ridiculous ability to run on fumes and still have the time of my life? I became worried about Disney. Did I suddenly lose my agility and power to run around the parks on 3 hours of sleep? What happened in 7 months to change me?

I was desperately hoping my plans wouldn't need to be changed due to my poor willpower, but until I got to WDW and saw what I was capable of, there was no point stressing.

Instead, I just went to sleep...


And there, my friends, is where the boring, non-Disney World stuff ends and here begins the official trip.



Up Next: 3 early arrivals, a 2nd chance at a particular eatery, and 1 over-stressed girl.

 

[wakica]

I would be such a coffee person too - if I could. Caffeine gives me migraines Like the whole aura followed by about 4 - 6 hours of the most excruciating pain and nausea imagineable and in order to keep them at bay I have cut out coffee, caffeinated teas, and pop - Yes, feel bad for me Actually I have meds now that dull them REALLY well and completely take away the nausea and I've gotten them down to only a few times/year but I do miss caffeine. I rarely have much energy and I hope people don't take that extra energy for granted bc people like me can't get that energy anywhere I still like fancy drinks though so I've figured out all the non caffeinated specialty tea drinks or other drinks like the yummy frozen hot chocolate type ones. So I still understand the need for a good fancy drink from time to time


sorry to go on and on. LOL.

Now on to something more important. You feel asleep during AVENGERS?!?! but it has Robert Downey Jr in it!!! and he was HILARIOUS!!!! That's such a shame to have fallen asleep in it!!!! did you get to enjoy what you did see of it at least? I LOOOOOVED it. Not only bc of him but bc of the GREAT one liners in it and the fact that each super hero had their own highlight moments each making it SUCH a great super hero movie - and I'm not usually a huge super hero movie person. lol Well, ok the only exception is Iron Man but that's only bc of the awesome actor in it. lol

I'm glad you posted more b/c I was thinking yesterday that I should tease you that I have more on my trip report than you do. LOL

 

[amazingact21]

I would be such a coffee person too - if I could. Caffeine gives me migraines Like the whole aura followed by about 4 - 6 hours of the most excruciating pain and nausea imagineable and in order to keep them at bay I have cut out coffee, caffeinated teas, and pop - Yes, feel bad for me Actually I have meds now that dull them REALLY well and completely take away the nausea and I've gotten them down to only a few times/year but I do miss caffeine. I rarely have much energy and I hope people don't take that extra energy for granted bc people like me can't get that energy anywhere I still like fancy drinks though so I've figured out all the non caffeinated specialty tea drinks or other drinks like the yummy frozen hot chocolate type ones. So I still understand the need for a good fancy drink from time to time


sorry to go on and on. LOL.

Now on to something more important. You feel asleep during AVENGERS?!?! but it has Robert Downey Jr in it!!! and he was HILARIOUS!!!! That's such a shame to have fallen asleep in it!!!! did you get to enjoy what you did see of it at least? I LOOOOOVED it. Not only bc of him but bc of the GREAT one liners in it and the fact that each super hero had their own highlight moments each making it SUCH a great super hero movie - and I'm not usually a huge super hero movie person. lol Well, ok the only exception is Iron Man but that's only bc of the awesome actor in it. lol

I'm glad you posted more b/c I was thinking yesterday that I should tease you that I have more on my trip report than you do. LOL

Wha-! You started your TR??? I can't believe I missed the start...but it's alright now, I've subscribed and am all caught up. Whew!


Mm, not getting caffeine has to be a challenge. I was really good for about a year, and only had 1 cup of coffee a day, and even now, I only drink 2 cups a day and don't have any soda or tea, but still....there's just somes days when you need a caffeine fix! I don't know how you do it.


I didn't sleep through the whole movie, just dozed off a few times. Like, I remember them being in the ship, and the next time I looked at the screen Mark Ruffalo was Hulked out. I was like, "Wait, when did he turn? I missed that!"

I did love it, though, and I'm trying to find time to see it again when I'm fully awake and can enjoy all the jokes again.

I will admit, I enjoy super hero movies a lot, and I agree, Iron Man is great, but I prefer Thor....

 

[teekathepony]

Yayyy for being on the road! The arrival posts are fun too, in their own way, full of anticipation!

 

[amazingact21]

You guys....

I've been presented with a challenge.

No, this has nothing to do with my trip report, and if you don't feel like reading something completely off-topic I won't mind if you just skip this update. But for those of you who don't care, I need a quick piece of advice.

If you're a veteran Disney go-er and you had to take a weekend getaway to Orlando, what's the minimum amount of time you'd stay there? This is with annual passes, a close proximity to Disney, and the knowledge that you'll be going back later in the year.

Just a quick there and back trip to break up the monotony.

And to build onto that question....if you only had a few days to play, would you stay in a value or moderate resort and would you get the Dining Plan?

AND...if you could get free tickets to Seaworld, would you spend one of your few days at that park instead of Disney?



If you haven't figured it out by now, I'm trying to brainstorm ideas. Last night, at dinner, Alex was talking about how much he'd really like a quick trip to Orlando, just a long getaway to get out of town and have some fun. He only got 3 days at Disney on this trip and 5 days with his family laughing and even while he was there he was studying for his rank test that occurred yesterday.


So, right now, I'm trying to see if a long weekend is even possible for us. Would 2 or 3 days even be worth the 7 hour drive down? The military gets free tickets to Seaworld, but do I want to waste precious Disney time at a theme park I've been to 4+ times?

And, most importantly....do I want to brave the summer heat and crowds? May was hot, what will July be like???


Right now these are just ideas and thoughts swirling around in my head. Naturally, at the mention of more Disney a million thoughts popped into my head, and right now I'm still unsure of what I think about a long weekend. I fell in love with this 7 day trip, I don't know if I could just do 2 days....


Okay, I won't dwell on this. Sorry to psych you all out with an update that wasn't an update at all. I promise the next one will be about arriving at Disney.

 

[CandleontheWater]

Yum starbucks! I love me a frappe, but I also try to limit them since they have sooo many calories! It is a wonderful treat to start out a trip though!

I hope you guys are able to get on another cruise soon, they do some great military discounts! We've done other cruises, but never Disney. Someday though!

As for your trip, I'd go for it! Dh and I did a three day trip last Oct, just a quick couples getaway and we really enjoyed it! Also when we were living in Florida weekend trips were the norm for us. You just have to scale back your expectations and concentrate on your favorites. I don't think a Disney fan would ever regret taking a trip to Disney! When we were living in Florida, I used to have to go to central FL for my job. I would always get the work done as fast as possible, and then swing by Disney for a few rides before I went home! Even that was fun!

 

[Elleshoodat]

I feel the same way about cruising as you! DH and I went on a cruise for our honeymoon (not DCL), and at the time we felt as though it was too boring and not for us. Now, though, we look back fondly on sea days spent reading and napping and stuffing ourselves silly.

I say go for the weekend trip! We regularly spend long weekends at WDW (especially during Food & Wine). You have a longer drive than us, so I would suggest staying three or four nights (we typically stay two). And no, I would not do SeaWorld (sorry, Shamu).

 

[Nermel9]

Mmm I love Starbucks, but I don't get it very often either, maybe twice a month, if that!

That's awesome that you got to see one of the Disney cruise ships! I really, really want to do a Disney Cruise next year, but we'll see how that works out!

Huh, I'm not sure I'd do such a quick trip in July! There's no way you'd want to wait until September or October and maybe add a couple of days and do the Food and Wine fest? That's always fun!

(Normally I'd be saying go for it, but this May trip with the HOT weather scared me off from hot months for a while! If you think you'd be ok with it, go for it! I'd skip Sea World, though, save that for a longer trip! )

(I know, I just totally contradicted myself! Basically, I'm saying I probably wouldn't go in July, but if you wouldn't mind the heat and crowds, why not? )

 

[MEK]

Nothing wrong with a quick trip out to the coast to see the Dream!

What? You can't stay up all night and go all day at WDW?

Looking forward to your arrival in the world.

I think 3 nights is the minimum I would do for a trip. And I would definitely go to Seaworld with a free ticket!

 

[wakica]

but still....there's just somes days when you need a caffeine fix! I don't know how you do it.

well, I just don't get much done I'll admit. LOL. Thank goodness DH has energy to spare - he takes on the laundry even though I'm the one at home during the day.

I will admit, I enjoy super hero movies a lot, and I agree, Iron Man is great, but I prefer Thor....

I'm not surprised - your much younger than me. LOL. and Iron Man has some similar features to my DH - dark hair, large head, facial hair. plus he's got that whole rich bad boy thing going for him I have to say Thor aint so bad on the eyes either!!! and that VOICE! WOW!!!!

ok now, on to more important things...

You guys....


I've been presented with a challenge.

1- would you stay in a value or moderate resort and would you get the Dining Plan?


2- AND...if you could get free tickets to Seaworld, would you spend one of your few days at that park instead of Disney?



3- Would 2 or 3 days even be worth the 7 hour drive down?

4- And, most importantly....do I want to brave the summer heat and crowds?

1- I would stay in value. Save the money to stay in a nicer place on a longer trip and I would NOT get a dining plan unless it was thrown in for cheap. I wouldn't want to waste my touring time possibly sitting in restaraunts. I'd eat counter service or if I did really want a table service meal I'd just show up at an off time like a really early supper (we eat early though so that's easy for me to day lol)

2- I would NOT do Sea World. The trip is too short - save the free tickets for a longer trip and just enjoy WDW.

3- We drive 8 hours to visit a friend and sometimes get there Friday and leave Sunday or early Monday morning so I'd definitely say it's worth it. Leave as SOON as you can to utilize your time even if it means driving after the work the night before or getting up SUPER early and driving in the am when it's still dark.

4- I would TOTALLY brave the summer heats and crowds bc it just takes smart touring. Either go before rope drop and get out to rest mid day and back in the evening IF you want to do the fireworks or just do the rope drop til it starts getting really crowded and hot and then leave and enjoy some down time and pool time in the evenings. Since it's short and you were there recently and going back again in the not too far future then pace yourselves and don't bother cramming in the extras.


good luck in your decision