A Pirate Adventure - Fall Break, Birthdays & MNSSHP - Chg in Plans!

[RachVH]

Whoo hoo! We survived the heat this weekend...106 on Sat & Sun. Took DS to see Brave and while he got a little scared of the bears he made it through while sitting in my lap for about half the movie.

Made a really cute banner this weekend...or most of one. I found a Mickey Head with a red bandana (w black polkadots) on one of the DISigners photobucket pages. Added a letter to each one spelling out Happy Birthday DS (with his name obviously) and then uploaded to Kinkos to color Laser Print on cardstock. Picked it up the next morning and cut out all the mickeys. I'm going to hook them together using black brads in the ears. Should be really cute.

Plan is to make a welcome banner using Mickey Heads the same way. May change up the font...and also just use a solid color (likely black). Since most everyone arrives on different days I can probably use this for most of the families too. The stuff on the DISign threads is way too addicting! I have spent hours look at all the great stuff people do.

I am planning to leave a stuffed character out each day on DS's bed with a note and a small gift. I have each of the Fab 6 so one for each day and then I'll have to figure something out for the last day. I have some ideas...like the a special MNSSHP tshirt the day we are going to the first party (where we won't dress up) and maybe some new water shoes for the water park day. Still have a few to work out though.

Sounds like you an I had similar weekends...went to see Brave and worked on Disney crafts! My craft of the weekend was making my "bride" and "groom" t-shirts for my DH and me, I pulled Mickey ears with a tiara and tophat respectively from RustManFan's photobucket pages. They came out so cute! Now all I have to do is get pictures posted on my TR!

Also, I don't think you are going overboard. I mean, look at it this way, you only have so many birthdays to do stuff like that for your DS before he gets "too cool for school" and doesn't appreciate it as much. Plus, if you enjoy doing it, who cares? (Says the person who has already committed to way to many hand made gifts this year)

 

[drlaurafsu]

Also, I don't think you are going overboard. I mean, look at it this way, you only have so many birthdays to do stuff like that for your DS before he gets "too cool for school" and doesn't appreciate it as much. Plus, if you enjoy doing it, who cares? (Says the person who has already committed to way to many hand made gifts this year)

Rachael - this is my thought too. Eventually (and probably way before I want it to happen) he's just going to want to hang with a few friends and for us to give him money or gift cards so he can pick out his own stuff.

So I am trying to take advantage while I can. We did a low key birthday last year...soccer party at our neighborhood field. And that was really his first party with friends. I'm guessing this will be the last big Disney trip where he still believes. I think he will when we go on the cruise too...but it will probably be a couple of years before another big WDW trip.

I finished the Happy Birthday banner...looks so cute! Once I get a bunch of stuff made I will take pictures and post them. But I am very pleased with how the crafts are coming out.

Can't decide if I want to do solid Mickey heads (and what color) or do the different character Mickey Heads as a welcome sign. Thoughts? I'm thinking something like these...

This is from Milliepie...but several DISigners have similar. I would put the letters W-E-L-C-O-M-E one per Mickey Head.

 

[drlaurafsu]

My poor neglected trip report...

I am remiss in my PTR duties lately. It has been so crazy at work this last week or so I have barely had time to think much less think about Disney. Thank goodness for the DIS app on my Ipad so I can keep up with the threads I am subscribed to.

I really need to get back to planning. I almost bought DS some watershoes for the waterpark day (formerly known as LegoLand day) this weekend. I did buy DS a couple extra pair of shorts this weekend as I am afraid he won't make it to Oct in size 5. I think that's about as close as I have gotten to doing something for our trip.

I also made DS pick a Disney movie he hasn't seen yet from our collection to watch this past weekend. He watched Monsters Inc. My goal is to try and make sure he knows more of the characters on our trip. He watched Lilo and Stitch 2 when it was on TV a couple of weeks ago (still need to watch the original).

DS passed his swim test at our gym...which means he can go down the big slides at the pool. Guess that means I have no real excuse not to take him to the waterpark. It is cheaper and we don't have to drive far...so I guess its not a bad thing.

Hoping that work will slow down some in the next few days and I can get back to planning! DH is going to be working all weekend so DS and I will be spending time at the pool and hopefully will be able to spend some time planning our trip! And we will definitely do another "new" Disney movie.

 

[RachVH]

Polycraftual...thats hilarious!

Love that your DH gets you that way...mine just thinks I'm nuts. Atleast until he sees the final project.

Goal for this weekend is to get in some Disney organization time. The coloring books came in and are adorable!! I them. Might try to design the bands to go around them and work on some autograph card designs.

I think I am going to do square so I can make a small book of autographs and photos for DS. I know he will use his old photo book for getting autographs but I also know at some point he won't want to get autographs any more. Since this will likely be our last long trip for a while with opportunity to meet most of the characters...I think it will be a good one for him to have a full set of photos and autographs.

I love the idea of the photo autograph book! I got some of my crafts done and the pictures posted but I feel like I have so much left to do. Unfortunately the DH and I have decided to make this weekend's goal getting all of our wedding thank you notes finished and mailed out, which is enough work for one weekend!

 

[drlaurafsu]

I love the idea of the photo autograph book! I got some of my crafts done and the pictures posted but I feel like I have so much left to do. Unfortunately the DH and I have decided to make this weekend's goal getting all of our wedding thank you notes finished and mailed out, which is enough work for one weekend!

Get them done and you will feel better. Nothing worse than having them hang over your head while you are trying to do other stuff. Once they are done you will be free to enjoy the planning & crafting fun!

I ordered some stuff from amazon this week. A new flash card for my as of yet, unpurchased camera. Some pirate eyepatches. A glow in the dark compass for DS's treasure box - as the birthday boy he gets a slightly bigger box and a few extra treats. He's been asking for a compass so when I saw this one I knew it would be perfect. And some clickable sharpies!! All have been stowed away in the closet full of Disney stuff.

Thinking I am going to try and finish the autograph cards this weekend and do some more work on the planning guides for our friends. I'm debating how much information to put in there about things to do/rides/menus/etc. Right now I have some decent info on the hotel plus some worksheets they can fill out on a couple of the parks (still need to do the ones for MK & HS) plus will have to do a few pages in Sept when more info comes out for F&W plus MNSSHP. I want to make sure to have the character interactions, parades, etc listed and for F&W have the different menus at the kiosks available.

There is a birthday party for one of the kids coming up in a few weeks so I think that will be a great time to get the photos for the Epcot passports.

 

[drlaurafsu]

So while I've been on radio silence now for another week...DH and I have been busy bantering back and forth on the topic of a cruise. This all started when DS began talking about wanting to go on a big ship. So when I mentioned this to DH...he suggested a Disney cruise...all on his own. Of course not to be one to let an opportunity like this pass me by, I got right on doing some research. When looking at the options...many did not appeal to me.

Have zero interest in Mexico. If I'm going back to Alaska I'd go visit my good friend who lives there and has boys about DS's age. Eastern Caribbean was not that interesting. So that leaves one option...the Med! Told DH my findings. He got online and picked the one he wanted. A 12 day Mediterranean cruise next summer!! There are two options...he only was interested in the one that went to Greece.

Our thought was for DS this is a great intro to European travel. It gives him some time doing the typical touristy stuff plus some downtime that is just fun Disney stuff. Not too much time in one place, but also not packing up and moving all the time either. We will probably end up staying a few extra days in Barcelona at the end and hopefully meeting up with one of his classmates and his parents (one of the ones coming on the B-day trip with us) before we come home. Its going to be a long vacation for us and really the only one we take next year. But wow...will it be worth it!

We had pretty much decided we wanted to do it, but getting DH to pull the trigger and put down a deposit was another story. I kept telling him we needed to get on it, but didn't make much headway. Until I called him on our way to swim lessons tonight and he told me he put down the deposit!!

So that is my Disney excitement for the day! Its going to be amazing!!!

 

[Joyciemc]

Congrats on the cruise!! I think it's a great pick- it will be wonderful for your DS to have done some European travel at a young age!

I think you mentioned in on my PTR, but your son has the BEST birthday

Can't believe how quickly October is coming up... I thought it would never get here.

 

[RachVH]

Amazing cruise plans! I'm jealous!

 

[drlaurafsu]

Amazing cruise plans! I'm jealous!

Thanks! We are super excited about the cruise. DH is trying to talk another family from DS's school into coming with us. They did the Baltic last year since the Med wasn't an option...but were really wanting to do the Med. Would be fun if they came with us...their DD is in DS's class and their DS is just a bit older.

Congrats on the cruise!! I think it's a great pick- it will be wonderful for your DS to have done some European travel at a young age!

That's what we were thinking too. It gives him a base without too much disruption. A variety of things to see...not all just museums and churches. And some Disney fun too.

I think you mentioned in on my PTR, but your son has the BEST birthday

Yes! And when I realized its 10/11/12 this year I had to do something special! I have a really cute t-shirt made for him tailored to AK since that's where we will be during the day.

Can't believe how quickly October is coming up... I thought it would never get here.

I know!! Its coming so fast...and summer is going so fast too! School starts back in 2 weeks!! I am busy this morning working on some of my craft projects for the trip...while working on laundry and all the other fun stuff around the house! I have DS's birthday shirt done and a couple of the trick or treat bags finished. Plan is to finish 3 more trick or treat bags today. That gives me 3 of the kids and 2 of the moms bags done.

Also need to get working on the planning guide. I'm easily distracted by the cruise stuff right now since I have no clue about cruising. But this trip is coming so quickly I know I need to get back to it. At least I have purchased a lot of the stuff already. Its more the creative stuff I still need to do. Of course that's the stuff that takes the most time to actually do!

But in addition to my projects for today I have recently purchased DS some new water shoes since his from last year didn't really fit, we just made due for the couple of days this summer that he needed them. But he'll need new ones if we go to BB. Mickey may bring them his first night.

I also upgraded to photopass plus this week. I wanted to go ahead and get the gallery cd and if I have time work on some page spreads for the book that I will do after the trip. Of course I still need to work on some of the other books first but I'll get there...eventually. I just love the idea of having someone else taking pictures too. And when we aren't all together this ensures we get pictures of the whole group. I love that we will be able to get the ride photos and also the character dining photos. With such a large group and a special occasion it is definitely worth it.

 

[drlaurafsu]

At least this time I was able to get some Disney stuff done. I spent a lot of time looking at the different DiSigners photobuckets to see if I could use things they have already put together. I was able to find options for trick or treat bags for all of the Dads except one, so I put a request out for that one. Not sure if anyone will be able to do anything for it or not...but we shall see. If not, I have a backup. But I think some of the talented people on that site can do a better job!

I am still waiting on the requests for name fills...but I did request all of the ones I need. As soon as they are done, I'll go ahead and print those out. I'm hoping to have all of them done this week. I do still need to find 2 shirts...but otherwise I am ready to wrap up that project. I think the best one will be the Peter Pan name fill for DS that I am having done for him to wear on the Pirates and Pals cruise. I think it will be fun to see what kind of reaction he gets from Capt Hook and Mr Smee when they see his Peter Pan shirt. And of course from the "mystery guest" upon our return.

I was also able to work some on my planning guide. I pulled all the Food & Wine menus down off the website and am in the process of incorporating those into the EPCOT guide. I am also working on a summary of info for each park. Still a lot to do on this front but making progress.

Also added to the completed project list are letters to the kids from Mickey telling them he's looking forward to seeing them soon. I downloaded a bunch of other letters about meals, events, etc so I will be working on those for DS and some for his friends too over the next few weeks. I am thinking I may take all of those and have them printed at Kinkos rather than use up my ink.

There is a 5k playdate this weekend so I am hoping that I can get good photos for their EPCOT passports this weekend. And get the requests in soon for those.

DS's new water shoes for when we go to BB are in the box that is going to my parents house in a couple of weeks. I need to try and get a few other items in there along with the Fab6. Each day one of them will bring DS something for the trip.

So I am slowly chipping away at my to do list. Trying not to get overly excited about the cruise next summer...because there is still tons of planning for that one! Taking DS to see the Broadway Across America production of Peter Pan this weekend.

 

[drlaurafsu]

Well...maybe not BIG...but big. We have moved the whole group over to Port Orleans Riverside. With the new military promotion we were able to save $400 each on my parents and our room. And some additional savings for the other two groups booked at our hotel with us. While I was looking forward to POFQ and the smaller location, its hard to pass up the better deal and better pool at the other resort. With our other vacations coming up that plays into it too.

So that's going to mean some rewriting of our travel guide. But I think in the end the savings will be worth it and the kids will be just as happy (maybe more so with the better pool). I'll just have to hike over to get beinets at least one morning...says the person who has a box of mix in her pantry and never makes them!

I'm glad that is settled, even though I'm a little sad about changing resorts. Just nice to know the savings are in place. Now I am just trying to patiently wait for my DiSign request to be fulfilled so I can get going on that project.

I have got to get out my stuff this weekend and get better organized. I know I have a lot done...but I'm sure there is stuff falling through the cracks. And we are only 60 DAYS AWAY!!!

 

[drlaurafsu]

My Dad is now talking about only getting a 4 day pass with the military salute tickets. He can get them with the water park option which would give him 5 park days. Then I got to thinking DH might be interested in this too.

Problem is what to do about the schedule and the ticket I already purchased for DH. One of the issues is Tuesday morning we have an ADR at 8:10am at CP in MK. I really want to have one morning in the park before RD to get the castle pics etc. I am taking DS to MNSSHP the night before (just the 2 of us) and will likely be out late. When I added the second MNSSHP for that day I thought we would just go early, stay until lunch then go back to the hotel for relaxing until his friend arrives.

But with this new wrinkle it becomes a good day for those who don't want to go to the park to skip it. But that ADR is still there. So after reading another post about getting lucky with ADRs I decided to try Wednesday instead of Tuesday for CP. And since one of DS's friends is coming in Tuesday sometime, I added him and his dad to the group. So an ADR for 7 people at CP...and pre RD if possible...60 days out. LOL!

But lo and behold...there it was!! An 8:05 ADR!!! For 7 people! What are the odds? So I snapped that up while we decide what Dad and DH will do ticket wise. If DH uses the 4 day ticket, my mom will likely use his we can exchange it for whatever we end up needing for her.

So yet another change...but its all good. Now about those t-shirts...

 

[lbuzz52]

wow! love that cruise!! what a great experience!

i'll watch for you at the beignets! i have to trek there one morning too,probably on the 14th.

 

[drlaurafsu]

I have been busy making items for the trip...and just fun stuff in general. I ended up ordering a Halloween costume online for the dress up Halloween Party night. DS is going as a pirate (reusing last year's costume) so I am also going as a pirate. But for the first Halloween Party we aren't doing costumes...just t-shirts. So I had seen a cute disign a while back with the princesses as their villains. It didn't have all of them, but that was ok. When I went searching the various threads and photobucket sites I couldn't find a decent sized version. Time to hit up Bing...easy search brought up tons of clips...including the one I was looking for. But even better was a new version that added Tiana and Rapunzel!! And it was a decent sized clip!!

I added a border and Happy Halloween. And printed the transfer. It has lots of purples, which I normally don't wear. So off I went to search for a t-shirt. First Hobby Lobby where I struck out. Then Michaels where I hit the jackpot! A nice med. grape color was perfect...and on sale for only $1.59!! Going to totally rock! Now I need to find a tee for DS.

I've also bought some cardstock to start printing other stuff. I have Safari Licenses and I survived cards printed for a few rides for each kid. I've also been printing invitations to meals and events and even I hear you are coming to Disney letters I'll have my parents mail in a couple of weeks. So gradually getting stuff done.

In an effort to not forget about our other trips, I also found my old book on Rome which has great overlays showing what the ruins around the city might have looked like back in the day. And I found a tour guide for Malta...one of the few destinations not covered in our Med. ports tour book.

I am so beyond ready for a vacation...I don't care which one it is!!

 

[RachVH]

Looks like you are almost ready to go! I can't believe how close we are getting now, the time really seems to be flying by.

That's awesome about the discount at Riverside. I called today to see if I could get a better deal (with the room-only discount they announced today) but since we already have a AAA rate we would only save about $50.00 if we moved to Riverside. We could save a little more by moving to a standard room at one of the other moderates, but I like the location of PO, plus the boat to DtD...

We'll be down there soon!

 

[drlaurafsu]

How sad is it that I can't wait for the Halloween Candy to be out...and start going on sale? One of the things I totally forgot about ordering last week are plastic bags. I wanted to get some that I can make into goodie/treat/snack bags for the kids. They are 6 in wide and gusseted so about 3 in deep and 12 or so in high.

I found a bunch of cute DiSigns for bag toppers...so I am printing those out and will use them to fill up the bags. Some will be for treats the Fab 6 leave for DS...some will go in their treasure chests...and some will just go in the backpack to be pulled out for snacks for the day.

I had to order 1000 bags...so I'll be looking for excuses to use them!!

Any other creative ideas for me to use up 1000 bags?

 

[drlaurafsu]

We are in the home stretch. We leave for FL in 30 days and will be at Disney in 31 days!

I sent an email out to our group today with some additional information. We will be getting together for a Star Wars movie night next weekend so I suspect the trip will be a prime topic of conversation.

My main focus (for the little time I can focus on the trip with work being so crazy) is to get the autograph cards ready. I have a few more to format tonight and can start printing them. Then I have to cut them and put them in order. Can't decide if alphabetical by character or by movie is better.

I'm hoping this weekend I can get my mind a little more focused on what all still needs to be done. I am planning on mailing letters from Mickey this weekend to the kids. Final few weeks are going to be busy ones. Going to be such a fun trip!

 

[drlaurafsu]

Well...another week has come and gone. 25 days and counting down way too fast!

I finished up the pirate treasure chests this weekend! They are so awesome!! There are 2 shirts, a bandana, 2 eye patches and glow stick sword, a coloring book, crayons, candy necklace and ring pops. There is a bag and topper for candy also but I am going to recycle some of the Halloween candy from the first MNSSHP DS and I go to for those.

I also got together 2 sets of snack baggies for the kids. They each have 2 packs of Motts fruit gummies and a Halloween Z bar. I have a couple more sets of snack packs to put together. Probably one with goldfish crackers and a fruit twist and still working on the other one. They look so cool! I got the bag topper disigns mostly from bababear and they rock! Have a bunch of others just for DS that I need to put together for park days too. And the best ones I need to finish putting together are for Smores kits. We will likely try and hit the firepits at POR one night so I want to have smore kits for all. Each one gets a chocolate bar and I found smaller packs of graham crackers with 8 cookies (4 split) and I need to get the marshmallows but waiting until closer to time so they stay fresh.

Thanks to lbuzz I have a new project for this weekend. Making DS a duct tape messenger bag to hold his autograph book and sharpies. Its going to be red...his favorite with a black mickey head on it.

I feel like things are starting to take shape. But I'm also feeling the pressure to get the other stuff done! Then theres the packing...I have my over the door holder about half packed. Have been doing that as I go. It will get folded and packed as is. But I still need a master list.

 

[Alysa]

25 days?!? Lucky duck!
And I'd love to see a photo of the messenger bag when you are done!

 

[RachVH]

Our countdowns are getting so short! I am sure the days are flying for you just like they are for me. And I am sure, like me, you feel like you still have so much left to do!