"Dreamy" 15th Anniversary adult trip (Or...by ourselves?? What will we talk about?)

[MinnieDiva]

Hi! I'm MinnieDiva (kim) and I have a Disney obsession. It's infectious, enough so that I managed to plague my husband (sean) with the same disease. For those spouses out there who long for such a mate, I'm here to let you know that it took me less than 15 years to accomplish this!

I'm here to illustrate that it is possible to plan and execute a fabulous adults-only 15th anniversary celebration! We're less than a week back from the Dream! I feel my tan fading as I write this....

With me, there is usually a backstory to get into my planning obsession, so bear with me as I preface this trip report. As my husband's leave schedule is planned far in advance, no trip is left to the last minute. In fact, it was about a year ago that we began thinking about this potential adults-only venture. After talking to DH about the possibility of doing something on our own, I called my dad and asked if we did do a trip, would he come up here and watch our DD (9). Other than a quick 2-day jaunt to Vegas for a reunion in 2009 (?? I think that is the year, and it was my monster in law who timed a trip out here for that), we've never gone on a vacation just the 2 of us.

So, dad was easy to get on board. Our daughter is to the age now where she's easy-going and helpful. Other than talking his ear off and constantly requesting frozen yogurt, it should be an easy week, right? Between school and swimming, her days are pretty full.

So, now what? What to do very active people do for a vacation? Hm. Um, duh? Disney, right? Glaringly obvious for me, but I needed to sell the husband on it. He's a fan, yes, but you have to make it worth his while...and throw in either alternative trips to other locations throughout the year or build in something for him during the trip in question. The answer became more obvious after our Florida trip last thanksgiving. We spent 4 days on WDW property, then joined our good friends Mindy and Jim for a week at their timeshare. We did the timeshare spiel, and bought into their "teaser" package that either gave us a week back there in the next 18 months or a down payment toward the big Kahuna. Knowing that we were looking at an anniversary trip the following September (last month), it seemed like a good solution. Right?

The other idea I had was to do the Wine and Dine 1/2 marathon, held last year on the last weekend of September for the 1st weekend of the F&W festival. Running, followed by food? And wine? Done! Sold to the highest bidder...or in this case, the husband! Now, I'm more of the runner than Sean is. If he had his druthers, he'd ride a bike. Not that he's not good at running, he just prefers the bike. Me, I'd fall off. I'm not fast, but he runs shorter distances. I figure it'd work out in the end, right?

Ok, in scrolling back thru what I've written, it occurs to me that the word "right" has overpopulated my text. I need to find a new word.

Continuing.

So, in planning Sean's vacation picks for 2012, I'm pretty sure I managed to find the dates for the Wine and Dine in the notes for the Disneyland 1/2 marathon from Sept 2011. Thank goodness for the Disboards to find data!! However, the race was completely changed. As in, the W&D was moved to November and the last weekend of the F&W festival. While that would be a much preferable time to go to FL, our picks were done and in the bag, and changes really weren't feasible at the time we found this out (which was in January, I think). BUT!!!! Another race, the Tower of Terror 10-miler was announced....an inaugural event (does that really even make a difference? probably not...)!!! Woot! Ok, back on board!!!

So where does the cruise come in? I'm getting there, really......but the husband in question just came home and this dialogue will have to continue at another time (tomorrow). In the meantime, if you want some background into my planning bliss, there's a link below to a pre-TR that tells more about my family and about Mindy and Jim, as they'll be in the story again here soon...

 

[OurDogCisco]

Can't wait to hear more about your trip! Sounds like you and your dh had a GREAT time...

 

[mindelmouse]

hmmm....somebody should have gone to work yesterday

 

[MinnieDiva]

Can't wait to hear more about your trip! Sounds like you and your dh had a GREAT time...

We did!!

hmmm....somebody should have gone to work yesterday

If I can't actually speak to the patients, what good am I there? I blame my lack of voice on Jim....

 

[mindelmouse]

We did!!

If I can't actually speak to the patients, what good am I there? I blame my lack of voice on Jim....

Hahahaha

 

[bigbootee]

We did!!



If I can't actually speak to the patients, what good am I there? I blame my lack of voice on Jim....

Sure, blame me. Everyone does

 

[MinnieDiva]

Sure, blame me. Everyone does

How'd you manage to get that tarnish off your halo??

 

[MinnieDiva]

...was the day we could register for the race! Might I mention that it's not cheap ($90, tho this is one of the cheaper races...), and non-refundable? Not to mention that I had to order the pins for us as well! At this point, I'd already made our reservation at the timeshare, and was blissfully planning how to spend a week in the parks without the kiddo.

Until the beginning of March. At which time I'd been surfing on DCL's site , likely looking at my reservation for the Med cruise next summer, when inspiration struck! I wondered if there was a cruise that we could do in conjunction with the race??

So if you haven't gotten the impression yet, let me summarize Sean's personality. He doesn't sit still well, and that may be an understatement. I call myself a type A- personality, because he's worse than I am. We DO NOT do cruises to nowhere, which is what I consider the 3 & 4 day cruises to be (and I still think that having just done one, BTW). BUT!!!! If ever there was a time to do absolutely nothing, wouldn't this be the occasion?

So lo and behold, not only was there a cruise, but there was a 4-night (much preferable to the 3's, IMHO) that left the day after the run!!!! Wow, not sure karmic luck can line the stars up any better than that! So, now to pose the question to DH: "honey, what do you think about doing a cruise where there's going to be nothing to see or do but sit on a beach?" To my utter shock and surprise, , he was all for it!! So off I went to the computer to email our TA to quick, book the cruise before he changes his mind!!!

This required a slight change in our dates, but I hadn't yet booked airfare and it was easy enough (once the 1 year window opened) to move the timeshare reservation to this coming March for a reunion that we'll be going to in Tampa. But, this did require consideration about where to stay on site (yay!). Initially, we booked the Little Mermaid wing of AoA...it would have been open for less than 2 weeks on our arrival. But, it wasn't going to be a host resort....hmmmm. This required some thought.

In the meantime, I was busy doing research on the Port Canaveral experience...our previous 2 cruises had departed from Barcelona and Vancouver. So...how to get there? I inquired of my TA the DCL transfers, and I have to say....what a rip off! $70 some-odd bucks per person? Per way? Are they high? Yeah, that wasn't going to happen. Besides, the ONE non-stop flight between Seattle and Orlando does't leave until 6:30pm. That leaves a LOT of time to hang around the airport. So, a rental car it shall be. But, what to do with it at the port? One way rental versus parking it? What to do? Well, consult the disboards, of course! It was this way that I found park 'n cruise, and I'd use them again. Cheap, convenient, didn't have to wait long at the port for a pick up after the cruise. But I get ahead of my self.

Off to Costco.com to secure a rental reservation. I did this many, many times to check rates, and eventually between the car, the parking lot at the port, and the parking at the hotel (more on that later), it was still just under $200 for the week we were there.

Ok, I've reached a good breaking point, so more later....

 

[MinnieDiva]

...which was an area of the boards I'd never really participated in. It's a very social, supportive area! If you're thinking about plunging into the fitness scene, wander over there and be supported!!

So in listening to the chatter, I realized that my choice of hotel may not be the wisest. Not a "host location", and, from the sounds of things, not really walking distance to one of the resorts that were hosts. I LOVE Epcot area deluxe hotels, but really didn't want to sink that kind of cash into a place I'd barely have time in. BUT...it was food and wine festival time!! I LOVE food and wine! You think I run because I like it? (well, yes, among other reasons, but that's not the point at this particular time..)

The Swan and Dolphin? Well, now! There's an idea. And a nurse discount to boot? Yes, please!! The parking fee is a little irritating, but still waaaaayyyy cheaper that the Boardwalk or Yacht/Beach Clubs. I looked at a map, and decided that the Swan looked a bit closer to the Studios on the chance that we'd have to hoof it before or after the race. The ultimate plan was to walk to the Boardwalk and hop the bus there. (which is what we did and it worked well). Ok. Hotel reservation placed, Starwood account linked. Now what?

Park tickets! The ticket options offered thru the runDisney site were actually pretty good. We ended up with 4-day park tix for less than what I could have gotten them for on base (not military, but DOD pricing).

So now you're probably yelling at your computer..."airfare!!! What about your airfare??". Well, that got to wait until July, as we fly Alaska and have their credit card that gives us an annual companion fare. And, they had just changed the rules that after Aug 1st we could only use it for coach class tickets. What??? Fine! Screw you, I'm booking one last 1st class ticket. That is, once they finally get around to posting the bloody code in my account. It took a few phone calls and me finally handing Sean the phone and telling him to deal with it...I was fresh out of friendly and was probably making things worse. But, it worked out and I had 2 lovely tickets for just Sean and I.

I feel the need to insert here that our daughter was not happy with us. She's been to WDW. She's been on cruises. She knew exactly what she'd be missing. So what did we tell her? 2 things: First of all, we reminded her that mommys and daddys that actually liked each other made life better for their kids. This was a special occasion for us and it would be a gift for us if she'd be gracious enough to support us (or some spiel along those lines). and secondly, that she was a pretty awesome little person and it was neat that she was going to get to spend some special time with her grandpa so he would get to see how neat she is. It pacified her, a bit. Not that we still didn't get grumbles...

So, then came August. But your trip....wasn't in in September? Why yes, yes it was. BUT.... in August we flew back east and started our tourism visiting our friends Mindy and Jim. They were gracious enough to tolerate us for a few days and showed us the sights of the Jersey shore and NYC. We met Mindy and Jim on the DisBoards for our very first cruise. Never met until I picked Mindy out of a crowd in Barcelona (actually saw her daughter who has beautiful red hair). Complete opposites, we and our spouses have been friends ever since. I have a point...I promise.

So, our last day there, Mindy, who is a tax-person-accountant-I-don't-know-what-penny-pincher by nature (she'll tell you this....I swear!!) says: "what if we were to come with you?" Really? THAT WOULD BE AWESOME (that was my inside voice)!!!!! My outside voice said something calmly, so as to not scare her away, along the lines of "wow, how fun would that be??!!"

So, ironically, just as we were leaving for NY, we'd been emailing back and forth with our TA..we were able to take advantage of a military discount! While we were within the paid in full penalty period, it was still worth it to rebook at the lower rate. We were able to go from an 8C to a 5A, pre-pay our tips, and still get some money back. And....we could book up to 3 rooms on that rate!!! So, I mention this to Mindy. And tell her what it would cost her.

So, after some wrangling on her part, her mother was booked to watch her kids and she and Jim were booked and coming with us!! And...it was non-refundable at this point and Mindy couldn't back out! Mwahahahahahahaha! I swear..there was no pressure on our end, just gentle assistance with flight-finding. And hooking her up with our TA.

So now, we were 6 weeks and counting!! Nothing to do but "just keep running, just keep running". More tomorrow....

 

[mindelmouse]

Hmmm...I think you forgot that when our other friends that you met on that very same cruise from Barcelona, came over to my house for a barbeque to see you, we were throwing around going as a joke. I think someone said why don't some of us come with you and you were like.."that would be great" That's what got me thinking.

And yes she described me perfectly...I hate wasting money, spending money and doing anything impulsive....so this was a realy big deal for me and yes I did have buyer's remorse afterwards, but I was basically stuck....you'd understand better if you were married to my DH who spends every penny we make....

 

[Tracerr00]

Great start to your report! So I've been with my fiance for 10 years now and I haven't been able to get him to Disney yet. So I've got 5 years to go until I give up!

I totally plan to do the ToT 10 Miler next year so I'm very excited to hear more about it!

Came from your pre-cruise report, now I'm on your TR and I'm going to check out the WISH section. You're a terrible influence on me.

 

[mindelmouse]

Gee. Someone else subject to Kim's influence. What is the world coming too??? Lmao

 

[MinnieDiva]

Hmmm...I think you forgot that when our other friends that you met on that very same cruise from Barcelona, came over to my house for a barbeque to see you, we were throwing around going as a joke. I think someone said why don't some of us come with you and you were like.."that would be great" That's what got me thinking.

Huh. I don't remember it at the house at all.

Great start to your report! So I've been with my fiance for 10 years now and I haven't been able to get him to Disney yet. So I've got 5 years to go until I give up!

I totally plan to do the ToT 10 Miler next year so I'm very excited to hear more about it!

Came from your pre-cruise report, now I'm on your TR and I'm going to check out the WISH section. You're a terrible influence on me.

Gee. Someone else subject to Kim's influence. What is the world coming too??? Lmao

Mwahahahahahahaha!!!!

 

[MinnieDiva]

So, what details need to be ironed out before the trip? Dad was due to arrive about 4-5 days before, so he'd get the chance to see how Ashleigh's days flowed. Not much to it, but I wrote everything down, from times to how many water bottles we needed to have prepared per day. That kid eats all the time...she burns calories by yawning, I swear! During the week there really isn't much time for her to cause havock, but the weekend could be an issue....

I even remembered the emergency letter with both our ID's and insurance card photocopied to it. What did forget? Forgot to notify the school we were gone. But, dad wandered into the office and left his cell number in case there was an emergency. Seeing as how our back up emergency contact was in WDW, this was a good thing!

Oh!! Which brings me to another part of my trip planning. Our good friends Marcy and Karl and their son Tyeson went to WDW for the 1st time about a week before we headed out there! I got to help her plan! What fun that was!! They ended up staying at AKL, and had a great time! In all this planning, we planned on meeting up at the Mickey's Not so Scary Halloween party on Sep 28th. The fabulous part was that they are retired military and could get the military tickets! Woot! Saved $20 a ticket!! Sean and I had been previously with Ashleigh in 2008, and really enjoyed ourselves. I suggested that they dress up, and that segued into my making eveyone's costumes. I haven't gone into this on this TR, but if you've read my other one, you'll note that I spend a lot of time planning outfits. I'm not a clotheshorse by any means, but my one creative outlet is sewing. So....halloween costumes it was!

Tyeson's favorite character is Perry the Platypus. Ok. So Tyeson got to be Ferb (as I couldn't see his dad wearing purple pants), his dad was Phineas (yellow t-shirt that I adhered orange stripes to), and his mom was Candace. She bought a red sleeveless shirt, I made the white skirt, sewed the 2 together, and made a belt/loops. My DH was Doof (made a white lab coat), and I was Isabella as a fireside girl (I made a red belt, orange beret with red bow, and borrowed a girl scout sash).

Here's the pants and dress:

And DD wearing the beret:

Me made quite the lot:

Sean forgot his olive pants, so he looked a little odd wearing olive shorts with a lab jacket.

My thoughts on the Over crowded! It was a friday night on a race weekend. NEVER again. The lines were long and the 10:30 parade was way crowded.

I have now, of course, gone out of order. sigh. More later....

 

[MinnieDiva]

So back into a timeline of events!

So what does one do the week prior to a trip? Freak out about clothes! I have a thing about not having the same pictures in the same clothes. For example, The nice shirt Sean has that he wore in Rome in 2010 will not even be allowed in his suitcase next summer. First of all, I hate it, second, I feel the need to differentiate between trips. Now, if none of the clothes made it into a picture, I'll consider it. And you're thinking...."but you said you weren't a clothes horse...". And I still stand by that statement. I'd managed to recycle 2010 Med clothing into 2011's Alaska cruise. I make clothes last a long time. Wasn't going to do it 3 years in a row!

I am far more comfortable in REI or Title 9 than any other store around. So, having to branch out is a bit frustrating. And...having left this to the last week, I couldn't drag Sean with me to approve or disapprove my choices. Macy's was a wash. Nordstrom's had a contender, as did White House Black Market. So what to do? Text a pic to both Mindy and Sean to pass judgement!! I ended up with yet another little Black dress....but some of the old ones are dated (like 8-10 years old) and need to hit the giveaway pile. What I do need to get, after wearing them again for the millionth time, is a new pair of dress shoes! The sling backs kept slipping off...irritating the living daylights out of me!

Ok, so Mindy and I had our outfits coordinated for Remy and the optional dress up night.

oh.....I'm going to interrupt myself here...when I took the penalty and changed my original reservation, my TA was able to convince DCL to keep my Remy, Palo, and spa ressies intact. Pretty awesome! Just sayin'!

My usual method of packing was to pile all my stuff on the guest room bed, but as my dad was due to arrive, that was not going to work, so I had piles all over my dresser. Did laundry the day before we left and started piling it into suitcases.

Now here's where I was a total idiot. We used one large and one carryon. I had the ability to pack 2 full sized cases, but didn't. So I was grateful that DCL had a backpack waiting for us as a return gift...However, after I saw all the stuff Jim packed, it was probably a good thing that I was so sparing in my size use. Hi Jim!

The night before: had a fabulous dinner as to leave my dad with leftovers so he wouldn't have to cook for a few days. Luggage packed, paperwork gathered, electronics charging. Kiddo to bed. Here's where the parental guilt kicked in big-time! She was worried that we wouldn't wake her to say goodbye ! Poor kid. We actually got her to sleep (thought she'd be up and down), and the next morning we kissed her goodbye and she stirred a bit but went back to sleep. WAY easier than I thought it was going to be!

We have a 2 hour drive from our house to Seatac. Traffic was a breeze, as was parking, check-in, and security! Time for starbucks! Enjoyed coffee and a snack, then meandered to the gate, to find out that we were nearly the last to board! Alaska does NOT mess around! Backed out a bit early, even! Waiting for us on our seats were the breakfast menus! We had a choice of eggs over hash with hollandaise (sean) or steak and eggs (me). It was decent, but was nice to be able to keep getting more coffee. 4:30 was early! We landed in Orlando about 5:15, and had our luggage pretty quickly. We had a car reserved thru Budget, and after leaving the air-conditioned airport, we walked into the blast of heat that was Orlando. I was still wearing jeans and a sweatshirt...so I apparently got quite a few looks when I announced: " I have GOT to take my shirt off!".

I'd reserved a full-sized car (thinking that that would be big enough for us and Jim's luggage ), and were pleasantly surprised by an upgrade to an SUV (crossover??)...a GMC traverse that was loaded!! It had leather and satellite radio, even! Very comfortable! So we were on our way to the Swan! I was wanting to go to the MK that night, but was reluctant to pay 2 parking fees (as we already had tickets, but no room key...). As fate would have it, it took an exceedingly long time to get from the airport to the hotel. The skies opened up and DUMPED water out of the clouds! Now, we get more than our fair share of rain here, but not like rain in FL. We get a constant drizzle. Fl rain is CRAZY!

So by the time we got our room and were ready to head off, the rain had stopped and we headed to Epcot! I'd suggested sushi in Japan for dinner...a suggestion that was readily agreed to! To our (somewhat) surprise, the food and wine booths were open already! And...it was crowded, as well! So, sushi and noodle dish consumed (YUM!) from Katsura Grill, and off we went...to South America....and a glass of Pinotage!

We also wandered over to the Champagne and dessert booth at the front of World Showcase. We each got a (different) glass of champagne and a dark chocolate mousse with chili and salted caramel, and toasted to our 15th anniversary (which was that day!)! We watched Illuminations before heading back to our room (very tired...), only to find that we couldn't connect to the wi-fi. This was important, as a certain little girl was assuming that her parents were going to facetime her that evening. So, we tried their tech department, who had to elevate the issue. In the meantime, Sean called the front desk, and came to the agreement that if the problem wasn't solved by morning, we'd be moved to another room. Off to bed......and more later......

 

[Tracerr00]

I love the outfits that you made for MNSSHP!! You all look great! I sure wish that I could sew because I just went costume shopping with my DD13 and everything was either way too sexy for a 13 year old or too little kid-ish for her. But great job - I can't wait to see the clothing that you've got lined up for your Med cruise! Someone on our board has already packed their suitcase for our cruise on June 1st as it's cold now and they probably won't pull out the clothing before they're in Barcelona! I couldn't do that because I'd forget what I'd packed and I'd also change my mind and add in more and take things out way too many times.

It looks like your trip got off to a great start! Looking forward to hearing more!

 

[MinnieDiva]

I love the outfits that you made for MNSSHP!! You all look great! I sure wish that I could sew because I just went costume shopping with my DD13 and everything was either way too sexy for a 13 year old or too little kid-ish for her. But great job - I can't wait to see the clothing that you've got lined up for your Med cruise! Someone on our board has already packed their suitcase for our cruise on June 1st as it's cold now and they probably won't pull out the clothing before they're in Barcelona! I couldn't do that because I'd forget what I'd packed and I'd also change my mind and add in more and take things out way too many times.

It looks like your trip got off to a great start! Looking forward to hearing more!

Thanks! And I agree about the appropriateness of clothing for kids. That's part of the reason I sew for my daughter...some of the crap they sell is so awful! I see her classmates come to school (9 year olds!!) in the most ridiculous outfits....but then...you have to look at the parents, right? I can control her and nothing else. Breathe in, breathe out.

And while I am a planner, I cannot imagine already having a bag packed already! I'd be afraid that I'd accidentally find out that I'd, um, "outgrown" something. But...I totally get that if you're packing all your stuff away, you might as well put it in a suitcase! For me though, since I pack "across" suitcases and group outfits, it wouldn't work...Ashleigh would have outgrown her stuff by the time we left!

And, I really need to start pondering anything I'm going to make for myself for next summer. That summery fabric is likely on the clearance rack and if I were smart, I'd be there now scooping up the deals. Sigh. But I'm not....

And I digress, back to the TR...

 

[MinnieDiva]

We woke up fairly early and discover that, of course, the wifi issue was not resolved. I hopped in the shower and let Sean work his magic with the front desk. By the time we'd showered and got everything back into our suitcases, Randy from Bell Services was at our door with new room keys and a luggage cart to take us to our room! We went from the 9th floor and a less than magical view to the 2nd floor and a view of a pretty courtyard. This room was the biggest standard hotel room I'd ever seen, and Randy told us it was the biggest room in the hotel (I'm assuming that suites were not included in this statement). He also told us that Darryl Hannah had stayed in this room and had a bunch of gym equipment moved in there for the duration of her stay! Interesting to ponder that fact...

So, before they moved us to this room, the staff had gone TO the room to check the wifi connectivity. There was a router ON the dresser . Yeah, that worked!! Too early for a FaceTime on the West Coast, so off to the Boardwalk bakery for breakfast. This was not well thought out, but as we were hungry, we decided to brave the ginormous line. I'd read about the fruit parfaits there, and as my breakfast usually revolves around fruit, yogurt, and granola, it seemed like a good option. It was ok. Their idea of fruit was strawberries in syrup. Meh. But...it kept our stomachs from eating our spines until the food and wine kiosks opened. So, breakfast complete, off to future world!

We headed for the Land, as no trip to Epcot is complete without Soarin', right? Well the Fastpass return time wouldn't have been convenient to our F&W touring, so we braved the standby line...which I don't think is something I've ever done! The queue was completely new (and boring) to me. But, it only took about 20 minutes, then we did Living with the Land. I love that ride! I always want to come home and form some sort of fabulous garden. Oh, but the lack of sun, warmth, and my general distaste for gardening always seems to botch that plan up...Still...pretty cool to ride thru!

And I need to comment here...wifi in the parks? Awesome! Did a Facetime with Ashleigh before she went to school! Had to wander looking for the strongest signal, but it got done! I don't think she was really happy seeing all the park stuff, though...

So being as far into future world as we were, we headed to Spaceship Earth. LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this ride! Did a different scene at the end of the ride and got a giggle seeing Sean's head on a goofy-looking character from the future! Headed from here over the the Festival Center. We've done F&W twice before and never made it here! I'd almost reserved one of the seminars, but I really wasn't willing to commit money to a schedule I wasn't sure was going to pan out. But, we wandered over to the Chase Visa area and took advantage of the ability to get a soda, then wandered about the wine area and found a few bottles to take on the cruise with us! They offered to ship these to International Gateway for us (can't go to the resort...alcohol), and assured us it would be there by 2. Sure..okay...Got some free chocolate and headed toward Mexico! First stop: Argentina! Beef skewer and a Malbec, please! YUM!! Australia? Lamb chop (for Sean, not my thing) and a glass of Shiraz-Cabernet (tasty!). Break in Mexico to go on the ride so as to escape some heat....then on toward Germany! Bratwurst in a Pretzel Roll....and a bottle of water!! In looking at the Passport for the event, it looks like this may be all we ate on this particular day. But, we did stop by France.

Yup. Grand Marnier slushies! While all the other items we'd tried were shared, we each got our own drink here. These are un-freakin-believeable!! Almost like an adult melted orange creamsicle! Finished with these, we decided to go see the film in France! We'd never seen it and figure it would be fun! And, other than the very dated clothing and hairstyles, the film was beautiful! I'd book a trip to France in a heartbeat! But, we were now hot and a bit ready to be done with the crazy crowds. So, off to International Gateway to go get our wine. Or not. It was 2, but the wine hadn't even been picked up yet from the festival center. Sigh...ok can we come back tomorrow and get it? Yes? Fabulous! Back to the room, get the car, and head to the race expo!

 

[MinnieDiva]

I'm pretty sure I said this before, but this was my 1st RunDisney event. I've done non-Disney runs before and had a good time, so why not mix a few of my favorite activities? We had the option of picking up our race packets either Friday the 28th or Saturday the 29th, but in listening to the chatter on the Wish boards, I figured that I needed to scope out the merchandise earlier rather than later.

We drove over to the ESPN area....I'd never been here before either! It was really big! I was shocked at how full the parking lot was! We had to cruise up and down a bit to find a parking spot. We walked over to the building the expo was in and upon entering, we saw this:

After heading downstairs, you head to the very back to pick up your stuff. Good for 2 reasons, I figure: control bottlenecks and makes you walk past all the stuff! We got our packets, walked over the thingie on the floor that activates your chip in your bib, then headed to see if I could exchange my shirt. Why? It was HUGE! I ordered mediums for both of us, and it's too big on Sean, let alone me! I'd asked for a small, but they were out. I'm kind of kicking myself that I didn't ask to see what the x-small looked like. At this point, Sean either has 2 shirts or I'm going to try and rip mine apart and re-sew it. At worst, it'll become the background on some sort of mounting for our medals. At best, I'll pull it off and be able to wear it. I did email RunDisney about my displeasure and got a canned "thank you for your feedbacK' sort of reply. The Tink 1/2 is supposed to have a women's cut shirt, thankfully. So we wandered around looking at merchandise, but I was really unimpressed with the prices. IMHO, these weren't any sort of deal, just capitalizing on people in a building with running as an interest. We didn't take the time to attend any of the seminars, though the topics were interesting. I did manage in the "official merchandise" area to find a short-sleeved women's cut technical t-shirt with the ToT logo on it...and it was purple and teal! Love it! Oddly, it was cut very small and I ended up buying a large...not my usual medium. I also got a magnet for my car...a Mickey head 13.1 "in training" logo! It said to apply to a clean surface.... might take a while for the car to get to that status...

We were off back to the hotel. It was going to be time soon to get ready for the Halloween Party. It started raining on our drive back to the Swan, and it refused to let up! We called our friends and changed the 5pm meet time to 6pm. Then, what does a married couple do without kids in attendance do? Go to a bar! We ordered a split bottle to share, but look at the size of this glass!!!!

The rain let up and we were off, calling our friends to let them know were were on our way. Now, my friend Marcy is great, but she runs on Canadian time, which is apparently a little, um, slow... (just kidding...no offense....I tell her this all the time as a joke...). She drives fast but has no concept of being early. So, as they had our tickets, we got to people watch at the Magic Kingdom. Remember what I was saying about level of appropriateness? Yeah. But...this was the most creative thing I saw! So creative I walked over and asked if I could take a picture:

As I already posted comments about the Halloween party, I'll refrain from saying anything further except for this: We were watching the parade, when I hear my husband comment on a costume and get my attention to show me. I look over and he's pointing out to me.....this is great.....a woman dressed up....OMG.....as a character out of SPACESHIP EARTH!!!!! Specifically, she was the woman in the mission control scene in the mini-skirt, boots and Afro!! My husband (and he's gonna kill me for posting this...) is an official DISNEY GEEK!!!. So, yes, 15 years of brainwashing has effectually rendered my husband into Disney Geekdom! I'm so proud!

 

[jedijill]

Great report so far.

Jill in CO