Cruisin into Spring Training-VWL & 4 Nt Dream 3/22-28/13 COMPLETE! 8/11

[podsnel]

Welcome back!
Can't wait to catch up on your trip

Thanks! I am so envious of your Alaska cruise! It's almost here!!

 

[anewmac]

For the record, I believe it is Wednesday Winesday and Thirsty Thursday...

my calendar says its
Moscato or margarita Monday
Tequila Tuesday
Kettle Juan Wednesday lol or wine down Wednesday
Triple Shot Thursday
Fudge Friday (what I drank all week I need some sweets now) lol

Which usually leads to Sloppy Saturday and Sleep it off Sinday lmao

 

[RGirl]

It was really good the second time, too! But my favorite thing is the fries-still.

What a nice surprise VWL was!

Cool! We are booked for Dec 28th on the Fantasy- I just booked an excursion in SXM with Captain Bob- very excited to see St Martin by his boat! ARe you an eastern or western?

I like the town car better going- but coming home, the bus is excellent, because you leave your luggage in the hall (just like everyone else) but you don't touch it again until you get home. That is AWESOME. I like the town car better on the way to the cruise because you don't pick up more PAX at other hotels, and hopefully the car will go faster than the very slow buses, PLUS you can get to the port BEFORE the buses and get on the ship faster. If I were traveling with just 1 other again, though, I would do the bus again- because of cost- and, again, it is nice not to have to deal with the luggage when you get to port. Although it kind of stinks that I was packing so late at night because they pick it up so early.

I am envious that you have all those years for her to enjoy the awesome younger kids' areas!

Nice! I am putting AP on my short list for my next visit- have only been once, but really enjoyed it.

So glad you are back! And I will definitely be checking out the latest from the DISMoms!

Your BoG review totally has me leaning toward the steak JUST FOR THE FRIES! I have a serious issue with mayo (it is actually my one and only major food issue as a grown-up), but I'm hoping that if I keep calling it "aioli" in my head, I can somehow overcome. The magic of the Beast and his castle should help with that. I mean, I have a real heights phobia, but at WDW, I can totally do things like EE without hyperventilating because of the amazing theming and just the joy of Disney, so it should work. Right? Right???

We are doing the Western on the Fantasy. I think the Eastern has better ports , but I'm going to be honest here and admit that we are not actually doing any port except CC. This cruise is 100% about enjoying the ship for us. After 7 days in WDW in August, we are going to want to chill out. I am looking forward to masses of people exiting the ship on port days - our plan is to do the Aquaduck, swim, and play the detective/painting game (what the heck is the name of that? ) on port days. Heck, I'm looking forward to seeing a movie, enjoying a coffee with no one yelling "MOM!!!!!," etc.

Thank you so much for the info on the transfer vs. town car. I have decided to use Disney for exactly the reason you said - it is quite a bit cheaper with just the two of us. So we won't get on the ship as early - we will be there for 7 days (with no port excursions ) and will have plenty of time to enjoy the ship. I am actually going to switch us to late dining as well - more time to enjoy the pools, shows, etc., and we can get back on West Coast time.

Aww - I do feel very blessed to enjoy these trips with my little one. I can't believe she is 6 already (and I really can't believe that I will be within a couple weeks of 44 when we cruise ). I love that she enjoys the clubs so much. Last night I asked her if she would mind if I booked a dinner for me at Palo and Remy. She said, "Mommy, after Disney World, I am going to want some time to just be with my new friends on the ship, so I don't mind." She loved the kids' club SO MUCH on the Wonder - it was one of her best vacation memories of all time.

Really glad you're back and can't wait for more updates!

 

[15isto2]

So long without an update, Timmy has probably grown another foot in height

 

[MEK]

How the HECK did I NOT know you had this TR going on?

I've got a lot of catching up to do and I am already drooling over the sushi on the first page.

Hope to get caught up soon!

 

[englishrose47]

Hi Ellen !!!

 

[podsnel]

Well, that was some break I took, huh?! Sorry about that- life gets in the way sometimes-

Sooo....Timmy and I were headed to the DISmeet....





We looked west, and the sky was NOT looking too good-



Far off in the distance, over land, we could see the craziest lightning- it began at the top of the clouds and went straight down to the ground- bunches of them, one after another, or all at the same time! I wish I had taken a video, but it was so windy that to be honest, we really just wanted to get inside asap!

We arrived fashionably late to our meet which was at the Vista Café- lots of DISers were already chatting it up. I ended up meeting Karen(toniosmom) nearly right away, which I was really happy about- she's a Jersey girl, like me, actually doesn't live too far away! She also is raising a son with a disability, so we have quite a lot in common. PLUS- she was cruising alone with him, so I was SO happy to have a GIRLFRIEND! While we were getting to know each other, we noticed the weather seemed pretty...crappy.



Suddenly, chair cushions and who knows what else went flying by on the deck! And we noticed that the ship- in port- was rocking. Ummm...that's not supposed to happen. Here's a vid-

click to play-


Nice weather for sailaway, huh? We found out later that a tornado had blown through the port, and that they had managed to get everyone safely inside before it blew through- and had battoned down most of the hatches to that end- but I guess a few random cushions and towels were lost in the scuffle (I hate writing this, I have to say, after the horrible tragedy in Oklahoma this past week. Please pray for Oklahoma, every day!).

Anyway, I looked around for a willing CM, found one, and asked everyone to assemble themselves on the stairs for a group pic-



And yea- in case you are wondering, NO, Timmy is NOT that much taller than me, he was a step up!

After the meet, we went back to the cabin for a few to unpack a little and wait for muster. I checked out our CC gift-



And the CD made an announcement NO ONE wanted to hear, but the sun is always shining on the Disney Cruise, lol....

Click to play-


Hey- can't do anything about the weather- it really didn't bother me as much as it could have- lucky me, I was on a Disney Cruise with my youngest son, and so - the sun really IS always shining onboard DCL for us.

Time to muster up, baybeeeee!!!!



We were in Group A so that meant we headed to the balcony of the theatre. It was handled differently than the last Dream cruise- they checked us in as we entered the theatre, and Timmy and I did not have to yell TWO! at the top of our lungs when they called out our cabin number (even though no one else did. Ahhhh...DISmom Cruise memories....). Timmy was looking....tired. Again.



REALLY!! So as soon as we were fully mustered, Tim went to the cabin- to take a nap.

What can I tell ya- growing an inch a day wears a kid out!

UP NEXT (and I promise to come back a lot sooner this time!)- I sail away by myself- AGAIN!!!!!

 

[englishrose47]

It is bringing back sweet memories !!!! The deck the Lifeboat drill!!!

 

[franandaj]

Yay for an update! I hope your weather improves.

 

[MAGICFOR2]

I can't believe you had a tornado in port! Freaky!

 

[podsnel]

my calendar says its
Moscato or margarita Monday
Tequila Tuesday
Kettle Juan Wednesday lol or wine down Wednesday
Triple Shot Thursday
Fudge Friday (what I drank all week I need some sweets now) lol

Which usually leads to Sloppy Saturday and Sleep it off Sinday lmao

You are too funny- after our vacation (DISmoms) I need a week of sleep it off Sundays, thank you!

So glad you are back! And I will definitely be checking out the latest from the DISMoms!

Your BoG review totally has me leaning toward the steak JUST FOR THE FRIES! I have a serious issue with mayo (it is actually my one and only major food issue as a grown-up), but I'm hoping that if I keep calling it "aioli" in my head, I can somehow overcome. The magic of the Beast and his castle should help with that. I mean, I have a real heights phobia, but at WDW, I can totally do things like EE without hyperventilating because of the amazing theming and just the joy of Disney, so it should work. Right? Right???

You can substitute the French fries for any starch- so you can take away the mashed potatoes on something else and request the fries-

We are doing the Western on the Fantasy. I think the Eastern has better ports , but I'm going to be honest here and admit that we are not actually doing any port except CC. This cruise is 100% about enjoying the ship for us. After 7 days in WDW in August, we are going to want to chill out. I am looking forward to masses of people exiting the ship on port days - our plan is to do the Aquaduck, swim, and play the detective/painting game (what the heck is the name of that? ) on port days. Heck, I'm looking forward to seeing a movie, enjoying a coffee with no one yelling "MOM!!!!!," etc.

I like enjoying the ship, too- and I prefer the eastern over the western like you- it's just so pretty on the eastern! On the Western, we did really enjoy Cozumel, though, because they have all-inclusives for the day that are pretty reasonable (We did Nachi Cocum, but I hear Mr Sanchos is also good), just in case you get a little wanderlust in port.

Thank you so much for the info on the transfer vs. town car. I have decided to use Disney for exactly the reason you said - it is quite a bit cheaper with just the two of us. So we won't get on the ship as early - we will be there for 7 days (with no port excursions ) and will have plenty of time to enjoy the ship. I am actually going to switch us to late dining as well - more time to enjoy the pools, shows, etc., and we can get back on West Coast time.

Cool! The really nice thing about the bus to the port is that you are getting on a bus with people who are all going exactly where you are- to the fantasy, and that makes for a REALLY happy vacation start! Just remember to have your luggage ready by 8 am- It was also a very secure feeling, knowing someone else was taking care of getting us and all of our things there- we just had to show up!

Aww - I do feel very blessed to enjoy these trips with my little one. I can't believe she is 6 already (and I really can't believe that I will be within a couple weeks of 44 when we cruise ). I love that she enjoys the clubs so much. Last night I asked her if she would mind if I booked a dinner for me at Palo and Remy. She said, "Mommy, after Disney World, I am going to want some time to just be with my new friends on the ship, so I don't mind." She loved the kids' club SO MUCH on the Wonder - it was one of her best vacation memories of all time.

That's so cute!!!! Wait until she sees the clubs- OMG, they are AMAZING!!!!!! It will be in my next few updates, because when Timmy took a nap, I toured the kids clubs- and was COMPLETELY blown away!

Really glad you're back and can't wait for more updates!

Thanks! I have a little break in baseball, although PTA is in full swing right now, between year end stuff and training my replacement as President (and she's one of my close friends, so the training is a nice thing to look forward to!). So I should be doing more updates.

So long without an update, Timmy has probably grown another foot in height

LMAO!! This really is true!!! The kid has no pants! They are all capris!

And you should be very proud of this post of yours- not only did it crack me up, but it motivated me to write last night.

How the HECK did I NOT know you had this TR going on?

I dunno- do you know there's a DISmoms one, too? We drank Turtle Krawls on our trip because of you and your friends!

I've got a lot of catching up to do and I am already drooling over the sushi on the first page.

Hope to get caught up soon!

I hope you do too! I still need to catch up on yours, too! And FWIW- I REALLY still miss HHI!

 

[podsnel]

Hi Ellen !!!

Mornin Rosie!!

It is bringing back sweet memories !!!! The deck the Lifeboat drill!!!

I wish I had been at your Muster drill with you!!!

Yay for an update! I hope your weather improves.

Hi Alison!! Don't worry, it did- kind of- and really, the way Drea was "Just happy to be here" on the latest DISmoms trip, well, that's how I was on this trip with Tim- "Just happy to be here". Even in the rain-

I can't believe you had a tornado in port! Freaky!

I know! I was shocked when I heard that later!!

 

[rentayenta]

Rain rain go away! That's a big DIS meet- looks like fun.

 

[2xcited2sleep]

Yeesh... first you have me hankering to go to Hawaii and now I'm dreaming about cruising. Such fun catching up on your adventure this morning.

You definitely are a hero mom for planning this trip and love that you have had special one on one trip time with your boys.

Looking forward to those pomme frites and aioli at BoG!

Congrats on finding that great fare... any tips or were you just patroling the website?

The DIS meet looks so fun!

Can't wait for more!!

 

[LITTLEKID58]

Luv Luv your report you are amazing mom...

 

[Flossbolna]

Another report from Ellen!! Just found you and will be following along!

 

[knewton64]

.....met our Page hostess that I SWEAR was as tall as Tim & I am guessing mabey 9 yrs older than him.
(I am 6 foot & she was TALLER than ME!!)


So as we were beginning the tour @ 30-Rock,
I leaned over and whispered into her ear
"What's your secret?"



She replied, "Milk & Wheaties!"



ANYWHO -
YYEEAAAAA!!!! U R back - I feel better now.



P.S. I agree about the rain -- GO AWAY RAIN!!







T.T.F.N.

 

[podsnel]

Rain rain go away! That's a big DIS meet- looks like fun.

DIS meets are always fun- very nice to put faces with the names you have been chatting with for months. We actually had a bunch more people who were not in the pic- and several who did not make it to this because they went to the DVC thing instead.

Yeesh... first you have me hankering to go to Hawaii and now I'm dreaming about cruising. Such fun catching up on your adventure this morning.

It's all good! Do everything!

You definitely are a hero mom for planning this trip and love that you have had special one on one trip time with your boys.

Well, thank you. That's very kind, but it was as much for me as Tim- I love having all these memories (of him napping, LOL) with him!

Looking forward to those pomme frites and aioli at BoG!

You go girl!

Congrats on finding that great fare... any tips or were you just patroling the website?

There is a GREAT app that I have used since then, called On The Fly that will figure it out on one airline- it compares all the fares on your dates from as many airlines as fly. But for this trip, I looked on Orbitz, noticed which airlines they were piecing together, and went from there. Just persistence at night got that first class for us- and luck! United has made flying out of EWR so much more expensive because of their monopoly over it. Although we do have a lot of flights to choose from-

The DIS meet looks so fun!

Can't wait for more!!

Thanks!

Luv Luv your report you are amazing mom...

Awww....thank you SO MUCH!

Another report from Ellen!! Just found you and will be following along!

Hi Magdalene!! Glad you found me! Did you start one yet? Are you going to?

.....met our Page hostess that I SWEAR was as tall as Tim & I am guessing mabey 9 yrs older than him.
(I am 6 foot & she was TALLER than ME!!)


So as we were beginning the tour @ 30-Rock,
I leaned over and whispered into her ear
"What's your secret?"



She replied, "Milk & Wheaties!"

That's very funny! He is not 6 ft yet- but he is close- Pods is just about 6 feet tall, and last night we noticed he only has about 1/2 inch or less on Tim.

ANYWHO -
YYEEAAAAA!!!! U R back - I feel better now.



P.S. I agree about the rain -- GO AWAY RAIN!!

T.T.F.N.

It's raining here today, too- very cold- at least it's keeping all the cicadas quiet and un-flying. (We have 17 year cicadas here this month- it is DISGUSTING!!! http://www.cicadamania.com/

 

[podsnel]

With Timmy taking a nap, I would be attending the indoor sail away party BY MYSELF. Again. Actually, out of 4 DCL cruises, the only sail away when I was NOT by MYSELF was when I was with the DISmoms. My family always has a pool they'd rather swim in, or something else besides dancing around and waving a streamer with Mickey and crew. So I headed to the Atrium, and MAN was it PACKED in there!!!









It was funny, they kept on encouraging everyone to jump around and dance, but if I would have done that, I am pretty sure I would have taken an eye out or broken someone's toe- we were squished in there like sardines! I ended up not staying for the whole thing, because after a while, getting pushed around and stepped on grew old (can you imagine!). And technically, we weren't really sailing away yet anyway. We were still in port.

So I decided to take a tour of the kids clubs- and WOW!!! Was I totally jelly over all the parents who were smart enough to come on DCL when their kids were still little! Those areas are beyond amazing- I was completely smitten!









This room made me miss Sean. He loves Toy Story (still)-















Andy's Room is incredible!

Back in a bit with more pics-

 

[podsnel]

Well, Happy Memorial Day weekend everyone- kick off to summer! Just turned my heat back on- the A/C we were running all week here in NJ just doesn't cut it on a 45 degree day!

Back to the Kiddie tour-



As I was admiring all of these kid areas, I was thinking of how people often say Disney thinks of everything, and how those people are REALLY RIGHT!!







I wanna wash my hands- don't you?



This was in between the two age groups, to be shared for flubber experiments and stuff-



WOW...just...WOW....



Hi Toniosmom!











Seriously...EVERYTHING...



Just then, I felt some movement- we were actually sailing away!! Cont'd next post-