Done Did Disney on a Dime (well...many dimes) LAH LAH's TR *Updated 3/17*

[Holly324]

Your family is BEAUTIFUL!!! Your adoptions brought tears to my eyes..how incredibly special. I have been a lurker on your previous trip reports, so I thought I would comment now! Can't wait to hear all about it!

[LAH LAH]

Originally Posted by luvmyboys

Just read through your PTR. Beautiful family! I can't wait to read about your trip!

Thanks for pushing through my PTR even though I didn't finish it. Happy to have you here!!

Originally Posted by Curiouser&curiouser!

Bring on the trip report! I am ready!

Woot Woot! C&C is here

Originally Posted by luckylady

Same here.

Yay!

Originally Posted by ladybug0506

Can't wait to read about your trip!

Happy to have you here!

Originally Posted by MissPrice

Joining IN -Amanda

Yay!!

Originally Posted by MagicKisses2

Your family is beautiful, what a blessing! I can't wait to hear about your adventures.

Thank you! It was a good trip

Originally Posted by 1stvisit0909

Me too! Subbing

Yay! Welcome to the chaos that is my family!

Originally Posted by Holly324

Your family is BEAUTIFUL!!! Your adoptions brought tears to my eyes..how incredibly special. I have been a lurker on your previous trip reports, so I thought I would comment now! Can't wait to hear all about it!

Thank you! I love lurkers who join!

[LAH LAH]

Traveling to Our Favorite Place

***********DISCLAIMER***********

I am a very detail oriented person, so during this trip I used a neat app on my iPhone to document the main points of each day, the order in which we visited each attraction, and any funny situations that arose. A month ago my phone stopped working on the way to the big city (we live 1.5 hours from the closest real mall and Apple Store). I decided to take it in that day without backing it up. They replaced the phone and I lost all of my extra trip info. Now that I am 2+ months out from the trip, I hope I can do it justice. Maybe as I get trucking through this TR I will magically remember more than just the basics. So...the following TR is how I remember the trip, it's as accurate as I can be without my notes, and with 400+ photos there might just be a reason to stick around!

********END OF DISCLAIMER********

Leaving the boys behind is always hard, but the thought of trying to attend to the needs of everyone while pushing a triple stroller around Disney is insane! We had a wonderful lady come and stay with Easton, Chase, Noah, Tallulah (cat), Charlie (puggle), and Herman (fish) here in our home while we were away. She loves the boys so much, is an EMT, an overachiever, and an overall amazing young lady. If I have to leave them behind, I am leaving them in good, good hands!

Maegan offered to drop us off at the airport so we wouldn't need to park our car and pay the big bucks. I am all about saving a bit of $!! Our van was packed up and ready by 9:00am so we could relax and not rush to make it to our 12:50pm flight to Orlando. We left around 9:30am, and Maegan patiently listened for the 1.5 hour drive as I reminded her of every single detail she already knows about the boys. Routines, medications, habits, sleeping schedules, favorite foods...you name it, I jabbered about it. Hahahaha! Last Disney trip it seemed to be a little easier to leave them behind. I don't know if that was because they were younger, or if they were still technically "foster babies", but this year Easton knew we were leaving for somewhere special and desperately wanted to come. Thankfully he loves Miss Meagan so much, and I think he thought he was getting the better of the two deals.

The time finally came to quickly pull our bags from the back of the van, say goodbye, and leave the boys. Easier said than done. I was so sad I felt sick. I wasn't expecting this. I had been pretty excited for a break with just the biggers, but leaving the littles was proving to be problematic. As we walked away and watched the van pull out, I had to reassure myself that the boys would be fine, actually super fine, as Maegan intended to take them blueberry picking, to a local fair, a great family oriented play place with their Aunt and Uncle, and an interactive agriculture center. They were indeed in good loving hands!

I pulled myself together and we headed off to the airline check-in with Southwest. Never flew with them before, but since we spent less than $100 on 3 round trip tickets they were our choice of transportation! We usually pack light, and stow away our carry-ons above our seats, but today we got to check our luggage for free (all but the one with my computer and camera...I am less than trusting when it comes to valuables)! Security was a breeze and we hurried off to find a place to eat. I'd been preparing myself for this moment ever since I knew we wouldn't have free dining. Our last 3 trips have been free dining and I wasn't excited to be paying out of pocket for all of our meals. I know I would've paid for this meal even if we had gotten FD, but it was the beginning of many, many, many meals and I wanted to work hard on not making Michael and Elsa feel poorly every time I handed over money for our meals. It didn't work. Hahahahaha! We paid $30+ for a meal that was just ok. I knew I was going to have to work on this, considering I had 9 days to make peace with this.

I was finally starting to get over the fact that we had just abandoned the boys (dramatic, I know) and now my "vacation" camera was producing blurry shots. Ugghhh. It didn't matter what kind of setting we put it on, the pictures were lousy. The camera is my right hand man on these trips. I love documenting everything I can, and this was unacceptable. I brought my Sony A550 DSLR on this trip, but only because Michael was taking a photography class in the morning at EPCOT, and he begged me to bring it so he could use it. I don't carry it around on trips because I can't handle the weight around my neck. Within an hour or so my back will keep me from doing anything. (2 previous back surgeries, for those just joining us). I was super frustrated, but we finished our meal and headed out to find our gate. Camera or not, this group is heading to DISNEY!

At the gate, while waiting for our flight, we all fiddled with the camera, and no one was able to produce anything that wasn't blurry. Oh well, we would figure it out later, because now it was time to board the plane!

We were a little disappointed that Southwest doesn't have personal TV's, but we sucked it up and pulled out our electronics. We are a bit of a gadget family:

The flight was uneventful, and before we knew it, we were landing in Baltimore!

(My Trip Nails)

UP NEXT: Our 1st Layover

[Jennifer48]

I can't imagine how difficult it was for you to leave the littles behind but it definitely sounds like they were in good hands!

I hope you got the camera situation straightened out!

[Holly324]

Hope the camera gets better soon! By the way, LOVE the polka dot finger nails!

[LAH LAH]

Originally Posted by Jennifer48

I can't imagine how difficult it was for you to leave the littles behind but it definitely sounds like they were in good hands!

I hope you got the camera situation straightened out!

I missed them something fierce! The whole trip I said "I can never do this again, I won't leave them again, no way, no how!" 2 months back in the swing of things and I could see how a vacation could be beneficial. hahahahaha

Originally Posted by Holly324

Hope the camera gets better soon! By the way, LOVE the polka dot finger nails!

I forgot all about doing them. See what happens when you wait this long to do a trip report?

[LAH LAH]

My Trip Nails

Last trip I had intended to fancy up Elsa's and my nails, but ended up with a serious migraine before we left and it was easily forgotten. Well, this year I was feeling 100% so I knocked them out the day before we left. They were a hit wherever we went! The nails only lasted 2 days, but the piggies stayed strong!

UP NEXT: Our 1st Layover

[partyof2]

Yipee you've started!

[littlezar]

Originally Posted by LAH LAH

We have been wicked busy! Elsa started soccer preseason the day we got back from Disney. She actually missed the 1st morning session while we were flying home. She walked in the door from the airport, dressed and went to try-outs. She made the JV a year early and has also dressed for all the Varsity games. She has played in 4 of them.

Congrats Elsa!! High School soccer is in the spring here. I think my 15 yr old is planning to tryout this year. He's currently playing on an advanced team and I am so not looking forward to that 8AM game tomorrow morning! (Because of the chilliness, not the time! LOL!)

Originally Posted by LAH LAH

Traveling to Our Favorite Place

***********DISCLAIMER***********

I am a very detail oriented person, so during this trip I used a neat app on my iPhone to document the main points of each day, the order in which we visited each attraction, and any funny situations that arose. A month ago my phone stopped working on the way to the big city (we live 1.5 hours from the closest real mall and Apple Store). I decided to take it in that day without backing it up. They replaced the phone and I lost all of my extra trip info. Now that I am 2+ months out from the trip, I hope I can do it justice. Maybe as I get trucking through this TR I will magically remember more than just the basics. So...the following TR is how I remember the trip, it's as accurate as I can be without my notes, and with 400+ photos there might just be a reason to stick around!

********END OF DISCLAIMER********

Leaving the boys behind is always hard, but the thought of trying to attend to the needs of everyone while pushing a triple stroller around Disney is insane! We had a wonderful lady come and stay with Easton, Chase, Noah, Tallulah (cat), Charlie (puggle), and Herman (fish) here in our home while we were away. She loves the boys so much, is an EMT, an overachiever, and an overall amazing young lady. If I have to leave them behind, I am leaving them in good, good hands!

Maegan offered to drop us off at the airport so we wouldn't need to park our car and pay the big bucks. I am all about saving a bit of $!! Our van was packed up and ready by 9:30am so we could relax and not rush to make it to our 12:50pm flight to Orlando. We left around 10am, and Maegan patiently listened for the 1.5 hour drive as I reminded her of every single detail she already knows about the boys. Routines, medications, habits, sleeping schedules, favorite foods...you name it, I jabbered about it. Hahahaha! Last Disney trip it seemed to be a little easier to leave them behind. I don't know if that was because they were younger, or if they were still technically "foster babies", but this year Easton knew we were leaving for somewhere special and desperately wanted to come. Thankfully he loves Miss Meagan so much, and I think he thought he was getting the better of the two deals.

The time finally came to quickly pull our bags from the back of the van, say goodbye, and leave the boys. Easier said than done. I was so sad I felt sick. I wasn't expecting this. I had been pretty excited for a break with just the biggers, but leaving the littles was proving to be problematic. As we walked away and watched the van pull out, I had to reassure myself that the boys would be fine, actually super fine, as Maegan intended to take them blueberry picking, to a local fair, a great family oriented play place with their Aunt and Uncle, and an interactive agriculture center. They were indeed in good loving hands!

I pulled myself together and we headed off to the airline check-in with Southwest. Never flew with them before, but since we spent less than $100 on 3 round trip tickets they were our choice of transportation! We usually pack light, and stow away our carry-ons above our seats, but today we got to check our luggage for free (all but the one with my computer and camera...I am less than trusting when it comes to valuables)! Security was a breeze and we hurried off to find a place to eat. I'd been preparing myself for this moment ever since I knew we wouldn't have free dining this trip. Our last trip 3 trips have been free dining and I wasn't excited to be paying out of pocket for all of our meals. I know I would've paid for this meal even if we had gotten FD, but it was the beginning of many, many, many meals and I wanted to work hard and not make Michael and Elsa feel poorly every time I handed over the money for our meals. It didn't work. Hahahahaha! We paid $30+ for a meal that was just ok. I knew I was going to have to work on this, considering I had 9 days to make peace with this.

I was finally starting to get over the fact that we had just abandoned the boys (dramatic, I know) and now my "vacation" camera was producing blurry shots. Ugghhh. It didn't matter what kind of setting we put it on, the pictures were lousy. The camera is my right hand man on these trips. I love documenting everything I can, and this was unacceptable. I had brought my Sony A550 DSLR on this trip, but only because Michael was taking a photography class in the morning at EPCOT, and he begged me to bring it so he could use it. I don't carry it around on trips because I can't handle the weight around my neck. Within an hour or so my back will keep me from doing anything. (2 previous back surgeries, for those just joining us). I was super frustrated, but we finished our meal and headed out to find our gate. Camera or not, this group is heading to DISNEY!

At the gate, while waiting for our flight, we all fiddled with the camera, and no one was able to produce anything that wasn't blurry. Oh well, we would figure it out later, because now it was time to board the plane!

We were a little disappointed that Southwest doesn't have personal TV's, but we sucked it up and pulled out our electronics. We are a bit of a gadget family:

The flight was uneventful, and before we knew it, we were landing in Baltimore!

(My Trip Nails)

UP NEXT: Our 1st Layover

Sounds like the little boys had lots of fun stuff planned! Sorry about the camera issues. I had my camera but realized at about 7 hours into the drive that I left the charger on my desk. We ended up stopping at a Costco before heading to the rental house and I bought a new camera.

Cute pics ~ especially Michael's pic with the soda cup. I have a similar pic of my 15 & 17 yr olds! And, of course, I'm partial to the salute the troops pic!

Originally Posted by LAH LAH

My Trip Nails

Last trip I had intended to fancy up Elsa's and my nails, but ended up with a serious migraine before we left and it was easily forgotten. Well, this year I was feeling 100% so I knocked them out the day before we left. They were a hit wherever we went! The nails only lasted 2 days, but the piggies stayed strong!

Cute nails!!

[LAH LAH]

Originally Posted by partyof2

Yipee you've started!

Better late than never, I guess. Hahahahaha

Originally Posted by littlezar

Congrats Elsa!! High School soccer is in the spring here. I think my 15 yr old is planning to tryout this year. He's currently playing on an advanced team and I am so not looking forward to that 8AM game tomorrow morning! (Because of the chilliness, not the time! LOL!)

Sounds like the little boys had lots of fun stuff planned! Sorry about the camera issues. I had my camera but realized at about 7 hours into the drive that I left the charger on my desk. We ended up stopping at a Costco before heading to the rental house and I bought a new camera.

Cute pics ~ especially Michael's pic with the soda cup. I have a similar pic of my 15 & 17 yr olds! And, of course, I'm partial to the salute the troops pic!

Cute nails!!

The boys had a total blast without us, Maegan is the best!

[alwayspooh]

I know that must have been so tough for you to leave the babies but at least they had some fun stuff planned to do. I know this didn't make up the fact that you were already missing them. I hope things got better for you once you were in the air and knew once you landed you would soon be at Disney!

I luv your pedi/mani!

Can't wait to hear about the next installment.

[LAH LAH]

Our 1st Layover

We've never had a layover before, and I was a little nervous we might miss our connecting flight, or I might lose our boarding passes, or something that could cause us to never ever get to see Mickey Mouse again (more dramatics, I know). We landed with plenty of time to find our gate, I had our boarding passes securely tucked away in my bag, and no one can keep us from Mickey Mouse! I relaxed a bit and decided to take some pictures of the kids in this new (to us) airport. I was hoping that being in a new state would magically fix the camera.

I was wrong. It was just as blurry as ever On our way to our new gate, I pulled the kids into an electronics store and I found a nice looking camera that the guy behind the register allowed me to test out before making a decision. I took two pictures, one with the flash and one without:

They weren't blurry!!! I swallowed my "second-hand, only-bargain-shopping, search-for-the-best-deal" pride, and paid $200 for this camera. I thought it was a decent price considering I was purchasing electronics in an airport. We made it to our gate and settled in to wait for our next flight. Michael and Elsa went off to find a bathroom and I worked on learning the new camera. It was very straight forward and I got bored, so I did something I knew I shouldn't. I pulled out my computer, took advantage of the free wi-fi, and searched amazon for prices on the camera I just bought. A.knife.to.the.heart. This was last years model that had just been reduced from $300+ to $110. Ughhhh. I hate wasting money!!! But we must soldier on, and be thankful we have a fully functioning camera to document our trip with!

Michael and Elsa came back and had to listen to me gripe about the money spent on the camera. They were gracious, but ended up telling me to get over it, so I tried.

Our wait time was over and we got to board again! I thought it would be nice to get another pic of them touching the outside of the plane while we were boarding, but the line started moving fast. I rushed the kids forward, and as I went to take the picture my carry-on tipped over and fell on the foot of the man behind us. Michael watched the whole thing and his face makes me laugh so hard!

Our final flight was uneventful and we were able to relax and enjoy the ride!

I don't think it will matter how many times I go to WDW, the excitement of landing in Orlando NEVER gets old. I want to scream and shout and make people move so we can run to Magical Express! We try to contain ourselves, but our excitement still seeps out!

We rushed to the "fake monorail" and then hopped on Magical Express in record time! We were one of the first on the bus so we had to wait a bit before we left, but that was ok! It gave Elsa and I a chance to eat the rest of her lunch that she took on 2 plane rides:

Pulling into POP just seems to amp up our excitement! I was really hoping for a room in the 1960s, and had even called a few days before to request one, but all the planning didn't matter as they had us WAAAAAYYYY over in the 1990s. Not the end of the world, of course, but a disappointment when you have two kiddos hoping to be a hop, skip, and a jump away from the Hippy Dippy Pool. We thought it might not be that bad so we checked out our new room. It's a bit of a hike, to say the least.

Michael and I needed to get on a bus and go to EPCOT to pick up our YES ticket package, as we had an early, early class in the morning. Elsa headed off to the pool while we were gone, and as soon as we returned from getting our park tickets, we ordered a pizza and while we waited for our number to be called, we inquired at the concierge desk to see if we might be able to move rooms. It amazes me how helpful they are. They didn't have a room for that night, but they said we could leave our suitcases by the door in the morning when we left for the parks, and they would move us to the 60's tomorrow! We were pretty excited!

We ate our yummy pizza, watched the Olympics Prime Time and got a great nights sleep to be prepared for our day at EPCOT early in the morning!



UP NEXT: EPCOT and the YES Program

[LAH LAH]

Originally Posted by alwayspooh

I know that must have been so tough for you to leave the babies but at least they had some fun stuff planned to do. I know this didn't make up the fact that you were already missing them. I hope things got better for you once you were in the air and knew once you landed you would soon be at Disney!

I luv your pedi/mani!

Can't wait to hear about the next installment.

Oh boy, it was hard! Harder than I thought it would be. Thankfully they were in great capable hands, but still hard!

Thanks about the nails

[TriniandBre]

I'm all caught up and wanted to say I'm here for the ride I can't wait to read more of your TR and find out the locations you ate and the prices that were paid. I'm all for a Disney trip on a dime lol. Your children are beautiful, my girls and I love your nails and no matter how many times we land in Orlando we get excited like it's the first time.

[littlezar]

Originally Posted by LAH LAH

I was hoping that being in a new state would magically fix the camera.

I was wrong.

LOL!! Love the big Ladies Room icon...wonder how many people still go into the wrong one!

They weren't blurry!!! I swallowed my "second-hand, only-bargain-shopping, search-for-the-best-deal" pride, and paid $200 for this camera. I thought it was a decent price considering I was purchasing electronics in an airport. We made it to our gate and settled in to wait for our next flight. Michael and Elsa went off to find a bathroom and I worked on learning the new camera. It was very straight forward and I got bored, so I did something I knew I shouldn't. I pulled out my computer, took advantage of the free wi-fi, and searched amazon for prices on the camera I just bought. A.knife.to.the.heart. This was last years model that had just been reduced from $300+ to $110. Ughhhh. I hate wasting money!!! But we must soldier on, and be thankful we have a fully functioning camera to document our trip with!

Michael and Elsa came back and had to listen to me gripe about the money spent on the camera. They were gracious, but ended up telling me to get over it, so I tried.

UGH! That's painful! At least it was worth the $200 to have a camera that takes good pics!


Our wait time was over and we got to board again! I thought it would be nice to get another pic of them touching the outside of the plane while we were boarding, but the line started moving fast. I rushed the kids forward, and as I went to take the picture my carry-on tipped over and fell on the foot of the man behind us. Michael watched the whole thing and his face makes me laugh so hard!

Too funny!! Elsa is ever the actress just smiling away and going on with the show (or pic in this case!) and Michael looks like he can't believe that just happened!

I don't think it will matter how many times I go to WDW, the excitement of landing in Orlando NEVER gets old. I want to scream and shout and make people move so we can run to Magical Express! We try to contain ourselves, but our excitement still seeps out!

Yay!

Pulling into POP just seems to amp up our excitement! I was really hoping for a room in the 1960s, and had even called a few days before to request one, but all the planning didn't matter as they had us WAAAAAYYYY over in the 1990s. Not the end of the world, of course, but a disappointment when you have two kiddos hoping to be a hop, skip, and a jump away from the Hippy Dippy Pool. We thought it might not be that bad so we checked out our new room. It's a bit of a hike, to say the least.

Michael and I needed to get on a bus and go to EPCOT to pick up our YES ticket package, as we had an early, early class in the morning. Elsa headed off to the pool while we were gone, and as soon as we returned from getting our park tickets, we ordered a pizza and while we waited for our number to be called, we inquired at the concierge desk to see if we might be able to move rooms. It amazes me how helpful they are. They didn't have a room for that night, but they said we could leave our suitcases by the door in the morning when we left for the parks, and they would move us to the 60's tomorrow! We were pretty excited!

Awesome!!

We ate our yummy pizza, watched the Olympics Prime Time and got a great nights sleep to be prepared for our day at EPCOT early in the morning!

UP NEXT: EPCOT and the YES Program

Sounds like the trip is off to a fantastic start even though you had to replace the camera!