Hurricane Rita vs. The Mouse - Part 4 posted/with Mom's comments

[Dad's Not Funny]

I have been an avid reader of trip reports for the past year and greatly enjoy the interesting stories and Disney tips that have been passed on by other DISers. I have been a lurker only up to this point but my DW has been telling me it was just a matter of time until I joined in. The trip reports I have read are all so entertaining. I am not sure I will measure up to the other posts but I hope I can add something to the fun. My family had an interesting experience with our return to WDW last fall after a long hiatus. A lot of natural disasters presented themselves along the way but stubbornness and pre-paid tickets won the day.

The players in this Gulf Coast saga are:

DW – homeschooling mom of 3, an internet forums junkie about homeschooling, ex- Navy nuke and self admitted A+ type personality with a taste for the better things in life

DS12 – a bright, fairly mature boy with a love of Boy Scouts and anything associated with it; enjoys thrill rides, airplanes, the Monorail and video games; personally responsible for ending our last Disney trip in epic fashion

DS9 – a smaller and faster version of his brother but not quite as daring with new rides; very competitive in everything else he does; wants to be a Navy Seal or a Light Saber Inventor; the personal arbiter of car trip license plate bingo wars and whether jokes Dad makes are funny (as a rule they are deemed NOT funny)

DD6 – The princess; very petite; very talkative to the point you wonder when she takes a breath to keep on going; pink and sparkly are her favorite colors; on a mission to keep up with the brothers

Me – a closet WDW nut who had been dormant for many years. Pleased to have had a relapse of OCDPD in the past year. I had been to WDW several times as a child; went again when in college on spring break and when stationed in Orlando at Naval Nuclear Power School. DW and I have been twice in the past 18 yrs. since then with the last attempt in 1997 so traumatic that it put us off WDW until now (more on that later).

We live in Texas far away from our families on both sides. Thus most of our vacation time for many years has been traveling to see grand parents for grand kid worship sessions. One set lives in SC and the other in WA State so it is no small task to pack up and go see either of them. There has not been much time or energy left for fun family trips after those multi-thousand mile drives and the stress associated with in-law visits. DW usually begins to refer to the kids as “those people” shortly after leaving. It doesn’t get any better being in close, unyielding contact for days with the usual bickering and relentless questioning kids always produce. DW usually is ready for some time in seclusion in a monastery when she gets back home but will settle for some margaritas. We have compensated for this limitation with annual passes to the Six Flags parks and the kids and I have gone many times each year (usually without Mom who considers the break time an E ticket ride in itself). This is where our kids have learned to love doing rides and going to water parks. Each time we went I was reminded of WDW and how much nicer and better themed it is than Six Flags. But it was closer and cheaper so we stayed in the familiar rut.

Last spring the marketing allure of the Happiest Celebration events began to waft over me and make me yearn to go back to WDW with the family again. I believed the family could have a great time there as I had as a child. We still had some days left on tickets from a past trip and they might not be good forever. We needed to use them up and have some fun doing it. But could we…no it wasn’t the money (although the bills do get pretty breath taking and provide a Tower of Terror type shock when viewed in total)…it wasn’t the time as we home school so we can take a week off anytime and just make it up in the summer….IT was…Did the CM’s remember DS12 at WDW and was he on a watch list after his initial visit? It was also wondering if DW and I could survive another round if disaster occurred again.

The disaster trip seemed like just yesterday in some ways. We had gone to WDW on a trip with friends and their kids in 1997. It was done as a surprise for our then 5 yr. old and his 2 yr. old sibling. They were very excited to go and we worked to expose them to Disney characters and stories to understand the park and rides. We were planning to be there for 5 days. On the first day of the trip our friends wanted to go to EPCOT. Their kids were much older and saw MK as less interesting. We went along as we knew there was plenty for our kids to see as well. The day started out pretty well. It wasn’t too hot but the park was crowded with spring break families. The lines were long so after a few hours and a couple of shows, we went into see the Making of Me and its pavilion. It was cooler, pretty kid friendly (or so we thought) and not so crowded. While in there, we saw the Body Wars ride line. Both DW and I loved that ride on past trips and began to talk about it. DS picked up on the conversation and as a BIG BOY said he wanted to ride it. We said no, it was too scary. He showed us he was tall enough to ride it…we said no. He told us he wouldn’t cry…we said no. We left the pavilion to brave the crowds and change the subject. But DS is much like his mother and had become obsessed with the idea and would not let it go. We were young parents then. We didn’t have the experience to handle the situation. After all, he was our DS and such a good and grown up child. If he said he could do it and had been warned of the risk of being scared by Body Wars and still wanted it so bad then who were we to deny him? I am sure most Greek tragedies are based on similar folly.

So we went back to Body Wars. My wife went in line with DS while I stayed outside to entertain our toddler. I was sitting with him playing with some of the video displays when I heard the sound of a child shrieking at the top of its lungs. It was a familiar sound. I gathered up DS9 (then a 2 yr. old) to see if it was his brother. Coming out of the exit of Body Wars was my DW with DS draped around her neck in a death grip. He was bright red and making tears and noise at a record setting volume even for him. She was trying to calm him and reminding him he had promised it would be OK if it was a scary ride but he would have none of it. DS was ALL DONE, ALL DONE, ALL DONE. His younger brother soon began sympathetic whimpering so we had a full scale dual melt down in progress. Both of our boys were capable of long, dramatic and sometimes terrifying crying jags at this age. This one was certainly Olympic class. I am sure that the people around us were either horrified or greatly amused depending on their perspective and past experiences. We just knew it was time to go. Let’s get them out of the park and calmed down. We left a trail of tears and staring strangers all the way out of the park. Tomorrow is another day we agreed. DW would likely also have her hearing back by then as well.

We went out to the van and made our way back to the condo. Along the way we plied the boys with offers of drinks, sweets and free cars when they were 16….anything to stop the screaming. Eventually they calmed down and we put them in the pool to cool off and rehydrate. Our friends came back later and consoled us that we had just gotten off to a bad start. We would certainly not let DS fool us again and the rest of the trip would be fine. They were more experienced parents so we believed them. I think it was just wishful thinking with hindsight. DS had told us he was ALL DONE.

The next day was planned for MGM. The older kids were still setting the agenda. We got our kids up and fed and set out for the park with high hopes. We still had 4 days left on our tickets and plenty of fun ahead of us. We made it to the parking lot with no problems. The tram came along to pick us up. So far so good. “The tram is fun isn’t it boys!” we said and they agreed. They loved trains and busses and wheeled things in general. The tram bounced along making more stops and hope grew within us. It was going to be a good day. Then the tram finished its rounds and came up to the entry gate to drop us off. We gathered the boys and got off. DS5 looked down the sidewalk and saw the ticket booths. He suddenly realized what was going on…we were back at the park! And he was ALL DONE! He threw himself on the concrete and picked up where he had left off at EPCOT. Tears and screams galore flowed on to the pavement. DS2 joined in as if he had ridden Body Wars himself. Our friends decided it was time to move on alone after a few minutes as it was clear we were at the end of the road. We slinked back on to a tram and went to our car. The tram calmed the boys down but we parents were in turmoil. How do we have fun at WDW with these two traumatized kids? Will they be scarred for life? Will a CM confiscate our tickets and ask us not to bring these heathens back again?

We were desperate. We needed a good time for the boys or it was time to saddle up on the trail to TX today. In thinking about our options, we decided to go for broke with the ultimate weapon of kid pleasure. We drove to DTD and went to Lego World. The boys love Legos and it was a success. We stayed there for 4 hours….partly out of seeing them happy and partly out of fear of them melting down when we wanted to leave. It was not the Disney fun DW and I had envisioned at the start but happy was good. The Lego store people began to look at us funny over time but we ignored them. The boys had taken control of the day and there were an infinite number of Lego things they had not built yet. Eventually they got hungry and we made our escape. We went back to the condo and the pool to rethink our plan. It was make or break time for WDW.

We hadn’t been to MK yet. We were sure they would love it if we could just get past the gate screaming thing with them. We talked with DS5 about MK. He didn’t want to go. He just wanted to play Legos all week. We tried all the tricks in the parent book – promises of toys, food and fun if he would give it another chance. No dice. He was ALL DONE! How about the monorail? Would he just like to ride the monorail and look at the MK from outside? His train obsession won out and he agreed to this approach. We waited until mid day when most people were already in the park. No need to put on a show for a big crowd if they melted down again. We rode the loop once and the boys were excited and happy with it. We went around again. It was a new peak in our Disney trip from a fun level. Why did they build the parks at all the boys thought? This was just fine riding the monorail. I had read that you could ride up front if you worked with a CM and we tried that. It was nirvana for the boys and pretty great for us to see them so happy. But then it came to an end after a final loop of the track. We asked if they wanted to go ride in the MK rides. There were trains in there. NO! they said. So we went back to the condo pool.

We decided it was ALL DONE at this point. We went back that night to watch the fireworks from outside the park and then headed home. We still had 4 unused days left on our tickets. As we drove into the night, we said we would be back to use them some day when the boys were older. I am not sure either of us believed it though. We did not talk of family vacations again for many years…

Next installment (If anyone likes this one) - Long term planning and re-programming to try WDW again…

[JoAnnPan]

Dad IS funny!!!

I really enjoyed reading your post ~ you poor things; basically having to ride transportation vehicles w/your kids for most of your trip

Can't wait to hear how the return to WDW worked out for the family ~

[rmom50]

Fun to read your report - yes we want more!

[TLinden16]

Wow. That wasn't a fun trip to Disney World. Yikes. At least you didn't waste the park ticket the second day, and you got to use them on your next trip

Thanks for posting, and Welcome to the DIS!

[Minniespal]

Enjoyed reading your reports ~ Thanx for posting.

[Dad's Not Funny]

I'll put up some more shortly...I do need to admit that since the trip discussed above I have been doing more flying to catch up with the family on trips and less driving along. My pretense is that it gives me more time with them at the destination and they can stay out longer than me if they want to when work pulls me back home. DW likes it better that way too. Her majesty can dictate all the stops and snacks without my input. I like snacks a lot!

[nicolemarie]

You're screen name IS funny - it made me laugh out loud. Your trip report did, too. Thanks for posting - looking forward to more!

[BionicEar]

Subbing.. you've got me hooked!

[Dad's Not Funny]

The unused tickets lay gathering dust for many years. I know this sounds like an impossibility to most DISers but the trauma of the 1997 trip made them less attractive than you might expect. We did have some fun teasing DS from time to time about his EPCOT escapades, mostly when he gave his siblings a hard time about being scared of a ride at Six Flags. But I now had the Disney bug again and needed to find a way to get us all back there to relive the magic.

I knew that I needed to appeal to all the members of my family in different ways in order for my plan to be successful. My background as a submarine sailor led me to believe that a sneak attack would work the best.

I would need to hit them when they were in a weak moment and set a trip date in stone quickly before they could think through all the travel issues. Now I needed to set my strategy. DD would be the easiest. She loves the classic Disney videos and dresses up as a princess from time to time on her own. She also loves her daddy to pieces and will go anywhere with me. She would be an easy ally in my efforts to convert the others. DW on the other hand would be tough. She is becoming more of a homebody lately and trips in general are to be avoided…especially trips with “those broken people”(our kids). She loves them and spends lots of time with them each day home schooling but there is certainly such a thing as enough of a good thing.

I went to the WDW website and began to study my options in secret. I was extremely pleased to find that the master WDW marketers would provide a free DVD about the Happiest Celebration on Earth. This would have to be a central piece of my re-programming the family into good Disney clones. I ordered one and began counting the days until it would arrive. I also went out and purchased several Disney travel books to update myself on the details of planning a successful trip. These books led to a list of websites to browse to add to my arsenal. My plan was to be fully armed with a list of interesting things to do once the video primed the pump of their interest. It was becoming hard to keep my planning secret due to the combination of my own excitement and the amount of materials I was accumulating. To me the planning and anticipation is as much fun as the event itself in most cases. I am not a control freak who tries to plan down to the minute but I don’t want to inadvertently miss out on the finer points of the experience anytime we go out as a family. I am sure DW became suspicious seeing some Disney stuff around but she didn’t stop me before I could launch my attack.

The video arrived on a Saturday. My kids are well trained to keep an eye out for the mailman and the UPS truck as DW is a frequent catalogue and Internet shopper. Thus there are boxes arriving almost daily which certainly must have something for them inside…every time…like a never ending Christmas. DD saw the Disney DVD in that day’s pile of booty and is just a good enough reader to figure out that she wanted to see it….right now please! I was able to gather up the brothers to join her in front of the TV and away we went. The Disney marketers didn’t let me down! Erin and friends quickly put my kids in a frenzy with their story of rides, food and fun. The castle, Space Mountain and Mission Space were their new obsession. It was time to go for the kill!

Hey kids…do you want to go to WDW someday? They were bouncing off the walls. Of course they did….How about this fall when it’s not too hot? You might have to miss some days of school time though…I didn’t need to go any further. They were caught hook, line and sinker. DD ran off to find her mom and tell her the great news. Now my DW is no dummy and she could see right through my plan. But she seemed unwilling to put up a fight and so the plan was initially blessed and put in the family schedule. I did have to do some serious explaining later about why it was the right year to try WDW again for so many reasons so she decided not to kill me…at least for a while.

I shifted into full planning mode like a good little DISer. There was a lot of new stuff to sort through….new restaurants…what days to go to each park...what special events to try to fit in. It is almost as bad as making all the decisions that go into remodeling a kitchen and almost as expensive. A few weeks into my daily planning update sessions, DW began to rethink the “kill him for this idea” option. She could see I was going over the top and dragging her down with me. Luckily, I had discovered the EPCOT food and wine festival matched my time window. I explained the food booths to her and the potential for other chef type interactions. DW is a serious cook and a more serious wine drinker so this presented a little bit of a reason to quit looking for her gun. I offered to get her a ticket to go to the Party for the Senses by herself (I am pretty much a teetotaler) as further trip bait. “I get a night away from the broken people right?” she confirmed. I agreed and we were back on the Express Monorail to see the Mouse.

I bought the tickets and made the hotel reservation. 10 day MYW passes (those last few days are so cheap) and two rooms at ASMu and the dining plan for a week (you can actually get less dining plan days than you plan to stay if you go this route I discovered although by accident)…one for us and one for the broken people. I would extend the trip if everyone was not too tired after a week at WDW.

Time was flying by and summer arrived. Real Texas summer… just as hot as Orlando but with worse bug control (can you say fire ants?). The family packed up to escape the heat by making a van trip to visit friends and family further north. It was supposed to last about a month. Unfortunately, DW hit a deer with the van on July 3rd going about 60 mph on the interstate. The deer and the rest of the visits were killed on impact. Luckily no one else was hurt but the DW and kids were stuck in a small hotel in a very small rural town for several days figuring out a path forward to get back home. When they arrived, it was clear DW had little interest in any more trips any time soon. I convinced her that she would feel better by Oct. and she wouldn’t want to miss all that wine tasting would she? And the tickets were paid for! How many more unused tickets could we accumulate? She gave in and the trip plan survived.

But Mother Nature proceeded to launch a counter attack on my WDW plan. As you all remember last hurricane season was pretty rough around the Gulf Coast. Katrina came in and scared the wits out of everybody as it cleaned out New Orleans. A few weeks later Rita began churning across the gulf. I am not sure if a worse forecasting job has ever been done on a big storm. They managed to evacuate the entire TX coast in stepwise increments as the storm moved toward landfall. It was bad enough that DW and kids packed up and left early in the week just ahead of the other millions of the over hyped masses (another home schooling perk…you don’t have to wait for permission). They got pushed further east each day for several days as they tried to find unbooked hotel rooms and eventually ended up in Georgia by the time Rita made landfall. I stayed home to finish up the storm preps on the house. I never did leave due to a combination of watching the traffic not move on TV and watching the storm turn further east. It ended up not being much of a storm at our house and I was back to normal within 12 hours of landfall. My family however was stuck on the other side of the country with no easy way back. They went to SC (you can’t evacuate much further away so this was an A+ on that scale) to visit my folks for a few days (a true sign of desperation as they had just visited them in June) until enough gas and hotels were available to make the trip back to TX successfully. There were a lot of damaged roads and empty stores for several hundred miles to our east so it was not a low stress or even typical drive home for them.

The real aftermath of Rita didn’t hit my house until their return. They were tired of being in the van (even with all the DVDs and space in ours)…tired of living out of suitcases…tired of being away from home…tired of sleeping in strange beds. DW had launched a serious counter attack on my plan with her captive audience on the trip home. I couldn’t really blame her. Rita had been rough on everyone and she really likes to be at home. I had not been doing all the traveling they had so I was not tired. I wanted to see WDW again. The final battle lines were drawn as we were only weeks away from our reservations.

I avoided the subject of our vacation plans for several days after they got home. DW eventually recovered enough energy to suggest we change our WDW plans to another time next year once we were all feeling better. I was not happy…there would always be some excuse not to go…and there would never be another chance to use the initial excitement of going idea to get it approved in the first place. It was do or die in my mind. I made my case that the money was spent and the kids were the right ages to all enjoy WDW now. It would not get better next year…one would be a teenager (likely a grumpy one) and another would become a Disney dining plan adult (amazing how only Disney can make us believe being 10 is so grown up) so there were good reasons not to change our plans. I added that “We all needed some fun after the tough summer!”

My arguments were falling on deaf ears. She saw the trip between TX and Orlando as being asked to drive through a war zone….no services or rest room stops available for long stretches, little gas or food available and maybe no hotel rooms until reaching WDW. DW and I are both pretty stubborn people and we were dug in. Luckily for me, DW really believes in the obey part of our marriage vows. Now there is lots of serious questioning involved in reaching that point…long hours of it…tortured logic on both sides…but if I really am serious about what I want done I believe I can get it with the obey clause in our deal. I can honestly say I had never exercised it before this time but it was because I am such a soft touch concerning my DW (I have the remodeling and UPS shipping receipts to prove it). But I believed it existed so I went for it.

And it did exist!

She gave in very grudgingly and the trip was back on. I would need to provide her with some travel planning help but little else new was put in the deal. The days counted down. The broken people and I made a trip to Six Flags and I pointed out how much different and better WDW would be to them. They sort of believed me but their enthusiasm was flagging. I played the WDW DVD for them again to try to refresh their excitement about the rides. They had been watching it many times on their own before this and it was losing its punch. The day to leave could not come soon enough from my perspective. My plan was hanging on by a thread.

If I had found one of those countdown timer programs I would certainly have had it running. But then that might have driven DW over the edge so it is probably best for my personal survival that I didn’t. As I noted in an earlier post, DW prefers to do long drives without me in the van. It simplifies decisions on where and when to stop and keeps the kids from getting what they want by asking old soft touch Dad when Mom isn’t listening. So I get to fly out behind them by a day or so when we vacation. This trip was no exception. MME was waiting for me to arrive and catch up with them.

We packed up the van the night before they would leave with clothes, food and water. I had also accumulated lots of little trip surprises in fanny packs for them based on the ideas in my planning books. The kids liked them but not as much as I expected. Heading out on the road was not the scene most other reports describe. DW was almost in tears about going. DS12 was not happy about it any more as he was going to miss some Boy Scout events. DD was not interested in going as she would miss the birthday party of a friend. I said “ Wouldn’t you rather have a week of fun than go to a party for one hour?” DD replied no. It almost broke my heart. But remember, I am stubborn. The kind of stubborn that the pioneers needed to be to head off on almost surely futile journeys in hope of finding true happiness in the wild west. So I kissed them all good bye and sent them on their way.

I was not certain what I would find 48 hours later on my arrival. I had given them my trip plan on what parks and things to do before I arrived and we had a date to meet for lunch in the Contemporary at the Concourse Steak House to meet our old friend the monorail. MME would need to be really magical if this was to work out alright…I said my prayers and headed out to WDW as scheduled. I was not sure if I would be eating alone or not…

Next installment – Would the Mouse beat Rita???

[Dad's Not Funny]

My plane arrived on time loaded with lots of excited little mouseketeers. It was fun to watch them all decked out in their Disney garb and ready to see Mickey. I kept thinking about my gang and wondering how they were doing. I knew they had arrived OK based on an e mail from DW but it gave no clues about their mental state. I made my way out into the lobby and looked for “the Hand” as my instructions had directed me to do. Eventually I found it and the CM who was entrusted with it and joined the merry band of travelers in my first line of the trip. MME puts you right into the spirit of things by breaking down your resistance to waiting for your turn.

I actually think that MME is great. They do a good job checking you in and the part about taking care of your bags all the way to the room is a real value, especially for parents who are heavily loaded down with kid gear. The bus ride was kind of a trip down memory lane. I had spent six months stationed in Orlando in 1981. The Navy brought me there for Nuclear Power School and some special high intensity training ensued to get me ready for submarine duty. (My DW was in the same class but we never met until 5 yrs. later.) We used to laugh about Orlando’s highways back then. They were huge and greatly oversized for the local population. “Rush hour” lasted about 5 minutes if you could catch it at all. Things sure have changed since then. The amount of stores, attractions and traffic have all grown to meet the highway size. I guess if you build it they will come. My old commanding officer used to tell us that the best view of Orlando was seeing it shrink in your rear view mirror if you survived the training class and moved on to the next training base location in the program. I am not sure I agreed then and certainly don’t anymore. Orlando is a great place to live and it is never a happy day to leave WDW. But maybe some of DW’s initial reaction to my plan is based on remnants of Orlando and Nuke school in her mind.

MME reached the park boundaries and I began to see all the new places that had been built since 1997. It was pretty amazing. I have to admit that I was not much of an Eisner fan but if he cracked the whip to make WDW change like this it is a great legacy to have passed on for all of us. I was getting more anxious to see my family and find out if they were having a similar reaction. I checked into ASMu with minimal problems. There was not much of a line. The CM covered all the basics and answered my dining plan questions. I made my way past the pool. It was pretty quiet with most people out for the day. I made a quick stop at the room (there was no sign of anything unusual just the usual big kid mess piles spreading out everywhere so I was sure they were all still present) and headed to the busses to face the real music. Only a few other people were on board with me as we made the rounds of the hotels. They were all pretty quiet and seemed to be trying to find some energy to drag their very small kids back into MK for the rest of the day. I made a mental note not to end up over tired and to stay on my plan of afternoon breaks for TS meals each day to recharge and rest our Disney feet. I reached the TTC in short order, walked over to the Contemporary with minimal problems and settled in to await my fate.

I am not sure where it happened…maybe it was in the van driving through the swamps of FL…maybe it was something in the water they drank at ASMu…maybe there really are fairies in the park with wands loaded with pixie dust…maybe aliens or Imagineers captured my family and replaced them with Disney clones but the people that met me at the Contemporary for lunch were completely transformed. It was pure Disney magic. DD came bounding out of the monorail and was bouncing up and down excited to see me down below in the lobby. This was pretty normal behavior for her so I tried not to read too much into it. The others came out next and seemed to be smiling broadly. As they got closer it became clear…they were happy…they were all talking at once about what they had seen and done so far and how great it was…they were apologizing for dragging their feet about coming. DS9 the official dubber of titles in the family said “this is the greatest place ever Dad, thanks for bringing us!” It was beyond my highest expectations and it made all the struggles of the past weeks worth it. They actually began to refer to each other as Disney clones in the coming days so maybe it is true. But I’m not complaining either. Being a “bad Disney clone” became our buzz word for anyone getting cranky in lines or not getting into the spirit of things at a show or a character meal. The food at the Concourse Steak House was pretty good and we all got indoctrinated into the dining plan three courses concept. Everyone was pretty full at the end of the meal and loaded up on sugar for a run at the MK.

I know some people are not sold on the dining plan but we are. Sure you can eat cheaper if you want to but you miss out on some of the magic of what WDW has to offer. I had never been to many of the non-CS restaurants on past visits. The ones we ate at each day were all just as much a part of the fun of the day as the rides and shows. In places like Whispering Canyon and Sci Fi it almost was like another show. You could look forward to them as a big part of the day. It also pushes you to visit more of the resorts like WL, AKL, the Poly etc. even though you aren’t staying there. But the biggest value to doing it is the lack of stress when you look at the menus in TS restaurants. You don’t really worry about how pricey a restaurant is compared to the others (on the ones with 1 TS credit per person anyway which is most of them). You just don’t even pay attention to the $$$. You just look at what you want to eat and order what you think will give you the most pleasure. You can try unusual items in most cases with some confidence they will be good tasting and well presented. There is plenty to eat as well. My kids began to ask to skip the desserts about half way through the trip as they were always too full and the never ending onslaught of very rich chocolate began to take its toll on them. I did not ever think my little Disney clones would ever say those words but they did and more than once. Sometimes we ordered dessert for them anyway just to look at it…and we didn’t mind if it wasn’t eaten. (that was pretty magical in and of itself). They are really pretty and festive looking in many cases. Another part of the fun is looking at the big bill total at the end of the meal when they charge your credits from the plan off. It is hard not to smile and think I just saved a lot of money having this experience and had fun doing it. Enough rambling but I think those who skip the dining plan are really missing some serious Disney magic. It isn’t possible to eat at all the places you want to try on a given trip but that just leaves opportunities to discover new things on your next trip. Our current favorite places are Whispering Canyon, Crystal Palace, Sci-Fi Diner and Wolfgang Puck (DTD). I am looking forward to trying Boma, Ohana, Chef Mickeys, Hollywood and Vine and Cape May Café as well on our next visit.

We went on to have a happy, busy and tiring time in the coming days. My plan got twisted and changed multiple times along the way but I didn’t really care anymore. The world outside seemed to be pushed out of our minds as we drifted from park to park and soaked in the magic. But there was another big surprise in store for us as I got fully sucked up into the Disney marketing vortex in the coming days….

Next installment – The Disney mugs lead me on a new adventure…

[a*lil*bit*goofy]

awesome awesome! can't wait for more! and no i wonder, if you are going to share with us how u got 'sucked into the disney marketing vortex" of DVC. LOL!

[jes77]

Glad to hear you were able to "convert" your family into the "good" Disney clones --

Can't wait to hear more !!!

[JoAnnPan]

I am still here also; awaiting the next installment!

[OhMari]

Bumping back up to the top so you continue your report. Enjoying your report.

[kimkarli]

Love the story!! I live in Groves, TX, right where Rita came in!! We were gone for 2 1/2 weeks and it was miserable!! In facts things still are not back to normal. DD6 and I are going to WDW in July (hurricane season), sure hope we are lucky (and blessed!!).
Great stort - subscribing!!!!