scoot241
Geaux Tigers!
- Joined
- Apr 21, 2009
Title Change 7/23/2009
Intro:
Well, it's finally happening. This trip has been over 3 years in the making, but the right deal and the right timing is finally getting my DD her first trip to WDW. Even better, I was able to make the trip fall on her 4th birthday to take advantage of the "What would you celebrate?" campaign.
I took my first trip to WDW when I was 2, so I wanted to have DD's first trip at a similar time. Life got in the way, though, so she'll be 4 instead. It's about time we took this trip.
In February, long before free dining was announced for everyone, I recieved a PIN for free dining in my e-mail and decided it was time to take the plunge. DW agreed, so at least the three of us were going. Then I spoke to my parents, and they and my sister decided to go too!
So it's the six of us on free dining. Where to stay? I definitely wanted to stay Value for this trip, so I read and read about about the 4 different value resorts (having never stayed in one). The 4 values aren't much different, and since we decided to book 2 rooms, we went with Pop Century. The theming is nice and the buses aren't shared, so that worked well for us. We'll probably be using the buses often to rest in the afternoon, so to not have to compete with 2 other resorts is a plus for us.
We live just outside of Houston, but my parents live just outside of New Orleans (we moved to Houston right after I finished my MBA; both my wife and I were born and raised in LA), so we had to book flights separately. All of us like flying Southwest, so we both got morning flights and should land at MCO within minutes of each other. We're taking DME to Pop.
This trip we already weren't planning on taking it at breakneck speed and flying around everywhere. However, we're probably going to take it even a bit slower now; not long after we booked our trip, we found out my wife is pregnant. She's still ready to go and has clearance from her doctor to do so. I think the only thing she was looking forward to ride but can't is the Safaris.
I booked ADRs June 8, not long before the online system came up. We got our most important ones, and the only restaurant we couldn't get into was Le Cellier. We also weren't able to get a Fantasmic package, but I understand it's not as good as it used to be.
9/6 - Ohana dinner
9/7 - Chef Mickey's dinner
9/9 - CRT breakfast (DD's really excited about this one)
9/10 - Mama Melrose dinner
9/11 - Teppan Edo dinner
Our general plan is:
9/6 - Check in, dinner and Wishes (MK evening EMH for some of us perhaps)
9/7 - EPCOT in the morning, MK in the evening
9/8 - AK for most of the day (it's only open from 9-5), mini-golf and Downtown Disney in the evening, try to get to bed a bit early
9/9 - CRT before MK opens and a full MK day
9/10 - DHS for the day, Fantasmic
9/11 - MK in the morning, EPCOT in the evening with Illuminations (and possibly EPCOT evening EMH)
9/12 - Pack up, maybe go do one or two things, and fly back home
With 62 days left to go, the excitement is building. I've been ready to go for a long time now. As of the last time I measured a few days ago, DD's 39" tall, so hopefully she'll sprout another inch in the next 2 months. Even if she doesn't though, we'll have a great time. She's princess obsessed, so she's most interested in seeing Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, Belle, etc.
Edit: Oh yeah, one more thing I forgot. I bought a Canon XSi D-SLR camera a couple of months ago and will be taking it on the trip, so I'm hoping to get some good pictures with it.
Quick Links:
Magic Kingdom Attraction List
Strollers?
Picture Itineraries:
Random thoughts about Le Cellier and Dining
Countdown Calendar - Finished Product Screenshot
The Cast
Next stop: The Offtopic Zone! (Harry Potter movie rant)
Two Bits of Randomness
RideMax, etc.
Pal Mickey Arrives
Unveiling of the Countdown Calendar, Disney Mail Arrives!
Precious Moments Event
Intro:
Well, it's finally happening. This trip has been over 3 years in the making, but the right deal and the right timing is finally getting my DD her first trip to WDW. Even better, I was able to make the trip fall on her 4th birthday to take advantage of the "What would you celebrate?" campaign.
I took my first trip to WDW when I was 2, so I wanted to have DD's first trip at a similar time. Life got in the way, though, so she'll be 4 instead. It's about time we took this trip.
In February, long before free dining was announced for everyone, I recieved a PIN for free dining in my e-mail and decided it was time to take the plunge. DW agreed, so at least the three of us were going. Then I spoke to my parents, and they and my sister decided to go too!
So it's the six of us on free dining. Where to stay? I definitely wanted to stay Value for this trip, so I read and read about about the 4 different value resorts (having never stayed in one). The 4 values aren't much different, and since we decided to book 2 rooms, we went with Pop Century. The theming is nice and the buses aren't shared, so that worked well for us. We'll probably be using the buses often to rest in the afternoon, so to not have to compete with 2 other resorts is a plus for us.
We live just outside of Houston, but my parents live just outside of New Orleans (we moved to Houston right after I finished my MBA; both my wife and I were born and raised in LA), so we had to book flights separately. All of us like flying Southwest, so we both got morning flights and should land at MCO within minutes of each other. We're taking DME to Pop.
This trip we already weren't planning on taking it at breakneck speed and flying around everywhere. However, we're probably going to take it even a bit slower now; not long after we booked our trip, we found out my wife is pregnant. She's still ready to go and has clearance from her doctor to do so. I think the only thing she was looking forward to ride but can't is the Safaris.
I booked ADRs June 8, not long before the online system came up. We got our most important ones, and the only restaurant we couldn't get into was Le Cellier. We also weren't able to get a Fantasmic package, but I understand it's not as good as it used to be.
9/6 - Ohana dinner
9/7 - Chef Mickey's dinner
9/9 - CRT breakfast (DD's really excited about this one)
9/10 - Mama Melrose dinner
9/11 - Teppan Edo dinner
Our general plan is:
9/6 - Check in, dinner and Wishes (MK evening EMH for some of us perhaps)
9/7 - EPCOT in the morning, MK in the evening
9/8 - AK for most of the day (it's only open from 9-5), mini-golf and Downtown Disney in the evening, try to get to bed a bit early
9/9 - CRT before MK opens and a full MK day
9/10 - DHS for the day, Fantasmic
9/11 - MK in the morning, EPCOT in the evening with Illuminations (and possibly EPCOT evening EMH)
9/12 - Pack up, maybe go do one or two things, and fly back home
With 62 days left to go, the excitement is building. I've been ready to go for a long time now. As of the last time I measured a few days ago, DD's 39" tall, so hopefully she'll sprout another inch in the next 2 months. Even if she doesn't though, we'll have a great time. She's princess obsessed, so she's most interested in seeing Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, Belle, etc.
Edit: Oh yeah, one more thing I forgot. I bought a Canon XSi D-SLR camera a couple of months ago and will be taking it on the trip, so I'm hoping to get some good pictures with it.
Quick Links:
Magic Kingdom Attraction List
Strollers?
Picture Itineraries:
Random thoughts about Le Cellier and Dining
Countdown Calendar - Finished Product Screenshot
The Cast
Next stop: The Offtopic Zone! (Harry Potter movie rant)
Two Bits of Randomness
RideMax, etc.
Pal Mickey Arrives
Unveiling of the Countdown Calendar, Disney Mail Arrives!
Precious Moments Event