"Big Girls Only" A Sept 2015 PTR *Final PT Update 9/10/15*

[Clarf]

Well I got behind on this! So awesome about your ADRs. I know you had one little hiccup with the CP breakfast, but I'm glad you mostly got what you wanted.

And yay for a huge tax return! That's why we can go back to Disney this year!

 

[MissMaryQC]

Well hello there everybody! I sure hope you are all doing great. We have had an action packed few weeks here in our house.

Let's start with our Spring vacation! Mama, my SO, DD and I all drove up to visit my family that lives in North Carolina. The drive is usually about 12 hours, we did it in about 15 since we stopped so much for baby. we met Sis up there, sadly her DBF couldn't make it cause of work. It was a bitter sweet trip for us all. While it was wonderful to be able to spend time with our family my grandmother on mama's side isn't doing so great. She has undiagnosed Alzheimer's which has started to affect her every day life.

It's not in the worst stages as of yet, but the family is concerned so we are all trying to get her and my grandfather some living assistance, which isn't easy; they're both very prideful and stubborn! Even so they are as loving as ever. We also got to visit with my father's mother, a few cousins and some aunts and uncles! we did some thrifting, enjoyed the little town we stayed in and were outside as often as possible, enjoying the beautiful weather. All-in-all it was a very lovely week spent in the mountains.

You guys wanna see some blurry pictures taken on my iPhone?! I know you do, so here ya go!







My SO has some really good ones I took on his camera, but we left the battery charger in NC, so I'll have to post those once we get that back. The worst, I know

In WDW news guess what we ordered and arrived in the mail? Two day air, for free, I might add...



Our MNSSHP tickets!!! This little envelope has made this trip feel SO real! I have to start planing my outfits!!

But I'm getting ahead of myself. There is one more thing I must report.



WE ARE GOING TO DISNEY WORLD FOR MOTHER'S DAY!!!!!!

Well, sort of. Here's how it happened: SIS is moving early; it will be May first now rather than August. And while we did just spend a week together in NC I didn't want to wait until later in the summer to visit her once she'd moved, so we figured we'd meet in Daytona for a weekend or somthing. I suggested we just meet in WDW! All parties agreed, except for my SO. He really wants to wait and tale DD to the parks when she's a bit older, so she can "really enjoy it." Whatever! The compromise was such; we will spend the weekend in Orlando, stay at AoA and celebrate my very first Mother's Day on property, but not in the parks. I'll take that!

We leave early on May 9th and come back May 10th at night. I booked Mama, SO, DD and me in a LM room at AoA. Sis will be living up there by then so she will be staying at her place. We have two ADR's dinner on the 9th at GFC and brunch at Boma on the 10th. We haven't been to either one so we are excited! I already did our Magic Bands so we are all set, just waiting, ever so impatiently, to pack and drive up!

Best news of all though;

SIS HAS AN INTERVIEW TO WORK FOR OUR FAVORITE MOUSE!

She is so excited. I know she will get the job; she's amazing. I can't wait to see where she'll be working, what she'll be doing, her costume! Too much fun! Not sure what that will mean for our trip in September, hopefully it just means a few complimentary tickets and not that sis will be working some of the days we are there.

That's all for now! I'll post more pictures from NC as we have access to them and I will do a mini TR inside this PTR for our Mother's Day weekend. TTFN friends, I will leave you with this:

 

[MissMaryQC]

Well I got behind on this! So awesome about your ADRs. I know you had one little hiccup with the CP breakfast, but I'm glad you mostly got what you wanted.

And yay for a huge tax return! That's why we can go back to Disney this year!

Thanks Claire!! I'm checking every day for that CP ADR; it will be mine, oh yes, it will be mine!

It was such a shock, a great one, but totally unexpected!! Glad it worked out for you guys too! Gotta love taxes!! Wait, what??

 

[Chicago Mo]

Oh My goodness SHE IS SO adorable!!!!
all the pixi dust going your sis's way for the job. I know she will get it. just hope it something FUN!
You adorable daughter needs a photo with Mickey. I am sorry your SO won't do it. BOO to that!

so gald you all were able to get together sounds like a great time, i hope everything works out for you and your grandparent's i know it isn't easy...


YA YAY for AoA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[afwdwfan]

While it was wonderful to be able to spend time with our family my grandmother on mama's side isn't doing so great. She has undiagnosed Alzheimer's which has started to affect her every day life.

I'm glad you got some good family time in, but I'm sorry about your grandmother. We went through that with my Grandma the last few years she was alive. It certainly wasn't any fun.

My SO has some really good ones I took on his camera, but we left the battery charger in NC

Our MNSSHP tickets!!! This little envelope has made this trip feel SO real! I have to start planing my outfits!!

Awesome! Always nice to get some of those little reminders along the way as you're planning your trip.

I suggested we just meet in WDW! All parties agreed, except for my SO. He really wants to wait and tale DD to the parks when she's a bit older, so she can "really enjoy it."

Oh no... so wrong. I can understand why he might feel that way, but she can definitely enjoy it now. It's probably actually easier to take her now than it would be in a couple of years.

The compromise was such; we will spend the weekend in Orlando, stay at AoA and celebrate my very first Mother's Day on property, but not in the parks. I'll take that!

Ok, good compromise. Not a bad way to spend your Mother's Day at all!

She is so excited. I know she will get the job; she's amazing. I can't wait to see where she'll be working, what she'll be doing, her costume! Too much fun! Not sure what that will mean for our trip in September, hopefully it just means a few complimentary tickets and not that sis will be working some of the days we are there.

Oh! Good luck to her! I hope she gets hired... and gets a position she really enjoys!

 

[KatMark]

What fun pictures from your trip. I'm sorry to hear about your grandmother.

for an interview with the Mouse for your sister!

And you are going to be there my last day? Maybe we will run into each other.

 

[Sisa]

Looks like a nice trip even with the circumstances.

MNSSHP tickets....eek! So exciting...super jealous.

A visit to Florida and a stay at AOA sounds like a pretty awesome way to spend Mother's Day. How fun!

Pixie dust sent your sister's way, how amazing is that?!

Your DD is so cute!

 

[MissMaryQC]

Oh My goodness SHE IS SO adorable!!!!
all the pixi dust going your sis's way for the job. I know she will get it. just hope it something FUN!
You adorable daughter needs a photo with Mickey. I am sorry your SO won't do it. BOO to that!

Thanks for the pixie dust for sis; she is hoping for some kind of performing position. She has an audition for a face character too!! DD does need a Mickey picture, but to be fair to SO he wants her first WDW trip to be special rather than a weekend we decided to drive up to Orlando. I'm hoping if I nab a BB in September he will agree to go for her second birthday.

so gald you all were able to get together sounds like a great time, i hope everything works out for you and your grandparent's i know it isn't easy...

We did have a great time. Thanks Mo, I appreciate the kindness.

YA YAY for AoA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am SOOOOOOO excited!! We are heading up SUPER early so we can spend the entire day at the resort!

I'm glad you got some good family time in, but I'm sorry about your grandmother. We went through that with my Grandma the last few years she was alive. It certainly wasn't any fun.

Her father had Alzheimer's so we all kinda saw this coming. It's sad, but she's still doing alright and the family is rallying for some new treatments so hopefully the condition won't worsen as she gets on in age.



Right?!


Awesome! Always nice to get some of those little reminders along the way as you're planning your trip.

Nothing like Mickey Mail!!


Oh no... so wrong. I can understand why he might feel that way, but she can definitely enjoy it now. It's probably actually easier to take her now than it would be in a couple of years.

Ok, good compromise. Not a bad way to spend your Mother's Day at all!

It's very hard sometimes being in love with a man who isn't in love with WDW! He's a good guy in other ways though. Heehee. I do get why he wants to take her when she's a bit bigger; after going with my baby half-sister (she is 8 now) when she was a tot I vowed never to return to the world with a baby in diapers. Mother's Day is gonna rock!!

Oh! Good luck to her! I hope she gets hired... and gets a position she really enjoys!

I think she will! She's such a bubbly girl, great Disney material!

What fun pictures from your trip. I'm sorry to hear about your grandmother.

Thanks Kathy.

for an interview with the Mouse for your sister!

She's so excited! Her interview is on Monday, so by the time we visit next week she could be a WDW CM!!

And you are going to be there my last day? Maybe we will run into each other.

If you happen to see us please say hello; we'll keep a look out for you too!

Looks like a nice trip even with the circumstances.

It really was, thank you.

MNSSHP tickets....eek! So exciting...super jealous.

Thanks! It's a first for us. I know your dates didn't match up this year, but like I said, just another new thing to look forward to later!

A visit to Florida and a stay at AOA sounds like a pretty awesome way to spend Mother's Day. How fun!

We live in South Florida, but I'll take a weekend any where near Disney property any day of the week!

Pixie dust sent your sister's way, how amazing is that?!

Thank you! She's got it in the bag, I just know it!

Your DD is so cute!

Thanks! She's the happiest baby I've ever known!

 

[MissMaryQC]

Really quickly, before I finally go to sleep (DD is teething and it's every bit as awful as everyone has told me it would be), I wanted to say...


WE GOT FREE DINING!!!

We had to upgrade to a preferred (which I had wanted from the beginning, but was shot down) and this year the offer requires a Hopper or Water Parks add on. We took the offer, cause even with the extra money on the package we are still set to save about $1500.

Normally FD wouldn't interest our family; we generally share a lot of meals and dessert is not a common item for us. HOWEVER, this year is a special trip, our last trip in a way, so we had a lot of special restaurants; FD saved us the most money of the generally released fall discounts. So bring on the desserts!!

 

[Chicago Mo]

WOOHOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!

I am SO SO HAPPY FOR YOU!!!! your still staying at AoA?

 

[MissMaryQC]

WOOHOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!

I am SO SO HAPPY FOR YOU!!!! your still staying at AoA?

Thanks Mo! We are at AoA in May, but just for one night, le sad I know! When we go in September we are at POR. AoA was actually our first choice; three sleeping spaces and two bathrooms was hard to pass up! Once we started pricing things out a Mod with FD was just WAY less expensive, so we went with the smaller price tag.

 

[afwdwfan]

(DD is teething and it's every bit as awful as everyone has told me it would be)

It is brutal.

WE GOT FREE DINING!!!

We had to upgrade to a preferred (which I had wanted from the beginning, but was shot down) and this year the offer requires a Hopper or Water Parks add on. We took the offer, cause even with the extra money on the package we are still set to save about $1500.

Congrats! I'm glad it worked out for you! Sounds like the whole FD thing was a borderline disaster this go around, so that's great that you were able to get something that worked for you and saved some money.

 

[KatMark]

That is awesome!!!! Way to go.

 

[-Hope-]

Hurray for free dining! I managed to get a couple of clients booked with it but I know lots of people missed out so congrats!!

 

[MissMaryQC]

It is brutal.

Tell me about it! My sweet little girl becomes a tiny monster!

Congrats! I'm glad it worked out for you! Sounds like the whole FD thing was a borderline disaster this go around, so that's great that you were able to get something that worked for you and saved some money.

I've heard some horror stories on here and on FaceBook. It was a roughish morning, but in the end all has worked out great. We actually made some changes to our reservation and saved another couple hundred dollars. I think after that day they released more rooms.

That is awesome!!!! Way to go.

Thanks Kathy! We're pumped!!

Hurray for free dining! I managed to get a couple of clients booked with it but I know lots of people missed out so congrats!!

Thanks so much Hope! I heard a lot of folks weren't able to snag the deal, so we count ourselves pretty fortunate!

 

[MissMaryQC]

Hey everyone!!
I sure hope Mother's Day was nice for you guys. We've had a fantastic few weeks in our house. Since I last updated we celebrated my very first Mother's Day in Orlando!! We didn't go to the parks but we did spend two wonderful days at AoA.
We booked a LM room but we got upgraded to a Cars Family Suite!!

We spent Saturday in the pool. It was DD first time swimming and she LOVED it!

​

We hung anround the quiet pool in front of the Cars building. The Big Blue Pool looked really cool but boy was it crowded!







The funiest thing happened after DD took a nap. Sis took DD into the pool again; she could not get enough of that water. As soon as sis and DD were at the steps a gaggle of children surrounded them! These kids could not stop ooing and aahhhing at DD! They literally followed sis as she floated DD around the pool; like the Pied Piper or something! It was a hoot!



The resort is so cool! We walked the entire thing, stopped at all the sections for photos. Sadly I don't have any of them as they are still on the camera and my SO hasn't had time to upload them. If I knew anything about that machine I'd do it myself, but fear of breaking the expensive toy stops me from even trying!

We had dinner at GFC that night which was lovely. GF is such a beautiful resort. A little fancy for my taste, but I can appreciate it's grandeur

We all had a nice sleep that night then we had brunch on Mother's Day at Boma!



The place was a zoo. I should have known. The food was great though and the service was wonderful as always. I actually wanted to mention a special thing here. I have a dairy allergy, well DD has one and since she still nurses I basically have one. At both meals the chef came to the table and walked me through the menu. No big deal at GFC but at Boma the chef LITERALLY walked me from station to station showing me what had dairy in it and what didn't. He even made me dairy free Mickey Waffles!!! I can't think of another restaurant that has shown such care for my allergy, ever.

We spent the afternoon in DTD checking out the new shops and just walking around. I think the group favorite was the hat store.







Mama and my SO actually bought hats too!! Here is SO passed out on the car ride home, wearing his new hat!



We also added to DD's TsumTsum collection.



I'm pretty sure she thinks they're chew toys. We left Orlando about 4 pm and made it home with just one quick stop for dinner. Stitch was DD's pillow on the ride home.



It was a great little trip.

In life news Sis got a job at HS!

She started Traditions today. She will be working in the Sunset Blvd portion of the park (ToT, RnR, Beauty and the Beast and Fantasmic!) so if you see a pretty blond girl named Kat in that area say hi for me!!

I'm so glad she's in Florida!!

We made a few changes to our plans as well; we moved from CBR Preferred Room to a Garden View Room at POR. Saved about $300 on that one move. I'm excited to see POR; I hear it's beautiful. Hopefully we will be able to take the little boat over to DTD at least once while we are there.

Our FP+ day will be here in July and I am at a loss. I've never used FP+ so I'm nervous about our selections. We all LOVE the mountains and thrill rides, but I don't want to wait in line for Peter Pan for the average 45 minutes. I know we won't see everything while we're there but I wanna do as much as possible. Any suggestions from you DIS Veterans is greatly appreciated!!

Well friends, that's all for now! I'll have another update once sis and I are able to chat about things; now that she's working again she's busy.

TTFN!



​

 

[hokieinpa]

Hi! Sorry I'm way behind!

That is so cool that your sister will be working at HS! My dream job!

It sounds like a really lovely Mother's Day weekend! AOA is a great resort! And how awesome that you got upgraded to a family suite!

DD is just so stinking adorable! Her first trip to the parks is going to be amazing!

And yay for free dining! And POR is one of my dream resorts - it looks so beautiful!

 

[afwdwfan]

We booked a LM room but we got upgraded to a Cars Family Suite!!

Isn't that just the most awesome thing ever??????

We had dinner at GFC that night which was lovely. GF is such a beautiful resort. A little fancy for my taste, but I can appreciate it's grandeur

Totally agree.

We all had a nice sleep that night then we had brunch on Mother's Day at Boma!

The place was a zoo.

Boma... zoo... I see what you did there.

No big deal at GFC but at Boma the chef LITERALLY walked me from station to station showing me what had dairy in it and what didn't. He even made me dairy free Mickey Waffles!!! I can't think of another restaurant that has shown such care for my allergy, ever.

They're great about that at the buffets there. My sister has an allergy and that's just how they do it at the buffets at Disney World. The chef always comes out, walks her through the buffet line and then usually they offer to make something specially for her if there's anything else she wants. They're fantastic about it.

It was a great little trip.

It definitely looks like it!

In life news Sis got a job at HS!

That's awesome!!!

She started Traditions today. She will be working in the Sunset Blvd portion of the park (ToT, RnR, Beauty and the Beast and Fantasmic!) so if you see a pretty blond girl named Kat in that area say hi for me!!

Sounds great! Does she know what she'll be doing in that area? Rides? Food? Custodial?

Our FP+ day will be here in July and I am at a loss. I've never used FP+ so I'm nervous about our selections. We all LOVE the mountains and thrill rides, but I don't want to wait in line for Peter Pan for the average 45 minutes. I know we won't see everything while we're there but I wanna do as much as possible. Any suggestions from you DIS Veterans is greatly appreciated!!

I don't think it will be as bad as you think. MK shouldn't be a big problem, really. 7DMT and A&E are the ones that need to be booked at 60 days if you want them. But most of the others will have availability on the day of. What I'd do... and actually what we did, was book MK FP+ for early in the day. Basically so we could hit one ride at RD and then have 3 FP+ to use within the first 3 hours of park opening... and then we could make more!
I'd probably do FP+ for like 7DMT, PP, and something else close by or maybe Space? I think the time of year you're going, you might be able to grab a 4th FP+ for BTMRR, or if not the wait shouldn't be horrible. MK really is a lot easier than the other parks because there are so many attractions that offer FP+ that they don't all go quite as fast as they do at the other parks.

 

[Sisa]

Looks like you had an amazing Mother's Day trip!

A cars suite upgrade, how awesome!

Your DD looks so happy to be in the water, great pictures!

That's really neat about the Chef at Boma going the extra mile to make sure you had a good meal.

Haha, love the hat photos!

Congrats to your sister, that is so awesome!!!!

I too am so lost on the FP+, I don't even want to think about it.

Congrats on upgrading to POR, I hear it is gorgeous! Can't wait to hear what you think of it!

 

[KatMark]

Sounds like a wonderful weekend get away and your first Mother's Day.

I did NOT know there was a new hat store. I must hit that with my hat loving hubby.

Love that the chef at Boma's was so helpful with you.

Your daughter is growing so fast...and she is a beauty.

I would take advantage of the baby swap as much as you can for the rides.