PTR-2015 Year of a million trips….oh maybe only five. UPD 9/22 lnk to video

[SarahDisney]

Yay! An update!

It's good to see that Olivia has some Mickey Mouse & Jake the Pirate stuff included in her pile of things ... it's always nice when your stuff reflects your excitement!

I love that Tusker House picture! Even though it's a non-traditional start to the trip, I think it's nice that you're doing AK as your first park. It's a nice change, a chance to enjoy some attractions you like, and it'll probably be a lot less busy than MK. Hopefully you'll get a chance to go to MK later in the trip, and I'm sure Olivia will be spending plenty of time there over the next few months.

I really like the Star Wars skirt!

I think it's a really good idea to let Olivia do the check-in/paperwork stuff alone. There will be plenty of parents there sitting biting their nails waiting for their kids to need them. Those kids are the ones who are going to eventually move out of their parents' houses and not know how to take care of themselves. It's good that you're only a phone call away in case she needs anything, but you won't be for most of her time there, and it's important that she learns to be away from you and take care of herself as much as she can. (I'm not saying ignore her if she does need your help ... but she should learn to do some things for herself, like fill out paperwork).
My four years living in a college dorm (even though I was only an hour from home and didn't cook) taught me a lot about being independent and taking care of myself. Unless they're going to live with their parents forever (like me apparently...) kids need to learn how to be independent.
(Sorry about the soapbox, this is just something I'm a little bit passionate about).

Anyway ... have a great trip & I can't wait to read all about it when you get back!

 

[stacy~**]

Yay! An update!

It's good to see that Olivia has some Mickey Mouse & Jake the Pirate stuff included in her pile of things ... it's always nice when your stuff reflects your excitement!

You knew there would be Jake stuff, right?

I love that Tusker House picture! Even though it's a non-traditional start to the trip, I think it's nice that you're doing AK as your first park. It's a nice change, a chance to enjoy some attractions you like, and it'll probably be a lot less busy than MK. Hopefully you'll get a chance to go to MK later in the trip, and I'm sure Olivia will be spending plenty of time there over the next few months.

I was wanting to do one character/nicer meal and Tusker House just seemed like the perfect choice (and still had an ADR open).I feel like we will make it to MK on Monday but maybe that is just wishful thinking! But yes...Olivia will be spending unlimited time in all the parks so soon because she gets to LIVE AT DISNEY so she is fine where ever we end up!

I really like the Star Wars skirt!

Thanks! There isn't really "cute" Star Wars fabric out there so I guess it's just not my usual style. I thought about adding some sort of girlie detailing to the bottom trim but I didn't have the time before I wanted to wear it on Monday and realistically don't see myself having the time before we leave in one week.

I think it's a really good idea to let Olivia do the check-in/paperwork stuff alone. There will be plenty of parents there sitting biting their nails waiting for their kids to need them. Those kids are the ones who are going to eventually move out of their parents' houses and not know how to take care of themselves. It's good that you're only a phone call away in case she needs anything, but you won't be for most of her time there, and it's important that she learns to be away from you and take care of herself as much as she can. (I'm not saying ignore her if she does need your help ... but she should learn to do some things for herself, like fill out paperwork).
My four years living in a college dorm (even though I was only an hour from home and didn't cook) taught me a lot about being independent and taking care of myself. Unless they're going to live with their parents forever (like me apparently...) kids need to learn how to be independent.
(Sorry about the soapbox, this is just something I'm a little bit passionate about).

Thanks for making me feel better. I agree with everything you said and wasn't questioning it too much but I am part of a FB group of parents of college program kids and I felt like I was the only one not going with my kid to check-in. Maybe they just don't have an annual pass like I do. Haha! For us this is definitely about Olivia getting to experience independence in a "safe" environment. Plus I wouldn't even be waiting in line with her....they have a separate parents area so that right there tells you they want parents to stay out of things, right?

Have you ever thought of applying for the college program? I know you have struggled with finding full-time employment so maybe you should give this a go? You only have to be enrolled in one class when you apply. If Aaron hasn't moved me to Florida by then (which is super unlikely) I am planning to do it once Lucy graduates. I joke that Lucy and I can do it together.

Anyway ... have a great trip & I can't wait to read all about it when you get back!

Thanks, Sarah! This day next week.....

 

[SarahDisney]

You knew there would be Jake stuff, right?

I was about 95% sure ... I wasn't sure if maybe she wanted to leave it at home for an adult experience ... it is technically a kids show ...

Thanks for making me feel better. I agree with everything you said and wasn't questioning it too much but I am part of a FB group of parents of college program kids and I felt like I was the only one not going with my kid to check-in. Maybe they just don't have an annual pass like I do. Haha! For us this is definitely about Olivia getting to experience independence in a "safe" environment. Plus I wouldn't even be waiting in line with her....they have a separate parents area so that right there tells you they want parents to stay out of things, right?

I think there are very different styles of parenting ... maybe most of the parents who are part of the facebook group are the ones who think their kids need them for everything.
Also, if everyone said they were going there with their kids, maybe the other parents who aren't going with their kids decided to just keep quiet for fear of getting screamed at by the helicopter parents. People get really angry on FB sometimes!

Have you ever thought of applying for the college program? I know you have struggled with finding full-time employment so maybe you should give this a go? You only have to be enrolled in one class when you apply. If Aaron hasn't moved me to Florida by then (which is super unlikely) I am planning to do it once Lucy graduates. I joke that Lucy and I can do it together.

It's interesting, I've thought about applying for an internship at Yellow Shoes Creative (they do all of the in-house graphic design work for the parks, like attraction posters and graphics), which is basically my dream job. But there just isn't really a great community for me in Orlando. It would definitely be a huge adjustment coming from New York ... there's not really a huge amount of Kosher there, and the Jewish community is pretty small and not really what I'm used to. Plus, there's that whole "I don't drive" thing ...
And I don't think Lucy would be at all horrified by having you be in the college program at the same time as her

 

[Mrs T 2009]

Yay! Your trip is quickly approaching!!

Sounds like you have some great plan ideas!

Yeah, why sit around separate from her status when you can get some park time in? I'm sure she'll understand!

I'm excited for her! My husband did the college program and said it v was one of the best things he ever did!!!

 

[stacy~**]

I think there are very different styles of parenting ... maybe most of the parents who are part of the facebook group are the ones who think their kids need them for everything.
Also, if everyone said they were going there with their kids, maybe the other parents who aren't going with their kids decided to just keep quiet for fear of getting screamed at by the helicopter parents. People get really angry on FB sometimes!

It's funny because I feel like I am often very overprotective but I also try and let go when it is age appropriate. I guess this seems like one of those time when it time for her to do the adult thing on her own and I am there if she needs me. Plus I have park touring to do!

And you are right about FB. A few parents were getting pretty sassy with each other yesterday on the parent group. It was crazy.

It's interesting, I've thought about applying for an internship at Yellow Shoes Creative (they do all of the in-house graphic design work for the parks, like attraction posters and graphics), which is basically my dream job. But there just isn't really a great community for me in Orlando. It would definitely be a huge adjustment coming from New York ... there's not really a huge amount of Kosher there, and the Jewish community is pretty small and not really what I'm used to. Plus, there's that whole "I don't drive" thing ...
And I don't think Lucy would be at all horrified by having you be in the college program at the same time as her

Ah yes, I am sure the Jewish community in Orlando doesn't compare to NY at. all. I hadn't thought about that. That Yellow Shoes Creative sounds awesome though.

Yay! Your trip is quickly approaching!!

Two more sleeps left! Its a crazy feeling because in so many ways I am dreading it. Between the drive and the fact that I am leaving Olivia there. Definitely not the same feeling as just going on vacation. Today I am starting to pack/prep for the trip so hopefully that will help get me in the mood. And once we are on the road I am sure we will be soooo excited to finally be on the way to the most exciting adventure ever!!

Sounds like you have some great plan ideas!

Yeah, why sit around separate from her status when you can get some park time in? I'm sure she'll understand!

She understands. And I will be there if she needs me! I guess they give the parents that wait around a button so I am kind of sad I will miss out on that. It's not anything exciting but just thought it would be a cool "souvenir". I don't think its worth the wait. Oh well!

I'm excited for her! My husband did the college program and said it v was one of the best things he ever did!!!

Thank you! Yes it will definitely be an experience of a lifetime for her. I think we are both just ready to get her there and settled in. Soooo many life changes for her at once. It's exciting but also a lot.

 

[Mrs T 2009]

Have a safe drive down an good luck to Olivia!! I'm sure she'll adjust well! It's disney, after all!

 

[stacy~**]

Have a safe drive down an good luck to Olivia!! I'm sure she'll adjust well! It's disney, after all!

Thanks so much! I keep thinking I will feel better once the drive is over and we are there safe and sound but I really think that is when it will hit me that she isn't coming home with me! But I can't wait for her to have this experience and while I know there will be an adjustment...as you said it's Disney. She'll be fine.

 

[stacy~**]

So we leave in about 23 hours! I still have cleaning, laundry, packing and a 5 mile run to squeeze into these next 23 hours (and sleep too!). I'm always a last minute packer so nothing new here.

Olivia's been busy working, getting ready and hanging out with friends so we haven't seen her as much as we usually do (or maybe it just seems that way....) Anyways we had a family dinner tonight where I made her favorite meal and we surprised her with cake and ice cream, balloons and a card filled with gift cards (Target, Disney, Papa Johns pizza, etc.).

Here is the cake (last minute grocery store cake...haha but I did add some Mickeys and the flowers are a hidden Mickey):

And the view to include the balloons:

Can't believe this day is almost here!!

 

[SarahDisney]

I love the mickeys on the cake (especially the flowers)!

Have a great trip, and I hope Olivia has a lots of amazing experiences over the coming months!

 

[cajunfan]

I have been thinking about you and Olivia. I have been seeing tons of training groups in all the parks! I keep wanting to scream her name to see if anyone turns around, lol!
Lynn

 

[stacy~**]

I love the mickeys on the cake (especially the flowers)!

Have a great trip, and I hope Olivia has a lots of amazing experiences over the coming months!

Thanks so much! And I just realized I can use your race ticker as an Olivia moves back home countdown. Haha!

Planning to post updates on Twitter and Instagram along the way!

I have been thinking about you and Olivia. I have been seeing tons of training groups in all the parks! I keep wanting to scream her name to see if anyone turns around, lol!
Lynn

That will be her next week!
I never got the chance to find your schedule but we should be at AK/EP on Saturday and HS on Sunday (probably just me). Maybe we will run into each other.

 

[KatMark]

Hope you have a safe, wonderful trip. Mine was great and I'll give you bat signal when I start the TR.

 

[Mrs T 2009]

The cake and balloons look perfect!

Btw I love your napkin holder!!!

What's your tag on instagram and Twitter?

 

[Glittercat]

DTD (I just recently updated my phone so I really want to design my own phone case at the Marketplace).

This sounds like fun!

Wolfgang Puck

Yumm, they've a tasty pesto pizza big enough to share.

Brilliant!

July 23-July 26 we will be staying at the brand new Polynesian Village DVC Studios! The Poly has been on my resort bucket list since the beginning of time. So excited to not only stay there but check out what all this “monorail” resort life is like!

July 26-August 1 we will be returning to Animal Kingdom Lodge-Kidani Village. We absolutely loved it here in February and after that trip I switched this reservation (we were originally at Boardwalk). Can’t wait to go back!

This sounds like an exciting trip too!

I dusted off the sewing machine to make this Star Wars skirt to wear that day. I don't love it but it will do in a pinch. And I finished just in time to give it a trial wear on May the 4th. (garage mirror picture....sorry). If you know me you know it wouldn't be a trip without a new skirt.

Love your skirt, it looks adorable on you!

avocado margarita at La Cava

This sounds very tasty, off to add it to my PTR Wishlist! lol
Hope your trip was wonderful and you got the chance to do all the things on your list!

 

[stacy~**]

Hope you have a safe, wonderful trip. Mine was great and I'll give you bat signal when I start the TR.

Thanks, Kathy! Our trip was safe....wonderful might be a stretch when you drive 1,000 miles and then leave your kiddo there in the end but it was good and looking forward to our trip in July more than ever. I'm going to do a mini-report on it in this thread.

I see you have a link to your report in your siggie. I will stop over and check it out soon.

The cake and balloons look perfect!

Btw I love your napkin holder!!!

What's your tag on instagram and Twitter?

I've had that napkin holder forever! Thanks...I love it too.
You found me on Instagram, right? I think that was you....

This sounds like fun!

Yumm, they've a tasty pesto pizza big enough to share.

We did make it there and it was tasty. I might have attempted (and nearly had success) eating one of those pizza's on my own!

Brilliant!

This sounds like an exciting trip too!

Sooooo looking forward to July! I have definitely learned I am happiest at Disney when we are all there. I missed Aaron and Lucy so much on this trip...and of course I am already dying to visit Olivia.

Love your skirt, it looks adorable on you!

Thank you! I was very glad I made it.

This sounds very tasty, off to add it to my PTR Wishlist! lol
Hope your trip was wonderful and you got the chance to do all the things on your list!

Thank you!

 

[stacy~**]

Well I did it. I drove to Florida and left my girl there! It feels a bit surreal! Here is a mini-trip report:

Thursday, May 14-Day 1

Before I get started I have to say….driving to Florida is hard. I can’t believe people drive there and back as part of a vacation. If that was the only way I could get to Disney World I would do it too, I guess, but it REALLY takes the vacation out of the vacation if you ask me. Already dreading the drive back in January. Haha!

So we packed the car and went to Lucy’s last elementary school performance that evening at 6pm. It ended just before 8pm so we slipped out (without saying goodbye to Lucy, but she knew that might happen) to get on the road. Olivia drove us down the road to get some Starbucks for the drive before I took over.

Only picture I have from this first evening (I was driving the whole time...). Posing for me:

I had hoped to make it about 300 miles (5 hours) before stopping. I had targeted Wytheville, VA as a stopping point but didn’t make a hotel reservation. We ended up being tired and “done” about 30 minutes before Wytheville so we got off to find a hotel and much to my panic nothing on that exit was available so we decided to just go on to Wytheville. Thankfully that exit did have availability at a decent hotel (County Inn and Suites) for a good rate. We crashed instantly around 2am.

Friday, May 15-Day 2

We set the alarm for 7am the next morning and pretty much just threw our clothes back on and stumbled down to the free breakfast. Not glamorous but we did find plenty to fill up on which was good because we were starving! (I didn’t pack any snacks for the car ride the night before).

We made a stop at the gas station and were back on the road just before 8:30am. A bit later than I had hoped but because of the late night the night before we just weren’t moving quickly. Here is what our day looked like:

I hoped to make it to about 350 miles out before stopping for lunch but we lost over a half hour of time with traffic outside of Charlotte and we needed the break so we stopped somewhere early into South Carolina. I thought the exit would be better than it was and really had very few food choices. We ended up stopping at Ruby Tuesday which was slower and not exactly what I had in mind but ended up being an ok break. They have a nice “choose 3 veggie sides” meal that includes their salad bar so that worked out nicely.

Olivia opted for a “carb-load” lunch!

And mine….

After lunch this was what was left for our journey:

The last leg was uneventful. Boring and I was just honestly ready to be done. Olivia took a few short naps and I trudged on. We crossed the Florida state line around 6pm and I was soooo excited to stop at the welcome center for the free juice and was quite disappointed that it closed at 5pm. But we were happy to be in Florida!!!

And starting to see the end in sight:

We made one quick stop for gas somewhere between the state line and the Disney bubble line. We approached Disney property from a direction I had never been before and I was super surprised at how close the outside world is. Not sure I liked seeing that. But this was a most welcomed sight!!

We had a very speedy check in and were on our way to our room with all of Olivia’s DCP belongings in tow. It was more comical because we actually couldn’t find our room. POFQ lobby:

Room pictures:

We then went down to Sassagoula food court for a late dinner that wasn’t very great (I think Olivia just had dessert, I had the veggie burger that was so terrible I didn’t want a picture reminder of it).

After dinner I called home while Olivia chased bunnies around the green space of the resort. These bunnies were so sweet and out every night.

I think we were in bed around midnight.

 

[SarahDisney]

Wow ... that drive sounds long and not so fun ... but you made it! And you have another 7+ months until you have to do the drive again.

 

[Glittercat]

Glad you made it! The drive does sound a bit on the stressful side. Hopefully the next one is smoother.
The pics of POFQ brought back memories as they look exactly how I remember them! I had a tough time finding non sweet veggie options there last time as well. I think one night we just settled for cheese pizza, but I don't like that to be our constant fallback option. Thankfully one trip across the water and there terrific dining options! Happy you both made it there safely!

 

[Mrs T 2009]

What an eventful drive!
Glad you guys made it there safe, though!

Can't wait to hear more!

And yes, I found you on instagram.

 

[stacy~**]

Wow ... that drive sounds long and not so fun ... but you made it! And you have another 7+ months until you have to do the drive again.

At least nothing went truly wrong so I guess I should be thankful for that. And I do plan and having Olivia do a bit of the driving on the way home in January!

Glad you made it! The drive does sound a bit on the stressful side. Hopefully the next one is smoother.
The pics of POFQ brought back memories as they look exactly how I remember them! I had a tough time finding non sweet veggie options there last time as well. I think one night we just settled for cheese pizza, but I don't like that to be our constant fallback option. Thankfully one trip across the water and there terrific dining options! Happy you both made it there safely!

All things considered (and now that it's over...) I guess I can say it wasn't so bad and could have been worse.

POFQ was just how I remembered it from our last stay there in 2007. And not in a bad way, it was really a pleasant surprise. Since we have mostly stayed at deluxe resort since then I wondered how I will feel about it and I was very pleasant. I am a HUGE fan of having a balcony and that was truly all that was missing for me.

I ate a lot of pizza on this trip. I love pizza and it was even a lot for me. Haha!

What an eventful drive!
Glad you guys made it there safe, though!

Can't wait to hear more!

And yes, I found you on instagram.

Thanks! You have no idea the relief I felt when we crossed over on to property!

I was 95% sure that was you on Instagram. I just sent you a follow back request and I hope to see lots of picture from your upcoming trip!

Hoping to do another update tomorrow. I am 58 days out on our trip in July and need to start focusing on that so I want to get this little mini-TR done as quickly as possible.