2006 Mommy & Daddy Only WDW Vacation Trip Report (PRE-TRIP & BACKGROUND INFO)
CAST:
Me (Total Disney Freak since way back yonder or a coons age whichever you prefer):
Paul
37 years old
IT Project Manager for Thrivent Financial
Something you didnt know: Anything illegal I might do within 60 days of a WDW vacation should technically be dismissed due to temporary insanity
Favorite drinks: Rum and just about anything and/or Jack Daniels and something clear and/or Canadian whiskey and something clear and/or okay, so I pretty much enjoy any type of liquid libation EXCEPT tequila, gin and Southern Comfort (all high on the icky meter [SHUDDER])
DW (Shes called a dame because she is too classy to be a broad):
Michelle
35 years old
Physical Therapist Assistant for Oneida Tribe of Nations
Something you didnt know: Has learned to tolerate (or ignore?) my Disney OCD and love of Rat Pack music
Favorite drinks: Tanqueray and Tonic and/or Bombay Sapphire and Tonic (notice the top shelf requirements again, more credence to the Dame vs. Broad debate)
DD (Dame-in-Training):
Allyson
11 years old
An astoundingly good student and daughter
Something you didnt know: SHES NOT COMING ON THIS TRIP
Favorite drinks: Orange juice and/or Code Red Mountain Dew
PREVIOUS WDW TRIPS:
1995 = Dixie Landings
1998 = Caribbean Beach Resort
2000 = Disney Institute (for business ha, ha, ha, ha)
2001 = All Star Movies with DD
2002 = All Star Movies with DD
2003 = Offsite Rental House
2004 = Offsite Rental House in Feb.
Offsite Rental House in Dec. with DD
BACKGROUND:
Not that anyone really needs a reason to go to WDW .
Okay, so it was sometime in July, 2005 and the odds of us getting back to WDW in 2005 or 2006 were not looking good. During the past few years, we have taken our annual sans-daughter trip with a group of friends for drinking, tanning, drinking, relaxation and drinking. These past trips had revolved around a rental house that our friends owned in Kissimmee. Without checking with us first to see if it was okay, these friends up and sold the house to cash in on the insane upsurge in real estate values in Florida. The selfish *******s!!!
So, plans were circulating amongst our group for a replacement trip to Cancun or other Mexican location. However, in October, 2005, Hurricane Wilma ripped through the Cancun/Cozumel area and the group trip started falling apart. Living by the motto of Seize The Future, Michelle and I immediately began to scheme a way to do something we havent done in 5 years go to WDW by ourselves.
Faster than the launch mechanism of the Rock and Roller Coaster, I blocked a week in my calendar at work for January 6th through the 13th, called Midwest Airlines to book 2 tickets from Milwaukee to Orlando (had enough FreqFlyer miles for a free companion seat for Michelle..woo-hoo!!), logged onto the WDW website to secure a Pop Century Resort room with 5 day MYW-Hopper Option tickets, and signed up for DME. All that was left was to deliver the bad news to our group of friends. Well bad for them good for us.
I think our friends are still a little disappointed in our withdrawal from the annual Escape the cold and drink!!! festivities for 2006, but they more than understood when we reminded them of our 5 year drought of alone time at WDW. Theres always next year!!!
THE PLAN:
It is now January 2nd, 2006 and after surviving the coldest and wettest Wisconsin December in recent memory, all of the snow is gone, replaced by an annoying freezing drizzle and fog. Ahh Wisconsin weather its craptastic!!!
The Disney OCD has REALLY kicked in now. Ive got about 4 different lists working, the bags have been packed for the past 3 days, I bought little bottles of booze for the room, put them in the already packed carry-on, and I cant seem to fall asleep real well lately.
You dont really care about all this do you? Alright, I guess I dont blame you so heres the pre-trip daily plan:
Thursday, January 5th, 2006:
- Try to look busy at work whilst staring at the clock tick, tick, tick, tick .
- Kiss and hug Ally to near death before dropping her off at Michelles parents and drop off the sweetest Golden Retriever that ever lived at the kennel
- Drive to Milwaukee and check-in at Four Points Sheraton (Sleep, Park n Fly Package)
- Have a relaxing drink to end the day at: TBD
Friday, January 6th, 2006:
- Wake up at 5am to get ready, catch the shuttle to the airport, check-in with Midwest, and wait until our 7:30am departure
- Arrive in Orlando at 11:05am and proceed to the DME for check-in
- DME to Pop Century
- Check-in at Pop Century and hopefully get our room
- Head to Downtown Disney for walking around, shopping, people watching and drinks
- Have a relaxing drink to end the day at: TBD
Saturday, January 7th, 2006:
- Magic Kingdom Day
- Have a relaxing drink to end the day at: TBD
Sunday, January 8th, 2006:
- EPCOT Day (I know its Marathon day but we gotta catch TT before it goes into rehab on Monday)
- Lunch at Beaches & Cream
- Have a relaxing drink to end the day at: TBD
Monday, January 9th, 2006:
- Disney Studios Day
- PS/ADR at SciFi for lunch
- Take advantage of EMH evening???
- Have a relaxing drink to end the day at: TBD
Tuesday, January 10th, 2006:
- Relaxation Day
- Blizzard Beach if the weather is nice, otherwise resort hopping and lounging
- PS/ADR at Yachtsmans Steakhouse for dinner
- Have a relaxing drink to end the day at: TBD
Wednesday, January 11th, 2006:
- Animal Kingdom Day
- Take advantage of EMH evening???
- Have a relaxing drink to end the day at: TBD
Thursday, January 12th, 2006:
- Park Clean-Up Day starting with Magic Kingdom EMH morning
- Park hop and ride our favorites
- Downtown Disney for shopping
- PS/ADR at Planet Hollywood for dinner (free meal voucher...love the free stuff)
- Pack everything up
- Have a relaxing drink to end the day at: TBD
Friday, January 13th, 2006:
- DME to airport for 11:45am departure
- Arrive in Milwaukee at 1:30pm
- Drive to Green Bay
FINAL PRE-TRIP THOUGHTS/GOALS:
So we are only 3 days out at this point. The weather in Orlando is looking pretty chilly for the first couple of days. Okay, so thats all relative. 58 degrees with sun in Orlando is still a whole lot better than 24 degrees with snow in Green Bay. Ill probably have to pack jeans and some sweatshirts for the first couple of days, but once it hits 65 degrees, the shorts are on. Dont worry, Ive been fake baking so the bloated white carcass that is my body will not shock small children into years of psychiatric treatment.
Also, we have the following overall goals for this trip:
1. Relax
2. Take a leisurely pace through the parks
3. Take time to sit and people watch more
4. Find a new bar every night to sip a few adult beverages before retiring for the evening
Lets hope it all works out as planned, or in the alternative, that we can let the little annoyances melt away.
CAST:
Me (Total Disney Freak since way back yonder or a coons age whichever you prefer):
Paul
37 years old
IT Project Manager for Thrivent Financial
Something you didnt know: Anything illegal I might do within 60 days of a WDW vacation should technically be dismissed due to temporary insanity
Favorite drinks: Rum and just about anything and/or Jack Daniels and something clear and/or Canadian whiskey and something clear and/or okay, so I pretty much enjoy any type of liquid libation EXCEPT tequila, gin and Southern Comfort (all high on the icky meter [SHUDDER])
DW (Shes called a dame because she is too classy to be a broad):
Michelle
35 years old
Physical Therapist Assistant for Oneida Tribe of Nations
Something you didnt know: Has learned to tolerate (or ignore?) my Disney OCD and love of Rat Pack music
Favorite drinks: Tanqueray and Tonic and/or Bombay Sapphire and Tonic (notice the top shelf requirements again, more credence to the Dame vs. Broad debate)
DD (Dame-in-Training):
Allyson
11 years old
An astoundingly good student and daughter
Something you didnt know: SHES NOT COMING ON THIS TRIP
Favorite drinks: Orange juice and/or Code Red Mountain Dew
PREVIOUS WDW TRIPS:
1995 = Dixie Landings
1998 = Caribbean Beach Resort
2000 = Disney Institute (for business ha, ha, ha, ha)
2001 = All Star Movies with DD
2002 = All Star Movies with DD
2003 = Offsite Rental House
2004 = Offsite Rental House in Feb.
Offsite Rental House in Dec. with DD
BACKGROUND:
Not that anyone really needs a reason to go to WDW .
Okay, so it was sometime in July, 2005 and the odds of us getting back to WDW in 2005 or 2006 were not looking good. During the past few years, we have taken our annual sans-daughter trip with a group of friends for drinking, tanning, drinking, relaxation and drinking. These past trips had revolved around a rental house that our friends owned in Kissimmee. Without checking with us first to see if it was okay, these friends up and sold the house to cash in on the insane upsurge in real estate values in Florida. The selfish *******s!!!
So, plans were circulating amongst our group for a replacement trip to Cancun or other Mexican location. However, in October, 2005, Hurricane Wilma ripped through the Cancun/Cozumel area and the group trip started falling apart. Living by the motto of Seize The Future, Michelle and I immediately began to scheme a way to do something we havent done in 5 years go to WDW by ourselves.
Faster than the launch mechanism of the Rock and Roller Coaster, I blocked a week in my calendar at work for January 6th through the 13th, called Midwest Airlines to book 2 tickets from Milwaukee to Orlando (had enough FreqFlyer miles for a free companion seat for Michelle..woo-hoo!!), logged onto the WDW website to secure a Pop Century Resort room with 5 day MYW-Hopper Option tickets, and signed up for DME. All that was left was to deliver the bad news to our group of friends. Well bad for them good for us.
I think our friends are still a little disappointed in our withdrawal from the annual Escape the cold and drink!!! festivities for 2006, but they more than understood when we reminded them of our 5 year drought of alone time at WDW. Theres always next year!!!
THE PLAN:
It is now January 2nd, 2006 and after surviving the coldest and wettest Wisconsin December in recent memory, all of the snow is gone, replaced by an annoying freezing drizzle and fog. Ahh Wisconsin weather its craptastic!!!
The Disney OCD has REALLY kicked in now. Ive got about 4 different lists working, the bags have been packed for the past 3 days, I bought little bottles of booze for the room, put them in the already packed carry-on, and I cant seem to fall asleep real well lately.
You dont really care about all this do you? Alright, I guess I dont blame you so heres the pre-trip daily plan:
Thursday, January 5th, 2006:
- Try to look busy at work whilst staring at the clock tick, tick, tick, tick .
- Kiss and hug Ally to near death before dropping her off at Michelles parents and drop off the sweetest Golden Retriever that ever lived at the kennel
- Drive to Milwaukee and check-in at Four Points Sheraton (Sleep, Park n Fly Package)
- Have a relaxing drink to end the day at: TBD
Friday, January 6th, 2006:
- Wake up at 5am to get ready, catch the shuttle to the airport, check-in with Midwest, and wait until our 7:30am departure
- Arrive in Orlando at 11:05am and proceed to the DME for check-in
- DME to Pop Century
- Check-in at Pop Century and hopefully get our room
- Head to Downtown Disney for walking around, shopping, people watching and drinks
- Have a relaxing drink to end the day at: TBD
Saturday, January 7th, 2006:
- Magic Kingdom Day
- Have a relaxing drink to end the day at: TBD
Sunday, January 8th, 2006:
- EPCOT Day (I know its Marathon day but we gotta catch TT before it goes into rehab on Monday)
- Lunch at Beaches & Cream
- Have a relaxing drink to end the day at: TBD
Monday, January 9th, 2006:
- Disney Studios Day
- PS/ADR at SciFi for lunch
- Take advantage of EMH evening???
- Have a relaxing drink to end the day at: TBD
Tuesday, January 10th, 2006:
- Relaxation Day
- Blizzard Beach if the weather is nice, otherwise resort hopping and lounging
- PS/ADR at Yachtsmans Steakhouse for dinner
- Have a relaxing drink to end the day at: TBD
Wednesday, January 11th, 2006:
- Animal Kingdom Day
- Take advantage of EMH evening???
- Have a relaxing drink to end the day at: TBD
Thursday, January 12th, 2006:
- Park Clean-Up Day starting with Magic Kingdom EMH morning
- Park hop and ride our favorites
- Downtown Disney for shopping
- PS/ADR at Planet Hollywood for dinner (free meal voucher...love the free stuff)
- Pack everything up
- Have a relaxing drink to end the day at: TBD
Friday, January 13th, 2006:
- DME to airport for 11:45am departure
- Arrive in Milwaukee at 1:30pm
- Drive to Green Bay
FINAL PRE-TRIP THOUGHTS/GOALS:
So we are only 3 days out at this point. The weather in Orlando is looking pretty chilly for the first couple of days. Okay, so thats all relative. 58 degrees with sun in Orlando is still a whole lot better than 24 degrees with snow in Green Bay. Ill probably have to pack jeans and some sweatshirts for the first couple of days, but once it hits 65 degrees, the shorts are on. Dont worry, Ive been fake baking so the bloated white carcass that is my body will not shock small children into years of psychiatric treatment.
Also, we have the following overall goals for this trip:
1. Relax
2. Take a leisurely pace through the parks
3. Take time to sit and people watch more
4. Find a new bar every night to sip a few adult beverages before retiring for the evening
Lets hope it all works out as planned, or in the alternative, that we can let the little annoyances melt away.