The July (2010) Plan needs Pixie Dust: DVC, Minivan & Twins Included

[NikkiLovesWDW!]

Oh poor Piglet! I feel like that area was just done a few years ago.

It is sad when they change things but it has to be done. That's what Walt wanted......

The girls' top 5 lists are so cute!

 

[Marshay]

Thanks for posting the piglet picture! We always stop at that playground, so my daughters will miss it for sure, but I can't wait to see the new Fantasyland!

I agree with your daughter's ride choices!! Hoping to add some of the thrill rides for my older daughter this year.

 

[disneydreamingdebby]

That picture of Piglet is so sad!! I hate to see change sometime, I wish they could just add on with taking away.

We are going to try 1900 Park Fare for breakfast this July - I am really glad to hear the good review about it! So far, Crystal Palace had been favorite - I am anxious to see how it compares.

We ate at CP for lunch. I do want to plan a breakfast there sometime to be on Main Street essentially alone. Oddly, when we were in Disney in Aug 2008, I have a pic of my girls with the castle and a main street vehicle and no crowd. It was the last day of our trip and we went early to Toontown. On our way back out of the park, it was soooo hot but not crowded. (It had rained for most of the trip.)

I know what you mean - we just have to have Stacy on the TV at the resort!! She is part of the Disney experience!! We lucked out in March, even though we were staying off-site at the Buena Vista Suites - they had a "Stacy" channel because they are considered a "good neighbor hotel".

It is odd that I can listen to her say the same thing a hundred times. DH asked "Who is Stacey?" I guess he doesn't think she is that important to the Disney experience. haha

hey, enjoyed your updates, cool gift for the 2 boys, i'd love to make a t shirt but making the countdown calendar wassuch a production!

I loved sweet valley!!! read them all, elementary, middle school, high school some uni and then some new versions of high school! we have three sets of twins in our dancing, so different from just regular brothers and sisters, the sisters I know love to see each other doing well but hate being beat by the other sister too, complicated!

i'm with emma on the best rides at Disney list, really can't wait! loved all the pictures too, the one of Sci-Fi looked so big, although I've been before but can't remember all the details, our next visit is in about 57 days! saw a portion of the onion rings on someones trip report...mmm!

T-shirts are easy enough - print the graphic on transfer paper and iron - no chance of ceiling splatter!

It will be neat to see if my daughters enjoy SVH. I'm glad to hear that there are more titles!

I think I will have to pay attention to more details this trip. I think I've overlooked way too many on past trips.

The girls made great choices. We always have to watch Stacy in our room too!

Thanks! I wonder if Stacey knows how important she is to us? I will have to see if there is a facebook group!

Oh poor Piglet! I feel like that area was just done a few years ago.

It is sad when they change things but it has to be done. That's what Walt wanted......

The girls' top 5 lists are so cute!

I'm not attached to any of the changes being made. I thought it was genius of someone to take that picture under the "great wall of Disney." Pooh does look frightened!

Thanks for posting the piglet picture! We always stop at that playground, so my daughters will miss it for sure, but I can't wait to see the new Fantasyland!

I agree with your daughter's ride choices!! Hoping to add some of the thrill rides for my older daughter this year.

My girls (7 last time) are a little older so the play spot was not a hit. (They are tall--so it was a combo of things being small and them thinking they were too old.)

Is Rachel a daredevil? My girls were 6-1/2 for our first trip. They did all of the thrill rides. Crazy enough it was Dinosaur and Tough to be a bug that freaked them out! It seems that the height restrictions are pretty permissive for rides that I would think would need to be taller.

 

[disneydreamingdebby]

Day 5 -

Check out of Jambo and into (for the first time) BCV -our home resort!

This is an early day for HS and a late night for MK. There is a chance we will go over to HS for the first two hours, head back to the resort to check out, then drive over to BCV. OR We could check out AKV and drive to the Studios... I think this will have to depend on how exhausted we are.

Regardless of the AM decisions, the mid-morning plan is to hang out at Storm-a-long bay. We will be visiting Hurricane Hanna's for a bite to eat and a photo op for my Hannah. When our room is ready we can check in and have some down time before our Cape May Cafe Buffet! After dinner, we will head over to MK.

I think I tend to start our touring plan in Frontierland. Tonight, I think we will head over to Tomorrowland for some SM, some Buzz Space Ranger Spin, Monsters, Inc (where I will text in some jokes provided by my eight year olds- like "what did one eye say to the other?" "something between us smells" Now, I am trusting that none of my May, June or July peeps use that before our trip!

Then, we will move over to the Indy Speedway, head over to the Carrousel, a little Philharmagic, Tea Cups (I'll sit out!), Barnstormer, and tour of Toontown.

Plenty of time left in the evening, time to head to Liberty Square: Hall of Presidents, Haunted Mansion...

Adventureland to Pirates and maybe a tour of Swiss Family Treehouse.

Did I hit everything again, yet...I know. I know. I have not, but I love that I do try. I can only imagine that the heat and the crowds will certainly change our plans. I like doing this though. It allows me to visualize the parks as I am writing.

 

[Marshay]

My girls (7 last time) are a little older so the play spot was not a hit. (They are tall--so it was a combo of things being small and them thinking they were too old.)

Is Rachel a daredevil? My girls were 6-1/2 for our first trip. They did all of the thrill rides. Crazy enough it was Dinosaur and Tough to be a bug that freaked them out! It seems that the height restrictions are pretty permissive for rides that I would think would need to be taller.

It's funny. Rachel is not a daredevil ... she is the contemplative child, not first to volunteer or make friends ... but she says, "I'm not scared of anything!" She will turn 5 on our trip and she says she wants to do Expedition Everest, Splash Mountain, Dinosaur, Kali River Rapids, Tough to be a Bug and maybe even "go upside down" on RnR or even try a dark coaster like Space Mtn but she thinks Tower of Terror she should do when she is 6!

When she was 3 years old, she loved Test Track and Soarin. At 4 she did BTMR (1x -- that was enough mommy, I'll go again next time) and Mission Space (non-spinning -- a favorite). So we'll see...

I really want her to be a daredevil b/c I love all the thrill rides ... so I got to remember to let her do them at her pace...

 

[disneydreamingdebby]

I really want her to be a daredevil b/c I love all the thrill rides ... so I got to remember to let her do them at her pace...

I think it is key to let her choose. I was shocked that my girls weren't afraid to do TOT. I kept asking "are you sure?" knowing they would say yes. Right before we went into the preshow library, I asked "are you sure?" and my daughter said, "no, I don't want to do it." DH looked at me "Really? you just had to keep asking..." I picked her up and down played it and said, "it's too late. Let's just do it." She kept her eyes closed for the better part of the ride, but loved it. (The ride before the drop is scary with ghosts and loud noises.)

When I was about 12 and we went as a family, my dad made me do Space Mountain. That is about the only part of the entire vacation that I remember. If he hadn't done that, I might not remember any of the vacation.

 

[Marshay]

I think it is key to let her choose. I was shocked that my girls weren't afraid to do TOT. I kept asking "are you sure?" knowing they would say yes. Right before we went into the preshow library, I asked "are you sure?" and my daughter said, "no, I don't want to do it." DH looked at me "Really? you just had to keep asking..." I picked her up and down played it and said, "it's too late. Let's just do it." She kept her eyes closed for the better part of the ride, but loved it. (The ride before the drop is scary with ghosts and loud noises.)

When I was about 12 and we went as a family, my dad made me do Space Mountain. That is about the only part of the entire vacation that I remember. If he hadn't done that, I might not remember any of the vacation.

Yeah, I think if she volunteers to go on one of the new thrill rides, I'm just not going to question it

My first "forced to go on ride" was the Super Duper Looper at Hersheypark -- the first time for me to go on a "big" roller coaster and it went upside down. My dad dragged my sister (2 years older) and I on the ride ... said we would like it. My sister starts bawling and he lets her go back to mom. But he won't let me go back to mom. (I found out later HE wanted to try it but was scared to go on it by HIMSELF!!) So we go on it. Guess what? I loved it and from then on wanted to do the wild rides.

He hated it!

Justice served!

 

[disneydreamingdebby]

He hated it!

Justice served!

I think my daughters paid my dad back pretty well. They took him on the Zipper at a fair. (He didn't realize what it did when he went on it. That is the first thing I want to know before I step on a ride. I wasn't there, but if I was I really would have warned him...)

 

[disneydreamingdebby]

As if Stormalong Bay isn't entertainment enough...I found a recreation activities calendar online. I stumbled upon it, actually. When I searched for one before, I could not find one anywhere! Unfortunately, it has copyright info declaring that it is not to be reproduced. (As an English teacher, I really can't plead ignorance.) It will allow me to post a link, so if you are interested in seeing the document click here. Here are some of the activities that might be of interest to my family. Also, it is from August, but I don't know which August.

Weekdays
-Bucket Brigade 4:30-5:00 - teamwork in a water race...
-Water Volleyball 6:00-7:00
-Movie under the Stars 9:00

Saturday
Bingo 3:45-5:00 $1 a card...prizes!! DH loves Bingo night at my daughter's school.

 

[disneydreamingdebby]

Last night my little angels wanted to create Disney planning books like mine. I didn't have enough of the divider tabs that I used to create sections for their notebooks, but we did have stickies. Since they didn't want to wait until I bought more section tabs, and they wanted the same sections as mine, we used the post-it dividers.

This morning, Emma brought her planner in the car to add to it (our commute is 5 min.) This afternoon, Emma was busy writing. She wants to have the same information in it as mine.

They are getting very excited about our trip - which is a relief since this Disney will be our vacation destination for many, many years.





Really though, this obsession of mine with Disney (which so many of you are quite familiar with ) is not really socially acceptable. I must need new friends! So, am I a bad mom since my kids are beginning to be obsessive too?

53 days

 

[disneydreamingdebby]

My SIL and her husband flew in for a family wedding this weekend. The wedding was Sunday, so we had time Saturday to visit. As my daughters don't do sitting around visiting well, I thought a trip to the zoo was in order.

First, I have to talk about our membership. We have a family plus membership which means DH, girls and I plus two guests have admission. Parking is free for members and everyone can do the extras for free. (paddle boats, train, camel rides...) This membership tickles me every time. We don't use it nearly enough. However, when we do it tickles me to have a free visit! (If we go more than once, the membership is paid for. Adults 18 x 3 = $54; 15 x2= $30; $12; (paddle boats $30); (zoo balloon $75); (Camel rides ~$6) I think our membership costs $170, but prices have gone up since last year.

As we drove to the zoo; about 40 minutes for us, the sky was threatening. About half way into the drive, the rain began. I figured if the zoo closed, we could head over to the Franklin Institute (we have a membership to a reciprocal museum.) Throughout our visit the rain showers came and went multiple times. (If only I had thought to bring ponchos from my Disney stock...)

We had a fun time, but I found that I did make multiple Disney connections! We were looking at the bats, and I had to share about the HUGE bats at Animal Kingdom that don’t fly into the open room because of their wingspan.

At the Zebra trail, I made sure to tell my SIL and BIL all about Savannah views at Animal Kingdom Lodge.

When my BIL demonstrated excitement about the polar bear made out of Legos, I had to tell him about the Lego serpent and Lego tourists at Downtown Disney!

Of course, with the weather anything but clear, the Zoo Balloon was grounded. I couldn’t help but dream about Downtown Disney’s balloon and how I heard on more than one podcast how people haven’t been able to ride because of the weather. (I didn’t mention this to anyone; my other references were already inching to the danger area on the Debby’s-obsession- is-not-normal meter. )

As we walked past the bird house, I thought longingly of Flights of Wonder. When I stopped in the gift shop, I saw souvenirs that could have just as easily read WDW instead of Phila. Zoo! As I went through my park bag to …oh wait…my backpack…to get my map, I reminded myself that I have to determine exactly where to put things as to not keep going through every pocket.

Our weekend did not end with Disney dreaming at the zoo. The next day we headed to Dover, DE for a cousin’s wedding. Test run before our drive to Disney—okay 90 min verses 15 hours… comfy clothes for the ride back, snacks, activities, blankets, okay, mini test run. The reception was at Dover Downs. I couldn’t help but dream of Disney just a little more when the ladies room was so similar to the Grand Floridian!

Needless to say, we had a great time at the zoo and a fun time at the wedding. I think my little Disney moments are just that, and it is nice to find a little pixie dust at places besides Disney.ixiedust:

 

[taymacsmom]

OMG!! I am not alone. I find myself doing the same things. Nothing compares to Disney. We went to the Philadelphia Zoo a few years ago and loved it. DH grew up in Philly and keeps talking about taking the kids to the Franklin Institute. Gotta find the time between Disney trips.

 

[belle8306]

It sounds like you had a nice weekend. It is funny how Disney connections can be made anywhere. Sometimes I can hear a certain song and it takes me right back there.

 

[irishdancer86]

That's cool the girls are getting into the Disney planning! the update on the 5 minute commute!

totally know what you mean on the constantly finding disney references in EVERYTHING! were your in-laws slightly taken aback or were they up to speed with your Disney-mania?! My aunt thinks me and my mum are crazy for all our disney researcgh , especially when i gave her a page reference from UG in response to a Disney query!

 

[disneydreamingdebby]

OMG!! I am not alone. I find myself doing the same things. Nothing compares to Disney. We went to the Philadelphia Zoo a few years ago and loved it. DH grew up in Philly and keeps talking about taking the kids to the Franklin Institute. Gotta find the time between Disney trips.

Nope, you are not alone!!! There is a family membership offer for FI right now - check out this link:
http://www.savvysource.com/event/home_philadelphia_pa/referrerCode=SPB2 - you have a day to act on the offer. It is $50 for the family - 2 adults up to four kids for a year. You would have to redeem in by end of Aug. so if you are planning to visit this summer.... Also, the Cleopatra exhibit is coming and I think you get free passes. The museum has reciprocal museums so you might be able to use it in CT!

It sounds like you had a nice weekend. It is funny how Disney connections can be made anywhere. Sometimes I can hear a certain song and it takes me right back there.

We did have a nice weekend. Your trip is so soon. Are you bouncing off the walls!

That's cool the girls are getting into the Disney planning! the update on the 5 minute commute!

totally know what you mean on the constantly finding disney references in EVERYTHING! were your in-laws slightly taken aback or were they up to speed with your Disney-mania?! My aunt thinks me and my mum are crazy for all our disney researcgh , especially when i gave her a page reference from UG in response to a Disney query!

I think both sides of the family know about my love of Disney - they don't, however, know exactly how obsession I am.

Quoting a UG page is pretty awesome!

 

[disneydreamingdebby]

Happy Memorial Day Weekend! (Insert applause here for all of those who do and have served! ) I have two weeks and three days of school left! Once I make it through these weeks (I have my students completing a research paper and reading a novel...I really misjudged time this year, I can really focus on Disney preparations...as if I don't already think about and completely obsess enough now.

I figured for this update, I would share how I fit a little Disney in each day.

Each morning, I put on my new Mickey watch. I was wearing DH's four parks Mickey watch, but the strap was black. I really wanted to get a white watchband; I was so excited when I found this one with Mickey and the "bling" around the bezel. (I spied one on Disney.com for $80 and when I finally decided I was okay with the price, it was no longer available!) So for the low price of $20; I picked this one up at the store after ordering on sears.com

The other daily way that I incorporate Disney is through my mugs. We bought these in the World. I use one every day. Unfortunately, my Mickey one shattered on the kitchen floor. I hope that I can replace it in July.

Lastly, of course is our countdown calendar. I showed it before, but I really like that I sprayed it black. It is a daily Disney reminder, so here it is again...

It reads 43 days...but we currently have 41 until we leave!

I also listen to podcasts to and from school and while I run any errands. While I work on my computer I listen to WDW stations on live 365.

How do fit Disney in while you are at home????

And, now for the question of the day...do all of you look for those little emoticons when you are typing an email?? Ugh! I think in emoticons!

 

[belle8306]

Very cute watch! I think that Disney is incorporated in more of my daily life than I realize. I have Disney earrings and a watch. My screen saver is pictures from Disney trips and my computer wallpaper is Disney. We have Disney mugs. I listen to the podcasts and Disney music. I have Disney music that I use in my classroom. I love finding small ways to bring Disney home. It makes the time between trips go faster.

 

[tinkerbell60]

I really like your mugs and your watch! I have a Disney watch too, and I LOVE Live 365. I just bought mugs when we were there in March - they have silhouettes of the characters. I have the Mickey/Minnie, Pooh and Piglet, and the Peter Pan. I think there is one more, that I will probably get this summer.
I am on the Disboards daily too - that helps me keep the Disney spirit!

 

[taymacsmom]

I do the same things with the mugs! I get a new one everytime we go. If I knew how to post pictures, I would do it but I am not so technically saavy. Our schools around here do not let out for 3 weeks from today. I cannot wait for my kids to be done.

HAPPY MEMORIAL DAY!

 

[disneydreamingdebby]

Very cute watch! I think that Disney is incorporated in more of my daily life than I realize. I have Disney earrings and a watch. My screen saver is pictures from Disney trips and my computer wallpaper is Disney. We have Disney mugs. I listen to the podcasts and Disney music. I have Disney music that I use in my classroom. I love finding small ways to bring Disney home. It makes the time between trips go faster.

I have a disney background, but a boring Windows screensaver..sounds like a summer project while counting down the days.

I really like your mugs and your watch! I have a Disney watch too, and I LOVE Live 365. I just bought mugs when we were there in March - they have silhouettes of the characters. I have the Mickey/Minnie, Pooh and Piglet, and the Peter Pan. I think there is one more, that I will probably get this summer.
I am on the Disboards daily too - that helps me keep the Disney spirit!

I am on the Disboards way too often! You will have to get the other mug or you will probably regret it.

I do the same things with the mugs! I get a new one everytime we go. If I knew how to post pictures, I would do it but I am not so technically saavy. Our schools around here do not let out for 3 weeks from today. I cannot wait for my kids to be done.

HAPPY MEMORIAL DAY!

Sorry that you have a bit of a wait for summer fun!! Here is info to help you with the photo posting