08 DEC 2007 - 7 Day Eastern Magic Part 2

[TheTXTaylors5]

That sounds good Bill. I've got a project scheduled to Go-Live on the 8th, and we're on track, the only project in our group that is on schedule with dates the business dictated to us. I can't wait until it's done, my boss owes me a lot of comp time for all the hours I've put in.

Yeah, it seems like around here the projects are never ending. It is just degrees of projects.

- Bill

 

[TheTXTaylors5]

Let me try:

1) Yes, varies by property. We own 2 properties. VWL and BCV

2) Just the booking time. We love OKW, but own elsewhere and the last 2 years have not been able to get into OKW the first week in Dec at the 7 months mark. Year before last we did get a 1 bdrm there by waitlisting, but not last year. We did not know about "Buying where you want to stay" when we bought.

3) Our dues have not varied much, just a few dollars. We have been members since Jan 2002.

4) The DVC Member cruise is not cheaper for members....it is ONLY for members (or a member that books for you). We went on the first Members only cruise 2003 and it was wonderful!


Using points is not cost effective they tell us. "They" say to rent your points and use the $$ to pay for a cruise. We really like the ease of using them to cruise though. We pay for some cruises, use points for some. We have never rented our points...we are in point debt for next year! We need more points! When you cruise with points and rebook with points within 3 days of getting off the cruise you get a point discount of 10%. We have done that twice.

Very good info. Thanks Angie!

- Bill

 

[TheTXTaylors5]

I know you didn't ask me but I have a few answers for you.

Thank you! We appreciate any and all information when we are looking at someting like this. We are both pretty impulsive when it comes to buying, so it is good for us to have as much info as possible before we succumb to our "sickness".

- Bill

 

[MrsMork]

Yeah we keep going back and forth too. We thought we had our minds made up that we were NOT going to do it and the materials arrived and we are now talking ourselves into doing it. It sounds like a great deal on paper but with a family of 5, our options are limited as we wouldn't be able to stay in the Studios and that seems to be where you get the most bang for the buck. In fact, we would have to sign a special waiver to be able to even stay in the 1 bedroom villas and those take almost twice as many points as the Studios. Anyway, we'll see how convincing we are to ourselves in selling this.

- Bill

I think I heard that they were making some of the AKL villas for 5. Not sure where I think I heard this......

 

[TheTXTaylors5]

I think I heard that they were making some of the AKL villas for 5. Not sure where I think I heard this......

No, you are right. They will be the only property that claims their 1 bedroom villas will fit 5 although the sales rep said we could get a waiver and house 5 in any of their 1 bedrooms.

- Bill

 

[MrsMork]

Thank you! We appreciate any and all information when we are looking at someting like this. We are both pretty impulsive when it comes to buying, so it is good for us to have as much info as possible before we succumb to our "sickness".

- Bill

It is a big investment. It also is a second home and so part of your investment is tax deductible.....did we mention that? We also impulse shop ALOT and so completely understand. But, like Brack and Annette our only regret 5 years post purchase is that we did not buy sooner.

 

[TheTXTaylors5]

It is a big investment. It also is a second home and so part of your investment is tax deductible.....did we mention that? We also impulse shop ALOT and so completely understand. But, like Brack and Annette our only regret 5 years post purchase is that we did not buy sooner.

You are making the impulse meter swing in the red.



That is the same thing I said after my Lasik as my only regret was that I didn't do it sooner. Decisions...decisions

- Bill

 

[BethC1952]

OK, that's it, I guess I can't ever go to sleep again until after the cruise! It took me all morning to get caught up here! Of course, that's because I had to stop once in a while to do silly things like work...

My DH wasn't a "joiner" either, and he referred to DIS'ers as my "imaginary friends". However, he's the one that people recognize most often. He's very distinctive looking with the still bright-red beard! Once he started talking to people he realized that it's a lot of fun to already "know" some of the people he's going to be cruising or vacationing with, and now he looks forward to the meets. I still can't get him to post on the boards, though! I'm on the Cruise Board (obviously!), the Theme Park Board, the Resorts Board and the Camping Board.

We're also thinking about DVC, but we'll be buying in with "The Kids" if we do it. They're planning on checking it out while we're at WDW in December, and then we'll compare notes on our thoughts. We, too, will be a group of five (hopefully six, we'll know next week). That means we'll always need larger accommodations.

DH and I love shopping--not necessarily buying, just shopping! We like seeing what stores in different areas offer. I had a great time in San Antonio at the mall (is it called Riverwalk?). I enjoyed shopping at Dillard's in Cincinnati--that was the best part of my stay there! Of course, there's always WalMart and Target! Grocery stores are fun, too. I had a great time at Wynn-Dixie in Jacksonville with my SIL last spring. Lots of people think DH and I are just a little too easily amused!

We don't watch much TV, but we're both hooked on "Law and Order", "ER" and "Boston Legal". When we watch TV, it's usually something on HGTV, or the Food Network or something about travel or history. I think it's because DGD is home-schooled. We're always looking for something to expand her learning!

OK, it's back to work now. I'll be back later!

Beth

 

[plutojudy]

My five favorite movies:

SUMMER RENTAL
GREAT OUTDOORS
WEEKEND AT BERNIES
WHERE THE BOYS ARE
A SUMMER PLACE

fav Disney:
LILO & STITCH

 

[pfishgirl]

No work for me today !! They said I don't need to cover because they are sloooooow...

DS took his own car to school so he didn't need to wait for the bus home after Vocts.. It is a 20 minutes ride from Vocts to the High School then he sits in the cafeteria for 25 minutes doing nothing with a few other people from Vocts who is doesn't really talk to and watches the clock until he can get the bus home.. That's why I pick him up from Vocts when I don't work or he takes his own car now on days I can't cause he can leave from the HS after he returns from Vocts.. He has no classes to attend after Vocts.

Spoke with DH and he too has Free time today so we are going to Lunch at Atlanta Bread.. It's a Soup, Salad, Sandwhich, Bakery shop and very yummy... Looks like I'll be bringing home a freshed baked Raisin Bread

 

[Cruise]

They also have podcasts on the DCL website, which helps to get the excitement level up. Also remind him about the margarita/tequila tasting, and you can always dangle an "Exotic Rasul" carrot in front of him....

What part of SoCal are you in? I grew up in Irvine. My DB lives in Orange, and my DSis is in Mission Viejo. They'll also be coming on the cruise.

If I told him I wanted to put mud on him, he'd look at me like I was insane. We did do the martini tasting last time we were on the cruise. We looked through the navigator and saw it listed for $5 and thought We went in and the bartender said they'd had a lot of people coming in because they'd misprinted the charge. It was supposed to be $15. But because of the misprint, he gave it to us for the $5! We only did the one tasting, but I was still wobbly going out of there.

And we're in West LA. We've been here about 3 years now and we still haven't gone to Disneyland We're horrible DISers.

 

[plutojudy]

My favorite TV show is reruns is

EVERYBODY LOVES RAYMOND

 

[plutojudy]

Phew, I finally got caught up. Between the weekend and a bout with flu yesterday, I finally caught up. Hopefully I am through with sick for the rest of this year. Caught a cold on day 3 of my 11 day FL trip, then the flu after I am home.
You people are just too busy here.

 

[pfishgirl]

Phew, I finally got caught up. Between the weekend and a bout with flu yesterday, I finally caught up. Hopefully I am through with sick for the rest of this year. Caught a cold on day 3 of my 11 day FL trip, then the flu after I am home.
You people are just too busy here.

I had the flu too.. I'm at the very end of it. Still a little cough and congestion.. but Nothing like what it was last week..

Glad you are feeling better

 

[TheTXTaylors5]

Phew, I finally got caught up. Between the weekend and a bout with flu yesterday, I finally caught up. Hopefully I am through with sick for the rest of this year. Caught a cold on day 3 of my 11 day FL trip, then the flu after I am home.
You people are just too busy here.

Look at the bright side...better now than December. Welcome back.

- Bill

 

[coastgirl]

DH and I love shopping--not necessarily buying, just shopping! We like seeing what stores in different areas offer. I had a great time in San Antonio at the mall (is it called Riverwalk?). I enjoyed shopping at Dillard's in Cincinnati--that was the best part of my stay there! Of course, there's always WalMart and Target! Grocery stores are fun, too. I had a great time at Wynn-Dixie in Jacksonville with my SIL last spring. Lots of people think DH and I are just a little too easily amused!

We don't watch much TV, but we're both hooked on "Law and Order", "ER" and "Boston Legal". When we watch TV, it's usually something on HGTV, or the Food Network or something about travel or history. I think it's because DGD is home-schooled. We're always looking for something to expand her learning!

Beth, first off, is that you and dh in your sig picture? B/c I thought you were still childless (seeing as you get to sit by yourselves at a table!), rather than grandparents! Must've been a child bride. (When we tell people we just celebrated our 20th and we have a 7 and 4 yo, I tell them I was a child bride. More a late bloomer, but my mom never actually turned 40, as I recall; she was always 39.)

Second, I thought I was the only one who went to grocery stores when travelling, for the heck of it. Dh and I always go to grocery stores when we travel, and places like whatever fills the niche of Wal mart. No window on a culture like their grocery store! I remember in England seeing all the ready-to-heat meals at Marks and Spencer. OMG, makes your average frozen food section look barren! (And make no wonder the English can't cook--they've forgotten how!) And who could resist checking out Piggly Wiggly when we were on a road trip in the South!!

Also a L&O fan, and someone tell me when the new season starts! I watched a new cop show called "Life" last week, and I think I liked it...

 

[pfishgirl]

OFF to meet DH for Lunch !!!

 

[BethC1952]

Coastgirl: Thanks for the compliment! Yes, that's us. This cruise is our 35th anniversary celebration. Our DS is 32, and the DGD is 7 1/2, and we're both on the far side of mid-fifties. The "1952" in my screen name is not a coincidence! The picture in my sig was taken at Palo during our last cruise (Nov., 2005), so there weren't any kids there anyway. We usually cruise at the beginning of December, but all of our other cruises were four-night cruises on Wonder. We missed last year because we moved, and it feels like forever since we've been on a cruise! We had a couple of childless years, but now share a very large house with DS, DDIL and DGD. The cruise portion of this vacation will be childless, but we will have spent the week before we sail in a tent at WDW with "The Kids", then two nights with just DGD at the Animal Kingdom Lodge. By the end of all that, we'll NEED the cruise to relax!

We actually started watching L & O after our Dec., 2004 cruise. Our dining partners were a wonderful couple from London, just a bit older than we are, and they got their views of American life from Law & Order and ER. Of course, we got our views of English life from the British mysteries that are always on A & E and from Harry Potter, so we had some very humorous conversations and some really fun dinners!

Beth

 

[JsMom2]

So JSMom2, I saw you posted that your DD was able to move to the 5-7 group at 4.5? DD will be 4.5 on our cruise, is extremely tall and is in Pre-K so is used to group settings. Looking at the activities, I think she would definitely have more fun with the older kids. I wonder if it will be a problem for her to do so. I just have to watch out for both Hook and Sparrow. Pirates really are not her cup of tea at all. No pirate party for us though we might watch the fireworks.

There really is a huge difference between a just-turned 3 year old, and a 4.5 year old. Just let them know that your DD would be more comfortable with the 5 year olds, and they'll work with you.

 

[JsMom2]

Use Brack and Annette (Dodd), don't use us - the Morkerts because we live in Oregon.

I gave DVC a call and used the Dodds as a referral. They are going to mail me some stuff. I am definitely interested!