2012? No Problem...but when?

[NiniMorris]

Well, today I am FINALLY going to get my machine to the shop. I don't like to drive ...I have complicated migraines. Stress has been known to bring them on. Anyone that knows Atlanta traffic knows driving in Atlanta can be very stressful! You put all that together, (along with the fact that I have been getting migraines a lot lately) and driving for an hour and half one way is not a great idea.

Hubby is off today, so we will take a trip to the other side of Atlanta. Mr D is happy, because that means he gets to eat lunch out!

The good news...I sold one of my baby quilts! I am so excited! They got a deal....It is half price...and when you consider the amount of time I put into it...it was priced low to start with!

Now I have a bit of extra cash to breathe a bit.

===========

My Disney plans for today did include putting the down payment on a trip with Nov/Dec dates, but now I have to wait to see if the machine is going to make itself available to purchase...('cause you KNOW they just wait around until I have no money to spend before they show up!).

I actually found a refurbished one for a little over $500. Reading their definition of refurbished gives me confidence that it is a good machine. Still am not 100% sure I want to buy vs fix the one I have... but I can't afford the one I really want, so those are my only options this year!

HOWEVER...next year you will be seeing me jump up and down, screaming all the way...as I have been promised the income tax refund will be MINE to get a new machine! (of course, as we all know, life happens and something all ways happens to get in the way.)

So...some good news...and a wee bit of Disney news... right?


Nini

 

[cogero]

Safe Travels Today Nini and I hope that things work out with the machine

 

[aboveH20]

===========

HOWEVER...next year you will be seeing me jump up and down, screaming all the way...as I have been promised the income tax refund will be MINE to get a new machine! (of course, as we all know, life happens and something all ways happens to get in the way.)

So...some good news...and a wee bit of Disney news... right?


Nini

<-----------helping with the jumping

 

[DMGeurts]

Yay that the tax $$ is yours! I hope you have a great trip today and it isn't too stressful for you. I also hope they are able to fix your machine - if they can't, due to the super glue - I would make sure they give you a GREAT deal on a new machine.



D~

 

[GrammytoMany]

Nini,
That nice that your DH will be able to drive you to the repair shop. I hope he is able to fix it..and if he can't I hope he compensates you...since he used super glue on your machine.

Nice news that you sold one of your quilts...always nice to have extra $ on hand. (One of my granddaughter's is looking over my shoulder and wanted to know if I could use the banana man in my 'e-mail' because she likes him. So I'll show her this message if it goes through. I keep getting messages that the server is busy.

Sheila

 

[NiniMorris]

No Disney news today.

But Bubba is now at the Spa.

I really wish the people at the Spa were nicer.

Or maybe if they just had better customer service.

I guess that is what happens when you have a captive audience!


When we dropped Bubba off, I was told I could not speak with the repairman because he was too busy. The woman filling out the form listened to me ramble for about 15 minutes with her eyes glazed over and wrote down..."tension". Oh well!

Then I spied my husband giving the Super Big Boy Bubba the eye. The sales lady was not the friendliest in the world. Considering that my family, the sales lady, the lady that wrote tension and the repairman were the ONLY people in the store, you would have thought they would be more chatty! They seemed to be more interested in their pot of coffee that it evidently took all three of them to make! (hubby said we should have brought our Keurig and showed them a good cup of coffee and then they might have spoken to us!)

I could not get a demonstration of the machine. They gave me very little information. Told me no, never, ever will they give a sale on the prices, they do not offer any extras (like most dealers do), they do not give classes on the machine, and they do not have any in stock. (It would take about 3 to 6 weeks to get a machine in.)

I was so upset that Super Big Boy Bubba had to remain in that environment I was begging hubby to let me bring him home. I mean SBB Bubba promised to be very well behaved and not cause too much trouble...but that adoption fee was just a bit too steep yesterday.


Of course, hubby like the way he looked. Even he could see the advantage of him over little Bubba.

I was told that when I decided I had enough money to get SBB Bubba I am not allowed to adopt him from the Spa. I will make the plunge and have the adoption done across state lines. There is a really nice Spa in AL that offers free shipping as well as some extras thrown in.


(now I think it will be interesting to see if anyone can de-cifer my whole story above! LOL)


Worked on our income tax last night. Another few hours doing some fine tuning and I will be ready to send it off. When hubby saw the amount we were getting back, he sighed a big relief sigh and said he was glad we had enough to pay for Disney...(we are getting less than we normally get, but still almost double what we need to pay for Disney....) And I reminded him that next year I get the whole amount for SBB Bubba. (at what point he reminded me that both cars are about to be paid for...I think he is planning on getting me the machine a bit earlier than income tax refund time!)



See, I did manage to at lest get a reference to Disney in here!


Nini

 

[cogero]

I don't blame you for going across state lines instead of dealing with that shop. I can't believe how rude they are.

Yeah for income tax refunds.

 

[GrammytoMany]

That's awesome that DH seems to be thinking about helping you get Big Bubba earlier than next year.


I'd love a small simple machine to leave here at my daughter's house (I don't like to use her's in case she is working on a project or if it breaks while I was using it) but my DH thinks it's silly to have 2 machines when you can only use them one at a time. I just don't like dragging my back and forth which I haven't done lately...too much of a pain.

Sheila

 

[aboveH20]

No Disney news today.

But Bubba is now at the Spa.

I really wish the people at the Spa were nicer.

Or maybe if they just had better customer service.

I guess that is what happens when you have a captive audience!


When we dropped Bubba off, I was told I could not speak with the repairman because he was too busy. The woman filling out the form listened to me ramble for about 15 minutes with her eyes glazed over and wrote down..."tension". Oh well!

Then I spied my husband giving the Super Big Boy Bubba the eye. The sales lady was not the friendliest in the world. Considering that my family, the sales lady, the lady that wrote tension and the repairman were the ONLY people in the store, you would have thought they would be more chatty! They seemed to be more interested in their pot of coffee that it evidently took all three of them to make! (hubby said we should have brought our Keurig and showed them a good cup of coffee and then they might have spoken to us!)

I could not get a demonstration of the machine. They gave me very little information. Told me no, never, ever will they give a sale on the prices, they do not offer any extras (like most dealers do), they do not give classes on the machine, and they do not have any in stock. (It would take about 3 to 6 weeks to get a machine in.)

I was so upset that Super Big Boy Bubba had to remain in that environment I was begging hubby to let me bring him home. I mean SBB Bubba promised to be very well behaved and not cause too much trouble...but that adoption fee was just a bit too steep yesterday.


Of course, hubby like the way he looked. Even he could see the advantage of him over little Bubba.

I was told that when I decided I had enough money to get SBB Bubba I am not allowed to adopt him from the Spa. I will make the plunge and have the adoption done across state lines. There is a really nice Spa in AL that offers free shipping as well as some extras thrown in.


(now I think it will be interesting to see if anyone can de-cifer my whole story above! LOL)


Worked on our income tax last night. Another few hours doing some fine tuning and I will be ready to send it off. When hubby saw the amount we were getting back, he sighed a big relief sigh and said he was glad we had enough to pay for Disney...(we are getting less than we normally get, but still almost double what we need to pay for Disney....) And I reminded him that next year I get the whole amount for SBB Bubba. (at what point he reminded me that both cars are about to be paid for...I think he is planning on getting me the machine a bit earlier than income tax refund time!)



See, I did manage to at lest get a reference to Disney in here!


Nini

The women at "my" repair shop aren't very friendly either. When I took my PE-770 last year while it was under warranty they saw I bought it from Amazon, not them. Since they charge $100 just to look at the machine I'd think they'd be glad to get a lot of repair business no matter where it was purchased.

I wonder if the stores get so many more lookers than buyers they've become jaded over the years. "My" store had a couple used machines that I was mildy interested in seeing, but didn't dare ask because of their non-friendly nature. Ironically they have a VERY friendly ad on the radio.

We're waiting for one more 1099 so we can do our taxes. [ ] <------ insert little yellow guy tapping his foot

PS I hate to be asked what's my favorite anything, because it takes me too long to process, review, eliminate, so I'm not asking YOU what your favorite restaurant at WDW is, but what is ONE you especially enjoy???

 

[NiniMorris]

The women at "my" repair shop aren't very friendly either. When I took my PE-770 last year while it was under warranty they saw I bought it from Amazon, not them. Since they charge $100 just to look at the machine I'd think they'd be glad to get a lot of repair business no matter where it was purchased.

I wonder if the stores get so many more lookers than buyers they've become jaded over the years. "My" store had a couple used machines that I was mildy interested in seeing, but didn't dare ask because of their non-friendly nature. Ironically they have a VERY friendly ad on the radio.

We're waiting for one more 1099 so we can do our taxes. [ ] <------ insert little yellow guy tapping his foot

PS I hate to be asked what's my favorite anything, because it takes me too long to process, review, eliminate, so I'm not asking YOU what your favorite restaurant at WDW is, but what is ONE you especially enjoy???

You would think that my husband asking if they took his credit card would have tipped them off hat we were serious buyers...especially when he pulled it out!

See, my favorite restaurant changes each year! LOL! As a family we love Crystal Palace (lots of sentimental reasons there); Garden Grill (another sentimental favorite); and CRT (the BOYS asked to go last year!). My husband and kids love Biergarten...me...not so much. A bit too noisy for me. It had all the things I hated about Germany...but at least had the food which I loved! My favorite from lat year was Coral Reef, and it is the one I am looking forward to this year the most.

How's that for a brief answer?


Nini

 

[aboveH20]

See, my favorite restaurant changes each year! LOL! As a family we love Crystal Palace (lots of sentimental reasons there); Garden Grill (another sentimental favorite); and CRT (the BOYS asked to go last year!). My husband and kids love Biergarten...me...not so much. A bit too noisy for me. It had all the things I hated about Germany...but at least had the food which I loved! My favorite from lat year was Coral Reef, and it is the one I am looking forward to this year the most.

How's that for a brief answer?


Nini

Here's my brief reply to your brief answer.

I love Crystal Palace as well. Until I switched to Tonga Toast at the Poly it seemed the perfect spot for the last day's breakfast.

I've never done Garden Grill. The one time we looked into it (no ADR, just walk up) it was full. Now that I go solo I'm not sure I'd want to go there alone. (I did HDDR solo a couple years ago. They sat me at my own table and brought a boat load of food. Don't know if that's how they'd do it at Garden Grill.)

We've done CRT twice as a family. I the root smash (or whatever they called the mashed potatoes).

We've done Biergarten a couple times. I wasn't that impressed so I'm always surprised when people call it a favorite-not-to-be-missed.

I'll have to check out Coral Reef again. Another one we went to once, didn't particularly care for it, and it was too $$$$$ for our budget back then. It would definitely be a good one for solo dining -- always something to look at.

<----------- Now I'm thinking about the potatoes at CRT.

 

[lovethattink]

I love the Coral Reef! I was at the Coral Reef last week. Our server said the kid's menu is changing. Not sure if the adult menu is changing or not. My new favorite there is the Vegetable Strata. I'm not much of a bread eater, but the rolls there, I really like!!

 

[aboveH20]

I love the Coral Reef! I was at the Coral Reef last week. Our server said the kid's menu is changing. Not sure if the adult menu is changing or not. My new favorite there is the Vegetable Strata. I'm not much of a bread eater, but the rolls there, I really like!!

Heigh ho, heigh ho, off I go to check out the Coral Reef menu.

<---- oh, wait, escargot, that's for Le Bistro

Try this

<----- well, that's probably more for SciFi Dine In

Possibly

<----not sure if they're 3 scuba divers or 3 "friends" in the shower

How about

<-----bye, for now, gonna check out the Coral Reef menu

 

[aboveH20]

MAGIC!!!

My reply to you showed up before you posted.

 

[DMGeurts]

Cheryl... Are you finally planning another trip??? Let me guess... You're gonna surprise the girls and I while we are down there?

D~

 

[NiniMorris]

I just had to tell SOMEONE!!!

I missed a call from the Spa...they are ready to send Bubba home! Now, all I have to do is find a way to get the time to drive the 3 and a half hours round trip to go get him...the $150 is the easy part!


And..... I called the TA that I love and we have reserved a room at Coronado Springs for Nov 23 to Dec 3! Hubby isn't happy about the CSR part (I DID tell you about the problem we had last year didn't I?) but he is happy that I finally
have the dates I want. (now, if only free dining will appear I will cancel that bounce back for good!)

Don't get excited...this doesn't mean we have the dates set in stone...if there is no free dining we may not go....


Nini

 

[DMGeurts]

I just had to tell SOMEONE!!!

I missed a call from the Spa...they are ready to send Bubba home! Now, all I have to do is find a way to get the time to drive the 3 and a half hours round trip to go get him...the $150 is the easy part!


And..... I called the TA that I love and we have reserved a room at Coronado Springs for Nov 23 to Dec 3! Hubby isn't happy about the CSR part (I DID tell you about the problem we had last year didn't I?) but he is happy that I finally
have the dates I want. (now, if only free dining will appear I will cancel that bounce back for good!)

Don't get excited...this doesn't mean we have the dates set in stone...if there is no free dining we may not go....


Nini

So glad Bubba is ready!

Awesome that you have your dates, now lets stalk for FD for you.

D~

 

[NiniMorris]

I thought I had put this in the early pages, but just discovered (after reading the first 10 pages) that I had left out that particular instance. SO if it was in here...somewhere after the first 10 pages...or you already heard me ranting about it...just ignore this post! LOL!

Mr D weighs a little over 110 lbs. He is a big boy. He takes meds three times a day that makes him go to sleep for a couple of hours. When we go to Disney, we rent a special needs stroller. He uses it as a hiding place when he gets over stimulated; he uses it as a napping place when he needs to nap; and he uses it as a chariot! When we come back from the parks he is out cold! We usually don't come back until the parks close, so he is out and heavy to carry.

We always ask for a ground floor (he has elevator and stairs issues)close to the parking lot. We never have problems getting that since no one wants a view of the parking lot!

On our last Nov/Dec trip we had a problem. DIL checked in before we did (by a couple of seconds) and told them it was fine that they did not have a ground floor room ready. (We had connecting rooms - that makes it easier for us to babysit at night!) My CM did not speak English well at all...and she was in training. I told them the room would not work at all, and she insisted there were no other rooms available. Even if I chose to wait there would not be another room available the whole trip! (yes, I knew better!)

Well, not only was the room not on the ground floor, but it was as far away from the parking lots as possible! After seeing the room I knew it was going to be a problem. I asked to see a manager, and the best they could do was to move us after the weekend. THAT was not going to be a help, since Mr D doesn't handle change all that well. So we decided to keep it.

That was on Saturday. Monday morning, we discover there is no hot water! And the cold water was just a trickle! I called the front desk and was assured they were taking care of it. When we left for the parks, we discovered they had blocked the sidewalk to the parking lot for some 'construction' . Now let me say here... I normally do not complain a lot. At least not to managers and things like that. I complain to my husband, but basically I do nothing. The construction detour made us have to walk all around the building to get to the parking lot. When I say it took over 10 minutes to go from the room to the car ...was NO exaggeration!

This went on for the whole week! It was Friday before we had hot water again. One odd thing we did notice...we were the ONLY people in the whole building! They moved everyone else out because of the water issues!!

Can you say I was not happy at ALL!

But, before you think they didn't compensate us for our inconvenience...on our last day at the parks (Sunday) we came back to the room to find a letter of apology and two deflated helium balloons with an autographed picture of Mickey and Minnie wishing us a Happy Holiday!

When we got home, Disney got a strongly worded email ...and their response was two nights comp on any moderate room. We will probably never use the comp rooms, because we cannot add dining or tickets to it and cannot add the nights onto a package.

So, there you have it...why I do not like CSR. Are we going to actually try there again? Stay Tuned!



(reading that ....wow I do seem to be a drama mama!)
Nini

 

[Lidian]

I'm sorry to hear you had such a horrible experience. I would have been livid as well. I would have asked to move to another resort if they couldn't supply me with things that I NEEDED to make my stay work.

That said, why can't you use the comp'ed rooms and then add tickets on when you arrive? Or use the comp'ed rooms at the end of your stay? Like stay for a week and pay for the first 5 days with your package and then move to your "comp'ed room" for the remainder of the stay. You'll already have your tickets. I think you can add the DDP after checking in as well, so long as you do it on your first day. So you could probably add the DDP to your comp'ed rooms once you got there. Just a suggestion.

 

[NiniMorris]

I'm sorry to hear you had such a horrible experience. I would have been livid as well. I would have asked to move to another resort if they couldn't supply me with things that I NEEDED to make my stay work.

That said, why can't you use the comp'ed rooms and then add tickets on when you arrive? Or use the comp'ed rooms at the end of your stay? Like stay for a week and pay for the first 5 days with your package and then move to your "comp'ed room" for the remainder of the stay. You'll already have your tickets. I think you can add the DDP after checking in as well, so long as you do it on your first day. So you could probably add the DDP to your comp'ed rooms once you got there. Just a suggestion.

That is what we thought...but the letter we got specifically says you cannot do that... we have called twice to try and get it, nope. Our TA called and got in trouble for asking! The tickets themselves we could get with the military discount so that part isn't the issue. but, not being able to get the dining plan really puts a crimp in our style of doing Disney.

They are also adamant about not taking on the two days on an existing stay. And we have to be really flexible on the days we want to stay! It is at their discretion! I really don't see us ever actually using the nights! LOL!

By the way...congrats on making the dean's list! How exciting! But then again, all my 'kids' are smart!


Nini