3 little boys, 2 new parks to explore & 1 first time onsite & ddp!

[Dylan_&_Blake's_mom]

Yay! I need all the input I can get. It's so crazy and frustrating trying to figure out how to cram it all in especially when we've never been to Epcot or DHS or done a party. Help please

 

[princess&her4princes]

Okay...I'll probably confuse you more..but here goes, feel free to ask any questions if I lose you!! LOL! You definately can do AK in a 1/2 day and especially since you haven't done DHS I would say a full day would be perfect for there, I personally don't think you need more than one full day there....what does everyone else think? You will definately want to do MK for AT LEAST one FULL day, plus MNSSHP one night (now, remember, you do not need a ticket that day if you decide to only do the party that day and you can enter at 4pm and stay all night-- this is what we did on MVMCP day, we went to DTD during the day, had a leisurely afternoon, went to Chef Mickey's for dinner then headed to the party that night and stayed until 11 p.m with all the boys! and it worked out great!!). I would say Epcot you could use more time at...depending on how you want to tour it...we did the World show case one day and the rest another 1/2 day....there are great KIDCOT stations your boys will love and a lot of interaction with CM's from the different countries, they can make masks and decorate them in each country, it's fun for them. The last 1/2 day you can play by ear and go where ever everyone wants to revisit....maybe do more time at MK or since the boys are older, do more at DHS? Does this help at all?? Sorry if I made you even crazier!!! LOL!!

 

[Dylan_&_Blake's_mom]

Thanks Kristen for all your info. I didn't realize that on the day of the party you could get into MK at 4. I assumed you couldn't get in until time for the party at 7 so I will definately keep it for a seperate day than our original MK day. Glad to hear you agree that I could do AK in 1/2 a day. I had thought about leaving the extra park time open for whichever park we decide we need more time at whether that be DHS or some where else so I guess I will leave it at that. With only having 5 full days at disney and not being able to do 2 parks in one day (the park hopper option just adds too much money) it's just kind of crazy since we want to do DTD and MNSSHP. They will let you do one park the first 1/2 of the day and then use your MNSSHP ticket to get into MK that afternoon right? If so I guess I have come up with a plan on what to do, if by some miracle we decide we can stay one more night that would change everything and make it all much more doable. Until then though here is the plan:

Sat. MK day (is it crazy at MK on Sat. or ok for that time of year??)
Sun. Epcot day
Mon. DHS day
Tues. AK 1/2 day and MNSSHP
Weds. DTD and park of choice for 1/2 day.

How does that plan look? If we strike gold and do get to stay another night (not just a problem money wise but also another missed day of school for boys) then I will update this plan. Thanks again for your help Kristen. It's nice to hear from someone who has been to all 4 parks and a party. In addition, you have 3 boys like me and with our Cole's being the same age your opinion is extra nice.

 

[Dylan_&_Blake's_mom]

Ok, decided I'm going to go ahead and post pics of the condo we chose since he should be getting the money and freezing our dates by tomorrow. I am really excited about staying here. I love the colors blue and brown together and that's pretty much how this whole condo is decorated. It's not quite as homey feeling as some of the other places but I love the way it looks and we didn't want it to be too frumpyy...we want to feel spoiled after all,lol.

We went back and forth between condos and townhouses because they were real close to the same price. The town houses would have given us a splash pool but we probably never would have used it anyway. We thought about staying at the townhouse also because it would make us feel like we are getting more for our money (with it being a 2 story house) it also meant more for me to be paranoid about since I am a worry wart and a scaredy cat,lol. SOOOOO these are some of the reasons why we decided to just stay at a condo. We aren't going to be there a whole lot anyway.

This condo has a view of the lake from the lanai and is across from the back entrance to the pool so it is perfect.

Here is the living room

view of the lake out of the sliding doors

the dining area

kitchen

our bedroom-which has it's own private bath

second bedroom

third bedroom- with ps2(not that we will have time or care to play it,lol)

one of two bathrooms

Isn't it just GORGEOUS! I think so. All of this for the same price or less than a value resort at disney with a tiny, hotel-like room....I am soooo excited!

I'll post some pics of the resort in next post in case anyone hasn't seen it.

 

[Dylan_&_Blake's_mom]

The resort clubhouse

huge pool with huge waterslide and it has a zero depth entry side (great for Cole)

awesome castle playground I can't wait to take the boys to

neat giant chessboard

game room

it also has a theatre where you can watch free movies, a bbq grill/picnic area and other things. So beautiful I can't wait to be there.

Ok, will update again soon.

 

[princess&her4princes]

Hey Tracy!

Wow what a great place you got booked!!! I can't wait to hear what you think about it when you get home, I think it may be the way we'll have to go our next family trip...families of 5 are kind of squished in a typical hotel room, especially when the 'baby' is sleeping in a big boy bed!!!! I was looking into those places for our last trip and with the minivan rental, it wasn't cheaper for us....and Coley was still okay in the pack n'play at 17 mos. I agree, a place to spread out, to do wash, take a dip in the pool and to have your own place to sleep with DH and have down time once the boys are in bed sounds like more of a vacation to me than a box of a hotel room.

Looking forward to the next update and I'll look over your plan of attack tomorrow morning....I read it and had some comments but now have to get the boys in the tubby!!

ttys!
Kristen

 

[Tnkrbelle565]

Subbing! Going back to read!


OK!! Love the condo pics!!! it looks gorgeous. What a fun surprise about the cruise! You plans sound great. We need as much time as possible at MK because DD will literally ride a lot of things 3-4 times. My tip for MNSSHP is to try and accomplish as many rides as you can from 4-7. Then you'll have from 7-midnight to do all the party things. We wasted too much party time riding rides. The only ride I must to during MNSSHP is HM. They take your pic in front and they have all these fun CMs dressed up like the characters in the ride walking around the line area.

 

[bertegirl]

You'll love a condo. We always rent one when we go to Branson that is on a golf course. It has an indoor and outdoor pool and plenty of room to play outside. Plus ours came with a washer/dryer. Huge benefit...since the 1st time we went we all ended up with the stomach flu. It also had a dishwasher. My hubby and daughter have touchy stomachs so its good for them to have some home cooked meals during vacation. I pray we all do ok with WDW. We have never been away this long before! I am ordering milk and pepto from Garden Grocer. So maybe I can coat their stomachs!!!

 

[Leleluvsdis]

That condo looks so nice!!!

We are staying in a condo in May and there is nothing like it to have a kitchen. We do miss staying onsite with the extra hours and transportation, but not having to eat out all the time and the added space makes up for it!!!

Where is the condo at? I probubly missed that part in your PTR.

P.S. Feel free to check out my PTR through the link in my sig!

 

[Dylan_&_Blake's_mom]

Hey Tracy!

Wow what a great place you got booked!!! I can't wait to hear what you think about it when you get home, I think it may be the way we'll have to go our next family trip...families of 5 are kind of squished in a typical hotel room, especially when the 'baby' is sleeping in a big boy bed!!!! I was looking into those places for our last trip and with the minivan rental, it wasn't cheaper for us....and Coley was still okay in the pack n'play at 17 mos. I agree, a place to spread out, to do wash, take a dip in the pool and to have your own place to sleep with DH and have down time once the boys are in bed sounds like more of a vacation to me than a box of a hotel room.

Looking forward to the next update and I'll look over your plan of attack tomorrow morning....I read it and had some comments but now have to get the boys in the tubby!!

ttys!
Kristen

Yes, the condo is much easier/nicer for us. It's what we've done both the other times we went. It really helps to not have to pack as much because you can do laundry and you don't have to take home dirty clothes. It is also nice to have the kitchen. We haven't ever really cooked a meal at our condo before...just snacks,breakfast foods and drinks. This year though we plan on cooking out with their bbq grills at least one or 2 nights and I can't wait. The last 2 trips we stayed at Westgate Lakes Resort & Spa so I'm anxious to see this new resort.

Subbing! Going back to read!


OK!! Love the condo pics!!! it looks gorgeous. What a fun surprise about the cruise! You plans sound great. We need as much time as possible at MK because DD will literally ride a lot of things 3-4 times. My tip for MNSSHP is to try and accomplish as many rides as you can from 4-7. Then you'll have from 7-midnight to do all the party things. We wasted too much party time riding rides. The only ride I must to during MNSSHP is HM. They take your pic in front and they have all these fun CMs dressed up like the characters in the ride walking around the line area.

I love it too, can't wait to see it in person. I hope we can pull off the surprise about the cruise, they will be so excited...especially when they think our trip is over,lol. Thank you very much for the tip about doing the rides more in the beginning.That is a really good idea. I could've seen us doing the same thing in getting caught up riding the rides. Thanks for the warning. Really excited to do HM during the MNSSHP and to get that pic, how cute.

You'll love a condo. We always rent one when we go to Branson that is on a golf course. It has an indoor and outdoor pool and plenty of room to play outside. Plus ours came with a washer/dryer. Huge benefit...since the 1st time we went we all ended up with the stomach flu. It also had a dishwasher. My hubby and daughter have touchy stomachs so its good for them to have some home cooked meals during vacation. I pray we all do ok with WDW. We have never been away this long before! I am ordering milk and pepto from Garden Grocer. So maybe I can coat their stomachs!!!

We've done the condo thing both the other times we've gone to disney and for that reason alone don't think we could ever stay onsite in a hotel room. The washer/dryer and your own space is just wonderful!!! We are staying at a different resort this time and I think it will be even better

That condo looks so nice!!!

We are staying in a condo in May and there is nothing like it to have a kitchen. We do miss staying onsite with the extra hours and transportation, but not having to eat out all the time and the added space makes up for it!!!

Where is the condo at? I probubly missed that part in your PTR.

P.S. Feel free to check out my PTR through the link in my sig!

I can't imagine having to stay in a little hotel room for that length. Condos are definately the way to go for us. The last 2 times we went we stayed at Westgate Lakes Resort & Spa. This time we are staying at Windsor Hills. Westgate was nice but I think Windsor Hills is going to be even better...can't wait to get there.

I will come check out your PTR.

 

[3princesses+aprince]

Wow, beautiful Condo!!!! And awesome deal with the cruise, one day I will take a Disney Cruise too. This May will be our first trip to Disney though, so I want to get a few more trips in, then we'll think about a cruise. Your boys are going to be so excited!!!!!!!!! Do you know how you're going to surprise them yet?

 

[Villainess]

The condo looks fantastic - love the giant chess board!

 

[Dylan_&_Blake's_mom]

Wow, beautiful Condo!!!! And awesome deal with the cruise, one day I will take a Disney Cruise too. This May will be our first trip to Disney though, so I want to get a few more trips in, then we'll think about a cruise. Your boys are going to be so excited!!!!!!!!! Do you know how you're going to surprise them yet?

I think it is too. I can't wait to get there. Yeah, we got in 2 family trips to Disney first. We didn't even plan on doing the cruise this time. We said we would take one "someday" with no real plan of when that some day was. I am thrilled and excited that we added it to this trip.

~HOW WE ARE TELLING THE BOYS ABOUT THE CRUISE~
I really think the boys are going to be blown away and not expecting it at all. So far the plan is to tell them it is our last day in Disney (which isn't a lie,lol) and they will think we are leaving the next morning especially since we are packing up from the resort and staying at the Radisson hotel down by the port the night before our cruise. Then when they wake up or we wake them up I will give them both either just a letter that says "Surprise we are going on a Disney cruise TODAY!!" or a basket with goodies they will use at the beach and such and a letter saying something about "Where will you use all this stuff? How about on the Disney cruise we are going on TODAY!! I haven't figured it out for sure yet. Any ideas anyone??

 

[Dylan_&_Blake's_mom]

The condo looks fantastic - love the giant chess board!

I think it's beautiful.

My oldest has played chess a few times and can't wait to try out that giant board.

 

[brookelizabeth]

Hi!!! I have been able to finally read your PTR-I'm sooooo excited for your trip, it sounds AMAZING!!!!!! The condo looks beautiful - wow. I would like to try staying off-site sometime, and hit some of the other attractions in the area, like Sea World. I can't wait to read your review of the resort.

Cole's birthday invites are adorable! I didn't read all the back-and-forth with your readers, so maybe you already shared, but did you decide on one?

I love the idea of surprising the boys with sand toys and a letter about the cruise. They are gonna FLIP!

 

[Mic_E_Man]

Hi "mom" and everyone.

We just booked our first DCL cruise for our family (DW, DD 11, DD 9) getting on the Wonder for a 4 day right after "mom" gets off on the 25 of Oct. "Mom" your post is great.

We live 45 minutes from Chicago, and I work downtown everyday. Your pics from your Chicago trip showed that you hit all the important spots. Navy Pier, Museum of Science and Industry, etc. are all great spots. How about the Sears Tower or John Hancock observatories?

Your plans sound great. We have been to WDW many times over the last 15 years, and have never stayed on property. We stayed at Westgate as guests not owners a couple of times. I think I recognize the dolphin fountain from Westgate on Turkey Lake Road.?. We have also stayed at Windsor Hills 2 years ago. We had a 6 bedroom house with pool and spa for less than $200 a night. That is less than $100 per family during spring break. On Disney property try getting anything for less than $200 per night for a hotel room. Windsor is great. The kids loved the water slide, and we requested that Madagascar be played in the theatre one afternoon for our whole group to go and see. We felt like the President with our own theatre and popcorn.

Our plans for this October have us in Emerald Island in a 6 bedroom house to share with my parents and sister and her family (6 adults and 6 kids). We are driving also and will spend 4 days in Orlando (one hopper day with a DD b-day on the 22nd). Pool days the rest of the time before going to the port on Sunday the 25th.

More later including a great hint on how to get the countdown to go a little quicker.

Curtis

 

[princess&her4princes]

I think it is too. I can't wait to get there. Yeah, we got in 2 family trips to Disney first. We didn't even plan on doing the cruise this time. We said we would take one "someday" with no real plan of when that some day was. I am thrilled and excited that we added it to this trip.

~HOW WE ARE TELLING THE BOYS ABOUT THE CRUISE~
I really think the boys are going to be blown away and not expecting it at all. So far the plan is to tell them it is our last day in Disney (which isn't a lie,lol) and they will think we are leaving the next morning especially since we are packing up from the resort and staying at the Radisson hotel down by the port the night before our cruise. Then when they wake up or we wake them up I will give them both either just a letter that says "Surprise we are going on a Disney cruise TODAY!!" or a basket with goodies they will use at the beach and such and a letter saying something about "Where will you use all this stuff? How about on the Disney cruise we are going on TODAY!! I haven't figured it out for sure yet. Any ideas anyone??

I think your sand toy idea is really cute!! Even Disney themed beach gear....like bathing suits, towels, sunglasses from Disneyshopping.com? They have some cute ones on sale now!! My Dollar store has some cute Disney themed things ,maybe you can find something there? Very cute, they are giong to love it!! I can't wait for you to go and check it out for me!!! Maybe we'll follow your lead.....in a few years.....have you explored the kids clubs at all? Maybe you and DH will have some quiet time? Imagine that.......

Happy Easter Tracy! Hope you and your boys are well!!! Thinking of you!!

 

[Dylan_&_Blake's_mom]

Hi "mom" and everyone.

We just booked our first DCL cruise for our family (DW, DD 11, DD 9) getting on the Wonder for a 4 day right after "mom" gets off on the 25 of Oct. "Mom" your post is great.

We live 45 minutes from Chicago, and I work downtown everyday. Your pics from your Chicago trip showed that you hit all the important spots. Navy Pier, Museum of Science and Industry, etc. are all great spots. How about the Sears Tower or John Hancock observatories?

Your plans sound great. We have been to WDW many times over the last 15 years, and have never stayed on property. We stayed at Westgate as guests not owners a couple of times. I think I recognize the dolphin fountain from Westgate on Turkey Lake Road.?. We have also stayed at Windsor Hills 2 years ago. We had a 6 bedroom house with pool and spa for less than $200 a night. That is less than $100 per family during spring break. On Disney property try getting anything for less than $200 per night for a hotel room. Windsor is great. The kids loved the water slide, and we requested that Madagascar be played in the theatre one afternoon for our whole group to go and see. We felt like the President with our own theatre and popcorn.

Our plans for this October have us in Emerald Island in a 6 bedroom house to share with my parents and sister and her family (6 adults and 6 kids). We are driving also and will spend 4 days in Orlando (one hopper day with a DD b-day on the 22nd). Pool days the rest of the time before going to the port on Sunday the 25th.

More later including a great hint on how to get the countdown to go a little quicker.

Curtis

Thanks for joining and thanks for the comments.

You are lucky to be so close to Chicago. That was our first trip and although I was nervous about it I quickly became addicted to it. I really loved it and so did everyone else. Can't say enough about the food at the Cheesecake Factory and Giordano's We packed a lot into that trip. The good part was though we found that, for our family anyway, most of the museums and such just weren't worth it. Now we know that the only place we will pay to see again is The Museum of Science and Industry. We are hoping to go back this summer for a shorter, 3 days or so, trip. We want to go back to the zoo, millenium park, The Museum of S&I, and to the Hancock observatory. Of course we plan on eating at our 2 favorites also. We did the Sears Tower last time so will do the Hancock this time. Our hotel was right next to the Hancock building.

Anyway, back to disney, I am definately for staying off site. Yes it was Westgate on Turkey Lake that we stayed at the first two years we went. We really enjoyed it but I think Windsor Hills is going to be even better and the best part is no stupid timeshare shpeal. I'll be anxious to see pics of where you are staying when you get back ( I guess that is if you are going to do a TR?).

Can't wait for the hint on how to make the countdown go fasterDo tell!

I think your sand toy idea is really cute!! Even Disney themed beach gear....like bathing suits, towels, sunglasses from Disneyshopping.com? They have some cute ones on sale now!! My Dollar store has some cute Disney themed things ,maybe you can find something there? Very cute, they are giong to love it!! I can't wait for you to go and check it out for me!!! Maybe we'll follow your lead.....in a few years.....have you explored the kids clubs at all? Maybe you and DH will have some quiet time? Imagine that.......

Happy Easter Tracy! Hope you and your boys are well!!! Thinking of you!!

Hey Kristen! I think that is the idea I like best too. I did get some disney themed sand toys, stickers and such from our dollar tree store. I frequent there often,lol. I will have to go check out the sales on disneyshopping. I am there often as well. Blake already has a Wall-E beach towell and Cole has a Cars one so I don't think I'll buy new ones but I'm sure I'll find something. I can't wait to go either and hope I can provide a good review for you. I have thought about the kid stations and I think that Dylan and Blake would really enjoy a thing they do where they make Flubber. I will probably send them for that event only because they would really enjoy it and then they could participate in the "graduation" at the end where they get a free shirt and mickey ears with a grad cap I don't think we will be on our own though because Cole would go to a different area than the older boys and since he has never stayed with anyone other than grandma for an hour here and there I would feel comfortable with it and don't think he would go for it. If he would have been with his brothers it might have been a possibility.

Thank you for the Easter wishes and I hope you and yours have a great one as well. Talk to you soon.

 

[Dylan_&_Blake's_mom]

HAVE A WONDERFUL EASTER EVERYONE!!! Make sure to remember why it is we celebrate Easter.

I will try and post pics of our weekend on Monday.

 

[Mic_E_Man]

Thanks for the words "mom". This will be our first cruise, and really the first time that we have had a big "countdown" to the trip. I am the most excited in the house, and am trying real hard to keep in under control. We started our countdown at about 240 days to go, and now we are at 192 days until we saddle up and hit the road.

I decided to let everyone pick one day during the countdown to have a pre-trip party. You get to pick food, location, decorations, and just be creative. For the kids one parent helps, and sets the budget at $10 for the party not including the food. I picked day 115 as that is my firefighter badge no. My wife picked her birthday as her party day. I am trying to get the kids to pick numbers under 75 to spread the parties out a little. I don't know, but it may just help.

I also try to envision what a specific day during the trip will look like. I ask the kids questions about things they may want to do. I have to remain flexible when the time comes, but it helps just talking about the trip before it is here. I almost like the anticipation better than the trip itself. It is much cheeper for sure.

Happy Easter Everyone.