exwdwcm
wishes she was Wendy Moira Angela Darling
- Joined
- Aug 19, 1999
- Messages
- 5,046
Well it's been a long haul and my trip reports will also be, so as the Lion King songs says (Scar) "Be Prepared!"....you can just call me long winded....but I'll definitely keep it interesting and funny, as our group defintely gets into trouble and has our fair share of laughs!! 
I'll also attempt to include some of our 500 photos in the reports....that is, if i can figure out how to post them 
I'll introduce our cast of crazy characters quickly first....
We are a tight knit family that really enjoys spending time together:
Me- Michelle, 32, marketing manager, married to a non-disney guy, no kids (but trying now!), former cast member (wdwcp in 1996), the pefectionist/organizer/trip NAZI
Mom- "MawMaw", 50s, married 35 years, recently retired, the generous one! Had brain surgery (pitutary gland)last year that might slow her down a bit this trip as she gets tired more
Dad- "PawPaw", 50s, along for the ride, our driver and constantly pulling out his wallet to pay for stuff!
Great Aunt- Marion or "Auntie", 60s, first time ever to WDW! recently retired as well!
Sister- Mandy, "NeNe", 28, special ed teacher, not big into disney, but loves to go with us, calls her "schmoopy" (boyfriend for those that don't get the Seinfeld reference) every night
Sister- Wendy, 30, paralegal, married with 2 year old, huge Disney NUT and the comedian of the family
Bro in Law- Mike, turned 30 on the trip, married to Wendy, and another comedian and great dad to little Ally
Ally- Mike and Wendy's little angel, 2.4 years old (terrible twos!!!), the first grandkid in our family and completely SPOILED ROTTEN (we love it!)
here is wendy/mike and ally
here is me (left), wendy (middle) and Mandy (right)
and finally - the parents and auntie too---in this pic from left to right- MawMaw, PawPaw, Wendy, Me and Auntie
My hubby has been to disney once when I worked there and had an okay time. But he's not a disney nut like me, he puts up with my craziness and all my disney "crap" around the house and never complains about it. I knew he wouldn't want to go again right now (not until we have kids of our own) so he stayed home. I knew I would have more fun with my family and not have to worry about making sure he wasn't grumpy or having a good time. I'll share with you how we ended up at WDW anyway...my family and I took a trip back in 2000- it was 10 days at disney (POR) and we had a ball. We hadn't been back as a family since though. I go to Orlando annually in the spring on business, and my sister joined me last year on my business trip and we extended a few days to do disney- just the two of us. We are the most Disney-crazy in the family, so it made sense. Unfortunately, my grandmother in SC passed away during our trip, at the end actually- and it really put a damper on it- we didn't even go to the parks our last day because we were so depressed and sad. We also missed not having our whole family there to share in the Disney magic.
So earlier this year, my sister Wendy's in laws were talking about going to WDW. So she jumped right in and mentioned it to us as well. Before long, we were thinking about a joint family trip- ours and then her in-laws and their kids. So the planning started last spring. But then her in-laws backed out and decided they weren't going to go afterall. So the whole idea started with someone else, snowballed and then ended up just being our family afterall. My great aunt Marion decided to join us too, as she has never been and just retired. So the plan was set- the 8 of us conquering disney with a two year old, our first time with a toddler. Should be interesting huh?
The planning started immediately....me, the virgo perfectionist planner did the research, got in touch with Magical Memories Travel and they found us a great rate at the POR for early December at $99 a night! So we took it. We booked two rooms for December 3-11th. Only shortly after did we realize it was Pop Warner week........but we held steadfast and figured we would just be flexible if Pop affected our trip. It was going to be the first time for us to see the Christmas decorations at WDW. I worked there over Christmas in 96, but didn't remember how great it was until I saw the decorations again. We were so excited we could hardly stand it.
And so the wait began......we started buying up special presents and gifts for Ally for the trip. I even bought some stuff for my parents as a pre trip surprise- I visited Orlando on business in April, my annual trip. I bought a disney 50th backpack, some hats, some snacks and other goodies, including guest of honor badges for my parents. We planned to give it to them just before the trip. They always go out of the way to make the trip special for us and had paid for a lot of it, including hoop dee doo, so we figured it was the least we could do.
We had found a good flight on american for about $230 each. We usually don't find it cheaper than $200 from DFW (direct), so we booked it. We had also decided to secretly upgrade my parents to first class. They had never flown in first and my BIL and I travel so much for work, that we had points built up on american to upgrade them. I upgraded my mom and Mike did my dad. He also did my Aunt's upgrade as a thanks to her for babysitting Ally so many times for free. Wendy and Mike are horrible at keeping secrets and surprises....but they managed for a while. Finally about a month before the trip, we couldn't take it anymore.....at a family gtg, we gave them the gift basket and also announced that they would be in first class. they were so shocked and excited and my aunt and mom both cried.
It was greatness!
My sister and I decided to do a monthly newsletter to keep us all excited about the trip. We started it in July. Everyone contributed 'columns'. We had guest editors and I even promoted Mike to senior editor after a few issues went out. The newsletters included info on our flight, hotel, holidays at WDW, meals we had planned (PS/ADRs), tips for travelling with toddlers, and we even highlighted one or two of us in each newsletter! It was great fun to put together each month. Everyone helped out and I organized it. It ended up being like a 10 page newsletter each time, complete with photos for everything, even photos of the food at the places we planned to eat. I know, a little crazy, what can I say, we just get really excited with the planning. But it was great to keep the excitement up and the anticipation going. But it got us to wondering, what if we sets the expectations too high and then we are disappointed when we get there? But no need to worry.
it didn't happen.
So the countdown continued. We emailed each other daily, reviewed our packing lists and ADRs. We set our itenerary for each day by planning which park to do each morning and night and built in breaks middle of the day. We didn't go as far as planning what rides to ride in what order or anything. We just wanted a basic plan to take advantage of low crowds on certain days, do the MVMCP and utilize any later or extra magic hours that we wanted. It worked out perfectly in the end, thanks to no other, than well you know----me! j/k, everyone had a say, in fact, we let each person pick a meal that they wanted to do. We wanted everyone included.
And so with our iteneraries laminated on notecards and bags almost packed......we headed into the final countdown (cue 80s music).....
Our plan included a break each day of at least 2-3 hours. We had 7 day park hoppers (no plus option). We would visit one park in the am and a different one in the pm. We would mainly eat breakfast in the room (cereal/milk). We would do one MVMCP on 12/6 and have one 'break' day in the middle of our 8 day trip.
We didn't do the dining plan. But we made many ADRs for meals:
Hoop Dee Doo
50s Prime Time lunch
Sci Fi Cafe dinner
Biergarten Germany at Epcot
Crystal Palace Character breakfast
LIberty Tree Tavern character dinner
Princess character breakfast at Norway
Dinner at California Grill (Contemporary)
We made all of them but one- Biergarten- explanation later on! Well if you have hung around this long, then I applaud you (golf clap!).....i promise the first real day will be much more fun to read. Our group gets loud and has a good time and I'll share all our tips and special moments with you. So hang in there as I try and post our complete 8 days and 8 nights of magic over this coming week.
In our next installment- will Ally be afraid of the gigantic characters? Will we make our 6am flight on time? Will we see a celebrity on this trip? Will we remember the car seat and diaper bag? Will we be overrun by chanting cheerleaders? Will Wendy cry at the sight of the castle? Will MVMCP be worth it? Will we donate too many funds to the great bank of Disney while we shop for little Ally? Will the group get up when I blow my NAZI trip whistle each morning? Okay, just kidding, no whistle! Stay tuned for these and other burning answers to your questions......
I'll also attempt to include some of our 500 photos in the reports....that is, if i can figure out how to post them I'll introduce our cast of crazy characters quickly first....
We are a tight knit family that really enjoys spending time together:
Me- Michelle, 32, marketing manager, married to a non-disney guy, no kids (but trying now!), former cast member (wdwcp in 1996), the pefectionist/organizer/trip NAZI
Mom- "MawMaw", 50s, married 35 years, recently retired, the generous one! Had brain surgery (pitutary gland)last year that might slow her down a bit this trip as she gets tired more
Dad- "PawPaw", 50s, along for the ride, our driver and constantly pulling out his wallet to pay for stuff!
Great Aunt- Marion or "Auntie", 60s, first time ever to WDW! recently retired as well!
Sister- Mandy, "NeNe", 28, special ed teacher, not big into disney, but loves to go with us, calls her "schmoopy" (boyfriend for those that don't get the Seinfeld reference) every night
Sister- Wendy, 30, paralegal, married with 2 year old, huge Disney NUT and the comedian of the family
Bro in Law- Mike, turned 30 on the trip, married to Wendy, and another comedian and great dad to little Ally
Ally- Mike and Wendy's little angel, 2.4 years old (terrible twos!!!), the first grandkid in our family and completely SPOILED ROTTEN (we love it!)
here is wendy/mike and ally
here is me (left), wendy (middle) and Mandy (right)
and finally - the parents and auntie too---in this pic from left to right- MawMaw, PawPaw, Wendy, Me and Auntie
My hubby has been to disney once when I worked there and had an okay time. But he's not a disney nut like me, he puts up with my craziness and all my disney "crap" around the house and never complains about it. I knew he wouldn't want to go again right now (not until we have kids of our own) so he stayed home. I knew I would have more fun with my family and not have to worry about making sure he wasn't grumpy or having a good time. I'll share with you how we ended up at WDW anyway...my family and I took a trip back in 2000- it was 10 days at disney (POR) and we had a ball. We hadn't been back as a family since though. I go to Orlando annually in the spring on business, and my sister joined me last year on my business trip and we extended a few days to do disney- just the two of us. We are the most Disney-crazy in the family, so it made sense. Unfortunately, my grandmother in SC passed away during our trip, at the end actually- and it really put a damper on it- we didn't even go to the parks our last day because we were so depressed and sad. We also missed not having our whole family there to share in the Disney magic.
So earlier this year, my sister Wendy's in laws were talking about going to WDW. So she jumped right in and mentioned it to us as well. Before long, we were thinking about a joint family trip- ours and then her in-laws and their kids. So the planning started last spring. But then her in-laws backed out and decided they weren't going to go afterall. So the whole idea started with someone else, snowballed and then ended up just being our family afterall. My great aunt Marion decided to join us too, as she has never been and just retired. So the plan was set- the 8 of us conquering disney with a two year old, our first time with a toddler. Should be interesting huh?
The planning started immediately....me, the virgo perfectionist planner did the research, got in touch with Magical Memories Travel and they found us a great rate at the POR for early December at $99 a night! So we took it. We booked two rooms for December 3-11th. Only shortly after did we realize it was Pop Warner week........but we held steadfast and figured we would just be flexible if Pop affected our trip. It was going to be the first time for us to see the Christmas decorations at WDW. I worked there over Christmas in 96, but didn't remember how great it was until I saw the decorations again. We were so excited we could hardly stand it.
And so the wait began......we started buying up special presents and gifts for Ally for the trip. I even bought some stuff for my parents as a pre trip surprise- I visited Orlando on business in April, my annual trip. I bought a disney 50th backpack, some hats, some snacks and other goodies, including guest of honor badges for my parents. We planned to give it to them just before the trip. They always go out of the way to make the trip special for us and had paid for a lot of it, including hoop dee doo, so we figured it was the least we could do.
We had found a good flight on american for about $230 each. We usually don't find it cheaper than $200 from DFW (direct), so we booked it. We had also decided to secretly upgrade my parents to first class. They had never flown in first and my BIL and I travel so much for work, that we had points built up on american to upgrade them. I upgraded my mom and Mike did my dad. He also did my Aunt's upgrade as a thanks to her for babysitting Ally so many times for free. Wendy and Mike are horrible at keeping secrets and surprises....but they managed for a while. Finally about a month before the trip, we couldn't take it anymore.....at a family gtg, we gave them the gift basket and also announced that they would be in first class. they were so shocked and excited and my aunt and mom both cried.
It was greatness! My sister and I decided to do a monthly newsletter to keep us all excited about the trip. We started it in July. Everyone contributed 'columns'. We had guest editors and I even promoted Mike to senior editor after a few issues went out. The newsletters included info on our flight, hotel, holidays at WDW, meals we had planned (PS/ADRs), tips for travelling with toddlers, and we even highlighted one or two of us in each newsletter! It was great fun to put together each month. Everyone helped out and I organized it. It ended up being like a 10 page newsletter each time, complete with photos for everything, even photos of the food at the places we planned to eat. I know, a little crazy, what can I say, we just get really excited with the planning. But it was great to keep the excitement up and the anticipation going. But it got us to wondering, what if we sets the expectations too high and then we are disappointed when we get there? But no need to worry.
it didn't happen. So the countdown continued. We emailed each other daily, reviewed our packing lists and ADRs. We set our itenerary for each day by planning which park to do each morning and night and built in breaks middle of the day. We didn't go as far as planning what rides to ride in what order or anything. We just wanted a basic plan to take advantage of low crowds on certain days, do the MVMCP and utilize any later or extra magic hours that we wanted. It worked out perfectly in the end, thanks to no other, than well you know----me! j/k, everyone had a say, in fact, we let each person pick a meal that they wanted to do. We wanted everyone included.
And so with our iteneraries laminated on notecards and bags almost packed......we headed into the final countdown (cue 80s music).....
Our plan included a break each day of at least 2-3 hours. We had 7 day park hoppers (no plus option). We would visit one park in the am and a different one in the pm. We would mainly eat breakfast in the room (cereal/milk). We would do one MVMCP on 12/6 and have one 'break' day in the middle of our 8 day trip.
We didn't do the dining plan. But we made many ADRs for meals:
Hoop Dee Doo
50s Prime Time lunch
Sci Fi Cafe dinner
Biergarten Germany at Epcot
Crystal Palace Character breakfast
LIberty Tree Tavern character dinner
Princess character breakfast at Norway
Dinner at California Grill (Contemporary)
We made all of them but one- Biergarten- explanation later on! Well if you have hung around this long, then I applaud you (golf clap!).....i promise the first real day will be much more fun to read. Our group gets loud and has a good time and I'll share all our tips and special moments with you. So hang in there as I try and post our complete 8 days and 8 nights of magic over this coming week.
In our next installment- will Ally be afraid of the gigantic characters? Will we make our 6am flight on time? Will we see a celebrity on this trip? Will we remember the car seat and diaper bag? Will we be overrun by chanting cheerleaders? Will Wendy cry at the sight of the castle? Will MVMCP be worth it? Will we donate too many funds to the great bank of Disney while we shop for little Ally? Will the group get up when I blow my NAZI trip whistle each morning? Okay, just kidding, no whistle! Stay tuned for these and other burning answers to your questions......
