9/23/06 Let's go!!!! Who's with us???

[brerrabbit70]

We always get travel insurance. I remember reading a post a long time ago about a woman who's father had a heart attack and had to be air lifted. I don't think they were on the ship, but on an excursion. She said the travel insurance covered everything! Most of our regular medical insurance companies with not cover outside the US, or they cover at a MUCH lower rate.
Someone started a thread on the main board about having to make claims on the travel insurance and it seems that everyone has been pleased with it.

 

[mom x4 grandma x4]

Hi everyone,
Well we are another week closer now.
We went to Epcot today for awhile. it was really a nice day there. It was cloudy, but around 70 degrees. It was very busy due to the holiday weekend and for locals it was a 4 day weekend. Lots of people here get Rodeo day off each year, which was friday. But we mostly went to take a walk around the worlds there and to buy some good chocolate candy they have there!!!
So we had a good time even with all the crowds.
We were suppose to be painting our new house today before we move, but things just didnt work out for that, so we just took the day for some fun. Next weekend will be the work of painting the place. It will take a couple of weekends and probably wont have it all done still. it is a big place, so it will take some time. Just want to get the bulk of it done before we move so we wont have to move furniture to paint. We finally have someone interested in our house, so maybe it will sell before we have to move, that would really be great.
Hope everyone had a good weekend. I'm still thinking about door signs. I have the magnetic sheets and lots of decals and letters, but not sure what I will do with them.
Kathy

 

[APB513]

I hope everyone had a nice weekend. The weather here was quite cold this weekend. I had to run out to the drug store on Saturday morning and it was 4 DEGREES outside!! That is just too cold.

The other day my older son said we needed to move to Florida because he was sick of the cold and snow. I told him I agreed!!!

 

[Euphscott]

Add another group. There are 3 of us from Texas. We just booked today. The prices for this particular cruise are at really reasonable rates (for Disney anyway) right now, so we grabbed one.

My name is Scott, my wife is Cindy, and our daughter Brooke are sailing. Cindy and I are 35, married 10 years. Brooke is our one and only and will be 4 next month. We are cruise veterans (well, this will be Brooke's first real cruise - Cindy was pregnant with Brooke aboard the Magic previously) and DCL vets. This will be our 5th on Disney, although it's been 4 years and the sticker shock is amazing. The DCL used to be a reasonable cost vacation, now the popularity is getting to the heads of the big cheese!

I am a technical writer, my wife is an analyst for an insurancec company, and Brooke, well, she is learning to read and write and IS a princess, just ask her, she'll be happy to tell you.

We are looking forward to the Magic. We do love her so and after sailing on other cruise lines, we'll be happy to be "home" again.

I hope you guys have not minded my looking in - I think I have a decent idea about the sailng party already with your previous posts!

 

[mom x4 grandma x4]

Welcome Scott, Cindy, and Princess Brooke!!!

I am so happy to have some more cruisers going with us and you guys are vet DCL cruisers too.
Your right about the sticker shock of the price, we looked at the 2007 prices when they came out and just about choked on them!!!

Looking forward to getting to know all of you over the next few months,
mom x4,grandma x4
Kathy

 

[brerrabbit70]

I'm so happy you found us! The more the merrier
I'm actually working on getting another couple to go with us and they have a 5 yr old princess. My DD is 11 and very jealous of the younger kid's Club. She said it looks way cooler than the Lab.

Angela, 4 degrees!!!!!!!!! You just move right on down here. My sister's selling a house...I'm just sayin! We lived in St. Louis for 10 months when we first got married and I about froze to death. I DO NOT like the cold.


Kathy, I'm so jealous. Ahhhhhhh, to be able to go to Disney any time I wanted. That is my dream! I've told James that Orlando is the ONLY place I would ever consider moving to. I'm ready to go again. It's been 3 years and that is way too long for me.

Cheri

 

[mom x4 grandma x4]

Hi Cheri,
Come on and move to orlando area, more towards Kissimmee and i have a nice 4 bedroom house for sale!!! It's just waiting for a new owner, it even has a pool!!! Ha! Ha! Just kidding, but we do have our house for sale right now, so I have to advertise it every chance I get.
We will be moving towards the end of next of next month to Leesburg. About 30 minutes longer to get to disney, but since it's just the 2 of us we can get a cheap hotel and spend the night if we dont want to drive that far after a day in the parks. But for now, unless we are ill or on a cruise, we are there at least once every weekend. We never get tired of it because it is a different experience every time we go there.

Angela,
I am so glad I dont live where you are, I love snow, but hate the bitter cold. It hurts my old bones. Hopefully spring is just around the corner and you will start thawing out soon.

Heidi,
Hows the tropical island of Hawaii?? I have never been there, so I dont know if you ever get cool in the winter.

Scott and Cindy being in Texas probably get both extremes, heat and cold, guess it depends where in Texas you are. I have visited parts of Texas a few times as a kid and all I remember is a very HOT summer.

Well the holiday is over so most of you are probably back to work again. My DH had to work yesterday so it didnt seem like a holiday to us. I am retired so everyday seems the same as the last, i tend ot loose track of time very easy, accept for counting down to the cruise. That I keep track of very carefully!!!
Have a good week everyone,
Kathy

 

[Euphscott]

Oh goodness - a 4 bedroom house with a pool near Disney? I will NOT allow my wife to see this information! Our stated desire is to retire in or near Orlando if I cannot afford a Caribbean island! I figure working 10-20 hours a week in a resort or park job would be just about the perfect retirement.

Yes - we do have lots of weather swings, but the good news with the cold is if we do get bitter cold, it's only a matter of a day or so before we become mild. This winter has been VERY mild with only a handful of days below freezing. Summers can be brutal where we hover around 100 for days on end, but at least we are not Houston (or Orlando for that matter) with oppressive humidity. We live in the Dallas area, so it's a little dryer most of the time.

I am not sure if this was discussed earlier, but it does appear that we will not be going to Cozumel. Our travel agent is listing the sailing going to Costa Maya, while discussion on the main forum seems to indicate Cozumel is off the board until at least 2007 with DCL. As far as we are concerned, that is a nice trade. We enjoyed our stay in Costa Maya with Princess, where we have been to Cozumel a couple times already. Prices on shopping seem to be better in CM and the fishing village is very charming and an example of unspoiled Mexico.

Back to work today - but with a lilt in my step - life is always a little sweeter with a cruise booking in your pocket!

 

[APB513]

Welcome Scott, Cindy and Brooke!!!!

Nice to have an addition to our club!! My dad lives on Grand Prairie, Tx and we usually visit during the summer. I know about that Texas heat...its a doosy. I toyed with the idea of moving to Texas but it was too hot for me.

I wonder if you and the wife will bring home another magical "souvenir" at the end of this cruise. I'm sure Brooke would love to be a big sister

Brerrabbit and Kathy -

Trust me if I could move I would take you up on the offer to buy the house!! I would really love to be able to visit a Disney Park every week!! That is my definition of heaven. Not to mention the beautiful FL weather. It's also been a dream of mine to work for Disney. I check their employment board from time to time to see if there is anything for me. Who knows, maybe one day I'll be a proud CM working at the most Magical Place on the planet!!!

I have a friend who moved with her two kids to Atlanta a few years ago. After years of talking about it, she just packed up and moved! No job but she did have family she stayed with. She's been there five years, has a great job and bought a home 2 years ago. I really admire the courage it took to pursue something she wanted to do. I'm just too cautious for something like that. No much of a risk taker!!!

So for now I wil have to be content with our first Disney Cruise!!! (I get so excited every time I say that). I ordered the Cruise DVD and I can't wait to get it. I also order the Passporter so that should keep me busy for a while.

I hope everyone has a wonderful day!!!

 

[strawberryblonde]

Welcome Scott and family ! It is fun to see our group getting bigger.

I was told that Hawaii doesn't have seasons really, just rainy and dry. I don't find that to be true. Summer felt like summer, more humid with straight sun for days. Around mid Dec. it started to feel like winter to me, not humid (to me) and cooler nights. Last week it actually felt alittle cold to me, it was around 75-78 degrees in the house for a few days. It has been in the 80's again lately. Last winter we were in Guam where it was HOT year round, so that most likely is why it feels alittle cold to me here this winter. I'm not dressing for cold and I don't have heat in my house, plus I like to leave the windows open for fresh air. We are still running around in shorts and flip-flops ("rubber slippahs" as a local would say) so it isn't that cold . We had some friends from the mainland here in Oahu visiting their family. My friend (in her 30's) felt hot every day, this was the same week I was feeling cold. So it is all relative.

Good idea to just plan on Costa Maya. I think I will have a backup plan for Coz. just in case as well.

 

[Euphscott]

Oh no - the only souvenirs we will bring home will be ones we can claim on the customs forms!

 

[mom x4 grandma x4]

Scott,
Dont worry if you wife sees the thread about our house, she will be too late. The first man who saw it bought it. But we have another 4 bedroom house here that we will be selling in a couple of years, maybe we could interest her in that one???? Ha! Ha!
Cant blame me for trying!!!
Yesterday was beautiful here in florida around 84 at our house.
This morning is overcast, but should reach the 70's by afternoon.


I had a new family respond to another thread I started for this cruise and I invited her to join us here on this thread, so I hope she does. I dont know her name but she is from California, so we may grow by another family in the next few days.

Well now I have to start to pack and plan for moving. I have 4 weeks, which sounds like along time, but as slow as I am, it's not that long.
Hope everyone has a great weekend.
Kathy

 

[Euphscott]

Congratulations on selling your house so quickly. Since we were not buying it, I hope you got a good price!

Packing and moving is one of my all time hated tasks. Buying a car, looking for a job, negotiating Dallas rush hour traffic - all some of life's less thrilling events. Hopefully your 4 weeks will pass quickly. I don't envy you!

 

[sftnslky]

I had a new family respond to another thread I started for this cruise and I invited her to join us here on this thread, so I hope she does. I dont know her name but she is from California,

hi, that would be me My name is Rebecca "Becca" for short. DH and I with all our brood live in Northern Ca...40 miles south of Sacramento. We are veteran cruisers, but newbies for the Disney line. We took our grils last year on a Carnival cruise and were sooooo upset by the "camp" that I don't know who cried worse them or us. We have 5 kids Courtnie who is 23 [Yes, I was a baby having a baby lol] then Jennah is 9, Macy is 7 and our identical twin boys will be 5 in April. We are only taking the two younger girls... and will take others on another trip. Also joining us will be DH's two sisters, one of his sisters DH and their three girls ages 17, 13, and 5 and also good co-worker friends of DH's and his wife, and their three kids ages 16, 12, and 6.

I hope this in't tabo or anything [if it please tell me] but I found Disney to MUCH more $$ then "reg" cruises... We ended up geting a deluxe inside statroom on deck 10 for the four of us..for $2300 is that about right? I only asked cause I just booked yesterday and am hoping I didn't get taken to the cleaners to bad

Well, I will write more later, but am off to pick up my girls from school and DH and I belong to a local drama group and have pratice every Thursday night from 6-8pm. So thank you for the warm and will chat with you all later...

 

[mom x4 grandma x4]

Becca,
I am so glad you found us. I have been watching the thread hoping to see a post from you.
Wow, you are a big group.
I'm sure you will all love the DCL cruise. you are correct that DCL is more spendy. I cant tell you if you got a good deal because my DH does all the booking and I never ask how much, I just go and enjoy the cruise!! No need to rock the boat!!
Have you got the free DVD that disny offers on their web site. If not you may want to order it. I'm sure everyone will enjoy watching it, but your girls will probably love to see what the kids areas look like.
One fun activity that you wont see on their site or on the DVD is the pirate deck party. You may of read about it on the forums here, but if not i will tell you it is a fun deck party. Lots of people, adults as well as kids dress up as pirates and go to dinner that way and stay in costume until the party is over.
Your wait staff will be dressed in pirate attire and you will receive a free pirate bandana, and scroll with your menu on it at dinner. Then later at night you go out on deck 9 for music, dancing, I should say pirate dancing. Then there is a skit with characters, fireworks, buffet on deck 9 and they play Pirates of the caribbean movie on the jumbotron movie screen by the family pool. By september it will probably be the new sequal of the movie that comes out this summer. Anyway you may want to ask your girls if they want to dress up and think about it for yourself. I just got odds and ends and made my own so it wasnt expensive and it is fun to dress up like everybody else. Thrift stores have lots of halloween stuff really cheap starting in september too, that is a good place to look. If you are interested.
Looking forward to getting to know you and finally meet in September.
mom x4, grandma x4
Kathy

 

[Euphscott]

Welcome aboard Becca.

We too booked a cat 10 (the deposit is actually paid today) and our total cost was 22XX for 3 of us. That does not include transfers or anything other than the cost to get in teh security gates and on to the ship.

It is a little high compared to other lines, but this sailing for whatever reason is the most affordable Disney sailing between now and the end of the listed time. So, we decided to pay the premium. We love the DCL product and our 4 year old daughter is all about Princesses, Mickey Mouse and all the marketing Disney can muster. So, we feel we need to indulge her once before we start sailing on other lines and itineraries. Is the premium worth it? Within reason I think so. But after a few sailings, for me it is worth spreading wings and seeing other ports and other cruise lines. We've not had a bad experience on any other lines, so it's all good - but Disney does do things a little nicer in some key areas.

We hope you enjoy your experience!

 

[brerrabbit70]

Welcome, Becca!!!!

I'm so happy there will be other girls my DD's age! (She's turning 12 on the cruise!) She was very worried about being the only girl there. Thank goodness they have Oceaner's Quest for the pre-teens.

I also have a 14 yr old DS. He offered to keep his sister company if she doesn't have anyone to hang out with. Awwwwwwww. I love that boy!

This will be our 3rd time on DCL and we love it. Well, the kids will tell you real quick that it is only their 2nd time because DH and I went once without them! They loved the cruise and are so happy to be going for a week this time.

We stayed in a cat. 10 on our first cruise with the kids and it was great! It never felt crowded and the kids love to fight over the pull down bed. (We'll have to flip a coin for the last night)

 

[mom x4 grandma x4]

Hi everyone,
I am excited that I found another family that are going on our cruise with us. I invited her to join us on this thread. I hope she does.
She goes by Peaches 26.
Becca joined us after we connected, so hopefully this family will join in too.
I am determined we will have a big family group by the time we sail.
Have a great weekend.
mom x4,grandma x4
Kathy

 

[strawberryblonde]

Welcome Becca ! Also, welcome in advance Peaches !

I think you got a great rate on your cat. 10 for 4 people. Does that rate include all taxes and fees? You didn't get "taken", so you can just relax and start planning for a great cruise !

 

[sftnslky]

Welcome Becca ! Also, welcome in advance Peaches !

I think you got a great rate on your cat. 10 for 4 people. Does that rate include all taxes and fees?

Yes that was port charges, taxes, and all goverment fees. So whew glad to know we did ok. I was at walmart today and they thad the cutest tinkerbell suitcases so I got one in pink and one in purple for my girls and they also had a ton of disney clothing...got them a new outfit for everyday of the cruise. I will get them one nice dress and some new shoes, will pack it all in the case and hide it till the day we go... They will be so excited... Well i have to run and pick up kids from school...will write more this evening.
xoxoxo to all
becca