A Disney-addicted mom plans a trip in August, 2010! *New pics #574*

[DrMomof3]

I'm starting to really think about the January trip (although I haven't gotten the ok from DH yet). I can't decide if we should stay Epcot-area or Monorail. There are merits to either. I'm also starting to fantasize about staying CL. It seems that staying CL will cost about the same as a one-bedroom villa....

Amanda

 

[Charlefours]

Yippee for an ADR at LTT for lunch! I am glad you were able to get one and your DH was happy!

 

[starann]

We officially have an ADR for LTT on Tuesday for lunch. My DH even thanked me when I told him!
I will eventually get back to trip planning (and I'm starting to think ahead to January ) but work is super busy and I'm still recovering from food poisoning....

Amanda

YAY for LTT lunch...we have it booked this trip. It was our only MK place to eat. A LOT of our ressies are at hotels (Ohana, Kona, CM, CMC, WCC) for Epcot (CR, 9 Dragons) opps I forgot about CP!


We did LTT lunch and dinner on our 1st trip and I liked lunch better!!!!

I hear you on being busy.....I do homecare and last week we were CRAZY, this week is slwoing down a bit, but it will start up again as we are maxed out on nurses on vacation......bring on the per diem $$$$!

Sorry you were sick....that is the worst because mommies aren't allowed to be sick!

 

[dismagiclover]

If I were you I would go with an Epcot resort for the January trip. It is such a huge advantage on race morning. You get that extra sleep because you don't have to catch the bus so early and you can just take the monorail back to your resort. If you stay in Epcot you still have to take the bus to the start and depending on your time you may finish before Epcot is even open so you have to take a bus back to your resort. Even if you're a bit slower the World Showcase will still be closed and I'm not sure if they will let you through to the International Gateway. Plus you probably won't feel like walking that far anyway. In theory the Epcot resorts sound great, but I'm not sure they are really an advantage for marathon weekend. (Though I'm staying at BWV so who am I to talk.)

 

[DrMomof3]

Yippee for an ADR at LTT for lunch! I am glad you were able to get one and your DH was happy!

I'm not sure he really cares but he pretended to!

YAY for LTT lunch...we have it booked this trip. It was our only MK place to eat. A LOT of our ressies are at hotels (Ohana, Kona, CM, CMC, WCC) for Epcot (CR, 9 Dragons) opps I forgot about CP!


We did LTT lunch and dinner on our 1st trip and I liked lunch better!!!!

I hear you on being busy.....I do homecare and last week we were CRAZY, this week is slwoing down a bit, but it will start up again as we are maxed out on nurses on vacation......bring on the per diem $$$$!

Sorry you were sick....that is the worst because mommies aren't allowed to be sick!

Mommies are totally not allowed to be sick! Many of our ADRs are at Epcot which makes sense since we're staying 3 minutes from the IG.

If I were you I would go with an Epcot resort for the January trip. It is such a huge advantage on race morning. You get that extra sleep because you don't have to catch the bus so early and you can just take the monorail back to your resort. If you stay in Epcot you still have to take the bus to the start and depending on your time you may finish before Epcot is even open so you have to take a bus back to your resort. Even if you're a bit slower the World Showcase will still be closed and I'm not sure if they will let you through to the International Gateway. Plus you probably won't feel like walking that far anyway. In theory the Epcot resorts sound great, but I'm not sure they are really an advantage for marathon weekend. (Though I'm staying at BWV so who am I to talk.)

You do mean monorail resort, right? I think I might want Poly for the 1/2 marathon....

Amanda

 

[dismagiclover]

You do mean monorail resort, right? I think I might want Poly for the 1/2 marathon....

Amanda

Oops! Yes I meant the monorail resorts! I guess I should proofread! The Poly would be awesome!

 

[DrMomof3]

Oops! Yes I meant the monorail resorts! I guess I should proofread! The Poly would be awesome!

Oh please! My posts are filled with typos!

I'm starting to really get itchy about buying DVC points. My DH is definitely not on board yet. He's not totally wrong (we're hopefully buying our house some time in the next year). I just feel like we spend so much cash on our Disney vacation so we might as well buy points instead. Right? Our August trip will be the 2nd time we've paid cash for a DVC accommodation. On our other 3 trips we've stayed deluxe (Poly, YC, Contemp). We're (hopefully) returning in January. I'm thinking about buying BLT and seeing if they can use their "new member magic" to get us a room for the marathon weekend.

Amanda

 

[dismagiclover]

Oh please! My posts are filled with typos!

I'm starting to really get itchy about buying DVC points. My DH is definitely not on board yet. He's not totally wrong (we're hopefully buying our house some time in the next year). I just feel like we spend so much cash on our Disney vacation so we might as well buy points instead. Right? Our August trip will be the 2nd time we've paid cash for a DVC accommodation. On our other 3 trips we've stayed deluxe (Poly, YC, Contemp). We're (hopefully) returning in January. I'm thinking about buying BLT and seeing if they can use their "new member magic" to get us a room for the marathon weekend.

Amanda

I love DVC and would love to own many more points. The reality at the moment is I don't think it's the most economical way to get to Disney. There are just so many discounts being offered and DVC is not cheap. And remember you'll still have the maintainance fees every year. However, I love the satisfaction of knowing there will never be a last Disney vacation! (Well not until 2042 anyway.) I think chances are good though that if you buy BLT with the condition of getting a room for marathon weekend one will magically appear. Funny how that happens Just make sure make it is a condition of sale. Good luck with whatever you end up doing.

 

[DrMomof3]

I love DVC and would love to own many more points. The reality at the moment is I don't think it's the most economical way to get to Disney. There are just so many discounts being offered and DVC is not cheap. And remember you'll still have the maintainance fees every year. However, I love the satisfaction of knowing there will never be a last Disney vacation! (Well not until 2042 anyway.) I think chances are good though that if you buy BLT with the condition of getting a room for marathon weekend one will magically appear. Funny how that happens Just make sure make it is a condition of sale. Good luck with whatever you end up doing.

That's the magic I was hoping to get.
Alas, DH is definitely against it - for now. He agrees that we will eventually buy DVC but not until we pay off more debt and buy our house. He's right, of course, but responsible isn't always fun. I also feel that we could be using our vacation dollars to buy into DVC rather than having them just go to Disney and be gone (sort of like the difference between renting and buying). We're getting close to being able to do it and it's frustrating for me.
I agree that the discounts are still good. We had a 40% PIN for our BCV villa but that still means $300+ per night. And if we do stay CL in January (I'm starting to think we should save $$$ and spend less), that'll be a lot again. But taking on new debt right now isn't the right thing to do.
I'm supposedly getting a raise soon (I don't know how much) and I usually get a good end-of-the-year bonus so that will help. And we're still on our Dave Ramsey budget plan.
It will happen but not soon enough for me!

Amanda

 

[TinkerbellLuvr7]

hi!! I'm following over from another Pre-TR I'm going to go back and read all the updates now!!

 

[DrMomof3]

An update:

I pre-ordered a photopass CD for the August trip. DH was totally on-board for that! We have some great pictures from last May (including one that we used for our holiday card). Once we decide to do photopass, we're very aggressive about doing family photos everywhere! Might as well get our money's worth.

MIL is not coming with us in January. She was thinking she could do the whole trip for $1000. A 5 day park hopper is $280 and airfare will likely be $300. That leaves $420 for 5 nights in a hotel and food.... The funny thing is that she came to Disney with us a few years ago (I was pregnant with Zachary) and we stayed at the Poly. I offered that she could stay at a less expensive hotel but she wants to stay wherever we stay. I understand that but we're going to stay deluxe or villa. Truth be told she wouldn't be happy in a moderate or value. She's pooh-sized and tends to fill the space with "stuff."
There's much irony in this related to my SIL but I'm not sure this is the appropriate venue to vent! Let's just say that my SIL's good-for-nothing DH has decided that having a job is optional and this has lead to bankruptcy and foreclosure (they have 2 young children). My MIL has been supporting them financially for more than a decade despite being a widow on a fixed income. This has lead to financial issues for her. My in-laws have not been great to me over the years (my MIL has gotten a lot better recently) so there's a limit to my pity. Nonetheless I hope that if/when we buy DVC we can bring my MIL to Disney at least once.
Having no MIL in January will simplify my life a lot! I now think we'll stay in a 2 bedroom villa at BLT with my parents (there seem to be some available now so I need to figure that out). My family will be able to walk out to the street and watch me run by. We'll have a kitchen and washer/dryer. My mom's very good about cooking some meals in and helping me straighten up. There are still issues with my parents but isn't that always the case???

Amanda

 

[Native NYer]

I've been following along, but haven't been able to post. The end of the school year was VERY busy for me.

Your plan of staying in a 2 br villa at BLT for January is fantastic! Are you going to request a lock-off or a dedicated? We're staying in a 1 br at BLT next month (arriving August 21st) and can't wait!

 

[DrMomof3]

I've been following along, but haven't been able to post. The end of the school year was VERY busy for me.

Your plan of staying in a 2 br villa at BLT for January is fantastic! Are you going to request a lock-off or a dedicated? We're staying in a 1 br at BLT next month (arriving August 21st) and can't wait!

Welcome! We're arriving on August 21st, too. We'll spend one night at CSR before moving to BCV.

Amanda

 

[Native NYer]

Welcome! We're arriving on August 21st, too. We'll spend one night at CSR before moving to BCV.

Amanda

I'm sure you'll get a lot of use out of SAB in the August heat!
I love the new decor at CSR.

 

[BippityBoo]

Yay for ordering your Photopass CD I want to order mine now with the great $99 deal (which I assume you got). I am always nervous it won't work in December, but everyone tells me it will!!

 

[dismagiclover]

for preordering the Photopass CD! I too think that is a must do! And I hope it all works for you to get BLT for January! You will love it! Super convenient for the race plus you can't beat being able to walk to the Magic Kingdom.

 

[lexmas]

Catching up!

Glad you ordered your photopass CD. I love all the pictures. I think I'm too cheap to get one still, but I enjoy looking at everyone elses!

It's still nice to know that you'll be buying into DVC in the future, anyway. It's hard to be responsible sometimes! I'm happy to hear that Dave Ramsey is going well fo ryou though!

Well, it's not nice to say that I'm happy that your MIL isn't going with you, but it does sound like that has really simplified things for you, so that's great!

Happy to be caught up! You did a lot of planning in the last week and a half!

 

[DrMomof3]

hi!! I'm following over from another Pre-TR I'm going to go back and read all the updates now!!

Welcome

I'm sure you'll get a lot of use out of SAB in the August heat!
I love the new decor at CSR.

Have you stayed at CSR? I'm curious what my family will think of a moderate. We've been very spoiled on our past trips!!!

Yay for ordering your Photopass CD I want to order mine now with the great $99 deal (which I assume you got). I am always nervous it won't work in December, but everyone tells me it will!!

I was worried about that, too!

Amanda

 

[DrMomof3]

for preordering the Photopass CD! I too think that is a must do! And I hope it all works for you to get BLT for January! You will love it! Super convenient for the race plus you can't beat being able to walk to the Magic Kingdom.

Thanks! We loved our photopass CD last year. In December we skipped it because it was a short trip. This time we both agreed to do it again.
I wish I knew what price/discounts we'll eventually get for BLT. The current quote is quite expensive!!!

Catching up!

Glad you ordered your photopass CD. I love all the pictures. I think I'm too cheap to get one still, but I enjoy looking at everyone elses!

It's still nice to know that you'll be buying into DVC in the future, anyway. It's hard to be responsible sometimes! I'm happy to hear that Dave Ramsey is going well fo ryou though!

Well, it's not nice to say that I'm happy that your MIL isn't going with you, but it does sound like that has really simplified things for you, so that's great!

Happy to be caught up! You did a lot of planning in the last week and a half!

Photopass is great - as long as you're committed to being aggressive about having your picture taken.
Dave Ramsey is great but it's also hard sometimes. Ok, it's hard a lot of the time!
My MIL staying behind is much easier. My in-laws are, well, interesting (that's a polite way to put it!). My parents do not particularly like my MIL so this makes life much better for me! I told her she could come on a different Disney trip.
I feel so far behind on my planning!!!

Amanda

 

[DrMomof3]

I passed my boards!!! I found out last night!

Amanda