Seriously? Seriously??
They make us use our real names! That doesn't seem fair!!
Reminds me of when I was single and my best friend and I would go out to clubs. If we were approached by any guys and we weren't interested, our code words to each other were the names we would give.
I was "Bernice" and my friend was "Ethel"...
Kathy
.
I just really don't want to have to tote around bologna and goldfish crackers whenever we go out to eat!!
Kathy
Oh well. I like it that we are all understanding of the DFI! 
Isn't that so funny about reading the Kids Menu first?? But I suppose we know that we can find something on just about any menu.... it's the kids with the limited food "repetoir" that can make or break the experience.
I just really don't want to have to tote around bologna and goldfish crackers whenever we go out to eat!!
yes we are Moms....and oh I don't go anywhere w/out goldfish for Margaret and she is starting to have a fond love for her bologna
Any friend of Scrappie's is a friend of mine!
My friends, I believe I am suffering from Disney Flight of Ideas!
No matter what the current topic of discussion, my mind will find a way to associate it with our upcoming WDW vacation.
well at least I know I don't really have a problem...
"I'd rather eat at Teppan Edo," he declared. "Billy will eat the chicken, just bring along some goldfish (crackers) for him and he'll be set."
I sighed.
I do believe that when I'm 80 years old I'll be carrying around bags of goldfish for Billy in the basket of my walker.
Okay.... so Coral Reef has been bumped. Teppan Edo now stands as our Epcot alternate to Le Cellier.
that's not too bad...
Oh, by the way, I got an e-mail with flight changes for our return flight.... we have to leave an hour earlier now.
BLAH! an earlier flight home is never fun
I got a very similar voicemail back from Member Services when inquiring about the rumor of the "caste system" for the ADRs. It was completely unhelpful. I gave up at that point and just let it go.
Ah, Cheerios! The breakfast of my young champion!!A nutritionist friend of mine says that ASD kids naturally crave carbs because their body "knows" that they give them the energy they need to be so (hyper)active!
I truly think that sense of smell plays a large part in the food pickiness, at least with Billy. When he's unsure of a food he always sniffs it thoroughly before he will attempt a first bite. The next issue is texture. He's used to the texture of the breaded coating in chicken nuggets and that's why plain baked or grilled chicken seems so foriegn to him.
You got Le Cellier for Sept '09?? That's great, 'specially with Free Dining!
Gabriel must be so excited!
Kathy
. Not that I want him eating tons of chocolate but really, a child of mine, not even trying it....
I think I bleed Hershey's. It's pretty hard while we are out but yes I usually pack something for him to eat. 
finally finished reading all 127 pages!!! 
Yes, and I even read almost 
all the chit-chat 
to write my own (don't think I'm all that witty?!)Yes... I noticed my ADR countdown ticker was a bit off, so I fixed it. I can make them this Saturday!
for you!!Hello and
Sorry about the length of this... I only recently learned how to post links to chapters. I put them in my April report, but frankly I'm just too lazy to go back and do it for this PTR!! I will do it when we get to the actual report, however, because it certainly does make it easier for new readers.
Doing links on a PTR can be daunting.... like Jordan said, it's kind of like musing aloud about the upcoming trip. It's actually just another way to talk to yourself, only here your cyber-friends actually talk back to you!!
Liz, feel free to PM me with any questions or just to say hello! Any friend of Scrappie's is a friend of mine!
Kathy
I'm sure I'll have lots of SSR questions and maybe even some DVC ? for you, but I'll send them in a PM 
and join you in ODP (Obsessive Disney Planning)...it's an -itis you know! Aaaahhhh, its so good to know I'm not alone!
My Disney trip is always simmering on the back burners of my mind!
Kathy
and my free moments at work 
Yep - I've got it too! Even without another trip planned, I have to mentally remind myself at times when I'm speaking to Non-Disney-obsessed people, how NOT to insert something into the conversation about Disney! It's a real challenge - I tell ya!
Sara
I always tell my family that I can't be that "weird" because there are an awful lot of people just like me on the DIS!!! Oh Kathy, I could have written your last installment. I definitely suffer from DFI, no doubt about it and I don't necessarily have to have a trip in the works either although it is a bigger problem if I do. DH and DD12 just smile and roll their eyes, DS8 and DD7 don't seem to pay attention.
If you end up with Teppan Edo you may want to talk to the Dining people and see if there is anything they can offer for Billy. I've read on the DISability forum about accomodations that are made sometimes, most of the time it is for allergies but I'd think they could do something for a special needs child too. It wouldn't hurt to ask.
As for Teppan Edo, perhaps I could call ahead if necessary. When we traveled with Aunt Rae all the TS chefs were incredibly accommodating with regard to her gluten-free diet. 
I made it
Oooh, Oooh, Oooh, I so have this...Hi My name is Liz and I have Disney Flight of Ideas!! (oh yes, I did catch the Horshack refrence all those pages ago)
Mine is not only in back burners of my mind...it's in each of my dreams at night!
Gabriel is a sniffer too. He can be quite comical when it comes to forcing him to try something new. He really doesn't eat bad...just not a big variety.....It's pretty hard while we are out but yes I usually pack something for him to eat.
I hope to do a trip report and maybe will even start a PTR
This is the first year Gabriel is really "excited" about going. Every year he gets a little better and trys new things so it will be interesting to see what new thing he will try this year.
I think our kids make progress too, just at a much slower pace. Just the fact that he can now order a hot dog opens up so many new dining possibilities!!You had me laughing out loud with your past couple updates!!!!!
..... I got a very similar voicemail back from Member Services when inquiring about the rumor of the "caste system" for the ADRs. It was completely unhelpful. I gave up at that point and just let it go.
And speaking of LeCellier (DFI), I was listening to the lastest Podcast this morning and they reported they WALKED UP to LeCellier (lunch) the other day. There were tables EMPTY! It was the first time in years they have been able to do that. They think it's because the online system is completely wack and it's showing no availability, but there truly is. So, it might be worth trying to do a walk-up reservation if you don't get it on the phone.
I see you're down to your last week of "Das Boot." 
She readily admitted that based on guest feedback, more training was necessary for those CMs in positions of answering our questions.
I said as much to Joy and then told her that because I did not want to lose an entire day of my dining reservation window, I would need to switch my reservation around.
*Note* This post, while certainly pertaining to trip-planning, may be a tad boring if you're not
1) A DVC Member, or
2) Someone with linked ressies who is planning to make your ADRs on line.
You've been warned! (The rest of you can all take a little cat-nap.)
After receiving two less-than-helpful e-mail responses from DVC Member Services, I was honored with a phone call tonight from a real-live MS cast member. Her name.....
.....Joy.
Real name or fake? We will never know for sure!
Anyway, she was extremely pleasant and Disney-like. This was obviously someone who had a talent for smoothing ruffled feathers because she listened attentively while I described the difficulties I had experienced getting straight answers from Disney regarding both the party dates for the MNSSHP and the use of the new on-line dining reservation system.
We had a lovely talk and we laughed together about how some Disney fans are true Uber-Planners and the extent to which we went to plan every detail of our WDW vacations. (I recommended she read the book, Mousejunkies, to get a good laugh or two, as well as insight into the mind of the Dis-Crazed!) I learned a few things, too.
I mentioned that Free Dining seems to have made the need for ADRs a necessity and that in some cases it has become difficult to procure reservations for popular restaurants at decent meal times. Joy stated that she thought the real reason for this was the change from the 180-day window to 90 days. "All you Uber-Planners had your days planned out and your dining reservations made five or six months before your vacation!" she laughed. "Then the rest of the guests would start thinking about reservations much closer to their trips." Now that we planners are forced to wait, we are "competing" with a larger pool of guests who are making ressies at the 90-day mark.
I also tossed in a comment that it was very difficult for the "Uber-Planners," who tend to be repeat customers, to plan our trips when park hours and entertainment schedules are released at only 90 days out. Of course, Joy has no power to change this, but I just felt like it should be said.
"Planning was never this stressful before!" I told her. She really did seem to understand, telling me that a good friend of hers is an "Uber-Planner" and has been telling her the same thing lately.
The next issue we discussed was the on-line dining reservation system.
"Why," I asked, "does a person with linked reservations need to log on multiple times for multiple 90-day windows?" "Doesn't the first ressie entitle you to the 90 + 10 window?"
The reason is this... the current software not only notes your check-in date for each of your linked ressies, it notes your check-out date as well! Linked ressies are actually a succession of check-ins and check-outs, even if they are "linked" so you do not have to move rooms.
When the current program notes your check-out date for each ressie, you're done. You cannot continue to make on-line ressies. Unlike the Disney Dining CM you call on the phone... who can look on the screen and see that your ressies are linked and note the dates of your 90 + 10... the computer cannot recognize that you have not actually finished your vacation just because you "checked out" of your resort.
While annoying, this certainly sounded plausible.
She also assured me that at 90 days, DVC resort reservation confirmation numbers can be accessed by the on-line dining system. "We did have a problem with that in the past," she remarked, "but that's been fixed."
Joy apologized for the glitches in the system and asked that guests be understanding while Disney "worked out the kinks." Unfortunately, I do not think the system will be smoothed out by Saturday.
She asked that I not go to the trouble, that I had had enough anxiety with planning the trip already. (I had related to her the whole is-there-or-isn't-there-a-MNSSHP-on-Nov. 1st. miscommunication from a few months back, and how it necessitated the addition of that additional night for cash.)
"If you use the phone-in system and have difficulty getting a certain reservation, call me and I will see what I can do behind the scenes to get you that reservation," she told me. Then she gave me her direct number. She reminded me that her name was Joy and I told her that she certainly sounded joyful, which she did. I could envision her big, friendly, Disney smile the entire time we were on the phone.
After I hung up, I felt better. Perhaps the on-line system will work more efficiently by the time I'm planning our next trip, but for now I'll be making that phone call on Saturday morning... knowing that I have a little backup plan to the backup plan... if that makes any sense.
Just use your DFI....
Kathy
