A Jolly Holiday with Masseys: THE TRIP REPORT - WDW Dec2019

[mFont23]

quick life update....

So we know my sister is heading back to the college program for, basically the fall advantage. That's what she always wanted. Personally, I can't wait to see her figure out how to handle the heat. In our October trip SHE COULD NOT HANG. But I don't think I'll have a chance to see her there, which is bittersweet. Jimmy and I have a BABY coming this December. Jimmy has been working back in our hometown since January, and while we definitely wanted another one, this was quite a sweet surprise. We're already planning for a trip next fall to bring the baby when he'll be the same age as when we first brought John Paul. We just found out this past Saturday that it'll be a BOY. I had a blood test done and that was the result. This'll be Gia's FOURTH brother (two at mom's and two here) so she's not thrilled right now. But she's just such a good big sister, that I know she'll come around. We just have to find ways to have her feel closer to it and a part of it.

My friend Lindsey had our gender results and we decided Saturday worked out. So I got pink and blue (washable!) paint and had her fill water guns with whatever it was. Jimmy and I wore white and let the kids spray us with the water guns. In true Disney fashion, Jimmy asked to wear his Pizza Planet shirt since it's mostly white. I'm like I don't care, just don't get mad if it stains. John Paul has let us know several times already that he "totally knew it." He calls Gia's other brothers his brothers, but he really wanted a" house brother". In the pictures I don't look terribly happy... you see RIGHT before we did this, John Paul and his "brother" were playing with a poop emoji squishy and pillow. Running around the house, being silly, making poop jokes, being boys. Then they decided it needed to go in the potty. So they stuffed it in the potty, flushed, and flooded the bathroom. Needles to say, the idea of another boy in the moment was not exciting. HAHA!!

But thanks, yall, for your support. Obviously, we enjoy chaos too much, here. Promise to get an update on the TR soon!









It was a lot of fun!! Gia showed me no mercy, then John Paul just wouldn't stop.

 

[smilie]

Ahhhhh, congratulations!!! That's so exciting. Aren't you just the most adorable preggo ever.

 

[vamassey1]

Peace of mind.

Very much so!

Biting... scratching... hair pulling... and of course the inevitable pillow fight.

All of the above.

I meant I only know two personally... if you can call it "knowing" over the DIS. Well... met one of them. Maybe I'll meet Danielle some day.

I really hope you get to meet her.

Oh? Shame. Unless she has something better.

I don't know about better, but different.

 

[vamassey1]

Are her three roommates coming back too for the June 2021? I may have missed that.

She actually had 4 roommates in a 3 bedroom apartment. C shared a room with her dog, Me & Mi shared a room and Danielle and Z shared a room. C is the only one not coming back. ME and MI are going to share a room again. Z is not coming back until July so she and Danielle can't share again. This time around Danielle listed a 4 bedroom 2 bath as her first option. She would not be sharing a room just an apartment. She has found a room mate that gets in 2 weeks after her.

 

[vamassey1]

I will surely do so. Will probably be AROUND Sept 17 or 18. Ish.

I'm so sorry but we leave on the 18th for our annual get together with Dennis' family at the Belmont Plantation .

This was set up last year by his Aunt. The get together was cancelled last year due to Covid.

Bummer!! But, she really dressed it up!

Yes she did.

Aww, love this!

Me too!

I have always really loved this fountain at DS. Always so pretty!

I love it too, it has lots of eye candy. I try to see it each trip.

Super, SUPER cute!! Love it!!

She really did do a good job.

 

[vamassey1]

I've been catching up. So glad she gets to go back!

So HAPPY to have you here GB! And thank you.

 

[Isabelle12345]

Congratulations on the pregnancy!
I hope you are feeling well!

 

[pkondz]

So we know my sister is heading back to the college program for, basically the fall advantage.

Personally, I can't wait to see her figure out how to handle the heat.

Oh, that's easy.

Sweat like a pig.


See? Easy!

But I don't think I'll have a chance to see her there, which is bittersweet.

Shame.

Jimmy and I have a BABY coming this December.

We're already planning for a trip next fall to bring the baby when he'll be the same age as when we first brought John Paul.

Aww! Love that.

We just found out this past Saturday that it'll be a BOY

Congrats on the news!

This'll be Gia's FOURTH brother (two at mom's and two here) so she's not thrilled right now.

No, I suppose not.

But she'll be doted on, I bet.

Jimmy and I wore white and let the kids spray us with the water guns.

Cool idea! Hadn't heard of that one.
Bit better than burning the entire state of CA down.

Then they decided it needed to go in the potty. So they stuffed it in the potty, flushed, and flooded the bathroom. Needles to say, the idea of another boy in the moment was not exciting. HAHA!!

1. You look great!
2. Your expression!

Think this one's my fave.

Oh my gosh! Look how big the kids are!!

All of the above.

 

[StarWarsMomofGirls!]

Jimmy and I have a BABY coming this December. Jimmy has been working back in our hometown since January, and while we definitely wanted another one, this was quite a sweet surprise.

I saw on facebook!!! CONGRATULATIONS!!!! That is super exciting.

This'll be Gia's FOURTH brother (two at mom's and two here) so she's not thrilled right now.

Poor girl! Well, she has lots of boys to boss around!

John Paul has let us know several times already that he "totally knew it." He calls Gia's other brothers his brothers, but he really wanted a" house brother".

That is so cute!

Congrats again!

 

[mFont23]

Ahhhhh, congratulations!!! That's so exciting. Aren't you just the most adorable preggo ever.

Thank you! The baby belly popped a lotttttt sooner than last time. I'm about to start lying to people and saying i'm more pregnant than I am HAHA.

Congratulations on the pregnancy!
I hope you are feeling well!

Thank you. Good days and bad days, as with anything. For a few weeks there, I thought I might drown myself in "preggie pops" and ginger tea to stay settled.

Oh, that's easy.

Sweat like a pig.


See? Easy!

She does not handle these things so well. I'm very interested to watch how much growing she does on this program into an adult.

Congrats on the news!

Thank you!!

But she'll be doted on, I bet.

She is well spoiled, that is for sure.

Cool idea! Hadn't heard of that one.
Bit better than burning the entire state of CA down.

No kidding, right?! Jimmy wanted something the kids could do, and no one likes popping things around here.

Oh my gosh! Look how big the kids are!!

Too big!!!!

Poor girl! Well, she has lots of boys to boss around!

That's for sure. She'll have a long line of boys to protect her, too. Not that I doubt her own ability to handle her business, HAHA.

That is so cute!

Congrats again!

Thank you!!!!

 

[Stasieki]

Such awesome news!!! Congratulations!!!!!

 

[Woth2982]

Congrats Michelle! That is so exciting! My husband and I are in the "trying but not trying" camp. Whatever happens happens! We are giving it two years then he is getting snipped lol.

The baby belly popped a lotttttt sooner than last time. I'm about to start lying to people and saying i'm more pregnant than I am HAHA.

I did not have a belly until like 7 months! I just looked fat. I was so miserable a few weeks before she was due and someone at the grocery store asked me when the baby was due, I was in such a foul mood I said "I'm not pregnant" with a dead face. Her look of shock helped my mood. I then came clean and told the truth, but I bet she thinks twice before she asks that again lol.

 

[pkondz]

She does not handle these things so well. I'm very interested to watch how much growing she does on this program into an adult.

She'll have to. I don't think they'll take kindly to "It's a bit warm. I think I won't work today."

She is well spoiled, that is for sure.

No kidding, right?! Jimmy wanted something the kids could do, and no one likes popping things around here.

Then it sounds like the perfect choice.

 

[vamassey1]

Now that Michelle has FINALLY shared her good news I feel we can all move forward. I've been holding my tongue for awhile now. We're very excited to welcome a new baby before Christmas! We knew she was expecting before our May trip but didn't know if it was a boy or girl. She wanted us to pick up something Disney but every thing we saw was gender related. Now we can shop more freely.

OMG Danielle leaves in 13 days for Disney, and no she is not at all ready. I told her today she better start getting some stuff done cause I'm not staying up all night before she leaves to get her packed. Spoiler alert, I ended up doing this the night before we left for our May trip. She is still real excited. I'm starting to get sad. More news seems to come in almost daily. She had a conference call last week and I heard most of it while I was home on my lunch break. Things are so different this year. Right now her "dashboard" shows QSR (Quick Service Restaurant) for her position. So no she will not be a seater at CRT again. They told them on the call that what they are seeing is just a placeholder. The kids are going to be put where they are needed most and will most likely be moved around. This is different than last year when they were given their offer it was know that was it for their entire program unless something unforeseen happened (ex would be an allergy or something). She will get her official starting position next week. Late last week they were sent their apartment leases for the kids arriving on June 15th. This is new too, in the past they did not sign a lease. The good news was now they knew what type of apartment they were getting. The options were 2 bedroom with 2 baths (2 kids in each room), 4 bedrooms with 2 baths ( each of the 4 would have their own very small room) or 4 bedrooms with 4 bathrooms (each would have their own room & bathroom) When the kids filled out their application they had to chose what order they would prefer. Since Danielle will not know her room mate well she chose 4 bedroom 2 bath as her first choice. Once they got their lease it was listed what apartment they got. Good news for Danielle was she got her first choice. They have more 2br/2bath than anything else and a lot of kids ended up with this. At the beginning of the day the kids could sign in after signing their lease and see who they would be rooming with but this was taken down by the time Danielle looked at her dashboard. So as of now she doesn't know who she will be sharing her apartment with, hopefully the girl she requested as one of her room mates will be in the apartment. She is not coming until 2 weeks after Danielle. The bad news for all was having to sign a lease. This will make a lot of the kids grow up. If they choose to self-term and leave they are still responsible for the rent. Disney has a problem every year in the fall with kids getting homesick and leaving at the busiest times of the year. This should be another learning lesson for them all. Danielle has already bought sheets for a double bed so now she won't have to return them. The 2 bedroom apartments have XL twin beds and the 4 bedroom apartments have XL double beds.

I went ahead and starting planning when I will come visit her. Dennis wants to visit too but isn't interested in spending time in the parks like I am. We are both going to try to do separate short trips with one trip together. He's not sure when he will go but plans on driving and staying off site. His trip would be something short and around her having a few days off. It's easier for him to travel during the week but I need to do weekends. I'm booked at ASM for Labor Day weekend. I'll fly in on the Saturday and out on the Wednesday (its cheaper to fly on Wednesday, fuzzy Disney Math). I'm thinking about doing the Boo Bash since there is one date while I'm there. I want to spend as much time with Danielle as possible so I put her on my reservation. I'm hoping to go to Sam's with her to get her stocked up and take care of anything else she needs to do. We want to take a trip together Thanksgiving week so we can spend some holiday time with her. We can't visit in December because we want to be here for the new baby. My birthday is also that Monday of Thanksgiving week and I have always wanted to spend it in Disney. I haven't booked anything yet. I haven't seen anything in my very limited price range for that week. I'm going to keep checking and hope they open another value resort or offer an annual pass discount. So yes, I did renew my pass last week (ouch).

I don't think I shared any actual graduation photos, so here we go.



I have also been updating my office. We have been sprucing up all the offices and I got to choose my theme. Can you guess what I went with? If you guessed Disney you're spot on. I have tons of Disney prints from the days when you got them free with the DVD presales at the Disney Store. I also have some of the smaller prints given out now with the Disney Movie Club. We bought a bunch of frames and a few accents from Hobby Lobby and Home Goods. I have the cutest cactus plant made by Brent's wife Hannah on my desk. My office now makes me very happy.












Covid update: Everything here is pretty much wide open. If you are fully vaccinated you don't need to wear a mask except to public transportation, airports, medical facilities and Federal buildings. It is highly suggested to continue to wear a mask if you're not vaccinated but everyone is pretty much on the honor system. I will say it was very nice not to wear a mask when I went to Mass. I truly hope the numbers stay low and more and more people get vaccinated. How are things were you live? I'm sure it different everywhere.

 

[pkondz]

We're very excited to welcome a new baby before Christmas!

Yes, I saw! Congratulations!

OMG Danielle leaves in 13 days for Disney

Coming up quick.

I told her today she better start getting some stuff done cause I'm not staying up all night before she leaves to get her packed. Spoiler alert, I ended up doing this the night before we left for our May trip.

I'm starting to get sad.

Late last week they were sent their apartment leases for the kids arriving on June 15th. This is new too, in the past they did not sign a lease.

Oh, really! Huh.

Good news for Danielle was she got her first choice.

Good! Glad she got what she wanted.

If they choose to self-term and leave they are still responsible for the rent.

That'll make you think twice... and grow up fast.

Disney has a problem every year in the fall with kids getting homesick and leaving at the busiest times of the year

Yes, I know.
I know one person who did just that.

I don't think I shared any actual graduation photos, so here we go.

Lovely photos.

We have been sprucing up all the offices and I got to choose my theme. Can you guess what I went with? If you guessed Disney you're spot on.

Nice! And yes, I guessed.

My office now makes me very happy.

Covid update: Everything here is pretty much wide open. If you are fully vaccinated you don't need to wear a mask except to public transportation, airports, medical facilities and Federal buildings. It is highly suggested to continue to wear a mask if you're not vaccinated but everyone is pretty much on the honor system. I will say it was very nice not to wear a mask when I went to Mass. I truly hope the numbers stay low and more and more people get vaccinated.

Sounds... very normal.

How are things were you live? I'm sure it different everywhere.

We are still in our 3rd wave, although the numbers aren't quite as high as they were a week or so ago. Most retail stores are open, but only to 10% capacity. No indoor dining, or recreational or spiritual activities. No gatherings at homes indoors or out.
But... our vaccinations are proceeding full speed ahead. My DDs each got their first shots today and a couple days ago and I'm getting my 2nd shot tomorrow.

 

[luvpoohandcompany]

Congratulations on the baby news. I love how you chose to reveal the baby's gender and while Gia might have 4 brothers that means she gets to be the only daddy's girl which is always special
I laughed (sorry) when I heard about the sqishey toilet trip! Count yourself lucky (sort of) my 2 year old nephew (now almost 40) tried to flush away my jewellery once while he was staying with us. Thankfully i checked on him just in time though it was not a joyful task fishing out my necklace and bracelet
Delighted for Danielle that she got her 1st choice apartment. Cant wait to hear how she gets on and it will be great for her to have you and Denis visit. Don't think Michelle would have forgiven you if you abandoned her with a newborn second time around (only kidding) so Thanksgiving sounds perfect

Things here are gradually returning to a more normal way of life. You can dine/drink inside but only with a max of 6 people from max 2 households or you can meet up to 15 people from 3 houses outside. Masks are to be worn in shops/on public transport/in post-primary schools during class or in corridors (for the over 11year old kids). Kids at my son's school walk a daily mile each day outside so the can catch up with friends and get some exercise while they're at it. The kids love it and it has been great for all their mental health too as they missed their pals so much. I have met my sister for a weekly walk and lunch outside and on the 17th I'm having chinese food at my sister-in-law's house to celebrate being together, me surviving the last year and our 34th wedding anniversary. All my in-laws will be there (restrictions are due to ease further next week to allow) and much prosecco will be drunk and to say I'm looking forward to it would be the understatement of the century

 

[vamassey1]

Yes, I saw! Congratulations!

Coming up quick.

Sometimes it's coming too quick and sometimes not quick enough.

That'll make you think twice... and grow up fast.

Welcome to adulthood.

Yes, I know.
I know one person who did just that.

I'm sorry. I know it's always a hard decision.

Lovely photos.

Nice! And yes, I guessed.

I knew you would.

We are still in our 3rd wave, although the numbers aren't quite as high as they were a week or so ago. Most retail stores are open, but only to 10% capacity. No indoor dining, or recreational or spiritual activities. No gatherings at homes indoors or out.
But... our vaccinations are proceeding full speed ahead. My DDs each got their first shots today and a couple days ago and I'm getting my 2nd shot tomorrow.

My heart goes out to y'all with all the restrictions. I'm happy to hear the vaccinations are proceeding and your family is getting covered.

Have you thought about immigrating?

 

[vamassey1]

Congratulations on the baby news.

I love how you chose to reveal the baby's gender and while Gia might have 4 brothers that means she gets to be the only daddy's girl which is always special

It really was a cute idea. I told Gia she was the Unicorn of the family.

Count yourself lucky (sort of) my 2 year old nephew (now almost 40) tried to flush away my jewellery once while he was staying with us. Thankfully i checked on him just in time though it was not a joyful task fishing out my necklace and bracelet

I'm sorry but that is too funny.

Delighted for Danielle that she got her 1st choice apartment. Cant wait to hear how she gets on and it will be great for her to have you and Denis visit. Don't think Michelle would have forgiven you if you abandoned her with a newborn second time around (only kidding) so Thanksgiving sounds perfect

Danielle understands why we can't come during the Christmas Holidays. Michelle will never let us live down leaving her after JP was born.

Kids at my son's school walk a daily mile each day outside so the can catch up with friends and get some exercise while they're at it. The kids love it and it has been great for all their mental healt

I'm so happy that things are getting better where you are and I love this idea of the walk. Great for mental health and their physical health.

I have met my sister for a weekly walk and lunch outside and on the 17th I'm having chinese food at my sister-in-law's house to celebrate being together, me surviving the last year and our 34th wedding anniversary. All my in-laws will be there (restrictions are due to ease further next week to allow) and much prosecco will be drunk and to say I'm looking forward to it would be the understatement of the century

Lots of great plans. Happy Early Anniversary!

 

[pkondz]

Sometimes it's coming too quick and sometimes not quick enough.

I get that.

I'm sorry. I know it's always a hard decision.

Didn't bother me!

My heart goes out to y'all with all the restrictions. I'm happy to hear the vaccinations are proceeding and your family is getting covered.

Have you thought about immigrating?

Yes, but I'm not sure England is accepting right now.

 

[vamassey1]

Didn't bother me!

Of course not but I'm sure is was hard for the CP.

Yes, but I'm not sure England is accepting right now.