A MAGICal FANTASY of an Anniversary - Now Jan 2013 - *Happy News!* 04/26!

[Disney9.9.10]

So I finally have some good news! Hopefully people will be more likely to read and comment now The last few posts have been quite depressing…

At long last, a decision has been made…
The company I work for has been sold. We are being laid off as of tomorrow, and we don't know for how long at this point - 3 weeks at least, but could be longer. There will be another lay-off in the summer as well. These layoffs are a positive thing because the new owners are doing some much needed maintenance on our machines and getting things in order so that we can be a much more productive company. There has been far too much slacking in these areas lately and our company was in danger. Because of all of this, everyone's vacations are pretty much out the window for this year. Some people are taking their vacations in April when we are laid off, and some are taking them in the summer (this is what I am going to do). Therefore…

…

…

…

We won't be going on the Canada/New England cruise in September We were looking forward to going out east (and cruising with DCL!!) but vacation dates just aren't allowing it this year.

But, the good news is that we booked a

7 Night Eastern Caribbean on the Fantasy in January!

Things at work are set to be all straightened out by then, so we can have proper vacations. I am really excited about this. I love to travel so I am just excited about going somewhere and going somewhere new. I know that we will get to see Eastern Canada at some point, so I am not really concerned about changing our itinerary. That isn't a once in a lifetime destination for us. We will most likely do a road trip so that we can see more of it than a 5 night cruise would allow.

I will re-list all of the things that make me super excited about this cruise
- I haven't been to St. Thomas or San Juan
- I have been to CC, DH hasn't, but I love it there!
- I love the Caribbean
- 7 nights instead of 5
- I am going to convince DH that I need a night (or 2) at WDW
- Getting to sail on the Fantasy

We already have flight credits to use, but will probably have to spend a little more to fly to Florida instead of New York.

I feel much better about this already. I hate being so disorganized and not knowing what is going on. Now I can start planning and stop worrying!

Yay happy PTR!! lol

 

[Disney9.9.10]

So I thought that I would start posting some details about our new cruise, starting with our itinerary!

I am working on convincing DH that we NEED a night (or 2…or 3) at WDW I am trying to decide if it would be best to stay at WDW before or after the cruise.

Before

I would like to stay at WDW before the cruise, but I haven't looked into dates enough to know whether that would be possible or not. The cruise leaves on a Saturday, which means more expensive flights, so it would be nice to fly in on a Wednesday or Thursday. I have to take my vacations at work for Sunday-Saturday weeks, we can't break them up.

So if we did it this way, I would be off starting January 20th, have a few days to get last minute things together and fly out on the 23rd or 24th, and then go to the cruise on the 26th. The cruise goes from January 26th to February 2nd, which is a Saturday. So I would have to fly out that day, or possibly take a lieu day from work on the Sunday.

After

If we decided on a couple of days in WDW after the cruise, I would have to take a lieu day or 2 (which I should have saved up from Christmas/New Years holidays; and I have never taken one before). We would have to fly out either Friday the 25th (if I got 2 lieu days) or Saturday the 26th (1 lieu day).

We would then cruise from January 26th to February 2nd. We could stay at WDW until the 4th or 5th of February and fly back in the middle of that week, giving me a couple of days to recuperate, do laundry, etc. after the trip and before I have to go back to work.


It looks like either way we are going to have to fly on a weekend day on one flight or the other, so that won't be a deciding factor. Going to WDW first will probably involve less relying on lieu days, but I will come back from the trip and have to go back to work the next day (I have done this before though, so I am sure I would survive lol)

I would love any opinions on this, and if you have found something that works best for you. Just typing these small logistics out makes me want to stay at WDW first, but we will see

 

[Disney9.9.10]

And here is the cruise itinerary

Saturday, January 26th
Port Canaveral, Florida
- This will either be fly-in day, or come from WDW day
- Hopefully we get an early boarding number!

Sunday, January 27th
At Sea
- I love, love, love sea days!
- Probably will be a day for exploring the ship, taking photos, sunbathing, and swimming

Monday, January 28th
At Sea

Tuesday, January 29th
St. Thomas/St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands
- I have been to St. Thomas before, but didn't do any excursions
- I am not quite sure if we are going to book any or not
- I do really want to take a lot of pictures though

Wednesday, January 30th
San Juan, Puerto Rico
- Neither of us have been to Puerto Rico before
- I haven't looked into the types of excursions offered yet
- We may do an excursion, or we may just do some exploring on our own

Thursday, January 31st
At Sea

Friday, February 1st
Castaway Cay
- I have been here before, DH has not
- I love the island
- Again, not sure if we will do excursions, or just relax on the beach
- Definitely will go to Serenity Bay and order a drink!

Saturday, February 2nd
Port Canaveral, Florida
- Disembarkation day

This will be followed by either a flight home, or a quick pop over to WDW

I am quite excited about our itinerary!

I hope that everyone has a wonderful Easter weekend!! (Or just a wonderful Spring weekend if you don't celebrate Easter!!)

 

[HermanTriplets+1]

Sounds like a great plan! OK, so you don't get to cruise to Eastern Canada on DCL, but you get a super Caribbean cruise, on DCL (what's not to like?!), and maybe a road trip to Eastern Canada! More important, your work place might be heading for a more stable time - and that rates high!
So, enjoy your new phase of planning. Did you join your cruise meet group yet?!

 

[Disney9.9.10]

Sounds like a great plan! OK, so you don't get to cruise to Eastern Canada on DCL, but you get a super Caribbean cruise, on DCL (what's not to like?!), and maybe a road trip to Eastern Canada! More important, your work place might be heading for a more stable time - and that rates high!
So, enjoy your new phase of planning. Did you join your cruise meet group yet?!

You think the same way that I do! I am going on a DCL cruise after all, so what isn't to like?

I have already joined my new meet thread, and am starting to do some planning for the new cruise!

 

[meplus3]

Hi! I'm following along! Sorry to hear about your work troubles....I used to live and work in Ontario and one day just before leaving for my shift a co-worker/friend called me from outside our work building to say they were shut down and there was a letter on the door advising us that we were all laid off!!! I hope your company fares better than that and you are back to work soon!! Anyway, for now you have your wonderful cruise planning to keep you busy, lol! We will be cruising on the Fantasy Oct/2013 and I'm also trying to decide if we should do a few days at WDW before or after our cruise. Look forward to reading more of your PTR! (I enjoy the smilies, can you tell? lol)

 

[Disney9.9.10]

Hi! I'm following along! Sorry to hear about your work troubles....I used to live and work in Ontario and one day just before leaving for my shift a co-worker/friend called me from outside our work building to say they were shut down and there was a letter on the door advising us that we were all laid off!!! I hope your company fares better than that and you are back to work soon!! Anyway, for now you have your wonderful cruise planning to keep you busy, lol! We will be cruising on the Fantasy Oct/2013 and I'm also trying to decide if we should do a few days at WDW before or after our cruise. Look forward to reading more of your PTR! (I enjoy the smilies, can you tell? lol)

Hi! Thank you for stopping by and commenting! Ontario (at least where I am) is in really bad shape right now. Businesses are closing left, right, and centre, and there are very few jobs that can be considered stable. I am just trying to take it all in stride and things are looking pretty positive for us, at least in the shorter term.

Are you as excited as I am about cruising on the Fantasy?! It looks so gorgeous, I cannot wait! Are you writing a PTR? If so I would love to check it out!

 

[Disney9.9.10]

Hello all!

I hope that everyone had a great weekend!

I have a teeny little cruise related update from my weekend.

Saturday was my birthday, and my mom got me this (a very similar variation anyway) luggage in 3 different sizes

I bought my old luggage at a sale at a local luggage and handbag store about 7 years ago or so. It has traveled quite a few times, and lasted very well, considering the price that I paid for it! On our last trip to WDW, I noticed that my big suitcase had a big rip in it where the zipper connects to the suitcase base. I noticed this before we even got onto the plane, but there was no turning back then I shifted some things around and prayed for the best! Everything turned out fine, but that is not a chance I was willing to take again. My mom was there with me on that trip, so she knew that my luggage was in need of replacing. A local store had an incredible deal on many brands of luggage, and my mom surprised me with this one! She is such a great lady, I am so lucky to have her And now I have new luggage for my trip!

 

[Dyerneeds]

Hello all!

I hope that everyone had a great weekend!

I have a teeny little cruise related update from my weekend.

Saturday was my birthday, and my mom got me this (a very similar variation anyway) luggage in 3 different sizes

I bought my old luggage at a sale at a local luggage and handbag store about 7 years ago or so. It has traveled quite a few times, and lasted very well, considering the price that I paid for it! On our last trip to WDW, I noticed that my big suitcase had a big rip in it where the zipper connects to the suitcase base. I noticed this before we even got onto the plane, but there was no turning back then I shifted some things around and prayed for the best! Everything turned out fine, but that is not a chance I was willing to take again. My mom was there with me on that trip, so she knew that my luggage was in need of replacing. A local store had an incredible deal on many brands of luggage, and my mom surprised me with this one! She is such a great lady, I am so lucky to have her And now I have new luggage for my trip!

saturday was your birthday? well Happy Belated Birthday to you.
Look forward to reading about your adventures!

 

[Disney9.9.10]

saturday was your birthday? well Happy Belated Birthday to you.
Look forward to reading about your adventures!

Thank you for stopping by, and for the birthday wishes

 

[Lolo1311]

I was reading your PTR and just had to comment to say that my husband and I have a cockapoo puppy too and she looks exactly like your puppy! Same color and everything. I thought that was so funny! Ours is a year and a half, so I guess she's not necessarily a puppy anymore. She's only 7 pounds, so she's tiny. How big is your puppy? She's so cute.
I'm so sorry to hear that things didn't work out with the cruise you planned this year. It's great that you were able to plan a cruise for January though! I bet the Caribbean cruise on the Fantasy will be a little better than the East Coast cruise since it's 2 days longer and on the new ship. My husband and I are going on the Eastern Caribbean cruise in November 2013 for our 4th anniversary. So excited! I just wish it was sooner!
Happy late birthday!

 

[Disney9.9.10]

I was reading your PTR and just had to comment to say that my husband and I have a cockapoo puppy too and she looks exactly like your puppy! Same color and everything. I thought that was so funny! Ours is a year and a half, so I guess she's not necessarily a puppy anymore. She's only 7 pounds, so she's tiny. How big is your puppy? She's so cute.
I'm so sorry to hear that things didn't work out with the cruise you planned this year. It's great that you were able to plan a cruise for January though! I bet the Caribbean cruise on the Fantasy will be a little better than the East Coast cruise since it's 2 days longer and on the new ship. My husband and I are going on the Eastern Caribbean cruise in November 2013 for our 4th anniversary. So excited! I just wish it was sooner!
Happy late birthday!

Hello and Welcome! Thank you for stopping by and commenting! Cockapoos are apparently really popular, but we have not yet met any on our walks My Scarlett loves everyone and has to say hello to every dog she sees lol Your puppy is really tiny! Scarlett weighs about 10 pounds right now, and I think she might have a bit of growing left. I don't think she will be huge though - I do have a colleague who has a cockapoo that weighs 85 lbs! It is a big dog lol I am excited about our Caribbean cruise. I wish ours was sooner too, and you've got even longer to wait than us… Do you plan on writing a PTR? If so let me know, and I will follow along. Thanks for the birthday wishes as well!

 

[Lolo1311]

An 85 pound cockapoo? Wow! I didn't even know that was possible. That's huge! The breeder thought Mia (our dog) would be around 20 pounds, but she's still so tiny! That's great that your dog is so friendly! Ours is too. She loves meeting other people and dogs. That's too bad you haven't come across any other cockapoos on your walks.
I know, waiting until November of next year is going to be so hard. I've been looking up prices of the cruises going out of NYC hoping to find a good price on them. We most likely won't end up doing it though, unless we find a really good price! I don't plan on writing a PTR for our trip. I don't think I'd have enough to write about! Haha. I can't wait to read all about your cruise after you get back in January, since we're doing the same cruise only a few months later. You'll have to tell me all about your excursions (if you do any).

 

[Disney9.9.10]

Hello everyone!!

I haven't really had much to update about lately, but I am hoping to real soon!

I do have a couple of quick little things to mention though. First, I got Mickey Mail today!! I love those little surprises! It was just the little brochure with information about the cruise that we have booked and how to go online and look at more (because I'm not already obsessed over it and haven't been looking for months …)

The other good bit of news is that I just heard from my accountant that I will be getting a nice income tax return that is enough to pretty much pay for the balance of our cruise! This makes me very happy. Extra money to have in the bank while I am off from work, so I don't have to worry (as much!).

This is my second week off from work so I only have one more week (hopefully!). I have found ways to keep myself pretty busy, and the puppy loves having someone home with her all of the time, but I am getting ready to go back to work. It is probably the money more than anything, but there are a lot of good things about my job so I will be happy to go back.

That's it for now, talk to you all soon!

 

[Disney9.9.10]

I have another little update, that I am quite happy about!!

I got the call yesterday that I am going to be going back to work on Monday They had originally told us that we would only be laid off for 3 weeks, but in this field, you never know! So I am really glad that it was only a 3 week layoff. That way I don't have to worry about months of no pay, and dipping into my savings to pay the bills and that sort of thing.

The way things are now, we probably didn't need to cancel our Eastern Canadian cruise, but I'd rather be safe than sorry, and now I get to cruise to the Caribbean, visit Castaway Cay, and sail the Fantasy!! Plus now we have extra time to save, which could mean little extra splurges - a massage on board perhaps?!

Well that's it for today! 9 more Months until our trip!

 

[puente0629]

Yayyy for work! Can't wait to hear more planning news...

 

[Disney9.9.10]

Yayyy for work! Can't wait to hear more planning news...

Hi Annie! Thanks for stopping by

 

[Shazzasmd]

Your excitement is infectious. Wishing you a fantastic cruise!

 

[Disney9.9.10]

Your excitement is infectious. Wishing you a fantastic cruise!

Thanks for stopping by! I am definitely very excited Disney has been a part of my life from the day I was born, and I have made some great memories on my previous trips so I always look forward to them