A Mother-Daughter Trip! Now with BONUS BIRTHDAY Trip! (Final Thoughts Coming Soon!)

[RGirl]

This is so silly but I got all teary-eyed that it was the end of y'all trip. Thank you so much sharing your vacation memories with all of us here. It's been wonderful!

Although, for a last day, it sounds like y'all had fun!

Ok, bring on Disneyland!

It is making me a bit sad too.

So I think I will get the DLR part started right away! I am working on it now!!!!!!!

 

[RGirl]

I just hate that our trip is over. So I am going to kick off the BONUS SURPRISE TRIP right now! I apologize for the heavy-on-words-and-not-pics first installment, but that will change dramatically as we get moving with this.

1. How This Trip Came to Be and THE BIG SURPRISE!

So, as you know, I decided even before our big October 2011 trip to WDW that I was going to surprise DD with a trip to DLR on her fifth birthday. For years, I had thought that it would be so amazing to do a surprise birthday trip “someday.” I always pictured doing it when she was older - several years from now. Well, I guess I’m not the brightest bulb in the chandelier because it was not until this last year that it dawned on me that, of course, DD will be in school after this summer and that her birthday is in January - not really an ideal time to take a kid out of school even if you are okay with taking a kid out of school (which, BTW, I am ) because Winter Break would have just ended. So, I kind of felt like it was now or never. So I decided on NOW! Of course!

Well, I decided that we would leave on a Wednesday (the day before her birthday) and come back Sunday. With DLR being so much smaller than WDW, I felt that we would not feel robbed of time, and I would not have to take a ton of leave from work. I got us a reservation at the HoJo’s across the street from DLR. Word on the DIS is that on-site is not necessary at DLR because you can walk there from “good neighbor” hotels and save a LOT of money over on-site hotels. I did want to save money on this trip because we would have just done WDW in October, Christmas a few weeks prior, and we had a cruise coming up in July. I was pretty excited about the trip!

As you know, we had a fantastic trip to WDW. After returning home, however, I was finding it hard to get very excited about the trip to DLR. There was a bunch of drama that happened at DD’s (now former) preschool, the stress of Christmas coming up, etc. And I was worried that DLR would seem too small and lame in comparison to WDW. I kept reading comments from WDW vets who had visited DLR describing the castle as small and disappointing, etc. I hadn’t been to DLR in close to 35 years, so I really didn’t know if we would be disappointed. One day, I found myself on the DLR website checking the cost of booking a package at a Disneyland hotel compared to staying at HoJo’s and buying tickets separately. The DLR package was definitely more. But with the winter discount, it wasn’t THAT much more.

I talked to my boss about it. (She is something of a Disney nut ever since I planned a WDW trip for her last September.) She told me the only things she regrets from when her son was small are the things that she didn’t do because she was worried about money. After that conversation, I called Disney and booked a package at the newly renovated (okay, still being renovated to a certain degree) Disneyland Hotel. I had stayed there with my family when I was a little girl! (I don’t think the Disneyland Hotel that we stayed in even exists anymore though! ) Suddenly, I was excited about our trip again!!!

Meanwhile, DD knew nothing about these plans. But she had suddenly started asking about DLR and what it was like - she knew it existed because we live on the West Coast and I had told her that I had been there when I was a kid. This gave me a great opportunity to tell her about DLR and have her excited to go there “someday.”

In the weeks coming up to the trip, I planned how to tell DD. We would have to drive to an airport an hour away, so I knew she would see the bags in the car, plus I would have to do some last-minute packing before we left in the morning. I decided that the best plan was to have her spend a little time with my parents on Monday (a holiday) while I packed as much as I could and then wake her up Wednesday morning with, “Get up! We’re going to Disneyland!!!” I hoped to get video of her reaction!

All went according to plan on Monday, and I got some packing done. That night, they started forecasting a big winter storm. Mind you we had had NO snow or ice at all this winter to date! I dropped DD at preschool Tuesday morning and headed to work. Soon, a colleague came into my office and suggested that I get a hotel room near the airport (again, in a city an hour away) because they were predicting a lot of snow that night, and it would be dicey for us to get to the airport in time for our flight the next morning if the roads were bad. I was kind of “meh” about it, not really thinking it would be a big deal. A while later, a second colleague came in and advised the same thing. Hmmmm. I called my folks to see what they thought. They were about to call me and say the same thing! So I booked a hotel, finished up my work, and got a ride from my parents to the car dealership where my car was being repaired. I zipped back to my house (my parents followed and picked up the dog to take him to the kennel for me ) and rushed around packing with no plan or logic - I had thought I would be leisurely doing it that night after DD was asleep! But I got it done, and I actually managed not to forget anything!

I called DD’s school to tell them that I was picking up early and not to let her lie down for “nap” (she doesn’t actually nap, but she is supposed to rest and be quiet). When I arrived at DD’s school, I could hear her in the director’s office chattering away about how her mommy was picking her up “but just for a little bit” or something along those lines - not sure what the teachers had had to tell her to get her to stop asking questions. I told her to use the bathroom because we would be in the car for a while. Of course, a little boy beat her to the bathroom and was in there FOREVER - I was dying waiting to tell her where we were going!!!

Finally, I got her in the car and took this video!! (Please excuse how breathless I sound - I have a lung disease, and my breathing is a little different because of it. Also, I have never posted a video on here before, so I hope this works!)


Up next: 2. Our Close Call with Cancellation​

 

[amandaw]

Great start to the Disneyland portion of this TR!

That video is beyond precious!!! Willow is too cute! I loved her reaction & how she got Bolt involved!

 

[RGirl]

Great start to the Disneyland portion of this TR!

That video is beyond precious!!! Willow is too cute! I loved her reaction & how she got Bolt involved!

I was so relieved that Bolt was excited!

 

[partyof2]

DIS is playing tricks on me tonight, I've typed approx 23423 versions of this comment and NONE WILL POST!!

I love love love surprise trips, thanks for sharing the video with us. Willow telling Bolt he was allowed to join in on the fun is so cute.

I can hardly believe Willow is only in pre-school, she's so articulate! You guys make a great team.

Looking forward to hearing about Disneyland, I know literally NOTHING about it.

 

[RGirl]

DIS is playing tricks on me tonight, I've typed approx 23423 versions of this comment and NONE WILL POST!!

I love love love surprise trips, thanks for sharing the video with us. Willow telling Bolt he was allowed to join in on the fun is so cute.

I can hardly believe Willow is only in pre-school, she's so articulate! You guys make a great team.

Looking forward to hearing about Disneyland, I know literally NOTHING about it.

Thanks for joining in! And thanks for the compliments about DD. She never stops talking (NEVER), so that is probably why she seems so articulate - lots and lots and lots and lots of practice.

I hope you will enjoy the DL Bonus TR! We had so much fun!

 

[RGirl]

2. Our Close Call with Cancellation

After picking up DD at school, we made the freezing cold (but as yet snow-less) drive to a nearby city and checked into a hotel. We were given an upgraded room because our room was not ready yet. Our first bit of Disney magic? DD was still very excited!

And the room was nice.

(There was another TV in the sitting area as well.)

We went out and got some snacks and then just hung out watching movies and stuff.

There was a note in the room stating they would be offering a complimentary dinner downstairs, so we checked that out. Not bad - soups, salad, hotdogs, fries, etc. (Yes, I totally let DD wear her jammies to dinner!)

Eventually, we went to bed. Still no snow when we turned in for the night.

But when we woke up in the morning, there was a lot of snow on the ground and a LOT more falling from the sky.

We took the hotel shuttle to the airport, got checked in relatively quickly, and got in line for security, It was early enough and this is a small enough airport that security wasn’t open yet!

This was the scene outside:

Before security even opened, I got a text from Alaska that our flight was delayed out of Seattle.

But we got through security and sat down to wait to see what would happen. Another delay was announced. At that point, I felt sure that the connection would be too tight for us, so I went up to the desk to ask about switching to another flight. The representative there agreed with me and switched us to a Delta flight through Salt Lake. I was THRILLED because there was nothing happening in Salt Lake so I knew we would be okay to get to Disneyland! It meant that we would get there much later, but that was much better than waiting on Seattle. It meant hours in the airport, but still - better than the gamble.

We settled in for the long haul. DD took some pics of the weather.

I took some pics of our “Occupy Airport” setting:

Finally, our original flight from Seattle approached. But the runways couldn’t pass the ice test. The plane circled and circled while they tried to make the runways safe. Eventually, it turned around and headed back to Seattle.

And we continued to wait. No planes had landed yet today. They were continuing to make announcements about the state of the runways - none of them good.

At this point, I called Disney to see if we would be able to re-book for the upcoming Saturday if necessary. They assured me we could, but I didn’t pull the plug yet. We continued to wait.

I did think that I needed to explain what might happen to DD at this point. So I told her that we were probably going to have to reschedule our trip. She started crying and wailing about how she didn’t want to go back to school, etc. It was so sad. But it was pretty clear that we were not going to get out. I decided to bite the bullet and call Alaska to see if I could reschedule us for Saturday. I was on hold forever, and I noticed that the snow had really slowed down. I decided to hang up. I checked the clock, and the Salt Lake flight to which we had been diverted was supposed to land in 1 hour and, as of that moment, was not listed as delayed. So far, no plane had landed at our airport that day, so things were not looking good, but I kept staring at my heartbroken child who was looking forward to the biggest surprise of her life, and I figured we could wait one more hour. I told DD that we would wait one more hour and, if our plane wasn’t there, we were going to have to reschedule. She assured me that our plane would land.

[cont. in next post]​

 

[RGirl]

[cont. from previous post]

Well, as you might have guessed, DD was right as usual. The first plane to land that day was the plane bound for Salt Lake City. And we got on!

Once on the plane, we waited and waited. They announced that there was a very brief window to take off because of the state of the runways, but they needed to de-ice the plane. And then the de-icer broke! Would we make that departure window???? Why yes, yes we would!!!

We had some exciting refreshments. For some reason, I LOVE TRs that include pictures of airplane refreshments - they crack me up! So I took some pics. DD had juice; I had club soda, and DD enjoyed some pretzels. I have learned my lesson with wheat (gluten, perhaps?) and did NOT have any pretzels!

We had a VERY harsh landing in Salt Lake - not sure if the pilot was new or what, but I have never hit a runway that hard, and I have flown a lot and had some very interesting landings! Anyway, we got some snacks for our layover - fruit for DD and salad for me. We felt a little bad that we would be arriving later than expected and miss our first-night ride on ToT, but we were so thankful that we were going to get there at all! Our flight out of Salt Lake was delayed a bit due to weather in Vancouver. DD was eager to see our plane.

Eventually, we were on the plane to John Wayne Airport! I could not get DD to take a picture without sticking out her gum.

We landed at John Wayne, and by the time we got to the baggage claims, our bag was waiting for us. When we got to the Disneyland Express spot, our bus was waiting. We boarded and waited for it to take off.

Now, what I haven’t mentioned yet was a very special surprise that I had planned for DD. Months ago, I had talked to a friend of mine - a friend I had known for YEARS but never met in person. We had belonged to a now-defunct message board years ago and remained friends on Facebook. She sews, and I had asked her if she thought she could make a Jolly Holiday dress for DD. DD LOVES Mary Poppins - she will act out the entire movie whenever she chooses it for movie night and has asked for a Jolly Holiday dress, “not a costume,” many times. Well, as you may know, you can’t buy a Jolly Holiday dress. Or a pattern for it! But my friend said that she thought she could do it. So I commissioned her to make it for DD. As I said, this friend and I had never met in person, but she lives about a half hour from DL! So we had planned to meet up this first night for dinner at the Rain Forest Cafe. Well, our travel nightmare had put us at the hotel a lot later than expected, but I had been texting with my friend throughout. And we texted while DD and I were waiting on the bus and decided that we would go ahead and meet up that night and just grab dinner together at a CS place at the hotel. So we arranged all that while making our way to DLR.

Anyway, we finally left the airport at about 7:00. (We should have been IN THE PARK late that afternoon, but we were just so glad that we were there at all!) The drive was weird - we were obviously right there at DLR, but we were also obviously right in the middle of a city - very different from WDW, and I started worrying about it not being as magical. This was the first of the many differences we noticed between WDW and DLR - this one is definitely more pro-WDW, but over all, I think they were equally divided.

Finally, we turned into the DLH, and then our driver veered off and dropped us off in a parking lot because there was apparently still some construction going on at the entrance. So we were left to schlep our bags from the parking lot to the hotel by ourselves. That was not pleasant. And my concerns of lack of magic grew…..

Up next: 3. Will There Be Any Magic for Our First Night?​

 

[amandaw]

OMG! I would've been so freaked out about the flying situation. So glad y'all were able to get there....and safely at that!

That's so cool that your friend made the dress for Willow. Hope we get to see a picture of it. And how nice of her to meet y'all!

It's funny you mentioned about Disneyland being in the middle of the city. There is a documentary titled, "Motel Kids of Orange County". It aired on HBO and is quite interesting. The documentary follows certain families that live in a very run down motel, just not a good place. Well, evidently, this place is right outside of Disneyland. In fact, there are 2 brothers in the documentary who regularly walk to the Disneyland parking lots to watch the fireworks. I'm not going to lie....the things I saw in that documentary & knowing that it was right by Disneyland is one of the biggest reasons why I have little desire to visit Disneyland.

 

[RGirl]

OMG! I would've been so freaked out about the flying situation. So glad y'all were able to get there....and safely at that!

That's so cool that your friend made the dress for Willow. Hope we get to see a picture of it. And how nice of her to meet y'all!

It's funny you mentioned about Disneyland being in the middle of the city. There is a documentary titled, "Motel Kids of Orange County". It aired on HBO and is quite interesting. The documentary follows certain families that live in a very run down motel, just not a good place. Well, evidently, this place is right outside of Disneyland. In fact, there are 2 brothers in the documentary who regularly walk to the Disneyland parking lots to watch the fireworks. I'm not going to lie....the things I saw in that documentary & knowing that it was right by Disneyland is one of the biggest reasons why I have little desire to visit Disneyland.

Oh, I was totally freaking out! I was sure that we would be heading home, and I knew DD was going to be SO disappointed.

And, well, um, you are going to see more pics of that dress than you could ever have wanted to see!

I would love to see that documentary - I am a huge documentary watcher. I can't believe I have never heard of it! DLR is definitely more "ghetto" than WDW. But I hope that you will see in this BONUS TR that the Disney magic really does take over. I was so worried given our amazing experiences at WDW. But, really, we had a WONDERFUL time.

 

[amandaw]

I would love to see that documentary - I am a huge documentary watcher. I can't believe I have never heard of it! DLR is definitely more "ghetto" than WDW. But I hope that you will see in this BONUS TR that the Disney magic really does take over. I was so worried given our amazing experiences at WDW. But, really, we had a WONDERFUL time.

I love your observation the DLR is more "ghetto" than WDW! But, I have to say, that from that documentary, it definitely seems that way. I truly couldn't believe some of the "stuff" surrounding DLR when I watched that documentary.

It really is a great documentary. My husband & I love documentaries. It aired on HBO in 2010. You could maybe find it on netflix or something. I believe the full title is "Homeless: Motel Kids of Orange County". It really is very interesting & heartbreaking.

Ok, I'm going to see if you can sell me on Disneyland!

 

[RGirl]

I love your observation the DLR is more "ghetto" than WDW! But, I have to say, that from that documentary, it definitely seems that way. I truly couldn't believe some of the "stuff" surrounding DLR when I watched that documentary.

It really is a great documentary. My husband & I love documentaries. It aired on HBO in 2010. You could maybe find it on netflix or something. I believe the full title is "Homeless: Motel Kids of Orange County". It really is very interesting & heartbreaking.

Ok, I'm going to see if you can sell me on Disneyland!

It is definitely more ghetto. I'm not sure whether it made a difference that we stayed on property, but we really didn't notice that side of things once we arrived at our resort. There were so many things about DLR that were as good or better than WDW that we just enjoyed every second!

The need to sell you on it is almost making me want to post another update tonight, but I think more than 3 updates in one evening is overkill!

 

[amandaw]

It is definitely more ghetto. I'm not sure whether it made a difference that we stayed on property, but we really didn't notice that side of things once we arrived at our resort. There were so many things about DLR that were as good or better than WDW that we just enjoyed every second!

The need to sell you on it is almost making me want to post another update tonight, but I think more than 3 updates in one evening is overkill!

If you can sell me on Disneyland, then I will write to them on your behalf to give you a job.

Since it's getting late here, I'll let you off for not doing another update tonight! But, I will be looking forward to hearing more!

 

[RGirl]

If you can sell me on Disneyland, then I will write to them on your behalf to give you a job.

Since it's getting late here, I'll let you off for not doing another update tonight! But, I will be looking forward to hearing more!

Wow! That documentary really had an effect on you!!! No underlying love for Walt's Park?? Come on! Okay - just wait until you hear about the magic we experienced.

Dang - it is late there, isn't it? Even getting late here. I still may try to kick out an update for you to see in the morning - I know that my updating time will be WAY down tomorrow and through the work week.

 

[RGirl]

3. Will There Be Any Magic for Our First Night?

Finally, we entered the lobby of the DLH. It was a lot like a regular hotel. Better, but nothing like a WDW resort with all that theming. I had expected that, so I wasn’t disappointed.




The check-in process was quite efficient with a CM with an iPad doing initial information while in line and then directing people to a CM at the desk when available. While we were checking in, I mentioned to the CM how excited we were because it was DD’s surprise birthday trip. Soon thereafter, he disappeared in back for a few minutes and returned with a birthday button, a balloon, and an autographed picture of Mickey. DD was thrilled!

We got our room keys and headed to our tower. I had called the Disney Surprise People (no, that is not the name, but I have no idea what they are called) and arranged for a birthday surprise in the room for DD. When we got to our door, we were greeted with a Surprise banner:

When we entered the room, we discovered that Mickey had left his footprints on our floor:

There was a big birthday present waiting on a bed for DD:

There was a birthday banner and tinkerbell light-up thing on the window as well as a big balloon that sang happy birthday when smacked:

DD soon checked out the present on the bed. There was a light-up toy, a Vinylmation, a picture frame and jelly beans.

On the desk/bar area, there was an autograph book (I had arranged with the CM to sub a photo/autograph book because that is a special thing that DD and I do every trip) and a pen - the book was signed by Mickey!

There were also birthday ears!

We really loved our room. The new headboards are amazing! They have a carving of Sleeping Beauty’s castle, and there is a button you can press that plays the Goodnight Kiss and the fireworks go off over the castle. I ended up playing this for DD every night as she went to sleep.

I took a few pics of the room:

But then we needed to go meet my friend! Somehow, I managed to get no more pics this evening! It was so amazing to meet someone I had known for so long. We had dinner at the CS restaurant by the pool at DLH. The three of us were amazed that there were people swimming. The weather was lovely compared to home, but it was hardly swimming weather - it was in the 60s. My friend and I both had the salad with crispy tofu - so good! I think DD had a few bites of an apple or something. Man, she is a terrible vacation eater!

And the Jolly Holiday dress. Oh, the Jolly Holiday dress. I had expected that my friend would do a nice job. But I had no idea what she was creating. It was INSANE! I could not have hoped for more in my wildest dreams. She had made a nearly exact replica - complete with a handmade petticoat to fill out the skirt. She had been looking for the red-ribbon-laced lace for the cuffs and neck and decided to go through a box of lace and scraps her grandmother had given her years ago, and found the EXACT lace. She had gone out and purchased a hat and then added tulle and a hat pin. I didn’t even know what to say to her - it was so far beyond anything I could have imagined! Too bad for you - I took no pictures that night!!!!

Don’t worry - you will see more than enough soon! I promise……

Anyway, we grabbed a few things at the little store in the DLH and then went back to the room for the night. We were surprised and thrilled to realize that we could see the DLR fireworks from our hotel room window!!! We watched for a while, and then DD wanted to go to bed - she was out cold at about 9:30 or 9:45 (at home, she is usually asleep before 7:30). Meanwhile, I was scrambling to look at the park maps and try to figure out some plan of attack for the next day since I was not at all familiar with where anything was at DLR!

Up next: 4. DD’s Birthday-palooza Begins!!!!​

 

[shan23877]

So much to comment on!

Great picture of tiny Willow on the giant sofa! Reminded me of Lily Tomlin on Sesame Street when I was a kid

Glad that you finally got to meet Alice at WDW! Poor girl hadn't met any characters at all!

Loved the video of Willow's big surprise! She reminds me so much of my DD (mine turned 5 in February)! We were packing up lots of DDs stuff today, and I told her that she could only keep 3 of her "guys" (stuffed animals) out on her bed. One of them ended up being Bolt, so it really cracked me up that he was the one that Willow took on the trip. Lucky Bolt to get a special surprise too!!

I'll bet that you were going out of your mind with the weather delays. I would have been so frustrated. I'm really glad that it worked out.

Can't wait to see Willow's new Mary Poppins dress. That's one of the few that DD hasn't had me make her. Princess dresses we've got though.

I watch tons of documentaries, and have never heard of that one either. I'm pretty sure that Netflix doesn't have it (for instant streaming at least) because I've watched most of the ones they have available. Have you girls seen Spellbound? It's more than a few years old, but one of my all time faves. My fave from this year was More than a Game (about Lebron James' high school team. It was really good )

So glad that you updated so much tonight, I've enjoyed the reading after 14+ hours of prepping the house to go on the market--tomorrow morning . But, the work is done, and now I'm relaxing with some lovely Disney TRs

Looking forward to hearing about your first impressions of DLH

 

[shan23877]

And, now I've seen DLH! We must have been posting at the same time.

The hotel may not be very "Disney" in the lobby, but it is nice. The rooms look very pretty, and I'll bet that DD loved those headboards.

How fun to have a birthday present waiting! Those birthday ears are just adorable.

Now I really can't wait to see the Jolly Holiday dress. Sounds fantastic!

The Disney commercial about only having so much time to make memories just came on, and made me tear up again. (happens all the time). So glad that you and Willow got to have such a special birthday trip. Your boss is right. We'll never regret the memories we've made. So glad to have another trip in the works.

 

[RGirl]

So much to comment on!

Great picture of tiny Willow on the giant sofa! Reminded me of Lily Tomlin on Sesame Street when I was a kid

Glad that you finally got to meet Alice at WDW! Poor girl hadn't met any characters at all!

Loved the video of Willow's big surprise! She reminds me so much of my DD (mine turned 5 in February)! We were packing up lots of DDs stuff today, and I told her that she could only keep 3 of her "guys" (stuffed animals) out on her bed. One of them ended up being Bolt, so it really cracked me up that he was the one that Willow took on the trip. Lucky Bolt to get a special surprise too!!

I'll bet that you were going out of your mind with the weather delays. I would have been so frustrated. I'm really glad that it worked out.

Can't wait to see Willow's new Mary Poppins dress. That's one of the few that DD hasn't had me make her. Princess dresses we've got though.

I watch tons of documentaries, and have never heard of that one either. I'm pretty sure that Netflix doesn't have it (for instant streaming at least) because I've watched most of the ones they have available. Have you girls seen Spellbound? It's more than a few years old, but one of my all time faves. My fave from this year was More than a Game (about Lebron James' high school team. It was really good )

So glad that you updated so much tonight, I've enjoyed the reading after 14+ hours of prepping the house to go on the market--tomorrow morning . But, the work is done, and now I'm relaxing with some lovely Disney TRs

Looking forward to hearing about your first impressions of DLH

So nice of you to comment on everything after my updating madness today! I felt like I owed those of you who continue to follow this TR after so many delays the last few months. Plus, I'm really excited to share DLR with you all!

Amazing how close our DDs are in age. Man, if I could get DD down to 3 stuffies, our whole house would be totally different!

Do you sew then??? I am so amazed by people who can do that - probably because it is one of those things that I have no idea how to do! I can't wait for you to see what my friend created for DD!

You know, I have to admit that in the last few years I have fallen woefully behind on documentaries along with all other movies. I just never have the time, and if I do, I am multi-tasking and miss so much of the film that I might as well have not watched it at all. It is really sad for me because I have always been a huge film buff. I figure I may get to experience films properly again when I'm about 70 or 80. I wish I could find a way to do it now!

Good luck with selling your house. There is little that is more stressful than buying and selling homes! I feel for you. Keep us updated!

 

[RGirl]

And, now I've seen DLH! We must have been posting at the same time.

The hotel may not be very "Disney" in the lobby, but it is nice. The rooms look very pretty, and I'll bet that DD loved those headboards.

How fun to have a birthday present waiting! Those birthday ears are just adorable.

Now I really can't wait to see the Jolly Holiday dress. Sounds fantastic!

The Disney commercial about only having so much time to make memories just came on, and made me tear up again. (happens all the time). So glad that you and Willow got to have such a special birthday trip. Your boss is right. We'll never regret the memories we've made. So glad to have another trip in the works.

WDW definitely wins the race on resort accommodations, but we had NO complaints about the refurbished DLH. The headboard was so lovely - DD really fell asleep to it every night.

I'm so glad that my boss talked me into springing for the DL resort and birthday surprises. They really made it so much more special. I feel bad because I had to tell my boss this week that I was going to be applying for other jobs and one of the first things she said was that maybe she shouldn't have talked me into spending the extra money. She is silly - obviously, that wouldn't make the difference for me in lifetime decisions. But it is so sweet that she was worried about it.

 

[ScotsMinnie]

Such a great ending to your WDW trip. What a fantastic time you both have had together.

I love the video of you surprising Willow! How cute!