A Not So Scary 5th Birthday PTR; October 2013 UPDATE 6/5/13 DD25's Wedding: Part 5

[LadyBeBop]

Not much going on with the Disney planning. Today, DH asked me how we were doing with the savings. I said we had about $900 in Disney gift cards right now. He said we need about twice as much in cards by next year.

And he's right. I figured about $2,000 in gift cards and another $1,000 in cash.

Hoping to get the tickets by next spring, before they go up in price. I'll buy for DH, DGD and myself for sure. And probably DD24. She'll probably be able to go, but she had to use a lot of vacation time this year. More on that later. Still unsure if DD25 and fiancé will come. They won't know until next summer. They want to take time out for a honeymoon. So the may not have the time either. If necessary, I'll buy their tickets at the last minute. And they will be their Christmas present from us for 2013.

 

[LadyBeBop]

Looks like DD25 and fiance will come. They pretty much got their vacation time approved.

However, our vacation times won't be exact. DD25 and DFutureSonInLaw work on weekends, so their weekends are Wednesday/Thursday. Everyone else has a Saturday/Sunday weekend. And DD24 won't have enough vacation days for, what will probably be a Tuesday/next Thursday trip. That's seven days off. As it is she'll have to take six days off.

So tentatively, we'll leave on Sat Oct 26, drive as far as southern Georgia to spend the night, and arrive at Bonnet Creek early afternoon on Sunday Oct 27. DD and DFSIL will fly in from Louisiana on Wednesday. I don't think they're staying with us...still being newlyweds, they need their space. We'll celebrate DGD's birthday on Thursday, hopefully with a character meal. We'll leave Bonnet Creek on Sunday Nov 3, hopefully spending the night somewhere in Tennessee, and arrive home mid-afternoon on Monday Nov 4. Don't know what DD25 and DFSIL will do from Sunday on...they may fly home or they may transfer to a Universal hotel. I think DD25 wants to do Harry Potter.

We also have news on the wedding front. My DS (DD25's godmother) wants to give her a bridal shower. Trouble with that is...DD25 is in Louisiana, with no good time to fly home. Her vacation time is booked up with the wedding, the honeymoon and Disney trip. And her days off, starting in January are Wednesday/Thursday. That would not be good for a quickie fly in and out.

But....

Her days off until January are the traditional Saturday/Sunday (not really the best days off, because Sunday is time and a half). So, DH and I are covering half the plane fare, and she's flying in after work on Friday Dec. 7 (we have to pick her up around midnight), and she's flying back to Louisiana on Sun Dec 9. Just a quickie in-and-out, but enough for the bridal shower (tentatively set for a Sunday brunch) and maybe a get-together with friends on Saturday. This will also be the only time this year my two DDs get to see each other. DH and I went down to Louisiana over Memorial Day week, then we took a family vacation to Myrtle Beach over Labor Day week. DD24 was supposed to come; however her work cancelled her vacation at the last minute. Which actually turned out better, because she had to take a lot of time off in the next two months. Major personal setback in her life; however it looks like it will have a successful conclusion. Not ready to talk about it now, but I think I will by midweek.

 

[PrincessInOz]

Budget buster today. DH hit a deer with his car. Car is driveable, but the front, left side is smashed in. There goes a $500 deductable. At least DH is OK.

Sorry to read this but I'm glad that DH is okay.

Looks like DD25 and fiance will come. They pretty much got their vacation time approved.

However, our vacation times won't be exact. DD25 and DFutureSonInLaw work on weekends, so their weekends are Wednesday/Thursday. Everyone else has a Saturday/Sunday weekend. And DD24 won't have enough vacation days for, what will probably be a Tuesday/next Thursday trip. That's seven days off. As it is she'll have to take six days off.

So tentatively, we'll leave on Sat Oct 26, drive as far as southern Georgia to spend the night, and arrive at Bonnet Creek early afternoon on Sunday Oct 27. DD and DFSIL will fly in from Louisiana on Wednesday. I don't think they're staying with us...still being newlyweds, they need their space. We'll celebrate DGD's birthday on Thursday, hopefully with a character meal. We'll leave Bonnet Creek on Sunday Nov 3, hopefully spending the night somewhere in Tennessee, and arrive home mid-afternoon on Monday Nov 4. Don't know what DD25 and DFSIL will do from Sunday on...they may fly home or they may transfer to a Universal hotel. I think DD25 wants to do Harry Potter.

We also have news on the wedding front. My DS (DD25's godmother) wants to give her a bridal shower. Trouble with that is...DD25 is in Louisiana, with no good time to fly home. Her vacation time is booked up with the wedding, the honeymoon and Disney trip. And her days off, starting in January are Wednesday/Thursday. That would not be good for a quickie fly in and out.

But....

Her days off until January are the traditional Saturday/Sunday (not really the best days off, because Sunday is time and a half). So, DH and I are covering half the plane fare, and she's flying in after work on Friday Dec. 7 (we have to pick her up around midnight), and she's flying back to Louisiana on Sun Dec 9. Just a quickie in-and-out, but enough for the bridal shower (tentatively set for a Sunday brunch) and maybe a get-together with friends on Saturday. This will also be the only time this year my two DDs get to see each other. DH and I went down to Louisiana over Memorial Day week, then we took a family vacation to Myrtle Beach over Labor Day week. DD24 was supposed to come; however her work cancelled her vacation at the last minute. Which actually turned out better, because she had to take a lot of time off in the next two months. Major personal setback in her life; however it looks like it will have a successful conclusion. Not ready to talk about it now, but I think I will by midweek.

Sounds like you're having a busy time. Enjoy Memorial Day.

 

[LadyBeBop]

Sorry to read this but I'm glad that DH is okay.

Quite alright. I know you were busy in California. Sounds like you had a great trip.

Sounds like you're having a busy time. Enjoy Memorial Day.

That's right, you don't celebrate Memorial Day...at least when we celebrate it. Memorial Day was in late May.

That said, I wouldn't be surprised if we end up in Louisiana during Memorial Day 2013. That's three weeks after the wedding, and I have a feeling, we're be stuck having to take wedding gifts from Nashville, back home to Cincinnati, and back to Louisiana. I think they're flying in for the wedding (about 600 miles), so they can't take the gifts home. We're driving (about 250 miles to Nashville), so we'll take the gifts. And in turn, travel 900 miles (14 hours) from here to Louisiana with the gifts.

Home alone for the day, without a car. I'm off work today due to the Veterans Day holiday (I'm a federal employee). No car...DH's car is still in the shop, so he's driving me. He needs a car for work (he's a service technician...driving from stop to stop every day). I don't...I'm behind a desk for ten hours a day, four days a week (I'm off on Wednesdays). Plus overtime (so I'll be working overtime on Wednesday). I'm making him get up early to take me to work though (I go in at 6 AM).

DH's car won't be ready until next Tuesday. That's not good...we leave for my in-laws this Saturday (Thanksgiving vacation). So, we'll cram DH, DGD and I into my little subcompact for the 4 1/2 hour trip down. And DH left the portable DVD player in his car. So we'll be without entertainment for DGD during the trip. I'm trying to convince DH to make this a middle of the night trip (leave about 4 AM, and arrive about the time she wakes up). That's go going down. Coming home might be the problem.

And that puts a hamper on Black Friday as well. We won't be able to put as much stuff in my car. And I usually go overboard on Black Friday. One year we went to my in-laws for Thanksgiving, I bought so much stuff on Black Friday, that we piled presents into my seat and I flew home from Knoxville. It helped that my DD25 was still working for the airlines at the time, and I had free airfare.

 

[PrincessInOz]

Quite alright. I know you were busy in California. Sounds like you had a great trip.




That's right, you don't celebrate Memorial Day...at least when we celebrate it. Memorial Day was in late May.
.

That's what happens when I'm not thinking too clearly! I meant to say enjoy your Veteran's Day!

The Aussie equivalent to Memorial Day is probably Anzac Day. We celebrate that in late April.

And yes, it was a great trip to Cali. I should be starting the TR shortly.

 

[LadyBeBop]

Leaving for my in-laws in a few hours. Me, DH, and DGD. Nice to be off work for a week.

One bit of good news. DH got his car back from the shop today. Three days early. Meaning a nice, comfortable ride down, instead of being crammed in a subcompact.

Won't have good internet down there (my in-laws still live in the 20th century as they don't have a computer or wifi), however I'll try to post from my iPhone when I can.

 

[PrincessInOz]

Have a great visit. See you when you get back.

 

[DMGeurts]

Have a great visit and a safe trip!

D~

 

[DMGeurts]

Just stopping by to wish you a Happy Thanksgiving!

D~

 

[LadyBeBop]

Just got back yesterday.

Nice peaceful week. Had a good traditional Thanksgiving dinner. There were nine of us for Thanksgiving dinner, me, DH, DMIL, DFIL, DD25, her fiance, DH's husband, his wife, and DGD. Crowded table, but fun. What was even more interesting was that DD25 and DFSIL1 came in on Tuesday night, while DBIL and DSIL came in Wednesday morning. All four stayed until Friday morning. So there were nine of us sleeping in the same house. At least, there were four bathrooms.

Did some shopping online (yes, you can get good cyber-bargains using an iPhone 3G). And DD25 and I went out late Thursday to hit Target and the mall. Went out about 9 PM...didn't get home until almost 6 AM. But we both pretty much scored what we wanted.

There's one other member of our motley crew that I haven't mentioned yet. I didn't want to mention him until all is well.

This is Ben, Theresa's (DD24)'s birthday. This picture was taken on Sept. 16, 2012, at a Cincinnati Bengals's football game.

Three days later, he was rushed to the hospital after vomiting blood. Doctors examined him, and he was immediately transferred to University of Cincinnati Hospital.

Doctors were at a loss on how to properly control the bleeding (which I think came from his stomach. I am horrible at medical terminology). They could stablize it for a while, but he would start bleeding again. Risky surgery was necessary...survival rate of the surgery is about 80%. But that surgery could only be done if his bleeding was stablized.

And it wasn't being stablized.

We all thought this would be the end for him. DD24 was not handling it well. She lost her BFF to cancer two years earlier. She did not want to go through this again. She took a lot of time off to be with him. And we actually took care of DGD while all this was going on.

He was put into an induced coma and was flown to University of Indiana Medical Center in Indianapolis. They have one of the finest hospital for internal bleeding problems. He had several minor, stopgap surgeries to control the bleeding. He stayed in Indianapolis for about two weeks, before being flown back to Cincinnati.

Please keep in mind, we're not talking hours, or even days. By the time he arrived back in Cincinnati, this was already late October. The main surgery was done, I think the Friday before Halloween/DGD's birthday. He came through it, but he still had to make sure he wouldn't bleed again. Plus he had to go through rehabilitation. He was in a coma for several weeks, and he had little strength.

He finally came home on November 14, eight weeks to the day that he was first admitted to the hospital. Ended up being three hospitals in three states plus a rehabilitation center.

He feels OK, however he still has a bandage over his head.

Since DD24 took so much time off for his surgery and recovery, he couldn't come with us for Thanksgiving. Although I didn't care for not having her with us, I think he needed her more.

Wednesday, while I at my in-laws, I got the news. They got engaged.

They're still debating on either a small wedding for Sept 2013, or a larger wedding in Sept 2014.

But it looks like I have two weddings to deal with. And quite possibly two weddings within five months.

Oh, and there's also a Disney trip soon afterwards...in case anyone has forgotten.

 

[PrincessInOz]

OMG. I'm so glad that things worked out with Ben and congrats on the engagement....but that's a lot of stress to deal with.

 

[LadyBeBop]

I'll probably be more hands-on with my younger daughter's wedding. Last week, DD25 went to see her wedding consultants in Nashville before stopping in at my in-laws in East Tennessee. DD25 will probably control most of the planning. And will pay for most of it (although we, as parents, will help). The wedding is still 5 1/2 months away, and DD25 is already majorly stressed out over it.

DD24 wants a smaller, informal wedding. Since her fiance is still on disability (not social security...he is trying for it), money is very tight on them. We'll throw a fairly large reception for them. They don't know if they want a very small wedding down at Red River Gorge, Kentucky (about 2 1/2 hours south of us...they love it down there), with a reception about a week later, or a smallish wedding in town with a reception immediately afterward. If they chose the former, the wedding will be in 2013; if they chose the latter, the wedding will be in 2014.

 

[DMGeurts]

Wow... What an amazing story. I am so glad he is home now and doing better. And how wonderful that they are engaged.

Will there be any long term problems for him with this?

I am glad to hear you had a great Thanksgiving - much to be thankful for. ((hugs))

D~

 

[oopsiDAISY]

Holy cow! You are definitely about to be a very busy lady! It's all good things, though... Glad DFSIL2 is doing better!

 

[LadyBeBop]

Will there be any long term problems for him with this?

He has never been in great heath. But this bought him a few additional decades of life. We'll see what happens down the road.

 

[PrincessInOz]

Double blessings with the wedding planning.

 

[DMGeurts]

He has never been in great heath. But this bought him a few additional decades of life. We'll see what happens down the road.

Well, I am very glad this bought him some time. Let's pray that it bought him a lot of time.

Did they set a date yet, or did I miss it?

D~

 

[LadyBeBop]

So much going on in my life...none of it Disney related.

Youngest DD does have a wedding date picked out. December 8, 2012.

More later.

 

[DMGeurts]

As in, 3 days from now? Gulp! Or is that a typo and you meant 2013???

D~

 

[LadyBeBop]

As in, 3 days from now? Gulp! Or is that a typo and you meant 2013???

D~

No typo. December 8, 2012.

This thread explains the situation in great detail.

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=3027353&highlight=preexisting

In a nutshell, DFSIL2 loses his health insurance on December 31. And no one will pick him up. As a result, he and DD25 is moving the wedding up to this year.

Since DD24 is coming up for her wedding shower on Friday night, we're having a very small wedding cermony on Saturday.
We have a minister for an hour on Saturday afternoon. It's going to be in a park overlooking the Ohio River. That's the best we can do. An outdoor wedding in December? And, of course, there is a 70% chance of rain.


Just going to be seven of us plus the minister...bride, groom, both mothers, her father (his father is deceased), her sister and daughter.

DD24 is sending Christmas cards along with the wedding announcements. I can't wait to deal with my side of the family. How to explain everything. Oh well.

Very busy weekend coming up. Both company Christmas parties on Friday (at different times, so no excuse for me to miss). DD25 comes in very late Friday night (after both parties). Then I'm going to shop for a Mother-of-the-Bride dress for DD25's wedding in May. Then DD24's wedding. And we're go out to celebrate on Saturday night. We're look after DGD on Saturday night. Sunday is DD25's bridal shower, then we have to take her back to the airport.

Oh, and DH's birthday is Sunday, and my birthday is Tuesday. Dunno when we'll celebrate the birthdays. Maybe Monday? DH is taking off work on Monday (not me), so we may do something then.

Other than that, nothing is really going on.