ABD 2010: Disers Go West - Let the Fun Begin

[DisneyKevin]

Our thoughts are with Jeri and Lauren and their familes.

I'll have more to tell you once we get home and I'm sure we'll talk about our Adventure once Pete and Walter get home.

Right now, we're sitting in.a restaurant on Fisherman's Whatf overlooking the Golden Gate Bridge and thinking we are the luckiest guys alive.

I'll never be able to stop raving about the drive up PCH / US 1.

It's 7:41pm PST and we are going to finish dinner and go back to the hotel. AND and Disers wore us out.

I miss my travel friends already. It's weird that they aren't all having dinner with us.

I'm rambling and my entree is here....

More later.

 

[Carolinagal]

Hi - I echo the sentiments of you all in that I experienced a trip that was truly unique, and greatly enjoyed meeting everyone. The opportunites we shared were amazing and I feel tremendously blessed to have met you all.

As you probably guessed - I have a few pictures to share and will be loading them to Flickr soon. Unfortunately, on the way home from the airport last night I had a car accident and my computer was damaged (wah!), along with my Kindle (horror!). It will take a couple of days to sort out and try and edit the pictures, but I will send an email to Kevin with access info for those interested.

Jeri and Lauren - I am so sorry for your loss and will keep you in my prayers.

Hope you are all well, and I will contact you soon!

 

[denise]

Our thoughts are with Jeri and Lauren and their familes.

I'll have more to tell you once we get home and I'm sure we'll talk about our Adventure once Pete and Walter get home.

Right now, we're sitting in.a restaurant on Fisherman's Whatf overlooking the Golden Gate Bridge and thinking we are the luckiest guys alive.

I'll never be able to stop raving about the drive up PCH / US 1.

It's 7:41pm PST and we are going to finish dinner and go back to the hotel. AND and Disers wore us out.

I miss my travel friends already. It's weird that they aren't all having dinner with us.

I'm rambling and my entree is here....

More later.

So glad you got there safe and are enjoying our part of the US. SF is a beautiful city that you WILL fall in love with. Enjoy your trip to the museum and the rest of your stay....

 

[corky441]

We are finally home. We just walked into the house about 30 minutes ago. I feel like I have been traveling forever today. Dino and I are so sorry to hear that Jeri's grandmother passed away. Our thoughts are with you both.
I hope within a day or two that I will be able to get all my pics uploaded. Fear not " flatties" there are a lot of pics to come.
Right now I need sleep lots of sleep . . . Zzzzzzzzzz

 

[Circusgirl]

Loving thoughts to Jeri and Lauren and their families.

Lynne - I'm so sorry about your accident and the damage to your important electronics. I assume from your message that you're ok?

Kevin - Thanks for the updates from the road. You've been in some of my most favorite places on earth - glad you could follow this trip up with something fantastic.

Jennifer and Bill - I love the camp analogy - it's so true! I keep looking for everyone in the parks and around the hotel. Really delighted to hear you're closer to cruising in December!

Being in the parks is forever different.

 

[stenogoddess]

Thanks everyone for your kind thoughts. We really do appreciate it! Looks like we're hitting the road tomorrow. I'm not sure my cat will ever speak to us again.

Lynn: I'm so sorry to hear about your accident! Take good care of yourself for the next few days until you're sure you're okay!

Here are my first couple of scraping layouts for your enjoyment. One day, far, far into the future, they might all even come together and make a book~

 

[dpuck1998]

Our thoughts are with Jeri and Lauren and their familes.

I'll have more to tell you once we get home and I'm sure we'll talk about our Adventure once Pete and Walter get home.

Right now, we're sitting in.a restaurant on Fisherman's Whatf overlooking the Golden Gate Bridge and thinking we are the luckiest guys alive.

I'll never be able to stop raving about the drive up PCH / US 1.

It's 7:41pm PST and we are going to finish dinner and go back to the hotel. AND and Disers wore us out.

I miss my travel friends already. It's weird that they aren't all having dinner with us.

I'm rambling and my entree is here....

More later.

You are my friend....you are!

 

[WaltD4Me]

Those scrapbook pages are awesome! Would love to see the whole book someday!

 

[kab407]

I kid you not...

I just hit shuffle on the iPod and the first song to come up, California Girls from the Beach Boys.

Is someone trying to tell me something?

 

[ImTooExcitedToSleep]

I kid you not...

I just hit shuffle on the iPod and the first song to come up, California Girls from the Beach Boys.

Is someone trying to tell me something?

Come on back. Just let me know when so I can stalk you.

 

[tmli]

I'm glad to hear that Jen and Bill and Katherine and John have all made it home safe and sound, and I'm very jealous of Heather still at GC and Kevin and John still enjoying Cali.

As for myself, I've downloaded all my pictures and there are 1,800 of them! Go me! But we've found out that Jeri's grandmother has passed away this morning, and so I'm frantically washing clothes and getting things situated so that we can leave again to go to Florida for the funeral. I know you all will keep Jeri in your thoughts this week. He is, of course, terribly upset, though we both appreciate that this was a sudden thing and much better than it could have been.

We miss you all so much and miss being on vacation. Re-entry into the real world is always a rough ride, but this really does take the cake. I can't wait to see you all again on 2.0.

We are so sorry to hear this...our deepest sympathies and warmest thoughts go out to both of you during this difficult time.

Tracey and Chris

 

[georgemoe]

I'm glad to hear that Jen and Bill and Katherine and John have all made it home safe and sound, and I'm very jealous of Heather still at GC and Kevin and John still enjoying Cali.

As for myself, I've downloaded all my pictures and there are 1,800 of them! Go me! But we've found out that Jeri's grandmother has passed away this morning, and so I'm frantically washing clothes and getting things situated so that we can leave again to go to Florida for the funeral. I know you all will keep Jeri in your thoughts this week. He is, of course, terribly upset, though we both appreciate that this was a sudden thing and much better than it could have been.

We miss you all so much and miss being on vacation. Re-entry into the real world is always a rough ride, but this really does take the cake. I can't wait to see you all again on 2.0.

Lauren sorry to hear about Jeri's grandmothers passing. Our thoughts are with both of you and your families.

 

[Mouse Skywalker]

Kevin, I'm glad you and John are getting a much needed vacation. Enjoy your time, enjoy it...

 

[macman752]

We arrived home just before midnight. At the airport we had our first "Real World" moment, handling our luggage! It was much heavier than I remembered.

Lauren, please tell Jeri that he is in our prayers. The scrapbook looks great. Lynne, hope that you are OK.

I put our Olszewski Hitch Hiking Ghosts light box in the carryon. Of course it created a problem with the TSA. I was pulled out of line while the contents of the carryon were examined. The light box was unboxed and swabbed for explosives. The TSA guy could not figure out how to repackage the item so he just crammed everything back into the box. His parting comment was, "That's real nice, I hope you did not pay a lot for it."

 

[tmli]

Well we made it home last night after an uneventful flight. LAX was a breeze yesterday. Ben came with my sister to meet us at the airport, it was amazing to see him!! I missed him so much, and for the first time in a long time, my almost 14 year old son sat beside me with his head on my shoulder and holding my hand -- he missed me, he really missed me!!!!!!

Slept in a little today, we all had lunch together and Chris is off to work and Ben to school. I am catching up on work and heading to the grocery store....ugh reality sucks!

I don't even have words to describe how amazing this trip was and how wonderful it was spending time with you all. I am sure Chris will post more, he is much better at it than I.

Lynn, I am sorry to hear of your accident, I am glad you are okay!

I miss you all so much already, December feels really far away! I am so excited to hear the Taylors may be coming on the cruise!

 

[slapwhitey]

Just wanted to take a brief moment from work to post on this thread.

First off, our thoughts and prayers to Jeri & Lauren. Please take care.

As others have said this really was a trip of a lifetime. I don't really know how to put it into words but I can't imagine ever being able to replicate the feelings and memories of this trip. We were able to do things that I never thought I'd be able to do in my lifetime. It seems like everyday there was something we were able to experience that would have made the cost well worth it even if the trip had ended at that point. There is not one single thing I could say was the best or my favorite experience on this trip. I keep thinking...maybe Club 33 or Walt's apartment. Maybe the mock-up of the new Fantasyland at Imagineering. As I sit back and reflect today (suffering terribly from post Disney depression) I realize it wasn't a "WHAT" that I enjoyed the most but a "WHO". It was all my DIS friends that I will remember and miss the most about this adventure. We were a little worried how this trip would work out for us as typically we are not group type people. We tend to be loners for the most part. This group allowed us to realize that when surrounded with like minded people it can only better the experience. For that I need to thank you all. Throughout this adventure I was having the time of my life but it wasn't until the farewell dinner and the video presentation that it really hit me how much this trip meant to me. We will always be connected in a small way because of this experience and I couldn't think of 40+ other people I would have rather enjoyed it with.

Spending time with some old friends and a bunch of new ones has made this the trip of a lifetime we have talked about. If I would have booked this ABD adventure on my own with folks other than DIS'ers I have no doubt it would have been a different experience. I'm sure I'll have more to add at a later date but for now I want to say a sincere thank you to all of you. This really was something I will never forget. A special thank you to John, Kevin, Pete and Walter for putting this thing together and letting us all join in on the fun.

Let me know when you're accepting deposits for the next ABD trip. Can't wait to do it all again.

Hope to see everyone again soon.

Take care,

Chris

 

[3guysandagal]

We are home safe and sound as well.

Thoughts and prayers to Jeri and Lauren, sad to hear you had to come home to such terrible news.
Hope you are fine Lynn, regardless of the electronics damage.

I put our Olszewski Hitch Hiking Ghosts light box in the carryon. Of course it created a problem with the TSA. I was pulled out of line while the contents of the carryon were examined. The light box was unboxed and swabbed for explosives. The TSA guy could not figure out how to repackage the item so he just crammed everything back into the box. His parting comment was, "That's real nice, I hope you did not pay a lot for it."

I had a run in with LAX TSA as well.
Pulled out of line due to all my electronic equipment in my carry-on (chargers, cameras, laptop, Jack Skellington light box, etc).
While searching the bag and wiping it down for explosives, the machine went NUTS!!
Full body pat down and complete search, but no cavities were invaded.

Just a tip here.....
DO NOT use the same backpack for travelling as you use during hunting season....gun powder residue seems to stick around for quite a while.....just sayin'.....
Interesting it wasn't caught on the way down.

Anyways, getting caught up on the threads, transferring pics, unpacking and just relaxing today.
More pics to come later, and some final thoughts.

 

[TheTXTaylors5]

Woman, you are quick!!!!! I love scrapbooking too. I have to sort from over 1,000 pictures to find the ones I want to put in the book. I didn't feel like I took that many pictures!

Sorry to read about Jeri's Grandmother. Please give him our condolences. Have a safe flight.

I totally understand about your cat. We didn't tell anyone on the trip, but we got a frantic call from my Mom one day that she thought something was wrong with our dog. He's normally happy and honestly hyper. He was not acting like himself. So, she took him to the vet last Wednesday for them to check him out and board him until we got home. I went to pick him up yesterday. I could hear the jingling of his collar as he approached from behind the counter. He was wagging his tail and back to his old self. They told me, he probably just missed us. It was as simple as that. Needless to say, I have been spoiling him ever since we got home.

Jennifer

 

[TheTXTaylors5]

Unfortunately, on the way home from the airport last night I had a car accident and my computer was damaged (wah!), along with my Kindle (horror!). It will take a couple of days to sort out and try and edit the pictures, but I will send an email to Kevin with access info for those interested.

Lynne,

I'm so sorry to hear about your accident. I hope YOU are okay. It was great meeting you. It wasn't until we got home that Bill told me what a wonderfully gifted daughter you have. Sending lots of pixie dust her way for 2012. If you are ever in the Dallas area, don't hesitate to look us up. That also goes for our fellow travelers. If anyone is ever in the Dallas area, let us know!!!!! We'd love to meet up.

Jennifer

 

[katscradle]

Bill and I made it home safely around midnight (CST) to a still awake four year old who came running into our arms with the biggest grin I have ever seen. It almost put tears in our eyes. We were missed. We are home "trying" to get back into the swing of things. I am on my second load of trip laundry and need to re-stock the pantry. It's as if we never left. However, I personally came back a different person than left ...

This trip was always tagged as a "once in a lifetime trip". It was. Never will the same group of people experience such amazing things for the first time like we have. Pictures cannot do the experience justice. You had to be there to feel the emotion and hear the oohs and aahs. I was asked numerous times what my favorite part of the trip was and that is such an unfair question to ask. It's like asking me which is my favorite child. There wasn't one single experience that came to mind because the whole trip was so amazing. It was one magical experience on top of another. It was surreal.

I still can't believe we ate breakfast in Club 33. We now know what is behind that door! I finally got to see the microphones in the chandeliers. Uncle Walt was a sneaky! Also, I will never look at the Fire Station the same way again. I will forever now picture every piece of furniture in that room as I glance up. When we were in Walt's Apartment Bill was so cute. He told me to make sure I sat on Walt's couch. Seeing the backside of Soarin' (one of Bill and my favorite rides) was a neat experience. I admit, I read a few ABD CA trip reports and never was that mentioned. So, it was a nice surprise treat! I had hoped and hoped to see Lucky the Dinosaur and when I caught a glance of Lucky out of the corner of my eye at Imagineering, I let out an inner-cheer. He is amazing. Seeing the DISers race into Mickeys of Glendale was like black Friday. Chaos, shopping and lots of fun!!!!

As expected, the trip went by too quickly. Before I knew it, with a heavy heart we boarded a plane on our way back to Texas. I didn't realize how emotional the trip was for me until the plane gained speed and tears welled up in my eyes. The trip was actually over. The trip we had been anticipating for months, done. California seems like a million miles away from here. But, the amazing memories created with 42 new friends will stay with me forever. Thank you all for letting me share this trip with you. You will all forever hold a special place in my heart as you were there when I truly fell in love with Disney.

Jennifer

I am sitting here reading your post and knowing exactly what you are feeling and the tears are in my eyes!
Our children were asleep when we came home last night.
They have been home for 40 minutes now, and they know where we went.
However they took it well when we explained what we did and they are not upset that we left them at home!
They are just so excited to have all the neat gifts we brought home for them.
Johnny and Kenny are very excited that they now have some bargining power where their pin trading is concered!
We have also promised them we would take them to DL in 2012 when carsland opens.