Alien Encounter gave me PTSD!! A Dec '14 PTR **Life Update 5/11 & 5/15**

[obxlvr13]

Hi! I just read your TR for your Mother/Daughter trip and followed you over here! Im glad to see that your dog is doing well! Cant wait to read the TR when you get back!

 

[Britbrie]

Awesome start!! Your fur babies are all adorable!

We are going Dec 23-Jan 1 and staying at the Caribbean Beach too!! How awesome! haha.

Can't wait to read more!

 

[PhoenixStrength]

Hi! I just read your TR for your Mother/Daughter trip and followed you over here! Im glad to see that your dog is doing well! Cant wait to read the TR when you get back!

Thank you! I'm glad you are following along. And Phoenix is still doing very well!

Awesome start!! Your fur babies are all adorable!

We are going Dec 23-Jan 1 and staying at the Caribbean Beach too!! How awesome! haha.

Can't wait to read more!

Thank you so much!

Maybe we will see each other while there! Don't hesitate to say hello if you see us.

 

[PhoenixStrength]

DAY ONE: SUNDAY DECEMBER 21ST

I'll be getting up early this morning, getting ready and last minute things packed and then heading out around 7am to pick up George. I live about 15 minutes from BWI airport (he lives 45 minutes further than me) so I'll bring him back to my house, then we will pretty much immediately leave for BWI. Someone in my family, we don't know exactly who yet, we drop us off so we don't have to pay to leave a car there for 12 days.

The plan is to get to BWI around 9am since our flight leaves at 11:15am and we are sure it will be busy due to the holidays. We are flying Southwest, because we love their rates and no bag fees, especially since I always take 2 suitcases for all my clothes and souvenirs! Knowing George he will probably have one bag and have it all packed within minutes of me coming to pick him up. I saw this a few days ago and I think it fits perfectly, for most couples!




Once we get through security and find our gate we will grab something to eat. Where at depends on time really. If we are held up by a long wait through security it will be one of the fast food places, but if we have the time we will get a sit down meal. In either case once we are done eating we will wait at our gate until it is time to board. I already have an alarm set to check-in 24 hours before the flight so I am hoping for an "A" group seating so we can easily sit together.

As I said our flight is scheduled to depart at 11:15am and then land in Orlando at 1:35pm. I don't think our flight has wifi heading down there (though I could be wrong!) so George and I will probably just plan, talk and maybe read some on the 2 hour flight. Once we land we will take this:









After our mini-monorail ride into the main terminal we will get our bags and then head over to Disney's Magical Express. I know they can take care of our bags getting to the resort for us, but I like having them right away and George agrees with me on that. If we are hungry again we might grab a bite in MCO before heading to DME. I very much want us to get a real DME bus so George can watch the video on the way to WDW, at least until we see this:






I am thinking that we should get to Caribbean Beach Resort at about 3pm where we would check in and then head to our room. Once we get all of our things in the room and get settled the plan is to explore the resort for the rest of the day since George has never been there. We will eat at OPR food court for dinner...






...and maybe swim at some point too, depending on the weather. Since we will have an early morning the next day and we will probably be tired from traveling we will get to bed early that night.

 

[mickeystoontown]

I loved the little cartoon. So sounds like most couples! Although, I do have to say that John doesn't wait until the last minute to pack mostly 'cause I won't let him.

Hopefully, your travel day will be as smooth as silk and everything will be right on time. Two hours is a quick flight and I'm sure you two will be chatting about everything you want to see and do.

I like the idea of spending the afternoon and evening at the CBR, especially since it will be George's first time staying there.

 

[afwdwfan]

I agree with you on wanting to have your bags with you. I'd want to get my own too as long as we didn't have too many. I'd just hate getting to the room and having to wait for my stuff to get there before we can get settled in.

Your arrival time looks about perfect. Should be able to get right to the room!

 

[PhoenixStrength]

I loved the little cartoon. So sounds like most couples! Although, I do have to say that John doesn't wait until the last minute to pack mostly 'cause I won't let him.

Hopefully, your travel day will be as smooth as silk and everything will be right on time. Two hours is a quick flight and I'm sure you two will be chatting about everything you want to see and do.

I like the idea of spending the afternoon and evening at the CBR, especially since it will be George's first time staying there.

Well, if I didn't remind him then George would do it last minute. But if I remind him he will at least do it the day before!

Thanks, I really hope all goes smoothly with it being so close to the holiday. I know it will probably be busy so that's fine, just as long as they have enough staff to compensate for that at BWI so things still move!!!

That's exactly why we decided to stick around CBR instead of venturing to DTD or doing an evening at one of the parks. Just relax, take in the resort, get him accustom to CBR, etc will be a great first afternoon and evening!

I agree with you on wanting to have your bags with you. I'd want to get my own too as long as we didn't have too many. I'd just hate getting to the room and having to wait for my stuff to get there before we can get settled in.

Your arrival time looks about perfect. Should be able to get right to the room!

I like to get everything in it's place and ready to be used right away, so I really do need my bags with me when I check in. I can understand the allure of having them get the bags, especially for families with multiple kids who already have their hands full, but it's not for me.

That's what I'm hoping! It will be a busy week so I'm hoping they will have our room ready as soon as we arrive!

 

[KatMark]

Plans sound great for the travel day, Steph. I hope security isn't too bad and you can have a nice sit down breakfast.

I love getting a "real" bus, but I do NOT like the new video at all.

I like the idea of just hanging at the resort since you don't get there until the late afternoon and George can take it all in.

 

[PhoenixStrength]

Plans sound great for the travel day, Steph. I hope security isn't too bad and you can have a nice sit down breakfast.

I love getting a "real" bus, but I do NOT like the new video at all.

I like the idea of just hanging at the resort since you don't get there until the late afternoon and George can take it all in.

Thanks, we hope so too but if not it will be fine, since we'll be on our way to WDW!!

When did they update the video? The last time I saw it was September of last year.

That's why we figured it made sense. George can take all of CBR in and we can relax a bit before the craziness of the parks during the holidays starts!!

 

[aprilisis]

Your trip sounds awesome! I've always wanted to go for the holidays. I can't wait to hear more and see photos!!! You'd be proud...I adopted a six year old dog. He's a hound mix. He's sleeping on my bed under a blanket right now.

 

[PhoenixStrength]

Your trip sounds awesome! I've always wanted to go for the holidays. I can't wait to hear more and see photos!!! You'd be proud...I adopted a six year old dog. He's a hound mix. He's sleeping on my bed under a blanket right now.

Yay!!! I want to see pictures of him. What's his name? I'm so glad you adopted him. No one will replace Isis, but now you can have a new doggie love in your life, and he got you!

 

[aprilisis]

His name is Snickers...I didn't want to change it. He's 6, so that would just confuse him!

 

[mickeystoontown]

April, Snickers is so cute! As Steph said, nobody can replace Isis but it will be wonderful to have another dog in your life.

 

[aprilisis]

Thanks! He's a wonderful, obedient dog. I've always loved hounds! It's really a match made in heaven.

 

[PhoenixStrength]

Snickers is so adorable! I have a thing for hound mixes too (Phoenix is part beagle!). And I like his name, and agree that at 6 years old it wouldn't really be fair to him to try to change it anyway.

 

[PhoenixStrength]

DAY TWO: MONDAY DECEMBER 22ND

George and I will be getting up early this morning, probably 5:30-5:45am (which, funny enough, is sleeping in a bit for us both, since we get up at 5am 5 days a week normally!) and after showering we will head over to OPR for breakfast:






And then to the OPR bus stop for our first park, which has morning EMH that morning so we want to get there by 7:30am for the 8am opening. And what park will we go to first? Magic Kingdom of course!!






(that's the best sign picture I could find in my photobucket account )
The park is open until 1am with EMH from 8am-9am. Since I won't have our FP+ booked until next week I'm not 100% sure what order we will do things in, but I do know we will try to get as much done as possible and stay as late as we can. A few things I know we will do, whether with a FP+ or standby line, are:
























...and whatever else we can do will be great too!

Lunch will either be at BOG if I can get a FP+ ressie, or if not most likely will be either Pecos Bills or Cosmic Rays, depending on what we are feeling like that day.

For dinner we have an ADR at 6:25pm here:






I look forward to eating here for my third trip in a row and for George's first time (he thinks, he doesn't remember any of the meal locations from his first trip 20+ years ago!).

I'm trying to get a Dessert party reservation for us for this night, but so far no luck. If I get one then we'll be doing that, otherwise we will just watch the castle show and Wishes from somewhere else and get our own snack! We plan on staying as late as we can so we can get as much done as possible. We know we won't get everything done since it's a holiday week, even with 2 days per park, but we will try to do as much as we can! In any case we probably won't stay all the way until closing since we have to get up at 6:30am the next day, but who knows?!

EDIT: I booked our FP+ so here they are:

10am - 11am: Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
11am - 12pm: Splash Mountain
8:50pm - 9:50pm: Seven Dwarfs Mine Train (not thrilled with this one but they had no better times available still)




NEXT TIME: DAY 3!

 

[mickeystoontown]

I'm keeping my fingers crossed that you'll be able to get the Be Our Guest FP and there is a cancellation for the dessert party that you can snag. Are you active over on the ADR cancellation threads? That's how I was able to get our dessert party ADR.

 

[PhoenixStrength]

I'm keeping my fingers crossed that you'll be able to get the Be Our Guest FP and there is a cancellation for the dessert party that you can snag. Are you active over on the ADR cancellation threads? That's how I was able to get our dessert party ADR.

Thanks! I am on the December cancellation board, but no dessert party cancellations posted yet.

 

[KatMark]

When did they update the video? The last time I saw it was September of last year.

It was new when we rode it in June. It's where they have a CM who does most of the talking, etc. Maybe some of the buses still have the old one? I just liked it better when all the characters get on the bus and arrive at the resort, etc.

 

[KatMark]

April, it's good to see you back on the DIS. Love your new puppy.

Steph, the plans for the FIRST full day at the park sound wonderful. I love doing EMH's in the a.m. because you can get so much done in that first hour.