All I Got Was A Lousy T-Shirt. . .(SleepyD's WetnWild Shower Fan Club -16 Feb 07)

[dawn8226]

I'm hooked. Now I need more! Please!

 

[tjeagle]

AWESOME!

 

[sleepydog25]

Day 1: Movie on Wheels​

The morning dawned with a nip in the air, like a fall morning should, with the eastern horizon magically awakening.

Flaming crimson sneaks​

Fingers to grasp cyan cloak;​

Porch lights wink, soften.​

Day 1 of our trip was here. . .and we were raring to go.



Wait. This isn’t where I left off is it? Well, I wanted to let you know there actually IS a trip report with pictures coming. In case you wondered. We now resume our regularly scheduled programming. . .

Family Doc Seeks Flying Dutchman: How Johnny Depp and the Travel Channel Cost Us Thousands of Dollars, Part II​

Yeah. Doc had discovered the DIS Boards. Oh, she knew of their existence but had never paid much attention to them outside reading responses to my last TR about our visit to WDW in June. (Available upon request!) No, she DISCOVERED them, as in she realized their full potential. I had a sinking feeling (it’s okay, you can groan). For the next few weeks, she succeeded in immersing herself, me, her parents, our friends, the cats, stray dogs, and two proselytizing types who came to our door. . .they left as fresh Disney acolytes. When Doc throws herself into something, she does it full bore. Either you’re along for the ride or you’ll wish you were.



Then there was the whole Pirates of the Caribbean thing. Doc and I remembered Johnny Depp primarily for one thing up until that movie: 21 Jump Street. Yeah, he had made a few movies, but they mostly weren’t of mainstream appeal. Then POTC hit. And Doc loved it and Depp. I mean, how could you not? (Side note: I actually fell asleep watching POTC the first two times I saw it on DVD.) Just the very thought of Depp in the movie made Doc think a cruise was a great idea. I don’t get the connection, but it’s there. Soon after, it was announced that the Flying Dutchman was going to be anchored at Castaway Cay. Thus, a doable trip just got upgraded to probable.



Still, I was still being a cruiseaphobic. It simply didn’t appeal to me. Every time she would bring up the topic, I gave her the old, “yes, dear” supplemented with a few agreeable nods. Note to future self: don’t absent-mindedly go along with an idea with which you actually disagree. Not only did the cruise idea germinate, it sprang from the ground like Jack’s proverbial bean stalk. Naturally, I brought up the expense idea, defense strategy #1.

“You know, dear,” I gently prodded, “this cruise would cost a lot, AND we are going to Walt’s World in June.” But Doc is a cagey woman with a mind much sharper than my own. I never saw it coming.

“Yeah, that’s true. So, what are we going to do with our leftover DVC points?”

“I dunno. We could go back to HHI,” I dumbly responded.

“Mm-hmm. They have a nice beach there.”

“Yep. And you like to relax under the sun,” I gushed, seeing a way free from the cruise.

“Ohhhh, and there are some good restaurants with superb wine selections,” she continued. I had her! “But, did you know there are four restaurants on the Wonder (Yikes! She had already chosen a ship?), each with good wine? And there’s an adults-only coffee bar with lattes, an adults-only pool, a spa with full-body massages, and adults-only beach, AND an adults-only restaurant with a really good wine list?”

“Uhhhhh. . .well, I, uhhh. . .” I was stunned into mumbling.

“And we have enough points to cover the cruise.” I was losing, wasn’t I? Then the kicker, “Did I mention the adults-only options?”

“Oh, yeah, you did,” stubborn to the end was I going to be. She arched an eyebrow and waited for my feeble brain to compute her last sentence.

“Ohhh. . .” The light bulb appeared above my head, “OHHHHHHH!” I smiled. Broadly.



As quick as that, I was sold on the cruise. I’m stubborn, but not a complete moron. Now the question before us was, how do we tell Princess—the veteran PSB patron, autograph seeker, and lover of all things Disney--that we are going on a Disney cruise without her? Answer: leave out one key word. . . oh, yes we did.

“Princess! Mommy and Daddy are going on a cruise, on a big ship that sails in the ocean for a few days, and you can’t go because you’re in school, and we’ll bring you presents, and even better than that, you get to stay with Mumma and Paappa!” All in one breath. The tension was high.

“Really?! Woohoo! I get to stay with the-e-em! I get to stay with the-e-em!” Whew! Crisis averted. Time to get down to planning. . .and no one plans any better than Doc. . .okay, maybe her parents. I mean, the gene has gotta come from somewhere.



The dates of the cruise were set: 28 Sep – 1 Oct. Now all that was left was a little prep work. . .for the next five months. First things first, Doc simply had to go shopping. The acres of clothes in her closet coughed up only two things she could wear: a beach pullover and one pair of shorts. She went with her mother for a three-hour tour. . .I saw them eight hours later, exhausted but successfully happy. Doc had bags o’ plenty while Mumma bought a top and a belt, reminding me of Charlie Brown’s Halloween: “All I got was a rock.” In all fairness, Doc rarely shops—she deserves it. And she enjoyed spreading her bounty across the room. . .off every single knob of every single drawer in our bedroom, not to mention a few doors, the footboard of the bed, and two chairs. I felt like I was at the mall every time I dressed.



In the meantime, Doc diligently searched the DIS Cruise forums for tips, hints, and TRs. This woman was gonna be prepared. We had a notebook filled with printed pages of every imaginable scrap of information she could glean from those forums. (Yes, we will ship copies to you for a mere $19.95, shipping and handling charges not included.) I made her get her own ID (DocLovesDis) after her umpteenth request to “ask this question for me” on the cruise forums. The woman was dedicated. She even figured out the tipping guidelines! (Did you know it was customary to tip your dining service manager even though you may never see him except to ask, “How was everything?” I figure it cost us about $2 per word to hear that.) The forums were also where we met future shipmates FatherForce, momsully, fallon, castlegazer, mickey4diane, bethsg, and a few others. Yep, we even set up a meet.



Of course, there were the typical “other” items to secure and do: update wills, (Mumma was NOT gonna let us go without them), POAs for our cats (I told you she was a planner!), passports, reservations for Palo, excursions, and spa packages. Oh, and let’s not forget the bribery for Princess. For each day of our absence, we left a small goodie bag for her to open. It was our way of being there while not actually being there. Finally, after months of planning—and taking time away from that for a WDW trip with Princess—the first day of our trip arrived.



On deck: More on Day 1: Movie on Wheels

 

[firstmickey]

would you hurry up!!!!!! I wanna sail already!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[tjeagle]

As quick as that, I was sold on the cruise. I’m stubborn, but not a complete moron. Now the question before us was, how do we tell Princess—the veteran PSB patron, autograph seeker, and lover of all things Disney--that we are going on a Disney cruise without her? Answer: leave out one key word. . . oh, yes we did.



NO YOU DINNINT!

 

[HaleyB]

would you hurry up!!!!!! I wanna sail already!!!!!!!!!!!

Rome was not built in a day.


So when did Princess catch on that it was a Disney cruise? hmm? 'Cause she is one smart little cookie and I bet she did, hence the large wedding in her future.

Our little tyrant Sophia decided (she is 8, time to start planing) that she wants to get married at the Grand Floridian and stay in a concierge suite. We can stay there too if we want to. She wants to use Cindy's carriage (they do that in FL don't they? They do in CA) because that should be less expensive (than what, I am not sure). Oh, and a chocolate fountian, too. So far that is all she has in the works...

 

[firstmickey]

Rome was not built in a day.

I don't wanna go on the Med.....I wanna go to the Bahamas!!!!!

 

[famof8]

YOU

WENT

WITHOUT

PRINCESS!!!!

Oh, please tell me this is all a dream....I can't stand the thought!
I just see that beautiful face in the picture and I just ASSUMED that was taken on the boat! Oh my, I think I'm going to faint!

 

[Ski-and-Sea]

You are lucky you got away with just painted toenails.

 

[thomprod]

Reading your so-called report gave me the best laugh I've had in a week. Your pacing would never make it in broadcast journalism, but I love your wording, teasing and humor. Bravo! BTW, I have also been blessed with a toenail job performed by my princess, so I can empathize with you. Can't wait for the next installment!

 

[DocLovesDis]

Ok - I have to respond... you see - I am Doc.
Overall Sleepy has been pretty accurate on his reporting (occasionally he has taken some literary license)
A few things that I do want to add:
1. yes, I am a lucky woman to have sleepy in my life. Although I work my tail off so we can go on vacations and so he can have his wine "collection". But I do need to note, that despite his cooking, caring for princess and do the laundy, he hates to do dishes and fold clothes. I guess I need to train him a bit better
2. yes - we did leave the princess at home. But it was for a very good reason. We had not taken an adult only vacation in the past 6 years!! We needed a little time for us. Plus we needed to do reconnaisance of a Disney cruise to ensure that the Princess would enjoy herself. The last thing I would want is to end up on a cruise that does not appeal to "our pride and joy" - can't really leave and try something new onboard a ship.
3. for those of you who do not know about DVC - it is great! It makes me take vacations! It is perfect for those work-a-holics out there (or for those married to the work-a-holics). Plus it was great to finally have the opportunity to see what cruising is all about.
4. The last thing (don't want to say too much and spoil sleepy's tale - remember I have to live with him) is that the Dis Boards are great. It allowed us to meet people on our cruise prior to sailing (was great to bump into friendly faces on the first day) as well as having a forum to ask questions. I knew that I would get great answers and none of the questions would be deemed "stupid".

By the by - this trip report is how sleepy normally tells his tales. He describes a lot of detail and takes awhile to get to the meat of the subject. I often need to prod him along. I will hopefully get him to post about our drive and boarding of the ship tomorrow. I will do my best ... no promises.

 

[firstmickey]

AHA! Now we get the real scoop!

 

[pppiglet]

Glad I found this thread before it got to 40 pages!

 

[HaleyB]

Doc!!! Nice to meet ya!

 

[Grammyof2]

Hi Doc This is my normal greeting - "I'm Grammy, nice to meet ya."

Finally we will get the real scoop Gotta love a tag team

 

[DiaLady]

Sleep & Doc!

Thanks for great report (and verification) so far . . . love your creative application of the English language. Can't wait to read the rest. You also remind me why I am thankful to have two wonderful BOYS! Princes tend to be less challenging then princesses, but hey some day they'll marry a princesses and I'll have to figure it out . ..LOL

Keep up the great work!

 

[jamal]

Hi D,
Well I finally saw the little link in your siggie among all the humor so here I am. I am ready to set sail!!

Get on the boat and tell ALL tales.

Oh. You KNOW this TR is useless without pho-toes.

Hello Doc!

 

[sleepydog25]

Since a few of you have requested links to my previous TR from the WDW trip in June mentioned in this TR, I've hastily attached the links. The report was from my superdupersecretagent days with the "company."

Sleepydog Does Disney - Day 1</B>

Sleepydog Does Disney - Day 2</B>

Sleepydog Does Disney - Days 3 & 4</B>

Sleepydog Does Disney - Day 5 and Day 6: The Final Moments</B>

Sleepydog's Supery-Dupery Secret Agent Blog on Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique</B>

 

[Bethipooh4]

Hi to both of you!!!

I love the TR so far, and am looking forward to reading more.
Our little princess is 22 now(hard to believe) so I know what you go through.

And yes, a wedding at WDW is her wish as well.

 

[lexmelinda]

despite his cooking, caring for princess and do the laundy, he hates to do dishes and fold clothes

You wash but don't fold? That's just wrong...get to folding....and writing this trip report. I'm beginning to wonder if you actually went on a cruise.