All I Want for Christmas is...A WDW Vacation!! UPDATE pg 35 - Leaving today!!

[wigdoutdismom]

Thanks Anita! I think she is pretty darling, too. We have a lot of fun together.

How is school going for you so far! Good I hope! And you can get through the days, thinking about your Christmas trip and next summer's cruise....
Have an awesome weekend!

School is a hectic adventure! Getting to know a whole new bunch plus going down to 2nd grade has been quite a trip. I am holding onto my next couple of trips to get me through the school year!

 

[DWGal210]

So on Saturday night, my friend Bekka and I went to see Kelly Clarkson!

In short - it was INCREDIBLE. First of all, to all those crazy gossip magazines who are casting remarks about her weight; she looks fantastic. I really couldn't see what they were saying about her gaining weight. She probably weighs a whopping 130 lbs. Whoa, Kelly! j/k That always drives me nuts - the same magazines that run stories about celebrities gaining a few pounds also, sometimes in the same issue, run stories about stars who are too thin. No wonder there are girls with eating disorders!! That just ticks me off.

OK, sidebar done, coming off my soapbox now.

Second, that girl can SING. Oh my goodness - I was tearing up a few times, she was so good. It really awakened in me the desire to start singing again. I sang pretty much straight through junior high - middle of college and then was kinda burned out so I stopped. But seeing her, and seeing how amazing she was, really made me evaulate getting back into it.

Here are some pictures from the night. We had great seats - we were only a bit off to the left of the stage. If you ever get a chance to see her, go. I'm telling you, you'll be blown away!

 

[BippityBoo]

So cool!!

 

[DWGal210]

So cool!!

Hi Katie! Yes, it was awesome. She has the most incredible voice, so powerful. My friend and I turned to each other many times during the show, just shaking our heads in amazement. The best $38 I have ever spent!

 

[Charleston Princess]

How fun to see Kelly Clarkson in concert -- I have heard that she puts on a fabulous show!

 

[DWGal210]

How fun to see Kelly Clarkson in concert -- I have heard that she puts on a fabulous show!

She really does put on a great show. And she actually sings, not one of these pop stars that records their music and then pipes it out of the speakers during the concert. This chick can sing.

She also did a few other songs, like a Patsy Cline number that was breathtaking and also "If" by Janet Jackson. I read an interview with Simon Cowell where they asked him who was the best idol thus far and he said "by a mile" it was Kelly. I felt like such a dork cause I was tearing up during some of her songs, but she is just that good. And a good roll model too, which I appreciate.

 

[DWGal210]

OK, so before we go on, I have to correct a spelling error (I was an English major in college and those things just scream to me when I see them!)

In my last post, I put "roll model" instead of "role model." DUH! Must not have had my coffee that day. Anyhoo, moving on....

So back to trip planning. We called Disney again on Monday and verified that yes, we in fact CAN make our ADR reservations on 9-27. It's a Sunday morning - my aunt and I are planning on being on the phone at 6 AM Central, bright and early, to get reservations! Our plan is for both of us to call, each armed with the schedule, and whoever gets a live person first will make the reservations.

In looking at dining, the numbers we've crunched say that Tables in Wonderland is going to work better for us than the Dining Plan. Since there are 8 of us, there is automatic gratuity added in, and with the TiW deal, they pretty much cancel each other out.

We've also decided that at some places, we're eating lunches instead of dinners. My aunt and uncle with steal away and have a few dinners just them, and probably my sister and I will either take them back to the hotel for counter service OR someplace like 50s Prime Time, Sci-Fi, etc.

I will post our exact schedule of 'wants' when we get that figured out, but for the time being, here is out list of "for sure going to make ADRs "
*Biergarten
*Le Cellier (either just adults OR lunch)
*Boma (just adults meal; when they were there last year, their kids just ate $25 worth of chicken nuggets etc, so it's just adults this time! )
*O'Hana - our favorite place to eat
*Raglan Road - we'll probably do this the night we get there, since we have to go to DTD anyway to pick up the TiW card.
*Sci-Fi
*Kona Cafe - Tonga Toast, here we come! YUM!
*Coral Reef

So that's the list of "for sure"; we might try a few others, like Yak & Yeti or Tutto Italia, but not sure. We're there for 9 nights so we could have a dinner each night, but we also don't want to spend a ton of money either. So some of the places will be lunch instead of dinner.

COMING NEXT: SCHEDULE of ADR days! (My favorite part - you know I love a plan! )

 

[DWGal210]

So I just wanted to post a message and say hi! I don't have anything new or of interest to post, but I also don't want this thing to drop off the deep end.

Take care everyone, and have a nice week!

Katie

 

[annnewjerz]

Hi---I don't want this to drop off the deep end either. Did you know December hours are out?

 

[Charleston Princess]

Hi, Katie!!! Hope you are having a great week!

 

[BippityBoo]

HI! Love your ADRs. Ohana is our favorite too! Also, looking forward to seeing how you like LeCellier and Boma! Two that we would love to try in the future

 

[wigdoutdismom]

Hi Katie!
We've eaten at all of your must do list with the exception of Raglan Rd. and I've heard really good review of it as well!
You have some great choices there.
Have you discussed this on the thread and I've missed it.... you are not trying for ADRs online?
Tell me more, we try for ours one week before you.

 

[ladybugmom]

Hi Katie!! I'm all caught up!! O'hana is my favorite place to eat, too!! YUMMY!!

 

[Disneymoon09]

Hi! I'm delurking with a tip ( i hope thats ok!). I just made my ADR's on wednesday. I woke up at 545 am Eastern Time, and was able to get everything i wanted, even Le Cellier! I loved the online system, and the fact that I didnt have to try to talk to someone about when I wanted things and such made it a much smoother process. I recommend a trial run a few days ahead to get the feel for the online process, but its super simple. Ok I'm done butting in!

 

[DWGal210]

Sorry I have been MIA, guys!

Hi---I don't want this to drop off the deep end either. Did you know December hours are out?

Yes - thank you! My aunt and I are going to pour over those this weekend.

Hi, Katie!!! Hope you are having a great week!

Yes, you too! How is school so far this year for you?

HI! Love your ADRs. Ohana is our favorite too! Also, looking forward to seeing how you like LeCellier and Boma! Two that we would love to try in the future

I am way pumped about Le Cellier. I think we are doing that just my aunt, uncle and myself, since my aunt doesn't really want to pay $35 for a steak for the 16 year old. But it will be nice to have an adult dinner!

We had Boma at our June 08 trip - it was so great!! Again, that might be an adult-only one, as they paid for their kids to eat there last year and of course the kids just wanted chicken nuggets and mac n cheese.

Hi Katie!
We've eaten at all of your must do list with the exception of Raglan Rd. and I've heard really good review of it as well!
You have some great choices there.
Have you discussed this on the thread and I've missed it.... you are not trying for ADRs online?
Tell me more, we try for ours one week before you.

Well, I think we are going to try the online ADR system, and then call them after we do it to double-check that they have our reservations. I think that you can go online like an hour earlier than if you call, so we're going to go for that.

We go to Raglan Road each trip. My uncle loves their fish n chips and some Irish beer they have there. (Can you tell I am not a beer person? I don't even know the name )

Hi Katie!! I'm all caught up!! O'hana is my favorite place to eat, too!! YUMMY!!

Oh we LOVE O'Hana. We're trying to decide whether that should be our last day there, or are first day as a good way to kick off the vacation...decisions, decisions!

 

[DWGal210]

Hi! I'm delurking with a tip ( i hope thats ok!). I just made my ADR's on wednesday. I woke up at 545 am Eastern Time, and was able to get everything i wanted, even Le Cellier! I loved the online system, and the fact that I didnt have to try to talk to someone about when I wanted things and such made it a much smoother process. I recommend a trial run a few days ahead to get the feel for the online process, but its super simple. Ok I'm done butting in!

Hey there! Yes, I love tips! Please send them my way!!

SWEET! That makes me feel really good about our decision to do online.

And you're not butting in. This PTR is full audience participation. Clearly I don't have a lot to talk about right now so any other topics are MORE than welcome! Thanks for reading!

 

[Flossbolna]

Hiope you get lucky with all your ADRs. By the way, there have been reports about the online ADRs now being available at 3am Eastern. I checked this morning (being 6 hours ahead here in Germany, that was at 9 am for me) and it had already the next day available. So depending on how determined you are....

 

[DWGal210]

So I have been bursting at the seams to tell all of you but now it is official.....




I GOT A PROMOTION/NEW JOB!!

I'll be working in the charitible office of our company, organizing events, doing fundraisers, etc. I am so excited I can barely stand it! I have all sorts of ideas running through my head of things I want to do.

Just had to share! Have a good one!

 

[Charleston Princess]

Congrats, Katie! Your new job sounds like it will be a lot of fun!

 

[MyMuse]

Congrats!!

I hope it comes with a raise! More $$ for Disney, mayhaps?