AN AP-ALOOZA with a baby! October TR turned year of Disney! NEW 2/7 AUG FINISHED!

[khertz]

Great plans!! Aria is definitely the best dressed toddler I have ever seen!

 

[Imagineer5]

Wow, we managed to plan very different days for all of our overlapping days! What time is your 'Ohana breakfast ADR? Not sure if we'll have left for MK yet, but maybe that's a chance to wave in passing.

I hope your Artist Point meal goes way better than last time. We had a really good experience there in 2011, so hoping you can have that too.

Just to throw another transportation option out there for your Kona/Epcot/DHS day: you could drive to the TTC, then walk to Kona (short path). Walk back to TTC and take monorail to Epcot. Walk to DHS. Bus DHS back to TTC and drive back to WL. I don't know. Complicated any way you do it.

How did I forget Club Cool in my plans?!? This is why I need to read PTRs!

Why is Rider Swap a pain for Soarin'? Just that you have to bring the kid all the way in and down? Or something else?

Why not just have ice cream at Beaches 'n' Cream? I see no problem with that. Their burgers are good, but I think it might be nice to have your dinner at Tutto, get your exercise walking over, then indulge in a banana split.

Yeah, I think after re-looking at the menus for B&C and Tutto I'm going to stick with tutto for the meals at least, I had forgotten about the salmon dish that I really wanted to try.

Soarin is just a pain since you have to bring her all the way inside, and there isn't much to do inside with the relatively long wait even for FP riders on Soarin (since we like to ride living with the land together).

Ohana is for 8:05 I believe?? I know - we aren't going to be in the same park at the same time during the couple of days we overlap! LOL! Even if you go to WL on 12/12 we will probably be headed off to Fort Wilderness at that time (since HDD is at 4).

Good idea for the TTC!! Maybe we will do that - the walk back to the poly is super easy, but then that might take away from my little epcot evening plans if they come to fruition. We will see that morning probably, I'll see what Andrew has to say, he always seems to come up with an opinion when I least expect it.

Great plans!! Aria is definitely the best dressed toddler I have ever seen!

Hahaha thanks so much! I was surprised to bring up squeezing in a bit of time at the AK on our "free" day and Andrew was actually up for it. She just NEEDS an excuse to wear that giraffe dress!

 

[AussieAngel]

All those plans look amazing! Can I come along in your suitcase?!

You can definitely just have ice-cream at B&C - there's even a take out window specifically for that! We went down one night and got dessert that we took back to our room, but it might be nice to sit around the pool or beach area and eat a massive banana split!

More beautiful dresses! I love the AK one... It definitely warrants a trip to AK! Hee!

 

[kmedina]

We did both Beaches and Cream and Tutto Italia last trip. I would choose Tutto over Beaches and Cream nine times out of ten. You chose right, in my opinion. The kitchen sink was just a disappointment. Way too much product and way too sweet.

Where do you get all of Aria's dresses again? She has the cutest wardrobe ever. If I have a daughter, I need all the help I can get. I have no creativity.

Your plans sound great. We are most likely skipping MVMCP in 2014 too, because it was not a huge hit in 2011.

 

[Dugette]

Ohana is for 8:05 I believe?? I know - we aren't going to be in the same park at the same time during the couple of days we overlap! LOL! Even if you go to WL on 12/12 we will probably be headed off to Fort Wilderness at that time (since HDD is at 4).

We might briefly cross paths that 'Ohana morning. We have plans to pack up and do the airline check-in, then head to the Magic Kingdom, which opens at 9am. Of course, who knows how things will actually go with a toddler and all. Dug Baby has just started to sort-of wave at people, so maybe she'll get to try that with Aria if our paths cross.

 

[Imagineer5]

All those plans look amazing! Can I come along in your suitcase?!

You can definitely just have ice-cream at B&C - there's even a take out window specifically for that! We went down one night and got dessert that we took back to our room, but it might be nice to sit around the pool or beach area and eat a massive banana split!

More beautiful dresses! I love the AK one... It definitely warrants a trip to AK! Hee!

Aww thank you so much!! hahah sure! Yes the ice cream for dessert might be awesome, depending on how full we are, maybe we'll do it after seeing the Osborne lights. See, you and i are totally on the same page! Bringing that dress def. means we need to hop there for a bit

We did both Beaches and Cream and Tutto Italia last trip. I would choose Tutto over Beaches and Cream nine times out of ten. You chose right, in my opinion. The kitchen sink was just a disappointment. Way too much product and way too sweet.

Where do you get all of Aria's dresses again? She has the cutest wardrobe ever. If I have a daughter, I need all the help I can get. I have no creativity.

Your plans sound great. We are most likely skipping MVMCP in 2014 too, because it was not a huge hit in 2011.

Good to hear!!

I get them from a variety of places - Matilda Jane, Kpea, Kids Fly Too, Tea Collection, and lots of customs from Tickled Pink Girls, Studio J, Laura Kae Designs, BabySWANK..(all via Facebook).

We might briefly cross paths that 'Ohana morning. We have plans to pack up and do the airline check-in, then head to the Magic Kingdom, which opens at 9am. Of course, who knows how things will actually go with a toddler and all. Dug Baby has just started to sort-of wave at people, so maybe she'll get to try that with Aria if our paths cross.

Awesome!! I'll Pm you with my cell # so we can connect that morning!!

 

[Imagineer5]

I last left off after our final evening – which means this day was our final day at Disney. We had an afternoon flight however, so we had a little time to enjoy Disney before heading home.

This morning I had an ADR at Kouzzina – this was a last minute addition when I realized that our flight was later than I thought, and I so wished I could get a Cape May ADR but it was fully booked. So instead we quickly packed up in the morning, checked our luggage with the porter (or whatever they are called – either way one of the best services Disney offers IMO!!) and put our carry on’s in the car, then headed off to breakfast. It was for 7:45 and since we’re all early birds, we were all up and ready to eat long before then haha.

I didn’t take any photos of my food (surprise, surprise) but it was decent. We enjoyed the press pot coffee offered here, but I don’t think the food was spectacular. There were few meat-free options for me to choose from. Aria also was in a mood and after about 10 minutes at the table was ready to go. At any rate, we had a decent breakfast and then headed over to…EPCOT! We love ending our vacation here!

First ride of the day – one of our favorites – living with the land! Aria was having a blast though sitting in the front row makes her want to run around so I had to tickle her to keep her attention on sitting on my lap!

Afterwards we headed to the Seas, rode Nemo then watched Crush. I guess I didn’t feel like sitting on the floor this morning because Andrew had Aria up on his shoulders for the show instead.

Next up was the Character Spot! Thought it would be fun to check out the new character spot with no wait at all. She was giving Mickey all smiles until we actually went to meet him, then she wanted him as far away from her as possible…LOL…same with Pluto and Minnie. Oh well. No tears, at least.

We had a little time to kill but not much so I did a little shopping at Mouse Gear. I had my eye on my very first Dooney & Bourke and wanted to check out the options. I’m not much of a purse person, so I ended up getting a wristlet and matching iphone cover. I was excited! : ) still use them daily.

After that we headed back through the gates and straight to the car for the airport. We did have to pack/check her car seat once there, but otherwise made it through security easily and onto the plane. Aria never slept (flight was around 1:30PM I believe) but she passed out in the car as soon as we got there. Oh and we pulled the classic seat configuration in order to get Aria a seat (as long as the plane isn't 100% full, it generally works - I sit in the window seat, Andrew in the aisle and Aria in the middle seat generally unhappy about being on rhe plane. When people are boarding, no one is going to sit in that middle seat unless it's the last option left, IMO!

Happy little miss

And that concludes my June trip!! At this point I don't think I had plans yet for August? That was WAY more last minute (so much fun to plan though!) so I thought I had 6 months until our next trip! Thankfully another one was right around the corner...

I have my photopass pics from August, and am going to start working on making some albums for the trip (apparently i never posted those pics on facebook, people were getting tired of seeing me at disney I think!). Then it will be on to my Mother/Daughter trip that I want to do EVERY year if possible!!

Thanks everyone for reading along for our adventures!

 

[jenny105]

That's the same Dooney print I have! Except I have a bag. I love it. I sent it back to Disney to have the strap repaired a few weeks ago and they sent me a brand new bag! Gotta love that.

I enjoyed reading your TR. I'm sure you'll have another one up soon, you go so much! lol

 

[dtr_angel]

Aria is seriously the best dressed little girl! Her closet must be insane! Lol.

Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

 

[Dugette]

Nice finish to your trip!

How does Aria not make a mess out of all her beautiful dresses when eating without a bib?! Even with a bib, Dug Baby usually manages to make a mess of herself at most meals.

Also, I think that's the same snack cup we got recently. Does it work well?

I remember really liking breakfast at Kouzzina, but I'm pretty sure the thing I liked had meat (Turkey Sweet Potato Hash).

That seat configuration on the plane is what we tried to do with our reservation, on the advice of others. However, after booking it that way (aisle/window) they moved us all around (I think maybe they changed the plane or something?) and we almost didn't end up together at all. They had us two rows apart going both ways. Luckily, we saw this and called and talked to a supervisor and got it changed! So, we should be sitting together, but we're not going to have the extra seat (I think both flights are pretty full). I can see how it would work better when you don't have to book a seat ahead of time.

Looking forward to the next trip!

 

[kmedina]

I have wanted to dine at Kouzzina for a while. It is disappointing that the food was not better for you. Glad a slightly later flight gave you extra park time. That is always awesome to visit a park on your departure day. We almost always leave too early to partake. I like the new character spot at Epcot too, except the fact that the PhotoPass shots from Mickey were lost on the card and were not able to be located. I am so disappointed that WDW lost a lot of our photos this trip.

Thanks for the tips on where to get the dresses. Hopefully, I get to order them someday.

 

[Imagineer5]

That's the same Dooney print I have! Except I have a bag. I love it. I sent it back to Disney to have the strap repaired a few weeks ago and they sent me a brand new bag! Gotta love that.

I enjoyed reading your TR. I'm sure you'll have another one up soon, you go so much! lol

Aww that's awesome service!! I LOVE the print!! I've been looking for a slim wallet type thing to go inside but settled on an old wallet insert of Andrews!

Next year will be different, I think. But yes, I plan to start up August ASAP (photos are uploading to a private album on Facebook as I type!!)

Aria is seriously the best dressed little girl! Her closet must be insane! Lol.

Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

LOL let's just say we did a reno of her closet a few months ago, to maximize hanging space as well as shoe organization

Nice finish to your trip!

How does Aria not make a mess out of all her beautiful dresses when eating without a bib?! Even with a bib, Dug Baby usually manages to make a mess of herself at most meals.

Also, I think that's the same snack cup we got recently. Does it work well?

I remember really liking breakfast at Kouzzina, but I'm pretty sure the thing I liked had meat (Turkey Sweet Potato Hash).

That seat configuration on the plane is what we tried to do with our reservation, on the advice of others. However, after booking it that way (aisle/window) they moved us all around (I think maybe they changed the plane or something?) and we almost didn't end up together at all. They had us two rows apart going both ways. Luckily, we saw this and called and talked to a supervisor and got it changed! So, we should be sitting together, but we're not going to have the extra seat (I think both flights are pretty full). I can see how it would work better when you don't have to book a seat ahead of time.

Looking forward to the next trip!

Oh yeah, that only really works on Southwest with open seating. Jet Blue when I flew with my mom, it wasn't a full flight so they were able to move us to an empty row at the gate (I asked).

Oh that snack cup is awesome! We use it daily. We need more of them, we bought a 2-pack and aria pulled off the lid (I believe on our August trip) and i didn't see it - so I threw away the cup part too. It's awesome for the dogs, too, because she can set it down anywhere and they won't go poking through it (they could, but they wont!)

I have some plastic fully-armd bibs (Ikea purchase - 2 pack for $5!! we actually got a ton for daycare too as they are meant to be painting smocks). That's what we usually use at restaurants, but more often than not we would take the old one out (dirty) and forget to restock with a clean one. I guess at that point, I just let her eat whatever while attempting to stay away from pizza, ketchup, etc that would leave a permanent stain. The rest, well, whatever she's a toddler and if she puts stains in her clothes then they will go in the "keep" pile vs. selling! Poor eventual baby #2, if she is a girl, she will get lots of hand me downs with little stains.

I have wanted to dine at Kouzzina for a while. It is disappointing that the food was not better for you. Glad a slightly later flight gave you extra park time. That is always awesome to visit a park on your departure day. We almost always leave too early to partake. I like the new character spot at Epcot too, except the fact that the PhotoPass shots from Mickey were lost on the card and were not able to be located. I am so disappointed that WDW lost a lot of our photos this trip.

Thanks for the tips on where to get the dresses. Hopefully, I get to order them someday.

Aww I'm sorry to hear you lost so many photopass pictures!! That is odd, because in June the Mickey photopass pics didn't show either - i didn't put up a stink about it though because we had handed our camera to the handler and he got some okay photos.

Yeah, Kouzzina is not high on our list. Until they do a big menu change. Which is unfortunate because I love EVERYTHING Greek and was so super excited for it (Greece is one of my eventual "big" trips coming up, just want Aria to get a bit older for that one!).

 

[Imagineer5]

AUGUST 2013
Dates – August 2-9
Where- Silver Lake Resort
Why- Daycare was closed for the week!

So as you all know, daycare was closed the week of August 2-9, 2013 which meant someone had to watch Aria. Originally I thought about taking her up to Vermont or having my mom or Andrew’s mom watch her. Then, the government furlough happened and I had to take the time off (unpaid) anyway, so I quickly priced out the trip, finding the 1 bedroom condo for $350 through getravelop.com, flight & car free through my Capital One rewards credit card, and using my “birthday money” for the trip to help pay for the rest. Of course, I way overspent beyond my budget but alas, we had a great time and it was worth it.

So it was just me and Aria – then 18 months old. I had 1 ADR planned for each day, and plans to fully enjoy the pool as well as the parks.

So without further ago – Friday, August 2nd!

We flew out of providence around 8AM – Andrew dropped us off at the airport before heading up north to work (he works north of Boston) and I was excited AND nervous. A full week with just Aria? Immediately I wondered what I was thinking – she is wonderful and I wish I could be with her 24/7 but I do work (at the time 32 hours/week, now 40) and have never been the sole parent for a full week straight. I had luggage to get inside, the giant stroller (I decided to bring the Baby Jogger City Select, because she sleeps in it much better and it has a nice big basket underneath for stuff, and I would have a rental car vs carrying it onto the bus (I wouldn’t be able to hold Aria AND carry it, if need be, it’s just too heavy). Anyway so I had that to contend with getting onto the plane, but otherwise it was really nice to have.

So in all my “what the heck am I doing” thoughts, I made it through security just fine, grabbed a snack for breakfast, fed Aria a squeeze packet and some snacks, and then we played in the empty area of the airport for a bit waiting to board.

Then we made our way onto the plane which was thankfully on time. I managed the stroller by putting Aria into my Beco front carrier and then my only carry on was a backpack. I had commandeered Andrew’s ipad for the trip (sorry Andrew) and so Aria basically played on that/watched movies/and played with the toys I brought – she had a great flight and zero tears. Since we were down to 1 nap/day around 1-3 or so, I wasn’t worried about getting her to sleep which was a big relief.

Arrived in Orlando by 10:30 or so, rode the monorail (sorry, I constantly see so much “fake monorail” business but I LOVE LOVE this! It means Disney is just minutes away, finally, and I love being on that headed to baggage claim. Anyway, we grabbed the suitcase & car seat bag, attached them together, then I pushed the stroller with one hand and pulled the suitcases with the other (this is another reason I wanted to bring the City Select, it can be pushed easily with one hand whereas the Maclaren goes all over the place).

Only to find the BIGGEST possible line EVER at Hertz. YIKES. I asked if since I was a Hertz member I could go straight to the lot, but was told since I booked via Travelocity I could not. However, I decided it was worth the shot (setting a bad example for little miss) since the line literally looked like it would take 2 hours to get through. I could NOT believe it (unfortunately no pics). So I went up to the Hertz counter (maneuvering the elevator wasn’t easy, BTW!) and sort of played dumb and he let me check in there and I was heading to the car in 3 minutes – score! My good luck ran out though – I packed up the car, installed the car seat, headed out of the parking lot only to assume the AC must just take a while to cool the car off? But the gate attendant told me to turn around and go get a new car, if it hadn’t kicked on by then something must be wrong. So, turned around, grabbed Aria & my wallet and headed to customer service who then told me to go pick out a new car – not as easy now that everything is all unpacked in the rental (especially the car seat bag which had a ton of random items stuffed into it). He was very gracious though and went to grab a new car then helped me move everything over. Phew! Finally on our way out of the airport though it was about 12:30 by this time. I gave Aria another squeeze packet for lunch along with some fruit, but I was absolutely famished.

She fell asleep quickly after finishing that, and I made it to the condo within 25 minutes, then drove around aimlessly, ending up at a Taco Bell drive through and grabbed myself some lunch, drove over to the check in area at the resort (fully gated, btw, which made me feel secure) and parked the car and waited for Aria to wake up. I ate lunch, played on my phone, and wished Andrew was there so I could go check us in while she slept! It was tough that first day adjusting to doing everything myself.

Anyway, she did finally wake up around 2 and we went in, checked in, and headed to the room. I was a bit worried about how she would be since her nap was shorter & earlier than usual, and I had a ADR at Boatwrights for dinner. But more on that later – first we unpacked (I brought her into the room with some toys and was a bad mommy and ran to the car leaving her in the locked room for a minute…)
Our room was a 1-bedroom (all that was available, definitely going to try to get a 2BR though for future stays). It had a full kitchen, living room, and nice big dining room table, then a separate bedroom with a king sized bed, and a full bathroom with Jacuzzi tub & separate shower along with a laundry area.

then we needed to go get some groceries for the week. There were 4 breakfasts and 2 or 3 dinners I planned to eat in the room to save a little $$ (and to get her to actually EAT on vacation, which she hates to do) so I needed to grab some stuff for those meals, along with milk, wine for me (a necessity, of course!), and some snacky type of things because I didn’t bring enough for the whole week. Oh and water, of course. I only drink wine & water, Aria only drinks milk & water, so we were all set! Haha.

So the location of the resort was AMAZING, I found this out really HOW amazing the next day, but I noticed even when heading to the grocery store that it was close to everything but secluded from the main road (192) by a couple streets. The next day I would see that 1 left turn out of the back gate, which is where my room was, and about ¼ mile down the road, and Animal Kingdom lodge entrance was RIIGHT THERE if I turned left- turn right and I’m on my way to all the parks. It was really like being on site, since we drive when we stay onsite anyway!
Back to Friday – after grocery shopping, it was pool time as we still had some time to kill before dinner at POR! I wanted to check everything out as they had a big main pool area (with 3 pools) which is where you “check out” pool towels, and then there was a smaller pool with a zero-entry near our building. We headed to the main pool first to check that out, enjoyed that for a bit before heading off to the pool near us. I realized that one was WAY better, it had the zero entry area perfect for Aria as well as some shooting fountains that we both enjoyed playing in. I brought Aria’s pool float, and blew it up before heading over to the pools, but she didn’t really want to be in it much.

(of course, I didn't see the spot on the camera lens until we were through for the most part, so sorry, pics are terrible!)

Main pool area

Little miss was being SO naughty this day, running from pool to pool (so happy) but it was hard to keep up and I could't just let her do it on her own...you know, in case she fell into the pool or something, ugh!

Then at the pool near our building -

After some pool time, we cleaned up with a quick shower

and then headed out – we had a 5:20PM ADR at Boatwrights to get to!

Continued in next post!!

 

[Imagineer5]

Despite staying at POR in December 2012, we never made it to dinner here and there was a dessert with bananas foster sauce calling my name! I was able to park near the main entrance (after about a 10minute drive from the resort – not bad!) and we were seated in the center of the room under the wooden boat structure, almost immediately. We were both very hungry and this is one of the only days I ordered Aria a meal! I immediately ordered her the kids mac & cheese. Side note – I have NEVER made her Mac & Cheese, so I didn’t know how she’d like it, but it came with green beans which she loves. First, she colored (so glad she is past chewing on crayons instead of coloring with them!!)

Then the waiter, who was fantastic BTW!, brought out her meal – she had maybe 2 bites and didn’t want to touch it again. ARGH! The waiter brought out my dish – a vegetarian gumbo – which was REALLY delicious, and Aria liked mine better than hers so I put some of it on her plate. She loves spicy stuff! Oh, she also wouldn't touch corn bread, but I did have a couple pieces. Again, ok? IDK. I make mine with jalapenos so I guess I just was looking for some spice, too.

My gumbo - delicious!

I forgot a bib this evening. So, this bubble (Matilda Jane) has gone into Aria's save pile (if you read my response in the previous post, you'll get that! )

The waiter then showed how truly amazing he was – he brought her a balloon – this kept her occupied through most of the meal and she was SO happy this day at dinner. YAY! Smartie pants, he must have done this once or twice before!! I also brought the ipad and she did play on that a little bit too.

For dessert I had the bananas foster w/ pound cake (it was just okay, I am spoiled as Andrew makes a mean bananas foster!!) and Aria had some apples.

Then we headed off to explore a bit of the resort! Again, in December we only went in the pool ONCE and never went to the awesome playground, so I took aria to the playground to have a bit of fun.

No more pics, i put the camera down and joined her on the slides!!

We enjoyed climbing around that for a good 30 minutes, then headed back to the room. I forgot to mention earlier that they immediately brought a high chair and a crib after I checked in, and I had placed the crib in the master bedroom tucked into the closet, which butts up to the A/C unit, but I was trying to give us a little separation. Unfortunately, this led to our worst night of sleep of the trip – but getting ahead of myself! I put Aria to bed shortly after getting back to the room, and I stayed up with a glass of wine and played online and watched some TV. Headed into the room around 9 to go to sleep. The AC unit was SO loud though, and sharing a room with Aria just does NOT work, that neither of us slept well that night. Luckily I changed up the configuration for the remainder of the trip though and we got it all straightened out! So…more to come later on!!

 

[Dugette]

I recognize that Minnie Mouse Eiffel Tower shirt!

Your room looks super nice for such a good price! And the pool area looks great too. I'm glad you figured out a good sleep configuration for the other nights.

Ha, crayons. Yeah, we had a meal out a while back where Dug Baby desperately wanted to eat crayons and was just wailing when we wouldn't let her. However, when I picked her up from daycare yesterday, she was playing with crayons and I asked her daycare provider about them and she said that she hasn't tried to eat them there. Still not coloring with them - just taking them out and putting them back in the bucket, but better than eating them!

Playground looks fun!

That would be really different and challenging to do a trip without another adult. Good bonding time, but no "off-duty" time. Interested to read more.

 

[kmedina]

I do not think I would be brave enough to take the kids on a trip for a week solo. The rental car place sounded terrible. Glad you bypassed the line and someone helped you move over to a new car. Your deal still impresses me so much that I am thinking of staying offsite the trip after next. I will probably PM you for a reminder of where you found the details shortly before I leave. Even though you mention it here, my memory is fading.

Connor never eats either. I have such a hard time taking him places. Mac and cheese is usually a miss for him too. He does like more adult food as well. Crap and I joke that Connor will use Xander's adult plan and Xander will use Connor's kid plan in a few years. It is so hard to believe that Xander will be considered an adult in three years (he's 9 days from turning 7).

I completely forgot to take the kids to the Playground at Wilderness Lodge last trip. Glad you got to take Aria even if it was after your initial stay.

 

[AussieAngel]

What a fun start to your mother / daughter trip! Well except for the car problems, anyway. The place you stayed looked great, especially the pool area!

I love Aria's outfit for dinner! Cute little ruffles! It looks like the restaurant was empty except for you two!

Can't wait to read more about your adventures!

 

[Imagineer5]

Happy thanksgiving everyone!! We are driving to ct as I type so I figured I would pop in to answer some things.

I recognize that Minnie Mouse Eiffel Tower shirt! Your room looks super nice for such a good price! And the pool area looks great too. I'm glad you figured out a good sleep configuration for the other nights. Ha, crayons. Yeah, we had a meal out a while back where Dug Baby desperately wanted to eat crayons and was just wailing when we wouldn't let her. However, when I picked her up from daycare yesterday, she was playing with crayons and I asked her daycare provider about them and she said that she hasn't tried to eat them there. Still not coloring with them - just taking them out and putting them back in the bucket, but better than eating them! Playground looks fun! That would be really different and challenging to do a trip without another adult. Good bonding time, but no "off-duty" time. Interested to read more.

Yeah soon enough she will start coloring! Daycare was when we realized we should give her some with paper at home after hearing how much she loves to color there. Now it's a fun pasttime though she loves markers too.

The first day (and our Mk day coming up) were the hardest just adjusting but otherwise it was so fun I want to do it again!

I do not think I would be brave enough to take the kids on a trip for a week solo. The rental car place sounded terrible. Glad you bypassed the line and someone helped you move over to a new car. Your deal still impresses me so much that I am thinking of staying offsite the trip after next. I will probably PM you for a reminder of where you found the details shortly before I leave. Even though you mention it here, my memory is fading. Connor never eats either. I have such a hard time taking him places. Mac and cheese is usually a miss for him too. He does like more adult food as well. Crap and I joke that Connor will use Xander's adult plan and Xander will use Connor's kid plan in a few years. It is so hard to believe that Xander will be considered an adult in three years (he's 9 days from turning 7). I completely forgot to take the kids to the Playground at Wilderness Lodge last trip. Glad you got to take Aria even if it was after your initial stay.

That playground was at Por! Not sure where the Vwl one is though I'm sure we will find out in 2 weeks! Eek!

I'd imagine 2 will be way tougher than 1!

The condo was through a government / military thing though I will say I've never had to show id when checking in, but I always bring it of course. I work for the DoD. Staying off site has it's positives but many negatives - as much $$ as we save I still prefer to stay on site but it comes down to onsite once a year or adding additional visits but staying offsite for them. The space is the biggest draw. In October we will finally be checking out the 2br and 1br villas so I'm sure that will sway us to being onsite even more (we've only done studios so far).

What a fun start to your mother / daughter trip! Well except for the car problems, anyway. The place you stayed looked great, especially the pool area! I love Aria's outfit for dinner! Cute little ruffles! It looks like the restaurant was empty except for you two! Can't wait to read more about your adventures!

Yes the pool right next to our building ended up really great but overall the place was super convenient, clean and comfortable.

There was another level in the restaurant that was nearly full but on the main floor it was almost empty - another family was next to us with a fussy kid (nice for me, I didn't worry too much about aria being a little Whiny).

Can't wait to write more! Happy Thursday since I guess you don't celebrate thanksgiving lol

 

[khertz]

Great start! I'm really looking forward to seeing how a trip just you & Aria goes for the rest of the week. Although since you said you want to make it an annual thing, I'm guessing it went pretty well! I would think the worst day would be travel day, and that seemed to go okay except for the rental car debacle.

She is so cute that that balloon at dinner! What a happy girl!

 

[Imagineer5]

Great start! I'm really looking forward to seeing how a trip just you & Aria goes for the rest of the week. Although since you said you want to make it an annual thing, I'm guessing it went pretty well! I would think the worst day would be travel day, and that seemed to go okay except for the rental car debacle.

She is so cute that that balloon at dinner! What a happy girl!

Haha yes, it did! I sort of gave that away Yeah the first and only time I've seen them bring a balloon to the table - we'd go back to Boatwrights just for the wonderful service!