August Disney Trip and 21st Birthday Celebration!

[Lilo's Mom]

Me: Lilo’s Mom, Donna, age 46. I am an obsessive planner, and certifiably crazy for all things Disney. I have 11 Disney World trips, 5 Disneyland Trips and one Disney Cruise under my belt. FYI, Lilo is our 1 year old Lhasa Poo, she is my little fur baby. I would love to bring her on this trip, but she is too big to fit in a carrier under the seat on the plane, and at just a year old, she has way too much puppy energy to be good even if she did fit.

DH: Pin Trader Bob, age 46. Bob has been with me on 3 Disney Trips and 4 Disneyland Trips. The greatest husband a woman could have. Encourages me in all of my Disney Madness, and lets me plan things to my heart’s content. We have been married for three years, this is the second marriage for both of us, and between us we have three children…well, five if you count the dogs.

DD: Demon Llama, Kelly, age 21. Kels has been to Disney World 10 times and Disneyland twice, she is a film student at Columbia College Chicago in addition to working full time at a Movie Theatre. Kels loves to travel and lately has been going to conventions and film fests all over the country.

Here is a picture of Bob, Kels and I at Disneyland this February. We took Kels on a trip to celebrate her 21st Birthday.

DS: Stitch Fan, Allen, age 20. Allen has been to Animal Kingdom once, and once to the Magic Kingdom this past December. In order to take part in the future stay program, Al and I made a 36 hour trip to WDW. It was the first trip he and I took alone, and I was amazed at how well we got along. I actually was worried that he would think the Magic Kingdom was lame…to my surprise he loved it.

Here is a picture of Allen on our December Trip

So, Pin Trader Bob and I had offered each of our children a special present for their 21st birthdays. DD, Brittany, now 23, wanted a diamond tennis bracelet, and Demon Llama wanted a trip as did Stitch Fan. Demon Llama wanted to go to California, which we did this past February, and Stitch Fan wanted to originally go to Sea World Orlando to do a shark dive he saw on their website. Once he saw the “Undiscovered Disney” show on the travel channel that changed to an entire Disney Vacation….made me really happy, that is for sure! That is why Al and I made the trip to WDW for 36 hours to qualify for the Future Stay Program. The hook of free dining with the program meant that we would save lots of money, especially where Stitch Fan and Pin Trader Bob are concerned. My men are big eaters! So the dates are all set, and the reservations for two rooms at Pop Century are all made! We are headed to the world August 10th – August 18th. Initially there was a little bit of a backlash with Stitch Fan about Demon Llama coming along. The logic was he didn’t get to go on her trip, why should she go on his. Well…it’s like this, when we planned Demon Llama’s trip Stitch Fan had a job, and we told him he could come along with us, as long as he paid his airfare and park tickets….he chose not to do that. When Demon Llama asked to come on this trip we gave her the same deal, since she has a job, she is paying her own way. Not my fault she saves money and has already taken care of her share! We did tell Stitch Fan that this is his trip and he can decide what he wants to do. So far the only thing he has made his mind up on is the Seas Aqua Tour. Pretty much he is letting me plan one day in each park, and for the remaining days he can decide which parks he wants to go back to. Ohhhh, almost forgot, Stitch Fan and I share the same birthday, so I negotiated all of the dining planning, since technically this is my birthday trip too!

Here is a list of what I have so far (keep in mind that I have already swapped out two ressies already!)

August 10th – We are going to pay OOP, since California Grill we take up two TS
August 11th – Breakfast at Ohana
August 12th – Dinner at California Grill
August 13th – Dinner at Coral Reef
August 14th – Dinner at Boma
August 15th – Dinner at Sci-Fi (this had been 50’s Prime Time Café)
August 16th – Dinner Le Cellier
August 17th – Dinner at Kona Café (this had been Whispering Canyon Café)
August 18th – No Plans Yet Until We Get Our Airfare.

Other than that, I hit a sale at Kmart for mens’ shorts at 30% off, and since Stitch Fan has lost 65 pounds he is going to need shorts for this trip. I plan on keeping myself busy shopping for what everyone is going to need for the trip, designing a family t-shirt for us, a sign for our door and picking up room decorations for Stitch Fan’s birthday.

I will keep everyone updated with my planning!

 

[winkers]

Sounds like a great trip! Would you like to adopt another child??? I'd love a disney trip for my birthday!

 

[Lilo's Mom]

Sounds like a great trip! Would you like to adopt another child??? I'd love a disney trip for my birthday!

LOL, we have an "open door" policy at our house. In the three years that Pin Trader Bob and I have been married, we have had at least four of Brittany's friends live with us, one of Demon Llama's friends and one of my friends. We feel so blessed in our own lives that anyone who needs help getting back on their feet is welcome to join our family. Our outlook is the more the merrier! Plus the birthday trip thing gives us an excuse to go too!

 

[Lilo's Mom]

Ok...so I wake up this morning really happy because today is the day I pay off our August Trip! Yeah . So I get to work and try to make my payment online, only to find that the site is not working properly. No problem I will just give them a call! So I get on the phone with a really nice CM, who takes my payment, and asks me why we have been there so many times, and haven't joined the DVC. Funny you should ask, I tell him, we got the info in the mail, but would really like to see it in person. So the conversation goes on I tell him my goal is to one day work for Disney. He gives me the number for Central Casting (keep in mind I live in Chicago) and tells me to give them a call. I think what the heck, maybe there is a job that I could convince my hubby that we should move to Orlando for. As it turns out Disney is opening a DVC Store in Woodfield Mall! It's going to be called "Disney's Doorway to Dreams". So I submitted a resume and a cover letter, for a part time position they had listed....so I was pretty happy! Then my phone rang.....

DH, Pin Collector Bob, got let go at his job today! I guess since ComDisco and Sungard Recovery Systems merged 18 months ago they have suddenly decided that anyone who works in Disaster Recovery for 10 years or more was going to be dismissed. Pin Collector Bob has been there 14 years. They are giving him a severance package...still what a kick in the pants to get fired because of the length of time you have been there! Four other people in his department and numerous others in the facility were all let go today.

Then my phone rings and my brother-in-law, who works for the Cook County Accessor, was inspecting a property, fell down a flight of stairs, and was rushed to the hospital with a spinal cord injury. Within minutes my private line is ringing again, this time it is my brother...he manages a movie theatre in Evanston...he caught three guys video tapping "Disturbia", so he called the police and had them arrested. Natually as they were led out in cuffs they thearten him, so now I am worried about that

I can't wait to get home!!!

 

[Lilo's Mom]

Hello All!

Well the countdown to WDW is now 86 days away!

There have been several ups and downs so far along the way.

DH, Pin Trader Bob is still desperately sending out resumes and scouring the internet for a job .

DD, Demon Llama, Kelly has found out that her job at the movie theatre won't let her take eight days of vacation, only three. So she is debating flying down, staying with her friends in Orlando for three days and flying home.

DS, Stitch Fan, Allen, wants his DGF, Meghan to come along on the trip now. This would probably work out well, since Demon Llama’s portion of the trip is already paid for, it would just require a name change. Although I have heard that since we are taking part in the bounce back program and free dining, and Meghan's name was not on our original ressie, that we can't simply just swap out Meghan for Demon Llama. . Anybody know if this is true or not?

Stitch Fan would really like to have his DGF there for his 21st birthday, and if she can come that means I don't have to change any of my ADR's. Problem is their relationship is a long distance one, she lives in Joplin, MO and we are in Chicago. I don't think she is too keen on flying out on her own, so that means she would have to fork over airfare from Oklahoma City to Chicago, then Chicago to Orlando. So I am waiting to see how that will pan out.

Being the OCD Disser that I am, I have an alternate plan! Of course this still would involve a name change on the resort ressie, but would work just as well. My DSD, Brittany, had met her old DBF, Anthony online, after several visits between Bradenton, Florida and Chicago, the two decided they couldn't be apart...so Pin Trader Bob's ex wife let Anthony move in with her so the two kids could go to High School together. After they graduated from High School the kids moved in with us, and started to make plans to get married. Pin Trader Bob and I loved Anthony and considered him family, so when we got married in 2004, we made him part of our wedding party. Here is a picture of Brittany and Anthony at the wedding.

Without getting into the Soap Opera of the situation, Brittany dumped Anthony and is getting married to someone else next week. Pin Trader Bob, Stitch Fan, Demon Llama, and I are not happy with the way things have turned out. We all miss Anthony....so, Pin Trader Bob and I have told Stitch Fan, that if Meghan can't make it, he should invite Anthony! So for the moment we have two different people that could potentially fill Demon Llama’s vacant spot!

So I ended up having to tweak the ADR a little, just in case Meghan is the one coming along.

August 10th – We are going to pay OOP, since California Grill we take up two TS
August 11th – Breakfast at Ohana - OOP
August 11th - Dinner Narcoossee (Pin Trader Bob & I)
August 11th - Dinner with Cinderella at Grand Floridian Cafe - OOP (Stitch Fan & Meghan)
August 12th – Dinner at California Grill
August 13th – Dinner at Coral Reef
August 14th – Dinner at Boma
August 15th – Dinner at Sci-Fi (this had been 50’s Prime Time Café)
August 16th – Dinner Le Cellier
August 17th – Dinner at Kona Café (this had been Whispering Canyon Café)
August 18th – No Plans Yet, we may just wing this day....although I would like to do Le Cellier twice!

I have an entire new "vacation" wardrobe bought and packed...yes I did say packed, for Stitch Fan. I don't want him ruining his "Disney Clothes" before we even get there! I have several new outfits bought and put away for Pin Trader Bob, I trust him not to ruin his clothes before the vacation. I have located my favorite little fan to take along to the world and have purchased three of them so everyone will have their own.

I highly recommend this, it is small, holds water, and can clip on to your belt, backpack or any other bag you are carrying.

I am still haven't decided which shirt designs I like for us, and I am looking at a digital camera for Stitch Fan. If I get him his own, he won't have to use mine! So to wrap up for today, I will be happier when I know who is actually going with us, and happier yet if Pin Trader Bob get's a new job before we go...but all in all things are moving along!

 

[fizz13]

Hi Donna,
Just found your report. My my, things certainly happen in your family don't they? Did you ever hear back about the DVC job? You have some fantastic ADRs there, well done with all your planning, although i would imagine you must be a certified pro by now
great report and will look forward to more over the next couple of months, especially who gets to go on the trip with you
Good luck for DHs job hunt

 

[Lilo's Mom]

Hi Donna,
Just found your report. My my, things certainly happen in your family don't they? Did you ever hear back about the DVC job? You have some fantastic ADRs there, well done with all your planning, although i would imagine you must be a certified pro by now
great report and will look forward to more over the next couple of months, especially who gets to go on the trip with you
Good luck for DHs job hunt

Hi Fizz! I have always said that into every life a little drama must fall, but it seems in my life it pours I haven't heard anything yet about the DVC job, from my understanding they are not opening here until late summer. Perhaps it is still to early to know anything yet.

I am pretty happy with my ADR's. Especially since Boma is going to be such a big leap for Pin Trader Bob. My DH thinks dinner should be meat, and mashed potatos, the only acceptable veggie is corn. When DS, Stitch Fan and I stayed at Pop for our little 36 hour visit so we would qualify for free dining I made him go to Boma for dinner. Stitch Fan loved it, especially since he could have prime rib, I figure with him in my corner, hopefully Pin Trader Bob will like it as well.

Hopefully there will be some kind of resolution as to who is coming with us next week. Meghan is flying in on Wednesday to go with Stitch Fan to the wedding. When she gets here we can talk about it and see if she will be able to go.

Thanks for reading and the well wishes on DH's job hunt!

 

[Lilo's Mom]

We are now down to 72 days before our vacation. I have started to fill a box to ship directly to Pop Century. Basically I am putting in things that I don't want to take up room in my suitcase. So far I have a couple of small boxes of laundry soap, some snack bars (I checked they expire in March of 08) and some first aid items. Last year when Pin Trader Bob and I stayed at POR Riverside we ended up having to buy moleskin, and extra batteries, so I am going to be sure to get them in the box as well. The money I am going to give to the Mouse House is going to be for fun things this time!

Last week we had the wedding for DSD, Brittany , here is a picture of my DFIL, DMIL, Brittany, Pin Trader Bob and Stitch Fan.

And one of the new Mr. & Mrs. Jose Tollinchi

Stitch Fan's DGF, Meghan came in for the wedding and it looks like she will be joining us for vacation! Stitch Fan is very happy. I once again tweaked the ADRs, for hopefully the last time.

August 10th – We are going to pay OOP, since California Grill we take up two TS
August 11th – Breakfast at Ohana - OOP
August 11th - Dinner Narcoossee (Pin Trader Bob & I)
August 11th - Dinner with Cinderella at Grand Floridian Cafe - OOP (Stitch Fan & Meghan)
August 12th – Dinner at California Grill
August 13th – Dinner at Coral Reef
August 14th – Dinner at Boma
August 15th – Lunch at Sci-Fi
August 15th - Dinner at Yachtsman Steakhouse
August 16th – Dinner Le Cellier
August 17th – Dinner at Kona Café
August 18th – Leaving at 3pm, no set dining plans.

From suggestions here on Dis, I tried to get into Whispering Canyon, but it would have required giving up Le Cellier and trying to reschedule that. So I decided to go with Yachtsman instead. The CM that was helping me with my ADRs suggested that we do Ohana for dinner, which Pin Trader Bob and I along with our Orlando Family did last year. I got sick in the middle of dinner and had to leave. Because I wasn't there nobody left at the table knew that we should have been served potatoes, or that they should have gotten desert. The waitress that we had wasn't really the best, I think they said they only saw her twice. Plus according to Pin Trader Bob, once you have been to Fogo De Chao, there is no other "meat on a stick" that can compare. So once again all of the dining plans are set. Now I am trying to find out from a few of our dining locations if anyone can make a make a red velvet birthday cake. I figure since Stitch Fan and I share the same birthday, that we should each get our own birthday cake once while we are there. My entire life my birthday cake has been a red velvet cake, so I will except no substitutions! When I was a little girl my grandmother baked one for me, then my mother, now my DBF, Jeanne, who is more like a sister to me, has been the official cake baker. Jeanne and I have been friends since I was 3 and she was 4. For the record we have been friends 43 years...so that is family in my book. I often joke with my brother that I have know Jeanne longer than I have know him. Greg was only one month old when Jeanne and I met, and let's face it he didn't talk or do anything interesting until he was around two.

My next thing I have to work on is getting a ressie for the Seas Aqua Tour. I would love to the the illumantions cruise...but since Pin Trader Bob is still in search of the perfect job, I will have to put that off until a future vacation!

Also just want to share a few pictures of my little Lilo, she just went on her first trip to the park!

She was very excited at first, and wanted to visit everybody...then she saw some really big dogs and decided it was best to just watch the action from the safety of a tree side seat.

Thanks for reading!

 

[Lilo's Mom]

We got Meghan's airfare, so she is on the same flights we are. Unfortuneatly the AirTran sale was over, so her fare was $70 more than ours. I even was able to pre-reserve our seats, so that is one less thing to worry about. The last couple of flights to Orlando have been on Southwest. I love their service, I hate the scramble for seats together. I paid $5 extra per person to get an assigned seat on AirTran, I would gladly do that on Southwest. Anything would be better than the pushing and shoving. Sorry for the mini rant!

Anyway here is picture of StitchFan and Meghan....I am working on a clever Disney name for her...but since it is Friday, and I am at work, the only thing my over taxed brain can come up with is MeghanBell, since she is a Tink fan. I know it's lame, I will have to work on that! I am excited that she is coming with us, she is such a cutie, and it makes StitchFan really happy, and since it's his birthday trip, having Meghan along takes things up a notch!

 

[prncssmel]

Love your adorable dog!

Too bad your daughter can't go, but it looks like you guys are in for a fantatic time!

 

[Lilo's Mom]

Love your adorable dog!

Too bad your daughter can't go, but it looks like you guys are in for a fantatic time!

Hi

Sorry I didn't reply sooner. I have an alert set to this thread and for some reason it is the only thread that doesn't notify me when there is a post!

Thanks Mel! Lilo is a cutie, although I am very biased about that!

I am sorry that Kelly won't be able to make it for this trip...but that has given us an excuse to try and come up with something in the fall. Like I need someone to twist my arm to go to Disney

Anyway, thanks for reading!

 

[Lilo's Mom]

So Friday was DD, Kelly, aka Demon Lhama's birthday. Kelly had been driving home the fact that this was her "Golden Birthday" for the last two months. Since Kelly will not be joining us on vacation, we decided to let her plan an entire day celebration for her birthday. We actually made "All About Kelly Day" on Saturday, the day after her birthday so she could spend the day of her birthday with her Dad and Grandma. On the surface this may not seem to have much to do with Disney Trip Planning, but it does as the story unfolds. I promise!

We started All About Kelly Day, by shopping...which led us to the BIG SALE at the Disney Store! I finally got some stuff for me, after months of buying stuff for everyone else. That was followed by picking up Pin Trader Bob, and Stitch Fan from home and going to see 1408 at the movie theatre. BTW, I liked the movie, but it really needed a better ending.

Moving along....Kelly was given the choice of where she wanted to eat dinner. After much thought, she came up with Wolfgang Puck Grand Cafe in Evanston. Good choice Kelly! This would give me the perfect opportunity to test out food that is a little more upscale than Stitch Fan is used to eating. I have no problems with Pin Trader Bob eating at Disney, he pretty much goes with the flow as along as he can get beef. Plus I LOVE Wolfgang Puck at DTD

Side story: Way back in 2002, Kelly's HS Marching Band was invited to march down Main Street on Easter Sunday. Pin Trader Bob and I volunteered to chaperone the band, basically so we could get an excuse to go to Disney. Thankfully as it turned out we were only give chaperoning assignments three of the 8 days of the trip, and we didn’t have to ride on the bus for the trip. I love my daughter and her friends, but 20 hours on a bus is not my idea of a good time…so we flew down and rented a car.

So one of my MUST Do’s on that trip was a trip to Wolfgang Puck. I didn’t care if it was Wolfgang Puck Express, Café Express or Grand Café, I just wanted butternut squash soup! So we picked a day when the kids were allowed to go off in small groups without any chaperones and we headed to DTD. DTD was packed that day! We shopped a little, watched a movie and decided to get our food to take back to the hotel. Pin Trader Bob got chicken strips and I got my soup and we headed back to our car. Once inside the car, I put his bag of chicken strips in the backseat and then balanced my soup on the dash board. Silly me! Pin Trader Bob had no idea that I had done this and started to back up the car, the soup slid off the dashboard, the lid fell off and scalding hot soup went all over my lap, legs and feet. So what do I do? I jumped out of the car, in the EXTREMELY crowded parking lot, kicked off my shoes and pulled off my pants. So now I am dancing around the Downtown Disney Parking lot with basically just my shirt on. Pin Trader Bob jumps out of the car yelling “What Happened?!” as people in the lot going to and from their cars are pointing at me, laughing and whistling. I was mortified! This was about six months before my gastric bypass surgery, so I am sure the sight of a 319 pound partially unclothed woman jumping up in down was not a pleasant one, although I must say all the laughing did hurt. Here are a few pictures for reference:

The first pic is from 2002, the second 2006...160 pounds difference between the two pictures!

Pin Trader Bob quickly wrapped a towel around me and got me in the backseat of the car, since the front passenger seat had butternut squash soup pretty much everywhere. I was in pain and crying from humiliation and burnt legs…but yet I still wanted the soup. Wanting the soup maybe had a little to do with my size, but probably had more to do with the fact that I really LOVE that soup!


So back to our story. We get to Wolfgang Puck and were seated within five minutes. Stitch Fan takes one look at the menu and tells us that there is nothing he wants to eat, it is all crap. Ok, now, things are not looking good for our ADRs, here is a recap:
August 10th – We are going to pay OOP, since California Grill we take up two TS
August 11th – Breakfast at Ohana - OOP
August 11th - Dinner Narcoossee (Pin Trader Bob & I)
August 11th - Dinner with Cinderella at Grand Floridian Cafe - OOP (Stitch Fan & Meghan)
August 12th – Dinner at California Grill
August 13th – Dinner at Coral Reef
August 14th – Dinner at Boma
August 15th – Lunch at Sci-Fi - OOP
August 15th - Dinner at Yachtsman or Whispering Canyon (we have two ressies depending on how things go that day)
August 16th – Dinner Le Cellier
August 17th – Dinner at Kona Café
August 18th - No Plans - YET!

Ok, so now I am in a panic about California Grill, Coral Reef, Le Cellier and Kona Cafe. Seems the issue with Stitch Fan is icky cheese, strange mayonnaise and weird sauces. Pin Trader Bob told Stitch Fan he would handle it and when the waitress came he ordered him the Puck Burger with just the bread, meat, and white cheddar cheese...therefore eliminating any icky cheese (goat cheese) strange mayonnaise and weird sauce. The fries turned out to be shoestring fries and thankfully that was just fine with Stitch Fan. So lesson learned is to try and get things as plain as possible if we can at each place we eat. If memory serves me correctly from previous Disney trips sauce can always be put on the side, cheese can be taken off or added and pretty much every place will try to accomodate you as best as they can. Still I was happy, I got my soup and didn't end up with it in my lap! So it was a really good day.

Thanks for reading!

 

[Lilo's Mom]

To bring everyone up to speed.....I got an email from AirTran letting me know that there would be a change in our return flight from Orlando to Chicago. The flight was supposed to have a 20 minute stop in Atlanta, than on to Chicago. Apparently now that flight has a 4 hour and 45 minute layover now. So the email said that if that wasn't acceptable to call AirTran. So I gave them a call, and they basically asked how could they make me happy. I originally booked during an internet sale where there were not a lot of options for flight times. In fact our flight out of Chicago, only had one direct flight coming home and it was booked. So I wasn’t too hopeful when I asked if we could be on a direct flight going home. AirTran ended up surprising me be giving us a direct early evening flight home on the August 19th…one day later than we had planned on coming home. It gets even better, the ticket agent looked at our flight going down , which leaves Chicago at 3:50 pm, and told me that she couldn't change that portion of the reservation without charging me a fee...however there are two other direct flights that are leaving earlier that day that are currently only 30% full. She suggested that I call AirTran the night before we leave and see if either one of the flights would have availability for the four of us. If they do, we can switch at that time without paying a fee. So possibly more Disney time there too!

So another day means another ADR. When I told Pin Trader Bob that he needed to pick another place, he insisted on Le Cellier again. Ok, twist my arm! We both love Le Cellier, so I don't mind doing it again. So here are the ADR's yet again

August 10th – We are going to pay OOP, since California Grill we take up two TS
August 11th – Breakfast at Ohana - OOP
August 11th - Dinner Narcoossee (Pin Trader Bob & I)
August 11th - Dinner with Cinderella at Grand Floridian Cafe - OOP (Stitch Fan & Meghan)
August 12th – Dinner at California Grill
August 13th – Dinner at Coral Reef
August 14th – Dinner at Boma
August 15th – Lunch at Sci-Fi
August 15th - Dinner at Yachtsman Steakhouse
August 16th – Dinner Le Cellier
August 17th – Dinner at Kona Café
August 18th – Lunch at Le Cellier
August 19th - No Plans yet

I am toying with throwing in the After Tea at GF. I don't know Meghan Bell well enough to know if she would be comfortable going with just me, and Pin Trader Bob said he would go if I insisted. I am working on him about it.

I would elaborate on all the special surprises I have in store for everyone, but I have encouraged Pin Trader Bob, Stitch Fan and Meghan Bell to visit the DisBoards....so I don't want to run the chance of them reading what is in store for them. Needless to say the Stitch Fan is going to LOVE his birthday celebration....and he in turn is going to give Meghan a VERY SPECIAL gift during the trip, and I am REALLY looking forward to that. I did get the reservation today for Stitch Fan and Pin Trader Bob to do the Aqua Seas Tour, that they did know about, so it is ok to mention it here. .

I always get to the point that once a vacation is close I start to worry about leaving Lilo alone. She is truly my little baby, and although Kels will be home with her, and so will my brother, I still have this fear that she will somehow get out of the yard, or someone will steal her. I just know I will be calling home everyday to check up on her. But with a cute little face like this

Can you blame me? Can you tell that she loves to have her picture taken? She sees the camera and practially strikes a pose!

Thanks for reading, I promise to be more entertaining with my Trip Report!