Back to the Wilderness

[stephm0188]

There's a great big beautiful tomorrow just a dream away!​

Hi! Welcome to my PTR. I'm Steph, wife to a guy we'll call My Husband We're both Galactic Heroes and wear our pins with pride. I'm also mom to a six year old son we'll call My Kid. He's not a Galactic Hero... yet. Some names may have been changed to protect the privacy of individuals.

Our upcoming trip will be our family's fifth trip to Walt Disney World! We didn't intend to become a family who travels to Disney so frequently, but we've been fortunate enough to be able to take advantage of a few great business opportunities that put us in Orlando. We figure we might as well make a vacation out of it while we're there. I feel so lucky that my kid gets the chance to experience the magic of Disney as often as he does.

(The Kid's first trip, circa 2009.)

Onto the Details! (more chapters coming soon!)
Our Upcoming Trip
Dining Plan or No Dining Plan? A Post in Which I Math
Shhh! It's a Secret Surprise!
One Week Left!

 

[stephm0188]

Our Upcoming Trip​

We are so very excited to return to Wilderness Lodge. We stayed there for a portion of our trip last year and loved the resort so much that we knew we had to return.

We'll be at Disney World for a fun-filled vacation from 12/6/14 through 12/11/13. We have a few things we'll do in Orlando after our Disney vacation as well.

Our ADRs:
All ADRs are for dinner unless otherwise noted.
Boma
Chef Mickey
Ohana
Biergarten
1900 Park Fare
Hollywood and Vine for breakfast
The Plaza for lunch
Whispering Canyon Cafe

We're excited to revisit a few old favorites as well as try a few new places. Dining at Disney is one of my favorite things about our vacations.

 

[stephm0188]

We're getting closer! All our Mickey Mail has arrived!

We have just a few more days until we leave. I need to start packing!

 

[ursalita]

Hi! I'm following along.

It's great that you're leaving so soon and you'll get to spend some Holiday time at WDW. I hope to do that someday. I LOVE the Wilderness Lodge. We stayed there all 3 of our previous trips. We're trying the Epcot area in April and staying at the YC. I will miss the Lodge. I heard the Christmas decorations there are stunning. Looking forward to hearing more about your trip.

 

[stephm0188]

Hi! I'm following along.

It's great that you're leaving so soon and you'll get to spend some Holiday time at WDW. I hope to do that someday. I LOVE the Wilderness Lodge. We stayed there all 3 of our previous trips. We're trying the Epcot area in April and staying at the YC. I will miss the Lodge. I heard the Christmas decorations there are stunning. Looking forward to hearing more about your trip.

I really do love WL. It feels a bit more intimate than the other resorts because of it's size and location. I'm very excited to return.

That said, I would love a chance to stay at YC. The pool looks amazing there. We've stayed at the Swan and really loved the location. Walking to Epcot through the International Gateway entrance each evening for a snack in World Showcase was a lot of fun. I think the Epcot resorts have a great location.

 

[stephm0188]

Dining Plan Or No Dining Plan? A Post in Which I Math.​

We always travel during Pop Warner week, and that just happens to be a week excluded from free dining offers. We're not afraid to spend money at Disney, but we do want to spend it well, so checking out the math beforehand just makes good sense. (cents? )

Our habits at Disney don't change much. We typically have one table service meal per day, and 1-2 quick service meals. If we don't have two QS meals, then we tend to fill up with snacks instead.

In the past, the math has never worked in our favor and we've always paid out of pocket for our meals. I was curious to see what it would have been this year.

Disney Dining Plan cost for two adults and one child for our 5 night stay: $696.55.
I figured we'd need to average $139.31 per day on meals as a family.

Then I looked at which table service meals we planned for our trip and came up with an average cost for our family of three.
Boma: $94.76
Ohana: $90.50
Chef Mickey's: $103.29
Biergarten: $93.97
Whispering Canyon Cafe: $93.93
Total for five TS meals: $476.45 That left me with $220.10 for five quick service meals and five snacks.

Now, I'll be honest, I don't include the cost of snacks or the resort mugs in my dining plan cost estimates. I don't really have a good reason to, I just don't. I wouldn't purchase the mugs, and the snacks aren't something I really plan each day. For budget purposes, I planned on spending $50 on snacks. That's $10 per day.

So after deducting that $50, that left me with $170.10 for the remaining five quick service meals. We're creatures of habit and like to revisit favorite QS places, so it wasn't too hard to plan this one. I planned to use our credits for lunch as it's a better value than breakfast.
Be Our Guest: $49.52
Flame Tree BBQ: $51.33
Pizza Planet: $41.63
La Cantina: $42.49
Pecos Bill's: $40.53
Total for Quick Service: $225.50

Recap of my Estimated Costs:
Table Service: $476.45
Quick Service: $225.50
Snacks: $50
Total: $751.95 That means the Dining Plan saves us $55.40, roughly. And since we'll get our refillable mugs, that's an additional money saving perk.

We did wind up purchasing the plan but only because it had the potential to save us money this trip. I'll be keeping my receipts and updating the final tally when I return! Obviously these are all estimates and might not be the way another family would calculate their costs, but it's worked for us in the past

 

[ursalita]

Yay! I love math. I've done a lot of math over the DDP. Can I ask, how did you determine the average cost of meals for your family? Did you consider the cost of what you would order if you had to pay OOP or if you were on the DDP?

 

[stephm0188]

Yay! I love math. I've done a lot of math over the DDP. Can I ask, how did you determine the average cost of meals for your family? Did you consider the cost of what you would order if you had to pay OOP or if you were on the DDP?

The cost of food hasn't been something we take into consideration when we go to Disney. We know it'll be expensive, so we plan for it so that we can go to the places that appeal to us and order the things we want to eat. So those things more or less remain the same whether we pay OOP or with DDP, if that makes sense. We would have chosen those ADRs either way. For QS, I calculated it based on the places I knew we'd go and the food we'd likely want to order. In some cases, it's the most expensive option, and in others it is the least expensive. I don't change what I want to eat in order to maximize DDP or in order to try to save money paying OOP.

Basically, we're going to enjoy Ohana and Boma and Chef Mickey's , ect ect, no matter what. We just want to find the cheapest way to do it. Sometimes it means paying OOP, but this time DDP worked in our favor.

 

[stephm0188]

SHHH! It's a secret surprise!​

We're going to Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party!​

We're surprising our six year old son with MVMCP. We're going on Dec 9. We really weren't going to go this time. Last year's party didn't feel so magical to us grownups, but apparently the little guy loved it. He's been hinting about going. He hasn't had many requests about our Disney vacation (Jedi Training, Chef Mickey's and 7DMT were the things he requested... and the party.)

He's such an awesome kid, so kind and easy. He's worked so hard in school and in therapy, so we said "Eh, why not? Let's do it."

So the tickets have been purchased and now I'm trying to think of a fun way to surprise him. I can't decide if we should tell him now or wait til we get to WDW.

 

[stephm0188]

One Week Left!​

I've been getting stuff ready to pack. I keep a box of Disney things in my closet to make it easier on me when it's time to vacation.

One of the things I sat down and worked on with my little person was checking off his pressed pennies and looking through his autograph book to see whose signatures he still needed to get.

I printed off a list of pressed pennies and their locations, then we went through our collection and checked them off the list. In the past we've just made pennies as we stumble upon the machines, but this time he's said that he wants to find a few specific characters and designs. The checklist will come in handy for that! I'm going to go through and highlight the pennies he wants to collect so it'll be easy to refer to the list when we're in the park.

He still has room in his autograph book from last year, so I'm happy that we won't need to purchase another. Anna, Elsa, Hiro, and Beymax are on his "must meet or else!" list.

Getting closer! I need to assemble my park bag soon as well.

 

[ursalita]

Oh, wow! I had no idea that you could get a list of all the pressed penny machines. I guess it shouldn't surprise me.

Since we're trading pins I don't think we'll try to collect the pennies but that is a terrific idea. I vividly remember our day at Hollywood Studios when the little one was having the ultimate meltdown and everyone was extremely frustrated. I came across one of those machines and just happened to have the pennies and some quarters. It saved the day, literally. Best $1.02 I ever spent.

So jealous that you are going in a week. Enjoy it!!

 

[stephm0188]

Our Final ADRs. (Hopefully!)

Saturday 12/6: Boma for dinner. This was my husband's request. He doesn't really make many requests about our dining options, so I said "Okay!" I'm curious to see what all the fuss over Zebra Domes is all about and hoping to have a chance to try them.

Sunday 12/7: Ohana for dinner. This will be our third time. It's bee something my husband looks forward to, and I enjoy the experience, too. The first time we went, the kid fell asleep at the table. Even though he didn't eat, we had to pay for him :\ Last year, we decided to make Ohana our date night and dropped him off at the Neverland Club. This year, the kid will be with us again and hopefully awake

Monday 12/8: Biergarten for dinner. I have to be honest, this is one that we've never really considered. We frequent a fantastic German place here at home, and we've never been interested in Disney's version.

But then they stopped serving Bavarian cheesecake at Sommerfest. Further investigation showed that I could get it at Biergarten. YES! And then I looked at the rest of the menu and wondered why we never considered it before. It looks fantastic! I'm excited for this one.

Tuesday 12/9: Whispering Canyon Cafe. This is one that kept getting crossed off our list because something else just seemed more appealing the last few times. I think the husband and kid will enjoy the antics, so I insisted on keeping it on our list this year.

Wednesday 12/10: Hollywood and Vine for breakfast. The kid requested this one. He wants to meet Doc McStuffins and eat his weight in Mickey waffles before Jedi Training, I guess!

Thursday 12/11: The Plaza for lunch, because milkshakes. Then we'll end the week with dinner at Chef Mickey's before departing for the second part of our Orlando adventure.

 

[stephm0188]

One week from now, we'll be arriving at Wilderness Lodge!!

 

[stephm0188]

Our Itinerary. Go, go, GO!​

I'll preface this by saying that we're always on the go at Disney. We like to be there for rope drop, we like to be there for closing, and we want to see as much, do as much, and eat as much as possible in between. Our itinerary might seem stressful to some, but it's similar to years past and is always a fun time for our family.

Sat 12/6: Arrive at MCO and board ME to head to Wilderness Lodge.
We'll check in and then head directly to Animal Kingdom. We're hoping to arrive at AK by noon.
We'll stay most of the day and then head to AKL for dinner at Boma.
We may or may not visit MK that night for EMH. We have a pretty early flight that morning and may not be up for it, but anything can happen at Disney.

Sun 12/7: We'll start our day off with rope drop at MK. We like to try to pack in as much as possible during those first couple hours before it gets really bus, and we can usually accomplish a lot! BOG FP for lunch. We have FP+ selections in the afternoon for Enchanted Tales with Belle, Big Thunder Mtn Railroad, and 7DMT. Heading to Ohana for dinner, and then hopping to HS so we can see the Osbourne Lights during EMH.

Mon 12/8: Starting again with MK for rope drop, and we'll focus on whatever we didn't focus on the day before. We'll probably only stay til noon-ish, then head back to the hotel to swim and take a break. (Hoping the pool is ready to go by then!) We'll hop to Epcot in the afternoon. Our first FP isn't til 4pm. We have Test Track, Spaceship Earth, and The Seas with Nemo. Dinner is at Biergarten, and we'll finish off the evening with Illuminations.

Tuesday 12/9: Heading back to Epcot for EMH in the morning. We're hoping to hit Test Track and Soarin before the lines are obscenely long. We're not planning to be here long and will head back to the hotel around noon to swim and relax. Then it's on to MVMCP for the evening! We're actually heading to MK around 3:30 to use our FP+ selections at 7DMT, BTMR, and maybe Buzz Lightyear, then heading to dinner at Whispering Canyon before heading back for the party. It's a lot of back and forth and I'm still tweaking things a bit to try to make it a bit more smooth. I do know that I want to avoid MK from 4pm-7pm, so we may wind up dropping our FP+ selections. Playing it by (mouse)ear.

Wed 12/10: Breakfast at Hollywood and Vine before HS rope drop. HS has limited hours for today and will only be open til 6. We'll stay all day, see Fantasmic, then head over to MK for Wishes and MSEP.

Thurs 12/11: Magic Kingdom day again. Might rope drop, might not. We'll probably rope drop. Spending the day at MK because it's our LAST DAY Lunch at the Plaze, then we're meeting Anna and Elsa, riding 7DMT and Peter Pan with FP+, and whatever else we want to do. Dinner at Chef Mickey's, then it'll be time to leave

Fri 12/12: Checking into another hotel off site and spending the day by the pool with the kid while the husband works. We'll wind up at his company Christmas party that evening

Sat 12/13: Taking the shuttle to Legoland! It's been on the kid's list of things to do, so we're going. He LOVES all things Lego, so it should be a fun way to end our trip.

Sun 12/14: Flying home and readjusting to life away from Disney.

 

[ursalita]

Your ADRs look great, can't wait to hear about your meals. You'll be doing a TR, right?

Your plans sound awesome! We've never park hopped but it is definitely something to consider. You can fit so much more in that way.

I hope you share your experience at Legoland. The boys want to go so maybe we can incorporate it into a future trip.

 

[stephm0188]

Your ADRs look great, can't wait to hear about your meals. You'll be doing a TR, right?

Your plans sound awesome! We've never park hopped but it is definitely something to consider. You can fit so much more in that way.

I hope you share your experience at Legoland. The boys want to go so maybe we can incorporate it into a future trip.

I will do a TR when we return. Gotta extend the vacation somehow, right?

I will for sure share our Legoland experience. It's been a little more difficult to find reports about it, so I'm eager to go and share when we return.

 

[stephm0188]

Our pins arrived today. The kid is pretty excited about trading pins this time.

I made lanyards for the two of us. He's thrilled about his Olaf lanyard and thinks that mine is beautiful. Don't look too closely. They were thrown together in a few minutes and the stitching is not nearly as perfect as I usually prefer.

 

[ursalita]

Love the lanyards, did you sew them? We ordered a 3-pack of lanyards from Amazon when we got the pins. We got red, blue and pink so it looks like I'll be trading too. I'm actually really looking forward to trading. I hope you guys have fun with it.

 

[stephm0188]

I did sew the lanyards! I wanted something a little more sturdy (and less expensive!) than the Disney lanyards, so I made me own. They were less than $5 to make both.

 

[stephm0188]

Packing My Park Bags​

Oh my goodness, we only have 4 days to go!​

​

I've been working on rounding up all the stuff I want to pack for our family, and I finished gathering all the things for our park bags. Yes, bags, plural. I promise I'm not *that* much of an overpacker!

I have two bags. The first is an old diaper bag that I discovered makes a great Disney bag. I keep it around for that very purpose. It clips nicely to our stroller and doesn't even need to be removed when we fold it up for the bus, which is fantastic. It also makes our stroller pretty easy to spot in those massive stroller parking lots.

"Wait, stroller? Your kid is six! Why are you taking a stroller?" More on that later.

So this bag stays on the stroller and holds the things that we might need (will probably need I should say, based on past experience.) It's pretty much never removed.

The other bag is my camera bag. I enjoy photography as a hobby and take my DSLR camera with me to Disney. It's heavy and can be a pain to carry around all day, but it's totally worth it. Nothing against Photopass photographers, but I prefer having a little more control over our vacation photos. Thus, the camera comes along. This bag obviously stays with me at all times.

So what goes in those bags?

I pack a one gallon Ziploc to hold my kid's stuff. We have a pressed penny checklist, a container for our quarters and pennies, his autograph book, a retractable Sharpie, and his pin trading lanyard. This baggie slips neatly into a pocket in my camera bag.

Isn't his autograph book adorable? I just love it. I'll have to take pictures of the inside pages to share.

Then there's the other "stuff."

The orange thing is a charger. It's fantastic for charging our phones on the go. It gets tucked into my camera bag.

The rest of the stuff stays in the stroller bag. They're not items I need to carry all day, and if they get taken... well, that sucks but it wouldn't be the end of the world.

Ponchos, because rain. They get tucked into a Ziploc, along with a couple extra Ziplocs. Baggies are handy to have for snacks, trading cards, phones on water rides, and all sorts of things.

Wet Ones wipes for the inevitable messes that happen. I feel like a bird always winds up pooping on the stroller. Then there are Mickey ice cream bars that end up all over my kid's face and hands. We wind up going through a pack of these every trip!

I like to purchase travel size sunscreen sprays at the end of the summer on clearance. We keep a big bottle in the hotel and apply it before we leave each day, but the small size is more lightweight and ideal for reapplication in the park. I also have a sunscreen stick for faces.

The glow sticks, necklaces, and bracelets were a 25 cent purchase after Halloween. They're a fun cheap thrill for nighttime events.

The little polka dot bag is a tiny first aid kit. Bandaids, anti-chafing gel, travel size packs of floss and toothpicks, and travel size Advil get stashed inside.

The polka dot bag is a wet bag. It's lined with PUL. It's useful for extra protection for things that we want to prevent from getting wet, or for stashing away items that are wet and we might not want to put in a bag with our dry stuff. They're great for stashing wet swimsuit in especially!

As for my camera gear, I try to travel light in the parks. I pack my DSLR camera with a Tamron 18-75mm lens. I have a Nikon 55-300mm lens that I like for Animal Kingdom, but I don't carry it around all week. It's additional weight I don't need, so it gets stashed in our room safe.

And that's it!