But, Where Are We Going? -wendy

[amyhughes]

Hello!

Well, for starters I should probably tell you a bit about our family. We are from Indiana. I am a seasoned Disney traveller, having worked there just out of college, and my trips have tallied now in the 20s. I lost count somewhere around the time I started to work there. To say it was an experience in growing up is an understatement. The lessons I learned in those few months have shaped me in ways that my college education as a whole never did. I took some years off between working there and returning, as I started a family and wanted to wait a few years. Not for their sake, but for mine!

My husband sulley had only been to Disney one time in his youth, unlike my saturation. I finally got him to go back with me last year, and now HE IS HOOKED. He doesn't love Disney with the same fervor as myself, but had a great vacation last year. I believe I surprised him. As we were leaving the parks last year all he could talk about was "Next time we'll have to stay here, and we should definitely eat there..."

My kids. ..They are Disney Geeks in Training. My eldest has the verbiage from Haunted Mansion memorized. Along with Grim Grinning Ghosts. In fact he gets in the car and asks for his "Disney music" everyday. Anytime I have this site open and he catches a glimpse of a castle, a character, or the mouse he immediately shouts "DISNEY WORLD!". He also is an aspiring Imagineer. He gets out his blocks and constructs Disney rides while at home, complete with story.

DS#2 is also following in his older brother's footsteps. But, his passion is ANIMALS. We barely got out of Animal Kingdom last year without being accused of child abuse. Just kidding! But, he was screaming and crying because we had to go home. The stares we got. All we heard on the drive back to the rental was "Mommy, monkey, Mommy Nemo, Mommy, Elephant!!! MOMMMY!" Also he LOVES Pixar. Anything and EVERYTHING Pixar has done he will sit and watch without moving. Another thing I find funny, he likes more the classic Disney movies than the newer ones.

Okay here is the cast:

Me-Amy-
My Husband-
DS #1-
DS #2-

Here is our itenerary:

Arrive at BWV on Sunday, September 28th. Hopefully get in our room before 3! For the most part that day, relax at the pool and hotel. Hit the Magic Kingdom that evening after 4. This is going to be a VERY relaxing day/evening. If we get to see half of what I want I would be surprised. We will have driven 14 hours between my DH and I the day before. So, I'm not pushing it!

Monday September 29th
Go to EPCOT in the AM. Hang around Future World and hit: Spaceship Earth; Soarin; The Seas w/ Nemo (if we can get DS#2 out of there without injury to ourselves we'll be good!); Journey Into Imagination; Test Track; Universe of Energy. Then we can take a walk over to a few attractions in World Showcase, and then head back to the resort for a swim and nap. We will return to EPCOT that evening for some Food and Wine Festival grub and KidCot Funstops for the kids (this is when I miss Tapestry of Dreams!)
Later in the evening I have a surprise for my family. I am booking a private Illumination's Cruise! Shhhh... My husband and children didn't get to see Illluminations on our last vacation. Best to spoil them the first time!

Tuesday September 30th
favorite park, Animal Kingdom will be on the docket today. I normally like to leave the parks and return later in the evening. However with the way Animal Kingdom has to work for the comfort of the animals, we will stay from earlier in the morning to late afternoon and relax at the resort all evening. WE HAVE TO SEE NEMO THIS TIME! We stood outside last year for 45 minutes with a 2 year old and 4 year old. NOT DOING THAT AGAIN! And I also need to ride Everest, again, something we wanted to do but was too packed for our children's tolerance, and they were OUT of FPs.

Wednesday October 1st
Disney's Hollywood Studios. I have a feeling this is going to be my favorite park after this trip. He has just started to get into 1.) Star Wars, and number #2) The Muppets. I also have in our house a PIXAR nut and both of them watch Playhouse Disney. This will be a BIG day again. But, I have a feeling we can get most of this park done early on in the day. We have a Fantasmic Dinner package for that evening at 4:30 at the Brown Derby. So, we'll eat and catch up on what we missed from earlier.

Thursday October 2nd
Magic Kingdom in earnest this time! We have an 8:05 at Crystal Palace so we can have Main Street basically to ourselves. Now, if we can get DH out of bed and to the Crystal Palace in enough time it will be a miracle. I have already warned him, "You aren't at the bus by 7:00, no mercy. Call me when you get to the park." Pirate Code on vacation, those that fall behind, get left behind! I am hoping that if we make it an early night after Fantasmic we can get rolling especially if we take showers the night before!
At Magic Kingdom there are many things we didn't get a chance to see last time. I have compiled a list believe it or not of NEED TO DO, WOULD LIKE TO DO, CAN SKIP. This has helped tremendously. There are some things that my kids are simply too young for at this point. Country Bears probably won't hold their attention. Splash Mountain we have one that doesn't hit the height requirement, and we won't babyswap. etc.

Friday Oct. 3
We will be checking out of our BWV and into a Studio at BWI for Friday. Reason why? Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party! I know it's gonna be packed with locals since it falls on a Friday, but I have wanted to see this for YEARS. I think my kids will get a kick out of it as well. We are working on costumes for them. I am begging my oldest to go as Woody, and my youngest to go as Buzz (they are the perfect body types and heights!) But, one wants to be Jack Sparrow again this year, and the other has NO INTEREST in dressing up! Sigh, ah well. Not the end of the world. I am packing my 4 year olds costume just in case. I know he will see all the other kids dressed up and want it!

Saturday Oct.4
We LEAVE WDW Resort and head north to St. Augustine Beach for an evening. Play on the beach and sleep. Wake up in the AM and play some more in the sand, then start the trek home.

So that is it in a nut shell. There are many other details I have to develop a bit more, (i.e. gift baskets, clothes, my new DONNER BAG! Thanks for the info Kevin!) So this Trip Report will be more informative as I develop these areas!

Thanks For Reading!

 

[OhMari]

Thanks for posting your itinerary. I am going to move you to our pre-trip boards. It is a great way to meet other people going at the same time.

 

[CelticBelle]

ok...youve caught my attention. ill be watching. I cant wait for your trip report when this is all done. how old are your kids?

 

[amyhughes]

Well like life, our Disney plans have changed. But only minutely. I didn't look at the Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party schedule closely. Guess what is on our first night, and also the slated day I have for Magic Kingdom? Yup, MNSSHP! So we are making plans to do it the first night, since we would be lounging at the resort during the day and at MK anyhow. What we pay in admission for the hard ticket event here we can swallow in that we won't need a hotel room now for Friday! But, this also means that the day I had slated for Magic Kingdom now will not work. I am not purchasing Park Hoppers for this vacation, as we didn't use this feature last year, and I am aiming to trim the fat, so to speak, from our budget.

So, to review: Sunday September 28th is MNSSHP (Still working out a costume plan ); Move Magic Kingdom to Wednesday October 1, and DHS to October 2. This will also mean that Friday, since we won't be guests we are going to stay at the parks until 1 p.m. and then head up the Gulf Coast that afternoon. I think on that Friday we are going to attempt Magic Kingdom as a last impression.

I also made my half payment to my DVC owner today. So that is done! The other payment isn't due until July 31, so we have a bit to prepare.

I did some shopping recently on Disney Dining Plan, and honestly have decided against it. If my kids were a bit older and we ATE that much I could see it. But, those table services are going to take a chunk out of our day. Not to mention we would spend more for Disney Dining Plan than if I bought the meals outright w/ gratuity. Throw in a Disney Dining Experience Card and we will save even more.

Here were my tallies:
Disney Dining Plan w/o Gratuity: $576 ( I guess I would estimate an additional $100 for gratuity if we are looking at 5 sit down meals at a $20 tip per meal) Grand Total: $676
Out of Pocket w/ Gratuity: $518.

The difference here is staggering. Yes, we lose the convenience factor of our meals being "paid for in advance", but if I tie my credit card on to my room key I see this as no different. Also from what I understand from other travellers with young children the DDP can be a further hassle because of dropping what you are doing to make your ressie on time with kids. We have 3 Table Service ADRs to make sure we are at, and they are all upon morning or evening entry to the parks. I hope that will work in our schedules!

Some other points that went into our decision:

We will be staying in a Villa with a kitchen. Peanut Butter and Jelly sandwiches and chips are really up my kids alley still, as well as DH. We can also drive to Publix and get some lunch meat and smaller dishes to eat in our room. DH has a set cereal he always eats for breakfast and the kids love oatmeal. I plan on making some things in our room throughout our trip.

We bring our own snacks for the kids into the parks. They are grazers by nature: Goldfishies, fruit snacks, bagged apple slices, etc. I asked a Disney Security Officer last time if this was ok for them, and he said it was fine and wished he could have some! Of course we will still buy our share of snacks in the parks but, I seriously doubt it will be over $100 worth.

The money we save can go towards our Private Cruise!!!

Luckily when I called Disney to switch our ressies around there was no issue, and we actually got a better time slot for all!

All for now. I am sure I will be able to post something else by next week. I am still coming up with those Halloween costumes!

 

[CelticBelle]

wow! Im glad everything seems to be working out well for you. The ressies and the budgeting of no dining plans seems like it worked out perfectly. Not without a lot of work and planning im assuming.

 

[amyhughes]

Thanks for reading and responding Belle! When I hang up my work hat, this is what I do. I sample Tour Guide Mike, WDWInfo, and Allears. Make Excel spreadsheets for our ADRs, and day plans. And of course listen to the Podcast religiously.

I am trying not to overplan our days too much, but have a few different touring plans for each park so that I know which attractions we need to get a fast pass for before we queue for another, etc.

Now I am also working on Gift Baskets for the boys!

 

[CelticBelle]

Sounds like fun to me! Im actually listening to the new podcast right now.

 

[macheath]

Hi, Amy!
Saw your PTR link and thought I would come over and sub! It sounds like you are off to a good start.

You guys are going to be there a month after us too bad! I would have love to run into you there!

I am jealous that you are going to MNSSHP... We are going to miss all the parties this year! No P&P party, No MNSSHP... That's what I get for going when the code was good...

I'm trying to decide whether to do my own Pre-trip Report. I'll keep reading yours and maybe it will give me the courage to start my own!

 

[amyhughes]

Well, Hello All Again!

Sorry for the delay in posting, but life is life... The boys underwent a small procedure. Purely outpatient, but they had tubes put in their ears and adenoids removed. Both boys are doing very well now, and I think are becoming more focused in their daily lives which is the best outcome we could have seen!

Also, our youngest has been diagnosed with sensory processing disorder and severe speech delay by the fine folks in our local school system. We have been weighing our options for therapy, advanced curriculum schools, etc. We have it worked out, but it has taken the breath out of me for a bit!

I also have gone back to working for our family business full time versus the web job I had. All this shifting and no time to write, what's a girl to do?

I had to tell DH about the private Illuminations cruise. I know, I know. I should have kept that under my hat, but we were out on a date night and we were discussing the upcoming trip and the temptation was just TOO MUCH! So, DH is in on it now. But we are making it a surprise for the kids.

On to GIFT BASKETS!

My eldest, loves Pirates, Pixar, Muppets, well really anything Disney related. So this makes this task very easy. I was thinking a Pirate themed gift basket for him, since they seem fairly prevalent throughout the parks. I found these Disney Racer cars on eBay that are done in different "characters". They have a POTC set! So that's going in there.

Here's What Else I am Lining Up:
A pirate Mickey plush as well.
Pirate Fruit Snacks.
A personalized (off Mommy's Computer!) autograph book
A Pirate Drink Bottle for the parks.
Pirate SunGlasses, to be cool in the sun.

For my youngest he ADORES Pixar. More than anything else in those parks, if he sees Nemo, Sulley, Buzz, Woody, Remy, Lightening McQueen wellll....it's gonna be over folks. So this is what I have on the list for him:

Buzz & Woody Racers (they have Monsters Inc. as well so we'll have to see)
Nemo Autograph Book
Remy Drink Bottle
Lightening McQueen Sunglasses
Nemo Plush
Pixar Fruit Snacks

Most of this stuff I have found on eBay, but I am making the covers for their autograph books on my Mac and know a way to place them on to a spiral bound. We are also going to get the click Sharpies so the characters have an easier time signing.

I just recently got my touring bag for our trip and I LOVE IT! IT's the Overland Donner bag, and I cannot wait to test drive this puppy in the parks! It has pockets for just about everything I could ever want or need, plus it hangs down at my side versus my back so my shoulder blades don't get sweaty. I also hate being bumped into with backpacks, and try really hard not to do this while touring. This cleans that problem up very quickly!

DH is starting to get excited about the upcoming trip. It has switched from "IF" we go to Disney to "WHEN" we go to Disney. I think he looks forward to that week more so sometimes than I do. He works so much, I know I do to, but being in a family business sometimes you eat sleep and breathe work (not in a horribly obsessive way, it's just that's your life). So I think a week of pure imagination will be good for the guy. He is also looking forward to staying at the BWV! I showed him pictures of our room and he was really impressed. I only got the standard view, but a girl can hope for a spontaneous upgrade!

It's not close enough for me yet to get out the poster board and start doing the tick off calendar, sigh. That made last year so cool. It was my first trip with kids, nevermind my OWN kids. To see their anticipation, their excitement, the chatter about what they would see and do, ahhhhhh I just reveled in it! This year, both boys have some knowledge about the "Lay of the Land", so we have been getting special requests... "I want to go on Pirates of the Caribbean first." "Haunted Mansion, first Mommy." "Sigh...No no no, Pirates." Daddy usually silences them both and says, "We're going on Peter Pan first cause I say so!"

All for now, night!

 

[macheath]

Hi, Amy!

Good to see you on and thanks for the update.

I had seen your post on the podcast board about the boys surgery. I'm glad they are both doing better. Sounds like you are quite the busy mama right now! That's alot on your plate.

Take care..
Heather