Celebrations Galore & Free Dining too! A Sept 2012 PTR (TR started!)

[Dancegrl624]

I just got all caught up. I'm so sorry to hear about your grandmother. Your family is in my prayers.

Thank you.

Joining in!

I read all your chapter updates. Even though we will be at FQ at the same time, doesn't look like we're going to the same parks on any days - bummer! Maybe we'll spot each other at the pool?

So sorry to hear about your grandmother's passing. I'll say a prayer for you and your family.

Thanks for reading! Bummer about not being at the same parks, but POFQ is so small the odds are pretty high that we'll run into each other!

Idk how I always end up losing tr's. Frustrating.

First and foremost, I am so sorry about your grandmother. I wish I could give you a hug during this rough time. My heart goes out to you and your family!

Cole's birthday party was so adorable. I loved the Mickey theme, those chocolate covered oreos were the absolute best!! I cannot believe how big he is getting!! So excited to see his reaction to everything! You are getting so close!! Let me know if you have any questions about the rider swap, I am an old pro having used it for the past 3 trips!

How did your run go?? Have you signed up for the Princess Half?? I wish I could so bad! I am doing a full in September and naturally, would love to run in Disney. But I think we are going to Florida on a family vacation only a few weeks prior (and I'm not paying, so I have no say in dates) and I couldn't do both that close together! I am hoping to maybe do the Tower of Terror 10 miler or something in 2013 though! You'll have to let me know how your running goes!

I have SO much catching up to do today on the DIS. We had a super busy week last week.

I do have rider swap questions! I know that each attraction has it's own way of doing things and I need help. I'm also just trying to think of other rides that Cole might not enjoy....Pirates for example. Will he like it?!

My 5K last week went great! I finished 5 minutes faster than my first 5K. I really need to start running more, but again, I've been too busy and it's been SOOOO hot. I haven't signed up for the Princess yet because Tony and I haven't had a chance to discuss it. My mom is definately going and has already signed up and booked a room.

 

[princess_momma]

I have SO much catching up to do today on the DIS. We had a super busy week last week.

I do have rider swap questions! I know that each attraction has it's own way of doing things and I need help. I'm also just trying to think of other rides that Cole might not enjoy....Pirates for example. Will he like it?!

My 5K last week went great! I finished 5 minutes faster than my first 5K. I really need to start running more, but again, I've been too busy and it's been SOOOO hot. I haven't signed up for the Princess yet because Tony and I haven't had a chance to discuss it. My mom is definately going and has already signed up and booked a room.

Usually with rider swap, you just have to bring the baby up with you and say how many people are in the party. Then the first person/people go through the standby line (unless you have fp's) and the remaining person gets a rider swap pass. Looks just like a fp, but with no expiration time. So you could even have the first set of people go, go to an adr and come back later.

Surprisingly, the only dark ride that Landon was scared of was Peter Pan!! He never went on HM though, because my mom didn't want to go. But he did fine on Pirates. It's hard to say what they will like and not like because who knows if it's just their mood or what will set them off? I was so shocked Peter Pan was the one that scared Landon!!

I will say, the one that really stinks is TSM because they will not give rider swaps for that, nor can you hold your small child in your lap! And that ride whips around corners SO fast, so you spend the whole time making sure they don't hit their head or anything. It's frustrating. I would say Cole would be fine sitting between you and DH, but I doubt you would want to make Madison ride by herself, even if she was just on the other side!

That's so awesome how fast your 5K improved!! I am so bad at running regularly!! I really need to make it a habit!! It's always too hot for me too and then by the time it cools down, I will have already eaten dinner and be too full! Or something!! Keep me updated on the Princess Half! I hope you can make it!! That'd be so fun!!

 

[Dancegrl624]

Usually with rider swap, you just have to bring the baby up with you and say how many people are in the party. Then the first person/people go through the standby line (unless you have fp's) and the remaining person gets a rider swap pass. Looks just like a fp, but with no expiration time. So you could even have the first set of people go, go to an adr and come back later.

Surprisingly, the only dark ride that Landon was scared of was Peter Pan!! He never went on HM though, because my mom didn't want to go. But he did fine on Pirates. It's hard to say what they will like and not like because who knows if it's just their mood or what will set them off? I was so shocked Peter Pan was the one that scared Landon!!

I will say, the one that really stinks is TSM because they will not give rider swaps for that, nor can you hold your small child in your lap! And that ride whips around corners SO fast, so you spend the whole time making sure they don't hit their head or anything. It's frustrating. I would say Cole would be fine sitting between you and DH, but I doubt you would want to make Madison ride by herself, even if she was just on the other side!

That's so awesome how fast your 5K improved!! I am so bad at running regularly!! I really need to make it a habit!! It's always too hot for me too and then by the time it cools down, I will have already eaten dinner and be too full! Or something!! Keep me updated on the Princess Half! I hope you can make it!! That'd be so fun!!

Thanks for the rider swap tips!!! I'm really only worried about Pirates and Haunted Mansion. I guess as long as we don't make a big deal about it, neither will he. He's a go with the flow kind of baby.

I swore I saw people holding babies on their laps on TSMM. I wouldn't let Madison ride by herself, but Cole could ride between me and her. Tony is used to riding that one alone!!

I'm going to do another 5K at the beginning of August. I hope to run a lot more between now and then!!

 

[Disneychix]

Thanks for the rider swap tips!!! I'm really only worried about Pirates and Haunted Mansion. I guess as long as we don't make a big deal about it, neither will he. He's a go with the flow kind of baby.

I swore I saw people holding babies on their laps on TSMM. I wouldn't let Madison ride by herself, but Cole could ride between me and her. Tony is used to riding that one alone!!

I'm going to do another 5K at the beginning of August. I hope to run a lot more between now and then!!

For the HM we gave the boys those light-up fans, not the big huge ones with the spinny things-these were smaller and didn't make so much light-really any light up toy would do. That kept them occupied and unafraid of the dark. This would work on Pirates too although that one would be harder since everyone sits together.

My mom was able to take both boys on TSM by herself. I'm not sure if Riley sat next to her or on her lap. He was only 7months so I'm guesing it was on her lap.
I will say, having Madison there will help. Brady occupied Riley on many of the 'scary' rides.

 

[Dancegrl624]

For the HM we gave the boys those light-up fans, not the big huge ones with the spinny things-these were smaller and didn't make so much light-really any light up toy would do. That kept them occupied and unafraid of the dark. This would work on Pirates too although that one would be harder since everyone sits together.

My mom was able to take both boys on TSM by herself. I'm not sure if Riley sat next to her or on her lap. He was only 7months so I'm guesing it was on her lap.
I will say, having Madison there will help. Brady occupied Riley on many of the 'scary' rides.

Thanks for the ideas!!! Maybe I'll just buy some glow necklaces/bracelets for the dark rides. Those are super cheap and I can get them at Party City!

For TSMM, I'll just do whatever the CM's tell me to do. He'll love that ride either way. How can you not!!

 

[Dancegrl624]

I am SO sorry I've been gone for so long. As you know, we were away for my grandmother's funeral and then we just jumped into craziness. We had the 4th of July, yummy food festival, last week was VBS at church and I'm one of the leaders for the games department....I also ran a 5K Monday night, Madison was in a parade Tuesday evening, dance started again on Wednesday and she had a soccer game Thursday night. Saturday was an Irish dance competition in Rochester (she got a 2nd and 4th!). Makes me tired all over again just reading how busy we were!

Anyways....I've been doing some shopping and it's time to share some pictures. I ordered a bunch of stuff from Old Navy a few weeks ago and it finally came today. I also went to the mall today and picked up a few more things from Old Navy and some shoes for Cole for our trip.

LOVE these shorts! They are just a teeny bit longer than my usual shorts, but oh so comfy.

Yes, I now own the shirt on the left in 5 colors. How can you beat $6 for a tank top?! The shirt on the right is a tad bit sheer for my taste, but it's great for lounging around the house.

Can you tell I like this shirt? I have it in one other color too. The one on the right was bought online (about $6) and I bought the blue one today. After my 30% off it was only $3!

More super comfy shirts. The white one is a bit more dressy and feels like a blouse, but it's great.

Again, another comfy shirt! Don't know if it will come on vacation with us but I love it! (bought it today)

Bought this awhile ago at Aeropostale. I exchanged a previous shirt I posted (baby doll, allover print) for this one.

Custom tank tops for me and Madison! Unfortunately, the girl who makes these had to close down her shop on etsy....Disney made her! I guess she was just too good at what she did. She is still selling tye dye shirts, just not with Mickey heads. So sad!

Bought the Donald shirt for Tony for his birthday (next week) and the tank is for Maddie. Both of them love to play Angry Birds, so I think he'll really like this shirt.

Shoes for Cole from Stride Rite. These will be perfect for Disney! They will protect his little toes but he can get his feet wet. Plus, they were on sale.

Side view of the shoe

I'm having some issues on photobucket right now....I turned all of the photos, but they are not showing up correctly on the DIS. GRRR!!! Anyways....I only have 64 days until vacation!! I have so much to do!!!

 

[Lovemy3babes]

Wow, cute clothes Meghan! I love your taste! What a bummer that her Etsy shop had to be closed down. The Mickey tanks are fabulous!

 

[Dancegrl624]

Wow, cute clothes Meghan! I love your taste! What a bummer that her Etsy shop had to be closed down. The Mickey tanks are fabulous!

Thanks! I love the Mickey tanks. I hope she finds a way to keep selling them!!

 

[Disney Mommy 3]

the clothes are all great but my favorite...Cole's little shoes!!!!!!!! OH My Gosh!!! How stinkin' cute are they!? Can you tell I miss baby boy stuff?!! I can't believe how close your trip is getting!

 

[Mndisneygirl]

Cute clothes Meghan!

I think it's normal for photo bucket to have that issue with rotating pictures. It happens to me all the time, and then somehow, eventually, they show up rotated. I did my updates yesterday with some rotated pictures, and they didn't turn right away, but now they look fine. Go figure.

 

[lauren_elizabeth]

Love all of the clothes... especially those Mickey tanks!

Aren't Stride Rite shoes the best for little ones? The ones you picked out for Cole are perfect!

 

[Fantasyland Mom]

Okay, that explains it. I went to etsy to order some and didn't see them on there anymore. I just thought I might need to special request them, but I guess I'm out of luck. And I have no desire to attempt to make my own!

I bought some Old Navy shorts the other day and they are so comfortable. Now that I know I like the fit, I'm ordering more colors! I like that they're not super short but they don't make me look dowdy, either.

It's getting so close!!

 

[Dancegrl624]

the clothes are all great but my favorite...Cole's little shoes!!!!!!!! OH My Gosh!!! How stinkin' cute are they!? Can you tell I miss baby boy stuff?!! I can't believe how close your trip is getting!

Aren't his shoes the cutest?! I love them and especially because I got a great deal on them. He can walk really well in them (he was running around the store) and has room to grow. I can't believe how close my trip is either. Plus, I leave for my business weekend a month from tomorrow!!!

Cute clothes Meghan!

I think it's normal for photo bucket to have that issue with rotating pictures. It happens to me all the time, and then somehow, eventually, they show up rotated. I did my updates yesterday with some rotated pictures, and they didn't turn right away, but now they look fine. Go figure.

Thanks Sheree!

Photobucket was making me crazy yesterday. It was running so slow!

Love all of the clothes... especially those Mickey tanks!

Aren't Stride Rite shoes the best for little ones? The ones you picked out for Cole are perfect!

Thank you!

Stride Rite is the best. I remember getting Madison her first pair of shoes there. Seems like yesterday! I love Cole's shoes....just perfect for Disney.

Okay, that explains it. I went to etsy to order some and didn't see them on there anymore. I just thought I might need to special request them, but I guess I'm out of luck. And I have no desire to attempt to make my own!

I bought some Old Navy shorts the other day and they are so comfortable. Now that I know I like the fit, I'm ordering more colors! I like that they're not super short but they don't make me look dowdy, either.

It's getting so close!!

I'm so upset that Disney made her close down her shop. She does have her own website now that sells fair trade bracelets. They are so beautiful and the profits go to women in Nepal who make the bracelets. PM me if you want her info!

I really like these shorts. Like you said, they're not dowdy looking!

 

[princess_momma]

Thanks for the rider swap tips!!! I'm really only worried about Pirates and Haunted Mansion. I guess as long as we don't make a big deal about it, neither will he. He's a go with the flow kind of baby.

I swore I saw people holding babies on their laps on TSMM. I wouldn't let Madison ride by herself, but Cole could ride between me and her. Tony is used to riding that one alone!!

I'm going to do another 5K at the beginning of August. I hope to run a lot more between now and then!!

He should be fine!! I think if you are worried about those ones...do them when he is in a prime mood. Like not when he is starting to get hungry or tired because then he could react more strongly then he would otherwise. I'm sure he'll be fine if he's a go with the flow kind of baby!!

I do honestly think babies in laps or next to you is kind of a depends on the CM thing! When Landon was 10 months and went, the CM REFUSED to let him sit on my lap and every trip after, he was big enough that I was okay with him sitting by me! But you know how different CM's can be. That same trip when he was 10 months (and he was walking then, so he could fully stand for sure), he had a picture of just him standing with Handy Manny but then over with Buzz and Woody, the CM handler told me I couldn't have just him stand. Those instinces were literally a half an hour apart!!

I'm supposed to run a 5k with a friend tonight!! lol I'm just hoping she's not really incredibly super fit because I might die if I try to keep up too much.

 

[Dancegrl624]

He should be fine!! I think if you are worried about those ones...do them when he is in a prime mood. Like not when he is starting to get hungry or tired because then he could react more strongly then he would otherwise. I'm sure he'll be fine if he's a go with the flow kind of baby!!

I do honestly think babies in laps or next to you is kind of a depends on the CM thing! When Landon was 10 months and went, the CM REFUSED to let him sit on my lap and every trip after, he was big enough that I was okay with him sitting by me! But you know how different CM's can be. That same trip when he was 10 months (and he was walking then, so he could fully stand for sure), he had a picture of just him standing with Handy Manny but then over with Buzz and Woody, the CM handler told me I couldn't have just him stand. Those instinces were literally a half an hour apart!!

I'm supposed to run a 5k with a friend tonight!! lol I'm just hoping she's not really incredibly super fit because I might die if I try to keep up too much.

I tend to overthink things when it comes to Disney trips. I just need to relax and listen to Cole's needs.

That is so crazy that the CM's were so different at 2 character meets. I know that each character's clothing interferes with their line of sight differently, so maybe that had something to do with it.

Good luck! Just do it at your own pace. If you need to go slower than her that do it! Pace yourself!

 

[jenny105]

I love your clothing posts I love Disney but they made her shut down her Etsy? Really? They're crazy when it comes to stuff like that.

I was eyeing those shorts at Old Navy! LOL

 

[Dancegrl624]

I love your clothing posts I love Disney but they made her shut down her Etsy? Really? They're crazy when it comes to stuff like that.

I was eyeing those shorts at Old Navy! LOL

Thanks Jenny!!! I love sharing all of my shopping goodies.

I can't believe they made her shut down her shop. So sad! It was for copyright infringement or something. Her shirts are SO high quality....a lot better than some shirts I've bought from the Disney store online! I wonder if she'll be able to just sell directly to customers if they want a custom order. You can't monitor what you can't see!

The shorts are awesome! I haven't worn them yet, but I look forward to doing so.

 

[Dancegrl624]

I am SO sorry I haven't posted in awhile. We have just been very busy and I've hardly had time to DIS at all. Anyways....today we are at 53 days!!!! 53 DAYS!!!!! How is that possible?! I, of course, am very excited about our trip but I'm starting to freak out too. We've never traveled with a little guy before and I haven't even started thinking about Cole's packing list. I keep a big master list on my computer and I just adjust it for each trip. I have a separate list for Maddie and then one for me and Tony. I really need to start up Cole's list!!!!

As most of know from my previous PTR's, I have a Disney bin. It normally takes up residence in the basement, but when we have a trip coming up I move it to my closest. Whenever I buy something for vacation I just throw it in the bin. That way, when it's time to pack (the day before we leave) everything is already together. It also holds all the things we only use on vacation....battery operated fans, Mickey headbands, Madison's pin lanyard, etc. It is getting pretty full and I think it's time I bought a bigger bin!

Speaking of stressed....I only have 22 days until my travel agency trip!!! I have my ME documents and my park ticket, but I haven't even thought about what I'll be wearing. I don't work outside of them home, so I don't have a lot of "dressy" work type clothes. AHHHHH!!!!

To add to all of my vacation stress we ran into a little health issue with Cole. He had a low fever Tuesday night, so I gave him some Tylenol and he went back to sleep. On Wednesday he woke up with a bit of a fever so again I gave him some Tylenol and he was fine the rest of the day.....well, until about 5pm. He felt very warm and of course I wasn't home. When we returned home I took his temp and it was around 101/102. I gave him some Tylenol but that did absolutely nothing. Throughout the evening, he just kept feeling warmer and the temp kept rising. I called my after hour number for the pediatrician and was told to head to the children's hospital. Luckily, my parents were over (it was Tony's birthday on Wed) so they took Madison to their house to sleep over.

We got to the ER around 10:30pm and when they took his temp it was 104.4!!!! I had never seen a fever that high before. They gave him some Motrin and we just waited around. After about an hour, he was super sweaty and was starting to feel cooler. They then gave him some Tylenol and took him for blood work. I could not go in that room with him, so Tony took him. I couldn't bear to see my little guy like that! They had to check his blood count and do a blood culture. Afterwards, there was a lot more waiting around for his labs to come back. His blood count came back pretty normal with nothing out of the ordinary. The blood culture takes 24-48 hours to get a result. Before we left, they gave him an antibiotic through his little iv just in case of a bacterial infection. That took 30 minutes! We just had to sit there listening to a little pump, but at least Cole was looking better.

They took his temp before we left and it was down to 100. Much better! We were finally able to go home and we told to call the pediatrician in the morning to make a follow up appt. We got home around 2:30am and we were wiped out. I took Cole to the doctor yesterday and I was told we'll have to have a follow up blood count next week. I was also told to call their office again in the morning to check on the blood culture. When I called today, the results still hadn't come through. I found out that there is another child who is going through the exact same thing at our office! The blood tests came back the same, same symptoms, everything! How strange.

Cole has still been running a fever today, but he seems to be more like himself. He's been sleeping well, eating well, drinking lots of fluids so that's good. I keep praying that the blood culture will come back negative and that it's just a viral infection. I just want my little guy to be happy and healthy. It's been a hard couple of days to say the least. Madison and I are heading to Canada tomorrow for an Irish dancing competition and I'm so scared to leave him. He'll be with Tony so I know he'll be fine, but I'm a chronic worrier. If you could send your thoughts and prayers to my little Cole, I would really appreciate it!

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

Prayers for little Cole.

 

[septmommy]

I can't wait to start reading. Our family "Bucket List" dream trip will be Sept. 22-29 at the Grand Floridian! This will be our family of 4's third trip to WDW.