Christmas Cruise 2005!!!

[tiggerwannabe]

Hi All!

To those who want new countdown timers, here are two websites that are currently useable on the DIS.

http://www.v50.net/cdgenerator.php
http://www.tickerfactory.com/ezticker/ticker_designer.php

After the countdown is "generated,"
copy the script
go to your user CP (to edit your signature)
and paste the new script into your sig,
then preview your sig to see if it worked.

I'm not too thrilled with the new countdowns, it's the only reason I'm not using one

colkath: Plymouth sounds beautiful, exactly as I would like it if I were to live there.

KKB: We don't plan meals well...therefore actual dieting is not too easy a task DH and I have to plan meals daily, according to who will or will not be home that night.
Yes, muscle does weigh more than fat-
and Tae Bo-I tried it and gave away the videos. I am rediculously unable to do this without hurting myself.

Another group of DISers told me of tapes called Walk Away the Pounds Supposidly available at Target. I may check those out for the summertime.

Aisling: The Pampered Princesses unite! My Brittany and Stefanie both want to have their hair done with us. TBJ: You gonna join us?
I'm there with you at Scoops and the Cove Cafe too!!!

Congrats on your new Trike Mom!

Welcome Nan! Pleasure to have you in our little group. Ask away, we're all here to help each other.

Hi Franco!

grim: Awesome news! Congratulations on your new home! Maybe by cruise time you'll at least have some pictures to show us??​

 

[KKB]

What a sellers market--name on a waiting list even to buy one, then 10 months until completion due to labor/material shortages!!!!! AND increasing prices---CRAZY!
We were lucky 3 years ago. We put our house on the market 6 weeks before 9/11. Needless to say the following 6 weeks were dead, then it broke lose. We had a couple look at our house SIX times before finally buying it. Then I was panicked because I didn't like anything on the market. Funny, one night DH and I were on a date and happened upon our current home. It had every qualification that I wanted if I could have it all--huge lot, walkout finished basement, 4 bedrooms up (bonus--laundry on second floor), on a circle, plus a basement bedroom to serve as my scrapbook room! It was like it was meant to be. It was about $20K more than our top end, but since interest rates were so good at that time, it really only cost us $300/month than our other home, and it is so much better! (last one had NO backyard and was on a busy neighborhood street--NOT good w/ young children!) We have wonderful neighbors (we did before, too), and several young children around the same age as mine. So happy it is warming up so we can all gather on the driveways and chit-chat while the kiddos play!
Here I go babbling again....well, it keeps me from eating!!
Have a good evening!
Kristin

 

[KKB]

Last time I noticed I was still earning my ears!!!!
Guess it's from all my babbling.....
Kristin

 

[Aisling]

Grim,
I was trying to avoid reading about that incident, but then it popped up on the news right in my face. Scary!! I would be traumatized if that happened while I was onboard, no kidding.
Congratulations on your new home Ditto Tig about the photos as the house is built!

Jill,
You are amazing! You sure know how to live life. Congratulations to you too on your trike. I wonder, is there something you've always wanted to do, but as yet haven't done? I'm waiting for the post about you taking your first parachute jump! It's wonderful that you're so involved in what makes you happy. I have a long list of things I want to do, none as nearly as exciting as what you do. I know you'll have a great time with your new trike.

Tig,
You're another amazing one---how'd you find those counters? You're too cool And I love being in the Pampered Princesses Club! This is getting more and more exciting every day. I hope the week doesn't feel like it goes by too fast when we cruise. I really want to savor it all.

Kristin,
Congratulations to you, too! You're official!
The way you described your home area sounds lovely. My sister lives in an are like you described, and it's a very different life than where I live. I love the city, but it's so nice to take my kids and slow down the pace for a while when we visit her. When a neighbor came by to ask my sis if she had a pineapple cake recipe, and my sister did(!), I thought this must be the twilight zone---it's so perfect!

3x,
where are you? We need some more Pampered Princesses for our club!

Nan,
How are you doing with your counter??

 

[trinibjill]

Once upon a time, when I was a little girl , I would listen to my Grandmom & Aunt sit and talk about all the things they wish they had done. I made a promise then if there was something I would like to do & it was in my power I was going to do it.

Another true story. IN the military I was going to mechanic school. The song we sang was "I want to be a truck mechanic jumping out of airplanes makes me panic". (ha ha)

MY next real long term goal is to retire in 5 years & work for Uncle Mickey (Mouse).

 

[nskjerven]

I have to confess didn't yet make it to the ticker(s) to try them yet...I had to force myself to not log on from my work desk (in the office we have in our backyard) because staying up and reading this list last night until 3am made me not work too well this morning. Good thing my boss loves that mouse as much as me (self-employed humor).

GRIM do tell, can real estate be worse in your town than Bay Area, CA? We've been watching 10%+ increases per month for a good time now. Of course that's great if you own, but not if you want to move up. We had a 2nd place in Half Moon Bay (during the wonderful Dot Com Boom) have since sold it, but now really want to live on the coast full time. Darn it if we can make the move for under $1 mil. Seems ridiculious to say "I bought a house for a million dollars". Even if you could afford it. If the bottom falls out, we may just fall into the ocean with it...

colkath2005 is plymouth anywhere near cobham or great bookham? My cousin(& family) lives there. Both DH and I have traveled to London(&Cobham). DH studied at Oxford in a college exchange, I'm sure he'll know of your town. Last time we went to London together was 12/96, Our Honeymoon We brought along DD, I was 6 weeks pregnant and was morning sick the entire time, even had to cut our trip short a week to get me home to barf in my own bathroom. We talk often of going to Europe, but the Disney force was pulling me toward the Magic Kindgom and to this cruise. Actually Euope is the next big family vaca, most likely 2010.

My next group query is...ages of the kids in this group. Seems most of yours are teenaged? As I mentioned mine will be 8 & 5. I'm really curious to see if DD will be happy to stay with my little guy in the younger kids group. I'm a nervous nelly and would feel safer if they hang out together. I haven't ever used a sitter, other than family for the kids. My sister & MIL live in town and often take them for our adult outings.

I just read that wave article & watched it on the news. God help us. Our trip will be just fine...My DD wants to watch Titanic, I've told her not until after the trip. (then I can just say not until you're older, ha tricky mom)

I also admit I must find a diet before boarding the boat. Maybe if they offered us $$$$ incentives that would make it easier

Went to target today and bought a few more "fat" swim suits (must be practical just in case)

SO, I have 35 minutes before midnight, so I should surf the rest of this list (30 pages to go) to finish up with my homework. Wish me luck and I'll check in tomorrow night.

bye-bye

Nan

 

[colkath2005]

First of all welcome Nan.Its always exciting when someone adds to our group,talking of adding put me on the pampered princess list,im soooo there.Thanks for all the dieting tips, i think ill go for the low carb as i can fill up on veggies.Im not worrying bout what i eat on the cruise either,thats what my new year ressies will be for 2006.Plenty of exercise also coming my way!!!Nan my boys will be five and eight too.So they will be in the same groups.If your oldest is anything like mine there is no convincing him to be in with the younger ones, he thinks theyre baies his words not mine (though i kinda think they are still babies at that age).Last time i went on the cruise they were seven and just turned five and they did have some activities together but even then by theend of the first night had made enough friends to be confident and my youngest can be shy at times.They page you for any problems anyway even if the kids just wanna see you for a second and i found that really reassuring.Welli will keep updating you all on my weightloss im starting on monday cause ill be finished moving on fri and can take the weekend to chill.

 

[KKB]

Ahhhh...a work day all day yesterday w/o students--I feel so organized this AM. It's nice while it lasts.....
Nan--remember, my kids will be 10-7-5, so right in there w/ yours!
And to think we thought a 6%/year increase in real estate prices is crazy! We were in Pebble Beach 2 years ago, would LOVE to live there! But it seems A quarter of a million for a 2 bedroom/no basement bungalow is a bit steep! Maybe when we retire.....HA!
Remind me....skinny tastes better than ANYTHING!!!!! KEEP REMINDING ME!
Have a great day!
Kristin
More tornados and baseball-sized hail in area last night. It was weird. The bad storms would just get to us, then suddenly dissipate (sp?) or change direction and go around us! Got a bit of much needed rain.

 

[grimgrinnin]

Nan - we're not nearly as bad as California - but the word has gotten out what a great value real estate is (was) in AZ, so a lot of people are selling there 800 SQ FT condos in CA for a half million and buyin 4,000 SQ FT McMansions here. It's driving up demand like crazy. I've made $2,000 in equity since I signed the contract 3 days ago. It's a good thing that I plan on living in this house for the rest of my life, because when the bubble bursts, it's not going to be pretty.

Pictures? Did someone say pictures???
Here's some pictures of the model home if anyone's interested.

I'm going to try and take a picture of the house each day as it goes up, and then make a time-lapsed movie with them.



grim

 

[nskjerven]

Now I'll never get anything done on my desk...too much Disney to plan

colkath2005 & KBB Ah yes, I did see that you guys had kids same age. Sorry I spaced. So do you really not see the kids on the boat? So many people have told me that they will be so involved with the club(s) that they won't even want to see us. How about dinner? Did your kids dine with you much? I would assume that we'll be together for Xmas (formal I hope) I'm going on ebay to hunt for a tux for DS 5, he is a real ham and will most likely wear it again and again, so it should be worth the cost. I better start shopping for some glam dress for DD 8 also. While I'm at it one for me too. I told DH that he could have rented a tux from DCL, he said too bad....I made him buy one last fall for a charity thing, using the ploy that he could wear it on the cruise too, but now I'm thinking of all the room it will take up in our suitcase(s).

I remember in an old thread that someone (tigger?) was looking into getting some NYE party group together. Has that happened, are we too late to join? After reading about how bad the crowds are pre-Xmas, I was even thinking that maybe we should push out our trip and enjoy the WDW after the 1st of the year. I guess we could miss some school.

As much as I'd like to spend the rest of my afternoon here chatting away I have to work (to pay for Disney of course)

& Stay out of that thunderstorm, it sounds nasty....

bye,

Nan

 

[Aisling]

The song we sang was "I want to be a truck mechanic jumping out of airplanes makes me panic"

Jill,
I agree with that! I was thinking about what you said about learning to be a mechanic in your thirties the other day when I was having a bald tire replaced and I asked the guy what's the difference between a tire rotation and an axle alignment , and the guy I'm making it my business to learn about my car, because I felt like such a (insert smilie for jerk). I was embarrassed, but hey it was an honest question; at least I asked instead of remaining ignorant!

Grim,
I love the time-lapsed idea. What a valuable keepsake that'll be, especially since you plan it to be your home for life. The model pics are beautiful...you and your made a lovely choice for a home. Keep us up on how it goes.

Speaking about real estate, here in NYC it's so expensive to buy a home, it's ridiculous. I'm thinking about when my son Chad, who's 19.5 now, finishes college and wants a place of his own. Houses are out of the question, averaging $500,000 for a small, plain 3-bedroom in a decent neighborhood in Brooklyn or Queens. As for Manhattan, co-ops and condos are rising all around us, but are also untouchable for a young person just starting out. And I'd rather have him buy a place instead of renting, because the value goes up sky high before the ink dries. So we're playing Lotto to get my poor son a downpayment on a $300,000 co-op so he won't be forced to leave NYC and his poor mom!

talking of adding put me on the pampered princess list,im soooo there.

Pampered Princess colkath Don't cha love it!!
Tig, you keeping the list?? Where are youuuuuuuu?

By the way, you two Prince Charmings Grim and Franco, I was wondering if your were Disers. If not, why not recruit them? Do they read these boards, and especially this thread?

Hope you don't mind me sharing...my dearest friend is a priest who met Pope John Paul II a couple of years ago. They both have/had Parkinson's Disease in common, as well as both being beautiful, holy people.

Anyway, my mom just got off the Amtrak train a little while ago for a visit. Her train was 5 hours late, and she was a wreck when I met her at Penn Station. So I have to go put my mama to bed!

See ya tomorrow!

 

[Aisling]

Someone please help me shrink that photo!!!!! I had NO IDEA it was going to turn out that way! OMG I'm freaking out, you guys must think I'm nutty for posting a huge pic like that, but I didn't know! My edit option is gone, so I can't even delete the pic.

Is there a mod in the house?? Quick!

Edited: I figured out how to shrink the pic on my own!

 

[KKB]

31 days left of school--I am SOOOO ready!!!!
Nan--my children are the sort that will yell at us if they are not the LAST ones at the club. Now MIL--who is paying for the cruise--seems to think that they will rarely be at the club! I say SHE can try and pry them away! There will be 10 cousins together at the club--why would they want to spend time with us boring adults??!! After sharing the Navigators w/ the kids, they said they want to do the scavenger hunt at CC, so we said we would spend the AM together as a family, then they could go to kid's club. When discussing St. Martaan/St. Thomas, DH9 said maybe one day they would rather stay on the ship! Smart boy! I look forward to dinners together, shows, some pool time. Luckily the activities they show are just my kids' things--crafts and activities for younger 2, computer, games and sports stuff for older son. MIL may find her best laid plans are not what the grandchildren have in mind! Don't get me wrong--I really like MIL, but she will get something in her mind, and that's the way it will be! (Even if we can prove her wrong!)
Yeah, better go earn my salary!
Kristin
PS NICE PLACE GRim!

 

[KKB]

I noticed that you reserved a room for DW's scrapbook room! What a guy!
I owned a scrapbook store for 3 years! (9/11 was our demise...sales plummetted). So tell DW to get online and chat sometime!
Have a good one--how nice, you should make another grand today!
Hmmmmm....maybe I should just get into real estate investment in Phoenix--certainly pays better than our teachers' salaries combine
Have a good one!
Kristin

 

[grimgrinnin]

I noticed that you reserved a room for DW's scrapbook room! What a guy!

Heh, like I had a choice


I just read this in the Passporter Newsletter:
"Starting December 31, 2005, everyone re-entering the U.S. from the Caribbean must have a passport. Until then, valid and current birth certificates and driver licenses remain acceptable."

Guess we all have to have passports for our cruise since it returns 12/31/05?
Our first cruise we just used birth certificates.



grim

 

[KKB]

I went to the website, and I do believe that since the start date is Dec. 31, 2005, we now need to invest nearly $500 more to get everyone a passport. I don't suppose MIL will spring for that, too....
DH suggested we get one each month to spread out the cost...but that means 5 trips to the downtown post office, and DH & I will both have to go w/ each child. So maybe getting us all done in one fell swoop has it's advantages...they do take Discover!!!
I did email FIL/MIL so they could ask travel agent--if any of you do, let us know. I figured we better have them!
Kristin
Grim--you and DH should get along just fine--sounds like a comment he would have made about my scrapbook room. He often whines that he doesn't have a room of his own--of course he forgets I share w/ the kids' desk/craft stuff as well as the good computer that everyone wants!

 

[tiggerwannabe]

I just read this in the Passporter Newsletter:
"Starting December 31, 2005, everyone re-entering the U.S. from the Caribbean must have a passport. Until then, valid and current birth certificates and driver licenses remain acceptable."

Guess we all have to have passports for our cruise since it returns 12/31/05?
Our first cruise we just used birth certificates.



grim

I have a question If we are at castaway cay on Dec 30th, won't we already have had our docs checked for reentry?

I was reading that little bit of info as us not having to worry about passports

Hi Christmas Cruisers!

I've been here, lurking...I have a list of answers and questions for y'all...but work has been crazy and I have to make time to DIS!!!

oh well...~TTFN~

I'll be back soon

 

[tiggerwannabe]

I have a question If we are at castaway cay on Dec 30th, won't we already have had our docs checked for reentry?

I was reading that little bit of info as us not having to worry about passports

I talked to TBJ last night and she agrees...

US Customs checks us back in to the US before we can get off the boat at Castaway Cay, for us it would be December 30th.

She said she'll call her TA and possibly ask Dave from Passporter for confirmation of our assumptions.

It's worth a look see, eh?

 

[KKB]

I sure hope you are right! I could go to save $500!
But isn't Castaway Cay considered the Bahamas?
I was just doing a long term budget. I actually get paid to take my classes this summer (it is all under a grant), so intend to be debt-free(well, not mortgage, of course) by the time we leave for this cruise! WOO HOO! Not sure if MIL is planning on paying our tabs on the ship...not expecting it since she put out the big chunk to get us there and on the ship. So would like to only have to pay for that bill when we get home! Probably ask for cash from everyone else for Xmas. We intend to have a VERY small Xmas at our house this year--the cruise spending $ will be their presents from us...and I am still trying to find a way for Santa to send $ or items that could be used on the trip....maybe if I emailed him he could help us out. Of course I need to find out what the rest of the family is planning on w/ their kids. Of course they all have more disposable income than us....
Isn't is December yet??!!
Have a great day!
Kristin

 

[nskjerven]

I had an idea for Santa to give the kids Disney $ (& stocked up on it during last DL trip) but then came up with a better idea. They are now earing Disney $ to spend on the trip. It's kinda a bonus program. They have regular chores (clean rooms, feed the dogs etc) for allowance, but bonus is for the extra stuff...

not fighting all week = $1 per kid
homework done early = $1 per day early
no crabbing while on errands = $1 (Wilson thought this one up himself and boy he needed it)

So far Wilson is ahead of Molly by $2.

The other part is that if they are extra rotten then they pay Mom & Dad their Disney $ and we then spend it on the SPA Of course that is the threat, they will get all the money I planned on and maybe we'll have some extra well behaved kids between now and Xmas

Okay, I now count 3 scrappers (me, KKB, & grim's wife) on board, aren't we going to plan some time to scrap on the boat???? Seems like the perfect place except for dragging all the supplies

& thanks for the info on the passports, we may also have to renew a few....

bye bye for now,

Nan