Christmas is a togethery and a remembery sort of Holiday! *Update 08/10

[sullymom]

Oh, hello. Am I glad to see you. It’s more friendly with two.

I have to admit that I am a little nervous to write my first PTR, but I have been a long time lurker and I’m ready to take the plunge.

Characters on this Trip:
First off we have two sweet, quirky and intelligent daughters. We have our oldest “A” who will be 8 on this trip and our youngest “W” who will be 6. The girls have been to Walt Disney World twice. First at ages 4 and 2 in 2011, and our last trip at 6 and 4 in 2013. They are full of energy and joy and have no idea that this trip is being planned. It was decided last Christmas that instead of doing gifts for the girls (since they have stuff and hardly ever play with it) we would go on a family trip.


“A” loves the rides. The bigger and faster the better. She likes princesses and dress up but doesn’t admit it much. She loves Disney movies but cries easily and really feels the emotion and connection with movies which can sometimes overwhelm her. Her favourite movie right now is Inside Out. Her favourite Characters are Ariel, Wall-E, Mary Poppins and Marie.



“W” loves princesses and dress up. She loves to meet characters but once with them becomes shy and loses her voice. She likes rides but needs coaxing sometimes to get on them. She will never do ToT after our last trip. She thought she wanted to ride and after words vowed to never ever go on it again. Her favourite movie right now is Brave. Her favourite Characters include all the princesses, number one being Cinderella. She loves Stitch, Sulley and Simba.



Mr. Incredible is the man of the family and a big kid at heart. He went to Disneyland once as a child but doesn’t remember much about his trip. On our first trip as a family he was looking forward to the holiday but he wasn’t necessarily excited about going to WDW. After the first day he was hooked. Our second trip in 2013 solidified his love of WDW. He loves all the rides (although he would skip spinning rides if he could) The food and excitement from the kids is another of his loves. His favourite movies include Star Wars(4-6) and Wall-E. His favourite Characters are Han Solo and Wall-E.


Last, but not least is me, Sullymom and I’m a Disney-aholic. When I was younger my parents took us to Florida and we went to WDW. We went to a timeshare meeting and got tickets for attending the meeting and also left with a timeshare (despite my parents saying we are only here for tickets) We went one more time as a family but didn’t return again until I had my own family. I am not the biggest fan of big rides. When I was 7 my family went to Darien Lake Theme Park and I got stuck on my first rollercoaster I ever rode. It seems to have left a fear of coasters in me. I do my best to ride with the girls and get over my fear. I also don’t want them to fear rides so I put on a brave face, most of the time. My favourite movie right now (I love them all) would have to be Princess and the frog. My favourite Characters include Sulley, Goofy, Gonzo and M-O from Wall-E.


Our plan:

We will be arriving in Disney 29 December 2015 and Departing 7 January 2016. We are staying at Caribbean Beach Resort.
We will be driving to Florida from Canada. My brother currently lives in Southeast Florida and we plan on visiting with them prior to arriving at Disney.

Next ADR's.

 

[tyandskyesmom]

We will be at Caribbean Beach when you arrive too...18th thru the 1st...

 

[sullymom]

We will be at Caribbean Beach when you arrive too...18th thru the 1st...

That's great! Did you get everything you wanted for ADR's?

 

[sullymom]

My computer is acting up and won't let me save my post. Grrrrr!

 

[tyandskyesmom]

Pretty much...waiting on Mama Melrose for that week...and I'd like a later Hacienda on New Years Eve but other wise, yep!

I have a pre-trip going too...http://www.disboards.com/threads/4-33-years-is-way-too-long-between-visits.3338004/

 

[sullymom]

ADR's

30 Dec - Prime Time Cafe Dinner
31 Dec - Mickey's Backyard BBQ Dinner
1 Jan - Kona Cafe Breakfast
1 Jan - Garden Grill Dinner
2 Jan - T-Rex Dinner
3 Jan - Akershus Breakfast
3 Jan - Beaches and Cream Dinner
5 Jan - BOG Dinner

31 Dec - Kids Pirate Adventure Cruise
​

I was pretty happy with all the reservations that I was able to get. I wasn't able to book Raglan Road. It keeps showing no availability for the entire time that we are there. I need to call Disney to see if I can get it that way. "A" mentioned today while watching a movie and cuddling her piglet stuffed animal, that she would love to meet Pooh, Tigger, Piglet and Eyore again. So I'm going to see if I can fit in a reservation at the Crystal Palace.

 

[sullymom]

So today I'm a little frustrated.

I spoke to family about our plans and when we will be visiting them in Florida. We were planning on meeting them prior to heading to Disney, and they have now decided that they would like to join us for a couple days. Don't get me wrong, I would love to spend the time with them but this will change the meals I planned. Also they are currently busy and can't give me an exact date that they will join us. I'm in planning freak out mode! Too many unknowns. I can't take It!



Deep breath in and out.
It will all work out I know, it always does.




​

 

[MataHari22]

Hi there! Nice to meet you. Following along. Your kids are cute!

Sorry your plans are going to get all changed with your family joining you. I am a rotten relative. I go down to WDW and don't tell any relatives I'm going down, so they cannot derail my plans. I am so bad.

 

[sullymom]

Hi there! Nice to meet you. Following along. Your kids are cute!

Sorry your plans are going to get all changed with your family joining you. I am a rotten relative. I go down to WDW and don't tell any relatives I'm going down, so they cannot derail my plans. I am so bad.

Thanks for following along! I agree that they are cute but I'm a little biased.
Does family ever get upset after they find out you've gone?

 

[MataHari22]

Thanks for following along! I agree that they are cute but I'm a little biased.
Does family ever get upset after they find out you've gone?

Yep, I usually hear about it, but really, I am not extremely close with the friends/family that I know down there. And, in the past, I have been burned a few times with changing things around and people being late, or canceling. So now, I go down and do what I want to do and not tell anyone.

 

[sullymom]

Yep, I usually hear about it, but really, I am not extremely close with the friends/family that I know down there. And, in the past, I have been burned a few times with changing things around and people being late, or canceling. So now, I go down and do what I want to do and not tell anyone.

I hate to say that I'm not that close with the family I am going to see either. I wish we had a closer relationship but we never will. I also never thought that they would come. In the past they have always said that they would never go. They live 4 hours away and haven't gone. I would be there so much more if we lived closer. We also travel differently. I'm all about planning and organizing and they aren't that way at all.
Next time I will do as you do and go and not tell anyone and deal with it when I'm back.

 

[BudgieMama]

Following your PTR I'd love to go to WDW at Christmas! I hope you have a great time!

 

[sullymom]

Following your PTR I'd love to go to WDW at Christmas! I hope you have a great time!

So Happy to have you following along. I've always wanted to go see the Christmas decorations, I'm so excited to get the chance.

 

[sullymom]

"If you can dream it, you can do it." Walt Disney

I am trying my hardest to keep the secret of the trip from the kids. I am dreaming of a perfect surprise. It's turning out to be more difficult than I expected. Lately the kids have been talking a lot about WDW. Yesterday "A" asked if I would measure her on her growth chart. I said of course and while walking to it she said you also need to measure "W". I said ok no problem she then said "We need to know how tall we are so that we will know what rides we can go on when we go to WDW".

Wait What?!?!



All that flashed through my head was that my daughter could somehow know what I've been thinking. She must be able to read my mind. She of course is my child and naturally talented. She hasn't seen me do anything with planning and she hasn't seen the mail that we received.

I had it set in my mind that she knows what is going through my head; she must know what I am thinking now as she looks at me. I must divert her attention.



Ok now that I've tricked her and I'm thinking about anything but Disney I start to measure her. Think numbers, only numbers. She finally breaks the silence and asks how tall she is now. I ask her how tall she thinks she is and I think hard about the number I've measured. I don't know she responds.
Hmmm maybe she can't read minds after all.
After I measure her I ask why she needed to be measured right away and she tells me she was talking to a friend at camp about rides and how tall she was. It made her think of WDW and she just wanted to see how tall she was now.

Crisis Averted!!!





​

 

[MataHari22]

Lol, mom's are supposed to be the mind readers, not the kids. So did she measure up tall enough to ride the stuff she wants to?

 

[sullymom]

Lol, mom's are supposed to be the mind readers, not the kids. So did she measure up tall enough to ride the stuff she wants to?

Yes she does measure tall enough for all the rides she wants to go on and a few that she's never done. Once she learns about the trip she will be happy to find out she can ride all the rides she wants to.

 

[sullymom]

If there ever comes a day when we can't be together, keep me in your heart, I'll stay there forever. Winnie the pooh


Sorry for the absence as of late. Our family has lost a dear member. Our cat Tolkien 'fat fat" had to be put down this past week. Over the last month he has been battling cancer of the tongue. His sores became unmanageable and he began to suffer. It was the hardest decision that hubby and I have had to make. He was our first baby. We took him and his sister into our family 12 years ago from the shelter. They had been abandoned in a snow bank and they wanted someone to take them together. We were happy to take them into our family.






Over the years our family has grown adding 2 dogs and 2 daughters. They have all kept us busy and they all play an important role in our family. His cuddles, licks and food stealing is missed so very much.






​

 

[sullymom]

People say nothing is impossible, but I do nothing everyday.

I have been seriously neglecting this pre-trip report. It's not that I haven't been doing stuff, I just haven't been doing it here.
The weather is getting cooler and the days are getting shorter. Fall is coming soon followed by Christmas which means Disney time!


I can't believe the hubby and I haven't spilt the beans yet about this trip. The coutdown is on to booking fastpasses. I now how to confirm with the family that wants to join us, for a day, to confirm the day they are coming so I can solidify which days we are going where and plan our fastpasses.​

 

[MataHari22]

So sorry to read about your kitty cat.

I just booked my FP+ the night before last. Cannot believe I have under 60 days to go.

 

[sullymom]

I just booked my FP+ the night before last. Cannot believe I have under 60 days to go.

Did you get all the FP+ you wanted?