DHHIR Family Reunion 7/31-8/7/09- a great time had by MOST! Final Updates 10/16 p.8

[dwelty]

Thanks for the invite Podsnel. Trip report looks great so far. Can't wait to hear about the inlaws!

 

[dallastxcpa]

Yeah. I love your trip reports and am looking forward to reading this one.

 

[podsnel]

Thanks for the invite Podsnel. Trip report looks great so far. Can't wait to hear about the inlaws!

Thanks for encouraging me to write it when I was dragging my feet!!

Yeah. I love your trip reports and am looking forward to reading this one.

And i love YOUR TRs!! Hope we get to meet this September at F&W!

Ok- I should have a new post up tonight...I'm on a roll, just left a huge Food Porn post on our DISmom tr....not that it was food from Disney, but it was excellent all the same!! Hopefully it will help you to forgive me for forgetting to take food pics at Alexander's....

 

[podsnel]

So tonight we were going out with Disneyaholic, aka Dottie and her DH, Joe. Pods had never met either of them, and this would be my first intro to Mr. Disneyaholic. Dottie had invited us over to her house for a cocktail and a nibble before we went over to Alexander's for the evening. On the way over, my DH proved, once again, that he really doesn't listen to me when I speak. He said, "so, how do you know Dottie?" "Well, DEAR, she is my friend from the DISboards. She introduced herself when I was in the Mercantile last year to buy water before I went kayaking with Tyler. We were only able to talk for about a minute and a half before I had to go, and unfortunately, that was the only time we saw each other, because she left that day to go back home for a few days." Sheesh- I only told him like a THOUSAND times we would be having dinner together!!!!

Well.... both he and I were THRILLED to spend the evening with the Disneyaholics! What a wonderful, fun couple they make. We had loads of laughs with them- Joe is a SUPER storyteller and joke master! He and Pods had one or two things in common, being married to DISgeeks who both have clearly had waaaaaaaaayyyy too much of the Kool-Aid.... Although Joe was actually wearing a Mickey Hawaiian shirt that night- Good work, Dottie! I'll have to start dressing my DH up a little more from now on.

Anyway, after a Rita with our friends, enjoying their absolutely GORGEOUS view of the marsh AND the fishing pier at DHHIR , we headed over to Alexander's for a fabulous seafood dinner with some very good company. I am so glad they suggested this restaurant, it was PERFECT. I couldn't be more happy about spending the night with them- I wish we could do it more often! Here's a pic of us at the end of the night- notice the boys' matching credit cards?

Up next- I'm up and out the door while the family sleeps- time to check-in at DHHIR!!

 

[podsnel]

I was up bright and early, grabbed a quick breakfast at the Hampton (I love the fruit salad there- tons of fresh citrus) and RAN (literally- I was excited! I was going back to Disney!) to my car to go and check in. I was checking in at 8:15 am, and do you know I was disappointed to hear I was the 2nd person checking in that morning! Someone beat me, can you stand it? I needed to make sure our 2 villas would be as close as possible- and that the 2 bdrm would be on the 1st floor (for my MIL). This seemed to make it a little more difficult to place us, I guess it was a very good thing I went to check in so early. But our rooms wouldn't be ready for quite some time- the GV takes 5 hours to clean! Immediately after check-in, I went down to the Rec window to sign up for a few things.

1. Bikes for some of us- last year we checked in on Monday and had a tough time getting them, by Monday many bike renters (including Disney) were out.

2. Sign up the families (who had responded to all my emails in the past months) for kayaking on Member Day.

3. Sign up all 11 kids for the Monday night kids night out. 4 were going in the teenage group which was mini golf and arcade games, the rest would be on the scavenger hunt.

I think the CM's all thought I was a little nutty. You know the expression "you wear your heart on your sleeve"? Well, that pretty well sums me up- and right at this point I was literally jumping up and down I was so excited!! Gwenyth was the CM at the window and she actually remembered me from last year (I must have been goofy then, too!) and so I was explaining how we were there for a family reunion, and there would be 20 of us, and I couldn't wait for everyone to arrive because I thought we would all have so much fun together. SO for the rest of the trip, Gwenyth remembered our names and what we were doing- she was really just great. Anyway, next, I walked around, bought 2 refillable mugs, got some coffee, and took some pics-

Then it was back to the Hampton to rouse the family and so our vacation could REALLY begin!

 

[podsnel]

So after i threw everything in the luggage, and ran around the room like a nut yelping "C'MON C'MON!!! Let's go to Disney!!!!" a few hundred times, we FINALLY were at the resort and soon joined by the other NJ family. We had something to eat and then were hanging at the pool. At 1:00 we were signed up for the "Secrets of the Marsh" tour with Gwyneth. We all put on our boots and got ready to head out, when G asked if we wanted to get wet. Well, sure! We thought she meant in the marsh on the tour, but what she was referring to was the GIGUNDO black cloud of rain flood that was heading our way- which she said would be pouring on us in about 3 minutes- and do you know, 3 minutes after she said that, it began to POUR!! Man, that girl is GOOD! So we went back and she handed out some umbrellas, then suggested we wait a few for the rain to slow down. In the meantime, we were all prepared, and we just hung out by the pool. Make fun if you will, but at my house, NOTHIN' says SEXY like a bathing suit, a pair of mudboots and a broken umbrella!

Yea, yea, I know- I'm Too Sexy for this Thread! Soon the weather improved, and we were all off + one other girl (who turned out to be from the town next to ours at home AND whose brother played DS12 in a baseball tournament this summer! Small world or what!) + Gwyneth into the marsh to learn about its secrets of the mud & muck.

Gwyneth!

Around this time, my youngest started complaining about his boots hurting his ankle, so DH left & went back with him. But I can tell you, his boots were NOT the problem- his fear of poisonous snakes et al instilled in him by some other kids in the Outer Banks (earlier this year) was in full force instead. Anyway, the rest of us learned about the crabs and the oysters and the snails, our girl Gwenyth is UBER smart!

We ate some pickle weed- that tasted like...pickles...

DN8 like getting stuck in the muck-

We learned the tides are HUGE in Hilton Head, especially in the spring. There can be a 7 foot difference between high and low tide. See the ladder? At high tide it is in the water-

A good cross-section of muck- it's what they burn for fuel in some places. Layers upon layers of poop and dead animals, smushed into one batch of goo. And here it is, an obscure Seinfeld reference...AH, the peat!

Our group of muck and mudders-

Then we were off with the boots (of course, DH begged me to keep mine for...you know...later, but I declined) and back to the pool, which was about to start the fun with some pool games-

Boys and girls, grab your duckies!!!!

Ok, that ends the first duck game now gently toss your duckies to the CM-ummm, I think we all thought he said throw your duckies AT the CM...

That poor kid! The ducks were a-flyin! He seriously had all those ducks flyin' at him which pretty much everyone at the pool thought was hysterical! Well, except for probably him. Anyway, another game and BIL won an arcade game!

Their kids having fun-

And more games-

And then....our rooms are ready!! YIPPEE!!! Just in time for those clouds rolling in! Next up- get ready for a TON of Grand Villa pics!!!

 

[podsnel]

I literally RAN to the villa to stick my key in the door and take photos before anyone else got in...not that 11 kids would make a mess, or anything ... And this is what I saw-

Then upstairs-

One bedroom-

The view out the window-

Down the hall to the other bedroom-

Back downstairs-

The gorgeous kitchen-

With the full washer and dryer-

Cont'd next post-

 

[podsnel]

The full bath off of the living room-

The master-

Did you know the GV master has its own full bath? So in a GV there are 4 full bathrooms- I never knew!

The view out the bathroom window-

Looking over to the main balcony from the master's balcony-

And the main balcony-

We were in BLDG. 16, and so was my MIL. Bldg 16 is a really nice location for getting to everything, near the center of the resort- but unfortunately, without a marsh view. BUT...it did have a view of the horseshoe court right below us, and we DID make use of that during the week, and everyone LOVED having the basketball hoop right out the door, so not all was lost. The GV was very impressive- I am truly amazed at how a place can look sooo rustic, and yet soooo lovely all at once. I think its part of the charm of this resort.

OK- I'm off to upload more photos....

 

[SunnieRN]

Wow!!! I have wanted to see HHI since we joined DVC as we are hoping to go there in a couple of years, All I can say, is spectacular!! I am so glad you are writing this!!! Thanks!!! Did you take pictures of the 2 bedroom sized units also?

Looking forward to more!!!

 

[CRdisMom]

love that everyone could stay in one place. It reminds me of a resort up north Mn. Granted it wasn't Disney but close. ITST is in full effect with those boots. i never knew about DHHI. Is it strictly a DVC or a regular hotel?

 

[podsnel]

Wow!!! I have wanted to see HHI since we joined DVC as we are hoping to go there in a couple of years, All I can say, is spectacular!! I am so glad you are writing this!!! Thanks!!! Did you take pictures of the 2 bedroom sized units also?

Looking forward to more!!!

I didn't take any pics in the other villa, because i was barely in there, sorry! But I think they have them on the dvc website. I thought the one we stayed in last year was beautiful- it was a dedicated 2 bdrm. And I'm so glad you're reading! Thank-YOU!

love that everyone could stay in one place. It reminds me of a resort up north Mn. Granted it wasn't Disney but close. ITST is in full effect with those boots. i never knew about DHHI. Is it strictly a DVC or a regular hotel?

Anyone can stay there- this fall if you have a Disney Visa they are running great deals-
http://disneyrewards.disney.go.com/newsandoffers/offer-wdwaugust09verobeach.html.
It is a DVC, though. It has a very, very homey feel. I love it. people who dislike it there are, i think, looking for more of a beach vacation. It is not on the ocean- that is a mile away, by bike or shuttle (or car, if you can find a spot). So, i like to think of it as a vacation where you can ALSO visit the beach. When you think of it as a vacation where you ONLY visit the beach, you might be disappointed.

 

[englishrose47]

Awesome update Ellen !! That Villa looks wonderful!!! 4 Bathrooms !!!!WOW!!!

I really think you should enter that SEXY Pix to Play Boy for their Centerfold !!! In the same issue on the Front Page could be ITSK!!!!!

 

[anewmac]

Make fun if you will, but at my house, NOTHIN' says SEXY like a bathing suit, a pair of mudboots and a broken umbrella!

hmmm the "DIRTY" Mary Poppens lol

Villa looked awesome, looks like lots of fun to do there.

 

[chum]

Thank you podsnel for taking the time and putting in the effort on this trip report.
I know it helps those considering a jaunt to HHI.
Not to mention it's entertaining!

 

[podsnel]

hmmm the "DIRTY" Mary Poppens lol

Villa looked awesome, looks like lots of fun to do there.

Never thought of that pic that way.... There's lots of fun stuff to do there- we absolutely love it. I'm a "joiner" so I try alot of activities, but lots of people just hang by the pool and still have a good time. I like that the resort offers something for everyone.

Thank you podsnel for taking the time and putting in the effort on this trip report.
I know it helps those considering a jaunt to HHI.
Not to mention it's entertaining!

Sure! Happy to- but I think I may be posting the TR on the DVC board as well- not sure if DVC peeps will see it otherwise (I'm glad you found it, though!).

 

[podsnel]

Awesome update Ellen !! That Villa looks wonderful!!! 4 Bathrooms !!!!WOW!!!

I really think you should enter that SEXY Pix to Play Boy for their Centerfold !!! In the same issue on the Front Page could be ITSK!!!!!

OMG- I think I just threw up in my mouth a little.

 

[DisneySunflower]

This is an awesome TR!

 

[englishrose47]

OMG- I think I just threw up in my mouth a little.

So does that mean NO!!!!!!

 

[LoveTwoTravel]

Loving your TR! We are going for the 1st time this fall. I didn't know they had the refillable mugs there, too. Can you post a picture?

Also, do you have a great packing list you can share? What do you bring for the room?

Thanks!

 

[MAGICFOR2]

Hi Ellen! I was catching up on your DISmoms gone wild thread, and followed you over here - I'm looking forward to this TR - I'll be back to catch up later.