Did we really just buy DVC at BLT? Taking MIL in Dec! Acronyms abound!

[exwdwcm]

But if you avoid that weekend then you can't pay my way, oops, I mean I won't be able to join you.

that's right, i mean, oopps, sorry pal!

We are planning to go in Oct for MNSSHP and F&W too!!!

what week are you looking at? Columbus day is like the weekend of the 10-11 or something- I was thinking maybe like the 15-23rd- avoid columbus day weekend and also halloween weekend (more locals maybe then?).

 

[Tinkermom76]

that's right, i mean, oopps, sorry pal!

what week are you looking at? Columbus day is like the weekend of the 10-11 or something- I was thinking maybe like the 15-23rd- avoid columbus day weekend and also halloween weekend (more locals maybe then?).

We want to stay at Pop the 20-30 and get on the Disney Dream on Oct 30th for 4 nights

 

[exwdwcm]

We want to stay at Pop the 20-30 and get on the Disney Dream on Oct 30th for 4 nights

awesome, then maybe we will overlap some! lucky you on the disney dream! I am hoping to talk DH into a cruise for maybe 2012. He's never been on one period. I did my first one last may on the podcast cruise (also my first cruise in general). Had a great time and I know our DS would love all the great activities.

 

[exwdwcm]

DAY THREE - MONDAY, 12/6

Time to get back on the actual pre trip report- so here is our day 3 plan.

Up early again- see a theme here? Luckily, when it involves disney, i can wake up early, otherwise, I HATE getting up early. Snooze, snooze, and again. So today we are heading to Epcot in the am. On most days, since we aren't doing any AM EMHs, we do plan to attempt rope drop or at least just a few minutes after. WE do usually like doing EMH AM, but it just doesn't work with our schedule this time for some reason. Plus, I figure we will be doing some late nights, so regular rope drop should be enough, during a slow time. That will be the plan today too- eat breakfast in the room and head over to the Contemporary via the walkway, board the monorail to the TTC and then get on the epcot monorail. I am really excited about the monorail access! Arrive by at least 9am or slightly before. Maybe we will stop and check out the fountains.

We will probably follow the masses over to Soarin for a ride or FP (or both!), then maybe just go ahead and do Living with the Land. After that we will probably head over and get a FP for Test track or ride. Then the rest will be by the seat of our pants. other than hitting the big e-ticket attractions, i don't typically plan the order we ride stuff. Maybe we will check out MouseGears or the coke place and have my MIL try 'beverly'!

Lunch today will be fast food- so maybe try 'eating around the world', grabbing a snack in each country- i like the nachos in mexico and ham and cheese croissant in france. We will probably tackle a few of the countries- whatever we can manage before about 2pm.

2pm is break time. With a toddler, we definitely need the small break, even if he doesn't nap, but if it is like last year's trip, he definitely did nap. We usually like to break for 2 hours or so- i don't usually nap, but we do just rest, have a snack or hit the pool or i go tour the resort and take pics. MIL will be a great addition to our trip, because she will probably volunteer to watch Pooh while he sleeps if we want to do something else.

So after our rest, it is time to head to the Polynesian for our ADR at O'hana at 5pm. I figure we head down to the monorail by 4pm and then that will give us a few minutes to also explore the Poly and show MIL the resort. We love O'hana and DH and i have enjoyed this meal twice now, once on our most recent trip last December and then on a prior trip with just him and I for free dining (I think in 06?). Anyhow- we loved it. Pooh loved it too- he ate so good there!

Last december, i had come down with a sinus infection and could barely taste the food, but I still pigged out. So i am looking forward to this meal a lot. My favorites are the potstickers, noodles, beef and dessert. I could have made a meal of the potstickers alone! I am hoping we can get through this meal in under 2 hours. Since we are a smaller party this time, i think that isn't a problem- most of our meals last december took at least 90 minutes- 14 of us and 5 different checks each time.


So after our glorious dinner- we will monorail it over to the MK (man, i am really loving our decision to buy BLT and have monorail access!).

Spectromagic (or MSEP, whatever is there) is at 7pm that night. We missed it last trip and I'd love to catch it again, especially since Pooh loves all the lights. So hopefully we make it over just in time to grab a spot (even if in the back) for the parade.

The park is open for EMH this night until 1am. Not sure we would stay that late, but it is an option. We aren't worried about avoiding EMH at night either. We typically do the less popular stuff then, so the lines aren't bad. Heck, we refuse to wait more than 20 minutes for anything anyhow, even when it is busy. We will get to see this beautiful castle, all lit up in icicles!

We will try and grab a fastpass for a few things as we can and just do whatever we feel like and head back whenever we are tired. Heck, since we are staying on the monorail line, one of us could even go back with Pooh if he passes out while the other two stay. I do want to make rope drop or just after for AK the next day (9am), so we can't stay out too late.

 

[Tinkermom76]

Great plans! Trust me I know from experience (stayes at CR last Dec) being on the Monorail is the best!!!! I am so sad that I will not be there that day for the MK meet

 

[taramoz]

Your day 3 sounds awesome! I love the eating around the world idea, I want to try that sometime, no ADRs, just snack my heavenly way around!

 

[PoppyGirl]

Yep, I like Day 3 plans too! Those nachos look AWESOME! And I like the idea of snacking around the world too. You can't beat that!

I love people's reactions to the Beverly. Have your camera ready! DS couldn't figure out why I was taking his picture trying a soda....until he tried it!

 

[exwdwcm]

Great plans! Trust me I know from experience (stayes at CR last Dec) being on the Monorail is the best!!!! I am so sad that I will not be there that day for the MK meet

Yeah, so glad to hear the monorail rocks. i know we still have to walk across to the CR, but it isn't that far. heck and we can walk to the MK from BLT too! we are really looking forward to this. We usually rent a car and drive- just our preference, so it will be nice not having to drive around as much. We will still most likely rent a car, we just like having the freedom to go when/where we want without ME or buses. But at least trips to MK and Epcot and the resort loop will be a cinch!

Your day 3 sounds awesome! I love the eating around the world idea, I want to try that sometime, no ADRs, just snack my heavenly way around!

thanks! yes, we love snacking our way around. It is really delicious and the more the merrier, so you can share items!

 

[exwdwcm]

Back from two nights in San Francisco for work. 2 long days of meetings, but had a few great meals, including the Presidio and zero-zero, an italian brick oven place.....made me get excited to try Via Napoli in December!

We got sexually harrassed by a cabbie- my poor boss sat in front and he started talking about taking us to a strip club. then he said something about trying not to spill coffee (he was driving like a maniac) and how he might have to 'wipe it off' her leg and rub her leg. okay, gross. creepy cabbie dude just went on and on and got stranger and stranger.

While we stayed at a fantastic hotel, the Westin St. Francis on Union Square, it reminded me of the Shining with its super wide hallways, classic light fixtures and the general age of the hotel. Then i got stuck in this awful corner room that was tiny- the toliet was like inches from the sink. you could basically sit on the toliet and probably wash your face at the same time. It was a little amusing. Last time, i had a great room here, with a view overlooking the square. This time, however, i had a view of a brick wall. my coworker had the same, she said it reminded her of little orphan Annie or something. Anyhow- that's our great business trip.

Just even being at the airport had me a little excited for what's to come in December!! We can't wait. I'll post our next day plus a picture of our countdown calendar tomorrow! Time for sleep and getting ready to head back to work tomorrow, night all!

 

[PoppyGirl]

Back from two nights in San Francisco for work. 2 long days of meetings, but had a few great meals, including the Presidio and zero-zero, an italian brick oven place.....made me get excited to try Via Napoli in December!

We got sexually harrassed by a cabbie- my poor boss sat in front and he started talking about taking us to a strip club. then he said something about trying not to spill coffee (he was driving like a maniac) and how he might have to 'wipe it off' her leg and rub her leg. okay, gross. creepy cabbie dude just went on and on and got stranger and stranger.

While we stayed at a fantastic hotel, the Westin St. Francis on Union Square, it reminded me of the Shining with its super wide hallways, classic light fixtures and the general age of the hotel. Then i got stuck in this awful corner room that was tiny- the toliet was like inches from the sink. you could basically sit on the toliet and probably wash your face at the same time. It was a little amusing. Last time, i had a great room here, with a view overlooking the square. This time, however, i had a view of a brick wall. my coworker had the same, she said it reminded her of little orphan Annie or something. Anyhow- that's our great business trip.

Just even being at the airport had me a little excited for what's to come in December!! We can't wait. I'll post our next day plus a picture of our countdown calendar tomorrow! Time for sleep and getting ready to head back to work tomorrow, night all!

Ok, the part about the cab driver has me completely grossed out. That's the kind of stuff that brings out any level of violence in me! ICK!!!

 

[Tinkermom76]

ewwwwwww I hate creepy cab drivers

 

[exwdwcm]

Ok, the part about the cab driver has me completely grossed out. That's the kind of stuff that brings out any level of violence in me! ICK!!!

ewwwwwww I hate creepy cab drivers

i've travelled a lot in the US for work in the past and this was the creepiest cab driver ever. I've had some bad ones, but he took the cake completely, and that is saying a lot considering how laid back i am (not easily offended etc.). fortunately, my boss is really laid back too and just laughed it off. But i could totally see someone really getting pissed.

 

[exwdwcm]

ANOTHER UPDATE....................FINALLY............

I know, I've been slacking. October is totally nuts for me. AS you saw, just returned from a few days in San Fran for work. Then this weekend was tons of errands and Sunday we visited the big 'flea market' they have in Canton, TX and had a ton of fun shopping with my sisters and mom. Now I am working out final details for my sister's baby shower we are hosting next weekend.

So finally as promised, is a pic of the countdown calendar. My son loves it. Even my DH thinks it is fun and cool. It's simple, but does the job for us. I hung it in the kitchen on the laundry room door, so we can see it easily!

So life is super busy in October- birthday party, baby shower, bunco, parents are moving (we are helping) and two work trips, plus halloween parties. But it will fly by and then we are that much closer to DECEMBER 4th!

So ALERT ALERT ALERT...............we also have more possible changes. So my MIL calls last night and I hear my hubby talking to her and they are talking about possible bringing along my niece or maybe even my nephew. Now I mentioned this as a possibility before, since my MIL's hubby was originally coming and is now out of the picture (divorcing). So our reservation still says 5 and we are in a 1bedroom at BLT. So we could definitely replace him with my niece or nephew. However, i just wish we would know for sure, so I can adjust any plans. All our ADRs are made for 5, except our CLP package, which is for just 4 at Le Cellier, so little chance of getting that changed. If just one of them comes, that is just fine- we would just put DS in my lap for dinner at LC if we need to, we'd make it work. But if both come, that is going to be tough. So i hope they figure it out soon. It would mean the kids missing school too. Hopefully they will decide soon. I wouldn't mind them coming at all, they probably won't get a chance like this on their own, so I know my DH would not mind taking them and even footing the bill. I think we could all fit in the 1bedroom too- me, DH and DS in the master, then MIL and nephew in the pull out, then niece in the twin chair pull out. So, we will just have to wait and see what happens. I guess good thing I haven't bought the MVMCP tickets yet! I still need to do that.

otherwise, the only other items on the to do list are:

• MVMCP tickets- for 12/8 (for 4 of us, 5 or 6????)
• grocery order- figure out where to order from- we've used gardengrocer before and it was great
• rental car- find a good deal with national if possible- again, the headcount will matter here on the size of the car........
• airport transportation at home- hire a car service to pick up or find family to do it for us- not sure anyone is interested in dropping us off for a 6:20am flight.......i probably want to leave the house by 4am!
• room request with member services
• transfer $280 worth of disney visa rewards to a rewards card to use!

We celebrated my son's bday a bit early too a week or so ago. here are a few pics of life as we know it over the last few weeks!

admiring the new dancing mickey (wasn't available yet, i think this week?)

pumpkin patch on saturday

his new big wheel

birthday party (a little early!, so we could share it with his cousin)

 

[Tinker_Tam]

Wow! You have been super busy! It makes the time go so much faster though. Our trips will be here before we know it at this rate!

 

[exwdwcm]

Well another BIG CHANGE in our trip plans. but hey, we can roll with it! I am actually excited, because one of the things i love most about disney world is sharing the magic with newbies! heck, even sharing new parks or new attractions with people that have been, but not on a certain ride etc.

So here we are, taking my little Pooh bear who will be turning 3 and finally really talking well. He will 'get it' more this trip. Then my mother in law (MIL) who has never been. NOW, drum roll please............we are taking my niece too!

Remember all the talk back and forth- now that my MIL is divorcing and her hubby is no longer coming, we had room for a 5th person still. There was talk of inviting my DH's brother, or possibly him and his two kids. That idea was squashed, bad timing. We also talked about taking my DH's other brother's kids. He has 3 kids- 14, 10 and almost 3. The 14yo nephew actually came with us on a beach trip 2 years ago for a week. he had a ball and is a really good kid. They all live in Oklahoma and don't get to go on vacations much, at least not on ones requiring a plane ride. Heck, my nephew had never even seen tall office buildings and was in awe as we drove past downtown dallas. So this will be a DREAM TRIP for my niece, we will just call her L. She didn't come to the beach with us before because they said she would get too homesick.


apparently they aren't worried about this time, especially since her grandma will be with her. So apparently my MIL (L's grandma) saw in one of L's memory books something about how her dream trip or vacation!!!!! too cute, huh? So i just heard from my MIL this am that we are going to take L and it will be a surprise, now not sure when the surprise announcement will be made- prior to the trip or morning of or what. MIL and L will have to drive down to Dallas- about 2.5 hours on Friday night 12/3, as we leave on a 6:20am flight on Saturday, 12/4. So she would know something was up then.

I am very excited for the opportunity to share the magic with her. Since she has a little brother Pooh's age, she will be great with him too. Plus we just like being able to do stuff for the family, especially when they might not have the opportunity otherwise. We can afford to take her, so it is a blessing to be able to do so. She is going to be so darn excited, I cannot wait!!!! So now just waiting on MIL to confirm that I can book her air ticket- our flight is still available at the same price (about $330). I need to buy her an 8 day hopper too. Then the fun stuff- ordering her a cute t-shirt or two, buying some cute little treats for her as well! Can't wait!

So this also means we need to consider a bigger rental car. That is the only bad part. I need to figure out if we could really manage in a full size car or not. 3 adults and 2 kids. We will bring along our own booster seat for Pooh and put that in the back middle. I know we could all fit in the car, but i worry about luggage fitting in the back- keep in mind we will have a stroller. Then luggage for 5 people for 8 days. Of course, we do have a washer/dryer in our room, so we can pack a bit lighter. hmmmmmmmmm.........gotta check out rentals and see what we can do. those mini vans get really expensive.

So that is our latest news. now off to also look at maybe adding a princess meal or BBB!!

 

[khertz]

I'm glad your niece gets to come! That is so great! And as a little girl who had the same done for me by my aunt & uncle, I can say it will be a great experience for her. At the time when my aunt & uncle invited me to go with them, it was supposed to be a once in a lifetime kind of trip, because my parents didn't think they would ever be able to afford a Disney trip. You can see from my signature how that turned out!! But going for that first time with people I adored was such a memorable experience.

 

[Tinker_Tam]

Yaaaa! So happy your niece is going to join you! I hope things go well and she doesn't get homesick... but than again, how could anyone get homesick at Disney???!

 

[Tinkermom76]

That's great that you get to bring your niece with you. I would love to bring my best friends kids but I couldn't handle them in the park 9they are a handful)

 

[exwdwcm]

I'm glad your niece gets to come! That is so great! And as a little girl who had the same done for me by my aunt & uncle, I can say it will be a great experience for her. At the time when my aunt & uncle invited me to go with them, it was supposed to be a once in a lifetime kind of trip, because my parents didn't think they would ever be able to afford a Disney trip. You can see from my signature how that turned out!! But going for that first time with people I adored was such a memorable experience.

Yeah, it will be a lot of fun for her. It will be fun too because we don't get to see them that often, maybe 3-4 times a year, even though they are just like 2.5 hours away. lol at how it turned out.....that's a good thing!

Yaaaa! So happy your niece is going to join you! I hope things go well and she doesn't get homesick... but than again, how could anyone get homesick at Disney???!

Yeah, with her granny there, i think she will do just fine. Plus it has been a few years since she used to get homesick. I am hoping she will have such a great time, she won't even notice. We will have our cell phones and she can talk to mom and dad each night, plus we will post countless pics on facebook, so her parents can also see what she's up to that way. see, social media is good for something afterall other than just eating up all our time.

That's great that you get to bring your niece with you. I would love to bring my best friends kids but I couldn't handle them in the park 9they are a handful)

lol- yeah, fortunately, she is a really good kid. A good student, very polite and really listens to her granny too. I am also very fortunate that my MIL is so great too. I love her and she is so 'go with the flow' and low maintenance. She won't care what we do and will be happy to go along with whatever, and that is how my niece will be too. They will just be having a good time.

 

[exwdwcm]

UPDATE

FLIGHTS
Flight booked! So we are bringing along my 10yo niece now and i just got her flight booked! Managed to get the same flight we booked back in March for the same price, so not too bad. Would have been nice if it was cheaper, but no such luck. We are flying on American, non stop. I think this could be her first time flying ever. I got us all seated together too.
They did recent change our flights. It was originally a 6:55am departure, arriving at 10:20am. Now it is a 6:20am departure, arriving at 9:45am! WOO HOO!!!!!!!i am happy about that, now we get in a little earlier. I am hoping we can get our luggage, head out to the car and arrive at DTD by 11am. Might be pushing it, but I think we can do it if the bags come fast enough. Now it means a VERY early morning that saturday. It takes about 25 minutes to get to DFW from our house. So ideally I'd like to arrive at the airport at least by 5am, preferably 4:45am. When i say arrive, i mean already out of the car. If we decide we need to park a car somewhere or something, we will have to arrive even earlier. I am thinking we will hire a car service though to drive us and drop us at the gate. So a 5am arrival means a 4:30 departure from the house. Build in a few extra minutes for laggers and i say we leave by 4;15am. which means up and at them by 3:15am or so. OUCH!!! but when it comes to disney, we get up early, right, besides we can sleep on the plane? okay, maybe not, too excited.


CAR- i found a decent deal on a car rental too. I love using National at MCO, since I can just walk out, get in the car and go. No waiting at a checkout counter in the airport. Of course you have to check out at the little guard booth when you exit, but you simply show your drivers license and credit card you booked with and you are out in minutes. I love it. So I found a coupon for $25 off and got a full size car for $225 with taxes and all. That is for 8 days, picking up early on saturday 12/4 and delivering back about 4pm on saturday, 12/11. not too bad. The next size up, an SUV was going to be about $400-$500, so we decided we would make it fit in the full size- they usually have a ton of impalas and those have great big trunk space. We'll fit fine in the car itself, it is just luggage I was worried about, but MIL has a solution for that.............shipping hers. We all manage to fit at home in our little cadillac CTS with a car seat in the middle, so i know the full size will be much roomier. We also will purchase a little booster seat for my son to use rather than bringing a full car seat, which was a total pain last year on the plane. We will check it at the gate and he will just sit in a normal seat. I think he'll be fine.

My MIL has decided she is going to ship their luggage down early through work to save room and money on checked bag fees. I am really really going to try my best to NOT overpack, especially since we have a washer/dryer in our one bedroom at BLT. I think my plan will be to wear jeans/tennis shoes and a hoodie on the plane. Then pack 3-4 more pairs of jeans, 2-3 pairs of shorts or capris and t-shirts and a few long sleeves. I'll use the hoodie to layer with as needed. One more pair of tennis shoes to swap out and a pair of flip flops. that's it. bathing suit/pajamas and i am good. I'll have to wash for my son anyhow- as we are about to start potty training, and even wearing pull ups, he sometimes 'leaks'. So i am hoping to pack one large checked suitcase and let my son carry on his little monogrammed cars luggage bag, it is really small (his size) and his backpack. I'll carry on a backapck too- then we have the stroller and booster seat to check at the gate. I might need another carry on or checked bag- we will see how we do. (most likely will).

All of our ADRs are for 5, so we are set there. However, our Candlelight dining package is for a party of 4. I think we will just try and see if they can fit all 5 of us that day. i doubt they can do it now on the reservation, we usually have better luck adding on in person. Plus my son can always sit in my lap if absolutely necessary- not how i want to spend a meal at Le Cellier, but it is doable. He sometimes wants in my lap anyhow.



So that is our latest update. Here are my to do's............

• purchase niece's 8 day hopper
• purchase MVMCP tickets (need to call member services to do this)
• buy t-shirt and goodie bag stuff for niece
• buy booster seat
• provide room request to member services (high floor, even #, north side)
• make goodie bag for MIL
• make grocery list
• find ride to and from airport