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

And these, are the days of our lives.........cue music..........

So there is drama with our trip. Not by any part of my DH or I (or our adorable DS!). You might remember our cast originally included me, DH, my DS-Pooh and then my MIL and her hubby.

Well in a previous update, you heard how hubby (FIL) is now out of the picture. They are in the process of divorcing and there is a restraining order against him now, unfortunate for all involved. Regardless, my lovely MIL is coming still. She is great, I really lucked out in the whole mother in law department. Sad she is going through this though. We already have the reservation for the 5 of us, now we are down to 4. We had even booked and paid for his plane ticket (which he had reimbursed), but it is non refundable and on AA, which gives you little leeway to do anything with it. so he is just stuck with having a ticket he won't use I guess.

Anyhow- so now there were 4..........

so what to do? I mentioned we talked to her about bringing along our nephew, who probably won't ever get to go to WDW. He would have to miss school, but he is repeating a grade this year anyhow. He's struggled in school and is very immature for his age (14)- he lives in a tiny town in OK and had never even seen skyscrapers before he came to stay with us. He's struggled with some family drama of his own too, so he's had a rough go. We thought he might be a good choice. We took him with us to the beach for a week a few summers ago and he is great with kids (he unfortunately gets stuck babysitting his cousins a lot- more drama). AND, we loved being able to see all this new stuff through his eyes- like first time seeing the ocean. so he is a possibility, but he has a sister, who is 10. So would we invite her too? Originally i didn't think we would have room for both, but now i think we would.

Our BLT 1bedroom sleeps officially 5 plus a infant/toddler in a crib. DS 'could' still fit in a crib, but in reality, he would probably sleep in bed with us (which we don't do at home ever though). So that would leave the queen couch for MIL and nephew and the twin foldout bed for the niece. So it could work. So I put that out there as a possibility too. But it means them both missing school and us giving them a magical experience that they wouldn't be able to share with their parents (which I would feel bad about) or their little brother (who is my DS age- almost 3).

Then comes into play more drama. :guilty: My beloved BIL and his wife, who shares my same name (and last name!) have hit a rough patch. They've dated since HS, have two beautiful kids (12 and 6 i think) and a beautiful home and well, just seemed perfect. But we all know everything is not as it seems. they are battling through a trial separation right now and so my MIL mentioned having my BIL come with us. Or him with his two kids. Which is fine, but then we have 7 and not sure we can all fit comfortably in a 1 bedroom. I checked and studios and 2 beds (basically everything) is booked for our dates at BLT. So we got what we got. We could use an air mattress or something, but i hate to go against the 'rules' and over our count for occupancy. My BIL and his wife had talked about doing WDW in December months ago, before I knew about any of this anyhow. So i don't know- i put the idea out there for him- we could cram in, but they wouldn't be able to eat with us. I tried to get additional ADRs to match up to ours or extend our ADRs from 5 to 7 and there is nothing available for the same times. So they would have to eat on their own a lot too.

So there is that option. I also mentioned them just getting their own room at a value and get free dining too. So we will see. I think he is going through so much right now, that thinking about a WDW trip is the LAST thing on his mind............unfortunately, it is the first thing on mine.

I can't finalize our ADRs until I know who is going- and how many. I still need to book Hacienda when ADRs open for it and the CP package (hoping for Le Cellier). So do i book those for 4, 5, 6 or 7???? AHHHHHHHHHHH shoot me now. Right now, i have no clue on the headcount. I guess I could jsut book like 7 to be safe and then try and down size later (or as a CM told me when i tried to downsize, just show up with less and that is easier).

In addition, DH wanted to do the WISHES dessert party- the only night we could would be on MVMCP night- 12/9, can't book it until i know who and how many. Same for MVMCP, can't book it yet.

so i am a little frustrated. And in the grand scheme of things, my frustration is just nothing compared to what my MIL and BIL are going through right now. It really hurts my heart to hear it all. But i hope i get an answer soon so we I can finalize our plans.

It might end up just being me, DH, Pooh and my MIL, which is fine. But i hate wasting a one bedroom when we could have fit in a studio- that would have saved us half our points. But oh well, what is done is done. We can't change now, like i said, almost everything is booked up at BLT and we don't want to move from there since it is our first stay 'home'.

So here I sit, twiddling my thumbs and anxiously awaiting an answer of some kind, any kind- 4, 5, 6 or 7. Or heck, if they work things out, it could be 8, but in that case, they would HAVE to get their own room.

anyhow- i was able to get an additional ADR for 3 more for our Crystal Palace breakfast on the first full day- just in case. And i was able to get an additional ADR for lunch at Coral Reef for 7 as well. so that would be two meals they could do if BIL joins us. Plus I haven't booked Hacienda yet, so that would be another. I have some nights doublebooked, so they could use those, just another restaurant. So we will see

keep your fingers crossed i get an answer soon. We are exactly 4 months away now!!!
 
OMG!! My head is spinning.:confused: I am so sorry that your family is having such a rough time. I hope you will be able to work out all your plans soon.:hug:
 
Those pictures are so cute!! I wish we did something like that for work; but yeah right, at a law firm? Ha ha ha!

Hoping to meet up soon!!!
yes, can't wait to meet up for a little dallas dis'ers meet!

OMG!! My head is spinning.:confused: I am so sorry that your family is having such a rough time. I hope you will be able to work out all your plans soon.:hug:
i know, totally spinning, right? :confused3

yep, rough all around, except us, we are all good. :thumbsup2
 
ANOTHER UPDATE

We are ANNUAL PASSHOLDERS!! :thumbsup2:woohoo::woohoo::woohoo::woohoo::woohoo::woohoo:

annualpass-200.jpg


I purchased 2 adult annual passes for DH and I last night to beat the impending price increase today. Since we are DVC, we got the DVC rate, but still cost us about $833 or so i think. This is the first time I have had an AP, so very excited! We will be purchasing the Tables in Wonderland (TIW) card too- but i think we do that when we activate it at guest services. We did not purchase an AP for Pooh yet. We are on the fence about purchasing him a ticket. DH doesn't want too. I know it is a big debate here, so i won't go into it or the ethics of it. In the end, i want to purchase him one. DH doesn't, so we will figure it out. It would be like another $350 and he turns 3 literally just a month before our trip. We are celebrating his bday on the trip and DH wants to say he turns 3 on the trip. I know, I know what the rules are and am trying to convince DH we should do the right thing. He is cheap, what can I say. So we are fighting the battle and will figure it out later. And I understand his argument, it is a big chunk of change to consider- almost $400. and as he says, they already got $23k from us this year for our DVC purchase.....i guess he doesn't want to dish out more. lol :lmao: In the meantime, i wanted to get at least DH and I all set on the APs. We will figure out the rest later. I know, the drama and the debate- it is a hot one- as hot as the pool hopping controversy, refillable mugs or taking kids out of school......:rotfl::confused3

As it turns out- my MIL called last night and said that BIL just can't make a decision right now- he just has too much on his plate and so to count them out and move forward. So for now, we are just planning on the four of us then- MIL, me, DH and Pooh. Which is fine. Usually my trips are the whole extended family- like at least 7-14 of us. so a smaller group will be nice- easier to be flexible and move around. All of my ADRs are for 5. I am just leaving them. I know to change them to 4, i will have to cancel and rebook and I know i won't get the times I want. So we will just show up with 4. we've done it before when someone got sick during a trip and it isn't a big deal to show up with less.
 

I can't believe I never subscribed to your PTR. What the heck is wrong with me. I'm in now though, hope you can put up with me.

but things were different this trip- we had our son. Baby changes everything right? Right. It really did. We had a blast and I think my DH saw how much fun our son was having (at the ripe old age of 26 months- as much fun as a toddler can have) and decided Disney IS pretty magical.

Nothing like seeing Disney through the eyes of a child.

So my concerns are that we are doing Chef Mickey's on our last day, that way we don't have to rush around on another day, competing with park time. but i worry it is our last day and maybe i should move it up?
We are doing Chef Mickeys on the last day as well, although I’m going at 7:45 am.
 
Love your report so far! We too are DVC and my DH was totally against it before we left for our first trip to WDW. 2 days into our stay at Pop he signed on the dotted line. I went thinking it would probably be a one time trip to leaving with 210 AKV points. When we went back for our 10th anniversary with no kids DH bought me 130 SSR point for my gift. Gotta love having a Disney loving DH even though he will never admit to it LOL
 
WOW I just got caught up and my head is spinning too, and I thought I had a lot of drama in my family. I hope everything works out for everyone.

Great plans so far!!!!
 
/
Hey, you need a 5th person. I am your "man"!;) Count me in. I'll even do a little babysitting for Pooh.:rotfl: There, problem solved!
 
ANOTHER UPDATE

We are ANNUAL PASSHOLDERS!! :thumbsup2:woohoo::woohoo::woohoo::woohoo::woohoo::woohoo:

I purchased 2 adult annual passes for DH and I last night to beat the impending price increase today. Since we are DVC, we got the DVC rate, but still cost us about $833 or so i think. This is the first time I have had an AP, so very excited! We will be purchasing the Tables in Wonderland (TIW) card too- but i think we do that when we activate it at guest services. We did not purchase an AP for Pooh yet. We are on the fence about purchasing him a ticket. DH doesn't want too. I know it is a big debate here, so i won't go into it or the ethics of it. In the end, i want to purchase him one. DH doesn't, so we will figure it out. It would be like another $350 and he turns 3 literally just a month before our trip. We are celebrating his bday on the trip and DH wants to say he turns 3 on the trip. I know, I know what the rules are and am trying to convince DH we should do the right thing. He is cheap, what can I say. So we are fighting the battle and will figure it out later. And I understand his argument, it is a big chunk of change to consider- almost $400. and as he says, they already got $23k from us this year for our DVC purchase.....i guess he doesn't want to dish out more. lol :lmao: In the meantime, i wanted to get at least DH and I all set on the APs. We will figure out the rest later. I know, the drama and the debate- it is a hot one- as hot as the pool hopping controversy, refillable mugs or taking kids out of school......:rotfl::confused3

As it turns out- my MIL called last night and said that BIL just can't make a decision right now- he just has too much on his plate and so to count them out and move forward. So for now, we are just planning on the four of us then- MIL, me, DH and Pooh. Which is fine. Usually my trips are the whole extended family- like at least 7-14 of us. so a smaller group will be nice- easier to be flexible and move around. All of my ADRs are for 5. I am just leaving them. I know to change them to 4, i will have to cancel and rebook and I know i won't get the times I want. So we will just show up with 4. we've done it before when someone got sick during a trip and it isn't a big deal to show up with less.

Ok...finally all caught up now! And I'm glad things seem to be finally settling down with the plans. :goodvibes

I'm finding that reading all these PTRs is making me want to make changes in my own plans....arrrgh! pirate:
 
Love your report so far! We too are DVC and my DH was totally against it before we left for our first trip to WDW. 2 days into our stay at Pop he signed on the dotted line. I went thinking it would probably be a one time trip to leaving with 210 AKV points. When we went back for our 10th anniversary with no kids DH bought me 130 SSR point for my gift. Gotta love having a Disney loving DH even though he will never admit to it LOL
lol, i saw the story in your PTR- so cool!! isn't it great to know you always have another trip to come- even if it is in a year or two, at least it is there! something to always look forward to. Hopefully our DH's are slowly becoming disney-ized!;)

WOW I just got caught up and my head is spinning too, and I thought I had a lot of drama in my family. I hope everything works out for everyone.

Great plans so far!!!!
thanks so much! lol, there is always someone with more drama. :rotfl:

Hey, you need a 5th person. I am your "man"!;) Count me in. I'll even do a little babysitting for Pooh.:rotfl: There, problem solved!
lol- love it! It is hard trying to fill just one slot...everyone is a couple or if i invite one niece, i have to invite another etc. etc. Yeah, so it might just be us 4.

Ok...finally all caught up now! And I'm glad things seem to be finally settling down with the plans. :goodvibes

I'm finding that reading all these PTRs is making me want to make changes in my own plans....arrrgh! pirate:
slowly settling down---let's hope anyway! I know, i keep seeing other's ADRs and wanting to change mine!:rotfl2:
 
what a busy weekend, but there is some disney trip news!

So got an email from AA that our flight changed. We booked this flight almost 8 months ago since we saw a good price and feared we wouldn't find better. Really the cheapest i have seen direct to MCO from DFW on AA (who we prefer to fly since it is our hub) is about $200. So we booked something at 239. With crazy high flight prices this last year, we figured it was pretty good (and we refuse to connect with a toddler). so it has been booked a while now.

Well our original flight departed at 6:55am.......now it departs at 6:20am! OUCH, but good, since we get in now at 9:45am instead of 10:20 am. just means we can hopefully get our bags, rental car and be at DTD for lunch at Earle by say 11am or so! We use National car rental usually, and i am emerald aisle, so there is no waiting, just pick a car, get in and go! love it. now to find a good rental deal.

I also booked us at Via Napoli! Not sure i want to keep this one or not, but i wanted to go ahead and get something there just in case. Once we get our CP package figured out, i can finalize our list at last! so far the menu looks good, so we might try it instead of tutto Italia. Any opinions there?

Hopefully we will buy our MVMCP tickets in the next month or so. I don't think our 'date' will sell out, but still want to get them a bit early. But once again, how many to buy? lol.......i figure by the end of this month, we will make a final call on that and decide if it is just the four of us or not.
 
I am planning on buying my MVMCP tickets at the end of August or in September. I don't think our date will be sold out either, I just can't resist :laughing: Do they send them to you in the mail, or do you get them when you check in?
 
what a busy weekend, but there is some disney trip news!

So got an email from AA that our flight changed. We booked this flight almost 8 months ago since we saw a good price and feared we wouldn't find better. Really the cheapest i have seen direct to MCO from DFW on AA (who we prefer to fly since it is our hub) is about $200. So we booked something at 239. With crazy high flight prices this last year, we figured it was pretty good (and we refuse to connect with a toddler). so it has been booked a while now.

Well our original flight departed at 6:55am.......now it departs at 6:20am! OUCH, but good, since we get in now at 9:45am instead of 10:20 am. just means we can hopefully get our bags, rental car and be at DTD for lunch at Earle by say 11am or so! We use National car rental usually, and i am emerald aisle, so there is no waiting, just pick a car, get in and go! love it. now to find a good rental deal.

I also booked us at Via Napoli! Not sure i want to keep this one or not, but i wanted to go ahead and get something there just in case. Once we get our CP package figured out, i can finalize our list at last! so far the menu looks good, so we might try it instead of tutto Italia. Any opinions there?

Hopefully we will buy our MVMCP tickets in the next month or so. I don't think our 'date' will sell out, but still want to get them a bit early. But once again, how many to buy? lol.......i figure by the end of this month, we will make a final call on that and decide if it is just the four of us or not.
You get to leave a half an hour sooner, that's just bonus Dinsey Time.

I looked at Via Napoli, but with an 8 and 4 year old, it just isn't worth it to eat at places like that.

Good luck with the MVMCP tickets.
I am planning on buying my MVMCP tickets at the end of August or in September. I don't think our date will be sold out either, I just can't resist :laughing: Do they send them to you in the mail, or do you get them when you check in?

I got my tickets delivered to me. I think it costs $5 or something. Nothing special on them though, they look just like my park tickets.
 
I am planning on buying my MVMCP tickets at the end of August or in September. I don't think our date will be sold out either, I just can't resist :laughing: Do they send them to you in the mail, or do you get them when you check in?
yep, we got ours mailed to us and loved having them early! :santa: of course who doesn't love disney mail! :confused3:rotfl:

You get to leave a half an hour sooner, that's just bonus Dinsey Time.

I looked at Via Napoli, but with an 8 and 4 year old, it just isn't worth it to eat at places like that.

Good luck with the MVMCP tickets.


I got my tickets delivered to me. I think it costs $5 or something. Nothing special on them though, they look just like my park tickets.
yes! more disney time!! hopefully the little one will sleep on the plane, it is about a 2 hour flight.

I have it booked, but not sure if we will keep it or not. My ADRs are still a mess-----until the CP package is finalized, i just don't know what we will keep or not. DS likes pizza, so i figured he can share some with me at VN! :wizard:
 
DAY ONE- ARRIVAL- (REDUX!!)

So to make this PTR more fun and interesting for any readers i might have left........i've take a cue from another report and will include some fun photos as I describe our day's plans! so we are going to 'redo' day 1!

And so, our day begins at 3am probably..........we just received word from AA that our 6:55am flight was bumped up to 6:20am! aaarrrggghhh! love the extra time in Disney, but dang.....early!! Okay, so my MIL will drive down from Oklahoma (about 2.5 hours) to our home in Plano, TX and spend the night!

Since we are travelling with a toddler and I have missed 2 flights before in my life- both due to my DH who hates to get there early and wait..........well i plan to get there early and wait. no missing this flight daddy! no sir! so with a 6:20am flight, i would like to be at the counter/gate checking our bags about 4:30 am, this gives us time to get through security and grab a bite before boarding at 5:50am. So depending on if we find a ride, book a limo service or what, we will need the house by at least 4am if not earlier (if parking off site). I am seriously considering a car service again. I did one for our last trip and it was about $200 RT. Not too bad. Just parking our car at off site parking will probably run close to half that. But we will have to wait on a stupid shuttle back and forth (which is what made us miss our flight to Vegas last year). So I think I want to consider the car service, make it easy.
PicForNewsletterDallasNov2006Airport.JPG


So we are tired, but fed and happy and ready!
ry%3D400

we board the plane and pray our little one doesn't act up and embarrass us! j/k! He has been pretty good on flights to date. Let's hope a little coloring, DVD and games keep him busy, or maybe he will even sleep.
ry%3D400


We touch down here at 9:45am!!! woo hoo!
200808-fscloud9-orlando-airport-0.jpg


Then it is off to baggage, which hopefully takes under 20 minutes. You never know at MCO. Then off to our rental car, which is yet to be booked. IF we book at my favorite, National, then we just pick our car, get in and go! here's hoping i can find a good rate.
national-emeraldclub.gif


Then it is off the 20 minute drive on 528 to I-4 (I just like going this way!) and boom we are quickly right under these!
3521276767_61d543f52a.jpg


hopefully by now it is about 11am. We will exit 535 and head to DTD and begin the long search for a parking space. Man i LOATHE parking down here. But the bus rides here are just as bad. it is a lose-lose! :confused3 So we park and head in to my favorite place for some grub!
Earl-of-Sandwich-Logo.jpg


After a nice sandwich, tomato soup (love it!) and drink, we will explore DTD a little bit. Probably order a personalized ornament for my parents at the christmas store (and us!) and hit up Goofy's candy company for a treat.
ry%3D400


i also want to see if they have any crocs for DS, don't have to be disney even, but finding crocs that we like in his size is hard! plus we want to try them on in person!

Hopefully around 1 or 1:30pm, we will be ready to head over to our new home away from home:
bay-lake-tower_night41667318.jpg

BAY LAKE TOWER!

We will head over to the front desk (in the Contemporary) to check in (although i will do online check in before we leave). We will pick up our keys and head over! We will spend some time exploring our lovely one bedroom- we have the master with DS and MIL will have the couch pull out. Instead of doing a grocery stop, i might just order groceries online and have them delivered, so we would check on the delivery of those too!
imgres

imgres


After exploring and unpacking a bit, we will freshen up (after maybe trying to let Pooh nap a bit?) and head to Epcot for the evening! our first real park visit! how do we get there?
markiv_exiting_contemporary.thumbnail.jpg


Once at Epcot, we might try SE first as we enter, usually lines aren't too bad in late afternoon. Then maybe see how TT or Mission Space look. We won't even attempt Soarin this late in the day (without a FP anyhow). We will probably just take in some atmosphere and go slow and start heading by the world showcase. I am still hoping to get an ADR for the new Hacienda restaurant for maybe around 8 or 8:30pm.


We hope to get a patio table and view this from our seats!
wsc-illuminations.jpg


then it is back to the monorail and room for a little shut eye- actually a lot! I know we will be exhausted since we are up at 3am! Here we are:
ry%3D400

 
Love the pictures!!!!

Wow that will be a long first day, I would not make it:sad2:
no kidding, now that i typed it all out, i am exhausted just looking at it! lol i guess we better make sure we are all in bed early (hello tylenol PM) like 8 or 9pm! I would say we can sleep on the plane, but I'll be too darn excited. Hopefully DS will though. when I am in disney, i somehow find the energy though.

Day 1 looks awesome!!:woohoo:
thanks!!!:thumbsup2

3521276767_61d543f52a.jpg


What a beautiful sight.
Don't you just love it! I have yet to stop and get a good pic! i think i need to this trip.
 
I got curious, so I looked at my pics from my 2007 trip, and I didn't get a picture of that either. I wonder if I can stop the ME so I can get a pic.
 














Save Up to 30% on Rooms at Walt Disney World!

Save up to 30% on rooms at select Disney Resorts Collection hotels when you stay 5 consecutive nights or longer in late summer and early fall. Plus, enjoy other savings for shorter stays.This offer is valid for stays most nights from August 1 to October 11, 2025.
CLICK HERE







New Posts







DIS Facebook DIS youtube DIS Instagram DIS Pinterest

Back
Top