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

[exwdwcm]

Girl, you sure can shop! Great pics of "Pooh"!

lol, yes, it can be a very bad thing at times!

Hi! Stumbled across your trip report and PTR and saw you will be in the World in December at almost the same time as us. We are going Dec 5-12 and staying the last four nights at BLT 1 bedroom. So after the 8th, we might cross paths. We have an almost 2.5 year old and this will be her third trip...can you say spoiled. We bought in at BLT in January after our December trip in 2009 and this is our first trip to BLT. We stayed on DVC points at AKV-Kidani for a weekend in May and it was a blast. Once you go DVC, it would be super hard to do value or even moderate again. It is SO worth it.

Will be tagging along for the rest of your PTR and maybe meet you soon.

Meredith

how funny! we also were there in dec 09 and did the tour then. we ended up buying in January as well! This is our first BLT trip and pooh's second trip. yes, they are spoiled, aren't they!? very cool, we just might have to meet up at BLT then. i think we are going to try and catch the fireworks from the TOW lounge one night. thanks for reading along!!

HI!! Back from the beach and all caught up! How great that your son takes swim lessons. How old is he again? I am thinking of signing up my 2 1/2 year old.

That Mickey DID look like Mighty Mouse I am sure he loved seeing him, though!

loved your beach pics!! He is 2.5- will be 3 on October 30th. He has been in swim since about 6 months old. He loves it!

 

[HeatherBelle614]

We did the last show, which I've completely blanked on. But, it ended right before Illuminations began. It was the best time slot for the dinner ADR that we wanted, too. (They make you eat so early for the earlier shows!)

 

[exwdwcm]

FOURTH OF JULY

So we had a great long weekend. I wish every weekend was a 3 day weekend!

We started off Saturday morning by taking Pooh to his FIRST movie! Now, this is the kid that won't watch more than 10 minutes of tv. He simply won't sit still, he just loves playing with his toys more than he likes watching tv. So i was a bit nervous about it, but he did great. My sister joined us. He even left on the 3D glasses the entire time. He loved his popcorn and was good the first hour. Then he got a little restless, so we went and walked the hallway for a few minutes and then he was okay again. He did keep trying to 'talk' loudly during the movie- like pointing stuff out on screen. or the toy phone rang and he would just say 'hello, hello, hello' over and over. surprisingly, there were not a ton of kids in this theatre, mostly adults, so i felt bad when he talked and took him outside for a few minutes. but overall he did great, for a 2.5yo!

and yes, he brought his stuffed Woody doll we got at Kohl's!

We had a big cookout (more of a cook in thanks to the rain from Alex) with family and friends. Sunday am, we hit our local water park where we are season pass holders. Pooh loves it there. He is fearless! We usually just stay a couple of hours, that is plenty to wear out a 2yo, plus he is extremely fair skinned like his daddy, and don't want him to burn.

Sunday night, we did catch some fireworks- he loved the 'booms booms' as we call them, of course no fireworks compare to WDW! we just saw our local city fireworks, we missed the biggest show around the DFW area the night before though- the Addison fireworks are in the top 5 in the country and only 10 minutes away, but the traffic is a nightmare and we weren't sure if the rain would hold off or not.

Monday, we both had off work. I finally got to see Eclipse. yes, i am one of those twilight people. not a total crazy. I don't really care for the movies much at all- i am not a big fan of Kristen Stewart or R Pattinson at all. but it is fun to see the book come to life. We spent some time outside playing with Pooh's water table that afternoon.

overall a fabulous 4th of July weekend!!! And last night, Pooh kept asking, 'I go eat with Pooh bear?'. we've been promising him he can eat with Pooh bear at disney world and he can't wait!! He asked again this am. Now I am wondering if i should schedule two meals at CP? one might not be enough!

 

[HeatherBelle614]

Looks like a fun 4th!

What did you think of Eclipse? I hate the actors too, so I normally rent them.

I definitely think you should schedule another CP meal! Have you taken him to dinner there? It's really pretty at night!

 

[exwdwcm]

Looks like a fun 4th!

What did you think of Eclipse? I hate the actors too, so I normally rent them.

I definitely think you should schedule another CP meal! Have you taken him to dinner there? It's really pretty at night!

it was okay, but then again, i didn't have high expectations and it isn't winning as oscar or anything. It is a pet peeve of mine when the movie takes too much liberty with a book or changes too much. I felt they had some things out of order in the movie and that bugged me a bit. But oh well. Again, i usually see the movies just to see the 'book' come to life. i do have to say, i am team Carlisle!

We haven't done dinner at CP- is it any good?

 

[exwdwcm]

okay, so as promised, here are a few pics of things we bought at the warehouse sale. I actually got a lot of disneyland stuff, but since we are going in September (just the girls), i thought why not?

i got some lanyards and a DL autograph book.

got this cute sweatshirt (DL again)

And, here are some pics of the homemade autograph book i made last year- we used it on our December 09 trip.

i need to go back and trim a few pages better!

 

[DWGal210]

Hi Michelle! I am here! Now going back to read the 1st 5 pages. YEAH for 1st DVC trip - WOO HOO!

 

[ThereYouSeeHer]

All caught up and subscribing!

By the way, I love the picture of Mickey Mouse that looks like Mighty Mouse. That is so funny! And it's great when kids are at an age where they don't pick up on things like that!

 

[creativeamanda]

Subscribing! I would love to own DVC, although I think SSR would be more my taste.

Also, as far as Eclipse goes--I just think Kristin Stewart seems less conflicted as Bella and more like she has a toothache the whole time.

But I'm a Harry Potter kind of gal, myself--can't wait until November.

 

[exwdwcm]

Hi Michelle! I am here! Now going back to read the 1st 5 pages. YEAH for 1st DVC trip - WOO HOO!

welcome!!! thank you so much for reading. We are VERY excited about our first stay 'home'!!! it is a dream come true for me.

All caught up and subscribing!

By the way, I love the picture of Mickey Mouse that looks like Mighty Mouse. That is so funny! And it's great when kids are at an age where they don't pick up on things like that!

lol- i know, I've actually seen a worse mickey than that though, much worse, like scary clown looking almost. Pooh is young enough that he didn't notice. Although this mickey did 'talk'. And was a very talented balloon artist. who knew?

Subscribing! I would love to own DVC, although I think SSR would be more my taste.

Also, as far as Eclipse goes--I just think Kristin Stewart seems less conflicted as Bella and more like she has a toothache the whole time.

But I'm a Harry Potter kind of gal, myself--can't wait until November.

lol, that is a great description of Bella vs Kristin Stewart. It is almost painful sometimes.

My sis is a BIG HP fan too. She can't wait to get out to Universal one day and see it. We will probably wait until Pooh is older to go back to Universal. can you tell i have a really hard time leaving WDW? It's crazy how much we pack in 7-10 days, and I still feel like i can't give up a day for Universal, sea world or the beach. Heck, even fitting in a water park day is tough. i think we might try a beach day and/or water park day in October 2011 though.

DVC is a dream for me. never even gave it a second thought. it is something i knew DH would NOT consider. This is the man that literally saves every penny he possibly can. He is a saving nut! He does a lot of stock trading on his own and therefore puts a lot of money into that (long term). so far, we've done really well. So DVC wasn't something i ever even thought to mention- since it doesn't 'make a return'. to my delight, he was actually agreeable to do the tour and when he seriously was considering buying, my jaw dropped to say the least. it still seems like a dream! It is our 10 year anniversary present to ourselves! We hope to have it all paid off by the end of year, so then we will just pay the maintenance fee each year and that's it!!! then we can just go and enjoy!!! I can tell you- people at work and people that don't get why we go back to disney, look at me like i have two heads when i tell them we own DVC.

 

[creativeamanda]

Wow-- that does sound like a dream. I would absolutely love it. . .dh and I are both teachers up for National Board Certification. I think if we gain our National Boards, we'll spring for DVC--the pay increase would pay for enough points to stay at the grand villa 2 weeks a year (of course we would not go that far with it)

As far as HP goes, we continually plan to do HP, but it never gets out of the planning stage. I think I'll have to do Universal before the trip as a separate minitrip from Disney.

 

[exwdwcm]

TRIP UPDATE

Well as you know, FREE DINING came out this week for December. It isn't good for our week anyhow, but as you know, if you are staying on DVC points, you don't qualify for any other discounts like FD. Oh well- it was fun while it lasted! I've used FD twice and it was great both times, but a LOT of food.

We will have a one bedroom lakeview with a full kitchen at BLT, so we can cook and eat in for some meals. To save a little money, we also plan:

• to buy APs for me, DH and Pooh. We plan to go back in October 2011, so we can use them then too. We do get the DVC discount on our APs and it will give us some other discounts on merchandise or food at certain locations
• to buy the Tables in Wonderland (TIW) card- never used this or even knew much about it until now. For $75, we purchase the card (must have an AP to do so) and can get 20% off most sit down meals (a few exclusions), plus any alcohol we have with our meal too! and it is good for our entire party. I did some rough numbers on the meals we have booked and estimated prices for what we would probably order and it is definitely a better deal to buy the TIW card than to buy the dining plan (which we have the option to do, we just don't get it free). So I am looking forward to the TIW card too! Another first for us. even with paying for the $75, i calculated we would save a whole lot more and still pay for the card.

and lastly- we are still waiting to figure out who is going to be our 5th person on the trip. Originally it was my MIL and her hubby. But plans have changed and he is no longer joining us (sadly, they are divorcing). in the end, i think it is best for her given what 'led' to the divorce, but now we have to figure out who is our #5. OUr room can hold 5. There isn't really sense in us keeping a one bedroom for just 3 adults and a child. But not sure i want to move to a studio (and figure out all the rules for doing so within DVC). It would save us over 100 points, as the one bedroom was 224 points. But DH told his mom she could pick who she wants to come with us. I am hoping she will invite my nephew. But so far, no mention. I just want to get back to planning and start buying our MVMCP tickets etc. I won't do that until we know for sure who is coming, if anyone.

My nephew would have a blast. He is a teenager, but very immature for his age. he lives in a tiny town in OK and hasn't seen much of the world. In fact, we brought him here for a weekend and he amazed at the buildings in dallas. he had never seen skyscrapers. So WDW would be totally insane to him! I think it would be a good opportunity for him. Of course he would have to miss school though, which is a big deal. He is repeating 8th grade though (due to many issues). I think the trip would be good 'ammunition' to use to keep him motivated in school too. We will just have to see what happens and who she chooses!! i can't wait!!!

 

[creativeamanda]

Those are some big updates! I've done the whole AP/TIW number crunch, as well. So much so, I think I will get an AP this trip. I'll just have to do the number crunch again. Last year, it did not work out in my favor by about $20.

I hope your nephew gets to go.

 

[exwdwcm]

Wow-- that does sound like a dream. I would absolutely love it. . .dh and I are both teachers up for National Board Certification. I think if we gain our National Boards, we'll spring for DVC--the pay increase would pay for enough points to stay at the grand villa 2 weeks a year (of course we would not go that far with it)

As far as HP goes, we continually plan to do HP, but it never gets out of the planning stage. I think I'll have to do Universal before the trip as a separate minitrip from Disney.

well i know how hard teachers work- my sis is one for special education HS children. So here is hoping it all works out so you can splurge on DVC!!! actually that isn't a bad idea, to do a separate side trip where you do everything else.

Those are some big updates! I've done the whole AP/TIW number crunch, as well. So much so, I think I will get an AP this trip. I'll just have to do the number crunch again. Last year, it did not work out in my favor by about $20.

I hope your nephew gets to go.

glad to know i am not the only one. i even went as far as looking at the menus and selecting what we would probably eat. WE don't typically order appetizers or dessert- we only get dessert when it is FD. i am sure we will splurge for a few desserts here and there though, but not every meal like we would with FD. heck, even with only including 6 restaurants when i did the original calculation, we would save $150. So $150 minus the $75 for the card and we are still saving $75. Plus, now we have at least 7-8 sit down meals scheduled, so the savings will only increase. Guess i need to re-calculate! we've since decided to try for the new Mexico sit down our first night as well as either Tutto Italia or something else in Epcot.

 

[amandatym]

Wow, BLT. I'm so jealous!
We'll be there in Dec, too (the 12-17th), also with a little one (our son will be 22 months when we're there). We were so glad to get the FD!!
Good luck with all your planning. I can't wait to read more!

 

[BippityBoo]

Great shopping finds!! I just LOVE the autograph book you made I am sorry to hear about your MIL. I hope it works out with your nephew!

 

[exwdwcm]

Wow, BLT. I'm so jealous!
We'll be there in Dec, too (the 12-17th), also with a little one (our son will be 22 months when we're there). We were so glad to get the FD!!
Good luck with all your planning. I can't wait to read more!

What's funny is that DH an I are totally traditional type people when it comes to our style. Modern/contemporary is so NOT us. But he loved the monorail access and proximity to MK especially since we have a toddler (and hoping for another kiddo maybe next year). We are looking forward to it. yeah for FD, i will miss it, but we will just have to pay out of pocket for meals and use the kitchen. I figure that might make us relax a bit more than usual by resting in the room more. I am known to be a little commando. No, not in reference to underwear!

Great shopping finds!! I just LOVE the autograph book you made I am sorry to hear about your MIL. I hope it works out with your nephew!

thank you! It was pretty easy and loads of fun. Yep, we will just have to see what happens on guest #5. She also has a close girlfriend she could always invite too i guess!

 

[exwdwcm]

Well picked up a few more things today and bought a little container to start my disney box again! The one for last year filled up quickly as my mom bought us so much stuff in advance!

I try and NOT buy Pooh anymore t-shirts, I swear he has like 25 disney themed t-shirts now and his day care must think we are nuts since he wears disney all the time. I actually have quite a collection myself.

But i did buy some toiletries- some laundry detergent, toothpaste and shout. Slowly buy here and there, so it isn't a huge expense before the trip. I even found a cute little toiletry bag from l'oreal for like $4 at walmart for shampoo and stuff. I do have lanyards for everyone and pins for me or Pooh to trade, although he is too little to really do it yet.

So Katie, your organization tips were so great! I thought I would post some of what we do to stay organized on vacation. I am a certified type-A personality. In fact, I had a roommate once that would get so mad when I would 'clean up'. Him and his girlfriend would leave their shoes downstairs all over the living room. Like 6 pairs at a time. drove me nuts, so i'd take them upstairs and place them nicely inside their bedroom door. One day I couldn't find my comforter- it was missing off the bed- he had hidden it as a lesson for me not to clean up his stuff. how about just picking up after yourself instead?

So PACKING
We actually own a set of these adorable suitcases

I have the black set. It is so nice so far. I've used it for disney in December and a few business trips. I haven't really used that smaller bag yet though, since we take bigger bags for carry-ons and don't want to shell out $20 to check something so small. We typically fly AA out of DFW (15 minutes away or so) and of course they charge for bags. I think i paid like $50 for the set on sale and it is pretty durable.

Last year we made a big mistake on packing. i always overpack, no big surprise there and will do better this year. Plus this year we won't have all the sippy cups to deal with and who knows, maybe not as many diapers if Pooh suddenly decides to use the potty on his own. But we did check two bags I think, plus we hand carried the stroller (checked at gate), car seat (used it on the plane), our mickey bag pack, a rolling small suitcase (CARS and embroidered with his name) for Pooh, plus another carry on. With the heavy and awkward car seat, that was a pain. We won't be taking the car seat this time. We will rent one at the car rental place instead.

speaking of backpack- i also ordered a custom embroidered backpack on the disney site last year. it has our last name and mickey on it. It is pretty durable too- black and has two side pockets for water bottles etc. Plus like 3 main compartments, then some smaller ones within each. I found it perfect to use as our one and only day bag- we carried diapers, cups, snacks, camera, ponchos, first aid kit, water, itinerary, autograph books, hats etc. It worked great and DH carried it most of the time.

In addition- we used space bags my mom bought. They weren't the kind you had to use the vacuum with, you simply just rolled all the air out of the bag by hand and it did the trick!

 

[HeatherBelle614]

CP has a pretty good dinner bar; you'll definitely be able to find something. I like it a lot better than CM, that's for sure! (The last few times we went to CM, it was just bleh!)

Love the autograph book! Did you just use scrap book paper? How did you get it bound?

 

[exwdwcm]

CP has a pretty good dinner bar; you'll definitely be able to find something. I like it a lot better than CM, that's for sure! (The last few times we went to CM, it was just bleh!)

Love the autograph book! Did you just use scrap book paper? How did you get it bound?

interesting, we will have to keep that in mind if we feel the urge to see Pooh twice! From the pics I have seen, CP does look a lot better than CM for dinner.

Yes, we just used card stock in colors and then used scrap paper over it to decorate along with stickers, stamps etc. My cousin does all the creative memories and stampin up stuff, so she had a binder we used. A kinko's would be able to do it for you though too.