DIS Divas, Take Two & Tyler....WooHoo!! COMPLETED!...OVER 1400 PICS!!

[DizNee Luver]

Great update! That looks like a lot of fun. And how nice would that extra $147 be to spend at CoD! Haha.

The Meet-n-Greet is tons of fun & usually one of the best attended events during the weekend.

I'm sure everyone was hoping for that extra spending cash!!!

 

[DizNee Luver]

The next thing up was the Villain gift exchange. If the ladies wanted to participate, they needed to bring a wrapped gift to the party. The theme this year was villains. A lot of us had issues finding items, unless you lived local to Disneyland. My number was drawn first.....so I zoned right in on a Jack Skellington tote bag!! I asked if I was supposed to share what was in the bag & people said yes....so I did. Next thing I hear is Capri saying....no, we don't open until the end. Since the exchange is done in the style of a White Elephant exchange......my bag was "frozen" so no one could take it since they had seen what was inside. The gift stealing ensued with all the other ladies as I sat knowing my giftbag was safe! There were some really neat gifts but there was a real theme for some of the bags: "Fairest of All: A Tale of the Wicked Queen" (book) There must have been 5-8 ladies that ended up with this book. I found a villain's mug at the Disney Store & then I added a $15 Starbucks giftcard. Bridget got my gift.

This is what I got!! (from Katie)

LOVED it ALL!!!!

I borrowed this picture from one of the Diva's. This was me showing off my loot!!!

Lisa made a thank you gift for everyone of the ladies on a committee.....she made labels for the little Hershey Nugget chocolates & then made cute little boxes.

With the game, thank you's, gift exchange & dinner were completed.....it was finally time to hit the snack table!!!

Here was my name/toe tag!!

After the ladies got through the snack line, it was time for clean up & to either head back to your motel or gather at Trader Sam's for drinks. I would have loved to have joined the group going over.....but I was exhausted. Ty sent me a text saying he hadn't eaten dinner yet (and I hadn't either)....so we met at the Ihop & had a late dinner. We were both so tired, by the time our food arrived.....we just didn't care. We ate a little & drug our tired bodies back to the Ramada Inn to call it a day.

Next up with be a brief overview of what Tyler did after I left for the Meet-n-Greet set up & party.

 

[charmama4]

First of all Laurie, LOVE LOVE your TR!! It is really helping see DL (and it' magic) in a whole different light.
Secondly, the snack table...what's up wit that? What's the skinny on it? Does everyone contribute to the "pot" and someone buys it all? or does everyone bring something to share? Do explain oh wise one
Thirdly, this whole DisDiva thing is fascinating and I'm excited I will be a part of it and be able to meet such great gals!! Love the pictures!

 

[kelmac284]

Bummer I answered your answer to my other post but it didn't go through. Hmmm. Anyway as far as Catal we ate there a few years ago and enjoyed it but this time was not as impressed. The food was good but it is SO expensive. Mom really wanted something nice for her birthday dinner but to be honest I enjoyed our dinner at Tortilla Joes the night before more and THEY at least remembered her b-day.

Not sure if I would go again but it was ok.

As always loved the latest pics and it really makes me feel as if I was there. I too was wondering what everyone got in the exchange and you got a GREAT one!! FUN!!

I really hope it works out to for next year because it looks like a LOT of fun!

 

[DizNee Luver]

First of all Laurie, LOVE LOVE your TR!! It is really helping see DL (and it' magic) in a whole different light.
Secondly, the snack table...what's up wit that? What's the skinny on it? Does everyone contribute to the "pot" and someone buys it all? or does everyone bring something to share? Do explain oh wise one
Thirdly, this whole DisDiva thing is fascinating and I'm excited I will be a part of it and be able to meet such great gals!! Love the pictures!

Hi Charlene!!! Thank you for stopping by!! The snack table started out as a "Candy Bar" for the first couple years, but its morphed into a HUGE table of sweets, salty, little gifts (bracelets, hand sanitizer w/holder & purse size tissues w/covers), etc. Each person brings an item to share on the table. In the past we'd ask you to bring enough for each lady.....but with 46-48 ladies...that can be quite a bit. I was worried we would be overwhelmed after the party with leftovers (that usually goes to the villas since they tend to be the meeting point in the evenings for drinks & socializing).....but really.....we didn't end up with a ton of leftovers this time. I went thru the line near the end & a number of the choices were gone.....but I still left with a full bag of treats!!

I'm excited that you'll be joining in next year!!

Bummer I answered your answer to my other post but it didn't go through. Hmmm. Anyway as far as Catal we ate there a few years ago and enjoyed it but this time was not as impressed. The food was good but it is SO expensive. Mom really wanted something nice for her birthday dinner but to be honest I enjoyed our dinner at Tortilla Joes the night before more and THEY at least remembered her b-day.

Not sure if I would go again but it was ok.

As always loved the latest pics and it really makes me feel as if I was there. I too was wondering what everyone got in the exchange and you got a GREAT one!! FUN!!

I really hope it works out to for next year because it looks like a LOT of fun!

That's too bad that it wasn't as good as you had experienced before. The place looks to "uppety" for me.....lol I went to Tortilla Joe's for the first time in December & had the nachos & tableside guacamole......delicious!!

I kinda wish I had tried to get a few pics during the opening......hard to remember now what people got. The book was popular & lots of laughs as diva after diva pulled one out of their bag.....lol

 

[anut4disney]

Enjoy reading about the Dis Diva's annual trip. I missed 2011 & 2012, mayber next year.

 

[DizNee Luver]

Enjoy reading about the Dis Diva's annual trip. I missed 2011 & 2012, mayber next year.

Hi Shirley!! I hope I get to meet you one of these trips!!!

 

[kaoden39]

Love your sleep mask!! So stinking cute!! You actually did real well loot wise didn't you?

 

[DizNee Luver]

Love your sleep mask!! So stinking cute!! You actually did real well loot wise didn't you?

I did!! I couldn't believe all the stuff in that bag!! Made me feel bad that my gift was a mug & a gift card.....but I was over the "suggested" amount.....just seemed a bit lame after opening this package!!

 

[Trentmom]

We always fly into Orange County....there's no way I'd fly into LAX I'd be freaked out by that place!!

Orange County is about 20 mins drive away.....really close!! We took the cab from the Ramada to SNA during 5pm traffic & still got there within 20 mins. If you have any way to fly into this one....I'd highly recommend it. Small airport, just a few minutes walk from your gate to the baggage claim & the transportation area.

I'll look into it. The thought of LAX by myself scares me! Actually flying in general by myself scares me a little, but I can do it if it means going to DL!

I had to jump in here, hope you don't mind

When we do make it to DL, we had planned on flying into SNA

However, I see Virgin Airlines is now flying out of Philly into LAX. They have direct flights and are like 600 dollars cheaper than all other airlines we have been looking at, plus most of those had layovers, which I am not a fan of.

Anyway, why is LAX so scary? Just because it really big? Just curious

I would love to hear how it is compared to Philly, which is a fairly busy airport

Thanks for any insight you can give or anyone else on this thread

 

[kelmac284]

Yeah Laurie Catal is kind of fancy but I thought the Napa Rose was "fancier" so as far as that goes not that big of a deal and the food WAS good the first time and not bad this time just not as good as I remembered. That was the night Shelby dropped her phone in the sink so it kind of got ruined if you know what I mean LOL. But I was dissapointed because I had specifically indicated that it was my mom's birthday and NO dessert or even a happy birthday. And since THAT was the particular dinner that we were celebrating it was kind of a bummer. In fact the DLH didn't do anything either and I specificially mentioned it. I have to say as much as I liked the rooms and remodel at DLH the PP still takes the cake. They really did it up for mom's bday in 10 when we came for the ladies trip and the last few times we have gotten the rice krispie treats the first night and chocolates EVERY night. We only got them in ONE room this time and only the first night. Not a huge thing but those little extras make the extra money you spend some worth it.

In fact when we stayed at the Hilton at Universal we came back from dinner and got a lovely fruit plate with chocolates and trail mix as well as a bunch of nice fruit and some bottled waters. REALLY nice. Then the Queen Mary also left us each some really nice bottled waters with the ships picture inside and chocolates. Those little things really make you feel special.

Anywho yeah I would have loved to have seen what the others got since it sounded so intriguing!! I bet it was fun and can't wait to see what they have in mind for next year!!

 

[kelmac284]

Trentmom I flew into LAX for this trip and it IS bigger and busier but I think if you are used to a larger airport you would have NO problems. The only frustrating thing for us was we had to get a rental car and those are offsite so trying to find the shuttle location with all our bags was a bit hectic. At Orange County you pretty much walk out of baggage claim and it is right there but LAX is so much bigger that you sometimes have to hoof it a bit. LAX is perfectly fine. Orange county is just nice if it works out financially because it is closer and smaller.

Oh and Laurie FYI on the exchange in years past anyway a lot of people put "extras" in the packages. Like my first year it was tote bags but some chose to fill the bags with fun stuff. I got a bag filled with chapstick, tissues, a poncho, mints and some other fun stuff that I could specifically use for the trip. It is a lot like the exchanges in that you ONLY need to spend the alloted amount but if you WANT to you can choose to add extra stuff.

I wouldn't worry about it. I am sure whoever got yours was fine with it. I honestly just like to play to play and see what others receive.

 

[DizNee Luver]

I had to jump in here, hope you don't mind

When we do make it to DL, we had planned on flying into SNA

However, I see Virgin Airlines is now flying out of Philly into LAX. They have direct flights and are like 600 dollars cheaper than all other airlines we have been looking at, plus most of those had layovers, which I am not a fan of.

Anyway, why is LAX so scary? Just because it really big? Just curious

I would love to hear how it is compared to Philly, which is a fairly busy airport

Thanks for any insight you can give or anyone else on this thread

I've heard from others that they can get much cheaper flights going into LAX. LAX is massive (have no clue how it compares to Philly)......someone was saying they had to take a shuttle from their gate to the baggage claim area. That tells me its a huge place when you can't walk from the gate to the baggage claim & transportation area. I prefer coming into a small place where I can easily maneuver & find things.

BUT.....with that being said......there are a lot of airlines that can fly their "big birds" into LAX but can't fly into the smaller airports and they offer better rates by using the massive planes. So with the cost of flying, you go with the cheapest flight you can.

 

[Trentmom]

Trentmom I flew into LAX for this trip and it IS bigger and busier but I think if you are used to a larger airport you would have NO problems. The only frustrating thing for us was we had to get a rental car and those are offsite so trying to find the shuttle location with all our bags was a bit hectic. At Orange County you pretty much walk out of baggage claim and it is right there but LAX is so much bigger that you sometimes have to hoof it a bit. LAX is perfectly fine. Orange county is just nice if it works out financially because it is closer and smaller.

Oh and Laurie FYI on the exchange in years past anyway a lot of people put "extras" in the packages. Like my first year it was tote bags but some chose to fill the bags with fun stuff. I got a bag filled with chapstick, tissues, a poncho, mints and some other fun stuff that I could specifically use for the trip. It is a lot like the exchanges in that you ONLY need to spend the alloted amount but if you WANT to you can choose to add extra stuff.

I wouldn't worry about it. I am sure whoever got yours was fine with it. I honestly just like to play to play and see what others receive.

Thanks for responding

That doesn't sound too bad minus the rental car thing.

Philly is pretty busy, so am pretty used to it. Thanks

I've heard from others that they can get much cheaper flights going into LAX. LAX is massive (have no clue how it compares to Philly)......someone was saying they had to take a shuttle from their gate to the baggage claim area. That tells me its a huge place when you can't walk from the gate to the baggage claim & transportation area. I prefer coming into a small place where I can easily maneuver & find things.

BUT.....with that being said......there are a lot of airlines that can fly their "big birds" into LAX but can't fly into the smaller airports and they offer better rates by using the massive planes. So with the cost of flying, you go with the cheapest flight you can.

Hey Laurie.

yeah, noticed flights into LAX are a lot cheaper.

Okay, that sounds like Orlando airport actually

When you get off your flight, you have to take what we call the Fake monorail to baggage claim area. We actually enjoy that

Thanks

 

[DizNee Luver]

Yeah Laurie Catal is kind of fancy but I thought the Napa Rose was "fancier" so as far as that goes not that big of a deal and the food WAS good the first time and not bad this time just not as good as I remembered. That was the night Shelby dropped her phone in the sink so it kind of got ruined if you know what I mean LOL. But I was dissapointed because I had specifically indicated that it was my mom's birthday and NO dessert or even a happy birthday. And since THAT was the particular dinner that we were celebrating it was kind of a bummer. In fact the DLH didn't do anything either and I specificially mentioned it. I have to say as much as I liked the rooms and remodel at DLH the PP still takes the cake. They really did it up for mom's bday in 10 when we came for the ladies trip and the last few times we have gotten the rice krispie treats the first night and chocolates EVERY night. We only got them in ONE room this time and only the first night. Not a huge thing but those little extras make the extra money you spend some worth it.

In fact when we stayed at the Hilton at Universal we came back from dinner and got a lovely fruit plate with chocolates and trail mix as well as a bunch of nice fruit and some bottled waters. REALLY nice. Then the Queen Mary also left us each some really nice bottled waters with the ships picture inside and chocolates. Those little things really make you feel special.

Anywho yeah I would have loved to have seen what the others got since it sounded so intriguing!! I bet it was fun and can't wait to see what they have in mind for next year!!

Napa Rose is way too fancy for me.....I'm more of a counter service gal....lol

Its a bummer they didn't do anything for your mom's birthday but to hear that the DLH didn't do anything either.....shame on them!! Those little extras are what sets them apart from the places across the street. I actually got a thank you card from the Ramada Inn when I arrived......so their PR was amazing....those are the things you remember when booking again.

Trentmom I flew into LAX for this trip and it IS bigger and busier but I think if you are used to a larger airport you would have NO problems. The only frustrating thing for us was we had to get a rental car and those are offsite so trying to find the shuttle location with all our bags was a bit hectic. At Orange County you pretty much walk out of baggage claim and it is right there but LAX is so much bigger that you sometimes have to hoof it a bit. LAX is perfectly fine. Orange county is just nice if it works out financially because it is closer and smaller.

Oh and Laurie FYI on the exchange in years past anyway a lot of people put "extras" in the packages. Like my first year it was tote bags but some chose to fill the bags with fun stuff. I got a bag filled with chapstick, tissues, a poncho, mints and some other fun stuff that I could specifically use for the trip. It is a lot like the exchanges in that you ONLY need to spend the alloted amount but if you WANT to you can choose to add extra stuff.

I wouldn't worry about it. I am sure whoever got yours was fine with it. I honestly just like to play to play and see what others receive.

Orange County is easy to get through......You can arrive 90 mins prior to your flight & still get through security in just minutes. The longest wait I've had there was 10 mins. I imagine security at LAX is a bigger & longer wait. I think the reason I get through the Portland airport with short waits is because of the time of day I go though it. 5am is a good time to leave a big airport.....lol

I should have added a few small extras but I still wanted them to work within the theme & I wasn't finding things. I'm sure Bridget was fine with the gift....just wish I had access to some fun villain stuff.

 

[Trentmom]

Jolly Holiday Restaurant looks awesome. I love Marry Poppins and love all the special touches, including the Penguins. Great pics

The Diva Party looks like a blast. Those shirts are gorgeous. I can't even imagine how long it took to make that many

Out of curiosity and nosiness, do you have to rent a room at the hotel to have that party or do they let you use it for free?

Either way, so awesome. Decorations looked great

Great stuff in your bag

 

[DizNee Luver]

Jolly Holiday Restaurant looks awesome. I love Marry Poppins and love all the special touches, including the Penguins. Great pics

The Diva Party looks like a blast. Those shirts are gorgeous. I can't even imagine how long it took to make that many

Out of curiosity and nosiness, do you have to rent a room at the hotel to have that party or do they let you use it for free?

Either way, so awesome. Decorations looked great

Great stuff in your bag

The Mary Poppins theme is fun & very fitting for Main Street.

The party is tons of fun. Melody mentioned that her daughters (&/or DIL's) helped her bling out the shirts during the Super Bowl. I imagine it was weeks of work to complete them. I know the design is taken into a printer who puts them on the shirts. I'd say 80% of the girls get their shirt blinged out. The pics of these shirts don't even begin to show you how beautiful they are.

The Carousel let us use the room for free if we had Quizno's cater the food. (there was a dollar amt needed)......it was also assumed that we would have people staying there. Last year we had 6-7 rooms.....this year we only had 1......so that was not good as it was brought up by management.

We've had the Carousel breakfast room for the last 2 parties and prior to that the first 3 years was held in the conference room at the HoJo. I believe they got the room for free, but again.....a number of people were staying there. Not sure where we're holding it this next year.

 

[charmama4]

Hi Charlene!!! Thank you for stopping by!! The snack table started out as a "Candy Bar" for the first couple years, but its morphed into a HUGE table of sweets, salty, little gifts (bracelets, hand sanitizer w/holder & purse size tissues w/covers), etc. Each person brings an item to share on the table. In the past we'd ask you to bring enough for each lady.....but with 46-48 ladies...that can be quite a bit. I was worried we would be overwhelmed after the party with leftovers (that usually goes to the villas since they tend to be the meeting point in the evenings for drinks & socializing).....but really.....we didn't end up with a ton of leftovers this time. I went thru the line near the end & a number of the choices were gone.....but I still left with a full bag of treats!!

I'm excited that you'll be joining in next year!!

How fun! So, is there a list of "requested" items from the ladies?

 

[DizNee Luver]

How fun! So, is there a list of "requested" items from the ladies?

Not really.....the only requested thing I've heard is the Canadian Smarties.....which are chocolate.....nothing like ours!!

 

[DisneyStitch626]

My favourite candy since I was a little kid. They are so good. Kinda like M&M's but waaaay better.