Disney Holiday Firsts at Last! - 2 Days to Go and It's Quiet, Too Quiet

[disney67]

Our trips are right around the corner hope all is well and hope we can catch up one morning or day to say hello

 

[mnmrmustard]

So glad everything is coming together for your trip...we will be there from Nov 25-Dec 4...


We are going to go to MVMCPARTY two times and have ressies for Crystal Palace, 50's Primetime Cafe, CRT, Hoop-de-doo Revue, Tonys Town Square and another one for Crystal Palace (Winnie the Pooh is my favorite thing in the world)!!

We plan n trying to eat at Be Our Guest Restaurant for a QS lunch because I tried for hours o get dinner ressies and they are all booked up! I keep trying though because there is always room for some Disney magic

I hope you have a fantastic trip...only 17 days till the magic!!! Woohoo!!!

That is quite the agenda, I'm jealous of your two MVMCPs! Sending good mojo your way on getting into Be Our Guest! I'd be happy to just be able to walk around in there and look at the theming

I hope your trip is very magical also - less than 2 weeks to go!

Hey Mike,

I'm bumping you up and

Thinking of your family and hoping that all is well with your MIL and that your plans are moving forward...

2 Weeks...

Hi Patricia! Thank you for the bump, I've been neglecting my poor little PTR We are still working through little things with my MiL but she is getting better and getting used to the routine there. She's even going down for bingo now

I can't believe that we are under 2 weeks

I'll have to check back in on your PTR and see what you've been up to

2 weeks


Are the kids bouncing off the walls yet?


How is your MIL adjusting?

The kids are having some interesting ups and downs. DD2 has been on restriction from her electronics for a week and hurt her wrist playing volleyball so she's been in a mood. But they are both excited - especially when I chime off with "in exactly 2 weeks we'll be at EPCOT" and so forth.

She's getting more settled each day. She's finally decided where she wants some of her pictures hung so I will be stopping by after work to do that for her. And we picked up a small table and a couple of chairs that fit into her suite so she has a palce to eat/do projects when she doesn't want to be social with the other residents.

Our trips are right around the corner hope all is well and hope we can catch up one morning or day to say hello

Hey Jeff! Yes, the trip is coming up FAST! Especially with the short work/school weeks this week and next week

I would very much enjoy being able to meet up with you and yours. I gotta get back to that thread and see where everyone is at on possible meet days/times

 

[disney67]

That is quite the agenda, I'm jealous of your two MVMCPs! Sending good mojo your way on getting into Be Our Guest! I'd be happy to just be able to walk around in there and look at the theming

I hope your trip is very magical also - less than 2 weeks to go!



Hi Patricia! Thank you for the bump, I've been neglecting my poor little PTR We are still working through little things with my MiL but she is getting better and getting used to the routine there. She's even going down for bingo now

I can't believe that we are under 2 weeks

I'll have to check back in on your PTR and see what you've been up to



The kids are having some interesting ups and downs. DD2 has been on restriction from her electronics for a week and hurt her wrist playing volleyball so she's been in a mood. But they are both excited - especially when I chime off with "in exactly 2 weeks we'll be at EPCOT" and so forth.

She's getting more settled each day. She's finally decided where she wants some of her pictures hung so I will be stopping by after work to do that for her. And we picked up a small table and a couple of chairs that fit into her suite so she has a palce to eat/do projects when she doesn't want to be social with the other residents.



Hey Jeff! Yes, the trip is coming up FAST! Especially with the short work/school weeks this week and next week

I would very much enjoy being able to meet up with you and yours. I gotta get back to that thread and see where everyone is at on possible meet days/times

just so you know im flying solo , if anything i can also cach up with you for maybe breakfest one morning to i have a rental car so hopping over to POP would be fun ?

 

[mnmrmustard]

Hello Everyone!

We are in the "two weeks ..." mantra. As in "two weeks from now at this exact time we will be just finishing lunch at Beaches and Cream". Every time someone is grumbly about their day or something goes wrong I have the itinerary down in my head well enough to pop off with stuff like that to the fam

In other news the updated December park hours have been posted. Normally this would be a "yay!" moment as it usually means extended park hours. Not so much a "yay!" moment if you managed to swing 8am Crystal Palace reses on December 7th that would have gotten you into the park an hour early the day after the Fantasyland Expansion grand opening which now does nothing for you

Soooo, I talked it over with the family and we had wanted to do 1900 Park Fare for breakfast one day so I got us 8:05am reses there and cancelled CP. If we can't be in MK early we'll at least get a character breakfast that the family will enjoy more and a free boat ride in the process

We also added in a Hollywood & Vine rese last week for our DHS day which will get us in that park early. The characters for this one are very secondary to the early entry as the girls are teens now. I still hope to get one more character breakfast - Tusker House on our AK day. I just keep trying and hope someone cancels. If we don't get the rese it's no real biggie but it would be nice.

Also with our AK day I was originally going to have us leave the park a bit early and catch a TS dinner at MK since AK was set to close at 5pm and we have MVMCP that evening. But now they've extended AK's hours to 7pm for the day. So we'll probably stay at AK and grab a TS dinner in the park and catch a couple more rides and leave for MK via the Contemporary around 6pm.

We made the kids REALLY happy on Thursday when we went down to a local store/pharmacy and we all got flu shots. Just the price of traveling and after our 2009 DLR Halloween debacle where both DW and I caught that MAJOR flu bug that was going around. Each lost a day of our vacation laying in bed at the Disneyland Hotel and were pretty miserable for about half of the trip. We don't want to take any chances for this trip.

Oh, and we picked up 4 passes to the Delta Sky Club on eBay to use on our trip back home. We'll be stuck at MCO for a couple of hours and at SLC for over 3hrs. It is worth the $15 per that we paid to be somewhere comfortable with free food, drinks, and WiFi while we wait

I hope everyone is having a magical weekend and that time goes quick to get to flight day and goes slow while you're in the parks!

 

[mnmrmustard]

just so you know im flying solo , if anything i can also cach up with you for maybe breakfest one morning to i have a rental car so hopping over to POP would be fun ?

Our POP breakfasts will be pretty fast endeavors but we'd be happy to see you. Otherwise we can check for other options over the next week. I just changed a couple of our breakfast reses and am hoping to make one more so hang tight and wish us good reservation mojo!

 

[Trentmom]

Glad you mil is adjusting and ready for some decorating and such. Give it that homey feel.

Sounds like some good changes

Hope you can get ressie at Tusker house

Sorry about your DD. Hopefully her wrist feels better soon and she behaves. I would be lost without my electronics

 

[mnmrmustard]

Glad you mil is adjusting and ready for some decorating and such. Give it that homey feel.

Sounds like some good changes

Hope you can get ressie at Tusker house

Sorry about your DD. Hopefully her wrist feels better soon and she behaves. I would be lost without my electronics

Hi Kelly! Yes, she's still having some big ups and downs but overall it is getting better. The decorating is helping.

I'm still bummed about not getting early entry to MK, but we are all looking forward to our first time at 1900 Park Fare Still trying for Tusker and am also going for Akershus at EPCOT for another breakfast. Suddenlly I'm character crazy

DD's wrist is better and she's off restriction now so things are looking up.

 

[disney67]

Our POP breakfasts will be pretty fast endeavors but we'd be happy to see you. Otherwise we can check for other options over the next week. I just changed a couple of our breakfast reses and am hoping to make one more so hang tight and wish us good reservation mojo!

Ok cool i will send you a quick pm

 

[PracPerfPatricia]

1900 Park Fare is a really lovely breakfast and fun characters... I think that you are really going to be happy with it....

Hmm...flu shots... good idea... I think I may be following suit this week... the sooner the better... and the kids will be a lot happier getting a quick shot than being in bed at Disney...

WE are now moving into Single Digits....

 

[Lcaemom]

Just came by to get the Who, The When...that's as far as I am able to get, at the moment. My first thoughts are daughters...ours are similiar in many ways but, I had to laugh about your 13yo and skateboarding...DD#2s seem to have some daredevil in them! Love that! Looking forward to reading more!!!

 

[mnmrmustard]

Ok cool i will send you a quick pm

Got it - it looks like we have some good options for the 30th-1st!

1900 Park Fare is a really lovely breakfast and fun characters... I think that you are really going to be happy with it....

Hmm...flu shots... good idea... I think I may be following suit this week... the sooner the better... and the kids will be a lot happier getting a quick shot than being in bed at Disney...

WE are now moving into Single Digits....

Glad to hear it about Park Fare, it looks like it would be a blast.

Yup, the girls complained about sore arms for a couple of days but sooooo much better than having any of us down during the trip.

Yup! So close to single digits I can almost touch it. Our countdown calendar is already so bare

Just came by to get the Who, The When...that's as far as I am able to get, at the moment. My first thoughts are daughters...ours are similiar in many ways but, I had to laugh about your 13yo and skateboarding...DD#2s seem to have some daredevil in them! Love that! Looking forward to reading more!!!

Hello and welcome aboard! And yes, DD2 is our thrillseeker in every way. Horses, skateboarding, thrill rides - it if involves adrenalin she's on board with it. But still doesn't like spiders or going into a dark kitchen to get water when we're going to bed. Go figure



Well all, we got a call last night from DW's aunt and she's coming up tomorrow afternoon to stay at our place from tomorrow until after we get back. Actually its really not that bad as she's a pretty fun character and it will be nice to have family in town to spend time with MiL and look after the house. We just have to finish cleaning MiL's old room and get some furniture in it for her this evening.

Since we leave the house Wednesday afternoon to check in at the hotel near the airport in the next town I can officially say that ...


...WE'RE IN SINGLE DIGITS!!!!!

 

[Trentmom]

That was nice your DW aunt gave you a lot of notice that she was coming

Seriously, that is good you are taking it in stride and will be nice to have someone to visit with your mil while you are gone.


Single Digits

 

[mnmrmustard]

That was nice your DW aunt gave you a lot of notice that she was coming

Seriously, that is good you are taking it in stride and will be nice to have someone to visit with your mil while you are gone.


Single Digits

Yeah no kidding, but we heard from her today that she's hurting a bit too much to make the trip up from Bakersfield so she's not coming after all. At least we have a couple of family friends set up to visit MiL while we are gone and MiL didn't know her sister was coming so won't be let down that she didn't make it up here.

 

[mnmrmustard]

Hey All! Are we feeling some good Disney Christmas mojo yet??? I know I am!!!

In exactly one week I will be at home checking my list ...checking it twice

Then I load the rig and go pick up the girls just after 3pm, wait for DW to get off of work, and load the dogs up and head out to the dog sitters and on to the airport hotel for check-in somewhere between 5-6pm

We'll order some pizza, play in the pool (indoor pool with 2-story water slide), and try and sleep. The next morning brings an early wake-up at 4am and shuttle to the airport and we're off!!!

things I am doing right now:

The "List":

** Disney Documents, MVMCP tickets, Photopass+ voucher, ADR Confirmation #'s
** Wallet, ID, Cash for Tips, Credit & Debit Cards
** Luggage tags/bags
** Clothes/under garments/PJs
** Laundry bag
** Rain Ponchos
** Shoes/flip-flops/slippers
** Hats & Sunglasses
** Medicine - allergy, Tylenol/Ibuprofen, anti-itch cream, Band-Aids, Neosporin, acid reducer
** Sunblock/face sunblock
** Deodorant, Toothpaste, Toothbrushes & holders, Hairbrush & Hair ties, Contacts and solution and eye drops
** Cameras, Memory Cards, Batteries, USB cables & Chargers
** Cell Phones & Charger
** Laptop & accessories
** Eyeglass Case, Glasses, Sunglasses
** Ziploc Bags
** Tide-to-Go Stick
** Decorations for our window
** Trading pins & lanyards

This list is largely compliments of other dedicated DIS'ers. Give a shout if you see something I've missed


Checking The Weather:

Our flight morning out of Medford shows periods of rain, which works well as that means no snow or fog

Weather in Orlando while we're there is a mixed bag of mostly sun/clouds with a system that will blow through and last 2-3 days. That system shows up on different days each day I check accuweather. Each time I look the system is showing up earlier in our trip. I am hopeful that by flight day I'll be completely off the radar

EDIT: It keeps getting better so right now we're looking at:

- Thursday Nov 29th (flight/EPCOT or DHS) - 72 degrees - partly sunny
- Friday Nov 30th (DHS) - 67 degrees - partly sunny
- Saturday Dec 1st (EPCOT) - 73 degrees - sunny
- Sunday Dec 2nd (AK/MVMCP) - 76 degrees - mostly sunny
- Monday Dec 3rd (Universal - Islands) - 76 degrees - periods of rain
- Tuesday, Dec 4th (Universal - Studios) - 79 degrees - mostly sunny
- Wednesday Dec 5th (Universal - both parks) - 77 degrees - cloudy
- Thursday Dec 6th (Girls choice at WDW) - 77 degrees - cloudy
- Friday Dec 7th (MK) - 71 degrees - sunny
- Saturday Dec 8th (flight day) - 73 degrees - sunny

I have completed online check-in so we should get either 50s or 60s first floor at POP, hopefully with a pool view. Other than that I keep wondering what I may be missing. The only thing we don't have in hand are the vouchers for the Delta Sky Lounge. And even if they don't make it in time our neighbors can FedEx them to us at POP (we'll provide them with a FedEx mailer and we won't be using them until the return trip).

EDIT: Sky Lounge vouchers are in!

Oh, and as a bit of extra Disney magic I just met with our new bookstore manager and her husband is an Imagineer & has membership to Club33

 

[FauntleroyFAN07]

just make sure you do the discount double check of your list and you should be good.

i love those state farm commercials.

 

[Trentmom]

I am glad you have some back up friends to visit with your MIL while you are gone

List looks good, just change the tickets to Christmas ones, not Halloween ones, or you might be disappointed


Weather looks pretty good

 

[mnmrmustard]

just make sure you do the discount double check of your list and you should be good.

i love those state farm commercials.

I hear ya bud, I'll be checking each thing off as I pack them.

I am glad you have some back up friends to visit with your MIL while you are gone

List looks good, just change the tickets to Christmas ones, not Halloween ones, or you might be disappointed


Weather looks pretty good

Yes, we want her to know that there will always be people there for her.

Oh how funny, I put down the wrong abbreviation down didn't I?

Each day that weather forecast looks better - I'm sooooo happy about that!

 

[disney67]

wow you are so ahead of me !!!
im going to pack sunday lol monday morning NO!!
I would rather walk the plank then pack but cannot wait to leave mon
and cannot wait to say HI soon in our happy place
just need to know is we are going to have a sword battle ?
hope you guys have a safe and happy trip there this will be my last post till monday when im in FLA .
Happy Voyage Mike and Family

 

[mnmrmustard]

wow you are so ahead of me !!!
im going to pack sunday lol monday morning NO!!
I would rather walk the plank then pack but cannot wait to leave mon
and cannot wait to say HI soon in our happy place
just need to know is we are going to have a sword battle ?
hope you guys have a safe and happy trip there this will be my last post till monday when im in FLA .
Happy Voyage Mike and Family

Well the packing should be pretty easy since clothes-wise it will be the more summery clothes we haven't been able to wear in a couple of months. And I love my lists and such!

A sword battle aye? I don't think the airline would appreciate me bringing a bunch of sharp metal objects on the plane . But maybe we can grab something from one of the shops and go at it

May your journey be a fast and safe one also!

 

[PracPerfPatricia]

5 days... Mike... 5 Days .... (Well actually by your count I think it may even be 4...)

Love your packing list and thanks for the weather forecast...

I hope that your Thanksgiving went well and that the upcoming days till Thursday are uneventful in a good way...