Disney Wonder Jan 23, 2011

[Kirbo]

We're happy to have you, whether you're doing fish extenders or not!

If you didn't see it yet, take a look at the little site our group has cooked up. If you want to participate scroll through the pages and shoot me an email with the info you want me to add! (names, ages, hometown, dining, pictures - whatever!)

Welcome to the group!

Welcome aboard Kristen and family
I understand not wanting to the FE but if you give your room number to Jessica you just might find something on your fish anyway.

It's Kirsten :, but I respond to almost anything . And for the welcome!

Kirsten - Welcome to our chatty group! We look forward to getting to know you better. Do you live in California?

Congratulations on your first cruise. I know you'll love it as will your girls. No worries about the FE. You are welcome to change your mind at any time. Having twin girls almost forces us to spread a little pixie dust though so let us know your cabin number before the cruise and your girls might find a few surprises when they come back to their room!

Take care and happy planning!

As for me (if I haven't already said enough), we are heading out tomorrow morning to go camping this weekend. I hope everyone has a safe and fun Memorial Weekend!

-steve

Have a wonderful camping trip

I'm currently planning away and loving it! Who knew there were entire boards dedicated to Disney and cruising? :

 

[Kidlette]

Me: "How much do you want for this?"
Owner: "Fifty dollars"
Me: "I'll give you five"
Owner: "Twenty"
Me: "How about ten?"
Owner: "Deal!"

Amy: "What the &#*$# are you going to do with an iguana?"
Me: "I dunno"

OMG! That is the funniest thing I've read in a long time! I wish they had an emoticon peeing his pants, I think I laughed so hard I might have!

We will figure out the excursions. Trust me, with me around Ryan definitely knows the options!

We had a Mexican Riviera cruise booked a couple of years ago and had to cancel it, so we had excursions chosen (on a different cruise line) at one point. I think it's just sad that he doesn't want to talk about it until Disney releases their excursions. If it wasn't Mexico (crappy waters) we would definitely be going snorkeling (we REALLY like to snorkel), but all the reviews I've read are bad (murky waters and very cold!) - so I think we agree that that's out. (Maybe we'll change our minds and go with Yanira and Sergio). He's said "maybe" on the zip line, but he wants to know how high and long they are, how many people have died at the particular zipline company...those kinds of things. He pretty much refuses to do the dolphin/sea lion and horseback riding excursions (the 2 things I would want to do the most). Cultural things could be OK, but we'd have to read exactly which one it is first and be very careful about picking. A lot of times those cultural and city tour excursions are horrible, having you drive around more than you actually do or see anything. Some cruise line's have a cooking excursion where you go to a restaurant somewhere in town and the chef teaches you to make an "authentic" Mexican meal, then, you get to cook and you eat for lunch what you just cooked. We might do something like that, but again, it would just depend on the reviews we read. Also, I have been on a cruise to Mexico (before I met Ryan), and my shore excursion experiences were HORRIBLE! The stories he's heard in the past about my Mexico excursion experiences probably aren't helping! (I can say the same for Jamaica). Anyway - we'll figure it out. This also may sound corny, but Ryan and I don't like to do things or go places separately. LOL, you and Amy have probably been married a lot longer, but Ryan and I are still in that "I go where you go" stage! (Yes...still...after nearly 8 years of marriage)
I'm going to do some research today and see what I can find out about some things. Maybe in PVR Ryan can do ziplining with Steve, Amy, and whomever else is doing that and I can do the dolphin encounter. Or, maybe we'll just walk around and buy an iguana! We'll see what happens. No matter what we do (or don't do), we'll have loads of fun!
For the record, we have stayed on ship in port before and it was AWESOME! There's almost no one on the ship so you get everything to yourself! It's a great time to take photos of the ship without a whole lot of people in the images, and Disney plays Disney movies on the jumbotron by the pool outside! You can also count on one (or more times) Ryan and I will be taking a board game to the top deck and play a game by the pool or something while drinking a lovely beverage (strawberry shake?!?!)! Hey - we should have a "game night" and bring board games to the deck and all get together to play games! Adults and kids could play (but with so many people we'd probably have to get more than 1 game going). That could be super fun! I know, how about the night of Toy Story (because it's so crappy)?!? For the record, I am SO GLAD they are keeping Aladdin at DCA and not bring the God awful Toy Story musical!

Anyway....I'll shut up about that now.

Steve, Yanira, and any other California cruisers - Ryan and I have already talked to Steve about meeting up with them while they're at DL in September, and we're 100% going (so long as nothing happens or comes up). I think it would be super-fun for as many of us to get together as possible and meet before the cruise! What do you guys think?!?? If anyone doesn't have (or does't want to pay for) Disneyland passes we don't have to go to Disneyland. Those of us that do have passes can all go to the parks, then we can leave and meet anyone who doesn't want to go to the parks for dinner! There are a plethora of restaurants at Downtown Disney, or there are cheaper options really close to the park (ex: Red Robbin, Oggi's pizza, etc). Let us know what everyone thinks and we can set something up! Then, we can add it and actually get something on our Group Gatherings! page on our little site!

About Hawaii - yes, that is technically correct. (For those who don't know what we're talking about, legally a ship that is not US registered cannot go to only US ports - because they would have to follow US employment laws. Therefore, any ship that stops or starts in California must stop at a foreign port. The reason Norwegian doesn't follow this in Hawaii is because they have a ship registered in the US, meaning that they follow US employment laws, pay minimum wage, etc). With that said, technically Disney could start here and stop off in Mexico for a couple hours then onto Hawaii - but the same problem still exists. It's simply too long of a sailing to make it worth it for them. Disney could do this, so it's not an impossibility. I just don't think it's very likely. But - I could be wrong! Steve, for your sake I hope they DO do this!

 

[SueTGGR]

Welcome, Kirsten & family!
We are a chatty group, so don't worry about keeping up.

I think you will have to count us out for the September gathering. Not that we don't want to but we are hoping for October for a Trick or Treat Party. But that could change when we see how much more they are charging since they are moving it over to DL instead of CA. I am kind of bummed they moved it. I know with all of the construction it maybe a little messy but it was really nice over there. I am afraid they will sell more tickets and thus the lines will be longer for the trick or treat stations. But I am hopeful that they have already thought this move all out and it will be good decision. I will just have to wait.

Well, I am so tired we spend all day working on the pool (notice I said ON the pool not IN the pool). It needed major attention. Maybe next weekend we will be able to go IN it. Now, we are making last minute plans to wake up @ 5AM and drive to Yosemite for the day. We have done it a few times over the last year & it works pretty good. We haven't tried it during a holiday weekend for a long time. But I am very familiar with how crazy it gets there so we will expect the worse! Keep your fingers crossed. This nice weather should give us a great day no matter what!

Steve will have to give us a trip report of his camping trip. just to warm up for all of us to post trip reports about all the fun everyone missed out on by NOT going on our cruise!

Kirsten, be careful, they swayed me into wanting to do FE's. There are quite a few threads here on the DIS boards about FE's and how easy & fun they are. Maybe we will have to get creative and have a FE (and gifts) magically appear for your girls! I went next door to a 99 cent store today & almost dragged Jeff in to see what Disney themed stuff I could snag. But he HATES to shop.

Anyway, I'm outta here. I will check in Monday and let you know if I made it home in one piece from Yosemite! If I ever figure it out, I will post a picture or two.

Later,
Sue

 

[Kidlette]

Sue and Steve - I hope you both have great getaways this weekend! Personally I think you're nuts - traveling on a 3 day weekend - you must be more brave than me! They started Fantasmic again at DL the other day and Ryan and I talked about going, but when we realized what weekend it was we gave up on that really quickly!

Sue - no worries on the September trip. However, I must tell you that Ryan and I have already decided to do the DL Halloween Party in October! If you go, we'd love to meet up! Maybe Yanira & Sergio and other Cali cruise-mates could meet up with us then too!

A side note on the Halloween party. I don't know if you know, but their party will only be Tuesdays and Friday's (because they will actually close Disneyland completely at 6:00PM for the party), they will then let everyone who have Halloween Party tickets back in the party to partake in the fun! But, because of shutting the park down early they will only be having it on Tuesday's and Friday's. Hopefully you will be able to make it on a Friday night! Also, I know you're leery about the party being moved to DL, but I think it's going to be GREAT! Now, if only they would wise-up and start having sugar free candies for diabetic kids and adults

About the fish extenders - - sorry about that! I don't think it's so much that we talked you into it though, I think you wanted to do it so bad yourself that you caved! Either way, it's going to be AWESOME! And yes, whether everyone participates or not I'm sure the girls will have a treat or two show up at the door.

Everyone - I hope you all have a fun and safe holiday weekend! I'm happy to announce I've gotten A's on 3 of my finals -- only 2 more finals to go! My weekend will be spent studying for my math final - the one I'm really scared about.

 

[Kirbo]

I forgot to answer the question about living in CA. We do not live in California, though I grew up there. We're in Washington.

The FE sounds fun, but I'm not in the least bit creative and I think my husband would think I'm nuts to do it. But I do look forward to hearing what you all are doing.

 

[Kidlette]

I forgot to answer the question about living in CA. We do not live in California, though I grew up there. We're in Washington.

The FE sounds fun, but I'm not in the least bit creative and I think my husband would think I'm nuts to do it. But I do look forward to hearing what you all are doing.

Hi Kirbo,

I don't know that anyone is going to "give it up" when it comes to what we're giving for fish extenders! Sorry to be the bearer of that news, but if we talked about it and told what we were bringing in advance then it wouldn't be a surprise on the cruise

This is a GREAT photo string of things people have given. It's 52 pages long, but it's a WONDERFUL source of ideas! It starts a bit slow, so feel free t start a few pages in http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1980639&highlight=fe

Also, I put you on our little website The list (currently on page 2 of this string) is the FE list that you will not be listed on (unless you change your mind on FE's) - but EVERYONE gets to participate in the website! You do not have to give your info (names, ages, cabin number, dining, or photos), but we would love it if you did! Like Sue said before, just because you're not officially participating in FE's doesn't mean that some gifts won't magically appear for your twins (but we would need your cabin number for that to happen) If you want to give your info you can post it here or email me directly. If you would like to share pictures with everyone then shoot me a personal email with them. (My email address is on our little website).

Again - we're so happy to have you on this cruise with us!

 

[Kirbo]

Jessica

I'm still a bit paranoid about sharing lots of personal info. Let me get to know you all a bit and I'll share more

I'll probably end up sharing too much

 

[Kidlette]

Jessica

I'm still a bit paranoid about sharing lots of personal info. Let me get to know you all a bit and I'll share more

I'll probably end up sharing too much

No worries, that's understandable.

 

[SueTGGR]

OK, so rewind back to 2AM and Mommy is awakened to Alec (my 10 yr old) saying he feels pukey & may get sick.
So we didn't chance driving for 3-4 hours to see the most amazing place on the planet. Better that than the alternative.
So I have been reading the threads that have the FE ideas on it. I think I had better start dropping in @ the 99 cent stores in town and see what they have. I have seen a few ideas that will be easy for the craft handicapped. Plus being from the Garlic capitol of the world, I am sure I will come up with ideas from our area! Hope nobody is allergic to garlic
For the Trick or Treat Party, we are still looking at the dates. they posted them here:
http://disneyland.disney.go.com/dis...il?name=MickeysHalloweenPartySpecialOfferPage
We still have annual passes so we will be able to purchase them early. I will let you know which date we pick. I am almost positive it will be a Friday. The only other option would be Tuesday the 12th as Alec will have no school on the 11th for Columbus Day. But I will let you know. If anyone has theirs narrowed down post away, maybe it will make our job picking easier.

OK, I'm off to finish cooking dinner. Drive safe and enjoy the weekend or what is left of it!

Later,
Sue

 

[Kidlette]

OK, so rewind back to 2AM and Mommy is awakened to Alec (my 10 yr old) saying he feels pukey & may get sick.
So we didn't chance driving for 3-4 hours to see the most amazing place on the planet. Better that than the alternative.
So I have been reading the threads that have the FE ideas on it. I think I had better start dropping in @ the 99 cent stores in town and see what they have. I have seen a few ideas that will be easy for the craft handicapped. Plus being from the Garlic capitol of the world, I am sure I will come up with ideas from our area! Hope nobody is allergic to garlic
For the Trick or Treat Party, we are still looking at the dates. they posted them here:
http://disneyland.disney.go.com/dis...il?name=MickeysHalloweenPartySpecialOfferPage
We still have annual passes so we will be able to purchase them early. I will let you know which date we pick. I am almost positive it will be a Friday. The only other option would be Tuesday the 12th as Alec will have no school on the 11th for Columbus Day. But I will let you know. If anyone has theirs narrowed down post away, maybe it will make our job picking easier.

OK, I'm off to finish cooking dinner. Drive safe and enjoy the weekend or what is left of it!

Later,
Sue

Hey Sue,

I'm sorry Alec isn't feeling well. I hope he gets better soon!

Ryan and I have been gathering FE gift ideas, but I think we're going to wait until it gets closer. We realized a couple of weeks ago that we have NO IDEA how many cabins there will be in the end, so gifts if it's just the 5 or 6 of us would be a lot different than gifts for 20 or 30 cabins. We will probably wait until a couple months before the sailing to finalize the gifts.

Any date should be fine with us for the Halloween party, we are 100% going, so the date shouldn't matter too much. I will have Ryan look this week to see if he gets that holiday off or not. If he doesn't then a Friday would be better for us; however, either way I'm sure we could make it work!

 

[Kidlette]

Ok guys and gals, we got bored and bit the bullet...we went to see Fantasmic at Disneyland tonight! We were going to avoid DL at all costs this weekend because of it being a 3 day holiday weekend, but we are SO GLAD we went! It wasn't bad at all! Here are a couple of pics to show what I mean.

Now...this looks like a picture of nothing, but that's because it is! More notably, this is a picture of main street 1 hour before fireworks - notice the lack of anyone even sitting on the ground for fireworks! It felt practically empty!

This is a picture at California Adventure. I'm sure Ryan has a story to tell about gnats!

I hope everyone had a great holiday weekend!

 

[SueTGGR]

Wow! That is so lucky! I hope everything else was that nice. When we go in a few weeks, we have already talked about how crowded it will be and we are going to do things we normally don't do. We are going to find a spot and WAIT for World of Color. Something we typically NEVER do. We are the ones that laugh at the people sitting for hours on the curb for parades and fireworks. But as much as Alec will let us, we decided we will be one of those people this time.
Has anyone read where the best spots will be for World of color yet? I will have to go through DIS boards and research. I'm sure there are pages and pages!
Have a good rest of the weekend! Alec is still a little under the weather.
Sue

 

[ymchavez]

Hi Yanira,

Definitely speak up! We'd love to hear what you're thinking!

Will do!

Ryan and I started trying to make FE gifts like 2 months ago! So no, I don't think it's crazy that you're starting so early! Unfortunately, we are not very crafty and what we started is down the tubes. So, that was a little money lost and a realization that we should probably just buy stuff! We'll see what happens.

You probably are Disney experts, you're just being modest Ryan is 100% an expert! Hey - we should get together sometime and maybe go to Disneyland! Ryan and I don't really have any couples that we hang out with because everyone our age is either wild and crazy (drinking, smoking, etc) or they have kids. Having a couple our age to hang out with who also has no kids and who loves Disney would be AWESOME! Are you and Sergio D23 members? By chance are you going to the Swiss Family Robinson screening?

That would be awesome!!! I can let you know when we plan on going so we can meet up there. I definitely want to check out World of Color, but I won't be able to go the day it opens. That's fine, because it's not like it's going anywhere. I can't wait! I know exactly what you mean about other couples because we are in the same boat. And we aren't D23 members...yet!

OK, I HAVE to ask! What have you started making for FE's?? More importantly - can you give me any ideas?!?!

I will give you this piece of advice: Oriental Trading Company has GREAT gift ideas. I feel like if I tell you what I'm making, it won't be a surprise anymore for the cruise! Or will you just forget? I mean it is ::checking our cruise website:: 237 days away!

Personally, I think you're crazy to snorkel in Mexico - and in Winter! But, to each his own! How was the dolphin thing in Hawaii? Would you recommend the experience, or is it not really worth the money?

If it were up to Sergio, we would snorkel at all three ports! He just really really loves it; that's the only reason why we HAVE to do it. Check out this video to really see what I mean: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWgDxJrt35M.

The dolphin experience was awesome! I really really love dolphins, so it was nice to swim, interact with and touch them. The only reason why I wouldn't do it again is because I've already have and I want to try something new. It is DEFINITELY worth the money though.

 

[ymchavez]

A little bored so here's a random picture

Nice pic!!!

 

[ymchavez]

If it wasn't Mexico (crappy waters) we would definitely be going snorkeling (we REALLY like to snorkel), but all the reviews I've read are bad (murky waters and very cold!) - so I think we agree that that's out. (Maybe we'll change our minds and go with Yanira and Sergio).

I heard that it's always good to go first thing in the morning before the murkiness begins. If you guys change your mind, we would LOVE for you to join us!

This also may sound corny, but Ryan and I don't like to do things or go places separately. LOL, you and Amy have probably been married a lot longer, but Ryan and I are still in that "I go where you go" stage! (Yes...still...after nearly 8 years of marriage)

Jessica & Ryan = Yanira & Sergio ... it's really crazy how alike we are. I can't imagine doing anything without Sergio and visa versa.

 

[ymchavez]

Steve, Yanira, and any other California cruisers - Ryan and I have already talked to Steve about meeting up with them while they're at DL in September, and we're 100% going (so long as nothing happens or comes up). I think it would be super-fun for as many of us to get together as possible and meet before the cruise! What do you guys think?!?? If anyone doesn't have (or does't want to pay for) Disneyland passes we don't have to go to Disneyland. Those of us that do have passes can all go to the parks, then we can leave and meet anyone who doesn't want to go to the parks for dinner! There are a plethora of restaurants at Downtown Disney, or there are cheaper options really close to the park (ex: Red Robbin, Oggi's pizza, etc). Let us know what everyone thinks and we can set something up! Then, we can add it and actually get something on our Group Gatherings! page on our little site!

Sergio and I are definitely down for this!

 

[ymchavez]

OK, so rewind back to 2AM and Mommy is awakened to Alec (my 10 yr old) saying he feels pukey & may get sick.
So we didn't chance driving for 3-4 hours to see the most amazing place on the planet. Better that than the alternative.
So I have been reading the threads that have the FE ideas on it. I think I had better start dropping in @ the 99 cent stores in town and see what they have. I have seen a few ideas that will be easy for the craft handicapped. Plus being from the Garlic capitol of the world, I am sure I will come up with ideas from our area! Hope nobody is allergic to garlic
For the Trick or Treat Party, we are still looking at the dates. they posted them here:
http://disneyland.disney.go.com/dis...il?name=MickeysHalloweenPartySpecialOfferPage
We still have annual passes so we will be able to purchase them early. I will let you know which date we pick. I am almost positive it will be a Friday. The only other option would be Tuesday the 12th as Alec will have no school on the 11th for Columbus Day. But I will let you know. If anyone has theirs narrowed down post away, maybe it will make our job picking easier.

OK, I'm off to finish cooking dinner. Drive safe and enjoy the weekend or what is left of it!

Later,
Sue

Hope Alec is feeling a lot better!

My husband and I garlic, so don't worry about us!

I spent all weekend working on my FE and it's finally finished!!!
Here's what it looks like so Kirbo (and anyone else) can get some ideas:

I'm pretty proud of it and was amazed with the final result. I paid $35 dollars on materials and it took me 2 half days to complete it. It wasn't difficult at all, just very tedious.

I don't know if Sergio and I will be able to join you all for the trick or treat party, but we will let you know. (Sorry for all the posts; just catching up. )

 

[Kidlette]

Will do!
That would be awesome!!! I can let you know when we plan on going so we can meet up there. I definitely want to check out World of Color, but I won't be able to go the day it opens. That's fine, because it's not like it's going anywhere. I can't wait! I know exactly what you mean about other couples because we are in the same boat. And we aren't D23 members...yet!

There is no way we are doing world of color until September. With summer heat, schools out, and the very anticipated new show - it's going to be CRAZY! We will figure something out though!

I will give you this piece of advice: Oriental Trading Company has GREAT gift ideas. I feel like if I tell you what I'm making, it won't be a surprise anymore for the cruise! Or will you just forget? I mean it is ::checking our cruise website:: 237 days away!

It's funny you mentioned Oriental Trading Company - we looked at that a month or two ago and we already have stuff picked out - we're just waiting to order until we know what quantity we will need!

If it were up to Sergio, we would snorkel at all three ports! He just really really loves it; that's the only reason why we HAVE to do it. Check out this video to really see what I mean: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWgDxJrt35M.

We'll let you know about the snorkeling. If we go snorkeling we'd love to do the same excursion as you guys! Hey, is there anywhere he in Cali where we could all go snorkeling on a weekend sometime?? I haven't watched the video yet, but I'll watch it in a few minutes!

 

[Kidlette]

Wow! That is so lucky! I hope everything else was that nice. When we go in a few weeks, we have already talked about how crowded it will be and we are going to do things we normally don't do. We are going to find a spot and WAIT for World of Color. Something we typically NEVER do. We are the ones that laugh at the people sitting for hours on the curb for parades and fireworks. But as much as Alec will let us, we decided we will be one of those people this time.
Has anyone read where the best spots will be for World of color yet? I will have to go through DIS boards and research. I'm sure there are pages and pages!
Have a good rest of the weekend! Alec is still a little under the weather.
Sue

If you do that research I'd be interested in hearing what you find out. I can't imagine anyone would know yet what a "good spot" is going to be, because no one has ever seen it before. You can try and imagine while you're there, but there's just no way to know. It's also going to be CRAZY as far as "seating" goes - considering there isn't any "seating"! Just like DL's Fantasmic, you get to sit on the ground. I've heard that only about 7,000 people can fit in the area to see the show at once (and I've seen the area, it doesn't look big enough to me to even hold that many!). I don't know, but considering Disneyland could average a good 40K to 50K people in one day (and people from that park will undoubtedly go over to DCA to see World of Color), it's hard to imagine only allowing 7K people into the viewing area. This is one thing I just don't know about. It will be interesting to see how it all works out - that's for sure.

A tip, if I may. California Adventure is doing the meal package with VIP seating for World of Color (just like the mean and VIP package for Disney World's Fantasmic). I would HIGHLY recommend you do this. If you're going in a few weeks, I would call Disney Dining tomorrow [(714) 781-DINE] and make your reservation now! My recommendation is the Trattoria, food is good. I think it's about $30 per person, but you get an appetizer, drink, entree, and dessert per each person plus the VIP seating. At least with this package you know you'll get a descent seat for the show. (Ariel's Grotto also has a package which is $39 per person, which I might ad is normal price so they are not charging more for the VIP seating). Anyway, just a thought. I would highly recommend it though!

Good luck!

 

[Kidlette]

Yanira - I completely agree - I think you and Sergio are SO MUCH like Ryan and me! It's insane how much we have in common! We just may have found friends for life!

Also, your FE is so cute! You actually did it! I'm so proud of you for making it yourself! I can't wait to put fun little gifts in it!

Everyone - Ryan and I have had great ideas for the kids FE gifts; we're actually having a lot of fun with that! But, we're not so sure about adult gifts. Does anyone have a link to any good strings with adult gift ideas?!?!? I have only a couple of ideas, but they require a craftiness. In case you haven't figured it out yet - I am not so crafty!

Also, I'd like to get a poll. Who is everyone's Disney character and movie?!? Yes - they can be different! (Not just your favorite, what is the favorite of each family member's - kids included!)