Disneyland Girls Only Trip thread

[toocherie]

I am getting DH resume together so he can make more $$$, so I keep up my Disney habit. I probably should tell him

He doesn't need to know until you tell him where to report for his new job!

 

[mommaU4]

Lol Beth I belong to a Military Wives board also (dh was in the Army) and people end up calling people by their screen names too and it is so funny to call people by whatever, Armywifey05 or whatever the heck. I feel so dumb doing that. It is nice to finally be able to call you by your "real" name

And OH NO not cleaning. As Disney is my FAV thing to do cleaning is my LEAST fav! But if I have to I have to I guess!

Anywho I sure hope this works out cuz you guys def sound like my kind of group that's for sure and even if you go the first part of April it looks like we are going the first weekend which is the weekend before easter break so even if I am there with dh and the kids I could def break away to meet up with you all for a dinner or something!

But if not this trip maybe another cuz it sounds like this is going to turn into an annual tradition and if not it should!!

Yeah, I made everyone here give their real names so I could post them on the front page. I refuse to walk around Disneyland yelling for eatmypixiedust or Dangermouse.

So far in the poll, the end of Feb/early March is winning. That could change, you never know, but if not, will that work for you? Just think, you could go to DL in March and again in April.

 

[mommaU4]

Hi ladies--I'm back and just voted--I chose late March-early April but really anytime is fine for me too.

Yesterday was a really long day at UCLA Medical Center-but the good news is my Mom is doing well. We got up at 4 a.m., had to be at the hospital at 6 a.m. and my Mom and I were taken down to pre-op at 6:30 a.m. (they would only let one person go with her so unfortunately her friend and caregiver--Ines-had to wait upstairs). They prepped her and had her sign consents, and then took her into the OR around 8:40 a.m. They estimated a 12-hour surgery. Ines and I went back to the hotel and napped until 1 p.m. and then I called and made our ADRs for November in the World! It took 40 MINUTES. I got right through (because I'm DVC I had an 800 number to call, thank goodness) but for an eight day trip making two reservations a day it took that long. The great news is that I think I got great ADRs, the most exciting being Cinderella's Royal Table at late breakfast on my Mom's birthday (Nov. 4th) and California Grill (hopefully during Wishes) on our last night there. I haven't decided yet about the dining plan--my current thought is to keep all the ADR's, but only get the basic dining plan. My Mom and I usually split meals, but at the ADR table meal we would each get our own and then for the other ADR we would pay OOP and split. We would still have counter service (which we would probably split too) and snacks. But I might decide to just go OOP for the whole thing before it's over (I definitely think the Deluxe Dining Plan will be too much food for us and not a good value.) If we go OOP I will probably get the DDE card--Shelly, Ruth and the others who have done a lot of WDW--have you used the DDE?

Anyway, back to Mom--for those that don't know, she has skin cancer on her face which had exploded all over her right face and neck--they basically removed all of the skin from the eyebrow to the neck on the right (if you think of the mask the Phantom of the Opera wears, that's about the area) and replaced it with skin and tissue from her thigh. The scar is pretty ugly currently, but I'm sure as it heals it will be less noticeable. She got out of surgery at 7 p.m. last night and was in recovery until 10 p.m. and then in ICU last night. We saw her about 11 p.m. last night. She was very swollen last night and less so today. She's been moved to a "mid-care" room--not quite ICU but not quite a regular room yet. She's also pretty grumpy today--which actually is a good sign I think! Very clear-headed--knows what she wants and how--so we have avoided the dreaded "general anesthesia brain fog" that you worry about with an elderly person. (If they have any leanings towards Alzheimer's or dementia general anesthesia can accelerate the process.) She didn't have any symptoms anyway--so we're good. She'll be in the hospital about a week.

So, hopefully that wasn't "TMI" but just wanted to give some of you who knew about this an update. Now back to our regularly scheduled programming . . . . . .

Hi Cheryl! I was wondering how things were going. Thanks for the update. I'm glad the surgery went well. Wow, sounds really intense though. 12 hours. I bet you were nervous and are relieved now. I hope she continues to feel better fast and that the scar heals up nicely.

As for your WDW trip, it sounds great!! I can totally believe it took you that long on the phone. It's a real chore to plan a trip over there!! LOL But it will all be worth it. I hope you plan to take lots of pics to post on the Shutterfly account.

I don't have a DDE card or much knowledge of it, but I do know two people who have it and love it.

 

[mommaU4]

He doesn't need to know until you tell him where to report for his new job!

Exactly!

 

[disney-super-mom]

Cheryl, I'm praying that your mom has a speedy and healthy recovery.

 

[Califgirl]

Cheryl, I'm so glad your mom is doing well after her surgery.

Your trip to WDW sounds like it will be a blast! Did you manage to get Jiko or LeCellier into your ADR's? They are two of my favorites, along with Boma for Breakfast. Ah...planning is so much of the fun of a WDW vacation! Which DVC will you be staying at?

I've used the DDP the last few years when it included tip and appetizer. I loved it. Even without the tip and appetizer, I would probably use it again. I've never used the DDE card, even though I had an AP for WDW for awhile. It used to be $60 per year, but I think it went up. It gives you a straight 20% off everything, even alcohol. I'm not sure what the break even point on the DDE is, but the restaurant board would have all that info for you!

Have fun with your planning!
And pixie dust to your mom for a quick recovery.

 

[BillyFan]

Hi ladies--I'm back and just voted--I chose late March-early April but really anytime is fine for me too.

Yesterday was a really long day at UCLA Medical Center-but the good news is my Mom is doing well. We got up at 4 a.m., had to be at the hospital at 6 a.m. and my Mom and I were taken down to pre-op at 6:30 a.m. (they would only let one person go with her so unfortunately her friend and caregiver--Ines-had to wait upstairs). They prepped her and had her sign consents, and then took her into the OR around 8:40 a.m. They estimated a 12-hour surgery. Ines and I went back to the hotel and napped until 1 p.m. and then I called and made our ADRs for November in the World! It took 40 MINUTES. I got right through (because I'm DVC I had an 800 number to call, thank goodness) but for an eight day trip making two reservations a day it took that long. The great news is that I think I got great ADRs, the most exciting being Cinderella's Royal Table at late breakfast on my Mom's birthday (Nov. 4th) and California Grill (hopefully during Wishes) on our last night there. I haven't decided yet about the dining plan--my current thought is to keep all the ADR's, but only get the basic dining plan. My Mom and I usually split meals, but at the ADR table meal we would each get our own and then for the other ADR we would pay OOP and split. We would still have counter service (which we would probably split too) and snacks. But I might decide to just go OOP for the whole thing before it's over (I definitely think the Deluxe Dining Plan will be too much food for us and not a good value.) If we go OOP I will probably get the DDE card--Shelly, Ruth and the others who have done a lot of WDW--have you used the DDE?

Anyway, back to Mom--for those that don't know, she has skin cancer on her face which had exploded all over her right face and neck--they basically removed all of the skin from the eyebrow to the neck on the right (if you think of the mask the Phantom of the Opera wears, that's about the area) and replaced it with skin and tissue from her thigh. The scar is pretty ugly currently, but I'm sure as it heals it will be less noticeable. She got out of surgery at 7 p.m. last night and was in recovery until 10 p.m. and then in ICU last night. We saw her about 11 p.m. last night. She was very swollen last night and less so today. She's been moved to a "mid-care" room--not quite ICU but not quite a regular room yet. She's also pretty grumpy today--which actually is a good sign I think! Very clear-headed--knows what she wants and how--so we have avoided the dreaded "general anesthesia brain fog" that you worry about with an elderly person. (If they have any leanings towards Alzheimer's or dementia general anesthesia can accelerate the process.) She didn't have any symptoms anyway--so we're good. She'll be in the hospital about a week.

So, hopefully that wasn't "TMI" but just wanted to give some of you who knew about this an update. Now back to our regularly scheduled programming . . . . . .

Hi! I'm so glad to hear that your mom is doing well. DH and I were on the DDP when we were last in the World in 2006, and we loved it! It was definitely a ton of food, but it was nice to know we could have pretty much whatever we wanted.

 

[21yankees]

Hi ladies--I'm back and just voted--I chose late March-early April but really anytime is fine for me too.

Yesterday was a really long day at UCLA Medical Center-but the good news is my Mom is doing well. We got up at 4 a.m., had to be at the hospital at 6 a.m. and my Mom and I were taken down to pre-op at 6:30 a.m. (they would only let one person go with her so unfortunately her friend and caregiver--Ines-had to wait upstairs). They prepped her and had her sign consents, and then took her into the OR around 8:40 a.m. They estimated a 12-hour surgery. Ines and I went back to the hotel and napped until 1 p.m. and then I called and made our ADRs for November in the World! It took 40 MINUTES. I got right through (because I'm DVC I had an 800 number to call, thank goodness) but for an eight day trip making two reservations a day it took that long. The great news is that I think I got great ADRs, the most exciting being Cinderella's Royal Table at late breakfast on my Mom's birthday (Nov. 4th) and California Grill (hopefully during Wishes) on our last night there. I haven't decided yet about the dining plan--my current thought is to keep all the ADR's, but only get the basic dining plan. My Mom and I usually split meals, but at the ADR table meal we would each get our own and then for the other ADR we would pay OOP and split. We would still have counter service (which we would probably split too) and snacks. But I might decide to just go OOP for the whole thing before it's over (I definitely think the Deluxe Dining Plan will be too much food for us and not a good value.) If we go OOP I will probably get the DDE card--Shelly, Ruth and the others who have done a lot of WDW--have you used the DDE?

Anyway, back to Mom--for those that don't know, she has skin cancer on her face which had exploded all over her right face and neck--they basically removed all of the skin from the eyebrow to the neck on the right (if you think of the mask the Phantom of the Opera wears, that's about the area) and replaced it with skin and tissue from her thigh. The scar is pretty ugly currently, but I'm sure as it heals it will be less noticeable. She got out of surgery at 7 p.m. last night and was in recovery until 10 p.m. and then in ICU last night. We saw her about 11 p.m. last night. She was very swollen last night and less so today. She's been moved to a "mid-care" room--not quite ICU but not quite a regular room yet. She's also pretty grumpy today--which actually is a good sign I think! Very clear-headed--knows what she wants and how--so we have avoided the dreaded "general anesthesia brain fog" that you worry about with an elderly person. (If they have any leanings towards Alzheimer's or dementia general anesthesia can accelerate the process.) She didn't have any symptoms anyway--so we're good. She'll be in the hospital about a week.

So, hopefully that wasn't "TMI" but just wanted to give some of you who knew about this an update. Now back to our regularly scheduled programming . . . . . .

Glad to hear she is doing well. I've heard grumpiness after surgery (and the like) is a good sign. Hope she continues to get better.

steph

 

[21yankees]

Hi everybody.

Sorry I haven't been around much since we got back last week (goodness it's been a week already ) I've had a pretty interesting week to say the least. So here's the synopsis of what's happened: Thursday morning I was doing my monthly self-examination and found a lump...needless to say I was a bit . So I called the base clinic to schedule an appointment. They got me in that afternoon. My dr saw it immediately without have to feel for it, which made me more . She got me a referral to get a breast ultrasound for the next day. So on Friday I went in for the ultrasound. The technician saw the one I was there for and found 2 additional ones that I didn't feel . This all made for a very long weekend. Of course the radiologist wasn't there to see this so I had to wait until my regular got the results which was yesterday.
So I get another phone call from my doctor saying she wants me seen in the next 72 hours by a breast specialist. The good news is that I got the doctor my boss (a breast cancer survivor) recommended. The even better news was that they could see me today. So I saw him today. He wants a needle biopsy of all three lumps done as soon as possible as he wants to see me one week from today.
If you've made it this far, thanks for listening to me vent a bit.... I'm waiting for their office to call me with my appointment time for the biopsy as well as my follow-up visit with him next week. I'll let you all know when I know.
I am working on a trip report but I don't know how interesting it will be. Thanks again for listening. I really don't want to be a downer but I needed to get this out and besides my husband and MIL we haven't told anyone.

steph

 

[toocherie]

Hi everybody.

Sorry I haven't been around much since we got back last week (goodness it's been a week already ) I've had a pretty interesting week to say the least. So here's the synopsis of what's happened: Thursday morning I was doing my monthly self-examination and found a lump...needless to say I was a bit . So I called the base clinic to schedule an appointment. They got me in that afternoon. My dr saw it immediately without have to feel for it, which made me more . She got me a referral to get a breast ultrasound for the next day. So on Friday I went in for the ultrasound. The technician saw the one I was there for and found 2 additional ones that I didn't feel . This all made for a very long weekend. Of course the radiologist wasn't there to see this so I had to wait until my regular got the results which was yesterday.
So I get another phone call from my doctor saying she wants me seen in the next 72 hours by a breast specialist. The good news is that I got the doctor my boss (a breast cancer survivor) recommended. The even better news was that they could see me today. So I saw him today. He wants a needle biopsy of all three lumps done as soon as possible as he wants to see me one week from today.
If you've made it this far, thanks for listening to me vent a bit.... I'm waiting for their office to call me with my appointment time for the biopsy as well as my follow-up visit with him next week. I'll let you all know when I know.
I am working on a trip report but I don't know how interesting it will be. Thanks again for listening. I really don't want to be a downer but I needed to get this out and besides my husband and MIL we haven't told anyone.

steph

Steph: I'll keep you in my thoughts and prayers. . . . .

Cheryl

 

[DangerMouse]

Cheryl, so glad to hear your mom is doing well after her surgery. I had no idea it was that major of a surgery. I'm sure she will be very appreciative of all the hard work you've done on the WDW planning and will enjoy a vacation with her new and improved face.

Still completely scared of ever trying to plan a trip to WDW. Wonder if I'll ever get over it. . .


Steph, I will definitely be keeping you in my prayers. I hope you get answers soon. The waiting has got to be so hard. I'm glad you felt comfortable sharing with us.

Callie

 

[wdwr]

Big hugs to Steph and Cheryl!!! Or to make it quicker we can do the group hug.



Cheryl, I used to have a DDE card before the last round of changes they made to it and the DDP. You'd really have to buy a lot of food for the two of you to find the break even point. If this is your only trip to WDW in the next 13mths and it's just the two of you....I'd probably either go OOP. Unless you think you can use the DDP credits. (I won't be using either the DDE or DDP again. I don't like change! rofl And they made too many changes to both of these.)

I'm not sure of the price to purchase it but I am pretty sure that they now automatically CHARGING 18% tip to your bill if you use it...regardless of the size of your party. That sort of annoyed me. The 20% discount is still the same. If you decide to get it, just make sure you watch your bills every time you use it.

I'm sure you can find more info on the disboards somewhere or you can try allears for more info. Maybe the breakeven for either the DDE or DDP.

 

[mommaU4]

Hi everybody.

Sorry I haven't been around much since we got back last week (goodness it's been a week already ) I've had a pretty interesting week to say the least. So here's the synopsis of what's happened: Thursday morning I was doing my monthly self-examination and found a lump...needless to say I was a bit . So I called the base clinic to schedule an appointment. They got me in that afternoon. My dr saw it immediately without have to feel for it, which made me more . She got me a referral to get a breast ultrasound for the next day. So on Friday I went in for the ultrasound. The technician saw the one I was there for and found 2 additional ones that I didn't feel . This all made for a very long weekend. Of course the radiologist wasn't there to see this so I had to wait until my regular got the results which was yesterday.
So I get another phone call from my doctor saying she wants me seen in the next 72 hours by a breast specialist. The good news is that I got the doctor my boss (a breast cancer survivor) recommended. The even better news was that they could see me today. So I saw him today. He wants a needle biopsy of all three lumps done as soon as possible as he wants to see me one week from today.
If you've made it this far, thanks for listening to me vent a bit.... I'm waiting for their office to call me with my appointment time for the biopsy as well as my follow-up visit with him next week. I'll let you all know when I know.
I am working on a trip report but I don't know how interesting it will be. Thanks again for listening. I really don't want to be a downer but I needed to get this out and besides my husband and MIL we haven't told anyone.

steph

Steph, you're not being a downer at all. We're here for you if you need anything, even just to vent.

I know a little of what you are going through. Last mammogram I had, they kept taking pics and taking pics. They made me wait forever. Finally they told me they wanted to do an ultrasound. Meanwhile I am freaking out.

After the ultrasound, they decide to send me to a specialist who then wants to schedule a needle biopsy. I was scared, but it wasn't that bad, and I am a WIMP! LOL Got any frozen peas?? That's what I used afterwards to help with any pain or swelling, which there wasn't even much of.

Anyway, if you have any questions or want to talk, feel free to PM me. I'll be keeping you in my thoughts.

 

[lisadoll93]

Steph

 

[21yankees]

Steph, you're not being a downer at all. We're here for you if you need anything, even just to vent.

I know a little of what you are going through. Last mammogram I had, they kept taking pics and taking pics. They made me wait forever. Finally they told me they wanted to do an ultrasound. Meanwhile I am freaking out.

After the ultrasound, they decide to send me to a specialist who then wants to schedule a needle biopsy. I was scared, but it wasn't that bad, and I am a WIMP! LOL Got any frozen peas?? That's what I used afterwards to help with any pain or swelling, which there wasn't even much of.

Anyway, if you have any questions or want to talk, feel free to PM me. I'll be keeping you in my thoughts.

Thanks Beth as well as everyone else who's passed on well wishes. Thanks for the tip on frozen peas. I'll make sure to have those on hand this coming week. I'll keep you all updated.

steph

 

[toocherie]

Still completely scared of ever trying to plan a trip to WDW. Wonder if I'll ever get over it. . .

Callie

It IS an incredible amount of work--more so than DLR. My Mom's caregiver was in the hotel room when I was making the ADRs yesterday and she couldn't believe it. The only thing that saved me was that being a DVC member I get to call an 800 number and because I was calling mid-day had not wait to get to a CM. Even then it took 40 minutes. And I'm not sure that at some point I won't call back and change something (I think we might want to do Hoop-De Doo the first night we are there.)

 

[toocherie]

Your trip to WDW sounds like it will be a blast! Did you manage to get Jiko or LeCellier into your ADR's? They are two of my favorites, along with Boma for Breakfast. Ah...planning is so much of the fun of a WDW vacation! Which DVC will you be staying at?

Yes, we have LeCellier for a lunch one day, Jiko for a dinner and Boma for breakfast since those seemed to be the ones that everyone favored (Capri, Shelley).

Basically what I did was schedule either a late breakfast or early lunch, followed by a dinner. The problem now will be deciding whether we actually keep them all or not . . . . I'm not sure we could eat two table service meals a day! But if we're not on the DDP and we're sharing we might be able to do it. Obviously the buffets like Boma (and I also scheduled Tusker House, I think) we would both have to pay. I tried to make a mix of "nice" places (like Jiko, LeCeller and Calif. Grill), character meals (Tusker House, CRT and Liberty Tree Tavern (which I didn't know was a character meal) and just plain--Brown Derby (because Mom expressed interest), Turf Grill (for our arrival lunch). Someone (maybe Shelley) also indicated they liked 50's Prime Time so I did that one too. In addition to not eating so much, I'm concerned too about spending so much time eating so we'll just have to wait and see. The good news/bad news is that it will be hard to get my Mom on some rides so we will probably mostly be doing shows and parades so may have more time to eat!

 

[disney-super-mom]

Hi everybody.

Sorry I haven't been around much since we got back last week (goodness it's been a week already ) I've had a pretty interesting week to say the least. So here's the synopsis of what's happened: Thursday morning I was doing my monthly self-examination and found a lump...needless to say I was a bit . So I called the base clinic to schedule an appointment. They got me in that afternoon. My dr saw it immediately without have to feel for it, which made me more . She got me a referral to get a breast ultrasound for the next day. So on Friday I went in for the ultrasound. The technician saw the one I was there for and found 2 additional ones that I didn't feel . This all made for a very long weekend. Of course the radiologist wasn't there to see this so I had to wait until my regular got the results which was yesterday.
So I get another phone call from my doctor saying she wants me seen in the next 72 hours by a breast specialist. The good news is that I got the doctor my boss (a breast cancer survivor) recommended. The even better news was that they could see me today. So I saw him today. He wants a needle biopsy of all three lumps done as soon as possible as he wants to see me one week from today.
If you've made it this far, thanks for listening to me vent a bit.... I'm waiting for their office to call me with my appointment time for the biopsy as well as my follow-up visit with him next week. I'll let you all know when I know.
I am working on a trip report but I don't know how interesting it will be. Thanks again for listening. I really don't want to be a downer but I needed to get this out and besides my husband and MIL we haven't told anyone.

steph

Gosh Steph, you just vent away! That's what friends are for, and we have a great group of girl friends here to listen and help support you in anything and everything that you need!

I'll be agonizing with you, waiting for your biopsy results......now I'm all worried. I'll keep you in my prayers, girl!

 

[mommaU4]

It IS an incredible amount of work--more so than DLR. My Mom's caregiver was in the hotel room when I was making the ADRs yesterday and she couldn't believe it. The only thing that saved me was that being a DVC member I get to call an 800 number and because I was calling mid-day had not wait to get to a CM. Even then it took 40 minutes. And I'm not sure that at some point I won't call back and change something (I think we might want to do Hoop-De Doo the first night we are there.)

I've done the Hoop-De-Doo and it was a lot of fun! Food was really good too. I'd definitely recommend that one.

I remember planning for WDW. I felt like all I was focusing on was food! LOL It's like the rides and shows were secondary and the whole trip was being built around food. It was fun, but also I did feel like we spent too much time eating.

 

[toocherie]

I've done the Hoop-De-Doo and it was a lot of fun! Food was really good too. I'd definitely recommend that one.

I remember planning for WDW. I felt like all I was focusing on was food! LOL It's like the rides and shows were secondary and the whole trip was being built around food. It was fun, but also I did feel like we spent too much time eating.

Thanks--I will probably call back in the next few weeks and do the Hoop-De-Doo reservation.

That is my concern too--planning on eating and not seeing the parks (I also want to spend just one day visiting some of the resorts--like the Polynesian, Grand Floridian, etc.) I figured I'd make all the ADRs and then as I refine our schedule would let go those that we probably won't use.

It would be nice, however, if WDW would post their darn November hours! Latest word is they are not going to post them until May 15th! And they won't post EMH hours until the end of the month.