Feb 20, 2011 - Presidents' Week - Mexican Riviera

[Tad1299]

Tad1299 (Tad) 1 adult, 1 girl 5 1st DCL cruise - and we will be participating in the Fish Extenders.

Looking forward to meeting everyone, should be a great time.

 

[Beachmum]

Anyone else making door magnets for their door?

I spent the day cutting out and laminating all of mine. I still have to re-cut out now that they are laminated and apply the magnets. We have two cabins (right across from eachother) so I had two doors to fill. While they won't be "filled" I think I did plenty.

I've been thinking about the lazy way to do it and just decided to print the pictures on photo paper and use the adhesive magnet paper to stick to the back. For the larger ones, I'll strategically put magnets along the outer edge.

I, too, have two cabins (side-by-side) but will probably be reasonably low-key in the magnets since DH thinks it's silly. I'll let you know how it works out on the photo paper.

Between now and the cruise, I have DD's birthday party (and the two girls are attending three others over the next two weekends), I have to finish some work for DH's company and my business has been super busy. I can't believe we're leaving so soon!

 

[AuntAmy]

I am making magnets too. But just haven't yet. I think my niece will like seeing her door all decorated. I got some stickers and am planning on picking up the mickey head paint samples from Lowes and going to put a sticker in the middle and magnet on the back. And I have some other stuff I want to get laminated. This is going to be a busy weekend.

 

[bayportkat]

I am hoping to make magnets for our door- probably printed on cardstock, laminated and then putting some small magnets on the back. The magnet paper was too expensive for my taste!

I also have a FE question- I think I am going to use a tote bag- time and money are against me to make a "real" one, though they are beautiful! I am just not sure when we would use one again.

So, if I use a tote bag, do I just put some kind of label on it with our screen name and real names? Does it need a label?

Also, another question about FE gifts for others- are we supposed to label who they are for? do we just put dd8 or ds15, etc. since we don't have the names to indicate who the gifts are for?

Thanks in advance!! getting more excited by the day to meet you all!

 

[minie_meese]

I am hoping to make magnets for our door- probably printed on cardstock, laminated and then putting some small magnets on the back. The magnet paper was too expensive for my taste!

I also have a FE question- I think I am going to use a tote bag- time and money are against me to make a "real" one, though they are beautiful! I am just not sure when we would use one again.

So, if I use a tote bag, do I just put some kind of label on it with our screen name and real names? Does it need a label?

Also, another question about FE gifts for others- are we supposed to label who they are for? do we just put dd8 or ds15, etc. since we don't have the names to indicate who the gifts are for?

Thanks in advance!! getting more excited by the day to meet you all!

Do what you are comfortable with and it will be fine. I've seen people use lots of different things for FE - last year we cruised just before Christmas and one family used a Christmas stocking. Another family used some kind of laundry bad - whatever works for you (and the fish ) - your idea of a tote bag should be fine. People decorate them as much as they want. If you want to leave it plain that is fine. I spent a lot of time making ours a few years ago and we've used them on every cruise. My granddaughter leaves hers hanging in her room as a decoration but mine - well - I thought I lost it and found it was still in a pocket of the suitcase we used last year.

I labeled my gifts with the info I have e.g. girl (8), adults, etc. Some gifts are going to be generic so you don't need to label them if it doesn't matter. I'd encourage people to put your screen name or room number on the gift so people know who gave it to them.

We used card stock and magnets on our first cruise. It worked ok and they looked great but they fell of the door especially when the door was opened and our verandah door was also open (it made a big breeze). We just got used to checking when we opened the door.

 

[minie_meese]

Tad1299 (Tad) 1 adult, 1 girl 5 1st DCL cruise - and we will be participating in the Fish Extenders.

Looking forward to meeting everyone, should be a great time.

Hi Tad - I don't have you on my FE list and you need to be or the 20 participating families will not know that you are participating or where to find your family. We finalized the list last month but have had a few late additions. I would hate to see your daughter disappointed. I can add you with the understanding that some families have finished their FE gifts so you may not get something from every family. A lot of people have made things for each individual and others are or have already purchased things. At a minimum I need your stateroom number to add you to the list.

Thanks

Elaine

 

[silence]

Elaine, I got your "graphical" list for the FE and it is FABULOUS. Oh my, this helps us newbies soooo much!

I made my hotel reservations for our 2 days at Disneyland before the cruise. I had been holding out for the Ent/AP rate at HoJo, but opted for the Candy Cane Inn this trip due to the shuttle. We decided to stay there Sat. night too instead of at the port, only because, the port hotels didn't get the best reviews. This way we can take our afternoon nap on Saturday too while we are enjoying the parks. Only two weeks before we drive down, too excited to do much else but obsess over the trip!

 

[bayportkat]

Thanks Elaine, for both the email with the picture of the decks and your earlier response!

I may actually have a Fish Extender- went to pick up my nephew and my sil (and travel agent) said our docs were in, so she went to get them and gave me a cool backpack with it. I said, maybe I can use this as my FE- will I get some onboard credit for advertising? (since it has her company name on it) and then explained my plan for the tote bag and she said she had an FE that she never used due to cancellation of the trip she bought it for. As long as she can find it, we should have one for our trip- if not, we will do the tote bag!

Thanks again Elaine for all of your hard work!

 

[Jennifer_W]

Hi Elaine,
I don't believe you have our cabin number yet. It's 2082. FE gifts are done. Now to tackle the actual fish extender. I don't sew, so it should be pretty interesting. Does anyone have any tips for no sewing fish extenders?

My dd is also 6 and can be shy in new situations. It will be nice for the kids to get to know each other on the first day of the cruise.

I can't believe it is a little over three weeks away. No travel docs here, but our TA told me they should arrive by Tues. Can't wait.

I'm not sure if anyone answered your FE question yet (I am trying to catch up with the board--took month off), but here's what I did last time:

I went to the dollar spot @ Target and got a cute glossy cardboard box with an open top, about 5" square (it was pink for Valentine's Day, I believe). I put a long pretty piece of ribbon through the holes for the original handle. Then I decorated it with Disney characters. I cut mine with my die-cut machine, but stickers would work great, too. The box was strong enough to hold most everything (except the really cool frames somebody made), and really, they would've put those on the ground for most FE's, anyway. The ribbon was great, because I could adjust the length when hanging it. It was simple and cheap. It would also work with a metal pail, etc. Can't beat a buck!

 

[betsy2010]

Hi All,
We're not doing the FEs but are hoping to meet up with some of you (I have my lime green mickeys!)

A couple of 'poll' questions for you all:

1) what time are you arriving at the port? we're staying at the HoJo Plaza on Fri & Sat and on Sunday I want to go early but of course my dh thinks I'm nuts. I'd really like to be in the first few boarding groups. It's our first family cruise (dh & I cruised pre kids quite a bit) and I want to get the lay of the land, sign up for palo, get the bracelets for the kids, try to get Tea reservations (btw, when is the Tea with Wendy/Alice?)

2) do your spouses all think you are as nuts as mine does? he is convinced (in the nicest possible way) that it's only the 50 of us who even know that we're no longer porting in Mazatlan, much less that I've downloaded, printed and read all of the navigators. My 'DCL' essentials bag is growing and I tried to explain to him that a LOT of DCL times are "extreme planners" but then I started to think maybe it is just us

thanks all
betsy

 

[bayportkat]

Not sure if you saw any of the posts yet, but there are now times for checkin at the port. We had originally planned to get picked up at 10 am at our hotel, so I chose the 10:30-11:00 check in time. If you go to your reservation on Disney's website, it is now part of the pre-checkin process. The time prints out on your signature sheet. This our first 7 day Disney cruise, so I also want to get tea reservations and anything else that you can't do on a 4 night.

My dh has come to terms with my Disney craziness- he has finally realized that, although I may be annoying at times with all my planning, it usually helps us a ton and we wait on shorter lines, know when and where to be, etc. I am hoping that I did enough research for this trip- I was very laid back until a couple weeks ago-hence, joining th FE group late!

Can't wait to meet you!

Kathryn

 

[betsy2010]

thank you - when I did my online checkin a week ago that wasn't part of the process. I just 'redid' it and I could only pick 11-11:30 but I plan on getting there by about 10:15 so not sure if they'll hold you to that time or not!

my dh is supportive and nice but in a kind of 'your crazy but I love you anyway' sort of way - the whole family calls me 'travel monkey'

 

[colmom]

Hi Everyone! I am on the March 20 Mexican Riv cruise and need a question answered about the DCL Pacific Side Horseback Riding excursion in Cabo. My daughter will be in a walking leg cast at the time of our cruise. She is an experienced rider and very fit. I am wondering if someone could ask the Excursion desk if she will still be allowed to horseback ride. DCL Customer Service said they thought it was ok, but weren't 100% sure. Thanks for your help in advance

Colmom

 

[talie]

I just signed up online for the 10:30-11:00 arrival time. We'll be in Santa Clarita Saturday evening and plan on getting to the port around 10am.

My dh is a fan of DIS because it has made our Disneyland trips go so smooth. Needless to say he's not real shocked that I'm on here all the time. LOL I even got him to agree to putting magnets on the door. He did look in horror at a picture of someone's dining room table full of FE gifts. Won me some serious points when I told him I didn't sign up for the FE because I figured he'd be really annoyed by all the stuff.

 

[Dishy24]

Get this--

We have had our share of snow days/ school canceled here in CT. 10 to be exact-- This week alone we had Tues & Wed off for snow, Thurs to remove snow/ ice from the roof & Friday (today) because they didn't finish all the ice removal yesterday! (We are the only school in town STILL closed Friday!)

So, the printed policy on our school calendar is that a maximum of 6 snow days will be added to the end of the year & after that any additional days to be made up will be taken from April vacation week *if necessary". This is always the policy & we have never lost a day of April break week, the days at the end of the year are always enough.

Well at TONIGHT'S Board of Ed meeting, they decided to ELIMINATE President's Week break! The entire vacation week-- GONE! I am livid! At least if they eliminated April's break there was a warning for parents/ teachers-- BUT to take away a vacation week two weeks before is ludicrous! If there is ONE new bit of subject material introduced that week and even 1 kid is out, it is not fair! My son is an extremely bright kid, but that's not the point. For the 1st time, I do the right thing and actually book my cruise DURING break week & they go & take it away 2 weeks before! We are leaving for CA on the 17th so he was going to miss 2 days of school-- now he will be missing those 2, PLUS the entire next week!

Somebody actually asked me if I took out insurance on the trip & to check and see if I could re-coop any money if we canceled-- IN A MILLION YEARS I wouldn't miss this trip because 2 weeks before it the BOE changed their plans & took away our vacation week! Isn't this nuts???

 

[LKFan]

Wow, that's crazy! I can't imagine that, with such short notice, he is going to be the only kid out of school. I'm sure others have vacations planned too. Poor move on their part as they are going to lose a lot of $$ with kids being gone. That and the fact that it is much more likely for the weather to still be poor in two weeks than to be poor in two months.

Parents in our district are in an uproar because there is a chance school will start a week earlier next year and people already have vacations planned for August.

 

[bayportkat]

I can't believe they would take the Febuary vacation- April, I could understand- it should be warm then! But for the February break, there is still the chance of snow! What will happen if it snows again and they have to cancel? It really makes no sense!

If they did that where I work, I would be telling them that I will be away for the week- the only time we get to travel since both dh and I work in a school too.

Good luck with everything- maybe they will change it again after all the complaints? Or your kids will just miss school!

 

[gichicdoc]

Tricia-
I was starting to fear that they would do the exact same thing here in Michigan and you better believe I would be p-----! At the very least, I would be calling the BOE offices repeatedly. It might also help to let the BOE members know you disagree with their votes. At least here, these are elected officials.
Sharing your Grrrrr
Michelle

 

[minie_meese]

Trish -

What stupidity. That really stinks. I'd be furious too. It stinks for the kids and it stinks for the teachers who I'm guessing are not going to have a choice about what to do.

A big problem with picking February - more likely to have more snow days that week than in April. I wonder how people would feel after canceling their plans and then getting stuck home for a snow day. I'll bet student attendance will be down considerably during Presidents' Week.

Elaine

 

[DVC_Chris]

Wow, that does suck. My wife is a teacher here on Long Island, and thankfully we have only had two snow days before so I think my vacation is safe. Only once growing up do I remember them not factoring in enough snow days, and I think they took it out of the Spring Break.

I am sure your son will not be the only one of his classmates absent that week, as (at least on Long Island) that is one of the biggest vacation weeks around.