Go into the mind of an over-planner: First-timer's pre/post-trip report for 12/2007

[CardinalsFan]

Fanny Packs:

Autograph Books and Clickable Sharpies:

Glow Stick Necklaces:

Sweatshirts:

Jibbitz:

 

[CardinalsFan]

YOAMD Hats (front):

YOAMD Hats (back):

Tinkerbell Mickey Ears Hat:

Tin Princess Purses (not from dollar bin - though I wish they were!):

Variety of stuff from the Target dollar bins:

More dollar bin stuff:

Magnetic dress-your-princess sets (dollar bin):

That's all (so far )!

 

[CardinalsFan]

Park Strategies

I was expecting the parks to be uncrowded during this week, but seeing the “December Roll Call” thread has made me realize this week may be more popular than I had anticipated! Something like RideMax is very interesting to me, as a computer programmer, but I have resisted using it, trying to keep our in-park experience a bit more spontaneous (hard word for an overplanner). I suspect I’ll cave-in sometime next week, and purchase it and play with several scenarios (I’ll have some downtime that week).

I do know from analyzing the park schedules that there are certain attractions that will have to be visited at certain times. We were lucky enough to get four tickets to Mickey’s Toontown Morning Madness (thanks vanvmom!), which we plan on using on Wednesday morning, or if we miss that for some reason, on Friday morning. And Fantasmic is only available on Friday night during our stay, at two different times, so we’ll attempt to go to the earlier showing, since I’m pretty sure my kids won’t be able to stay up for the later showing (not without cranky-tired incidents, anyway). And the only opportunity to view the DL parade during daylight hours will be on Friday; I’m sure we will have already seen the same parade (at night) before then, but if for some reason we wanted to experience it during daylight hours (e.g., better photos), this will be our only opportunity. Speaking of parades, the Block Party Bash is only available on Friday during our stay, so if we want to see it, we had better be in DCA on Friday at 5:15pm. Side note: a website I found (thesunrisetimes.com) forecasts the sunrise to be around 7:00am each day, and sunset around 5:00pm each day. So I guess it will be nearly dark when we see the Block Party Bash? Does that seem right?

Most everything else is available at least a few times during our stay, so we’ll have plenty of opportunities to see things like the nighttime DL parade, fireworks (weather permitting), Aladdin, Playhouse Disney, and the HSM2 performances. We will prioritize seeing the fireworks as early as possible in the trip, in case of cancellations due to weather. And if we do the Princess Fantasy Faire, one of us will get in line before it opens, and we'll all go in right when it opens, to minimize the wait to see the princesses.

We would like to experience as much as possible, and with 53 available hours in DL and 35 available hours in DCA, I’m hopeful we can do it all! Maybe we’ll even have time to re-visit some favorites. I’m not very interested in the wet rides (Splash and GRR), since I’m assuming it will be too cool for getting wet. I’m prepared to accept the possibility that we’ll have to go back to the hotel for mid-afternoon breaks/naps, even though I’m not going to like it! From what I’ve read, my tune will change once I’m there, and I experience the exhaustion everyone talks about. But right now, I’m scheming to sneak back out to the parks while my wife and kids nap. We’ll see how that goes over. Maybe we'll have an unseasonably warm day, and hit a wet ride just before heading back to the hotel for an afternoon change of clothes and nap.

I’d like to let the kids have plenty of time for stuff like the Redwood Creek Challenge and the Pirate’s Lair.

And I want to go to the Visa Meet-N-Greet in DCA each day, so we can get our free 5x7. But if we're having too much fun in DL, I'm prepared to skip it a day or two.

 

[MommyTo5]

Great pre-trip report, CardinalsFan! Sounds lke you over-plan in the same way I do... I definitely want the most bang for my buck! I've found this guarantees a GREAT vacation!!!

You are inspiring... I may just have to start my own pre-trip!

(By the way, sound like we might be neighbors... I'm in Olathe!)

 

[MommyTo5]

Visits from TinkerbellI’m still looking for some small items for them to bring into the parks in their fanny packs, like Chapstick, and maybe something to occupy them while waiting in lines (suggestions are welcome!). I may get DD7 some Disney-themed games for her Nintendo GBA. And I have another Mickey Ears Hat with Tinkerbell on it (from eBay) that Tinkerbell will leave for DD4. I may get each girl a disposable camera to use as she sees fit (ten bucks says they take all 24 pictures in the first 24 minutes!).

Not Chapstick, but very similar!

Avon.com has some Disney lip balms for $.69 each

http://shop.avon.com/shop/product.a...ney&camp=200724&dir_delivery=1&rep_delivery=1

If that link doesn't work, just do a search!

Use code EREPFS for Free Shipping (you might have to search for an e-rep in your area and select her as your rep for the code to work).

My girls have always loved these!

 

[Hound 109]

Park Strategies

.....I’m prepared to accept the possibility that we’ll have to go back to the hotel for mid-afternoon breaks/naps, even though I’m not going to like it! From what I’ve read, my tune will change once I’m there, and I experience the exhaustion everyone talks about. But right now, I’m scheming to sneak back out to the parks while my wife and kids nap. We’ll see how that goes over. Maybe we'll have an unseasonably warm day, and hit a wet ride just before heading back to the hotel for an afternoon change of clothes and nap.

I’d like to let the kids have plenty of time for stuff like the Redwood Creek Challenge and the Pirate’s Lair.

........

CF, the "afternoon break" theory evolves naturally for me & others (all are basically HydroGuy followers) who believe that the best way to tour DLR is to get there early (& collect FPs the first 3 hours) & then relax for a couple of hours when the SoCal day trippers (& the "get up later go with the flow" types) are crowding the park.

Half the time a nap is taken, sometimes it's just a nice 2 - 3 hour rest & a chance to change your socks & a shirt....maybe take a dip in the pool or a shower. Allows us to re-charge for the wonder that is DLR at night.

Maybe you'll be able to commando thru the afternoon, but with kids, i recommend a couple of hours of down time (especially if you properly tour early, which i suspect you will). Regarding you slipping over while they're resting. It's a pretty good hike (at least for 4 round trip walks in a day)....I would recommend you do the "sneaking off, or touring on your own", either before or after the rest. While the rest of the family is shopping or doing a character greet, you can split off for checking stuff out & FP collecting. (HydroGuys Aug. of 05 "How to do FP on a crowded day" report illustrates how this just kind of happens naturally).

Your idea of doing Griz or Splash just before departing is a great one. We have done that 5 of our 7 days of touring.

Penciling in time for Redwood Trail (which is also a good place to "dry out" after Griz btw..) & Pirates Lair is also smart. When the park is crowded these are good places to let the kids "romp". Pirates Lair (or Tom Sawyers Island as us old timers call it) is a blast & a good hour to hour & a half of fun can be had on the island (which would include pirate show & raft transport time).

Great Report.

 

[CardinalsFan]

Thanks, MommyTo5, er, 6... I just realized that we have some lip "stuff" among the Tinkerbell-themed items from the dollar bin at Target. But I might have to get a few of those anyway (my 7-year-old can lose a tube of chapstick in 5 minutes). Do you know if that stuff has any mineral oil in it? We don't use any moisturizers containing mineral oil... so I'm just curious to know that.

Pretty cool that you're in Olathe, too!

 

[CardinalsFan]

Hey Hound - thanks again for the advice!

CF

 

[MommyTo5]

Thanks, MommyTo5, er, 6... I just realized that we have some lip "stuff" among the Tinkerbell-themed items from the dollar bin at Target. But I might have to get a few of those anyway (my 7-year-old can lose a tube of chapstick in 5 minutes). Do you know if that stuff has any mineral oil in it? We don't use any moisturizers containing mineral oil... so I'm just curious to know that.

Pretty cool that you're in Olathe, too!

I just ordered the Disney lip balm today so I don't have any in hand to check, but I did check both the Avon High School Musical and Desserts varieties we have here at home and they both list the exact same ingredients on the label - neither containing mineral oil. I think it's safe to assume that the Disney variety does not contain mineral oil either.

 

[CardinalsFan]

Thanks for checking on that!

 

[CardinalsFan]

I just ordered two of those lip balms from Avon. One in Tinkerbell (Grape) and one in Princess Aurora (Pink Cupcake). Thanks again for the tip... the free shipping code worked like a charm!

 

[1KidandaHalf]

Wow, you are an inspiration to overplanners everywhere.
I, too, am planning a first trip to DLR this December. We'll actually be there the exact same dates as you, except flying into SNA airport instead. Am eagerly awaiting more tips and news from you, as I've not had as much time to plan as I would have liked.

I love to research and plan. My DH not so much, so it's pretty much up to me. Unfortunately, this trip planning has been super-rushed and I've not been able to research/save as much as I wanted. Originally we were going to go next spring for my son's 5th birthday. These plans have been accelerated with the news that we will be expecting another one next summer (hence the "and a Half") and I didn't want to travel in the third trimester. With the change in plans, we started looking at dates two weeks ago. Settled on one and booked hotel, a 4-day hopper, air and car just two days ago! All very rushed, but I was able to get reservations at CCI and a good car rental rate - $17 a day on Hotwire. The hotel rate was so-so, but it came so highly recommended on the boards that I went for it.

The airfare caused me some frustration. There was a sale when I first looked at dates over the weekend, but we couldn't confirm time off work until Tuesday. It went up $40 a person that day! I was bummed. However, we did manage to get a corporate discount through my DH's employer travel so it wasn't as bad as it could have been.

Your posts here are great and I will definitely be making notes of some of your tips. I, too, am shopping for Disney goodies as surprises through the trip. If you end up doing the RideMax, let me know. We are thinkign about it too and, like you, are SW engineers so the algorithms look interesting.

Here's a tip I found: If you are planning on going to Legoland (which we are) and have a AAA membership, you can get 10% off discount at the gate and a 2nd day pass for free. There's more information on the Legoland site too.

Have a great trip and maybe we'll see you there!

 

[Hound 109]

One & a 1/2 kids....have you read the tip thread stickys at the top of the DLR board?

If not, I recommend you do.....especially all of HydroGuy's tips. & continue to read Cardinal Fan's anal....er......I mean thoroughly planned, .........

......& most excellent trip report.

 

[CardinalsFan]

Fairy Godmailer Sets the Stage for Tinkerbell

Today, the girls each received a postcard in the mail, postmarked from Santa Ana, California (psst!... thanks, kc10family!... hope you had a good trip)! The girls absolutely loooooove to get mail, and my DD7 was able to read hers to herself:

I do hope you and your family can come to Disneyland soon to visit! Love, Tink

And my DD4 received one as well, but my DD7 had to read it to her:

I have been thinking it is time for you to come visit us at Disneyland. See you soon I hope! Tink

The front of each postcard was a picture of Tinkerbell, with phrases like "Think Tink" and "All you need is Trust & a little bit of Pixie dust!"

The looks on their faces were priceless! They kept asking me questions, like how Tinkerbell knew their names (and address)! My DD7 asked me if we could go buy two Tinkerbell costumes tonight. When I asked why, she said "So we can wear them to go visit Tinkerbell at Disneyland! They asked me if I had been talking to Tinkerbell about potentially visiting DLR. My DW and I played it coy, saying things like "well, I don't know if we can go to Disneyland anytime soon, we just took that trip to Idaho" and "we'll see, but no promises."

So, now when we surprise them with an unannounced trip, they'll very likely ask "are we going to Disneyland?" but we will neither confirm nor deny their guesses. Maybe I'll use the postcards to break the news to them once we're there.

 

[CardinalsFan]

Kid-n-a-half: thanks for the compliments! Hope you have a great trip, too! And congrats on your new addition to the family.

No, I won't be using RideMax. I'm building a Home Theater PC (HTPC) this week for my HT in the basement, and well, I've got problems. I can't get Windows to stabilize, and will be spending loads of time messing with that, I'm guessing (I've never built a PC before). So, I won't have any extra time to play with RideMax, like I thought I would.

Nice job getting a great rental car rate. Was that for a full-size car? If so, you did better than me!

I'll look for your Lime Green Mickey Head tags in the parks!

 

[1KidandaHalf]

Hound -
Thanks for the info. I will most certainly carve out time to go through those posts.

CardinalsFan -
The $17 a day was for a full size. I think we got lucky on timing. I checked the day before and the price was higher. Checked again the next day and saw the price had dropped, so grabbed the rental.
For as rushed as the trip planning has been, I think we did alright. So far the costs (car, hotel, air, 4-day hopper) add up to around 2k for our family of three - and we will actually be in SoCal for a whole week but visiting DLR for just 4 days of it. I think I could have done better if I'd had more time, but considering we did it all so fast, I am pretty happy with the results.

I don't have green mickey tags, but if you see an exhausted but excited pregnant lady with a little 4 year old and an adult kid (my DH ), that will be us!

 

[CardinalsFan]

This morning, my DD7 was watching "America's Funniest Home Videos" and having a good time laughing and gasping at everything... then, at the end, somebody wins $100,000 for having the funniest video. My DD7 turns to me and says, "Daddy, I think we should make a funny video, send it in, and when we win the money, we can go to DISNEYLAND."

So...... she probably doesn't think we're going. I've got her right where I want her...

 

[CardinalsFan]

DD7 needs surgery! Not that big of a deal... just tubes in her ears and probably an adenoidectomy and tonsillectomy. If we decide to do the tonsillectomy, she'll be down for a week.

So, we scheduled the surgery for the Wednesday after we get back from DL. She's already met her deductible for 2007 with all of the asthma and allergy stuff we've done this year, so it's to our advantage to get this done before the end of the year. And she'll miss enough school with the week at DL, so we want to have her recovering during her holiday break, to minimize any more missed school days. Unfortunately, she's going to still be recovering on Christmas. So, we'll make that point when we tell the girls that Disneyland is their Christmas present from Mommy and Daddy... they're getting it early because of DD7's surgery.

Good thing we didn't decide to do DLR a week later, or we would have likely missed this opportunity.

Here's hoping we can keep everyone healthy for the next 12 days!

 

[Hound 109]

Here's wishing your daughter the best of luck, CF.

I hope your trip to Walt's park goes according to your most excellent plans.

 

[CardinalsFan]

DD7 is not getting tubes - the fluid in her ears is gone. But we're doing the tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy to help improve her breathing function. She had to give blood this morning for her pre-surgery labs, and she freaked out uncontrollably. I had to constrain her while she screamed and cried and pleaded to not make her do it. Girl hates needles more than anyone I have ever known. Poor thing. The IV for the surgery is going to be nearly as bad, I bet. At least we'll be in Disneyland next week, and she'll forget all about it for six days.

My mom decided she needed to send her granddaughters some Disney dollars to spend on whatever they wanted in the parks. She sent them $50 each, via ten $10 "bills" with Stitch on them. They looooooove Stitch, so that's extra special.

Oh, and DW just transferred her remaining Disney Rewards points onto her rewards card. We'll have $387 to spend on food and souvenirs. Not bad for just under two years of charging business expenses!

Time to start packing!