Healing at our Happy Place: making GOOD 2017 memories: Mar, May, Aug, Oct, Dec TRs (3/24 UPDATE)

[DisKaren]

Hi there. . . I just read your pre-trip report today. I can absolutely relate to what you are going through with your health because I'm a breast cancer survivor. I was diagnosed last year, and had a double mastectomy with lymph node removal and reconstruction. I went through radiation, and I'm doing hormonal therapy. I have a good prognosis, but had a bad scare about a month ago when I went to a routine neurologist appointment (I get migraines), and my doctor told me she suspected a brain tumor! I had to have another surgery to remove the tissue expanders (part of the reconstruction process), as they contain magnets and I couldn't have an MRI with them still in, then get the MRI, then wait for results. Fortunately, I have a brain cyst rather than a tumor. Sorry to ramble on, but anyway it was partly the distraction of the planning for our August Disney trip, including the wonderful people on the Free Dining thread that helped keep me busy and distracted from my health issues. I'm incredibly thankful to be on the mend now and am looking forward to spending time with my family in our "2nd home" in Disney this August.
Btw, I also bought a juicer after my diagnosis! I didn't have the best diet beforehand, so I'm doing my best to improve my nutrition whenever possible. However, when I want a treat, I'll have a treat. I feel like I've earned it!
So, from one Disneyholic/Breast Cancer Survivor (and you will survive this) to another, you are in my thoughts and prayers.

Karen

 

[kittylady1972]

I will be thinking and praying for you over then week or so. Here is some pixie dust that everything goes as planned and you have a quick recovery!

Thank you so much!

 

[kittylady1972]

Hi there. . . I just read your pre-trip report today. I can absolutely relate to what you are going through with your health because I'm a breast cancer survivor. I was diagnosed last year, and had a double mastectomy with lymph node removal and reconstruction. I went through radiation, and I'm doing hormonal therapy. I have a good prognosis, but had a bad scare about a month ago when I went to a routine neurologist appointment (I get migraines), and my doctor told me she suspected a brain tumor! I had to have another surgery to remove the tissue expanders (part of the reconstruction process), as they contain magnets and I couldn't have an MRI with them still in, then get the MRI, then wait for results. Fortunately, I have a brain cyst rather than a tumor. Sorry to ramble on, but anyway it was partly the distraction of the planning for our August Disney trip, including the wonderful people on the Free Dining thread that helped keep me busy and distracted from my health issues. I'm incredibly thankful to be on the mend now and am looking forward to spending time with my family in our "2nd home" in Disney this August.
Btw, I also bought a juicer after my diagnosis! I didn't have the best diet beforehand, so I'm doing my best to improve my nutrition whenever possible. However, when I want a treat, I'll have a treat. I feel like I've earned it!
So, from one Disneyholic/Breast Cancer Survivor (and you will survive this) to another, you are in my thoughts and prayers.

Karen

Oh wow Karen! I love reading inspiring stories about so many brave people who have gone through this. I'm doing my best to remain hopeful as much as possible. I cannot imagine how scary that was for you to have the brain thing as well. I agree this is a great place for distractions. I'm trying not to think too far ahead about what's next and just wait for the surgical results and my first oncology appointment. Until then, I'll have some good events to look forward to and keep my mind on for now.

When in August are you going because we just might be there at the same time!

The juicer has been really fun for us though we haven't used it as often as we probably should. I'm constantly reading about foods and supplements and pretty much anything that might help this body of mine stay healthy because yes I was a very poor eater before this and now...our frig is so packed with fruits and veggies that it's crazy and that's just about all I eat. I allow very small cheats every now and then (had pizza on Saturday...heavenly...but not in my new eating plans) and eating in Disney will be a little more complicated but I'll figure out something.

Thanks for your support!

 

[Jenny Sanders]

I am so happy you are able to keep your May trip in the works! Keep a positive attitude, because it will go a long way! I will continue to pray that everything goes well on Monday!!!!

 

[kittylady1972]

I am so happy you are able to keep your May trip in the works! Keep a positive attitude, because it will go a long way! I will continue to pray that everything goes well on Monday!!!!

Thanks I am happy also and thanks for the prayers as well!

 

[kittylady1972]

Since we are so close now (17 days) I thought I'd do a quick recap of the plans.

MAKING HAPPY 2017 MEMORIES - MAY PLAN 2.01

FRIDAY: Departure date. I have to work for a few hours in the morning but should be home by 10am. DH will get the dog off to the kennel. DH will be doing a lot because my surgery means I will have limitations on the use of my right arm and no heavy lifting. I think we may try to pack some of my stuff with his stuff at this point to make it easier. While the kids usually drive to school, we may have to drop them off this day so that we can pick them up early and head right from school to the airport for our 4pm flight. Upon landing, we get our rental car and drive straight to Shades of Green where we have a one-night stay. Hoping to be there by 8pm and we have FP+ reservations at MK so if we are up for it we'll head there for a while. If not, we can just chill at the resort and the pool that we have NEVER used!

SATURDAY: I'm thinking this is MK morning for us. We should try to get there early so we can ride as much as possible with no FP+ reservations. We can walk from the park to the Contemporary for our brunch at Chef Mickey's around 2:30pm. Hopefully by that time our room at Beach Club will be ready for checking in so we can head there around 3:30pm/4pm. Once checked in, we can walk or boat over to Hollywood Studios where we have 3 FP+ reservations: ToT, RnRC and Star Tours. We have an 8pm Prime Time Cafe reservation in case we want some dessert or late snacks. I'd love to catch the 9:30pm Star Wars: Galactic Spectacular Fireworks this evening.

SUNDAY: I have this planned as an early HS morning but only if we are up for the EMH time (8am). If not, we can instead aim for Magic Kingdom. I've posted this as a possible 4 parks in one day if we can do HS in the early morning, MK after that, EPCOT evening and then AK late evening but we'll see. If we make EE at HS then I'd like to hit RnRC, TSM and ToT. If we decide that's enough and no MK, then we have the option of an afternoon at the pool and resort. Around 3pm or so, we'll head out to EPCOT probably via boat where I'll have my first DisBoards meetup and dinner with Angryduck71 and her son at Via Napoli! I've booked a few FPs there for all of us to do after dinner which should be fun. And if we are up for it, we can try to hit AK for the LATE LATE hours.

MONDAY: This may now be a day of rest for us, unless the kids and family have other plans. We could relax at the resort, hit the pool for a while, and just chillax. However if my family is not interested in relaxing, then the options would be EMH at AK at 7am or any other park (maybe EPCOT since it's close) for a while. We will return to our resort around 2pm since we have an early dinner at Beaches and Cream. After that, we'll head over to AK by about 4:30pm/5pm and meet Angryduck71 and her son again for some more FP+ rides we have together, including the new Avatar Flight of Passage. I do have a dinner for the 5 of us at Yak and Yeti in case we are hungry but not sure I'll keep it. We also have a FP for the 5 of us to see the 10:30pm Rivers of Light later that evening if everybody can stay awake for it.

TUESDAY: Since Monday will probably be a late night, I have no early plans for today. So the day is open for any park, or pool time, or even a waterpark is an option. It is our last FULL day, so we'll see what we've missed and want to do at this point. I have a late lunch at Sanaa which we may or may not keep. We will head to the MK around dinnertime for FP+ reservations that begin around 5:15pm. I also have an ADR at Skipper Canteen which we may or may not keep. At some point we'll need to pack for the next day's checkout.

WEDNESDAY: The dreaded LAST day of vacay for us. Traditionally we either do HS or EPCOT this final day, so that will be the plan. I have an 11ish FP reservation for Frozen Ever After so we want to be at EPCOT around that time. I also have lunch at Via Napoli but I may cancel that. We have to depart the parks by about 2:30pm for our 5:30pm flight home. We'll probably get in a few rides and maybe some shopping before we go. Our flight home has us arriving around 8pm.

Can't wait to see how much of this we stick to and keep and how much we just do on the fly. Vacation is about both really. We know we'll be back in October no matter what so if we miss something this trip...it will be on the list for the next one about 4.5 months later.

 

[DisKaren]

Oh wow Karen! I love reading inspiring stories about so many brave people who have gone through this. I'm doing my best to remain hopeful as much as possible. I cannot imagine how scary that was for you to have the brain thing as well. I agree this is a great place for distractions. I'm trying not to think too far ahead about what's next and just wait for the surgical results and my first oncology appointment. Until then, I'll have some good events to look forward to and keep my mind on for now.

When in August are you going because we just might be there at the same time!

The juicer has been really fun for us though we haven't used it as often as we probably should. I'm constantly reading about foods and supplements and pretty much anything that might help this body of mine stay healthy because yes I was a very poor eater before this and now...our frig is so packed with fruits and veggies that it's crazy and that's just about all I eat. I allow very small cheats every now and then (had pizza on Saturday...heavenly...but not in my new eating plans) and eating in Disney will be a little more complicated but I'll figure out something.

Thanks for your support!

We are staying with my parents who live in Vero Beach August 15th-18th, then staying at All Star Sports Aug. 18th-23rd.
I hear you about eating in Disney being a little more complicated when you're trying to stay healthy. I'm sure it's possible to eat nutritious food there, but why is the food I'm craving things like the beignets I had at POFQ last year? Or the steak at Mama Melrose??

 

[kittylady1972]

We are staying with my parents who live in Vero Beach August 15th-18th, then staying at All Star Sports Aug. 18th-23rd.
I hear you about eating in Disney being a little more complicated when you're trying to stay healthy. I'm sure it's possible to eat nutritious food there, but why is the food I'm craving things like the beignets I had at POFQ last year? Or the steak at Mama Melrose??

Ah...we will just miss each other at least at Vero, as we arrive there August 26th. There is a possibility of a few days in Disney either before or after Vero, which would be Aug. 21-25th or Aug. 30-Sept 1st. We are still up in the air about it though.

Yeah I get the cravings for the bad stuff at Disney. Despite my trying to avoid sugar these days, I know that Mickey Bars and ice cream will be consumed on this trip for sure, as well as Dole Whips.

 

[kittylady1972]

So I posted a quick update this morning...but it got swallowed up somehow and I honestly didn't have the patience to try again at the time. I'm back now...so here we go on the latest info.

First off...15 Days, 1 hour about 9 minutes to go until liftoff!

And now the updates...all have to do with my ADRs. I cancelled a few, made a few new ones, and kept many of them.

• Cancelled: Yak and Yeti...this was on our AK day but honestly I think there are plenty of places to eat within AK and no need to try to squeeze this in there. Just one less thing to worry about.
• Cancelled: Via Napoli on Wednesday...our last day. This was already late and would be pushing it to leave for our flight.
• Added: So in place of Via Napoli, I managed to snag LeCellier. Now it's been YEARS since we've eaten at LeCellier, and I know it's $$$, but my boys love some steak and I love the soup...and so it seemed a good "last" WDW restaurant for our trip and before our flight that evening
• Added: Hollywood Brown Derby lunch...on a day where I THINK we'll be at HS in the morning, so it would be nice break before we either head to the resort or to the MK next if we are up for attempted 4 parks in a day
• Added: Sanaa lunch...on a different day than I had previously scheduled one...but we know have two so chances are one will get chopped at some point

I think that's it for now and I'm also considering, if we decide to attempt the 4 parks in a day, we might splurge for the Express Transportation that day for fun. We'll see how we feel as that will be day 3 for us...though day one is a short one and day two might be a long one.

Will try not to make any more changes...but of course no guarantees!

 

[ariane37]

I managed to snag LeCellier. Now it's been YEARS since we've eaten at LeCellier, and I know it's $$$, but my boys love some steak and I love the soup...

We haven't eaten at Le Cellier in years either and I've thought about going back for that soup! Steve and Chris love steak so maybe soon.....I see mixed reviews. For every positive one I read like 2 negatives, but the soup and filet always come out on top lol

and I'm also considering, if we decide to attempt the 4 parks in a day, we might splurge for the Express Transportation that day for fun

I totally think you should go for the 4 parks in 1 day And I also suggest doing the Express Transportation. We only used it for one day in March but it was great, and we're definitely getting it for all days next week.

 

[kittylady1972]

We haven't eaten at Le Cellier in years either and I've thought about going back for that soup! Steve and Chris love steak so maybe soon.....I see mixed reviews. For every positive one I read like 2 negatives, but the soup and filet always come out on top lol

Yeah I seem to recall not long after the dining plans started really being utilized a lot more the reviews got worse. I think the first time we ate there was maybe 2007 when for that trip we DID get the original dining plan for a few nights. We enjoyed it. DH and I ate there a second time alone...I remember it being good but really I remember the Chocolate Moose more than anything and that's the only food I have a picture of from that restaurant! We always get the soup samples during F&W but it's not the same.

I totally think you should go for the 4 parks in 1 day And I also suggest doing the Express Transportation. We only used it for one day in March but it was great, and we're definitely getting it for all days next week.

Yes I think it would be cool and if we do it early enough in the trip we can probably handle it. The thing is we actually tend to drive to the parks anyway...which was great but now with the security hassles...it might be easier to just do the transportation instead. We'll see.

 

[kittylady1972]

What's New Pussycat??

So I thought I'd make a list of things that we plan to do this trip that are NEW to us. I'm not sure if we'll get to all of them...but I'd love to mark a few off my Disney bucket list.

1. Four Parks in One Day - We attempted this once years ago...but it was with a lot more people, and travel with a family member on a scooter...and we just gave up though I think we made 3 of them.
2. Express Bus - If we try to attempt #1 above, then we'd want to use this service as well
3. DISBOARD meet - I will finally be meeting somebody who I only know through the DISBOARDS...angryduck71...and I'm looking forward to it (and yes my family doesn't understand this...but that's okay)
4. AK at night - Have yet to be here after dark...or probably after 3pm...but we have FP+ reservations for at least one of the new rides in Pandora
5. Rivers of Light - Of course...it's new...and so we must try to see it even though I'm sure my family will complain loudly "not a SHOW!"
6. Pandora - Hadn't planned on this one...but of course the trip has been booked for months and now the new land opens the weekend we arrive
7. POSSIBLE Restaurants to try: they aren't booked...but I'd love to maybe make one or more of these: Breakfast at the Wave; Brunch at Trail's End; Breakfast or lunch at Whispering Canyon (we actually did eat at WCC many, many years ago...like perhaps 2001?)

We don't have to fit all of this in for this trip, with at least one or two more on the horizon for this year. However it would be great to knock a few more things off the list.

 

[KathyM2]

Trying to catch up. Wow you've had some tough challenges. I'm so glad you are able to escape...both through planning Disney trips and actually going on them. That's what I love so much about Disney. Such a complete escape from reality.

Four Parks in One Day

Wishing you luck with this one!!

Breakfast at the Wave;

I have this on my list too. Look forward to hearing if you make it there and what you think.

 

[piglet1979]

I know you won't read this for a few days, but I wanted to stop by and say that I am thinking about you today and praying that everything goes good.

 

[LilTinkFan]

Sending you wishes for smooth and speedy recovery.

 

[jenkel]

Wishing you a speedy recovery!! Thoughts and prayers to you

 

[dalmatian7]

thining of you and sending lots of pixie dust

 

[DisKaren]

Just wanted to let you know I'm thinking of you and praying for a quick recovery! You'll need it for your upcoming trip!!

 

[camper06]

Hope you are doing well after surgery. Wishing for a speedy recovery for you!!

 

[kittylady1972]

So sweet that I finally had the chance to check in today and see so many lovely messages. You all made my day...thank you!

Trying to catch up. Wow you've had some tough challenges. I'm so glad you are able to escape...both through planning Disney trips and actually going on them. That's what I love so much about Disney. Such a complete escape from reality.

Wishing you luck with this one!!

I have this on my list too. Look forward to hearing if you make it there and what you think.

Yes Disney has been our escape for so long and of course now more than ever I'm looking forward to returning. We'll see if we manage the 4 parks in one day or the Wave...hard to say but I'll definitely let you know if we do!

I know you won't read this for a few days, but I wanted to stop by and say that I am thinking about you today and praying that everything goes good.

Thanks so much. Everything in regards to surgery went well. It was a long day but I was home around dinnertime and feeling really good. I decided to stick to tylenol for pain as prescribed and avoid the oxy that they sent with me as well and that's working out well so far...at day 2. I'm now at 48 hours from when surgery began for me.

Sending you wishes for smooth and speedy recovery.

Thanks so much!

Wishing you a speedy recovery!! Thoughts and prayers to you

Thank you!

thining of you and sending lots of pixie dust

Thank you!

Just wanted to let you know I'm thinking of you and praying for a quick recovery! You'll need it for your upcoming trip!!

Thank you! I'm hoping for that also...so ready!

Hope you are doing well after surgery. Wishing for a speedy recovery for you!!

Thanks so much!