"Here I go again! On my own??" Solo in May 2017 PTR **updated 4/29

[missangelalexis]

Haha I am almost certain your Disney days will be nothing like your days at home

Can't wait to see the ears you bought!

Your plans (both of them) for arrival day sound great, no matter which you choose!

 

[xlsm]

I can't wait to see your new ears!! I just purchased rose gold sequinned ears from an Etsy seller whose shop had been on a break for a long time, too, and I was super pumped when she opened back up. Ears are no joke, I'm coming to realize! I'm so curious what yours will be...

I feel you on the unmotivated doing nothing phase. We just got off a spring break here last week, too, and I still haven't managed to get my mojo back. (Or gotten used to getting up at 6am again! Work mornings got me feelin' like your precious little gif of Boo up there...)

Sounds like you could have a wild first day!! (Get it? Wild? Yeah, I know, sorry.) Good to have several plans though. The nice thing about a solo trip is that you can pick whichever plan suits YOU best! Yeah, I'm loving the solo idea more and more.

Ears are definitely no joke! Bibbidi Bobbidi Brooke ears were my first lesson on that...I got my highly coveted pair of ears from her in 2015. Her shop openings were announced on Instagram (which is how most shops I buy from work...i forget to check and miss out on so much!) and would sell out almost immediately. When I scored mine, it was like winning the lottery. Sadly, they're the only ears I've never been able to wear into the parks because the ears are too stuffed and top heavy

And then my FAVORITE ear shop, EarBowtique, stopped making them for awhile and now only opens every so often...it's an involved process to get ears from certain shops!

I'm sorry you have had trouble getting back into "regular" life after spring break! I'm really worried about that too...especially because next week is going to be SO BUSY at school. Ticket sales for our spring event weds, thurs, and fri, Odyssey of the Mind practice at least two days, the spring event friday after school, and then up super early to be on a school bus by 4am on Saturday for OM state competition. I'm overwhelmed just thinking about it, and I think that's the reason I've been hit so hard with the "don't wanna do anything" bug.

Wild first day? Be careful, you're sounding like me there, LOL!!! I'm really looking forward to that day...but also SO SO SAD because I'm missing the Pandora AP preview by a week.

I love your day of doing nothing. That's why I can't get into books too often, because I find I'll ignore my entire family and life to finish one! Good for you!

I love your more "aggressive" AK day plan but I'm sure I'd be exhausted as well. How great would it be to have a plan like that and be able to follow it without any family complaints??? I love FoW so starting it off there is a great plan.

Our family ONCE attempted to do 4 parks in one day...but I think we only got to 3, but we also had a group of 9 and my MIL who wasn't capable of moving very well on her own so we had to take things much slower. I just MIGHT try it again for our May trip though, for fun. We really just want to hit a few "main" rides at each park before moving along and we probably could do it if it's just the five of us. I don't know if we'll be up for it or not though.

For my solo trip...I think I already mentioned I napped on a bench in EPCOT! There were other days I also went to my room and just enjoyed the chance to take a quick nap to refresh myself, something the kids would never have tolerated. AK Lodge is just so lovely so hanging out extra there can also be nice.

I love my busy AK plan too! I know it's ambitious, but I'm wondering if adrenaline will carry me through...otherwise, I might end up napping on a bench like you did!! My luck, I'd fall asleep on some out of the way bench, roll into some bushes, and get locked in the park overnight. Which could be cool, I guess...LOL!!

I'm just so curious to see how I'm going to feel once I'm there and alone...will I want to spend more time at the resort or more time in the parks? Will I be lonely or excited? (both, I'm sure)
I'm getting so anxious and antsy and so ready to go!!

Haha I am almost certain your Disney days will be nothing like your days at home

Can't wait to see the ears you bought!

Your plans (both of them) for arrival day sound great, no matter which you choose!

I hope not! If I end up spending an entire afternoon doing laundry at Disney World, I've got real problems!! (although on my first ever trip, my friend and I actually did spend a rainy day doing laundry...but we were there for two weeks, so we had the time I guess!)

One pair of ears is gold sequins with a hot pink bow, the other is purple mermaid scales...I think they're so cute in the pictures from instagram/facebook/etsy, and I hope they look as good in person!

I'm really excited about arrival day, mostly because I'll be getting there pretty early in the day. I love having so much time on arrival and departure day this trip! My husband is a little afraid I'm going to try to hug a giraffe or something and get kicked out, so I hope I can contain myself and avoid all that

 

[xlsm]

I am so sad



I will be missing AP previews for Pandora by about a week. I logged in and was going to make a reservation for one anyway, just to say I did, but it said no modifying once you clicked "submit" and I was afraid I couldn't cancel and would keep someone else from getting a spot.

The kids are wanting me to take them to see the Power Rangers movie later...that is a poor, poor substitute and not at all likely to take my mind off of this.

On the plus side, I'll have plenty of time with Pandora being open and reports coming back to plan for touring there in October, right??

 

[xlsm]

Teeny tiny little update...considering switching my trip dates to 5/16 - 22...I have booked a BOG breakfast for 8:05am that falls during those new dates, and a Rivers of Light dinner package at Tiffins that falls right after my scheduled AP Pandora preview (yes, I went ahead and booked it just in case I could change dates or make a quick weekend visit!) just in case.
Waiting to see if I can change my flight, there's one available with the same arrival/departure times as my current flight dates. If there's a significant fee to change, it won't be worth it, because it's already an expensive flight...I will have to switch room categories at AKL to keep my AP discount, but will save a little bit there. Unfortunately, it'll mean giving up savanna view for pool view.

I have no idea if this is going to work out or not...it's scary because it's so close to the end of the school year, and I worry about all the things that will be going on during that time at home.

I need to talk over things with DH and check on the flight issue...so nervous! I've never made a change this big so close to trip time. 36 days!

Hopefully I'll have answers soon...I can't believe I'm even considering this! I'm not into change, this is outside of my comfort zone. But I REALLY REALLY want that Pandora preview!

 

[coloredimage]

Oh I hope you see the Pandora preview! I was so bummed that it started after we left and I don't think I'll be able to make it back down during preview time

 

[MeghanEmily]

Oh my goodness, changing your dates now is huge!! But if the flights work out, it could be totally doable... If it means you get to do the Pandora AP preview... (which I'm so sad to be missing!! I didn't even get an AP email about it, not that I could have swung the trip right now or anything.) Can't wait to hear what you get sorted out! I can understand why you'd be feeling anxious about it for sure.

 

[kittylady1972]

Oh wow...I totally get what you are coming from wanting to change to see something new. I'd be tempted too...can't wait to hear what you end up deciding.

Especially since I'm seriously considering changing my own upcoming dates...but for me and the whole family...and NOT telling them. I'm thinking we may leave a day earlier than planned, which doesn't buy us a whole lot but really who can really sleep the night before a Disney trip anyway? Why get up at o-dark-thirty to catch a 7am flight when you can leave the previous day instead and arrive the night before?

 

[Denamac]

I just booked a one night trip for the Pandora AP Preview! May 18th is our date for the preview, 12-2.

 

[Raeven]

We managed to snag a time slot on our last day! And we changed our flight so we have time. (Our last day is the first day it's open for previews and it's the first time slot!

Teeny tiny little update...considering switching my trip dates to 5/16 - 22...I have booked a BOG breakfast for 8:05am that falls during those new dates, and a Rivers of Light dinner package at Tiffins that falls right after my scheduled AP Pandora preview (yes, I went ahead and booked it just in case I could change dates or make a quick weekend visit!) just in case.

Aw we won't get to meet up then But if you can make it work and that's what you want to do you should!

I need to talk over things with DH and check on the flight issue...so nervous! I've never made a change this big so close to trip time. 36 days!

Not the same at all but I changed hotels completely once 2 weeks before the trip because the discount was better and it worked out fine.

 

[xlsm]

Hello!


​

My little Penny says, "I don't always open up a PTR update, but when I do, I do it adorably."

Please ignore my askew living room pillows and dog-smashed couch back cushions. They are fluffed and fixed now, but that was at 6am, sooo...nope.

But don't ignore my sad little Olive, staring up at Penny, and wanting to shove her off the back of the love seat. Olive is super duper jealous of Penny, because until we got Penny last May, Olive was the baby. She's still my baby, but she's also a giant jerk to Penny. We had to introduce a water spray bottle to (sort of mostly) keep the peace.





My house is a disaster right now. We were planning to put new wood flooring in our bedroom this weekend, so Friday I removed all the old carpet and carpet tack strips AND the baseboards, and we've had the flooring sitting in our room "acclimating" for a week. We moved all of our stuff out of our room and into our entryway and dining room or master bath, I cleaned the floors and we laid down the moisture barrier and got ready to work!

The first few boards went in great, then we moved onto the next box and...they wouldn't lay flat. What is going on? Are we morons? Are we doing something wrong??

In all of our research, nothing told us to lay all the boxes flat on the floor and not stacked up. Apparently, the lower boxes did not acclimatize to the room and now we have a topsy turvy house, a dismantled bedroom with only a bed and a gazillion boxes of flooring all spread out in there. DH is going to have some of the guys who work for him come help him put it all in on Saturday because I'll be on a school bus full of children.

Odyssey of the Mind state competition is Saturday, and we'll be on a bus at 4am, driving over three hours to competition. All three teams from our school moved on to state after regionals, so we have 21 kids and 6 adults to haul down there, so the school paid for us to have a bus. All of our teams are scheduled to be finished with their competition by 2pm, but awards aren't until 5:30, so we won't be leaving until around 7pm...and then driving back. It's going to be a loooooong day.

This week is also our Spring Fun Night. PTO has a carnival style event twice a year, and our spring event is Friday night. Yep, the night before the bus ride from HE--you know. I have ticket sales during all three lunch periods Weds thru Fri, plus Odyssey of the Mind practice Weds and Thurs. Basically I have no life outside of school after today.



Is it Sunday yet??

So this is probably going to be my one and only chance to get any kind of update out for you this week, so it's a big one! Let's start...

Chapter Six: We can learn a lot of things from the...Flower and Garden Festival

I know what everyone wants to know first.

Did I switch my dates or not??



The answer is no. No, I was not able to make the date switch work. I really thought I had it worked out! I found the room, I found the ADRs I wanted to keep and transfer...honestly, when I found the ROL Tiffins pkg reservation, I thought it was some kind of sign. I knew the only hiccup might be the flight...and I was right. Delta's change fee plus the difference in price would make my plane ticket almost $800. I could fly to Europe for that, and there's no way to justify it.

I'm still trying to figure out a way to get down there for the Pandora preview, though!! If I do it, I will have to fly Allegiant Air into Sanford and rent a car and stay offsite probably, but I'm trying to make it work!! Right now it's a "fingers crossed" situation, but logically, it's during the last week of school and I can't imagine not having 9 million things to do that will keep me from it.

But let's not focus on my sadness, let's be happy!! Happiness is getting mail, right?? At least when it's FUN mail!

My ears from Be Ear Guest came yesterday afternoon and they are GORGEOUS.



They are so SHINY!!



I made a video to show them off, but I can't get it to upload. I posted them on Instagram, I'm samanthars there, if you want to see!

I have a little bit of t-shirt shopping left to do, and figure out what in the world I'm going to pack, but I have ears so what else do I really need??


Keeping up with the happy thoughts, let's talk about my first full day at Disney World!!

I'm coming mainly for Flower and Garden festival, so I'm going to kick things off with Epcot! I am looking forward to stuffing my face!




I am not married to rope drop this day, considering my long travel day, but I do want to get there close to opening.

I have another pretty ambitious plan, still holding onto that "I'm alone so I can pack it all in" mentality.

I want to take alllllllllllllllll the pictures at the entrance in front of Spaceship Earth, get those topiaries from every angle and visit all of the photopass photographers!! At least that's my current line of thought!

I have a fast pass for Soarin', so I'll probably head there first depending on what time it is. I don't LOVE Soarin' the way some people do. In fact, we skipped it in December because we'd already seen the new movie at California Adventure last June. But, since the ending at Epcot features WDW, I figured I'd ride it this time around.

I have a pass for Spaceship Earth that begins as soon as the Soarin' one ends, so that's why timing is important.

I'd like to accomplish the following:

-Soarin'
-Living with the Land
-Living Seas
-Imagination Pavilion
-gardens and topiaries
-Spaceship Earth
-topiaries/gardens near Test Track and Mission Space (Cars 3, hooray!!)
- lunch at either Jardin de Fiestas or Pineapple Promenade, depending on mood
- World Showcase Easter egg hunt
- explore WS, topiaries/gardens, etc...

*maybe* 5:30 Berlin Garden Rocks concert

Depending on tiredness level, I may skip Berlin and leave early for a resort break.

I have a few options for the evening.

- go back to Epcot for 8:00 Berlin concert, then hop to DHS for Star Wars: A Galactic Spectacular
- go straight to DHS for SWaGS
- or something completely different!!

I have another day planned at Epcot so I can do whatever I miss


I have an awfully long list of food and drinks I want to try around the world at the F&G booths, so I guess I'll go ahead and list that here so you can see just how much of a glutton I plan to be during my week at WDW! I wonder how many evenings I abandon other plans to come EAT MORE FOOD?!?!?!?



Here goes (stars indicate must do items):

Pineapple Promenade (showcase plaza)
- spicy hot dog*
-violet lemonade*

Jardin de Fiestas (Mexico)
-chile relleno de picadillo

Lotus House (China)
-bubble tea

Smokehouse (American Pavilion)
- brisket burnt ends hash*
- frozen lemonade with blackberry moonshine

Hanami (Japan)
- frushi*
- matcha sake cocktail

Florida Fresh (located between France/Morocco)
- carne asada with black bean cake
- shrimp and grits
-watermelon cucumber slush

Fleur de Lys (France)
- tarte a l'onion alsacienne
- macaron chocolate framboise

The "must do" list is manageable...I wonder how far I'll get on the WHOLE list?? Probably not very far, LOL!!

Ok, that's it for now!! It took forever to type this out! I started this morning, made it through a few dvr-ed tv episodes, loads of laundry, a shower, and some other house cleaning chores, but I made it!

Have a great Tuesday!!

 

[Raeven]

Delta's change fee plus the difference in price would make my plane ticket almost $800. I could fly to Europe for that, and there's no way to justify it.

Yuck! The change fees are really bad for most airlines. I looked into changing a United flight and it's more than the ticket. Southwest is what we usually fly and they don't have change fees so I guess I got used to that.

 

[missangelalexis]

I'm sorry you weren't able to change your dates around!

The ears are so pretty!

Your first day plans sound great! I have faith you will be able to cram as much in as possible!

 

[coloredimage]

Can I just say, every time I scroll past your PTR my brain starts singing and I've caught myself randomly singing Whitesnake while working in the kitchen all week? lol!

I LOVE THOSE EARS!! Especially the mermaidy ones <3 Violet lemonade is my favorite, it's definitely my must-do for our Epcot day, even if I have to break away to do it (I'm hoping that the idea that my friend floated back in January about drinking around the world is still a thing because I want to go to as many booths as possible lol)

 

[kittylady1972]

LOVE the ears! So cute!

Plans sound good especially the food booths. I wish we had had more time to visit some of them during our trip in March, but I'm definitely looking forward to returning in May to try the ones I missed. That frozen lemonade with blackberry moonshine sounds delicious! We never made it that far around the World Showcase when we were there.

I've never flown Allegiant but they are pretty cheap and I've been tempted to try them. I'll be interested to read if you end up doing that but it doesn't sound likely. I'm with you and wouldn't change my flights for that. I just made a change to our May flights, but since it was SWA there was no change fee and the cost to change 5 tickets was less than $200 for me so a no-brainer to get an extra 14 hours or so in Florida AND to not have to be at the airport at 4:30am!!

 

[Jenny Sanders]

Your trip planning looks AMAZING! And I LOVE your ears, sooooo cute!

 

[OregonMomToWDW]

Sorry you couldn't make the switch happen. You sound like this week will be crazy for you. That is a lot of school events.

I am not a Soarin' fan either. We did check out the new one at Calif. Adventure also. I don't have the Epcot on my list of attractions, but maybe. I doubt we will ride it though. We will be there for Food & Wine for the very first time, so I will be making lists of things we want to try. I am looking forward to that.

Good luck with getting down there for the Pandora AP preview.

 

[MeghanEmily]

So much food, so little time! This is how I always seem to feel about Disney, but Epcot events make it so much more of an issue! Go big or go home!

I'm sorry about your date change issue. It would have worked so nicely if not for those flights! I hope you manage to somehow get down for the AP preview anyway, but I'm sure it'll be hectic. We've flown Allegiant before (they have a direct flight out of Maine that's not an unmanageable drive for us.) We always had good experiences with them, but flying in to Sanford is a bit of a hassle...and you miss out on all those Magical Express vibes, of course!

I LOVE your ears! I just got my new pair in from a different Etsy shop...but then I noticed that tomorrow night is Be Ear Guest's next opening...and I've got my eye on one or two of her pairs now...hmmm...we'll see...

 

[dnllmz]

Boo Delta! I was hoping that would work out for you. I'm loving the f&g food list. A solo trip during f&g would be a dream for me. I live with picky eaters & they're always crushing my food dreams.

 

[WonderWoman28]

Woo following along! I've never read a PTR before. I recently finished your December TR, stumbled across this gem and went "hey she looks familiar". So here I am

I'm so excited for your solo trip! DH and I have said we will go on a "honeymoon" for a wedding anniversary somewhere in the distant future. Until then, I will dream through everyone else's solo/anniversary trips.

 

[xlsm]

Yuck! The change fees are really bad for most airlines. I looked into changing a United flight and it's more than the ticket. Southwest is what we usually fly and they don't have change fees so I guess I got used to that.

I was shocked by the price...I mean, I knew that change fees were a thing, but I've never had to consider them before, so it was surprising to see how much it was. Plus the cost difference of the new ticket. It is so expensive to fly out of our local airport if you fly anything other than Allegiant (which doesn't fly into MCO, so no Magical Express). We fly Delta b/c we have their rewards card and like the perks, and our options are limited for airlines here. I could drive to Kansas City, St. Louis, Memphis, Tulsa or a few other cities, but then it's kind of like, what's the point if I then have to pay for a hotel, gas, food on the road, etc...But KC might become the best option in the future - and Southwest flies out of there!

I'm sorry you weren't able to change your dates around!

The ears are so pretty!

Your first day plans sound great! I have faith you will be able to cram as much in as possible!

One time, I had a ton of stuff to shove into our recycling bin. I had to get a chair and climb inside and stomp it down. That's what I'm going to do with my trip - climb in and stomp all the things down until they fit, LOL!

Can I just say, every time I scroll past your PTR my brain starts singing and I've caught myself randomly singing Whitesnake while working in the kitchen all week? lol!

I LOVE THOSE EARS!! Especially the mermaidy ones <3 Violet lemonade is my favorite, it's definitely my must-do for our Epcot day, even if I have to break away to do it (I'm hoping that the idea that my friend floated back in January about drinking around the world is still a thing because I want to go to as many booths as possible lol)

I sing the song too! Some days I regret the title, LOL!!

I was surprised how much I loved the mermaid ears. They were kind of a whim add on, but I love them so much. I couldn't believe how sparkly they were.
I think I might keep a running tally for how much violet lemonade I end up drinking. If you see a news report of a woman found lying next to the World Showcase Lagoon passed out and stained purple...well...

LOVE the ears! So cute!

Plans sound good especially the food booths. I wish we had had more time to visit some of them during our trip in March, but I'm definitely looking forward to returning in May to try the ones I missed. That frozen lemonade with blackberry moonshine sounds delicious! We never made it that far around the World Showcase when we were there.

I've never flown Allegiant but they are pretty cheap and I've been tempted to try them. I'll be interested to read if you end up doing that but it doesn't sound likely. I'm with you and wouldn't change my flights for that. I just made a change to our May flights, but since it was SWA there was no change fee and the cost to change 5 tickets was less than $200 for me so a no-brainer to get an extra 14 hours or so in Florida AND to not have to be at the airport at 4:30am!!

The food booths are really exciting to me this year! We didn't really do any while on our December trip, and I regretted it, so having this larger scale selection with so many fun things is making me

I was talking with a friend yesterday who flew Allegiant on their March trip, and she said it was nice because it was a direct flight (which is so tempting, I was so sad Delta stopped non-stops to Orlando from any of our localish airports!) and the drive to Disney World is basically just getting on the road and driving in a straight line. It is definitely a less expensive option from here, but the travel dates are limited b/c they only fly on certain days and sometimes the flight times are inconvenient. I figure we'll try it at some point, because I really do like flying out of our home airport, and at this point, we don't really NEED the Magical Express, it's just such a nice perk and really gets the trip off to a very Disney start!

I was really shocked at the cost...I guess I shouldn't have been, but I'd never paid much attention to it before, because it wasn't ever an issue. I'm excited you got such a good deal on switching your flights - more time in Disney is always better!!

Your trip planning looks AMAZING! And I LOVE your ears, sooooo cute!

Thank you!! I was so excited when those ears arrived. I can't wait to wear them in the parks!!

Sorry you couldn't make the switch happen. You sound like this week will be crazy for you. That is a lot of school events.

I am not a Soarin' fan either. We did check out the new one at Calif. Adventure also. I don't have the Epcot on my list of attractions, but maybe. I doubt we will ride it though. We will be there for Food & Wine for the very first time, so I will be making lists of things we want to try. I am looking forward to that.

Good luck with getting down there for the Pandora AP preview.

It was disappointing, but I have so many things I want to do on my original dates, that the pro/con list was pretty even. But still...I really want to see the Pandora preview, so I haven't stopped sulking quite yet.
The school stuff...I just feel like everything always ends up scheduled at once, so instead of something here and there, allllll of the things are crammed into one week. It makes it so stressful. I am ready for Sunday already!!

I'm looking forward to Food and Wine, too! Flower and Garden food booths are like my training session, LOL!!

So much food, so little time! This is how I always seem to feel about Disney, but Epcot events make it so much more of an issue! Go big or go home!

I'm sorry about your date change issue. It would have worked so nicely if not for those flights! I hope you manage to somehow get down for the AP preview anyway, but I'm sure it'll be hectic. We've flown Allegiant before (they have a direct flight out of Maine that's not an unmanageable drive for us.) We always had good experiences with them, but flying in to Sanford is a bit of a hassle...and you miss out on all those Magical Express vibes, of course!

I LOVE your ears! I just got my new pair in from a different Etsy shop...but then I noticed that tomorrow night is Be Ear Guest's next opening...and I've got my eye on one or two of her pairs now...hmmm...we'll see...

Yes! Go big or go home, that's how I feel too.

The direct flight part of Allegiant is realllllly appealing to me. Landing in Sanford is not ideal because I love the ME and don't want to rent a car, but I figure at some point it's just going to be too good of an option to avoid for much longer...the cost alone would make Disney trips even more attainable, lol. Priorities!

If you go for Be Ear Guest tonight, good luck!! I set an alarm for about 5 minutes before shop opening, keep refreshing the page, and then click buy it now instead of add to cart. I firmly believe that was the key to getting them successfully. I have my payment info saved to Etsy so I don't have to type anything in. The last time I tried to get ears from them, I put them in my cart and even though it was less than a minute, I missed out. It was crazy.

Boo Delta! I was hoping that would work out for you. I'm loving the f&g food list. A solo trip during f&g would be a dream for me. I live with picky eaters & they're always crushing my food dreams.

The flight situation made me so sad, but I'm still excited about my dates...but I feel like Pandora is just out of reach, and I keep trying to grab it, and it just slips away. *sigh* I'm sorry the picky eaters are crushing your food dreams!! That's what happened to me in December when I switched my Candlelight package to Rose and Crown from San Angel. I knew they wouldn't find anything to eat there that would make the cost worth it. They like Mexican food, but not "fancy" Mexican food, which is what they called the San Angel menu, LOL!

Woo following along! I've never read a PTR before. I recently finished your December TR, stumbled across this gem and went "hey she looks familiar". So here I am

I'm so excited for your solo trip! DH and I have said we will go on a "honeymoon" for a wedding anniversary somewhere in the distant future. Until then, I will dream through everyone else's solo/anniversary trips.

I'm so happy you're here!!

I think having a "honeymoon" anniversary trip is a GREAT idea! My DH and I want to do that too. DH is getting kind of jealous of my solo trip, and keeps talking about a trip for just the two of us...He's missing WDW, which is so funny to me, since before our first family trip down there in 2014, he was not all that into going. Now he loves it because it is so "easy". Easy for him because I do all the planning, LOL!!