Hey! July 30th, 2005 cruise to Mexico DISfriends!

[littleowensmommy]

Ted is fine, however the guy driving the tank (Lincoln Navigator) is now claiming injury. He is an active duty Navy boatswain mate so he has to seek treatment through the Navy hospital which should help reduce the risk of a fraudulent claim. Ted is indeed being held at fault by the insurance company so our rates are going to go up big time. If the other guy is truly injured I sincerely hope he recovers quickly but it was not a high impact collision. (Ted's airbags didn't even deploy). I can't help but be skeptical. I worry that one might think that being rear-ended by a doctor driving a Mercedes could equate to winning the lottery. None of our friends are surprised about this development. One friend joked that had it been her, she would have rolled out of the car screaming "Don't touch me, I can't feel my legs!" My brother the firefighter, said he would have demanded a backboard, neck brace and transport to the hospital. Our lawyer friend said had he been driving by at the time of the accident, he would have tossed his business cards out of his car window. On a brighter note, Ted's car should be "better than new" in about 3 weeks. That makes Ted feel a little better. We've got a relatively quiet weekend on tap. Tomorrow afternoon we're taking the kids to see David Copperfield. Owen loves magic so he is so excited. Tomorrow evening I'm going out with a few of my girlfriends for a belated birthday celebration as I had company last weekend. I've lost all interest in the NFL playoffs as any team that I was even remotely interested in was eliminated last weekend. Give me an idea of dates for WDW in July and I'll make every effort to get down there but we're in Chincoteague 22-29 July.

 

[jfis1020]

The Fisher family has secured "ressies" and plane tickets already. We are scheduled for July 23 (or 24, can't remember) through Aug. 3rd or 4th. Maybe I should ask "Mr. DVC" aka Mark.

Mark, the poor guy, has logged approx. 55 hours this week. I am ready for him to come home and RELAX!! His poor sleeping/working habits have even rubbed off on me!!! I didn't get up until 6:30 today. I am usually READY FOR WORK by that time!!!

I still don't have a clue as to where we are going tomorrow!!!

 

[allie_gator]

Hey guys! Hope everyone is doing well! Just got in from the animal kingdom and I'm about to nap it up!

Expedition everest is amazing! Things are well down here. I'm going to be doing a few character breakfasts this upcoming week and I'll be friends with Mickey and Minnie all week. Fun Fun!

Kathy, I hope Ted is okay!! You guys are in my thoughts!

Joann, when you do have the procedure, good luck!

Everyone else, thank you for your kind words, it means alot! Hopefully my mom got you all the picutres, i saw there was a slight mix up =/

Anywho, I just had a bite to eat and now I'm heading to sleep for a bit. Expedition Everest wore me out!! Hehe

Hope its warm where you all are

Love to all!!

 

[Minnie's Guy]

Alex,
So glad you are having so much fun - you should, you deserve it, you're a great gal. NOW, if only YOUR MOTHER would send ME some pictures - i'm a little upset and jealous!
I saw on another site they had problems with EE - hope you weren't riding it at the time - NO, NO, NO, this is NOT a ride Lucy will ride!

Debs!!!

Oh, and Alex, NO, the weather isn't great like your weather.
I hope you are having such a GREAT time that you decide to stay the summer so we can get your parents and the rest of these people on this thread down to see you - SOME of us MAY even buy you dinner (others will buy you a )

Well, Jenny should be starting her weekend....wherever that may lead her.

JoAnn - hope 'pops' comes thru for you, and if he doesn't, you know what girls on this board to tell, and he will NEVER live it down - we stick together

 

[jlawall]

I loved the pics!!I know, I'm gloating!! Really, it's so cool!! Keep up the good work, lexi, the weather is pretty good this weekend here, but we certainly don't have the Florida sun!

This weekend the family, boyfriends and 'rents are all going to the Borgata for a special dinner, I'm psyched! Tomorrow, it's WW time, yikes! The time of reckoning has arrived (way too much fun last weekend!)

I'm working on the reunion....i made my first mention to Ken today just to feel him out. I think he said, "Huh?"

Sorry Kathy and Ted, that sounds ugly......I guess I better not get that Mercedes after all!! Seriously, enjoy your weekend and thank goodness Ted's healthy.

 

[jfis1020]

JoAnn At least he didn't say Duh............ Come on Ken...we are a lot of fun.... Remember, the first roller coaster is on me!!! And, it doesn't have tequilla in it!!!

Now that Lucy is staying at the BWV with us it's a party!!!!!!! Right Lucy and Bob!!!!

Happy weekend!

 

[LynnTarrant]

Hello Hello from across the pond
We definitely won't be able to make a reunion in July as we have a long standing engagement with a man with a fish... I don't know if you've come across Jim on the DIS but he and his family have become really good friends and they are coming to stay at the end of July.
Kathy I hope things work out for you and Ted, Keith was in an accident this time last year and getting all the insurance worked out is a pig...we had a similiar problem although I think the Law is very different here, the other driver was back at work the next day saying she felt fine but then we started getting insurance claims stating she had been injured..
Jo ann hope the procedure goes well and Bill stop giving her a hard time.
Lucy I've now finished my disney part of the trip and realised as I got to the last day I had no pics of you it was such a strange evening with dinner taking so long and stuff Did any of you take any!!! It was really good to see you again.
Jenny I'll e mail you about the student teacher that school isn't one I know but I looked it up and it sounds amazing . it is in a Listed building (very old... even by English standards), I bet she has an amazing time she will only be about 45mins from us so if you want to pass on my address/ tel no. it'll be fine maybe we can catch up.
Debbi we are getting serious now about a New York break , I need to know everything, where should we stay, what should we do, where should we eat? It will probably be last weekend in may which I think is a holiday weekend for you guys will that mean it's busy or all closed up I need informatiom.... I also need pictures of Lex...
Lex It's not going to be possible for us to come over again finances just won't allow it but it sounds amazing it's so good of you to post for us, I'm sure you'll do great

Everyone If the Magic comes to Europe we'll be sailing so if you do wanna leave it till the end of July 28th will be the first Sat I can go we'd love to sail with you. I think Jim and family will be along too so bring on the Magic

 

[littleowensmommy]

I know it's a day early but I don't want to forget to wish you both a happy day!

Hi Lynne, I hope this accident mess works out quickly and we can be done with it but we are certainly thankful that Ted and his passenger were not hurt.

I checked in with Keith at All Seasons Travel yesterday. I'm getting so excited about next year. He said there is still no official word from DCL but one of his clients sailed aboard the Magic on 31 December and reported that there will be 8 10-12 night cruises from Barcelona. Ted and I would love to do the transatlantic cruise but if it sails on 5 May (which is the next not yet released sail date) it will be too soon for us to pull the kids out of school. They don't finish until 6 June. We are waitlisted for both the transatlantic and a Barcelona cruise which includes 16 June. Our plan is to travel to Europe on 6 June and tour around until our sail date and then return to San Diego at the conclusion of the cruise. If we are able to do the transatlantic cruise, we'll tour around in Europe after the cruise. I really hope we can do this as I'd love to go to CC! I'm bummed that we won't be sailing with you guys but Ted will be able to take 30 days or more off since he will be changing commands. We haven't taken advantage of a chunk of time like that since he graduated from med school in 1993.

JoAnn, Jenny, Lynne, How early do you think would be too early to pull the kids out of school? Owen will be in second grade and Amy will be in Kindergarten. Do you think it would be awful to pull them out a month early? They will start school that August in Coronado.

 

[jfis1020]

Kathy That's a question I really hadn't thought about, however you could run into some "law" about that. I would seriously sit down with the principal and state your case. That's A LOT of school even if it is at the end. But, I also know that your kids are quite bright, so for them, I doubt they'll miss a beat! BTW...thanks for the birthdway wish!!

Lynn I will forward your e-mail address to Megan. She was telling us about the school she's going to and how it was like a "living museum" with the castle and all. She is really excited, but nervous. They leave here around the 15th of March. I think the idea of living with a host that she knows nothing about is a little scary too.

Lex Hope all is going well........ It sounds so amazing! What's the latest on "the guy" scene or should we request p.m. so that your poor mother doesn't have a heart attack!! At least your mom is "cool"!!!!

JT/Bait Boy Whatever your name is!! Watched the press conference of the new Reds ownership last night. This guy is going to bust his gut to get a winner. He used to own part of the Rangers and Cardinals but, as a local Cincinnatian, jumped when the Reds came up for sale. His family was also in ownership during the "Big Red Machine" era. At least this gives us something to possibly look forward to! The former owner owned the Reds strictly for tax purposes and it was obvious. He had no hands on. This new guy moved into the offices yesterday and started out making sure everyone knew their "place" in the organization, including the idiot general manager!!!!

JoAnn My soul sister! Since we are leaving later today (and still no clue where!) I wanted to say tomorrow!! I hope you get what you want, and J.T. buys you something REALLY NICE!! Enjoy the day!

 

[littleowensmommy]

The kids would miss the last 21 days of school assuming there are no snow days added on. They will also miss 5 days of school in October for a WDW vacation. They are in private school as you know. Does that make a difference? Their student handbook states that "absences in excess of 20 days may mean that your child cannot be promoted to the next grade." Could we "home school" them for the last month to make up for the lost time? They will be enrolled in the Coronado school district that Fall. Don't they just get placed according to their age? I'm not saying that we're going to do this but we are thinking about it. Ted thinks that the trip would be a once in a lifetime opportunity and that the kids can make up their missed school work. He thinks they'll gain far more through the travel experience to Europe. I'm not trying to justify this trip but there was a girl in Owen's Kindergarten class last year who finished up about 4 weeks early due to a move. I hope DCL doesn't do the transatlantic so early. I guess we're going to just have to wait and see.

 

[jfis1020]

I think it all depends on how the school looks at it. Private schools have so much more flexibility when it comes to all of this. Maybe they would be willing to let the kids do something to "make up" the work, like a project.

I definitely agree with Ted. But, I think differently than most educators. My travel experiences as a kid (as limited as they were) far outweighed much of my schooling. There's a lot to be said about being together as a family as well. When I have a family taking a trip, I usually ask the child to do a journal and a very limited presentation to teach us about where he/she went.

 

[jlawall]

Hey all! Thx for all the birthday greetings! Lynn, we will go at the end of July if that is the consensus of the group. It's always hard to say what is best for my girls but for a trip like this, I'm sure they can make it. I guess if there is any European touring, for us it would have to be prior to the cruise.

Have a great time, Jenny, and fill us in with all the details! Remember, you're not older, you're better! Ken is halfway in so far! We are going to GF in April and we're all really excited to go there. We haven't been since the girls were babies(When it was cheaper and we could afford to go there, now we're using DVC points.)We can't wait to see Alex!

Kathy, I would say as a teacher , one week is the most a child should miss, however, if you could prearrange something for Owen, that would probably work out at a private school. It truly is a once in a lifetime experience for the whole family. As a mom, I would love to take my children on such an experience.

The extended clan is going to the Borgata in Atlantic City for the B-day! I told BB to make sure the flowers, balloons and gifts were ready. He mentioned something about a band? (jkjkjkjk)

Hey Lucy! You never told us how the visit with Lynn was? Fill the details in, please!

We're experiencing Spring-like temperatures here! How about everyone else?

This is so me!

 

[littleowensmommy]

Jenny and JoAnn, Thanks for taking time away from your birthday celebrations to comment about the school thing. I really appreciate your thoughts.

I just got back from my belated birthday girls' night out. We went out for margaritas and then we went to see "Brokeback Mountain". We had heard it was very good and we knew enough about it to know that none of our husbands would be interested in seeing it. I guess it didn't quite live up to all of the hype for me.

JoAnn, Our weather has been unseasonably warm. We haven't had any sign of winter in over a month. I wouldn't mind a good snow storm though.

We saw David Copperfield this afternoon. He was really amazing. The kids loved the show. Ted actually got to go up on stage for the final illusion. He ended up being an observer instead of one of the 13 people who disappeared. I think he was a little disappointed. Owen was on the edge of his seat the entire show. The magic was real to him. Amy sat on my lap. I think she was nervous that she might disappear so she held on to me throughout the show.

Good night all...

 

[littleowensmommy]

Ted just got paged into the hospital...food impaction. I'll never get back to sleep.

Here are my predictions based on researching RCCL's 2006 European itineraries.

DCL's transatlantic crossing will be 5-19 May 2007. (Alas too early for us...)

I hope Disney does 10-12 night itineraries in and out of Barcelona but RCCL does 7-night cruises so will Disney follow suit?

Airfare will run us over $5K based on the four of us flying from Norfolk to Barcelona and then back from Barcelona to San Diego.

Lynne, I could use your Eurail expertise. If we want to travel to Disneyland Paris at the conclusion of our trip what is our best option? It appears that the train (without a Eurail pass) would cost us over $500 vs about $200 with a pass that would cost us about $1100. I would like to travel to Paris and then maybe to Switzerland and then on to London. We'll have about 9 days before the cruise (assuming a 7-night Sat-Sat itinerary) and about 1 week after the cruise. Do you have any better suggestions regarding where to fly into and out of and a train routing? Also isn't there an inexpensive way to fly within Europe? Maybe we should do all of our European travel before the cruise and then just fly home from Barcelona at the conclusion of the cruise. I guess we could fly London and start our journey there. Lynne, is there any efficient route popping into your head for us? If we do all of our travel before the cruise we'll have about 2 weeks available.

The 13-night transatlantic sailing on RCCL is much cheaper than their 7-night mediterranean cruises. That coupled with lower travel costs will make the transatlantic seem like a bargain. I predict it will be much like the canal repositioning last May...very few children as everyone will still be in school.

BTW I priced 3 nights at the Disneyland Paris Hotel for the 4 of us with theme parks tickets, etc.,....$1776.

It's going to be a long day....

 

[DisneyMom13]

Happy Birthday Girls - Hope you have a great day!

Yesterday we set a record here with 63 degrees, where is the snow???

Micco was missing Alex, so he booked a flight Friday night and went down for the w/e. He will be back tomorrow night. He got to ride Expedition Everest with her yesterday. Yes, I am a little jealous. We still haven't booked our ressies for the end of Feb, which I told him not to come home without. LOL.

Kathy - Based on the airfare alone, I don't know if we will be able to swing that trip. We will have to see. If we can book it while Alex is a CM, we get a discount on the trip, but $5,000 for airfare sounds like a lot. Anyone interested in the Southern Carribean??? I want to cruise together, but we have to keep it in check.

Lynn - You guys are more than welcome to stay with us when you come, unless you actually want to stay in Manhattan. It is very $$$ to stay in the city, probably anywhere from $300 to $500 a night. Let me know if you want to stay in the city and I will check on some places for you. The city is always open, never sleeps, and there is always something to do, no pmatter what time of the year it is. The end of May/beginning of June, the weather is great here, so you won't have to worry about that.

Again, I still don't know about Disney this summer, we are up in the air. Alex????????? It's up to you honey!!!!

Debi

 

[Albill]

The well advertised, and well attended ... JoAnn's recent birthday party....yes.. another one... wwas celebrated on Sat nite at the Borgota Casino... All the "BIg" names in the family were present .. 3 Daughter's, (Tara,Traci,Jessica), with potential son-in-laws.....!! ....Also In-Law's (Harry,Rose)... Harry was in good form, harrassing the waitress : who , handled Him like molded putty Also, in attendance was the beautiful "Alice Baby" with Her "Hi roller" husband.. TJ,BB ,"do little", BillBo It was a tremendous feast, ,all covered by JoAnn's very generous Husband ...Ken ....good time had by all ...
what was TJ,BB's,DoLIttle's big gift....?? why a slightly "used" coffee cup
from the "Rip Tide Bait and Tackle".... Who luv's Ya.....

 

[littleowensmommy]

I wonder if there is a cheaper way to do the airfare. For example fly into and out of Paris or London. Our airfare is going to be more expensive because it is an open jaw between 3 cities since we are returning to San Diego instead of Norfolk. I would think that you would have better access to cheaper flights up in the NY/NJ region. I also wonder if DCL will offer a special airfare. I would think you should be able to book it while Alex is a CM. How much of a discount does she get? I transferred my 24 June 2006 reservation to a random December sail date to keep my onboard discount and onboard credits alive. Keith at All Seasons will transfer my deposit from that reservation to a 2007 mediterranean sail date so I will be able to get the 10% discount and $200 + $250 onboard credits. I still expect that it will be ridiculously expensive but if I prepare myself for the worst and it comes in cheaper than anticipated I'll feel like I saved $.

While I was on the RCCL site their newest ship "Freedom of the Seas" which isn't even in service yet looks incredible. It will be cruising the Southern Caribbean out of Miami. Take a look and let me know what you think. I'd love to do that cruise.

For us the Med cruise is a must do as we don't see ourselves getting another chance to go to Europe with the kids for several years and what better way to do it with young children.

 

[LynnTarrant]

Happy Birthday Jo Ann and Jenny.
Here's my present to you hope it works, link to my first week of pics from WDW, hope you enjoy them.
Lynn


http://lynntarrant.shutterfly.com/action/?a=8Aat3LZo1YtnRw

 

[jlawall]

Thx Lynn, wonderful pics, it was so good to see both of you, but, who the heck are those other people??? Seriously, a wonderful birthday gift!

I had the best birthday....my 3 DDs really gave me some thoughtful gifts (family pics in a frame, sweet cards, and Ken also was very nice!) However, the slightly used mug was no exaggeration! Sheesh! El cheapo! Still, it was great to spend the evening with all our closest family members. We shared a few laughs And a HUGE bill!) Thx, BB, for the memories. Dear ol' Mom, was asked to host breakfast this morning and SHE COOKED FOR ALL MY KIDS AND THEIR BFs! THANKS MOM!

Hey DEbs, that's really sweet that Micco went down, I got chills! How adorable! I'm sure they had a nice visit! I'm sure we can get better airfare than that in 2007, let's keep looking!! Perhaps the NY flights are cheaper! Thx for the cool smilies, so cute!!

Weeellll, it's about time for Jenny to check in! WE'RE DYING TO HEAR ABOUT THE SURPRISE! Fill us in, Jenny!

Heellllooooooo, Lucy! How ya been?

Ok, I guess I won't be seeing Brokeback Mountain, it really didn't appeal to me anyway, Kathy!(I hope things have settled down for Ted by now!)

 

[lwilliam]

and NO JENNY - do you think Mark whisked her away for a few more days?!
maybe they are on The Magic!

WOW! Kathy's estimates scared us. DEBS! Bob and I have never, EVER seen the Southern Carribean - one destination we want to do........we'll talk this summer down at Disney, the last week of July, about
our 2007 reunion, ok?
Please, guys, don't miss it!
Seriously, the Med sounds out-of-reach for us too. We'll see what Disney comes up with, maybe some kind of all-inclusive package that won't be
outrageous.

Hey, big time spender! (you know who you are) - my birthday is coming up too - and, just to let you know, I've got PLENTY of mugs.

Debs, I'm so glad Micco got to visit - Bob and I have been on the internet this weekend, reading reviews of the ride. Once again, a ride Lucy does not attempt. Bob can't wait.

Where is our little Alex?