How 1 trip turned to 2 and now turning into 3!! Update Pg 40 Days 3, 4 and 5!!

[newtodis]

I'm in the process of juggling a lot of things-
July-visit from Papa and Grandma J; possibly another visit from Gram; Dan and Corbin's brithday!!
August-trip back to MI
Sept-Disney trip
Oct-nothing yet
Nov- Carter's birthday; My mom and step dad visiting
Dec- trip to Disney; trip to MI for Christmas

but I think I'm juggling it all pretty well right now We'll see once things get a little closer and I'm working on ADRS for two trips instead of one!

DH says that's he working on ways to "surprise" me on our Dec trip as we'll be there on my actual birthday and just a few days after DS1 turns 2. I've already got some things arranged for the baby (I won't be able to call him that too much longer!). After DH sees all of the surprises on this trip, he's going to know he's got his work cut out for him!

I'm so glad I have you guys to spill my secrets to! I almost slipped the other day about Mickey bringing presents to our room! Oops! I lucky stopped myself before saying too much-thank goodness!

We booked the flight for DMIL's trip last night so it's all official now! I don't think she has a clue really what she's in for on vacation with me!

I plan on finishing up the plans this weekend and emailing them to her so she has an idea of the busy-ness that we will have on our trip. She's also going to be a bit shocked by me making her shirts for her to wear every day of the trip!

Speaking of those infamous shirts, I have to watch for some to go on sale and start picking them up so I can get them to Betsy in time to put them in with the presents from Mickey.

This also means that I'll have to make the shirts while the boys are sleeping so they don't see Mommy making the shirts from Mickey!

Well, I spent part of my afternoon researching more ways to celebrate birthdays in WDW. I knew of most from the Dis boards but here's basically what I found:

*Birthday character meal
*Daily surprises in the room (Jill aka Leonsmom also mentioned this!)
*Birthday turn down service-you basically print out little tent cards or notes and put them on the special person's pillow with a Hersey kiss/hug or another special treat
*Decorate room
*Collect birthday pins for sale at various pin stands/stores
*Phone call from character (also mentioned again my Jill)
*In EPCOT, get a passport to have "Happy Birthday" written in many different languages.
*Call places you have ADR specifically to make sure they're aware of the birthday being celebrated

I plan on mentioning the boy's birthdays at check in to our resort, each ADR check in and any of the shows that we go to. My hope is that we can make "Turle Talk with Crush" one day and Corbin will get a birthday message from him. He's been talking quite a bit about Crush lately and loves "duuuuude"

DH and I have decided that Grandma coming on this trip will certainly be a surprise. She now knows this, as of last night! Hopefully we'll keep the secret until the trip. I'm debating the best way to pull this off. Her flight doesn't get in until 9:30 so the boys will probably be asleep by then. They'll either wake up and Gram will be there or we'll have Gram go outside for a couple of minutes then knock on the door or go in the bathroom and surprise them.

Because I love making special gifts for people, I've made the following clip boards to put the autograph pages on that I'm making for the boys:

If they decide they don't want to use them, that's fine as well. They'll always use them around the house.

As for a special gift for Grandma, I think I'm going to use one of the dis-igns and make her a special shirt for the characters to sign. Then we can frame it or put it in a shadow box or something for her to display at home.

We're going to fit in a photoshoot, probably at Poly, to make sure I get some good pictures fo Grandma, DH and the boys and Grandma and the boys. I've already got the boys shirt's for this (from Carter's on clearnance!) so I've got to find something for Dan and I and Grandma to wear that will match. I think we'll all wear khaki pants/shorts/capris with whatever kind of shirt we find.

I'm going to call tonight and put Grandma's flight info on our ressie with WDW so we can get her ME stuff. I also have yet to finalize the plans (for now) to email them to Gram and finish trying to make ADRs. I've given up on trying to add Gram to them-we're just showing up with her and praying they'll have room. With a little pixie dust, it will all work out just fine!

I'm also going to keep looking for some small little gifts for Tink to leave in our room each day while we're out and about. I want to get a scrapbook made for Grandma so she can just slide pictures in after our trip.

Thank goodness we're driving! Mommy's going to pack a special bag with some decorations for the room and send the boys off to the pool once we arrive and eat dinner so Mommy can "relax" before the vacation begins. Hopefully it won't take me too long to decorate. I also want to get the boys a couple of cute little plush to snuggle on the way there and leave in the room for Mousekeeping to have fun with too.

Ok off to start dinner, play with the boys, finish the scrapbooks to send to DH's family that was just here to visit, start a scrapbook for DMIL for our trip. Not a problem!

Have a magical day!!

 

[newtodis]

Changing the name of the thread due to some changes in plans! Don't know how we're going to manage three Disney vacations within about six months but darn it we're going to have fun trying!

So we originally started planning for a trip in Sept because we needed a break and a little pick me up trip and *really* wanted to see MNSSHP (more for me than the kids!).

Then, I started reading about MVMCP and *had* to see that....and why shouldn't I get to go to Disney for my birthday if Dan and Corbin were going for their's??? So that's how our December trip came to be.

Now, after talking with our good friends (who are still up north), we're going to try and hit Disney with them too!! Since we've moved, they've sold their house and are in the process of building a new one. With that, we're trying to combine a visit together and a vacation into one trip. What better place than Disney?? It will be their DS3's first time so it will be great fun! It will certainly be after our December trip-probably Jan or Feb of '09 since we'll need to go in a value season to get a big enough room or two rooms.

So, on top of planning two trips back to MI before the end of the year, I think I'll have my fix of planning the Disney trips for a while! Thank goodness I love Disney!

So updates on the Sept trip:
*Called last night to check our reservation and get rid of trip insurance...the budget part of my brain is saying I can spend $200 better than on something we might not use. I found the perfect use for this money (more on that later!).
*Added DMIL's info for ME since she's flying right to Disney while we're driving.
*I finally got around to making our spreadsheet. I've been keeping track of everything in a notebook and was typing it up anyways to send to DMIL so I just put it together this morning. Now I'm panicing even more since we've got a lot of blanks!

Next: Plans for December trip!

 

[newtodis]

Since we're going so close together, I'm going to give you the details on our December trip too!

Dates: December 11-14, 2008 (we'll be there on my b-day!)

We're celebrating DS1 (turning 2) birthday on this trip. He'll turn 2 on Nov 20 so that's close enough for me since we're not going to Disney for Thanksgiving. We'll also be there for my birthday but I don't expect much since I'm the planner! I'll make mention of it when I make the ADRs and mentioned it when making our ressies way back when.

So for this trip, DH chose the AKL. It will be awesome to see the animals. When I made the initial ressie, I just booked a plain room with a savannah view. Since we booked, DH's been talking about the concierge (SP???)/club level. I keep looking at him like he's certainly lost his mind-there's no way we can do club level!! So on the phone last night, I decided to ask just to see what the price difference would be. It was almost the exact amount that I took off our September trip by cancelling the trip insurance! So I made (another) executive decision and upgraded our room! DH's going to freak out when we check in at the club level desk! I just can't wait to see his face!

Now I have to start "shopping" for something to put in the baby's birthday basket to give Mickey some ideas since we're doing birthday baskets on this trip. I'll probably also find something small or pick something up on this trip to send and ask to have it included in the basket drop off.

So looking forward to this trip. I've decided that this will be our "relaxing" vacation (if there is such a thing with me!). In case you haven't noticed, I'm not good at all sitting still and just doing nothing. I do love me some people watching from time to time but I get enough of that at home.

Seriously though, I want to enjoy myself and our resort more than we have/will on our other trips. Since a lot more "perks" will be included on this trip and who knows when we'll treat ourselves like this again, we're going to try and take advantage of some of it.

My "goal" for this trip is to try and get us some ressies at Cindy's for breakfast-ideally on my actual birthday. That would be the coolest for me. I'm sure the boys will hate every second of it...Corbin's already been talking about living in the castle when I'm a princess so he might be ok with it. Gotta love that boy!

Ok off to start my spreadsheet for the December trip...never too soon to start planning right???

 

[newtodis]

So sorry I've been a bit lax on this pre-trip business. It's not that I haven't been working on the trip, I've just been a bit busy with lots of other things at the same time.

Updates:
*Most of DH's Father's Day gifts are Disney planning books as he wants to have a go at planning things for the December trip... Now I laugh at this because he can't remember to take his lunch to work in the morning so I don't know how he's going to remember things enough to plan them! I'm giving him the chance though to help on this trip so we'll see what happens...

*I've been ordering things to make DMIL's scrapbook. I've found some things on Ebay and Creative Memories. I've also been looking at local craft stores and pick stuff up when I see a good deal. I want to have the book ready to send in time to have it in the basket in the room upon arrival. She's going to love it I'm sure, and I'll enjoy making it, I just have to find the time.

*They're increasing my hours at work (just an extra hour on three days) which is nice for the extra Disney money, but I don't love getting up to be there earlier. Oh well. Hopefully it'll give me a bit more time to search around the DIS to look for more ideas for the trip.

*I've been picking things up as I see them to include in the boys (all three of them!) baskets at the hotel. I'm really debating now though, if I should have them delivered the first night or wait until our next night there. We won't all be arriving at the same time on Wednesday night so the boys might be even more surprised if Mickey drops it off while we're out in the parks. Still mentally debating on this one!!

*I also got some pins off Ebay too for Corbin to add to his lanyard for trading purposes. He has his heart set on Nemo and Cars pins so hopefully with the ones that I got, he'll be able to trade a CM for what he wants.

*I've also been trying to teach myself some of the tricks (with lots of help!!) from the dis-igns board. I'm certainly a newbie to it all but it's fun and pretty addicting!

Ok the boys are taking a nap and I have a couple of projects to try and finish up to mail out tomorrow. More updates soon-including our ADRs for the December trip!!!

 

[newtodis]

Hey y'all!! (I'm getting this Southern thing down!)

Sorry it's been so long. Lots has been happening. I've started DISigning on the Creative DISigns board on top of planning our 2 trips to MI, Corbin's birthday party and two trips to Disney before the year's over. DH's dad and step mom are coming next month just before DH and DS3's birthday. They were born on the same day thanks to the jinx from my DFIL. Then, I also found out my mother is coming for Thanksgiving and passing on coming to Disney!!

Oh wait....I mean Just when I thought I would get out of cooking a big Thanksgiving meal she has to come and now I've got to put my Martha Stewart on. Oh well...such is life. At least we'll have a quiet Disney trip.

Corbin's decided that his birthday this year will be Cars (again-same as last year). I've been busy searching the dollar stores and Ebay for some good deals on things for the birthday treat bags. Here's what I've got so far. I think the only thing I would add would be some fruit snacks or something candy-ish:

For Father's Day, DH got 4 new (well, new to him) Disney books that I found on Ebay. We now own the following:
Unofficial Guide to WDW with Kids
Hassle-free WDW Vacation (this is the one we've gotten from the library)
Birnbaum's 2008 Official Guide to WDW
WDW with Kids 2008

DH's been combing through them looking for the perfect things to include on our trips. Everything he mentions I just hand him my spreadsheet and point to where it's already scheduled!

Ok here are the updates on the birthday baskets. The list below is what Betsy is getting for the baskets:

Dan: birthday button, baseball cap, ESPN trivia book, arcade card, refillable drink mug, Disney dollars, Mickey ears hat that says Daddy

Corbin: birthday button, Cars plush, 2 pins (Nemo and Pirates), Cars racer, Disney dollars, Mickey ears hat with name

Carter: Cars squirters, Mickey ears hat with name

DMIL: canvas Disney bag, Mickey ears hat with Grandma on it, lanyard with pocket, refillable drink mug (as she lives on Coke and will certainly get my money's worth!)

Me: canvas Disney bag, Mickey ears hat with Mommy on it.

Here's what I'm sending to put in the baskets:
trading pins that I'll seperate between everyone and Sept and Dec trips:

For both boys:

For Corbin:

For Carter:

I found these cute water shoes on sale at Toys R Us this weekend:

Next: What's the plan for September???

 

[newtodis]

Here's the plans as they stand right now.

9/17 Arrival Day!
Check in to hotel-All Star Sports here we come!!!
Dinner-TBD (depends on where we're at)
Grandma arrives
Bed time

9/18 Magic Kingdom Park
Breakfast-Crystal Palace
Rest at Hotel
Need to decide what park to do this afternoon-Epcot or DHS
Lunch-TBD
Dinner-TBD

9/19 Breakfast-Tusker House
Animal Kingdom Park
Lunch-TBD
Rest at Hotel
BBB- "Cool Dude" for Corbin
Dinner-Tony's Town Square
Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party

9/20 Disney Hollywood Studios
Breakfast-TBD
Lunch-TBD
Rest at Hotel
EPCOT
Dinner-Coral Reef with diver and personalized menus!!

9/21 Departure Day!
Breakfast-TBD
Lunch-TBD

Most of the TBD are going to be our counter service meals. I'll of course have *suggestions* as to where we should go, but try and take other input as well. A lot will also depend on where we're at in the park and how hungry the boys are. They tend to eat kind of early and are more snacky kids rather than wanting to sit down and have a full out meal so counter service is good for that.

DMIL's only request this far is that we go to Epcot. I'm thinking our first afternoon we'll probably go there. I'd like to take advantage of the Disney VISA character meet and greet as many days as we can.

I also have to fit in a photo shoot at GF or Poly. I want to get some pictures of the boys with Gram and Gram with her boy (daddy). I've got a little bit of time left to figure out where and what we'll wear so that's good.

I'm debating doing the segway tour for DH and his mom as a "birthday surprise" to give them some time together. I know there will be lots of happy tears on this trip.

I'm also on the fence about getting a Wishes cruise. That might be a very good way for Gram to spend some time with the boys and I think DH would like it.

I'm a Disney crier so no matter what trip, I'll be in tears several times throughout the day!

The current debate in my mind right now is if I should send the shirts to be included in the baskets or not. I'm terrified that they'll get lost and we won't have anything to wear! I'm also worried about keeping them at home and the boys seeing them. That will just lead to a war of "when can we wear them?" "At Mickey's house!" "Let's go now!" that I'm just not ready for yet.

Ok, DH's home from getting pizza (Mommy doesn't feel like cooking tonight and we FINALLY sold our house in MI on Friday so we're celebrating!!). I'm going to go eat and I'll come back to post our plans for the December trip.

 

[newtodis]

The only paper I can find right now is my email from AKL confirming our ADRs they made for us. We're staying Club Level and are certainly looking forward to it! This trip will probably be pretty "bland" compared to September as we're spending a lot more on the hotel and this time we have to pay for our food.

My "favorite" holiday is probably Christmas as I *love* to decorate and pick out gifts for everyone. I just cannot wait to see Disney in it's holiday decorations.

I'm also trying to put in a bit more pool time and things like that on this trip. We'll be heading back to MI exactly 10 days after we get back from Disney and there will be no warm weather or swimming there! Our luck, we'll get there fine and be snowed in and won't be able to leave!

On this trip we'll do baskets again (of course!) but on a much smaller scale. We're celebrating Carter's birthday, since we'll only miss it by about 3 weeks, so he'll get some cool stuff. Corbin will be the one to only get a couple of things this time. On our September trip, I'll be scoping out ideas for baskets for the next trip.

Also on our December trip, Santa may be looking for ideas too. We're blessed to have family who will buy our children enough clothes to last until their birthdays and more than enough toys for them to play with. This gives DH and I a bit more freedom to buy "bigger" things for them and not feel quite as guilty about not getting them so much.

Of course, I'll be making shirts for this trip as well. I'll be an expert by the time we go again with our friends. Of course, my best friend (who we're going with) already thinks this of me in the craft arena so I can't disappoint. I'll also be the planner for that trip but more on that later!

So far, here's what we've got for December (notice there's a "princess" theme with this trip):

12/11 Breakfast-Princess Storybook Dining-Epcot
Epcot-we'll try and stay until the Disney VISA character meet n greet
Lunch-TBD
Rest at hotel
Dinner-LTT
Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party

12/12 Nothing yet....I'm thinking maybe Garden Grill???

12/13 MY BIRTHDAY!!!
Breakfast-TBD
Park-TBD
Lunch-TBD
Hotel to rest
DHS
Dinner-Sci-Fi

12/14 Breakfast with Cinderella in the Castle!!!! What a way to end the trip!

I need to fit in some "different" places on this trip or places we wanted to go put couldn't get into in September. I'd also like to fit in Chef Mickey's someplace (for both trips) since we went there on our first trip. This won't be hard for December but it's going to take me a bit of work in September. I'm aiming for the last morning. Good memory to leave Grandma with

Ok...have to get the boys down for bed. Here's a few pictures from our weekend. Since it was Father's Day, Saturday morning we went to "doughnuts with dad" at the library and stayed for the "ladybug lady". After that, we shared with Daddy that we would do whatever (within reason!) he wanted to do.

We ended up in Savannah at Bass Pro Shops:

Corbin enjoying his ice cream cone from Cold Stone Creamery:

Carter did *not* want to listen!

Sunday we got a storm in the afternoon and lost power for about 15 minutes. Once the worst passed, I let the boys out to play:

Off to fold laundry so I can get it off my bed and go to sleep!

 

[Leonsmom]

Come back!!!!
How else am I going to add more great ideas to my own trip????

i miss your PTR!!!!!!!

 

[Leonsmom]

P.S. Fix those photo bucket links, will ya.

 

[newtodis]

Hey you!! I'm having Jill withdrawls! Get a new computer will ya please!??! My goal for this afternoon is actually to update this crazy thing! Lots of changes and I think they're ironed out now. There will be an update and photos on here before the end of the day just for you!

Feel free to steal ideas as you see fit!

 

[newtodis]

Sorry for the lack of follow up here-things have just been too crazy!! Between working (turning more into full than part time), 4th of July, Dan and Corbin's birthdays (more on that in a minute) and trying to get things figured out for our trip to MI next month all sprinkled by my computer giving up on me and my washer breaking, I've had something going on constantly.

As for the birthdays, they're done now.... My baby is now 4...yes four! I cannot believe it!! He's such a little man. I tried to make a deal with him to be three for another year but it didn't work out so well...so he's going to be four for three years now-that's the deal!

I surprised DH (Dan) with a birthday dinner the Friday before his birthday. He thought we were dropping the kids off at a friend's house and going out to dinner. Little did he know, his co-workers were there waiting for us! Here are some pictures:



Corbin's birthday party went well. He had a great time playing with all of his friends. He thought it was great fun surprising Daddy (for the second year in a row mind you!) with his party. He's also starting to realize that he and Daddy share a birthday. It took a little explaining but he's starting to understand.

This is our friend (and Corbin's friend's Dad) having more fun than the kids!!

Corbin was very interested in reading the cards-funny, they all said something like "Here's your present. It's not really your birthday, just your party but Happy Birthday" according to Corbin!

Carter got a litte bit of "static" from the toys!

Then we had a cake at our house on their birthdays-that's the crazy part of me. Yes we'd had cake Friday night and again Saturday night, but it wasn't their birthday so it didn't really count! Dan's mom (who's going on the trip with us) happened to call just as we were getting ready to sing Happy Birthday so she got to sing to him and listen while he blew out his candles.

He kept asking for fire on his cake!

 

[newtodis]

This should have been in the previous post but I'm too lazy to edit today-thanks Kari (rumblytumbly) for the cute DISign I used to make Corbin's birthday shirt. Jill-did you happen to see the back of Corbin's shirt???

Ok on to the plans! There are not any fun pictures for this one...sorry!

So trip updates. We’ll start with September.

Here’s the “plan” as it stands right now…I’m not thrilled with a couple of ADRs but being free dining and all, this was all I could get. I’m hoping to have a bit of time to keep calling and changing some things around to work out a little better for us. If not, it will just have to work. Everyone will like it and be happy!

Wednesday, 9/17
DH and I are leaving work at noon to come home, change our clothes, pay the nanny (this is important!) and head to Disney!! We’re planning about 5 ½ hours on the road with potty breaks and the like. Depending on the traffic, it might take a little longer than that. Once we get to Mickey’s house, we’re going to check into our room, dump our luggage and try to find some dinner. I don’t have a clue right now as to where we’re going to eat-probably somewhere in DTD so Mommy can get a bit of her shopping fix after we eat. If the boys are not up for shopping (who wouldn’t be???), we can go back to the room and hang out or go swimming depending on the time.

DMIL is also flying in tonight. He plane lands in Orlando at about 9:30. Depending on how long ME will take, DH may just go and pick her up. I’m thinking the boys will be in bed by this time so I can start unpacking a little bit and trying to get my pixie dust ready to be spread out for the trip.

Depending on how exhausted I am, I may wait up for Gram and I may not…Mommy needs her rest too ya’ know!

Thursday, 9/18
We’re starting our morning off at my favorite park, Magic Kingdom. The park opens at 8 with EMH so we’ll be there! The boys are early risers so this will not be a problem for our family at all. It may be a little tough to get them moving this morning when they wake up to find Gram there!!! We’ll just do breakfast in the room-pop tarts or cereal or something.

We have an ADR at 10:10 at Crystal Palace. I had an AWESOME ressie at 7:something but moved it to accomidate DMIL. (what was I thinking????) My senses did get the better of me and I quit trying to add her to anything at all-we’re just going to show up with her hoping it’s not a huge problem since Carter’s still in a high chair.

We also have an ADR at Chef Mickey’s at 1:00. We will not be able to eat at both places! I want to eat at Chef Mickey’s since we ate their on our last trip and everyone liked it. This will be (I have decided) our “family” meal on every trip!

That leaves me to decide what to do about Crystal Palace??? Should I just cancel all together or try to swap for another day or just not each very much at either and enjoy the characters?????

After Chef Mickey’s, we’re heading back to the hotel to rest. We may nap-Carter will for sure. Corbin may be more interested in heading down to the pool if he can convince someone to take him.

Once we’re all rested up, we’re heading to DHS. We’re planning on watching Fantasmic tonight for the first time! Then, of course, we’ll head back to our room and get some sleep.

Friday, 9/19
Our Friday morning will start off with breakfast with Donald and crew at Tusker House! We got an 8:00 ressie before the park opens at 9. YAY!!

We’ll obviously be heading to AK this morning. The boys like the safari so we’ll do that early before the line’s too long. We’re also hoping to hit a couple of the shows but that will depend on the boys. Corbin is NOT a fan of loud noises at all so they may end in my carrying out a screaming, crying child. I’m sorry for any of you that have to hear that!

Lunch will probably be a counter service place-whatever we can all agree on. When we’re done with lunch, we’re heading back to the hotel again to get some rest.

Tonight we’re hitting MNSSHP! Corbin has an appointment at the BBB for a “Cool Dude” at 3:40. This should be very interesting! Gram and I will probably take him to this-me so I can take pictures and her just to be a part of it. From there, we’re heading to Tony’s for dinner at 4:30. When we’re done eating, we’re hitting the MK to ride some rides and party! Corbin’s fully aware that he will be trick-or-treating at this event and is ready for that to happen! I’d also like them to see the parade if they can make it that long. We’ll stay for Hallo-Wishes for sure, regardless of who’s sleeping. Once that's done, DH will probably want to head back to the room or something. If the boys are still going, we'll hit more rides or whatever they want to do. If they're out, I'm going to try and beg DH and DMIL to take the boys back to the room so I can stay and have fun at the party.

A bit OT-I'm trying to get into photography and would love some cool Disney pictures. To be able to wander and take pictures without screaming kids or worrying about holding everyone up, it would be so nice. To keep it interesting, here are some shots I've taken with my new camera since I don't have any Disney pictures to go with this part.

Back to the trip at hand....

Once I've taken my pictures or been kicked out of the MK, I'll head back to the room to try and get some sleep.

Saturday, 9/20
This morning we do not have ADRs for breakfast or lunch so probably breakfast in the room and counter service at the hotel or park.

We're hitting DHS again this morning because that's where McQueen and Mater live and if we could see them every day, we would I'm sure! If, by some chance, we cannot get up and moving this morning, that's fine too. The "alternate" is DTD, DQ or the pool. Since we don't have any ADRs it makes it easier to change our plans a little bit.

Once we're rested and ready to go, we're heading to EPCOT. This is the only park DMIL asked to go to. This is also the park that we're "celebrating" DH and Corbin's birthdays. Dinner will be at Coral Reef at 4:20. I've already requested the diver and personalized menus for my DH and DMIL. I cannot wait! I'm also working on ordering a custom cake, hopefully Nemo themed, for us after dinner. After watching IllimiNations, we'll head back to the room to get some sleep.

Sunday, 9/21
Today is the saddest day of the trip-the last day! We don't have ADRs planned for breakfast or lunch. DMIL's flight leaves at like 1 so we'll probably hit whatever park we want to so we can do whatever we missed out on. As for once it's time for her to go, we'll either stay at Disney for a couple more hours (since we're driving and she's flying) or we'll head to the outlet malls so Mommy can shop some more!

 

[newtodis]

Since I'm on a roll and DH put the boys down for a nap, I'm going to keep going!!! There will be pictures in this post to keep everyone awake!

I mailed off my (huge, heavy) box to Betsy at Memories by Betsy. She's going to work with Mickey and crew to get some extra special baskets put together for our room.

Here's some of the things I've picked up for the baskets:

Everyone will be getting a Cars plush from Ebay:

Again, from Ebay, some trading pins:

Some stuff from Target and Dollar Store for the boys:

These cookies and shoes came from Toys R Us (the shoes were on clearance!!!):

Betsy is also passing a list on to Mickey of some things for him to pick up for our baskets. Mickey's making everyone some special ears with their names on them which will be a lot of fun!

I was also lucky enough to find some very cute Disney stuff at our local Hallmark store. It was even reasonably priced which was even better! I didn't get a picture of it before I sent it off.

I also made my DMIL a scrapbook for her basket. I got the book from Creative Memories and used a bunch of different stuff to decorate the pages. I didn't take a picture because I finished it the night before I had to send the box out and wasn't thinking about it.

I've been picking stuff up along the way for the car ride as well. I've got to get a new Cars dvd since ours is worn out. The boys also watch Super Why (from PBS) so I'll have to order a dvd from their website before we go. Hopefully, they'll take their naps in the car on the way down so this will take away from some of the whining and crying that could ensue from being strapped in a car for a road trip.

To practice for our upcoming drive to Michigan (yup 15 hours in a car with DH and two kids...I'm thrilled!) and to Disney, we drove to Jacksonville over 4th of July weekend to go to the zoo. The boys did quite well actually. It was about 2 1/2 hours but it wasn't too bad. Here's some of what we saw at the zoo:

Carter loves him some "shishes!!"

Ok up next, my ideas to spread pixie dust throughout our trip!

 

[newtodis]

Thanks to the Creative DISigns board, I've gotten tons of amazing ideas! That board has cost me almost as much money as our Disney trip!

So everyone will know we're together, we must having matching shirts. Because DH was with me when I picked out the shirts, they could not all be matching.

I've also found cnady bar wrappers to print out and put over the "regular" wrappers. This is something I'm waiting until a bit closer to the trip so I don't have candy sitting around waiting to be eaten.

I also picked up some extra "sprinkles" (confetti) when I was at the dollar store. They had some little Cars and Mickey stickers/confettis that I plan on putting in our room when Tink or someone else visits.

This trip should just be so much fun. I cannot wait to see everyone's faces!!

Next....Changes to our December trip

 

[newtodis]

In casual conversation one night at our house, we mentioned to Dan's co-workers our Disney trip. One couple is going in November and we told them they should move their trip back a couple of weeks to come with us. Little did we know they were up for going twice!

We decided to have our first "Disney meeting" to figure out if they were even really interested in everything that I'd already planned. Thanks to everyone else trying to squeeze in their trip during the last possible "value" dates in December, we cannot get them into the AKL let alone upgrade our room to accomidate them!

In preparation of the Disney meeting, I put together a "Disney Bible" for our friends.

Sorry-I guess I should introduce them to y'all. Sandy and Angie are just the sweetest people you could ever meet. When our washer died, Sandy and Dan went and got a new one in the pouring rain and put in the new one, only causing a minor flood!

Sandy's on the couch in this picture with his hand in front of his face!

Angie's the one who volunteered their home for Dan's surprise party.

Ok...back to the Disney meeting. Angie's been going to Disney forever so she's not new to any of this. But because they'll be going so close together, they're getting APs for their trips which is new for her. We got that squared away and the benefits of having the AP. Angie and I both know this means more Disney trips in our next year! We just have to get the men to agree to it or leave the children home with them and go by ourselves!!

So here's our "plan" as it stands now. Our friends are looking for a hotel room. If worse comes to worse, they'll stay at a value. This will be their first time staying on property so they're excited!

We're talking about carpooling down instead of driving two vehicles. I just have to make sure we can find our luggage thing for the top of the van as we won't all fit luggage and everything inside the van!

We're leaving work Wednesday at noon to go home, change clothes, pay the nanny (again, very important!) and pick up Sandy and Angie if we carpool.

We'd be at Disney for dinner Wednesday night and probably do something in DTD.

All of our ADRs were made with the Club Level staff prior to having invited our friends. Some ADRs are still for 4 but some we were able to add an additional 2 people to. We're hoping to still squeeze them in to all of our ressies somehow! Then whoever shows up can eat and if something happens that someone can't make it, we'll at least know we had enough space just in case.

After much debate, and some great help from a DIS'r , we were able to add the dining plan to our package without buying the one day pass since we have ADRs.

Thursday, 12/11
We've got ADRs for 4 at Akershus Princess Breakfast at 8:40. This means we'll be spending our morning in EPCOT. We'll have lunch and head back to our rooms to rest. We need lots of rest for our evening!

Our dinner ressie is at LTT for the 4 of us at 4:30. From dinner, we're heading to MVMCP! I'm very much looking forward to this barring any weather issues.

Friday, 12/12
We had an ADR for Chef Mickey's at 7:05 this morning. This will not do after partying all night! Instead, we're having lunch at Grand Floridian Cafe at 12 noon. This time the ADR is for all 6 of us so that's great! That gives them time to sleep in and us time to hit DTD, DQ or the pool if we want to.

We don't have ADRs for dinner today so we'll either do counter service or figure something else out.

Saturday, 12/13 (Happy Birthday to ME! Happy Birthday to ME!)
We have no ADRs for breakfast or lunch today so we'll be able to use up some counter service credits!

We're going to DHS in the afternoon as we have our dinner ADR at Sci-Fi drive in at 5:55 for all 6 of us. I'm looking forward to this just to go and have a milkshake. I will be so increadably if I drink one but it just might be worth it just once! We'll probably also stay and watch Fantasmic and see the Osborne Specticle of Lights while we're there.

Sunday, 12/14
Another sad Disney day.... We have to go back to reality! But, we are having an amazing breakfast in the CASTLE!!! We haven't been able to add our friends to this ADR yet but we're trying like crazy! Our ADR is at 8:05 so it should be pretty cool. I'm very much looking forward to eating in the castle.

To prepare for all of these princesses, which my boys know nothing about , we looked on youtube yesterday to check some of them out. Corbin keeps telling me that I'll get a princess dress if I'm good!

Since I don't think we'll have time in September, I also would like to schedule a photopass photo shoot at one of the resorts. I'm hoping for a Christmas card worthy picture from some point in the trip.

Also, with this trip and having help with the boys, Dan and Sandy will probably go off and do their own thing. I'm going to look into either fishing or golfing for them, maybe some kind of a tour, so they can do something fun and hang out together.

That also means that Angie and I will have time to do something without the boys! I've got to look into this! She would love something like a "behind the scenes" tour. I know she also loves animals and such so I've got to work something out.

Next up, I'll share some links I've found some great info for planning and stocking up my Disney Bible

 

[newtodis]

If you're anything like me at all, you love to make lists. Grocery lists, packing lists, lists to keep track of your lists... DH hates my lists with a passion. He has even gone so far as to hide my lists and thinks this is hilarious! It will come back to get him...don't you worry!

Please know that I did not write or make any of these things unless specifically described. I do not want to take credit for someone else's work.

Do you need a packing list? Here you go:
http://themouseforless.com/downloads/trip/UltimatePackingList/UltimatePackingList-.doc
http://www.geocities.com/djkidkaz/UltimatePackingList.doc

Need a planning kit? Here you go (I personally didn't use this but thought it had some good forms to use):
http://themouseforless.com/downloads/trip/PlanningKit.shtml

Need ID for the kids? Here you are (I plan on using something similar to this with a current picture of the kids attached):
http://themouseforless.com/downloads/kids/id.shtml

Need to save some money on your trip??? Here you go (I like checking here and the DIS of course! for codes and the like):
http://themouseforless.com/tripplanning/links/Financing.shtml

Need help planning your trip? Here you are (please note the 4th suggested site to help plan your trip!!!):
http://themouseforless.com/tripplanning/links/PlanningSites.shtml

I also have touring cards that another DIS'r sent to me that I'd be more than happy to forward along. She took the time to put everything onto notecard sized paper to print off and laminate. They've great. I can't wait until it's close enough for me to finish these and print them out!

We've also joined the TGM site. I'm not sure that I love it yet. I do like logging in to see how many days until we leave! Other than that, most of it's here on the DIS for free. I'm going to put some of his tips to work on our trips to see if we'll be using his site again.

This is a cool thread of other ideas of "fun" things to do while in the World:
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1827527

For all of you like me that love to take pictures, here's a cool thread of fun places to take pictures around the World:
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1730599&page=10

Hopefully these links will be helpful!

Now get out there and get planning people!!

Corbin's up-he never really went to sleep but Daddy did! I guess that means I should get off here and go play with my baby. Now that we're a bit more caught up, I guess I can do that.

Thanks Jill for sparking me to sit down and get this all done! Let me know what you think!

 

[newtodis]

Come back!!!!
How else am I going to add more great ideas to my own trip????

i miss your PTR!!!!!!!

Ok now you've got some reading to do! With pictures even at that! Feel free to borrow whatever ideas you would like! I even posted some links for you to add to your list collection!

P.S. Fix those photo bucket links, will ya.

They're all fixed now for your viewing pleasure!!

Ok I've got to keep an eye on Corbin. He's more and more fearless as the days pass. He also thinks he is super cool now

Carter (aka Pip) has been having fun watching it rain here the past few days with the hurricane out off the coast and now the tropical depression coming our way.

We told the boys last night that Sandy and Miss Angie were coming with us to Mickey's house and Corbin was less than thrilled at first. He wanted to leave last night (that's my boy!!) but was not happy when I told him we had to wait until almost when Santa comes to go with them. Glad he's excited.

We've also been working on a countdown calendar to use once it gets closer. Not quite as planned but it'll work just the same!

 

[newtodis]

I got an email from Betsy, who's helping Mickey put our baskets together, this afternoon. Look at the amazing baskets she put together!!!!!!

Needless to say, I'm very excited! Cannot wait to get to Disney now!

ETA: In my excitement, I forgot to explain them! DUH! The one on the left is for DH. The one on the right is for Corbin. The one in the middle is for DMIL, Carter and myself. I just cannot wait to see them in person.

Also, I cannot say enough wonderful things about Betsy. We had a slight problem with shipping my stuff (some things that are NOT mine wound up in the box {things like hardware for a rearview mirror????} and she was right on top of it to let me know and figure out what to do and how it got there. Also, I mentioned like 2 days ago that my husband liked the Deadliest Catch show so she went and hunted down a Northwesterner hat SIGNED by Sig from the show! She's amazing!! I fully intend on using her again when we go in December with our friends.

Ok I've got to get some sleep!

 

[lmillercrew]

Oh my gosh! Your PTR is fantastic! And your boys are doll babies. Cuties!!! I am so jealous that you get to go 3 times in the next six months. I wish I lived closer so that I could drive 5 1/2 hours and be at the world. We live up in your old neck of the woods. Toledo baby. Anyway, your baskets look great and you have planned so many things. Thanks for the links. I've moved them to my favorites so that I can read them later. Can't wait to hear more updates as the days get closer.

 

[newtodis]

Oh my gosh! Your PTR is fantastic! And your boys are doll babies. Cuties!!! I am so jealous that you get to go 3 times in the next six months. I wish I lived closer so that I could drive 5 1/2 hours and be at the world. We live up in your old neck of the woods. Toledo baby. Anyway, your baskets look great and you have planned so many things. Thanks for the links. I've moved them to my favorites so that I can read them later. Can't wait to hear more updates as the days get closer.

Thanks so much!!!

I tend to agree-my boys are pretty darn cute!

Our third trip (we're still waiting to figure out dates) will be with our good friends and their son from MI so they'll certainly be flying down since it'll be winter there!

Thanks-I love the baskets-she did an amazing job for me!

Yes I'm certainly a planner. It kills me that I can't control the weather so I'll know just what to pack!

You're very welcome for the links-hoepfully something in there will help you out!

I'm hopnig this week to call and get cakes ordered-another thing to check off the list!

Have a wonderful day!