How Early is Too Early to Plan??? - TR Link Added - 12/29

[afwdwfan]

Well of course it wasn't too bad for you! You probably ran everywhere you went

Well, he ran everywhere except for that one lap that he swam through the lake.

 

[DaveinFallsChurch]

I don't know how the heck I missed your Halloween update! Great costumes! We did the exact same combo from the Disney Store for our DD7 and DS4. They both loved it!

A toddler in a Cousin Eddie costume, so awesome. It's the gift that keeps on giving, Clark.

 

[afwdwfan]

I don't know how the heck I missed your Halloween update! Great costumes! We did the exact same combo from the Disney Store for our DD7 and DS4. They both loved it!

Excellent costume choice!

A toddler in a Cousin Eddie costume, so awesome. It's the gift that keeps on giving, Clark.

Excellent use of a movie quote.

 

[lilpixiebabe101]

Hey! Haven't seen you around in a while. I'll have to go check out your TR.

They definitely are growing fast, and she is certainly developing quite the personality.

Yeah, been on a bit of a Dis hiatus. We had a blow up with the PTR for the current TR. Lost some people. We kind of stayed away a bit to give ourselves and the other lady some space.

They do indeed. I cannot believe mine will be 5 in just over a month! Your youngest is getting to that age to really start having a personality!

 

[afwdwfan]

Yeah, been on a bit of a Dis hiatus. We had a blow up with the PTR for the current TR. Lost some people. We kind of stayed away a bit to give ourselves and the other lady some space.

So you're saying I need to check out the PTR then? That's why I usually stay away from the Theme parks attractions and strategies board.

They do indeed. I cannot believe mine will be 5 in just over a month! Your youngest is getting to that age to really start having a personality!

Personality? Yeah, she already has that. Believe me.

 

[lilpixiebabe101]

So you're saying I need to check out the PTR then? That's why I usually stay away from the Theme parks attractions and strategies board.

Personality? Yeah, she already has that. Believe me.

Haha. There was only truly a little at the end to signify the blow up. It all happened behind the scenes in Texts, Emails, and FB messages. It was lovely, and there was suppose to be "no dirty laundry aired". Two didn't. One did. Now we are the bad guys. But I digress, we all kind of backed off of disboards not knowing if we were going to be able to keep our distances. We are following a few of the same threads. It's weird on some to see our names back to back.

Oh kids are for sure funny creatures! I hear some of the things that come out of Alexa's mouth now, and I cringe thinking about 8 years from now when she hits teenager.

 

[afwdwfan]

OK. For those who don't know I live on a farm and we use mostly John Deere equipment so I follow some John Deere pages on Facebook. A certain picture popped up on my time line today that I just had a chuckle about and thought I'd share. I just can't help but think about the morning we missed the opening show at MK 2 years ago because of one of these.

 

[jedijill]

Nothing runs like a Deere!

Jill in CO

 

[Leshaface]

I don't think I was around for that TR. What happened?!

 

[KatMark]

You know my son and daughter-in-law work for subsidiaries of Deere in Dubuque, don't you?

Happy Thanksgiving to you and your beautiful family.

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[afwdwfan]

Nothing runs like a Deere!

Jill in CO

I don't think I was around for that TR. What happened?!

Here's the link to that update, but I'll give the short version here...

One evening, we rode the monorail around the resort loop and noticed an excavator and other construction equipment at the GF.

Our second to last morning, we were planning to get to MK before RD because we hadn't seen the welcome show yet. We were staying at WL, and we got out early and caught the first boat of the day. Just before we got over by the Contemporary our boat stopped. And we sat. For a long time. They were moving a barge with that excavator on it and we couldn't move until it got clear of the area.

Why that couldn't have been done an hour or 2 earlier is beyond me. Anyway... we could see the singing and dancing at the train station from the boat as we pulled up to the dock.

You know my son and daughter-in-law work for subsidiaries of Deere in Dubuque, don't you?

I do. Any chance they could make a 9410R fall off the back of a truck in central Indiana for me?

Happy Thanksgiving to you and your beautiful family.

Thank you, Kathy.

 

[afwdwfan]

Who's Going Where When???

Ok, I've mentioned before that planning is going slowly because we're still trying to figure out who will join us. Well, at first, it looked like MiL was on the fence and might be joining us. Apparently, she really wants to go. But our planned week, the week after Thanksgiving, doesn't work very well for her. I've mentioned that we could change it to the week of the 12/15. I really don't want to, because it know it will be more crowded, but if it works best I can live with it. As of right now though, I think we're still planning for the week after Thanksgiving.

In addition to this, she is trying to convince FiL, who never wants to travel anywhere for more than 2 or 3 days to go with us. The last I heard, she convinced him to go because it will be a chance to make memories with his grandchildren. She knows just the right buttons to push.

Anyway, it looks like we can go ahead an pencil them in to go with us. It is definitely changing the way I'm planning this trip though. FiL won't enjoy the parks. It won't be that he won't try, or that he'll complain, but he just isn't going to have fun there. He'll enjoy spending time with his grandkids, but he's not going to want to be in the parks all day, and by the 3rd or 4th day, he'll want to be back home. That's just how he is. When we go on vacations with them to Gatlinburg, it is his type of vacation. Maybe an afternoon of golf, but mostly just relaxing with the family. And even then he's ready to get back home after a few days.

It pains me to say this, especially after khertz went and got me all excited, but I think we are going to just have to cut any plans for Universal out of this trip and possibly even shorten our intended Disney stay.

I'm not crazy about that aspect of it, but I truly am glad that FiL is joining us. I know that this isn't exactly something he wants to do, but he's doing it for his grandkids. I still want to make sure that we can at least make it as enjoyable for him as possible. One thing I'm sure he'll enjoy is Candlelight Processional, so I'm sure we'll be looking at getting a dinner package for that.

Another thing we're considering is inviting my parents to join us as well. My parents and Mil & FiL get along great. They and a few other couples take a weekend trip every summer so the guys can golf and the ladies can go shopping or something. We're thinking this might help him have a better time if he and Dad can hang out and talk. Dad can't ride many of the big rides, and I'm sure FiL won't want to, and I'm sure that they'd have no problem finding a shady spot to relax together.

Either way, I know we'll have fun. It just seems like every question that gets answered opens up several new ones. I was hoping to get our trip booked just after the first of the year, but it feels like we're still not too close to knowing what the heck we're going to do.

We did sit and look at some resort options last night. I'm kind of putting off the idea of AoA right now since it seems to me that we'd really be getting a little too crowded for a suite there with MiL and FiL. Out of the blue, DW mentions that she wants to stay at All Star Movies or All Star Music. I just feel like slamming my head into a wall. We've even considered staying offsite in a vacation home or something. I kind of want to see where this Magic Band thing goes first. I wouldn't mind staying off property if it can save a lot of money, but if it ends up being a situation by this time next year that FP+ is more limited for offsite vs. onsite, it might not be worth it. Who knows...

I have looked into DVC rentals. While it is definitely a discount vs. rack rate, it is still a little bit more than we'd really like to spend this trip. Especially if we're going to try to hit Disneyland about a month later. Now, if Mom and Dad would end up going and we're splitting the cost of a 2 bedroom villa... that might make more sense. So it is still an option, but we'll just have to see where things go from here.

 

[amazingact21]

While not completely figured out, at least you're making progress on your trip plans.

I have members in my family, as well, that want nothing to do with traveling and visiting parks day after day. So long as you take their opinions into account and plan for some activities outside of the parks, I'm sure they'll have a decent time.
Having your dad along to entertain your FIL sounds like a smart move. That way you can get away with doing a little more park time since they'll have something to keep them occupied.


Resort choices can be so tough to pick. I'd definitely keep an ear to the ground with FP+ and MagicBands before you decide to stay offsite. Fastpasses were hard to come by when I was at Disney. From what I observed, offsite guests were stuck with attractions like Nemo and Philarmagic.
I know it's still the early days, and Disney's goal is to allow offsite guests to get FP+, but just in case....

 

[KatMark]

Andy, to you and your beautiful family, a truly

 

[afwdwfan]

While not completely figured out, at least you're making progress on your trip plans.

2 steps forward, 1 step back...

I have members in my family, as well, that want nothing to do with traveling and visiting parks day after day. So long as you take their opinions into account and plan for some activities outside of the parks, I'm sure they'll have a decent time.
Having your dad along to entertain your FIL sounds like a smart move. That way you can get away with doing a little more park time since they'll have something to keep them occupied.

After some discussion, I think it is just going to be MiL and FiL going along with us. Which is fine. I just really want them to have a good time. I guess that means firs and foremost that I'm going to have to suppress my natural park commando tendencies.

Resort choices can be so tough to pick. I'd definitely keep an ear to the ground with FP+ and MagicBands before you decide to stay offsite. Fastpasses were hard to come by when I was at Disney. From what I observed, offsite guests were stuck with attractions like Nemo and Philarmagic.
I know it's still the early days, and Disney's goal is to allow offsite guests to get FP+, but just in case....

Yeah, that is the biggest strike against staying offsite.

DW really, really wants to stay at AoA, but I just don't think there's any way there'd be enough room in one of those family suites for all of us.

Andy, to you and your beautiful family, a truly

Thank you Kathy! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you and your family as well.

 

[that's nice]

If the MB & FP+ ends up working out for offsite guests, a vacation home would work out for you. I have done a lot of research and have stayed at a few. I can forward you some links. The best one was a 3500sq ft house with 6 bedrooms, hot tub, pool, and it was no more than 10 minutes from Disney. You could even see EE from the end of the road. It cost us $1200 for 8 days. I'd suggest you have at least 1 AP to save on parking.. that $15 a day adds up quick.


Renting points is still an option but keep in mind a 2BR DVC has 2 queens and 1 king with a few pullouts in the living area. It might not be ideal. You might be OK staying at a value with connecting rooms.

 

[MEK]

Belated Merry Christmas! I hope you and your family are having a wonderful holiday season.

Stuck on a boat while a barge with a John Deere tractor crosses. I'm sorry - that stinks!

As far as the planning- sounds like there are a lot of loose ends to tie up. Is Bonnet Creek a possibility? Off site, but not too far off site. I honestly think off site is not a bad option. But I guess before you plan than you have to see which of the parents are definitely in.

I hope things start to solidify a bit more for you soon! Definitely take a look at VRBO when you get to the lodging stage. My brother found a great place there for $800 a week. I wish I could find that listing again.

 

[afwdwfan]

If the MB & FP+ ends up working out for offsite guests, a vacation home would work out for you. I have done a lot of research and have stayed at a few. I can forward you some links. The best one was a 3500sq ft house with 6 bedrooms, hot tub, pool, and it was no more than 10 minutes from Disney. You could even see EE from the end of the road. It cost us $1200 for 8 days. I'd suggest you have at least 1 AP to save on parking.. that $15 a day adds up quick.

Yeah, the parking expense could be a big one. Not sure an AP would make up the difference though.

Renting points is still an option but keep in mind a 2BR DVC has 2 queens and 1 king with a few pullouts in the living area. It might not be ideal. You might be OK staying at a value with connecting rooms.

I know. It would be tight, but I thing we could manage. In fact, when you consider what we're likely going to do, a 2BR would be rather spacious.

Belated Merry Christmas! I hope you and your family are having a wonderful holiday season.

We certainly are. And since it is well past Christmas now, Happy New Year to you and your family!

Stuck on a boat while a barge with a John Deere tractor crosses. I'm sorry - that stinks!

So much for my plans that day.

As far as the planning- sounds like there are a lot of loose ends to tie up. Is Bonnet Creek a possibility? Off site, but not too far off site. I honestly think off site is not a bad option. But I guess before you plan than you have to see which of the parents are definitely in.

And as of now, it is just going to be DW's parents. So we're definitely gearing our search more towards on site.




Just a quick update on the last update... DW has made the point that while she agrees that her dad might have a little more fun if my parents went, she doesn't want to invite them. Her reason being that this is pretty much definitely going to be the only time her dad ever goes. She wants him to be in grandparent mode the whole time and spend more time just enjoying the grandkids and seeing things through their eyes. I can't disagree with that logic.

As a result, we are looking at AoA, once again. Yes, I know it will be ridiculously tight. But I think we can manage. I believe there are 2 bathrooms, and that is my biggest concern. I don't think we'll be spending a huge amount of time in the room anyway so although it will be tight, I don't think it will be too big of a deal. I think we'd just let MiL and FiL have the main bedroom. I don't mind sleeping on a Mater themed table bed. I just hope it is long enough to accommodate someone who is 6'2".

We just keep coming back to this resort because DS is just the perfect age for it. He LOVES Cars, and actually so does FiL. I think he'd really get a kick out of staying in one of those rooms and I know DS would love it. Nothing has been booked yet, because I'm still pretty hesitant and worried about the space situation. I do need to do some more research to make sure the fold out beds are comfortable/big enough, but if so, I think we can manage and with some of the expense being shared we can stay at DW's dream resort and stay well within budget.

So if anyone wants to try to talk me in to or out of staying at AoA, please feel free. I'm sure there are some points that I haven't even considered yet.

 

[KatMark]

I won't try to talk you out of AoA. I just know that I could not stay there. It's very well done theme wise, but it's HUGE and very "busy."

A little heads up as I haven't gotten that far in my TR. As you know, we went the week after Thanksgiving (Tuesday to Sunday). It was a bit more crowded than the year before and we had a wait for several rides. I think the reason is that Thanksgiving was so late this year and the Christmas taping was that following Saturday (the 6th...and our last day there). Thanksgiving is late NEXT year too, so just take that into consideration. I don't think we are doing a December trip next year, but if we do, we will push it back a week to avoid the taping crowd.

 

[KatMark]

Oh, and I forgot:

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