afwdwfan
DIS Dad #460
- Joined
- Apr 23, 2010
- Messages
- 14,164
Welcome to my third PTR. I'm doing things a little bit differently this time though. I have no firm plans.
I've always started writing PTR's after we already have dates and resort choices pinned down, but right now it is all up in the air. I'm pretty sure that we will be going to Disney World sometime between Thanksgiving and Christmas in 2014 though... And there could possibly be a bonus trip that has a little splash of Disney to it in early 2015 if I can pull a few strings to make it happen without breaking the bank. 
I felt the need to start this PTR already because I'm going through Disney withdrawal. The past 2 years, we have been in Disney World during that Nov/Dec time frame. Unfortunately things didn't pan out for us to do it this year, but we just got home from a family vacation and I feel like I need to be working on planning some kind of a trip.
We had considered a June trip with my Sister In Law's family, but it was going to take some inside 180 day planning. I actually went so far as searching for ADR's and actually found a few that we wanted and had them booked. After going back and forth discussing the pros and cons we just decided that it wasn't in our best interest. Why? Well I'll introduce you to the family and explain why.
Me: Andy
I'm a 31 year old Disney fanatic. I made my first trip to the World back in 1985 just a few months before I turned 4 and have been hooked ever since. I am the most Disney obsessed member of our family, but DS is a close second, and DW is definitely starting to see things more my way.
I grew up going on trips to Disney World with my parents and sisters about once every 3 or 4 years. Our last trip like that was in 1998 when I was in high school. We didnt make it back as a family until 2008 after my sisters graduated from college. During those 10 years, I made 2 trips to Orlando, but only got onto Disney property once in 2005 for a spring training game at WWoS and a few evenings at DTD and the Boardwalk. I guess I was kind of in that Disney doesnt have enough big rides phase and it wasnt all that big of a deal to me at the time, but the 2008 trip definitely re-ignited my passion for the parks and now I couldnt even fathom the idea of being so close and not stepping in one of the parks!
DW
We have been married since 2008, and she braved that summer 2008 trip with my parents and sisters. Not only did she survive, but she enjoyed it enough that she signed on for another big family trip this past winter. She had been to Disney World a couple of times before we were together, but it was never quite as big of a deal to her as it is to me. Weve had some great experiences over the past 5 years in our visits to WDW and I really think that she is beginning to appreciate what that park offers almost as much as I do.
Since our last trip, she has even mentioned a few more ideas for trips. We typically go to Gatlinburg every couple of years with her parents and siblings, but that is about as far as her dad ever wants to travel. He has never been to Florida or seen the ocean, and has no interest in it either. Her mom, I think, would like to go to Florida and Disney World sometime, so DW has thrown around the idea of planning a trip sometime with her parents and mine. My dad and her dad actually play golf together about once every couple of weeks during the summer so the idea is that maybe if we promise her dad a couple of days of golf, he might actually be willing to go along with it. I dont know if it will happen or not, but Im pretty excited about the fact that she is coming up with reasons to go to Disney World on her own now. She was also the one that brought up the idea of going this June with her sister.
DS
He is 3 years old and, well, hes a typical 3 year old. He was just under that 3 year mark when we went this past Dec, and he had a blast. He enjoyed the characters and loved the rides. Aside from a few tense moments where he refused to get in the stroller, we really didnt have any meltdowns or any of those dreaded toddler incidents in the parks. He wants to go back to Disney World, and I keep telling him I do too and we will one of these days. He loves to watch Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Jake and the Neverland Pirates, Cinderella, Cars, Toy Story, Tangled, Finding Nemo and Peter Pan. He always points out the castle at the beginning of the movies and talks about going there again.
DD
She is the princess of the family. She is 1 year old and she basically runs the house. Let me start by saying that her general personality and demeanor tends to make her the easier child, but she also has more of a tendency to interfere with our plans. DS has always been pretty flexible about nap schedules and never in his life has he wanted to go to bed early. DD on the other hand well she wants about an hour nap right after breakfast and another hour or 2 after lunch and in bed by about 8:30. And if we dont follow her schedule well, shell let us know about it. She does love watching Jake with her Bubby though, and it is clear that his rotation of Disney movies seem to catch her attention as well. She has been known to carry her Minnie Mouse (which is actually about the same size she is) around the house in a big bear hug.
Ok, so why did we decide not to go this year?
Well, having gone in December, it would have been a 6 month turnaround to do the prospective trip with DWs sister. Personally, Im all for that. However, we had other things to consider. For one, I had a really hard time swallowing the cost of adding DS park ticket when the Tomorrowland Speedway and Barnstormer were still going to be the only height restricted rides he could enjoy. I just really feel like Disneys current pricing structure makes it very hard to want to bring a 3 year old to the parks.
This was the biggest reason we decided to just wait, but in addition to that, DD was still just going to be about 13 months old. While she got along fine in December, she wasnt going to get any more out of it than she did then. And we werent going to have a grandparent with us who doesnt do hardly any rides and will always be willing to wait with her while shes asleep in the stroller. Instead, we decided that we would go around the same time of year as we had gone in 2011 and 2012 but skip 2013. The logic here is that in late 2014, DS will be 4, almost 5 years old, and DD will be 2 ½. WOW did I really just type that????
Anyway, we figured that she will be about the same age DS was during this past trip and old enough to enjoy it more. We know he had fun and still remembers some of the rides and things he saw because he talks about it. We want her to be able to enjoy it too. The reason 2014 works is that shell still be under that magical 3 year old threshold, DS will hopefully be tall enough to ride some of the 40 requirement rides, and we want to be able to enjoy the Christmas season one last time before DS starts Kindergarten. I dont judge anyone for doing so, but DW and I have already discussed it and really dont want to pull the kids out of school for family vacations, so well likely be back to school break only trips once he starts school and might not get to enjoy the cool temps and lighter crowds again for a long time.
Well, that is enough of my rambling for now. As Ive said, we have no solid plans yet, so there will actually be a lot of planning to be done over the next 16 months or so. On top of that Ive got a few things to share to keep things going around here. We just returned from our Plan B to going to Disney World this year, so Ill probably start things off here with a quick TR from that.
I will end my intro with an extra little piece of information for those of you who read my latest TR. At the time that it was completed, BiL had just survived his first Disney World visit and he even seemed to have a little bit of fun. Well Im proud to say that he and Sis are planning to go back next year and take his mom along with them.
