I wanted to marry a Mouse - but I guess I can settle for second best. [Honeymoon PTR]

[DisneyFan06]

don't you just hate it when you really get to reading a great trip report and it just suddenly disappears? i do, but now i am joining in on it. i created a new ptr in hopes that i can keep it more organized for both the reader and myself. i hope you all understand and will not bash me for trying to make my life (and ours) easier.

it took a lot of time, energy, and thought in naming this report. orginally, it was called "a pregnant princess and a grumpy prince." although she is a pregnant princess, i dont think the name grumpy prince suits me. so, rather than asking her to name the report - i named it for us. the name of this report refers to me personally and the trip in general.

let me begin by introducing my family. what better way to introduce us than a photograph.

i am on the right. my name is christopher but i perfer to be called chris. i am twenty-two but will be twenty-three when we go on our trip. i am creative, proud, fun loving, leader who loves attention. i am both protective and loving. i am also supportive, faithful, and passionate. at times i can be rather bossy, dogmatic, arrogant. to sum it all up, i am a leo. i just graduated from the univeristy of central florida with a degee in elementary education. right now, i am currently a customer service manager at one of the many local wal-marts. i love all things disney - always have and always will. my favorite characters are the traditional mickey and minnie.

my fiance is the one on the left (in the orginal photo). her name is stephanie. stephanie is eight years older than myself. stephanie is already a mother to a wonderful eleven year old son. her son, matthew, is not into disney - he went to many times as a kid and is now immune to the disney touch. disney is just another day to him. he would rather spent his day at a local skatepark. stephanie is graduating with an associate nursing degree in december. stephanie is kind, sencere, protective, and caring. stephanie tends to be conservative, imaginative,and and easily flattered. at times she can be moody, devious, and dominating. i took stephanie to disney for her first time (in many years) back in 2007. stephanie has became a true disney dork - just like her future husband. stephanie's favorite characters are tigger, piglet, and chip and dale. stephanie's favorite princess in snowwhite.

as you can see, my family is rather small now. that is until february. stephanie is just shy of being two months pregnant. were thrilled about this - we can't wait to take our child to the world. do you know what this means? well it simply means that stephanie will be pregnant on our upcoming trip. she is very excited about this and is looking forward to taking that special picture with those baby mickey ears over her precious tummy.

if you haven't guessed by now - well were engaged. although we wanted a disney wedding, we simply can't afford it so were settling for the beach instead. we are getting married on november eighth. since we can't afford to get married a disney - we opted to have our honeymoon there (as if there was any competition). because stephanie will still be in school at this time, we decided to wait until she graduates to celebrate our honeymoon - so we decided we will go during the week of christmas. yes, it is very busy during this time but it is so magical, as well.

stephanie and i try to go to disney often, since we live in florida. you would think we would have upgraded to annual passes but nope - we still can't afford it. so, we go on many day trips and may the same as you would a single day pass - what is it seventy-one dollars now? we have been talking about getting passes for sometime but we simply can't afford it - with me working at wal-mart and her in school it is rather difficult right now.

last december, we decided to go to the magic kingdom around christmas time and just loved it. we dreamt of having a honeymoon there and now that dream is becoming a reality. we booked our honeymoon earlier this month and here is what we have thus far:

december 22 - december 27th
pop century
keys to the kingdom tour
disney dining plan
1 myw base ticket (for each)
4 day florida play pass (for each)

this is our first time staying at pop century. we loved all star sports. stephanie wanted to do a value because they give her the disney feel. however, i am making it an attempt to visit different hotels during our stay and see what more is out there. we are also going to do the keys to the kingdom tour. we heard that this was fun and we are big fans of the magic kingdom. we are doing this our first day. were excited about this. first time on the dining plan, as well. we are really thrilled to get to make ADRs! actually today, june 25th was our 180 day mark and i was on the phone at 7 am and i booked - did we get what we wanted? (you will certainly have to read about our adventures with disney dining in a later installment). we are gong to make this the most romantic, comfortable, and magical honeymoon anyone can imagine - and it all starts with a wish!

i am going to leave you with some christmas pictures we took at the magic kingdom last year. we were really pleased with photopass. we are looking to purchase the cd this time around....

cast and characters

stephanie - who? your what?

my graduation and wedding plans vs honeymoon plans

adding a day plus schedule

today is an amazing day

no news yet but aquatica pics

busch garden pics

gift baskets

next installment: stephanie - who? your what?

 

[DisneyFan06]

before i go any further into my report let me just say how inspired i am to write about an upcoming trip thanks to those like timandlesley and glendmax. you ladies are writing such fantastic reports that it only inspires me and gets me ready for my upcoming trip. i will never be as great as either of you - and i dont expect to be. i just want to thank you for keeping me, along with many others, entertained by doing what you do.

​

before i got any further, i wanted to explain our story and how we met. i graduated from high school in two thousand and three. i began college at the daytona beach community college in august of that year. on my first day of class, it so happens that i ran into this intelligent female. we became good friends that first semester and learned that we shared many things in common. for one, she got her g.e.d the same year i received my diploma. she was going to school to become a nurse and i was to become a teacher - both truly respected professions. we became great friends that semester and decided to remain friends. from there, were enrolled in the same courses until it was my time for departure at the local community college. i transferred to the unviersity of central florida on the daytona campus (which was actually all housed in a building at dbcc). so, i didn't move far - we remaind friends. we studied together, hung out, went bowling, and out to eat every now and then.

back then, we loved to eat. we like to eat now, but then - we loved to eat. when i met stephanie she weighed 350 lbs. i weighed 220 lbs. we were both overweight college nerds, who loved to eat and we were good at it. below is a picture of stephanie when i first met her, i have her permission to post the picture - i will later post of a picture of myself at my before weight.
​

then

now
​

in december of 2005, i decided i was going to stop eating unhealthy foods and begin eating healthy. one of the habits i had to break was drinking excess amounts of soda. when i began losing weight, stephanie wanted to do it as well. to give herself a boost, she received a weight loss surgery called lap band - no it is not gastic bypass, this was safe. in january, we began going to the gym together and eventually our weight issues became non existant. we have both kept off our weight quite sometime. stephanie is now at 159 lbs and i am currently 133 lbs. we are both where we currently need to be and continue to remain active and our healthy eating habits remain the same.

okay, stephanie and i went to disney and that is where i believe we fell in love for the first time. actually, i knew she kinda liked me when she wanted to sit in the same astro-orbitor jet as i. we could hardly fit but one thing was for sure, we were not going to be falling out. there is this one moment that i believe became a moment we will never forget -

stephanie and i were waiting for wishes to begin. stephanie, who never seen wishes, wanted to go get popcorn. i told her that things at disney usually do not begin on time and that she could go get popcorn. i pointed her in the right direction. not three minutes later, the lights turned off and the fireworks began. i have no idea where she was - neither did she. when it was over, stephanie came walking back in tears. i asked her where she was and she said in line for popcorn. she thought she was lost. she watched wishes for the first time alone, in line for popcorn. long story short, she got the popcorn! we talk about this moment daily and i think we will continue to talk about it for many years to come. wishes is our favorite nighttime firework display - i believe we seen it together eight times since then, everytime we cry together.

i asked stephanie to marry me last november. i asked her to marry me at the bookstore. yes, we are major dorks! she said yes. we went to the beach afterwords, which would be our future wedding location. since then, things have been going well. i graduate, and she is about to. she lost weight as did i -and were keeping it off together.

we are getting married november 8, 2008 at ponce inlet. it will be at sunset. my family knew that i was friends with stephanie for a while. in fact, they thought we were dating long before we ever were - so it really wasn't surprising to them when they found out we wanted to get married. stephanies parents were not surprised. i believe they seen it coming.

so, there you have it a little more detailed look as to who we are.

next installment: my graduation and wedding plans vs honeymoon plans

​

 

[OhMari]

Hi,
Welcome to the DIS Boards. Technically you should be in the pre-trip boards. But for a newbie, you can stay down here for awhile.

Really enjoyed your intro.

 

[DisneyFan06]

i just want to first say, i accidently posted this in the wrong forum. i thought i was in the pre-trip section and when i posted i noticed it was not in the correct place. i am sorry. if there is a way you can transfer it please feel free to do so.

i have always dreamt of becoming a teacher. i remember playing school with my sister and her dolls rather than going outside playing a game of hide-go-seek. i was the talk about child growing up. i would rather play school than go outside and do the normal digging in the dirt, playing with worms, or being mean rollie-pollies. it was so bad that i used to waste tons of notebook paper and computer paper by marking grades on them - such as A, C, D, F. i would just imagine stuff on the paper. i would even put stamps and stickers on them, etc... i even made a grade book and averaged grades, etc... yes i had quite the imagination. i even made up tests and literally made them hard on purpose. yep, i did this for as long as i could remember.

eventually, i grew up and started college. i enrolled at a community college with intentions of transferring after i get my associates degree. i graduated from dbcc in 2006. i graduated with an associate of arts degree. from there i transferred to the university of central florida where i began the core course - the classes that teaches you how to become an effective teacher. well i did all that, took the certification tests, completed my internship experience, etc... i graduated on may 3, 2008.

stephanie was unable to attend because she was still in classes. however the day before, she surprised me at work. she walked into my job at about 6:45 (i had to close that night) with three large ballons, two graduation cakes, a card and several other goodies. one of the ballons was a disney princess balloon. she came up to me and basically cried. we literally went through college together. all the associates were happy to see her. stephanie is quite the wal-mart visitor, she is always in there to bring me a surprise whether its a sugar free iced coffee from mcdonalds to a diet lemonade from chick-fil-a my baby does it all and i am blessed to have such a special person.

i graduated and from there, i am here. i am still looking for a teaching job. it so happens they just let go of 200 teachers in my county and permenatly closed two schools. i did have an interview last week with a charter school - i am hoping they call me back soon. it sucks having a degree and still working part time. at least i have a job - that i should be thankful for.

now. stephanie and i decided to make it simple. since she will be in school till december, i will plan the honeymoon. stephanie and her mother will be doing all the wedding planning. i have been informed that the wedding plan has begun. stephanie's mother purchased us beautiful rings, rings that are so amazing it is breath taking. i will post a picture below when i can transfer it over here. her mom and step-father are amazing people. i even heard that stephanie already got a dress because i overheard her talking about having to get it resized that now were expecting. stephanie spilled some beans and told me that she got the special mickey and minnie wedding cake topper. i was thrilled. anyway, we decided that is all we need to know. she wants to be surprised about the honeymoo and i want to be surprised about the wedding. so, we divided it all up. and away we go.

next installment: let the planning begin

 

[OhMari]

I moved you over to the pre-trip boards.

Congradulations on your College Graduation. Teaching jobs in Wisconsin are hard to find too. In Wisconsin, they have a great incentive for people to retire at 55 with full benefits, so many teachers are taking the offer. Which in turn helps college graduates find teaching jobs.

 

[timandlesley]

before i go any further into my report let me just say how inspired i am to write about an upcoming trip thanks to those like timandlesley and glendmax. you ladies are writing such fantastic reports that it only inspires me and gets me ready for my upcoming trip. i will never be as great as either of you - and i dont expect to be. i just want to thank you for keeping me, along with many others, entertained by doing what you do.

​

before i got any further, i wanted to explain our story and how we met. i graduated from high school in two thousand and three. i began college at the daytona beach community college in august of that year. on my first day of class, it so happens that i ran into this intelligent female. we became good friends that first semester and learned that we shared many things in common. for one, she got her g.e.d the same year i received my diploma. she was going to school to become a nurse and i was to become a teacher - both truly respected professions. we became great friends that semester and decided to remain friends. from there, were enrolled in the same courses until it was my time for departure at the local community college. i transferred to the unviersity of central florida on the daytona campus (which was actually all housed in a building at dbcc). so, i didn't move far - we remaind friends. we studied together, hung out, went bowling, and out to eat every now and then.​

back then, we loved to eat. we like to eat now, but then - we loved to eat. when i met stephanie she weighed 350 lbs. i weighed 220 lbs. we were both overweight college nerds, who loved to eat and we were good at it. below is a picture of stephanie when i first met her, i have her permission to post the picture - i will later post of a picture of myself at my before weight. ​

then

now​

in december of 2005, i decided i was going to stop eating unhealthy foods and begin eating healthy. one of the habits i had to break was drinking excess amounts of soda. when i began losing weight, stephanie wanted to do it as well. to give herself a boost, she received a weight loss surgery called lap band - no it is not gastic bypass, this was safe. in january, we began going to the gym together and eventually our weight issues became non existant. we have both kept off our weight quite sometime. stephanie is now at 159 lbs and i am currently 133 lbs. we are both where we currently need to be and continue to remain active and our healthy eating habits remain the same. ​

okay, stephanie and i went to disney and that is where i believe we fell in love for the first time. actually, i knew she kinda liked me when she wanted to sit in the same astro-orbitor jet as i. we could hardly fit but one thing was for sure, we were not going to be falling out. there is this one moment that i believe became a moment we will never forget - ​

stephanie and i were waiting for wishes to begin. stephanie, who never seen wishes, wanted to go get popcorn. i told her that things at disney usually do not begin on time and that she could go get popcorn. i pointed her in the right direction. not three minutes later, the lights turned off and the fireworks began. i have no idea where she was - neither did she. when it was over, stephanie came walking back in tears. i asked her where she was and she said in line for popcorn. she thought she was lost. she watched wishes for the first time alone, in line for popcorn. long story short, she got the popcorn! we talk about this moment daily and i think we will continue to talk about it for many years to come. wishes is our favorite nighttime firework display - i believe we seen it together eight times since then, everytime we cry together. ​

i asked stephanie to marry me last november. i asked her to marry me at the bookstore. yes, we are major dorks! she said yes. we went to the beach afterwords, which would be our future wedding location. since then, things have been going well. i graduate, and she is about to. she lost weight as did i -and were keeping it off together.​

we are getting married november 8, 2008 at ponce inlet. it will be at sunset. my family knew that i was friends with stephanie for a while. in fact, they thought we were dating long before we ever were - so it really wasn't surprising to them when they found out we wanted to get married. stephanies parents were not surprised. i believe they seen it coming. ​

so, there you have it a little more detailed look as to who we are. ​

next installment: my graduation and wedding plans vs honeymoon plans​

Just found your PTR, very nicely done! Thanks for the compliment, that truly means a lot, glad you are enjoying my report. You guys look like a lovely couple. Congrats on her weight loss, Tim recently went through the same and it is such a compliment and a life change. Can't wait to hear more about your adventures.
Lesley

 

[DisneyFan06]

good morning. i just got off the phone with disney and did a minor upgrade.

orginally, we were planning on staying december 22 - 27 with dining plan and four regular one-day tickets. today, we changed that. because i have read about the many adventures that happes at WCC, it made me want to eat there more. last trip, we wanted to eat at WCC but it was booked - so we had to settle on trails end. dont get me wrong we loved it, but we wanted WCC. i just got off the phone adding an extra day to our reservation. so, here is our knew plan -

december 21 - 27
pop century, standard
disney dining plan
annual tickets

yes, finally - we are going to upgrade to annual tickets. this is something we should have done long ago, but were finally doing it. we are not purchasing the tickets until later in the planning process but everything is really much done - except for the packing and minor planning that still needs to be complete.

we wanted our trip to be special because it is our honeymoon, so we orginally wanted to eat at CRT our first night. things got changed when we noticed all the other resturants around the world and seen what they all had to offer. here is what things look like as of now -

december 21 - we check in at pop century. we relax. we have a reservation at WCC for 4:30. after, we are going to head over to the camp fire and sing along.

december 22 - key to the kingdom tour in the morning. columbia harbor house for lunch (included). 'Ohana for dinner at 7:40. we are going to watch wishes from there.

december 23 - epcot. we are going to do future world in the am and go to biergarten for lunch at 1:45 this includes the candelight processional package for the 5:00 show. we will eat dinner at the c.s resturant in mexico from there we will watch illuminations.

december 24 - hollywood studios. we will eat breakfast at pop century and quickly head over to the studios. our mission is to first get on toy story mania. we have reservations at 50 prime time cafe for 5:45. we are looking forward to this meal, but it does not include the fantasmic package. we will do the later showing of fantasmic.

decemer 25 - crystal palace reservations at 8:10. from there we will stay in the magic kingdom. we will stay there all day. we orginally wanted to go back to the resort but we heard that the park may fill to capacity and we would not be allowed back in. we have christmas dinner planned for 6:45 at liberty tree tavern. oh, lets not forget the 12:30 christmas parade. and the fireworks.

december 26 - off day. we plan on eating lunch at either wolfgang puck express or earl of sandwich using a c.s. credit. we will go look at the decorations at the mk resorts. we may rent a mice boat or do something fun. then, we will head to boma for our dinner reservations at 6:20. we dont know what we will do after this, prob go back to the resort and relax.

december 27 - eat breakfast. express checkout and drive to animal kingdom. we will spend the day at animal kigdom and eat at flame tree bbq. when the park closes at 8 we will drive home back to reality in good ole daytona beach, florida.

this is how it appears to be for now. i am sure things may change - we are skeptical about biergarten but were willing to give it a try. we are doing many firsts on this trip, were excited it is going to be a wild ride.

now, i must head off to work. i will share more details later. have a magical day.

 

[DisneyFan06]

today is already turning out to be an amazing day.

day night, stephanie told me she purchased some matching sweaters and hoodies for our upcoming trip. she also had them personalized but refuses to let me see them until it gets closer to the time of departure - i give it about a week before she spills the beans.

stephanie also is in the process of purchasing the florida annual pass which are only three hundred and fifty dollars a piece. we will use these on our upcoming trip. i think i am also going to call walt disney because someone once told me that with an annual pass you can get a discount on your tours. hm... i will have to find out.

my bagallini i purchased with free shipping (thanks dis) came in the other day. i have been using it to and from work and i am loving it. i am sure it will work perfect for our trip. now, stephanie wants one. she wants our initals stitched into them and perhaps a mickey and minnie patch. maybe me women is turning out to be a disney dork like her future hubby!

guess what came in the mail today. we got something from disney that looks really cool. when you open it, it has all kinds of information about our upcoming trip and it is all personalized. it has our name all over it and has the resort. we thought it was cool, we never really seen it before. were looking forward to getting our maps we ordered. we had these in the past but we ordered more so that we can frame them and put them in our kitchen - were in the process of making it all disney/mickey related.

okay, now this news is exciting - it is not really related to disney but i am sure you will all want to hear it. its rather good news. so i have been looking for a teaching position. here, in our county, they are letting teachers go because of budget. so my outlook was not very promosing. last week, i had an interview with a charter school that is opening. this morning, they called me and offered me a position. of course, i accepted - its for my dream job. i am going to be a kindergarten teacher and i am just thrilled. it is going to be a new school and they are having this huge bbq there on stephanies birthday - july 12th. i think am going to ask to step down from being a csm at wal-mart and just be a cashier a few evenings a week. it will be enough to pay for gas.

im thrilled, excited, and i am just ready!

 

[starann]

Congrats on the job!!!!!! I am a nurse, and a mom to 3 and 4yo boys. I look forward to hearing about your wedding a honeymoon. We go for a family vacation in Oct.

Our 1st was 6 wk old when we got engaged. We started planning the wedding, and booked places, and BOOM I was preggo again!!!! So I had to go for my dress before I started to show. I managed to have the baby and lose all the weight (and then some) in the 4 months between. Now we have some really great picts of us and our boys at our wedding! LOL!


Good Luck!

 

[DisneyFan06]

nothing new or exciting to share with you.

but, about a month ago, we made a honeymoon registry on the disney website. well, we didn't know that when you registered you get a free gift. yesterday, our free gift came. it was a large disney tote. we lost our camera so i dont have a picture of it yet.

to be honest, i dont even know where i placed the camera. i had it where i always keep it and when i went to look for it - it was gone. i hope it shows up because it is a really nice one.

okay. i am getting excited because our trip is only 174 days away! were so thrilled. our adrs are still the same. were going to try and keep them as they are. but were still skeptical about biergarten. so, that one may change. i also am trying to set up a dis meet for december. hopefully there will be lots of dissers there.

here are some pictures from a day trip we took to aquatica a few days ago, note: stephanie is going to kill me when she finds out i posted these....

 

[mousescrapper]

`Hi Chris!

Ok I just had to click your PTR link after you posted on my newly TR to find out a little more about the "pregnant princess" and "grumpy prince"...

Oh and you hooked me line and sinker and just w/ the first post!

Congrats on the upcoming Wedding, Disneymoon, and precious little baby on the way too....

Back during our '98 trip w/ friends I was just newly pregnant w/ my twins (now 9) I didn't even know it yet. My twin DD Aldine jokes that she has been to WDW 3 times....

something special to share when you take your DD or DS to the World.

Well I'm subbing in, need to get caught up later, but I will.

PS,
my favorite picture is the one of you and your future wife in front of the castle w/ the Christmas Tree...so perfect!

 

[DisneyFan06]

Finally, another reader!

Thanks for taking the time to read about our upcoming trip. Were getting really excited about it. So excited that I am to the point of just going to work and coming home to search the DIS. I feel so bad for the dog and cat. At least Stephanie is in school so she isn't feeling ignored.

Our next appointment is July 28th and we will let you all know how that one goes. Thanks, again!

Chris.

`Hi Chris!

Ok I just had to click your PTR link after you posted on my newly TR to find out a little more about the "pregnant princess" and "grumpy prince"...

Oh and you hooked me line and sinker and just w/ the first post!

Congrats on the upcoming Wedding, Disneymoon, and precious little baby on the way too....

Back during our '98 trip w/ friends I was just newly pregnant w/ my twins (now 9) I didn't even know it yet. My twin DD Aldine jokes that she has been to WDW 3 times....

something special to share when you take your DD or DS to the World.

Well I'm subbing in, need to get caught up later, but I will.

PS,
my favorite picture is the one of you and your future wife in front of the castle w/ the Christmas Tree...so perfect!

 

[DisneyFan06]

even though disney is what we love, we do go to other parks. we went to sea world last summer and just came back from a trip at busch gardens. here are some pictures of busch gardens...

this is us on gwazi. look at my face - o my!

sheikra, have you heard about this diving coaster?

kumba

sheikra. it sits up there thirty seconds before dropping you at a 90 degree angle.

 

[njdisneyfreak]

i have always dreamt of becoming a teacher. i remember playing school with my sister and her dolls rather than going outside playing a game of hide-go-seek. i was the talk about child growing up. i would rather play school than go outside and do the normal digging in the dirt, playing with worms, or being mean rollie-pollies. it was so bad that i used to waste tons of notebook paper and computer paper by marking grades on them - such as A, C, D, F. i would just imagine stuff on the paper. i would even put stamps and stickers on them, etc... i even made a grade book and averaged grades, etc... yes i had quite the imagination. i even made up tests and literally made them hard on purpose. yep, i did this for as long as i could remember.

eventually, i grew up and started college. i enrolled at a community college with intentions of transferring after i get my associates degree. i graduated from dbcc in 2006. i graduated with an associate of arts degree. from there i transferred to the university of central florida where i began the core course - the classes that teaches you how to become an effective teacher. well i did all that, took the certification tests, completed my internship experience, etc... i graduated on may 3, 2008.

stephanie was unable to attend because she was still in classes. however the day before, she surprised me at work. she walked into my job at about 6:45 (i had to close that night) with three large ballons, two graduation cakes, a card and several other goodies. one of the ballons was a disney princess balloon. she came up to me and basically cried. we literally went through college together. all the associates were happy to see her. stephanie is quite the wal-mart visitor, she is always in there to bring me a surprise whether its a sugar free iced coffee from mcdonalds to a diet lemonade from chick-fil-a my baby does it all and i am blessed to have such a special person.

i graduated and from there, i am here. i am still looking for a teaching job. it so happens they just let go of 200 teachers in my county and permenatly closed two schools. i did have an interview last week with a charter school - i am hoping they call me back soon. it sucks having a degree and still working part time. at least i have a job - that i should be thankful for.

now. stephanie and i decided to make it simple. since she will be in school till december, i will plan the honeymoon. stephanie and her mother will be doing all the wedding planning. i have been informed that the wedding plan has begun. stephanie's mother purchased us beautiful rings, rings that are so amazing it is breath taking. i will post a picture below when i can transfer it over here. her mom and step-father are amazing people. i even heard that stephanie already got a dress because i overheard her talking about having to get it resized that now were expecting. stephanie spilled some beans and told me that she got the special mickey and minnie wedding cake topper. i was thrilled. anyway, we decided that is all we need to know. she wants to be surprised about the honeymoo and i want to be surprised about the wedding. so, we divided it all up. and away we go.

next installment: let the planning begin

First of all, I'm loving your PTR!!! Thanks for hopping on board mine. I began reading your PTR before my recent unexpected trip, and tonight came back to finish reading what you had done since. Congrats on graduating!!! Stephanie sounds like a great woman, and you are definitely blessed to have her.

I so remember being like you when I was a kid. Teaching is in the blood. I've always thought that. I used my sister and our stuffed animals and dolls as students all the time! I had a blackboard, smaller board, that thing with beads they used to use to learn math and no kidding, I'd go to garage sales to buy textbooks people were selling, to make my imaginary classroom more authentic! Yup! You were not alone.

It sounds like you guys are having so much fun with graduating, baby planning, wedding planning, honeymoon planning and doing this PTR. So much to be excited over!!! I don't know how Stephanie is able to concentrate during all this excitement.

good morning. i just got off the phone with disney and did a minor upgrade.

orginally, we were planning on staying december 22 - 27 with dining plan and four regular one-day tickets. today, we changed that. because i have read about the many adventures that happes at WCC, it made me want to eat there more. last trip, we wanted to eat at WCC but it was booked - so we had to settle on trails end. dont get me wrong we loved it, but we wanted WCC. i just got off the phone adding an extra day to our reservation. so, here is our knew plan -

december 21 - 27
pop century, standard
disney dining plan
annual tickets

yes, finally - we are going to upgrade to annual tickets. this is something we should have done long ago, but were finally doing it. we are not purchasing the tickets until later in the planning process but everything is really much done - except for the packing and minor planning that still needs to be complete.

we wanted our trip to be special because it is our honeymoon, so we orginally wanted to eat at CRT our first night. things got changed when we noticed all the other resturants around the world and seen what they all had to offer. here is what things look like as of now -

december 21 - we check in at pop century. we relax. we have a reservation at WCC for 4:30. after, we are going to head over to the camp fire and sing along.

december 22 - key to the kingdom tour in the morning. columbia harbor house for lunch (included). 'Ohana for dinner at 7:40. we are going to watch wishes from there.

december 23 - epcot. we are going to do future world in the am and go to biergarten for lunch at 1:45 this includes the candelight processional package for the 5:00 show. we will eat dinner at the c.s resturant in mexico from there we will watch illuminations.

december 24 - hollywood studios. we will eat breakfast at pop century and quickly head over to the studios. our mission is to first get on toy story mania. we have reservations at 50 prime time cafe for 5:45. we are looking forward to this meal, but it does not include the fantasmic package. we will do the later showing of fantasmic.

decemer 25 - crystal palace reservations at 8:10. from there we will stay in the magic kingdom. we will stay there all day. we orginally wanted to go back to the resort but we heard that the park may fill to capacity and we would not be allowed back in. we have christmas dinner planned for 6:45 at liberty tree tavern. oh, lets not forget the 12:30 christmas parade. and the fireworks.

december 26 - off day. we plan on eating lunch at either wolfgang puck express or earl of sandwich using a c.s. credit. we will go look at the decorations at the mk resorts. we may rent a mice boat or do something fun. then, we will head to boma for our dinner reservations at 6:20. we dont know what we will do after this, prob go back to the resort and relax.

december 27 - eat breakfast. express checkout and drive to animal kingdom. we will spend the day at animal kigdom and eat at flame tree bbq. when the park closes at 8 we will drive home back to reality in good ole daytona beach, florida.

this is how it appears to be for now. i am sure things may change - we are skeptical about biergarten but were willing to give it a try. we are doing many firsts on this trip, were excited it is going to be a wild ride.

now, i must head off to work. i will share more details later. have a magical day.

That's great that you were able to do an upgrade and stay an extra night! I loved Pop Century when we went there. The theming is so cool. Are you requesting an area to stay? We stayed right in front of teh Lady statue, from Lady and the Tramp, since that is one of my all-time favorite Disney flicks. We absolutely loved walking around and seeing all the decade icons and the lobby has memory boxes for each decade, which is great for thinking back and reminiscing.

We're thinking of doing the Keys to the Kingdom Tour. What have you heard about it that convinced you guys to go? I really think that's the tour for us. We might actually see you guys on your way to breakfast Christmas morning! We have ressies at that same time for CRT. Will you two wear the bride and groom headwear or Christmas ones? A word of caution about Christmas at the MK: stay clear of Main Street after the morning, as best you can. Last year, we left the park after we had lunch at CP, and before lunch we found the Main Street area to be an absolute mad house!!! Take time to sit and relax whenever you can. I know one of our favorite things to do at the MK is to play checkers in the shop right near the confectionary store, the one with the kitchen stuff in it, after the bakery. We cut through from the ice cream place and work our way through, sit down and play checkers for as long as we like. Sounds corny, but it's actually fun.

Your plans sound great so far. Isn't planning so exciting?!

today is already turning out to be an amazing day.

day night, stephanie told me she purchased some matching sweaters and hoodies for our upcoming trip. she also had them personalized but refuses to let me see them until it gets closer to the time of departure - i give it about a week before she spills the beans.

stephanie also is in the process of purchasing the florida annual pass which are only three hundred and fifty dollars a piece. we will use these on our upcoming trip. i think i am also going to call walt disney because someone once told me that with an annual pass you can get a discount on your tours. hm... i will have to find out.

my bagallini i purchased with free shipping (thanks dis) came in the other day. i have been using it to and from work and i am loving it. i am sure it will work perfect for our trip. now, stephanie wants one. she wants our initals stitched into them and perhaps a mickey and minnie patch. maybe me women is turning out to be a disney dork like her future hubby!

guess what came in the mail today. we got something from disney that looks really cool. when you open it, it has all kinds of information about our upcoming trip and it is all personalized. it has our name all over it and has the resort. we thought it was cool, we never really seen it before. were looking forward to getting our maps we ordered. we had these in the past but we ordered more so that we can frame them and put them in our kitchen - were in the process of making it all disney/mickey related.

okay, now this news is exciting - it is not really related to disney but i am sure you will all want to hear it. its rather good news. so i have been looking for a teaching position. here, in our county, they are letting teachers go because of budget. so my outlook was not very promosing. last week, i had an interview with a charter school that is opening. this morning, they called me and offered me a position. of course, i accepted - its for my dream job. i am going to be a kindergarten teacher and i am just thrilled. it is going to be a new school and they are having this huge bbq there on stephanies birthday - july 12th. i think am going to ask to step down from being a csm at wal-mart and just be a cashier a few evenings a week. it will be enough to pay for gas.

im thrilled, excited, and i am just ready!

You'll have to post pics of the matching clothes Stephanie got you two! Too cute.

I know how you felt when you got the package in the mail. It makes the whole trip so much more real, doesn't it? We don't pay off our trip till September or October, so we'll get our final package after that.

Most importantly, congrats on the teaching position!!! It's so exciting when you first get hired. Those kindergarten students will be lucky to have you as a teacher. Make sure to devote some time to buying stuff for your classroom. I still buy stuff for mine. I have Disney stuffed animals, mugs and figurines, a poster of Mickey saluting with the American flag in the background on one wall, WDW trip pics on my desk, a small bulletin board I put up with MK postcards on it, a Mickey ears hat with my last name on it and I don't know how much else. I'm always adding to it. It's very clear, when you enter my classroom, that I love Disney. Since you'll be teaching kindergarteners, there is so much you can buy. In fact, someone started a thread where people suggested all sorts of great teacher stuff to be found at WDW and where to find them. Here it is, if you want:

I look forward to reading more as you and Stephanie continue planning. Great start!!!

 

[DisneyFan06]

Woah! Thanks for taking the time to read and reply!

It sounds like you guys are having so much fun with graduating, baby planning, wedding planning, honeymoon planning and doing this PTR. So much to be excited over!!! I don't know how Stephanie is able to concentrate during all this excitement.

I think I am more excited than her, to be quite honest! But, she doesn't like to show her emotions - so it is still hard to tell. It was such a good feeling graduating! However, when I graduated I found myself sitting back and thinking - now what? I was so used to going to school - I didn't really know how to do anything but go to school.

Stephanie had an appointment recently and had some tests done. Stephanie is only about ten to eleven weeks, but one of the tests she had done can help predict the sex of the baby. I always wanted a girl - for as long as I can remember. Recently, I had a slight change of mind and wanted a boy. To be honest, as long as it is healthy is a blessing in itself. Okay - I am sure you are all waiting on the results. What did the test reveal?

According to the DR, the tests, and the heartbeat - all signs point to a !
Now, anything can happen because it is very early and DRs can be wrong. In fact, I was suppose to be a girl until I was already on my way out! I was suppose to be a Christine, not a Christopher! Having a girl, makes Stephanie and I very excited. We are already planning as to when we can take her to BBB and CRT!

Now, on to the wedding plans. Stephanie and her mother is in charge of this. Everythng is going well. Stephanie's parents went ahead and purchased wedding rings for us. I was very surprised and very stunned. They were already delieved and Stephanie already tried them on! However, she wont let me see them - she will only show me this picture:

Honeymoon plans are going well. More on that later!

That's great that you were able to do an upgrade and stay an extra night! I loved Pop Century when we went there. The theming is so cool. Are you requesting an area to stay?

We did not request a certain section to stay. I stayed at Pop (only overnight) in the past. We stayed in the 50's, I believe. I felt it was very quiet. We loved the atmosphere around the main pool - were party people! So, I am not sure. We may call back later and make a request.

We're thinking of doing the Keys to the Kingdom Tour. What have you heard about it that convinced you guys to go? I really think that's the tour for us.

We going to the this tour only because we think this is our tour! We are total fans of all things Disney and our favorite park is the Magic Kingdom!

sorry to cut this short but I have to go to work... i will post an update later because i have a new installment!

 

[njdisneyfreak]

Woah! Thanks for taking the time to read and reply!

You're welcome!

Stephanie had an appointment recently and had some tests done. Stephanie is only about ten to eleven weeks, but one of the tests she had done can help predict the sex of the baby. I always wanted a girl - for as long as I can remember. Recently, I had a slight change of mind and wanted a boy. To be honest, as long as it is healthy is a blessing in itself. Okay - I am sure you are all waiting on the results. What did the test reveal?

According to the DR, the tests, and the heartbeat - all signs point to a ! Now, anything can happen because it is very early and DRs can be wrong. In fact, I was suppose to be a girl until I was already on my way out! I was suppose to be a Christine, not a Christopher! Having a girl, makes Stephanie and I very excited. We are already planning as to when we can take her to BBB and CRT!

CONGRATS!!! A little princess will be so cool, with all the Disney stuff they have for little girls, though if anything changes, I'm sure a little boy will be just as fun. This is so exciting. You are going to have to buy a bunch of Disney baby stuff on your trip, in preparation.

Now, on to the wedding plans. Stephanie and her mother is in charge of this. Everythng is going well. Stephanie's parents went ahead and purchased wedding rings for us. I was very surprised and very stunned. They were already delieved and Stephanie already tried them on! However, she wont let me see them - she will only show me this picture:

Honeymoon plans are going well. More on that later!

Beautiful rings. They made a great choice.

We going to the this tour only because we think this is our tour! We are total fans of all things Disney and our favorite park is the Magic Kingdom!

sorry to cut this short but I have to go to work... i will post an update later because i have a new installment!

I can't wait to hear all about the tour. They didn't have any availabilities when we tried to book it for ourselves.

I look forward to reading your next installment.

 

[insoin]

Hello Chirs, I just ran across your PTR and it's really cool.

I want to say Congrats on the engagement, Disney Honeymoon, the job, and the baby!

I am sure you will love the Keys to the Kingdom, I have taken this and its great. Lots of walking, but well worth it.

I will keep reading.
Scott

 

[the4princesses]

congrat's on the wedding,grad. and new baby girl!!
we stayed at pop in 2007 and we will be staying at pop sept. 3-10th with free dining!!
We can't wait!!
Hope everything will go great for you all!!

 

[insoin]

OH and congrats with the weight loss. That is the one thing I always struggle with.

 

[DisneyFan06]

I am sorry for the lack of updates lately. I have been really busy with getting ready for the new job, etc....

I also joined ChaCha in an attempt to earn some extra money.

Today, we have a meet the teacher/community bbq. It was fantastic.

I promise an update soon since I have the next two days off.