Is It Just Me???????????

[davidsprincess]

So, we leave for DLR in 15 days. I have been on these boards quite a bit in that last several months. I have taken many notes, read lots of hints and at one time felt very confident about our trip. Now that it is basically crunch time, I feel soooooooo unprepared. I am still really excited (okay, not so much after today and getting my money exchanged and realizing we were not going down with nearly as much as I had planned for fun money), but I am so not ready to be unleashed in DLR! My brain feels as if it is on a continuous fart and I will not remember anything. Is it information overload? or just wanting such a perfect trip that I am setting myself up for failure?

I feel like I am not ready and need wayyyyyyyyyyy more time to prepare.

Is it just me, or does anyone else feel this way too as they get closer to their trip. I am still really excited just really not ready to go yet.

 

[jenpok]

I totally know how you feel! We are at the 60 day mark and I feel like the closer it gets the less I know. I've been lurking and reading and printing all kinds of tips but I am getting more nervous. I live in FL and am a TGM junkie so I can tour WDW with my eyes closed. I have this bad feeling once I get in DL I'm not going to know what to do!!!!

 

[shoppingmom]

We are also a few weeks away from our trip from Canada to DL. It isn't information overload, I have done the same thing in the past with reading every thread I can hoping to make it the best vacation possible and when we have been in the park I forget everything I read until suddenly I spot a Green Mickey Head and think, "oh someone from DISBOARD!" Or I remember to tell the kids to look behind them when standing in the Peter Pan line up and see the Evil Queen in the window. It will come back to you while in the park. Have a wonderful time!!!

 

[Empico]

Plan to be flexible. Sometimes rides break down or they may be out of a thing you wanted. Planning is fun but I personally have gone into shock from too much planning. Be sure and stay in the moment and enjoy what is there for you. Magic has a way of sneaking into your plans without you knowing. And never expect your companions to cooperate. Throw away all your notes as soon as you get into the park.

 

[Daisybelle]

I was the same too. I prepared and prepared and researched and researched and I felt like my brain was a sheet of blank white paper leading up to the final days before the trip. But it all worked out great. Factoids and helpful hints came to mind when I needed them and we just did our thang and had a fabulous time.
We also didn't have as much money as I had orginally hoped but I still came home with money to spare and never felt like I had to scrimp any more than I normally would.
You will no doubt come home with a fun report for us all to read!

 

[davidsprincess]

IYou will no doubt come home with a fun report for us all to read!

Well, I hope it will be fun, but whether you will want to read it or not will remain to be seen

Thanks fellow DISers! I thought that I was going out of my mind. (not that it would be hard or a long trip). I just want to get the most out of this trip, but not be so hard on the rest of my family that they want to drown me in Rivers of America. My DH has already informed me "NO COMMANDO". Plus DBIL has never been to DLR and I want him to enjoy himself, even if (shudder) he doesn't actually like it. I am stressing and worrying too much. Meanwhile, I still have a ton of packing a little things to get done.

Thanks again, all!!

 

[Brady's Mom]

This is such a great place to get information and yet, sometimes I feel overwhelmed with all I know. Don't worry, you will still have a great time with your family! When we first took our family 2 years ago I had some unrealistic expectations at first. Don't expect a perfect trip, sometimes you will be tired and someone will be cranky. If you don't see all of the things you have read about here - it just makes a really good excuse to go back.

There are three things I always remember to do and it makes DLR totally fun for my family.
1. Eat as healthy as possible. Choose fruit instead of fries, that kind of thing!
2. Drink more water than you think you need. You are always a little dehydrated when you travel
3. Plan for some meltdowns! Kids get tired, grown-ups get tired, other park visitors are cranky, sometimes that stuff just happens. If you know that at some point in your trip that will happen, you are prepared and know how you will handle it when it happens.

These 3 things made our first trip so much more than I had expected and we didn't ride all of the rides that we wanted (I hadn't found DIS yet!) or see everything there was to see. But, we did make great family memories and that was the most important thing of all!

Have a great trip!

 

[evilprncess96]

Sometimes I think this forum is a double sided sword. We want to be prepared, but then we get so hyped up on the "perfect" DL trip. The only way to have a perfect DL trip is for you to relax and ENJOY the trip and the memories that you have made. No matter what you will always leave and then remember that one little thing that you wanted to see or do. Don't dwell on what you have forgotten or what you don't have time for. Dwell on the wonderful memories that you are coming home with. Take the last couple of days before your trip to be excited and NOT STRESSED!!

 

[Vacation Dad]

Sometimes it isn’t easy to process all the information here. I think that you can have a really good trip if you do three things as much as possible:

1. Get to the park early - before opening if possible
2. Gather as many fastpasses as possible
3. Have a general idea of what you want to do when you enter the park

I figure that anything that saves me time at the park is good. It is great to just walk onto rides with only a short wait. Getting to the parks early if you can, and using fastpasses helps with that. You can be commando about getting fastpasses (it only takes a moment to get them), but you don’t have to be commando about using them. If nothing else, just be sure to gather them when you walk past a FP machine and it is time to get one. When your group does decide to go on a ride, they will be quite happy that you have fastpasses ready to use.

And it does help to have a general idea of what you want to do when you go in the park. Do you like roller coasters or do you have to go on Pirates first for example? You don’t have to have a plan for the entire day, but it helps to have an idea of what you want to do for the first hour or 2.

 

[IBLarsen]

You know, i'm with you! I too was suddently very stressed that I wasn't prepared enough after months of planning. But you know what? It all worked out well. After we were in the parks, everything just happened. I just took it all in and remembered a few of the important tricks, like lining up early and I just kind of 'knew' what to do, even though I didn't think I would remember everything. Once you are there, you are so wrapped up in Disney that you don't worry about the planning anymore, or the what should you have prepared better for...you just go with the flow and follow your instincts and have a Great Time!

I had to laugh at myself after we were in the parks that I was so stressed about the preparing. It really seemed silly after the fact. I was prepared enough and I shouldn't have kept 2nd guessing myself.

 

[fairykin]

Empico said exactly what i was going to say.

 

[jenpok]

What great advice! After touring WDW so many times you'd think it would come naturaly. Be in the moment.

 

[avalon451]

Totally know where you're coming from. I did the same thing. I put off making actual touring itinerararies till a week before, and worried about being less than ready. I did make a touring plan, but after our first trip, I told myself that I would be FLEXIBLE above all. And I was!

I was glad to have our touring plan, because it gave me a general outline of what I wanted to accomplish each day, but if something was closed, or we were a little late to the park, we knew to just go with the flow.

Here's the difference between a DISer and somebody who is truly unprepared:

When we were there last week, DD13 marveled at how I just knew where everything was and what would have shorter lines at any particular time of day. If something changed we could roll with the punches.

In contrast, we walked past a dad in NOS who was pushing a stroller with a cranky kid in it. They looked very tired and frustrated. He had a cell phone to his ear, and was saying in a very annoyed tone, "I don't KNOW where we are, because YOU took the MAP."

See the difference?

You'll have a great time!

 

[jenpok]

Totally know where you're coming from. I did the same thing. I put off making actual touring itinerararies till a week before, and worried about being less than ready. I did make a touring plan, but after our first trip, I told myself that I would be FLEXIBLE above all. And I was!

What kind of touring plan did you make and what information did you look at when making it? I think that's what I'm most stressed over. Walking into the park and not know where to go.

I've read most of the tips. Maybe I need to go back over everything now that I have some knowledge under my belt.

 

[avalon451]

I followed Hydroguy's tips, some of the tips on Ridemax (www.ridemax.com) and Unofficial Guide.

The way I did it this time, was I took a park map, looked at each attraction in each land, and put it in a category: Do I want to do this one time, maybe more than once, or multiple times like every day? Examples of the respective things for us would be Disneyland Railroad, Big Thunder Mountain RR, and Space (which we did at least twice daily!)

I also thought about which shows and parades I wanted to do, so I could schedule around them.

Do you need a set of park maps to refer to? I brought back 7 sets and was getting ready to send them out to those in need. If you do, PM me with your address and I'll get those out to you.

 

[jenpok]

You are a life saver. I would LOVE that. I will pm you. I have all these maps I've printed and they just aren't working well. Big hugs to you!! Thank you!

 

[dhlovesbelle]

jenpok-I am right where you are! I feel a teeny tiny bit of anxiety coming upon our last week before we leave, just a tiny bit I think I have no fewer than 5 notebooks (not full ones, I just keep starting new ones) floating around that I need to organize into one final one with all of my 'need to pack', 'still need to buy', 'tips from Disboards', and so forth and so on. There is so much to plan and organize. I did purchse ridemax yesterday but then my dh commandeered my computer all day yesterday and my kids are home for 4 days from school so I can't play around with that (they still don't know we are going), and I am dying too I still need to make my LGMH keychain and my signs for the Jedi training thing, I need to clean my house, and set up pet babysitting, aahhh! *starts pulling hair out* Okay, deep breaths, inhale, exhale It will be super fun, though. I know as soon as we get there it will all fall perfectly into place because I will be in DL and just being there is perfect!

 

[jkh1978]

Now I'm feeling overwhelmed... what notes should i be taking to prepare?

 

[jenpok]

I need to clean my house, and set up pet babysitting, aahhh! *starts pulling hair out* Okay, deep breaths, inhale, exhale It will be super fun, though. I know as soon as we get there it will all fall perfectly into place because I will be in DL and just being there is perfect!

I think cleaning the house and the pet sitting are the hardest part of the trip!!! Let me know how you do and how your park touring went! Good luck.

 

[tink2dw]

Make Lists of Everything!! Now!
packing items
food
list of all PS

list everything you need to do between now and the time you leave!

Have your Airport items together
Don't forget the Adult ID's
Wear easy shoes to take off and on
Don't wear jewelry or metal on your clothes

Put together All your hotel stuff

any car rental stuff

Put it All in the order you will need to use it.

Same with going home stuff.
getting to the airport
your tickets

Make lists, of all your lists, then put them in your purse and suit case till you need them.

Because you think it is bad now? It gets worse the week before you leave, when you need a clear head, but you just don't. The lists will work like little brains!

It worked Miracles for me when the DIS'ers told me make lists!!