It *will* be the happiest place on earth...even if it KILLS me!! (a royal family PTR)

[Raksha]

Since I am deep in the throes of planning our Sept/Oct 2012 trip, I figured I would start a PTR. As this is my first time writing a PTR I'm just going to follow the lead of others I've seen...

So that means first up is the cast of characters!! And boy are these guys characters!!

Me: Cinderella - AKA: Mom - AKA: Michele
I am a 37 year young full time student. I finally decided this year what I wanted to be when I grow up, so I went and registered at the local college and am currently preparing to apply for the nursing program to get my BSN. My ultimate goal is to be a CRNA (nurse anesthetist).

My first trip to WDW was with my husband in September 1998, and I was hooked!! This will be my 3rd trip to the World, with many many more in my future!!

Him: Prince Charming - AKA: Dad - AKA: Peter
My dear husband of 16 years. He is a 41 year old manager at a systems engineering firm. He is not as much of a Disnut as I am, but he tolerates me well. This will be his 4th trip to Disney.

Thing 1: Prince Valiant - AKA: Bubba - AKA: PJ

He is (almost) 10 years old and in the 4th grade. He is a Webelos II in the Cub Scouts and is working hard on earning his Arrow of Light. He is in the choir at school and is training to be a cantor. This past year he found his inner "drama geek" and landed one of the leads in the school drama club production of "School House Rock Live!", and it was a blast!! He is running track for the first time this spring, and seems to enjoy it, so I hope he continues.

Thing 2: The Littlest Prince - AKA: Choo Choo - AKA: Patrick

Patrick is 8 years old and in the 2nd grade. He is also in the Cub Scouts and will bridge to the Bear rank in May. He is also in the school choir, and plays football for the school team. They call him ChooChoo, as in "you better get out of the way cause the train is coming".

For both boys, this will be their second trip to Disney World. We did a surprise trip for spring break in March 2011. They didn't know where we were going until we drove under the welcome arch. This year they know we are going, but I don't know if they really believe we are going back so soon.

What they don't know is that Pete's mom and dad are joining us this time!! So let's continue the introductions with...

The Queen Mother - AKA: Mom mom - AKA: Betty
Pete's mom is well traveled and only slightly neurotic. She is used to having things a certain way, and although I have planned every aspect of this trip, everything needs to get her nod of approval.

It's Good to be the King - AKA: Pop pop - AKA: Pete
Pete's dad is disabled due to a stroke 12 years ago. He has limited mobility, but tries to do as much as possible.

Pete's parents live 15 hours away from us in Philadelphia. They don't get to see the kids often, so we try to make it special when they do. I had already made reservations for the 4 of us almost as soon as we returned from out 2011 trip. After I made those reservations I obviously lost my mind temporarily. I turned to my sweet husband and said "We should invite your parents". It was one of those things that you suddenly realize you said it out loud and now you can't take it back. (This is where my PTR title came from....Everyone is going to have a magical happy time and we'll just pray I survive it!!)

 

[Raksha]

**placeholder for update links**

 

[Raksha]

argh!! I promised myself I wouldn't ignore this PTR...but I have finals coming up and I may just be losing my mind.

I think I have all my ADRs ready so I will at least get that part posted tonight....

 

[Raksha]

Well...I"ve ignored the PTR long enough. Hopefully my summer will be waaaaay less eventful than my spring was and we can continue our countdown to my happy place


So now we are on to the good stuff...

The Details!!


We love Coronado Springs. If CSR was a DVC resort, it would be home. So we have booked 2 rooms (preferred water view of course ) for the 6 of us from Sept 30 to Oct 6 2012. Inlaws will arrive via ME and the 4 of us will drive in and stay the night in Ocala. I like to arrive refreshed and early on our first day. The kids like to have the day to go to the pool and explore the resort since it's pretty much the only day they have to do it.

Now, this trip has been booked since June of 2011. Full rack rate for everything and I didn't care, my behind was going to be seeing Mickey and friends in 2012!

When free dining was announced for DV customers, I called my agent and asked if she could get us on that without changing our resort, did I mention that we REALLY like CSR?? She came back to tell me that FD ends the day before we get there....

I'm sure you see where this is going

I told her to price it for the extra day. She said it would save us about a grand. Well...DUH!! I told her to book it

So here is our itenerary (subject to change of course):

Sat Sept 29:

Resort/DTD
Dinner @ Cape May Cafe​

Sun Sept 30:

EPCOT
Dinner @ Garden Grill​

Mon Oct 1:

AK
Dinner @ 1900 Park Faire​

Tues Oct 2:

MK
Dinner @ Crystal Palace​

Wed Oct 3:

DHS
Lunch @ 50's Prime Time Cafe​

Thur Oct 4:

DTD/Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party
Dinner @ Liberty Tree Tavern​

Fri Oct 5:

Up in the air....any suggestions??​

Sat Oct 6:

Check out
​

We don't like to schedule every single minute, but we do like to coordinate our park to our meal options. Since we are doing the DDP, we made reservations for every day but Friday. We need to pick a park so we can pick a place to eat