It's My Birthday and I'll Go to Disney if I Want To! **NEW 6/23 p.8 Sick and Sicker**

[Eventer98]

Subscribing....I am going at the end of June and perhaps reading your Pre-TR will make the time go much faster for me too!!!

 

[duncanssweetie]

Shannon, you've got two little cutie patooties going with you !!!

You win the BESTEST AUNT in the WHOLE WIDE WORLD Award hands down. I have a cool Aunt don't get me wrong, but as a kid she would have been even cooler if she'd have taken me to Disney

 

[my2boysrtwicethefun]

I'm enjoying your pre-trip report. It sounds like you are going to have an awesome time. My brother's birthday and SIL's birthday is the same day as your mothers. How cool is that?

Thursday March 22, 2007:

Planning update: Phoebe has been booked at her hotel and is all set and ready to go. She’s so excited she already got out her suitcase. J/K She doesn’t have a suitcase, but she does know what it means when she sees me or my mom with a suitcase….ROAD TRIP!

So if you read back a few pages you would see that I booked POR, our birthday resort of choice, on March 7. Note the date of this installment is March 22. I still have not received my confirmation by mail in that beautiful blue and white envelope that tells my mailman that they are going to Disney again?!?!

You know...this envelope:

I don’t know about the rest of you, but I have always received the Envelope of Magic within a week of making the ressie, sometimes within 5 days of doing so. So I was starting to freak when I realized it had been 2 weeks since I made the reservation.

Remember Slow McSlowsky, the helpful, yet slow, CM who took my reservation? I had no doubts in my mind that he was capable of losing the whole thing and me having to start over.

So I whip out the cell phone, grab the official Disney planning notebook (i.e. many scraps of paper), and dial Heaven. I mean Disney Reservations. After pre-selling my first born and giving a pint of blood, they finally let me talk to someone. And this someone clearly forgot to take her Pixie Dust Pill this morning.

Me: Hi, I already have a reservation, but I have not received any confirmation by mail yet. I just wanted to check and make sure everything was still in the system.
Her: Well did you check online?
Me (in my head): Since when do I have to check it online. And even if it was there, I still want the freakin’ by mail confirmation because I like to see the Envelope of Magic! It is tangible evidence that a Disney trip is coming!
Me: No I did not.
Her: Ma’am (I’m 26 lady, not a ma’am) I can’t hear you. Did you say you did or did not check online?
Me (in my head): Good grief, what does it matter. Just pull up the ressie and send me another one. Geesh.
Me: No I DID NOT check online.
Her: Verify your information.
Me (and I may have said it a little snooty – but she was ticking me off): My name is Shannon and I live here and my phone number is this. Umm, what else do you need?
Her: **while sighing** email address
Me: It’s this@yahoo.com
Her: Your aol account is no longer active?
Me (thinking in my head that Slow McSlowsky said he changed it when I made the ressie) but saying: Well it was that@aol.com but now it is this@yahoo.com. It should have been changed the last time I called.
Her: So what is it?
Me: for the 1000th time it is this@yahoo.com!
Her: Ok I see a trip for Shannon and Mom at POR for 3 nights checking in on June 8. I’ll get another confirmation sent to you. Thank you for calling Disney. Goodbye.
Me: Yeah, thanks. Thanks for nothing Lady.
Well I wasn’t that mean at the end. Not while the call was still connected anyway. Seriously, was I so wrong to want to see the Envelope of Magic that when it was over a week late, I called to have another one sent to me?

So apparently I should be getting another Envelope of Magic in the next few days. We shall see.

Hope that lady got her Pixie Dust Prescription refilled.

P.S. I called to make yet another ressie for another quick weekend trip with a friend in May. Guess who's email addy was still that@aol.com? MINE! I have since had it changed again and I think this time it worked because I actually did get an email.

Just last week I got so excited when I went to the mailbox and saw an envelope from Disney. I wasn't expecting a correspondance that quickly and when I got it I was like a kid in a candy store. I was excited, even if it was a bill for the remaining balance due.
I couldn't help but laugh when I read about your conversation with Disney reservations. It's a very good thing that people can't read our minds.

 

[Wonders10]

Subscribing....I am going at the end of June and perhaps reading your Pre-TR will make the time go much faster for me too!!!

Hope the time flies by!

Shannon, you've got two little cutie patooties going with you !!!

You win the BESTEST AUNT in the WHOLE WIDE WORLD Award hands down. I have a cool Aunt don't get me wrong, but as a kid she would have been even cooler if she'd have taken me to Disney

Thanks! I am more than happy to take them with us. It is so much fun. It's weird though - they have probably been to WDW more times in their 6 and 4 years of life than most adults in their entire lifetime!

I'm enjoying your pre-trip report. It sounds like you are going to have an awesome time. My brother's birthday and SIL's birthday is the same day as your mothers. How cool is that?

Neat-o Toledo! I'm definitely excited about this trip but have been so busy to even think about it! I guess thats good sometimes though, right? Makes the time go faster.

Just last week I got so excited when I went to the mailbox and saw an envelope from Disney. I wasn't expecting a correspondance that quickly and when I got it I was like a kid in a candy store. I was excited, even if it was a bill for the remaining balance due.
I couldn't help but laugh when I read about your conversation with Disney reservations. It's a very good thing that people can't read our minds.

Thank you for agreeing with me that the "envelope" is very special. For the record, I still have not received it. Oh and I called reservations today again for something else. They wanted to confirm that my email addy was still that@aol.com. At that point I just had to laugh and have then change it to this@yahoo.com.....again.

Last edited by Wonders10 : Today at 11:07 AM. Reason: How do I change the main title to show a new addition?

Go to your first post and hit "EDIT" then when the new screen appears, click on "GO ADVANCED" and the you can edit your main title from there.

Yay for Owen & Claire! As much as I think an all adult trip would be fun, I do love to watch the little ones soak in all the Disney magic!

I definitely like when it is just the grown ups but I always end up thinking of them while I'm there. And they're not even my kids! Lord help my own children. Oh and thanks for the title edit tip!

Shannon...ya hooked me...line and sinker! I am all caught up...took a bit, cause...well, I had to work...blak!

How fun to bring the kiddos! That will be so special for all!

p.s. It is amazing to hear that soccer is ending...it starts in a month here (we just lost our last ice-berg in our yard today (all time record 81 degrees, baby).

work, shmerk. Glad you joined me though! Yes soccer started for them in early February through the city. I believe the next league starts in August.

Shannon! I'm here too!

I'm such a duffus! How did I not know you had a pre-trip going?

Anyway....all caught up! Glad Claire and Owen are going to!

You're the best aunt ever! Would you consider adopting a couple of nieces and a nephew from KY?

Keep it comin'...............

Yay another Peep! Better late than never right?

Aww, how cute are those kiddos?! Adorable. I am still here reading too. Cant wait to hear this trip develop.

I can't wait to see how this trip develops too!

Your niece and nephew are just so sweet and what a lovely auntie you are too, you'll have so much fun

Thanks Jo!

And thanks again everyone for reading!

 

[Wonders10]

Not a real update but I remembered this little video I had of the kiddies on the Tea Cups in 2005. Enjoy!

[/URL][/IMG]

 

[DisneyJo]

Ahhh they are adorable there little faces are so cute, good on you for filming that whilst spinning

 

[Wonders10]

Sunday March 25, 2007:

Well with the extra additions to our trip, I felt the need to completely re-do everything I had planned. Here are some of my thoughts:

1) I’ll keep Le Cellier, but I will have to change the party size from 2 to 4. Must do that very soon. No biggie if the time changes. I immediately thought that I could now order a personalized cake for the dinner! But then I remembered something. Claire and Owen don’t like cake. I know! A 6 and 4 year old that do not like cake. Or frosting. None of it interests them. At all. So the cake will still be a waste. Oh! Will also have to add their names to the resort ressie.

2) I love POR, but wouldn’t it be more convenient to stay at the Poly () with the monorail to MK and Epcot and larger rooms. And heck, wouldn’t concierge be nice so we could have the lounge for “free” snacks and breakfasts? And that extra special attention from CMs for planning all my unexpected birthday needs? Like some yummy birthday treats in the room…chocolate covered strawberries, anyone?

3) I need to get some cheap trading pins and lanyards for both kids. Last trip they finally got the gist (jist?) of the autograph book and they loved it! So I decided on our next trip, I’d get them some pins and lanyards to begin trading. They’ll think it’s fun. Probably. Maybe. Ok, so maybe it’s more for me because I like the idea of collecting pins and buying them, but I don’t want to wear a lanyard and go up to strangers or CMs and ask to trade with them. The kids will still think it is fun. So there. Who wants to take bets that I’ll end up wearing both lanyards because they will be “too hot” or “too annoying”? I’ll contribute $5 to get the pot started.

4) I’ll probably need to add a character meal into the mix since the kids are suddenly into the characters. Before they could take ‘em or leave ‘em. Now they HAVE to see this one and that one, etc. I asked Claire who she wants to eat with. She said Pluto, Mickey, Goofy, and Donald. I’m a little rusty on my character meals, but I’m pretty sure most if not all of these characters are at Chef Mickey’s. Great, Shannon – go ahead and book that, you say? One problem, I’m boycotting Chef Mickey’s and have been strong and firm in my decision for 3 years now. I won’t go into detail, but let’s say our waitress sucked, half the characters skipped our table, and my niece left saying “doesn’t Mickey like me?” ‘Nuff said. We had eaten here numerous times prior to this so I know it’s not always like this. But I just had had enough of the place. I suppose I could call the Press and have the boycott cancelled. But if there is another place to find some or all of these characters anywhere on property, please remind of it! I think I was most shocked that she didn’t want to eat with the Princesses. We did the Castle before. It was great, but I don’t need to break my neck trying to get an ADR for it again. Ooooh, how about Restaurantosaurus with Donald at AK? Opinions on that one?

5) Family Magic Tour. I read about this right after I returned from our last trip. It sounds like something we would all like, especially the kids. We go so often, that we do like to do something a little different each time, even if it means missing a ride or two. Have any of you done this tour?

6) More dining dilemmas as my mother has just questioned our Le Cellier birthday dinner. I tell her it is nice, but not that nice, and it’s totally ok to have kids in the restaurant. She asks what the kids meals are. I tell her it’s the standard chicken fingers, etc. But then I looked at the menus. These kids don’t eat steak, pasta with sauce or hamburgers. Or anything on their kids menu. What now? Well our second choice was the Coral Reef. Kid’s menu is better and the cool aquarium wall would probably keep the kiddos occupied for awhile. Then I could get the Diver Sign that I thought was so cool! But I want Coral Reef to be a lunch, not a dinner.

7) I’m also considering Tour Guide Mike. I know our trip will be short and I know I have been TONS of times. BUT this time will be in the summer which we have tried to avoid for many years now. There is always so much that we want to see or just end up “missing” because of bad timing. That combined with the rave reviews has me very curious to check it out and see if it’s worth it. Any advice on TGM?

8) I want shirts! Matching shirts that is. Only for one day. I tried to get them for our last trip but I was concerned that the shirt I wanted would not fit me the way I like. But I’m getting smaller as we speak (shout out to my Peeps – Holla!) so that should not be a problem this time. Now I just have to decide what kind of shirt. I’m really leaning towards the Mickey Mouse Club shirt with our names on them. But I’ll have to take a closer look. As much as I love Disney, I’m really not too into Disney stuff. Clothes-wise anyway. So I like to keep things looking simple. Think Disney meets J Crew.

So it looks like some changes are in store.

***I have looked at park hours, EMH, and thought of tentative itineraries in my head, but I do not want to post anything until I know what my semester schedule will be like. Have I mentioned to please pray that I do not have any clients/patients on Fridays? Or Mondays? Although I’d take none on Friday at least. That will really put a damper on my plans.

Thanks for reading!

 

[dance2874]

I think the Poly is the way to go...ok maybe just because I want to live through you and your plans for there sound amazing! The monorail will be a HUGE plus with kdis I think though.

The lanyards would be fun. Get some pins on ebay and go for it. I did it for my daugher on our last trip. She was almost 4 and loved it. We didnt really trade them though. I only buy ones I like. Yes, I had one too of course. "Tinkerbell" (aka me) left a new pin and maybe a special treat for her on our windowsill every morning. We could then hold that over her head all day if she acted up "You know Amanda, if you dont stop fill in the blank, Tinkerbell may not come tonight" We are mean parents

I have to tell you TGM was the best money I spent on our last trip. Everything he said was right on, and we never waited longer than 10 min except when we deviated from his plans. I will not hesitate to renew for our next trip.

And last- we did the dorky family matching shirts for one day of our trip last year. It was fun, made some good pictures and we got lots of attention that way! There are some great threads on the creative boards (I think that is what it is called) and you can easily make some you like if you dont find something online. Maybe start with a plain shirt you like, a basic polo or something, and just add a touch of disney to it. It was really easy to do.

 

[DisneyJo]

Ditto what dance says. Character meals, on V's TR she had a great time at GG the characters are meant to be really interactive there! Coral Reef and the diver sounds great, the kids meals are quite restrictive now and how do they not like cake

 

[PrincessV]

Sunday March 25, 2007:
2) I love POR, but wouldn’t it be more convenient to stay at the Poly () with the monorail to MK and Epcot and larger rooms. And heck, wouldn’t concierge be nice so we could have the lounge for “free” snacks and breakfasts? And that extra special attention from CMs for planning all my unexpected birthday needs? Like some yummy birthday treats in the room…chocolate covered strawberries, anyone?

POLY, POLY, POLY, POLY, POLY, POLY!!!!!!!!

Okay, I may just be trying to vacation vicariously through you.

Ok, so maybe it’s more for me because I like the idea of collecting pins and buying them, but I don’t want to wear a lanyard and go up to strangers or CMs and ask to trade with them. The kids will still think it is fun. So there. Who wants to take bets that I’ll end up wearing both lanyards because they will be “too hot” or “too annoying”? I’ll contribute $5 to get the pot started.

Oh, I know how this will turn out - I've lived it! Still fun, though!

4) I’ll probably need to add a character meal into the mix since the kids are suddenly into the characters. Before they could take ‘em or leave ‘em. Now they HAVE to see this one and that one, etc. I asked Claire who she wants to eat with. She said Pluto, Mickey, Goofy, and Donald. I’m a little rusty on my character meals, but I’m pretty sure most if not all of these characters are at Chef Mickey’s. Great, Shannon – go ahead and book that, you say? One problem, I’m boycotting Chef Mickey’s and have been strong and firm in my decision for 3 years now. ... Ooooh, how about Restaurantosaurus with Donald at AK? Opinions on that one?

Okay, I've heard nothing but bad things about Breakfastosaurus, though I've never been, myself. Liek Jo said, we LOVED Garden Grill! No Donald, but Mickey, Pluto, Goofy, and Chip & Dale are there. The food was fantastic, the atmosphere quiet and relaxed, the characters very attentive. It got a solid three thumbs' up form my family

You are on a roll!

 

[Wonders10]

April 3, 2007

Some updates:

1) Made ressies for the Family Magic Tour on Saturday June 9 (mom’s bday lol). I told them it was her bday too. She’s gonna kill me.

2) Ordered a DDE card. We had this before and really liked it. We wouldn’t have gotten our money’s worth had we renewed back then, but with a May trip and this trip, and the various discounts, it will definitely be worth it. Heck, the POP food court and PI discounts alone probably will make it worth it – but that’s another trip report. Hint, hint.

3) Ok, I’m convinced. No Donald’s Breakfast-o-saurus for us. I had read the bad reviews, but I like to give places the benefit of the doubt. But then I was realizing that 90% of the reviews I was reading were bad! Not good. So we will get our characters and a birthday dinner in at the same time with a dinner at Garden Grill on Saturday. (Thanks PrincessV ) ADR time is 6:30. Hopefully that will give us plenty of time to swim and freshen up after the tour that morning.

That's it for now. I've made a tentative itinerary for the proposed dates, but I'm just holding my breath and waiting to see what my client schedule will be like next semester. I won't know until the 26th of April.

Thanks for reading everyone!

 

[Wonders10]

Hi everyone!

I'm leaving for a cruise tomorrow and won't be back til Saturday. Then that week I will find out my schedule for the upcoming semester. Which means that will be when the real planning can begin!

Thanks for reading!

 

[DisneyJo]

Have a great time

 

[timandlesley]

Just found you tonight and need to get caught up, love it so far. Just read the more recent report and have to comment: The chocolate covered strawberries are TO DIE FOR, GO FOR THEM - got them last year for my b-day YUM YUMMY YUM Also, I highly recommend TGM, I learn so much from his site and we never wait more than 10 min. for everything, sounds cliche but so true. Hope you are enjoying your cruise. Can't wait for you to come back and post more
Lesley

 

[DisneyGuy77]

Ok, I’m all up to date. Go TR!

 

[Wonders10]

Hi everyone!

First of all, I had an awesome time on my cruise.

Second of all, today was the day I was going to find out my client schedule for the summer semester. If you'll recall I was hoping for no Friday clients.










Well not only do I have no clients on Fridays - I have no Monday clients either!

So excited I can't even stand it. True, hardcore planning can begin.

But not right now. I'm on my lunch break at school.

Be back in a couple days with some more planning adventures!

 

[punkin413]

Well not only do I have no clients on Fridays - I have no Monday clients either!

yay!!!!!! i can't wait to hear more details!

 

[dance2874]

Hi everyone!

First of all, I had an awesome time on my cruise.

Second of all, today was the day I was going to find out my client schedule for the summer semester. If you'll recall I was hoping for no Friday clients.










Well not only do I have no clients on Fridays - I have no Monday clients either!

So excited I can't even stand it. True, hardcore planning can begin.

But not right now. I'm on my lunch break at school.

Be back in a couple days with some more planning adventures!

How cool!!! 4 day weekends every week

 

[Wonders10]

April 29, 2007:

Let’s see…some updates.

I’ve decided not to push the Poly issue. I seem to be charging more and paying off less so I really need to chill with the unnecessary spending. POR is great and we’ll be just fine there.

DSIL probably won’t be joining us. She anticipates being very busy with work since she is taking a 2 weeks vacation shortly after our WDW return. That’s fine with me. To be honest, the kiddos are much better behaved when mommy or daddy aren't around.

I made a pretty decent itinerary of what parks we’re going to, when, what restaurants we’ll eat at, factored in pool time. I thought it was pretty much done.

Then I joined Tour Guide Mike. Last night actually. Looked at the best park days for my dates and realized that about half of it would put me at the “don’t even think about going here today” park. It also would give us no MK time. I don’t know if this is legal to post or not but how can it be bad to visit MK every single day? Anyway, I’m revamping to try to follow TGM while also seeing what we want to see. I’ll post that in a few days.

I’m thinking of adding another ADR as well. For Sci-Fi Dine in. I’ve heard the food isn’t too great, but if you stick to burgers you’re ok. It looks fun to eat in there and I think the kids would really like it as well. Opinions?

I did some shopping! The Gap finally came through for me and I found a pair of cute Bermudas (black) and a couple tanks on sale (orange and baby blue). I’m also in the process of designing matching shirts for the 4 of us for my Mom’s bday via Zazzle and deciding what Crocs I want. Not sure about color or size. I tried on a couple pairs today at Nordstrom. I’m really a 7 ½. But I know the crocs are supposed to be loose. But are the 8’s too loose? And are the 7’s not loose enough? And I’m debating between black and brown. Starting off with some neutral colors. Heck, I may even get both colors if I’m feeling really extravagant.

I think that is everything for now. Now that I know exactly when I’ll be there and when I’ll be leaving, I’m way more excited and in the mood to plan plan plan!

Thanks for reading!

 

[DisneyJo]

I’ve decided not to push the Poly issue. I seem to be charging more and paying off less so I really need to chill with the unnecessary spending. POR is great and we’ll be just fine there.

I've never stayed at the Poly but we loved POR

DSIL probably won’t be joining us. She anticipates being very busy with work since she is taking a 2 weeks vacation shortly after our WDW return. That’s fine with me. To be honest, the kiddos are much better behaved when mommy or daddy aren't around.

Good move mine are always angels for other people

Then I joined Tour Guide Mike. Last night actually. Looked at the best park days for my dates and realized that about half of it would put me at the “don’t even think about going here today” park. It also would give us no MK time. I don’t know if this is legal to post or not but how can it be bad to visit MK every single day? Anyway, I’m revamping to try to follow TGM while also seeing what we want to see. I’ll post that in a few days.

Don't worry just make sure you don't go on the red days! We're going against his advice a little as we really want to do the Princess breakfast at Epcot on the first day when it's not green. Just make sure you spend loads of time reading stuff as it is a bit confusing!

I think that is everything for now. Now that I know exactly when I’ll be there and when I’ll be leaving, I’m way more excited and in the mood to plan plan plan!

Oooooh can't wait