It's Our First Thanksgiving Trip (And I'll Start My PTR A Year Early if I Want To!)- COMPLETE 11/16

[Newsies]

... Hi!

My name is Kaitlyn and it's been three months since I properly finished a PTR on these boards, two months since I finished up a TR, and approximately 3 days since I cancelled a PTR on the Disneyland boards. The creative well is running a little dry in these introductory posts as they get closer and closer together, but I just can't stay away! Welcome to It's Our First Thanksgiving Trip (And I'll Start My PTR A Year Early if I Want To!)

My family has come a long way since we started vacationing at Walt Disney World. Besides a day trip in 2002 and a vacation in 2010, 2013 is where our family's Disney journey really begins. We've all developed a stronger love for Walt Disney World and our Disney experience has changed a lot over time. Our biggest change occurred in our last trip, July-August 2017. It was our second time staying at the Polynesian resort, so I made the title of my last PTR, "Looks Like the POLY is our Laughin' Place!", and I was right! It was during this trip that we took the Disney Vacation Club plunge. This PTR will document our first vacation as DVC members at our home resort, Disney's Polynesian Villas & Bungalows. Our tentative dates are November 18-24, 2018. ISSA POLYNESIAN THANKSGIVING!

Under normal circumstances, I would never start a PTR this early... because under normal circumstances, there's never a trip this early! We haven't booked anything yet, and usually, when we finally decide to book, it's March or April and the vacation is in July or August and we're into our ADR window already. But this trip is a horse of a different color! We're going to utilize our 11-month booking window to our full advantage. That means that for the first time, I can write a PTR from the very first steps of the booking process! That's why we're starting this PTR a year early, so that I can document my most meticulous planning process yet.

Come and meet my family and I!

In this picture we're in our element... screaming our heads off on the 7DMT. We're a happy family of four from New Jersey!

The wacky guy in the red t-shirt is Thomas, also known as Dad. He's the zany, Poly-loving goofball who coordinates all of the traveling plans. There's nothing he loves more than hittin' the road in his pick-up truck with his Polynesian music Spotify playlist and a nice, large un-sweetened iced tea from Dunkin' Donuts (with exactly HALF of a packet of Equal! ). I don't think dad ever expected to love Walt Disney World as much as he does today. The Polynesian Resort is his true happy place. One day, he wants to retire and be best friends with Chief Smokey Miller. When he's not in Orlando, he's a volunteer fireman who works for our township's municipal department.

That beautiful woman in the grey shirt next to him is Susan, also known as Mom. She works in the real estate business, and she's the ultimate Disney snob. She loves the Grand Floridian resort. And she loves to have breakfast with Winnie the Pooh at the Crystal Palace because he's her favorite character! When she was growing up, she went to Disney World once or twice a year and she brought that love of Disney to her own two daughters. She's my best friend in the whole world and I love spending time with her- in Disney World or at home.

The little one with the tiara is Grace. She'll be 17 at the time of the trip. It'll be one of the two vacations we've ever had where we're celebrating something other than her birthday! Grace is a junior in high school, where she's a part of the yearbook committee. She loves Peter Pan, Chef Mickey's, Be Our Guest, and meeting the Frozen sisters. She's #TeamWishes all the way and has some VERY strong opinions on Happily Ever After. She's a pretty funny kid, but she gets that sense of humor from me

My name is Kaitlyn. I get my own picture because we're going to be spending the most amount of time together!

I'm a college student majoring in Communications in New York City. When I'm not thinking about or planning my next Walt Disney World vacation, I'm spending time in a Broadway theatre, going on a Target run, or hanging out with my amazing sorority sisters. I love laptop stickers, Cole Sprouse, vanilla ice cream, and anything branded in rose gold. And of course, I love Walt Disney World. I love it so much that I worked there! I'm a WDW College Program Alumn from the Fall 2016 season, where I was an attractions hostess at two classic Fantasyland attractions. Disney Springs is my favorite place in the world, I'm always down for a trip down Splash Mountain, and Tinker Bell and I are basically on a first name basis.

This is my 5th Walt Disney World pre-trip report. I started my first PTR in 2013 and have been writing ever since. Going to Walt Disney World and writing are my two favorite things to do, and getting to share the intersection of those two things has brought a lot of fun and joy into my life. I'm grateful for anyone who wants to come along for the ride!

Now that I've RAMBLED for 9 years, it looks like it's time to get the ball rolling on this PTR! Stick around for twelve whole months of:

Snarky Gifs!
Sniping reservations!
Playing "Musical ADRs!"
Ranting about The Great Movie Ride!
Purchasing things from online small shops!
Tangents about my personal life!
AND SO MUCH MORE!


Off we go!





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[Newsies]

Checklist and Table of Contents
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Checklist-
Hotel reservation made? Yes!
Tickets Purchased? Yes-- we're passholders!
Dining Plan Purchased? Yes!
Memory Maker purchased? Yes-- included with our passes!
Made arrangements for the dog? Yes!
ADRs made? Yes!
FP+ made? Yes!
Online Check-In Done? Yes!
Finished customizing magicbands? Yes!
Packed? Uh... kinda!

Table of Contents:
#1- The First Update (12/13/2017)
#2- We're Official! (12/18/2017)
#3- Merry Christmas! (12/25/2017)
#4- PTR-Ception: The PTR Within a PTR (1/5/2018)
Arizona mini-TR:
Part 1 (1/15/2018)
Part 2 (3/8/2018)
#5- Back to the Trip! ... Kind Of. (3/16/2018)
#6- Welp. (3/21/2018)
#7- Potential ADRs! (3/26/2018)
#8- RL Update: I'm a Big! (4/15/2018)
#9- Disney Haul! (4/22/2018)
#10- It's Been a Month, and There is So Much Going On (5/20/2018)
#11- 21st Birthday? Celebrated. ADRs? Made! (5/22/2018)
#12- Small Shop Ongoings: The Conclusion (6/2/2018)
#13- What Comes Next? (6/13/2018)
#14- My Must-Try Drinks! (7/4/2018)
#15- Our Biggest Itinerary Change... Ever? (7/9/2018)
#16- My Must-Eat Snacks! (7/15/2018)
#17- A Third Quarter Summer Update (7/28/2018)
#18- The Best Friday Ever (8/3/2018)
#19- The Double Digit Dance! (8/11/2018)
#20- Preliminary Plans: Pre-Travel/Travel Day (8/21/2018)
#21- And Now For Something Completely Expected (9/10/2018)
#22- Our FP+ Selections (9/19/18)
#23- C-c-changes! (10/8/18)
#24- 15 Days Left! (11/3/18)
#25- Wardrobe Sneak Peek (11/10/18)
#26- Introducing my Travel Journal! (11/12/18)
#27- Home for the Holidays! (11/15/18)
CONCLUSION (11/16/18)

 

[missangelalexis]

Yay glad you've started a new PTR Can't wait to join along and hear all about your planning!

 

[Newsies]

Yay glad you've started a new PTR Can't wait to join along and hear all about your planning!

WELCOME WELCOME WELCOME MISS ANGELA ALEXIS!!!

I'm so happy to see you here again! Thanks for joining in!

 

[PlutosRHM55]

Look who's back... back again... Kaitlyn's back... phone a friend...

...

I have arrived and I'm so ready for what will be the most epic and iconic PTR of yours yet. I'm slightly shocked you are actually willingly going back during THANKSGIVING, but you know... whatever to get that Holiday Turkey from EoS. Or a Poly bungalow.

Also, "Ranting about the Great Movie Ride!" I AM SCREAMING. Guuuuuurrrrlll, we will never EVER let it die.

Anyways, super LIT for all your crazy planning! I'll be waiting eagerly and impatiently for another update.

 

[Newsies]

Look who's back... back again... Kaitlyn's back... phone a friend...

...

I have arrived and I'm so ready for what will be the most epic and iconic PTR of yours yet. I'm slightly shocked you are actually willingly going back during THANKSGIVING, but you know... whatever to get that Holiday Turkey from EoS. Or a Poly bungalow.

Also, "Ranting about the Great Movie Ride!" I AM SCREAMING. Guuuuuurrrrlll, we will never EVER let it die.

Anyways, super LIT for all your crazy planning! I'll be waiting eagerly and impatiently for another update.

GUESS WHO'S BACK, GUESS WHO'S BACK, GUESS WHO'S BACK

Gorl, it's going to be a Thanksgiving trip of relaxing at the hotel with the occasional splurge at Disney Springs. I'm already planning to dine mostly at the Contemporary, Poly, and GF. LMAO.

This board waiting for us to move on from GMR:

I am #SOYBLESSDT to have you hereeeee. I can't wait to update you soon. Ugh ilysm Timmy

 

[shannie102]

Excited to follow along, I have enjoyed some of your previous reports! Plus I just started a PTR going December 2018 so its like we are planning close!

 

[Newsies]

Excited to follow along, I have enjoyed some of your previous reports! Plus I just started a PTR going December 2018 so its like we are planning close!

Welcome aboard! Thanks for being here!

Let me hop on over to your December 2018 PTR right now!

 

[Newsies]

The First Update
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Hello, hello, hello! Welcome to the first update.

​

I just want to say that it's really hard to update a PTR when the trip hasn't been booked yet. I found that out about two weeks ago. I've been drafting and then deleting and then re-drafting and re-deleting this update multiple times since we last spoke.

You're probably looking for a trip-related update but this is a life update. Sorry.

I have been really busy. I'll be sitting in the middle of class and suddenly I'll think to myself, "Oh, I'll do an update in the middle of this three-hour lecture!" ...

​

... And I go back to window shopping on Amazon.

I have had a super wacky semester. And this finals week has been super-duper wacky. This was my first full semester being active in my sorority, so a lot of philanthropy and social events occupied my time this semester. I was offered a job at the Disney Store in Times Square at the beginning of the semester, but I couldn't take it because they couldn't train me within the availability they gave me until November so they would have only had me from Thanksgiving to New Years Eve but I was only gonna be in NYC until the middle of December and the whole affair was a MESS. I still had my on-campus job though, so I didn't sweat it. Also I'm really upset about Riverdale right now. I wasn't able to watch season 2 because my dorm doesn't have the CW, and the Riverdale Funko Pops (which I had been waiting on for MONTHS) were released without a warning yesterday and I wasn't fast enough and now I only have serpent Jughead but I wanted regular Jughead and Archie and UGH

I had fun times this semester, too! I saw Hello, Dolly! with Donny Murphy, A Bronx Tale, and Spongebob Squarepants the Musical. I ate a lot of Potbelly mac and cheese. I started re-watching Glee last week and that will probably carry over into winter break. But it's not over yet. I have about 3 pages left for my film paper, but I need to find another source for it and right now my school's database is down so I'm procrastinating on the DIS.

What I'm really looking forward to next semester! First of all, I have a new position on my sorority's general board of officers that I'm really excited about. It puts me in the loop with the Panhellenic council, which is what I really wanted to be involved in. Second of all, my class schedule is perfect. And third of all, spring is recruitment season for us! I'm super excited to no longer be the baby and super hopeful that I'll be a big.

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But what I'm really, really looking forward to is this winter break because I'M GOING TO ARIZONA! I have my plane tickets to visit my friend Austin from Jan 7-13 and I'm so excited for it. I've never been out west before. You're going to get a mini-TR in this PTR!!!

And, uh... now you probably want to hear some news relevant to our November 2018 vacation.

​

So our window opens up on Monday morning at 8 am. I'll be up super early to prep for my two finals that day anyway, so wooooo! I've been told that I won't have any problem booking what I want at the 11-month mark for PVR, which is incredibly reassuring. I'll wake up around 7:50, log onto the DVC website and use those sweet, sweet points.

The family is very excited to see all of the things WDW has to offer for the holiday season. I don't want to share everything in this post, but I definitely want to do the Candlelight Processional with them, take them to see the gingerbread house at the Grand Floridian, do a MVMCP, and I hope that Disney brings back the DVC Member Thanksgiving Dinner!

Also, I started the Official November 2018 Thread on the Theme Parks Attractions and Strategies Board! That'll be fun, so come join me if you want to!

That concludes my ramble this post. Hopefully by the next time I update you all, we'll have a trip officially booked!

-Kaitlyn

 

[missangelalexis]

Sounds like you've been busy! Sorry you couldn't take the job at the Disney Store!

I hope you were able to book with no issues!

 

[Newsies]

Sounds like you've been busy! Sorry you couldn't take the job at the Disney Store!

I hope you were able to book with no issues!

I wasn't heartbroken over it, since they told me explicitly that I would be working Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, and NYE. I've done it before and I know there are people who do it every year, but it would have been nice to spend Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve with my family this year considering my hellacious holiday hours at WDW last year

We booked without a hitch! I'm taking a final in about an hour but I can't wait to update with all of the juicy details after that!!!

 

[Newsies]

We're Official!
A Whopping 335 Days Out!!!
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Today I woke up at 7:50 after a long, sleepless pre-final exam night. So far I've downed 3 large iced coffees (two from Starbucks, three from Dunkin'). I'm still tired, but my eyes are open so far wide I couldn't shut them to take a nap if I wanted to.

So why did I wake up at 7:50 when my first class started at 10:35?

Because my window opened at 8 AM!

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Nothing like booking a Disney vacation to put some pep in your step pre-coffee. .

I was a little tense, since I knew we would get a studio no matter what, but my parents specifically wanted a lake-view studio, and I was worried that those would be gone for Thanksgiving week. I sat down at my laptop (with a little bit of early morning, pre-final nausea), opened it up, and refreshed the DVC "Book Online" page until it told me I could book trips starting from November 18, 2018.

We ended up nailing it! We are now official in a Lake View Deluxe Studio at Disney's Polynesian Village Resort from November 18-24, 2018!

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I'm so excited. The whole family is! Mom forgot that Lake View rooms can also see the castle, and she was so excited that she was texting me in all caps. Her exact words were "OMG. DOUBLE WIN."

Getting to plan a trip before all of our windows are open is a huge advantage, something we've never done before. But we're also planning it for the busiest time of the year, so we're gonna need to be quick when they open!

So what are the next steps?

• May 22 - Our ADR window opens up. We need to start thinking about what our Thanksgiving dinner is going to be!
• September 19 - Our FP+ Window opens up. I think we're going to try to stay away from DHS this trip, but other than that... we'll probably stick to the norm.
• September 19 - Online check-in starts. My mom actually loves to do check-in in person, but I want to put in room requests, so I want to do this as soon as we can.
• October 18 - Our last day to customize Magic Bands! Still waiting to see if Millennial Pink bands are being added to this color lineup any time soon...

We also need to...

• Buy our dining plan!
• Buy our park tickets!
• Buy our Memory Maker!

And of course, I'll be keeping an eye open for DVC member events, Candlelight Processional dates, and Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party dates.

I'll update you guys again later! I still have a lot of studying to do before tomorrow.

-Kaitlyn

 

[PlutosRHM55]

YAY!! So happy you got your optimal choice in rooms. I'm so excited for all the gorgeous Seven Seas Lagoon with Castle in the distance photos you're going to get. Oh so so SOOOOO much to look forward to! What a journey of a PTR this will be. If only I was going along with you, this would be another RIDE (i.e. DCP Fall 2016 part II minus all the dying and tears and madness we dealt with)

 

[Newsies]

YAY!! So happy you got your optimal choice in rooms. I'm so excited for all the gorgeous Seven Seas Lagoon with Castle in the distance photos you're going to get. Oh so so SOOOOO much to look forward to! What a journey of a PTR this will be. If only I was going along with you, this would be another RIDE (i.e. DCP Fall 2016 part II minus all the dying and tears and madness we dealt with)

This is TRULY going to be a journey and a half of a PTR and we are ONLY on page one, folks.

Why haven't we had our Disney vacation yet? I can't wait to turn 21 and go to World Showcase with you.

 

[Momee]

Following along! Love love love your TRs.

 

[PlutosRHM55]

Why haven't we had our Disney vacation yet? I can't wait to turn 21 and go to World Showcase with you.

TEXT ME. Let's go on this ish!

 

[Newsies]

Following along! Love love love your TRs.

Welcome aboard! Thank you so much, that means a lot to me!

TEXT ME. Let's go on this ish!

SIMPLE PLAN is playing the Garden Rocks festival this year mid March and ugh I'd kill to be in Epcot for one of their sets

 

[missangelalexis]

Congrats on getting the room type you wanted!!

 

[Newsies]

Congrats on getting the room type you wanted!!

Thank you so much!

 

[Newsies]

Merry Christmas!​

Merry Christmas, DISboards! I would have felt weird if I didn't post tonight to check in with you all. This is a blog post and not related to the trip, sorry! We're gonna have a few of those during this PTR.

Christmas is the busiest time of the year for my family. We host a huge Christmas Eve dinner with both sides of the family, which always takes weeks to plan. My aunt hosts the Christmas day dinner, so we're usually there from around 1 in the afternoon to 8 in the evening and today was no different!

So Tuesday was a trainwreck-- I had a final at 9 am, a final at 2 pm, and then my last final was at 6 pm. It was a messy day! I studied too much for the 9 am final, and I didn't study enough for the 6 pm final. Also I had half of my suitcase packed Monday night so trying to throw everything together in between finals was fun. Then I got home at around 9 PM and fell asleep as soon as I got my suitcase upstairs.

My mom was home for the week, so Wednesday-Friday was a lot of fun. We ran to the mall a few times, got some lunch, and prepped for Christmas Eve. I got to put together the Saran Wrap Ball!

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If you're looking for a fun party game, Saran Wrap Ball is the way to go. You wrap a bunch of prizes in a big ball of Seal-and-Go, then everyone sits in a circle. The first person to go rolls the dice. Let's say they roll a three. Then have to unwrap the ball as fast as they can until the person next to them rolls a three, then the ball is handed to the next person. If you unwrap a prize, you keep it! It was our third year doing it and it was a big hit.

The party went great. We had some people cancel at the last minute, but other than that, we all had a lot of fun. There was a lot of food, we took a lot of pictures, and even Roxie was well-behaved for everyone. We got to see a lot of people we don't normally see otherwise, like my cousin and her three year old daughter (who I adore! We watched the new Frozen short together). And of course, the night ended with one of my favorite holiday traditions: Santa brought me a new set of Christmas Eve pajamas.

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This morning I woke up at 7:45 and it was like I was 6 years old again. Granted, I was the last person in my family to wake up, but I was so excited to see what Santa brought me! He was exceptionally good to Grace and I this year, and I was sure to thank him at least a thousand times.

Technically, I only asked him for two things this year- one was a bracelet from Lillian & Co, which is one of my favorite Disney small shops. They followed me on insta one day and I fell in love! The other was the Tinker Bell bag from Danielle Nicole I had been eyeing up since it made its debut earlier this year! I was so happy when I unwrapped these and I can't wait to wear them around NYC and eventually the parks next year!

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He brought me two things I totally didn't expect and I adored them both. The first was this nice carry-on bag for when I can visit Austin in Arizona in a few weeks!

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But then he surprised me with this really nice, super soft sherpa jacket with my letters on it and UGH I can't wait to live in it next semester. I seriously almost cried when I put it on.

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I also got to give Grace the special gift I got her and she was so excited!!! We're seeing Mean Girls on Broadway this April! She asked mom for tickets a while back, and mom kept telling her that we'd try to get tickets after we saw Spongebob. She was so excited that she screamed and jumped up and down and I had never seen her that happy in my life!

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Dinner tonight was amazing as usual. My uncle is a great cook and his macaroni and cheese just can't be beat. We got to see my baby cousin Zoey on her first Christmas and I love her so much I could burst.

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All in all, I couldn't have asked for a better two days. I'm so happy I was able to celebrate with my family today and more importantly, last night. Christmas Eve is such a special time for us, and I was really upset last year because I was hundreds of miles away, working an 11 hour shift at the busiest theme park in the world. It was hands down the hardest day of my program, and being together with my family this year made me so happy.

Merry Christmas to you guys! Let me know about how your holiday season has been, I want to know all about how you celebrated this year!

-Kaitlyn