January 2009. . . Calling all Snowbirds ~ Part III !!!

[peach3es]

Hi, Snowbirds! I've had zero time on the DIS lately! Just popping in to check things out and to say I miss you all!

I've been trying to find an All Star Fridge Swap. Not much happening over there...not like POP Century! I'm bummed. I found one with partial dates for my trip, but no on has responded. Wondering if that swap is deed.

We'll survive without a fridge, but it sure would be nice!

Other than that, just living life! I got my Mom's Christmas present finished! I predecorated a Disney scrapbook for her so that all she has to do is slip pictures and journaling in and she'll have herself a gorgeous album and fun memory of our trip! I have scrapbooking friends who donated things to make this album happen. I just shared it with the kids...they loved it! I can't wait to give it to my mom! I'm going to have the kids write down some notes that include reasons why they are glad Mo-mo is taking us to Disney, why they are glad she'll be there with us, etc. I'm going to slip those into the album and let mom attach them to the pages if she likes. I'm thinking my own Disney album will be digital.

Trying to catch up with you all! Welcome to the newbies! And I'm so sorry to read about the job troubles that so many of you are having. Prayers that things will begin to look up soon!

Have a wonderful rest of your sleep and a great day!
~~Carrie

 

[GavinsMom04]

Wow--thanks for all the great information! I can tell this is a GREAT group of friends!! I look forward to getting to know each of you!!

Have a great Friday!

 

[jenjolt]

My family may join you...where are you meeting at?

The Haunted Mansion Ride...ooohhhhh...please do come!!!

 

[Remmy]

POFQ Food Court - Sassagoula Floatworks and Food Factory

Breakfast

For our Young Krewe 9 and Under
Breakfast Platter $4.09
Mickey Waffles $4.09
Pancakes or French Toast $4.09


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King Creole Breakfast Platter $6.29
Ham and Cheese Omelet $6.99
Western Omelet $6.99
Cheese Omelet $6.99

Side of Bacon or Sausage $1.99

Biscuits and Gravy $3.39

Berry Pancakes with Bacon $6.19
Chocolate Chip Pancakes with Bacon $6.19
Pancakes with Bacon $5.19

Croissant Breakfast Sandwich $5.99

French Toast with Sausage $5.19

Egg and French Toast Platter $6.29

Oatmeal $2.49

Mickey Waffle with fruit $5.59
Mickey Waffle with Bacon or Sausage $5.69
Cinnamon Roll $2.59
Yogurt Parfait with berries $4.29

Cappuccino $3.19
Espresso $2.69
Refillable Mug $12.49

Beignets - six $4.29
Beignets - three $2.99
Croissant $2.29
Muffins $2.59
Bagels $2.29
Danish $2.39

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Lunch/Dinner

16 Inch Pepperoni Pizza $15.49
16 Inch Meat Deluxe Pizza $17.99
16 Inch Veggie Deluxe Pizza $17.99
16 Inch Supreme Pizza $17.99
Choice of Toppings: Pepperoni, Onions, Sausage, Mushrooms, Ham, Peppers, or Jalapenos
Each Additional Topping $1.39

Tossed Salad $3.99

Meatball Sub $7.19
Veggie Sandwich $7.49


Pasta with Meatballs $8.09

Individual Pepperoni Pizza $6.09

Chicken Parmesan $8.79

Cheeseburger $6.09
Veggie Burger $6.29
Cheese Steak Sandwich $7.99
Double Cheeseburger $7.09
Grilled Chicken Sandwich $7.19
Chicken Breast Nuggets $7.69
Hot Dog $6.09

Chicken Caesar Salad $7.19
Taco Salad (beef or chicken) $7.39/$7.59
Ham or Turkey Sub (hot or cold) $6.79

Chicken Club Wrap $8.49
Muffaletta Sandwich $8.09
Chicken Quesadilla $8.39

Adult Meals served with fries or pasta salad

Adult Sandwiches served with chips or pasta salad


Souvenir Refillable Mug $12.49

Kids' Picks
For ages 9 and Under

All meals include choice of two side: grapes, carrot sticks or applesauce
and a beverage: 1% Mickey Milk, apple juice or small bottled water

Peanut Butter and Jelly $4.49
Chicken Nuggets $4.49
Grilled Cheese $4.49
Pasta with Marinara Sauce $4.49

Soft drinks and fries available upon request


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Ice Cream Cookie Sandwich $4.99
Beignets - six $4.29
Beignets - three $2.99

Assorted Cakes by the Slice $3.59
Freshly Baked Cookie $1.89

Cappuccino $3.19
Espresso $2.69

Hand-dipped Single Scoop Cone or Cup $2.69
Double Scoop Cone or Cup $3.69

Cheesecake with berries $3.89


Milkshakes $3.99

Has anyone had the Beignets? I have read elsewhere they are a must have. We wish to go look at this resort on one of our off days, and wondered if we should stop and pick up some of these.

Thank you,
Remmy

 

[Dancegrl624]

Good morning everyone! I just wanted to hop on here real quick before I start my crazy day. Hopefully, I'll find some downtime to come hang out with all of you before my trip to Rochester. If not, I hope that you all have the most wonderful Friday!

 

[Lil'Mermaid75]

Good morning, Snowbirds!! Happy Friday!! It's supposed to be rainy and BLAH today, and tomorrow - COLD with rain/snow mix. Honestly, when it gets this cold, I'd prefer the snow over the cold rain - it just chills you!!

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

Morning Snowbirds.

Lots to read and catch up on!

 

[sarbah77]

Has anyone had the Beignets? I have read elsewhere they are a must have. We wish to go look at this resort on one of our off days, and wondered if we should stop and pick up some of these.

Thank you,
Remmy

I have! They were really good. Then again, I AM a sucker for friend things coated in powdered sugar. However, I don't know if I'd go out of my way for them. My friend and I were "bored" last time I went - we were staying at POR. We went to DTD and caught the boat back to POFQ, got the beignets, and walked back to POR, eating them.

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

Sarah and Kayte, hope tomorrow goes well for both of you, and you both have speedy recoveries.

As for me, I haven't been around to much...DH hit me with I am about to be unemployed. He is the mayor breadwinner in our house. I teach plus work a part time job. Not enough to support our family of five that is for sure. My oldest is in the middle of filling out college applications, and I have twins who are 12. Christmas is coming up and thank goodness I am almost done and it is paid for in full, no credit. My trips are paid in full, so most of it is non refundable, so we are going.

The thing is DH is a proud man. Last time he was unemployed he was out of work for 18 months. He would not take any job that did not have a title. He will not work more than one job. He won't work one job that pays him less than unemployment and two jobs like I have is out of the question. He is to proud to work a menial job. I think this maybe the final blow to our marriage. It almost killed us last time, we came within weeks of losing our home and at the time my kids were 3 and 8. I am a wreck to say the least.

Today I signed up to every survey site known to man. I know he is home, but other than looking at Monster.com or the paper, he will do nothing else, but complain.

I have been feeling sick to my stomach since yesterday. I feel awful...

Yes, Jen I will be there with my crew at midnight I hope others join us

I'm so sorry Glo. That really stinks. We only have been through this once. Back in 2003 DH had to have major back surgery. While he was off his employer decided to get rid of him. How nice, right? The kids were very little and I was working part time at the bank. So now we were living off of my part time banking income and unemployment. DH and I didn't even have health insurance for quite some time. It was bad. DH was looking for employment, there just wasn't any in the area where we lived. Still isn't. He eventually got the job he has now, but is was well over an hour drive each way and the hours were very long. He was never home. So we did have to sell our house and move, but in the end he had a good job. We just had to give up a lot to get it. We didn't want to move, but pretty much had to. DH was falling asleep while driving after working 12 hour days. I had to give up my job because he was never home. I guess my point is to just try to help and encourage your DH and be open to new possibilities. We are here for you. Good luck.

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

Hey Disney Friends!

My name is Kelley and we're going to Disney in Jan 09!! We're getting very excited. It's actually a "last minute" trip planned and I'm starting to panic!

We are staying in a timeshare in Lake Buena Vista, so we won't actually be on Disney this time. This is my son's first trip though and he's very excited. (He'll be 3 in December).

I still have SO much planning to do so any advice would be great!! Please give me any advice or direct me to some great resources! Couple questions though:

I keep hearing about discount codes for theme park tickets? We haven't purchased our tickets yet and I wondering if we could find some discounts.

How many meals to you make reservations for? I'm trying to decide if I should make reservations for more than one meal a day or leave some plans open.

I feel like I'm so far behind, but looking forward to meeting each of you and getting lots of ideas!!

WELCOME to the Snowbirds! What are your dates?

We make one ADR per day. Anymore than that would be too much time spent in restaurants (for us anyway ). But we are on the DDP. If we weren't on the DDP we would probably only make about 3 ADR's for the week. It just all depends on what type of touring your family plans to do. Maybe just look at the park hours and make up a little schedule of where you plan to be each day and then check out the restaurants in that area. Don't forget to check out the deluxe resort restaurants too! Then go from there. You probably want to call pretty soon though for any ADR's.

We are here if you have any other questions!

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

We all definately need to get together! By a pool somewhere...with drinks...

Sounds like a plan! All you CBR Snowbirds let me know what days you will be hanging out at the resort!

Shelly how did it go for your little man this afternoon?

Thanks for asking Shawna. Well he ended up not needing glasses, so that was good. But, he has Amblyopia. His left eye is fine. His right eye has 20/40 vision, has very little depth perception, and is slightly turned inward. Therefore he has basically been "turning off" his right eye to avoid double vision and only using his left eye. This is nothing glasses could correct. The only option is to try to force him to use the right eye (the bad one) by covering up or blurring the good eye. The doctor says that this will usually correct the problem over time. So our choices were to either wear an eye patch over his good eye 2 hours everyday or to have drops put in his good eye on Saturday and Sunday to make it blurry. He wanted the drops. I figured he'd want to be a pirate every evening for 2 hours , but he thought that was way too long I guess. I'm not sure I'm happy with either option, but I guess we will give the drops a try and we go back to the specialist in 5 weeks.

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

Has anyone had the Beignets? I have read elsewhere they are a must have. We wish to go look at this resort on one of our off days, and wondered if we should stop and pick up some of these.

Thank you,
Remmy

We did get the Beignets one morning when we stayed at POFQ in 2007. We thought they were just okay. Even DH, who LOVES donuts and things like that, said they were just okay. I really didn't think they lived up to all the hype. I wouldn't make a special trip to get them, but if you are visiting the resort you should try them!

 

[snykymom]

Sarah and Kayte, hope tomorrow goes well for both of you, and you both have speedy recoveries.

As for me, I haven't been around to much...DH hit me with I am about to be unemployed. He is the mayor breadwinner in our house. I teach plus work a part time job. Not enough to support our family of five that is for sure. My oldest is in the middle of filling out college applications, and I have twins who are 12. Christmas is coming up and thank goodness I am almost done and it is paid for in full, no credit. My trips are paid in full, so most of it is non refundable, so we are going.

The thing is DH is a proud man. Last time he was unemployed he was out of work for 18 months. He would not take any job that did not have a title. He will not work more than one job. He won't work one job that pays him less than unemployment and two jobs like I have is out of the question. He is to proud to work a menial job. I think this maybe the final blow to our marriage. It almost killed us last time, we came within weeks of losing our home and at the time my kids were 3 and 8. I am a wreck to say the least.

Today I signed up to every survey site known to man. I know he is home, but other than looking at Monster.com or the paper, he will do nothing else, but complain.

I have been feeling sick to my stomach since yesterday. I feel awful...

Yes, Jen I will be there with my crew at midnight I hope others join us

Glo, I'm so sorry for what you're going through. I didn't respond yesterday because I was so mad!

[stepping on soapbox] I hate it when men misuse the word "proud" to mean "insecure"! Your husband's not "proud" in any real sense of the word. He cares more about what the neighbors think than about caring for his own family! A proud man does whatever it takes to meet his obligations. A proud man doesn't lean on anyone, including his wife working two jobs. A proud man takes any job, as long as it's legal, to meet his obligations to his family, and does it to the best of his ability. A proud man knows that there is no shame in gainful employment. An insecure man knows none of those things. Unfortunately, and I have no way of knowing if this is true in your case (and I am not giving you specific advice!) some men don't learn the true meaning of "pride" until they're kicked to the curb. And often the women discover, in the same sense of Remmy no longer having to deal with a negative coworker, that even though they may be carrying more of the load, it's easier without the anchor. [/stepping off soapbox - sorry if it's harsh!]

My prayer for you is that you can figure out what is best for your family, and that you have the courage to do it.

We can be over it, together!! My brother is an August baby so he would always have a birthday party and get a STACK of presents. Like you, Jan 4 is right between semesters. In fact, at the U, it's the day BEFORE classes start... so my work birthday party will be rushed because it's the frist day of the semester. Dang it!! When I turned 21, we were on break, so my parents took me out (though, I never did drink ENOUGH for them!! )

Now, my parents say "oh, you know CHRISTMAS" and I generally get my birthday presents in February. And usually an "OH CRAP HI ITS YOUR BIRTHDAY!" email at 6am on my birthday. One year, I called the night before, just to say hi and we chatted away. The next morning, my birthday, each parent sent me an email saying "oops, didn't realize when we talked to you that it was nearly your birthday!" While you don't celebrate Christmas, did your parents ever lose your birthday in the shuffle? (It frustrates me since, HI, one week between my mom and me!!) (on the plus side, since MIL shares her b-day with New Year's Eve, she's super careful to make sure I get a card as close to my birthday as possible)

BUT! THIS YEAR! We've already decided to celebrate - Mom and I - our birthdays together in Disney. Does it get better? I submit that it does not!!

+++

Also, thank you everyone for your well wishes. It's really amazing to have such a great group of women looking out for me!!

OK, you got me beat! My folks never forgot my birthday (at least my mother didn't)! The rest of my family did, though. And there are never work parties for my birthday. It's always lost in the rush of holiday parties, and people are always like, "Oh, no! Not another cake!" Oh, well, like I said, I'm over it.

Good luck today!

Sounds like a plan! All you CBR Snowbirds let me know what days you will be hanging out at the resort!



Thanks for asking Shawna. Well he ended up not needing glasses, so that was good. But, he has Amblyopia. His left eye is fine. His right eye has 20/40 vision, has very little depth perception, and is slightly turned inward. Therefore he has basically been "turning off" his right eye to avoid double vision and only using his left eye. This is nothing glasses could correct. The only option is to try to force him to use the right eye (the bad one) by covering up or blurring the good eye. The doctor says that this will usually correct the problem over time. So our choices were to either wear an eye patch over his good eye 2 hours everyday or to have drops put in his good eye on Saturday and Sunday to make it blurry. He wanted the drops. I figured he'd want to be a pirate every evening for 2 hours , but he thought that was way too long I guess. I'm not sure I'm happy with either option, but I guess we will give the drops a try and we go back to the specialist in 5 weeks.

Shelly, my DH had amblyopia when he was a kid, and he was given eye exercises to strengthen the muscles of the lazy eye to keep it straight. I'll ask him what kind of specialist that was. Good luck to him - he may change his mind about the patch once he uses the drops!

 

[Dancegrl624]

I know I posted about this last night, but I thought I would post it again. I am willing to put together a list of people's schedules for the last week in January (24th-31st). Even if you're only there one or two days during this time period, I would definately include you. That way, we could start planning out some meets! How exciting!

 

[snykymom]

Sounds like a plan! All you CBR Snowbirds let me know what days you will be hanging out at the resort!



Thanks for asking Shawna. Well he ended up not needing glasses, so that was good. But, he has Amblyopia. His left eye is fine. His right eye has 20/40 vision, has very little depth perception, and is slightly turned inward. Therefore he has basically been "turning off" his right eye to avoid double vision and only using his left eye. This is nothing glasses could correct. The only option is to try to force him to use the right eye (the bad one) by covering up or blurring the good eye. The doctor says that this will usually correct the problem over time. So our choices were to either wear an eye patch over his good eye 2 hours everyday or to have drops put in his good eye on Saturday and Sunday to make it blurry. He wanted the drops. I figured he'd want to be a pirate every evening for 2 hours , but he thought that was way too long I guess. I'm not sure I'm happy with either option, but I guess we will give the drops a try and we go back to the specialist in 5 weeks.

OK, Shelly, DH just e-mailed me back and said that the specialists he saw (and who currently still do this) are optometrists specializing in "visual training." I'm sure you could Google it or ask around. He really advocates this because it's life-long - if he feels his eye wandering, he just does the exercises for a few days to bring it back under control - and it's drug-free, surgery-free and painless. He started it around your DS's age.

Good luck to him and you!

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

Kona Cafe

Breakfast

Tonga Toast - banana stuffed sourdough bread, rolled in cinnamon sugar and served with Strawberry Compote and your choice of ham, bacon, or sausage $10.99

Big Kahuna - French toast, Macadamia-Pineapple pancakes, eggs, home fried potatoes, ham, bacon, and sausage $11.99

Two Eggs Your Way with home fried potatoes, a biscuit, and choice of ham, bacon or sausage $9.99

Macadamia Pineapple Pancakes - with macadamia nut butter,, pineapple sauce and your choice of ham, bacon or sausage $9.99

Pancakes with choice of ham, bacon or sausage $8.99

French Toast with choice of ham, bacon or sausage $8.99

Steak with Eggs - A 5 oz. char-grilled NY Strip steak served with two eggs, homefried potatoes, and biscuit $14.49

Ham and Cheese Omelet with home-fried potatoes and a biscuit $10.49

Blueberry Pancakes - with choice of ham, bacon or sausage $9.99

Eggs Benedict served with home fried potatoes $9.99

Fruit Plate - fresh seasonal fruit served in a pineapple with banana nut bread $8.99

Fresh Fruit Cup Side Dish $3.99


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Hot Beverages
100% Kona Coffee French Press Pot $7.49
Kona Blend Coffee - $2.69
Espresso - $3.49
Cappuccino - $3.99
Cafe Latte - $3.99
Cafe Mocha - $4.49

Take a home a bag: Whole Bean or Ground
Kona Blend $15.00
100% Kona $40.00



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Juices
Orange juice, Apple juice, Cranberry juice, Tomato juice, Pineapple juice and Grapefruit juice - $2.29

Lilikoi Juice - Passion fruit, orange and guava blend - $3.99

South Pacific Smoothies - a creamy blend of tropical fruit juices served frozen - orange-passion fruit, strawberry-banana, or raspberry $4.29


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Kona Cocktails

Wasabi Mary - Absolut Peppar Vodka, wasabi, spices and tomato juice $8.25

Mimosa - sparkling wine and orange juice $8.00


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Dinner

Appetizers

Lump Crab Cakes - with Asian tartar and pineapple relish $10.49

Shrimp Roll - Tempura shrimp, mango, and sushi rice served with passion fruit-orange-guava Sauce $12.99

Pot Stickers - wok-seared duck dumplings with creamy ginger soy sauce $7.49

Shrimp and Coconut Curry Soup - $6.99

Sticky Wings - glazed chicken wings wings with a tangy mustard drizzle and toasted sesame seeds $8.49

Kona Salad - Mixed greens, Maytag blue cheese, fresh fruit, red onions, and smoked almonds with a citrus vinaigrette $6.99

Chicken Noodle Soup - $6.49


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Dinner Entrees

Pomegranate Barbecued Pork Chop served on pan-roasted fingerling potatoes and applewood smoked bacon braised Swiss chard $21.99

Shrimp and Scallops - panko breaded shrimp and pan-seared scallops with sticky rice and ponzu, spicy guava-passion fruit and wasabi cream sauces $20.99

Slow Roasted Prime Rib - mashed potatoes and stir-fried broccoli florets $21.99

Coconut Almond Chicken - sauteed chicken breast served with Asian greens tossed with honey-lime dressing, golden pineapple, strawberries, and toasted almonds $16.49

Tuna Oscar - served with fried green tomatoes, tempura-fried jumbo lump crab, and wasabi hollandaise $21.99

Macadamia Nut and Chive-crusted Mahi-mahi - served with watercress salad with warm shiitake-soy vinaigrette and sticky rice $20.99

Pan Asian Noodles - Asian egg noodles with sliced chicken, pineapple, seasonal vegetables, and a housemade sweet and sour sauce $16.99; with shrimp $17.99

Teriyaki-style New York Strip - sirloin strip grilled with pineapple teriyaki glaze served with mashed Yukon gold potatoes and stir-fried broccolini $24.99


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Desserts

Banana-Chocolate Creme Brulee $5.99

Coconut Cream Kiki Tart - $5.49

Kilauea Torte - $5.49

No Sugar Added Apple Stack - $5.49

White Chocolate Cheesecake - $5.49

Chocolate Fondue $5.99

Kona Kone $5.99


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Kids Menu

Breakfast

All meals served with choice of 1% milk, bottled water or juice

Choice of one entree $5.09

All meals include choice of one side item bacon, sausage or fruit cup

Fresh Fruit Plate

Donald's Choice - one egg, quacked and scrambled, with sweet cinnamon toast

Mickey Pancakes - buttermilk pancake shaped like Mickey

Minnie's French Toast - Rolled in cinnamon sugar

Goofy Toast - only Goofy would fry an egg in the middle of a piece of toast


Lunch and Dinner

All kids' meals are for guests 9 and under

All meals served with choice of 1% milk, bottled water, or juice

Kids' Complete Meals

These menus include one serving from each of the five food groups

Grilled Fish of the Day served with whole-grain pilaf, veggies, and yogurt parfait $7.59

Grilled Chicken Strips with macaroni topped with marinara sauce and mozzarella, served with veggies and fruit salad $7.59


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Kids' Picks

Choice of 1 appetizer, 1 entree and 1 dessert - $7.59

Appetizers

Chicken Noodle Soup

OR

Garden Salad


Entrees

Hot Dog OR

Hamburger OR

Macaroni and Cheese

French fries and Soft Drinks Available Upon Request



Desserts

Fruit Salad

Ice Cream Sundae

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

OK, Shelly, DH just e-mailed me back and said that the specialists he saw (and who currently still do this) are optometrists specializing in "visual training." I'm sure you could Google it or ask around. He really advocates this because it's life-long - if he feels his eye wandering, he just does the exercises for a few days to bring it back under control - and it's drug-free, surgery-free and painless. He started it around your DS's age.

Good luck to him and you!

Thanks so much! I will definitely look into that. The pediatric ophthalmologist didn't mention it. Maybe he thought DS was too young. . .

 

[snykymom]

I think it's just a physician's bent - they go to drugs/surgery right away. Many don't even know about it. My MIL was big into alternative medicine, even though she was a nurse (or maybe because she was a nurse!), so she sought some non-medical intervention first.

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

Thanks for all the info Snyky!

So when does everyone think we will need Part IV ???

Probably sometime next week I suppose. . .

 

[MAGGIED]

. IF YOU KNOW SOMEONE WITH A DECEMBER BIRTHDAY WORST THING TO DO IS GIVE THEM A GIFT AND SAY HERE IS YOUR CHRISTMAS BIRTHDAY GIFT!EVEN WORST WRAP A BIRTHDAY GIFT IN CHRISTMAS PAPER!
Really, I am over it all.

I so get this.... my birthday is December 26th..... the only one that thas done that to me is my husband... so I got him back the next year... I bought myself a beautiful braclet and wrapped itand put it under the tree and signed it from him.... then I acted all surprised when I opened it up.... thought that was a pretty good pay back...