January 2009. . . Calling all Snowbirds ~ Part V

[Monny2AE]

You'll never guess who just called me!!!! Disney called to confirm my Grand Gathering reservations and room requests before sending it to CBR. I've never had that happen before. Are they that worried about no show's that they are calling to make sure people are still coming?

 

[laurainsem]

HELP! I am furiously packing away and I suddenly realsized that I am unsure of the size of "ziplock" bags I have for the whole "3-1-1" dealy! The bags I have do not have an actual Liquid measurement on the box, they have dimensions... 10.5x11 inches! Are these the right size? Are they too big? Can somebody measure theirs and help me out? PLEASE!!!!!!

I don't know if this will help you or not, but at Wal-mart and target they have little plastic 3 oz bottles in their travel section. This helps me, as i'm not good with measurements at all.

 

[Mndisneygirl]

HELP! I am furiously packing away and I suddenly realsized that I am unsure of the size of "ziplock" bags I have for the whole "3-1-1" dealy! The bags I have do not have an actual Liquid measurement on the box, they have dimensions... 10.5x11 inches! Are these the right size? Are they too big? Can somebody measure theirs and help me out? PLEASE!!!!!!

I measured my Airport Security APproved Hefty travel bags and they are about 8 x 6 1/2 inches and say Quart size. Our Target store sells a pack of 4 I think in the aisle where the travel size toiletries are.

 

[Mndisneygirl]

Got my Disney Cruise documents today. So relieved because I was having trouble filling them out on line and wanted them before we left. I wouldn't have known I got them but my SIL called and said hers were left by UPS. SO I checked the front door and there it was!

I just got back from the dentist - no cavities! and now my teeth are all pearly white for all the Disney pictures!!

 

[crzyred]

Before our trip we pre-ordered the Photopass CD. So I just got done looking at them. I'm rather disappointed with them. Some of the pictures are dark, like the ones at EPCOT at night with the ball, it looks like the flash only partly worked. Our MK pictures at night with the Castle are tilted and there is a worker guy standing next to us with his broom. Then add to it that all our boarders are still for 2008...nothing for 2009...and Christmas stuff . Plus the pictures aren't zoomed in at all.

Is there a way that we can get out of it? We really hoped that they would turn out much better, they have in the past, but I'm not happy right now with them. I'm hoping that if I look at them on a different computer suddenly everything will change and they will look great .

 

[momjilly]

Detailed ten-day forecast


Today
Jan 16
Details Fair
Hi: 59° Lo: 39°
Day: Sunny skies. High 59F, humidity 30%.
Night: Clear skies. Low 39F.

Tomorrow
Jan 17
Details Clear
Hi: 62° Lo: 42°
Day: Sunny skies. High 62F, humidity 40%.
Night: Clear skies. Low 42F.


Sunday
Jan 18 Clear
Hi: 68° Lo: 42°
Sunny skies.


Monday
Jan 19 Clear
Hi: 64° Lo: 41°
Sunny skies.


Tuesday
Jan 20 Fair
Hi: 61° Lo: 38°
Mostly cloudy skies.


Wednesday
Jan 21 Clear
Hi: 64° Lo: 44°
Sunny skies.


Thursday
Jan 22 Clear
Hi: 63° Lo: 41°
Sunny skies.


Friday
Jan 23 Partly Cloudy
Hi: 68° Lo: 51°
Mostly cloudy skies.


Saturday
Jan 24 Partly Cloudy
Hi: 71° Lo: 43°
Partly cloudy skies.


Sunday
Jan 25 Clear
Hi: 56° Lo: 48°
Sunny skies.

BRRRRRR....I'm kind of disappointed!

 

[MelXThree]

The website is parkpennies.com

Thanks for the info...I amgoing to print the list out tonight

Before our trip we pre-ordered the Photopass CD. So I just got done looking at them. I'm rather disappointed with them. Some of the pictures are dark, like the ones at EPCOT at night with the ball, it looks like the flash only partly worked. Our MK pictures at night with the Castle are tilted and there is a worker guy standing next to us with his broom. Then add to it that all our boarders are still for 2008...nothing for 2009...and Christmas stuff . Plus the pictures aren't zoomed in at all.

Is there a way that we can get out of it? We really hoped that they would turn out much better, they have in the past, but I'm not happy right now with them. I'm hoping that if I look at them on a different computer suddenly everything will change and they will look great .

That's to bad your pics didn't turn out good Here's what photopass e-mail say's:

Satisfaction Guarantee/Return Policy: By taking advantage of Disney's PhotoCD plus Photo Book Pre-Arrival Savings Offer, you are guaranteed to get a great value on our most popular memory keepsakes. This e-mail contains your two promotion codes. You will use these codes to get all Disney's PhotoPass images in your account on an archive quality CD as well as a copyright release that allows you to reprint and use your images in the sizes and formats that you wish, plus you will use the second code to order a Professional Photo Book. You must purchase the pre-arrival offer before your vacation and then order your CD or CD + Book after your vacation. The promotion codes cannot be combined with any other offers. You must order your PhotoCD and Photo Book in separate orders. If for any reason you are not satisfied with the photos and decide that you no longer want to order your Disney's PhotoCD or Photo Book, just let us know and you will receive a full refund. To receive a refund, you must request it within 2 weeks after the completion of your Disney vacation and you must not use the special promotion code to order Disney's PhotoCD or Photo Book. If the promotion code has been used, a refund will not be granted.

 

[EPCOT is a verb]

We're also doing the Gospel Brunch at the House of Blues, high tea at the GF and maybe dinner at Planet Hollywood. I tried to go for a mix of fun, Disney meals and more sophisticated meals. Hopefully, it'll all be good

Tea at the GF was one of the highlights of our trip! It is beautiful, elegant, and delicious. Enjoy yourselves.

 

[Northern Disney Girl]

I don't know if this will help you or not, but at Wal-mart and target they have little plastic 3 oz bottles in their travel section. This helps me, as i'm not good with measurements at all.

I measured my Airport Security APproved Hefty travel bags and they are about 8 x 6 1/2 inches and say Quart size. Our Target store sells a pack of 4 I think in the aisle where the travel size toiletries are.

Thanks so much! I guess I have some shopping to do! Drat!

 

[Mndisneygirl]

Where is everyone? Either too busy packing or frozen? I'm working on my binder full of stuff trying to get organized. Gathering documents...

A week from now I will be here with only one child. DH and DD5 will be somewhere near Madison WI. That will be so weird!

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

Where is everyone? Either too busy packing or frozen? I'm working on my binder full of stuff trying to get organized.

I've been working on my income taxes all day! Oh - and I am frozen. Our high was 0 today!!

 

[Mndisneygirl]

I've been working on my income taxes all day! Oh - and I am frozen. Our high was 0 today!!

Oh, man, you are going to need this vacation! I'm not even thinking about it until I get back!

 

[crzyred]

ok, so maybe it's just post vacation blues or something, but things are not going well today.

I just opened the mail to find out that because I pay my credit card bill on time every month and rarely have an outstanding balance, they are uping my APR from 6.9% to 19.9%. UGH.

I've also been hibernating all day. I changed from my pajamas to sweatpants and stayed that way all day.

 

[Tropigal]

Hello from Disney!!!
We arrived around noon today after leaving Cleveland in -12 Degree weather and then arriving in Memphis to 12 Degree we arrived in beautiful Orlando to 50 Degrees and sunny skies. It was a gorgeous day!

We didn't do any parks today but did go to Prime Outlets because my BFF's aunt is MGr at the Disney Character Store there. I got 4 of the bags that the parks sell with the tree of life on it and some other great deals!

We didn't go anywhere near Disney today besides driving past DTD on the highway. Airport and Rental Cars were NUTTTO. ..lots of cheering competitions going on now as well as soccer tourneys.

Tomorrow we are heading to MK for rope drop and we have Chef Mickeys for dinner. It will be a long day for us with the 2 kiddos who are almost 2 and 3 1/2. We did MK in June so we will take our time and I'm not worried about crowds at all....I expect it to be busier but not like it was in June.

We are not staying on property either, we are at Orange Lake and so far so good! I will try to update daily!!!

 

[Momto2PrncChrmgs]

Thanks for all the welcomes! I just got off the phone with the dining people-again, I think they must know me by now, I've made so many changes!

Here's our dining schedule for now-
1/26 dinner at 50s Primetime
1/27 dinner at Marrekesh (thought DH would enjoy the belly dancer)
1/28 late (hopefully romantic) dinner at Jiko
1/29 early breakfast at Crystal Palace
1/30 Norway Princess breakfast (I know I'm old, but I'm still a sucker for stuff like that!), dinner at the Garden Grill
2/1 dinner at Teppan Edo
2/2 Boma breakfast right before we leave

We're also doing the Gospel Brunch at the House of Blues, high tea at the GF and maybe dinner at Planet Hollywood. I tried to go for a mix of fun, Disney meals and more sophisticated meals. Hopefully, it'll all be good!

I have to smile when I read everyone's reports about school closings, that's all in the past for me! The kids would be so excited when there was a snow day and crestfallen when there wasn't. My youngest is in college now, so I'm empty-nesting it.

First of all Welcome!! I would LOVE to try the Gospel Brunch or even go to dinner at House of Blues one of these days. If we ever not do the dining plan, it will be on the list. I just can't justify paying out of pocket when I've paid so much for the plan! Let us know how it is!

 

[Momto2PrncChrmgs]

I'm am so excited I have a three day weekend!! I have so much to do this weekend-grocery shop, pack, make tshirts, clean, make dinner for my mom's bday (lasagna-yum)...I'm exhausted just thinking about it but at least I DON'T HAVE TO WORK FOR THREE DAY!!

Only 1 more week until we start the road trip!! Anyone have any new ideas to keep a 6 yr old and a 2 1/2 yr old entertained for 20 hours! (I"m thinking Benedryl? ) But seriously, we have the DVD player and plenty of movies (I thought about borrowing a few new ones that they haven't seen yet), and I have some Color Wonder markers and books...anyone have anything else that's worked for them? I'm really stressing about the driving part. On the way down, they will hopefully sleep some of the way since we're driving thru the night, but until they fall asleep...

 

[trixiequilts]

Anyone have any new ideas to keep a 6 yr old and a 2 1/2 yr old entertained for 20 hours!

You are a brave woman!

My girls really liked those little pieces of wax covered string...they were called Wiki Sticks when we had them...they're advertised all the time on TV as something else that for the life of me I can't think of right now!

I've also (this sounds really dumb but it worked) given them a baggie full of twist ties to hook together or a roll of scotch-type tape which they just stuck onto the pages in a notebook! This was a while ago, by the way, I don't think twist ties and tape would amuse them as much now. But I guess it depends how desperate they are, right?

 

[dundeehunter]

A week from now I will be here with only one child. DH and DD5 will be somewhere near Madison WI. That will be so weird!

Hopefully WI and Minnesota will be much warmer next week!

I've also (this sounds really dumb but it worked) given them a baggie full of twist ties to hook together or a roll of scotch-type tape which they just stuck onto the pages in a notebook! This was a while ago, by the way, I don't think twist ties and tape would amuse them as much now. But I guess it depends how desperate they are, right?

LOVE that creativity! My girls also love toothpicks and pipecliners, but they are 9 & 12. Luckily they have Nintendo DS's and all we have to do is buy a new game and they are silent for a good 2 hours in the car!

I was out and about tonight in the -10 degree weather. Thought I would hit Target's clearance racks... 75% with an extra 30%. Found some pants for DD9...$2.47 for jeans!!! I bought myself a men's terry bathrobe. Was originally $31.99, it was a steal for $4.35!

Since I work for the State of WI, we have Monday off, so I don't have to go back to work for another 12 days ! I'm not really enjoying the weather forecast for WDW next week, but compared to the sub zero weather this week, I'm okay with 58 degrees maybe.

My DD's and DH are going ice fishing tomorrow is this weather up near Crzyred... so I'm hoping to do some deep cleaning on my bathroom floors. Until tomorrow....

 

[figmentfan0724]

Good Evening Snowbirds, I just back from my first night back to work. Let me tell you it was so hard to get back to wrk after a wondefully relaxing vacation.
I must first start by saying this was the best vacation we have had in a long time!!!!! the only bump on the road was that our room wasn't ready on time. SSR was beautiful as always, service was fantastic as usual and the weather was absoutly great, even when it got colder the last two days!

 

[Remmy]

Hi Everyone! Thank you for the warm thoughts of concern on what I have been up to. It is now crunch time for me and DH has a karate thingie he wants to go to on Saturday then that night out with friends to see a UFC show on tv. I asked him when he would find time to do all the things on his list and he said he would. Right now he is still on item 2 on a long list. I just have to have faith he will come through. Sadly, I don't have much faith. He was to put on a "pod" or as a co-worker says a "coffin looking thing" for our luggage on top of our vehicle. He procrastinates until now with frigid temperatures (we have had this for 5 months in our basement ) so I think he may have learned his lesson, or maybe not. It just puts more pressure on me. Oh well, I have off this Wednesday, the day we leave to try to finish and do it all.

To all those Snowbirds that have returned:

Welcome back and thank you for the updates and tips you have brought back. I love looking at the pictures and any trip reports that you have done. I cannot wait to read more about your adventures.


To all Snowbirds yet to leave:

Thank you for sticking around and still coming up with fantastic ideas. Tomorrow is the day I make my LGMH and attach them to my backpack, camera bag and stroller (large tag for that one) and a large door decoration with my DIS name on it. Great idea to include avatar pic too. I also have to clean my pennies for the penny pressing machines we plan to hit. So much to do but thanks to all the posts, I can find great ideas and live with my decisions.
I wish all Snowbirds about to leave a wonderful and magical time. I will keep my eyes out for LGMH as we still have that contest going on don't we on who meets the most Snowbirds? I know it will be hard to know who I am since I didn't post a pic but I think I will copy the idea of the luggage tag on one side and LGMH on the other. We will have to keep our eyes peeled in lines (If there is any ). Hopefully we all experience warm weather and low crowd levels.


To all Snowbirds there now:
Have a great and enjoyable time. Keep us informed and I hope you discover magical and new experiences.


To all Snowbirds still joining us:

I believe we are a lovely group of people and we love to chat about our Disney vacations. I welcome all of you to our group and feel free to jump in and share your thoughts and comments. I think it is great that people are still finding our group half way into the month and want to join. I think that with 4 threads on the same subject under our belts and still going strong it speaks volumes on the caliber of people on this thread. Again welcome .

I will end now wishing everyone a safe and stay warm evening.

Remmy