July 9, 2006 WONDERful Cruise! All Aboard!

[Trishde]

The countdown is on & the clothes & supplies are being collected. Van is being checked out & getting it ready tomorrow.
We leave July 4th for the long drive down the East Coast WOOHOO!!!
We are due at Boardwalk July 5th. The kids get out of school this coming Monday (now they will really be thinking about it!)
My husband is in desparate need of this vacation.
Everyone have a good one!!

 

[Hollyster2]

We are collecting our clothes and supplies on our dining room table.
I just need to see all that we have, and what we still need. I wish I had a spare room to lay out suit cases, but I don't.

My kids are out of school as of tomorrow! We will actually get serious about our packing after Father's Day. I want to go pick up some of those hand sanitizer gel things that hook onto your purse or back pack. They are so handy! Found some "Ariel" (Disney) Sunscreen to bring with us.

Have fun counting down the final weeks!

 

[jimmiej]

I think I'm going through a "lull" right now. I've planned for so long & now I'm ready, but still a few days left...

 

[Hollyster2]

Anyone watching the weather they are having in Florida? What do you think?

 

[pacercolt]

It's not long now!!

 

[jimmiej]

Anyone else get their cruise package in the mail?

 

[Trishde]

We got ours today!
Showed the kids, we are so very excited about our 1st Disney cruise.
I have to call about the lugggage tags since we are driving in. I would assume that we put the tags on what will go with us on the cruise.
That I would do when we leave Boardwalk.
Since school is finally out (monday was their last day) they are going crazy.
At least we have the next 2 saturdays filled (10 year old finally sleepover almost a month late & his friend is having a pool party.
During week we are enjoying pool working on base tan & the whole sunscreen (getting them used to it again).
My 10 year old is getting worried about the banana boat, he is the rollercoaster king (i think he is more concerned with the carribean water & sharks but I told them both no sharks)
Getting them really geared since we are leaving nj on the 4th. pirates movie comes out on 7th & the ride opens back up, hoping they make a deal, I did see that they were going to have activities along with the reopening of ride.
My kids are disney channel fanatics & were hoping the hannah montana concert at typhoon lagoon was while we were there but found out it was tomorrow.
I am no where near ready as I would normally be but gotta get a move on it. I need to get some shorts since I finally made goal on weight watchers. I didn't want to get too much to make sure now I don't have enough.
6 weeks of maintenance (2 of which will be vacation) Wish me luck, I am allowing myself 5 lb for the cruise (with all the walking we do at "the world" i have not had to worry about that so I am leaving that for the cruise) so I have leeway before & after for weighins to keep within for lifetime.

Hope everyone is as excited & looking forward to meeting

WOO HOO!!

 

[jimmiej]

I have to call about the lugggage tags since we are driving in. I would assume that we put the tags on what will go with us on the cruise.
That I would do when we leave Boardwalk.

I was wondering about that also. We're staying at BCV a week prior to our cruise. I think you're correct about when to use the luggage tags.

I need to get some shorts since I finally made goal on weight watchers. I didn't want to get too much to make sure now I don't have enough.
6 weeks of maintenance (2 of which will be vacation) Wish me luck, I am allowing myself 5 lb for the cruise (with all the walking we do at "the world" i have not had to worry about that so I am leaving that for the cruise) so I have leeway before & after for weighins to keep within for lifetime.

Congrats on reaching your goal! DW & I do WW also. We just don't worry about it on vacation.

 

[Trishde]

I called dcl and they said to put the tags on before we leave the resort to drive over.
Thanks!! I am not going to go crazy worrying about what i eat on cruise but I am going to stay active.
I am on maintenance for the 6 weeks so I don't want to mess that up. I have never been a lifetime & that is my next goal.
Have a good one!!

 

[Hollyster2]

Finally doing the Doc dance here!!!!!!!

The trip is so close!!!!! We are getting so excited!

 

[Trishde]

Is anyone ordering any gift baskets? Either from dcl or Shirley's. Thought I might order a snack basket for the kids since it is thir frist cruise.
Thanks
It's really here, wow, we leave tuesday morning at 4am (unless dh can't sleep).
I just read that Epcot is having a summer concert series and that a Billy Joel tribute band will be plaing (they are called 52nd strret & I think they have played at house of blues in my area)
I'll have to look into that when we get there.
Have a good one!

 

[Hollyster2]

I HAVE BUTTERFLIES IN MY STOMACH!
We leave on Friday! All packed up except for the last minute things we will use the morning we head out. The house is all clean, and groceries bought for the older ones staying behind. I will miss them, much more than they will miss me I am sure.

I didn't order anything to be sent to the ship, but if I had I would have for sure used Shirly. I just couldn't decide on what to order for my group. I did order some things from the Disney Florist to have sent to our resort!

I hope you all have a wonderful cruise, and PLEASE come back and post on this thread about your trips!!! Ok?

 

[jimmiej]

Is anyone ordering any gift baskets? Either from dcl or Shirley's.

Since we're celebrating our 25th anniversary, I ordered a dozen red roses from DCL for my wife. Aren't I a good husband?

BTW, we're leaving on Sunday (July 2) at 5 am. I won't be able to sleep! Just like the commercial! I told DW we need to be in bed no later than 9 pm as we need to get up by 4 am.

Hollyster, we're leaving our kids behind too (20 & 23). I only hope the house is still standing when we return!

 

[Hollyster2]

OH HOW SWEET of you to send your wife roses!!!! I hope you have a wonderful Anniversary celebration!

My twins daughters are almost 20, and I will hardly see them before we leave. I think one may have dinner with us tonight, but the other will have to work. In the morning the one working tonight will go with us to the airport to drop us off. SO WEIRD to not have them going on this family vacation!! My 16 yr old is really looking forward to being the "oldest" kid on the trip though. Hope it turns out to be all she thinks it is cracked up to be.

Our 2 cats definitely know something is up. They keep sitting on top of the suitcases and giving us "the Look".
We leave in the morning!

 

[Hollyster2]

Hello!
We got back on Sunday, and STILL wish we were back in Florida! We had such a wonderful time on the cruise, too! I am still working on laundry around here and getting back in to the routine of home. Is anyone else back yet?

 

[jimmiej]

We came home when the cruise ended. We spent a week in WDW prior to the cruise. DW & I were blown away back Castaway Cay (especially Serenity Bay) & Palo's.

 

[Trishde]

We got back last Friday night. We ended up only staying one night in Cocoa Beach. Space center barely took 1/2 the day (since we were off the ship by 7:35 am we were in the parking lot before it opened).
I left our toothbrushes on the ship (think I might have left a couple of other things that I can't find) that is so unlike me.
The days inn we stayed at in cocoa beach went downhill (we stayed there 9 years ago but they had a decent review on orbitz, I am going to add my review since we were dissappointed). We get home and they charged us for both nights when we cancelled the 2nd night within more than the time allowable.
We did book another Disney cruise while on board, we are going same time next year, flying in (no more driving for us).
A couple of days in Disney.
Did anyone get a glimpse of Johnny Depp or Orlando Bloom. Rumor was they were staying in Beach Club (we stayed at Boardwalk)?
The kids loved the clubs, we obviously loved the cruise!! We went to Palo Wednesday night, well worth it. We did get to Serenity Bay (hubby thought too quiet but I thought it was perfectly quiet).
I was going to bring a journal so I would have an awesome review for the trip report but will have to do it from memory.
Next time since I will be more aware of what I am doing. We definitely packed way too much. But next time we are going with a one bedroom at boardwalk instead of studio so i have 24 hour access to washer & dryer before cruise.
I also lost 3 lbs during the 10 days we were away (I was comfortable, didn't deny myself anything & drank like a fish) they were amazed at my weight watchers meeting on Tuesday but in Disney one day I clocked in 21,000 steps so we were active, I went to the gym one day on the ship & took the stairs.
Can't wait to go again next year, think we are hooked!!
I am also taking just the 2 younger kids & my friend and her daughter to Disney World in April (my hubby & oldest will hopefully survive alone together without the mediator, lol)
We had the early seating with Coskun & Eva (our rotation was TAAP so I had to change our Palo), they were great.
I was one number off the Bingo jackpot $2700 would have been a nice chunk to help pay for the next cruise, lol.
Hope everyone else had a great cruise!!

 

[Hollyster2]

Serenity Bay was just the best! We did brunch at Palo and enjoyed that very much. Great seats for the show on Pirate Night! My husband really went all out--he had a stick on beaded beard and everything. I kept losing him in the crowd because he looked so unlike himself!

 

[jimmiej]

Holly:

If you were at Serenity Bay, we probably saw you. Were you with some other couples?

 

[Hollyster2]

HI!
We were with one other couple, but while at Serenity Bay we met some other people. Amoung them was a very nice couple from Pennsylvania that gave us quite a bit of information on some of the sea creatures!
While sitting by the water's edge a big blue crab came up from the sand right under my friend's chair so you may have heard us all yelling about that. LOL