Lesson learned. Need more days in Disney!!! Aug 2010 (NEW 1/20-COMPLETE)

[englishrose47]

Just popping in to say Hi and let you know I posted the Albany pix on my TR!!!

 

[Flossbolna]

Hi Yuki, since we started talking about Kitchener over on Jen's thread I thought I would finally come over and check out your TR! Which is absolutely wonderful! I love to read the experiences of someone who isn't yet a WDW veteran like so many of us are. How great that Andrew enjoyed WDW much more than you first thought he would! I am looking forward to read more about your trip!

 

[dizneeat]

Hi Yuki!

Believe it or not but I am finally all caught up again! And since there are no more school trips planned for a while I'm trying to keep it that way!

I'll keep my fingers crossed for you on Monday!

 

[YukiPhnx]

Just popping in to say Hi and let you know I posted the Albany pix on my TR!!!

Hey Rosie! I'll be right by to check those out!

Hi Yuki, since we started talking about Kitchener over on Jen's thread I thought I would finally come over and check out your TR! Which is absolutely wonderful! I love to read the experiences of someone who isn't yet a WDW veteran like so many of us are. How great that Andrew enjoyed WDW much more than you first thought he would! I am looking forward to read more about your trip!

Hey Magdalene! So good to have you here!

Yeah, he really surprised me as to how much he actually enjoyed being there, after all his talk about him probably not loving it that much. I think it helped that we were experiencing a lot of things for the first time, together.

Hi Yuki!

Believe it or not but I am finally all caught up again! And since there are no more school trips planned for a while I'm trying to keep it that way!

I'll keep my fingers crossed for you on Monday!

Hi Karin! Hooray for being all caught up! Thanks about Monday. I'm feeling pretty confident about it.

 

[YukiPhnx]

Catching up on all that I've missed!

I love all the outfits you have for your Duffy because my DFi got me my early Christmas present - a bear from Build a Bear Workshop! I'm really excited to have "Howie Wary Bear" keep me company during the week when I'm missing DFi. I also am excited because I might be able to get some Duffy costumes for him when we go in February! I actually have that green and white striped hoodie from BABW for my bear!

Awesome! I've always wanted a stuffed animal from that place, but I'm glad I waited for my Duffy McDuff. I went back to the store a week after I bought him the striped hoodie, and they didn't have it anymore! I'm glad I bought it when I did. I also bought him the dress shirt with vest and tie. He'll be wearing that when I go to my fancier ADRs at WDW.

Ooo, that roped off area with the staircase in Italy looks so pretty! Could probably get some really pretty engagement or wedding photos there!

Ooooh, that sounds like a great idea! It is a very nice looking place.

I love that you went crazy over the Gulden's spicy brown mustard. It is really good, isn't it? If you're in NY delis, they always use brown mustard. They don't give the yellow stuff from the bottles. Good mustards changes everything!

I almost tempted to bring the mustard with me when I get deli sandwiches....Gulden's is just sooo good.

Haha, it's so funny when people think about fortune cookies when they think of Chinese culture. I have to tell them that they were made in California ... haha. I still like them though!

Did I mention they were citrus flavoured? Citrus flavoured fortune cookies....very Chinese stuff.

HAHA, I loved the Tom and "soup" thing!!! In 2008 when we spent time exploring the store, my dad was picking out all the Chinese name necklaces and saying that they weren't correct. I can't read Chinese, so I wouldn't know any better!

Haha yeah, Andrew and I did a bit of that too! We couldn't believe how unauthentic some of the stuff were, especially being run by Chinese people straight from the mainland.

Those pictures of Andrew eating his sandwich at EoS should be used in an advertisement for the place! Haha, he makes it look so good. The Full Montagu is the one that my DFi also likes, I think. I'm a huge fan of the All American, which is turkey, cheddar cheese, cranberry, ranch, tomato, and lettuce. Perfect combo with that bread, in my opinion!

Hmmm, maybe I should make a deal with EoS....pictures of Andrew "enjoying" the Montagu for free sandwiches!

We actually considered getting the All American, but never got around to it. It's definitely something I'm ordering the next time I'm there.

 

[Dina Monster]

Nah I just deleted my old account. I was spending too much time on here so I pulled myself away. I am back I just kind of lurk now because I'm in school again so I'm writing papers all the time now. And then I started Belly Dance back up, started running 5Ks for fun and joined an adult soccer league. So needless to say I've been pretty busy. When your hubby is gone you have to till your time up some how. He will be back for the holidays but then back to Texas for another month or so. It's kind of tough.

I did a TR for DL but then I deleted my account so I don't know if it is there. But it was really cold for July! I was expecting you know sunny California but I got 60 degree weather! It was quiet shocking to say the least. But I think because I said this was going to be our last trip for a while I ended up bumping into a lot of characters. I got to meet Tiana and she was super nice! I still have yet to meet Aladdin someday. But overall the trip was great! All the CMs kept telling me Happy Birthday and all the Characters were overly nice! I was so thrilled with the whole couple of days. I would never go again for my birthday main cause of crowds but it was cool to go just once.

Yeah I really want to take a trip up there. I know there is a cheap place I can stay, but I think we were worried about getting a rental car. The offer tours at the place we could stay so maybe they would take us on the other side. Not sure...but it's worth a try.

Right now I'm most excited about going to the Caribbean for the first time ever on a cruise. When my husband gets finished with training that's our plans.

Yes, I am excited about the Con one of my friend's is running a Maid Lolita Cafe during the Con. So I was going to drive up to PHX and visit for a bit I know she'll be busy but it'll be fun and I don't mind walking around too much by myself and if I get bored I'll just stay in the cafe. But lately my husband has been super addicted to Anime which we rent on Netflix and he keeps telling me about all these shows I should watch. Of course they are all "guy" type shows haha so they end up coming to the house and I have to watch them. It's really cute I'm glad my hubby got back into Anime.

 

[heathsf]

Heather, you are in the exact same boat I was in before my trip. I was super excited about everything, and would often tell him about my plans, but he really wasn't that interested. He's also not much of a Disney fan and hasn't been back to WDW since he was a little kid, and he barely remembers THAT trip.

I say try to plan the trip around him also. Maybe tell him about Hidden Mickey's and how it's like a scavenger hunt when you're in line. See if he's interested in that. When you go shopping, allow him to go off on his own and do his thing if he's not interested. No reason to keep him bored and following you around.

You know what he's actually interested in, so make it a point to point those things out. As a computer engineer, Andrew is very interested in programming, which is why Turtle Talk with Crush really blew his mind because he understood how complicated the programming must be. I also knew that he would not like to wake up EVERY DAY at 7am to get to a park at rope drop. So I planned plenty of days where we can sleep in and just relax or go around the resorts.

If he's into sports, maybe plan a lunch or dinner at the ESPN zone at the Boardwalk so he can catch a game.

If he's not into planning and prefer not to have to decide stuff, it's best to have an itinerary. You don't have to stick right to it, but you at least can answer the question "What next?" instead of saying, "I dunno, what do you want to do?".

I also know Andrew likes to drink, so I did my research on what the DIS recommends and had those in mind to recommend him, so we didn't have to spend time deciding if we wanted to try something. Get to know the menus of the restaurants in the parks, so you know what they're serving before you get into the lines.

If you plan to resort hop, get to know the transportation system and how they work, so you don't get stalled somewhere or even lost!

Since I'm sure you plan to souvenir shop, write down a list of what you're interested in getting, kind of like a shopping list. So all the merchandise doesn't distract you and you don't spend hours going through the shops just to "see what I might like". That'll cut down on browsing time and give you more time to just enjoy the parks.

I think what surprised me most with Andrew is the effort he put into enjoying himself. He really made an effort to appreciate what I appreciated and took the time to get to like the things that I liked, even if he wasn't sure about it before. He also really loved how prepared I was, that I knew exactly where we were going and that we had a plan. He's the indecisive type, so for me to lead the way was very good for him.

I think in the end, I wasn't super surprised. I was always worried he wouldn't have a good time in the parks, because he just wasn't interested, but he always reassured me that as long as I was having a good time, he would too. Instead of getting frustrated with your DBF, don't talk so much about your trip if he looks like he's getting annoyed by it. If you make ADRs, run it by him to make sure he's not against it, but otherwise, just keep him in mind with your plans. The DIS is here to share all your plans with, so you have US to talk to and be excited with. That's really what I learned from my planning.

If you need any more help, please just ask!

Wow I got so behind on this thread! Thank you for such a thorough response

I really think your advice is great. Thank you thank you thank you!

 

[MAGICFOR2]

Catching up on all that I've missed!

I love all the outfits you have for your Duffy because my DFi got me my early Christmas present - a bear from Build a Bear Workshop! I'm really excited to have "Howie Wary Bear" keep me company during the week when I'm missing DFi. I also am excited because I might be able to get some Duffy costumes for him when we go in February! I actually have that green and white striped hoodie from BABW for my bear!

Ooo, that roped off area with the staircase in Italy looks so pretty! Could probably get some really pretty engagement or wedding photos there!

I love that you went crazy over the Gulden's spicy brown mustard. It is really good, isn't it? If you're in NY delis, they always use brown mustard. They don't give the yellow stuff from the bottles. Good mustards changes everything!

Haha, it's so funny when people think about fortune cookies when they think of Chinese culture. I have to tell them that they were made in California ... haha. I still like them though!

HAHA, I loved the Tom and "soup" thing!!! In 2008 when we spent time exploring the store, my dad was picking out all the Chinese name necklaces and saying that they weren't correct. I can't read Chinese, so I wouldn't know any better!

Those pictures of Andrew eating his sandwich at EoS should be used in an advertisement for the place! Haha, he makes it look so good. The Full Montagu is the one that my DFi also likes, I think. I'm a huge fan of the All American, which is turkey, cheddar cheese, cranberry, ranch, tomato, and lettuce. Perfect combo with that bread, in my opinion!

Hi! Are you thinking of a Disney Wedding or engagement party? I've been reading Lurkyloo's TRs - she had a Disney wedding, and now writes for Passporter about Disney weddings - here is her blog on that subject:

http://disneytravelbabble.com/welcome-to-disney-travel-babble/

 

[lmbcdb]

Hey Lisa! I just checked my pictures and they look ok, so I hope it's just a computer problem for you. I've posted so many pictures!

It was my work computer - saw all the pics at home. I guess it's time to update IE!

Anyway, I love your TR. It's just the right mix for me of pictures and story. It's keeping me entertained as I get ready for my trip!

 

[YukiPhnx]

It was my work computer - saw all the pics at home. I guess it's time to update IE!

Anyway, I love your TR. It's just the right mix for me of pictures and story. It's keeping me entertained as I get ready for my trip!

I'm so glad you can see my pictures!

You're leaving in less than a week! You must be so excited! It's getting SO COLD here, I wish I could leave too.

 

[YukiPhnx]

Wow I got so behind on this thread! Thank you for such a thorough response

I really think your advice is great. Thank you thank you thank you!

I just asked Andrew about what you asked me and he told me he was "pleasantly surprised with how much I enjoyed it".

The big thing to remember is really not to expect too much, or you'll just be disappointed in the end. Don't push it too much on him or he might come to not like it at all. Just remember that as long as you're together, and you both remain positive, then you'll have a great trip for sure.

 

[YukiPhnx]

Nah I just deleted my old account. I was spending too much time on here so I pulled myself away. I am back I just kind of lurk now because I'm in school again so I'm writing papers all the time now. And then I started Belly Dance back up, started running 5Ks for fun and joined an adult soccer league. So needless to say I've been pretty busy. When your hubby is gone you have to till your time up some how. He will be back for the holidays but then back to Texas for another month or so. It's kind of tough.

Wow, you've been getting so active! Yeah, it must be hard to not be able to see him often. Andrew and I had a long distance relationship since we started. We were always 5 hrs away from each other. It's not as far apart as you guys, but far enough to not see each other as much as we liked.

I did a TR for DL but then I deleted my account so I don't know if it is there. But it was really cold for July! I was expecting you know sunny California but I got 60 degree weather! It was quiet shocking to say the least. But I think because I said this was going to be our last trip for a while I ended up bumping into a lot of characters. I got to meet Tiana and she was super nice! I still have yet to meet Aladdin someday. But overall the trip was great! All the CMs kept telling me Happy Birthday and all the Characters were overly nice! I was so thrilled with the whole couple of days. I would never go again for my birthday main cause of crowds but it was cool to go just once.

Wait a minute...I DID read about it~ I remember seeing your picture with Tiana! Haha, silly me. Yeah, Andrew loved that people were saying Happy Birthday to him. That attention is just awesome. It's always cool to go at least once on your birthday. I'd love to try that one year.

Yeah I really want to take a trip up there. I know there is a cheap place I can stay, but I think we were worried about getting a rental car. The offer tours at the place we could stay so maybe they would take us on the other side. Not sure...but it's worth a try.

Oooh, a tour would be nice, but it's definitely best to go on your own. It's a pretty small place so there isn't much to navigate. If you ever do come up here, let me know! I'll give you a tour.

Right now I'm most excited about going to the Caribbean for the first time ever on a cruise. When my husband gets finished with training that's our plans.

Oh a cruise! Awesome!!! I loved going on a Caribbean cruise. You're going to love it.

Yes, I am excited about the Con one of my friend's is running a Maid Lolita Cafe during the Con. So I was going to drive up to PHX and visit for a bit I know she'll be busy but it'll be fun and I don't mind walking around too much by myself and if I get bored I'll just stay in the cafe. But lately my husband has been super addicted to Anime which we rent on Netflix and he keeps telling me about all these shows I should watch. Of course they are all "guy" type shows haha so they end up coming to the house and I have to watch them. It's really cute I'm glad my hubby got back into Anime.

Aww, it's so awesome he's getting back into it. Andrew and I have been watching some more shows lately. We just really haven't had any time to just sit and watch anime.

Oooh, a maid lolita cafe! My friend was one of the maids at our con's cafe. I've also cosplayed as a maid before. I just love it. I'm planning on making more maid costumes

I find that I tend to wander by myself around cons a lot. It's so hard to stick together if your friends have slightly different tastes. But it's perfectly ok to walk around yourself. You might make new friends!

 

[Dina Monster]

Oh yeah totally I'll let you know! How far away do you live from Niagara? I know the Hubby has been wanting to go there for a while and it's a little trip I keep in the back of my head that needs to happen. I wanna aim for like the 4th of July here. It's kind of close to my Birthday same month at least. I will have to see.

Yeah it's rough having to do long distance period, I mean don't get me wrong I know that 5 hours is still a long drive to go! It really is! It just stinks not having him here at all when you are so used to him being around ALL THE TIME. But I know it is only for a short period and then it will be over. It's just tough...

I don't think I will dress up I really seriously considered a Wa-Lolita outfit but i decided against it cause I wanna be comfortable. Haha!

Can't wait to read more!

 

[YukiPhnx]

Oh yeah totally I'll let you know! How far away do you live from Niagara? I know the Hubby has been wanting to go there for a while and it's a little trip I keep in the back of my head that needs to happen. I wanna aim for like the 4th of July here. It's kind of close to my Birthday same month at least. I will have to see.

I live about 1.5 hrs from Niagara, so it's not far at all. Oooh, a July trip! That sounds great. I think it's best to visit the Falls when it's hot, cause the mist from the Falls is really breezy and wet, which is SOOO refreshing on a hot day. But then, I've been to the Falls at all times of the year and always love it.

Yeah it's rough having to do long distance period, I mean don't get me wrong I know that 5 hours is still a long drive to go! It really is! It just stinks not having him here at all when you are so used to him being around ALL THE TIME. But I know it is only for a short period and then it will be over. It's just tough...

I'm here for your sister

I don't think I will dress up I really seriously considered a Wa-Lolita outfit but i decided against it cause I wanna be comfortable. Haha!

Can't wait to read more!

You were going to do Wa-Lolita??? Adorable! It's not THAT uncomfortable. I go out in sweet and classic lolita pretty often. But then...those styles are typically more comfortable....minus the headdress on my sweet lolita.

awesome stuff

And thank you!

 

[Dina Monster]

Haha okay Yuki you caught me the real reason was I didn't want to get stares! I've never dressed up for a con and since I haven't been to one since I was 20...a little over 7 years I was a little nervous. I might still do it or I'll just wear a cute dress and take tons of pictures and post them on Facebook. Haha!

Yeah I think July might work as long as we can get a good flight up there. 4th of July weekend would be great and Michael wants to see Niagara really bad.

I was just thinking cause you live in Toronto or outside of it right? Not that this is by any means close but I just suddenly remember my younger brother is moving to North Bay I think it's a ways outside of Toronto not sure what is there I just know it's near a lake. I was jealous for a little bit but seeing how bad the weather is right now, I think I'm not anymore haha.

 

[YukiPhnx]

Haha okay Yuki you caught me the real reason was I didn't want to get stares! I've never dressed up for a con and since I haven't been to one since I was 20...a little over 7 years I was a little nervous. I might still do it or I'll just wear a cute dress and take tons of pictures and post them on Facebook. Haha!

Oooh, a cute dress sounds nice. Haha, well, you definitely can't be shy if you want to cosplay. I can't wait to see pictures! (but I don't have facebook....)

Yeah I think July might work as long as we can get a good flight up there. 4th of July weekend would be great and Michael wants to see Niagara really bad.

Wow, I had no idea Michael wanted to see Niagara that badly. 4th of July sounds like a good time to come! The crowds should be better cause it's past our Canada Day on Jul 1st.

I was just thinking cause you live in Toronto or outside of it right? Not that this is by any means close but I just suddenly remember my younger brother is moving to North Bay I think it's a ways outside of Toronto not sure what is there I just know it's near a lake. I was jealous for a little bit but seeing how bad the weather is right now, I think I'm not anymore haha.

My family is in Toronto, but I go to school outside of it. So...depending on your definition of "live in" it can be both!

Yeah.....don't be jealous....it's freezing up here! At least it's not as bad as out west, but the weather here is just funky.....I'm jealous of where YOU live!

 

[Dina Monster]

Tell me when you wanna visit! Buhaha it was 80 degrees today, I couldn't believe, it is not normal for this time of year. I would be wearing a sweater and maybe a jacket not running around in shorts.

Oh yeah Michael has been bugging me about the whole state of New York ever since we got married. He has wanted to go to Niagara Falls and he wants to go to NYC. Which both are doable just the timing has to be perfect since we are both active duty military it's hard to pinpoint things we are going to do you know? I try to plan things in advance and hope they work out.

 

[YukiPhnx]

Tell me when you wanna visit! Buhaha it was 80 degrees today, I couldn't believe, it is not normal for this time of year. I would be wearing a sweater and maybe a jacket not running around in shorts.

Oh yeah Michael has been bugging me about the whole state of New York ever since we got married. He has wanted to go to Niagara Falls and he wants to go to NYC. Which both are doable just the timing has to be perfect since we are both active duty military it's hard to pinpoint things we are going to do you know? I try to plan things in advance and hope they work out.

Yeah, timing must be a hard thing for you guys. I'd LOVE to visit~ I was planning on going next fall. We'll see....

Well, let me know if you really do get to come up here and we'll figure out the deets to meet up.

 

[YukiPhnx]

The search for pretzel bread

After hearing the story from Magdalene (flossbolna) that her server in Le Cellier mentioned the pretzel was from Kitchener (the city adjacent to the one I go to school in), I knew I had to look for it.

I also heard that it was made by the mennonnite women in our Waterloo/Kitchener area. I've always known there was a Farmer's Market close by, but I've never been. So today, I set out to experience the Farmer's Market for the first time, as well as look for the pretzel bread!

My housemate and I set out at noon because the market closes at 3pm. We got there in no time at all! I really had no idea it was so close by. Just a hop step away from my house.

Here is the entrance to one of the buildings. This one had food on the bottom floor, and knick knacks for sale on the upper floor.

Some vendors were outside the building. There isn't a lot because it was so cold.

A fruit and veggie stand right as we walk in. Everything looked so wonderfully fresh.

We walk around a bit, all the while checking out bakeries for pretzel bread.

Aaaaaaaaaand......I found it!

Wow....that was easy......One stick was $0.75 so I bought two. Here's a photo of the one I DIDN'T already bite into.

Looks pretty good right?

Unfortunately, it wasn't that great. It was way too salty. My housemate took a bite and agreed with me.

So even though I found it, I'm sure there are better ones out there. I went around to all the bakeries at the market and didn't find any more. The search continues!

 

[Flossbolna]

Wow, it really looks like the stuff being sold at the bakeries here in Germany!

If it was too salty, did you try to just scratch of the salt? That's what a lot of people do here.