March 3, 2007

[rpclmc]

Caro, My bruising is up and down, some times/days better and some worse. The pain is much better. The dr. did say I needed to get some Merrill water shoes/sandals. Not something I would normally spend that much money on, but I have always wanted some, so great excuse. They are so comfortable and make swimming so much easier, since I am not flexing the toes (it has a stiff sole - not like the cheapo water shoes). Now, I am going to get spoiled on expensive shoes.

Thanks for the suggestion on boarding early - that will be awesome. I kind of feel like I might be taking advantage of this, but everyone says "go for it". I do have the handicapped placard, but I won't use it at the stores and malls around here; there are so many people who need those spots way worse than I do.

I have taken your dissers suggestions and trying to organize the dissers on my cruise thread to get identifiable name tags. Maybe we just are all apprehensive about things (since we are all new cruisers) and not talking that much. Everyone, on our thread has an 7 or 8 year old kid with them. Which I think is great.

All of you take care and have a great time cruising. I am soooo excited. Who knows maybe we will meet next year. I am already looking at what cruise to do next March. Ugh, now I have another expensive thing to budget for in our expenses (good thing I don't want expensive vehicles and can save money there).

Linda

 

[Johnna_Story]

Poker was great - but I didn't win; just came out even. Better than a loss. There were only three of us, so it wasn't too cutthroat! I'm sure I'll have a deck of cards on the ship! How cool would Disney poker chips be - shaped like the mouse of course???

Carolyn - can't wait for the fashion update!!!

Kim - I'm going to have to dig out our paint chips; I think we used them all as door magnets last year, but to make them name tags is such a great idea. I'll add that to my ever-growing to-do list!!

 

[Brucemcc]

Just found this forum, we also have booked for 03 Mar 2007, 1st time cruisers from Cold Lake Alberta Canada, Husband (40), wife (31), and daughter (10 months). Read all kinds of interesting comments/feedback that has answered many questions we have had. Completely unable to book Palo, seems to be full at least on line.Trying to time it with availability for child care for our daughter, almost impossible to do as everthing seems to be booked. Did book a couple of shore excursions, Castaway Cay catamaran ride, (2hrs), St Maarten, Magen beach and shopping/sight seeing. Seems we are very limited with a young child but leaving her at home wasnt even a thought. Have noticed that many people travel with young children and have little problems. Our concerns are food and diapers mostly as these items are bulky/heavy when travelling and take up a pile of room, any one have advice or faced this dilemma before, do they have provisions on the ship? It also happens to be our anniversary (09 Mar) and our daugthers 1st birthday (01 Mar) so we are turning the cruise into a massive celebration. Do they do anything special for things like birthdays etc? Thanks for the posts, all kinds of wisdom/experience on Disney cruising here for sure.Cheers

 

[alanapapa]

Just found this forum, we also have booked for 03 Mar 2007, 1st time cruisers from Cold Lake Alberta Canada, Husband (40), wife (31), and daughter (10 months). Read all kinds of interesting comments/feedback that has answered many questions we have had. Completely unable to book Palo, seems to be full at least on line.Trying to time it with availability for child care for our daughter, almost impossible to do as everthing seems to be booked. Did book a couple of shore excursions, Castaway Cay catamaran ride, (2hrs), St Maarten, Magen beach and shopping/sight seeing. Seems we are very limited with a young child but leaving her at home wasnt even a thought. Have noticed that many people travel with young children and have little problems. Our concerns are food and diapers mostly as these items are bulky/heavy when travelling and take up a pile of room, any one have advice or faced this dilemma before, do they have provisions on the ship? It also happens to be our anniversary (09 Mar) and our daugthers 1st birthday (01 Mar) so we are turning the cruise into a massive celebration. Do they do anything special for things like birthdays etc? Thanks for the posts, all kinds of wisdom/experience on Disney cruising here for sure.Cheers

Yes they do things for celebrations, talk to your TA or call DCL direct. Let your room steward and the dining room staff know too. You might want to check with Shirley at www.theperfectgift.cc as she has baskets she puts together for cruisers.

I believe that the ship has diapers and stuff, but it will be expensive. Are you going to be in Fl on Friday night? If so, come join us at GRILLS for a Pre-Cruise meet. Come find us at the Cruise Meet onboard too. We are still hoping to have it in Indea88's stateroom, but that might change.

 

[alanapapa]

I finally called Grills as the e-mails I sent all came back as undeliverable and the letter I sent snail-mail was not answered. They said that they do not take reservations on weekends, but if we call at least one hour ahead of time, we can put ourselves on the wait and get tables together.

So.. we will need to have an exact number before I call. We will be staying at the Residence Inn in PC (or is it Cocoa Beach?). I would like to have my list before we leave home though. PM me or email me if you would like to come. So far we have:
Caropooh, Alanapapa and family
Ejkjmom and family
Mark_story, Johnna_Story and family
Shirley and Norm form "The Perfect Gift"

And the people who have sent their regrets:
GDUL
Mermaidbaby
Michaels_mom
MrSanderz
Qball

35 more days

 

[michaels_mom]

OK - I'll volunteer - let's see if we can book up another Palo Brunch ressie and I will send it in...I can start it off with the first five names

1. Shawn Hobbs (the reservation will be under this name - Stateroom 5628
2. Melissa Hobbs - Stateroom 5628
3. Shelley
4. Lynn
5. Kenneth
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.

=======================================================

I'll fill in the blanks for # 3, 4, & 5 when I talk to them here & get the info Can we fill the rest of the names???

 

[Disneybridein2k3]

Hi everybody! Just wanted to say hello. My little counter says 35 days. I'm working on getting off some of these pounds so that I can fit into my summer clothes. Winter has been a buggar for me!

Anyone make their name tags so I can introduce myself and my family at Port while waiting to board?! Ours are made with the paint swatches from Home Depot. They were fun and got lots of looks when we wore them last year. We clip them to our backpack. You'd be surprised who knows a DIS'er but has never posted!

Have a great day!

Kim

Kim -- So glad to see I'm not the only one!!! My dr suggested South Beach b/c my mom is diabetic and she is worried about my sugars. I told her that I would start AFTER my cruise but she said I need to start now. My husband convinced me to wait until after my birthday (32 on Feb 4) so I will do Phase 1 and begin Phase 2 just before the cruise. I flat out told the dr that I was NOT going to be on any sort of diet during the cruise and she agreed it was okay. The good news is I actually do need to lose a few so my summer clothes fit so it came at a decent time I guess!
~Stacy

 

[Disneybridein2k3]

Just found this forum, we also have booked for 03 Mar 2007, 1st time cruisers from Cold Lake Alberta Canada, Husband (40), wife (31), and daughter (10 months). Read all kinds of interesting comments/feedback that has answered many questions we have had. Completely unable to book Palo, seems to be full at least on line.Trying to time it with availability for child care for our daughter, almost impossible to do as everthing seems to be booked. Did book a couple of shore excursions, Castaway Cay catamaran ride, (2hrs), St Maarten, Magen beach and shopping/sight seeing. Seems we are very limited with a young child but leaving her at home wasnt even a thought. Have noticed that many people travel with young children and have little problems. Our concerns are food and diapers mostly as these items are bulky/heavy when travelling and take up a pile of room, any one have advice or faced this dilemma before, do they have provisions on the ship? It also happens to be our anniversary (09 Mar) and our daugthers 1st birthday (01 Mar) so we are turning the cruise into a massive celebration. Do they do anything special for things like birthdays etc? Thanks for the posts, all kinds of wisdom/experience on Disney cruising here for sure.Cheers

Welcome! We are also traveling with a baby (she turned 1 on 1/19). Is your daughter eating any table food yet? We are still doing the baby food thing mostly. I'm trying to break her of the bottle/formula before the cruise but I'm not sure if I'll succeed before we travel. I know we are going to have to basically bring an entire bag full of diapers/wipes/baby food but the good news is it will be an extra bag on the way home for all of the stuff we are going to buy! Check online at disneycruise.com for the celebration package - my husband ordered it for me when we cruised for my 30th birthday - this trip we are celebrating my other daughter's 13th birthday. If there is any questions you have, just ask!

~Stacy

 

[ejkjmom]

Just found this forum, we also have booked for 03 Mar 2007, 1st time cruisers from Cold Lake Alberta Canada, Husband (40), wife (31), and daughter (10 months). Read all kinds of interesting comments/feedback that has answered many questions we have had. Completely unable to book Palo, seems to be full at least on line.Trying to time it with availability for child care for our daughter, almost impossible to do as everthing seems to be booked. Did book a couple of shore excursions, Castaway Cay catamaran ride, (2hrs), St Maarten, Magen beach and shopping/sight seeing. Seems we are very limited with a young child but leaving her at home wasnt even a thought. Have noticed that many people travel with young children and have little problems. Our concerns are food and diapers mostly as these items are bulky/heavy when travelling and take up a pile of room, any one have advice or faced this dilemma before, do they have provisions on the ship? It also happens to be our anniversary (09 Mar) and our daugthers 1st birthday (01 Mar) so we are turning the cruise into a massive celebration. Do they do anything special for things like birthdays etc? Thanks for the posts, all kinds of wisdom/experience on Disney cruising here for sure.Cheers

Hello and welcome!!!!
As far as the diapers etc. go, you could do as alanapappa suggested, (if arriving the night before). Also, I have read (never done it myself) that alot of people mail a box of stuff before their cruise date, w/ name,
stateroom number, etc and that when they arrive to their stateroom, the box is there waiting for them

Hope everyone is having a great weekend!!!!!
Brenda

 

[michaels_mom]

Just found this forum, we also have booked for 03 Mar 2007, 1st time cruisers from Cold Lake Alberta Canada, Husband (40), wife (31), and daughter (10 months)... Our concerns are food and diapers mostly as these items are bulky/heavy when travelling and take up a pile of room, any one have advice or faced this dilemma before, do they have provisions on the ship? It also happens to be our anniversary (09 Mar) and our daugthers 1st birthday (01 Mar) so we are turning the cruise into a massive celebration. Do they do anything special for things like birthdays etc? Thanks for the posts, all kinds of wisdom/experience on Disney cruising here for sure.Cheers

to the group!

For DS's b-day last year, the dining staff came out and sang to him and they had a special cake for him. I also brought all the fixings to decorate our room and the door - they must do something for anniversaries too

I've never done this, but perhaps others will know, what about like ejkjmom suggested and shipping the diapers ahead of time so they'll be at the ship when you get there??

Also, a question from NNM (b/c I can't remember from last year )...when you fly into MCO with Disney, do you collect your own luggage before going to the buses that take you to the port, or does Disney do that??

Yeah - this is post 101

 

[Brucemcc]

Thanks for the tips, tried to get the celebration package and the romantic package a few months back as this seemed to be the only way to get into Palo but as our trip was fully paid for already, I was told that there was no guarantee to get into Palo even with the romantic package if it is fully booked and that my money would not be refunded if they cound not accomidate my wife and I. Also, the packages had to be booked and paid along with the initial cruise price and could not be paid separately afterwards. After hearing that 50% of the reservations are held back for people when they boarded the ship, not too concerned about not getting into Palo now. Not very many people from our neck of the woods have ever been on a Disney cruise so our travel agent had a few questions as well. Diapers and formula will more than likely be coming with us but am curious to what sizes/ brands etc. are available on board, no problem as I am a light packer and will have all kinds of room. We are bringing a small collapsable stroller with an umbrella, pop up sun tent, life jacket, water diapers and a few other goodies for our daughter, all excellent ideas I have seen on this forum. She is still on formula and bottled baby food but is currently switching to adult food a little at a time. Does anyone know if we are able to switch to the earlier sitting for supper? We requested it originally but seem to have the late sitting instead, is it too late for my daughter? She is usually is in bed at 1900hrs and I believe the late sitting is at 2030 hrs. Thanks for all the tips, any little thing that anyone can think of for cruising with an infant would be appreciated. I am retired Canadian military,and have travelled all over the world including 11 trips to the Caribbean but never have travelled with an infant, packing is going to be a challenge to my wife and I. She is fully fluent in french, Im 80+% so the people from Montreal have others to talk to if needed, we can bridge the language barrier if required. Thanks again for the tips. Cheers

 

[Disneybridein2k3]

I was reading up on excursions and was thinking about maybe not booking through Disney. I found this website:
http://www.stmaarten-activities.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=46&Itemid=26

for things to do at St Maarten. What do you all have planned?

Stacy

 

[Brucemcc]

Stacy

Pretty good link, I booked the family for the "Island Drive &Explorer Cruise" on St Maarten,($112). One of the only to accomidate small children, seems to have a little of everything for everyone,should be a lot of fun. I think we will be hitting a family beach prior to the tour, from what I have heard and read, its not too far away. We have relatives in St Thomas and they say that Magens beach is fantastic for all ages and has everything located right there. What are you and your family looking at doing with your young one?Would love to do the dolphin excursion but our daughter is too young. We were married in Holguin Cuba 2 years ago and had a 40 minutes tour with dolphins right in the ocean, was amazing, would be fantastic for an infant, something that they would remember for years, great interaction at a young age.

 

[Magicbound2007]

Hi Everyone~
We will also be sailing. Me, my DH, DD4 and DS2.5
See you all there!
Tammy

 

[GDUL]

After hearing that 50% of the reservations are held back for people when they boarded the ship, not too concerned about not getting into Palo now.

We took our first Disney cruise about 1 year ago. When I tried to make Palo dinner and brunch reservations, I was only able to get dinner - and not the date or time that I had wanted. We boarded the Magic as soon as we could (I think that we were in the #4 group), went right over to the Rockin' D bar and had no trouble switching our dinner reservations to the date and time that we wanted and we were able to get the brunch reservations too! I'm not sure if this is the norm though - LOL! I guess that I would suggest to get there early if possible and go right to where they tell you to go to try and get your reservations.

 

[ejkjmom]

Hi Everyone~
We will also be sailing. Me, my DH, DD4 and DS2.5
See you all there!
Tammy

Hi Tammy...and welcome,

Are you sailing on Feb3 or Mar3???

Love you name "Magicbound 2007", awhile back our thread was looking for a name for our group..never thought of that one.

 

[Tinkified]

What day are you all signed up for brunch at Palo's? Could we be tentatively signed up to go and if all goes well (with DD going to the club) join you? If so and there is no kind of penalty for not going...add us to the second list going...Michelle and Michael (6049). We really would like to go...because of all the talk as well as scoring some adult time too!

"I know DIS much is true"
Michelle

 

[kshabare]

Stacey,

I've looked at South Beach. It's very, very close to Weight Watchers. I fully endorse WW and work there part time. If you'd like to be my tracking buddy, let me know. I'm determined to drop the extras. Don't wait for tomorrow, or February. You'll feel so much better if you take control now. PM me if you want to chat.

Brucemcc and Magicbound2007 - PM me your email and I'll get you added to our big 90+ DIS'er list!

Happy Sunday everyone. Each day brings the trip closer.....

Kim

p.s. Jus curious - are any of you going to Orient Beach - the topless beach? DS is bummed because I say NO WAY!! Magen's Bay sounds better to me!

 

[michaels_mom]

Michelle - OK, I've added you and Michael - just need last names. I'm going to try to book for the Sunday brunch (March 4th) @

1. Shawn Hobbs (the reservation will be under this name - Stateroom 5628
2. Melissa Hobbs - Stateroom 5628
3. Shelley
4. Lynn
5. Kenneth
6. Michelle *need last name* - Stateroom 6049
7. Michael *need last name* - Stateroom 6049
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.

OK - we need to have five more people to make this reservation work, since we need a minimum of 12 people...anyone?? As soon as I get them I'll fax off the request

Anyone know the answer to the "penalty" question? If there are "no-shows" are they billed to MY account, since the ressie is under my (or DH's) name?

GDUL - to the group I noticed you have Feb/Mar in your signature - we're staying at WDW for 3 nights before the cruise (@CBR) - u too?

 

[wanderlust72]

Hi all! We'll be joining you as well on March 3! Me, DH, DS(13), Dneph(14), DD(5), and DS(3).

Anyone else have teenage kids that have signed up for the teen CC shore excursion?