May 26, 2007 (5/26/07) "First Magical Med Cruise!!" (The M&M's!)

[konslerg]

Wow! My husband and I are the newbies on this cruise. We've only been on one other cruise in our lives, a 3 night Disney/Wonder cruise just to see what it was like. (Needless to say, we liked it!)

My husband is Gary and I am Gloria and we are both a very young 61 (but aging fast LOL) Neither of us had ever been to Europe before so this is VERY exciting. We'll be celebrating out 40th wedding anniversary a year early. (It will be 39 years for us in June.) Since this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, we decided to celebrate at the beginning of our 40th year instead of at the end ;-) (Hey, I can rationalize with the best of 'em!)

Gary is an investment portfolio manager for a bank in Miami and I work 3 days a week as an administrative assistant. We live in a high-rise condo about 1/2 mile from our offices. Since we have no commute during the week, we "commute" to our small home about 20 miles from Walt Disney World most every weekend. We don't go to the parks every weekend, but we go often enough to keep my need for a Disney "fix" under control.

We are both originally from southern Indiana, but spent 25 years in Grosse Pointe, Michigan before moving to Miami in 1998. We have two grown children and 5 grandchildren. Our son and family are just outside Boston (Sudbury) and our daughter and her family are on Long Island.

As far as shore excursions, I think we are going to do one in just about every port, but the "biggie" port for us in Rome. I'm anxious to see all the churches, fountains and the Vatican in particular. Other than that, we are planning on taking some of the more relaxing, shorter tours ...and we are not planning on visiting Florence. I'd LOVE to go there, but I'm really reluctant to spend all the time getting there and back on the bus. Besides, I think Gary might be "churched and monumented" out by that time. I think a wine tour might be in order for him ;-)

Now, I'm going to call the bank to see if I can mortgage one of the grandkids to pay for this trip ;-)

I look forward to meeting all of you.

 

[sunshine state kim]

I'm Kim and my husband Todd & I are both pharmacists. We've been in Tampa for 17 years and have taken advantage of Florida resident rates at Disney and on the cruise line. This is our 7th Disney cruise. (2 - 3 nights, 2 - 4 nights, 1 eastern and 1 western (double dip) caribbean. I am originally from Minnesota and Todd's from Tennessee. Our daughter Savannah just turned 13 and our son Carter will be 10 by the time we cruise. They've certainly seen more of the world than I had at their age.

 

[first timers]

Congratulations to all of you on your marathon success!!!! That is so amazing! Alex, Shari and Carolyn.....what are their screen names and will they be coming along on the first Med cruise also?

I just saw your photo, Celeste......you are but a mere child compared to me! I'll be turning 54 on the Med cruise and will be closer to 55 when - and if - I do the Disney half. I can walk fairly fast and average under a 15 minute mile on the treadmill. Today I walked outside and did 6.38 miles in 96 minutes. That's just marginally over a 15 minute mile but it included 2 short - but fairly steep - hills which slowed me down I'm sure. I figure I have nearly an entire year to train for the event so hopefully I will get even faster. My goal is to do the half in 08 and if i'm successful with that, try for the full in '09. I don't think I could EVER pull off the Goofy! Gotta hand it to you guys that do.

Age is just a number. I am 54 and Carolyn is about the same (can't tell your wife's age), did the half marathon in '06 before tackling the goofy challange in '07. We trained 3-4 days a week with short to medium walks during the week and long walks on the weekends. Our longest training walk was 24 miles two weeks before the race weekend. We did 6-8 miles during the week and had our time down to 13:45 to 14:15 min. per mile by November. The half marathon was great fun and an easy 13 mile walk (our time was 14:38 min per mile). The marathon was more challenging especially after the half marathon on Sat.. Just stay motivated to train well. I downloaded the course map and Carolyn put it above her desk at work. Just go for it and sign up early. Alex

 

[first timers]

It sounds like you've bitten by the DCL bug. Many of us have been on multiple DCL cruises. Welcome aboard! This is a great group of people and this cruise should a great chance for kids (big and small) to get a taste of what most can only read about in history books. Alex

 

[jeanneg]

Age is just a number. I am 54 and Carolyn is about the same (can't tell your wife's age), did the half marathon in '06 before tackling the goofy challange in '07. Alex

Older kids to play with.......YAY!!!!!!!

 

[CubCatsK&D]

HI all!

Just a bit about Kim and me: Both big Disney fans, though I was a little late to the party in that Kim was a Disneyholic when I met her; I have since been (happily) assimilated.

We have never been on any type of cruise whatsoever--so this is all quite new!

I've been to Europe several times, including Florence and Rome, as well as a few other interesting places in the world. This is Kim's first venture out of the country, so we are looking forward to it. She turns 40 in August, so this is the big 4-0 celebration.

Kim works in mortgage banking for an independent mortgage company located in Chicago's western suburbs. I work as a communication director for a division of a major non-profit. We live on the north side of Chicago.

Our screen name is a combination of two of our major (and perhaps questionable, as you'll see) sports obsessions: The Cubs, and the Northwestern University Wildcats.

We're not on here too frequently but are trying to be more as we get closer to the cruise. We're really looking forward to it!

Deb (and Kim)

 

[kpros]

HI all!


We have never been on any type of cruise whatsoever--so this is all quite new!


Deb (and Kim)

Nothing like jumping in with both feet. We had several people on the May 05 repo (14 days) that had never been on a cruise. I think they are now spoiled for anything shorter - I know we are.

Looking forward to meeting you!
Ken

 

[icunurse_celeste]

HI all!

Just a bit about Kim and me: Both big Disney fans, though I was a little late to the party in that Kim was a Disneyholic when I met her; I have since been (happily) assimilated.

We have never been on any type of cruise whatsoever--so this is all quite new!

I've been to Europe several times, including Florence and Rome, as well as a few other interesting places in the world. This is Kim's first venture out of the country, so we are looking forward to it. She turns 40 in August, so this is the big 4-0 celebration.

Kim works in mortgage banking for an independent mortgage company located in Chicago's western suburbs. I work as a communication director for a division of a major non-profit. We live on the north side of Chicago.

Our screen name is a combination of two of our major (and perhaps questionable, as you'll see) sports obsessions: The Cubs, and the Northwestern University Wildcats.

We're not on here too frequently but are trying to be more as we get closer to the cruise. We're really looking forward to it!

Deb (and Kim)

Welcome Deb & Kim,

Hello neighbors!

Well, kind of neighbors. While I work in Chiacgo at the R hospital, I live in the burbs- like really, really in the burbs. Like almost in Wi burbs.

Nice to meet you!

C

 

[milestogo]

Hi all,
This is our third Disney cruise, my husband (Jonathan) gets motion sickness so thought he could not cruise. We finally gave it a try (inaugural Mexico 05)bringing every type of motion sickness item we could find and he ended up only having one bad night during a storm! BUT loved every minute of it, so much so that we went again 6 weeks later while it was still here. We live very close to Disneyland, so spend a lot of time there throughout the year. We love WDW, but rarely get there (he's been 3 times, I've been about15+ times.) We met 12 years ago when a mutual friend told me she had a comic who she wanted me to meet. I owned a comedy club in Harvard Square (Boston) and snobbily said, "I don't date the comics!" On our first date I found out he had never been to Disneyland - stunned, I said, "If we go on another date then someday I'll take you to DL!" 3 years later he went to DL and loved it, 2 more years and honeymooned in WDW and he was hooked for life. This spring we joined DVC with the intention of using our points for cruising. 11 years ago we closed the Comedy Project and started Miles To Go Drug Education lecture series. and are now the largest private program in California. We created programs using science and humor and work primarily in private schools and conferences. This year we are publishing our first book series and are in the beginning phases of syndicating our articles about parenting. This year I will finish my Ph.D. and begin my dissertation, so if you see me with a textbook on the cruise, don't be surprised.

We have a 3.5 year old daughter named Zoe who has inherited the theatrical side of mom and dad. She believes that Mickey, Goofy and Minnie is her personal friends and is in love with the villains and the princesses. She changes costumes a dozen times per day!

That's who we are and can't wait to meet all of you. It has been such a booster all year getting to know you. It has made me work harder to make this trip happen.


Celeste you are required to come and share your anniversary with us!

 

[winotracy]

Like almost in Wi burbs.

C

Hey, what's wrong with Wisconsin

 

[Coalchick]

Greetings ... What a great idea to get to know everyone. This is all new to me, but I can't believe how much I have learned about DCL, etc. My name is Karen and my husband Doug and daughter Jordan (age 5) will be going on the cruise. Doug and I will celebrate our 15th wedding anniversary on June 20, so this is kind of an anniversary thing for us too. It started out as a generational cruise with both sets of parents taking the cruise. My mother is Canadian and is having some issues getting her green card renewed before the cruise and my mother-in-law is having back surgery. So we will have to wait to see who shows up. We live just outside of Tampa and get to Disney as often as we can. I am in the energy business and my husband is a senior manager for a department store chain. He has stores throughout central Florida. I have traveled a lot to Central and South America, but have never been to Europe and we have never been on a cruise either. We are just jumping in and plan on enjoying the ride. Our daughter is looking forward to meeting other girls her age on the trip. Till the next chat ....

 

[milestogo]

Yeah, another little girl!!!! We've got several 4&5 year olds!

 

[littleowensmommy]

Greetings ... My name is Karen and my husband Doug and daughter Jordan (age 5) will be going on the cruise. Our daughter is looking forward to meeting other girls her age on the trip. Till the next chat ....

Hi Karen,

My DD Amy is 5 so there's another friend for Jordan.

 

[littleowensmommy]

Hi, Kathy here. This will be our 4th (and 5th) Disney cruise. We're also on the Transatlantic. Ted (DH) is a gastroenterologist. Hopefully nobody will require his services during the trip but don't hesitate to call on him if you need anything. We're preparing to move back to California where he will finish a 27-year Navy career and then practice in San Diego. I've been a stay-at-home mom for the past 8 years. BK (before kids) I worked in medical education. We'll celebrate our 21st anniversary in June. We're really looking forward to this trip with our kids. Owen will turn 8 in March and is in 2nd grade. Amy is 5 and in Kindergarten.

 

[kpros]

Hi Everyone

Thanks to everyone who has participated in the "Get to know you" game.

Don't forget to check out NejTheLions great webpage at:

http://mysite.verizon.net/nejthelion/

and sign up on the cruise list.

Also, t-shirts are available at cafepress.com - if anyone gets a discount code, please post it here.

Ken

 

[ronunc]

Greetings,
I'm Ron and my wife is Becky. This will be out third Disney cruise, previously 1 East Carib. and 1 West Carib.
I am retired (4 years), after 35 years of being a geophysist and oceanographer. Traveled extensively around the world. Becky worked for the same office but "retired" many years ago.
We live in Picayune, Mississippi with 2 collies, Disney and Jessie(Toy Story 2), that keep us young. We have 1 grown daughter and 3 grandkids.

 

[jeanneg]

yay, UNC!

 

[sweetsue]

Hi everyone! I have finally made it back on to the DIS in ever so many months. It has been so long I actually forgot my username AND my password, made myself some kind of intruder and took forEVER to get back online!

Bookmarked the link to the website - awesome job! I guess that means I don't need to retake over the old spreadsheet... Whew!

For the cruisers that I didn't meet earlier, here's our info:

I'm Sue and I love Disney. This is our 4th DCL cruise (assuming I don't break down and do another "quick" one at Easter again). I travel with my DM, Nana Barbara and my DD, 6 (her birthday was Sunday!), the ever-in-charge Princess Christina. Nana has been to Europe before but this is the 1st time for Christina and me. I'm very excited!

I work for Motorola as a program/staffing manager. At least that's my job this week! DNana spends her days as the President of CONA (a group of neighborhood associations). It's a full-time job paid only in smiles and happy residents. Christina splits her day between kindergarten, art, ballet, and generally driving her mother nuts!

We'll be arriving in Barcelona on the 23rd. We're staying at the Citadines Aparthotels on Las Ramblas. After the cruise we're spending a week in Paris, finally returning home on the 13th.

DNana and I have been pouring over the shore excursions since Christmas. There is just so much to do and so little time! I think we've finally narrowed it down. Our booking opens on the 5th.

Do we have any onboard or pre-boarding meets scheduled? (Yes, this is me being way too busy to scour through the posts). Peter - where's that p1p5????

On to a quick update for those who know Princess Christina. She is doing well health wise. Our last surgery was in December - and I don't have another one scheduled! She's gained a few pounds and a few inches! She's walking GREAT - even without her walker. She loves kindergarten but we've had some real issues with the school. The administrator that makes sure she gets the help she needs in school has messed up Christina's services multiple times. She's in violation of the ADA (America with Disabiliteis Act), so it's a very big deal. With all the surgeries I just didn't have time to deal with it. The last straw broke on 1/16th. We were meeting on Christina's services for the next annual year and this adminstrator pulled MOST of her services then finalized the agreement WITHOUT MY SIGNATURE! Needless to say, I've complained up the line - and we're in the process of moving Christina to a new school. In the long run it'll be a good thing. The new school is an even better school than where she's going now. It's the best school in the entire county - and tops most schools in the state!

Time to run now - Christina seems to think it's time for dinner. Haven't even pulled anything out of the fridge yet so we're in trouble!

Sweet Sue

 

[icunurse_celeste]

Hi Everyone

Thanks to everyone who has participated in the "Get to know you" game.

Don't forget to check out NejTheLions great webpage at:

http://mysite.verizon.net/nejthelion/

and sign up on the cruise list.

Also, t-shirts are available at cafepress.com - if anyone gets a discount code, please post it here.

Ken

Can you tell that I was at work today....not so chatty!

Here is a coupon code:VDAYSHIP for free shipping over $50.00


I usually get better ones, but that is al I have lately.



Sue- Glad to hear the Christina is doing well and that she did well with her surgery. I know how ruff it can be for you and her! It will be fun to see her again and I'm sure that Tracy & Bill will be excited to get some hugs. (See Bill, kids do like you Noah & Christina)

Well, I"m off to bed- 8 hours until I have to wake up and I already know I'm going to have a busy day with one of my patients who will be having surgery tomorrow. (A horrid story I am working on for my blog)

Night all.

 

[milestogo]

SweetSue: welcome back! and I'm so glad to hear that your daughter is doing better. It broke my heart (and I'm sure all of us with kids) to hear what you've gone through. I'm an insider in the private school systems, so I'm really picky and it makes me furious to hear when people aren't getting what they need for their children - especially when they need extra help.