NEW...DOLPHIN/SWAN..."questions and answers"...tips and hints!

[Disbug]

I appreciate all of your gracious comments about my "epic"!
Thank you judirain. I know you must be deliriously happy about almost leaving!

Thanks, Muffy! (Happy BD, too!)

Thanks, Mouseteacher and Ozziewags!! Oh! I forgot about looking in Italy for the charm bracelets . That settles it, I just have to go back!!

Thanks, to you, too, marymrg!

#1 HockeyMOM ~ you go girl! Congratulations! I KNOW it was the P and PD combo that did it (not to mention your obvious craft in your field!)

I am disappointed in my pictures! I think I didn't stay still long enough while the shutter was working ! I can only get better from here.... I only include the pictures to help "set the scene" as it were.

Later everyone!

 

[judirain]

Yippee Hockymom!! Keep the Faith! I will be saying an extra prayer that it becomes OFFICIAL!

 

[judirain]

Disbug ~ I LOVE the pictures!! Thank you

 

[#1hockeymom]

*still happy here* Thank you Mouseteacher, Judirain, Disbug and everyone else who has been cheering for me right along!

Love the story with the pictures! I would have loved to see you guys singing away on the boardwalk! Sounds like you have a very happy family who knows how to enjoy yourselves! I noticed you have "my table" in one of your pictures! DS was behind me on the other computer when I was reading this thread and I turned around and said, "Whats this?" he immediately responded, "When can we go back? Are the croissants out? There is MommaT, where's Thabo?" LOL Glad you are enjoying CL and the entire resort area. Keep those great pictures and your adventures coming!

My carpets are clean, my brain feels more clear, I am thankful for many things!
Debbie

 

[ozziewags]

Hey, hockeymom, congratulations! I just got back from helping at registration at my school and we got 46! new students, in a building of almost 600 already! Of course, school doesn't start until Aug. 26, so we could get even more. Maybe you should come here and teach! Where do all these kids come from?!

Disbug....love your pictures and your 'tale'...keep it coming!

hookedup....also love hearing of your adventures. I will certainly remember about that King room with the balcony on the 12th floor!

Have been busy trying to plan a 35th anniversary trip to Hawaii for next summer, for dh and I, and possibly our kids, if they can fit it in. We just can't give up taking them along if we can.

I still wonder if DF is having computer problems, because I don't think her cruise was to last this long. Hmmm.

 

[hookedup]

End of a looonnnngg day. It started of great with a relaxing breakfast from the CL. They do have a very nice spread up there. I have found it to be very good. If you like continental breakfast (which I do) it is worth it for the convenience.
Then the day got off to a bad start and went downhill from there...
Our waits for the boat to MGM were very long - they even sent a captain over via speedboat to apolgize to the people. Bad line karma all day at MGM. Nothing was going right. Ds was super fussy and grumpy and we came back to swim and he would not even do that. We were not having a magical day. When we got back to our room at 3:45 housekeeping had not made it up yet. In fact we had been in there 5 mins, just lying down, when there was a knock on the door. I asked them to please come back in an hour, she did not want to since it was so late. I explained my son had just got in the tub and she agreed to come back after 5.
So we rested and then got dressed and headed for MK. We had CRT reservations for dinner. This is something we always enjoy doing, unfortunately the food was not very good (dh said our meal made our Amtrak food taste like gourmet) and we hardly ate our prime rib. Over $100 for a yucky dinner is not fun either. On the way out I politely mentioned how dissapointed we were in our dinner and they asked me to speak to the manager (which I agreed to but was not very comfortable about) he came out with the chef. They both were very nice and genuinely interested in our complaints. They asked us to come back on Saturday night to eat again, my dh said he would never eat there again but they were so nice and apologetic about it all we felt like we should. So we will.
We took the bus back to the boardwalk and walked around a bit. What a neat area - we had never been over there before. Definately worth checking out if you are staying at the S/D.

Well kids, I am off to bed. Hoping a good night sleep and some rest will bring a better day tomorrow for all of us!

joshua4 -
Yes our room does indeed have a balcony. It is a king room on the 12th floor. The balcony has 2 chairs and a very small table on it. If anyone wants to know the room number I will be happy to give it out after our trip.

 

[luvdisney14]

Mouseteacher - Congratulations!! We are off the the swan this morning, hoping for an upgrade to club level, if not than an upgrade somewhere. Thank you for all your input to all of my questions. Be back in a week

 

[judirain]

Luvdiseny~ I hope you have a magical trip!!

 

[judirain]

Hookedup~ I sorry you had such a bad day. I know excatly what you mean about a child waking up on the wrong side of the bed making everyone grumpy. I hope today will be much better.

 

[joshua4]

I have been lurking on this thread for a couple of weeks now and you guys are great! If my mom's medical condition does not get any worse (she has a malignant brain tumor), we are going to leave for the Swan on Sept 4. I am keeping my fingers crossed that we can actually go and see all of the things that you are describing. If not, I guess I will just have to live vicariously through the rest of you.

Thanks again for the great "live" trip reports! (and Disbug, great pictures -- we are hoping for a club level upgrade as well -- I really want to meet Mama T and Thabo!)

Lauren (aka Joshua4)

Note to Hooked up -- We were just in Disney World last June with a 2 year old, 3 year old, 5 year old and 7 year old. When anyone got grumpy (which was bound to happen), this is what we did. All of us would get in a circle and do what we called the "get out grumpies dance" (grown ups too!) It involved some jumping and spinning and wild hip gyrations (made it up as we went along). The grumpy kid liked getting the attention and we would do it until a smile broke out. It must have looked odd to people walking by, but it was our fun way of dealing with the situation. Of course, this does not work if the grumpy child is really in need of a nap or food - but it did work for the rest of the grumpy occasions. Not sure how old your ds is, but hey, to de-grumpy a kid at the parks can make all the difference in the world, so this might be worth a try if he is between the ages of 2 and 8.

 

[madge]

So, officially I still don't have a call back, but unofficially I must be there on Wednesday morning! (and here I thought it was Monday morning! I get to enjoy a few more days of vacation!)

YAY YAY YAY!!!

congratulations, Debbie!

 

[Mouseteacher]

Disbug ~ great reports and pics. My family calls the "hill" near Y/B Club when renting the surreys - Heartbreak Hill" after our Boston Marathon! We all laughed so hard each time we approached the "hill"! To be a brat - I was in the back pedaling w/ youngest DS and DH and older DS were in front - I took my feet off the pedals!!!

I saw a volleyball game going on on Sunday when I took my walk over to the Grotto Pool around 3:30 (or was it 4:00). I did not encounter one DISer my entire time and I had the green ribbon on my belly pack. Oh well, maybe next trip.

Joshua - P and PD for your you and your mom. I know what it is like to have a mother fighting cancer - been there.

luvdisney ~ Have a magiacal time and post upon your return!

 

[auntkelly]

I've been lurking on this thread for several weeks now, and have learned so much about the Swan/Dolphin. We're staying at the Dolphin on Saturday, November 22nd though Wednesday November 26th. The 26th is the day before Thanksgiving. We've booked a standard view room. I have lots of Starwood points, and am accumulating more thanks to the info on this thread. I know that Thanksgiving week is a very busy week at Disney World, so I'm not too confident we'll be able to get a complimentary upgrade. My question is this: if CL is full during the days that we are there, can we still purchase an upgrade w/ points for CL privileges? I really don't care if our room is on the CL floor (although that would be nice). What I'm really interested in is the convenience of grabbing breakfast in the morning in the CL room and enjoying a snack in the late afternoon.

 

[MOM POPPINS]

Hello
I have been sooooo busy this summer with the girls and the new little one. I am still lurking around but not posting as much. I am glad to see the trip reports, save some magic for all of us.

I am trying to workout our drive down to Florida. We have driven it before but prefer flying. DD Rachel (8 years old)progressive hearing loss has put an end to all our flying.... poor sweetie girl... she really enjoyed the drive though and is happy about stopping by the beach in Destin on our way back home. Spring break is second week in March so we are leaving a week earlier, hopefully to beat some of the spring break crowds. We arrive in WDW on Feb. 29th. and are staying at the Dolphin for 9 nights then on the beach for 2 nights. Last year her school said they would allow her to have to extra week so I hope they still hold to it. We have a new principal this year. Rachel cannot travel to WDW in the summer because of the heat does something to her hearing. Just like the flying the pressure we feel from being in the heat makes her at risk for her hearing loss to progress. This being the case the I am not sure when to let the principal know our situation. Rachel is a very good student so her studies should not be a problem. I will be having our IEP with her school near the first of the year. Should I mention it then??? Last year a represenative from the district stated Rachel being able to travel to WDW annually should not have to change because of her disability and she would be given extra travel time. I am not taking advantage of the situation and only asking for extra time once a year not everytime we have a break. Any thoughts on any of this???? Next year I am going to try Christmas time break instead since it is a little longer.

Congrats on your "call back" to work Debbie more PD your way to make it official...

Disbug: love the pics keep them coming, I am glad you had a great trip....!

Luvdisney: Have a wonderful time in WDW!

Hookedup: I hope you have a great day today in the "magic" With 5 kiddos I know how these days go

Mouseteacher: Thanks for asking about us we are doing great and Baby Kirk is 6 pounds now and is 8 weeks old today

Ozziewags: Any suggestion on how we can keep our platinum status ??? PM if any ideas ?

Will post when I can..... I love this thread and appreciate the support I get from here.... Thanks to all of you, now where is DREAMFLIGHT????????????

 

[MOM POPPINS]

By the way... I would like to get tagged by the tag fairy so far no luck... any suggetions....????

I BELIEVE I BELIEVE I BELIEVE

CLAP CLAP CLAP.....

 

[Mouseteacher]

Mom Poppins ~ Please do tell the principal early on. Hopefully, he/she will be compassionate about your travel needs (not want - need!). I would totally understand and not feel you are taking advantage. I would appreciate your candor and forthrightness. If I remember correctly, Rachel is still young. So, missing school, IMHO, is less problematic than if she were in an upper grade. Just be up front and honest about what you must do for your family.

Tag Fairy... please tag Mom Poppins - a SUPER mom indeed!

 

[Disbug]

Me, too! Me, too! CLAP....CLAP....CLAP.....CLAP!

*or how about a little soft-shoe?

TAP...TAP...ATAP...TAP!

I believe in rainbows ! I believe in fairies! I believe in pixie dust and the power of prayer! I believe in the magic of the Swan and Dolphin! I believe in the heart of Cast Members! I believe in complete strangers linked by kindness, courtesy, and a love of all things Disney! I believe in the joy of childhood! I believe in finding enchantment wherever it may be found!

 

[Mouseteacher]

Disbug and Mom Poppins ~ post over on the "Who in the heck is the Tag Fairy?" thread.

You both are deserving of very special tags.

 

[#1hockeymom]

Baby Kirk is getting so big! I am sure that every ounce is celebrated there! I think he's going to be one fine little boy! As a teacher, I would rather know something right away than later. During the IEP is the perfect time to let everyone know what your concerns are and your doctor's. Remember the P in IEP is for plan! I think she's going to have a great year!

I just realized that Disbug and Hookedup are probably right next to each other! They should set a plan and both run out on their balconies at 9:00 pm sharp, and wave! I just can't seem to say this enough, but its so nice to hear all the stories from the world! LuvDisney>> I hope you add your stories, too! I wish I were going with all of you!

Aunt kelly>> Welcome to the thread! During my stay I paid for club level but requested a non club level room. I was under the impression, as I think we all were, that you couldn't get a balcony on the CL floors unless you had "president or princess" next to your name, or atleast their travel account! LOL Since I really wanted a balcony for our stay I made that a priority and it worked out fine. Even being at the end of the hall, furthest from the elevators, still made for a very short walk to the lounge! We loved having the CL priviledges when we went down there with both kids. Especially in the mornings it made everything more carefree with us able to go up when we wanted to, not waiting for everyone to get ready. (plus, how else does the eating machine eat breakfast three times?) LOL

Disbug>> I Love all the sayings at the end of your last post! They're much nicer than my redwings clapping chant post! The secret, I believe, is to post on one of the tag fairy posts. I think the secret to being in the DISyearbook is to post on the community board.

Ozzie>> 46 more! Sounds like you need a teacher down there! I understand about wanting your kids down there. We were talking the other day how it is nice to get away ourselves, and it doesn't happen often, but there is no way we want to give up the family vacations, either! Watching expressions and sharing discoveries is so precious!

Once again, thank you to so many people here for all the P and PD! I believe, no I KNOW it makes the difference! I haven't heard anything new, but today it was so nice to get out of bed and be smiling! I didn't realize how much the stress was affecting me, but it was. This morning I went and opened a package of our treasured hidden away coffee, Jamaican Blue Mountain, and really enjoyed my morning! Here is a toast to all of you! *pouring coffee all around and offering cream and sugar*
Where are you Dream Flight?

Debbie

 

[joshua4]

I have been posting on the DIS for over 2.5 years and I swear this is the nicest, most supportive thread on these boards! (and that is saying a lot because overall, the Dis is a pretty supporting place to be).

You guys are great! I hope I get to go next month so that I can share my information right back with you.

Lauren (aka Joshua 4)