New Year Means Time to Plan a New Disney Trip! Dec. 2016 Mommy/Little Princess Trip

[cafox1985]

Hi all! So I'm new to DisBoards but definitely not new to Disney. I am in the beginning stages of planning a mommy/little princess trip in December 2016 for my daughter Sophia's 8th birthday. The last time we went to Disney World was back in May 2014 and we have been itching to go back! I just graduated with my Master's in Public Health in May 2015 so finding a job post-graduation was priority #1 before planning any trips of any kind. Luckily I found a job at my alma mater so let the planning begin!

Since I'm new to the boards, I decided why not create a PTR to get in on the action! Feel free to give your input and follow along with all the planning fun!

 

[cafox1985]

Table of Fun:

Introductions!
Where Oh Where Shall We Stay (and When??)​

 

[cafox1985]

Introductions!​

So who am I and this cute little princess named Sophia that will be going on a magical trip? Well let me tell ya!

Me:

I am Cassie, a 30-year old single momma from the St. Louis area. Back in the day (and by back in the day I mean 2006/2007), I worked at WDW as part of the College Program and fell in love! I worked as a hostess at Trail's End Restaurant and Hoop Dee Doo Revue at Fort Wilderness, Whispering Canyon Cafe at the Wilderness Lodge, and the Yacht Club Galley (now Captain's Grille) at the Yacht Club....yes I got moved around a lot and worked a ridiculous amount of overtime but loved every minute of it! Like I said in my first post, I graduated with my Master's in Public Health (MPH) in May 2015 and am now a data manager for a local site of a national research project.

Sophia:

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My partner-in-crime is my mini-me and princess-in-training, Sophia. Her birthday is December 1st and she will be turning the big 8 this year! She's my girly-girl and tom-boy all rolled up into one (I didn't know it was possible until she came along!). She loves all things Disney, clothes, Monster High, dancing, soccer, and playing video games. She's also my only child which means we are basically best friends and may be slightly obsessed with each other . This will be her 3rd trip to Disney World and she is already planning her 4th....I may have created a monster but I'm totally fine with it!

We may have some additional guests as the planning progresses but as of right now, this is going to be an Epic Mommy/Daughter trip

 

[cafox1985]

Where oh where shall we stay? (and When??)​

So when I asked Sophia where she wanted to stay on our next Disney World trip, she initially said the Animal Kingdom Lodge (or that place with the animals that we stayed at). On our trip in May 2014, we rented DVC points and stayed at the Animal Kingdom Lodge in a standard view studio room. It was awesome getting to see the animals when we were heading out or to our room everyday. Sophia is a HUGE animal lover and an aspiring veterinarian so this was a plus to her. And we never really minded how long it took to get to the parks on the buses. Before that we had stayed at Port Orleans Riverside in the Royal Guest Rooms, but that didn't pop up on Sophia's radar.

I was totally fine with staying at the Animal Kingdom Lodge again but then Sophia remembered the AMAZING pool at the Beach Club and her love for Beaches and Cream (because who doesn't love ice cream?) and how she wanted to stay there. So as of right now, our plan is to stay at the Beach Club in a standard room. But of course, plans can always change!

Now for the when...this is the tricky part of planning any vacation since Sophia is in school and I would prefer for her not to miss a bunch of school. Her school usually gets out for Christmas vacation the Friday before the week of Christmas and that Friday is usually an early-dismissal/party day. With that said, we are planning our trip for Dec. 16th to Dec. 22nd. This means that Sophia will miss her Christmas party at school but she said she is fine with that....we will see how she feels when it gets closer though! That is what our initial plans look like for now! Stay tuned as plans become reality and for some real life updates so you can get to know this fox clan!

 

[cafox1985]

Life Update and Change in Plans!
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So, I realize it has been quite some time since I updated this and for good reason...we've had some major life changes in our little family! Let's rewind back to the end of February to when I was offered an amazing epidemiologist position with the Texas Department of State Health Services! I took some time to think it over, discuss it with Sophia, and ultimately decided to accept the position, which meant that Sophia and I would be Austin, TX bound with our dog Skye at the end of March! Not a lot of time to plan and move but we made it work.


So for the last few months we have been settling into our new city and new life and have been loving every minute of it! I had the privilege of living at my parents house while I was in college and grad school, so this will be our first time living completely on our own. Which is definitely a little scary but also exciting. And since this is our first time living on our own, we had very little furniture to move to our new apartment. So over the next few months, most of my extra money will be going towards furnishing our new digs, which is why we decided to postpone the trip. So as of right now, we are planning on going during her spring break, 3/11-3/17. This may, of course, change as things become more concrete and settled here in Texas but for now that is what we are aiming at.

 

[iheartbelle87]

Awesome PTR! I'm in!