Oh, Great, Mom's on her Disney kick again - 1st time ptr

[DIS_Indoctrination]

I'm about to break a lot of rules in my book. They may seem petty to some but to any that have their "way" of doing things you will totally understand this. We have this tradition of no parks on the first day, hang at the resort after arrival and do dinner at Chef Mickey's then do whatever. Another thing is Magic Kingdom cannot be the first park we visit. I am afraid my kids will be bored with the others if they do MK first, kind of like saving the best for last, dessert after dinner and so on. Well . . . . I just found out that Toon Town's last operating day is Feb 11th which is our date of arrival, so guess what?????? I am trying everything to find a way to get my kids there to see it. They missed it last time due to bad timing, weather, planning and my inlaws, so I really would love for them to see it before it's gone. What do you all think, am I just nuts? I am sure most of the world will be feelign the same way that day.

The original plan was to leave our house early AM on thursday, drive til late evening arriving north of atlanta, stay for the night and then arrive at POR around 1 or 2 on Friday, dinner is at 5 at Chef MIckeys. So now how do I get us there 6 hour earlier? I have to do some serious thinking on this, but I am almost considering leaving Wednesday night and driving all night, then all day thursday, am I insane? Too insane? I just don't know.

Ok, me the rookie just finished her first Disney vacation. Some feedback. Our little girl had a hard time with all the other parks, once she'd done the Magic Kingdom rides the first day. So, if you're going to the Magic Kingdom to experience Toontown, I'd say make it a short day & just do Toontown. It's easy to get to Chef Mickey's from MK so you can do both the first day.

The other point, if you want to get there a day earlier and do a non-Disney hotel (what we did). We stayed at the Days Inn in South Clermont. We used hotels.com to get a room with two queen beds for $41. It was clean, the bedding was newish, the beds were comfortable, and they have a hot breakfast. We just ate muffins & sausage patties. If you take a few kids down with you to carry the breakfast back to the room, you could get biscuits and gravy, scrambled eggs lots of great stuff - including milk, juices etc. I was very impressed for $41. The only hitch to the breakfast is they only have one table to eat at. Also, the hotel is off the street behind another building so it was a little hard to find, but very quiet. Oh, and it only took us 15 minutes to get to Disney - no traffic at all. We checked into Pop at 9am, and they had our room ready for us after being sold out the night before.

Now we didn't go anywhere near toontown. My understanding is that the judges tent is already shut down & the characters are greeting in other locations. That leaves Mickey's house, Minnie's house, Donald's boat and the goofy's barnstormer kiddie coaster. We had a hard time getting things done, but what's left in toontown it doesn't seem like enough to fill more than an hour or two of time. Also, I don't think any of it opens until 10am.

Anyway we didn't see it, and I'm not mourning the loss. My little girl was much more interested in the rides & thrills. I think she would have liked to see the houses, but I'm holding out hope that they will re-appear elsewhere after the expansion is finished. From the pictures I've seen they are too cute & well thought out to just be tossed away, and they really can't take up too much space, so I would think they'd re-appear somewhere they need filler.

 

[DIS_Indoctrination]

I can't believe that in 2 days my countdown will be less than 1 month, we will be into days only Nothing much has happened on the planning front. I am planning on doing some shopping this week for some of our necessities for the trip. Also it is my goal to sit down with the kids this week and let them do some planning. They have been enjoying there planning books and talking a lot to each other about the rides and what not, so I think they are ready to put together the itineraries. I am so excited for them to help with this part.

I realized I have a dilema and what til you hear my nonplanning husband's solution. 2 of our 4 kids have totally outgrown their summer clothes, and well being in MIchigan summer clothes are impossible to find right now. I realize it may be chilly still, but saying it's not, it was 70's when we went a few years ago. I dont' know what to do, I can order full priced summer clothes online I suppose. But dh's idea was to wait til we get down south and then buy clothes for them somewhere. Seriously, that's a solution??????? Not for the super duper planner here, leave home with no clothes for them and expect to buy them some down south somewhere??

Any ideas on how to make sure I sleep the night before we leave? I am driving the first long leg of the trip and we are leaving around 3am, so any suggestions? I can never sleep the night before anything big.

We dressed our little girl in lightweight long sleeves and pants for our trip. They had unusually warm weather of mid-70's and she was comfortable. The thing I didn't expect is the cool breeze coming in from everywhere. I'm cold natured and I had to wear a fleece over my long sleeve shirt all week. I'd take if off for maybe an hour in the early afternoon, then even with the temp in the 70's I'd be cold. Plus you're going into cool dark indoor rides that are intended to be a relief to hot weather, so they are all much colder than the outside temp.

Oh, and there are a ton of outlet malls on 75 on the way down, but I wouldn't waste vacation time shopping, if I could make due with stuff we already have.

 

[Colleen27]

For clothes, I'd plan on jeans & tees. You shouldn't run into such warm weather that you'll be wishing for shorts; cold weather that has you putting on long sleeves and light jackets is a lot more likely. So not having summer clothes shouldn't be a problem.

But if you want to do some shopping - DisneyStore.com has some cute tees and such on sale right now, and they're running free shipping with no minimum through the end of the week. I'm hoping for a Gymboree sale before we go, because the one thing I need to buy is a swimsuit for DD2 and affordable options are tough to find since I insist on a rashguard style to keep the sun off her shoulders/back.

As far as Toontown goes, I don't think it is worth trying to drive straight through for. Minnie's house is really cute, Mickey's is just a (usually crowded) walk-though, more like a fancy queue for the meet & greet than an attraction worth going out of the way to see. The playground areas are nice but still just playgrounds, a place for toddlers to get a break from being shuttled from one attraction to the next in a stroller. And while Barnstormer is a lot of fun for kids who are just barely big enough for it, it is kind of lame for those who have crossed the 40" mark and ridden any real coasters. The characters are really the main attraction and I'd expect those lines to be mobbed on the last day, especially for the Fairies since it seems Tink will be the only one out for a while after the closure.

 

[jenseib]

I would do MK, even if it's just an hour or two. We have always gone to Mk first, and had a great time at all parks. My kids never had a problem at all going from one to the other. The tent is still open and wil lbe through the 11th. If you can arrive a day earlier, go for it and stay off site. It will only be one night and just find something cheap.

 

[2princesses2princes]

I did price comparisons, and had a small talk with Dan last night, we are making a final decision this weekend on what to do. It is either stay offsite for around 80 bucks for one night (tough to get a room for 6) or we can stay onsite for about 173.00 and be at POR and possibly just have to switch rooms, I think it would be a lot less hassle to do it that way. BUT, this does mean leaving Wednesday and driving straight through, which was our original plan anyway. I just don't know I am a little nervous about it. I think what I'll do is take a half day on that Wednesday, so that I can go home and get all the packing done while the kids are still at school. (But keep the stuff hidden somehow) Then hit the hay (mom's not feeling well, came home from work not feeling well) while I sleep Dan can do dinner and get showers in and everything. Then when they think they are going to bed all in their jammies and everything, load everyone in the car and hit the road. This means with all the stops we plan on taking we may not arrive to POR until 8pm or later on Thursday night, but we'll be there at least. Or if we decide on offsite, same thing we wont be there til late which is one reason it would make sense to stay offsite, but onsite we'd be able to use bus transportation right away.

What do you think?

 

[2princesses2princes]

Ok for those of you that are still hanging on, I have a few things to propose as ideas. This may get lengthy. I am not relisting our entire itinerary only a few key points.

1. Original Plan leave MI early Thursday morning, stop and stay somewhere on the way Friday night and arrive Friday

Friday- Arrival day, swim, nap, check out POR. w/ 5pm dinner at Chef Mickeys
Saturday- AK/Downtown
Sunday- Epcot
Monday- MK electrical parade and wishes
Tuesday- DHS, no fantasmic, it'll be hard but I think we'll survive
Wednesday- MK
Thursday- Epcot
Friday- MK hopefully we can get in the extra night, as of now we are booked to leave on this day, but we are hoping to stay one more night.
Saturday- 10am Boma Breakfast and then leave
Driving to visit my brother in North Carolina not arriving there until midnight or so.

2. Change to include Toon Town visit before close and more time with brother

Leave Wed right after school, drive switching and napping, arrive at POR Thursday evening.

Friday- breakfast at BOMA, afternoon at toon town, dinner 5pm Chef Mickeys

NO changes until final days

Friday- dinner is suppose to be at 7:15pm at Park Fare but considering changing it to 4:35 to allow for time at downtown disney since

Saturday we'd be leaving very early AM, like 6am or earlier to get to my brother's by 6 or 7 instead of midnight.


With these changes I have also considered changing the front end but not the back end. I want to have more time with my brother don't get me wrong, but I also dread leaving disney at 6am. However if we don't and we were to go to downtown or somethign I am afraid I wouldn't want to leave either. Any ideas???

 

[jenseib]

I think you should stay off site and save that extra money the first night.

 

[Colleen27]

I think if you're going to drive it straight through offsite is the way to go for the first night. Remember, just because your room probably won't be ready doesn't mean you can't check in to POR early Friday morning, get your park tickets, and use their transportation from there on. Unless you see yourself doing something Thursday night - not likely after driving all night - there's no sense in paying the price for an on-site room. Just pack a seperate overnight bag for the family and find someplace decent but cheap (there's TONS of that in Orlando!) and check into POR bright and early on Friday.

I also think I'd look for some middle ground on the departure. Getting everyone going for a 6am departure after a week of running around Disney will be brutal. Why not plan on leaving at 8 or so when everyone is starting to wake up of their own accord?

 

[jenseib]

WE had a really ealry flight back last trip, and I think we had to leave for the airport around 5 9maybe 6). Anyways DD was 4 at the time and creid the whole entire trip to the airport.

 

[2princesses2princes]

Thanks for all the respsonses. Funny we are all on the same page pretty much. Dan and I talked some about it last night and we decided to stay offsite Thursday night, and get up early and get to POR and continue our day that way. As for the day we leave, hitting the road too early would be detrimental to us all I am sure, so I think we will just hit the road when we are all up and moving. I am still undecided about Boma for breakfast on the Friday we actually arrive at Disney, not sure if we could still make it there or not with leaving the offsite hotel, checking in at POR and all.

 

[jenseib]

I would skip Boma. It might be too much pressure to get there on time.

 

[Colleen27]

I don't think I'd try to squeeze Boma in if the goal of Friday is some Toontown time. That's a lot of travel time, even with a car - from the offsite hotel to POR then to AKL for breakfast and then to MK to get the fun started. Just the on-property part of that equation is pretty much hitting each of the far corners of WDW!

Besides, are y'all really going to have the patience for/interest in a leisurely sit down breakfast after driving all night and day with the WDW anticipation building with each passing mile? My kids are budding foodies and love good food, but there's no getting them to enjoy a relaxing TS breakfast before our first park day. They're just too excited at that point to care about the meal.

 

[2princesses2princes]

A nondisney, but yet still affecting disney type of update.

We had a wrotten weekend. Dan (hubby) was in a car accident on Saturday morning. Thank the Lord he is ok and nobody was hurt. Long story short, he hit ice, spun and got hit by van in his rear. Tore off the bumper and did some other damage. Car is still driveable, just not legally. So we wait til Tuesday when the insurance companies open back up so they can get an estimate and all that stuff. Last time we went to Disney in 07, 3 nights before we left he got rear ended in the same car, on ice. Hmmm????

Sunday his back had gotten worse( not sure if I told you all he's had back pain for 2 weeks now), so we went to the Urgent Care and is now on work restrictions and meds. Pray he heals quickly, he's getting nervous as am I about our trip and his condition right now. I feel for him, I delt with back pain for 2 years before having surgery so I know what he's dealing with all too well.

Now to try to cheer myself up and lighten the mood we have 23/24 days until we hit the road. Ok that didnt' work, I was hoping it would.

FYI we are forgoing BOMA as much as I wanted to try it, you are all right, it's just too much.

 

[dizneeat]

A nondisney, but yet still affecting disney type of update.

We had a wrotten weekend. Dan (hubby) was in a car accident on Saturday morning. Thank the Lord he is ok and nobody was hurt. Long story short, he hit ice, spun and got hit by van in his rear. Tore off the bumper and did some other damage. Car is still driveable, just not legally. So we wait til Tuesday when the insurance companies open back up so they can get an estimate and all that stuff. Last time we went to Disney in 07, 3 nights before we left he got rear ended in the same car, on ice. Hmmm????

Sunday his back had gotten worse( not sure if I told you all he's had back pain for 2 weeks now), so we went to the Urgent Care and is now on work restrictions and meds. Pray he heals quickly, he's getting nervous as am I about our trip and his condition right now. I feel for him, I delt with back pain for 2 years before having surgery so I know what he's dealing with all too well.

Now to try to cheer myself up and lighten the mood we have 23/24 days until we hit the road. Ok that didnt' work, I was hoping it would.

FYI we are forgoing BOMA as much as I wanted to try it, you are all right, it's just too much.

So sorry to hear about the accident! Isn't that the second accident in quite a short amount of time?
I hope the insurance can take care of the car pretty soon and that your DH will get better pretty soon.
Backpain is just the worst! I really really really hope he will be okay for your trip! Here's some healing pixie dust!

 

[ash-n-brensmom]

I don't know how you feel about this, but what about a Chiropractor? I have a pretty crummy back as well...been flaring up pretty badly the last week or so...my chiropractor is my miracle worker!!
I hope everything gets better soon!!!

 

[2princesses2princes]

So sorry to hear about the accident! Isn't that the second accident in quite a short amount of time?
I hope the insurance can take care of the car pretty soon and that your DH will get better pretty soon.
Backpain is just the worst! I really really really hope he will be okay for your trip! Here's some healing pixie dust!

No, we just have had car problems, no accidents in a few years anyway. The last one he was in was a few days before our 07 disney trip when he was rear ended.

Thanks for the healing pixie dust.

I don't know how you feel about this, but what about a Chiropractor? I have a pretty crummy back as well...been flaring up pretty badly the last week or so...my chiropractor is my miracle worker!!
I hope everything gets better soon!!!

I did the chiro when my back was messed up but I was beyond repair, had to have surgery. I mentioned it to him, but he didn't want to do it. I am going to try to talk him into it again though, for the future anyway, with all the lifting and stuff he does it would help him a ton.

 

[pinkxray]

Sorry to hear about the car and DH's back.

Thank goodness your trip is so soon. It sounds like it will be a much needed vacation.

We did Boma breakfast last year and it was really good. It is really not that special though.

 

[jenseib]

I guess I was thinking like Karin was. I thought someone recently hit your car in your driveway. If not you, then it was someone here on the Dis. LOL!
I hope your hubbys back gets better fast. I have off and on back and shoulder pain. I go to the chiropracter every so often, but honestly to make it work I would need to go daily.

 

[2princesses2princes]

Oh how I wish I was leaving today for Disney. Work is soooo stressful right now. Up til now, I've been here 4+years it hasn't been stressful, I just come in, do my job and be done, sometimes busy sometimes not. Well I took on a new commitment the end of November, and the past 2 weeks have been nothing but nightmares. I go home each day hoping it will disappear but nope, the nightmare is still sitting on my desk when I come back the next morning. Had to try to laugh there. Oh well it will make this trip all the better. I told Dan today that even the thought of being in a car for 2 days straight with the kids sounds relaxing compared to this.

But I have to be thankful, I have a job, a decent job, and I am treated with respect by my coworkers and managment. .

 

[ash-n-brensmom]

I feel for you..yes you are lucky to have that job, and they must respect you because they had you take on a new responsibility. But, stress is stress..and it gets to you after awhile!
Chin up, look at your ticker!! It's getting closer!!