Our FIRST EVER Disney Trip.....May 2011

[katiekoester]

Hello all! Let me introduce myself and my family:
I am Katie, 29, a preschool teacher
My DH is Andy, 28 (yes he is younger which he never lets me forget), a manager for the family restaurant
DD1 is Savanah, 8, a gifted 2nd grader who is starting to grow up , but still loves Princesses
DD2 is Brooklyn, 5, a diehard Princess fanatic
DGP is my Dad, Brent, 52
DGM is Annette, my dad's new wife, 46

My dad and his new wife are joining us a wedding/birthday/Christmas present. We originally wanted them to go on an Alaskan cruise, but my dad is deathly afraid to fly so they chose to come with us to Disney instead. Let me tell you, my DH is thrilled

My DH has been to WDW before, but doesn't remember much of it. The girls and I have never been. I am also slightly OCD with the planning, much to the chargin of my family. I have been given the task of planning our trip and have put lots of expectations to create the most magical time, to the best of my capabilities.

We have very active lives and finally narrowed our trip to May 21-28 because that is the only week that works between dance, soccer, etc. We are taking DD1 out of school, but really she is very advanced and I don't think it will make any difference. Not to mention grades have to be turned in May 20th for our school so how much could they really be doing? We will be driving from Ohio, overnight without stopping, and jumping in feet first. DH will do a majority of the night driving because my eyesight is just that bad, but he has an amazing tolerance for sleep deprivation. The plan is to leave around 5pm and drive the 15 hours to Florida in time to make our ADR for 'Ohana at 9:30 am. Crazy......maybe a little. I have given DGP the option of checking into the room and napping if they want, but I am going to Epcot with or without them! The plan for the week will be following shortly.

 

[katiekoester]

So I went back and forth over it, but I did purchase a membership to Touring Plans and settled my dates according to their crowd projections and things I really want to do. I must have changed ADR's a million times, but they are pretty set now (hopefully). Our plan is the following:
Sun, May 22nd: Arrival
Breakfast: 'Ohana at 9:30am
EPCOT
Lunch: Coral Reef at 2:10pm
Dinner: Akershus at 6:40pm
Must see Illuminations!

Mon, May 23rd:
Breakfast: 1900 Park Fare at 8:05am
EPCOT
Lunch: Le Cellier at 12:15pm (would love for this to be later, but I'm not getting picky because I really want to try the cheese soup and filet)
Dinner: 'Ohana at 9:30pm (would love for this to be a little earlier, but once again I'm not getting too picky)

Tues, May 24th:
Rope Drop at DHS
Lunch: Fantasmic package at Mama Melrose's at 2:05pm
Dinner: 50's Prime Time at 7:20pm
Must see Fantasmic!

Wed, May 25th:
MAGIC KINGDOM
Breakfast: Crystal Palace at 8:05am (so excited to get here early!)
Dinner: Cinderella's Royal Table at 4:10pm
Wishes Dessert Party at 8:00pm
We also have Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique scheduled for 12:50 that day so we can begin with wet rides and then finish with princess stuff
Must see Rapunzel (hopefully we are done at CP before RD and can get over there and get in line ASAP)

Thurs, May 26th:
Breakfast: Chef Mickey's at 7:05am
Rope Drop (hopefully) at MAGIC KINGDOM
Dinner: The Wave at 6:00 pm
Must see the Electrical Parade and Wishes from a "perfect" spot by the hub

Fri, May 27th:
Departure Day
ANIMAL KINGDOM
Breakfast: Tusker House at 8:00am (excited to try and be on the first Safari of the day after breakfast!)
Lunch: Yak and Yeti at 12:30pm
Dinner: 1900 Park Fare at 7:20pm

We will be driving home after dinner on Friday. We will take our time on the way home as DH does not have to be in to work until Sunday morning. DGP and DGM will be heading to Daytona to visit family so we don't have to worry about them either (thank goodness).

 

[katiekoester]

We are staying at POP mostly because we are also paying for DGP and DGM. My first choice was Port Orleans, but another whole room, tickets, and meal plan kinda shot that in the foot. We opted for DxDP because we wanted to do a ton of character meals, my girls are HUGE breakfast eaters, and DH and I wanted it prepaid so we didn't have to worry about it when we got there. My DH is 6'4" and is a bottomless, skinny pit (which is a point of contention with me as I am 5'2" and Pooh-ish sized). I know to expect a lot of food and I will not be concerned about not getting my "value" because I have run the numbers (did I mention the OCD ) and know we will come out ahead 25% at the best, dead even at the worst and I'm fine with that. I continue to do TONS of research here and all over the web to make sure I'm not missing something, but once we get there I will be completely relaxed and go with the flow. Completely weird I know, but that is my pattern. DH on the other hand is completely relaxed now (almost to the point of not caring) but once we get there he is a commando style person. It makes a very interesting dynamic.

DH might be somewhat pissy because the last vacation we took with my father (did I mention I am an only child and feel responsible to include my dad in damn near everything we do) was HORRIBLE and my DH swore never again. He was not to happy to hear that DGP was coming, bringing the new wife, and that my mom will be accompanying us on the next trip because she is jealous dad is coming on this one. DH is quite the trooper, huh.

 

[mrssmith06]

Looking good!! We are taking our first ever trip in June!! I look forward to reading more of you PTR!!