Our SUPER special and SURPRISE Pre-trip Report

[shellywalker]

I'm Shelly (25), My DH is Alex (25), we have a DD Madeline (5) and a DS Jackson (8 months).

A little about me: I'm 25 years old, and a stay at home mom to my two beautiful children. DH is currently overseas, so I like to spend my time planning our vacation when we will see him! I'm an avid Stamper (card maker) and scrapbooker. I'm in love with animals, of all kinds. I love taking pictures, almost always of the kids. I love going to the zoo. I love the beach. I love the sand between my toes. Wisconsin is not my final destination, I believe it to be the beach! Somewhere, on the coast of somewhere beautiful! It's been a rocky road, but we all made it here safely!

We are not only taking our first vacation together as a family, but we are taking it at Disney! I couldn't be more thrilled. DH hasn't been there since he was little, and neither one of the kids have ever been there! We'll be there October 24th-November 4th. The kids and I will be hitting a morning flight out of Milwaukee and arriving in Orlando around lunch time. We will be meeting DH there, as he will be arriving from Dubai. DH is currently in Al-Kut, Iraq and this is what he wanted to do with his R&R. Our house is currently under construction...so coming home wasn't a great idea!

I am for now, hoping that I can compile my thoughts here. I feel so overwhelmed with all things. Initially we were going to stay on property, and then after the time we were there kept increasing, it just wasn't practicle for us anymore. We currently have reservations at the Marriott Grande Vista, through a dear fried of mine...but as you will see...those will change!

 

[shellywalker]

My DD has NO idea that we are going to Disney World. Not even a little bit of a clue. She knows that we are going on an airplane to visit Daddy. But for all she knows (and by the way she talks), she thinks were going to Iraq. Haha. The innocence. DH doesn't want me to tell her, because he wants to be in on the suprise, and be able to see her face when she finds out. And DS, well, lets face it. He doesn't have a clue.

DH is going to be arriving into Orlando a few hours prior to us. Which is wonderful, because then he can go get the rental car, and be able to be ready to pick us up when we arrive! Initially, I wanted to drive down to St. Petersburg/Clearwater and take them to the places I used to visit often. My Grandparents lived down there, and so I visited there all the time growing up. But now a few things have changed into our plans. Some friends of ours had mentioned over the summer that they were THINKING about going down as well for a few days, as the kids have some days off of school around Halloween. I put it on the backburner not really thinking about much. Then when school started up (They have 3 kids, 2 DD's and a DS. Their oldest DD is best friends and in the same class with my DD.), the talk got a little more serious. They picked their DD up from my house the other day and mentioned that they booked their tickets for October 24th-29th! I was thrilled! They aren't planning on doing all of Disney...as they were just there last year. But thinking about doing Animal Kingdom with us as well as Sea World! Next up...the current Itinerary!

 

[shellywalker]

Friday October 24th

Alex arrive in Orlando at 10:12 AM
Alex pick up Rental Car (Still need to book)
Shelly, Maddie, Jackson arrive in Orlando at 1:35 PM
Eat lunch at fast food while driving to St. Petersburg Beach
Check into hotel at beach (Tradewinds-Still need to book)
Play on the beach/swimming pool
Dinner at Beach Nuts



Saturday October 25th

Breakfast -
Hang out at Beach in the morning
Check out of Tradewinds Hotel 11:00 AM
Lunch at Gators on the Pass
Walk around John’s Pass
Drive back to Orlando
Check into Marriott Grande Vista 4:00PM
Dinner-
Grocery Shopping


Sunday October 26th – Alex’s Birthday (Golden Birthday)

Chef Mickey Breakfast @10:50 AM
Lunch-
Dinner @ Margaritaville 5:00PM (need to make reservations 407-224-2155/Call 30 days in advance)



Monday October 27th

Breakfast-
Magic Kingdom
Lunch -
Dinner -


Tuesday October 28th

Breakfast-
Magic Kingdom
Lunch-
Dinner-
Mickey’s Not So Spooky Halloween Party (Magic Kingdom)

Wednesday October 29th

Breakfast-
Sea World (Still need to purchase tickets)
Lunch-
Dinner-


Thursday October 30th

Breakfast-
Lunch-Princess Story Book 11:35
Epcot
Dinner-Quick Service


Friday October 31st

Breakfast-
Lunch -
Dinner-
Trick or Treating in Downtown Disney 4-9 (Trick or Treat bags will be distributed at Disney's Wonderful World of Memories, Once Upon a Toy and World of Disney. Head to the Tinker Toy Tower for the Pumpkin Patch and the Dance Party at the Dock Stage.)
· Disney’s Days of Christmas
· Disney’s Pin Traders
· Disney’s Wonderful World of Memories
· Disney Quest
· Goofy’s Candy Company
· Mickey’s Groove
· Mickey’s Pantry
· Once Upon A Toy
· Pooh Corner
· West Side Pin Cart
· World Of Disney


Saturday November 1st

Breakfast-
Hollywood Studios (MGM)
Lunch- Toy Story Pizza Planet
Dinner- 50’s Prime Time Café 5:50


Sunday November 2nd

Breakfast-
Animal Kingdom
Lunch-Quick Service
Dinner- Rainforest Café 5:30


Monday November 3rd

Breakfast-
Lunch-
Dinner-
Port Orleans Riverside Resort Evening Carriage Ride (need reservations 407-939-7529)


Tuesday November 4th

Breakfast-McDonalds
Check out of Hotel @ 10:00 AM
Return Rental Car
Lunch @
Alex Depart at 4:00 PM
Shelly, Maddie and Jackson Depart at 5:25 PM

This is what I have so far. But now that we have other people coming who want to do things with us on different days...I'll have to do some rearranging. I'm glad it didn't really effect any of our ADR's! Rainforest Cafe is OUTSIDE of Animal Kingdom right???

 

[shellywalker]

And so I forgot to mention the new resort that we are looking at staying at. If anyone has heard of this or knows of a review...please let me know. It's the Liki Tiki Village in Winter Green! It looks too good to be true, for me at least. It's very reasonable price wise...and the amentities are endless!

Also, we are going to be spending DH's golden birthday down there, and this is a very important event for him. It is also a celebration of our 1 year anniversary of Marriage We have ADR's for Chef Mickey's for a late breakfast that day, then I have NO idea what we will be doing during the day. As for dinner, I am thinking I want to take him to Maragaritaville. As he is a HUGE Jimmy Buffet fan, and he's never been to one of his restaraunts. So I thought I would surprise him with that. I want to make sure that I make a cake reservation for Chef Mickey's for him...need to inquire on that ASAP!

Next up...the monsterous packing lists! That's plural. I think I have a list of all my lists!

 

[shellywalker]

I know. I'm nuts. But it's hard to pack for all these people by yourself. Geesh.

This is what is Packed for DD:
Ariel Beach Towel
Swim Suit Cover Up(2)
Capri's(2)
Swimsuits(4)
Rashguard Shirts(2)
Pajamas(5)
Water wings
Dresses(3)
Nice Shorts(2)
Comfy Shorts(2)
Outfits(3)
Tank Tops/Shirts(5)
Skirt(1)
Underwear(13)
Socks(5)
Sunhats(2)
Sandals(1)
Flip Flops(3)
Zip Hoodie(1)
Hoodie(1)
Sunglasses
Purse
Hair Accessories
Earrings
Toothbrush/Toothpaste
Flossers
Vitamins
Flouride

This is what I packed for DS:
Sunhats (4)
Shorts (3)
1 Piece Outfits (6)
Onsies t's (4)
Outfits (3)
t-shirts (5)
sweatshirt (1)
swim trunks (2)
rashguard shirt (1)
L/S shirts (3)
Disposable Bibs
Disposable Wash Cloths
Bodywash/Shampoo
Lotion
Toothpaste/Toothbrush
Butt Paste
Brush/Comb
Sunshade
Disposable Changing Pads
Swim Diapers
Sunglasses

Things that need to be packed for DS still:
Pants
Onsies
Socks
Bibs
Bottles
Sippy Cups
Both Kids trick or treat bags and costumes

Things that were packed for DH (he is bringing some of his own things from Iraq):
Shirts (2)
Shorts (2)
Swim Trunks (2)
Khaki Pants (1)
Baseball Hat (1)
Hoodie (1)

General Items that were packed:
Shaving cream (DH)
Sunscreen
Aloe
Vasoline
Lotion
Baby Powder
Thermometer
Q-Tips
Sewing Kit
Aspirator
Benadryl (DD)
Nail Clipper (baby)
Jackson Medication
Shampoo/Conditioner
Eye Drops
Toothpaste
Floss
Hand Sanitizer
Deodorant (Myself and DH)
Bodywash
Toothbrushes
Razors and extra blades
Body Puffs
4 Personalized Towels
Tylenol
Kleenex
DD Tylenol

Next up: Things I need to still buy and Maddie's Tink bag!

 

[shellywalker]

So our friends will be arriving in Orlando later the same day we arrive. They get in several hours after us! So I'm hoping to be able to Tink their room before they get in! If things go accordingly, we'll be in the same resort! Since they will be doing all the Halloween stuff with us, I decided to do the same bags for their kids as I'm doing with mine! They have two girls, 3 and 5. And a boy that is 1. I haven't decided what to really do for the boys yet...but this is what I have for the girls:

My mom will be making them all personalized trick or treat bags and they will contain these items:

Disposable Camera
Tinkerbell Pins (purchased in Dollar section of Target!!)
Tinkerbell Tattoos (same as above)
Tinkerbell Dry/Erase Boards (also from Target)
Bath Squirties
Lg Sharpie (only for my DD)
Autograph Book (only for my DD)-STILL NEED TO PURCHASE
Princess Pumpkin Carving Kit (only for my DD-they will all share)
Flash lights-STILL NEED TO PURCHASE
Glow Sticks (dollar section in Target)
Glow Bracelets (same as above!)
Sm Princess toy-STILL NEED TO PURCHASE

Other small things that still need to be purchased:
Memory Stick for camera
Earplanes for DD
Pack n Play sheets
MP3 player for DD (Daddy took hers to Iraq)
Postcard Stamps
Costumes (my mom is making them!)

 

[Alysa]

I love your report so far! I'm a list girl and you have reminded me of couple of things I need to do on mine! I was planning on packing this weekend but it never worked out...
I hope you have a magical R&R with your husband. What a treat for your little ones! What are you and your children going to be for halloween? Is your husband dressing up too? Can't wait to hear more details!

 

[shellywalker]

I love your report so far! I'm a list girl and you have reminded me of couple of things I need to do on mine! I was planning on packing this weekend but it never worked out...
I hope you have a magical R&R with your husband. What a treat for your little ones! What are you and your children going to be for halloween? Is your husband dressing up too? Can't wait to hear more details!

Thank you for reading my report! I was starting to get worried I'd be the only one I picked up a bunch of last odds and ends on Friday for the kids...and they are basically packed, with the exception of some warmer clothes for the baby!

We are doing the Wizard of Oz for Halloween. My daughter has been asking for 2 years to be Dorothy...so I guess I'll finally give in DD is going to be Dorothy and DS is going to be the Tin Man. My mother works at Joann Fabrics (a large craft store here!) and she's going to be making their costumes...so if she finishes and has time for us...then DD wants DH to go as the Lion and me to go as the Good Witch! So we'll see what happens there!

I'm going to hop over to your report quick before I head to school to help out in DD's kindergarten class this morning!

 

[Alysa]

I LOVE that tin man costume - I know the one you mean. My nephew was that when he was 3 - adorable!!
I actually turned the Glenda pattern into a snow white one which is what I am wearing this year. I would probably be Glenda too so I didn't scare the kids but secretly I'd be wishing I was the wicked witch.

Have fun at class - I'm on tomorrow at DS's daycare!

 

[shellywalker]

I LOVE that tin man costume - I know the one you mean. My nephew was that when he was 3 - adorable!!
I actually turned the Glenda pattern into a snow white one which is what I am wearing this year. I would probably be Glenda too so I didn't scare the kids but secretly I'd be wishing I was the wicked witch.

Have fun at class - I'm on tomorrow at DS's daycare!

I'd rather be the wicked witch too, I'm still not positive that I'm going to dress up. So much stuff to get done and not so much time to make myself a costume! School was great! It's amazing what they pack into two hours in a Kindergarten class. Geesh.

 

[shellywalker]

I've been slacking, I know. But I promise I have good reasons! Or at least I think they are good reasons! Saturday, well, I had to watch the Brewer game with my wonderful big brother and my kids, then spent the evening at my parents house. Sunday morning, my daughter and I and a friend did the Race for the Cure 5K walk down on the lakefront. Beautiful. And VERY emotional. As I'm sure everyone here has been effected in some way by breast cancer. What an awful thing. Then we attended a craft fair, where I allowed my daughter to pick out some clothes for her American Girl doll! What an expensive hobby that is! Yikes. I bought a few snowman clay ornaments....SUPER cute. One of them is holding a little sign that says "My other car is a fire truck' and one says "Proud to be a Milwaukee Brewers Fan". It was a good time, and my DD loves to go to these things. Then of course we had to watch the Brewer game again on Sunday afternoon...afterall, the post season future lied in two games that day! Fastforward to yesterday....The Brewers made it to the playoffs and so Milwaukee had a HUGE rally for them before they left for Philly last night...we all partied like rockstars and showed them off Milwaukee Style. It was an amazing evening. But back to reality on this hung over morning!

Not much happened vacation-wise over the weekend...other than my personalized maps I ordered from Disney arrived...with my maiden name on them I'm pretty sad, but oh well. They are awesome, I can't believe Disney does this for free! How awesome!

 

[shellywalker]

Well I created a list of things to pack in the Diaper bag and for my DD to pack in her backpack. Imagine that, eh?? I feel like I have everything except for my flat screen tv packed into this list! Here goes...

Diaper Bag:
Diapers
Wipes
Bottle
Formula(except I think I decided I'm not buying formula anymore...he can just drink milk)
Sippy Cup
1 jar baby food (plane leaves in AM so he'll eat bfast at airport)
1 spoon
Disposable changing pads
Disposable bib (for the bfast feeding)
Regular bibs
Change of clothes
First Aid Kit
Baby Tylenol
Childrens Tylenol
Regular Tylenol
Dramamine
Benadryl
Desitin
Wet Wipes
Shout Wipes
Tide-to-go
Camera
Video Camera
Laptop
Pacifier
Cell Phone Charger
Contacts case and glasses
Small stuffed animal
Blankie
Sm Toys

I am so nervous about taking my DS on the plane. He's so loud. But it's a happy loud. The kid doesn't cry...hardly ever. But he loves to talk and play...and I'm so afraid people are going to be annoyed by him ...even though he's the cutes kid ever.

DD's Carry-on:

She decided she wanted a Minnie Mouse backpack this year for school...and she doesn't even know we are going to Disney! Oh the angel!

Leapster
Go Fish
Old Maid
Books
Coloring Book/Crayons
Workbook/Pencil
Ipod
Snacks
Change of clothes
Travel Pillow
Teddy bear (the one DH made for her before he left for Iraq)
Blankie...because OH MY GOD CAN YOU IMAGINE IF WE TRAVELED WITHOUT THIS!

I still have a few more things I need to pick up from the store. Because when I went to Target the other day....I forgot my list at home
Things I forgot:
Earplanes for DD
Pack N Play sheets
Postcard stamps

I also need to ask my mom if she can pick up some really cute little pumpkin flashlights I saw at her store for like $1.50...can't beat that!!!!

 

[Alysa]

ALWAYS take a change of shirt of yourself when travelling on a plane with a baby. ALWAYS!
Our first trip with DD, we had a million things for her including two sleepers and an outfit but nothing for us and yup - she threw up on me. Not my finest hour (or two).

 

[shellywalker]

ALWAYS take a change of shirt of yourself when travelling on a plane with a baby. ALWAYS!
Our first trip with DD, we had a million things for her including two sleepers and an outfit but nothing for us and yup - she threw up on me. Not my finest hour (or two).

He thankfully has not EVER thrown up. Not even a little bit. But I will do it just incase! Because with my luck..or lack of...it'll happen when I'm in that awesome confined aircraft. I think by the time I'm done packing for this trip, I'm going to need my own jet. For my luggage.

 

[shellywalker]

So...my mom...she's the craftiest person I know of! And oh how I love her to pieces! She's getting into this Disney stuff as much as me...and she's not even coming! She called me from work yesterday (she works in a craft store) and tells me that the store got in some new Halloween fabric and it has DISNEY CHARACTERS on it! Then asked if I'd rather have that for the Trick or Treat bags, instead of the fabric I had previously picked out. WHY OF COURSE! So she finished Jackson's bag...and oh my lord. The CUTEST thing I've ever looked at. I need to figure out how to post a picture...so I can get it on here. I had a lovely DISer design the MNSSHP picture on the bags and then my mom sewed the bags together and embroidered each child's name onto the bag. LOVES IT! Going to figure out how to post a picture now.

 

[Alysa]

Can't wait to see it! Grandmas will so pretty much anything for their grandkids, won't they?

 

[shellywalker]

Here is the bag! So cute. She said on the next ones, she's going to move the name up a little bit so it's not right at the bottom of the bag. The fabric of the handles is what's on the inside of the bags...it's blue with spiders and mickey, minnie, goofy all decked out for Halloween! How exciting.

Now that I know how to post pictures, I will upload some of us

 

[shellywalker]

This is DH and I on our wedding day! We've been married for almost a year...on October 19th.

This is DD Madeline! She's in Kindergarten this year and LOVES it. Last night, after dinner she was talking about getting ready for school this morning...I told her she didn't have to go to school because it was Saturday and she was so upset! So I guess that's a good thing. She's got a lot of spunk, more energy than anyone I've ever seen. She's come such a long way in the last few months and I'm so proud of her. She is just going to freak when she finds out we are at Disney!

This is DS Jackson. He will be 9 months old in a week. He's the cutest thing to ever crawl the Earth. He has the cutest/most charming personality I have ever seen in a baby! He will make me have a head of grey hair before I'm 30. He's daring, and he doesn't even walk.

 

[shellywalker]

I've got a little bit to update you with! We have made our reservations for a 2 bedroom/2 bath Villa at the Liki Tiki Village. I'm so excited to be staying at this place! I think the kids are just going to love the "water park" and the playground! It's much more "kid friendly" than the Marriott! On that note, I also cancelled the reservation that was made for the Marriott!

I still need to reserve the rental car. I will do that tomorrow morning! I was going to do it tonight, but the computer was running slow before...so instead...I painted some more in my kitchen! A little bit off topic, but we are remodeling our kitchen...well I am remodeling, since DH is busy over in Iraq I purchased some gorgeous slate tiles for the floor and am painting the walls sort of a light brownish color and then all the wood work is white. I love it, it looks so much cleaner and slick looking. So tonight I went shopping with my daddy to Home Depot to buy the rest of the stuff for the floor...grout, mortar, spacers....those types of things. I casually asked him when he was planning on doing the floor and he told me while I'm on vacation! WOOHOO!!!! I'm so excited. I will be coming home from heaven on Earth...TO A NEW KITCHEN FLOOR!

I also did some ADR rearranging. I cancelled our 50's Prime Time and Rainforest Cafe. I rescheduled the Rainforest Cafe for Monday the 27th at 5:45 for a party of 9! We will be going to Animal Kingdom that day with our friends and then to dinner! Should be a good time. I was a little disappointed to find out that they can't seat us all together, but will TRY to seat our tables close by eachother. UGH! I guess you can't always get your way. We have also been trying to get the Donald's Safari Breakfast for that day...but so far no luck. So if anyone is reading this and has a party of 9 on the 27th they want to give up

I went to the Disney Store yesterday to see if I could find anything for the boys Tinkerbell bags. No luck. I was rather disappointed in their selection of things for small boys. Oh well. So I left there with two stuffed Pooh bears that were in Halloween costumes...on sale for $2.50! Not to shabby. Then I went to Walmart last night to buy some diapers...and I came across some super cute little Mickey Mouse Clubhouse T-shirts...on sale for $1.00! That's right!!! So for the boys, I have the flashlights, t-shirts and pooh bears. Maybe one more thing if I can find something! We shall see!

I also went for a visit to my moms yesterday to pick up the rest of the Trick or Treat bags and just happened to pick up some Minnie polka dot fabric to try and make a dress for my DD! I'll be working on that tomorrow hopefully...after I prime the rest of the kitchen!

Ya know...if anyone wants to chime in here...so I don't feel like I'm talking to myself...that would be great

 

[shellywalker]

So I had thought about purchasing some sort of Disney dress for my DD to wear to our Breakfast at Chef Mickeys..but browsing the good ole Dis...I found an idea to make a dress. I suck at sewing...but my mom...it's what she does for a living. So I found a pattern, bought all the pieces, cut everything out for her....and she sewed it together...and this is what we got: