Pre Trip Planning for June

[tink2007]

We are down to 55 days and counting! I have been planning since our last trip in June of 2005. June is nice time for us to go despite the heat. We live in Atlanta so we are used to heat and humidity. The crowds were not so bad on our last trip and I'm hoping for the same this time.

This year we are going June 6th through the 13th. We will be staying at Port Orlean Riverside for the first time. I thought this was the best resort for our group because of the various ages and budgets. I hope I have made the right choice.

Our group consists of the following characters:

Myself - Valerie age 37. I am the planner. I love everything Disney. I work at a private school as an office manager. People I work with think I'm crazy with the planning. They just don't understand the time it takes to plan a great Disney vacation.

My husband - Daniel age 38. He will recieve his masters degree in July. This has been a long process and I am very proud of him. This vacation is part of his graduation present.

My daughter - Ashley age 15. Ashley will be celebrating her 16th birthday while we at WDW. We have a birthday party planned for her at Cindrella Castle. She dosen't this but I have a special birthday t-shirt and button for her to wear. She is going to die with embarassment. Thats my job as her mother.

My son - Caleb age 11. Caleb is a thrill ride junkie. This is so strange to me because the first time we took to WDW he would not ride anything. Not even Dumbo. He was 4 at the time. I had the worst vacation I have ever had. I sat on a bench with him the whole week and watched everyone else have a great time. I'm glad he came to his senses.

My In Laws - Thurman and Vindetta age unknown. I have great inlaws and am looking forward to spending the week with them. They have not been to WDW since 1981. They are a big reason we chose to stay at POR. Vindetta loves old southern homes and is excited about the carraige ride through the resort. They will be celebrating their 54th wedding anniversary in June. We have a special night planned for them at Le Cellier.

My borther in law - Darryl ( Daniel's brother) age 45. We had to really work on him and convince him to come with us to WDW. Darryl's wife, Martha, can not make the trip because she is going back to school and can not miss class.

My niece - Victoria (Darryl's daughter) age 13. Victoria is so excited about this trip because she is going with her cousins and family. She has not been to WDW since she was 4. My kids have filled her in on all the new attractions. They have watched the vacation planning video at least 25 times.

Niece #2 - Elizabeth (Darryl's oldest daughter) age 24. Elizabeth has always been my husband's pet. She used to go on vacation with us when she was little. She is a OB nurse now and is married to a wonderful guy. She is looking forward to going with her husband who has never been to WDW. Is that possible? Who dosen't go to Disney?

Nephew in law - Chris (Elizabeth's husband) age 25?? We have had so much fun telling Chris about Disney. Of course he dosen't get what the big deal is. It's just a theme park. He is going to be a Disney junkie by the thrid day. As a joke, we have told him not to pack any shirts to take because I have made matching shirts for everyone to wear everyday. Now, I have done this before when our kids were little but not any more. I am going to make him sweat it out for the next few weeks.

My mom and dad - Norman and Patricia ages unknown??? My parents went with us on our last trip. They enjoy watching the kids have a good time. My mom does not ride anything. She likes to find a bench and people watch. She comes in handy as a bag and drink holder while she waits. My dad will ride anything while acting like a 15 year old just to embarress my kids.

My oldest brother - Tim age 42. I tell everyone Tim is the golden child of our family. The perfect one. Tim and his family are frequent Disney goers. They
live in St. Augestine Florida and go every chance the get.

My sister in law - Shelly (Tim's wife) age 38. Shelly is the one who got all of us hooked on Disney. She loves Pluto. She and Tim are great parents and I'm so glad they are passing along the magic of Disney to their daughters.

My neice - Lexi (Tim's oldest daughter) age 3. We have so much fun with this kid. She is just like her mom when it comes to Pluto. She lights up the sky when she sees him. It is so sweet.

Neice #2 - Sydney (Tim's youngest daughter) age 18 months. We have not gone to Disney with her yet and I'm looking forward to sharing the magic with her.

My little brother - David age 36. David went with us on last trip to Disney. He can only stay a few days this time but I'm glad he's coming. On our last trip he rode Tower of Terror at least 10 times in a row. He was sick as a dog by dinner. We ate at Sci Fi Theater and even in the dark I could see that he was green as grass.

This is the end of part one of my Pre Trip Report. Until next time.....

 

[TN_DISNEY]

That's quite a large group. Sounds like fun. I wish (sorta) that we too could get some of our family members to join us.

I hope you guys aren't going to try to do everything together (rides, dining, shows, transportation, rest, etc.).

When we've taken large groups on trips, we've had the best luck with the "divide & conquer" strategy where we try to have at most one group gathering per day (often a meal).

I also prefer to come up with my own agenda and let the others know what your plans are and invite them to tag along. If you have no strategy or plan, then you'll spend all day trying to coordinate plans and nothing will get done.

 

[tink2007]

On our last trip there were 19 of us. Though we told everyone to do what they wanted, when they wanted we actually stayed together the entire time. This time who knows what will happen. My family has a plan, if everyone desides to follow thats great. If not, thats fine too. I like to follow a plan but I understand that not everyone is geared that way. I like to get to the parks before they open and stay till they close. Some people like to sleep in and get to the parks later. I feel like I'm going to miss something if I don't get there early and stay late. Of course by the end of the week I'm so tired I need another vacation.