Prince Charming takes his Princesses to Disney World~Updated 6/7 with ADR's

[princesspaige]

Hi everyone!!

This is my first foray into a pre-trip report...heck any type of trip report for that matter! I hope I do this justice and don't sound like a goober

Anyway, let me introduce the family. There is me, DW extraordinaire and Head Princess, Margaret. My favorite character is Belle and DH would say it is more of an obsession... ok, maybe it is.

I have been married to DH, Rod , for almost 14 years and he is my Prince Charming. His favorite Disney character is Mulan. Which is good b/c I like her.

Our little Princess is Paige. She is 4 and is the light of our lives, sometimes she turns that light off and it gets dark, but then she turns it right back on. Her favorite character is Ariel. Also a good choice as I like her also.

This will be the second family trip. We took DD for her 2nd b-day and brought my parents along for that one. This one will just be the 3 of us and I am extremely excited.

Here is how it all came to be:

At the end of January we decided to do a good behavior calendar, stickers for good days, x's for not so good days. Paige decided that after getting 12 stickers we would take her bowling. At the end of February, DH decided that if she got "lots" of stickers we would go to Disney World!!!!! Of course all I heard was "go to Disney World"

That same weekend I decided to check out the price of flights to Florida. We had already decided to go over Labor Day since it required the fewest days off work. Guess what??? I found 3 round trip, direct flights for less than $500 total!!! I couldn't believe it!! So, DH says, book it. Guess who is going to Disney World???

So far, we have plane tickets. That's it, nothing more, just plane tickets. But that is okay, I have a countdown going...at work. I am trying to keep this a secret from DD so it will be a surprise, not sure if I can keep up with it though.

Since I am the planner of the house, I have already bought a book to help me remember all those things I need to do before going....like book a room. No, seriously, I know I need to book a room but it is nice to have something to keep me sane until we fly out. I have some ideas of where I want to stay, yep it is all about where I want to stay b/c if Momma's not happy, ain't nobody happy! I would love to stay at POFQ but the economy may decide on All Star Sports. Either one works for me as long as I get to go. I am trying to hold out a little longer to see what deals Disney drums up but am also checking out what kind a deal I get thru AAA. I have the best AAA TA and I know if I book thru her and Disney comes out with a better deal she will work her magic to get that for me. I am soo lucky to have her.

That is all I have for today, I hope you enjoy this journey as much as I do. Once I figure out how to insert pics, I will add some. Sometimes technology can be so difficult.

Thank you for reading...

 

[princesspaige]

There is another member of our family who never gets to go anywhere with us...his name is Apollo and he is our dog DH likes to call him Big Brother (a play on Little Brother from Mulan).

Poor Apollo has to stay home but he always has great company. We hire the neighbor kid to watch him, play with him, and on occasion, sleep at the house with him. I think he prefers that to going anywhere with us. Probably because his only car trips involve either the vet or the groomer...both of which he hates!!

Good news today, I made our reservations for the big trip. We are planning on staying at POFQ. I am really excited. DH and I stayed at POR a few years ago and really enjoyed it. After seeing some of the pics of the resort, I am even more excited.

I feel like it will be a lifetime before vacation ever gets here, but I am hoping this pre-trip report will help ease the pain of not going NOW.

I still haven't figured out how to insert pics but that is my goal tonight, maybe tomorrow, well honestly anytime before we leave.


Until next time, happy reading....

 

[shordiebecka]

I'm here! Things sound great, the good behavior chart is such a fun idea Your vaca will be here before you know it, I promise. Can't wait to to hear more!!!

 

[princesspaige]

I'm here! Things sound great, the good behavior chart is such a fun idea Your vaca will be here before you know it, I promise. Can't wait to to hear more!!!

Thanks for reading. The good behavior chart is working wonders...it is amazing how much power a marker holds.

 

[princesspaige]

Ok, if all goes well, you will get to see what we really look like. So, grab some popcorn, sit back and enjoy the show.

This is the 3 of us last November on the Disney Cruise...

Our very own Big Brother...keep in mind, no animals where harmed in the taking of this photo...even though he looks petrified.

Paige is all about the make-up, even when pretending to put it on someone else. Thank goodness DH is such a good sport.

My TA called to say she is sending out my confirmation info and a brochure for Paige to look thru.

Now I just need to survive the next 5 1/2 months.

 

[princesspaige]

So, the planning bug has taken over. I have decided that this year I am not taking a fanny pack but a small backpack instead. I need one small enough that it won't be hot and heavy but big enough to hold a palm sized dvd camcorder, a small camera and a change of clothes for DD (in case of an accident).

After looking around, I think I have decided on the Vera Bradley backpack. I like the size of them and the high quality but balk at paying $88 for one!! I think DH balks as well. So, I have enlisted friends to be on the lookout for me. One is scouring ebay for me (she is the resident ebay queen and can sniff a deal a mile away ). Another has a neighbor that goes to the Vera Bradley trunk show (outlet sale) in Fort Wayne, IN every year. That isn't until the end of April/first of May so if the e-bay thing hasn't worked out for me yet, she is going to see what they have there. if the price is right then she said she would pick one up for me. I am keeping my fingers crossed and throwing out some pixie dust that I get that settled. I am not sure why I feel I need to accomplish this right away as I still have over 5 looong months to go but I do...crazy I know.

My next step is to complete my "lists"...packing, buying, to do, etc...it is a good thing all this self imposed stress leads to a very happy ending...Disney World.

Until next time...happy reading.

 

[mrsksomeday]

Great PTR!! Love the pictures, you looks so happy, DH is a great sport. I get that same look from our dog too . POFQ is the first Disney resort I stayed at for my first Disney trip in Feb. 2006. I have been to WDW 5 times since then, do you think I am hooked . I can't wait to hear all about your planning.

 

[shordiebecka]

Aw you all look so happy. DD will be very excited to have some Disney stuff to look through!!!!! PS- love Vera Bradley to pieces....I wish it wasn't so expensive!!! Before you know it your trip will be here. I know 5 months is so hard to wait!

 

[princesspaige]

Great PTR!! Love the pictures, you looks so happy, DH is a great sport. I get that same look from our dog too . POFQ is the first Disney resort I stayed at for my first Disney trip in Feb. 2006. I have been to WDW 5 times since then, do you think I am hooked . I can't wait to hear all about your planning.

DH and I stayed at POR back in 2002 when it was just the 2 of us going and we loved it. I am really excited about staying at POFQ...I am hoping DD will go down the slide at the pool since "King Triton" is on it.

 

[princesspaige]

I told Rod that I wanted this trip to be a surprise for Paige and he is willing to go along. To do this, I had to break the "bad" news to Paige that we probably won't be able to make it to Disney this year. Her only response was "but we still get to go bowling, right?" That is of course, in reference to her behavior calendar.

This just may be easier than I thought. She thinks we are not going, I just need to not talk about it and we are good to go. Wait a minute, I can't just not talk about it...

It is a good thing I started this PTR, I get to talk about my trip all I want and Paige will hopefully have no clue. Note to self...remind other family members to NOT ask Paige about Disney!!! That could be bad...

I have decided to take a Tai Chi class at the YMCA (we are members). Rod thinks it is pretty funny but it should help keep me focused on the prize. What I really should be doing is running...I signed up late last year to run in this years Indy 500 Festival Mini Marathon. It will be my first one ever and unfortunately it will be more of a walk than anything....but hey, I just want to finish. Maybe next year I will run it...then again this may be my first and last mini marathon.

That is all I have for tonight. Thank you for being on this journey with me and happy reading.

 

[princesspaige]

Does it ever end??? I think I am usually planning all the way up to the point in which we check into the hotel...then there are times I am still planning for those just-in-case-something-goes-wrong moments...ugh!

My friend did find a Vera Bradley small backpack on e-bay and we (I) won. I am hoping it comes this week and it turns out to be what was discribed. If it is, then that is one thing I can check off my list.

I also saw on the codes/discounts page that it looks like Disney may actually have free dining when we go... Now I am hoping that that is true and we can add it to our ressie...could the sun really be shining down?? Maybe I should throw some pixie dust out there, maybe it will help...

Until next time, happy reading.

 

[princesspaige]

Today was a fantastic day!!! Disney announced free dining for this fall and as a Disney Visa cardholder I got to request it today. My TA was able to add it to our ressie! For those of you who do not have a Disney Visa, word on the street is that it will open up to the general public on Monday...

Could the week be any better? So far this week I have:

watched the movie Twilight 3 tiems!! Gotta love Edward...;

received my Vera Bradley backpack (the one I won on e-bay) in the mail. It was perfect. ;

and bought the first Twilight book to re-read...I borrowed it the first time around from a friend at work now I have my own copy to read as often as I want.

I think this week will be hard to top...well, a week at Disney tops just about anything in my book.

That is all I have for tonight, happy reading...

 

[princesspaige]

Ok, I know it is way to early to make ADR's but Rod and I have already started throwing around places we would like to eat. Since I was able to score us free dining we are taking a closer look at meals.

So far the following have made our wish list:

Le Cellier - Rod and Paige both love steak...I on the other hand prefer chicken ...but I am taking one for the team here. Maybe I will order a steak, for Paige to eat, and hopefully order chicken fingers for Paige, I mean me.

Aukerhaus - Character dinner - All I needed to hear was that the Princesses are here. Good enough for me, plus it only uses 1 TS vs the 2 that Cindy's takes.

Hoop-Dee-Do - We have done this one in the past (2 times) and really enjoy it. Rod wants to do it again, even if we end up paying for it vs using the plan.

I think we are good with just the one character meal, unless Disney decides to bring the Phineas and Ferb group out...then we would definitely do whatever it took to go to that one. We are obviously fans.

My goal is to have the rest of it planned out by the end of May (I know that is 2 months away but it will take all of the 2 months) so when it comes time to call Disney, I have it all mapped out...it just needs to work the way I want it.

That is all for tonight...happy reading!

 

[princesspaige]

and Rod talked me off. I was thinking about switching our ressie from POFQ to ASSp to save some money but Rod kept his cool and said he is good with what we had and saw no reason to change!! Yeah!!! I really do love that man...

So tomorrow is going to be a big day for Paige. We are skipping swim lessons (her first one this year she will miss) to go Easter Egg hunting at our Church. Paige is very excited as her cousin is spending the night with us tonight so he can go with us tomorrow. Not only will her cousin be there but a couple of boys (they happen to be brothers) will be there as well. It should be great. Hopefully the weather will be clear so they can be outside...otherwise it might be in the gym...we'll see.

Hopefully I will take some good pics to share with you. Paige loves the camera so it shouldn't be to hard.

That is all I have for tonight. Until next time...happy reading.

 

[princesspaige]

Paige had a great day yesterday. The weather was perfect for hunting eggs. It started at 9:00 in the morning so they had donughts and juice for those who wanted it. Plus the Easter bunny was there handing out candy. Once Paige realized that you got candy if you went to see him, she kept trying to go back for more. I got a pretty smart girl here.

The instructions to the kids when it was time to get the eggs was "take 9 or 10 eggs so there are enough for everyone". I was good with that and would count Paige's eggs as she picked them up. Apparently she sneaked in a couple of extra ones as she had 12 eggs not 10 when we got home!! Because of how they had the age groups divided, I was not able to keep on eye on her cousin to track his eggs...he ended up with 11 (after I gave 2 of them to one of Paige's friends)...oy!!

Once I get the pics uploaded, I will post them. I may not have time until tomorrow as I have a busy day ahead of me...I got the lawn about 3/4 of the way mowed before the rain came down...ugh! I guess I should be glad to get what I got done. I still need to do my weekly grocery shopping (that I should have done yesterday), finish the laundry , and fix dinner tonight ...then hopefully I will have some time to just sit down and chill out in front of the tv.

Only 5 months to go and I am ready for it to be here already!!

 

[princesspaige]

Back in February, shortly after starting her good behavior calendar, Paige earned enough stickers to go bowling. We took her in March because Rod had knee surgery right before Valentine's Day so bowling had to be put on hold for a couple of weeks. Paige was okay with the wait as she really wanted Daddy to go with us. Once she got there, there was no stopping the fun!!

She wasn't strong enough to pick up the lightest ball so I taught her how to do it granny style.

She got a spare and was so excited that she skipped her way back!!

Once we got home and after her nap, she was allowed a doughnut with chocolate icing ...boy that was a mistake!!

All in all it was a great day. We took her to see a movie for her next set. I can not remember which one we saw but I am pretty sure she enjoyed it. We are quickly approaching her next reward so it looks like we are going bowling again...

Like I mentioned Sunday, we had a great time Easter Egg hunting...pics are in the next post.

 

[princesspaige]

Paige really liked the Easter Bunny...because he was giving out candy!!

And then it was time for the eggs...It is amazing how fast kids will run when there is candy involved. I don't think any of them walked like all of the parents told them to...not that I am surprised.

She had such a great time that she keeps asking when we are going to her Memaw's house to find the eggs the Easter Bunny leaves there. After all, he leaves money at her house.

And then it was photo studio time....

 

[princesspaige]

So I decided to take some pics of Apollo...a few came out okay

Then the cooperation ended...

I think he was done! So Paige and I decided to take one of the 2 of us laying on the floor...

Apparently if we were in the picture, then so was he...I am sooo not into dog saliva!! Makes you wonder why I have a dog, doesn't it.

Until next time...happy reading.

 

[princesspaige]

I thought I had our places to eat decided...that was until my brother decided to offer his suggestions. We have done HDDR twice and really like it. My brother says we should do O'hana's....now I am torn. Do we do HDDR or try O'Hana's? Or, do we do the breakfast O'Hana (not sure what it is called but it is with Lilo and Stitch) and still do HDDR? So many decisions so much time! What makes it worse is that I can not even make my ADR's yet as it is still tooooo early. After all, I could change my mind another million times by June. EEK!!

Oh, and anther thing, I thinking Le Cellier is out as well...not b/c Rod doesn't want to go (the man does a good steak) but b/c I really don't want to. Is that selfish of me? I could always tell him that I couldn't get a ressie...

OT...sorry need to take a quick left turn...I am watching Dancing with the Stars and they are showing Shawn Johnson's training.. hilarious!!! I can only imagine how silly I would feel trying to be sexy with someone other than my man and I am 35...not 17!!!

Now back to your regularly scheduled show...where was I?? oh yeah...ADR's...the only place I haven't changed my mind on is Akerhaus...all because of the Princesses!!!

Basically I am at square 1...where to eat. I think I am going to have to troll the restaurant area some more...the problem is just when I think I have it all figured out someone says something that changes my mind...why can't everyone just say the same thing! I guess all this really won't matter if I can not get the ressies I want, will it? Either way, we are going to have the best vacation ever!!!

Until next time...happy reading!

 

[princesspaige]

I knew that I would be changing my mind about our TS meals...I was just hoping it would take longer than 3 days for it to happen!!

Ok, so far this is what I am thinking...

Saturday (arrival date) - Spirit of Aloha (HDDR is out, this is in)
Monday - Princess Storybook Dining at Akerhus - lunch
Tuesday - Supercalifragilistic Breakfast at 1900 Park Fare
Wednesday - Le Cellier - lunch (yep, it's back )
Thursday - Chip 'N' Dale's Harvest Feast at the Garden Grill (b/c LTT doesn't have the characters anymore...their loss )
Friday - Chef Mickey's Fun Time Buffet - breakfast

Now, I just need the ADR fairies to sprinkle some pixie dust on me so I get the days/times I want...maybe I need to work on a plan b just in case.

We decided not to do BBB this year. We did it last year and Paige really enjoyed it but I am good with skipping it this year. We are going to do MNSSHP again. We went last year, on Halloween, and had a blast. I hope this year we have just as much fun! I need to start thinking about what costume Paige will be wearing this year...I am pretty sure it will be a princess. Heck, she could probably wear the same Ariel one from last year. That would definitely same us some money.

It looks like I still have lots of planning to do...so until next time, happy reading.