PTR-2015 Year of a million trips….oh maybe only five. UPD 9/22 lnk to video

[stacy~**]

I "think" so. Not positive. We didn't stay Savannah view that trip- we viewed the bus stop, but it was not too noisy. And it was down the hall from the lobby, which was nice with littles.

Thanks...I guess I forgot that we do have the upgraded view (we didn't in February), I just assumed we had the same travel plans. I have read about lonnng hallways there so that is nice.

I just realized you had a PTR going! I just spent the last hour or so catching up. How exciting for Olivia to be doing the DCP!!! I can't imagine how hard it was for you to head home and leave her there, but she is in for an amazing experience, I'm sure.

I also noticed you are going to be there in October, but I don't know if I missed your dates or not? We are planning on 17th-25th!

Hey ya, Kristy! Nice to see you here! I desperately need to finish your ABD report (hangs head in shame....). I can't believe how close your ticker is getting for your new princesses' arrival. That is very exciting!

I don't really have dates for a trip in October yet. Honestly that trip will be one of those very last minute trips (if it happens at all) and it might be September. I really just have always wanted to go to MNSSHP and am hoping with Olivia being there it would be my chance to sneak in a quick fall time of year trip but right now I have nothing on the books for it.

 

[stacy~**]

With less than a week to go I thought I would pop in for a quick update and to finish my May trip report!!

I’ve made NO changes to our schedule which is nothing short of a miracle. Honestly I am pretty sure this is as content as I have ever felt with a plan. I usually have a slew of last minute changes.

We did find out that Olivia will be working the evening we arrive so before heading to Epcot we will be taking a quick detour to the Grand to see her working!

My-to-do list is pretty manageable which is also nice. Just a couple more easy sewing projects, pick up one last gift card, finalized/print spreadsheet, a few Target items, etc... I think my biggest thing going on right now is we decided to get a GoPro camera and try our hand at making a trip video! I’m very excited about this new way to capture the magic of our trip, although I am not super tech savvy so I am GoPro Youtube watching like crazy to see if I can get this thing down.

Be sure to find me on Twitter (link below) and Instagram ( stacyleigh9) if you are into those types of social media places.

Now on to the final update and very brief wrap of the May trip…

Tuesday, May 19-Day 6, Part 2

So after breakfast at The Grand and our monorail tour we finally arrived at Magic Kingdom around 11. Olivia had to head back to her apartment at 1 for her housing meeting but we wanted to try and squeeze in a few things. Of course we had to stop for this picture!

And a quick picture of this beauty!

We had made a few last minute FP’s. First up was Jungle Cruise which has become one of my favorites over the last few trips. I feel like the skippers have really stepped it up lately and today our skipper was no different. Unfortunately our time with him in the end was a bit awkward. The boats were all backed up right before the unloading dock so it made for some uncomfortable skipper chatter. He stayed in character for a while and used ALLLLLL his jokes/puns on us and finally abandoned it and started giving general MK advice. Haha! He was defeated.

We next made stops at Philhamagic, Space Mountain and Carousel of Progress. During COP the man next to me was on his phone for the entire show. Talk about annoying, having that screen glowing right next to me in the dark. I understand using these dark shows as naps/escape from the heat and if you don’t want to pay attention to the show that is your own business but to be on Facebook and have your screen on high glow is just disruptive to others. Ugh!

After our whirlwind tour I walked up Main Street with Olivia is say goodbye. It was soooo hard to do. Really, really hard. I tried my best not to have a complete meltdown in front of her (you know that whole….the parent needs to be strong stuff) but I was only marginally successful.

After she left I really didn’t know what to do. I basically just walked around Main Street trying to keep it together. I watched the Dan’s for a while and did a tiny bit of last minute shopping.

I then decided to get a FP to meet Tink. I was really hoping to have a conversation with her about me needing some pixie dust to get back soon to visit my girl but instead she ended up talking a mile a minute about stuff I wasn’t even following. Tink had definitely had her coffee that morning. Haha!

My last stop was the confectionary because I wanted to bring home some sort of fresh baked snack for Aaron and Lucy. After I was done there I decided to head out (and I believe the tears started up again).

I believe this was the tearful picture I posted to Facebook (possibly a bit of a posed pout).

Once I got back to Port Orleans I figured I should have some lunch even though I wasn’t really hungry. I ordered (surprise!!) pizza and a giant cookie. I was pretty over pizza at this point but I think just ordered it out of habit. The giant cookie was to drown my sorrows and worked….very temporarily. I do love how this picture turned out to look like a hidden Mickey.

After lunch I sat in the atrium area of POFQ and waited on my Magical Express bus. I had a bit of a wait (maybe 45 minutes or so) and normaly would be squeezing in my last bits of Disney but this time I just wanted to get home. I was so sad and I just wanted the leaving to be over with.

Of couse my flight was delayed, then the gate moved, etc., etc. but in the end I made it home. I did see this cool guy with slippers on at the airport. Haha!

While in flight I was crying (thankfully had the row to myself) and took a few pictures to see how awful I looked. The sadness is evident here. Yikes!

So there it is…..and I’ve survived and now I get to see her in a week. Yay! Yay!!!!

 

[Mrs T 2009]

Yay, one week!!!

That cookie looks delicious!! And pizza in Disney always tastes better! Haha

It'll be nice to see her, at work, on your arrival day!

I really dislike when people do that! Sit off to the side by no one, or in the back if you're going to do that. I don't want my time disrupted, ya know? Common sense he was apparently lacking

I am excited for your trip!!
I'll be following on insta!

 

[disneyguy4life]

I think my biggest thing going on right now is we decided to get a GoPro camera and try our hand at making a trip video!

They are pretty handy. I got one for my last trip and they were useful around POR's pool when my wife and I went swimming. We were going to use it while parasailing over 7 seas lagoon but a rainy day canceled that. I love the quality and I think it is worth the money. They have a really handy app for your phone that helps you see what the camera sees. You can also purchase the view finder for them as well. I really liked using it. I hope it works out for you.

 

[SarahDisney]

So exciting that you get to see Olivia on arrival night!
I can't believe your trip is so soon ... have an awesome time! I'll definitely be following along on twitter and instagram and I'm excited to see everything you post (and read all about it when you get back!)

I'm sure leaving Olivia was super sad ... but at least you get to see her again soon!
And Tink is always talking a mile a minute about something ... sometimes I miss old school Tink (from Peter Pan), who didn't talk at all (although I'd guess that doesn't make for a great M&G).

Cookies fix everything (even if just temporarily), so it's totally understandable that you got one! And even though the leaving was sad ... you'll be back there again in a few days, and then hopefully again in the fall, and then again in December/January ... so you'll be seeing her lots before her program ends!

 

[stacy~**]

Yay, one week!!!

That cookie looks delicious!! And pizza in Disney always tastes better! Haha

It'll be nice to see her, at work, on your arrival day!

I really dislike when people do that! Sit off to the side by no one, or in the back if you're going to do that. I don't want my time disrupted, ya know? Common sense he was apparently lacking

I am excited for your trip!!
I'll be following on insta!

Only a few days to go!

I was hoping she would be working mornings on our arrival because that would have her getting off work just about at the time we were arriving but oh well....it will be fun to be reunited with her while she is working.

I usually just blow off rude people but I think it was due to the fact that I was upset about leaving that it was more irritating to me. But hey....I'll be back in a few days so all is good!

I'll do my best to post a few pictures a day.

They are pretty handy. I got one for my last trip and they were useful around POR's pool when my wife and I went swimming. We were going to use it while parasailing over 7 seas lagoon but a rainy day canceled that. I love the quality and I think it is worth the money. They have a really handy app for your phone that helps you see what the camera sees. You can also purchase the view finder for them as well. I really liked using it. I hope it works out for you.

Thanks! Still trying to get a handle on the best settings, etc. but I hope I can wing it. From some of the test videos I have done even on what might not be the most ideal settings it seems to do a good job! I already have the app downloaded, I guess I need to look at it though. Haha! Can't wait to get some underwater video!

So exciting that you get to see Olivia on arrival night!
I can't believe your trip is so soon ... have an awesome time! I'll definitely be following along on twitter and instagram and I'm excited to see everything you post (and read all about it when you get back!)

I'm sure leaving Olivia was super sad ... but at least you get to see her again soon!
And Tink is always talking a mile a minute about something ... sometimes I miss old school Tink (from Peter Pan), who didn't talk at all (although I'd guess that doesn't make for a great M&G).

Cookies fix everything (even if just temporarily), so it's totally understandable that you got one! And even though the leaving was sad ... you'll be back there again in a few days, and then hopefully again in the fall, and then again in December/January ... so you'll be seeing her lots before her program ends!

Thanks! We are soooo excited. I'm just pretty much watching the hours tick by until we can go (oh yeah and trying to do a million things on my to do list). I'll do my best to keep my social media updates coming.

It was so sad leaving....like I can't even describe it but after those first few days it has really been ok. And this time I won't have to be sad leaving her because she is turning around and coming home for a quick visit just a few days after we get home. That visit is more about seeing our dogs and her friends but she will be around so I don't have to worry about tearful goodbyes at Disney.

Cookies fix everything is a motto that I need to lose. Haha! But really that moment really called for it.

 

[stacy~**]

Hello!! We are back (well actually we've been back for 2 weeks but it's been a crazy 2 weeks).

We had a wonderful yet rainy time! I have been torn on what to do with regards to writing a TR. We probably had more down time than usual due to rain and because I was trying my hand at capturing video for the first time I feel like I have a lot less pictures than I normally do and who really wants a TR without loads of pictures? So I think I have planned to do another "mini-TR" in this PTR thread (vs. starting a new one). Instead of documenting each day I am just going to pick topics to discuss that hopefully will be more interesting than the day to day things. So far I'm thinking:

Resort reviews (we stayed at Poly and AK-both Kidani and Jambo)
Dining
Desserts (we ate a TON)
Special events and new to us "extras" (Pirates and Pals fireworks cruise, Behind the Seeds tour, Hoop Dee Doo, mini-golf and Typhoon Lagoon DVC party)
Bonus magical moments
So give me just a few more days and I will be back with an update! Until then I wanted to share these two pictures from Day one!

Aaron was a good sport and wore this shirt for our travel day (flight). It entertained Lucy and I and we have deemed it the travel day shirt going forward. Her is a snapchat I sent Olivia.

After we checked in we went straight to the Grand to find Olivia (she was working). I posted this picture on Instagram and I LOVE it!

 

[SarahDisney]

I like the idea of a Mini-TR - you can hit the highlights without having to endlessly write about every detail. I think you picked some great topics and I can't wait to read about all of them!

I love Aaron's travel day shirt. It's perfect!

 

[Mrs T 2009]

I like your mini-tr idea! I cant wait to hear all about your trip and your stays at AK and Poly!!

 

[Mrs T 2009]

Are you still going to do a mini TR of your May trip here? I may be the only one still here to read it, but was interested to see your photos and hear about your trip!

 

[stacy~**]

I like the idea of a Mini-TR - you can hit the highlights without having to endlessly write about every detail. I think you picked some great topics and I can't wait to read about all of them!

I love Aaron's travel day shirt. It's perfect!

Thanks, Sarah! It is really still on my to do list and I AM tackling a few things so I do hope to get to this soon.

I like your mini-tr idea! I cant wait to hear all about your trip and your stays at AK and Poly!!

Are you still going to do a mini TR of your May trip here? I may be the only one still here to read it, but was interested to see your photos and hear about your trip!

I'm still hoping to do a few very mini-trip report updates but I am not making any promises. My schedule has just changed in a way that leaves me very little Dis-time. I'm starting a new post now with a few updates in general!

 

[stacy~**]

First of all...thanks for sticking with me...the few that have. I appreciate that you are still interested in our trip(s)! I really, really hope to do a few updates/reviews from our trip but we will see if life gives me a chance to squeeze those in.

My Disney to-do list included:

Photopass pictures which are done.

January trip planning which really, really needs worked on. I do have airfare purchased and resort reservations made but that is it. Oh yeah and the list of ADR's we might want is done....even though I can't seem to get it together enough to rough out a schedule so I can make those ADR's. This is really my next project. I also need to think about race costumes.

And finally....the week before we left for our trip I bought a GoPro on a total whim (well after obsessing over some trip videos on YouTube). I barely knew the on/off switch from the record but this week I somehow managed to take that footage and make our very first trip video. I am basically in love with it. It's like revisiting our trip each time I watch it. So go watch it and then come back here and tell me what you think!!

And I promise to get back with updates on that July trip or planning updates for January.

 

[disneyguy4life]

Can't wait to hear more about your trips and PR's. Keep them coming.

 

[SarahDisney]

I love the video! It really looks like you guys were having fun!

I don't know that much about GoPros, so this may be a stupid question, but ... did you have it attached to a stick or were you wearing it? I really couldn't tell - I didn't think you were wearing it most of the time, but carrying it around on a stick seems like it would be annoying when walking through the park...

I know you're busy with stuff, but ... post some updates!!! I really want to read about the July trip and (especially) the planning for January!

 

[Mrs T 2009]

Love the video! shows how much fun you all had!!

 

[stacy~**]

Can't wait to hear more about your trips and PR's. Keep them coming.

Thanks! I was just wondering if you had your baby and it looks like you did! Congrats! I hope all is going well!

I love the video! It really looks like you guys were having fun!

I don't know that much about GoPros, so this may be a stupid question, but ... did you have it attached to a stick or were you wearing it? I really couldn't tell - I didn't think you were wearing it most of the time, but carrying it around on a stick seems like it would be annoying when walking through the park...

I know you're busy with stuff, but ... post some updates!!! I really want to read about the July trip and (especially) the planning for January!

Thank you for the complement on the video! It was so fun to give this type of memory documenting a try. I am not super tech savvy so I wasn't sure I could pull it off. I'm excited to give in another try in January.

Everybody does GoPros different but outside of water use (where I had a wrist strap) I exclusively used a small (not extendable) handle with a wrist strap. It was super easy. Some days I captured very little footage so it never a nuisance. I think the hardest part was trying to decide between my iphone camera, regular camera or GoPro. I might leave the regular camera at home in January. By the end of the trip I was hardly using it. I am considering getting the chest strap for the 5k. I won't want to bother with it for the half but thought getting some of that footage would be pretty awesome.

Here is a bad picture of me with it!

I just uploaded pictures so hoping to do a Poly review later today!

Love the video! shows how much fun you all had!!

Thank you! I'm so happy it turned out and hope next trips will be even better. I do like that I was still able to include the girls being crabby/eye rolling at me, etc. It keeps it real.