PTR for 2 Big "O" Birthdays! Now back-TR to follow

[Dizneydaz]

DD (Belle) is now 10!

Okay, I promised myself I would do a Pre-Trip Report and the only way I’m going to is if I do my first post. I figure if I do a PTR report then it is more likely I will do a Trip Report after I return. I did one a few years back and really enjoyed it. So here we go….

Cast of Characters
Me, DM50, frequent DLR goer and this will be my 14th trip to WDW, and my 13th since 1998. Celebrated my 50th at DLR in June. Self employed in the construction business. Things have been a little slow. But picking up. I like to use smilies in my posts-can you tell? I may call myself Mother Goose, Mother G, or MG in this report.

DD9, soon 10. This is her 10th trip to WDW (no, she is not spoiled). She’s an avid reader so I’m going to call her Belle. She’ll be turning 10 during our trip on Sept. 19th. She's small for her age and hates it. but she can finally ride almost every ride at Disney.

--------------------------------------------------------------------- they grow up so fast-here's Belle in Jan. 05, 5 years old.

DGM69 goes to WDW with DD and I every time. I usually forget she’s almost 70. She’s celebrating her 70th on 9-22, 3 days after DD’s 10th. Also in the construction business. We’ll call her Nama (DD’s name for her when she was smaller). Used to be able to ride all rides, can't ride RnR anymore but loves ToT.

Background
The three of us live together. In 2001 (right before 9-11) my DM, DD, and I moved into together. We each sold our houses and bought a new, larger home about 30 mins. east of DLR. This was a big change for DM and me since I had been living on my own for almost 20 years. We did this so my DM could help my raise my DD as a single mom. (Thanks mom! )

Me-I am an adoptive mother. The adoption was finalized when Belle was about 2-1/2. But she has either lived with my DM, or me, since birth. She is biologically my niece (through my brother). She’s the best thing that has ever happened to me and I am so lucky to have her. I was 40 when she was born and had given up hope on being a mom. Recently my brother produced another child and my younger DSis is adopting him. So my DD has a biological ½ brother who will soon be her cousin. (She also has 2 other 1/2 sisters) Due to my DSis’ work schedule we have the baby a lot of the time. It’ll be nice for my DD to get away with my DM and me where she can have us all to herself. (She really prefers this!).Update- My DSis just called me and the baby finally crawled-3 feet! He’s been so close the last month or so. He was born Christmas Eve though we did't find out about him until he was abou 10 days old. We had less than 24 hours to prepare to bring him home. This sounds so "soap opera" but other than my flaky brother, the rest of my family is normal-has jobs, lives in a regular house, no drugs, etc.

Nama-My DM had breast cancer about 7 years ago but is cancer free and going strong. Like I said, it’s hard to believe she’s almost 70. She doesn’t act her age. She has a one year older sister that recently started to decline and it’s been really hard on her-she needs this vacation to relax and have fun! She loves going to Disney but she insists we don’t spend all our time at Disney. So over the years we have checked out the “Real Florida” Pretty cool actually!

Belle is in 5th grade, an avid reader, and is getting straight A's again. She’s in year round school and has been in 5th grade since July. As of now she’s had 6 weeks of 5th grade and she is already past her annual AR (Accelerated Reader) goal of 150 points. Now she’s shooting for a school record. Even though she’s a big reader, she also loves to play outside. She just started practice for Girl’s Fastpitch Softball. Winter League. Her coach from Spring froze her this time and so we have the same manager and coaches-makes me happy. Belle loves animals and may want to grow up to do something with them or be a Scientist. She is currently into BSG (Beacon Street Girls), softball, recently joined Girl Scouts, Club Penguin, still plays with her LPS, Harry Potter, Percy Jackson, Greek Mythology, and Science. She’s loving and caring and I am very proud of the person she is becoming.

Details
We are staying at POP again. Arriving about 6:20 on Sept. 12th and leaving about 5 p.m. on Sept. 23rd. Usually we stay 11 days, this year I was able to squeeze in one more day!

Here’s some pictures of us from last few years.

Besides using smilies I like to post a lot of pictures.

Hope I can reconnect with some old friends and make new ones.

 

[Dizneydaz]

More to come later-going to DLR today-braving the So Cal AP holders!

 

[MomTo4+more]

Your daughter is adorable and she looks like she is full of personality. I am a single, adoptive mom too. It's the best adventure I have ever been on. it will be fun to follow your PTR.

 

[shishigirl]

Great trip report! Your daughter is so cute! I love the photos you and your family has taken. Can't wait to read more. Have so much fun on your Walt Disney World vacation!

 

[Dizneydaz]

Okay, sorry I’ve been gone so long. Went to DLR Sunday, it was so nice to be home again but I’m sure glad we got there early. We were in the parking structure by 8 a.m. and in the park by 8:30. No line to speak of to enter (I’ve been there in the past when it opens and there’s a huge line waiting to get in). My hint-get there about 20-30 mins. after park opening. Oh, and all security check points were open and only took about 2 mins. We hadn’t been to DLR since June 23 (my birthday). So I really missed it.

For those with Disney Visa cards-no more free strollers! As of 8/12 DV card holders now get them at 50% off. $6 for 1 and $11 for 2. bmmer!

By the time we left, DLwas getting really crowded! It was about 5 p.m. and they closed the parking structure! The traffic was backed up on to the 5 freeway! It was insane. It was the first day So Cal AP could go back. My neighbor went on Monday which was the first day the other So Cal AP could go back. She said it was insanely crowded-they rode 2 rides at DCA.

Even though it was crowded, we still had a wonderful time. We rode SpaceM and Buzz and grabbed FP for SM and Indy before we crossed over to DCA about 9:45. Thanks to a hint I read on these boards I recently found out that DCA opens ½ hour before posted time and you can ride Soarin’. So we did, and we did! Thanks for the tip! When we got off Soarin’ we went to Paradise Pier to get a FP for Screamin’ and ride TSM in the single rider line. Well, guess what? No FP for Screamin’ yet and no SR line on TSM!! The wait on TSM was already 40 min. and they hadn’t opened the SR line yet. Crazy! Soarin’ was 30 min. and no FP yet. So we rode Mickey’s Fun Wheel and checked Soarin’ and TSM again. No dice. Then we went over towards Mullholland Madness where I rode Maliboomer, single rider. Only had about a 5 min. wait. Grabbed FP for MM and then DD9 rode it twice, SR. Then we rode Zephr, which had basically no wait.

Oh and on the way to PP, we made a detour to tour the Tortilla factory but it wasn’t opened yet. We went back later and got our corn tortillas.

My DSis mentioned that she hadn’t seen what was happening at DCA in the future so we stopped off to check out Blue Sky Cellar. Good news! The CM in there confirmed that Maliboomer is not leaving. My DD was so happy to hear this as she is about 1” away from riding it. We watched the little movie about World of Color and it looks great! Can’t wait for it to open. But boy, I can’t imagine the crowds when it does.

By now DD and DSis were complaining that they were really hungry. It was about 11:30. They had actually been complaining since about 10 a.m.! So we went to our new favorite CS place, White Water Snacks at the GC hotel. As we were exiting the park into the hotel, we saw them turn a family away from entering who weren’t hotel guests. Mental note-bring receipt so we won’t have same problem. We had a nice relaxing lunch. DSis and I shared the French Dip and DD had the kid’s cheeseburger. If you ever get to DLR, plan to have a lunch here, it’s a hidden gem!

We made our way back over to PP and finally Screamin’ FP were available. We grabbed 3 and went to TSM. Yeah, single rider was open! DD and I even got to ride together. The nice man in front of us let me go with DD when the CM called for 2-it was his turn and DD’s. Thank you stranger!
Then we made our way over to grab FP for ToT and then visited Animation Academy. We were just in time to do the drawing class or Crush. The drawing class was doing Piglet so we decided on Crush since we’ve done Piglet before and he’s actually pretty hard to do. Crush was entertaining as always. This time instead of bringing out a bikini top, he brought out a foam finger. This was the 1st time I’ve seen this version. After that we checked out The Sorcerer’s Workshop and did some stuff in there. DD and I did the scene from Bambi.

By now it was time to ride ToT-I really love this ride! (Sorry, but I like the DCA version better than the DHS one-just straight to the drops, no unnecessary stuff!) We also grabbed FP for later (didn’t end up using these). HSM was just starting so we exited the area through the stores and had some fun trying on hats, etc. My DSis bought a cute little onesie for her 7 m/o DS. Really cute and on sale!

Then we exited DCA to go over to DLR. Yikes, put on the brakes! The line to get in was more than ½ way back to DCA. That’s insane. It was about 3 and CELEBRATE had just started at IASM headed towards Main St. We immediately made a U turn and went back into DCA. I figured the line wouldn’t get better until about 4. So then DD and I rode MM. We also used our FP for Screamin’. Love this ride too!

By now it was getting close to 4 so I figured it was good time to cross over to DLR. I was right, there line was now gone. Once we got inside I found out why-they were all in DLR! DSis had decided to go home before we entered DLR-turned it this was a good idea.

DD and I headed over to Indy to use our FP. We checked out Dole Whips and the line was really long! So no Dole Whips today. When we got to Indy the FP line was all the way back to Tarzan’s house so we decided to skip it and head over to Space by the train. Oops, looked like the train was going to take at least 2 times, which would be 20 min. or more. So we decided to head home. It was about 5 by now and as I mentioned above, the parking structure was closed.

Our AP exp. while we are at WDW in Sept. DD goes off track next Friday so we’ll have 2 weeks to visit DLR. This trip we didn’t take any Photopass (PP) pix. It was kind of strange since I haven’t done that in a long time. Saw quite a few photos while we walked around. I am doing the CD at WDW and will be inc. DLR pictures on it was well. So, based on the timing of ordering my WDW CD I can start taking DLR PP again today, the 21st. Planning on going to DLR either next Monday or Tuesday, after school. Probably won’t stay for the fireworks, I’ll have to see how crowded it is. When we were there on Sunday I was surprised to see all the blankets and towels laid out for F! at about 4:30. And people weren’t even staying with them. This doesn’t seem fair to me. Holding a spot for 5 hours! No wonder the area around F! was insanely crowded. They had the ropes already up.

Oh, and one more change, DV card holders no longer get free strollers. They get 50% off which is $6 for one, or $11 for 2. My DSis wanted me to get one to carry her backpack in but we didn’t since I didn’t want to pay $6 for it. Also, turns out pushing around a stroller around that day would have been insane.

Ok, so my next post will be about our upcoming WDW trip, I promise.

Right now I’m getting ready for DD to have a sleepover with 3 friends and then we are going to a bowling party tomorrow a.m. Our local bowling alley is doing a free bowling party for kid’s inc. bowling, shoes, pizza, sodas, and ice cream. Sounds too good to be true but looks like it is.

 

[Dizneydaz]

Your daughter is adorable and she looks like she is full of personality. I am a single, adoptive mom too. It's the best adventure I have ever been on. it will be fun to follow your PTR.

Thanks, and she is!

Great trip report! Your daughter is so cute! I love the photos you and your family has taken. Can't wait to read more. Have so much fun on your Walt Disney World vacation!

Thanks shishi!

 

[Dizneydaz]

Since my DM insists that we don't stay on property the whole time we are there, we always rent a vehicle at MCO. We've never even taken ME! Couple years ago when my DNiece24 joined us about 1/2 way during our trip (a total surprise for Belle!) she took ME to POP and we all returned to MCO in our rental.

Actually, I pretty much agree with my DM, I love Disney but I also like the days we check out the "Real" Florida too. The days we've spent on the beaches have been great. Very relaxed and Belle loves anything to do with beaches. She keeps telling me she wants to learn to surf. Unfortunately we are almost an hour away for the closest beach so not sure how that's going to happen.

So, anyway, back to car rentals.... The first time my DM and I went to WDW (Sept. 98) we were pretty much unprepared for our trip. I hadn't been since 1983 when I added a 3 day trip to WDW at the end of a Carnival Cruise. Before we went I did find Deb's Unofficial Guide to WDW (now allearsnet.com) which helped alot but looking back it's surprising how much I didn't know. I didn' even know until we got there that AK had opened earlier that year! Don't know how I missed that! Of course we loved it and it's still my fav of the big 4.

That trip we didn't make car rental arrangements before we arrived and so we called a few companies from the phones at the airport. I don't remember what we paid but I'm sure it was too much! We got this little Ford (Festiva, I think), bright blue, 3 cylinders, off site. After that I quickly that from now on we rent our vehicle before we left. For the first few times we used Dollar, which was fine. But when we started using Alamo, I was very happy. Great rates, no credit card required, and you get to pick your own car! How cool is that!

Other than our first trip, we've always gotten a mini van. Usually about $250 for 10 days. This year when I first started looking minivans were running about $1000 for 11 days! What!!!! Are you kidding me? What happened to the recession?. I started looking at rates once I booked our trip in April but seriously looked in June once I booked our flight and knew our exact dates and times (or so I thought). I finally booked a full size, in mid-July, for $404 for 11 days and then started checking rates almost every day. I know Alamo's rates fluctuate and it pays to check all the time.

A few years ago I remember rebooking my car twice on the same day. The rate fell twice in one day! This was a few days before we left. I've noticed that the rates will continue to fall up until a day, or so, before we leave. Then they go back up.

I've been checking rates almost everyday and they didn't budge for weeks. Finally, I was able to rebook for about $371 about 2 weeks later (late July).

I check rates using the coupons on the website as well as Entertainment ones. I try to use the site's coupons so I can easily use the kiosk, which is really cool-saves lots of time!

Recently, Alamo offered 10% in Florida and I was able to stack it with their coupon for $25 off. So my current rental is $330, full size, 11 days. Hoping it fall more, I'll just have to keep checking!

I'm really hoping minivans will drop more, we don't really need a minvan for the 3 of us but I love the convenience of it and it has so much room! They're still over $700!

Last year we had a minivan ($250) but when we got there there wasn't a big selection and they weren't very clean. I asked them if they could wash one and they told me it would be about 1/2 hour. I mentioned that they had a ton of bigger minivans (Toyota Sienna) out there, at least 25, and the manager on duty let me have one for no extra! Yippee! I love Alamo. That was a really nice vehicle, even easier to drive than a regular minivan.

So, I'll keep checking for a rate drop (nothing today) and I'll post it here when it happens.

Gotta go now, the girls are up from their sleepover (except the one girl who went home about 11:30 last night and I need to get them feed so we can head out to our free bowlling party!

 

[Dizneydaz]

Well, the bowling party was a huge success! The girls all had a great time. They bowled 3 games and did pretty well. Pizza was served at 9:45 a.m. (I know, but they loved it!) All the Sprite they could drink and some of those little cups of vanilla ice cream. Best of all, it was totally free! The only think I paid for was my own drink. Large Diet Coke please, that's my caffeine of choice.

After the party, and some time in the arcade (limit $2 each) we stopped by the girl's homes to pick up their bathing suits. They all forgot them. We have a 3-1/2 deep above ground pool which I just refilled about a week ago (couldn't conrol the algae ) I briefly considered not refilling it since last year we didn't use it once after returning from WDW but I figured we'd had 4 weeks to use it before we leave. Plus, Belle loves water, in all forms. Most of her favorite things at WDW deal with water: Pools, beaches, and TL AND BB. I gotta admit though, I love BB and TL too! Only wish the weather was warm enough longer here so Disney would put in a waterpark.

I used my new (new to me at least) laptop while the girls swam (have to keep it plugged in-the battery is DOA). Found a some new discounts for Alamo and saved another $6! I.D. SUNPROMO and coupon #AD2123JMC (thanks to poster who posted this on another thread)

Finally had to tell the girls it was time to go home about 1 p.m. They'd been here since 6 the night before and while they were well behaved my ears needed a break-how can 4 girls be so loud! And mine was the loudest!

My DSis got off work about 5 and picked up her little one at 5:30 or so. She works at one of the HI stores and her hours are very varied. Some days she has to be in a 6 a.m. other days she gets off at 11 p.m. So we (mostly my DM) watch my nephew (8 mo.) about 5 days out of the week. Thing is, I love my sister and her new boy, but when she gets off work she tends to stay, forever! Sometimes I think she's waiting for us to make her dinner. Sometimes I want her to just go home so we can return to our simple life. Just the 3 of us, no baby and no company. So, yesterday, after she was there for about 1/2 hour I asked my DM if she still wanted to go to Kohl's. she said "yes" so we told my DSis she could stay while we were gone and go home. She went home. :thumbsups.

So we were free to go to Kohl's and Sports Authority. Belle recently started Winter Softball and needed a few things. New cleats, sliders (for under her shorts), and knee pads. Well, we struck out, only got the cleats, no knee pads or sliders in her size.

I did okay at Kohl's-usually I get more for Belle than for me but this time I found some things I liked. I wanted to get a few new pairs of capris for our trip and I did! Yippee! Also a few light weight tops-great deal too! Used my MVC coupon and got 15% off! I did get Belle a pair of Levis for $20-it wasn't easy since she's between 7 and 8's now and no longer can fit in slims (she's slim but her thighs aren't little sticks)

We finally finished shopping about 7 and decided we were too tired to cook. We were going to go to Macaroni Grill but after we were seated we decided it was too cold in the restaurant (why do they keep it so cold!) wo we left and went to Chili's. You really can't beat the 2 for $20 deal, even got Belle to agree to share our meal so it was only $20 for the 3 of us! The Key Lime shooters (dessert) were really good. A nice light ending to our meal.

Checked Alamo rates today and no drop today. I'll check tomorrow.

 

[SilverL]

Your little girl is adorable. I love the picture of her looking so shocked at Minnie on the bench!

 

[shishigirl]

Glad the sleep over and Bowling party went well! That is a great deal to bowl free with all those perks. Good luck on the car rental! I hope you are able to find a van at the right price. I dont blame you for wanting to have one for 3 people. It makes it so much easier to load and more comfortable to ride in. It sounds like you, DD and DSIS had fun at DL last week. From reading your report and other threads, it sounds like it was crazy with the other APs being able to get back into the parks now. I will have to mention the White water snacks to my DSISs when we go in oct. And you can use the park enterance both to leave the park and get back in? Your trip is sooooo soon! Have fun preparing!!

 

[Dizneydaz]

Your little girl is adorable. I love the picture of her looking so shocked at Minnie on the bench!

Thanks! That was actually the PP photogs idea-he wasn't sure if the powers that be at Disney would let it through but they did (he's our fav. PP guy-he knows us by name now and we even exchange emails occassionally). He has taken a few pix of us that have magically disappeared!

Glad the sleep over and Bowling party went well! That is a great deal to bowl free with all those perks. Good luck on the car rental! I hope you are able to find a van at the right price. I dont blame you for wanting to have one for 3 people. It makes it so much easier to load and more comfortable to ride in. It sounds like you, DD and DSIS had fun at DL last week. From reading your report and other threads, it sounds like it was crazy with the other APs being able to get back into the parks now. I will have to mention the White water snacks to my DSISs when we go in oct. And you can use the park enterance both to leave the park and get back in? Your trip is sooooo soon! Have fun preparing!!

It was fun! You never know what to expect when someone says it's free. It was a promotion for their new kid's leagues starting on Sept. 12th, of course. So it's a no go for us since that's the day we leave. Actually it's a pretty good deal, 4 weeks of bowling, 2 games each week and it inc. a free starter bowling ball (inc. drilling). Only $50 for 4 weeks. They said they'll be offering it later in the year. I think it would be fun for DD and she could get her own ball.

You can exit and enter through the GC. On Sunday I had my receipt just in case I needed to get back in but they didn't give us a problem. I think when it's super crowded, like it was on Sunday, they may ask you for your room key to keep guest from avoiding the long lines at the security checkpoint. We've probably eaten at WWS 6-7 times over the past 8 or so months and never had an issue. One thing worth mentioning to those we may have a Disney stroller (even though they are no longer free with DV card, only 1/2 off) you have to park it and leave it inside DCA. It can't go into the hotel with you.

And yes, I'm getting excited, and a little nervous about our trip. My work has been slow for months but wouldn't you know it, now I'm getting busy. I also picked up a bookkeeping job from my neighbor and it looks like it's going to take a lot of my time. (I'll have to limit my time on the boards ). Good thing is I now have a lap top, bad news, it's battery is dead. If my new boss wants me to work while at Disney I'll get him to spring for the $10/day charge of internet. Guess I'll need to get an ethernet cable too. And of course I would love to get a new battery as well.

I got all excited a little while ago when checking Alamo's rates. It came up at about $286, turns out it was for the wrong dates. When I corrected the coupon, it changed the dates to Aug. Oh well, I'm sure they'll fall soon!

 

[joelp]

Subbing -

Especially since Belle and I have the same birthday!!

And we'll be celebrating at WDW!!

But can't write now - my DD is up and raring to go!! - good sign for WDW, though ...

 

[Dizneydaz]

Welcome Joel!

You do share the same birthday (with DD) and our DDs share the same name. Small world, huh!

My DD just left for school about 1/2 hour ago. It's her last week before her 1 month break. This is the week in school where they don't do much. She has only 4 days this week (Friday is an In-Service day for the teachers). Wed. at our schools is now early day, they get out an hour earlier than normal (about 1 p.m.) And then Thursday is Awards Assembly from 9-10 (plus they are performing a song) and then they go to lunch from 10:45-11:30. Her track gets dismissed at 11:40. Can you see why it's so hard for me not to take her out of school for a day, or at least early, just to go to DLR? It's not like they're going to do any learning this week, right? I just have to remind myself that we can go anytime during the following 2 weeks, (except Sat., blocked out).

I am planning on taking her out after the Assemby on Thursday since most of the rest of the day will be taken up by lunch. They'll only have 10 min. after lunch before they are dismissed. I'm thinking of going to DLR to see the fireworks (haven't seen the new ones yet ) and I figure Th wil be better than Fri. Only problem is she has softball practice Wed and Thurs. but hey, since she's already going to be missing the first 2 games due to our trip I don't think it'll hurt her to miss one practice, right?? I can almost always justify going to DLR!

Oh, and I think I have a name for myself now, Mother Goose! Yesterday a.m. Belle came downstairs at about 10 a.m. and said something like "Mother Goose, I said 8 not 10!" which referred to the fact that she asked me to wake her by 8 if she wasn't up yet. I told her I woke her at 8:30 but she went back to sleep. Now she's never called me MG before, but I think I like it for my nickname. So, if you see Mother Goose, Mother G., or just MG, you'll know it's me I'm talking about! DD is going to try to wake up earlier over the next 3 weeks to get ready for Florida time. Right now she wakes up at 6:30 since she has to be at school at 7:45. She wants to try to get up about 5:30 though so she'll be ready to get up around 8 while in FL. Don't tell her, but getting up at 8 at WDW is not an option! That's just way too late!

Okay, I have to get off the computer and do some work to earn some $$ to spend at WDW! Back soon....

Next up, my ADRS for the trip. Just when you think I had it all nailed down, DD changes her mind again about her birthday dinner... Stay tuned!

 

[SilverL]

DD is going to try to wake up earlier over the next 3 weeks to get ready for Florida time. Right now she wakes up at 6:30 since she has to be at school at 7:45. She wants to try to get up about 5:30 though so she'll be ready to get up around 8 while in FL. Don't tell her, but getting up at 8 at WDW is not an option! That's just way too late!

Oh man. Thanks for reminding me about adjusting to the time difference. I'm on the Pacific Coast, but right now my sleeping habits are more like Hawaii time. That's a six hour difference! YIKES!!!

 

[joelp]

Very cute pictures!!

We'll have to make it out to Disneyland one of these days ...

I lived in San Diego one semester during college, but never made it there (not that I was interested back then - I was staying in an apartment on the beach!!)

Oh, well ...

Later ...

 

[Dizneydaz]

Okay, so I promised you my ADRs.

So here’s my ADRs, part I

Since we are going to be there for 2 birthdays I asked Belle and Nama where they wanted to have their birthday dinners. They both mentioned Tutto Italia and DD also said Park Fair. We decided that we’d do Nama’s birthday at Tutto on the 22nd and Belle’s at PF on the 19th. So at my 90 day mark, I called and booked both of them. Yeah! We’re doing PF at 6:15 p.m. which means we can go back into MK to see the fireworks at 9 and maybe even Spectromagic at 8. I have yet to see Spectro. Keep hearing it’s so much better then the Electrical Parade at DLR. We’ll see. I’ve also later booked CP for an early entry (our 1st time) at 8:05. Since we’ll have been in FL for a week by then I figure we’ll be adjusted to the time change enough to get up early for breakfast. I want to see MK with the streets almost empty. I figure we may stay at MK for awhile and maybe then head over to AK (or not) AK closes at 5 and that would give us time to get to PF for our ADR. Or we may just stay at MK all day. Since it’s a Saturday it may get crowded! We usually don’t spend a lot of time at MK since we have the original (DLR) almost in our backyard. Our favorite parks are Epcot and AK.

For Tutto on the 22nd I made ADRs for 7 which I figure will give us time to eat and still see Illuminations after. Last year we were just finishing up our meal when Illuminations went off (we had 7:30 ADR). Belle and Nama went outside to watch while I settled the bill. I got outside for the last few minutes so this year I want to make sure I see it as well. Not sure if we’ll spend all day at EPCOT or not that day. MK is only open until 7 (it’s a MNSSHP night) as is DHS. It is EPCOT’s EMH a.m. so it may be more crowded than normal. It might be a good day to start out at AK and then take a mid-day break before heading over to EPCOT. So many things to consider, most people just don’t get it!

The third ADR I made that day was ‘Ohana for breakfast. It has become our tradition (I think this will be the 5th year) that we have a nice TS breakfast on our last day, which is a non-park day for us. First 2 years we ate at PF and the last 2 years at ‘Ohana. This year we picked ‘Ohanas again. Last year I made ADRs at 11:50 (10 min. before closing) but was disappointed in the characters. Unlike the year before they didn’t stay until the last guest left. They made one rotation (to bad if your kid was in the bathroom) and then left. So this year I made our ADR at 10:45. They’ll be open until noon. That will give us time to check out at POP, check in our luggage at airline check in, and head over to Poly. The food at Poly is really top notch!

So to recap, there are the ADRs I made first (the most important ones)
9/19 Park Fair 6:15
9/22 Tutto Italia 7:00
9/23 ‘Ohana 10:45

Next up, was I able to use online booking for ADRs when they first started?

 

[joelp]

Looks good!! - and hope to see you at PF (or in the MK) on the 19th!!

I booked an early dinner that day so we could get back to the park early and do a few things before finding a spot for Spectromagic (we've never seen it either ...)

 

[Dizneydaz]

I know I promised the rest of my ADR info but I wanted to post this first. My DM just called me and she just made the decision to let her older sister, who is in end stage renal failure, go. She's been dealing with this for the last month or so every since my aunt broke her hip. She's rapidly declined and her body has been shutting down. Now it seems like only a matter of days, if not hours. This is really hard on my DM as I know in her mind she knew this day was coming sooner rather than later, but in her heart it's much harder to handle. Today she didn't recognize my DM which was very hard on her. My DM is about 1-1/2 years younger than her sister but has never acted her age. She'll be 70 in Sept. and she wanted to go to WDW for her birthday. She hates to be in town on the big "0"s.

The reason I'm mentioning this is I'm so glad we are going to WDW in 16 days. My DM truly needs some magic and to get away from things. Dealing with her sister's 2 (very selfish) daughters hasn't helped. They both live out of state and even though they knew things were bad they didn't come and see their mother. I just don't get it.

Funny thing is I asked my DM just yesterday that if her sister died before we left for WDW, or while we were there, what would she like to do? She said "What do you think my sister would want?" I said she would want us to enjoy our vacation and she agreed. So, like I said, my DM knew this was coming but even knowing so doesn't make it any easier.

Boy do we really need WDW magic!

Now back to happier things. More updates in the works. DD just got an award at school for her AR success. She's over 120% in only 2 months. I'm so proud. Today is her last day. We are now officially (in the next 1/2 hour) on break until Sept. 28th. Oh and the heat we haven't had all summer is finally here. Will be over 100 today and near that at DLR.

 

[joelp]

Your DM and my Mom have something in common (in addition to their ages ...) -

She has an aunt and uncle in their 80's in similar condition (they've both been in and out of the hospital a couple times the last month ...). My Mom's response if something happens when we're away: "Put them on ice, and we'll deal with it when we get home. We're on vacation!!"

So this will make your WDW trip just that little bit more special ...

Here's some

 

[Dizneydaz]

Thanks Joel! Love what your mom said. She sounds like my kind of person.

A lot of people (Non-Disney types) might not understand this but I was able to get my DM to go to DLR for a few hours last night. We got there just after dark and since it was over 100 yesterday it was still nice and warm in the park. We picked up a FP for Indy and then got a spot for F! (hadn't seen the new version yet) which was also a good spot for the fireworks. We also hadn't seen the new fireworks, with Dumbo, yet either. My mom is a big fireworks fan, just like DD and me.

It was nice to get away for a few hours and the new fireworks are great! We could even see Tink and Dumbo from our spot in NOS. After the fw we rode Indy with our FP and then headed for home about 10:30. A nice pleasant evening.