PTR:Four Former CMs Reunite For Free Dining:(TR Has Started!) 10/30

[TinkerbellLuvr7]

FOUR FORMER CMS REUNITE FOR FREE DINING

HI DIS FRIENDS!!!

I'm back!!!

I can't believe I'm going to do 2 PTR's at the same time but the Aug trip is less than 30 days away, so why not start another one.

I'm doing this one in the hopes that all the plans will go through and that the trip will actually happen! So with that we will hope and onto another PTR we go!!!

As always, I explain my title first to break the ice and then it's off to introductions!


TITLE:
Hi, I'm Megan!!
As most of you know, I'm a former WDW CM. I worked as a CM with the Disney College Program from Jan-May 2008 at BBB, then I landed a Professional Internship with WDW at AK and worked June 2008-Jan 2009. After that I was one of 5 lucky enough to get seasonal status with AK and went back to BBB after working an extra month at AK (while the new interns trained) and worked Feb-May 2009 at BBB by picking up shifts from the CMs there. Sadly WDW was in shambles and went on a hiring freeze while I was there and I could not land a FT job so I left, moved to Cincinnati (formally lived in Pittsburgh but due to family job transfer I looked for jobs in Cincy) and was lucky to get a teaching job, teaching Pre-K at a local Children's Academy!


So why the title you ask?

Am I going with family...NOPE!
college friends...NOPE!
CO WORKERS?...NOPE!

About 2 months ago, a former CM friend from AK emailed myself and 2 other good/close friends about a reunion trip for this fall!! We had done a mini reunion trip in Jan when the 3 came to visit me in Cincy for the weekend! We figured another reunion was in store and we made a promise to reunite at least twice a year and what better place but WDW where we all met!

UP NEXT:
-INTROS AND HOW WE MET BACKGROUNDS!


PTR UPDATES:

~INTROS AND HOW WE MET 7/11

~WHAT WOULD YOU DO? 7/12

~THEN THERE WAS 3, NO 2 7/14

~MY TALK WITH M 7/16

~WHICH DIRECTION TO TAKE? 7/18

~WE BOOKED TODAY!!!! 7/25

~GUESS OUR ADRS!!! 7/29

~OUR ADRS!! 8/1

~I BOOKED MY FLIGHTS TODAY! 8/4

~MNSSHP TICKETS! 8/13

~NOW THERE'S 3!!! 8/16

~COSTUME CRISIS/CONCERNS 8/21

~POSSIBLE COSTUME 8/22

~TRIP BINDER 8/28

~WEEKEND UPDATE 9/4

~PAID IN FULL 9/6

~Mousekeeping Envelopes + More! 9/10

~1 month, 1 week, and 1 day to go! 9/14

~MICKEY MAIL PLUS MUCH MUCH MORE! 9/19

~AWAY FOR THE WEEKEND 9/22

~WEDDING WEEKEND PART 1 10/1

~WEDDING WEEKEND PART 2 10/1

~MICKEY MAIL AND LOADS OF QUESTIONS 10/1

~LET THE DRAMA BEGIN! 10/3

~SCHEDULE DAY 1 10/5

~SCHEDULE DAY 2 10/10

~Praxis Update 10/12

~UPDATES 10/16

~SCHEDULE DAY 3 10/16

~schedule day 4 10/18

~SCHEDULE DAY 5 AND PACKING PICS

~TOO EXCITED TO SLEEP!!! 10/22

TRIP REPORT HAS STARTED!!!

 

[TinkerbellLuvr7]

INTROS AND HOW WE MET

Well, let the Intros begin!

Me: MEGAN, 25, from Cincinnati, Pre-K teacher, and LOVED being a FGIT at BBB. I loved to tell people that I worked in the castle for a living, made dreams come true, and came home daily with pixie dust!
*My favorite ride is Splash Mountain!
*I worked at BBB as well as an education presenter at AK (Kids Discovery Clubs).

KATIE, 25, from IN, aspiring to be a music teacher if she can land a job one of these days, and loved working at DHS mainly because she could hear Fantasmic weekly!
*Her favorite ride is: Philhar Magic.
*She worked at Sunset Ranch Market-QS.
-Katie and I met on our College Program in 2008. I was lucky enough to have her as one of my 5 roommates in our apartment. We got along so well that when 4 of the 6 of us stayed, she and and I moved into a townhouse with a few others and worked seasonally until she bowed out gracefully Jan 2009.

MEGHAN, 24, from CT, aspiring to work at a museum in whatever job she can get, loved being my partner in crime, and aspiring to eat at every restaurant in Epcot!
*Her favorite ride is: Mission Space
*Meghan worked as the Animal Programs Intern at AK with the Savanna guides.
-Meghan was my accidental meet. 4 of us CP roomies had made a pact to all live together after our program for our PI's but 2 girls ended up splitting and living in other places leaving Katie and I and homeless. I was on a Facebook group the one day for Animal Program PIs and Meghan was new to FB and was looking for a roommate so I snatched her up for our 5br townhouse in Kissimmee! We ended up becoming great friends!

Jenny, 25, from Chicago, in charge of Education programs at the Chicago Aquarium, my bar/drinking buddy, and favorite co-CM of mine at AK!
*Her favorite ride is: Kilo Safari
*Jenny worked as an Education Presenter with me at AK.
-Jenny and I met before our program started via Facebook. At that time she was still looking for roommates and sadly our townhouse was already full but she was able to find 2 roommates and live in a 3br townhouse in the same complex. We met the first day of orientation and hung out nearly every day after that. We car pooled to work every day and was lucky enough to even have the same days off! Out of all the girls, her and I related the most to each other while the others have good qualities that balance out!

Back in Jan 2010, we had a mini reunion in Cincinnati:

And FINALLY 2 of my many fav WDW pics:

4th of July at Pleasure Island 2008:

Chef Mickey's Dec 2008:

So that's it, 4 FORMER CM FRIENDS ARE HEADING TO WDW FOR FREE DINING THIS OCT!!!!

UP NEXT:
-THE DEBATE/DRAMA: WHO'S GOING AND WHO'S STAYING?
-WHERE WILL WE STAY?
-WILL WE GET FREE DINING OR BE TOO LATE?

 

[wdwgirl03]

I'm first! Sounds like such a fun trip!

 

[BabyEeyore]

I'm here! Can't wait to hear all about it.

 

[Trentmom]

Hey.

Excited for another Pre Trip

Sounds like this will be a very fun trip

Can't wait to see it develop

 

[TinkerbellLuvr7]

I'm first! Sounds like such a fun trip!

I'm hoping it will be one to remember!!! J is already talking about costumes for MNSSHP..I'm not very crafty so this frightens me!

I'm here! Can't wait to hear all about it.

Thanks!!

Hey.

Excited for another Pre Trip

Sounds like this will be a very fun trip

Can't wait to see it develop

Dec PTR will follow this one! To think that I'll be at WDW in Aug, Oct, and Dec..crazy! My boss at work wants to know why I vacation so much Just think if we had DVC!!!

 

[TinkerbellLuvr7]

WHAT WOULD YOU DO?!!

to those of you who have joined me!!!

Now that you know a little background and some info about us...now for the dilemma...

Honestly, I keep playing this situation over and over again in my head and maybe I'm just over-analyzing it.



Basically:

--J and I are for sure going on the trip. We both want Free Dining. I know my brother will be a CM and can get 40% off but when we weighed the 2, going with the CM discount left us with less than $30 a day to eat. My mom is confident that we could eat on $30 a day but having to be stuck to that number would drive me nuts because I would constantly be adding up to see how much I spent to see which ended up being a better deal.

--M is still waiting to hear about a job at a museum in DC and is unsure if she can go. She wants to go but maybe only Fri-Mon not Fri-Tues. She's not sure when she'll hear. We are able to add her onto our package if it's after Aug 14 and even if it's after the 45 day window.

--K has applied for teaching jobs. Not sure on her status but if she gets a job she won't be going period. She's also a seasonal CM which means she can get 1/2 off her room and won't need the tickets.


**So here's where we stand, 2 for sure going, 2 unsure. J and I both said if all 4 go, we're getting 2 rooms = 4 beds for 4 girls and 2 bathrooms! POP is our first (really only choice--I dislike All Stars).

My mom says that J and I should just book and let the other 2 battle it out. I said we could add M onto the package if K can't go because I don't see K going unless M goes.

I'm pretty much at the point where I'm going to tell K and M that they are on their own. K can let M of her decision later on. If she says no, then M can be added onto ours and we can possibly upgrade-POFQ, maybe WL.
If M can only go for 3, not 4 nights, we will adjust the price to not have her pay for a night she won't be at.
-If K can go and M can go, they can room with each other with K's 50% off room only plus K will use her Main Gate pass to get us all in for free.

*If that's the case, J and I will pay for no expiration on our tickets to use on a future reunion!!



OKAY..WHO'S TOTALLY LOST NOW!!?? IF YOU UNDERSTOOD AND HAVE ANY ADVICE AT ALL, THAT WOULD BE GREAT. THIS IS DRIVING US CRAZY BEYOND BELIEF. ANY HELP WOULD BE WONDERFUL!!!!!!

 

[moparop]

I think your best bet is for you and J to go ahead and do your thing. The other gals are being wishy washy and you don't want to miss out because of that!

 

[Trentmom]

If you dont think it will ruin your friendship or if you are not that close wiht other two, then I would go ahead and book it

 

[TinkerbellLuvr7]

I think your best bet is for you and J to go ahead and do your thing. The other gals are being wishy washy and you don't want to miss out because of that!

My mom would agree with you! She said let the other 2 deal with it. Pretty much if M know's that she is going no matter what then she and K need to keep in contact to let us know. We debated with the upgrade DDP but with them not knowing and I'm not playing around with ADRs for months (although I wouldn't mind ) I think QS will be fine for us. There will be plenty of different places to eat that won't all be burgers and fries. The food at POP is very good !

If you dont think it will ruin your friendship or if you are not that close wiht other two, then I would go ahead and book it

I don't think it would, and if it did..what can I say?? I wouldn't want them holding back if I was unsure. It's all about money and saving as much as possible. I think since were able to add on people at anytime totally helps in case K bails on M. I guess I need to make sure that if K goes, M would be okay not getting Free Dining and getting 1/2 off the room instead.

 

[moparop]

I think this is one of those cases where the other two are either going to realize hey they are serious about going or hey I totally cannot afford this. Either way, you get to Disney and they have to start making decisions!

 

[therussells08]

I'm here! I just caught up! What an awesome looking group of friends! I hope everyone is able to go!

I would suggest that you and J just go ahead and do your thing. I think that the other two will understand!

 

[TinkerbellLuvr7]

I think this is one of those cases where the other two are either going to realize hey they are serious about going or hey I totally cannot afford this. Either way, you get to Disney and they have to start making decisions!

Yes, I agree. If you have a new job you might not be able to get off and if you aren't working, you aren't going to have $600+ to spend on a vacation. I can totally understand! If I were living in my own apt paying rent on my own, I for sure would not be doing this trip. I wish I had a public school teaching job where I could be on my own and afford to go on vacations at the same time!

I'm here! I just caught up! What an awesome looking group of friends! I hope everyone is able to go!

I would suggest that you and J just go ahead and do your thing. I think that the other two will understand!

Thanks! I would totally understand because if I had a new job and didn't ask for time off at the interview or shortly after, I wouldn't bother and not having a job = no money which means = no trip!




I WILL UP UPDATING THE PTR LATER TONIGHT!!

 

[TinkerbellLuvr7]

AND THEN THERE WERE 3, NO MAKE THAT 2..

Hi Dis Friends, the week is almost over!!

I have some slightly sad news to share. This morning, I got up and checked my email (as always). Since M or K had not responded to the last email with the # figures for the rooms, I had been checking it like crazy for a response. J and I were both under the impression that K would probably not go and M would try her hardest to go, even if it's for a few days.

I got up this morning and had an email from K. It pretty much said that she is pulling out from the trip because she does not want to have to pay in full by early Sept and not know a job situation. I wasn't implying that she had to buy Free Dining and we assumed she would use her 1/2 off CM discount + her ID for the parks. She also said if she is not working and would be able to go, she is not willing to shell out that much money for a trip. Once again, leading me to believe that she thought we were all doing Free Dining. I guess I will have to re-read the email? In a way, it makes things easier because now we know that: we will need park tickets, M can just add onto our ressie, and we will know to make dining either 2 or 3 people.

With that in mind, I began to re-run the numbers over my lunch for 2 and 3 people at POP and POFQ. I did all the number crunching to check email after work at 7pm to find an email from M pretty much saying the same thing but is more willing to come but can't commit this soon (which we knew). She said for J and I to go ahead and book and if she was able to come, she might only come for 2 whole days (won't need or want the DDP) and I could certainly get her a 40% off room with my brother's CM discount. I think I'm going to call her later tonight and just talk things over with her and assure her that we really want her to go and we can work things out! She has applied for a job, not interviewed, and J and I both said to her that a bunch of employees will inquire about a vacation in the works but I can understand too you are trying to get a job and that's more important.



So, it went from 4, to 3, to 2 all in one day. So the question of the day is....

Do J and I still go? Even my mom said, well if M doesn't go and it's just you and J, that seems like a ton of money to spend to see each other when she only lives 5 hr away in Chicago.

That is the story as of now...I'm about to go call M and see if she answers to discuss this further as it seems like she wants to go but I don't know haha!

 

[moparop]

While it is a lot to spend to see someone 5 hours away, it comes down to where you want to hang out. Yes, you've been to Disney quite a bit lately, but not with your bud -- so, that's totally different, imo. Is there somewhere else you could meet up and get all 4 to commit to? NYC? Chicago? Vegas? What are the numbers for that?

I'd absolutely call M and talk it over with her. Emails can get so weird!

 

[Trentmom]

I think is a good idea to call M and talk it all out

I can't imagine it being that expensive for a short trip with free dining and staying at a value

Am sure it will all work out one way or the other

 

[therussells08]

I think you and J should definitely still go if you both can afford it! You might only be 5 hours apart, but time together in Disney would be so much more magical!!

 

[TinkerbellLuvr7]

I think is a good idea to call M and talk it all out

I can't imagine it being that expensive for a short trip with free dining and staying at a value

Am sure it will all work out one way or the other

YOU WILL SEE WHAT HAPPENS!!!

I think you and J should definitely still go if you both can afford it! You might only be 5 hours apart, but time together in Disney would be so much more magical!!

I agree!

 

[TinkerbellLuvr7]

MY TALK WITH M


YAY IT'S FINALLY FRIDAY!!!!!

Not much to report on! I found out last night that K has a job interview at a school South of Orlando--not sure what county or district. I was looking at teaching jobs in Osceola Co. *just outside of WDW, and they had 133 teaching positions open If only...Anyways, she's down at WDW right now to work some hours so she is going to interview! I hope she gets it because she has been trying for a Music teach job for several years now! If that's the case, she will be able to meet up with J and I on the weekend when we are there!


I talked with M last night as you all suggested. The convo started off very rocky and not like usual and then I told her that we were planning on just adding her onto our package. I'm making the ADRs for 4 (unless we do CRT and I'll make that for 2 for the pre-payment). I told her that we wouldn't make her pay for nights that she wasn't there for because it isn't fair.

Then she told me that she has 2 possible job interviews in DC, one at the Capitol Building doing those tours and the other is a coordinator position at the Smithsonian. She said because they are very high paying, government type jobs, she would not dare to ask for time off at the interview. She said for one of the jobs there are already 300 applicants that have made it through the first round. I hope she gets it. She said depending on flights she might be able to fly out Fri night and stay till Sun night (depending on her days off too!)

So after that, she felt better about the whole situation and said hopefully she knows about interviews soon!




As for J and I, well I texted J this morning telling her of the convo and told her to call me this weekend if she was interested in booking right away.

Of course I will be back with updates as they arise!

For now, I'm off to spend the weekend studying for my Praxis with the hopes that I pass this time and can eventually move back to FL and teach close to WDW!!!

 

[Trentmom]

Sounds liek conversation was a tad uncomfortable in beginning. Glad it turned out okay by the end.

When is the next praxis test? Good Luck

You would be in heaven teaching near Disney