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

[TinkerbellLuvr7]

Ugh, that stinks about the sinus infection! Atleast you are feeling a little bit better.

Have a good weekend!

Thanks

 

[TinkerbellLuvr7]

WEDDING WEEKEND!!!!

Before I start into my mini TR from the wedding weekend, I wanted to run this past everyone to get opinions!

I'm seriously debating about upgrading my 2 day park hopper tickets to an annual pass in Oct. It would be an extra $300 for the upgrade but I'm having some issues..
-Do I want to fork over an extra $300 with Xmas coming up plus another WDW trip in Dec?

-We will be using Dbro's Main Gate Pass in Dec so we'll get in for free and his time off has already been approved.

-I'm not sure when I'll be going back to WDW for sure. I'd guess if not in March around my birthday then in late spring or early summer.

-My goal is to move back to FL by next summer and hopefully land a teaching job somewhere in FL assuming I can get my test passed!

..anyways, what would you do? Go head and pay for the AP or just wait it out?? I know its hard to justify an extra $300 but assuming I go in the spring and don't get "main gated" or have passes, then I think it would have been a good decision seeing as I have already paid $200 for just a 2 day park hopper!



NOW FOR WEDDING WEEKEND!

Since you guys have been there for me and helped me make countless decisions, I only felt it right to do a mini TR about the wedding!

It all started last Thurs Sept 23rd!

I worked till 6pm and then got in my car and drove off to PA!! I decided to stay in a cheaper hotel near my college (same one as the weekend before with my test) and assumed it would just take me 45 mins to drive into the city the following day as it always did..but I was wrong.

I got to the hotel a little after 10pm, got a shower, and was in bed by midnight! Of course I couldn't sleep but that was the theme all weekend it seemed!

FRIDAY SEPT 24TH

My alarm went off a little after 8 and my goal was to be out of the hotel by 9:30am and make it to Pittsburgh by 10:30 to meet at the brides house or her mom and dads house and catch up before the nail appts at 11.

Well, I was out the door by 9:35 but forgot I had to get gas . That mixed with major construction and Friday traffic did not get me to the house in time to catch up before the nail appts and I had to meet the girls at the nail salon!

Finally, by 10:50, I made it to the nail salon!

The Bride:

One of 3 flower girls named Ocean (yes that's her real name!)

After 4.5 hours at the nail salon..yes 4.5 hours..we were all ready for the rehearsal!!

Everyone went their separate ways and I went to check in at the hotel where the bride had blocked rooms. After checking in, I went a block down the street and ate a late lunch at Fuddruckers. I figured it was nearly 4pm by then, the rehearsal dinner wasn't till 7:30 and we just had cheese and crackers at the salon. After a quick lunch and shower, I was off to the rehearsal at 6pm!

The bride w/her mom and dad (she's an only child):

After the hour long rehearsal, we had the dinner! The grooms family is 100% Italian so the family made all of the food by scratch! We had yummy wedding soup, chix parm, chix rigatoni, salads, etc!! It was soo good!

Favors:

Finally, it was time for the bridal party gifts!

We got lunch bags which looked like mini purses to me and that's what we made them out to be! They were SOOOO helpful the next day!

We got: flip flops (a life savor!), yellow umbrellas, and jewelry:

The charm was to go on the flip flops for the reception but they didn't fit so it got clipped onto my fancy wedding shoes and now it's attached to the bracelet that I was going to wear but didn't because no one else wore one.

The bride and I..bffs and college roomies!

Bridal Party minus 1 flower girl:

After the dinner, a few of the BM's went out with the GM's and the bride was NOT happy to say the least and 2 of the BM's were staying at her mom and dad's house but..they say everything happens for a reason right?

After the dinner, I went back to the bride/grooms house and they opened their gifts from me and then the 3 of us went to the MOB/FOB house and sat and caught up for an hour before the groom said goodbye and then it was just the 4 of us which was bitter sweet because that's how it always was in college!

 

[TinkerbellLuvr7]

WEDDING WEEKEND CONT

By 12am we went to bed..and tossed and turned till finally at 5:30am I asked the bride..are you up? We were both up and starving so we texted the MOB and asked if she could put the casserole in the oven and she did! We got zero sleep but we were up and ready for the hair/make up appts at 9am!

I had to go first since I was doing the 3 flower girls hair styles! I was in and out by 10:15 with make-up done as well! The Bride was at her MOB/FOB house getting her hair done..

By 10:30 the flower girls arrived at the MOB/FOB house and I went to work!

Ocean again!

I did all 3 flower girls within an hour which was amazing since I haven't done the style in over a year!

Finally it was time to get dressed and get ready for pics!!

We took pics outside and then were off in the limo for the church and 2pm wedding!

The bride's hidden mickey!

Sadly, my parents sat in the back since my mom handed out programs and my dad tooks pics of us walking in so I didn't get very good shots of the wedding.

After the wedding, we went to Mt. Washington which is an overlook of Pittsburgh and when we got there, there were already 6 weddings there!

After SEVERAL pics there, we headed to the reception!

It was your classic WDW Wedding!!

Cookie Table:

My Flowers:

Our glasses:

Bride and I

And of course there were many tears and it was sad but we had a great time!

After the wedding, we all went to Dave and Busters!!

Overall, it was a great wedding!! There were only a few oops moments such as 5 of the guys tuxes were wrong, the flower people made the brides bouquet too small and they forgot the white runner for the church, and the limo driver was not so magical and asked for late payment when they ran 15 mins over but it was a great wedding!

All of my pics are on FB if we're friends! They even have some of the photographers!

Currently the bride and groom are enjoying the last few days they have at WDW. They used their DVC for a CL room at AKL (home resort) but are moving to WL tomorrow night for their last night! She said they've already eaten at lots of good places with their DDP and are meeting at Teppan Edo this afternoon to have lunch with my Dbro!! He has seen them a few times and even backdoored them onto Test Track and rode it with them!!




I'll be back with a TR update tonight or tomorrow!!

 

[TinkerbellLuvr7]

MICKEY MAIL AND UPDATES!!


Hello again Dis Friends!

HAPPY OCTOBER AND 21 DAYS TILL THE TRIP!!!

WE LEAVE 3 WEEKS FROM TODAY, CAN YOU BELIEVE IT???!!

I wasn't going to update so soon but I figured I had a ton of what-if questions so I'd give y'all all weekend to answer them!

First of all, last Wed, Sept 22, my best Mickey Mail arrived in the mail!

It arrived the day before I left for the wedding so I really didn't get a chance to read through everything until today so my first question is..

DO YOU EVER USE THE VOUCHERS/DISCOUNTS THAT'S IN THE PACKAGE?

Being that we are only going for 4 full days, I don't see us using much of it. I could see maybe using the arcade points, Planet Hollywood, and maybe the mini golf. I'm just excited about the luggage tags..sad I know!

Also...
M has FINALLY finalized her part of the trip aka..changing EVERYTHING. She is now staying from Fri morn-Tues night instead of Fri night-Mon night. I have her the # to call DME to change her part of DME..hopefully it goes well for her

K has finally finalized her part of the trip as well. She booked herself a CM discount room at All Star Movies for Fri and Sat night and will be leaving us after MNSSHP on Sunday night as it is a teacher work day for her on Mon and she feels silly for taking off when the kids aren't even there. She tried to get into POP but said it was sold out..doesn't surprise me

So as it stands:
M will arrive 10/22 at 9:11am
J will arrive 10/22 at 1pm
K will arrive 10/22 at 7pm'ish??
I will arrive 10/22 at 9pm
..that isn't including travel with DME but I'd add on an extra 1.5 hr for each

Leaving:
K will leave 10/24 after MNSSHP
J will leave 10/26 at 12pm
I will leave 10/26 at 1pm
M will leave 10/26 at 2:30pm

So here come the loads of questions! I'm asking the experts because I feel like I'm either being too OCD or I'm missing something haha.

question 1: Upgrade to an AP or not?

I posted this on the Wedding updates but I figured I would repost. A few of the reasons why I don't think I should do it include:
-Won't need it in Dec because we'll have Dbro's Main Gate pass to use
-Don't know when I'll be going back in the spring or summer
-The extra $300 is a lot considering Xmas is coming as well as the Dec trip

Why I think I should get it:
-It's only an extra $300 and will be good from oct-oct.
-It gives me an excuse to do a spring/early summer trip
-My main goal is to move back to FL by next summer to get a teaching job and I'll already have the pass and will only have to renew it in the fall or become a Seasonal CM again.

Question 2: Chefs De France for Lunch or Dinner?

What would you do? We have lunch booked but now that K isn't joining us on Monday and M is staying, we wouldn't have to do lunch and could do dinner as we originally planned. I thought the dinner menu was better and got at 5:10pm ADR.
Our plans that day are:
AM EMH at AK and then Epcot with a slight afternoon break somewhere as we will be up till 12am for MK EMH.
I was thinking, AK, rides at Epcot, lunch at either POP or Epcot + maybe food and wine stuff, break before 5:10 dinner and then head to MK after dinner. Does that seemed rushed to you because it does to me! I might be giving up my afternoon breaks, especially since we won't have a car but I do enjoy going back to jump in the pool and change for the 2nd 1/2 of the day.
~or~
Keep the 1:30 lunch ADR and go to AK rides, Epcot rides, Lunch ADR, finish up what we want, slight afternoon/evening break, and then go to MK from POP. We could do dinner at POP or MK (I have a feeling MK CS will win!)

Finally..

QUESTION 3: TONGA TOAST OR OHANA?
This has been a growing debate among my friends and as of now: K and M are doing Kona for Tonga Toast and J and I are going to Ohana on Sun 10/14 before MNSSHP. Here lies the debate. I thought that if J really wanted to do TT at Kona, we could just go to Capt' Cooks on our last morning since she doesn't leave for DME till 12pm but then I began thinking how rushed and tired we would be plus allowing travel time...
So I'm considering approaching her and seeing if she would really rather do TT at Kona, we can cancel Ohana and I'll give in. I have to keep thinking this trip isn't all about me and I have to make compromises

I do think that doing Capt' Cooks on the last day would be a bit of a rush and staying at POP and enjoying the pool and room (hope for late check-out!) would be a better option IMO.


Okay that's it..sorry for the loads of questions but I want the experts advice!!


Thanks..I look forward to reading the answers

 

[TinkerbellLuvr7]

LET THE DRAMA BEGIN!

Happy Sunday Dis Friends!!

Are any of my readers still out there?!

Oh well, if you are..I've put up 2 chapters about the wedding and one about the mickey mail I got last week! All of the chapters are on page 11!!

Anyways, I thought I would just post a little about the drama over the weekend about the trip haha.

I've decided to change my costume to Wendy. I found out last week that my school's BOO FEST is the night before I leave an instead of packing a potentially gross/dirty/child infested costume that's covered in glue, glitter, and what-not from the party..I've decided to use the Hula one for school and Wendy for MNSSHP! I was able to get a nightgown and black ballet slippers (you know the fuzzy kind you wear around the house!) so all I need to get is ribbon for a belt and my hair! Pics will come next weekend!


Now for the drama..
There's going to be drama, I know that for a fact. You put 4 girls, 2 with the same personalities, likes, and wants, against another 2 of the same..there's going to be issues!

First of all, M tells me tonight that her and K are going to AK the Fri that we all arrive..no big deal. I asked K if she could come get me at the airport that night and I would pay her tolls and gas. Well she tells me that her an M are eating at Saana and M isn't going to Crystal Palace the day of MNSSHP on Sunday. They are already doing their own thing by going to Kona and not Ohana and now are telling me they aren't going to CP. That's fine except, we're taking up a table for 4 at 2 of the busiest restaurants and they could have been used for a family that couldn't get an ADR. It kind of made me upset!
So now I'm torn because do I try and get ADRs for just 2 at the 2 restaurants or keep it at 4 and just tell them at the podium that 2 couldn't make it. We'll see..
M also said that she is going to DHS the morning that we leave as the schedule J and I made does not allow time for her to see shows and go to the Animation class. She said she will say goodbye to us as she leaves for DHS our last morning and won't be joining us at Capt' Cooks for breakfast.

When all was said and done and a conference with J, we said that the break at the 2 meals might be needed as we will be together A LOT the next few days! We will most likely have to branch off during the day as J and I want an afternoon break and the other 2 won't...

Can you see where all this is going haha. It's a good thing food and WINE will be going on haha.

Anyways, just thought I'd share a bit of the drama that's unfolding!

I'm still torn about the AP..we'll see what happens in the next 19 days!!

UP NEXT:
*NEW COSTUME PICS*
..SCHEDULE DAY 1

 

[TinkerbellLuvr7]

SCHEDULE DAY ONE

HI DIS FRIENDS...
ARE YOU GUYS OUT THERE? IS ANYONE STILL OUT THERE? 3 UPDATES HAVE GONE BY AND NO ONE HAS POSTED...I HOPE YOU ALL DIDN'T RUN AWAY TO NEVERLAND AND FORGET TO TELL ME!!!


Anyways..for the lurkers out there, I guess I'll continue!


DAY ONE PLANS:

FRIDAY OCT 22, 2010


I guess the easiest way of doing this is to start off doing this person by person as to when they arrive! It will give you a little refresher of the cast!

First..

Meghan..aka M:

She is the craziest of all. Her plans are to go see a new movie that comes out at midnight, go home, and leave for the airport in Northern NY at 4:00am for her 6:30am flight. She is the "pack the night before" type person and usually forgets something! She will make fun of the packing lists that we make but we never forget anything!

She is flying Jet Blue for the first time and will be checking a bag but not putting the DME tag on the bag.

She will land at MCO around 9:30am and head to:

When she checks in for the POP bus..she's hoping and we're all hoping that the CM will say..you've been upgraded to:

Remember my CM friend, you know, the one who made the simple phone call to friends at YC and asked them to give my brother and I a pretty room in Aug and we got upgraded to CL..well, she's attempting to work her own magic at her own resort, CSR. We shall see! I told the girls, don't get your hopes up and we're all glad we're just going!

After M checks in at whatever resort we end up at, she's upgrading her tickets and heading to:

She'll stay and play till 8pm EMH is over!


Now...

Jenny...aka J:

J's morning will start off early too but not as early as M! Her flight is at 9:25am CST out of Chicago and lands in MCO at 1pm EST.

She will also be checking a bag and not using the DME tag.

When she gets to MCO she'll be taking:

After she gets to the resort, hopefully the room will be ready and she can unpack and head to the pool!

Her plans that night are not to go to AK with M but to head to:

And use her first CS at:

After shopping, she'll hang around the resort until I arrive!

Now..

Katie...aka K

She will be at her school teaching until the end of the day. After school is over, she is driving up to Orlando ( from near West Palm area). She will check into her resort All Star Movies and meet M at AK.

After EMH is over, the two girls have ADRs for 8:45pm at:

After dinner, they have plans to tour Kidani and Jambo since that's where M worked for her Professional Internship. Since K will have their car, they will drive back to the resort to meet J and I!

Finally..

Me!!..aka Megan

I'll have the longest day of all because of the anticipation! I'll be working at school till early leave at 2 (I think that's what I wrote?). I'll drive home and my mom will drive me down to the airport in Cincinnati for my 7pm flight on:

I'll have to grab dinner at the airport before my flight so depending on what time I'm all checked in will depend on whether I get sit-down food or fast food.

When I get to MCO at 9pm, I'm hoping a certain someone will pick me up..

I'll know on Sun when he gets his schedule if that will work or if I'll have to take DME.

When I get to the resort, my plans are to:
-Eat a snack
-Unpack
-Use the pool!!!

And of course...IF I PASSED MY PRAXIS TEST FROM SEPT (find out score next week)..THERE WILL BE ADULT BEVERAGES TO CELEBRATE!!!!!

Well, that's it..It's going to be a crazy day for all but it will be a great start to our vacation weekend!

UP NEXT:
-SCHEDULE DAY 2

 

[wirki]

Sorry..I am here. Just been sooo busy with teaching and getting ready to be there too

I am sorry that you are having some drama..but I am not surprised. I went last year with some people and was really glad when we had separate itineraries. It just gives you a bit of a breather

I can not wait to hear where you are and when. Maybe we will be able to see each other!!

 

[Nermel9]

Hey, I'm still here! I meant to respond to your last updates but I never had the time to answer all of your questions!

Your first day looks great, it will be fun to meet up with all of your friends! I hope your friend who works at CSR can get you guys upgraded!

Hopefully you will pass your Praxis and get to enjoy some adult beverages!

 

[TinkerbellLuvr7]

Sorry..I am here. Just been sooo busy with teaching and getting ready to be there too

I am sorry that you are having some drama..but I am not surprised. I went last year with some people and was really glad when we had separate itineraries. It just gives you a bit of a breather

I can not wait to hear where you are and when. Maybe we will be able to see each other!!

Thanks, I guess that's a good excuse lol. I fully expect the drama, it was that way when we lived there! When you have 2 groups of 2 with strong personalities, it's going to come out at some point. I think the alone/separate time will be welcomed!

When will you be at WDW???? No PTR??!!

Hey, I'm still here! I meant to respond to your last updates but I never had the time to answer all of your questions!

Your first day looks great, it will be fun to meet up with all of your friends! I hope your friend who works at CSR can get you guys upgraded!

Hopefully you will pass your Praxis and get to enjoy some adult beverages!

Thanks sorry, there were a lot of questions haa..We'll see about the upgrade..she says it's going to happen but I won't believe it till I get the call from M after she checks in!

 

[wirki]

I will be there Oct 21-27. No trip report....just could not find the time. I know quite a few people from here that are going to be there at the same time. I hope maybe we will be at some of the same places at the same time

 

[Trentmom]

Thanks! It was a beautiful wedding!



It ended up being a great day and the dress held up!



Haha..ya I would have told you to call DME directly. I'll be posting updates soon but M decided to change her whole entire plan of the trip, including flights so I had to get her the DME number for her to call and update her new flight info!





Glad you followed over from the TR!!



Thanks



Thanks..that's what I was thinking. Change of weather here I'm sure as it went from 90 to 60 in a day



Thanks!



****Hi Everyone!! Just wanted to say that I'm feeling a little better. I finally gave in and went to the dr. yesterday (I'm not paying $157 a month for insurance for nothing right!?) and found out I have a bacterial sinus infection which is contagious. I didn't know that those were contagious but I was ordered to be off work today and yesterday so here I am, not sleeping at all and catching up on Dis!!

The wedding went very well and pics and an update will follow soon! For now I'm going to head back to bed and start uploading on photobucket this afternoon!!

Just got back from vacation
Hope you are feeling bettter

The wedding pics are great. You did a great job on the flower girl Hair, That is the exact same style my friend daughter got on our trip


I am not sure if you have made any decision yet, but I would go for the AP

You know you will have at least two more trip before next October, so I think it would be worth it

I would just leave your adr of 4 alone and tell them two people could not make it. They can switch you to table for 2 and open up something for another family trying to get in I would think

 

[Trentmom]

I think the first day plans sound great

Just out of curiosity, why arent your friends using ME?

 

[TinkerbellLuvr7]

I think the first day plans sound great

Just out of curiosity, why arent your friends using ME?

They are using DME but just not putting the tags on their bags. Assuming..hopefully that my friend is able to upgrade us from POP to CSR, we won't know that until we check in at DME and they don't want to risk their bags being taken to POP instead of CSR and having to deal with lost bags/tracking them so since their flights get in super early, they don't mind getting their bags and then going to DME!!

 

[TinkerbellLuvr7]

I will be there Oct 21-27. No trip report....just could not find the time. I know quite a few people from here that are going to be there at the same time. I hope maybe we will be at some of the same places at the same time

Wow that's great!!!

Just got back from vacation
Hope you are feeling bettter

The wedding pics are great. You did a great job on the flower girl Hair, That is the exact same style my friend daughter got on our trip


I am not sure if you have made any decision yet, but I would go for the AP

You know you will have at least two more trip before next October, so I think it would be worth it

I would just leave your adr of 4 alone and tell them two people could not make it. They can switch you to table for 2 and open up something for another family trying to get in I would think

I've been stalking some of your pics on facebook

Still haven't made a decision on the AP yet...While it's only $300, it's still $300 with Xmas coming up and gifts to be bought. On one hand, I'm not paying full rent since I"m with my parents and it might be a smart decision as if I do move back to FL as planned, I would be paying rent by then and wouldn't want to shell out the $500 for an AP!

 

[wdwgirl03]

Oh shoot, I thought I commented on here but I guess I didn't. Your plans sound good for the first day! I love DTD and Earl of Sandwich is so yummy.

Fingers crossed you pass your Praxis test!

 

[creativeamanda]

Megan, I don't know if I could keep up with your group's first day, lol! But it does look nice!

 

[TinkerbellLuvr7]

DAY 2 PLANS

HAPPY SUNDAY DIS AND HAPPY 10/10/10!!!!

I'll be back later today with a TR update as far as the planning goes but thought I would update Day 2!!!


DAY 2...

SATURDAY OCT 23, 2010

**The following pics were taking during my Professional Internship with the 3 bff's that I'm taking this trip with!!

The day will start out with breakfast at the resort. I'm still debating if I want to buy or bring breakfast items or take extra morning time and get stuff from the food court . I'm not really a huge breakfast person so it might be as simple as bringing some granola bars and having some juice in the room (in the ice bucket if we end up at POP instead of CSR!)

After a quick breakfast, we will be flying out the door and either taking the bus or hopefully K can pick us up and we are off to:

It's EMH that day so we will hopefully be there by 8am and run off to TSM!

Of course as tradition we will ride this several times as we used to in the past..

At 11:05, we have an early early early ADR for:

Assuming we get up how early, I'm sure the early ADR will be welcomed if we don't have a huge breakfast!

After a yummy lunch, we will either finish up stuff at DHS, go back to the resort for a swim/rest, but eventually head to:

Our goal for the day..not the rides but:

That's right..FOOD AND WINE!!!

I've already emailed the food list/prices to the girls and I've printed and highlighted in mine what I would like. I've decided to get the gift card (if they have it this year) and put only a set amount of $$ on it...I'm thinking $30-$40 as we still have Free Dining to use!

M has already expressed that she won't be eating a CS dinner at Epcot, she'll just veg out on Food and Wine..I on the other hand, will put less $$ on the gift card and use my Free Dining credits!

After drinking around the world, we will watch Illuminations and then head back to the resort...

NOT.

MK EMH is our destination and it's open till 3am!!!!!!


(Our first Park Pic taken as Professional Interns)

We will ride ride rides till we drop and hopefully a snack will be in order at some point!

After we drag out of MK, we will head to the bus and crash into bed before 4am hopefully!!!


DAY 3 PLANS..
-SLEEPING IN
-LATE BREAKFAST ADR WHERE..
-TRICK OR TREATING!!!

 

[TinkerbellLuvr7]

Oh shoot, I thought I commented on here but I guess I didn't. Your plans sound good for the first day! I love DTD and Earl of Sandwich is so yummy.

Fingers crossed you pass your Praxis test!

THANKS!!!

I keep stalking the Praxis website like some crazy person and as of this morning, the score was not posted yet but it said it won't be till Tues..I keep hoping it will pop up early!

Megan, I don't know if I could keep up with your group's first day, lol! But it does look nice!

Haha..I'm sure there will be many many many texts sent that day! I'm seriously now regretting my decision to take the 7pm flight and not just taking the day off but since I was just there in March and Aug, and I'm going in Dec for 6 days, I can't really justify it
The 4pm flight we're taking in Dec isn't offered in Oct but the 7pm in Oct isn't offered in Dec so it's a tough one haha.

 

[creativeamanda]

Cool day one plans--probably exactly how I would do it.

So tell me, will you walk over to Epcot or will you take the boat? Inquiring minds want to know.

 

[CPer'sMom]

Hey Megan ~

Looks like everything is coming together for a great trip! (Here's hoping there is no unnecessary drama at any time!!)

Yes, they do have the little gift card wristband again this year. SO convenient There is also a little passport with all the food & drink offerings of each country listed - makes it easy to keep track of what refreshment you need next! You can pick that up at the Festival Center. Make sure to post your favorites when you get back My DD and I will be there on the 28th and I have my list started!!