Sea Ya Real Soon: A Dreamy Pre-Trip Report--UPDATED 4/10 DOLE WHIP!!!

[fnrsgrl]

Welcome to my very first PTR! My name is Brandy, and I have been mostly a lurker here on the DIS for a couple of years now. I am super-excited to get started on this report, and even more excited about our upcoming trip! In honor of my sister-in-law's college graduation, the whole family will be taking a combined land and sea vacation in May 2012. It will be my fifth trip, but I'm the rookie of the group! Anyway, I'll be getting started soon, and I hope you'll read along, comment and enjoy!

 

[fnrsgrl]

Introduction and Cast of Characters
An Overview of Previous Trips
Our Plans At the Moment
Countdown Calendar
Some Questions
Dole Whip!
Trip Report Link

 

[fnrsgrl]

Here is the Who, What, Where, When, Why and How(although not necessarily in that order) for our Wonderful Trip back to the world:

What:A seven-night land vacation followed by a four-night Bahamian cruise

When:May 13-24, 2012

Where:Disney World, of course! We'll be staying at Port Orleans Riverside for the land portion and cruising in verandah rooms on the Dream.

Why:To celebrate my sister-in-law's college graduation.

How:Okay, so there's not really a how--by plane, I guess?

Who:Now, this is the fun part because we are a rather interesting and sometimes crazy bunch, or as a certain Photpass caption suggests, we're real characters! So, without further ado, the cast:


First of all we have my father-in-law, Eric. This picture pretty much sums up his personality:

He is a small-business owner that loves to have fun and is a bit of a jokester. He loves to make other people smile and laugh, and is always up for a good time. He has been to Disney many times, and loves it!

Next is my mother-in-law, Debbie:

She works in the print company of a large local church. She is one of the most laid-back and easy-going people I know. She is also very caring and generous. This makes her a great person to be around and a perfect person to take a vacation with! She absolutely loves Disney World, and although I don't know how many times she's been, I know it's more than the rest of us! She first visited with relatives as a teenager. She loves all of the parks, but I'm pretty sure the Magic Kingdom is her favorite!

Together, they're like peanut butter and jelly:

Completely different, but a perfect match!


Then, there's my husband, Josh:

Yeah, so he and his dad have a lot in common! He works at his dad's business and usually, they get along just fine! He is a total goofball who loves to laugh and just generally have fun. He's also the best husband in the world, in my completely and totally unbiased opinion! He loves Disney World, and hasn't been in four years, so he's really, really excited about this trip! His favorite park is the Magic Kingdom, his favorite character is Tigger, and his favorite thing to do at Disney is:

Get Dole Whip! (That's him in the black shirt.)

Next, we have me:

Did I mention that my husband was a goofball? How in the world do you describe yourself? I'm a stay-at-home wife and pet parent (we have four) who absolutely loves Disney everything! I have been four times and cruised once before. My favorite park is the Animal Kingdom, my favorite ride is Splash Mountain and my favorite character(in case you couldn't tell by the siggie and such) is Stitch!

Here we are on the last trip we went on together:

Lastly, there's the guest of honor, my sister-in-law, Beth:

She is graduating in from college in May with a degree in elementary education. She has been looking forward to this trip through the whole four years! She is a very sunny and joyful person who loves life--and Disney World! Her favorite character is Goofy, but she isn't a big fan of the costumed characters because she got freaked out by a rather mischievous Peter Pan several years ago.

It's also likely that my husband's uncle, Brad, will join us for at least part of the trip.

Altogether, we are a bunch a of Disney-lovers who cannot wait to go back!

Up next: An overview of my previous trips.

 

[cbcrockett]

Subbing! Can't wait to hear y'alls plans!

 

[debfen]

Great beginning! I look forward to reading (and doing) more! I love the pics you chose for Eric and Josh! They are perfect!

 

[fnrsgrl]

cbccrockett, Thank you and welcome! and debfen(gee, I wonder who you are), I know, right!!

 

[fnrsgrl]

As promised, here is an overview of my previous trips. I have personally been to Disney World four times. The first time was in January of 2002, when I was a teenager, with my family. This was shortly after September 11, and I remember it being a little unnerving to go through security because of it. Everyone was on high alert, and not a lot of people were traveling. My dad won the trip by reaching a certain amount of sales at work, and we were all very excited to go. We stayed at the Yacht Club for several nights and All-Star Movies for one additional night. It was a lot of fun, but we definitely did not know what we were getting ourselves into! I still remember my first Disney attraction was It’s Tough to Be a Bug, and, to this day, it’s one of my favorites! I don’t have any photos from that trip.

Then, in May of 2007, this happened:

We knew immediately that we would take our honeymoon Disney-style! We stayed in the Animal Kingdom Lodge:

In a savannah view room:

For four nights, while we enjoyed all that the World has to offer.

Then, we boarded the Disney Wonder:

For a delightful 3-night cruise into the Bahamas. Our favorite part was definitely Castaway Cay, but we loved the whole thing! Our only complaint? It wasn’t nearly long enough!

I visited for the third time in May of 2008, in celebration of this:

And this:

This time it was me, my husband, his parents and sister, plus his Uncle Brad and Grandma Shirley.

We stayed at All-Star Movies for I think ten days, and had a fantastic time.

We even caught a soft opening of Toy Story Mania!

My most recent trip was in February of 2010. Hubby and I had been having a rough year, so we were thrilled to find out that both of our families were planning Disney Trips at the same time, and they wanted us to join them. Unfortunately, my husband’s boss got really difficult about vacation time and wouldn’t let him go, so I went by myself! I stayed at Port Orleans Riverside in Acadian House for seven days, and loved it!

The trip was a bit of a mixed bag. My luggage got soaked by Southwest on the transfer from the plane to the airport, and my mom had to go to the ER. On the other hand, a few of the days were beautiful and the crowds were mostly low. Plus, it was Disney World! They don’t call it the Happiest Place on Earth for nothing’!

All in all, Disney World has been good to me, and I can’t wait to go back!! Next up: Some of our plans.

 

[fnrsgrl]

We are not really the crazy super-planning type, so our plans mostly consist of where we are going to eat each day and some of the bigger stuff. Here is what we have so far:

Sunday, May 13:This is our arrival day. I don't recall exactly what time we get in, but it's a morning flight, so it should be no later than one or two. We will check in at Port Orleans Riverside(I definitely want a mansion, rather than a bayou room and would love one that is close to where I stayed before), and then probably visit a park until our dinner reservation at Raglan Road. MIL and I absolutely loved this the last time we went, so I am really looking forward to this meal. After dinner, there are MK EMH until 1 am, so we will probably do that.

Monday, May 14: We have lunch at Le Cellier(filet mignon w/mushrooms-yum!), and EMH at DHS until midnight. My vote will probably be to do AK in the morning because it's my favorite, and I'm always anxious to get there!

Tuesday, May 15:Dinner reservations at 1900 Park Fare--this is also a family favorite. There are no EMH as of right now, but maybe they will add some before then. Might do a water park in the morning this day, then switch to a regular park in the afternoon. No EMH makes Downtown an evening possibility.

Wednesday, May 16:Breakfast at Kona Cafe. So excited to try this one based on the reviews and pictures on here. No EMH. This evening is date night, so DH and I are going to California Grill, his parents are going to another restaurant, and I think Beth is having counter-service. Dinner will probably cap off the night, as CG tends to run rather late.

Thursday, May 17:Dinner at O'hana, and once again no EMH in the evening

Friday, May 18: Dinner at the Coral Reef(not big on seafood, so I hope the other options are good), EMH at Epcot until midnight. So, probably we will do another park during the day and hop to Epcot for dinner and EMH. Also, hopefully, Illuminations, which I have only seen once and really want to catch this trip.

Saturday, May 19: Last full day on land, but then we get to cruise! Dinner is at Tutto Italia, no EMH. I'm guessing probably we will do some MK, some Epcot this day.

Sunday, May 20: This is cruise day!!! We have breakfast at O'hana, and then have been advised that it will be more economical and more convenient for us to take a taxi to Port Canaveral. Definitely plan on catching the Sail Away party, which we missed last time. We have verandah rooms, on Deck 5, near the kids club. Has anyone stayed in this area before?

Monday, May 21:According to my cruise guide, this should be Nassau day. MIL and FIL are planning on mostly staying on the ship, while we adventurous types head for Atlantis Aquaventure. Has anyone done this before? We did the dolphin encounter on Blue Lagoon Island last time, and loved it, but wanted something different this time. I'm really excited about it, especially the not-so-lazy river. Also, the website says this books up fast--does anyone know how fast? Do we need to worry about not being able to get in?

Tuesday, May 22: This should be our Castaway Cay day. The plan is to get the getaway package, with the tubes/bikes/snorkeling gear, but DH and I might add the stingrays because we really enjoyed them before. Other than that, Hello, Beaches! Also, I am excited to try Pelican Plunge and such.

Wednesday, May 23:Our day at sea. Does anyone know if Palo does high tea on the four night cruises? I would be really interested in trying it.

Thursday, May 24:Debarkation day, and time to go home So, so sad! I hate the day you have to go home!

And that's our trip!

 

[debfen]

Great job with the plans! It sure seems like there are not enough extra magic hours. Did we miss something? Is it possible the will add more as the time gets closer? Certainly hope so!

 

[fnrsgrl]

I went and looked again before I posted. At tghe moment, that is all of the evening EMH that are scheduled. I'm still hoping they will add more as we get closer.

 

[fnrsgrl]

Just ordered some things for our countdown calendar. So excited!

 

[fnrsgrl]

About a week ago, DH and I made our fun Disney Countdown Calendar, which we will be starting on March 3, 75 days out from our trip.
We began by thinking of 75 parks, attractions, restaurants, etc. that we will be visiting in Disney. I typed them up in a nifty Disney font and printed them out.

We cut these up into strips and folded them.

Next, we purchased several packages of Disney Squinkies(Toy Story, Cinderella, Cars and Aladdin) and some Easter candy.

I ordered some mini gift bags from Oriental Trading Company and my husband purchased some yellow tissue paper and a silver marker(we already had the other needed markers)from Walmart.

Using permanent markers, we wrote a number from 0-74 on each gift bag. We then opened them up and arranged tem in random order. We put a paper strip and a piece of candy in each bag and a Squinkie in roughly half of them. We topped each bag off with a square of yellow tissue.

We arranged them in order, threaded them onto some string and hung it up in our foyer.

Each day, we will cut down one bag, eat the candy , and then open the paper strip. We will have fun doing interenet research on whatever the paper strip says. I figure we can research history, watch on-ride videos on, look at menus, find out if there are hidden Mickeys, etc. Hopefully, this will keep us in a Disney frame of mind!

 

[fnrsgrl]

Today, we started our Countdown! We are 71 days from our much-anticipated vacation, nd today's topic was .. . .
The Big Ball! (aka Spaceship Earth) Here are some interesting facts we learned today:
-It took 26 months and 40,800 labor hours to build.
-There are 11,324 triangles on its surface.
-There have been four narrators: Vic Perrin, Walter Kronkite, Jeremy Irons(Scar) and Judi Dench
-According to hiddenmickeys.org, there may be as many as 26 Hidden Mickeys on and around the ride. Anyone have any cool pictures?

 

[fnrsgrl]

We're all checked in, with shore excursions and even a Palo brunch booked. I'm starting to get so excited!!!!!!

 

[fnrsgrl]

We are only 40 days away now!!! It's getting so close, and I am getting so excited! Anyway, we have decided that fish extenders look too difficult for DH and I to make and that the fabric and such would cost almost as much as purchasing one anyway. So, I was wondering, does anyone know if there is someone here on the DIS that makes and sells them? I would rather support a DISer then someone random on Ebay or Etsy. Also, we will be visiting Atlantis Aquaventure. Is there anything we should know about this excursion? It seems like info about it is hard to come by. We will also be doing a Palo brunch, and I'm wondering how to dress. Is it the same as Palo dinner or more casual? I don't want to be the only one dressed up! Any help would be greatly appreciated!

 

[fnrsgrl]

On Saturday(Easter Eve), we visited our local zoo, and got to enjoy a little taste of Disney at home. That's right, folks, our zoo has. . . . .

DOLE WHIP!!!!!!!!!!!
They even had tasty raspberry/pineapple twist, which I tried and thoroughly enjoyed!

It just got us so excited for Disney to have that little reminder, and I thought I would share it with you all so that you could destroy your keyboards with drool! I hope everyone had a great Easter and has a wonderful rest of the week!

 

[fnrsgrl]

Leaving in just ten days, plus an hour or so!!! Oh, my goodness, the time has gone by so fast!

 

[debfen]

We are sooooooooo close!!!
Graduation on Friday, packing on Saturday, flying on Sunday!

 

[fnrsgrl]

Yay!!

 

[Disneyfreak616]

Hi there! Just stopping by to say hello and that it was so nice to meet you! I hope you're gonna do a trip report!