~ Sew Sweet 16 ~I’m packing your angry eyes just in case~Aug 2014~ BFF' bag 8/20!!!!

[DMGeurts]

Good Morning D!

I just wanted to pop in and tell you that even though I haven't been commenting I am reading along.

Congrats on the progress with BFF! It feels good for planners like us to at least get "some" adr's nailed down.

Speaking of Adr's....I had a family meeting yesterday with the extended family and friends that are travelling with us next summer.

Let's just say this trip will be interesting........

We did manage (with alot of discussion) to nail down a few Adr's to eat together. Thank goodness we are not trying to coordinate the entire two weeks!

Have a great rest of your weekend!

Hi Tasha! I am so happy to see you! I hope you are well and had a wonderful holiday!

I am actually thinking of calling BFF today, since all of the girls are out of school and do a "trip meeting" if we can, either today or tomorrow... I'd like to get some of this ironed out and decided... That way, I can get our days planned out better and get started on our mini-planners too.

I am glad you were able to get some planning done too... Yah - trying to coordinate a trip like that and stay together for the whole two weeks is a recipe for disaster, IMO. So, I am happy to hear that you aren't doing that.

I hope you had a wonderful weekend!

I think we were posting at the same time!

Congrats on the weight loss and inches D. I know you want faster results (so do I) but hey we didn't put it all on in one day.....

I am still super proud of all your hard work and dedication! We will reach our goals

Thanks Tasha! LOL - I guess I could care less about "faster" results, at this point, I would just like to have some results, period. LOL

Thanks for being proud of me, I am not very proud of myself at the moment. I spent most of my night last night researching my numbers to make triple sure I got them right. So, here's to a bit better progress.

On the plus side... And there is a plus side... I didn't gain any inches over the holidays - I maintained perfectly. So, I think that's a pretty big plus. LOL

D you are doing great.

I am fan of Calorie Confusion. I also eat the same amount pretty much every day. I am obsessive and have to journal to stay on track.

You are such an inspiration.

Thank you Chiara! I just hate journaling... It would have been so much more beneficial to me, had I been journaling all along - but I can't beat myself up over it... I just need to keep moving on. It sort of helps that so many others are joining me for New Years.

And you are an inspiration to me.

Are those sandals available in stores? I have a high arch and have had plantar fasciitis before, so those sandals look promising.

They are not... I order them online at:
orthaheelusa.com I just checked and it looks like they are out of stock and discontinuing the original Tide sandal, but they've come out with the TideII... I am not sure how the new ones are sized, but the old ones, I sized down (whole sizes only). I normally wear a 9 or 9.5 in most shoes and I wear an 8 in these. So, I would read some reviews.

At least you discovered the cause of the problem and that it is solvable. Congratulations on the successful weight loss to date and good luck on the future weight loss to come.

Thankfully I did... Now, hopefully I start to see some progress in the next few weeks.

Thank you Lois, we are still getting by one day at a time. The service in Hawaii was yesterday and we are waiting for Gwen to come "home". Looks like it may be another week before they can get a flight. I really appreciate your thoughts and prayers.

I am glad that the service in Hawaii was already... but wow - I cannot believe how long it takes for them to get a flight. I pray it's sooner than that for you.

Glad to hear Jennifer is doing well. I've been praying for her as well.

We went to see Saving Mr. Banks last week. Shannon and I liked it, but Charlie did not. He was expecting a more "upbeat" movie.

Bummer that Charlie didn't like it. As much as I want to see it in the theatre, I don't know if I will get the chance. I hope to though.

I also have plantar fasciitis. I found flip flops at Walmart called Okaboshi that have an arch support that worked wonders for me last year. They also have a website so you could order online. I also alternate wearing flats with wearing heels and I think that works for me as well. I do notice flare ups if I wear flats for too many days in a row.

Can't wait to see your family pictures!

I remember you talking about those last year. I did find them at our store, but by the time I did, they were sold out in most sizes and colors, so I wasn't able to try them on. I hope to look for them earlier this year.

Hi D~! I am finally caught up. I followed your FB posts about your dad. I'm grateful that he is settled and that he's settled in and doing well. Sorry about the tasks you have to attend to on his behalf - I know they are time consuming. I'm sure he is ever so grateful for all that you do.

Thank you Brenda! Yah - it kind of sucks... but I am glad that I am here and able to take care of it for him. I know he is worried about it - I talked to him last night and I had to tell him to "pretend he is on vacation" and let me take care of all of this "stuff". I hope he listens, because his job right now is to just get better.

Loved reading about your Christmas (yay for your new scissors!), post Christmas and seeing photos of the lovely finished stockings all hung in the appropriate homes. Great job!

Thanks! It was a lot of fun! I hope you had a wonderful Christmas too!

Even 5 years after losing 34 lbs I still keep a food and exercise journal. It keeps me accountable even if my weight increases from time to time at least I know what I need to do. I don't weigh myself that often since I'm too obsessed with the numbers. At least you have a plan for adjusting your calorie intake without it being too drastic. Makes perfect sense.

UGH!!! I dunno how you do it? I just hate the journaling part... I wish I could do this with out the journaling, but I need to be accountable for a while - so hopefully this change helps and I will be back on track.

And congrats to you for maintaining your loss for so long! That is JUST FANTASTIC!!!! That is one of my long term goals this time.

Congratulations on progress for your ADRs!! I completely understand how those can change.

Hahaha... I know. I am hoping to have a meeting with BFF and her dd either today or tomorrow, so we can work on the rest of them.

Since I didn't make it over to wish you a very Merry Christmas I will send you an early Happy New Year greeting!! I hope you are enjoying your weekend!

Thank you - right back atcha too! I hope you had a wonderful weekend.

Sooo…I have to ask, where is the picture of your Christmas skirt?

Sorry, I have to be the trouble maker

~Jennifer

Hahahaha... Well, I know this is so disappointing, but I don't have one... I thought I did, but I just went through all of my files and I can't find it. I will try to get one today or tomorrow, and get it posted for you. I know, I am a total slacker!

I'll have to check those out. Last time I went to the Dr. about it they gave me a few names of shoes I should check out because they told me I should have a shoe that has a very firm sole. So when you hold the shoe in your hands and try to fold it in half it doesn't fold. I also have a very high arch so I'm sure I wouldn't have to many problems adjusting to those.

Glad it's on the mend. Hope it doesn't flare up as bad after your next shift.

Well, I just took it off of my foot, and it bends a little bit at the ball of the foot - so it bends when you walk. But the rest of the sole is very solid and I couldn't bend it at all. I usually buy them at Orthaheel.com, but it looks like they have discontinued the Tide and come out with TideII to replace it. Not sure how the sizes are running for the new version, but the original version - I normally wear a 9 or 9.5 in a regular shoe, but these flip flops, I have to wear an 8... So they run really big.

That does make it hard when he's not calling you and that the reception is horrible on his phone so you can't reach him. Does he at least know how to check his voicemail so he knows you have called? (I only ask because no matter how easy I make it for my mother in law she still can't check her voicemail.) I agree he's probably having a good time and just doesn't think to call.

Yes, he does have issues listening to his voicemail too <--- As do I... I NEVER listen to my VMs... I hate doing it, because I have sooooo many in there, it takes me an hour to get to the message I need. So, I just call everyone back. Anyways.... I was able to get ahold of him yesterday and we chatted for quite some time. It was very nice.

It is so nice to have my living room put back to normal (well kind of since we have now added baby items to it. I've also been going through my closets and dresser the last 2 days so I can put the babies clothes in the dresser. It's something I've been wanting to do for a while just didn't have the motivation until now. Yes it is getting close!! I've been having Braxton hicks contractions off and on for the last 3 weeks and starting yesterday I've been getting the real one's off and on. He'll be here before we know it. So if I disappear for a week or so don't worry to much. I'm probably just off having a baby!!

YAY!!! I'll be watching for you to disappear! Just don't be gone before then, or I"ll be posting all over thinking you had him.

Before kids I was really big into scrap booking and enjoyed doing it. Then once I had Jeremy I found I still enjoyed it but it was just a pain to pull things out and then have to put it away. Especially once he was crawling and grabbing everything. I also did different crafts growing up but not anything I've wanted to do now.

I loved scrapbooking back in the day too... but I had the exact same issue. That, and I was too much of a perfectionist... It would take me HOURS just to do a page... Eventually - BFF and I coordinated a scrapbooking day, after which - she told me to give it up... She said she had never seen me so CRABBY ever, and I shouldn't do a hobby that made me so crabby. LOL So, I took her advice and gave it up. I am much happier now. I did keep all of my SB stuff though, and ALli uses it all the time. Which is good - at least it isn't going to waste.

Can't wait to see how the pictures turned out!! I'm sure they turned out great since Allison took them.

Glad you figured out what you were doing and hopefully you can get back on track to losing weight and inches.

Thanks! I hope so too... Hopefully it won't be such a long and slow road now. I don't mind it being slow... I just don't want to be stalled completely. Yah know?

**********************************************************

Great day of doing NOTHING all day. Literally. I sat in my recliner all day and did NOTHING. It was wonderful!

I am still scheduled "off" in my sewing room this week... but I do have a few projects I'd like to work on. HOpefully I can get motivated to do those.

Alli edited our family pictures yesterday... YAY! I didn't think she was going to... Most of you saw them posted on FB, but for those of you that didn't... Here they are...

Remember - any of them that Alli is in... She had to set the timer on her camera and run to be in it... LOL

I hope you enjoyed our first official family pictures since 2004:

I am very embarassed that it's been that long! Time just cruises by all too fast!

I hope each and every one of you has a fantastic day... Sending out prayers to all of you who need them.

D~

 

[DisMom1981]

Love the photos! The red vests and snow are icing on the cake! Happy New Year! I'm excited to be back on the boards, it's a good pick me up since I'm one of the weirdos that is so sad to see bare Christmas trees left by the curb haha -even more of a pick me up...... DCL is being canceled and we are headed back to WDW in August!!!!

Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

 

[lovedonaldduck]

The photos are awesome! Alli is quite talented. My girls better hope they don't have a knack for photography - I'd be asking them to do photo shoots all the time!

One thing I've made sure that we do is a professional family Christmas picture each year. We've done them at Disney 3 times and we've done them anywhere from September-January but I have at least one picture of the 3/4 of us each year from Peyton's first Christmas. I need to get this year's picture in a frame and have my DH put up my display of them all. We repainted the living room a couple months ago so we had to take all the decorations down, when we did the blank canvas inspired me and I finally decided what I wanted to do with the 2 built in shelves over our TV - the perfect place to display all those Christmas pictures my husband has humored me with and suffered through

 

[1000HappyWishes]

Why does it always seem I discover your trip reports super late? Ah well, at least I've found it now! Excited to read another one, I enjoy your TRs. Also, glad to find more Doctor Who fans! I'm obsessed with the show, I go to a Doctor Who convention with my dad every year. Also, your daughter's photography is absolutely amazing, I wish I could be that good.

Yay Disney!

 

[cogero]

love your photos and maybe look into a remote for Alli's Camera. They shouldn't be that much

This is the one I am looking into http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/753842-REG/Vello_RWII_N_FreeWave_Plus_Wireless_Remote.html

 

[nowellsl]

Great pictures! I love the vests. the scenery is spectacular! I do love living in FL, but I would like to visit the great north sometime! It's just beautiful!

 

[solana131]

Yep, still love those pictures....wait....where's the "butt pic"?? I thought we had this all figured out?! Anyway, they are all great.
And the whole losing pounds/inches thing is totally overrated. What is important is how good you feel. Exercising is keeping you healthy..it doesnt matter what size pants you wear. You are doing awesome D. Such an inspiration to me in many ways

 

[Pluto0809]

I love all of the family pictures, they turned out great!

I'm back and all caught up, I can't wait to hear what ADRs you pick for your trip.

I got that memory stick a few weeks ago but have still not taken the time to look at it. I think it is all about how to do the FP+ system but I've already used it on my trip in October so I'm not sure I need a tutorial at this point!

 

[DisneyTeacher01]

Slacker! Slacker????!!! That is one word that I would NOT use to describe you!


I wish I had half of your motivation some days

~Jennifer


Happy New Year! (almost)

 

[DisNorth]

Love the family photos!!

 

[Wood Nymph]

I love the family photos. My DH doesn't like to smile very much in his pictures, either. I'm not sure why.

 

[KatMark]

Great family photos, D. Alli did a really nice job with them.

In case I don't get back here:

​

 

[ladylyons]

Well, I just took it off of my foot, and it bends a little bit at the ball of the foot - so it bends when you walk. But the rest of the sole is very solid and I couldn't bend it at all. I usually buy them at Orthaheel.com, but it looks like they have discontinued the Tide and come out with TideII to replace it. Not sure how the sizes are running for the new version, but the original version - I normally wear a 9 or 9.5 in a regular shoe, but these flip flops, I have to wear an 8... So they run really big.

That's exactly what it should do. Next time your in a shoe store pick up almost any pair of shoes and do it and you'll be surprised just how much support they really don't give you. I'll check into those because I really hate wearing shoes and if I can keep another flare up from happening that would be great. Thanks for the sizing info. I'm a 6.5 so I'd probably have to get a 5.

Yes, he does have issues listening to his voicemail too <--- As do I... I NEVER listen to my VMs... I hate doing it, because I have sooooo many in there, it takes me an hour to get to the message I need. So, I just call everyone back. Anyways.... I was able to get ahold of him yesterday and we chatted for quite some time. It was very nice.

I don't blame people for not listening to their vm's but my mother in laws issue is she has a hard time hearing the speaker on the phone (even though it's all the way up) so she tries to put it on speaker phone before it can connect so she voids out the password. She just doesn't get that all she has to do is wait a minute before putting it on speaker phone. Glad you were able to chat with him. How's he liking it?

YAY!!! I'll be watching for you to disappear! Just don't be gone before then, or I"ll be posting all over thinking you had him.

Well as a warning right now don't expect to see me on here tomorrow!! So I'll wish you and your family a very Happy and Safe New Year's!!! And when I do go off to have him I'll make sure someone posts it on my PTR so you should be able to check just one place (or check on FB cuz I'm sure it'll be there).

I loved scrapbooking back in the day too... but I had the exact same issue. That, and I was too much of a perfectionist... It would take me HOURS just to do a page... Eventually - BFF and I coordinated a scrapbooking day, after which - she told me to give it up... She said she had never seen me so CRABBY ever, and I shouldn't do a hobby that made me so crabby. LOL So, I took her advice and gave it up. I am much happier now. I did keep all of my SB stuff though, and ALli uses it all the time. Which is good - at least it isn't going to waste.

Oh it'd take me forever to do pages too. I think that was also one of my issues with it. That could be why my kids don't have their own yet!! Sarah got one for her birthday from my father in law and step mother in law and I'm like oh goody we get to do a scrapbook!!! NOT!!!!! Not looking forward to when she just keeps pushing the issue and we do it. Glad your stuff isn't going to waste. Mine's still sitting in a closet.

Thanks! I hope so too... Hopefully it won't be such a long and slow road now. I don't mind it being slow... I just don't want to be stalled completely. Yah know?

It shouldn't be stalled now that you know what's going on. Yes I know exactly what you mean.

Fun family pictures!!! Glad you were able to get such great shots of all of you!!!

 

[DMGeurts]

Love the photos! The red vests and snow are icing on the cake! Happy New Year! I'm excited to be back on the boards, it's a good pick me up since I'm one of the weirdos that is so sad to see bare Christmas trees left by the curb haha -even more of a pick me up...... DCL is being canceled and we are headed back to WDW in August!!!!

Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

Hi Ann! Happy to have you back! Now we can start planning in earnest! I was kind of waiting until after the holidays to really get into the swing of planning! I sure miss it.

The photos are awesome! Alli is quite talented. My girls better hope they don't have a knack for photography - I'd be asking them to do photo shoots all the time!

Hahaha... THat's the problem... Now that Alli is getting lots of practice, we always find reasons for her to take us on photo shoots - it's so much FUN! And we all enjoy different parts of it...

One thing I've made sure that we do is a professional family Christmas picture each year. We've done them at Disney 3 times and we've done them anywhere from September-January but I have at least one picture of the 3/4 of us each year from Peyton's first Christmas. I need to get this year's picture in a frame and have my DH put up my display of them all. We repainted the living room a couple months ago so we had to take all the decorations down, when we did the blank canvas inspired me and I finally decided what I wanted to do with the 2 built in shelves over our TV - the perfect place to display all those Christmas pictures my husband has humored me with and suffered through

I wish I would have... We do have family pictures almost every year - but not professional ones. I wish I would have splurged - but I am such a tightwad... It's not the paying for pictures that's expensive (well, it sort of is...) but it's the buying of all the coordinating outfits that I feel we all must have, and all the other stuff that adds up.

What an excellent idea for all of your past photos! I love it!

Why does it always seem I discover your trip reports super late? Ah well, at least I've found it now! Excited to read another one, I enjoy your TRs. Also, glad to find more Doctor Who fans! I'm obsessed with the show, I go to a Doctor Who convention with my dad every year. Also, your daughter's photography is absolutely amazing, I wish I could be that good.

Yay Disney!

Nah - no worries... You're not late at all... The trip planning is just beginning.

Oh yah - Josh and the girls are HUGE DW fans... V is so sad that the latest Dr is done, it's all I've been hearing about it. Alli and I prefer David Tennant - he was the only Dr. that I ever really watched. So, I know a little about DW, but not much.

Thanks... I am so proud of her. She still has a lot to learn, but she is making a lot of progress. I do have to admit, she wasn't really in the mood to do a photo shoot last weekend, but she was kind enough to indulge me.

love your photos and maybe look into a remote for Alli's Camera. They shouldn't be that much

This is the one I am looking into http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/753842-REG/Vello_RWII_N_FreeWave_Plus_Wireless_Remote.html

Thanks for the link! I have been thinking about a remote for her, some day - I know they aren't very expensive... maybe that's something I can talk her into buying for herself?

Great pictures! I love the vests. the scenery is spectacular! I do love living in FL, but I would like to visit the great north sometime! It's just beautiful!

Thanks! The vests were a gift from Josh's dad for Christmas... It was a subtle hint that he wanted real family photos this year. I was super excited, because I've always wanted a red down vest.

Yep, still love those pictures....wait....where's the "butt pic"?? I thought we had this all figured out?! Anyway, they are all great.
And the whole losing pounds/inches thing is totally overrated. What is important is how good you feel. Exercising is keeping you healthy..it doesnt matter what size pants you wear. You are doing awesome D. Such an inspiration to me in many ways

Hahaha... I didn't upload the butt pic when I uploaded the rest - so I just decided not to post it. Maybe I'll post it another day. YOu know how much it pains me to put my butt on the internet. LOL

I know - I feel GREAT - but when I look in the mirror, I don't look as great as I feel - and that's important to me. I am doing all of this HARD work, and right now, there isn't much to show for it. Does that make sense? I have no goals in mind, except that I want to look like I am as healthy as I am, and right now, I don't see that.

But thank you - you know I love you and you inspire me in so many ways too. I miss seeing you here - I know you are super busy, but know that I love ya, and so happy that I still get to see you on FB all the time.

I love all of the family pictures, they turned out great!

I'm back and all caught up, I can't wait to hear what ADRs you pick for your trip.

I got that memory stick a few weeks ago but have still not taken the time to look at it. I think it is all about how to do the FP+ system but I've already used it on my trip in October so I'm not sure I need a tutorial at this point!

Thanks Ariana! I can't wait either... I will be sharing some info about them below.

I know - I keep forgetting to plug it in... I need to do that. I just hid it as soon as it came, so Josh wouldn't see, and now I have to find it.

Slacker! Slacker????!!! That is one word that I would NOT use to describe you!

I wish I had half of your motivation some days

~Jennifer


Happy New Year! (almost)

Hahaha... Well, I've had NO motivation for the last 2 weeks. This is my last week off from my sewing room, and I still have a couple of projects I need to get started on before the week is over. I hope to do that today.

I hope you and your family have a fantastic New Year too...

Love the family photos!!

Thanks Tracy! Your trip is getting so close! Are you getting excited?

I love the family photos. My DH doesn't like to smile very much in his pictures, either. I'm not sure why.

Hahaha... I actually yelled at DH for this very thing the other night. Guess what his reply was... "I was smiling." Yah - I don't think so. After all these years, I finally drag him out to do family pictures, and what do I get... Mr. Straightface.

Great family photos, D. Alli did a really nice job with them.

In case I don't get back here:

​

Thank you Kathy! I hope you have a wonderful New YEar too! And I hope you had a great Birthday!

That's exactly what it should do. Next time your in a shoe store pick up almost any pair of shoes and do it and you'll be surprised just how much support they really don't give you. I'll check into those because I really hate wearing shoes and if I can keep another flare up from happening that would be great. Thanks for the sizing info. I'm a 6.5 so I'd probably have to get a 5.

Yah - with that size, you should be able to get some great deals on their website right now with the original Tide flip-flop. I love the black - because it goes with everything.

I don't blame people for not listening to their vm's but my mother in laws issue is she has a hard time hearing the speaker on the phone (even though it's all the way up) so she tries to put it on speaker phone before it can connect so she voids out the password. She just doesn't get that all she has to do is wait a minute before putting it on speaker phone. Glad you were able to chat with him. How's he liking it?

Totally understand your frustration. My dad seems to be liking it a lot! Which I am so happy for... He hasn't sounded this happy in years, and I love it! He called me yesterday, he was able to go out and see his normal Dr. for his "after hospital check-up" and his Dr. said he looked fantastic! He did take bloodwork just to double check his numbers, he should have those results in a few days.

Well as a warning right now don't expect to see me on here tomorrow!! So I'll wish you and your family a very Happy and Safe New Year's!!! And when I do go off to have him I'll make sure someone posts it on my PTR so you should be able to check just one place (or check on FB cuz I'm sure it'll be there).

OK - I'll be stalking you! Are we FB friends? I am not sure if we are?

Oh it'd take me forever to do pages too. I think that was also one of my issues with it. That could be why my kids don't have their own yet!! Sarah got one for her birthday from my father in law and step mother in law and I'm like oh goody we get to do a scrapbook!!! NOT!!!!! Not looking forward to when she just keeps pushing the issue and we do it. Glad your stuff isn't going to waste. Mine's still sitting in a closet.

Hahaha... That made me think of all the years the girls were given play-doh for Christmas... They loved it so much, but I hated it with a passion... Not only did it make the HUGEST mess, but the smell makes me vomit. After the first year - I would make it disappear after 1 or 2 times playing with it, because I couldn't stand the smell or the mess.

Some day, Sarah will be old enough to make sure your stuff doesn't go to waste. Josh used to bring it up once in a while - all the $$ I'd spent on scrapbooking stuff, and it just sat there... But now that Alli has been using it - he hasn't said a word. See... It wasn't so wasteful afterall.

It shouldn't be stalled now that you know what's going on. Yes I know exactly what you mean.

Fun family pictures!!! Glad you were able to get such great shots of all of you!!!

Yah, I sure hope I see progress now. Or I will just have to keep tweeking it... I am learning a lot about nutrition and other things though - so I feel like there is progress.

Thank you! I am so happy we were able to get a few.

**********************************************************

So, yesterday, I started Stage 2 of my heavy lifting program... and WOW/GULP is all I have to day. I expect heavy lifting to be hard, but I didn't expect it to be that HARD. WHOA! I barely made it through my session... It was rough! It wasn't until I was making my smoothie - I realized I did 3 sets of each lift, instead of the 2 I was supposed to... Oops. I figured I would be super sore today - but so far, it's not too bad.

Then girls and I went to town. I had to stop at the grocery store to grab a few meal ingredients for my lunches n' such. I didn't get to do my BIG grocery shopping trip last week, due to my dad being in the hosp. and Christmas. So, I just had to get a few things yesterday.

I was able to set myself up for healthy eating, and staying on track through the new year. I am really looking forward to seeing some progress now.

Edited -----> Then the girls and I went to BFF's house... It was Olivia's 15th birthday yesterday. BFF was having cake, and a few of O's friends from school over. After last year, with the fiasco that happened at O's party, and now this year... We won't be going to any more of her birthday parties - we will just do our own with her. I am a bit nervous about how this trip will pan out... And I just don't know if my girls will be able to spend so much time with her. I am convinced that they continue to go to BFF's house so much, because they love BFF so much - and they keep hoping that O will change her ways. We all do.

**********************************************************

Despite that... I do have some trip planning news for you all...

BFF and I had a big trip planning meeting yesterday... And we have ALL of our ADRs planned! I am very excited. The girls and I chose 3 that we just couldn't live with out...

Crystal Palace - breakfast before the park opens
Tusker House - breakfast before the park opens
50's Prime Time Cafe - lunch or dinner... we really missed this meal on our last trip.

We left the rest up to BFF and Olivia. They chose some great ones - actually, some of our favorites. The only bad part is, since neither of them have EVER done a character meal before - they chose ALL character meals. Which isn't such a bad thing, but every one knows how character meals go... You pretty much don't get to eat.

So, here's their list...

1900 Park Fare - Dinner
Chef Mickey's - Dinner on arrival night
O'hana - breakfast
Akershus - any meal

Which puts us at 7 meals.

There was some talk about possibly doing BoG... The girls and I really liked that meal, and I like that it isn't a character meal (technically)... So, we might add that one OOP (or a cheaper one OOP, and use a dining credit for this)? We will see.

But that's the official list.

We plan to get 4 day passes with the WPF*M addition. I don't think we will do PH this time. I know I talked about it at first... but I just don't think it's necessary.

We will spend one full day in each park. And 1 full day in each of the water parks. Our arrival day will be DTD (if we have the time) and our arrival dinner.

So, now that we have our ADRs set, I can start working on which parks on which days and begin assembling our Mini-Planner.

**********************************************************

I hope that each of you has a fantastic New Year's Eve... Please be safe out there, if you plan on going anywhere. Prayers and continued good thoughts going out to all.

D~

 

[cogero]

I like all your choices except Chef Mickeys.

I really need to figure out how to get us to O'Hana.

I remember hearing about O's birthday last year. I am glad Ali stood up for her beliefs and defended the girl. That is something C would do.

My plan for your trip is you should have an hour or two per day for just you and the girls maybe not stay joined at the hip. That or Maybe without the negative influences there O will act differently.

Glad you have your ADRs planned out.

 

[MrsDrewsky]

I'm still catching up on the rest of your PTR. Your family photos look fantastic. I love the one of Josh giving you a big kiss on the cheek. Alli did such a great job.

Your dining plans look fun.

I hope you and your family have a great New Years Eve.

 

[lovedonaldduck]

Congrats on having your ADRs all figured out! That's a major step.

That is a lot of character meals! You guys really enjoy the characters so I'm sure it will be great for you. We stick to one character meal per trip - that's really all the adults in our travel party are up for We enjoyed all the meals you have listed, although we've never been to Crystal Palace We're not huge Winnie the Pooh fans at our house so it's never made the must do list. Maybe on our next long trip we'll finally knock that one off the list.

Sorry to hear about Olivia, hopefully it is just growing pains. Good for your girls for being more mature and grounded - proof you are doing things right. I don't want to spend too much time thinking about when my girls will be teenagers It may be important for Olivia to have Alli and V in her life (as much as they can stand to be) so she has a good example. Hopefully Disney will bring out the best in her and you guys will have a great time together!

The annual pictures can get pricey! I try to be reasonable though, this year I found the girls matching dresses on clearance (although I didn't have a overall theme in mind when I went shopping so we ended up with 3 sets of matching dresses! We'll use one set for Easter and they can wear the other whenever so it's not a total loss). I got my dress for $25 and can wear it to work anytime so it's not a bad deal (although I did the same thing for myself and ended up with 5 dresses at $25 each). DH didn't get new clothes for the picture - I just shopped in his closet (he probably has the most clothes of all of us). We did out photo shoot at Animal Kingdom Lodge which was convenient since we were staying at Kidani - I think it was $150. We had the same photographer that we'd had a year prior at Beach Club so that was nice. Now that I've listed it all out like that, those were some expensive pictures! Maybe I can do better next year. I always think of myself as cheap but perhaps that isn't very accurate.

 

[DisMom1981]

Oh my sister and I had a BFF like O growing up. Was a great friend to us but started hanging with bad influences. Her family moved away which saved the friendship bc we were strictly phone friends and vacation friends where there wasn't much other influence around. Sadly, her troubles followed her to her adult life but she seems to finally be recovering somewhat in her early 30s and my sister has maintained the friendship......we aren't not friends but just not in contact- I'm busy!

For me Chef Mickey's breakfast is a must do on our off day. We are in fab 5 mode constantly over here DS 5 and DD 3 and we had a nice breakfast there- by far our best meal for the trip. I think because it was an off day and we weren't rushing around???

I also am back and forth on CRT with DD- she loves her some princesses, but.... The price for a child who isn't going to sit and eat.....the compromise might be sending DS and DH to do something else during that time and just taking DD myself. Still not sure but will make the ADR so I have it while ironing all the plans out. Also thinking the meet and greets at Fairytale Hall might be enough to fill a three year old's princess dreams.

My kids are also Chip and Dale fans so I think we will do Garden Grille at Epcot.

And for a yummy/non character meal? Maybe via Napoli or Tonys. Both would be new experiences and I think the kids will eat at either.

Happy New Year!

Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

 

[KatMark]

We've eaten at a number of your choices. Unfortunately, we don't care for Chef Mickey's for dinner or Prime Time...but the others all sound great. I'm glad you got this all settled and can concentrate on more planning.

 

[Pluto0809]

Kudos to Alli for standing up for the person they were making fun of.

Your dining choices sound wonderful! It's kind of opposite of my February trip, we are only doing one character meal. You may want to look into pre-purchasing Memory Maker since you are doing so many character meals. It's new and similar to the old Photo Pass Plus in that you get most of the character meals and ride photos as part of the package.