~Snowbird Chat~

[Momof2Disneyboys]

Shelly- We bought a lot to build on!!!

Congrats! When will you break ground? That's so exciting! We built our last 2 houses before buying this one.

 

[Disney Mommy 3]

Kim- No matter how busy I am, I'll make time for my snowbirds. Ya'll are truly friends in my book. I'm going to be honest with ya'll and say that I'm not as 'into' this trip as I was last year. I'm sure it's because we have everything else going on.

Shelly- We bought a lot to build on!!!

I am sorry you aren't as pumped up this time. I don't feel like I am either. I think for me it's because when we are going. I just really think Jan would've been better...$$ and time wise (for me). I just love having our Chirstmas and then going...oh well!!! At least we are going, getting a deluxe and FD!!! Why should a girl NOT be ecstatic?!?!? I hope I am not sounding ungrateful or spoiled.... I just want the kids to love Christmas for the right reason...and not let other things be more important.

When will you start?

 

[Monny2AE]

Morning all...it's raining here and I'm having a hard time getting moving this morning. In about a half hour I'm going to have 5 kids so I won't have a choice but for now I'm enjoying being lazy.

Shawna, thanks for asking about dh's truck- he should have all the parts he needs by today and then he'll spend the weekend putting it back together. If we can get it running again we're going to get rid of it and get him something with better mileage and that hopefully won't break down again.

Soleil, I'm sorry you're not as 'into' this trip but I'm sure when you get there and you see your little princess' eyes twinkling taking in the magic, you will be! I'm scared that I'm getting TOO excited and I'll be disappointed if I have to push our trip back a year if Disney doesn't release a good enough code.

Hope everyone has a beautiful day!

 

[BellaSoleil]

Congrats! When will you break ground? That's so exciting! We built our last 2 houses before buying this one.

I'm not really sure! It's such a slow process. We've been pre-approved and our paperwork is with the underwriter. We are meeting with the draftsmen tommorow to (hopefully) finalize house plans. We went and ahead and got the lot because it's in an amazing neighborhood where lots of our friends live and there were only 2 lots left that we were interested in. I'll try and post pics of house plans and such soon if ya'll don't mind.

 

[snykymom]

I'm not really sure! It's such a slow process. We've been pre-approved and our paperwork is with the underwriter. We are meeting with the draftsmen tommorow to (hopefully) finalize house plans. We went and ahead and got the lot because it's in an amazing neighborhood where lots of our friends live and there were only 2 lots left that we were interested in. I'll try and post pics of house plans and such soon if ya'll don't mind.

Don't mind? Don't you know yet that we wouldn't have it any other way?

And it's no wonder you're not as excited about this next trip. With so much going on, you probably haven't even had time to focus on it yet!

 

[crzyred]

Good morning everyone! This week has been a busy one so far. I had company from out of town, the final members left bright and early this morning.
-Tuesday was my Grandma's 96th birthday.
-Yesterday I took 2 boys that I babysit for to the local Single-A baseball game. I was exhausted from that. The boys are 4 (5 in Oct.) and 3. It was still fun.
-I've got a ton of work related stuff I need to get done before the weekend, which is only about 24 hours away.

Aren't summers supposed to be relaxing?

Have a great day everyone!

 

[Momto2PrncChrmgs]

We've had an exhausting week as well. We started hiking as a family (I don't know if I shared that), and Sunday we did a 2.7 mile hike that my SIL clocked at 4.1 miles with her gps. I carried Keaton on my back for about 1/3 of it. LOTS of hills and rough terrain which was fun, I was just sore and exhausted. Then Tuesday we spent the day at Six Flags, and last night Drew had his first soccer practice and it was HOT! So I finally got a good nights sleep last night and feel rested, but I"m secretly praying for storms tonight so the kids won't want to play outside and we can veg!!

OT: Has anyone ever used the big bulky backpack carriers for kids?? I always swore I wouldn't because if something happened (like they choked or something) you wouldn't be able to get to them. But I would always have another adult, and I found a Kelty carrier that holds up to 50 lbs on craigslist that i'm thinking about getting. Any advice??

 

[Monny2AE]

I'm not really sure! It's such a slow process. We've been pre-approved and our paperwork is with the underwriter. We are meeting with the draftsmen tommorow to (hopefully) finalize house plans. We went and ahead and got the lot because it's in an amazing neighborhood where lots of our friends live and there were only 2 lots left that we were interested in. I'll try and post pics of house plans and such soon if ya'll don't mind.

Are you kidding...of course we all want to see where Princess Belle is going to call home- I know it will be some time before it's built but I'm dying to see how you decorate it! You have such great ideas and I'm sure you're anxious to see them come to life.

We've had an exhausting week as well. We started hiking as a family (I don't know if I shared that), and Sunday we did a 2.7 mile hike that my SIL clocked at 4.1 miles with her gps. I carried Keaton on my back for about 1/3 of it. LOTS of hills and rough terrain which was fun, I was just sore and exhausted. Then Tuesday we spent the day at Six Flags, and last night Drew had his first soccer practice and it was HOT! So I finally got a good nights sleep last night and feel rested, but I"m secretly praying for storms tonight so the kids won't want to play outside and we can veg!!

OT: Has anyone ever used the big bulky backpack carriers for kids?? I always swore I wouldn't because if something happened (like they choked or something) you wouldn't be able to get to them. But I would always have another adult, and I found a Kelty carrier that holds up to 50 lbs on craigslist that i'm thinking about getting. Any advice??

I've never used the Kelty ones but I always use my Mei Tai carrier and love it. DD is big enough now to walk but she tires easily so it's nice to have it if needed. A friend of mine makes them so I didn't buy a name brand but here's what they look like just so you get an idea- http://www.piggysack.com/ The Kelty one might not be bad for hiking though!

Good morning everyone! This week has been a busy one so far. I had company from out of town, the final members left bright and early this morning.
-Tuesday was my Grandma's 96th birthday.
-Yesterday I took 2 boys that I babysit for to the local Single-A baseball game. I was exhausted from that. The boys are 4 (5 in Oct.) and 3. It was still fun.
-I've got a ton of work related stuff I need to get done before the weekend, which is only about 24 hours away.

Aren't summers supposed to be relaxing?

Have a great day everyone!

Happy Bday to your Grandma!!!!

I'm still waiting for my summer to become relaxing...

 

[Disney Mommy 3]

Good morning everyone! This week has been a busy one so far. I had company from out of town, the final members left bright and early this morning.
-Tuesday was my Grandma's 96th birthday.
-Yesterday I took 2 boys that I babysit for to the local Single-A baseball game. I was exhausted from that. The boys are 4 (5 in Oct.) and 3. It was still fun.
-I've got a ton of work related stuff I need to get done before the weekend, which is only about 24 hours away.

Aren't summers supposed to be relaxing?

Have a great day everyone!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY GRANDMA!!!!!!


How awesome is that? Wow!!!! I know...this summer is just zooming by!! I really had plans to clean/organize every closet and cabinet this summer. I have done a couple, but not like I intended...things just keep getting in the way!!!! Soleil....send those pics on!!!!

 

[drakes]

Regarding excitement over this trip.. I too am not as excited. However our last trips I was learning everything and making so many lists of what I needed to find. Now I feel kind of "pro league" .
I feel very comfortable going and am excited to have this time with my DD. I always said my next trip would be at Halloween or Christmas to see the decorations, but I want to be sure I am comfortable on this trip and going in Jan is all I know.
My stress is with pricing and money, as well as keeping this a surprise from DD.
I had maps of the resort all printed out for when I made the ressie and she wanted to carry the bag they were in, it was as if she knew!
I also wish I would stop second guessing myself and have confidence a discount will be released for Jan that is just as good.

 

[sarbah77]

Hey ladies!

Well, we made it home again. Now that Northwest has apparently switched over to Delta... I'm still not impressed. Somehow, their first three flights from Boston to DTW managed to be delayed. One of them, a 9am flight, was eventually cancelled... after 3pm! What was that about? And how did the pilots find out? The same intercom announcements that the poor passengers heard. We were only about 2 hours later (for no real reason). Blah!!

But, on the plus side, our luggage was already on the belt thingy when we got there so that was nice. And it's great to be home with no yap dogs, my own cats, and peace and quiet of a two person household!

I emailed my surgeon this morning. I haven't heard back. How spoiled am I, that I expect so fast a turn around?

Oh well, I should be in bed since I AM working tomorrow!

 

[Momto2PrncChrmgs]

COMPLETELY NON-DISNEY RELATED VACATION QUESTION:
I know my snowbird peeps are a wealth of info, and since we are all such "planners", I am doing some research to prepare for a cruise we're going on with my parents July 2010. I've never cruised before and I have an excursion question. I'm asking here because I don't want flamed for not following rules/guidelines, etc..
ANYWAY...I'm looking at all the excursions for our trip, and a few of them say minimum age is 4. Keaton will be only a few days from turning 4 when we're on this cruise (July 4-11, his bday is the 14th). Do cruise lines/excursion people stick to this, as in check passports or is it a general guideline? Because if it's about size, he's in the 100th percentile for height and weight, so he's larger than most 5 yr olds already! And if it's about maturity level...well, we'll just have to see how that changes between now and then...
ON THE OTHER HAND...there are also some excursions that "infants 3 and under" are free. That's pretty enticing to have him stay 3.
Just looking for any advice if anyone has any. Or any general cruising with children advice would be great, too!! Thanks peeps!

 

[Disney Mommy 3]

Jenny....we cruised once when our littlest was 10 mths old. We LOVED it!! We did the Carnival cruise out of Galveston...it was the first cruise for all of us, we didn't do any of the extra stuff, so I am not sure about that...I bet you could find out all that on one of the Dis-cruise threads!!! It's so relaxing to be on that boat on the water and not have to do ANYTHING if you don't want to!!! Enjoy!!

 

[EPCOT is a verb]

COMPLETELY NON-DISNEY RELATED VACATION QUESTION:
I know my snowbird peeps are a wealth of info, and since we are all such "planners", I am doing some research to prepare for a cruise we're going on with my parents July 2010. I've never cruised before and I have an excursion question. I'm asking here because I don't want flamed for not following rules/guidelines, etc..
ANYWAY...I'm looking at all the excursions for our trip, and a few of them say minimum age is 4. Keaton will be only a few days from turning 4 when we're on this cruise (July 4-11, his bday is the 14th). Do cruise lines/excursion people stick to this, as in check passports or is it a general guideline? Because if it's about size, he's in the 100th percentile for height and weight, so he's larger than most 5 yr olds already! And if it's about maturity level...well, we'll just have to see how that changes between now and then...
ON THE OTHER HAND...there are also some excursions that "infants 3 and under" are free. That's pretty enticing to have him stay 3.
Just looking for any advice if anyone has any. Or any general cruising with children advice would be great, too!! Thanks peeps!

We have cruised often, but never with children. I recommend that you go to cruisecritic.com and read the discussion boards there. That site is as helpful about cruises as this site is about Disney.

 

[BellaSoleil]

This is our lot-

The diva pose was really just me trying to cover up our lot # so I could blog the picture.

 

[danceintherain]

Soo...I got on here yesterday and caught up, but somehow the long post I wrote out didn't get posted.

As for Disney non-excitement... I just wish I could officially plan a trip. Logan told me earlier that I could start thinking about planning something for our anniversary, even if it's not in January.

Soleil - Congrats on the lot! It looks so full of potential.

I just spend last weekend in Georgia for my nephew's first birthday. He started walking between now and when we saw him at Disney. It's so much fun to watch him tottering around. Not-so-much chasing him!
It was a last minute trip, because my Mom was having a really hard time with the idea that she wouldn't be there for her first grandbaby's first birthday.
I agreed to the idea because I hadn't been out there since last August. Also, I had never taken Logan there, which meant he hasn't gotten to spend that much time with my family out there.
We're hoping to get stationed in Georgia when he starts active duty, so I also wanted him to get a feel for the area.

 

[snykymom]

COMPLETELY NON-DISNEY RELATED VACATION QUESTION:
I know my snowbird peeps are a wealth of info, and since we are all such "planners", I am doing some research to prepare for a cruise we're going on with my parents July 2010. I've never cruised before and I have an excursion question. I'm asking here because I don't want flamed for not following rules/guidelines, etc..
ANYWAY...I'm looking at all the excursions for our trip, and a few of them say minimum age is 4. Keaton will be only a few days from turning 4 when we're on this cruise (July 4-11, his bday is the 14th). Do cruise lines/excursion people stick to this, as in check passports or is it a general guideline? Because if it's about size, he's in the 100th percentile for height and weight, so he's larger than most 5 yr olds already! And if it's about maturity level...well, we'll just have to see how that changes between now and then...
ON THE OTHER HAND...there are also some excursions that "infants 3 and under" are free. That's pretty enticing to have him stay 3.
Just looking for any advice if anyone has any. Or any general cruising with children advice would be great, too!! Thanks peeps!

I love cruising; I've done it many times. I may be odd, but I really enjoy all the on-board activities, so I like extra days at sea. Yeah, OK, I know I'm odd.

Excursions: The 4 and up age limit is not about size, and it's not about maturity level. It's about insurance. Insuring those under 4 for some excursions can be ridiculously expensive. My guess is that they'll have his age on record and will be cross-checking; it's all done by computer in the database. You can ask, but it's not worth lying about Keaton's age. (And the "free" part is nice, too.)

 

[Disney Mommy 3]

Soleil,...love your lot!! And that house looks like mine--kinda!! Ha!! I will post a pic of it later--if I don't have a good one I will do it tomorrow. It does actually look like one he just built in our other subdivision. I LOVE it!!!!!!!!

 

[sarbah77]

I love cruising; I've done it many times. I may be odd, but I really enjoy all the on-board activities, so I like extra days at sea. Yeah, OK, I know I'm odd.

Hey, cruising has something for everyone!

My parents just got back from an Alaskan cruise (that I forced them to go on, mind, as much as I can force my parents to do anything) and they were CONvinced they'd HATE the sea days. HATE them.

But I also forced them to get a balcony.

....they loved the sea days. They did like Alaska, but they're still talking about lounge chairs, sunshine, and beer. (They were there during that super warm spell)

On the other hand, we appreciated the sea days to do nothing, as we've learned that I can get overstimulated. ... but we really did like the port days better.

There's this targeted cruise next April we're considering, which would mostly be for the sea days!

+++

I emailed my surgeon YESTERDAY morning. I haven't heard back from him yet! How dare he be out of town/on vacation/unplugged/whatever and NOT instantly replying to me.

 

[Disney Mommy 3]

Sarah...give us his # and all of us will converge on him at once.....bet he calls you back then