Stroke of Genius or Just Plain Heat Stroke? August 2016 at the Poly!! Update 2/21 180 Days!

[ursalita]

My favorite kids meal was the salmon at Sunshine Seasons - that was the one that inspired me, actually! It was the perfect small lunch before heading to WS.

As far as saving money now, I don't know enough of your habits to know where to suggest. Food is always a good one - menu plan and only buy the ingredients for the plan, and use items in the pantry so you don't have to buy too many things. Watch price per unit - sometimes the biggest package isn't the cheapest per unit, depending on sales, etc. But only buy more if you will use it before it goes bad, of course. Now that you are working, your cooking schedule will probably change a lot. I love my crockpot because I can come home to dinner already ready. Eating out and convenience foods can add up quickly. I also stock up on some of the cheaper convenience foods so we don't get stuck when I don't feel like cooking, or didn't get around to menu planning.

And of course, if you have stuff you can sell and declutter at the same time, that could be another one. That hardly ever works for me, sadly, because we tend to buy stuff and use it until it isn't sellable anymore, lol. So, it goes to Goodwill and I get my deduction.

There's a Budget board here where you can get more ideas on saving/selling. I browse there every so often, but haven't posted at all.

Thanks for the ideas. I'm going to start planning my weekly meals especially since I'll be working and won't have as much time. I don't want to resort to take out. I love my slow cooker, too. I just got an instant pot for Christmas which is basically an electric pressure cooker so I can make meals faster.

Bringing a refillable water bottle is a big one for us - then you don't need to keep buying drinks. In August, that'll probably save a ton, and you can spend the savings on Mickey bars and Dole whips, lol.

We use water bottles at home all the time, I don't know why I never bring them on vacation. Will definitely do that this time.

Oh, yeah - my dh always pre-grinds coffee when we travel, so we have relatively freshly ground coffee but don't have to take as much stuff with us. We hardly ever go out for coffee.

Making my own coffee killed my urge to buy coffee out. Not only does it save money but it makes coffee shop coffee completely inedible.

How confused were you when you got it?

Not sure. Confusion is pretty much my natural state.

Probably soon, I think. Unless I'm getting my months wrong, I'd expect them at some point over the next week or so.

Yup! They're out!

They're adorable! But yeah, so small!

Thanks!

Congratulations!!!!!!!! How awesome to be off the same days as the boys.

Thanks! It's not the greatest job but you can't beat the hours.

Colleen, say it isn't so. Wine??????? Maybe you can just downgrade to a cheaper one rather than cut it out all together. Or milk get rid of the milk, no one needs that anyway ; )

Yeah, that's not happening.

You already hit my big one and using reward points. We very rarely pay for our airline tickets as we use credit card points and/or miles to pay for them. Do you have a Disney visa card? They usually offer a $200 gift card when you get one.

I also sell a ton of crap on amazon. We always end up with unopened old gifts and stuff and you can sell things for full price less the commission amazon takes, which isn't too much. I also sell a lot of old clothes and purses to ThredUp. They take a while to process stuff and get you payment but if your stuff is in good condition, you can get a decent chunk of change. Think my last closet clean-out got around $80 plus I got another $125 for a purse. They take boys things too.

I'll have to check out that site. I might have some things I can part with. Thanks for the idea!

Can't believe how small they are either. They grow up way too fast.

I know it. I can still pick up Sam but it won't be long before he's too big to lift.

If you haven't seen park hours are up now. Easywdw has them up

Got em! Thanks for the heads up.

Hi Colleen! I only just realised you had this PTR going!

So glad you made it, Lu!

I for one hope that you don't die!

There's no dying at Disney.

Urg! I don't get why the second floor rooms don't have a balcony?! We are staying in a Lagoon view and there are only like two Lagoon view rooms on the third floor that aren't DVC! What is up with that!?

I had to do that when we moved from TX to CO to get my massage therapy license. I totally understand the necessity of it, but it was still kinda weird getting fingerprinted!

I don't mind it so much, it's just that I don't seem to actually have fingerprints.

How are you at energy saving? Such as turning down your thermostat a few degrees at night, changing our your lightbulbs to energy efficiency ones, reducing the heat setting you your hot water heater a bit? Making sure lights are turned off when people aren't in the room? You'd be surprised at how doing these small things can lower your energy bill! Stepping off my Aveda environmentally friendly soapbox now

I'm right there with you. I'm freezing right now.

Yay! I love when Facebook flings Disney memories at me!

Me, too!! It's probably the only thing I still like about fb.

Tsk. Your travel agent needs to get on the ball! You're welcome... https://media.disneywebcontent.com/StaticFiles/ParkHours/WDWTravelAgent_August.pdf

Thanks!

Hi Colleen! Seemed to have missed a few updates! But congrats on the new job! That is great!

You are on the right track to saving money by getting the Southwest card...I do a lot of amateur travel hacking and I usually fly for free on different airlines. In the past few years my DH and I have flown to Hawaii, Florida, and California multiple times for close to nothing. I even flew to Bali, Indonesia round-trip in first class for just 80 bucks in taxes. Soo...the credit card points can really add up and save you lots of money, even if you don't use it for this particular trip. It allows me to splurge on the lodging, excursions, and meals when I'm in a destination. Do you have the Disney Visa card? It can save you 10% at Disney stores and you get points redeemable in gift cards that you can use in WDW!
Also, do you have a card that earns multiple points or cash back at gas stations, supermarkets, or office supply stores? You can go there and purchase your Disney Gift Cards. You won't get a discount on them but you'll be earning points and cash back and a great rate. For example I have a card that earns 6% cash back at supermarkets so I'll go there and get some Disney GC. Good luck with everything!

I have the Disney Visa which I use for the no interest Disney purchases but the rewards aren't as good as my other card.

I hadn't thought about buying GC. Thanks for the heads up!

Hello Colleen! "Aug." and "Poly" in your title caught my eye as we've gone twice in August and DH and I just returned from a trip & stayed a few nights at the Poly for the first time I get being concerned about the heat. I DETEST summer, hate sweating and generally avoid sun as much as I can, and when we decided to go down in Aug. 2014 (due to older DS starting Jr. high that Sept) I was dreading it. We definitely had to change our touring style and IMO summer trips are different trips, but we had a great time and did it again last Aug. In fact, DH and I were wearing GLOVES and HATS last weekend, and we both said we rather sweat than freeze!

Totally awesome booking the Poly It's been a dream of mine, too and I'm really glad we got the chance to stay there. FWIW, our first few nights we were at AKV, also our first time there. DH wasn't excited b/c he felt it would be too far out but we both ended up absolutely loving it and want to stay there next trip w/ the kids.

Thank you for coming by.

I'm so glad that you visited in August and enjoyed it. I actually don't mind the heat too much. I actually the winter and snow. I'm more worried about how the boys will do.

I'm ready to try a different touring style. Did you take more mid-day breaks?

Thanks for the feedback on AKL. I hope we get to stay there someday. I've heard great things and I really want to try all the restaurants there.

 

[pkondz]

Thanks for the suggestion. The edited post is up if you want to take a gander.

I did!
I too would wonder about not going to a park until day three.
That would be torture!

Not sure. Confusion is pretty much my natural state.

 

[kastoney]

Hope you made out in the storm better than us. Thinking it will probably be tomorrow before our little neighborhood sees a plow. Guess that means more time for drinking.

I don't know about your bunch, but I know mine would probably want to be in a park on Day 2. Since a 7 day ticket is usually only a few dollars more than 6, maybe you could get to one of the parks early to get a couple of rides in and then spend the remainder of the day at the water park. And I'm sure you know this already, but DTD will likely be a nightmare on a Saturday too. Maybe they should start crowd calendars for there too????

 

[SarahDisney]

I hope you guys made it through the snow okay! We also had pretty indecisive weather forecasts ... ended up with about two feet, which is more than I saw in any forecasts - but I also gave up on the forecasts by Friday morning. I reached a point where I didn't care how much snow we got, as long as I didn't have to hear the ever changing forecasts.

I think your plans sound good. I get why you're hesitant to do the water park before any park days, but honestly, you don't want to start off at a super crowded park and then be cranky about it the rest of the trip. If the parks are going to be crowded that day, I think you're better off with the water park. But that's just my take on things - only you know what works best for your family.

 

[irene_dsc]

Thanks for the ideas. I'm going to start planning my weekly meals especially since I'll be working and won't have as much time. I don't want to resort to take out. I love my slow cooker, too. I just got an instant pot for Christmas which is basically an electric pressure cooker so I can make meals faster.

I have to admit, I had totally fallen off the meal plan wagon. Posting about it re-inspired me, and on Saturday, I made a meal plan that will last us 3-4 weeks, depending on how quickly leftovers go, and how much we fill in with repeats (hamburgers only got on there once, for instance, but ds really likes hamburgers.)

The other thing I've seen with my friends who have gone from full time SAHM to working is that they had to really readjust their expectations on things like housework, and all the things they did during the school day. Like, I have a mom friend who used to do a ton of seasonal decorating, with 5 Christmas trees in different rooms of the house. Once she went back to work, she had to give a lot of that up. So, good luck with that part, and may you have a relatively smooth transition back to work.

Not sure what to tell you on the trip days. I can see it both ways. It does seem like a mid-trip break at the water park would be good, but starting with a super crowded and annoying day isn't a good idea, either.

 

[ariane37]

Thank you for coming by.

I'm so glad that you visited in August and enjoyed it. I actually don't mind the heat too much. I actually the winter and snow. I'm more worried about how the boys will do.

I'm ready to try a different touring style. Did you take more mid-day breaks?
.

We had never taken mid-day breaks before our Aug. trip; on that trip we started taking a mid-day break but then pretty much gave it up. Because everything I'd read said to take the mid-day break due to the heat, I planned TS lunches, a return to the resort, then a return to parks at night and CS dinners. We swam the first 2 days on our break but after that the boys (12 and 8.5 at the time) didn't want to swim so when we returned for breaks we twiddled our thumbs in the room. We tried toughing it out in the parks after our TS lunch one day by doing some indoor things during the worst part of the day and found we handled it fine, and didn't need the breaks.
On our 2nd Aug. trip last year it was actually quite a bit cooler (not cool, don't get me wrong it was still hot and humid lol) and much easier to stay in the parks all day. We still did TS lunches though and that helped. I think, if you aren't used to taking a mid-day break you need to plan on doing so for you first summer trip, but you may find you don't need it

 

[ursalita]

I did!
I too would wonder about not going to a park until day three.
That would be torture!

Yeah, I'm starting to see that. I'll be altering my plans. Again.

Hope you made out in the storm better than us. Thinking it will probably be tomorrow before our little neighborhood sees a plow. Guess that means more time for drinking.

I don't know about your bunch, but I know mine would probably want to be in a park on Day 2. Since a 7 day ticket is usually only a few dollars more than 6, maybe you could get to one of the parks early to get a couple of rides in and then spend the remainder of the day at the water park. And I'm sure you know this already, but DTD will likely be a nightmare on a Saturday too. Maybe they should start crowd calendars for there too????

We didn't end up with much snow - maybe 6 inches - and it cleared up well the next day. Did I hear that you guys got a couple snow days out of it?

You know, I think you've got a great point there.



I checked into the price of another day and it was less than $10 per person extra so it's a no brainer.

I hope you guys made it through the snow okay! We also had pretty indecisive weather forecasts ... ended up with about two feet, which is more than I saw in any forecasts - but I also gave up on the forecasts by Friday morning. I reached a point where I didn't care how much snow we got, as long as I didn't have to hear the ever changing forecasts.

I think your plans sound good. I get why you're hesitant to do the water park before any park days, but honestly, you don't want to start off at a super crowded park and then be cranky about it the rest of the trip. If the parks are going to be crowded that day, I think you're better off with the water park. But that's just my take on things - only you know what works best for your family.

That was crazy that NYC ended up with 2 feet! I remember it had only looked like 12 inches up until the last minute.

I have to admit, I had totally fallen off the meal plan wagon. Posting about it re-inspired me, and on Saturday, I made a meal plan that will last us 3-4 weeks, depending on how quickly leftovers go, and how much we fill in with repeats (hamburgers only got on there once, for instance, but ds really likes hamburgers.)

3-4 weeks?! That's amazing. I don't think I could ever plan that far in advance. I can usually put together a rough plan for the week and fine tune it when I go shopping and see what's on sale at the market. But one week is probably my max.

The other thing I've seen with my friends who have gone from full time SAHM to working is that they had to really readjust their expectations on things like housework, and all the things they did during the school day. Like, I have a mom friend who used to do a ton of seasonal decorating, with 5 Christmas trees in different rooms of the house. Once she went back to work, she had to give a lot of that up. So, good luck with that part, and may you have a relatively smooth transition back to work.

Yeah, it's definitely an adjustment. Even though my hours are roughly the same as the boys, I'm starting to realize how much I was able to get done while they were in school. It's been about a month now and it's working out ok.

Not sure what to tell you on the trip days. I can see it both ways. It does seem like a mid-trip break at the water park would be good, but starting with a super crowded and annoying day isn't a good idea, either.

I think a break mid trip would be great. Maybe spend the morning at the park and the rest of the day at the resort. Maybe Disney Springs for dinner.

We had never taken mid-day breaks before our Aug. trip; on that trip we started taking a mid-day break but then pretty much gave it up. Because everything I'd read said to take the mid-day break due to the heat, I planned TS lunches, a return to the resort, then a return to parks at night and CS dinners. We swam the first 2 days on our break but after that the boys (12 and 8.5 at the time) didn't want to swim so when we returned for breaks we twiddled our thumbs in the room. We tried toughing it out in the parks after our TS lunch one day by doing some indoor things during the worst part of the day and found we handled it fine, and didn't need the breaks.
On our 2nd Aug. trip last year it was actually quite a bit cooler (not cool, don't get me wrong it was still hot and humid lol) and much easier to stay in the parks all day. We still did TS lunches though and that helped. I think, if you aren't used to taking a mid-day break you need to plan on doing so for you first summer trip, but you may find you don't need it

Good points. I think I'll try to make the plans loose enough that they can be tweaked depending on how the boys are feeling. For that reason I think TS dinners or breakfasts will work so we won't be tied to having to be somewhere mid-day and could either stay at the parks or return to the hotel.

 

[ursalita]

Let's Talk About FOOD!!

We had our first Snow Day of the year today. Since I'm working for the school department this is the first time that I got the day off, too. Still not a fan of snow. Or days off due to snow.

It is pretty, though. The sky in my backyard tonight:



This picture does not remotely come close to capturing the colors that were on display. Nature is amazing.

I was able to spend some time finalizing my park days, planning my ADRs, and updating my spreadsheet.



I took the advice of @kastoney and added a day to our park tickets so now we have 7-day base tickets. All of the comments made me realize that I wouldn't want to be at Disney for 2 days and not see a park. The cost of adding the day was less than $10 per person so it was totally worth it.

According to MDE, We have 196 days until our trip so 16 days until I can make ADRs, February 21st if I'm doing my math right. I'll take you through my daily plans and my reasoning because I have to tell someone and my family is sick of hearing about it.

Friday, August 19

Park: Arrival Day, no park. Pool, explore resort(s), watch Wishes on Poly beach.

ADR: Dinner at Ohana! We've never tried dinner here because I've read so many negative reviews. But I've also read a lot of good ones (looking at you, @Elevationist ) so we're finally going to try it. Besides, the boys love meat on a stick!

Saturday, August 20th

Park: Epcot. Touringplans shows Epcot with the lowest crowds and we love it so it is a good choice for a first park.

ADR: Tokyo Dining. It was tough to pick one restaurant for dinner in Epcot. I considered Via Napoli but @pkondz convinced me that the pizza is not that great. I really want to try Chefs de France but Jamie doesn't like French food. Finally I settled on Tokyo Dining since we all love Japanese cuisine. I had to do some research because I haven't heard much about it. I found mainly positive reviews and I also learned that there is a good view of Illuminations from the dining room so I will try to time our reservation accordingly.

Sunday, August 21st

Park: Magic Kingdom. Because...



ADR: Lunch at Liberty Tree Tavern. I want to make ADRs primarily for dinner because I want to have more flexibility in the afternoons so we can change plans depending on the heat. But I've been wanting to try lunch here for awhile. It's time to try this beautiful thing:



I thought about dinner at BOG but I don't want to deal with the stress of worrying that I won't get an ADR. Since we had lunch there last April it's not my first priority so I'll settle for Ooey Gooey Toffee Cake. Maybe I'll try for an early lunch to allow us time for a mid-day break if needed.

Monday. August 22nd

Park: Epcot/Disney Springs. Last April we spent a full day at Epcot and then a half-day hitting everything we missed the first day. It worked out well so we're trying it again. We'll spend the first half of the day at Epcot, go back to the hotel for a break, then head over to Disney Springs for the evening. Hopefully it won't be too crowded on a Monday.

ADR: Raglan Road. While I'd love to try Boathouse or Morimoto's, (eating at Morimoto's in Hawaii would be a dream come true, seriously) I've been reading and drooling over reviews of Raglan Road for so long we just have to try it. They've got a great fish/seafood selection so my boys will find something they like. Jamie will probably go for the Bangers and I love the look of the salads. But I'm pretty sure this is going to be my choice: Tart Art, Asparagus & goat’s cheese tart with garden peas, leeks & lemon oil dressed arugula. omigod

Tuesday, August 23rd

Park: Animal Kingdom. I hope that at this stage of the vacation Sammy will be having enough fun to agree to go to "the zoo." He had a pretty epic fit at AK last time but I think my mistake was making AK the first park we visited (we'd visited Epcot the night before but that was just to see Illuminations). I plan to get to the park early and see how it goes. If we only last a couple hours and have to head out we could check out a water park (we have a bonus ticket) or spend the rest of the day at the resort.

ADR: Tusker House pre-opening breakfast. I'm not a big fan of buffets but I heard that their breakfast was good and I'm looking forward to meeting the characters in their safari gear. I booked CP pre-opening breakfast last trip and I was disappointed. I'm hoping that we'll have better luck here.

Wednesday, August 24th

Park: Water Park/Magic Kingdom. We've never spent a lot of time in the parks at night so I'd like to take advantage of EMH which has MK open until midnight. I'm really looking forward to this new experience now that the boys are older. The plan is to take it easy in the morning, go to a water park if we haven't already. In the later afternoon we can head over to MK and start our night.

ADR: Kona Cafe and California Grill. I'm trying to limit myself to one ADR per day but I'm making an exception on this day. Since we're not in a rush to get somewhere in the morning I think it will be a good chance for breakfast at Kona Cafe. This is the only duplicate ADR, we've already had breakfast here. But I'm looking forward to trying it again if only for the Samoan:



Since we're going to be out late I want to take a break for dinner. California Grill has always been at the top of my wish list and now that the boys are a bit older they might appreciate it. This will be our only signature restaurant. Since we will have a big breakfast I will shoot for a late dinner and plan to watch Wishes from the restaurant.

Thursday, August 25th

Park: Hollywood Studios. I considered visiting HS over 2 days because the boys love Star Wars so much. But I think with the uncertainty of the construction it's probably a better idea to plan for one day and try to hit all the boys' favorites. Since we'll have a late night the day before we won't try to make rope drop. I also don't need to see Fantasmic! if we don't have the time.

ADR: Sci Fi. This is another restaurant that's been on my list for awhile but I went with 50's Prime Time or Mama Melrose's Fantasmic! package. I think the boys will love the atmosphere and the food. Personally, I'm looking forward to the Fried Pickles.



I don't know what's wrong with me.

Friday, August 26th

Park: Magic Kingdom. Based on proximity, we'll spend the morning at MK before we have to head home.

ADR: Plaza Restaurant. I plan to schedule 9 ADRs intsead of 8 but since (I heard) the Plaza is close to a QS in terms of price, I think it justifies the extra ADR. It will make a good last meal on Disney property.

So that's my ADR wish list. I don't think I'll have any trouble getting what I want since I'm not shooting for any hot-ticket items.

Next: Must-do's
​

 

[ariane37]

I'm glad you're trying Tokyo Dining. DH and I ate there last month on a whim and absolutely loved it! Didn't think we would enjoy it as much as we did and now can't wait to go back with the boys. And the views of Illuminations from the deck are beautiful

 

[cinderkelly]

I think your ADR list looks fantastic. Tokyo Dining does look intriguing to me, I may need to investigate further into that one. With so many choices at Epcot its darn near impossible for me to decide on where to go!

That Ooey gooey toffee cake ...... And I fully support your love of fried pickles. Yum!

 

[pkondz]

Glad you got it all sorted out!

Let's Talk About FOOD!!

Okay!

Since I'm working for the school department this is the first time that I got the day off, too.

All her life, my oldest DD waited for a snow day... never happened. Never.

Still not a fan of snow. Or days off due to snow.

Days off for snow means extra work shovelling it.

It is pretty, though. The sky in my backyard tonight:

Nice shot!

All of the comments made me realize that I wouldn't want to be at Disney for 2 days and not see a park

The cost of adding the day was less than $10 per person so it was totally worth it.

Practically giving it away.

I'll take you through my daily plans and my reasoning because I have to tell someone and my family is sick of hearing about it.

That's what we're here for.

ADR: Dinner at Ohana! We've never tried dinner here because I've read so many negative reviews. But I've also read a lot of good ones (looking at you, @Elevationist ) so we're finally going to try it.

Yep. I keep hearing completely polarized views on this.
I'd try it.

I considered Via Napoli but @pkondz convinced me that the pizza is not that great.

Yeah. Definitely "meh" with the pizza there.
I'd rather try something else and just have a good pizza at home.

Finally I settled on Tokyo Dining since we all love Japanese cuisine. I had to do some research because I haven't heard much about it. I found mainly positive reviews and I also learned that there is a good view of Illuminations from the dining room so I will try to time our reservation accordingly.

Interesting. Looking forward to hearing what you think of it.

ADR: Lunch at Liberty Tree Tavern.

We did dinner there, not lunch. But it was good!

ADR: Raglan Road.

I have never... ever heard a bad review of this place.

But I'm looking forward to trying it again if only for the Samoan:

Holy crap! That looks amazing!!

Personally, I'm looking forward to the Fried Pickles.

mmmmm.... fried pickles.

I don't know what's wrong with me.

Nothing. Fried pickles... mmmmmm.

 

[SarahDisney]

ADRs look good!

I think fried pickles sounds like one of those things that sounds so gross that it has to be amazing. Seriously.

 

[Jake & Crew]

We had the same stroke of genius several years back ( when our kids were close in age to yours) and we loved late August! Also being from RI I would schedule it so we came home the day or two before school started which would be one of those days the last week before Labor Day. Nothing got the kids more motivated to do summer projects in July than knowing they were going to Disney in August!

Unfortunately we have had to move our August trip back to the beginning of August. My oldest started high school two years ago and we went mid-August so she could participate in tennis try outs for school, which was not too bad. This year we are going early August as we were coordinating 5 family schedules and we were not sure which high school my youngest would be going to when we booked. Turns out she is going in Massachusetts so we could have gone mid-August (girls high school tennis is in the spring in Mass) but there is no way I can get 19 people to change their schedules now. Bottom line I am jealous of your dates!

Had looked at April but with every New England state on vacation it was too expensive and with a teacher and high school student in the family we had no play on dates. Our flight down in August is direct on SW for just less than $100 pp and we will be booking our return when the next schedule releases on 2/18 and we expect the same type of rate.

Your crowds will be lighter and the heat while hot will be better than ours. We always took a break at the height of the day whether it was a table service or pool time. Every day also had a cooling rain and generally we moved shower times from morning to late afternoon. As I tell everyone yes, it is hot but unlike New England everything I has central air not just fans or room conditioners so you can stay cool!

We also had water bottles delivered to our room and froze them. Start out the day with ice and mid day you have cold water which you can refill at snack bars for free.

Bonus for August....no snow to worry about when you fly!

Promise you will be happy in August!

 

[Elevationist]

Let's Talk About FOOD!!

Yes, let's!

I'll take you through my daily plans and my reasoning because I have to tell someone and my family is sick of hearing about it.

That's EXACTLY what the Dis is for!

ADR: Dinner at Ohana! We've never tried dinner here because I've read so many negative reviews. But I've also read a lot of good ones (looking at you, @Elevationist ) so we're finally going to try it. Besides, the boys love meat on a stick!

MEAT ON A STICK IS A TRUE 'MURICAN DELICACY! YEAH!

DR: Lunch at Liberty Tree Tavern. I want to make ADRs primarily for dinner because I want to have more flexibility in the afternoons so we can change plans depending on the heat. But I've been wanting to try lunch here for awhile. It's time to try this beautiful thing:

I'm making a lunch ADR for October for this SAME REASON. Yummmmm!

ADR: Raglan Road. While I'd love to try Boathouse or Morimoto's, (eating at Morimoto's in Hawaii would be a dream come true, seriously) I've been reading and drooling over reviews of Raglan Road for so long we just have to try it. They've got a great fish/seafood selection so my boys will find something they like. Jamie will probably go for the Bangers and I love the look of the salads. But I'm pretty sure this is going to be my choice: Tart Art, Asparagus & goat’s cheese tart with garden peas, leeks & lemon oil dressed arugula. omigod

Oh man. Dude, seriously. SO GOOD. I had dinner there in Sept 2014, and it was AWESOME.

ADR: Tusker House pre-opening breakfast. I'm not a big fan of buffets but I heard that their breakfast was good and I'm looking forward to meeting the characters in their safari gear. I booked CP pre-opening breakfast last trip and I was disappointed. I'm hoping that we'll have better luck here.

I did breakfast here on the same trip, and it was really good, too! I was impressed! (But then again I love Crystal Palace, so you might not want to pay any attention to me.)

But I'm looking forward to trying it again if only for the Samoan:

THIS. A THOUSAND TIMES, THIS. Man. Oh man. This was so so so good. For realsies.

 

[kastoney]

We didn't end up with much snow - maybe 6 inches - and it cleared up well the next day. Did I hear that you guys got a couple snow days out of it?

Yeah, things were pretty paralyzed here for a while. The federal government (which I work for) was closed for two days and Casey was out of school all week. Still have snow in our front yard from the storm and more coming tomorrow.

I took the advice of @kastoney and added a day to our park tickets so now we have 7-day base tickets. All of the comments made me realize that I wouldn't want to be at Disney for 2 days and not see a park. The cost of adding the day was less than $10 per person so it was totally worth it.

Glad it all worked out for you!

According to MDE, We have 196 days until our trip so 16 days until I can make ADRs, February 21st if I'm doing my math right.

Woohoo a week to go. And your ADR day is Casey's birthday! Hope it brings you good ADR luck.

Saturday, August 20th

Speaking of birthdays, this is fine. Just thought I'd mention it so you can celebrate in Disney on my behalf ; )

ADR: Tokyo Dining. It was tough to pick one restaurant for dinner in Epcot. I considered Via Napoli but @pkondz convinced me that the pizza is not that great. I really want to try Chefs de France but Jamie doesn't like French food. Finally I settled on Tokyo Dining since we all love Japanese cuisine. I had to do some research because I haven't heard much about it. I found mainly positive reviews and I also learned that there is a good view of Illuminations from the dining room so I will try to time our reservation accordingly.

I haven't gotten to it in my dining review yet, but we did Tokyo Dining on our last trip and really enjoyed it.

ADR: Lunch at Liberty Tree Tavern. I want to make ADRs primarily for dinner because I want to have more flexibility in the afternoons so we can change plans depending on the heat. But I've been wanting to try lunch here for awhile. It's time to try this beautiful thing:

Is it possible to hear angels singing when I see this thing???????

ADR: Tusker House pre-opening breakfast. I'm not a big fan of buffets but I heard that their breakfast was good and I'm looking forward to meeting the characters in their safari gear. I booked CP pre-opening breakfast last trip and I was disappointed. I'm hoping that we'll have better luck here.

You know by now I'm not a big fan of buffets either but Tusker is the one exception. Hope you all love it as much as us.

ADR: Kona Cafe and California Grill. I'm trying to limit myself to one ADR per day but I'm making an exception on this day. Since we're not in a rush to get somewhere in the morning I think it will be a good chance for breakfast at Kona Cafe. This is the only duplicate ADR, we've already had breakfast here.

Great choice on both accounts!

ADR: Sci Fi. This is another restaurant that's been on my list for awhile but I went with 50's Prime Time or Mama Melrose's Fantasmic! package. I think the boys will love the atmosphere and the food. Personally, I'm looking forward to the Fried Pickles.

The boys will love it. And hello, fried pickles. Nuff said.

ADR: Plaza Restaurant. I plan to schedule 9 ADRs intsead of 8 but since (I heard) the Plaza is close to a QS in terms of price, I think it justifies the extra ADR. It will make a good last meal on Disney property.

Great choice. And while it may be an ADR, it really is just quick service prices and table service quality. And agree great last Disney meal.

 

[irene_dsc]

Oops - I never commented on ADRs!

You did pick 2 we did on our trip. Our only 2, actually! LTT lunch and Tusker House breakfast, though we did late breakfast more as brunch. LTT was yummy, but I hadn't heard about the Ooey Gooey, so we did appetizers instead. Oops. But anyhow, I approve of your choices, lol.

I'm still going through my huge menu. The tricky part is making sure I update my grocery list as we go through it!

 

[ursalita]

I'm glad you're trying Tokyo Dining. DH and I ate there last month on a whim and absolutely loved it! Didn't think we would enjoy it as much as we did and now can't wait to go back with the boys. And the views of Illuminations from the deck are beautiful

Oh, I'm so glad to hear you enjoyed it. I think it's a great fit for us. I'm looking forward to seeing Illuminations there.

I think your ADR list looks fantastic. Tokyo Dining does look intriguing to me, I may need to investigate further into that one. With so many choices at Epcot its darn near impossible for me to decide on where to go!

That Ooey gooey toffee cake ...... And I fully support your love of fried pickles. Yum!

It was so impossible! Finally I kinda went the safe route. I've been drooling over that toffee cake for years.

All her life, my oldest DD waited for a snow day... never happened. Never.

Really? Don't you live in Canada? Are you spared heavy snow in your area or are you just better at handling it than we are.

Days off for snow means extra work shovelling it.

Exactly! And Jamie always ends up going to work so it's always me to do the shoveling. I just tell myself it's a good workout.

Nice shot!

Thanks. I ran in to get my camera but the battery was dead so I ended up getting this one with my cell phone.

Yep. I keep hearing completely polarized views on this.
I'd try it.

Definitely going to try it if only for the convenient location.

Interesting. Looking forward to hearing what you think of it.

I will definitely share when the time comes.

We did dinner there, not lunch. But it was good!

The family style Thanksgiving dinner on the dinner menu didn't appeal to me but lots looks good on the lunch menu. I am glad you guys enjoyed your dinner, though.

ADRs look good!

I think fried pickles sounds like one of those things that sounds so gross that it has to be amazing. Seriously.

Thanks, Sarah. I love fried pickles but sometime they tend to be too salty. Can't wait to try Disney's version.

I'm making a lunch ADR for October for this SAME REASON. Yummmmm!

Great minds...

Oh man. Dude, seriously. SO GOOD. I had dinner there in Sept 2014, and it was AWESOME.

I can't wait!

I did breakfast here on the same trip, and it was really good, too! I was impressed! (But then again I love Crystal Palace, so you might not want to pay any attention to me.)

I'm optimistic. I've heard it's similar to Boma breakfast buffet (is that true?). I know you just had the Boma breakfast and you enjoyed it.

THIS. A THOUSAND TIMES, THIS. Man. Oh man. This was so so so good. For realsies.

Your DRs may have influenced this choice.

Yeah, things were pretty paralyzed here for a while. The federal government (which I work for) was closed for two days and Casey was out of school all week. Still have snow in our front yard from the storm and more coming tomorrow.

A week? Wow. I don't know how I would have handled that.

Woohoo a week to go. And your ADR day is Casey's birthday! Hope it brings you good ADR luck.

Happy birthday, Casey!

Speaking of birthdays, this is fine. Just thought I'd mention it so you can celebrate in Disney on my behalf ; )

I'll drink some wine in your honor.

I haven't gotten to it in my dining review yet, but we did Tokyo Dining on our last trip and really enjoyed it.

Awesome! Can't wait to read about it.

You know by now I'm not a big fan of buffets either but Tusker is the one exception. Hope you all love it as much as us.

Yay! Kari approved buffet.

The boys will love it. And hello, fried pickles. Nuff said.

Yes, I think they will love it. It's right up their alley.

Oops - I never commented on ADRs!

You did pick 2 we did on our trip. Our only 2, actually! LTT lunch and Tusker House breakfast, though we did late breakfast more as brunch. LTT was yummy, but I hadn't heard about the Ooey Gooey, so we did appetizers instead. Oops. But anyhow, I approve of your choices, lol.

I'm still going through my huge menu. The tricky part is making sure I update my grocery list as we go through it!

Thanks! I'm so impressed with your meal planning. It sounds like a serious project. Do you have spreadsheets?

 

[ursalita]

We had the same stroke of genius several years back ( when our kids were close in age to yours) and we loved late August! Also being from RI I would schedule it so we came home the day or two before school started which would be one of those days the last week before Labor Day. Nothing got the kids more motivated to do summer projects in July than knowing they were going to Disney in August!

A fellow Rhode Islander! Thank you for sharing your experience with Disney in August. I'm starting to feel better about the dates I chose.

Bottom line I am jealous of your dates!

Oh, no. I'm sorry you couldn't work it out but I hope you have a great time!

Had looked at April but with every New England state on vacation it was too expensive and with a teacher and high school student in the family we had no play on dates. Our flight down in August is direct on SW for just less than $100 pp and we will be booking our return when the next schedule releases on 2/18 and we expect the same type of rate.

We went last April vacation but I'd planned far ahead and booked them in November the morning SW released flights. We still had to adjust our dates and I think we went the Tuesday of break through the following Monday so the boys missed a couple school days. My older son is in 4th now so it's a little more serious and I don't want him to miss any school if we can help it. How did you do with the return flight. I checked the flights yesterday and the prices looked good but I had far fewer choices for direct flights out of TF Green. There's a 6:45 and 1:25. I wonder if they'll add more flights.

Your crowds will be lighter and the heat while hot will be better than ours. We always took a break at the height of the day whether it was a table service or pool time. Every day also had a cooling rain and generally we moved shower times from morning to late afternoon. As I tell everyone yes, it is hot but unlike New England everything I has central air not just fans or room conditioners so you can stay cool!

The idea of August in Florida used to scare me but now I far prefer heat to cold. And we've been enough times that I'm confident we can plan around the heat and the showers and spend time in the AC.

We also had water bottles delivered to our room and froze them. Start out the day with ice and mid day you have cold water which you can refill at snack bars for free.

This is a great idea. I've always considered it in the past but never did it. Will definitely plan it for this trip.

Bonus for August....no snow to worry about when you fly!

This is true. But I guess you have to worry about hurricanes.

Promise you will be happy in August!

Thank you so much!

 

[irene_dsc]

The family style Thanksgiving dinner on the dinner menu didn't appeal to me but lots looks good on the lunch menu.

That's what dh and I had! It was yummy, and really seemed to be the obvious choice to go with the atmosphere. Of course, I'm not sure if I'd feel the same in the full heat and humidity of August!

Thanks! I'm so impressed with your meal planning. It sounds like a serious project. Do you have spreadsheets?

Lol - it's actually a list scribbled on the back of an envelope! Seriously, I keep envelopes just for that purpose, since they are the perfect size and shape, and then I put it up on the bulletin board over my kitchen desk area.

This week has been weird - I used one recipe on Valentine's Day, and then on Monday, dd's tiny Cadette troop finished up their New Cuisines badge by making a 4 course French meal for the families. I ended up with a bunch of leftovers from both meals, and we had a work event last night, so I haven't had to cook since Monday!

 

[Jake & Crew]

Booked our return flights this week when SW opened their schedule. In summary we leave PVD at 6:45am on a non-stop and return on a non-stop that departs at 8pm. I wanted the 3:25 return but my husband wanted the later flight. My sister and parents are on the 3:25pm.

Airfare was a total of $203 pp for all 10 of us! So happy I booked the flight down last month even though the return schedule was not posted. If we waited until this week it would have been an additional $115 per person

Interesting to note the return flight are different on the new SW schedule than the previous one. The non-stop returns on the schedule through 8/5 are 12:30 and 6pm and 8:40. We are happy with our flights though.