Suzy & Perla’s Battle Against the Lines The Saga Continues! We're baaaaaack......

[estherhead]

“Ring, ring! Who's there? Destiny? I've been expecting your call.”



Well, OK. It was an e-mail. But just the same Destiny did contact me.

A few short days ago, I got a pin code. Truth be told, and hopefully this doesn’t cause a stampede of haters, I get a lot of pin codes. Almost every pin code I hear about, I’ve received. I know they say they are random. However, I have a Disney Visa that I buy EVERYTHING on. I shop at Disney.com when they have their $5.00 graphic tees sales. I save dream trips on waltdisneyworld.com when I’m not really going. And I have listed on my official Disney account that I’ve been to Disney 20 times.

Personally, I think this helps me get “randomly” chosen quite often.

So I didn’t think too much of it when I got an e-mail free dining pin code. But I did, naturally, mention it to Suzy. I didn’t think much would happen since their family had literally JUST gotten back from Puerto Rico (free airplane tickets from being bumped at the end of our last WDW trip.) And they had had kind of a miserable travel day home with a cancelled flight at 3 in the morning! So I figured she’d blow it off like all the other times I call her & say “I got another pin code.”

But I was wrong.

Destiny had contacted me and would not be denied.

So the next morning Suzy sat in my kitchen and explained some undeniable truths while I did my dishes.

1) The timing of this free dining code was perfect: the beginning of December, exactly one year from last time.
2) Our dh’s LOVE to eat out so free dining is the perfect promotion for them.
3) We love WDW.
4) She had priced it all out online the night before and it would cost under $2000.00 for my family of 5 for a WHOLE week.

So. I listened. But we had been planning on going to DisneyLAND this year in February and Puerto Rico mid November (just Donald & I for our 15 year anniversary!) Donald was VERY excited about our plans. He’s never seen the Sequoias and has been greatly looking forward to it. So I didn’t think he would easily relinquish such an exciting trip for the same ole WDW.

Before contacting Donald & seeing his reaction, I crunched some numbers and was quite shocked. We could save $2000 off our annual vacation costs by doing WDW instead of California.

Well, I don’t know about ya’ll but Donald & I are pretty good budgeters. And when I showed him the numbers his exact words were,

“Forget California. California is stupid. It was a dumb idea to go there. Disney World rules.”

Suzy mentioned it all to Milo and his reply was, “You’re going to make me go, aren’t you?”

So, by the end of Tuesday, we were going to Disney World. Week after Thanksgiving 2009.


Bolt: There's no turnin' back.
Rhino: Guess I'll have to "roll" with the punches!
["surfs" his ball]
Bolt: Easy won't be part of the equation...
Rhino: Promise?
Bolt: I gotta warn ya, going into the belly of the beast - danger at every turn.
Rhino: [getting closer] I eat danger for breakfast!
Bolt: You hungry?
Rhino: [cracks neck] Starving!

 

[estherhead]

So now a true confession. BEFORE telling Donald & Milo about the cheap Disney trip, I already had it booked. Whoops.

See, I called just to get pricing & see what was available. Well, EVERYTHING was available. I could have any resort I wanted. I really wanted All Star Music. Great pool activities. Beautiful landscape with a bit more subdued color scheme. Plus, we love music. I’ve never stayed there before, but I wanted to. When the CM told me the price on 3 rooms for all 11 of us with dining, rooms, tickets (7 day park hoppers) I was shocked & booked it right then. What if I waited until Donald & Milo said yes & I hadn’t booked it & then ASMu was booked because I had waited an extra day? That would be disappointing. Why take the chance?

Suzy & Milo have never stayed on site with their kids. So the boys will be thrilled to stay on property.

Which brings me to a very important part of this TR: The List of Characters.

Perla: Me!

Donald: My dh.

Mulan: Our eldest: 9 years old. I’m a bit concerned about her on this trip. She had a hard trip last time & when I told her we were going to WDW, she cried. Not tears of joy. So we’ll play this by ear with her.

Ariel: Our middle: 7 years old. Generally agreeable with periods of negative attitude.

Boo: 2.5 year old. Currently learning to talk & hard to understand. VERY enthusiastic about Diego & Dora. Loves outside & especially carrying around bugs (yes, alive bugs until she kills them with love.) TERRIFIED of characters.

Suzy: My sister.

Milo: My b-i-l, married to Suzy.

Charming (as in Prince): 12 years old. Very helpful with his younger brothers, almost an adult. Almost. WAY too into ESPN.

Buzz: 9 year old. Has Aspergers & therefore struggles a bit with changes to the schedule & only wanting to play video games all the time. Other than that, VERY easy to travel with.

McQueen: (as in Lightening) 6 years old: Headstrong, hotheaded, and talkative. But super cute. My only McQueen note is if Space Mt. is not open yet (being rehabbed) while we are there, we’re in big trouble.

Jack-Jack: 2 years old. Adorable. Easy-going. But quite busy and therefore quite the handful. If you stop looking for one second, he is a mile away from you & running quickly away from you.

The only other note I would like to make on this crew, which I hope isn’t a factor, but know really will be. We get sick Sept-Nov. We are all highly allergic (yes, me included.) The boys suffer from asthmatic stuff. Lungs, fevers, respitory in general. And we girls have ear, nose, & throat issues. Maybe not this trip. But lets just be realistic. At least this time we already know where all the clinics are & Suzy will bring the “machine” for her boys to be able to breath. I’ll just be Airborning, Zicaming, and vitamin chewing for the last two weeks of November & hope for the best. Do you think it would be too freaky if we wore masks around WDW? Or put vials of anti-bacterial gel on our lanyards & every 30 minutes a timer goes off & we have to all bacterial our hands?

So, as a final note here is what happened after everyone was made aware of our actual WDW reservations.

1) Restaurants were immediately debated (& will be until 8/31 when our 90 day window opens.)
2) I actually finished my 2008 WDW scrapbook.
3) Milo pulled out a bottle of alcohol he can only get in Epcot & drank the last of it he had been saving to celebrate a return trip.
4) I bought Tour Guide Mike so Suzy & I could lead all y’all again in our quest:


Don’t want to wait in lines?????? Follow us!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[houseful of boys]

 

[H20DogsNDisney]

can't wait for more

 

[deslynnpatterson]

count me in I am ready to read more!!!

 

[estherhead]

So, our ADR 90+10 window is right around the corner. And the great debate has begun. The Perla gang all had lots of opinions, most of them not in agreement with each other. There are just soooooo many options at WDW of places to eat.

One thing we all agreed on was: we aren't going to eat with the Suzy gang. We actually will be at places sometimes together, but 11 people is a lot and if we want to tour together, than we need to take a break from each other & have relaxing meals.

On my short list were: Coral Reef, Le Cellier, O'hana, 1900 Park Faire, Narcoossee's.

On Donald's were: Tony's, San Angel Inn, Crystal Palace.

Let the debate begin. First, Donald didn't want Coral Reef as he had read bad reviews. But I felt like doing something different, eating in Future World, and the fish will amuse Boo. I won. Coral Reef got a place in our line up.

Le Cellier: Donald didn't want to do it as Boo had been an obnoxious 6 month old when last we were there, not a good thing in a tiny basement. But the girls & I all wanted to do it. I won again.

O'hana: No objections. We all win.

1900 Park Faire: gets terrible reviews, come to find out. So the girls & I decided on getting our princess fix at Akershus. Breakfast here we come!

Narcoossee's: I'll spare you the details of the debate as it was all over the place. But we finally settled on Cali Grill for Donald & my date night. Shhhh, don't tell Donald but I'm going to try to get a seating for fireworks!

Tony's: We only need one MK TS meal & everyone voted so Crystal Palace won.

San Angel: HUGE debate. We all hate it, but it is Donald's VERY FAVORITE restaurant in all of WDW. So he won. It is a super cool setting & I do like margaritas. I probably won't spend a TS here & will just get a margarita & eat chips. We'll see.

The second factor in this great debate is getting your WDW schedule set without have the hours out yet. This is a very tricky thing. We've been using TGM's November hours to guess December's hours. There are such limited Spectro/Wishes & Fantasmics that we almost gave up on night time entertainment completely. But we came to our senses.

Here, without further ado, is what I think will be our game plan (remember this is Donald & Perla's plan. Though we'll tour the parks mostly together, for the purpose of dining, our plans are separate:

Wed: Leave home at 2:30 p.m. Drive halfway. (7 hours)

Thurs: Drive to Daytona Beach. (7 hours)

Fri: Daytona Beach in the a.m. Drive to Disney. Stay at Holiday Inn Downtown Disney (hopefully it's open by then!)

Sat: Hang out at hotel. ESPN Zone. Stay at Holiday Inn Downtown Disney.

Sun: Check into All Star Music at 7:00 a.m. bus to MK for rope drop. Crystal Palace for lunch (1:00). Go to resort after lunch & unpack & swim. Epcot. Coral Reef for dinner (6:00)

Mon: AK EMH; Switch to DHS whenever AK gets too busy. Mama Melrose Fantasmic package.

Tues: EMH Epcot: only do Test Track & Mission:Space, breakfast at Akershus (10:15). Then to DHS.

Wed: DHS, Donald & Perla date night: Cali Grill (7:00)

Thurs: EMH at MK; Le Cellier (6:00) at Epcot & Illuminations

Fri: AK or MK, Milo & Suzy date night

Sat: Epcot Lunch at San Angel (12:00) SeaRaycers at Poly & O’hana (6:00-6:15) Wishes from beach.

Sun: End WDW reservations; Leave EARLY & drive home (or leave middle of night)

So, that is the big, bad plan. Here's hoping I get what I want. I ahve every intention of getting up at 5:45 a.m., opening all my windows with my ressie number in there and being ready to go.

Another note, we made Mulan an adult so we'll have 3 adult TS's, 3 adult CS's, 1 child TS, 1 child CS, & all our snacks every day. So this should ease things up a bit and give us plenty of food & choices. If a TS kid's menu has lame choices I'll make the big girls share & we'll let Boo eat the child TS.

Seriously, it's pretty exciting. Now I just need to lose 10 lbs before we go so I can gain 5 back and be where I like to be.

 

[estherhead]

So, today was our big, giant 90 day window. Time to get up at 5:45 and get ready. Except I woke up at 4:30 a.m. instead and realized today was the day and then could not longer sleep. So I got up & scrolled through the TV channels. Then I ended up watching the Models of the Runway. It was pretty boring. It probably won't be must see TV for me.

Then I did a few practice runs. They all went well. MUCH better than the real thing. That was incredibly stressful!

I had originally decided to start with Cali Grill since I wanted a Wishes seating time. But as 6 o'clock approached this morning I switched plans and decided to go for Le Cellier. I was nervous about that one & it was one my girls felt passionately about.

So I tried at 5:59 & couldn't get my 10 days to pull up. I refreshed at 6:00 and bam there they were, all ten days. Can I just tell you I actually got butterflies? It was here! 3 months away! It was so scary! What if everything is gone? What if there is no food anywhere in WDW in 97 days? What if Suzy gets hers and I get squat?

My very first click was for Le Cellier & it was all booked. OH NO! I added the +3 days and it was still all booked! So I did all the rest & decided to go back to it. About 3/4 of the way through my booking Suzy called me. She, too, had been having problems. We had been so sure with 90 days +10 there wouldn't be problems. But there were and now we needed to confer.

The end result was that when I checked out I had 3 Le Cellier ADR's all at different times & days. Hmmm, maybe it is people like me who make Le Cellier unavailable. And when I called WDW-DINE at 7 o'clock to get our Fantasmic package (we want all 11 together and you can't do that online) and cancel some of these extras (I have extra O'hana also) there was a 25 minute wait! What? I have to get my kids on the bus, I can't do 25 minutes. So I hung up and switched to my cell so I'd be portable and it was a 40 minute wait!

So I'm not doing that. I'll just wait and we'll all take our chances with the Fantasmic package. There is no way Mama Melrose is worth 40 minutes of me on the phone.

I'll get back to you after my kids are gone & I'm out of the shower and willing to be on the phone. Sheesh. Good morning Monday morning.

 

[estherhead]

Whew. Whelp, after finally getting through to Disney, there were no more Fantasmic meals left. It really doesn't surprise me since there are 11 of us and only 2 Fantasmics our week and only one could we try for because they can't book December until the hours are out.

You know what? It was stressful. It basically took me 3 full hours to figure it all out. Now I realize this is because Suzy & I had to make our ADR's seperately and then coordinate & re-make some and then cancel, etc. But still. I had no idea I would be working on it fro 5:45 until 9:00 am! Crazy.

When all was said & done what we ended up with:

Sunday Crystal Pal. 12:55pm All of us
Coral Reef 5:55 pm Perla's Fam
W.C. Café 6:15 pm Suzy's Fam
Monday Primetime 4:25 pm All of us
Tuesday Akershus 10:30 am Perla's Fam
Chef Mickey5:40 pm Suzy's Fam
Wednesday Cali Grill 7:10 pm Date for Donald & Perla
Thursday Le Cellier 1:30 pm All of us
Friday Jiko 5:45 pm Date night for Suzy & Milo
Saturday San Angel 11:50 am Perla's fam
Saturday O’hana 5:30 pm All of us


And as of right now, without December's official hours being released, our itinerary is as follows:

Sunday 7:30 am Check into All Star Music
8:00 am MK
1:00 pm Eat at Crystal Palace
3:00 pm All Star Music to unload vans
5:00 pm Coral Reef
5:00 pm Stallard’s to Whispering Canyon
Monday 7:30 am AK EMH
4:25 pm Primetime Café
6:30 pm Fantasmic
Tuesday 7:30 am Epcot EMH
10:30 am Princess Storybook Breakfast in Norway
12:00 noon MK
5:40 pm Chef Mickey’s
Wednesday 8:30 am DHS
7:10 pm Date Night: Cali Grill
Thursday 8:30 am AK
1:30 pm Le Cellier
Friday 8:30 am MK
5:45 pm Date Night: Jiko
Saturday 11:50 pm San Angel
4:00 pm Rent Boats at Poly beach
5:30 pm O’hana
8:00 pm Wishes from Poly beach

 

[estherhead]

Hi all! Lots of updates in our little lives.

First, we decided to spend a few days at the beach before our WDW trip. So we decided on Amelia Island and booked a condo for three nights for all eleven of us. We were so excited. Shortly after paying for it we discovered that Milo would have to come back home for a speaking assignment or whatever you call professor speak of talking to an auditorium full of people. And it wasn't something he could get out of.

So the day we arrive from the beach in Orlando, we'll be dropping Milo off at the Orlando airport. He'll fly home, stay the night in a hotel, give his speech the next morning, get back on an airplane & take the Magical Express and meet us at ASMu for our very first night on Disney property.

Because of this, we decided to alter our plans a bit. For anyone who read our last story, you'll know that Milo isn't a huge fan of AK & all of it's real/fake animals. So we decided to be merciful to him and go to AK the day he is gone. That way he doesn't have to be tortured at AK and he doesn't have to miss a single ride on Space Mt.

This does make it a bit trickier on Suzy. She will have 4 boys 12 & under at WDW alone!!!

Naturally, we tried & tried to change ADR's so that she could eat with us that first night. But with free dining, it just wasn't possible to get another WCC ressie for her and she didn't want to lose it. So we'll continue with our Coral Reef ressie and she will take all 4 boys to Wilderness Lodge for a skillet supper. Alone. She'll be fine. Really.

Also, to make up for him missing that meal, she booked an extra ADR at Biergarten. And I, just cause I wanted to, booked a breakfast at Tusker House and changed my princess meal & San Angel meals around.

Cause I love to hang out on the Dining Res. section of disney.com and keep trying to find better ADR's. It's a big pastime of mine. And yes, of course I cancel those I won't use. So no yelling at me.

Coming up tomorrow:
Are Tinkerbell presents a form of lying to your children?
Have I already started packing?
Will Boo hug Goofy?

 

[estherhead]

So, I have a few worries about this trip.

Firstly, I'm a bit worried about the flu or getting sick. Because I got sick last year it is on my mind. And the whole H1N1 scare doesn't help. I can't imagine a more miserable Disney trips than puking AND having cold like symptoms. Not to mention sharing whatever germs we are carrying with the rest of the tourists. To be honest, we haven't gotten sick too much this year so I shouldn't be concerned. But I can't help it. I am.

Next are the questions I asked from yesterday:

Are Tinkerbell presents a form of lying to your children? So two years ago when the big girls were 5 & 6 I read a thread on here about buying presents from Dollar Tree and telling your kids they are from Tinkerbell. It appealed to me on many levels. It makes staying on site even more special. It makes your kids ask for less souvenirs. I love Dollar Tree. So I did it. And they loved it.

Last year we didn't stay onsite so there were no Tink presents and this year my girls are 7 & 9 so it never occurred to me that they would potentially remember this & still believe it.

However, shortly after telling the girls we were staying at ASMu this year Ariel asked me if Tink still left little kids presents if you stayed onsite. It took me off guard & I said I didn't know. To which she logically replied, "Can you look it up on the Dis?" After making a quick call to Suzy (since she would have to buy Tink presents if I did) I told Ariel that Tink did still leave presents.

This led to a long conversation at Suzy & Milo's house since their boys are clearly not as gullible as my children. But after a bit of chitchat, Buzz & McQueen thought it a great plan for them to get presents, even if they weren't sure who exactly would be leaving the presents after their multiple questions which Milo & Suzy had to dodge.

We now have the presents bought & I know it will add to our children's joy. But we are still left with the moral dilemma: Is it lying. And honestly, I believe it is. It isn't just make-believe. It is over the top lying. Or at the very least over the top pretend. So I guess our family will truly be leaving reality behind. Hopefully my nine year old (Mulan) will be able to figure out that I bought these presents by the end of the trip. I may have to cave at some point this trip & just tell her if she cannot figure it out herself.

Have I already started packing? Yes, yes I have.

Will Boo hug Goofy? This is my other issue. Boo, if you recall, have a total character meltdown last year at Tusker House. She has never fully recovered. I thought this summer we had made some progress and lately she has been talking about hugging Goofy constantly. Goofy & Donald Duck are her friends and she is determined to give them a hug. This is great since our very first day we have a lunch scheduled at Crystal Palace.

Unfortunately at tailgating today our team's mascot, a bobcat, was wandering around. I picked her up & pointed him out to her. We were probably 50 yards away. She FLIPPED out. Exactly like this smiley. It took her a full hour to calm down.

Crystal Palace may be a meal I must skip. Sigh. And maybe Tusker House. I don't know. It's stressful. I wish I could give her something that puts her in control. That makes her understand that she has the control. But I just don't know how to crack her terror, how to help her understand these are fake. I wasn't too worried before today because I just thought we would keep everyone away from her. But if simply seeing Mickey Mouse freaks her out, we may be in trouble. Because as you all know, there are characters everywhere at WDW.

So that's my update for today. We'll talk more about packing tomorrow.

 

[estherhead]

So this post is at the request of Donald. He fully intends on making use of his apps this year at Disney and has quite a few either already on his iphone or ready for purchase/download.

Once we get started on the actual TR I/he will give you details of how the iphone enhanced our trip.

Also, he will update daily on Twitter. For those of you who would like to follow our tweets from Disney: @timfromdws

I'll remind you once we get closer.

I'm really excited about the iphone this year. It's best for it to be in Donald's worthy hands as I am OK with technology but certainly no guru. We took it to Williamsburg this summer and I found it incredibly handy-dandy. For example we were at Water Country USA & it started raining. It was late & we were starving, wet, and cold. While I was getting out of the parking lot, he was finding the closest pizza joint (a Domino's), finding specials there, ordering it, and then finding the closest grocery (for beer) which just happened to be in the same plaza. Within 10 minutes of deciding to leave the water park we had treats, beer, and pizza for a movie night in the hotel. That is just one small story. We have many more.

Point being, since I know you all are only reading this for your own enrichment, we can help you. How to not wait in lines, how to use your iphone, and how the crowds/weather are while we're there. I know how all you Dissers LOVE knowing the crowd level & weather at Disney while you're not there & could easily find this information weather.com and touringplans.com. But I won't judge you. Cause I have the illness too. WDW Flu. It's a pandemic.

 

[houseful of boys]

This Tinkerbell debate has been a bit stressful for Perla and I. And we only have Perla and other crazy Disser's to blame for it. McQueen is the big questioner in my household. Buzz honestly doesn't say much about it (I don't think he cares a whole lot where the presents come from). But McQueen, now he's a thinker. And I'm not a good fibber. I'm the kind of mom who when my kids ask me a question, the explanations are plentiful and factual. So Perla called me and told me her girls were asking about Tink's gifts so i kinda put it out there for my boys to see what they would think. Now McQueen got quiet for a while and first question was, "Does Tinkerbell give presents to boys too?" So I responded, "I don't know, maybe other characters deliver the gifts to boys. I'll have to find out." So he patiently waited while I checked my Dis encyclopedia. "Yes, boys get presents at the resorts too." "Can you find a picture of the characters delivering the gifts on the computer?" "Hmmmmmm...let me see" I've been dodging that question for the last couple of months. He still is really hoping to catch a glimpse while we're there.
So then Perla and I have been busy trying to gather up gifts for 6 children (obviously Charming will not be receiving "tinkerbell presents," I've told him I will reimburse him with cash), not spending too much money, yet making them fun, and making sure that no one gets more or better loot than any one else. And although there were no "Tink presents" last year when we stayed off site, we did give "mommy presents" every morning for the kids. These were also dollar tree goodies so we have to make sure that one year later "Tink" doesn't accidentally give a repeat of a "mommy" present. Needless to say, complicated. Last week Perla had the audacity to call me and try to complicate things further by suggesting we needed to write "Tinkerbell notes" to go along with the "Tinkerbell presents" because some of them need explanations. I was not about the disguise my handwriting or cut up newspapers to create fake notes from Tinkerbell So we scratched that idea.
So we're done shopping, now we've got to wrap and label and pack in a secret compartment to get our gifts to Florida (did we mention, we have 6 children and 7 days....that is a total of 42 gifts) Perla and I are both hoping that one of the kids will figure out this covert operation and spill the beans for the others. I've considered leaving "Big Lots" price tags on some of mine. And I keep teasing Perla that she has to wear her "Tinkerbell wings" to deliver the gifts and I'm going to take a picture of her and show the kids.

 

[estherhead]

And I keep teasing Perla that she has to wear her "Tinkerbell wings" to deliver the gifts and I'm going to take a picture of her and show the kids.

Which I want to say, I'm totally willing to do. Because that is just how I am. I have this idea to wear them & disappear around a corner & her photo just gets the wings & maybe a tiny bit of me. Maybe then my girls would recognize the wings from our dress-up box & figure it out.

Today it is cold, cold, cold here. Though I do have a few things to do this afternoon I think this a.m. I might spend making a few Disney things. Sometimes I hang out over on the Disigns area of this board. Which, if your are planning a trip to Disney, is a super dangerous part of this site. Because they are all amazingly creative and have these super ideas.

The latest thing I discovered were candy pockets. I grabbed the Mickey Mouse & friends and a Woody & Buzz one and thought I would make a bunch up for all the kids. I know this is overkill since we can just buy raisens & fruit chews & m&m's already in individual sized packages. But how cool would Disney ones be? I don't have any ink in my printer so that one might have to wait.

I also ordered from a lady over there special iron-on transfer paper that is supposedly much softer and easier to use for making your own t-shirts. So very soon I will make our own t-shirts too. We are only making two sets this year. The ones that have all of us on it with our names and then Kingdom Hearts shirts. I also found (for $1.00!) Toy Story shirts that match for the kids. And then I bought my girls matching princess shirts for a character breakfast at Akershus. So I have some work do on that but it should be too bad. I need to buy the guy's t-shirts and wash them all. That might be what I accomplish on my projects today.

Then I have a secret project that I've been looking at. I am finally done with my wedding cakes for the year. The wedding cakes pay for my Disney addiction so I can't complain about them, plus the fact that I love doing it. But it is really nice after an insane summer to have it all done. So here is my last cake of the year:



And now for the secret project. My kids are very patient with me as they see cool cake after cool cake walk out this door not for them. Boo calls them "cake cakes" and it is hardest on her. But she never touches the finished cakes, pretty good for a two year old! And I've never made her a cake. So we are staying at a condo for three days before Disney and we are driving down so I could easily transport a cake. We also will be taking a special meal for our first day down there to make in our kitchen. So I think I will buy some Mickey Mouse party things, just streamers & maybe a few balloons, and have Boo a Clubhouse party. Just have daddy take them all to the beach & spend 15 minutes taping up streamers and put the cake in the middle of the table.

Here's one I've got my eye on:



I might make it two tiers, one in lemon & raspberry & one in pumpkin cream cheese or chocolate peanut butter. Plus then I can do different colors. I have made a mickey mouse cake before but I let the kids decorate it mostly and, though they love doing it, it isn't as satisfying for me.

If I decide this is just too much work then I probably will make mickey mouse shaped cookies on lollipop sticks & make a cookie bouquet instead. We'll see how busy my November gets.

I know I teased you with discussing packing but I'm just not in the mood. So I'll just tell you that I have a HUGE pile of clothes & Disney needs, like pin lanyards and mouse ears in my laundry room. And I found a blackout curtain & some stick-on hooks since we're staying at All Stars. I have my ultimate Disney packing list set to go and here within the next week I may actually start working on it.

 

[KathyRN137]

Hi Perla! I'm so glad to have found your PTR!

My family is going to the MNSSHP as pirates... I still remember your daughter's awesome Parrot costume!!!

Kathy

 

[estherhead]

Hi Perla! I'm so glad to have found your PTR!

My family is going to the MNSSHP as pirates... I still remember your daughter's awesome Parrot costume!!!

Kathy

Welcome Kathy! You are the reason I wrote that very first TR. You inspired me. I wish you had a parrot to go with you, but I get you're glad you don't have a 6 month old with you.

I think I might go to Hall of Presidents this time because of you guys too. It's been so long since I've been there I don't remember it!

 

[estherhead]

So, I've begun the countdown. Or should I say it was begun for me. My Disney dreams started last night. I hate when the Disney dreams start. That's how you know you'll be leaving soon. Mickey and his crazy world haunt you in nightmares.

But I also had a real life nightmare. Well, okay, it wasn't like someone almost died or some horrible monsters was chasing me kind of nightmare, but it was still a serous PANIC attack.

Here's the story:
My dad does not get Disney. He is not much of a walker/exerciser and he doesn't play games and he doesn't go to movies. He cannot quote every line from all six Star Wars and he cannot name all the Disney movies in order of their release. He likes to bake bread and grow amazing tomato plants and go to historical places where he sits on a bench or a rock and ponders the universe.

He has, however, been to Disney with all of the five older grandkids and has wonderful memories of us kids at Disney World and essentially, as far as Disney goes, he's good. Been there, done that, no need to ever do it again.

Let me say that I get people who don't get Disney. I'm fine with them. But I'm NOT ok with people who don't get Disney being at Disney with me. Cause even if they don't say anything you can just tell that they think I am crazy. And maybe I am. But surely on vacation I should be allowed to be crazy and not be judged for being crazy. I'm not hurting anyone with my Disney insanity, am I?

This brings me back to my tale. My mom told Suzy that they were pondering visiting friends in Florida while we were at Disney and would just swing by and ride Dumbo with the last two grandkids for a day. Now you would think this would be ok, but seriously, it was not, because I did not believe that it would be so simple. Things with family are never so simple. They are complicated and end up with me changing everything and adapting to everyone else.

Just as I thought, my parent's friends just happened to not be available and so Mom called me and said she'd found a great deal on a flight which essentially was for our ENTIRE week at WDW. I don't normally have a negative reaction to things. But I will not joke with you when I say I was a shaking ball of nerves. How could I deal with this? Our entire vacation was based around eating at restaurants and riding rides and hanging out with Mickey and swimming. My dad hates all these things. He probably would hook up a KitchenAid in our room and bake bread in the microwave in Intermission. Seriously.

Yes, I said "our room" because Donald & Boo and I have our own room so technically, according to WDW, we had room for our parents to stay in our room with us. This is something my mom was aware of. Please, can someone give me a ????? My relaxing vacation where I get away from it all and escape into a world where reality doesn't exist was slipping through my fingers and I wasn't sure I could find a way out.

Anyhow, long story short, I spent the next three hours kindly & calmly & nicely reminding my parents how much they hate WDW and how horrible it would be. Greatly exaggerating the traumas they would face. "You'd have to ride BUSES with Disney freaks! " It'd be horrible. Thank goodness for my mom's sensibleness. And the fact that my dad thought spending an entire week at WDW sounded bizarre at best. By the end of the night we were back to the original plan of one night and one day. And then the tickets were actually bought and all was right in the world. And if everything works out, we might even get an afternoon and our dinner at Le Cellier without the toddlers. And some great Photopass photos.

But those three hours taught me one thing. This is a VERY important vacation to me and I am not willing to budge. I need this. I need a break from reality.

Oh, and by the way, my parents are now going to Costa Rica after their day with us which is MUCH more up their alley. Monkeys are almost as cool as museums. And for my Mom monkeys are WAY cooler than both Disney and museums.


Now that that trauma has been avoided, I will take a pause and update you on Tinkerbell presents in the next post.

 

[estherhead]

So Tinkerbell. Suzy and I spent HOURS of thought and shopping. Mostly at Dollar Tree but we did get a few pricier items. And then we wrapped all the Tinkerbell presents. But Jack-Jack and Boo were around while this was happening. Boo thought it was interesting. Jack-Jack thought he should be allowed to have his presents. And seeing that he is only two and does not really understand and that it would most cruel to have an entire suitcase full of presents and not give him one, we gave him one. Two Cars cars.

McQueen, who misses nothing, was quite curious when he came home from school where these cars came from and why he didn't get anything too. After going in circles for awhile Suzy gave in and just explained there was no Tinkerbell giving presents and it was us. And that we had wrapped them all. With the cat out of the bag at Suzy & Milo's I felt I had no choice but to have the cat out of the bag at our house. Because as devastating as it is to know there is no real Tinkerbell, it's MORE devastating to hear the news from your younger cousin.

So Donald & I sat them down, much to Donald's consternation, and told them. And much to my surprise Mulan, who is nine, burst into tears and said, "But it was so magical!" She just could not be consoled and refused to go look at the presents in our basement.

By the next day, and almost an hour of discussion, she was better. And we went down to see the presents.

We still intend on handing them out one day at a time with Tinkerbell dust & I bought fairy wings for $1.00 at Halloween clearance and am going to play a prank on McQueen by taking a photo of "Tink" going around the corner of the resort and tell him that it was Tink all along just to pull his leg and tease him for being so smart.

So the Tinkerbell is out of the bag. Thank goodness. Ariel cracked me up by saying the next day that she was so relieved that it wasn't Tinkerbell because when we had met her last year she was so sad for her that she had to deliver all those presents. Not sure she quite got the whole scope of what we were saying. Oh well.

 

[estherhead]

Whenever I get into a state of total confusion the following conversation runs through my mind:

Buzz: According to my navi-computer, the...

Woody: [quietly] Shut up! Just, shut up, you idiot!

Buzz: Sheriff, this is no time to panic!

Woody: This is the perfect time to panic! I'm lost, Andy is gone, they're gonna move to their new house in two days, and it's all your fault!

Buzz: My fault?! If you hadn't pushed me out of the window in the first place...

Woody: Oh, yeah? Well, if you hadn't shown up inside your stupid little cardboard spaceship and taken away everything that was important to me...

Buzz: Don't talk to me about importance! Because of you, the security of this entire universe is in jeopardy!

Woody: WHAT?!! What are you talkin' about?!

Buzz: Right now, poised at the edge of the galaxy, Emperor Zurg has been secretly building a weapon with the destructive capacity to annihilate an entire planet! I alone have information that reveals his weapon's only weakness. And you, my friend, are responsible for delaying my rendezvous with Star Command!

Woody: YOU... ARE... A... TOY!!! You're aren't the real Buzz Lightyear! You're-- oh, you're an action figure! You are a child's plaything!

Buzz: You are a sad, strange little man, and you have my pity. Farewell. [exits]


The perfect time to panic. We're at 3.5 days and counting. Suzy called me earlier and wondered if I was panicking. Well, I wasn't. But that's the thing about panic. It comes in waves. Waves of total confidence in my capabilities to accomplish things, quickly followed by nausea that there is no way I will forget things, that we'll get sick, that the house will burn down, the cat will die, Boo will run screaming out of Disney World after laying eyes on Mickey Mouse, and other nonsensical things that either certainly won't happen or really aren't that big of a deal.

But I can't help it. I'm Woody, a sad, strange little woman. What I wouldn't give to be Buzz, hopelessly and happily lost in a world that never was and never will be.

Anyway, I got off the phone with Suzy feeling happy & glad I wasn't panicked. About 5 minutes later Donald got out of the shower and blew my Buzz Bubble.

"I think I'll start packing tonight. You have the laundry done, right?"

"Yes, totally, except it isn't folded or put away and the socks aren't matched and Milo's t-shirt didn't work out so I bought a new one & new sweatshirts and they have to be washed, well, no, I guess the laundry isn't done."

"Oh, Ok. Well the thing is, I'm not sure what the plan is with the matching t-shirts. Do you know what days we're all matching? What days just our family is supposed to match? How many other t-shirts I need? Cause I'm not sure which t-shirts I need."

"Uhm.... No, I don't know. I mean, I can't remember."

"Oh, Ok. I'll just pack everything I own. That seems like the best plan."

And suddenly my little Buzz Bubble is burst and I am Woody standing alone in a gas station with nowhere to turn. PANIC! And then, the final hurrah:

Donald says, "And what is your plan for the next three days?"

I say, "Well, today I'll get the house totally clean & the laundry totally done & the van scrubbed out. Then Monday and Tuesday I have to work. Tuesday night I'll drag everything upstairs and we can pack it all in the suitcases and into the van/car top carrier. Oh, and Suzy will be bringing the food for the cooler Monday night. And the Mickey Mouse sugar cookies have to be made."

"And Wed. morning? Are you working?"

"Well, there won't be time. We'll have to get the kids on the bus & then finish up touching up the house & getting everything in the van. We're supposed to be at Suzy & Milo's by 11:00 am to put their stuff in the car top carrier."

"What? I thought Suzy & Milo were driving down at 2:30 so Charming doesn't have to miss more school."

"Uhm, no, I mean, no."

"Ok, they are coming with us."

"Yes."

"Ok. Anything else I don't know?"

And that is when it went to full out panic. Plus, Suzy & I & Donald and about half the kids have colds. Boo is on antibiotics.

Whatever.

What is it about panic that makes sane people suddenly put insane things on their to do list? You would think that I, a basically calm person, would be able to sit here and come up with an absolute must do list and then accomplish it. But when you are panicking things you never do, or rarely do suddenly become priorities. Cleaning out the van seems redundant, it'll only get dirty once we all get in it anyway. But cleaning the windows is essential.

Instead of focusing the nervous energy on packing, like I should be doing, it is suddenly a priority to start a new diet and exercise program. Paint my bedroom. Replace all the furniture. Maybe it's just me, but seriously I've been focusing on the dumbest things this week. Not actually doing any of them, mind you, just pondering them. No, what I've been doing is nothing. Playing on the computer and wandering aimlessly. Or currently I'm watching a football game I don't really care about. Cause that's what I do when I panic.

Thank goodness it comes and goes. Or we really wouldn't be ready to go Wed.

But in a few days it will all be a distant memory as I sit in the van panicking on my way to Florida. And then maybe the next day I won't be panicked at all.

 

[estherhead]

Our trip has begun! We left two days ago. It's is sunshiny and beautiful today. And I'm soooooo relaxed. I love vacation!

 

[estherhead]

Hi all! I wanted to start our TR yesterday but my pre-trippie was moved accidentally to completed reports and I couldn't post. Now I'm in the right place but have no time!

But I'll just say this: It was great. Disney is just as magical as ever, despite some negative talk around these parts. We had a great time and LOVED the free dining. So much so that we gained a lot of weight. Good thing it was totally worth it. And now I'm back in freezing cold Ohio. Dieting and working and currently sitting in my messy living room watching Nick Jr. getting ready to leave again and go back to the grindstone. It's so nice to be in a different world for awhile. As my dad said, "Disney to a lot of people is a little piece of paradise."

So coming up within the next few days: Did driving 11 hours with two 2 year olds kill us? Was it too cold to enjoy the beach portion of our vaca? Why were people wearing pajamas out and about?