Swimming our way to WDW (March 2016)

[elcmum]

Here's a placeholder for our pre-trip report, where we'll be staying at AoA from March 21-24. It's going to be a quick four day trip for my ten-year-old son and myself, as he will be swimming in the state championships (hopefully!) on March 18-20.

He knows we will be traveling to WDW late next summer, so the surprise will be on him when I announce at the end of the meet that we're actually going to be leaving the following morning!

Plans:
March 21
Depart IND-MCO on early flight
Arrive MCO around 9am; check-in by 10am; hit DHS by 11am

March 22
EPCOT day?

March 23
DMK day, with a possible afternoon break so we can enjoy EMH from 11pm-1am.

March 24
Check-out, return to MK until about 3pm. Still looking to buy return flights and hoping to get them as late as possible.

 

[elcmum]

Oh! Cast of characters:

Me, the Mum. I'm an Aussie living in the USA with three kids. I haven't been to the World since a trip with my former in-laws in 2001, but that doesn't mean I haven't mentally planned trips, created spreadsheets and configured budgets, looked at school schedules and then realized nothing would work out in the end. I've been a huge WDW fan since I read Babysitter Club books and there was a book where the club took a trip to WDW and on a cruise. That obsession started in the late 80s, and in '97 I moved to the US and the obsession with WDW has not stopped.

Cam, the kid. He's going to be almost eleven by the time we take the trip. He's a swimmer who dreams of making it to an elite level. While that is years away, he has practice almost every day during the week and, so, late March is our first travel opportunity. I want to support his dreams as much as I can while being as realistic as possible and ensuring he is a normal kid. Our close friends have all been to WDW in the recent years and Cam has wanted to go. He is a thrill-seeker and likes adventure so I was unsure if WDW would be too tame for him, but has expressed an interest in a few rides, so the trip is basically about him and what he wants to do.

Not attending:
Em, the oldest. She'll be 18 by the time of the trip and would rather spend time on a farm around livestock. Her only rule is that I buy her a souvenir.
Lid, the middle kid. She's 15 and her school schedule doesn't allow her to travel with us. Ditto, souvenir.

 

[elcmum]

I've spent the past few days trying to figure how to cram four days of everything into, well, four days. After a lot of thought and looking at my budget and checking airfare and thinking how exhausted we're going to be, I decided to suck it up and add two days on to the trip. So, we're booked from Mar 21-26, and I just need to find a great deal on flights to get home on the Saturday evening.

Annnnnnnd, I told Cam about the trip, only I sort of lied and added 100 days to our countdown so he actually thinks we're leaving in June. I wanted him to have input in the trip and get some excitement, but also he needs to understand why I might say no to us going out to dinner with friends or going to the movies or things like that. Either way, he's thrilled, and I am, too!