Taking Grandma to Disneyland: PTR 3/9-3/12/2019

[Jaina]

Sounds like your plans are really shaping up! All of those restaurant options sound amazing! I am kind of with your DH on the Disney food prices/kids that don't eat what they ordered. That's why we're bringing as much food in with us as possible on a family trip, and saving the sit-down restaurants for adult trips/when they're older! I am craving a Monte Cristo again though...

 

[VandVsmama]

Sounds like your plans are really shaping up! All of those restaurant options sound amazing! I am kind of with your DH on the Disney food prices/kids that don't eat what they ordered. That's why we're bringing as much food in with us as possible on a family trip, and saving the sit-down restaurants for adult trips/when they're older! I am craving a Monte Cristo again though...

Yeah, I am definitely all for making this trip as stress free for everyone as possible!

 

[erinlynn2020]

I sure hope you can experience Club 33 again! Is it on your MIL's bucket list? Great job on the weight loss. Here is a site for Keto in Disneyland to help you find good choices and keep $$ in your wallet. https://www.slashfilm.com/keto-at-disneyland/ What ever you do, I wish you great weather and lots of fun!

Great PTR!

(saving this keto @ disneyland info! awesome)

 

[VandVsmama]

Touring Plan for Sat 3/9:
Although I'm a strong believer in people going to DL first, especially if it's their first visit or if they haven't been in a looong time like my MIL, since 3/9 is a Saturday and I don't think there are any APs blocked out, we're going to go to DCA first. Realistically, I think we'll probably end up there about 3:30 pm. Here's how I think things will go:

• ~ 3:30 pm - get into DCA. Use Max Pass to get FPs for RSR (if there are any left), Toy Story or Soarin'. Our family of 4 really dislikes the GotG ride, nor do we go on Goofy's Sky School or Incredicoaster. Check ride wait times and if Mater's or Luigi's is ~ 15-20 min, go on 1 of those. Take pics in Carsland with a PP photographer.
• 4:15 pm - go to Hollywoodland to get in line for the Frozen musical. We've seen it twice now and I don't care about seeing it a 3rd time, but MIL will really enjoy it. So it's worth while for us to make an effort.
• ~ 6:00 pm (or whenever the Frozen musical ends) - have dinner at Flo's V-8 Cafe.
• After dinner - use FP for Soarin, Toy Story, or RSR. I'll check DL FP return times and target an IJ, Star Tours, Splash Mtn, BTMRR, or HM FP for the 9-10 pm time frame for DH, the kids, & I.
• Then go to Animation Academy, Turtle Talk with Crush, and explore the Sorcerer's Workshop (which we have never been in!).
• Then go on Ariel's ride.
• At this point, MIL will probably be ready to go to the hotel and go to bed.
• DH, the kids & I will probably then hop over to DL. We'll use the FP for IJ, Star Tours, Splash Mtn, BTMRR, or HM.
• At 9 pm when the 1st showing of Fantasmic begins, we'll go on Pirates or HM.
• Then we'll go on the other one (Pirates or HM), whichever one we didn't go on first.
• Then right before fireworks end, we'll get in line at the train station and take the train to Main Street station.
• Then stop at City Hall to put in a thank you for a CM.
• Then say good night to DL and head to the hotel for bed!

** Edited to add **
We'll stop by the DCA Chamber of Commerce to get MIL a First Visit button.

 

[VandVsmama]

Updated Touring Plan for Sun 3/10:u
Park hours are: DL 8:00 am - 11:00 pm, DCA 8:00 am - 10:00 pm

• 6:00 am - I wake up & get myself & my park bag organized & ready to go. At home, I usually get up 5:30-5:40 am every morning anyway.
• 6:15 am - wake up DH
• 6:30 am - bark at DH to get his sorry butt out of bed & in the shower. Wake kids up.
• 6:35 am - bark at kids to wake up & get dressed because in 10 min, Mama is going downstairs for breakfast.
• 6:40 am - give my family the 5 minute warning. It goes something like this: "I am leaving in 5 minutes to go to the lobby for breakfast. If you want to actually eat something before we go on rides for 3-4 hours, I highly suggest you get your butt in gear and get your shoes on. Otherwise, you're welcome to lay around here some more. But know this: I WILL leave without you!"
• 6:45 am - I announce that I'm going to the lobby. Lots of protests of "No! Wait!" and "Hold on!" I wait another few minutes watching the kids scramble to get shoes on. YDD forgets to brush her hair, so I bring the hairbrush in my park bag and brush her hair in line later at the main gate. I remind YDD to go to the bathroom. She protests. I tell her to get her sorry butt to the toilet or she's not going anywhere. She finally listens to reason and makes a deposit in the toilet. LOL. MIL will probably be in the lobby at 6:45 waiting for us.
• 6:50 am - kids & I are finally at the lobby. If breakfast starts at 6:30, we'll eat then. Otherwise, if it starts at 7:00, then we have a place to sit and then we eat in a few min at 7.
• 7:00 am - DH saunters to the lobby to eat.
• 7:15 am - Kids & I get up to leave for the main gate. DH protests. MIL balks that she wants to enjoy her breakfast. I tell them, "That's fine. Take all the time you need. We're going to go get in line so we can be some of the first people there. Just know that every minute you spend on your leisurely morning here means more waiting for you in lines later." They both wisely decide to get their acts together & go with us. DH gets some coffee to go. So does MIL. Igrab 2 bananas for the kids to snack on for later in the morning.
• 7:20 am - all 5 of us leave Park Vue Inn.
• 7:30 am - all 5 of us get through security screening & are in line at the DL main gate.

It's really hilarious, but my family knows that I mean business when we're at Disneyland and I tell them that I WILL leave them behind and that I WILL go without them.

 

[VandVsmama]

Sun 3/10 Touring Plan continued:
I enjoy laughing at myself, as you can probably tell from my previous post. A Sunday morning at Disneyland is NOT a time to sleep in! 8-11:30 am is prime ride time on a day like that! Especially when the average So Cal resident going to DL that day won't get there until 11 am - 12 pm. I've used Ride Max's subscription service enough times now at DL to know how things usually go in the morning at DL for the first 2-3 hours. So we're going to wing it based on our previous experience.

Here's the more detailed plan for Sunday morning!

• 7:40 am - they'll probably start letting people in the main gate. We'll go walk down Main Street, give high 5's to all of the CMs who line Main Street at that time of day (I LOVE THIS PART SO MUCH!!). Then we'll go gather at the rope that'll be headed to Fantasyland (probably on the right side of the castle since I think the pathway through the castle will be blocked).
• 8:00 am - rope drop! We head to Dumbo. MIL parks her scooter nearby in FL. I use Max Pass to get us FP for Star Tours.
• 8:00 am - 9:00 am - After Dumbo, we go on Alice. Then Mad Tea Party, Mr Toad's Wild Ride, and Pinocchio. (not too much of a walk between any of these, so MIL won't have to relocate her scooter).
• 9:00 am - we all go on Snow White. then MIL gets on her scooter & we get a scooter/wheelchair return time for Peter Pan.
• ~ 9:15-9:20 am - DH, kids & I go on Star Tours. MIL parks in Tomorrowland and people watches while we ride. After scanning our tickets to use the FP, I get us a FP for Indiana Jones.
• ~ 10:00 am - we go back to Peter Pan to ride it using MIL's scooter/wheelchair return time.
• 10:05 am - done on Peter Pan (it's a 3.5 minute ride). Take pics of kids at the stationary tea cup for old time's sake. Take pics of MIL & the kids trying to pull out the sword in front of King Arthur's Carousel. Usually there's a PP photographer there in the morning. Do a bathroom check, see if YDD with the small bladder has to use the facilities. Check w/MIL to see if she needs something to eat. DH reminds her to drink some water.
• 10:15 am - head over to Adventureland. Check return time for IJ. Assuming FP return window has opened, DH, kids & I go on IJ while MIL waits. After scanning our FP for IJ, I use Max Pass to get a FP for Splash Mtn.
• ~ 10:35 am - we're probably done on IJ. Go collect MIL and head to Jungle Cruise. Get a wheelchair/scooter return time for Jungle Cruise. If >20 min later, go to Tiki Room first. DH & kids don't care for the Tiki Room, but MIL hasn't been there in about 30 years, so we're all going to do it to make Grandma happy.
• ~ 11:00 am - leave Tiki Room, head back to Jungle Cruise. Go on Jungle Cruise using MIL's scooter/wheelchair return time.
• 11:20-11:30 am - head over to NOS to check DH & MIL in at the Blue Bayou for their lunch reservation. I have to check them in because the reservation is in my name. From what I recall, I would swear that I have to show ID or something when you check in that the hostess desk/kiosk.
• 11:40 am - DH & MIL's reservation for lunch at Blue Bayou. Kids & I leave them to go on Splash Mtn. After using the Splash Mtn FP, I get FP for all 5 of us to go on HM (if HM is running FPs that day).
• 12:00 pm - kids & I have lunch at French Market.
• ~ 12:45 pm - DH & MIL are done w/lunch at Blue Bayou. All 5 of us go on HM using the FP I got about an hour previously. After scanning the HM FP, I get FP for DH, kids & I to go on BTMRR.
• 1:15 pm - MIL is totally tired & needs a nap. All 5 of us go to the hub & we take family photos in front of the partner's statue. Kids & I ride a Main Street vehicle down to Town Square while DH walks w/MIL to the exit. DH probably leaves w/MIL to take a break. Kids don't want to leave, so I stay in the parks w/them for another hour.
• 1:30-1:45 pm-ish - Kids & I take train from Main Street station to New Orleans Square station. We stop in the Pandora store in NOS so ODD can buy another charm for her Disney Pandora bracelet. Then we use our FP to go on Fast Choo Choo (BTMRR). Pre-order the kids some ice cream sundaes from Gibson Girl on Main Street.
• 2:00-2:15 pm-ish - Get silhouettes done of the kids at the silhouette studio on Main Street. Then go over to Gibson Girl to pick up the ice cream sundaes. Eat them at Coke Corner.
• 2:30 pm-ish - leave a thank you for a CM at City Hall. Then leave the park. Turn off all the lights in the hotel room, everybody turns off their devices & their phones so we can all take a 10 min nap.

 

[VandVsmama]

Sun 3/10 Touring Plan continued:

We have reservations at 5:30 pm at Hungry Bear for Fantasmic. So here's my thoughts on the evening's plans for Sunday:

• 4:30 pm - DH goes to MIL's room or calls her room & reminds her that we're leaving in 15 min to go back to the parks. DH said that MIL usually gives herself an insulin injection around 3:30 pm every day (in addition to 1 in the morning), so she can do this in her room and not need to take the insulin w/her into the parks.
• 4:45 pm - all 5 of us leave Park Vue Inn to head back into DL for the evening.
• 5:00 pm - we're probably inside DL at this point. I'd like to get all of us on POTC before dinner, but I'm not sure if that will be do-able.
• 5:30 pm - check in at Hungry Bear for our Fantasmic reservation. I send kids to get 2 tables by the water. I look at FP return times for HM or BTMRR. If there's HM return times around 6:30-7:30 pm, I'll grab a FP for the 5 of us to go on this again.
• 6:30 pm - we're done with dinner. All 5 of us go on Winnie the Pooh (since it's RIGHT THERE and there's usually NO wait and MIL has never been on this ride).
• 6:45 pm-ish - All 5 of us go on POTC. Then use the FP I got earlier to go on HM again.
• 7:30 pm-ish - DH & the kids have some fun at the shooting gallery in Frontierland. MIL & I browse in the Frontierland shops. This is a good time for a bathroom break.
• 8:00 pm - we go check in at the Hungry Bear section for Fantasmic. MIL will probably end up toward the back of the section so she doesn't block the view of people who would sit/stand behind her. We'll go in front of her. This is where my scarves/sarongs will come in handy. Make sure that DH keeps his Fantasmic! FP in his wallet in case he wants to run to the bathroom at the "last minute" 30 min before the show starts.
• 9:00 pm - Fantasmic starts
• 9:30 pm - fireworks start. I grab FP for kids & I to ride BTMRR or Splash Mtn again.
• 10:00 pm - DH & MIL go back to the hotel. DH will probably be totally wiped out from dealing with his mom most of the day. He'll want to stay w/the kids & I, but he'll need extra energy the next day to deal w/MIL again. Kids & I will stay in DL. We'll head over the back way to Fantasyland and go on some Fantasyland rides again. Maybe Casey Jr Circus Train if that's running after fireworks.
• 10:30 pm - go on Pirates again.
• Just before park closes at 11 pm - get in line for BTMRR or Splash Mtn. Then leave and go to the hotel for bed!

 

[VandVsmama]

Mon 3/11 Touring Plan:
We will all be a bit more tired today since this is Day 3. So we ALL will definitely be taking an afternoon nap at the hotel on this day! But the plan is still to leave the hotel by 7:20 am, get through security and in line at DL main gate around 7:30 am. Since on Sunday, we focused on Fantasyland for the first hour, on this morning, we'll focus first on Tomorrowland to get a couple of those out of the way. Here are the park hours:

DL 8:00 am - 12:00 am
DCA 8:00 am - 10:00 pm

So here's the more detailed plan for Monday:

• 8:00-9:00 am - be in the park near Tomorrowland for rope drop. Get FP for 4 of us for Star Tours while we walk to Autopia. Go on Autopia, then all 5 of us go on Buzz Lightyear. Then use the FP for Star Tours. Then head over to Fantasyland to inquire about a scooter/wheelchair return time for Storybook Land Canal Boats (if wait is >20 min, MIL won't be able to stand in line). If wait is >20 min, get the return time for MIL & then we'll go to Toon Town.
• 9:00 am - go to Mickey's house and take family photos w/Mickey. I really also want to get a photo of just my kids & MIL with Mickey. After meeting Mickey, go on Roger Rabbit with probably almost no wait. DH and the kids love this ride and I'm certain that MIL will be able to handle it. Check Max Pass for return times for Toy Story or RSR at DCA. Target to have a FP for RSR or Toy Story for ~ 12:30-1:30 pm at DCA.
• After Toon Town, head back to Fantasyland and go on Storybook Land Canal Boats.
• It'll probably now be ~ 9:45 am. We get MIL a scooter/wheelchair return time to go on Mr Toad. While waiting for that wheelchair return time to open up, we all go on IASW.
• probably ~ 10:15 am - MIL, DH, & the kids go on Mr Toad while I go on Matterhorn in Single Rider line (I'm the only one who likes this ride!). Hit up another Fantasyland ride again. Then we can all head to New Orleans Square and go on POTC together.
• now it'll probably be ~ 11:30 am - DL will start to get more crowded and we'll be ready to have a break for lunch. I think that we'll probably end up eating at Galactic Grill, a combination of Coke Corner/Jolly Holiday Bakery Cafe, or the Plaza Inn. Or we might do French Market since MIL & DH wouldn't have eaten there yet. I am pretty certain that MIL will enjoy the ambiance at French Market.
• 12:00-12:15 pm-ish - we head out of DL, park hop over to DCA. When we leave the hub area in front of the castle, I'd really like for MIL to be able to ride a Main Street vehicle back to Town Square...especially the horse-drawn trolley or the fire truck. DH or I could ride MIL's scooter to Town Square to meet her.
• 12:15-12:30 pm-ish - probably are at Toy Story now to use the FP. On the way to Toy Story, take photo pass pics with a PP photographer near the entrance to Pixar Pier (to hopefully get Mickey's Fun Wheel in the background of the picture). After Toy Story, I get a FP for DH, kids & I to go on RSR later in the day. After going on Toy Story, we all head over to Carsland and take MIL on Mater's or Luigi's (whichever she didn't get to go on 2 days before on Saturday). Before we leave Carsland, take some family photos there w/a PP photographer...or do that on Saturday afternoon/evening. Then we all go to Hollywoodland and go on the Monsters, Inc ride.
• After Monsters, Inc, leave the park, go to the hotel, take a nap!

 

[Jaina]

Your Sunday morning itinerary had me cracking up! You have got this down to a science! I tried that on our last trip, but we ended up throwing it out the window within an hour, so we'll see what happens this time... I'll probably still make a plan, just a little looser this time.

 

[VandVsmama]

Your Sunday morning itinerary had me cracking up! You have got this down to a science! I tried that on our last trip, but we ended up throwing it out the window within an hour, so we'll see what happens this time... I'll probably still make a plan, just a little looser this time.

Yeah, that whole routine of what happens before we even leave the hotel is what happens every single time. Seriously, it does. Every time, my family acts the same way & the conversation goes the same way. They're very predictable and I know that their desire to not wait in lines overrides their desire to sleep in. It's really funny. It goes something like this:

me: tiptoe quietly around the hotel room. Shower quietly, get dressed quietly in the dark so as to give everybody else maximum sleep time.
me: Honey, time to wake up (me waking up DH)
DH: (grunts at me, rolls over) 1 more minute
me: Girls, time for Disneyland!
kids: Go 'way
...5 min later...
me: (shakes DH, speaking louder this time, all bathroom lights are fully on now) Honey, if you want to shower, you need to get up NOW.
me: (turn on TV to Disney Channel) Girls, time to get up.
ODD: What TIME is it?
me: It's ___. We need to leave in ___ minutes.
ODD: (grumble, grumble) Ok, FINE! I have to go to the bathroom.
me: Ok, you get first dibs. Go for it. (ODD gets up, YDD still fast asleep. that child can sleep like the dead)
me: (nudge DH yet again) DH's_NAME! IT'S TIME TO GET UP! YOU HAVE X MINUTES LEFT TO GET READY! I WILL LEAVE YOU HERE IF YOU'RE NOT READY!
DH: Ok, FINE! (like father, like daughter!) What TIME is it?
me: It's ___. We need to leave in ___ minutes so we have enough time for breakfast.
DH: wake me up when ODD is out of the bathroom.
ODD: (emerges from bathroom). Done. Next.
me: DH, bathroom's free.
DH: (silence, he's snoring now)
me: DH! BATHROOM'S FREE! (nudge YDD awake) DH, WE ARE LEAVING FOR BREAKFAST IN 5 MINUTES! (it's really 10 min, but they don't know that and I have to give them less time because I know it takes them forever)
YDD: are we going to DL today?
me: Yes, sweetie. Get up please, go to the bathroom, brush your teeth, and get dressed. We're leaving for breakfast in the lobby in 5 minutes.
YDD: (gets up) OK! Are we going on Pirates today? Do you think we'll get to see Peter Pan? (normally, she is very grumpy in the morning. Except on Disneyland days!)

me: DH! YOU HAVE 3 MINUTES TO BE DRESSED AND READY TO GO OR THE KIDS AND I ARE LEAVING WITHOUT YOU!
DH: (really grumpy) Ok, FIIIINE! I'm up! (actually sits up in bed now, gets up, heads to bathroom)
YDD & ODD in the meantime are getting dressed, brushing teeth, getting shoes on, all of that normal morning stuff. Talking about what rides they want to go on, which characters they hope we run into that morning, etc.

...5 min later...
ODD & YDD: Ok, Mama, we're ready!
me: Great! Ready for breakfast? Let's go to the lobby for breakfast.
YDD: But what about Daddy? He's not in the shower yet.
me: You snooze, you lose. He'll catch up with us.
ODD: But you're leaving Dadddy?
me: We're not going to outer Mongolia. We're just going to the lobby. Daddy and I both have cell phones. (stick my head in the bathroom) DH! We're going now! Meet us downstairs for breakfast! We're leaving the lobby for the main gate at ___ am!
DH: You're not waiting for me?!
me: No! I told you that last night. And I told you this morning. We'll meet you downstairs. I'll get your breakfast ready for you. You want coffee, right?
DH: Yes please. Ok, see you in a few minutes.

Then kids & I leave. We're almost done eating when he finally shows up for breakfast. His breakfast is now lukewarm, but he eats it anyway because he doesn't care...he just wants coffee in him pronto. Downs 1 cup, scarfs down his breakfast in like 5 minutes, gets a 2nd cup of coffee to go, and then we leave the lobby 5 min after I told them we actually needed to leave (which ends up to be the real time we need to leave).

it's been 6 yr in a row like this. ROFL!!!!

At home during the week when we are all prepping to leave the house in the morning for work/school, I always do a "10 MINUTES!" and a "5 MINUTES!" shout out warning. When we go vacation elsewhere, we sleep in an go at a leisurely pace. On a DL trip, we get extra sleep & rest during the PM break at the hotel. But not in the morning!

 

[AJA55]

That's quite the plan VandVsmamma.

I used to have a detailed timeline planed. They were on 3 by 5 index cards.

Now we're older, and more relaxed. Or is it just slower? haha...

 

[VandVsmama]

That's quite the plan VandVsmamma.

I used to have a detailed timeline planed. They were on 3 by 5 index cards.

Now we're older, and more relaxed. Or is it just slower? haha...

I hear ya! In my case, I'm dealing with Mr. Food Police and Grandma who wants to ride everything, but can't stand in lines all day long & needs naps every afternoon. And Mr. Food Police hates waiting more than 20 min in a line for anything. And when Mr. Food Police gets grumpy, then kids get grumpy. And then Mama here gets grumpy and that's when nobody has a good time.

So yes, I'm the cruise director on the Good Ship Lollipop herding everyone this way and that.

Mr Food Police is also way less grumpy when he doesn't have to think about where we're going to go next, what we're going to do next, or where we're going to eat. He wants to have decided that stuff ahead of time and he wants to be on autopilot so he can focus on being in the moment with everyone and enjoying the experience....instead of being in decision-making mode all day long. Mr. Food Police has some definite ideas on what his big things are that he wants to do on a DL trip and we always talk about it ahead of time....this is something I learned from my parents. Well, my parents did it the hard way. We'd go on family vacations and invariably, my mom and dad would always end up arguing at several points during the trip because Mom wanted to do X, but Dad wanted to do Y...but neither of them told the other person that they really wanted to do X or Y on the trip. So they'd both be angry and resentful for either most of the trip or for a long time afterwards because they were angry that they didn't get to do X or Y.

....this is why Hydroguy's advice on having everybody pick their #1 thing that they want to do is such good advice. Everybody in our travel group picks THE #1 thing they want to do on the Disney trip and we make sure that we do each of our group's #1 things on that trip. And before we even leave home, we go in with the attitude that everything beyond our collective group of #1 things is "icing on the cake."

As a result, we all have a much better time. Everyone is much more patient with each other. There's far less snapping at each other. And nobody gets home from the trip angry, resentful, or with hard feelings.

Grandma's personality is that she likes to know what the plan is.
She likes to know what time she's going to eat.
Also likes to know WHERE she's going to eat.
And likes to know WHAT she's going to eat so she can plan accordingly Type 2 diabetes-wise.

Normally on a DL trip, for CS restaurants, we play it a lot more by ear. But with Grandma going on this trip with us, I'm being way more anal about meals. Normally at home, Grandma eats breakfast around 7 am, lunch at 11-11:30 am, and dinner between 5-6 pm. So to put things into perspective, for something like Thanksgiving or Christmas, if we are hosting, MIL usually calls me 2-3 weeks ahead of time to ask what exactly are we eating and what time are we eating. Then if I haven't figured out the details yet, she calls every couple of days until we have a more firm/definite answer for her.

So yeah...Grandma is not flexible. Think back to when your kids were in preschool or were toddlers and you had them on a schedule...nap at this time, eat at that time, go to bed at X time. That's my MIL nowadays.

 

[VandVsmama]

So what's our collective list of #1 things to do this trip?

• MIL - eat a meal at Blue Bayou, go on POTC, go on HM
• DH - go on Mr Toad w/his mom
• ODD - go on RSR
• YDD - go on POTC
• me - get family photos taken w/MIL @ DL & DCA, get silhouettes done of the kids, buy 1 trading pin to commemorate the trip, leave a thank you every day at City Hall for a CM.

That's it! Everything else is icing on the cake. If we achieve all of the above, it'll be an awesome trip. It could rain and we could still have a great time. You know what's not on there? Fireworks. Fantasmic. Character meals. Going on a million rides. Are we going to do some of that? Yes. Will we stick to everything on the tentative plan? Probably not, but we'll get all of the #1 things done for sure!

It's going to be a lot of fun!

 

[theluckyrabbit]

... So yes, I'm the cruise director on the Good Ship Lollipop herding everyone this way and that...

LOL!! Oh, I so hear you on this... and then my family doesn't get why I need a vacation after a DLR trip!

 

[Jaina]

Our mornings (all of them, but much more intense when we're all sharing small space while traveling) go more like:
4:30-5 AM
DS5: *Awake* "Is it time to get up?"
One of his parents: "No, go back to sleep."
DS5: Does not go back to sleep. While "trying to be quiet," manages to wake the rest of his siblings, which never ever go back to sleep.
Both of his parents: "Seriously?!?"
Repeated ad nauseaum. If it's not DS5, one of his siblings steps up to the plate and plays that part.

 

[VandVsmama]

Our mornings (all of them, but much more intense when we're all sharing small space while traveling) go more like:
4:30-5 AM
DS5: *Awake* "Is it time to get up?"
One of his parents: "No, go back to sleep."
DS5: Does not go back to sleep. While "trying to be quiet," manages to wake the rest of his siblings, which never ever go back to sleep.
Both of his parents: "Seriously?!?"
Repeated ad nauseaum. If it's not DS5, one of his siblings steps up to the plate and plays that part.

I laughed out loud when I read this because this has happened to us!

 

[VandVsmama]

DH & I have been married for a long time...over 20 years. And in that time, we've figured out a couple of things about ourselves when it comes to vacations.

First, when it's a Disney trip, we want to use our limited time to our best advantage. We HATE waiting in long lines. We NEED breaks away from the parks. We do NOT like to be "those people" who stand in the middle of Main Street with a map deciding for 15 min where to go next...all the while, ride wait times keep increasing. Hence, that's why the uber planning ahead of time.

Second, on a NON-Disney trip, we totally go with the flow. We decide the 'day of' where we might want to eat that day. We usually don't plan activities in advance. We don't like having to be up at a certain time or be somewhere at a certain time.

But on a Disneyland trip? No, those are not leisurely sleep in until 11 am trips. Those are adventure trips!

 

[FeistyDisneyMom]

I love every single bit of your plan and can relate so much to your family dynamic. My ODD and DH are so much like that I was laughing so hard and nodding as I read your Sunday morning plan. Pretty sure I could copy/paste for my Monday morning plan!

I also love your prioritization and expectation setting. I'm definitely doing that with my kiddos. DH is the kind of partner who has pretty much zero interest in the pre-planning. I know he appreciates things when they go well even when issues come up(like the year I had everything planned out so well for the group that even though I was too sick to do the park one day, they had a great time following my directions), and he has a great time in the parks once we are there. His ideal vacation is definitely more a sit by the pool/beach/fire/anywhere you can reasonably sit for an entire day and chill. The downside is, when I ask him what his 'must do' things are, he's non-specific - 'whatever makes you happy dear' and 'anything that puts a smile on the kids' faces'. Lovely sentiments, but so unhelpful while planning

I can't wait to see how things go for you guys! I know you will have fun! Our trips are overlapping (11-15th for us). If we make it to a rope drop maybe we'll see your group

 

[DocDCT]

• The kids asked if we could stay until closing one night. I haven't decided yet if it'll be Sunday or Monday. I'm tempted to do it both nights! But if we stay until closing both nights, then the kids will definitely need a mid-afternoon break both of those days and I'll need to force them to take a nap...even if it's just for 10 minutes.

I definitely agree on the enforced naps. Kids their age often say their not tired until they hit the wall and too many parents just believe them. Are your kids reasonable about that?

 

[VandVsmama]

I definitely agree on the enforced naps. Kids their age often say their not tired until they hit the wall and too many parents just believe them. Are your kids reasonable about that?

My kids are definitely NOT reasonable about this! You'd think that I was torturing them. I'm going to have to confiscate the electronics and force DH to turn the TV off so the kids actually nap for a few minutes.