"The greatest gift, and honor, is having you for a daughter" - Grad 2016

[digiMom]

This trip will be all about my DD. She will graduate HS next year, and this trip is one of the motivations for her to get there. There's also other aspects that will come into play as we plan this trip, but DDs graduation is the main one.

I'm not sure what this report will become. If it will be more about how we struggle to get through the next year or where we're going make our ADRs and FP+ choices, but it will be fun. I invite you to join us!

 

[digiMom]

Who?

DS starts HS next year. He's like me in that he wants to do everything perfectly, so I think it will be stressful for him. He's signed up to be in their new InRoads program in the video production strand. I suspect he will be into photography and videography this next trip. He's not "all about Disney," but has enjoyed the trips so far and the rides. So I think he's secretly looking forward to it more than he lets on.

DD has had a long journey. She has physical and developmental delays, no diagnosis, and has been extremely lucky to be surrounded by the wonderful people she has, from doctors to teachers and classmates. I have not wanted to share too many details here to maintain her privacy, but she's 18 now so we may share more info as this thread progresses if she allows. On this trip, she has asked to visit US an IoA, so we will visit those for the first time. She's also very interested in seeing Star Wars Weekends (SWW) at HS, so we'll see if we can work that out.

Grandma (my mom) is so excited to be going again. A good portion of this trip will be her graduation gift. My mom has also been through a lot. Nursing for over 30 years, physical challenges from vision and knee surgery to a fight with ovarian cancer (she's now 10 years cancer free.) She loves going to Disney World and, with her physical challenges, feels this may be the last time she is able to go. (I disagree, but avoid direct confrontations on the matter

... and Me. Hi! I don't like to talk about the personal stuff too much, but think I will here. I was born in Orlando, but my family moved up to the Milwaukee, WI area when I was 18 months old. My grandparents and aunt/uncle/cousins still lived in Florida, so I remember my family packing up everything (including the dog) and driving down to visit every Spring Break. Growing up was tough; I was bullied alot in school and my dad was an alcoholic. But I (mostly) remember having good times on our trips. Only a few of those included time at DW, but those were magical. My parents got divorced and there was a long span of time that I didn't get to visit again. Other than honeymooning offsite there, the next visit was in 2006. My kids were 5 and 8. It became a very special place where my family was accommodated and I could enjoy myself. Life is a wonderful struggle, and when I visit DW I can forget some of it and enjoy the people that I share that struggle with. We've been lucky enough to go every few years since. This 2016 trip has been in the planning for years already and I can't wait to share it here.

What?

A trip to DW that includes a day at US and IoA.

When?

The plan is to leave sometime within the first week that the 2016 school year is over (June 10 - 17), and to stay for probably 8 nights.

Where?

We have been debating where to stay for this trip. DH will be staying back this trip (we've discovered DH and my mom do not travel well together , so we've been trying to find somewhere convenient. Last trip (2014 BWV/VWL/AKV split), we rented points and loved it. My mom's only stayed at POP (other than the Poly and CR when I was a kid), so I wanted her to have a new experience. We've been going back and forth, but ultimately deciding on seeing if we can rent points at BWV. Epcot is her favorite resort and should be extremely convenient. We thought about doing a split stay with VWL because I think she'd love it and to be close to MK and everything in that area for a few days. We were on the fence, though, because we were a little worried about the inconvenience of having to pack and being "homeless" for a day. Ultimately, the rumors of the possible expansion and construction at VWL made the decision for us. I love that resort and don't want to see it torn up. Maybe after it's done...

Why?

It's a graduation celebration! DD will be 19 when she graduates. She had a lot of tests and issues the year she would have started kindergarten, so we kept her in Early Childhood for an extra year when she was little. She always tries to do her best, but school has been a battle and a struggle. I'm hoping that the trip will help keep her focused and motivated as this chapter in her life comes to a close... and help me with the challenges this year will bring, too

 

[lilpixiebabe101]

Yay another 2016 planner! Joining along!

 

[digiMom]

Hi! It seems like forever since I made the initial post here. Life threw me a major curveball when our wonderful dog, Lucy, suddenly became extremely ill. I was initially happy as anything we tested for came back negative until I realized that as we continued down the list of possibilities, the causes became worse. I never did do a biopsy on her liver or spleen as by that point she was too sick to handle chemo even if we chose to go that way. Best guess is she had gastrointestinal lymphoma in her liver and possibly her spleen as well, meaning stage 4 or 5. She was only 6 and completely healthy up to that point, so I feel like my world has been taken away. We had to put her to sleep last Thursday.

So I haven't felt like planning this next trip and I'm not sure when I'll get back to it. I did have enough together to rent our points, so we're booked June 17-24 in a standard studio at BWV. I need to make sure I get some trip insurance. Besides that, it'll probably be a while before I get back into planning.

 

[digiMom]

Things are starting to go to a new normal in our house. I'm so glad it's Labor Day weekend so I can take some time to regroup. I feel like putting our reservation number into My Disney Experience, so I think I'll do that today.

We started our social bowling league this past Friday and found out our new bowling couple is really into Disney We talked about past and upcoming trips. It helped get me back into planning mode. I thing I'll add to my signature as well...