The Merriest Mother and Daughter trip to Disneyland: A Pre-Trip Report

[Mstarprincess]

Hello everyone! This is my first ever post on Disboards, so please bear with me. I have been reading the disboards for months now, but have not gotten the guts to post anything, but now I am just so excited about our upcoming trip that I just can't help myself.

About the trip: It will consist of my mom and I, we will be going November 30th to December 4th. We try to go to Disneyland every year because we are obsessed with all things Disney. I think about Disney things everyday, and about our trip that year, even if its 11 months away. I don't know what this world would be like if Walt Disney hadn't been here. Me and my mom have been through some hard times in our life, and Disneyland has always been like a second home to us. So as I mentioned we try to go every year, but this year we weren’t going to be able to (so I thought) because we just couldn’t afford it. I am in college trying to get into nursing school, so last term I took 18 credits (all science), and that was pretty much my life for 3 months. One night when I was studying I was just getting very frustrated, and I was just really worn out. As I was studying my mom told me to come downstairs because she needed to tell me something really important, so my mopey self went downstairs, and what do I see on the computer screen in big letters??? WE ARE GOING TO DISNEYLAND MEG, YOU DESERVE IT!! Oh my gosh we both started crying, and jumping up and down! I just couldn’t believe it, and it made my year!! So this trip will be celebrating the upcoming holidays, and my acceptance into nursing school! We will be staying at the PP, and we stayed here last year, and we really liked it. We are from Oregon so we will just be flying there, and I just cant wait!!!!

Food that I have never tried, and can't wait to eat are:
Beignets
Chocolate Filled Croissant
Pomme Frites ( I cannot wait to try these, my mouth is watering just thinking about them)
Corn dog
Tinkerbell twist
Funnel Cake


When we go we usually don’t plan on what attractions we want to see or ride, we just do what we feel like. But the musts are Pirates (we have been calling it pirates since I was little) Space mountain, splash mountain, btmmr, all Fantasyland rides, The Matterhorn, ST, The train around the park, smh, and I am really excited for TSMM! We just love Disneyland and try to do everything!

So that is pretty much it, and I just want to say that the Disboards is so amazing for people who love all things Disney, and thank you to whoever started it!

 

[Sherry E]

Meg, welcome!!! And happy holidays to you (and your mom)! I will be eager to read a full Trip Report and see photos after you return, and even read more pre-trip details.

First of all, let me congratulate you on getting into nursing school! Two of my best friends have been RN's and it was a tough, often stressful job for them, but rewarding in the end. They had to have cast iron stomachs and they had to show compassion while still staying sort of detached (it is easy to get attached to your patients), but it was fulfilling because the work is so important. Good luck with that! I am sure everyone knows there is a shortage of nurses in the U.S., so we need as many good ones as possible!

Second, let me say that I know what you mean about trying to go to DLR every year, even when times were tough. I grew up thinking that DL was a yearly thing, because we went every year since I was about 5 years old to about 16. I would be thinking about a trip that was 11 months away also! As soon as one trip was over, I was thinking about the next one! And I carried on the tradition with friends when we were old enough to go without parents, well into my 20's and 30's and now 40's! We continued to go to DLR every year, at least once, and it truly is an escape from the "tough times" in lilfe. You always have a better attitude towards things and everything looks a little brighter when you have been to DLR. You feel like you can take on those problems with more positive energy, in a better mood. I couldn't afford to go to DLR for about 6 years between 2001 and 2007, and when I returned last year for a Halloweentime trip and a Christmastime trip, I knew I couldn't stay away that long again! It is too meaningful to those who really love DLR to have to give it up for a long stretch of time. Of course, now I am in the position where I think I may have to be away from DLR again for another year or two after I pull off this upcoming Christmas trip because finances are just in bad shape, but I do not plan to stay away for another 6 years!!!

Have a magical trip to DLR in just over a week. The holidays are the best possible time to be there, I think! Truly magical! Take lots of pictures for us!

 

[Mstarprincess]

Thank you so much for reading this. Also thank you about the congratulations into nursing school. I know that this career is going to be very hard, but I am ready to just start working, and be done with school. Your absolutely right nurses do have to have cast iron stomachs, and it is hard. The U.S. does need more nurses I just wish there were enough teachers to allow more people to become nurses.

I was going to post pictures from last trips but I dont know how. Do you know how? Also it would be so hard to not be able to go to Disneyland for 6 years! Hopefully that never happens to you again! I think after this trip we wont be able to go for a few years, because finances are tough for us too.

It is so true that after you have been to DLR you do have a brighter outlook on things, and are more positive! I also think that the holidays are the best times at DLR. I will take lots of pictures, now I just need to figure out how to post them!

 

[Mstarprincess]

We will be arriving at DLR at about ten so we plan on being in the park by noon, if not earlier. Everytime we go to Disneyland, on our first day it is tradition that we eat lunch at the RiverBelle Terrace. We havent been there since it was remodeled so I am anxious to see what it's like and what the menu is like. After this we will probably get FP for splash, and space depending on the crowds. But then we will got to BTMMR because this will be our only day to ride it. It is going to be refurbished Dec. 1-5th. I am really disappointed about this because we love BTMMR. So we are going to ride it that day as many times as we can. Also that night we will watch Fantasmic beause it wont be showing any other times when we are there.

This day is going to be very busy for us with little rest. I am worried that it may be too much for our feet to handle, but I think it will be okay. We will stay in the park until we are forced out! Then as soon as our heads hit the pillow I am pretty sure we will be out like lights!

Day 2:
Day 2 we will probably head to CA and head straight for TOT! We love this ride. On our last trip it was our last day, and our last time on this ride. The number one thing that I really wanted to accomplish that hadnt been done yet was to meet Mr. and Mrs. Incredible, and Sulley! I was so afraid this wasnt going to happen because we hadnt seen them that whole week! So as we were walking off of TOT who do we see? Sulley, and Mr. and Mrs. Incredible!!! I was so happy and they were great! But, anyways we will also get a corn dog which we havent had yet, and ride Soarin over California, and Screamin. We also really want to see the Pixar Play Parade. We have not seen this yet, and we are both really excited. Also we have to go to TSMM! After doing this we will head over to DL, and go on Pirates, HMH, and just whatever else we feel like doing. Probably watch the Fireworks this night too.

Well off to bed, have a busy day of studying tomorrow!

 

[Sherry E]

Thank you so much for reading this. Also thank you about the congratulations into nursing school. I know that this career is going to be very hard, but I am ready to just start working, and be done with school. Your absolutely right nurses do have to have cast iron stomachs, and it is hard. The U.S. does need more nurses I just wish there were enough teachers to allow more people to become nurses.

I was going to post pictures from last trips but I dont know how. Do you know how? Also it would be so hard to not be able to go to Disneyland for 6 years! Hopefully that never happens to you again! I think after this trip we wont be able to go for a few years, because finances are tough for us too.

It is so true that after you have been to DLR you do have a brighter outlook on things, and are more positive! I also think that the holidays are the best times at DLR. I will take lots of pictures, now I just need to figure out how to post them!

I do know how to post the pictures but was afraid I wouldn't be able to explain the process properly and it would be confusing!! It took me a while to figure it out too! I found this thread about posting photos in the Tech Support section. I didn't read it all the way through but it looks like you can probably figure out what to do from there: http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1359157

I think you may have to have a certain number of regular posts before you can post photos, but not sure how many. Just keep adding sections to your pre-TR and rack up the post count!

I think a lot of non-Disney people (meaning not that they hate DLR but just that they don't understand what it is about DLR that has so many folks enchanted!) would never comprehend why it feels almost necessary to get back to DLR every year, and why it so depressing when you can't get there. They think it is just a fun place to go where you can ride Space Mountain or whatever, and that it is just sort of superficial feel-good entertainment that you forget about once you get home. Some folks even think DLR is a frivolous waste of money. The people who 'get it' about DLR understand it is much more than that! It is an almost emotional connection to it - especially for those who have been going to DLR since childhood. People love it and get so much joy from DLR. How can that be a waste of time or money? And it truly does put you in a much better frame of mind and give you a better attitude to be able to get back home and face the real world and all its problems. I mean, trips to DLR are not always perfect, and sometimes things can go awry from the beginning of the trip to the end, but it is still better than NOT being there! When I had my first year where I couldn't go to DLR, I was pretty sad about it because it was so foreign. And with each passing year of not going, I got used to it and ended up not thinking about it because it just seemed like it wasn't a possibility anymore. But when I was given some free tickets to DLR after six years, and the opportunity to return there presented itself, I felt the anticipation starting to build again. It had been suppressed for a long time but it was coming back! And once I set foot onto DLR property, that was it! The monster was created all over again!!

I may not be able to get back to DLR every year now - especially when they keep raising prices - but I am not going to wait 6 years to go back if I can help it! You don't realize how much you miss the park until you have been away that long and then come back! It really does feel like you are a kid seeing DLR for the first time all over again!


Good luck with the nursing career and I hope you and your mom have many more DLR trips ahead (at least every other year!). I hope you can figure out the picture posting process soon so we can see some photos from your last trip!!!

 

[travelmel]

Hello everyone! This is my first ever post on Disboards,

Food that I have never tried, and can't wait to eat are:
Beignets
Chocolate Filled Croissant
Pomme Frites ( I cannot wait to try these, my mouth is watering just thinking about them)
Corn dog
Tinkerbell twist
Funnel Cake

Hi! I am all over your Food To-Do List! Looking forward to your upcoming stuff!