The trip we have no business taking! Jan 2010

mom2meiko

Mouseketeer
Joined
Apr 17, 2007
Messages
402
Hi all!

I've never done a trip report or pre-trip-report before but figure if nothing else it's an opportunity for me to track my own plans, thoughts, etc. I don't know if anyone will find it interesting, but there you have it. If you see anything you like or think is crazy, feel free to jump in! :) I'll do my best to continue to edit it and update it to make it the best it can be.

Cast of characters:

Me - My name is Melissa and I am a wife, mother and of course a disney addict! My first trip was when I was just 4 years old and I've been in love ever since! I'm a planaholic and I love it! I always have to plan something - be it a party, renovation, vacation, whatever! I always have something in the works! :)

DH - His name is Dave. I introduced him to Disney parks in 1996 when we traveled to CA and visited Disneyland for the 1st time. He is now an official Disney addict as well! He may even surpass my addiction levels to be honest! :laughing: He has even picked up a 2nd job to feed his addiction - aka afford our DVC - without having to feel too guilty.

And then there are our darling children... Cora is 2 and Jackson is currently 6 weeks. Yes, that's right - we are already planning his first trip to the world! He will be 6.5 months at the time - a tradition we started with Cora and hope to continue with future children as well! ;)

We also have our partners in crime, our BFF's Kim and Jay along with their 2 children Matt (9) and Emma (4). This will be our 3rd trip to the world together. We generally travel really well together - although there are of sometimes a few bumps along the way as with most situations where you combine more than 1 family.

Our plan so far - very subject to change of course...

We are flying out on 1/9/10 from BOS to MCO, arriving at 7:30 PM. (A later flight than we would typically choose but it was significantly cheaper than the others.)

We will be using our DVC points to stay at Animal Kingdom Lodge - Kidani Village. This is a new adventure for us as we typically stay at WL - our favorite home away from home - but we booked late and WL was already full. :sad1: We actually got the very last dedicated 2 bedroom unit at AKL available - whew!!! It seems there are a lot of runners coming to WDW that weekend and taking up all of the available space! Now I love Disney but I have to say that running through the parks just isn't appealing to me. If I'm going to be there, I'm going to be enjoying it at a leisurely pace with many stops along the way. Then again, if I had to run, what better place than WDW??? Way to go to all you runners!!!

OK - taking a short intermission while I make some "eggies" for dd.
 
So - back to the planning books... :)

The Disney Marathon is happening during our first weekend there. We have no idea what to expect, never having been there during marathon weekend in the past. We had planned to go to Disney Studios on Sunday, 1/10, but we are now debating going there, going to SeaWorld (and escaping all of the WDW marathon madness) or just hanging out around the resort and possibly hitting DTD. Our goal is to go the road less traveled on that day - so we have to do some research on where it will be the least crowded. Not sure what the BFF's will decide either but they are far less inclined to sit around "doing nothing" than we are.

Some other things we are trying to decide...

I have some mobility issues due to some serious back problems that I have had for a number of years. Ultimately I will require surgery to correct the problem but I'm still avoiding that nightmare because of the downtime it would require. I can't handle a lot of downtime that keeps me from caring for my babies so avoidance of potential injury is key for me. This means that my walking abilities are very limited. Once I receive the OK from my OB I will begin taking some small walks to try and build up some strength but I will most likely end up requiring an ECV again this trip. So the question is - do I get one only at the parks each day or just bite the bullet and get one for the week from an outside source? Decisions, decisions...

We are also going to rethink our restaurant choices since we are not going to have the close proximity to the MK resorts. We had planned on dinners at Artist Point, Whispering Canyon, 1900 Park Fare (all 3 tried and true in our books) and California Grill (would be our 1st time). This had of course been planned when we expected to be staying at WL so we are trying to determine if there culinary experience will be worth the travel hassle. Again, decisions, decisions...

OK - baby is waking up so I have to run once again... More later...
 
all right - I'll admit your title "got me" I had to come in and see if you were a runner!!

:rotfl2:

WHAT? Just a lover of Disney!! (and I so chuckled at your assesment - ITA - I am NOT in any way shape or form a "runner" I did it in '08 to get to go to Disney with DH - and somehow got roped into it again - and I'm worse off now than I was then - but IF I HAVE TO - I'll run at Disney!! :goodvibes)


This time we're taking DD 12 - and we booked early enough that we're at BCV!!

Since we were runners last time I'm not sure I have any advice for you!! I can tell you if you arent in the bus at 5AM - you cant get there from BCV - they close the roads to traffic!! BUT you have to keep up a 16 min per mile pace or you are "swept" off the course - Disney does open up the roads - but I've read reports that it is still a traffic snarl on Marathon Day.

The half is over by 11am and its the road to Epcot that gets snarled - we start running at 6:30AM and go up to MK then back down to Epcot!

The Marathon goes thru all 4 parks and someone posted that when he ran thru AK - he stopped at EE and rode it!! (no, you're not supposed to do that!!) I just hung out at Epcot to cheer DH and others on - which I'm sure got annoying! I think most people head to MK on this day - since the Marathon RUnners are out of the park before it opens!! (not so the other parks!)

I can tell you we at a BOMA and DD really wanted to stay there!! I enjoyed it and DD and I are really really picky eaters!! (altho a CM that eats there regularly was disgusted they no longer have prime rib on the buffet - just a sirloin steak that gets dried out - not sure if that's changed!!)

With your entourage of kids - you really should be fine going to at least 1900 Park FAre (another fav of dd!!)

BTW - in case you havent noticed - I tend to talk too much!! :rolleyes1
 












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