"Then you can stay home, Dad!"

[mommyof2boys1girl]

Sorry - have to share - still laughing....

Last night dh and I were having a discussion about our upcoming trip to DL. We are still in the early planning stage, and dh is having some job uncertainty right now, so we were discussing timing and length of stay, etc... He only has 5 vacation days, but in a couple months he may not HAVE a job anymore, so that may not matter. But anyhow, here's how the conversation went.
Dh "Who knows what's going to happen? Right now, I only have 5 days, so that's as long as we can go for. If I'm not working and in between jobs, we can go for longer. And if I lose my job and don't have another one lined up, I won't want to go at all!"
At which point our 5 year old looks at him in horror and says, very matter of factly..."Well, then, Daddy, you can just stay home alone, while we go to Disneyland!!!"

Ha - guess he got told, huh? He seemed pretty upset that our kids would just go without him - he underestimates the hold DL has on the rest of us!!

Just had to share...

 

[QueenDoOver]

You know what they say. Out of the mouths of babes.

 

[DizNee Luver]

That's really funny...... all I can say is "You Go Kid!!"

Good luck on the job situation, hubby & son both got laid off 3 weeks before christmas & still haven't found work.....gotta love our economy????

 

[noga]

Kids are great!

DH got laid off a week before Christmas and he was a total bum. He didn't want to do anything. We did postpone our Disney trip because of it of course, but we have been very, very lucky that he found another job and we get to go in two weeks

Good luck to you and your family and everybody else dealing with this economy.

 

[pixiewings71]

ROFL!!! Sounds like something my kids would say. LOL

 

[wannagoback]

That's funny! I asked DD4 last week if she wanted to go to Disneyland with just her and mommy. The response I got? "Umm... I'll talk to you about it next week." I said, "next week? that's a long time away?" She says, "Okay, well maybe Saturday." Even though she has no concept of when Saturday actually is.

My other favorite line is this one that comes up whenever I mention a ride (she would hardly go on any rides when we went last year). "Well, I wanted to go on that ride, but you wouldn't let me."

 

[Disney Princess]

Kids are great, aren't they? Sounds like he has his priorities in the right place!

 

[alvernon90]

Kids are great, aren't they? Sounds like he has his priorities in the right place!

Yeah! What a lame-o that Dad is, worrying about how he will provide food, clothing, and shelter for his family during the worst economic downturn of the last 80 years. Sure, the 5-year-old might not understand why Daddy is so stressed out or why Daddy might think spending money at one of the most expensive vacation spots in America isn't such a good idea, but we get the joke.

It's especially funny that the Dad would be so upset that his family would abandon him and give in to the "hold" Disneyland has on them. Doesn't he know that Disneyland means more to kids (and wives) than a father (or husband) ever could?

That kid (and his mother!!) will be standing in line at Splash Mountain while uptight old Dad is standing in line at the unemployment office! Ha ha ha ha! Absolutely hilarious!

 

[Disney Princess]

Yeah! What a lame-o that Dad is, worrying about how he will provide food, clothing, and shelter for his family during the worst economic downturn of the last 80 years. Sure, the 5-year-old might not understand why Daddy is so stressed out or why Daddy might think spending money at one of the most expensive vacation spots in America isn't such a good idea, but we get the joke.

It's especially funny that the Dad would be so upset that his family would abandon him and give in to the "hold" Disneyland has on them. Doesn't he know that Disneyland means more to kids (and wives) than a father (or husband) ever could?

That kid (and his mother!!) will be standing in line at Splash Mountain while uptight old Dad is standing in line at the unemployment office! Ha ha ha ha! Absolutely hilarious!

I'm sorry if it came across as if I was blaming the dad for not wanting to go. I know parents will do the right thing for their situation, and their kids will be better off for it. I was just making a joke that the child obviously didn't understand. I hope I did not offend anyone.

 

[prettyprincessbelle]

Your DD is awesome!!!

That is totally is something I'd say to my Dad.

 

[mommyof2boys1girl]

Hey everyone,
I just wanted to clarify - we won't really be in any financial difficulty if dh loses his job - he will get a nice, tidy package out of it that will get us by until another job comes along. Thankfully, the current economic situation hasn't really affected his job market much. So his disinterest in going to DL wasn't based on not being able to afford the trip so much as he would rather be home hunting for a job, but even he admits that one week probably won't make too much difference, and the kids have been so much looking forward to this trip....Perhaps that is why I was able to find it so funny - I am sure if we were in a different situation, I would feel differently.
I feel guilty having everyone feeling badly for us when we really aren't in as bad a situation as so many others. I wasn't trying to belittle the bad times that many people are stuck in - I was simply struck by my son's dedication to Disneyland!

Best wishes to all whose dreams are being messed up by the current times - here's hoping everything improves soon.

 

[bumbershoot]

Yeah! What a lame-o that Dad is, worrying about how he will provide food, clothing, and shelter for his family during the worst economic downturn of the last 80 years. Sure, the 5-year-old might not understand why Daddy is so stressed out or why Daddy might think spending money at one of the most expensive vacation spots in America isn't such a good idea, but we get the joke.

First, the OP is in Canada, and I don't think it's quite the same up there.

Second, you're takin' it waaaay too seriously.

Third, DLR is one of the most expensive vacation spots? I've looked into other vacations, and it's about the cheapest that I can find! Other than camping, but then that requires a huge initial outlay (or lots of junky rented gear from REI), and still requires, around here at least, reserving sites 9 months out. So I don't know what you're comparing it to, or how you normally vacation there, but it's certainly not one of the most expensive in our experience and research.


Carm, don't let anyone bring you down. Keep above it, which is easy for you, since you're above the States.

 

[alvernon90]

Third, DLR is one of the most expensive vacation spots? I've looked into other vacations, and it's about the cheapest that I can find!

Yow! If you can't find a cheaper place to vacation than DLR, you must be living a lifestyle I can't really imagine. For starters, you could go to almost any beach town in the country for less than 5 days at Disneyland. You could also visit almost all of the major cities which have plenty of cheap or free entertainment (particularly Washington, D.C. where all the major attractions are free). Almost any theme park would cost less than DLR. There are plenty of smaller cities and towns that offer great vacation values, like Austin. Heck, I spent a week in London for less than a week at DLR would cost -- partly because I couldn't find a place that charged $2.50 for a Coke.

Are there luxury resorts that cost more to visit than DLR? Absolutely. Is DLR "about the cheapest" vacation spot out there? Only if you refuse to vacation where most people do.

I apologize if this is hijacking the thread -- the point here is to make fun of a father who thinks finding gainful employment is more important than a trip to Disneyland, contra the opinion of a small child and the people on this board.

 

[pixiewings71]

Yow! If you can't find a cheaper place to vacation than DLR, you must be living a lifestyle I can't really imagine. For starters, you could go to almost any beach town in the country for less than 5 days at Disneyland. You could also visit almost all of the major cities which have plenty of cheap or free entertainment (particularly Washington, D.C. where all the major attractions are free). Almost any theme park would cost less than DLR. There are plenty of smaller cities and towns that offer great vacation values, like Austin. Heck, I spent a week in London for less than a week at DLR would cost -- partly because I couldn't find a place that charged $2.50 for a Coke.

Are there luxury resorts that cost more to visit than DLR? Absolutely. Is DLR "about the cheapest" vacation spot out there? Only if you refuse to vacation where most people do.

I apologize if this is hijacking the thread -- the point here is to make fun of a father who thinks finding gainful employment is more important than a trip to Disneyland, contra the opinion of a small child and the people on this board.

What beach towns are you going to? I live IN CA and can't do a beach vacation for any cheaper than a DL vacation. Seriously.....all the beaches near me are hugely $$$$$$$$$$. For instance DBFs parents rented us a beach house last summer for the weekend, she refused to tell us how much it cost so I did some research and WOW! NO way could we afford that! And flying 4 people to DC would far outweight any free entertainment we would find there. And like Bumber, camping around here you have to book it 9-12 months out or you won't find a spot.

And no one is making fun of the Father in this thread, we all hope he does not lose his job but we also can read that Mom isn't too worried about it and we can feed off her emotions.

 

[Sherwin]

Yow! If you can't find a cheaper place to vacation than DLR, you must be living a lifestyle I can't really imagine. For starters, you could go to almost any beach town in the country for less than 5 days at Disneyland. You could also visit almost all of the major cities which have plenty of cheap or free entertainment (particularly Washington, D.C. where all the major attractions are free). Almost any theme park would cost less than DLR. There are plenty of smaller cities and towns that offer great vacation values, like Austin. Heck, I spent a week in London for less than a week at DLR would cost -- partly because I couldn't find a place that charged $2.50 for a Coke.

Are there luxury resorts that cost more to visit than DLR? Absolutely. Is DLR "about the cheapest" vacation spot out there? Only if you refuse to vacation where most people do.

I apologize if this is hijacking the thread -- the point here is to make fun of a father who thinks finding gainful employment is more important than a trip to Disneyland, contra the opinion of a small child and the people on this board.

What exactly have you been spending at DLR? Within reason, I can budget a weeklong DLR trip to $400-500 per person flying from Seattle (not including food and souvies), if I bring along 3 others with me, but that's still a pretty good deal. How did a trip to London cost less than that? Airfare alone is twice what I can spend at DLR. No, DL is not the cheapest place on earth, but that shouldn't surprise anyone. And I think you missed the OP's point, which was clearly not about her DH (hence the thread titlle)

 

[bumbershoot]

Yow! If you can't find a cheaper place to vacation than DLR, you must be living a lifestyle I can't really imagine. For starters, you could go to almost any beach town in the country for less than 5 days at Disneyland. You could also visit almost all of the major cities which have plenty of cheap or free entertainment (particularly Washington, D.C. where all the major attractions are free). Almost any theme park would cost less than DLR. There are plenty of smaller cities and towns that offer great vacation values, like Austin. Heck, I spent a week in London for less than a week at DLR would cost -- partly because I couldn't find a place that charged $2.50 for a Coke.

Are there luxury resorts that cost more to visit than DLR? Absolutely. Is DLR "about the cheapest" vacation spot out there? Only if you refuse to vacation where most people do.

I apologize if this is hijacking the thread -- the point here is to make fun of a father who thinks finding gainful employment is more important than a trip to Disneyland, contra the opinion of a small child and the people on this board.

Yeah, I don't know what towns you're looking into either....

Beach towns...let's see I could stay with my dad near Santa Cruz, but the trips to the ER for my asthma would bust the budget, as would the cheapest nastiest hotel there. Beach towns in WA...I could camp in a yurt but that's still 50/night, there are spiders, we have to eat out or buy a ton of groceries for the trip, and it's freezing.

I'm not really interested in TX, but staying at a hotel in Austin I'm SURE would be more than the HoJo $59/night entertainment rate!

Perhaps you just travel at DLR a bit differently than many of us here...we have APs so we're not having a huge outlay of tickets when we go...we don't buy many souvenirs, we share food, we bring food in...we have only stayed onsite when we have a great AP rate.

A theme park costs *massively* more than Disneyland! Especially compared to what you get!!! And then their food is MORE expensive, tastes worse, and is even worse for you. I keep wanting to just go to the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk when I visit my dad, but the ride tickets are crazy, especially given how few are actually sized for DS.

Also, beach vacation= bathing suits which are NOT cheap, so there's another chunk of money...


"I spent a week in London for less than a week at DLR would cost -- partly because I couldn't find a place that charged $2.50 for a Coke."

Well, we don't drink sodas so that's not a part of our budget anyway, but...how much do you normally spend at DLR? I think that is where the problem is.

I know how Carm spent their first vacation to DLR, and it wasn't at the GCH. They were very intelligent in how they spent their money and had a great time! And that's how many of us here do trips...we don't throw money away while there and make intelligent choices.



But regardless of all that, the Disneyland forums are supposed to be happy and fun, and insulated from the nonsense that happens elsewhere. So let's play nicer!

 

[mystic_path]

Thats so cute. I am still giggling. Thanks for sharing. Its amazing how kids think and how they come across some times. But its funny how our love of DL starts very early.

 

[pixiewings71]

Just a quick note, we have APs too (xmas gifts for us from DBFs family), our last trip we used timeshare points so our total cost for last weekend was about $200, that is food and gas. We also spent another $106 to upgrade our APs from Deluxe to Premiums (we had gift cards we used for upgrading, the difference was $106). This weekends trip will be a bit more but only because we are paying for a hotel, our points expire this year so we've used them all for our March and May trip and they also paid for our Jan and last weekend trips. We can't do a beach trip for less than $200 for a full weekend away, no way.

 

[alvernon90]

Just a quick note, we have APs too (xmas gifts for us from DBFs family), our last trip we used timeshare points so our total cost for last weekend was about $200, that is food and gas. We also spent another $106 to upgrade our APs from Deluxe to Premiums (we had gift cards we used for upgrading, the difference was $106). This weekends trip will be a bit more but only because we are paying for a hotel, our points expire this year so we've used them all for our March and May trip and they also paid for our Jan and last weekend trips. We can't do a beach trip for less than $200 for a full weekend away, no way.

Well, the reason it sounds so cheap is because you are not counting the stuff you already paid for, like the APs and the timeshare points. By this reasoning, you could have done the entire weekend for $50 (gas money) if you had brought food that was already in your pantry at home. Maybe even $25 if you filled the tank the day before you left for the trip. In any case, I guarantee that you could do a beach trip for $200 for the weekend if you don't count lodging expenses. Find a hotel for the same amount as a hotel in Anaheim, and you are guaranteed to come out ahead because the beach has no admission fee (or perhaps nominal, if it is a state park or something).

Still, the fact that Disneyland is an expensive place is a point not worth arguing, because anyone who wants to argue cannot be convinced otherwise. Therefore I will stop.

 

[pixiewings71]

Ok, apparently you didn't read my post well. We did not pay for the APs, they were gifts, we paid $106 for the upgrade of 4 APs. The timeshare points value is laughable and I would not be able to find ANY type of lodging near a beach for the price we figured it out to be worth. BTW, when we weren't/aren't able to use points we stay at the HoJo for the $59 rate, again, no hotels near the beach will go for that price. And $50 is what it takes to fill the van with 1 tank, we use that driving one way, we need another $50 for the drive home. We did take snacks and water bottles from home, we spent about $100 on gas and about $100 on food. A little less to be honest but $200 is a good estimate. But again, even when we don't use our points it's still not as much as a beach vacation would be.

Of course DL can be expensive, I don't disagree with you. What I do want to know is how you went to London for less than DL and what beaches you are going to because I'd like to go there for around $200-300!