SwansLoveDisney
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- May 15, 2007
- Messages
- 2,954
Well, I've decided that it's inevitable...I am starting my Pre-Trip Report. After reading and loving so many others on these boards, I've decided it's my turn.
First, I will give you my Disney history. My first Disney trip was when I was 12 years old, with my parents and my 3 older brothers. We did four days in the World and then went on the Big Red Boat for 3 days. At that time, MGM was very new. Magic Kingdom and Epcot were fabulous. MGM provoked sheer amazement from my brothers and me. I knew then that I loved Disney, but I also knew it would be a long time before I would go back.
Fast forward to 2004...I finally got my Master's Degree and had my first job. I had my own money for the first time in my life. I was dating my then-boyfriend, now husband. To my surprise, when I brought up a Disney Trip, he quickly agreed. So I began to do my research. We booked a 5-night stay at POP. The only website I consulted at that point was the official Disney website. How short-sighted of me!!! Despite my naivete, we had a great time and we went on every ride and saw everything we wanted to, and even some we didn't. My boyfriend surprised himself by really liking Disney World. It wasn't until a couple years later that I discovered that he is actually a Disney grump. More on that later...
After coming home from that trip, I wanted, of course, to plan my next trip. So I convinced my parents that the family should go the Disney World for Thanksgiving that same year. My brother wanted to go on the trip as well. I called my best friend, and she was in. Lo and behold, a postcard for 40% off rack rates showed up in my mailbox! And even though it had blackout dates for the Thanksgiving weekend, it worked! Thank you Mickey! So we now had 2 rooms at POR for 6 nights over Thanksgiving weekend. This is when I got more serious with my planning efforts. I found a few more websites, talked to some more people, and conducted a semi-commando style trip. My family and my BFF are all very easy-going people, and were happy to go along with my planning. Everyone saw what they wanted to see, and we had a fabulous time. Due to my wedding planning (planning for a wedding at Yosemite National Park from Chicago) and planning our move from Chicago to Phoenix, it would be a while before I would return to Disney World.
Next trip was April of 2006. BFF had met her soon-to-be husband and wanted desperately to show him the wonders of Disney World. So we planning a quick trip to the World. It was me, BFF, her boyfriend, and another friend. This trip was great because I got to meet BFF's boyfriend (greatest guy ever, second only to my husband). Let's just say meeting him was the highlight of the trip. The other friend who had come with was cranky for most of the trip. She got her foot run over by a motorized scooter the first day and was having trouble walking, but refused to use a wheelchair. To make matters worse, she somehow scratched her eyeball and there was a little flap of the outer layer of her eyeball, impeding her vision for the rest of the trip. Oh, and she could not walk past a shop without going in and shopping for a half hour.
So now, we're doing a re-do. This time, we're doing it right. Allow me to introduce you to the cast:
There's me, Julie, 27.
I work as a pediatric physical therapist. I play with children all day long and I love it. I still don't consider myself an adult, and I hope that I never will!
Then there's my BFF, Bethlehem, 28. She is due to have her first child July 9. There is currently a family pool on when she will have the baby and how much he will weigh. My guess is 7-7-07; 7 lbs, 7 oz. She is part of my family, I am part of hers. We were roommates for all 6 years (undergrad and grad school) of college, and never had one fight. Halloween is her favorite time of year. So it's only fitting that we'll be at Disney World for Halloween this time!
There's also BFF's husband, Doc, 30. Clearly, he's had training in surgery...if only you could see the finished product of this pumpkin carving!
He is the greatest. He likes Disney, does not love it, but wants to make Bethlehem happy in all ways, so he will gladly listen to our endless talk of Disney World. And he will even accompany us on our trip. He will finish his residency in December and had to move around some of his important residency stuff to come on this trip. What a guy! Oh, and he is obsessed with the Chronicles of Narnia. He even has a tattoo of it.
And last, but not least, is ??????? We don't know yet who will be our fourth person. We are being very picky about this selection, because of our last experience. We have asked my childhood friend, the Italian, 28, to be the fourth. This is a horrible pic of him, but it's the only one I have on my computer. I just won't let him see it.
Because he is unsure of the dates for his 7,777th trip to Italy, he does not yet know if he will be able to join us. He receives a call on a weekly basis to check the status. He promised me yesterday that he will have an answer by next weekend. We'll see!
Why, you ask, is my husband not included? Well, let me introduce you to Grumpy, 29.
Grumpy is perfect in every way. Except that he would rather go somewhere new on vacation but Disney World. His argument is that we should not go back to Disney World, a place I have been 4 times, when there are so many places we have not yet seen. My argument is that this year alone, we have been skiing in Park City, we went to Portland, we went to Seattle, we went to the Grand Canyon, we will go to Hawaii for a week in August, and we'll go to Magic Mountain in LA this summer. We have never been to any of those places. So we are seeing tons of new places. I just really love this one place and want to go back. Grumpy does not object to me going to Disney World. He will listen to me talk about Disney World as much as I like. He even reads interesting and funny posts that I find on these boards, and laughs with me. Right now, he is cleaning the kitchen after a party we had last night. He is a great guy. He just doesn't want to go to Disney World again. All that being said, I convinced him that we are having my 30th birthday party at Disney World. We are inviting all our friends and family, and he is coming along as well. Too bad that won't be until August 2009!
And why, you ask, is Bethlehem and Doc's baby missing from the trip? Bethlehem's mother is dying to have this grandchild. She will be in heaven to have that baby to herself for a week. So baby will be safe with Grandma and Grandpa Bethlehem.
Here are some pics of the rest of my family. They won't be coming along, but they love Disney just the same.
This is Roxy, our firstborn. She really does love Disney, she just doesn't like having her ears on. We're working on that
This is Indy, our new addition. He's 7 weeks old and already loves Mickey. It was meant to be.
Next up: Our plans so far.
First, I will give you my Disney history. My first Disney trip was when I was 12 years old, with my parents and my 3 older brothers. We did four days in the World and then went on the Big Red Boat for 3 days. At that time, MGM was very new. Magic Kingdom and Epcot were fabulous. MGM provoked sheer amazement from my brothers and me. I knew then that I loved Disney, but I also knew it would be a long time before I would go back.
Fast forward to 2004...I finally got my Master's Degree and had my first job. I had my own money for the first time in my life. I was dating my then-boyfriend, now husband. To my surprise, when I brought up a Disney Trip, he quickly agreed. So I began to do my research. We booked a 5-night stay at POP. The only website I consulted at that point was the official Disney website. How short-sighted of me!!! Despite my naivete, we had a great time and we went on every ride and saw everything we wanted to, and even some we didn't. My boyfriend surprised himself by really liking Disney World. It wasn't until a couple years later that I discovered that he is actually a Disney grump. More on that later...
After coming home from that trip, I wanted, of course, to plan my next trip. So I convinced my parents that the family should go the Disney World for Thanksgiving that same year. My brother wanted to go on the trip as well. I called my best friend, and she was in. Lo and behold, a postcard for 40% off rack rates showed up in my mailbox! And even though it had blackout dates for the Thanksgiving weekend, it worked! Thank you Mickey! So we now had 2 rooms at POR for 6 nights over Thanksgiving weekend. This is when I got more serious with my planning efforts. I found a few more websites, talked to some more people, and conducted a semi-commando style trip. My family and my BFF are all very easy-going people, and were happy to go along with my planning. Everyone saw what they wanted to see, and we had a fabulous time. Due to my wedding planning (planning for a wedding at Yosemite National Park from Chicago) and planning our move from Chicago to Phoenix, it would be a while before I would return to Disney World.
Next trip was April of 2006. BFF had met her soon-to-be husband and wanted desperately to show him the wonders of Disney World. So we planning a quick trip to the World. It was me, BFF, her boyfriend, and another friend. This trip was great because I got to meet BFF's boyfriend (greatest guy ever, second only to my husband). Let's just say meeting him was the highlight of the trip. The other friend who had come with was cranky for most of the trip. She got her foot run over by a motorized scooter the first day and was having trouble walking, but refused to use a wheelchair. To make matters worse, she somehow scratched her eyeball and there was a little flap of the outer layer of her eyeball, impeding her vision for the rest of the trip. Oh, and she could not walk past a shop without going in and shopping for a half hour.
So now, we're doing a re-do. This time, we're doing it right. Allow me to introduce you to the cast:
There's me, Julie, 27.
I work as a pediatric physical therapist. I play with children all day long and I love it. I still don't consider myself an adult, and I hope that I never will!
Then there's my BFF, Bethlehem, 28. She is due to have her first child July 9. There is currently a family pool on when she will have the baby and how much he will weigh. My guess is 7-7-07; 7 lbs, 7 oz. She is part of my family, I am part of hers. We were roommates for all 6 years (undergrad and grad school) of college, and never had one fight. Halloween is her favorite time of year. So it's only fitting that we'll be at Disney World for Halloween this time!
There's also BFF's husband, Doc, 30. Clearly, he's had training in surgery...if only you could see the finished product of this pumpkin carving!
He is the greatest. He likes Disney, does not love it, but wants to make Bethlehem happy in all ways, so he will gladly listen to our endless talk of Disney World. And he will even accompany us on our trip. He will finish his residency in December and had to move around some of his important residency stuff to come on this trip. What a guy! Oh, and he is obsessed with the Chronicles of Narnia. He even has a tattoo of it.
And last, but not least, is ??????? We don't know yet who will be our fourth person. We are being very picky about this selection, because of our last experience. We have asked my childhood friend, the Italian, 28, to be the fourth. This is a horrible pic of him, but it's the only one I have on my computer. I just won't let him see it.
Because he is unsure of the dates for his 7,777th trip to Italy, he does not yet know if he will be able to join us. He receives a call on a weekly basis to check the status. He promised me yesterday that he will have an answer by next weekend. We'll see!
Why, you ask, is my husband not included? Well, let me introduce you to Grumpy, 29.
Grumpy is perfect in every way. Except that he would rather go somewhere new on vacation but Disney World. His argument is that we should not go back to Disney World, a place I have been 4 times, when there are so many places we have not yet seen. My argument is that this year alone, we have been skiing in Park City, we went to Portland, we went to Seattle, we went to the Grand Canyon, we will go to Hawaii for a week in August, and we'll go to Magic Mountain in LA this summer. We have never been to any of those places. So we are seeing tons of new places. I just really love this one place and want to go back. Grumpy does not object to me going to Disney World. He will listen to me talk about Disney World as much as I like. He even reads interesting and funny posts that I find on these boards, and laughs with me. Right now, he is cleaning the kitchen after a party we had last night. He is a great guy. He just doesn't want to go to Disney World again. All that being said, I convinced him that we are having my 30th birthday party at Disney World. We are inviting all our friends and family, and he is coming along as well. Too bad that won't be until August 2009!
And why, you ask, is Bethlehem and Doc's baby missing from the trip? Bethlehem's mother is dying to have this grandchild. She will be in heaven to have that baby to herself for a week. So baby will be safe with Grandma and Grandpa Bethlehem.
Here are some pics of the rest of my family. They won't be coming along, but they love Disney just the same.
This is Roxy, our firstborn. She really does love Disney, she just doesn't like having her ears on. We're working on that
This is Indy, our new addition. He's 7 weeks old and already loves Mickey. It was meant to be.
Next up: Our plans so far.
for some reason I cannot see any of your pics.
. I would so draw up this no-complaining agreement for that person. And they would be voted off the island if they did not comply.
, but I think there will be thousands of Pirates there. And with all the accessories you need to be a pirate, I think it would be a difficult costume to pull off.
The only saving grace about departure day is that DH will be at home waiting for me and I am sure I will be dying to see him! We're going to do Epcot this day. This is the day we'll try to get on all the big rides at Epcot. 
