Three Girls and a Daddy: My first pre-trip report!

[Cree629]

Okay, so I have been on these boards (on and off) for the past three years. The reason I say "on and off" is because I just can't seem to be able to visit and post on these boards when I don't have a trip planned. You would think I would need a "dose" of Disney even more when I am not trip-planning, but with me, that's not the case. For the most part, if I don't have a trip in the works, I actually find it a bit depressing to visit here, as it reminds me of the fact that I do not know when I will be able to return to one of my very favorite places in the world.

So, the fact that I am here not only visiting, but posting, must mean that I have a trip in the works, right? I am happy to report that, yes, I am returning to WDW with my family from September 27th-October 4th and I am beyond excited!

Firstly, let me introduce you to my family and tell you a little about our "Disney" background.

I am Chrissy, A 35-year old former elementary school teacher, now a stay-at-home mom to two amazing little girls. My first trip to Disney World was as a 10-year old in 1986 with my parents and my two brothers. We stayed off property, and had a fantastic trip. There is one thing in particular that stands out about that trip (and I only wish I could have known and appreciated how truly amazing it was back then). I still don't know exactly how it happened, but it had something to do with my father's company and some kind of work/contract they did with (what was then called) Epcot Center. The day we visited Epcot, we were given VIP treatment. We had a private Epcot tour guide (I still remember, his name was Jeff!) who took us around for the day. We went in back door entrances on all the rides, never waiting in line. We had snacks and drinks in special VIP lounges throughout the park. It was such an incredible day, and many of my memories of that first trip revolve around being treated as a VIP in Epcot.

I would return to Disney World twice in high school, once to perform as a part of "Magic Music Days" with my high school band. We were part of a parade in Epcot. I then celebrated with my two best friends on our "senior trip." It was my first time staying on property, at what was then Dixie Landings. We had so much fun and still talk about that trip almost twenty years later.

My real obsession (or maybe "passion" sounds a little less crazy) with all things Disney began in 2007 when I was planning my frist trip to The World as a "grown-up," with my husband and then two-year old daughter. I have always been a "planner," and, well, I stumbled across the DisBoards one night and, as I am sure you can all understand, the rest is history! Anyway, more about that trip later; I am supposed to be making introductions here.

Keith, my husband. He is 37 and in orthopaedic sales. He is an incredible husband and an absolutely amazing father. He is my best friend and is always supportive of me and my interests, including my Disney obsession (oh yeah, I mean passion.) He does not necessarily share the passion, but he loves doing anything that involves being able to play with his girls and experience their joy alongside them, so Disney World certainly provides him plenty of those opportunities. He is the more practical of the two of us when it comes to finances, though, and after our last trip to WDW two years ago (more about that trip later, too), he was clear about the fact that it would likely be quite a few years before we would be able to afford to do it again.

Our older daughter, Sophie, is turning 6 in just a couple of weeks. She is an incredibly intelligent, caring, kind, sensitive little girl who always wants to make people happy and proud. She is a rule-follower who literally will not even take off her socks without asking permission. On our first trip to Disney she was 2 years, 9 months. She does not have many memories from that trip, but, man, we do. Seeing The World through her eyes was so incredible. We had an amazing trip. She was turning 4 on her second trip. She does remember quite a bit from that trip. Her little sister was 6 months old at the time, so the family dynamic had changed since our previous trip, but we still had a great time. Sophie is a girly-girl who loves the princesses and Tinkerbell. She is looking forward to meeting Rapunzel and doing the BBB (for the 3rd time!). She wants to dress as Jasmine for MNSSHP. She is a cautious little girl, and I wonder if she might shy away from some of the rides this time (like HM or POTC), even though she has done them before.

Our little one, Lucy, is two-and-a-half. She will turn three just a couple of weeks after we get back from Disney in October. She is almost the complete opposite of her big sister. She is a firecracker-- always on the go. She loves to explore and test limits (tell her not to climb on the dining room table and she will move on to the kitchen table). She has a wonderful sense of humor, and she is so smart, but she definitely keeps us on our toes far more than Sophie ever did! Lucy is a huge fan of Mickey, Minne, and Goofy, as well as all of the Toy Story characters. She also loves the princesses and keeps going back and forth between wanting to dress as Snow White, Ariel, or Cinderella for MNSSHP. She was 6 months old the last time we visited, so she obviously does not remember the trip. But she loves to look at the pictures and keeps saying "I so excited!" when we talk about our upcoming trip.

So, that is our family. I feel very lucky and blessed to have such a great husband and healthy, beautiful little girls. I mentioned our previous two family trips a little in our introductions. Our first was January 18-25 2008. We had just Sophie at the time, and we stayed at POP.

Our second trip was May 1-8, 2009. We traveled with another family, and stayed off-property (pretty sure I won't do either of those two things again anytime soon, but more on that later).

It was after that second trip that hubby told me we wouldn't be able to do it again for quite a while. I thought I was okay with that. For a while anyway. But lately I have been itching to get back to Disney. On top of that, we have had a tough couple of months lately with some family drama and some other difficult situations, so I have really felt the need to have something to look forward to. I promised hubby I would pay for most of the trip with my "babysitting money" (I do afterschool care for two little boys a few days a week), and he gave me the okay to book it just about a month ago. Yay! I chose late September so we could take advantage of the "Kids Stay and Play Free" discount. I am also excited to be able to try MNSSHP! We are staying at Coronado Springs, which I am also beyond excited about.

Never thought I would do a trip report of any kind, but another one of my hobbies is writing, so I figured why not combine my love of Disney with my love a writing and try my hand at one of these reports?

If you have read along this far, thank you! I would love to have you along for the ride as I plan this upcoming trip! I'll be telling some more about our last two trips, as well!

More soon!

 

[PixieMama]

What an adorable family you all are!

I'm also a SAHM to 2 girls (mine are ages 10 and 8). Looking forward to reading more of your PTR!

 

[mrssmith06]

Loving your PTR so far! Your girls are adorable!

 

[ladytink75]

Hello there I would also like to join in on the reading of your pre-trip report.. I am also a SAHM of two girls ages 14 and 11.. I have two trips planned for this year.. My sister surprised me with an all expense paid trip for me and my girls to join her and her daughter in Aug to help celebrate my sisters bday and then the other trip is the one that I am putting together for my family right along with my parents for Christmas of this year and that one is a HUGE surprise for the girls since they don't know about that one yet and I hope they won't find out until we are on the airplane to DW

 

[Cree629]

What an adorable family you all are!

I'm also a SAHM to 2 girls (mine are ages 10 and 8). Looking forward to reading more of your PTR!

Thank you!! So great to have my first reader. I just love being Mommy to two girls. I never had a sister, so watching my two girls together is so special. They are already such good friends. Hopefully, they will stay that way as they get older.

Loving your PTR so far! Your girls are adorable!

Thank you!!

Hello there I would also like to join in on the reading of your pre-trip report.. I am also a SAHM of two girls ages 14 and 11.. I have two trips planned for this year.. My sister surprised me with an all expense paid trip for me and my girls to join her and her daughter in Aug to help celebrate my sisters bday and then the other trip is the one that I am putting together for my family right along with my parents for Christmas of this year and that one is a HUGE surprise for the girls since they don't know about that one yet and I hope they won't find out until we are on the airplane to DW

Two trips!! How exciting! I love that you are surprising your girls! That is going to be such a special moment for all of you!

 

[MelMel11]

Count me in!! Your girls are precious!!

 

[Cree629]

Count me in!! Your girls are precious!!

Welcome!! And thank you!

 

[Cree629]

So, I thought maybe I would start by telling you a little about our first family Disney trip back in January of 2008. We live in New Hampshire (I grew up outside of Boston), but my husband went to college at the University of Tampa. He played baseball for them, and, as it turns out, they have an alumni golf tournament for the baseball team every January. Keith really wanted to go in '08, so we decided to make a vacation out of it and head to Disney World as well.

We booked the trip in September of '07, and it was right around then that I discovered these boards. I was instantly hooked. All of the information and tips I received here were absolutely instrumental in making our trip as magical as it was.

I learned about ADR's and the importance of making rope drop at the parks.

I learned about how to send diapers, wipes, and snacks to the resort ahead of time and which building to request at POP. I learned how to order a custom cake for our first night.

I learned to take a picture of your photopass card numbers in case you lose them.

I learned where to get custom Disney outfits for Sophie and how to decorate our window at POP.

I learned how to trick my husband into trying Beverly at Club Cool (and to have my camera ready!)

I learned how to make Sophie feel like a princess at the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique

and that we should line up early at the Pirate and Princess Party if we wanted to meet Captain Jack.

I learned that if you wanted to ride in the front of the monorail, all you had to do was ask.

I can't even begin to tell you all of the other tricks and tips I learned on these boards that contributed to the magic we experienced that week. We had two particularly magical moments on our first trip... the type of magical moments that make your eyes fill up with tears and that you will never forget. One happened at the Magic Kingdom and was the result of being at the right place at the right time, and the other happened at Animal Kingdom and had to do with the kindness and generosity of one exceptional cast member. Curious? You'll have to stay with me and I'll tell you all about them next time.

 

[PixieMama]

Oh, I love hearing about magical Disney moments... can't wait to hear your stories!

 

[Cree629]

So, I promised to tell you about a couple of my favorite moments from our first family trip to WDW. We arrived in Orlando on January 18, 2008 sometime in the early afternoon after a long morning of traveling (Sophie loved her first trip on an airplane!)

We had rented a car, since Keith would be traveling to Tampa to play in a golf tournament one of the days of our trip. So, we waited for our luggage, got everything all set with the rental car, and finally, arrived at POP.

I had requested a room on the ground level in the 50's section, poolside. Made that request when I initially booked, and double checked on the phone about a week before our arrival. However, for whatever reason, they said they had no record of our request, and that there was nothing available that would match it. We ended up on the top floor in the 60's section. We had a great view of the main pool, which was cool, but our room was about as far from the elevator as you could get, and since we always had a stroller with us (and sometimes were carrying a sleeping child), that made it difficult. Also, we were not particularly close to a parking lot, which was tough for us since we were driving to and from the parks and almost ALWAYS had a snoozing toddler in tow on the way back to our room at night.

But, anyway, I was ridiculously excited to be there and was not going to let anything put a damper on my excitement! We got settled in the room and relaxed for a bit.

Soon, it was time to head over to the Masgic Kingdom for our dinner reservation at Liberty Tree Tavern. I had not been to Disney World since I was a senior in high school in 1993, so I was giddy with excitement. Before long, I saw this sign and got butterflies in my stomach:

After all of the planning and anticipation, we were finally really there!

Okay, so I feel I should pause for a moment here to let you know something about me. I am an extremely emotional person (moreso than ever since becoming a parent), and I have been known to be a crier. I get it from my mom-- I always used to make fun of her when she would come to my school concerts and plays and sit in the audience crying like a fool. And then, I had Sophie. The first time she rode the little mini-train ride at the mall when she was one-and-a-half, I cried like a baby. I instantly had a new understanding and appreciation for my mom...

So, anyway, we go through the gates and start heading down Main Street, and I am just so completely overwhelmed, excited, and grateful. To be back in the most magical place on earth for my first time in 15 years, this time as an adult with my own husband and little girl made me so emotional. My eyes were full of tears (one or two of them escaped, if I can remember correctly).

I was able to get control of my emotions after a minute, and when I did, we noticed that there was a stage show going on in front of the castle. So, we decided to head down to check it out. Then, about 3/4 of the way down Main Street, I noticed a Photopass photographer taking a family's picture. Thanks to these boards, I had known enough to pre-purchased our photo CD for a great discount before leaving home. So, since there was a photographer right there, we decided to stop and wait to get our first picture taken.

So, there we were, posing on Main Street with the castle behind us. The photographer lifts his camera, we all smile, and suddenly, I hear a boom behind us. Fireworks. The photographer's eyes lit up and he kept snapping. More fireworks. People were stopping on Main Street to ooooh and ahhhh and comment on how cool our pictures would be with fireworks in the background. The fireworks lasted all of about ten seconds-- they were the ending to the afternoon stage show that had been going on in front of the castle. We never even saw them; we merely heard them behind us as the photographer was taking our pictures. My eyes were completely filled again. I could not believe that we just arrived at the Magic Kingdom for the start of out first Disney vacation as a family, stumble across a photographer, decide to have our first pictures taken, and then (literally!) BOOM! Ten seconds worth of fireworks in front of the castle happen to shoot off during the exact ten seconds we are having our pictures taken! If you look closely, I am pretty sure you can see the tears in my eyes in this picture. After we walked away and continued down Main Street, I remember that I just kept asking Keith, "Did that REALLY just happen??"

Such a wonderful way to begin our trip, and one of my favorite memories from that vacation.

One of my other favorite "magical moments" would happen a couple of days later at Animal Kingdom, but if you want to hear about that one, you'll have to stick around until next time...

 

[PixieMama]

I'm getting all teary just reading this!

I know what you mean about being more emotional now that you have kids of your own. My kids think it's funny when I cry at stuff... concerts, TV shows, etc.

 

[momabbate]

Joning in. I can tell you are a writer and looking forward to hear the rest of your ptr. I am not a writer so am waiting till closer to time of trip to start a ptr. My hopes are when we get back to have my daughter (who does write) do my tr and I can just comment. Your girls are very pretty. What a great way to start your first trip with fireworks in your pp.

 

[Cree629]

I'm getting all teary just reading this!

I know what you mean about being more emotional now that you have kids of your own. My kids think it's funny when I cry at stuff... concerts, TV shows, etc.

I know! I cried at Sesame Street Live last month. What is wrong with me??

Joning in. I can tell you are a writer and looking forward to hear the rest of your ptr. I am not a writer so am waiting till closer to time of trip to start a ptr. My hopes are when we get back to have my daughter (who does write) do my tr and I can just comment. Your girls are very pretty. What a great way to start your first trip with fireworks in your pp.

Thanks for reading along! It was such a special way to start our trip. It took me about a half hour to get hold of my emotions after that!

 

[Cree629]

I hope everybody had a great Easter. Ours was really nice. I was happy that the weather cooperated for the most part. It has been pretty gray and cool around here lately. I think that is why I am having a hard time wrapping my brain around the fact that May is just a few days away. Sophie will be 6 on May 9th and I feel like that's a world away! Her party is on the 15th, and being the planner that I am (I'm sure most of you know something about what that's like!) I usually have her birthday party completely planned and every last detail taken care of by now. But this year, I still have so much to do! I just can't believe how quickly April has gone by. Some nice flip-flop weather would help me get in a more "springy" mood... Soon, I hope!

Before I tell you about our second magical moment on our first family trip in '08, I am going to make you look at some pictures of my sweet girls on Easter. I may be biased, but I think they are pretty gorgeous.

And here is the whole family:

Oh, and just to keep you hanging for one more paragraph, I had a "Disney" moment this weekend! On Saturday, we decided to take the girls to the mall to walk around. We went to a different mall than we usually do (only about 30 minutes away, but we have one literally down the street, so we usually go to that one). Well, the mall we went to has a Rainforest Cafe in it. I haven't eaten there since it forst opened when I was in high school. But I did eat at the one in Downtown Disney with Sophie in '08 the day that Keith was golfing in Tampa. To my surprise, being there this weekend totally brought me back and felt like I was in Disney again! The whole theme of the restaurant... it was so great! The girls absolutely loved all the animals and the rain (I can't believe we have never thought to bring them before). There was even a pressed penny machine outside the restaurant, and Sophie got such a kick out of making one. It was so much fun and a nice unexpected Disney-like "fix." A couple of pictures:

And then a quick stop to see the Easter Bunny before we left the mall.

Okay, so I suppose I have dragged it out long enough. Sure hope the story won't be anti-climactic after all of that.

Our second super-magical moment from our first trip with Sophie in 2008 happened at Animal Kingdom. We arrived at rope drop on a chilly January morning. (What a crazy time of year there, weather-wise. I literally packed everything from hats and mittens to bathing suits-- and we used them all!). We did the Safari first thing. Sophie loved all of the animals and we had a blast.

After the Safari, we headed over to Tusker house for our 10:00 ADR. Sophie was wearing an absolutely adorable custom boutique Nemo outfit that day. I wish I could say I am talented enough to have made it myself, but alas, I am not, so I found an Ebay seller who was. I am proud to say that I did, however, make the hairbows myself (no sewing required! Just scissors and a glue gun!).

Tusker House breakfast was great! Really good food and a fun atmosphere. Sophie loved dancing and singing with the characters and getting to meet all her favorites.

We were finishing up our breakfast when one of the waitresses came over to our table (she was not even our waitress). She commented on how adorable Sophie's outfit was. Sophie thanked her, and then she asked us if we had gotten a chance to see the Nemo show yet. We said no, and she asked if we would like to. We said yes, we were hoping to catch a show that afternoon. She took our names and told us that she was going to make a call and be right back. A few minutes later, she came back and told us that she had called up to her friends at the Nemo show, and that she arranged for us to have special VIP seating for the 1:00 show. We should arrive 15 minutes early and just tell the CM at the front of the line our names. We couldn't believe she had done that for us! We thanked her over and over again (her name was Danielle!), and asked if we could get our picture with her.

When we arrived at the Nemo show at 12:45 the line was incredibly long. We walked to the front and told the CM our names. He smiled and said, "Of course! We have been waiting for you! Please follow me." The theater was totally empty, and he led us inside. He told us we had our choice of any seats in the house, and suggested where he thought would be the best seats. It was absolutely incredible! About five minutes after we were seated, They opened the doors and all the people who had been waiting outside began to file in. We really felt like VIPs and we LOVED the show! I am still so grateful to Danielle for her kindness. I wonder if CM's realize how magical it truly is when they go above and beyond for guests. I am sure she doesn't remember us three years later, but we certainly still remember her and will remember that magical day forever.

 

[mrssmith06]

Aww the girls look so pretty, glad you had a good Easter!
I know what you mean about the birthday, my DS's is in May as well and I usually have everything done, planned and purchased several weeks, sometimes months, in advance- but with all of the Disney planning right now, I'm behind on the birthday planning lol

 

[Cree629]

I don't know if anyone is still interested in reading, but if so, I apologize about the delay! It's been a crazy busy couple of months (as summer always is!), but I would like to continue with my report and am planning on writing my next entry (about our second family trip back in 2009) later tonight!

Our late-September trip is right around the corner now and I am getting SUPER excited!

 

[momabbate]

I'm still here. I understand the delay. They actually help me I have a list over a page long of threads that I am reading, plus I started my own PTR for our Sept trip this week. Look forward to your next update.

 

[PixieMama]

I'm still here, too!

 

[KatMark]

First, you have a beautiful family--your girls are precious.

The pixie dust stories your first days at the parks are wonderful.

You are staying at our favorite resort (we'll be back to the CSR for our tenth stay). You will be there two of our days.

I look forward to following along with your plans.

 

[Cree629]

Okay, so I thought I would tell you a little bit about our second family trip to the world before I start telling you about our plans for our upcoming trip. We went from May 1st-May 8th 2009. We hadn't planned on another trip to WDW so soon (a little more than a year after our first trip), but we got an offer we couldn't refuse.

My friend's husband is in the Navy, and he gets crazy dicounts on certain condo rentals throughout the country. WDW was also offering an amazing military discount at the time. Our friends asked us to go with them. I think that we paid less than $200 for our share of the condo for the entire week, and then we got 5-day park tickets for $99 each. Impossible to pass up!

So, this trip was a bit different from our previous one. For one, we now had Lucy along with us (she was 6 months old at the time). Secondly, we were staying off-property. And lastly, we were traveling with another family.

So, here is the whole group of us:

Doing WDW with an infant was harder than I thought it would be. I felt badly for her-- it seemed to me that she just wanted her regular routine back. We were dragging her all around in the heat. She wasn't a big stroller napper, and going back to the hotel for a nap wasn't all that easy, since we were off-property. She was a pretty good sport about it all most of the time, but I am not sure I would bring a baby that age again.

She was pretty stinking cute, though, no?

Staying off-property isn't something that I think I would be likely to do again, either. I mean, it was a lovely condo, and for the price how could we refuse? But I am just one of those people who wants to be completely submerged in the whole "Disney" experience when I visit. I want a true escape from reality; a week in a truly magical world away from "real life." So, grabbing breakfast at Krispy Kreme on the way to the park or running into Walmart for a couple of bottles of sunscreen kind of kills the magic a little for me, you know? Also, my husband went golfing one day with some friends from Tampa (and took our rental car!) and the friends we were staying with were out for the day, so I was pretty much stuck at the condo all day that day. Had we been on property, I could have taken my girls and hopped a bus to, well, anywhere!! We did the pool and playground at the condo, but I just felt so removed from the whole "Disney" experience that day.

Sophie and Lucy at the playground at our condo:

I am also not sure the travelling with another family is something I will be rushing to do again. Our friends are great. But it is difficult to find people whom you can really travel/tour with. They had just a little boy at the time, and he was crazy active an couldn't really sit still at restaurants. The wanted to do pretty much all counter-service meals. But we like to have one nice relaxing sit down meal a day. Also, Sophie was so into princesses at the time. Their son wanted nothing to do with waiting in line to meet them, going to the BBB, or having a character meal with them. All that would be fine if we could have just parted ways and met up with each other later. But they wanted to try to stick together as much as possible. So, that made things kind of difficult at times.

Nonetheless, it was a great trip and we have a ton of great memories. The weather was beautiful and the crowds weren't bad. Here are a few of my favorite moments from that May, 2009 trip:

Sophie was chosen by the candy lady in Japan and requested a pink giraffe! SO cool!

Happy family at the Magic Kingdom!

Sophie's makeover at the BBB:

Meeting Tink!

Sophie's 4th Birthday at 1900 Park Fare:

Dancing with Daddy at the Grand Floridian:

Photo shoot at the Grand Floridian:

Daddy participating in the show in France at Epcot!

Chef Mickey's!

So, while I learned a few things about what is not ideal for our family, we still enjoyed our time immensely. Sophie was just turning four at the time, and while she doesn't really have many memories from our first trip when she was still 2, she has many fond memories from this second trip in 2009.

After that trip, I knew I needed to get back to WDW as soon as possible, but the hubby kept saying we would need to wait quite a few years to save up. I nodded my head and pretended I was okay with that, but I think we both knew deep down that I would have our family in Orlando once again before terribly long.

Which, leads us to NOW. It has been over two years since we have visited, but still sooner than hubby's "quite a few" years. I am beyond excited to be going back. My girls are currently 6 and almost 3; which I think will be amazing ages to have them at WDW. I am thrilled about CSR, too! So happy to be back on WDW property!

Looking forward to telling you a bit about our upcoming trip! Plans are done, ADR's are made, cute Disney outfits are purchased...

Won't be long now...