Whew! Life. Non-stop crazy the last few weeks and I haven't been on at all. So, for that I'm sorry. Although, I'm sure some of you can relate.
Updates:
(In no particular order)
~BOG take 2! So, we all remember the nutty day I posted about last time. The day the world stopped and ADRs for Be Our Guest became available. Well, I had figured out that literally days after that I would get to attempt it all over again for the Princess 1/2. In my mind I was like surely it would not be as bad because It would be at the 180+10 window. The date I wanted was that Sunday night after race to kind of wrap things up. Perfect, right? Ha.
So, I set my alarm and got up early on a Sunday. I log in and the computer system is not working. Lovely. So, I then decided to bypass it all together and just call. I get to talk to a rep immediately and I tell her what I need and she begins the search. She responds with, "um. I am so sorry but I don't have ANYTHING AVAILABLE on that day. It's already booked?!" She was shocked herself. Seriously?! This is days before it will be open to the public and it's already booked solid by people that got to book at the 180+10?!
I then tell her to search my whole dates and see if she has anything available. (I'll rearrange my plans I just need this ADR for my sister and SIL.) Thankfully, she has just a few spots left for dinner on Friday. Saturday was already full as well. Are you kidding me?! Again, this reservation is probably the craziest thing to secure in the history of Disney. We've done Le Cellier a couple of times now and even that wasn't this big of a deal. BOG our first night...actually didn't throw my plans off too much and fits in nicely now. My sister and SIL were over the moon. I also got to chatting with the girl that helped me and told her about my first round of craziness...she laughed and said that it was craziest day she had ever worked. I believe it.
~October Resort Location: Changed! What?! Yes, at the moment it has been changed to a different Marriott. Long story, but my MIL has a few extra points that now need to be used up. I called to see if they had a 1 bedroom available for us to just upgrade our studio and they had nothing. So, the guy rebooked us at Grande Vista, where we've stayed the last two times we've stayed off-site, since they have a higher point value. Also, at the moment the new reservation gives us another day! Don't get excited for me just yet. Andy doesn't think he'll have the time off to be able to stay an extra day. So, he wants me to keep calling back and seeing if I can track down a 1bedroom. Eh. All of this happened last Monday and so I need to check back this week to see if they have anything. If we can't upgrade I may just hold on to the reservation we have and see how it goes. We may just get down there and Andy decide we need to stay an extra day.
One can dream, right?
~We are a month away! WAHOO. For some odd reason I had the need to tweak our ADRs tonight. Of course, I go and check everything out and there is nothing available that is better than what I already have. Ha. I think it makes me either a crazed planner or slightly OCD. Can anyone relate?!
~Trip supplies: I tend to start stashing/stock piling stuff as we go. I find that it is cheaper this way since I can slowly pace myself. It all goes in to a box so that I have it when we get ready to pack. Today AG and I went to the store to pick up a few things and I opted to let him go ahead and pick out the special snacks he wants to take with us on the trip. Included in what he picked out... a box of Brave and Toy Story fruit snacks. One for him and one for his baby sister. Never mind that she can't eat them yet. I didn't have the heart to tell him, sweet boy. And on a completely unrelated note Avi-Kate's hair is coming in curly! She might need to be Merida for Halloween next year.
~Countdown to our Trip: I'm in the process of reworking my previous countdown board. Once I get it finished I'll post pictures. Since our kids are so little I feel like a massive countdown just wouldn't work well. The last few times we've gone we've counted down from the three week mark. Much more manageable...but don't be fooled I've been counting down for months!
~AG is...40 inches with shoes on! (39.5 barefoot) Andy and I are really excited about this possibility. However, we aren't sure if AG will be gung-ho for some of the 'new' stuff that will now be available to him. Take for example, Splash Mtn., we know he would LOVE the actually riding around part but the drop might freak him out. He tends to be a little cautious when it comes to new things. So now the current conversation is do we just put him on it and deal with him hating it after? Eh. I don't know. Part of me thinks he'll love it we just need to give him a nudge. We've also been talking up the Barnstormer now that it is back up and going. (Both of these we have watched videos on
youtube to show him.) We'll see. I guess we'll just feel it out once we get there. Avi-Kate on the other hand is absolutely FEARLESS and would probably ride Everest if that was possible. She's a daredevil already at 15 months. Labor Day Weekend she had a meltdown at my MIL's pool because she couldn't swim by herself. Yes, by herself unassisted by flotation devices. She was mad when we put her in the baby float, water wings on, etc. Heaven help me. If she was a wee bit older and had a wider vocabulary then I would go ahead and start teaching her how to swim.
I'm sure there is something else I've forgotten. Oh, well. Hope everyone is off to a good week. Thankfully, it's finally starting to cool off a bit here in GA. At least the mornings feel fall-ish.
. We're trying Garden Grill this trip for the first time because of our family's obsession with Living with the Land, too! Great minds
I almost laughed because it seemed not real. You hear all these stories about how nutty Christmas is and how packed the parks are. Anyways, it worked out and I'm glad Andy and I get to do BOG for a date in January. 
I hope you get to do it when you go next fall and I really hope that it dies down for everyone as whole. Although, at the moment it's probably a hotter reservation than Le Cellier. Andy and I have entertained the idea of QS in November but I honestly don't know if they'll have the kinks worked out by the time we are there. For some reason I have these visions of it turning in to a production just sit down and eat. I can also seeing it being an absolute mob with people wanting to eat there since they didn't secure ADRs. We said we'll go check out just for curiosities sake. 
Ahhhhhhh! I can't wait. 
While avoiding a meltdown at 6:30 this morning with a house full of guests was a pain in the rear it is slightly amusing now. Ha. 
He came waltzing out of his room this afternoon with it. I actually dropped to my knees and kissed him. So hooray for big brother. Tomorrow my plan is to call Disney Dining to get my reservations finalized...gotta get that Hollywood and Vine ADR for Saturday dropped so I don't get charged $. 
Actually, this was Andy's request. When we switched things at the beginning of September he wanted me to see if there were any one-bedroom places instead of a studio since we'll have the kids. At the time there were no upgrades available. He wanted me to call this week and see if by chance someone had canceled and we could change our reservation...well, I called this morning and they did in fact have a 1 Bedroom available. So, now we are in a 1 Bedroom at Grande Vista. We'll have a full kitchen and washer/dryer in our room. The kids will be able to sleep in the living room and we'll be able to stay up without disturbing them which will be nice. Plus, I had planned on us eating breakfast in the room at least once and that will be easier since we'll have a table with plenty of seating for the kids. I can even request a highchair for Avi-Kate. And speaking of breakfast I think we are going to try and grab breakfast one morning at POP! since we get our Tables in Wonderland discount at the value foodcourts. (I'm not sure if they are letting people use it at AoA? If they are we may try and check out things there.) This all came about because Andy was like we need to have Mickey Waffles for breakfast one morning because I promised AG we'd do that. 
We'll see...other than that nothing else is changing! At least at this moment it's not. 
