Vienen mis amigos a la Coronado Springs --- A September 2014 Pre-Trip Report

[RooRach0906]

Sorry about the baby chicks. Your magic band covers look awesome. I will keeping praying about the house.

 

[Tinker326]

So sorry about the house offer. You can only hope that means something BETTER is in the works!!!

Love your magicbands & definitely book BB. If anything, you can cancel. I feel that you need to take the time with your kids, when you can.. as they grow up too quick & life can throw it's own twists and turns... I know I don't ever want to be saying 'I wish I had done this....' when I can't do that anymore!

Boston traffic sounds like Chicago! We are defensive drivers here & the poor out of towners who travel our roads have no clue what hit them when the enter our roadways!!! (Like when Chicago speed limit says 55 it really means 80 & don't even think about going less than 70 or you'll cause an accident 'going too slow') Ha!

Enjoy the rest of the summer! So close to your vacay. Woo!

 

[Victoriasmom98]

MAGIC BANDS ARE COMING!!! MAGIC BANDS ARE COMING!!!
Ok, I just had to share!!

 

[LoJoDisney]

YAY FOR MAGIC BANDS!!! Is it weird I'm going to want to wear mine around? hahahaha

Are you planning on decorating yours at all??

 

[OregonMomToWDW]

Now the mailbox stalking begins! Glad you got the email that the MBs are on the way.

Sorry to hear that there are issues with the house sale. I am hoping things work out for you.

 

[SarahDisney]

MAGIC BANDS ARE COMING!!! MAGIC BANDS ARE COMING!!!

YAY!!

Last year when we got ours they said it would be delivered between 8 and 10:30, so I sat in the living room starting at 8 AM waiting for the delivery. I was so excited when they came.

Your vacation time is almost here!!!!

 

[Victoriasmom98]

Yup, I totally missed that the band she likes isnt coming anymore! Oh well, more time in EPCOT then!!

I can't believe you're so close! Squeeee!!!

I am the same as you, I can't do my packing too early becuase I need the stuff! I serisouly own like 3 shorts and I will need to wear them up until I pack them! LoL!

I really cannot believe the trip is sooooo close!!! I got my Magic Bands today!! I had checked the tracking number earlier and it was in transit, so when I got home from lunch, the package was in the mailbox!! Squeeeee!! Yeah, Victoria was very disappointed, but hey, we did just go to Boston to see 1D and 5SOS, so I don’t think she’s deprived at all!

I'm so sorry about the baby chicks!

You should TOTALLY book BB! It's easy to cancel if you need to but if you don't book and they could either not come out with FD or you have to wait and scurry around with everyone else booking. Who needs that stress?? Disney is so good about refunding deposits if you need to cancel...I should know.

Get in that pool woman! I would DIE for a pool and you have used yours twice??? Enjoy it!

Yeah, I’m totally going to book the BB! I now have the Target Red Card and the Pharmacy Rewards card, so with only 2 more prescriptions (easy for us!) I will have 10% off of my purchase and that includes Disney Gift Cards!! I plan on buying $200 worth for $180 and using those to book the BB. I just hope I’m understand how the Target discount works. We’ll find out! Thank you for the condolences over those babies. We’ll try again at some point but it was so very sad. I know, I will be using the pool definitely this weekend. I think a lot of it has to do with I already go to the Y twice a week so I get my pool time in. But, you’re right….it’s time for me to use my own pool! You could always come join me. Just a quick trip to Maine……

Hi. From what I have read, the Frozen activities continue daily through September. Fireworks are, however, only Friday - Sunday.

Hmmmmmmmmm…….I’ll have to read more about it. I can see that the sing a long is not at the hat, so that’s good. I just don’t want my favorite park in the world to be crowded! I am kind of curious to see the trading post, but to see ice? Nah, I get enough of that come November – March!!

From what I've seen, it seems like just the fireworks won't be happening during the week, but everything else (including the sing along) will be every day. I'm not entirely sure. I don't think they're offering the premium package for weekdays, so you're safe from that decision.

Yay on the 29 days! So exciting!

When you book the bounceback, do you have to pay in full or just the deposit? Since the deposit isn't too much, it might be worth it if you can scrape the money together. Pay a little now to save money later - it makes sense. If you have to cancel, at least you're only out the deposit.
And if you don't mind larger crowds, you can take Victoria during her breaks when she's in college! I went during break twice - winter break my senior year and spring break when I was in grad school. It can get crowded when a lot of schools have break at the same time (which happened to me when I went for spring break), but maybe you'll get lucky and her school will have break at a different time than most other schools, which means smaller crowds.

If you're looking for other recommendations ... I recommend you get off the computer and go use the pool!

Yeah, I think I just went back and read that the premium package is on the weekends only, so no extra money!! Yay!!! And I’ve definitely decided to do the Bounceback offer. You do only have to pay the deposit, and I already have a plan for that, so I’m going to do it. I’d much rather book it and have to cancel than to worry if Free Dining will be offered at all. I hope that as Victoria gets older we can still go on vacations together! She’s my ride partner, after all!! Yes, I will go use the pool!!! I promise!!!

I'm sorry about the baby chicks, Ann I'm keeping my fingers crossed that everything works out with the property sale.

How exciting that your trip is so close! I would definitely do the bounce back. Take it from the Queen of Cancelled Trips, the Disney cancellation policy is your friend! Hopefully, Victoria can still do the trip next year though. I like your MagicBand covers! So, I saw on Karen's TR that you are planning on doing something different with your pressed pennies this year! Spill! I'm planning on a big project with them, too, but it's going to require about 200 pennies! I think I'll have to collect them over the next TWO trips!

Oh hello Queen of the Cancelled Trips ……About the house…..I found out this morning that the sale fell through so we are back at square one again. Grrrrrr!!! But maybe the next offer will be for nearer the asking price. I’m hopeful there will be a next offer. My psychic friend states she sees it being sold in the Fall to a man with a beard and flannel shirt. Ok…..I’ll take that with a grain of salt, but won’t I just poop my pants if that happens! Well, maybe I won’t poop my pants, but wouldn’t that be amanzing??!!! Thank you for the condolences. I’m still pretty sad about the chicks. But, like I’ve said before, we’ll try again in the future. Certainly NOT when I’ll be away even for one night! So, nope, I’m not going to tell you my plan for the pressed pennies as I don’t know if it’s even doable yet. I would imagine it is, but you’ll just have to wait and see……

Sorry about the baby chicks. Your magic band covers look awesome. I will keeping praying about the house.

Thanks.

So sorry about the house offer. You can only hope that means something BETTER is in the works!!!

Love your magicbands & definitely book BB. If anything, you can cancel. I feel that you need to take the time with your kids, when you can.. as they grow up too quick & life can throw it's own twists and turns... I know I don't ever want to be saying 'I wish I had done this....' when I can't do that anymore!

Boston traffic sounds like Chicago! We are defensive drivers here & the poor out of towners who travel our roads have no clue what hit them when the enter our roadways!!! (Like when Chicago speed limit says 55 it really means 80 & don't even think about going less than 70 or you'll cause an accident 'going too slow') Ha!

Enjoy the rest of the summer! So close to your vacay. Woo!

Since I am a cancer survivor I’ve always lived each day to its fullest, or at least tried to because you really don’t know what life is going to throw at you! As you have read, I’m definitely going to book the BB. I can always cancel or make changes later. It’s so much better than to sweat it out like this past May. Oy vey! Yeah, my husband had to drive in Chicago once. That’s what he compared the Boston traffic to! I don’t know how you do it! Crazy Lady Driver!!!

YAY FOR MAGIC BANDS!!! Is it weird I'm going to want to wear mine around? hahahaha

Are you planning on decorating yours at all??

Hi Lauren!! You’ll see in a previous post that I purchased DVC Coverbands for our Magic Bands. They are decorative stickers that you put over your bands. They came in today and believe me, I want to wear mine too!!! So, we are both weird!! More power to us!!!

 

[Victoriasmom98]

Now the mailbox stalking begins! Glad you got the email that the MBs are on the way.

Sorry to hear that there are issues with the house sale. I am hoping things work out for you.

Nope, no mailbox stalking for me as when I went to lunch, the box was right there waiting for me in the mailbox!! Yahooooooo!! As you read above, the house sale didn't go through......Hopefully another offer is right around the corner!!

YAY!!

Last year when we got ours they said it would be delivered between 8 and 10:30, so I sat in the living room starting at 8 AM waiting for the delivery. I was so excited when they came.

Your vacation time is almost here!!!!

I am soooo excited for these 26 days to go by!!! I have a couple more projects to do but I'm still not having to rush for anything. I want to wear my Magic Band now, but I'll hold off. I'm sooooo very excited!!!!!

 

[MonsterWDWmom]

Awesome about the magic bands!! I would love to see them with the covers!

Sorry about the chicks and the house, hopefully someone will come around soon with a better offer.

Disney is so close now! I mean the last step (before packing) is receiving the bands!

 

[Denovagirl]

Woot! Woot! For MAGIC BANDS!!!

 

[OregonMomToWDW]

Sorry for the sale falling through. Hopefully, the bearded man comes by soon.

Yay for the magic bands coming.

 

[Victoriasmom98]

Hello my peeps!! Today we are at 22 more days until Disney!! OMG!!! Now I am getting the anxiety that precedes my trips….ugh! There is absolutely no reason for me to be nervous with all the freakin planning I do. Tonight I will have to try on my shorts to see which ones I want to bring to Disney with me. I also have to make Victoria do the same thing. It’s funny as I don’t wear shorts around the house in the summer. I’m in jeans on the weekends and so is Victoria. I know, we are weird! Peter, on the other hand, is ALWAYS in shorts unless it’s snowing but yet he is the one that’s always cold. Well, duh, darling! Peter usually takes care of his own packing. I just make sure he has his swim trunks as one year he forgot them and he now has a nice pair of Mickey swim trunks because of that faux pas!

I did get to make up all of the tip envelopes for the trip. I found some really nice designs on the boards and went with those. Now to get the money to fill them up… it will have to be ½ this paycheck and ½ in two weeks when I get paid again. I just hate being responsible and paying bills! LOL! I also added 6 fabric loops to my park bag to hang stuff off of. I have my sunglasses, LGMH, and laminated schedules hanging off them with caliber clips. It’s a good way to have our mugs with us, too. It looks kind of funny, but it will serve the purpose.

I did get an email for the Be Our Guest lunch fast pass this morning. I made our fast pass for noon on the 10th ---- the same day our CRT breakfast is. Hey, it will just be a castle-type of day, right? I may change it to the 16th. I’m not sure. At this point I keep second guessing my choices. Does anyone else do that?? Hopefully Victoria will find something she likes to eat. She didn’t like it last year so I’m going to print off the menu and have her decide prior to arriving what she will want. I think to decide on the fly is pretty stressful, so maybe if she makes a different choice she’ll do ok. There really aren’t a whole lot of choices, though. Oh well. We will manage.

Nothing too exciting here. We hung around the house this past weekend, you know, getting household stuff done. I did manage to go in the pool yesterday --- yeah, it’s 71 degrees out and the pool is 70 degrees. It was cold!!! But I told you all I was going to take advantage of the pool, so I did. Not for a long time, though.

Our Trip to Boston:
We left around 9am on Saturday the 9th for the One Direction concert. Allison had stayed over the night before and they were so cute and excited to be headed down to Boston! We had the boys join us in the back window:


Funny story about this cardboard cutout…..I was walking in Shaw’s supermarket and walked by the display the workers were setting up. I just casually said, “my daughter would kill for that…” and one of them said “here you go…here’s 4 of them” so we got 4 of the same cardboard cutout. I sure as heck looked amusing as I walked through the store carrying them!!! We gave one to Allison, my friend’s daughter and we still have an extra. Don’t know what we are doing with that one yet.





Our first order of business was to find the Chanel store as Victoria had her heart set on buying a lipstick. Don’t ask me why --- she could have just purchased it online. Or buy it from me --- an AVON representative!!! Let me tell you that was an experience! At Chanel there are no prices on anything or racks of anything. It looks like a museum, I kid you not!! I asked the person helping Victoria how a person shops in there and she explained as you walk in you are assigned a salesperson to walk around with you to assist you. Well there. It sure wasn’t Wal-Mart!!!! Oh, and apparently you are not allowed to take pictures as I was scolded for taking them. Um, yeah, I’m really going to share your trade secrets Chanel!! Geez!!!










After her purchase (I must admit, I liked the color) we headed off to find the hotel which is actually located in Mansfield. Victoria has a GPS on her phone, so we just entered the address and followed its directions. We stayed at the Holiday Inn Mansfield. It was ok. It surely wasn’t a Disney resort, but it will do for one night. I was bummed about no fridge, though. I had insulin that I had to keep cool, but the ice bucket did just fine.




Oh, hi there Allison!! Everyone, this is Allison who’s been friends with Victoria since Junior High. They went to last years’ One Direction concert together, too.




Me and my girl!!!

Once we settled in it was time to decide where to go for lunch/dinner (as it was now 2pm). We all decided that seafood sounded good so we headed to this place:






Oh, this pose is familiar…

It really did look like a hole in the wall, but the food was excellent! Yummers!!! It was then time to bring the girls to Gillette Stadium. That place is MASSIVE!!! There’s a shopping complex called Patriot Place which surrounds the stadium. Of course we ended up parking on the opposite side of where they needed to be, so I bet we walked a good 2 miles if not more. Since they had VIP tickets they had to check in at a special table where they picked up their merchandise and tickets.






Peter and I asked the event workers (people in orange shirts) if there were going to be taxis available after the concert that will get them home and were assured there were. Ok, so the plan was that the girls take a taxi back to the hotel. Everyone was in agreement. Yay!! So, Peter and I headed back to the hotel to enjoy some amenities….









And in traditional Disboard fashion…..the room number:


The girls made it back to the hotel around 11:15pm which wasn’t bad at all. They also found 4 other girls coming back to the same hotel, so they all split the cab fare. I thought that was awesome, although…..I don’t remember Victoria giving me my change back from the $20 I gave her. I mean she did mention it only cost her $7 for her portion…hmmmmm. Victoria said they had awesome seats!







Those pictures are awesome, so I do believe they were great seats!!!

cont'd in next post ---- I'm over image limit!! [/b]

 

[Victoriasmom98]

con't

The next morning rose and we were packed and out of the room by 9am. I was ready to go home, even after just one night! All of us love IHOP, so Victoria whipped out her handy dandy GPS and found one relatively close by and off we went. Now that we had full bellies, it was homeward bound……






There’s my smiley girl!!! LOL!!!

 

[LoJoDisney]

I can't believe our trips are getting so close! 3 weeks!! I am feeling the same way as you. I've never done so much planning for a vacation, yet I keep thinking I am forgetting something.

How I am possibly going to sleep the weekend before we leave I do not know!

I just got the BOG email too- i'm excited since I really wanted to go there for a meal! DBF is picky too, but I just ordered for him. Hopefully he likes it!

The girls must have had such a great time in Boston! It looked so fun!!

 

[Denovagirl]

WOW! That looks like a FUN weekend in Boston! I am dying at the cutout in your car! TOO FUNNY!!

Looks like the girls def had great seats!! Glad she had fun!!

And yay for BOG FP!! I don't think dining at 2 castles in one day is too much, but maybe I am just a Princess like that! I would make sure that your lunch is a late one though, as the breakfast will probably be pretty filling!

And you're so funny with being nervous! Don't be! You have it all planned out so well, it's going to be GREAT!

 

[RooRach0906]

Yay for Be our Guest lunch. We have decided we might take our picky eater to eat at a different counter service before the rest of us eat at Be Our Guest. It may even end up being her and DH cuz he is pretty picky too.

Yup I feel disorganized before a trip starting about a month before we leave and like I will forget something but mine isnt anxiety so much. Until the night/day of if we are flying. I used to love to fly but now I am always freaking out. DH thankfully knows and sits with DD while I just chill with my ipod or book that I will help me forget about the plane ride. I normally do end up forgetting something but normally it is something minor.

Yay on getting some Disney projects done. I tried to get some the other day put the stuff isnt printing right I am hoping DH can figure it out for me.


Looks like you guys had a great time in Boston!!! YAY!!!

 

[kclark9830]

I absolutely love the shirts you made! Now I have a new project idea...

 

[stindall]

Oh gosh I've been away for a bit, trying to catch up!

I'm sorry about the house! I'm not psychic but I think that it may mean a better offer is to come!

I'm sorry about the chicks as well, that's a very big bummer! At least you knew it was a possibility!

Traffic in Boston DOES sound a lot like Chicago. (I'm from Indianapolis but only 3 hours from Chicago so we visit a few times a year) I can't stand when people don't use their turn signal! Otherwise it sounds like it was a great trip for you all! Victoria looks amazing in that colour! I don't often buy higher end products but sometimes you just gotta spoil yourself right? I'm not sure I would be a fan of shopping in the Chanel store though. That picture of you two is so cute! Frame it!

Also on board with GO SWIM IN THE POOL! I wish we had a pool! We have a rec center with a great pool but it's always very crowded.

I got the Corque Monsour last year at BOG and didn't like it at all. I also got a cream puff and it was gross. Looking at the menu this year not much appealed to me but it's so hard to resist eating in the castle! We ultimately ended up choosing one of the kids meals for us in addition to a roast beef sandwich.! It does seem like there isn't a lot to choose from doesn't it?

 

[PracPerfPatricia]

Hey Ann,



I'm so happy for you that your trip is coming up in such a short amount of time... I'll be looking forward to that trip report...

I love Boston and come on look and that awesome bag Victoria got with her lipstick she looks completely blissed out... she looks great btw-hoping all is well with her...

Sorry to hear about your chicken woes we kinda convinced David that we'd consider doing bees in the spring but probably not chickens plus we adopted a sweet little female bulldog so not sure that would be a great mix... fortunately he starts a new school next year and they just added a garden and a chicken coop!)

We were supposed to do a summer trip to Acadia but unfortunately life had other plans so it didn't happen...hoping maybe next summer... and I just found out that DH booked a short but sweet trip to Dis/Universal 3 nights at Key West & 2 at Hard Rock in December since we missed our summer trip ... ok I will be a baby and complain just a little- I love New England summers and especially Maine...

btw... If you like Boston- you really should come to Philadelphia sometime... it's pretty cool here...just saying...

 

[Victoriasmom98]

Day 18!!!! Really? Only 18 more days? Yep!!! Above are the t-shirts I made for Peter and I for our anniversary on the 18th. I’ll have to take a little fabric paint to the bottom of Peter’s Mickey head, but other than that I think they came out really well. I can’t wait to wear them! Now, let me get back to sharing my days with you. It’s been since page 3 that I’ve talked about my days!!

September 16th --- 2nd Magic Kingdom Day!


Breakfast will most likely be at the Longue at the hotel. Hey, it’s free (or I should say it’s part of the rack rate we paid) so hopefully we will fill up on that! This will probably be one of those do what we didn’t do before days. Our fast passes look like this:

10am 7DMT
12:00pm Big Thunder Mtn Railroad
2:30pm Anna & Elsa Meet





As for lunch, I’m thinking Columbia Harbor House or Pecos Bills. I like both places, but I’m leaning towards Pecos Bills. Although, come to think of it, I love the ½ chicken at Cosmic Ray’s. Wow…..indecisive much? I think it will all depend on where we are in the park when we get hungry. I will bring peanut butter crackers with me in case I get hungry. I drive my family crazy sometime because I wait too long before I eat…..I feel sick as my blood sugar drops pretty quickly.





I’m hoping to meet Rapunzel through standby. We’ll see how that goes as I have yet to meet her. I’ve heard some say that she’s been at CRT, so maybe I will have met her by now. Yes, I know I am extremely lucky to have gotten A&E. I’m very pleased with that. I originally had our ADR for Tony’s at 1pm but then I got to thinking (yeah, bad idea for me!) Tony’s is by the Railroad Station on Main Street. That means we would have to walk out of the “lands” and almost to the exit in the middle of the day. Wouldn’t it make more sense to go to Tony’s on the way out of the park? I thought so. MK closes at 7pm for MNNSHP so we’d have to leave before then anyways. It took me a couple of weeks but I was able to snag a Tony’s ADR for 6:25pm! PERFECT!!! That way we can see a lot of the people in costumes coming in and see the park all decorated for Halloween!! I’m thinking there may even be the special merchandise carts out, but maybe not. I think they leave those under wraps until 7pm and after 7pm if we don’t have a party band, we can’t buy the merchandise! I'm such a Halloween geek! So while 6:25pm is late for my family to eat, it should all work out perfectly! My goodness I’m rambling on today. It must be Friday!!






September 17th is another HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS day!!



But, as much as I love HS, this is a sad, sad day. If any of you have read my previous trip reports, you know I usually try (and fail) to make it onto the American Idol Experience. I had a fast pass scheduled for the 7pm finale show, but then the news came out that they are closing the Experience on August 30th! NOOOOOO!!! It was scheduled to be closed AFTER my September trip. I won’t get to see my hottie Greg, the host. Those of you who have been with me for a while know what a major crush I have on that boy! My husband knows and accepts this. Now, I won’t be able to lust after him. I’m so crushed! But, alas, I do follow him on FB and Twitter, so I get to kind of see him….just not in person. Ahhhh, a moment of silence please. LOL!!







Ok, so rant over……we will start this day with an 8:05am ADR for Ohana’s. Love this restaurant. Love Stitch. Love Lilo. Just love!



Our fast passes for the day are:

11:15am Rock n Rollercoaster
12:25pm Tower of Terror
3:30pm Indiana Jones (4pm show)






I was going to do the fp for Lights, Motor, Action, but I am hoping to catch Character Palooza at 4:30pm or 5:10pm on the Streets of America and LMA starts at 4:30pm. I’d never make it. I’ve never been able to do the Palooza so I am curious to see what it’s like. We’ll probably end up doing LMA on the 15th at 1:20 or on this day at the same time. I’m not sure if we’ll stay for Fantasmic or go back to the hotel and come back later. We’ve never toured like that and I’m envisioning my family being too hot and tired to stay from opening to closing. We could always go to the Poly beach and watch Wishes, too. I’ve never done that either and I think it sounds so nice. We’ll have to wait and see how everyone feels.

September 18th --- HAPPY ANNIVERSARY TO US DAY!! This will also be choice day. It happens every year that choice day ends up being another EPCOT day, so we’ll see what happens. We do have an ADR for 1900 Park Fare at 4:55pm so wherever we end up, we have that dinner already in place.



September 19th ---Departure Day…….crying day……

Our flight doesn’t leave until 6:05pm so that means the unMagical Express will be picking us up around 3pm. We do have a breakfast ADR for 7:15am at Chef Mickey’s. That’s the only time I could get. I keep checking for something later, but there’s nothing available. I’m not sure what we are going to do from the time breakfast ends until 3pm. Probably just hang around the pool or lounge. Maybe head to DTD. I just don’t know. We’ll have our bags packed and with luggage services by then, except for my carryon. I just can’t think about departure day right now. Too depressing!!

Well folks, that’s the plans as they are written right now…..**subject to change, as always**