We Spent Halloween with the Mouse (and Donald too!!!)

[AshleyMWC]

ONE WEEK FROM TODAY we will be on the way to the Mouse's House!!! I can't believe it is already here and I still have so much to do! We have been so busy lately that I am really banking on this weekend to get packed and pick up last minute things we need.

Last night I did make my LGMH tag for my park bag, so at least that is one thing done. I was going to make it all pretty and sparkly, but I lost motivation and just made it plain- one side has AshleyMWC and the other side says Do you DIS?. It's simple and effective, and it only took me about 5 minutes to make Now I just need to find the hole puncher to make a hole for the lime green ribbon I am going to attach it to.

Last night I also got out my park bag (just a Vera Bradley small backpack) and loaded it up with Aleve, wet-naps, Purell, gum, tissues, and a mini-hairbrush. I love that bag. It is small and lightweight, and has plenty of room for the aforementioned items, as well as 2 ponchos if needed, plus a bottle of water/soda. If the pnochos aren't in there, my camera bag fits in there perfectly as well, but I find it a hassle to drag it in and out fo the bag, so sam will probably carry the camera bag most days.

Hmmm, other than that, nothing else has been accomplished, eek!!! But in all honesty, I don't relaly have tons more to do, other than physically pack everything up. I have been good the past coupel months about picking things up as I see them, so as not to be too stressed my the last week. The only things I think I still need to get are snacks for the plane, and a black skirt for the halloween party. I have looked everywhere for a skirt, but I guess I wanted until too late in the season. I still have a couple more places to check, and if I can't find one, I'll have to start getting creative I guess

I do need to go ahead and print out my TGM pages that I like to take along and peruse. I will do that this afternoon I guess. I also need to type up a list of all our ADR's so that I can laminate that and carry it in the park bag. I always carry a list of ADR's just in case Also along the same lines, I need to type up a final itinerary and put that in the folder. I don't think we are going to have any changes to make between now and then, so I might as well go ahead and do that too.

I know that I promised pictures a coupel days ago, and I haven't forgotten, I jsut ran out of time. I am going to try my darndest to upload them at lunch today so that I can post them this afternoon.

Thanks for reading along everyone, I really do appreciate it!

 

[izzyzoeybear]

I let my son know today that we would be at MNSSHP in exactly 2 weeks from today. He was like really??? And now the wish list is starting because he asked for a Mickey Hoodie from the parks.

Don't you just love the Vera Bradly bags? I get a new one once a year for Christmas from my parents. and as ridiculous as this is...My DD who is 3 loves them and she is going to ger first one this Christmas to carry her Nintendo DS in. But she is a girly girl might as well get her started now...

 

[AshleyMWC]

I let my son know today that we would be at MNSSHP in exactly 2 weeks from today. He was like really??? And now the wish list is starting because he asked for a Mickey Hoodie from the parks.

Don't you just love the Vera Bradly bags? I get a new one once a year for Christmas from my parents. and as ridiculous as this is...My DD who is 3 loves them and she is going to ger first one this Christmas to carry her Nintendo DS in. But she is a girly girl might as well get her started now...

Hey you might as well start the girl off right when she is young. Nothing like laying a good foundation for the future I say I mean, it might be an expensive future, but at least she will look good, right?!

 

[AshleyMWC]

Well, as promised, here are a couple of pics for you guys. The first are the 3 new shirts I got for a whopping $5 each for Sam. He now has 5 Disney shirts to wear for vacation, so I am rather proud of myself He of course couldn't care less what he is wearing, but it still makes me happy for him to be dressed in the Disney spirit.

The second picture is the elusive mini-toiletry land. Ok, it seemed like a lot more stuff in the bag, but here it is regardless. There are a couple things that I didn't include in the pic, but that is most of it....I think.....

Moving on, we have Mousekeeping envelopes. I can't take credit for the designs, just the cutting and pasting onto the envelopes. I like to have them already made up and pre-monied (that's so not a word, I know) before we leave. This just eliminates scrounging for $1 bills in the morning when we are usually in a hurry anyway. I usually leave $3 a day, and leave the envelopes either on the pillow or on the vanity. I am always worried that Mousekeeping won't know to take the envelopes, but so far they have not let me down.

Next, we have my park bag. Ok, it's not new or anything, but I did get it out, wash it, and pack it with the park-carrying essentials. For that reason, I thought it deserved a place in my PTR. I was going to take a picture with my Dis LGMH name tag attached, but since it is laminated, it just kept reflecting the light. So, you will just have to take my word that it will be attached and waiting for approaching Disers next week

And finally, the face of my 29 year old fiance in his recording studio upon realizing that exactly one week form now we will be preparing for landing in Orlando!!! What can I say, I am marrying a big 'ol kid

So, that does it for the pics tonight. On a planning note, I did call this afternoon and put in a request for Tokelau longhouse, 3rd floor at the Poly. And then the CM, Brad, to be exact, asked me "What will you be celebrating with us this trip?" To which I had to think fast on my feet and reply, "Well, we weren't planning on celebrating anything in particular this year, BUT we did just get engaged, so now we will be celebrating that I guess." Yeah, it was a shameless plug in hopes of some pixie dust, but whatever...we ARE celebrating getting engaged, I just hadn't planned it that way when we booked in January He was seemed excited for us, so I am keeping my fingers crossed for some magic...but totally not getting my hopes up. Staying 8 nights at the Poly is magic enough for me!!!! I also had Brad check one more time on O'Hana character breakfast for the first morning, to no avail. So, I have decided to just go with breakfast at Kona like we currently have booked. The menu looks so good there, that I'm really not that let down at all. Heck, we might to be excited to get to the parks and end up ditching breakfast anyway. Who knows, we'll just play that morning my ear--- it's a bonus morning for us anyway, thanks to Air Tran

So, I think that's about all for now. I have a couple loads of laundry that are calling my name to be folded before bedtime.

 

[kaysmommie]

Your trip is getting close, just 6 more days . I think and engagement is a good thing to celebrate! Why did you choose Tokelau and not Samoa? Just wondering since we love Samoa longhouse. I love you new shirts and your mousekeeping envelopes are cute too.

 

[AshleyMWC]

Your trip is getting close, just 6 more days . I think and engagement is a good thing to celebrate! Why did you choose Tokelau and not Samoa? Just wondering since we love Samoa longhouse. I love you new shirts and your mousekeeping envelopes are cute too.

I know, 6 days, I can hardly believe it. We booekd this trip back on January 18th, and that was over 200 days ago This weekend is dedicated to packing, for the most part, and that means the trip is REALLY close- at least in my mind. As for Tokelau, I requested it because it is kind of inbetween the GCH and the TTC. Last year we found ourselves walking to the TTC a lot to either catch the boat to MK or the monorail to Epcot, so I like being close to that. Tokelau also seems to be a short walk to the GCH for eating and the monorail. Samoa is just a little to close to the big pool for me I think. We are not pool people- sometimes we will get in one or two times at most, so I am trying to avoid pool noise if possible. I think that having the quiet pool right outside the building might be nice though. Last year my mom and I stayed in Tahiti, and while we loved the convenience to the TTC, I remember wishing I was just a TINY bit closer to the GCH. So, to make an already too long explanation even longer, that is why I have requested Tokelau. Honestly, I almost didn't put in a building request just to see where we got, but I really didn't want to end up in Tuvalu since we have a garden view room. Plus, I have read that is some of the garden view rooms in Tokelau, you can see the lagoon and even the castle if you get the right room

I can't wait to read about your trip, although I am sorry that Thomas was sick a few days. Hopefully you were still able to experience some magic

 

[bawsmom]

hey
just wanted to say that i am loving your trip report!! we were in Tokelau 2 years ago and loved it!! i had not requested anything so it was just luck of the draw... we could step onto our balcony and turn to the right and see the castle!! it as really nice and quiet. i don't remember the walks being long at all- and with 2 kids i probably would have remembered the whining! good luck ... can't wait to hear all about it.

 

[AshleyMWC]

hey
just wanted to say that i am loving your trip report!! we were in Tokelau 2 years ago and loved it!! i had not requested anything so it was just luck of the draw... we could step onto our balcony and turn to the right and see the castle!! it as really nice and quiet. i don't remember the walks being long at all- and with 2 kids i probably would have remembered the whining! good luck ... can't wait to hear all about it.

Thanks for joining along for the ride!! I am glad to hear that you enjoyed Tokelau, and I hope that we get a room there. If we don't it's no biggie, but it just seems like the perfect location for us.

******************************************************

Can I just say that I think I have an addiction to checking the weather forecast! Is there a program for people like me?!?! I know that a 15 and even 10 day forecast is totally a guess on the weatherman's part, but I just can't stop myself! There is way too much rain in that 15 day forecast

Ok, I am going to get back to working on my packing list, hopefully that will take my mind off my addiction

 

[llurgy]

I dont think we ever got a piccie of the toiletries did we???

Hmmmmmm...... LOL

Just kidding, not long now

Mandy

 

[julezdisney]

Wow! 6 Days! Eeeeeeee!

 

[izzyzoeybear]

The mousekeeping envies are just adorable. I don't think I would have even thought of doing something like that. We just usually throw the money on the table for them. We are now down to 12 days!!!

 

[AshleyMWC]

I dont think we ever got a piccie of the toiletries did we???

Hmmmmmm...... LOL

Just kidding, not long now

Mandy

Oh no, did you miss my picture of the toiletries?!?! Just scroll up a little bit and you will see them Yes, it certainly is getting close now, and other that TOTALLY stressing over the fact that rain is forecasted for my MNSSHP night, I am pumped! The possibly rain is kind of bumming me out, but I keep telling myself that the forecast will change a a dozen times between now and then

Wow! 6 Days! Eeeeeeee!

I KNOW, my Mac ticker currently reads 5 days, 22 hours, 18 minutes, it's awesome!!

The mousekeeping envies are just adorable. I don't think I would have even thought of doing something like that. We just usually throw the money on the table for them. We are now down to 12 days!!!

Yeah i love the envelopes too- too bad I can't take credit for the designs. I used to just leave a few dollars, but I find it so easy to just pull out an envelope that already has a few dollars in it, each morning before we head out.

 

[izzyzoeybear]

I am actually thinking that maybe i might get some plain envies and some Disney stickers and let the kids decorate them all up this weekend. I like the idea of the envies since you are right they are easy to just pull out of the suitcase and lay out instead of having to make sure one always had dollar bills....I will have to take pics for my PTR after they have them done...

 

[llurgy]

Oh no, did you miss my picture of the toiletries?!?! Just scroll up a little bit and you will see them Yes, it certainly is getting close now, and other that TOTALLY stressing over the fact that rain is forecasted for my MNSSHP night, I am pumped! The possibly rain is kind of bumming me out, but I keep telling myself that the forecast will change a a dozen times between now and then

How did I ever miss that piccie post? It's a long post too. I must be blind

I love the Grumpy T-Shirt
I want one

I love the Mini hairbrush
I want one

I love your park bag
I want one



I wanna know all about the LGMH.......I think I want one of those too but I need to know Exactly what it is first

Mandy

 

[kaysmommie]

Just 5 more days. I guess Tokelau might be a better location for you than Samoa. If your not pool people. the view is nice too and it wasn't realy noisy at all as I'm a light sleeper. I wouldn't want Tuvalu either though for a garden view at least. Tahiti would be nice for the 2 sinks though but a bit far of a walk with little kids. I hope you have a great stay at the Poly and a wonderful trip as and engaged couple at Disney!!

 

[Camster0307]

Hi Ashley! As usual, I'm late to the party! Sorry I had no idea you had started a pre-trippie.(I'm having a hard enough time keeping up with my own, that I haven't been browsing the TR boards lately!)

Your trip is soooo close and you seem so organized - I'm jealous!

First of all, you and Sam are just THE cutest couple! And he's a Disney fanatic too? Jackpot! Congrats on your engagement; and the ring is absolutely gorgeous!

You've got some great ADRs lined up. So happy you were able to get the lunch with an imagineer. I'm also real curious to hear about the Party of the Senses. I would LOVE to try that some day!(think I'd need to ditch the kids for that one, though!)

Love your countdown calendar and your collection of shirts. And -- step away from the weather forecast!!!! Seriously, I don't think they're ever right - even when predicting the weather for the next day!

And, on one last note - I laughed out loud about Sam hating the words "errands" and "platter". My DSIL is freaky like that too - she hates the words "belly" and "hoagie". So, of course, we torture her by always telling her we just ate a hoagie and it's now in our belly!

(personally, I HATE the words "last day of Disney vacation." )

 

[julezdisney]

I just today saw your MMC tee shirt. Adorable!

 

[AshleyMWC]

I am actually thinking that maybe i might get some plain envies and some Disney stickers and let the kids decorate them all up this weekend. I like the idea of the envies since you are right they are easy to just pull out of the suitcase and lay out instead of having to make sure one always had dollar bills....I will have to take pics for my PTR after they have them done...

Up until this year I jsut took plain white envelopes and decorated them with stickers and a little note for Mousekeeping, nad that worked fine. Hoenstly, this was just easier to print them out, but making the envelopes last year was fun also!

I wanna know all about the LGMH.......I think I want one of those too but I need to know Exactly what it is first

Mandy

The LGMHs are jsut pain chips from Home Depot. I think the color is called Alien green or something to that effect. I just cut out the Mickey head from the paint chip sample, wrote my Disboard name on it, and then laminated it. I will try and get a picture up today with it attached to my park bag. It's a pretty simple project that only takes a few minutes.

Just 5 more days. I guess Tokelau might be a better location for you than Samoa. If your not pool people. the view is nice too and it wasn't realy noisy at all as I'm a light sleeper. I wouldn't want Tuvalu either though for a garden view at least. Tahiti would be nice for the 2 sinks though but a bit far of a walk with little kids. I hope you have a great stay at the Poly and a wonderful trip as and engaged couple at Disney!!

My mom and I actually stayed in Tahiti last year and it was also a great location. The walk would be a little far I guess with little ones, but it's certainly doable. We loved being a 2 minute walk tot he TTC also. The 2 sinks were a huge bonus also. I wouldn't hesitate to stay there again, I just would like to try somewhere different this year.

Hi Ashley! As usual, I'm late to the party! Sorry I had no idea you had started a pre-trippie.(I'm having a hard enough time keeping up with my own, that I haven't been browsing the TR boards lately!)

Your trip is soooo close and you seem so organized - I'm jealous!

First of all, you and Sam are just THE cutest couple! And he's a Disney fanatic too? Jackpot! Congrats on your engagement; and the ring is absolutely gorgeous!

You've got some great ADRs lined up. So happy you were able to get the lunch with an imagineer. I'm also real curious to hear about the Party of the Senses. I would LOVE to try that some day!(think I'd need to ditch the kids for that one, though!)

Love your countdown calendar and your collection of shirts. And -- step away from the weather forecast!!!! Seriously, I don't think they're ever right - even when predicting the weather for the next day!

And, on one last note - I laughed out loud about Sam hating the words "errands" and "platter". My DSIL is freaky like that too - she hates the words "belly" and "hoagie". So, of course, we torture her by always telling her we just ate a hoagie and it's now in our belly!

(personally, I HATE the words "last day of Disney vacation." )

Thanks for coming over to to my PTr, I have really enjoyed reading about yours! Yes, I have to say that this year I am more organized than usual. Last year I felt so rushed getting last minute things that I have been picking things up for months, here and there, as I see them. I have made a packing list, and it has made packing SOOO much easier. I will never not have a packing list again!

I will certainly report back in detail about Lunch with an Imagineer and PArty for the Senses. You should definitely try and sneak away for PFTS one year. It is a really fun evening, and such a great way to try so many different foods and wines!

Oh, and rest assured, I have stepped away fromt he weather forecast. There are no hurricanes headed our way, so I guess that's the most important thing. I have accepted that being there for 9 days, we will certainly have a couple rain showers, but that's ok. I can hoenstly handle the rain, I just really don't want rain our MNSSHP night or the Segway morning. On an up note, temps are looking to range between 78-82 for the highs next week, perfect!!!

I just today saw your MMC tee shirt. Adorable!

Thanks, I can't wait to wear them!!!

 

[AshleyMWC]

Well, we are down to 3 days at our house!!!! It is really starting to sink in now, although since I have so much left to do, mostly at work, before we leave, I don't think it will totally sink in until we get to the airport Thursday night. My plan this past weekend was to get everything laid out to go in the suitcase- yeah, that totally didn't happen. It was NOT my fault though. One of Sam's friends was in town this weekend, and he spent the night Friday, Saturday and Sunday night. Hence, the extra bedroom was out of commission for me to lay all my items out. I tried not to panic, however. I managed to get almost all the laundry done that we will need, and I packed up all my toiletries. I have selected all of Sam's shirts for park days- he can't be trusted totally here because he has so many ratty and holey shirts in his collection I have also printed out and put in the Disney folder all my Tour Guide Mike printouts, our itinerary for the week, my ADR list, and our ME and MNSSHP tickets. Suprisingly, I actually still feel calm about getting everything done. I think having a detailed packing list really really made me not freak out this weekend. So, tonight, packing will resume full steam! I hope to have everything on the bed tonight (other than what I still need to use this week, of course) and also get the suitcases out of the attic. So, that is my packing-or lack of packing- update from the weekend.

Oh, on a totally unrelated note, we officially have a wedding date! October 10, 2009!! So, this time next year, not only will we be married, but we will be on our Disneymoon! POFQ (most likely), here we come!!!!!!!!!!!!! My goal was to have a date confirmed with the chruch before vacation, so at least I got that done. Now, we start looking at reception sites, woohoo And of course, I can thrust myself into full on planning mode. After vacation I will probably start a wedding report on the Dis wedding board, so feel free to come on over once in a while.

Tonight, other than packing, I also need to head over to Pet Smart to get more dog food and treats for Noel and Disney, before shipping them off to grandma's house. My mom is going to watch Noel, and Sam's mom is going to watch Disney. His parents also have a miniature schnauzer, and Disney loves to run and play, so that's why we are splitting them up. Noel prefers to sit and be loved on like an only-dog, so she will be totally loving 10 days of being spoiled rotten by my mom!! Other than that, I don't think I need to get anything else- is that even possible??!! I mean I have even gotten plane snack already- this is way prepared even for me. Unfortunatley the only thing awaiting me after I pack is cleaning the house. Ugh!! I just need to give the bathrooms and the kitchen a good once over..oh, and the gues room since Sam's parents will be staying there this weekend. Ok, there is a little more cleaning to do that I would like. But that's ok...a plane to the Happy Place is waiting at the end

Ok, back to work for me. I will try and update tonight with packing pictures

 

[llurgy]

Well, we are down to 3 days at our house!!!! It is really starting to sink in now, although since I have so much left to do, mostly at work, before we leave, I don't think it will totally sink in until we get to the airport Thursday night. My plan this past weekend was to get everything laid out to go in the suitcase- yeah, that totally didn't happen. It was NOT my fault though. One of Sam's friends was in town this weekend, and he spent the night Friday, Saturday and Sunday night. Hence, the extra bedroom was out of commission for me to lay all my items out. I tried not to panic, however. I managed to get almost all the laundry done that we will need, and I packed up all my toiletries. I have selected all of Sam's shirts for park days- he can't be trusted totally here because he has so many ratty and holey shirts in his collection I have also printed out and put in the Disney folder all my Tour Guide Mike printouts, our itinerary for the week, my ADR list, and our ME and MNSSHP tickets. Suprisingly, I actually still feel calm about getting everything done. I think having a detailed packing list really really made me not freak out this weekend. So, tonight, packing will resume full steam! I hope to have everything on the bed tonight (other than what I still need to use this week, of course) and also get the suitcases out of the attic. So, that is my packing-or lack of packing- update from the weekend.

Oh, on a totally unrelated note, we officially have a wedding date! October 10, 2009!! So, this time next year, not only will we be married, but we will be on our Disneymoon! POFQ (most likely), here we come!!!!!!!!!!!!! My goal was to have a date confirmed with the chruch before vacation, so at least I got that done. Now, we start looking at reception sites, woohoo And of course, I can thrust myself into full on planning mode. After vacation I will probably start a wedding report on the Dis wedding board, so feel free to come on over once in a while.

Tonight, other than packing, I also need to head over to Pet Smart to get more dog food and treats for Noel and Disney, before shipping them off to grandma's house. My mom is going to watch Noel, and Sam's mom is going to watch Disney. His parents also have a miniature schnauzer, and Disney loves to run and play, so that's why we are splitting them up. Noel prefers to sit and be loved on like an only-dog, so she will be totally loving 10 days of being spoiled rotten by my mom!! Other than that, I don't think I need to get anything else- is that even possible??!! I mean I have even gotten plane snack already- this is way prepared even for me. Unfortunatley the only thing awaiting me after I pack is cleaning the house. Ugh!! I just need to give the bathrooms and the kitchen a good once over..oh, and the gues room since Sam's parents will be staying there this weekend. Ok, there is a little more cleaning to do that I would like. But that's ok...a plane to the Happy Place is waiting at the end

Ok, back to work for me. I will try and update tonight with packing pictures

Oh My,
How on earth are you so organized????
Will you come to our house when our time to visit the world gets near?

You are going to have a fantastic time, you have some wonderful things set up to do and I really, really, really wanna come with you.
I can pack myself in a suitcase and just interlope if that is ok with you and Sam? You wouldnt have any extra packing???

Thanks for s'plain the green Mickey tag....Alien Green, must remember....Alien Green. I gather I will be looking for big paint chips then yes?

Mandy