"We're following Dad to work....SURPRISE!!!" Secret's out Trip - May/June 2013

[DisneyJillian18]

Joining in! I have enjoyed reading your pre-trip report so far! So happy the boys are excited for the upcoming trip! I can't wait to find out about your upcoming trip!

 

[BridgetR3]

good thinking to copy/paste. My dd mentioned that to me also...after the fact. It's okay I didn't get a spot, I would not have gotten it before our Aug trip anyway, there is always another trip in the horizon.

Hope you have a wonderful 1st day back. I too am ready for summer. We have already gotten the poison ivy part of it.! youngest DD.

Oh no Dee!!! Poison Ivy already!??!?! Whew! Ya know, I've never ever had that in my life. Someone told me one time that I must not react to it because I was at a camp and was picking the most beautiful flowers I had ever seen when a camp attendant came by and freaked out that the poison ivy/oak was all over in the plant. However, I never ever broke out so maybe I don't have reactions to it. That would be a nice plus!

D~ has me scheduled for the week of Nov. 4 which means I will have my bag before our Christmas trip and before my birthday!!!!! YIPPEE!!!!

Joining in! I have enjoyed reading your pre-trip report so far! So happy the boys are excited for the upcoming trip! I can't wait to find out about your upcoming trip!

Thanks for joining us!!! I hope you stick around and that I keep you somewhat interested!

 

[BridgetR3]

So yesterday I wrote - "Well with so many close calls lately, I decided it was time to tell the kids. SO this morning while we were waiting on DS6 to wake up, I asked DH if it was o.k. to tell the kids about our trip. He says, "Yeah, sounds good." and goes back to whatever he was doing at the time. Remember this as it proves interesting later on."

And then I finished my story and went about my business without EVER telling you why this was important...... Sometimes, I amaze myself and NOT in a good way!

So while the kids were opening the eggs, DS10 calls out, "And I have an X!!!!"

DH looks at me with a scrunched up face and says, "An X? What do they need an X for?"

I just smile and turn back to the kids.

A few minutes later DS10 has the words "World Sixty Days" all written out and DH panicks. He leans over and whispers, "But I didn't think we were going to tell them about THIS trip....." Ummm....oops!!

Talk about miscommunication! He thought I was going to tell them about our Christmas trip or the one with their grandmother but alas I meant THIS trip, the trip in 59 days.....the trip HE kept reminding me that HE never CHOSE to keep it a secret, that the secret was MY idea. OOPS!!!

Well, the cat is out of the bag and as much as I wanted to grab all the pieces at that point and try something else, it wasn't happening. He was cool with it albeit VERY VERY shocked.

Later tonight we are making our chain of links to tear as the days get closer!

 

[StitchIsOurHero]

That's too funny about telling the kids. . .that definitely sounds like something that would happen at my house!! So, are they excited? You all are going to have the best time!

So excited that you are getting one of D~'s bags! I think they are amazing! Off to read the other posts so I can see which kind you're getting!

Have fun making your countdown chain!!

 

[Deesknee]

Too funny about miscommunication. We actually have figured that into our conversations. I will look at DH and pause while he actually absorbs what he just heard. And I have to stop & repeat what he says to me if he pauses, because for me the words come in, mix around in my empty head, then come out with something totally different. After all these years we have finally found a way to make communication work....sometimes.

Great timing on your D~ bag. I actually bid on her Dopey mine train bag, but didn't win it. I will have to watch for her next auction.

I hope you post pictures of your count down calendar!

 

[BridgetR3]

That's too funny about telling the kids. . .that definitely sounds like something that would happen at my house!! So, are they excited? You all are going to have the best time!

So excited that you are getting one of D~'s bags! I think they are amazing! Off to read the other posts so I can see which kind you're getting!

Have fun making your countdown chain!!

Yeah we sooooo weren't on the same page!! Oh well!

I am excited too!! My mom knows how much I love them and how I would never spend that on me when I could save it for a trip so she is buying it for me!!!

I'm sharing pics of our chain in a little while!

Too funny about miscommunication. We actually have figured that into our conversations. I will look at DH and pause while he actually absorbs what he just heard. And I have to stop & repeat what he says to me if he pauses, because for me the words come in, mix around in my empty head, then come out with something totally different. After all these years we have finally found a way to make communication work....sometimes.

Great timing on your D~ bag. I actually bid on her Dopey mine train bag, but didn't win it. I will have to watch for her next auction.

I hope you post pictures of your count down calendar!

Oh Dee, we should definitely take your advice. Call us clueless!!! But at least all turned out well and I'm really enjoying it now that the kids know!

Yep, it will work out perfectly with my D~ bag! Oh the mine train bag was adorable but I haven't bid on the auctions because I really really wanted the Steamboat Willie one!

Yep countdown chain pics coming right up!!

 

[BridgetR3]

So we worked really hard on our chain last night and here's what we ended up with.....red, yellow, white and black for our friend Mickey!

We decided to hang it on the mantle so that we see it each day when we come in. (The way my students have been acting lately it's my inspiration to survive the last 9 weeks of school.)

Whoa, excuse the Valentine's day card on the mantle. Ummm....it's now gone but I didn't even notice it until I took this picture!

No we don't typically dress like this crazy kid. It was later in the evening and these are his awesome PJ's which CLEARLY do NOT match.

So that's our chain. I looked for our Mickey heads last night but couldn't find them. I know I had some left over but I seem to have maybe thrown them away. I know....I leave the Valentine's Day cards on the mantle for two months but I throw away unused Mickey heads......scary.....

 

[BridgetR3]

Hey,

Did you guys see this - Cirque Discount with TIW card??

I'm thinking about maybe seeing this show while we are there. I'm not sure if DH or the kids would be willing to give up an evening in the parks but they LOVE Cirque stuff normally.

So what do you ladies think???


Also, our Mardi Gras 2014 trip is with my mom who will need an ECV. She suffers from a few disabilities - the most painful of which is severe arthritis. She does not use a wheelchair at home because she never goes anywhere that needs one. My dad grocery shops for her. She does not go to the mall and shops only small stores. She works in an office at a desk so she doesn't typically "aggravate" her condition but I know Disney will be hard on her. With that said, she wants to come and make memories with us so I'm reading up on all the ECV things and I'm really worried about our trip with her.

So are their separate entrances at some/most/any of the rides for ECV's and wheelchairs?? There's no way we would be able to steer the ECV through most Disney lines. Will she have to walk these unless we are in a wheelchair? Are there wheelchairs available at the entrances to lines to put her in and push her through the queue? I think standing in those queues and slowly moving through them would completely wear her out. HELP!!!

 

[Deesknee]

Love the chain! Very cute using the 3 Mickey colors. Wouldn't worry about the cards, obviously you loved them & appreciated them soooo much you just couldn't put them away... even more than your unused Mickey heads.

Cirque d'sole. I saw that. Those prices aren't offered for when we are there, but if they extend it, it would be something I might consider.

About the ECV, my chair is manual. It used to be that most of the rides had seperate entrances for w/c's, but I am noticing a new trend when they redo the rides to make them more chair friendly. Here is my experiences, now again remember mine is manual so I'm sure in some cases it differs. Your best bet is to check in on the disabilities thread.
A lot of the rides have seperate entrances, however this doesn't guarantee a shorter wait. More than once I have doubled or even tripled my wait time by using the w/c entrance.
Also, in some cases you miss out on part of the ride. HM has since changed, but there was a time if you were in a w/c you did not get to experience the stretching room. My biggest complaint about being in a chair is missing the viewing experience. My view is not of the optical illusion of the buildings on Main St. but rather of other guests butts. Keep in mind though, some of that is due to my particular situation as it is difficult for me to look straight up.

I am going to ask forgiveness before I even type the next part. I am about to suggest something medically speaking, and I get irritated when people do that to me. Please just consider it a story. I will tell it as one. Take from it what you will.
I had an elderly friend. He was an autobody repair man. His hands and feet were riddled with arthritis. He was in such extreme pain with his hands that he could no longer zip his own zippers, clutch the steering wheel to the car. As a very last resort . He was an old Navy guys guy. Raised during the depression so he did NOT part easily with a dime., He tried acupuncture, even though his insurance wouldn't pay. After 1 treatment he could hold the steering wheel after 2 treatments he could zip his zippers & tie his shoes. After 3 he had no pain. He needed no further treatents. That was his hands. His feet were not as successful. It didn't help at all. He had metal rods in them, and they believe that may be why it was unsuccessful. Just a little story.

Also, to make the chair a little more fun, the creative boards have "license plates". I have used them for my chair in the past.

 

[DisneyJillian18]

I love that we are not the only family to leave out cards a little past their prime!

The chain came out so great! The colors are very Disney! But I was wondering how you got it to stay up. I can see something at the tops of the left, middle, and right sections, but what is it? Hope it wasn't a nosy question!

I wish I could answer your wheelchair question better, but I will still share my experience, though it probably won't help much for your situation.
On one of our trips to Disney, we ate at the Rainforest café. We had never had a problem there before and the food was always fairly good, not the best but good. This trip my boyfriend caught a terrible case of food poisoning from the food here. Long story short, we ended up in the Orlando hospital until four a.m. the next morning. We had to miss most of the park day that day because he still was not feeling his best, but around five he decided he would try to go, we got him a wheelchair and Disney was very accommodating (Rainforest Café not so much, but that's another story) We didn't ride any rides, due to the fact that he was still sick. But Disney did make the experience better for us but making sure people would scoot out of our way if we were trying to past with him. I thought this was so nice of the cast members to do. Not very helpful for you, but I still thought I would let you know!

 

[BridgetR3]

Love the chain! Very cute using the 3 Mickey colors. Wouldn't worry about the cards, obviously you loved them & appreciated them soooo much you just couldn't put them away... even more than your unused Mickey heads.

Cirque d'sole. I saw that. Those prices aren't offered for when we are there, but if they extend it, it would be something I might consider.

About the ECV, my chair is manual. It used to be that most of the rides had seperate entrances for w/c's, but I am noticing a new trend when they redo the rides to make them more chair friendly. Here is my experiences, now again remember mine is manual so I'm sure in some cases it differs. Your best bet is to check in on the disabilities thread.
A lot of the rides have seperate entrances, however this doesn't guarantee a shorter wait. More than once I have doubled or even tripled my wait time by using the w/c entrance.
Also, in some cases you miss out on part of the ride. HM has since changed, but there was a time if you were in a w/c you did not get to experience the stretching room. My biggest complaint about being in a chair is missing the viewing experience. My view is not of the optical illusion of the buildings on Main St. but rather of other guests butts. Keep in mind though, some of that is due to my particular situation as it is difficult for me to look straight up.

I am going to ask forgiveness before I even type the next part. I am about to suggest something medically speaking, and I get irritated when people do that to me. Please just consider it a story. I will tell it as one. Take from it what you will.
I had an elderly friend. He was an autobody repair man. His hands and feet were riddled with arthritis. He was in such extreme pain with his hands that he could no longer zip his own zippers, clutch the steering wheel to the car. As a very last resort . He was an old Navy guys guy. Raised during the depression so he did NOT part easily with a dime., He tried acupuncture, even though his insurance wouldn't pay. After 1 treatment he could hold the steering wheel after 2 treatments he could zip his zippers & tie his shoes. After 3 he had no pain. He needed no further treatents. That was his hands. His feet were not as successful. It didn't help at all. He had metal rods in them, and they believe that may be why it was unsuccessful. Just a little story.

Also, to make the chair a little more fun, the creative boards have "license plates". I have used them for my chair in the past.

Thanks for the story about the accupuncture treatments! I'll pass them along! I've read on the DISabilities boards but it was slightly overwhelming so I'm going to pay VERY close attention when we go down these first two times without her to see how we will manage with her chair.

I love that we are not the only family to leave out cards a little past their prime!

The chain came out so great! The colors are very Disney! But I was wondering how you got it to stay up. I can see something at the tops of the left, middle, and right sections, but what is it? Hope it wasn't a nosy question!

I wish I could answer your wheelchair question better, but I will still share my experience, though it probably won't help much for your situation.
On one of our trips to Disney, we ate at the Rainforest café. We had never had a problem there before and the food was always fairly good, not the best but good. This trip my boyfriend caught a terrible case of food poisoning from the food here. Long story short, we ended up in the Orlando hospital until four a.m. the next morning. We had to miss most of the park day that day because he still was not feeling his best, but around five he decided he would try to go, we got him a wheelchair and Disney was very accommodating (Rainforest Café not so much, but that's another story) We didn't ride any rides, due to the fact that he was still sick. But Disney did make the experience better for us but making sure people would scoot out of our way if we were trying to past with him. I thought this was so nice of the cast members to do. Not very helpful for you, but I still thought I would let you know!

I love that you are worried are being nosey asking about my chain. It's umm.....scotch tape.... At first it didn't want to hold but I used quite a few pieces so it should be fine.

Wow....your poor BF!!! I'm glad that Disney was accommodating. Too bad Rainforest Cafe' wasn't so nice!

Thank you ladies for hanging out with me!

 

[Deesknee]

I hope you don't think I was brushing your question about the wheelchair off to the disability board. I just don't go as often as some of them, and i haven't been using a chair as long as most of them. Plus since my chair is manual it does make a difference.

 

[BridgetR3]

I hope you don't think I was brushing your question about the wheelchair off to the disability board. I just don't go as often as some of them, and i haven't been using a chair as long as most of them. Plus since my chair is manual it does make a difference.

Dee, let's just say you worry too much!!!

I know you weren't brushing me off. You actually answered and offered help to me in the form of the DISability boards (Which some people don't know about). That was very kind of you. I know you don't use an ECV and more than likely won't know the answer to my question but I figured it would stir up some conversation.

Please don't ever feel like you have aggravated me!! It takes a LOT to do that I promise!

 

[Deesknee]

Thanks. It is difficult sometimes to "hear" someones tone via the written word. Glad to know you are not easily aggravated.

but how about this....

why?
why?why?
are we there yet?
why?
why?
why?
no I don't have to go to the bathroom
...I have to go to the bathroom.
are we there yet, because I have to go to the bathroom again. (as you finally get to bite into YOUR meal.
why?

see... now I aggravated you huh?

 

[BridgetR3]

Thanks. It is difficult sometimes to "hear" someones tone via the written word. Glad to know you are not easily aggravated.

but how about this....

why?
why?why?
are we there yet?
why?
why?
why?
no I don't have to go to the bathroom
...I have to go to the bathroom.
are we there yet, because I have to go to the bathroom again. (as you finally get to bite into YOUR meal.
why?

see... now I aggravated you huh?

Nah I'm good.....I teach first grade. That sorta sounded like my lunch.
Except it's more like........

Can you open this? Can I have Johnny's pizza?
But I don't like this.
I need the bathroom. Can I go to the bathroom?
Can I have your food? Your lunch looks better than mine.
ALex is playing with his food.
But I DON"T WANT TO EAT THIS.
Can you put my straw in?
I SPILLED.
Joe's nose is bleeding again.
Suzy is sitting in my spot.
I tee-teed my pants.
Andy touched me.
My tummy really hurts. This food is yucky.
Alice is looking at me.

Whew.....yep that's us!!

 

[DisneyJillian18]

Thanks for the story about the accupuncture treatments! I'll pass them along! I've read on the DISabilities boards but it was slightly overwhelming so I'm going to pay VERY close attention when we go down these first two times without her to see how we will manage with her chair.



I love that you are worried are being nosey asking about my chain. It's umm.....scotch tape.... At first it didn't want to hold but I used quite a few pieces so it should be fine.

Wow....your poor BF!!! I'm glad that Disney was accommodating. Too bad Rainforest Cafe' wasn't so nice!

Thank you ladies for hanging out with me!

Hah! I just didn't want to offend you, from the south
It looked almost like those command strips, which is the main reason I asked, I wanted some like that! It wasn't even the fact that we had to miss Disney time, it was just really bad for him! Even the hospital said they had never seen a case that bad, our luck! Disney was amazing, Rainforest not so much, it's so sad because we had always loved the atmosphere there!
Can't wait until the actual trip to read all about it!

 

[Deesknee]

Nah I'm good.....I teach first grade. That sorta sounded like my lunch.
Except it's more like........

Can you open this? Can I have Johnny's pizza?
But I don't like this.
I need the bathroom. Can I go to the bathroom?
Can I have your food? Your lunch looks better than mine.
ALex is playing with his food.
But I DON"T WANT TO EAT THIS.
Can you put my straw in?
I SPILLED.
Joe's nose is bleeding again.
Suzy is sitting in my spot.
I tee-teed my pants.
Andy touched me.
My tummy really hurts. This food is yucky.
Alice is looking at me.

Whew.....yep that's us!!

I'm not a teacher, but that kinda sounds like what our dinner table sounded like about 15 years ago.

 

[BridgetR3]

I'm not a teacher, but that kinda sounds like what our dinner table sounded like about 15 years ago.

Today I can add the "Mrs. R, I think I'm going to spit." to the mix. Yes one lost her lunch at lunch. It always makes for such a pleasant experience for the rest of us.

I'll be back later with our itinerary sheet for Day 1. We are sharing it with the boys tonight!

 

[Deesknee]

Today I can add the "Mrs. R, I think I'm going to spit." to the mix. Yes one lost her lunch at lunch. It always makes for such a pleasant experience for the rest of us.

I'll be back later with our itinerary sheet for Day 1. We are sharing it with the boys tonight!

gross. I always cringe when DD comes home telling me someone got sick at school. I always know it is just a matter of time before we all get it if it is viral. Can't imagine as a teacher what pleasure that must be, to see it spread through the class, waiting for your turn.

 

[BridgetR3]

gross. I always cringe when DD comes home telling me someone got sick at school. I always know it is just a matter of time before we all get it if it is viral. Can't imagine as a teacher what pleasure that must be, to see it spread through the class, waiting for your turn.

I used to catch the virus EVERY time it passed through our classroom but after a couple of years, I had an immune system of steel!! Now, I almost never catch it. Of course, it helps that I literally bathe in hand sanitizer most of the day.