What is your pre-trip Tradition(s)??

[CindysGusGus]

We always stop in St. Augustine for 1 or 2 nights just to start the relaxation mode before we head into Orlando.

 

[meeko_33785]

I like to watch old vacation videos before I go. It's sort of become a tradition to countdown the days by watching a different video every night. The morning before I leave I always watch at least one old Disney cartoon. This originated back when that's what they showed on the Disney Channel at 5am. Now that they don't show them on Disney Channel anymore, I put in a Disney Treasures DVD insteed.

 

[DisneyAddict_M]

I usually pack the night before and finish up the morning of. I'm such a procrastinator. That's probably why I usually end up forgetting a bunch of things.

 

[ziggystardust]

As long as I can remember my family and I have always gone out to a great dinner the night before we leave.

This last trip I started a new tradition. I got a manicure/pedicure, facial, and massage. ( I can't wait to do this again!)
I also ran around getting those travel size things b/c I love those.
And of course - we went out to dinner.

 

[Chicago526]

More of a nessesity than a tradition. I run around the evening before trying to pack and clean the house. Then I take a sleeping pill so I can actually get some sleep that night! Everyone else's sounds much more fun! Maybe I'll try to be more organized that that 90% of my stuff is done the night before and I can relax! (yeah, right!)

 

[carone0318]

at the 60 day mark we build a paper chain with 60 rings and dd pulls off one each day. This was a way for her to visualize how long it would be until we went to WDW. Well now this year's trip she will be just 2 weeks shy of 8 and I guess I really don't need to build the chain, but I still will, her 3 yr old brother needs to learn somehow. Unfortunately though unlike her, if her gets his hands on it he will destroy it ! We love our little Stitch....

 

[Mortlives]

Originally posted by CindysGusGus
We always stop in St. Augustine for 1 or 2 nights just to start the relaxation mode before we head into Orlando.

Nice one! We were just in St. Augustine in March, and fell in love with the place.

Our tradition is to go out for a nice dinner the night before, and talk about how excited we are. Then, I unpack my toothbrush, since DH has already packed it on me, so I can brush my teeth before bed. This process gets repeated the next morning, then *I* pack my toothbrush.

Ciao,
Mort.

 

[jann1033]

plan to leave around 5 am (usually drive ) and leave around 1-2am instead cause we can't wait any longer and then stop at cracker barrel or Bob Evans for breakfast depending on where we are. ( one of the few times we actually leave "early" for anything!)

Husband is self employed so usually he is working like a maniac till the very last min. finishing the job he is on that is of course taking longer than it should but thankfully we broke that tradition last trip and hope to not reinstate it!

 

[Cocamami]

At the 30 day mark, I make a huge calendar counting down the number of days left until we leave. I cut out pictures from the previous year's brochures so that the calendar has Disney pics in every square. Each night, one of the kiddies crosses off the day. I hang it up on a wall in the living room so that when people come over and ask what it is, I have an excuse to talk about my favorite subject- DISNEY!

 

[TwingleMum]

Awesome ideas, I'll have to adopt a few for my own. Of course I'll let DH think I thought these up myself LOL...

 

[anditoo72]

OMG- This is our first big trip with our motor home so I have already planned on doing a couple of these things, it was so funny to read that people do them as a ritual.

Rice Krispie treats- I was planning on making these this year- I figured it would be a great snack-Camcolt how do you make them into mickey shapes, I looked for a cookie cutter in a craft store the other day- no luck. What do you use. I am also going to make a fruit salad for the RV.

I always do the packing way ahead of time- we are not leaving for 21 days and I have the kids already packed. So I run around on the last day getting the things I forgot.

We are spending our first day and night in Florida in St. Augustine. We love to visit this area we do the free tour at the chocolate Factory. Do the Fort and then some poking around at the shops.

Something that I didn't think of until I read this thread is to watch National Lampoons Vacation. That would be perfect night before we leave movie.

 

[ugadog99]

At thirty days out we make a calendar and the girls take turns marking off days. This year we used various Home Depot Mickey heads to cover the days and some Disney clip art. They mark the days off in the mornings. At night, we have a paper chain and pull off a link. We add one Disney trivia question per link on the chain so it makes it a little more interesting. Also, since Splash Mountain is one of our favorite rides, we start at 27 days out and read one story per night from our very old Uncle Remus collection. On our last night we always read the Tar Baby.

 

[zakatak]

Let's see... we always wake up excited on Disney Eve, actually more excited than on the day we leave! This year it will be very different than normal. Usually we do regular stuff all day and then go out to dinner, then watch a Disney Movie (usually Lion King) while I give the girls and I pedicures. Then hit the sack! This year our Disney Eve falls on Thanksgiving so I will be busy cooking all day (I host it for our extended family). I will be serving on Chinette plates, though, instead of my china for easier cleanup and handing out all leftovers to go home. I'll probably serve dinner a bit earlier than normal so that we have time for cleanup, relax, baths, pedicures and movie!

We'll be doing our countdown chain tomorrow, actually! But I like the M&Ms idea too.

I usually make a list for a week before of little things to do so that on Disney Eve, I just have to worry about last minute packing and starting vacation early!!!

 

[CamColt]

Anditoo72, few years ago my mother gave my kids a Disney cookie making set for Valentines Day. One of the cutters included was a Mickey shaped one. I wonder if you check out the Disney Catalog if they would have anything like that.

 

[Jen D]

Traditions... how about running around flipping out like a chicken with my head cut off?

The one thing I MUST do before vacation is get a little waxing done and get a pedicure. Sometimes a haircut too. Hopefully I don't put it off until the day before vacation but that has happened.

I always do laundry the day before. We have to go to a laundromat so I can't just do a little everyday, I do it all the day before-- so the bulk of the packing is done when I finish washing clothes (it goes straight from the laundry bag to the suitcase. So there's packing. Picking up last minute things for the trip. Going to the bank. Setting up the taxi to the airport. Synching the palm pilot. I never cook-- too stressed out. Dinner will usually be sandwiches from the deli around the corner. Mostly I'm cleaning-- I HATE coming home to a messy house, but usually I have been so busy in the days leading up to the trip that the house is a mess by the day before we leave.

We don't have family traditions-- my husband is always a mess all his own-- he usually has tons of work to finish before we leave town, and is filing things so he won't have to on vacation, so he is often working very very late the night before we leave.

And I can never get any sleep. And we always take a very early flight, so I'm usually asleep at 2am and up at 4am. So I'm a wreck on day one.

Maybe-- just maybe-- this trip I can do a little better and ENJOY the anticipation rather than let it ruin me! I'm like this with every trip, not just Disney.

 

[LovesHauntedMansion]

This is one of the most interesting threads I've ever read. I'm always curious as to what other people do before trips. I'm one of the ones stressing out, but I hope to do some of these things before my next trip. However, my DBF said we're not going back to Disney for 7 years. We'll see about that.

 

[HenDuck]

1. buy those trashy magazines that I never usually read (to read on the plane and then left for the next lucky passenger )

2. get a massage!

3. buy my favorite Aveda and Origins products - my treat to myself for the whole trip!

4. the night before - mad-last minute packing, locking up the suitcases and bringing them downstairs (and hopefully putting them in the car too), and eating on paper plates!

5. buy everyone new toothbrushes and myself new disposable razors.

6. we usually burn a few new CDs for the discman too.

7. when I get to the airport, I usually buy myself a mocha or latte. it's like the official beginning to the over-indulgence!

Great thread!

 

[Zoo Keeper]

We watch Disney's Sing Along "Disneyland Fun". It really gets you in the Disney mood. "I'm walking right down the middle of Main Street USA....."

Of course the last minute frantic packing also occurs on Disney Eve.

 

[crow11ad]

The day before me and dw do not go to work. Well at least I do not and hopefully she will not have to work. We go out and do our last minute things that we need to get and pack. We will probably be on these boards to get last minute details or to give some. Watch some WDW movies that we made or the planning video. Also, read up on our resort. Then go to sleep early and wake up early....

 

[flipturngirl]

we make our beds and then lay on it and then run out when alarm hits and are all hyper.