Disney Dreaming

It's ADR day!!!

2012-06-01T11:29:00.001-04:00

YAY!! I always love this day, despite walking at 5:40 am to get the laptop booted up and ready to log in at 6 am on the dot to start my reservation process! :)

I have my brand spanking new laptop this time, so that helped. I brought it in the bedroom last night and set it on my night stand, so all I had to do was grab it, prop myself up in bed, and go at it. Worked well until I got in and my first ressie, Chef Mickey's, required a credit card # to book. I thought I was safe....didn't think I had any restaurants that needed one. But nope, both Chef Mickey's and Ohana needed it.

But anyway, I made sure I had my list of restaurants in order of priority beforehand. Chef Mickey's was first, then I moved on to Whispering Canyon Cafe. This one I was nervous about because I needed a table for 7 and it's a MVMCP night. Then I did Ohana and 50's Primetime. Next was Coral Reef...nothing. I tried my other Epcot day...booked solid. Moved on and booked Liberty Tree Tavern and Biergarten.

Coral Reef was the only restaurant hubby requested. So I had to check with him before booking a substitute. Garden Grill would have been mine next choice, but that was booked solid too. I find that to be kinda weird. I looked at the menus for Epcot, trying to find what would be good for us and also for the kids. I try to pick places that are somewhat entertaining for the kids...not just a restaurant. I would love to try Chef de France, but I'm not sure if my 4 year old would sit there nicely. So I suggested Teppan Edo to hubby and he said "yes". We've been wanting to do it...just waiting for the youngest to be old enough to be interested in watching the show.

I'm hoping and praying the Be Our Guest restaurant will be open for our trip, and I can get my hands on a reservation!! Ideally, that would be the day I made the reservations or Liberty Tree Tavern. I chose that restaurant for that day, hoping I'd be canceling it for Be Our Guest. I do love LTT, but since they took the characters away, it's not the same :(

I'm excited, as usual, for all the great food we'll eat!! My only hope is that Disney offers free dining for the late fall, like they have the last few years. It would slice $700 off our bill. Not sure what we'll do if they don't. :(

Different ways for different Disney Fans

2012-05-29T15:56:00.002-04:00

I think all Disney World fans have their priorities. It's fun to try new things and do each trip a little different, but there's some things we won't budge on. And sometimes it's kinda hard to understand why people do what they do. In the end, everyone is happy in the happiest place on earth, so it really doesn't matter! :)

I know out in cyberland there can be some major snobbery when it comes to resorts. I myself stay away from those communities and only visit those who refuse to put up with that kind of rude behavior. It makes me super sad. I like value resorts and I have my reasons, just as those who like deluxes have their reasons, so if everyone's happy, why does it matter?

Would I like to stay in a deluxe resort, all out with deluxe dining plan? Sure! If I had a never ending supply of money!! LOL! But like most people, we live on a budget. I know there are some who would rather only go to Disney every 2,3,5 years, but go all out. I prefer to go more often and keep to a budget.

And there are others who like to stay deluxe, but bring all their own food and save money that way. Seems like a another good plan. It's something we have thought of before. But in the end, we spend very little time at the resort. We've done upgraded trips before and stayed at a moderate with the plan to spend more time there and take more advantage of the resort's amenities...but no. We still spent the same amount of time in the parks! LOL!

And honestly, I love food. I lot eating!! I don't think I could give up Disney food in order to stay deluxe!!

But that's me. I know everyone has their priorities. Some couldn't care less about food and are all about the ambiance of where they stay.

Disney has so much to offer every person with every size budget and taste. That is the great thing about Disney.

Almost ADR day!

2012-05-23T11:20:00.001-04:00

As any Disney planner extraordinaire, I have been thinking of my dining reservations almost as long as I have been planning this trip! Dining is a HUGE deal for us. Part of the Disney experience is splurging on the fabulous food. For us, the restaurants are an attraction! So many fun character meals and awesome experiences!

My 180 day marker is next Friday. I had a huge list of possibilities. But when it came down to choosing which park for which day, and therefore, which restaurant for each day, I had some trouble. Problem is, we arrive November 28th and stay til December 5th. Disney has only released the calendar for November. December's calendar won't be available until a few days into June. Which doesn't help me right now. My ADR day is June 1st!

I did manage to find a website listing December's hours, and usually these sites are pretty accurate. Either way, I tend to follow Touringplans.com's advice anyway.

My other snag...I am REALLY hoping the new Beauty and the Beast Be Our Guest restaurant will be open for our trip. Disney is saying "holidays" for an opening date. Fingers are crossed. But in the meantime, I have to make my ADRs. If it's announced that the new restaurant will be open, I hope to be one of the lucky ones to secure an ADR for one of our Magic Kingdom days. I have one day planned that I hope will work. I chose a restaurant we like, but are okay with canceling if the new restaurant opens.

We debated on a dinner show too. But ultimately decided to skip it. We will be on the dining plan and having to use two credits for the show didn't seem like a good plan for this trip.

So here are our plans:

Chef Mickey's, Whispering Canyon Cafe, Liberty Tree Tavern (to Be Our Guest if it's open), Coral Reef, Beirgarten, 50's Primetime, and Ohana.

Yum yum yum! Can't wait!

Baby and Toddler Tips!!

2012-04-17T11:51:00.000-04:00

I've traveled to Walt Disney World many times with babies and toddlers. My oldest, now 9, we took as a toddler twice- when she was 2-1/2 and 4. My youngest, now 4, has gone at 9 months, 20 months, and 2 months shy of 3. And honestly, it really wasn't that big of a deal! But as I've always done with any trip we take, I plan ahead and plan smart. Go with flexibility and common sense.

First of all, taking a child under 3 is great because they are FREE! Who doesn't like free??? If you do the dining plan, children can eat from your plate or if it is a buffet, they eat off the buffet for free. We always brought food for the kids- things like fruit cups, pb crackers, dried fruit, trail mix, breakfast bars, etc.. Things that had nutritional value and they could eat as meals. That way we weren't limited on what we could order. This upcoming trip will be our first paying for our son, which stinks on some levels. (Yuck...over $200 for his park pass!) But it will be nice to not have to bring tons of food with us and he gets all his own counter meals like his sister.

WDW is THE MOST kid-friendly place on the planet. We've taken other vacations with the kids and it's not as easy. In Disney, there are kid care centers in each park. A place for parents to feed, change, play with the little ones if they need a break and some quiet time. A large percentage of attractions in the parks are suitable for kids of all ages. Try going to a Six Flags or other amusement park...there's very little for parents to do with small children. And most of it the parents cannot also ride with the children. The cast members who work at WDW know how to deal with children. They aren't uncomfortable around little ones. They know how to speak to them to make them smile.

I know many people use the argument of "the kids will never remember." Yeah, probably not. But the kids sure have a blast while they're there. The parents have fun and have memories of the fun had. Family time is very important for our family, and vacations are too. It's very hard to completely relax and forget about bills and responsibilities while at home. So for us, leaving home is a big part of complete rest and relaxation. We enjoy doing fun things with our kids and so what if they don't remember. We do. And I have the photos to prove it.

I know for some families, a Disney trip is a once in a lifetime event, so yes, it is smarter to wait until the children are old enough to fully take advantage of everything the parks have to offer and be old enough to remember it. If that is the case, I think 5-7 is a great age. They are still young enough to "get" the magic and still believe, but should be tall enough to ride most rides. They'd still have to skip some though. Our daughter has always been a peanut, so at 9, she is finally tall enough for Rock n Roller Coaster (minimum height requirement is 48"). And if we'd waited til she was this age to take her for the first time, we would have missed out on all the memories she's made, playing with the characters, still believing that she was meeting the REAL Mickey and Cinderella. She's past that now...she knows there's someone inside the costume. She knows they're actors. I wouldn't have wanted to give up the memories of her smiles and the excitement in her eyes meeting them when she was 2-1/2 and 4.

Updated Scrapbooking Page!!!!

2012-04-15T17:05:00.000-04:00

I've FINALLY finished my Disney Scrapbook from our big 10th Anniversary trip in 2008. Yeah...only took me 3-1/2 years. but it's done and I uploaded a bunch more pics today. I have a bunch more but for some odd reason I'm having trouble uploading the pics to my computer from my phone. New computer...still figuring it out! :)

Check out the new pics here!

Officially changed our reservation today.

2012-04-02T12:54:00.000-04:00

I'm sad my parents are not going (well...they still haven't given a 100% no..but 99.9%) but it sure was exciting talking with the Disney reservations lady on the phone to change our reservation today!!

So what I did was this: I took my parents off the reservation and switched it to a standard room at Art of Animation...since The Little Mermaid section is opening earlier than planned! Yippee!! If my parents decide they are in, all we gotta do it make a new reservation just for them in a standard room. It is cheaper for us to stay in standard rooms anyway, even with us splitting the suite (Those things are awesome, but way pricey! Two standard rooms is cheaper...but a good amount.)

But I did change the dates too. Unfortunately, my parents places of employment make it kinda difficult. My dad can only take M-F...so that means we had to go Sat-Sat...and flights will be more $$. And my mom can't take any vacation in December. But she wanted to go at Christmas time. So we were going Nov 10-17th. Parks are all decked out by then, so it was good. Hubby did not have that vacation though. He can probably get it. At his job, vacation is assigned...you get it when they give it to you...and his vacation is actually the last week of Nov and first of Dec. So since it's just us, we switched it to then..and a Wed-Wed to save on airfare. If my parents can go..we'll just switch the dates back. No biggie. (Hopefully)

So anyway, if you made it through all that babbling, thanks! We're pretty excited. I am in total Disney World withdrawal here. Our last family vacation was Nov/Dec 2010, and then me and DD took a short trip in March 2011. It's been a LOOOOOONG time since I've gone a year without a trip, let alone a year and 8 months.

And we already have our 2013 trip semi-worked out! We're heading West!!!! Yep! DISNEYLAND!!!! And most importantly, the new Carsland!! I was at Disneyland when I was a kid when my mom and step dad lived in San Fransisco. I am so eager to get back..and see the place as an adult and appreciate the park Walt created and was there to see finished. The plan is 5 days at Disneyland and then another 5 touring So Cal! :) Doing it in August, so I hope that will be a good time to visit! :) It will be way pricier than we're used to paying for...but hopefully we can swing it!

Tried not to act disappointed, but I am.

2012-03-26T12:00:00.001-04:00

Talked with my mom yesterday. I am trying real hard not to talk about anything Disney World, but as you all understand, it is damn hard! I don't want to talk cause I don't want to push. I've known since June that them talking this trip with us was iffy. But I'd been hopeful the last couple months. Well...not anymore.

My mom pretty much told me they are definitely out. There is a minuscule chance, but it's not looking good. My dad is too afraid he will have an episode and doesn't want to chance it.

I get it. I understand. But the rest of me is wondering, "So you're just gonna sit home and do nothing...not live your life...be careful because of what might happen?" "You want to miss out on something special with your grand kids because of your fear?" But I don't say any of those things. My new life mantra: It is what it is. I can't force people to do anything and putting them on a guilt trip won't help either.

So...now I sit back and wait and make plans for a trip without them, just in case.

Maps are ordered!

2012-03-14T15:11:00.000-04:00

I've done the free custom maps through Disney's website a few times. They are super nice and cool to have. I've never actually used them at the park. I think you're better off grabbing a map the day you're there, as it has up to date into on them with showtimes and what not. But the customized ones are fun to have!

This set I ordered for my parents actually. I'm hoping they generate some excitement for them. They still haven't given a definitive "yes" or "no" for the trip this November. It's all booked and all that's left is to make the dining reservations in May and book airfare at some point. And pay for the trip, of course. But it's all planned. Been planned since this time last year when we were supposed to go November 2011.

Today felt really nice!

2012-02-27T15:53:00.000-05:00

For the first time in a while I got to do something today that made me really happy! Disney trip planning!!!

It's been 8 months since my mom gave me the definite news that they needed to cancel our trip that was supposed to be November 2011. That day I stepped away from trip planning and haven't opened my computer file since. We decided to postpone the trip instead of cancel...for November 2012. My mom really wants to go when the parks are all decked out for Christmas. It's felt really weird to not be planning a trip....I'm almost always planning a Disney trip! The trip was 80% planned out and everything will pretty much stay the same. Normally I am always making some kind of Disney plans...so it's been a weird 8 months.

But on Saturday I was at my parents house and my dad put in for the vacation time in November of this year. There is still a chance they will have to cancel again (dad's health issues) but I am feeling pretty confident. He's been doing well. Knock on wood...fingers super duper crossed. Today I was running errands with hubby and we started chatting about the trip. We may shorten the trip by a day, which would mean we need to change some things around, but wow did it feel good to talk about it!!!!

Why I'm not really a fan of using a travel agent

2012-01-31T14:18:00.001-05:00

I think travel agents are extremely useful and can really help take the stress out of vacation planning...for some people. I thoroughly enjoy the planning and researching phase of any trip, not just Disney World. I like bargain hunting. I like searching and finding just the right hotel or resort. I really just enjoy it.

But I also need the control. Here's a little story where I used a TA and the control was completely out of my hands and I was not happy.

I booked the trip with a TA friend but then she'd quit and the reservation was transferred to another agent. I had booked the trip with my agent friend for three reasons. She is my friend and I wanted to give her the business. I trusted her with my Disney vacation. I had a referral credit to use. So fast forward to the day Disney announced the free dining promo. The second I read it I called my TA to upgrade our package. As most Disney lovers know, when promos are announced, sometimes they book up fast. TA was out of the office for the day, so I could not get a hold of her. But I said to myself, "Eh, no worries....I'll just call Disney myself." No dice. Disney only allows changes to be made to an agency made reservation by the TA. I was so so upset and freaking out. I ended up talking to another TA at the office, who hadn't even heard about the free dining promo yet, and she made the call for me.

I vowed then to never use a TA again. You just never know when they will be out of the office and unable to make a call for you.

BUT, I know there are a lot of people who either do not have the time, or do not have the experience or desire, to plan their trips. For them a TA can be an extremely important person to have.

Boy do I need to get away!

2012-01-08T16:16:00.000-05:00

This pic was taken while waiting in line for Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.

Hubby recently told me we really need to go on a vacation alone again. I couldn't agree more. I think back to this trip in April 2010, just the two of us, kids at home with Grandma and Grandpa, and I remember how peaceful it had been. So relaxing. Just us...recharging.

I have days too where I wish I could just go away by myself or a few days...no one asking me to do this or that, no household chores, no responsibilities...a few days to be completely selfish and worry about no one but me. I never used to think I could take a solo Disney trip....but I so totally think I would love it. Taking time to explore the things only I want to do. No one asking me to hurry so we can go do something. Being able to just sit and relax if I want, when I want.

It's been a rough few months around here and some days the stress just gets to me. Wish i was in Disney!

The trip is still a go! For now, at least

2012-01-04T11:02:00.001-05:00

Well, me, hubby, and the kids are most definitely going. It's just my mom and dad I am not sure of.

We were all supposed to go this past November, but because of some medical issues, my parents had to back out.Instead of canceling, I just postponed the trip a year. My mom really wants to go when the parks are decked out for the holidays and we have to go in November because she cannot take time off in December.

Anyway, so I rebooked at the new art of animation resort...a Cars suite. so looking forward to it!! But I've had the sinking feeling that they were gonna back out again. My dad's health issues are somewhat better, but it was more than that. i really just had a feeling they did not want to go anymore. Or at least, my dad didn't want to go anymore. I need to know though. And semi-soon. If they're not going, we would probably switch our dates and we'd need to stay somewhere else. We can't afford the suite all by ourselves. Plus, dining ressies will be mid May.

So I chatted with my mom about it the other day. My dad still has concerns, but as of now, they are still in. But they want to shorten the trip by two days, 6 instead of 8. Hubby wants to stay a couple extra days just us and I so want that too...but when I told my mom we might do that, she seemed like she wasn't happy about it. I think they want us to fly with them, there and back, so they have guidance. But I'm sorry...by the time we go it will have been a LOOOOOOONG time since our last trip and I don't think 6 days will be enough. I could make it enough...but will I want to???

Carsland!!

2011-12-26T10:47:00.002-05:00

I recently read a blog showing all kinds of pictures of the new Carsland that will open this summer! I am so so excited!!! Do you think I can find the blog though???? So wish I could share it with you!!!

But anyway, the pictures showed the little town of Radiator Springs and it is so so amazing. I cannot wait to see it live in person...it will be like walking into the TV. From the pictures i saw, everything is so completely authentic...just like the movie.

We are HUGE Cars fans in our house. It's probably our favorite Disney movie of all time. We've watching it at least 100 times, if not more. So to get the chance to go to radiator Springs and be a part of the movie is just so exciting!!!

We are definitely planning a trip to California soon!! It's a little tough for us though....since the trip requires us to travel across the entire country! We have our trip planned for 2012, staying at the new Art of Animation resort, Cars section, of course!! It will be a nice way to gear up for Carsland!! Hopefully we can do that in 2013!

Would I like some cheese with this whine???

2011-11-10T08:59:00.001-05:00

If you mean "cheese" as in "The Big Cheese" as in "Mickey"......then yeah!!

The last two weeks, I must have thought about Disney World like 80 times a day. Our big family trip is planned for next year (a year from today) but it just seems soooooooooooooooooooooooo far away. I had been handling it well....until hubby's aunt started asking me for advice on helping her plan a surprise trip for her daughters for January. I want to go soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo bad!!!!!! Can't she adopt me for a while and send me too???

Wordless Wednesday

2011-11-09T08:59:00.001-05:00

Well, four words and an emoticon.....

Wish I was there :(

My Disney Daydream......

2011-10-29T12:02:00.003-04:00

So...I had this crazy daydream. I've been helping my husband's aunt plan a surprise trip for her girls as a Christmas present..they're going second week of January.

It's been well known that I am completely jealous and would love to go too. But we just don't have the money. So I had this crazy daydream that hubby somehow found the money and was gonna surprise me too. It was a silly daydream that I knew would not happen......until I saw the dining reservation confirmation his aunt had made and it said 4 guests instead of the three I knew about going on the trip- her two daughters and their one friend. (I'd let her use my email address to make ressies) And one was for one of my favorite places- BOMA!

So of course, my brain was like "OMG!!! Did my crazy daydream somehow actually come true??????"

I told him about it and he is so bad at keeping secrets and surprises...so when he was completely serious when telling me he did not, in fact, plan on surprising me with this trip....I was a bit bummed. He happened to call his aunt last night and asked her who the 4th person was....she said as of right now, no one....it was in case they got a fourth girl to fill the room.

It was silly of me to even think for a moment that it would happen. I know we don't have the cash...and he only recently transferred to his new job and him getting the days off to stay home with the kids so I can go would be super hard to do.

Unless...................he's getting better at keeping surprises........

But I won't get my hopes up.

So, I shall wait 377 days til our next family trip to the World next year.

Reader survey!! Please help!!!

2011-09-19T15:10:00.001-04:00

Hello!! Some of you may know that I am also an author. I write romance, women's fiction and chick lit. I put together a survey to poll reader habits Would you be interested in helping me??????

The results are so so important!!!

This survey is for readers only...not writers (bloggers welcome, as long as they are not writing for publication.) It's only 30 multiple choice questions..takes maybe 2 minutes to complete. Huge thanks to everyone that helps me out!

And if you could pass it on, that would be even better!!!!!

Click here!

Wordless Wednesday!

2011-09-14T11:40:00.001-04:00

This week's theme is characters:

Wordless Wednesday!

2011-09-07T11:33:00.000-04:00

Had to sit inside the Camaro!

Gonna whine for a moment!

2011-09-05T10:00:00.001-04:00

I'm in a mood. A Disney mood...but not a good one :( It's the I-wanna-go-to-Disney-but-I-can't mood. You know the one. It seems like everyone on the planet just went and they're sharing their photos on Facebook and emailing you the link to their Photopass pics. And it kills you to look cause you know you won't be back for a long long time.

We were supposed to go in November...but had to postpone because of my dad's medical issues. We decided not to go ourselves and just wait. But the waiting is going to be way harder than I thought. We have to wait until next November.

Okay...whining over...for now ;)

C is for Cinderella!

2011-09-01T11:01:00.000-04:00

My daughter has always loved Cinderella...though honestly, I think the reason is because she wears a blue dress and blue is my daughter's favorite color. LOL! So when she saved all her pennies and worked to make extra money so she could go to Bibbiddi Bobbiddi Boutique, and could pick any princess she wanted...she still choose Cinderella.

But what isn't there to like about Cinderella? Poor girl who was dealt a crappy hand and was mistreated her whole life...finally she catches a break and the eye of the hot guy. I'm sure every woman can relate to that story. She dazzles him with her charm and they live happily ever after.

Wordless Wednesday!

2011-08-31T15:30:00.000-04:00

Had to have Baby Buzz! And bring him to dinner at TRex!

B is for Boma

2011-08-06T13:36:00.000-04:00

Okay, gonna try really hard not to make all these posts about food! But this was the first thing that popped in my head for B. One of my favorite dining establishments on Disney property...along with thousands of other people!

We had never stayed at Animal Kingdom Lodge, so I'd found out about Boma from my fellow Passporter buddies. They'd RAVED about it. I checked out the menu and wasn't sure what hubby would think. So I passed on it..for a couple trips. And then the one year I just said "I wanna go here. I'm sure there will be something he will eat, even if it's from the kid's buffet." My hubby is not a picky eater, by no means, but some of the menu scared him a bit.

Until we got there. Even he was in heaven. The kids loved it, too. Everything was so unique and vibrant...really different. I get so bored with the ordinary! Especially when it comes to food.

My Disney A-Z!

2011-08-01T13:46:00.000-04:00

So I've decided to try this A-Z thing. I know I won't do it every day...but maybe 2-3 times a week. It seems like a fun thing to do!!

My A word is Aloha Isle!!!

YUMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM

No trip to Magic Kingdom is complete, for me, without a Pineapple Float from Aloha Isle. One of my favorite relaxing things is to grab one and sit for a while in the shade, just people watching. So tasty, so refreshing. Love it!!!

Wordless Wednesday!

2011-07-27T11:18:00.000-04:00

So stinkin' cute!!