IloveJack
04-20-2012, 10:44 AM
I think this is the most excited I've been about a Disney trip in a long time. We've had one crazy past year, and many times I thought we were going to end up canceling, but this is turning out to be our longest trip ever! I have the I'cot countdown on my work computer and a countdown app on my phone, plus a paper chain countdown on our wall at home. I'm serious when I say I'm excited!
Backstory:
As some of you know, I took my now 3 yr old DD to WDW for her first birthday, and plan to do so for each consecutive child. So when I found out I was pregnant with our second (literally the morning we left for our last WDW trip... talk about early magic!), I started mentally planning this trip. She was born June 8, three weeks early, and on my mother's 60th birthday.
And then I developed post-partum depression. My car broke down, leaving me stuck at home with a newborn and a 2-yr old for 3 months straight (every bit of my maternity leave). DH had to have his car for work. Our AC went out, so we had to move to my parent's for a week, since July in TN is brutal. Our fridge quit working. The baby refused to nurse on my terms, so I couldn't venture out (when I did have transportation) for the first 2 months. And the list goes on.
I didn't realize it was PPD until my husband started having an emotional affair. It didn't last long; I caught a text message very early on; and things are fine now, but it was a royal wake-up call to our marriage and my mental well being.
Then, in January, DH was laid off. I saw our trip go out the window. But actually, it's been a major blessing. His work had been so inconsistent, that his unemployment benefits are actually more income than he was making. Not to mention, we were able to switch the girls' insurance without the 3-month waiting period (it had been eating up what little of his check there was). Due to him being home, we've been able to save all the childcare money, and voila! instead of 0ut-the-window, our trip has been able to grow.
It's been a roller-coaster year. But nothing can dimish my excitement for this trip. DH and I are looking forward to time away together. I know it's cliché, but our marriage really is stronger now. Sammie (DD3) is beyond amazed and full of anticipation. Plus, the baby pictures are worth it all. And, we'll be in FL for 10 days, our longest trip anywhere as a family.
The Plan:
We'll leave at midnight Thursday/Friday and drive to Panama City Beach. We'll spend the day, then leave around 2pm to drive to Lake City. We have some friends who live there, so after cleaning up and checking-in to our hotel, we plan to have dinner with them. We haven't seen them since before DD3 was born, and between us there are three new kiddos we only know through Facebook.
Saturday morning, we'll head for Clearwater Beach. We'll again spend the day, before driving back up to WDW to check-in at All-Star Movies somewhere around 7pm. We have no plans for the night, but I'm sure we'll get dinner, swim, and turn in early-ish.
Sunday, we're headed to the AK. We have ADRs at Tusker House for breakfast, and we plan to round out the day with Pizzafari and Flame Tree BBQ. We'll hit up everything that the girls can ride, baby swap for Everest a couple of times and see Nemo and Lion King. The park closes at 7, so I'm sure we'll end the night swimming again.
Monday is DHS day, and we have evening ADRs at Prime Time. I've been there before, but DH hasn't, so that'll be interesting. Gotta remember to remind him not to order anything he doesn't like. Ha! I'm sure breakfast will be at the bakery and lunch at Pizza Planet. I'm not too fond of the CS meals at DHS, but DD3 likes Toy Story a lot, so that'll suffice. The park has evening EMH that night, so we'll ride a while and then return to our resort for a nap. We'll head back to the park afterwards, where we plan to catch a showing of Fantasmic. Toy Story Mania and Disney Junior are must do's for DD3, with ToT and RnRC on DH's and my list. Single rider line plus baby swap ought to really help out there.
After a really late night, 8am ADRs at Akershus will come early on Tuesday. We're spending the day at Epcot, DH's and my favorite. We have evening ADRs at Rose and Crown, our favorite restaurant there, and I think lunch will be at the Electric Umbrella. It's CS; it can change. Epcot has EMH that night, too, but I doubt we'll do nap time, since it's our only day here. I plan to do characters early, WS in the middle, and FW at night during EMH. Hopefully, we'll catch some stroller naps, or show naps. Must do's are a family picture with Pooh and the Gang in the UK (tradition), Soarin', and school bread, which I've never tried before.
Wednesday is DH's 27th birthday, so we're spending his day at Islands of Adventure. Of course, we'll spend a good bit of time in Hogsmeade. DD3 is finally big enough to ride the Flight of the Hippogriff. And lunch will be at the Three Broomsticks. We'll single-riders-line our way through Marvel and the girls will both ride some in Dr. Seuss world. I doubt we'll close the park, so after a nap in the room, we plan to end the night at DTD. It's tradition to buy a Christmas ornament from every trip. Plus, we really enjoy shopping our way through the marketplace. Dinner will be at Wolfgang Puck's Express. Depending on the length of naps, I'd like to get to bed early, if possible.
MK has early EMH on Thursday, so we'll begin our day with the mountain range. We have no ADRs planned, so we plan to try Casey's, and return to the Bakery and Pecos Bill's, but not in that order. This day is mostly about things we often skip, since we'll spend tomorrow here as well. We'll be in line for Rapunzel at 9, ride the train, see the parades, meet Tinkerbell, and play on Tom Sawyer's Island. Nap time will be a must. Anything else is fair game. I plan to be in bed by 10.
Friday is a repeat of parks, but not of things. We have very early ADRs at the castle, for today is Lily's first birthday! I'm hoping to get a couple of "strangers" free pictures in front of the castle on our way in. Today we'll try Pinocchio's for lunch before getting a first haircut and then returning for a nap. The MK has EMH til 1am, so napping will be important. Dinner will be at Columbia Harbour House, and we hope to eat over the walkway. This is the day we'll hit all our favorites, using EMH to our favor, even if we have to ride while the kids sleep.
DHS is the park for us on Saturday, another repeat. However, it's the final Star Wars weekend, a first for us. I'm sure we'll ride some, but the point is to get lots of pictures and see the special parades. I care not for autographs, but I'm a photo-hound, so hopefully Chewie doesn't scared the DDs. There really is very little plan for the day, so I don't even know where we'll eat.
We'll leave when we're done (ha! as if that'd ever be true), and begin our trek home. If there's enough money leftover, we'll get a room on the way so we don't fall asleep driving.
We didn't get park hoppers, since we have 6 days of tickets, and nap time transportation will eat up enough of our park time. We also didn't get the DDP, as DD3 won't eat $25 worth of food in a week, much less a day. I did the math, with 7 days worth of menus, and we seem to come out better going OOP. I've budgeted $100/day for food; I'll let you know how it turns out. We've got two umbrella-ish strollers (one reclines for DD>1), and I plan to take my wrap to carry DD>1 if she doesn't nap well in the stroller. I did pre-purchase the PP, but I don't plan to upgrade to the PP+, as most of our character meals include pictures in the price, and we won't be riding many rides together.
Sorry this got so long. I'm long-winded, and I enjoy planning the trip almost as much as the trip itself. 40 days til we leave!
Backstory:
As some of you know, I took my now 3 yr old DD to WDW for her first birthday, and plan to do so for each consecutive child. So when I found out I was pregnant with our second (literally the morning we left for our last WDW trip... talk about early magic!), I started mentally planning this trip. She was born June 8, three weeks early, and on my mother's 60th birthday.
And then I developed post-partum depression. My car broke down, leaving me stuck at home with a newborn and a 2-yr old for 3 months straight (every bit of my maternity leave). DH had to have his car for work. Our AC went out, so we had to move to my parent's for a week, since July in TN is brutal. Our fridge quit working. The baby refused to nurse on my terms, so I couldn't venture out (when I did have transportation) for the first 2 months. And the list goes on.
I didn't realize it was PPD until my husband started having an emotional affair. It didn't last long; I caught a text message very early on; and things are fine now, but it was a royal wake-up call to our marriage and my mental well being.
Then, in January, DH was laid off. I saw our trip go out the window. But actually, it's been a major blessing. His work had been so inconsistent, that his unemployment benefits are actually more income than he was making. Not to mention, we were able to switch the girls' insurance without the 3-month waiting period (it had been eating up what little of his check there was). Due to him being home, we've been able to save all the childcare money, and voila! instead of 0ut-the-window, our trip has been able to grow.
It's been a roller-coaster year. But nothing can dimish my excitement for this trip. DH and I are looking forward to time away together. I know it's cliché, but our marriage really is stronger now. Sammie (DD3) is beyond amazed and full of anticipation. Plus, the baby pictures are worth it all. And, we'll be in FL for 10 days, our longest trip anywhere as a family.
The Plan:
We'll leave at midnight Thursday/Friday and drive to Panama City Beach. We'll spend the day, then leave around 2pm to drive to Lake City. We have some friends who live there, so after cleaning up and checking-in to our hotel, we plan to have dinner with them. We haven't seen them since before DD3 was born, and between us there are three new kiddos we only know through Facebook.
Saturday morning, we'll head for Clearwater Beach. We'll again spend the day, before driving back up to WDW to check-in at All-Star Movies somewhere around 7pm. We have no plans for the night, but I'm sure we'll get dinner, swim, and turn in early-ish.
Sunday, we're headed to the AK. We have ADRs at Tusker House for breakfast, and we plan to round out the day with Pizzafari and Flame Tree BBQ. We'll hit up everything that the girls can ride, baby swap for Everest a couple of times and see Nemo and Lion King. The park closes at 7, so I'm sure we'll end the night swimming again.
Monday is DHS day, and we have evening ADRs at Prime Time. I've been there before, but DH hasn't, so that'll be interesting. Gotta remember to remind him not to order anything he doesn't like. Ha! I'm sure breakfast will be at the bakery and lunch at Pizza Planet. I'm not too fond of the CS meals at DHS, but DD3 likes Toy Story a lot, so that'll suffice. The park has evening EMH that night, so we'll ride a while and then return to our resort for a nap. We'll head back to the park afterwards, where we plan to catch a showing of Fantasmic. Toy Story Mania and Disney Junior are must do's for DD3, with ToT and RnRC on DH's and my list. Single rider line plus baby swap ought to really help out there.
After a really late night, 8am ADRs at Akershus will come early on Tuesday. We're spending the day at Epcot, DH's and my favorite. We have evening ADRs at Rose and Crown, our favorite restaurant there, and I think lunch will be at the Electric Umbrella. It's CS; it can change. Epcot has EMH that night, too, but I doubt we'll do nap time, since it's our only day here. I plan to do characters early, WS in the middle, and FW at night during EMH. Hopefully, we'll catch some stroller naps, or show naps. Must do's are a family picture with Pooh and the Gang in the UK (tradition), Soarin', and school bread, which I've never tried before.
Wednesday is DH's 27th birthday, so we're spending his day at Islands of Adventure. Of course, we'll spend a good bit of time in Hogsmeade. DD3 is finally big enough to ride the Flight of the Hippogriff. And lunch will be at the Three Broomsticks. We'll single-riders-line our way through Marvel and the girls will both ride some in Dr. Seuss world. I doubt we'll close the park, so after a nap in the room, we plan to end the night at DTD. It's tradition to buy a Christmas ornament from every trip. Plus, we really enjoy shopping our way through the marketplace. Dinner will be at Wolfgang Puck's Express. Depending on the length of naps, I'd like to get to bed early, if possible.
MK has early EMH on Thursday, so we'll begin our day with the mountain range. We have no ADRs planned, so we plan to try Casey's, and return to the Bakery and Pecos Bill's, but not in that order. This day is mostly about things we often skip, since we'll spend tomorrow here as well. We'll be in line for Rapunzel at 9, ride the train, see the parades, meet Tinkerbell, and play on Tom Sawyer's Island. Nap time will be a must. Anything else is fair game. I plan to be in bed by 10.
Friday is a repeat of parks, but not of things. We have very early ADRs at the castle, for today is Lily's first birthday! I'm hoping to get a couple of "strangers" free pictures in front of the castle on our way in. Today we'll try Pinocchio's for lunch before getting a first haircut and then returning for a nap. The MK has EMH til 1am, so napping will be important. Dinner will be at Columbia Harbour House, and we hope to eat over the walkway. This is the day we'll hit all our favorites, using EMH to our favor, even if we have to ride while the kids sleep.
DHS is the park for us on Saturday, another repeat. However, it's the final Star Wars weekend, a first for us. I'm sure we'll ride some, but the point is to get lots of pictures and see the special parades. I care not for autographs, but I'm a photo-hound, so hopefully Chewie doesn't scared the DDs. There really is very little plan for the day, so I don't even know where we'll eat.
We'll leave when we're done (ha! as if that'd ever be true), and begin our trek home. If there's enough money leftover, we'll get a room on the way so we don't fall asleep driving.
We didn't get park hoppers, since we have 6 days of tickets, and nap time transportation will eat up enough of our park time. We also didn't get the DDP, as DD3 won't eat $25 worth of food in a week, much less a day. I did the math, with 7 days worth of menus, and we seem to come out better going OOP. I've budgeted $100/day for food; I'll let you know how it turns out. We've got two umbrella-ish strollers (one reclines for DD>1), and I plan to take my wrap to carry DD>1 if she doesn't nap well in the stroller. I did pre-purchase the PP, but I don't plan to upgrade to the PP+, as most of our character meals include pictures in the price, and we won't be riding many rides together.
Sorry this got so long. I'm long-winded, and I enjoy planning the trip almost as much as the trip itself. 40 days til we leave!