***1st Week of December Thread ADR Plans, Park Hours, and dealing with Pop Warner***

Old Navy today, is having a 40% off sale, in addition to an additional 10%. I ordered socks for both girls, underwear for DD1, a hoodie for myself, and a few things for DH.

If you need any basics, head on over there. It's worth a look :)
 
It occurred to us last night that we'll be at Disney for 12 days. Soooo, I of course had to spend 20 minutes this morning working on lyrics for our trip that could be sung to the tune of The 12 Days of Christmas! :rolleyes1

Enjoy! (or ignore if you're not in the mood ;) )
*** Apologies if my calling it "Magic Express" is triggering anyone's OCD or something. It was the best way to get the syllables to match the tune. :blush:

On the first day of Disney, my mother planned for me:

A trip on Magic Express!

On the second day of Disney, my mother planned for me:

Early Morning Magic and a trip on Magic Express!

On the third day of Disney, my mother planned for me:

Frozen Ever After, Early Morning Magic, and a trip on Magic Express!

On the fourth day of Disney, my mother planned for me:

Wilderness Explorers, Frozen Ever After, Early Morning Magic, and a trip on Magic Express!

On the fifth day of Disney, my mother planned for me:

Snack ‘round the World! Wilderness Explorers, Frozen Ever After, Early Morning Magic, and a trip on Magic Express!

On the sixth day of Disney, my mother planned for me:

Mickey’s Christmas Party, Snack ‘round the World! Wilderness Explorers, Frozen Ever After, Early Morning Magic, and a trip on Magic Express!

On the seventh day of Disney, my mother planned for me:

Swimming in the pool, Mickey’s Christmas Party, Snack ‘round the World! Wilderness Explorers, Frozen Ever After, Early Morning Magic, and a trip on Magic Express!

On the eighth day of Disney, my mother planned for me:

Meeting Kylo Ren, Swimming in the pool, Mickey’s Christmas Party, Snack ‘round the World! Wilderness Explorers, Frozen Ever After, Early Morning Magic, and a trip on Magic Express!

On the ninth day of Disney, my mother planned for me:

Mine Train Roller Coaster, Meeting Kylo Ren, Swimming in the pool , Mickey’s Christmas Party, Snack ‘round the World! Wilderness Explorers, Frozen Ever After, Early Morning Magic, and a trip on Magic Express!

On the tenth day of Disney, my mother planned for me:

Eating cupcakes, Mine Train Roller Coaster, Meeting Kylo Ren, Swimming in the pool , Mickey’s Christmas Party, Snack ‘round the World! Wilderness Explorers, Frozen Ever After, Early Morning Magic, and a trip on Magic Express!

On the eleventh day of Disney, my mother planned for me:

Doing what we want to, Eating cupcakes, Mine Train Roller Coaster, Meeting Kylo Ren, Swimming in the pool , Mickey’s Christmas Party, Snack ‘round the World! Wilderness Explorers, Frozen Ever After, Early Morning Magic, and a trip on Magic Express!

On the twelfth day of Disney, my mother planned for me:

Taking lots of pictures, Eating cupcakes, Mine Train Roller Coaster, Meeting Kylo Ren, Swimming in the pool , Mickey’s Christmas Party, Snack ‘round the World! Wilderness Explorers, Frozen Ever After, Early Morning Magic, and a trip on Magic Express!
 
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It occurred to us last night that we'll be at Disney for 12 days. Soooo, I of course had to spend 20 minutes this morning working on lyrics for our trip that could be sung to the tune of The 12 Days of Christmas! :rolleyes1

Enjoy! (or ignore if you're not in the mood ;) )

On the first day of Disney, my mother planned for me:

A trip on Magic Express!

On the second day of Disney, my mother planned for me:

Early Morning Magic and a trip on Magic Express!

On the third day of Disney, my mother planned for me:

Frozen Ever After, Early Morning Magic, and a trip on Magic Express!

On the fourth day of Disney, my mother planned for me:

Wilderness Explorers, Frozen Ever After, Early Morning Magic, and a trip on Magic Express!

On the fifth day of Disney, my mother planned for me:

Snack ‘round the World! Wilderness Explorers, Frozen Ever After, Early Morning Magic, and a trip on Magic Express!

On the sixth day of Disney, my mother planned for me:

Mickey’s Christmas Party, Snack ‘round the World! Wilderness Explorers, Frozen Ever After, Early Morning Magic, and a trip on Magic Express!

On the seventh day of Disney, my mother planned for me:

Swimming in the pool, Mickey’s Christmas Party, Snack ‘round the World! Wilderness Explorers, Frozen Ever After, Early Morning Magic, and a trip on Magic Express!

On the eighth day of Disney, my mother planned for me:

Meeting Kylo Ren, Swimming in the pool, Mickey’s Christmas Party, Snack ‘round the World! Wilderness Explorers, Frozen Ever After, Early Morning Magic, and a trip on Magic Express!

On the ninth day of Disney, my mother planned for me:

Mine Train Roller Coaster, Meeting Kylo Ren, Swimming in the pool , Mickey’s Christmas Party, Snack ‘round the World! Wilderness Explorers, Frozen Ever After, Early Morning Magic, and a trip on Magic Express!

On the tenth day of Disney, my mother planned for me:

Eating cupcakes, Mine Train Roller Coaster, Meeting Kylo Ren, Swimming in the pool , Mickey’s Christmas Party, Snack ‘round the World! Wilderness Explorers, Frozen Ever After, Early Morning Magic, and a trip on Magic Express!

On the eleventh day of Disney, my mother planned for me:

Doing what we want to, Eating cupcakes, Mine Train Roller Coaster, Meeting Kylo Ren, Swimming in the pool , Mickey’s Christmas Party, Snack ‘round the World! Wilderness Explorers, Frozen Ever After, Early Morning Magic, and a trip on Magic Express!

On the twelfth day of Disney, my mother planned for me:

Taking lots of pictures, Eating cupcakes, Mine Train Roller Coaster, Meeting Kylo Ren, Swimming in the pool , Mickey’s Christmas Party, Snack ‘round the World! Wilderness Explorers, Frozen Ever After, Early Morning Magic, and a trip on Magic Express!
Just want to say this is soo awesome!! :worship:
 
Okay since the song reminded me of the Magical express....how many of you peeps are taking Magical Express from the airport? I don't like the idea of letting them "deliver our bags to the room". That is pretty standard for cruises and once they couldn't find my bag. I was soaking wet (it had been raining that day and the cruise terminal did not have enough shelter for everyone), and of course DH's bag came quickly but mine we waited for an hour. We had to do the muster drill and I had NO CLOTHES. I had to wear DH's clothes which looked ridiculous since he's 6ft 5 " and I'm 5 ft 4". I'm just about to walk out the door and they "found" my suitcase. I also had something similar happen when I was at a business conference. So, given we're arriving at night, I'm going to look like a schmoe and just take our luggage with us. Has anyone else had this experience? Do the hotels have porters for luggage?
 
I hope you don't feel like you are at work!!

We are a family of 3 as well, though its me, DD18 and DS14. Not very original, but we do say we are the 3 musketeers! :-) Or that we're small in number but mighty in spirit! lol We're very close and strongly connected, and having felt some disconnect there for a while is precisely why I have thought about this screen time/planning time thing so much.

The planning is totally worth it, I think! "To a point" really stands out to me though because I seriously had issues with going way beyond "to a certain point". Some things were reflected back to me during this planning process that really opened my eyes to the fact that I was going overboard. Among other things, we concluded that magic really cannot be planned (at least for us, we feel it happens outside of the plans). I think I'm in recovery now! ;)

This self-care you mention...I'm terrible at it (I think many moms are). I think of it as "getting in my own head" and I need to do it more. It's so necessary and I don't know why I always throw it on the back burner. The way you talked about it was very inspiring...like, wow, that is the best idea EVER and I REALLY want to do that ASAP!!


It's true, you ARE a good listener!! haha Thanks. :flower3:
Lol--I love your "ah-ha" moments!
And no, I don't feel like I am at work, though I really enjoy helping people, in any format.
Most moms are not the greatest at self-care. The worst I have found were at my former job with active duty Soldiers--the ones who were also mothers were the least likely to practice self-care. Guilty here as well. I think we throw it on the back burner because we feel the need to do so many other things for so many people. (One more helpful hint and then I will be quiet:)).
Picture the "caring" or "nurturing" you give to others as if you are filling glasses with water. You are the pitcher, and you can fill MANY glasses. Until, of course, you are empty. We all need to replenish and refill, otherwise we can't fill those glasses for the ones we love, because we have nothing left to give!:drinking:The trick is keeping ourselves full enough on a regular basis, not waiting until we are bone dry and are trying to help a child in the middle of a crisis!
And thank you! I am so glad you found inspiration! That really makes me happy to hear that! :flower1:
 
Okay since the song reminded me of the Magical express....how many of you peeps are taking Magical Express from the airport? I don't like the idea of letting them "deliver our bags to the room". That is pretty standard for cruises and once they couldn't find my bag. I was soaking wet (it had been raining that day and the cruise terminal did not have enough shelter for everyone), and of course DH's bag came quickly but mine we waited for an hour. We had to do the muster drill and I had NO CLOTHES. I had to wear DH's clothes which looked ridiculous since he's 6ft 5 " and I'm 5 ft 4". I'm just about to walk out the door and they "found" my suitcase. I also had something similar happen when I was at a business conference. So, given we're arriving at night, I'm going to look like a schmoe and just take our luggage with us. Has anyone else had this experience? Do the hotels have porters for luggage?
Not using Magical Express since we're headed to Universal first... maybe @Lisa F or @areno79 or @Wood Nymph would have more experience?
 
Not sure any of you have experience with this, but how does fast pass seating work for shows, specifically Nemo and FotLK at Animal Kingdom? If part of your group enters in the FP line and part of the group enters in the standby line can you possibly sit together if a couple of extra seats are saved, maybe use the had to go the bathroom excuse? Please, no judging for asking this question, LOL!
 
Okay since the song reminded me of the Magical express....how many of you peeps are taking Magical Express from the airport? I don't like the idea of letting them "deliver our bags to the room". That is pretty standard for cruises and once they couldn't find my bag. I was soaking wet (it had been raining that day and the cruise terminal did not have enough shelter for everyone), and of course DH's bag came quickly but mine we waited for an hour. We had to do the muster drill and I had NO CLOTHES. I had to wear DH's clothes which looked ridiculous since he's 6ft 5 " and I'm 5 ft 4". I'm just about to walk out the door and they "found" my suitcase. I also had something similar happen when I was at a business conference. So, given we're arriving at night, I'm going to look like a schmoe and just take our luggage with us. Has anyone else had this experience? Do the hotels have porters for luggage?

I have never used it before but we ARE using it for this trip. I also can't say how or if things are different traveling from Canada vs. domestic travel. Here's what I do know: You are always more than welcome to collect your own checked bags and bring them on DME. The driver will store them under the bus for you and will get them for you when you arrive at your resort (tips appreciated). Anyone who plans to collect their own luggage should NOT use the yellow DME tags as that will result in your bags being pulled before they even get to baggage claim. For anyone who is planning to use the yellow tags, the best advice I've seen is to spread your clothes among all your checked bags and bring at least 24 hours worth of clothes in your carry-on. That way if one bag is lost, no one is without ALL their clothes and if Disney is delayed in getting your bags to you, you still have enough clothes (swimming suits, pj's, and an extra outfit or whatever you feel you may need) to get by.
 
Okay since the song reminded me of the Magical express....how many of you peeps are taking Magical Express from the airport? I don't like the idea of letting them "deliver our bags to the room". That is pretty standard for cruises and once they couldn't find my bag. I was soaking wet (it had been raining that day and the cruise terminal did not have enough shelter for everyone), and of course DH's bag came quickly but mine we waited for an hour. We had to do the muster drill and I had NO CLOTHES. I had to wear DH's clothes which looked ridiculous since he's 6ft 5 " and I'm 5 ft 4". I'm just about to walk out the door and they "found" my suitcase. I also had something similar happen when I was at a business conference. So, given we're arriving at night, I'm going to look like a schmoe and just take our luggage with us. Has anyone else had this experience? Do the hotels have porters for luggage?
We always use Magical Express and have our bags delivered to the room. But we also take a plane that lands between 9:30 am and 10:30 am, which gives them plenty of time to deliver the bags before we need them. The only time we had a late bag delivery was when we arrived at the Wilderness Lodge on the Saturday after Thanksgiving. The Magical Express lines in the airport were the longest we've ever seen them. And our bags didn't arrive in our rooms until some time after 4:30pm. Our flight had landed around 10 am. We didn't have the clothes we wanted to wear to dinner and the toothbrushes, something I really wanted. Ever since then we pack our carry on with the things we need immediately. We include bathing suits in the carry on if the weather is hot enough to swim.

If my flight was landing after 5 pm then I would definitely check the bags myself and pick them up at baggage claim in Orlando. I wouldn't want to risk having them deliver the bags later than 9pm.
 
Okay since the song reminded me of the Magical express....how many of you peeps are taking Magical Express from the airport? I don't like the idea of letting them "deliver our bags to the room". That is pretty standard for cruises and once they couldn't find my bag. I was soaking wet (it had been raining that day and the cruise terminal did not have enough shelter for everyone), and of course DH's bag came quickly but mine we waited for an hour. We had to do the muster drill and I had NO CLOTHES. I had to wear DH's clothes which looked ridiculous since he's 6ft 5 " and I'm 5 ft 4". I'm just about to walk out the door and they "found" my suitcase. I also had something similar happen when I was at a business conference. So, given we're arriving at night, I'm going to look like a schmoe and just take our luggage with us. Has anyone else had this experience? Do the hotels have porters for luggage?
I wanted to add, you can bring a set of clothes on your carry on. I plan to do this as a just in case. :)

EDIT: oops, just saw iowamomof4 has posted the same thing
 
We always use Magical Express and have our bags delivered to the room. But we also take a plane that lands between 9:30 am and 10:30 am, which gives them plenty of time to deliver the bags before we need them. The only time we had a late bag delivery was when we arrived at the Wilderness Lodge on the Saturday after Thanksgiving. The Magical Express lines in the airport were the longest we've ever seen them. And our bags didn't arrive in our rooms until some time after 4:30pm. Our flight had landed around 10 am. We didn't have the clothes we wanted to wear to dinner and the toothbrushes, something I really wanted. Ever since then we pack our carry on with the things we need immediately. In hot weather the carry on with include bathing suits.

If my flight was landing after 5 pm then I would definitely check the bags myself and pick them up at baggage claim in Orlando. I wouldn't want to risk having them deliver the bags later than 9pm.

:scared: We arrive at MCO around 11:30 on the Saturday after Thanksgiving. I figured outbound flights would be crazy but I didn't expect DME lines to be that bad. :sad2:
 
:scared: We arrive at MCO around 11:30 on the Saturday after Thanksgiving. I figured outbound flights would be crazy but I didn't expect DME lines to be that bad. :sad2:
We were shocked, too. But it only took about 20 minutes or so longer to get through the lines than it normally takes. And this was 2013 and Magic Bands were brand new. People had no idea how to work them so that slowed the lines down.
 
We were shocked, too. But it only took about 20 minutes or so longer to get through the lines than it normally takes. And this was 2013 and Magic Bands were brand new. People had no idea how to work them so that slowed the lines down.

Did it translate to crazy crowds at the parks or was it not noticeably different?
 
Totally not related to your question but I just noticed you're staying at OKW. I am too, for the 2nd half of my trip, 8th-11th. Have you stayed there before? It's my first time, I'm looking forward to it!
We stayed in a 2BR villa at OKW in Feb 2015 and loved it. We are trying to find a reason to go back to OKW again, but we need a group. The rooms are huge and the buses seemed to come frequently and were seldom crowded. I don't think we ever waited for more than 10 minutes for a park bus.

This is our first time too. We stayed at Saratoga Springs last trip and really enjoyed it and it seems like OKW kind of has a similar vibe so I'm looking forward to our stay! We liked how laid back and quiet SSR was, it was really nice after the sensory overload of being in the parks around crowds of people all day!
We really liked the laid back atmosphere at OKW. ::yes::

t occurred to us last night that we'll be at Disney for 12 days. Soooo, I of course had to spend 20 minutes this morning working on lyrics for our trip that could be sung to the tune of The 12 Days of Christmas! :rolleyes1
This is co cute. :)

Do the hotels have porters for luggage?
The BC has porters who will load your bags on their carts and follow you up to your room, if it is ready, or put it in storage if the room isn't ready yet. All the deluxe resorts will do this.

Not sure any of you have experience with this, but how does fast pass seating work for shows, specifically Nemo and FotLK at Animal Kingdom? If part of your group enters in the FP line and part of the group enters in the standby line can you possibly sit together if a couple of extra seats are saved, maybe use the had to go the bathroom excuse? Please, no judging for asking this question, LOL!
The fp lines for shows are sometimes on a different side of the building. Other lines, like Lion King, run parallel but you'll be seated in a different section than the non fast pass people. FP people are usually let in first and then they let the GP in after them.

Did it translate to crazy crowds at the parks or was it not noticeably different?
The craziest crowd was at MK on the Monday after Thanksgiving. The park was mobbed and I think it was due to the Christmas parties taking up the available nights. Everyone had to cram into MK on the few nights that it didn't have a party. Epcot was crowded, too. The Christmas activities there attract a lot of people. I don't remember AK or DHS being especially crowded.
 
:yay::yay::yay:thanks to @justcin711 :genie:I got my BOG dinner for 6:45 on our MVMCP night!!! YAAAAAYYYY!!! My son isn't into meeting characters as much as he used to be, so hopefully he doesn't get a sudden hankering to meet the stars after seeing Zootopia this week! :PI think he will be thrilled to have the steak he loved so much last time, as well as, of course, the grey stuff! WOOT!!!:jumping1: Thanks for the pixie dust, @justcin711 !!!pixiedust::thanks:


Now, of course, I have an 8:05PM rez at BOG on 12/6 for 2 in case anyone is interested. . . I'll post on the cancellation thread as well if no one here wants it.
 
It occurred to us last night that we'll be at Disney for 12 days. Soooo, I of course had to spend 20 minutes this morning working on lyrics for our trip that could be sung to the tune of The 12 Days of Christmas! :rolleyes1

Enjoy! (or ignore if you're not in the mood ;) )
*** Apologies if my calling it "Magic Express" is triggering anyone's OCD or something. It was the best way to get the syllables to match the tune. :blush:

On the first day of Disney, my mother planned for me:

A trip on Magic Express!

On the second day of Disney, my mother planned for me:

Early Morning Magic and a trip on Magic Express!

On the third day of Disney, my mother planned for me:

Frozen Ever After, Early Morning Magic, and a trip on Magic Express!

On the fourth day of Disney, my mother planned for me:

Wilderness Explorers, Frozen Ever After, Early Morning Magic, and a trip on Magic Express!

On the fifth day of Disney, my mother planned for me:

Snack ‘round the World! Wilderness Explorers, Frozen Ever After, Early Morning Magic, and a trip on Magic Express!

On the sixth day of Disney, my mother planned for me:

Mickey’s Christmas Party, Snack ‘round the World! Wilderness Explorers, Frozen Ever After, Early Morning Magic, and a trip on Magic Express!

On the seventh day of Disney, my mother planned for me:

Swimming in the pool, Mickey’s Christmas Party, Snack ‘round the World! Wilderness Explorers, Frozen Ever After, Early Morning Magic, and a trip on Magic Express!

On the eighth day of Disney, my mother planned for me:

Meeting Kylo Ren, Swimming in the pool, Mickey’s Christmas Party, Snack ‘round the World! Wilderness Explorers, Frozen Ever After, Early Morning Magic, and a trip on Magic Express!

On the ninth day of Disney, my mother planned for me:

Mine Train Roller Coaster, Meeting Kylo Ren, Swimming in the pool , Mickey’s Christmas Party, Snack ‘round the World! Wilderness Explorers, Frozen Ever After, Early Morning Magic, and a trip on Magic Express!

On the tenth day of Disney, my mother planned for me:

Eating cupcakes, Mine Train Roller Coaster, Meeting Kylo Ren, Swimming in the pool , Mickey’s Christmas Party, Snack ‘round the World! Wilderness Explorers, Frozen Ever After, Early Morning Magic, and a trip on Magic Express!

On the eleventh day of Disney, my mother planned for me:

Doing what we want to, Eating cupcakes, Mine Train Roller Coaster, Meeting Kylo Ren, Swimming in the pool , Mickey’s Christmas Party, Snack ‘round the World! Wilderness Explorers, Frozen Ever After, Early Morning Magic, and a trip on Magic Express!

On the twelfth day of Disney, my mother planned for me:

Taking lots of pictures, Eating cupcakes, Mine Train Roller Coaster, Meeting Kylo Ren, Swimming in the pool , Mickey’s Christmas Party, Snack ‘round the World! Wilderness Explorers, Frozen Ever After, Early Morning Magic, and a trip on Magic Express!
They really need a "love" button! Great work!
 

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