The Whole Fam-Damily - A Multi-Generational Thanksgiving Week Trip 2022 - 4 DAYS TO GO!

[kimberwee]

I love how organized you already are planning your trip! All we have so far is our first park will be Epcot, we all love Soarin so want that to be one of our first rides.

We loved staying at Kidani over Thanksgiving in 2017. Christmas decorations were beautiful. We did not take full advantage of what the resort offered at that time (but loved the pool, was never crowded when we were there) so hope to spend more time there this year. We did not have issue with resort buses back then so hope to have same luck this trip.

Thanks! I love planning our trips.

I really can't wait to see the Christmas Decor and am glad to see that you were still able to use the pool. Fingers crossed that weather allows for it this year!

 

[kimberwee]

FLIGHTS ARE BOOKED!...and other updates.
I am so excited. Southwest released their flights last week and I was able to snag exactly what I wanted for a super low WGA (wanna get away) rate! DH, DD and I are ready to go for 11/19-26!

DEPARTURE TIME IS AMAZING AND WILL LEAVE TIME TO ENJOY F&W:

RETURN TIME GETS US HOME BY 3 ON SATURDAY:

We've never done non-stop to/from MCO and I am looking forward to not having to change planes. Even better, our return time on Saturday's going to give us a lot of time to recover before heading back to work on Monday...

I mean, I still fully anticipate the standard "Disney Blues"...but a full Sunday at home will help.

I shared (well in advance of the release date) that the rest of my group should also hop on booking as soon as SW released flights...of course they didn't. Now, WGA fairs are blocked and flights are crazy expensive.

...And, because there is never a dull moment - MIL is stating once again that she is NOT excited or looking forward to the trip (she has motion sickness and it's expensive). This is like the third time she's talked about her and FIL not going. I told her that if she doesn't want to join us, she should cancel. I said that she would probably regret it, but she doesn't think she will. Last night, we were at dinner when the subject of the trip came up and she rolled her eyes. I almost lost it and said that while she isn't excited, many of us are, and her negativity isn't fair to the group. We'll see if she ends up coming and what kind of drama that entails.

In other news, I also booked/reserved an ECV for GMIL through ScooterBug. We chose them specifically for the availability to have drop off and pick up directly at Bell Desk.

150 MORE DAYS TO GO

 

[kimberwee]

AND NOW FOR ANOTHER CHANGE...
Disney just released their MVMCP dates and just our luck, its scheduled for Tuesday, our MK day. There is no way that our group will attend, as it would be $716 for my SIL's family of 4, so I am going to move our Epcot Day to Tuesday...and Magic Kingdom to Wednesday.

No biggie...

 

[becauseimnew]

FLIGHTS ARE BOOKED!...and other updates.
I am so excited. Southwest released their flights last week and I was able to snag exactly what I wanted for a super low WGA (wanna get away) rate! DH, DD and I are ready to go for 11/19-26!

DEPARTURE TIME IS AMAZING AND WILL LEAVE TIME TO ENJOY F&W:
View attachment 678496
RETURN TIME GETS US HOME BY 3 ON SATURDAY:
View attachment 678497
We've never done non-stop to/from MCO and I am looking forward to not having to change planes. Even better, our return time on Saturday's going to give us a lot of time to recover before heading back to work on Monday...

I mean, I still fully anticipate the standard "Disney Blues"...but a full Sunday at home will help.

I shared (well in advance of the release date) that the rest of my group should also hop on booking as soon as SW released flights...of course they didn't. Now, WGA fairs are blocked and flights are crazy expensive.

...And, because there is never a dull moment - MIL is stating once again that she is NOT excited or looking forward to the trip (she has motion sickness and it's expensive). This is like the third time she's talked about her and FIL not going. I told her that if she doesn't want to join us, she should cancel. I said that she would probably regret it, but she doesn't think she will. Last night, we were at dinner when the subject of the trip came up and she rolled her eyes. I almost lost it and said that while she isn't excited, many of us are, and her negativity isn't fair to the group. We'll see if she ends up coming and what kind of drama that entails.

In other news, I also booked/reserved an ECV for GMIL through ScooterBug. We chose them specifically for the availability to have drop off and pick up directly at Bell Desk.

150 MORE DAYS TO GO

Just joining in… another fellow Okie!
Glad the flights worked out. Just watch out for SW flight changes, hopefully they have things figured out and they don’t mess with your flights.
We also had WDW scheduled for the same week, but changed directions.

Sorry about your MIL, does she want you all to change your trip destination? Or why doesn’t she just cancel?

 

[kimberwee]

Just joining in… another fellow Okie!
Glad the flights worked out. Just watch out for SW flight changes, hopefully they have things figured out and they don’t mess with your flights.
We also had WDW scheduled for the same week, but changed directions.

Sorry about your MIL, does she want you all to change your trip destination? Or why doesn’t she just cancel?

She is definitely more excited about beach destinations, but we really needed to use the credit that GMIL had for David’s rentals. We’ve discussed that next thanksgiving will be a beach trip
Only time will tell if she cancels or goes

 

[kimberwee]

More & More...
Flights Update - SIL1's Family and Friend are booked to arrive late Sunday night instead of Monday now. I am planning on keeping my breakfast @ Ale & Compass and then heading over to the resort to wait for more of our group to arrive.

In other news...it was agreed that we SHOULD go to the Christmas Party on 11/22...
This has me thinking that I should move MK back to that day for the family and then those who aren't attending can call it an early night. It is the week of MIL's anniversary, so I thought about suggesting that we make her a nice dinner reservation for the two of them at Boathouse (Disney Springs) and giving her a gift card for it. Thoughts?

AND, now that we are going to go to MVMCP, I thought that we should probably get a reservation at around 4:30 for The Plaza or Tony's for appetizers and drinks. This will help us relax for a bit/take a break and make sure we have something on our stomachs before stuffing our faces with cookies all night.

 

[MFG]

Following this as we’re just starting to work with a TA for a blowout thanksgiving Week 2023 trip so can’t wait to read more about your planning and adventure!

 

[kimberwee]

MagicBand+ Orders...
So, life has been crazy with work and personal junk over the last week and I haven't really felt like updating Dis until today. We had to put down a beloved fur-baby, our cat Mikku. It was really one of the hardest things I have ever had to do and I will never forget him.

Somewhere in the blur that was the last two weeks, we did order our MagicBand+

They still show a status of processing, so we are left wondering if they will come right before the trip...

Here's what we got:
DD selected

DH didn't want one, but I know he will change his mind

I selected:


AND, because we have a split stay, I ordered more. This is mainly to do with our next planned trip for DD's High School Pom Team's UDA Nationals trip in February. I will be personalizing (with my Cricut) the cream band and the black MagicBand+ that I selected for DH. He can hop between the basic black MB or the MB+ if he wants:




Getting Excited!!!

 

[lauralynn0612]

Hi! I am just north of you in Wichita (KS)! Love following your plans.

Is there anything that you all consider "must haves" that we need to add to the list?

My favorite item of all time is the maple cheesecake at the Boursin booth! It is so light and fluffy.

Namely, GMIL. I am a bit concerned about her enjoying the trip, as we will be waiting in lines and riding things she can't/shouldn't. With her being in an ECV and older, and a bit "Pooh-Sized", the only rides I am thinking she will enjoy are:
Jungle Cruise, Small World, Mickey's Philharmagic, Laugh Floor, Haunted Mansion and the Tiki Room...Hall of Presidents...
Am I missing anything?

Have you looked into the DAS (Disability Access Service) pass? A friend had it on our trip last December. It works a lot like Fastpass+ used to work. It didn't cost any extra and is super helpful for those with accessibility issues and lines. I think you can even sign up for it ahead of time.

 

[Deb1993]

Sounds like a great trip!! I recommend Walker Mobility for the ECV - we've used them several times for MIL and FIL.

 

[kimberwee]

Hi! I am just north of you in Wichita (KS)! Love following your plans.

My favorite item of all time is the maple cheesecake at the Boursin booth! It is so light and fluffy.


Have you looked into the DAS (Disability Access Service) pass? A friend had it on our trip last December. It works a lot like Fastpass+ used to work. It didn't cost any extra and is super helpful for those with accessibility issues and lines. I think you can even sign up for it ahead of time.

We thought about DAS for me, because of a condition that I have, but not for GMIL because I heard you do not get approved for mobility issues.

I will probably skip the DAS myself, because we will be using Genie and our group is so large.

 

[kimberwee]

Disney Dinner...

We are 96 days away from our Thanksgiving trip, so I am planning a Disney Discussion Dinner for most of the members of our travel group on Sunday night. This weekend we will discuss tentative plans, go over My Disney Experience and Genie+

I am also going to talk about the "Enchanting Extras" and Disney Dinning, that will have to be booked next month. The only ones I am worried about getting are the dining reservations for DH, DD and I on Saturday/Sunday...the Photoshoot for Sunday....and then I am going to book a Droid Session for my littlest nephew for later in the week.

Glad to be in the Disney Double Digit portion of the countdown. We are so busy with work, school, life that time is going to fly by.

 

[kimberwee]

Disney Dinner...

Well, the Disney Dinner was a success..."ish"
We discussed the trip by day and I showed overview videos of each park. We went over how genie works at a very high level and I designated team 2 team leaders...myself and SIL's Friend...we'll call her K from now on...
K is joining our family at the lake for Labor Day, so I plan on spending more time with her going over Genie.

DH last night asked if we were going to be able to eat at Yak & Yeti... so, we may be adjusting a bit on the "no reservation" thing
SIL & SIL2 want reservations to OGA's on Thanksgiving night...Pray for me.

Closer to the trip, we will be scheduling another "Disney Dinner" to talk more about using MyDisneyExperience...

This week, I plan on getting my family's MVMCP tickets.

89 Days to go!

 

[kimberwee]

MORE CHANGES!

SO, after the Disney Dinner on Sunday and listening to some of the reactions on parks/rides/etc, we've decided to make another adjustment...I am sure it won't be the last one

First, most of the group is attending the MVMCP now, so we will keep Tuesday as our Magic Kingdom Day.

Wednesday, we were planning on going to Epcot. My immediate family loves Epcot, but because we are going early and spending 2 days there and the rest of the group isn't as interested in Epcot, we are switching to....

Everyone in the group is fixated on Galaxy's Edge being Star Wars fans...and none of them have ever gotten to see it. So, we might as well spend the day there, not being rushed by half day time constraints if we'd stuck with Thanksgiving Day. There are plenty of great spots to relax or catch a show when we need breaks, so hopefully we won't be too miserable with what is sure to be a crazy crowd level.

That leaves us moving our Epcot Day to Thursday after Thanksgiving lunch...

In other news, MIL has finally booked her airfare...she arrives on Sunday night with FIL, but won't get in until 12:30am. She's looking at just getting a room at the Hyatt Airport hotel and then meeting up with us in the morning. I will probably invite her to join us for breakfast...

She can catch an Uber to Beach Club Villas and we can meet her in the lobby and both groups check bags with Bell Services for transfer to AKL. From there, we will take the bus over to Disney Springs for an early Lunch @ Boathouse...From Disney Springs, we can catch a bus back to AKL. DH, DD and I will get off the bus with MIL/FIL to explore Jambo and then hop the shuttle to Kidani to meet up with rest of our party.

I know that I'd mentioned doing Boathouse brunch on Sunday and Ale & Compass on Monday...I am going to switch the restaurant order and try to book Ale & Compass for Sunday instead...

MIL/FIL are big lake/boat people and I am excited to visit Boathouse with them.

 

[jgadway11]

Because you are staying at a deluxe resort you do have the option of extended evening hours which will be Nov 21 Monday at Epcot and Nov 23 Wednesday at MK. We will be there that week as well, it is a great week! We are doing a VIP tour this year Nov 19, bucket list, hoping to take some of the stress out of Genie+ and ILL for the rest of the week. We are a group of 10. I enjoy reading your updates!

 

[kimberwee]

Reservation Day 1! Here's How I Did...
I was only able to book for 11/19-21, because we have a split stay

Day 1 - Saturday 11/19 - No "60 Day" Reservations Needed

Day 2 - Sunday 11/20 - 10:30am Breakfast Reservation @ Ale & Compass, 4:30pm Capture Your Moment Epcot Session & 5:30 Chefs De France Dinner
I wasn't able to get Le Cellier as originally planned...but, I am not sure that I am too upset about it. With sunset happening @ 5:30pm, pictures should be great and the lighting in Chefs for dinner may be gorgeous. I will be stalking LL times for Remy that day

Day 3 - Monday 11/21 - 11:30am Lunch @ Boathouse
The plan is to have MIL and FIL to meet us at Beach Club for luggage transferred to AKL, while we catch a bus to Disney Springs to eat @ Boathouse for lunch. After lunch, we will catch bus to AKL and meet up with SIL2's family and GMIL. From there, we will head over to Animal Kingdom. A couple of us are Landry's Select Members, so we are going to try and split our group into a couple of reservations for YAK & YETI dinner...

Now, I get to wake up and do it all over again on Thursday morning...
Time to start looking at what to wear for family pictures as well...

60 Day's To Go!!

 

[natieya]

I'm having fun watching your updates. I will be there from Nov 20th through the 26th.

 

[kimberwee]

It's been a while...
I have so much to update!!

We got through all of our reservation scheduling and I think it might be easiest to just give you a glimpse of what the trip looks like now, rather than going through the "ins and outs" of what we did... I will make notes where I can to help explain how we got some of these reservations...

We are at almost the 1 month mark and here is the trip, as of today:

Saturday - 11/19
The good news is that OU has choked during their last few games, so DH isnt going to be as upset to miss the bedlam game where we face an undefeated OSU. The bad news is that this is probably THE LAST time these two teams meet, because OU is joining the SEC, and he's mentioned that he would have liked to have actually gone to the game... Oh well... We will probably be travelling
Our flight lands at MCO around 1:50 and we will collect our bags, grab an Uber/Lyft to head to BCV
We have a park reservation for Epcot...it's the last day of F&W and my list posted earlier this year is still my "must try" list
I didn't make any dinner reservations, because we will be eating our way around the park
Not sure how late we will be at Epcot, but earlier that morning, I will be purchasing LL for GOG

Sunday - 11/20
The plan is to sleep in a little before heading to breakfast at:

After breakfast, I want to walk around BCV a bit...maybe take a nap...maybe swim...
Around 4 we will walk over to Epcot for our Capture your Moment session. I am still not sure where we want them taken or what we will wear...

Earlier that morning, I am going to try and get a LL for Remy around 5, so that we can ride it before heading to dinner at:

Our reservation is during sunset and I am really looking forward to it. I think we will like the atmosphere better than being at Le Cellier

Hopefully, after dinner we will feel like hanging around for Harmonious, before heading to bed.

Monday - 11/21
When we wake up, it will be time to pack up for the rest of our stay at AKL
SIL and MIL families will have landed late the night before...
SIL will probably head to the resort early to check her bag and head to the park
I am having MIL and FIL meet us at BCV to transfer luggage and head to Disney Springs for an early lunch at:

I am looking forward to eating here with them, as we are all really into boating...
After lunch, we will take the bus to AKL to meet up with SIL2's family and GMIL, before heading to Animal Kingdom

The schedule there will be tighter, so I am going to insist that everyone gets Genie+ for the day. It will help us to get through the park more quickly and allow us to enjoy our sit-down dinner at:

This reservation was tricky - we had to call with our Landry's # in order to get 2 reservations for 6 ppl each and then SIL got a reservation for 3 ppl
All of the reservations are within 15 min of each other, so we are going to ask if we can combine them into just two groups sitting near each other... I know that this isn't guaranteed, but we will try.

We are also working on a cake delivery for my Niece. It will be her actual birthday and we wanted to make it a little more special

Being a travel day for some, I fully expect everyone to be ready to go back to the resort after dinner to get settled into our rooms

I am scheduling a late grocery delivery, so that we can stock up on waters/snacks/etc

Tuesday - 11/22
This is our Magic Kingdom day and Christmas Party Day...
I am waking up early to pick up our heat & serve food for Thanksgiving - praying that Publix is doing this again this year...
I didn't reserve anything for breakfast or lunch, but SIL and I did manage to get a reservation around 4pm for everyone attending the party at:
The Plaza

I wanted a sit down meal so that we can eat some real food and have a glass of wine before the party...
I also booked a reservation for MIL and FIL to have a date night at Disney Springs... I am sending them back to The Boathouse

Wednesday - 11/23
This is our Hollywood Studios Day
SIL and SIL2 scored a late reservation for Oga's - my family has been and would rather head to Baseline

We also got Nephew2 an appointment to build a Droid! This was such a stressful process.
Reservations didn't open for this until well after the 60 day mark and I had to keep stalking the site...SO, if you are interested in building a droid, don't stress if there is 0 availability at the 60 day mark.



I am so excited that he gets to do this. It is his bday/xmas present from my family...

Thursday - 11/24
We will be enjoying a Thanksgiving lunch before heading to Epcot for the day...
I didn't reserve anything, but the park
We will all be full from lunch for most of the day and Epcot is great for walking and snacking

Friday - 11/25
It's a free day, so most of the group will be doing their own thing. I made a 6pm dinner reservation for Wine Bar George to include my family, GMIL, FIL & MIL at Disney Springs...
Not sure how smart this will be considering it is Black Friday...Oh well. They are not visiting any parks that day, so dinner either needed to be at Disney Springs or AKL...I looked to get Boma or Jiko, but it didn't happen for me.

Saturday - 11/26
Departure Day

So, I think we did really well ...especially considering that it is Thanksgiving week and crowds will be insane

 

[kimberwee]

HOLY MOLY WE ONLY HAVE 4 DAYS TO GO!

Time flies when you are having fun, right? We sure have been a busy family.

DD is a BACK TO BACK STATE CHAMPION. If you've seen our other reports/updates, you will know that we are the proud parents of a high school POM athlete, who keeps us busy with Friday Night Lights and competitions. She competed for a state title last week and her team WON... So exciting and I can't wait to start thinking about her trip to Nationals (ESPN WWOS) and heading back to DW. We've got a few people who have said that they would be joining us for the trip and I will talk about that more in THAT pre-trip report.

Back to this trip...We had another family meeting a couple of weeks ago to go over the app specifically and I am so glad we did. There were several calls to get things arranged/set-up/organized on the MDE app for the group.

Regardless of the time I've spent going over things though, we ran into our first HICCUP

I got a call last night from SIL's friend K, who will be the other half of the family's leader/coordinator. Welllll...she thought her Disney tickets WERE her park reservations (I don't understand how she missed the multiple talks about reservations ) ...and wouldn't you know it, MK is full on the day we want to go. We will have to stalk the website to see if she can get lucky and snag some MK reservations in the next few days. If not, they will have to wait to come to the park after 2pm on Tuesday.

This also impacts the idea I have about resting/eating before the xmas party. We have a reservation for The Plaza @ 3:35, but if the other half of the family doesn't even get there until 2, what's the point? They aren't going to need to take a break or relax and will want to hit some rides. I may just cancel, eat quick service closer to lunch time and move on with the day Thoughts? Advice?

Another adjustment...game time was just announced for our Bedlam Football game. OU vs OSU. It is set for 6:30 central (7:30 at DW) and will be on ABC. This may change how long we want to stick around Epcot, so I am pushing for a GoG reservation @ around 5. It will be my guess that DH will want to go back to the room, unpack and watch the game.

I really am going to try to take it easy this trip. I want it to feel more like "going home for the holidays"

Still to do:
Cricut some last minute projects
Pack Suitcases
...and I really want to decorate the house for Christmas, so that when we come back it feels like Christmas...(if this doesn't happen, I wont stress...we can always just get the tree up without decorations)

Doesn't seem like much, right? Wrong.
We have obligations every night this week that will keep us away from home. UGH. Pray for me.

 

[SEAGULL59]

HOLY MOLY WE ONLY HAVE 4 DAYS TO GO!

Time flies when you are having fun, right? We sure have been a busy family.

DD is a BACK TO BACK STATE CHAMPION. If you've seen our other reports/updates, you will know that we are the proud parents of a high school POM athlete, who keeps us busy with Friday Night Lights and competitions. She competed for a state title last week and her team WON... So exciting and I can't wait to start thinking about her trip to Nationals (ESPN WWOS) and heading back to DW. We've got a few people who have said that they would be joining us for the trip and I will talk about that more in THAT pre-trip report.

Back to this trip...We had another family meeting a couple of weeks ago to go over the app specifically and I am so glad we did. There were several calls to get things arranged/set-up/organized on the MDE app for the group.

Regardless of the time I've spent going over things though, we ran into our first HICCUP

I got a call last night from SIL's friend K, who will be the other half of the family's leader/coordinator. Welllll...she thought her Disney tickets WERE her park reservations (I don't understand how she missed the multiple talks about reservations ) ...and wouldn't you know it, MK is full on the day we want to go. We will have to stalk the website to see if she can get lucky and snag some MK reservations in the next few days. If not, they will have to wait to come to the park after 2pm on Tuesday.

This also impacts the idea I have about resting/eating before the xmas party. We have a reservation for The Plaza @ 3:35, but if the other half of the family doesn't even get there until 2, what's the point? They aren't going to need to take a break or relax and will want to hit some rides. I may just cancel, eat quick service closer to lunch time and move on with the day Thoughts? Advice?

Another adjustment...game time was just announced for our Bedlam Football game. OU vs OSU. It is set for 6:30 central (7:30 at DW) and will be on ABC. This may change how long we want to stick around Epcot, so I am pushing for a GoG reservation @ around 5. It will be my guess that DH will want to go back to the room, unpack and watch the game.

I really am going to try to take it easy this trip. I want it to feel more like "going home for the holidays"

Still to do:
Cricut some last minute projects
Pack Suitcases
...and I really want to decorate the house for Christmas, so that when we come back it feels like Christmas...(if this doesn't happen, I wont stress...we can always just get the tree up without decorations)

Doesn't seem like much, right? Wrong.
We have obligations every night this week that will keep us away from home. UGH. Pray for me.

My daughter and I are heading to Disney as well in a few days. So excited!! Hope your family has a great trip.