Trip Report Clappy Clap.....Welcome Back!! The Many "World Firsts" TR

Hello all & welcome!! I'm so happy to finally be able to do another TR!! It feels like forever since my last one--probably b/c it has been(at least that's the way I feel)!! So, I don't want to dwell on the negative b/c let's face it, we've all had a crappy year. 2020 has not been kind to us. But, along with the obvious I had 3 relatives pass within 3 months of each other. Then I knew I was losing my job of almost 28 years in July. We had a Disney trip booked in May that never happened. E rescheduled for June(I couldn't b/c of work) but we all know what happened there--access denied. I knew I wouldn't be able to go until August so she & J booked for then. Since I no longer had an existing reservation she figured she would add me on to her's. Little did we know that nothing would be that simple....

I'll fill you in on the drama as we go along....

WHEN: Tuesday, August 11th - Tuesday, August 18th

WHERE: Saratoga Springs(Spoiler--we really ended up enjoying our stay there. Of course, it's not our beloved Riverside but we agreed it had kind of the same "vibe". Being on the Sassagoula kind of helped with that also.)
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THE DRAMA THAT WENT ALONG WITH IT:

E & J may have had a reservation but there was no room at the inn for me. E purposely got a 1 bedroom villa & thought it would be easy to add me to the reservation. Yeah, that wasn't happening. They were not accepting any modifications to existing reservations. It was getting down to the wire. She was able to make park reservations & I still couldn't be added on. Finally, all's well that ends well. After many weeks of trying she was able to add me on & I was able to get the same parks. Never fear though, as a few of my magic friends know I had a "Plan B" ready as a backup but fortunately didn't have to go that route.
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Then there were the many flight changes Southwest kept imposing on us. Here was one they did for me that was particularly scary. What happened to Pittsburgh to Orlando? :oops: They had my return flight correct but that didn't mean anything b/c it didn't look like I'd be making it there to begin with!!
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The loss of my job was weighing on me all year(I've known since January). Here's my desk during my final days.
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The reason for the dates was I knew I would be done with my job by then. I figured I'd take a few weeks off. One week to get situated then the next week to go to Disney. After that I would come back and search for work. Sounds like the perfect plan, right?
While still employed the new company taking over was encouraging us to apply. I did but didn't think it would really go anywhere for a number of reasons. Lo & behold they made me an offer on July 30th & asked me if I could give them an answer the next day. They were planning on reopening the store August 16th--while I would be away!! I broke the news that I would be away then. The company was very receptive to it when I explained why I had planned it the way I did. I also figured I should totally come clean & mentioned that I had an October trip booked also!! At this point I thought for sure they wouldn't want me. I called the next day & accepted their offer. Originally the plan was that I would start on the 19th when I got back. They called me on the 1st & asked me to start on the 3rd so I could get some training time in before I went away. I was fine with it & did it but was scrambling to pack etc.

I'm happy to be back in the place I've worked all my life that is so much a part of me. I'm still learning to do things the way the new company does them but overall I'm happy with the way things are going.

E & family were very sweet to give me a good luck present when I started my new(old:hilarious:) job.
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With not much time to pack I made sure to do it early. I actually packed 6 days before the trip. That's amazing for me!!
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I also made sure to bring a large supply of masks. They would get gross in a hurry!!
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THE TITLE: I have to start out by giving credit to @Rista1313!! I got the "Clappy Clap" part from a comment she had made in my last TR. So many magicians loved the saying & I thought it was quite catchy. The "Welcome Back" part is b/c I truly felt like we were really welcomed back by the CM's. They seemed genuinely happy to have guests there. Also, that song had been in my mind for quite some time. Has anyone seen the Applebee's commercial with that song in it? The first time I saw it I had tears in my eyes. It's very fitting & says a lot with little words. And, there were many "World Firsts" you'll see as we go along!!

WHO: I'm sure you've figured it out by now but we're back to the "same old" crew!! My sister E, my nephew J & myself, Patti!!
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No, I don't really care for pictures of my backside but I did think this was a neat picture--minus the castle colors. I'm still not a fan!!:cautious:


To all my friends out there reading, "Welcome Back"!!
 
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MinnieM123

Premium Member
Really enjoyed your TR, and I've read some of your previous ones as well. Always interesting to read about other people's perspectives of WDW. I think that you are the type of person to go with the flow, and have a great time, no matter what. And of course, your nephew just cracks me up! He's definitely the star of your vacation! :joyfull:

Thanks for sharing your trip with everyone! :happy:
 

Ears to Disney

Well-Known Member
This was awesome to read your TR! Living vicariously through everyone now a days since we are stuck in Buffalo, NY and a mandatory quarantine lift not looking too good currently! We are holding out hope for our visit the week after Thanksgiving to still happen, we could use a real vacation and some magic any way we can get it! I loved seeing J doing all of his "firsts"! Such a brave little man! Saratoga is one DVC resort we haven't stayed at but it looks super nice, albeit, large. I think that is what keeps us away. We loved Riverside in December so I can see why it is so miss able! Hoping to return some day soon!

See the guy in the background? Anyone know who he is? We assumed he was some vlogger. Multiple people were coming up to him like he was a celebrity. Even the CM's seemed to be falling all over him. As we were leaving though I asked our waitress who he was & she said she didn't know. I figured he had to be some vlogger b/c how else could someone talk to their food & still have people falling all over him wanting to talk to him??
I didn't read through to see if you had gotten your answer or not, but this is Michael Kay! He is super nice, I had meet him during the Toy Story Land opening day. He is a larger YouTube vlogger, we are a tiny vlog channel compared to his and he focuses on the Disney parks. He is now a local. :)

Thank you for sharing all your fun!
 

annienevells

Well-Known Member
Finally caught up and finished, another great report!

Also.. still internally laughing about your "celebrity" spotting of Michael Kay (the vlogger). I am firmly in the camp of thinking he is CRINGE and I would much rather get my WDW content from my Magicians like you!! :)
 

riverside

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
I’m not sad that this is finished because I know another one will be coming soon 😊.

Have a great trip - and don’t forget to negotiate for Pirates if J wants to go back on Astro Orbiter. 😉
You're too kind!! Thank you!!

I tried--he said he didn't need to go on Astro Orbiter then!!
WOW!!! What a fantastic trip report and you only have a few days to wait until your next adventure!!! :geek: :geek: :geek:
Can't wait to read about your next report!
Thanks so much!! I'm hoping to start it soon!! 🤞
Thanks as always for writing this... I can't wait for the next one!
Thanks you!! As always, I enjoyed it!! I'm hoping to start it in the next few days but let's see what work has in store for me when I go back later today!!
I'm so glad that another TR is right around the bend and that I will finally get to meet up with you in person soon!!! I'll text on 10/27 to figure out when and where the magic will happen for our meet. :) Safe travels and thanks again for writing such an entertaining TR. :)
Thank you very much & that was SO. MUCH. FUN!! Hopefully there will be a next time & we can meet up longer!!
I can't tell you how many times my sister went looking for that popcorn bucket. {psst - we found it at the popcorn cart near the castle by Tomorrowland if it's still there}
We didn't get it but I saw it. It actually looked better in person than it did on that picture!!
Enjoyed your TR! It’d been too long since your last one! And I too was impressed by all of J’s “world firsts”. He should definitely be proud of himself. (Btw, I hope his staples removal goes well)

Hope y’all have safe travels down (I assume it’s the three of y’all again?) and have fun!
Thank you & yes--it's been too long!! He was pretty impressed with himself!! Thanks for your well wishes on the staple removal but it didn't go so well. He shed a lot of tears!!

Thanks--we had a great time!! It was us 3 & JSR for this one!!
Thanks for sharing! I enjoyed following J's adventures!
Thank you for reading!! Constantly an adventure with him for sure!!
Thanks for sharing - looking forward to the next
Thank you for reading!! I appreciate that!!
Great trip report!!!! Thank you for those of us who had cancel their trip this year😩!!
Thank you very much & I'm sorry you had to cancel yours. Let's hope 2021 will be a better year than this one!!🤞🤞🤞
Thank you!!:)
As always, your TR was
Plotting The Simpsons GIF


Looking forward to the next one!
Thanks so very much!! I'm hoping to start sooner than later!!
Really enjoyed your TR, and I've read some of your previous ones as well. Always interesting to read about other people's perspectives of WDW. I think that you are the type of person to go with the flow, and have a great time, no matter what. And of course, your nephew just cracks me up! He's definitely the star of your vacation! :joyfull:

Thanks for sharing your trip with everyone! :happy:
Thank you very much!! I appreciate that!! That is my personality for sure!! Life's too short not to!! Yes he is--he's a trip for sure!!

Thank you for reading!!
Sad to see it end but so happy you are there now so that we'll have another report soon!
Thank you!! I'm already sad that this trip is over & I just got back yesterday. But--I do have a quick one booked--I just have to talk to my boss first!!🤣
This was awesome to read your TR! Living vicariously through everyone now a days since we are stuck in Buffalo, NY and a mandatory quarantine lift not looking too good currently! We are holding out hope for our visit the week after Thanksgiving to still happen, we could use a real vacation and some magic any way we can get it! I loved seeing J doing all of his "firsts"! Such a brave little man! Saratoga is one DVC resort we haven't stayed at but it looks super nice, albeit, large. I think that is what keeps us away. We loved Riverside in December so I can see why it is so miss able! Hoping to return some day soon!
Thank you very much!! I hope you are able to go--this is so darn frustrating in so many different ways. He was pretty brave--E & I were in amazement!! It is a very nice resort but it is huge!! This trip we stayed at the Treehouse Villas so we really saw how big that place was. I really do like it there but miss Riverside. I hope you get back soon also!!
I didn't read through to see if you had gotten your answer or not, but this is Michael Kay! He is super nice, I had meet him during the Toy Story Land opening day. He is a larger YouTube vlogger, we are a tiny vlog channel compared to his and he focuses on the Disney parks. He is now a local. :)

Thank you for sharing all your fun!
Thanks for the info!!

Thank you for following along!!
Ready for the next adventure!
Me too--& I'm not talking about the TR!! I'm ready to go back!!🤣
Thank you for sharing! I'm looking forward to your next report
Thank you for reading!! I hope to start it soon!!
And boy do I love it!! It’s my new favorite!! And it goes with my Minnie my daughter found for me at Disneyland! Thank you again!!
You're more than welcome!! I'm glad I could get it for you!!
Finally caught up and finished, another great report!

Also.. still internally laughing about your "celebrity" spotting of Michael Kay (the vlogger). I am firmly in the camp of thinking he is CRINGE and I would much rather get my WDW content from my Magicians like you!! :)
Thank you--I appreciate that!!
Why thanks!! That is quite a compliment!!
I'm lazy right now and agree with all Minnie said:happy:.
I always enjoy your trip reports. Hopefully, we will all be back to our favorites, POR,and POFQ for us:)
Thank you so much!! You're too kind!!
I really hope so!! I just hope things are the same when they open back up.
 

bee

Well-Known Member
I still have lots of catching up to do, but I had to address this:

Ok, I just need to vent for a moment. It never fails, anytime I go somewhere & I'm asked my name I immediately get the question, "Is that Patti with a "Y" or "IE"? Neither, it's just an "I". Am I the only person on the face of the earth to spell Patti with an "I"? Obviously, I wasn't even asked this day how to spell it. It was just assumed that it was with an "IE"🤷‍♀️


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riverside

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Catching up a bit late. 😬

Excellent TR-as always. So glad your next one should be soon. 🤞🏻
Thank you!! I'm hoping to start it soon. I planned to by now but life.......
I still have lots of catching up to do, but I had to address this:



ExhaustedRemoteEagle-size_restricted.gif
It drives me crazy!!

I must say though, this morning I was at Starbucks-not my usual one I go to so the guy didn't know my name. He asked me it & said is that Patti with an I or Y!! I about fell over!!
 

LisaBelle

Well-Known Member
I've been away from the forum for awhile and finally managed to catch up with your TR. My daughter HATES birds because of the ones that J was warning you about! When she was 4 one of those birds came right up to our table and helped itself to her quesadilla and she has hated them ever since. I'm so glad that you all had such a good time. It's great that J tried some new attractions. Sorry you had to take one for the team with Astro Orbiter. That is one ride I cannot handle!
 

riverside

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
I've been away from the forum for awhile and finally managed to catch up with your TR. My daughter HATES birds because of the ones that J was warning you about! When she was 4 one of those birds came right up to our table and helped itself to her quesadilla and she has hated them ever since. I'm so glad that you all had such a good time. It's great that J tried some new attractions. Sorry you had to take one for the team with Astro Orbiter. That is one ride I cannot handle!
I've been away for awhile myself so my apologies for the late reply!! I don't blame your daughter--she has every right to hate them!! I was really excited for him--except when it came to Astro Orbiter. And to have to wait in line twice for it--:arghh: If I never go on it again that will be fine with me!!
Thanks for reading!!:)
 

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