Pre-Trip Flowers, Food & Fun- A May Pre-trip report!

Well, since I am 75 days out now, I figure it is time to start my pre-trip report!

Who? Just DisneyB and myself- formely known as DisneyShe- until a certain someone came along and made me a DisneyGigi.

I am having very serious stress at being away from my grandson since I have him so much. Not just that this time but also, this kid LOVED Walt Disney World! I don’t know how I am supposed to explain to him that we are going without him.

Look at that sweet face!



In all reality though, we made last trip all about him so there were a lot of things we did not get to do.

Another thing that honestly makes me nauseous to type...
After a short trip in September for our Anniversary- we are taking a short break for awhile to let Star Wars Mania die down a little. Reading that makes me honestly feel butterflies in my stomach. I really got spoiled by going more than once a year.

I am, however, very blessed to have been able to go 3 times over the past 9 months. That was something I have never done before. We went twice one year but usually it was a once a year trip, lasting 10-12 days. (Still very blessed to have been able to do that as well) I am one of those people that just doesn’t take anything for granted, especially a Disney trip. We are not guaranteed a thing and I always think when we leave, what if this is it. Gloomy thought, I know but you just can’t take a single day or thing for granted in my mind.

Onto the when’s and where’s -

May 5-11th F & G Festival! (I love it so much)

I love F & W Festival too but to me, there are less drunk people at Flower & Garden. Don’t get me wrong, I have several drinks at Walt Disney World... it is a vacation, after all- but I don’t get sloppy drunk like so many people we saw at night at the last 2 Food & Wine. Had a little happy Buzz before and may or may not have been a good bit tipsy at Club Villain but never to the point of cursing and being obnoxious like we saw. No point in it, at all. If you can’t handle your liquor, at least eat with it- don’t overdo it in front of so many kids. -end of rant

Coming home the 11th so I am here for Mother’s Day. My son would be ticked if I wasn’t, plus I want to be home for my Momma too.

Coronado Springs Resort (my fave resort and will always be my home resort) This will be our 6th stay there.

And for those that have read my reports- I hate the drive down. I think I started hating it more when we got a smaller vehicle. It is so blessed uncomfortable, it isn’t funny. They can call a Mercedes (SUV) luxury all they want... but I call bull! The seats are horrid and no room to lay back. I was used to a Suburban that we had with the kids and I honestly have hated the Mercedes from day one. Very happy to report we have another Suburban that will be making the journey this time!

This trip will be very close to both of our birthdays too- 46 for me and 48 for B! Getting awfully close to the big 5 0!!! At least he will beat me there.

ADRs made for this trip-
BoG dinner (I want to try the new menu and eat with beast- I am a 3 year old)

Also have a CS booked here too because I love the pork. (Almost canceled dinner and I still may, but I doubt it. I love the Beast.)

Mama Melrose Fantasmic!
I have bad feelings about this going away so definitely have to do it again, just in case and it is and always will be my fave night show. I loved Wishes don’t get me wrong, but Fantasmic! is my thing!

Snow White Dining at Artist Point-
Very excited to try this, I love characters (again 3 year old) plus the food looks really good for a character meal.

Crystal Palace breakfast

‘Ohana (always, always eat here)

Cape May Cafe (Crab legs!)

We love snacking at the booths, so leaving one day open. We do the dining plan because it saves us money since we do eat and snack quite a bit when there- especially now that they added alcohol to both TS & CS.

We may take the last day and do a tour again or possibly the After Hours since we missed it last time having Stinker with us. (Assuming they have it) Up in the air about doing MK or DHS. I feel like DHS is going to be a nightmare for awhile so that makes me lean towards riding Slinky, Toy Story Mania, ToT, RnRC as many times as I can. The beauty of an empty MK is a hard thing to pass up though.

Also, hopefully this trip I will finally get to see Happily Ever After up close. Something always happens and I have only seen it from the Poly once.
My priorities will be Illuminations (with it leaving) and Fantasmic though.

So, with that- about 2 weeks til FP day and will be tweaking some things as we go along....

But... here we go!!!

 

[DisneyGigi]

An update-

After learning of the change regarding smoking, which takes place 3 days before our arrival-

I, being a smoker emailed to ask questions about the new rules.

I got a phone call Friday.

The questions I asked were-

Can I have cigarettes with me?

Do I have to stand in line to re-enter?

Will I have to go thru bagcheck?

The answers were-
Yes.
Yes.
And we don’t know yet.

First of all, I want to say I do not smoke often. Especially at a theme park. I am too busy and that is not the problem.

Second- I am not a rude smoker. I actually would never sit in a smoking section when dining or anything else because I did not want to be in a bowl of smoke. I think all of the changes they have made isolating smokers more over the years was a great thing.

I also am not a rule breaker- I would never light up anywhere that is not a designated area. I don’t lie, cheat or steal and to me that is no different. I don’t bend or break rules.

I also would not die, freak out or whatever if I did not have a cigarette. Sometimes I don’t have one for days, or weeks.

What irked me is that they change the rules but have no plans in place to tell an already booked and paid for guest that trip begins days after the new rules.

If a company that big can tell you about the changes, yet have no idea how they are going to implement the changes- I am sorry that is BS.

So to make a long story short- I canceled.

Not because of the change, but because I don’t know where the level of guest services in to people who have paid. If they shut a pool down or even the food court anything at a resort they email you that and always tell you other areas available. Ya know?

I spend a lot of money at WDW- all I expected was a clear answer.

Does this mean I won’t be back? Heck no! It means I said hey, not cool, will wait until you guys have your crap together.

Maybe this was a good thing. I am not upset, at all. I thought I would be but I am not.

I have a new deck being built by the pool, a hot tub being delivered next week, 2 full weeks at the beach instead-my money refunded- including the 1500.00 worth of Disney cards... lol Stinker is gonna get a lot of toys- I still love Disney and Walt Disney Parks- I just don’t think what they did here was cool, so I am sitting the rest of the year out.

We most likely will go to Orlando this fall, and actually visit Universal. Something we always said we were gonna do.

Final note on the smoking though- everybody isn’t like me. I would never smoke anywhere I am not supposed to. EVER. Some people think they should be able to light up anywhere. I expect that amount of people to double if not quadruple. I have actually blessed people out for smoking in a non smoking area. It isn’t that hard to follow the rules and again- I don’t have to smoke. I just think it crappy to make a new rule and not be able to tell someone that is booked and paid.

Thank you guys for following along on the pre trip adventure and this isn’t a goodbye to my trips- just a break!

 

[lostpro9het]

...because I don’t know where the level of guest services in to people who have paid...

So much this.

I've harped on it and decided, like you, that the Orlando Mouse wont be seeing us for a while after our May Surf n Turf. Anaheim and Cruise Mickey treat us good and that is our focus now.

 

[DisneyGigi]

So much this.

I've harped on it and decided, like you, that the Orlando Mouse wont be seeing us for a while after our May Surf n Turf. Anaheim and Cruise Mickey treat us good and that is our focus now.

It just doesn’t seem cool, changing stuff, with no plans of how to to tell you, How it affects your trip.

Poor customer service, no matter what.
I am not peeved- just disappointed. Not quitting Disney, just taking a break- Think we may book a cruise- my doc gave me a script for patches for sea sickness!
We have 1500.00 in Disney cards plus 1000 refunded. It is a start to a cruise at least- and I can smoke if I choose to. Lol

 

[ELeigh]

It just doesn’t seem cool, changing stuff, with no plans of how to to tell you, How it affects your trip.

Poor customer service, no matter what.
I am not peeved- just disappointed. Not quitting Disney, just taking a break- Think we may book a cruise- my doc gave me a script for patches for sea sickness!
We have 1500.00 in Disney cards plus 1000 refunded. It is a start to a cruise at least- and I can smoke if I choose to. Lol

Hopefully you can turn lemons into lemonade and get a cruise instead . It stinks that Disney handled this change so poorly. I would have expected having and email go out to those with an upcoming trip booked that will be impacted by the changes, not everyone is on boards like this one to get the latest info.

 

[DisneyGigi]

Hopefully you can turn lemons into lemonade and get a cruise instead . It stinks that Disney handled this change so poorly. I would have expected having and email go out to those with an upcoming trip booked that will be impacted by the changes, not everyone is on boards like this one to get the latest info.

We actually, after talking it over, the past few days, decided to donate the 1500.00 dollars worth of gift cards to Make a Wish or Give Kids the World.

To me, it isn’t about smoking. I barely do when there. It is that they can change the rules, yet not take into consideration the paying guest. I have been booked and paid for forever, added things too. If they change it and can’t tell me the details- that is poor service. It is not Disney.

Rather that spending that 1500 worth of Disney cards, on something Disney, to me I would rather donate it. Lemonade out of lemons- No vodka needed.

 

[krisri18]

We actually, after talking it over, the past few days, decided to donate the 1500.00 dollars worth of gift cards to Make a Wish or Give Kids the World.

To me, it isn’t about smoking. I barely do when there. It is that they can change the rules, yet not take into consideration the paying guest. I have been booked and paid for forever, added things too. If they change it and can’t tell me the details- that is poor service. It is not Disney.

Rather that spending that 1500 worth of Disney cards, on something Disney, to me I would rather donate it. Lemonade out of lemons- No vodka needed.

Lemonade indeed! Very thoughtful of you to help make a family's Disney wish a reality!

 

[ajrwdwgirl]

It's very nice of you to donate the gift cards it will make a big difference to someone.

 

[DisneyGigi]

Lemonade indeed! Very thoughtful of you to help make a family's Disney wish a reality!

It's very nice of you to donate the gift cards it will make a big difference to someone.

Just trying to make a positive out of a negative situation. I don’t need the cards- and I am not mad, just disappointed in the level of service. To be honest, this has actually felt better than any trip I have ever planned.

 

[Dave B]

Rather than donate them , which is amazing, would you want to sell them at a discount and get something for them, besides a tax write off? I would be interested....just saying

 

[DisneyGigi]

Rather than donate them , which is amazing, would you want to sell them at a discount and get something for them, besides a tax write off? I would be interested....just saying

I already donated them. Thank you for asking but no. It isn’t about money or a tax write off for me.

 

[DisneyGigi]

So, I am still not going to the World, but for those that care, and followed- look at my kitty!
A lot going on- still don’t agree that Disney doesn’t have plans for the change, but doesn’t mean I still do not love the Mouse House.

Help me name this cute girl!

P
Poll-

I have no idea how to do it-

Sarabi
Lilo
Loki (she is a girl, yada, yada)
Chloe
Totally open to suggestions.

 

[Rista1313]

So, I am still not going to the World, but for those that care, and followed- look at my kitty!
A lot going on- still don’t agree that Disney doesn’t have plans for the change, but doesn’t mean I still do not love the Mouse House.

Help me name this cute girl!
View attachment 363890
View attachment 363891
View attachment 363892P
Poll-

I have no idea how to do it-

Sarabi
Lilo
Loki (she is a girl, yada, yada)
Chloe
Totally open to suggestions.

Hei hei... because that's what you might be yelling at a naughty kitten =D

 

[Swissmiss]

She definitely doesn’t look like a Chloe. I love @Rista1313’s suggestion of Hei Hei, because I loved that character. Choosing a name for a pet is almost as difficult as choosing a name for a child

(BTW I have friends that named their female cat Loki...)

 

[NothatDonald]

Naming pets or kids for that matter can be tough. Named our youngest dog Betty. Short for “Whoa Black Betty Bam Ba Lam” one - because she’s a black lab and two - she was the wildest little pup ever. Now five years later and she forgets her training five minutes after being taught the same thing for the zillionth time, I wished I’d named her Dory.

 

[DisneyGigi]

Hei hei... because that's what you might be yelling at a naughty kitten =D

That is a cute one!

She definitely doesn’t look like a Chloe. I love @Rista1313’s suggestion of Hei Hei, because I loved that character. Choosing a name for a pet is almost as difficult as choosing a name for a child
(BTW I have friends that named their female cat Loki...)

It really is! It doesn’t help that we used to raise Goldendoodles I have used up almost every Disney name lol

Naming pets or kids for that matter can be tough. Named our youngest dog Betty. Short for “Whoa Black Betty Bam Ba Lam” one - because she’s a black lab and two - she was the wildest little pup ever. Now five years later and she forgets her training five minutes after being taught the same thing for the zillionth time, I wished I’d named her Dory.

Aww! Dory is an option but again I named a pup that. The new parents changed her name but I always still think of her as Dory when I see her. I have to correct myself when I say her name even to this day! She is now 6 lol.
My husband just mentioned Arlo. Still a boy name but I like it.

 

[NothatDonald]

There’s always Kevin for a cute girls name.

 

[DisneyGigi]

I love Kevin, that is one of my favorite movies! Hubby and I dressed up as Carl and Ellie for MNSSHP- oh my gosh! Ellie?

 

[DisneyGigi]

Leaning towards Ellie now. Actually it is Ellie. I prob should move this topic to chit chat, or something. :-/ Since it isn’t a pre trip report anymore. If Kevin had not been mentioned, would not have thought of Ellie tho! So glad I posted.

 

[Swissmiss]

Ellie fits her

 

[Laura Loves Tigger]

LOVE Ellie! Perfect name for such a cutie! Congrats on your new kitty.