Pre-Trip How to avoid single riders in your Test Track Car - Max, the girls (AND THE BOYS!!) do Disney!

To all who come to this happy place , welcome, (and leave a few bucks in the bucket if you can spare it - this one's not going to cheap)

For those who do not know me - shame on you!

I am Max or AMJT660 or Andrew or Drew or to a few people I am Clarence

This is the Max Family (my DW Tricia (T) and my DD Stephanie (S) and Cassie (C))

And these are the new comers- Jordan(J) - who will officially join the family on Oct 5, 2019 ( yes - zoom in on Steph’s left hand)

And Shane (SH) who has been in our lives a long time (more on that later) and has been dating Cassie since Feb2017)

We are heading to the World on Dec 22 and flying back home on Dec 27. (yes - we are crazy - thanks for noticing)

More details to follow - thanks for following!!

Max

Editors note: my laptop and iPhone are not cooperating so I have to two step each post - so do not be surprised to see only text or only pictures for a few minutes until I can edit the post to complete it.

 

[kk0311]

Hi Max, following along. I am really interested in seeing the Family Room at the Dolphin. We are taking a very similar group in 2020 with our adult children plus our 11 year old.
Have fun!

 

[amjt660]

You are only 4 years older than me... and I'm not old yet dang it!

Well this is going to be fun!

I certainly hope so - I do not do this to depress myself...

But the weather in Vienna was fantastic yesterday and after the meeting ended, we went to lunch and sat out on a terrace without coats on and then walked around for another hour until we had to head back to the airport - and once off the plane I had to pull out additional layers to keep me warm for the bus ride home

Glad you were able to enjoy the nice weather on this short trip
I too have been known to take advantage of business trips to do something fun (cough - Tokyo Disney - cough - HK Disney - cough - Shanghai Disney - cough)

Following along

Thank you - I aim to please

I'm counting on trip reports to distract me from labor pains!

I will do my best to distract but it still may come to this...

How cool to all be going as adults and at Christmas with a newbie! Can't wait to read all about it!

Yes - we are hoping for it to be a great time - thanks for following along on this magical mystery tour

Looking forward to the hearing about the trip and excellent commentary!

I will try to live up to Albus on this one...

Hi Max, following along. I am really interested in seeing the Family Room at the Dolphin. We are taking a very similar group in 2020 with our adult children plus our 11 year old.
Have fun!

Yes , I will give details on the room(s) and hotel
I have been trying to find floor plans and pictures - but cannot find everything I want - so I will try to remedy that for you.
I do know that the adjoining rooms can be two doubles or a king. The king size beds are on the first floor so no fireworks viewing for us - but we are more interested in a good night sleep at this stage.
Thanks for following

Max

 

[Tony the Tigger]

In your first pic, I thought there were green antlers or something on your ballcap.

For the newbie: going when it’s crowded is a great first trip - it will almost always feel “not that busy” for the rest of his life!

 

[MySmallWorldof4]

To all who come to this happy place , welcome, (and leave a few bucks in the bucket if you can spare it - this one's not going to cheap)

For those who do not know me - shame on you!

I am Max or AMJT660 or Andrew or Drew or to a few people I am Clarence
View attachment 322996

This is the Max Family (my DW Tricia (T) and my DD Stephanie (S) and Cassie (C))
View attachment 322999
And these are the new comers- Jordan(J) - who will officially join the family on Oct 5, 2019 ( yes - zoom in on Steph’s left hand)
View attachment 322998
And Shane (SH) who has been in our lives a long time (more on that later) and has been dating Cassie since Feb2017)
View attachment 322997
We are heading to the World on Dec 22 and flying back home on Dec 27. (yes - we are crazy - thanks for noticing)

More details to follow - thanks for following!!

Max

Editors note: my laptop and iPhone are not cooperating so I have to two step each post - so do not be surprised to see only text or only pictures for a few minutes until I can edit the post to complete it.

Nice dates. Should lead to a real interesting and fun TR.

 

[MySmallWorldof4]

WHO:
As mentioned in the title this is the first time the trip will include 6 people
So we are a perfect fit for Test Track - no stranger danger!!!

Me: For those who do not know me I have been a member here since 2008 but I lurked for quite a few years before (probably started in 2003) This is lucky 13 for WDW and 28 Disney park visit in total. I have been lucky enough to go to all 6 Disney resorts (thank you Toyota) and my first trip was a 3 day pass to Magic Kingdom in Florida in 1979. I was 13 - do the math - yes, I am old
And as most know - I AM CANADIAN!!! - I am sorry if that was too loud.
The name thing? - AMJT660 is my licence plate - Max is my nickname from University (from Maxwell), Drew is what most people call me, Andrew is my given name from my mother and Clarence is my given name from Roz (at Monsters Inc ride in Disneyland)
View attachment 323318
View attachment 323325
Last Disney trip - Nov 2017 - Shanghai
Last WDW trip - Dec 2016
Most looking forward to : Pandora and Flight of Passage

Tricia (T- Mom and DW)- She is a saint for putting up with me for 31 years - 27 of those being married. This is her 14th trip to WDW and 25 overall. She has been to Anaheim and Paris - well I sort of dragged her to the Paris one - she did not want to leave the city of lights at all.
Not a lot of single pictures of Tricia - she loves having here family together
View attachment 323319
Last Disney trip - Aug 2017 - DLR
Last WDW trip - Dec 2016
Most looking forward to: Having the whole group together in our happy place

Stephanie - DD23 - Music is her life (soulmate for @bee ) She completed her undergrad in Music Therapy at Acadia in Nova Scotia and is now pursuing her Masters in Music Therapy at Concordia in Montreal Quebec. This is her 10th trip to WDW and 21st Disney trip.
This is a copy picture of Steph and Mr Toad - she took the first one like it in 2005
View attachment 323320
Last Disney trip - Aug 2017 - DLR
Last WDW trip - Dec 2016
Most looking forward to: Being able to bring her fiance to Disney

Cassie (DD21) Cassie is hard core - everything!! She is extremely driven at school (finishing up 3rd year at Biomedical Engineering at U of Waterloo). She is also most like me at the parks - if I am the Jedi Master she is my padawan - and her skills will soon pass mine!!
She did all the ADR and FP+ bookings (IT Level 2!)
She is also going to WDW for the 10th time and when you add the 10 DLR and 1 DLP visits she too will be at 21 Disney trips.
This is another copy cat picture with the statues in Anaheim. We do this shot everytime.
View attachment 323323
Last Disney trip - Aug 2017 - DLR
Last WDW trip - Dec 2016
Most looking forward to: Pandora at night!!

Jordan: Stephanie's fiance as of end of April, They have been together for almost 4 years and met while at school (Acadia). He took one extra year to finish his dual degree and is now at McGill in Montreal (yes - they picked grad schools in the same city) and is studying Genetic Research. This is his FIRST TIME AT DISNEY!!! - YES - WE HAVE A NEWBIE - and for some crazy reason we are bringing him at Christmas . He is a huge Star Wars fan and has been studying hard on all things Disney -especially the Music (wonder why?)
At the Jays came a day after the proposal - Steph showing off the bling!
View attachment 323326
Last Disney trip - never
Last WDW trip - never
Most looking forward to: everything! - but mostly Star Wars

Shane - Cassie and Shane have been dating for just under two years. He goes to college near where we live and studies Computer Programming. But we have known Shane for a long time. Cassie and Shane were in the same Grade 1 class. He continued to be in the same school and classes with her up to Grade 8 when his family moved to the other end of our tri cities and they lost touch.
But here is the cool thing - Shane has had a crush on Cassie since Grade 1!! They reconnected around Cassie's Bday on FB and started dated. The crush never went away!
This is Shane back in grade school
View attachment 323327
Last Disney trip - 2010
Last WDW trip - 2010
Most looking forward to: everything! - Avatar - he watched the movie over 50 times when it came out - he will be teaching us!!

Well that is the crew!!

Max

Great background info, and the Shane/Cassie story is Hallmark Movie Channel worthy. So adorable. Looks like your girls really got keepers!

 

[MySmallWorldof4]

Yes , I will give details on the room(s) and hotel

Is that the type of accommodation that you need to call in to reserve, or could you do it online?

 

[Tuvalu]

the Shane/Cassie story is Hallmark Movie Channel worthy. So adorable!

This made me LOL because it is so true!

 

[krisri18]

I will do my best to distract but it still may come to this...
View attachment 323570

Max

Lol, no meds. Just instrumental Disney music and some trip reports will do just fine!

 

[susan lees]

Following along

 

[RememberWhen]

I hope we can - I will post day by day plan soon and we can PM to determine if it is possible

Oh. I need to do that too. Life got busy with kids and DS is playing soccer this year (only 2 games left!) and getting ready for Halloween/Thanksgiving coming up. I can’t wait for vacation!

 

[amjt660]

In your first pic, I thought there were green antlers or something on your ballcap.

For the newbie: going when it’s crowded is a great first trip - it will almost always feel “not that busy” for the rest of his life!

I had never noticed that - nice catch!!
And that is a very positive outlook on the crowd situation!!

Nice dates. Should lead to a real interesting and fun TR.

Oh yes, yes it will!

Great background info, and the Shane/Cassie story is Hallmark Movie Channel worthy. So adorable. Looks like your girls really got keepers!

My wife and I have joked about it in the past - glad you picked up on it.

Is that the type of accommodation that you need to call in to reserve, or could you do it online?

You can book it online but I called because I wanted the King bed style - I think if you did it only online it would be hit/miss as to which room you end up with.

This made me LOL because it is so true!

Yes - we are working on a storyboard and a title!!!

Lol, no meds. Just instrumental Disney music and some trip reports will do just fine!

No pressure at all - this report better be a good one!!

Following along

Nice Santa emoji !! Thanks for following

Oh. I need to do that too. Life got busy with kids and DS is playing soccer this year (only 2 games left!) and getting ready for Halloween/Thanksgiving coming up. I can’t wait for vacation!

Plans coming soon!

Max

 

[slipperalwaysfits]

SO EXCITED for your daughter and her fiancee! What a fun way to celebrate with a Disney trip! You guys lucked out with the family room at the Dolphin! Here's to an amazing and magical trip! Can't wait to read all about it!

 

[CaliKris]

I am excited to read your upcoming trip report! Out son has a girlfriend who loves Disney but has only been to Disneyland. We are thinking about bringing her on our next family trip to WDW, but are wondering how it might change the group dynamics. I told her if she comes to WDW that we will need to have a Disney planning meeting at least 6 months prior to decide our dining and discuss FP,etc. She looked at me like I had lost my mind. We have decided to bring her to DLR (we are only going for a couple days) to see if she can handle our crazy family at Disney. I will be interested to see how your trip unfolds as well as your amazing accomodations!

 

[amjt660]

WHEN:
Just to keep the party going I will review the When aspect of the trip
For those that do not know most of us live in Waterloo Ontario Canada (Steph and Jordan are in Montreal)

How many are using Google maps right now?

About a 1 hour drive West from Toronto, about 2 hours to Buffalo airport and about 3.5 hours to Detroit airport
(know where I am going with this?)

So we checked all 3 nearby airports that fly enough airlines to make it worth it to check and decided on Buffalo.
Cheaper cost, better inboard and outboard times and not toooo far of a drive in potential bad weather.
(Canada eh!)

Saturday Dec 22 - Leave home around 5am (earlier if weather is questionable) and with time for the border crossing arrive around 7:30 for a domestic direct flight to Orlando (10:35am depart) - Tricia likes to arrive early and we do not know how well everyone will wake up
(I know - hard to believe)
We are flying :

(so the free bags help with 6 people.)

Arrive at MCO at 1:15pm and pick up

Yes - we are renting a minivan for the 6 adults - I own a Sienna so if it all fits in the van on the way to Buffalo...…..

With baggage claim, rental pickup and probable delays we hope to be on our way out of MCO by 2:30

We will do a grocery stop (Publix in Celebration is my usual choice) and then head to the Dolphin.
We have a wide variety of preferences and food allergies to deal with so buying some food for breakfasts and snacks is a must.

We then have 5 nights here:

We fly back on Thursday Dec 27 out of MCO at 1:00pm
Land in Baltimore at 3:05
Take off at 4:25 and land in Buffalo at 5:35

I am hoping to be in my van (with most of my luggage and most of my fellow travellers) by 6:30 .

We will have to stop somewhere for dinner soon after leaving the airport

(Any suggestions from the Buffalo members @Doc Disney & @becca_ or anyone else who lives there?)

Depending on dinner duration I hope to be home around 10 pm

I have to go to work the next day so I will try to skip out on laundry duty and hit the sack quickly

That is it for now - next up will be either What (day by day compete with ADR and FP+), How (am I going to pay for this!!!) and then of course Why

Thanks for tagging along so far

Max

 

[Doc Disney]

Oh and we are flying out of Buffalo so I found this great Bed and Breakfast on Airbnb for the night before

I'm dying...
no wonder you were calling me out for not reading this.
Also super bummed we are missing each other by one day....
I don't have enough bedrooms for you guys sadly haha

 

[amjt660]

SO EXCITED for your daughter and her fiancee! What a fun way to celebrate with a Disney trip! You guys lucked out with the family room at the Dolphin! Here's to an amazing and magical trip! Can't wait to read all about it!

Thank you - we are all very happy that it is happening!!

Now about the family room - hotel schematics are limited but I think I pieced together what we will be getting

The main room in the middle is identified on their website as a family room
The other two rooms are standard king bed rooms (this is where I am guessing on size , orientation , etc.
So Tricia and I will be in the middle room and Steph/Jordan in one king and Cassie/Shane in the other one.
I hope this makes it semi clear (and again this is my best guess - you will have to wait for the final report to see the actual pictures)

I am excited to read your upcoming trip report! Out son has a girlfriend who loves Disney but has only been to Disneyland. We are thinking about bringing her on our next family trip to WDW, but are wondering how it might change the group dynamics. I told her if she comes to WDW that we will need to have a Disney planning meeting at least 6 months prior to decide our dining and discuss FP,etc. She looked at me like I had lost my mind. We have decided to bring her to DLR (we are only going for a couple days) to see if she can handle our crazy family at Disney. I will be interested to see how your trip unfolds as well as your amazing accomodations!

If you have never been to Disney World or it is over 20 years since you have been then yes, you will not understand the planning requirements
Our approach was 3 step - Cassie and I did the basic plan with dining potentials back in the early summer
Tricia and Steph reviewed and then we booked meals
All six of us sat down for our Canadian Thanksgiving in October and determined FP
The boys were listening and learning

I'm dying...
no wonder you were calling me out for not reading this.
Also super bummed we are missing each other by one day....
I don't have enough bedrooms for you guys sadly haha

I was dying inside waiting for you see it
@MeeskaMooska0714 caught it first !!

Max

 

[Sabrina1705]

Following along!

 

[Doc Disney]

Oh for eating you could always eat in the airport at Anchor Bar for wings - delicious! There are not a ton of places other than chains close to the airport

 

[amjt660]

Following along!

Thank you for following along - more details to come today!

Oh for eating you could always eat in the airport at Anchor Bar for wings - delicious! There are not a ton of places other than chains close to the airport

OK - not sure what we will do - depends on everyone's mood - if we do eat in the airport I guess we will just wing it

Max

 

[amjt660]

HOW and WHY :

How are we going on this trip?
Tricia and I are paying for almost all of the trip (plane, hotel, tickets, most meals)

You might be wondering (as our family does at times) how we could possibly afford to go at Christimas with 6 adults when we all have a wedding and schooling to pay for ?

Well it comes down to this:

1) Life is short - can't take it with you - smell the roses - etc ,etc
2) In the spring I will be supporting the launch of the new RAV4 at my plant - I estimate a 15 week span with no time off, crazy stress and stupid hours - so this is the window to take a break before the storm hits - (and I lucky to get paid overtime so I should be able to pay off the trip)
3) This is the only time all 6 of us can go based on the 4 younger ones being enrolled in 4 different post secondary schools
4) We wanted Shane and Jordan to experience this crazy hobby of ours.

We have been going as a family of 4 to Disney parks since Feb 2002. The girls have been 20 times already - almost 1 per year
(Steph will be 23 and 7 months and Cassie will be 21 and 11 months when we depart for their 21 trip)

And for each of the last few trips we have been wondering:

Is this it? Is this the last family trip?

There is a certain melancholy about this being the end.

Last summer in Cali was the last trip for the just the 4 of us and this one seems like the only one for the 6 of us.

Both girls - ahem ladies - have grown up- and I am a proud papa of all of their accomplishments and who they have become.

With Steph getting married next October and Cassie moving out next spring to finish up her school the family trips to Disney will probably go on hiatus for awhile

I can only hope an look forward to someday having grandchildren to spoil.

Did not mean to take the air out of this TR

I guess the best way to put it is

"I am excited for the trip to start.. and dreading that it will end."

Max