Peoplemover TTAs August 2011 Trip Report - But Wait...There's More!

Now that I've been back for a few days, it's time to get started on my first, full-fledged WDW TR. As some of you may know, it's with a somewhat heavy heart, as my mom passed away at the end of June, very suddenly. We booked this trip last August, and had been counting down ever since. My family new that we still had to take this trip, to heal, and because my mom would be mad if we didn't .

I don't want this to be a depressing TR, and I won't dwell on the loss of my mom...I tried to take advantage of this trip to remember her and honor her spirit, and hopefully I was able to do that a bit!

For some of the backstory on the trip and it's major players, details are in my PTR here.

Here's a basic overview:

Originally booked in POFQ with free dining from 8/20 - 8/28, we had to add two nights when airfare on those days was literally twice the price. So, we bookended our trip with overnight stays at POP. Our trip instead became 8/19-8/29. My sister, cousin and I were flying Jetblue, and my grandma and aunt were driving.

Wednesday morning (8/17), I received a text that my grandma was in the hospital. Turns out, she was in renal failure! She was hospitalized for 2 days, and insisted to the doctors that she was going to Disney World and to get it figured out. Not sound medical thinking, but my grandma is 78, has tons of health problems, and we had been through a lot...she wanted to make it on this trip!

Her renal failure was actually caused by medicine she was taking. They tested her extensively and restored all her levels where they should be, then gave explicit instructions so nothing happened while we were on vacation (and she ended up being fine, thankfully). She literally got in my aunt's Equinox on Friday morning after being discharged and hit the road!

With everyone raring to go, we approached 8/19 with excitement. Stay tuned for Day 1 (the first day is a little wordy, but I'm setting up things to come, so bear with me...I hope I don't disappoint ).

 

[PartOfYourWorld]

Glad to hear everything is better now!

And glad to hear to had a great trip overall (besides the end of course)

Hopefully you can make it back in Jan/Feb and I wish you the best with your move!

 

[silver1113]

I'm so glad to hear that your leg is better. Hospital trips are scary to begin with they are more so when you are away from home. Glad to see that you enjoyed AI. I haven't heard much about it and what I have heard wasn't actually positive. My dd is going to try out for it when we are down there.

 

[PeoplemoverTTA]

So sorry to hear about your leg and the problems with your flight. Even though you were at Disney, I'm sure you would have rather be home than deal with all of that.

Great Trip Report!

Thanks for your time and effort and I hope you make it to Orlando.

Thanks, fractal - I hope so too! It really was such a weird ending to my trip. Now that I'm home and better, I can (almost) forget the stupid hospital part! Now, it's time to plan

Oh, I'm so sorry about your leg too!! I'm glad it's better though!

Crazy Jetblue!!

I can not believe your cousin paid full fare and left!!! That is crazy!! She probably could have talked a manager into moving her flight! I talked someone in United into doing it, although I ended up doing something different. Crazy, I tell you!

I'm so glad you had a great trip before the end though!! Thanks for sharing it!

Thanks, Tammy! I can't wait for my next trip...we had such a great time, the weird ending doesn't spoil it per se, but I can't wait to kind of erase that lingering "end of trip!"

That definitely sucks about having to go to the ER. I have a Disney ER story from last November:
I had been in NC at my bf's house for a couple days and was flying from NC to Orlando to meet my family. Well 2 nights before I was to leave I woke up with the worst pain of my life in my left side. It hurt so bad and I was vomitting and couldn't sleep. I started crying and called my Mom (it was about 2am) and her and my aunt thought it might be a UTI or kidney infection so my bf got me some water an cranberry juice and made me drink it the rest of the time I was there. When he dropped me off at the airport my right side had started hurting. The whole flight from Jacksonville, NC to Atlanta it felt like someone was stabbing me in the side. I got sick when the plane landed and when I got up to get my carry-on from under the plane, everything kinda went black and I thought I was going to pass out. I managed to cart my bag to the bathroom where I went into a larger stall and laid for a minute. I got sick again and called my mother saying "I dont know if I can make it to Orlando" she advised me to go get a medic so I did and they took my vitals and told me they could take me to the hospital, get me a hotel and change my flight to tomorrow. was nervous about being in Atlanta all by myself so I decided to try and make it to Orlando so they brought me down to my gate on on of those carts and I managed to fall asleep on the plane and chugged a ton of water. My side felt a little better and my Mom picked me up at the airport and we went to our timeshare and went to bed. At about 2am I woke up with the same excrutiating pain as before and she took me to Dr. Philips Hospital. They put me in a room and took all my vitals and gave me an IV of fluid and meds along with 2 perscriptions, one antibiotic, one for nausea (as I was getting sick every couple hours). Turns out I had a kidney infection and just drinking a ton of water and cranberry juice wasnt going to help it and I needed antibiotics. We were spending the next day at Universal and I was determined to make it. It definitely ruined the end of my trip to NC and the beginning of my Florida trip but if I hadn't gone to the ER it would have gotten a lot worse.... And now Im paying the hospital $44 a month because my bill was almost $3,000 and I'm responsible for $900 of it!!!

It definitely seems like your Mom was watching out for you and got you to that plane on time to get home! She's your guardian angel

Good luck on the move to Florida! It's a wonderful place and I'd love to live there someday!

Sounds like other than some mishaps and a grouchy cousin you had a blast!! Thanks for sharing it with us! :wave:

Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry that happened to you! I'm glad you were able to salvage the trip and have a good time though. It's a crummy club to be in - the "I went to the hospital on my Disney vacation Club," isn't it?

Yeah I think this trip was very cathartic - even with the hospital visit. I can't speak for my family, but I needed it to help heal. Especially now - we finally found out what happened to my mom (the results took a few months). She had a rare heart condition, that we didn't know about, and her heart just stopped. My brother, sister and I each have a 50% chance of having this same condition, so we all have to be tested. Whatever way the tests go, I think that sealed the deal for me - I'm moving to Orlando. If I fall on my face, I fall on my face, but from all of this, I have learned that life is too short.

I'm only 30, and maybe I"m too young to be wistful, but it's time for me to start taking charge and reaching my goals. This is the start, and I'm going to use it for all I can.

Glad to hear everything is better now!

And glad to hear to had a great trip overall (besides the end of course)

Hopefully you can make it back in Jan/Feb and I wish you the best with your move!

Thanks so much - I'm really hoping to get back soon, either for a long weekend, or permanently! I'm guessing the weekend may come first, though!

I'm so glad to hear that your leg is better. Hospital trips are scary to begin with they are more so when you are away from home. Glad to see that you enjoyed AI. I haven't heard much about it and what I have heard wasn't actually positive. My dd is going to try out for it when we are down there.

How exciting - good luck to your DD! I was surprised how much I enjoyed the show - I really didn't expect to. Have a great time on your trip, and thanks for the positive wishes! Now that my leg is 'healed," and I have a huge scar, I've decided that in the future, I'll be telling people that I was bitten by a shark, or something exotic :lol:

And in other news, I was in a meeting at work the other day, when I realized that maybe this whole leg thing was caused by some radioactive bug...maybe after all this, I'll end up being a superhero...

...hey, you never know!