Pre-Trip To Pandora and Beyond...

Well, it only took me 10 months to finish me last TR, so here is my feeble attempt to speed through a pre-trip report. I better hurry because we only have 39 DAYS!!!!!

Just in case you forgot who we are…

And here we are in some non-Disney attire...

(That's my sis with us in this pic.)

Our cast of characters:

Me/mom - Mary: I am the original Disney fanatic in our group.

Hubby – Ross - He's the one who works non-stop to make our travels possible.

DD 15 – Julia - My teen who hates being called a teen. She is a stressed filled child who is battling the evils of Chemistry, Japanese and Algebra this year.

DD 8 – Hope - my 8 year old princess who battles the evils of Autism and Sensory Integration Disorder everyday

If you don't know our crazy family, you can read about our past adventures here:

2013
http://forums.wdwmagic.com/threads/...-add-a-little-pixie-dust.873100/#post-5707305

2014:
http://forums.wdwmagic.com/threads/honey-i-blew-up-the-magic-band-completed.892800/

2015:
http://forums.wdwmagic.com/threads/...-hopping-a-september-2015-trip-report.905518/

2016:
http://forums.wdwmagic.com/threads/pop-hop-snack-shop-graduation-celebration-sept-2016.919622/

Now that you know who we are... allow me to take you back to last September...

We were booking our bounce-back for September 2017 - hoping to avoid F&W and planning for the girls and I to come down 2 days early.

Hope had convinced Ross to book 1 night at AoA and the remainder at POR. The plan was that the girls and I would arrive on the 11th spend 1 night at AOA, move to POR on the 12th and then Ross would join us on the 13th. However, we would get a wrench thrown in that plan when the CM told Ross that in order to receive the bounce back for free dinning, we would have to arrive no later than September 9th! Oh and P.S. – F&W was starting in late August!!

Due to Ross’ job – there was no way he could leave before the 13th – he can’t leave his stores until after the Labor Day/ back to school rush is done. What he did next is still blowing my mind away. He booked it! So the bad news is Hope will not get to stay at AoA this time… but the unbelievable, utterly awesome news is that we are going from September 9th – September 23rd!!! Ummm… can you say 2 weeks in Disney?!!!!

We are actually leaving on the 8th because Ross is once again hysterical that we will miss our flight. Since we got a better deal on a flight out of Newark, we are booked to stay at a Park, Sleep & Fly Place close to the airport. I am trying to do my best to cancel it.

If I am correct, I think we are going to be visiting the same time as @Ciara, @lostpro9het , @Disneydreamer23, @MotherofaPrincessLover, and of course, @blgauger (who I guess technically doesn’t “visit” anymore.) So please, if anyone sees us – say hi to us!

So with 39 days to go... let pre-trip countdown begin!!

 

[Figment Forever]

Ditto!! We will be down from 7th-10th at Beach club...but if I see you, I will say hi!

I dream of staying at the Beach Club!! We may venture there to have some ice cream. Have a great trip and will keep an eye out for you!

 

[Figment Forever]

39 days!? That's so close! I'm so happy for you all that you'll be in Disney so soon! Also, such a nice long time to enjoy all the things WDW can bring.

I am actually hoping we slow down a little during this trip. Thanks for following along with us!

 

[Figment Forever]

It's coming fast! And 2 weeks in the world will be amazing. I'm sure with lots of stories to share with us when your back.

It's at the point where I feel it's coming too fast! I don't feel like I'm doing enough to get ready! lol Thanks for reading!

 

[Figment Forever]

So happy you get to go back and for 2 weeks as well. Who knows maybe you will even slow down a little in the parks.
Julia has turned into such a beautiful young woman, so fun to see your girls grow up when reading your previous TRs.

Yes - I am hoping we slow down a little bit - we'll see how that goes... I can't believe how quickly my little girls have grown! Thank you so much for the kind words and for following along!

 

[Figment Forever]

So exciting!!! That month or so wait is so awful but so amazing. Awful because it's so close and not here, but amazing because you're so close and it's so exciting to know how close it is!!!

Happy waiting and planning til then. Have a great 2 week trip!

Thanks so much!! I feel like it's coming too fast - I don't feel prepared!!

 

[joshsprincess921]

Yay! 2 weeks! That is going to be great!

 

[Figment Forever]

Yay! 2 weeks! That is going to be great!

Thanks! We are so excited and hoping to try a few new things!

 

[Figment Forever]

37 Days to go...

So what do we have planned?

Well, along with having to check in by the 9th to get the bounce back, we also had to book a room with a pool view and purchase the water park & more (aka golf) option. So it looks like we will be venturing out to the water parks this trip.

So that leads me to ask a few questions…

Which is your favorite water park and why? We will NOT be doing any single rider slides. We are more the wave pool and lazy river family. Although a "family" raft ride - we may try.

How do you get to Fantasia Gardens Mini-Golf? Hope told me we have to go to the Swan/Dolphin Resort? (She discovered Google Maps and apparently has the route planned out.) Can someone confirm this for me? Will the bus system work or do I have to figure out how to get a polka-dot car to pick us up?

 

[dizfan917]

whoa! TWO WEEKS! I am jealous.

Enjoy those Mickey Ice Cream Bars on the 17th! <grin > "Happy Birthday to ME!"

Have a total BLAST!! (If Germany is featuring that nudelkoogle stuff at F&W, check that out! it's good. and cheesy. We like cheese here in Wisconsin.)

 

[dizfan917]

Fantasia Gardens is a quick walk from the BoardWalk - OR - grab a boat out the back of EPCOT or from DHS and disembark at the Swan / Dolphin and hoof it across the street. that's all we did...

 

[Ciara]

37 Days to go...

So what do we have planned?

Well, along with having to check in by the 9th to get the bounce back, we also had to book a room with a pool view and purchase the water park & more (aka golf) option. So it looks like we will be venturing out to the water parks this trip.

So that leads me to ask a few questions…

Which is your favorite water park and why? We will NOT be doing any single rider slides. We are more the wave pool and lazy river family. Although a "family" raft ride - we may try.

How do you get to Fantasia Gardens Mini-Golf? Hope told me we have to go to the Swan/Dolphin Resort? (She discovered Google Maps and apparently has the route planned out.) Can someone confirm this for me? Will the bus system work or do I have to figure out how to get a polka-dot car to pick us up?

If you aren't going to do any single river slides i would definitely go with Typhoon Lagoon!

 

[melmel89]

I'll be keeping my eyes peeled for you all, Also how is Julia 15 ! time flys.

 

[Figment Forever]

Fantasia Gardens is a quick walk from the BoardWalk - OR - grab a boat out the back of EPCOT or from DHS and disembark at the Swan / Dolphin and hoof it across the street. that's all we did...

Thanks for the info! (What made me doubt Hope? lol )

 

[Figment Forever]

whoa! TWO WEEKS! I am jealous.

Enjoy those Mickey Ice Cream Bars on the 17th! <grin > "Happy Birthday to ME!"

Have a total BLAST!! (If Germany is featuring that nudelkoogle stuff at F&W, check that out! it's good. and cheesy. We like cheese here in Wisconsin.)

Thanks!!! Hoping it's a tad bit cooler than last year. Mickey bars on the 17th is a definite! I have never heard of nudelkoogle... but will keep an eye out for it... who doesn't love cheese?

We are doing a state study this year and guess which state Hope picked to do first?

 

[Figment Forever]

If you aren't going to do any single river slides i would definitely go with Typhoon Lagoon!

Thanks for the input - TL is Julia's top pick while Miss Hope keeps saying she wants to go to BB, so we will probably try for both. But I think we will hit up TL first in case we decide not to do a second day.

 

[Figment Forever]

I'll be keeping my eyes peeled for you all, Also how is Julia 15 ! time flys.

Time sure does fly by - just yesterday Julia was 6 and walking into the MK for the first time!

 

[Figment Forever]

What are we celebrating?

Well, besides Hope & Julia’s “Disney” birthdays, we do have a special occasion that deserves a little attention…

Look at those cute kids… lol

25 years ago, Ross and I got married. It seems like a lifetime ago. I had even forgotten I had the church soloist sing, “Beauty & The Beast” at our ceremony!

Anyhoo… where did we head for our honeymoon you ask? WDW of course! It was Ross’ first trip to Disney and he wasn’t as enthusiastic as he is today.

I had us booked for the Grand Floridian and dinner at Victoria & Albert’s. I went through a travel agent and after we booked, she talked me into changing our plans. Apparently a brand new hotel had just opened and it had a “moderate” price of $89.00 a night. That meant our vacation increased from 6 nights to 10. Where did we stay? Room 3857

So I guess it’s fate that 25 years later we will be staying at POR aka Dixie Landings.

We missed the opening of Splash Mountain by a few weeks. We watched empty logs go down the drop on our last day there.

We had dinner at EPCOT almost every night. I remember we made our reservations the same day as we dined! lol Our favorite restaurants were Mexico, Garden Grill & Coral Reef.

Our favorite attraction at MGM Studios was Superstar Television - specifically the I Love Lucy skit.

And yes, I do believe we went River Country!

Don’t ask me for any pictures… I have NONE. I don’t even remember taking a camera with me. A different world back then…

I have to admit, sometimes I wish we had stayed at GF and dined at V&A… But it was a fun trip and Ross ended up liking WDW… but he would not become a true convert until 15 years later.

BTW, Ross is not happy I mentioned that I wanted anniversary buttons – but hey, I told him if I could stay married to him for 25 years and not kill him, I at least deserved a button.

 

[riverside]

What are we celebrating?

Well, besides Hope & Julia’s “Disney” birthdays, we do have a special occasion that deserves a little attention…

View attachment 220523

Look at those cute kids… lol

25 years ago, Ross and I got married. It seems like a lifetime ago. I had even forgotten I had the church soloist sing, “Beauty & The Beast” at our ceremony!

Anyhoo… where did we head for our honeymoon you ask? WDW of course! It was Ross’ first trip to Disney and he wasn’t as enthusiastic as he is today.

I had us booked for the Grand Floridian and dinner at Victoria & Albert’s. I went through a travel agent and after we booked, she talked me into changing our plans. Apparently a brand new hotel had just opened and it had a “moderate” price of $89.00 a night. That meant our vacation increased from 6 nights to 10. Where did we stay? Room 3857

View attachment 220524

So I guess it’s fate that 25 years later we will be staying POR aka Dixie Landings.

We missed the opening of Splash Mountain by a few weeks. We watched empty logs go down the drop on our last day there.

We had dinner at EPCOT almost every night. I remember we made our reservations the same day as we dined! lol Our favorite restaurants were Mexico, Garden Grill & Coral Reef.

Our favorite attraction at MGM Studios was Superstar Television - specifically the I Love Lucy skit.

And yes, I do believe we went River Country!

Don’t ask me for any pictures… I have NONE. I don’t even remember taking a camera with me. A different world back then…

I have to admit, sometimes I wish we had stayed at GF and dined at V&A… But it was a fun trip and Ross ended up liking WDW… but he would not become a true convert until 15 years later.

BTW, Ross is not happy I mentioned that I wanted anniversary buttons – but hey, I told him if I could stay married to him for 25 years and not kill him, I at least deserved a button.

Congratulations on 25 years!! I love that you're staying where it all started!! Riverside is a beautiful resort--I stayed at the Grand Floridian once & the whole time I kept wishing I was at Riverside. I believe that fate is bringing you back there again! Wishing you 25 more!!

 

[becca_]

Congrats on 25 years, that's awesome! I love Riverside as well, I just stayed there in May & it was amazing

 

[Tuvalu]

Congrats on 25 years.
Woody and I honeymooned at the Contemporary and spent our 25th at GF (I was sick most of the trip.) In between we had many delightful stays at Dixie Landings/Riverside. As you experienced last September, POR is a wonderful resort!