A Disney-addicted mom: 2nd annual August trip and Marathon Weekend *Update 10/7*

[DrMomof3]

Good luck with your trip and the weather!!! Hope you are able to dodge a bumpy flight.

The fanny pack is definitely the way to go at Universal/IoA. No, it is not the most fashionable accessory, but it will be priceless not having to lock up a backpack!

It is harder than I imagined to purchase one these days- A friend needed to find a couple last Halloween (she and her sister were going as an Amazing Race Team) and the local stores didn't have any. Fortunately (unfortunately?) I had a couple for her to borrow.

I ordered my fanny pack off Amazon. It was just under $20. We're amazon prime members so we get free 2 day shipping. It's cute, just quite large. It'll be a great replacement for a purse. I can definitely keep APs, room keys, camera (point and shoot), phone, autograph book, etc. in it. There's even a pouch for a rain poncho. It's more of a sports fanny pack for hiking trips. The phone pouch is too small for an iphone but that's ok, I feel safer with my phone inside the pack. I'm pleased with it, even if I look like a dork!

Have a great trip, maybe we'll bump into eachother! Hope you get out okay Saturday and your house holds up. Our basement sometimes get water when it rains too much so we're a little worried about that, gonna have a friend come check on Monday. Looks like it's gonna hit harder up here than down South.

Have a safe trip! I hope everything's ok at home while you're away. I always have lime green Mickey heads on our stuff so you'll recognize us!

Hey - I wanted to wish you fun, safe travels!

Some pixie dust for good weather...(home and away).

Debby

Thanks Debby!

Have a great trip!

Thanks Hope!

Have fun Amanda! We'll be here when you get back! (waiting to hear all about it!)

Thank you! I'll have my ipad so I may do some reporting while we're there. I don't know if I'll be able to post pics from my ipad (I haven't figured it out yet but maybe my DH can help?). My kids tend to need quiet time in the afternoon and also go to bed early so I may get some updating live!

Amanda

 

[DrMomof3]

I'm almost done packing. I need Zachary's "nicest" bathing suit which is at daycare as well as his carry-on bag (which is also at daycare). My nanny will bring both home tonight. I need to pack my carry-on bag and the diaper bag. I want to make sure each child has a complete change of clothes in the carry-ons because we've had "issues" with accidents in the past (Jessica is notorious for having accidents at Disney ). Not to mention the infamous vomiting incident from 2 Decembers ago (Zachary had a massive "spit up" episode as we were landing at MCO and managed to soak himself, Tom, and me after he had already gone through his 1st change of clothes due to a 3 hour flight delay. It was a fun day. But at least it ended in some new clothes! ).
I haven't figured out lunch on the plane yet. We're flying out of a tiny airport so the food options are quite limited. I might just buy bagels with cream cheese. As long as the cream cheese is already on the bagels, I think it'll be ok with security. Right? I know you can't bring yogurt through. I could get deli sandwiches but my kids aren't big on lunch meats. Other ideas?
Tom has decided that he can't deal with a big car seat for Zachary so we're bringing 3 boosters. We'll just threaten him with not seeing Mickey and I think he'll be ok. He weighs 40 lbs so he's big enough for a booster (even in NY you can go in a booster before age 4 as long as you weigh 40 lbs and the car seat laws in Florida are amongst the most lax in the country). My issue is that we can't always trust him. At least with a minivan, I can always sit next to him and make sure he's behaving! We're going to bring the 2 strollers. Tom originally only wanted one stroller but I made a convincing argument for the 2nd one, especially if we leave it behind. It's just so hot at Disney this time of year. And whiney kids = unhappy parents.
I've had a rough few weeks so I'm really looking forward to this trip!

Amanda

 

[DrMomof3]

Major change of plans!!!
We moved our flights to Friday night. JetBlue did not charge anything for this. Unfortunately we couldn't all get on the same flight AND we have to fly out of JFK.
Jessica, Zachary, and I are taking a 7pm flight and arriving at MCO at 10pm.
Nathaniel and Tom will take the 9pm flight and arrive around midnight.
My TA booked us one night at the airport Hyatt. We will take advantage of the luggage service they offer. For $10 you can call the bellman to meet you at baggage claim and help take your bags. Seems like a bargain to me!
I need to make sure we can get the rental car early without paying a small fortune. Yikes!
We will have most of Saturday at Disney!

Amanda

 

[Kat in GA]

Yippee for getting out early and staying a step ahead of Irene!

Have a safe flight - and I hope that our paths will cross while we are there. I'll be posting to facebook - so maybe we'll find that we are in the same park!

 

[DrMomof3]

Yippee for getting out early and staying a step ahead of Irene!

Have a safe flight - and I hope that our paths will cross while we are there. I'll be posting to facebook - so maybe we'll find that we are in the same park!

Awesome! I'll look for you!!!

Amanda

 

[DrMomof3]

WE LEAVE TONIGHT!!!!

I'm freaking out still. Just a bit. I can't get assigned seats on our flight. Which is stressing me out because I'm flying with a 3 year old and a 5 year old. Neither will do very well if they aren't with me. My 7 year old would be fine. Not these 2! Please reassure me that JetBlue will figure out a way for us to sit together!!!!

Amanda

 

[starann]

Have a GREAT time.....

the flight will work out jsut fine....at the very least, you will have a quiet ride down and some unsuspecting stranger will have to wrangle the kids!! (just kidding!)

 

[DrMomof3]

Have a GREAT time.....

the flight will work out jsut fine....at the very least, you will have a quiet ride down and some unsuspecting stranger will have to wrangle the kids!! (just kidding!)

Thank you!

Amanda

 

[DrMomof3]

We made it! We successful escaped Irene and NY. I won't say the trip down was uneventful but we're all here safe and sound. I will say that the Hyatt at MCO is fabulous. A wonderful respite after a difficult journey. We had a few bonus hours at MK today. Our room at BLT is gorgeous! The kids love it here!

Stay safe if Irene is in your neighborhood.

Amanda

 

[cdotla]

Yikes Amanda....are you there right now? I somehow missed your send-off. I haven't been on the Dis much this month.

And what's this about rental cars???? I thought Tom was completely against those?

There have likely been a million other things/updates I missed. Hopefully I can get caught up before you return!

HOPE YOU ARE HAVING A FANTASTIC TRIP!!!

 

[DrMomof3]

Yikes Amanda....are you there right now? I somehow missed your send-off. I haven't been on the Dis much this month.

And what's this about rental cars???? I thought Tom was completely against those?

There have likely been a million other things/updates I missed. Hopefully I can get caught up before you return!

HOPE YOU ARE HAVING A FANTASTIC TRIP!!!

Tom *is* against rental cars! but I think I like having one. We arrived earlier than expected to avoid Irene.

Amanda

 

[dismagiclover]

Amanda! I'm glad you made it! I wish I was there instead of in Irene too. We've already gotten something like 6 inches of rain here. I'm anticipating power won't last too much longer. I'm so glad you guys got the earlier flight!

 

[DrMomof3]

Amanda! I'm glad you made it! I wish I was there instead of in Irene too. We've already gotten something like 6 inches of rain here. I'm anticipating power won't last too much longer. I'm so glad you guys got the earlier flight!

Thanks Jenny! Hope you stayed safe!

Amanda

 

[DrMomof3]

I'm sad to say I sent the family off to AK while Zachary (who has vomited on me twice this trip and still has a fever) and I stay at BLT and enjoy Diego movies. he's actually feeling much better today but I'd rather sacrifice the day and let him recover. I was hoping to ride EE for the 1st time but I guess that'll wait until another trip. If he feels better later, I might walk over to MK and get him a hair cut. Or he and I can go swimming.
This illness has been the best argument for DVC ever! I have a washer/dryer in the room and we have plenty ofnspace to hang out today!

Amanda

 

[natebenma]

I'm sad to say I sent the family off to AK while Zachary (who has vomited on me twice this trip and still has a fever) and I stay at BLT and enjoy Diego movies. he's actually feeling much better today but I'd rather sacrifice the day and let him recover. I was hoping to ride EE for the 1st time but I guess that'll wait until another trip. If he feels better later, I might walk over to MK and get him a hair cut. Or he and I can go swimming.
This illness has been the best argument for DVC ever! I have a washer/dryer in the room and we have plenty ofnspace to hang out today!

Amanda

So sorry to hear Zachary is under the weather. Just can't stop using the word weather!

Hope he is feeling better and ready to tackle the World soon!

 

[-Hope-]

Poor Zachary! And poor mama. I hope the day of recovery helps and you both get to enjoy the rest of your trip!

 

[DrMomof3]

So sorry to hear Zachary is under the weather. Just can't stop using the word weather!

Hope he is feeling better and ready to tackle the World soon!

Thanks Dee!

 

[DrMomof3]

Poor Zachary! And poor mama. I hope the day of recovery helps and you both get to enjoy the rest of your trip!

Thanks Hope!

 

[DrMomof3]

We're home! And exhausted!!! The trip was really good. Not everything went as planned but I think we accomplished the primary goal - building happy family memories.
I'm not quite ready for a trip report. Need to upload pics and try to remember everything. And order our pre-paid CD. (Not to mention unpack, do laundry, and get kids ready for 1st day of school on Tuesday!)

Amanda

 

[beebeeryan]

Glad to hear it was a good trip. Our trip didn't go exactly as planned either, but happy family memories is right!

Did you find it busier than last year the same week? Did you go the same week last year? I thought it was a little more crowded this year than last. Maybe everyone chose to go to Disney to escape the hurricane or something. We met a lot of people from the Northeast, especially Connecticut this trip.