Is Grandma a Princess or a Pirate? UPDATE 9/28! The Last Suppah! PICS!! Pg. 69!

[Goofyluver]

“Is grandma a princess or a pirate?”

Outta the mouths of babes. My 4-year-old niece asked me this question last night. And…as you will see…no other inquisitive statement could be more apropos.

And wa-freakin’-la. A pre-trip report is born.

Before I get into my motha …as she will affectionately be referred to…and her princess/pirate tendencies…let me introduce the entire cast of this lovely adventure:

Me: Jen/Goofyluver. Call me either. I answer to pretty much anything. I’m a single mommy to the MOST amazing boy in the whole world. I am a Speech-Language Pathologist in the elementary school setting. I love what I do, and it is rewarding as all get out. And no…my English ain’t perfect…don’t judge…just because I teach it…don’t mean I can speak it.

Oh…and I loooooove me some Goofy…hence my name. I didn’t know I was a goofyluver until our trip to the world 2 1/2 years ago. I decided to take my little one on a Christmas vacation to the world---pre-DIS and pre-planning. That’s right…I’m not afraid to say it! I went without a plan…and I’m never doing that again! Anywho…I was nonchalantly makin’ my way around AK during our trip…when who did I spy? The Goof-man. And I lost my ever lovin’ mind. I screamed…I jumped…I about wet my pants…and that’s when I knowed it! I…am…a…GOOFYLUVER!

DS: Jon/The Enforcer---as he’s so affectionately known. If you read my last TR, you know why. Jon is the enforcer of the rules…he knows all…he sees all…and he’ll let ya’ know if you’re doing it wrong!

Jon is almost 12! I can barely say that without wanting to faint! And Jon is amazing. It’s just Jon and I in this world…and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Jon is a complicated kiddo. Jon was born with Agenesis of the Rostrum of the Corpus Callosum…basically, he is missing a portion of his brain. This causes several issues for him, including global developmental issues (speech, gross and fine motor), academic issues, etc. He also has muscular and orthopedic issues in addition to sensory integration dysfunction. Jon is asthmatic and has multiple allergies. He has also always had immunological issues, which we always attributed to asthma. Then last fall we found out Jon has a condition called Adrenal Insufficiency. This is a life-threatening condition, which lessens the immune system and makes it dangerous for Jon to become ill or injured. We have had some hospital stays over the recent past due to his condition. But, we’re learning to manage it the best way we know how! Jon was also diagnosed last fall with Hypopituitarism. This causes a significant delay in growth, for which Jon now takes growth hormones. Jon is about 3-5 years delayed physically and cognitively.

In spite of, and frankly because of, Jon’s multiple medical issues, he is a fantastic kid. He has the heart of a lion. He is kind, gentle, and generally, an amazing kid. Although…pre-teen attitude is starting to rear it’s ugly little head. And if what they say is true…that your children pay you back for your adolescence…I’m in world of freakin’ trouble!

DM/DGM: B/My Motha/Grandma. Lemme see…how to explain my motha. Weeeeelllll, she’s a typical Jewish motha. If you have one, you know exactly what I am talkin’ bout. She was reared in New York by some equally crazy Jewish parentage, and she is both my best friend and my worst freakin’ enemy. She calls me every day, at least 5 times a day for various reasons. If I don’t answer the phone…cuz say…maybe I’m at work…then she leaves messages on my voicemail like this:

1st call of the day:

“Jennifer…it’s me…your mother (as if I didn’t know). I’m calling to see what you’re up to. Call me back.”

2nd call of the day:

“Jennifer…you haven’t called me back yet. Call me…oh…and it’s your mother.”

3rd call of the ding dang day:

“Jennifer…are you okay? Why haven’t you called me back??? (panic-stricken voice) Is something the matter? Are you mad? Are you dead? Because frankly I can’t figure out why you haven’t called me back! Callllll meeeee! Oh…and it’s your mother…”

And so the cycle continues. And I invited her on this trip…in a moment of pure weakness. We’ll see how it goes.

DNiece: Princess Lexie. Alexis is 4-years-old. She is my middle-brother’s oldest kiddo. She is a princess’s princess. She is all spunk wound up in a teeny tiny 30-pound body. And she loooooooves princesses. All of them. Long story short…Alexis is living with my brother in my mother’s home. My mother is the only mother Lexie has ever known.

Lexie is heeeelarious! Hence the title for this pre/trippie which will turn into a trippie! I can’t wait to take her with us...and for her to meet her favorite princess of all time…Cindywella…as Lexie calls her.

Oh…and ssssssssshhhhhhh! This trip is a secret to the kidlets! Jon and Lexie don’t know! I am officially…a KOTS member!!!

Ch. 1: The Characters
Ch. 2: Is $600 Worth a Week With my Mother???
Ch. 3: Introducing: The Cast Members!
Ch. 4: Breaking the News! Help Me Do It!!
Ch. 4: The Plans Stan...An Overview!
Ch. 5: The Officially Official Days 1 and 2...With a Motha Countdown Too!
Ch. 6: We're Soarin'! Day 3!
Ch. 7: Humid Heat and Heckling Mothers at AK…and Traitor Day at Sea World!
Ch. 8: P&PP!
Ch. 9: MGM and Mickey Head Ravioli!
We're Baaaaaack!
Ch. 10: The FISH! Philosophy!
Ch. 11: The KOTS Reveal! "Mom...what is W-D-W?"
Ch. 12: Sickness, Head Injuries, and the Pearly Gates!
Ch. 13: Lost Losers and the Motha is the Loudest One of All! Right HERE and HERE!
Ch. 14: The "Spoooky" Ride! Right HERE and HERE!
Ch. 15: Pushin' and Shovin'! Momma Don't Play!
Ch. 16: The (almost) Throwdown at MK! Right HERE and HERE!
Ch. 17: 'THIS' Close to the Castle Winners!
Ch. 18: Me and Phillameana M. Snipey!
Ch. 19: Owwwww...Me and My Caballeros! Right HERE and HERE!
Ch. 20: This is "The Life."
Ch. 21: The Second Coming...or Ducking...Right HERE, HERE, and HERE!
Ch. 22: Ignoring the Dream Team…Didn’t Yo Momma Teach You Anything??? Right HERE and HERE!
Ch. 23: Wet T-Shirts and Fuzzy Electronics! Right HERE and HERE!
Ch. 24: Penguins, Puffins, and Hanky Panky...OH MY!!!
Ch. 25: It's My Vacation...And I'll Scream If I Want To!!!
Ch. 26: Pirates and Princess Bonding!!! Right HERE, HERE, and HERE!!!
Ch. 27: The Last Coming! Right HERE and HERE!
Ch. 28: The Last Suppah! Right HERE and HERE!

 

[2ScottishPrincesses]

Fabby so far Jen, count me in for the ride

 

[Muffinygood]

Dude! I'm In! And check your ding dang myspace mail!

are you doing fockerfest?

I'm thick, so if you've told me already....sorry.

 

[jenna]

Yay Jen!!! A pre-trippie!!!

I'm here for the party!!

 

[OregonDisneyFanatic]

Woo Hoo a new pre- trip report. I my Jen's pre-trip reports they are sooo good.




Type more Jen, Type more. I NEED more!

 

[PrincessV]

Jon is almost 12! I can barely say that without wanting to faint!

I know what you mean Jen!

It’s just Jon and I in this world…and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

RIGHT ON sista-motha!

Although…pre-teen attitude is starting to rear it’s ugly little head. And if what they say is true…that your children pay you back for your adolescence…I’m in world of freakin’ trouble!

Sweet Jon??!! Say no more - I prefer to be surprised when Leo gets to that stage.

DM/DGM: B/My Motha/Grandma. Lemme see…how to explain my motha. Weeeeelllll, she’s a typical Jewish motha. If you have one, you know exactly what I am talkin’ bout.

Close enough - I've got a Jewish ste-grandmother. She calls my step-mother at least 15 times a day.

“Jennifer…are you okay? Why haven’t you called me back??? (panic-stricken voice) Is something the matter? Are you mad? Are you dead? Because frankly I can’t figure out why you haven’t called me back! Callllll meeeee! Oh…and it’s your mother…”

And I invited her on this trip…in a moment of pure weakness.

You did WHAT?!?! This is gonna be a 3-boxer...

Lexie is heeeelarious! Hence the title for this pre/trippie which will turn into a trippie! I can’t wait to take her with us...and for her to meet her favorite princess of all time…Cindywella…as Lexie calls her.

Awww! She's gonna have a blast with you guys!

 

[sharkB8HooHaHa]

Jen, I'm in! Loved your last TR with Meeska (who I hope is doing well). Secret trips are awesome ...we surprised our boys back in December. When are you going to let them know? And how? Any ideas?

 

[rentayenta]

Fabby so far Jen, count me in for the ride

Me too!


I vote that the mutha is a

 

[OregonDisneyFanatic]

I forgot to say I also think that mutha is a

 

[jcc0621]

I'm here Jen. Now I'll go back and read

Ok, I've read. Great intros. I have a feeling your mother is going make this trip REALLY interesting!

 

[DisneyJo]

Jess is almost 12 too How did they get to be that old so fast

I can't believe you're doing a secret trip Jen, so how are you going to tell them????

 

[Miz Diz]

Hey Jen! What are your dates for this trip? Did I miss that somewhere?

 

[KatGarcia]

Must resist another TR...Must resist....who the heck am I kidding--> I'm addicted to them! I''m in!!!!!

 

[Goofyluver]

Fabby so far Jen, count me in for the ride

Welcome darlin'!

Dude! I'm In! And check your ding dang myspace mail!

are you doing fockerfest?

I'm thick, so if you've told me already....sorry.

I never check my myspace. I promise to get that done! AND...I'm so jealous you're doing wienerfest!

Yay Jen!!! A pre-trippie!!!

I'm here for the party!!

YAY!!

Woo Hoo a new pre- trip report. I my Jen's pre-trip reports they are sooo good.




Type more Jen, Type more. I NEED more!

You crack me up!

I know what you mean Jen!

RIGHT ON sista-motha!

Sweet Jon??!! Say no more - I prefer to be surprised when Leo gets to that stage.

Close enough - I've got a Jewish step-grandmother. She calls my step-mother at least 15 times a day.



You did WHAT?!?! This is gonna be a 3-boxer...


Awww! She's gonna have a blast with you guys!

I'm not sure 3 boxes is enough. Just in case:

Jen, I'm in! Loved your last TR with Meeska (who I hope is doing well). Secret trips are awesome ...we surprised our boys back in December. When are you going to let them know? And how? Any ideas?

Meeska is doing well. She has had some major life changes recently. She and Kaia will be moving back to our hometown. Meeska is getting a divorce. I know she wouldn't mind me telling you that. She is doing wonderful...as she is the strongest woman I know!

Me too!


I vote that the mutha is a

That's because you know about Jewish mommy's!

I forgot to say I also think that mutha is a

That's because you know me!

I'm here Jen. Now I'll go back and read

Ok, I've read. Great intros. I have a feeling your mother is going make this trip REALLY interesting!

Jess is almost 12 too How did they get to be that old so fast

I can't believe you're doing a secret trip Jen, so how are you going to tell them????

I'm not sure yet. I'll get into the details...but who has an idea???

Hey Jen! What are your dates for this trip? Did I miss that somewhere?

I am just fixing to post them. But...they are May 26th-June 2nd!

Must resist another TR...Must resist....who the heck am I kidding--> I'm addicted to them! I''m in!!!!!

And really...how could anyone resist my motha??

 

[OregonDisneyFanatic]

You crack me up!


That's because you know me!

I try to make you Hee hee it worked today

I do know you we are one in the same person intertwined

 

[Goofyluver]

Sooooo…how did this trip come to be? This trip which I am not sure that I will survive. After all…my mother and I’s relationship has a time limit. That’s right…a time limit. It’s about 3 days…give or take (mostly take) 3 days. Any longer than that and we’re at each other’s throats. How could I do this to myself???????

Weeeelllll…The Enforcer is graduating from 6th grade on May 23rd. Next year he is leaving our school (I work at the school where he attends) and will be going to middle school! I still haven’t decided if I will be shadowing him full time or not in middle school. He’ll love it…I know he will! Don’t judge my over-bearing motherness. I come by it honestly. (please see above)

Soooo…I needed a graduation gift we could both live with. Jon wants a Wii. Hmmmm…more electronics???? Ummmmm…no. I’m giving that a heck no. I’m about all gamed out. Besides…I want to give him a gift that will please me as well…since it really is all about me. Ermmmm…Disney anyone???? ‘Sides…Jon loves it just as much as me. I has trained that boy good! He knows he’s not allowed to travel the world and see educational things. Museums are for schmucks! What can you learn at some Natural History Museum that you can’t learn on Dinosaur????

I started running the numbers. See…ummm…we’re also going for Christmas. Which we’ve never done ON Christmas day. We’ve gone right after…but I want to be there before and during. And that trip is my priority. So, this trip had to be…a budget trip. *GASP*

Soooo…how to go cheep cheep cheep?

Well, I’m never doing value again. Call me a snob…but after our ASMu incident of a mystery substance shmeared all over the paintings in our room…and being afraid to even walk on the carpet…I’m not doing a value. And who can forget the nude dude lying on the bed in my room??? Not I! Now…we did stay in the family suites last summer…but I consented to that as a last resort. It was best for our whole group. But nevah evah again babes.

I looked into moderate resorts. I was going to book at POR, when a little bitty voice spoke to me from above. And that voice said:

RENT DVC POINTS!

Or…at least I would look into it. POR was going to run us around $1600 for the week or so. A value would have been about $1000. Let’s price renting points.

But first…I doed my homework. I looked up point values for staying at different DVC resorts. The least amount of points required for a DVC resort when I wanted to go was at SSR or AKV. Mmmmmkay…well, I wanted AKV. 88 Points for when we wanted to go. I found a website dedicated to only DVC owners, and they have a rent and trade section. I posted what I wanted…and I got a bite.

Only…since it was so last minute…they didn’t have any studios left at AKV. And originally, it was just Jon and I. So, we only needed a studio. But, the lady I was renting points from said they had ONE…count ‘em…ONE studio left during the week we were going. AT SSR!!!!!! My second-choice. I said book it Dano! (who is Dano???? ) 112 points for a week at SSR. At $11 p/point, that came out to $1232 for a week at a villa. Exsqueeze me? Did you just say that I could stay at a villa resort for less than a moderate???? Holy carp…why hadn’t I done this before!

Oh…and just a hint for anyone who may rent points in the future, there is a website you can go to to verify DVC ownership. And…MS will verify the ressie. So, once I did all my homework, we were booked!

And then…it happened.

Lord, I don’t know what I was thinking. I was talking to my motha on the phone when it just came outta my mouth.

“Why don’t you come to Disney with us?”

And then it was out there. I couldn’t take it back. It was already heard by my motha’s unforgetful ear. To which my motha replied:

“You know…I’ve been thinking. Lexie really has wanted to go since you came back from your last trip. I think we will go.”

See, as I have said, my brother lives with my mother and she has basically raised Alexis. And lemme tell ya’…Lexie deserves some good times. And she loves her some princesses. We just had her 4th birthday about a month ago. And I did a whole mini-BBB for she and her friends. We had a hair station, make-up station, nails, we made princess necklaces…and then…we played in the mud. Hey…princesses need mud time too!

So…it was done and I couldn’t take it back. PLUS…and this may be the only plus…with my mother going…that meant she’d pay for some stuff. Now…my mom is not the kinda mom who would say, “Lemme pick up the check.” Nosirreebob. She’s the mom who will divide the check to the exact cent and will hound you for her 3 cents if you owe her. BUT…she will be paying for half the room. And she’ll be paying for she and Lexie. SOOOOO…fuzzy Disney math…I’m going to stay in a deluxe villa resort for 7 days for about $600.

How cool am I? Pretty freakin’ cool!

Even if I did invite my motha on my vacation. You remember that scene from “The Fly,”…where that fly is on the spider web thingy shouting out in the high-pitched screech…”Heeeeeellllllpppp meeeeeeeee.” That’s me.

It was settled then. May 26th-June 2nd…SSR!!! All of us…packed into one tiny studio. Please pray for us.

Up Next: Pics of the Characters!

 

[OregonDisneyFanatic]

Very well done and I can hear you telling me this with your own voice in my ear


(wonder why?)

 

[OregonDisneyFanatic]

Pictures, pictures hurry up will you

 

[Goofyluver]

Very well done and I can hear you telling me this with your own voice in my ear


(wonder why?)

Pictures, pictures hurry up will you

I have to do that from home!!!

 

[OregonDisneyFanatic]

I have to do that from home!!!

Well go home then