Dug-says-HI-THERE!
SQUIRREL !!!!
- Joined
- May 16, 2010
Yes, youre eyes do NOT deceive you
.Im going back to visit one of my favorite places on earth!! Before I get to explaining how this trip came to be, I should introduce the crew that will be mentioned over the course of this TR.
The MAIN players:
ME: Donna -- CODE NAME: Dug
Im a wedding specialist for an online stationery company. I basically deal with crazy brides for a living. I love my job, which combines a bit of personality with a lot of perseverance. My obsession with DISNEY started in 1996, when I took a 8+ night to WDW and fell in love. I stayed at the WL, and man I was HOOKED!! After that, my (then) husband and I chucked it ALL and moved sight-unseen to Orlando, where I promptly got a job you know my boss, right the Rodent in the RED PANTS? I loved my tenure at WDW .it afforded me a lot of luxuries, namely a GREAT CM discount so that my parents could buy into DVC. Fast-forward to now, where I now live back in the Mid-Atlantic, got remarried and dream of my next glorious trip back to the land of Walts Dreams. This will be my FIRST trip, post Gastric-Bypass surgery, which I had in March of 2010. I am 4 month post surgery, and have lost over 80 pounds, so I hoping for TRIPLE-DIGIT loss by the time the trip rolls around---wish me luck!!
DH: J, -- CODE NAME: The Dark Lord (or DL for short)
Js the (brace yourselves), DISNEY-hater of the group. Gee, hate is such a strong word .hes more of the Disney-downer .that sound a bit more PC. Hes a shift supervisor at a Gamma-Sterilization facility .he works long and hard and tolerates my talk of Disney. He usually gives me the look when Ive pushed my limit with him. This isnt the first time hes been to WDW .if you count the 26 hours total he spent on property, back in 2001, then hes BEEN before. He was supposed to be on our 2007 trip, but craziness with work schedules and financial budgets made it easier for him to just back out, which Im sure was just the hardest decision to make. His agreement to this trip came as a HUGE surprise, but I was not about to question said decision ..I know my place, and come next year, its at WDW! All I had to do was promise a day-trip to NASA, and he was set!!
Featured Players:
My Mom--CODE NAME: Gimpy
Mommas been through a lot, on the health front. She suffers from lots of arthritic issues, so her and my dad are ECV pros---its like their Amex card ..they never do DISNEY without one! She loves Disney, but on her own terms .no rushing, no fighting were at Disney, for gosh sakes!
My Dad CODE NAME: Grumpy
Yes, my dad is a dwarf ..not really, but ever since his FIRST EVER trip to the world, hes been Grumpyits just HIM (to a tee!). Hes my DISNEY-obsessed Protégé .hes gives the credit that EVERYTHING he knows about Disney, he learned from ME (awe shucks, Dad)---and believe me, he talks DISNEY to almost anyone who will listen (which makes my mom just ROLL the eyes). He can be fool of surprises, like when, on my parents FIRST visit to WDW, they went to a DVC presentation, and a hour later he was an owner (Excuse me, who are you and WHAT have you done with my Dad?) not that Im complaining,. that one decision allows for decades of fun for our entire family!! This trip, was another surprise, courtesy of dear, old DAD!!
My SisCODE NAME: WaWa
my sis is a store manager at, can you guess....WAWA!! This will be my sisters SECOND trip to WDW .the first was back in 2000, when the entire family came and stayed for a week at BWV .my oldest nephews first trip. We made the mistake of all STAYING together and doing EVERYTHING with each other BIG MISTAKE. By the end of the trip, we had argued, fought and were ready to kill each other. Needless to say, this trip came with some conditions .namely SPACE and time on our own.
My BILCODE NAME: Chiller
My BIL is so relaxed, its scary. Hes the YING to my sisters YANG shes the workaholic and hes Mr. Mom, when he's not working at his regular job!! My DH and BIL are like two peas in a pod, so I cant wait to see what kind of trouble theyll get into while in Florida. I should bring extra BAIL money, just in case
My Oldest NephewCODE NAME: Future CM
C is my oldest nephew. Hell be 16 when we go on this trip, so in a word, he makes me feel REAL OLD. He did his FIRST trip, at age 5, and hes been back about with the grandparents about 6 times since. Hes in Performing Arts High School, and would like to be on Broadway someday. Hell be the one working in the College Program in about 4 years, so if you see this tall blond kid in some of the shows, with a deep baritone voice, thatll be him. Hes big into THRILL rides, NASCAR and Reality TV.
and lastly, the STAR of the trip, My Youngest NephewCODE NAME: Mater-Tater
E is the baby .well not really a baby .hell be FIVE next month and almost SIX by his FIRST TRIP TO DISNEY!! Hes grown up, biding his time, until he could FINALLY go to see The MICKEY, so of course we ALL had to go too!!! Hes into all thing that move ..Boats, Cars, Planes, Trains you NAME IT ..his favorite things are probably trains, so he is SUPER-DUPER excited to ride all of the Disney Choo-Choos
So here we are .they players in this real-life drama-dy. Ill be posting dates, hotels, all the nitty-gritty in the next posts.
Ill also be including link to all of my future updates, here on this first post. Hopefully, youll come along for the crazy ride to come ..thanks for reading!!
Chapter 1: When and Where at the World
Chapter 2: When is it NOT a good time to discuss visiting the MOUSE??
Chapter 3: Must learn to STOP thinking outloud......
Chapter 4: To DINE or not to DINE (on the Disney Dining Plan, that is.....)
Chapter 5: By popular demand---the DINING (version 1)!!
Chapter 6: A message to all.....
The MAIN players:
ME: Donna -- CODE NAME: Dug
Im a wedding specialist for an online stationery company. I basically deal with crazy brides for a living. I love my job, which combines a bit of personality with a lot of perseverance. My obsession with DISNEY started in 1996, when I took a 8+ night to WDW and fell in love. I stayed at the WL, and man I was HOOKED!! After that, my (then) husband and I chucked it ALL and moved sight-unseen to Orlando, where I promptly got a job you know my boss, right the Rodent in the RED PANTS? I loved my tenure at WDW .it afforded me a lot of luxuries, namely a GREAT CM discount so that my parents could buy into DVC. Fast-forward to now, where I now live back in the Mid-Atlantic, got remarried and dream of my next glorious trip back to the land of Walts Dreams. This will be my FIRST trip, post Gastric-Bypass surgery, which I had in March of 2010. I am 4 month post surgery, and have lost over 80 pounds, so I hoping for TRIPLE-DIGIT loss by the time the trip rolls around---wish me luck!!
DH: J, -- CODE NAME: The Dark Lord (or DL for short)
Js the (brace yourselves), DISNEY-hater of the group. Gee, hate is such a strong word .hes more of the Disney-downer .that sound a bit more PC. Hes a shift supervisor at a Gamma-Sterilization facility .he works long and hard and tolerates my talk of Disney. He usually gives me the look when Ive pushed my limit with him. This isnt the first time hes been to WDW .if you count the 26 hours total he spent on property, back in 2001, then hes BEEN before. He was supposed to be on our 2007 trip, but craziness with work schedules and financial budgets made it easier for him to just back out, which Im sure was just the hardest decision to make. His agreement to this trip came as a HUGE surprise, but I was not about to question said decision ..I know my place, and come next year, its at WDW! All I had to do was promise a day-trip to NASA, and he was set!!
Featured Players:
My Mom--CODE NAME: Gimpy
Mommas been through a lot, on the health front. She suffers from lots of arthritic issues, so her and my dad are ECV pros---its like their Amex card ..they never do DISNEY without one! She loves Disney, but on her own terms .no rushing, no fighting were at Disney, for gosh sakes!
My Dad CODE NAME: Grumpy
Yes, my dad is a dwarf ..not really, but ever since his FIRST EVER trip to the world, hes been Grumpyits just HIM (to a tee!). Hes my DISNEY-obsessed Protégé .hes gives the credit that EVERYTHING he knows about Disney, he learned from ME (awe shucks, Dad)---and believe me, he talks DISNEY to almost anyone who will listen (which makes my mom just ROLL the eyes). He can be fool of surprises, like when, on my parents FIRST visit to WDW, they went to a DVC presentation, and a hour later he was an owner (Excuse me, who are you and WHAT have you done with my Dad?) not that Im complaining,. that one decision allows for decades of fun for our entire family!! This trip, was another surprise, courtesy of dear, old DAD!!
My SisCODE NAME: WaWa
my sis is a store manager at, can you guess....WAWA!! This will be my sisters SECOND trip to WDW .the first was back in 2000, when the entire family came and stayed for a week at BWV .my oldest nephews first trip. We made the mistake of all STAYING together and doing EVERYTHING with each other BIG MISTAKE. By the end of the trip, we had argued, fought and were ready to kill each other. Needless to say, this trip came with some conditions .namely SPACE and time on our own.
My BILCODE NAME: Chiller
My BIL is so relaxed, its scary. Hes the YING to my sisters YANG shes the workaholic and hes Mr. Mom, when he's not working at his regular job!! My DH and BIL are like two peas in a pod, so I cant wait to see what kind of trouble theyll get into while in Florida. I should bring extra BAIL money, just in case
My Oldest NephewCODE NAME: Future CM
C is my oldest nephew. Hell be 16 when we go on this trip, so in a word, he makes me feel REAL OLD. He did his FIRST trip, at age 5, and hes been back about with the grandparents about 6 times since. Hes in Performing Arts High School, and would like to be on Broadway someday. Hell be the one working in the College Program in about 4 years, so if you see this tall blond kid in some of the shows, with a deep baritone voice, thatll be him. Hes big into THRILL rides, NASCAR and Reality TV.
and lastly, the STAR of the trip, My Youngest NephewCODE NAME: Mater-Tater
E is the baby .well not really a baby .hell be FIVE next month and almost SIX by his FIRST TRIP TO DISNEY!! Hes grown up, biding his time, until he could FINALLY go to see The MICKEY, so of course we ALL had to go too!!! Hes into all thing that move ..Boats, Cars, Planes, Trains you NAME IT ..his favorite things are probably trains, so he is SUPER-DUPER excited to ride all of the Disney Choo-Choos
So here we are .they players in this real-life drama-dy. Ill be posting dates, hotels, all the nitty-gritty in the next posts.
Ill also be including link to all of my future updates, here on this first post. Hopefully, youll come along for the crazy ride to come ..thanks for reading!!
Chapter 1: When and Where at the World
Chapter 2: When is it NOT a good time to discuss visiting the MOUSE??
Chapter 3: Must learn to STOP thinking outloud......
Chapter 4: To DINE or not to DINE (on the Disney Dining Plan, that is.....)
Chapter 5: By popular demand---the DINING (version 1)!!
Chapter 6: A message to all.....
I can't wait to hear where you're going the be staying!
I wish, right? Please excuse my typographical error....that should only be 6 nights in DVC, not including the 3 additional nights to be added later. Good eye!! 
That would ONLY be if I won the powerball or something, and then of course, I'd invite all of my DIS friends along too... 
I'm subscribing!
but the wife disagrees
Anxiously awaiting more reports. 
So, that repair is being done now, and then they’ll be able to evaluate the other systems and the axel to see if anything else is broken. Boy could I use the winning POWERBALL numbers, right about now…….
lets talk DISNEY TRIP!!
that DOESN’T fly?? Well, I’m sure if it was a space ship or something, he’d be on board, but with the TSA involved….not so much. His ONLY experience with normal plane flights was on our trip to Hawaii. I, only the other-hand am the SEASONED TRAVELER of the family. My first plane trip was to Europe, when I was 14. Since that, I’ve flown almost a gazillion times--ok, maybe not THAT much, but its’ been A LOT. I don’t mind flying one bit….it’s fast!! So, I made the mistake of saying to DL….”oh, well we could always RENT a car here and drive down to Florida….” 
{What was I thinking, you ask?} 
….really!! We checked the rates and to have the car from June 17th through June 30th, the cost would be less than $600.00. Now, DL has it in his head that that DRIVING 
is the way to go…..NO!!!!! If we drive, that adds TWO days to both the beginning and end of the vacation (which means I would have to take 4 more vacation days), PLUS gas cost, PLUS lodging and food for those days (in addition to longer boarding cost for our other dog, Kona). I’m hoping that DL will see the logic (and budget savings) to FLY 
…..come on SOUTHWEST….Dug needs some EXCELLENT rates for 2011!!
I know the deep pain you are feeling. Last October our dog Zoe died after we'd had her almost 15 years. It truly felt like we lost a member of our family and there are still days I tear up at the mention of her name.
about the car.....I've got my fingers crossed.....
