I've been planning this trip to Disney World with my family for over two years. As you may know, it will be me and my boyfriend and five of our children, ages 2-11. It will be a "first time to Disney trip" for three of the kids (ages 2, 4, and 9).
I have wanted this for so long, and now that it's less than three weeks away...I'm sort of dreading it. Part of the reason I know is that we will be flying standby...and for seven people on booked flights it really sucks. We'll probably have to take two different flights, at least. One of the other reasons is I feel I'm not ready: I have all the tickets bought, and the hotel paid for....but I wish I had more spending money for while we're there. I hate to have to skimp on souvenirs, etc... Also, my boyfriend really isn't looking forward to going.
What can I do to pump up my excitement? I'm not sure why I'm feeling so down about it. The kids are a little excited, but not how I would have been when I was their age. I feel like I'm spending all this money for nothing. My 4-year-old is really the only one SUPER excited about the trip. And I feel like I'm forcing my boyfriend to do this.
SO EXCITED!!!!!! (Finally)
-
kbehm29
- Anniversary Edition
- Posts: 1184
- Joined: Wed Jan 18, 2006 7:49 am
- Location: Too Far Away from Disney
- Contact:
SO EXCITED!!!!!! (Finally)
Last edited by kbehm29 on Mon Apr 23, 2007 1:58 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Disneyland Trips: 1983, 1992, 1995, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2016, Aug 2018
Walt Disney World Trips: 1999, 2007, 2011, 2014, 2016, ~Dec 2018~, ~Apr 2019~
Favorite Disney Movies: Peter Pan, 101 Dalmatians, Tangled, The Princess and the Frog, Enchanted, FROZEN
Walt Disney World Trips: 1999, 2007, 2011, 2014, 2016, ~Dec 2018~, ~Apr 2019~
Favorite Disney Movies: Peter Pan, 101 Dalmatians, Tangled, The Princess and the Frog, Enchanted, FROZEN
-
Princess Stitch
- Gold Classic Collection
- Posts: 336
- Joined: Mon Mar 19, 2007 7:13 pm
- Location: Mississauga, Canada
I agree, don't start willing bad things to happen before you even get near the plane. I'm sure that once your family gets there and gets absorbed in the magic you'll all feel differently.
Your older children probably don't know that there's stuff for them to do that's not "little kid things". Alot of kids think that Disney World is just the Magic Kingdom.
At the worst possible case, your husband can stay at the hotel swimming with the older kids, or take them to downtown disney or a water park or something while you take the smaller ones to the park. Don't be disappointed if your family doesn't want to spend the whole day together. Your 2 year old will probably not have very much in common with your 11 year old, and the best thing for everyone might be to split into two groups and meet back up for meals and fireworks later in the evening.
Just try not to overplan anything, be flexible and I'm sure you'll all have a wonderful time!
Your older children probably don't know that there's stuff for them to do that's not "little kid things". Alot of kids think that Disney World is just the Magic Kingdom.
At the worst possible case, your husband can stay at the hotel swimming with the older kids, or take them to downtown disney or a water park or something while you take the smaller ones to the park. Don't be disappointed if your family doesn't want to spend the whole day together. Your 2 year old will probably not have very much in common with your 11 year old, and the best thing for everyone might be to split into two groups and meet back up for meals and fireworks later in the evening.
Just try not to overplan anything, be flexible and I'm sure you'll all have a wonderful time!
-
kbehm29
- Anniversary Edition
- Posts: 1184
- Joined: Wed Jan 18, 2006 7:49 am
- Location: Too Far Away from Disney
- Contact:
Maybe once the whole plane thing is over I will feel better about it.
I'm not crazy about splitting up, but I guess if the older kids are bored...we'll have to. We were planning on using the baby-swap feature a lot. My 4-year-old is actually tall enough to go on a lot of stuff.
I think this weekend I'll do a paper-chain or something with the kids counting down to our trip. And finish packing.
I hope that I change my attitude, because this may be the last time we all do this together as a family. It's just too hard with so many people.
Thanks for the encouragement.
I'm not crazy about splitting up, but I guess if the older kids are bored...we'll have to. We were planning on using the baby-swap feature a lot. My 4-year-old is actually tall enough to go on a lot of stuff.
I think this weekend I'll do a paper-chain or something with the kids counting down to our trip. And finish packing.
I hope that I change my attitude, because this may be the last time we all do this together as a family. It's just too hard with so many people.
Thanks for the encouragement.
Disneyland Trips: 1983, 1992, 1995, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2016, Aug 2018
Walt Disney World Trips: 1999, 2007, 2011, 2014, 2016, ~Dec 2018~, ~Apr 2019~
Favorite Disney Movies: Peter Pan, 101 Dalmatians, Tangled, The Princess and the Frog, Enchanted, FROZEN
Walt Disney World Trips: 1999, 2007, 2011, 2014, 2016, ~Dec 2018~, ~Apr 2019~
Favorite Disney Movies: Peter Pan, 101 Dalmatians, Tangled, The Princess and the Frog, Enchanted, FROZEN
-
slave2moonlight
- Diamond Edition
- Posts: 4427
- Joined: Wed Aug 23, 2006 11:33 pm
- Location: TX
- Contact:
Actually, it doesn't sound like your kids are old enough to do the splitting up thing, unless you mean one adult taking them one way, the other taking them the other way. Of course, that's just my opinion. Splitting up can be okay for older kids, but even then, it can have its bad sides. No matter how well it seems worked out, sometimes people aren't at the meeting place when it's time to go back, and all sorts of problems can arise over getting reconnected.
Anyways, here's how I see it, having gone with my family (parents and sisters) on most of my WDW trips. My dad has no interest in Disney, really. Perhaps this is how your boyfriend is. My older sis is not big on the cartoonier stuff, and when we were kids, she always had her plan for the day that she wanted everyone to follow, even though we all wanted to do other stuff. My little sis loves the parks, as do I. My mom is not a fan of animation, yet she loves Disney World. I don't know what the deal is there. Anyways, being the ones that are most psyched for Disney, it's always sort of hard for my mom, little sis, and myself to deal with the other two. And, certainly, when someone (or more than one) is either not too interested or simply resents being there, that can bring everyone else down. One time, it absolutely ruined our whole trip.
I'm sure one reason you are not excited is probably due to not having everything the way you want it (the flight, the spending money). Certainly, it stinks when you have to go with very little spending money. Not that it brings in the big bucks, but before the trip is a good time to have a garage sale or something like that. Anything you can think of to bring in some extra cash. Believe me, you'll wish you had it when you're there. The meals alone will be hard to do on a budget, especially for a group. However, possibly a bigger or almost as big reason you are not excited is knowing that your boyfriend isn't that excited and your kids could be moreso. What I would recommend is trying to get them excited before going. A great way to do that is Birnbaum's Walt Disney World book, which was 10 dollars the times I bought it, with a new edition every year. Trivia books about Disney and Disney World can get the kids excited too, along with seeing that they watch some Disney films leading up to the trip. Maybe throw in some Disney films your boyfriend enjoys, if any. Mix in with that some stuff about the parks. Did you order the free DVD about the parks? That can really get folks excited about the rides and attractions. Also, try to catch the Disney park programs that sometimes come on the Travel Channel, Food Network, and maybe some other channels like that. Getting a knowledge of the attractions you will enjoy when you get there, and watching films relating to those attractions, can really get you psyched for the trip, and it works great on kids. The Birnbaum guides are GREAT for psyching kids up too, if they're not the type that avoids any kind of reading, ha.
However, sometimes, that stuff isn't effective, at least, on adults. If someone doesn't like Disney, they don't like Disney. This is why I have convinced myself I will not marry someone who doesn't love Disney, ha. But I can never seem to meet a single girl anyway, so I guess that's beside the point. There is some hope that once you get there, your boyfriend will find some things he likes. This can happen on a first trip. However, people like that usually seem to only care to go once, maybe twice, in a lifetime. My dad is like that. After one or two trips to DisneyWorld, he had "been there, done that," and one or two new additions weren't going to draw him back. I believe you previously decided not to go to EPCOT? I hate to say it, but that place seems to be one of the more interesting parks to the adult, non-Disney fan. Unless they are thrill-ride people, who would likely prefer a non-Disney park all together.
Where was I? Oh, you can try to keep everybody excited, put up with the bellyachers, or whatever, but if you feel this is bringing you down, I sincerely recommend you break off with the one kid who is excited to be there. Let your boyfriend hang out with the ones who refuse to have fun. It sounds cruel, but there's no sense in EVERYONE having a bad time. If ALL the kids realize they're thrilled to be there, then leave the boyfriend on a bench if he prefers it. That is the tactic we sometimes have to use with my father. He gets to hold the bags/purses/whatever. What we have learned now though, is to stop buying 5 day park hoppers for the parents. On our last trip, we just got dad a ticket for the one day he went with us, which was to EPCOT. He could stay in the room the other days. Those of us who knew we wanted to be there everyday got the parkhoppers. Though, we rarely do any parkhopping. We believe it wastes a lot of valuable time that could be spent standing in a line, ha.
Well, I think that covers everything I wanted to say.
Anyways, here's how I see it, having gone with my family (parents and sisters) on most of my WDW trips. My dad has no interest in Disney, really. Perhaps this is how your boyfriend is. My older sis is not big on the cartoonier stuff, and when we were kids, she always had her plan for the day that she wanted everyone to follow, even though we all wanted to do other stuff. My little sis loves the parks, as do I. My mom is not a fan of animation, yet she loves Disney World. I don't know what the deal is there. Anyways, being the ones that are most psyched for Disney, it's always sort of hard for my mom, little sis, and myself to deal with the other two. And, certainly, when someone (or more than one) is either not too interested or simply resents being there, that can bring everyone else down. One time, it absolutely ruined our whole trip.
I'm sure one reason you are not excited is probably due to not having everything the way you want it (the flight, the spending money). Certainly, it stinks when you have to go with very little spending money. Not that it brings in the big bucks, but before the trip is a good time to have a garage sale or something like that. Anything you can think of to bring in some extra cash. Believe me, you'll wish you had it when you're there. The meals alone will be hard to do on a budget, especially for a group. However, possibly a bigger or almost as big reason you are not excited is knowing that your boyfriend isn't that excited and your kids could be moreso. What I would recommend is trying to get them excited before going. A great way to do that is Birnbaum's Walt Disney World book, which was 10 dollars the times I bought it, with a new edition every year. Trivia books about Disney and Disney World can get the kids excited too, along with seeing that they watch some Disney films leading up to the trip. Maybe throw in some Disney films your boyfriend enjoys, if any. Mix in with that some stuff about the parks. Did you order the free DVD about the parks? That can really get folks excited about the rides and attractions. Also, try to catch the Disney park programs that sometimes come on the Travel Channel, Food Network, and maybe some other channels like that. Getting a knowledge of the attractions you will enjoy when you get there, and watching films relating to those attractions, can really get you psyched for the trip, and it works great on kids. The Birnbaum guides are GREAT for psyching kids up too, if they're not the type that avoids any kind of reading, ha.
However, sometimes, that stuff isn't effective, at least, on adults. If someone doesn't like Disney, they don't like Disney. This is why I have convinced myself I will not marry someone who doesn't love Disney, ha. But I can never seem to meet a single girl anyway, so I guess that's beside the point. There is some hope that once you get there, your boyfriend will find some things he likes. This can happen on a first trip. However, people like that usually seem to only care to go once, maybe twice, in a lifetime. My dad is like that. After one or two trips to DisneyWorld, he had "been there, done that," and one or two new additions weren't going to draw him back. I believe you previously decided not to go to EPCOT? I hate to say it, but that place seems to be one of the more interesting parks to the adult, non-Disney fan. Unless they are thrill-ride people, who would likely prefer a non-Disney park all together.
Where was I? Oh, you can try to keep everybody excited, put up with the bellyachers, or whatever, but if you feel this is bringing you down, I sincerely recommend you break off with the one kid who is excited to be there. Let your boyfriend hang out with the ones who refuse to have fun. It sounds cruel, but there's no sense in EVERYONE having a bad time. If ALL the kids realize they're thrilled to be there, then leave the boyfriend on a bench if he prefers it. That is the tactic we sometimes have to use with my father. He gets to hold the bags/purses/whatever. What we have learned now though, is to stop buying 5 day park hoppers for the parents. On our last trip, we just got dad a ticket for the one day he went with us, which was to EPCOT. He could stay in the room the other days. Those of us who knew we wanted to be there everyday got the parkhoppers. Though, we rarely do any parkhopping. We believe it wastes a lot of valuable time that could be spent standing in a line, ha.
Well, I think that covers everything I wanted to say.
-
Princess Stitch
- Gold Classic Collection
- Posts: 336
- Joined: Mon Mar 19, 2007 7:13 pm
- Location: Mississauga, Canada
OMG, of course that's what I meant! DISCLAIMER: I do not endorse having 11-year-olds walk around Disney by themselves!slave2moonlight wrote:Actually, it doesn't sound like your kids are old enough to do the splitting up thing, unless you mean one adult taking them one way, the other taking them the other way.
I just meant that trying to FORCE everyone to stay together will probably cause more harm than good. Will the older ones and dad really want to hang around for hours in fantasy land waiting for the younger ones to do all the rides? They could be riding splash mountain, space mountain etc. There's still lots of shows and rides that you can do together, and you'll always have meals too!
Oh, and about the money, just know that no amount of money is "enough" at Disney. You'll probably never go home from that place thinking "I've bought everything I wanted to" no matter how much money you bring. You'll be surprised at how many cost effective eating/souvenir options there are though.
Oh, and slave2moonlight, I was actually surprised at how many Disney-loving guys are on this board! I could never find one when I was looking around! My current BF likes Disney, but doesn't LOVE it like I do. Keep looking, maybe stake out a local Disney Store
-
slave2moonlight
- Diamond Edition
- Posts: 4427
- Joined: Wed Aug 23, 2006 11:33 pm
- Location: TX
- Contact:
Princess Stitch wrote: OMG, of course that's what I meant! DISCLAIMER: I do not endorse having 11-year-olds walk around Disney by themselves!
Ha, sorry, I didn't read that into it. I have seen some bad parenting before, ha.
Yeah, this board seems to be more guys than girls. I'm always a little annoyed when hardcore Disney fans don't consider that a necessary quality to find in a mate. Growing up with some non-Disney fans, I can't imagine marrying one, ha. As for the local Disney Store though, ha, I worked there for a while. Hardly any of the customers spoke English (I live on the Texas/Mexico border), and there were no datable employess either.Princess Stitch wrote: Oh, and slave2moonlight, I was actually surprised at how many Disney-loving guys are on this board! I could never find one when I was looking around! My current BF likes Disney, but doesn't LOVE it like I do. Keep looking, maybe stake out a local Disney Store
-
kbehm29
- Anniversary Edition
- Posts: 1184
- Joined: Wed Jan 18, 2006 7:49 am
- Location: Too Far Away from Disney
- Contact:
Rest be assured to all that my 11-year-old will not be walking around by himself!
Things are looking up a little for me. I started packing this weekend and went to the Disney Store to pick up last-minute stuff and got a little more in the Disney mood. Also, I've found out I have the last disbursement from my inheritance from my mother coming to me before we leave...so I will have spending money after all.
However - the flights are totally booked for the day we have planned to leave, and the condo's already paid for.
I may have to fly out the day before with all 5 kids by myself and stay at a motel 6 and pick up my boyfriend at the airport the next day. That sounds like a nightmare to me.
Thanks for all the input. Still not sure about splitting up -- I think my 11-year-old will be the only one whining about Dumbo, and he can just deal. I would rather spend the time together as a family, and maybe I'll start talking to him now about having to be a bigger person.
We will definitely watch the planning DVD next weekend - I do have it.
Thanks again!
Things are looking up a little for me. I started packing this weekend and went to the Disney Store to pick up last-minute stuff and got a little more in the Disney mood. Also, I've found out I have the last disbursement from my inheritance from my mother coming to me before we leave...so I will have spending money after all.
However - the flights are totally booked for the day we have planned to leave, and the condo's already paid for.
I may have to fly out the day before with all 5 kids by myself and stay at a motel 6 and pick up my boyfriend at the airport the next day. That sounds like a nightmare to me.Thanks for all the input. Still not sure about splitting up -- I think my 11-year-old will be the only one whining about Dumbo, and he can just deal. I would rather spend the time together as a family, and maybe I'll start talking to him now about having to be a bigger person.
We will definitely watch the planning DVD next weekend - I do have it.
Thanks again!
Disneyland Trips: 1983, 1992, 1995, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2016, Aug 2018
Walt Disney World Trips: 1999, 2007, 2011, 2014, 2016, ~Dec 2018~, ~Apr 2019~
Favorite Disney Movies: Peter Pan, 101 Dalmatians, Tangled, The Princess and the Frog, Enchanted, FROZEN
Walt Disney World Trips: 1999, 2007, 2011, 2014, 2016, ~Dec 2018~, ~Apr 2019~
Favorite Disney Movies: Peter Pan, 101 Dalmatians, Tangled, The Princess and the Frog, Enchanted, FROZEN
-
Loomis
- Signature Collection
- Posts: 6357
- Joined: Fri Apr 18, 2003 4:44 pm
- Location: Sydney, Australia ... where there is no Magic Kingdom :(
- Contact:
I'd say just borrow some of your child's enthusiasm and hope for the best. No matter how horrible the journey is, there is something about a Disney park that just lifts your spirits as soon as you walk through the gates.
I'm a bit the same: I plan continuously for years and then worry just before the trip. However, I usually end up having a ball. It's all in the attitude. Rail, hail or shine, if you are determined to have fun, it will
Just be grateful you can get to a Disney park. There are many areas of the world where the thought wouldn't even cross their mind for fear of starvation and other nasty things on a daily basis. I pine for my own trip down the track...
I'm a bit the same: I plan continuously for years and then worry just before the trip. However, I usually end up having a ball. It's all in the attitude. Rail, hail or shine, if you are determined to have fun, it will
Just be grateful you can get to a Disney park. There are many areas of the world where the thought wouldn't even cross their mind for fear of starvation and other nasty things on a daily basis. I pine for my own trip down the track...
Behind the Panels - Comic book news, reviews and podcast
The Reel Bits - All things film
Twitter - Follow me on Twitter
The Reel Bits - All things film
Twitter - Follow me on Twitter
-
blackcauldron85
- Ultimate Collector's Edition
- Posts: 16691
- Joined: Sat Jun 17, 2006 7:54 am
- Gender: Female
- Contact:
I got married last year, and one of the first things I found out about my husband when we were dating was that he likes Disney (and his family comes down all the time- about a week after we started dating, he went on a WDW vacation [this is when we still lived in Massachusetts]). No one would want to be married to me if they didn't like Disney (but, recently he said that he likes Pixar movies better than Disney movies, and I feel that he's been living a lie to me all this time...). Even when friends come over, I have to remind them that if they take a movie off the bookshelf, they must put in a placeholder (like a CD case), since they're in chronological order ( I have a master list, but still). And, our friend (who also loves Disney) needed to borrow some plushes to teach some kids something, and he knows I love those plushes, and he had the kids wash their hands before they touched my plushes. I love hard-core Disney fans!slave2moonlight wrote: I'm always a little annoyed when hardcore Disney fans don't consider that a necessary quality to find in a mate. Growing up with some non-Disney fans, I can't imagine marrying one, ha.
-
slave2moonlight
- Diamond Edition
- Posts: 4427
- Joined: Wed Aug 23, 2006 11:33 pm
- Location: TX
- Contact:
-
kbehm29
- Anniversary Edition
- Posts: 1184
- Joined: Wed Jan 18, 2006 7:49 am
- Location: Too Far Away from Disney
- Contact:
SO EXCITED
OK - now that my trip is only FOUR DAYS AWAY, I am so excited I feel like I could throw up or burst or both! I am totally packed, I have my itinerary ready, and I am READY for my long-awaited trip. These next 3 1/2 days are going to go soooooooo slooooooooooow.
The weather forecast looks great too! Anyone have any questions they want me to check into on my trip?
My one outstanding question is: when I am admitted early to Animal Kingdom for my 7:50am breakfast reservation....can I rent a stroller that early, or do I need to wait until later that morning?
The weather forecast looks great too! Anyone have any questions they want me to check into on my trip?
My one outstanding question is: when I am admitted early to Animal Kingdom for my 7:50am breakfast reservation....can I rent a stroller that early, or do I need to wait until later that morning?
Disneyland Trips: 1983, 1992, 1995, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2016, Aug 2018
Walt Disney World Trips: 1999, 2007, 2011, 2014, 2016, ~Dec 2018~, ~Apr 2019~
Favorite Disney Movies: Peter Pan, 101 Dalmatians, Tangled, The Princess and the Frog, Enchanted, FROZEN
Walt Disney World Trips: 1999, 2007, 2011, 2014, 2016, ~Dec 2018~, ~Apr 2019~
Favorite Disney Movies: Peter Pan, 101 Dalmatians, Tangled, The Princess and the Frog, Enchanted, FROZEN
-
PeterPanfan
- Diamond Edition
- Posts: 4553
- Joined: Thu Apr 19, 2007 1:43 pm
- Location: USA
- Contact:
-
Prince Charming 12
- Gold Classic Collection
- Posts: 101
- Joined: Mon Feb 12, 2007 7:09 pm
- Location: The Castle
Your Trip
I would ask a cast member at the Animal Kingdom entrance gate or at Guest Relations when you arrive, if the stroller rentals are available before the park officially opens. You could also call the WDW information number: (407)939-8255 to find out ahead of your visit. I entered the Magic Kingdom early already, but none of the shops, food stands, etc. were open yet. The crew refurbishing Main Street Station was even still working away!
Have a magical time and don't forget to report back to us!
Have a magical time and don't forget to report back to us!
Remember the Magic!
-
Disney Villain
- Special Edition
- Posts: 607
- Joined: Wed Mar 03, 2004 7:37 pm
- Location: Windermere, FL
