“Rise” to the Challenge, FREAK!! Done and new trip report started 5/2/21

[Tracy161]

We were both living it up at WDW last August! I miss it, heat and crowds, all of it!

Yes! I'd happily take the heat and the crowds to have things back to normal again!

My Eeyore shirt, sums up 2020

No kidding! Hopefully 2021's summary shirt will have a much happier vibe

 

[disneyAndi14]

Nice haul! I like the Pandora charm

Thank you, I really liked the design and a nice edition to my bracelet!

Thank you! I can't wait for him to be here but also I'm terrified for him to be here at the same time!

Ahhh such normal emotions, once you hold the little guy, your heart will swell so much. You will have a feeling you have never had before, so priceless!

Yes! I'd happily take the heat and the crowds to have things back to normal again!

Exactly! Bring back the old normal, not sure I care for this new normal!

No kidding! Hopefully 2021's summary shirt will have a much happier vibe

Let’s hope for a brighter 2021!

 

[paradesintherain]

I've been a little MIA in the Trip Report section, but I'm back and I'm going to binge this TR! Just to not overwhelm you I've tried not to quote quite so much!

Our wake up time was 3am, ugh! I always think the early morning flights are the best at the time of booking, however, when the time arrives, not so much.

It always seems like a good idea because you get there earlier... my dad runs into this regret often! Even after I remind him how bad the early morning is!

The resort is huge, the bus takes almost 30 minutes to go around the resort coming back from the parks. We started getting off at the Pennisular bus stop and walking, it saved us over 15 minutes of bus time.

Wowza, that is an enormous resort. Who wants to spend an extra 30 minutes on a bus?!

We also found toenail clippings on the floor in the little kitchen area and a lot of hair in the bathroom. This was gross, we could tell the floors had not been cleaned at all before our arrival.

Oh heck no! That is so disgusting. Thank goodness they compensated you.

Life has been rough for me the last couple weeks. My dad died suddenly at home and during this I ended up with a stomach virus that took me out for 3 days! Let’s just say I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy!
My dad lived a long and adventurous life, he was 86 and was able to live at home with my mom until the end.
He started my love of traveling! My dad loved to see the world and he was generous enough to take his children with him.
I was able to travel to many places including some of my favorites Australia, Figi, Galápagos Islands, and all over Europe.
My dad did have end stage Parkinson’s and even at the end he never complained and always tried to do everything himself!
My dad has a beautiful lake place in Michigan and we as a family will celebrate his life in the spring months. This is what he wanted. We are trying to help my mom now since she has spent the last 65 years with my dad and now feels a big loss!
I will be back soon to update
Thanks for listening!

Oh, Caroline, I know this is belated, but I am so sorry to hear about your father. What a difficult year.

Thank you for sharing the stories about your dad, he sounds like he had a very full and happy life; and he must have been pretty special to raise someone as wonderful as you!

We all know, the famous saying from our non Disney friends, “Haven’t you done and seen everything there?” Roll eyes! No my friend there is always something new to discover and find happiness in!

Ugh non-Disney folks just don't get it. PLUS, I love the stuff I've already done. It's familiar and comforting and feels like home. (these same people then go to the same beach resorts and waste away on a beach for their vacations! lol)

This is priceless!

This is soooo cute!

We just took it all in and savored the treats and the wonderful HEA show. This party took away the stress of finding a spot to watch HEA and increased the enjoyment by 100% for me. Tink flew right over us, it was amazing, she was so close!!

Well, you did it! I'm finally sold on a dessert party! When everything is back up and running again I for sure want to check this version out.

Hahaha your pirate impression is too perfect!

What a great photo of Andi!

We had a rowdy group of kids next to us. They kept running around the chairs and bumping into everything. This was a little distracting! The adults never said a word and basically ignored them.

Ughhh, I'm perfectly fine with kids being kids, but parents also need to be parents!

As we turned to leave, we ran right into Molly! This was perfect timing.

Aww how fun!

Love this photo, reminds me of all my happy memories with my dad at Disney!

We are also thinking about a November trip for Andi’s 21st Birthday It is hard to believe my baby girl will be drinking age! She wants to drink around WS, responsibly of course!

I can't believe that she's almost old enough to (legally - I saw those sips!!! ) drink! And, what is this "responsibly" you speak of?

I ate snacks in the room. I had cheese and crackers, chips, and candy. Perfect TV watching food. It was a well needed lounge night at the resort for me.

That sounds like the PERFECT night. Like I'd fly to Disney right now just to do that.

My screen protector cracked and my rear camera didn’t work anymore! This really sucked! I couldn’t take any more of my award winning pictures!

Noooo, always a slight damper when that happens. Darn breakable phones!

This looks heavenly, I'm drooling!

This was a big step for me. I am a shy person and had not traveled solo to Disney and I was a little nervous My husband bid me farewell and told me to have fun at my bloggers convention Well, let me just say, I had the best time and met the nicest group of Diser’s! This was one of the best Disney trips I have had! I am forever grateful to have been included in this! I can’t wait to do this again!

Aww I'm so glad you went. I'm so glad I went! I'd really love to do it again someday, and put myself out there a bit more (struggle with that shy stuff myself).

This is Douglas, he is Andi’s pet rabbit. He is the cutest little guy. I call him my “grandbunny”. She sends me pictures and videos everyday of little Doug and it helps me feel happy, especially at work these days! She bought him a harness and takes him out in the yard!

This brought me so much joy, which is very hard to come by these days. What a sweet grandbunny! How has work been for you? I hope you have plenty of PPE and safety precautions!

There was a huge family next to us. They were talking about their trip and how they don’t feel the need to come back to WDW, what? Blasphemy, I say!!

Pshhh more room for the rest of us!

His little white feets! I love him!

two queen beds (which is not the norm for DVC studio)

I sooo wish it was the norm because those sofa beds are really uncomfortable.

Festival of Arts or FArts was a fun time as well.

This festival looked so fun in your TR, really need to get down there in January some year!

One main reason is COVID-19 cases are high and this virus isn’t going anywhere for awhile and I need to do my part.

Love this about you - big long distance hug!

March 20-27 at CSR Tower room, excited to stay here again.

Argh so close but so far to my tentative travel days! What if I just go twice in March?

This one is too funny!

I am now on 2 weeks of vacation and I only have to use 3 vacation days.

#NursePerks

Way to make me tear up, Andi!!

 

[luvpoohandcompany]

Ughhh, I'm perfectly fine with kids being kids, but parents also need to be parents!

Truer words were never spoken! I loved reading all your quotes- it was like a mini recap for me and seeing the photos again made me smile so thanks for that

 

[disneyAndi14]

This brought me so much joy, which is very hard to come by these days. What a sweet grandbunny! How has work been for you? I hope you have plenty of PPE and safety precautions!

Karamie thank you so much for taking the time to read through my report. It really made my day when I saw all your quotes! It again made me happy and sad all at the same time! This happens so much these days! I know how much you love Disney and how hard being a nurse during this crazy time is! I miss WDW so much! Now I really understand how important these trips are! It is my time to forget everything and take the time for myself! Our jobs are difficult in the best of times and right now, ugh! Work has been crazy busy for me, however, I do feel pretty safe and we do have a decent supply of PPE! I am thankful to be in Home Care! Our hospital is always short staffed from what I hear and much more difficult to work inside the hospital these days. I hope you feel safe and have supportive staff and hospital administrators!
Douglas is such a sweet little bunny. I love his pictures! He is only 3# so darn cute and little.

Love this about you - big long distance hug!

I know you feel the same way, too many people don’t take this virus seriously. I really want to go to Disney the end of November but I am not sure it will be a good decision. Time will tell!
If you come in later March we could bump elbows and maybe hug! Lol!

Way to make me tear up, Andi!!

So true! You made me tear up some today, reading all your wonderful responses! It made my day off today very nice!

 

[disneyAndi14]

Truer words were never spoken! I loved reading all your quotes- it was like a mini recap for me and seeing the photos again made me smile so thanks for that

I felt the same way! It was a nice look back!

 

[disneyAndi14]

A pre trip update, maybe??????

Well, I made reservations for a trip the end of November!

Will we keep it, will we go?? I really want too, however, I can’t say for certain.

It still is so fun to plan something. I renewed our AP’s for another year. Our expiration date is now 9/28/21. I was rich with Disney gift cards from our cancelled trips, so I figured why not. We will make use of the pass even if we have to bunch up trips in the 2nd half of 2021!

Andi and I discussed our options for November. We both feel we will be safe at WDW, however, the flight and my work policies maybe the road blocks for going, at this time.

My work has a policy in place that states, if you travel on an airplane and are around 50 or more people, regardless of being masked, you have to quarantine for 14 days. I doubt this will change by the time November rolls around.

I do have over 700 hours banked of sick time and I can use this if need be. I just don’t like leaving my team in a bind. I have worked extra and have not missed a day of work since this pandemic started, so part of me, is saying just go!

Okay, on to the fun part! How many times do you turn 21?? Me, at least 20, haha Andi will be 21 on Thanksgiving Day this year! My original plan was 11/25-12/2, however, I have dog issues! My husband and son will be hunting in South Dakota until 11/29 so I changed our dates to 11/29-12/5. This way my sweet little Buddy won’t need dog sitting. He is so afraid of strangers and hides behind the couch if someone comes over to let him out. Oh boy!


I had my wonderful TA check out pricing for AP rates and there was not much available. Sad and for AP rates just to costly for 1 park a day and limited experiences.

I did find a really good AAA rate at The Swan, they didn’t have any AP rooms for those days either. Scared it is going to be very busy that week, ugh makes me nervous! The Swan it is for us. I booked a standard view room with 2 queen beds for $200.00 less than the CSR standard view. We wanted to be in the Boardwalk area for walk ability to Epcot and DHS. The price does include the resort fee so I feel it is a very good deal. It will be a new resort for Andi and I, this is also a plus.

Thanks google search for the picture!
As far as flights go, I think we will be flying Delta right from Duluth. I have enough Southwest points to fly free, however, Delta flies right out of our small town and they are keeping middle seats open until January. I know everyone is raving about their $20.00 flight tickets, I wish! Our flights won’t be anywhere near that price! The price is still really good for flying out of our airport and we get priority boarding and free checked bags. It is sad to say, even in November, I have to worry about snowstorms and our airport takes these in strides, thank goodness! I would not want to risk having to drive to Minneapolis for a little less on the ticket price.


We will be leaving early as usual! The flight leaves at 5:15 am, ugh and why! Oh well, we will arrive in Orlando by 1:30 in the afternoon, this is the plus.


I have Epcot scheduled for this day. I figured we can spend a few hours there. I believe, the park will be opened until 8pm. We will do a few rides and eat some food! I usually don’t make a dining reservation the first day. It is a gamble with flying. I am hoping, there is enough choices between the Festival booths and QS.


I have read, Epcot will have The Holiday festival booths during this time. The most important thing will be having an adult beverage with my 21 year old daughter! I want us to have one of the delicious slushy drinks
from France or a delicious margarita from Mexico

My park day schedule looks like this so far

11/29 Epcot

11/30 DHS

12/01 MK

12/02 AK

12/03 DHS

12/04 Epcot

12/05 MK

We will use Lyft for most rides, skyliner for fun, and walking for everything else. The Swan does not participate in DME or Magic bands because this hotel is not owned by Disney.

I don’t think we will miss DME since you have to get your own luggage anyway. We will use our magic bands for entering the parks. The Magic bands can’t be used for charging to the hotel or opening your hotel room door. We will use are phones for most everything.


I have to figure out ADR’s for us. Andi is a little nervous about eating indoors, which leaves us with very few TS options. I think it will be fine to eat inside for a few meals.


We definitely want to try Wine Bar George, Baseline Tap House, and some of the places around the Boardwalk that are open. I also like the option of ordering for takeout from some of the TS places now.

That is it as of now. let me know what you all think. This was fun to get it down on paper. Oh by the way, my husband and son think we are crazy They have no problem traveling to South Dakota for a hunting trip. How dare they, lol


I will be back with more as time goes on. My ADR day will be coming up soon
Take care all and wear your mask

 

[tundra1]

One of my coworkers son’s just had emergent appendectomy last week.
Do you think it is related at all to Covid-19? Interesting
Andi will be back in classrooms in September makes me a little nervous as does it for her. Hopefully, it will be okay!
The few patients I have worked with that have the virus have done very well overall.

Our docs also staff the Emergency Dept in Chippewa Falls, and they said they are not seeing much Covid-19 at all. Andi should be fine at UWEC. She has a mom who is a nurse, so she knows how to take care of herself! Stay well!

Also, have an excellent time on your trip! I will be interested to hear how you like your resort. The itinerary sounds perfect!

 

[DLo]

I hope you get to go ! I will be there at the same time . Staying one night at YC then moving to GDT. I got the discount for the nearby states.
My plans -
Nov 29th - arrival - no parks
Nov 30th - DHS
Dec 1st - EPCOT
Dec 2nd - MK
Dec 3rd - DHS
Dec 4th - EPCOT
Dec 5th - AK
Also Dec 5th - move over to RP at UO for Orlando Informer event.
Dec 6th - Orlando Informer
So maybe we can try for a DisMeet !

 

[pkondz]

Well, I made reservations for a trip the end of November!

Yay!

I renewed our AP’s for another year. Our expiration date is now 9/28/21. I was rich with Disney gift cards from our cancelled trips, so I figured why not. We will make use of the pass even if we have to bunch up trips in the 2nd half of 2021!

Good for you!

We both feel we will be safe at WDW, however, the flight and my work policies maybe the road blocks for going, at this time.

I get that. I have the same issues at my work.

I do have over 700 hours banked of sick time and I can use this if need be. I just don’t like leaving my team in a bind. I have worked extra and have not missed a day of work since this pandemic started, so part of me, is saying just go!

Yeah... I hear you. I have over 1,300 hours of banked sick time, but... I haven't taken any this year for the same reason you haven't. It would leave the team short.

Okay, on to the fun part! How many times do you turn 21?? Me, at least 20, haha

Awww... cute!

it is going to be very busy that week, ugh makes me nervous!

Really! I didn't think Disney would be "busy" for a while, yet.

Oh by the way, my husband and son think we are crazy They have no problem traveling to South Dakota for a hunting trip. How dare they, lol

And yes, I'm wearing my mask!

 

[suse66]

Okay, on to the fun part! How many times do you turn 21?? Me, at least 20, haha Andi will be 21 on Thanksgiving Day this year! My original plan was 11/25-12/2, however, I have dog issues! My husband and son will be hunting in South Dakota until 11/29 so I changed our dates to 11/29-12/5. This way my sweet little Buddy won’t need dog sitting. He is so afraid of strangers and hides behind the couch if someone comes over to let him out. Oh boy!

Oh I really hope you get to go!

I have read, Epcot will have The Holiday festival booths during this time. The most important thing will be having an adult beverage with my 21 year old daughter! I want us to have one of the delicious slushy drinks
from France or a delicious margarita from Mexico

Won't that be lovely??? I can't wait to do the same with Jack in August!

 

[missjackiemcg]

Caroline, this plan sounds AWESOME!!!! And how perfect to celebrate Andi's birthday with a slushy Epcot drink. Sounds like perfection right about now.

You (and all nurses!!) have certainly earned the time to give yourself a little relaxation and a whole lot of magic!! I do hope you get to take this trip!

 

[missangelalexis]

Exciting to have a potential trip in the works! You have been working hard through all this so you deserve a trip!

How cool for Andi to have her birthday on Thanksgiving! A perfect reason to head down to WDW! And Epcot is a great park to have a celebratory birthday drink!

Oh my, Buddy is sooo cute!!

 

[luvpoohandcompany]

Awesome plans. Can’t think of anywhere better to celebrate turning 21!

 

[schumigirl]

Caroline, I love your plans!

Perfect way to celebrate Andi turning 21......will keep everything crossed it happens.....and love the Judging You meme......lol......

You certainly deserve a good break away after the year you`ve had. Between missing trips and the amount of work too......

 

[buzzrelly]

Sounds like a fun trip! I hope you get to go!

We both feel we will be safe at WDW, however, the flight and my work policies maybe the road blocks for going, at this time.

Ugh…I feel your pain. I'm in the same boat

My work has a policy in place that states, if you travel on an airplane and are around 50 or more people, regardless of being masked, you have to quarantine for 14 days. I doubt this will change by the time November rolls around.

That's super random and yet very specific. Makes no sense at all. So you could be in a room with 45 unmasked people and not have to quarantine?

I do have over 700 hours banked of sick time and I can use this if need be. I just don’t like leaving my team in a bind. I have worked extra and have not missed a day of work since this pandemic started, so part of me, is saying just go!

Yikes! Use some of that up!

A word of warning…about 5-6 years ago, our hospital hired an outside company to come in and help with cost-saving measures. One of the first things they did was take away all of our excess PTO that we used to be able to roll into an extended bank of time indefinitely. They basically stole thousands and thousands of dollars away from us and because we aren't in a union, there wasn't a darn thing we could do about it

Now we have a cap on how much PTO we accrue and if you're at the top, you stop accruing which is basically like they are stealing money from us. I make sure to take PTO almost monthly so I don't ever cap out and my cap is low because I'm technically part time, I cap at around 170 hours. If I was full time, I'd cap around 260.

Anyway, the moral of that story is…use your time! Maybe your employer isn't horrid like mine, but you never know!

Oh boy!

Aw, what a cutie

The most important thing will be having an adult beverage with my 21 year old daughter! I want us to have one of the delicious slushy drinks
from France or a delicious margarita from Mexico

Yes! Allie and I are panning to do the same in 2024!

 

[luvpoohandcompany]

ok I have to ask what is banked sick time and PTO? Here if your sick you take sick leave which may or may not be full pay depending on your contract. Do you get a certain amount whether your sick or not?

 

[disneyAndi14]

Our docs also staff the Emergency Dept in Chippewa Falls, and they said they are not seeing much Covid-19 at all. Andi should be fine at UWEC. She has a mom who is a nurse, so she knows how to take care of herself! Stay well!

Also, have an excellent time on your trip! I will be interested to hear how you like your resort. The itinerary sounds perfect!

Thank you! Andi is doing well, however she does not agree with UW’s in person classes right now, especially since cases are on the rise in WI.

I really hope our trip works out! I found out with our current work policy, I just have to check in with occ health, not necessarily quarantine for the full 14 days

 

[disneyAndi14]

I hope you get to go ! I will be there at the same time . Staying one night at YC then moving to GDT. I got the discount for the nearby states.
My plans -
Nov 29th - arrival - no parks
Nov 30th - DHS
Dec 1st - EPCOT
Dec 2nd - MK
Dec 3rd - DHS
Dec 4th - EPCOT
Dec 5th - AK
Also Dec 5th - move over to RP at UO for Orlando Informer event.
Dec 6th - Orlando Informer
So maybe we can try for a DisMeet !

We will both be at DHS and Epcot the same days right now, very cool! We definitely have to make plans to bump elbows and say hi, maybe have a nice 6 feet apart drink! i sure hope we can go. I was telling Andi how much I need a vacation!
I almost caved and bought tickets for the OI meetup on 12/5/20, I still might, lol! We could stay 1 more day except traveling after a late night is not my favorite.

 

[disneyAndi14]

I get that. I have the same issues at my work.

Why do we have to work?? Lol

Yeah... I hear you. I have over 1,300 hours of banked sick time, but... I haven't taken any this year for the same reason you haven't. It would leave the team short.

Wow you have tons of sick time. We can only bank 820 hours. We use to get such great perks for not using the sick time, like extra pay, not anymore our benefits shrink all the time!

Really! I didn't think Disney would be "busy" for a while, yet.

I hope not, so many different reviews, some say it is really crowded others ay it is like a ghost town!

And yes, I'm wearing my mask!

We, nurses, thank you very much!!!

Oh I really hope you get to go!

I do too. I really need a vacation!!

Won't that be lovely??? I can't wait to do the same with Jack in August!

It will be so nice. I hope we can meet up in August to all have a drink!

Awesome plans. Can’t think of anywhere better to celebrate turning 21!

I agree, we are really excited!! It is so fun to plan trips, I love it!